yay me!

Fast forward past the cold from Hell – I finally found the motivation today to get off my arse and engage in some type of exercise.  I’ve been neglecting myself and my house these past few weeks since we have all been sick non-stop.  From a series of colds that got passed around and back again, to ear infections, to infant constipation issues, I was starting to consider buying stock in Kleenex and Pedialax.

I had to break out of what was becoming a “crash on the couch because it’s easier” routine and do something. However, I had to start slow. My abs are sore from coughing and the thought of any cardio activity makes me nauseous. Within an hour or so tonight, I was able to pull off 30 minutes of yoga, clean my bathroom and my bedroom, wash dishes and make a round of baby food (mangoes).

I was a little worried to step on the scale since I’ve been off the wagon lately, but was pleasantly surprised to see my weight hadn’t faltered that much. So far, I have shed 42 lbs. of baby weight and I don’t plan on gaining any of it back!

electric food steamers rock!

me with my super-duper steamer

If you’ve never experienced the joys of an electric food steamer, you haven’t lived. Maybe that’s a bit extreme, but seriously, my food steamer rocks! We had put it on our wedding registry (we’re married now – woohoo!), just curious about it really and not expecting to get it. I’m so glad we did because you can cook almost anything in it. Check out the picture below – I’m making hard-boiled eggs and rice all in one contraption! 

Another night we made a layer of corn on the cob, a layer of tilapia filet, and a layer of broccoli and squash – all in one fell swoop – and in only 30 minutes.  By the way, we have found that steamed corn on the cob might even be better than grilled corn on the cob (>gasp<).  You can make all kinds of vegetables, meat, fish, rice, eggs, oatmeal, and even heat up your leftovers in this baby.

I don’t know how some food steamers compare to others, but I do know that ours is awesome. You can find it here.

Next - crab legs!

We’re engaged!!

The Ring

We got engaged on April 11 (411) at Skyland Resort on Skyline Drive, near Luray, VA.

 

Poor Gyp Gyp

We had quite the scare last week when our dog, Gypsy, had a seizure.  I had never seen a seizure in a dog before and naturally it scared the hell out of me. 

For the past few months I noticed when she would be watching me in the kitchen she would sometimes have what I can best describe as head tremors.  They would last less than a minute and I could distract her with a treat and they would usually stop.  Ryan made the observation that they only seemed to happen right after exercise. 

Last Wednesday we exercised her like we usually do by throwing her ball up and down the stairs for a few minutes.  And since it was a nice day we decided to take her for a walk which took approximately twenty minutes.  When we got home I went on the back deck to do some planting and Gypsy followed me out as she likes to lie in the sun.  I heard a thud behind me and turned around to see her on the ground.  Her toes were curled in and her jaw was clenched tight as she was shaking uncontrollably.  The seizure lasted only a couple of minutes, even though it seemed like forever.  Afterward she was up and walking around like nothing happened.  We took her to the Vet ER that night to make sure she was okay. They did blood tests and said that she probably has epilepsy. 

The next day we took her to our regular vet for a follow-up. She said that there is a condition among some labs where they can have seizures after they are over-exercised or over-heated.  However, the only way to check for this is to get a rectal temperature while she is having the seizure, as dogs with this condition have a very high fever while suffering one.  She couldn’t think of anything else that would cause the seizure, and she was hesitant to caul Gypsy an epileptic dog since she is almost six  years old (usually epilepsy appears earlier).

Luckily, she hasn’t had an episode since that night. In the mean time we’ll have to be very careful about how much we play ball or how far and long we walk. She’s happy to be getting much more attention and to be even more lazy.

Snow!!

Gypsy in the snow!

We just had the first significant snow storm I can remember since the ’90′s. I’ve missed the sound of fresh packed snow crunching under my boots, the glisten and  sparkle when the sun hits it, the mountains of white created by plows, and best of all, snow days!  I’ve been saying all winter that I just want one good snow. I am definately satisfied!
Gypsy really enjoyed the snow too and we now have a favorite new game: “Where did that snowball go?”