la familia Staley: August 2007

Thursday, August 30, 2007

December 9th, here I come!

My 30th birthday is in just over 14 weeks! Yes, that's right, I will no longer be considered "twenty-something." I'm SO excited! For me, it's my biggest birthday ever. A lot of people I know were excited to turn 16, 18, or even 21, and while those were fun, I'm most enthusiastic about being in my "30's." Perhaps it's being a bit more grown up, having more resources, or even my very own family to share the fun with. I've accomplished a lot in my 30 years on earth and have so much to celebrate.

While our celebration plans are still "up in the air," I want to give myself a gift that is more far-reaching than anything else I can think of...

Drum roll please.....30 pounds of successful weight loss! December 9th is just over 3 months away which means I have 14 weeks to shed 30 pounds and I'm really pumped to make this happen. I CAN do it. I've done it before and it's about time!

So stay tuned as I embark on this 14-week goal. I'll be posting details about my experience, ups and downs, and my weekly weight loss numbers. Please feel free to check-in to see how things are going and even leave some "cheerleader" comments...as they would be much appreciated!

Here's to 30 by 30!

Over and Out--
Stormy

Friday, August 17, 2007

Hannah Montana---Holy Cow!

Have any of you out there heard of Hannah Montana?!?!

Well, Sofia has, and so have our nieces, Careese and Allison. Our nieces have spent a lot of time at our house this summer and in doing so introduced us to the pop star Hannah Montana and her Disney Channel TV show. Sofia is IN LOVE with Hannah Montana and anytime her music comes on the radio or TV she goes nuts! This morning as I was driving back from taking Ryan to work, the local radio station announced that Hannah Montana tickets go on sale tomorrow for the concert in Portland, October 30th. Can you believe that I actually entertained the idea (only for about 10 minutes) of buying tickets so that we could take Sofia?!?!?

Holy cow! What was I thinking? Yeah, take our 3-year old to a pop concert, nice one. Clearly, she's a bit young for that. I don't know, maybe I wanted to introduce my daughter more early on to music concerts...perhaps to make up for my own concert-deprived childhood?!?!? I know, I know, the Debbie Gibson concert was huge for me....and still is. Until I met and married my husband, that was the only concert I had ever been to!!! HA HA HA Go ahead, the laugh is on me. Wink Wink.

Anyway, here's to Hannah Montana, I guess....and I can't wait for when Sofia is 5 or something and when asked what kind of birthday party she wants to have, she shouts, "A Hannah Montana Party, Mom!!!" (duh!)

UPDATE: As we were driving to eat dinner with some friends, tonight, Sofia started to sing, "The best of both worlds" ...Hannah Montana's theme song! It was hilarious...and so perfect right after I wrote this post. Silly Sofia.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Another Stellar Recipe

Once again, Cooking Light Magazine comes through. I found this recipe as I was browsing the latest edition of the Cooking Light Cookbook in Costco the other day. The cookbook itself is only $20 bucks and it's huge! Our family loves salmon and ever since we've moved to the Northwest we eat more and more of it. I picked up some very fresh wild catch salmon at Costco the other day and used it to make this recipe. It was to die for...and once again, my husband paid me the "Stormy, I wish you couldn't cook so well, then I wouldn't have to eat everything," compliment. I was grinning from ear to ear. It's simple and easy to make, enjoy!

Lime-Marinated Broiled Salmon

Ingredients

1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
2 garlic cloves, chopped
4 (6-ounce) skinless salmon fillets (about 1 inch thick)
Cooking spray
4 lime wedges

Preparation

Place first 5 ingredients in a blender; process until smooth. Pour into a large zip-top plastic bag. Add salmon, and seal and marinate in refrigerator 1 hour, turning bag occasionally.

Preheat broiler.

Remove salmon from bag, discarding marinade. Place salmon on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray; broil 8 minutes. Turn, and broil an additional 4 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Serve with lime wedges.

Yield

4 servings (serving size: 1 fillet and 1 lime wedge)

Nutritional Information

CALORIES 281(42% from fat); FAT 13.1g (sat 3.1g,mono 5.7g,poly 3.2g); PROTEIN 36.8g; CHOLESTEROL 87mg; CALCIUM 25mg; SODIUM 414mg; FIBER 0.1g; IRON 0.8mg; CARBOHYDRATE 7.9g

Cooking Light, MAY 2003

My notes:

1. One whole lime will squeeze 1/4 cup fresh lime juice, of course you could subsitute from lime juice concentrate--I just prefer this ingredient to be fresh;

2. Ground ginger and chopped thyme from your spice collection works just as well as fresh ginger and thyme;

3. Minced garlic from a jar works just the same as fresh chopped garlic; and

4. You can marinate more than 24 ounces of salmon using this recipe. I marinated 37 ounces for three hours and the flavor was absolutely scrumptious.

Saturday, August 4, 2007

HAPPY 6TH ANNIVERSARY!!!

This year our anniversary lands on a Saturday --the same day of the week we were married. This morning we celebrated by attending a Spanish Temple session. It was very peaceful and so enlightening. We saw a young couple right before their wedding cermemony and we couldn't help but picture ourselves in their shoes six years ago. This evening, we'll dine at our favorite restaurant in downtown Portland, Mother's Bistro and then afterwards we're going to the movies to see Bourne Ultimatum!

A lot has happened in six years and the best part of it all is how much we have progressed as a couple and individuals. Marriage and all that it entails has proved to be the greatest teacher of life lessons, gospel principles, and true love. We're both better people today than we were six years ago and we'll continue to improve and progress even more in the years to come.

I loved my husband the day I married him and now six years later my love is 50 billion times greater than what it was that day. The milestones and progression spiritually and temporally which we've achieved together as well as the struggles in varying areas have all enhanced our marriage. Ryan is the most diligent and sincere person I've ever known. He's strong and sensitive, he loves me back. I can't imagine my life without his friendship, love, and dedication.

Together we've become parents, something that has been monumental and key to our spiritual growth. We cherish our daughter, Sofia, and can't imagine our lives without her. We can't wait to have another little one. It's definitely a goal for 2007-2008 and we know he or she will come in the Lord's time.

Here's to SIX YEARS of a marriage filled with love, dedication, trials, and lessons learned. I love you, Ryan, you're my dreamboat.

Below is a fun look back over the last six years...