One thing...

I have one thing to say...round ligament pain sucks. I feel like I have just done fifty sit ups after having not done any in ten years...lol. As much as the pain and discomfort sucks I know it just means things are growing and shifting around like they should be to make room for my little one. I have already started having trouble sleeping, I can't sleep on my back, I can't sleep on my tummy, obviously, but even sleeping on my sides hurt. I was starting to wonder I am just being a big fat complainer but my sister confirmed today that she started having trouble sleeping around the same time. It's nice having someone to go to so that we can compare notes, now if only our husbands would understand...lol. Good news for my sister though, after her doctors appointment this morning the doctor confirmed she has completely thinned out and Dylan should be here within the week. I am going to be an Auntie, YAY!! She is definitely ready as she can't even sit without being completely miserable. I joked with her today that I will wait until her labor and delivery to determine whether or not I want to go through with this, she promised not to scream to loud. The girls at work informed me that I am in to far to turn back now, I am going through this whether I want to or not.

On a nursery note, we are starting to work on the nursery this weekend. We have lots of stuff that needs to find a new place in our home so this should be interesting. As I mentioned in a previous post we are doing a farm theme in the nursery and my step-dads girlfriend has offered to do a mural for us. I can't wait until the room is done and ready for the baby. The nursery takes priority but then we get to start working on the spare bedroom upon the nursery's completion. The room is currently being used as Daniel's personal walk in closet so we have to organize and get the furniture arranged. We're slapping on a fresh coat of paint and getting some new bedding and then that room will be ready to go for any overnight guests that we might have in the first few weeks of the baby being home. It's ridiculous that we have been in this house for three years next month and it's taken a pregnancy to push us into getting things done around here.

I am off to bed now, hopefully I can get comfortable, this ache in my belly really needs to cease until it's time to get up...lol.

Slow Cooker Italian Beef

Last week I had the urge to come up with some new dinner ideas for the hubby and I and so before we did our grocery shopping I perused several different blogs and some of my favorite cooking websites. I found this recipe at allrecipes.com and thought why not give it a shot. Daniel is not a big red meat fan and the first time I made pot roast I think he dreaded having to sit down at the table with me and eat it. Lucky for me though he loved my pot roast and I have slowly started bringing him around. He still won't touch a steak of any kind but hey saves more for me. Of course I was somewhat leery of how this would be accepted by him but I knew that as long as it came out tender and juicy he would at least be willing to try it. Plus put anything on a sandwich with cheese and peppers for him and he's a happy camper.

Slow Cooker Italian Beef
Ingredients:
3 cups water
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. onion salt
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 bay leaf (I omitted)
1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix
1 (5 pound) rump roast (I used an eye of round roast because we were unable to find a butt roast)

Directions:
1. Combine water with salt, ground black pepper, oregano, basil, onion salt, parsley, garlic powder, bay leaf, and salad dressing mix in a saucepan. Stir well, and bring to a boil.

2. Place roast in slow cooker, and pour salad dressing mixture over the meat.

3. Cover, and cook on Low for 10 to 12 hours, or on High for 4 to 5 hours. When done, remove bay leaf, and shred meat with a fork.

Now as usual I started putting this together without fully reading the instructions...big surprise I know. I completely skipped step one and ended up just putting everything in the slow cooker mixing it together as I went and then I threw the roast on top. Honestly, I don't see the point of step one so even if I had read the directions, I probably would have skipped over it anyway. I am afraid that here in five months I am not going to have time for extra steps that can be omitted from a recipe...lol.

Also a quick note, GENTLY place your roast into the slow cooker, DO NOT accidentally drop it in, especially if you omit step one as I did. Why you ask? Because if it gets dropped in, the liquid ingredients get splashed EVERYWHERE!! All over yourself and into your hair, on the poor dog who was just an innocent bystander and all over the kitchen counter and canisters and then unless you shower or give the dog a bath you will smell like italian seasoning for the remainder of the day. The other dogs are giving Lennon a hard time because they think Mom gave him a treat and forgot about them, poor guys.

Anyway, we served ours on hoagie buns with lots of mozzarella cheese and banana peppers and threw them in the oven for a few minutes to help melt the cheese and to make the bun nice and crispy. These were so good and so flavorful. I really think you should give them a try!!

Don't forget about my first ever giveaway. Everyone has until midnight on the 15th to enter!

Cabbage Rolls

Tonight I made cabbage rolls for the very first time in my life. Seriously, the trying to pry cabbage leaves off of a head of cabbage without them tearing is a chore. The women folk on my facebook page suggested putting the head of cabbage in hot water and then they should peel right off. Where were those suggestions when I started the process...lol.

I had planned on using my MIL's recipe because honestly, hers are the best I have ever eaten. As usual though I couldn't find the recipe card she had given me, I know the vicinity in which it's located but I just couldn't find it this round...maybe because I was looking to hard. So instead I sort of winged it and came up with my own and let me tell you, I was so darn proud of myself I almost cried. Not as good as my MIL Sue's but they were yummy, especially for my experimentation. Daniel suggested adding more meat next time and I will since I will know then how to get my leaves off in one piece.

Katie's Cabbage Rolls~

Ingredients:
12 cabbage leaves
1 1/2 lb. ground beef, browned (I used only 1 lb. but the boss said to use more)
1 tbsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. salt
sprinkle or two of ground black pepper
1 cup white rice, cooked as directed on packaging
1- 8oz. can sauerkraut
1- 26oz. can tomato sauce

1 cup chicken or beef broth (plus extra in case needed)

Directions:

1.) Begin by boiling a large pot of water and in a separate skillet begin browning your ground beef. In a smaller pot begin boiling water for your rice.

2.) Add your garlic powder, salt, and black pepper to your ground beef mixture. Drain excess grease and set aside in a mixing bowl to cool. Add rice to water, cover and set aside. Once the rice has absorbed all of the water throw in with your ground beef mixture.

3.) Slowly and carefully pull your cabbage leaves off of the head of cabbage trying to keep them intact.

4.) Dip the cabbage leaves in the boiling water for 2-3 minutes to soften them enough that you can roll them. Drain and allow to cool so that you can handle them.

5.) Turn on your slow cooker to the low setting. Remember cold food into a cold slow cooker, warm food into a warm slow cooker!!

6.) Begin stuffing your cabbage leaves. Add about a scoopful of the meat mixture placing at the bottom of the leave. Tuck in the sides and continue to roll forward. Place each roll in the bottom of the slow cooker slowly building them up as you go along.

7.) Once all of the rolls are in pour in your tomato sauce, sauerkraut, and chicken or beef broth. Take a spoon or some kind of utensil and gently pull your cabbage rolls away from the side of the dish long enough to allow some of the liquids to slowly make it down to the bottom of the dish. Cover and turn to high for four hours or keep at low for eight hours. Keep extra broth on hand in case it appears your cabbage rolls are beginning to dry out. I did ours for four hours so I imagine that after eight the liquid may have all but evaporated out.

Serve alongside a heaping mound of mashed taters and you have yourself one heck of a comfort meal. Throw in some green beans and it becomes that much healthier for you.

Also make sure you take a look at my previous post for something very interesting!!

First Ever Katie's Korner Giveaway

I had full intentions of having my first giveaway back around the time of my 100th post but this little thing called pregnancy got in the way and my blogging had pretty much come to a screeching halt.

Since I am back into the swing of things when it comes to making a mess in my kitchen I figured better late than never!! So starting today and ending on September 15th at midnight I am doing a giveaway...yay!! In order to participate all you have to do is two things; if you haven't already...become a follower of my blog, and leave a comment on this post giving me your favorite pizza recipe. You can either type the recipe out or paste the link of where I can find the recipe. The husband and I have been making more pizzas at home and I would love to branch out to pizza combinations that we haven't yet tried! As a bonus if you mention this giveaway on your own blog you get an extra chance to win, just make sure you mention it when you leave your comment!

Still working on the prize but it will be worth your while and my guess is that it is going to be pizza related. I just love suprises don't you? Also, please be sure you leave me with some way of contacting you should you win and unfortunately, this giveaway is only open to those living within the United States...blame FedEx and their outrageous prices.

Happy posting!

Apple Crisp

We had another family dinner this past Saturday night and since we had yet to make a trip to the grocery I had to come up with something that included ingredients that were currently awaiting use in my pantry. I stumbled across this one and I am so glad I gave it a chance. You will see the few changes I made listed next to the ingredients.

Apple Crisp I
Compliments of Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 3 1/2 pounds apples - peeled, cored and sliced ( used 6 granny smith apples)
  
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 packets instant maple and brown sugar oatmeal ( I only used 2 and used what I had on hand that had cinnamon in it, cinnamon roll and cinnamon and spice)
  
• 1 pinch salt ( I omitted)
  
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts ( I used about a 1/4 cup of pecans, it was all I had)
  
• 1/4 cup maple syrup

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Place apples in a 9x13 inch baking dish. In a bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Stir in flour, instant oatmeal and salt. Fold in walnuts. Sprinkle oatmeal mixture evenly over apples. Drizzle with maple syrup.
3. Bake in preheated oven 50 to 70 minutes, until apples are tender and topping is golden.

This was really good and I wish we would have had some vanilla ice-cream to go along with it. It would have also been much better with more pecans...I forgot just how good pecans are in things. This is definitely one to try out during your fall festivities, I can see it now, getting fresh apples from your local orchard and then sitting around a nice campfire as you eat this with a nice warm mug of apple cider. Can you tell fall is my absolute favorite time of year??

Basil Pesto Chicken Sandwich

Since I find myself wanting to get back in the kitchen and cooking again, Thursday afternoon I sat at work wondering what I could pick up at the store for dinner that night. I stumbled upon this recipe over at Cassie Craves so I figured I would make it with a few changes of my own. I thought it was yummy and so did Daniel, he is eating his as I type this (leftovers).

Basil Pesto Chicken Sandwich~
Makes 4

Ingredients:
3 lg. chicken breasts
3 tbsp. Good Seasoning Garlic and Herb
extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp. mayo
1 tbsp. basil pesto
2 roma tomatoes
8 slices provolone cheese
4 hoagie buns

Directions:
1.) In a large skillet add a few drizzles of extra virgin olive oil over medium high heat.
2.) Sprinkle your garlic and herb seasoning generously over your chicken breasts and add to skillet. Brown on both sides and then continue cooking in a preheated oven at 450 degrees Fahrenheit for twenty to thirty minutes.
3.) In a small bowl mix mayo and basil pesto and set aside. Slice tomatoes.
4.) Pull chicken back out of the oven and begin building your sandwich. Slice each piece of chicken on the diagonal and layer first, top with two pieces of cheese, three slices of tomato, and then on the opposite side of the bread slather on your basil pesto mayo.
5.) Place on a baking sheet and put back in the oven until your cheese has melted and the bread is slightly toasted.

I served ours with french fries and it was yummy in my tummy.

Heartbeat

Today was our 12 week check up that should have been done almost three weeks ago but got cancelled and then rescheduled...oops, so that meant we finally got to hear our little one's heartbeat. I went in wondering if they would be able to find it being that we are only at 15 weeks and plus my belly is where I store all of my extra poundage, but they found it right away and confirmed that yes, there is still someone growing inside of me. The heartbeat was at 155 which is good and everything including my blood pressure checked out normal. If I am correct the heartbeat was lower than what it was the first time they checked it during out ultrasound so my first thought is that it is a boy, darn it. But the kind lady who was standing in line in front of me at Subway over heard my conversation with my sister giving her all of the details. I got off the phone and the lady excused herself and said "I couldn't help but over hear you, I am 18 weeks pregnant and we just found out we're having a little girl and her heartbeat was 151." So I guess that means we still have a shot even though the more stories I hear the less credibility I give to the old heartbeat wives tale. The big ultrasound is in four weeks, I don't know how I am going to wait that long. I keep telling everyone that since I have already reached my out of pocket maximum for the year thanks to my $6,000 a pop Remicade treatments that I may just have to develop some severe cramping and make my way over to the hospital for a short visit...lol. How wrong of me is that? LOL What an impatient Mother is willing to do for an answer. On the bad side of things it looks like my gall bladder is on it's way out, they are trying to get the baby delivered first and then take it out so let's keep our fingers crossed that everything remains calm like it has done since I have gotten pregnant.