Making Applesauce!

Today I made applesauce for the first time! I had a ton of fresh apples from when my friend Rachel and I went apple picking a few weeks ago. The apples sat in my fridge for a few weeks until I felt courageous enough to tackle them. My goal was to make apple sauce to freeze for when Reid starts eating solids and today, I was victorious!

Reid played in his "office" while I peeled apples!

I bought this sweet peeler for $20. Reminds me of pie making day at Granny and Boppa's.

Peeled and sliced apples soaking in salted water.

Apples in the pot, ready to be cooked down.

Cooking down...getting broken up from the heat.

Reid and I while the apples cooked!

Finished!

Baby food cubes ready for the freezer.

Home Improvements (and mom and dad!)

It's been quite the eventful 2 weeks! Mom and Dad arrived on August 5 and we've been just going ever since. Mom has been especially busy...sewing blinds for my kitchen, scrubbing my bathtub, taking care of Reid, washing windows, cooking, grocery shopping and just doing everything for me...I feel quite lazy! But always appreciative. I love that my parents come to spend time with me here...maybe when I go home for Christmas it will be my turn to clean and scrub their house! Maybe. Here is our visit in pictures. 

Josh and Dad out for dinner in Eastern Passage.

Mom, Reid and I, out for dinner in Eastern Passage.

Mom and Dad, out for a walk on the Bedford Harbour front.

Our little family! That growth on my chest is Reid in his pouch under a blanket!

Self portrait...always amusing.

A nice passer-by offered to take our picture!

Dad and Reid!

I bought this "birth stat print" from Etsy. Cute!

Reid's change table area...the ribbons were Mom's idea and he does love them!

Mom made this hanging book display for me!

Reid's footprint art...2 sets of prints = 2 months of age!

Reid' s room...Erica, this is where I hung his name banner!

Close up of the hanging book display.

Lazy roman blind that Mom made, as per Auntie B's instructions.

We had extra fabric from the blinds, so Mom added some detail to the dining room curtains! What do you think?

The full view of the dining room curtains. 

Roman blind for the kitchen window.

If you are interested in making a hanging book display, click here. 

Well, there you have it! Our glorious visit. Mom leaves on Sunday and there's no doubt I will miss her! It'll suck having to do everything for myself again....! Just kidding. I will miss her for other reasons, of course!

What's for supper? Honey Chicken Enchilada's with Mexican Rice!

Here's what I made for supper tonight - it was delicious and easy!

Honey Chicken Enchilada's

Mix together and let marinate:

1 lb chicken, shredded (I bought a rotisserie chicken and chopped that up)

1/4 c. lime juice

1/3 c. honey

1 T chili powder

1 t. garlic powder

2 c. enchilada sauce (I could not find this at SuperStore, so I went to the "ethnic" aisle and found some red Mexican-y sauce. I took a gamble and it turned out OK! I think buying taco sauce from the salsa aisle would also be acceptable.)

1/2 c. heavy cream (I had whipping cream at home and used that)

shredded cheese

8-10 flour tortillas

Preheat oven to 350*.

Spread half the enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Roll each tortilla with the meat mixture and a handful of cheese and place in pan. Mix together the rest of the enchilada sauce with the heavy cream, pour over the tortillas. Top with the remaining cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 350*.

I served them with:

Mexican Rice

1 c. white rice

1 1/2 c. chicken broth

1/2 t. cumin

chopped onion, green pepper and tomatoes (as much as you desire!)

salt and pepper

1 t. garlic

Heat some oil in a pot, add rice, stir for a few minutes. Add the chicken broth, cumin and garlic. Season with S&P. Add the onion, green pep and tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and let cook for 20 minutes. 

This was really flavourful and easy. A great side dish to the enchiladas!  

Here's a picture of my baby. 

Homemade Granola Bars

When my mom was here back in June when Reid was born (8 weeks ago - wowsers!), she made several batches of these homemade granola bars. The reason she had to make several batches is because we ate those suckers like they were going out of style. They are SO GOOD. And super easy to make. Here's how!

Homemade Granola Bars

1 c. brown sugar
2/3 c. peanut butter (I like to use crunchy, because then you get those extra bits of peanut, great for texture!)
1/2 c. light corn syrup (I had no idea "light" corn syrup existed...I just used regular)
1/2 c. margarine
2 t. vanilla
3 c. oatmeal

And the optional ingredients to mix it up for variety:
1/2 c. coconut
1/2 c. sunflower seeds
1/2 c. raisins
1/3 c. wheat germ
2 T. sesame seeds
1 c. chocolate chips
1/2 c. Craisins
1/2 c. apricots, chopped

I hucked all of these ingredients into my trusty KitchenAid mixer and let 'er rip. Once it was mixed thoroughly, I pressed it into my 9x13 Pampered Chef pan.

Bake at 350* for 20-25 minutes. I did mine for 23 minutes and I don't think that was enough as it was still a bit gooey. But I cut it into squares anyway and chucked it in the fridge and that firmed everything right on up.

These are really delicious and like I said, easy!

Homemade dishwasher detergent

Quite a while ago I found a homemade dishwasher detergent recipe on Pinterest and since my current Norwex (which I love) detergent was almost empty, I decided to give this homemade one a go. I thought it would be cheaper - providing it worked as well as the commercial ones! 

Here's the recipe:

1 c. washing soda 

(I used baking soda, as some comments on the website said it worked 

just as well, and washing powder can be hard to find)

1 c. Borax

1/4 c. Kosher salt

2 packages unsweetened lemon Kool Aid

(I could not find this, and left it out completely - 

does not seem to affect anything!)

Mix these all together and store in container. 

Add 1 - 2 tablespoons of the mixture to dishwasher.

Add 3 drops (no more!) of dish soap to the detergent compartment. 

Splash 1/2 cup of  vinegar into bottom of dishwasher before turning it on. 

Some comments on the website recommended putting the dish soap in the Jet Dry

compartment of the machine, but my dishwasher is old and doesn't have one of those.

Splashing it into the bottom works just fine for me.

 

I've been using this homemade recipe for over a month now, and I am quite happy with it. The glasses come out clear, not cloudy, and plates and cutlery are clean as a whistle. 

Reid Spencer

On June 3rd, Josh and I met our son, Reid Spencer Gorman! He was born at 2:46pm, weighing in at 3 lb 14 oz, and 16" long. Reid was born 6 weeks premature and was born via emergency c-section, due to his heart rate dropping several times. Since he's been "out", Reid has been doing really well. He is in the NICU, breathing on his own, and getting better at breast feeding every day! We're not sure how long he'll be in the hospital for - of course the doctor's don't give you a time frame since every baby is different. In the 8 days since Reid's birth, he's improved so much. He's eating more and more and gaining weight pretty much every day. We can't wait to bring him home!!!

Reid Spencer, June 3 @ 2.46pm.

A little bit jaundiced - chillin' under the phototherapy lights!

Wide awake.

Very proud dad!

Family picture!

Totally in love with this boy.

Skin to skin time - best part of my day.

Favourite Things

Yesterday I read about a "Favourite Things" party on my cousin Erica's blog and I thought it was a great idea! In a nutshell, she's inviting some of her girlfriends over to her house, making some great party food and they are exchanging some of their favourite items (all worth $6 or under). I think this is such a super idea and something I would love to try one day.

So I got to thinking (because I have a lot of time for that these days, stuck in this hospital bed while I wait for Spartacus to grow and/or for my blood pressure to go sky high) about what my favourite things are lately.

Here's what I came up with (not all of them are under $6, but all of them appear to be cosmetic):

 First up is L'Oreal Studio Silk and Gloss Curling Mousse. About $5.99 at WalMart and is a really nice creamy mousse. Holds without being crunchy.

Second, Boots Soft and Sheer Tinted Moisturizer (I use Fair). I found this at Shopper's for about $8 on sale, but regular is around $17. This is super smooth and creamy without being heavy, gives some colour and coverage but I do add some of my regular liquid foundation to this to get more coverage when I am going out or something. But for everyday around the house, this does the trick! I like this because my skin is sensitive, but this is not irritating. A winner! 

 I have always liked Nivea lip chap, but usually only buy the regular blue tube that comes in the 2 pack. This time I tried this Nivea Hydro Care lip chap and am really liking it. This is about $1.99 I think. Very light and moisturizing. Doesn't make my lips break out and make me look like a clown. Another big winner!

 I got this Johnson's Bedtime Lotion as a baby gift from a girl at work, but I started using it on myself and haven't stopped! It's got a great light scent and doesn't irritate my skin. I think this is about $3 or $4 at WalMart.

Another Nivea product: Nivea Strawberry Lip Care...again, about $1.99 for a tube. I use this mainly for the light red colour this gives my lips...nice for a pop of colour without pulling out the sticky lip gloss. Makes me feel light and fresh! I did actually see this at Dollarama (I think maybe in the Cherry flavour), so that's even better than the $1.99 price tag at WalMart!

Sneak peek, baby news, and being crafty.

Last night, Josh and I had some maternity pictures done by my friend Danielle. Here are a few sneak peek pictures:

And now for baby news: most of you know that I've had pregnancy induced high blood pressure and have been on medication since December. In the last few weeks, my BP has been going up and about 2 weeks ago my OB put me off work on sick leave. She also upped my current medication and added a new pill to the mix to try and bring it down. Anyway, this past Friday I had an ultrasound and we found out that Spartacus is quite small, only 4 pounds. This is apparently due to the high blood pressure, which causes a lack of blood flow through the placenta, making the baby small. So. That being said, on June 8 I have another ultrasound where they will measure his/her weight and growth. If Sparty hasn't grown in this 2 week period, my OB may make the decision to induce labour/do a c-section. If he doesn't grow, it means he's better out than in, hence the early delivery. The goal is for me to get to 36 weeks (June 15), which would make Sparty 4 weeks early. So right now there is nothing set in stone as my OB is just waiting to see how Sparty does and we're just playing everything by ear, which is frustrating and annoying! I want to know!! I am nervous about having a premature baby, but my doctor tells me he is totally healthy and everything, just a bit small, so I know he will be OK when he's born. I did have 2 steroid shots (in my bum!) to help with lung development, so that will help if he does come this early. The bonus of this situation is that my mom is coming, probably around June 15 (her birthday!), as I'll probably end up having a c-section and will need some Momma lovin' from her. So seeing her in June is very exciting, and then she and my dad will come again in August. So that's the news - it's pretty overwhelming to all of a sudden be having a baby in 3 weeks (probably less) instead of 7, but I know that God has got it under control and I'm trusting in Him and the knowledge and expertise of my doctor (who is amazing). The good news is that we get to meet our little baby sooner rather than later!

Moving on to being crafty: I found this picture on Pinterest and thought it was something that even I could do! I bought a canvas from Michael's and some craft paint from Dollarama, and went to town. We're going to do monthly footprints for a year and hang it above the crib. I think it's a really cute idea! I should take some more pictures of the baby's room, as some things have changed and we've added a dresser. I shall try to do that this week.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

Tonight I made Cajun Chicken Pasta, a recipe I found a while ago from www.skinnytaste.com. I have been meaning to make this for a while, but never got around to it. Thanks to some high blood pressure, I am now on sick leave and find myself with a lot of unoccupied hours in my day. Perfect timing to make some new and delicious suppers! I was actually skeptical about this recipe while I was making it...I just wasn't sure if the flavour would be there or not. However, both Josh and I really enjoyed it and I will be making this again! Most of the recipes from this website have proven amazing, so I should know better than to doubt.

Here's the recipe:

Cajun Chicken Pasta

1-2 chicken breasts, sliced into strips/cubes
1-2 t. cajun seasoning
1 t. garlic powder
salt to taste
1 red pepper, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1/2 red onion, diced
2-3 medium tomatoes, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 c. fat free, low sodium chicken broth
1/3 c. skim milk
1 T flour/cornstarch
3 T light cream cheese
8 oz. linguine

Make it like this:

Prep all veggies: peppers, onions, tomatoes.

Combine milk, flour/cornstarch, and cream cheese in a blender. I used my handy Starfrit hand crank food processor. Set aside.

Season chicken with cajun seasoning, garlic powder and salt.

Boil pasta in salted water.

Saute chicken, remove from pan when done, set aside.

Add some olive oil to pan, saute veggies, add garlic. Season with some salt and garlic powder.

Reduce heat, add chicken broth and the milk/flour/cream cheese mixture. Stir.

Add chicken, adjust salt and cajun seasoning to taste.

Drain pasta, add to veggies and chicken. Toss to coat. Top with chopped green onions if you so desire.

**This makes a nice creamy sauce without being too overwhelming or heavy. The garlic and salt are a must to bring out the flavour, and the cajun spice on the chicken is really good. I probably could have added more cajun to the veggie mixture too, to give some added kick. I also used whole wheat pasta to be healthy. I find the taste isn't too bad, although you do have to get used to it. That's why a flavourful sauce is key to hide that slight cardboard taste of the pasta!! 

The Holy Trinity & a baby shower.

The Holy Trinity crib blanket from my mom!

 My mom made me this beautiful crib blanket. For some reason the pattern is called The Holy Trinity - although I think we made that up and that's not actually the official pattern name! Anyway, something about only using 3 fabrics in the 1 blanket. We picked out the middle wren fabric back in January when Mom and Amy were here in January on fabric.com. Mom was on her own to get the red and grey fabrics, and she did a great job! I love the look of this blanket and almost want to hang it on the wall as a piece of art, it's so pretty!

A close up of the gorgeous wren fabric!

Last night my friend Chelsey threw a double baby shower for myself and my friend Katie. We had a great night with the rest of our bible study girls, playing games, eating and opening up lots of lovely presents!

Katie and I at our joint baby shower!