Ft. Lauderdale Beach

(I took this with my iPhone at 7:15am when I ran down to the beach to watch the sunrise.)

Growing up so close to the beach, my life virtually revolved around the ocean. I would spend my weekends either swimming miles of shoreline for swim practice or sunning myself on the sand. There was always a pickup game of volleyball to be found and in the absence of any responsibility outside of swim practice, endless hours of beach time to burn.

(The pier is stretching out on the right.)

In the evenings, my best friend, Andy, and I would pick up a box of Krispy Kreme donuts and large Coke slurpees (from 7-11 of course) and head down to the Pier to consume our sugary treats and talk about our dreams. We would sit on the edge of the Pier and dangle our bare feet over the edge, guarding our donuts from the hungry pelicans.

For a long time after I moved away, I couldn't go back to the Pier because it brought back so many memories that I ached with homesickness for my carefree days at the beach. As the years wore on, that ache mellowed into a warm fondness for my youth and I slowly started heading back to that same stretch of beach to ruefully remember how I thought my life would be.

Life has certainly come full circle. Out of habit and nostalgia, I've been taking Parker to the stretch next to the Commercial Pier for his daily outing of sun and fun.

I think that he finds the same peace there that I have my whole life.

Glimpses

There are certain moments in your child’s life when you can almost glimpse what they will be like at a much older age. These pictures of Parker helping his Uncle Mike wash his truck are just such moments.

Looking at Parker here, I can almost imagine him as a teenager, washing his truck on a nice day and getting some color after a chilly winter. In other words, exactly the kind of thing I would have done as a 16 year old. Which reminds me, maybe it isn’t too early to install locks on the outside of his bedroom door…

For The Love Of A Running Shoe

There comes a time (about every 400 running miles or so) when it's time to retire a pair of running shoes. With the mileage that I generally run, this works out to be every 6 months or so and frankly, it's kind of a sad event. Please see exhibit A below.



The running shoe on the left is the old one and the one on the right is fresh out of the box. What I want to bring your attention to is the thickness of the tongue. Notice how the tongue on the old shoe is completely flattened while the tongue on the new shoe is nice and thick. Well, the same thing that happened to the tongue happened to the interior workings of the shoes. Running on a hard surface yields hundreds of pounds of pressure and the poor shoes can only take so much before they stop doing their job of cushioning your steps.

Here's comparison of the bottoms of the shoes.



I'm almost positive that the old shoe is caked with clay. At least I hope it's clay. I look at that worn sole and I think about all of the journeys that the old shoes and I have taken together. The races that we ran and the scenery we passed. It's bittersweet to think that they have no more mountains to climb. I truly can't dwell on it. I know it sounds totally bizarre, I mean they're just shoes, but still. I get attached.

And then I look at my new shoes...



...at their pristine stitching and unmarred whiteness...and I start to feel better. Holding those new shoes, I feel their potential. I dream of the miles and journeys we'll take and I know through experience that they'll help me go the distance. I mean, it isn't their fault that they're as of yet untested. And frankly, I know that in a week or two, my old shoes will be just a memory and the new shoes and I will have begun our new journey towards a life of happiness...that will last precisely 6 months.

The love of the running shoe is a fickle thing.

On The Road YET Again...

As you're reading this, I am traveling down the great state of Florida to meet up with these folks again. You know, the crazy computer crew that I refer to as my dear family.

After my almost 3 week long sojourn into solitude, I'm particularly anxious to see the munchkin. I simply cannot wait to snuggle him. In fact, if not for him, I would be perfectly happy to lock myself in my house alone for at least another 3 weeks or so. What? The Irishman would be welcome to visit me. Okay, okay, I guess I'm excited to see him and my little Greek parents as well. There's just nothing quite like having the clan all in one place...unless of course it's having them in one place while I'm by myself in the mountains living in utter silence and solitude. Just kidding. Kind of.

Moving right along, what's particularly exciting about next week is that the Catholic Easter and the Greek Orthodox Easter actually fall on the same day. If you'd like a full explanation of why they often don't, I can give you my father's phone number and just give him a buzz when you've got an hour or five to get caught up on the intrigues of the church.

Next week will be a Greek baking and cooking fest. For Greeks, Easter is the biggest holiday of the year. Yes, even bigger than Christmas. I believe that in 2012 our whole family is going to travel to Greece to experience it first hand in the motherland, but for now, my mom does a great job of keeping up with the pomp and circumstance of the holiday.

Of course, I'll catalog each delightful recipe and explain the meaning behind it and yes, I will even show you how we dye our eggs read and crack them at midnight. If you have no clue what I'm talking about, now would be a good time to rent My Big Fat Greek Wedding. But the fun doesn't stop with the baking and egg dying. No siree, we also get to go to an Easter picnic with the Irishman's family (all 50+ of them) and do the traditional Easter egg hunt and basket exchange.

It's going to be one fun-filled week. Of course, I'm going to be facing off against a whole hoard of people who are going to try to sneak ridiculous amounts of chocolate and candy to Parker, but I think I'm up to the task. Don't worry, I'm not going to be totally militant about it - I'll draw the line about when his eyes start spinning in different directions and he starts speaking gibberish. And then I plan on sending him home with the biggest candy-giving perpetrator. Yup, like I said, there's a ton of fun to be had.

Boston 2.0

Where were we...oh yes, old cemeteries. The next one that I visited was the Granary burial ground.



This particular cemetery had a ton of famous people...and a ton of not so famous people who clearly still had the wealth during that time to purchase expensive headstones.



The large obelisk that you see on the left side of the picture above was the tomb of Benjamin Franklin's parents. And here is the tomb of Paul Revere. So cool, huh?



And then of course the burial ground also contained the remains of John Hancock, who is best known for signing his name the largest on the Declaration of Independence.



And look, right across the street, Parker had his own hotel.



Continuing along to the Boston Harbor, I passed by this treasure trove - the main headquarters of the Boston Fire Department.



I wonder how many strapping firemen work in that building....never mind. About 2 hours and 2 large Starbucks skinny vanilla lattes later, I finally reached the harbor.



It was peaceful and lovely and I sat for a while imagining what it must have looked like filled with revolutionary era ships. Sometimes, I think that I should have been a historian because I'm fascinated by how events unfolded throughout time.

As I wound my way back into town, I had some not revolutionary sites to see, but every bit as historic. Below is Copley Square, the finishing line for the Boston Marathon.



In just a short few weeks, a bunch of really fast and dedicated runners are going to end the journey of a lifetime right there at that location. For a runner like me (i.e. a REALLY slow runner), that's like the Olympics of marathoning. Very cool.

Then I walked historic Newbury Street, Boston's shopping version of the Champs Elysee.



The architecture was gorgeous, the shops were amazing and talk about a fun place to people watch! I had a cappuccino at Stephanie's on Newbury and saw such an interesting mix of people walking the street. Suffice it to say that I was really well caffeinated after all of my walking and coffee-ing.

Well folks, that's it. My walking tour of part of Boston. If the weather had held, I would have loved to have made a trip out to Wrigley field, but I am quite certain that I'll be back to such a great city and perhaps, I'll even catch a game there.

Tour Of Boston, Part 1.5

I have to say that my absolute favorite way to see a city is by foot. I have walked some of the most beautiful cities in the world and while public transportation is generally available and always faster, you get such a better feel of the lifeblood of a city when you walk her streets. Join me on a walking tour of Boston, won't you?

I started out at the Boston Common, which was right by my hotel.

The Boston Common was the cities first public green space. Here's a blurb about it from the city's website:

The "Common" has been used for many different purposes throughout its long history. Until 1830, cattle grazed the Common, and until 1817, public hangings took place here. British troops camped on Boston Common prior to the revolution and left from here to face colonial resistance at Lexington and Concord in April, 1775. Celebrities, including Martin Luther King Jr., and Pope John Paul II have given speeches at the Common.

Walking around the Common, you come across various tour groups with a guide dressed in Revolutionary era clothing speaking about the history of the place. I chronically loiter behind these groups to hear just a bit of the lecture before moving along.

The Boston Common was also the beginning of the Freedom Trail, a 2.5 mile walking trail that leads to 16 nationally significant historic sites. It's a unique collection of museums, chruches, meeting houses, burying groups, parks and historic markers that tell the story of the American Revolution.

I have to confess that I used to have quite the obsession with all things patriotic as evidenced by the American flag converse that I wore every day of 11th grade. While my American flag wearing days are over, I still feel quite strongly about my civil liberties.

During my walk, I came across a monument of George Washington, our almost king.

I also came across the new State Building with it's golden dome that reminded me of the French building that houses Napoleon's tomb.

Then there were the burial grounds. For whatever reason, I am strangely fascinated by old cemeteries. They are so peaceful and make me as if I'm part of the wheel of time. A part of history itself.

This was the central burying ground. Hey, check out my reflection above.

The grave markers were all smooth and reminded me of the huge cemetery at Gettysburg.

Well, I just checked the clock and I'm due to leave to escort a group of youngins to prison in 5 minutes. Stay tuned for more of Boston tomorrow, including famous grave sites, shopping highlights and the Boston Harbor.

Boston, Part 1

Hi folks. Boy, oh boy, am I swamped! I literally hit the ground running when I landed yesterday evening from the airport and I have yet to come up for air. While I plan on posting a full “tour” of Boston tomorrow, I wanted to give you a sneak peak at my meet-up with my friend Jude and her family.

I met Jude in an online mommy group when I first found out that I was pregnant with Parker. So technically, even though this was the first time we met in person, I know her and her family better than I do a lot of my in real life friends that I’ve lost touch with. Jude in person was exactly what I thought she would be. She was witty and delightful. Of course, it helps that we have similar positions on a lot of things, but seriously, it was just like continuing a conversation that I had just left off a week ago.

Even though I’m not a hugger by nature, I attacked Jude and her poor husband, Josh, when I first saw them. It just was so seriously cool to meet them in person. And her children, my goodness were they adorable! Her daughter is smart as a whip and ridiculously well behaved. I had to pick my chin up off the floor as I watched her sit all through dinner, quietly eating. As you know, Parker would have been running around like a bull in a china shop unless he was bribed for the duration of the meal. And her sweet little 7 month old boy…well, I would be lying if I said that my uterus didn’t flutter. He was just so sweet and beautiful.

We met at Boston’s public park in the Back Bay area (just down the street from my hotel) and spent a good hour walking around there. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and the park was packed! Then, we went to a great local seafood restaurant. On the way to the restaurant, I got a great history lesson on Boston in general and on that part of town in particular. The evening flew by with great conversation and lots of laughs. I am so incredibly thankful that we got to meet up and next time I’m in the area, Jude and family will definitely be priority one on my to-do list.

Pardon The Interruption

Hi folks! I just wanted to hop on to say that I'm still in Boston for one more day, but that the regularly scheduled blogging will resume on Wednesday.

Sunset

As you know, I love sunsets. When the sun dips below the horizon and paints the sky with gorgeous hues, it takes my breath away and makes me grateful for living yet another day. I also can't help but to photograph them whenever I come across a spectacular one. Here are three gorgeous sunsets that I've come across recently that I had to share with you.

This one was somewhere in north Georgia. I took this picture while we were driving down the highway on our way to Florida.



And here's a lovely and muted sunset in Tallahassee, Florida. I took this one from my darling friend's front yard.



And finally, this was taken from our back deck in North Carolina. I stood outside in 35 degree weather for about 20 minutes watching the sun go down. Which was really stupid on my part considering that I could have had the same view from inside my dining room.



Seriously, I almost can't handle the beauty that the earth has to offer. Sunsets are like snowflakes, no two are the same and I catch myself wandering towards the back of the house every day around the same time just to see what will materialize. This is my version of taking a moment and step outside and smell the roses so to speak.

Shrimp Salad

So, you may have noticed that I post a lot of shrimp recipes on here. There's a good reason for that - shrimp are healthy (less than 100 calories per serving), nutritious (18 grams of protein and 15% of your daily iron) and cook in under 4 minutes. Plus, it's such an easy addition to so many things.

For example, I regularly make a simple side salad for dinner. I just buy the organic bagged salad that already has shredded carrot and 3 different types of lettuce and then I just add some diced onions and top it with an olive oil vinaigrette. Well, this past week, I got a great deal on a 2 lb. bag of frozen peeled and deveined shrimp (it was only $10). I got the inspiration to add shrimp to my salad watching a Red Lobster commercial during a rerun of the Golden Girls. It looked so good with the steaming shrimp and the crisp salad that I decided to make one immediately.

30 minutes before I wanted to eat, I just put 10 frozen shrimp into a bowl of water and let them thaw. Then, I drained them and seasoned them with Old Bay seasoning and sauteed them in a skillet with a bit of olive oil on medium high heat. For medium sized shrimp, let them cook for a maximum of 2 minutes per side. Then, just assemble your salad as you normally would and add your shrimp on top. That's it! A super simple, low-fat protein boost to an everyday salad.

St. Patrick's Day

Today is St. Patrick's Day, which didn't really mean anything to this little Greek girl until I started dating the Irishman almost 9 years ago. Part of the reason that I call my husband "the Irishman" is because that's how I think of him in my own head. Both his first and last name are decidedly Irish, his ancestry is primarily Irish (with some Hungarian thrown in to keep it interesting), he's a beer drinking (non-practicing) Catholic and finally, he was born on this most holy Irish holiday.

So to my dear and darling husband, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

I thought that it would be appropriate to finish with a traditional Irish saying.

May the road rise up to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back,
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon your fields,
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

Happy St. Patty's Day everyone!

Purple Crocs

Our little guy Parker is very expressive and very opinionated. He loves cars and trains, sand and dirt. He also loves the colors pink and purple. They're his favorite. What's really interesting is how people around him have responded to his love of so called "girl" colors.

A couple of weeks ago when we were out shopping for rain boots, I held up two pairs (a light blue and a navy blue) for Parker to pick from. He pointed over to the bright pink ones with polka dots and said, "I want those!" And in a moment of truth, I embarrassed my sociological self my nudging him towards one of the two blue pairs I held. I wish I could have grabbed the pink polka dot ones and said, "Ok buddy, these are great," but instead, I thought of all of the older little boys at his school and all of the potential teasing that might take place and I pushed convention over polka dots. The Irishman was appalled at my decision. His position was that if Parker wants pink then let him have it and I got grief over denying him the pink boots for weeks. I felt seriously guilty and like a sell-out. It was the first chance I had to support him in his "fight against the man" and I folded. I felt very small and vowed to do better next time.

Fast forward a couple of weeks. My mom and I had taken a trip to Target with Parker and decided to get him some sandals. When we got over to that section, my mother (unaware of the previous boot situation) asked Parker to pick a color. Without hesitation, he pointed to the pink pair and said, "I want pink!" Relieved that I had a second chance to redeem my sell-out self, I said, "Absolutely Parker, here you go." My mom looked at me like I had grown two heads and said, "Seriously?" Then, she said to Parker, "Don't you like purple too, Parker?" His response was, "Yes, I want the purple pair please." She quickly swapped out pink for purple, heaved a sigh of relief and we went about our business. Of course, I totally stole the Irishman's position and guilted my mom for the rest of the trip. And that is how Parker ended up with a pair of purple crocs that he proudly sports on a daily basis.

The Scoop On Greek Yogurt

Greek yogurt has really become all the rage in the last year. It's thick, it's creamy, it's expensive! So, what's the big deal about Greek yogurt? I would love to say that it has twice the awesomeness simply for being Greek, but that's actually not true. Most Greek yogurts sold in this country are manufactured in this country. For example, the Oikos yogurt above, which has a lovely picture of Santorini, Greece on it, is actually manufactured by Stoneyfield Farms right here in the USA.

That's not to say that I don't buy Greek yogurt. I actually have two containers in my fridge right now. That's because, for me, it comes down to one huge advantage. Greek yogurt has twice the protein of the same amount of conventional yogurt. As you know, protein is great for building and repairing muscles. Based on my weight, I try to consume 75-125 grams of protein per day, which is not easy to do when you're a pescatarian. Oh and Greek yogurt also has fewer carbs per serving if you're into that low-carb thing.

So, if you are looking to pile on the protein (or replace carnivorous sources of protein), then the cost may be offset for you. However, if you simply like yogurt in general and get your recommended protein through other sources, then you probably don't need to invest in the Greek stuff.

Besides, I can show you how to duplicate the thick creamy texture of Greek yogurt using the regular stuff. In fact, before it became fashionable to eat Greek yogurt, my mom used this method for years to get the consistency right for making tzatziki.

First, put a medium sized strainer over a bowl. Make sure that there's about an inch of room between the bottom of the strainer and the bowl. Then, overlap coffee filters so that the strainer is covered. Finally, dump your yogurt into the coffee filter lined strainer, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it over night. The next day, you'll have a thick, creamy yogurt left in the strainer and the excess liquid sitting in the bottom of your bowl.

Another tidbit of useful information is that dairy in general is one of the few foods that can have the fat removed while retaining all of the nutrients. In other words, you're getting the same benefits from fat-free yogurt as you would be from full-fat yogurt and the same goes for 2% cheese and skim milk. The same is not true for most other reduced calorie foods. In fact, studies show that people who consume reduced fat snacks (like Oreos or Cheez-its) actually consume more calories than if they were eating the regular version of the product. That's because they feel less guilt consuming it so they eat more of it. Do you know what this means?? This means that I read way too many studies on diet and nutrition. Regardless, it's true so read those labels.

Anyway, back to yogurt; however you choose to enjoy it (be it Greek or traditional), it's definitely a good part of a healthy diet so eat up!

Recovery Breakfast

Just last weekend, I stayed with Brother Dean while I was in town for the Disney half marathon and I must say, he is a great host (never mind the fact that he's male.) When I got there, the house was spotless and there were candles burning. After relaxing and watching SportsCenter for a couple of hours, he whipped up a delicious dinner of shrimp cooked in a red sauce with spaghetti paired with a delightful salad, which included strawberries, sunflower seeds and a balsamic vinaigrette.

He thoughtfully turned down the TV when my geriatric bedtime of 8pm rolled around. I could have blamed it on the 3:30am wake up time, but who am I kidding, I could have absolutely nowhere to be the next day and I'd still be in bed by 8pm. Right before bed, he took the clean sheets out of the dryer and made the bed and then asked what my preferred house temperature was.

The next morning after I came home from the race, this is what was waiting for me:



It was nothing short of the perfect recovery breakfast. Whole grain toast with crunchy peanut butter, sliced bananas drizzled with Greek honey, half of a cheese and herb omelet and hashbrowns. I should mention that Dean's plates are giant sized - that was a ton of food...and I ate every bite.

I have to say that I'm really proud of my big brother and his thoughtfulness. We've come so far from the days when he stuffed me in the dryer almost 25 years ago. Oh, the memories...

Papou and Parker

"Papou" is the Greek word for grandfather and it was one of the first handful of words that Parker said regularly. Even when he was an infant, Parker and his grandfather shared more than just a name (Parker has papou's middle name). They share the same ears as well as the same mannerisms; similarities which have become more pronounced as Parker has grown. Please see exhibit A below.



This shot was not staged at all. They were both just happily eating their breakfast, but check out the eerily similar hand placement as well as the posture and head tilt. It's uncanny! There are also some parallels in their personalities (which of course I share as well). They can both be introspective and very serious. Parker has ridiculous amounts of patience for a 3 year old and he will diligently work on a puzzle or a problem until he figures it out. There's no giving up for our little man. Also, they (and I) are adverse to loud noises, which is an irony considering the voluble person that I married. I have to say, it tickles me when Parker says, "Hush daddy, you're just too loud." Ha!

One of my greatest joys is watching my parents interact with Parker. I'm so incredibly lucky that they're both still here with us and it's one of the reasons that we go to South Florida when we have a break long enough to warrant the trip. Don't get me wrong, I'd rather gouge my eyes out than live down there, but the thrice annual month-long pilgrimage is definitely worth the trip.

Meat Alternatives

When I first became a vegetarian over two years ago, I began looking for healthy ways to replace the protein that I had been getting from meat. The first type of products that I tried was the fake meat soy products. I'm primarily talking about the Boca burgers and Boca grounds that are the most common meat substitute available. There was one problem. I thought that they were...gross. I'm perfects happy with soy milk and edamame, but the soy meats - no thank you.

So, I started searching for other protein products that were not soy based and not yuck. After much searching and experimenting, I came across two such brands. The first one is Quorn. Quorn is made from mycoproteins. Here's what they say about them on their website:

Mycoprotein is made from a member of the fungi family (like mushrooms and truffles) and is a high-quality meat-free protein that's naturally low in fat, with very few calories. It's high in dietary fiber (important for your digestive system) and has the essential amino acids your body needs, with no cholesterol or trans fats at all.

Now, there are two Quorn products that I love. The first is their grounds. The picture below is from their Australian website so it's called Mince here, but it's called Grounds when you buy it in the states.



You use these grounds just like you would ground beef. I make tacos with them all the time and just last night, I sauteed an onion, added the grounds and brought it up to temperature. Then, I added a jar of spaghetti sauce and some oregano. I let it simmer for 15 minutes and I had a bolognese sauce. It was scrumptious.

The other Quorn product that I love is the nuggets. These nuggets have a great flavor and texture and I like to mix honey with mustard for the sauce.



Moving along with our Tour De Sans Meat, my favorite burger product is made by Amy's Organics. These veggie burgers are actually made out of *gasp* veggies! My favorites are the California burger and the Texas burger.



Pop the burger in the microwave for 60 seconds, throw on a slice of cheese and zap it for another 20. Then, throw it on a sesame bun and add on all of your favorite toppings and condiments. Personally, I'm a lettuce, tomato, pickle, mustard, ketchup and mayo kind of girl.

So there you have it. Whether your a vegetarian or not, these are some tasty and filling alternatives that will happily live in your freezer until you're ready to eat them up.

Virtues of Pacing Yourself – Disney Princess Race Recap

Last December, I wrote about the painful experience that was the OUC half marathon. It was ugly. I was in pain. And frankly, it was an experience that I didn’t want to repeat. Looking back on that race, I know exactly what I did wrong. I went out too fast. WAY too fast. It’s another failing of mine – I’m impatient and I seem to think that I’m capable of more than mortal feats. Man, was I wrong and the OUC proved it.

Fast forward 3 months to the Disney Princess half marathon. My dear friend Kasey and I decided to run it together. We were back at Disney, where our inaugural marathon took place and we were very much looking forward to catching up with each other.

One thing that made this race different from the OUC half was that we were both coming into it with an injury. Kasey’s knee had been bothering her for about 10 months (on and off) and unfortunately, it had recently flared up during a 12 mile training run. I have been having issues with a lower calf strain and a tight hip flexor. In other words, we both feel about 60 years old when we stretch. It’s a common affliction of high levels of training.

This Disney race started off the same as the last one – 3:30am wake up time, arrive at the Epcot parking lot at 4:30, walk to the starting line at 5:30 (it was a 6am start). Since there were so many people running the race (14,000 for this one), Disney assigned individuals to different corrals based on proven or estimated start time. I had been placed in corral A due to my finishing time at the full marathon and Kasey had been placed in corral E (even though we had the same finishing time, she didn’t report the Disney full time).

Here we are waiting for the start.



Well, when we found out that (1) we couldn’t sneak Kasey into corral A, and (2) corral E didn’t have a start time until 6:28am (it was COLD outside!!), I talked Kasey into jumping the gate at corral B so that we would start at corral B. Yup, leave it up to the criminologist to talk Kasey into breaking the rules!

The runners waiting at the starting line.



Due to our rule breaking behavior, we got to start at 6:07am (after freezing and shivering for a short while) and we were off. And limping. And moaning. You see, for a lot of mild injuries, the first mile is the absolute worst, especially in the cold. It usually takes a bit to get your muscles and ligaments warmed up and until then, you limp and grunt your way through the pain. Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?

The good news is that because we were hobbling along so gingerly, we inadvertently paced ourselves at a slower rate than we would have if we had been 100%. By mile 3, I think we were both feeling decently warmed up and as the sun rose, we really started to enjoy the race and the beautiful day that was dawning. I have to say, the miles literally flew by. I couldn’t believe that they were coming up so quickly. This was due to one thing – good conversation. Have you ever been chatting on the phone with a good friend and hang up only to realize that an hour had gone by? For Kasey and I, running is the same way (well, at least it was after we stopped moaning long enough to chat).

Look, Cinderella's castle!



I wish that there was something more to be said for the middle part of the race, but truly, it was easy and breezy in its entirety. In fact, around mile 11, I had started to feel guilty that I wasn’t suffering more. Clearly, I wasn’t pushing myself hard enough, but truly, in my world, that’s what training is for. The race itself is just to have fun – Brother Dean would greatly disagree by the way.

Before we knew it, we were back in Epcot and in the last mile. We had a smile on our faces for the duration of the race and we kept up an easy banter throughout. It was about as much fun as I could have possibly have had on a Sunday morning at the crack of dawn.

So, the moral of the story is that if you go out slowly and conserve your energy, you’ll succeed in your event and you’ll have a better time doing it. I actually beat my time from the OUC half and that was including stopping for pictures and a potty break. Go us!

Culinary Cheating, Redux

After posting about culinary cheating last week (and getting laughed at by my mother for complicating things that could and should be simple), I decided that a couple times a week, I’m going to keep it simple: 1 protein + 1 veggie +1 starch.

In my own version of this combination, I made the following: shrimp sautéed with a sprinkle of Old Bay seasoning, spinach sautéed in a little olive oil and garlic and then finished with lemon juice and a side of white rice.

It was simple, it was filling and it was my perfect for my tastes. Oh yeah, and it only took 10 minutes to throw together. Stay tuned for more simple meals – maybe by the time I’m 50, I’ll learn that each part of life doesn’t need to be turned into an Olympic event. Oh, why am I kidding…I’ll never learn!

Wired.

I like to call this one "Wired." What would our Greek ancestors think if they saw our modern day reliance on technology? I shudder to think...but it does make for a cute photo. If I were to hazard a guess as to what was on the computers that I couldn't see...

The Irishman was probably looking at either his email or a gaming blog. Probably his email since my father was in close proximity. My father was probably checking his bank balance or reading up on Greek news. Parker was watching, "Accidents Happen," a Thomas the Tank Engine song. And my mother, well, my mother probably had 8 windows open with her various email accounts, the news and different assignments.

Chewie. Eats. Poop.

Chewie is an incredibly cute dog. Everyone who sees him in the street stops to comment on his gorgeous coat, his light blue eyes and his sweet disposition. But Chewie is harboring a dark secret. It would make most people shudder and cringe despite his cuteness. The cold, hard fact is that Chewie. Eats. Poop.

Please feel free to shudder and cringe, I'll wait.....

I have no idea why he does this. It makes it so much worse that he doesn't discriminate - fresh or old, his or Nona's, feline or canine - Chewie is simply a poop eater of the largest magnitude. It's so bad that I've started to walk the dogs separately so that I have a chance to pick up after them before Chewie could have "dessert."

I'm also aware that my neighbors (and now my parents' neighbors) are privileged to a steady stream of curses and exclamations of "CHEWIE, DON'T YOU DARE EAT THAT POOP! STOP THAT! UGH! WHY, OH WHY ARE YOU A POOP EATER!!"

I'm not proud of his behavior (or mine), but I simply cannot bring myself to turn a blind eye on this behavior. We've talked to his vet about it and tried changing his diet to no avail. When I called his vet for a follow-up, the revised prognosis was that sometimes, for no reason whatsoever, dogs just like to eat poop.

I'm not exactly sure why I'm sharing this with you. It grosses me out on a regular basis, but I guess it makes me feel better when I see people who seem gorgeous and flawless beyond belief. They're probably hiding some deep, dark secret like excessive flatulence or halitosis. I'm just saying...

Best Friends

Here is Parker with his best friend, Beck. Parker and Beck share a last name. This might explain while they both thought that they were brothers upon meeting. Clever kiddos. Beck and Parker are roughly the same size (Parker is slightly taller and heavier) and more importantly, they have the same level of exuberance. Man, do these kids run like maniacs around the playground! They go to the same preschool and their teacher assures us that they're double the trouble on the days when they're both there. While I feel a twinge of parental guilt that my son is one of the more active children there, I secretly applaud his independence. Don't let "the man" hold you down boys! Be free!

Okay, so I got a little carried away there, but seriously, I feel that children should be children. Respectful, but uninhibited when it comes to creativity and imagination. If a wanted a droid, I would have stuck with my Cabbage Patch kids.

Well, the boys are going to be separated for the month of March while Parker vacations in Florida with the grandparents and Beck continues on with his usual schedule up here. Apparently, Beck is convinced that he's going to Florida too. I don't envy Beck's mother once he realizes that is not the case. Poor kiddo. Parker is, thankfully, too uber excited about seeing the grandparents to realize that he'll be without his partner in crime for an extended period of time.

I can only imagine that this part of parenting gets harder and harder the older the kids get. Parker currently views each trip as a big adventure. In a handful of years, the Irishman and I are going to be the villains who are dragging him kicking and screaming away from his friends. I know this because that's exactly what transpired as soon as I hit my teens and my parents still insisted that we go to Greece every summer. The nerve of them!

Anyway, wish us luck that separation anxiety doesn't set in. I really want him to have a great time during this warm weather sojourn.

Root Beer Pancakes

One of the Irishman's favorite cookbooks is one that was published a couple of months ago by our local micro-brewery. Each recipe includes beer. There's beer chili and beer cheese soup; beer cake and beer pancakes. Wait, beer pancakes? That one gave me pause. Imagine as I might, I could not fathom how beer pancakes could possibly taste good. I mean maybe if they were made with ROOT beer...

And so it happened that I whipped up a batch of fluffy, moist root beer pancakes. I figured that root beer was simply a sweeter, non-alcoholic version of regular beer so the ratios should remain roughly the same. The only thing I had to increase was the amount of flour because the consistency was a bit runny for my taste. Anyway, they were so tasty, that I forewent the usual dousing of syrup that I usually drown my pancakes in and I elected to sprinkle them with powdered sugar instead. Delightful, no?

Here are the ingredients:

1.5 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup root beer
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbs. butter, melted

Super simple - just mix together all of the dry ingredients and then add in the wet ingredients. Stir until the batter is no longer lumpy. I like it pourable, but not runny so I generally adjust the flour accordingly until it's where I want it.

I almost always use an electric griddle to cook pancakes because I can make 6 at a time and the flat, non-stick surface makes them nice and smooth. Once I pour the batter, I don't touch them until the sides of the pancakes are dry and air bubbles start rising to the surface in the middle. If you're using an electric griddle, 300 degrees is about right to get them golden brown.

As you can imagine, this recipe could be easily modified to use Coca-Cola or Cream Soda if that's what you have on hand. I like that there's minimal dairy (in the form of butter) since Parker has an intolerance to dairy and he also feels like he's getting a major treat just because there's root beer in there. Hmmm, perhaps I can modify a recipe to make root beer vegetables...