It’s not really a secret, but the secret to weight loss is: eat less, move more.  I’ve got the move more portion nailed.  A typical day for me starts after going to bed at 10:00pm the night before.  Stats all courtesy of my mother’s Body Bugg.  Thanks Mom!

1am Get up with Baby, run downstairs to warm up bottle, run back upstairs to feed and rock baby. Go back to bed. Calories burned so far: 190

4:30am Same routine as 1am. Calories burned: 390

6:30am Alarm goes off, morning routine commences.  Calories burned: 540

6:30-9am Multiple trips made up and down stairs getting 3 kids and self dressed, brushed, fed, 2 cups of coffee, backpack checked, lunch packed. Put baby in sling, and walk 6 year old to school, pushing stroller containing 3 year old. Stand at school waving as 6 year old goes inside. Push empty stroller back home as 3 year old runs alongside.  Put 3 year old and baby into car seats and drive to pre-school. Unload 3 year old and baby, walk into school, wave good bye, return baby to car seat and drive to grocery store. Calories burned so far: 960 

9-11am Put baby in sling and walk around grocery store for 1 hour. Load baby into car, drive home, unload groceries, put groceries away, feed baby, play with baby, sort laundry, check email.  Load baby back into car drive to pre-school.  Calories burned: 1310

11-1pm Make lunch for 3 year old, feed baby, read story, put everyone down for a nap, including self. Calories burned: 1610

1:30pm Power nap over. Calories burned: 1670

1:30-3:30pm Eat lunch, put away clean dishes, load dish washer, put away clean clothes, wake up and dress 3 year old, put baby in sling, push stroller containing 3 year old to school, wait for bell, walk 6 year old home, pushing empty stroller as 3 year old runs alongside.  Calories burned: 2040

3:30-5pm Put away more laundry, make snacks, feed baby, make dinner.  Calories burned: 2240

5-7pm Dinner eaten, watch news, feed baby, kids bathed, jammies, teeth brushed.  Calories burned: 2610

7-8pm Read story, goodnight kisses and hugs, bathe baby, feed baby, put baby to bed. Calories burned: 2780

8-10pm Watch TV, Relax! Go to bed.  Calories burned: 2950

Steps: 15,839

I use Calorie Count, a free service from About.com to track my daily calories and I highly recommend it to anyone who would like to lose any amount of weight.  They really break down the science of losing weight and make it suddenly not seem so unmanageable.   

This is my mother’s recipe, it is an easy and fast week-night meal.

French Dip Sandwiches

• 1/2-1 lb high quality deli roast beef, thinly sliced
• 1 can beef consomme
• 1 can concentrated french onion soup
• sliced provolone
• hoagie rolls
• butter and garlic bread sprinkle

1. Combine soups in a pot on the stove top and heat.
2. Add roast beef, breaking up the slices, simmer.  I usually use about 1/2 lb for 3 sandwiches.
3. Slice hoagies and toast lightly under broiler.  Keep an eye on them! I usually go through an entire bag of hoagies for a 2 person dinner because I set the first batch on fire.
4. Butter toasted buns and sprinkle with garlic powder or garlic bread sprinkle or get fancy and rub with a slice of fresh garlic.
5. Spread mayo or prepared horseradish or whatever you like on one side of bread.  Using tongs so the liquid will drain back into pot, pile meat onto bread.
6. Cover with sliced provolone and return sandwiches to broiler.  You’re just warming them until the cheese melts! It will only take a minute!
7. Put the tops on and slice on the horizontal (that makes them fancy).  Serve au jus from the pot on the side.

For my kids, I usually make hot ham and cheese melts cause they don’t eat.  I would rather them not eat the cheap deli ham than the expensive filet of roast beef.

Whatever you consider Pico-salsa, salad, condiment-it is a great way to freshen or brighten up what could otherwise be really heavy dishes. Enchiladas, queso, guacamole are all thick, creamy, and rich and really go well with the bright flavors and contrasting texture of the pico. It is also a great way to incorporate veggies into really meat heavy dishes like tacos and fajitas. You can also serve it as a dip with chips or as a topping over grilled chicken or shrimp. This recipe is really just a guideline. Start by combining a little at a time until you get the tomato/onion/pepper/cilantro combination you like.

Pico de Gallo

• 4 medium tomatoes
• 1/2 small white onion
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1-2 serrano peppers, to taste
• 1 clove garlic, minced (optional)
• 2 tbsp lime juice (optional)
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• pinch sugar

1. Finely dice all vegetables and combine all ingredients, to taste.

I think pico is better when it is finely diced to allow all of the flavors to really come together and to get a little of each flavor with every bite. Finely chop the tomatoes, onion, cilantro, and the green flesh of the peppers. If you want the pico to be hot you can keep in some of the seeds and ribs.

Beyond Merlot: Wine Reviews for Newbies

One real winner we have found both in taste and price is: Red Diamond Cabernet Sauvignon.  You’ll note I don’t give a year, because so far we’ve yet to have one that wasn’t good.  According to their website the cab is actually a blend with 2% Merlot.  I never realized it but that probably accounts for this wine’s easy drink-ability.  It is fruity and light but with a good mouthfeel.  The best part of this wine is it’s cost.  We’ve seen it from between $7-$12 but look for it around $8.50.  The price makes it a great buy for a group, or take advantage if your grocer has a buy 6 discount. It is very smooth compared to a lot of other under $10 wines and a great first step if you are thinking about branching out.