Gluten Free Mom To Be | A Blog About Gluten Free and Pregnancy

February 17, 2015

A Pre-Valentine’s Dinner With My Love At Toscano’s Ristorante Where Eating Gluten Free Is Stress Free

Happy belated Valentine’s Day! It was Valentine’s week last week for sure with some heart crafting, cupcake baking, valentine decorating, and a few special love episodes of our favorite Disney Junior shows. And making our Valentine’s week a little extra special, mommy and daddy were able to enjoy a meal just us two pre-Valentine’s day so we could celebrate the big day with our little valentine. Whenever we have a special day to celebrate or get a chance to sneak out and enjoy some alone time the first place we want to escape to is Toscano’s Ristorante in Bordentown, NJ. A cozy, Italian restaurant that’s been our home ever since we started dating, this gem holds a special place in our hearts and even more so now that they can flawlessly create an amazing dining experience for both of us.

The biggest joy in dining at Toscano’s is the worry free meal that we get enjoy. There’s no need to double check, triple check, quadruple check that your dish is gluten free here because the chef understands what a gluten free meal entails and is able to follow through without sacrificing flavor for a safe meal. I have to admit I’m an order the same dish every time you dine somewhere kind of girl, however here I’ve tried and loved many a dish, each one coming out exact or pretty darn close to how it’s described on the menu. Every single dish I’ve tried has been sauced and seasoned to perfection, which means we leave with nothing but big smiles and full bellies every time.

Okay so for our parents only, pre-Valentine’s dinner and my mommy-to-be appetite back in tact I decided to go with the gluten free versions of the Antipasto Salad (which is gluten free already), Vodka Rigatoni, and for dessert a Flourless Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Sauce. While I ordered my favorite dishes, true to form Dan indulged in two of the specials along with an extra special dessert just for him. Normally, we share desserts, if we even have room for them, and sometimes appetizers too but for this special occasion we had a lot to celebrate so we decided to splurge a little. As always, we didn’t have to wait too long until our appetizers arrived and oh my was I ever glad to see my heaping plate of antipasto salad placed in front of me.

By the way, pardon the less than stellar phone pictures, we left the camera at home but I just had to snap a few of the beauty of these dishes. Lettuce topped with cheese, mixed meats, kalamata olives, roasted red peppers, tomatoes, onions, celery, all mixed in their house made balsamic dressing. It’s a divine appetizer, one that both Dan and I absolutely love and I may have enjoyed on a few take out occasions prior to our meal out. What I love most, besides the amazing mixture of flavors, is that each ingredient is chopped into small, bite size pieces so every bite you enjoy is filled with antipasto deliciousness. While I could have easily finished the whole plate, I saved half for tomorrow’s lunch, making sure I had plenty of room for my creamy vodka penne (the gluten free pasta they stock) that was on its way. And with perfect timing as always, our entrees arrived not too long after we had digested our appetizers. And voila, my gluten free vodka penne was calling my name, steaming hot and looking just as beautiful as always. The gluten free pasta was cooked perfectly and smothered in a creamy vodka sauce chock full of prosciutto and tomatoes, all topped with a few slivers of cheese and some basil. This dish is by far my all time favorite pasta dish and Toscano’s does me proud every single time. I love a creamy, less tomato based vodka sauce and Toscano’s delivers just that. Needless to say, I finished every last bite of my entree, making me so glad that I saved some of my appetizer for the next day so I could enjoy my vodka penne at its best, fresh out of the kitchen.

To be honest, even pregnant me was pretty full at this point but Dan and I had decided to at least taste our desserts and save the rest for the next day if we needed to. I forgot to snap a picture of my Flourless Chocolate Cake but it was a beauty, especially with that gorgeous raspberry sauce drizzled all over it. Their cake is definitely more of a brownie cake texture rather than some flourless chocolate cakes that I’ve had that are more like eating a piece of fudge, both varieties I love and neither of which I would ever turn down mind you. This dessert though was the perfect, gluten free finish to our meal, even if I only took a grand total of 3 bites out of the huge piece of cake. Thankfully, I can report that flourless chocolate cake holds over very well until the next day.

All together, it was a great meal filled with delicious gluten free food and even better company. We love taking our little girl with us everywhere, especially out to eat, she completes us, so Dan and I rarely get out just us two. So on occasions like this one, we always like to celebrate just mommy and daddy and then have a family celebration too. This holiday we wanted to do just the same, reserving a romantic dinner for us a few days before and having a special day with little girl included on Valentine’s day. Love was certainly in the air for our Valentines day celebrations this year and I’m constantly reminded of how much love we share in our family. Not a day goes by in our house that kisses, hugs, and plenty of I love yous are shared and that’s just the way we like it. No matter how you celebrated I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine’s Day, filled with lots of love with your loved ones and plenty of tasty gluten free food!

Sincerely,

Lindsay (20 weeks)

February 13, 2015

A Special Little Surprise For Our Soon-To-Be Big Sister

As our little girl’s new room begins to take shape, it’s beginning to feel so surreal that we’ll one day soon have two little ones running around together. Only last week we found out who our Baby #2 is and we couldn’t be more happy and excited to welcome he or she into our family and into this world. Curious who our little one might be? No worries, with Disney right around the corner I thought it would extra special to make our announcement then and there, so only a bit longer until the big reveal. Until then, I’ve added one more really fun feature to the big girl room that I think a certain somebody will really enjoy.

The past few weeks my little girl has really started to get into hide and seek and fort making. As a new two, we’re not the best at the hiding concept, usually revealing herself with a giggle or jumping out from a hiding spot, but loving the game just the same. I had thought about adding a little teepee or tent to her big girl room that could be her little nook for playing, hiding, or even taking a little nap if mommy gets lucky. It took awhile to find just the right one that I thought would suit her perfectly without breaking mommy and daddy’s budget but I’ve finally found it. I picked out this ceiling mounted lilac floral canopy that I thought would make a really fun space for our new hider that she could play with her stuffed friends and maybe mommy too. We were able to snatch one of these gorgeous canopies from RH Baby & Child during their amazing winter sale event while happily staying in budget. I can’t wait to see it all set up live and in person but just through the packaging I can tell that it’s going to be well loved.

Even though the future big girl room is right now just a storage space, come spring my little girl’s new room will take shape and we’ll be moving her in so we can tweak the nursery to be baby friendly once again. In the meantime, we’re letting her keep a few toys in there and play from time to time so she gets used to the idea that it’s hers. When it comes time for the big reveal I think our little girl will feel all of the love that went into her new room and hopefully feel just as special as we had hoped she would as she becomes a big sister.

Sincerely,

Lindsay (19 weeks)

February 10, 2015

Start You And Your Baby’s Day With A Glass Of Gluten Free Naked Juice Smoothie

Now that I have a little bit of my appetite back I’m craving tons of things, and true to form both sweet and salty. I’ve always been somebody that loves a salty bite after a sweet or vice versa and pregnant me I guess is no different. I certainly have been craving some fun snacks from my beloved pickles or cheddar and sour cream potato chips to a good bowl of ice cream. Besides the obvious treats, I also can’t get enough of fresh fruit and salads galore. Since fresh fruit can be very very pricey at this time of year in my neck of the woods I on occasion enjoy a fresh fruit salad but I also turn to juices or smoothies. I used to love making these fresh and mixing in some veggies here and there, but until produce prices come down a bit and I get a little more energy to make them on my own again, I rely on delicious fruit smoothie substitutions like this one by Naked.

Naked offers tons of different smoothie options from all fruit to fruit and veggie and most are gluten free. They have a perfectly thick and smooth smoothie texture and are packed full of nutritious goodness. I pair a half of a glass of smoothie in the morning with either a sweet breakfast treat or toast or a bagel, keeping my growing belly full for just a bit longer than usual. I’ve only tried a few of the fruit flavors but my favorite so far is the strawberry banana which is conveniently marked gluten free. Check out more on this smoothie option and all of the rest of their Naked Fruit Juices. But I should probably note that there is some confusion on gluten free labeling for these juices.

According to Naked, there are only a few varieties that they do not recommend to you if you’re gluten free and by my inspection it appears to be because of the presence of barley or wheat. However, some of the varieties like the strawberry banana are marked gluten free while others whose ingredients appear fine are not. I was in mid drink of a glass of the mango juice smoothie and noticed the labeling difference and called customer service for an explanation on the discrepancy. Unfortunately, the information I received was less than helpful and I was told to review the ingredients with my doctor. Now I should mention that regardless of whether an item is marked gluten free or not, I personally always review the ingredients for my own reassurance; that being said, prior to the instruction to just read the label, I knew already that the ingredients were okay on the mango juice but I wasn’t sure why some were marked gluten free and others were not, i.e. because of cross contamination or something like that. After a few more minutes going over cross contamination and differences in labeling I was no closer to any clarification but was directed again to read the ingredients on the label carefully and even told that maybe Naked was starting to label those kinds that were gluten free.

Despite the confusion on the juice labeling, by reading the ingredient labels I have never had an issue with any of the varieties I’ve tried. But for now, I’ll be purchasing those that are labeled gluten free for my own reassurance so I can enjoy every last drop!

Sincerely,

Lindsay (19 weeks)

January 30, 2015

Almost Halfway There And This Mommy-To-Be Can’t Wait To Find Out Who Our Little Swimmer Is Next Week!

With a predicted blizzard on our hands earlier this week, we’ve been somewhat snowed in or at least frozen in because it’s been so cold outside lately. But no amount snow or cold was going to keep us away from taking our little girl to see a special surprise that was perfect just for her. We were treating our snowed in bunny to Disney On Ice, Princess And Heroes. I was a bit skeptical back when we purchased the tickets if she would actually sit through the entire thing but boy was I wrong.

With a two hour ice show filled with all of her favorite Disney princesses, princes, and characters galore, she was in awe of everything from start to finish, even straining to stay awake not wanting to miss a second at the end. We had amazing seats so that way little one and her cousins would catch all of the action from up above and did they ever. It was a fantastic show even for us adults, and our kids couldn’t get enough of the fancy ice moves, music and lights flashing, surprising stunt work, and even better sets and props. And what would a fun night out be without a funny anecdote about your toddler, this night was no exception. While nibbling away on her special soft pretzel, she happened to notice the people controlling some of the spotlights who were seated near the ceiling above us and she couldn’t get enough of them. So between enjoying the show she would crane her neck to admire, point at, and even wave and say hi to the light controllers up in the rafters. Bet they didn’t know they were part of the show for a certain little girl! While Disney On Ice was certainly a winner for our little girl, I think we might just have a future Disney lover swimming around in my belly too. With my bump getting bigger and bigger, I’ve been feeling a little bit of movement but none compared to the swirling around that’s been going on this week. By far though the most movement was at the show, where it literally felt like I swallowed a 5 inch fish and it was swimming around like crazy in my belly. Such an extraordinary feeling that never gets old.

To find out more on my 17th week of pregnancy and catch a peak of my little copilot, check out my surprise vlog! Ignore the lovely thumbnail image from the video, because I’m sure there were no smiling moments that youtube could snapshot for me, gotta love it!

A few more details of what 17 weeks looks like in our house:

Go to gluten free foods: Fruit salad, bagels with cream cheese, homemade pizza with Schar crusts, lots and lots of salads with Marie’s Blue Cheese Dressing, Ore-ida fries with Lawry’s Seasoned Salt and blue cheese dressing….as you can tell my appetite is returning a little at a time
How am I sleeping?: Things are going pretty well here with only one bathroom wake up each night, which really isn’t too different than the norm for me.
What’s happening in our world this week: As I mentioned earlier, we were in that blizzard prediction earlier this week with no blizzard to be found which is fine by me. What we did get was about 5-6 inches of fluffy white snow that our little girl just loved playing in, mommy not so much seeing as it is beyond freezing outside. But watching her get out and get some fresh air, laughing and smiling away was worth a little while of me not feeling my legs.
Countdown to baby gender reveal: We’re almost there! Just a short, really excruciatingly long weekend, away from seeing our little baby live and in person Monday and learning what we have in store for us. I couldn’t be more excited to not only find out boy or girl but to see that little one swimming around in there again.
What I love most at this point: That first real feeling of baby moving around is truly extraordinary. Up until now I’ve felt tons of swirls and small little movements but none like this week where baby has been literally swimming laps in there. I guess Baby #2 is going to be a water lover/ swimmer just like it’s sister and mommy!

Sincerely,

Lindsay (17 weeks)

January 28, 2015

What’s A New Room Without A DIY Project: Transformation Tea Table And Chairs Is On Our List!

When I first started imagining my baby girl in her very own big girl room I first had to get over the shock that this little baby girl that we had brought home from the hospital not too long ago would be moving out of the nursery and into her very own special space. After getting a handle on that overwhelming thought, I couldn’t help but get excited about the project ahead. With a toddler who just loves to play 24/7 I knew that I wanted to keep it simple when it came to toys in her actual room. After all, right now, we literally only have a container of stuffed animals or “friends” that she absolutely loves and plays with when she’s in her room but they don’t really detract away from the main mission of being in there for nap time or bed time. When we had a few other things it was play time central so we had to clean house and simplify her room so sleeping was still the main focus of the bedroom. So as far as toys and play things in her big girl room, we’re keeping it simple and adding a few things that will definitely make it special.

Play Table — Adorable play table with farmhouse chairs!

Last Christmas Santa brought our little girl a princess tea set and ever since she’s been making tea for anyone and everyone that stops by. It’s no surprise than that one of the first things that I knew I wanted to include in her big girl room was a little tea table that she could enjoy now and for years to come, it truly would be a perfect addition to her new room. After a little scoping on pinterest, I knew that I wanted to go with a Pottery Barn/ Land of Nod inspired set with farmhouse chairs or something of that nature that was good quality and had some pretty details to it. Contrary to what I imagined though, kiddie tables and chairs can literally cost as much as a normal sized kitchen table and chairs, which is a bit extravagant for our budget for her big girl room. So it was back to the drawing board and the searching online continued.

After searching high and low for a good deal without any success I all but gave up on this first idea, until that is I came upon a gorgeous set on a yard sale site resembling the adorable table and chairs in the picture above. It was a beautifully made round table with four mini farmhouse chairs that with a little tender, love, and care and our own personal flair would make a certain little girl very happy, not to mention we managed to snatch it up for $35 making mommy and daddy even happier. No the table and chairs don’t look quite like those in the picture above yet but once we decide if we should paint everything white or do a cool stain we’ll have a gorgeous tea table on our hands. Stay tuned for the tea table renovation!

Sincerely,

Lindsay (17 weeks)

January 27, 2015

Snowed In For The Day? How About A Warm Plate Of My Mom’s Tomato Soup Macaroni And Cheese Done Gluten Free!

Growing up, anytime I had a bad day, good day, holiday, and all of the fun days between my mom would come to the rescue with her tomato soup macaroni and cheese. Nice warm garlicky Campbell’s tomato soup sandwiched between layers of pasta and shredded cheddar cheese and American cheese. Such a perfect combination and heaven to my tastebuds that’s for sure. Looking back I probably should’ve requested it a couple more times seeing as my days of enjoying her classic were numbered and I didn’t even know it. At least I still have my lovely food memories to keep me warm, along with a few gluten free tricks in my pocket too!

Even though I’m not able to enjoy some of my favorite childhood delights in the same way that I used to, my mom’s recipe has been passed down to me and adapted to be gluten free by yours truly. I’m happy to report that it’s not just as delicious as I remember but I think a little bit more now that I’m the mommy sharing this delicious bowl of tomato, cheesy goodness with my little girl. That’s right, she’s a girl after my heart loving every bite of pasta that we give her but especially a good bowl of homemade macaroni and cheese. I’m sure in the days to come, that just like my mom, I’ll receive quite a few requests for a warm plate of Tomato Soup Macaroni And Cheese!

Ingredients:

12 oz box Gluten Free Pasta, elbows or penne will do (My favorites are Ronzoni and Barilla)
Between 1 1/2 and 2 cups Gluten Free Tomato Soup (No more Campbell’s Soup because it’s loaded with wheat, but my favorite substitute is Pacific Foods Organic Creamy Tomato Soup, it’s so creamy and perfect for this macaroni and cheese.)
1 1/2 – 2 cups Shredded Cheddar, Colby Jack, Mozzarella or any mixture of them (I also like to add in American Cheese if I have it, it really matches well with the tomato soup, kind of like grilled cheese dipped in tomato soup.)
Garlic Powder
Salt

Directions:

Cook your pasta according to the directions on the box, cutting off 2 minutes or so since you’re cooking your pasta in the oven afterwards. Whenever I use pasta like this I always cut a few minutes off of the total cook time since it’ll continue to cook in the oven after, just to prevent it from being mushy.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Measure out 1 1/2 to 2 cups Gluten Free Creamy Tomato Soup, Pacific Foods is my favorite. I use somewhere in the middle of 1 1/2 to 2 cups, it really depends on what casserole dish I choose to use. Basically, you just want to make sure your macaroni and cheese will be creamy enough without it turning to soup.
Add some garlic powder to tomato soup and mix, adding just enough to melt in that delicious garlic flavor.
To a 2.5 qt baking dish, cover the bottom of the dish with tomato soup mixture until layer is about 1/4 inch deep.
When pasta has finished cooking, drain and add first layer of pasta to cover the bottom tomato soup layer. Note: I usually have enough pasta to do about 3 layers in total.
After the pasta is added, sprinkle on a generous amount of either Shredded Cheddar, Colby Jack, Mozzarella, or a little American Cheese, or if you feel really fancy do a combination of your favorites.
I always like to make sure the dish is seasoned throughout so after the cheese layer I sprinkle on some salt or garlic salt, just enough to add a little seasoning.
Next, top the cheese with your next layer of tomato soup, enough to go around the whole layer, but don’t make the dish too soupy. And continue layering with pasta and then cheese until your top layer is finished off with some cheese.
Cook at 350 for about 15-20 minutes until the top is melted and begins to brown.
Enjoy!

Gluten Free Tomato Soup Macaroni And Cheese

Nothing beats a warm bowl of tomato soup or steaming plate of cheesy macaroni and cheese when there’s inches upon inches of snow on the ground. Just looking at the snow makes me crave both; so why not combine them into this one delicious Gluten Free Tomato Soup Macaroni And Cheese! I certainly know what’s on our dinner menu for today since we’ll definitely be putting in some cold but fun playtime out in the freshly fallen snow.

Sincerely,

Lindsay (17 weeks)

Gluten Free Tomato Soup Macaroni And Cheese

2015-01-27 07:23:49

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Ingredients

12 oz box Gluten Free Pasta, elbows or penne will do (My favorites are Ronzoni and Barilla)
Between 1 1/2 and 2 cups Gluten Free Tomato Soup (No more Campbell's Soup because it's loaded with wheat, but my favorite substitute is Pacific Foods Organic Creamy Tomato Soup, it's so creamy and perfect for this macaroni and cheese.)
1 1/2 - 2 cups Shredded Cheddar, Colby Jack, Mozzarella or any mixture of them (I also like to add in American Cheese if I have it, it really matches well with the tomato soup, kind of like grilled cheese dipped in tomato soup.)
Garlic Powder
Salt

Instructions

Cook your pasta according to the directions on the box, cutting off 2 minutes or so since you're cooking your pasta in the oven afterwards. Whenever I use pasta like this I always cut a few minutes off of the total cook time since it'll continue to cook in the oven after, just to prevent it from being mushy.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Measure out 1 1/2 to 2 cups Gluten Free Creamy Tomato Soup, Pacific Foods is my favorite. I use somewhere in the middle of 1 1/2 to 2 cups, it really depends on what casserole dish I choose to use. Basically, you just want to make sure your macaroni and cheese will be creamy enough without it turning to soup.
Add some garlic powder to tomato soup and mix, adding just enough to melt in that delicious garlic flavor.
To a 2.5 qt baking dish, cover the bottom of the dish with tomato soup mixture until layer is about 1/4 inch deep.
When pasta has finished cooking, drain and add first layer of pasta to cover the bottom tomato soup layer. Note: I usually have enough pasta to do about 3 layers in total.
After the pasta is added, sprinkle on a generous amount of either Shredded Cheddar, Colby Jack, Mozzarella, or a little American Cheese, or if you feel really fancy do a combination of your favorites.
I always like to make sure the dish is seasoned throughout so after the cheese layer I sprinkle on some salt or garlic salt, just enough to add a little seasoning.
Next, top the cheese with your next layer of tomato soup, enough to go around the whole layer, but don't make the dish too soupy. And continue layering with pasta and then cheese until your top layer is finished off with some cheese.
Cook at 350 for about 15-20 minutes just until cheese has melted and top begins to brown slightly.
Enjoy!

By Gluten Free Mom To Be

Gluten Free Mom To Be http://www.glutenfreemomtobe.com/

January 22, 2015

Hearing Baby’s Heartbeat For The First Time At 16 Weeks Is Music To A Mommy-To-Be’s Heart

We made it to 16 weeks! It’s been a long road so far for me and baby but we’re chugging along. By far my favorite part of this week has been hearing Baby #2’s heartbeat at our appointment. We’d seen it flicker on our ultrasounds but haven’t yet heard the beautiful rhythmic beating rumbling in my belly. That sound is truly music to an expecting mommy’s ears and one that never ceases to amaze you no matter how many times you hear it. Knowing baby is well and good inside gives me so much comfort especially since it hasn’t been the easiest 16 weeks of my life.

On the good side of things my nausea and morning sickness as a whole has begun to subside, fingers crossed it stays like that for awhile. My appetite hasn’t quite returned to itself so eating is still pretty tough but I’m hoping with the other two things on their way out this one will return soon. As with my little girl, around this time I started getting some acid reflux and seeing a flare up in my migraines and sadly it seems that they too have reappeared. Thankfully, Tums seems to be keeping my acid reflux at bay and I seem to be reaching a break in my migraines, hopefully those take a backseat permanently seeing as they are one of the least fun parts of my pregnancy, okay really life in general.

It might seem a little strange to be thinking about delivery at this point in our pregnancy but with our little girl around this time we were already in the process of figuring out how she’d arrive. Seeing as my c-section didn’t leave me with the warmest of memories I haven’t been shy about wanting a vaginal delivery this time around but with my venous angioma I haven’t been entirely sure if that was even a safe possibility. I’ve spoken with my new neurologist who basically explained that there are risks with any form of delivery with me, really assuring right. But I’ve seen a shimmer of hope after my appointment yesterday where my doctor went over things with me assuring me that he feels comfortable with a VBAC delivery this time around, given that the stars all align for that to be possible. So I’m no closer to an answer for the ending of this story but at least now I can hold onto a little hope of the type of delivery that I wanted the first time around. For now, it’s just prayers for a safe and healthy pregnancy and delivery. Take a peak at a few other ins and outs over the past week.

Go to gluten free foods: Bagels with butter, Claussen dill pickles (Kraft changed their labeling so there’s some question about them being gluten free but I’ve never had a problem eating them, knock on wood), fruit salad, snickers, some salads with Marie’s Blue Cheese Dressing
How am I sleeping?: I’m somewhat well rested, at least when my migraines haven’t been interrupting things.
What’s happening in our world this week: With a somewhat quiet winter so far this year, and I probably just jinxed us, we saw a little bit of snow last night along with the winter chill that me and my little girl have been less than fond of lately. As my little one says when she looks out the window “it’s freezing” so we’ve been trying to occupy ourselves inside but there’s only so many winter friendly activities I can do with my two year old before cabin fever sets in. But with a little break in the below freezing temperatures we have been able to go for a little walk around the block and I’m hoping it might warm up enough today to maybe have a little snow adventure
Countdown to baby gender reveal: T-minus a week and a half until our biggest question so far is answered. We contemplated keeping the gender between just us three, but with so many people in our family there’s no way a secret like that can be had so I think we’ll at least keep his or her name to ourselves until the big birthday.
What I love most at this point: Hearing that sweet heartbeat made my week. It’s a beautiful moment to hear it for the first time and I’m so glad Dan could be there to share it with me. I have to say, just like their sister, Baby #2 has us wrapped around it’s little fingers already!

Sincerely,

Lindsay (16 weeks)

January 21, 2015

Now A Certain Little Girl’s Big Girl Room Is Going To Be Nice And Cozy! Area Rug: Check!

Anyone that has purchased area rugs knows that they can be enormously expensive. It’s a horrible process and I literally loathe the search, but it is a necessarily evil when you have hard wood floors throughout your house and little toddler/baby feet roaming everywhere. In the past we’ve had pretty good luck spotting decent deals on large area rugs at Home Depot or Lowes, with the only downside ever being that they have very few choices in store and you have to resort to crossing your fingers and hoping for the best ordering off their website. But it really has been just that, luck; it’s a hit or miss process and unfortunately at this time we were struggling to find a great deal for an 8 x 10 rug for my daughter’s new room.

As you probably have caught on to by now (check out my inspiration board for all of our ideas), our hope was to do a more neutral rug that could be versatile enough and last her through a couple of room colors/themes over the years. So to go with the lavender, aqua, and white color combination we’ve been leaning towards a gray rug. Little did we know that gray rugs are tremendously expensive, especially in 8 x 10 sizes. However, this bargain hunting mommy-to-be has been combing website after website and finally spotted a great deal on a quality area rug that not only fit the bill price wise but was the exact look and color we were after.

Beautiful rug that's a perfect addition to a big girl room! — Beautiful Moroccan rug that’s going to make my little girl’s big girl room nice and cozy!

We ended up grabbing one of these soft and cozy Homespun Moroccan Trellis Rugs off of Rugs USA. I’m always a little hesitant ordering things online, especially things like rugs that you really want to see the color and feel the texture of before purchasing. Unfortunately, it seems like everything is online now so we kind of had to take a chance and hope for the best. I fell in love with the Moroccan pattern on the rug and just knew the simplicity of it and the neutral color option would be perfect in her new room. The only question we were left with was what color to actually go with. Thankfully, there were thousands of reviews that guided us away from the actual gray rug that had a bluish hew and to go with the tan rug that ended up looking more gray, yay for customer reviews!

Luckily we were able to take advantage of a winter sale and we ended up grabbing this rug for a fantastic price as far as 8 x 10s go not to mention we had a bonus of free shipping too! So after a little waiting our rug had arrived and little one helped mommy unwrap it to see what it looked like in person. Good choice going with the tan color and even better with the beautiful pattern which looks even more gorgeous in person. I even asked what little one thought and she very simply stated as she pitter pattered across “I like it” (she’s such a little person now!). The only downside is the stink; I’m very sensitive to any kind of smells, and what I’ve noticed with a couple of things that we’ve gotten shipped is that sometimes the packaging can have a really funky smell, as was the case with the rug. So we unrolled it in the spare room, aka little one’s future big girl room, and cracked a window and turned on the fan to air it out. It took a few days but the smell is gone and fits perfectly in the room!

As you can see, things are moving along in the transition to a big girl room, slowly but surely. All of the planning and purchasing is certainly getting us more and more excited for our new arrival. And as far as the actual baby that’s on its way, well we’ll be hearing he or she today at our 16 week appointment and I’ll finally be sharing my 16 week picture tomorrow! Lots of fun things going on over here so stay tuned!

Sincerely,

Lindsay (16 weeks)

January 20, 2015

Gluten Free Ravioli By Pastosa Coming Right Up!

There’s no denying that gluten free or not I’ve always been and always will be a true pasta loving Italian. Sure these days I indulge in those of the gluten free variety, but I fondly remember years past of cheese filled homemade pastas that were always my favorite and never failed to hit the spot. Sadly, it’s been too long since I’ve enjoyed butter slathered ravioli, tortellini, and manicotti, but I’m happy to share that I’ve finally found a gluten free substitute worthy of an Italian’s stamp of approval.

Pastosa has brought us a fantastic gluten free substitute that looks, feels, and tastes just like the “real” thing. For about $10, you can get a 16 ounce package of frozen, large gluten free cheese ravioli. To give you an idea of how many servings you’d get out of one package, I usually can make at least 3-4 dinners for myself from one (with about 4-5 raviolis each). And when you want to enjoy this Italian staple, just boil some water, pop some in, and gently boil them for about 8 to 10 minutes and soon enough it’s time to serve and enjoy!

ravioli (3) — Pastosa Gluten Free Cheese Ravioli

Now I personally like to enjoy my gluten free cheese ravioli with just some melted butter or a very light sauce of that nature, I just love the flavor that butter adds to the pasta itself as well as the delicious ricotta filling inside. But believe me, any sauce option that you choose will marry perfectly with Pastosa’s gluten free ravioli, they’re just that delicious. The pasta itself cooks up perfectly al dente each time, never turning to mush. Meanwhile the filling nestled inside is a flavorful combination of creamy ricotta, romano cheese, and parsley. My favorite part is when you cut your ravioli open and the melted butter meets the filling for the first time and just absorbs right into it, absolutely delicious!

Pastosa's Gluten Free Ravioli stuffed with a perfect ricotta mixture. — Pastosa’s Gluten Free Cheese Ravioli stuffed with a perfect ricotta mixture.

Since going gluten free, I’ve learned that unfortunately finding great gluten free products like these gluten free ravioli can sometimes be a difficult process and may not always be readily available at your grocery store. For many products I’ve had to dig around to find them either online, at different grocery stores, or at my local health food store, not very much fun or convenient or cheap but worth it in the long run to uncover quality gluten free food. These Italian delights I stumbled upon on a trip to a local Italian market where I was purchasing some fresh raviolis for the rest of my family and I truly couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw these in the freezer case. As with many gluten free products, they weren’t horribly cheap but for an occasional dinner, and as I said several dinners for myself, they were totally worth it. Since my venture to the Italian market, I’ve since learned that you can pick these up on Pastosa’s website if you can’t find them in the store so no worries if you haven’t seen them for yourself because you can certainly join in the fun and enjoy them too.

Living gluten free isn’t always as easy as your weekly trip to the grocery store, but don’t be afraid to dig a little in other places, especially online, you might just find a hidden gem like these raviolis that will soon become a family favorite and worth every extra second you took to discover them!

Sincerely,

Lindsay (16 weeks)

January 16, 2015

And The Transformation Begins! Big Girl Bed: Check!

As Baby #2 cooks away, we’re busy getting our little girl ready to be a big sister in more ways than one. First up, is creating her special space in her big girl room. I already gave you a glimpse into my ideas for her new room through my Big Girl Room Inspiration Board, but now some of them are actually coming to fruition.

One of my favorite new additions is this gorgeous white tufted headboard. To save on costs of furniture, seeing as new bedroom sets from the furniture stores can set you back up to $1000 when all is said and done, we decided on piecemealing with different pieces from all over. I instantly fell in love with this soft and squishy tufted headboard from Target that just screams my little girl’s name. I kept an eye out for the best sale on the headboard and surely found it pre-holiday when it was discounted almost 50% and was accompanied by free shipping. That great deal along with a cheap universal bed frame from BJs made for the perfect starter to her big girl room. All together, it was a much more cost efficient option than some of the others I considered, yay for this mommy-to-be!

I can just picture this beautiful headboard with lavender colored bedding fluffed on top of it and my little girl snuggled down inside like a big girl. Hard to believe she’ll no longer be a crib baby but truth be told she’s been in the conversion toddler bed since her gymnastics moves shined through just shy of 18 months, so she’s more than ready for the big move in that sense. Time is certainly ticking away before the biggest change happens but we’re savoring every moment, every holiday, and every adventure before we start creating some as a family of four.

Sincerely,

Lindsay (15 weeks)

Just an update on my pregnancy, I decided with the holiday setting me back a few weeks of pictures to just wait to start fresh at 16 weeks which is next week. So stay tuned then to see how my bump has grown!