Pregnancy Take 2

If it seems like my blog has only been about cooking recently, you're right! I'm not sure why it's been the only thing I've been motivated to post about as there have been so many other interesting things going on for me. I figured I'd take a few moments and reflect on what has made this pregnancy SO different from the last one before she's out and I'm too busy with a newborn to post anything!

• At home, I felt like my husband and I were talking about my first pregnancy all the time. We discussed names for a much longer time, talked about what baby gear we needed, and went through a lot more of the excitement and fears of "new parents."
• This second time around, we barely discussed the fact that I was even pregnant until much later. I think some of that came from anxiety over the loss I had in between pregnancies and the threatened loss at the beginning of this pregnancy, some came from being busier around the house with a 3 year old, and some came from the comfort zone of "knowing what to expect."
• At work, last time I felt like my baby bump was akin to a big, burning scarlet letter. I was an intern doing my residency and when I revealed my pregnancy to my chief residents because I needed a few hours off to get the quad screen ultrasound, they refused. After that, I was afraid to allow my pregnancy to be seen as a sign of weakness and didn't ask for any special treatment until I finally broke down and asked (under medical advisement) NOT to do a 24 hour call at 38+ weeks.
• During this pregnancy my work has been amazing! They have been completely flexible about what I want to do for maternity leave, how I want my patients scheduled, and are constantly offering to cut back my hours or responsibilities if I feel I need a break.
• During bug's pregnancy I struggled a lot with how my body was "letting me down." I am naturally a busy person and didn't like how tired and achy my body got and felt very antagonistic towards what was happening a lot of the time. I really didn't like being pregnant because I felt like it was stopping me from being me. Probably also due to the attitude I encountered at work, I felt I couldn't ever take it down a notch or ask for help which made me more stressed.
• I think I was prepared for that to happen again this time and have been pleasantly surprised that it hasn't. The pregnancy itself has been similar (reflux a little worse, weight gain a little less), but I feel more in sync with my body and do what I can and accept the times I need to back off. 
• Prepping for a baby was a lot harder (although more exciting) last time because we were starting from scratch. When getting ready for bug, we had to accumulate all the "baby stuff" which meant numerous shopping trips for nursery furniture, researching and refining registry choices, baby showers, and SO many thank you notes.
• This time we literally have everything. We didn't even think about setting up the nursery or the bassinet or anything until about two weeks ago when we realized she could actually be born and come home any day. Then, it was a matter of dusting things off that were in the basement and collecting other things from where they were being stored at grandparent houses. So much easier, but a bit anti-climactic.

All of the other differences aside, I think the absolute biggest contributing factor to what made this pregnancy different was having bug around. She has made this pregnancy harder in many ways - I can't just flop on the couch and do nothing at the end of the night, I don't get much "alone time" to re-group, and I am constantly picking up her little girl messes that don't bother Daddy, but drive me insane. On the other hand, she has been a fresh new person to share the fun and excitement with and her reactions to my pregnancy have been some of my favorite moments. I love to see her face light up when she feels the baby kick. I crack up every time she tells me to open my mouth so she can "talk to her sister." And my husband and I have shared more than a few giggles at her attempts to understand breast-feeding (she nurses her dolls and gets very concerned about why I don't have milk for her sister yet...). 

So as this pregnancy draws to a close, I have to say it's had it's own challenges and I'll be happy when it's over, but I feel much more at peace and content at this stage then I did 3 1/2 years ago...

Friday Five Favs: Pumpkin Recipes

Fall is absolutely, positively my favorite time of year for baking and pumpkin is by far my favorite main ingredient. I have been lazy so far and been using canned pumpkin puree, but I promised the bug we would try our hand at roasting our own pumpkin very soon. Here are some of my favorite pumpkin recipes that I've discovered this year - be warned I like my baked goods heavy on the spices and usually double what is called for in most recipes.

1. Almost Famous Pumpkin Cheesecake from the Food Network: I made this last week for our cousin's husband's birthday and it was a huge hit. The only changes I made were: to add some cinnamon and nutmeg to the graham cracker crumbs when I was making the crust, I didn't add pecans to the top, and I make my whipped cream with a dash of vanilla extract and a tablespoon or so of confectioner's sugar.

2. Pumpkin Pie Bars from Annie's Eats: I also made these for our cousin's husband's birthday because I wanted a different option because I didn't know what everyone would have a taste for. These really do come out with a creamy pie texture and are wonderful - my father-in-law liked these even better than the cheesecake (which was a big success). The only thing I changed was to omit the nuts because I didn't know if there were any allergy issues.

3. Pumpkin Whoopie Pies from Made in Melissa's Kitchen: I made these as a dessert the time before her husband's birthday when we went to our cousin's house for dinner - have you noticed a trend? Her husband loves baked goods so much that I find it very gratifying to bake for him:-) These were absolutely amazing! The cookie/cake batter is perfectly spiced and keeps the fall flavor prominent even with the sweet frosting. The only downside is the cream cheese in the frosting means you have to chill them and that makes the cake part get a little sticky and moist. I would like to try them again with a straight buttercream.

4. Pumpkin Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Buttercream from Made in Melissa's Kitchen: Bug and I made these for fun one weekend and everyone who tried them was blown away by how good they were. I was impressed with how spicy and moist the cake came out (I did double all the spices except the ginger) and how totally indulgent the salted caramel buttercream was. I had multiple coworkers in my office rave that this frosting was their favorite they have ever tasted.

5. Pumpkin Pancakes from The Curvy Carrot: We made these for breakfast last weekend and I thought they were quite yummy. Beating the egg whites gives the pancakes a really light and fluffy texture that is worth trying if you have never made a pancake like this. Definitely at least double the spice called for to get the fall flavor you'd expect from a pumpkin pancake.

Slow Cooker Apple Butter

This weekend I realized my apple supply was dwindling AND they were starting to get some soft spots. As we were planning to be out of the house all day, I couldn't dedicate myself to any big baking projects to use them up before they spoiled. I quickly scanned my list of "to do" apple recipes and realized that nothing fit! Always willing to improvise when it comes to cooking, I did a quick google search and decided to switch my overly-ambitious-stand-by-the-stove-for-2-hours-stirring (really, I have no idea what I was thinking...) apple butter for a slow cooker version. I was NOT disappointed by the swap and I don't think you will be either because this recipe is delicious!

 Based off a recipe found here from My Baking Addiction...

4 pounds apples - peeled, cored and sliced
1 cup granulated sugar*
1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed*
2 teaspoons apple pie spice
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 cup apple cider
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
*I used more sugar because my apples were a tart variety. If you have sweeter apples, scale back your sugar*

1. Chop up all apples and pile into your crockpot.
2. Mix both sugars and all spices together until blended in a medium sized bowl.
3. Pour sugar/spice mixture over apple slices and stir.
4. Add apple cider to crockpot.
5. Cook on low heat setting for approximately 7 hours.
6. Add vanilla extract and stir mixture well. It will have darkened in color and many of the apples will have "dissolved" into the mixture. Cook 1 more hour.
7. Turn off heat and use blender to puree mixture (use immersion blender if you have one!). Be careful as it is going to be very hot!
8. This recipe made four small mason jars (with a little extra that I just spooned into a small bowl). If you can be sure you have people to distribute it to that will use it within 2 weeks, your work is done! I went the extra step and canned it according to the instructions here.