A Night to Remember

Confession: Thanks to my self abuse esteem, I’ve never been very good at accepting compliments. As the saying goes, “’tis better to give than to receive”. I believe wholeheartedly in that sentiment. I would much rather recognize the good in others than have compliments directed toward me. What’s more, I enjoy being the center of attention nearly as much as having my teeth drilled. So when I learned that I’d been nominated for the Fox Valley Technical College’s “Achievement Against the Odds” Award, a golf ball sized lump made an instant appearance in my throat. Don’t misunderstand…I was extremely humbled and honored that not one, but TWO of the staff members at the Tech felt that I was worthy of the award, but I didn’t believe that I was deserving of such an incredible award.  I was also frozen with fear that I might WIN…requiring me to give an acceptance speech in front of a room full of people. May I please have a shot of Novocain with that?

A few weeks later, the winners were announced…. *Insert the Halleluiah Chorus here*

In recognition of our hard work, determination, and drive to succeed in our programs of study, despite physical and/or emotional obstacles that would have otherwise prevented us from doing so, 4 other recipients and I were chosen. I was and am touched beyond words.

There was a wonderful banquet held for us, with an incredible dinner service that was prepared and served by my peers from the restaurant operations class. Everything from the place cards on the table, to the exquisitely plated Caprese salad, and the perfectly seasoned beef shoulder steak with mushroom burgundy reduction (MAJOR YUM!) were absolutely perfect.

Even my acceptance speech went pretty well. My eyes welled with tears a few times, especially went I heard the heart wrenching stories given by the other winners, but I was able to maintain my composure enough to properly thank everyone involved with making it a night to remember. Everyone that is, except for the two most important ones. First, thanks and acknowledgement go to my almighty Father God. Without His love, mercy, and healing powers, I would surely not be here today to write this post. Secondly, I want to thank the love of my life, Brian Donovan. How INCREDIBLY embarrassing it was for me to realize that I had failed to recognize and thank the one person who has stood by my side to support, comfort, and encourage me through every single one of the trials, challenges, illnesses, and battles that I’ve faced over the past few years. I fall in love with him more every day and can’t imagine my life without him.

OK…enough of the sappiness… let’s talk FOOD!

Brian and I will be embarking on a new food plan this Monday. I refuse to call it a diet. That’s such an ugly 4-letter word for a change in portion sizes and food selection. At any rate, primary focus will be placed on digesting less sugar and more fruits and vegetables. I will also be finding HEALTHY carbohydrate choices for us to eat in place of the morning bagel schmeared with Nutella and/or cream cheese. Don’t you worry, though…EVERYTHING in moderation will be the mantra around here. I will never completely release my inner bacon and butter loving addictions, either. I’d never be able to live with myself, and you would never be able to handle my rants! Incidentally, I have a personal blog in addition to this one. It’s called Feed Your Inner Chef. I haven’t posted there in several months, but if there’s interest shown by you, my dear readers, I could start posting there again, placing primary focus on my progress towards what I hope will be weight loss and road to a healthier life.  Just leave a comment on this post and/or shoot me an email to let me know what you’d like to see.

I’ve been pouring over recipes at my favorite food sites, and I found a recipe that looks perfect for Monday night’s dinner. If the dish tastes as beautiful as it looks, this will be a delicious adventure to health!

I’m going to make oven roasted asparagus and some brown rice to serve along with it. Thanks to Nancy at http://www.honestcooking.com for the recipe, photos, and inspiration. I need to find a recipe for low carb dinner rolls to go with that dinner, but for now, maybe I’ll make a batch of Christina’s incredible THIN MINT SWIRL brownies. After all, I still have 2 days left to binge all things cream cheese!