Food my Mom could never get away with...

I love making good food. Although, you probably wouldn't have been able to predict that if you knew me growing up. I come from a family of ridiculous picky eaters, much to my mothers chagrin. Mom would have made good food everyday if she didn't have SIX 'I don't like that! Ewwww gross! It's got sauce on it! BEANS?!?!?! BARF!!!! <>... etc... mouths to feed every night for about 18 years straight. When I went off to school, I discovered how expensive food was (I was only able to work 20 hrs a week at $6.50 and had rent to pay). Ramen became a staple. So did pasta-roni; you can throw in a can of veggies and almost think 'Hey! This is a well balanced meal!' almost. Every time I eat momma's cooking now, I'm much much less likely to complain about it. Although, according to my husband, I'm still a picky eater (little does he know!!!). 

As many of you know, Chad is in the military. He's my favorite soldier in the whole wide world! Our first couple years of marriage have been... interesting... lonely... chaotic. He's been gone from our marriage a lot: our of the last 30 months, he's been gone 13 solid months, and about 2 months more in sporadic spurts. In the foreseeable future, he's going to add another month and a half to that list. It's safe to say he splits his time almost evenly between us and them (at least until he deploys next year). He's been home about a year now (minus random training events) and I've run out of things to make. I haven't needed to expand my repertoire since recently, but I'm pretty sure he's glad we're not eating the five things I'm good at making over and over again every week.

I've inherited one of Moms' talents: I can sort of toss things together randomly and they'll taste good. It comes in handy when I need to add a little more to feed more than just my family, or when I've got leftovers that need using. It's also a handy thing to have in my pocket of abilities when trying new recipes out. Today's conquered meal: Parmesan Couscous Sausage Bake.

Let me tell you: It looks YUMMY! It's got a bunch of things in there that would make my younger self cringe. It's got stuff in there my mom would love. It's got stuff in there that only one of my siblings would eat, really.. and maybe my dad.. since it doesn't have sauce ;) [Spaghetti sauce and apple sauce are the only acceptable sauces for dinner]. What's in it you ask? Well, I'll tell you!

1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 cups couscous
1 lb Jimmy Dean HOT sausage (great flavor!!)
1/2 large white onion (chopped)
3 TBS minced garlic (we have a love affair, garlic and I)
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
3/4 cup diced green bell pepper
1 can diced tomatoes
1-2 TBS basil
1 (ish) cup shredded parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Ready?! Bring chicken stock to a boil, stir in couscous, boil for a couple seconds, cover, remove from heat. Let sit for 5-10 minutes (or till your done with everything else, like I did), and fluff for good separation. Meanwhile... Brown your sausage. Toss in your onion and let it saute in the yummy grease until almost translucent. Add your garlic and let it soak up the flavors for about 2 minutes. Toss in your red and green bell peppers, stir around for a minute or two. Add your can of tomatoes, juice and all. Add your basil. Cook this for a few minutes, letting the juice from the tomatoes reduce just a bit. In a 9x13 glass casserole dish, combine couscous, meat mixture, and half of your parmesan cheese. Top with remaining cheese and put it in the oven at 350 for 20 minutes. Serve. It's yummy. I promise!!

Mom never would have gotten away with peppers and couscous... let alone all in one meal!

Super Mom

I'm claiming super mom status today. I feel like Dr. Hodgins from Bones- 'King of the Lab!'

'Super Mom!'

Today wasn't spectacular. In fact, it could be said that I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Well.. I did actually, but thats because Ben took over my side of the bed after Chad left for work this morning. I woke up grumpy. Two days with out naps and minimal sleep at night because I apparently ate something that kept Ben gassy make for one super grumpy momma. And then there was Sariah. Sariah who is the cutest and most adorable little girl I know, IS DRIVING ME ABSOLUTELY CRAZY! I know.. shocker. She's reached that phase where nothing I do is good enough or fast enough. I hear my mothers voice constantly in my head at this point.. half concealing with ideas of how to make her stop screaming, stop poking her brother, stop climbing over the couches... and the other half is my mother laughing at me, reminding me that she's just like me.

I've also learned that when I get frustrated, overtired, and grumpy, I like to hide in my sewing room. It's been a rather productive two days, since my naps obviously weren't going to happen, I've sat right here behind my machine. I've produced two sets of curtains, two baby blankets, four burp rags, and even managed to catch up on my seasons of Bones. I've made two wonderful dinners, and I've organized my sewing area to a level of almost OCD proportions. I've installed a wall mount for our TV, and found a way to keep the couch covers from slipping off the couches.

I got Sariah to play nice today. I even managed to get clothes on her today. After a morning of installing curtain rods, Both of my wonderful children fell asleep for naps AT THE SAME TIME! So what did I do? I took a nap. It was Amazing. Amazing. I've been functioning without stressing out or snapping at kids ever since. Course... it probably helps that Chad came home during the nap, didn't wake me up, but did take Ben out so that when I didn't have to get up when he decided. And then: I didn't make dinner tonight. I know- how can you be super mom without making dinner?! Well... Maybe I'm not super mom. I did the whole super mom thing for two days straight.

And. It. Was. Exhausting.

So I didn't make dinner, Chad did. And Chad changed the diapers tonight. And Chad installed the baby locks on our pantry. And Chad put Sariah to bed. So.. maybe Chad is super Dad. He sure is a great dad. But he's a better husband- because he changed the diapers, and put on the PJ's, and put Sariah down, cooked dinner, did the dishes, and let me have a couple hours to be mentally alone. He payed attention to me saying I was super stressed and tired. (Although, I think my being frustrated to the point of 'Chad! I need a mental health day!' in a very exasperated voice while trying to get Ben to stop screaming at bed time last night probably helped). I'm too practical to try to take a full day off of motherhood, but the hours after a good solid nap and child free evening sure did go a long way to restoring my desire to be super mom.

And then my awesome cousin posted on her Blog. She does a great pre-schooler/toddler activity blog, and shared her mother experiences with the world. Todays post was a good breather and reminder for me: Deliberate Motherhood. She also linked a great mommy self help/networking site, The Power of Moms: A Gathering Place for Deliberate Mothers. I thought of my friends Caroline and Nyssa when I was clicking on links. I'll probably be visiting this sight often, so I remember things like: I chose motherhood. I love motherhood. My children are my world, and what I do as a mom matters. (Can anyone else here the chanting going on inside my head?? Because it totally is!) It will probably become my mental mantra when I ask those inevitable questions like 'WHAT IN THE HECK WAS I THINKING?!?!!?'

So I'll admit it. I'm not super mom all the time. But since I had a mental health afternoon behind my sewing machine, I'll try to go back to being super mom tomorrow. Until then though, I'm going to feed Ben one more time, and I'm going to go to bed. Best laid plans don't start in the morning, they start the night before. My mothers voice now is one of a memory: Go to bed early so you're ready for what tomorrow brings (or something along those lines).

... As a teenager I never believed it when someone (esp my mom) told me that someday, I would realize my mother really knew what she was talking about and was usually right... But I never questioned her when she cursed my with a child of my own, just. like. me. Selective hearing? I think so.

Super mom, signing off and going to bed.

Ben's pictures

Well, we've survived our first week of having more than one kid! Every success counts, right?!

 Grammi and the kids

 Our tree frog~

Meet my Mini-Chad... or as my dad calls him, Benny-Pete!

Benjamin!

Benjamin Iosepa Pekelo'Kekoa Nunes has finally arrived! He was born at 1:49pm, Friday April 15, 2011. He was 8 lbs 1/2 an oz, and 20.5 inches long. We're all home, happy and healthy. Pictures and more to follow, maybe this evening!

35 1/2 weeks

Dear family:

This is my every growing burden. Everyday it feels like I'm an inch or two larger, and a pound or ten heavier. Ironically enough, this is pretty much as 'light' as I've ever been this far in a pregnancy (mini 'woohoo's; going on in my head). So ya.. Just thought that I would show you what was happening in my world.

Sariah is growing like a weed. She's pretty much skipped two sizes in the last two weeks, and all of a sudden, I'm finding myself without t-shirts long enough to cover that Nunes' torso (they're abnormally long!!) Chad is doing good at work, and he's even better at home! We recently moved into a nicer and bigger house (still in Washington), so we're once again unpacking everything. Hopefully I'll have it all done before Ben decides to make his official appearance! <<Good news is, the one room that is completely set up: My Sewing Room!>> Yes, I admit, I'm turning into my mother ;) Can't wait for her to get up here!!


I just watched my tummy bulge out three inches while Ben stretched... Oh the things a body can do!

Start Practicing!

Alright family! We've officially decided on a name for this kiddo kicking the snot out of me, so start practicing! haha.. sometimes it's so much fun being married to a Hawaiian!

Benjamin Iosepa Pekelo'Kekoa Nunes
(Ee-oh!-sep-ah Peck-ae-low Kay-koh!-ah)

His names come from various family members and even a great friend, and someday, I may share the story! For now, I'll just say that he's named after some of our hero's. Translated, the Hawaiian part is Joseph (the family name passed to the oldest male Nunes), Peter for my daddy, and Kekoa is 'steadfast and courageous.' I like how Peter means 'like a rock,' because it surely gives this kiddo a great foundation of characteristics to build upon! Good Luck! He should be here around the middle of April! Can't wait! Sort of...

Haven in a bite~

So... this pregnancy is making me a foodie. The only problem with trying to be a foodie and being an army wife at the same time is- WE'RE POOR! So, in order to satisfy some ridiculous flavor cravings, I've had to budget, plan ahead, and be inventive with whatever spices are in my cupboard. (I know, everyone does this already... but I'll admit a certain type of laziness that usually has me supplementing dinner with a box of _________).

Today, I've created Heaven in a bite.

I live on allrecipes.com most of the day. I'm on a 'lets try something new for dinner' kick. I've discovered Braised Basalmic Chicken- manda style.

You can look it up, or you can do it like I did- it's totally worth it!!

2 chicken breasts
1 med onion
1 tbs olive oil
Garlic powder
Pepper
2 cans diced tomatoes (drain one, leave the other juicy)
1/4 cup basalmic vinegar
1 tbs oregano
1 tbs basil
1 tbs rosemary

Thaw your chicken and cut into cubes. Slice your onion into thin, long chunks (or however you prefer your onions- not super diced). Sauté in a pan over med-heat with the olive oil, sprinkling pepper and garlic on chicken while cooking. In a separate bowl, combine tomatoes, vinegar, and spices- stir together to let the tomatoes absorb the flavors. (I'm also somewhat on a garlic kick, and added some freshly minced garlic to the tomatoes as well). Once your onions have softened and are turning clear, add tomato mixture in with the chicken, and simmer until chicken is fully cooked and juices are reduces- about 10 minutes ish. Serve over rice, spaghetti, angel hair pasta, or your favorite noodle- Green beans pair nicely with these meal too.

I'm going to go and stuff my face now. That is all.

Transitions~

It's been a busy week! (And it's only Wednesday!)

This week I had my first official FRG meeting with my co-chair and the "Uppers." Well.. Upper. Captain D was there in the beginning, and then left to take care of some military business while we (the women) handled our meeting :)

Guess I should tell you what the FRG is... The Family Readiness Group is basically visiting teaching for the army. We are the group that takes care of the families, making sure they have the resources they need, are aware of company activities and travel/training schedules, and any other little thing they need to keep the morale up for them and their soldier. We're pretty much the support group, but have major assisting duties during deployments- and are the information distributers from army command to the families.

I'm excited to be able to be a part of the FRG- and now I'll know anything should anything happen the fastest (you know that's one of the reasons I'm all over this!), but I like helping too.

Ya, I know.. I needed another thing to add to my crazy life! You think that between the pregnancy, Sariah, Chad, mom stuff, sewing, knitting, crocheting, and being a full time student I'd have enough on my plate... but I didn't!!

Well, in other news, I took Christmas down today. What?! Christmas was THREE WEEKS AGO! Yes, yes... but the tree served as the perfect night light so I could wander around in the middle of the night, and it was really pretty, and there was the sentimental value of this holiday season~ See two posts ago~ So I took it down. And put it in it's box. And told Chad to put it in the closet. Away... for 12 months... sigh~

I am amazing this week, truly, I'm awesome. And I'm patting myself on the back. I ordered my new sewing machine. It's been a long time coming. I've spent weeks (literally) debating which one to get. I've spent those same weeks hoarding the gift cards from Sears. Chad kept looking at me- JUST GET THE MACHINE ALREADY! I told him no, I was holding out for the gift card that I knew was coming (Thanks military support fans!! We're so grateful!!). I'm glad I saved them, because I only paid $6.00 for a $200.00 machine. Yes, patting myself on my back :) I got the confirmation email this morning "Your item has shipped!" Made me very happy. It will be here next week. Hopefully I'll finish my sisters quilt soon. I've been trying to avoid looking at it, because it needs doing and I can't do it!!

Chad has a four day this weekend, we're going to go out with his Sgt. to celebrate his recent promotion. OH YA! CHAD GOT PROMOTED! Early! I'm so proud of him. He had high remarks from his leadership because he is such a super HOOAH soldier! I got to pin his new rank on him, and he kissed me in front of all the other soldiers- caused quite a ruckus.. you know how men are.. hoots and hollers, cat calls and whistles.  And then Captain took us to lunch (it was a lunch meeting for me and my co-chair, but it was still nice!).

I measured the belly this week. I should have done it in the beginning, but you'll just have to trust me. Once upon a time, I was skinny. I was so skinny that my perfectly shaped waist was 27" around. But.. that was a very long time ago. About 6 years ago actually.. If memory serves me right. But in more recent measurements- About 6 months ago, I had a 33-34'' waist. 6 hours ago, it was 47''. I think something must be growing. It got me thinking "How far am I?" See, I generally have things of this nature scheduled. But with everything else happening lately, I've lost track. So I went online and looked it up. I knew I was almost in my third trimester- two more weeks and I'll be there officially. But, when I looked it up today, my magic tracking site informer me that I had 100 days left. I thought that was pretty cool. 100 days is not a long time. I can do this. So long as Chad keeps rubbing my back and hips every other night. The hip dysplacia has been acting up, but I'm doing my exercises, so it's not killer! Chad laughs at me most evenings when I do the exercises, apparently I'm somewhat awkward looking in a squatting position.

I just saw an old spice commercial. 'Should you're man smell like an old spice man?' YES! Sorry.. I blame the pregnancy for my tangential thinking pattern.

That is all for now. 'Gangster Paradise' is now stuck in my head. Thank you Seth Rogan and 'The Green Hornet.'

Chili

I have this habit of not feeling like anything sounds good for dinner. Usually in this situation, I call my mom, and she tells me what to make- It works for me. I don't have to think, just do. And I can do, and do do, most of the time. Yesterday was the exception. Nothing she suggested sounded good. Nothing I found in the cupboards sounded good. But eventually, we came up with something worth eating.. Homemade from scratch Cornbread and Chili. I know, sounds great right?!! Well, I looked in my freezer, and I had some sausage. I looked in my pantry, and I had some kidney beans, stewed tomatoes, corn, and tomato paste. I added some other good stuff for flavor- and found a whole new corn bread recipe (the last one I tried was blah.. too bitter and not sweet enough for our tastes! So here you go- clean out your pantry chili and yummy cornbread!

Chili

1lb Jimmy Dean Sausage- Hot
1 small- medium onion, chopped
1 can Red Kidney Beans (drained)
1 can Whole Kernel Corn (drained)
1 can Stewed Tomatoes (undrained)
1 can Condensed Tomato Soup
1 can Tomato Paste (those small cans.. I know, I should look up ounces and what not...)
2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
2 squirts Ketchup (so probably around 2 Tbsp or so)
2 quick squirts Mustard (mustard squirts and ketchup squirts are NOT EQUAL! = 1 tbsp(ish) mustard)
1-2 tsp Red Pepper (we like chipotle red pepper, it gives it a nice kick/after burn/smokey feeling)
1 tsp Cumin
1 tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp Salt

So.. This is what was in my pantry yesterday. Brown the sausage and add the onion while browning (the onion is the only other thing that actually needs to cook!) Once browned, add in the cans- Beans, Corn, Tomatoes, Soup, Paste. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Turn down to a simmer, and start adding the rest of the flavor. Use caution on the mustard- a little bit goes a long long way. Salt and Pepper to taste, the spices are all tinker-able.

Cornbread

2/3 cup Butter or margarine, softened
1 cup Sugar
3 Eggs (beaten)
1 2/3 cups Milk
2 1/3 cups All-purpose Flour
1 cup Cornmeal
4 1/2 tsp Baking Poweder
1 tsp Salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and grease a 9x13 pan. Cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs and milk, mix in well. Add the rest of the ingredients, combining well. Pur mixture into greased pan, and put in the oven for 22-27 minutes (make sure that the bread is all the way cooked through by sticking a toothpick or knife in the middle- when it comes out clean, it's done!)

Now, if you were smart about it, you'd do the bread first, since the prep work takes the longest- and you can make the chili while the bread cooks.

Some of you might argue that true chili doesn't have meat in it.. well... tough luck! I like the sausage in my chili, and it gave it just the right consistency that probably would have been missing had it not been added! So there. Nay-say all you want. It was good!

Enjoy!

2011

Lets face it: I'm a terrible blogger.

Our future Beauty Queen!

No, no, I really am. I'm inconsistent and don't have much to say most days, except how Sariah has accomplished something new- which is great, since I know my mom is one of those four followers and needs to know everything my baby accomplishes! Well, this post really isn't any different. I'm going to brag about my baby.

Sariah went to Nursery for the very first time yesterday. I know she's not old enough, she technically has one more month before they'll let her stay without a parent. But it was a big deal for this tired and pregnant mom. Church has become increasing hard to sit through, mostly because this little boy in my tummy is seriously killing my hips. But the energy it takes to keep Sariah somewhat hap and almost quiet is usually more than I can handle on my own. Luckily, Chad is here to save the day! He's such a good dad! Always willing to take her out or get on the ground and play with her! The nursery leaders are wonderful- and I'm sure that Sariah is going to have such a good time in there! We're very lucky, one of the leaders tries to teach the kids sign language, especially those who aren't speaking very much yet. I've taken the opportunity to restart and reinforce Sariah's signing (previously a very unsuccessful venture in parenthood for me!). Something has happened. She understands. She repeats what I do, AND SHE DOES IT ON HER OWN NOW! All of this makes me really excited and lets me know, I'm not a failure as a momma!

Sariah signing 'Love'

Sariah doesn't have a lot that she can sign, but in one week, she's learned how to say 'love,' 'more,' and 'cup.' She's also a book-a-holic. I have no idea where that characteristic came from at all! Ha.

She made out like a bandit at Christmas, and now keeps herself occupied while I find the time to go back to my crafts.

Recently, I've been working on a quilt for my sister. It's insane. It's killed my machine. The quilt is now on hold, until I can afford to replace the machine. I'm having some serious sewing withdrawal. So to make up for the lack of a major project to undertake, my wonderful mother in law sent me some yarn to make an afghan with. Now, I'm kept busy, Sariah is kept busy.. and Chad.. well.. Chad works.

The Growling Daddy monster catching his prey!

Chad works a lot. But the last two weeks have been quite the treat for us. He's been home more than he's been gone! Two 'four days' for the holidays that don't count against us in vacation time have made this holiday season great for us. I'm so glad he was able to be home, since the last two years we've either been traveling (and we didn't have Sariah), or we've been separated. When Chad's not working.. well, he does man things- he eats dinner when I get around to making it, he sleeps on the couch when his tummy is full, and he does all my laundry and dishes because I don't. I know. I'm spoiled. It's true. He also comes home and chases Sariah around while making growling monster noises. A very Dad thing to do, and Sariah loves it. I want to just bottle her laughter when he catches her for rainy days. (There's a lot of those here!).

2011 is only a couple days old, but already we're preparing for some changes. We've only got 14-16 weeks left before Baby Boy Nunes makes his debut. Ok- now that I've seen written I might start to panic. Dang. I don't have enough time. Well, I do, but it doesn't look like a lot. We're also currently debating whether or not Washington is going to be home for another three years. I'm thinking yes... maybe... We'll see what the army declares, and we'll survive wherever we end up. But I'm kind of hoping we stay.

Well, this is how we've opened out new year. We're going to add to our family, hopefully settle further into our home, and continue to stay happy!