The Light Between Oceans

We had a great book club last night.

We all loved this book and all feel it was one of the best books we've read in a long while.  We are all looking forward to more from M. L. Stedman.

We had great food including:

• Chicken, bacon, mushroom & cheese quesadillas (based on an Outback Restaurant Alice Springs recipe)
• Shrimp on the barb
• Shrimp Cocktail
• Chicken Salad Sandwiches
• Multiple salads (Tarragon Potato Salad, Greens with Blueberries & Strawberries, Ramen Slaw, Chickpea, Mango, Cilantro Salad)
• Lamington Cupcakes
• Fruit Cocktail Cake

 Looking forward to our next meeting in September!

Our next book is Wild by Cheryl Strayed.

At twenty-two, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother’s death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life. With no experience or training, driven only by blind will, she would hike more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State—and she would do it alone. Told with suspense and style, sparkling with warmth and humor,Wild powerfully captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.

I finished...

and that was my goal!

My first 5K since the baby was born.  I won't post my time (very slow) because for this 5K, my goal really was to just finish.

I did the Friends of Julie 5K.  Ten thousand dollars was raised to provide memory making vacations to families with parents who have a terminal diagnosis. 

My cousin D and her dad also did the race.

Now, a few words about my Uncle E.  He has been a runner, a very good runner, for over 40+ years.  What I love is that he is such a cheerleader for anyone starting to run.  He doesn't care what your pace is, he's just so proud that his niece and daughters are out running (or in my case jogging).  He is more than willing to slow wayyyy down to run with you, meet you early in the am to jog the beach, give you advice on gear, etc.

So, even though he offered to keep pace with me, I told him to please take off and run at his regular pace.  He won his age division (70-80), beat over 3/4's of the runners, ran under a 10 minute mile (a jog for him) and was at the finish to cheer the rest of us on as we finished.

Way to go Uncle E!!!!!

My cousin D ( in the grey shirt and hat) waiting for Uncle E
to receive his medal.

It was a good day.  Next 5K June 1st.  Now I have a new goal-beat my time!

Have a great Monday!

WIP Wednesday

Babies, babies, babies everywhere!  

More on the way for some family members.  

So, I am making more carseat/stroller afghans.  These are improvised patterns, just stripes of all the standard stitches-single crochet, half double crochet and double crochet.  I am also using up yarn from my stash (YAY! My husband will be so happy so see the amount of yarn decrease!).

I am currently working on the second afghan and will need to do the border on both (not sure what I'll do for the border).

We are not sure of the sex of the babies, so I just went for a mixture of all colors.

Have a good week!!

Linked to:

My Merry Messy Life

the winthrop chronicles

Watch Out, Martha
Daisy Cottage Designs
The Thriftiness Miss
Design, Dining + Diapers
Will Cook For Smiles
Sew Many Ways
U.S.S. Crafty

Play Ball!

We live near McCoy Stadium, home of the PawSox, and we take full advantage.  It is so nice to be able to take your family out to a baseball game and not spend a fortune.  

We took E to his first game this past Saturday!  He was so good and seemed to love the bright colors and all the people.

We will be going back often over the summer!

If at first you don't succeed....

Try again, and again and again.

So, I failed Jenny Craig.  

I failed it, it did not fail me.  

I had done it before and had success.  However, this time I am not single, working all the time and loving the convenience of frozen meals.  This time around, I MISSED cooking...I love to cook.  I found myself cooking instead of eating the frozen meals.  So, I decided to make a change.  I bit the bullet and joined Weight Watchers.  I'm having much more success and am more motivated on this plan.  

I like the fact that I can cook and eat out, and yes, have a glass of wine (or two).

I have been using the recipe builder and also using an old WW cookbook I bought at a yardsale years ago.

Today, I'm off to visit my brother.  He is recovering from a serious illness and is still finding it hard to regain his appetite.  He loves chocolate chip cookies, so to the recipe book I went.  

I found WW Puffed Up Chocolate Chip Cookies.  Points=2/cookie.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup softened butter
• 1 tbsp vanilla
• 1 lrg egg
• 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

• Pre heat oven to 375
• Place applesauce in fine sieve and drain for 15-20 minutes
• Wisk together flour, baking powder, salt
• Cream sugar and butter
• Add applesauce to sugar and butter mixture, blend well
• Add egg and vanilla
• Add dry mixture, blend well
• Add chocolate chips
• Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes
• Enjoy!!

Calories: 78

Fat: 2.9g

Protein: 0.8g

Carbohydrate: 12.8g

Fiber 0.2g

Linked to:
the winthrop chronicles
Sew Many Ways
USS Crafty
Watch Out, Martha

Nana's Goulash

My Dad always makes what he calls "Mum's Goulash".  His mom (my Nana) used to make this for her six kids because it was easy and cheap...but oh so tasty!

I have adapted her recipe.

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 to 1 pound pasta of your choice
• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 14.5 oz cans Italian Stewed Tomatoes
• 1 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 1 6 oz can tomato paste
• crushed red pepper flakes (amount of your choosing-I use a handful)
• minced garlic (amount of your choosing-I use 1 tbsp jarred minced)
• basil (amount of your choosing-I sprinkle a fair amount on)
• Salt & Pepper

Directions:

• Brown the meat and drain off the fat
• Add tomatoes, sauce, paste, red pepper garlic, salt and pepper
• Mix, sprinkle basil and simmer (covered) for 20 minutes)
• Combine with your cooked pasta, add some garlic bread or a salad and you have a simple, fast, have it in your pantry dinner!
• I make it a few hours ahead of time because I think all pasta dishes are best reheated :)

Enjoy!

Forgive my photos, they were done on my cell:

Linked to:
the winthrop chronicles
Sew Many Ways
Watch Out, Martha

NYC

We had a great time in NYC!

One of my Forty Tasks was to continue our yearly trip to NYC and see the Space Shuttle on the Intrepid.  Well, I didn't see the Space Shuttle, but I am considering this task completed.  Due to the time schedule we opted to see the 911 Memorial instead (a moving choice).

I just love to visit NYC.  We walk for miles, eat great food and see great sights!

When in NYC, visit Patzeria restaurant.  Small, friendly, great simple food-I love this restaurant!

World Trade Center Complex

Battery Park

Good Bye Bob

We lost a beloved family member this past weekend.

Good Bye Bob.

You were a kind soul who gave of yourself selflessly for your entire life.

Husband, Father, Friend, Firefighter, EMS.

May you rest in peace.

You will be missed beyond measure.

Heartache...

The events of Monday are still unbelievable to me.

If you live in Boston, you know what a wonderful day and event the Boston Marathon is. Even if you aren't into running and watching the marathon, it seems to (almost) always be a beautiful day and you can't help but check out the TV coverage to see the finish.

Our family usually watches the marathon at mile 20.  It is so fun to cheer on and encourage the runners when they are so close to being done.  My husband and I were away in NYC this year, but our family were all there doing what they do best-being loud and upbeat.

We will definitely all be there next year, cheering louder than ever.

A thank you to all the EMS and medical staff.  It is due to them and the marathon volunteers that people were triaged and in ERs within approximately one hour after the bombings.

A very special thank you to my co-workers Nancy and Betty who were part of the marathon medical sweep team and ran towards the victims and helped save countless lives and limbs.

From the MNA (our union):

MNA Board Member Betty Sparks – A True Hero at the Scene of Yesterday’s Tragic Bombing

We wanted to share a brief story about one of our Board members, Betty Sparks, a nurse at Newton Wellesley Hospital, who is also a specially trained nurse in providing care and treatment in the wake of all types of disasters. Betty, who was on the ground to help victims after Hurricane Katrina and in Haiti after the devastating earthquake, was working at the medical tent at the finish line of the Boston Marathon yesterday, and she was there to respond and care for the victims when the bombs exploded. She is trained to do this, she has seen horrific scenes before, but this time it was different, for at the finish line she knew her son was there with a camera getting ready to photograph her daughter-in-law, who was finishing the race. “I never had to run out to victims before where one of them could have been someone I knew, a member of my family,” she wrote in an email after the event. Thankfully, her son and daughter-in-law were fine, and Betty did what she is trained to do. She worked the scene, caring for the victims as she always does in these situations until they were all transferred out to the city’s hospitals. We salute Betty Sparks as a true hero, for her courage and her professionalism, and we offer our thanks that her family was unharmed, as we continue to mourn and pray for those who were not so fortunate.

A Plague...

A plague has hit our house....

Cold, cough, runny nose.  

Now, I'm not going to point fingers, but I can say I am not the one who has been wiping his runny nose other people (mom) and coughing in their face and laughing.

He who shall remain nameless, (E), is getting better while I am still on a downward spiral.

Here's hoping I am well enough to walk in Doyle's 5 miler on Sunday.

Mason Jar Motivation

I wish I could say good health and a smaller jeans size are motivation enough for me to exercise and eat right...but, they are not.

So, my new motivation can be found in a mason jar on my counter.

I have started RunKeeper.com's Running for Fat Loss training plan.  Total = 28 workouts.

So, for every work out I complete, $1.00 goes into the mason jar.  At the end of the training plan, I can take the $28.00 and purchase a new Alex and Ani bracelet.  Since I will finish this plan close to my first 5K since having the baby, I am going to choose a charm that means strength and perseverance and wear it at that 5K.

What is your motivation?

BBQ Chicken & Cornbread Pie

On my constant quest for new meals, I searched Pinterest.  Such fun to search Pinterest since a picture is worth a thousand words.  

I stumbled across Table for Two's BBQ Chicken Cornbread Pie.  I decided  dive in and make it! 

 It was YUMMY!  (Hubby had 2+ portions...)

Ingredients:

Cornbread base:

• 1 8.5 oz box of Jiffy Cornbread mix
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp unsalted melted butter
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup thawed frozen corn

Topping:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2-3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (boiled for 2 minutes, cooled and shredded)
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 red pepper, diced
• salt & pepper
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp hot sauce (I used a lot more, but we like spicy)
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 1 1/2 tbsp dark brown sugar (I used 2 tbsp, next time I'll use 1 1/2 tbsp)
• 10 oz shredded cheddar cheese (or any amount you like)

Chopped, diced, thawed and ready to go

Sauté onions & red pepper in olive oil

Chicken and spices added to the mix

Tomato sauce, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce added

Cornbread base ready to go

Broiled and piping hot

So good!

Directions after the jump...