Brian’s beloved Giants won, and all we were rewarded with was a tiny fist pump and a “Yea!”

He’s not the most emotive guy. I know he’s celebrating on the inside, though.

But the FOOD. Since I can’t drink this year, I had to make up for all of those extra calories… with pulled pork:

Recipe here (I used Stubb’s BBQ sauce).

Beer-Cheese Dip:

Recipe here.

Seven Layer Dip:

Recipe here.

And Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cupcakes with Cinnamon Sugared Chip Frosting:

Recipe here. I was a little disappointed with this one- my cupcakes turned out super dry.

Lauren also brought these amazing meatballs from Central Market: Buffalo Chicken, Steak & Bacon, and Chile Relleno. Apparently meatballs are the new food trend. I’m totally on board with that.

We had a really fun weekend. Bank of America offers cardholders free admission to various museums once per month, so we took advantage and ventured over to the Museum of Nature & Science on Saturday. They have a great children’s museum on the bottom floor, and Jack had a blast (despite the fact that it was hotter than the 7th layer of hell down there). Naturally, he LOVED the water table.

Okay, time to clean up and hit the hay. Hope everyone had a good weekend!

So now you have the rundown of my child’s health, which I’m sure is just riveting. It’s been a slow day…

How many times have I posted about Moroccan Chickpeas & Eggs (#39 here) on this blog? Too many to count. Because it’s awesome. Easy, cheap and healthy.

And- AND- Jack will eat it. He actually ate all of his dinner tonight: Pasta, chickpeas, eggs and roasted broccoli.

So of course we had to make a special trip afterward.

(I’d like to point out that this is a SMALL. Two scoops?? Way to make me feel like the fat kid, TCBY.)

(Also, see those delicious-looking peanut butter cup pieces sticking out? Jack ate ALL OF THEM.)

There’s another batch of Amish Friendship Bread in the oven and it smells pretty amazing. Have a great weekend!

Also? The strawberry lemonade bars were a massive fail. They tasted fine, but the filling never really set up. Not sure if I took them out of the oven too soon or what, but they were so gooey and messy that I just said forget it and trashed them.

Given our late bedtimes last night (Brian literally came home from work at 9 just so he could put Jack to bed, then went right back to work until 3am), neither of us were up for cooking or cleaning up dinner. So we went to Fuddrucker’s.

One of my favorite blogs, Enjoying The Small Things, always does a Friday Phone Dump of random Instagram pics from the week. I love seeing all of the photos, so that’s what you’re getting tonight instead of the usual dinner post:

L to R, Top to Bottom:

1. First baby girl nursery purchase! Had to figure out a way to girly up the glider… Little Lam baby boutique in Richardson has some awesome stuff, and I want it all.

2. My OB said to start taking iron supplements. I’m eating a buffalo burger instead.

3. Bath time! Laaaaadies…

4. Cute, cute kids’ meal at Chocolate Angel: Turkey-cheese-cracker “sandwiches”

5. I would KILL for those lashes.

6. My mom cleaned out a bunch of my brother’s old toys from the 80′s and Jack was fascinated with them. This is some weird rock that turns into a monster. I like him.

7. Sonic run buddies. (Think my car needs a detailing?)

8. I was trying to rock Jack to sleep the other night and he was having none of that. So we took pictures instead.

9. This was a couple of Fridays ago when we were playing with some of Jack’s various flying toys on the porch. I was trying to explain to him that one was actually a space shuttle, but he looked at me like I was an idiot and informed me that it was, “An air-pwane.” Ok, sorry.

So there you have it. Riveting stuff, eh?

I’ve mentioned before that with both pregnancies I’ve had major citrus cravings. I type this while I sip my raspberry lemonade and a batch of Strawberry Lemonade Bars cools on the counter. See what I mean?

I’ve been wanting to test out this recipe for a while so I figured I would make them for a playdate tomorrow. I’m actually not a huge lemon bar fan, but they just looked so pretty in the picture.

First you use the stand mixer to make the crust (flour, butter, sugar, salt) and press it into a 9×13 pan. Bake for 17 minutes:

Then you combine strawberry puree, fresh lemon juice (FYI, it takes approximately EIGHT lemons to get a cup of lemon juice), lemon zest, sugar, eggs, flour, baking powder and salt in the food processor. Pour this custard-y mixture over the baked crust, then place back in oven for another 20ish minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with powdered sugar:

Lovely, right? It’s hard to tell from the pic, but they’re actually a pretty pink color. I wish I could attest to the flavor, but they just came out of the oven and the instructions are pretty adamant about waiting until the pan is COMPLETELY COOL before cutting. So I’ll have to let you know tomorrow. In the meantime, here’s the link to the recipe.

Today was sunny and in the 70′s. In January. Remind me of this in July when it’s 110 degrees and I’m cursing Texas weather. Jack and I had a little park date at our local elementary school:

“Airplaaaaaaaane!”

Dear God, he is STILL UP. I may be breaking into those lemonade bars after all…

Jack was pretty hilarious today. He always is, but today was particularly funny. At dinner he kept telling me to eat my pasta (like anyone ever needs to tell me that), and every time I would take a bite, he would clap and yell, “Great job, Mommy!”

Aw, thanks. And I can eat even MORE than that, son! Look at me go!

Then earlier today I was explaining to Jack how when people are sick/hurt/sad, you should try to do things for them that make them feel better. I asked him, “If mommy was sad, what would you give her?” (FYI, I’m aiming for “hug” here.)

“A coke.”

Hallelujah, the kid gets me.

Tonight I made a pretty amazing dinner. I found the recipe on Pinterest, but it just so happens to be from a blog I already love (remember the cookie dough truffles?): Baked Buffalo Chicken Pasta from How Sweet It Is. It’s essentially the love child between baked mac & cheese and buffalo wings.

The recipe calls for 3 cooked chicken breasts, chopped. I just threw frozen breasts in the crock pot with a little broth for 4 hours on high. They get so tender that it only takes about 10 seconds to shred them afterward.

For the pasta, I used Barilla Piccolini shells. Once the pasta is cooked, you make a roux on the stove, then add milk, cheese and buffalo sauce. Pour over the pasta and chicken in a casserole dish and mix well:

Then top with mo’ cheese and panko crumbs and bake for 25 minutes. Once it comes out of the oven, top with chopped green onions and gorgonzola.

Really, what’s not to love? I’ve been full-on obsessed with Frank’s Red Hot lately so this worked out well with the pregnancy cravings. Oh, and despite the hot sauce, Jack gobbled down an entire serving. It’s really not that spicy (I added more hot sauce to my plate) but does have a little kick.

I’m definitely making this one again. It’s not the lightest dish, though the pasta was whole wheat, and we used reduced fat cheese. I wouldn’t use skim milk, though, or the sauce might not thicken. Good stuff- give it a try.

On Saturday we headed to the Frontiers of Flight Museum for Jack’s friend Zoe’s bday party. Jack was a wild man, so I couldn’t get any good pics until we sat down for cupcakes…

“Back off and let me eat my cupcake, lady!”

I asked him later if he had fun at the party, and he said, “I liked the cake.”

That’s my boy.

Saturday night Jack spent the night with my parents, so Brian and I had a hot date. After dinner at Mattito’s, we headed to Times Ten Cellars to celebrate Lauren’s dirty thirty. Can you tell the preggos in this pic?

It’s kind of hard to see bumps, but it’s me (obvs), Lauren (left of me) and Camille (next to Lauren)… and we’re all having girls. Crazy, right? As of right now I know at least 10 people who are pregnant and only 2 are having boys.

(On a side note, I’m experimenting with the whole beachy waves thing lately. So far the only method that’s worked has been with a curling iron, which isn’t ideal because it takes forever and fries my hair. Any other ideas? I’ve tried this genius headband tutorial that Erin featured on her blog but it leaves me with a red indentation on my forehead all day. Okay, that’s it- y’all are smart and pretty so I figured you would have good suggestions.)

I feel like all we did all weekend was eat, and most of it was either fried or sugar-filled. After reading this month’s issue of Bon Appetit- dedicated entirely to Southern food- and then watching an episode of Best Thing I Ever Ate, I had an uncharacteristic craving for fried chicken for a solid week. So Friday night we headed to Babe’s. Totally worth it. And then we had Snuffer’s on Saturday afternoon, the Mexican Saturday night. Tonight I managed to fit a few veggies in there with a kitchen sink vegetable barley soup:

I just sauteed garlic, onions, carrots, celery and bell pepper in olive oil, then added chopped zucchini, 2 cans of diced tomatoes, chicken broth, chickpeas, 3/4 c quick cooking barley, a parmesan rind, spices (Italian seasoning, bay leaves, thyme, paprika, seasoned salt), dash of sugar and a little red wine vinegar. Simmered for about 20 minutes, then added chopped swiss chard and simmered for another 15 minutes or so. EASY. Basically I just kept tasting and adding, tasting and adding…

Also- BLT’s on toasted whole wheat with avocado.

So there’s our weekend. Baby Girl is going crazy right now… I think she wants ice cream. What baby wants, baby gets.

This, my friends, is what you get when you ask a toddler to smile:

Not to toot my own horn, but I made the BEST dinner tonight. I was thisclose to suggesting that we go out for Mexican, too. One of my favorite standbys is this Real Simple recipe for Baked Spinach and Pea Risotto. I’ve always wanted to try some variation of it with goat cheese… and tonight was the night. It’s the perfect recipe because you get fancy risotto without sweating over the stove and stirring for half an hour. The lemon juice balances out the creaminess of the rice & cheese, and the chard and peas give it a little veggie boost.

Baked Goat Cheese Risotto with Swiss Chard & Peas

• 2 Tbs unsalted butter
• 1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 cups swiss chard (leaves torn into bite-sized pieces; no ribs)
• 4 oz goat cheese, crumbled
• 1 lemon

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. In a Dutch oven (oven-safe), heat 2 Tbs butter until melted. Add onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until onion is soft.

3. Add wine to pan and cook, stirring continuously, for 2 minutes.

4. Pour in chicken broth and rice. Bring to a boil, then cover with lid. Place pot in oven and bake for 20-25 minutes.

5. While rice is cooking, rinse chard leaves and place in covered microwavable dish (no need to add additional water). Microwave for 2 minutes to steam & soften.

6. Remove rice from oven and stir in peas, goat cheese and chard. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then squeeze lemon juice over the top. If rice seems dry, feel free to stir in 1/4 cup of hot chicken broth.

SO SO SO SO GOOD. I don’t care, I’m tooting my own horn. Toot toot.

Have a great weekend!

I had a major recipe fails today. Brian had a guys’ night out tonight, so I was super excited to make this recipe for Roasted Grape, Goat Cheese and Honey-Stuffed Sweet Potatoes. Not really Bri’s style, but definitely mine. Unfortunately I think our oven must be off or something, because my grapes burned to a nasty crisp. Like essentially melted into a black, sticky mess.  Gross.

So instead I had a hummus wrap and tomato soup for dinner.

But. BUT. I found a recipe that I forgot to post last week! So all is not lost: Mango Blueberry Quinoa Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing.

All good things- quinoa, mango, blueberries, cucumber, dried cherries (which I substituted for the cranberries), lemon and basil. It would be amazing with chickpeas, too.

Anyway, we had it for dinner the other night along with the bean soup. I fully expected Brian to hate this salad, but he actually commented on how much he liked it. Will definitely be making it again!

And to cheer myself up from the sweet potato fail, I currently have No Bake Energy Bite batter chilling in the fridge. Hooray.

Oh, one more thing! Remember a month or two ago when I posted about the wedding dress sketch from my friend Debi? Well I got my sketch the mail yesterday and it is GORGEOUS. I can’t wait to frame it. Debi’s site is now up and running, so if you’re looking for an amazing wedding/anniversary gift, check out Illustrative Moments!

We’re having a GIRL!!!!!!!!

Jack’s getting a little sister (or “mister”- as he says). I’m pretty much over-the-moon excited. I’ve always, always, always wanted at least one of each, and I think Jack will be so sweet with a baby sister. We had our appointment at 10 this morning, and of course the sonogram was at the very end. I was literally shaking through the whole thing. With Jack, I had an unexpected sonogram at 15 weeks and never thought they’d be able to tell us what we were having that early, so I didn’t get the chance to get butterflies. But everything looked great, baby is healthy and all appendages are in the right place.

So now the shopping begins…

And by begins, I mean ALREADY STARTED. Oops.

(Girl clothes are so much more fun than boy clothes.)

It’s rainy and gross outside and nothing sounds better than my warm bed, so this preggo is turning in early. Night!

How awesome is that? A little toddler buffet in an ice cube tray. It’s perfect because he only eats like 2 bites of any one thing anyway, so at least this way he gets a variety. I included: blueberries, grapes, broccoli, carrots, grape tomatoes, ranch dip, pretzels, crackers, shredded cheese, pasta, Annie’s Cheddar Bunnies, beans, freeze-dried banana slices, quinoa and clementines. He loved it and actually ate way more than I anticipated.

On to dinner. I found a recipe on Allrecipes for slow cooker pork tenderloin and doctored it up a bit. Served it over mashed potatoes- Brian was a HUGE fan. The “gravy” is delicious over potatoes, but I could see this making a great sandwich if served on rolls. Here’s the original recipe, and here’s my version:

Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin

• 2 lb pork tenderloin
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 envelope dry onion soup mix
• 1 cup red wine
• 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 3 Tbs low-sodium soy sauce
• 3 Tbs minced garlic

1. Season tenderloin with seasoned salt. Heat a large skillet over high heat, then sear pork on both sides.

2. In crock pot, place sliced onions, then pork. Top with onion soup mix, wine, broth and soy sauce. Turn pork to coat with liquid.

3. Spoon garlic on top of pork. Place lid on crock pot and cook on low for 4 hours.

4. Remove pork from slow cooker and slice (or shred with 2 forks). Return meat to crock pot so that it can soak up some of the juices. Serve over mashed potatoes or rice.

Although the meat on the bottom of the tenderloin (the part that was submerged during cooking) was perfect, the top was a little dry. Returning the meat to the “gravy” after slicing helped soften it up. Also, the liquid is pretty salty- which I like but others might not. It tastes a lot like French onion soup.

Finally, on the side we had yet ANOTHER Pinterest recipe: Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon & Apples. I tried to follow the recipe exactly but immediately burned the bacon and had to start over. SO… what I suggest is to heat the oven to 400 (instead of 425) and cook the halved brussels sprouts and sliced bacon together for 15 minutes. Then add the cut-up apples to the baking sheet, stir, and cook for another 10-15 minutes.

Yum. Will definitely be adding this to the regular rotation… because what isn’t better cooked with bacon?? Also, I like my sprouts pretty caramelized (the crunchy leaves are SO good), but you don’t have to let yours get this dark.

So, TOMORROW is the big gender sonogram!!!! I don’t even know how I’m going to sleep tonight- already getting crazy butterflies. I really want to be able to tell my family in person, so if we can coordinate a time to meet tomorrow then I plan on posting the results here tomorrow night. If NOT then I guess I’ll wait and post it on Wednesday, though I have no idea how I’ll be able to wait that long. So feel free to place your bets now…