Lots of BIG news!!

Hello old friends,
I know it has been a long while since I last had a new post. I wanted to catch you up on the many changes that have taken place in my life since I have been ignoring you.

I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition. This was the culmination of so much hard work and so many hard choices.

 

 It was once of the happiest moments of my entire life. I had the honor of graduating SUMMA CUM LAUDE (4.0 GPA.)

 

Winston and I moved to Benton. He loves not being in a tiny apartment.

I was accepted into graduate school and began in January. I am attending UAMS and pursuing a Masters degree in Clinical Nutrition. I am having a great time! It is so different than undergrad!!!

Ryan and I eloped on a mountain top!!!

It was the most beautiful and meaningful moment for us and WE LOVED IT!!!!!

So that means that I am a married lady now!! I love being Ryan's wife. I've never loved him more. :)

And we went on a lovely honeymoon cruise to the Caribbean.

We ate SO much good island food and cruise ship food. It was a marvelous honeymoon!!

Once we got home we had a reception, 3 family birthdays (within 2 weeks), Passover Seder and Easter.

All the while, I was preparing my DICAS application online. ((DICAS is a website that nutrition students use to apply for the almighty, un-attainable dietetic internship.)) This was pretty stressful and overwhelming with everything else going on, but as every dietetic student knows, everything leads ups to this application. If you want to be an RD, this is your only shot!!!

Sunday, April 7th, 6:00 PM - MATCH DAY

I wish I could explain how much stress and preparation went into this day. But there is just no way to put that much neuroticism on a blog post. What is important is that at 7:30 when I finally got the courage to check, this is what I saw:

 

I am 1 of 14, out of hundreds of applicants, to be matched to UAMS.

I am going to be a dietetic intern.

I am going to be an RD.

 

Antioxidants and Red Bell Pepper Soup

Vitamins A, C, & E are antioxidants
to get antioxidants you have got to eat your fruits and vegetables!!

Vitamin C – berries, kiwi fruit (higher concentration than oranges), citrus fruit, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, green leafy vegetables and bell peppers
Vitamin E – nuts, seeds, green leafy vegetables, broccoli, cereals, oats, grains, eggs and olive oil
Vitamin A – carrots, apricots, cantaloupe, parsley, spinach, kale and sweet potatoes

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Antioxidants help your body handle free radicals. Free radicals are wandering molecules looking for trouble.

They are molecules that are one atom short to being "complete" or whole. So they go around the body looking for the atom they need and stealing it from other molecules. When they steal an atom from another healthy molecule, they leave it damaged.

What an antioxidant does is "donate" atoms to these free radicals. This means that the free radical is now a rehabilitated citizen of the body. And the antioxidant is none that worse for wear.

A free radical left unchecked causes cellular damage that can lead to anything from pre-mature skin aging to cancer.

Congratulations, you are now a scientist!! :)

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Bell Peppers are loaded in Vitamin C! So here is a recipe for some delicious Vitamin C soup!

Creamy Red Bell Pepper Soup

• 4 red bell peppers, chopped
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 24 fluid ounces chicken broth
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Place the red bell pepper, onion and garlic in the saucepan and saute for 5 to 10 minutes, or until tender.

2. Pour in the chicken broth, stirring well, reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes. Transfer to a blender and puree til smooth,3. Run the soup through a strainer and return the liquid to the saucepan over medium low heat. Stir in the heavy cream and the ground black pepper and allow to heat through, about 5 to 10 minutes.


ENJOY.