Wine Tasting at Temecula

I wanted to do something for Eddie so I booked a chauffeur to take us wine tasting in Temecula, about 1 hour drive north of us. It was great having the tour planned for us, and it was so peaceful to be outdoors. After a couple of stops, including a winery designed by the architect of Disney meant to replicate Snow White's cottage, we headed to lunch at Thorton Winery, and had the best beer battered fries ever. I said I could just eat a whole plate of those and be happy. When we told our chauffeur, unprompted, she said the same thing! So good. I liked the dessert wine at Hart, while the most unusual was the Talking Frog Wine, a mix between champagne and IPA. Our final winery was too overbooked and resembled a frat party, so we decided it was time to head home. Indian delivery was the way to go tonight. A great ending to a great day.

Enjoying the sunshine at Hart Winery.

What a view!

Hanging out in Snow White's garden at Briar Rose Winery.

Awesome 80s

Waking up at 5am on Sunday for our Awesome 80s run was anything but awesome. However, as the morning unfolded, we were both glad to be outside. Eddie felt strong and raced ahead, and I was proud of him for preparing for this run. It was a flat course across Mission Bay, perfect weather, and some 80s music to greet and welcome us back on this loop course. I'm really liking 10ks, but Eddie's got his sites set on a 10mi race early next year. I do love the excitement of halfs, but what I really enjoy are any kind of race that involves a theme or a festival so I think the Strawberry Festival Run would be a great time.

It's been a busy month, but we've found time to spend it together, which makes me happy. Thanks to the hubs for a great anniversary weekend.

Outside of Coco's and ready for breakfast.

Mom's B-Day Wine Tasting Tour

While we headed up to SF for a wedding, the timing was perfect for an early birthday celebration for my mom. She wanted to go wine tasting so we decided to take her to St. Helena to visit a some wineries we hadn't been to before. Since it's been years since we did wine tastings with my family, we were all looking forward to it. The 1.5 hour drive to Napa seemed long, but we were glad to sit down to a delightful picnic lunch, followed by visits to two other wineries. The wedding we went to was also at a winery so we unexpectedly ended up doing tastings two days in a row. It's been busy weekend with lots of activity - great to get some downtime now that we're home.

My brother and Michelle set up a birthday picnic lunch at V. Sattui Winery.

And now for a more civilized tasting, we visited Duckhorn, a winery that once hosted Obama.

A look at Duckhorn's vineyards.

Mom and I couldn't pass up a chance to eat grapes right from the vine. They were very sweet.

 

Castello Di Amorosa, a castle in St. Helena, was a unique wine tasting experience.

 

An extra treat - animals just outside the castle. This sheep was very hungry.

Happy and healthy chickens. We even saw some pigs.

A Birthday to Remember

 The way to a woman's heart is through her stomach, at least it's true for me. Eddie made me a wonderful meal thanks to some help from the Food Network. For dinner, skinny pesto pasta and a lite caprese salad. This was a homemade meal with fresh organic ingredients, nothing pre-made except for the pasta and the cheese. Eddie did a great job, and I got to enjoy a little down time outside in our backyard with a little wine. I received some nice cards and gifts from friends and family, which we read together. It was a sweet and peaceful evening, and I wouldn't have preferred it any other way. I'm sipping a cup of tea and still thinking about that delicious meal. Who knew my hubby had these skills?

The best pesto linguini ever made by my favorite person.

 

Another Year Another B-Day

Eddie proposed a dinner out and a walk for my birthday. Nothing formal was the mood of the day so we ordered appetizers and drinks while enjoying a lovely ocean view. It's hard to believe I'm another year older, that we've been married for a year, that it's been 6 years since we first met. What have we accomplished? Getting married, buying a house, 2 job promotions, 7-8 half marathons. Learning about how to support each other has been part of this journey. Sometimes we struggle to find common ground, but we do find it. I'm not sure how any couple effortlessly drops the "I" completely when you become a "We". It takes practice. I have a great partner in Eddie. Thank you for a very special birthday.

 

Lucky in love.

Las Vegas with Mariah

Eddie and I visited Las Vegas with nearly front row seats to see Mariah Carey. She sounded great, and it was amazing to sing the songs we know and love with the superstar herself. We dressed up for a dinner at Nobu that night. Eating healthy in Las Vegas is possible after all, and we walked 4 miles a day easily even if we stayed inside the hotel. With over 100 degree temps, it was tough to stay outside for any length of time, so 30 min at the pool was about all I could handle. Some high notes, Mariah Carey, Miso Cod at Nobu, and finally watching Wild (I read the book, and the movie did it justice).

Mariah in all her glory - nearly front row seats.

Eddie and I on a rare dress up night out.

Healthy breakfast to start the day.

Universal Studios and the Gentle Barn

We had a great time at Universal Studios followed by a visit to an animal sanctuary for farm animals. Check out our fun pics!

Mom and Eddie on the red carpet.

Eddie insisted we go to Moe's Bar.

The Gentle Barn Entrance

Mom brushes a cow saved from slaughter. You can see she was branded #28.

 Cows are so gentle.

We're about to enter the sanctuary.

Genetically modified pigs for slaughter grow to 1000 lbs like these. Normally, they are 200-300 lbs.

Buttercup got her close up. She serves as mama for orphaned calves that come to the sanctuary.

Track Day is a Great Day

Is a day a the races ever bad? Never. My wonderful hubby booked us a table with a seat close to all the action. A bloody mary, appetizers, friends, and perfect weather! Now that's how you enjoy the summer in San Diego. We broke even, but we really came out ahead because we had a great time.

 Track side table with friends and a few libations.

Cool shades! 

 

What a view!

My Vegan Inspirations

Cooking can be fun, but for those of that work full time, cooking can also be a chore. I recently watched a Ted Talk with Jamie Oliver talks about kids should learn 10 recipes in school that could save their life so that in times of abundance and hardship, we know how to eat in a way that allows us to support our health. I'll share my top ten on another post. In the meantime, here are some other resources. I couldn't have changed our eating without the following sites that made cooking plant based food accessible.

Vegan Recipes

http://www.oneingredientchef.com/

http://minimalistbaker.com/recipes/

http://ohsheglows.com/

Films

http://www.fatsickandnearlydead.com/

http://www.forksoverknives.com/

http://www.vanishingbees.com/

http://www.gmofilm.com/

http://www.takepart.com/foodinc/film

http://farmageddonmovie.com/

Books

http://www.amazon.com/Fast-Food-Nation-Dark-All-American/dp/0547750331

http://michaelpollan.com/books/the-omnivores-dilemma/
 

http://www.kathyfreston.com/kathy_freston_books.html
 

21 Days and Polo

21 Days, no chicken, beef, or pork for me and a dramatic increase in veggies/fruits, green smoothies, no to sugary pastries. For Eddie, no alcohol, decrease in meat, More veggies/fruits, no night eating, and less processed foods. I can't say it's been smooth sailing completely. Eddie's beer is still sitting in the fridge untouched. Me, saying no to cookies (Chips ahoy, Keebler, anything!) was tough this week. It's not the meat I miss, it's sugar. Symptoms for me, fatigue, stomach aches, and headaches. I'm going to up my calorie intake with more veggies this week since my research shows that some of this might be caused by a calorie deficiency. I also read it can take up to year to get rid of all the toxins caused by animal products.

Going back to what you know.
I am eating more vegetables and fruits than I can remember, except for when I was a kid. As a youngster, every meal was loaded with veggies, and fruit was typically dessert. Eating this way reminds me of how far off track I had gone from eating what I knew was intuitively good for me.

Withdrawl is real.
I have read so many articles about the withdrawl symptoms up to the first few months such as cravings, flu-like symptoms, breakouts, etc.Withdrawl is a constant reminder that food choices matter. Overtime, I had trained myself to eat unhealthy foods, and now I have to train my body to eat healthy foods. I find it so odd that broccoli would wreak so much havoc, and yet our bodies can tolerate junk food.

Know that it's making a difference.
My initial motivation was to upgrade my health. There's also a bigger picture. I can make conscious choices about what I eat and be less influenced to a lesser degree by the food industry machine. Who wants to go back to waking up in the am to chase the Starbucks addiction?
http://vegetariancalculator.com/vegetarian-calculator-monthly

 It was a sunny and slightly overcast day at the polo fields with some adventurous friends who invite us to join them. Funny thing is, we know nothing about polo going in and even less going out .  No one was particularly interested in watching the game, not even people that were attending who knew people who were playing, and grassy fields turned into what was kind of like a Vegas night club with VIP and reserved areas, fashions were interesting and even flamboyant with men wearing white pants and handkerchiefs in suit pockets, ladies with hats. Note to self - wear wedges, digging into the dirt with heals was no fun. We do look quite comfortable posing in front of this BMW with a glass of champagne (it's all part of a healthy diet - not! oh well I'm not perfect).



We clean up well. Eddie donning Polo at polo.

Palm Springs and a Veggie Panini

Heading to Palm Springs on vacation, we didn't know if we would revert to our old ways and make bad choices. I almost fell out of my chair when Eddie ordered a Veggie Panini. I never thought my meat loving husband would every voluntarily choose to order this, but Eddie does continue to amaze and surprise me despite being together for four years now.

Dairy will be the toughest for me to give up. I love eggs and ice cream occasionally. I may source some local farm eggs at the farmer's market moving forward. I may not give up fish. I do feel better in my heart and body having eaten no chicken, beef or pork in the past 3 weeks. This will be a work in progress.

We stayed at a new hotel, and we lounged at the pool practically the whole day in 100 degree temps. Any fantasies of living in Palm Springs were dashed by the sweltering heat this past weekend. It was nice to get away, and seeing that we're both looking to change to healthier lifestyle, I was glad to see us making better choices, not just to shed a few pounds here and there, but to really treat our bodies well from the inside out. One documentary I saw talked about how we spend so much money putting on make up or buying expensive creams to make us look better, why not treat yourself well from the inside out. What a concept.

Going Veganish

We are going Vegan or Veganish. Don't attempt to adjust your screen, you heard correctly.

It all started a discovery that Netflix offers documentaries. I came upon Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead, one man's journey to cure himself of illness by doing a 60 day juice fast. The results - no more medications, glowing skin, and a clean bill of health. I was hooked and began watching a whole slew of food related documentaries, which pointed to process foods and animal fats as the culprit for the decline in the obesity epidemic. I learned about the ways animals were treated in today' meat production industry and how hormones and other drugs were used to combat unsanitary living conditions.

Sick? Nearly dead? But that's not us, after all, we run half marathons, we're "healthy". Even active people are not immune to stressors, work, commuting, household chores, relationship, etc. So eating the Standard American Diet (SAD), of dairy, meat, carbs, processed foods, this is what I was experiencing:

• 7lb weight gain (despite doing more challenging workouts)
• Chronic lethargy
• Coffee Addiction (need it first thing in the am or I'm cranky)
• Insomnia
• Unable to taste food (tastes were muted, this would come and go, but my doctor had no remedy and pointing out that my 7lb weight gain suggested there was no real problem with my appetite - gee thanks)
•  General sense that I was being pulled by addictions versus providing myself with real nutrition. See below.
• Blood tests showed I was healthy.

Here's a typical day:

• 6a My fix - Starbucks iced coffee/pumpkin bread (40g sugar)
• 10a. Starving
• 11a Lunch - salad, bag of chips, diet coke to give me energy
• 2p Afternoon crash, cookie or a granola bar, or most of the time nothing
• 4:30p Hungry and tired, I go shopping at the grocery store, buy a bag of cookies I can snack on before dinner.
• 6p Dinner - Meat with a side of veges, and rice or potatoes

So here's what I did:

• Breakfast - Green Smoothie (Large Handful of Kale, 1 banana, 1/2 green apple, 1 cup soy, water, 1 tsp Better n' Peanut Butter)
• Lunch - Salad
• Afternoon Snack - Green Smoothie
• Dinner - Mostly Veges, beans, some grains

First day, I was terribly hungry. I had a brain fog some of the time, and I drank coffee since I felt I needed it to get through the day. Each subsequent day, I felt less hungry, and felt more energetic.

After three days, I was shopping for groceries, I just HAD to have cookie, after all I'd been so good up until then. So I bought it, I went home, opened the cookies and ate one, and it tasted gross. My taste buds had changed. My body now wanted better foods. I also realized I only bought the cookies, because I was hungry.

After 9 days, I actually began forgetting to drink coffee in the morning, and preferred tea instead if anything. I had lost 7lbs, and felt lighter, no longer bloated and tired.

At Week 3, I'm am continuing to find more Vegan and plant based recipes to make for dinner. Today's dinner, a vegan pizza, was an epic failure, but my Banana Muffins were a winner. Over all, I would say the biggest gain from this is realizing that you can have a say about what you eat, not just succumb to what's available - it just takes a little preparation.

We'll keep you posted on our progress. Eddie hasn't stared doing the smoothies, but he's committed to not eating processed foods, eating less meat and more vegetables, and drinking 1 cup of green tea a day.

Proudest Moments

It's funny how a small thing can make you feel like you're finally grown up. I suppose getting married, or buying a home are milestones, but those decisions on its own aren't indicators of maturity. How many married people still act like kids? And buying a home? I find myself missing our little beach town apartment from time to time, having traded the freedom of dirty floors or knicks on the walls as renters to the constant maintenance and preservation of home ownership.

Making wontons has always been a family tradition. With the kitchen being an adult zone where real work was done not play, these little allowances meant a great deal. It was a time to share jokes, stories, and life lessons. With every swoosh of a spoon, every tuck, and pinch, "less filling", "more filling", it seemed like in those moments, our family was unbreakable, time would stand still, and the only people that existed or mattered were my dad, my mom, and my brother.

At 36 years old, I made wontons with my husband last week. We'd made them once before in our old apartment years ago when we were dating. The healthy recipe found online was bland and dry. But today, I found myself wanting to do something out of the ordinary. I didn't follow a recipe nor did I try to recall the exact ingredients my parents used. Instead, I allowed my senses to guide me to ingredients I was familiar with growing up, ginger, green onions, the sounds of sounds and smells make me smile as I'm dicing away. But wait, Dad would never put ginger in wontons. I added a bit of soy, some rice wine vinegar (just because), and generous portions of salt (a no no in a salt conscious family) plus frozen spinach, (totally unheard of), no shrimp (I didn't feel like it).

Somehow riffing on a family tradition became a parable for a bigger life realization, that as an adult, sometimes making decisions different from my parents might not just result in a better dumpling, but maybe a happier and more fulfilled life. It wasn't that the previous wontons were bad, but that is' okay to create something new, and there's chance that the result might be better than you could have ever imagined.

 As we were giving each other some ribbing on which ones looked better,  I realized that it's come full circle. As husband and wife, Eddie and I are not only remaking family traditions, we are starting our own. It's as if the scene in the movie shot to my family's kitchen in 1988 and flash forwarded to our kitchen in 2015. The main protagonist takes a moment of self-reflection as the camera pans in for the final close up. After scoring my breakfast at a 9, Eddie gave the wontons a 10. Yes, they were that good.

1/2lb ground turkey (don't use lean)
1 box frozen spinach
1 egg
3 stalks green onions
2 tbsp. diced ginger
1.5 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. salt
1 pack of wonton skins (you can also use egg roll skins cut in 4)

Boil enough water to cover the dumplings. Add wontons. Be careful not to add too many at once as they stick. Use a ladle to separate wontons. Bring to boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Serve with hot chili sauce or soy sauce.

A Birthday in Seattle

Eddie's belated birthday celebration could not have gone better. Not only did we celebrate his big day, the trip also landed on our first wedding anniversary. While you can say we ate our way through Seattle, we also walked 4 miles a day (thanks fitbit). Our hotel was centrally located downtown so we were close to all of the attractions. My brother had generously bought Eddie tickets with really great seats to the Yankees game.

We surprised ourselves with the vast amounts of walking we did, staying out late, watching a couple of movies, Pitch Perfect 2 (not as good as the first one) and Poltergeist (not too scary), and even playing games at a local arcade. Despite the fact that this is my fourth visit to Seattle, it seemed like the first time in a lot of ways, since I had never done any of the tours. Celebrating our first anniversary on a trip together was icing on the cake. We shared so many laughs on this vacation and had the best time together. Can't wait for our next trip!

Day 1 - Lakeside Cemetery, Bruce Lee/Brandon Lee Gravesite, Top Pot Doughnuts. Blue C Sushi
Day 2 - Duck Tour, Dog in the Park, Blue C Sushi
Day 3 - Seattle Bites Tour, Mariners/Yankees Game

Do not attempt to adjust your screens. This is Eddie reading. (Top Pot Doughnuts)

A little nourishment after a 2.5 hour flight as we plan our trip.

We had a taxi take us to Lakeside Cemetary, just a 10 min cab ride.

1 Adult Ticket with Quaker please, a fun 90 min land and water excursion with  Captain Marty Graw.



Two hungry guys, Eddie and Neil, hoping Crumpets are filling breakfast food.

On our food tour on a cold and rainy day.

Our tour guide with 80% meat no filler sausage samples. That's Eddie on the right. Nice wrist action.



Maybe our best doughnut in Seattle, sugar dusted, warm, and chewy.

Eddie shaking the hand of the Orka as we bid farewell to Seaattle.

A Peakcock Run and Knotts Bery Farm

The day started at the Leo Carillo trails providing a challenging and interesting course with rolling hills, dirt, and pavement. Nearly a perfect run, practically no runners, cold weather, no sun, and surprises at every turn, 3 peacocks, and new trails we didn't know existed. Although it's easy to do our old routes, I felt intuitively that we really needed to try this place, and I am just so grateful to have this new path that has reinvigorated my Saturday morning runs.

When I got home that morning, another surprise - my hubby had planned a surprise getaway to Anaheim. So I booked a couple of tickets to Knotts Berry Farm, the only amusement park I have not been to in that area. So we probably should have gotten the fast pass in hindsight, because by the time we got there, lines were long for the most popular rides. Eddie did show me to rides that did not have lines, and we managed to hop on 4 rides, and play some games. Leaving around 7p, I wondered how I was able to close down the park when I was a kid. I did eat a Churro, which wasn't bad, Eddie was disappointed that they ran out of turkey legs. We give this place 3 out 5 stars. As Eddie says, Disney would never run out of turkey legs and pretzels with salt (twice he was out of luck)!

Well we're back, and I'm so glad to have hang out with my favorite person.

Eddie landed basketball in the hoop to win this hedge hog.

 

Scrambler was a level 3 out of 5 thrill ride, but it felt like a 5.

Our view as we awaited our thrill ride to start.

Still can't believe I saw peacocks on my run.

Chocolate + Running = Fun

We were completely impressed by the Hot Chocolate Run, We really couldn't think of anything that wasn't top notch. First, leading up to the race, Eddie didn't feel totally prepared, so it happened to work out perfectly since Eddie accidentally signed me up for the 5k and him for the 15k. Luckily they let us switch our registrations at no cost.

Pros
Gatorade at every hydration station and finish line, really nice touch since water just doesn't cut it at the end of a hilly race
Interesting snacks - Chocolate, Strawberry Marshmallows, Marshmallows - even if I can't see myself eating these while running, it made me smile
Enthusiastic volunteers - everyone at the expo and aid stations were super excited to cheer us on
Well organized - the most well organized race ever
No lines - From check in to gear check to food post race, the numerous volunteers and organization made it fast and efficient to get anything done, No lines for gear check! First time ever.
Port o potties - numerous in the beginning of the race and throughout the course
Swag bag - high quality sweatshirt plus they let us try some sizes on to make sure they fit with the ability to trade out sizes same day!
Food - the hot chocolate was hot and thick, I drank the chocolate ganache, because it was that good
Course - I was afraid of the hills originally, but they made the course interesting, and I loved the down hills especially after the 10k mark, just pure bliss.
Fun environment - great DJ and dance instructor leading the warm ups
Race times/Video postings - we got a kick of out seeing ourselves run across the finish line
Expo - cool vendors with great items to buy, like headbands and clip on carrying cases with plenty of drink and food samples
Overall - this is what all races should be like - full of energy, well run, with lots of great food

Con
Wish 5kers got a medal too - huge gold blinged out chocolate medal for 15kers only

We finished off our day with Mexican food and Chinese delivery. I sat in the Jacuzzi, and feel like I ran a half marathon. Thank you to my hubby for being my cheering section throughout this entire day. He missed out on a breakfast at the hotel to watch me finish. Glad we did this together hun. No more races for a while- it's in writing!

Our new Marshmallow Friend

Woke up at 5am, warmed up and ready to run.

How much fun is this? Marshmallow men hanging out.



Where's Eddie? I see you!



 

Greeted by Eddie and chocolate. What could be better? Banana, pretzals, ganaache, marshmallow, rice crispy treat, vanilla wafer, and hot chocolate.

Grateful in San Diego

The weekend started out with a gorgeous run from Solana Beach to Del Mar. Since the forecast said 90 degree temps, I was surprised by the cool morning. The ocean breeze was perfect. The best part the course was heading back with the ocean to my left and the train tracks to my right. I don't know how my coach and I ended up running 8 miles, but by the time we got back to Solana, I felt grateful. I list endless reasons why I love living in San Diego, but the morning run encapsulated so much of what it means to live out here.


There wasn't much time to dwell in my post run nirvana. A quick trip to Starbucks, and I was off to shop for our BBQ. With a cart stacked high with groceries, I headed home. Thanks to Eddie who has now won the title of Grill Master General, we dined on some delicious chicken drumsticks and hot dogs. I made a pasta salad and a white sangria. Having spent hours building patio furniture with our handy man this week, it was incredibly rewarding to share a relaxing day at home with friends. What can I say, my husband and I make a great team.

With our taxes behind us, Eddie and I went out for Mexican food. Even that was amazing followed by a 3 hour nap. What a weekend.


You can see the running path on the left of the train. It's on a cliff so you have panoramic views of the ocean.

A strawberry smoothie for breakfast. So good after a run! 

Eddie's little bundles of joy - twin nieces!  Guess they didn't mind the beard.

 

85 degrees, Not the Bakery

It's been darn right hot in San Diego this past weekend. Eddie is wiped out from our 10 mile race today due to the heat, which was way different from last year's race which was cool and overcast. We are pleased to report that this year was even better than last year's inaugural race.

Pros
Be a participant and a spectator at the same time, we were inspired by the top runners whizzing by
Gatorade at every station (real Gatorade and not watered down)
Plentiful water stations
Clean bathrooms at the race grounds
Talented bands
Energetic volunteers and race vibe
High quality tech shirt and medal
Cool swag we can purchase at the expo or prior
Discounted prices at the expo
Plentiful parking
No parking fee
10 mile is the perfect distance
Free beer
Post race food - love the halo tangerines! Bananas, pretzels, bottled water, bars.
Plenty of areas to stretch and enjoy the shade or sunshine

Cons
Limited food options post race (not that we would eat there anyways, but they only had gyros and fried food)

The day prior to our race, we stopped by the Lunar New Year Festival after our packet pick up. Not a lot to do for adults, but we ended up playing a game and winning a minion, followed by RV Trip, a movie Eddie had recorded for us with Dominos delivery. President's Day allots us one more day to recuperate. Seeing as Eddie is napping at the moment, we'll need it!

On Sunday, Eddie broke in our grill with chicken drumsticks that turned out perfect! It was charred on the outside and moist inside. I made jalapeno poppers for the first time, but since I took out all the seeds they weren't hot at all. The chicken turned out so well, we see many great grill meals in our future.

Lunar New Year Festival

The Year of the Ram

We did it again!