Pumpkin Pancakes

Fall is in the air and to be honest, I’m not mad about it. On my way into work on Friday I grabbed a pumpkin spiced latte and it got me excited for the change of season. Yesterday morning I woke up and made a triple batch of these kid friendly pumpkin pancakes. We toss these in the freezer and thaw them out in the microwave for a quick and yummy breakfast for the munchkins. They are probably their favourite breakfast ever - they inhale them. Because of the amount of puréed pumpkin they aren’t fluffy like your traditional pancake, but I assure you that they won’t disapoint. Enjoy! (Pictures coming - tech difficulties - dammit).

Yield: 6 medium pancakes
Ingredients
1 1/4 cup flour (I do half whole wheat)
2 tablespoons sugar (sub with maple syrup)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon (pinch) ground clove
1 cup milk
1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon pure pumpkin purée (not pie filling!)
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 egg

Method
Mix dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside. Mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Fold dry ingredients into wet ingredients. Pour 1/4 cup pancakes on greased skillet/griddle. Flip once a few bubbles form. Serve with maple syrup. Freeze extras. Soooo good!

Zero Point Taco Soup & Rejoining WW's

I just spent a glorious week at a cottage in the Sandbanks area with the family I spent my days relaxing, visiting, eating, and drinking. I woke up on our last morning feeling mighty bloated.  I check my phone and saw an email in my inbox for 50% off of Weight Watchers. Hmm...if that wasn't a sign that I needed to get my ass in gear, I don't know what is.  I decided it was time to rejoin - my clothes are fitting tighter and I haven't been accountable with my eating for months.  I had previously been on the online version of Weight Watchers for the 9 months following the birth of my son and was quite successful, however since Christmas I've gained 10.2lbs so I know I need more accountability.  I decided it would be wise to join the WW meetings as well.  This means that I have to weigh-in in front of someone, and have the choice to sit in on a meeting to chat with other people going through a similar jo
urney. I am also able to earn a free lifetime membership if I hit and maintain my goal weight, an option not available to on-line members. SOLD!!! I love FREE shit! Talk about some added motivation to get this muffin top under control.

While off on my previous maternity leave with my daughter, a friend had us over for a playdate and served a "Taco Soup" to us. It was awesome - my then 8 month old gobbled it up and so did I.  Since then, I have adapted the recipe to suit our family and it's usually on the dinner menu every 3 weeks or so.  It's perfect for lunch leftovers too! I drain the liquid when serving to the kiddos just to make it a bit easier. This recipe is considered 0 freestyle points so enjoy a big, filling bowl with no guilt! Yum!


Yield: 8ish portions
Ingredients
2-4 boneless & skinless chicken breasts (thawed)
1 can diced tomatoes
2 cups chicken stock
1 can of corn
1 can kidney beans, drained & rinsed
1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
1 packet taco seasoning
1 packet ranch dressing powder
*Optional - top with fat free plain Greek yogurt
*Optional - top with shredded cheese for a point or two.

Method
Toss all ingredients into a crock pot and cook on high for 4ish hours or low for 8ish hours. Remove chicken breasts and shred with a fork. Mix shredded chicken back in and serve with greek yogurt and/or shredded cheese. So delish!

Zucchini Loaf

Zucchini season has arrived! Our veggie garden has given us four awesome zucchini's so far and I'm looking forward to getting some more. Keep in mind that grated zucchini can be frozen to bake with through the whole year. All you have to do it squeeze out the excess liquid once it's thawed. I love zucchini (and free veggies!!!). My husband found an awesome zucchini loaf recipe online a few nights ago so we adapted it a bit and whipped up two loaves for an easy breakfast for when we had company this past weekend. Warning: there is a lot of sugar in this recipe but it was delish. I always put chocolate chips in my loaves but this one totally didn't need them (probably because of all the sugar).  Keep in mind this recipe makes two loaves. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Yield: 2 loaves
Ingredients
3 cups flour (white or whole wheat)
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
l teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup ground flax (optional)
3 eggs

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup apple sauce (or veggie oil)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini (packed!)  I used a food processor to make this way quicker!
walnuts (optional - I sprinkled on top but you can add up to 1 cup in recipe too)

Method
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease two loaf pans. Combine flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, flax and salt in a bowl and set aside. In a separate large bowl beat eggs, apple sauce (oil), vanilla, and sugars together. Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Stir in grated zucchini. separate out into two greased loaf pans. Bake for about 45 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Miracles do happen.

Over the years I have used this blog for a variety of reason, including infertility awareness, yummy recipes, as well a place to document my memories.  I told you about my daughters birth story here and I'm so glad I did because I get to reread it anytime I want. My son was born almost a year and a half ago and I thought I would document how he came to be and his birth before it becomes a fading memory. 

I've written a ton about our infertility struggles and journey (here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here) so it only makes sense that I include how baby #2 came to be.  I remember so vividly scouring the internet during all hours of the night for any information I could find on infertility and different treatment options. The information that I found most helpful and uplifting were those stories written by real people - not the information that I found in medical journals or on medical websites. So here is the beginning of our story of sweet baby #2.

Peanut was coming up on turning two and I knew that if we wanted to try to expand our family in the next few years we would have to get the ball rolling since the wait times for IVF had increased dramatically due to provincial funding changes.  In February 2016 we met with my amazing fertility doctor, Dr. McNaught again, at which time he indicated that our best chance to receive funding would be for him to refer us off to a different clinic. We hesitated at first, but knew that if we had to undergo 3 more rounds of treatment, having some of it funded by the government would be extremely helpful. We waited almost two months for an intake meeting with our new doctor.  Because of my original diagnosis of blocked fallopian tubes we knew the process would be a bit easier than before because we wouldn't have to undergo all of the preliminary diagnostic tests. After our first appointment we were put on the wait list for a mandatory IVF education class that we had to attended in order to be put on the wait list for a funded IVF cycle. Our class was scheduled for July 7th, which meant that if we were lucky we would be able to get a funded IVF cycle before the new year. If you haven't noticed by now, there is a shit ton of waiting when it comes to fertility treatment (and any treatment for that matter!).

Rewind to December 2013 when I was 5 months pregnant with Peanut. I was in excruciating pain on the right side of my uterus. So much so that I couldn't stand up, and I felt extremely nauseous.  The pain continued for more than 6 hours and my husband and I decided to head to the hospital. Unfortunately, birthing triage wouldn't take me because I was 1 week shy of their minimum requirement so they sent me down to the emergency room where I sat for 8 hours.  The pain would subside every now and then which meant that the triage nurses weren't taking me very seriously and kept pushing people ahead of me.  Long story short, the doctor who saw me couldn't confirm for sure because their ultrasound machines weren't good enough to see that much detail but he suspected I had an ovarian cyst rupture and sent me home to rest. The pain eventually dissipated and I felt back to my old pregnant self within two days. I didn't think anything of it after that point because I have had ovarian cysts come and go over the years. I didn't even mention this hospital visit to my family doctor nor OB.

Fast forward to the first weekend in July 2016.  I had some close girlfriends over for the weekend and I wasn't really feeling like myself.  I felt hungover, tired, bloated - all the sure signs of early pregnancy but the only issue was I had been told by 2 fertility doctors that it would be impossible to get pregnancy naturally due to my tube blockages. After running out to the pharmacy to grab a pregnancy test once my girlfriends left, I sat alone in my bathroom and looked down at the test and saw two very clear lines - PREGNANT. I couldn't believe my eyes. My husband had no idea that I was even thinking I could be pregnant, so imagine his surprise when I flew down the stairs crying with the positive test in my hand. I called my family doctor the next day so that we could run blood work to make sure. Turns out she was away for two weeks. Ah well, what's another two weeks - I was apparently already 7 weeks along (*I never paid attention to missed periods because I was suppose to be infertile...).  My doctor couldn't believe her eyes when she saw the urine and blood test results. She sent me for an early ultrasound the following week just to be 1000000% sure.  The tests were correct - I was pregnant!

Turns out the episode I had when I was pregnant with my daughter wasn't due to a rupturing cyst, it was actually the scar tissue in my right fallopian tub breaking apart. My uterus was stretching so much during my pregnancy that it had opened my 75% blocked tube up. What a miracle! It still makes me cry to talk about - I truly feel so blessed. My daughter was able to give my husband and I our son. It can't get much better than that.

There it is, folks! Miracle do happen.

 

 

Cauliflower Rice Skeptic

I can’t be the only person who thinks cauliflower tastes a little like a fart...amiright?  After seeing a lot of cauliflower hype (if you can even call it that) on Pinterest and Instagram I reluctantly grabbed a bag at Walmart for $2.97. After staring at it in the fridge for the last few days and having no clue what the hell to make with it, I decided to make fried “rice” for lunch. I used the recipe on the back of the bag with a few minor tweaks and it ended up being DELISH and I'm not just saying that like most people do about kale chips - it was actually really tasty!). It only took 10 minutes from start to finish - perfecto. I honestly couldn’t even tell that there was cauliflower in the recipe and a serving is 1-2 smart points! I will 100% use the recipe again and will be experimenting with some new recipes in the weeks to come. Hope you like this as much as I did. Enjoy!

Yield: 3 large servings 

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup grated carrot

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 cloves minced garlic

1 bag cauliflower rice (2 1/2 cups)

1/2 cup peas (frozen or fresh)

2 tablespoons soy sauce 

2 eggs lightly beaten 

Salt & pepper to taste 

*add two chicken breasts to bulk this up for no added smart points!  

Method 

In a large fry pan over medium heat, heat olive oil. If using chicken add raw cubes now and cook through, about 8-10 mins. Add onion, carrot and garlic and cook for 2 mins. Add cauliflower, peas and soy sauce. Cook for 3 more mins, stirring a few times (make sure the cauliflower is heated through). Turn heat to high and push all “rice” to one side of pan. Pour eggs into other side, season entire dish with salt and pepper then scrabble eggs until cooked, about 2 mins. Mix together and serve. Sooooo good!

Hello stranger...

Oh...hey....ahem...this is awkward...
It’s been close to 3 years since I last wrote a blog post. I’ve thought about it many times particularly when friends ask if I’m ever going to post again, but never found the time nor motivation to actually bang out a post. I used to love composing each post but for the last three years it felt like a chore, so I didn’t. Today I’ve decided it’s time to write again. This may be  the first and last for three more years but here we go. (I should preface this post by saying that for those of you who are new here I’m a terrible speller and I never proof read my posts before publishing, so if that’s the type of stuff that drives you batshit crazy this blog probably isn’t your jam...).

A lot has changed in the last three years. My then 1 year old peanut is now a fierce and fabulous four year old heading off to school in September. My husband and I welcomed another miracle baby into the world on March 1st, 2017 who is now a walking, rambunctious and precious little (big) boy. We lost our sweet Rylee-dog almost a year ago and our hearts still feel the void everyday. I joined weight watchers 6 weeks after having our son and was sucesssful on the program, however I have gained back 8lbs of the 70lbs so I need to rejoin the program I think... (dammit!).  Maybe this will help with accountability. We’ve renovated our main floor and gutted the kitchen. I have a sweet kitchen but have lost a bit of passion for cooking due to lack of time and energy.  Similar to my first, I took another extended maternity leave and will be returned to a new school in September. Hmm...that’s about all I can think of for now.

For the first number of years the blog was primarily focused on cooking, then shifted to a lifestyle blog that touched on a little of everything, particularly my infertility struggles. My hope going forward is to post once a week with content ranging from kid friendly recipes and activities to motherhood truths and everything in between.

There - - I did it!! .... slow clap....