Kathleen Smith's Blog, page 18

Food Flashbacks

Do you ever walk up and down the aisles of a grocery store looking at food? Do you stop at one particular item and think “hey I haven’t had those in years!” Or does the food remind you of something your mom used to buy?

What about vacations? Have you ever gone on a vacation had some really good food. Then one day while driving or doing whatever you all of a sudden want that food.

This weekend that happened with my oldest daughter and myself. So this is what happened.

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Friday we were at Walmart. We were looking for pretzels and all of a sudden she asked for “Nana” pretzels. I had no idea what she was talking about so naturally I asked, what are Nana pretzels? She explained to me that when she was growing up her Nana (my mom) would bring Snyders buttersnap pretzels to our house and she would share them.

Those pretzels become a fond food memory of my daughters just like Italian cookies became “Nana” cookies to my daughter. I almost cried in the store when my daughter explained herself.

On Saturday a similar thing happened to me. My husband and I had some time to ourselves Saturday night and we were hungry so we went out. He asked me what I wanted. I thought about it and then I got thinking about the Shepherd’s Pie I had in a little town in England while we were on vacation.

[image error]I told him I would love that. We found an “Irish” pub not to far from us and I had the Shepherds Pie. Well the American version of it anyway. It wasn’t anywhere near as good, but the memories were there. It also made me miss that little town in England. I’m thinking the fish and chips would have been better. Then I would have missed Ireland. I’m thinking that would have been a loose – loose situation.

My husband and I agreed–Americans trying to cook Irish and English food is just as funny as the Irish and English trying to make American food. (I don’t recommend a hamburger in Ireland.)

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This was definitely a weekend for remembering good tasty food and trying to eat some of it. I’m also thankful my daughter has good memories of her Nana.

A Day to Remember

Memorial Day, a day to remember. A day to remember our veteran’s who have passed away.

[image error]I think like most American’s these days my family and I usually go to a local Church’s Memorial Day parade. We join in this parade walking down a small country road. We listen to that Church’s Pastor talk about our veteran’s who have since passed away and the true hero’s they were. We stand as the horn is blown and say the pledge of allegiance to the American Flag and then we stand in a moment of silence. When all is said and done we gather with some friends and family for a bit and then head home.

This isn’t the only thing that I do on Memorial Day though. I also remember my uncle who was a veteran and who also passed away. I remember him with loving fond memories. No, I don’t drive to New Jersey where he lived to visit his grave. But I’m sure my aunt, his wife does on that day.

[image error]Then I saw something on facebook that my sister-in-law shared. Which happened to actually be something our sister-in-laws, brother shared who happens to be a former marine. And I have to say it got me thinking.

This is what was shared:

“Here’s some ground rules for next weekend:

1. Don’t wish me a Happy Memorial day. There is nothing happy about brave men and women dying.

2. It’s not a holiday. It’s a remembrance.

3. If you want to know the true meaning, visit Arlington or your local VA, not freaking Disneyland.

4. Don’t tell me how great any one political power is. Tell me about Chesty Puller, George Patton, John Basilone, Dakota Meyer, Kyle Carpenter, Mitchell Paige, Ira Hayes, Chris Kyle and any other heroes too numerous to name. Attend a Bell Ceremony and shed some tears.

5. Say a prayer… and then another.

6. Remember the Fallen for all the Good they did while they were here.

7. Reach out and let a Vet know you’re there, we’re losing too many in “peace”.” took this from Matt McMahon with minor editing.

[image error]All of the above got me thinking. I get not wishing someone a Happy Memorial day. I don’t personally recall ever saying that to anyone. And it’s true that Memorial Day is not a holiday. It’s a day we are suppose to be remembering the brave men and women who died for this Country and the freedom we have.

I do have a tendency when I see a veteran to thank them for their services to our Country, in the store or a restaurant. This may not be much of a gesture, but I do want them to know I’m thankful.

[image error]I do think it’s ok to have family BBQ’s though. I think that is a good time for families to get together and remember their loved ones who died during a war or from sickness. It’s a time to laugh and cry together and remember the good times they had with their veteran’s.

Last but not least, praying for the families of our veterans is something that I can definitely do. Do I remember to pray for them? Probably not as often as I should.  That I can change though. I can purpose in my heart to pray for them weekly or daily.

Calories, Protein and Exercise

[image error]In the past I have written blogs about exercising. About how I didn’t like how I looked or how much I weighted. About how I made the decision to wake up early in the morning so I could exercise before I did anything else that day. About how the exercises were working for me and making me feel good about myself. About how much I love using the Cize DVD’s with Shaun T.

In this weeks blog I would like to take a look at things from the perspective of how many calories to eat. What to eat and what not to eat. How much protein to eat and exercising to try to get my abs toned.

A couple of weeks ago I noticed that my weight and my body fat weren’t moving on the scale. I also noticed I wasn’t getting much out of my exercise routine anymore. I wasn’t really sure what to do about either. Where the exercise is concerned I talked with a FaceBook friend of mine who is my BeachBody coach. We both agreed on a different routine for me to try. I decided to go for it, but still wasn’t getting the result that I wanted.

[image error]At the same time I was reading different statuses from friends on Facebook about how they were eating smaller portions. Eating more fruits and yogurt and protein shakes and all theses different things. I thought I would give some of it a try. So for one week I had fruit and some cheese for my lunches and on other days I had yogurt. I was noticing my weight going down and my body fat was going up. This I didn’t like. So then I decided to try eating only yogurt for my lunches. The only thing that did was give me a nasty stomachache by the end of that week. Then I remembered I can’t eat a lot of dairy.

Mind you during these weeks I ate the same thing for breakfast and English Muffin and whatever I decided to make for suppers. My weight was still going back and forth and my body fat was getting higher. This was making me very upset.

Then I was reminded to forget about what the scale says and what my mind keeps trying to tell me about my weight and looks. That’s when I decided to go back to my normal lunch which happens to be chunky chicken with some cheese on a bread thin. And eating whatever I want. I also changed my exercise program again. This time to Shaun T’s Hip Hop Abs. Oh yeah, I also need to remember that my body is not the same as other’s bodies nor are theirs like mine. Some women have to watch what they eat and they need to keep their food portions small.

[image error]I am the opposite and I pretty much always have been (sorry). I am the type person who eats when they are hungry and I stop when I am satisfied. No more no less. Or as my husband likes to say I eat to survive where as other like to eat for the fun of it.

I am back to eating my favorite lunch, but I am also trying to get as much protein into my body as possible. I am also watching my calories, drinking as much water as I can and enjoying doing the “Full Body Burn” on Hip Hop Abs. After one week of going back to my normal eating habits I have found my weight do be doing good and my body fat is slowing going back down. I have also started to notice a small change in my stomach and abs. All of this makes me happy.

I plan to continue with my exercises as best as I can along with eating as much protein as I can and will continue to watch my calorie intake. I’ve realized I have to do what is right for me and my body. And I am becoming happy with myself again.

Spending Mother’s Day with Dad

[image error]You might be thinking to yourself “did I read that title right, spending Mother’s Day with dad? Yes, you read it right. This year I am spending Mother’s Day with my dad. I would gladly spend it with my mom, but she passed away three years ago.

I’m actually spending it with my dad, my husband and our kids, but I figured you would know that. Am I wrong?

[image error]I wasn’t planning on celebrating Mother’s Day this year. Not something I care to celebrate much anymore since my mom passed away. Then my dad said he wanted to come up for that weekend so….

Friday while our kids were either in school or at work my husband and I took my dad shopping. He wanted to buy a new laptop so we took him to Walmart. That happened to be the place with the best price. After that we went to Fresh Market and the mall. Friday night we got pizza for supper and that’s that. All in in it was a nice day.

[image error]Saturday we went to the Manchester Outlets in Manchester, Vermont. We did some walking. We shopped at our favorite stores. New Balance for sneakers and active wear and the Vermont store for dark chocolate covered pretzels. We had lunch at our favorite place Zoey’s Deli. Did a little more shopping then got Starbucks on our way home.

[image error]Sunday – Mother’s Day. The day I haven’t looked forward to celebrating since my mom passed away. The day that was suppose to be the day I celebrate MY mom and call her and let her know how much I love her. That day is today.

Instead my family made today all about THEIR mom, ME. They gave me wonderful presents. Then gave me lots of hugs and told me how much they love me. They took me to eat at the Black and Blue. My youngest even thanked me for having them!

This is the first Mother’s Day since my mom passed away three years ago that it felt like MY Mother’s Day. The day my family celebrates their mom and shows their love for me. They all made me feel special and loved. Something I needed today.

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Alone Time for Parents

[image error]I love to spend time with my family. Whether it’s all five of us together or my husband and I with one, two or all three of our kids.

I also love spending time with only my husband. In fact there are days or nights when I need time with only him.

I need that one on one time with him. These are the times we get to talk with each other about anything and everything. From work to vacation time and everything in between. It’s the time we get to share our thoughts and feelings with each other. Sometimes we even cry depending on what we are talking about or memories we are sharing.

[image error]We used to ask our oldest daughter if she could go to bed so we could have some time together alone in our living room before we went to bed. Now we go up to bed early so we can have that alone time.

Yesterday (Saturday) was one of those days. My husband, our youngest daughter and I spent the day together. That night we asked her big sister to stay with her so we could have some much needed alone time and go out.

My husband and I enjoyed our time together last night. Even if it was only a couple of hours. It was needed. It helps us get back into parent mode when we are home.

[image error]I’m thankful for the alone time I get with my husband. Our marriage means a great deal to me and keeping it strong is important. Our time alone helps to keep it that way.

Get Your Clothes Fix with Stitch Fix

[image error]Stitch Fix is a clothing company that sends women a bunch of different styles of clothes in a box straight to their homes. It’s pretty easy to do too. You set up a profile with them. Give them your clothes size and tell them a little bit about yourself. Things like what you would wear, your style preference, your likes and dislikes. I think you got the idea.

The first time I heard about Stitch Fix was on FaceBook. I didn’t think too much about it at first. I thought “Oh that’s nice” and left it at that. Then I saw an advertisement for them go through my FaceBook feed and saw an outfit that I liked. That’s when I talked with my husband about it and we agreed to give it a try.

[image error]The first box I received from them came with a couple of tops, a pair of jeans and a jacket. The jacket I liked but not the color. The tops I didn’t like. The jeans I loved. They were a bit big around my waist, but I knew a belt would take care of that. I kept the jeans and sent everything else back. They give you a stylist that you can provide feedback to. I told her what I like and dislike.

Between that box and my next box I was doing a lot of exercising and ended up loosing some weight and did some major toning around my waist. This meant my jeans were getting seriously loose around my waist. So I asked for another pair of the jeans they sent me in a smaller size.

So in the next box I got the jeans and a cool sweater top that I really like. Everything else I sent back. The box after that I had asked for a black maxi skirt that I was in need of. Sadly that next box was disappointing for me. I did get some skirts, but not what I asked for. I also received some tops, but they weren’t my taste. With the exception of one top that I kept.

[image error]I am extremely picky with the clothes I wear and the colors. Just ask my husband, he’ll tell you. I won’t wear form-fitting tight dresses and I won’t wear any dresses or skirts that go above my knee. Nor will I wear any cleavage or see through clothing.

I was sad that the last Stitch Fix box didn’t do anything for me, but I figured not a big deal, I will try them again.

My next box came this weekend and I was excited to see what they sent me. There was a note in the box letting me know they looked at my Pinterest clothes for some tips on what to send me. They sent me a pocketbook, a pair of jeans and three tops. I love one of the tops and will be keeping it. The other two tops weren’t my style. The jeans I only liked on my legs and the pocketbook wasn’t me. It’s all good though cause I at least get one item that I really like and I’m good with that.

[image error]I highly recommend you do give Stitch Fix a try, remember to give them your Pinterest clothes page link so they can get an idea of what you like. Even if there is only one item in the box that you like from them, that’s okay. That one item is worth the fun in getting a box of clothes delivered to you.

Eavesdropping Over Breakfast

[image error] My family and I have this thing where we like to listen to other people’s conversations while we are eating out for breakfast.

Some people might consider this to be more of a problem rather than a thing. I prefer to call it a thing. I can’t tell you why we do this. I only know that we do it. Perhaps you do it as well. 

It’s an interesting way to find out a persons religion, politics, likes and dislikes, where their going, where they were and things you wish you didn’t hear at all!

[image error]So why eaves drop then? I really couldn’t say. It’s just something we do out of habit I guess. We usually only do it when we are eating breakfast at our favorite diner. Maybe we do it because it’s hard to resist.

Sometimes we find ourselves doing it at other places too. I have to say we do get some laughs out of some of the things we have heard. Some things are weird. Some of the things we have heard make our eyebrows go up and our eyes pop out of our heads. 

I imagine to some people eaves dropping would be considered rude. Maybe their right. We do have a talent for it and I think people never know we are doing it. 

[image error]Although I guess after reading this blog some people will know now. Oh well. 

Getting Back to Reality

[image error]Getting back to reality is far from easy after spending a week and a half in England and France. But getting back to reality and our normal routines is what my husband, youngest daughter and I had to do.

We got back home late Sunday night, April 2nd. Monday morning my husband and I woke up at our normal times. He went to work and I did my exercises and got back to taking care of our family and house. Our little girl on the other hand was out like a light so we let her sleep for as long as she needed to.

[image error]By Monday night my husband and I were feeling the jet lag, but we still needed to get some food for our house. So we went to the store when he got home from work and bought food. We came home, had supper and watched some TV. By seven O’Clock that night we were both exhausted. By eight O’Clock we were in bed and by nine thirty we were sleeping.

We had our alarms set for our normal times on Tuesday morning. When they went off we were both tired and pretty much ignored them. I decided exercise for that morning wasn’t happening. Sleep was way more important. I know my husbands body was thinking the same thing.

[image error]All day Tuesday I pretty much had to push myself to do anything around the house. All I can say for jet lag is, it isn’t any fun. Getting back to normal hasn’t been easy for me. Getting back to cleaning the house, promoting my blog and books and all that stuff. Although I have to say I did check my book sales once while I was on vacation. To my surprise I had a couple of book sales and I wasn’t even promoting them. So thank you to who ever bought copies of my books.

I’ve also noticed my stomach doesn’t like American food after a week and a half’s worth of English and French food.

[image error]I actually miss that food so much that I am trying to eat like I did there. When there we ate mostly fresh foods. That was a nice tasty change from what we normally eat here in NY.

 

England & France What a Vacation!

[image error]Getting to vacation in England has been a long time dream of mine. I am finally on this dream vacation with my husband and our youngest daughter.

I was thinking about writing this blog on a day to day basis of what we did, but I think that would be to long of a blog. So I will do my best to remember everything.

I feel like I’ve been through a world wind this week with everything we’ve done in England. It’s all kind of a blur at this point. Makes me glad we took lots of pictures!

[image error]Our first day in London England we had a cab tour guide of the city. He took us to see Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abby, The Tower of London and a bunch of other places. That day we only saw the outside of those places. We would have gone in, but they we were temporary closed off.

The next day we were on our own and we did everything thing we possibly could in that one day.

[image error]We took a tour of the Tower of London. To me that was fascinating. I love history and to know I was in the same building that royals and such were in many, many years ago thrilled me.

After that we went over to Big Ben. Looked at it in awe. Listened to it chime and obviously took pictures.

[image error]After that we went to Westminster Abby. I’ve always wanted to go into that place. What an experience that was. To see where the Queen was crowned. Where Princess Diana’s funeral was and where Prince William and Kate were married. There is more to that place then meets the eyes though and I had no idea until we started walking. The history in that place was unbelievable.

We did a bunch more walking and site seeing after that. We “shopped” at Harrod’s and went to Leicester Square– a large shopping area. We also went to the national gallery and looked at some art. It’s all one big blur at this point. But a good blur.

[image error]On another day we had our taxi cab tour guide take us to the Stone Henge, Bath England and a little town out in the English country side. This was a special all day tour we booked in advance with Black Cab Heritage tours. The same company and driver that gave us our introduction tour of the city the first day we arrived.

[image error]The Stones were an amazing site for me. Another piece of history for my eyes to take in. We had lunch at a place called the Red Lion in the little English country town named Lacock Village. It reminded us of the pub from the show Poldark.

[image error]Craig, our guide, gave us a tour of Lacock Village. The village is a national historic site and many movies and television shows have been filmed there as it looks like it did 800 years ago. There is a very old Abby there where parts of Harry Potter were filmed and we got the chance to see it and walk through it. That was pretty cool.

Bath, England is filled with its own history with the Roman baths and all the Georgian style buildings and such. To say the I enjoy history and walking through historical towns and buildings would be an understatement.

[image error]While in England we went to Liverpool one day so I could see the Church where my great grandpa was baptized as a baby in the 1800’s. that was a true blessing for me to see. I was in the Church my ancestors were in so many years ago.

[image error]Oh, before I forget! We went to our first afternoon tea in London and had a wonderful time. I’m not a tea drinker, but this tea was good. We went to the English Tea Room at Browns Hotel. All the little finger foods were tasty. My favorite were the scones. We made sure we packed dresses for my daughter and I and dress pants and a jacket for my husband for tea. I’m so glad we did that. It helped us to fit in a bit better.

We did some shopping before we went for tea. I had to buy a Paddington Bear, yes I had to. We were in an area that I can only describe as old London and it has a store that reminded me of the BBC show Paradise. (Liberty Department Store)

[image error]We did go to the British Museum for a bit one night. The place could take me a whole day. We saw the Rosetta Stone and some artifacts from Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon.

On our last day in England we took the WB Harry Potter Studios tour for our daughter. For me personally it was boring, but she loved it. After that we went to Old Spitafields Market where I bought this really cool looking coat. Oh, yes we also went to St Paul’s Cathedral.

[image error]After that we took one last lonnnng walk along the river Thames and around London and got our last look at Big Ben.

Our next stop France….

When we got to France we spent our first day in Paris. Honestly I had very low expectations for Paris and that city met those low expectations.

[image error]We did some walking. We went to the Notre Dame Cathedral which I have to say was something to see and a place we’ve been wanting to visit for years.

The next couple of days we stayed about an hour north in the French County side at a small village called Pierrfonds. We had the pleasure of walking through this old French village and making it our home for a few days. We bought and ate fresh croissants, bread, cheese, pastries and macarons at the local shops.

[image error]The best part of the French Country for me was getting to see and tour Chateau De Pierrefonds – AKA – Merlin’s Castle from the BBC show Merlin. Visiting this castle was a dream come true for me!

We visited the Palace in Versailles and spent hours walking in the gardens and touring the palace. We also enjoyed another baguette sandwich from a small patisserie.

Our last day of vacation was spent in Paris. We did a lot of walking. We also went to the Arc de Triump, the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower. I have to say those places are amazing.

[image error]We had tickets to go to the very top of the Eiffel Tower and what a view that was. We waited around for the light show which was well worth it.

All in all my husband, daughter and I had a great time in England and France.

I had a croissant with coffee every morning for breakfast. France has the best croissants I’ve ever had and all the other pastries are so good.

There was a bit of a language barrier between the French and English language, but we handled it well.

It was without a doubt an amazing vacation, but I am happy to be home as well.

Some of the photos I took are on this blog. You can see all of them in my photo gallery.

 

Ice Cream: Hard vs Soft

[image error]Some of you are probably wondering why I am writing a blog about ice cream in March. Your probably thinking it’s to early in the season to be thinking about going to the soft ice cream stands. I almost didn’t write about ice cream until my husband checked to see when the ice cream places open and it turns out that a bunch of them open this weekend. So you see I’m actually right on time!

I’ve been thinking about my mom this week and how she use to take me for ice cream whether it was Winter or Summer. So this seemed like a fitting blog for this week.

When I was little my mom use to take me to Carvel for ice cream. Sometimes we went to Baskin Robbin’s, but for the most part I think we went to Carvel. I would always get the same thing two scoops of hard chocolate ice cream in a cone with different colored sprinkles. In the Summer time we would walk to Carvel. I don’t remember how away it was from our house, but I do remember it always being a fun walk with my mom. In the Winter my mom would sometimes surprise our family and bring the ice cream home. We always enjoyed that treat.

[image error]I don’t remember buying gallons of ice cream for our house growing up. Couldn’t tell you why, I just don’t remember having it. That might be the reason why I loved when we got Carvel.

The first Summer that I was married to my husband we went for soft ice cream with some friends of ours. They couldn’t believe that I never had soft ice cream before. It was true though. Staying true to my taste buds I would always get a small soft chocolate cone with different colored sprinkles.  I have to say I really liked the way that soft ice cream tasted!

I remember telling my mom about that soft ice cream and asking her why I never had it growing up. She told me Carvel did have it, but I didn’t want any. I remember thinking “how about that!”

[image error]These days I like both! In the Winter my family likes to have hard ice cream in the house. I’ve even extended my taste buds to mocha flavored ice cream and mint cookie crumble. In the Summer time we like going for soft ice cream.  This still remains to be chocolate ice cream with different colored sprinkles for me.

I wonder how many people like hard ice cream and how many like soft ice cream. Do they like both. Do they only like one. Are people as crazy as I am and willing to go to a soft ice cream stand at the end of March when it’s still cold out and possibly snow on the ground.

I would love to hear you opinions. Hard ice cream? Soft ice cream? Both? Or is it possible for it to be neither?

 

Here is the schedule for many of the ice cream place openings in our area.