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By Katy, March 4, 2010

I may not be the best cook in the world — but I know how to read a recipe.

So when I tell you to make this now…make.this.now.

As Kel said better than me, POM + Fish (I used tilapia) = Happy! The reduced pomegranate-mint sauce was delicious, but I have to say, I think it would be even better over ice cream. It got sweet and sticky and ohhhhh so good.

Also so good? My recipe for Chocolate Popcorn Brittle, kicked up with the addition of some Naturally Nutty Vanilla Cinnamon Sunflower butter. I’d show you a picture, but I didn’t wait to dig in!

It’s been a very busy, very stressful week…nothing too bad, just lots of busy work! So you KNOW this made my day:

My sweet husband texted me, saying my boys missed their mama!

This also cracked me up — this morning, I tweeted:

And got this video in return, from @NoMoreBacon:

I cracked up — one of those gut-busting, feel sick afterwards laughs. How funny is that?

And a less funny, but still important video…I implore you to follow this link for a clip from Jessica Simpson’s new show. Now, yes, I am a Jessica fan girl (confession: I even bought her clip-in hair extensions) BUT, I think her message is one that’s so important when it comes to media, women and body image. Men too!

OK, gotta end it on a positive note.

How’s about this — my other favorite video?

What do you do when you need a laugh?

          

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By Katy, February 28, 2010

Housekeeping: I’ve been updating the blog — there’s a new look to the Recipes page as well as my Videos page. Let me know what you think!

I don’t have a lot of fears — off the top of my head, I can only name:

• Birds
• Flying (more like a fear of turbulence)
• Losing loved ones (duh)
• People that look like animals

Shudder.

But back to my point — I don’t like birds. Especially small, screeching, sharp-clawed birds. I don’t like them near me and I CERTAINLY don’t like them on me. (Sidenote: is it just me or does the woman in the background of this photo look astonishingly similar to CatWoman above?)

But I found myself feeling brave when the man at Gatorland’s aviary asked me if I wanted to feed the birds. After Lucas stopped laughing, he grabbed the video camera and started shooting. Even I admit…it’s an instant classic.

I didn’t realize until I watched the video that I was repeating some mantra most of the time and closing my eyes for at least half of the experience. It was a lot of fun, and even though one pooped on my hat (must have been a Yankees fan), I was thrilled to have done it.

Gatorland is definitely a tourist trap, but it was a lot of fun:

And although it’s not that close to our house, it is close to the store where I get my wedding rings inspected. It turns out, they’re due for a dip, so I kissed them goodbye and am now ring-free for a couple of weeks! Sniff.

I was craving french fries for dinner, so we decided to go all college-like and made hot dogs and french fries. Except these hot dogs were organic and grass-fed:

And served with caramelized onions and crusty multi-grain bread.

And also unlike college, dessert was not a six-pack of beer — instead, I whipped up some Almond-Maple-Coconut Macaroons to satisfy our sweet tooth while watching Syracuse basketball WHOOP those dang Villanova Wildcats.

Exciting updates:

• I won the Simply Savor MaraNatha Nut Butter giveaway! I am super excited to get my goodies and start making some new yummies.
• I also won copies of Happy Herbivore’s e-cookbooks, which I’m currently poring through for meal ideas for the week.
• Next weekend, on March 6th at noon, I’m hanging out with lots of healthy bloggers at Orlando’s Pizza Fusion. Some of them are running Walt Disney World’s half marathon, and if you’d like to come hang out, email Lindsey from Sound Eats (Lindsey AT soundeats DOT com). You don’t have to be a blogger, and we’d LOVE to see you!
• Speaking of meetups, Lucas just co-hosted his first Tweetup, and it was a big success! It featured beer, beer lovers and some other cool stuff, so you can learn more here.

          

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By Katy, February 25, 2010

Whole lotta bacon cake fans in the house, huh? I can’t wait to hear how all of your versions turn out. The cake, btw, has left my building. 2 days and Lucas polished it off.

Speaking of Lucas, if you want to hang out with both of us AND drink free beer — check out this Beer Tweetup tonight (Thursday) at the Celebration Town Tavern in Celebration, Florida. I’m @kwidrick and he’s @nighthops.

Also speaking of Lucas — for his birthday, I bought him a new pocket video camera and I came home from work to find this video playing on the TV…so cute to see what they do all day!

The bacon cake was a big hit, but I prefer a more subtle, refined OH WHO AM I KIDDING I love chocolate!

So for a sweet treat this week, I made what I can only call Popped Heaven:

That’s chocolate popcorn brittle with a side of riesling. Want some of your own?

Chocolate Popcorn Brittle (adapted from Mark Bittman’s “How To Cook Everything Vegetarian”)

• 2T neutral oil
• 1/2C popcorn kernels
• 1/4C sugar (I used organic cane sugar)
• 1/8C cocoa powder (I used raw with maca)
• 1/3C water

1. Heat the oil in a deep, wide pot. I use a pasta pat or a big stockpot for this.
2. Place three popcorn kernels in the pot and cover.
3. Once the three kernels pop (should take about 4-5 minutes) put the rest of the kernels in, shake to coat in oil, and return the cover.
4. While you’re waiting for the kernels to pop, mix the sugar and the cocoa powder.
   1. I prefer to run this mix through a food processor so it’s super-fine, but this is optional.
5. Place the sugar and cocoa mix in a small pot and add 1/3C water. Stir to combine then put on low heat.
6. Let sugar and cocoa combine — don’t stir! — until it caramelizes and turns a nice dark, silky color.
7. When the kernels finish popping, place into a heatproof bowl. Pour the caramelized sugar-cocoa mix over the popcorn and toss gently to cover.
8. Pour the popcorn into a greased baking or cake pan and gently press down with your fingers, packing the popcorn together.
9. Let cool for at least 5 minutes then EAT!

A 1/2 C of popcorn makes a TON of finished popped product, so if you want to cut the recipe in half you may.

Random photo on my camera that I had to share — I found these on clearance and almost bought them! I am a Syracuse grad, you know. Go Orange!

And finally, I wanted to pass on a video to Jamie Oliver’s TED talk on childhood obesity. It really struck a chord with me, and it’s a really well presented argument. Check it out here and sign his petition here!

          

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By Katy, February 22, 2010

That’s right — vegans, beware. Because below, I am proving my awesome wife status with pictures of the Bacon Birthday Cake that made Lucas drool.

But first, an NKOTB throwback video for my baby on his 30th birthday:

Don’t even hate on my for the NKOTB love (which, BTW, I have professed before). I still think Joey looks slammin’.

Ever since we went to Portland and Seattle a few years ago, Lucas has been reminiscing about the Maple Bacon donut he had at Voodoo Doughnut:

So, when I brainstormed ideas for a unique birthday cake (he’s not really a buttercream frosting kind of guy), I turned to Google, which presented me with this gem: Bacon Gets Its Just Desserts.

I knew it could be a winner, and I was right.

I know, I know. I don’t eat a lot of meat, and the sight of this much bacon is a little off-putting for me, too. But you know what? The salty bacon with the sweet maple icing was incredible — and since this was more like a coffee cake than a cake cake, each bite was a mouthful of pecan-y, apple-y, bacon-y goodness.

But first, we had to eat a balanced meal, hand-picked by the birthday boy and right out of “Gordon Ramsay’s Healthy Appetite” cookbook. Burgers, beers and cucumber raita.

Good, but we’re a little biased because of the incredible meal we shared with friends over the weekend. I rocked the Bumpit and got my Snooki on.

We had an adorable eating partner.

And open minds — so when we saw these meats listed as taco fillings at the Mexican hole-in-the-wall restaurant our friends took us to, we said “one of each, please!”

So good — I even tried the head and the chicharonnes, although they were not my favorites. The food was super fresh and when we added grilled onions, cilantro relish and hot sauce…YUM!

And in case I haven’t scared all of you off with the meat-tastic post, I’ll leave you with this gem. Lucas loves to share his homebrew, but he asks his friends to return the bottles so he may reuse them. We got this package on our doorstep over the weekend — a lovely joke from one of his pals.

My 30th birthday is next month, and we’ll be celebrating it with a trip to Baltimore and Fitbloggin‘! Will you be there?

          

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By Katy, February 20, 2010

A while back, I found a big ugly green…thing.

If it didn’t have a sign telling me that this ugly thing was a “water coconut,” I never would have believed it. This is, after all, the same store that would post something like this:

Grammar. You failz it.

Anyway, the Internet confirmed that this was, in fact, a coconut. Now — how to open it? YouTube was a big help, but my honey of a house husband had his own ideas:

Like anything in life, we (he) had to work hard; cracking the hard outer shelf and gently pulling aside some unattractive but supportive layers:

And when we did, we gloried in the goodness:

We poured the lovely coconut water into a bowl and then scraped the white yumminess out with a spoon:

Victorious.

I’m still plotting what to do with the fresh coconut, but I had a taste for it and after a run to Whole Foods, I gave into the craving. Meet Coconut-Almond Macaroons a la Joggers Life.

I did make a few changes, substituting oat flour for the almond meal and halving the recipe. That was a mistake, since I’ve already eaten quite a few. I also made a second type of macaroon, from Everyday Raw.

They’re both amazing (and raw, since I stuck ‘em in the dehydrator — what do you think, Patti?) Ahhhhhh macaroon.

So y’all know I love my job, right? This week, I got to meet a man who blows me away with his bravery, his kindness and his SLAMMIN’ body! Would you believe this guy is about to turn 70?

Sandy Scott broke his neck during a horrific cycling time trial — he might have died, and probably should have stopped competing. But he didn’t, and he’s looking to set MORE records for his age group at several national events! I had an amazing day, field producing a video with him, and that will be posted on our site soon.

I’ll leave you with a picture of Travers — aka “Best Cat.” He loves wearing my medal from the OUC Half Marathon and Lucas gave him the nickname.

Who inspires you? Leave me a comment!

          

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By Katy, February 13, 2010

I definitely want kids someday but moments like this:

make it easy to wait…because I have friends with babies who need spoiling! That’s miss Elizabeth Ava, less than a day old. Fast forward two years and she’s an amazing little PERSON — who walks, talks and visits us at work!

What a great Valentine:

And a perfect gift during a week that looked like this:

Luckily, it ended with some less weighty reading material — which I found in the car with my sexy chauffeur!

For those who don’t know my story, I am married to Lucas. Lucas is a registered, LEED-certified architect who decided he didn’t like where his career was headed. So, he took a HUGE leap of faith and quit his job to focus more time on his true love — brewing, drinking and writing about beer.

As part of a project with Celebration Town Tavern — a very cool Boston-themed seafood restaurant and bar — Lucas is helping review the beers that are included in the Tavern’s 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall Club.

Since he’ll have to review them all eventually, I got to help pick his beers last night — the random number selection ended in Mickey’s, a malt liquor that came with a puzzle in the cap!

I still don’t know what the answer is. (Sorry for the photos — I took many of these with my iPhone for easier tweeting!) And, since I was driving, I decided to pound a few hot drinks of my own:

Woke up this morning to do another P90X workout, although someone wanted us to quit early:

We pushed through, then decided to follow the animals’ leads:

And snuggle up with blankets, quinoa and oatmeal and frothy lattes:

Now we’re on the couch, watching the Olympics and reading. Love lazy weekends!

Do you have kids? When do you plan on having them? How many? Have you picked out names?

          

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By Katy, February 7, 2010

P-p-p-p-perfect!

Let’s back up, so I can catch you up on the last few days. On Friday night, Lucas and I hit up a local bar known for its craft beers. A beer blogger’s gotta see what people are drinking, right?

It was a special release party for Brooklyn Brewery, which I normally love. But after a few sips of Luke’s beer:

I decided I was more interested in playing a few games:

And talking to a bunch of friends that showed up. It was a blast! We even managed to record a quick video, using my iPhone:

On Saturday, I worked up an appetite cleaning the inside of my stove. We had an, ahem, incident with some overflowing custard, and no amount of elbow grease was getting it clean. Then we found a natural cleaner recipe online — just a mix of baking soda, vinegar and dish soap and VOILA:

Just like the day we bought the stove! Ahh, happiness…

I celebrated with a POM martini, made with pomegranate-mango juice, Absolut Boston and triple sec, in a martini glass that I rimmed with organic cane sugar and lime juice. More happiness…

Gotta support Pom, since it’s a sponsor of Fitbloggin‘, and I’m going in March! Will you be there?

I’ve also had a weekend of awesome food. Saturday night, I made curried tilapia, broiled until crispy and served over the most amazing spinach and tomato paella:

And tonight, for the superbowl, I made (unpictured) chipotle beef and carmelized onion tacos, from Rick Bayless’ Everyday Mexican. Awesome!

It’s very possible that I’m the last to know this, but did you know that you can pop popcorn right on your stovetop, using kernels and a little bit of butter or oil?

It’s so much cheaper and easier (duh) than buying the microwave popcorn, and better for you. I’ve been topping mine with coconut-lime salt:

And eating by the faceful:

Off to watch the rest of the Superbowl. The commercials have been very disappointing — hello, sexist much? — but the Puppy Bowl made my night.

LOOK WHAT ONE OF THE DOGS WAS NAMED! Tater Tot!

Tater Tot the Puppy Bowl star

OK, off to get in PJs. I am going to a big social media conference in the morning, and I will be tweeting while I’m there. So be sure to follow me!

P.S. I updated my Google Reader with all the Fitbloggin’ bloggers — if you want to add it to your own reader, click here!

          

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By Katy, February 4, 2010

Life works in funny ways, huh? I’ve been slowly climbing the mountain upon which a social media crown sits — and, since we all know I’m a bit of a princess, I have been climbing that bad boy as quickly as I can!

I love social media. I’m on Twitter and Facebook all day long, but not always for personal updates — I run three business pages on Facebook, and two business Twitter accounts. I also moderate a weekly Twitter chat for work, and am trying to learn all the latest tricks and tools to use the Internet to get my job done.

So, today, I have a guest post up on Eating Bender, detailing the best ways to use social media.

Also today, I got burned in a big way.

Sad Tater Tot

I use a service called Posterous, which lets you post images, links, videos, etc., then “pings” then to your other social networks, including Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. I shared a headline that read:

Yay, I Just Got Fired! True Passions, Here I Come! http://post.ly/KUiy

If you click the link, you’ll see that it’s a post by someone else, sharing the news of a job loss but welcoming it as a chance to pursue her true passions. I related to the post, because Lucas recently quit his job for the same reason AND I have the job of my dreams!

So, the headline gets posted and I QUICKLY realize that there will be some confusion. I knew that taking it down would make it worse, because some people would have already seen it. So, I added a comment to it on Facebook, saying I had learned the power of editing a headline, and did the same on Twitter.

I forgot LinkedIn.

Big mistake. Apparently, other people in my network saw the headline and contacted my BOSS who had to deal with the rumors — and assure people that I was not going anywhere!

Sure, it sounds funny, and in this case, it’s not that big a deal. But it’s a good lesson for us all when it comes to sharing content. Who clicks through every headline that’s posted on social networks? Who takes the time to read every work of a post? I’m certainly going to do a better job of proofreading my posts, to make sure I don’t get caught in confusion again.

Now give my that CROWN!

OK, since this is a healthy living and food blog, I’ll leave you with some pictures taken at a fabulous dinner at Luma on Park in Winter Park, FL, surrounded by strong drinks, good friends and nice staff. Enjoy!

Celery Root and Rutabaga Soup

Sweetbreads and Gnocchi

Truffled Popcorn

Salmon Carpaccio

Short Rib Ravioli W/Pomegranate Seeds

What’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to YOU with social media?

          

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By Katy, January 30, 2010

A while back, I declared a trip to M&M world, Pizza Fusion, Whole Foods, Fresh Market and Total Wine  to be “His ‘n’ Hers Dream Day.”

Well, folks — we took a very different, very successful crack at the title today. Of course, it didn’t hurt that my mood was brightened on Friday. Lucas had some buddies over for brews, so I decided to take an evening to myself, surrounded by what I love so much.

Makeup at Ulta:

I lurrrrrve playing with makeup. In the picture above, I had two different looks — one for each eye. I walked around like that all night! I ran around looking for a vegetable spiralizer (unsuccessfully, harumph) then headed home where I indulged in another favorite: a mudslide.

If such a thing could be called healthy, this was it — it was Kahlua and Absolut Boston mixed with crushed ice, unsweetened almond milk and raw cocoa. Yummm…

Don’t worry — Lucas and his friends had fun, too.

We had an early wakeup call, to get to Tampa in time for a very special event. In between multiple pit stops (WHAT?!?! I needed two cups of coffee!!), we dodged some potential road hazards:

And made it to our cousin Adam’s powerlifting competition.

Adam is a national superstar in powerlifting — today’s event was “raw” which means the athletes can’t wear special shirts or suits to help them lift. Adam weighed in at 130 pounds and set TWO records — the second time, he broke the one he’d set in a previous lift! — when he benched 363 pounds.

Un.freaking.believable. I was so proud!

He was so excited to get his medal, and the $300 prize. Congrats, Adam!

I made a new friend at the meet — this is Big Al.

He could have bench pressed me with one arm. Crazy.

After bidding Adam and his lovely fiancee goodbye, we headed to Cigar City Brewing, just down the road.

Lucas, of course, was thrilled.

We decided to do a sampler of all the beers on tap, and I really liked them — especially the Winter Warmer (at 9% alcohol, this was more like hard liquor than beer) and the Oatmeal Raisin Cookie.

Lucas liked chatting with the guy pouring the beer. After 90 minutes, I was not only getting antsy — I was getting hungry.

So I used the Yelp! iPhone app to find a restaurant that would please me as much as the brewery pleased my man.

It was great! Lucas and I sipped on a raw Bachelor smoothie while we waited:

Bachelor          Raw
Nut milk, raw hemp protein with E3Live and Maca root, banana, flax seed,
plantago fiber, agave nectar and a sprinkle of bee pollen

And I borrowed a book from the shelf:

Then our food arrived.

Sunshine Burger Vegan
A blend of sunflower seeds, brown rice, and vegetables baked and served with lettuce,
tomato, finely diced onion, ketchup and vegan mayo on a sprouted toasted  bun

Raw Burrito Raw & Living
Our delicious “Rawfried Beans” made with sprouted sunflower seeds and the finest mexican
seasonings.  We top it with fresh avocado, diced tomatoes and Zesty Raw Parmesan Sheeze,
served on a crisp romaine lettuce leaf.    Roll it and enjoy!

We both really enjoyed our meals — and I appreciated Luke being such a good sport.

Finally, we pointed the car home. We made two stops — both fruitful. Ha!

We stopped to get a flat of strawberries in Plant City, which is known for the amazing berries. I’ll get more in a month or so when they’re really ripe, but the flat let me freeze several bags for smoothies, and throw them in this bad johnnie.

At the same farm, I found 3-pound bags of organic bananas for $1 a bag, so I stocked up and put some in the dehydrator for banana chips, and the others are awaiting their banana soft serve and smoothie future in the freezer!

Not a bad day, huh? What does your perfect day involved? Weightlifting championships and raw food, or something else?

          

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By Katy, January 21, 2010

Meet the new me:

That’s what happens when you’re almost 30 and you find two gray hairs in one night. Thank you, L’Oreal.

So, Thursdays are my busiest of the week — I’m slammed at work, have to run home and catch up on back episodes of Teen Mom and Law & Order SVU work out and make dinner, then I host a live Twitter chat. They’re also my favorite, because I am a girl that thrives on deadlines.

And on Green Monsters, like I had for lunch today.

I’m also a girl who finds inspiration and motivation from fellow bloggers, so here are some of the men and women making me go “hmmm” today.

• Diana from The Chic Life: Her Online Bake Sale for Haiti blows me away. I was so inspired that I signed up as a blogger, along with dozens of others. Stay tuned for details on how you can get my Whole Wheat Molasses Bread (it’s so good, especially as croutons) and other yummy treats.
• Emily from The Front Burner: Her answer to The Vegetarian Question not only made me understand her lifestyle better, it inspired me! Lucas and I are not vegetarian, but we eat mostly veggies and grains, so I really related to this post.
• Ashley from Healthy Ashley: Since I’m blessed to know her in real life as well as the blog world, my heart broke when she Tweeted that she had suddenly lost her job. But after reading this post, I knew she’d pull through with a smile on her face.
• Dori from Dori’s Shiny Blog: Another amazing girl; another amazing idea. Her online auction is raising money for a great cause, and one that is close to many of our hearts.
• Lindsey from Sound Eats: She says life is like a pomegranate, and after seeing her explanation — I agree!
• Jen from A Prior Fat Girl: If you don’t think this girl has a huge heart…I don’t want to know you. And she’s beautiful even when life hands her a crap sandwich.
• Katie from Chocolate Covered Katie: She’s giving away a VitaMix and if I didn’t already love her and her fudge babies, I’d be falling for her now.

And, I can’t make a post like this without some love for the family, so:

• My poor Massachusetts mother is lamenting this week’s Senate election. RIP, Ted Kennedy.
• My darling, unemployed, beer-blogging and -brewing husband just redesigned his site. ALL BY HIMSELF!
• My brilliant brother now has two blogs — one about his life, one about his cat. Don’t make me pick a favorite.
• My aunt Patti just posted an updated on her awesome Seattle-area farm! It makes me want a cow. In Orlando. I know.

Want to get to know me even better? Here I am on Twitter and on Facebook. See you there!

          

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By Katy, January 6, 2010

Ahhhh, I crack myself up.

But here’s why the title was so appropriate. Cue the yum:

And the oh, yeah…

Add a dash of deeeelish:

And you get my dinner. Maybe not the most picture-worthy, but pretty freaking awesome. The brown balls (that’s what she…oh, no, I won’t) are a mashup of two recipes; chickpea cutlets from Veganomicon (thanks, Rose!) and a recipe from Mark Bittman’s “How to Cook Everything Vegetarian.” I’m calling them falawesome falafel.

I’m getting pretty excited for this weekend’s half marathon at Walt Disney World for the following reasons:

• It’s the culmination of a goal I set a year ago — when I signed up and told myself “you can do this.” After completing one half marathon already, I know I can do it.
• Seeing good friends. My buddy Carolyn is going to run with me (she’s down from Buffalo!) and I’m meeting with lots of great bloggers for lunch!
• Because of the frigid weather that has descended on Florida, I am borrowing clothes to stay warm. I also purchased this beauty from the thrift shop (50% off!):

It will not only help me channel my inner Sue Sylvester,

It’s HAWT and something that I can wear on the long, cold walk from the parking lot to the starting line before ditching. Ashley gave me this tip — wear clothes that you don’t mind going to charity (in this case, back to charity), because crews pick up discarded clothes and donate them after the race.

It’s funny — I actually covered this same race two years ago, for GrowingBolder.com. Here’s a picture my boss took of me that day:

And the video I produced/reported that day. Not to toot my own horn, but I think it’s a pretty good example of why this event is so popular, and what drew me to it! (If you can’t watch it below, here’s the link)

I am keeping my expectations low for this race. If I want to stop and take a picture with Mickey, I will! If I need to rest a little or stop for water, I will! But I promise to give it my all and smile the whole 13.1 miles.

Other things that make me smile? Blogging buddies:

And Ivy Leaguers.

Oh, and my husband. I really like him. Despite the fact that I didn’t pick up any Glee-inspired gear for him, he will be going to the half marathon this weekend — a 4:30am arrival — and may even tweet about it! Check his blog out here and follow him on Twitter here. Follow me here.

          

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By Katy, January 3, 2010

Brrrr….it is SO COLD here in Florida right now. I am wearing three layers and two pair of socks and my teeth are still chattering!

Luckily, I have found ways to keep warm.

Let’s catch up, shall we? When last we met, I was exposing myself and kissing off 2009. 2010 (pronounced twenty-ten, of course) has been good so far!

I rang in the new year with good friends, good drinks and hair bling.

Yes, that’s Lucas in heaven. Dog in lap; beer in hand; Wii controller in other hand. I’m surprised he ever left this couch.

We are an old couple don’t stay up late much any more, so this was a rough recovery for us both on New Year’s Day. But we rallied, tackling some overdue house cleaning and shopping. I hate to start the new year in a mess.

On Friday, we met some good friends who were visiting from New York state and staying at Disney. We had sushi and fun by a big Christmas tree.

You can tell when he takes the photos because we’re not all scrunched up and too close.

Plans fell through on Saturday, so we decided to party like it’s 1999 we were 10 years old and hit up the arcade. I kicked a little butt in the driving and tennis games; Lucas wiped the floor with me in pretty much everything else. It turns out I am married to an air hockey master.

We worked up an appetite and decided to check out the new fish place in Winter Park. It was delish.

And today, Ashley and her hottie David came over with their doggies for a very loud doggie date. But I never got my camera out! I was too busy playing worried mom. My boys can be rough.

We were supposed to go watch football but at the last minute, that changed…so now we’re home in comfy clothes with tired dogs at our feet! Time to get some work done. Toodles!

          

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By Katy, December 31, 2009

2009 was a year of highs and lows — all documented on the blog! It’s so much fun to look back at what I did, especially because from a fitness perspective, this was one of the most successful years of my life.

Overall, I’m very proud to have continued to succeed at a job I love, moved my blog to its own domain, marked three years of marriage with my lovey, helped him launch a blog, visited friends and family, traveled and continued my healthy lifestyle.

Indulge me, would you, in a look back? I’m highlighting the fitness achievements in red. Because they make me especially proud and happy.

January:

• Found a frog in my toilet AND discovered the mung bean
• Watched a friend run the Disney half marathon and (GULP!) signed up for the 2010 event!
• Made pink chicken and visited a now-favorite Vietnamese grocery
• Supported Lucas on his quest to begin homebrewing
• Completed my first 90-minute run
• Defended Brussels sprouts (they truly are one of my favorite foods)

February:

• Announced my would-be beauty pageant platform
• Wished for a Snuggie (keep reading!) and had fun with Google Images
• Ran 10 miles for the first time EVER!
• Got a sweet Valentine’s Day present from the dogs
• Revealed my “before” weight-loss picture and chopped my hair

March:

• Reviewed Making the Cut and shared my love of all things Jillian Michaels
• Completed my second sprint triathlon (this time, not getting lost) and gave up caffeine
• Had a very happy 29th birthday (posted a few days late!)
• Went on a beautiful date and proved that cleaning burns calories
• Watched an amazing movie about ethical eating

April:

• Had a life-changing trip to Chicago

May-July

• Took a break from blogging…Flickr reveals that I:
  • chopped my hair and did a triathlon at Walt Disney World, organized my pantry, hosted a visit from Mom, celebrated a friend’s birthday, took an amazing ride

August:

• Returned to blogging (in a big way — I posted almost every day that month!)
• Saw “Julie and Julia“
• Had a His ‘n’ Hers dream date and found a new candy treasure
• Learned that when you ralk, you’ve wun
• Shared my take on counting calories
• Attended the Healthy Living Summit in Boston with posts here here here and here.
• Reviewed P90X
• Shared my technique for making perfect tofu
• Survived a flat tire and showed off my tips for getting enough water
• Cried and shared an emotional post on why I love triathlon
• Made homemade bread for the first time
• Learned about sustainable food
• Had an AMAZING swim/run brick
• Ate around the nation in high heels with Caitlin and her adorable husband

September:

• Celebrated the season with my first Pumpkin Spice Latte of ‘09!
• Found that grocery stores are like New Kids on the Block
• Vowed to never order takeout pizza again
• Failed at running 10 miles but succeeded at fun with friends
• Attended a very sweet Twitter event
• Finished my first 5K with lots of great bloggers
• Marked my 100-post anniversary
• Got my trampoline on
• Did my first double-digit run in six months
• Went indoor rock climbing
• Remember what it’s like to run in the Northeast and went to a “gorge”ous wedding

October:

• Traveled to Maine to spend time with family and posted here and here
• Fell in love…with chocolate tofu
• Shared my technique for cooking delicious yuca
• Found another frog and discovered the way NOT to diaper a toddler
• Got in a fight with my blender
• Ran with the blogging posse and showered at Starbucks
• Found out first-hand what dragon boat racing is all about
• Started feeling pain in my, um, area — a problem that would plague me for months
• Looked back at the wedding dress of my dreams
• Completed my first Olympic distance triathlon
• Volunteered at a beer festival
• Announced plans for a No Nonsense November

November:

• Posted my recipe for Pumpkin Bulgur Beer Bread (now known as Vulgar Bread)
• Tried kombucha for the first time
• Wrote an emotional love note to running, in light of my injury
• Announced Vegan Week, a partnership with the lovely Eating Journey
• Went on a hike with the husband and got ready for Vegan Week
• Sat back and watched as Vegan Week became an Internet sensation (click the link for ALL posts)

December:

• Got Stella, my Garmin Forerunner 305
• Made lemonade from lemons as I prepared for my first half marathon
• Completed my first half marathon!
• Found the best BBQ joint in Central Florida
• Shared my tips for meal planning
• Had a phenomenal day with the husband, all planned by him in secret
• Celebrated the holidays with some blogging buddies
• Changed up the blog look and fell into a cookie coma
• Cursed technology but celebrated an outstanding Christmas
• Exposed myself in a movement that’s sweeping the globe

I really enjoyed reading back through the last 12 months — it made me look forward to 2010 even more!

What are the highlights of 2009 in your own life?

          

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By Katy, December 25, 2009

Doesn’t technology blow? Ugh…I was working on my laptop yesterday, getting some work done so I could relax on Christmas Day when POOF! The MacBook stopped working!

Now, after several stressful hours, I have booked an appointment with the Apple Genius Bar. I’m crossing my fingers — but had to laugh when I checked the warranty on the computer and it expired on December 7th.

Today has been fantastic. We started new holiday traditions, by making and eating copious amounts of this bad Johnny:

Which I earned by proving I am a dedicated runner.

When I set out for my run, it was a nice light drizzle. “Ahhh,” I thought. “This will be good training in case the half marathon next month is in the rain.” Two miles in, the drizzle had turned into a steady, heavy rain.

As soon as I walked in, Lucas snapped the picture then asked, “Did you know we’re under a tornado watch?” No. I did not.

I warmed up with the monkey bread (pictured above) and a steamy cup of goodness.

I also put on the gift my boss gave me — this is a picture from Wednesday, when my co-worker Jackie and I tried them on and posed.

Sad. That picture reminds me of happier times, when the Mac was still my friend.

And then, because the kids could not wait any longer,

I gave the go-ahead for opening gifts. Like our tree?

The dogs got some great presents:

Which they used immediately:

Can you spot the Snuggie?

Luke and I got some much-appreciated presents from friends and family all over the country!

We also got some delicious treats, including food from Lucas’s homeland: cheese curd, Croghan bologna, chocolates, wine and more.

After opening gifts, we watched some of the National’s Lampoon’s christmas movie, then Lucas got to work on another new tradition.

Lunchtime lasagna. He made his with buffalo, homemade sauce, three cheeses, spinach, squash, carmelized onions and more.

I ate one big serving and am thrilled that the leftovers will last several days!

I hope you all had a very special holiday, and now it’s time to look ahead to 2010! (Gulp…I’ll be turning 30.)

I’ll leave you with a video that I thought was pretty stinking cute…it’s Junior, unwrapping one of his presents. Enjoy!

          

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By Katy, December 22, 2009

Some of you already noticed the change to the blog — thanks for your kind comments! And for those of you checking this in a reader, why not mosey on over to http://SillyTaterTot.com and check out the new look? It’s still under construction, and that header just about exhausted my Photoshop and HTML skills.

Good thing my brother is well on his way to being the next big THANG in Web design!

I can sum up the last few days in two words.

COOKIE. COMA.

As regular readers know, 355 days out of the year, I avoid white sugar, dairy, white flour and other processed foods, and I stick with organic, whole-grain and clean foods.

The three times that I throw the rules out and enjoy every tasty, buttery bite are:

• Christmas and the six days that lead up
• My birthday
• Easter

Not-so-coincidentally, those are the same times of year that my dear grandmother-in-law (Luke’s grandma) sends us her homemade cookies. Tins and tins of cookies.

To give you an idea of how good they are — she pays the extra charge for insurance when shipping the goodies to us. And I promise, if those cookies went missing, I’d claim every penny of the settlement.

I mean, let’s take a moment and break down the delicious details:

There were peanut butter cookies with chocolate kisses, macadamia nut cookies with white chocolate, buckeyes (peanut butter rolled with krispies and chocolate), fudgy cookies, chocolate covered peanuts and more.

Here’s my theory on treats: If I can only get them at limited times of the year, or if a place is known for that treat, or if it’s a homemade goodie … it’s worth the splurge. If I can get the goodie any time I want, or if it’s not something special (grocery store cookies, chips, etc.), I’ll pass.

Following the idea that eating MORE to get rid of the cookies FASTER, (thereby ending the temptation) Lucas and I have been eating cookies every time we pass by the fridge.

That has led to this:

Crappy picture, but PhotoBooth was the only way to sneak up on them. Passed out puppy and very sleepy husband.

And if you follow me on Twitter, you already saw the cause of my “bah humbug” moment today. I was doing some last-minute shopping, on the way home from a very busy day at work, and just wanted to get in and get out. Which was tough when I came out of the store to find this:

Ugh, seriously? I had to get in through the passenger seat and just squeaked out of my spot without scratching his or her car.

What treats do you indulge in during the holidays?

          

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By Katy, December 20, 2009

It has been a very busy stretch at work — I normally count on my camera to remind me of what I’ve been doing, but after taking 150 or so pictures during the Secret Saturday adventure, I only took three during the week! And two are from this morning, when I made deeeeeeelish Apricot Date scones:

They were definitely picture-worthy.

I am so excited that my pantry is stocked to the point that I can make almost anything out of my cookbook — with just a few substitutions — so I can wake up and make what I’m craving. In this case, baked goods.

I also found this picture on my cell phone, which pretty sums up my life at work:

Last night, Lucas went out to football night at the bar with the boys…I’m always invited, but last night I decided to make it a lazy night with chick flicks and sleepy dogs.

I am the last NetFlix holdout, but we do have a million of those $1/rental boxes near us, so I stopped and grabbed two movies that I’ve been dying to see:

I can give two very enthusiastic (“Clueless,” how I love thee) thumbs up to BOTH movies — Revolutionary Road really struck a nerve with me because it’s about a man who’s unhappy in his job, and decides to take a leap of faith and quit his job to figure out what he truly wants to do. That’s what Lucas is doing. Of course, I hope it works out better for him than for ol’ Leo!

Time to get some more work done — luckily, I have the same sleepy dogs who joined me last night at my feet now, which makes working from the couch a much more pleasant experience.

Oh, P.S. — I figured out how to do splits on the Garmin! Here’s my run from yesterday. I ran 8 miles total — taking a .2 walking break at the beginning of the 4th mile and a .8 walking break later in the run. I walked the last lap.

          

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By Katy, December 14, 2009

Thanks for all your kind comments on my surprise trip to manatee land…I think Lucas is very proud of the day that he planned.

And the weekend fun continued on Sunday! First, I woke up for a bike ride — my first since my Olympic triathlon. WOW! I missed ol’ Sugar. Yes, I name my bike.

I also got to test out the multisport capabilities on Stella, my Garmin Forerunner 305. Yes, I name my GPS device.

Not bad! I have a cyclometer on my bike, but it only works half the time. If I hit even a small bump, the little measuring thing gets knocked sideways on my spoke, and I stop getting any data. No such problem with Stella!

I like to go at least 30 miles on the weekend, but I needed to get back to make a special dish for a blogger “linner.” I can’t post the recipe, because I’m submitting it to a contest, but I can post pictures of the process. If you want to see s’more (hint, hint), I’ll post details when I can:

Lucas was a patient tester — did you know that marshmallows essentially evaporate when cooked? He ate his way through at least eight variations before I was happy enough to make a batch for the bloggers.

The sweet treats were a hit at the party, planned by Meghann and hosted by Sarah.

I managed to look silly in every photo snapped by Meghann:

And while I did have my camera — I was a little intimidated by the awesome cameras that Katy and Ryan had! So I didn’t take too many pictures, although I did get some shots of all the amazing food!

I had good company, too — sitting with Meghann, Kelly and Meghann’s man Derek.

There were lots of dogs — which meant lots of noise and activity! I didn’t bring my boys, but I could have…they would have had plenty of friends!

I was very happy to see that my Secret Santa gift was the one everyone wanted… Ashley ended up getting the apron, Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride tea and Bondi Band that I brought, so that was exciting!

And I snagged this present with an eye for Lucas:

Beer and chili…the perfect pair.

I braved the Wal-Mart superstore to find Mason jars (three other stores didn’t have them in stock!!) which was a mistake — I was not feeling jolly after fighting the crowds. But I was very happy to come home to a secret cooking project of Luke’s own (I can’t post details or Santa will have his surprise spoiled!) and two very curious doggies.

What’s your favorite dessert or sweet treat?

          

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By Katy, December 12, 2009

Take it from me — when your husband says:

I’m planning a secret Saturday fun day. We need to leave at 7:30am. Wear sneakers and jeans and eat some breakfast before we go.

Just nod your head and agree. I know, I know…fellow A Type personalities, it’s against my nature, too! But if you don’t let go and just have faith every once in a while, you miss some of the most amazing adventures.

We hit the road this morning, coffees in hand, and only one of us knew where we were headed.

Stop #1: Blue Springs State Park in Volusia County, Florida, which has been on my “must see” list for years.

Blue Springs is where manatees come during the winter months — and you can get THISCLOSE to them!

Don’t believe me? Watch this (if for nothing else than to see Lucas’s interpretation of manatee noises):

I took 172 pictures and three videos today, so feel lucky that I am showing restraint.

We spent about 90 minutes at the park, looking at the manatees and embracing our inner children:

One of our favorite things to do is meander…so instead of taking the highway home, we pointed our car in a random direction and decided to stop at whatever struck our fancy.

Stop #2: Random Flea Market.

Goodies galore.

We got

• fresh chick peas (in their pods)
• hot peppers (lots and lots and lots, for hot sauce and salsa)
• prickly pear
• limes (local)
• sweet potatoes
• garlic
• dried hot peppers
• chayote squash (in its prickly skin)

and were tempted by (but did not buy) sugar cane, tomatillos, tamarind, cactus, coconut candy, pineapple, dried fruits and much, much more.

Lucas is a sucker for street food of any kind, so when we saw this sign:

We knew he needed to stop for a snack. A homemade, fresh and amazing snack. I’ll let him tell you. Keep watching for more details on this random market.

The rambling trip home continued, and with nothing more than an iPhone and a healthy sense of adventure, we stumbled upon

Stop #3: Downtown DeLand, Florida

Where I spent a ridiculous amount of time poking in and out of shops. I think I spent an hour in an antique shop that had these amazing old magazine and newspaper ads — I bought a few…merry Christmas to me! Again!

But, the tacos didn’t hold Lucas and I was STARVING, so it was time for

Stop #4: Hollerbach’s Willow Tree Cafe

Beer, sausage, sauerkraut, more beer and two happy people.

Don’t be fooled by that massive plate of food. We couldn’t decide between all the authentic and homemade German food, so we got a sampler plate, and I took a bite of everything, Lucas ate a huge plate and has enough in a doggie bag to eat for dinner tonight! It was good, but not great. I think it would be more fun during one of their sing-along nights, so we will be going back!

We walked down the street for

Stop #5: Farmers’ Market

We didn’t buy anything, but I did meet a couple of horses dogs:

Gentle giants.

And as we headed home, we decided to make one more stop. For years, I’ve been saying that we need to visit the world’s largest Cypress tree. It’s in a state park near our house, and we’ve never taken the time to visit.

Until Stop #6:

I love you, Senator.

And all that before 3pm! Now we’re settled on the couch with some Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride tea and a mind full of memories.

Big props to Lucas for planning an amazing day.

          

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By Katy, December 10, 2009

I learned many lessons during Vegan Week — and the most important one had nothing to do with food. Or, let me clarify — it had nothing to do with eating food.

In order to shop, cook and ensure that all my meals were animal product-free, I planned my meals for the week. I went through cookbooks, online recipes, blogs and more to come up with ideas, crafted a shopping list, and followed the plan to the T.

And I was the happiest I’ve been in a long time.

So, even though I’m back to eating animal products, I’m still planning meals. Here’s how this week looked:

• Sunday: Yuca Empanadas with Plantain-Black Been Filling, Sauteed Squash

• Monday: Beef Stew

• Tuesday: Split Pea Daal, Roti, Roasted Cauliflower (no picture, sniff sniff)
• Wednesday: Sweet and Spicy Pork Chops, Oat Groat Pilaf, Steamed Bok Choy

• Thursday: Pepin Potatoes, Braised Carrots and Fennel
• Friday: General Tao’s Tofu, Steamed Veggies

It’s more work up front, but a LOT less stress through the week. And, unfortunately, I’m not one of those people that can just throw things in a pot and make it come out delicious. I live with one of those people. But I’m a recipe girl.

On the exercise front…um, yeah. I have set my alarm for 5am every day since Monday. And I have woken up, turned the alarm off and gone back to sleep. Every day since Monday.

A girl needs her post-half marathon rest, right? I don’t feel too bad. I have another race in January, so I’m going to get back to normal training on Saturday.

What’s your best source for healthy recipes? The Web? Cookbooks? Family recipes?

          

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By Katy, December 5, 2009

What a day! My full race recap is below, but I wanted to say a BIG thanks to everyone who supported me today on Facebook and Twitter, as well as in real life.

The husband supplied me with a sweet I’ve been craving for weeks:

And my Vegan Week partner in crime, Michelle, sent me the SWEETEST flowers and a note wishing me luck!

I have to tell you, thinking about all the people who were wishing me luck really powered me through the day!

It was pretty dreary when we woke up and headed to Downtown Orlando for today’s OUC Half Marathon, so I dressed in layers.

But as the morning went on, the rain let up and I decided to ditch the rain jacket, passing it off to the unofficial photographer.

Seriously, what a guy, right? We met up with Caitlin and Megan for some pre-race hugs and advice (Caitlin’s tip to hug the corners really paid off!)

And before I knew it — the race director was counting down…5 minutes. 4 minutes. 3 minutes. I put my headphones in, got my Garmin ready and took off!

I wasn’t sure how I’d be feeling, or how fast to go out, so I lined up at the back of the 9:00/mile starters, and it was perfect. My goal for the race was to try and maintain a 10:00/mile average, and I was THRILLED to see that I got it! (click the image for a bigger view)

My official finishing time, according to the chip, was 2:11:01. Not too bad!

Confession: I don’t know how to get my mile splits off the Garmin yet. I hit the lap button halfway through the run, and I wonder if that screwed things up?

Lucas sat by the finish line to get shots of everyone coming in. He found my friend Jamie by accident — look at her go!

Speedy gonzalez…she is amazing. Then Megan came in, followed by Caitlin, and finally I turned the corner to see them cheering! Lucas tried to take a picture but hit the video button instead (you can hear him say “oh come on!”), which turned out to be even better — he caught me giving Megan a high five!

And after I hit the finish line, I was thrilled to see their smiling faces giving me hugs and high-fives for finishing my VERY FIRST HALF MARATHON!

We all headed to the beer garden where I posed with my medal:

And Lucas got his payment for a job well done — nice cold beer.

Here are my overall thoughts on the race:

• A beautiful course! I got to run through some great neighborhoods, and could see several lakes along the way. People were sitting on their front steps and lawns cheering us on and it made a huge difference.
• It really does pay off to hug the corners. My Garmin says I ran 13.19 miles — not bad, because both Caitlin and Megan ended up running longer than that.
• I took a Pineapple Rocktane about halfway through the race. This is the best flavor I’ve tried!
• Because no matter what happened, I’d be setting a PR today (and a Personal Distance Record), I tried to set small goals along the way.
  • Miles 1-3: Get settled into a groove…find a clear space for running and set a decent pace. I ran at about 9:30/mile for those first miles.
  • Miles 3-6: Keep it under 10:00/mile, keep my shoulders down, try not to stop unless I had to.
  • Miles 6-9: Keep it under 10:00/mile but have short bursts of speed every once in a while. Find a rabbit and try not to let him/her out of my sight.
  • Miles 9-10: Keep it under 10:00/mile, take a walking break if needed (it wasn’t).
  • Miles 10-12: Since each mile after number 10 was a personal distance record, I just wanted to do my best. Nebulous, but it helped.
  • Mile 13: Leave it all on the course. Run as fast as I could and smile for the cameras!

I am very proud to say that I accomplished all those goals — and I never walked, even for one step! Having that 10:00/mile reminder, and a Garmin to let me know how I was doing, really helped. I did hit a bit of a wall at about 11.5 miles in, when I just wanted to start walking. But I knew that if I could get to the 12-mile mark, the last mile would just be a race to the finish line, so I kept running! I also didn’t take any water or bathroom breaks. I know that’s kind of against running philosophy, but I really don’t like running with anything in my stomach, so I didn’t want to risk it. I did chug two big bottles of water once I was done!

My mom is so cute — I called to tell her about the race and she asked how my “girly bits” held up (I have a groin injury). They held up just fine.

All in all, a great day — I am so proud of myself and truly can’t believe that just a short time ago, I couldn’t run a mile. Now I have run a 5K, several sprint triathlons, an Olympic triathlon and now a half marathon. Go me!

And Carolyn — I am PSYCHED for the Disney half in a month…it’s ON, girl!

Time for a nap…Lucas and the dogs have a head start…

          

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By Katy, December 4, 2009

First, let’s show off some goodies. Like the Amazing Grass that wasn’t — I took one sip and had to dump it. Shudder.

Then, my better half:

Who was very happy with his breakfast this morning. We met a friend before work (or in his case, before house husbanding) and he got a plate full of goodness.

I got the carrot cake pancake, which I will be attempting on my own.

I passed up the pumpkin pancake, but luckily my friend shared.

All pictures courtesy my iPhone.

So, tomorrow is my first half marathon, and I’m facing a few challenges. But I’m choosing to spin them, so they’re positives. Examples:

Lemon:

• I’m undertrained for this distance, and have only done one “long” run — 10 miles — in the last month. I’m battling a groin injury and have seen my training pace drop way off.

Lemonade:

• I would be doing a long run tomorrow anyway — why not do it with 3,500 other runners? I’m always faster during competitions, and even if I don’t feel great, I’m sure I’ll be inpsired by someone along the way.

Lemon:

Lemonade:

• An excuse to buy a new running hat so the torrential rain doesn’t drip into my eyes! Junior chewed mine up a while back, so I’ve been hatless. The hat will also cover up my sweaty, stanky self and allow me to truly smile from within when it’s time to cross the finish line.

Lemon:

• I’m feeling the effects of two years of training. My groin hurts, my back hurts, my shins hurt…everything hurts.

Lemonade:

• As a reward, Lucas has told me I can not only pick ANY place for dinner after the race, I can also get a massage and ice cream! Triple awesome!

Lemon:

• Well, there isn’t one, I just wanted a chance to share…

Lemonade:

• Carbing up. The afore-mentioned carrot cake was an indulgence, since I normally go with an egg white omelette. Then at lunch, I got my carbs in another way (below) and we’re having black bean pasta for dinner. Nom nom nom.

Lemon:

• Out of all the people I know competing in tomorrow’s event, I am by far the slowest. If they wanted, they could finish their half marathons, go home and shower, get massages and come back to high-five me at the finish line.

Lemonade:

• I’ve already arranged to see some of my friends before the race starts, so we can hug and high-five for luck. Plus, I keep telling myself that by 10am, I’ll have done more than more people will do all month.

And, if I may be so bold as to volunteer a lemon/lemonade scenario for Lucas…

Lemon:

• Wife’s crazy running addiction once again has me up way before the sun, fighting traffic and bad weather.

Lemonade:

• Beer garden for participants after the race. Wife won’t drink her beer. Score.

Wish me luck!

          

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By Katy, November 23, 2009

I may have one of the best husbands in the world.

When we met in college:

He was a red-meat eating hunter, a beer-drinking, no-exercising, study-around-the-clock archicture student. My experiments started back then, when I would try and wean him off of Miracle Whip, switch his coffee to bottled water and introduce fruits and vegetables into his diet.

And he never complained.

Just like he never complained during Vegan Week, even thought it went against everything in his nature!

In fact, when Michelle and I came up with this crazy adventure, I hesitantly asked Lucas if he’d be willing to let me cook vegan dinners through the week.

He shocked me — in an amazing way — when he almost immediately told me he was not only OK with vegan dinners, but he wanted to give the entire Vegan Week a shot! He traded his cereal and milk for oatmeal; bologna sandwiches with cheese for salads and soup and let me run wild when it came to dinner.

So, what are the takeaways from the husband’s perspective? (He wrote me notes!)

• It was not that difficult to go a week, though Katy did a great job of having the proper foods in the house and planning dinners (which often was lunch the next day)
• It would have been much more of a problem if we did not already eat a lot of vegetables
• No dairy was the hardest part for me since I am a ‘cereal for breakfast’ guy. Not having yogurt or cheese options at lunch was rough.
• The worst foods of the week (for me) were the fake meat — “bologna” and yogurt (soy and/or coconut milk). Maybe if it was a long-term change I would learn to like them, but it would take a long time. The texture of both were a bit off-putting to me and the “bologna” had really no flavor on its own, serving as nothing but a filler in a sandwich.
• It was certainly a good exercise to refine label reading skills, knowing what you are putting into your body is important whether vegan, vegetarian or other.

Cute, huh?

I agree with Lucas about the processed foods. To tell you the truth, we don’t eat much processed food at all, whether we’re following a specific diet (vegan) or not. I bought him some vegan “bologna” to see how it compares to the bologna and lunch meats that he normally has. Almost all of our meals through the week were homemade, with fresh fruits, vegetables, grains and more.

We should also note…Lucas had, um, some tummy troubles this week. As he says: “It was a good thing I was home alone a lot.”

So what do you think of his notes? Would your significant other or family members consider changing their diet?

          

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By Katy, November 19, 2009

I hope you’re not sick of hearing how overwhelmed I am with gratitude to those who have followed the #VeganWeek…hard to believe this started as a random conversation between me and Michelle — miles apart — and became a blogging sensation.

Today, we asked you to consider making one meal or all your meals vegan, to see what it’s like.

Here are just SOME of the people who posted:

• sarahghostworld: I will be participating!! i’m a total omnivore with no plans of putting labels or restrictions on my diet, but i do have have ethical qualms about the environmental and economic impact of meat-eating. so i figured . . . .why not! i linked to both of you in my post today (here) and will be photographing my eats all day to show tomorrow! i have a 20 mile run planned, so . . . there will be a lot of them
• Kristen: I’m participating in vegan for a day: http://inspiredbydooce.blogspot.com/2009/11/blo… So far the hardest part is the pictures…I’m taking pictures of what I eat for the day and it is hard to remember to put all of the ingredients in the shot.
• nutritionista: Yay for Vegan Week/Day!! I just posted my list of 10 Reasons to Go Vegan, and I plan to post a summary of my day’s vegan eats later today. http://yournutritionista.com/post/249757081/10-…
• Megan @ Healthy Hoggin: I just put up my first post about being Vegan 4 A Day: http://wp.me/pB1yI-5q So far so good, although the second I tell myself I “can’t” have something, I seem to want it more than ever!! Isn’t it funny how that works?? I have a feeling some cheese is in my future… but not today.

And on Twitter:

• @vegetarianwife: My vegan eats http://vegetarianwife.blogspot.com/2009/11/vegan-eats.html #veganweek
• @BodyandSoulmag: some friends were doing a #VeganWeek challenge, so here are some delicious vegan recipes to try! http://ow.ly/DQiM
• @pure2raw: Twin’s 20 reasons for being #vegans in honor of #VeganWeek http://bit.ly/3P5LgK
• @dysterious: Back to the gym tomorrow I hope! Been since monday and I’m itching to go but must clean all night. + drink Stickelback vegan wine #veganweek
• @abbynormally: http://twitpic.com/q4wmz – Does this meet the requirements for #VeganWeek?

And on, and on, and on. You guys rock my world.

So does this:

If you follow me on Twitter, you noticed that I talked about moving today. We packed up our current offices, and moved to some swanky new digs that afford me an incredible view. And this hunky husband wasn’t too bad to look at, either — he helped us lug some of the heavy stuff around!

Luckily, I’d fueled up with some Kitchen Sink Granola and oatmeal, served with a splash of almond milk:

Because the moving took all morning and part of the afternoon…while on a key-copying run, I got a caffeine boost with a soy, 4-pump sugar-free hazelnut coffee:

Then finally tucked into these beauties…a salad with veggies and tahini dressing:

And a juicy grapefruit:

Ran around some more, then headed home to catch up on #VeganWeek tweets (and soothe my pacrhed throat):

While my pre-made Yuca Shepherd’s Pie casserole (Veganomicon, again) cooked, along with some Cornmeal-crusted masala brussels sprouts:

So, so good. I stuck it under the broiler for 2 minutes after baking, and the yuca topping got crispy and crunchy. And the sprouts…heaven. By the way, heaven is spicy. Just like me.

I already have plans for cooling my mouth down:

And, since I have some work to catch up on, this guy gets remote control (which is good, because Syracuse is on TV!) This means I’ll be DVR’ing Project Runway, so heaven help the person that spoils it for me.

Evil dog in the background.

So, what can you look forward to when it comes to #VeganWeek?

**The Glo Bakery bar giveaway is open until 7pmET tomorrow. ENTER NOW!

**Tomorrow, I’ll be posting about a vegan diet and weight loss. Check it out and let me know what you think!

**Jess from A Fete For Food just did an amazing post on Michelle’s blog, about the environmental impact a vegan diet has. She taught me so much!

**Catch up on all the #VeganWeek action on my page here and Michelle’s page here.

          

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By Katy, November 18, 2009

No, really…I am!

Can you read his shirt? It says I Love Tater Tots. Awww…

We followed Caitlin’s lead and had a bowling date night! It was supposed to be a double date, but those plans fell through. We decided to go anyway — and it was a blast! It was great to do something different on a weeknight.

But let’s start at the very beginning…a very good place to start. Breakfast was my take on Katie’s fudge babies: banana bread balls. Joke away.

Plus good ol’ yerba maté and pumpkin oats:

If I were a true culinary rockstar, I might have noticed that breakfast and lunch had the same frightening color and texture. But I didn’t, so I packed this carrot ginger soup:

Followed by an orange:

and leftovers…delicious leftovers:

After getting my butt kicked in bowling, we came home for my first #fail meal of Vegan Week. The flavor was great, but the broccoli-millet croquettes fell apart in the pan, and the garlic yams didn’t get as crispy as I wanted.

Tasted good, though:

And who knew peeling potatoes was such a dangerous job?

Don’t worry — I’ve already started to self-medicate, with Dr. Lucas. It’s good to be married to a beer blogger.

And to fully ease the pain, here is my dessert: vegan chocolate chips in peanut butter.

So, when I say I’m bowled over…I mean it. Between the responses on Angela’s guest post (y’all REALLY want those Glo bars, huh?) to the overwhelming tweets about #VeganWeek:

I have to say thank you, thank you, thank you. Together, we bloggers (and beloved readers) can do amazing things!

So let’s keep it up!

On Thursday, November 19, we are asking that you devote one or all of your meals to being vegan. We just kindly ask if you could link back to either my blog or Michelle’s when you make your posts about Vegan Week. We will be compiling a list of all who participate throughout the day, on our blogs under the ‘VeganWeek’ tabs. If you could make sure to either send us the link and/or leave it in the comment section of the ‘Vegan 4-A- Day’ official post on Thursday then we can give you proper accolades.

If you know of any other friends, bloggers or not, who are up for the challenge…spread it around! Everyone who takes part will have a chance at a really cool prize — details of that to come soon!

There will be chances at giveaways for those who take part. AND if you don’t have a blog — don’t worry! You can just leave us a comment telling us you went vegan for a meal or for the day.

AND REMEMBER:

• Tomorrow, I’ll have an interview with vegan triathlete (and super-hottie) Brendan Brazier, who makes the Vega products we all know and love so much.
• Use the hashtag #VeganWeek in your tweets about this adventure, or your own vegan-minded thoughts!
• Check out my page of Vegan Week stories here and Michelle’s here.
• The giveaway of Glo Bakery bars is open until 7pmET on Friday. ENTER HERE!

P.S. For the first time since my injury, I ran 4 miles straight. That’s a big accomplishment for a girl who has been forced to walk and ralk for so long! I missed you, running, but I’m back.

          

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By Katy, November 15, 2009

We’ll get to the meaning of the post title in a moment…but first — THREE CHEERS FOR LUCAS!

I’ve been moaning about my injured leg and my inability to run for weeks, but it has really opened my mind to other workouts, like long walks, bike rides and now, hiking!

Well, hiking is a stretch…in Florida, we don’t have hills, so it’s more like halking. Cousin of ralking. Lucas planned the whole morning and it awas great to get outside and enjoy the cooler weather.

We saw a deer, but he (she?) was too quick for us to get a picture. We did see some other creatures, including this guy:

Pretty cool, huh?

Toward the end, I was getting a little tired, and needed a game to push through the 2-hour hike. I started following in Luke’s footsteps

But he caught on and started messing with me, taking HUGE leaping steps and walking in a circle:

Good thing he stopped, or else it could have been:

That’s one of his favorite shirts. Luckily, he also has one that says “I Love Tater Tots,” so it all balances out.

Speaking of balancing…that’s something my checkbook might not do for a while, since I decided to stock up for #VeganWeek at my home away from home, Whole Foods.

First, I had to have a delicious lunch (grilled, open-faced pumpkin, apple and cheddar cheese sammies with chicken noodle and veggie soup):

It helped me fight through a very busy grocery store to get these goodies:

I’ll be getting into the how and why of #VeganWeek in tomorrow’s post, as well as laying out some VERY exciting giveaway news (!!!), but I will say that so far, the shopping didn’t involve much more than normal. Lots of fresh, organic veggies and fruit, some organic grains, etc. The only things that aren’t normally in my cart are nutritional yeast flakes, tahini and soy yogurts. And I didn’t even need to get those. I guess Lucas and I are just so far on the vegetarian side already that it will be an easier transition.

Once I got everything unpacked, I decided to make some Kitchen Sink Granola to have ready for breakfasts this week. Here’s the recipe — enjoy!

Kitchen Sink Granola

(note: This recipe should be used as a guide, not a bible. It would work just as well with different grains, dried fruits, etc. In fact, I plan to make this with wheatberries, dried coconut and cranberries for holiday-inspired granola)

1C quinoa (rinsed)

1C rolled oats

1C ground flaxseed

3/4C bulgur wheat (I had SO MUCH leftover from my Vulgar Bread!)

3T vegetable or canola oil (I may try using hemp or coconut oil next time)

1C maple syrup or agave nectar

2tsp vanilla

2tsp cinnamon extract OR 2T ground cinnamon

dash salt

diced fruits (I used prunes and figs but next time would add more kinds)

chopped nuts (I used a mix of “Oh Nuts!” pepitas, cashews and almonds left over from the Healthy Living Summit)

Mix everything — everything! — together and spread onto a cookie sheet in a thin layer. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-25 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Once you smell it, it’s done…just give it a taste and make sure it’s the right texture.

          

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By Katy, November 14, 2009

Thank you ALL so much for the support you’re giving me and Michelle as we prepare for #VeganWeek, which starts on Monday.

If you’re interested in taking part, we’ll be revealing some details — along with guest bloggers, prizes and more — so be sure to check out my special page:

When I first told Lucas about the vegan challenge, I told him that he didn’t need to take part. I was pleasantly surprised when he said he’d like to try for dinners, which I’d be in charge of organizing.

I was even more surprised — and thrilled — when he told me yesterday that he’s going to try and do a completely vegan diet for the week!

Of course, his first question was…is beer vegan?

Notes of pumpkin spice...

It's good to be a brewer's wife...

That was quickly followed by this statement:

“I guess we’d better get our meat on this weekend.”

So, we’ve all been stuffing our faces:

Is that not the laziest dog you’ve ever seen?

We have big plans today. For my sanity, I am going to plan my meals for next week, then we are going shopping for our vegan pantry. We’re also going back to one of our favorite places — a “hiking” trail.

I used quotation marks because in Florida, there are no hills, so hiking is more like walking, but after doing THIS in Maine:

We’re desperate to get outside and enjoy the weather and views offered by the Sunshine State!

What is your favorite way to embrace and celebrate nature?

          

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By Katy, November 13, 2009

I’m a lean organic chicken and sauteed greens girl, living with a meat and potatoes man. I grew up eating meat, and while I’m more veggie-friendly than most, I’m not a vegan, and it would be tough for me to become a vegetarian.

Lucas grew up hunting and eating deer, deep-frying turkeys and grilling big fat steaks for most of his meals.

But next week — for 7 days — we’re going Vegan.

Well, sort of. Lucas will be sucked in taking part for dinners, which I will be in charge of cooking.

This first came about when I floated the idea of going vegan out on my blog — I got some great comments, including:

I totally know what you mean. I wont eat any more meat anywhere unless I know exactly where it came from–and it has to be humane. I don’t feel deprived. Although, it’s hard to go out sometimes. Otherwise, I feel like I am doing my part.

That comment from Michelle, mixed in with some of you who wholly endorse a vegan diet and some who say (nicely) that it’s a bad idea, sparked a plan. (You can see her version of the aha moment on her blog post today!)

That plan, my friends, is #VeganWeek.

Starting on Monday, and running for a week, Michelle and I are going to follow a vegan diet, as much as possible. We’ll post what works, what doesn’t; what we like and what we don’t.

So what’s in it for you? We have some amazing guest bloggers lined up as well as some super giveaways and some more surprises that should make it fun, whether you’re just following along, or you want to get involved.

**I am also VERY excited to reveal that I will be interviewing vegan triathlete and best-selling author Brendan Brazier, so be sure to check that out next week!

Be patient, my sweets, because we’ll both be posting more details on our blogs on Monday morning. This weekend, I think I’ll be indulging in some meaty goodness. And getting to know Veganomicon as well as possible.

          

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By Katy, November 8, 2009

Dear Running,

I miss you. In the days since we last spent time together, I have found in myself a sense of loss and longing — and I wonder…do you miss me? I’ve been spending more time with your cousin, Ralking, as well as some time with your distant relation, Walking. We all know it’s best, for now, to separate me from Running. At least until our unforseen enemy, Injury, leaves forever. Unfortunately, Injury is an uninvited visitor who has not revealed his travel plans.

On the bright side, Walking has shown me some beautiful things; things I never noticed while with you, Running.

And today, just as I was really feeling sorry for myself, Walking showed me something that made me realize…I am lucky to be able to do anything at all.

What a beautiful tribute…that’s how I’d like to be remembered someday. As a girl who loved to dance.

Thank you, Running, for giving me the space to come back to you a healthy, happy and ambitious person. I hope we can get back together before our planned events in December and January. But I know that no matter what — no matter how long I go away or how badly I talk about you in your absence, you will greet my return, unconditionally.

Love,

Katy

As you can tell, I’m really struggling with the emotional side effects of being forced to the sideline. My injury is getting better — I think. I wake up some days with no pain and some days in terrible pain. I’m doing my best to stay optimistic and not get overwhelmed by the fact that every day I can’t run is a major setback in my half marathon plans.

Walking really has been great. I’ve been listening to Dan Brown’s “A Lost Symbol” on audiobook, which has made it possible to pass 90 minutes easily and quickly.

On the non-fitness front, No Nonsense November is going pretty well. I’m doing much better with portion control and am shocked at how little food I truly need. I have been taking a lot more time to breathe — I have finshed two books in two weeks, have walked almost every day and have been much better about taking some “me” time.

Lucas is like a little kid with his brewing, and it’s fun to watch. He just posted a video of himself explaining the brewing process for his Pumpkin Ale.

While he was getting set up, he got two great videos of my crazy cats: Travers the trouble-maker and Laila, who is my shy girl. Watch her go into a total kitty trance in her “safe spot” on top of the fridge.

          

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By Katy, November 2, 2009

I have a few exciting announcements!

• I wrote a guest post about my journey through weight loss and triathlon training for Michelle at Eating Journey — click here to check it out. If you don’t read Michelle’s blog, you really should. She’s an American living in Australia, chasing not only her career dreams but her healthy living goals. For her, that means becoming a triathlete and I’m so excited to see how she does!
• I just posted a new article at Examiner.com, all about the so-called Intention Experiment that’s at the center of Dan Brown’s new book “The Lost Symbol.” Read it here to see what some (real, not fictional) scientists think about mind over matter, and our ability to change the world with the power of thought. The idea came to me because I’m listening to the audiobook while I walk.
• I am up for a pretty big award through my local newspaper, The Orlando Sentinel! Here’s the scoop — over the last few weeks, people could nominate their favorite Central Florida blogs. If I win, I get huge exposure on the Sentinel’s homepage, as well as some other cool prizes.

I (Silly Tater Tot) was nominated for:

• Best Overall Blog
• Personal
• Sports/Other

And my darling husband Lucas (A Night With The Hops) was nominated for:

• Best Overall Blog
• Personal
• Foodies

You can vote in each category once per day. Lucas and I each have links on the right side of our blogs, to make it easier. Now, you do have to register — it’s free, and relatively painless…we’d sure appreciate any votes we get, but if it’s too much of a pain, we understand. We’ll just have to break it to these guys:

I’m shameless, I know.

That’s enough pandering for now…Let’s get you up to speed on other fun!

Gotta brag about my dinner last night — oatmeal pancakes a la Kath, except we added walnuts, almond milk and doubled her recipe.

Then spread applesauce on top. Breakfast — it’s what’s for dinner.

So, when you take away toys from kids, what happens? They cry. Take away a bone from a dog, and he’ll growl. Take away running from a runner?

You get a tantrum. This morning, I thought — mind over matter. I’ll just forget the excruciating pain that my leg is in (which, by the way, has been diagnosed by my social networking friends as an “adductor” injury) and go for a run as planned.

Not so much. I got about a 1/2 mile into my run and nearly collapsed in tears. It just hurts too dang much, and I am now on the delicate tightrope that is falling off my training wagon and not being able to complete my two half marathons, and injuring myself so badly that I’ll never be able to run again.

I got through 4 miles, walking, and figured at the very least, it all adds up for the POTM challenge.

Have you ever been injured? How do you decide if and when to press through, and when to rest?

The frustrating thing is that I did absolutely no exercise, short of some light stretching and yoga, for a full week after my Olympic triathlon, and didn’t see much improvement.

But, my good mood improved with some (unpictured) Coffee Coconut Cinnamon Pumpkin Oats and this amazing Hugh Jass:

It was too much for mere plastic:

Super salad!

Now I’m settling in for some much-needed office cleaning, some doggie time and an early bedtime.

          

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By Katy, October 31, 2009

**Are you going to FitBloggin ‘10? I AM! I just bought my ticket and would love to find out who else is going.

Good news, everyone…after reading this post, Lucas assures me that he would save me in a fire. But before you get all mushy, you should know that he qualified it by telling me it’s because I have two hands and could carry the beer while he carried me.

Hard to be too mad, since his latest homebrew is especially for me: pumpkin spice ale. That one’s bubbling away, and we celebrated by drinking some of his most recent creation: Practice Makes Porter.

I’m not only the brains behind the name, I’m an official taster!

Isn’t that pad adorable? A not-so-anonymous fan sent them to Lucas in a care package.

Speaking of beer, I’m on a baking mission today. I’m taking part in something called Foodie Fights and I have to find a tasty way to combine pumpkin and Bulgar Wheat. While I may need to beer to soothe my frayed nerves, I’m actually thinking of putting together a pumpkin barley beer bread.

Never mind the fact that I:

• Am a terrible baker, especially when it comes to using yeast.
• Am not sure that barley makes for a good bread grain.
• Am not really a fan of either beer bread or bulgar wheat.

I’m going to try and make it vegan, too, but that may be the first thing I throw out. Because as Top Chef fans know, trying too many new techniques turns you into a pumpkin:

Stay tuned. I have a few backup plans in case my bread goes bust.

NEW PRODUCT ALERT!

Yes.

Ohhhh heavens yes. I found this baby at Whole Foods and couldn’t leave it behind. You all know how much I love Stonyfield Farm, and to find organic frozen yogurt and ice cream for a very reasonable $4/pint was awesome.

And it tasted great! I think next time I would get the ice cream because the yogurt was just a little too thin, and when I indulge, I like the real creamy thing. But the fudge ripples were delicious and they had lots of flavors.

On the health front? I’ve had a rough week. After finishing my triathlon and then taking a week off of exercise, I really fell of the wagon in a big way. I’ve been eating (and eating and eating) and while none of it has been unhealthy, it’s just been out of control. So, I’m starting something I’m calling:

No Nonsense November

It falls perfectly in line with the Pile On The Miles challenge that I’ve already signed up for. The rules for NNN go as follows:

1. Be smart. This just means that overall, I will not put myself in situations where I feel overwhelmed or out of control. I will eat regular meals, at regular times and will remember that I can have whatever I want…so there’s no need to eat like chocolate is disappearing forever!
2. Remember the goal. Once you’re a big loser (weight-wise!), you’re always worried about that slippery slope back to being overweight and unhappy. I need to put that out of my mind and remember that no matter what the scale says, I am stronger than ever before, more fit (hello? triathlon?) and much, much happier.
3. Portion control! I’ve started to slip back into bad habits…so when I serve myself, I need to take a small portion of everything and go back for more if I’m hungry. No more loading up the plate and telling myself that anything I don’t eat can be saved as leftovers. It just doesn’t happen.
4. Regular meals, regular times. I know that there is a lot of debate about strict numbers of meals, but for a while, I need to go back to eating Breakfast, Lunch, Snack and Dinner. And no more! I’ve been falling into the trap of eating an extra pre-dinner snack. It’s been ruining my appetite for dinner, but that’s not stopped me from eating anyway. And then I feel like, since I’ve already blown it, I might as well have dessert, too, and lots of it!
5. Breathe. This isn’t an eating goal so much, but I think it will stop that feeling of “oh my gosh so much is going on must cope with that peanut butter!” feeling. So this means:

• I will take time every day for quiet moments, whether it’s reading a book at lunch, taking a walk with my ipod, doing yoga or just turning the TV off and talking with Lucas.
• I will get as much sleep as I can, even when it means going to be early or postponing a morning workout.
• I will drink lots and lots of water. It makes me feel full, helps me to stay on target when it comes to NNN goal #4 and gives me the feeling of flushing the bad out and making room for the good.

That’s enough for now…I am going to spend the last day of October cleaning up the house, making my pumpkin barley beer bread and enjoying the amazing Florida weather.

And, my latte that loves me (has Kath’s coffee been giving out lessons?)

What are your goals for a healthy, happy November?

          

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By Katy, October 28, 2009

(I almost called this post “crimped hair is cool” — you’ll see why if you read on!)

Wow, it seems like a lot of people have either tried a vegan lifestyle or think I should try one…surprisingly, the one person I thought might be apprehensive — Lucas — just shrugged his shoulders when I asked him what he thought, and said “we’re practically vegetarian already!”

I think he knows he wouldn’t have to give up his most prized possession:

Oops, I mean:

I’ve never asked Lucas whether he’d save me or his beer if the house caught on fire. I don’t think I want to know the answer. I’ve asked him whether he’d choose me or the dogs and he’s told me, “you have hands, you can open the door — the puppies can’t!”

Harumph.

So, when life gives you lemons green monster messes inside your bag:

You say, “screw you, Amazing Grass, I’m going back to my true love” and then you make this:

Foamy goodness. High on caffeine, you go outside to watch a rocket launch. Ho-hum.

Then you create a heavenly lunch dessert. Yeah, it’s the new course and all the cool kids are eatin’ it.

Apples + chocolate pudding = happy girl.

I thought my braid looked pretty cute today…until I took it out. I actually have a better (?) picture than this, but I love how weird Junior looks in the background.

Hey, if ya have a moment…check out this video that Lucas submitted for a dream job contest. If you follow his blog, you know that he recently resigned from the architecture firm that he’s worked at for more than five years, to try and figure out what he really wants to do in life. He’s either brave or crazy, but since we’re both approaching the (ahem) big 3-0, we agree he needs to take some time to chase his dreams now, right?

Hope you like it.

          

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By Katy, October 25, 2009

Yum…nothing like homemade lattes to start a Sunday!

I whipped (ha!) these up this morning to try and treat myself and Lucas after a very busy Saturday. You know about my triathlon, and I hinted at our volunteer “job” at the Beer Festival of the South. It was fun, but really hard work — it made for a two-wristband day for me:

We poured beer, talked to attendees about various breweries, brewing techniques, etc (as you can probably guess, I did the pouring while Lucas did most of the talking!) and helped haul stuff around.

Can’t complain, since we got paid in cases (and cases and cases) of great craft beer.

But Lucas did have to cry over spilled milk beer.

Oopsie. Luckily, we only lost one bottle, and we hired on a new head of security to ensure that this does not happen again:

We fit as much as we could in our fridge (see Lucas’s post about my mini-freakout regarding the state of our supply):

And I helped drink down the beer stock by indulging in a Dogfish Head Punkin Ale. Ahhh, fall beers.

I’m actually not in too much pain after yesterday’s events…I have a general soreness all over — including some weird places like the sides of my neck (from breathing during the swim) and the balls of my feet (pressing down on the bike pedals). My groin injury is remarkably better, which is shocking considering how badly it hurt yesterday. I wonder if the 5.6-mile run could have actually been good for the leg?

I’m having some brief, but possibly crazy thoughts about my race goals for 2010. I’m already signed up for a half marathon in January, and I’d like to try another Olympic triathlon in March. The thing is…the Florida Half Ironman is in May. If I could train for the 56-mile bike, I think I could have a chance. I will have done two half marathons by then, and the swim is not that much longer than those I do in my current training.

We’ll see.

          

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By Katy, October 20, 2009

Aww, you guys are so sweet for supporting me through the pain!

I’m feeling incrementally better — I am supposed to run tomorrow, and it would be my last hard workout before the triathlon this weekend. But I’m going to see how I’m feeling when I wake up. The last thing I want to do is hurt myself more, so I may just do some gentle yoga instead.

Any Jillian Michaels fans? I heart The Biggest Loser. Well, since I’m stalking her following her on Facebook and Twitter, I saw her big announcement today:

She’s starting a new NBC show, all about helping families get healthy! After a brief scare, in which I thought she was leaving TBL, she cleared it up — this is in addition to the show.

I know there has been a lot of concern about Jillian’s recent move into the supplement world, and I’m not going to wade into that. At least, not now. And for some, I know she’s too intense, too in-your-face, too darn mean!

But whatever gets American families moving, re-considering their eating habits and developing new, healthy lifestyles…well, I’m all for.

Off the soap box. Who wants to talk weddings? I’m currently obsessed with TLC’s “Say Yes to the Dress.” If I could get married every year — to Lucas every time, of course — I totally would.

Sure, I love him, and I definitely loved spending quality time with my besties:

I mean…these guys!

But I realllllly loved dress shopping. I tried on lots of dresses — strapless and straps. Short and long. Poofy and streamlined. I ended up with my dream dress:

It let me get my groove on:

And still makes me smile when I see it. Plus, it was wicked cheap. I’m a bargain bride, and ordered it over the Internet! (Tip: I found my perfect dress at a wedding boutique, then looked for it on eBay, craigslist and other online sites. I ended up ordering it from here. $550 for a designer knockoff. Yeah, baby).

So what does one do with the dream dress? She trashes it. If you’ve seen Caitlin’s recent re-do of her wedding photos, you know that she’s working with an Orlando photographer (who is also a cyclist and triathlete!). He’s also going to help me to a Trash the Dress shoot, triathlon-themed! We are still working out our schedules, so stay tuned for that.

What does this have to do with healthy living? Nothing. Your regularly-scheduled food and fitness blogger will be back tomorrow. Thanks for indulging my walk down memory wedding aisle.

I’ll leave you with two of my favorite pictures of my favorite people: mom and dad.

          

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By Katy, October 16, 2009

No, not Starbucks AND a shower.

An actual shower inside Starbucks.

Stay with me. I had a very early wakeup call — 4:30am — to hang out with some of my best girls.

That’s Kelly, me and Megan, snapped by an unpictured Caitlin.

But first, I spent some quality time with the number one girl in my life: Laila.

And got the essentials for a long run: band-aids for my blisters, good socks and water.

Caitlin and I met for a nice easy 2.5-mile run before the other girls joined us, and we had a great group run…slow, but steady, and we talked the entire time. What a blast! I think we finished that last part at about 6 miles, so I guess I did about 8.5 miles this morning!

So, here was the dilemma. I knew I wouldn’t have time to go home and shower after the run, so I decided to take the idea of Friday casual pretty seriously and I packed a “shower in a bag” kit, intending to clean up in the bathroom at work. (Megan offered me her shower — how sweet is that! But she and Caitlin ran on after me, and I wanted to test my cleaning abilities, so I passed.)

I also knew I’d need some caffeine. So, that led to this.

Before:

During:

After:

Yup, that presto quick change was done in the Starbucks bathroom! I used those great Action Wipes, which soap up but dry invisibly, and are designed for situations just like this. I was even able to shampoo my hair (I brought a towel and a complete change of clothes).

No worries, I made it worth the baristas while — ordering four coffees for work and leaving a big tip. Plus, I cleaned up.

My bosses got a kick out of it, and we got out early because we are all working on Saturday morning. That left time for:

Pho-tastic. Lucas and I were celebrating, but I can’t share the news (it’s his) so you’ll just have to keep an eye on his blog. We are NOT pregnant (I know you’ll ask!)

He is a very happy boy, not only for the soup, but for his newly discovered Vietnamese sandwich:

And because we found Allagash beer at the local wine and beer store, and he just happened to be wearing the shirt we got during a tour of the brewery:

Now I’m exhausted, and have another early day tomorrow, so I’m about to change into my comfies, watch some baseball and catch some ZZzzzs.

Oh, and guess what? I’m crazy! I just signed up for an Olympic distance triathlon that’s happening NEXT freaking week. And, I signed up for a half marathon in December. Oh me oh my…here we go!

          

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By Katy, October 13, 2009

Just got back from a great walk with Lucas and the puppies — and if you want proof that you don’t need a lot of time or energy to get your exercise in, chew on this:

• I woke up only 20 minutes earlier than “normal” today to get two rounds of yoga in, courtesy of Polly. Her videos are great, so I bounce between those and the free downloads from yogadownload.com.
• I took a walk during my lunch break at work, while listening to some nice calming girly music.
• Our dog walk took us about a 1/2 mile in 10 minutes.

Net result? I feel like I got some good “me” time in without having to give up a lot of time or sweat.

And man did I need the “me” time after battling my blender this morning.