It's Simply Lindsay

09/8/16

Healthier Homestyle Pasta and Meatballs

For some reason in my pregnancies, I don’t like the term “pregnancy cravings,” either because it makes me feel like an uncontrollable animal or because I tend to have these “cravings” at all times in my life, so nothing about pregnancy makes them special.

Basically what happens to me is I get an idea of something I want to eat, and I pretty much cannot rest until I make it happen (and by “I” I mean my husband, who has been known to get me Captain Crunch at 10 p.m. or who makes me Gingersnap cookies from scratch after checking that 3 stores don’t carry the pre-made mix).

But I digress. I had one of these strong food preferences last night when I decided to make a lightened version of a homestyle family favorite – pasta and meatballs.

09/6/16

Favorite iPhone Apps

I’m someone who doesn’t like clutter, so when it comes to my iPhone apps, I try to keep them to a minimum, only displaying my absolute favorite, frequently used apps. Aside from the standard social media apps, as a blogger and mom, these are the top apps I use daily, and include everything from keeping my daughter educationally entertained and checking Instagram stats to photo and video editing.

I also couldn’t function without a sturdy phone case – I used to opt for the plain clear cases for their durability, but after upgrading to a custom CaseApp case, not only do I benefit from a durable product, but also one that is pretty and gives me joy. I created two of my own cases, one with my signature motto, Be Kind, It’s Cool, with my blog name listed.

You can win your very own custom iPhone case by entering at the end of this post, and ALL READERS can get 20% off your own custom case with code SIMPLYLINDSAY20.

08/16/16

Tales from Nursing Moms Plus Breastfeeding Giveaway

To celebrate Breastfeeding Awareness Month, I’m teaming up with Melissa, the creator of LatchPal, to share the joys, struggles, and humors of real breastfeeding moms along with an incredible giveaway! Thank you to Melissa and other Chicagoland mommas for opening up about your experiences; hopefully you can connect with, relate to, and laugh with these women’s experiences. Looking forward to hearing your own stories in the comments.

Enter to win the giveaway below for a chance at these amazing prizes:

• LatchPal & breast soothie set from LatchPal by Happy Fig
• Pump & nurse set from Rumina
• Postnatal vitamins from Fairhaven Health
• Spectra pump from Lehan’s Breast Pumps
• Milk maker & mother pins from Fine and Dandy Pins
• Pink water bottle from Refresh2go
• Baby burp cloth from Newbees Baby

 

08/13/16

Hospital Bag Checklist

*Affiliate links included. When you’re nearing the end of your pregnancy, you have a million things to think about and prepare for- the last thing you need it to scramble at the last minute trying to put your hospital bag together. Even though we measure pregnancy by 40 weeks, your baby will come when she or he is ready, not according to your schedule. For my first pregnancy, I prepared my hospital bag at 35 weeks, just to be safe, and had a checklist of items I needed to add at the last minute (makeup and technology).

When my sister was pregnant with her second baby, she called me one night to go over anything she might have missed for her bag. She was still well before her due date but wanted to be prepared. Luckily she ran to the store that night, in the spirit of preparedness, and ended up going into labor the next day!

I enjoy being extremely prepared, and my hospital bag checklist may be more extensive than you need, so feel free to use it as a base guide. I’m including hospital bag lists for mom, dad, and baby as well as items you may think you need but should leave at home.

08/2/16

A Letter to My Future Students

Dear future students,

You may not believe it, but as the summer is drawing to a close, I’m excited to get back into the classroom. I’m actually looking forward to meeting you, to learning your names, to teaching you strategies to write sophisticated papers, and to read those papers.

As I’m bringing up my lessons and creating our class calendars, I wanted to give you some advice. Hopefully you’ll somehow come around to this post so you’ll be ahead of the game when it comes to the first day of school.

Show up

My first piece of advice is pretty basic, but considering absences I have seen in the tens, twenties, and ever thirties, it’s worth mentioning – if you want to succeed in my class, you have to show up. You can’t go far without being present, and being present is more than sitting in your seat.

When you show up, first, you have to come to class on time.

07/30/16

Gender Reveal Announcement

A few weeks ago, I announced my second pregnancy, giving a little update (or, bump-date, if you will) about how things are going so far.

Today, I’m 15 weeks pregnant with baby number two, and this morning we headed over to the ultrasound clinic to find out the gender. So what do you think? Boy or girl? I’ll answer the questions to some old wive’s tales first:

• Carrying high, girl, low, boy: I’m carrying low
• Little girls will steal your beauty: My skin & body have definitely taken a hit.
• Heart beat under 140, boy: Baby’s heart rate has been in the high 160’s.
• Craving sweet? Girl. Salty? Boy: I’ve been leaning towards salty.
• Sick as a dog? Girl: If you know me, you know I’ve been extremely ill.
• Extremely moody? Girl: I may have been sick, but I can’t say I’ve felt moody.
• Dream of having a boy? Then you’re having a girl: Justin and I both had dreams of a boy.
• Headaches? Then you’re having a boy: I’ve been waking up every night with headaches.