Marathon Mom

What a great day! A high of 60 degrees and sun, perfect weather for running. Started the day with a 5K at the local Turkey Trot. Still managed a decent time despite crowds, walkers, dogs, strollers and plenty of people starting much too further up then they should. Mile 1: 7:00 Mile 2: 6:20 Mile 3: 6:40 Finish 20:40, Nice! And I managed to run this comfortably with a presumed broken toe. Spent the afternoon eating pumpkin pie and then just had to get in another run with the dog to top off the day. Another 4 miles in perfect weather before coming home to grill for dinner. I've got to say even when I did eat meat I was never a fan of Thanksgiving dinner, the only part I've ever liked was the pumpkin pie and sometimes the stuffing if it wasn't too salty and mushy. My family often goes away from the traditional and opts for whatever dish we choose for most holidays. This year we were at the in-laws who stick with the traditional, well if you count canned vegetab...

November has not been a great month, can I have a do over? Please! It all started with some of the worst illness I've had in years, so much that I gave in and hit urgent care and got the dreaded words "just a virus". But was still offered antibiotics "if I wanted". What? No thanks! Especially not after all the GI issues I've encountered since the last antibiotics. The worst part of this illness...we're still not better. Every time I start feeling better it only comes back. And right now Ophelia and I are in the midst of wonderful upper respiratory fun. This needs to end soon. Then we decided it was time to give away the pacifiers and my big girl left them out for the baby bunnies. At first she was all excited about it, but has wanted to find the baby bunnies many times since. Luckily she was a toddler who only used pacifiers at nap and bedtime. Unfortunately after almost 3 weeks nap time sis still not fun much of the time and bedtime only slightly bett...

I love pumpkin so Fall is the perfect time of year. Last weekend I spent hours, roasting and pureeing pumpkins and now freezer is full and ready for my baking adventures. First up was pumpkin bread, it was a hit and Ophelia is requesting more, too bad it only last a couple days. Good thing it is healthy! I've been working on this recipe I've been adapting over the past month and keep forgetting the changes I make. The last batch turned out best so I figured I better write it down, so my main reason for the post is to remember. While posting I figured I'd also share on  Wellness Weekend Pumpkin Spice Bread 2 c whole wheat flour 1/4 c oats 1/2 c dates, packed (soak for a few mins in warm water if dry) 1/2 c non-dairy milk 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda 2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp nutmeg 1/2 tsp ginger 1/2 tsp ground cloves 1 3/4 c pumpkin puree 1/2 c unsweetened applesauce 1/2 c raisins or chopped dates (nuts, seeds, etc) Pre-heat oven to 375 F. Mix dry in...

The other day I was getting ready for work and having a conversation with my chatty daughter... O: Daddy? Me: Daddy's at work. O: Baby work. (she calls herself baby) Me: What do you want to be when you are bigger? O: Mommy. Me: You want to be a mommy? O: Yep! Me: How many babies will you have? O: 3 (holding up 3 fingers) Me: Do you want to be anything else too? O: No, mommy. Looks like at 21 months we have our first life goal and answer to the ever changing question "what do you want to be when you grow up?" Looks I I can forget about the college fund and instead start a wedding or rich husband search fund!

I'm a banana, ready to go trick or treat! The pumpkins she helped daddy carve!

Our CSA box has been overwhelming us with squash all season, every kind imaginable! It has taken some creativity to make use of it all and plenty of freezer bags full for future use. We have moved on to Winter squash and thanks to endless web searches and some ingredient changes we've had some great meals lately. It started with   Chipotle Butternut Squash 1 butternut squash cubed 1 onion diced 2 cloves garlic minced 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce diced (from can) 1 tbsp adobo sauce 1/2 cup tomato sauce 1 can black beans rinsed and drained Saute onion and garlic until tender, add squash, pepper and sauces and cook 25-30 min until soft. Add black beans and heat through, about 5 min. Serve topped with cheese, avocado, etc. Next came  Red curry delicata squash  with a few changes. 1) I'm lazy and used store bought red curry paste 2) Cauliflower sounded better then broccoli 3) I added in about 1/2- 1 cup of light c...

I kind of disappeared for awhile but with work, completing clinical hours for grad school and attempting to figure out a project that will be a approved I hardly have time to sleep. Things are just crazy around here, today was my one and only day home between last Thursday and this Friday (really Sunday since I will be gone all weekend). But this will be a much needed break with some college friends for a girls' weekend complete with wine tasting. This semester I am doing clinical hours in peds and OB and honestly if I have to do one more pelvic exam I think I will scream! Really, kind of boring, I can't understand why people work OB/Gyn. Peds on the other hand is slightly interesting, although some days I want to rip my hair out over the lack of parenting skills out there. It just amazes me how some people are so oblivious to their children's bad behavior. Some of these kids make mine look like an angel even on her worst days! Now the grad project is an even worse situ...