TMI Tag

I've seen this floating around so thought I'd give it a go.

1. What are you wearing? I'll go bottom to top - Purple fluffy slipper socks from Primark, Sleepy (as in the dwarf in Snow White) PJ bottoms, a navy blue vest top and a hideous, mis-shapen, over-sized brown cardigan that has button up it and a hood (It's just so warm for round the house and so snuggly!)
2. Ever been in love? Yes - right now.
3. Ever had a terrible breakup? Not really, no.
4. How tall are you? 5 ft 7.
5. How much do you weigh? Too much.
6. Any tattoos? No - I don't have the bottle! I like small ones on other people though.
7. Any piercings? Just my ears. When I was a teenager I tried to pierce my own ear (half way up it) because I thought it was cool but the pain was too much! So I bought a magnetic earring from Claire's accessories and just wore that instead and made out like I'd pierced it! So cool.
8. OTP? I believe this means One True Pairing? Erm... I'm a geek so either River Song and the Doctor (cute!) or Ron and Hermione.
9. Favourite show? Criminal Minds probably. I always look forward to it being on - I hate that they make us wait soooo long in between series!
10. Favourite bands? Right now I don't have any favourites. But back when I was an oh-so-cool teenager I was totally obsessed with My Chemical Romance...
11. Something you miss? Well right now I miss coffee (too much caffeine so doesn't feel worth it) and bananas on my porridge (give my crazy heartburn). And being able to do normal daily things without worrying I won't make it round Asda because of the pain. Oh and we are having the two kiddie's (LO and Squishy) rooms decorated at the moment meaning that we have ALL the furniture piled in our bedroom - I miss being able to get into the wardrobe without almost dying!
12. Favourite song? Summertime from Porgy and Bess. I'm a singer (did music at Uni) and that's my favourite thing to sing around the house. I also like to sing Baby Mine (from Dumbo) to the bump - it's such a gorgeous lullaby.
13. How old are you? 23
14. Zodiac sign? Libra
15. Quality you look for in a partner? Someone who is like my best friend and is fun to be around.
16. Favourite Quote? I'm not sure I really have any to be honest.
17. Favourite actor? I like Jennifer Lawrence - just because of how funny she is. And I love Rebel Wilson - only know her from being obsessed with Pitch Perfect (I have seen that film sooooo many times!) but loved her in other things, like What to Expect When You're Expecting!
18. Favourite colour? Bright red
19. Loud music or soft? Depends on my mood. Loud in the car, soft for singing or relaxing to.
20. Where do you go when you're sad? I like to just go lie down in bed with my laptop on my own and chill out. Gives me time to sort myself out a bit.
21. How long does it take you to shower? About 4-5 minutes ususally.
22. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning? Depends how long I have! When I was at work I'd set my alarm for 5:20am, get up at about 5:27am and be out the door by 5:35am... If we're going somewhere then I can take up to about 40 minutes.
23. Ever been in a physical fight? No but I did lob a bottle of ketchup at my partner when we had an argument once. I missed (luckily!) and yes, it did explode all up the wall. It took me ages to get out. (Moral of the story: don't throw stuff that you might have to clean up.... remote controls make less mess...)
24. Turn on? Erm...
25. Turn off? Smelly breath!!
26. The reason I started blogging? I just love reading other people's blogs and felt like I wanted to record this amazing thing in my life (pregnancy)
27. Fears? Spiders!
28. Last thing that made you cry? I'm pregnant and emotional.. so maybe something like running out of milk when I had heartburn. That's made me cry a couple of times lol!
29. Meaning behind your blog name? "And One More's Four..." just documenting that our family is growing to 4!
30. Last time you said you loved someone? I messaged the OH when I woke up this morning to tell him I love him.. so about 2.5 hours ago.
31. Last book you read? I haven't read in so long. I just don't make the time for it anymore. So maybe one of the Twilight books about 5 years ago!
32. The book you're currently reading? None...
33. Last show you watched? We watched Monday's Criminal Minds last night after tea. 
34. Last person you talked to? My partner.
35. The relationship between you and the last person you text? They are my student's mum.
36. Favourite food? I really don't know. I love pasta. At the moment I'm obsessed with toasties but when I wasn't pregnant I never ate bread! I also am a huge chocoholic.
37. Place you want to visit? I'd love to go back to Chicago as an adult. And OH and I want to visit New York and Las Vegas. 
38. Last place you were? Does bed count? If not, then we went to Ikea on Monday.
39. Do you have a crush? Of course!
40. Last time you kissed someone? About 5:30 this morning I sort of sleepily puckered my lips at the OH on his way out to work lol! 
41. Last time you were insulted? OH and I jokingly call each other names all the time! But it's just our humour and never mean. So probably sometime in the last 24 hours lol. I don't think I've really had people hurl insults at me though.
42. Favourite flavour of sweet? I will fight you for the strawberry flavour of ANY sweet. But mainly Starburst.
43. What instruments do you play? Piano and singing (and yes singing is playing an instrument - if you take a few lessons you'll understand the complexity of it... )
44. Favourite piece of jewellery? Probably the bracelet my OH bought me for one of my birthdays - it's beautiful. Just a simple chain with a T-shaped fastening and a little heart on.
45. Last sport you played? I actually just laughed at that out loud. Does wrestling with the duvet covers count as a sport?
46. Last song you sang? I was singing Get Lucky by Daft Punk while making my breakfast this morning.
47. Favourite chat up line? I hate those things! Some are hilarious though.. "I lost my teddy bear. Will you sleep with me?" Hahahaha
48. Have you ever used it? No! Do people actually use these things? Outside of films..
49. Last time you hung out with anyone? Last night I hung out with my partner. Other than that we had his family over for a games night and Chinese on Saturday which was really nice.
50. Who should answer these questions next? Anyone who wants to.

What I Ate Wednesday

So I thought that now I am on maternity leave I'll try my best to make better posts for you guys (if anyone is even reading this lol!). I absolutely love reading Anna Saccone's What I Ate Wednesday posts on her blog so thought I'd give the same thing a shot.

Breakfast for me this morning was one of the Special K Multigrain instant porridges (the last one in the box - nobody really liked these that much so they just needed using up) with I spruced up with a handful of sultanas and far too much golden syrup! Woops! I had this with a mug of the Twinings Peach and Cherry Blossom Green Tea (my favourite flavour). I also had a pint of water, my prenatal vitamin, my Ranitidine and my baby aspirin (add into that bunch my painkillers for the sciatica and I'm surprised I don't rattle!).

I was a bit peckish around 11am so decided to grab a few crab sticks for a nice snack to see me through til lunch.

Lunch today was a tuna pasta bake that I threw together to try and use up some iffy looking veg in the fridge. It was really tasty. Here is the recipe.

Tea tonight was leftover chilli con carne with rice. Yum! Didn't manage to eat it all though... eyes definitely bigger than belly.

I forgot to take a picture, but I had two mini twister lollies after tea.

Thats it! What I ate Wednesday.

Tuna Pasta Bake

So for lunch today I needed to use up some leftover tuna and sweetcorn mayonnaise from yesterday's tuna toastie, as well some veg that was starting to look a bit iffy. I fancied pasta but really wanted a hot lunch instead of the usual tuna pasta salad. So pasta bake it is!

Ingredients:

• Pasta (enough for 2 people)
• Leftover tuna and sweetcorn mayo (or you could just use a tin of tuna - sweetcorn is optional and mayo isn't necessary)
• Leftover veg (I used up a few mushrooms, half an onion and a tomato)
• 250g of passata (other half of the carton from last night's chilli con carne)
• cheese (as much as you like)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190
2. Pop the pasta on to boil (follow instructions on packet)
   
3. Chop up your leftover veg, grate the cheese and get everything out ready to just throw together.
   
4. Once the pasta is boiled drain it off and put that, the veg, the passata and the tuna into a casserole dish (so everything except for the cheese). You could also add any herbs, seasonings, etc at this point.
5. Pop the dish into the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until it is all brown and tasty looking on top
   
6. Add the cheese and return to the oven for another 5-10 minutes to melt the cheese.
   
7. Serve and enjoy! This would be nice with some steamed veg or a salad to make it a tasty evening meal.
   

Squishy report: 29 weeks pregnant

How far gone? 29 weeks - hello third trimester!

Total weight gain: 1 stone

Maternity clothes: I've not bought any new ones - still living in the usual maaternity trousers/leggings with stretchy vest tops and waterfall cardigans.. Although we go away in a few weeks so I could probably do with a few extra bits as I can't just wash the same pair of trousers over and over in a caravan...

Sleep: What is this word? I reckon I get about 3-4 hours a night in between the constant trips to the loo, for milk, to grab random cushions off the sofa downstairs...

Movement: Squishy is possibly the next karate kid! The little monster kicked my midwife the other day! Although according to our growth scan this tiny tike is already 3.5lbs! They reckon baby could be 9lbs full term if growth carries on at this rate! So no wonder the kicks are so strong now.

Food cravings: Twister lollies for the past 2 weeks or so. I buy those mini ones as they are 2 boxes for £3 at Asda and can go through at least 2 a night.

Gender: Not a clue still. Everyone tells me I'm having a boy though.

Labour signs: Nothing still. Still getting those weird muscle contractions on my bump but nothing to worry about.

Symptoms: Sciatica and Acid reflux. I'm taking Ranitide for the acid reflux and co-codamol for the pains, but I'm trying to limit the amount of painkillers I take as I really don't like the idea of relying on tablets while pregnant.

What I'm looking forward to: So I'm now on maternity leave! I'm planning little craft projects (I'm terrible at crafts though so we'll see...) and looking forward to getting the nursery sorted (It's being plastered right now ready to be painted very soon). I can't wait until I can start adding all the finishing touches to the nursery. 

I have been reading about Squishy's progress each week here so go and have a look. 

Hot Cross Buns

I found this amazing recipe for hot cross buns that looked simple enough for even the most unskilled baker! So gave it a go. They taste amazing! Definitely a recipe to keep.

Squishy Report: 27 weeks pregnant

How far gone? 27 weeks

Total weight gain: 10lbs so far

Maternity clothes: Nothing new.Although I've not really been out so have been living in PJs at home (they're just so comfy!) and if we have to go somewhere I'll throw on waterfall cardigans over a cami, maternity trousers and ballet flats. I'm hoping that some of my skater dresses might still fit for when it's starting to get warmer.

Sleep: I've gone back to being absolutely exhausted again - I had 11 hours sleep last night and could still have a nap this afternoon!

Movement: Squishy's kicks are starting to get quite strong. I have been able to see them from outside my bump for a couple of days now - it is amazing!

Food cravings: Last time I said I'd completely gone off fruit and veg - but now I want salad quite alot. I don't know if that is because of the weather getting warmer or if I'm just craving the nutrients, but I've had some really nice salads this past week.

Gender: No idea!

Labour signs: I've been feeling my bump go from quite soft to really hard every couple of days for about 30 minutes or so - I read this might be the start of Braxton Hicks, but I'll speak to my midwife at my next appointment.

Symptoms: So I have had my Sciatica confirmed by the doctor, although there isn't alot I can do other than some simple stretches and taking paracetamol. Not long left at work now so I'm hoping that once I finish and am able to relax more the pains won't be so hard to deal with. Also my heartburn got even worse (I didn't think it was possible) and is now so bad that I've had chest pains a few times and the past couple of days I've been actually throwing up with it. My doctor recommended Gaviscon so I'm going to see how I get on with that.

What I'm looking forward to: Feeling Squishy get stronger and looking forward to maternity leave when I can start relaxing and preparing for our little arrival.

I have been reading about Squishy's progress each week here so go and have a look. 

What is making me happy this week? #2

1) Fun night out - On Monday we went to see Jason Manford at a local theatre.. he was absolutely hilarious! Everytime we go see a comedian I just want to go to more and more!

2) Cosy nights in - I love curling up with a nice fleecy blanket on a chilly night. Yesterday we bought Frozen to watch - it was amazing - and all 3 of us got under the duvet in our pyjamas with hot chocolate and treats to have a nice family night in. I love those nice family moments.

3) Wriggly baby - Squishy moves more and more everyday. Before I was never feeling movement at work due to rushing around all day, but this week I've been feeling loads of little Squishy kicks throughout my day.

4) Cheeky takeaway - Every so often the boyfriend and I treat ourselves to a takeaway. We had a voucher for £10 off a £25 order for our local Indian so decided to be bad! We ordered WAY too much food... I ate about half mine and then saved the rest for Saturday's lunch... whereas being all manly he forced his entire mountain of food down... and still had room for pudding! We are definite foodies in this house.

5) Hot chocolate - I am a huge chocoholic but I only have hot chocolate when it is freezing cold or if I am ill. This weekend I have had that horrendous cold that is going round at the moment and so dug out the tub of Options Belgian Choc - I must have had at least 3 cups yesterday! It's like this powdered chocolate mixed with hot water just makes everything feels a million times better.