Man, this getting older stuff is frikken weird...

Is it me or has this year just been flying by? I had crazy dreams last night about everything from credit to Mario and Tina’s wedding. Its weird because I didn’t make it to their wedding because I was dog-sick. In my dream, I saw everyone I have been thinking about these past few weeks. I dreamt about Daniel driving the train in his bomber clothes with his necklace of aresol tips and his camo-pants 5x too big for his stature; I dreamt about Tara running after Mycaden and him doing this smart-alecky dance when she got stuck in this tree that looked like a giant fork; I dreamt about my aunt Myra with her red curly hair flying in the wind, laughing and waving to me as I ran with my cousins chasing the truck she was sitting on as it rode down the beach in Galveston; I dreamt about Ronda and me at this club, that turned into Mario and Tina’s wedding, dancing and laughing, carrying on and cracking jokes while Ying Yang Twins “To the Window To the Wall” played in the background. X was in my dream, really skinny, but kinda fine looking dressed like a vato-loco complete with the hair net covering his freshly pomade-greased hair. I even dreamt that I had this huge thick squiggly vain on my neck like those huge body builders that look like they’re wearing a body armor suit because their bodies are so huge but their heads are so small…

I know why I dreamt all of these things though. I had been thinking about the last time Daniel and I spoke and how he said he felt like a grown-up because he had a real job with benefits that he could see as a career. I reminded him of all the stupid things we used to do when we were kids-like sneak out at 4am to bomb a wall or jump a train to the other side of town. What the hell was I thinking?! I just saw Tara and Mycaden last night and he is a world full of sass. He is way to smart for his mouth! The fact that he was running his momma crazy and then mocking her in my dream was just reflective of real life. I’ve thinking of Tia Myra lately because I’ve been thinking of Gino, Little Myra, and Mario. It comes as a package. The anniversary of her death is soon and it’s still a little shocking and sad. Plus, Mike and I went to Galveston the night of my birthday (last week) and just seeing how different and damaged it is even 5 months after Hurricane Ike. I have so many memories growing up on that island in the summers of my childhood. I had thought about seeing Tina recently and how adorably pregnant she is and still growing even though it feels like just yesterday everyone was getting married. I’ve been thinking about Ronda a lot lately and about how happy she was the last time we saw each other. Tara said she had spoken with her recently so it only brought up more thoughts about her and how she’s doing. We had some fun times. I’m positive that’s the reason Ying Yang Twins was in the background-it was sort of our theme song. Finally, the professor himself, X will finally be in Houston soon. I feel so bad for not keeping in touch like I should have. We were steady communicating for a minute and then life popped up. I try to find the time, and sometimes I have sat and written 3 page letters that just never get sent. My guilt over being a bad friend and my will to be a better friend just collided in a really all-over-the-place dream. The vein issue has to do with my own vanity and the fact that I was reading one of Mike’s Muscle Man magazines with this goliath of a man who won like 8 or 12 Mr. Olympias. He’s disgusting…

All of this got me thinking about how life is just on the move. I feel in transition, from a “forever 21” mindset to an “OH SHIT! I’M ALMOST 30!!” mentality. I wish I had more time. People look back sometimes and when they’re posed the question if they have regrets most say no. That’s bullshit! I used to say that too! I regret plenty. I would change a whole mess of stuff. I would mostly change missing out on some important things like Mario and Tina’s wedding, the first year of Maddie’s life, not keeping in touch with X for the past 9 months, letting bullshit get me frustrated or get the best of me, staying close to my friends and not letting another minute pass by without letting them know how much they mean to me. I wouldn’t take for granted opportunities I had to spend time with people because you really never know when or if you’ll have that opportunity again.

It seems like life is so busy these days and even though I want to do all of this, its hard. They say give yourself a chance and don’t let life pass you by but the world around you is a rat race. Here we are entering March. We’re out of the first quarter of the year. December feels so far away, but its almost so close I can touch it. My hope for the rest of the year is to reconnect with my people. I’m striving to be a better friend, a better cousin, a better sister, a better wife, a better person, but at the same time, it’s a two-way street. I hope my people have plans to do the same to not let life just pass them by, but to get fulfillment in every moment. Join me on cloud 9-in a world of love and harmony.

Healthy Recipes: Mini Meatloaf!

I was chatting with a friend about my passion for cooking and I’ve realized that ever since I’ve decided to lose weight, I haven’t had that zeal I once had. Mike has tied his apron strings and has taken over the kitchen lately. He’s become experimental and he’s gotten a lot more comfortable in the kitchen. He’s actually made some really great dishes lately. Leave it to a man to bring simple, yet delicious foods back. I got to thinking about it and I realize that I have a lack of healthy recipes. Its easy for me to create recipes with tons of butter (i.e. flavor) and cheese (i.e. gooey goodness) and love (i.e. love). But I haven’t really given too much thought on creating great recipes in a healthier way. This brings me to my new segment- Healthy Recipes for the Caloric Impaired. I think this will help me spark that passion for cooking I once had and very much miss and the creativity of finding a healthier technique turning high fat, high calorie favorites into their much healthier-same taste, counterparts. Here’s one that I’ve been thinking about:

Mini Meatloaves

Ingredients:
1lb lean ground beef
.5lb lean ground pork
1 large egg, beaten slightly
1/4 c Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated
1/4 c wheat bread crumbs (use your food processor to pulse 2 or 3 slices of wheat bread)
4 tbsp Italian seasoning
1/4 C chopped fresh parsley (just a handful-not quite 1/4c)
1 small chopped onion
1 small bell pepper
2/3 Tspn ground pepper
3 TBSP Worcestercshire sauce
1 crushed beef bullion cube (instead of salt)
1/4 Can of diced tomatoes, NOT DRAINED

Directions:
1.) Coat 8 muffin tins with cooking spray. Using a muffin tin allows you to regulate portion sizes.
2.) Mix meat, egg, bread crumbs, Italian seasoning, parsley, onion, bell pepper, ground pepper, bullion, 1 1/2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce, 1/4 cup cheese, and 1/4 can of diced tomatoes in a large bowl.
3.) Form the meat into 8 balls and put them in the muffin cups. Combine 2 TBSP of ketchup and 1 1/2 TBSP of Worcestershire sauce and spread 1/2 teaspoon over each mini meatloaf.
4.) Put the muffin tin on a baking sheet and bake for 20-30 minutes. Pour off fat before serving.

Serve with roasted rosemary new potatoes or garlic and herb mashed potatoes and roasted or steamed veggies.

Alternatives:
Substitute the bullion cube and onion for a packet of onion dip or soup mix and avoid the tears from cutting the onion.

Add spice by adding a few dashes of Tobasco to the ketchup and Worcestershire topping.

Add spice and flavor by substituting 1/2 c of salsa instead of diced tomatoes.

Eliminate some sodium content by substituting low sodium tomato sauce instead of ketchup.

Cut fat/calories by using .5lbs of ground lean sirloin, ground lean pork, and ground lean (90/10) turkey or chicken. Make sure to really work meat together with your hands when you mix them with the other ingredients.

Freeze leftovers in individual portions and reheat in microwave for 3-5 minutes.

Hello, My Name is Jenn...and I am a TV Addict

Do you ever feel ADD? I think I’m starting to. It’s carrying over to my “real” life not just my imaginary me. I think it started to happen when we lost the remote control. I’m forced to get up and change the channels during the commercials or leave it and sit through monotonous Geico and FreeCreditRepot.com commercials. Ugh. I usually opt for getting up because some days are easier than others.

Take Tuesdays for instance. Last night John Quinllones with ABC has his half-investigative, half-scientific, half-social experiment show. Well, I guess it would be thirds, not halves. Anyway, he has this show called “What Would You Do” which is based on creating a scenario while hidden cameras are taping the reactions of normal everyday people in certain ethical situations. He then interviews them as to why they reacted or didn’t react when confronted with said situations. Throughout the takes, he interviews psychologists for professional/behavioral answers. Then he changes the parameters like age, gender, and/or race of the victim/assailant that’s “in” on the experiment to see if that changes the outcome. Last week’s experiments included how women/men reacted when they see someone stealing from an open house. The realtor was in on the experiment and the “thieves” were white females, black females, and a black male all in different scenarios. All the experiments ended the same way, with someone speaking up and refusing to let them leave while someone called the police (who were also in on the experiment). Women were more likely, more outspoken, and more vigilant about calling the “thief” out and refusing to let them leave and even blocked the door. In the scenario with the black male they were more hesitant, especially since it was a white male, refusing to let the man leave. There was a scenario about a blind people being talked to like they’re idiots and getting ripped off because they can’t see the change someone gives them. This week was what would you do if you saw a locked car and a baby left inside? The baby was actually a realistic doll so no one was harmed. It’s FACINATING. By the way, people do the right thing in every situation. Gives me hope for mankind.

At the same time the new season of Nip/Tuck is on. I know its mindless trivial nonsense but it’s totally HOT! Murder, lies, plastic surgery and explicate sex?! What more could anyone want in a show? The last think I want to do after a long day of pushing papers is think, so I immediately look forward to Tuesdays. This poses a problem though since I’m now torn between my passion for seeking knowledge of human behavior and watching the raw animalistic human nature in the form of Christian Troy. I have my own running list of social experiments that should be done-oh, what to do what to do?!

Even still, The Office reruns on TBS which was the whole reason I started watching TV on Tuesdays. The Office makes me feel awkward and uncomfortable and I think that helps me cope in my imaginary life. King of the Hill is also on at the same time on Adult Swim. I know it’s a cartoon, but its pretty frikken funny! Since everything I do is ass-backwards, it would make sense that I would feel ADD by watching only 1 show as, opposed to when I have my remote, watching all 4! I can’t wait till tonight, I only have 2 shows, both on the same channel! LOST! I know what you’re thinking, but the encore of Damages comes on after Nip/Tuck on Tuesdays so I wait till then to catch it. I don't have a problem, but I can quit whenever I want!

Reflections/Hair Did/Superbowl

Can you believe its February already? It seems like just last week we celebrated New Years. Boy, life can pass you by if you let it. Good thing we’ve been living it lately and taking advantage of almost every moment. This month I think I’ve made good strides for personal and spiritual growth. I’ve taken steps to learn how to communicate better and I’m learning how to filter my thoughts to get my point across without useless details. Communication isn’t one of my strongest suites but I hope to change that this year. I’m also learning how to relate with strong personalities which is awesome since we all seem to have them! Spiritually, the pinpoint-sized light at the end of the tunnel is now size of a very large beach ball and rapidly expanding. I feel so grateful these days of every day we have, everything we have, everything we’re able to do, and every one that shares their lives with us. I know it’s through His will that we’re all healthy, happy, and finally movin’ on up. My family is doing great; everyone is healthy and happy. Life’s too short for strife. I know even brighter days are yet to come and I am excited!

I finish the month with a 15lb weight loss. Not bad if I say so myself. I’m learning healthier habits, making better choices, and feeling really good about myself. I have a long way to go, but it took a long time to get where I was 15lbs ago. I’ve learned patience really is a virtue and now I can say its one of mine.

The beginning of the year has been incredible and if it’s any indication of what’s to come then I’m ready!!

February started with a much needed makeover, great fun, an abundance of good food, good people, laughter and love. I’m sure all the moving taking place this weekend was exhausting (I wouldn’t know since it was an “All About Jenn” pamper/makeover weekend) but it pays off with mom and Josh in an incredible place, with an incredible view, and more importantly, an incredible venue for the Cheesy Valentine’s Day Birthday Bash to take place! Look for more details on that in upcoming blogs…

Superbowl at Dev and Javi’s should be an annual event. They threw one heck of a party! Besides the Steelers making history and winning for 6th time in an INCREDIBLE game and the most memorable thus far, and probably the best Superbowl game in History, Temo was definitely the entertainment of the night! He was the life of the party and the comedy too! I bet he slept like a bear when it was all said and done. Hats off to the chefs for the tantalizing spread off everything from 5 different dips and 3 different salsas, to the chicken and beef perfectly grilled, to the meaty cheesy nacho goodness, to the arroz y frijoles refritos! Man, it was pretty much GONE by the end of the night. I kinda wish I had binged! I missed out man… Next year, I vote for a 2nd annual Dev and Javi Superbowl!

I don’t have a lot of pics since I forgot I had my camera with me, but here are the one’s I do have…Its of Superbowl and my hair-I put my hair pics in there because I LOVE IT! and you can actually see my weightloss! I haven't been able to tell, but these pics were NOT taken over and over to get the angle just right so I look thinner, they were taken straight on! I can't beleive it! One of these days I'll hook up a slideshow for ya...until that day, here's the link. Enjoy!

PS. Look how proud my Tio Jamie is-and this was BEFORE the Superbowl-I think you can see every TOOTH!

http://s219.photobucket.com/albums/cc37/sweetgirlsugar/?action=view¤t=a87fb286.pbw

If that doesn't work-try this one:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/ViewSlideshow.action?&collidparam=425449100107.769779366307.1233687937745