Over Half Way Preggo!

~21 weeks~

Size of baby: a whoppin 1 pound now... size of a cantaloupe!

Maternity Clothes: Just recently started hitting up the stores for maternity only clothes for me, i am officially moving out of my normal clothing... bittersweet. :) I'm loving my cotton skirts, maternity shorts, and maternity tanks

Gender: BOY! our baby Caleb is growing so fast

Baby bump: it's ever expanding... and strangers can finally tell i'm not just fat, but preggo! finally! now it can slow down. :)

Sleep: On and Off days. I am now an only side sleeper, pillows help with my back. waking up less for the potty, only 1-2 times now.

Cravings: cravings have decreased some, but still bagels, grapes, and i've added cheese and pbj to the list :)

What i miss most: Being physically fit and having endless energy! Not used to the extra weight just yet, but reminded that it's helping my wee one grow up healthy. and trying to walk as much as possible.

Symptoms: I've been feeling SO much better this past month. some muscle cramps here and there

What i'm looking forward to: Still waiting to really feel the baby kick. My placenta is in the way, so I think i've felt him a few times, but I can't wait until I can feel him undoubtedly.

BABY registry ADVICE!?!?! :)

Well, we are halfway through our pregnancy and couldn't be more thrilled! The bump is growing, our baby room is starting to fill up, and now it's time to start thinking about baby necessities before it's time to REGISTER :) I have been so blessed to already start stocking up on some cute clothes and baby basics from family, friends, and awesome child care parents. But now it's time to start picking out fun new things for our first little baby boy.

I need ADVICE. I would love ANY and ALL opinions on what items have been a

--"must have"--

--"waste of money"--

--"just plain fun"--

for your newborn babes. So any of you experienced mothers out there... please help me out!

Also any advice you have on brands of car-seats, carriers, pack-n-plays, strollers, joggers, etc... I'd love to hear it. I am experienced with caring for babes and kiddos, but when it comes to quality, SAFE, yet affordable purchases, I am a novice and would love some guidance... :) THANKS ALL!

Food Fixin' Friday

I'm joining the ranks... stepping it up in the blog world and starting a weekly recipe post each Friday! (thanks Kel at oxboroughchoas.com for the idea).

My recipes will always be GLUTEN and TREE-NUT FREE because my dear husband has food allergies and celiac disease. Hope you enjoy!

Cream Cheese Chicken

Ingredients:

* 1 can of gluten free Cream of Chicken (or Mushroom) soup

* 1/2 cup of chicken broth

* frozen chicken breasts

* 1 packet of Italian salad dressing mix

* 2 cloves of minced garlic

* 1 block of reduced fat cream cheese (to add later)

* Gluten free pasta (to add later)

Directions:

Put the soup, chicken broth, chicken breasts, italian salad dressing mix, and garlic into the crock pot. Cook on low for 6 hours, or until chicken is cooked through and can be shredded. Shred the chicken using 2 forks and add in the cream cheese. Cook on high for another 30-40 minutes until cream cheese is fully melted and sauce thickens (depending on the soup used, you may need to add a bit of gluten free all purpose flour to thicken.) While waiting for the cream cheese to melt, prepare the gluten free pasta as directed (add a tablespoon of olive oil to the pasta to prevent sticky noodles when done). Serve the cream cheese chicken/sauce over noodles... and enjoy!

The BIG Baby REVEAL!

To find out, or not to find out... that seems to be the going question in pregnancy these days. We decided we wanted to find out the gender of our baby, but still add the element of surprise! So we chose to do a "baby cake reveal". We had our big ultrasound yesterday (Aug 4th), and we went and asked our technician if she could text message a baker the gender of our baby, without telling us... which she did. We then had my dear sister-in-law Kelly's friend, Amy, create a cake that was either blue or pink on the inside! We then waited the entire day, until our baby "reveal party" where we had our family and close friends over to share in the big surprise with us. :) It went out just as planned, without a hitch, and the cake was PERFECT (thanks Amy!).

If you know my husband, you know he "knew" it was going to be a boy from the beginning. Everyone else thought girl... I honestly didn't have a clue. No "mother's intuition" for this girl. just a growing baby :) But my husband's knowledge came about in a unique way, let me share...about 5 years ago Adam was out in La Crosse (where we went to college) spending some time with God praying, and he had this moment where he felt like God was telling him he would some day have a son, his first-born, and he should name him Caleb... which means man of courage, with a "different" spirit from the rest. (I will share more about our choice in name later). So ever since that moment, we knew our first son would be a "Caleb". So cutting through that cake yesterday we were THRILLED to see blue... a unique story of God's faithfulness. We can't explain the excitement we shared. Honestly a day we won't forget, and a story we can share forever. :)

Thanks to all for sharing in our excitement and big day. Our little peanut measured a week behind... so we may be pushing that due date back to the new year! Currently it stands at Dec 29th, but after our next doc appt it could be January 7th. EEEK! Either way, we feel blessed and can not wait to meet our little guy!

below is a link the video of us cutting the cake:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fDXnLDKNJI&feature=player_embedded