This Post From The Summer…

1- Homemade Iced Espressos
2- Summer Fruit Smoothies
3- Weekends in the Sunshine with Family

I love that picture to the left. It’s my husband dancing with my 4-year old niece a few weeks ago at my parents house. The dance party continues too! We recently set up a family “webcam” network via our PS3’s and my living room has become a Friday night dance party with Uncle Tim in NJ and Mary Willow in Florida.

The Update

It’s been awhile since I’ve updated. I know I started a few posts throughout the summer but I never completed them.

It was a very busy summer. We celebrated father’s day, then my father’s birthday, then traveled to my sister’s graduation, then attended her graduation party (a different weekend), BBQ’ed with Tim’s family (twice), traveled to Florida for a family reunion on my mother’s side, traveled to the Cape for a family vacation on my father’s side, attended the annual pig roast of our closest friends, celebrated Tim’s 35th, celebrated Tim’s father’s 65th, celebrated our friend Jacks 45th and then spent 2 weeks in Italy celebrating my mother and stepfathers 25th anniversary. The trip just so happened to fall on our 8th anniversary. 15 years together “as an item” so my father says. There was also a major family illness late August that left us completely rocked. Life is very, very precious.

Since ditching my business partner in March I’ve been inundated with work. More work than I’ve ever had before, in fact it has been my largest grossing year, to date. Sometimes I truly wonder if it is Karma? Nonetheless, it’s work work work all the time. Although from the above, you’d think it was play play play. I signed my biggest contract in August then backed it up with another one on September 4. Truly amazing things. I worked in Florida. I worked in Cape Cod. I work a hell of a lot in Italy. I learned you cannot own your own business and take a true vacation. I am not complaining though. I am lucky. Right now I am very lucky.

My weight is up 3lbs from my last post in June. I confess it was up 12lbs from my lowest then. I started counting points the day I got back from Italy. I am going to lose those 15lbs before 2009.

I have so many deadlines right now, I am trying to cook in advance or in batches. Tonight I am making a mushroom soup and a pear crisp. At least the crisp is from Cooking Light. I am reducing the butter and removing the heavy cream from the soup too.

On Sunday I made 3 soups. Carrot, Leek, Potato; Chicken Stew; and Broccoli Stilton. I had to update the ingredients to make them all healthy(ier) though. In fact, the Chicken Stew called for 12T of butter? What, Butter Stew? There were 60+ reviews and I was the only one commenting with 12T of butter? REALLY?