Shrimp Feta, Baked Ziti with Ricotta and Ground Turkey, Father's Day, and Joseph's 10K

On the plate:  Linda's shrimp feta and Mario Batali's baked ziti with ricotta and ground turkey

Soundtrack to cook to:  Disney music from my computer library - Alexander is still talking about how much fun he had at Disney and wants to keep reliving it.


To make it completely official on the blog (by finally including photos of our Cletus the Fetus)- yes, we are excitedly expecting our second child (a boy!!) on October 26, 2012.  We found out that we were expecting on February 14, 2012 (Valentine's day) and were so overjoyed to receive such a wonderful Valentine's day present!  Unfortunately, this pregnancy has been very different from Alexander's pregnancy.  I was stricken with morning sickness (which was really 24/7 nausea...I don't know why they call it "morning" when it was really all day) from week 5 to week 20 of the pregnancy.  Thankfully, things are much better and I'm feeling back to normal.  Here's how we announced to friends and family as to the gender of our baby that's brewing: 

Proud big brother Alex announcing to the world that
he's going to have a baby brother!  (I bribed him with a
chocolate chip cookie so that he would give his best smile
for the picture.  Not my proudest moment as a parent, but
I thought the picture turned out really nice!)

The 3D ultrasound of our little boy with his
left hand by the side of his mouth saying,
"Hellooooooo out there!!"  :)

Alriggghhhht...here's a baby bump picture.  21 weeks!

Brookline had a Flag Day fair and parade on Father's Day
(June 17,  2012).  Alexander had a great time at the fair
and rode quite a few rides.  He's making the scrunchy
face because it was really sunny that day - I swear he had a fun time!

The little guy floating in the air!

Sliding down a giant slide with Daddy!

Jumping around on an inflatable giraffe.  This kiddo held

his own with the big kids!

Smiling and jumping around

On another fair ride with Daddy - these two had a lot of
fun together on the rides.

My boys in action!

Since I couldn't ride on any of the rides, I decided
that I would treat myself to a lemon shake-up drink -
one of my favorite things to get at a fair.  It was delectable!

Alexander enjoyed a few sips from the lemon shake-up
as well.  It was his first one and as you can tell, he didn't
want to give it back...they're just that good.

We had a lovely little family father's day celebration and the weather was absolutely perfect!  It's incredible to think that at this time next year, we'll have two little boys to make arts and crafts for their father.  

That next day, I was pretty pooped and have been trying my best to use ingredients that we have in the freezer and the refrigerator.  Joseph suggested that I make his mother's shrimp feta recipe.  It's a very easy recipe that you can whip up in less than 30 minutes...perfect for this pooped mama!  You'll need the following ingredients:

• 1 lb shrimp, deveined and no tails
• 4-6 plum tomatoes (I prefer them because I find them more firm and flavorful- I strongly dislike mushy tomatoes) cut into small chunks - I keep the seeds in because they help to make the sauce
• 1 onion, sliced
• 3-4 garlic cloves, sliced thin
• 3/4 cup feta cheese

Start heating up your pan with 1-2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
while you're chopping up the veggies.  Then add the garlic to infuse
the olive oil for a minute or so.  After that, add the onions and cook them
until they're almost translucent.

After that, throw in the tomatoes and shrimp.  Season them with salt (very little)
and pepper.  Cook until the shrimp turn pink.  Then add the feta cheese
and finish cooking until the feta cheese is completely melted.

We like to serve this over a bed of brown rice.  To get some greens
into this meal, I made a village salad of cucumber, onion, and tomato
with a little bit of feta cheese, sprinkle of oregano, and a balsamic vinaigrette.
It's delicious and ready in less than 30 minutes.  Plus, there's normally
leftovers for at least the next day's lunch!

The weather has been somewhat touch and go the past few weeks.  It's been either cold, rainy, or 94 degrees F outside (too hot for Alexander).  Thus, when it's not so great, we've been playing around inside the house, singing songs, reading books, etc.  I've really enjoyed this stage of Alexander's development, because as you heard from the previous post - he's quite the little crooner and entertainer.

The entertainer, hard at work. :)

Ahhhh!  Finally, a beautiful summer day!  I couldn't
find any parking around the gym, so I decided to take
Oscar on a nice long walk around Jamaica Pond that's right
by our house.  I absolutely LOOOOVE where we live - we're really very lucky.

Thankfully, on one of the incredibly hot summer days, Alexander had his P.E. class and he had an absolute blast.  I'm bummed that we won't have class for the next two weeks while the gym is closed, because Alexander loves it so much.  We'll just have to schedule some play dates and museum trips for those days missed, I suppose. :)  I love taking Alexander out and exposing him to new things!

Alexander swinging around like a little monkey.

Alexander wearing a pirate's hat while riding on the
pirate ship swing in his P.E. class.

Our little pirate in action.

Now that I'm not completely repulsed by the thought and sight of food (I seriously couldn't watch any of my favorite cooking shows - they made me that sick), I finally got to watch The Chew.  It's a fun little daytime talk show that is food centered.  I became immediately in love with Mario Batali's baked ziti recipe.  I loooooove baked ziti and couldn't wait to whip this little number up for my family.  

*Warning:  This recipe took me 1 hour and 35 minutes to make (from start to finish), and that's because I was running around the kitchen like a mad woman.  However, if I would have taken my time, it would have taken me about 2 hours.  There are many elements to this dish, which is why it takes so long.  Therefore, you may want to make this dish on the weekend when you have extra time.   

The recipe doesn't call for that many vegetables; however, I felt that it
would be nice to include as many vegetables as possible.  Thus, I added
1 pepper, 1 head of broccoli, and if I had the time, I would have added
mushrooms as well.
*In order to save a little bit of time, I began browning the ground turkey
(instead of Mario's pancetta) while I was cutting the veggies.

Mario made a bechamel sauce, and I had found a lighter bechamel
recipe that I chose to use instead.  It yields 3 cups, and the recipe calls for
2 cups, but I figured bechamel is so yummy...so what's a little extra in the dish going to hurt?
Here's the link:  Low-fat white sauce  :)

After the ground turkey has browned, add the vegetables into the
mix and cook them for about 8-10 minutes.  Then add the red wine
and tomato sauce.
*While these are cooking, make the bechamel sauce and start to
boil the pasta.  I only made 1 lb of pasta, even though the recipe
called for 1 1/2 lbs - I just felt like this was already SO much food
for this little family (and some leftovers for my sister) to handle.

Once the pasta is boiled, mix in the bechamel and some parmesan cheese.

Grease a casserole dish, then pour a layer of the cheesy pasta,
a few dollops of ricotta cheese ( I use fat free), then a layer of
the meat ragu.  Repeat until you run out of ingredients.

Bake uncovered for about 25 minutes and here's the end result!
It's a delicious and hearty pasta dish that was a huge crowd pleaser.
There were plenty of leftovers, plus a little leftover to give to
my sister and her boyfriend.  Delish!

In the spring, Joseph and I ran a 5K together.  It was something that I have always wanted to do, and really wanted to get into running (since I've never been a runner), but found out that I have patello femoral syndrome and had to do some physical therapy in order to get better.  After months of training, I finally got back to normal and wanted to try my hand at running again.  Then, I found out I was pregnant, but still wanted to run a 5K before I gave birth for the second time.  Joseph has always been a great runner, and wanted to accompany me on this little check off the bucket list for me (he's such a great husband!).

I was proud of myself for running the entire time,
got a better time than I had been training, AND
I was 12 weeks pregnant! :)  Thanks for cheering me on, hun!

Then, the same association hosted a 10K today (June 24, 2012) and Joseph and his friend Peter decided to run it together.  Since I'm 22 weeks pregnant, I opted to sit out and cheer the guys on with Alexander from the side lines.

Joseph before the race.

Joseph and Peter, chit-chatting before the race started.

Joseph and Peter chit-chatting while running, during the first few
minutes of the race.

Joseph crossing the finish line!!  

He always insists on making these funny faces while I'm taking pictures,
so I decided to include this little gem. :)

Congratulations Joseph!!  We're so proud of you!

After Joseph cooled off and cleaned up, we took Alexander and Oscar to Larz Anderson Park to play around since it was such a beautiful day.

Alexander sporting his shades and being proud about it. :)
He's got quite the mischievous smile. 

The little guy having fun and laughing up a storm
at the park.

I love his smile.

Okay, okay...one more picture of this cute guy. :)

Ahhhh!  I'm finally caught up to present day pictures and topics with this blog.  It's about time!  It's been a great 22 weeks thus far.  Let's see what the remaining 18 have to offer.  I can't wait to enjoy this summer with Alexander (since Joseph will be busy with his fourth year of medical school), although I'm definitely excited to celebrate this fall with our new little peanut!  Until next time...

Love and kisses,

Nikki

Banana, Peanut Butter, Chocolate Pudding Pie, Tzatziki Potato Salad, Branzini a la Elias, and May/June Catch up

On the plate:  Banana, peanut butter, and chocolate pudding pie, tzatziki potato salad, and Branzini a la Elias

Soundtrack to cook to:  Gretchen Wilson's Here for the Party...yes, I know...it's country and I'm so not country at all.  However, I DARE you to listen to the song Here for the Party and not break out into a spontaneous dance number.  It's the only country album I own and I love it.

Alexander riding in a big boy swing - this little guy
is embracing his new 2 year old status well and welcoming
new challenges each day!  He's soaked from head to toe
because he was playing in the fountains prior to riding in the swing.

Alexander LOVES playing in the fountain near our house.

There's a lovely little zoo by our house called the Franklin Park Zoo.  Thankfully it's only about 3 miles away and we have a membership so we go there at least once a month.  However, when the weather is nicer, we typically go twice a month since it's so nice outside and Alexander loves animals.

For this summer, the zoo has a new exhibit that has robotic dinosaurs that move and roar!  Alexander is in a new phase where he absolutely LOVES dinosaurs, so I thought that he would absolutely love this exhibit at the zoo - and he did!  Below are a few of the dinosaurs from the exhibit:

Alexander's favorite - T Rex!!

And now for the easiest and incredibly delicious dessert recipe...banana, peanut butter, and chocolate pudding pie!!!  I can't even remember where I found this recipe, but I found it years ago and loved the creamy, salty, and sweet combination.  What you'll need:

• 1 pre-made graham cracker crust
• Creamy peanut butter
• 2 medium-sized bananas
• 1 package of instant chocolate pudding
• Milk (in order to make the pudding)

Spread a thin layer of creamy peanut butter into the pre-made
graham cracker crust.

Slice the bananas into little coins and spread them evenly around
the peanut butter crust.

Mix the instant chocolate pudding according to directions.
Then pour the pudding mixture over the bananas in the peanut butter
pie shell.  Refrigerate for an hour or until the pudding is settled (I made this
during Alexander's nap and it was perfect 3 hours later.)

Slice it up and serve!!  It's a nice, creamy, and decadent little treat
to end your meal juuuuuuuust right!  I'm a huge fan of sweet and salt
in my desserts and this satisfied my craving most definitely.

Ever since Alexander turned 2, he's been singing

non-stop!  It's so much fun and pretty surprising to hear

ALL of the songs that he actually knows.  Here's our little

crooner singing with his mommy. :)

Here's Alexander "reading" Hush Little Baby.

Here's another video of Alexander "reading" another one

of his favorite books Happy Dog, Sad Dog.

Alexander "hanging around" during his P.E. class.

Alexander using his daddy's mouse as a phone to
make an important phone call. 

During the summer, I typically get a craving around this time, for a good potato salad.  I like to mix green beans in with mine.  Thus, when I found this recipe on one of my favorite food blogs, I got really excited to make it!  I loosely followed the recipe and the suggestions that the blogger made.  For this recipe, I used:

• 1 lb small red potatoes, cut into fourths
• 3 small, seedless cucumbers
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 cup fat free Greek yogurt
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Juice of one lime
• 1/2 lb green beans
• 1/2 cup marinated green olives with Mediterranean seasoning
• *After I made this recipe, I decided to follow the recipe link a little bit more closely and added about 1/2 cup of fat free sour cream.  It gave it the right amount of tanginess and creaminess that it needed.

Cut up the potatoes into fourths and boil until they are fork tender.

Grate the cucumbers over a strainer.  Make sure that all of the liquid
is gone from the cucumbers.  Otherwise, your tzatziki sauce will
be really runny.

Grate the one clove of garlic and mix it together with the cucumber.
DO NOT use any more than this, or else the sauce will be incredibly
spicy and you'll be tasting that garlic for the next day or so.

Mix the grated cucumber and garlic with the yogurt, salt, and pepper
and juice of 1 lime.

The end result of the tzatziki sauce!  Your grater may be of a
different thickness, which would result in a thicker cut of cucumber.

Boil the potatoes and green beans.  Allow them to cool completely.

Then mix the tzatziki sauce with the potatoes and green beans.
I decided that it needed a little bit more salt and texture, so I added
the green olives, per the blogger's suggestion.  Plus, about 1 tsp of
dried dill, and 1/2 cup fat free sour cream.  The result was a
delightful Greek-inspired potato salad that was relatively healthy and delish!

In order to make this a completely Greek-infused meal, I decided to
make one of Joseph's and now Alexander's favorite entrees - Branzini a la Elias.
(I say "a la Elias" because this is my father-in-law's recipe.)
Take each Branzini fish, coat it lightly with extra virgin olive oil,
salt, pepper, and garlic powder on both sides.  Turn your broiler
on high and cook one side for 12-15 minutes.  Then, turn the broiler
on low, flip the fish over, and finish cooking it for another 12-15 minutes.
Serve it with the juice of a lime or a lemon.  It's just like eating the delicious,
light, buttery, and delicate "lavraki" (as they call it in Greece) in Greece!  Enjoy!

Alexander posing next to Tigger (he insisted that he be in the shot)
on his big boy bed!!  We just removed the front gate to his crib and replaced
it with the open gate to turn it into a toddler bed.  He took the plunge
into the big boy world on June 11, 2012.

A successful first night!!  Each morning he says to me, 

"Have fun in big boy bed??!  Yes!!"  He's too sweet.

Alexander playing with his awesome bubble machine
that he got for his birthday.  This kid loooooves bubbles!
But really, who doesn't? :)

More fountain play!!

Little man, playing around with a bell that is near our

house and identifying letters on the sign.

This was a great few weeks, as so many things got better in our lives.  I FINALLY started to feel better, was no longer nauseous 24/7, and was able to get back into cooking again.  Alexander finished teething with his last four molars (thank goodness - he's quite a crabby little guy when he's teething), AND he graduated to his big boy bed.  So many milestones in such a small amount of time!  Until next time...

Love and kisses,
Nikki

Disney World Trip!

Here's a little sneak peek into our week-long vacation (May 19-25, 2012) to Orlando, Florida where we visited the four parks in Disney World (Animal Kingdom, Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Hollywood Studios) and Sea World as well.  We had an absolutely fantastic time, although it was incredibly hot when we visited.

Driving up to see the welcome sign!  I still get excited - maybe even moreso
than Alexander!

The Animal Kingdom was our first stop because we had a character
lunch scheduled for that day at the Tusker House restaurant.

Daddy and Alexander packed into the tram and on our way to the park.

Daddy and Alexander waiting in line to pick up our park hopper
tickets for the next four days.

Daddy and Alexander checking out the animals as you first walk into the park.

Safari ride time!!  

As you can tell, Alexander is just filled with excitement.
*said in a very sarcastic tone*

Checking out the animals

Isn't the view breathtaking?

I thought the trees were gorgeous

Pointing out the giraffes to the little guy

Giraffes!

Elephants!  There was a really cute baby one there.

Alexander checking out the elephants

Flamingos! 

Whoa!  Check out those horns!

Alexander during his jam session on the drums

Look at the little man, go!

Daddy and Alexander checking out the tree of life

Alexander meeting with King Louie and Baloo.

This was the best shot that I got with Alexander looking at the camera.

Then we made our way to the Tusker House restaurant in the Animal
Kingdom for our character lunch.  Alexander's favorite character,
Donald Duck, was waiting at the entrance and Alexander enthusiastically
shouted, "DONALD DUUUUCK!!"  He then began clamoring to get to him
and ran up to give him a big hug.

"Hooray, Donald Duck!"

Even though Alexander was somewhat scared of Goofy,
he soon became Alexander's second favorite character
of the entire visit.

Alexander hugging "Daisy Donald Duck" as he
likes to call her.

During the lunch, Mickey Mouse came by and the kids got to play
instruments and dance around the restaurant with Mickey.  Alexander
had a blast!

Alexander checking out Mickey Mouse.

"Hug Mickey Mouse," said Alexander.

Alexander and Daddy posing by the base of the tree of life.

Winnie the Pooh!

"Donkey Eeyore," as Alexander calls him.

Tigger

One tuckered out little mouseketeer

Day 2 - Disney World's Magic Kingdom! (My personal favorite)

Daddy and Alexander on the boat to the Magic Kingdom

"Hooray!"

Tired little mouseketeer - he missed the entire parade because he was so tired.

Cinderella's castle

Alexander and Daddy posing by the castle

Mommy and Alexander's turn :)

Alexander and Daddy checking out the
country line dance performance in Frontier Land.

Alexander FINALLY got to see a parade and was
SO excited to see "DONALD DUUUUUCK!!"

Awww, look at the excitement in both of my guy's
eyes.  Too precious.

Joseph was really happy that Alexander was so excited.

Monoraaaaailllll!

Hey!  Look guys!  I'm holding up Epcot Center!!
(You seriously have no idea how excited I was to do that....)

Day 3 - Epcot Center - and BOY was it hot!

Daddy and Alexander posing by Alexander's favorite - Donald Duck

The grounds of Epcot are absolutely gorgeous.

Outside of Nemo

Mommy and Alexander posing in front of Nemo :)

Day 4 - Sea World - Daddy and Alexander posing by the flamingos

Time to feed the dolphins!!  We had such an awesome time being
the first ones of the day to feed the dolphins some fish.  We even got to
pet the dolphins.  It was so much fun!

Feeding and petting the dolphins

Daddy and Alexander watching the seal and walrus show.

Alexander watching a show

Alexander checking out the turtles.

"Wook, wook!  A seal!"

We had lunch at a pretty cool restaurant where there were sharks
and large fish swimming right by our table.

Alexander loved cooling off at the splash water park.

I love to see him get so excited!

The little guy splashing around

Lunch with the sharks and fish

Day 5 - Disney's Hollywood Studios

Alexander loved the Muppets 3D show - it was really
fun and interactive.

Daddy and Alexander checking out the "Honey,
I Shrunk the Kids" playground.

Alexander riding an ant - he was definitely
not upset when he had to get off.

The backstage tour - a nice and relaxing way
to end our day.

Alexander - absolutely pooped on our last day of our trip. 

Alexander and Daddy walking towards the
Boston Common memorial for Memorial Day.

Alexander and Daddy looking at all of the flags
in the Boston Common for Memorial Day.

Daddy and Alexander on the carousel in the Boston Common.

Me and Alexander in the Boston Garden - I absolutely
LOVE this place!  It's so beautiful.

Alexander laughing and being silly at Larz Anderson
Park on Mother's Day.  I love that smile and those dimples!

It's amazing how big he is already!

What a handsome little guy, huh?

We had such a great time being able to have a family trip together.  It was nice to get uninterrupted time with Joseph and Alexander and to expose Alexander to all of these fun and new experiences.  It's amazing to be a parent and see things through your child's eyes.  To see their pure excitement and innocence is truly amazing and heartwarming.  Until next time...

Love and kisses,

Nikki