A Woman of a Certain Age

For some reason, upon turning 35, I began using the phrase "now that I'm a woman of a certain age".

for example:

now that i'm a woman of a certain age, i'm going to wear shoes with purple sequins on them

now that i'm a woman of a certain age, i'm going to wear a 2 piece swimsuit

you get the idea.

i guess i'm just tired of feeling self-conscious or awkward all the time. life is short. God made me who I am - God made me what I look like.

I think the turning point for me was the realization that I've lost a lot of weight these last few years. Hooray me. I weigh now what I did in high school. Hooray me. I can still look in the mirror and think I look portly.

So clearly the problem wasn't the number on the scale. I mean, it's good to be healthy, but changing how I see myself doesn't necessarily start with changing what I look like.

so, now that i'm a woman of a certain age, i think i'm finally starting to feel comfortable in my own skin.

Mother's Day Lunch

Today was my 4th annual Mother's Day Lunch. A lovely time was had by hostess and guests.

And now on to the food.

My aim was to only serve foods I could eat (how selfish I know), so everything was gluten and dairy free - and by nature of the recipes I found, also refined sugar free.

Strawberry Soup

(i ended up using way more strawberries than called for to give it a more strawberry taste, and then when i served it, i drizzled a little full-fat coconut milk on top in a swirly pattern)

Chicken kebabs on the grill (thanks to Steve for cooking them) with zucchini and bell peppers

Spring Mix Salad with a balsamic vinaigrette and a pomegranate vinaigrette

Bacon wrapped Asparagus (and then some sauteed asparagus on the side when I ran out of bacon)

Lemon Bars

(used extra lemon zest not called for in recipe)

Coconut Cream Pie

(added lime zest to the coconut cream layer, used coconut cream in the chocolate layer, and added vanilla to the coconut cream topping) - and so I call this one Coconut-Lime Cream Pie

Chocolate cupcakes made from a mix from King Arthur Flour company - I used this recipe idea for the chocolate frosting on top

Life

I've been busy.

It's exhausting being in the real world.

Last weekend, I turned 35.  Didn't do a whole lot because a kid had a fever.

I'm considering this coming weekend as my do-over :)

Lots o' teaching. It's fun. I just have weeny stamina for subbing and teaching and dealing with my kids.

Next week is back to normal though.

Too tired to regale you with witty stories.

zzzzzzzzz