Food, Food, and More Food!

Oh the things that bring us joy as adults! This Lindgren household finally has a deep freeze! Let the food prep begin. Today was super productive....John studied and I made 5 casseroles and about 5 dozen muffins to help us out once Peanut arrives. As promised, I wanted to share some ideas for a couple of easy recipes that I fall back on in a pinch.

Harvest Muffins (This is a spin off of the Weight Watcher's recipe!)

Muffin Ingredients:
1 Box Spice Cake Mix
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup of dried fruit (I usually use cranberries, raisins, or chopped figs)
(optional) 1 small banana or apple chopped
1/4-1/2 cup ground flax seed (a great way to get in your Omega's...I add it to all my muffins!)
1t good cinnamon

(optional)Topping Ingredients:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup oats
1t cinnamon
2-3 T chopped butter

Preheat Oven to 400 degrees (drop your temp if using dark pans). Mix muffin ingredients together until blended. Batter will be stiff. Spoon into muffin tins sprayed with non-stick spray or into tins lined with paper liners. Mix together topping ingredients with a fork - mashing the butter. Sprinkle over the muffins. Bake for approximately 15 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned and the muffins spring back when you touch them. If freezing them like I did today, wrap each muffin individually in a small piece of plastic wrap then put all muffins in a freezer storage back. When ready to enjoy you can thaw at room temp or the fridge and then heat in the oven or in the microwave. OR, do as we do - pop them out frozen two at a time, zap in the microwave for 15 minutes and ENJOY! Super fast breakfast when you're on the go.

Easy Chicken and Rice Casserole
-This casserole is GREAT for leftover chicken and dinner veggies. I have substituted leftover broccoli and carrots, roasted green beans and mushroooms, and even asparagus. It is all yummy.

Ingredients:
1 small rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 can green beans, drained
1 small onion and 1 small bell pepper (your choice depending on taste), diced and lightly sauteed
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, reduced fat/sodium
1 small can of chopped water chestnuts
1 small jar of pimentos packed in water, drained
1 box of wild rice, prepared according to box directions - if making your own approximately 4 cups cooked wild/brown rice
1 cup sour cream, reduced fat - I never use fat free, it tends to be too watery
2 cups shredded low fat cheddar cheese, plus about 1/4 to 1/2 cup reserved

Mix together all indgredients. This will make 1 large or two smaller casseroles. Sprinkle top with remaining cheese. Bake at 375-400 until bubbly.

Nesting Has Set In...

The past month has been a whirl of preparation for our sweet baby girl - "FC" as her uncles and aunts are calling her these days. We've given in to requests and announced her initials. It has been hillarious listening to everyone's guesses. I love that our families are as excited about her arrival as we are! Adding to my excitement has been the great need to order our home - I just couldn't stop myself. We now have a cleaned and organized garage...a deep freeze is being delivered on Friday so that I can do a little food preparation to help John out when Peanut comes home - look for some of my recipes next week. I also have attempted to organize Peanut's things to make comming home a bit easier...we shall see if my predictions for organization hold true. Additionally, John and my brother Nate have worked tirelessly the past two weekends trying to complete the bathroom remodel. They have done amazing work and the bathroom will be a great improvement to our home...one that we will not be able to fully enjoy until this summer. Progress is progress! My mom and Ashley were also here this weekend helping me with cleaning the house....because I unfortunately contracted a nasty stomach bug this past week. The "bug" completely halted my nesting instincts...probably for the remainder of my pregnancy. My doctor checked me out and has assured me that Peanut is fine. I am, however, strongly encouraged to slow down, ask for help, and rest whenever possible....not been too hard to do as I have felt pretty run down the past few days. I am so very thankful for a healthy baby and a loving family that has helped us out in so many ways!

We have a new toilet and tiled floor.

The shower walls and floor are tiled. Yay!

Aunt Ashley and Uncle Nate gave us a swing for Peanut! Ashley was SO kind to put it together for us this weekend.

On a sweet side-note, our precious nephew Robert Matthew was baptized the first weekend in March. John and I have the great honor and responsibility of being his Godparents and so enjoyed sharing this special time with baby Matthew and John's brother and sister-in-law Rebecca. 

Proud Uncle John with Baby Matthew on his baptismal day. I love this picture!

Please keep John and I in your prayers. John is taking a final test for his military course and is under so much pressure right now between work, home, and Navy. Please pray for baby and I's health...the countdown has started!

Nursery News



The big day is slowly approaching! Thankfully, sweet Peanut's room is almost complete. Mom, Nate, and Ashley came in early February to paint and put together furniture. What a huge help they were! I am so excited to bring baby home to this cute room. Six more weeks...I do believe, for obvious reasons, that this will be one of the longest waits of my life. Please continue to pray for Peanut and I's continued good health and for her big debut in April.

The Owl Family is my attempt at art for Peanut. John even insisted on having a Daddy Owl - It's so fun seeing him excited over planning for the baby.



Mommy and Baby Owl with a favorite scripture verse.

Daddy and Baby Owl - acting silly....as I'm sure John will be when he plays with sweet Peanut.





The crib - a gift from Mom. I searched for awhile to find one that 'looked' like a crib. It means so much that she'll be sleeping in something Nana gave her.

Hopefully Peanut shares my love for reading. Her book collection is off to a good start!