And now it's Monday. The parties are over, Mother's Day has come and gone, and it's high time to depuff. Bites of pastry, pizza, and lemon tart are lovely, all things in moderation after all... But fresh fruit and vegetables are lovely too, and given the havoc that too many refined carbs, drinks, meat, and dairy wreak on my face and waistline since achieving 40-something, I get downright excited to get back to "normal". Green tea and grapefruit? Woo hoo! The fact is, I have become supremely sensitive to over-indulging (I blow up like a balloon, to put it mildly - see Cancun '08) which is either a sad reminder that I'm aging (I get it already!), or a lucky reminder to, you know, embrace moderation. I'll consider it the latter (snarl).

I actually enjoyed a lovely transition meal last night, at lovely Lucia's, with my lovely mom and sister. I know I say this over and over (and over), but Lucia's does amazing vegetables. I had a cup of pureed tomato soup - no cream, but creamy; perfectly seasoned to taste like soup, not spaghetti sauce (always a risk with tomato soup). All three of us ordered the roasted French-cut chicken breast (boneless, with skin, and the first joint of the wing attached; do any of you ever request this cut from your butcher? I haven't, but I'm going to soon, I'll let you know if they oblige) served alongside a small dollop of mashed potatoes, a tangle of al dente green beans (seasoned with what I'm guessing was butter with a bit of horseradish whisked in - delicious), and wilted greens topped with crunchy walnuts and kalamata olives. Too comforting to be light, but not ridiculously heavy either. Pretty damn perfect.

Tonight? Well, we are not going out for dinner! I'm thinking miso soup and a simple saute of whatever veggies I can scare up from the cooler. More tea, grapes, and a few almonds to finish. Simple and light and clean tasting. My palate (grocery bill, butt, John, dishwasher, eye bags) will thank me.

Moderate it: back-on-track, depuff favorites are green tea, grapefruit, raw almonds, fish, arugula, and kale.