Plans change . . .

. . . and then change again.

I decided to take this afternoon off. There was grocery shopping to do and pulled chicken to get started. Todd's family is having a family
reunion in Milwaukee on Saturday and his brother from Michigan will be staying with us on Friday and Saturday evenings. While we will be in Milwaukee during the day tomorrow, I still need to make sure that there is food in the house for breakfast and dinner tonight.

Last evening I asked Todd -

what time are they expecting to get here? 'early evening' .
What about food? 'Well we can probably just order something!'

No, we can't do that. I will make something, how about pulled chicken in the crock pot? 'Sounds great! '

I wanted to say, of course that sounds great! It always sounds great when someone else does the work!

I don't know about you, but if someone is coming to your house, you don't

order pizza, maybe when you are younger, but at my age, you should be able to come up with home made food! Only problem with my plan, is that I didn't have any chicken thighs in the freezer, so I decided I could take half a day of vacation, run to Costco on the way home, pick up chicken and a few other items and get the chicken going in the crock pot by early afternoon and it would be done in time.

But wait at 10:00 I have a message on my phone from Todd, now his niece, her husband and kids have decided to stay near Madison instead of Milwaukee and would like to get together for dinner at a brew pup in Madison. His question is where should we go? I suggest either Great Dane or Ale Asylum. I suggest that Todd try for reservations at either place.

He later calls me, as I was driving home and now his niece and family will not be staying near Madison, because they didn't leave Michigan on time, so I head to Costco and the original plans!

Dinner was good, although a little latter than I had wanted. The chicken was great, recipe compliments of Jenna's blog, Eat, Live, Run, Crock pot root beer pulled chicken, here. Served on a bun or sweet potato.

I made a batch of margarita's and everyone was happy. No pic's of the evening!

Enjoy the moments!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Bike rim . . .

. . . art!

 

Wow - were does the time go?

Skipping biking and running, yard work and a trip to New York and tons of other stuff - today was a work in the garden day. But before we did that I started the morning off with a little 2 mile run with Sophie. Next up was a bike ride to Pilates. After class I headed over to Revolution Cycles to pick up an old bike rim to build our garden gate! Didn't even have to pay for it, what a great bike shop. Biking with a bike rim over my handle bar was not the easiest thing, but doable. Once home we headed out to pick up our boat and two jet skies. I am sure this is the latest we have ever picked up our water toys from winter storage, but the weather has not exactly been warm enough to even think about being on the water, let alone in the water . . . current Lake Mendota water temp is in the 50's, brrrrrrrrr.

Here is what we did with the bike rim.

 

After we built the door, next up was to put the fencing up. By the time we finished that we didn't have time to plant, but that can be done tomorrow. We still have to put some fencing material on the bottom of the door to keep the rabbits out. Again, that can be done tomorrow.

Because of life in general, I have not been cooking much - - but last night I made shrimp tacos with grilled poblano and avocado salsa. HERE. The salsa was so good, I just finished it off tonight wih a couple of chips. Oh my, it was so good.

Enjoy the moments.

As I read back through this post, it is scattered and disorganized, which pretty much describes my life right now! Oh well!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Spring has finally . . .

come to Madison . . . although our two large lakes, Monona and Mendota are still frozen

and we are sure to receive some cold temp's in the weeks to come, I think we can actually think about spring in the current tense instead of the future tense.

Spring! I especially think we were waiting . . . waiting . . . waiting for any slight sign of warmth after the extremely cold winter we had. I checked the weather history and in March 2012 the highest temperature was recorded at 83 degrees with 19 days when the high for the day was 60 or above. 19 days sounds unbelievable as we just survived a March that only yielded 1 day that was above 60, March 31 when the high was 65.

Biking: This year we were thrilled with 50+ degree weather, which occurred for a whopping 5 days in March! I got out on my bike on 3 of those days and was also out on a day when the high was only 46! I biked for a total of 61 miles in March, an all time record. When I bike to work I usually do 60+ miles per week, but in March, not so much!

Running: I have been running, but not for any distance. My runs are comprised of running with Sophie for 2 miles. Here we are on Monday morning - I loved the deep blue sky.

The next race I would like to do is the Crazy Legs run on April 26th, a 8k run though UW Madison campus, ending up on the 50 yard line at Camp Randall. Unless I am able to get some hill work in and run for more than 2 miles, I won't be signing up. We will see what the next few days and week end brings.

Recipe Update:
I have now made 25 recipes from Jenna's blog: eat,live,run, HERE. Doing the math or looking at the counter on the right hand column of my blog, shows that I have 105 recipes left to go. Looking at the number of recipes I have completed so far, 25 just doesn't sound like that many, especially since I started in November. Anyway, I am not going to give up and will continue through this journey!

Last night I made the Penne with White Bean and Spinach, here. I will be honest, I didn't think I would enjoy the fact that there really wasn't any real sauce in this recipe, but the lemon zest and juice along with a little water from the penne and the white beans provided a creamy consistency. The cayenne pepper provided a bit of a bite. It was a quick easy meal. I would make it again and actually thought of adding tuna . . . that might sound weird, but I think it would go well with the lemon and spinach.

I have another recipe planned for tomorrow evening - Chicken Paprika with Homemade Dumplings - this will be a new experience since I have never made dumplings before!

As always

Enjoy the moments!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Preparing for bitter. . .

. . . bitter cold, but not quite yet!

Temp's have been pretty frigid lately. Mid-day temp's have been single digits with a few days in the teens. The news over the last few days have been full of foreboding about the temperatures to come. Much colder, very windy, frigid, frigid temperatures. Madison Schools and all other schools in the area have cancelled classes for Monday. Obviously just about the entire country is getting cold temps's but come Sunday evening and Monday the thermometer will read negative numbers. Combined with high winds the "feels like" temp will be 40-50 below zero and near 75 below in certain areas. That is beyond cold . . . but today, was unbelievably mild. Temp's were in the low 30's. Sophie and I headed out early for a run. We ended up running 5 1/2 + miles. I took my gloves off and unzipped my jacket and top. It was windy, but not that windy!

This afternoon we went snowshoeing at Token Creek. The location is on State hunting and fishing land, so there are no restrictions about taking our dog and Sophie loves the snow! We just don't go during hunting season!

It was so beautiful - protected from the wind - mild temp's - sticky snow - snow balls on Sophie.

On our way home, we made a quick stop at the grocery store. I needed carrots for our dinner. Another recipe from Jenna's blog: eat, live, run - Kicked Up Turkey Meatloaf, HERE. The grocery store was super busy. There were no carts or hand held baskets available when I came through the doors! it looked like everyone in the neighborhood was stocking up for the cold . . . and all I needed was carrots! But I can never walk out with just one thing, so I also picked up a 6 pack of New Glarus Cabin Fever, afterall, with a name like that, how could I pass it up.

Back home we prepared the meatloaf and then settled in to watch the last episode of 'orange is the new black'. If you haven't watched it, I love it! I could not believe how the season ended!!!!! Oh my!!!!!!

Back to the food: Todd took the first bite - oh, it is really good! I followed and said the same thing. There is a cup of cooked lentils in it, something I have never made. I realize they are just legumes - but I have never used lentils in anything I have ever made. On top, there was a wonderful glaze made with balsamic vinegar, maple syrup and ketsup that added a little sweetness to the meatloaf.

Enjoy the moments, even if they are freezing!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Last Sunday of . . .

. . . 2013. I started the morning with a 4 mile run with Sophie. It was cold, but the forecast was to continue to get colder as the day went on, so around 9:30 Sophie and I headed out the door. Holy cow, it was slippery! There must have been a fine layer of mist on the pavement that froze and that made for a very slow and cautious run. Once we made it out of the neighborhood the roads generally have more traffic and ended up being in better shape but it was still a run that kept me slow and careful. I had thought about wearing my yaktrax, but I don't think it would have helped, the little ice that was on the pavement was just a very thin layer.

The temp's were still in the mid 20's so there was lots of slush on the roads. Sophie's belly was full of grit and salt and needed an under chassis wash when we got home!

Early afternoon took us out to mega warehouse Costco and mega local grocery store Woodman's. I usually stock up on the big bags of broccoli and cauliflower at Costco. I love the convenience of having the broccoli and cauliflower already cut up but didn't buy any today because the "best purchased by" date was January 1 - no way could I eat that much by Wednesday!!! I searched the bottom of the containers, but couldn't find any later dates.

Back home I made a quick salmon quesadilla with creamy chipotle cilantro sauce for lunch, HERE. I had purchased the smoked salmon last weekend so I figured I could try another recipe before tossing the salmon. How long does smoked salmon last in the frig? I just googled it, and most answers said 5-7 days after opening the package. So it was OK today. I love a good quesadilla and I love smoked salmon, but I am not sure I would make the combo again, but I definitely would make the creamy chipotle cilantro sauce for sandwiches. It would be great on turkey or a cucumber and tomato sandwich!

 

Then we settled in to watch the Packer / Bear game. (Current score is 27-28). Sure hoping Rogers can pull out a win for the Pack, I would hate to lose to the Bears twice in the season!!!!! Updated to report: the Packers WON!

At the half we headed into the kitchen to make Spicy Jambalaya, HERE. We are now patiently waiting for the Jambalya to be ready!

Adding to the jambalaya will be a loaf of 'rosemary olive oil bread' from Costco and a bottle of Charles & Charles chardoney!

The Jambalya was really good. I have recipe for a 'day long' version of jambalaya that is REALLY good, but I would have to say the Jenna's version is much easier, quicker and pretty much - just as good - yum! I learned years ago that while I love to cook - I would rather spend less time cooking, since no matter how long it takes you to cook, it takes the same amount of time to eat! I added a little hot sauce from 'Crazy Ed's Chili Beer hot Sauce' - HERE. We brought it back from Key West.

You can't go wrong with a bottle of Chalres & Charles HERE! Don't let the twist off top put you off - it is a good Chardonnay!

Enjoy the moments!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Christmas Wishes . . .

. . . to everyone reading!

Pretty quiet Christmas here . . . presents, church, family, snow, baking, cooking and wine. What more could anyone want?

Eat,live,run recipe update

I added three recipes to my project - Turkey meatballs, Broccoli, Cheddar and Potato soup and Turkey Taco Casserole.

Sunday while watching the Packer game I made the turkey meatballs, HERE. Positive comments from everyone. The meatballs were good and the marinara was quite tasty. Until the meatballs go into the marina they aren't much to look at, ground turkey has a way of looking pale and (honestly) somewhat sickly compared to beef.

On Christmas Day I made the Broccoli, Cheddar and Potato soup, HERE. Usually I make cream of broccoli soup for Cristmas Eve - but since we celebrated on Tuesday, I decided to switch it up and made soup on Wednesday. I have to say, it was hard for me to not make my customary Cream of Broc soup - but I gave Jenna's recipe a try. The recipe called for blending the broccoli and cooked potato. I used my immersion blender and left a few chunks of broccoli and potato. The recipe includes a bit of cayenne, mustard powder and sharp cheddar cheese - this all gives it a bit of a bite. It was really creamy and yummy. Another great one. This is a pic from my lunch today at work - I remembered that I had not taken a photo, so this had to do!

Although I was thinking we would order pizza tonight I arrived home and decided to make Turkey Taco Casserole, HERE. Easy to put together and ohh so good. It is quite apparent I need to learn to take better food pictures. Well, if you want to see better pic's make sure to check out Jenna's blog - she takes much better pic's! I added sliced black olives to the recipe.

I am off to make a Cosmo in celebration of getting released from infusions today! I saw the Doctor today and she decided today's infusion was my last. My arm looks good and I just need to keep an eye in it and make sure to call if there is any type of recurrence.

Tomorrow I am heading out for a run and will be adding the squats and lunges to get ready for skiing.

Enjoy the moments!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Updates . . .

. . . First the Recipe Update:

During the last week I made two more recipes from Jenna's blog, eat, live, run HERE. Both were easy and worthy of making again. Although based on my resolution to make all of Jenna's main course recipes over the next year - I won't be making them again until next year . . . but that doesn't mean that you shouldn't make them sooner!

Last week I made Spaghetti with Meat Sauce, HERE. I loved the earthy, cheesey flavor. The recipe fed us several evenings and I was able to freeze 2 containers of the meat sauce which is great for a quick meal during a busy work week.

Tonight for dinner I made the 30 minute lemon brown sugar chicken, HERE. Another easy recipe. The chicken didn't get as browned as in Jenna's pictures, maybe I should have left it in the pan a little longer but the flavor was bright and sweet. My son, Charlie thought it was a little to tangy because of the lemon juice and zest. As the name of the recipe says, it was ready in 30 minutes, which would be great on work nights.

 

Medical update:

I was at the clinic this morning for my second antibiotic infusion. My arm looks and feels better today; it is not nearly as swollen, the color is closer to normal, and my temperature is only slightly elevated. I still am a little achy - but it didn't stop me from doing some shopping, baking and cooking!

I have another appointment tomorrow morning. To counter balance the effects of the antibiotics I have been eating yogurt and bought a container of Kefir. I have appointments scheduled through Christmas Eve day and hope that will be enough. I have had lymphedema for 9 years and have never gotten cellulitis - I am trying to hope that this is a single event, even though it appears that once you've had it, you are more prone to contracting it again.

In the end, no matter how much I try to put it behind me - - it is always staring me in the face - Cancer Sucks!

Enjoy every moment!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Thanksgiving and . . .

. . . Birthday rolled into one. In case you didn't know, Thanksgiving was the latest in November it can be, based on the 1st being a Friday this year. When this happens it means that Thanksgiving falls on my birthday, or my birthday falls on Thanksgiving, take your pick. This year marked the beginning of my 58th year. I need a few days to let the fact that I am closer to 60 than 55 sink in and will post more about that later. For some reason this seems monumentis but maybe I am making too big a deal about it!

I sadly have no pictures from my birthday or Thanksgiving. My college son came home Wednesday afternoon and my oldest son and girlfriend came over on Thanksgiving day. We had the normal turkey, stuffing, beans, corn, stuffing, rolls and apple and pumpkin pies. Nothing photogenic about that.

No Black Friday shopping for us. The day started with a 5+ mile run with Sophie and then a couple of appointments at the house. We had a furnace check up and our house contractor came to measure one door and check on molding and trim decisions. I haven't previously mentioned this, but we are having new interior doors, window trim and base molding installed. Such hard decisions, picking trim! All the books are profile pictures, yet most of the time you look straight on at the window. Anyway, deciding on the doors was pretty easy, but the window trim was really hard. It is one of those decisions, that you spend lots of time himming and hawing over, but in the end, any of the choices would be fine!

Saturday was the last home football game for the UW Badgers.Surprisingly, the weather was fine. With the last game on Nov 30, you never know what to expect. As it turned out the temp was around 40 at kick off. While it did cool off as he game progressed, it wasn't until the 4th quarter that my feet got chilly. Too bad the game didn't have a better outcome for the Badgers, losing to Penn State.

On to Sunday with pictures.

Breakfast, was the usual steel cut oats with fruit.

 

Todd and I spent time cutting down the perennial flower stems and summers growth, while Sophie rolled in the lawn!

Then it was off to run some errands. First stop at the dog park at Token Creek so Sophie could run!

A few groceries and essentials at Costco and Woodman's.

Tonight's dinner was Thai Red Curry Chicken, compliments of Jenna's recipes at eat, live, run blog Here. My recipe count is up to three. I haven't figured out exactly how I will keep track of used recipes or more specifically, how to record it on the blog, but will come up with something.

The curry was a smashing success! I think Todd's first response was that it tasted OK, but then I think the subtle flavors worked their magic and he started to really enjoy it, even going for a second helping! This recipe was easy to make and tasted delish. There is plenty for at least two more meals. I love the bright orange color of the curry. I served it over rice.

Enjoy the moments and curry!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Where do you go . . .

. . . for new recipes? Various websites, or recipe books or a combination?

I have been following this blog for years - somehow in following various running blogs, I happened upon Jenna's blog, eat, live, run. I immediately loved it, her writing, her stories, she easily pulls you in.

Her blog has evolved over the years and is now my first place to stop for new recipes. I can honestly say that I have loved every single recipe I have used and I have used many, over and over again. You must check it out.

Last night I made the Spicy Thai Shrimp Skillet - here. Oh my gosh it was delicious. Her recipe included marinating the shrimp with Stubb's marinade - we used the Pork, which was nice and spicy (hot). The outside temperature was single digits last night, so the added heat was more than welcome. We made 2 small changes to Jenna's recipe, one was I added more marinade to the skillet and we made more brown rice (2 cups) and then served the shrimp and veggies over the rice. It was delicious. Here is a picture (from the left-overs that we ate today) and it tasted just as good).

This evening I made Broccoli Wild Rice casserole, HERE, not one of Jenna's, but from The Pioneer Woman and recommended by Jenna. Again it was delish, so creamy and good. I made a small addition of some chicken, but other than that, followed the recipe. It filled a good size casserole dish, so we will have leftovers for a few evenings.

All this talk about cooking got me thinking! I have been wondering if I could do my own version of the "Julie/Julia project" as a 2014 goal. In case you aren't familiar; Julie Powell began her famous blog, "The Julie/Julia Project," in 2002, at the age of 29. The blog chronicled Powell's attempt to prepare all of the dishes described in Julia Child's classic cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, in just one year. 524 recipes in 365 days!

I have seen glimpses of the movie, but not in its entirety and have never read the book. Looking up information for this post, I see that most reviews are negative for both the book and movie . . . but I don't care, I love the idea of expanding my recipes and cooking out of my comfort zone.

Since I love Jenna's recipes, this would be a perfect goal for 2014! But how would I do this? She has far too many recipes on her blog which would make it impossible for me to get them all done in one year! But I think I would be able to cook all of her main dishes, currently sitting at a few more than 150, over the next year. Add in some salads, snacks, desserts, etc and we will be eating all of our food for 2014, compliments of Jenna's eat, live, run blog.

Now my biggest decision is whether to start now, or wait for 2014?

Since I made the Spicy Thai Shrimp Skillet last night and the Wild Rice casserole tonight, I am going to start now. I figure with vacations and other busy times, I probably need a head start!

My plan will be to reference the recipe (giving credit to Jenna) and comment on each one. This will give me another reason to blog on a regular basis.

Stayed tuned for my journey!

No running today - but we did head out to the dog park with Sophie at the end of the day. The winds were still bitter cold, but the sunset was beautiful.

Enjoy the moments!

Posted with Blogsy