Monday, August 27, 2012

Chickpea Salad...So Refreshing!




One 7-oz. can of chickpeas (Garbanzo beans)
6-7 cherry tomatoes
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
1tbsp chopped fresh parsley
Juice from 1/2 of a lemon
1 tbsp olive oil
2 oz. crumbled feta cheese

1. Rinse and drain the chickpeas.
2. Place chickpeas, tomatoes, basil, parsley, and feta in a bowl.
3. Squeeze juice of lemon over the salad, drizzle in olive oil, add a pinch of salt and pepper and mix thoroughly.

This was filling and delicious enough on its own but I decided to serve it over a bed of fresh baby spinach.

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Monday, June 18, 2012

Baked Tilapia with Homemade Tomato and Avocado Salsa with Roasted Asparagus




I seasoned the asparagus with a little bit of lemon infused olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. For the tilapia, I sprayed the bottom of a baking sheet with cooking spray and seasoned with some salt, pepper, minced garlic, parmesan cheese and lemon juice. I baked at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. After it was done cooking, I topped it with salsa made with chopped tomatoes, avocado, lemon juice, garlic salt, fresh black pepper and drive parsley flakes. It was so good!


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Sunday, May 27, 2012

Chicken Stir-Fry

I had Gavin help me make this super easy dinner tonight.



I cut up some red and green bell pepper and onions and steamed them in the vegetable steamer that goes on top of my rice cooker. I love that thing. It's so easy and steaming vegetables is such a better alternative to frying.

We sprayed the frying pan with non-stick cooking spray instead of using cooking oil and then added the chicken strips. When they were done cooking on one side, we flipped them over and then added soy sauce and a little toasted sesame oil. When the chicken was done, we took the steamed vegetables and tossed them with the chicken and sauce. We played up the food. Gavin had soy sauce on his rice but I used rice seasoning instead. In total, dinner took us 20 minutes and it was delicious!

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Monday, May 14, 2012

Tortellini With Edamame and Smoked Sausage!

Tonight, I made this delicious dish from www.ziplist.com.



Ingredients:
1 pound frozen cheese tortellini
1 cup shelled edamame
1 cup diced red pepper
1 pound smoked sausage
1/2 cup Italian dressing

Instructions:
1. Boil 6 quarts of salted water in a large pot.
2. Chop red pepper and slice the smoked sausage into 1/4 inch-thick rounds.
3. Stir-fry red pepper and sausage together until heated through--about 5 minutes.
4. Add tortellini to boiling water and cook for 5 minutes.
5. Add edamame to water and boil for another 2 minutes. Drain tortellini and edamame well.
6. Toss everything together with the Italian dressing and heat through one final time.

It turned out great and I can't wait to enjoy the leftovers for lunch tomorrow!

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Saturday, May 12, 2012

Pizza Pizza!

With my foot still sore, I can't cook like I normally do and I can't take Gavin on hikes. So how can we still bond while we're still together? We can cook together! Tonight, we made homemade pizzas!



Gavin's favorite food is pizza so we were both really excited.



The pizzas turned out great. He eats really weird though. Gavin eats all the pepperoni first. Then he picks off the cheese but doesn't eat the cheese. He just leaves it on the side of the plate. We are so different in that respect. I love cheese!



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Late Night Conversations

This is a paraphrased conversation last night between me and Gavin.
Gavin: Mom, I got you something for Mother's Day but you can't have it until Sunday.
Me: Oh, is it a card? I love it when you give me cards. You didn't have to get me anything. I'm just glad we get to spend the whole weekend together. That's my idea of a fun Mother's Day.
Gavin: Me too. I like hanging out here. I hope they open the pool soon. And I like snuggling with you and helping you. I think I love you more with your foot hurt so I can help you.
Me: Hopefully, my foot will get better fast so we can go on hikes again. But we will still have an awesome Mother's Day because I'm the luckiest mommy in the whole entire world.
Gavin: Because of me?
Me: That's right. I couldn't have picked a better kid to be my son. You're perfect and I'm so proud of you. You're the best son ever.
Gavin: You too, Mom. You're the best mommy in the whole world.
Sometimes, being forced to slow things down can be a blessing in disguise. Gavin and I have these kinds of conversations often. But I'm so much more appreciative when I'm feeling a little low. I really am so lucky to have a son at his age who is still willing to give me hugs and kisses and tell me he loves me.




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Thursday, May 10, 2012

One Week Later

It has been exactly a week since I hurt my ankle. I must admit, it looks much better than it did last week!



The swelling has gone down quite a bit and the bruising isn't as dark. I had an MRI today to check out the tendons. The orthopedic doctor thinks I tore the peroneal tendon. That's the one that runs along the outside top of the foot. I see him on Monday to review the results of the MRI.



I am hoping to avoid surgery. I don't like hospitals and I would prefer not to have anyone cut my foot open. I've really been praying that this will heal in its own. I can handle some physical therapy if that's necessary. But I really don't want surgery or a cast.



I can't take that much time off work and my closest adult family members are thousands of miles away. From what I've read online, recovering from this kind of surgery can be brutal. I can handle the pain but I cannot stand sitting around doing nothing and asking other people for help.
I'm not normally bothered by living so far away from my family. I miss them and I want to be there with my Grandma. But I typically cope just fine. But when something like this happens, you realize how important your family is. In the bright side though, it really makes you appreciate your friends. I've had so many of my friends offer to help me. Patti's son helped me put my regular tires in my car and carried my suitcase upstairs on Sunday. He even carried the closet door downstairs that I removed like a month ago! And Rich came over tonight and carried my snow tires upstairs for me. And so many other friends have offered to cook and clean for me and do whatever else I might need help with. I'm stubborn and proud so i hope I don't have to take anyone up in their offers. But it sure makes all of this easier to know I have such wonderful people in my life. Perhaps this is God's way of showing me how truly wonderful my friends are.

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Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Some More of Savannah

With all of this mess about my ankle, I didn't even mention how much fun I had while I was in Savannah. The weather was just gorgeous during the trip. Patti and I went on a bus tour on Friday afternoon.



Then there was an awesome cocktail dinner on Friday night! Patti and I caused a stir when some gossips wanted to spread the word that we were a romantic couple. ;)






If we were a couple, I think our children would be adorable. LOL!!!
We went on a really fun Low Country Scenic Tour on Saturday afternoon.






Despite the lack of acceptable medical care, I still loved it. The people are just the nicest they can be and the food was awesome. I would love to go back at some point.

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Saturday, May 5, 2012

Aaah! My Ankle!

During my first night on a company trip to Savannah, I twisted my ankle on the cobblestone sidewalk.



This is what it looked like the next morning before going to urgent care. I was warned about the cobblestones before heading over on the ferry so I changed into flat shoes. It didn't help me when I stepped off the curb and slipped on a crooked stone.

The crappy thing is that medical care down south is not quite the same as in CT. I injured my foot on Wednesday night and went to urgent care on Thursday morning. They were able to X-ray my foot. They only took two "pictures." That seems pretty lax considering what my foot looked like. Oh yeah. The best part is that I still don't know what's wrong with it because they don't have anyone at urgent care who knows how to read an X-ray! They send it off and will call me with results. So it is now Saturday night, I still have not heard back from them and I leave to head back to CT tomorrow in the late morning. Wonderful.


It did not look better the next day!









Little swollen!



Das boot. They don't know what's wrong with my foot so they strapped a huge boot on it and gave me crutches. They tried a few different splints, all extra large but none of them would fit since my foot is so swollen.

I didn't let it ruin my trip. I still love Savannah and I would love to make it back here again someday.


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Location:Savannah, GA

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Toasted Quinoa Salad!


Toasted Quinoa Salad with Shrimp and Snow Peas!




Originally from www.eatingwell.com.  Their recipe called for scallops and I just substituted shrimp.
Ingredients:
12 oz dry sea scallops, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, or dry bay scallops (again, I used 12 oz of shrimp here
4 tsp soy sauce or tamari, divided
4 tbsp plus 2 tsp canola oil, divided
1-1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed well (I was able to purchase pre-rinsed quinoa at the store)
2 tsp grated or minced garlic
3 cups water
1 tsp salt
1 cup trimmed and diagonally sliced snow peas (1/2-inch thick)
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 cup thinly sliced scallion (green onions)
1/3 cup finely diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro (for garnish, optional)
Preparation:
1.  Toss scallops with 2 tsp soy sauce or tamari in a medium bowl.  Set aside.
2.  Place a large, high-sided skillet with a tight-fitting lid over medium heat.  Add 1 tbsp canola oil and quinoa.  Cook, stirring constantly, until the quinoa begins begins to color, 6-8 minutes.  Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrantm about 1 minute more.  Add water and salt and bring to a boil.  Stir once, cove and cook over medium heat until the water is absorbed, about 15 minutes.  (Do not stir).  Remove from heat and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes.  Stir in snow peas, cover and let stand for 5 minutes more.
3.  Meanwhile, whisk 3 tbsp canola oil, the remaining 2 tsp soy sauce or tamari, rice vinegar, and sesame oil in a large bowl.  Add the quinoa and snow peas, scallions and bell pepper; toss to combine. 
4.  Remove the scallops (or shrimp) from the marinade and pat dry.  Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot enough to evaporate a drop of water upon contact.  Add the remaining 2 tsp canola oil and cook the scallops or shrimp, turning once, until golden and just firm, about 2 minutes total.  Gently stir the scallops into the quinoa salad.  Serve garnished with cilantro, if desired.
Per Serving (with scallops):
326 Calories, 15 g Fat, 1 g Sat, 8 g Mono, 19 mg Cholesterol, 2 g Carbohydrates, 16 g Protein, 4 g Fiber, 713 mg Sodium, 511 mg Potassium.
Notes:
If using scallops, be sure to buy "dry" scallops which are scallops that have not been treated with sodium tripolyphosphate or STP.  Scallops that have been treated with STP have been subjected to a chemical bath and are mushy, less flavorful and won't brown properly.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Crock Pot Lemon and Rosemary Chicken

I made this chicken last weekend and it was absolutely delicious!
Step 1: spray crock pot with nonstick cooking spray.
Step 2: put whole chicken in crock pot.
Step 3: rub some butter on the skin. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Step 4: juice half a lemon over the chicken.
Step 5: lay lemon slices and rosemary sprigs on top of the chicken. Cook on low for about 8-10 hours. I did not add any liquid.

When I say that the chicken was falling off the bones, that is a major understatement! When I tried to take the chicken out of the crock pot when it was done, the bird actually split in half! I put both huge halves in a 9" x 13" casserole dish and very quickly and easily removed all the meat from the bones. Most of the meat fell right off when I picked up a bone!

I put the bones in the freezer since I knew I wouldn't have time to make stock for a while. But then I defrosted the bones and made a delicious homemade chicken stock with the bones, carrots, celery, onions, parsley, and other herbs. To make this all even better, the chicken was free because I had bought so many groceries at Shop Rite. At checkout, you got to choose a free Easter grocery item and I chose this chicken!



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Saturday, March 24, 2012

The Big Race!

Gavin and I ran out first official race together today. It was a 2-mile St. Patrick's Day theme race in Bristol, CT. I've run it a few times. He ran it with me two years ago, unofficially, and I carried him on my back for the last 1/4 mile or so. But this year...we ran together!



Gavin threw up in my car on the way there from being car sick. E was upset about it and felt terrible. I assured him it was okay. He insisted on helping me because he wanted to hurry up and get to the race. We made it on time and tied our timing chips on our shoes. We stretched in the grassy area before the race and watched the kids' fun run.
Then it was time for our race. We kept a nice steady pace for the most part. Gavin skipped for parts of it. When he needed to walk, he would grab my hand and walk for a bit. We came in right at 24 minutes. Not too bad for a pukey 9-year old and his old mom!




I am just so proud of him. We then went home to clean up, eat some lunch and head to his bo staff training for karate. No rest!

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Monday, March 5, 2012

So Far, So Good!

My condo is coming along nicely. So far, I have done a ton of cleaning! Tons! And I've had help fixing the shower in Gavin's bathroom and replacing his shower head, replaced the garbage disposal, changed out all the light switches and outlets so they all match including the covers, replaced my vanity and countertop and both sink faucets, replaced my toilet, replaced the carpet in both bedrooms, tiled my bathroom, replaced my vanity light, replaced all the window blinds and the horizontal blinds for the patio slider. I also FINALLY got my couch and bedroom furniture set!








I am still waiting to have my dining table and chairs delivered. I cannot wait to get my table! Ive been eating standing up this whole time! I put my TV on its stand all by myself! My actual entertainment center should be delivered this week along with the area rug and runner I picked out.

I am really anxious to get settled. The plumber still had to fix my shower and will hopefully be done this week. I am also waiting to have one of "the guys" replace my closet doors which will also hopefully be done this week. Fingers crossed! Then I can really get into decorating and unpacking the rest of my clothes.

I am anxious for spring and summer so I can relax on my patio and even enjoy a dip in the pool. Now that my pneumonia and sinus infection seems to be subsiding, I can also get back into the gym downstairs. I ran the Shamrock and Roll 5k in New Haven yesterday and it's clear that I need to work out...a lot!




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Sunday, February 26, 2012

Blessed Sunday

I truly enjoy attending my new church, New Life Christian Fellowship. After every service, my spirit feels uplifted and I feel like I can tackle anything that comes my way because God is behind me. "God loves me for who I am, not who I should be." that was the most important message I received during my first visit there on January 1, 2012. I needed that message like I've never needed anything else in the entire world. After spending 2 years of my life in a relationship with someone where I felt worthless, disgusting, ugly, stupid and fat, I came to a place where I was loved just for being me. What an awesome place to begin the new year!
So , of course, I was overjoyed when I started bringing Gavin there and he enjoyed it. He tried out the kids Sunday School but found that he prefers staying in the regular service with me and the rest of the adults.
Today, my spirit was lifted once again. As we were worshipping through song, I heard this tiny little voice next to me singing along. It might not seem like a big deal to some people but Gavin can be extremely shy. I couldn't believe my ears. Tears were streaming down my face just from hearing his sweet voice sing the very same words that lift my heart every Sunday morning. What a lucky mother I am to have a very special son.
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Location:Glastonbury, CT

Sunday, February 19, 2012

New Look?

I went out last night and did my makeup a little differently than I usually do. By different, I mean really heavy eye shadow and liner. Not sure what to think of it. I was going for a smokey eye but I don't think I quite got there! Oh, and you can't really tell from this picture but my boy, Carlos, colored and cut my hair.


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Location:East Hartford, CT

Friday, February 17, 2012

Online Dating...Not So Much!

So, I have ventured into the world of online dating. So far, not so good.  I started messaging back and forth with this guy, Steve.  *The names have not been changed to protect the innocent because this guy is a terd.  We messaged for a while and then exchanged phone numbers.  We talked quite a few times over the phone and got along fairly well.  He mentioned a few things that made me question his lifestyle.  He apparently eats dinner at his parents' house several times a week.  Several times a week?  Yes, several times a week.  So I imagined he's a 44-year old virgin who brings his laundry over for his mom to do and then eats her food while his dad asks him what he is going to do with his life.  Anyway, I decide not to be too judgmental and give him a shot.  He waited forever to ask me out.  He finally asks if we can go out on Wednesday after I get out of work.  We agree that we will meet somewhere in Glastonbury.  I had to get off the phone so he said he would text me the next day to figure out where we would meet.  

I got a text from him alright.  He texted me and asked if we could meet at Whole Foods because he needed to "grab some stuff."  What the...?!  I told him I would rather meet at Max Fish or Plan B so we could sit and talk and get to know each other.  He insisted on Whole Foods and said he didn't have time to eat dinner with me because he was meeting his parents for dinner at 7:30pm.  Again, what the...?!  He wanted our first date to be grocery shopping?  This is why he is single.  I don't mean to sound like a snot but are you serious?  I think I am worth more than a stop at Whole Foods.  I'm not sure if it's worth mentioning but that was the last conversation the two of us had.



So Crazy

People often tell me that I have the craziest things happen to me.  So why not blog about it?!  I constantly have crazy, amazing, silly, odd, infuriating things happen to me.  If there is someone out there who can get a laugh from my life, I think that's great!  Hope you enjoy some of my stories.
~Kelly