Monday, July 26, 2010
Where to begin?
We are finally home, after an interesting weekend.  While there was some down time with swimming in the lake and playing card games, there was also some stress.  My sister is doing fine.  She is still on bed rest in the hospital, but every day she holds the little man in her belly is another day he gets stronger.  The other strange twist on this weekend is that my mother, who was helping take care of my sister's 3 year old while she is in the hospital, fell while she was at a restaurant with my dad celebrating there wedding anniversary. Apparently there was water outside the bathroom door and she slipped and fell.  She has torn a muscle from her hip bone which actually broke a piece of the bone off with it.  Just typing that makes me hurt behind my knees.  So, both my mother and sister have been in the same hospital over the weekend...weird stuff.  All of this led to not so much sleep on Saturday night due to the text messages of distress starting at 3:50am and the concern of my mom needing surgery the next morning.  Luckily, she will not need surgery, but unfortunately, it will take a long time to heal and now my sister is short the help. I guess this is the good side of having a bigger family, we can all pitch in to help out. So, I may or may not be heading there at some point to help. At any rate, we are back to moving in the right direction. Now if everyone would just stay put, we will be in great shape.


Now, where to start with my stuff...
Friday night was such a great night!  I went to my first blogger meet up at Season 52! This was the perfect spot for a healthy blogger meet up!  Everything on the menu is less than 475 calories and caters to dietary restrictions. I had the seasonal market vegetable plate with almond tabbouleh, roasted peppers, carrots, asparagus, mushrooms, tomatoes and golden beets. I had never had roasted golden beets, but lets just say I am going to get my hands on more soon! Absolutely amazing! I, sadly, did not take my camera with me for the occasion. Luckily Em, sent me a picture of the group! Thanks Em for coordinating such a great evening. It is so comforting to hang out with people who share a similar lifestyle as me. We automatically had so much to talk about!

From left to right we have Emily (who came in from Boston), Laura, Lee, Tyler, Me, Anna (reader), Em and Tina.
The boys tubing! My in-laws live right on this lake. I wish I could own a place like this!

We got up early on Saturday morning to head out to my in-laws house.  This was the last chance for the illustrator to see daylight for the next few months. We had not been there since last winter and we really wanted to go visit them before the summer was over. I did not take my camera to the lake so the only shot I got was on my phone of the boys tubing. The had a blast and I was so happy the weather cooperated! The illustrator and I took some time to float around the lake and enjoy the outdoors. It was very calm and relaxing until we got a visitor...a SNAKE! Anyone who knows me, knows that I am deathly afraid of snakes!  This scared me the heck out of both of us. I was out of the water in a flash and the illustrator got out so fast, he cut is toe and leg up on a rock. After looking around, I am pretty sure it was poisonous, that is my story and I am sticking to it. Since I did not work out the past three days, that moment was enough cardio for one of those days (probably all 3)! Holy crap, I still have the willies!
My first meal there was a salad! I know, shocker! My mother-in-law stocks me up on vegetables when I go visit her. This is my salad bowl when I go there. I LOVE retro bowls! My lunch upon arrival was fresh romaine lettuce, fresh Tennessee tomatoes, my stash of Spicy Falafel Chips and a boat load of hot sauce! Perfect start to the weekend! I pretty much ate the same thing with variations throughout the weekend. I also have a favorite oatmeal bowl, but again, did not take the camera out for the rest of the weekend. Sometimes you just have to step away from the camera. Besides, mine is pretty large and now I want a smaller point and shoot to carry with me just for fun stuff. Any suggestions for a good one?
Now we are home and it is time to get back into the groove of normal life. I am baking a batch of oatmeal cereal for the week. I am also ready to start playing with some summer produce. I hope to get to the local farmer's market tomorrow afternoon to get some goodies...you have to support the local farmers when you can! Hopefully the next couple of weeks will go by a little slower for the boys since it is almost time for school to start up again!

So, what did I miss over the weekend?  Any suggestions for point and shoot cameras?

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posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 5:21 PM  
28 Comments:
  • At July 26, 2010 at 5:38 PM, Anonymous Amy B @ Second City Randomness said…

    Oh my gosh- that fall sounds like it was just awful! Sorry there's so much stress going on for the fam!

     
  • At July 26, 2010 at 6:12 PM, Blogger Stephanie P said…

    I have a Canon PowerShot ELPH that I love. Even an older version or refurbed camera could be quite good. It takes great point and shoot pics!

     
  • At July 26, 2010 at 6:16 PM, Blogger Beth Morey said…

    What a crazy-making weekend! It sounds like everyone is doing okay, though, considering, which is good.

    As for cameras, I like my Lumix DMC-LX3. There are many modes/modifications you can fiddle with, or just use it as a standard point and shoot.

     
  • At July 26, 2010 at 7:22 PM, Anonymous Heather (Where's the Beach) said…

    So sorry to hear so much is going on with your family. At least your mom doesn't have to have surgery. We had a super packed weekend with a great day at the lake - lots of tubing going on too. Hugs girl!

     
  • At July 26, 2010 at 7:31 PM, Anonymous Alisa said…

    Crazy weekend! Hope the ladies are doing better and glad you had fun :)

     
  • At July 26, 2010 at 7:56 PM, Anonymous Evan Thomas said…

    Oh my God! I will definitely be wishing well for your family. And watching where I step next time I'm at a restaurant.

     
  • At July 26, 2010 at 8:11 PM, Blogger Megan D said…

    I will definitely be keeping your sister and family in my prayers!! Season 52 sounds awesome. I wish there was a place like that near me!

     
  • At July 26, 2010 at 8:37 PM, Anonymous homecookedem said…

    Oh my goodness, your poor mother!! I'm glad your sister seems to be doing well, but I know it must be so hard for her to be on bedrest... I can't even imagine. I will definitely continue to keep your family in my thoughts and prayers!

    So glad you came along to the blogger meet-up!! You are so cute and sweet and I really enjoyed talking with you!! Let's do it again soon!! :)

     
  • At July 26, 2010 at 8:53 PM, Blogger Stacey said…

    Whats that tray, it looks so good. Maybe bars?

     
  • At July 26, 2010 at 10:07 PM, Anonymous Anna @ Newlywed, Newly Veg said…

    I'm sorry to hear about your mom!!! I hope everything works out okay with your family members!

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 1:43 AM, Blogger Averie @ Averie Cooks said…

    wow your family is in my prayers!

    your sister and being on bedrest brought chills over my whole body. may god bless your family right now

    onto lighter matters..that meetup! i saw it on tina's blog and i wish i coulda been there...or you all coulda been in So Cal :)

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 3:07 AM, Blogger laura said…

    Sorry to hear about your mom's fall. I hope she has a quick recovery and perhaps next weekend will be a bit more relaxing?

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 5:34 AM, Anonymous MelissaNibbles said…

    Your entire family is in my thoughts and I'm pulling for you!

    Looks like a fun, busy weekend!

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 7:28 AM, Anonymous Pure2raw twins said…

    Sorry to hear about your family. You are all in our thoughts and prayers!

    Your meetup looked fun, what a great group of girls.

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 9:54 AM, Anonymous Tina said…

    I'm still so happy to have met you! I look forward to another future meet up.

    Sorry to hear about the situation with your mother and sister. I will be sure to say a prayer for them. I hope it all works out. How nice that you have a family that is so helpful and supportive.

    The lake looked like fun. And I love that your mother in law is accommodating to your needs. Mine would never stock me up on veggies.

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 10:23 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    How sad that both your sis and Mom were at the hospital! Hope your sis keeps the baby in longer and your mom has a speedy recovery.

    My Aunt and Uncle have a house on a lake - hands down one of my favorite vacation spots. They are at one end of this huge lake, so there isn't a lot of boat traffic - our favorite thing to do is to put on life jackets and just float!


    I have a point and shoot camera - its an Olympus 1010 - I really know nothing about cameras, most of the time I take my pictures on the "sport" setting because it seems to let the most light in, but again, I am not that technical so it works for me!

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 10:31 AM, Blogger Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen said…

    Thanks everyone for the well wishes for the ladies in my family! They both seem to be doing well so far today!!!

    Stacey, that is the oatmeal cereal I make for Tony's breakfasts. He prefers cereal after our walks and I have been making it for him.

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 11:08 AM, Anonymous Kelly @ Healthy Living With Kelly said…

    Wow...what a weekend!!! I am glad that your mom and sister are going to be okay!!! Scary stuff!

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 11:37 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Man I wish Season52 had a restaurant in VA! That looks like a cool place!

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 11:55 AM, Anonymous Michelle @ Give Me the Almond Butter said…

    I am so sorry to hear about your family being in the hospital! That is awful! I am so so sorry. I hope they recover well.

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 12:48 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Ouch! Your poor mom!

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 1:16 PM, Anonymous Priyanka said…

    I am so sorry to hear about your mum and sister. I hope your mum feels better.

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 3:24 PM, Anonymous Andrea (Off Her Cork) said…

    Oh so many things to say! I'm glad that you enjoyed your vacation and had a lovely time! Although what a bummer about your sister and your mom. Goodness! Glad to hear that everyone is doing well though.

    All the eats look amazing and I am in love with that waffle sandwich below! YUM!

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 8:21 PM, Blogger Emily said…

    Hi Serena! I'm so sorry to hear about your mother and sister. I'm sending lots of good thoughts your way.

    I have a Canon PowerShot that is great - takes awesome pictures and is reasonably priced.

    It was so nice to meet you on Friday! I look forward to keeping in touch. :)

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 8:28 PM, Anonymous Jessica (Healthy Exposures) said…

    Oh dear, sounds like quite the weekend! I'm glad you were able to have some fun, though. My thoughts are with your whole family - I hope your sister stays well and your mom has a speedy recovery. Was there a visible sign that the floor was wet? If not I'm betting they're in deep doo-doo, though I know what is most important is your mom's wellbeing.
    I would have about had a heart attack seeing a snake in the water, too! Snakes, spiders - just can't deal with them!
    Your cereal is always so tempting to me. What's your secret?!
    As for point and shoots, I'm with oyu - sometimes I wish I had something smaller and more discreet, but that's sort of what my d40 became when I got my d90. still would like something smalle, though. At work we're getting in some of the Nikon point and shoots and they're reallly nice. And someone else mentioned Lumix - that's also a really good line.

     
  • At July 27, 2010 at 9:45 PM, Blogger Nicole said…

    I hope your mom has a speedy recovery and your sister continues to hold that baby in her belly! I want to meet you at a blogger meet up :)

     
  • At July 28, 2010 at 8:23 PM, Anonymous lee said…

    I have a Canon Powershot that I like.

    I got that So Delicious Coconut milk that you told me about. It is good!

     
  • At July 28, 2010 at 8:24 PM, Anonymous Lee said…

    Oops, somehow i missed reading that part about your family. Hope they are doing okay.

     
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Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen
Home: Atlanta, GA, United States
About Me: Lactose Challenged
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