ok, so far so good...

A week has gone by (just about) and here I am again, ready to post.  I'm happy with that.  It was a crazy week - Jenni and I both had busy work schedules and Jack is back at school after Feb vaca. 

Despite that I managed to squeak out another loss in the WW voyage this week.  I'm down 2.4 lbs and now weigh 274.  I'm very happy with my progress.  I haven't been this motivated in, well I'm not sure when.  It's been awhile.  I've dropped just about 20 lbs since early January.  I'm working out daily, if possible - that's my goal.  (To do at least some sort of physical activity for at least 25 min and sweat while doing it.)  I've been alternating between the Wii game "Just Dance 2" the sweat mode, circuit training, and the elliptical.  the Wii game is easy to do and fun.  A lot less complicated than EA sports active or the other work-out games out there.  And the boys like doing it with me.  In reality I'm probably averaging 4-5 days a week for exercise but I'm happy with that. 

My next big goal is 260 lbs - that's 14 more.  My next small goal is to be IN the 260's by the end of March when we go away to NYC for a little vaca.  That's 5 lbs.  I think it's doable but challenging.  We'll see. Maybe I'll post pics once I reach 260 - if there's a noticeable change I'll definitely do it. 

Here's a tasty recipe we made this week:



Beef and Vegetable Cheese Casserole.  A serving is only 5 points.  I'm all about the big serving sizes with little points value!  Click the picture for the link!

Ichi, Ni, San!

Karate is going swimmingly for the boys.  They're having a great time!  Here are some pictures:



Jake fighting Sensei with a Bo.



Protecting his head from an attack.



Kicks!

And don't they just look so CUTE!!!

They both are learning so much.  Jack has earned 4 yellow strips which means he's 6 stripes away from testing for his yellow belt.  Each stripe = a new skill.  It's a lot less crazy now - We have a bit of a routine in place.

I try to get there early enough to get a good seat right next to the mat so Jack can always see me.  (and I can get good pictures!)  If I'm lucky, the seat next to me remains empty until the 1st class is over so Jake can join me while we watch Jack's older class.  If not, I give him my seat and stand for the rest of Karate. 

So, I get Jake situated and take off his Karate shirt (so he doesn't get it dirty).  I put their shoes under my seat so I can quickly get Jake's back on.  He then proceeds to ask for his "munch".  (lunch).  "I want my munch, daddee."  He's actually referring to the baggie of snacks I've prepared and placed in the diaper bag.  He calls it his "munch" I call it "the Jake distractors".  He begins with a cereal bar (his favorite), followed by a tiny box of raisins.  It's all washed down by a Capri Sun Roaring Waters juice box. Then, the final piece of "munch" is a mini-bagel (usually cinnamon raisin) which he picks at while he watches Dora on my phone.  (Gotta love the iPhone - and trust me, I do.)

As I wait on Jake hand and foot, our oldest tosses reassuring glances my way every few minutes from his spot on the mat while he makes his way towards yellow belt.  By the time class is over, Jake is done with the bagel (he never actually finishes it) and has had enough of Boots and Swiper.  Jack runs over to me and gives me a big hug and has a huge smile.  He loves Karate.  We fight through the sea of Karate gear, coats, shoes, parents, siblings, and such and make our way to the car.  On Mondays, we rush home to meet Grandee so I can go to work.  On Thursdays, we head to McDonald's so the boys can enjoy a hard earned treat for dinner. 

I think they like Thursdays a bit better...HIYAH!

ok, maybe this wasn't such a good idea...

Well, I thought I could maintain a blog but it's really not panning out that way, is it?  20 days. 20 days have passed since my last post.  And I'm only posting now because Jack is on February vacation and I don't have to make his lunch, get them both dressed, and trek two towns over to pre-school to drop him off.  So, I really don't know about this.  Jenni started her own blog and posted two fabulously written pieces in the time since I last posted here.  (you should check it out: click "Being Jenni" )

Anyway, I think I set my expectations too high.  I'm just too busy to post more than once a week.  So, I guess that's my new blogging goal.  Once a week, write a blog post about whatever's on my mind.  If I'm not careful, this will just end up being a weight-loss journal.  Which is cool, but not what I wanted to do. 

So - let's see if I can at least maintain a weekly entry and we'll go from there.

Cake Decorating Part 2

This past holiday season, I decided to take advantage of the fact we were going to host ALL of the gatherings and use it to as my inaugural pass at full-on cake decorating.  I came up with a simple design (a present)and decided I would make it twice - 1 for each side of the family. Here's the pictorial "journey" if you will. 

1 box worth of chocolate cake baked in a 8 X 13 and cut in half.  Butter-cream vanilla frosting in between the layers - nice and thickly applied

Fresh cut strawberries - an extra touch.  (Jenni's idea)

Dirty frosting layer.

Fondant.  I bought the store-version (Wilton)  I kneaded it then rolled it out using powdered sugar so it wouldn't stick to any surface.  This took awhile.

Draped it over the cake - this was a tough step, I think I'll get better with practice.

I took the remaining fondant and died it red.  This is hard too and required gloves so I wouldn't have red hands well into the spring. 

Rolled it out and began to cut strips to make the ribbon. 

Began draping and adhering the ribbon to the cake with butter-cream.

Died the remaining butter-cream to pipe on accents to the finished cake.

There you have it.  I think it was a good start.  I liked using Fondant but I need to find a better tasting option.  I knew going into it that the store-bought stuff is not yummy.  Making my own sounds DAUNTING but we'll see what happens.  Better fondant might also be slightly easier to manipulate as well.  I will blog about my next endeavor - which was supposed to be a Valentines Day cake - but I haven't even created a design yet and we're like 2 weeks away.  Maybe St. Patty's Day...  ;)

Cake Decorating Part 1: the back story

Jenni and I started a tradition when Jackson turned 1.  We decided that we'd like to design and make his birthday cake from scratch.  It probably began out of a need to save $ (I don't quite remember) but now, even though we could afford to buy a cake from a bakery, we've really grown to love creating them.  We've done it for every one of Jack's 5 birthdays and for Jake's 2. 

Here's a sampling of the cakes:



An impromptu cake for Jake's ACTUAL birthday this past year, 2010.  The boys are Spongebob fanatics. 



Jack's cake for his 5th birthday.  He loves soccer and played in two leagues last summer. 



Jake's 2nd birthday cake - the official one.  Mickey's Not-So-Scary-Halloween Birthday Cake.  (the white circle the pumpkin is on is also cake)



Jack's 3rd birthday.  Jack's been a huge Transformers fan ever since he could pick up a toy, pretty much.  This is Optimus Prime. 

So I think we've improved since the beginning on the birthday cakes.  This Christmas, however, I stepped up my game: brought it to the next level.  Fondant.  (more to come...)

WW Update: Mission Accomplished

283.2 - Did it.  Mission accomplished for this week.

Next Goal is 279.5 for next Friday.  So, I need to do what I did this week and then some.  Continue making good food decisions and step-up my game in the exercise department.  I worked out approx 3 times this week. (I'm including shoveling snow with that because WW gives me activity points for it.)

so, here we go!

Filet Mignon, Wine, and a Horse-Dog

The sitting area at the Hotel Marlowe.  This is where Jenni and I sat together by the fire, in comfy chairs sipping wine and reading books (Jenni had her kindle) before enjoying a tasty meal at Bambara - the hotel's restaurant. 

January, 12 2011 marked our 9 year wedding anniversary and to celebrate Jenni and I spent the night at our favorite local gettaway - the Hotel Marlowe, a kimpton hotel in Cambridge, Ma.  Grandee watched the boys - thanks Ma!

We had a blast as usual.  We got a great deal on a king-size room with an extra special package that included $25 towards the restaurant and an in-room movie. 

The hotel offers great perks and always has complimentary offerings for guests to enjoy in the lobby like a wine hour, hot chocolate bar, fruit-infused water, sangria tasting, iced coffee and tea in the summer, etc.  This time we took advantage of the hot chocolate bar with homemade whipped cream and other toppings and of course the wine hour which included some sausage kabobs and mixed nuts that quickly became Jenni's favorite. 

Dinner was excellent - we both had steak and Jenni tried a chocolate martini for dessert. After dinner, we headed to the elevator and rode it with Thor - a bull mastiff.  His owner was there too, of course.  The hotel is pet friendly.  He was very cool.  I think I want a bull mastiff for our next puppy.  We got back to the room, watched a couple of movies, and enjoyed items from the mini-bar. 

It was super-relaxing and reminded me once again how much fun I have with my wife.  She's amazing.  I am one lucky dude. :)

Our next gettaway is already booked.  All four of us are heading to NYC in March!  We're going to visit one of our bestest friends Michelle and try to get into Carlos Bakery in New Jersey.  (We are huge Cake Boss fans.)