Baby R: 1st Trimester - 14 Weeks Recap

I've been asked a lot about how the pregnancy is going so far, so I thought I'd give you all a little update.

There are some women who absolutely love being pregnant and it's a wonderful joyful experience. And then there are those who have a different experience. Not to say I don't enjoy being pregnant (I am amazed the human body can grow another person and it's pretty cool to be doing so), but there are definitely times when I have not enjoyed the side effects that come with it.

For example, morning sickness. I can really only equate my experience to having the stomach flu for 2 months straight. Things got really bad around week 10 and my doctor put me on baby-safe meds to help. Thankfully things seem to be tapering off now that I'm out of the 1st trimester. 

Fresh fruit seemed to help. I ate a lot of peaches!

Minestrone soup was also a staple.

Fatigue is pretty common in 1st Tri as well and my running/exercise in general got put on the back burner. I've noticed my lung capacity isn't what it used to be and my running pace has gotten a lot slower. I haven't even attempted going more than a couple miles at a time. I need to work on this since I've got the Disneyland 10k coming up in less than a week!

A little update on my running- at 14 weeks, I was able to get out there and make some progress! It's been slow going and I am still really nervous about not finishing the race, but at least I'm getting somewhere!

Eating has completely changed. I always assumed once pregnant, I would want to eat everything. And that was the case for the first couple weeks. Then I quickly discovered I couldn't eat as much as I used to. I used to be able to be able to eat a full prime rib dinner with mashed potatoes and veggies (mmm, now I'm getting hungry just thinking about it), but now I can barely eat 2 sliders without feeling full. But that fullness doesn't last long. You'll find me poking around the fridge a few hours later. :)

At the family 4th of July BBQ, there was a blind taste testing wine game. Sadly, I could not participate. :( 

But even harder than giving up alcohol, has been giving up sushi. Sushi is like it's own food group for me. Yes, I can still eat all the cooked stuff, but nothing satisfies quite like fresh salmon sashimi.

On more than one occasion, I have used the excuse "but baby NEEDS ice cream!" and yes, my dear husband *almost* always gives in. :) I've craved boba tea and pretty much anything that is cold. We went through a very minor heat wave here (nothing compared to the heat I experienced in Texas), but I found myself dragging the fan next to me as I lay on the couch. My body temp has definitely increased, something I was not expecting. It's been odd to say the least.

I was a bridesmaid around week 8- that pudge is mostly a good steak dinner baby. ;)


I was craving Dole Whip and my hubby found some locally! It's not quite the same without the Tiki Room atmosphere, but it hit the spot.

Life is happening fast around here and it seems like there's so much to do before baby arrives. We know we need to move out of our tiny one bedroom apartment, so we're searching for a new place to live. There's so much to research as well- car seats, strollers, carriers, cloth diapers, bottles, etc. Eeek!

If you made it this far, thanks for reading! I'll try to post updates more frequently. :) 

The Best Layered Taco Dip (Seriously)

Layered Taco Dip

I'm sure you've tasted or at least seen some kind of layered dip, but this one takes the cake. It's got extra ingredients for more flavor!

Any time there's a potluck or I host a party, I make this. It's always the first to go and people rave about it the entire time. This kind of tastiness needs to be shared. I hope you enjoy my signature dish!

Ingredients

- 1 can (10 oz) refried beans

- 1 small can diced jalapeños

- 1 box Avo Guacamole 

- 1 cup (8 oz) sour cream 

- 1 cup mayo

- 1 pkg taco seasoning 

- 1 small can (3 oz) chopped olives

- 1 small can diced chili peppers

- 6 Roma tomatoes, diced and pat dry on paper towels

- 1 bag finely shredded cheese (Mexican blend)

- tortilla chips for dipping!

- 9x13 inch dish

** You can use reduced fat alternatives (mayo, sour cream, refried beans); it'll still taste amazing!

To prep your layers- drain liquid out of cans (jalapeños, chilies, olives). If more than one ingredient in the layer, mix together before spreading.

Layers in order of going into dish (bottom to top)

Layer 1: refried beans & jalapeños

Layer 2: guacamole

Layer 3: sour cream, mayo, chilies, olives, taco seasoning

Layer 4: diced tomatoes

Layer 5: shredded cheese

Expecting a new set of ears...

I am happy to announce that my husband and I are...

DIY Mickey Ice Cream Bar Ear Headband

Want Mickey ears like the ones I had for my ice cream bar costume?

I'll show you how to make them!

You'll need:

- 2 craft foam circles (I found these at Michaels in the floral section)

- a headband (fabric covered is best, not plastic)

- white felt (one sheet)

- brown felt (two sheets to be on the safe side)

- hot glue & glue gun

(I ended up not using the embroidery floss)

For each ear, shave down one of the edges so that the ear will lay flush against the headband.

Put your headband around something to mimic it being on your head. Use the hot glue to attach to the headband, centering the circles. 

Don't forget: On one ear, chisel out the bite of the ear. :)

Take the headband with attached ears and lay one ear on the brown felt. Trace around the ear, adding a 1/2 inch extra around the ear. Mark the points at the base of the ears where it meets the arc headband. Wrap the felt around to the other side of the ear and mark the points at the base of that side of the ear. Trace around that side of the ear, again adding an extra 1/2 inch around the ear. You should have something that resembles 2 circles connected by a short rectangle/square.

Repeat for the other ear, being careful to go around the bite.

Glue the brown felt to one side of the ear (you'll have that 1/2 inch hanging over the edge), then wrap the felt around the headband to the other side of the ear. That little part in the middle will ensure the ear doesn't pop off your headband. Now glue the other side of the felt to the ear. 

Now let's work on the extra around the ears. Clip the 1/2 inch of extra brown felt and glue each piece down. The round flat circles of the ears should be covered, but you should still see some foam on the curved part. 
Cut a strip of brown felt the width of the foam circle. This will go around the circumference of the circle. Glue the brown felt, paying close attention to the edges.

Repeat for the bitten ear, also cut a strip of white felt the width of the foam. Glue the white into the bite, trim excess if needed.

And you're done!

As a last minute addition, I sewed a small piece of elastic between the two ends of the headband to make the whole thing tighter. I didn't have to adjust them the entire Wine & Dine half marathon, even through the rain!

Crunchy Thai Peanut Quinoa Salad

I am always on the lookout for tasty lunch options. I love salads, but sometimes they just aren't filling enough and by the end of the work day, I'm shoving quarters as fast as I can into the break room vending machine.

I love to make this delicious Thai Crunch Salad w/ Peanut Dressing for work, but I wanted something more filling. So when I found this recipe for a Crunchy Cashew Thai Quinoa Salad w/ Ginger Peanut Dressing, I knew I had to give it a try.

I ended up using a combination of the two recipes- the dressing part of the first recipe (modified a bit) and the salad part of the second recipe. I found the dressing for the quinoa salad to have too much soy sauce and was way too salty. Plus, I already prefer the taste of the other dressing.

It's an easy salad to make; cook the quinoa, chop all the veggies, blend the dressing in a food processor, toss and voila! Yummy salad!

Crunchy Thai Peanut Quinoa Salad

Salad

1 cup uncooked quinoa

2 cups red cabbage, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 carrot, shredded

1/2 a red onion, chopped

1/3 cup chopped green onions

1/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves

1/2 cup cashews or peanuts

1/2 cup edamame, shelled and cooked

Dressing* 

1/3 cup peanut butter

1 tbsp red wine vinegar (or unseasoned rice vinegar)

2 tbsp fresh lime juice

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp honey

1/2" square ginger, chopped

1 clove of garlic

1/2 tsp salt

3 tbsp cilantro leaves

1 tsp sesame oil (optional)

1/2 tsp red chili pepper flakes (optional)

* When making the dressing, don't forget to taste test and tweak it to your personal preferences. I rarely follow the recipe to a T, I add a bit more here and there until I like the flavor. I enjoy spicy, so I add more chili flakes! :)

Directions

Cook the quinoa first. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add quinoa, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until all water is gone.

While the quinoa cooks and cools, chop and prep all your veggies. If you need to, cook the edamame.

I love the vibrant colors of the salad!

Red onions, carrots, red cabbage, red bell pepper, green onions, and cilantro.

Let's make the dressing!

Throw all the ingredients into a food processor and blend. Add move olive oil if it's too thick. Don't thin it out too much; it should be the consistency of a sauce.

After letting the quinoa cool, mix all the ingredients together. Don't add the dressing all at once. Add a little at a time as the dressing can definitely overpower the salad. I found that I did not use all the dressing I had made.

Since I'll be taking leftovers to work, I didn't add the cashews yet. I'll add those the day of.

Enjoy!

Jumping into Spring!

If at any point I thought Winter was going by slowly, Spring will certainly be the opposite. I still can't believe that today is the last day of March! I felt like I blinked and February was over. Anyone else feel the same?

Things at work are starting to get crazy for both me and my husband, so the weekends were packed with relaxation and unwinding with friends. We tried a new restaurant that has crabby cheesy garlic bread. Yes, it's as delicious and it sounds! Mmmm...

We also went bowling. That counts as exercise, right? ;) 

I've also been making a lot of bows (these are only some of the bows that went out last Tuesday) for my Etsy shop. The majority of these are for a bachelorette party at Disneyland.

** Note: if you're interested in ordering bows for the Tinker Bell Half Marathon Weekend (May 7th-10th), please place your order before April 12th. I will be putting the shop on vacation mode on the 13th to ensure all bows get to their new owners on time. If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment or use the contact area to the right on this blog. :) **

Although I've done less running than I have in a long time, I'm still keeping up with my fitness. I've actually been more diligent about it than ever!

Earlier this month, my husband and I had a heart-to-heart with each other. We had both let our fitness and eating habits get out of control and we made a plan to help each other get back on track.

We agreed to 21 days of healthy eating and exercising everyday.

We stuck to it and it's really made a difference! It was a lot of salads and protein with steamed veggies. For my work outs, I use an app called FitStar where they have short 20 minute sessions where you don't need any weights, etc, sort of like some Jillian Michaels DVDs.

I lost 2 lbs and a couple inches off my mid-section. I've noticed my muscles are more toned and in general I feel a lot better. I also have a lot more endurance when I run, perfect for my 10k next month. It's been almost a full month and I've stuck with working out every day; now I'm challenging myself to twice a day! :)

How was your March? Do you have plans for Spring? 

Featured today on Fairytales and Fitness!

Good Morning!

Check out Meranda's (of Fairytales and Fitness) recap of the Frozen 5k from the recent Princess Half Marathon weekend! My Disney bows are also featured in the post. :)