At the ball game

The last time Eric and I went to any sort of sport game together was on one of our first dates when we went to go see a BYU basketball game.  I love going to any type of game so I was excited when we were able to get tickets to go see the San Diego Padres play last week.  We completely were creamed by the Atlanta Braves but that didn't keep us from having a blast!

 It was Mormon night at the Padres so we were there with a lot of our ward members. The lady next to Eric with the towel on her head is Ronell Craig - amazing lady. I think the sun must have been in her eyes, she doesn't usually wear a towel on her head...

A good action shot of the poor Padres trying, but not quite making it...

Our friends Anita and Michael - they are moving to Guam next week. We will sure miss them!

The best two years

June 27 2009...

What is so special about that day?  It was the day when Eric and I went from two people in love to husband and wife with a whole lifetime ahead of us to fall even more in love.

It's two years later now, and as Eric told me the other day, the honeymoon has never ended.

Marrying Eric was the best decision I ever made.  We have been happier than I could ever have imagined. I love you Eric!

It's Summer

Summer is officially here. And I don't know about you all, but it was sure a beautiful day! And summer brings with it the start of Eric's internship and the nearing of the end of mine!  Eric had his first day yesterday at Cymer.  He will be spending the next 3 months in their Global Trade Solutions department doing all sorts of important stuff. 

As for me, I officially have about 6 weeks left of my internship. I am finishing up my outpatient and community rotations with a week at WIC this week. Eric is currently running some regressions for me on data I have to analyze on breastfeeding rates among San Diego's WIC participants.  And he thought he was on vacation.

So this may not turn out to be a 'lounging at the beach' or a 'long road trip' summer for us. But we wont complain. We do live in San Diego after all.  

Here's some of the fun things we have already done this summer.  Okay, it was last weekend, but it was almost summer!

Played croquet with the father-in-law...

Went to my kid brothers college graduation...

This brother of mine graduated with just about 

the most perfect GPA I've ever seen.  

Who knew I was related to such a smart kid?

Had a blast at the post-graduation party...

It was actually a combined party for my mom and my brother. My brother just graduated and my mom is now officially a retired teacher!

Yes, he is putting a blanket into the barbeque. No idea why, but it was sure cute.

And this was just a nice picture of my parents. 

A weekend of beaches, family, and fun...

We love visitors!! Which we don't get enough of...hint hint...  :) My sister Ruthie and her family came to San Diego for Memorial Day weekend for their 6 year anniversary and they were nice enough to let us play with them. Nathan and Lizzie were super excited to see the ocean so most of our time was spent at beaches or near the water.  San Diego sure isn't lacking in that department so we had plenty to do to fill our time.

We thought we'd be playing the tour guide role but Cole actually found a few fun places that Eric and I had never been to.  So it was a weekend of adventure for us too!

Our little explorers!

Walking near the tide pools at Cabrillo National Monument.  We love this place - so beautiful!

Isn't he just adorable?!

Nathan staring at the water.  He would have jumped in at any time if Cole or Ruthie had let go of him for one second.

Fun at the beach:

Now, you can't really tell in these pictures but this was one amazing beach.  The sand sparkled!  There was literally millions of gold flecks in the sand. Thanks to Cole for finding this one!

A snapshot of an evening at the Andersons. Babysitting here involves dance parties and lots of twirling.  Good times!

 

The Anthony family - We love you guys!!

From pyramid to plate, unveiled

Here it is!

I have to be honest, my first reaction when I saw the new food guide was, 'Is that it, is that all?'  It seemed too simple. But then I realized, that is exactly the point - it is simple. We all eat, usually on a plate.  This is familiar to us.  I think all of us can look at this picture and immediately be able to compare it to what our own plates look like and know what we can do better on.

Some of the other points that are an emphasis along with this new food guide are:

• Eat smaller portions
• Make half your plate fruit and veggies
• Make half your grains whole
• Switch to low-fat or fat-free milk
• Choose foods with lower sodium
• Drink more water

These guidelines go right along with the new Dietary Guidelines for Americans that came out earlier this year. There is even a fancy new website that is being developed for our new guide which provides more information and tips for healthy eating. 

Obviously, just making a pretty picture probably wont make anyone suddenly start eating more healthy. But hopefully it will be successful as an educational tool.  I think it will be. 

What do you think? 

From pyramid to plate

When I was at the California Dietetics Association conference last month, one of the keynote speakers talked about and showed pictures of the different food guides from various countries throughout the world and then discussed the similarities and differences. It was fascinating. He did not even show our food pyramid, saying it was too horrible and a waste of time to talk about.  He then hinted that some changes may be coming.  Well, apparantly as of this Thursday,  this familiar image will be done away with:

I agree that this pyramid has its flaws, (though I wouldn't say it was horrible).  Who looking at it would be able to explain what those different sections represent and how that is translated into a healthy diet? (The full, complete version does have these labeled but it is rarely used) One strength Mypyramid had though was definitely in the emphasis it placed on exercise and how that is an important component of a healthy lifestyle.  

So what will the new pyramid look like?  According to this New York Times article , it is going to be in the shape of a plate. I like this. Of the different international food guides, there were two (Mexico and England) that I really thought were good visually and both of these were also in the shape of a plate. 

 It sounds like the new US pyramid will be even better than these since it will have half the plate filled with fruits and veggies, emphasizing the importance of a diet higher in those food groups.  This is what, as dietitians, we tell people to do already for a healthy diet and so it will be good to have the food guide reflect this.

I'm excited to see what it looks like!  I will definitely post a picture once it is unveiled.

My Birthday Boy

Eric's birthday was last week.  It came right in the middle of a busy week for him with finals coming up in a matter of days now. I was sad that I had to work 8am to 7pm that day, but I don't think Eric really was.  It meant that he got to get a lot more studying in than if I had been there. :) He was still working on his schoolwork when I got home and I had to pry him away.

Although he was so busy, I was able to get him to celebrate a little.  He started off his birthday with waking up to yummy, hot cinnamon rolls in the morning.  Thank goodness for an amazingly simple overnight cinnamon roll recipe!

Once I got home, he got to open his presents and eat cake along with homemade frozen yogurt.

Tonight we are going to finish off his birthday season with a trip to Baskin Robbins.  Gotta love those birthday clubs!

I love you Eric!! Happy, happy birthday!