St. Baldrick's

A few months ago, Shannon had decided she was going to participate in St. Baldrick's.  St. Baldrick's is an organization dedicated to drawing attention to, fighting, researching, and eliminating childhood cancers.  The main way they do this is through their shaving events.  Because an organization with bald in the name OBVIOUSLY is going to have something to do with head shaving!

So over the past few months, Shannon worked to raise money for this cause.  When I did Undy 5k last year, she couldn't really participate, but she still helped to fundraise.  This time around, I had no problem with the head shaving...since losing the weight, I feel like I wouldn't look awkward with that look, and since there's a fairly good chance between the dandruff/seborrheic dermatitis and my curly hair that I'll be going bald by the time I hit middle age, might as well get a sneak peak now to get comfortable.  My biggest concern was that I just had a huge push of asking for money in November.  And with plans to do Undy 5k again, I figured it'd be best to save up my begging for that.  Shannon ended up raising over $700 for St. Baldrick's, not too shabby at all.

So, as a family, we went to the event at Martin's East.  I noticed on the way in, they did offer walk-in registration.  As we walked around, there was just a great sense of camraderie.  All the shavees are up on stage and they applaud everyone that gets up there.  There was a lot of events and activities for non-shavees too.  Silent auctions, Chinese auctions, face painting, hair coloring, hair braiding, carnival games, lottery games, food, beer.  But, watching everyone who went up on stage or signed up to do it, I felt like a chicken for not doing this.  I felt like, to do this, would be a badge of honor.  The child that Shannon did this in honor of, Sam, is a 2 year old fighting neuroblastoma.  BOTH Sam's parents did St. Baldrick's this year.  And Shannon was one of 13 women to sign up for the event (Far many more men sign up to do it).

So, I went back and asked about any open slots around Shannon's time.  And as it turned out, they had a cancellation about 30 minutes after.  So, for a 50 dollar donation, I had my spot.  And I was glad to see that both kids didn't freak out about us being bald, Noah got a HUGE kick out of it, and Darcy loves the feel of our heads.  The only problem I found after going down to the scalp...that dandruff/dermatitis stuff never went away, and so you can see ALL the sores and redness on my skin now.  I'll just have to keep working on it with my old shampoos and stuff.

Anyway, the real point of this post is to encourage anyone reading this to take the plunge and sign up.  It's just hair after all.  It grows back.  And it's such a good feeling, knowing that #1, the money you raise is going to make sure a kid doesn't have to be sitting in a hospital, doing chemotherapy when they should be playing on a playground, playing kickball, learning how to WALK! and #2, by going out and just showing people you are brave enough to go bald, you're raising awareness without even being loud, making signs, or asking for money.  There was no end to the amazing stories I saw there.  One girl walked up shortly before my turn, her sister was one of the storied children that St. Baldrick's helps...She is going to prom in a month, and on the spot, said if she could raise 1000, she'd get shaved right then and there and go to prom bald.  And about 10 minutes later, she had her turn in the barber's chair.  Or Team Scarlet, a team of probably more than 10, who raised over $48,000.  The team captain is the father of one of the children supported by St. Baldrick's  There were some less touching, more funny ones.  Like the Fire Chief and the Police Chief, who usually don't get along too well, getting shaved side by side.  Or a couple of the guys with real long hair doing Locks of Love along with St. Baldrick's, so they got their hair braided before it was chopped.

A picture of the two of us, after the event...

I'm Not a Gourmet Cook, But I Try...: Pan-Fried Catfish (Repost)

I had this blogged about 7 months ago, but I've tweaked the recipe and I've actually had requests from people to post it, so why not?  I do have to give thanks and credit to my father-in-law, a former chef, who helped me figure out what was going wrong in my "technique" and recipe.  For awhile, the "shell" was flaking off during flipping of the fish and I ended up with pan-"half-fried" fish.  Also, my original recipe ended up being too bland.

Pan-Fried Catfish

1 lb catfish fillets
1 cup white cornmeal
0.25 cup white flour
1.5 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1.5 teaspoons Old Bay
0.5 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
1.5 teaspoons Garlic Powder
1.5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
0.5 cup egg whites

1. Mix everything but the catfish and oil in a large bowl.  Toss well to make sure the spices are evenly mixed in the cornmeal and flour.
2. Pour the mixture onto a sheet of wax paper
3. In a bowl, pour the egg whites and add a "splash" of water to it
4. Using paper towels, pat dry the catfish fillets to remove any moisture
5. Run a fillet through the egg whites, drip dry it until the excess liquid mostly runs off, then roll the fillet in the cornmeal and flour mix.  Hand dust the fillet to make sure it gets entirely coated.
6. Repeat Step 5 with each fillet
7. Pour the oil into a large skillet and heat for 5 minutes on medium
8. Place each fillet in the skillet and cook for 5 minutes
9. Flip the fillets and cook on the other side for another 5 minutes
10. Continue flipping and cooking until the fillets are well cooked and starting to brown.  The cornmeal flour mixture should harden into a type of shell
11. When finished cooking, place the fillets in between two paper towels and pat dry the cookef fillets to remove oils

Per 4 oz fillet:

285 calories
15 g fat
15 carbs
23 g protein

Notes:

• The fat content on this is pretty high, but the majority of it comes from the fish oil, which is really good fat.  Worth it, in my opinion.  You could use a lower fat fish, but they're more bland also.  Catfish is by far my favorite.

I'm Not A Gourmet Cook, But I Try...: Crockpot Pulled Pork

Been awhile since I posted a recipe.  Been doing rotations of the same old standards for awhile, but I needed a crockpot meal and wanted to try a new one.  Now, we've done crockpot pulled pork before, but that was not on my diet.  In that one, I just put a pork loin in with 1 cup of BBQ sauce and a BUNCH of cola to immerse the pork loin.  Well, that "bunch of cola" obviously won't work on my diet, so I searched SparkRecipes and found a good one nutrition wise and sounded like it'd be straightforward.

The results were pretty good.  It's nothing special, but it does the trick.  And it was good enough that I found myself trying to snack on little pieces after dinner.  So, if you have tricks to make it even more flavorful, go ahead and spin it up.  But this is a nice healthier option for pulled pork.



Crockpot Pulled Pork BBQ


2 pounds pork loin

1 cup ketchup

2.5 tablespoons brown sugar

2.5 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1.5 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce

1 tablespoon horseradish mustard

pepper



1. Mix all ingredients except pork loin in a bowl

2. Place pork loin in the crockpot, then pour mixture over top

3. Cook on low 5-6 hours

4. Shred in the crockpot



Per about 1 cup of pork:

255 calories


4 grams fat


20 carbs


33 grams protein

We Invent Fun, Everyday

There's a lot of things about Baltimore we can look down on, even as Marylanders living within the region.  The crime rate, venereal diseases, the school system, the Orioles.  Baltimore is not a metropolis in the grand scheme, like a Philadelphia, or New York, or Boston, just to name a few eastern seaboard cities.  But, I tend to forget that Downtown Baltimore does offer a good bit of fun things to do.  Especially as a parent looking for family fun.  We've frequented the Aquarium, we've tried Port Discovery...

The Science Center was another place I went often as a child.  My dad bought a membership at some point in our childhood, and we definitley took advantage.  Especially the lock-ins.  We used to do it every year, go to church at St. Mary's Star of the Sea (note, this is the same church my parents were married in), head over to the Science Center, get dinner of Tony's Pizza, go into a couple fun little classes about different science topics (I remember learning about volcanoes), hit up both a Planetarium show and an IMAX film, then spread out our sleeping bags in the Newton exhibits and sleep literally among the exhibits.  I can't remember what we did in the morning after, but it was a lot of fun.  And we did it for a bunch of years.  I also remember seeing Rolling Stones on the IMAX, and that was pretty great.  I'd have to say the last time I remember going there was just before they started the major renovation/expansion, which was finished in 2004.  So it's probably been over 10 years.

So, with two kids of my own now, especially kids under the age of 4, I was a bit unsure of how they would do at the Science Center.  Noah actually remembered seeing a Sid the Science Kid where they went to a science center, so I guessed he knew what he was in for.  Let me tell you, that renovation took that place from great to VERY great.  The layout I remembered before was...1st floor: Science Arcade, Blue Crabs, IMAX...2nd floor: Newton Exhibits, Planetarium, Space...3rd floor: Special Exhibit, Odds and Ends, Kids Room (which was just a regular sized room where they put some kiddie toys I think).

This layout was WAY expanded.  On the "Ground" floor, there was a large dinosaur exhibit where Noah dusted off dinosaur bones and there was a COLOSSAL sculpture of a brachiosaurus being bitten by another dinosaur.  Making our way to the 1st floor, they have all the Newton exhibits, plus some new ones, along with the IMAX.  The 2nd floor had their Special Exhibit, which currently was about Bugs (more on that later), Space and the Planetarium, a "Your Body" exhibit which we only got a few exhibits into.  The 3rd floor was Science Arcade, Blue Crabs, Energy Conserving Car of Tomorrow, and a MAJORLY fleshed out Kid Room.  We probably spent about half our time in this Kids Room alone.  I was glad to see a lot of the exhibits I remembered from before (The Floating Ball!), while a bunch of new good ones were added in (One Noah wanted to do but forgot about later was a "self propelled chair ride" where you pulled yourself up into the air on a seat).  Noah loved pretty much all of it.  We spent 5 hours there, and the only reason we didn't spend more was the ADULTS were getting tired out.

In addition to reviewing this, I took my new attitude into here.  With the Tough Mudder coming up, I've started trying to adopt a new mantra..."What won't kill you can only make you stronger".  I will need this mantra when I come upon a field of LIVE WIRES carrying 10000 volts and have to run through it.  Basically, if I know something isn't going to set me back more than some temporary pain or discomfort, go for it, otherwise you won't know what you're missing.  This mantra got me to try two things I probably would've passed on before...I ate a cricket.  The bug exhibit had a "Bug Food" stand where a chef was literally making up bug recipes, and one of them was "Cajun Crickets", which was crickets cooked with Old Bay.  So I grabbed one, took a quick glance, and popped it in my mouth.  And you know what, if you aren't think about it, it doesn't taste like a bug.  I tasted the old bay more than anything.  The other thing I decided to try was the Bed of Nails.  Noah was admiring this exhibit (where a Science Center employee was running the exhibit) and Shannon asked if he'd be able to do it.  The lady said he probably could, but if he wiggled around a bit, it might not be as good for him, so he decided to pass.  But he volunteered me for it.  I was like "You know what, bring it on!".  So, lucky for me, I was now withing the weight limit (Old weight would've been 10 pounds over).  I laid down, gave Noah the okay to push the button and after a few seconds....I was sleeping on a bed of nails!  The lady gave me a fright by telling Noah "Okay, now we'll push him back down".  She meant the button to retract the nails, but I thought she was trying to tease and saying "Now, go and push on daddy to make sure he feels those nails!".  But you know what, it was fun.  And it felt pretty cool, I could feel the nails, but they just felt like blunt rods on my back.

So all in all, the Science Center was a big hit.  I was even slightly dissapointed that we didn't have more time there to finish exploring, but Shannon and I were pretty close to pooped.  Noah and Darcy both fell asleep on the drive home, and Noah stayed asleep (But he did wake up right at his bedtime to get dinner).  Between the National Aquarium, The Science Center, and Port Discovery (which we rated lowest of the three, but will grant that they have a ton of fun stuff for older kids there), Baltimore is definitley a place a family can go for a FULL weekend of activities.

A Startling Realization about Karma and the Baltimore Orioles/Ravens

As pitchers and catchers report for another great season of fail whale for the Orioles (Why bother having optimism?  We're basically hoping that every team overlooks us and sends their Single-A affiliate to play the game instead), Casey Willet posted a video reminder of how last season ended, with pretty much the only Orioles highlight to mark the season.  We got to play a role in the most epic, fortuitous 30 mins of baseball I've ever seen between two teams.  Boston and Tampa were tied for the Wild Card.  A win by one and loss by the other would seal it.  Any other scenario would mean a play-in game the next day.  Through...7 innings?...Tamps was losing 7-0 to the Yankees, who had already wrapped up their division title with a nice bow, but they weren't giving up.  We had an earlier game and were losing 3-2, but there was a long rain delay, allowing Tampa-NYY game to pass ours.

The stage was set first by an epic comeback by the Rays, as they managed to come all the way back to 7-7, shocking the Red Sox Nation.  But, the Red Sox were still winning against us, and it came down to the bottom of the ninth.  With a man on second, Nolan Reimold slapped a double off the great Papelbon to tie the game.  The next batter, Robert Andino.  And on a 1-1 count, he hit a line drive right to a sliding Carl Crawford...WHO DROPPED IT.  The throw to the plate was too late to get Reimold and just like that, O's win, Red Sox now hoping the Yankees pull it out in extra innings against Tampa.  Within about 5 minutes of that, Evan Longoria hit a solo shot in the bottom of the 12th to give the Rays the win, which ended the Boston baseball season without a playoff trip.  I was awake and watched this comeback and despite how bad the O's was, it felt good to see us play a role.  Aand watching the highlight video, I sort've celebrated...

And then I remembered.  What NFL team does Boston/Massachusetts play host to?  The New England Patriots.

Yes Baltimore, we had our laugh against Boston.  And they promptly returned the favor, about four months later.

We were down 3 points to the Patriots in the AFC Championship game (difference noted...game with playoff implications vs an ACTUAL playoff game.  And the Conference title game no less).  Joe Flacco throws a pass to Lee Evans in the endzone and he doesn't secure the catch, allowing a former practice squad DB to knock it loose.  Two plays later, Billy Cundiff lines up for a pretty easy FG of 32 yards.  And due to whatever circumstances you want to list (Ghost of Myra Kraft, Scoreboard-gate, stupid idiots not taking a timeout), he pushed it about as wide left as you can.  Just like that, when it seemed we could at least make a go of it in OT, the BALTIMORE Ravens lost and the NEW ENGLAND (Read: Boston) Patriots were advancing.

Oh, how I wish I could go back to that night in September and just WILL Carl Crawford into catching the ball.  O's would likely lose in extra innings, Boston would pull off a win, and the fate would be out of Baltimore's hands.  And then, 4 months later, maybe Cundiff just happens to pull off that FG which he makes 1000 times in practice, or Evans manages to make a catch he would have 1000 times in practice.

I know, I know...woulda coulda shoulda.  And now, we have to suffer through 6 months of no football, which will inevitably be an Orioles losing season.  Maybe I'll be wrong, maybe something will finally go right for the Orioles.  But I'm counting on karma to push the Orioles season as wide left as that Cundiff kick, if only that maybe, the Ravens will once again have a nice, dominant season.

My 2012 Fitness List: January Checkin

To Do in 2012 (The Fitness/Wellness Edition)

1. Complete weight loss to 160 pounds - CURRENTLY: 194 pounds.  I'm still stuck in neutral on this one, I've stayed the same for about 2 months now.  I need to recommit to SparkPeople, I haven't gone nuts with my choices, but I stopped tracking every day, and I think the snacking has slowly crept in.


2. Run 325 miles - CURRENTLY: 35 miles.  That would include the 13 miles I've done in February already.  Definitley fell behind on this one in January, but if I can keep up my February start, I'll smash through this one easy.


3. Complete a Tough Mudder - CURRENTLY: Signed up for September 8th!  It's going to happen, for sure.


4. Beat my 2011 Undy 5K time - CURRENTLY: 10:21 pace, 6 seconds better than Undy 5k 2011


5. Begin training for a half-marathon - CURRENTLY: Not even close.

There is no such thing as a 24-hour bug to parents

Man, we had such nice plans laid out for this weekend.  We were going to meet up with Gail Montgomery for lunch and get to pickup the awesome pictures she took of the family a few weeks back.  After that, we were set to drop off the kids with Grandma and Grandpa for a sleepover with their cousins, and I swear, Noah was looking forward to that ALL DAMN WEEK.  Like asking me every single morning.  With our free night, we were going to try to hit up Coho Grill for Restaurant Week, then head home for lots of sleep.  No real plans for Sunday, but again...SLEEP!

Wednesday night, I made Chicken Stuffing Casserole.  Noah started getting kind've mad about it, saying he wanted something else, but we don't do that.  So, then he said his tummy hurt.  We just assumed he was bellyaching, so he ate a couple bites, some green beans, and then went off to bed.  Maybe an hour later, I was upstairs and he came out of his room, again with belly hurting.  And then, the fireworks came.  I won't elaborate on "fireworks", use your own discretion to put together stomach bug and fireworks.  So, that happened, got him to the toilet for about half of it, worked on cleaning up the rest off the rug (Why on earth did I allow him to drink some red Koolaid at dinner?  Idiot!), got him a good drink of water and brushed his teeth, and sent him back to bed, since he said his belly now felt better.  For the next 3.5 hours, he did not sleep.  At.  All.  Came out of his room every 10 mins or so complaining.  A few times, he wretched up a little bit of clear stuff (Assumed it was water).  A couple times, he needed underwear changes (If we labeled the other thing fireworks, we'll call this one bombs).  Finally, I gave him some tylenol to see if that would stop the belly pains, and a little after midnight, he went to bed.

Next morning, he still had bombs, though these cam in the proper facility, and he was still saying his belly felt off, so we called him out of school.  He woke up about as early as you'd expect him to (I end up waking up with Darcy around 5 or 5:30amm so he's up within 10 mins of that), but ended up crashing on the couch around 8am through till about 10:30am.  Always the sign of a sick little man when he crashes in the morning.  Lunch and dinner that night were a bit better, complained less about the belly pains, and finally allowed us to give him some ginger ale (That plan to make him hate soda worked a little TOO well).  So Thursday night, I declared he was doing fine, okay that was the 24 hour bug.

Idiot, you know what's coming next right?

Yup, around 1am, I started the exact same sequence he did.  In the exact same order and time frames.  This happened once before.  He got a stomach bug, was fine the next day while BOTH Shannon and I were curled up in fetal positions in bed struggling not to firework.  So I mustered up some gall and ran him into school (Yeah, parents of kids in daycares are probably about to rip me a new one, but we NEEDED a day of letting him "run free" while I was incapacitated).  Luckily, my side effects were mostly giving way around the time I dropped him off anyway.  Started eating again around lunch, and felt well enough to have a Chicken Cheesesteak for dinner.  Even started to think we'd saved the weekend.

Then, his fireworks started.  Again?  WTF?  After eating, maybe 1/8 a chicken tender and drinking some red Hi-C (Hey idiot, you really deserved that one, a red drink AGAIN!), he just LOST it on the dining room table.  He seemed to be okay after that and went to bed.  Oh yeah, and then Shannon's cycle started too.  So, there went our weekend plans.

And then this morning, he was fine again.  He's still got the bombing problem (still in the correct facility though), but my guess is that will subside in time.  And we made the best of Shannon being down today and not having plans.  I went nuts on the closet in the playroom, finally cleared out all the stuff that used to be in our bedroom and finally turned it into The Playroom Closet (complete with fanfare).  Which allowed me to finally put together one of Noah's Christmas presents, a decorate your own cardboard playhouse.  And immediately, we have plans for tomorrow too, which would be him going nuts on said playhouse.

But to summarize, there is never such a thing as a 24-hour-bug to a parent.  Because inevitably, you catch it, and that just extends the awesomeness.  In our case, this is going on a 36 hour bug.  UGH!