Recipes!!

I have finally gotten around to trying out some weight watchers recipes lately. There are a few good ones I want to share. I tried two, a blueberry squares recipe and a pumpkin muffin recipe, that were just okay. If I figure out a way to make them better I will share, but for now these were the best!

First, a chicken chipotle sandwich: 6 points per sandwich

1 pound uncooked boneless skinless chicken breast, thinly sliced

1 tsp fresh lime juice

1/8 tsp table salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

2 Tbsp reduced-calorie mayonnaise

1 Tbsp canned chipotle pepper(s), finely chopped

1 cup mixed greens

8 slices reduced-calorie wheat bread, toasted

1 medium fresh tomato, sliced

Heat grill pan on high heat. Season chicken with lime juice, salt and pepper. Cook chicken in pan, turning once, until cooked through, about 5 minutes.

In a small cup, combine mayonnaise and chipotle peppers.

Divide greens among 4 slices of toast. Top each with 1/4 of tomato slices and chicken.

Spread each remaining piece of toast with about 2 teaspoons chipotle mayonnaise; place on sandwiches. Yields 1 sandwich per serving.

I used cubed chipotle peppers. They came in a small box by the cans. This way, I can just unwrap one cube at a time and break it up into the mayonnaise whenever I want. It's a little difficult to chop really spicy things by hand since I usually make our dinner while feeding Brady his :) I used bread that was 40 calories per slice and one point each. I made sweet potato fries (16 fries for 4 points) and the whole meal was 10 points! It was delish and SO FILLING! Go easy on ketchup, it's 1 point for 2 Tbs.

Next Chicken Bruschetta: 7 points per serving (makes 4 servings)

This is Teresa Giudice's recipe from her new book, Fabulicious: Fast & Fit. Love her book!

It has all the nutritional info in the back so it's WW friendly :)

                       There are 3 huge pieces of chicken under there :) 

3 ripe plum (Roma) tomatoes, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch dice
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 medium celery rib, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for the pan
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 11/2 pounds)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 450ºF. Lightly oil a 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Combine the tomatoes, onion, celery, wine, parsley, oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes in a medium bowl. Set aside while the oven is preheating.

Pound the chicken until it is 1/2-inch thick. Season with the salt and black pepper. (I put the chicken (one breast at a time) in a large plastic bag (zipper left just a tad open) and then smashed them with a small glass baking dish since I didn't have a meat pounder.

Arrange the chicken in the baking pan. Spoon equal amounts of the tomato mixture over each chicken breast half, then pour any left over liquid around the chicken. Bake until the tomato mixture is hot and chicken is cooked through. About 15 – 20 minutes.

I used half the parsley and added 1 Tbs Italian seasoning. I used Sutter Home Chardonnay wine. Next time, I will use a little less onion and possibly measure out some Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top. It was delish and the portions are big!

Lastly, our favorite desert lately..

Chocolate Marshmallow Bark – YUM! And 4 pts per square (makes 12 squares)

8 oz bittersweet chocolate chips

2 tsp butter

3 cups mini marshmallows

Line a 9- X 9-inch pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil.

In a double boiler, melt chocolate and butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thoroughly combined; remove from heat and stir in marshmallows.

Scrape chocolate mixture into prepared pan using a silicon spatula; smooth into a somewhat even layer. Refrigerate until chocolate sets, at least 1 hour; keep refrigerated until ready to eat.

Cut into 12 pieces and serve. Yields 1 piece per serving.

Use Ghirardelli chocolate and don't mix the marshmallows in too much or they will melt. We are obsessed with this one. So good!

  You can see the difference between the 2 pics - melted marshmallows the first time, but it still tasted great! This piece looks small in the picture, but they are decent size.

I have several more recipes I'm going to try this week. Stuffed mushrooms, Asparagus soup, Skinny spaghetti, and turkey meatballs! I'll share more soon.

Brady's Birth

Brady is almost a year and I don't think I've written the full birth story anywhere so here goes :)

My last doctor's appointment was the morning of June 28. I saw Dr. Doan, who was a partner in the same office as my doctor, Dr. Friedman, who was going on vacation in a few days for the 4th of July. She convinced Dr. Friedman to schedule an induction since I was 2 cm dilated, 50% effaced, and my due date was that Saturday. Dr. Friedman loved to tell me each visit that “this isn't a small baby”, so I was very happy to get him out! I would go into the hospital the next night to get the induction started, and actually get pitocin the morning of the 30^th.

Just as planned, I went into Christus Saint Catherine (a nice small hospital in Katy) on Wednesday, June 29 at 8 pm. I can truly say I wasn't nervous at all, just ready. I spent that day making sure everything was ready and packed while I waited for Eric to get off work. Eric was SO nervous, but incredibly supportive. Everyone made a point to tell me their awful induction stories and the horror stories they'd heard from so-in-so, but I knew my doctors had waited until my body was ready. They had first mention an induction weeks before but waited, and I was only 2 days from my due date of July 2^nd. At the time, I didn't care what I faced as far as pain and long labor, I just wanted my baby born!

The hospital was busy, but got us in a room and checked in that night. As soon as I was hooked up to all the machines, the nurse said, “You're already having contractions.” I was surprised at first, but then it made sense. I had been in pain. Lol! But I had also been preparing myself to be in pain, so I really thought it was nothing. I'm usually a total wimp. So for 9 months, I'd been talking myself into being tougher. I guess it worked! Around 10 pm, I got cervidil inserted overnight to “get my cervix more ready for the induction”. It's basically a flat, rectangle tampon that sits on the cervix. I immediately felt cramps, but nothing too bad. Like a bad menstrual cramp, basically. I was able to get some sleep that night and Eric slept on a big couch. At one point, I rolled to my right side, the nurses came in and made me move, because Brady's heartbeat had slowed down. I was freaked, but glad I was hooked up and they could monitor that. I still had incredible fear of something happening to him right at the end.

The morning of the 30^th, I was just slightly more dilated and more effaced. At 10 am, I got the pitocin. Holy smokes! Induction contractions are unrelenting! Someone text me to ask how far apart my contractions were. I thought.. what? There's no time in between AT ALL!? They got pretty bad and by noon, I asked for the epidural. My nurses (I had 2 at this point and they were phenomenal!) made Eric leave while I got the epidural. I didn't like that one bit. I got cold, and nervous, and was shaking while the anesthesiologist got ready. He didn't announce what he was doing and obviously I couldn't see. The nurse had to tell him to please let me know what was coming. I was beyond annoyed, but he was really the only person I encountered up until then with poor bedside manner, so I just tried to stay calm. Throughout my pregnancy, I said “Oh yeah, I'll get the epidural” like it was no big deal. In the moment, it's a lot different! I had expected that Eric would be by my side, but the nurses were great and I felt immediate relief. Mostly on my right side at first, then all over, then I couldn't even move from the waist down.

For the next few hours, I just relaxed and hung out with Eric. By 3 pm, I started to feel pain again and told my nurse. It was bad and right in the middle of my lower abdomen. She was going to check the epidural, but decided to check me first, and sure enough it was time to push. I didn't feel the 'have to poop' pressure like most women. I said, “Shut up!” when she told me it was time and everything felt very surreal. The moment was really here!? I did have to wait 15 min for Dr. Friedman to get there from his office. It felt like forever! The nurses said I could start pushing before he got there if I 'needed' to, but I didn't like the sound of that and waited for him to get there. The pressure was so bad though. Eric started to say something and I yelled, “Just shut up!” I didn't want to hear anything during the pain. Then he actually complained about me squeezing his hand to hard. Who does that!? Lol.

When the doctor got there, 10 different people came in the room and started setting up. I wasn't really prepared for all the 'witnesses'. Oh well, legs up and let's get this baby out! Lol Dr. Friedman came in and put his ipod behind me on a counter. It was loud and blasting Garth Brooks. Are you kidding me!? My child may be born in Texas but NOT to Friends in Low Places. Okay!? I had my nurse shut that thing off.

We got ready to push and Eric automatically got tears in his eyes. The husbands don't have the same mental and physical preparation as the pregnant wives. I was SO ready and I think he was scared! He stayed strong and held my right hand and leg and one of my nurses held the left. The monitor for contractions had stopped working, so I just had to push when I felt them. 10 seconds never felt so long!! Eric counted with the nurses and I thought it was going in slow motion! Probably didn't help that I was so out of shape and that I couldn't feel how hard I was pushing. Brady crowned very quickly and I think that's the only time Eric 'looked'. He started crying and saying “I can see him! I can see him!” Dr. Friedman said “He's bald like you” to Eric. I had to have an episiotomy and then Brady was suctioned out. I pushed him far, very quickly, but then he was stuck.

The whole thing lasted less than 30 min and Brady was born at 3:43 pm. 8 lbs 5.4 oz. And 21 inches long. As soon as I heard his cry, I sobbed. I felt such relief and all my anxiety left me. I didn't realize until that moment just how worried I had been that something awful might happen to him before or during delivery.

Eric stood next to Brady and his nurse, while she cleaned him up and weighed him. She gave him to me and I cried some more! It was truly a magnificent moment. He looked like me, his eyes were open, and we just stared at each other. I fell in love instantly. I held him, kissed him, and told him I loved him for the first time. Brady Dean Weisinger had my heart!

His nurse said she had to take him to make sure he was getting enough oxygen because he was breathing heavily. That scared me, so I loved on him and kissed him for a minute and then handed him right back. I got cleaned up and taken care of while we waited on Brady. The nurse came back to tell us that he was breathing fine (he was born 'in stress' (as if any babies are not!?) and had pooped on his way out), but he did have low blood sugar (go figure since I hadn't eaten anything since noon the day before! Doctors orders). So they were giving him formula and I couldn't breastfeed yet. We didn't get to see him again until almost 8 that night. It took 24 hours to get his blood sugar back up and staying up. I yelled at one nurse in the middle of the night for pricking his foot. I could hear him crying so hard and I said, “How many times are you going to poke him!?” I must have scared her, because she immediately left and Eric said she only poked him once but she was squeezing the sh** out of his heel to get blood. I hated it! But I do feel bad for yelling at her.

I started to feel better, but then got worse. The episiotomy was painful but the hemorrhoids were something evil!! Somehow, the nurse I had that Friday missed it and I didn't know that was why my as* felt on fire until I was home. I knew I was pushing pretty hard!! I couldn't get up or sit up without serious pain! Poor Eric was taking care of me and Brady for the first week. He had blood shot eyes and was SO exhausted. He was the best husband and Daddy we could have.

We took Brady home on Saturday, July 2^nd. My due date!! Eric and I panicked getting him into the car seat. Lol Like new parents would! And I said, “Be careful!” about 100 times while driving home. There were balloons and a sign at our house courtesy of Eric's parents. It was so exciting to have Brady home and in his room! My family came to visit the next week. 

I think I had the best pregnancy and delivery I could have hoped for. (Minus outrageous weight gain and moving at 33 weeks!) But even so, God blessed us with a healthy, handsome, strong baby boy and reliving all of this has me excited for the next baby! Brady will be 1 year old next month. We've come a long way in a year and I am blessed to be his Momma!

Go Cardinals!!!!

I was so happy that they won the game on Sunday. Eric, Brady, and I went to the game with the Fletchers and had a blast. The Astros creamed us Friday and Saturday so I was nervous. I didn't want to hear a bunch of crap wearing a Cards shirt. Well, after 4 home runs, no one said a word! 8-2 :) We saw a guy wearing a shirt that read "Marry a Cards fan, Live happily ever after" Story of Eric's life :) Brady did SO good at the game. He was awake and happy until the 9^th inning. After 3 hours he passed out on Daddy. I think it's safe to say he loves baseball as much as we do! Good thing, because his birthday is allllll baseball. We have gotten the decorations, invitations are going out tomorrow, and the cupcakes are ordered. SO exciting!!! My Mom, Dad, sister, and her husband are ALL able to make it down for the party. I cried when I heard they could all make it. I can't imagine celebrating Brady's birthday without any of my family.

My dad is working on building his toy chest for him. I'm really excited about this since my Dad is a top notch carpenter. It makes me want to redo his room already for a big boy. Lol But we'll wait on that. Brady is doing great with everything. He loves to walk around holding my hands and turning on and off the light switches. He dives for them when we walk by! He's 10 flippin months old. NEXT MONTH he will be 1. Truly unbelievable. Until... I think about where we were a year ago.. staying with my in-laws, looking for a house, and almost 9 months pregnant! Not to mention I was as big as a HOUSE! Yeahhh then it feels like a year! :) We've come a long way. I think we're really getting the hang of recruiting. Eric's new boss is great! His days are a little shorter now. On average 8-8. Sad that that's better, right?? Well it is! I've also lost 10 lbs on Weight Watchers in 5 weeks. My goal is only 12 lbs away. I'm hoping to get there by Brady's birthday! Lol But, that goal is 17 lbs under prepregnancy so I've got no complaints! Even when I think I'm being 'bad' on WW, I still loose weight. It really changes the way you think about what you eat. Thank goodness for Lauren sharing her success with me and now I have 5 friends and family doing it since I started. Very helpful! I got my hair cut pretty short and I love it. Been feeling pretty good lately :) Eric has lost 9 lbs and says that people notice all time. So he's doing great too.

I've been stripping my diapers today. Brady's diapers that is ;) I have only done this once before and didn't do it full out. I took our clean diapers and rinsed them about 6 times in the washer to get rid of buildup (Desitin and detergent). Then added a TINY bit (½ tsp probably) of Dawn Original dish soap and washed them with that. I have an HE washer and dryer so I was VERY nervous to try it and Eric really didn't want me to, buuuut the diapers did have a little funk to them. So I couldn't help myself. My child is still a big pooper! Yesterday, he pooped 4 times before noon. They were all solid. He gets it from Eric LOL :) With all that pooing, I'm surprised I've made it this long without stripping them. It's probably because I still use liners. Anyways, I'm going to dry them in the sun to get rid of any stains and hopefully they will be like new!

Our tenant in NC signed a new 1 yr lease. Talk about a huge relief! It's stressful wondering and waiting to find out. Other than that one mishap of being late in November, she's been a good tenant. Shit happens, so I try to be understanding and move on. I have been feeling very grateful lately. There are so many stresses in life, especially one in the military and on awful recruiting duty. But it's always what we make of it. I'm thankful my husband is home every night and most weekends. Plenty of our friends can't say that right now. My husband is so good to me. I know I'm not always easy to handle, but he does a great job ;) We have a beautiful home, healthy baby, and no BIG worries. God is good!! And I don't want to forget it!