Loin of pork with fennel

When my Mom was in town we were watching Barefoot Contessa and she made this amazing looking dish with pork lion that was stuffed with a fennel and onion mixture. We thought it would be a fun meal to make on her last night in town. We put the dish together earlier in the day, but we ended up having a big lunch and didn't cook it that night. So even though it was a feast just for two, Justin and I made it on our own the night she had left and it was SO good. I love pork but I don't cook a lot of it, and this was a pretty easy dish to put together and you can make it in advance and cook before serving. I will definitely make it next time we have guests around. It reminded me of the holidays, it was a really hearty meal. Click here for the recipe.

Am I pregnant, or what?!

I am just about 18 weeks and I don't really have a "bump" yet. That is almost 5 months pregnant!! Some days I think I look pregnant, those days are usually days where I have eaten a lot, and other days I just don't think I look pregnant at all. I am definitely thicker in my stomach, but I am really looking forward to having an actual bump. I feel like I have been stuck in this awkward in between stage with my body for the last few months. I don't feel comfortable in tight shirts, but I can still button up most my pre-pregnancy shorts and pants. The worst is when I get dressed for work. I am supposed to wear tighter clothing so when I am showing clients how to do certain movements they can see my body, but in most outfits I think it looks like I have a serious beer gut. I have told some clients I am expecting, but I don't just want to announce it in my classes so some of them are probably thinking I have been over indulging in doughnuts the last few months.

Here are pictures of me this morning when I got home from work, where I was feeling not so pregnant. When did you start "looking" pregnant?

Birthday Surprise

My 26th birthday was this past Thursday. It was great to have my Mom in town for it again, she was here last year for it as well. I worked in the morning, then Justin, my Mom and I went to lunch at my favorite Japanese place Sushi Tei. After lunch I had my monthly appointment to see my doctor, it happened to fall on my birthday, the 16th of September, and it was also the start of my 16th week of pregnancy. Last time we saw the doctor she said that we would most likely be able to find out the sex of the baby on this visit. We told her before the scan that we did want to know the sex, but not in the office. We wanted her to write it down so we could open it later. Sure enough little baby Nicolson was moving around giving great positions for her to see the goods. She wrote down the sex and sealed it in an envelope. We had decided to open it with my sister while on skype that night.
The three of us went out to dinner to my favorite Italian restaurant Oso before the big reveal.Once we finished we were all in a rush to get home in anticipation of finding out the big news. After a few technical difficulties we got my sister on skype and Justin opened the envelope, with the biggest smile he could possibly have, he announced it was a BOY! After lots of shouting and excitement we hugged and soaked up the fact that we are going to have a son. I hope he pops out exactly like Justin in every way possible. :)

I bought our first few outfits for baby Nicolson the next day. How cute our baby clothes?! You can go crazy. I will be needing to use restraint in the months to come.

Overall, it was a perfect birthday. I was spoiled with love, flowers, great gifts and the best surprise I could have wished for.

Our 1st Baby Gift

My Mom gave us a gift from my sister today. It is the first baby "thing" we have received, which makes it so special. I started tearing up when I saw it. I can't believe we are going to have a little person next year to fill this!! So sweet.

In the heart it says amazing, smart, funny, stunning, generous...
I couldn't have put it any better myself. Thank you Sissy.

Mom is here!!!

My Mom arrived last night!! She is staying with us for the next 10 days. Today we took her to the famous Marina Bay Sands resort. Even though this is her 3rd trip to Singapore, that was actually the first "touristy" thing I have done with her. It was a beautiful clear day, but WAY TOO hot!

Brunch

This past Sunday we went to a great brunch at the Capella hotel in Sentosa. I had never even heard of this hotel, and it is apparently one of the most luxourious hotels in Singapore. The views and the pool were breathtaking. We sat outside by the pool for brunch with a view of the ocean. Laura was in town that we just went to Thailand with, and we met up with out mutual friends Sarah and Nick. Brunches are usually a very popular option on Sunday's because of the free flow of alcoholic drinks for 3+ hours. This was my first brunch where I did not partake in the drinking festivities, which I would normally be getting full value out of. But, I was still very happy eating away and sipping on virgin bloody mary's all day. After brunch we went up to an outside lounge and listened to a band while dancing and bouncing up on down on the couches and drank and mingled till past 7 at night. It was a really fun day.

Us and SarahEveryone singing along with the bandFollowed by bouncing to the music
P.s. This is my 3rd post of the day!!! This should make up for the lack of blogging the last 2 weeks. :)

Healthy Banana Bread

Banana bread is one of my all time favorites. My mom baked the best banana bread when we were growing up. I have fond memories of waking up to the smell of banana bread so often. Even now whenever I go home to visit she will always make it for me. Recently I asked her for the recipe so I could start making it myself, and I realized how bad it was for you!!! One of the ingredients was Crisco, pure lard basically. So even though I would still eat hers when I am home, I didn't want to make a habit of making that all the time myself. So I have tried several recipes that were healthier that never really measured up to my mom's, until last week! I think I hit the jackpot. There is no sugar, you use the natural sweetener agave instead. And there is no eggs, no butter or Crisco, there is oil used but it is overall much healthier for you. Recipe below!

Dry Ingredients:
All Purpose Flour 2 cups
Sugar 3/4 cup - or .5 cup Agave Nectar
Oats (I used quick cooking oats) 1/2 cup
Baking Soda 3/4 teaspoon
Baking Powder 3/4 teaspoon
Salt 1/2 teaspoon

Wet Ingredients:
Oil (I used Canola) 1/3 cup - little less oil if using agave
Bananas, ripe, mashed (about 3 medium) 1 and 3/4 cups

1. Preheat oven to 375F/190C. Lightly grease the baking dish.
2. Using a mixer or hand blender puree the bananas.
3. To the banana mixture add the sugar(or agave) and oil; beat it well with a whisk or electric beater.
4. To the wet ingredients add the flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder and salt; mix until just combined.
5. Fill batter in greased baking dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
6. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to wire rack.
I altered the original recipe from this Eggless Cooking website, check it out for more eggless recipes.

Well Hello!!

It has been awhile since my last post. No real excuses to give, just haven't updated. Last weekend we went to Koh Samui, Thailand to visit some friends who were on vacation there. We had such a fantastic weekend with Daire and Laura. The four of us always have so much fun together. We rented bikes one day and went around the entire island, stopping for lunch and site seeing. Saturday night we went out for a great dinner and had a very chilled out relaxing Sunday by the pool. It was a short trip for us, but such a nice little getaway with great friends.