Pseudo and Healthier foods

Prevention Magazine did a short article for MSN regarding healthy and not-so-healthy foods. It is pretty interesting, and (hopefully) the link to the article is below:

5 Pseudo-Healthy Foods—and 5 That Are Healthier Than You Think - - 10Nutrition - MSN Health & Fitness

Some of the items noted are pretty well-known, even if one did not know the reason (i.e., diet soda is not a healthy food and people are more likely to gain wait drinking diet soda than regular soda), and some are just plain interesting.

Happy eating!!!

Dam Cam in New Hampshire

On NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association) there is something called "Dam Cam" for the Merrimack Village Dam removal in New Hampshire. I never knew that the removal of a dam warranted a live video stream. How funny is that one?! Well, needless to say, I had to check it out. And, you can too by clicking (or cutting and pasting) the following link:

http://www.earthcam.net/users2/interface.php?i=0&id=2015&projectid=1308&clientid=951&tab=default

You can even go back and view other days. It is mind-dumbing and fascinating all at the same time!

Manah Manah

Gotta love this video....brings back memories of my childhood and The Muppets....what a great show!

What a weekend!

Phew - the past few days have been a whirlwind of excitement, and the coming week looks to be much more of the same. All good, mind you.

First, one of very best friends in college was married on Saturday. He is marrying a wonderful woman who I know will make him happy. I've only had the pleasure of meeting Lisa once before the wedding, and the impression she left me was that there were not two people more perfectly matched. Saturday was a perfect day for an outdoor wedding - Sunny and Warm. This is more remarkable in the fact it has been raining everyday all week and still is raining!! They were blessed with such a great day. I wish them both the very very best!

(Catching a quick moment with Dan)

(Time for one picture with the newlyweds!)

On Sunday, we spent some time with Al's parents - who came up to babysit Isabelle while we attended Dan and Lisa's wedding. We met for brunch at The Crowne Plaza (Nashua), and had a side trip to the duck pond. Later in the day, the rain returned....some very nasty moments and losing power for over an hour....Isabelle was outside helping Al mow the lawn when the rain arrived. She had a blast and Al had to go and drag her inside....gotta love being a toddler!

(Isabelle and Al with the ducks)

(Isabelle and I after brunch)

(How cute - matching bag and pinnie! Pinnie can be purchased at Lassie Girl's shop on http://www.etsy.com/. Bag bought on Cape Cod.)

(Coming in out of the rain)

Hannah and Firetrucks

Today, Isabelle and her friend Hannah were going to spend their play date at Charmingfare Farm. Yet again, we have had to postpone the trip (trying to go there since May!) due to the rain. So, we met for a yummy breakfast (pancakes with whipped cream for the girls and strawberry cream cheese crepes for Inger and I) at The Market Place Diner (http://www.marketplacediner.com/). Afterwards, an impromptu field trip to the fire station was made. What fun. Isabelle and Hannah were given a tour of the fire station - which included looking at all of the trucks and the ambulance. Hannah was given a ride in the firetruck - sirens and lights. Isabelle declined...first time to the fire station and the trucks are awfully big when one is so small! But, she had a blast watching the truck go around in the parking lot and laughed at the siren and lights. Basically, a really great time!




In my never-ending search for fun things to do with Isabelle, I discovered this artsy activity - Modern Art Masterpiece. It is really cool, and if you have children or are looking for an activity for kids, this is perfect and fun. To check it out, visit http://www.cookiemag.com/magazine/blogs/nesting/2008/06/modern-art-mast.html#init

I will be trying this out with Isabelle in the very near future!

It's been a while

What can I say, life is crazy! Last week, I was hoping to catch up on work and various other items. Then, our cat, Gizmo, had a serious problem which required taking him to the vet directly from the groomer. Poor guy. He is doing much better. I owe a huge thank you to the groomer who spotted the problem and the vet who was able to get him that very day. Basically, he is on medication and doing much better! It is a lesson on how it stinks to get old!!! (He's fifteen and right now is taking four medications daily.)

After the trauma with Gizmo, off Isabelle and I went to visit my Mom. The plan was to have her and Walter come back to NH on Monday. Alas, that fell through. But, one the positive side, they are planning to come up later this month.

So, then there are the thrills in my friends' lives. One friend's child (born in May as a preemie) has just undergone brain surgery....having been postponed three times....happily, he did well and seems to be recovering nicely....at least as of last night. And, another friend is divorcing her husband of 24 years. Needless to say, she is very sad and broken hearted! My thoughts and good wishes are with her! She lives in NJ, and we have been communicating via email since 1992. I worked with her at Hartford College for Women. She taught me a lot during my brief employment at the college. What a trip that was too....Asst. Director of Student Activities - that was my job. Oh, the stories there. Tears still come to my eyes (from laughing so hard) when I think of some of them. Good luck Lisa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This week looks to be just as busy. Last night I went out with some friends from the Greater Nashua Mothers Club. Had a great time with them. This particular group, a sub-group within the club, are really wonderful people. And, it is nice just to get out and meet people. Tonight, it's a car club meeting and this morning Isabelle and I are off to get our hair cut. Tomorrow we head off to Charmingfare Farm (Candia, NH), if it does not rain. Our last trip was cancelled due to rain. Then, Saturday, my good friend from college is getting married - congratulations Lisa and Dan!!! We're so excited to be attending. Should be a lot of fun.

So that is the "cliff-note" version of my life over the past two weeks. Oh yes, I have to say that I scored really well at a weekend sale at Olive Juice (http://www.olivejuice.com/). I ended up buying some of Isabelle's wardrobe for next year. Everything was marked down to $10 - it was just for the weekend. If I had purchased all items full price, it would have cost $296.....my price $60! Gotta love that.

Au revoir until next week.....maybe I'll have some beautiful pictures to post of the wedding! Stay dry!!

Sunny Summer Day

It is a perfect summer day today. That is really nice as Isabelle is playing with Amy - my neighbor's daughter that I have hired to babysit once a week for a couple of hours and play with Isabelle so I can get some work accomplished. Have I ever mentioned how challenging it is to work from home with a toddler? I thought the corporate workplace was tough. No more. Nothing like trying to get a press release prepared or a flyer finished with a toddler pulling your arm or playing with your PC. Alas, it is a wonderful challenge to have!

Speaking of which, a couple of weeks ago I went to dinner with some friends at a wonderful restaurant in Nashua - Unums (http://www.unums.com/). The food was outstanding. I ordered a seafood dish and it arrived in the largest bowl anyone has ever seen. I had to have the ocean in it (see picture below). Needless to say, I could not even begin to finish it. The restaurant is really charming and the food wonderful. Everyone had a great time...if you are ever in Nashua, check it out. Reservations are recommended.

That same weekend, Al and my friend Dan went go-karting with the car club. Funny, I help plan the event, and do not attend. For one thing, go-karts are not me and for another, the thought of a toddler in 100 degree heat on a tarmac all day did not seem like a good plan. But, overall, everyone had a great time. (See pictures of Al go-karting, Al and Dan and the line up for the group for Al and Dan's group.) There were about 7 groups of 9 people. And Famous Dave's BBQ catered the event. If anyone is interested, you can check out all of the pictures at the club's website (http://www.whitemtn-bmwclub.org/).

Al racing around the track. His best time was a couple seconds slower than some of the seasoned racers of the club - car racers that is....pretty good for a guy who does not race!

Al (on the right) and Dan chatting before the fun!


The line up before the race. Al is #9 and Dan is #3.