B-day Meals 2008 part 4

Bryan and I had a joint birthday gathering with a bunch of our friends for today at The Blue Owl in Kimmswick, MO.

I learned on the way down there how much I miss my Garmin even though I have always had a pretty good sense of direction. Typically, regardless of whether I was driving the first time or not, I can find my way to about anyplace I've been before. Kevin, Stacy and I were chatting as I drove and, although I'd visited Kimmswick many times for their annual Strawberry Festival and Apple Butter Festival, I completely missed the exit. Without Garmin's pleasant ding and lovely voice reminding the autopilot in my brain which place on I-55 was today's destination, we ended up in Ste. Genevieve County. I was concentrating on driving safely in the rain and even going the speed limit for a change. We figured out that we had over shot the exit by about 10 minutes, but the next exit was 8 miles further. For those of you doing the math at home, our slight over shoot became a 40 mile side trip.

A special thanks to Ran for letting me steal his seat at the cool table even though we were the last to arrive.

One reason that I mentioned the Sunday afternoon lunch at Blue Owl for our b-day bash was that the Owl is very well known for their pies and I had not been there in years. The other reason is that they only have chicken and dumplings on Sundays. The meal was so good I almost didn't have room for pie... almost. Stacy and I got one slice of White Chocolate Banana Cream Pie and one slice of their Levee High Apple Pie. (most of both slices went home in the doggie bag.

I think this officially ends the birthday celebration for this year. Thanks to all that helped me celebrate my 32nd.

Mmm ... Pie

B-day Meals 2008 part 3

Since Stacy had to work Monday night, she got a few folks together for AYCE Sushi at Sekisui Pacific Rim for a post-birthday dinner. With the way I've been eating lately, I don't think I quite got the value I typically strive for, but I enjoyed it none the less. I had a nice smattering of shrimp, crab, tuna, and salmon nigiri plus a cucumber roll. They gave me a free dessert for my birthday, so I tried the Raspberry Chocolate Creme Brulee. It had a nice thick layer of crunchy sugary goodness atop creamy chocolate.

B-day Meals 2008 part 2

I gave myself a birthday break on the "diet". Jonathan and Stef took me out for my b-day and I was craving pasta. We went to Pasta House on Delmar for AYCE Pasta. I had their yummy chicken noodle soup, ravioli (beef ravioli with a meat sauce) and Rigatoni Roma (rigatoni pasta served with a meat sauce, peas, prosciutto, and topped with a cream sauce).

I figured a little beef and prosciutto would be alright. It wasn't a bacon double cheeseburger and fries. I didn't want to blow the diet, just a little treat.

You say it's your birthday ...

It's my birthday too--yeah
They say it's your birthday
We're gonna have a good time
I'm glad it's your birthday
Happy birthday to you.

--

Happy Birthday to my bicentennial brethren Bryan, Andy, Mandy, and Peyton Manning... and Lars too.

B-day Meals 2008 part 1

Tomorrow is my 32nd birthday, so this afternoon Stacy and I met my family at Lewis and Clark's on St. Charles' Main Street. It was nice to spend some time with the kids and not be responsible for them. I had a tasty teriyaki chicken with pineapple on a bed of rice and side of broccoli. For the past two weeks many of my meals have consisted of fish or grilled chicken, steamed green veggies and rice or pasta. It's not exciting but it's been far healthier than the burgers and fries I had been living on.

Self Improvement

Starting March 10th, I made a little change in my eating habits. No beef, no bacon, no ham, no sausage, and no fried foods. The plan is to start to reintroduce these items in very limited quantities after a minimum of one month. In addition, I've started a daily regimen of sit-ups, crunches, and push-ups. As the weather improve I will also work in biking and more walking (Truman will be thrilled). The goal is to lose about 40 pounds... maybe more.

On a completely different front, I bought a book this evening to help me learn Hebrew... Hebrew in 10 minutes a day. There is a little Hebrew left in my head from my Bar Mitzvah, but I want to be able to read the Hagadah without the transliterations and sign my name on the ketubah without a cheat sheet. We'll see how many days it'll take at 10 minutes a day.

Wish me luck.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Uncle Eric Week recap

Every year in late February/early March, Michael and Rachel go on a week-long all expenses paid company trip to somewhere tropical. Nice incentive, eh? While they are gone, I spend the week with their kids. This is known as Uncle Eric Week. This year was the first such experience for "soon to be Aunt" Stacy. My niece got a cold and gave it to everyone in varying degrees. I got it the worst, followed by Stacy. I even went to the doctor today because the cold caused some kinda viral eye funk. Truman did remarkably well with the new surroundings and it allowed us to reset his crate training. It was a long week that left Stacy and I questioning how many kids of our own we really wanted.

Addi looking cute.

Andrew's Soccer Game

Uncle Eric and his niece, Addi