'za

Pizza, that is. I like take out pizza, and Domino's has certainly improved their product since my college days, but nothing beats home made. I use this Focaccia recipe as my base, then customize.

Sarah & Lauren both wanted calzones.

(unbaked--I put a little olive oil & kosher salt on top, and some of the sauce oozed out, but no complaints!)
(the one in the front looks huge, doesn't it? really, they were pretty much the same size)

Jeff was strictly pepperoni.

I passed on the sauce, and had mushrooms, yellow pepper, red onions, and fresh basil on the cheese.

The trick to getting a nice crispy crust (there I go with the crispy again) is to roll the dough out as thinly as possible on parchment paper, then transfer it to a pizza stone that's been preheating along with the oven. It's important to trim the paper fairly close to the dough, because if it's too long, it can burn in the oven. I cook them at 400 degrees for 10 or 15 minutes. I think I pulled mine out a little too soon, but I was hungry, it smelled good, and I didn't want to wait. That's one of the drawbacks of this: you can't put too many in the oven at once. Also, you have to be careful when you take them out of the oven; because of the parchment paper, they slide around unpredictably!

These don't make huge, doughy pizzas, but they are big enough to satisfy, and I really like the thin and crispy crust.

Lady Gaga song that I'm actually willing to have on my iPod: Edge of Glory

Baby Brag

. . . about my baby. Sarah won the 6-hole trophy at Junior Golf last week! She shot a 45; I guess that's pretty good. She was very proud and excited. This is the first trophy she's actually won--all the other ones have been strictly for participation. If she does it next year, she'll be in the 9-hole group, and always playing her own balls instead of a scramble (playing the best ball of the group). Definitely a bigger challenge, but my mother in law has said several times that when she concentrates, she really does do a good job. Do I smell a golf scholarship in a few years? Dare to dream!

Two Beatles songs that need to be added to my iPod: Twist and Shout and Can't Buy Me Love.

Bulgur Wheat

When I was at Meijer yesterday (groceries are so expensive, sigh), I picked up a package of bulgur wheat. I've had tabbouleh before, but was never a big fan--too parsley-y for my taste. But it was cheap, much cheaper than quinoa, so I decided to give it a shot.

I cooked some up today to add to my tomato/cucumber/red onion/chickpea/olive oil/red wine vinegar/pita chip salad, and it was pretty nice. Kind of like rice or couscous. It was a bit of overkill, though: the chickpeas AND the bulgur AND the pita chips. I'll try it with something else next time. Hmmm . . . there's leftover steak & green beans in the fridge . . .

I'm trying to think of other things I can do with it besides throw it in salads, and found a couple ideas.

Bulgur with Ginger and Orange This looks like it would be good beside a pork chop or even salmon.

Cranberry Bulgur Wheat Pilaf Cranberries = yum

Herbed Bulgur-Lentil Pilaf This is an Ellie Krieger recipe, whose recipes always look good to me. The lentils will make it a harder sell to the family. I'll have to put it with something they really like. Like biscuits & gravy.

Song I'd like to have on my iPod by an artist that I otherwise can't stand: Katy Perry's "Firework."

Raising the Bar

Jeff has always been supportive of my healthy reboot, even though he isn't as single minded as I tend to get. He doesn't have as much to lose, either. And over the past few days it's become more apparent that he's leaning even more toward the healthy end of things.

He got his cholesterol numbers from the doc today, and although they aren't bad, they could be better. He'd really like to drop some of his meds, and knows that healthier food choices and more exercise can lead to that.

Tonight over dinner (steak, baked potatoes, steamed green beans), we were talking more about goal setting. I said that there were two kinds of goals: results oriented (I want to lose x amount of weight) and behavior oriented (I want to eat better). Although I'm frequently very results oriented, I try to make behavioral goals as well.

Then he offered that if he would cut out fast food, he could save $20 or $25 a week--maybe that saved money could be used for something he really wants? One of Jeff's big things is that he wants to visit every major league baseball stadium. He's been to about half of them--the half that are closest to our home, of course. The rest of them are quite a hike. But if he "banks" the money he would have spent on fast food, he could earn a trip to another stadium.

When I got past the "how much fast food have you been eating?" dismay, I was all for it. This is a TREMENDOUS motivator for him. It will take quite a while to save up, essentially until the start of next season. He knows that he won't bank 100% every month, and to even try that is an unreasonable expectation. But I think this is something that will keep him moving forward in a really good way.

I think he's really going to be working this now. I'm really excited for both of us moving forward!

Favorite Beatles song on my iPod: "Revolution."

Staying Healthy

I said the other day that I really need to have some serious exercise goals if I want to be able to continue my healthy life after I get to my goal weight.

Another intense incentive for me to continue on is to find a way to get a job out of it. If I'm getting paid to be healthy, I'm a lot more likely to keep it up.

So what kind of jobs pay you to be healthy? I've heard lots of people say that they'd like to be personal trainers once they get to their goal. I don't think that's for me, but I do have another idea.

What I'd really like to do is teach healthier cooking classes. Who hasn't fantasized about hosting their own cooking show? I'd love to be able to share/demonstrate some of the really tasty recipes I've discovered. And although I have no desire to have an actual show, I think it could be feasible for me to offer a class through the local community college.

What this really means is that I need to start thinking about what recipes I'd like to show, and of course sharing them here. So I'll be trying new recipes more often, and talking about them here. Comments always appreciated!

Song that I was listening to as I came in the house tonight: Rascal Flatt's "Life is a Highway."

6 Month Anniversary

Six months ago, I went in to my doctor's office and was told my blood pressure was crazy high, and that if i didn't get it down and lose some weight, I'd have to take meds. This morning, my blood pressure was 99 over 63, and my resting pulse was 58. This morning, I weighed in and saw that I've lost exactly 80 pounds.

Five months ago, I started exercising. My first day, I walked 1.19 miles in 28 minutes. Last night, I walked 3.36 miles in 66 minutes. My goal is to walk 100 miles this month.

It's been six months since I rebooted my life, and it is awesome.

Most joyous song on my iPod: Peter Gabriel's "Solsbury Hill."

I'm Looking Forward to

• Crustless Spinach Quiche. Have spinach. Need cheese.
• Corn Chowder. I know it's too hot for soup. Don't care.
• Meringues. Maybe chocolate meringues. Can you put citrus in meringues?
• America's Test Kitchen Light Cheesecake. Not likely to happen soon, as I don't have an occasion to make it. No, "Thursday" is not a cheesecake occasion, sorry.
  
• Lemon Bars. I'm on a real citrus kick lately. I'd probably do these with lime.
  

Most obscure song on my iPod: "Laura's Zest" from Laura Bennett's Project Runway final show. (I did love her collection, but Uli was robbed that year!)

Unexpectedly Tasty Lunch

When I was figuring out what to make for lunch today, it was more a matter of "whatever" than anything else. It's kind of crazy time around here, and combining that with a general boredom with what I've been eating lately (NO MORE BLACK BEAN SALAD, THANKS), I didn't have very high expectations.

I say this all the time, but here we go again: I have never been so happy to be so wrong.

I don't even have a name for this.

Start with:
1/4 cup diced red onion
1 tomato, chopped
1 medium small cucumber, sliced
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
Salt & pepper

Look around for something to add some protein, maybe a little fiber. Aha--chickpeas!
1/2 cup chickpeas

Hm. Need some more protein, something a little different. What's in the freezer?
3 oz shrimp, sauteed with cooking spray

Salad needs crunch.
1/2 pita bread, cut into pieces, sprayed with cooking spray, and baked at 400 for about 10 minutes (keep an eye on them in the oven!)

Wow, this is getting pretty good. What else?
2 Tablespoons minced fresh parsley.

Yep, that's it. Mix it all up and eat, happy that you have a huge lunch for under 425 calories, only 12 grams of fat, a whopping 29 grams of protein (that's almost half my day's requirement!), and 8 grams of fiber (again, half my day's requirement). The crispy bread on top will eventually get a little soggy from the sauce, but it's still delish. If I had put this over lettuce, as I'd originally planned, I'd still be eating it.

Song that doesn't get me moving as much as I thought it would: Sting's "We'll Be Together."

Hi to everyone from Eat at Home!

Running

I don't run. I walk. I like to walk. But I miss running. I miss that feeling of really being able to move. I want that feeling back.

When I first started exercising outside back in March, I would do about 20 or 30 minutes at a time, averaging about 2.5 miles per hour. Last month, my average time was 3.1 mph. A few nights ago, I even jogged for a tiny bit of my walk, and hit 3.5 mph average that night. This is still pretty slow by most standards, but it's a big improvement for me.

In May, Lauren and I did the Farmington Crop Walk. We just did the mini version, which is 2.2 miles, but I swore to myself that next year I would do the 10K. I know I won't run the whole thing, but it would be great if I could finish in under 90 minutes.

Since then, I've been hearing about some interesting "races."

The Warrior Dash. There was one not too far from here a few weeks ago. I've heard that the obstacles require a fair bit of upper body strength. They even have suggestions for weight training.

Run for Your Lives. I always say, "when the zombie apocalypse hits, I don't have to outrun all the zombies--I just have to outrun YOU." The only one on the schedule is in Baltimore, which I wouldn't go to even if I was in shape, but if one were closer, I'd think about it for next summer.

Getting in shape isn't hard; I've done it before. Staying in shape is something I've never been able to do before. I think doing something like this, something that really pushes me and takes me out of my comfort zone but is still goofy & fun, might help me with that.

The song that gets me moving the fastest: Pink's "Raise Your Glass."

July Stats, August Goals

Total exercise time
July goal: 40 hours
July results: 32.3 hours
August goal: 40 hours

Average daily time
July goal: 80 minutes
July results: 61.87 minutes
August goal: 75 minutes

Number of days exercising
July goal: 31
July results: 30
August goal: 31

Number of days walking
July goal: 26
July results: 17
August goal: 26

Total distance walked
July goal: 80 miles
July results: 57.75 + 39.94 = 97.69
August goal: 100 miles

I didn't hit all my goals this month. I can blame some of that on my fall and my rib (which is pretty much totally better now, so I'm thinking it was just bruised instead of cracked). And I've set some pretty lofty goals for August, but that's the only way to do it, right?

I'm going to try to do two things differently this month:

1. I'm going to do less of the Free Step on the Wii. I've noticed that it seems to get "hung up" occasionally and doesn't count every single step. I might actually try the Free Run and see how that goes.
   
2. I'm going to start keeping track of crunches, lunges, squats, etc. I'm even going to try a plank this week.
   

Also, I realized that when I couldn't walk one day this week, I really did miss it. It's good to have that feeling back.

Song I've had running through my head all week, that needs to go on my iPod ASAP: Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now."

No Yoga for You!

Last Friday, I tripped over some uneven pavement and bit the dust, hard. At first it looked like the only consequence was that my knee was spectacularly skinned. I even thought how lucky I was that I hadn't damaged my teeth, eyes, or ankle (those who know me know that this is a valid concern).

The next day, my ribs on my right side were a little sore, but not too bad. Maybe I drove my elbow into my ribs as I fell? Don't know, but it started getting more painful Sunday and Monday. I even Googled "cracked rib" because of my suspicions.

You know what the treatment for a cracked rib is? TIME. That's it. There's nothing you can do but wait it out. WebMD did say that you should be checked out by a doc to rule out other stuff, but I was reasonably sure that I hadn't done anything else.

Then I talked to my mom (hi, mom!) on Tuesday morning, and she got me to promise that I would go to the doctor just to make sure, so I made an appointment for that afternoon.

My doc said she wasn't sure if it was cracked or just bruised, but she wasn't going to send me for an x-ray, because it just didn't matter. The treatment for both bruised and cracked ribs is exactly the same. That treatment? Yep, TIME.

She did say that I shouldn't be doing any big stretching, which wasn't a hard sell. I'm still trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in, and there are a dozen different ways to move that make me wince.

So all this, combined with this miserable heat, has really done a number on my exercise regimen. I had been getting walks in twice a day, and was starting basic yoga and strength training on the Wii. Now I'm barely managing half an hour of Wii Basic Step. It's supposed to cool down a little this week, so I'm hoping to get back to at least one walk a day, although I know it'll be slower than before.

In spite of all this, it looks like I finally broke that miserable plateau I've been sitting on for a couple weeks. As of this morning, I've officially lost 75 pounds!

Tried and True

I was reading at Eat at Home this morning (a food blog I check regularly), and this week's ingredient spotlight is smoked sausage. The call went out for recipes and as a matter of fact, I do have one we love. It's one of those "measure? huh?" recipes, which I do pretty frequently.

Kielbasa, Potatoes & Peppers
That's kind of it--the whole recipe in the title. Oh, there's also red onion & some oil, but you get the gist. More specific?

• 1 pound Kielbasa or beef sausage, sliced about 1/2" thick (why is it that the ones that don't have turkey in them so rarely go on sale?)
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1/2 red, orange & yellow bell peppers, sliced into strips (you can use green too, if you have no taste buds)
• 4 or 5 redskin potatoes (size depends on how much you love potatoes)
  
• olive oil

The thing here is that you want everything crispy, and everything done at pretty much the same time before you throw it all in a big bowl and put it on the table. For me, there are two tricks to achieve this.

First, you want to par-cook the potatoes. I usually microwave them earlier in the day and then let them cool down. When you're ready to cook, cut them up into chunks.

The second trick is to use two pans. Yes, it makes more dishes. But since everything is served in just one dish, I figure it evens out in the end. You can use one skillet, but it will take twice as long. You don't want to overcrowd the pan.

I used a griddle pan for the sausage slices. Lay them all out and cook on medium-low heat, turning once they brown on one side. I cook the peppers & onions in about a tablespoon of oil in a big non stick skillet. Let them get brown, too. When they're done, put them in the serving dish and set aside.

Turn the skillet up to medium high and add another tablespoon of oil. Let it get hot. Add the potato pieces and swirl them around a little to get them coated. You only want one layer of potatoes here--too many and they won't get crisp. Then wait a few minutes so they can get really crispy. Turn them so the other sides get crispy too. The thing to remember is that this takes time. If you're constantly moving them, they won't crisp up. Once they are crispy, add them to the serving dish with the sausage. (This part is all about the crispy, in case you missed that.)

Mix it all up, take to the table and get out of the way. If I forget to put the ketchup out, one of the kids is getting it before I manage to pick up my fork.

This is not my healthiest recipe. In fact, I don't think I've made it in the last few months. But everyone does love it, and I do have beef sausage in the freezer, so I will be making it soon. I'll just have a smaller portion. And some salad. :)

Food is Boring

It's time to go grocery shopping again, and again, I can't think of what to buy and make for my family this week. Chicken is fine, but Jeff can't have it. Steak is great, but expensive. It's too hot to use the oven. I'm sick of hamburgers. I have yet to find a seafood recipe everyone really likes. No one likes beans but me.

We had spaghetti tonight and pork fried rice last night. We had pizza last week. We have breakfast for dinner all the time.

Wow, that was quite a whiny rant, eh? I guess it's time to buy pork chops or country style ribs again. They're versatile and cheap. I'll get some chicken, too, and grill it after the main meat is done so Lauren & I will have lunch options (Sarah's not a big chicken fan).

Aha! Finally, a suggestion that we haven't had in a while, is easy, and won't heat up the house: French Dip Sandwiches! There's ONE down, at least.

It's Only Money, Right?

Yesterday, the drain in the basement from the kitchen sink kept backing up, and Jeff couldn't snake it out for anything. I cringingly made an appointment with a plumber, knowing that we probably wouldn't get over to the pool today.

When they arrived, I was hopeful that it wouldn't be too bad because at least it wasn't the main stack they had to deal with. Did I mention that friends of ours recently had their basement floor ripped out because of broken pipes?

Yeah, about that . . . we have almost exactly the same issue. The only saving grace here is that we don't have drywall or carpet down there, and there wasn't any crap piled up in that area, so we didn't really lose any stuff.

It will cost over $3K to repair, but at least the kitchen sink is properly draining again, and I can finally run the dishwasher! Hopefully the insurance company won't give us any hassles.

And to really try to squeeze some lemonade out of these lemons, it will force us to move faster on donating stuff and throwing more stuff away. Purple Heart comes Tuesday.

Great

I fool around with the template, and lose a bunch of comments. Sorry, Snapper! Keep commenting, please!

Random

What to write about today?

That we probably won't go swimming tomorrow because we have to have a basement drain snaked out to the tune of about $150.

or

That I didn't get any exercise at all yesterday. Three days into July and I drop the ball on a goal. Oh, well. I'm going to start doing yoga on the Wii more frequently, and the strength training as well. I got a walk this morning, and will try to get another--shorter--one before dinner.

or

That I've recently discovered quinoa and like it quite a bit. I cooked up the last of the package this morning, and mixed some into my black bean salad with lunch. I'll have more with broccoli, chicken, and parmesan cheese tonight. Sadly, it's too expensive at Meijer to get on a regular basis, and Aldi & Randazzo's don't carry it at all. I could probably get it cheaper in bulk if I went to Zerbo's, but I don't get there too often.

or

That I've already thrown out three bags of crap from the basement today. I should buy stock in garbage bags, because there is a LOT more to go through!

That was some game!

Every year, we go to a baseball game for Father's Day. This year, the game Jeff wanted to go to was last night (actually, the one he really wanted was Friday night, but the girls were at my Dad's boat to watch the fireworks).

It was pretty toasty when we got to our seats. Even though the game started at 7PM (we got there about an hour early), it was 97 degrees. Sarah said she wished it would rain, and I said that just some clouds would do it for me.

After a disastrous first inning (I don't know who was pitching, but he let two home runs go, making the score 5-0), I noticed that it was clouding up. And, um, the clouds didn't look friendly. They looked like the clouds that precede a storm that pops up when it's insanely hot in the summer.

About halfway through the second inning, I saw the first flash of lightning. Hm. Yeah, we're in the upper deck, really high up. The clouds were still a ways off, but definitely moving in our direction. We frequently leave before the last pitch is thrown, but the second inning wasn't even over yet! As the second inning closed, we decided to head out. We stopped to see if my Dad wanted to leave (he & Sharon had come with us, but because he needs wheelchair access, they sat in a different area), but he wanted to stick it out.

We made our way through the concourse, and sure enough, it started to rain. By the time we got closer to an exit (went past the statues, on our way to the covered area under the fountains), the wind was gale force and the rain was driving. At that point, we were all trying to stay together, and not so worried about getting wet, because we knew there was no getting around it at that point.

We made it just under the covered area, but I could see the poor grounds crew getting the tarp on and people trying to get from their seats to a covered area. It was really packed in there, and we weren't staying dry anyway. Some people were shoving, and when a wheelchair could barely make it through, we decided to head out. By the time we got to the Nemo's bus, all four of us were drenched through. It took another 15 minutes or so before the bus was full enough to leave, and by the time we got back to our car, it had mostly stopped raining.

I really wanted our bedraggled selves as this year's family picture, but the stranger I grabbed to shoot it had a hard time with my camera, because it came out quite blurry, to my disappointment. Seriously, if it had been clearer, it would be my new Facebook profile picture.

We got home and I called my Dad to see how they were doing. He was still waiting for a wheelchair to get through, and ready to start walking himself. (Note: he can walk, just not the kind of distances to get from the entrance to our seats.) They finally called us back about an hour later to say that they'd made it out and were on their way home.

So although this was certainly a memorable Father's Day game, it was in no way our worst. That honor still goes to "hood flipped up while driving on the highway, making it impossible to see and requiring the whole thing be replaced" 2008.

Bountiful Breakfasts

Sometimes I'm in a big hurry in the mornings and grab Cheerios or Raisin Bran for breakfast. Usually, though, I'm up in time to make something more substantial. There isn't a lot of variety in the meals themselves, but there are many possible variations in the "add-ons."

1. Chobani vanilla fat free Greek yogurt & fruit. Variations include different types of fruit, fresh pineapple, blueberries or strawberries being my current favorites. I also frequently throw a half ounce of almonds in as well, for extra protein & crunch. I especially like this one in the summertime.
   
2. Oatmeal & fruit. The fruit is usually apples, and I add cinnamon & brown sugar. Again, sometimes I throw in half an ounce of nuts. (Yes, I measure pretty much everything these days. It not only ensures that I don't get too much, but that I get enough. I'm as likely to underestimate as overestimate.) This one is best when it's cold out.
   
3. Scrambled eggs with green onions, mushrooms, cheese, peppers. Sometimes I throw meat, like leftover sausage or ham, in as well. It's usually two eggs, but if I know I have a lot of calories for the day and I'm really hungry, I throw an extra egg white in. Start with a little butter, saute the vegetation, toss in the eggs, save the cheese--not too much--for the end. For the love of all things good, do not overcook the eggs.
   
4. Fried eggs. This is generally the highest calorie option. Sometimes I have the eggs with an English muffin or toast (I'm dying to try Eggs Benedict over a grilled portobello mushrooms or polenta, too), but my drop dead favorite is potatoes. I cut up a smallish potato and throw it in the frying pan with a little water and slap the lid on. Once the water has evaporated, the potato is cooked through. (This is better than par-cooking the potato in the microwave, because then you don't have to cut up a steaming hot potato and lose the skin off it, etc.) Then add a couple teaspoons of olive oil and toss to coat. This way, you don't need a ton of fat, but you still get deliciously crispy spuds. Let them sit on one side so they do crisp up--if you're tossing them all the time, they don't have time to get brown. Once they're almost done, I toss in green onion, and leftover sausage or ham. (I don't bother with cheese in this version, because it just doesn't seem to "go" to me. Cheese is more of a scrambled addition.) Once it's all well cooked, slide it onto the plate and fry a couple eggs. Generally, I don't need any more fat because the pan is already pretty well lubed up. Over easy, slide them on top of the eggs, and inhale. Try not to lick the plate.
   

June Stats, July Goals

Total exercise time
June goal: 45 hours
June results: 35.17 hours
July goal: 40 hours

Average daily time
June goal: 90 minutes
June results: 70.33 minutes
July goal: 80 minutes

Number of days exercising
June goal: 28
June results: 25
July goal: 31

Number of days walking
June goal: 28
June results: 23
July goal: 26

Total distance walked
June goal: 75 miles
June results: 78.76 (102.23) miles
July goal: 80 miles

I hit some of my goals in June, but not all. My total exercise time, my days exercising & walking were all more ambitious than I could handle. However, I did hit my mileage goal, and I attribute that entirely to joining a fitness challenge at My Fitness Pal to "walk" 100 miles in June. That included steps on the Wii as well. Since I didn't have actual mileage to go on, I counted every 2000 steps as one mile. So that's why my June walking results have two numbers--the first is actual mileage I clocked around here, and the second in parentheses includes the stepped miles I got on the Wii.

I found that I got most of my walking in if I went very early in the morning. If I waited until after 7, it was already getting warm and the sun was too high. I've discovered that I don't much care for sunshine when I'm out for a walk--I'll actually choose which side of the street to walk on based on how shady it is.

I've also joined The President's Challenge, which I think will also help keep me moving. So for June, the most challenging goal is that I get at least 30 minutes of exercise every day. No slacking because the weather is miserable or I'm having a bad day or I'm too busy. I'd prefer to walk outside, but if all else fails, I'll do 30 minutes of Basic Step on the Wii while I watch tv.

I'm still not looking forward to walking the way I expected. It's still something I do because I have to, not because I want to. I did have one rather stressful day where I went out for a walk after dinner, and it did help, but I didn't have the stamina to walk until I wasn't upset anymore. I think I used to enjoy walking so much more because the kids were small then, and I really needed to get out of the house solo more frequently. Now that they're more self sufficient, I don't crave alone time as much.

Today is July 1st, and I haven't gotten any exercise yet. Since it's almost noon, hot out, and I have a lot going on, it looks like it's Wii for Mii today!

Roller Coaster

At first, I was going to say that I felt like a yo-yo. But really, a roller coaster is more appropriate for things lately, even with my weight. Since the beginning of June, I've lost 2.9, gained 2.7, lost 9.1, gained 4.7, and lost 11.5. That is ridiculous! I would really prefer to lose a nice, steady two or three pounds a week.

If I followed the pattern, I'd have a sizable gain this week (weigh in is Thursdays). And I had a bad case of food oblivion today. But I have tomorrow's food fully planned out (Greek yogurt, strawberries & almonds for breakfast, black bean salad for lunch, and steak/shrimp at Applebee's Date Night for dinner), so I'm confident that I'll be making good choices again.

I still have to exercise today, so I'll post those stats tomorrow.

It's a good thing there are no cookies in the house

Actually, there are about 30 boxes of Girl Scout cookies, and I could eat ALL OF THEM.

So I haven't posted as frequently as I promised. Things have been kind of busy. Back in February, I made the mistake of telling my doctor that my stress levels would decrease significantly after May.

HA. Truly, the past weeks have been among the most stressful in my life.

So yes, I'll be posting more in the coming days. I make no guarantees as to the subject or tone.

May Stats, June Goals

Total exercise time
May goal: 27 hours
May results: 44.7 hours
June goal: 45 hours

Average daily time
May goal: 60 minutes
May results: 86.5 minutes
June goal: 90 minutes

Number of days exercising
May goal: 27
May results: 29
June goal: 28

Number of days walking
May goal: 23
May results: 24
June goal: 28

Total distance walked
May goal: 50 miles
May results: 56.36
June goal: 75

Overall, I'm pretty happy with how May went in terms of exercise. I surpassed all my goals! The only two days I got no exercise at all were the days I flew to & from Florida.

In June, I've upped the goals a little but not a lot for the most part. I'm going camping with Girl Scouts this weekend, so I know there will be a day or two that I'll get no exercise, and I'm taking that into account.

I haven't posted much lately, but there's been a lot of stuff percolating around in my head, including: different kinds of exercise and how they work for me, body fat calculating web sites, more about music & cooking, as well as other miscellaneous stuff. So look for me to start posting a lot more frequently coming up!

Home Again, Home Again

Florida was really nice. The best part was getting to just hang out and relax. The kids were disappointed that I never did go swimming with them, but when the air temp is 75 and there was a torrential downpour the day before, I know that the water is not going to be where I like it. I'll do lots of swimming this summer.

I did go out walking three mornings. The first day was too hot by the time we got there, and the last day, I had some blisters that hurt too much to walk on. Yesterday, though, I put on my old shoes and had no problems. I do need to get real walking shoes, though. My wintry boots are fine for now, when it's still (STILL!) cold and wet out, but by the time I can wear shorts to walk, I'll need something else.

The other item on my agenda is grocery shopping. I discovered Chobani Greek yogurt in Florida, and can't believe how amazing it is. I know I won't be able to get it just anywhere, but it's worth hunting down. Vegetables are what are really lacking in the kitchen right now, though. I don't know that I'll bother making up any big new recipes, since the kids won't be back for a while, but I definitely want to have all my healthy choices around.

In fact, I'm trying to take this kid-free time to really be focused on being healthy, making sure I eat right and get lots of exercise. Cleaning up the accumulated junk from the bedroom & basement would be a nice bonus.

Dance to the Music

More like walk to the music, but you get the point.

I put some songs on the Wii, and it really does help. During my first walk with it, I finally broke the 3/mph mark, which has taken me surprisingly long to do. I didn't put a million songs on, because I'm trying to do this on a budget. I was very selective, only choosing songs that I thought would help keep me moving. This meant that some songs that I really love will never reach my MP3.

Sting's Fields of Gold? Not a chance. We'll be Together? Definitely. In addition to being pretty peppy, it was my go-to song when I was getting ready to go out when I was at Idaho State, so nostalgia puts it over the top. Disappointingly, it didn't really kick me into overdrive the way I expected. The two superstars in that area are Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation and Gloria Estefan's Everlasting Love. Apparently, I have a heart of glittery disco (shudder).

I also wanted to make sure I kept it as mixed up as possible, so no more than one song per artist (exception made for the Blues Brothers, because I already had those on the computer and didn't have to pay extra). So it was Revolution from the Beatles, but not Back in the USSR. Not yet, anyway.

I only have fewer than two dozen songs on so far, and that's a good start, but it isn't much variety. (and I still can't figure out how to set the thing to "random"--it's a Shuffle, so why does it keep playing everything in order?) I've decided that if I hit my walking goals every month, I'll reward myself with some new songs. This month's goal is 50 miles; I've done 19 so far.

I found an interesting web site that will certainly help me come up with ideas: jog.fm It lists a bunch of songs, including the beats per minute. For example, Queen's We Will Rock You has 90 bpm, but Hammer to Fall has 137. Guess which one goes in the "want" category? Again, it isn't because I think it's a better song; it's because it will keep me moving.

If I had more time, I'd go through all the CDs we have--I'm pretty sure I paid to download something we already own, and anyone who knows me knows that I can't stand the thought of that. But we're in a bit of a time crunch right now, so maybe next week I'll have some more time and make that happen.

Surreal

I had quite the "Hello, Dali" moment yesterday. All of us got new glasses, and when I put mine on in the store, I had that period of adjustment where things are suddenly MUCH clearer than before. My previous glasses were old, out of prescription, and badly scratched. The new ones are amazing. At first, everything seemed too close, but then I got the standard "everything is farther away" feeling that comes with new glasses for a severely nearsighted person. (By the way, America's Best is a great place!)

When I was driving in the car, I felt much higher up--like I was driving a pickup or minivan. When I got out of the car, it was even more dramatic. "I'm tall!" I thought. Yes, I am tall; I know that, but seldom give it more than a passing thought. Yesterday, I felt like a giant! Not only did the ground seem farther away, I actually felt like my head was closer to the trees. So I guess more of an Alice in Wonderland moment instead of Dali.

A small part of me is actually tempted to put the old glasses back on, because I think it would make it easier to get things done today if I was just back to "normal." I won't do it, of course. This is normal now and I need to get used to it.

Not Happening

I told Jeff that I'd like to take over a lot of the lawn mowing duties now that it's warmed up. Good exercise, right? We have both a push mower and a gas mower. I greatly prefer the push mower--no fumes, no noise, and I don't have to kill myself to get it started. Unfortunately, the blades aren't very sharp, and it's as likely to bend the grass as to cut it. Also unfortunately, the drive belt on the gas mower is broken, so when using that, it has to be substantially manhandled across the grass.

Since neither mower is exactly optimal, we've really let the lawn go. Jeff powered through the front over the weekend, and I told him I'd have a go at the back today. First, I got out the gas mower, but couldn't get it started. I got out the push mower, and started across the lawn. I was pleased at how it was going at first, even though it was tough going. Then (of course) I stepped into a hole and fell (the ground is very uneven in that part of the yard). Oddly, the fall wasn't the most painful part; that was when I hit the ground, and some blades of grass apparently went right into my ear canal. For a second, I was checking my ear for blood, because it did hurt that much and that's the kind of weird injury I tend to get.

At that point, I knew I wasn't going to get the whole lawn done. I was about to pack it in altogether, but ended up doing a small patch up by the garage. In order to get the rest of it done, Jeff will have to help me get the mower started, or do it himself (looking better and better!)

The best part of all this is that I didn't dislocate or break anything, or even do enough damage to cause a limp, which is unusual enough to be notable. :)

It's A Bore!

Apologies to Lerner & Lowe.

It's a bore!
Just a chore!
Walking on the street
Thinking of what to eat

Trying not to trip
Sure that my feet will slip
It's a bore!
To my core!

See the flowers
Hear the birds
Same as I saw
Sam as I heard
Every single other day
Long before the month of May

It's a bore!
And a snore!

I could go on and on, because that's the tune that was running through my head when I went out walking yesterday, and it's been my attitude for a while now. I had an MP3 player from a long time ago, but it slowly died on me, to my severe frustration. I hinted to Jeff that I'd like a new one (read: "I really want a Shuffle for Mother's Day."), and of course he came through.

It's charging up right now, and I have to put a few songs on it before I head out, but I've already got a whole list of music I want that is strictly to get me moving and enjoying my walks more. More on that later. Right now it's time to get my playlist started!

Jimmy John's

Beach Club Unwich is very tasty. For less than $6 and under 400 calories, it's great. When you missed lunch, it's unbeatable!!!

Biscuit Results

I made the biscuits from CI Best Light Recipe last night, and was pretty satisfied with how they turned out. They were considerably more work than my mom's biscuits, and somewhat smaller, but still light, fluffy and tasty. And for 150 calories each, I ended up having two.

When I asked what everyone thought, Jeff said that the true test of a biscuit was putting sausage gravy over the top. I laughed, because ANY biscuit is tasty when it's slathered in yummy sausage gravy!

End result? I'll continue to make them. That's another one to put in the "win" column for this cookbook.

Story Problem Results

• I went to all three stores.


• I think I got hit on.


• Razor blades are too expensive--I've decided I prefer Jeff scruffy. I don't think he shares this preference.


• Tonight will be Breakfast for Dinner, a perennial favorite. Specifically, bacon, scrambled eggs & biscuits.


• I'll be trying the biscuit recipe from CI Best Light Recipe instead of making the classic via my mom's recipe. We'll see how they turn out.


• Last night I made an Apricot/Orange glaze from CIBLR and poured it over leftover pork chops, red peppers, and steamed broccoli, and it was good but not great.


• Of the four recipes I've made from CIBLR, one has been spectacular (Cinnamon Rolls), two have been ok but not amazing, and one was not good (oil & vinegar dressing--too watery).

A Story Problem

If gas is $4.20/gallon, is it cheaper to go to Aldi for flour, sugar, eggs & other staples, Randazzo's for fruits & vegetables, and Meijer for meat, Old Bay seasoning, and other miscellaneous things that I can't get at the other two, or should I make one trip to Meijer and grumble about how things are cheaper elsewhere?

My preference would be to hit Aldi & Randazzo's--less than a mile apart--and leave Meijer out of it altogether, but that might not be an option. There's also a smaller grocery store that frequently has good deals on meat, but it's about as far away as Meijer, so the gas issue remains.

This story problem obviously doesn't give us enough information. I need to plan our week's meals and make a grocery list first.

April Stats, May Goals

Unfortunately, I'm still down off the wagon. Trying again tomorrow. Interestingly, looking at my exercise stats has told quite a tale. All this exercise, and yet I got almost none this past week. Maybe setting new exercise goals will be the kick in the pants I need. (I did get two miles today for the Farmington Crop Walk, but I can only guess how long it took.)

Total exercise time
April goal: 15 hours
April results: 23.9 hours
May goal: 27 hours

Average daily time
April goal: 30 minutes
April results: 49.4 minutes
May goal: 60 minutes

Number of days exercising
(some days were walking, some were Wii, some were both)
April goal: 25
April results: 26
May goal: 27

Number of days walking
April goal: 20
April results: 17
May goal: 23

Total distance walked
April goal: 30 miles
April results: 31.23 miles
May goal: 50 miles

These are considerably more ambitious goals than I had last month. The thing is, when I'm in the groove, it's easy to get 60 minutes of exercise. That's a 45 minute walk and 15 minutes on the Wii. And the weather should finally warm up a bit and maybe stop raining for a second or two, so that would help.

I've noticed something about my walks, though. Last time I was in the healthy groove, walking was a pleasure. I really looked forward to it. Now, walking is more of a chore. It's just another thing to check off of my to do list. I do it because I'm supposed to, not because I want to. I've got something in mind that will hopefully change that, but that's another blog post.

Getting Back Up

This past week, I've kind of fallen off the Healthy Wagon. Well, "fallen off" isn't really the most accurate term. "Swan Dive" is probably closer to it.

So now it's time to get back up, put down the Easter candy, and go for a walk. Today, all day, I will make good choices.

Still no head

Skirts got finished (though I want to tweak Lauren's), tops were found, walking was done (though not nearly enough to balance out the yumminess of Easter dinners), and now it's a new week.

I work today, morning and evening, tomorrow is Scouts & potluck for Lauren, Wednesday is Scouts for Sarah (she needs to bring mulled cider & custard) and I work that evening, Thursday is an open house/pictures/potluck and then I scramble right to work, and I work Friday morning. It's supposed to rain most of the week, again.

I'm glad the oven is fixed, but I can't imagine having the time to bake much of anything.

Chicken, sans Head

Gonna be busy the next few days.
Tasks include:

• make Sarah's Easter skirt--so easy, I'll probably let her do it herself (tomorrow)
  
• Lauren's skirt is more complicated, so it's all on me (today)
  
• find Easter tops to go with the skirts (today or tomorrow)
  
• get the oven fixed, finally! (tomorrow)
  
• buy myself some Easter clothes (today)
  
• work (tonight)
• check out cyber-school information with a friend (today or tomorrow--there is a deadline for this, so it can't wait)
  
• haircuts for girls (tomorrow)
• new glasses (was hoping to do it last weekend, but we're waiting to hear back about a deal at America's Best, so it's on hold)
• WALK (today, tomorrow, Saturday, Sunday)
  
• dinner with Jeff's family (Saturday)
  
• dinner with my family (Sunday)

I'd like to bring some healthy food to both dinners, as well. Not that there won't be any healthy options, but it'll be easier to avoid stuff that I know I love (my step-mom's potato salad, omg) if I can bring something in addition.

Soooo . . . think I should get off the computer? Uh . . . yeah.

Dragon Fruit

I've heard of Dragon Fruit before, and even seen them used in cooking shows. But I'd never seen one live and in the flesh, so to speak. So when we saw them at the produce market last week, the kids begged to get one. Hmmm . . . $4 for one piece of fruit. That's kind of a lot, especially when you don't know if anyone will even like it.

But I do try to get new foods, so we took a chance. It's an unusual-looking thing, pink on the outside, white on the inside with little black seeds. I knew to take off the skin and only eat the inside.

The taste was pretty mild. Sweet, but not overly so. The seeds were a nice crunch (as opposed to pomegranate seeds, which I dislike). Actually, I had expected more flavor. So it was nice to buy, but it won't go into standard rotation in our fruit bowl, even if it is regularly available.

Cold

It's spring, which means that sometimes it's nice out, and sometimes it's cold. Bitterly, miserably cold. Too cold to do anything except stay in the house and get the warm socks back on your feet.

It's also too cold to go out for a walk, at least for me. This presents a problem. Yes, I can still do the Wii Fit Plus. I did it yesterday for 90 minutes over the course of the day. Sixty of those minutes were spent doing Basic Step, which is just stepping on and off the platform for 10 or 20 minutes. Having loud, energetic music helps make the time pass faster. But for whatever reason, it is not the same as walking.

I've already walked 14 days this month, out of my goal of 20. That's great, but I'd really rather walk outdoors as frequently as I can.

We have some errands to do today, and I'm working tonight, so if I am going to walk, I need to do it soon. I should suck it up and go do it right now, but I'm pretty certain that I'm going to spend as little time as possible outside today.

Shot Down Again

Another new recipe, down in flames. Oh, well--I fully plan to make it again, with a few tweaks.

Whole Wheat Pasta + Cauliflower+ Red Pepper+ Shallot + Mushrooms + Broccoli + Carrot + Yellow Squash + Evaporated Milk + Cornstarch + Parmesan = Pasta Primavera, light style.

I blanched or sauteed the vegetables, boiled the pasta, and added the milk (some of it mixed with the cornstarch to make a slurry) and combined everything in a big serving bowl. It was not overly saucy, but there was definitely too much pasta. I also think I could have skipped the cheese, or rather left it on the table to sprinkle on top.

I thought it was good, but could have been better. Jeff thought it was OK. Lauren wouldn't stop talking about how she hated it until I added some salt & pepper (it really did need it, for all of us) and reminded her that there was garlic bread. Then she loved it. Sarah didn't much care for it, until I started talking about adding protein. Shrimp didn't interest her (I'm really trying to find a shrimp recipe we love, without a lot of success so far), ham is not a popular option with her, but bacon made her eyes light up. So, maybe I'll try a little bacon next time.

Bacon--is there anything it can't do?

March Stats, April Goals

I didn't start exercising until March 7, so these aren't for a complete month.

Total exercise time
March: 8.8 hours
April goal: 15 hours

Average daily time
March: 21 minutes
April goal: 30 minutes

Number of days exercising
(some days were walking, some were Wii, some were both)
March: 19
April goal: 25

Number of days walking
March: 9
April goal: 20

Total distance walked
March: 10.93 miles
April goal: 30

Exercise

I read a really interesting article yesterday, Why Exercise Won't Make You Thin. The premise is that 1) bursts of intense energy aren't enough to burn lots of calories, 2) you're more likely to indulge in high calorie foods after an intense workout, and 3) you're less likely to be active outside the gym. Aerobic exercise is great for your heart and even your mind, but it doesn't necessarily help you lose weight. What seems to be more effective is frequent activity throughout the day.

Here's where the forehead slap comes in. How many times have I said that I was at my healthiest/skinniest after I came back from Switzerland, because while I was there, I never stopped moving? Walking everywhere, chasing the kids, running up & down stairs, hanging up & taking down laundry--I rarely sat down during the day except for meals, and maybe to polish shoes or silver.

I know this stuff, intellectually. But it hasn't changed how I'm living now. I am very sedentary. I spend most of my time on the computer, reading, or watching TV at night. So now I'm trying to be more active even while I'm at home. I did three loads of laundry yesterday, and instead of having the kids take the clothes from the washer to the dryer (they're on opposite sides of the basement--don't ask) and bring the dry laundry upstairs, I did it solo. Instead of not going downstairs for days on end, I'm going to make it a goal to go up and down the stairs at least three times a day (and actually work down there on those trips--bonus!). It's still too cold for outside walks, so I'll try to do 15 - 20 minutes on the Wii twice each day, instead of just once. I'm not as concerned with intensity as I am with frequency and total time.

Spaghetti Dinner

Every year, our church's youth group hosts a spaghetti dinner as their big mission trip fundraiser. Ever year is a different theme; this year was "International Night." Sarah took India--no surprise there!

The servers are all the teens in the youth group, and they work really hard. Sarah got there at 8AM and didn't leave until after 8PM. The spaghetti sauce is all made from scratch, with fresh parsley, basil and oregano. Stripping all those herbs took a while, even with six of us doing it!

Most of the kids did black pants and a t-shirt for their country--one of the girls at the "France" table wore a very cute beret. Luckily, we have some Hindi friends who let us have some clothes and borrow a few table decorations and jewelry. Sarah got a lot of compliments on her outfit.

There is also a paper bag raffle, where people donate items. Each item has a paper bag in front of it, and you put however many tickets in each bag. Tickets were $1 each, or 25 for $20. People brought in English Muffin Bread, puzzles, books, pies, tote bags, handmade pillowcases, a gift certificate for a massage, framed art, a tv, and several movie night baskets. Since I am thoroughly behind the eight ball this year, Sarah made a batch of fudge on Friday night, and we threw a cookbook in with it in a cute Easter basket. We ended up winning it ourselves! But when some friends of ours at our table had said that they'd put in for it as well, I happily passed it on, because more fudge in this house is NOT what I need right now. Some other friends of ours won both of the homemade Polish sausages, so they let us have one. It's in the freezer now, waiting for me to figure out what to do with it.

So after a salad with Ceasar dressing, a plate of spaghetti I couldn't begin to finish, and some truly decadent desserts (Sarah made Halava, which was good, but had enough leftovers for her to have for breakfast) , my weight is up a little this morning. Which is fine by me--unlike my McDonald's breakfast of a few weeks ago, it was all totally worth it. My motto is, "everything in moderation, including moderation!"

Oh, and the youth group raised about $2200! W00t!

A Tale of Two Soups

Or rather, two soup recipes. Both Cook Yourself Thin Faster and Cook's Illustrated Best Light Recipe have recipes for Corn Chowder. I was looking for something to go with hamburgers for dinner last night, and that sounded good to me.

The recipes included many of the same ingredients, but had several differences as well. Both started with one slice of bacon. CYT had no dairy at all; CI had over a cup of milk and half & half. CYT used water; CI used chicken broth. CYT's version was 104 calories per serving; CI's was 400. Since this was a side dish instead of a main course (and the main course was hamburgers), I wanted something lighter.

So, being unable to resist tweaking a recipe, I did pretty much my own thing, and it turned out ok. Not fabulous, but a good starting point. I think that making this next September, when I can get fabulous fresh corn and the nights are maybe cooling down a bit, will be the best time for this soup. Frozen corn worked, but it just isn't the same.

I used the bacon (of course!), and water, but also added a bit of Veggie Better Than Bullion and cream I had in the fridge. I know it added calories, but I think anything called a "chowder" really needs dairy in it. Sure, pureeing half the soup did thicken it, but nothing can take the place of that creamy unctuousness.

Want to make some?
Simple Corn Chowder
- bacon 1 slice
- shallot 2 oz
- potato 5 oz
- broth 4 cups
- corn 16 oz
- half & half 1/4 c
- salt, pepper, thyme

Slice the bacon and fry in a large saucepan. When crisp, remove from the pan and reserve. Saute the shallot in the bacon drippings. Dice the potato and add to the shallots. Add broth and simmer until potatoes are softened, about 15 minutes. Add corn and cook five more minutes. Remove about half the soup and use an immersion blender (or regular blender) to puree the rest. Add the cream and let warm through, but do not boil. Season with salt, pepper and thyme. Sprinkle the reserved bacon on top. Makes six servings, about 1 cup each, 175 calories each.

I had two bowls last night; everyone else had one. There is about a serving left over, which I'll have for lunch with a little leftover ham & extra corn to beef it up a little.

New Food Reviews

The family has had to deal with a lot more new food than usual lately. Here's the lowdown.

Ham & 13 bean soup: went over about as anticipated. Everyone ate the requisite one bowl, and I've been eating the leftovers. I don't mind; I liked it, though I think it could have used more vegetables. Next time, I'd make half the beans and double the veg for a batch.

Sara Moulton’s Orecchiette (er, Macaroni) with Broccoli and Chickpeas: not well received at all. Even I didn't think much of it, but that could be that there was too much tomato (I used a big can instead of a small one) and we'd just had mostaccioli the night before. There are lots of leftovers. We've used up some of them by taking out the broccoli, adding some bok choy and chicken broth, and making a kind of soup. I think it would have been better without the tomato & broccoli, and with some other flavors instead. Leftovers for me this week, because I'm trying to use food up.

Mostaccioli: always popular, especially when there's garlic bread. A baguette can be sliced thinly, and since it's a small piece, not a crazy number of calories.

Cod: I floured it and sauteed it in some butter. Both Sarah & Jeff said it tasted buttery, but I thought it had the most delicious fish flavor, like the inside part of really good fish and chips. Looking forward to more cod recipes, especially since it's supposed to be very heart healthy.

Haven't done the Moors & Christians yet. I'm soaking the beans now, and will throw them in the crockpot before we go to church. I'll use as much as I want tonight, but there is so much other food in the house, I'm not going to push them on the rest of the family. The rest of the cooked beans will go in the freezer.

Twice Baked Potatoes: A lot of the ingredients here were a concession for Sarah. Bacon instead of ham, mozzarella instead of cheddar, and spinach instead of broccoli. She thought they were ok, Lauren didn't care for them, but Jeff & I thought they were pretty good. I used the link above as inspiration, but changed it up a bit. Four big potatoes, 8 slices of bacon, a small shallot, a half a cup of milk, no butter, a bunch of spinach, wilted, and 8 oz of part skim mozzarella. I baked the potatoes in the crockpot, and finished them under the broiler, which worked out well. Will definitely make again.

The hockey game last night was fun (Lauren now wants to play hockey next year--we'll see if she remembers this come August), but it wasn't a healthy day for me, despite staying within calories. Almost no fruits or veg. I'll make up for it today. I can't wait for summer fruits to come in season. I'm getting bored with apples, grapes and bananas.

Dinners this coming week include IHOP for Lauren's birthday. I'll have to get requests for meals, and try to include some family favorites instead of so many new things. Sadly, biscuits & gravy will not be on the menu for a while.

I'm looking forward to . . .

. . . being able to get my wedding ring on again (hopefully by the end of the month, definitely by Easter).

. . . being able to dive to the bottom of the deep end of Greg's pool to retrieve swim toys (maybe by the end of August, definitely by June '12).

. . . being able to run through a cold parking lot to get into the warm store (not till next December, hopefully!).

. . . having a family portrait done (next fall, no later than early November).

. . . digging out some of my favorite clothes (next fall/winter).

. . . going for early morning walks that last an hour (this depends on both the weather and my building stamina--shooting for the beginning of May).

As of today, I'm 26 pounds closer to these goals.

How Much is Too Much?

I've been really dedicated to healthier eating since the beginning of February. Lately, I've started adding exercise. My doctor told me to shoot for 1500 calories/day. I've generally been able to do that, though some days are higher and some days it's actually hard to find enough calories. Since then, I've lost 23 pounds. That's good, right? Hmmm . . . maybe too good?

I've heard that your target calories should be 10x your target weight. According to BMI statistics, I should weigh 175. I can say from experience that at 175 pounds, I would look and feel unhealthy. When I came back from Switzerland (now that was a healthy, active lifestyle!), I weighed about 190 or so, I think. When I got married, I was at about 220, which was pretty good for me (bear in mind I'm close to six feet tall and pretty curvaceous, even at lower weights).

So maybe I should be shooting for between 1800 & 2000 calories a day. But 1500 isn't difficult at all, at least most days. And I'm losing really well so far (averaging 1.35% of my total body weight lost per week). I know that when you have a lot to lose, you lose more rapidly at first. I certainly don't expect to be able to maintain 23 pounds every six weeks.

So if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Right?

But I can't shake this feeling like it's too easy, too fast. Am I justifying something that is unhealthy? Or am I just overthinking it and making it harder than it has to be?

Cheap, Healthy, Good

Cheap, Healthy, Good is one of my favorite blogs. It's challenging for me to come up with meals that fit all three criteria, and I get lots of good ideas there. But when one member of the family can't have poultry, another doesn't like (most) meat or beans or cheese, when sodium and calories are issues, and cost is a big issue, it's a little daunting some nights.

That said, we don't do too badly. We all like a wide variety of vegetables, especially salads. Stir fries are a great way to have a lot of vegetables and make a bit of meat go a really long way. We do reasonably well with soups (most of the leftovers go for my lunches, though). I'm starting to do more meatless main dishes, including beans.

• Tonight's dinner is a ham & 13 bean soup.
  
• Tomorrow is miscellaneous, since only two of us will be home, and there are lots of leftovers around.
  
• Tuesday, I'm going to try Sara Moulton’s Orecchiette (er, Macaroni) with Broccoli and Chickpeas. I have a can of chickpeas, but I got a package of the dried variety, and I'm going to give those a try. Any I don't need for the recipe will go in the freezer, to be happily added to my salads & soups as I go.
  
• Wednesday is mostaccioli with a little Italian sausage and a lot of vegetables.
  
• Thursday is something with a bit of cod currently in the freezer (suggestions? there's only 3/4 pound). This is the night Jeff always has Mongolian Barbecue for lunch, and brings home leftovers for his dinner. If I make chicken, it's usually on a Thursday. If I can't think of anything else, I'll fry up the fish with some chips for the kids, and have some leftover soup myself. Kind of low on the "Healthy" continuum, though.
  
• Friday is Moors & Christians (aka black beans & rice--we'll get a little history in there, too!)
• Saturday we're going to a hockey game. The ticket includes a hot dog or slice of pizza, neither of which sounds all that appealing to me, so I'm not sure what I'll eat. I'm also working registration at a Homeschooling Fair (gets me in for free and I get early entry to the used book sale, woot!), so chances are I'll have a big salad for lunch and scarf the pizza for dinner. Once in a while, a splurge totally works for me.

De-Stress

Confession: I'm a stress eater. I eat when I'm stressed or bored. Carbs are my method of choice. Carbs, that is, that are loaded with fat & salt. Rice, potatoes, bread--I can eat huge amounts. Butter is a welcome accompaniment.

I used to walk my stress off, though, which actually was more effective. Eating really doesn't make me feel better once the food is gone. If I walk long enough, I will feel better.

Example: at my last full time job, at a major auto company that shall remain nameless but rhymes with "bored," my boss made me crazy on a regular basis. It got so that I would walk around the outside of the building just so I could stand the sight of him. One time, I was headed back into the building when I realized that I was still ready to kill him. I did another round, and when I came back, I was truly calm again.

I used to love going for walks in the mornings. The quiet was a huge bonus back then. I've been feeling the urge to walk again now that I'm eating better, but it's cold out there! And snowy and icy and some of the sidewalks are flooded.

As we say around here, "Suck it up, buttercup."

I went for a walk with the kids this afternoon. Lauren took her scooter, and we did have to cross the street once to avoid a small lake, but we were gone for half an hour, which was really nice.

Our forecast is for rain/snow later this week, but my goal is to get out for a walk at least twice more. I love my umbrella, so why not? It can't do anything but make life better.

Good Value

I like to plan out my meals. Since I'm keeping a sharp eye on calories, I can tweak how much I plan to eat at different times of day.

Last night, I figured the calories on my mom's pancake recipe, and it wasn't too bad, so I told Lauren we'd have pancakes & strawberries for breakfast.

When I woke up, the power was out. When Lauren woke up, the power was out. When we left to go to her cookie booth, the power was still out. Neither of us had eaten. Could we have made peanut butter sandwiches or figured out something else? Sure. But I really wanted to leave the refrigerator closed to keep all the cold air in in hopes that power would come back on soon.

Our options were limited; we stopped at McDonald's. In general, fast food isn't an appealing choice for me, at least intellectually. Sometimes I WANT A BURGER AND FRIES. But in general, I'd rather avoid it if I can.

We each had a sausage biscuit and I also got her a hash browns. I had no idea how many calories it had in it, but I figured it would be reasonable by fast food standards. When I got home (the power was back on, whew) and checked, I found that one measly sausage biscuit is 430 calories.

Are you kidding me? For that?

My whole pancakes with strawberries breakfast was only going to clock in at 425, and that included butter and a glass of milk! Yeah, it was tasty, but it took me just a few minutes to inhale it. I would much rather have had something more substantial for that same number of calories.

I'm really careful when I shop for food, to make sure I get the most for my money. I need to be just as careful to make sure I get as much ka-pow for my calories as bang for my buck.

SUPER Yum

Now that I'm eating more healthfully, I'm passing on the super greasy hash browns and fried eggs for breakfast. I'm much more likely to have loaded oatmeal (brown sugar & apples) or loaded scrambled eggs (ham, green onions, red peppers, cheese). Lots of food, really tasty.

But sometimes it's nice to have a treat, a splurge. I bought Cook's Illustrated Best Light Recipe a few years ago, but never used it that much. Their recipe for Cinnamon Rolls looked really good, so I decided to give it a try this morning.

Quick Cinnamon Rolls with Buttermilk Icing

Filling:

• 1/3 cup brown sugar
  
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp cloves
• 1/8 tsp salt

Dough

• 2 1/2 cups AP flour
  
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 3 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled
  

Glaze

• 3 Tbsp light cream cheese
• 2 Tbsp buttermilk
  
• 3/4 cup powdered sugar

1. Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Spray an 8-inch-square baking pan and a wire rack with the vegetable oil spray; set aside.

2. For the filling: Mix all the ingredients together; set aside.

3. For the dough: Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk and 2 tablespoons of the melted butter together. Stir the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until the liquid is absorbed (the dough will look very shaggy), about 30 seconds. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface and kneed until just smooth and no longer shaggy, about 30 seconds.

4. Pat the dough with your hands into a 12 by 9-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the remaining tablespoon of melted butter. Sprinkle evenly with the filling, leaving a 1/2-inch border of plain dough around the edges. Press the filling firmly into the dough. Using a bench scraper or metal spatula, loosen the dough from the work surface. Starting at the long side, roll the dough, pressing lightly, to form a tight log. Pinch the seam to seal. Roll the log seam-side down and cut it evenly into 9 pieces with dental floss. With your hand, slightly flatten each piece of dough to seal the open edges and keep the filling in place.

5. Arrange the rolls in the prepared baking dish (3 rows of 3 rolls). Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for about 12 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until the edges of the rolls are golden brown, 12-14 minutes longer.

6. Use an offset metal spatula to loosen the rolls from the pan. Wearing oven mitts, place the greased rack over the pan and flip the rolls onto the rack. Let the rolls cool for 5 minutes before icing.

7. To ice the rolls: While the rolls are cooling, line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper (for easy cleanup). Set the rack of cooling rolls over the baking sheet. Whisk the cream cheese and buttermilk together in a large nonreactive bowl until thick and smooth (the mixture will look like cottage cheese at first). Sift the confections' sugar over the mixture; whisk until a smooth glaze forms, about 30 seconds. Spoons the glaze evenly over the rolls.

The lowdown on how it went:

• I don't have an 8" square pan, so I used a shallow oval baking dish.
• My cutting board is exactly 9x13, which helped with rolling out the dough to the perfect size.
  
• It is a very wet, "shaggy" dough, and I did need to use a fair bit of flour, on the board and on my hands, and it did still stick to the board a little, but not too bad.
  
• I also didn't really roll them up tightly enough, so they were a little loosey-goosey in the cutting (I didn't bother with the dental floss, and just used a butter knife). When I lifted them off the cutting board to put them in the pan, a fair bit of the filling did fall out. I took care of that be just pouring everything left on the board on top of the rolls in the pan.
  
• I didn't have tin foil, so I put a baking sheet on top for the first 12 minutes. They came out of the pan easily, and I separated them before drizzling the glaze over the top.
• They aren't super huge, but they aren't skimpy, either. It's actually a really nice portion.
  
• Total time was about an hour from when I walked into the kitchen to when I poured the glaze.
• 280 calories and 4.5 grams of fat.

WOW. So tasty, quick and easy. These are going into steady rotation around here. The kids went crazy for them, but Jeff isn't big on sweets in the morning, so he didn't have any. I only had one, and sent the leftovers to my Dad & Sharon with the kids.

Hat Girl

For Sarah's birthday, we went to The Henry Ford. We all had a great time, as always, though we almost missed the Rosa Parks Freedom Bus. Jeff & I agreed that since we hadn't seen it anywhere, it must have been a temporary exhibit. We told her that the easiest way to settle it was to ask a docent, who happily told her that it was just on the other side of a wall not too far away. So there, Mom & Dad! (no, she didn't really say that, but I bet she thought it)

Since it happened to be a free admission day, we told her she could get something small from the gift shop. She almost got a t-shirt with "When you can do the common things of life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world." George Washington Carver on it, but eventually went for a Union Civil War soldier's cap.

That girl and hats. Last year, on her Girl Scout trip to Mackinac, she got a coonskin cap. The leaders assured me that it was faux, and yes, you can tell that the cap itself is synthetic, but I swear you can feel bones in the tail part. (shudder) When she was about 3, I did a whole page in her scrapbook of her in various hats. Many of my favorite pictures are of her in hats.

On the way home, I said, "I don't think Sarah's going to be a doctor when she grows up. (a frequently voiced ambition when she was younger) I don't think she's going to be a doctor, or a minister, or a botanist, or a baker. I think she's going to be a milliner." After a discussion of what a milliner does, she responded, "I'm not going to be a milliner. I'm going to be a minister . . . who likes hats."

Almost Perfect

Now THAT lived up to expectations.

I just finished a really good, filling lunch. I cut up some ginger and a couple cloves of garlic, and sauteed in a tablespoon of olive oil (yes, I measured). After a minute, I threw in a chopped scallion, some chopped red pepper, and the last of the steamed green beans, also chopped. I let it saute for a minute, then added a tablespoon of brown sugar and one of soy sauce. I put a lid on and let it steam for a bit, then took the lid off and added a cup of leftover cooked rice (it turned out very dry, almost like takeout rice, but I'm not sure why), and turn the heat up full power. I could barely hear anything else above the sound of sizzling. Let it go for a few minutes, then turned into a bowl and devoured it. The only thing that would have made it perfect would have been a few shrimp. But for 430 calories, it worked very nicely for today.

Kind of a Letdown

I've heard so much about roasted curried cauliflower, and been really eager to try it. Maybe it's that nothing could live up to my expectations, but it was just . . . ok. Jeff & Sarah both rated it a "B," Lauren didn't like it at all, and I would have given it a "C." The only part I really liked were the roasted almonds. I think most of us would be willing to eat it again, but no one would look forward to. That's not something I'm going to put into heavy rotation around here.

Tonight, it's Catch & Kill Night. That means there is a fridge full of leftovers that need to get used up in some way. Find something you want, make it, eat.

More Yum

Dinner last night was minestrone soup and focaccia. I liked it more than anyone else, but--as usual--homemade bread is a powerful encouragement. Leftovers are for lunch.

I didn't use a recipe for the soup, just sauteed onions, garlic, carrots, onions & celery in a little olive oil, added some broth, a can of white beans, a can of tomatoes, half a package of frozen spinach (I'm going to try to make Hot Pockets some time this week, too), and a half a cup of Ditalini pasta. Also a little Better Than Bullion Vegetarian and Italian seasonings. I usually put Italian Sausage in as well, but I'm trying to cook meat-free a little more frequently.

The focaccia was good, but not as fabulously crispy as the one my SIL makes--I'm pretty sure she uses a lot more olive oil, and that's obviously not a road I can travel too far down.

Tonight, I'm kind of at a loss. Maybe chili, maybe pork chops or stir fry.

LIfe is Too Short . . .

. . . to eat boring food.

Going back to the doc Friday went about as expected--I had lost a little weight, but my blood pressure was still up a little too high. So the gauntlet was thrown down. She said that she wanted me back in another month, and if I hadn't lost some weight, etc. it was meds for me. She gave me a subscription for a water pill in the meantime, which I can tolerate because I know it's short term. Anyone who knows me knows that I avoid pills when I can. So consider me motivated.

Part of being motivated is trying to remember what I used to make myself for lunches. I can figure out dinners for the whole family, but lunches give me different options. The only two things I could remember were Cold Sesame Noodles and Spanish Rice (which includes lots of veggies). It was kind of frustrating. I remember that I used to eat really tasty lunches when I did Weight Watchers last time.

So I spent some time this afternoon looking through some recipes I've saved and the archives at Cheap Healthy Good. I've also started thumbing through my copy of The Best Light Recipe. And I have to say, I'm really getting excited about food again! The thing is, I like a much greater variety of foods than the rest of my family. Dinners are fairly standard, but since lunches are just for me, I can make whatever I want.

The possibilities are endless! Black beans, garbanzos, quinoa, tuna in tomatoes--the sky's the limit!

I tried two new recipes tonight, both based on Barefoot Contessa recipes. Roasted Broccoli and Roasted Butternut Squash. They both did use some oil, but not a lot. They were reasonably popular, and will certainly be made again.

I still long for carbs & fat in great measure. Birthday season has begun, and that brings a lot of decadent stuff with it. But I'm looking forward to eating stuff that is tasty and healthier. Vive le Yum!

HWoC Saturday

Today, had steel cut oatmeal w/brown sugar & raisins for breakfast, a roast beef sandwich w/a slice of mozzarella & light mayo for lunch, and Roast Pork Loin with Garlic & Rosemary and baked sweet potatoes for dinner. Water to drink. No snacks.

Boring. Boring, boring, BORING. The roast is always good, and I love baked sweet potatoes, but I before that I was standing around the kitchen, trying to forget about the caramel apple dip in the refrigerator. I really wanted some coffee or tea or some other hot thing when we came in from running a couple of errands in the blizzard. We didn't get to Randazzo's because of said blizzard, so I'll have to wait to get some more produce. I might have some grapes tonight.

Boring.

Healthy Week of Cooking

Semi-inspired by the Crazy Week of Sewing from a few years ago.

This week, I'm going to keep track of everything I eat. For accountability's sake, I will post here daily. Everything. What this means is that since I'll have to "fess up," I'll be a lot more likely to stay away from junk food of all kinds.

What brought this on? My blood pressure this morning. It was 176/100. That is just crazy high, especially considering that I've never had blood pressure issues before. The doc gave me a week to see if it was just an aberration. So it's no caffeine and no extra salt for me this week. Oatmeal for breakfast. Lean lunches & dinners, including soups. Tomorrow, we're finally going to pick up the Wii Fit we've been talking about for a month.

Tonight, I had half an avocado and a French Dip Sandwich. Probably a little too much salt, now that I think of it. And definitely not enough vegetables, but I still feel a little crappy, and the price of fruits & veg at Meijer was appalling. I'll hit Randazzo's tomorrow and we'll be in good shape.

Homesick

"I need a vacation," a friend of mine said the other day. I agreed with her--she does need a vacation. I do, too, preferably someplace toasty warm where I can listen to waves hitting a beach.

The ironic thing is, I get vacations fairly regularly. We've been to Florida almost half a dozen times. Last year, we went to Washington D.C. There's a chance we'll go to New Orleans this year (all these relate to relatives in Florida in some way). But every time we plan a trip, a little voice inside my head whispers, "You're never going to get back to Idaho. Never." (The voice also whispers that I'll never get back to Switzerland, but I've kind of resigned myself on that point.)

We started going to the Diamond D when I was about 9 or 10. Idaho can be blamed for the camera that is always in my hand, even now: the first summer we went, I fell in love with the mountains; the second summer, I brought drawing paper (and discovered that I have no talent for drawing); the third summer, I brought my first camera, and the rest is history.

How does this relate to my previous comment that a planetarium made me homesick? No, not the laser light show you might expect (that was in Salt Lake City, anyway). It was the projection of the night sky. All those stars, stars you don't even imagine can exist when you live in a city. The first summer we were at the ranch, I saw a sky so full of stars that it was downright surreal. Sitting in the chair at Wayne State on Monday, looking up at the projections of stars on the ceiling, reminded me of that summer night back in the 70's so strongly it was almost painful.

So why haven't I gone back to Idaho in 20 years? Why haven't I shown my family real mountains, my old house, the diner where I had my first dish washing job, the chapel where my Dad & Stepmom got married, and skies so blue they look airbrushed? $. $$$. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. The benefit of our previous vacations is that they are relatively short, and we can stay with relatives most of the time. An Idaho trip is inherently longer, and would be all motels. There's also the cost of gas & food. I think the last time we were thinking about it, we figured it would cost about $3K. And that's if we didn't stay at the Diamond D! If we're that close, I'd also want to hit Yellowstone, and Jeff thinks that's close enough to Denver to catch a Colorado Rockies game. That kind of income is not currently disposable, if you get my drift.

Don't get me wrong; I love Michigan. It's gorgeous here, especially in the fall, especially if you get out of the city. Almost all our family is here. There are so many opportunities and events here. I've said that if I could live anywhere, it would be Michigan.

But. I do ache to go back, if only for a visit. It is sometimes depressing to look out at nothing but flat city. It is always frustrating when friends send me pictures of snowy mountains. I just don't see how I'm going to home anytime soon.

Edit: Amy's comment made me realize that I left one important thing out of this post, one thing that Idaho has that no place else does, no matter how beautiful that other place may be or how brightly the stars may shine. Idaho has Pat, one of my best friends ever, who is still friends with me even though I keep talking about coming out to see him and never follow through.

Buncha Sissies

DeathStorm! Snowpocalypse! Run! Run for your lives!

Girl, please. I know the roads are slippery and there have been a lot of accidents. Drifts are nothing to mess with, and that wind is bad. I feel for anyone who has to be out on the roads, and I'm very happy and grateful that my family can stay home today.

But this level of panic, again, is just ridiculous. Seriously, how many times do we hear about a major storm coming in and we get relatively little snow? I've become incredibly jaded toward weather casters. I know predicting snowfall is an inexact science, but I really wonder if these guys know what they're doing.

Now, Idaho. Idaho gets snow. I have a picture of my dad on the roof of our house when I was in college, up to his hips in snow. With a shovel. Because that's what you do in Idaho. You get on the roof and shovel the snow off so it doesn't collapse. Because you get a lot of snow.

One time we drove north to Stanley. We stopped on Galena summit to eat the lunch we brought with us, climbing to the top of the snowdrift at the scenic overlook. When we got to the top, we realized that we were level with the little service building there. Hell of a view, dude. Driving down into the valley, the snow was higher than the roof of the car. Road was beautifully plowed, sky was amazingly blue--it was a great day. You just couldn't see anything other than the road in front of you and the sky above.

And yes, there is an element of "when I was a kid, we had to walk 23 miles to school in the snow, uphill both ways." Whatever. That doesn't change a thing. This "2011 blizzard" is for amateurs.

Tangerine Lemon Curd

One of the blogs I visit with some regularity is Joy the Baker. About a week ago, she put up a recipe for Tangerine Lemon Curd. I am cray-cray about lemon curd, and have always wanted to try to make it, but was put off by the whole double boiler thing. Joy's recipe is super simple--throw all the ingredients in a saucepan and cook gently so as to not scramble the eggs. I liked the idea of rubbing the zest into the sugar, and I knew Sarah would have a good time doing that with her mortar & pestle.

We had a busy day yesterday (more about that tomorrow, including how a planetarium show can make me homesick), and I knew I would want to do something quick and easy for dinner. Around these parts, that means breakfast for dinner. We stopped to pick up some sausage links, eggs, and canned biscuits.

Digression: yes, I know canned biscuits can't hold a candle to homemade. I know homemade biscuits are super easy, cheaper, and don't have unpronounceable ingredients. But I also know that sometimes I don't want to dirty even one more bowl, much less take 5 minutes to measure a few ingredients and then roll out dough and cut it out. Sue me.

But I did want to try something new, and the lemon curd recipe seemed fairly straightforward. We didn't have any tangerines, so I used all lemon. I zested the lemons and put Sarah to work with the mortar & pestle. We threw everything in the saucepan and let it go, whisking pretty frequently over medium/low heat. We strained it afterward, just to make sure it would be nice and smooth, and put it on the table with the rest of dinner.

As with most new things around here, it was a qualified success. Sarah & I really liked it, Jeff & Lauren had no interest in it. That said, I see much, much more lemon curd in our futures, to say nothing of tangerine curd at Christmas and lime curd this summer. Viva la curd!