More food for thought

Okay, so food occupies a lot of my brain power these days. I like cooking it, eating it, reading and talking about it, watching others prepare it... Basically, food is awesome!

I think I've been a little more obsessed with it lately since our kitchen has been non-functional. All of the major components (counter tops, sink) were put back in order yesterday so now all I have to do is a little cleaning and re-shelving of all the displaced pots, pans, and generic Tupperware. I've been fantasizing about the first thing I'm going to cook. It's definitely going to be some sort of soup or stew. I'm still deciding on the final menu. If you have suggestions, let me know.

You would think that because I like food so much that I would make better food choices. Sadly, I make some rather questionable selections at times. Take today's lunch for example. I had three bean salad and gumbo from the cafeteria. And, I had an irresistible urge to get a slice of red velvet cake. I haven't tasted it yet, but it looks decent for cafeteria fare. It's like the cooks down there have been reading my blog... except for the gumbo part. But that totally hit the spot today. Thank you, cafeteria!

On a completely unrelated note, I posted new photos of Rowan. Some were taken yesterday afternoon while we were waiting on Jeremy to join us for dinner. The Happy Meal ones were taken on our trip home from the Fall Fling. The box was of more interest to him than the food contents. Can you blame him? Although, I will say that the chicken nuggets looked more like pieces of chicken rather than a boot/Italy, as they did when I was a kid.

The big 2-0

Rowan turned 20 months old today! As usual, I have included some highlights about his skills and such. Enjoy!

• Likes: Firetrucks and other vehicles with sirens and lights (He yells, "honk, honk!" when he sees one.); Fig Newtons (aka New-toos, aka New-News); music, singing, and dancing; reading; doing things by himself; taking off his shoes and socks in the car and at school;
  
• Dislikes: Getting out the bathtub and drying off (Almost every night there are tears.); having his face washed (Yes, I do use a warm washcloth.); having his food cut/broken into pieces if he's already seen that it was a larger piece - this is especially true with Fig Newtons, waffles, and bananas - but it's okay if he does it on his own. So complicated!
  
• New Vocab: He's starting to put 2 and 3 words together in semi-sentence form. He's very good at repeating short sentences. Two of his favorites are "I'll get you!" and "I did it!". He also likes to name objects and their owner - e.g., Mommy's pillow, Daddy's truck, baby's shirt. Other new words: two (said when he has or sees two of something!); shower; helicopter (kellicot-ter); pillow; and a bunch of others I'm sure I am forgetting.
  
• New Skills: He's still working on jumping, but he's getting a lot better. The potty is still a hit and a miss; some days he's more into it than others. His singing is getting so good! The tune has always been recognizable, but now he's starting to sing more of the words. I tell you, the A,B,C song never sounded so sweet.

Happiest birthday wishes to my sweet boy! I'll try to take some new photos and post them this week.

Cravings?

I just discovered that I like three bean salad. I've seen this option on salad bars and church supper buffets my whole life but have never been tempted to try it. The idea of cold green beans sounded unappealing, as did the whole concept of a wax bean. Couldn't they have come up with a better name than that? So I am wondering if this is a pregnancy-related food craving or if I truly like three bean salad. The stuff they serve in our cafeteria is really good. The beans still have some give and the dressing is the perfect balance of sweet and sour. YUM!

Am I wrong to love this salad? I'm looking for good recipes so let me know if you have one. Maybe I'll try my hand at making my own once our kitchen gets put back together. All we wanted to do was get new countertops. We've been without a kitchen sink and countertops for at least 2 of the last 4 weeks. Hopefully we will have things back in order by Saturday. I've missed cooking!

I've also been jonesing for a massive cupcake. I vacillate between chocolate with chocolate icing and something more exotic like red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting (as seen on Food Network last night) or pumpkin spice with maple frosting...

Oh, baby!

Great news! We're having another baby! Our new addition is scheduled to arrive sometime around April 10.

This pregnancy is a little different than the first. I suspected something was up when I started getting really bad heartburn. The only other time I had experienced it was when I pregnant with Rowan. Always trust your body! I am also showing a lot sooner than last time. I'm heading to the storage unit and to a friend's house to pick up some maternity clothes. Hello, stretch waistband!

Besides the heartburn, some mild nausea, and feeling tired, the first trimester went by pretty well. Hopefully the next 6 months will go as smoothly. I'll keep you all updated along the way.