Henry Vilas Zoo

We have a lot going on lately. In ten days, our wedding will be here. In twelve days we'll be flying to Mexico, and in just over two weeks we'll be moving into a new apartment. That means there's a lot of packing and wedding planning going on. To top it off, my bachelorette party is in Chicago this weekend!

To entertain you while we pack, I thought I would post these zoo pictures. We went to the Henry Vilas Zoo a while ago (its free) and I just haven't gotten around to writing about it. The best part is the baby lion! Enjoy.

A big bear.

Aaron and the giraffe.

Orangutans!

Baby lion! Sorry my camera is crappy and doesn't allow you to control the focus.

Weight and Weddings

I mentioned in my elimination diet wrap up post that one effect of the diet was Aaron and I both lost weight. While Aaron's weight loss has been praised, mine has been a mixture of criticisms and comments that truly frustrate me. It also just happened to be before our wedding, so many people assume I was losing weight for that.

I do not know how much I weighed before starting this diet because I don't regularly weigh myself, but I estimate that I lost a minimum of 10 pounds and a max of 20. I only noticed when none of my jeans fit and I went to buy new ones and found out I was 2 sizes smaller than I thought I was.

While I was definitely eating more "healthy" and a lot less grains, I was eating a lot of food and plenty of healthy fats (nuts, avocado, olive oil, coconut milk etc). I'm not sure why or how I lost so much weight, but I have a few ideas:

1. It was water weight. My body could have been retaining water due to all of the nightshade vegetables I was eating. Once I cleansed my body of those chemicals, it stopped retaining water.

2. Less stomach aches means more time to work out. There were many days when I found myself feeling too sick to work out, or only able to do a slow bike ride (on the gym bikes). Since I feel so much better, those days are fewer and farther in between, which means my workouts are more productive and my muscles are a lot bigger!

3. Moving to Madison. We walk a lot here every day, which is a stark contrast to the amount of walking that happened in Farmington Hills/Detroit.

This has all casued me to reconsider my understanding of what a healthy weight is for me. I never thought I could lose weight, but now I feel better than I ever have. My energy levels are higher and my body feels awesome all around. Those of you who aren't as close me may not know that I was getting painful stomach aches almost every single day. It made work and life in general unpleasant. It frustrates me to hear people criticize my body when I'm finally feeling better!

Also, telling me I need to eat more or eat junk is not helpful. I eat until I'm full. I eat food that makes me feel good. I eat at least 5 times a day and I don't skip meals. Sometimes I eat more than Aaron does!

The main reason I'm writing this is that it is unlikely I will gain any weight before our wedding. The last thing I want to hear on my wedding day is comments about how skinny I am or how I need to eat. Even if they are "compliments," I do not take it that way.

I would like compliments on how buff my arms are though!

Devil's Lake

On Monday, Aaron and I woke up with no plans for celebrating the 4th and a vacation day. We decided to take a trip to Devil's Lake state park, which is about an hour from Madison.

I had been to Devil's Lake while visiting my college roommate, so I knew there was some cool hiking. After we paid our entrance fee, which unfortunately was more $ due to our out of state license plates, we found a place to park near the beach and set off the find some trails.

I was looking for Balanced Rock and Devil's Doorway, two cool rock formations. The climb to Balanced Rock is steep and very rocky. Aaron said he was sweating watching every step I made because he was afraid I would fall. I was just sweating. It was a good workout and worth it for this view:

As you can see, we are a little shiny. It was hot!

We didn't get any pictures of balanced rock because it was mobbed by people by the time we found it (we passed it, went to Devil's Doorway, and came back). The increase in traffic also made it difficult to get back down the path. Its a lot scarier going down.

Devil's Doorway.

After our hike, we immediately changed into our bathing suits and went swimming. Then we had a picnic, played frisbee, and laid in the sun. We also enjoyed listening to the myriad of languages spoken by people going by.

Even though it was crowded, it was a great way to spend the day off. I'd like to go back and hike some of the other trails and maybe camp here. One good thing about Wisconsin State Parks (as opposed to Michigan) is alcohol is permitted, so camping is more enjoyable!

New Glarus Brewery

Happy Fourth of July! This weekend I was determined to soak in as much Wisconsin entertainment as possible, since the coming four weekends will be consumed by wedding activities and moving.

On Saturday the weather was beautiful and perfect for a drive to New Glarus, WI. We have been wanting to check out the New Glarus brewery for a while, because we really enjoy drinking their beer.

They make the popular Spotted Cow, which is light and refreshing, but some of our favorites have been their seasonal brews like Stone Soup and the special edition IIPA.

At the brewery, located in the middle of farmland, you can tour the factory and then enjoy some delicious refreshment.

Aaron posing for a photo and the 30 liter brew test center.

It was interesting to see all of the equipment, but it would be even cooler to come during the week and see the brewery in action.

Aaron drinking Moon Man.

You can buy either a full pint or a tasting sampler. The first one is a little pricey ($6) because you get to keep the glass, but refills are only $3.

We chose to sit outside and enjoy the view of the country and people playing corn hole. We both have a sunburn to show for it.

Unfortunately for most of you reading this, New Glarus beer is only available in Wisconsin. We'll try to drink your share.

Elimination Diet: Wrap-Up

Today marks the official end of the elmination diet. It feels like its been over for a while after we added bread and dairy, but it wasn't.

This week I added corn. Corn is pretty easy to avoid in its basic form. No popcorn, corn tortillas, corn bread, etc, but corn syrup and corn starch is in almost every type of packaged food! I'm proud to say I have had little to zero servings of packaged food for the past 3 months. We have had things that are in packages but needed to be added during this diet, like icecream, but we read the labels all the way through to avoid corn in any form.

I didn't miss it much, but the nachos we made this week with corn chips were delicious!

So what happened to our diets and bodies over the past 3 months? It has been quite an intersting experience. Was it worth all of the trouble? Would I recommend it to anyone else?

Here are the noticable benefits/effects of the elimination diet:

• We both lost weight.
• I learned what foods I need to avoid.
• We are more appreciative of foods that most people take for granted (if you don't have any grains except quinoa for a month, rice tastes pretty amazing).
• I have fewer stomach aches.
• We both tried new foods, like adzuki beans and collard greens.
• I realized we don't need packaged food, bread, or any animal products to eat delicious meals.
• I learned that refined sugar makes my sugar levels unstable and leads to more "crashing" between meals.

It was some of what I expected and some of what I didn't. I never thought I would find I couldn't eat my favorite foods and I didn't expect to feel so much better without sugar. I thought Aaron might lose weight but I had no idea how much. I was hoping that I would have less stomach aches, and I'm happy it worked.

So to answer the above questions: YES it was worth all of the trouble and YES I have already reccommended it to people. However, I honestly reccomend it as a last resort, because it takes a certain kind of desperation to stick to such a strict diet.

I will now start to add some things that weren't added back at all, like mushrooms and olives.

Next I will try the things that I think I shouldn't eat just to be sure: coffee and tomatoes are first on the list.

We are starting to resort back to some of the foods we ate before (like nachos and sandwiches) but overall our diet has changed for the better. I am more focused on vegetable or legume based meals instead of grains, dairy, or soy products. I think Aaron and I will do a mini-version of this diet whenever we aren't feeling right, probably after the holidays!

What Co-Habitation taught me about Marriage

This post has nothing to do with cinnamon rolls, but we did make them because we were living together and both temporarily unemployed.

About a year ago when I was 22 and extremely wise, I told Aaron that there was no way we were going to live together before we got married.

While many people may like to think that was because I didn't think it was right for people in love to live together before tying the knot, it was actually for a different reason: I thought theonly thing that was special about marriage was that you get to move in together! I figured once you live together you're basically married, but without the party.

Anyway, I was afraid to lose that one special aspect and Aaron obliged. Of course, my life took many twists and turns right after we got engaged and I was faced with two options: 1) move in with my parents; or 2) I move in with Aaron.

As you would expect, all of my fears about losing "marriage specialness" were quickly overcome by fears of living with my parents, so Aaron and I picked out an apartment.

I was definitely worried about how this would effect our relationship, but it only took a few months for me to realize something important: getting married is way huger than moving in together.

Living together as fiance and fiancee is like having a fun roommate who is conveniently around for all wedding planning decisions, but it's pretty similar to when we were dating (except we have to save all of our money for favors and flowers). We are still legally single. I still have a fear that maybe we'll break up after every fight. Even though we know we are going to, we haven't made a lifetime commitment yet.

One positive aspect is we have had a chance to go through all of the little adjustments that living together brings. We have learned each others sleeping, eating, and farting habits (something I am happy to have out of the way before our wedding). It means we can spend the first year of our wedding adjusting to just being married, without all of the new roommate strangeness.

My vision of what makes getting and being married special has changed dramatically this year and I'm surprised to say I'm happy I didn't get my way.

Olbrich Botanical Garden

On Sunday, the weather was perfect so Aaron and I set out to find a free/cheap activity, preferably outdoors. Since we are within a month of our wedding, we have a lot of payments due and not much money left for fun. We googled for parks and found the Olrich Botanical Gardens.

The gardens were beautiful and free to roam in, with lots of interesting plants and sweet fountains.

Olbrich is home to the only Thai temple in the U.S. It was made in Thailand and then constructed in Madison. Very pretty and relaxing place.

There is also an indoor tropical exhibit, which made me ready to go somewhere tropical. I love palm trees.

It was definitely a good way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Afterwards we crossed the street to a park and sat on a dock on Lake Monona. Nice, entertaining, and a total cost of $2 (suggested donation).

Creating Pizza without Tomato Sauce

One of my favorite foods has always been pizza. Pretty much from any place with as many toppings as possible. It was quite a trial to go without it for so long and then facing the realization that not being able to eat tomatoes means no traditional style pizza.

You can easily order pizza without the sauce at any restaurant or chain, but most topping are off limits too (bell peppers, banana peppers?) so its easier to make at home.

All of the dough ingredients making a mess.

Making your own pizza also makes it infinitely healthier. We still put cheese on, but probably 1/3 or less of what is used at chain pizza places. I used whole wheat flour in the crust. This pizza even has a surprise "sauce": mashed white beans, which are surprisingly delicious!

To make my dough, I broke out my bridal shower gift from Ruth:

It kept my black tank top and shorts flour free. Aaron insisted on the pictures which you may be able to tell from the look on my face.

The inspiration for this pizza came from: Local Kitchen Blog. The pizza turned out very filling and tasted great. You can just buy frozen pizza dough or the dough from Trader Joe's if you don't want to make your own (but it only takes about an hour!). I definitely recommend trying the white bean spread as a little something different for your pizza.

We don't use any fancy things to make our pizza and we cook it on a regular baking sheet. The crust still gets crunchy!

Here is Aaron's pizza... he gets the tomato on top.

Subaru vs. Saturn

7 reason why my Subaru Outback was way better than the Saturn:

1. There was a windshield wiper on the back. Now when it rains I just have to deal with not being able to see out the back.

2. Heat that didn't take 15 minutes to get warm. 5 minutes and I was nice and toasty. That extra ten minutes is rough when its -2 degrees out.

3. All wheel drive. I don't think I need to explain this one.

4. It was heavier. The Saturn weighs about as much as me. When the wind blows I'm very afraid I will be picked up.

5. Anti-lock breaks? Silly me, I thought these were pretty standard in cars made after the Cold War.

6. It was easier to shift. My right arm is way bigger than my left one now from shifting in the Saturn.

7. Most importantly: The Subaru did not take over $500 of repair in the first year of ownership.

Wedding Planning: Reception Music

We are nearing the end of our wedding planning, with exactly 1 month to go!

Its time to finish all of the details that get pushed aside while you focus on the big stuff. Right now the major concerns have been the ceremony and music. I have to admit, the only song we have thought about up until this week is what to play for our first dance.

Last night we listened to about 100 songs as possibilities for the bridal party entrance. Its a tough choice. We want it to be fun but not obnoxious and something our bridesmaids and groomsmen could get into. This one will take some thinking about.

But there are a lot of other songs to pick out. Father/daughter and mother/son, garter/bouquet toss, and do we really want to do the chicken dance?

We also want to come up with a list of some must plays and some songs that we think would be fun if there is time to play them. Luckily we have an awesome DJ and Ruth sent me what they used for their suggested play list, but we are a little different from Ruth and Sean and need your suggestions!

Since we have been pretty this year, neither of us have been following new music much (well, Aaron never does). You can help by throwing out some songs for our consideration that you would love to dance to. Having people dance is very important to us, so consider it your duty as a wedding guest. Your dancing will make us really happy.

So lets here your favorite dancing tunes, and don't forget to bring change for the dollar dance!