Crock Pot Chili

Last week I made chili for Philip before he went into work. And then my 2 friends Emily and Corey came over later and had it too! I am sort of picky about chili, because I love my Mom's so much, but this one was really good (and super easy)!! 

(taken and modified from www.myrecipes.com )

ingredients:

1 1/2 lb lean ground beef

1 onion chopped

1 green bell pepper chopped

minced garlic cloves

1 (16 oz) can red kidney beans

2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes

2-3 tbs chili powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp ground cumin

brown sugar (depending on how sweet u want it)

prep:

cook first 4 ingredients in large skillet until beef is no longer pink. drain. stir in remaining ingredients and put in crock pot. cook on high 3-4 hours or low 5-6. 

makes 4-6 servings (fed 4 for me) 

I served with corn bread muffins. Everyone (including me) really liked it. I will definitely be making again! 

23 weeks

I am a day late on this post-- oops! Yesterday was a busy and tiring day for me, but it was good:) 

you already know about the dr's appointments this week so I wont go into that again. excited for wednesday though!!

thank you Kelly for taking pic in philips absence:) 

size: Aunt Ellen is cracking up at this week's comparison... she is an ear of corn! haha, what a funny thing to compare a baby to :) she is 8.5 inches long and 1.5 lbs! I am not putting a picture of an ear of corn on here. because that's just sort of weird to me:) but so happy she is growing in there!!! 

what's going on with me:

this week held NO PUKING for me-- yay! still nauseas and still having to take some time to get it under control but i was determined to not get sick this week :) thankful I work with people who can sympathize and help take care of me:)

I have felt good enough to walk a lot this week and am hoping I can keep doing this while it is still nice out. 

I have hit the 'emotional phase' with full force. These hormones are the real deal people. it is scary having them take over in ways I can't control. I'm not a big cryer so this has been an adjustment for both Philip and for me:) 

what's going on with Ainsley: she is now about the length of a standard letter (much better comparison). her face is almost fully formed. can't wait to see it wednesday i hope! she still doesn't have any fat under her skin so the skin is transparent. Philip hasn't been able to feel her again this week, she always seems to be crazy when he is at work. he gets disappointed when I can feel her and he can't. hopefully she will start kicking around for him in there;)
* i passed my glucose test!!!! i was so afraid they were going to tell me I failed and I couldnt have sweets for the next 4 months*

cravings:  pineapple. we bought some at Sam's club and I am loving it. 

we also welcomed

 one of Ainsley's soon-to-be best friends into the world on Friday. Avery Nicole Donovan was born on 10-12-12 weighing 7 lbs 11 oz. Jordan, of course, made labor look like a breeze and her and Avery are both doing great:) 

dr appt

For the very  few of you who read this for updates, I wanted to let you know about our appointment today. 

So we thought they might do the heavily anticipated anatomy scan LAST visit. but they told us no, this time they would. and also would be the dreaded glucose test. so I was excited for one part and not for the other:) 

when we got there I asked them if we could do ultrasound first so Philip could get home and get to bed. they said they were confused because they didn't do ultrasounds on Tuesday... well, come to find out there was a little scheduling mix up. I told them no big deal and went to sit down next to Philip. Where I then proceeded to start crying. because let's be honest, I have cried a lot this week. Philip is telling me its ok, and I am telling him I know it's ok but I can't stop crying!. the woman comes out to give me my glucose drink and sees me crying and feels terrible. which then made me feel terrible. because mistakes happen. It's just hard when you are so looking forward to this ultrasound and realize it isn't going to happen. and of course philip and I have no other days this week we could come back. so we have to wait a whole week to go back. (not the end of the world, I realize this) 

anyway, they were trying to work something out for us, so told Philip not to leave. which he didn't, and should have. because he wasted hours this morning at the doctors, where they did nothing except draw blood and doppler her heart beat. I felt so bad for him. 

sooo...ultrasound next wednesday. and because they felt so bad they told me they are doing all kinds of extra shots and pictures for us, and will even burn them to a CD so we can bring them home to show her off:) ill take it. 

Results of glucose test should be back tomorrow. her heart beat was strong- yay:) 

I apologized numerous times for getting so upset. they seemed to be used to it. I guess working at an OB/GYN office you would be. but I still was embarrassed. guess it comes with the territory.... 

random

*these are random ramblings:)*

Philip has had a pretty easy work schedule the past few weeks. He will pay for it at the end of this month, but for the past few weeks it has been so nice. We have gotten a lot of stuff done for the nursery. all the big stuff anyway. furniture ordered, bedding ordered (and shipped!), glider ordered, closet organizer designed. next on the list is order paint so mom and aunt ellen can get to painting:) I will help as much as I can:) 

My first shower is on Sunday and I am so excited. It's a little early, but my good friend Erin is at the end of her pregnancy and wanted to have it before baby Tate gets here:) I just can't believe that people are actually coming to shower my baby with love. it sounds corny but it really just means so much to me. that people care enough about me and this sweet baby that hasn't even made it into the world yet. 

We have our anatomy scan tomorrow and I can hardly wait to see her again. Philip works the next 3 nights so he is sacrificing sleep to be there, which I appreciate a lot. I told him he didn't have to come, but I know he wants to be there and see her too:) I also have the dreaded glucose test. so no eating tonight after midnight. prayers I don't puke in the waiting room tomorrow:/ 

It is getting chilly here in KY, it was 60 degrees in our bedroom this morning when I woke up. loved it. this fall weather makes me so happy. 

At church this Sunday Mike challenged us to pray with our spouse for the next 30 days. I want to try really hard to do this. It isn't always feasible for us because we don't see each other every day, but we have at least made a list of things we want to both pray about this month. Mike referenced the scripture we had read at our wedding which is always good for me to hear:

"Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. ¹⁰ If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. ¹¹ Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? ¹² A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken." Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 

Trying to spend some time focusing on the fact that 3 is much stronger than 2. 

Happy Monday :)

22 weeks

This past week held a milestone for our pregnancy! Tuesday night Philip and I went out to dinner to Mexican. we had a wonderful little date, and when we got home I was laying on the couch when Ainsley started kicking hard. Philip came over and was able to feel her move for the first time!!! He was so excited, and I was too because it isn't fair I get to feel her all the time and he hasn't been able to. (the way my placenta is lying is making it hard for him to feel her). 

size: This week she is a papaya! almost 8 inches and 1.2 pounds. She is going to double in the next 4 weeks- yikes! :) 

what's going on with me: my sick days are getting less frequent but I still had several this week. Wednesday night I passed out after I got home from work and forgot to take my medicine. I woke up and spent the morning puking:( I am taking a very small dose of medicine at night but apparently it is helping. I am trying not to take medicine if I can help it, which philip calls stubborn. I just don't want this poor child to come out and be in Zofran withdrawals!!! (this can't really happen and I know that in my head, but i'm still trying since i had to live on zofran my first trimester)

Ainsley (my belly) continues to grow little by little:) I can feel her moving a lot better now and sometimes it is comparable to the sensation you get when you 'lose your stomach' going on a roller coaster. 

Also my heart rate has gone up and is around 100bpm. This is high for me, as I am usually in the 60's or low 70's. They tell me it is normal, but I can definitely tell my heart is beating fast and sometimes I have to take a deep breath. I am also trying to drink more water in case it is up from being dehydrated. 

what's going on with Baby A: She can hear my voice, my heartbeat, my blood pumping, and my stomach gurgling:) We can now hear her heartbeat with a stethoscope (instead of a Doppler). So of course we tried it:) Her skin is red now due to the blood vessels developing. Her hair is still white but continues to grow:) Her pancreas is now making her own hormones! She also now has her own sense of balance. 

cravings: bologna. I know a lot of people don't like this 'meat' but i love it. and for some reason I thought it wasn't considered a 'lunch meat' (which you are now recommended not to eat in pregnancy). so I have been eating and loving it. Well we looked it up and it can in fact carry Listeria the same as any other lunch meat, and we decided I should stop eating it, just in case. *note-- we both realize that in all reality eating lunch meat is probably safe and the chance of getting Listeria is very low. however we are first time parents and you know how that goes;)* anyway, I switched to PB&J, only to find out there has been a national recall on all kinds of peanut butter. can this pregnant woman not get a simple sandwich without worry! haha :)

Fall Day

Today was the beginning of fall for the Overall family. 

We went to Evan's Orchard and picked out our pumpkins for our annual 'Overall Pumpkin Family'. Auntie Jo, who works at the Orchard, has been scouring pumpkins for us, to help us find a 'pregnant looking' one for me:) 

Mom and Dad met us out there and helped us pull the wagon and keep up with Jackson. We had lunch at their outdoor cafe (yumm) and headed home to put together the pumpkin pieces:)

Maya

Jackson

Looking forward to cooler weather and the beauty that fall brings:) 

21 weeks :)

remember when I said my sickness was a 5 week thing? well i should have known week 20 would ruin my streak! I went 10 days without puking and then Wednesday it came back. Wednesday morning was rough, but to add to it, my nose would bleed every time I would puke. same thing thursday. made for an interesting site, i'm sure, when poor philip came to check on me. kleenex stuffed up my nostril as i'm hugging the toilet :) My friend Jessie (who is 8 days behind me in pregnancy) said 'well at least you know it will end in 19 weeks'. i guess that is true:) I am definitely getting better at managing the sickness, that's for sure. 

anyway, my belly is growing and so is Ainsley! and that's all that matters :)

size: This week she is the size of a 'spaghetti squash'. 8 inches long and 1 pound!!! i can't believe she is a whole pound now:) 

 what's going on with me: like i said, i had a good streak but sickness came back. partly because I am trying not to take nausea meds before bed. clearly that didn't work. I read my feet will start swelling, but so far so good. my scrub pants are getting a little snug though. 

what's going on with baby: Her little 'flutters' have gotten more like real movements and it is a crazy feeling! This week she is developing her sense of touch. She might even be getting ahold of the umbilical cord in there (makes me nervous!). She is developing her sense of sight and can tell the difference between light and dark if I shine a flash light on my belly. Her eyelids, eyelashes and eyebrows are well formed, and her hair is forming (although right now it's pure white!). 

cravings: kettle corn. YUMM. 

Betsy Bear!!! Ainsley's first stuffed animal and one of a kind:) thank you Aunt Ellen! I can't wait to take pics with her!