Lemon-Zucchini Cornmeal Cookies

In our most recent co-op pick up, we got a zucchini. Since Clay has been out of town so much, I knew it would go bad before we could eat it so I thought and thought about what to make with it in the meantime...

After a little searching on marthastewart.com, I found this recipe for Lemon-Zucchini Cornmeal Cookies. And fortunately, I had all the ingredients!

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract (or vanilla bean paste, which is what I use)

1 tsp lemon zest (I used more because I love lemon so much!)

1 tsp coarse salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup fine cornmeal

1 medium zucchini, grated on the small holes of a box grater (about 1 cup)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Then combine the butter and sugar in a large bowl. 

 Mix with a wooden spoon until pale and fluffy. (I suppose you could use a mixer, but everything in your kitchen would be covered with a fine layer of powdered sugar!)

Stir in the vanilla, lemon zest, and salt.

Add flour and cornmeal.

Mix until the dough is crumbly like this:

Add zucchini and stir until a thick dough forms.

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto baking sheet.

I love to use my Silpat baking mat - they're reusable and ensure that my cookies are evenly baked!

Bake until cookies are golden brown around the edges, about 25 to 30 minutes.

 Allow to cool and enjoy!

24 Weeks

Wow- it is hard to believe I am SIX MONTHS PREGNANT!

Only three and a half more months to go... Yikes!

Unfortunately we haven't been able to make much progress on the nursery as Clay has been going to Shreveport each week, and then I have been working volunteer trainings on Saturdays. Hopefully things will clear up in the next few weeks so we can get to work. I have a feeling June will be here before we know it!

23 Weeks

...and still going strong!

Baby Rich is moving around more and more these days (there's some kind of jig going on in my belly as I type this). Clay even got to feel the baby move this weekend - while we were catching up on shows Saturday night, he put his hand on my belly and felt the little kicks. Wish I could have captured the look of wonder and excitement on his face!

We also got some exciting news from Clay's cousin and her husband: their family will be expanding in August of this year! I am so happy for Laura and Eric - and excited that Baby Rich will have another playmate in the family. :)

22 Weeks

Look at that baby bump!

It is truly amazing how I've just popped in the last week or so - and it seems like everyone has noticed! Two people just couldn't help themselves and invaded my belly space this week. Looks like I'll be in for another four months of belly grabs. :}

I had my routine check-up on Monday and the doctor said everything looks good! I am right on schedule - with weight gain and belly measurement - and so is our little jellybean. :) All the little body parts that the sonogram tech could see looked healthy and normal, which is what we like to hear. AND I've been feeling Baby Rich move more and more. Sometimes I wonder if there's a jumping bean in my belly!

This weekend Clay and I made some more decisions on the nursery -

finally picking out a crib

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and a rug

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though we won't have either for quite some time.

(Thank you, eternal delivery waits!)

We also went to Babies 'R' Us to register, and boy! were we unprepared! Although we had made a list of what we wanted to register for, it was still incredibly overwhelming when faced with all those strollers and car seats and crib sheets and bottles and bibs. Many times we just stood in the aisle staring at the multitude of choices. What a sight we must have been!

All you moms out there, what are your top three favorite baby products? We would love some more direction as we add to our registry. ;)

A Week of Weekends

Can you believe this is Texas?!!?!!

 

During all of these snow days, I have certainly tried to keep myself from going stir-crazy

by staying busy...

On Tuesday, I finished reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusac,

which I cannot recommend highly enough.

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The story follows a young girl who lives in a suburb of Munich, Germany,

during World War II. I know this sounds odd, but Death is the narrator - and a fantastic one at that. The writing is absolutely amazing - I can't even begin to describe it. Please, please, please check this book out! It is absolutely worth your time to read. And if you need a copy, I've got one I'm happy to lend. :)

I also worked on some photo books using Picaboo, which is one of my

"28 Before 28" goals. Three down and (only) 12 more to go!

Clay watched Despicable Me one evening this week while I did some crafting. I know we're a little behind the times in viewing this one - but better late than never! It was a very clever movie with a great ending. ;)

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AND my cute little felt snap-ons are one step closer to being finished -

if only I could have run to the store since I ran out of snaps. :(

My sister's birthday is today (Happy birthday, Rach!)

and she requested that I make her a chocolate cake.

So with my schedule clear, it allowed me lots of time to whip up this beauty:

We'll see how it tastes at her party tonight!

And that's not even counting all the fun things I've yet to do today. :)

Hope you've enjoyed your week of weekends!

19-20-21

 

20 Weeks                                 21 Weeks

(Yes, we forgot to take a picture at 19 weeks. I promise we'll do better!)

There are lots of new experiences that have come

with this pregnancy over the past few weeks...

Purchasing a Boppy pregnancy pillow.

I had always thought it was a high-maintenance thing to do - until I really needed one! After many restless nights and lots of online research, I decided upon the Boppy brand total body pillow. Although I'm still working to overcome my tendency to roll onto my back (which this pillow doesn't really help), I am definitely getting a more comfortable night's sleep!

Transitioning to maternity clothes.
Although I have a few items that have transitioned well into this stage of pregnancy, I have discovered that the Bella Band will only get you so far. This past week I made a trip to Motherhood Maternity and Gap Maternity to find some more comfortable workwear. I wouldn't have needed to make this outing if only I could wear yoga pants to work every day!

Adding an antacid to our medicine cabinet.

I have never been one to take lots of medications, but the recent development of heartburn has made it necessary to take extra measures. Maalox tablets have been a life-saver!

Taking prenatal yoga classes.

For about a month now, I have been attending a weekly prenatal yoga class at Hobbstudios in Fort Worth. Although I've been practicing yoga for the past three years, there are a lot of poses that need modification! Katy is an amazing instructor and the classes are small (only four people will fit in her studio). I always leave feeling refreshed - and a little bit more prepared for the journey still ahead!

Feeling Baby Rich movin' and groovin' in my tummy!

For the past few weeks I have felt what can best be described as a growling feeling in my stomach - but it was a little different from when I'm hungry or thirsty. At first I wasn't sure if it was really our little jellybean moving around, but the more and more I've felt it the more sure I was that Baby Rich is exercising its little limbs. Clay will occasionally put his hand on my belly in hopes to feel a little kick, but I think we're still a ways from that milestone. :)

So many new experiences - and so many more to come!

A Taste of Spring

I seized the chance to enjoy some of the amazing springtime weather this weekend. There were many others taking advantage of the weather too - dusting off their shorts and flip flops to take their dogs for a walk. (I know - shorts in January?!!!) Because my job will require me to work on Saturdays for the next month, I figured I should capitalize on this opportunity - although I passed on the shorts part. ;)

My dirty little Honda made a trip to the carwash. Now it's all sparkly and pretty.

The previously empty flowerpots on my porch are now filled with some beautiful kale, pansies and herbs.

Although the temperatures have plummeted once more and Al Roker says winter weather is on its way, I still have a little taste of spring to tide me over until the real thing gets here. :)

Blue Or Pink?

On Friday we had our almost-20-week sonogram. It was so much fun for Clay and I to see Baby Rich again! Even more amazing was to see this precious little one as explained to us by the sonogram tech (and yes, we needed an interpreter!).

See what I mean?

(Now that it has been explained to me, I can tell that this is a back view of our little jellybean.)

As I mentioned before, we did not find out if Baby Rich is a boy or a girl - and we won't be finding out until June 11th (or somewhere thereabouts)!

What do YOU think: is Baby Rich a boy or a girl? We'd love to hear your predictions. :)

Weekly Wows

What a week this has been...

I've been having a little trouble with my sewing machine, so I took it to Richland Sewing Center in Hurst last weekend to see what was wrong. Besides the fact that I had the bobbin in backwards, the service man recommended that I have the machine cleaned and oiled. Even though it was apparent that I had no clue what I was doing, both the men (yes, men do work at a sewing shop!) in the service department were so nice to me and explained everything in terms that novice-sewer-little-me could understand. And when I went to pick up the machine, they even loaded it into my car for me (and I don't think it's because I looked like a helpless pregnant lady). Let's just say I am now a Richland Sewing Center customer for life - and you should be too!

I have discovered my new favorite dessert: Oikos chocolate Greek yogurt with raspberries. It is SOOO good, and it has less sugar in it than other non-nutricious sweet things I might want to eat (like Girl Scout cookies).

Speaking of Girl Scout cookies, did you know that you don't have to pre-order them any more? Girl Scouts now peddle their cookies with boxes in hand rather than the old-fashioned order form, which I remember from back in the day. (Geez - that makes me feel so old.) If only they had gone to that method sooner, it would have spared me much grief and competition with the younger, cuter Girl Scouts who would steal all my customers at church.

My sister-in-law let me borrow the Perfect Pregnancy Workout DVD, which I tried out last Thursday night. Let's just say I had no idea what I was getting into. First of all, the instructor has performed with Cirque du Soleil for many years and plans to film something for them only six weeks after giving birth, so she is in incredible physical condition. She is "one of those" pregnancy ladies who has crazy muscles in places I didn't even know existed! Not only that, but she is pretty far along in her pregnancy (think close to 30 weeks) and yet she is doing exercies that would wind me even in a non-pregnant state. I only did the beginner level of each exercise and was definitely feeling it for a few days afterwards. But then again, they say giving birth is a phyically-challenging experience which you should train for. I just think I like the prenatal yoga-style of training a little better. :)

My dear, sweet grandmother Ruth - or Mema, as I called her - went on to be with the Lord early Friday morning. She fought for the past four months to overcome the effects of several strokes which caused her left side to be paralyzed, and made incredible progress despite the difficulties this caused for everyday activities like getting out of bed, eating solid foods, and talking with those she loved. A final stroke last weekend left her completely paralyzed, yet she still fought to her very last breath on Friday. I was lucky that we were able to make the drive to Tennessee to be there for her service over the weekend. It was amazing to hear the stories of her 92 years of life and to remember all the memories she gave us. We will all miss her dearly, but we are so glad she is in a place where there is no more suffering and look forward to joining her there one day.

First Nursery Purchases!

So I finally broke down this week and purchased two small items for Baby Rich's nursery:

A brown polka-dot fitted crib sheet (on sale for $5!) and an LED bluebird nightlight, which doesn't have to be plugged in! It just sits on the beside table and you press the top when you want it to glow - so cool. I found both these items at Target on one of those dangerous browsing trips I sometimes take. :)

Clay and I haven't really decided much of anything on the nursery, and it was starting to stress me out. My dear, sweet sister-in-law in all her wisdom suggested that we decide on colors and at least that will appease my nesting instincts for now. So the other night, I was sitting in our living room watching TV when I looked over at this stack of books on the media console:

I thought to myself, I really like those colors together. And then a light bulb went off: Why not put them together in the nursery?! I'm such a genius. ;D

So there you have it, ladies and gentlemen. We have decided on colors. We have a night light and a crib sheet (for the crib that is yet to be purchased). And - thank goodness - we have 21 more weeks to get ready for Baby Rich!

16 & 18 Weeks

16 Weeks

(We had just flown in from LA at midnight last Sunday and picture-taking wasn't high on our radar.

Sorry for missing the 17-week pic!)

18 Weeks

I had an appointment this week and everything looked good. Our 20-week sonogram is scheduled for January 21st, at which time we will NOT be finding out the gender - just that we have a healthy baby with all its parts! We thought it would be more fun this way. :)

It is absolutely crazy to think that I am approaching the halfway mark of this pregnancy. There are days where I still cannot believe that there is a little life growing inside of me - it still seems so surreal. I am continually in awe of God's amazing creative power in the way that He shapes each and every life, and that He already has great plans for Baby Rich. It will be so exciting to see it all unfold!

Coast-to-Coast Christmas

Whew! Do any of you ever feel like you need a vacation after your vacation? I know I sure do! We had two wonderful weeks of travelling from coast to coast to spend time with family and loved every minute of it - but we sure do wish there had been a few days of catch-up before heading back to the real world.

Our journey started with a trip to Tallahassee to visit my family. It was such a nice and relaxing time to spend with my mom and dad, as well as my sister, grandparents, aunts, and cousin.

We made gingerbread houses

shot at bottles with the BB gun

took funny family photos

enjoyed a Christmas Eve bonfire

hung our stockings by the chimney with care

and spent a LOT of time at this table eating my mom's fabulous cooking!

Our time spent together made me wish that Florida weren't so far away. :(

After a week near the Gulf Coast, we hopped a plane and headed westward to meet up with Clay's family in Malibu. Clay's sister Katie and her husband Jeremy were on leave from the Marines, so it was the perfect time for us to meet up for a Rich Family Trip. And boy - did we pack it in! ('Tis the Rich way, after all. :))

We went to Disneyland 

visited the Getty Museum

played lots of games

had fun with Jaxon

watched the Rose Parade

and (some) attended the Rose Bowl Game!

What an amazing two weeks! We were so blessed to be able to spend this time with family making memories and having a blast. It was also particularly fun to think about this time next year and all the memories that are yet to come! ;)

Better Late Than Never

Do you think it's a good omen to be starting 2011 and I'm already running behind?

But after our coast-to-coast Christmas - two weeks of travelling from Florida to California and back - it only makes sense that I would be a little slow in welcoming the new year. After all, I'm still not quite sure which time zone I'm in!

Updates from our holiday travels and belly pics coming soon, I promise! Better late than never, right? ;)

15 Weeks

The belly is growing!!!!

Although it's still not super-obvious that I'm preggo, I feel like it is - and I definitely feel more pregnant, if that makes any sense. It is beginning to be more uncomfortable when I sleep, and I'm thinking one of those pregnancy pillows is going to be necessary before long.

For all you moms out there, what type of pillow (if any) did you use to help you find a comfortable sleeping position throughout your pregnancy? Do you have any tips or tricks you'd like to share? This mama would love to hear 'em! ;)