Christmas Letter 2012

28 Weeks - 3rd Trimester!

As of yesterday I am 28 weeks which means more belly pictures:)  This pregnancy is going by so fast I can hardly believe it.  I went to see my doctor this morning and heard our baby girl's strong heartbeat - so fun!

24 Weeks

Belly Shots are always awkward... but I want to be able to share this pregnancy with family and friends that I don't get to see regularly :)   I don't take pictures regularly but just random weeks to send to my mom.  Here is the baby belly progress up to where I am now at 24 weeks. 

Color Run 2012

I ran the Color Run with my friend Maddie.  Basically it was a 5K, where every 1K they would throw a different color of powder (cornstarch) on you.  It wasn't timed, so it was more of a fun run.  It was fun to do and I'm glad we did it!  Friends/Family in Utah - you should run the race there next month :) 

Here are some pictures:

Before

They said there were 7,000 people running the race.  They started people in waves.  We were in the 2nd wave.

Starting Line

With our bandanna's so we wouldn't inhale the powder along the route

Ready for the run to start

Getting to the finish line

After

Scott was nice to drive us out to the race and take pictures for us - so I shared my color:)

After the race every 10 minutes, they would have a color party and people would throw more colored powder in the air. 

February 2013...

We are so excited!!!

Farmington 5k and 10k 2012

When I was in Utah the middle of July my brother Cameron and I ran the Farmington 10k.  My parents and sister Courtney along with my cousin Danielle ran the 5k.  I was so happy that they all came to run with me.  It was very fun!  Scott's parents, his brother Erik and his wife Camille with their kids were there as well.  It was fun to see them!  I have to say running in a smaller city is so nice.  The last 5k I did in NYC, there were like 7,000 people that ran.  It was a nice change:) 

Here are a few pictures: 

Dad, Mom, Court, Me, Cameron

Me, Danielle, Mom, Courtney

Courtney, Me, Cameron, Dad, Mom, Danielle

P.S. I love my neon Nike Frees - they are amazing shoes!



Blogging Break

It's been over 3 months now since I have blogged... that is a long time! 

I remember the thing that stopped my blogging.  That was when my grandma passed away in April.  I didn't want to blog until I wrote something about her, but every time I sat down to write a blog post dedicated to her, it just made me sad all over again.  I still have that post sitting in my drafts unfinished.  So I just didn't blog.

Then Scott went to Utah for four weeks for an away rotation for school, and it was really hard for me.  So I didn't blog.  There were good things that happened during that time that I should have blogged about.  Like when I got to visit Scott in Utah and spend time with my family.  Or when my friend Lindsay had her beautiful baby Annie and I got to hold her.  But then Robert and Lindsay moved to St. Louis with Annie and that was really hard.  So I didn't blog.

Scott came back from Utah and it was so nice to have him back!  But there was a looming reminder everyday that he would be leaving again in a few weeks for Seattle.  So I didn't blog. 

Scott left for Seattle for another four week away rotation and it was just as hard doing this the second time around.  I've had a really hard time being husbandless... so I didn't feel like blogging.  I went to Utah to see my family and had an amazing trip!  I should have blogged about that - it's actually still on my to do list:)  Then coming back to NY after the visit was really hard.  I didn't want to come back to be alone.  The weekends are the hardest.  Now, Scott comes back one week from Saturday, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.  So the end of this lonely summer is coming and I finally feel like I want to blog again.  Things are looking up, and I'm feeling good about things again. 

I have realized in my blogging that I don't like to blog about things that are hard or make me sad.  These are the times that I sort of withdraw.  I have seen some of the things that my friends have gone through - really, really hard things.  Yet, they blog to share their experiences to help in their healing which could perhaps help someone else.  Sorry for the rambling, I just felt like I wanted to explain why I've been MIA on this blog for a while.  I'm back now, and life is good!

Orecchiette with Cherry Tomatoes, Mozzarella & Basil Pesto

We tried this recipe on Sunday and loved it!  Very good, and very quick to put together.  I added a few of my comments in green below.

Ingredients:
1/2 lb. orecchiette pasta
kosher salt
2 T. olive oil
1/2 lb. cherry tomatoes, halved -put all of these tomatoes in - mmmmm :)
2 T. basil pesto
1/2 lb. ciliegene (small balls) mozzarella (We used the small balls of mozzarella, but when I make this again I will just buy regular fresh mozzarella and cut it up.)
fresh basil - If you have small tender leaves, leave them whole; otherwise, chiffonade the basil
parmesan
fresh cracked black pepper
*We added a little chicken for Scott, but it definitely didn't need to have it

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a pinch of kosher salt. Add pasta and cook till al dente, about 9 minutes. (Package instructions said 11 minutes but the pasta will continue cooking as its tossed with the other ingredients so it’s best to undercook it a little bit.) Drain pasta. Do not rinse.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the cherry tomatoes and cook for 30 seconds. Add pasta and pesto. Cook 1 minute, stirring to coat pasta with the pesto. Add the mozzarella. Stir to incorporate. Add the fresh basil and remove from the heat.

Divide pasta among bowls and sprinkle each with freshly grated parmesan. Crack the pepper overtop and serve.

Servings:  4

Scotland Run - 10K

I ran my 10k last Saturday!  The course was the loop through Central Park.  It was super crowded, but very fun!  It was the Scotland Run so there were a lot of people in Kilts, and people playing bagpipes at the mile markers.  I was worried it was going to be really cold, but it was perfect weather for a run.  Scott came down with me cheered me on at the finish line.  I ran 11 min/miles, so not very fast at all... but my goal was not to stop at all and I accomplished that.  I also enjoyed running, which shows I have come a long way :)

I have decided that running is a mental game for me.  If I tell myself I can't do it, then I can't and I have to stop.  I am slowly learning this and now give myself encouragement during my runs.  I did this during the race, when I was running uphill.  I would tell myself that it wasn't bad, and felt good, and at the top I would get the reward of running downhill.  It totally worked, and I enjoyed the run!  Now I just need to tell myself to run faster! 

Wet Paint

Anyone that knows me well know that when I see a sign that says "Wet Paint" I just have to touch to see if it's really wet.  This was no exception when my parents and sister Courtney were in town last week.  We were down in the subway station, waiting for the train and we saw the sign.  Courtney and Scott pointed it out and dared me to touch it. There were other people on the platform, so we tried to be sneaky and take a picture quickly (which explains the blurriness).

P.S. It wasn't wet!

Soft and Chewy Snickerdoodles

I made these on Sunday, and they turned out really well!  I thought I would share the recipe.

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups sugar (12.25 oz), divided
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 1/2 cups (12.5 oz) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt*
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter* (not margarine) at room temp
8 tablespoons vegetable shortening
2 large eggs
*if using salted butter, just omit table salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon in shallow dish and set aside. Whisk flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl.

Beat butter, shortening, and remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-6 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until incorporated, about 30 seconds, scraping down bowl as needed.

Reduce speed of mixer to low and slowly add flour mixture until combined, about 30 seconds. Give dough final stir to ensure that no flour pockets remain.

I chilled my dough at this point to make it easier to roll into balls.

Working with 2 tablespoons of dough at a time, roll into balls. Working in batches, roll dough balls in cinnamon sugar mixture to coat and set on prepared baking sheet spaced 2 inches apart.

Bake 1 sheet at a time until edges of cookies are set and just barely beginning to brown, but centers are still soft and puffy, about 10-12 minutes. The cookies should look raw between the cracks and seem underdone. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature. Makes about 2 dozen 3-4 inch cookies.

Newsies

My parents and younger sister Courtney came to visit us this last week.  They took us to see Newsies on Broadway.  It was AMAZING!!  I loved it!  The dancing was so fun to watch in person.  If you have a chance to see Newsies, definitely go.  I want to see it again!

25th Birthday!

My birthday was on March 30th, it was a great day!  

My day started off with waking up to these decorations Scott put up for me while I was sleeping:)  I was very impressed - I love our tradition of decorating for birthdays. 

Some friends at work took me out for lunch.  I had delicious cupcakes, and other things that people brought in.  The work day went by really fast.

After work I went with Scott and my friend Maddie to see The Hunger Games.  I was excited to see it because I liked the books.  The movie did not disappoint at all!  It was really good - I was on the edge of my seat the whole time!

After the movie, Maddie came over with her husband Dan and we had birthday dessert.  We had my traditional Strawberry Shortcake - mmmmm :)  I can't remember a year where I did not have that for my birthday dessert.    

Scott spoiled me with the last season of Boy Meets World and a few other things.  I can now say that I own all of the seasons of Boy Meets World!

It was a fantastic birthday!  Here's to next year!

"I think I'll go to Boston..."

Remember the Augustana song "Boston"?  In the music video they are on the beach playing their instruments.  The water starts rushing over everything including the drums and piano...  Here it is in case you haven't seen it.  Anyways...

We decided to go to Boston to visit our friends Jonathan and Ashley in Boston last weekend.  This was our second trip to Boston so we were excited.  We took a bus on Friday night and stayed with them in their cute Boston apartment.  On Saturday, I went on a run with Ashley in the morning - she was so nice to slow down and run my pace:)  It was fun to run around their neighborhood.  Then they took us to a bakery to get blueberry scones for breakfast.  They were amazing!  We got cleaned up from our run and decided to do a tour of Harvard.  It was fun to hear stories and history of Harvard and some of the buildings.  The Hansen's showed us around different neighborhoods.  We got some lunch to warm up - because it was chilly that weekend.  We went by Mike's bakery of course to pick up some treats.  Then later that night we had our first experience with Ethiopian food.  It took a long time to get into the restaurant but it was worth it!  It was so good!  It was fun to try something new:)  In between all of this we got a lot of chatting time with the Hansen's.  We headed back to NY on Sunday morning.  It was so good to catch up, and they were the best hosts!  It was fun to escape NY for a weekend.   They will be moving back here soon and we are very excited!

Here are some pictures from Ashley's (Hansen, not me) phone.  Thanks Ashley!

Ooey Gooey Blueberry French Toast

I made this recipe on Saturday for a Relief Society Activity.  It turned out very good, so I thought I would share the recipe.  I originally got this recipe from a cooking class in college.  Just a warning this is not a low-fat recipe:)

Ooey Gooey Blueberry French Toast

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
14 slices home-style white bread, crusts discarded and bread cut into 1-inch cubes (I used french bread)
2 (9 ounce) packages cold cream cheese, cut into 1 inch cubes (I used 1 package regular, and 1 package 1/3 fat Neufchatel cheese since that's what I had)
1 cup blueberries, picked over and rinsed
10 large eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup fresh-squeezed orange juice

Directions:
Butter a baking dish with the tablespoon of butter (I just sprayed the pan with cooking spray). Arrange half of the bread cubes on the bottom of the baking dish. Top the bread cubes with the cream cheese cubes and blueberries and arrange the remaining bread cubes over the blueberries.

In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, syrup, and orange juice. Pour the egg mixture evenly over the bread mixture. Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.

Remove the baking dish from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature for about 20 minutes. Position rack in center of oven and preheat the oven to 350.

Bake the “French toast” with foil cover for 30 minutes. Using oven mitts or pot holders, remove the baking dish from the oven, remove the foil, and return the dish to the oven until toast is golden brown and puffed, about 30 more minutes. Using oven mitts or pot holders, remove the baking dish from the oven and allow to sit until slightly cooled, about 15 minutes.

Serve in bowls with blueberry sauce ladled over the top.

Blueberry Sauce - can be made in advance and kept refrigerated for up to one week.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup fresh-squeezed orange juice
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoons orange zest
1 1/2 cups blueberries, picked over and rinsed
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions:
In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stir together the sugar, water, orange juice, cornstarch, and orange zest. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5 minutes.

Stir in the blueberries and simmer the mixture, stirring occasionally, until the berries have burst, about 5 minutes. Add the butter and stir until melted. Remove from heat and serve.