Where have I been?
everywhere. and busy.
1. Air Conditioner at our house went out yesterday. With my dad's knowledge and husband's help, it got fixed today.
2. The entire hospital system I work for is converting to a unified electronic medical record system. This is a huge headache... I have been in 7 separate classes in the last few weeks for ~25 hours of education on it. It goes "live" on Friday... craziness shall ensue.
3. Hubs has finished his school year, and is now studying for some big exams. As soon as I finish my work year on June 30, I'll be joining the study party. I have to take my final USMLE "step" later this year.
4. Starting to get my house straightened up... it stays fairly clean, but we have accumulated piles of things that have to be sorted through. I already cleaned out my closet and put away much of my clothing that won't be worn until next year. With both of our current schedules running similar to a traditional school year, it's the end of our year and time to get organized again.
5. I've had meetings for various committees at work... and you can imagine how exciting that can be.
6. In other news, I've caught up on my DVR.
7. 17 weeks 4 days currently... soon to find out gender "for sure." whoop whoop
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Friday, May 18, 2012
Confessions
Confessions.
1. I pretty much just had a piece of cappuccino cheesecake for supper tonight. Earlier this week I had a bowl of ramen and some spicy pickles. I have no shame. I usually eat fairly healthy food... just not always.
2. A League of Their Own is my favorite movie of all time. I can't NOT watch it if it's on TV. Although I own copies of it, I never watch them. It's on TV now. And I'm a'watchin'.
3. I am not enjoying my work right now, but I am really excited about flipping over to a new "year" (for us) in July.
4. I'm off Sunday, and I'm going to spend part of it watching my favorite 8 year old in her church choir program. It should be fantastic.
5. I hate two chores in life... unloading the dishwasher and cleaning bathrooms.
1. I pretty much just had a piece of cappuccino cheesecake for supper tonight. Earlier this week I had a bowl of ramen and some spicy pickles. I have no shame. I usually eat fairly healthy food... just not always.
2. A League of Their Own is my favorite movie of all time. I can't NOT watch it if it's on TV. Although I own copies of it, I never watch them. It's on TV now. And I'm a'watchin'.
3. I am not enjoying my work right now, but I am really excited about flipping over to a new "year" (for us) in July.
4. I'm off Sunday, and I'm going to spend part of it watching my favorite 8 year old in her church choir program. It should be fantastic.
5. I hate two chores in life... unloading the dishwasher and cleaning bathrooms.
15/16 Weeks
How far along: 15 weeks, 6 days (16 weeks tomorrow)
Baby Size: Avocado
Maternity clothes: Just getting into them fairly squarely now...
Sleep: Dog with allergies, husband who has to leave for the hospital before 5am, otherwise ok...
Best moment this week: Trying to scope out gender via US... couldn't get the right angle (I joked that my child is like any proper southern lady or gentleman... modest to the core. I still have to teach it a few signature southern/Ole Miss rules... never dance on elevated surfaces, and never use cleavage as a cup-holder. Kidding, of course)
Food cravings: none in particular. Chicken sounds really gross (I could probably still eat a Wendy's spicy chicken sandwich though)
What I'm looking forward to: Gender, gender, gender!
Pregnancy symptoms: Hello, bathroom trips.
Girl or Boy: Gut says boy. Coworkers are fairly split. Family is split too. We have names picked out, but we have to make sure they "fit" once we find out gender (it's not perfectly logical, but if we start referring to it by name, we'll know quickly if it fits).
Baby Size: Avocado
Maternity clothes: Just getting into them fairly squarely now...
Sleep: Dog with allergies, husband who has to leave for the hospital before 5am, otherwise ok...
Best moment this week: Trying to scope out gender via US... couldn't get the right angle (I joked that my child is like any proper southern lady or gentleman... modest to the core. I still have to teach it a few signature southern/Ole Miss rules... never dance on elevated surfaces, and never use cleavage as a cup-holder. Kidding, of course)
Food cravings: none in particular. Chicken sounds really gross (I could probably still eat a Wendy's spicy chicken sandwich though)
What I'm looking forward to: Gender, gender, gender!
Pregnancy symptoms: Hello, bathroom trips.
Girl or Boy: Gut says boy. Coworkers are fairly split. Family is split too. We have names picked out, but we have to make sure they "fit" once we find out gender (it's not perfectly logical, but if we start referring to it by name, we'll know quickly if it fits).
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Happy Mother's Day
Friday, May 11, 2012
Weekly Food...
With crazy schedules in my house, I've tried to find things that I can prepare ahead of time and will make leftovers (but not so much that we get tired of them). With my schedule this week consisting of two weekend day calls and one weekday call, and John's schedule having one weekday call and working one of the two weekends, I decided to get on the ball...
Some weeks are red meat weeks (not intentionally, just turns out that way), some are lighter.
Last weekend, I ran to Walmart and bought a bag of cooked frozen shrimp and a container of pesto and at Kroger I picked up some Russets (3 large bagged for sale for 99c), strawberries (big clamshell package on sale for $1.09), green onions, bananas, and pizza crust. These things will likely work their way into the menu over the next 1-2 weeks.
So what have I made thus far?
1. Corn Chowder (half-recipe made for me, John doesn't eat it... 4 servings) Just double for full recipe:
1/2 c chopped onion (I use the frozen chopped Kroger brand)
1/4-1/2 c chopped bell pepper (frozen again)
1 Tbsp butter or margarine
1/2 can Rotel (other half freezes beautifully... or in my case, will go into the fridge)
1/2 can cream of chicken (or mushroom, or shrimp, or potato soup... again, remainder freezes great in a ziploc)
1 can cream corn
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 pint Half-and-half (fat free works fine)
Milk
Old Bay seasoning
Tony Chachere's (or other cajun seasoning)
Hot sauce
Optional meat/protein-- shrimp, crab meat, chicken
Saute onion and peppers in butter until softened. Stir in Rotel, soup, cream corn, kernel corn. (At this point, I portion this out into 3-4 portions and either freeze or refrigerate.) Simmer over low-medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring periodically (it will be thick). If making the whole batch, stir in one pint of half-and half and add milk if you want a thinner consistency. Stir until warmed through. Season to taste with Old Bay, Tony's, and hot sauce (I like it spicy, so just sprinkle, stir and taste until it's "right"). If adding shrimp or crab, add in at the end and heat through.
This recipe is super flexible... I've added potatoes, multiple proteins, etc. When I am making it into portions, I heat each portion up with 1/2 cup half and half and a little milk when I'm ready to eat it. It works fine to reheat, but I find it easier to freeze and store (smaller containers) before I add the liquid.
2. Potato Skins
No "recipe" here... threw a few russets (bought on sale at Kroger) into the oven to bake. Prepared them by washing, salting, wrapping tightly in foil and cooking at 350 until they "give" when squeezed. I had huge potatoes and they took about 80 minutes.
Scoop out insides (save for later in the week) leaving 1/2 inch potato in skins. Let cool, then roast at 400-450 degrees for 7-10 minutes on each side.
Top with cheese, garlic salt, bacon pieces and throw under the broiler (or back in the hot oven) for 2 minutes until melted. Then top with sour cream, green onions, and if you're so inclined- ranch dressing (I make this from the dry seasoning packet... half mayonaise, half sour-cream, mix in ranch packet, thin with milk to desired consistency)
3. Deluxe loaded mashed potatoes
This uses up leftover potatoes from the skins. Mash potato with sour cream, butter, milk until thick but smooth. Mix in cheese (any variety, even American works if that's what you have on hand), bacon bits, and thawed cooked shrimp (or crab, or chicken)and add salt and pepper to taste. Spoon into small casserole dish, individual casserole dishes (or potato skins if not using them for other recipe), top with cheese and pop in the oven until warmed through.
4. Pasta with Pesto (this is a ridiculous 3 ingredient recipe that I love to make)
Cook pasta of choice according to package directions. If so inclined, throw in frozen or fresh chopped spinach, broccoli, peas at the end of cooking to warm through. Strain and reserve 1/2 cup cooking water. Mix cooked pasta with pesto until thinly coated, add splash of cooking water to thin pesto if needed. Add protein of choice if so inclined (I usually use shrimp).
5. Pizza...
I love using pizza to "makeover" leftovers. John and I are not huge fans of leftovers... we'll usually eat something as leftovers once, but things that can't be frozen or make more than one night of leftovers need to be "remade" for us to really get after them. One solution is pizza... Make a crust, bake according to package directions (or from frozen dough, but that's another story for another day), top with pizza sauce, pesto, ranch, BBQ sauce, or other sauce and top with cheese, veggies and protein of choice. One of my favorites is pesto and cheeses. Another is leftover chicken or pork "pulled" and mixed with BBQ sauce with cheese. Pizza sauce, cheese, veggies, etc. It's a catch-all for when I finally run out of everything else.
6. Hamburgers- fairly self-explanatory. If I feel like dressing things up, I'll mix 1 lb ground beef with packet of ranch dressing mix or packet of onion soup mix.
I'm usually doing good to get one dish made for supper...which is why trying to buy things that will be used in multiple recipes or things I can make ahead are a huge help. I won't lie... last night, I had a smoothie and John had some simple butter pasta and a breakfast burrito out of the freezer (random, but whatever works).
Some weeks are red meat weeks (not intentionally, just turns out that way), some are lighter.
Last weekend, I ran to Walmart and bought a bag of cooked frozen shrimp and a container of pesto and at Kroger I picked up some Russets (3 large bagged for sale for 99c), strawberries (big clamshell package on sale for $1.09), green onions, bananas, and pizza crust. These things will likely work their way into the menu over the next 1-2 weeks.
So what have I made thus far?
1. Corn Chowder (half-recipe made for me, John doesn't eat it... 4 servings) Just double for full recipe:
1/2 c chopped onion (I use the frozen chopped Kroger brand)
1/4-1/2 c chopped bell pepper (frozen again)
1 Tbsp butter or margarine
1/2 can Rotel (other half freezes beautifully... or in my case, will go into the fridge)
1/2 can cream of chicken (or mushroom, or shrimp, or potato soup... again, remainder freezes great in a ziploc)
1 can cream corn
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 pint Half-and-half (fat free works fine)
Milk
Old Bay seasoning
Tony Chachere's (or other cajun seasoning)
Hot sauce
Optional meat/protein-- shrimp, crab meat, chicken
Saute onion and peppers in butter until softened. Stir in Rotel, soup, cream corn, kernel corn. (At this point, I portion this out into 3-4 portions and either freeze or refrigerate.) Simmer over low-medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring periodically (it will be thick). If making the whole batch, stir in one pint of half-and half and add milk if you want a thinner consistency. Stir until warmed through. Season to taste with Old Bay, Tony's, and hot sauce (I like it spicy, so just sprinkle, stir and taste until it's "right"). If adding shrimp or crab, add in at the end and heat through.
This recipe is super flexible... I've added potatoes, multiple proteins, etc. When I am making it into portions, I heat each portion up with 1/2 cup half and half and a little milk when I'm ready to eat it. It works fine to reheat, but I find it easier to freeze and store (smaller containers) before I add the liquid.
2. Potato Skins
No "recipe" here... threw a few russets (bought on sale at Kroger) into the oven to bake. Prepared them by washing, salting, wrapping tightly in foil and cooking at 350 until they "give" when squeezed. I had huge potatoes and they took about 80 minutes.
Scoop out insides (save for later in the week) leaving 1/2 inch potato in skins. Let cool, then roast at 400-450 degrees for 7-10 minutes on each side.
Top with cheese, garlic salt, bacon pieces and throw under the broiler (or back in the hot oven) for 2 minutes until melted. Then top with sour cream, green onions, and if you're so inclined- ranch dressing (I make this from the dry seasoning packet... half mayonaise, half sour-cream, mix in ranch packet, thin with milk to desired consistency)
3. Deluxe loaded mashed potatoes
This uses up leftover potatoes from the skins. Mash potato with sour cream, butter, milk until thick but smooth. Mix in cheese (any variety, even American works if that's what you have on hand), bacon bits, and thawed cooked shrimp (or crab, or chicken)and add salt and pepper to taste. Spoon into small casserole dish, individual casserole dishes (or potato skins if not using them for other recipe), top with cheese and pop in the oven until warmed through.
4. Pasta with Pesto (this is a ridiculous 3 ingredient recipe that I love to make)
Cook pasta of choice according to package directions. If so inclined, throw in frozen or fresh chopped spinach, broccoli, peas at the end of cooking to warm through. Strain and reserve 1/2 cup cooking water. Mix cooked pasta with pesto until thinly coated, add splash of cooking water to thin pesto if needed. Add protein of choice if so inclined (I usually use shrimp).
5. Pizza...
I love using pizza to "makeover" leftovers. John and I are not huge fans of leftovers... we'll usually eat something as leftovers once, but things that can't be frozen or make more than one night of leftovers need to be "remade" for us to really get after them. One solution is pizza... Make a crust, bake according to package directions (or from frozen dough, but that's another story for another day), top with pizza sauce, pesto, ranch, BBQ sauce, or other sauce and top with cheese, veggies and protein of choice. One of my favorites is pesto and cheeses. Another is leftover chicken or pork "pulled" and mixed with BBQ sauce with cheese. Pizza sauce, cheese, veggies, etc. It's a catch-all for when I finally run out of everything else.
6. Hamburgers- fairly self-explanatory. If I feel like dressing things up, I'll mix 1 lb ground beef with packet of ranch dressing mix or packet of onion soup mix.
I'm usually doing good to get one dish made for supper...which is why trying to buy things that will be used in multiple recipes or things I can make ahead are a huge help. I won't lie... last night, I had a smoothie and John had some simple butter pasta and a breakfast burrito out of the freezer (random, but whatever works).
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Sweet Sunday
Sunday Sweets... a.k.a. foods I'm currently loving...
Biscoff crunchy. It's heaven in a jar.
These almonds...
Frozen bananas in a blender... just plain bananas, delicious, add cinnamon, peanut butter, or chocolate. This picture is from SeriousEats.com.
One thing I'm not loving...the fact that I absolutely cannot cook canned cinnamon rolls without burning the bottoms. I adjust oven temps, change pans, nothing works. I prefer them from scratch (and those never burn!), but sometimes convenience usurps superior quality.
Biscoff crunchy. It's heaven in a jar.
These almonds...
Frozen bananas in a blender... just plain bananas, delicious, add cinnamon, peanut butter, or chocolate. This picture is from SeriousEats.com.
One thing I'm not loving...the fact that I absolutely cannot cook canned cinnamon rolls without burning the bottoms. I adjust oven temps, change pans, nothing works. I prefer them from scratch (and those never burn!), but sometimes convenience usurps superior quality.
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Doing my thing...
Because this is awesome...
And this exchange at work was equally awesome...
Me: What were you doing when [some symptom] occurred?
Patient: Oh, I was just doing my thing.
Me: (blank stare)
And this exchange at work was equally awesome...
Me: What were you doing when [some symptom] occurred?
Patient: Oh, I was just doing my thing.
Me: (blank stare)
Friday, May 4, 2012
Friends...
Linking up through Kelly's Korner
My blogger profile says "Wife. Daughter. Sister. Family member. Christian. Friend. Family physician." That sums it up.
I married my husband in August 2010. We were set up by a dear friend three years after she decided we needed to be set up (at the time she decided we "would be PERFECT for each other," he was working in the northeast as a lawyer and I was a senior in college). We got married by a thick-accented Cajun judge in his chambers in New Orleans. (my pictures from my wedding are on another drive, so this will have to do... my something old (rings that belonged to my late mother-in-law), something new (eyelet wedding dress), something borrowed (necklace and earrings from my mother), something blue (Mama's sapphire jewelry).
My parents are wonderful and did a spectacular job at rearing me and my sister to be decent people. I hope I do half the job that they did.
I have one sister who is two years younger than me. We got married 3 months apart. She was my witness, I was her matron of honor. I tried to get my mom to return her at Walmart shortly after she was born.
My family is large, very close, and very involved in each other's lives. I can't imagine it being any other way.
I love my friends from every walk of life... hometown, college (Hotty Toddy), medical school, work, real life.
Christian-- raised Southern Baptist, saved in 1996, married a preacher's son, now split time between my home church and my husband's. We love them both!
Family physician... I'm currently a family medicine resident learning how to be "the local doctor."
The only "title" not on here is "Expecting"... 14 weeks along with our first, praying and hoping that all goes well.
My blogger profile says "Wife. Daughter. Sister. Family member. Christian. Friend. Family physician." That sums it up.
I married my husband in August 2010. We were set up by a dear friend three years after she decided we needed to be set up (at the time she decided we "would be PERFECT for each other," he was working in the northeast as a lawyer and I was a senior in college). We got married by a thick-accented Cajun judge in his chambers in New Orleans. (my pictures from my wedding are on another drive, so this will have to do... my something old (rings that belonged to my late mother-in-law), something new (eyelet wedding dress), something borrowed (necklace and earrings from my mother), something blue (Mama's sapphire jewelry).
My parents are wonderful and did a spectacular job at rearing me and my sister to be decent people. I hope I do half the job that they did.
I have one sister who is two years younger than me. We got married 3 months apart. She was my witness, I was her matron of honor. I tried to get my mom to return her at Walmart shortly after she was born.
My family is large, very close, and very involved in each other's lives. I can't imagine it being any other way.
I love my friends from every walk of life... hometown, college (Hotty Toddy), medical school, work, real life.
Christian-- raised Southern Baptist, saved in 1996, married a preacher's son, now split time between my home church and my husband's. We love them both!
Family physician... I'm currently a family medicine resident learning how to be "the local doctor."
The only "title" not on here is "Expecting"... 14 weeks along with our first, praying and hoping that all goes well.
Confessions
Confessions are a very popular blogging topic right now...
A list of five things that happened to me this week...
1. I saw a new car with a tag that read "Tag Applied For"... that dangling preposition kills me.
2. I officially gave up artificially sweetened beverages... cutting out both Coke Zero and fountain Diet Coke simultaneously nearly broke my spirit, but I press on... I have substituted a half-and-half mix of sweet (w/sugar) and unsweet tea, or plain unsweet. Sidenote... I love the fact that waitresses here can ask "Sweet or Un?" and everyone knows exactly what they mean.
3. I attempted to wash my king-size comforter in my washing machine. It didn't work. I had to take it outside and spread it on the deck to dry. Later that day, it rained. I was at work at the time.
4. My oldest "baby" cousin turned 16 and got her driver's license. I won't lie... it made me feel old. Real old.
5. I have taken a minor vow not to buy any non-consumable items in the next few month (or as few as possible... there will be a few clothing items that have to be purchased). I'm a minor-league couponer, and I make a conscious but not truly sacrificial effort to save money. Right now, our biggest problem is that our house is FULL... we have so much STUFF, some that needs to be packed up (for a eventual move to a bigger house) and some that needs to be used up (hello, freezer that barely closes).
Four things you may not (and probably don't care to) know about me..
1. I spent a month earlier this year working here... Look up the town's history. It's fascinating.
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2. When we went to Canada two years ago on our honeymoon, I HAD to get poutine... it's popular in some areas of the northern US, but no one around here knows a thing about cheese curds. This is french fries topped with fresh curds and gravy. Seriously one of the most delicious things ever... sort of like gravy fries with cheese down here, but the fries are homecut, the gravy is peppery-er, and the cheese curds are squeaky.
3. My dog's full name is Maximillian Aloysius Jackson. Max knows how to work it.
4. I once caught a foul ball at a major league baseball game... Royals vs. Twins.
A list of five things that happened to me this week...
1. I saw a new car with a tag that read "Tag Applied For"... that dangling preposition kills me.
2. I officially gave up artificially sweetened beverages... cutting out both Coke Zero and fountain Diet Coke simultaneously nearly broke my spirit, but I press on... I have substituted a half-and-half mix of sweet (w/sugar) and unsweet tea, or plain unsweet. Sidenote... I love the fact that waitresses here can ask "Sweet or Un?" and everyone knows exactly what they mean.
3. I attempted to wash my king-size comforter in my washing machine. It didn't work. I had to take it outside and spread it on the deck to dry. Later that day, it rained. I was at work at the time.
4. My oldest "baby" cousin turned 16 and got her driver's license. I won't lie... it made me feel old. Real old.
5. I have taken a minor vow not to buy any non-consumable items in the next few month (or as few as possible... there will be a few clothing items that have to be purchased). I'm a minor-league couponer, and I make a conscious but not truly sacrificial effort to save money. Right now, our biggest problem is that our house is FULL... we have so much STUFF, some that needs to be packed up (for a eventual move to a bigger house) and some that needs to be used up (hello, freezer that barely closes).
Four things you may not (and probably don't care to) know about me..
1. I spent a month earlier this year working here... Look up the town's history. It's fascinating.
.PNG)
2. When we went to Canada two years ago on our honeymoon, I HAD to get poutine... it's popular in some areas of the northern US, but no one around here knows a thing about cheese curds. This is french fries topped with fresh curds and gravy. Seriously one of the most delicious things ever... sort of like gravy fries with cheese down here, but the fries are homecut, the gravy is peppery-er, and the cheese curds are squeaky.
3. My dog's full name is Maximillian Aloysius Jackson. Max knows how to work it.
13 Weeks
13 weeks...
How far along: 13 weeks, 6 days
Baby Size: lemon
Maternity clothes: Up a scrub top size, B Band, finally in maternity jeans
Sleep: Sleeping better now than I did in first trimester
Best moment this week: Having "the talk" about names, testing, baby boy things, etc.
Food cravings: sushi (I had it twice this week, cooked varieties both times)
What I'm looking forward to: Finding out boy or girl!
Pregnancy symptoms: More a "sign" than "symptom"... starting to show/get bigger on top and bottom
Girl or Boy: Me, my sister, my aunt are on team boy, my cousins and my mom are on team girl
How far along: 13 weeks, 6 days
Baby Size: lemon
Maternity clothes: Up a scrub top size, B Band, finally in maternity jeans
Sleep: Sleeping better now than I did in first trimester
Best moment this week: Having "the talk" about names, testing, baby boy things, etc.
Food cravings: sushi (I had it twice this week, cooked varieties both times)
What I'm looking forward to: Finding out boy or girl!
Pregnancy symptoms: More a "sign" than "symptom"... starting to show/get bigger on top and bottom
Girl or Boy: Me, my sister, my aunt are on team boy, my cousins and my mom are on team girl
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