Thank you Emily, Peggy, and the best running coaches around, Claudia Kefor, John Ferguson, Shaun O’Rourke, and Susan Sacco!!!
I had a the best time running 5 1/2 miles at 6:30am on a Saturday morning since I can remember.
I'd also like to thank yellow cab for making the last mile so much more enjoyable from the back seat of one of their very comfortable cabs.
In all seriousness, we had a huge turn out with lots of friendly and dedicated runners.
Enjoy the pictures and I look forward to seeing you all next time.
LB

A baby's first haircut is all about the first. No doubt--it's a sentimental milestone.
But remember, a one year old isn't likely to see it that way.
Kids can be terrified of strangers-- add to that scissors and a strange place. It can be a recipe for disaster. And those of us who try to do it ourselves have learned-- it's a lot harder than it looks. My poor niece barely escaped injury when my brother in law attempted the first cut.
He was using an electric shaver-- it slipped, and she was scalped! It took weeks to grow out. (She looked adorable in spite of her buzz cut!)

So if you fear that might happen to you, check out the areas kid friendly salons. There are quite a few of them sprinkled throughout the area.
Here's a look at one in Avon:

Here's a look at RJ Julia Bookstore's picks of the summer.
If you're looking for a great read, look no further.
They have done the hard work for you!

Monday – Kids & Young Adult

Wave, by Suzy Lee
Bats at the Library, by Brian Lies
The Curse of Addy McMahon, by Katie Davis
Found (Missing: Book One), by Margaret Peterson Haddox
The Magician: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flannel, by Michael Scott

Tuesday – Fiction

A Case of Exploding Mangoes, by Mohammed Hanif
The Secret Scripture, by Sebastian Barry
Mudbound, by Hillary Jordan
Child 44, by Tom Rob Smith
Palace Council, by Stephen L. Carter

Wednesday – Non Fiction

Twenty Chickens for A Saddle, by obyn Scott
The Film Club, by David Gilmour
Hospital, by Julie Salamon
Sloop, by Daniel Robb
The Man Who Loved China, by Simon Winchester

Thursday – Summer Reads for Men & Women

The Pig Did It, by Joseph Caldwell
So Brave, Young and Handsome, by Leif Enger
Last Kiss, Luanne Rice
The Day I Ate Whatever I Wanted, by Elizabeth Berg
The Crowd Sounds Happy, by Nicholas Dawidoff

Friday:
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle - David Wroblewski
The Story of a Marriage - Andrew Sean Greer
Split - Suzanne Finnamore
Mudbound - Hillary Jordan
Last Kiss - LuAnn Rice
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Post-American World - Fared Zakaria
The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living -
The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler
Roadfood - Jane Stern and Michael Stern

Happy Fourth of July!

This morning, Chef Chaz Fable from Stew Leonard's stopped by the studio to help fight the Fourth of July Burger Blues.
He told us how to avoid the burger rut (Although I happen to love the occasional burger!).

A Few Grilling Tips

1.Always start with a clean grill. The grill is easiest to clean when it is hot.

2.Time items properly; start cooking with the item that will take the longest.

3.When cooking marinated items, always remove excess marinade to avoid a messy grill and possible flare ups (especially if there is oil in the marinade).

4.Meats that are 1¼” to 2 ¼” thick tend to cook better than cuts that are less than 1” thick.

5.Don’t play with the food once it is on the grill; the more you flip and turn meat, the dryer it will become.

6.Always let your meat rest before you serve or slice it.

7.Grilled food will continue to cook even after it has been removed from the heat.

Stew’s Naked Porterhouse
with Wild Mushrooms

1 Porterhouse steak (cut ½ inch thick)
2 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon, chopped garlic
4 ounces each Shiitake, Crimini and Button mushrooms, sliced
Salt and pepper

Season steak with salt and pepper and place on grill over high heat. Let cook for 3-4 minutes, then give steak a quarter turn. Cook for 2-3 minutes then turn over and repeat. Remove the steak from the grill and let rest.

In a sauté pan, melt the butter and then add sliced mushrooms. Cook over high heat for 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Stew’s Naked Grilled Salmon
Served with Mango Salsa

4 six-ounce portions of Stew’s Naked Salmon
1 Tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup mango puree
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
½ teaspoon cumin
¼ cup reed bell pepper, Diced
¼ cup red onion, diced
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 Jalapeño pepper, diced
4 cups Mesclun greens
Salt and pepper

To prepare salmon:
Coat salmon with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on grill over medium high heat. Cook salmon for 2 minutes, then give fish a quarter turn, and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Turn salmon over and repeat. Remove from grill and let stand.

To prepare mango salsa:
In a medium sized mixing bowl, add remaining ingredients (except for the Mesclun greens). Mix well.

Preparation:
Place Mesclun greens on a platter, arrange salmon on top of greens and top with mango salsa.

Stew’s Naked Grilled Chicken Breast
Marinated with Balsamic Vinaigrette

4 six-ounce Stew’s Naked Boneless Chicken Breasts
¼ cup Stew Leonard’s Balsamic Dressing

Place chicken in a zip-lock bag and pour dressing into the bag, making sure to evenly distribute over the chicken. Place in refrigerator for 2-4 hours.

Remove chicken from bag and pat dry. Place chicken on the grill over med high heat. Cook 2 minutes, then give chicken a quarter turn. Cook for 2 more minutes, then turn over and repeat. Remove from the grill.

For more information-- check out the link:

http://www.stewleonards.com/html/recipe_list.cfm?recipe_cat=2&cat_name=Barbecuing

Let it be!

That's what I learned from Fine Gardening Managing Editor Steve Aitken.

We recently moved to a new home-- and this is our first growing season there. We knew the garden had been left alone for a few years, but I was really at a loss. I just didn't know what was what-- what was a plant, what was a weed.

Fortunately for me, I wondered that aloud on air-- it was on my birthday-- May 14.

And what a birthday present!

It came in the form of an email:

Dear Rebecca, I was pleased to hear a mention of gardening on this morning's broadcast. As the Managing Editor of a national gardening magazine based in Connecticut, I would be happy to help you sort your ornamentals from your weeds.

Let me know if you need help

Best,

Steve Aitken

Managing Editor

Fine Gardening

And so we did.
Yes-- I wrote back! We need help!
And Steve was happy to oblige.
He came over and helped out. What I thought were weeds-- were really perennials. And I have a lot to look forward to this summer.

Steve told me to let things go for a while, clean up what I could-- but let the big stuff go. It will bloom, he promised me. And it already has started to!

It's looking really great. And I'm so thankful.

Next week, we'll try to check out roses!

Until this week began-- I have to admit, I didn't know too much about golf. But in the past 72 hours, I have learned all there is to know about golf and then some.

That's the neat thing about being a journalist--
Everyday is a new adventure.
We have different interview subjects-- on topics that range from a 9 year old boy who did a modified Heimlich maneuver to the Traveler's Championship-- and just how much revenue it brings to the state.

Our job is to learn everything we can possibly learn about a subject so you can do more than spout out fact-- we have to internalize it, make it make sense-- not just to us, but to you the viewer.

Having a PGA stop in Connecticut is important-- even to those of us who don't play much golf. When a sport takes you seriously-- and you can get the big players-- there is a trickle down effect. And that's why it's so important to shine a light on what's happening in Cromwell-- why we'll go live there for two days running, and why we as a news organization put so much emphasis on the tournament.

Interesting facts I have learned about golf (compiled from a few different websites):
-There are about 27 million golfers worldwide
- The wooden golf tee was invented in the 1930s
-Some universities actually have classes about "Business Golf."
-The first type of golf ball was feathery, amde out of leather and feathers
- The Traveler's Tournament was founded in 1952 as the Insurance City Open. In 1967 it was re-named the Greater Hartford Open.
- For the tournament's first three years, it was played at the Wethersfield Country Club. It moved to Cromwell in 1984.

I just got word that one of my favorite teachers from high school (Hampton Roads Academy) is retiring. I wrote a little essay for him-- that I'd like to share with our viewers.
it's perfect for March-- as we celebrate Dr. Theodore Seuss Geisel-- aka Dr. Seuss.

It’s funny when you look back on high school— I’m astounded at just how vivid my memories are. I can actually conjure up the scent of the brand new auditorium and hear the bell ring at 8:15am. I remember getting in trouble for writing notes in class, but feeling it was imperative for me to write them.

What were they about? That, I can’t answer.

I remember finding history fascinating—because the man who taught me was unlike any other teacher I have ever known.

To date, Mr. Cunningham remains the most engaging teacher I have ever had.
I can still have a knowledgeable debate about Woodrow Wilson and his 14 points because of what I learned in AP History. But his legacy is more far-reaching than that.

We the class of 1992 felt a special bond with Mr. Cunningham. I still think of him as ours—perhaps because we followed him through the years.

From 8th grade on, he was so much more than our History teacher.
Larry Cunningham was our mentor, our friend and our rock.

His was the office where we all felt welcome. And this was years before we were allowed in the Senior lounge. A few years later—when I’d been suspended from school and thought my world was crumbling around me (a little melodramatic but this is a 17 year old girl’s perspective)— I still found comfort in Mr. Cunningham’s office, and in his words. He promised me better days ahead—and knew enough about me to say something encouraging when I really needed it.
He was right. And he was right about so much.

Teachers—the really great ones, do so much more than stand at the head of the class.
They help mold us into the adults we will become. They help us figure out who we are so we can navigate our way into the great unknown.

So Mr. Cunningham, your legacy remains in each and every one of us.
You have touched so many lives— and we are better for it.

I still have a hard time believing it has been sixteen years now since I walked those halls on a regular basis. When I close my eyes every now and then, I find myself transported back to HRA. And whenever I’m there, I see you there, too.

Three months into our new morning show, we are up and running.(!)

After years of talking about it-- the Fox 61 morning news is finally a reality. We've been on three months now, and the weeks have flown.

Truly.

My son just celebrated his first birthday (gasp!) which of course, has me a little teary eyed-- scratching my head wondering where the time has gone.

The past year has changed my view of the world entirely. Motherhood brings a sort of perspective that you cannot prepare for. When everyone told me, "everything changes," I didn't really know what that meant. Now, I do.

You look at things differently-- you appreciate the little moments and big moments alike. The huge giggles when you tickle his belly-- the quiet (and increasingly rare) sleepy moments when he's about to fall asleep. I think my son has a lot to do with what I love about morning news programs, and why I wanted to be a part of the Fox 61 Morning News. I wanted to help create a show that I would watch-- a show I find relevant and fun. It's a working schedule that lets me be home with him in the afternoon, but at the same time, I can keep working. Which-- in today's economy, we all know is a reality for most families. In fact, most of our viewers are a lot like me-- we're working moms who feel like there's never enough time. We're always running from place to place, from errand to errand-- pretty worn out, hoping to cross things off the "to do" list before it gets too long.

And that happens in an instant!

So-- I'm hoping to make this blog more than an entry on my "to do" list, and something to which I can look forward each and every week.

Anyway-- welcome to my new blog, I hope you'll be a part of it.