You asked, 23 weeks

Well you got a bonus post yesterday, that was actually supposed to post today, but I forgot to set the date and once it posts, it shows in all readers so I just let it be. My plan, or better said my goal is 3 posts a week, mon, wen, and fri. I hope to write a bunch in advance when the baby is first born so there will not be a back lag. But I will of course not prewrite all of the posts, as I am sure you will want to see posts about teenie as well :)

So here it is week 23. Please do ignore the hair. :D

And just a quick update: Tonight is my first class in the geburtsvorbereitung, which I imagine to be quiet similar to lamaze courses. I am excited. Yesterday marks week 24, I am officially 6 months. Only 4, yes 4, that whole 9 months concept is a lie, left. 40 weeks= 10 months, no matter how you try to explain calendar months lol. 

10 day meal planning

Previously we had shopped every week. I would like to push it out to twice a month, but due to the size of our fridge, it is just not doable. We were lucky to get a small beer size freezer which will add to our freezer room, but I plan to use that for meats and veggies to keep from tossing out food I do not use quick enough.

When we do eventually upgrade to a combi I think I will try to shop on a 14 day cycle, with the exception of really good sales. Actually ultimately I would like to have a well stocked pantry and only shop necessities and sale items, but that will take some time.  

As I plan meals I have found it is really hard to seek out recipes, not due to a lack of resources but just not knowing what to look for. I would end up with week with 5 days pasta, or all chicken. So I decided to create a guideline for myself. Now this is no way set in stone, it is just to guide me to various types or recipes and keep a nice variety in our diet.

So as of now my outline for the 10 day cycles is:

1. Beef

2. Chicken

3. Pork

4. Fish

5. Salad

6. Sandwiches x2

7. quick and easy/budget meals x2

8. pasta

How do you plan your meals?

Linsen tacos

My apologies the pic is not the best but I assure you this is worth a go, it will be added to our favorites binder.

I got this recipe from Eat at home

Here is the original recipe with notes of the variations I made.

2. Linsen Tacos 
   Ingredients:
   1 cup lentils 
   1 onion diced
   1 clove garlic minced
   1 tbs. Chili powder
   2 tsp. Cumin
   1 tsp. Oregano
   2.5 cups chicken broth
   1 cup salsa
   a bit of oil
   taco shells
   toppings: shredded lettuce, tomato, shredded cheese, sour cream

Directions:

Rinse the lentils and drain them. In a large skillet, saute the onion and garlic together. Add the lentils and spices cook for a minute. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes. Uncover and cook a few more minutes to thicken. Add the salsa.  

My variations:

I used one can of precooked lentils. I also added diced red bell pepper as well as ground dried red pepper flakes. I still used the same amount of chicken stock. 

I served mine with tortillas, mexican rice, cheese, salsa, and lettuce. The cumin really makes it pop and gives it that taco belly taste (yes I just said taco belly deal with it, ha)

26th Birthday

We spent my 26th birthday down in Sonthofen visiting my brother and his family. We actually did a lot of traveling during that time as you saw with the Neusuanstein post. And there is more to come. But today I wanted to talk about my birthday.

I wish I wrote these posts sooner, rather then so long after the fact, as I loose a lot of the details and that always upsets me.

Anyway, on the morning of my birthday we wend out sightseeing, we did not go far, I believe we just looked around Sonthofen and visited a few local shops. Nothing fancy, at least that I can recall, but again I have pregnancy brain so bear with me.

When we came back we had a lovely family party with my brother and his mother. We had coffee (decaff for me) and cake (banana and German strawberry cheesecake)

And then we (I) opened presents:

From my brother and his family I got this lovely basket with a cloth insert, a sandwich cooker, a tuperware set, and a digital picture frame full of photos from our dads youth. I loved everything, but the latter was the absolute best. Maybe I can record the slideshow somehow and post it here. Then again my dad might kill me for posting photos of him with a red fishnet tee, but hey he was rockin the decaprio hair, he was quiet striking even with the red mesh, ha. Hey you bought that shirt, not me :P

Toni got me a lovely Sterling silver charm bracelet with my first charm a star. I plan to add additional charms for certain events- anniversary, lukas birth.

My Dad and step mom funded our trip down to sonthofen as well as our excursions to Neuschwanstein and the boden sea. 

And I do not have a picture, but my mom got me the Betty Crocker Cooking Basics cookbook and a whole bunch of maternity clothing. 

Overall it was a great birthday and it was wonderful to have a family party, especially in a culture where there are no pot lucks or going dutch. Here no one treats you to dinner on your birthday, you have to plan your own party and are expected to buy everyone elses. Some things you just never get used to.

Meal plan Aug 20-31st

I know mine are running a little funny at the moment. But due to the pregnancy I am trying to get it down to 3 times a month shopping or every 10 days. Unless there is a very good sale and then I can just go in super quick for those items.

On that note: This week Lidl has Cheddar for 2.19 for 400g

I am also interested in perhaps the swedish meatballs. I have never tried any of the other items, have to struck gold with any of those?

Bear in mind cheddar can be bought at most groceries, but you will pay around 5 euro for a tiny wedge that maybe brings 1 cup shredded. And i am not fond of the taste. I find the lidl cheddar more in line with what I am accustomed to in the US. Bear in mind lidl only has this sale 2-4 times a year. So stock up. I would buy a whole case if I had the freezer room. But I think I will pick up 5. I like to shred half and then cut the other half into slices for snack or sandwiches and then you can take out just so much you need, versus trying to use a whole block up before it goes bad.

I am actually on a freezer kick in general to save veggies that would otherwise go bad. But mine is so small, I can't really do much. I hope santa brings me a combi for christmas.

So here are my meals from August 20th through 31st

Dinners:
1. Pork fried rice
2. Tortellini with a baguette and salad
3. Soup and salad
4. Spatzle with linsen soup
5. Bratwurst with brat sauce, potato salad, and a roll
6. noodle bake with ham, krauter butter, and cheese, roll and salad
7. Coney Island Chili cheese dogs and fries
8/ Fleischballchen Stroganoff
9. Chicken nuggets with Kroketten and a veggie
10. Pizzas and salad
11. Spagetti with rolls and salad

Lunches:
1. Left over fried rice
2. rib burgers with bbq chips
3. Ministrone soup with toast
4. Grilled cheese with salad
5. belegtes brotchen and 5 minuten terrainen
6. Curry noodles
7. Left over day
8. Top ramen and egg
9 Grilled cheese and ham and potato salad
10. Pork chops and baked beans
11. Left overs

Breakfast:
4x yogurt
2x hot rolls with nurenburger wursts
2x cereal
1. Pancakes with bacon
2. Omlettes

I no longer plan snacks but I have sweet, salty, savory, and fruit/ veggie on hand.
This week I have kase wurstchen, carrots and celery, chips, musli bars, baby bells, and grapes

So whats for dinner at your house?

Free herbal tea samples

I just ordered mine. Check it out.

You can get 2 free samples of Teasta tea for free. They normally cost 3.15 each so that is 6.30 in freebies, plus shipping is free.

I used a US address, so unsure if it works internationally, perhaps the code does but incurs addition shipping costs. I did not have to enter any info aside from an address.

Available Flavors:

• Black Tea

• Fruit Tea

• Green Tea

• Herbal Tea

• White Tea

Add (2) samples to your cart and use coupon code TRYME at checkout. The coupon coed will make your sample blends FREE! You’ll get a confirmation email of your order and your samples should arrive in  7-14 business days.

I found this freebie over at the proverbs wife

Feminine Friday

This is actually an older picture. I do not have many dresses in general, and only 1 maternity dress. So I figured I would use some older photos as well.

I don't see any reason to buy an abundance of maternity clothes since they only last a set amount of time. Once I run out of images, I guess I will just wait until I have new images to post :)

Yep, there is surely no way I am getting into that dress again anytime soon, ha.

Check out the other ladies at Buildeth her house

22 weeks

Looking down

Self portrait 

Reflection. Ignore the recycling lol.

No I do not want to talk about my hair in this photo. 

He's growing.

And he has a name, Luka.

It did hurt but I think it helped

I had posted a few weeks ago about my upcoming dental appointment and being excited while also a bit concerned. Just an update, they did find additional periodontitis pockets, though much smaller in size. They are actually very common in pregnancy. Many women get gum issues due to the hormonal changes in the body.

While there are various option to treat pockets that do not heal on their own, the first step is a deep cleansing. And they tend not to do those big treatments during pregnancy. But so far it seems to have helped. I still have issue with food getting in the pocket and it is uncomfortable, but no longer painful. I am also able to use floss, albeit it takes a few minutes of work, but much better on the gums then those brushes.

They also gave me a homeopathic toothpaste that is supposed to be good for inflamed gums. Germans utilize a lot of herbs and homeopathic medicines. But man that stuff tasted icky, took some getting used to, I tell ya.

So here is what they suggested to me and may be helpful to other expectant moms with gum issues.

1. Invest in a natural or medicinal toothpaste. Warning these cost more, sometimes ads much as 5 euro, yikes, But I use it once a day before bed so the effects really have time to work.

2. Brush at least morning and night and if possible after lunch as well.

3. Floss daily, best at night, and only after you have brushed your teeth. Otherwise you are just pushing more crude in rather then removing it. Make sure you do not use the same point of floss in multiple teeth, you should have a long piece that you work along so each tooth gets a fresh bit of floss. Also enter between the teeth with gentle back and forth motions versus just pushing straight up or down, and make sure you get below the gum line.

4. Use a antibacterial mouth wash, but no more then 2 times a week.

5. If possible invest in an electric toothbrush. Need not be the fancy ones, even the colgate 30 euro one works better then brushing by hand, because we commonly use the wrong movements. We should brush in circles rather then strokes.

Hopefully that will be able to help some of you guys, it has been a great help to me. Since my cleaning I have not once had that excruciating pain I used to get every time I ate. The pockets do not instantly go away, but when they are less inflamed they have the chance to heal or shrink in size and be less accommodating to misplaced food bits.

Paprika Chicken

Let me start by saying I cook for taste and not aesthetics, so bear with the presentation :P

This was the dinner I made tonight and it was a huge hit. This was originally adapted from a german recipe called Paprika- Haenchen- Geschnetzeltes.

We have a discount grocery store called netto and they occasionally include meal suggestions based on their sales, this was from a section called 5 meals under 5 euro. Obviously your price will vary by location and sale prices.

I have included both the english and german names so anyone worldwide can make this :)

I served mine on a bed of rice and with a baguette. The sauce was amazing it had the texture of Thai peanut sauce.

Ingredients:
600g Haenchen Brustfilets (Chicken breast fillets)
1 rote Paprika (red bell pepper)
1 Zucchini or 1/2  ein Gurken (zucchini or a large cucumber)
125ml Apfelsaft (apple juice)
125ml Huenerbruehe (chicken stock or broth)
200ml schlagssahne (substitute with a whipping or heavy cream)
Salz (salt)
2 grosse zwiebeln (2 large onions)
4 EL Oel (4 TBL Oil)
2 EL Tomatenmark (2 TBL tomato paste)
Pfeffer (pepper)
Paprika pulver (paprika seasoning)
Rote chili flecken (red pepper flakes)
2 Knoblach (garlic cloves)

Prep work:
1. Wash and cut the bell pepper into stripes. Mine were small so I ended up using one and a half.
2. Cut up your cucumber or zucchini. I used cucumber, I cut it into rounds and then thin strips, similar to a grated affect without the elbow ache.
3. Cut the chicken into stripes. If the breasts are thick you may cut them in half, I found this game me many more bite sized portions. I also used fresh but you could use thawed frozen filets.
4. Dice your garlic and onions
5. Pre-measure your liquids and make your broth if needed.
6. Gather other ingredients

Instructions: (note: I used one pan and set aside into bowls, but I bet you could just lump it all together I did it the german way)
1. Cook the garlic and onion in oil until caramelized, then set aside.
2. Add chicken and fry in oil and well cooked, solid white no pink. I seasoned mine with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
3. Fry the zucchini/ cucumber and red pepper in oil. Once it starts to turn golden brown and get a nice crisp edge, add the onions back into the mix.
4. Add the apple juice, chicken stock, and tomato paste. Stir into the veggies until well mixed and bring to a boil.
5. Add the chicken back into the mix and then the whipping cream. Add paprika, salt, pepper, and additional red pepper flakes to your liking, the more the zestier.
6. Let simmer 15 minutes. The sauce will simmer down, and you can also set aside from heat for a few minutes to let it thicken.

:) Enjoy