32 Weeks

 Here we are at 32 weeks on the nose! Bec took some photos for us yesterday and I just love them! She is so talented. The lighting is lovely.

Again, I look a lot bigger than I feel! Each baby weighs approximately 4 pounds.

About 6 more weeks til the girls are here!

And the man that made this all possible is looking mighty fine these days too!



30 Weeks

I know I've been MIA for awhile and I am very sad about that. I think about blogging a lot but I just never get to it. Plus, I haven't been cooking too many creative meals lately. Once the girls are here and we're on a schedule (sooo,  next Spring?!!), I will be back at it! Until then, I'll keep posting random updates.

Mom, Claire & Eden at 30 weeks.... growing big!

Our 1st Wedding Anniversary

On Monday Adam and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary.

Here is one of my favorite photos from our wedding day - our frist dance as husband and wife.

To celebrate, we went to Baltimore for the day. With the city only an hour away from our new house, it was a great getaway. We saw a lot of the city we had never seen before.

We started our day walking around Camden Yards and then visited Babe Ruth's birthplace.

Unfortunately, it rained the entire day so after our visit with Babe, we made our way to a nearby bar to wait out the rain. After 2 orders of fried pickles for me and some local brews for Adam at Pickles Pub, the rain held steady. So with our new Orioles umbrellas, we ventured to Little Italy.

We ate at a cute place called Chiapparelli's.

I had homemade manicotti and Adam had a caprese panini.

We will definitely visit this restaurant again!

After lunch we made our way to Inner Harbor for dessert.... 2 delectable pieces of cheesecake from where else than the Cheesecake Factory!

Next we headed to the National Aquarium. Even though it was a busy Saturday, we got to see everything, including our favorite - the sharks and sting rays. We even saw an enormous sea turtle who was missing his front left flipper, which made him all the more adorable!

Here I am on my wedding day and then... a little rounder... 1 year later, along Inner Harbor.

After a short rest at the hotel, we visited the neighborhood of Canton to feast on a dozen crabs at Bo Brooks. A great treat!

Adam picked his crabs and saved all the meat until the end. He had a big bowl of buttery crab to enjoy.

After dinner, we ventured to Fells Point. We wanted to visit America's oldest saloon, The Horse You Came In On. It was packed. We had to wait in line just to get in. Even though I felt awkward in a lively bar with my big belly, we had a good time (for the 20 minutes I lasted). There was a fun band and the girls liked the music. They were kicking away!

Before we headed back to the hotel, I had to have some gelato at Pitango - chocolate and pistachio. A great ending to a great day!

So when our official anniversay rolled around on Monday, we got the top tier of our wedding cake out of the freezer.

The gorgeous cake on our wedding day:

 And one year later:



Not as delicious as we remember, but it was fun to reminisce about our beautiful wedding day.

It was a wonderful anniversary! I can't wait to celebrate next year with our girls!

23 Weeks

Here I am at 23 weeks in front of our new house!

We've been moved in for 3 weeks now. We're really loving the house, neighborhood and the short drive to work. And the dogs love going for long walks.

We saw the Dr today and the girls and I are growing right on track, with Baby A weighing in at 1 lb 4 oz. and Baby B weighing in at 1 lb. 6 oz. And Mama weighing in at... well, let's just say the Dr said I'm right where I should be :)

I'm feeling really good but just tired when I get home from work. I keep telling myself this fatigue is nothing compared to what it will be like when I'm carrying around girls in my belly that are 4, 5 and 6 pounds each!

Who will they be?

 

Two girls!!

We are having twin girls! They are fraternal which means they aren't identical and will have their own unique look but still the special bond of being a twin!

We can't wait to meet them!

22 weeks down... over half way there!

Delicious, pink butter cream filled cakes by The Couture Cakery

Lovely images by Rebecca Sior Photography

My 5th Year College Reunion

 Last Friday, Adam and I began our journey to Roanoke, VA for my 5th Year Reunion from Hollins University. It felt good to be back - the last 5 years flew by.

We stayed two nights at the beautiful Hotel Roanoke.

After checking in, I took Adam to the top of Mill Mountain to see the beautiful view of the Roanoke Valley. Hollins is to the right, about 11 miles away.

 I just love all the things that tell us we're in the south - like this huge magnolia blossom.

Adam took this picture of my 18 week belly. Those baby are getting big - and I just started feeling them move around!



 This is a photo of everyone from my class that attended reunion, taken right after the parade of classes.

Here Adam is chatting with some of my classmates during the Tinker Day Lunch.

The highlights of a traditional Tinker Day lunch is fried chicken and chocolate cake. Both were just as delicious as they were when I was a student.

For those of you who don't know, Tinker Day is a Hollins tradition that takes place in the fall. Students are surprised early in the morning by seniors banging pots and pans to wake everyone up. Then we all go to the dining hall in our PJs for Krispy Kremes, followed by getting dressed up in crazy costumes, hiking Tinker Mountain, having lunch and entertaining each other with skits. It's a special day that you have to see to believe!

This is me in front of a building on campus before dinner on Saturday night.

This was a beautiful spread for cocktail hour.

The tulip and lemon centerpiece for the dinner buffet was picture perfect.

And for our send off from the Star City, we had brunch at the First & Sixth Restaurant in the newly renovated Patrick Henry Hotel. It was delicious and I highly recommend it. I planned a spring cotillion in the Patrick Henry the year before it was renovated so it was fun to go back to see the changee. Below is Adam's Bloody Mary - green bean and all!

Adam and I are already looking forward to my 10 Year Reunion!

Where I've Been & Cheeseburger Soup

I know I haven't posted for months and it makes me sad.

I look at my own blog often to refer to my blog reading lists (see left side) and everytime I see that broccoli noodle casserole, I just can't believe I haven't posted since March.

You may think since I haven't been posting, that means I haven't been cooking.

Well, you are partially correct.

I haven't made many new recipes over the past few months.

But I have been cooking...

two little Pankakes...

in my belly!

That's right! Adam and I are expecting twins on November 4.

Everything is going well and the twins are growing fast - already 16 weeks along.

The first few months of pregnancy, I wasn't feeling too hot and didn't have much energy so I really wasn't making any meals that required much effort.

But now I am feeling better - and hungry! - so I'm back at it!

Thanks to Bec, we have this great photo taken at 15 weeks, 6 days.

Cheeseburger Soup

This is a delicious soup I made for the first time last night. It's a recipe from my Aunt Donna and she put it in the Hope in the Kitchen Wedding Edition. You can use your favorite kind of cheddar - white or yellow.

1/2 small onion, chopped

3/4 cup shredded carrots

3/4 chopped celery

1/2 lb ground beef

4 Tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried parsley

3 cups chicken broth

4 cups potatoes, peeled and cubed

1/4 cup flour

1 1/2 cups milk

2 cups cheddar cheese, cubed

1/4 cup sour cream

In a dutch oven, melt 1 Tablespoon butter over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, celery and ground beef. Cook, stirring occasionally until meat is cooked through and vegetables are soft.

Add the basil and parsley. Stir.

Add the chicken broth and potatoes. You may need to add more broth so potatoes are covered.

Bring to a boil and cook for 12 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

In a seperate bowl, melt the remaining 3 Tablespoons of butter and stir in the flour. Then whisk in the milk.

Slowly add the milk mixture to the soup, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and stir in the cheese. Once cheese melts, stir in the sour cream. Do not boil.