Most of the time when I look through my viewfinder, I see someone else's family... so this blog gives me a new reason/excuse/opportunity to pick up my camera and see the people I love most in this world... my family! Thanks for joining me here - isn't the view beautiful?!
Both girls are going to school this year! Averhy is in first grade at Carrie Busey Elementary, and Eden is going to Judah Christian Preschool for 3 mornings each week… and I think it’s going to be a great year! It got off to an especially good start with our traditional first-day-of-school trip to Jarling’s Custard Cup… because Eden started on Tuesday and Averhy started today… which meant 2 trips to Jarling’s in one week! Very non-paleo, and very delicious! Yum!!
August 22, 2010 - 6:19 pm - Wish I could have been there when they got home to hear about all their new friends and adventures!
August 21, 2010 - 1:54 pm - Getting new shoes was always the best thing about the new school year!
August 20, 2010 - 9:14 pm - Getting much too big, much too quickly.
Summer is in full swing, which explains why I haven’t posted anything on here for a while! Here’s a quick update… We’re sticking with our paleo lifestyle for the most part, and still enjoying it. The 50-day challenge is almost over (I think… kinda lost track) but we’re just continuing to eat our no-grains, no-sugar diet with a few cheats here and there. We had a great time visiting family in Wisconsin over the 4th of July, complete with lots of cousins and several rounds of beanbags!
Then we spent a week in New Brunswick, Canada with Grandi and Sky’s parents & sister. Another relaxing, do-practically-nothing week of fun (except for the 3 days that Sky was out of commission because he pulled a muscle in his back installing some carpet for Grandi. Oops.).
Finally, we went to southern Illinois this past weekend with several of Sky’s coworkers and their families for a fun week on the Lake of Egypt! (Thanks Stu and Anita and Michael!) Eden loved the jetski, while Averhy’s favorite was going tubing!
Whew! Now it’s August already, and I’m starting to think about school…. after all, it does start in just 15 days! Eek!
Day 18 :
Back home and playing catch-up all day, trying to get things done before we head out (again) for the weekend! Laundry, post office, oil change, lunch, bake muffins and breakfast bars, work, whew!
Breakfast : yogurt with fruit, coffee, oj
Lunch : leftover feta-olive burger, carrots
Dinner : fish taco salad (spinach, tilapia, tomato, onion, avocado, cheese), milk, broccoli, snap peas, carrots
Day 19 :
Breakfast : tilapia omelet (2 eggs, leftover tilapia taco meat and toppings), oj, coffee
Lunch : um… kinda skipped it
Snack : 2 almond-flour chocolate chip cookies; oj; a sugar-free popsicle
Dinner : um… can’t remember… probably brats and fruit quickly before we hit the road!
Day 20 :
Together with family for the 4th of July weekend - it’s always lots of fun with the Paydon clan!
Breakfast : yogurt; strawberries; oj
Lunch : BBQ Pork; quinoa salad; lots of other semi-paleo picnic food that I can’t remember… and some definitely not-paleo desserts (persimmon pudding for sure!)
Dinner : repeat of lunch!
Day 21 :
More family fun, by land or by sea… We started the day at the Pranga’s, finishing up our 4th of July gathering with more beanbags and hanging out chatting. Then we loaded up the caravan to drive over to Racine for a sail… and sail we did! The kids (all 6 of them at this point) stayed with my mom and Aunt Linda, while the rest of us (Sky, Allyson, Adam, Amanda, Kevin, Carrie, Scott, Rachel, Uncle Greg, Grandma Muehling, and Dad) went for a sail… which was beautiful at first… until we headed back toward land and it got CRAZY. Like boat-tipping, water-splashing, up-chucking crazy. But we survived and laughed a lot!
Breakfast : 1 breakfast bar; 1 zucchini muffin; coffee
Lunch : quinoa salad; BBQ pork; deviled egg; lots of other semi-paleo picnic food I can’t remember…
Dinner : oops… Pizza Hut. Definitely not paleo.
Day 22 :
Sailing, sailing, over the ocean waves… this time with much calmer waves, which was a good thing because we had Averhy and Caleb on board too!
Breakfast : 2 breakfast bars; iced coffee; cantaloupe; milk
Lunch : cheese; apples; breakfast bar; green tea; cantaloupe
Dinner : t-bone steak; sweet potato; milk
Day 23 :
Back to reality. And laundry.
Breakfast : omelet with ham, cheese, avocado, tomato, onion; coffee; 1 breakfast bar
Lunch : cottage cheese; 1 apple with natural peanut butter; water; a breakfast bar
Snack : a cheese stick; water
Dinner : brat; corn on the cob (nope, not paleo); green beans; grilled potato; carrots and dip; water
July 7, 2010 - 8:39 am - That's a good-lookin' crew in that last photo! Rachel, pay attention!!! :)
Can you tell that I’m trying to get outside more and on the computer less this summer??
Day 11 :
The girls and I (and Averhy’s friend Lizzie) spent most of the afternoon at Pontious Berry Farm in White Heath - a gorgeous day, just perfect for blueberry picking!! The girls did a great job staying focused for a while (Lizzie counted as she picked, and got up to 404 berries!) and then had fun playing on the little playset there while I finished filling our pails. We ended up with exactly 6 pounds of berries — about 18 cups! Then the girls enjoyed feeding the ponies and horses before we headed home.
Breakfast : orange juice and blueberry-pomegranate juice; yogurt with 1 banana, blueberries, and flax seed; coffee with half and half and creamer
Lunch : ham and egg salad (1 egg, 1/2 c. cottage cheese, 1/4 c. chopped ham); leftover sweet potato fries; a handful of Aunt Helen’s New Ginger Cookies; water
Snack : fresh-picked blueberries!
Dinner : jalapeno polish sausage with guacamole; leftover broccoli salad; a handful of Aunt Helen’s New Ginger Cookies; water
Bedtime snack : milk; a few more ginger cookies
Day 12 :
A hot one today… another great day for a visit to the pool I think!
Breakfast : scrambled eggs with ham, cheese, and guacamole; blueberry-pomegranate juice; coffee with creamer and half & half
Lunch : um…. I can’t remember!
Dinner : Paleo Pizza with avocado, garden tomato, sausage, olives
Bedtime cheat : ice cream with natural peanut butter
Day 13 :
We had a great evening with our friends from small group, enjoying a hot and muggy evening and loud fireworks at the Tolono Fun Days!
Breakfast : omelet with avocado, ham, cheese, onion; blueberry-pomegranate juice; coffee
Snack : a delicious peach from the Farmer’s Market!
Lunch : a big bowl of peaches, strawberries, blueberries, and bananas
Dinner : bunless cheeseburger; spinach salad; grapes; strawberries; water; white zinfandel
Tasty Spinach Salad
2 (10 ounce) packages baby spinach, rinsed and dried
1 1/2 cups toasted, chopped pecans
8 ounces crumbled blue cheese
1 1/2 cups balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons molasses
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2/3 cup olive oil
Arrange spinach, pecans, and blue cheese in a bowl. In a small saucepan, warm the garlic in the olive oil to allow its flavor to diffuse into the oil. Then add molasses, vinegar and pepper. Whisking constantly, bring almost to a boil, remove from heat and cool until just warm. Pour into a shakeable container, shake and pour over salad. Serve immediately.
Day 14 :
Breakfast : 1 breakfast bar; coffee
Lunch : 1 jalapeno brat; corn on the cob (nope, not paleo); spinach salad; fruit salad (peaches and blueberries); milk
Snack : 1 apple with natural peanut butter
Dinner : a delicious steak filet and sweet potato fries prepared by Sky… yum!
Bedtime cheat : ice cream with natural peanut butter and milk
Day 15 :
The girls and I took a quick trip up to the Chicago area today to visit my parents, and I also visited a good friend and her new son - such a cutie! In the afternoon, the girls had fun playing with their cousins Ethan and Kendall, while I picked some yummy black raspberries at Aunt Di’s house.
Breakfast : 2 breakfast bars; a handful of dried apricots and cashews; coffee
Lunch : a ham & swiss on rye (not paleo, I know); grapes; water
Dinner : Yummy Cakes; boiled zucchini (which was surprisingly good!! Reminds me of corn on the cob…); milk
Bedtime snack : yogurt with blueberries and black raspberries
Day 16 :
At 3:38am, I got the phone call that I’ve been waiting for… for about 2 weeks now… that Megan’s water broke and she was headed to the hospital! So I loaded up the (sleeping) girls into the van and headed north to the Morris Hospital to meet Megan, Rob, and Vicky (after enjoying the sunrise as we drove, and then dropping off the girls at Julie’s house to play for the day). It was a long day of waiting, but finally a bouncing baby boy entered the world at 3:39pm!!
Breakfast : 2 cups of coffee, an apple, 2 breakfast bars, green tea
Lunch : salad with chicken, cucumber, pepperoncini, onion, tomato; water
Dinner : pizza (yup, cheated.)
Day 17 :
Knew that today was going to be another day of waiting… this time waiting for Gary to arrive from London so we could get some family pics… so the girls and I decided to head over to the Brookfield Zoo with Mema, where we met Melanie and the cute kiddos she babysits (Gigi and Theo). It was a gorgeous day and the kids had fun walking around and seeing the animals - especially the seals, gorillas, and elephant. In the gorilla exhibit, we read about an incident back in 1996 when a little boy fell into the gorilla pen and was “rescued” by a gorilla — and that was on Averhy’s mind the rest of the day. Literally ALL DAY - it was the first thing she told Sky about when we got home around 7:30pm! Hopefully she won’t have nightmares about it tonight… we just kept reminding her that it was a happy ending!
Breakfast : 1 breakfast bar, strawberries, yogurt, orange juice
Lunch : tuna salad, strawberries, pineapple, cheese, green tea
Dinner : feta-olive burgers topped with avocado on a coconut-flour bun, broccoli, carrots, sugar snap peas, milk
Day 7:
Breakfast : 2 breakfast bars; strawberries; milk
Lunch : summer sausage and cheddar cheese; strawberries; pineapple; black raspberries; grapes; green tea
Dinner : (went out to eat - cheat night for Father’s Day!) 3 grilled chicken sliders (chicken, avocado, cheese, tomato, tried to eat only 1/2 the buns); steamed broccoli with butter; tossed salad with caesar dressing; water; vanilla ice cream and chocolate cake
Snack : green tea
Day 8 :
Breakfast : omelet (2 eggs, 1/4 tomato, ham, cheese, green onion, cilantro); coffee
Lunch : leftover chicken salad; cottage cheese; water
Dinner : Broiled Tilapia Parmesan; sweet potato fries; broccoli salad (broccoli, dried apricots, apples, blueberry yogurt); milk
Day 9 :
Breakfast : yogurt with strawberries, bananas, blueberries, almonds, and flax seed; coffee; orange juice
Lunch : baked catfish; strawberries; water
Dinner : an apple with natural peanut butter; water; handful of Aunt Helen’s (New) Ginger Cookies; milk
WOD : 9 rounds of Cindy (AMRAP 20 mins: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 squats)
Day 10 :
Breakfast : an awesome birthday omelet (2 eggs, 1/2 tomato, 1/2 avocado, 1 green onion, ham, provolone, cilantro); coffee; blueberry-pomegranate juice
Lunch : leftover Tilapia Parmesan and sweet potato fries; milk; ginger cookies
Snack : strawberries
Dinner : Birthday dinner at El Toro… shrimp and white fish with sauteed veggies, black beans, a little rice; water; ice cream with milk and peanut butter (my attempt at a paleo angel food cake was a disaster…)
Great Aunt Helen’s (NEW) Ginger Cookies
1/3 c. coconut oil
1/3 c. butter
2/3 c. agave nectar
1 egg
1/4 c. yacon syrup
2 c. almond flour, packed
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. cloves
Cream oil, butter, and agave. Add egg and yacon. Beat well. Sift dry ingredients together, and add to wet ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Spoon onto cookie sheet in SMALL 1″ balls — the dough will spread and flatten to about 2x the size while baking. Bake at 350* for 6 minutes. Makes about 6 dozen thin cookies!
We’re up at my parents’ house this weekend because Sky (and Mitch and Brit) are running the Warrior Dash in Joliet, while I have several photo shoots with some fun families… but since my parents are very much NOT paleo eaters (my dad’s favorite breakfast is a big bowl of Cookie Crisp. Seriously.), we might have to get a little creative this weekend! I brought along the ingredients for breakfast bars (with flax seed in it this time… mmmm…) so we baked that up, and luckily my mom is sympathetic to our cause, so the fridge was well-stocked with fruit. But once we get up to the sailboat tomorrow, where the cabinets are usually full of Twinkies and StarCrunch… ooh, temptation!
Breakfast : 2 scrambled eggs with cheese; 1/2 banana; 1/2 c. strawberries; 1 breakfast bar; milk
Lunch : 2 breakfast bars; 1 c. raw carrots; 1 cheese stick; 1 c. strawberries; 1 small apple; water
Dinner : grilled pork chop; 1 c. strawberries; 1 breakfast bar; water
Bedtime snack : a bowl full of more strawberries!
WOD : 5 hours of family photo sessions… I’m wiped out!
June 22, 2010 - 12:13 pm - I keep meaning to try a breakfast bar. And thanks for the talapia last night. I need to get the recipe.
June 22, 2010 - 9:40 am - make that tempt, as in temptation, not degrees of enjoyment :)....
June 22, 2010 - 9:37 am - ...and I hope you took note that there were NO Twinkies or Star Crunch at the boat to temp you! (I will not mention the bags of plain and peanut M&M's) :)
by Allyson
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