Yep, This Is My Friday Night!

Today is Friday, which is a big day in our house to begin with. However, THIS Friday is also payday...that magical day when our cup runneth over (or so it seems, until we run out at the end of the month and scratch our heads, saying, "Where did our money go?". Turns out our money went out the window somewhere around payday. Whatever. Vicious cycle and all that.)

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For my husband, Bz, payday is special because for him, it means he goes and gets a massage. For the past three years, we lived in the Middle East, in a country where the cost of living was on par with (if not more than) that in the US. That meant that things like spa treatments and massages on a regular basis were out of our budget. Now that we are back in SE Asia, bi-monthly massages are back on Bz's agenda, and he always goes on payday.

Now, the reason why I mention Bz's massage addiction is because whenever he goes to indulge, I am left on my own for two hours. So tonight I will share with you the goings-on in the Expat Mom household while Bz is de-stressing. Hold on to your hats! Well, don't...not really. Because it isn't very exciting. Unless you like cooking and exercise. Then maybe you'll think so. But I doubt it.

My first instinct was to immediately uncork the wine bottle, lie on the couch and not get up for at least 4 hours. However, I'd had a late-afternoon latte at work in order to make it until the end of the day, and it's effects were still in full swing, so sitting still in one place just wasn't an option yet at this point in the evening. Anyway. I have already mentioned my quasi-obsession with Jessica Seinfeld. So tonight for some inexplicable reason (that was not at all stalker-ish. Really.), I ended up on YouTube searching her name, hoping to find some cooking video that did not contain meat or fish that I could try this week.

I hit pay dirt when I came across this clip of her on Regis and Kelly, demonstrating how to make creamed spinach that (apparently) is not completely disgusting. I am a little dubious of this, as I have never liked creamed spinach. However, I am desperate for my family to eat more green side dishes that aren't frozen, so I am bound and determined to make this dish this week to accompany one of our dinners. Do I think it will be good? Maybe. Do I think my kids will actually eat it? Not so much. However, I am their mom and it is therefore my job to provide them with healthy meals, such as creamed spinach, even if they pretend to gag when they see them. Or so I am told. I will let you know how that one plays out.

***Note: After a trip to the grocery store, I am sad to announce that the creamed spinach will NOT be made this week due to my inability to find spinach. Boo, Ranch Market, Boo!****




Alas, if one is going to spend one's time perusing cooking sites and eating like they are going into hibernation, then one must also exercise from time to time (again, so I am told). After I finished making my grocery list, I looked at the clock and saw that I still had another hour until Bz returned home. What to do, what to do?? Hmmm...I have less than a month before we will be on Winter Break and spending 10 days at the beach with our good friends who are coming to visit us from Doha. My desire to not spend the full 10 days in the only one-piece bathing suit that I own, coupled with my fear that my dear Doha Friend will secretly judge me for not having lost my post-baby pooch, well over a year past giving birth (you just can't help noticing that stuff, can you?) led me to open up my practically-new post-pregnancy workout DVD by Tracy Anderson. If you don't know Tracy Anderson, then you need to get acquainted with her workouts ASAP. They hurt like hell, but they hurt because they love.

I did the abs and arms portion of her post-pregnancy DVD, then decided to give her mat workout DVD a glance through. I did about 2 minutes of her standing abs routine, and about 3 minutes of her arms routine. OH. MY. FREAKING. GOD. That was the thought that was going through my head the entire time I was doing the moves. I knew that I would be sore this morning, but I had no idea how sore! I could barely sit up in bed. I knew, however, that I was sore because I'd been working muscles that probably haven't moved in over a decade. I will definitely be doing these DVDs again, but I'll have to wait until I can stand completely upright and move my arms again first...most likely in about 3-5 days. Seriously.

After I'd finished the mental makeover of my family's meal rotation and damn near killing myself with exercise (see? I just should never be left alone!), the door opened and in walked Bz, fresh and relaxed from his evening of pampering. At least one of us knows how to have fun on a Friday night...

How did you spend YOUR Friday evening? Was it as awesome as mine? Hard to beat, I know.