The Search for New Recipes

I have been trying to shake things up regarding our dinner lately. Usually I make a dinner of chicken or beef, with some tofu, shellfish, or pork now and then. We usually have rice or pasta with some corn, potatoes, or bread/pastry now and then. We have vegetables with every meal, sometimes with salad on the side. Same old, same old.

I started looking for new recipes because on Wednesdays and Fridays the kids have Tae Kwon Do from 5pm-6pm and when they get home they’re hungry. I can’t start making dinner when we walk in the door and have it ready fast enough to please them, so on those days I have to have something ready on the stove, in the oven, or in the crock pot for when we get home. We’ve had casseroles and lasagne; we’ve done soups, stews, and chowders; we’ve had all sorts of slow cooked meals; I’ve made pizzas, pies, and breakfasts. And still when the kids come to the table and look at their plates they’ll invariably say “This again?”

So I borrowed lots of different cookbooks from the library and picked some yummy-looking bubbly suppers to try. With varying success. Also, a friend put together a recipe exchange email group where we can send our healthiest recipes and she would forward them on to the group (I’ve almost exhausted my list of tried and true “healthy” recipes for her). The family have been my guinea pigs while I’m trying out all these new dishes, and some have gone over better than others. I’m still mixing in some of the old favourites too just for comfort.

At best we’ll find some new faves to add to our list of usuals, and at worst we’ll sample some new tastes to break up the monotony. Do you have any favourite healthy family dinners? Would you care to share the recipe?

Marathon Training

So it’s official, Kent has convinced me to attempt to run a marathon. We have set our sights on the Vancouver Marathon on May 1^st. This will be my first marathon and I’m a little scared by it. Not only is it a daunting distance, but the training plan is a huge commitment.

Kent has decided to run this one with me at an easy pace to encourage me over the finish line. Like running with my own personal pace bunny. So we have both chosen a training plan online, and will be doing the same weekly runs (though his will be much faster than mine). I had to tailor the plan to my schedule and work around Caylie’s preschool days and my volunteer hours, but it’s going to look like this:
Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Run for a specified time rather than distance (eg 1 hour), combined with some hill work. I will probably always do this on the treadmill.

Wednesday: Rest

Thursday: Tempo

Friday: Recovery with some speed bursts (“striders”)

Saturday: Long

Sunday: Short, easy run - maybe with a local running group

And there we have it. So far the Tuesday runs have been the hardest because it’s on the treadmill and when I run on the treadmill I find my willpower and dedication waning. However, most of the runs are going according to plan. So far my speeds are a little slow for my liking, but it’s early in the plan yet and speed will come with more training.

I am trying to balance getting in all the miles and building the training base with easing into higher mileage and avoiding injury. A delicate tightrope walk, but so far I have been fairly pain free. There is a long road ahead, but I am feeling optimistic!

De-Stressing in 2011

With the hope of reducing stress in my life, I have decided to “pick my battles” more discerningly. One of the things I’ve been battling Caylie over this year is what clothes she wears and how her hair is done on school days. I long ago dropped this battle on days we’re not doing much, but I still like her to be dressed in a weather-appropriate and somewhat attractive outfit for school. And I like her hair to be neat and off her face, if not done up in doo-dads that match the attractive outfit. Often she is happy with my choices, but this can sometimes turn into a needless fight, and why do that to ourselves? Lots of other kids in her preschool class come to school in mismatched clothes obviously chosen and donned by four-year-olds (sometimes even inside out). Lots of little people in the class have hastily tied-up hair or bed-head. So why to I have to be so picky? I don’t. I will remind myself that the important thing is that she’s clean and fed when she arrives at school and if she’s having a spirited day where she wants to choose her attire, then so be it.

This would hopefully cut down on some unnecessary tension in the house if I wasn’t planning to add some battles into the mix. There are a couple of things I’d like to start insisting on around here.

Privacy in the bathroom. This may seem ridiculous to some (especially those without kids), but I have decided that the time has come to demand a few minutes alone while I’m on the toilet.

Keeping clothes off the floor and put away. The kids are in the habit of flinging down their clothes and jammies wherever they happen to be whenever they remove them. This makes for a very untidy life, and I think the time has now come when they are capable of discerning which things are laundry-worthy and folding the rest. There will still be toys strewn about the house, but one thing at a time.

New Years' Non-Resolutions

I don’t make New Years’ Resolutions. Too much pressure to change big things and never slip up. However, I do have an ongoing list of things I’m trying to do more of. Many of the items on the list are things I’ve already been doing and I plan to continue, but some are newly added.

Make more of our food from scratch instead of buying packaged. The big items I’m trying to avoid buying prepared are bread, snacks, beans, granola. I have been baking double batches of bread once or twice a week, baking a lot of muffins, bars, cookies etc to put in the kids’ lunches, and preparing big batches of dinner ingredients to portion into the freezer. Of course I don’t always have time to do all of these at once, so I also grab the odd loaf of bread at the bakery or buy the odd tin of lentils.

Keep on track with my diet and exercise regimen. It’s been over a year since I began the journey to being the new me, but I still need to remind myself all the time to stay with it. Bad habits are still lurking just under the surface and I have to keep forever vigilant lest they creep in and take over. Of one thing I am certain: I am much happier and healthier now than I have ever been, and I don’t want to go back to the old ways.

Reduce stress in my life. This is a difficult one because new stressors are always cropping up. But some of the ideas I have for this year are: Make Christmas cards and gifts all year long so that they are done come December when I need them; Strive for better organization of papers, toys, and stuff in general; Simplify!

Run a marathon and achieve a yellow (or possibly higher) belt. Self explanatory.

Keep connections with family, old friends, and new ones a priority. It’s easy for life to get in the way, but my loved ones are really important to me. Even though I can’t see everyone as often as I’d like, I can show them by small gestures how much they mean to me.

Read my favourite books with my children, and find some new favourites together. Reading to my kids is honestly one of the most pleasurable parts of my day and I look forward to it. We’re currently working our way through the Chronicles of Narnia, and next I think I’d like to read the Hobbit. Those are favourites from when I was a girl, but we’ve found several wonderful series recently as well. I look forward to continuing with How to Train Your Dragon, and Peter and the Starcatchers, and many more just as soon as there are new ones available.

That’s enough for now. There are slip-ups now and then, but the purpose of setting clear goals is so I can always get back to following them. It’s never too late for me to strive to achieve those goals no matter how many attempts have petered out. So here’s to a great year in 2011, may your days be merry and bright, and may you take charge of what is important to you and make it happen!