The Truth About… Lemon Water

Posted in Does That Diet Really...?, Food, Life by Em

So I thought it was time for another diet debunking… and while this is one is getting old, (and hopefully less popular), it seems to keep popping up every now and again… so I thought that I would post this anyway…

Another popular… shall we say diet trend that I have been watching for a little while is again not in itself a diet but another food buzz… a food buzz around lemon water… No I am not just talking about flavouring water with a slice of lemon to make it more palatable, although… it is just lemon in water… but it’s the claims that surround it…

Once again, my friend google has offered countless of sites that offer lots of reasons why everyone should start their day with warm lemon water… everything from alkalizing the body, to speeding digestion, to flushing out toxins… but can it really be that good? Unfortunately not… it’s just lemon in water… Although unlike many wonder diets out there at least this one hasn’t cost you that much…

So what’s the truth… well, maybe it’s easier to say what isn’t. The most common reasons for consuming lemon water… as searched on google by myself… are as follows… aiding digestion and detoxing, weight loss, and balancing the bodies pH… and here are the facts

1. Water helps with digestion and detoxing… not lemons.
Some of the benefits that are often attributed to lemon water are most likely due to the fact that more water is consumed. Water is essential for digestion, absorption and transportation of nutrients, body temperature regulation and the elimination of waste from our bodies. Starting the day with a full glass/mug/bucket of lemon water also means that you are starting the day with the same volume of water and in many cases this is additional to what you may have normally consumed, or instead of an alternative beverage that contains other things as well as water, such as milk, juice or coffee. When we consume adequate amounts of water, which many people find challenging, our bodies are more efficient at processing and removing waste products… I guess that could be called detoxing, but it’s not the lemon, it’s simply the fact that the body has the bits it needs to do it’s job.

2. One food won’t ‘fix’ your metabolism.
Another common misconception that gets caught up in this is that lemon water can also ‘increase your metabolism’ and to be blunt, it’s just not true… there is no single food that will boost/speed up/alter our metabolism. Yep foods are metabolised differently, and some are easier to digest than others, but our metabolism as a system is much more complicated than simply adding lemon. It is regulated somewhat by our intake, including water and hydration, but also by a whole series of hormones… and if I could find one food that would make it go faster… my job would be a lot easier… but it’s not lemon water.

3. Lemons are acidic!
There is also lots of hype around alkaline foods… and their neutralizing nature – but that’s a whole blog in itself. The reality is the GI tract which runs from our mouth to… well the other end, has a number of different pH levels (that is how acidic or alkaline something is) which it requires to function. On the most part it is acidic… on purpose… and if it wasn’t it would stop working properly. Lemons are also acidic… in saliva, they are still acidic… they give us vitamin C because they are acidic (Vitamin C is also known as ascorbic acid)… if they neutralized and somehow alkalized the body we wouldn’t get the vitamin C or ascorbic acid… because it would have disappeared in the process… if it becomes neutral or alkaline… its not an acid anymore… Lemon water and alkalising just doesn’t make sense. You can’t add an acid to our acidic bodies and make an alkaline environment.

As a side note to the whole lemons are acidic thing… acidic drinks… like soft drinks, juices and you guessed it lemon water aren’t great for your teeth, so you need to make sure that you clean your teeth afterwards… the acids in these drinks eat away at the enamel on the teeth… and if that’s not protected… well it’s not pretty. Acid + more acid doesn’t equal alkaline

4. Lemon water won’t make you lost weight.
Well simply adding lemon water to the diet won’t… there are lots of celeb’s that rave about the lemon water diet…the great Beyoncé herself believes it is a miracle diet… but it only works if you use lemon water to replace other food… so really just having less calories in the diet… less calories in = weight loss. But in this case it also means you also lose all of the other nutrition that the meal replaced has provided… mostly all macronutrients – Protein, Fat, Carbohydrate… none of which lemon water provides. So it will work, but it’s not a great way to do it, it’s unsustainable and dangerous… and definitely not recommended.

So is there any actual benefit for lemon water?
Well, if you can’t stand plain water and a slice of lemon helps you keep your fluids up and stay hydrated… then absolutely… If you really hate fruit and this is as close as you can manage… well I guess some vitamins are better than none (and even then a slice of lemon only has 16% of your recommended daily intake of Vit. C compared to an orange which contains 118%). But including water and fruit, even lemons, as part of the bigger picture of a well balanced diet is much more important than relying on lemon water to fix everything… because it just can’t.

It’s not magic,
It’s not special,
It’s just regular food…

Em – your friendly Accredited Practicing Dietitian (APD).

1Jan2014

The 2014 List

Posted in Food, Friendship, God, Life, Love, Project 365, The List by Em

I am a little bit excited about this years list, I feel like the whole idea is taking off… and I like the fact that except for the last couple of months my blog has now made it into its forth year… and just because I really love having a list here is my 2014 list of 100 things that I would like to do/achieve in the coming year.

Once again the list is a mix of things, some of them I have attempted in the past and even blogged about them (my old ‘lists’ can be checked out by clicking the year 2006, 2007, 2012 and 2013), and some of them I have never done or at least haven’t done for a long time. As always it’s a mixed bag of all things weird, normal and wonderful… Things are always more fun when they are done with someone else, so if you see anything on the list that you might want to try… let me know!

Hopefully as the year goes by I will once again be able to tick them off this not so little list and put a photo or a blog up about it… so here it is… the 2014 list:

Do the 1000 steps
Make a loaf of bread
Use my day off productively
Cook dinner at least once a week
Do mine and Dave’s family trees
Try a green juice
Go to two weddings
Eat something from my veggie garden
Run 5km without walking
Be a more informed consumer
Go 1 week without a sometimes food
Embrace home cooking
Read the New Testament
Stop back dating blogs…. Post it when it happens or not at all
Go Low FODMAP for a week
Do another boot camp
Get a sun reflector for my car
Help someone set up a blog
Review the books I read on amazon
Send one handwritten note of gratitude to someone each month
Complement a stranger everyday for a week (different strangers otherwise it would be creepy)
Break a rule
Swim 50km, not all at once, but over the year
Update my resume (Not because I want a new job but to reflect on my accomplishments)
Walk/Run 300km
Buy a house
Do another fun run
Cuddle a baby less than 6months old
Get a massage
Be Vegan for 24 hours
Go in a sea vessel… Kayak, Canoe, Paddle boat… whatever
Go out in country Victoria for the day
Build a sand castle
Write at least 3 letters to my prayer pal
Play a board game with friends
Enter a colouring competition
Make a cushion
Cook fish
Learn a song on clarinet without Dave’s help
Plant something in the garden
Play Mini golf
Follow through with Dave’s Christmas present again
Take Dex for a play date with Abe or Diesel
Learn a song on the guitar
Go to Costco
Try 1 recipe from each recipe book I own
Take Dex for a walk every week
Work as a teacher
Get some fresh flowers to brighten a room
Hire a bike and ride around the city
Get a fake tan
Go to a pump class
Go to a spin class
Do something truly Melbournian
Make my own advent calendar
Find a train free route to work
Get a timer for our Christmas lights
Go to Bright
Put Pa’s videos on DVD
Try Pilates
Use my new paper diary more effectively
Be better at visiting my grandparents
Go to the cricket
Cook all meals at home for a fortnight (no lazy takeaway or eating out just because)
Go fruit picking
Get awesome Christmas jumpers for Dave and I
Start my Australia camping pictures map
Go camping
Walk across the bridge in Kilcunda
Go to a cemetery
Join a book club
Read 12 books
Try some regular yoga
Do 5 different exercise classes
Do a trail walk/hike
Go a month without playing games on my phone
Put some nets on my veggie patch
Take a photo everyday
Get there and stay there
Have a picnic in the backyard
Swim in the ocean at least 5 times
Actually finish our wedding guest book
Update our displayed photos
Keep my corner clean
Pretend to be a morning person
See the movie Frozen
Exercise 4 times a week
See ‘Saving Mr Banks’ at the movies
Have dinner and go bowling with Dustin and Rachel
Do my chores and pull my weight around the house
Just stop picking
Play Super Mario Bros
Save some of my pocket money each fortnight
Cook something from each of my Donna Hay magazines
Try at least one thing from each of my Women’s Fitness magazines
Do my 2012 and 2013 scrapbooks
Wash my car by myself
Go on a push bike adventure with Dave
Finish going through my cooking magazines and either save them or throw them out
Drive a bus

So there you go… thanks to all the people who helped me put this years list together, sing out if you want to help cross something off, or if you have a list of your own I would love to hear about it.

Here we go!

31Dec2013

2013 – Through the eyes of my iPhone

Posted in Christmas, Family, Food, Friendship, God, Life, Photo A Day, Project 365, The List by Em

Another year done and dusted… and once again it’s time to reminisce on what the year has brought. It’s kind of overwhelming to look at the year in one go like this. In many ways it feels like 2013 just started, but when I look at all the things i’ve done this year, it feels like a long time.

2013 has been another busy busy years, with lots of excitement, fun and laughter, some tears and sadness but it has all played an important part in the year that was… and without it.. it would have been pretty boring. There are still things I wish I had have achieved this year, but there is lots of things that I have done which have been bigger and better than I could have imagined. And just like the last couple of years I have taken a photo everyday, some good ones, some boring ones, and some in-between, but it gives me a good recap of all that happened in 2013… so here is 2013 through the eyes of my iPhone…

JANUARY…

Highlight: January was fun month full of all good things about summer… sun, friends, family and the beach. There was a lowlight of my computer dying, but that was outweighed by weddings, new puppies, dinner with family and some time at the beach with rellies from overseas… well played january.

FEBRUARY…

Highlight: All things outdoors – my new herb garden, a new sleeping bag, moonlight cinema, young adults camp, oh and an indoor night with Keith Urban…

MARCH…

Highlight: New apple products – a new laptop and my iPad mini… Fun weekends in Inverloch where Dex met Abe oh and Kate got married… March was a winner month.

APRIL…

Highlight: My Birthday and everything that went with it… crossing things off my list… although I am not sure if bikram yoga is a highlight or lowlight… but the most exciting moment of all is getting the call that said my best friend was engaged! So much love and joy in one call.

MAY…

Highlight: Dave’s school production of Les Mis… hands down… it was simply the best, such a wonderful bunch of talented kids and teachers… well done WCC…. Also Jake got enrolled as an adherent and that was pretty awesome.

JUNE…

Highlight: Camping… I have decided I love it… I love the tent, I love the adventure and I love our new tradition of timer photos.

JULY…

Highlight: Jake turned 21… and it was fun! Oh and there was more camping which was also fun.

AUGUST…

Highlight: Well actually it’s a lowlight, in August we said goodbye to Dave’s Nanny, which was sad, but it did mean I was able to learn a whole heap about Dave and his family, look through lots of pictures and reminisce which I love.

SEPTEMBER…

Highlight: September was a big month, we went on another road trip, I got an awesome Tupperware haul, the Hawks won the flag and I finished my teaching rounds. Overall a pretty impressive month.

OCTOBER…

Highlight: The highlight for October definitely has to be upping the anti on 2012 and completing my 21.1km half marathon at the Melbourne Marathon Series with my Dad and Davo.

NOVEMBER…

Highlight: Kempy got married, I got a veggie garden and we crammed in a whole lotta date days…

DECEMBER…

Highlight: Another December, another year of Christmas being the highlight… In particular this year a special mention goes to Carols by Candlelight, the fireworks and Bruce, my penguin snow globe. Man I love Christmas.

So that’s it… another year condensed into pictures and a highlight or two… so much madness compacted…

Here’s to 2014… I’m hoping its even better…

19Jul2013

The Truth About… Green Juice

Posted in Does That Diet Really...?, Food, Life by Em

There are lots of new diet fads popping up all the time, some good, some bad, some indifferent… Usually they have all been spruced before… Just like fashion trends, diets come and go, some last a little longer and some are gone almost as soon as they were in.

The truth is, lots of these diets are actually based around a little bit of truth, but their promotion and advertising, usually done by those who don’t understand the research or science behind the idea, often promise miraculous results and mind blowing efficiency.

One such diet that I have been watching for a while now, is actually not so much a diet, but a food buzz around something in particular… Green Juice…

A quick google search will quickly offer you a number of benefits from this magic drink. From curing cancer, detoxing and cleansing, to goodness delivered straight to your cells because of decreased digestion… But the reality is, they are not all they are cracked up to be… and in some ways they can actually be more of a hinderance then good…. but before we get that, lets just clear a few things up:

There is no diet/juice/miracle food that will curer cancer. Believe me I have looked and if there was, I would tell everyone… and I would be very rich. Good nutrition is important to maintain strength and wellbeing during cancer treatment, and in some cases good nutrition can assist in preventing cancer, but there is no one food that will magically take it away. I wish there was, but there isn’t, green juices are not the exception to this rule.
Juice does’t cleans or detox The jury is still out on detoxing, but the reality is regardless of what we eat our food is broken down through the same system. Our gastrointestinal tract… it has one liver and some kidneys whose greatest purpose in life is to detox the body… and you guessed it, they do this to the green juice too. Juice cannot not actually remove any toxins itself, and depending on how concentrated it is can actually just make your body work harder than if you had eaten the ingredient raw. As a side note, because the ingredients of green juice are… juiced… they also loose some of their ability to cleanse and clean out. This idea is basically looking at a good bowel… making sure what goes in, comes out and does so regularly this system relies on fibre to work and much of the fibre from the ingredients in green juice are removed or prematuraly broken down during the juicing process.
Green Juice is Digested… As you may have guessed from number 2… Green juice is in fact digested. Everything we consume is digested, in fact the act of chewing or in the case of drinking… swallowing is part of the digestion process… these nutrients are delivered to the cells of the body the same way everything else is… via digestion. If something went straight to our cells we wouldn’t need to drink it… we could simply bath in it to get the full affect… but that’s not what happens, we drink, we digest, and the nutrients are delivered just as efficiently as any other food.

There are a few other things about Green Juice that worry me just a little. While they do contain lots of vitamins and minerals they are deficient in key macro-nutritients that our bodies require to function. These are called macro-nutrients because we require ‘macro’ or larger amounts of them, than the micronutrients offered by a juice. So when a juice is regularly used as a meal replacement, we miss out on protein and fat that we need (yes, fat is an essential part of the diet).

If we consume the juice with a meal, e.g. as part of breakfast we also get the additional energy provided by the juice… (an average cup of green juice contains somewhere between 335kJ and 502kJ (80 and 120 calories) this is roughly equivalent to a tub of low fat yogurt (427kJ)). Extra energy in, if not burnt. will eventually lead to weight gain, so the addition of green juice to an individual’s regular diet will not assist with weight loss…

Generally speaking Australian’s struggle to get enough fibre in the diet. Good bowel health is important for so much more than regality, and fibre is crucial to this. While you may be able to fit the volume of 3 serves of vegetables into a green juice, because of the fibre lost through juicing, it will only ever be equivalent to 1 serve of veg… thats a lot of work for 1 serve.

So what’s the alternative… well there is a place for the occasional juice, especially for the fussier few who don’t really include any vegetables, as juiced vegetables are better than none at all… but can you get the same amount of vitamins and minerals without juice? Of course! How? Well you eat the greens (and other vegetables) normally, include them as a regular part of the diet. The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating recommends that women consume 5 serves of veg and 2 serves of fruit daily, for Men it’s 6 serves of Veg (19-50yrs) and 2 fruits… What’s a serve? 1/2 cup of cooked veg, or a 1 cup of salad. A nice way to work towards this is to aim to have half of your dinner plate vegetables.

Remember that the vitamins and minerals are not enhanced by juicing, they are always there in the food… Make sure you include fruits and veg at every meal because the reality is, one great day of intake doesn’t give you your vitamins for the week… if you don’t need these extra vitamins on the day, your body will dispose of them anyway. Most of them aren’t stored up for a rainy day, they need to be consumed daily… so just eat your greens… and oranges… and yellows… and reds… and purples… get a little bit of everything and you’ll actually find you will have all you need.

It’s not magic,
It’s not special,
It’s just regular food…

Em – your friendly Accredited Practicing Dietitian (APD).

14Mar2013

Too Busy not to Blog

Posted in Family, Food, Life by Em

Wow, it’s already been half a month and I am still behind in blogging. This past month has been a busy one, they always are, but it seems busier than normal. I am not sure if it is because the year has actually started and the pace I was enjoying in January is long gone, or because I have been distracted by other things and just not got around to getting on here. It could be the fact that both Dave and I have gone back to uni and it’s just all a bit much… who knows? But even though I should be:
a) cleaning my mess in the kitchen,
b) attempting to start some uni work or
c) starting to cook dinner
I have decided to stop and take a minute to reflect.

I feel like I say this constantly… but I am just really busy. I know it’s my choice because I have to say yes to all the things that I do, but when I do take a minute to stop and weigh it all up, I am not even sure where to start taking things out. In fact sometimes I am not even sure if I want to take anything out… I think one of the things that makes me feel busy is that Dave and I have different schedules, this means that we are always doing different things at different times, so even if I am not that busy after work one day, because Dave isn’t there it doesn’t feel like I am relaxing. Now I know I don’t need Dave to be around to relax, but I just find it easier to do so when he is.

I have tried to start some routines to try and feel a little more settled, and even though I have just had 3days off, I still feel a little out of control. There is always something looming that is due, or needs to be done. Always somewhere to be or something to follow up, it just never stops. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to just refuse… just to say no to everything, but to be honest I think if I did that I would get bored.

Sometimes I feel a little messy if I am in a mess… which with me is often, Dave actually describes me as a mini tornado… ‘leaving a trail of destruction wherever I go’. But maybe I need to, instead of stopping to reflect, or panic, or just give up and watch TV, maybe I need to clean up… give myself a nicer working space… a calm space… maybe that will help.

Maybe I just need to get better at balance, or learn to say no… maybe I need to make more lists so I can see it all coming… or maybe that just wastes the precious time I have…. Maybe I will just get better at dealing with it as life goes on… I really hope so. I guess I better stop reflecting and either start one of the three things I was supposed to be doing or at the very least tidy something… here goes nothing.

1Jan2013

Here we go again… The 2013 List

Posted in Food, Friendship, God, Life, Love, Project 365, The List by Em

Wow… I am a little bit excited that this blog has now survived to see the beginning of another year… and because I really love lists here is my 2013 list of 100 things that I would like to do/achieve in the coming year.

Like always some of them I have attempted in the past and even blogged about (in fact you can check out my old ‘lists’ here, here and here), and some of them I have never done or at least haven’t done for a long time anyway. It’s a mixed bag of all things weird, normal and wonderful… Things are always more fun when they are done with someone else, so if you see anything on the list that might tickle your fancy… let me know!

Hopefully as the year goes by I will once again, be able to tick them off this not so little list and put a photo or a blog up about it… so without further adieu… I give you the 2013 list:

Have a Star Trek Movie Marathon
Cook all meals at home for a fortnight (no buying take-away, or going out)
Finish my Dip Ed
Go in two fun runs/walks
Complete a month’s photo a day challenge without missing a day
Attend a Step Class
Read 12 books
Stop buying breakfast regularly
Complete a half marathon
Use my diary more effectively
Start a list of restaurants Dave and I like to go to.
Watch all of my Disney Movies
Clean out my wardrobe
Go to the beach at least 5 times
Get a herb garden
Be deliberate with my TV time
Go Camping
Do something I have never done before
Be on time to things
Build something from Ikea
Throw something old out/give something away every week
Go to the library
Visit Mum in Mornington
Start a list of all the common dishes Dave and I like to eat
Blow Bubbles
Smash a Pinata
Play Badminton
Try Yoga or Pilates
Get down to my goal weight… and stay there
Establish a morning routine
Establish an evening routine
Exercise 3 times a week
See the Myer windows
Wash my car regularly
Eat 5 new foods/dishes I haven’t tried before
Finish a puzzle
Make Home Made Jam
Make a gratitude jar and use it
Do a clean out of my Kikki.K folders
Make something out of origami
Exercise everyday before work for a week
See Dave’s school production
Hear a big band live
Finish our Wedding guest book
Sort through my Cooking magazines and take the recipes I like for my folder
Make something I have seen on Pinterest
Lie on the ground and look at the stars
Have high tea somewhere
Crack 5 eggs in a row without having any shell accidents
Try at least one exercise from each of my Women’s Fitness Magazines
Have a spa
Actually stop pushing the snooze button
Go to a Trivia night
Paint my nails and toenails regularly
Take a photo everyday
Clean out my computer properly
Hear live music
Have 5 different groups of people over for a meal
See some fireworks
Pack up after myself more often than I don’t
See a Musical
Try at least 1 recipe from each of my Donna Hay subscription magazines
Actually go into the Zoo
Cook a three course meal
Go through my house/lifestyle magazines and cut out or throw out
Follow through with Dave’s Christmas present
Visit a country town I haven’t been to before
Give Dave back his bedside table
Actually stop picking
Stick to a devotional/reading plan the whole way through without missing a day
Be more deliberate with my fruit and veg intake
Participate in another table tennis tournament
Tidy up my iTunes library
Ride my push bike more than once
Go away for a full weekend
Get a library card
Have fish and chips on the beach
Hear Keith Urban live… again
Do my chores before Dave does more often than not
Go to two different Christmas carols
Take Dex to the park
Have a picnic
Eat breakfast outside at least 5 times
Get the new Star Trek movie on bluray
Have a milkshake
Floss once a week
Cook something on the BBQ, by myself
Eat red meat at least twice a week
Use a sewing machine
Fly a kite
Walk along the Inverloch beach to Eagle’s Nest and back
Pop a cork
Play a gumleaf
Go to 7 open house inspections
Mow some lawn
Do some colouring
Write to our sponsor children
Try something other than a McChicken or nuggets from McDonalds
Go to a live sports event
Drive a bus

31Dec2012

2012 – Through the eyes of my iPhone

Posted in Christmas, Family, Food, Friendship, God, Life, Photo A Day, Project 365, The List by Em

Once again I find myself reminiscing on the year gone by, still finding it hard to believe that another year is over… This year, just like all those gone by has been busy, filled with all things that tell me I am alive, highs, lows, fun, laughter, tears and sadness. I find this time of year really both happy and sad, I love looking back on what I have achieved, as well as planning some adventures for next year. Yet I also feel sad about the things I couldn’t or didn’t do, or perhaps the time that I wasted on things that I shouldn’t have, but I know that really this is what makes up a year, it’s all just part of it.

Anyway, I really enjoyed using my project365 photos to help me capture all that happened in 2012… both the good and bad… so here is 2012 through the eyes of my iPhone, with a highlight for each month some big, some small but all highlights… oh and maybe some special mentions…

JANUARY…

Highlight: January was a list frenzy, everything from cleaning, baking, getting fit and eating… and all of it was heaps of fun, especially because it most of them were crossed off with friends and family. Time well spent.

FEBRUARY…

Highlight: Weekend’s away at the beach.

MARCH…

Highlight: Taylor Swift with some very excited young girls… oh and great food…. Steak Sandwiches… yum yum.

APRIL…

Highlight: My Birthday and everything that went with it… including my kindle… man I love that thing. Special Mention goes to the Inverloch house which we said goodbye to in April, I have lots of fond memories and while it may not have been a highlight of this month, that house certainly has played a big part in summer and holiday highlights of years gone by.

MAY…

Highlight: Our trip to New Zealand, and being able to celebrate Brian and Jean’s 60th Wedding anniversary… oh and our first one. Oh and a special mention to my first classroom teaching placement.

JUNE…

Highlight: A few bonus trips to Bendigo and all the fun that that brings… it’s a fun place to be especially when you have friends like mine.

JULY…

Highlight: Getting my Donna Hay on, not once, but thrice. July also has a few important birthday’s in it which always deserve a special mention.

AUGUST…

Highlight: Dave’s Secondary Performance Dinner (SPD) with Jake.

SEPTEMBER…

Highlight: Getting stuck into my exercise and loving it… no sarcasm, actually loving it. Oh and finishing placement is worth a special mention.

OCTOBER…

Highlight: Completing my 10km run at the Melbourne Marathon Series.

NOVEMBER…

Highlight: Dust and Jess got married… doesn’t get much more exciting than that… although the colour run does get a special mention.

DECEMBER…

Highlight: Christmas… the food, the gifts, the carols and the fun… always a winner especially the town hall lights… that was very cool.

So there you go… my year… it seems simple when you put it all together like that, but it wasn’t, it was good though and I am hoping that 2013 is just as good… maybe even better.

29Dec2012

Not How I Imagined…

Posted in Family, Food, Life, The List by Em

Ok so before I get stuck into this post let’s be clear on one thing… my list, my rules… got it? Good… Now with this in mind I do need some help… I can’t decide whether or not this is cheating… There have been a few things on the list that haven’t happened they way I imagined they would in my mind… What I mean by that is when I put them on the list I imagined them to play out a certain way… But they haven’t… I have still ‘completed’ them and so they come off the list, but just not the way I had originally intended… Maybe I am making a mistake, I don’t know… What do you think?

20. Get a massage…
What I imagined: I nice relaxing half hour… maybe even an hour… relaxing while listening to meditation music and experiencing a sense of ahhh…
What actually happened: A quick 2 min massage in the kitchen from my brother, while I kept preparing Christmas dinner

29. Dance with Dave…
What I imagined: Well I had two weddings on the cards this year and at most weddings there is an opportunity to slow dance… So I went ahead and imagined myself slow dancing with Dave in the lovely atmosphere of a wedding…
What actually happened:
Well neither wedding was dancing kind of wedding… So we did not dance… Instead we danced in the kitchen… Dave under sufferance while I attempted to have a beautiful moment… technically we danced… but not for long and perhaps only coz I said we had to…

And… 88. Go to the Zoo…
What I imagined: Dave and I would actually go into the zoo, spend a morning, an arvo or a whole day wondering, looking at the animals, generally enjoying each other’s company… I would whinge about the smell, and refuse to go in the butterfly room, but it would be fun.
What actually happened:
Dave and I took a small detour on our way home from Bendigo and I went to the zoo… that is I stood outside and Dave took my picture… we were there, went out of the way to go there… but didn’t actually go inside…

So there your go three more off the list… but perhaps not exactly the way I thought it would.

28Dec2012

The Girl Can Cook

Posted in Family, Food, Life, The List by Em

December has escaped me… well and truly. It has disappeared in a whirlwind of work and festive goodness. But it has been good, and fun and worth it, even now as I sit here and type with heavy eyes, a full stomach and with one Christmas dinner to go. I have also learnt some things this December and impressed myself a little in the process.

This December has been a month of cooking so I thought I would take a moment to brag a little because I really am quite proud of myself. I think one of the reasons I am so proud is while I am not a bad cook, I am not a confident cook. Cooking and baking take me a long time, I am meticulous with recipes and even then things don’t always turn out all that well… in fact you can read about some of my past kitchen adventures here… anyway, this year as part of my list I added a couple of cooking challenges and throughout the year I have been able to cross a few off the list…

2. Make my own Ice Cream

13. Make Breakfast Muffins

16. Make meringues

35. Make a mocktail

83. Bake something for work

But at the beginning of December there were still a few left… some of them on purpose, but not all… And while all the cooking things on the list were things I had wanted to do for a while, or things I felt might stretch me and my skills… and hopefully increase my confidence in the kitchen, in December I got my chance to shine… This month I have been able to knock another 4 cooking things off the list…

41. Try 1 recipe from each of my Donna Hay Subscription Magazines
This one has taken all year, mostly because it was a yearlong subscription… but it has been fun. I still lean towards baking biscuits and sweets rather than dishes and meals, but I have tried to vary it up a little and this was the result:

54. Use every appliance in my kitchen at least once
I don’t have pictures of every appliance so you will just have to trust me that I did… and it was fun…

93. Make a gingerbread house
This is probably the one I am most proud of, if I am honest. Previously even just the gingerbread alone has been a disaster… missing ingredients and not tasting all that good. But not only was the gingerbread delicious, but the house went together and stayed together… and looked pretty good too, even if I say so myself…

100. Have a dinner Party
I am also very happy about this one… this year I hosted Christmas dinner at my house, with my Dad, my brothers and my sister-in-law, and it went well… nothing was a disaster, all had a good time, and it all came together perfectly… dinner party complete.

So after it has all been crossed of the list, how do I feel about my cooking skills? Well… pretty good. I can cook… I can cook good food and amazing dessert. Of course, I am not chef quality and it still takes me a while, but I feel like I have proved to myself that if I just give it a go I can do it, even the more challenging ones… the skills are definitely there and it can only get better from here.

26Dec2012

Wordless Wednesday – Christmas

Posted in Christmas, Family, Food, Life, Wordless Wednesday by Em

The Most Curious George

Category Archives: Food