Scrabble Love

I made a Valentine's decoration last night around 8:30 p.m.  Yes, I do realize yesterday was Valentine's Day..haha.  I had been meaning to make this for a while, but we've been sick around here for the second time in like a month (I don't know how we keep seeming to catch things), so I was finally able to get out this week to get a frame.

I got the idea from a PIN I pinned several months back.  I thought it was a tutorial, but found out it was actually up for sale in the United Kingdom. I thought to myself, well that can't be too hard to make!

Here's how mine turned out :) 

I had to take the picture at a bit of an angle to not get my reflection in it.

It's pretty self-explanatory.  You have to get a frame where the glass is pushed out front of the matting so that the Scrabble pieces will fit under. I got mine from Hobby Lobby with my handy gift card from Amber for Christmas.  I used some leftover magenta cardstock from my WREATH a few years back.  Just cut it to fit the frame.  I traced the little square opening to make sure I was gluing the Scrabble pieces on straight.  Then assemble and wa-la!  So easy!  This literally took me 15 minutes tops!

In other news, we had a low-key Valentine's Day.  I surprised Trent with this new recipe for a Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake from Less-Than-Perfect Life of Bliss when he got home. It was yummy!  I may just make it a little tradition for every Valentine's Day :)  If only I had a cute heart-shaped pie pan like Julie :) 

We ate a quick dinner (thanks to Bertolli!) and hurried off to Aiden's swim lesson.  I got a LivingSocial deal for four swim lessons and this was Aiden's second.  The first time Trent got in with him, but his nose was still really running so I got in last night.  Aiden likes it pretty well except floating on his back..haha.

Sometimes Aiden tries to drink the water :/  He does this in his bath too..haha.

Peeking over at Daddy :)

Oh..we sent a Valentine's shout-out to all of the aunts. I got this picture before we headed off to Aiden's swim lesson.  Notice Aiden's crabby flip flops.  Aiden and I did a little shopping yesterday and picked them up. Aiden doesn't know what to think of something being wedged between his little toes..haha.

We headed home after the lesson and Aunt Jen stopped by with Valentines.  She brought mini m&m's for Aiden since he's "mini."

We got Aiden new jammies yesterday too, as pictured.  I don't know why, but I love two-piece jammies!  I think Aiden looks so darling in them :)

We haven't exchanged gifts yet, so we'll do that tonight and go out and celebrate :)

Homemade Butterfingers

Trent and I discovered this post on how to make homemade Butterfingers back around Halloween.  And you only need 3 ingredients - peanut butter, chocolate chips, and *drumroll* CANDY CORN!!  Hence why we probably discovered the recipe right around Halloween.

Several weeks ago Trent randomly mentioned how much he wanted to try them (he loves all things peanut butter!) so Aiden and I decided to surprise him one afternoon and have them ready for him when he got home from work :)

Preparing to melt the candy corn.

Mixing in the peanut butter.

I read through the comments on the original recipe and one guy mentioned that a 16-ounce jar of peanut butter is almost exactly 1.5 cups!  Because who really likes to measure out peanut butter?!

I also read in the comments that some people preferred them thinner so I spread the mixture in a cookie sheet instead.

Seriously SO GOOD!!  I will be honest, during the process of dipping in the chocolate I was thinking to myself, "These better be good or I'm not making them again."  I forgot how annoying it is to dip things in chocolate and have them still come out looking presentable.  I got pretty good by the end though.  If anyone has any good tips though, let me know!

And they were definitely worth it!  I'm positive we'll be making them again :)

As promised

Aiden came a week before Thanksgiving so we got to put him in his little Thanksgiving outfit that I mentioned here.  YAY!  And as promised, we got pictures :)

Aw, it's still too bright outside for poor Aiden. 

A closer shot.  You can kind of see the "Gobble, Gobble, Gobble" on his shirt :)

His turkey bum bum :)

He was much happier inside!  Very content :)

We had Thanksgiving this year with Trent's parents and they were kind enough to come to us so we didn't have to drag Aiden and all of his things out to Phoenix.  We had a nice, quiet, easygoing meal :)

Trent made an awesome hazelnut pumpkin pie this year.  You can find the recipe here.  It has more of a cheesecake consistency and was so yummy!  My family tried some later and even they liked it!  They can be pretty picky ;)  

Good job babe!

Grandpa and Grandma

I went out and purchased this turkey at a craft boutique with my mom and Jill last Saturday, right after we got home from the hospital.  

Everyone thought I was crazy!  I was pretty sore and had to walk pretty slow, but I had had this boutique marked on my calendar for a few months and just couldn't miss it!  I love stuff like that!  And we had to get a picture with the babes because of the "gobble gobble" theme  :)

Some Firsts

Over the last week or so I've experienced a few firsts.

• Baby got the hiccups for the first time (at least the first time I've noticed) Tuesday night as I was trying to fall asleep and it kept me up for a while.  It kind of freaked me out at first because it felt like a strong pulse and many of you know I hate feeling pulses and thinking about blood run through my veins and what not.  Anyway, it was weird to recognize his hiccups for the first time.  He got them again yesterday during the day.  It's quite distracting.

• Speaking of sleep, baby has also kept me up a few times at night when it feels like he's pressing against the mattress.  It's as if he doesn't want me to go to sleep and is trying to get me to get back up!  I try to trick him by turning onto my other side but it doesn't always work..haha.

• This last Sunday before Church I had to have Trent put my sandals on for me.  It's getting really hard for me to lean over or squat down. Luckily I'm still wearing flip flops 99% of the time (it's still in the high 90's here).  I thought I'd have to have Trent help me repaint my toenails last night, but I was still able to do that.  Although my tummy got pretty squished while I was at it.

• Over the last few days I've been getting uncomfortably full even though I'm eating the same portions I usually eat.  I think my stomach is just getting more crunched as baby is getting bigger.  I guess I'm going to have to eat smaller portions at a time.

• Lastly, and this one doesn't really have anything to do with my pregnancy, I made nectarine scones for the first time this afternoon and had them ready for Trent when he got home :)  One of my former college roommates, Cassie, posted the recipe to her blog, and now I'm going to post it for you!  Check it out here! 

Do they not look amazing?!  Go make them right now!  You won't regret it! They are stinkin' delicious!  

Gobble Gobble

I loved the simplicity of our Friday evening date last night.  It was so simple yet so fun for me.  It was kind of a rough week so it was really nice to just be with Trent enjoying our time together before this little guy comes.  I'm 30-weeks now and kind of, totally freaking out (haha) BUT I'm also totally psyched :)

We first picked up some sandwiches for a young family in the ward (I visit taught the girl) that's moving today.  The Compassionate Service committee came up with the idea to drop by sandwiches the night before any family moves since they've probably packed away all of their silverware and what not.  I think it's a great idea, something I had never thought about!

Then we headed over to Border's at the mall.  I had heard rumors that Border's was going out of business a while back, but didn't realize just how soon!  We got there and it was already completely closed.  Nothing was there anymore!  We thought we'd be able to get some steals of a deal.  Oh well!

Outside of Border's we ran into a buddy from Trent's mission and his wife.  It was so fun to hear them catch up some.  They were both so excited to see one another..haha.  We may just be hanging out with them in the near future :)

I didn't want to just head home after this so we went inside the mall to see if any of the department stores had a cute outfit I've had my eye on for baby boy.  Our first stop was J.C.Penney and sure enough, we found it!  And it was on sale!  I was so excited.

Baby is due November 25, the day after Thanksgiving.  Since I first got pregnant I've assumed he'll come a little early, maybe just because I came early (although I'm a twin).  I don't really know.  Anyway, when I saw this little outfit I just had to have it :)

Here's the front...

and the little bum bum is what had me sold!  It's a turkey if you can't quite tell :)

Trent keeps asking what we'll do if baby doesn't actually come until his due date or even after.  I've assured him we will still dress him in this..haha.  You all will be seeing a picture of our new baby in this outfit, promise..haha.

After I had perused the baby section a few times over (it was SO fun!) we obviously (from the pictures) headed home.  I have been craving an orange julius for several weeks now so I finally made some for us and it was DELICIOUS!  I used this recipe.  Be sure to read his updated note about using half powdered sugar and half regular sugar.  Oh and we had to half the recipe.  Our blender wasn't big enough for all of it.

Pourin' in the sugar :)

And wa-la!  Fancy glass and all :)

So delicious!  We finished off our evening by watching "It's Kind of a Funny Story."  We really liked it!  It's pretty funny!

Cheesy Potato Chowder

Isn't it the best to have a hot bowl of soup/chowder on a cold winter's night? Well it's not exactly cold down here in AZ, but Trent and I made this chowder last week and it hit the spot! The recipe is from eatbetteramerica.com and it is a "healthified" recipe. I have mentioned this concept in a previous post that you can find here.

It makes a lot (well there's just 2 of us) so you may want to half it or share with guests :) I'll direct you to Eat Better America to get the recipe. You can find it here. One of the reasons I love this website is because there are reviews and ratings for almost all of the recipes. I love to read the reviews to see how people may have tweaked the recipe.

Enjoy! And I'm a little behind on blogging so stay tuned over the next few days for a few more posts :)

Oh and I just have this picture because I wanted to show off our cute Christmas plate being displayed in our kitchen :)

Easy Black Bean Burritos

I made these burritos last night and they are definitely a fave of ours. And they are so EASY! The recipe is from the Colorado Collage Cookbook that Trent's aunt Tracy gave to us as a wedding gift. We have liked all of the recipes we've tried from it :)

You seriously just mince some garlic (if you want to use fresh garlic) and throw all of the ingredients in a saucepan for like five minutes and it's done!

You'll need:

1/2 teaspoon dried minced onion

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup purchased salsa

4-8 7-inch flour tortillas

1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese

In a large saucepan, combine onion, garlic, beans, coriander, sour cream, and salsa. Cook over medium heat, mashing beans with back of spoon, about 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Divide bean mixture among tortillas, sprinkle with cheese, roll up, and serve.

The final product! Their picture is a lot nicer :)

Delish! Enjoy!

Orange Chicken

I thought I'd post a recipe that we love for orange chicken, like P.F. Chang's :) This is a recipe I got from my cousin Michelle. She made me a cookbook for my wedding and it was one of my favorite gifts :) I'm sure I'll post more of her recipes in the future. I posted her recipe for Scotcheroos a few months ago.

Anyway, here is the recipe for orange chicken!

To begin you'll need a 28 oz. bag of popcorn chicken (It's kind of expensive, but just remember that it's a lot cheaper than what you'd pay at P.F. Chang's. You could also just use breaded chicken tenders and cut them into bite-size pieces. That's usually cheaper. Whatever you buy make sure it's all white meat chicken and not the chicken nugget type stuff..haha).

So, cook the chicken according to the directions on the bag.

In the meantime, make the sauce.

Saute for about a minute in a little oil:
2 T. minced garlic
4 green onions, sliced

Add:

8 oz. tomato sauce (one little can)

1/2 C. water

1/2 C. sugar

2 t. chili garlic sauce (Found in Asian aisle. This is what gives it all the heat, so it can be adjusted according to your taste - we only use 1 teaspoon.)

1 T. soy sauce

1 t. cornstarch (up to 1 T. if you want the sauce thicker)

Bring to a boil and let thicken. Add the zest of an orange into sauce. When the chicken is ready, add it to the sauce.

Serve over rice (we like brown), which hopefully you remember to start in time so you're not waiting for it..haha!

I took this picture of Trent and this is how he posed..haha! He cracks me up!

Cream Cheese Brownies

I had a friend ask for the recipe for Cheesecake Brownies when I mentioned them in the survey I posted about a week and a half ago. It turns out I got the name wrong. They're actually called Cream Cheese Brownies, but I think they may as well be called Cheesecake Brownies :) Anyway, they are one of me and Trent's favorite treats! We got the recipe from eatbetteramerica.com . We love this website and try their recipes all the time (I'm on their email list)!

The website has a section of "healthified" recipes. This is just where small, simple changes are made to a recipe to make it more healthy. These brownies are "healthified" in that the recipe calls for 1/3-less-fat cream cheese and only egg whites (not the yolks). Most people can't tell that these are "healthified" and love them. Anyway, I've posted the recipe below.

Filling
1 package (8 oz) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla

Brownies
1 box (1 lb 2.3 oz) Betty Crocker fudge brownie mix
1/4 cup canola oil or unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup water
4 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray bottom only of a 13*9-in pan with cooking spray. In medium bowl, beat cream cheese with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in remaining filling ingredients until well blended.

2. In large bowl, stir brownie mix, oil, water, 4 egg whites and 1 teaspoon vanilla with spoon until well blended. Spread in pan.

3. Spoon filling mixture over brownie batter in pan. Cut through filling mixture and batter with knife several times for marbled design. Sprinkle with chocolate chips.

4. Bake 28 to 32 minutes or until toothpick inserted in brownie 2 inches from side of pan comes out clean. Cool completely, about an hour (this is the hardest part for us!). Store covered in refrigerator.

Enjoy! Let me know how they are if you try them. And I apologize if you really don't care for them :) My sisters have all liked them, but my mom said she could definitely tell they were "healthified."

Scotcheroos

We have a friend, Spenser. My cousin Andrew lives with Spenser in Arlington Place Town Homes (where Trent and I live) and it's been so fun to have them close, especially if we ever need an ingredient, or flashlights when our power randomly goes out..haha. Most recently we needed to borrow Spenser's truck to go pick up our couch that my cousin and her husband were keeping at their place while we've lived here (this place came almost fully furnished). Anyway, I wanted to make Spenser a little treat to let him know we appreciate him, and that we're not just using him, so we decided on Scotcheroos. Well, I got up this morning around 9:15 and Trent had already made them..haha! He is so funny! I love that he truly enjoys baking :)

I made Trent take this picture! Doesn't he look happy?!

After we dived in! So delish!

I thought I would put the recipe up for any of you who don't have it. I actually got this recipe from my cousin Michelle, Andrew's sister :)

1. Pre-measure 6 scant C. (a little under full) of rice krispies

2. Pre-measure 1 C. peanut butter

3. On med-high heat cook 1 C. sugar and 1 C. light karo syrup. As soon as it starts to boil, remove from heat. DO NOT let it come to a rolling boil.

4. Add peanut butter and mix

5. Add rice krispies and mix

6. Pour into 9x13" pammed pan, wet hands to prevent sticking and press into pan

7. Cover with 1 C. butterscotch chips and 1 C. chocolate chips, put in oven at 350, JUST long enough to melt chips (just takes a few minutes for them to get soft enough to spread). Then spread and cool.

Hope you like them :)

Devil's Food Cake Cookies

So I found this recipe on a cooking blog and have made them twice now. I am so impressed with how easy and delicious they are! All you have to do is mix 1 box of Devil's Food cake mix with 2 eggs and 1/2 cup of oil (I use vegetable oil). I then like to add half a bag of white chocolate chips. Then you just bake them at 350 degrees for 9 minutes. If you want to, you can then sprinkle them with powdered sugar. That's it! EASY!

Both times I have made these people have asked me, "Oh are these those cake cookies?" I guess it's a pretty well-known recipe. Apparently you can use any cake mix, so it may be fun to experiment! Have fun! Oh and let me know if you've tried them with a different cake mix and how they turned out :)