Almost myself

I know. It's been awhile. I was put on some new medication the other week that totally messed with me. This particular cure was worse than the disease; the side effects were excessive thirst (which I could handle by drinking water), excessive sweating (oh well, I'm a big sweater anyway and it IS summer), extreme fatigue (which I could handle by taking a nap but I was sleeping all.day.long), and pressure in my chest (which I could not handle.) So of course I googled the symptoms, and decided that I was having female symptoms of a heart attack. Or bad side effects of the drug, neither of which did much for the anxiety quotient. To show you just how bad I was feeling, another side effect was that it totally KILLED my appetite, and I STILL wanted to stop despite the weight loss. I spoke with the doc, and he was surprised I was having effects at such a low dosage, but I got to stop and am slowly feeling better. We may be adding something different in, so if I am MIA again, that could be the reason.

I thought I'd go to My Fitness Pal and see what I had for some of the meals, but there were entire days I didn't record anything. I know we ate; just can't remember. Let's start over:

I had to go back and reread the last post; it has really been awhile. Erin came home for a few days and I redeemed my Mother's Day / birthday coupon for a ticket to "Hairspray" and dinner with my favorite blue-eyed child. We went to Pitch and shared some roasted Brussels sprouts and a Mia pizza. I should really try something different there, but it's just so good! And you know what else was good? The Omaha Community Playhouse's performance of "Hairspray". Our friend's daughter was fabulous, but the entire cast was too. What a fun, joyful night! (Thanks again, Honey!)

Dwight broke in his new grill on Father's Day by grilling steaks. He chose a T-bone, while I had a strip. We had some corn on the cob (I could seriously make a meal of just this), some parmesan bread, and a salad. We were talking about how many different foods we had at that meal; we usually have the main dish and a salad or veggies. Too many choices! The best of which was my favorite wine:

OH - I cooked the corn a new way. I have been boiling it my entire life, but I read on Pinterest that you could microwave it - husk and silk intact. So I just googled "microwave corn on the cob", and it came up, complete with chart for cooking times. I cooked four ears (made some black bean / corn salsa yesterday with the leftovers), and the chart said eight minutes, turning halfway. So I dampened a paper towel, cut of the long pointy end of the corn, and put all four of them in the microwave. I cooked for four minutes, turned them over, and cooked for another four. When they were done I wrapped them in a dishtowel for about five minutes and then husked them. The husk and silk peeled right off. It was w-a-y easier than cleaning them before cooking.

Breakfast yesterday was a protein waffle and some blueberries. I haven't written the recipe for awhile, so just in case you were wondering: 1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal, 1/2 cup cottage cheese, 3 egg whites, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp vanilla, and 1/2 tsp almond extract. Put it in your Magic Bullet for a minute, and then cook. This recipe is from my friend MaryLu, and I've been making it for YEARS. Except that I was making them as pancakes; they are way easier to just pour the batter into (onto?) the waffle iron.

I made Thai chicken burgers last night when Emmy and her friend Tony were in town for the day. I know I've written about them before. I had made them on Erin's recommendation, and they were a hit once again. Tony said it tasted like an entire Thai dinner in one bite. (I did 'fess up to the fact that I was out of cilantro. I ALWAYS have cilantro in the fridge - except for yesterday. But they were still good.)

oatmeal with a tablespoon of PB, teaspoon of brown sugar, and almond-coconut milk

apparently I'm good at remembering to photograph my breakfasts

(A note on the coffee mug in the above two photos: I bought it last year at Sur La Table to drink my English breakfast tea and eat my English muffin while watching the royal wedding in my big hat and bathrobe. Totally true story. I'm a huge nerd. Coincidentally, that was the day that Alex proposed to Aly!)

Okay, back to food. I was running errands today, one stop of which was Whole Foods. And since it was lunchtime, I made a trip through the salad bar: mixed greens, spinach, roasted edamame, pulled chicken, shredded carrots and shredded radishes. And some Kombucha - I haven't had any for quite awhile, and there was a whole bunch of fermentation going on in my bottle. I'm glad I opened it outside my car! (That's right, I couldn't wait till I got home. Busted.)

And check out this new find:

It is every bit as good as it sounds. I had a basket full of goodies at Trader Joe's and the clerk asked if I was planning on tossing the broccoli slaw with the cilantro dressing. I wasn't, but I am now! I'm making gingered beef for dinner tonight and bought the slaw to toss with some sesame oil and rice vinegar for an Asian-inspired salad. I think I'll like this idea better.

Exercise side note: today is the first time I've done anything for a few weeks. I just walked the perimeter of the 'hood, which is two miles and many hills. I usually listen to my own workout playlist, but after reading about it on Carrots-n-Cake, I put on Pandora's Pop and Hip Hop Power Workout station. I found that Rihanna's "Don't Stop the Music" is my perfect walking cadence!

I probably won't post again till next week because I'm leaving tomorrow for several days of birthday / bachelorette party fun! Until then: