Posts filed under 'Special Occasions'
Voyages of Discovery
This is my last post for a while, dear readers, as the much-needed holiday va-k season officially begins.
After hosting a holiday cookie exchange with fab friends on Sunday, at the crack of dawn Monday morning, my husband and I are driving to DC (where we met and where I moved here from) and Annapolis (where we got married) to see friends and family over the Christmas holiday.
We won’t be back until late Sunday night, so I probably won’t blog again until Tuesday or so.
This means several things:
1) I will be away from my house. (my usual food/morning get-ready routine)
2) Away from the gym. (my usual exercise routine)
3) Away from my computer. (my technology addiction)
Could be scary, but I’m not afraid. After all this time, I know some certainties about myself. (more…)
17 comments December 19, 2008
Life’s Like a Dreidel …
Hannukah, like Christmas, is just around the corner.
And while I’ve long out-grown my Hebrew School days and the eight nights a year spent playing dreidel with my siblings (always figuring out a way that *I* could win the most of whatever we were playing for, be it money, chocolate coins, etc) … I recently had the opportunity to revive my Jewish roots by teaching a friend’s bright-beyond-his-years four-year-old son about Hannukah …
Hannukah, the Festival of Lights, the holiday where Jews around the world remember the miracle that occured when, at the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, oil that should have burned for only one night, burned for eight.
Sharp as a whip, her son had come prepared with really good questions to ask me about one of my favorite holidays. I answered them, and we talked about special Hannukah foods and shared some Hannukah songs, which of course brought me back to my childhood.
Then, we played dreidel, a game beloved by children around the world. For anyone who doesn’t know what a dreidel is, it’s a small top that children play with on Hannukah. The prize can be anything, but it’s usually gold chocolate coins (called “gelt“), which are distributed to each player before the game begins. (more…)
13 comments December 18, 2008
New Year’s Resolutions — Thanks, But No Thanks
It’s ironic (or maybe not?) that during the most joyous, food-filled time of the year, everyone seems to be talking about dieting, “being good” or “being bad”, weight loss, exercise … it’s like a national past-time this time of year. A fixation on “fat.”
At work, at home, out socializing, at the mall, restaurants, you name it … I’ve heard it. I’m convinced the topic du jour is the dreaded, dirty four-letter “D” word.
Collectively, we indulge and talk about it. We don’t indulge and talk about it. We talk about the new pudge around our middles and the extra flesh forming on our backside, real or imagined.
We commit to the gym, our trainers, our nutritionists, our diets, our programs.
We pooh-pooh things people bring to work (or to the gym or deliver to our home) as “too fattening” and groan when we see it … then we over-indulge at home on Puffins or something equally ridiculous. (more…)
23 comments December 16, 2008
Not Quite There Yet
Today I read this post about going ahead and enjoying the holidays by Anne at Elastic Waist. You can see my comments (Melissa); I appreciate what she wrote, but I have to admit:
I’m just not quite there yet.
And I don’t know which came first: the chicken or the egg. As in, I don’t know if it’s because I’m not at the weight I want to be at, or because I still look at some foods as “healthy” or “unhealthy” even though rationally I know I shouldn’t.
Food is, after all, food. In small quantities, there’s no harm in it. Yet I still attach stigmas to certain foods, even when I don’t realize I’m doing it. (more…)
9 comments December 8, 2008
Preparing for Turkey
Image credit: worth1000.com
I love, love, love turkey.
But I don’t like stuffing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, or candied yams — four of the side dishes that seem to make their way to every Thanksgiving table I’ve dined at since birth .
(OK, save for our honeymoon in Puerto Rico when we opted for chi-chi Italian on Thanksgiving night!)
This is nothing new; as a kid, I loaded my plate up with rolls, turkey, cranberry sauce, and veggies.
And today, I still do (though now it’s wheat rolls and homemade cranberry sauce with orange zest!)
What always ruined my othewise-healthy Thanksgiving meal as a child and teenager was the appetizers and snacks my nana or mom always put out … and the desserts, of which I never ate less than two.
Today, I will prepare for the holidays with caution and care … not the careless abandon I had as a child, but also not the restrictiveness I’ve done in the past (which only backfired with midnight eating or noshing all day). (more…)
10 comments November 19, 2008
Melting Pot Fun
Saturday night, my husband and I went to the Melting Pot to celebrate our second wedding anniversary (which is tomorrow).
We had a blast, and I’m so glad we went. I’d been with girlfriends in college, but he’d never been before. Since his love for cheese pretty much rivals my love for chocolate, I figured it was guaranteed to be a surefire success.
And oh, it was!
I planned (are you surprised?!) somewhat for the day by getting in a great cardio workout in the morning. I felt so good, I literally could have kept going, but knew that would be counter-productive if I ended up ravenous.
So we had a good brunch at home in the morning, then got dressed up, visited a friend and their new baby (totally made me want to have a baby — STAT!) and headed off to an early-ish dinner. (dinner at the Melting Pot is a 2 1/2-3 hr affair if you’ve never been, and it’s an hour away from us).
By the time we arrived at the Melting Pot, the aromas were enticing beyond belief, and I was super-hungry (usually I have an apple or something so I am not a wildebeast). But I wanted to save my appetite, and thought going hungry would be a good thing. And it was! (more…)
10 comments November 17, 2008
