Flavor Fest

We've started introducing a few new foods and surprisingly, Hunter is less than eager to chow down on the apples and sweet potatoes we've tried so far. Check out how it all went down, or should I say, how it all came out:

A Solid Performance

Tonight, we introduced "solids" on recommendation from the pediatrician. It was no surprise that Hunter loved his rice cereal, since he's always had an appetite the size of Texas. But, we were surprised at how well he responded to the goo-filled spoon fulls. Check out our little cereal-eating-cutie in the video below.

State Fair 2008

As some of you may have noticed in my current craves, I had a great time at the State Fair last Sunday! You see, the State Fair is home to endless booths of wonderfully-bad-for-you-goodness, served up in under 60 seconds, giving you plenty of time to sample the next fare in line. I'm convinced the State Fair is a pregnant woman's heaven. I mean, where else can you get fried twinkies, ice cream, pickles, corn dogs and cotton candy? Mmmmm, I'm smiling just thinking about it. Too bad the fair only comes around once a year!

Here are pics of Mama, me and Jamie making our way through the crowds last Sunday:

See my baby belly!

Recipe for a Happy Mama

2 slices of honey wheat bread
2 slices BBQ chicken breast
2 slices of Honey Ham
1 slice Muenster cheese
two big fat slices of tomato
Kosher dill Pickles
Mayo on both sides
Salt & Pepper to taste

Yep, it's a sandwich, the ingredients for which cost $17.42 at Target on my way home tonight. But, this wasn't just any sandwich. This is the sandwich I've been fantasizing about since 11:25am, when my coworker unpacked her lunch, and proceeded to enjoy a similar spread as I sat and worked, stomach growling, waiting for a more reasonable time to eat lunch.

You see, if I ate lunch when I actually started getting hungry, I'd be chowing down at 10:00am every day. Do you know how long the rest of your day feels when you eat lunch at 10:00am?!?! Very, very long.

So, I waited until 12:30pm, proceeded to Arby's thinking I could get a delicious market fresh sandwich to curb my craving. But, no, it couldn't be that easy. Arby's was out of the sandwich I wanted, so I settled for a chicken club and fries, which, of course tasted terrible, as everything does, until you feed a craving.

But, not to worry, at 7:35pm tonight, after cheerful banter with the deli guy and a mad dash around the grocery aisles, I had my sandwich. My glorious sandwich. And, now, I am one happy mama.

Extendo-belts & Safety pins

So, I'm not really "showing" yet. As in, if you didn't know I was pregnant, you probably wouldn't know... You might just think I was a little chunky. But I know. And all my pants know, too. My jeans, my dress slacks, my skirts, anything with a waistband, they all know, and they are getting tired of being cinched and pinned and lassoed with my new found friend, the extendo-belt. Sure, it has a cute name like bella belly belt or something like that, but it's really just a clever snappy thing that corrals your two closest belt loops and cinches the un-buttonable. But what about those pants that don't have belt loops, you ask? This is where the almighty safety pin comes into play. One, two, sometimes three or more are needed to ensure a smooth-appearing waistband... add a long top to cover those shiny give-aways and voila! maternity-shmaternity. Who needs maternity clothes?!

There's just one problem... yesterday, the unthinkable happened. My beloved casual-but still dressy enough for work-comfortable-black pants not only refused to button.... they wouldn't even zip up! This can't happen at only 9 weeks!!! What's gonna happen at 20 weeks... or even worse... 40?!?!?! Guess I should start cutting back on the Bojangles french fries and boiled peanuts...

Homemade Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients:
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts or strips
1 can of chicken broth
10 chicken bouillon cubes
1 pkg cream cheese (8 oz)
2 cups Mexican style shredded cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup of medium salsa
1 small can of premade enchilada sauce
10-12 small, soft corn tortillas
onion powder
salt & pepper
1 8x13" glass baking dish

Prepare Chicken.
Place chicken in crockpot, sprinkle onion powder, salt and pepper to taste. Pour can of broth over chicken. Add 3-4 bouillon cubes. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours. Once chicken is cooked, remove and shred by hand. Reserve broth for use in cheese sauce.

Prepare Cheese Sauce.
In a blender, mix reserved broth, cream cheese, shredded mozzarella, flour, salsa, 1 cup mexican cheese, and 6 bouillon cubes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Blend until creamy. Transfer sauce to medium sized saucepan and heat sauce over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring often. When sauce has thickened, remove from heat.
**Need more heat? Replace medium salsa with 1/3 cup of hot salsa.

Assemble Enchiladas.
First, cover the bottom of your baking dish with 1/2 cup of cheese sauce. Warm tortillas in microwave for 20 seconds to make them more pliable. Laying each tortilla flat, spoon one tablespoon of cheese sauce over entire inside of tortilla. Next, layer mozzerella and chicken. Roll up and place seam-side down into baking dish. Fill the baking dish completely with enchiladas to help prevent them from unrolling while baking. Pour remaining cheese sauce over assembled enchiladas and sprinkle remaining mexican cheese on top. Bake at 375 uncovered for 20 minutes.
**Short on time? Layer cheese sauce, chicken and tortillas like lasagna. Not as pretty, but just as good.

Remove from oven, drizzle premade enchilada sauce on top to taste. Serve with refried beans, Lipton's Taco Rice or salad. Serves 4-6.

I am now able to rent cars...

Well, that's what the waiter at The Melting Pot pointed out last night as we ate our way to pure fondue gluttony. Of all the things he could have said in relation to my 25th birthday, he chose to comment on my car-renting abilities. Funny stuff. Anyways, here are some pics from dinner last night. I have to admit, it was the best birthday dinner ever :)

I have a great husband, y'all.