It's baaaack!

Round 2 starts next Friday, June 8th.

Details to come next week!

Summer Salads: Broccoli Slaw

I can't stand coleslaw. Or potato salad, for that matter. I know, I know - they're an absolute staple when it comes to summertime cookouts. They're just always swamped with mayonaise! I was psyched when I came across this sweet, smokey, very green side dish. Best of all, this broccoli slaw has very little mayo.

Broccoli Slaw (adapted from The Kitchn)


Ingredients

• 2 heads broccoli
• 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp dried cherries
• 1/2 cup red onion, minced
• 3/4 cup slivered almonds
• 1/4 cup bacon bits
• 1/4 cup mayonaise
• 3 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Grate the raw broccoli with a food processor. In a large bowl, combine shredded broccoli, dried cherries, red onion, almonds, and bacon.

In a small bowl, whisk together the mayo, lemon juice, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Toss over broccoli mixture.

Allow to chill in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Print Recipe | Printable grocery list

Summer Salads: Avocado Chicken Salad

Another one of my favorite summer salads is the chicken salad. The protein makes it filling enough, yet it's still a cool, refreshing dish for a hot day. After reading this post, I was inspired to experiment with substituting avocado for mayonaise. That's right, this chicken salad is mayo-free! The result of my experimenting was a bit bland at first, so I added ranges in the ingredients to encourage you to experiment with your flavoring, as well. I like a lot of cilantro, and I can never have enough cumin. Start small and add to your liking!

Avocado Chicken Salad


Ingredients

• 3 grilled chicken breasts (about 1.5 pounds), chilled
• 2 ripe avocados, diced
• 1/4 - 3/4 cup lime juice
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup cilantro, minced
• 4 green onions, sliced
• 2 Tbsp cumin
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Sriracha garlic chili paste, on the side

Directions

Shred chicken, or use a food processor. If you're processing, add the avocados and pulse til smooth. If you're shredding, use a potato masher to combine the avocados with the chicken.

Add lime juice until no longer dry.

Stir in remaining spices.

Serve with Sriracha at the table...the heat goes great with this dish, but your guests will undoubtedly have a variety of tastes when it comes to the spicy stuff!

Print Recipe | Printable grocery list

Summer Salads: Caprese Pasta Salad

Summer is quickly approaching, as evident by the high of 84˚ today in Atlanta. We're so excited to start entertaining on our deck with our new patio furniture...the only problem is that we don't yet have a working grill. I decided to take a stab at this problem recently by collecting a few flameless recipes. They were such a big hit with our guests, we didn't even miss the grill! I decided that these dishes were too good not to share, so it's my pleasure to introduce you to a new mini-series on my little blog: Summer Salads!

First up, we've got a fresh spin on a summer classic. I love pasta salad, but it's hard to find a good recipe that isn't too heavy. When I stumbled upon this recipe, I was thrilled to find something light and refreshing. Plus, it's colorful and therefore beautiful:

Caprese Pasta Salad (adapted from Hello Newlywed Life)


Ingredients

• 1 pound whole wheat pasta (like shells or penne), cooked according to package directions and chilled
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 3 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes (I like the baby heirlooms from TJ's because they're so pretty!), sliced in half
• 16 oz fresh mozzarella, cubed
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup fresh basil, hand torn
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Mix oil, lemon juice, and garlic in a small bowl. Toss into pasta.

Gently stir in tomatoes, cheese, and basil. Add salt and pepper as desired.

Chill for at least an hour in the refrigerator.

Print Recipe | Printable grocery list

NYC Recap

I recently traveled to New York to celebrate with my family as my sister, Amanda, graduated with a masters degree from Columbia University. We attended two different ceremonies: one for the entire university and one for Teachers College. Somehow, we also found the time to explore the city a little bit!

We kicked off our celebration with a little pre-theatre dining at Room Service in Hell's Kitchen.

The non-graduation-related highlight of my trip was our evening at the theatre. My sister, my mom, my dad, my husband and I saw Peter and the Starcatcher.

{via Yucatan}

It's hard to satisfy five very different tastes, but we were all laughing hysterically throughout the show. It was one of the most creative, well-written, and entertaining plays I've ever seen. I'm so excited that it's getting the recognition it deserves with so many Tony award nominations!

The next day, we attended the Teachers College commencement ceremony at the Cathedral of St. John the Devine. The organ was fantastic:

I played paparazzi waiting for the candidates to proceed to the cathedral. Can you find my sister?

The ceremony was beautiful. The weather was not.

Remember how I was stressing out about what to wear to this thing because of my stupid splint? This is what I went with:

I bought two maxi dresses from Nordstrom, and I went with a pearly pink pair of Toms. By day two, they had stretched out around my splint and were actually pretty comfortable!

After ceremony #1, we played tourist at the American Museum of Natural History.

If you're in the area, there's a temporary exhibit on bioluminescence that was really cool! Who knew fireflies were so interesting?

The next day, we attended Columbia University's commencement ceremony.

It was huge, and very long, but the speakers were good. I think it's important for a graduation speaker to praise, inspire, and challenge the candidates...and I think they did just that.

Afterwards, we celebrated with my sisters' classmates (there were only three of them total in her program) and their families at Havana Central. Of course, my husband was devastated that he had to eat Cuban food.

Later that day, we finished up our trip at The View, a rotating lounge at the top of our Times Square hotel. We had a beautiful view of the city as the sun set.

The Empire State Building was illuminated in blue to celebrate Columbia's newest alumni!

We had a really great time, and my foot held up okay (though I was glad to be home relaxing for a couple of days before being back on my feet at work). It was a good balance of family time and sightseeing, and we had a blast celebrating Amanda's accomplishments...congrats again, dude!

Are you traveling to any graduation festivities this May?

Splint Style?

I've been thinking a lot about my upcoming trip to New York and what the heck I can comfortably (term used loosely) wear to a grad school graduation without looking inappropriately casual. I'd had a dress picked out for months, and I was debating whether to wear it with heels or flats (or perhaps I'd walk there in flats and change into heels once I got there so that I'd look like a legit NYC commuter). Now that I have The Splint, both of those options are out. It wouldn't fit in flats, and I can't wear heels because my ankle literally will not bend that way. I'm not about to wear sneakers with a dress, but I couldn't justify wearing pants either. Then I got to thinking...what about TOMS?! They're kind of like a hybrid between flats and sneakers, and they're a great cause!

Ashlynn by courtallisonh featuring long earrings

{via Polyvore}

I love the style of those shoes, but I wasn't sure if they were wide enough for The Splint. Then, I found this creation that included a more traditional TOMS design:

wednesday morning brunch by chloeporelmar featuring marc by marc jacobs jewelry

{via Polyvore}

I could even take it up another level and get some fancy TOMS!

{via Nordstrom}

What do you think? Can I pull it off? Any other suggestions for fashion that's comfortable without being too casual?

Office Redo

When you walk through the front door of our house, the first room on the left was very empty and very boring.

We decided to make it Dave's office, which meant that the first item on the to do list was to paint it a "legal color."

Recently, we started to furnish it. Dave really wanted cherry wood to go with his merlot walls, so we found a couple of small tables at some antique stores. We found a particleboard desk on Amazon for like $200...hey, it looks like cherry wood and that's close enough! Real cherry wood probably would have tacked a zero onto that price.

My favorite feature in the new room are these brass scales of justice that we found at a flea market.

The room still needs a lot of work. Since it's near the front door, it echoes a lot of noises from the dog terrorizing greeting everyone who comes to our door. An area rug would be nice. Also, we'd like to create built in bookshelves along the long wall. We had someone come out for an estimate, but they suggested it would cost about $7K to do it their way sooo now we're investigating DIY Ikea options on Pinterest. I don't care how we get it done as long as it has a sliding ladder.

{by Disney / via The Designer Lifestyle}

Does anyone else share the ladder obsession with me?

A Pathetic Lament: The Splint

If you read my previous post, you know that I'm dealing with some ankle issues that could result in orthopedic surgery. As much as I prefer to blog about things like cupcakes and DIY projects, I think it'll be good for me to blog about what I'm feeling through all of this. I'm a healthcare professional and I've had several family members experience significant health issues - you'd think this would give me some perspective on the matter and I could get over something this petty. The fact of the matter is that I, myself, have never dealt with anything like this personally and I'm not quite sure how to cope with it. I'll still have my usual fun posts, but I feel like I just need to get all of this off my chest. Otherwise, I'm afraid I'll end up talking about it non-stop in my every day life, and no one likes to be around that person.

So, I received The Splint earlier this week. I've decided to capitalize The Splint, by the way, because of all the hope I have invested in it. If wearing a splint for a month cures a decade-old injury, I won't need surgery. If not, I'll face the cold steel and warm lights of the OR for the first time in my life...and I'll be out of work for at least two months. No pressure, right?

Anyway, I hate The Splint. It's just really uncomfortable. This wouldn't really be a big deal, since I'm currently avoiding so many activities (I'm not allowed to dance, run, swim, hike, or do yoga while we're trying this thing out. I was told I could ride a bike, but I tried it and it was awkward). The problem is that I don't have a desk job. I'm a physical therapist, and I primarily see neurorehab patients. I do stuff like this all day:

{by Stroke Survivor Blog / via YouTube}

This video isn't ideal, mostly because the patient's cane is a bit too tall and his left arm should really be in a sling (so much so that it's making me nervous), but you get the idea. I'm on my feet all day. Sometimes I have to squat down to facilitate and cue muscles to activate, sometimes I'm holding onto a patient to guard them while practicing an activity, sometimes I even have to stabilize them to prevent them from falling. I work four 10-hour days, so I do this for about eight or nine of those hours. I wouldn't have it any other way, because neurorehab is what I'm passionate about; however, The Splint makes this excruciatingly difficult.

I received The Splint Monday afternoon. Monday evening, I went to the movies with my husband. We saw Five Year Engagement, Jason Segal was adorable, I got to sit, and aside from waddling to and from the car, I had a great time. Tuesday was my first full day wearing The Splint, and it was a 10-hour work day. By the end of the day, I was nearly in tears. Wearing a sock, followed by The Splint, followed by a sneaker made for a very tight squeeze, and the top of my foot was bruised from the pressure. Ice and Aleve helped, but I ended up tying it a little looser before going to bed.

This led to a complete downward spiral of worry. If it's too loose, is it not going to be effective? The entire intent of The Splint is to prevent movement, but it's too painful by the end of the day when it's that restricted. If it's this uncomfortable with prolonged weightbearing, how am I supposed to do my job? Could I be putting a patient's safety in jeopardy if I'm not at my physical best? Is the rigidity of The Splint causing so much immobility in my ankle muscles that I'm going to atrophy? How the eff am I supposed to sleep with this dang thing on when sleep is an essential part of healing?!

Aside from work, I am able to avoid prolonged weightbearing and excessive walking for the most part; however, I'm going to New York in two weeks for my sister's graduation. This trip will undoubtedly require a great deal of walking. Here's my issue with walking: ankle movement is an important part of the gait cycle. This is what your ankle does while you walk:

{by Rose, J., Gamble, J. (1994). Human Walking (2nd ed.).

Baltimore, MD: Williams and Wilkins. / via UTPA}

When one part of the body isn't working the way it's supposed to, we develop compensatory mechanisms in order to make up for it. So, since my ankle is locked in a neutral position, I feel like I'm walking like this:

{by the geniuses that make up Monty Python / via ervingeky}

You'd think this is a simple issue of vanity, but I'm not actually that concerned about what my gait pattern looks like. I'm concerned that inevitably, these compensatory mechanisms will lead to additional injuries. My left leg is already sore from working in a manner in which it's not accustomed to. So now I've got the original ankle pain, some leg soreness, and some pain from the pressure of The Splint. 

On the other hand, my ankle hasn't made that disgusting popping noise since I started wearing this awful thing. That silence may be the glimmer of hope that gets me through this month.

A Long and Whiny Tale

A long time ago, I sprained my ankle while dancing. I was en pointe, and my pointe shoe's shank broke. I rolled over the box of the shoe and my foot turned in. I looked down, and my ankle was immediately huge and discolored. I iced it, skipped rehearsal the rest of the week, and bought a new pair of pointe shoes the following week.

Now that I'm an adult (and a practicing physical therapist), I cringe whenever I remenisce about this incident. First of all, pointe isn't good for you.

{via Pointe Shoe Physics}

Pointe causes an abnormal distribution of forces through the feet, and therefore, through the entire body. Just as your car absorbs shock, your body does the same thing. Our heel bones are super thick for this reason. As you can see from this x-ray, the calcaneus (or heel bone) is nowhere near immediately load-bearing. It's an unnatural movement that puts your body in a very vulnerable position for injury.

My mom, though not a healthcare professional, was aware of this and was understandably hesitant about letting me start pointe. Most young ballerinas begin pointe training around twelve years of age. I was nine. My mom took me to a doctor and had me ask him what pointe could do to my body. He told me all kinds of scary things and showed me all kinds of crazy pictures of jacked up feet (that's the medical term, you know, "jacked up"). Armed with this new and terrifying knowledge, my mom then allowed me to make an informed decision about whether or not to take the next step in my dance career. In hindsight, this was absolutely brilliant parenting. Nonetheless, it had absolutely no impact on my decision whatsoever. And you know what? Even with what I know now, I would make that decision all over again if I had to because ballet is awesome.

What really makes me cringe about that horrible injury, isn't the fact that pointe that caused it. It's the fact that I never did anything about it. I don't think I ever even told my parents. Now that I know what I know, I should have gone to the emergency room because I had a Grade III ATFL tear.

{via Beantown Physio}

"ATFL" stands for anterior talofibular ligament, which connects the talus (a foot bone) to the fibula (a shin bone). Grade III means it's completely ruptured. If I had gone to a physician, they would have had me immobilize my foot to allow the ligament to heal in a functional position. If it had been a really bad Grade III, they may have even done surgery to reattach the ligament. Either way, I needed to avoid weightbearing to allow time for healing. Instead, I iced it and went to rehearsal the next week. Oh, I did wear an ACE wrap though, which I'm sure helped a lot (sarcasm).

Throughout the next few years, my left ankle was subject to frequent sprains. It happened occasionally at dance, and pretty much every time I was hiking. The fact that I grew up in South Florida and therefore lived in flip flops didn't help. Walking all over a college campus in a sundress and Rainbows may look cute, but it's not supportive footwear for an unstable ankle.

Even with all of these recurrent sprains, my ankle never really hurt. It wasn't until 2008 (a decade or so after the initial injury) that I started to experience pain. I was in graduate school at Emory studying physical therapy when I had the brilliant idea (again, sarcasm) to become a runner. We teach people how to walk again after a stroke; why couldn't a healthy person learn how to run? (The answer of course, is that my ankle was not healthy). I learned that I could run a 5K so I started training for a half marathon. (See?! Brilliant!) When I got to about seven miles as my base, I started to develop really bad shin splints. Shin splints typically present along the anterior aspect of both shins, but mine were only on the outside of one shin. I consider myself to have a pretty high threshold for pain (see above x-ray), but this got so bad that I decided to quit running. I was initially pretty bummed, but I got over it quickly. I wasn't a runner to begin with, so I didn't really miss it.

Then a few years later, I was visiting New Orleans with my husband and sister. After a few days of walking around on cobblestone streets, my shin splints returned. I understood that running could cause pain in an unstable ankle, but walking?! This was unacceptable. I was starting to become frustrated with my failing joint, but I chalked it up to wearing unsupportive shoes and vowed to wear something better than sandals during future vacations.

Last year, my pain became constant. I wasn't running, I wasn't walking on an uneven surface, there was no trigger. My ankle just hurt. The pain worsened over the next few months, which prompted me to invest in custom orthotics. Instead of wearing cute flats with my business casual physical therapist clothes, I now wear sneakers with these inserts every day. At least I have a job where I can pull that off, I suppose. This helped with the pain for a little while, but then it came back. This time, the pain was accompanied by a periodic audible pop. The pop became more frequent and the pain became more severe.

Winter melted away in Atlanta, and I was excited to break out my spring wardrobe. The first day I wore strappy sandals and a cute skirt, I was in absolute agony. I finally decided to see an orthopedic surgeon. He tested the strength in my ankle muscles and he palpated the ligaments to make sure nothing was inflamed. Since this testing was negative, he dismissed me and advised a follow-up appointment for a cortisone shot "if the pain got bad enough." Now that we're several paragraphs into this story, do you think the pain was bad enough? I begged for an MRI, which he finally agreed to.

The MRI revealed intact ligaments and tendons. Everything actually looked pretty good except for a 0.8 x 0.4 x 0.8 cm cyst that had formed beneath my talus, one of the foot bones. Without orthotics, my feet pronate when I walk. This is pretty common, even among athletes. But with pronation, the talus shifts downward. So basically, I have a collection of fluid that keeps getting squished up against nerves and joints every time I take a step. No wonder it hurts so much to wear flip flops!

I took my MRI to a different orthopedic surgeon, who listened to me and who asked me a lot of good questions. He did a lot of manual testing on my foot and ankle, including some tests that provoked the pain and popping. Then, he expressed that while he was concerned about the cyst, he was more concerned about how it got there. "I know, I know," I rolled my eyes. "My feet pronate and bad foot mechanics can cause fluid build-up."

He disagreed. He said that if the culprit was pronation alone, I would have this issue on both ankles. His manual testing revealed that yes, my ligaments were intact, as the MRI had suggested. However, my ATFL (that anterior talofibular ligament on the front of my left ankle) was hanging on by a thread. It was intact, but it felt like it had been torn a long time ago. It healed, but it healed in a lengthened position because it was never properly treated. So that ligament is intact, but it's not functional. This has caused poor foot mechanics over time, which caused fluid to collect, and has subsequently caused me so much pain. With that brief examination, he both confirmed my greatest fears and explained his findings in a manner that I found comforting.

We decided on Plan A: to wear an ankle brace for 3-4 weeks in an attempt to get the ligament to tighten up. I follow up with the physician later this month, and if those tests are negative this time, he'll drain the cyst and hopefully I'll be feeling better in a day or two. If the splinting is unsuccessful, we go to Plan B: ATFL reconstruction. He'll have to put me under general anesthesia, detach the ligament, reattach it in a tighter and more functional position, and drain the cyst while he's in there. I'll have to be in a cast for six weeks, and then I'll probably have to have one of my coworkers rehab me for a few more weeks.

The moral of the story, kids (if you're still reading), is go to the doctor when something is wrong. Denial, avoidance, stubbornness will only cause you more problems in the long run. Even if you're reluctant to put your faith in modern medicine, try some homeopathic shit, see some kind of alternative practitioner, do whatever you want, but in addition to seeing a true medical doctor. Then, follow that physician's recommendations, even if they're inconvenient. If I had gone to a physician immediately after the initial injury, they would have had me immobilize and then I would have needed physical therapy. I would have been greatly annoyed and inconvenienced by this (especially since it would have meant missing dance), but not nearly as much as I am now.

Are any of you out there kicking yourself for not dealing with a medical issue sooner?