Dear Baby,

We're halfway to meeting you and it's kind of blowing my mind. For weeks (okay, months) I couldn't really picture anything about you--I knew you were in there but you still felt so hypothetical, so unreal to me; this little bundle of cells, more alien than baby.

But then we saw your little face and nose on the ultrasound, the curve of your neck and skull and even your brain--I feel you moving every day and your dad can feel your kicks around 6PM when they're especially strong, and the other night we lay in bed talking about how you'd be a toddler before we knew it, and when you turn 15 or 16 will you even need to learn how to drive? Our neighborhood is right in the middle of Silicon Valley so every day we see self-driving cars being tested on the roads and I can't help but imagine you as a teenager, laughing at how much manual driving we used to have to do when you were a brand-new baby.

For as long as I can remember I've had one particular baby girl name picked out, and then we found out you were actually a girl and now we can't seem to name you. You're so real now, so human to me, that it makes you even more magical; more unreal. Naming an actual person like you feels like such a responsibility. Is that your name? I flip it over in my mind and wonder. Kick twice if that's your name. 

One thing you don't know about me yet is how much I'm obsessed with fall, when the weather turns cool and the leaves change color and it smells like campfires every morning. Every year around this time (sometimes even earlier--the 4th of July is my new limit) I find myself wishing the rest of our summer days away and counting down until September, October, November. You'll be here this November, though, and there's so much we still need to do, so much to prepare for, that I'm trying so hard not to wish these last few months away. But then I think about your tiny face and how much we love you already and it's almost impossible to not get caught in a daydream where we're both wrapped up in a blanket, you with a tiny hat on your head, me with some hot chocolate (or maybe a boozy hot apple cider...let's be realistic), soaking up our first fall and winter together.

I'll talk to you again before then. Are you getting enough hash browns in there? I'll keep 'em coming, just in case.

With love,

Megan (AKA your mom--so weird)

Thank you Village Harvest for sponsoring this post. Every day Village Harvest is planting seeds of change and growing possibilities, one bag of goodness at a time.

I'm a big fan of poke bowls--when we first moved to California I think I ate at least one a week for a couple months. There's a place down the street from our house that makes great ones, but they can get expensive, especially if you make them a habit. I decided to make a few at home the other day because I hadn't had one in a while. Raw fish isn't exactly pregnancy-friendly, so I made mine with cooked crab (most of the ones I used to order had a mix of poke and crab, so it's not too much of a variation from what I normally would have ordered).

Recently Village Harvest was kind enough to send me a box of three of their Organic Benefit Blends to try, so I decided to take the Organic Antioxidant Blend for a spin instead of regular white rice. They also have an Organic Ancient Grains Blend and an Organic Protein Blend, but the antioxidant blend is made with black rice, black lentils, and black quinoa; so not only does it have a ton of nutrients, but it also looks really cool in your bowl. 

Ingredients (makes 2 bowls):

• 1 cup of rice--for this recipe I used the Antioxidant Blend from Village Harvest Organic Benefit Blends
• 2 1/4 cups water
• 1/4 pound of ahi tuna, diced
• 1/4 pound of snow crab leg meat, chopped
• 1/2 of a large cucumber, diced
• 1 large carrot, julienned or peeled into ribbons
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic chili sauce
• 1/2 of an avocado
• Sesame seeds, for garnish
• Sliced green onion, for garnish
• A few tablespoons of pickled ginger on the side

Instructions: 

1. Prepare the rice according to package instructions. Allow to cool slightly.
2. In a large bowl, combine cucumber and carrots with diced tuna and chopped crab. Add the soy sauce, sesame oil, and garlic chili sauce. Gently toss to combine.
3. Assemble bowls by spooning rice, then topping with veggies and seafood. Top with sesame seeds and sliced green onions and serve with pickled ginger.

And the best part? Village Harvest has pledged 1% of their profits to run programs that give back to the local communities from which they source their products. By the way, if your local grocery store or market doesn't carry Village Harvest, you can fill out this form to request it.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Hello! It's been a minute since I've posted, and even longer since I shared a Life Lately According to Instagram post (hey there, 2015). For so long this blog was my main priority and my content calendar was super full, but lately I've been teaching more Pure Barre (I teach 8 classes a week! But next month I'll be cutting back to just 4) and working on more writing projects (there may or may not be another cookbook coming out this year), and I've found myself not only stepping back from Freckled Italian a little bit, but missing the way it used to be when it was just my hobby.

I still love working with brands and I hope to continue to share recipes with you, but I'd also like to get back to posting more little bits and pieces of life--the things I used to share when I wasn't so focused on a 5-day-a-week schedule of content.

So without further ado, here are some things I've been up to lately, according to the photos on y phone:

1. Hanging out with Ender most afternoons. He doesn't help much but he's certainly cute.
2. Went out for a weekend breakfast date with Rob the other day. We usually hole up at home over the weekends so it was kind of fun to go to Blue Bottle for cappuccinos and avocado toast.
3. Rob's birthday was about a week ago--how cute is he?
4. Snagged this bouquet of lavender from Trader Joe's and made simple syrup with it. Lavender iced coffees are kind of the best.
5. Went to San Francisco to see Hamilton last Wednesday afternoon. It was incredible.
6. I don't want to brag, but I've been eating more ice cream (and milkshakes) than anyone ought to lately.

Rob's parents are flying in today to spend the weekend with us, so we'll be showing them around and shooting up to Sonoma for the day on Sunday. It'll be so nice for them to see our house and Rob's office and all the things we've been up to on this side of the country!

What are you up to this weekend? What have you been up to lately? As always, I can't thank you enough for hanging out here and reading the things I share.