Ravioli Soup

I invented this recipe a few months ago, and it's become a favorite. It's a healthy and hearty soup for chilly spring days, and can be easily adapted to fit difference tastes and the ingredients you have on hand.

   1 Onion, finely chopped
   2 T. Olive Oil
Saute onion in large soup pot until clear and browning. Then add:
   3 Cubes Vegetable Stock Cubes (Bullion) 
   1 can Garbanzo Beans, drained
   1 can Kidney Beans, drained
   1 can Great White Beans, drained
   1 can Green Beans, drained
   1 can Diced Tomatoes
   1/2 c. Spinach, fresh or frozen
Cover with water, and season to taste with:
   Garlic Powder
   Basil
   Oregano
   Thyme
   Rosemary
   Salt
Bring to a boil, then simmer for twenty minutes. Add:
   1 package Cheese Ravioli, frozen or dried (if dried, cook first)
Simmer for an additional ten minutes, then serve topped with:
   Lemon Juice
   Parmesan Cheese

How to Prepare your Body for Pregnancy

Since baby-making is (finally) in my near future, it’s time for me to start preparing my body for carrying another life for almost ten months. If you are a few months or less away from starting TTC (trying to conceive), here are some things you can do to prepare:

1.   Exercise and maintain a healthy weight – If you are drastically over or under weight, you may have trouble conceiving. This is the time to get your body into the shape that’s right for you – a healthy shape.

(Even though I wasn’t technically overweight, I lost 30 pounds this year in preparation for TTC by exercise and a healthy diet, to get my weight in the ideal range recommended for my body type by the Mayo Clinic.)

2.    Get your diet on track – Get healthy by improving your diet. Reduce or drop sugars and refined foods from your diet and start eating more raw food. Remember, if you get used to a healthy diet now, it will be much easier to stick with later.

(Even though I was already a vegetarian, I chose to do a raw food cleanse to make sure my body was in tip top shape, and then continued to add lots of raw foods to my diet instead of refined foods.)

3.Cut out bad stuff – Now is the time to quit smoking, drinking, recreational drugs, and coffee. All these things aren’t really good for you anyway, but they can be especially harmful while you are TTC and pregnant, and can even lower your chances of conceiving.

(I don’t drink, smoke, or do drugs, but I did have to give up my coffee addiction. It wasn’t easy, but I’ve finally cut my coffee habit down to the occasional - like once a week - decaf cup.)

4.  Go to the doctor – Make sure your health is in order at your doctor’s office with both a checkup with your general practitioner and a preconception checkup with your OB.

(I had full blood work and urinalysis run just to make sure everything was good and I didn’t have any deficiencies like anemia.)

5.Go to the dentist – Get a full periodontal exam, including x-rays if necessary. You won’t be able to get x-rays while pregnant, and many dental problems can become much worse during pregnancy if not taken care of. If you don’t want to live by the old wives tale “You lose a tooth for every child”, you’ll want to be on top of this appointment!

(I’ve made an appointment for a dental exam, and am having full panoramic x-rays done to check for decay or potential issues with my wisdom teeth.)

6.  Start taking prenatal vitamins – It takes time for your body to build up its stores, so start taking your prenatal vitamins now. Folic acid is incredibly important to the development of your baby in its first weeks, perhaps before you even realize you are pregnant, so it’s a good idea to start taking them before you start trying.

(I started out taking a chewable gummy prenatal vitamin, but I found out that they don’t contain iron and other minerals I need. I’ve ordered another, higher quality vitamin, and will switch out my gummies for those as soon as they arrive.)

7.   Keep track of your cycles – While you don’t necessarily need to start temping and charting right away, it’s a good idea to at least keep track of your periods so you can estimate  your ovulation dates. If you want to start charting, invest in a good basal body thermometer and use a site like Fertility Friend to keep track.

(I started an account on FF and started keeping a record, although I don’t temp. My cycles seem quite regular, so I won’t start temping unless I need to in the future.)

8.Figure out finances – Now is a good time to open a savings account for all those baby-related items you’ll be needing. Also check your insurance coverage to make sure everything is in order for prenatal coverage.

(We’ve done our research to figure out coverage for prenatal care and the birth, and we feel confident in our plans. While we certainly won’t have a lot of money to spend on baby gear, we’ve done our homework on quality budget items and we’ll manage just fine.)

If your partner wants to get in on the pre-ttc preparation, here are a few things he can do as well:

Get healthy – He should be in his best health too, so maintaining a healthy diet and exercise as well as taking a daily multivitamin and staying off alcohol, drugs, and smoking would be a very good idea.

Keep Cool -  Heat is bad for sperm, so to increase conception chances he should keep his testicles cool. That means no hot baths, boxers instead of briefs, and limit bike riding.

The Reasons Why

Something I've decided to doing my travels and moves is to write lists - lists of the things I love about every country I live in, and the things I hate.

The list of things I love is for those bad days, those dark moments where I hate the place I am and want to get away.  It's a list I can use to remember all the reasons why I should stay.

The list of things I hate is for the day I leave, that moment in the airport when I feel like my home is being ripped from me.  It's a list I can use to remember all the reasons I'm glad to be moving on.

 

Albania ... such an easy place to create those lists.  It can be a paradise or a hell hole.  It's a land of opposites and paradoxes, and it can leave you feeling torn in every direction.  So my lists will always be here, ready for me to return to anytime I need to be reminded of the reality of Albania.

Five Things I Hate About Albania

1. The weather that runs from unbelievably hot (did you know it hits 122 in Europe?!) and dry in the summer to bone chillingly cold for endless months of winter, while rain drizzles on and on and makes the entire country into a mud pit.  It's not even really THAT cold (it usually doesn't go below 8-10F), but because homes don't have heat or insulation, it feels so much colder. 

2. The power and water outages.  When it's 120 degrees outside and the water goes out for five days, it's beyond frustrating, it's torturous.  When the electricity goes out just when you're putting dinner in the oven or power cuts kill the internet right before an important skype call and then stays out for three days, it's beyond inconvenient.  It's infuriating. 

3. The cultural restraints on women are many, and for a women raised in a western culture, moving to Albania feels like abandoning freedom.  Just having the ability to jump in the car to go out shopping or having coffee outside at a sidewalk cafe is something we take for granted, and it's not culturally acceptable here. After awhile a woman can start to feel trapped and crushed in this environment. 

4. While overall the food in Albania is good, what it greatly lacks in is variety.  I can only eat the same meals so many times before I long for a taste of something different, and it's just not here.  Besides the lack of options, there are a few particular foods that are completely beyond the bounds of what any human should be forced to eat.  Sickeningly sweet orange peels boiled down in gallons of sugar water and then jarred, served on a plate with a spoon and expected to be eaten alone without bread or anything to soften the assault on the tongue, teeth, and stomach.  Don't get me started on brain soup breakfasts or sheep testicle dinners.

5. The overwhelming darkness and depression that covers the Albanian existence.  They've been through so much that it's hard to expect otherwise, but still, it almost angers me that they seem to no longer care.  I just want them to want, to try for something better.  I want them to still care.  I can't bear to see the empty, listless depression in their eyes.  There's a reason that suicide is the second highest cause of death in Albania.  Depression is their lifestyle.

Five Things I Love About Albania

1. The cafe culture, the smell of coffee in the streets as you pass the hundreds of tiny cafes on every street, spilling out onto the sidewalk as waiters pour into the street balancing trays filled with tiny cups of espresso to be delivered to local shops owners for their morning coffee.

2. The intrinsic beauty of the old ottoman architecture seen everywhere, especially in old cities like Berat and Kruja .  The whitewashed plaster and exposed dark wood beams, thousands of windows and detailed carved ceilings ... they just don't put that kind of character into homes anymore.

3. The way Albanians put their hand over their heart when they thank you for something, and seem so much more genuine about everything they say and do.

4. The over-abundance of fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables available everywhere for pennies with taste and texture that makes American supermarket produce taste like wet styrofoam, and tempts you to invent new and creative recipes for the food that you know will only be here for a season, and then gone again till next year.

5. The ever present feeling of community and the way that people always seem to have time for each other even if it means stopping their car in the middle of the street to greet a friend, holding up the traffic for ten minutes while they ask about health and family.

Cinnamon Swirl Pancakes & Cream Cheese Topping

I saw a picture of cinnamon swirl pancakes on Pinterest and was inspired to create them, even though I couldn't find a recipe link. Here's what I came up with.

Pancakes
1 1/2 c. Flour
3 1/2 t. Baking Powder
1 t. Salt
2 T. White Sugar
1 1/4 c. Milk
1 Egg
3 T. Butter, melted

Swirl
2 t. Cinnamon
2 T. Sugar
5 T. Melted Butter

In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and add the remaining ingredients. Mix until smooth. In a small bowl, mix together more melted butter, sugar, and cinnamon. Heat a lightly oiled frying pan over medium high heat. Pour batter, then use a spoon to add a swirl of cinnamon mixture to each pancake. Brown on both sides.

Topping
1/2 package Cream Cheese
1 c. Whipping Cream
1 T. Maple Syrup

Mix together, drizzle onto pancakes. 

Photo a Day Challenge - February 13: Blue

There may be more yellow than blue in this photo, but the bench stood out to me after the city officials gave them a coat of fresh paint for election year. 

Photo a Day Challenge - February 11: Makes You Happy

"Oh, I'm a Gummy Bear, Yes, I'm a Gummy Bear! Oh, I'm a Yummy, Chummy, Funny, Lucky Gummy Bear."

Photo a day Challenge - February 10: Self Portrait

A shockingly sunny morning lasted just long enough to capture this shot in the movie theater facade before the cold and rain came back and the heavy coat went back on. 

Photo a Day Challenge - February 9: Front Door

Not my front door, but somebody's. I love it, and someday I want big wooden doors with a stone arch over them. 

Photo a Day Challenge - February 6: Dinner

Sorry, this might have ruined your dinner. But someone will be throwing these goats on the spit for their dinner tonight. 

Photo a Day Challenge - February 4: A Stranger

Even though it looks like this lady didn't know I was taking her photo, she actually offered herself for a photo while I was photographing her spices today. She managed to look very busy in her posed shot. 

Photo a Day Challenge - February 2: Words

This street gang has their name graffitied all over the city, in English, for some odd reason. Maybe they think it sounds cooler. 

Photo a Day Challenge - February

Let's go for month two!

365 Questions to Answer in 2012 (February)

1. What is your resolution for tomorrow?
2. Who do you live with?
3. On a scale of 1-10, how sad are you? why?
4. Outside, the weather is _______________.
5. What are you obsessively listening to?
6. Are you seeking containment or excitement?
7. What are three things you have to buy?
8. Are you in love?
9. How late did you sleep?
10. If this day was an animal, which animal would it be?
11. How did you get to work today?
12. What is your biggest obstacle right now?
13. What's your favorite question to ask people?
14. Did you kiss someone today?
15. Write down the cure for a broken heart.
16. What was the last performance or concert you went to?
17. If you could change something about today, what would it be?
18. What's the most expensive thing you're wearing now?
19. Who is the craziest person in your life?
20. What word did you overuse today?
21. What is the current buzzword?
22. What was your prevailing emotion of the day?
23. What's the most embarrassing purchase on a recent credit card statement?
24. Today you've got too much ____________________.
25. What's the last dream you remember?
26. Name one item you can't throw out.
27. Are you the original or the remix? why?
28. When was the last time you were sick?
29. Leap year? What did you do with the extra day?