chicken manicotti alfredo

Tried out a different manicotti recipe tonight. Since the red sauce and I don't agree, the white sauce is much better.

Ingredients:

2-3 large chicken breasts, uncooked and sliced into tenders

16 oz alfredo sauce

1 cup of water

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon of italian herb seasoning

14 manicotti shells, uncooked

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375F. In a bowl, mix the alfredo sauce, water and garlic powder. Pour 1/3 of it into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle the italian herb seasoning over the cut chicken. Stuff the uncooked manicotti shells with the chicken and then place on top of sauce in baking dish. Pour the rest of the sauce mix over the shells. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with cheese. Bake for an additional 5 minutes, uncovered, until cheese is bubbly. (Optional) Top with pepper, pesto or tomatoes to add more flavor!

superbowl sunday

I don't really care about either of the teams playing, but it sure gives me a good excuse to eat poorly. My in-laws are still here visiting, so we decided we are going to fire up the grill and make some brats. Then of course we have the traditional football snacks. Peanuts, chips and dip, crackers and cheeseballs, little smokies. Only today, I have a gigantic cookie frosted like a football field. YEAH! My pregnant self is going to eat a ton today.

Four years ago, we were watching the same match up with our friends at our first apartment in Illinois. Now we are watching it in Texas. Next year, I'll be watching the Superbowl, most likely alone, in Georgia. It is crazy to think how much has changed in the past 5 years and some odd time together with Chris. We've matured in so many ways. Moved almost every single year. Got married and had a son. Now we're expecting baby #2. Insane. If you were talking to me 4 years ago during the Giants/Patriots match up, I would have given you an entirely different scenario from what I am living today. 

Thinking about watching football alone would probably depress some people. I've come to accept it, though. 1. I love football and 2. Deployment is a part of our life now. I've spent many days, weeks, and even months on my own. It's a little bit of an adjustment, but I know I can do it. I have a few months to prepare for it. Not entirely such exactly how much time, since we won't know when he for sure will be leaving until we actually get to Fort Stewart, but it's not too early to start preparations. I'm not so much worried about myself as I am for his family. They've never dealt with anything like this. I grew up having friends and family in the military, so it's nothing new to me. I have to be strong for my husband and my kids, but also for my extended family. We can do it together. 

My mom finds it terrible that we are so young and already have to worry about living wills. I told her that, military or not, it's a good idea to have a will in place. You just never know what it will be your time. Well.. this blog just turned a little depressing. Sorry! Anyway, we're about to bust open some of this junk and prepare for this afternoon. Even though I don't care for either team, my bet is on the Giants. :)

crispy cheddar chicken

In the words of Chris, "This is restaurant quality." Although, I feel like he has to say that since he's my husband and all. It was pretty tasty. I feel like it wasn't as crispy as it should have been, though.

Ingredients (main):

4 large chicken breasts

1 1/2 sleeve of Ritz crackers

1/2 cup of milk

2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/8 teaspoon of pepper

1 teaspoon of dried parsley

Ingredient (sauce):

1 can (10.5oz) cream of chicken

2 tablespoons of butter

2 tablespoons of sour cream

Preheat oven to 400F. Cut each of the chicken breasts into 3 chunks. In a small food processor, grind up the ritz crackers (or put them in a gallon zip lock bag and bang the crap out of them). In 3 medium bowls, put cracker crumbs in one, milk in one, and cheese in one. Add the salt and pepper to the cracker crumbs and mix well. Dip each piece of chicken in the milk and then into the cheese. Press the cheese into the chicken with you fingers. Smother in the cracker crumbs. Some cheese may fall off during this, it's okay. Spray a deep baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and place chicken in the dish. Sprinkle the parsley over the chicken. Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove from oven and remove foil. Bake an additional 10 minutes, until golden brown and crispy. Meanwhile, in a medium sauce pan combine the cream of chicken, sour cream and butter until nice and hot. Pour over chicken and enjoy!

ham and cheese sliders

It's been a while since I've posted a new recipe. I've been on a pretty bland diet. Ever since finding out I was pregnant, I'm not allowed to take Nexium which means the GERD is back with a vengeance. I have a few new ones for you guys within the next 2 weeks. Not new as in I made them up (which I rarely do), but new to me and good enough to pass on! Now, this recipe called for poppy seeds, but I was unable to find them at the store. Instead of trying another store, I just omitted them. I'll still add them to the recipe though. You can either use them or not. The recipe is meant to make 24 sliders.

Ingredients (sandwich):

white dinner rolls

honey ham

sliced swiss cheese

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup miracle whip

Ingredients (Poppy seed sauce):

1/2 tablespoon poppy seeds

1 tablespoon yellow mustard

1/4 cup melted butter

1/2 tablespoon minced onions

1/4 teaspoon worchestershire sauce

In a small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise and miracle whip. Cut the rolls in half and spread on both sides of the bread. Place a piece of honey ham and swiss cheese on each roll bottom and then close with the top. I cut the cheese and ham in half and the fold them in half to fit them on the rolls. Place the rolls close together in a deep baking dish. In another bowl (or the same one rinsed out), mix together all ingredients for the poppy seed sauce. The original recipe says to pour the sauce over the rolls, but I used a marinade brush and just spread it evenly over the tops and sides so they wouldn't get super soggy. Let the sliders sit for 10 minutes to allow the butter to set slightly. During this time, preheat the oven to 350F. After the 10 minutes, cover with foil and bake for 12 minutes. Remove foul and bake for an additional 5 minutes, until the tops are slightly brown and crispy. Best served warm!

the joys of a toddler

Conner has definitely been giving us a run for our money. We started potty training back in December. I'm not going to lie, we haven't stuck to it very well. There are days where we just don't even try. Well, none of that anymore. He wore his last diaper yesterday and I am NOT buying anymore until this baby is born. From now on, it's underwear during the day, pull up during nap and bedtime. Here is where we run into our issue. When he is naked, he goes in the bathroom and pees all by himself. Once the underwear go on, he just assumes it's a diaper. The wetness does not even seem to bother him. It's very frustrating, especially seeing my friends kids of the same age or younger already potty trained. I get it, all kids are different, but I just want my kid to 'get it' and understand that underwear does not = diaper! We haven't even attempted working on the poop part yet. I need to get him trained with the pee part first. He does go into the bathroom and yell 'potty' at us when he poops, but he does it AS he is going, not before, so we can never get him on the toilet. Not to mention, he is TERRIFIED of sitting on the potty. The big one or the little one. Sigh. He'll get it eventually. Until then, I can't do anything since I have to stay at home and potty train.

On better notes, this is the second time Conner knew I was pregnant before we did. Before I had my miscarriage, he kept telling me 'baby'. I didn't know I was pregnant then until I had the miscarriage. He also did it this time, pointing to my belly and saying 'baby' before I found out. And now he keeps telling us 'baby sister'. Wouldn't that be awesome if it was a girl? I might have a toddler psychic on my hands, haha. He really loves being around babies so there is no doubt in my mind that he will be an awesome big brother. I can't wait until I get a bump going on and he can feel the baby move. He'll love it! 

big changes in 2012

And I do mean big. First big surprise of 2012 - We got orders to PCS to Fort Stewart, GA in June. Along with that PCS, Chris will also be deploying shortly after we get there. We've already started preparing mentally for what is to come. This is a part of the military life. It's going to happen and we just go with the flow. Easier said than done, I'm sure, but we intend to get through it stronger than ever. After all, they do say distance makes the heart grow fonder. But we also have a BIG surprise. Ready?

You are seeing that correctly, my friends. We are expecting! If you think this comes as a surprise to you, imagine what a surprise it was to us. On January 12 I was supposed to go to a routine appointment to get my birth control refilled. I always take an EPT to save myself and them some time from doing it at their office. Like any other time I've gone in to have the prescription written, I took it that morning. While it was sitting there doing it's thing, I continued to get myself and Conner ready for the day. I went back over to the sink and glanced and then did a double take. Instantly I was pushed into a panic attack. I sat down, shaking, with my head between my legs trying to figure out how it all happened so quickly. At the end of November, when Chris finished his last field time, we decided we would go ahead and try for another baby. However, At the end of December, I told him I'd rather wait since we would most likely be PCSing and along with that was the deployment. Plus, it took us 8ish months to get pregnant with Conner, so there was no way I would have been pregnant after barely a month of trying. I guess God had other plans! I also found it weird that I had zero symptoms. Had I had this appointment a few days later, the absence of my period would have given it away. It was the same with Conner. No symptoms at all with him and so far none with this one.

I calmed down just enough to call Chris, who was standing in first formation (awful timing, I know), but as soon as he answered I started babbling like a fool. He thought I had been in a car accident! Haha. So I finally get out that I don't think I can get back on birth control because the EPT was positive. I told him not to worry, I was headed to the doctor anyway and I'd have an answer when he got home. I get there and told them the happenings of the morning. They had me do a urine pregnancy test for them, but theirs was negative. With conflicting pregnancy tests, I had to do the blood test to see my HCG levels. Dr. Gomez said that if it came back positive, that she would call me by the end of the work day. If it was negative, I wouldn't receive a call. All day long I was pacing the house waiting for a call. Nothing! I just had this feeling that I was, so we went to the store and got another pregnancy test. It was also positive. Why didn't she call!? I planned to call her the next morning.

When I called, she was with a patient so they took a message. About an hour later, a nurse called me back to inform me that I was indeed pregnant and that Dr. Gomez had just gotten busy the afternoon before and had forgotten to call to tell me the results. It certainly was a little light for that mornings events. We had decided that we were not going to tell anyone right away, because that same morning we had gotten the call about Chris's uncle passing away. We wanted to give the family time to properly grieve before we hit them with our news. However, it has been SO hard to keep this a secret! Anyway, I made my appointment for OB orientation and first ultrasound. It's on February 8. With Conner's pregnancy, I didn't take belly pictures except the day we found out he was a boy. This one I will be taking them every 4 weeks. 

4 weeks. Promise it's not a bump. Just my fat!

The only downfall so far with this pregnancy is that I am not allowed to take medication for any chronic illnesses (with includes GERD). That Nexium was the only thing making the GERD bearable. Now I can only take Tums, which barely do anything for it.This just means I have to be much more careful about my intake of meats and red sauces. The dreadful heartburn will just continue to get worse, I'm sure. I might just end up throwing up with this pregnancy, unlike Conner's haha.

But that's our big news. :)

home-style italian meatballs

These can be used for a variety of things. I was originally going to make meatball subs, but realized too late that I had forgotten the french bread, so we ended up just eating tortellini with meatballs. Super easy to make, too!

Ingredients:

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/3 cup bread crumbs

1/4 cup finely shredded parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons dried parsley (or 1/4 cup freshly chopped)

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1 teaspoon of salt

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 pound of lean ground beef

1 tablespoon of olive oil

24 oz marinara pasta sauce

1/2 cup of water

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, parsley, onion, salt, crushed red pepper and garlic. Add in the ground beef and mix well. Shape the mixture into about 18 meatballs. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add in the meatballs (you may have to do multiple batches) and cook for about 10 minutes, turning occasionally, until brown. Drain off the fat and transfer the meatballs into a crock pot. Pour the marinara sauce and water over the top of the meatballs. Cover and cook on low heat setting for 5 hours or high heat setting for 2 1/2 hours. Enjoy!