nausea

The sickness has begun. It started with just nausea which I could easily deal with. Then last week driving home from the gym one morning I couldn't control it. I lost the few crackers and Vernor's I had to tide me over until breakfast. This happened in the car, mind you. Then the next day it happened at home. There have been a few other times and of course it's not that bad but it's definitely not the most fun!
So sorry for the TMI!
Anyway, most days I just feel nauseous. I have a few more weeks until they say it should settle down so we will see. It is interesting how your body reacts to this. The little person is the size of a grape today and has arms and legs. The joints are developing and it can move the arms and legs around. The tail, gone! Maybe it will still have a small tail though, that would be cute.
Pictures coming soon! I have a very tiny little bump right now.

announcing baby easterling

This is how big the baby is right now, a kidney bean. Or a raspberry. About .6 inches long. It has little arms and legs and a head where eyelids have formed.
We are currently at 8 weeks and 5 days. Soon we will be telling the world that we are expecting a little bundle of joy but in the meantime here are some pictures to document this momentous time.
We are thrilled (and a little freaked) that God would bless us with a child. He is such an amazing Creator. And to think that just 8 weeks ago this little being was not even formed yet but was being prepared...for us. For such a time as this.
I have been thinking about how amazing it is that it was God's plan for these cells to meet and grab hold of each other and create this little living thing to grow into such a blessing. How it was not a surprise to God, at all. It was God's love. It is interesting to think about creation, when God saw that Adam was alone and needed a companion, he took part of Adam and created Eve. Out of love. And then he saw that it was good. And when we look at a relationship with God, how at one time this person had a choice to meet and grab hold of their Creator and they grab hold. You see their life change and they become a blessing. They become a picture of love. And when two people who God has drawn together, just like those little cells, grab hold of each other and don't let go you see an amazing creation called love. I think creation is Love in its finest form.
It is quite a surreal feeling to think that something was being formed in my body and I didn't even know it. That God did not only create my body as a temple for his Spirit to dwell but that he created my body to grow one of His creations. And as it continues to grow, our love for this little bean continues to grow. Love is such an overwhelming thing. But. Love. Is. Enough.

Pesto Cream Sauce

I'm sorry there won't be any pictures of this but next time I make it I will try to remember to take some pictures.

This sauce is really very simple to make and is delicious to eat.

You start by making pesto or you can buy it if you are into wasting money like that (just kidding, kind of). Go to your local farmer's market and they will probably be selling basil for some absurdly low price like 2 bunches for $1. If you buy this much basil you will have like 3 batches of pesto. Pull the leaves off the basil and put them in your salad spinner. Fill up the bowl and cover the leaves with cold water. Shake off the water and pour it out of the bowl. If you don't have a salad spinner, put the leaves in a strainer and fill your sink with water, then drain the water. Rinse the leaves again and then spin them a few times to get all of the water off.

Now to make pesto, I use a very simple recipe….are you ready for this?

Get out your blender and load it full of basil leaves, pine nuts, and olive oil. Grind. Chop. Mix. Whatever you need to do. Make sure all the pine nuts and basil are chopped up to little tiny pieces. Oh, you want to know how much to use? Hmmm..

I use about 3-4 cups of basil leaves, 1 cup of olive oil, ½ cup of pine nuts and then I added a pinch of garlic and Kosher salt for some flavor. Add more olive oil as you see fit.

So you made your pesto, it is great to put on pizza or pasta or you can freeze it and save it for later.

Now let's say you want some pasta with pesto but you want it to have some depth to it and not just be plain pesto. Here is when you should make the pesto cream sauce!

To make the cream sauce:

You make a simple Bechamel sauce and then add pesto. Easy as 1-2-3.

To make a Bechamel sauce you do the following:

2 Tbsp Butter

2 Tbsp Flour

1 ¼ Cups Milk

Melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and stir until the flour is dissolved to a paste. You want it to start bubbling but not change colors. This happens pretty quick. Next you add your milk and continue to stir. Let the milk boil. Lower the heat, add your pesto and cook. Stir the sauce for about 2-3 minutes. If you want it to be more like an alfredo sauce with the pesto, add some parmesan cheese. If you want it be cheesier, add some mozzarella cheese. Keep stirring until the cheese is melted. I usually add about ¼ to ½ cups pesto. It will turn a nice shade of green. Don't worry, it will taste so good you can overlook the color. Hope you try this, it is very tasty!

Back in the saddle again

Hello, we are back. I had the flu last week and was pretty much lazy so that meant no blogging. I could hardly get enough energy to read all of the blogs that I like to read. So we are back and ready to post again. A forecast of what you can expect to see this week…pictures from Josh's birthday party (only 10 days late), a recipe for Creamy Pesto Sauce, a fun knitting project, something from Josh.

Ok that should do it. Just wanted to let you know we are still alive and kicking, just a little bit slow these days.