good food

 My west coast brother informed me that today is "Let's All Eat Right Day" and also "National Chocolate Covered Peanuts Day."  I'm really not quite sure how those two go together unless you're supposed to eat the peanuts with your right hand.  I wrote a blog a few weeks ago expressing my view that not everything is edible just because it's covered in chocolate, but I do think chocolate covered peanuts are ok.  My lefty wonder spouse is pretty ambidextrous when it comes to eating so he could handle using his right hand for snacks.  But sadly he's allergic to peanuts. Ah well.  

We did make an attempt to Eat Right this evening. We went to dinner with friends at Zianos, one of our very favorite Italian restaurants. There we ate salad (definitely good food) and bread sticks (also good food I think).  I will refer you back to my recent blog about the importance of grain in our diets in defense of bread sticks.  The fact that these bread sticks were puffy, slathered with butter and covered with grated parmesan should not count against them.

Then the main course, and this is where the question of whether we were Eating Right becomes a little more problematic.  The food was, of course, delicious and the helpings were beyond bountiful, but I have a feeling that the sauces, thick and creamy and buttery and oozing calories did not exactly fall into the Eating Right category.  On the other hand, we certainly ate well.  Close enough. 

quite a speech

 I just finished watching President Trump's State of the Union speech.  Regardless of your political persuasion, I think we can all agree that it was long,  

But seriously, it was also full of honors and stories of brave men and women who have served our country in one way or another.  I did appreciate those accolades.

I could do that

 Even though the winter Olympics are over I'm still thinking about them and I have realized that there is one event in which I could compete.  I'm talking about the Luge.  Not the Skeleton. There is no way that I would go zipping down a slippery curving ice coated slide at 60 miles an hour, or more, on my back, head first,

But I watched the Luge teams, for the two person sleds, and I'm pretty sure I could do that. On my back feet first so I could see where I'm going.

Of course there would need to be some modifications made to the event.  I can't see myself running beside the sled pushing it to get it up to speed and then leaping in.  I would rather get in the sled and recline carefully while it is securely held in place, then hold on tight while someone else gets the sled going. It does look like a fun ride.

If they ever build a luge slope here in Fort Wayne and offer an Octogenarian division (maybe limit us to 30mph) I'll sign up.  Our colors could be gray and silver.  Does anyone want to be on my team?

great expectations...

 My spouse and I had dinner this evening with my grandson and his wife.  It was a very joyous get together.  They are expecting their first child in two weeks.  I'm guessing it might be sooner.  She looks ready to pop.

Although it's been many years for me, I can remember the excitement of waiting for that first baby to be born. Every birth is exciting but that first baby catapults its parents into a whole new life style.  Sleeping through the night will probably become a thing of the past, at least for the first several months.  Your whole life revolves around this new being come to live with you.  

Some things never change but I am intrigued by the things that have changed since I became a mother.

1. They know the sex of the baby, it's a boy. They decided on his name months ago.

2. They know how much it will weigh at birth, six pounds.

3. They know it is healthy and normal with the correct number of fingers and toes.

4. They know it's in the head down position.

5.  My grandson knows that there will be a chair for him in the delivery room in case he feels faint.  It could happen. 

And the one thing that hasn't changed - they know that the baby's grandparents and great grandparents are ready, willing and able to pitch in and help as needed, especially with rocking the baby. 

As it happens, I'm a champion baby rocker.  If it was an Olympic sport I'd have a gold medal for sure.  Can't wait to get back in the game.

new guidelines

 My west coast brother informed me, earlier this afternoon, that today is "National Grain Free Day."  Unfortunately, or maybe luckily, depending on how I look at it, I didn't read his text until after my spouse and I returned from a trip to our favorite Amish bakery where we had stocked up on our favorite breads and cookies. (I'll admit it, the molasses cookies are my downfall, not my spouses, but I do limit myself to one a day.)

Thinking about a grain free day, even though I'm not observing it, led me to wonder where grain falls on the newly designed food pyramid. here's what I found out. "The 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans released in January 2026 feature a new 'inverted' food pyramid, prioritizing high-quality proteins, healthy fats and produce at the top, while placing whole grains at the (pointy little) base."

Luckily my spouse and I do have access to high quality proteins thanks to generous family gifts from the Omaha Steak Company. Also, if you were to look in our refrigerator right now you would find an ample supply of apples, oranges and grapes so that covers produce.  Also celery, but nobody counts celery.  I'm pretty sure that the real butter that I slather on my Cinnamon Swirl toast counts as a healthy fat, at least today.  Butter like coffee is one of those foods that gets flipped from the 'good for you' list to the 'bad for you' list with some regularity.

I don't really have any argument with the new food pyramid except for where it places grain.  Let's face it people need bread.  What are you going to spread your peanut butter and jelly on? What will hold your ham salad sandwich?  What will accompany your bacon and eggs if not some form of bread?  I'm ok with grain at the bottom but I think the pyramid needs to be replaced with a semi-circle or U shape.  

"The Good Food U for You" sounds catchy to me.  Maybe I should write a letter to someone.

the Olympics

 I have been watching the winter Olympics every night since they started over a week ago.  Like everyone else watching, I marvel at the amazing performances whether it's on skates, snow boards, skis, luges or skeletons.  I groan when someone falls and cheer when they pull off an excellent performance, even if the judges don't think it's perfect. 

As a mother myself, I do find myself wondering what their parents feel as their children compete.  All of my children marched in high school bands and I have felt a little bit of what they might be experiencing.  I've watched our bands compete and come in third or fourth when I thought their performance was perfect.  

But there is one big difference.  I could relax while watching my offspring compete, knowing that they will not be flying down a mountainside, up an incline, doing triple and quadruple flips then landing gracefully on their feet (usually).  Or, better yet, twirling up into the air on skates, doing four or five spins. then landing perfectly.  It's all so exciting to watch and I assume that the athletes' parents have been supporting them through years and years of practice and competitions.  

So here's to our wonderful Olympic contenders and here's to all those who have supported their dreams all along the way. 

feeling lazy....

 First, here's a picture of our latest accomplishment puzzle wise.  It has been a very rainy day with nowhere to go so we puzzled more than we usually do.

I'm sorry that it's side ways but that's how we looked at it much of the time we were working on it.  It's a 500 piece puzzle, so fun to work on. 

Before you judge me too harshly for spending this warm rainy day in frivolous pursuits I did manage to put together an agenda for an upcoming meeting this morning before the laziness totally overtook me.  

Further in my defense, I am convinced (although no doctor has diagnosed me) that I am suffering from EOSF.  Have you ever noticed how most of the TV commercials touting remedies for various ailments refer to the diseases by their acronyms? I seldom know what illness they are "curing" but, by the time they finish telling about all the possible side effects of the medication they are touting, I'm pretty sure I would rather have the disease. 

This is certainly the case with EOSF, the symptoms of which include sleepiness, laziness, and general lack of ambition.  

If you haven't figured it out by now, EOSF is Early Onset Spring Fever.  I know it's only February, I know it will get cold again, but for now I will enjoy my malady.