31-37 weeks with Baby #3

It's been a while since I did a baby update. I only have a few weeks left and they are flying by.

At 31 weeks I had gained 23 pounds. Babies heart rate was 160 bpm. Everything looked good!

32 weeks

33 weeks

At my 36 week appointment I was up 26 lbs. Babies heart was 154 bpm. Everything still going good. Just very hard time falling asleep at night.

37 weeks started my every week appointments. I'm up 28 lbs. Babies heart rate was lower at 132 bpm but still good. I'm also dilated 1 cm and 50% effaced.  I've had random contractions almost daily, but nothing crazy.

Could be tomorrow or could still be another 5 weeks.

Pesto Chicken & Beans Crock Pot Freezer Meal

2 chicken breasts

1 can green beans

small jar of pesto

Mix everything together in freezer bag and freeze. To cook, thaw and then toss in crock pot. Cook on low for 6 hours. 

I don't have any pictures of this once it was done cooking. However, the chicken was delicious. The beans were a little weird tasting to me and Marley, but Mike liked them (he likes everything)

Shredded Lime Pork Crock Pot Freezer Meal

2.5 lb bone in pork shoulder

juice from two limes

1 Tbsp honey

1/2 tsp ground red pepper

1/4 tsp salt

Freeze everything together in a freezer bag. To cook, thaw and cook on low for 8-12 hours. Shred and serve on tortillas or rice. 

Sorry I don't have any pictures of it after I made it. =( 

Western Beef Casserole Crock Pot Freezer Meal

2 lbs ground beef, browned and drained

16 oz kidney beans, drained and rinsed

16 oz can corn, drained

10.75 oz can tomato soup

1 cup shredded cheddar

1 onion, chopped

1/2 tsp ground chili powder

1/4 cup milk

Combine everything in a freezer bag and freeze. Cook in crock pot on low for 4 hours. 

This was pretty good. Reminded me of chili but a bit thicker. 

White Chicken Chili Crock Pot Freezer Meal

2 lbs. chicken breasts

4 cups chicken stock

2 cans white beans, drained

1 can chopped green chilis, drained

4 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp corn starch

4 tsp cumin

4 tsp chili powder

2 tsp salt

2 tsp pepper

Split between two freezer bags and freeze all ingredients.  To cook, thaw and cook in crock pot on low for 4-6 hours. Shred chicken and serve.

Almost done! Baby #3 Update

I can't believe I'm already 30 weeks. The time is just flying by. I am now into the every other week doctor appointments. And the weather is getting warmer so we're doing more stuff so I'm sure the next 10 weeks will go by even faster.

I had my glucose test almost 2 weeks ago, and I passed that! I was super nervous about not passing because since Mason was so big we all thought for sure I had gestational diabetes but it just wasn't picked up on the test with him.

As of my appointment last night I have gained 20 pounds so far. Baby's heartbeat was 140 bpm and everything was looking good. This baby is super active, especially at bed time.

We still don't know gender, but the kids are having fun guessing and coming up with names. Mason is pretty set on naming the baby Minecraft. I have a feeling he's going to be upset when we don't pick that.

I'll update again after my 32 weeks appointment.

French Dip Sandwiches Crock Pot Freezer Meal

2-3 lb beef chuck roast

29 oz beef consomme

6-8 hoagie buns

Mix beef and consomme together and freeze. Thaw for about 24 hours and then dump into crock pot. Cook on low for 8-11 hours. Shred and serve on buns with juice for dipping. 

O.M.G. Chicken Crock Pot Freezer Meal

2 lbs chicken breasts

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 packet italian dressing mix

1/2 packet ranch dressing mix

8 oz cream cheese

Combine everything in a freezer bag and freeze. To cook, just thaw it and dump into crock pot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Mix together to make sure cream cheese is melted and mixed throughout. 

Goobers - Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls

I got this recipe from a friend back in high school so it's been around for a long time. She used to make it for all our cheerleading holiday parties. Her family called them Goobers, but I see them mostly known as peanut butter balls or buckeyes. Whatever you call them, they are good. 

1 cup confectioners sugar

1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1 package chocolate chips

1 Tbsp vegetable shortening

In a small bowl, combine the confectioners sugar and cracker crumbs. 

In a saucepan, heat butter and peanut butter on low heat until it's melted. 

Let your dog lick the peanut butter spoon and laugh! 

Mix the sugar/crumb mix with the butter/peanut butter mix until mixed well. Roll into small balls and place on wax paper. 

In a small sauce pan, heat the chocolate chips and vegetable shortening on low heat until melted. Making sure you don't burn the chocolate. Once melted dip your balls into the chocolate until coated and return to wax paper.  Let cool in the refrigerator covered in wax paper for about an hour. 

Store in a container with a lid so they don't dry out. 

Potatoes & Ham Crock Pot Freezer Meal

I've added this meal to one of my favorites. It's so nice to have on a cold snowy night. It kind of reminds me of potato soup, but a little thicker. 

1 bag of frozen cubed hashbrown potatoes

2 cans cream of potato soup

2 cans water

Cubed ham

8 oz cheddar cheese

4 cups broccoli

salt

pepper

Mix everything together and split between two freezer bags. Freeze. Thaw and cook on low for 8 hours.  

BBQ Chicken Crock Pot Freezer Meal

This was super simple to put together and there's so many ways to serve it. We just ate the chicken breasts whole, but you could shred them and serve it on buns too. 

2 lb chicken breasts

18 oz bbq sauce

1 1/2 tsp onion powder

1 1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp pepper

1/2 Tbsp parsley

Mix it all in freezer bag and freeze. Thaw and cook on low for 6-8 hours. 

Ranch Chicken & Potatoes Crock Pot Freezer Meal

2 chicken breasts

1/2 bottle ranch dressing

1 box au gratin potatoes (only use the potatoes)

1 cup water

Mix everything together in a freezer bag and freeze. Thaw and dump into crock pot with chicken on the bottom. Cook on low for 6 hours. 

The flavor of this was good, but the potatoes were a little tough. I think next time I will use real sliced potatoes or even frozen cubed hash brown potatoes instead of boxed potatoes. 

Sweet & Tangy Meatballs Crock Pot Freezer Meal

36 meatballs

16 oz grape jelly

20 oz bbq sauce

Divide between two freezer bags and freeze. To cook, just dump into crock pot and cook on low for 2-4 hours. 

Very delicious and would be good as an appetizer even. 

Crock Pot Freezer Meals Part 4

Since I made my menu board and loved being able to have everything prepared a month at a time, I had to put together another round of crock pot freezer meals. This time I made 21 meals for around $150. So far we've had all of them and they were so good. 

I'll update with links below as I post the recipes but here's what I made. The ones with the 2 after means I doubled those recipes and then just spaced out when we ate them. 

Sweet & Tangy Meatballs - 2

Creamy Ranch Pork Chops & Potatoes

Bean Tater Tot Casserole - 2

Ranch Chicken & Potatoes

BBQ Chicken

Pesto Chicken & Green Beans

Scalloped Potatoes & Ham - 2

OMG Chicken

Orange Chicken

Meatloaf

Chicken Noodle Soup

French Dip Sandwiches

White Chicken Chili - 2

Western Beef Casserole

Loaded Potato Bacon Soup - 2

Lime Shredded Pork

You can see my other freezer meals here, here and here.

Spaghetti Sauce & Meatballs Freezer Meal

Meatball Recipe

1 3/4 lb ground beef
3/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
4 cloves mince garlic
2 Tbsp basil
3 Tbsp parsley
2 tsp seasoned salt
2 eggs

Mix everything together (using your hands works best)  Form into balls and place on baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Let cool and divide into freezer bags and freeze.


Spaghetti Sauce Recipe

7- 28 oz cans of crushed tomatoes
6-8 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
4 Tbsp basil
2 tsp pepper
1 tsp sugar
2 Tbsp olive oil

Heat olive oil in a saucepan. Add garlic. Heat for a few minutes. Add tomatoes, pepper, basil, and sugar. Stir often until it starts to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Add cheese and simmer for 5 more minutes. Divide into freezer bags.

To cook the meatballs and sauce, just thaw overnight and then simmer for about 20 minutes. Serve with spaghetti noodles.