How to not fail at feeding your kids

One of my co-workers told a story about a child who knew what she would be having for dinner days in advance. I quickly expressed my disdain for said child's parent.Not because the parent is evil, but because I am jealous of the skills it would take to master such a feat. I allowed this idea to consume me for a couple of days. I have done meal prep for the week in the past, but this does not usually include cooked foods. I usually prep veggies, season meats or make the baked egg cups for breakfast. Generally, I do not like to prepare food in advance. I am not a huge fan of the microwave and I prefer fresh cooked foods for dinner.I will eat leftovers and warm them in the microwave if they are available. I just don't want to if I don't have to. It's just my preference.

On Sunday, I happened upon an inspirational recipe site called Budget Bytes. There were so many recipes that were quick and easy and CHEAP!!! I decided that I would plan meals for the week. I printed out four recipes from the website. The fifth recipe was one of my own and the other days I left open to leftovers or tomfoolery.

On Sunday, we decided on a Spinach and Artichoke Wonderpot from the website. The littlest Joe was able to follow this recipe while I made homemade buttermilk biscuits. She used a little too much pepper but  the pasta was awesome. We used fresh spinach and frozen artichokes. We also sprinkled the pasta with Mozzarella cheese when it was done. The biscuits were ugly as sin but quite tasty. I was impressed. The Joes were impressed. So impressed that they asked for biscuits the next night as well!

On Monday, we had a crustless Spinach and Feta Quiche. Again, from Budget Bytes...The recipe calls for mushrooms. I hate mushrooms. We had a mushroom-less quiche. With biscuits. Again.

On Tuesday, I was a super lazy momma. I used one of my free days and ordered carryout for the kiddos.

Wednesday is usually the busiest day of our week. Big Joe had football practice and then band practice until 9PM. The littlest Joe has private Saxophone lessons in the evening. I have running around to do  in the midst of all this. I got up early this morning to prepare White bean soup from the Budget Bytes website. I had to alter this recipe quite a bit. I cooked the navy beans in chicken stock, with 2 smoked turkey tails, carrots, parsley root (I thought they were parsnips), onion, garlic and seasonings. I used soul seasoning, salt and pepper. This soup was sooo tasty. And there was so much of it. Definitely enough for leftovers!!!

Thursday was Halloween and despite the fact my children are big, huge humans, they were going trick or treating. The Littlest Joe was an 80's valley girl and the Biggest Joe was just creepy... Since they were given Chipotle gift cards for Sweetest Day by their adoring mom, they wanted to use them to get the 3 dollar Boo-rito and I obliged. I mean, helping to sort the candy and taking the yearly candy tax (they each give me candy for my sugar addiction) is hard work. Who could cook after that? Probably the aforementioned perfect mom...

Friday was the last football game of the season. When I got home, The Littlest Joe had left to hang out with a friend before the game and the Biggest Joe was still at school getting ready for the big game. I mixed some leftover white bean soup with rice and had leftovers for dinner. (I will have to try a less offensive bean next time).

Saturday was pork stir fry. This is my own little recipe. Cut up a pork tenderloin. Sauteed pea pods, zucchini, red and yellow peppers, onion and garlic. Added soy sauce and seasoning, of course. Yum-tastic!! This was served over rice. Which magically cooks itself in the rice cooker as the meat and veggies are being cooked.

I chose recipes that were manageable. I shopped in advance. I did not commit to cooking a specific meal on a specific day. The Joes helped in the decision making process. I was open to failure. Every one will not like everything. There is always an alternative choice. Its usually PBJ...I think this week in meal planning was a huge success. Now to plan for next week...

Recap of the summer (Part Deux)

I planned a little trip to Toronto this summer. My brother, Jason, lives there and this trip has been a long time coming. I planned to take the Joes, my cousin DuAne,  my nephew Bradley and two of his buddies from college (my extra nieces). When the time came for us to take our trip, Big Joe informed me that he could not miss that many days of football practice. He was gonna have to hang back. DuAne told us that he wouldn't be able to get time away and one of the extra nieces, Laina was out of the country. I was most disappointed that Big Joe was not going. He is 15 and able to stay home alone but I was looking forward to a family vacation. And who knew what he would be up to whilst I was away!!!

We drove to Canada on a Thursday morning. By we, I mean, Bradley. I was super excited to be a passenger on a road trip. I am usually the driver. It was a pretty uneventful trip. We listened to music and ate snacks and laughed and talked. When we crossed the border to Canada, we were all excited. We took pictures and began our countdown to our arrival at our destination. Soon, our happiness turned to frustration when we realized that our cell service was no longer working and our GPS no longer worked. We missed a turn and the GPS would not reroute us. LOST. IN. ANOTHER. COUNTRY. We finally figured it out and eventually made it to our hotel. The hotel was a Doubletree hotel outside of Toronto and was very nice and it prided itself on being a very "green" establishment. WIN!!!We drove around for 4 days in Toronto with archaic printed directions until my cousin J asked why wasn't I using my Tom Tom. AAAARRRRRGGGGHHH!!!!! I haven't used it in so long that I forgot I had it. It was helpful for the rest of our trip and the ride home.Duh!!

Jason, his GF Stefy and J2

J2, me, Taryn, Bradley and Jason

CN Tower

While in Toronto, we ate good food every single night. We attended an Afro-Caribbean festival. We took a boat tour of Toronto's waterfront. We shopped. We visited tourist spots. We had a great time.

Fancy!!!

Bradley and me at Spring Sushi

J2, Taryn and Jason at Spring Sushi

There was one tiny problem at the hotel the night before we left. Bradley and extra niece Taryn were heading out for an exciting night on the town in Toronto when they got stuck in the elevator. For about an hour and a half. The fire department had to come and rescue them. I believe there were tears. I was not crying...

Bradley FaceTimed me while stuck in the elevator

On our way home, we stopped in Niagara Falls. We parked in New York and walked across the border to Canada. We ate dinner at Planet Hollywood and had chocolate at the Hershey store.

We had an awesome time. Big Joe called me several times asking when we were coming home. He missed us. I had given my friends his number and gave him theirs in the event that he needed something. One friend, Tiara, called and checked on him AND went by to  visit him. What an awesome Kid-Spy!!!

I definitely enjoyed Toronto and will have to go back soon.

Getting back on the proverbial horse or literal bicycle...

Longest bike ride this summer...Hit a 4 minute mile in there!!

I had to buy new bicycles for The Joes last year. I went to Target one night and excitedly bought them both new bikes. I explained that they should take care of them, lock them up and not leave them in the driveway. One week after I purchased them, The biggest Joe left the littlest Joe's bike in the driveway and it met an untimely death. The biggest Joe's pedal fell off of his bike. We returned it and got another. Both pedals fell off. In the meantime , I lost my receipt. We're currently stuck with a pedal-less bike.  Needless to say, bicycle shopping in 2012 was pretty much a bust. 

This year, I invested in good bikes that will last for The Joes. The biggest Joe has a Giant brand bike and the littlest Joe has a Fuji brand bike. When I brought that Fuji bike home for the littlest Joe, I just had to try it. I needed to see if there was a difference between my cheap bike and this pricey bike. I can tell you with all certainty, that there is a difference. Over the summer, I have alternated between riding both of the Joes bikes. If I ride with the littlest Joe, I ride Big Joe's bike. If I ride alone, I ride the littlest Joe's bike. Starting to ride was a little difficult. I was only able to ride 5 miles in an half hour on my first ride. I set a goal for myself to be able to ride a double digit ride (10 miles or more) in an hour by the end of summer. I also wanted to spin for the entire ride (no coasting, constant peddling). A friend of mine who bikes encouraged me to try this. I rode about twice a week and used RunKeeper to track my rides.  My longest ride so far has been 11 miles. I participated in a virtual 50 mile race and used this race as inspiration to get in some miles on the bike.

Views from the ride

Swag bag from virtual 50 mile race for Alzheimer's Awareness

Recap of the summer (Part Uno)

I had an eventful summer this year. I had planned a mini vacation without the Joes and a family vacation with the Joes and my nephew, Bradley. I was super excited about both vacations. I was spending my mini-vacation with an old friend that I semi-dated in college in Puerto Rico and we were spending our family vacation in Toronto, visiting my younger brother, Jason. I had never been to either place. On the Tuesday before my Puerto Rico trip, I got a call while at my standing nail appointment (this is how I remember it was a Tuesday) from my friend from college (for convenience's sake, we can call him Steven). Of course, I couldn't answer because I was mid-Shellac and who wants to mess up their Shellac?? I listened to the message and found that he was cancelling due to work. I responded and told him that I was okay with going alone and that I would just do all the activities I scheduled alone. He selfishly requested that I not go without him. I stupidly obliged. The ticket that I bought was non-refundable but I had a layover in Atlanta so I decided to make some lemonade out of the lemons I had been handed. I bought a return flight to Cleveland, booked a hotel in Atlanta, reserved a car and called my buddies that lived there to make plans. I met up with a girlfriend from college, LuShaun, who is pregnant, for breakfast (my favorite meal of the day). She was absolutely adorable!! I shopped and ate with my girlfriend Nicole and her husband and then celebrated her birthday at a DJ Jazzy Jeff party. We also walked for exercise...around an outdoor shopping mall... I hung out with Shelly, my buddy from 6th grade (yes, 27 years) for drinks and then spent a leisurely day at the pool with her mom, her sister and her very adorable nephews. I also had lots of fun at dinner with my cousin Gary. Overall, I had a terrific time with my friends and family. I am a little bummed that I missed out on Puerto Rico. I wish that I had just gone alone but I am totally grateful for the much needed time away. I took one picture while in Atlanta. It's a selfie. The other two are stolen from other social media sites...

My outfit looks funny in the other pic. I think it's cuter here;-)

Me and Shelly

Nicole and Me at her birthday party

Save your dough...



The hair-pre cut

The hair-post cut



I made a decision at the end of spring to cut my hair. It wasn't a tough decision. Hair grows and if I wanted long hair again, I could just grow it. I cut it into a little bob and I love the cut!! I did not consider that I may not like to wear my hair curly. After a couple of times of wearing my mini afro, I decided that I preferred my hair straightened. I have been natural (no chemicals in my hair at all) for about 6 years so keeping my hair straight is a feat. Especially in the summer and with working out. I saw an advertisement for the "Save Your Do" wrap by Nicole Ari Parker and was curious. They claimed that the wrap would "wick away moisture from your hair, allow heat to escape, and when properly applied keep hair pressed down during a workout". I figured I could at least give it a try. The reviews that I read were all glowing. I was excited and dropped 29.95 plus tax to get my hands on this wrap for my hair.  My first use was on a bike ride. I choose a bike ride because I sweat less riding the bike than I do running. I went on a 6 mile/30 minute bike ride. When I returned home, my hair was drenched.  Hair style could not be salvaged. Had to do a wash-n-go. Check it out down below. I am definetly NOT a fan. Obviously, you can try this for yourself. In my opinion, it is not worth the money. You can save your dough and not buy the "Save Your Do"!!

After the "Save Your Do" bike ride
YIKES!

 

Fear of running

I took a break from writing this summer to enjoy The Joes and the season. I also took a break from running. I took this break because I have been afraid. I ran a couple of times this summer but no long runs at all. I ran a total of about 12 miles!!! My longest run this summer was about 3 miles and I struggled. I got fully dressed a couple of times and even thought that I would run more but when it came time to actually run, I chose to ride the bike or to hit the gym. I only figured out just recently that I was afraid. So…what am I afraid of?

I am afraid that I am old and will hurt myself. 38 feels a lot different than 26. When I was 26, I hurt my left foot at work. I was sent to an MD at the hospital where I was employed. After testing, I was diagnosed with arthritis in my foot. I didn’t care one bit. I didn’t take it seriously. I never got the prescription filled for the medication that was prescribed. I left the office and ignored everything that was said to me that day. I was 26!!! Who has arthritis at 26? Last year, after an injury to my right foot and repeated complaints of numbness and pain, testing revealed that I had arthritis in my right foot as well. This time I took it seriously. The MD said that staying active was a great way to fight it. So I kept running. I was still experiencing numbness and pain at times. This scared me and left me wondering whether or not I was going to permanently injure myself. My running times began to suffer. Where I was once able to run a half marathon without stopping once to walk, I was walking during 3 mile runs. I felt horrible about that.

I am also afraid of failing. I began to fear that my pace times would never improve. I want to be faster. Over time, I expected that my times should improve. I dreaded running and seeing those times taunting me. I wanted to see improvement. Over the 6 months prior to my running hiatus, I had only seen my pace per mile increase. People had invited me to run with them. I politely avoided these invitations. I disappeared. Last week I felt a renewed drive to run. I got dressed and ready for a run a few times last week but ended up biking or hitting the gym. On Sunday, the last day of my workout week, I was determined that this should be the week to re-start. I decided to run my street. One time up and down is a little over half a mile. I set a goal to run 3 miles. I ran that first mile in 9:38. The next mile was 10:15. The third mile was 11:29. I walked a portion of the 3rd mile. Positives: 1. I can still run a mile in under 10 minutes. 2. I am still in good shape. 3. I had no pain during this run. Negatives: I walked during a 3 mile run. I now have to set new running goals taking into account my lack of running over the summer. At this point, I need to work back up to my continuous 3 miles. So…If anyone is interested in running with a turtle. Let me know. I think I’m ready to get back on the road…

Happy Bloggerversary!!!

My actual handwriting...

Today is my bloggerversary and I had planned to write about my half marathon experience in Chicago. Instead, I will say that I am honored to have you as readers. Thanks so much for your kind words on Facebook, your re-tweets on Twitter, your comments on the blog and your sincere thoughts when face to face.  

 I signed up to run the Women’s Half Marathon in Chicago on June 23rd. I was actually very excited about it. My friend was going to run it with me. We have both been running for years, but have not run together in quite some time.  She told me that she was going to register but I have not heard from her since she said this. Despite being stood up, I was still determined to run it alone. I even took time off of work for a recovery day after the race. At the last minute an opportunity to go to Puerto Rico arose and I had to choose between going to Chicago to run 13.1 miles or going to Puerto Rico to soak up sun, sand and warmth. (I don’t want to take too many trips without The Joes.) I chose the later. I have never been to Puerto Rico and I am very excited. We are staying on Vieques. I am also very excited to hang with a long time friend. I have been religiously perusing all sites related to our trip and I have narrowed my choices for activities down to horseback riding on the beach, bike tours of the island, and a kayaking tour of the Bioluminescent Bay. If you have other suggestions feel free to share!  I also plan to eat lots of good food. I am not a modest eater either. I plan to demolish some seafood while I am there. 

I will see the Ocean again soon...