Rowan-10 Months Old

Rowan was 10 months old on March 27th! She has definitely been all over the place this month and I imagine will soon be taking her first steps. She likes walking along the coach while holding on and has let go a few times to stand on her own. She will also walk as long as someone is holding both of her hands. I'm hoping she'll be walking by her first birthday!

She crawls all over the place. We have to keep all of our interior doors closed because her favorite thing to do is venture into the bedrooms and get into stuff she shouldn't. We also bought her a cage play pen this month which has been a lifesaver. I was putting her in her pack-n-play when I needed to get stuff done. But she felt so confined and fussed the entire time. But I had to give that to my mother-in-law recently for Rowan to nap in while I was at work. So we bought a play pen which gives her so much more room to play and crawl around.

She has also started to slim down some as a result of all the crawling. She currently weighs 26 pounds but has stayed in her 18 month clothes for a lot longer than I expected. I'm not sure how tall she is but she fills out her 18-24 month clothing in length as well as weight. In fact, the other day she wore a dress to church that Blakely wore when she was 23 months old. It was very short on her and almost indecent. :) She is definitely going to be my tall child. 

She loves eating table food, which has helped a lot with our grocery shopping. For breakfast, she usually has pancakes or a waffle. She's also had mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, cheese pizza, and strawberries just to name a few.

She's still not saying "Mama" but loves to say "Uh-oh," "Dunc" (which is my MIL's dog), and "Papa." I'm hoping that "Mama" will be right around the corner. She's such a little sweetie and is still super happy (most of the time). 

15 Weeks-Baby #3

Well my first trimester just flew by, and I hit 15 weeks yesterday. This pregnancy is going by so much faster than my other two. But I also have a 10 month old to keep up with, so I'm guessing that has something to do with it.

I am having a really easy pregnancy (other than some insomnia at night) and am really looking forward to next week when we find if we're going to add another girl to our clan or have a sweet little boy. Blakely is really hoping for a girl, Kevin of course wants a son, and I don't think Rowan cares either way. As for me, I will be perfectly happy with either (although a son would be a lot of fun).

Here is a little 15 week update along with some pictures.

How far along: 15 weeks
Weight Gain: 6 pounds (I blame the pizza and Mexican)
Maternity Clothes: Some. I'm still able to fit into some of my regular pants if I button them low but am definitely having to wear maternity jeans.
Sleep: Going to sleep is no problem. Staying asleep is another story. I'm already having a lot of insomnia in the middle of the night. I'm not uncomfortable at all, but I just can't seem to stay asleep.
Workouts: I'm still able to do my regular workouts but am really tired in the mornings and at night due to the insomnia. Therefore, I usually pick sleeping over working out. I need to do better about making time for my workouts because they always make me feel so much better.
Best Moment This Month: Having an unexpected ultrasound
Worst Moment This Month: The extra ultrasound being due to finding no heartbeat at 12 weeks. That was the longest 30 minutes of my life!
Cravings: Ice cream (Dairy Queen Blizzards) and lots of fruit
Food Aversions: Still my Shakeology and sometimes coffee
My Favorite Things: My yoga pants from Target. 

Cheesy Pumpkin Spaghetti Squash Casserole

Who loves pumpkin? I do, I do!!

I absolutely LOVE pumpkin and am always excited when I find a recipe where I can use it. I came across a version of this recipe yesterday on www.skinnytaste.com and knew I had to try it. The original recipe uses whole wheat pasta, but I'm always looking for ways to make recipes healthier so I decided to use spaghetti squash instead. I also tweaked a few other things to make it my own.

Also, if you're not the biggest pumpkin fan, you could always substitute other things for it. Next time, I may try cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup because I'm sure that would be just as yummy!!

First you want to put your spaghetti squash in the microwave for about 10 minutes to soften it. Otherwise it will be too hard to cut. Next, cut it open and scoop out the seeds and yucky stuff. Then, bake it at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until it is cooked enough to easily separate with a fork. You then want to use a fork to shred it like pasta and place all the spaghetti squash in a bowl.

Now you're ready to start cooking!

Ingredients

1 whole spaghetti squash

6 slices turkey bacon (cooked and crumbled)

15 oz canned pumpkin puree

1 cup reduced sodium chicken broth

salt and fresh pepper to taste

1/2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped

2 cups shredded cheese (I used a pizza blend that included Romano, mozzarella, Parmesan, and provolone) 

pinch of garlic powder

Directions

1. Cook the spaghetti squash and separate with a fork. Place in a separate bowl.

2. In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the canned pumpkin, chicken broth, rosemary, and turkey bacon. Stir until it is well combined and heated. 

3. Add in the spaghetti squash and stir until it is coated well with the pumpkin mixture. 

4. Add 1 cup of the cheese and continue stirring until it is melted.

5. Place the mixture in a large bakeware dish (mine was 2 quarts). Cover with the remaining cup of cheese.

6. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

7. Enjoy it with a little garlic powder if you like!!

Calories for 1 cup: 180

I used a lot of cheese since I was saving on calories by using the spaghetti squash. However, if you cut out some of the cheese, you can make it even healthier! 

9 Months!!

Well this is a first! I am actually doing a post on time rather than really late in the month. Today Rowan is 9 months old! It is really hard to believe that she has now been alive for as long as I was pregnant. It actually makes the pregnancy seem really long since I can't imagine a time without her in my life.

She is changing so much now and it is fun watching her learn new things everyday. The biggest accomplishment this past month is that she has finally learned to crawl! She is super active now and is moving everywhere. It's also a great way for her to get some exercise. I make her crawl to whatever she wants and don't carry her around the house anymore. Plus it tires her out which is great for getting her to take a nap. :)

She is also trying to pull up and is starting to at least get up on one knee. She hasn't quite mastered pulling up all the way but I don't think it will be too much longer. We lowered her crib to the middle but I think it's time we lower it all the way.

She has been a little fussier than normal lately because she is getting in her top teeth. Since she has started getting teeth, I have started feeding her some table food. Her favorite is pancakes and Cheerios for breakfast. She makes a giant mess but loves being able to feed herself. We've also tried some mashed potatoes and applesauce.

She is weighing somewhere around 25 pounds and wears 18-24 month clothing. She is still really big for her age but I'm hoping that with crawling and eventually walking, she'll begin to slim down some. She is also wearing size 5 diapers which is really funny since Blakely only ever made it to size 5 before being potty trained at 2 1/2 years old. At this rate, she'll grow out of diapers really quickly which could be a good incentive to potty train early. :)

Rowan also got to experience her first snow this month. She wasn't really impressed by it at first but eventually warmed up to it enough to let me take her picture in it. My sweet little snow bunny!!

She has started saying "Dada" but has yet to say "Mama." But we're still working on it. Of course, Blakely keeps trying to get to to say "Bakey" so we'll see which one she says first!

Happy 9 months my sweet girl!!