my internet cobbler

i found this recipe online a few years ago. this was before pinterest, so i have no record of where, but i think it is fantastic.

i originally used it for blueberry cobbler, but it can be used with blackberries, apples, or peaches, and probably more, if you get the desire to try it out on something different.

the crust is more cake like than other cobblers i have had, which have more of a pie crust instead.

this recipe fills an 8x8 baking dish, so if you want more, you'll have to do the math on that one. as it is, it's a small and simple dessert that i love love love to eat while it's still warm, topped with vanilla ice cream. (or, you know, reheat it each time in the microwave like i do and then it's always warm.)

the "filling" (which is actually just the bottom)
3 cups of blueberries or blackberries (or apples or peaches, cut into small chunks)
the juice of 1/2 a lemon (ssshhhh, i use bottled lemon juice, a few teaspoons)
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp melted butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp flour

grease an 8x8 inch baking dish. all of the above can be combined in the baking dish. i like to use as few dishes as possible, so i melt my butter in the baking dish and then add everything else to it and stir it together. (a variation would be to add more fruit, maybe even 4 to 5 cups if you have a deeper pan, and just increase the sugar, butter, and vanilla.)

the crust
1 3/4 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
6 Tbsp sugar
5 Tbsp butter
1 cup milk

mix together the flour, baking powder, and sugar. cut in the butter (cut butter into cubes and use a pastry blender or even a fork would work in a pinch, i suppose, to work it into the dry ingredients). add the milk and stir. let the batter rest for about 10 minutes. (5 will do if you're feeling impatient.)

spoon the batter evenly over whatever fruit filling you have chosen to put in the baking dish. sprinkle the top with cinnamon and sugar (or completely coat it, like i do...whichever).

bake at 375 for about 25 minutes.

mmmmmmmm.

20 weeks has come so fast.

second child syndrome, i guess...

i used to see moms posting about how they haven't kept up on updates, baby books, photos of developing bellies, etc, and think, "oh i will be so excited i will post about everything."

let me tell you something.

no, you won't. because you're tired and you have at least a 2 month old by the time you're pregnant with your second (thankfully sam was five months when we found out - i had NO IDEA what it could do to your body but i will say that i could never be the duggar lady and not be the biggest whiner in all of the world). because you might have to work full time and hide your gagging from 95 kids a day and then come home to a 6 month old who needs you, you won't update everyone on every single round ligament pain or braxton hicks contraction.

so this time, i got zofran. some people would never take medicine to stop nausea during pregnancy, and that's ok. that's a choice a woman has to make. but if you wouldn't and i would, it doesn't mean either of us is wrong. it means we need different things to get through our different days. ginger ale and puking all day does not a good algebra teacher make. the medicine has been a life saver. i started out so miserable that even if i wasn't tired, i would sleep just so i wasn't awake to feel so crappy. now, i can at least enjoy parts of my days.

last time, around this time, i started to get dizzy a lot, lightheaded, feeling like i couldn't get enough air (well before my lungs should really be affected), and honestly if you hit the nail on the head, it feels like there isn't enough blood supply in your body. being that i was 20+ weeks last time, the doctor said it was just sam's weight on my blood vessels.

this pregnancy, by 11 weeks i was feeling the same thing. i talked to my family doctor and my ob doctor and they both came to the conclusion that i probably have postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, which i also saw on the news and said, "justin! that's me! i have that!" basically your heart doesn't pump your blood right, and you feel tired, weak, and dizzy a lot. it's why i feel "bad" a lot (even when not pregnant) without actually seeming to have a reason. i definitely feel legitimized. (kind of like when i found out i had giant endometriosis - not a good thing but at least a real, legit thing.)

thankfully mine isn't the worst case - there are people who are unable to live normal lives with this. mine is exacerbated by pregnancy, so it is worse when my blood is carried around and diverted to do other things, obviously. i may get on some medication for it after i have levi (that would be this baby's name).

now the pregnancy hasn't been all about medication and discovery of my crazy ailments, obviously, but being that i have had these experiences, i like to get them out there so that someone going through the same thing googling "zofran math teacher" or something will find this and maybe be able to relate.

it has been fast, though. at 13 weeks we had a measuring ultrasound because i was measuring ahead. of course, when you have had infertility, you KNOW when things happen, and i KNOW when i got pregnant with this kid. he was just a big one at 13 weeks. now, he measures right on time...just like i told my doctors. ;) BUT, the fun part is that we got to find out with 90% certainty that he was, in fact, a he. so that was fun. before i knew it, i knew "the baby" was a boy, and i could feel him moving around. so fast.

i finally got justin to pick a name after the 19 week anatomy scan that confirmed sam does indeed have a baby brother. levi james is what we chose. i wanted something short to go with sam, but something that couldn't have an irritating nickname. justin said sam is from a prophet, and levi is from the priesthood, so we have to have another and give him a king name and we will have prophet, priest, and king. i told him the next one would be a girl. hahaha.

levi is a normal, wiggly kid, whose ultrasounds look healthy and good.

sam is as fantastic as ever. he is a beautiful, wonderful boy, and i love him with my whole entire heart, even when he gets snot on me. he is doing all of the typical baby things. he says words when he WANTS to, he has a couple of teeth, he crawls and likes to play with his ball and his calvin dog (who sometimes likes to play with sam and sometimes does not). he pulls up and tries to walk and exactly one week after justin put cabinet locks on, has learned to open cabinet doors. his toys are all over the living room and he sleeps like he was born to sleep perfectly. he will eat anything you are eating. he will pinch you out of meanness on purpose if he doesn't get his way, which has me believing we are indeed sinful by nature if i didn't believe it before. overall he has been an easy kid. he is great. super duper great.

justin needs the laptop, and this has been plenty long enough to keep you busy reading a while, so i will go. maybe i'll post again after levi is born. hahaha.