Happy Anniversary, Big Man

Today is my six year anniversary with the Big Man.When I think back on the day I got married, what strikes me the most is the fact that I wasn't nervous. By the time we got married, we had been dating for nearly 4 years. But I had known six months in to our relationship that we would get married.

Please excuse the following sentimentality. It is not in my nature to express my feelings, with the exception of anger. But occasionally, I should try.

Like most married couples, the Big Man is my best friend. He gets me. He just does. He understands my quirky sense of humor and can make me laugh like no one else. I feel calm and safe when I am with him. When he is not with me, things are a little less fun.

Of course, our relationship is not perfect. I'll take most of the blame for that. But we work thru the obstacles and come out of the other side stronger.

Tonight we are celebrating by playing tourist in the French Quarter. The Big Man and I going to all the fancy bars we never get to visit because we have kids. I'm looking forward to enjoying rare my alone time with my husband.

Random Mishmash

Normally, I like to do separate posts for each idea. I'm not good with flow and tying themes together. But I've been a bad blogger lately. I haven't blogged about much of anything as of late. This random mishmash of the things that have been rolling around in my head. Sorry, I know its long.

Running
Race season is almost here! My first race is 10days out. The inaugural Louisiana Half.  I'm so excited. I love race day. The excitement, the comradery, the medal, the after party. A few of my friends are running this race too. Plus a bloggy meet up. I should have tons of fun.

This past Sunday, I "ran" my last long run of my training. I put ran in quotes because I didn't run it. Well, I ran 3 miles out of the 10.5mi and walked the rest. My hip/ITband is still bothering me. Running hurts. But walking is fine. The one advantage to being a slow runner is that my running isn't that much faster than walking. So it's not a big hit to my ego. My plan is to walk the first half marathon. Then maybe rest a bit, do all my stretches/strengthening and see if it will ease up. If not, I walk the second one at the end of the month too. I know that I should just rest and not race.  But I've signed up, paid, and told people I was racing. So I'm racing.

Weekend Fun
Now that its fall, festival season here in Southeast Louisiana has started again. Last weekend was the beginning of Oktoberfest at the Deutsches Haus. It was a fun way to introduce the girlies to the little bit of German heritage they have mixed in with the Cajun and Irish. What's not to love about this festival. Lots of pork, lots of beer, lots of people, and of course music.

The Big Man, MM, & Li enjoying the porky goodness

Li dancing with the Big Chicken to (of course) the Chicken Dance

MM being too terified of the Big Chicken to dance with him

MM with me and with her daddy. 

Yeah, that's a Road Id.  I make them wear them at festivals/Mardi Gras

The next day we went to the Alligator Festival in Luling. In reality, we went because it was close to the house. (This isn't a very exciting festival. More like a state fair.) Nothing is ever close to our house. We have to drive at least a half hour to get to the fun (which is fine). But since this was close, we took the girlies to the festival.  Of course, we ate lots of alligator food, alligator burgers, alligator sausage, alligator fritters, etc.  Then once we loaded up on food, we hit the rides.

I was trying really hard not to let my engineering self 

talk me out of letting my girlies ride these unsafe looking rides. I'm

not scared to ride them but putting my kids on them is a completely different story.

Of course, there was a baby alligator from a local farm to pet

Wedding Weekend
My Brother is finally getting married on Saturday. I'm so excited/happy for them. I love my new sister in law, Lindsay.  The girlies along with Lindsay's nieces are the bubble girls. I bought gorgeous white eyelet dresses from a seamstress on etsy.  Don't you just love etsy?!

We are going to spend a few extra days in Mississippi to make in a mini vaca. I'm sure I'll have lots of pictures to share next week. 

Me with the Bride-to-be at her Shower

Although, I've been a bad blogger, I have been checking in on your blogs. I can do that without having to put together coherent thought. I'll try to stop by over the weekend but no guarantees.  
What do y'all have going on this weekend?

Weight Loss Challenge Wk 6

Not sure why I resisted Weight Watchers for so long. I'm a numbers person. I like tracking and analyzing data. I like seeing the weight tracking down a few points every week. Plus the daily food tracking. And it's kinda a game to optimize you daily points allowance. And this is the best kind of data. You  are in control of if the data trends in the right direction or not. And at the end, you are skinnier.

I'm doing really well. I steadily loose 1-2lbs a week. Most days I don't feel deprived. I think the portion control is the biggest thing WW is teaching me. A cup of this is plenty. So many oz of that is more than enough.

As I get smaller, my clothes stay the same size. I realize that this is stating the obvious but it can be really frustrating getting dressed. My go-to outfits no longer work out. Shirts and pants bunch and gape. I can't walk around like this. Kerrie at Momvs.Marathon had a similar problem a few days ago. To deal with it, she issued a challenge to her readers. "Clean out your closet! And your dresser drawers! Get rid of things that don’t fit anymore. Donate them to a homeless shelter or drop them off at a Goodwill or sell them on eBay. Whatever you want to do."

My biggest problem is my camis. I'm wearing the same post-baby, xl sized under shirts I've had for years. The issue is that I am particular about my under shirts; long but not too long, form fitting but not tight, and no shelf bra. That's a lot of requirements for a shirt. So I'm hesitant to buy more shirts until I find the right ones. But I haven't even tried to find new ones. That stops now. In the next few weeks, I'll be replacing all my worn out, over sized camis.

Do y'all do that? Hold on to clothes that don't fit or are rags because you're too lazy to find replacements?

This weeks progress:

	Big Man	Δ (%)	Meg	Δ (%)
Starting wt (lbs)	258	0	182	0
Wk 1 wt (lbs)	255	.99	177	.97

Wk 2 wt (lbs)	255	.99	176	.97

Wk 3 wt (lbs)	252	.97	175	.96
Wk 4 wt (lbs)	252	.97	173	.95
Wk 5 wt (lbs)	251	.97	172	.94
Wk 6 wt (lbs)	?	.97	170	.93

Note: The big man forgot to weigh himself first thing this morning. I'll add his weight tomorrow to this post.

Weight Loss Challenge Wk 5

Over the last few weeks, I've cut most of the sugar out of my diet. Very few sweet snacks, no Alcohol, etc. Before I started losing weight, I ate candy everyday and had a few drinks most days. (Hence, the weight gain.) Cutting out sugar has been a lot easier than I thought. You know, I'm on a weight loss mission. This has had two side effects. My face has thinned out. Huh! I always thought I had a round face. Guess not.

Before/After

And I was walking down the cereal aisle and wanted to buy sugary Lucky Charms. I haven't eaten sugary cereals since I was in college. That was a light bulb moment for me. I need to allow myself occasional treats or this weight loss won't stick. After my long run last week, I made myself a small brownie Sunday. (FYI...brownie sunday = awesome) And I still lost weight.

This weeks progress:

	Big Man	Δ (%)	Meg	Δ (%)
Starting wt (lbs)	258	0	182	0
Wk 1 wt (lbs)	255	.99	177	.97

Wk 2 wt (lbs)	255	.99	176	.97

Wk 3 wt (lbs)	252	.97	175	.96
Wk 4 wt (lbs)	252	.97	173	.95
Wk 5 wt (lbs)	251	.97	172	.94

Do you have treats every day/week?

Spillway Classic Race Report

This weekend I ran one of my favorite NOTC races, the Spillway Classic. The race is only 3mi but it's a trail run full of water and mud and fun.  And it's not far from my house at the Bonnet Carre Spillway in Norco. (Nothing is close to my house.) This is one of those races where you feel like you make money on the deal. For your $20 (for NOTC members) entrance fee, you get a technical T with free beer and food at the post-race party.  The first 500 finisher got a sweet  Spillway Classic medal that doubles as a bottle opener. If I'd have know that, I'd have ditched my friends to haul butt to snag one. (Well, maybe not)

This year the Big Man and I met up with some of my DetermiNation committee members before the race. 

  Pre-race photos

As we we milling about waiting for the race to start, the sky was steadily darkening.  We were kind of happy about the impending rain. The rain might keep down the temp. But rain storms in SE Louisiana have tendency to come on fast and drench you. More than once, I've been caught running in a rain so hard you can't see.  The rain held out until we were in the trees and then it was just a drizzle.

The rain rolling in

The first mile of the race is run along the spillway levee. This is the toughest part of the race.  It's paved with gravel and you have to watch where your foot lands. There is no shade.

 Running on the levee

The course then turns down into the spillway and proceeds through the “gauntlet.” This is where the craziness begins.  This is the part of the course with the most water and mud. You should not wear new shoes. Most people fall often with help from they're friends. Some runners try hard to get as muddy as they can. (Not me. I'm too much of a girl I guess.) 

After all the muck the course turns onto the main trail deeper into the woods. Then we continue on a path parallel to the canal back towards the finish line. This is the best part. Along the way there are,  log jumps, muddy/slippery sections, low limbs, switch backs, and a wooden bridge. This part is mostly single file. So you have to go the pace of the person in front of you. But this race is more a for fun than speed. It took us 58+mins to run 3mi. Once you are thru the wood, the finish line is not far.

After the race, we headed to the fire hoses to wash the mud off. It took a decent amount of time to wash off the caked on mud.  Some people were still muddy after the hoses. Now they were muddy and wet.

Then it was time for beer and food. The beer line was long. Only 4 taps for 2000 racers. Not nearly enough. I gabbed the Big Man and I hot dogs and chee wees to eat while in the beer line.  I knew we were going to need food before we had alcohol. We grabbed two Michelob Ultra (yuck) each. Then got back in line. 

Post-race party

All that fun and we were home before noon Sunday morning.




Don't forget to enter my CSN Giftcard Giveaway.

Weight Loss Challenge Wk 3

Three weeks down. I finally feel like I'm getting enough protein on Weight Watchers. It took a little time to adjust to the points distribution. A decent size pork chop is only 3pts. I guess I've never really know proper portion size.

While I was organizing our office, I came across this picture of the Big Man and I at his graduation. I feel sad for the girl in this picture. Only 22 but 200lbs. And if you asked me if I was happy with my body, I'd have said yes. But I only ever wore pants and rarely wore short sleeves.  And I was sad. I was hiding from my emotions. I hated to leave the house because I hated to get dressed.

Me, the Big Man and the Senior Project Car

I've been giving myself a hard time the last few months because my weight loss has stalled. But I look at that picture and can see how far I've come. Not only physically but emotionally. I feel like I can try anything. I may not be great at it. But at least I'm doing new stuff.

This weeks progress:

	Big Man	Δ (%)	Meg	Δ (%)
Starting wt (lbs)	258	0	182	0
Wk 1 wt (lbs)	255	.99	177	.97

Wk 2 wt (lbs)	255	.99	176	.97

Wk 3 wt (lbs)

252

.97

175

.96

I think I need a new scale. The Big Man has a hard time getting an accurate weight. He can get off and on 3times and get  different weights. I'm pretty sure it has to do with the size of his feet vs. the size of the deck of the scale. Does any one have a suggestion for a man-size scale?

Sunday Dinner - 07/11/2010

This weekend was jam packed as usual with lots of fun activities. I originally planned not to have a Sunday Dinner post this week. I just couldn't fit it in. But my very sweet hubs cooked dinner and took pictures long the way. (This is why you marry a Cajun man. They cook.) He knows how important this is to me and he loves me. So the recipe below is his. I hope enjoy this healthy Enchilada bake.

This recipe is sometimes called an Enchilada bake or Mexican Lasagna. You can “hide” a lot vegetables in this and everyone likes Mexican.

This is an easy recipe that you can add or remove ingredients depending on your personal taste. It can also be prepared the day before and put together in about 30 minutes so its great for throwing together after work.


Enchilada Bake
Directions
2 lbs chicken breast tenders

8-10 oz. fresh spinach
Corn Tortillas (or whole wheat)
2 onions, chopped
4 bell peppers, chopped
1 ¼ cups low fat shredded cheese
1 can enchilada sauce
1 can rotel (drained)
1 small can diced chile peppers
Mojo Criollo marinade
2tbsp balsamic vinegar
2tbsp olive oil

Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 350deg. In a large heavy bottom pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat. When the oil is hot, place chicken in pot to brown the chicken a little. Turning once to get both sides brown.

With chicken in pot, place chile peppers, onions, and bell peppers over chicken.

Pour ½ cup of Mojo Criollo marinade over veggies and chicken.

Place cover on pot and place in 350 degree over for 1 hr.

Remove pot from oven and strain the contents to remove the liquid that has cooked out of the vegetables. Carefully remove chicken (it will be tender and falling apart). Set aside and let cool.

Return veggie mixture to pot and place on stove over medium heat to further caramelize onions. Stirring occasionally. (Optional – Add a tablespoon of Mexican seasoning to veggie mixture for a little more spice)

While onions and peppers cook a little more, heat a small non stick pan over medium heat. Add olive oil and a tbsp of balsamic vinegar. Toss spinach a handful at a time in pan for 3-5 minutes to soften spinach. Once you have sweated all of the spinach, set is aside and dice your chicken.

Everything up to this point can be done the day before and refrigerated overnight to speed up prep.

Now to build your enchilada bake. Begin by layering a 9 x 13 pan with tortillas. I use 8 to completely cover the bottom of the pans.

Next, add spinach, chicken and top with 1 cup of shredded cheese.

Add a second layer of 4 tortillas here to help absorb some of the juice from the veggies. Add you onion/pepper mix and top with 6 tortillas.

Pour can of enchilada sauce over top. Use a fork to place rotel over top.

Bake for 15-20 minutes.
Remove from oven and sprinkle remaining ¼ cup of cheese over top.

We enjoyed this with black beans and a little guacamole and baked tortilla chips.


This is an easy recipe and it’s very versatile. You can add vegetables like frozen corn, sliced zucchini, squash, chopped broccoli or whatever you have on hand to the onions and peppers while they caramelize.

I'm grateful the Big Man cook and wrote up this recipe. It made my evening much easier. He was also kind enough to do the dishes.


I hope you enjoy this dinner as much as I did. What did y'all have for dinner?

If you have any question/comments about this recipe, pls leave me a comment or email at megmehell at yahoo.

Weight Loss Challenge Wk 2

Week two of the weightloss challenge is done. I feel like I'm settling in to the new diet. I had so many flex points and activity points left for today I didn't even bother to count points. Eating better and

Friday afternoon, the Big Man and I dressed the girl for a walk. While I dressed MM, the Big Man tied Li's shoes. But he didn't double-knot the laces. I noticed he doesn't-double knot his own laces. That got me thinking. Do grown ups not double-knot? Am I just a goofy fool who can't walk with out her shoes coming untied?

We weighed in this morning to check our progress:

	Big Man	Δ (%)	Meg	Δ (%)
Starting wt (lbs)	258	0	182	0
Wk 1 wt (lbs)	255	.99	177	.97

Wk 2 wt (lbs)	255	.99	176	.97

I think I mis-recorded my weight last week. I think it was 179 not 177. But either way I still lost a pounds this week.


Do you still double knot your laces?

Weight Loss Challenge Wk 1

The first week of our family weight loss challenge is complete. We had some bumps but the week went well over all. Like any change its taking some times for us to get used to it.

The Big Man didn't realize the honey-mustard dressing he was using on his salad had 13g of fat/2 tbsp. But he watched his portion size and made better choices during meals. It's hard for him to control what he goes into the food he eat during the week. He lives in a bunk house in a port town on the Gulf during the week where someone else cooks. The opportunities to workout are limited. No gyms with in a hour's drive and only a busy highway to run run on. But he has his own room do lift weights and do P90. Like anyone else, there are always challenges.

I decided to join weight watchers online. There's no time for a meeting but I need a way to keep track of my food intake. I guess I haven't been being honest to myself about what I eating. Hence, the 3lb weight gain. I tried WW a few years ago but I wasn't ready to face my food issues. I didn't keep up with it and I didn't loose any weight. This week has been tough but I'm learning. My morning coffee with honey and cream was killing me on points. So I adjusted the amount I'm using. My favorite lunch burrito place, well, that was obvious. I mean, I go into a food coma after eating the over-sized nachos. But I've been walking a 15mins here and there when I get a break at work. And I've I'm in love with the stationary bike. Not to mention my half marathon training. So far I've earned 35 activity points. But I burned thru them with dinner last night and a margarita. But I'm trying not to beat myself up about it.

The Big Man wanted to go for a family walk this morning. So we loaded the girls in the double jogger and headed out before the heat set in. The girls got out and walked a bit but MM was cranky from being woken up.  Li did a great job. Twice as far as she normally goes. We had a good time walked for a little over an hour.

We weighed in this morning to check our progress:

	Big Man	Δ (%)	Meg	Δ (%)
Starting wt (lbs)	258	0	182	0
Wk 1 wt (lbs)	255	.99	177	.97

He's winning so far but not by much. We've got 7 more wks for me to catch him.

Let the Games Begin...

Over the past few weeks, I have fallen off the healthy food wagon. I don't know what happened. I was doing so well then it got away from me. Oh well, these things happen.

To get me back on track, I convinced the Big Man to join me in a weight-loss  competition. The winner gets a fabulous prize of their choosing. I've been  wanting a trainer for my bike, to ride at night and in bad weather. Of course, I could just go buy it. But that takes the fun out of it. The Big Man hasn't chose his prize yet.

CycleOps fluid trainer

The Details:
The competition will last from now until August 28 or 8wks.  Whom ever loses the most weight by percentage wins. But of course we both win by getting fitter. We'll have wkly weigh-ins and I'll share our progress with you.

Starting Weight:
Ok. I'm sharing out starting weights which is very hard for both of us. But that's the point of this post.

258lbs

182lbs

Check in with us every week to see how we are doing.

Sunday Dinner - 06/20/10 (Father's Day Edition)

Just a to give you heads up, I didn't make the "healthy" meatballs. Nor is this a  quick cooking dish. This meals is for the Big Man on Father's Day. And I decided we could splurge and eat the the full fat and I could spend hours making meatballs. You can easily substitute ground turkey for the pork and sausage. 

Everyone in my family love Italian food. Whip up pasta and a sauce and they are happy campers. This meal can easily be doubled, freezes beautifully and can be made ahead.
This meal was actually made on Saturday since we'd be spending today at the in-laws 2hrs away. 

Spaghetti and Meatballs


Ingredients (Red Sauce)
1tbsp olive oil
1 cup onions,diced
1 1/2tsp chopped garlic
1/4tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomato
2 (15-ounce) cans tomato sauce
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
1/2tsp dried basil leaves
1/4tsp dried oregano leaves
Salt, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste


Ingredients (Meatballs)
1lb ground chuck
1lb fresh Italian Sausage
6 eggs
1cup onion, minced
1/4cup garlic, chopped
1/4cup basil, chopped
1 3/4cup Italian breadcrumbs
1/2cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsps salt
2 tbsps pepper

Directions (Red Sauce)
In a large heavy-bottomed pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until softened and translucent. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, for 1min. Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste.

Season the sauce with the basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally.

Continue to simmer the red sauce over med-low for at least 1.5hrs. The longer the better.

Directions (Meatballs)
In a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef and ground pork, using your hands. Add eggs, onion, garlic, basil, breadcrumbs and cheese.

Again, using your hands, blend thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper. Roll the meatballs (MBs) into the desired size, 1in dia. Heat (medium) 2tbs of  olive oil in a large skillet. Add a few meatballs at a time. Be sure to leave enough space to turn the MBs .

 
Brown all sides of the MBs. Then transfer to a plate. Continue making MBs until all the meat mixture is used.  (Just a warning, this is time consuming.)

Add MBs to the red sauce and serve over pasta.

I hope you enjoy this dinner as much as I did. What did y'all have for dinner?


If you have any question/comments about this recipe, pls leave me a comment or email at megmehell at yahoo.

Happy Father's Day to the Big Man, Don (my daddy), and Pawpaw. 
I took a few pictures of the girls with their favorite men.

MM and Li playing my little ponies with Don

The Girls snuggling the Big Man

Sitting on Pawpaw after Father's Day lunch

Hope your weekend was good. How did you spend Father's Day?

Sunday Dinner - April 4th (Easter)

When the Big Man and I got married, I wanted to have a holiday at my house. (This was before I knew all the work it took. :)) But all the major holidays were taken. Except for Easter.  And since Easter falls near both our birthdays, we snatched it.

Normally, we boil crawfish for Easter. But because of the El Nino/La Nina crazy weather we've had this season and last none of the suppliers could promise us crawfish. So we decided to mix it up and do the Cajun solution to a crowd to feed. Make a big pot of something.  The following recipe is easily double and freezes well.


Shrimp Etouffee

Ingredients
2lbs shrimp
1/4lbs butter
1 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup celery, chopped
1 cup green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup tomatoes, diced
2tbsps garlic, diced<
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup flour
1 quart water
1 ounce sherry
1 cup green onions, chopped
1/2cup parsley, chopped
salt and cayenne pepper to taste
hot sauce to taste
2 cups white rice, steamed

Directions
In a large heavy bottomed pot, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onion, celery, bell peppers, tomatoes, garlic and bay leaves. 

 

Sauté vegetables for 3-5 minutes.

Add shrimp and tomato sauce and blend well into mixture.

Using a wire whisk, blend flour into the vegetable mixture to form a white roux. Slowly add water, a little at a time, until sauce consistency is achieved. You may need to add more water to maintain the consistency of the sauce.

Bring to a rolling boil, reduce to simmer and at least cook 30mins, stirring occasionally. (Normally, I cook for hours. The longer/slower you cook it the better the flavor.) Add sherry, green onions and parsley and cook an additional 5 minutes. Season to taste using salt and cayenne pepper.

Serve over steamed white rice using a few dashes of Louisiana Gold Pepper Sauce.

I'm beginning to realize most of my cooking looks the same. Some sort of seafood (or other meat), red sauce  and rice or pasta. Dang! I thought I was a creative cook.



If you have any question/comments about this recipe, pls leave me a comment or email at megmehell at yahoo.

Happy Happy Birthday

Happy Happy Birthday Big Man!

Li, MM with the Big Man at the Irish Channel Parade

Thank you for being our strong,  patient and kind Daddy. We love you.

Getting Old

The Big Man's birthday is on Easter this year. Mine is the week before. Because they are so close, we usually celebrate at the same time. Usually, it's dinner at a fancy restaurant and go to the theater. But this year, Nanny Goat is getting married my birthday weekend and Easter is Corey's we are going to push our celebration until the following weekend.

The Big Man, being the ever thoughtful person he is, asked what I wanted to do the day of my birthday. This is what I said. "Laze around, watch movies and cook. Drink wine with dinner." I'll add get in a run and bike ride, if I feel like it.

Dang! I am getting old.

NOLA Turkey Day Race 2009

Thursday morning, I woke the family up early, dressed everyone warmly, and headed off to get Nanny Goat (my sister).  I thought it would be fun if we all ran the Turkey Day Race.  By fun,  I meant we could all burn some calories before we pigged out. 

The Big Man agreed to push the girls in the jogging stroller in the 1mi race. Nanny Goat & I  could run the 5mi race at full speed.  By that I mean, Nanny Goat could run her pace and I could run mine. She's too fast for me to keep up.  But I'm happy with my finish time 59:56.

Since Li always wants to race like mommy, The Big Man got her out of the stroller to run the last 100m.  They gave her a ribbon at the finish line. She is so proud of the ribbon. She has told everyone about it.

Now for the race day photos:

Li and her ribbon

 MM showing off her running skills

Me almost to the finish line. I have got to work on keeping my head up. 

The Big Man with his running buddies

MM, Me, Nanny Goat and Li

Look at the difference in Nanny Goat & my running outfits. She's in tights, a long sleeve shirt and a jacket. I'm shorts and a technical tee. She likes to be hot when she runs and I hate to run in clothes. 

We had fun and it was nice to get some miles in. But I doubt we'll do it next year. It just made the day too hectic.