After the success of the first meal on Sunday night prepared from the diabetic cookbook, I went through every recipe with my husband so we could determine which things we would definitely like, which things we would try, and which things we should not even think about (like anything with only vegetables in it - he won't eat that).
Monday, I picked out the next recipe to try: Chicken Paella. Proudly I can tell you that I only needed two ingredients from the store - a can of stewed tomatoes and a red bell pepper. The paella was simple - one skillet, chicken breast cut into strips and browned, onion, garlic, low-sodium chicken broth, parsley, rice, stewed tomatoes, bell pepper, frozen peas & carrots, seasonings (including turmeric). It was ready in about 30 minutes.
JR loved it! I loved it! Another win for the recipes!
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Salmon in a Garlic Bath
My first try at creating a diabetic-friendly meal came directly from the diabetes cookbook I've been using (credit and picture to come). It sounded so delicious, so we tried it.
Salmon fillets in a baking dish with a "bath" of low-sodium chicken broth, olive oil, minced garlic, dry white wine, and coarsely chopped fresh parsley - baked till the fish is flaky. I positioned the fillets in the baking dish so that they formed a circle with each other.
I made brown rice, peas & carrots, and grilled shrimp skewers as sides.
I plated the meal: 1 fillet each, semi-circle shaped & positioned to match the outline of the plate; a big scoop of brown rice in the "pocket" of the fish; a big scoop of peas and carrots to complete the circle; two shrimp skewers each in an X pattern atop the other items.
Beautiful.
In my husband's best Gordon Ramsey impression, he gave his critique:
"Nice presentation. Tammy - look at this. The fish. It's cooked perfectly. On to the peas & carrots. A little pedestrian, but flavored well. The rice is overcooked. The seasoning on the shrimp is clean and simple. Delicious. Now bugger off."
For a first attempt at cooking a completely diabetic-friendly meal, I was impressed with myself. Whew!
Salmon fillets in a baking dish with a "bath" of low-sodium chicken broth, olive oil, minced garlic, dry white wine, and coarsely chopped fresh parsley - baked till the fish is flaky. I positioned the fillets in the baking dish so that they formed a circle with each other.
I made brown rice, peas & carrots, and grilled shrimp skewers as sides.
I plated the meal: 1 fillet each, semi-circle shaped & positioned to match the outline of the plate; a big scoop of brown rice in the "pocket" of the fish; a big scoop of peas and carrots to complete the circle; two shrimp skewers each in an X pattern atop the other items.
Beautiful.
In my husband's best Gordon Ramsey impression, he gave his critique:
"Nice presentation. Tammy - look at this. The fish. It's cooked perfectly. On to the peas & carrots. A little pedestrian, but flavored well. The rice is overcooked. The seasoning on the shrimp is clean and simple. Delicious. Now bugger off."
For a first attempt at cooking a completely diabetic-friendly meal, I was impressed with myself. Whew!
Monday, August 2, 2010
If You Really Knew Me
I've been watching the MTV show "If You Really Knew Me." Here is part of the description from the Web site:
"Like a reality version of The Breakfast Club, each episode of If You Really Knew Me takes place at a different high school, and follows five students from different cliques as they go through the life-changing experience of Challenge Day, a one-day program that breaks down the walls between cliques, and completely changes the way students view their school and each other. Watch the amazing transformation each week as new students open up for the first time and try to change by revealing who they really are, behind the cliques and the labels. Is it possible to change your life, and maybe even your high school, in one day? These students are going to find out... on If You Really Knew Me."
I've seen the first two episodes, and I am digging it. It makes me nostalgic, it makes me sad, it gives me hope, and it gives me worry.
If something like this had happened in my high school, I am not sure what the outcome would have been. I don't know what clique I would have been assigned to...I called myself a "floater." I could talk to anyone, but at the same time I didn't do a lot of socializing outside of school.
Just for giggles, I thought it would be interested to pose the challenge to you...I'll start.
If you really knew me, you would know that I always thought I was fat in high school. Only after seeing pictures of myself years later did I realize that I was a very healthy size.
If you really knew me, you would know that I always wanted to hang out with people after school and on the weekends but never felt like I belonged.
If you really knew me, you would know that I was excited to go to my ten-year reunion because I was still not married, I had no kids, and I was living 8 hours away...I was excited because I had broken any mold of what people thought I should be.
If you really knew me, you would know that after the ten-year reunion, I felt just as un-cool and un-popular as I did in high school.
What would I really know about you?
"Like a reality version of The Breakfast Club, each episode of If You Really Knew Me takes place at a different high school, and follows five students from different cliques as they go through the life-changing experience of Challenge Day, a one-day program that breaks down the walls between cliques, and completely changes the way students view their school and each other. Watch the amazing transformation each week as new students open up for the first time and try to change by revealing who they really are, behind the cliques and the labels. Is it possible to change your life, and maybe even your high school, in one day? These students are going to find out... on If You Really Knew Me."
I've seen the first two episodes, and I am digging it. It makes me nostalgic, it makes me sad, it gives me hope, and it gives me worry.
If something like this had happened in my high school, I am not sure what the outcome would have been. I don't know what clique I would have been assigned to...I called myself a "floater." I could talk to anyone, but at the same time I didn't do a lot of socializing outside of school.
Just for giggles, I thought it would be interested to pose the challenge to you...I'll start.
If you really knew me, you would know that I always thought I was fat in high school. Only after seeing pictures of myself years later did I realize that I was a very healthy size.
If you really knew me, you would know that I always wanted to hang out with people after school and on the weekends but never felt like I belonged.
If you really knew me, you would know that I was excited to go to my ten-year reunion because I was still not married, I had no kids, and I was living 8 hours away...I was excited because I had broken any mold of what people thought I should be.
If you really knew me, you would know that after the ten-year reunion, I felt just as un-cool and un-popular as I did in high school.
What would I really know about you?
Friday, July 30, 2010
"Free" Time
The company for which I work has some pretty cool benefits for being such a small organization...I get to keep my airline miles (which makes vacations easier); When I am working in the office, I come in at 7:30am and leave at 4:30pm (I can pick back up tomorrow); if I need to leave for something, I have a no-questions-asked personal time off policy (with 10 days of PTO to use in 15 minutes increments); we have lunch-and-learn once a month during which we learn something useful, get a free lunch, and get to leave one hour early; and, my favorite (at least today) - cookouts once a month during the summer! We each brought in a side dish or dessert, the managers bought the main course (today was chicken), and we have a social hour (or two) on a Friday during the summer. Then, we all clean up and the president of the company tells us when we can go home - today it's 2:30pm! Two hours early!
Ah. Free time!
Wait. Is it "free?"
What am I going to do with those two hours? Well, first I am going to drive home. While I am leaving earlier in the afternoon than usual, it is Friday, and there will be people on the road. So, there's about 40-45 minutes. When I arrive home I'll decide to relax, but I'll see the dishes in the drying rack from last night's dinner. I'll put those away, wipe down the counters, wipe down the stove, sweep the floor, realize the rest of the floors need to be swept, remember that the tub needs to be cleaned, etc., etc., etc. until about 4:30pm. Okay - that's still about 90 minutes before I would usually be home. I'll sit down to read. Then I'll remember that I need to go to the library to pick up some book about some vampire and some girl and some werewolf... I'll head out to the library, hunt down the book, think of a few more I remember I want to read, check them out, and get back home by 6:30pm. Just as I would have anyway.
So, that time may not be "free," and I may not have been able to really relax, but I will have accomplished some things that will allow me to sleep in tomorrow!
Woo hoo!
Ah. Free time!
Wait. Is it "free?"
What am I going to do with those two hours? Well, first I am going to drive home. While I am leaving earlier in the afternoon than usual, it is Friday, and there will be people on the road. So, there's about 40-45 minutes. When I arrive home I'll decide to relax, but I'll see the dishes in the drying rack from last night's dinner. I'll put those away, wipe down the counters, wipe down the stove, sweep the floor, realize the rest of the floors need to be swept, remember that the tub needs to be cleaned, etc., etc., etc. until about 4:30pm. Okay - that's still about 90 minutes before I would usually be home. I'll sit down to read. Then I'll remember that I need to go to the library to pick up some book about some vampire and some girl and some werewolf... I'll head out to the library, hunt down the book, think of a few more I remember I want to read, check them out, and get back home by 6:30pm. Just as I would have anyway.
So, that time may not be "free," and I may not have been able to really relax, but I will have accomplished some things that will allow me to sleep in tomorrow!
Woo hoo!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
The Niece Chronicles
I have some ideas for short stories about my nieces...here are the titles and plots, stories to come:
Courtney and the Alligator Whiskers - girl can speak with water creatures and has vivid imagination about all life under water.
The Amazing Growing Rebecca - girl can tug on her ear and grow taller, which is helpful when she needs to get her magic shoes off the top shelf.
Katie Feeds the Fishies - girl provides magical nourishment to all animal life through her smile and warm heart.
Jessica and Lola - a girl and her bunny save the world.
Samantha the Zombie Hunter - awesomely strong-willed, strong-minded, strong-bodied girl takes on zombies and kicks butt.
Amanda at the Speed of Light - 9-year-old Flash-like girl rushes around the world to save puppies from bad families.
Courtney and the Alligator Whiskers - girl can speak with water creatures and has vivid imagination about all life under water.
The Amazing Growing Rebecca - girl can tug on her ear and grow taller, which is helpful when she needs to get her magic shoes off the top shelf.
Katie Feeds the Fishies - girl provides magical nourishment to all animal life through her smile and warm heart.
Jessica and Lola - a girl and her bunny save the world.
Samantha the Zombie Hunter - awesomely strong-willed, strong-minded, strong-bodied girl takes on zombies and kicks butt.
Amanda at the Speed of Light - 9-year-old Flash-like girl rushes around the world to save puppies from bad families.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
My Latest Read
I was looking through my bookshelves on Sunday night (now that they are all unpacked, organized by category, and alphabetized by author) because I was ready for a new book to read. Having finished the first in the Anne of Green Gables series, followed up with Deja Dead by Kathy Reichs, I wanted something different.
I scanned the sections of my personal library:
Antique Books: No, I fear damaging the pages too much to pull one of those out.
"School" Fiction: (books I've read for grades since junior high, and I reread them because I like them...) No, I've read all those at least twice, some four or five or ten times. I want something different.
Anthologies: Like those above, this is a collection of collections of works which I have read numerous times...no, this is not exactly what I am in the mood for, but close...
Mysteries, Suspense, etc.: Kinda my "other" section...Dean Koontz, Stephen King, a couple Danielle Steel novels for good measure, and some random hard cover novels that I don't believe go with my school fictions. No, these are of the same vein as Kathy Reichs, and I want something different.
Comic Books and Related Texts: Yes, comic books. Wonder Woman, Spiderman, Justice League of America, random comics from authors I know and/or like, anthologies of comics, etc. No - I'm in the mood for a deep read, not a quick read.
Business and Self-Help Books: Why Good Girls Don't Get the Corner Office, Negotiation Skills, Men are from Mars..., etc. No, I am not in the mood to improve my negotiating skills or determine why it is that I am still in a cubicle at age 35.
Books for Which I Was the Developmental Editor: What? If your name was on the inside of a book, wouldn't you want to keep those you put blood, sweat, and tears into? The shelf includes the first text I ever worked on, which won First Edition of the Year for the company, as well as some that I was so proud just to get into print. The majority of that shelf, however, holds my pride and joy, in every version I published, as well as all its supplemental works: The Gregg Reference Manual, Tenth Edition. Go find it in a bookstore and check out the Copyright Page. I'm on there (maiden name). No, I don't really want to read the rules for using commas right now.
Books about Writing: For some reason, I have a whole collection of books that are supposed to teach me how to be a writer...No, not in the mood to ponder why it is I can't sit down and right the next great American novel.
Writing Manuals: This section is different from the above...APA, MLA, Harbrace, Chicago Manual, etc. Style guides. No, I don't need to know how to put in the correct citation right now.
Reference: Still different from previous categories. Includes dictionaries, thesauri, language dictionaries, etc. No. I don't want to know what the Spanish word for "imagination" is right now, or what all the different definitions of the word "strike" might be (but maybe later).
Finally! I found the section that called out to me, as it were:
Bibles: An entire section. All the Bibles I have ever owned, from childhood through high school through college and into adulthood. I remembered that many times I've tried to read the Book completely through, and many times I've failed...so, I wanted to try again.
I'm not even through "Genesis" yet, but here are some "Things That Make You Go Hmmm" moments that I have re-discovered:
"Genesis" has many sections on the "begets." If you can make it through all those, you can make it through the rest of the book.
When God created the firmament (Heaven), He made it to separate the water from the water...so, there is water in Heaven.
When God created land, He put it all in one place - historically known to us humans as "Pangaea" before the great Continental Drift...cool, huh?
Did you know that Noah was directed by God to collect SEVEN of every clean animal, a male and his female, and TWO of every unclean animal, a male and his female? So, that would mean 14 of every clean animal and four of every unclean animal. Also, SEVEN of each bird, a male with his female. Another set of 14...sure, they walked in two-by-two, but there were more than two of each animal!
Here's to learning and re-learning things I've been learning all my life...
I scanned the sections of my personal library:
Antique Books: No, I fear damaging the pages too much to pull one of those out.
"School" Fiction: (books I've read for grades since junior high, and I reread them because I like them...) No, I've read all those at least twice, some four or five or ten times. I want something different.
Anthologies: Like those above, this is a collection of collections of works which I have read numerous times...no, this is not exactly what I am in the mood for, but close...
Mysteries, Suspense, etc.: Kinda my "other" section...Dean Koontz, Stephen King, a couple Danielle Steel novels for good measure, and some random hard cover novels that I don't believe go with my school fictions. No, these are of the same vein as Kathy Reichs, and I want something different.
Comic Books and Related Texts: Yes, comic books. Wonder Woman, Spiderman, Justice League of America, random comics from authors I know and/or like, anthologies of comics, etc. No - I'm in the mood for a deep read, not a quick read.
Business and Self-Help Books: Why Good Girls Don't Get the Corner Office, Negotiation Skills, Men are from Mars..., etc. No, I am not in the mood to improve my negotiating skills or determine why it is that I am still in a cubicle at age 35.
Books for Which I Was the Developmental Editor: What? If your name was on the inside of a book, wouldn't you want to keep those you put blood, sweat, and tears into? The shelf includes the first text I ever worked on, which won First Edition of the Year for the company, as well as some that I was so proud just to get into print. The majority of that shelf, however, holds my pride and joy, in every version I published, as well as all its supplemental works: The Gregg Reference Manual, Tenth Edition. Go find it in a bookstore and check out the Copyright Page. I'm on there (maiden name). No, I don't really want to read the rules for using commas right now.
Books about Writing: For some reason, I have a whole collection of books that are supposed to teach me how to be a writer...No, not in the mood to ponder why it is I can't sit down and right the next great American novel.
Writing Manuals: This section is different from the above...APA, MLA, Harbrace, Chicago Manual, etc. Style guides. No, I don't need to know how to put in the correct citation right now.
Reference: Still different from previous categories. Includes dictionaries, thesauri, language dictionaries, etc. No. I don't want to know what the Spanish word for "imagination" is right now, or what all the different definitions of the word "strike" might be (but maybe later).
Finally! I found the section that called out to me, as it were:
Bibles: An entire section. All the Bibles I have ever owned, from childhood through high school through college and into adulthood. I remembered that many times I've tried to read the Book completely through, and many times I've failed...so, I wanted to try again.I'm not even through "Genesis" yet, but here are some "Things That Make You Go Hmmm" moments that I have re-discovered:
"Genesis" has many sections on the "begets." If you can make it through all those, you can make it through the rest of the book.
When God created the firmament (Heaven), He made it to separate the water from the water...so, there is water in Heaven.
When God created land, He put it all in one place - historically known to us humans as "Pangaea" before the great Continental Drift...cool, huh?
Did you know that Noah was directed by God to collect SEVEN of every clean animal, a male and his female, and TWO of every unclean animal, a male and his female? So, that would mean 14 of every clean animal and four of every unclean animal. Also, SEVEN of each bird, a male with his female. Another set of 14...sure, they walked in two-by-two, but there were more than two of each animal!
Here's to learning and re-learning things I've been learning all my life...
Monday, July 19, 2010
The Rooms in My House
I think that each room in my house represents a different part of my self. Now that the house is cleaned, organized, and mostly decorated, here's my self-analysis.
The master bedroom: My subconscious, my heart, my romanticism. I share this room completely with my husband. We are intertwined in this room. It is the place I feel safe. It is the place we share all our secrets. It is the room in which our souls combine during our sleep...I love this room.
The guest room (aka "Dee's Room"): My past, my need to hold onto my childhood and my roots, my get-away. I decorated this room in a sort-of country-girl chic. Pastel greens with pink- and rose-colored accents. A very girly "shabby chic" bed linen set, stuffed animals, ballet art work, candles, and dried flower bouquets everywhere. My antique sewing machine table, with my new model sewing machine, and a closet of gifts, wrapping paper, and gift bags Martha Stewart would be proud of. I've always wanted a room like this. I feel it makes me closer to my baby sister because she has a room like this, and she calls it my room. Yes, I have my own room in my sister's house in Tennessee. Now she has her own room in my house in Illinois.
The master bathroom: My solace. My thinking place. My planning place. I like the simplicity of this room. Whites with lavender accents. I ponder life in the steam of the shower. I refresh my body and mind. I recharge myself here.
The kitchen: My comfort, my warm fuzzy, my life. I love to bake. An entire section of cabinets is dedicated to that love. I feed more than my stomach in this room. JR and I share breakfast and conversation in this room. It is a great room for casual conversation over a cup of tea. A radio in the corner allows me to sing and dance like nobody is watching (even if they are) while I cook, bake, and clean.
The "Great Room": This is a room in progress. It will be the ever-changing room, I can feel it. Currently, it is a fabulous wide-open room with many comfortable seating choices. A set of bookshelves in a corner offers visitors a myriad of reading materials, each section offering a peek into my and my husband's hobbies and interests (an entire section of writing manuals, another of comic books, another of antique collectible books, and yet another of mystery novels, to name only a few). With a fireplace, I am sure this room will provide a great place to have a wonderful visit with friends, sharing a glass of wine and a vivacious discussion. In the future, this room will transform...into what is the unanswered question.
The downstairs bathroom: The place where all life's problems end up. Currently, according to the downstairs bathroom, life has no problems. Over the last few months, life was ankle deep in poop. Now, everything is working well again.
The basement: The fun, the entertainment, the togetherness. This is the most-used room in the house. This is where we laugh during comedies, cry during love stories, hide under the covers during horror fests, and work our butts off to video games. This is the room where the board games are pulled out and played till exhaustion sets in. This is the "family" room.
The laundry room: The room where the cleaning happens. Therapy takes place during the laundry process. Life is sorted out, and all the bad stuff from the week is washed away (including the inevitable food stains on my shirts). I am so happy to finally have this room!
The office/my closet: This is the secret room. The room nobody is allowed to see. The mess. The boxes. The clutter. The clothes and shoes and shoes and shoes. The computer is in there somewhere. Despite it serving as my closet, my husband spends more time in the office than I do. He kills zombies on the computer into the wee hours. This room holds his solace and relaxation.
The patio: The "ahhhh" place. Where we go to rest after yard work. Where we make the neighbors hungry from the wonderful aromas of the grill. Where JR's pet Zombie "Morty" lives with his pet lizard "Lexie." (I'll update this with pictures, I promise.)
The garage: The holder of things we don't know what to do with...for now. That's all I'm saying.
Every room is important to the whole of the house...Every piece represents a different part of our lives...I love my house, and I love my life.
The master bedroom: My subconscious, my heart, my romanticism. I share this room completely with my husband. We are intertwined in this room. It is the place I feel safe. It is the place we share all our secrets. It is the room in which our souls combine during our sleep...I love this room.
The guest room (aka "Dee's Room"): My past, my need to hold onto my childhood and my roots, my get-away. I decorated this room in a sort-of country-girl chic. Pastel greens with pink- and rose-colored accents. A very girly "shabby chic" bed linen set, stuffed animals, ballet art work, candles, and dried flower bouquets everywhere. My antique sewing machine table, with my new model sewing machine, and a closet of gifts, wrapping paper, and gift bags Martha Stewart would be proud of. I've always wanted a room like this. I feel it makes me closer to my baby sister because she has a room like this, and she calls it my room. Yes, I have my own room in my sister's house in Tennessee. Now she has her own room in my house in Illinois.
The master bathroom: My solace. My thinking place. My planning place. I like the simplicity of this room. Whites with lavender accents. I ponder life in the steam of the shower. I refresh my body and mind. I recharge myself here.
The kitchen: My comfort, my warm fuzzy, my life. I love to bake. An entire section of cabinets is dedicated to that love. I feed more than my stomach in this room. JR and I share breakfast and conversation in this room. It is a great room for casual conversation over a cup of tea. A radio in the corner allows me to sing and dance like nobody is watching (even if they are) while I cook, bake, and clean.
The "Great Room": This is a room in progress. It will be the ever-changing room, I can feel it. Currently, it is a fabulous wide-open room with many comfortable seating choices. A set of bookshelves in a corner offers visitors a myriad of reading materials, each section offering a peek into my and my husband's hobbies and interests (an entire section of writing manuals, another of comic books, another of antique collectible books, and yet another of mystery novels, to name only a few). With a fireplace, I am sure this room will provide a great place to have a wonderful visit with friends, sharing a glass of wine and a vivacious discussion. In the future, this room will transform...into what is the unanswered question.
The downstairs bathroom: The place where all life's problems end up. Currently, according to the downstairs bathroom, life has no problems. Over the last few months, life was ankle deep in poop. Now, everything is working well again.
The basement: The fun, the entertainment, the togetherness. This is the most-used room in the house. This is where we laugh during comedies, cry during love stories, hide under the covers during horror fests, and work our butts off to video games. This is the room where the board games are pulled out and played till exhaustion sets in. This is the "family" room.
The laundry room: The room where the cleaning happens. Therapy takes place during the laundry process. Life is sorted out, and all the bad stuff from the week is washed away (including the inevitable food stains on my shirts). I am so happy to finally have this room!
The office/my closet: This is the secret room. The room nobody is allowed to see. The mess. The boxes. The clutter. The clothes and shoes and shoes and shoes. The computer is in there somewhere. Despite it serving as my closet, my husband spends more time in the office than I do. He kills zombies on the computer into the wee hours. This room holds his solace and relaxation.
The patio: The "ahhhh" place. Where we go to rest after yard work. Where we make the neighbors hungry from the wonderful aromas of the grill. Where JR's pet Zombie "Morty" lives with his pet lizard "Lexie." (I'll update this with pictures, I promise.)
The garage: The holder of things we don't know what to do with...for now. That's all I'm saying.
Every room is important to the whole of the house...Every piece represents a different part of our lives...I love my house, and I love my life.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)