Let it be known far and wide that I can keep a food diary.

After reading my friend Carrie's blog, coffee is on my mind. But rather than continue the spread of coffee related blogs through out the world, I will resist commenting on my own addiction.

Instead, I will celebrate the 6th day of what is officially the longest period of time I've ever kept a full and accurate food diary. *waits for the fanfare and applause*

Ok fine, it's not that big of a deal, but in this new quest I'm on, it's the single hardest part of the whole shebang. There are things that I have talent for and there are things whose mastery always seem to elude me. Keeping track of what I put in my mouth, taking pills and calculus compete for the top spot.

So, this is my new goal (previous goals were 1)plan menu and cook at home and 2)drink less Starbucks). I am, right now, not even concerned with what I have to write down (or embarrassed that the phrase "12 oz of coffee" repeats over and over and over again) as much as i am trying to be obsessed with getting it on paper. or...into the computer, as it were.

I was using my little journal software thing to keep track of it, but i recently found a free website that comes up with calorie counts for foods and entire recipes and decided this might be an even more useful tool to use as a diary.

I have been visiting the website often to calculate how many calories are in things like my chili recipe or the mashed mock-potatoes i made last week. It will take all the ingredients and put them together and divide it all out into the number of servings you choose. It breaks down fat, carbs, protein and other nutritional info also. Very handy.

I guess the whole point is to make this as easy and interesting as possible, so as to not stop doing it. Of course, now I want to track my progress with their nifty reports and such and so I have 5 more days of stuff to enter that I was putting in the journal and that's a bunch more work. Work, I think....that requires a cup of coffee to complete. Heh.

Notes from my holiday vacation...or apparently you can get good eats in North Dakota

- I actually dig my mom with no hair. She's grown accustom to the look and says it's quite liberating. She's over the chemo-already-dead look and her color is good. I was prepared to be shocked and horrified, but it was really rather cool. She didn't quite appreciate me calling her "baldy."

- This year was no different, mom left the entirety of the Christmas decorating to us when we arrived and was bugged by my less than enthused execution of the task. Well, it was a bit different in that she got to use cancer as an excuse not to do it herself. An excuse that would have totally held more water with me if she hadn't left it for me to do every year since I left home.

- Ryan managed to enjoy most, if not all, the food he ate while visiting (unlike last year where it seemed everything he ate somehow sucked). He had sweet potato fries for the first time and is planning to return to California to open a place that serves only those. He was shocked to find a place that serves decent falafel(sp?) as well. For the most part, our eating out was 1000% better than the last time he was here. Also, I mention with pride, he thinks I make great coffee, great French toast, loves my bacon wrapped shrimp and my lasagna (which admittedly would only be mediocre if anyone with Italian blood happened to taste it).

- The dog has graduated from sleeping in his box at night to taking the place of several stuffed animals in my daughter's bed. He is still, however, eating his own poop. :(

- I still have not mailed out most of my Christmas cards. They will now be referred to as Post-Holiday Season cards.

- I think I am officially old. We went out New Year's Even and had a very good time but as soon as Midnight hit we couldn't get home fast enough. If it hadn't been New Year's we probably would have been home before midnight.