Bump Update

I had no idea that two weeks have flown by since the last bump update! For some reason last week just disappeared into thin air. Don't know if you can tell from the pictures but there has been a definite increase in girth over the past two weeks, my hips and belly are almost the same size now with my boobs a close second, who knew I would ever enjoy getting so big!

I had been suffering from a tooth ache for about a week and finally broke down and did something about it. My hesitation was due to the fact it has been waaaayyyy to long since my last check up, I did not have a local dentist to go to and I had convinced myself that it was either a filling (if I was lucky) or the tooth was coming out. Yes, a bit dramatic but I did say that it has been a very long time. What made it even worse was that I was not sure if I could get any freezing done due to my extra passenger. So, found a dentist within a 5 min walk from our place who was very kind, checked me out, informed me it was just sensitivity to the tooth that I was feeling that was being heightened by the pregnancy. He gave me a thorough cleaning and said to come back once Pip arrives to get a bit more work done. I almost teared up I was so happy.

To be completely honest any attempts at exercise were non existent last week, could blame the weather but in my opinion there really are no excuses. Did a bit of yoga which Pip really likes as he ends up dancing around for a good half an hour once I finish. Speaking of dancing around, Pip has been relentless lately. Usually goes on for a couple days in a row of non stop kicking, and I do mean full on kicking. I do love feeling all the kicks and bumps but momma needs a break once and a while, especially if you are already secret training on the bike. It's either that or space is getting tighter and Pip feels the need to kick all my organs out of the way for some fun!

This week I am covering the pager for work but with no pager, just the laptop, which means I am not going too far! I have some sewing and knitting projects that I would love to do so I may give them a go.

Perfection

As mentioned in the previous post I have been experimenting with making pizza dough and I think that I may have found the perfect one. It was easy to work with, nice and thin, crispy where it needed to be and most important, good flavour. I was so excited with the results that I have wanted to make pizza every night, but have resisted.

I found this recipe through Punchfork, a fantastic recipe aggregator.

Pizza Dough
Original post: My Baking Addiction
Yeild: four 1lb loaves

2 3/4  cups warm water
1 1/2  tablespoons active dry yeast (2 pkgs)
1 1/2  tablespoons salt
1        tablespoon sugar
1/4     cup olive oil
6 1/2  cups all purpose flour


Directions
1. In a large bowl add all the ingredients but the flour and mix until combined

2. Add in the flour and mix until all combined and your dough has formed. No kneading required, I promise. If mixing by hand, which I did, you will want to finish incorporating the flour by hand as it gets a bit difficult. Once a smooth dough has formed you are finished.

3. Transfer dough to a large bowl and cover. I used a metal mixing bowl and saran wrap leaving some small gaps for air to transfer. Rest at room temperature for 2 hours or so, until it doubles in size and then flattens out or collapses. For me that was about 3 hours but I did kind of forget about it.

4. The dough can be used immediately but I suggest keeping it in the refrigerator for 24 hours. This allows for the flavour to continue to develop. When ready to use, take out what you need about 1 hour before baking and allow to warm up a bit. I did find that it was very easy to roll out while it was a touch cool.

5. Keep remaining dough in the refrigerator for up to 12 days in a container that is not completely air tight, again, I used a metal bowl and saran wrap.

I halved the above recipe with no problems at all. We cooked our pizzas on a pizza stone at 475 degrees for about 6 - 8 minutes, but not entirely sure as I usually cook by sight and smell, not by the clock! You can bake these up as you would normally do, nothing special.

Last note about the pizzas, we did a basic tomato sauce, mozzarella, carmelized onions, mushroom and orange pepper topping but going forward this is perfect for a white pizza or just some pesto and toppings as you can roll out this dough very thin.

Enjoy!

Green Eggs and Toast

Yes, there seems to be a theme going on here, spinach in everything. I find it a very easy vegetable to incorporate into almost anything, helping up my vegi intake. Today's lunch was hard boiled eggs mixed with some baby spinach, greek yoghurt, dijon mustard and some pepper. It's quick, simple and pretty tasty. I did add a bit more yoghurt than usual but I need to up my calcium intake even more as Pip's bones are starting another growth spurt now.

As for dinners I have been on a bit of a roll lately, just saying! This week consisted of a ostrich and quinoa chili that kept us well fed for a few meals. Ostrich is a very lean red meat, for a 6oz serving you get 190 calories and 38g of protein, and is really tasty. Second meal was a white bean and chicken stew with lemon, dill and topped with a mint pesto. You could say that this is more of a spring/summer dish but was a really nice change from the typical bean dishes I make. It was also very easy to pull together. Here is a link to the recipe, it's a keeper. Chicken and bean stew.

Yesterday I made up a batch of pizza dough and will be making up pizzas for dinner tonight. Hopefully I wont be a ziggy piggy like usual and will try to take a couple of pics. I am still trying out pizza dough recipes and hopefully have found one that gives us a great flavour as well as a sturdy thin crust.

Now if only we had a wood burning oven to bake them in.

Green Pumpkin Pie and a Bump Update

Slowly growing and very happy!

Just got back from our latest midwife appointment and everything is rolling along really well. Noting to report really, basically that in the next couple of weeks I should up my calcium intake to accommodate for Pips growing bones. Baby is big enough to be able to hear the heartbeat with a stethoscope now and I got to hear it. While lying down Pip gave us a show by giving several really big kicks, big enough that my belly moved so of course I couldn't help but laugh. It was great that Rob was there during to visit so he got to see everything, they were the biggest ones so far!

I was hungry by the time I got home and wanted something quick, a smoothie is my favourite option. This one is two big handfuls of spinach, about 1/3 cup of pumpkin puree, one frozen banana, vanilla protein powder, milk, almond meal and pumpkin spices. Nutritious and delicious! As you can see, I started drinking even before I could shoot it.

Cotton, Bamboo, Hemp, Wool...Sherpa!

With every great adventure comes a detour (or two) and I have come upon my first one. A couple of months ago if you were to ask about diapering you would have received a semi blank look followed by a definite disposable option. Living in a small condo is great but there are limits and the thought of stinky diapers hanging around did not appeal.

Fast forward to earlier this week and I have been opened up to the world of cloth diapers. I had no idea that there were so many options, so many different comfort levels for dealing with cloth. Needless to say I have been doing a lot of research and am warming up to the idea of using cloth diapers for several different reasons. Depending on the system you use they appear easy enough to clean, less garbage for sure and a potentially big savings in cost when compared to disposables. There is the initial investment but that would be it. Doing laundry every couple of days is what I do now so that would be no big deal.

Plus, I'm sure that I can make a few covers myself once I purchase a couple of cute ones to check out.

There are two brands that have caught my eye so far, Bummis and Gdiapers. Bummis are Canadian (which I love) and offer a waterproof cover, cotton or bamboo insert and a disposable liner to go on top, clean ups made much easier! Gdiapers offer a similar system but with slightly different assembly.
If you are really that interested here are links to their websites for more info:
Bummis   Gdiapers

This is not the final option as this is just the beginning of my research and I will keep you updated. If anyone has any recent cloth diapering advice I would love to hear from you.

'Nuff Said

Anyone who has spent enough time around me knows that I have no problem adding in some swear words when and even when not needed! Add a few drinks to the conversation and I magically turn into a sailor.

So a couple of nights ago while Rob was playing video games and I was hanging out on the sofa I realised that we can't continue cussing like we do if we want to raise a child who is somewhat socially adjusted, so a plan was formed. For the next month, until our birthdays we will kindly point out to each other whenever we let one slip. The idea is to become aware of our potty mouth habit and make the change. Once the month is up we will see if we succeeded or more desperate measures need to be taken.

The rest of the night was spent coming up with suitable alternatives and playing video games was great fuel for the fire.

Happy New Year

It has been a while since posting last, I have been enjoying the Christmas holidays with family and friends and spending quality time with Rob. We had grandma and grandpa Fletcher over on Christmas eve for a great dinner and visit and boxing day was spent at my aunt and uncles place in Oakville with all the extended family. Again, a fantastic spread was put out, this year we feasted on beef lion and shrimp. Sorry no dinner pics, we were all so hungry and dinner was too good to wait.














My cousin Valery, who is 10 by the way, knit up these two adorable hats for Pip which was so sweet, I did my best not to tear up! Since it will be a surprise she made one for a girl and one for a boy and they are so well done, very impressed.

We then spent a few days relaxing, watching movies and doing some more organizing/editing in preparation for May. New Years was spent at our friends Bill and Tanya who host a party every year, this year was a bit quieter than previous but fun all the same! It was great to catch up with friends we have not seen for a year or even longer. Especially since most did not know we were going to have a baby so my bump caused quite a stir!

Well, it's back to reality this week, the Christmas tree is coming down, Rob goes back to work on Wednesday and I need to get back into an exercise routine.

As for the bump, pants continue to get tighter and my latest obsession is my belly button. I can't stop checking on it as it continues to stretch and become shallower, I may have been wrong in predicting it won't pop!