Reeds and Rachael

Practicing for Dave's recital is going well. At times my fingers don't want to go as fast as they need to, but I can play most of the piece (Paganini's Moto Perpetuo) up to our (current) performance speed. With all this practicing, my chops are feeling great (go figure!), and I'd love a chance to play a recital of my own in the near future. I guess not too near. No time before Baby, and I'm sure a recital will be the furthest thing from my mind for a while--short or long while, I have no idea!

In other news, Rachael Ray is a liar. (Fighting words?) I enjoy making most of her recipes, but they are rarely 30 minutes to make. Maybe it's my slow prep skills, but I average 45-60 minutes for her 30-minute meals. There are exceptions, and I can usually spot them, but sometimes new recipes take some experimenting. Tonight's meal was right on schedule, clocking in at 50 minutes. At least it was good. Smoked turkey sherperd's pie. Lots of leftovers. :) I did manage to slice off two fingernails (I'm not used to long nails, and they grow fast during pregnancy!) and a good chunk of one thumb. Hey--it turns out my knife skills ARE better in the oboe studio!

I'm so sleepy, and it's only 8pm. We're going over to Tracy's for dessert, which should keep me awake until bedtime.

No more scary blog titles

As per my friend's request, I won't write titles that include the words "blood" or "feeling sorry for myself" until after the baby's born. Even then, I'll use them sparingly. ;)

So, today's blog will be about my lunch. I stared, uninspired, into my fridge today, and I contemplated having cereal for my second meal. I spotted some turkey we'd bought, and I realized I had enough to make a sandwich. While having a healthy lunch isn't something to brag about, I was sort of proud that I came up with something besides Pringles and cashews. In fact, lunch looked so healthy and delicious, even if it was very very simple, that I took a picture.



So, yeah for me.

Eat it

I had a craving for tortilla soup, and I found this great recipe on FoodNetwork.com I made it with tortilla chips made from flour tortillas which I cut into strips and quick-fried in oil. Sooo good. Dave doesn't normally like soups, but he loved this one. He even ate the left-overs! And if you know Dave, that's a miracle. It's also great with guacamole or sour cream spooned on top.

Tortilla soup recipe

Enjoy!

Boo, Flames, Boo

What a depressing hockey game. 4-1 Detroit over Calgary. Way to start the series. They seemed to sit back and watch while the Wings hussled, and Kiprusoff was what kept them from losing 8 or even 10-1. At least it was on TV. Of course, that may be why they lost...because I was able to watch live. I've never been to a winning Flames game. I rarely see one on television. Do I have an overactive imagination, or should I just not watch the rest of the series?

In other news, I have no appetite. Forget the food pyramid--I can't eat enough in a day. My dinner was left-over guacamole and chips, left-over Kraft dinner, and a cheese stick. Oh, and a glass of juice. Right now I'm seriously contemplating some ice cream. And I thought Dave ate poorly when I went out of town. Come home, honey! (And tell me how the Flames did--I won't watch.)

Hard to practice, hard to eat

I'm practicing for my lesson with Ray Still next Saturday. When you're 1) not playing in a symphony (I don't have any more concerts this year--life of an auxiliary musician), 2) not in school, and 3) writing your lecture-document, not to mention the many other things that take up your time in life, it's so easy to fall out of shape very quickly. Maybe a stamina-heavy piece like the second Schumann Romance wasn't the best choice for today's practice session, but it sure did show me that I have my work cut out for me this week. Think of me as Rocky Balboa. My embouchure will be training big time. It'll be running up several flights of stairs, jumping rope...ok, I've never seen a Rocky film. Bad analogy to have chosen.

The food pyramid is proving to be tricky to follow. I'm not sure about the conspiracy theory, Mary, but who knows if the daily calory guides are entirely appropriate. I do think it's a good guide for the amounts of servings you should try to get in your diet (grains, milk, greens, fruits, protein). My problem is that I can't seem to eat nearly "enough". (Again, you may be somewhat right, Mary.) According to my food analysis, I'm eating about 1400 calories a day, and I "should" be eating 2200. Wow. Why am I not skinnier? ;) I tried to up it some today. I had McDonald's for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Kidding! I did eat more today though--trying to eat smaller meals more often. I definitely need to eat more protein. I was at 1 oz. yesterday. Hmmm. Who knew it would be hard to get enough food in your diet?

Food Pyramid

The US government is good for something...

Here is a free service to help you keep track of your diet and exercise, helping you make informed choices based on your individual needs. You have to create an account--it is free though. I've been keeping a food journal for sometime now, but this seems even easier! I'm also going to print up their food pyramid and put it on my fridge.

I'm heading to the gym now. Have a healthy weekend!

An acquired taste

One of the places we always visit with out-of-town guests is Chocolaterie Stam in Des Moines. They boast two world-wide locations: Amsterdam and Des Moines. Some might think DSM is an odd choice, but there were many Dutch settlements around here. OK, this is not a history lesson. I love this chocolate store. Back in Canada, one could compare it to Bernard Callebaut. A little pricey, but if you're going to indulge in a little chocolate, have the good stuff. They also sell salted, double salted, and triple salted black licorice. If you are saying to yourselves, "yuck!", you likely did not have a father who went to school in Holland. Growing up, my dad would take us to Heritage Park what seemed like every weekend in the summer. There's an old-fashioned candy shop, and my dad always got the "dubbel zout" variety. It remains one of my favourite treats today. Just about the only two people I'd have to worry about taking my licorice today would be my brother James and my dad. Since we're in Iowa, I don't even have to hide it! Dad, you know some is coming your way when Paul and Margaret go back to Calgary this week. Yummmm!