Better Together

POTUS

2012-01-26T09:50:00.002-05:00

I have never hidden the fact that I lean more toward conservatism (except on many human rights issues, i.e. gay marriage) or that I did not vote (and will not vote) for President Obama. However, this whole Governor Brewer chastising President Obama "controversy" has me thinking (see here for another article). Is the President immune from criticism? Is it disrespectful to stick up for yourself in a disagreement with the President?

Of course, social media is abuzz and I've seen several posts on facebook (from supporters of the President) calling the Governor out for being rude, disrespectful, etc. I would challenge those same people to stick up for the Office of the President when George Bush was our leader. Nonetheless, I tend to agree with the crux of their argument.

While I do not agree with many of the policies our President has enacted or supports, I have the utmost respect for the Office of the President. He (and hopefully one day, she) has a job that I do not envy and that none of us can comprehend unless there is a former President reading this lil' ol' blog (if so, hi, and call me!). I would still get a thrill out of meeting President Obama and shaking his hand. Hell, I'd love to sit down and have a beer with him and congratulate him on kicking his smoking habit and tell him how I admire the First Lady's children's health initiative. I'd love to pick his brain about why he supports certain policies and share some of my ideas, like how his "shovel ready" projects are lame-o (build big infrastructure projects that are NEEDED and employ WAY more people over a WAY longer period of time than these little jobs). And, if we disagreed, which we would, I would not back down. However, I do think any President deserves a level of respect and decorum which was not displayed by Governor Brewer.

We're really only hearing her side of the story, but based on that, I support her sticking up for herself. Just maybe don't put your finger in the President's face next time.

An Ode to my Best Friend

2012-01-19T10:51:00.002-05:00

Jenn, on your 30th year plus one day of life, I wrote an ode to you. It's also somewhat of a discourse on best friends, but anywho.

We met in college. I don't think you liked me at first. I was pretty indifferent about you, too. We had mutual friends and hung out a fair amount, but I know I didn't have your phone number. My first memory of meeting you is actually going to move your car (affectionately known as White Lightning) from the Hume lot, because I think it was a game day weekend or some nonsense like that in which those who actually reside on campus must give up all rights to football fans. The things we do in the name of SEC football.

Anyway, I digress. A few years passed by and due to circumstances somewhat beyond our control (I like to think of it as fate, or we were single and our friends were all shackin' up... I mean, even Kelly had a boyfriend!), we started to take up with each other a lot more. We quickly learned of our shared love of dive bars, $5 AYCD bourbon nights at Balls, putting Britney Spears on the juke box just to piss people off (mixed in with some good Southern rock, of course), and shaking what our mamas gave us at :08, Gator City, and Market Street. Oh yes, we really did not discriminate when it came to cheap booze and good times. I'm not sure if I was a bad influence on you or vice versa. ;)

From our late nights grew a true friendship based on much more than just bourbon. (Although, bourbon has scored me a husband and a BFF, so I do not discredit the power of the sweet honey brown liquor at all.) I mean, I moved in with you for a summer and you went and found a boyfriend (who became your husband), and I still liked you even when I was walking up to Salty Dog and drinking ~~by myself~~ with the bartender. That's saying something right there.

Since then, we've been with each other through thick and thin. Boy drama, first jobs (and subsequent jobs), roommates in the ~~ghetto~~ city, marriages, babies, attempts at babies. I miss living together and seeing you every day and giving each other massages and pulling each others' hair (we're weird... now I make Matt pull my hair sometimes). But, I love where we are in life. I love that we can share in each others' joys and sorrows, triumphs and tribulations, and all the funny little things that happen in between.

You are more than my best friend. You are my family. I love you, Matt, Madelyn, and Davis like you are my blood. You are there for me when I need you most, and at times when you should be worrying more about yourself than anyone else, you amaze me and ask how I am doing. I will never forget when I called you and you were in the hospital with horrible pain (and later gave birth to that miracle boy), and I was so concerned about you, yet you are asking me how my RE appointment went. What!? Hello!!! You are in the ER!!! But, that's just you. I also love that I know that I can tell you anything, and you won't judge. And, I know you feel the same way by the e-mail you sent me the other day. You know what I'm talking about. ;)

I don't know if everyone has a best friend in their lives like you are to me. But, I sure hope so. If not, they are sure missing out.

Cheers to 30 years. The best is yet to come! (And, by the best I mean the girls trip to NYC!!!! And the rest of it too...) :)

P.S. I promise to get the pics from your party off my camera and send them to you. Soon. :)

Oh, the pain.

2012-01-17T14:03:00.000-05:00

First of all, http://kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com/. Is she talking to me? I think so.

Anywho, ouch. WOD + projects all day = I hurt in places I didn't know I could hurt. Like the front of my neck, i.e. the muscle in front of my throat. Huh? I am assuming that soreness is a combination of going balls to the wall for three minutes doing situps (82 thankyouverymuch - but trying to pull myself up with my head, apparently) as part of yesterday's WOD and then probably crouching and craning my neck awkwardly as I attempted to strip the paint off the back of Ikea Lots mirrors (fail... but it will happen) and spray painting Ikea Ribba frames. I was wiped out yesterday, but I could not sleep last night. Combo of things on my brain (like how I need to take a week off to tackle all of my DIY projects) and sheer pain every time I moved.

In other news, our living room and dining room are painted! I got some fun things at Scott's Antique Market! I saw an example of what my antique mirror projects is going to look like (more info here), and it will be worth the effort! We surprised Jenn on Saturday night with a birthday dinner in her honor! Dai and AY came into town for said birthday dinner! Miss America was a really good pageant and they crowned a really pretty girl (congrats, Miss ~~Wisconsin~~ America... now go invest in some waterproof mascara)! Tim Tebow is still the man (Tim, call me)! I am getting my hair done after work! And, that's all the exclamation points I've got for today. :)

Back in the saddle

2012-01-10T16:51:00.000-05:00

I have a confession. I ate like crap for the last few months of the year. I was still mostly paleo, but I cheated a lot... like A LOT A LOT. And, I hadn't been to CrossFit since before Thanksgiving. Oops. But, it's a new year and I'm back in my routine. Well, I guess it's not yet a routine but I'm working on it. Got up and hit the box this morning (even after a later than normal bedtime due to the BCS title game) and I'm back to eating clean. And, it's just so silly for me not to. It's amazing the hold sugar can take on you. That stuff is addicting (and I'm not even talking desserts necessarily... but those too).

The crazy part is here we are trying to have a baby, and I KNOW that diet affects fertility. I guess I chalked it up to I was 100% strict paleo for six weeks early in the year and then still pretty hardcore for a while and it never happened. And, I can definitely tell the effects sugar has on my mental state... I get down in the dumps easily when I'm eating crap (and not working out). So sugar + unsuccessful babymaking + winter + not working out = not the happiest I've ever been, and it has nothing to do with outward appearances.

But speaking of outward appearances, my acne has also been pretty bad (or as I like to refer to it, backne). My face isn't perfectly clear, but it's generally fine. But man, my back gets these awful flare ups. I'm hoping that cleaning up my diet will help with that, since my miracle drug is off the table (and I don't believe in taking Rx for most things, yet... if it clears my skin, hell yes... vanity wins). I was perusing http://chriskresser.com/ this afternoon and found an interesting podcast on acne being related to gut issues. I don't really have any gut issues, but I might and just not know it. In any case, I'm not getting all crazy and eliminating FODMAPS (what would I eat!?), but hopefully some of the things he suggests will help.

In any case, I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you have any health issues at all, your diet may be a huge cause of them. Almost all modern disease is a result of systemic inflammation, and while changing your diet is hard, it might be easier than you think. You just have to do it. And, I'll be your biggest cheerleader!

Just What I Needed

2012-01-05T12:37:00.000-05:00

Last night I "prayed" (really, more like just putting it out into the world, because this is not something I felt the need to put on God) that we would get our appraisal back (the new one) and it would be good (i.e., what we needed... good would be to say that everything we've spent on our house has tacked on to what we paid for it). :)

BAM! Woke up this morning, checked the ol' e-mail and there it is... do I open it and possibly ruin my day? But, if it's good, then I'll have a super day. When I saw the appraised value, the heavens opened and a light shone down upon me and the choir of angels in my head began singing, "Hallelujah!" Now, we can refinance! {happy dance}

Plus, next week our new built-ins are going in, we just got a quote on painting that is excellent, Capella Kincheloe is escorting me to Scott's Antique Market to get all kinds of fun stuff for her beautiful design for our home, and I'm confident we can have it all put together by mid-February (with some hard work and $, but it can be done). Things are looking up. :)

Onward

2012-01-03T15:48:00.000-05:00

Well, hello there 2012. Where did you come from? Somewhere during recovery from our eight day "Tour de Florida" you snuck up on me. Truth be told, I was ready and up watching Dick Clark trying to catch a glimpse of my cousin who proposed to his girlfriend in Times Square (see here - scroll to 03:06:00). Love it. As a side note, he is my connection to Matt... they played rugby together at UF. :) As another side note, Nivea made them wear these hats. :)

Can I get a collective awwwww? P.S. That's Bill and Giuliana Rancic.

But, 2012 isn't exactly starting out as I'd hoped, and I was not filled with excitement or hope when the clock struck midnight. For one, I am not pregnant. Two, I have a cold. I guess things can only get better from here, right? RIGHT!?

Ugh, I can't really put my frustration into words except to say I finally broke down. Over dog food, nonetheless. (These are real issues, people... I'm quite particular about the food my dog children eat.) I just don't understand. I truly do not. And, if someone tells me to just relax and it will happen, I will dropkick you right in the damn face. I do think there's legitimacy to that, but then why didn't it happen before? And, I don't think I'm really stressed over it. Yes, it sucks. But, it does not consume me (most days). I'm pretty level headed and I am able to keep things in perspective. But, I - JUST - DON'T - GET - IT. Period. 'Tis life, I suppose.

So, we don't know what is next. That was number three for three IUI tries and we're 0-3. Well, more like 0-14 or something, I guess. All I know is the ride isn't over... I know the destination but the route is still TBD.

P.S. I had to go off my miracle acne medication when I pulled the goalie, and can I just say that God can be really cruel. (Okay, I'm just kidding... love you Big Man but for reals.) The acne stuff is a bit OOC. And, I know what will make it all better but I can't take it. But, I also can't get pregnant, so for the last 14+ months, I could have had beautifully clear skin. But instead, I've suffered through pubescent acne breakouts (mind you, I'm about to be 30) for naught. Aye.

Mr. Toad's Wild Ride

2011-12-19T16:14:00.001-05:00

That was always one of my favorite rides at Disney World. Considering I am a thrill seeker and love all things rollercoasters with big drops, I'm not sure what excited me so about a little ride on a car that was basically a stroll through a large, partitioned room with some strange scenery and a few crashes, twists, turns, and close calls. Maybe it was all in preparation for the wild ride we're now on... maybe you have to go through darkness and hell to come out the other side into the light and get off the ride.

I'm going to tell you two things that will make absolutely no sense together.

Over a year ago, when we decided to pull the goalie, I never thought I'd be where we are right now. I fully expected to get pregnant pretty much right away.
Most of my adult life, I've had this nagging feeling that I would have trouble getting pregnant.

I told you they wouldn't make sense together. I truly have always had this feeling, but when it came down to it, I very much expected to get pregnant right away. Part of me wonders if it's a self-fulfilling prophecy. The other part of me thinks it's just like many things I have feelings about, deja vu, dreams, etc. (I am kind of psychic. Not full on can read anyone's mind or anything, but I think I have more weird "psychic" things than most people. And, now you may also call me psychotic.) Here's the thing about this feeling, there is absolutely nothing in my past or health history to ever make me think this. Up until about two years ago, as far as I've known, I'm totally healthy. I did find out almost two years ago that I am subclinically hypothyroid, but it doesn't appear to have much effect on anything. I cycle normally, have a ton of eggs, etc. The only other thing is that we've found out I have low progesterone post ovulation, but there's ~~an app~~ a pill for that. So, while things aren't perfect, I should still be getting pregnant.

So, back to the ride. I don't think I'm enlightening anyone by telling you that it is such a rollercoaster of emotions. Some days I don't know my head from my ass and I'm just pissed. Other days, I feel totally hopeful and happy. Then, I'm sitting around a dinner table listening to someone say how their friends just got pregnant, friends I don't even know, and my heart drops into my stomach and does five flips. Why can't that be us they're talking about? I'm all for a good cry, but I have not even cried over our lack of pregnancy (I prefer this to infertility, as we really aren't infertile... maybe incompatible, I don't know, but not infertile). Now, when our appraisal came back way less than we expected (we're trying to refi), I almost cried. When Matt found out his project was canceled, I almost cried. But not yet about this. (P.S. God, I know You're listening... I realize you think we're really strong and stuff, and we are, but can we just have a few good years without being thrown for some sort of loop like job uncertainty or child uncertainty or family illness or death? K, thanks.)

Maybe it's because I know it will happen. I do. I don't know when, and I wish I did. That would make this a lot easier. I know that I have some control over it (treatments), but not really. We've had two IUIs with no pregnancies. I never questioned whether or not we'd do them, but I did question whether it made any difference. If I truly believe that God will give us a child when He's good and darn ready (I do), then what difference do fertility treatments make, especially for people who don't really seem to need them? But, God also gave us the knowledge and wisdom to do these things, so you have to try. This, my friends, is the roller coaster... the wild ride... of thoughts, of (over)analysis, of prayers, of emotions.

There's more to say, to explore, to overanalyze, but not today. So, I invite you on board. Buckle your seatbelts, because it's going to be a wild, bumpy ride, but I have faith that we will arrive safely to our Destination; we just might make a few sudden turns and hit a few pot holes on the way. I pray we're almost there.

And, if you want to join in this journey, may I ask for your prayers this week as we try again? Obviously, I'd love your prayers for a successful outcome and a healthy baby, but I'd also love if you'd pray for our peace and that God makes Himself known to us through this process.

Governor Deal is Incompetent

2011-12-16T15:29:00.001-05:00

That's about the nicest thing I've said about him since I found out he canceled the project Matt has been busting his ass on for the last year plus. He will be receiving a strongly worded letter from me, and while I would love nothing more that to tell him he's an idiot, I'll keep it factual without name calling.

http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/5661 - this article explains it much better than I could.

I'm happy to say that I didn't vote for him!!! Libertarian all the way, baby. Ron Paul is inching up my list too (we'll see which party he runs under after the primaries are over), but I am still a Romney fan.

Christmas Miracles

2011-12-13T12:00:00.001-05:00

I love Christmas, and I love this time of year. I love the decor, the music and reflecting on the miracle of Christ's birth. But, for whatever reason, I am just not that into it this year. I don't want to shop; I wasn't even that excited about decorating my house; I would like to bake at some point, but I probably won't. I think part of the problem is that I have too many things going on at the moment, so I don't really have time to just sit back and enjoy the magic of the Season. I literally do not want any material goods and do not have a Christmas list. I don't need anything. Matt and I are not doing gifts this year (hello kitchen renovation/finally decorating our house), so I don't have a ton to buy but I have not bought a single thing for the family. Nothing. I did manage to throw together a Christmas card last minute despite not really having any pictures of us this year (this yields a card with a very tiny picture of us and two gratuitous pictures of the doggies). :)

I think the other part is the only thing we really want for Christmas can't exactly be bought. I don't think I need to skirt around the subject with such vagueness anymore now that those close to us know. We want a child. We want children (one at a time, preferably). We've been trying to make this happen for over a year. And nada. And, there's not really an explanation for it. Which is great, because we "work" for all intents and purposes. But also extremely frustrating, because if we "work", then WTF? Is our junk incompatible. What? I know in my heart of hearts that we will have children. I truly do not doubt that. I do not believe that God would put the desire for children in our hearts if He did not intend to bless us in that way. I don't know in what form that will come... our own, adoption? I've always been open to adoption, but I do want children of our own blood too (and we certainly aren't to the adoption point yet considering the cost).

This whole "infertility" thing (I hate that term, because we are certainly not infertile) is quite the test of faith. Matt asked me one night what we'd done (as in to deserve this). I joked the other night that maybe God does hate me. Of course, we don't really believe that but sometimes you just need to say it. On the other hand, while I feel like this could push so many people away from the Lord, it's only drawn me (us, really, if I can speak for Matt) closer. I can do NOTHING but TRUST in the Lord and that His timing is perfect. I truly don't feel like I have anything without faith, hope and love. Our hearts ache for a child, but I also know that EVERYTHING will change when that happens. And, the time we spend waiting is time that we can be selfish and focus on each other. We are so lucky to have a truly amazing relationship and a very strong marriage, so I know God is working something here and making all things work together for our good (love that song). Frankly, I think God is answering a prayer in a way I would have never wanted, but nonetheless, I believe He knows what He is doing.

So, that's it. That's all we want for Christmas... a little life growing inside me. Not quite an immaculate conception, but a Christmas miracle nonetheless.

The rest of what I'm thankful for...

2011-12-01T15:21:00.000-05:00

To continue from the last post through the month of November.

17. A warm, cozy bed.
18. Cuddling.
19. A fire in the fireplace.
20. Things to look forward to.
21. Knowing what Brussels sprouts look like before they end up in a bag. Who knew!?

22. That I've never run across one of these. OMG.

A freaking huge eastern diamond back rattlesnake found not too far from where my mom lives some time ago.

23. A solid marriage. Have I mentioned that I love my husband???
24. Pageants, my guilty pleasure.
25. Being a Florida Gator... in all kinds of weather... or crappy football seasons.
26. Good wine.
27. This young man standing up for equality.
28. A good cry every now and then.
29. Chick-fil-a. I don't eat it too often, but it's usually worth the "cheat." I could really go for a cookies and cream milkshake right now.
30. James 1:2-8

Win or Lose...

2011-11-18T10:08:00.001-05:00

...we still booze. For some reason, that saying will never get old to me. Well, the Florida Gators have been on the receiving end of a lot of losses this season, but it's still great to be a Florida Gator. We headed up to Charlotte this past weekend to stay with Dai and head down to Columbia on Saturday as the Gators took on the Gamecocks in a nooner. Noon games mean the Bloody Mary was on tap at 10am. It was a fun day, even though we lost... again. :)

I really liked this rooster (I'm censoring this compared to what I wrote on facebook after some liquid courage). Had he been a hen, I would have stolen her to start my chicken coop! But, really, who brings a rooster to a bar??? I think I may have said to him, "You have a rooster? In a bar?" 10pts to name that movie. Jenn, you don't count.

Gator scarves from Dunlop McCandless. They also have Auburn, Alabama (which is my favorite one behind the Gators, of course... it's so cute), LSU, Florida State and an assortment of nice cufflinks!

Thankful

2011-11-16T10:20:00.001-05:00

A lot of people on Facebook are posting daily with the things they are thankful for through the month of November. Well, I didn't jump on that bandwagon, but I find it is always a good exercise to stop thinking about the "bad"/what you don't like in your life/what you're missing/etc. and focus on all of the things you have been blessed by. So, here goes my catch up through today...

The grace, love, redemption, and providence of God and our Savior.
My husband. I truly look at him on a daily basis and thank God for him.
My family (immediate and extended). We aren't perfect, but we stick together!
My girlfriends. I have the BEST friends you could ask for. Their support, love, encouragement and humor always astound me. Just yesterday, Jenn sent me a text message that made me cry I was laughing so hard. Man, I love her.
The men and women who have and continue to serve our country, giving us the freedom we enjoy.
Our jobs. Even when Matt is working 12+ hour days and even though I am having a quarter-life crisis and don't really like my job that much, I am so thankful to be employed.
The roof over our heads and the means to make it a home that we love (thanks to the talent of Capella Kincheloe - stay tuned).
That not only do I never have to worry about going hungry, we are able to eat delicious and nutritious foods to sustain our bodies.
Perspective.
Faith and hope.
My inlaws, who I can't wait to see next week! It's been too long. And, going to Mama Kath's means that I am going to be very fat and happy. Yum. :)
My health and that of my family's. We just had someone beat cancer and another scare it the eff away. And, Davis' heart is looking really good. Praise God!
My doggies. This Monday will mark a year since we adopted them. Sometimes I want to drop kick them, but man I love them.
That Maddie let me hold her like a baby last night... one big, hairy baby. It was so cute... she just laid there and let me cradle her (belly up) in my lap and did not want to leave.
Coffee.
Being able to travel, even if it's just a quick weekend road trip to Charlotte.

Let's see what the rest of the month brings! What are you thankful for today?

P.S. I've seen this quote many times, but I love it. "What if the only things you had today were what you thanked God for yesterday?" Ponder that.

Proud Big Sister Alert

2011-11-14T09:30:00.003-05:00

My little sister makes me proud all the time, whether it's making and selling her own line of jewelry (B. Envy), acing her dental hygiene classes or just being the nice girl that she is. But, today I am proud of her for trying out and making the Jacksonville Sharks Dance Team! As mentioned previously, she tried out totally last minute with almost no preparation but worked hard to learn all of the dances, got her flexibility back, figured out she could still tumble and made it! I think this will be so fun for her and is a great way to stay in shape while doing something she'll enjoy!

My mom and her boyfriend's parents have already said they are buying season tickets! Haha. Matt and I will definitely head down for a game or two... one of my alltime favorite Gators, Chris Leak, is their new QB! So, I have two reasons to support the team.

You can see her in the below video at 0:03, wearing a red sports bra w/ blonde curls blowing a kiss to the camera, then again at 0:43-0:47 doing her routine and then at the end, third from the left on the bottom row. Ain't she cute?

And, here are the 2012 Shark Attack Dancers! (Brandi is on the bottom row, third from the left - let's not discuss my jealousy of her body. :) Thanks.)

Vacay in photos

2011-11-09T15:04:00.001-05:00

I wonder if we will have as many photos of our dogs once we have kids. It's a bit ridiculous. These pictures pretty much sum up what we did on our vacation... went to the beach, ate, relaxed, fished. There's not much else to say. It was amazing.

lazy day... spoiled girl.

these crabs were at least 20 feet away... love our camera

scallops + steak + crab cakes + baked potato + asparagus = well fed

gone fishin' - we caught at least 70 fish between 4 of us, kept 56 (mostly trout)... and did not take one picture of the fish... oops

family pic

the love of my life

two tennis balls = talent. see also: typical, hoarder.

riding the wave to shore

my second favorite picture from our vacay

my most favoritest photo from vacay. love those dogs.

Successful Weekend

2011-11-07T14:21:00.000-05:00

Two shout outs.

First, to my friend Jamie Dragon for winning Miss Vermont USA on her 7th try! Lucky #7!!! Everything happens in perfect timing and this was just always meant to be. She is an amazing person inside and out, and I am so so so so so glad she finally got to experience her winning moment. Now on to Miss USA!!!!!!!!! Woohoo! (Side note: I bawled like a baby at the first picture I got to see of her taking her victory walk. I am a complete sap. I met Jamie because the pageant messageboard I moderate, Pageant Central - www.voy.com/208387/, sponsored her as our Miss Pageant Central this year, providing her with a ton of amazing sponsors to make her dream come true... and it could not have happened to a better person. She is GOLDEN and beautiful inside and out!)

Winning reaction! So happy.

Love this. One of the girls on the left (in the audience w/ her mouth open) was who nominated Jamie for Miss Pageant Central and she's a former Miss VT USA who I also know.

Right after crowning.

A little help from photoshop and voila, the state crown on her MPC headshot. :)

Also, to my sister, Brandi, for making it to the finals of the Jacksonville Sharks dance team tryouts! You can see her in this video at 0:52-0:56. I also spied her in some of the group dance segments. Brandi is not really a dancer, but she's as cute as can be and they are also looking for some girls with gymnastics ability, which you can see she has from the video. Finals are Saturday, and I wish I could be there to cheer her on! Go Brando!

Happy Fall Y'all

2011-10-31T15:05:00.000-04:00

Imagery courtesy of God. Pictures courtesy of the iPhone.

Dreams

2011-10-28T14:18:00.001-04:00

A dream is a wish your heart makes... when you're fast asleep.
In dreams you will lose your heartaches... whatever you wish for, you keep.
Have faith in your dreams, and someday, your rainbow will come smiling through.
No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dreams that you wish will come true.

That Cinderella knew what she was talking about. (Except for those weird, inexplicable dreams... in those cases, I'm calling her bluff.)

I don't wannnnnnnnnnnnaaaaaaaa

2011-10-24T13:53:00.002-04:00

Return to reality, that is. We spent 7.5 glorious days here and I want to go back and pretend that I don't have bills to pay and boring stuff like that. The dogs were nonetoohappy to return, and neither were we.

I received an e-mail from Matt around lunchtime with the following message.

Subject: St. George Island

Just think, this time last week we were eating oysters and grouper while drinking a cocktail and looking out at the gulf. Now I’m eating a sandwich with pretzels while drinking water and looking at a monitor.

{le sigh}

Some iPhone photos until I upload the rest from the cameras... be warned, lots of dogs fetching tennis balls on the beach coming your way.

Good morning, SGI.

Finally, a photo of the two of us.

Spoiled. (And loving life.)

bathtime

so happy

him too

10" of rain = a very relaxing day

Not bad.

Apalach sunset.

Windy day on the Bay.

SGI sunset.

breakfast (made by moi)

Crazy little thing called life

2011-10-12T14:06:00.000-04:00

Please keep praying for Davis. Things are "good" right now, but they can change so quickly. It is really still amazing and unbelievable to me that this is happening. To my best friend. And her family. These things don't happen to people you love. But, they do. And, I know that God is the ultimate Healer and believe that He can and will heal Davis, so that he grows up big and strong and with an amazing testimony.
Sewing Roman shades... waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay harder than I thought it would be. Maybe I'll get them done by the end of the month? And, I'm pretty sure they are not going to look so great down, so I might insititute a shades up at all times rule. :) Thankfully, they are on the side of our house and one of them is for a window that's been "naked" since living here, so whatevs.

Maddie "helping" me sew.

We were in Charlotte this weekend for one of my best friend's SURPRISE 30th birthDAI parties. AY wins husband of the year for that one. She was (in her own words as captured on video) "so so so so SO surprised." It was way fun and I want to move to "Camelot" to live with them. :)

The ladies celebrating our dear friend, Dai!

After you've prayed for Davis, if you wouldn't mind saying a little prayer for me, I'd appreciate it. God will know the reason. :)
My mom was asking me for a recent picture of Matt and me and I do not have one. That's sad. Plan to remedy that soon.
Did you know that Pottery Barn offers a 10% "new move" discount? Something to that effect. I just purchased a sofa (the kitchen remodel has extended into finally just decorating the house so we can stop saying, "when we do {insert home improvement project or decorating}..."), and being the bargain shopper I am, I tried to get any available discounts. So, maybe we didn't just move, but it is the sofa we're buying for our new(ish) home, just two years later.
We've got some much needed R&R coming up and I cannot wait.
PRAY FOR DAVIS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Visual Interest

2011-10-04T15:03:00.000-04:00

I'm going to wait until it's completely done, rug in, curtains hung, etc. before posting any more photos BUT I had to let you see a little sneak peak of what kept us busy all weekend. Tile saw + Kristin = BFF. It's not grouted or caulked yet, but isn't she beautiful?

P.S. On a much less superficial note, I went to the hospital last night to see Jenn, Matt and sweet Davis. He is hanging in there... such a strong little guy. No news is good news, and while as of yesterday, his heart "looked" the same on the echo, his vitals were very good. Praying that the worst is over and that God heals him completely.

Need your prayers

2011-10-03T13:05:00.001-04:00

Please pray for my best friend, Jenn's, baby boy Davis. He has been in the hospital being treated for bacterial meningitis for 11 days (since he was 6 days old). Things were looking good, and then they took a turn for the worse. Maybe Wednesday or Thursday, the test came back positive for enterovirus, but the doctors still thought he may have bacterial meningitis because of the numbers, so they (thankfully) kept him to keep treating him prophylatically (not too much you can do for viral). Long story short, he started having cardiovascular and respiratory issues on Friday night, because the virus started attacking his heart. He's had to go through a host of tests and go on even more drugs to help his heart function. They need to stop and reverse the damage. Since they began treatment, he has not gotten worse but they have only seen a little improvement. The doctor is encouraged, but it's not as much improvement as they'd hope to see.
I know that God is the ultimate Healer and that He can do anything. I am praying to Him for full healing of Davis and strength, hope and faith for his parents, family and friends. I believe God will heal Davis and that he will have an amazing testimony to share about the prayers and love poured out for him and his family at the beginning of his life.

Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
-Mark 11:24

Mission 365

2011-09-30T14:16:00.000-04:00

You should read my friend Jenny's blog. Here are the reasons:
1. She is awesome.
2. She is awesome.
3. She is awesome.

Did I mention that she is awesome? She said good riddance to corporate America and headed down under to explore a new life. I was perusing through some of the photos she took in San Francisco a few months ago and saw that we had taken many of the same pictures. However, hers were SO.MUCH.BETTER. It wasn't the clarity or anything like that, she just has a much more creative eye than I, therefore the composition of her pictures really captures your attention.

Her blog is a documentary of her journey abroad and her mission to break out her camera and take at least one picture per day for 365 days. Besides the beautiful eye candy that her images present, she's also a great writer. And, at this very moment, I pretty much want to throw caution to the wind and go join her on her journey. Except I'd really miss my husband. And my dogs. And college football season. Maybe in the spring. ;)

Vive la Jenny!

Swift Kick in the Butt

2011-09-20T10:16:00.001-04:00

There have been a few things (one in particular) that have been weighing heavily on me in my personal life lately. I have been praying a lot... asking God for what I want and asking Him to help me be content with what I have. Literally, just in the last maybe 30 minutes, I was petitioning Him with all I have for contentment. And then He gave me a swift kick in the a*s. Just got some news that is beyond devastating for someone I know and another reminder of how fragile, precious and short life can be. It's like He said, "Snap out of it, girl. Your life has a plan and a purpose and it will happen in MY time and according to MY plan. Enjoy what you have now and stop looking to the future. I do not guarantee you a tomorrow." I may not always like His answers, and in this case, the reminder that I am beyond blessed comes with the sheer pain and loss for someone else, but I trust Him. My life has been good, but it hasn't always been easy, and God has not failed me yet.

Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.
-Psalm 9:10

So happy together

2011-09-13T14:56:00.000-04:00

Three years, and that couldn't be more true (and I sure hope I'm speaking for both of us)! :) It's been a whirlwind three years between job transfers, job losses, fun trips, buying a house, doing all kinds of improvements and renovations on said house, adopting our little lickers, and just living that thing called life. It hasn't always been easy and there have been a few "hard" times, but I couldn't imagine a better partner to walk through this with than Matt. He makes me smile and laugh (and sometimes want to punch him in the face); he makes me proud and still makes me weak in the knees; he humbles me when I need it and lifts me up too; he still surprises me and I feel like I'm always learning something new about him. No matter what else happens, I am so lucky to have a husband like him.

Our modeling shot. ;)

A little moment... not sure what the smirk was about, but it's pretty typical with us.

Update on the kitchen... or why I've been driven to the bottle.

2011-09-09T13:19:00.001-04:00

Renovations are not for the faint of heart, especially when you're renovating the heart of the house. If we aren't sleeping, all of our time is spent in our living room and kitchen, both of which are currently rendered useless and have been for almost three weeks. Now, this truly isn't a terrible timeframe considering the kitchen was almost a full gut job (no wall removal, but every other surface was removed or altered in some way). We're looking at another 10 days before we have countertops and 11 days before we have a fully functioning kitchen (but not fully completed). First, a list of reasons I've started drinking just about every night we've been in renovation mode.

Dust. Everywhere. (It has since been mostly cleaned, but the dining room/our kitchen staging area is in major need of a deep cleaning.)
Spending all of our time at home in our bedroom. With two golden retrievers who are antsy and confused as to why they are permanently confined to the bedroom or bathroom.
My kitchen renovation diet. Let's just say that a major paleo lockdown/detox is needed after a very increased consumption of grains and sugar. And, it's a total reminder of how addicting sugar is and how amazing you feel when you're free of it. Sugar = crack.
Washing dishes in the half-bathroom sink. The toilet is approximately two feet from said sink. Sanitary much?
A very laboring Labor Day weekend. Seriously, worked in the kitchen almost the entire weekend (we took breaks to attend a Braves game on Friday night and to watch the Gators with some friends on Saturday night). (I felt very accomplished after getting it all done though.)
Finding out today that our floors need a third coat of poly, when we thought we'd be able to start moving everything back in this weekend. Have I mentioned that we are a frat house??? Our couches are on our front porch. Classy, party of two, your table is ready. (Thank God for a giant covered front porch... I guess we would have had to get a storage unit or pod if not.)
The fact that we bumped out the depth of our laundry closet a few inches (and a fair amount of $$$) to accommodate solid bi-fold doors and the depth of our washer and dryer only to find that the solid doors do not open wide enough to be able to open the washer/dryer doors. We need like another inch, so we're trying to figure out ways to make this happen. Thankfully, our contractors are awesome and even though this was not anything anyone expected (or necessarily should have), they are working to make it work at no additional cost to us. I'm confident that we'll figure out something, or at worst, have to stack the units.
The cabinet installer mis-drilling for the hardware on three drawers. (No worries, they will be replaced at no cost to us, of course.)

Second, what's still left to do.

Paint the doors. (us)
Paint the ceiling. (us)
Pick out fabric for Roman shades. (me)
Pick out tile for backsplash. (us)
Sew Roman shades. (me)
Another coat of poly on the floors.
Install dishwasher. (Matt)
Pick out different corbels and hang shelves. (us)
Figure out shelving in laundry closet once configuration is known. (us)
Make/install said shelving. (us)
Install countertops.
Install stove.
Install faucet and disposal.
Put in the tile backsplash. (us)

I'm sure I'm missing a few things, but that's the gist of it for posterity's sake. What's left is mostly finishing items, except the countertops are a pretty big one. I'm hoping to pick out the fabric and tile this weekend, paint the ceiling, and get the doors painted. We should be able to handle that after all we did last weekend. Our biggest project was creating the shelving in the pantry... I hate wire shelving, so I was the brain child behind our nice, solid wood shelves and Matt executed (I painted). Besides the wire shelves, the pantry previously had yellow baseboards and I'm not sure it had ever been painted. I don't know what it is with me and closets, but having a nice clean and fresh looking closet makes me so happy (same with walls... I just don't like stuff to look dirty).

She's a beaut.

So, besides the pantry, last weekend we did a ton of cleaning, finished painting (including the interiors of two other closets and trim throughout the kitchen and living room), and Matt put in the under cabinet lighting. And, that, my friends (including trips to HD and said other activities above) took up our entire long holiday weekend. I was so thankful for that extra day, because even though we worked our butts off, it felt good to cross those items off the list!

To be continued, but it's coming together nicely. And, truly, things have gone pretty much according to plan, so I am thankful that the hiccups have been minor (and correctable) in nature... and eased by a nice glass of wine. :)

Better pictures of the progress...

2011-08-31T09:47:00.000-04:00

Demo! Not so fun when there are no sledgehammers.

Our dining room turned kitchen storage/staging area

I'm a lucky lady. Check out those jorts.

Ruh Roh. Let's just say we had a little mishap with the plumbing. Specifically, the hot water. Good thing we have a sense of humor... and Matt knows where the water shut off valve is for the house. It was pretty hilarious.

Hardwoods went in (now we can do whatever we want on this wall... built-ins, furniture, whatevs. Got plans for new built-ins though... ones that fit a modern day TV).

Shot of the old lighting.

Paint (BM Seapearl)

This is a little "drop zone" area - there will be two shelves above this, but I need to find different corbels. The ones I ordered were way too big.

Not completely finished, but recessed lights!

These pictures are a MUCH better representation of the color of everything. Hardware is mostly up now (need some longer screws for a few cabinets), and it looks great. We just did very simple Metrik pulls from Ikea. The cabinets are a grayish green color, but they really change depending on the light. I had cabinet buyer's remorse (this is typical for me... buyer's remorse, that is) after purchasing, wondering if the color is really what I wanted, but I love them! Even with a lot of finishing left to do, the kitchen feels SO different... so much warmer and cozier. I can't wait to get it done (for more reasons than one... have I mentioned that living in a construction zone kind of sucks?)!

Progress!!!

2011-08-30T14:48:00.000-04:00

These are from my phone, but I have not had time to upload the better pics from my camera (maybe tonight?). We are making progress!! We started demo two weekends ago and got everything cleared out except the tile floors. Our contractors came Monday and removed the floors, built out the wall for the laundry closet (our washer and dryer BARELY fit in there, so we pushed the wall out a couple inches so we could fit thicker, heavier doors on there without having to cut part of them out so they would close) and started on some of the electrical and plumbing work. The flooring guys came in on Thursday and got the floors laid in the kitchen and where the built-ins were, sanded everything (including the living room), and put on the stain and a coat of poly on Friday (final coat of poly will go down once all the construction is done). I forgot how bad that stuff smells, so a HUGE thank you to our amazing neighbors/friends, the Hargathers, for letting us crash at their place. Seriously, THANK YOU!

We got some painting done this weekend, so we didn't have to edge around all of the cabinets. We're not done (as you can see... waiting on drywall work to be completed and still need to paint the closets). Yesterday, the cabinets went in (finished today with hardware, which I have not yet seen), as did the recessed lights. Woohoo for real light!!!! We had two terrible fixtures that cast shadows everywhere and did not provide enough light, so I am super excited for six 6" cans in the ceiling, even though that means we have to paint the entire ceiling. I PRAY the white ceiling paint we have leftover from the previous homeowner matches when we put it up. It will not be good if it doesn't since the ceiling is continuous into the LR, DR, entry way, hallways... not good. The countertop template was done today, so I am anxiously awaiting a call to let us know how long the fabrication will take. I want to get that installation scheduled! Our range was supposed to be installed today, but there's been A LOT of back and forth about having it installed before or after the countertops and before or after the floors are finished... so many decisions.

Still to do (for us):
-finish painting (this weekend) and paint ceiling
-order faucet
-pick out fabric for Roman shades
-decide on tile backsplash (white subway in herringbone pattern or pretty irridescent ($$$) subway in traditional layout)
-figure out if I can get Martha Stewart paint in the same color as the cabinets (or have it color matched) for window moldings
-get different corbels for two small shelves going above a little drop zone station we created for mail, purses, keys, etc.
-paint doors before they are installed (we have time on this one because they won't be installed until after the floors are finished)
-install custom shelving in pantry and laundry (hopefully this weekend)
-install backsplash

If things keep moving forward on schedule, I am hoping we can put in the tile backsplash the weekend of 9/17-9/18, and then we should have a finished kitchen!!! Living in a construction zone is not fun, but that's another post for another day. Now, to the (crappy) pictures... much better ones to come.

See here for more before pics (way before... before we even moved in).

A little reminder of what it looked like before...

built-ins coming out... guess the house was once a lovely shade of sage

oh my, that carpet was terrible

almost demolished

bye bye tile!

hello dark walnut hardwoods... you are so pretty/handsome

paint... lots of colors... it makes more sense with the cabinets in...

this is the wall we still need to paint once the dry wall work is ready

cabinets going in!

almost done!!!

A Chance

2011-08-19T10:29:00.000-04:00

Dumb and Dumber is one of my all time favorite movies. I can watch it over and over and pretty much quote any part of it on demand. This quote is my new mantra though... so, you're telling me there's a chance! Gotta hold on to hope. :)

Lloyd: What do you think the chances are of a guy like you and a girl like me... ending up together?

Mary: Well, Lloyd, that's difficult to say. I mean, we don't really...

Lloyd: Hit me with it! Just give it to me straight! I came a long way just to see you, Mary. The least you can do is level with me. What are my chances?

Mary: Not good.

Lloyd: You mean, not good like one out of a hundred?

Mary: I'd say more like one out of a million.

Lloyd: So you're telling me there's a chance... *YEAH!*

Brain Dump

2011-08-17T15:45:00.000-04:00

Kitchen reno starts Monday. I guess if you want to get technical, it starts this weekend since we are clearing everything out and removing the appliances, cabinets and countertops.
My sister is coming in town tomorrow evening. Welcome to Atlanta, now help me pack up my kitchen! :)
I have a lot to do and have been doing a lot since I got home from a quick jaunt to south Florida this weekend. Literally, non stop. Well, I did sit down to watch True Blood on Monday night, but other than that, I've been going going going. (Side note: that was the weirdest True Blood yet. So silly.)
I built the bed from my last post by myself. I'm the bomb, and yes, I gave myself a pat on the back. ;)
I am going to somehow make time to have fun with my sister while she is here. I'm not sure how, but it will happen. The timing of her visit isn't great, but since she's in school and we're always up to something too, it was really the only weekend that worked. Plus, it's the first time she's been to Atlanta since she's been of drinking age, so a trip out for some cocktails is a must.
Not really much else to report. Life has been busy and is about to be busier!! We have hired out most of the work in the kitchen, but are still doing a good bit ourselves - demo (except tile floors), painting (walls, trim, doors), installing new shelving in the pantry and laundry closet, tile backsplash, and I will be sewing Roman shades for the windows. I will certainly be documenting the process and will share the ups, downs and pictures for posterity's sake.

Spending that money, honey.

2011-08-08T16:10:00.001-04:00

Phew, things are expensive. And, apparently, money does not grow on trees. I've been trying to win the lottery, but no luck. How hard can it really be to successfully pick five numbers plus a power/mega ball? Ponder that for a moment.

Unlike the United States government, Matt and I are {pretty much} fiscally responsible adults who have saved for everything we're now spending (plus more, of course), but it still hurts. Our credit card bill is growing faster than the US debt to GDP ratio and our savings is shrinking like investor confidence! {Perhaps I've been watching too much CNBC and Bloomberg.} I like to think that we are trying to stimulate the economy to prevent another recession. Everyone has to do their part. We are sure doing ours. Here's a little glimpse at some of our stimulus bill.

cabinets and countertops (different but similar countertops than pictured)

Virginia Bed - Ballard Designs (guest bedroom)

Weber gas grill - Matt's b-day present/our cooking apparatus while the kitchen is not functioning

Jenn-Air 30" downdraft gas range - I can't wait until I'm cooking with gas!

Whirlpool dishwasher (we're replacing a perfectly good Whirlpool that we really like, but it's white, so might as well make everything match when we're already spending this much... hoping to donate the old one to Habitat)

Vacation home in St. George Island - nicer than our house, one block to beach, private pool, dogs welcome. Cannot wait.

Anyone else out there, besides Jenn, also stimulating the economy by way of some home renovation, decorating or something else? Do your part, people... do your part.

P.S. I heard Timothy Geithner say that S&P's downgrade of the US bond rating was "irresponsible." I laughed. An evil, p-o'd laugh. Really? Because, what I find is irresponsible is the fact that we're in this mess in the first place. I'm so over politicians... all of them. Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Green, Independent, whatever. I want to know who, if anyone, is actually trying to put the American people before their own interests???? End of rant. Thank you for reading.

17 years

2011-08-04T16:29:00.000-04:00

It's almost like he was never here. But, he was. And, I have many a fond memory of our time together. But not enough, not nearly enough, and they are fading. His life was cut way too short, and in a way, so was part of mine. So many things that he's missed out on, and as a result, I've missed out on. He doesn't know that after that first, fairly miserable year for me in Jacksonville (sixth grade), I went on to make a lot of friends, make the varsity cheerleading squad, have my heart broken, break some hearts, win my high school pageant, continue to be at the top of my class, win a team national championship in dance, go to the University of Florida, join a sorority, have the time of my life, meet the love of my life, get married, buy a house, and on and on... Or maybe he does. Maybe he's not the one that's missed out. He's with me everywhere I go. I know it's better Up There. Maybe it's just us left here that miss out, until we meet again.

November 10, 1951 - August 4, 1994

Mountain Momma

2011-07-28T17:02:00.000-04:00

We took a little trip to the mountains for Fourth of July weekend. I'm super lucky that my grandma owns a cabin just a few miles down the mountain from Highlands, right on the Cullasaja River. It's a small, quaint, very 1970s little place, but it's just perfect for a getaway. Unfortunately, we really don't use it enough. We took advantage of the long weekend and made a quick trip with the dogs.

We arrived on Saturday afternoon and spent a bit cleaning things up (it hadn't been used since last summer). It was pretty warm, so after we got settled, we decided to go swimming in the river. The house next to Gram's cabin has a "beach" and a good swimming hole, so we took the dogs there and swam and threw the tennis ball for them. I'm happy to report I did not see any water moccasins (we did run across one in the same swimming hole some 18 years earlier and I have not forgotten). We cooked a steak dinner that night and enjoyed sitting out on the deck, listening to the river (and some Jack Johnson), watching fireflies and a few amateur fireworks and looking at all the stars.

Happy to be in the mountains!

Matt going for a little fishing excursion in front of the cabin.

Yeah, I found these in a kitchen drawer - the date on the package was 1965. Awesome.

This is the life.

This next series of pictures is a progression of what happens when Maddie hears fireworks. Or thunder. We do not typically let her climb on us like this.

And she's gone... off to find another unsuspecting victim (aka: Daddy).

The next morning we were up early to try a little trout fishing. FAIL. I did, however, look super hot in my waders, fishing shirt and fishing sunglasses (they're polarized and I only wear them to fish because they are UGLY on me). After our unsuccessful fishing trip in which I broke my pole (oops), we headed back to the cabin to pack up for our 9.6 mile Yellow Mountain hike. Yep, you read that right. 4.8 miles in and 4.8 miles out. I wore the Camelbak, Matt had a backpack with food and water, and Maddie carried her pack with water. It was definitely strenuous, as labeled, and took us 5 hours round trip with only a quick stop at the top for lunch and a rest... lots of ups and downs and tight switchbacks. The dogs led most of the way, but by the end, we were kicking them in the butt to speed up in front of us. They were pooped, but we all made it and enjoyed it! And drank all the water.

Against my better judgment, I am posting this for all the interwebs to see. Yikes.

I think Matt is doing pretty feet.

View from the top of Yellow Mountain.

The Fire Tower

Those tongues! They were tired but they LOVED it.

Of course they find the water hole on the way out... a little cooldown. Maddie promptly laid down and began drinking. Silly girl.

Time for a little swim after that hike! They swam after the tennis ball for another 30 minutes after the 9.6 miles. They couldn't have been that tired.

That evening we took advantage of what had to have been a caloric deficit that day and had a cold beer and a delicious burger and onion rings at Flipside in Highlands then went for icecream at SweeTreats. We once again spent the evening on the deck, watching fireflies and looking at the stars. So peaceful.

The next morning we packed up and headed back to Atlanta, but not before a stop at Tallulah Gorge to see what it's all about. After our Sunday hike, we weren't too keen on the idea of thousand whatever stairs to get to the suspension bridge, so we just did the upper three overlooks. We'll definitely go back and try to get a pass to hike to the gorge floor at some point. I can only imagine how cool it must be down there!

No Bust Your Butt Falls on this trip (a Highlands favorite), but we're hoping to get back again soon!

Food

2011-07-19T15:23:00.000-04:00

This is what my shopping cart looked like when I checked out at YDFM on Saturday morning. I'll let you guess what all that cost, but suffice it to say, I will not need to shop for groceries (or wine) for awhile thanks to all of this and my weekly CSA goodies. I should mention that I pray my freezer doesn't go out, because it's storing an awful lot of meat.

I made six jars of cucumbers this weekend, and I STILL have cucumbers left! Anyone want some? I should be getting more today. Here's my pickle recipe... I actually measured ingredients, so this should be pretty accurate. Of course, you can just cut everything down if you don't have several pounds of cucumbers.

Kristin's Paleo Garlic Dill Pickles
(makes 6 Ball jars)

3-4 lbs cucumbers (organic)
3-1/2 c distilled white vinegar
3-1/2 c water
6 tbsp coarse kosher salt
1 tbsp agave nectar
1-1/2 tbsp black peppercorns
1/2 tbsp Chinese Szechuan peppercorns
1 tbsp Dijon mustard (or 1 tsp dried mustard)
1 tsp red pepper flakes
lots of fresh dill (organic)
8(ish) small cloves of garlic, sliced
~1/3 vidalia onion, sliced thinly

In a non-reactive pot, bring vinegar, water and remaining ingredients through dill to a boil until the salt dissolves (the mixture will be a little cloudy from the salt and mustard... that is okay). Remove from heat and let cool. Divide the garlic and onion evenly in each jar. Put 1-2 (or more) sprigs of dill in each jar. Slice cucumbers to desired thickness (I did 1/4"-1/3", you can also use small pickling cucumbers left whole, but they will require more time to pickle) and pack each jar full. Once pickling liquid is cool (or at least luke warm), pour into jars. Seal jars and refrigerate. You should be able to enjoy yummy pickles within 24 hours!

Notes: I like a vinegar-y pickle with lots of dill flavor and a little spice. Experiment and adjust accordingly. I've read something about letting your cucumbers "rest" with salt for a few hours to remove some of the liquid... sounds like a good idea but I didn't do that and my pickles were still crunchy.

We had some nice bell peppers from the CSA, so I decided to make stuffed peppers last night. I've never made them before, so I checked out a few recipes online just to see how you cook them and then made up my own recipe. It was tasty, if I do say so myself (and, I do)!

Kristin's Paleo Stuffed Peppers
(serves 4+)

4 bell peppers (organic)
1 lb ground beef (grass fed)
~2/3 vidalia onion, finely diced (I just used what I had left from my pickles... you can use a whole one)
garlic (to taste, 4+ large cloves), minced
15 oz can tomato sauce (organic)
herbs of choice (I used dried basil, bouquet garni and red pepper flakes)
1 large zucchini, coarsley grated
fresh parsley, coarsley chopped (organic)
freshly grated parmesan (optional)

In a pot big enough to fit the bell peppers standing up (but not so big they fall over), heat EVOO over medium and add half of the garlic and onion. Saute until tender. Add tomato sauce, salt, pepper and herbs to taste (you're just making a quick marinara). Reduce hit to low and let simmer.

Preheat oven to 400. Meanwhile, cut tops off bell peppers and remove ribs and seeds from inside pepper. Remove stems from the tops and dice what's left. Heat a saute pan with EVOO over medium heat and saute onions, diced bell pepper and garlic until tender. Remove from pan and add ground beef. Cook until done and drain fat. Add the sauteed veggies, zucchini, parsley, about 1/4-1/2 cup marinara, and parmesan (optional), salt and pepper to taste to meat and mix well. Fill bell peppers with meat mixture and place upright in the pot with the remaining marinara. Cover and cook until peppers are tender, about 20-30 minutes. Serve with the marinara. (I also served this with a Greek style cucumber and tomato salad.)

Notes: This isn't a super quick meal, but it was maybe 30 minutes of hands on time and then 20-30 minutes in the oven. You can obviously cook the peppers in a different pan if you don't have an oven proof pot, but I just like to use as few dishes as humanly possible to keep clean up at a minimum.
Enjoy!

It's actually happening...

2011-07-08T11:36:00.000-04:00

We are renovating our kitchen!!! So, nothing is happening yet but cabinets and countertops have been ordered!!!!!!! (I hope the exclamation points convey my excitment.)

Here's a little sneak peak. The cabinet style and color is the same as above (Martha Stewart - Ox Hill in Ocean Floor), though I feel like the cabinets are a little darker with a slightly green undertone in real life. Floors will be dark walnut, just like the rest of the house, and the countertops will be Silestone in White North. We're also adding recessed lighting, changing up the layout of the kitchen a bit, putting in a tile backsplash (TBD), new window coverings (TBD), new closet doors on the laudry, pantry and other random storage closet, new range and dishwasher, new faucet... you name it, it's all pretty much being done! Well, except opening up the wall between the living room and kitchen. Oh well. Barring any disasters, we should have a new kitchen by early September!!!! Woohoo!

Crockpot Curry Concoction

2011-07-06T10:08:00.001-04:00

Or, perhaps more accurately, experiment. It's not a total experiment, because I did base it on another recipe, but I will have to wait until tonight to judge. I like to try to do at least one crockpot meal every week or two, because it just makes dinner a cinch (and provides leftovers). So, last night, after I had my dinner of split chicken breasts roasting in the oven, and my CSA cucumber and tomato salad prepared and chilling, I chopped the veggies (all from CSA except sweet potatoes and organic carrots), mixed the spices and pulled out the other ingredients so that I could throw this together this morning. It's sort of premature to post a recipe I haven't even tried, but honestly, even if it doesn't taste that good, the curry aroma is worth it. I can still smell it on my hands and I don't even think I touched any of the spices. So, if you happen to work in my office and walk by me sniffing my hands with a happy, closed eye grin on my face, you know why. :)

(On an unrelated note, my pickles were delicious and I have a boatload of cucumbers, so once I get more jars, I will be making more pickles and will take notes on the recipe. I just threw it together last time, so I don't know how much of what I put in them. But, man, they're good if I do say so myself!)

Crockpot Beef Curry Concoction
-1.5 lb grass fed beef chuck roast
-2 sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into ~3/4" chunks
-1 c baby carrots
-1 green bell pepper, cored and diced
-1 small and 4 very small onions, diced
-1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
-~1/2" piece of fresh ginger, sliced
-2 cloves garlic, sliced
-1 tbsp coconut oil
-2 tbsp curry powder (I was almost out of curry, so I used the rest which was about 3/4 tbsp and probably closer to 1.5 tbsp garam masala... you could also use curry paste and maybe omit the other spices below)
-1 tsp chili powder
-1 tsp cumin
-1 can coconut milk
-2 tbsp coconut aminos (soy sauce alternative)
-1 tbsp fish sauce
-1-2 tbsp apple cider or apple juice or something fruity w/ a little acid

I chopped all veggies the night before and squeezed the juice of half a lemon over them since I had it sitting around. I don't know why, I just did. Covered the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerated overnight. I mixed the spices in a small bowl, covered and set on the counter with the other ingredients that didn't need chilling. This morning, I put the meat and veggies in the crockpot and seasoned with salt and pepper. I melted the coconut oil in a small saucepan on the stove, added the spices to create a paste and release some flavor, then added the rest of the wet ingredients and mixed well. I didn't let this cook for any amount of time, because I needed to get to work, but I just wanted everything to meld together. Poured it over the meat and veggies in the crockpot, set it for low and let it do its thing. I hope it tastes good! I will taste it when I get home and add more spices, as needed. And update the blog accordingly.

Update: the "stew" was good. It was really more like a curry stew than a traditional curry, but for 10 minutes of prep work, I'll take it. Matt made rice for his, and in a moment of weakness, I added about 1/8 to 1/4 cup to mine. Have I mentioned that I've been "falling off the wagon" too much lately? Yeah, about to institute a 30-day hardcore paleo lockdown on myself. But, that's another post for another day.

TGIF

2011-06-17T12:13:00.000-04:00

This week flew by. Awesome.
I am actually, really, for real going to start a paleo/primal blog. It will not be fancy and I'm not paying anything for it. If enough people start reading and like what I cook/post, we'll see what happens. I had a name all planned out but now I am second guessing it. So, once I figure out a name and get some content ready to post, I will let you know. Based on my past performance, this will probably take six months. ;)
We are actually, really, for real going to remodel our kitchen. I think. We have one contractor that's given us some quotes for different options, and they all seem a bit high. We have also come to the realization that we will not be removing the wall between the kitchen and living room. {sad face} We will never get that money back, and considering everything we're putting into our house this point is negative equity (thanks, housing market!), it's just not a smart move. But, we are changing the layout a little bit... it will be much more efficient and also provide bar seating for four. We are waiting (and waiting) for a quote from our neighbor contractors who I am pretty sure will do the job.
We were thinking of ordering unfinished cabinets and having them painted, but the first quote we've received for that was $5,000! To paint cabinets!! The cabinets themselves don't cost much more than that. Sheesh.
The incomparable Capella Kincheloe will be once again making up for my severe lack in design ability. We've hired her to do the design for our kitchen, living room, dining room and foyer. I'm super excited to have a house that is decorated and doesn't look like we just moved in... two years + after moving in.
We're hoping (pending our neighbors' bid) to get this party started late next month, but again, we need their bid so we can start ordering everything!!!! SEND ME YOUR DAMN PRICING! In their defense, they are awesome and a two man shop. They do almost all the work themselves (which adds up to lots of cost savings), so they only have time to do estimates in the evenings and on the weekends. But, that doesn't mean I'm not going to go knock on their door this weekend and tell them to give me something... now. :)
Is it just me, or is everyone pregnant? Or just had a baby? Seriously.
Speaking of pregnant, Jenn and I went to Florida this weekend for one of my best friend's baby showers, hosted by another one of my best friends. {We're the four best friends that anyone could have and we'll never ever ever ever ever leave each other.} The shower was awesome... Dai is definitely the hostess with the mostest, and it was so good to spend some QT with some of my favorite people in the world. We walked on the beach after dinner, and it was amazing. What was not amazing is that I, along with many others, got the speeding ticket of all speeding tickets on the way down. Oops. I honestly had no idea I was speeding at all or that the speed limit was 60. I don't speed through construction zones, and I typically don't go more than 10 over. I was just driving along with everyone else, and apparently we were all doing about 20 over the speed limit... in a construction zone (where there was absolutely no construction... the project is DONE with a capital D). Can't wait to call and find out how much that is going to be... my prediction is at least $500. Eh, it's just money. {vomits}

Dai, Jenn (+Davis), Meg (+Kate), and me

On another note, I should really avoid standing next to friends that are 7-8" taller than me in pictures. When will I learn?

It's What's for Dinner

2011-06-16T13:16:00.000-04:00

Meatloaf, that is. Specifically, this recipe for turkey meatloaf with feta and sun dried tomatoes from Giada de Laurentiis. I believe I saw it on a blog this week, but I don't remember where. All I know is that when I saw it, I knew I had to make it. Matt and I are both fans of the loaf of meat, and I have made many different recipes. This one is my new favorite. I was going to make it paleo by leaving out one egg, the milk (I used half and half) and the breadcrumbs (breadcrumbs and dairy being non-paleo, of course), but last time I attempted a paleo meatloaf, the texture was off (I totally made up the recipe), so I didn't want to mess this one up. Also, 1/2 c of breadcrumbs to a pound of meat isn't going to kill me (shhhhh, don't tell the paleo nazis). I used fresh basil in place of parsley, since I have a lot of it from the CSA this week, but I did add about 1 tbsp of dried parsley. I also upped the garlic since I bought regular sun dried tomatoes.

For the side dish, I threw together a zucchini saute, again with CSA goodies. This was inspired by a trip to Bonefish this weekend down in Florida, as they served a zucchini and tomato side that was quite tasty.

Zucchini and Tomato Saute
3-4 zucchini, quartered long ways and diced to 1/3-1/2" chunks
1 small Vidalia onion
2-3 cloves of garlic, sliced
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
~1/4 c fresh basil, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

In a saute pan, bring EVOO to heat over a medium to medium-high burner. Add onion and zucchini and saute until amost tender. Add garlic and cook for another minute or two. Add tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan Reggiano. Mangia!

On the foodagenda for the rest of the week (which now runs from Tuesday dinner - Tuesday lunch since I pick up my CSA bounty on Tuesdays after work)...

-my hacked version of Zoe's coleslaw (thanks to that beautiful cabbage and leftover scallions from last week, plus feta leftover from the meatloaf)
-roasted beet and herbed goat cheese salad (die over the deliciousness of this, beets and lettuce from CSA)
-cucumber and tomato salad with dill (all from CSA)
-basil pesto (will freeze and use on chicken, fish and/or grilled veggies when needed)
-turnip puree
-homemade pickles
-zucchini "hummus"

I don't think we'll be eating out but once this weekend. Can't waste all that fresh, local, organic deliciousness I've got in my fridge and on my counter. I've also been blanching and freezing my hardier greens (collards, kale, spinach, etc) to save for later, since we typically cannot get through a whole week's worth of veggies unless we are eating at home 5-6 nights per week and bringing lunches that include said veggies a few times per week. I typically bring leftovers for lunch, but Matt tends to be more of a sandwich guy. Speaking of, I'm absolutely stuffed after eating last night's leftovers and I wish there was more!

Ah Paris...

2011-06-14T11:58:00.001-04:00

Oh Happy Day! is hosting a giveaway for a 7-night trip to Paris. For real. But, you should not go enter, because I must win this. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

P.S. Oh Happy Day! also has great (P)inspiration.

Pinned

2011-06-10T10:22:00.001-04:00

I finally got my long awaited invitation to Pinterest, and I'm officially obsessed. I'm always saving photos from the interwebs for inspriation, especially for the house, and now I have a place to keep them safe, instead of having folders on both my home ~~and work~~ computers (of course I don't surf the web at work).

Here are a few things I'm pin(n)ing over (hardy har)...

Black bannister... remember when I was going to do that? Yeah, me neither. (Repinned from Jenn - original credit houzz.com)

It's the weekend... cocktail time! (Repinned from Erika Powell - original credit entrenous.typepad.com)

Painted cabinets with pretty, feminine island (Repinned from Erika Powell - House Beautiful)

Pretty (Repinned from Jenn - Southern Living)

I love lamp - I pinned from younghouselove.com. Anyone that knows me knows I'm a sucker for a quatrefoil just as much as I am for an elephant.

Food for Thought (or Chew on This)

2011-06-06T17:17:00.001-04:00

Or, "Ew, gross."

Credit: Huffington Post

I've said it before and I'll say it again (and, I am far from a conspiracy theorist), if you haven't seen Food Inc., watch it or at least educate yourself on the "food production industry" in the USA. See also: Michael Pollan.

P.S. FYI - nothing on that food subsidy list is good for you in large quantities. I have yet to find anything that tells me that fruits and vegetables (corn is not a vegetable, neither are legumes) are anything but good for you in large quantities. Now, you might have some stomach issues if all you eat is fruit (see: The Grapes of Wrath), but I don't think anyone reading this here blog is starving.
P.P.S. This is why animals like cows and chickens are fed grains (like corn) when they should be eating grass or bugs. The government subsidizes these crops so other farmers buy corn for less than it costs to grow/harvest.

Stuff White People Like

2011-06-03T15:06:00.001-04:00

Winning Yard of the Month...

A few quick iPhone shots of some of the foliage. You'll notice the grass isn't looking so hot. Funny that we win YOTM when our grass looks like this (the sign was delivered the day after we Matt cut the green off the grass, so it was probably green when they picked us... ha!). Apparently, for the last almost two years, Matt has been mowing it too high (we have zoysia in the front), so there's all this dead stuff underneath that needed to be raked out. So, he had to put the mower way down and cut all of our pretty green grass to get to the dead stuff. See how it's green around the edges? That's because I guess he cut those areas short enough with the weedwacker. Anywho, project green grass is underway and it's already greening right up!

Useless musings

2011-05-27T13:59:00.002-04:00

• I have an irrational fear of not playing the lottery and my numbers hitting. I don’t play all the time, and when I do, I play one set of numbers and a quick pick. This is why you should just do quick picks… if I ever saw my numbers hit and I didn’t play, I would likely cause myself substantial bodily harm.

• Work is going pretty well so far. It’s weird to go from an office and managing analysts to a cube and basically being on the bottom of the totem pole. We have an intern coming soon though, so my status will change and I’ll move up a notch. Score.

• Being that I’m at a new job, I didn’t think it would be smart to start out coming in “late.” There are no set in stone hours or anything, but I figure I should be here around 8:30, which means I can’t work out at 6:45am. So, I started the 6:00am CrossFit class yesterday morning. Getting up before 6:00 is brutal, but I rationalize it by telling myself that getting up any time before 10:00 is hard for me, and I feel the same when I first wake up at 5:15 as I do at 6:00 and 6:30 and 7:00. I just don’t like to get up in the mornings… period. I could sleep for 12 hours every day, I think. I like to attribute it to being in touch with my ancestors… like the ones from thousands of years ago that slept that much, if not more. I was so meant to be a cavewoman.

• Speaking of sleep, Mother Nature, I'd sure appreciate it if you'd stop the middle of the night thunderstorms. I almost drop kicked my sweet golden retriever at 2:00 am because of her thunderphobia. I don't want to be a dog abuser, but I need my sleep. Thank you to my husband who took her to the living room and slept on the couch, so I could sleep in peace (I hadn't slept well the last few nights and went to bed before 9:00... I couldn't take another night like that).

• Matt and I are going to see Ryan Bingham in concert tonight. I am SOOOOOOOOOOO excited. If y'all don't know who he is, check him out. Except don't, because he's getting too famous. We saw him at Smith's Olde Bar a few years ago with maybe 100 people there, and then we weren't able to get tickets to his last two Atlanta shows because they sold out so quickly. I guess an Oscar changes things (he did the music in the movie Crazy Heart with Jeff Bridges). Hope anyone reading, hi Jenn, has a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!!

CSA

2011-05-18T16:53:00.001-04:00

I have been wanting to be part of a CSA for the last few years, but with Matt working out of town, it really didn't make sense for us. Now that he's back, I knew this would be the year. We bought a full share from Serenbe Farms, and so far, ~~we're~~ I'm loving it (I don't think Matt could give two hoots). We are on week three of thirty, and the bounty so far has been full of greens, onions, turnips, radishes, various herbs and this week, carrots! I knew we wouldn't get through all of the greens, so I blanched several servings of kale, spinach and collards to freeze for later. Even though we're eating out on Friday night and will be at a wedding on Saturday night, I'm pretty sure we'll get through all of this week's share before I pick up next week's.

Last night, I made mustard dill salmon (fresh dill this week... yummmmmmy) and sauteed bok choi and spinach. It makes for a great, healthy weeknight meal because it's so quick and easy (well under 30 minutes from start to finish).

Mustard Dill Salmon
-2 fillets salmon (adjust serving size accordingly), about 1" thick, skin on
-Dijon mustard
-fresh dill
-EVOO

Rinse and pat salmon dry. Grease baking pan/dish with EVOO (or whatever you want) and place salmon skin side down on dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Squirt or spoon Dijon directly on salmon and "brush" with the back of a spoon to evenly coat. Tear dill with hands and apply liberally to top of salmon. Broil about 4" from burner for 8-10 minutes or until done.

Sauteed Greens
-greens of choice (again, amount depends on # of servings)
-minced garlic (again, to your taste/# of servings)
-EVOO
-red pepper flakes

Wash and dry greens thoroughly. Rough chop if larger greens like bok choi, collards, etc. Bring saute pan with about 1 tbsp EVOO to heat over a medium burner. Add garlic and saute for about 30 seconds to release flavor (be careful not to burn). Add greens and "toss" until they begin to wilt. Add red pepper flakes (1/8-1/4 tsp for 2 servings is enough for most palates) and salt to taste.

So easy and yummy, especially with fresh, local, organic produce. On tonight's menu is a roasted chicken (will probably make an herb and garlic rub and roast it with some onions from the CSA), sauteed dill carrots and mashed turnips. I didn't even know I liked turnips, but mashed turnips are an amazing replacement for mashed potatoes. I've got some gorgeous Swiss chard I plan to use in some omelets or sauteed with eggs and bacon this weekend (I really like sauteed greens with eggs for breakfast) and some Chinese cabbage and sugar snap peas that I will make on Sunday with some sort of TBD Asian inspired dish.

If you haven't already jumped on the CSA bandwagon, I highly recommend. It's important to me to eat locally and organic whenever possible, and at $27 per week, I think this is a great deal. I do have to supplement some things here and there (right now, fruit), but I don't think I have bought any vegetables at the store over the last three weeks. I'm pretty sure I couldn't go to Publix, Whole Foods or Trader Joe's and get the same amount of organic produce, let alone local, for that price. I also love that it's making me try things I might not otherwise and think out of the box with my menus.

It was nice while it lasted

2011-05-13T17:31:00.000-04:00

Today was my last Friday of (f)unemployment. I bid thee fare well. It was nice to know you these past three and a half months, but it is time for me to return to the working world. I start my new job next week, and I'm moderately excited. If I can be 100% honest, which I can, I would love to not have to work. It's not the work that I don't like... I do like to work. I just like to do it on my own terms. Who doesn't, right? But, yay for a paycheck and something a little different!

When did that happen?

2011-05-09T14:38:00.000-04:00

That being the month of May. Seriously, how is it already May 9? I don't understand. I have been unemployed for over one quarter of a year. Slackerfest. And, I would swear last month was February, yet we're already through March and April and onto May, just in case you needed a tutorial on the order of the months.

We've had a fairly eventful couple of weeks. Two weekends ago, we made our way down to Jacksonville, because Matt was playing in a golf tournament for work. Of course, this means we got to spend some time with my family, as well. On Friday evening, James had a baseball game, so I was thrilled to be able to see him play. He is so cute and told me he was going to hit a home run for me. No homers, but two RBI's and a single isn't too bad. Their opponent was really good and a lot bigger than them (the age for his division is 4-7... there is a HUGE difference between 4 and 7 year-olds). But, this means he got a lot of action out in left field, and he enjoyed that.

On Saturday, we made our way down to Vilano Beach. I realized that I am no longer a Florida girl through and through, because I was so excited to get on the beach. While I've always enjoyed and appreciated the beach, growing up in Florida, it was old hat. We went to the beach all the time. I definitely have a finer appreciation of it now. Vilano is awesome, because you can drive out on the beach and bring your dogs. I don't think Max and Maddie knew what was going on, but they loved it.

On our way to the beach!

James on his boogie board. Next up, surfing.

B Bear... little stinker.

Max was passed out. Tired puppy!

Sweet boys.

He was thrilled with his seaweed.

On our way home... the back seat of an F-150 isn't big enough for two dogs and some luggage. :)

It was a great weekend, and I almost forgot to mention that my mom and I got up bright and early to watch the royal wedding. We are both saps and loved it. I thought the message provided by the Archbishop of Canterbury was lovely, and Kate looked stunning. I thought her dress and styling were perfectly princesslike. I love that she and Prince William are trying to live a "normal" newlywed life and turned down the opportunity to have a maid, butler and cook. Also, how awesome was it when they drove out of the palace in his dad's car? So great. It seems that they understand the pressures they will face and are doing their best to make life as "normal" as possible, you know, for a future King and Queen.

Last week, we decided to throw a very last minute Kentucky Derby Party. I love any excuse to entertain and Matt loves an excuse to flex his BBQ muscles. The man knows his way around a smoker, and his pulled pork was excellent, as always. For deciding to have the party Wednesday night, it was quite a success. The menu included pulled pork, our honey mustard BBQ sauce, the most delicious and unhealthy BBQ beans ever, mac and cheese, and cilantro-lime cole slaw. And, of course, mint juleps! I didn't take many pictures, and the one thing I wanted to capture was the bar setup for the mint juleps, but to no avail. So, instead, I leave you with more gratuitous pictures of the dogs and a few people too. Oh, we also drew horses out of a cup and Matt M. won $70. And, he cursed the horse when he drew it. Ye of little faith.

The ladies in our hats.

The loves of my life.

One too many mint juleps.

Oh, the amusement we get out of these dogs.

So, that's about it. I think I will be back to work soon, but still not ready to share anything until it's a done deal. I'm actually a little nervous right now so hoping to hear something soon. I turned down another job offer, and that was scary!!! But, I just don't think it was the right thing. If I hadn't had any other options, I would have taken it, but in the long run, it would have just been a paycheck. Which sounds really nice right now, but this other opportunity is better for the future (I think). We shall see. :)

What's going on

2011-04-28T00:00:00.000-04:00

I read Two Kisses for Maddy by Matt Logelin in less than 24 hours. Obviously that means you should go buy it and do the same (you can take more than 24 hours if you have a life unlike me). I'm also in the middle of two other books but about to start reading Black Heels to Tractor Wheels by Ree Drummond. I already knew a lot of Matt's story, as I'm a long time blog reader and supporter of the Liz Logelin Foundation, but the book had me laughing, crying, laughing and crying again. Maybe because I understand the pain of loss but know enough to know that I have no idea what it's like to lose the love of your life, but my heart literally hurts when I think about him losing Liz just a short day and three hours after they welcomed their precious daughter into this world. But, the story is so poignant and well written, if you don't mind some well placed f-bombs and other choice words. Much to my chagrin, I have more of a potty mouth than I'd like to admit (I try not to, but they just come out), so needless to say, I am not offended. Especially when he says, "This f*&%ing sucks," in reference to giving his wife's eulogy. To that I say, "Amen."
I have been sick since Sunday and ran a fever for three days. I don't know the last time I ran a fever for that long, and for that, I am thankful. I hate being sick. And, I think I make it worse because I can't just rest if I'm not totally wiped out. Yesterday, I vacuumed and cooked. And today, I washed the dogs and cooked. But, at least I also went to the doctor today and got some antibiotics.
I'm sitting here watching the weather because there are some major storms coming through. Doesn't look like my immediate area is going to see the wrath of it, but north and south of us are getting hammered.
I've got some big decisions to make on the job front by the end of the week, and I'm feeling a bit of anxiety about what to do. I'd prefer not to put anything out there in the blogosphere right now, but if you wouldn't mind saying a little prayer that I'll get the sign I'm asking for or make the right decision, I would appreciate it. I will share more once decisions have been made. But, I'm ready to be back in the workforce!
We had a lovely Easter weekend. Good Friday dinner with family in the 'burbs, Madelyn's 2nd birthday party on Saturday (she was so cute... I'd share pics but her mommy hasn't yet so I'll save that for her), and a good Easter service followed by brunch with friends on Sunday. Then Matt and I came home and I laid down for awhile (this is when I started to get sick) while he smoked a beer can chicken (but our own au jus instead of beer) and wings. We had that with sweet potato fries and tomato, basil and mozzarella. I love having a husband who can cook.
And with that, I'm off to tend to my thunder-phobic golden. She's such a wimp but I love that she feels the need to cuddle with me when there are storms, especially when I'm still awake as opposed to being woken by her face in mine, panting furiously.

Good Friday

2011-04-22T11:36:00.000-04:00

When you say "TGIF" today, it has extra special meaning. Maybe it should be "TGIGF". And, for real, right? Thank God that He sent his Son to die for our sins so that we can have everlasting life. I don't even have kids yet, but I cannot imagine sending my child to die for humans, who are so flawed when He is perfect. But, He did it willingly and out of His incomparable love for us.

¹¹ “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ¹² The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. ¹³ The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
¹⁴ “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— ¹⁵ just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. ¹⁶ I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. ¹⁷ The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. ¹⁸ No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”
John 10:11-18

Old is the New New

2011-04-20T12:09:00.000-04:00

So, maybe it's not the new new... maybe old is the old new. But, I like old. And, I like new. So, I took some old and new and voila, a ~~masterpiece~~ new dresser! (Please pardon the iPhone pictures... I will take some good ones once I have it "staged" so you can see it in the room.)

Exhibit A: an authentic mid-century (we think late 40's/early 50's) Broyhill dresser

The dresser has dovetailed drawers that are also lined in cedar, is solid wood with a thick wood veneer (not like you see today) and all the drawers worked great. It had some minor damage, including stains and chips and cracks in the veneer, but no matter since I was painting it anyway. Oh, and I got it off Craig's list.

The first thing I did was remove the drawer hardware (which I'm going to sell on eBay... holler if you're interested in some authentic mid-century drawer pulls... I have 12) and sand all of the surfaces with a hand-sander and 150-grit sandpaper (I believe... may have been a little lower grit than that). I just wanted to rough it up a bit and remove any stickiness or debris from the dresser. Then I cleaned it very well to remove all of the dust from sanding and many, many years of use (the amount of regular dust and wood dust from sliding the drawers inside of that thing was impressive).

Once it was clean, I used Elmer's wood filler to fill in the extra holes left by the old drawer hardware (they used two screws and the ring pulls I got only needed one), the "cracks" down the middle of each dresser since I wanted a flat front, and any imperfections in the veneer. Let it dry, sand, apply more wood filler as needed, rinse and repeat. Once I felt like everything was smooth (and fully dry), I began priming using Zinsser oil based primer, since I knew it would stick to the veneer. I added Penetrol to the primer to help it go on smoothly and used a combination of a good Purdy brush and foam roller. I still had issues with it going on smoothly, but I sanded with 220-grit sand paper in between coats.

Once the primer was dry, I began painting. I used Benjamin Moore slate teal in semi gloss latex, as it was a close match to the blue I wanted to pull from the zig-zag fabric on my grandma's old cane back chairs and it also compliments the light blue-grays in the room. I actually had them mix it at 125% saturation, because I wanted it to be a little richer than the swatch. There was a more navy blue color above it on the swatch (I think it was called twilight), and I wanted to do 50/50 of those colors, but that wasn't possible without buying a quart of each, which was just too much paint. I should have gotten Floetrol to add to to paint, as I had a lot of issues getting the paint to go on smoothly. Latex paint just dries too quickly, so it was tough. Unfortunately, I had to give up here, because I had a friend coming in town and couldn't spend any more time on it.

Exhibit B: the new old dresser with burnished bronze ring pulls from Lee Valley

At some point, I will sand everything back down with fine sand paper, add Floetrol to my paint and try to get a smooth coat, but it's actually not noticeable in the room (outside, the brush strokes were glaring). After that, I will add a low/no-VOC clear coat, such as Acrylacq to give it some sheen and wipe-able protection (and so I can bring it back in the room and not suffer through the fumes, even though I secretly like the way they smell). Although the above picture is not a very accurate depiction of the color, you get the idea. More pictures when it's really done!

Life with dogs...

2011-04-12T10:31:00.003-04:00

... is great. And fun. And a little bit of work. And sometimes expensive. And involves a LOT of cleaning floors. But, I wouldn't trade them for the world.

I am that person. I love my dogs. I show pictures of them on my phone to friends. Probably strangers too. And to the interwebs via facebook and the blogosphere. I mean, that's what it's all about anyway, right?

So, it has been approximately four and a half months since we adopted Max and Maddie, and I think they're pretty well settled in to life with us. They have such different personalities but have captured our hearts in their own ways.

Max (or Maxy-boo, punk or Max the Million) is a big, goofy lover. He is so excited to see someone new, whether us coming home or guests, and lets you know. If we had renamed them, I think we would have named him Chewbacca, because he makes this "moaning" noise when he's super excited that is reminiscent of the big, furry guy from Star Wars. He just wants your love and affection and will push his sister (or anyone, for that matter) out of his way to get it. He's a big time licker, and we're trying to work on that, but it's tough to break a life long habit when he doesn't understand what we're telling him not to do. He also has some ear issues and we can't decide if it's a nervous reaction or they legitimately bother him (he hasn't had an ear infection since we've had him, but they get so swollen from him scratching them... we don't know why he goes after them like he does... I think it's just a vicious cycle, but we have tons of ear stuff to try to soothe them). I think I get him more than Matt, so he and I have a special bond.

Maddie (or Maddie girl, Maddie Belle (I decided that Belle is her middle name), princess, or pumpkin) is our sweet, smart, manipulative, beautiful girl. Everything a girl should be, truly. She really is so smart and conniving and knows how to get what she wants, especially from her daddy. (Yes, we call ourselves mommy and daddy when speaking of the dogs.) She would pick Matt over me any day of the week, unless I had a treat. In fact, I was outside brushing them the other day (for like the third time in 24 hours because our house looked like a dog salon, with all the hair everywhere) and even though these dogs LOVE to be brushed, she was standing at the back door looking inside for Matt and wouldn't come when I called her. To say that he loves that would be an understatement. ;) Maddie is really everything that Max isn't. She doesn't get nearly excited or worked up over things and is much smarter, gentler and the troublemaker of the two. It's like a movie where you have an impressionable goofy kid who hangs out with the troublemaker and follows what he/she does... that's Max and Maddie. And, when I say trouble, it's not much... getting into the trash once, sitting on the couch when we're not home (think we broke that habit), tearing up her bed or blanket (thankfully, nothing that isn't for them, but I'm a bit upset at the condition of their LL Bean beds!). One of the best things about Maddie is that she's a champion cuddler... we don't let them sleep with us, but if we did, she would be a good one to sleep with. Plus, she's so soft. We've also found over the last few weeks as we've gotten some thunderstorms that Maddie has thunderphobia, which is common for goldens. She's not totally crazy like some are, but she shakes like a leaf and pants like a fool. Last night, I was watching the last parts of Mildred Pierce on the couch when the storms came through, and I was trying to comfort her by giving her lots of pets and affection... she jumped right into my lap on the couch. It was hilarious and I let her stay there in my arms like a child, because the poor thing was shaking so badly! They no longer sleep in crates (I love the way my room looks with those things gone), so I'll wait for the day that another night t-storm rolls through and she ends up in bed with us. Money says Matt won't kick her out. ;)

I can't imagine why their previous owners would have given them up, but I'm glad they made their way to us. Life is crazier, dirtier, more planned, more expensive and better than it was before dogs.

Spooning

After the Shamrock 'n Roll 5K

What happens when Max's tail hits the wall...

Love for Yoforia runs in the family

Typical.

Auburn fans (duck and elephant)? I think not. Guess we should get them a bulldog toy to tear up. ;)

Like Whoa

2011-04-06T20:53:00.000-04:00

I have a lot to say and not much at the same time. So, bullet points it is.

Unemployment budget is in full force. My car was FILTHY, so instead of taking it to the ol' they-do-it-for-me-and-I-like-to-watch-it-go-through-the-car-wash place, I went to one of those DIY places. Took me forever, but I'll be darned if that ain't one clean car, practically detailed for about $6.00. I could have done it at home, but I really needed a heavy duty vacuum to get the copious amounts of dog hair out of the way-way.
Speaking of copious amounts of dog hair, my dogs are definitely shedding their winter coats. We bathed them on Monday then gave them a good brushing. I vacuumed the house. Yesterday, there was hair all over. I cleaned most of it up. Matt brushed them again. Today was way worse! Unreal. But, I do love them so. Little lickers.
Back to the car wash... I somehow left my driver side floor mat and it was still there today. Yay.
It is the week of the job. All of a sudden, I have a couple of things in real estate that are promising. And, maybe something in med device, but I won't get my hopes up on that one.
I had to turn down an opportunity to go help do Bod Pod testing for the Clemson football team next week, because one of my best friends, Kelly, will be in town from California. She's worth it, but barely. You have to be darn near naked for the test, and I wouldn't mind seeing a bunch of football players, even the big dudes, get tested all day. No siree.
We went to Raleigh for one of Matt's best friend's wedding this weekend. Let's just say there was not a lot of paleo activities going on, and Matt and I are not what we used to be. Thankfully, I got to sleep in the day after we got back but he suffered through the day.

He's so handsome.


The boys. Three of these guys were Matt's groomsman and the other is a really good friend.

Well, that's about it. I don't even know why I bothered writing any of this profound information, but I did. So, yeah.

Paleo Cake?

2011-03-28T18:02:00.001-04:00

Yes, you can make a "paleo" version of cake. Since my birthday is tomorrow and we had dinner guests last night, I decided to try a cake for dessert, knowing I'd have leftovers to eat on my birthday (and for breakfast and a snack until it is gone). I went to one of my favorite paleo/primal websites, The Food Lovers Primal Palate, and found this lovely recipe for a dark chocolate coconut cake with dark chocolate ganache. I do not miss grains or sugar eating this cake. It was so good, even my guests had seconds and they are not paleo freaks like me! You honestly would not know that this cake doesn't have grains or sugar (well, technically there is sugar in the chocolate chips, but not compared to conventional).

Some comments on the recipe:
-I used almond butter instead of hazelnuts in the middle. I thought the directions were a bit weird in that it had you refrigerate the frosting, but I did it anyway. I'm guessing you're only supposed to refrigerate it long enough to thicken it a bit, but I ended up having to melt it again over a double broiler. Next time, I'd just go ahead and let it cool a bit on the counter then frost my layers. It's still "slick", so you could hold the layers together with toothpicks and refrigerate the cake for a little bit to harden the frosting.
-This cake would be great if you added fruit to the middle... like strawberries. Yum.
-The ganache didn't harden very quickly for me, so I refrigerated the cake for a little bit to harden it.
-I added halved strawberries to the top of the cake. Very good. And pretty. But, I don't have a picture. I will take one when I have a slice after dinner and post. :)

Do yourselves a favor and check out their blog. Lots of delicious recipes!

ETA: the pic... not a great one (or a perfect piece of cake) but delicious... that's organic whipped heavy cream on there, you know, because it needed a little something extra. ;)

Dilemma

2011-03-22T15:47:00.002-04:00

I have a problem that's not really a problem. My clothes don't fit. They are almost all too big. Since up until a week or so ago, I was pretty much wearing the two pair of jeans I live in, which both still fit pretty well (especially after coming out of the dryer... I never used to dry my jeans and rarely even washed them). Now that it's getting warmer, and I have had a few reasons to wear "work" pants, holy-incredible-shrinking-woman-Batman! I cannot wear several of my work pants, because they are ginormous. My shorts that used to fit or be too small, mind you I rarely wore shorts before because I didn't like the way my legs looked in them, are too big. Mostly still wearable, but too big. Skirts that fit or were a little snug are now too big or fit nicely.

I am not trying to brag. It's amazing what a Paleo diet will do for your body. It takes self control, and sure I do bust my butt a few times per week doing CrossFit, but this hasn't been hard (once I got through the first two weeks). There's nothing to really brag about. I tell you all this, because herein lies the problem... I am unemployed. And the impending end of my severance and start of unemployment means that the budget does not provide for clothes shopping. And, isn't one of the best things about losing weight getting to revamp your wardrobe!? I think so. It's not like we're broke by any means, but we don't want to eat into our savings unless we come across an emergency expenditure, so we're going to just make it work until I find something new. Plus, shopping motivation is good motivation. Job=money=new clothes. See how that works?

P.S. If you know of any medical device sales jobs in Atlanta, let me know. I need to get myself in front of the folks that hire, because I don't think a commercial real estate resume is going to help me find something via medreps.com. Somehow, I don't think complex debt structures, asset management and financial analysis are the searchable words they're looking for to sell an implantable device. But, I'll be damned if I can't sell myself to them in person! ;)

Just Stuff

2011-03-15T12:01:00.001-04:00

I'm in a bullet point mood again...

It was SO good to see Lindsay and (finally) meet Brandon, and of course to get my hands on little Tristan. He is an angel baby. Seriously. Not even a month old, and he was SO.SO.SO.GOOD.
A little back story, because I love these stories... Brandon has faced three battles with cancer. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer when he was 22 or 23. Went into remission. Yay. Meets Lindsay. They get engaged. Cancer comes back. Boo hiss. Lots of crazy treatment like stem cell transplants and high dose chemo. Lots of prayer. Cancer seems to be gone. They get married. Doctors tell him that he has less than a five percent chance of being able to procreate due to the chemo. Lindsay and Brandon choose to trust God and His plan for their family. Lindsay gets pregnant. Holy crap! What a miracle. Cancer comes back. Cancer sucks. Doctors tell Brandon that this is going to kill him. Brandon says, "Nothing in my heart leads me to believe that I'm going to do anything but get better." Lots and lots of prayer again. Some treatments and surgeries. The Hallelujah diet. Lindsay finds out baby B is a boy (we ALL swore she was having a girl... seriously, everyone thought it was a girl). Today, Brandon is cancer free and has a beautiful, strong, loving wife and a sweet, precious baby boy. God listens. I wish I could go into even more detail, but suffice it to say that it has been one heck of a ride. God was always with them, just as He is always with all of us through the good and the bad. And, even when His Plan is so hard to understand, His Plan is always right, and I fully believe that it all makes sense at some point in our lives. Praise the Lord for His Grace!
I also got to spend time with Jenn, Madelyn and Baby M on Saturday, since they came up to see the B fam. Jenn got the thumbs up last week and again yesterday to fully share the news that Baby #2 is on its way and due in September! I seriously could not be more thrilled, and although I will love him/her no matter what, I really hope it's a boy. :) I've been on a baby boy kick lately. Madelyn is going to be such a good big sister. She is such a doll face. I love watching Matt with her, because he thinks she's the bee's knees. Ladies, is seeing your husband be sweet with a child not the most heart warming thing ever? He'll be such a good daddy... one day. ;)
My nephew, James, is a stud. So is Brody. But, see below for example A of James' studliness. Mind you, he is 5 and this is actually t-ball. Proceed to 0:25 and make sure your volume is down, and then please ignore my mom's yelling... she lost her crap.
Still on the bandwagon with paleo eating. I've added in some dairy (heavy cream in my morning coffee, cheese when it adds to a dish but not just because) and I'm drinking again, but I don't drink a ton anyway. I'm trying to keep it to the weekend or social situations. I rarely have a drink during the week, just because. I can definitely tell a difference when I do cheat (like after having a calzone and beer on Friday night), but I certainly don't think I've gained any fat. So, it's definitely possible to do a modified version of paleo, so long as you keep it in check. Aim for full compliance with the realization that you likely will not achieve it 100% of the time. I probably only ate two or three cheat meals last week. Generally, if I can stick to paleo (+ booze), I do. I really had no good choices on Friday night, but the calzone was darn good.
The 5K was a lot of fun! It doesn't have an individual chip start, so I have no idea what my time was. Maddie and I finished at 34:32, but I don't know how much time had elapsed when we started, since we were in the back of the pack with the strollers and dogs. I also had to stop for her to poop, pick up her poop (thankfully I had a bag), toss it, walk so I could take off my jacket and then I walked for a little bit somewhere around 2 miles because I got super dizzy for some reason. When we were running, it was definitely at a good pace (for me). I think if I'd never stopped, I would have been around 26-27 minutes, but with the short stops, I think we were probably around 30 minutes. Now, I'm itching to run one by myself so I can maneuver through the crowds better and keep pace. Besides the bout of dizziness after mile 2 was completed, I felt really good and strong. I ran it in 27 something last time I ran this race, and I know I was running stronger and faster this time. Oh, and we lost Matt and Max early on, because they were too slow for us. ;)

And, scene. Back to "work."

This Thursday's Thoughts

2011-03-10T14:41:00.000-05:00

How's that for alliteration?

CrossFit ain't for sissies. Yesterday, we did the Nasty Girls WOD (for those of you non-CFers, which is most of you... 3 rounds for time: 50 air squats, 7 muscle ups (modified, since I don't have a muscle up - 7 fake MUs and 7 pullups, 10 hang power cleans (@85lbs). A) I am so sore today. B) I have bruises dotting (literally) the front of my thighs from the hang power cleans. I really use my hips, which causes my legs to hit the bar (that weighs 85lbs) as I power it from the hang position to my shoulders. Also, when you lower the weight for a new rep, it often smacks your legs. And, I used my legs as a "resting place" to fix my grip. All that to say, my legs look like h-e-doublehockeysticks.
I want to go skiing again. Those bruises are pretty too. Let's just say sliding down a pile of rocks leaves a mark. But, I still want to go skiing again.
I am doing some contract work right now, and it's really cramping my (f)unemployment style. Very happy for the income, though. And, it's from home and at my own pace. So, yeah. No complaints.
One of my best friends from college is coming in town for a night this weekend with her husband and month old baby boy, Tristan. So excited. Sadly, we have not seen each other in well over three years. I refuse to figure out how long it's been, because it's been too long. They are driving back home from her inlaw's in south Georgia, so I'm so glad they are stopping here to break up the drive.
Matt and I are running a 5K this weekend with the dogs. I can't tell you the last time I ran 3.1 miles. But, I can run a mile, then do 100 pullups-200 pushups-300 squats, then run another mile. So, I'm hoping I can run the whole thing. I'm taking Maddie, because she's faster. And, although Matt is typically a better runner than I, he hasn't run in forever, so I'm leaving him in the dust with the slow dog. ;)
I will no longer put a timeline on the Paleo blog. Let's just say I have a backlog of posts and recipes, but I haven't found enough time to sit down and get it going. I do have someone to do a semi-custom blog design (I need to find a wordpress template to use first), so maybe sooner than later.
I started my LLC, so I can cross something else off my (f)unemployment to do list.
I am pretty sure I want to go into medical device sales, preferably surgical/implantable devices. I had an interview with a real estate company and for a job that theoretically would be what I want. And, I was less than excited. A sign? We'll see.
I won the Lockdown for the ladies. I edited my last paleo related post to add that, but most of you probably didn't see it. They were going to award 1st - 3rd place, but since no women would have placed (I hate guys and their fat burning/muscle gaining abilities), they decided to do 1st and 2nd for men and women. I got $250. Yeah!
Alright, back to the grind. I know, I know.

Carving up the Powder

2011-03-04T15:13:00.001-05:00

I've been MIA... out in Utah skiing with my handsome husband! And, I got to see my Utah family, which was definitely the highlight of my trip, although not enough time (there never is!). They were wonderful hosts (must run in the family, as my Gram is "the hostess with the mostest") and even had special paleo food for me! Looooved it. (As a side note, it's amazing how people will go out of their way to support your dietary choices and lifestyle). I didn't take any photos with the family, but photos were taken, so I'll have to get those (hint hint to those of you reading). :) We did, however, take lots of photos on the slopes.

We arrived in SLC on Saturday and stayed that night with the family. On Sunday, we spent our first of three days skiing Deer Valley. Wow. The service there is impeccable. It was great skiing, but not our favorite (Breckenridge wins of the places we've visited), but everyone is just so nice, including the clientele. We even shared a bench with Weird Al Yankovic in the locker area (besides the hair, not so weird and quite nice). Random! They have maps and tissues as you get on each lift, mountain hosts everywhere, and even the lift operators were super friendly. The grooming was awesome, especially in the morning. We found some great runs, and I did several blacks. Matt is much more adventurous than I, and he even conquered a bowl. I think we did pretty much every blue run they had, many of the double blues, and a few blacks (no moguls for me). I tried moguls once and I wasn't feeling it (I've done them before), so that was the end of that. I prefer flat surfaces or a few bumps where you can catch a little air, but I'm just not good enough in my turns for tight moguls, not to mention my ski set up wasn't great for them either. In hindsight, we should've skied two days at Deer Valley and a day at Park City, because we'd done everything we wanted to in two days at Deer Valley, but still enjoyed our last day there (must have because we skied from open to close!). My favorite runs were Tycoon (I did the whole thing without stopping once and it's a long double blue, so my legs were feeling it at the bottom!), Jordanelle, Magnet and Big Stick. I like long runs, and those were all pretty long and challenging.

We haven't been skiing in three years, and last time we skied we decided that we wouldn't do it again without a helmet. It's just not worth it, especially when you like to get into the trees like we do (and when you witness a friend take a bad fall... thankfully, he was okay but he smacked his head pretty hard on the snow). Well, three years ago, I'd say less than half of the skiers had helmets. This trip, I'd say at least 90% were wearing helmets! I thought that was awesome. Even if you're a safe or accomplished skier, you just never know what could happen or if someone else could take you out. I also found the helmet to be very comfortable and warm (we bought our own). Matt even got one with the audio set up, so he jammed out very comfortably. I also listened to my iPod, but it's not as comfortable with earbuds.

We kept it pretty low key as far as food. Our condo (free thanks to an attorney I used to do a lot of work with) was in Kimball Junction, so we grabbed quick Mexican one night and Whole Foods another. We had sushi at Oishi, which was pretty good, and met my aunt and uncle at Davanza's for some decidedly non-paleo grub our last night. I had pizza and it was good. :) I was able to eat mostly paleo (plus dairy) while there (minus drinking), but I didn't focus too much on it. It's amazing how I naturally gravitate toward paleo dishes though. When I didn't eat paleo, I tried to stay away from gluten (except the pizza and bread pudding we had for dessert one night). On the mountain, we had chili and cappuccino lunches at Cushing's Cabin. We spent one day walking around PC and visiting the Olympic Training Center/Museum and had lunch that day at Bar Boheme, under Easy Street Brasserie. I had a salmon BLT+A (avocado) with no bread and sauteed spinach, and it was delicious. Matt had French onion soup and a salad, and we both had delicious Bloody Marys. I would definitely recommend lunch or dinner there. I also bought the dogs some ridiculously overpriced venison and turkey jerky from a pet boutique, but I missed them and figured I'd have to buy their love after leaving them for that long. Needless to say, they were VERY excited to see us and go home.

We had a great time, and on our way home, Matt asked where we were going on our next vacation. Ha! I need to generate some income before we start thinking about that. Talk about working to live, right? We're definitely not folks that live to work.

Drumroll please........

2011-02-23T13:32:00.003-05:00

...........in this corner, wearing black trunks and a grey sports bra, weighing in at 130.744 pounds and with 27.0% body fat, we have Kristin "KO" O---, (hopefully) Lockdown Champion of the ~~World~~ CrossFit North Atlanta!

Please excuse my messy room. But, do you have tickets to the gun show?

So, in six weeks, I learned to eat how we were made to eat and the following things happened:

I lost 6.805 total pounds.
I gained 1.328 pounds of muscle, so I lost 8.133 pounds of fat.
I went from 31.6% body fat to 27.0% body fat.
I have increased energy.
My performance in the gym has vastly improved.
I never feel sick to my stomach or bloated (seriously, even when I'm PMSing, I don't feel bloated).
I look better.
85% cacao chocolate and unsweetened coconut flakes taste sweet to me.
I've lost an inch from my waist, hips and chest.
I was starting to develop cellulite on the front of my legs, which are quite muscular (even pre lockdown) and I now have almost no cellulite anywhere.
I have no desire whatsoever to go back to a Standard American Diet.
(bloodwork results pending...)

Mind you, all of this with doing CrossFit for only 45 minutes per session, three days per week. Otherwise, I walked a lot, ran a few times, and did things like yard work, house work, etc. That's it. Proof positive that fitness is at least 80% nutrition.

They took before and after pictures, which are apparently going to be e-mailed to us, and as embarrassing as my before pictures may be, I will post them. Don't let the government and medical professionals fool you into thinking a low-fat, high grain/sugar diet is healthy. I am proof that "high fat" and no grain/sugar will give you incredible results, and you can still eat delicious food, just lose the grains and sugar. Shoot, even Cooking Light is catching on and has a ton of grain-free recipes this month and an article about how the main culprit in our nation's health crisis is probably (their words) sugar! I remove the probably part. Once you get the sugar out of your diet and get through the withdrawals (sugar activates the same receptors in your brain as heroin... dead serious), you just have a new definition of what is dessert, if you eat it at all... fruit with unsweetened coconut, a small piece of 85% cacao chocolate, a small serving of Turtle Mountain dairy and gluten free icecream (all hail the Paleo gods on this one). Just do it!

ETA: I won the lockdown for the ladies! Results here. Pictures and BodPod don't lie. I have reverse body dismorphic disorder... I didn't realize I looked that bad! Hahahahaha.

Stream of Consciousness

2011-02-22T19:05:00.000-05:00

Working is overrated. (Paychecks are not.)
I'm ready to get the paleo blog going but I can't make up my mind as to what I want to do... do I want to just host it in blogger or wordpress for now and buy my own hostname? If I start to make any money, I could migrate it to another host (if you host through blogger/wordpress, you don't own your site or its content, apparently). Or, should I just shell out the $ to host it somewhere? Who out there has a website? Help me please.
Do you know anyone that does wordpress blog design/layout? I want a "faux website" which is really a blog with links at the top of the page to different things, such as "About Me", "Contact Me", etc. I'm really leaning toward wordpress, because I've heard it's more dynamic than blogger. But, I still love me some blogger.
We are going skiing SOON! Yay!!! I am sooooo excited to ski, but especially to see my family in Utah!
Today is the LAST DAY OF THE LOCKDOWN! Woohoo! I kicked the lockdown's butt. I have my BodPod tomorrow, so you can be sure I'll be back with the results. The winners probably won't be announced until early next week.
I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up, but I think I'm getting closer. I met with a guy that works for a medical device company while I was in Jacksonville, and the more I learn about the industry and the more I talk to folks, I think I want to make the switch and I'm getting good feedback as far as me being a good fit in the industry.
I also have a lead for a good job in my current field. My interest is piqued, so we shall see.
Oh, I have a ULI event tomorrow evening that is being hosted at a Mexican restaurant, and although I am definitely keeping up with the paleo lifestyle, I am going to DEVOUR some chips and guac. And some wine. Which means, I should probably have Matt come pick me up since I haven't had more than 1.5 glasses of wine (total) in six weeks. And, I will probably be hungover Thursday. Good thing I don't work.
I need to go check on my paleo venison chili. Another recipe for the paleo blog, once I figure out how the heck I want to host it! xo

The Happiest Place on Earth

2011-02-22T18:49:00.000-05:00

I headed down to Jacksonville last week to spend some QT with the family, and we all spent Saturday at the Magic Kingdom! Being President's Day weekend, it was fairly crowded, but we had a great time. The lines weren't too bad (Fast Pass helped us out a lot in this department), and other than not really having enough time to browse around the shops and whatnot, it was a successful trip. James, my five year old nephew, went on all the Mountains! He was awesome. He was apparently a little scared on Space Mountain, and I can't blame him being that it was his first roller coaster and it is so dark in there (no tears or anything, but he said it was scary when he got off... the picture was apparently hilarious). He absolutely loved Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain. Other favorites were Buzz Lightyear, the Teacups and Mickey's Philharmagic. Little Brody Bear even went on some rides including Buzz, the Astro Orbiter, the Teacups, Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean. We were up at 5am to get down there, and both boys were amazing all day. James entertained himself in the lines by playing with my Canon SLR... yes, I am the world's nicest aunt. He wore the strap around his neck, so that made me feel better. :) He took a few good photos... the budding photographer that he is! Now, I'm just itching to go back on a less crowded day!!

Photography by James

Astro Orbiter

Teacups!

Tigger kissing Mickey

I want to eat him.

Cutest nephews ever.

Aunt Brandi sporting Brody's light up ears

Mickey!

Proust Tag

2011-02-18T17:40:00.000-05:00

AEOT did this on her blog, and I have never participated in one before, so I thought it would be fun to look back on in a few years and see if my answers have changed.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?
How do you answer this question? Things that make me perfectly happy include sharing an amazing meal and conversation with my husband, traveling to new places together, a really good bottle of wine, my family and friends, etc. But, my perfect happiness would be just to be completely content in my life, whatever that means.

What is your greatest fear?
Losing my family, but especially my husband.

Which figures do you most identify with?
I'm confused by this question... lol. As in, I'm not exactly sure what the question is asking, but if it's body type, I'm a curvy gal and am pretty happy with my figure right now but would kill to be long and lean (and to be able to eat whatever I wanted and still be healthy and look good... alas, that is not me).

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Talking about myself or being a know-it-all.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?
I cannot stand people that are inconsiderate. Is it that hard to think about others?

What do you most value in your friends?
Loyalty and the ability to make me laugh.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
"Shut the front door", "seriously", "like"

What is your favorite journey?
marriage

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
In today's society, openness. Some of us have become a little too open. I'm known for being an open book, but I'm referring more to poor decisions about what young kids post on the internet.

What is your favorite occupation?
TBD...

What do you dislike most about your appearance?
Hmmmm... probably that I still breakout. Or, as I said above, if I could eat anything I want and not have it affect my health or appearance, that would be primo. ;) I love paleo, but I still love things I have given up! :)

What is your greatest regret?
Times I have hurt others (they weigh on me and I still remember them)

What or who is the greatest love of your life?
My Matt.

When and where were you happiest?
times spent together as a family before my dad died (Huey Lewis concert, watching my dad play in his bands, Disney trip, NC cabin); being with my friends in college (Key West Summer '02 or SB'03 anyone?); traveling and/or experiencing new things with Matt

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I'd be a morning person and wake up at 6am every day full of energy!

What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Staying on the straight and narrow and being goal oriented throughout my life; finding time to serve others even when I'm busy

What is your most treasured possession?
My pictures.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Another one I am not sure how to answer... watching my loved ones be hurt, tortured, etc. Do it to me, but don't do it to someone I love.

Where would you like to live?
Sonoma County

What is your most marked characteristic?
Personality - I talk... a lot. I don't think I'm as bad as I used to be, but my friends can attest to my ability to talk, especially when I was in a new situation. It's my crutch. Appearance - my ~~fore~~fivehead.

What is your greatest extravagance?
Food. I cringe at spending $200 on a pair of shoes or even a purse and am a super frugal clothes shopper, but I will drop some money on food be it good quality meats, wines, etc. or a good meal out. We don't even blink to spend $100 on dinner for the two of us. Granted, we don't do it much (especially now), but I'd say it used to be an at least twice per month occurrence.

What are the qualities you most like in a man?
Loyal, outgoing, compassionate, adventurous, handy around the house ;)

Who are your favorite writers?
Ernest Hemingway, Harper Lee, John Steinbeck, Emily Giffin

How would you like to die?
Very old, in my sleep, no fuss, after I've gotten to experience the most out of life

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Forrest Gump and Atticus Finch

Who are your heroes in real life?
Gram, Memere, my mom... three incredibly strong women!

What is your motto?
I have a few...
No one needs a smile so much as he who has none to give. (my senior quote in the yearbook)
What does not kill you only makes you stronger/God will not give you more than you can handle.
Live life to its fullest, because you never know which day will be your last.

Food is Love

2011-02-15T11:42:00.001-05:00

I love food. I think most of you know this about me. Like really love, will eat almost anything and try pretty much anything once, love. So, it goes without saying that it is also how I express love. And, I wasn't going to let a little thing like paleo get in the way of a kick butt Valentine's Day dinner (if you notice, I haven't let it do so at all over the past five weeks). But, this wasn't just a normal Monday night dinner (not at $23/lb for fresh, large sea scallops). And, oh my... it was good. I probably moaned (TMI? told you I love food) every single time I cut into one of those big, juicy scallops and put the succulent, soft, buttery bite in my mouth. I looooooove a good scallop. And, my friends, these were divine. But, the recipe is being saved for debut on the new blog (hopefully to be unveiled in the next week or two), so I will instead leave you with photos.

Oh, and who could forget dessert? Just a paleo version of key lime pie, found here. It was a little too tart for our tastes (likely a result of using regular limes... key limes are sweeter), so I sprinkled a little bit of palm sugar on the top and it was perfect. If you eat dairy, I think it would be amazing with some fresh whipped heavy cream. Yummmmmm. I even went crazy and had a glass of wine with dinner. Watch out. P.S. Is it bad if I felt a little dizzy from one glass of wine? I think so. My tolerance has left the building.

Lockdown Update

2011-02-11T16:40:00.000-05:00

As you may have caught in my previous post, I am working on starting a paleo blog/website. I guess you could say I'm smoking the crack (I'm even going all out with hosting and my own domain name so I make sure I own the content and not blogger or wordpress). So, I thought it was time for another update, since it's been awhile.

Today is day 30 of the lockdown! Wow, I just realized that. A lot of people encourage just a 30 day trial of this lifestyle, but being that CFNA is "cock diesel" (don't ask, because I don't know), we go all out for a six week lockdown. So, for those math challenged, 12 days to go. Or for me, a lifetime to go. You guys, this truly is not that hard and the results are so worth it. I've lost an INCH... ONE INCH... from my waist in four weeks, and it's not like I am obese and the weight falls off really easily. I think I'm also down 4 lbs, but we'll leave those measurements to the BodPod in a couple weeks, as I've hopefully gained some muscle too. Don't get me wrong, one of the things that motivated me to do the lockdown was that I was not happy with the excess fat amassing itself around my mid-section and thighs, so I definitely had some lbs to lose. BUT ONE INCH AND FOUR POUNDS IN FOUR WEEKS. And, I EAT. A LOT. Eggs, grass fed beef, organic free range chicken, fish, olives, coconuts, avocados (yum), nuts and lots of fruits and veggies. I even found PALEO ICECREAM... y'all, icecream that isn't so bad for you... and it tastes good (it's made w/ coconut milk and agave nectar)! I looooooove icecream, and I've already planned to purchase an icecream maker so I can make paleo versions of icecream and sorbet, but I can buy it at Publix when I'm lazy. Cue the choir... "Hallelujah!"

I seriously encourage you to at least read about paleo and primal eating and learn what grains (especially gluten... if you do nothing else, eliminate gluten from your diet), sugar (same as grains), dairy and legumes do to your hormones and gut. You will be shocked at some of the science that's out there and the fact that our own government subsidizes corn production, making things like high fructose corn syrup (don't buy those commercials... nothing about that crap is good for you, and they're exactly right... it's like sugar... which guess what, is NOT GOOD FOR YOU) cheap so that junk food and all the things that make us sick and diseased are cheap, then they subsidize the drug industry to treat those diseases (cancer, diabetes, inflammatory diseases such as lupus, artherosclerosis, etc) when all we need to do is change our relationship with certain foods. Also, watch Food Inc.

So, the new venture for me will be a mix of recipes, things I learn about paleo along the way, tips for eating out and adhering to a paleo/primal lifestyle, my random musings and of course, my continued journey and results with my new found obsession. Once it's up and running, you'll be the first to know! Except a glass of wine, I don't even think I'll take much of a cheat on my first day after the lockdown. I do have an event to attend which will have a guacamole bar, so I will most definitely be partaking in that (guac is paleo (assuming no dairy) but corn chips... not so much). I've pretty much gotten to the point that most things aren't even worth cheating for, not to mention I know I'll probably feel like crap after eating them.

So Much To Do, So Little Time

2011-02-09T16:16:00.000-05:00

That's a funny comment coming from someone who it would seem has nothing but time on her hands. I don't have a job to report to every day, but I do have a laundry list of things to accomplish while I'm funemployed. The list looks something like this.

-~~do taxes~~
-establish LLC for contract/consulting work
-file property tax appeal
-~~paint upstairs bedroom~~
-create paleo blog (coming soon to a world wide interwebs near you... recipes, info, etc.)
-find dresser for master bedroom (2nd hand or IKEA hack)
-refinish/paint dresser for master bedroom
-sew pillows for master bed
-find bedding/make bedding for upstairs
-~~sell furniture~~ (my awesome friend Lauren is buying our old bedroom furniture!)
-make curtains/shades for upstairs bedroom and "skylights"
-sell clothes and purses on eBay
-meet with medical device reps to discuss industry and make connections

Obviously, some of this could carry into future employment, but at the rate I'm going, that's not going to be any time soon. I haven't even fully updated my resume or started to get it out there, but I'm just not quite ready to go there yet. Ideally, I would be able to get enough contract and consulting work that I won't need a "9 to 5" for a few months, if ever again (I guess that would be the true ideal). Plus, there's really not much out there for someone of my qualifications at the moment, so there's not a huge hurry to beat anyone to market. I have a lot of connections in the Atlanta commercial real estate industry, so in the next couple of weeks, I will start leveraging those connections to set up meetings to get myself, and my consulting gig, out there. At this point, I just really don't want to settle for a job where I ultimately will not be happy.

In the meantime, I've already met with one friend in the medical device sales industry and am trying to set up a meeting with a friend of one of my mom's coworkers for next week, while I'm in Jacksonville. I haven't mentioned that mixed in with this list (which includes more than the above), I'll also be "home" for several days, and then we're going skiing in Park City too. That doesn't seem to leave too much time for job searching. ha!

I've also kept busy and continue to keep busy with lunch meetings with friends and folks in the industry, keeping up with the house, etc. I have to say, if we could make it work financially, I'd never go back to work! haha. I might change my tune in a few weeks if/when I get bored. But, so far, unemployment has been nice. Below are some photos of one of my accomplishments of last week.

I don't have any before pictures of this room, but it was previously the same color seen in our master bedroom (and the rest of the house), which was a putrid yellowish-peachy color and the blinds were some fake wooden blinds that were also yellowish in color. Once I got it all painted (Behr's Oyster in eggshell and a fresh coat of Glidden's White on White in semi-gloss on the doors and door/window trim, which were inexplicably filthy, even after a good wipe down), Matt said it looked like a smoker's room because of the blinds, and promptly made a trip to Home Depot for some bamboo blinds. Gotta love a guy who knows what he wants. This is our old master bedroom furniture, which Lauren is taking off our hands. It's too big for this room, as is, without the armoire and tall dresser that are in our room and the other bedroom. Even though the furniture is too big for the room, it already looks so much bigger, cleaner and lighter with the updated paint. I want to use orange in this room, so I'm on the hunt for bedding or fabric to make my own. Also thinking about taking on an IKEA hack to make an upholstered headboard, but we shall see.

Like I said, so much to do, so little time...

Funemployment

2011-02-02T15:22:00.000-05:00

I was laid off on Monday, which was not entirely unexpected and not exactly dreaded, either. A lot of people have been saying how sorry they are, but I don't think anyone should feel sorry for me, because I sure don't! I loved the people I worked with and my company was a good company, but I was not happy in the work I was doing. I didn't feel any sense of fulfillment or accomplishment. I've come to realize in my short, illustrious six year career that I need a job in which I feel like I am doing something, whether that's creating something or making a difference in someone's life.

So, I'm taking my extended paid vacation (okay, it's not really that long, but I'll take it) to figure out what I want to do ~~when I grow up~~ with my life. I have a long list of things to do while I'm not working, besides the obvious of finding a new job, so I will definitely keep busy. I'm also planning to create an LLC that will allow me to do contract work and consulting in commercial real estate, and also do some pageant coaching, which is something I've thought about for a long time. I've done coaching before but never officially as a business. So, if you know of anyone who needs a pageant coach, holler! I have a lot of good insight and resources and have worked with girls in MAO and USA with great results. I can coach everything from image to presentation to interview to fitness/nutrition.

I'm also seriously considering a career change and have been for some time. I wanted to be a doctor for most of my life. Toward the end of high school, I began to talk to doctors and every single one of them said not to do it if there was anything else I could see myself doing. Instead of choosing something else in the medical field, I just went completely away from it. I still have a passion for it, but would want to do something where I'd have patient interaction but combines my business background. So, I'm thinking about medical device sales too and am trying to set up some meetings with people I know in that field.

We shall see... the possibilities are endless!

Another Breakthrough

2011-01-27T09:40:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, I was tired all day and really wanted to down some sugar. I went to Publix to pick up some eggs (I eat eggs like they are going out of style... which brings me to, if anyone local knows where you can get affordable FREE RANGE (not cage free... that's propaganda) eggs from chickens that eat bugs and stuff, PLEASE let me know. I saw some at Whole Foods, but the price was missing... based on the other eggs, I'm guessing it was $5-6 for a dozen. Eek.) and back to the original point... the dairy aisle is also the candy aisle... oh man, if I weren't doing paleo, I probably would have bought some Twizzlers or Reeses Pieces or something. I wanted something sweet bad. Anyway, didn't do it, chewed a piece of gum instead, went home, had dinner, then made the blueberry "dessert" (jury's out on that one).

Woke up at my usual 6am for CrossFit days and hit the gym. I feel great this morning, although I tweaked my elbow doing push presses, so that was not fun (I think I've got a knot somewhere in my left trap/delt/or something in that area that is pulling on a tendon that runs from the shoulder/back to the elbow and it is not fun to put weight overhead). I have a ton of energy right now and will likely sustain it all day. The days I sleep a little later and don't work out in the morning are my roughest days. Weird. So, coming from the ultimate sleeper-inner (seriously, I HATE getting up in the morning), I think I might start getting up at 6 every morning during the week and doing yoga or pilates on my off days... something relatively easy to get in some good stretching and get my blood pumping. I know I will not want to get out of bed, but I was in such a funk all day yesterday even after a good night's rest. I can't make it much past 10pm anymore.

So, anyway. That was my breakthrough yesterday/today. I'm putting it here for some accountability. Now, I just need to find some decent yoga/pilates workouts On Demand (and a kick in the butt to get up... I think Matt will gladly handle that), and I'll be golden.

ETA: http://robbwolf.com/2011/01/19/nutritional-relativism/ - this is a good read

Locking it down into week 3

2011-01-26T15:48:00.003-05:00

Today marks the start of week three of the lockdown. So far, so good. Save a few tiny (and I do mean tiny) sips of Matt's beer or wine, no cheats. I feel good, albeit tired. I feel like my diet is good, so I'm not sure if the sleepiness is just my body adjusting to the lack of sugar or what. It's actually worse on days I don't work out, oddly enough (today being one of them). I tore my hand up but good doing Monday's WOD (CrossFit acronym: Workout of the Day), which included a lot of pullups, so I am NOT looking forward to tomorrow's workout consisting of a lot of olympic lifting. Note to self: wear gloves and not care when people make fun of me... I'll just show them the nice, raw rip right in the middle of my left hand.

Nothing major to report except that living this lifestyle really isn't that hard IF you plan ahead and don't mind cooking. I'm learning about all kinds of things like coconut flour and almond meal and other ways to make foods that would normally contain grains. I have not had any "desserts" yet, so that is something I will be doing more research on as far as finding paleo friendly desserts. I did see one the other day that involved heating blueberries sprinkled with cinnamon, then topping with cold coconut milk (the thick part of the milk... don't shake the can). Sounds soooo good. And, I have everything I need to make it, so one of these days, I'll get on that.

Also, one thing that I've really taken away by being on a "restricted" diet is that the beer or wine or cookie or (insert your own vice here) may be tempting and hard to resist, but once you replace it with something good for you or just get over it, you don't care. If I were to eat a cookie, I wouldn't care five minutes after eating it... the satisfaction would be over and then I might be mad at myself. Like I said before, I will certainly cheat after the six weeks is up, but I hope I will do so in moderation. Having a non-paleo dessert once a week isn't going to hurt me, but constantly barraging my body with things it doesn't need will. Matt and I went out to eat last Thursday night and hit up our local Yoforia after dinner. Sure, I would have loved to partake, but I didn't even sweat it... I knew it wasn't going to do anything for me after I was done eating it, so I just didn't.

Last night, I made chicken tortilla soup, minus the tortilla, so I thought I'd share the recipe (courtesy of Momma Kath).

Chicken ~~Tortilla~~ Soup
3-4 chicken breast halves, sprinkled liberally w/ cumin and chili powder
EVOO
1 medium onion, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 c (a hand full) fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
2 cans diced tomatoes, with juice
1 can Rotel (this is Matt's addition to the recipe)
~~6 small flour or corn tortillas, cut into 1" pieces~~
6-8 cups chicken broth
1 tbsp chili powder
1-1/2 tbsp cumin
3 bay leaves
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
salt to taste
garnish with avocado (sour cream and shredded cheese are also good, but I'm not eating those right now)

In a soup pot, saute chicken in a little bit of EVOO over medium-medium high heat long enough to sear both sides. Reduce heat to low and cover until chicken is cooked through, flipping it about half way through. When done, remove chicken to cool and increase heat back to medium-medium high. Add enough EVOO so that you have enoguh liquid to saute onion. Add onion and saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cilantro and saute for another few minutes. Add tomatoes with their juice and bring to a boil. Add chicken broth, chili powder, and cumin and bring to a boil. Add chicken (which you should shred or dice), bay leaves, cayenne pepper and salt to taste. Reduce heat to low and cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes. (If you wanted the non-paleo version, add the tortillas.) Garnish with avocado (and cheese or sour cream, if you wish). Enjoy!

Blog Fodder

2011-01-25T10:45:00.002-05:00

This morning, the Today Show was full of blog fodder. I like to share my opinion, in case you haven't noticed.

Case A: "The Tiger Mom"
Some of you may have heard of this Chinese American woman, Amy Chua, who wrote a book titled The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. She and her American husband raise their two daughters according to strict rules, common in the Chinese culture, which is how she was raised. People are going crazy over this. Personally, I think... MORE POWER TO YOU! Amen, sister. Look, maybe it's totally easy for me to say that, because I don't have kids, but the American society has gotten to a point where coddling our children is the norm. There are no winners at Field Day, sports teams don't keep score, everyone's a winner, it's okay that you didn't do well at ________ (fill in the blank). Bull crap, people. That is not life. There are winners and losers and things aren't always easy. Sure, maybe she goes a little overboard on some things (no sleepovers, being one), but I give her kudos for raising her kids with a good work ethic, to know that there are certain areas in which it is not okay to fail (i.e., school and life in general), and to know that she's the boss.

I don't expect that my kids are going to be the best at everything, but if they are the worst on their soccer team or in their violin class, I don't want them to think they are the best. They can work harder to improve (and know that they need to) or try something else where they may excel. I don't want my kids to think that mediocrity is okay in every area of life. Every single one of us has something that we are good at, and I think part of our roles as parents is to help our children find that thing that they can be proud of. If they are okay with being the worst on the soccer team because they love to play soccer, then I think that is awesome, and I will encourage the heck out of them.

I think it also comes down to your children having a level of respect for you. My mom was by no means the strictest mom in the world, but we learned at a very young age that no meant no. You would never see any of us having a meltdown in a grocery store, because we couldn't have a piece of candy. I hated hearing it, but the phrase, "Because I said so," was enough. It might have gotten a few, "But why"s in response, but no acting out (Mom, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong on this). I also think that it's not too much to ask to expect your children to have basic manners and to not get something until they say please and respond with a thank you. And, even though my mom had rules that I might not have always agreed with and didn't always let me do what I wanted, get what I wanted, etc., guess what... she's one of my best friends today. So, proof positive that you don't have to be your kid's best friend for them to love you and have a good relationship in the future. Plus, you know we all look back now and say, "Thank God we had parents that didn't let us act like little terrors!"

Case B: "Financial Infidelity"
There was a survey done recently that found that a lot of people "cheat" financially on their spouse... they lie about how much they spend, have secret credit cards, secret bank accounts, secret cash stashes, etc. The so-called "financial expert" said that she didn't think because you get married, you should become one in the state of finances. Look, I say whatever works for you works for you. Matt and I share our finances completely, because we trust each other, communicate needs/wants and thankfully, have very similar financial personalities and goals. But, you should have heard this lady. Thankfully, there was a voice of reason in the form of a psychologist who rained right down on Miss Financial Expert's parade. I know people that do not share finances and it works for them. But, the thing that was killing me about what this lady was saying is it completely negated the need for trust and communication in the relationship. Whether or not you share finances completely, how can you not talk about what you need and want? Whether my fun money is in a joint or separate account, I want Matt to know what I'm using it for and why (and vice versa). However, I will go back to the "similar financial personalities and goals"... we definitely lucked out in that aspect. We spend similarly, so frankly, I have never made a purchase that "offended" him. We don't spend above our means or frivously unless we both agree.

So, anyway. That's my two cents for what it's worth (approximately, two cents). Thoughts, comments, opinions? Do you think I'm crazy (don't answer that)?

I walked into a bar

2011-01-24T17:14:00.000-05:00

You know the jokes, "A priest and a rabbi walk into a bar." Well, I walked into a bar. Literally. At CrossFit this morning, I clearly wasn't paying attention, and walked smack into a bar that was moved down low in between the pullup bars. Hit right in the middle of my ~~fore~~fivehead, and made a nice loud sound for all to hear. I blame it on it being 6:45am and freezing. And, I thank God I was blessed with one heckuva skull. It hurt my pride more than my head.

Most Eligible Bachelor - Atlanta, GA

2011-01-20T15:23:00.002-05:00

I am linking up to Kelly's Korner for her "Show Us Your Life - Singles Edition."

Meet Greg. Greg is 25 and lives in Atlanta. Before I even go any further, you should know this... I'm Greg's boss. And, I love him. And, he's a very good friend. Weird, but not. Greg has lots of friends... more friends than probably anyone I know. He has definitely been in more weddings and invited to more weddings than anyone I know. That's because everyone likes him. And for good reason. He's quite likable.

Facts about Greg:

He'll turn 26 in May. He graduated from Auburn (I don't hold it against him). He's from Atlanta. He currently works in commercial real estate. He's about 6' and 185 lbs, if I had to guess. He has brown hair and brown eyes and a beard... and cute dimples. He's really involved with Young Life at his old high school. His passion is Jesus. He's one of the funniest and wittiest people I know. He has a heart of gold. He knows how to have fun. He's generous. He plays the guitar. He's 1/2 Greek and 1/2 Irish.

Now for more elaboration:

I honestly cannot say enough about Greg. He is truly one of the most genuine, kind hearted, funny people I know. He has a great personality, zest for life, and ridiculous love for our Savior. He has been a spiritual mentor to me over the almost three years we've worked together. He currently works in commercial real estate, and it pays the bills, but it is not his passion. His passion is teaching young folks about Jesus. Much to my pleasure, he's making his passion his job in June (don't tell our company). ;) He'll be going to serve with Young Life full time somewhere in Georgia. I pray somewhere near Atlanta, because he will be "Uncle Greg" to our future kids. Fact. I always love when he comes back from Young Life camps and tells me how so many young men in his group accepted Christ. Besides the fact that that is rad, it's the excitement and passion he has for it.

I talk about Greg a lot at home. You would think that this would make my husband uncomfortable. But it doesn't. Matt has met Greg a few times and thinks he's great. He said to me after our team's Christmas party, "I understand why you like Greg so much." He's just that guy. He's funny as all get out and not above self-depricating humor. He can talk to anyone.

If you're a single, Christian lady in/near Atlanta and reading this and looking for an awesome guy, leave me a comment with some way to get in touch with you (e-mail address or blog). Even if it's not a love match, you won't regret meeting him!

ETA: Thank you for all your comments! I'd say I'm surprised at the number of responses, but I'm really not, because Greg is a catch. Obviously, Greg can't really start anything with everyone, so I've sent him everything and he's going to contact anyone that catches his eye. A number of you were not in or near Atlanta, and I'm not sure Greg is up for the long distance thing (especially to start out a relationship), but you never know.

Fat is your friend

2011-01-20T11:59:00.002-05:00

Brace yourselves, this is a doozie.

Somehow, I'm all of a sudden a health (Paleo) nut. But, the more and more and more I read, the more and more and more convinced I am of this lifestyle's health benefits. That's not to say I'm not going to cheat when this lockdown is over... oh, I will. I will also probably regret it, because once your body rids itself of the crap, when you eat it again, you feel sick and then hungover the next day.

But, I digress... that's not what this post is about... this is about fat and how YOUR BODY NEEDS FAT. That's right, F-A-T, FAT! That dreaded word that American society has come to believe is what makes you fat. Errrrrrrr (that's my buzzer sound) - incorrect. Fat does not make you fat. Your body needs fat to perform its basic functions. And, by fat, I don't mean a super sized "value" meal from a fast food chain. Let's go back to the basics, shall we?

As mentioned previously, there are three (yep, just three) food groups that your body needs to function: PROTEIN, CARBOHYDRATES, and FAT. In review, below are examples of foods that fall into these categories.

PROTEIN: eggs, poultry, beef, pork, fish (basically, lean meats... it's okay for them to have fat, you just don't want to be eating a chunk of fat for dinner... so, maybe stay away from the pork belly most of the time... but it's soooooo good)
CARBS: veggies and fruits. period. NO GRAINS OR SUGARS! (emphasis on green veggies and fruits with lower glycemic loads)
FATS: olives, coconuts, avocados, nuts and seeds (peanuts are not a nut, FYI)

Each meal you eat should contain all three of those food groups. Nuts and seeds are the easiest ways to get fats, but the first three should be your main sources. Of course, that includes their oil counterparts.

The usual American definition of carbohydrates includes grains and sugar. Your body treats both of these the same way... it sends a message to your brain to store fat. Too little fat in your diet also does the same thing. Because your body relies on fat (and even cholesterol... gasp) for basic bodily functions, it doesn't like it when it doesn't get enough and therefore holds on to it as a life preserving mechanism (this has a lot to do with insulin, as well, so my version is quite simplified). If you read the extremely long article I posted a week ago, you'll find that when the US government starting recommending a low fat (therefore, high carb... grain/sugar definition of carb) diet in the early 80s, obesity and the incidence of type-2 diabetes began to skyrocket. I highly recommend reading at least the first few pages, but really, read the whole thing. It's good.

From the article, "With these caveats, one of the few reasonably reliable facts about the obesity epidemic is that it started around the early 1980's. According to Katherine Flegal, an epidemiologist at the National Center for Health Statistics, the percentage of obese Americans stayed relatively constant through the 1960's and 1970's at 13 percent to 14 percent and then shot up by 8 percentage points in the 1980's. By the end of that decade, nearly one in four Americans was obese. That steep rise, which is consistent through all segments of American society and which continued unabated through the 1990's, is the singular feature of the epidemic. Any theory that tries to explain obesity in America has to account for that. Meanwhile, overweight children nearly tripled in number. And for the first time, physicians began diagnosing Type 2 diabetes in adolescents. Type 2 diabetes often accompanies obesity. It used to be called adult-onset diabetes and now, for the obvious reason, is not.

So how did this happen? The orthodox and ubiquitous explanation is that we live in what Kelly Brownell, a Yale psychologist, has called a ''toxic food environment'' of cheap fatty food, large portions, pervasive food advertising and sedentary lives. By this theory, we are at the Pavlovian mercy of the food industry, which spends nearly $10 billion a year advertising unwholesome junk food and fast food. And because these foods, especially fast food, are so filled with fat, they are both irresistible and uniquely fattening. On top of this, so the theory goes, our modern society has successfully eliminated physical activity from our daily lives. We no longer exercise or walk up stairs, nor do our children bike to school or play outside, because they would prefer to play video games and watch television. And because some of us are obviously predisposed to gain weight while others are not, this explanation also has a genetic component -- the thrifty gene. It suggests that storing extra calories as fat was an evolutionary advantage to our Paleolithic ancestors, who had to survive frequent famine. We then inherited these ''thrifty'' genes, despite their liability in today's toxic environment.

This theory makes perfect sense and plays to our puritanical prejudice that fat, fast food and television are innately damaging to our humanity. But there are two catches. First, to buy this logic is to accept that the copious negative reinforcement that accompanies obesity -- both socially and physically -- is easily overcome by the constant bombardment of food advertising and the lure of a supersize bargain meal. And second, as Flegal points out, little data exist to support any of this. Certainly none of it explains what changed so significantly to start the epidemic. Fast-food consumption, for example, continued to grow steadily through the 70's and 80's, but it did not take a sudden leap, as obesity did.

As far as exercise and physical activity go, there are no reliable data before the mid-80's, according to William Dietz, who runs the division of nutrition and physical activity at the Centers for Disease Control; the 1990's data show obesity rates continuing to climb, while exercise activity remained unchanged. This suggests the two have little in common. Dietz also acknowledged that a culture of physical exercise began in the United States in the 70's -- the ''leisure exercise mania,'' as Robert Levy, director of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, described it in 1981 -- and has continued through the present day."

Interesting, right?

One of the things that our body craves is Omega 3 Fatty Acids. Omega 3s come primarily from animal fats and are severely lacking in our food supply with the exception of deep or coldwater fishes. They are not found in most of our other protein supplies, because our cows, chickens and pigs are fed diets which they aren't meant to eat - grains and corn. Cows are made to turn grass into Omega 3s, but not grain or corn. Chickens in the wild eat bugs and stuff, not grain and corn. So, when you see that advertising on your chicken and eggs that says "vegeterian fed", whipty freakin doo. This is why it is important to by free range (not cage free, again, have you seen Food Inc?) chickens and grass fed beef. Although they may still be getting some grains (like cows in the winter in colder climates and chickens are probably still fed grains but can pluck bugs and whatnot from the ground when they want to), they're at least getting some of what they should eat.

But, since that can often be expensive and hard to find, AND you don't want to consume a ton of fish because of mercury risks, this is where fish oil comes into play. A good quality fish oil is purified of heavy metals and provides your daily needs of Omega 3s. Because this is already long enough, I won't go into a ton of detail as to the benefits of Omega 3s (in the form of EPA and DHA)... Dr. Google can tell you all about that, but it helps things like cholesterol, inflammation (arthritis), exzema/other skin issues, hair/nail growth, fetal development, energy and triglyceride levels. Unless you have a blood clotting disorder, I've been hard pressed to find any real risks (so long as your fish oil is pure). I found this one yesterday, which I will be purchasing next time. If you do nothing else, research the benefits of fish oil, talk to your doctor, and start taking it.

My advice - reduce or eliminate grains and sugar from your life and increase protein, fat, and veg/fruit. Start slow... no grains/sugar at dinner or breakfast or lunch... whatever, and work your way there. Try it for a short period of time (30 days) and see how you feel. Watch as your body leans out even while you're consuming fat. Wait until I'm done with the lockdown, and see my results for yourself. I'm getting bloodwork done tomorrow morning, and I had bloodwork done in October, so it will be interesting to see if there's any difference after a week and a half. But, the real kicker will be the results toward the end of February. You can all throw pie in my face if I don't lose fat and see improvement in triglycerides and cholesterol. Nine days in, and I'm feeling great. Of course, the weekend will be the real test again... and I'm going out to eat twice! But, now I KNOW I can do it... shoot, it's so easy, even a caveman could do it. Hahahahahaha.

Self Control = A+

2011-01-18T12:33:00.002-05:00

I made it through a girls weekend with no meaningful cheats. I say meaningful, because I did have a tiny sip of Jenn's elderflower gimlet and a tiny sip of her wine, and about 1-2oz of champagne. Also, I was pretty limited on my food choices for lunch, and there were chickpeas in my Everything Veggie soup from Souper Jenny. BUT, I took the bread and cheese off my turkey sandwich. So, let's call it even. :) It wasn't easy, and I reeeaaaaaaaallllllllllly wanted a glass of wine (and a cookie), but I made it and I can definitely say that the accomplishment I feel now heavily outweighs the momentary high I would have gotten from the wine or cookies. This blog may be mostly paleo talk for the next five weeks (almost done with week 1!), so you'll just have to forgive me in advance.

Some things I learned this weekend:

San Pellegrino with lemons and limes is the way to go when everyone else has fun cocktails. I went out and bought a few bottles to have at home, so I can have a sparkly "fun" drink every now and then (besides plain water, black coffee, and tea).
Most restaurants, especially nicer ones, are more than willing to accommodate your dietary needs. I was able to order three delicious paleo friendly small plates from one of my favorite restaurants, Ecco. They held the cheese in one, and the others were paleo friendly on their own - braised short ribs stuffed in piquillo peppers, grilled octopus with olives, some spicy peppers and some other veggies, and sauteed broccoli with cheese sauce (but obviously, without the cheese). Sure, the girls' fried goat cheese balls and pizzas looked divine, but whatever.
Choose restaurants that have these options... it makes dining out a much more pleasant experience.
Pretend you're pregnant when everyone else orders alcohol (save one truly pregnant friend), and it makes you feel a little better. :)
It's super easy to eat breakfast out. BLT minus the bread with 2 fried eggs and a side of fruit was a delicious breakfast out with friends yesterday morning.
I feel good.

I think I can safely say that I'm over my cravings (that was quick), and hopefully, it's all downhill from here. That's not to say I might not cry if I have to go to a Mexican restaurant and abstain from chips and salsa (a weakness of mine), but otherwise, I'm loving this.

On the menu this week:

Finishing off the leftovers of my "spaghetti" and meatballs for lunch (recipe below).
Paleo pad thai
Pecan crusted catfish and steamed broccoli with lemon
Paleo potluck at the gym Friday... not sure yet what I am bringing... thinking of some sort of fish/crab cakes with paleo tartar sauce (basically, homemade mayo with herbs/spices)

Also, there are 40-someodd people participating in the lockdown, and at $20 a piece, the pot is high. I am determined to win this thing. Lucky for me, I sandbagged my starting stats (that's my excuse anyway), and I fully plan on getting the max points for the other areas measured (turning in food log, workouts and bloodwork). I can already tell I've leaned out. It's amazing what a week of no grains or sugars does to your body. Now, I'm sure it's water/inflammation, but to see and feel results after a week is encouraging. I am also ordering my fish oil today and am looking forward to starting that. I'm going with a pretty high quality liquid fish oil, so it's not cheap ($60 for a month and a half supply), but I don't want to risk putting anything bad into my body and since the fish oil industry is not government regulated (not that that always matters... have you seen Food Inc?), I'm making sure what I buy has been tested against and exceeds other governments' standards. I'm going with Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega Liquid. I'm doing a liquid, because according to Robb Wolf's fish oil calculator, I need 6.5 grams of fish oil for my current state of health. That's about 2 tsps versus 5 pills since this stuff is more concentrated.

Since this entry is long enough, I'll save discussions about fish oil for another day. In the meantime, Robb Wolf's website is a great place to start learning more about this crazy, makessomuchsense lifestyle.

Paleo "spaghetti" and meatballs
Note: This is a somewhat time consuming meal (about 1.5 hours total), so either prepare it on the weekend, ahead of time, or if you're home from work earlier. There's a good bit of handsoff time, but would still be tough to pull together during the week. I can confirm that it reheats well, as I'm going on serving #4 for lunch today. :)

-1-2 spaghetti squash
-EVOO
-1-1/2 sweet onions, diced and divided
-many cloves of garlic, minced (by hand, garlic presses take a lot of flavor from the garlic, but I'm a garlic snob)
-a few organic carrots, peeled and chopped (adds sweetness w/o using sugar)
-1 small can organic tomato paste
-2 big cans organic San Marzano tomatoes
-1 15 oz can organic tomato sauce
-herbs of choice (parsley, basil and some bouquet garni) for marinara
-about 3 oz prosciutto, diced
-2 lbs grass fed sirloin
-herbs of choice (parsley, basil, red pepper flakes and fennel seeds)
-salt and pepper
-1 egg

Preheat oven to 400. In a nonstick pan, "saute" diced prosciutto on medium heat until somewhat crisp. Remove from pan to cool in a mixing bowl (large enough to mix your meatballs). Add EVOO to pan and saute about 3/4 c onions and several cloves of minced garlic until tender and add to bowl. Meanwhile, cut spaghetti squash in half, scoop out seeds and junk, drizzle with EVOO, and place cut side down on a jelly roll pan (something with an edge so EVOO doesn't drip out). This will cook for 40-45 minutes, so I'd put it in the oven once you get everything into your marinara. In a large pot (enamel cast iron if you have it), saute the remaining onions and garlic and carrots in EVOO on medium heat until tender. Add tomato paste and mix to thin, then add tomatoes (use kitchen shears to cut into pieces) and tomato sauce. Add herbs, salt and pepper to taste. Put squash in oven if you haven't already. Once marinara begins to bubble, turn heat down to low and cover, stir occasionally. By this time, your prosciutto, onions and garlic should be cool enough so add your meat, herbs (just eye ball it... I like a little fennel flavor but not a lot, so I used probably 1/2 -3/4 tsp and at least a tablespoon of parsley and basil... probably 1-2 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper). Add your egg as binder, and mix well. Form into meatballs and place in a baking dish. This will go in the oven for about 25-35 minutes, depending on size, with your squash. When the squash is done, you'll use a fork to remove the innards, which will come out like noodles. Top with your meatballs and sauce, and enjoy a grain and sugar free take on spaghetti and meatballs!

Day 3

2011-01-14T15:01:00.000-05:00

Today is day three of the lockdown, and so far, so good. This weekend is the real test, as two of my best friends are coming in town and we are eating out for a few meals, meaning I will have to really be a pain in the butt for the waitstaff and kitchen. And, I know there will be lots of wine drinking, and I REALLY WANT SOME WIIIIIIINNNNNEEEEEE!!!!!!!! I have definitely had some sugar cravings, which I wasn't expecting since I don't really consume a lot of sugar on a normal basis, but being that our body treats grains like sugar, I believe that is the real source of the cravings.

Day 1
B: 2 eggs fried in EVOO, a tangerine
L: turkey cold cuts, celery, guacamole
S: almonds and sunflower seeds (not too many and go for raw or dry roasted)
D: rolled flank steak with spinach, sweet potato "fries" (sliced thinly, cooked in oven w/ EVOO and salt)

Day 2
B: 2 eggs fried in EVOO, homemade turkey sausage (recipe below), blackberries
L: leftover flank steak, kale sauteed w/ EVOO and garlic powder
S: olives (yum)
D: turkey "tacos" using Romaine lettuce intead of tortillas, topped with guac

Day 3
B: 2 eggs fried in EVOO, homemade turkey sausage (recipe below), blackberries
L: turkey cold cuts, celery, guacamole, leftover kale
S: TBD (almonds, celery & guac more than likely)
D: leftover turkey tacos w/ guac

Can you tell I like guacamole? I must say, it's not the same without my Garden of Eatin' blue corn tortilla chips, but at least it's guac and satisfies my need for fat. Right now, I know I am not eating enough. I usually get full during my meal, but because I'm really not taking in as much as I should, I feel hungry shortly thereafter. Or, it's just my body adjusting to the lack of bloat that grains and sugar cause. I'm not really sure. I know that compared to the example meal plans offered up to us by Paleo'ers at the gym, my food intake is lacking. As far as positive effects, not too much so far though I swear I already look leaner (especially in the stomach).

We'll see how the weekend goes. The wine is going to be hard to resist, but I can do it. I think I can... I think I can... I think I can...

Turkey Sausage
1 lb ground turkey (could also use pork)
1 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp each cumin, black pepper, nutmeg, oregano, red pepper flakes and ground ginger
1-1/2 tsp poultry seasoning (or 1/2 tsp each dried basil, thyme and sage)
1-1/2 tsp sea salt
1 egg, lightly beaten

Form into patties and cook on med heat.

Snow Days

2011-01-14T12:53:00.003-05:00

Holy snow and ice, Batman! It's been quite the uneventful week here, depending on how you look at it. On Sunday evening, the snow began to fall... and kept falling until we'd accumulated about 4.5-5" at our house smack dab in the middle of Atlanta. It was quite nice up until late in the day Monday, when the all-day sleet/freezing rain turned the snow into a sheet of ice. School has been cancelled all week. I ventured to work on Wednesday afternoon, and made it out of my neighborhood fine. On the way back, one of the hills was too big of a match for my traction control. I made it almost to the top, before my tires just kept spinning and spinning on the ice, getting me nowhere. Thankfully, there were some really nice neighbors walking by that gave me a push (took several attempts) to make it to the turn and flat/downhill roads. The major roads are clear now, but the neighborhoods are still a mess, especially in shady areas.

around 9pm

11pm

around 9pm

11pm

8am

Ski vacation? Nah, just at a neighbor's.

Snowball fetch.

She's slightly less coordinated than her brother.

Food for Thought

2011-01-11T16:52:00.000-05:00

Lockdown starts tomorrow, and I'm ready. In the interest of full disclosure, I weighed 137 (embarassing) and have 31% body fat... more than when I tested last March. Blame it on the holidays. Ha. The good news is part of my weight gain is lean muscle... just not all of it. Here we go...

Read this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/07/magazine/what-if-it-s-all-been-a-big-fat-lie.html?pagewanted=all

Eating Like a Caveman

2011-01-06T12:09:00.000-05:00

That is how I usually explain the Paleolithic (Paleo) diet to people. Basically, it's going back to our roots before agriculture was invented 5,000-10,000 years ago (I know that's a big delta between 5,000 and 10,000 but somewhere in there... I'm not an anthropologist here, though I do love shopping at Anthropologie). Since I joined CrossFit last March, this is something I've heard about, thought about doing, but just didn't have the gumption to try. Well, the time has come. Starting next Wednesday, I am participating in a six week lockdown put on by my gym. What does this mean? In short, it means I cannot eat grains, sugar, dairy or legumes (or ALCOHOL). Honestly, the dairy and alcohol are going to be the toughest aspects of it. In long, it means I'm probably going to lean out, feel amazing and have better overall health.

The idea and science behind the Paleo lifestyle is that the human body was not created to process a lot of the foods we eat today. We were made to be hunters and gatherers, so Paleo encourages eating in that manner. There's also a lot of science that goes into it such as Omega 6 (not as good for you) to Omega 3 (very good for you) fatty acid ratios. Omega 6 is more prominent in a lot of our protein sources, because these animals are also being fed diets which they are not meant to eat (corn and grain). Wild animals eat grass, vegetation, bugs and other animals. You need Omega 3s to balance out all the Omega 6s you get from "dirty" meat. Most people take a fish oil supplement which contains EPA and DHA (yes, the nutrient now recommended for pregnant woman for fetal brain development) to balance out the Omega 6s. Robb Wolf has a good fish oil calculator here for how much you should be taking. I am going to do more research on this, as it is an anti-inflammatory/blood thinner (naturally) and more than you'd get in a standard prenatal vitamin, so I want to make sure it's safe for me to take as much as he recommends (6 grams per day) (and, no I am not pregnant). The other thing with Paleo is creating a consistent blood sugar level all day long instead of the highs and lows most of us experience from our carb and grain rich diets.

There are three main categories of food: protein, carbohydrates and fats. Your body thrives on these three things. Below are examples of foods that fall into each category. Stop thinking about the fat free fads - it's all a lie. Your body NEEDS fat... but good quality fats. In fact, there is such a thing as undereating, and if you've been dieting and exercising and not seeing results, you should get some metabolic testing done (check out FitLab or the BodPod).

PROTEIN
chicken, fish, beef, pork, venison, bison, eggs, turkey, etc.

CARBOHYDRATES
veggies (especially dark greens), fruits (lower glycemic load is better), sweet potatoes (sparingly) - no white potatoes, corn, grains, etc.

FATS
avocado, olives, coconut, nuts and seeds (not peanuts - they are a legume)

If you are eating a carb, it should be balanced with a protein and/or fat. Your big three meals a day should contain all three food groups, with an emphasis placed on veggies as a carb. An example of a paleo breakfast would be eggs cooked with spinach, broccoli, bell peppers, onions and sausage and topped with avocado. Throw in a side of berries for good measure.

I won't bore you with all the science, but basically, I believe the fact that high cholesterol causes heart disease is somewhat of a myth. I have slightly high cholesterol. I also have extremely low blood pressure, am active and healthy and would be shocked if I had any blockage in any of my arteries. In fact, there are two different types of LDL cholesterol (the supposedly bad cholesterol), and I'd be willing to bet that I have high good LDL. I also have very high HDL (probably from my diet already rich in fatty acids like fishes, avocados, olive oils, lean meats, etc). Triglycerides probably have more of an effect on heart disease risk, and if you're eating Paleo, it's guaranteed your triglycerides will be where they should. In any case, I'm getting pre and post blood work done, in addition to the BodPod test (measures body composition - % fat to % lean muscle in addition to other things).

I plan to chronicle this journey on ye ol' blog here, so I will share the ups and downs, test results, recipes, links to good websites, etc. as the time goes on. This lifestyle definitely requires a lot more thought and preparation as far as meal planning, but from what I can tell, the results are so worth the effort (and I'm not even talking about being thin, though that's certainly a plus). And, who knows, maybe when it's all over with, I'll move to an 80-90% Paleo lifestyle (what most people do), so I can still have a drink or an unrestricted dinner out every now and then. I am probably going to go ahead and start on Monday (since I'll be doing meal prep on Sunday), but until then - cheers to some non-Paleo food and drink... I might not see them for a long time... and perhaps, good riddance.

2010 Year in Review

2010-12-31T14:00:00.001-05:00

Last year, I enjoyed recapping my year and reminiscing on all of the fun things we did. So, as this year draws to a close, 2010 is certainly worthy of a reprise.

January - spent New Years Day with fellow Gators watching the boys whoop up on Cincinnati and Tebow set Sugar Bowl records; SNOW DAY!; painted the dining room

February - Matt sent me flowers for the first.time.ever; more snow!; nothing says love like a little motocross action on Valentine's Day; failed in giving up the snooze button for Lent

March - joined CrossFit; headed down to the DAB for the Durrance-Young nuptials; brunched with Spurrier (NBD); painted the front door and shutters; booked our flights to Greece and Turkey!; found out I had excess fat... duh (thanks BodPod); turned the big 2-8 in which my mom did not forget my birthday ;)

April - partially got over my irrational fear of worms by digging in the dirt (aka: gardening); made the awesome decision of hiring an interior designer to help with our master bedroom; celebrated Madelyn's first birthday; headed to Louisville for the Derby!

May - Derby Day!; all day rain but still had a damn good time and won a few bucks; saw some crazy flooding on the way home in Nashville; attended Miss USA in Vegas and ended up on national TV; got 17 stitches in my shin thanks to a mountain biking incident (let me tell you, the scar is nice)

June - John Thomas is born; began master bedroom makeover; 10 year HS reunion; found out Matt would be in Tifton even longer than we thought (after the third or fourth extension of how long we thought he'd be there); Matt wins the third annual Rib Off; finished the master bedroom (and love love love it)

July - celebrated the Fourth of July with some of my most favorite people; joined the 21st century and got an iPhone 4; got a serious poison ivy rash... nasty stuff; took my baby (21? is that still baby) sister to NYC for her first time; went to South Dakota for a family reunion; celebrated the births of Charlotte Ann and William Oliver

August - attended "To Live and Dine in Atlanta"; identical twins Ryann Janelle and Reese Leigh are born premature (Reese Leigh goes to heaven shortly after birth); headed down to the DAB to spend some time with our favorite Volusia County residents; Matt turns 31; Morgan Lorraine is born; geared up to head to Greece and Turkey

September - took the best vacation yet to Athens, Milos, and Santorini, Greece and Istanbul, Turkey!!!

October - went to Gainesville for Homecoming (loss to Miss St if you must know); I went to California to visit one of my bestest friends, Kelly (aka:KellBell, Kellybear, skinnyb*tch); spent Halloween at home and had trick-or-treaters; Matt came home from Tifton for good!!!!

November - volunteered at a bereavement camp; thought about adopting a dog; went to Gainesville for the South Carolina game (we lost, if you must know); almost got arrested by a cop for riding the Cruzin' Cooler on the street (that might be a big of an exaggeration but Dai was sure to let him know it was street legal, dagumit!); adopted Max and Maddie!; found out Maddie was in heat (yikes); Maddie goes to the vet for a little operation; Max comes with us to Florida for Thanksgiving; Reagan Grace and Anna Kathrin (Anna Kate) are born

December - renovated the upstairs bathroom; decorated the house for Christmas; Luke Parker is born; celebrated Christmas at home with Matt's parents; cooked a ridiculous amount of food but it was awesome; felt very thankful for all the fun we had this year!

I don't know how 2011 could top 2010, but we'll sure have to try. Some things on the agenda: possible ski trip in February, stateside trip TBD (thinking Chicago, Boston, Portland or Seattle), and a kitchen renovation (yikes!). We're both praying that we stay gainfully employed so that these things can happen... say a little prayer that Matt's company gets the project he is now working on (it goes to bid mid-2011), and he'll have a job for a nice, long time with that one. :) Also, while we're on the praying subject, please pray for our family member who is fighting cancer. God will know who you're talking about. She has two young boys (3 and 1) and is expected to beat it, but it's been a longer and tougher battle than anyone thought.

Cheers to a great year behind us and to the one ahead... may you all have good health and good fortune in 2011.

Winter Wonderland

2010-12-30T11:35:00.000-05:00

I still cannot believe we got a white Christmas. In Georgia. Snow, real snow. On Christmas. Which is in December. Boggles my mind! I loved every second of it, and I may have gone outside during the middle of the snow and performed a ~~wine induced~~ jig. However, since there is no pictorial or video evidence, this cannot be proved one way or another.

Christmas was great. Matt's parents came to spend the holiday with us, and we both thoroughly enjoyed having them and not having to travel and spending Christmas at home for the first time. We decked the halls and prepared lots of food. Altogether, it was a lot of merriment. I was spoiled on all fronts, and I am happy to report that I got the steamer mop I've been coveting. Funny part of it is that mom bought it for me before she even knew I wanted one and was worried that I would think it was totally lame. Little did she know at the time, I could NOT wait to get my hands on one. And, I must report that it worked splendidly and made cleaning all of my hardwoods and tile almost fun.

I can't believe it's almost 2011!