Pregnancy Favorites!!! 1st and second trimester!

Hey y’all! Happy Friday!!

I swear these weeks keep on blowing by.. I cannot believe I’m almost halfway finished with this pregnancy!!!!!!

Today I wanted to share some of my absolute favorites this go around that I absolutely cannot live without! Here we go! 

Oh and.. for laughs

Because for real this is so true....

which brings me to pregnancy favorite Number 1!!!!

Click on the links highlighted below to navigate to these products!

1. Blanqui Leggings <------- Link here

Y’all I cannot say enough wonderful things about these leggings. They are soft, stretchy, you can wear them with outfits or to workout, and they do not get all fuzzy in the washing machine. They are the COMFIEST maternity item I own and I literally wear them daily. A must have for sure!

2.  Bubba Cup

During pregnancy I literally become SO thirsty. I always tend to drink a lot of water anyways but during pregnancy its like I cannot ever get enough!!! I am also a sucker for great water jugs. I have everything from the Yeti ( love) to a Bubba Keg Cup. I love this ^^^ Cup because it is large enough to not have to refill constantly throughout the day and you are getting more than enough of your daily water intake. If you have trouble drinking your water try adding some fruit!! I love to chop up strawberries & blueberries or lemon and mint, and even some grapefruit to keep my water a little interesting!

3. A great moisturizer

This is the Kate Somerville Goat’s milk moisturizer linked above and I CANNOT say enough wonderful things about it. I have been using Kate’s line for about two years. I used the Nourish line and have never seen my skin so clear and dewey! Since I have become pregnant a facialist told me that using skin care products with lactic acid is a lot healthier for our mama skin so I switched over to her Goat Milk line of products and am SO happy with the results. I will do a separate skin care post on all of my favorite products in the future!!!!

4.  RX bars

I couldn’t link these bars but they are found at Whole foods, Trader Joes, HEB, and Target. These have been a GAME changer for me!!! During the first few months when I was nauseous at just about everything..I would pop one of these bars in my mouth and instantly feel a little better. These bars are made with ALL natural and whole, healthy ingredients so you don’t have to feel bad about eating them. They are made with egg whites, dates, and nuts so if you are allergic to nuts steer clear but otherwise go grab some of these babies!

5. A great exercise routine!

Even if it is just a nice daily walk or jog outside in the fresh air it does SO many wonderful things for our bodies. I try and at least get a workout or walk in 3-4 times a week and on days when I feel sluggish, nauseous, and tired it is really the best medicine to perk me right up!!! I joined my FIt4Mom class when Jax was a baby and they specialize in pre and postnatal fitness!! It is absolutely perfect for any pregnant mom. Please check your area and find your tribe!!!

Some pictures at Stroller Strides :)

“ Healing Chicken Soup"

Happy Snow day Ya’ll!!!

Once again here in Texas for the SECOND time this year we are experiencing freezing conditions, ice, and freezing rain. CRAZY!!! We are all cozy with a fire and some hot coffee so all is well over here..

With the cold weather comes a lot of unwanted illnesses. Right now in Texas we are fighting the flu epidemic like mad. It is absolutely out of control and I have been trying my best to avoid getting sick. Here are some preventative measures I have been taking. Hypochondriac or not I am trying my best to stay healthy!

• Hand washing..sanitizer.. ALL THE TIME.
• lots and lots of water. If you hate water , try adding some fresh lemon slices, mint and grapefruit to brighten your drink :)
• Epsom salt baths- Dr Teals is my favorite along with a few essential oil drops of Eucalyptus
• Oil diffusers - Eucalyptus, Orange, Theives
• Extra Vit. C and D
• Elderberry tummies daily to boost immune
• Tumeric teas and Golden Tumeric milk ( google recipes)
• SlEEP

This is what I am doing for both Brandon and I ( and adapting a few of these for Jax) I am praying that we all stay well!!!

So also with cold weather comes SOUP WEATHER!!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE to make soup because hello! You can make it in the crock pot :) Or just let it simmer away on the stove allowing that amazing smell of soup to fill your home :) It is just so comforting. I already made an amazing batch of chili ..but what I wanted to talk about today was my chicken soup. 

This chicken soup has a bit of a kick so spicy lovers this is right up your alley!

Ingredients:

1 Sweet potato/butternut squash peeled and chunked

1 yellow onion chopped and diced

3 stalks of celery chopped

3 carrots peeled and chopped

1 zuchinni chopped

1 or 2 bunches of spinach
chopped cilantro

cayenne

salt and pepper

tumeric

cumin

2 chicken breasts

chicken stocks

Procedure:

In a crock pot...dump all of your ingredients in :) season to preference and cook on LOW and slow for about 6 hours. Shred chicken and serve.

Stay well y’all!!!!

Home Tour: Dining Room!

Happy Tuesday Friends!!!

My morning started off not the way I wanted it too.. ugh. Don’t you just hate when you have mornings like that? I was on my way to my Fit4mom class when my garage door would not cooperate with me. After about a million tries I just could not get my door to come down..I also left my house key in Brandon’s truck so I couldn’t just leave the door unlocked. My plans changed and we ended up going for a walk instead..at least it was beautiful weather!!!

So after our walk, lunch, and laying the baby down for nap I sat and had my alone time with Jesus. I felt so refreshed and much better than I did this morning. I haven’t really had the time to blog and I have sort of been at a loss on what to blog about since I have been repeating a lot of the same meals. I decided that since we have just recently moved and I have been working on each room one at a time that I would share my progress!! I LOVE to see other people’s homes and find so much inspiration from seeing their work! So far I have done and completed, The Gameroom, Master Bedroom, Dining room, and Jax’s Big boy room. Each week I will do a room reveal and list/link where I bought everything. This will be fun!!!!

Starting with one of my favorite rooms

The Dining Room

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this room. I had so much fun with this room and if it weren’t for the help of my Father in law this room would not be this beautiful!!!!

Details

Dining Table: Handcrafted by Doug Frankhouser - My Father in Law

Paint: Fawn Brindle by Sherwin Williams

Chairs: Star Furniture

Light Fixture: Wayfair: Geyer 7 candle fixture- SHOP HERE

Vases: Pottery Barn

New Year New GOALS!

Happy 2018 Friends!!

I absolutely love the new year.. it’s such a wonderful time for everyone because it is a season for growth and renewal. Whether you are working towards losing 10 LB or gathering the courage to try a cooking recipe each week.. a goal is a goal!  I try not to make resolutions but I DO make goals. I have found in the past that it is hard for me to stick to nitty gritty resolutions but when I come up with a list of goals to work towards I usually get a lot accomplished!!

Brandon and I usually each make a set of personal goals and then we sit together and talk about our family goals. 

I wanted to share my personal goals below to hopefully inspire anyone who is looking for something to work towards in 2018!!! 

2018 GOALS

            Wake up 1 hour earlier: I love this and used to do this all the time but then came #baby and hello I was #exhausted. I loved the time when the house was quiet..it was just me, my steaming mug of coffee and my daily devotional. Sometimes I would even put soft music on and fold the laundry. It was special time with God and I CRAVE it during this season of mommy hood  so I am once again going to do it. Realistically, maybe I won’t get up every morning because I’m tired and pregnant and chasing after a 1 year old BUT if I could even wake 1 hour earlier 3 times a week, I know I will be so refreshed throughout the day.

Fit Pregnancy: I love working out, I love eating healthy and I would really like to continue that into my pregnancy! I was moderately fit with Jax and walked every single day but I would really like to have a shorter labor and delivery this time so I am going to do a few things to help move that along. FIT4MOM falls right into that category and I plan on continuing my daily workouts along with eating a healthy diet. Of course I love #jellybeans but I mean.. it’s all a balance. RIGHT :)

Book Club: Something about me that not many know is that  I absolutely love is to read. I read book after book when I was first pregnant with Jax and have just always enjoyed getting lost in a great novel. I struggled with finding time to read after Jax and sort of lost my passion for a while. Recently I picked up a random novel at Target and was able to finish it in a few days. I read a little each night ( instead of Netflix) once Jax was asleep and I LOVED IT! So here I am doing it again.. I love to go to Half price books and stock up on cheap novels and then share with friends:) Book club anyone?!! I plan to read a few novels a month ( maybe 2 ) and then post my reviews on here!

Get a little eccentric with cooking: Don’t get me wrong I am all for “ stick with what ya know” and what I know is southern cooking. I am good at it and LOVE to make it. However I have been reading a few of my cook books and have found so many different types of recipes.. an amazing recipe I recently tried was a "Mango Curry Chicken". I never use curry.. and the recipe called for raisins. TOTALLY out of my comfort zone. I made it and it was absolutely amazing. I plan to try just a few “ out there” recipes and see which ones I can tweak and make my own:) 

Be more Intentional: This is a really important one for me. I know that life can get so busy that it can feel as if  we are going through the motions day after day. I know that especially as moms we feel like we wear a million different hats and have to juggle a thousand different things! I know it can be overwhelming and I know it can feel like you are doing these things 50 % instead of 100 %. That is why in 2018 I want to do things more intentionally. I want to be more purposeful in my actions whether it be with my husband, my son, or my friends.. I want to give them 100% of me. When I take Jax to the Doseum to watch him play and explore I NEED and WANT to be 100 percent- fully aware of our time together and how special it is. I want to give him my ALL..intentionally. When my husband and I are up late just talking about nothing.. I need to be fully aware of that special time. Not scrolling through Pinterest during pillow talk.. but being aware..intentional...fully there.  As many wonderful friends as I have been blessed with.. I would LOVE to grab a coffee ( when we can) and just enjoy our friendship!

BE INTENTIONAL

My inspiration for this comes from 1 Corinthians 13 and this amazing rendition I read over Christmas

If I decorate my house perfectly with lovely plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights, and shiny glass balls, but do not show love to my family, I’m just another decorator.

If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals, and arranging a beautifully adorned table at mealtime, but do not show love to my family, I’m just another cook.

If I work at the soup kitchen, carol in the nursing home, and give all that I have to charity, but do not show love to my family, it profits me nothing.

If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and crocheted snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties, and sing in the choir’s cantata but do not focus on Christ, I have missed the point.

Love stops the cooking to hug the child.

Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the husband.

Love is kind, though harried and tired.

Love doesn’t envy another home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens.

Love doesn’t yell at the kids to get out of your way.

Love doesn’t give only to those who are able to give in return, but rejoices in giving to those who can’t.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.

Love never fails. Video games will break, pearl necklaces will be lost, golf clubs will rust. But giving the gift of love will endure. 

Happy New Year Friends

Kitchen Aid Chicken Salad

First off, I want to say I hope EVERYONE had a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! We have already wrapped up Christmas, organized toys, and put mostly everything away until next year ( except the tree- I leave the tree up until Jan 1) and it feels good to start a fresh new year!!! I cannot believe this coming year is the year we will be adding to our sweet family!! I feel so blessed!!

If any of you are like me you want to take a BREAK from the kitchen following Christmas. After all the baking, kneading, appetizer making, and vigorous holiday cooking.. it’s nice to just sort of take a breather. I received an Instant Pot for christmas and I am really excited to use it!! I will be posting some of my recipes I find and try on here as well as on Instagram!! To me- The instant pot and Crock pot are like a total vacation from cooking.. because they do all the work!!!

Today’s Chicken Salad is similar in the fact that you don’t have to do ANY work :) This is a lunch I make on repeat each week so that we can pull it out and munch on it without any fuss. I love to stuff chicken salad on a bed of spinach or on top an Avocado..in between toasted bread!! It just goes a long way and mostly everyone likes it:)! Here is my “ Kitchen Aid” recipe- You can also use a hand mixer too.

Kitchen Aid Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

2 cooked chicken breasts: To further explain- I love to take 2 to 4 chicken breasts and cook them on high in the crock pot prior to “ Chicken salad making day” usually if I am already making a soup that calls for chicken ill throw in some extra breasts to make the salad with. By cooking your chicken in the slow cooker it allows for it to shred SUPER easy therefore giving it that nice texture for chicken salad. 

3 stalks of celery diced

1 apple diced

3 hard boiled eggs

3 tablespoons pickle relish ( or to taste)

Salt & Pepper to taste

1 cup mayo - give or take

1/2 cup mustard - give or take 

Procedure:

Start by placing your cooked chicken in the mixer and turn on the lowest setting..this will shred your chicken. Watch closely because it will shred quickly, do this until you have the consistency you like. ** some people like a pasty chicken salad while others like a little texture**

once your chicken is shredded add your ingredients

MIX IT AGAIN!!! ** lowest setting**

Once everything is mixed up you can season and add to your taste preference.

THATS IT!!! 

y’all its a total game changer making the chicken salad in your Kitchen Aid..I mean I gotta tell ya' I feel like a total princess letting my mixer do all the work!! If you don’t have a Kitchen Aid then you can pull out your handy hand mixer and get the same results!!!

Enjoy y’all!!!

Baby Number 2

Baby Frankhouser #2 is on the way!!!! 

Expected arrival date is June 2018

We could not be more thrilled OR grateful to be expecting another sweet baby!! Many of you know it took us nearly TWO years to conceive our precious Jax.. during that difficult time I remember wondering WHEN/IF it was EVER going to happen. I know many of you have often wondered those same questions. There are so many different times in our lives when the outcomes are unknown and unpredictable. Those are the times when it is vital to lean on God. God is sovereign and he is ALWAYS working within us even during the times we aren’t sure if he “ hears our prayers”. Fast forward a beautiful pregnancy and baby boy later I felt redeemed. I felt as though God had TRULY answered my prayers with Jax. 

B and I were never really diagnosed with any major fertility issues so it was unbeknownst to us and to the doctors why we had such trouble. God knew though.. and everything falls into HIS timing. 

This second baby.. this blessing.. this GIFT came to us without any forewarning at all. Of course we always prayed diligently for our second child and hoped that God would bless us again whether it be through IVF or naturally but we never knew the timing and figured we would worry about the next baby January 2018. 

God had BIGGER plans.

I came home one day from a MOPS meeting ..feeling “off” no other symptoms other than just having a weird feeling. Call me crazy but something told me to take a test. 

When that test came back positive I nearly fainted off the toilet seat. Of course I took 7 more before calling Brandon hysterically to tell him the wonderful news. We were both so shocked and amazed at the work of our Lord. I had heard so many times about something like this happening to “ other people..” so I never really thought it would happen to us. God proved me wrong that day..and he also broadened my faith times a MILLION.

God gifted us a child without any medical intervention whatsoever.. in his beautiful and perfect timing. We certainly were not expecting to get pregnant so easily but that is the beauty of our God. He is that amazing.. and he is THAT big. He moved our mountain and opened our hearts even bigger for this next baby.  We never cease to pray in thankfulness for this unexpected blessing he gave to our family. 

Psalm 52:9

“ I will praise you forever for what you  have done”

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Happy Middle of the week friends!!!

I am currently in the midst of chomping down on a delicious white chocolate peppermint pudding cookie and looking at the monumental mess in my kitchen...buttt that can wait:) I HAD to write this recipe down as soon as we finished eating because friends...it was SO amazing. Lucky for us Texans we have been graced with the COLDEST northern front this week so I know everyone is searching for yummy soup and stew recipes!! 

This one will not disappoint!!

 Grab some cozy blankets and pour this soup in a mug and eat it by the fire!!!!!

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

( by the way did I mention this was made in the SLOW COOKER!! Such a WIN!)

Ingredients:

3 chicken breasts
kosher salt and black pepper
6 cups chicken stock/broth
1 cup wild rice
3 cloves garlic minced
1 yellow onion diced
3 carrots, peeled and diced
3 stalks celery chopped
fresh thyme
fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 lb mushrooms thinly sliced ( wash them of course)
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup milk
1 cup half and half
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup monterrey jack cheese

Method

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper, to taste. Place chicken into a 6-qt slow cooker.
2. Stir in chicken stock, wild rice, garlic, onion, carrots, celery, thyme, rosemary and bay leaves; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cover and cook on low heat for 6-8 hours. Add mushrooms during the last 30 minutes of cooking time.
3. Remove chicken from the slow cooker and shred.
4. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Whisk in milk and half and half, and cook, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about 4-5 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
5. Stir chicken and milk mixture into the slow cooker. If the soup is too thick, add more half and half as needed until desired consistency is reached.
6. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, and shredded cheese if desired.

** We also served ours with a nice yummy crusty bread**