Off and Running

This is a snap of Ella and Jack on the first day of preschool.  Ella often had teary drop-offs last year, but is raring to go this year.  Jack is new to preschool, but seems to take after his daddy whom I remember running off to join the line of new kindergartners with never a backward glance.  Here's hoping that they're this eager every day!     I am not quite this geared up to meet my goals, but I can happily report that I'm starting my fourth week of being on program, exercise, and tracking what I eat.   

I lost 3 pounds the first week and, as Debbie wisely predicted in the comments of my last post, gained one pound last week (the day after my surgery).  Thank goodness for her counsel, because I just chalked it up to water and stress and kept on going.  Of course I haven't been perfect every day in my eating choices, but, on the whole, I'm pretty content with my diet.  I've tried lots of new recipes and bought a few new food items  to keep things interesting.  The WW online recipes are great.  I made their Classic Chicken Soup with Noodles for dinner the other night now that we're getting a hint of fall in the air.  It was a definite winner and will make a repeat appearance soon, I think.  As a side to the soup, I made a half recipe of Apricot Scones (just 4 points +) and used some of my flex points to have two!  Such indulgence!

Thank you all for your good wishes about my surgery.  It went well and I was back to my normal routine the next day.  I got the great news yesterday that the biopsy came back "all clear."  I'm not a huge worrier, but, as you can imagine, this was really good to hear.

Today I earned a gold star (well, an imaginary gold star).  I had the morning "off" and had decided to get out and do some exercise.  I woke to the patter of rain on the window panes, but got dressed and went out and did it anyway.  I went to my favorite river path and did Week One, Day One of C25K!  It's the first time I've actually run in any organized sort of way since my spine surgery in March.  Yay me!  And I didn't even melt in the rain--I guess it was only the Wicked Witch who melted.

With September, it seems like everything's starting up again.  This year, instead of BSF, I've joined another Bible study group (Community Bible Study).  They are very similar in content and format, but CBS is a bit closer to my WW meeting so that I won't be late.  

WI tomorrow and I'm hoping to lose.  

Are you off an running?

Spaghetti

I'm a fan.  I like mine whole wheat (Barilla) and cooked al dente.  Check out Karen's (Waisting Time) pasta post today.  What I'm not a fan of is spaghetti legs.  I walked along my favorite path this morning and felt like I had spaghetti legs.  Why is it that over a year of good exercise on a regular basis doesn't carry me through three weeks of not exercising??   I went just over 1.5 miles, but that's the longest consecutive walking I've done since my surgery.  Anyway, I did it and I'm assuming it will get better and I'll get stronger.  I wouldn't mind at all if the temperatures warmed up 15 or 20 degrees, either :-).  I was disappointed that my 1.5 miles didn't perk up my little nike+ gal.  Guess I'll take Cammy's advice and tell her to "stuff it."

I get a lot of pleasure from "walking the garden" on these spring mornings.  Here are a few pictures from this morning's walk.

 The Virginia bluebells are coming right along.  This entire bed (8'x8') will be in full bloom in a week or so.  I like the tightly furled buds that look purple.  See the next picture to view an early bloomer with its beautiful blue flower.

Looking through the deciduous magnolia blossoms to the weeping cherry.  The cherry was a "volunteer" a couple of years after we moved in--probably a bird dropped the seed.  Luckily, I recognized it for a cherry and let it grow.  The magnolia was from son John's tenure working at a nursery during his college summers.  This magnolia was declared dead, but Johnny thought it might live and brought it home.  He was right.



I made a wonderful stir-fry last night.  Sweet red and yellow peppers, flank steak, mushrooms, onions, and thin spring asparagus. Served over brown rice.  So good and it feels great to eat things that you know are chock full of vitamins and good-for-you ingredients.  Fortunately, I made a double recipe, so tonight's dinner just needs heating up.

Tonight, we have our first social outing since my surgery.  We're going to a lecture, tour and reception at the Library of Congress.  I haven't decided yet whether to try to cover up my scar/incision or to just wear whatever.  The bruising has almost all faded.  Either I'm getting used to the way it looks or it really doesn't look that bad.  It is kind of cold though, so maybe a cashmere turtle neck wouldn't look amiss.  We'll see.   I plan to have a little lunch, take a shower and wash my hair, and then take a lovely nap so I'll be fresh and up to an evening out.  I'm hoping we'll swing by the national cherry blossoms on the tidal basin on our way.  Apparently the cool-ish weather has prolonged the bloom for several days. I normally hate naps (I don't like waking up in the late afternoon) but these past few days, they've seemed the thing to do.  I can't nap too long though, or I won't sleep well at night.  Just an hour or so.

How about you?  Do you like naps?

What's Happening

Hi All,

I'm still in an exercise hiatus, but the end is in sight.  I saw the neurosurgeon today and he said that the two herniated discs in my back have probably been there for some time.  The disc in my neck, however seems recent and needs to be removed ASAP.  He showed me on the pictures from the MRI where the bulge from the disc is bumping into the spinal cord and compressing it.  He says that all of my symptoms (numbness and tingling in arms and legs) as well as feeling awkward when I walk (sort of like one leg is an inch or two shorter than the other) are being caused by that compression on the spinal cord.  Also he said that things would rapidly get worse and might not be reversible if I don't get that pressure off of the spinal cord very soon.  The upshot is that I'm scheduled for surgery (ACDF) this week--first thing Friday morning.  I'm feeling good about this.  I liked him a lot.  He's the kind of doctor that doesn't rush you through things.  He answered all my questions thoroughly and helped me understand his answers.  He'll do the surgery.  Oh and I'm wearing one of those awful looking neck braces to keep things stable until the surgery.  I hate how it feels, so it must be good for me. :-)

I'm really missing the exercise.  Apparently I get to start walking again as soon as I feel up to it after the surgery.  No lifting or jerky kind of exercise, but there are a lot worse ways to get exercise than walking along the river path in the spring when the wild flowers and the trees are waking from winter..  I'll break out the pedometer and to the 10K step/day challenge and work my way up.  Biking, running, folk dancing and lifting weights will have to wait for a while.  I'll ask about yoga.

I'm still going to town on the de-cluttering.  If you every followed "fly lady," you'll recognize my tactic of going into a room and removing 5 things.  (not necessarily furniture--I have way too many little dishes and ornaments around too).  Do this a few times and things start to look uncluttered.

We had company for dinner the other night and I started the dinner with a caprese salad.  Mmm.  Fresh mozzarella di bufola, tomato slices, and basil leaves sprinkled with salt and pepper and drizzled with olive oil.  YUM.    We also had fresh asparagus, grilled lamb chops with mint jelly, and whole wheat couscous with dried apricots, mint, and toasted almonds.  Sliced California strawberries and a dollop of ice cream for dessert.  It was easy to fix almost everything ahead and a very nice spring dinner.

I'll keep you posted!

Happy New Year, final Hot 100 Update

Happy New Year!  As an optimist, I always love that clean slate, full-of-promise feeling that comes with a brand new year.  I have not made resolutions or goals set down on paper yet, but this, for sure, is going to be the year I reach and stay at my goal weight (and maybe work on the procrastination issue!).  Last year had some ups and downs, but I weigh 20 pounds less today than I did one year ago.  That's progress.

After my gym workout on Thursday night, I swam.  I was able to add one more lap (both ways!) to my workout.  Yay.  Swimming does NOT come naturally to me.  I had a shoulder injury more than 10 years ago and think that some of the aches I've had recently are probably due to the swimming motions that involve that shoulder.  I'm taking it easy and a little bit at a time.  I was pleased to win a "sneak-race" with the man in the next lane.  [Sneak Race = spotting and racing someone who doesn't know s/he is in the race.]

J, trying to hold both his and E's new balls.  Note E's French braids.

We had the kids over last night so that the grands could open gifts.  Yes, yes, this is the Xmas I'm really behind.  They loved it anyway, perhaps moreso in spreading out the presents over a longer time.  Little J's favorites were a ball and a sweater with a big red fire engine on the front.  E loved her pink sweater with hearts and her new snow boots that light up when she steps.

For dinner I made an old fashioned roasted chicken (5 lb chicken, rub w/ olive oil & salt & pepper, roast in 500 degree oven for 1 hour--perfect every time), mashed potatoes, peas & corn, and, my new favorite, baked apples  (I've made these EVERY day since we returned).  We ended up not having dessert because the kids were very anxious to open their presents.  I confess, DH & I had WW latte bars after they left.

Capital Crescent Trail

Today DH and I are going to go on a long bikeride on the Crescent Trail.  Our temps are getting up to the mid 50s and we wanted to start the year off right and get some mileage in, too.

I'm back in the saddle with the new WW PointsPlus program.  A few small veerings off-course, but I just track them and use my generous allotment of weekly points.  Interestingly, my WW leader said that during her 2 month long trial of this program, before it was presented to us, she NEVER gave back any of her alloted points and still lost 4 pounds.  (remember, she was already at her goal weight).

My Hot 100 Update:  I did not reach my goal weight by today, but I am content that I did the best I could under trying circumstances.  I did firmly establish the 6/7 workouts per week plan--this feels just right to me.  Also, I think I have the chocolate under control. One ounce of dark chocolate per day, and I seem to be able to keep the remainder in the cupboard until it's needed.  Yay.  Thank you Steve for organizing this and keeping me accountable over the past few months.  I'll be back next year with a maintenance goal.

New thought.  Does anyone here have a Kindle?  I'm considering getting one.  We gave our daughter, Laura, one for Christmas.  I didn't realize it played games (scrabble, etc) until recently.  The other option is an iPad.  Ideas?  Comments?

Have a great day and a Very Happy New Year.

(my little bike rider next to my signature is from Andrew and is used with his blessing--thanks, Andrew)

I did it!

You can just start calling  me Tech-Tisha!  I got my sister's new Mac wireless system up and running in less than 15 minutes.  I am on my computer which found her new network with no problem at all (easy when I know all the passwords!).  Now all I have to do is find the right cord so I can get her ancient PC and printer connected to the network.  She's asleep in that room right now, so I'll have to wait until tomorrow. I think I'm going to get myself one of those Airport Extreme routers --they are awesome.

I decided to check a bag on my flight down.  I usually travel with a 26 inch suitcase, but, because I was bringing the computer & router as well as a couple bulky boxes of Christmas presents, I decided to bring my huge suitcase.  I checked it and only managed to squeak under the 50 pound limit by decanting a few items to a carry-on bag.   My trip was otherwise uneventful.  Oh, I did finish the "difficult" level sudoku in the flight magazine that had apparently been attempted by several previous occupants of my seat.  That felt good.  I also started reading the book Unbroken, by the author who wrote Seabiscuit.  This one's a true story, but it's not about horses.  It's about a second-generation Italian boy who was on the fast track to becoming a delinquent until he discovered he could run.  Really run. He ran for the US in the 1936 Olympics and was on the way to breaking the 4 minute mile.  Then the war came.  His war involved flying, crashing into the Pacific, being a prisoner of war, and becoming an unsung hero.  I like this kind of book and it's so well written, it almost reads like a novel.

This is how I like 'em best, cut in wedges.

I think I'm going to do fine staying OP here.  We had baked fish, 1/2 of a potato, and green beans for dinner.  I'm going to run to the store tomorrow and stock up on a few of my staples.  I'm already missing the huge box of navel oranges I scored at Costco on Friday.  They were delicious.  I want some NOW.  :-)  Hmm, maybe it's time for a nice glass of water.  I always have trouble staying hydrated when I fly.

I brought along my running shoes and my Nike+ ipod thingie.  I'm going to try to get out for a run tomorrow.  I only have about 25 miles to run to reach 500 for 2010.  That sounds like a nice round number, no? It's supposed to dip down into the 20s here tonight, so maybe I'll wait to do that run until the sun has had a chance to warm things up a bit.

Okay, that's it for now.

Have you enjoyed the first northern hemisphere navel oranges of the season yet??

Friday Fly By, Hot 100 Update

Where has this week gone?  And next week, by this time, Thanksgiving dinner will be a year off.  Amazing.

I did my strength work out last night, so this morning was a cardio morning.  It was beautiful out so I went for a run on the river trail.  For a change, I set off the opposite direction.  I did a combination of walking and running for a total of about 3.9 miles.  My little Nike+ girl is happy with me again.  I only have about 45 miles left to run this year to reach my goal of 500 miles in the year.  I'll probably surpass 500 handily.

We celebrated son Johnny's birthday yesterday (34).  I made two cherry pies and cranberry bars during the day.  We had flank steak, roasted potatoes, and broccoli (all "plan-friendly") and I did have a small piece of birthday pie (because I knew it was 'special').  I was pretty good about staying away from the cranberry bars, too.  Jay helped, inadvertently.  I made a double batch because I wanted to give a tin to Johnny (he loves 'em) and also take some to my dad (who also loves them) and have some for numerous house guests next week and send a tin in with Jay on his birthday next week.  This morning when I was getting the milk for my cereal, I noticed that the big tin with the extra bars was not there.  I knew DH wouldn't have taken them, and finally guessed that Jay had misunderstood and thought he was to take the big tin in to work to share with his work team today.  That was what happened.  The tin re-appeared back in the kitchen, empty, when he got home from work.  Oh, well.  I do super well at avoiding temptation when the object of my temptation disappears!

The second cherry pie was for dessert tonight.  We had some friends from our time in Rome to dinner tonight.  They're moving back to Virginia after having lived in Rome for 20 years.  They're missing good Italian food and cappucini, but are enjoying all the ethnic restaurants.  I made steak, whole wheat orzo with spinach and tomatoes, and sauteed zucchini with mushrooms for dinner.  I confess to another small-ish piece of pie.  We're sending the leftovers over to Johnny's house tomorrow morning and planning austere eating until the first house guests start arriving on Tuesday.

Hot 100 Update:
1.  I gained weight at my WI this week.  I am having a hard time getting back in that good mind-set.  I'm not giving up and I still hope to make progress toward my goal, but this week's grade for making progress is a fail.  Semper Speranza.
2.  Yes to the exercise.  6 out of 7 exercise days this week.  Good cardio, good strength workouts and I enjoyed the exercise.  I helps me feel better about myself to have succeeded in this goal and thank God it helps with the calorie war, too!
3.  Chocolate did not stay at 1 oz/day allotment this week.  Hmm.  Perhaps there is a correlation between goal #3 and goal #1.  

I've been tagged with some interesting questions.  I'll try to get to those tomorrow.

Be strong.

Travel Notes: Vol III, Hot 100 Update

Cora and Henry Lattin, my great grandparents

Don't you LOVE this picture?  I was finding some old family pix to put up on my facebook page for Veteran's Day and I came across this picture of my mother's father's parents BICYCLING.  Look at her outfit!  Can you imagine trying to bike in a long skirt??  They were both doctors in Albion, New York--she was one of the first several women doctors to graduate from medical school in NY.  I think this picture is probably from the mid 1890's.   See:  biking is in my blood!

Another great day.  I'm starting to sound like a broken record, here, but yes, it was another great day today.
As is so delightful on vacation, we slept until we wanted to get up.  I got dressed in my running clothes, had a quick oatmeal breakfast (perfect for a crisp fall morning) and went out for a run on the beach.  It was beautiful and sunny, a little breezy, but not too cold.  My run was a bit haphazard because I hadn't thought to consult the tide charts and I think high tide must have been reached some time in the middle of my run.  That meant that the nice "hard" surface sand kept getting washed over by the breaking waves and I had to dodge little incursions of waves trying to reach almost up to the sand dunes.  We've established that running on the unpacked sand is not fun, so I did have a lot of walking parts.

The incoming tide taking up some of the best running space.

I went 5km and had a nice run.  A couple hours after I got back from my run we went out for our bike ride.  The ride I'd read about started in downtown Wilmington and went out along the Cape Fear river to the beach.  We saw the traffic and lack of bike lane and decided to catch the trail closer to the river.  We parked in a community and were able to avoid the city traffic.  We went about 20 miles and were back in 2 hours.  It was a good ride and we saw some beautiful sites along the river, but Wilmington needs to put a little more work into its bike trail system.  The "bike lanes" were marked, but were quite narrow and the road was uncomfortably busy with trucks breezing past us as close as two feet away.  

Here are some pix from our bike trip:

A nice park at the far end of our ride.

You can see the bridge in the back ground.

A very cute covered bridge across a marshy area to a very large home.

Our bike lane.

All in all a very nice day.  We went with FIL to visit some of his friends for a late afternoon tea (I had a cup of coffee and 2 small (wonderful) cookies.

We came back to our beach house and I made a fish chowder--from scratch.  It turned out beautifully and I'll definitely make it again.  I used skim milk and skim evaporated milk and the only "off plan" things in the recipe were 3 T of butter and 2 T of flour.  It served 8, so that's not so bad.  The cornbread I made was a different story, but also very good.  I'm hoping that my 3 hours of exercise will offset 2 small cookies and a large piece of cornbread.  What do you think??

Hot 100 Update: (the quick, I'm tired and off to bed as soon as I hit "publish post" version)

I have 3 goals:

1.  I lost .5 pounds at my WI this week.  I'm headed back in the right direction.  With a few indiscretions, I have been pretty much right on plan with my eating.  I continue to weigh and record my weight daily.

2.  I am way ahead on exercise this week.  6 out of 7 days and several days with 2 sessions.  No "phoning it in" this week.  Yay.

3.  Chocolate.  I'm enjoying my 1 oz a day allowance.  I admit to doubling up one day, but I didn't have any the next day, so I'm averaging out okay.  I'm trying to stay with my 1 oz per day though and be satisfied.

Be good!  Tune in tomorrow.

Tish

Travel Notes: Vol II

What a great day!  I slept so well last night; I didn't wake up even once between when I went to bed and about 7:30 in the morning when the sun woke me up (believe me that's very rare!).  We slept with the bedroom door open and enjoyed the sounds of the ocean all through the night. Oatmeal this morning and then I went out for a run on the beach.  It felt great (especially the homeward leg when the wind was at my back).  Here's a picture I took on my way out.

Oh, this is not me.  This is the cute little guy who was my running partner this morning.

A nice lady took my picture.

DH snapped this good one of Jay and me when we all went out for a long walk after I got back from my run.

So I ran a little over 3 miles.  It's different running on the beach, I tried to stay on the "hard" sand near the water, but it's not the same as running on my normal trail.  I plan to run every morning that we're here--watch my little Nike+ girl icon and just see if I don't!

When we got back, DH went and picked up his father. They took his bike to the shop to get a new tube and then got back here.  I fixed a nice bean soup, popcorn, and orange wedges for lunch and then we went on a bike ride.  The gimp (DH, with his half-arm cast), the octogenarian (my 88 yr old FIL) and me!  Here are some pix from that ride.

FIL & DH

DH & me

FIL, looking pretty good, no? (he refused to wear a helmet)

Self portrait, while riding (nice quiet street).

We had roasted rosemary pork tenderloin, baked acorn squash & broccoli for dinner tonight and DH bought some WW latte bars for our dessert.

Tomorrow we'll do our long ride (28 miles) in the afternoon.  I want to run again in the morning.  This week will NOT be a "phone it in" exercise week!

Be good!  

Travel Notes: Vol I

Many thanks to the neighbor who has the unlocked WiFi access  :-)   We've arrived after a 6 hour drive.  The beach condo is gorgeous, I've stowed things from our huge cooler and 3 grocery bags so that we have good food choices, John unpacked the car and stowed our bikes in the garage, and Jay is happily ensconced in his bedroom with a portable DVD player and his favorite DVDs.  We have the sliding glass doors open so we can hear the ocean, the sky is relatively dark and the new moon is low on the horizon so the stars and constellations are particularly brilliant tonight.  We're sitting in the living room enjoying a nice cup of tea while I check in with my cyber world and John checks out Law and Order.  Our bedroom has a large deck overlooking the ocean and the bed looks really comfortable.  Heaven!

I imagine we'll wake up with the sun (streaming in our eastern window) and go down to the beach early.  I see oatmeal with cinnamon and raisins in my future!  I think I'll run on the beach tomorrow morning and we'll bike the island (4 miles long) and explore some of the side streets.  DH lived on the island for a year or so years ago, and he has lots of things he wants to show me.

At this same beach in 2006.  We'll get an updated version tomorrow!

I lost .5 at my WI this morning.  Not as much as I'd hoped, but with getting the car packed up, my Bible study, and the WW meeting, I didn't get in my normal Wednesday morning run, so .5 is comparatively good.  (Did you follow that?  It works for me.)

I planned our meals for this trip well and expect to stay well within my plan parameters.  Our vacation meals include a fish chowder,  roasted rosemary pork tenderloin, lamb loin chops, and a beef stir fry with red peppers, shitake mushrooms, and snow peas.  Our pantry here is stocked with whole wheat couscous, orzo, oatmeal, shredded mini wheat cereal, dried apricots, tea, and popcorn among other things.

I have our scale as well as all the electronic stuff we seem to need when we travel.  I put them all in a green fabric reusable grocery bag (ipod nano, cell phone charger, spare cell phone & charger, a surge protector to plug everything in, the download cord for the camera, the battery charger for the camera, the portable DVD player and its cords, and the nike+ thingamajig to record my runs).

How do you handle your technological accoutrements when you travel?  Do you go without  or bring it with?

Have a great day!

183.5

The day before WI

Hi all!   I got my trip to the gym in early today and managed to add a bit to my usual routine of lifting.  Later I met Sharon & Mr. B and we stopped for lunch at a great little Italian bistro place in Alexandria before heading into DC.

We took a behind the scenes tour at the National Cathedral.  Then we drove to Arlington National Cemetery.  Here are some pix:

View from the South Crossing

Not a gargoyle (no gutter pipe) but a "grotesque."

Unbelievably beautiful fall leaves.

View from JFK's eternal flame back toward Washington

Me, beside my sweet mother's grave.  She would have been 90 yesterday.

We're eating so well--healthy, nutritious, and OP.  Tonight we had Tilapia, broccoli, & roasted butternut squash.  After dinner--Wii time!  Sharon and Mr. B were newbies to the Wii and we had a great time and laughed a lot while playing with the Wii fit and some of the basic sport games.  I think we may have gotten Mr. B hooked!  

Tomorrow we're off on our mini bike holiday.  Lots of biking.  I plan to go to my WI on the way out to our bike holiday headquarters.  Off to bed now so I can get in my Last Chance Run before the WI.  

Bye for now.

What's Happening

Another fly by sort of post.  Sorry.

Thanks for all your good wishes to DH.  He's off refereeing 2 soccer games this afternoon.  Both bones in his right forearm are broken at the wrist and he's sporting a molded splint thing, and his fingers are swollen and he can't do any fine motor tasks (I had to pull up his referee socks and tie his shoes as well as retie the bandaging on his splint for him).  Typical guy--he still wants to referee because he said he would, and he likes doing it,  and because his leg's not broken [YET!].

In the hubbub of the emergency room, closing on two houses and the rest of life during the past couple days, DH forget to remind me that he had invited a nice young couple he knows from doing pro bono legal work to dinner last night.  Thank goodness they called in mid-afternoon to get directions.  Lots of scurrying around picking up toys, a last minute grocery trip and a very contrite DH, but I managed to get a pretty decent dinner on the table by the time they arrived.  We had grilled salmon with apricot glaze, whole wheat couscous with dried apricots, mint, and toasted almonds, and peas.  For dessert, I removed WW frozen yogurt strawberry bars from their popsicle sticks and topped them with fresh cut strawberries and a dollop of ff cool whip.  We had a fun evening, and  I even got in a kettle bell session in the afternoon in lieu of the nice long bike ride I was planning.

Anyway.  I'm off in a bit to meet one of you guys for coffee!  You know who you are, but we'll tell the rest of you about it tonight.  I'm going to put my camera in the car right after I type this sentence so I don't forget it.  'Til tonight!

Fall (Updated)

I went for a run this morning and it was great!  First the weather--it has turned beautiful this week. Temps in the high 70s, sunny and no humidity. Who could ask for anything more?  I wanted to get my run in, but also spend time with my brother, who is leaving tomorrow, so I limited my run to 60 minutes. With the temperate weather I was able to run much more easily. I still had some walking parts, but a lot fewer. I've always heard that interval training is good for runners, maybe my run/walk pattern might serve as some kind of an interval and, in fact makes me run better . . . . (you know I'm an optimistic glass half full kind of person!)

As I was coming to the end of my run, I happened to look down and saw these on the path.  I stopped to scoop up these few and brought them back to show you proof that fall is actually coming.  I also saw about 3 fuzzy/wooly caterpillars today--doesn't that mean that winter is going to be cold? 

My eating was a bit unusual (for me) today but falls within my WW Core guidelines.  Breakfast was my usual unfrosted mini wheats and half a peach.  For lunch I went out with my brother and his friend.  I ordered a cheese steak sandwich. I cut my sandwich in half and gave each of the guys a quarter piece.  I thoroughly enjoyed my half a sandwich and refuse to feel guilty.  So there! For dinner, we were 10 (we 3, brother & friend and son John's family + his SIL).  I made grilled sirloin/veggie skewers, apricot almond couscous, and broccolini with smoked paprika almonds and garlic. We had coffee and WW strawberry frozen yogurt bars for dessert. It was yummy.

broccolini with smoked paprika, almonds, and garlic

After dinner we went for an impromptu bike ride in the neighborhood. "We" is my bother, his friend and me. It was getting dark, so we stayed close to home.  My brother's friend was riding DH's bike (his first time with shoes & "snazzy pedals").  He fell, twice.  I fell once. Very embarrassing. It was not so much a matter of forgetting to unclip as it was trying to make too tight a turn. In any case, I got a skinned up elbow; not pretty, but it doesn't hurt--too much.  UPDATE:  It got achey after an hour or so, so I had to take some pain reliever to get comfortable sleeping.  I also have a lovely long bluish purple bruise and related tenderness on the side of my hip. Thanks Karen for the tip:  Unclip the shoe on the on the side of the tight turn so I can balance.  Sure hope I get this all down soon.  I'm a little old to keep diving toward the pavement elbow first.

Laura sent me a belated birthday present that arrived today--A Kettle bell plus a DVD set she says is very good.  Now I get to be one of the "cool kids!"  Thank you, beautiful daughter!  Yes, Laura has become a reader. She's on the other coast and is going great guns exercising, eating well and losing weight.  

I like trying new things. Chayote Squash was new yesterday. Broccolini was new to me tonight--it was deelish. Kettlebells are new to me. I'll try them out tomorrow and let you know. Falling with my new bike gear? It was new, but now it's old hat. I don't need to fall any more!

How about you?  Have you tried anything new lately??