22 Week Update

Happy Leap Day!

And Happy 22 weeks to Baby T!

22 weeks

4 weeks apparently makes a huge difference!

18 weeks

My photographer got a little silly during this week's photo, but I was pleasantly pleased to see that I look relatively normal from the front angle.
A least my belly does....

I love my goofball husband :)

Baby T: is currently 11.5 inches and weighs 1 pound and 1 ounce!
I can feel her on a daily basis now, and it still hasn't gotten old. It is the best feeling!
During our sonogram yesterday she was moving all over the place. The technician said it was because she had hiccups! It was so adorable to see her little belly move.

Me: As you can tell, my belly has gotten noticeably larger in the past few weeks. I have also noticed a few other things...
I've noticed a few stretch marks on my hips. I've noticed a fine layer of hair on my belly. And I've noticed that my belly button gets more shallow by the day.
Recently, I have to get up to go to the bathroom during the night. Looks like no more sleeping through the night for me.
Otherwise I feel generally great!
I went through a rough spell of heartburn a few weeks ago, but my doctor recommended Pepcid, and that really seems to help.  Luckily I only have to take it once or twice a week.

Weight: I got weighed at the doctor's office yesterday and was up 11 pounds. I'm really pleased with that number. If I continue to gain one pound a week for the rest of the pregnancy, I will end up right in the middle of the suggested 25-35 pound weight gain.
I have also managed to get some good time in on the treadmill in the past few weeks. I've been walking just over 2 miles in 45 minutes, or I spend 30 minutes on the elliptical. I've managed to do this about 4 days a week, and hope to keep it up.

Cravings: Strawberries and chai tea.

I finally searched the tea aisle of the grocery store and found a decaf with no star anise (questionable for pregnant ladies).

Stash Chai Spice Decaf

I am currently enjoying this cup with milk and sugar. And an Oatmeal Almond Joy Bar!
Stay tuned for a recipe coming soon!





And congrats to Hungry Heart for hitting 10,000 page views! 
Thanks to everyone who follows the blog :)

Girlfriends: Past, Present, and Future!

Where did the weekend go?

First let's back track to last weekend.
I got to hang out with this lovely bunch of ladies and their adorable babies.

I went to high school with Liz, Melissa, and Emily. And they all had daughters last year!

Melissa and Emily are still two of my closest friends, and it has been so nice to see their little ones grow.

Eila, Lilly, and Josie

Its also nice to know that Baby T will have girlfriends growing up!

It is such a great experiene to watch my friends become mothers. They are both such inspitrations as parents to me.

Emily and Melissa also lent me huge tubs of maternity clothes. I am so grateful! It was getting frustrating working with such a limited wardrobe. Now I feel like I can go shopping in my own closet!

I also picked their brains about what to register for. Babies need so much stuff, and they were full of useful tips.

I have tons of baby related reading to do.

BOOKS!

Some Jerry and I bought, some were gifts, some borrowed. Plus I have 2 more on my Kindle!

My friend Denny also joined in on the baby fun last weekend. He is celebrating the addition of a niece to his family. Congrats, Uncle Denny!

Already, our lives becoming overrun by babies, thoughts of babies, and books about babies. And that's just fine with me for now.

On a completely seperate note, I am becoming obsessed with oatmeal again. Check out this epic bowl I made on Saturday.

Ever since Jerry had my Valentine's surprise delivered to me at work, I have been craving strawberries. I've been buying them every week. Great on my afternoon Greek yogurt or morning oatmeal.
After this photo I stirred them into my oats so they were a little warm. So good with the mountain of Wild Squirrel Curious Cocoa-Nut Peanut Butter hiding underneath. I am obsessed with this peanut butter, and have to find out where my Mom bought it. 
I had an identical bowl on Sunday morning.

Baby T is officially 22 weeks today, and I will post an update after our appointment on Tuesday.

Happy Monday!

Down Time

Its been a quiet week here at the Tylutki house.
I've gotten to veg on the couch, do some baking, and get a few good treadmill and elliptical workouts in.

On Monday I was off from work and watched my adorable niece, Maggie.

We watched cartoons and played with Play Doh.

And we went to the zoo!

Sea lions and Mags, so cute!

I also managed to do a little baking. I made Jerry brownies for Mardi Gras.
(In my opinion, Ghirardelli makes the best box brownie mix).

I also made these delicious orange scones last night.

Can you spot which one is Jerry's?

I'm currently enjoying one with steamed milk and a splash of coffee. I really should buy some decaf or tea for mornings when I want a warm drink.

I also made some vegetarian stuffed peppers on Wednesday.
They were full of whole wheat couscous, black beans and veggies. And topped with pepper jack cheese.

They were good, but not the best stuffed peppers I have made.

Last night's noodles were a different story.
We had veggies, chicken, and rice noodles in a spicy peanut sauce.

Snow peas with red and orange peppers for the veggies.

Peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, Sriracha, garlic, ginger, and lime juice for the sauce.
Somebody really enjoys when I cook with peanut butter....

The noodles came out fantastic!

I'm working on the sauce recipe, and will post it on the recipe page this weekend.

Jerry said dinner was so good he would order them in a restaurant. Now that is a compliment!
Imagine what he would have said if my grocery store wasn't out of the scallions I wanted to put in there? 

TGIF, friends!

Cheese is Good

I've often thought that I could be a vegetarian.

From the ages of 15-23 I rarely ate any meat besides chicken.
And while I enjoy the occasional steak, and really enjoy seafood, I think being a vegetarian is something I could embrace.

Being vegan is a whole different story.

I can't imagine a life void of cheese.

I know cheese is not exactly a health food, so I try my hardest to eat it in moderation.

Except in this Baked Macaroni and Gouda dish.

I made it ever-so-slightly healthier by using skim milk and whole wheat pasta. I also use 4 tablespoons of butter and flour instead of 6.

But I didn't skimp on the 3/4 pound of grated Gouda.
A girl can only make so many sacrifices.

I started by caramelizing three yellow onions.

I cooked mine on a pretty low flame for almost an hour, and ended up with the 1 1/2 cups of onions the recipe calls for.

In the meantime I made myself a refreshing 'mock-tail'.

A little citrus seltzer, a squeeze of lime, and a splash of Simply Lemonade with Mango.
The mango lemonade is delicious!
Jerry even saw my drink and made himself the same (with a little gin).

Making a cheese sauce is a necessity for a good mac n' cheese.

I love how the Gouda melts right in.

I added a can of drained diced tomatoes in addition to the turkey sausage.

This takes a while to make, but is totally worth it when you have the time.

Check out that cheese!

I have made this mac n' cheese 5 or 6 times over the past few years, and I swear that every time I make it Jerry falls in love with me a little more. 
He is very excited for leftovers this week. And it makes a LOT of leftovers.

If you happen to not like smoked cheese, you can sometimes find regular Gouda. Or a good old sharp cheddar would be great, too. 

While I have decreased the amount of meat in my diet, I have no plans to go vegetarian right now.  

Right now, I'll take more cheese, please.

Cheap Eats

Since Jerry and I splurged on a fancy meal out this week, I tried to make the rest of our dinners fairly budget friendly.
I did so by using lots of staples and some miscellaneous items from the freezer.

The best of the meals was this pulled pork:

I defrosted a pork butt from the freezer on Sunday night.
We put the pork in the slow cooker on Wednesday morning with some sliced onions, a little Dinosaur barbecue sauce, and a splash of water. By the time we got home from work the house smelled wonderful and it was ready to be pulled.
Jerry removed some of the fat and put the pulled pork back into the slow cooker. We added some more Sensuous Slathering Sauce and put it on warm until we were ready to eat.
I had a simple salad on the side with a homemade mustard vinaigrette; whole grain mustard, honey, garlic olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

This was so tasty I ate the exact same thing for dinner again last night. That's the nice thing about pulled pork. An $8 cut of meat can feed us for at least 6 meals.

Some other dinners from this week included lemon artichoke risotto with peas.

Everything from this meal was found in my pantry or freexer.
It was not my prettiest or tastiest risotto, but I was excited that there were 2 vegetables in there. I still haven't been eating as many veggies as I should while pregnant. Salads are about the only greens that appeal to me lately. I try to sneak as many in as I can.
This has also been great leftovers that I have been eating for lunches.

We also had really yummy pizzas.

I made a quick homemade sauce and added spinach and mozzarella to a multi grain crust.
Next time I would pre-cook this crust, but I kind of enjoyed its chewiness. It is a Hannaford brand pizza dough and I would highly recommend it.

What is your favorite budget friendly meal?

Date Night

Could a girl ask for a more handsome Valentine than this?

We headed to Cafe Canole for dinner, and the food was excellent! The service was a little slow (who starts a new waiter on a holiday?!) but I didn't really mind.

For an appetizer I ordered the Stewed Moules Frittes. It was basically a big bowl of mussels in wine sauce with french fries on the side.

I loved these, and could have just eaten them as my dinner.
The Chardonnay broth had smoked bacon and onions, and we pretty much dipped everything we could find on the table into it.
If I had to pick a favorite seafood, it would be a tie between mussels and scallops.

Jerry chose a crab cake for his appetizer.

It was served or a salad of shredded radicchio, onions, red peppers, and kalamata olives. On the side was a balsamic reduction. The crab cake was crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. I really enjoyed the slightly bitter salad, and Jerry enjoyed dipping the crab into the mussel broth.

In between courses I stole a sip of Chianti.

It tasted wonderful! I don't really mind the no-drinking aspect of pregnancy, unless we are out at a restaurant. I am sick of drinking ice water, so I ordered myself a club soda with a splash of cranberry.

Dinner was a 10oz filet mignon in a red wine demi-glace, with asparagus and roasted Gorgonzola potatoes.

The demi-glace on the beef was amazing. Pretty sure it was just butter and reduced wine.
I ordered my steak Medium-Well, since you are not supposed to eat under cooked meat while pregnant (I just couldn't bring myself to order it well done).
Before my steak came I asked Jerry if he thought it would be as good as Medium Rare. He looked at me and flat out said, "Nope".
I burst out laughing. I appreciated his honesty.
And even though it was just the slightest bit pink in the middle, it was still nice and tender. Had I ordered it more rare, this would have been the best steak I have ever eaten.

Jerry's dinner was beautiful. He ordered an encrusted swordfish steak over wilted spinach, topped with sun dried tomatoes and a large shrimp.

He liked the fish, but the shrimp was overcooked. (That is a pet peeve of his).
He has a big pile of my potatoes and half of his fish for leftovers today.

Since we ordered so much food, neither of us was really in the mood for dessert.
But that's ok, I had dessert delivered to me at work today!

A 'bouquet' of chocolate covered strawberries!
So cute, and delicious!
My Valentine spoils me on a daily basis, but I felt especially lucky yesterday.

Hope you all had a Valentine's Day as nice as mine!


*I was so proud that I got over my fear and took all of these photos at the restaurant!

Halfway to Baby T

Happy Valentine's Day!

And happy halfway mark until Baby T comes!
I can't believe the pregnancy is half over. Sometimes it feels like it is going by quickly, and sometimes it feels. so. slow. 

20 Week Update:

14 Weeks

What a difference 6 weeks makes!

20 Weeks

Baby T: is almost 10 inches and weighs 10 1/2 ounces. She is about the size of a banana! And I can definitely feel her move, which is amazing!

Weight: My doctor's scale gave me a weird number (it said I lost weight, I disagree). But my at home scale is consistently showing a 9-10 pound weight gain.

Cravings: Still loving avocados. And ice cream.

We finally decided on nursery furniture and bought it last week. So excited for it to arrive!
Now we are on to the difficult task of picking names. We have about 4 we really like, but we won't be sharing them until Baby T arrives :)

I hope everyone has a lovely V-day.
Jerry and I are off to dinner tonight at Cafe Canole.  I have been drooling over their menu all week. I'm in the mood for seafood, and am hoping for a fabulous Italian pastry for dessert!

I may even work up the nerve to take a few pics!

Sadie Strikes Again

Telling people that we are pregnant is exciting news to share.
Its so fun to see people's reactions!

My Mom immediately wondered if she could quit her job.
My sister bounced in her bar stool for a solid 30 minutes.
My brother quoted Joey from Friends: "I'm going to be an uncle! Or an aunt....".
One of our friends was so excited he blurted out: "You're the first of my friends to get pregnant on purpose!"

But there has been one response that hasn't been filled with joy.

Not a normal place to lay

Jerry bought me this book for Christmas. I was so excited, it was the first thing either of us had bought for the Baby T.
The next day someone took it upon themselves to chew the corner off.
I cried for 15 solid minutes (you know, cause that's what I do now that I am pregnant).
Jerry promised to get me another book.
And then I cried again because "I can't even raise a dog, how am I going to be a good mother?!"

My poor poor husband. 

Sadie went on a separation anxiety rampage after the holidays. She started chewing all sorts of random things. Books, ornaments, toothpaste, a birthday present. Jerry's iPod case.
I know it has nothing to do with the pregnancy, but she seems to get angry when we leave the house and then looks for something (anything) to destroy while we are gone.
Since then we have had to keep her in her cozy little pen that Jerry built in the basement.
(Which makes me want to cry a little).

I'm hoping she can learn to behave soon, and am open to any suggestions!

Dinner last night was delicious.

I've been dying for a piece of wild salmon lately. And something to dip into ketchup.

I love how the salmon comes out when cooked in the cast iron skillet.
I put some seasoning on the fish and then cooked it flesh side down for about 4 minutes on Med/High. Then I flipped it over and put the skillet in a 400 degree oven for a few more minutes. (Time will depend on the thickness of the fish).
The salmon comes out super moist but with a nice crust on the outside.

On the side we had Alexia Oven Reds (with tons of ketchup) and sauteed zucchini and onion with tons of garlic and red pepper flakes.

The hardest part of this dinner was waiting 25 minutes for the fries to be done.

I wanted to go back for seconds of everything, but I knew that was a bad idea.
I am learning that my heartburn is worse when I eat a big meal.
It actually hasn't been too bad lately. I've only taken Maalox once in the past month!
But if I go back for seconds, it is definitely worse.

I managed to limit myself to a few more fries. With a lot more ketchup.

Happy Thursday!

Food Overload

Man, I have got to get back to blogging on a more regular schedule.

So much food from this weekend that hasn't made it to the blog!

Saturday morning's triple berry oats.

Frozen blueberries and raspberries, dried cranberries, granola, and Wild Squirrel Curious Cocoa-Nut Peanut Butter.
This was the best bowl of oats I have had in a while.

Sunday's lunch was homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese. 

Jerry had been asking for homemade tomato soup for a while, and this didn't disappoint.
My grilled cheese had sharp cheddar, smoked Gouda, and spinach. Yum!

And then there was our Super Bowl spread on Sunday.

Chips, hummus, and salsa. Homemade guacamole with crackers and veggies. And a huge pan of chicken wing dip.
Did I mention this spread was just for the two of us? We may have went a little overboard....
Even though I substituted half of the cream cheese with Greek yogurt, the chicken wing was delicious and not at all healthy.
Jerry is happily eating the leftover dip, and I called guacamole my lunch yesterday.

Finally, last night's dinner: Chicken Cacciatore.

This is a staple of mine and Jerry's. Giada's recipe is fantastic, and I follow it very closely.
With the following exceptions:

• I use 2 bell peppers instead of one
• I add some crushed red pepper for heat
• I use boneless skinless chicken (because it is easier/faster and a little healthier)

Last night I used chicken thighs and I served it over whole wheat spaghetti.
I love this meal because it is actually pretty easy to throw together on a weeknight. (Ask me that after Baby T comes and I may change my story)
30 minutes of chopping and sauteing, and then you just leave it in the pot to simmer. Add a side of pasta and you have a complete carb/protein/veggie filled meal.
I love slow-cooked, one pot meals in the winter time.

Jerry and I will be eating leftovers for days!
Our fridge is so full of food, I can't even decide what to eat for lunch.
Wait, yes I can.

Guacamole.