Kid Pics...

It has been a while since we posted some pictures of the kids, so.....here they are:

Nom de Pen

So I was thinking about what my pen name would be if I had one, when it hit me: Lemony Snicket.  Kim ruined my joy, though, she claims that one is already taken.  So I decided to brainstorm on some other potential pen names, see what you think:

Orangeny Smiket

Cherry-ey Likit

Banana-ey Rickets

Coconuteny Wicket

Apple-ey Cricket

Hmmm...much to consider....

My Meatless Month

So, at about 2:43 pm on February 17, I made up my mind to accept the challenge that had been brewing inside me for several weeks: No meat for one month.  Why do such a thing, you might ask? Have I always dreamed of the special privileges of the vegetarian diet, such as being able to give a half smile and say, "actually, I don't eat meat"? 

No.  

Have I reached a crucial point in my not-quite-as-young-as-I-used-to-be life in which I needed a drastic change? 

Nope.  

Is it a condition? 

No.  

Does the mental image of a fluffy young lamb frolicking in a flowery meadow cause my appetite to shrivel? 

Nope, lamb is delicious.  

The truth is that I came to the realization that somehow, someway I had developed a 'foody' bias towards vegetarians, or more precisely the vegetarian diet.  But when I asked myself what my reasons for thinking vegetarian fare to be lesser, the only real answers I could muster were that it doesn't contain meat, and is probably bland.  Neither of which is substantial reasoning; the first is part of the definition of vegetarian, and the second is more of an hypothesis...one that I decided should be put to the test.  So to sum it all up, I challenged myself to a meatless month to face my prejudice head on and to find out in a real way once and for all if vegetarian is as horrid as I thought.

Here are my rules: No meat (duh!), dairy products and eggs do not count as meat, fish and shellfish do.

"Hmmm...", you say, "and what did you learn, strange person?"  

Actually I did make several important realizations during the past month.

First, the way 'pasta' is pronounced in a British accent sounds eerily like the way 'pastor' is pronounced by New Yorkers or Bostonians. (I am not exactly sure the implications of this, but it certainly has deep meaning).

Also,  there are many ways to cook both zucchini and red peppers.  In fact, going meatless wasn't nearly as hard or complicated as I had expected.  Some of our recent favorite dishes, such as Nasi Goreng, Pasta with polenta, and even fajitas actually lend themselves quite well to vegetarian versions.  Additionally, taking lunches to work didn't end up being much more of a chore either.  Peanut butter and honey sandwich, Cheese and crackers, trail mix,  none of these require any real change.  So did we make any changes, then? (I say we, because Kim actually was super supportive and went along with me for meatless dinners).  Yes, we did try out Lentilloaf in place of Meatloaf, Curried Chickpeas with Veggies in place of Curried Chicken, Roasted Veggies with Hummus, and also Tofu in place of Shrimp in the Nasi Goreng.  And the honest truth is that the vegetarian fare did not lack in flavor.  An added bonus  is that while I wasn't really planning on this being a weight loss type of effort, when I started eating meat again I noticed that my stomach had gotten used to much smaller portions, and I am not eating less at a single sitting than before.  A very interesting side effect, don't you think?

So to wrap this whole thing up, I learned over my meatless month that a vegetarian diet can be just as satisfying as a meat-filled diet, and that it doesn't require buying special, expensive food or living off of lettuce.  In addition, there is some sort of connection between eating veggie meals and portion control, although I am not sure what since I only noticed this after I started eating meat again.  

Phew, that was quite a post, time for a steak or maybe a grilled mushroom...oh the choices! :) 

February, Cold but Damp

January and February have been quite eventful so far, several birthdays (Roger McKnight, Landon Queen, Nimajneb Naak) , a few tests of the ol' immune system, the Superbowl,  the pastor at our church actually using a 'Highlander' analogy in his sermon (still trying to figure that one out), and maybe biggest of all, Stella has realized that she adores whipped cream.

She is also fond of chocolate cake, but the whipped cream is like more favorite.  (Brian Regan reference #1)

Elijah has also found out a little about himself...he has discovered that he distinctly enjoys playing video games...mario games to be exact.  He does what every normal 4-year-old should when controlling the mario, he leans and jumps and moves around the room as if he is actually jumping on giant bird-turtle things and such.  It is pretty funny, he needs like a 10' x 10' area to be able to play (which wouldn't be odd if we were talking a Wii game here, but the truth is that we only have a Gamecube!  I know, I know, like sooooo 2005,  but we are willing to shoulder the shame :)

Oh look, the little guy managed to find a Mario sculpture at the 'Canstruction' display at the train station, its like Mario follows us these days.

Well, it is forcasted to be 63 degrees tomorrow, which will feel like a heat wave compared to the recent frigidity, so I am gonna go dig some shorts and a tank top out of my closet.

Have a great Week! (You too! .....and there is Brian Regan reference #2)