Dark Chocolate Cupakes infused with Rasberry Preserves

Happy Monday!!!! It has been SO long since I blogged regularly and even longer since I blogged about FOOD! My morning sickness has completely abated :) ( knock on wood) and I am back to cooking on the reg! ( Brandon is clapping his hands ) This week I felt a little crazy and decided to make cupcakes.. #bestillmypregnantheart 

They were awesome! 

Shopping List

One box dark chocolate cake mix

2 small boxes chocolate instant pudding

1/2 cup veggie oil

1 1/4 cups of water

4 eggs

1 cup chocolate chips

1  1/2 cups rasberry preserves or jam

4 cups powdered sugar

1 stick of butter

2 tablespoons dark chocolate cocoa powder

3-4 splashes of milk

fresh rasberries for garnish


Procedure

Grease your cupcake pan
In a mixing bowl combine cake mix, puddings, oil, water, and eggs with electric mixer. Stir in one cup chocolate chips. Spoon half of the batter into each cupcake tin, then take your jam and smear a dollop on top. Spoon the remaining batter on top and bake 40-45 minutes. To make the frosting, beat butter with powdered sugar, cocoa powder and milk until creamy. Slather on the frosting once the cupcakes are cooled and garnish with fresh raspberries

Wistful Weekend

It is already Sunday :( sigh. These weekends go by way to fast.. and I am already over winter and ready for Spring.. I know never satisfied. We had a busy and productive weekend!!! 

On Friday we decided to head out on our first mommy and daddy shopping spree!! Since we found out the gender the previous week we thought it couldn't hurt to shop a little bit :) we grabbed pizza ( big mistake) and then went to Baby Gap and holy cuteness. I got a little carried away...the night didn't end pleasant because baby J decided he hated pizza and I was sick all evening long:( On Saturday we cleared out the guest bedroom, I packed away most of my pre pregnancy clothes, and Raul painted his room. The color turned out absolutely beautiful... I cannot wait to post our finished nursery eventually. Here are some fun pics!!! I also am going to be posting a few new recipes ( fingers crossed my food aversions can stay away ) since I have had the itch to cook a little bit :) yay!!!

One of Brandon's favorite dinners..Buffalo Turkey Meatballs. Easy and effortless..and if you like buffalo wings this is a healthy alternative!!! Spicy though!! My yummy recipe is found Here

mama got a mani. OPI mod about you is the perfect fresh nail color!! I was getting bored of my dark winter hues

Before Pizza on Friday!!!

Sunday Brandon went hunting and I did this... went to church on my couch

Some of my bump pics.. because I LOVE watching that belly grow :)

On Friday I received a little mail....

Yes. 

One of my best friends who has FOUR boys...( she really is supermom) sent me this "care package" if you will, of tons of helpful baby items. I started CRYING when I opened the door to all of this. It made me feel so special and loved and just so happy to be able to share these special moments with my friend. Tessa if you are reading this " THIS MADE MY WEEKEND:)"

These are his nursery colors...we painted the wall the middle color "colonnade gray" and it turned out so beautiful...I can't wait to see how the rest turns out!

Come back this week for some yummy new recipes!!!!!

Walking into the Second Trimester!!!!!

I found this fun group of questions and I plan on using them every couple of weeks to document the pregnancy!!!!! Everyday I just feel so blessed and I don't want to forget anything :) Here's to walking into my second trimester woohoo!!!!

How far along: 13 weeks!!

Total weight gain: 1 lb. 

Maternity clothes:  I am mostly just wearing stretch pants and leggings..I have one pair of maternity jeans that fit pretty comfortably

Stretch marks: nope!

Sleep: Still getting up every night to go pee and/or from leg cramps

Best moment of this week: Finding out the gender!!!!!!!!

Miss anything: Aerobics..and sometimes icy cold margaritas!!!!

Movement: none that I can feel yet!

Food cravings: More like food aversions....I had a VERY nauseating first trimester. I couldn't hardly eat any meat or any vegetables..I lived off of fruit, yogurt, oatmeal, cereal, toast, and sour candy!!!! 

Anything making you queasy or sick: I throw up every morning still.. but the nausea isn't sticking around all day like it has been!!!! 

Have you started to show yet: oh yes I have a  fabulous little bump :)

Gender: Boy!!

Labor signs: nope to early

Belly button in or out:  in 

Wedding rings on or off: On

Happy or moody most of the time: People and certain things def. annoy me a lot more...but I'm not sure if it is because I'm pregnant or because of my lack of cafffiene/ alcohol :) 

Looking forward to:  Painting the nursery this weekend!!! I already ordered his bedding and we have his beautiful furniture!!!! 

Boy Joy

ITS A BOY!!!!!!!! 

Oh the excitement is almost to much to contain. We found out today during our sonogram and have been on cloud nine ever since...

It is so funny..I just KNEW it was a boy from the moment I took the pregnancy test a little voice just said.. "yeah its a boy". I never once thought it was a girl and so when we found out today I just started laughing because BRANDON was the one in shock!!!! The grin on his face was a memory I will never ever forget..there is just something about dads and their boys :) I am so happy to be able to give my husband a son and can't wait to meet baby JHF ( name reveal later) this July!!!! YAY FOR BOYS!!!!!

I thought I would post a few pics.. we have already started the nursery and bought the furniture from Pottery Barn Kids on sale after Christmas. I was IN HEAVEN. 

This is our nursery inspiration..we went with the Larkin furniture in white and just ordered the Harper bedding in Navy!!! I haven't quite figured out the other details but I have time.. Love it!

MY BUMP!!!! I look a little rough here but it was so cute this morning popping out so I grabbed a pic...yeah yeah Im in my underwear oh well.

and again!!!!!! 

This was today after finding out the babes gender...the staff at my doctors office is amazing. They are like family!! They totally put up with me and my crazy worry wart ways!

My very first purchase. I have been wanting a petunia pickle bottom diaper bag forever!!! So today Brandon let me go and pick it out!!! Of course I had to buy something for him to wear while he hangs out with dad :)

The sweetest little profile I ever did see <3

This little boy already has his mama wrapped around his finger. I prayed for this baby and God has given me what I have asked of him.  I am so happy. I love you baby boy!!!!

ANNNNDD......

WE ARE PREGNANT!!!!!!!!

Baby Frankhouser is due July 16 2016

  My love of cooking and posting delicious meals has quickly been replaced with constant nausea and food aversions!! So...since I have had a few comments as to why I have not been posting any yummy food pics...this is why! :) I have been bursting at the seams to spill the beans... I am currently about to be 11 weeks ( on Thursday) and already have a cute little belly poppin'! Seeing the baby moving around on the sonogram screen is utterly and completely surreal to me. Everytime I go in and see my sweet baby I am quickly reminded of how BIG our God is. We prayed for this baby and God answered our prayers in beautiful timing. I lost my best friend on October 27th 2015 and found out I was pregnant 6 days later. Tremendous joy has been replaced by such a huge sadness and I like to think she is in heaven smiling down on us. Brandon and I feel incredibly blessed by the amount of love, prayers, and well wishes. We truly are just basking in God's goodness and are going to soak up every moment. 

Bumpies ( bump selfies :)) Soon to come!!!

xoxoxo

White Chicken chili

It finally turned crisp and cool here in San Antonio!!! I was so excited that I busted out the christmas decor. No really I did.. but I will save that for another post. I checked the weather app on my phone and saw that the low was going to be 50 degrees so I pulled out my crockpot and that was that :) My white chicken chili is perfect for a crisp fall evening.. the crockpot does all the work during the day so that when dinner time comes you can pull on your cozy sweats and grab a bowl of steamy hot chili. Sounds perfect!!!

Ingredients:

• Three cans of white beans: I normally choose Cannelini, Northern Beans, and Butter beans
• One small can of hatch green chills
• chicken broth
• one half chopped yellow onion
• Three cooked chicken breasts ( or a deboned rotisserie chicken works nicely too)
• one small poblano pepper diced 
• cumin, cayenne, salt, pepper, paprika, chilli powder
• fresh cilantro chopped rough
• sour cream
• avocado
• monterey jack cheese

Procedure:

-If you are using a rotisserie chicken make sure and get all of the meat off of the bones then throw it in the crockpot using a full box of chicken broth ( I use low sodium organic chicken broth or stock and use 3/4 of the box) If you are using chicken breasts that are raw I suggest cooking the chicken breasts first and then shredding them later after everything is cooked before dumping the rest of the ingredients in the pot.

• place cooked chicken, broth, yellow onion, poblano, green chillies, and all of the white beans in the crockpot. Season generously and cook on low for about eight hours. If you did not use rotisserie chicken now you can shred the chicken breasts. Add the fresh cilantro thirty minutes before the soup is done. Serve with shredded Monterrrey Jack cheese, sour cream, and chopped avocado. Enjoy!!!

This would be fabulous over my Cornbread Casserole. The recipe for Callie's Cornbread Casserole can be found HERE

Lindie

Lately I haven't blogged much because I have had a lot going on...

some of which I will share now..and some I will share later...

On October 27th I learned that my best friend in the world had passed away. Respectfully, for her family I am not going to give any details. She will be so incredibly missed...words cannot explain the depth of how much she was loved. 

 I met Lin in 7th grade during PRIDE. She thought I was weird because I always had my nose buried in a book and I thought she was weird because she was always writing notes to boys. Regardless a friendship started and we were pretty much inseparable. Writing notes to boys and reading books turned into slumber parties and tormenting our mothers. We went on tons of trips, cheered and made fun of the girls our boyfriends broke up with us for...the list is endless. We went to all of our dances together, spent many sleepless nights staying up talking and laughing, took selfies...visited each other during college.  She was there when I needed someone to talk to, vent to, cry to...she was always there and now she isn't. There are SO many things I want to tell her and now I cannot. I wanted to share a few memories on here because she was so special to me...

The heart will always remember <3 

Lindie Elizabeth Deblase

April 6th 1989- October 26th 2015

I will miss talking to you, I will miss hearing your laugh, I will miss sharing special events with you,I will miss your texts of funny e-cards that remind you of us,  I will miss sharing Netflix favorites with you but mostly I will just miss the vivacious person that you were. I will always miss you my friend.