Otis' birthday!

Here are some pics from Otis' birthday that I've been meaning to post...I think Otis and Cooper had a good time.

J.B.

Boo's half-baked!

We're halfway done with the pregnancy! Halfway to meeting our little baby boy! Otis says, "Hooray!"

The last couple two weeks have been pretty good. Our ultrasound last week showed us a healthy little boy growing. I had a doctor's appointment Tuesday and everything seems to be normal and good. The doctor said Boo had a strong heartbeat. My blood platelets are still low. But the doctor said not to worry about not being able to get an epidural. Nothing can be done to increase the platelets. It's just something they'll keep monitoring. Boo's kicks are getting stronger and more frequent. We also picked out the paint for the nursery. Jamaica Bay and Cornmeal. I came home from work to a nearly completely painted nursery. It's looking good so far. The rest of the week has been busy, so we haven't finished it yet.

Here's me at 20 weeks. Getting bigger. All over. 

J.B.

Adventures with food

We got another CSA box this week. This week's box included salad greens, red oakleaf lettuce, asparagus, spinach, green garlic, dill, rhubarb, garlic scapes, strawberries and kohlrabi. Some interesting stuff, huh?

Kohlrabi is certainly something I'd never seen before. Kohlrabi is German for cabbage turnip. Apparently it tastes like broccoli stems. It's used a lot in Indian food. Here's a pic.

Thank goodness for the Internet, so I can figure out what the unfamiliar vegetables are....and so I can find recipes! I've yet to get a vegetable in my CSA that I don't like, so I'm excited to try another new one.

With all the green leafy vegetables we have, I've been trying to figure out new ways to prepare them. I discovered a great way to prepare spinach. A smoothie! Yep, it probably sounds really weird, but you honestly can't taste it.

Spinach Smoothie
Blend:
1 1/2 cups fresh spinach
1 banana
1 apple
1/2 cup canned pineapple
1 cup vanilla yogurt
And some ice cubes

The smoothie is green, but it's delicious. Dave even told me he wanted one of my smoothies today. Dave generally likes the food I make him, but it's not too often that he asks for certain items.

Tonight I made an asparagus casserole. I'm not going to say "hot dish"...sounds too Minnesotan. But the dish was creamy, the asparagus crisp and overall delicious...just like a hot dish should be. Haha. I modified a recipe I found online with what was in my kitchen.

Asparagus Casserole
1 lb fresh asparagus, chopped
6 strips of bacon
2 T butter
1 1/2 cups crushed Ritz crackers
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup (plus 1 can milk)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

In saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add cream of mushroom soup and water. Stir. Add cheese. Cook until cheese is melted and mixture is smooth, stirring occasionally. Separately cook the bacon and chop into pieces.

In casserole dish, add layer of asparagus, followed by bacon, crackers and soup mix. Repeat layers. Top with crackers. Cook at 350 for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

J.B.

B. O. Y.

What can I say? The big ultrasound was today.

We're having a boy. A little baby boy.

I've had a smile on my face all day. We couldn't be more thrilled.

Well, the fact that Boo is healthy makes us more than more thrilled. He's growing completely on track. Has a healthy heartbeat at 152 bpm. All of his measurements are normal. He was quite the active guy during the ultrasound -- most likely a sign of things to come.  

It is quite a feeling to know that there is a little boy joining our family. It's real. It still seems surreal. I've been feeling his kicks all afternoon. His kicks.

Only 144 days until I can tickle his toes and kiss his head.

J.B.

Wow.

At this time tomorrow, we'll know if we're having a boy or girl. It is so exciting and seems unreal at the same time. It just seems like a lot of things for getting ready for the baby is dependent on knowing it's gender. Getting the nursery ready. Registering for baby stuff. Buying baby clothes. Picking out a name. Get the idea?

I know all the above can be done without knowing the gender....but since we are going to find out, it just makes sense to wait to do it all until we know.

Whatever Boo is, both Dave and I are going to be thrilled.

Wouldn't it be funny if Boo decides to be shy tomorrow....I'm guessing that will be the case.

We've really enjoyed reading everyone's guesses about the gender. Thanks for helping us pass the time until the big reveal. The results...

Girl - 18
Boy - 16

So close! There is still a little bit of time left for you to guess if you haven't yet! You can guess here.

J.B.

A golden birthday

Today our first born, our little guy, Otis is celebrating his golden birthday! He's four years old. Which means in dog years, he's the same age as Dave and I! We were so excited for little Otis to join our family. We'd been waiting for years to get a dog. But we waited and waited until we had our own house. And then we waited for after all the wedding craziness to bring this guy home. He was such a cute pup -- he still is so handsome. His little soul patch is gone. It's morphed into more of a beard. He still loves to sleep. He loves attention. He loves people. He loves cuddling. He loves treats. I love Otis and I'm so glad he's our pup.

J.B.

Don't forget to vote on what gender you think Boo is. You can guess here.

Veggie fun! CSA week 1

We got our first CSA box of the summer season yesterday. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. Basically, we bought a "share" of a farm for the summer and we get a box of their produce every week throughout the summer. The farm is in SE Minnesota, so all the vegetables are grown locally. They also grow their produce organically. It's amazing how yummy such fresh food tastes. Since it's early in the season, we got a lot of different types of lettuce. We also got radishes, cilantro, asparagus and spinach. As more vegetables are ready for harvest throughout the summer, the contents of our box will increase.

I love trying new ways to cook the vegetables and trying new stuff. Yesterday I made radish cilantro salsa. After letting all the ingredients sit overnight, I have to say that it's really good. Except I made it a little spicy. Tonight I made pasta with asparagus sauce. Dave wasn't too happy that I was making him something so out of the norm, but it was pretty good, although a little bland. It definitely doesn't beat asparagus wrapped with bacon and cooked on the grill. We still have more asparagus, so there is time left for some of that deliciousness. We only have a week to eat up all these goodies. We get another box next week!

J.B.

Don't forget to vote on what gender you think Boo is. You can guess here.