A new week! A new week! I pray that everyone had a beautiful Easter. It was wonderful having breakfast with our church family and then coming together to worship our risen Savior. The day was gorgeous and the company was pleasant.
The weekend went by so quickly, because I still had to work on Friday. I hope everyone had a beautiful and restful weekend too! I know I said I would be blogging but I see that I posted last Monday and I wondered where the whole week went by. It is amazing the amount of work that can get done when one not on the computer, go figure, but I also think that nursing a cough and cold also did not make me feel like blogging about it either.
Out went the first trimester and in came the second trimester. Thank God for helping me because the 24/7 nausea has disappeared. Don’t get me wrong. The nausea and vomiting has not disappeared. I am still sensitive to the smells and my tummy is now deciding what it wants and what it will reject.
Remember when I was sick back in February? Yeah, it seems like I relapsed. I don’t know where it came from or how I got it but it was REALLY frustrating not being able to take medications. I mean, the doctor’s office gives you a list of “Approved” medications a pregnant woman can take but in reality, who wants to give that to the baby?
I spent the whole week drinking hot teas made of fresh lemon juice, fresh grated ginger, cardamon, cayenne pepper, and honey. I really really think it helped me fight this cold because this is the shortest it has ever been. I also did some steam inhalation therapy with peppermint and eucalytus oils and I also rubbed the oils on my chest, neck, and the bottom of my feet. I also had a humidifier too. I think these all saved me, for real! It is pretty amazing how quickly natural therapy can heal.
Well, despite being sick, I DID cook. I managed to really cook 15-30 minute meals this week which really made for light dish washing and more time for chores. Ha!
One of the most exciting recipes was making pretzel rolls. Last Monday I read Jessica’s step-by-step post on Tasty Kitchen on making pretzel rolls and I was sold on making them. I am finding my fear of making bread is quickly subsiding because the more I make homemade bread, the quicker I find how easy it is to make and prepare.
We had friends visit and when I realized I was all out of bread and all out of budget money I turned to making my own rolls for lunch. I planned making egg salad sandwiches witht the rolls hopeing the combination would proves successful.
The step-by-step process is EASY and fun. Once the dough is prepared and it has been given time to rise, the dough is placed in a baking soda bath before baking, causing the dough to expand. Ryan was REALLY impressed by the rolls because I surprised him with sandwiches and he took one look at them and said “You made these????” I like impressing my husband, don’t you?
I made a spread consisting of egg salad sandwiches, fresh carrots, lettuce for the sandwiches, celery, and a nice fruit salad. It was a great lunch and a quick one too! I really hope you make these because they are perfect for everyday and even for company or as dinner rolls.
Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in bulk. Punch down and turn out onto a lightly floured surface.
Cut the dough into 18 pieces (2 ounces each). To shape, take a piece of dough and start forming a round, smooth ball by pulling the sides to the center and pinching to seal. Place, pinched side down, on a counter and lightly cupping your hand around the dough ball, rotate your hand in small circles lightly rolling the ball around the palm of your hand.
