Radio Alumni Day

I don't know how many people who read this blog know this about me, but when I was in high school, I worked on the school's radio station, 88.5 FM WKPX for 3 years. I was a DJ and had my own show called "From the Vault" where I played mostly old rock - Grateful Dead, Pink Floyd, Phish, etc. - and it was a total blast. I spent two class periods every day in radio class - broadcasting, programming, reviewing music for air play, and making recordings of public service announcements.

I was invited to come back to the station for an alumni appearance last Friday. My dear friend Jen was also a DJ on the station so I asked her to come with me. We had an amazing time on the air and I can't wait to do it again! We even had our own paparazzi - Scott came along and brought his camera so we have some great pictures from the day too.

Recipe: Deviled Egg Salad

I've been on a bit of a sugar/carb detox after gaining a few pounds over Thanksgiving and my wedding vow renewal. This may give you an idea why:

So anyway...I'm eating very little sugar/carbs for a couple of weeks until my pants feel good again. This is a recipe I came up with for lunch, and woowee...it's slap-yer-mama good.

I don't normally like egg salad (except when my sister makes it with yogurt...hers is kinda delicious) but I LOVE deviled eggs. Go figure. It's a texture thing. But deviled eggs are kind of a pain in the butt to make in bulk, and transport for lunch and snacking. So I saw a recipe for deviled egg salad and I changed it a bit to suit my tastes. (Measurements are approximate - everything is "to taste" - I ended up using more hot sauce but didn't exactly measure...I love the stuff.) Yesterday for lunch, I made a salad with a bed of romaine, celery, a couple of ounces of grilled chicken, a scoop of egg salad, and a sprinkle of bleu cheese. Delicious!

Deviled Egg Salad

8 hard boiled eggs, whites and yolks separated, whites roughly chopped
1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup yellow mustard
1 Tbsp. cider vinegar
1 Tbsp. hot sauce (I used Texas Pete's in this recipe)
Salt & pepper - to taste
3 scallions, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped

Mash egg yolks with mayo, mustard, vinegar, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Toss yolk mixture and veggies with egg whites. Chill. Eat.

Vow Renewal

Scott and I renewed our vows on Friday since that was our ten year anniversary. It was an amazing day! I wanted to share a few of the pictures with you...I am way happier with how I look now than I did at the original wedding in 2002...

This was my favorite picture from before the ceremony.

Posing with my mama.

My Uncle Mark flew in from California to surprise us...that was AMAZING!

With my ladies...some of my best girlfriends...

from left to right - Vicky, Donna, me, Mom, Dawn, and Jen

I put on my original wedding dress to take some pictures...it's about 8 sizes too big so my friend Dawn cinched it up with hair ties and barrettes so it would stay on...very "Project Runway" :-)

 I DEFINITELY prefer the way it looks on me now vs. 10 years ago.

Newlyweds...again. :-)

 We got a mini replica of our original wedding cake - white chocolate and fresh raspberries.

...which Scott proceeded to smoosh all over my face with the 

excuse that he didn't do it the first time around.

For reference...here are some pictures of the first wedding...

Baked Oatmeal

Michelle asked how I make my baked oatmeal. This is the basic recipe as written, but I make some changes (see below)...

Ingredients

• 1 egg, lightly beaten

• 1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats

• 1/2 cup sugar

• 1/2 cup milk

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

• 1/4 cup chopped nuts

• 1/4 cup raisins

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

• Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Pour into a greased 8-in. square baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes. Cut into squares.

My changes...

I use regular long cooking oats (NOT steel cut) because I prefer the texture. I reduce the sugar to 1/3 cup and the oil to 3 Tbsp. I then add 1/2 cup of some sort of fruit puree (my favorite is pumpkin, but unsweetened applesauce or mashed banana works too). I increase the cinnamon to 1 to 1.5 Tbsp. because I love it - or I'll use pumpkin pie spice if I'm using pumpkin puree for the fruit. I don't like raisins so I omit them, but sometimes will use dried cranberries instead. I've made it with or without nuts. I also find that it needs a little longer to bake - 35 minutes or so. I like the top to be a little crunchy.

I made one batch with frozen raspberries and blueberries - it wasn't as good. They were a bit mushy. I'm going to try fresh chopped apples and dried cranberries and see how that is.

There you have it! Easy as can be.

Voted

Scott and I voted today. Did you? :-)

I haven't posted a full body shot in awhile but this is me at work. I think I look just sort of...normal. I like that. 

I was talking to one of the doctors at work about my band (I was having a really tight day and was sitting in the break room with my lunch in front of me and not eating...I made some remark about how I know it's a tight day when I can't even eat a whole pudding cup) and I showed her the "before" picture below...she gasped and said she couldn't believe I was the same person. I forget sometimes that the people I work with now didn't know me at 292 pounds.

Note To Self...

1. Never tell anyone that you "never" have a problem with a particular food. You will have the second worst PB of your life on said food that very evening. (Chicken thighs...I'm looking at you.)

2. It was finally cool enough here to go for a walk outside instead of in the stinky old gym. Cool breezes and sunshine and good tunes are better for my mood than I imagine a pile of Prozac would be.

3. THIS is my new favorite breakfast - homemade baked oatmeal with Greek yogurt. Tons of fiber and protein, not too sweet, and it keeps me going for HOURS. This batch has raspberries, cranberries, and blueberries in it. I'm going to make some today with pumpkin and lots of pumpkin pie spice. Mmmm.

4. My friend Maria sent me this pic of us from the end of the 5K a couple of weeks ago and I wanted to share.

5. And just for fun, I LOVE this pic of Zachary and ALL of his aunties in the same place at the same time. On the left is Laura, my brother-in-law's sister who (shameless plug) has a Kickstarter to raise money for her farm if you want to check it out. She's the one with whom I planted garlic at her farm last year. The woman makes some gorgeous veggies. Kate, my brother-in-law's twin brother's wife, is on the right. I really enjoy hanging out with her. I love having such great "co-aunts" for my beautiful nephew!

Ten Things Thursday

1. My request for time off for the entire Thanksgiving weekend was approved. Thank goodness! My 10th wedding anniversary is the Friday after Thanksgiving and that would have really sucked if I had to work.

2. I picked up over 8 hours of overtime last weekend. I really like my job and I am SO grateful for the extra money, but man...I'm tired. I'm glad I had yesterday and today off to recover.

3. My husband has had a bunch of dental work lately and is on a soft diet until his permanent crown is done in a few weeks. I'm putting my mushy cooking skills to work and I made shepherd's pie for dinner. I made one batch as usual, with ground beef, full-fat cheese and mashed potatoes for Scott, and another for myself where I used a little bit of ground beef along with red beans, carrots, onions, cauliflower, spinach, and corn for the base, a sprinkle of 2% milk cheese, and a very thin layer of mashed potatoes on top. It was tasty!

4. One of my favorite authors, Jennifer Weiner, wrote this article about the day her daughter used "the 'F' word" (FAT) for the first time. Very interesting read.

5. Today I was contacted by the Rachael Ray Show to fly to New York to be on the show and have a makeover...for free! I was so excited until I found out what the catch is...they're looking for couples who are having a "milestone anniversary" this year where BOTH people have a makeover. My husband really doesn't want to be on TV. Boooooo. I understand completely, but am still disappointed, of course. If you know of anyone having a "milestone anniversary" let me know and I'll pass it along to the producer I was speaking with.

6. I am obsessed...obsessed with The Hunger Games. I'm "reading" (via audiobook) the first in the series and it's totally not the kind of book I usually read, but it's fantastic. My "niece" Keara recommended it and I can't stop listening. I've already reserved book 2 and 3 from the library.

7. This new fill is treating me nicely. I lost 6 pounds the week after the fill. I feel great. Eating very little but not hungry.

8. I'm glad everyone had such a nice time in Chicago! I've really enjoyed seeing the pictures.

9. Scott is amazing. Truly. We needed to have some repairs done on our old house because our insurance policy needed to be renewed. Scott (along with our very helpful neighbor for a little assistance) did all of the work himself and completed a job that was quoted at over $2000 for under $500. Incredible. He seriously busted ass and we passed our inspection with flying colors. He researched how to do it and got it all done. I'm really impressed with him.

10. I have to work a 12 hour shift tomorrow, so I have to go wind down for bed. Goodnight!