Pregnancy Symptoms Your Friends Don't Talk About

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During the past 16 weeks of my pregnancy, I feel like I've had just about every symptom and side effect listed on the pregnancy sites.  Fatigue, dizziness, sore breasts, fluctuating emotions, and of course nausea.   I've been nauseous almost every day of the past 4 months.  I haven't actually gotten sick (aka vomited), but at times I think I might actually feel better if I did.  

I was eager to hit week 14, the week I heard my nausea would probably go away.  Two weeks later and I still feel icky.  Unfortunately I have yet to feel that "Second Trimester Glow" that I was so looking forward to.  

Maybe the old wives tale about baby girls and morning sickness are true?

Along with the symptoms above, I've had a bunch of others that kinda surprised me.  I think these are the things your girlfriends probably don't talk about, and maybe for good reason.

1.  Gas.  Lots and lots of gas.  Caused by higher levels of progesterone, which slows down the digestive process.   I used to scold my husband whenever he burped after dinner, but now I'm the one belching up a storm.  Not really the best way to keep the romance alive!

2.  Excessive mouth watering.  Along with the constant nausea I had (and still have), my mouth was constantly watering.  Which just made me more nauseous.  It's like an evil circle.

3.  Constipation.  No explanation needed.  Again caused by the slowed digestive process.  Also most likely made worse by the iron included in most prenatal vitamins.

4.  Heartburn.  I know this gets more common as the baby gets bigger and squishes your tummy and everything else.  But I've had it pretty bad from day 1.  There are the obvious culprits (acidic foods, carbonated drinks, chocolate).  But I get it from everything.  Even water.  Lucky me.

5.  Crazy vivid dreams.  Monsters chasing me.  Talking babies with adult sized heads.  By far the weirdest dreams I've ever had, on an almost nightly basis.

Some of these have gotten better or disappeared over the past several weeks (mouth watering) but the heartburn is still pretty constant.  I've learned to eat really small meals throughout the day, which is not easy.  I have to stop myself early, before I feel full, or else I know I'll feel sick later.  I can't wait for the day that I can just eat a meal without worrying about if it'll make me sick later!

It's not all sickness and worry, though.  Other parts of the pregnancy have been easy so far.  I've only gained a pound or two, although I can't button up most of my pants anymore.  (Thank goodness for belly bands and my sister's old clothes from before she lost some weight.)  I haven't had much back pain or anything.  And, for the most part, I'm not too fatigued.  Which probably means I should get off my butt more often and exercise!  I am taking a Pilates class tonight, so that's a good start, right?!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

If you're looking for an easy homemade treat

to bring to a holiday (or any other) party,

then you definitely must try these bars.

They have become my staple treat to bring

and they never fail to disappear by the end of the night.

I mean, who doesn't like chocolate and peanut butter together?

There are no fancy steps in this recipe,

it only requires a bit of time to allow the chocolate to harden.

The original recipe is from Mrs. Fields Cookie Book,

one of my first cook books,

which is filled with great cookie recipes (go figure!).

I altered a few of the measurements

to get a crisper crust

and a greater chocolate to peanut butter ratio.

Seriously, you MUST try these bars. 

Creamy Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars

8 medium chocolate chip or butter cookies

3 Tablespoons salted butter, melted

2 1/2 cups (15 oz) milk chocolate chips

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1/4 cup salted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1.  Preheat oven to 350

2.  Process the cookies in a food processor until finely ground.

Add the melted butter and mix completely.

Press into bottom of 8x8 baking pan and bake for 10 minutes.

Cool to room temperature.

3.  Melt a little bit more than half the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave.

(I like a little thinner chocolate layer on the top)

Pour over the crust and smooth evenly.

Put in the fridge to harden.

4.  Mix the peanut butter and softened butter together until smooth.

Slowly add in the confectioners' sugar, then the vanilla.

Beat until smooth.

Spread the filling over the chilled chocolate layer.

Melt the remaining chocolate and spread evenly over the peanut butter layer.

Chill in the fridge about 1 hour until hardened.

Then, take it out of the fridge for another 30 minutes or so before slicing.

(The chocolate tends to crack if you try to slice straight out of the fridge)

The edges of my pan are sloped

so to get nice flat pieces that sit nicely on a plate

I slice off about a 1/2 inch strip all the way around the pan before cutting into bars.

Plus, this gives you little pieces to nibble on without eating a whole bar!

 I slice the pieces fairly small, because these are super rich.

Oh so Yummy!

Enjoy!

Easy Asian Beef and Noodles

This recipe is true to its name…..easy.

While it may not be the most authentic asian dish,

you can have it cooked and on the table in under 30 minutes.

Which is great on a Wednesday night 

and you’re struggling to just make it to the weekend.

I’ve had this recipe in my box for a few years now.

 I’m not sure where I got it 

but a Google search points to Cooking Light.

Kinda ironic, I think, considering how unhealthy Top Ramen is.

Was anyone else shocked to find that out 

after years of eating it in college, 

thinking you were being healthy and economical?

Easy Asian Beef and Noodles (2 servings)

Cooking Light

8 oz ribeye steak

1 teaspoon dark sesame oil

1 cup sliced green onions

2 cups prepared cole slaw mix

2 packages of beef flavored ramen noodles

1 ½ cups water

1 Tablespoon soy sauce

Trim fat from steak and cut diagonally across the grain into thin strips

Heat ½ teaspoons oil in skillet over med-high heat.

Add steak and onions.  Stir fry 1 minute, or until cooked through.

Heat ½ teaspoon oil. Add slaw mix and stir fry 30 seconds.

Remove from pan and keep warm.

Remove noodles from packages.

Add water and 1 flavor package to the skillet.  Heat to boiling.

Break noodles in half and cook until most of the liquid is absorbed.

Add the beef and slaw to the pan.  Cook till heated through.

(489 calories, 68.1g carbs, 12.5g fat, 29g protein, 4.9g fiber)

Enjoy!

Sugar and Spice....

I've been keeping a little secret from you.

Well, most of you.

And now that it's officially on Facebook

I figured it's time to share on blog-land, too!

We are expecting our first baby in May!

And we found out today that it's a girl!

Or, as the doctor put it, she's 99% sure that we're having a girl.

So this kinda explains the lack of posting lately,

and especially the lack of recipe posts.

It's hard to write about food 

when you're just trying to make it through the day 

without it coming back up.

I've been feeling pretty nauseous, 

amongst other wonderful side effects of pregnancy.

But we'll get into that in another post.

Betcha can't wait for that one, huh?!

So do you want to see a few pics of the little one?

Here she is at just 7 weeks...

And waving hello at 11 weeks...

Amazing that in just 4 short weeks

she goes from looking like a bean

to looking like a real human.

I'm about 15 weeks along now

and crossing my fingers I get my appetite back soon.

I mean really, what's the holiday season

without being able to enjoy cookies and peppermint bark?

Tis the Season....For Cookies!

A few of my girlfriends and I started a tradition last year

in which we get together and bake a whole bunch of cookies.

We then divvy them up so we each go home

with a huge batch of assorted baked goods.

It's a fun way to spend an afternoon with friends

and try out some new recipes.

To get ready for our baking session this year

I scoured several magazines, tearing out anything that sounded good,

and like something I could actually accomplish.

Wanna see my stash?

Now I just have to decide on which ones to actually bake!

Do you have any favorite holiday baking recipes?