The Recipe for my Craving

I posted in my 23 week update that I had been craving "scotcharoos."  I had one comment saying that they hadn't heard of them, and to me they seem very Wisconsin-y, or at least very Midwestern.  (Like 7 layer salads and hot dishes, ha ha ha!)  Obviously, they're not a delicacy or anything (I would argue that they should be),. but I wanted I would share the awesomeness of scotcharoos with the world.  Please let me know if you've ever tried anything like this, and what you call them.  If you've read my blog much, you know I'm a big language nerd and colloquialisms like this are my favorite.  Yup, I'm that big of a dork. 


Also, I found this photo online (source) because by the time I got around to writing this, I (with M's help) had already polished off an entire pan (and a half if you count the leftovers from M's parent's party a couple of weeks ago), and I felt too bad about myself to make more....as much as I really wanted to...for the sake of my blog and all.  ;)

I think there's a lot of ways to make these, and I don't use a recipe, I just go from what I've always done.  So here's my version: 

1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
6(ish) cups of rice krispies
1 1/2(ish) cups of chocolate chips
1 1/2(ish) cups of butterscotch chips

Heat corn syrup, sugar and peanut butter on the stove until just melted together.  Careful not to overheat, or the bars will be hard as rocks.  Mix rice krispies with the peanut butter mixture.  Spread it in a 9X13 pan. 

Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips in the microwave.  Spread the mixture over the rice krispies and wait for it all to set.  I usually put them in the fridge/freezer (depending on how quickly I want them) to speed up the process. 

I don't really bother measuring the ingredients other than the first three.  I just eyeball what looks good.  I know, I'm so good at recipes, I should write a cookbook.  (<--sarcasm)  I've never made a pan of these that were inedible, even when I overheated the stuff and it was hard as rock, we found a way to eat them.  Even when they're bad, they're good. 

Have you ever tried these?  What do you call them?  Do you have a dessert or recipe that's specific to your state/region that you LOVE??  Please leave me a comment!!  I need more dessert recipes while I still feel not bad about eating whatever I want!!

Happy Birthday Evie! - A letter for your 2nd birthday

Dear Evie, mi hijita,

It's hard for me to believe that a year ago, you couldn't walk, you didn't talk much, your hair looked so short, you were still such a baby in so many ways.

Evie with my mom on her first birthday

Now, you are a toddler to the core.  You don't just walk, you run, you climb, you do somersaults while watching Olympic gymnastics...  And boy, do you talk.  You've inherited that trait from both of your parents, although we'll both blame the other if asked.

One of my favorite pics from the past year...telling the world what she thinks

You've even become a little world traveler.  I'm so proud of how you adapted to a different way of life, and a new language.  You made me so proud, and I hope that my travel bug wears off on you a little bit.  I'm going to need someone to go with me on my world adventures, and your dad has never been interested. 

Chasing some pigeons in a plaza in Barcelona

With me, overlooking Barcelona from El Parque Guell

The past year has been easier than the first in some ways, and more difficult in others.  Asserting your independence is part of growing up, and, as your mom, I am going to struggle with that at times.  But I wouldn't trade a single temper tantrum for the ability to have a conversation with you, or to hold your hand walking into the grocery store.

"Talking" on the phone.  Around Halloween last year

You amaze me every day.  I think that I couldn't love you more, but then you imitate how your dad puts on deodorant, or how I talk on the phone, and I melt all over again.  Each moment is something new and exciting and I am honored and thrilled to share it all with you.

Evie at her 2nd birthday party.
She picked put the Brewer cake...I was pushing for a big 2 with zoo animals.

The next year is going to bring some big changes.  You'll be a big sister soon, and I'm going to need your help every step of the way.  I worry all the time about how you'll handle this, but you never cease to surprise me.  I know you'll charge into the role, like you do with everything else, and you'll be fine.  ;)

I love you completely, and that will NEVER change.  

Love,
Mama

23 Weeks

Well, I know I've been a bad blogger lately, but I've been enjoying time with my family....I'll catch up on writing about it later!

It's crazy that I'm 23 weeks.  Crazy that I can't believe how quickly I've gotten to this point, and crazy that I still have 17 weeks to go.  Four more months seems like an eternity, and I am feeling so big already that I don't know how I'm going to fit any more baby in there. 

Feeling H-U-G-E!

Anyway, M was off of work all of last week, so we had a lot of family time.  I'll have posts for all of that later this week, but for now, I'm going to take the easy way out and just do my "weekly" survey.  :-P

Weight gain/loss: I'm not sure how much I've gained in the past few weeks.  I've fallen off the wagon of weighing myself regularly, but I'm up about 15 pounds total since I found out I was pregnant.  I think I'm on about the same pace as I was with Evie.

Fruit of the week: This week baby is the size of a grapefruit. Seriously, it feels more like "bowling ball." 

Feeling: A little overwhelmed.  My sister brought her 3 month old daughter to Evie's birthday party yesterday, and I had flashbacks to caring for a newborn....and now I'll have a toddler too.  Yikes!!!

Sleep: I think my hips are shifting because they've been very sore the past week or so.  I took a tylenol before bed a couple of nights and that really helped.  I feel like I have a long way to go to start feeling like this already.

Food cravings: Scotcheroos...I'm not sure if these are a Wisconsin/midwestern thing, but if you know what they are, you know they are amazing.  It's basically peanut butter rice crispy treats covered in melted chocolate and butterscotch chips.  I should post the recipe....add that to the list of "later this week" posts. 

Maternity clothes:   Just see this post.  I pretty much feel like a whale wearing a burlap sack. 


Movement:  Still feeling a lot of it.  M is able to feel it almost every day too, which is so exciting.  I think I even felt hiccups yesterday.  Not sure if it's too early for that, but something strange was going on in there!   

Gender? Boy.  We are currently having a name battle at our house.  M and I cannot agree on boy's names.  This is going to be interesting!

What I miss?   I'm beginning to feel like I might have a problem, but I still miss alcohol.  A cold beer sounds amazing.  

Best moment this week: Evie's birthday last Tuesday!  I get more excited for her birthday than I think I ever did for my own.   

What I'm looking forward to:  Going to the State Fair on Friday.  Funnel cakes and cream puffs, here we come!!!


Next Appointment: This Wednesday, August 1st. It should be a routine weight/blood pressure/baby's heartbeat checkup.  :)

I need a clothing section called, "So, you've given up on life."

I am so over maternity clothes.  Eight weeks ago when I began wearing them, I thought that they were the most comfortable things I'd ever tried on in my life.  That was purely because I had been squeezing myself into my pre-pregnancy clothes while waiting to get all of my maternity clothes back from my sister.

For a few weeks, maternity clothes and I lived together in bliss.  I was happy to have pants without zippers or buttons, and flowy shirts that hid my bump, or tighter shirts that showed it off in a good way. 

Fast forward to now, when I think that what I really need is a clothing store/department called, "So you've given up on life."  I feel like they would have what I'm looking for: the ultimate in comfort and stretchiness, while not making me feel bad about myself.  I'm having a much harder time with my body image with this pregnancy than when I was pregnant with Evie. 
I'm stressing more about this right now because we have a big party this weekend for my parents-in-law.  I didn't plan on being pregnant in July with 90 degree heat at a party in a park where I will undoubtedly be chasing my two year old EVERYWHERE.

Oh, and add to that the fact that I feel hideous (even when I'm not sitting in a pool of my sweat with a toddler hanging off of me) and I can't decide on anything to wear.  I bought a cute new dress while I was in Spain, but it's a little big on me at this point in my pregnancy.  I'm going to attempt to rig it up with some pins to see if it will fit decently, but I'm doubtful, and to be honest, I won't have a ton of time to monkey around with it on Saturday morning.

Cute Spain dress

I also bought a new shirt in Panama, but I would need an undershirt for it because the material is a little transparent.  Did you know that it's impossible to find flesh-colored neutral maternity tank tops????  I know I could probably find something online, but I'm not much of an online shopper (I like the rush of making my purchases in a store), and the party is less than 48 hours away.

Panamanian Bargain Buy ($6!!!)

I'll probably just end up wearing the same black dress that I wore to all nice occasions when I was pregnant with Evie.  I feel like it's a tired article of clothing...basically, I'm sick of it, but I have limited time and options right now.

Black dress: cute, but I'm just not feeling it

I think the crux of the issue is that I don't feel like I look good in anything.  I just don't feel pretty right now.  I picture myself looking decent and then I look in the mirror and see a very different image.  I know it's all in my head, but I worry that I'll never feel like I look good again.  I lost the weight quickly and easily (really without trying at all) with Evie, and what if that doesn't happen this time?  What if I have a closet full of non-maternity clothes that don't look good on me either? 

In the meantime, I'm thinking of opening a boutique.  I'll sell yoga pants and hooded sweatshirts.  Hair bands and sports bras sold separately....

21 Weeks (and 1 day)

I'm finally back from all of my summer travels.  I'm lucky to be back too.  We almost didn't get out of Panama on Sunday morning due to a flight cancellation, but all ended up working out, and we made it back in Wisconsin....just 6 hours later than planned (around 2 a.m. Monday morning).  My students were amazing with all of the delays, but also with the trip in general.  I'm one proud Spanish teacher right now!!!

I  missed Evie (and M) like crazy.  I was very homesick towards the end of the week, and I am so happy that I am home to stay for the foreseeable future.  M said that all of my flight issues were a sign from the universe that I'm not supposed to leave the country again for a while.  He's probably right!

Oh yeah, and I'm pregnant too!  That made for a few issues on my trip, but overall, it wasn't bad.  Panama has the most humid climate I've ever had the (mis)fortune of experiencing.  I was a hot, sweaty mess the majority of the week.  However, I think that would have been the case whether I was pregnant or not. 

So, here's the 21 week bump!  Crazy that I'm over half way done!!!!

Feeling not so pretty lately....

Weight gain/loss: +2 pounds from two weeks ago.  Putting my total weight gain at +11 pounds. 

Fruit of the week: This week baby is the size of a pomegranate.  

Feeling: Happy to be home!!!!  I'm VERY tired, but I think that's just the trip catching up with me.  I was so happy that Evie took a 2 and a half hour nap yesterday so that I could take a nap too!  Normally, she sleeps for an hour and a half on a good day. 

Sleep: Better now that I'm not dripping in sweat.  I LOVE A/C!!!

Food cravings: Chocolate.  Anything chocolate.  

Movement:  I'm feeling a ton of movement.  M was able to feel the baby kick for the first time last night.  Loving it!!

Gender? BOY!!!  Here's the post in case you missed it.

What I miss?   Booze.  Seriously, it's summer.    

Best moment this week: Seeing Evie yesterday morning.  Man, I missed that kid.  

What I'm looking forward to:  M's vacation next week.  We need some time, just the three of us.  We are taking Evie to an amusement park by my parent's house, and I can't wait!!!


Next Appointment: Friday, August 3rd.  Although I might reschedule because we are also planning on going to the Wisconsin state fair that day.