The Philadelphia Story

Last Wednesday afternoon, my mom, my daughter Anne, and I left on a road trip.  The occasion: our son's graduation from Villanova Law School.  After three long, difficult years, he walked across the stage and received his Juris Doctor degree.

CONGRATULATIONS DAVE!

My husband, who is already working in Charlotte, NC, met us in Philly.  We had a great weekend with Dave and his girlfriend, Danielle.  We had incredible weather (sunny with highs in the mid 70's and lows in the 50's), great food, and stayed at a wonderful bed and breakfast just down the street from Dave's apartment.

The highlights:

 We had dinner at a great seafood restaurant Thursday evening.

Unfortunately, I can't remember the name of it.

On Friday morning, we took the train from the city to Villanova--about a 30 minute ride.

 Dave, waiting to cross the stage to receive his diploma

The whole gang (minus our youngest daughter, Katie) 

 There was a reception for the graduates and families 

after the ceremony.

Dave and I went for a run Saturday morning. 

 We ran up the steps of the museum, just like Rockie.

 Philadelphia has a great running/biking path along the river.

 We went to the Italian Market after our run.

 A great cheese shop in the Italian Market

The Magic Garden is a museum that has created things 

with various junk (bottles, bike tires, plates, etc.).

 Independence Hall

 Elfreth Alley-the longest continually inhabited residential

street in the United States.

My husband has been living in a hotel for a month now.

He packed rather quickly to drive up to Philly, and halfway 

through the weekend, he realized he had two different shoes on.

The weekend went way too quickly.  It's back to reality now--sorting, packing, pricing things for the upcoming garage sale, and everything else that goes along with moving.  Waaaah.

Stressed

I am looking at a piece of paper with a name written on it and I have no idea who it is or what it means.  Unfortunately, the handwriting is mine and I think I wrote it down this morning before I rushed out the door to work.

I've been a bit stressed the past few weeks.  "Why?" you ask. Well...my husband has accepted a job in Charlotte, NC.  We're moving!  After 28 years in one town, we're leaving behind family, friends, and a job that I love.  We're moving out of the house that we built and raised our kids in.  We're leaving Michigan where we live within walking distance of a great lake with incredible beaches.  I could go on and on of reasons why I don't want to move.

On the other hand, it's a new adventure that God is calling us to.  The way things are falling into place, it's evident that He has His hand in this.  So I must follow.

It doesn't mean I'm stress free about it.  We've worked like mad to get the house ready to show.  Of course, when you decide to put your house on the market, everything that's wrong with it comes into clear focus.  AND THE STUFF!  We have so much stuff!  39,000 pounds of stuff, according to the mover.  I've been
purging, but I've hardly made a dent.

We've had three parties come through the house in the first week.  We have more coming through Thursday and Friday.  Of course, I get a little crazy trying to get everything perfect.  One good thing--my husband started his new job today, so I don't have to reclean everything since he's out of town.

Did I mention I had a phone interview today?  (That's part of the reason for the unknown name I wrote down.  I was quickly looking up something online that was interview related and must have jotted it on the paper.)  Anyway, the interview went really well.  I'll meet them when I go down in a few weeks.

So now I'm off to sort through cookbooks.  On second thought, I think I'll put my jammies on and read for a few minutes before hitting the sack....after I google the mystery name.

Deal of the Decade

I love a sale.  I see it as saving money.  For instance, if something, say a sweater, originally cost $100 and now is on clearance for $30, I just saved $70.  Unfortunately, my husband doesn't understand this logic.  Well yesterday, I got THE most incredible deal ever.  I got a top for.......drumroll please......49 cents.  It was on sale for $20.99.  Since it was on clearance, there was an extra 50% off the sale price bringing it down to $10.49.  Plus I had a coupon for $10.00 off a clothing purchase.  Even if I only wear it a few times, I've definitely gotten my money's worth out of it.  Score!

Sodium Shocker

I started my food log yesterday and decided to keep track of the sodium I consume.  Since I work with cardiac patients, I discuss sodium consumption frequently.  The new guideline for sodium is less than 1500 mg a day for people with heart disease, diabetes, and ANYONE OVER THE AGE OF 50.  Ahem...that includes yours truly.

I have always thought I do pretty well when it comes to limiting my sodium intake.  I may add a little salt to my food at dinner, but that's it.  I've lectured my patients about cutting back, all the while thinking I set a good example of not eating a lot of salt...that is until yesterday.  Thanks to myfitnesspal.com, I about fell off my chair last night.  My total sodium consumption for yesterday was 3419mg.  And that doesn't include the little pinch I put on my egg whites at breakfast.  Praise God I don't have blood pressure or kidney problems.  I'd be six feet under if I did.

In looking over the foods I ate yesterday, the biggest culprits for sodium content were the deli turkey I had on my salad for lunch (600 mg) and the pork tenderloin marinade (with soy sauce) we had for dinner (550 mg).  Almost everything I ate yesterday had salt--even the romaine lettuce (4 mg).  Who woulda thunk?  I'm not sure where I'll make cuts yet, but I definitely need to do something. Right now, 1500 mg. seems like an impossible goal.  The best I can do is try.

For now, no more smug lectures for my patients.

Food Log - A Necessary Evil

To lose weight, a food log makes all the difference in the world if you want to be successful. But let's face it.  The tedious task of logging food is totally painful--especially when you're a grazer like me.  Three pretzels here, 5 almonds there...it's impossible to keep track of it all.  That's why in the past, I've kept a log for 1-2 weeks max and then given up.

Yesterday, one of our weight management patients told me about a food log website called myfitnesspal.com/.  I've used online food logs in the past but found them annoying.  They had standard foods you selected from for your diary and you couldn't alter the serving size.  For instance, the standard size oatmeal serving was 1/3 cup and I used 1/2 cup.  Since I couldn't be accurate with what I ate, I quit after one day.  (Maybe I should have taken it as a hint to decrease my portion size.)  With My Fitness Pal, this isn't a problem.

To get started with My Fitness Pal, follow the prompts for age, current weight, goal weight, etc.  Once that's done, it calculates the amount of calories, carbs, fat, and protein you should have in a day to reach your goal weight.  You type in what you consume and it keeps a running total of what you've had so far that day and how much you need for the rest of the day.  You also keep track of your exercise (for which you're rewarded with extra calories you can consume).  You can enter recipes and it will calculate the nutritional content per serving.

I've been doing this for 10 hours and already it has altered what I eat.  This morning, a patient brought in some dark chocolate covered pomegranates, and I resisted because I didn't want to have to record it.  I ignored the food sample people at Sam's Club, even though it was lunchtime and I was ravenous.  (I hope they didn't think I was rude.  I'd hate to hurt their feelings.)

Hopefully, I will keep this up until I lose 8 pounds and keep it off for at least 3 months.  I know if I stop recording, I'll gradually start eating more.  Like they say, it's the BLT's that kill you.  (The bites, licks, and tastes.)

Zuppa

There's nothing like a bowl of hot, hearty soup on a cold winter's night.  This particular recipe has become ones of my favorites.  Of course, I love anything Italian, so this fits the bill.

White Bean, Basil, and Tomato Soup

1 48 oz. jar Randall's Navy Beans
1 cup chopped onion
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup diced baking potato
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 48 oz. can chicken broth
2 bay leaves
2 cups diced, seeded tomato
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon salt
Grated Parmesan cheese

Spray large pot with cooking spray.  Sauté onion for 2 minutes.  Add garlic; sauté 1 minute.  Add beans and partially mash.  Add potato, thyme, broth, and bay leaves.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer, covered for 2 hours.  Stir in tomato, basil, lemon juice and salt.  Cook, uncovered, over medium heat until thoroughly heated, stirring frequently.  Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Serve with crusty bread and a Caesar salad.

The Silent Treatment

Five weeks ago, after reading an article on "younger looking haircuts", I decided to go for a change.  I opted for the Lisa Rinna do.  I thought it would save me time, since I wouldn't have to straighten my hair in the back and could just go with the natural curl.

Ha!  That was a total misconception.  It ended up taking me longer and it looked (excuse the language) poopy.  I couldn't wait to get back in to get it chopped off.  So Tuesday, I went back to short hair (not that it was long by most people's standards).  This time, it's the Kris Jenner look.

On Wednesday, I went to work with my radical new do and the only person who commented on it was my boss ( a guy, no less).  So I've deduced that either nobody noticed (which is hard to believe) or everybody noticed and they didn't like it, so they didn't say anything.

Before

After

A Side Note:  My daughters always comment on how I have the ability to make every haircut look the same, because I style it the same.

It must be true.