Today's the first day of the rest of your life..

OK, really, that is a song by Rascal Flatts, but it popped into my head as soon as I got home today. Why you might ask? Well, I keep talking about going to the gym, and right now that is not in the budget for Penguin and me. So,my sister J had given me Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred around the time of my wedding and I promise, no I pinkie swore that I would do this tape. Well, I am sorry to say that I didn't. I had every excuse under the sun, and man, to me they were all good ones. The only one that made the most sense was that I didn't have the right sports bra. Well, J fixed that too. see, she told me about this sports bra company that makes bras for well endowed women. I even got a bra in my favorite color PINK. Anyway, I think I used the sports bra like for a week and then put it away. Out of sight out of mind. Well, last night at work it occurred to me that I don't need a stinking gym to get in shape. I can start with the Jillian video and then see where I feel I need to go next. So, that I what I just got finished doing. I did the level one video and it KICKED MY ARSE FROM HERE TO NEXT WEEK!! No seriously, I am sore in places I didn't know existed. And even better, in exactly a month is Christmas, so if I can do this 20 minute exercise every day for 30 days, maybe I will notice a change in myself by Christmas. I am the hardest critic I have. Even though everyone said I looked beautiful on my wedding day, all I see are the flaws and the what ifs. But, I also know that it is possible for me to get back to that day, and maybe better. See, right now I come home and go right to bed. I don't sleep well, I don't eat correctly, heck, even other body systems were wacky. About a month ago I started taking vitamins and I have started to sleep better. I really think I was lacking vital nutrients just because of my sleep schedule. So I figure maybe if I start exercising I will feel the need to sleep. Penguin starts school in Jan, so he won't be able to still be sleeping when I get home from work. In a way that is a good thing because then nothing will stand between me and working out. I just have to remind myself that it is only 20 minutes a day...what is 20 minutes if it means I feel just a little bit better about myself.
I also started looking up smoothie recipes. If you have any good ones, send them my way. I never eat 3 meals a day, so I know I am not getting enough fruits and vegetables in my diet. Add on the fact that Penguin doesn't eat fruit and only certain vegetables you see where my dilemma is. Anyway, I found this awesome recipe and I am dying to try it. See, I am lactose intolerant, so I only do dairy in small amounts. This recipe calls for Almond Breeze, which sounds amazing and I think would be an awesome change from milk. Anyway, today, before my work out I made a smoothie, and I surprised even myself. Here is my smoothie recipe, which I think I am going to try to make again before I go to work. Again, any recipes send them my way!

Mixed Berry Smoothie
1 cup Lactaid (we have non-fat, although I am sure milk will work as well)
1 cup fresh blue berries
1 cup of frozen mixed berries (some concoction my mom gave us)
6 oz of Yo plait yogurt ( mine was peach)
Put it in a blender and puree. If you don't use frozen fruit you may have to add ice.
It was yummo..although I think the mixed berries had raspberries in it because I kept picking out seeds.

Apple Pie update

Well...As you know, the apple pie was made Friday. Penguin and I finally got to try some of it. The hubs enjoyed it...his actual words were "honey, you can make this any time, and no worries, I will eat it." Looks like I can make apple pie afterall. Thanks Katie and your grandmother for the recipe.

Last Sunday of ordinary time...

That is what I heard in Church today. Last Sunday of ordinary time. That means that Advent starts next weekend...which means 5 weeks until Christmas. Holy moly! Where did this year go. I have so much to be thankful for. I will save my thankful post for Thanksgiving day. In the meantime, I just thought I would say that finally...finally the weather is starting to behave like it is supposed to this time of year. Finally, little by little we are getting ready. Penguin says no tree or decorations until after Thanksgiving...hopefully by J's birthday we will be ready. I feel bad for Rockle who's entire family apparently is ill of some sort. Hopefully by Thanksgiving you will all feel better. Speaking of Thanksgiving...I will not be there to celebrate with family. I work Mon-Thursday, but no worries, Penguin is making our own meal so I will make sure to take pictures and post it on here. I will miss you guys, but this girl has got to sleep. Oh, quick mention..I will be in Brooklyn with Penguin and his family for Christmas Eve, so unfortunately I will not be back in time for Christmas Eve Mass...anyone wanna join me on Christmas morning? Just thought I would ask now. Anyway, have a blessed last Sunday of Ordinary time. Hopefully Penguin will be up soon and we can go visit the one and only Nana H.

Apple Pie

An aunt of mine makes apple pies all the time for my grandparents, and whenever I ask for a recipe, the answer I get is always the same...THERE IS NONE! (And, I want to respond "If you know how to make it, you had to learn it somewhere right?") But, I just mumbled nonsense under my breath. Well, thanks to a new blog I read from an awesome girl named Katie, I became obsessed with trying to make my own apple pie. What a better way to vent your stress and frustration than baking right? Yeah, I know. Penguin does the cooking and I do the baking. It is an agreement we have and quite frankly I am OK with that. Anyway, I chose today to be the day that I try it. Now...I have learned that making your own pie crust from scratch is messy but none the less fun. Here are the pictures like she did...step by step.
Here is my crust in the kitchen aid pie pan...always wanted to use it;)

Even Penguin helped...he was in charge of peeling and slicing the apples.

Pie with apples assembled....wow looks like it is going to EXPLODE!

Pie with topping...almost ready for the oven...

Pie all topped off and ready for the oven...

See, the pie is in oven...I can't wait to smell it cooking...


TALA! The finished pie...


Now, I just hope it looks as good as it smells.

Accident

Yesterday, Penguin and I were on our way to the grocery store when we got in an accident. While I don't want to get into the details because all that really matters is that we are OK, this is what happens when a

crashes into a

And while the above is an exaggeration of what really happened, below is the real results of what happened. The first picture is from the Internet. It is the rear driver side of what Penguin's car looked like before the accident. (The only difference is Penguin's car is not red)

Here is what the same side of Penguin's car looks like now, post accident.

So, we did it

SO, today Penguin registered for his first college classes. Starting Jan 12th, the igloo is going to be completely different. Penguin has class everyday except for Fridays and the weekend so now he will have something else to do to pass the time. Even I got in the class spirit. Since I am still waiting to hear if I got into grad school, I thought of doing something productive. So, while Penguin is taking classes to start his career, I am taking classes to umm...start mine? Nahh, I am taking a photography class because well what a better way to truly value an awesome camera is to take a class on how to take photos. Not really sure what I am going to be learning, but it seems fun and interesting, and I thought why the heck not. Anyway, not much else going on here in the igloo. Penguin has been cleaning up the house since I stopped asking him to help and well actually, the place is kinda awesome now. We are slowly getting more organized and maybe one day before our lease is up, it will actually look like people live here.

Veterans' Day 2009

Yes, I know this post is late, I hope you can forgive me. Working night shift sometimes has it's perks (why else can I stay up late to watch reruns of True Housewives); but it also has it's downsides (like sleeping while the rest of the world is awake). Anyway, was Veterans' Day, and Penguin is a vet...so, I had to do something to show him how much I appreciated what he gave up. But, what do you get someone for Veterans' Day?! Well...one of my co-workers suggested this Little dessert...

(Yes, I made this...well assembled it, and I used the food setting on my camera). With the craziness of how working nights goes, Penguin and I did not eat this yesterday..BUT, don't worry, I will be trying this today! Happy Veterans' Day! I know I am late, but it doesn't mean I didn't think about it!

My project for this weekend...APPLE PIE! I found this awesome website on the blog of an awesome girl named Katie and the recipe looked easy enough, and her pie looked awesome. Wish me luck..it is the first time I am going to try to bake an apple pie!

High Hopes

...yes, I did have high hopes. High hopes that the Phillies would have won the world series, hopes that I would have bragging rights in the igloo of mine, but I digress. The Phillies did not win, but we are still National League Champions. We are still the team that last year won the pennant and still celebrated our 10,000th loss. There are a lot of what ifs and what could have been, but that won't change the outcome. It won't change the fact that my mom's secret boyfriend is Chase Utley, or that the Flyin Hawaiian is also known as Shae's Victorino cuz he's her best friend. It doesn't change how it makes us feel when they win and when they lose. What it does is it plants a seed of hope and dreams about what next year will bring. I do have to say that I am proud that the series wasn't a sweep, and that the Fighting Phils lived up their name. I am proud to be a Philadelphia Phillies Fan, and I guess I still love Penguin even though he is for the other team.

PS Say a little prayer for me, I have an interview at a top secret location today...I will tell you about it later.