Where Did Thanksgiving Go?

The day after Halloween I started to see Christmas decorations going up in stores and around town. Now don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Christmas (it’s the hap-happiest time of the year) but where did Thanksgiving go?

It bothers me that that is now a holiday that seems to get skipped right over. People take for granted what they have and don’t stop to think about what they are truly thankful for.

I have a lot to be thankful for. I am healthy, active, loved by many, I have a great family, great friends, great “kids”, and an overall great life. I had a great childhood and have the best husband ever. I have a great job that I love and it pays well. I live in a country where I can say what I want, live where I want, travel where I want, and I live free. There is always food on the table, a roof over my head, and clothes on my back. What else could I ask for?

Let’s not forget this great holiday.

What are you thankful for?

Way Too Long…

So it has been way too long since the last time I blogged. It seems that everyday I think to myself, “I need to put that on our blog,” but it never gets done. So, here is a quick update:

Jake carved another big mac pumpkin this year. He went for a Mickey Mouse this time. It looks awesome!

One night when Jake and I had to work, we put the dog beds in the garage for them to sleep. The next morning, we saw that Alfie didn’t want to sleep in the garage. He had pulled his, and Nico’s, beds out of the dog door. I wish I could have seen him.

I started running again. Boy is it hard. I’m starting slow but almost enjoying it. I use almost very loosely.

I’m starting up my Mary Kay business again. I sure love doing it. I had just been so busy that I kind of slacked off. Well, not anymore. I am going to make gift baskets for Christmas.

Next Monday-Wednesday, Jake and I are going to Las Vegas for our 3 year anniversary. I can’t believe it’s been that long already!

Jake and I went to check out a cutting horse trainer in Camp Verde. I’d like to start cutting on Soda Pop. I think she would be great at it. I wanted to start last week but I got a cold/the flu and then a respiratory infection so I haven’t been riding at all.

Jake met me at work the other day and surprised me with a date night. We went to Phoenix and had dinner at the Old Spaghetti Factory then went to a Phoenix Coyotes hockey game. It was so fun!

Well, that is pretty much the long short of it. I’ll try to be better at blogging on a regular basis! Until next time…

Fried Green Tomatoes… Kinda.

The 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teacher at my mom’s school was teaching weather to her kids. My mom volunteered Jake and I to go in and talk to them and answer some questions. As we left, Mrs. McCall gave us a basket of some squash, gourds, tomatoes, chilies, and some Halloween candy. The tomatoes were from her garden and still very green. So, I decided that I was going to make fried green tomatoes.

I started looking up recipes online and didn’t like any of them. Most use buttermilk which I don’t have. Many are just fried with bread crumbs and no seasonings. Some have lemon pepper in them- I’m not a HUGE fan of pepper. So I decided I’d come up with something myself.

Well, after a day or two the tomatoes started turning red. So I sliced up this half green half red tomato. I dipped it in milk and a mix of Panko bread crumbs and ranch dressing mix. I then fried them in oil. All in all, pretty easy to make. They taste yummy too. The heat brought out the sweetness of the tomato. The bad thing, they seemed to get much more ripe and red in the heat so they are not quite as firm as I think truly green tomatoes would have been. However, they taste very good.

Fact # 3

• From 2001 to 2004, breast cancer incidence rates in the U.S. decreased by 3.5% per year. One theory is that this decrease was due to the reduced use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) by women after the results of a large study, called the Women’s Health Initiative, were published in 2002. These results suggested a connection between HRT and increased breast cancer risk.

Don’t replace your hormones.

My Favorite Cookbook

After taking a long nap with the hubby, it was time to decide what to make for dinner. I turned to my trusty friend, Bill Phillips and his book, Eating for Life.

I knew I had ground turkey in the fridge. I flipped through all of the pages (each recipe has a picture of the finished product and ingredients) and found a winner. “Crunch Taco Salad: Chili-seasoned ground turkey on a bed of lettuce topped with salsa and sour cream.” Yummy. I used extra lean turkey and vegetarian chili- which by the way does not smell very good coming out of the can but tastes way better.

This book is awesome. It gives you many breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack recipes. All of them have been rated an 8 out of 10 or above by Jake and I. They are super simple, very healthy, and YUMMY! The recipes are low fat, high protein and balanced. He also includes basic diet and exercise information in the front of the book. In the back he has examples of menus that readers have sent in along with their before and after pictures.

Of all of my cookbooks, this is my favorite. Try it out. You won’t be sorry.

Fact # 2

As promised, here is another breast cancer fact:

• About 1,990 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in men. Less than 1% of all new breast cancer cases occur in men.

It's not just a woman's disease.

Are You Tough Enough to Wear Pink?

Well, October is here again and I can't believe the year has gone by so fast! I feel like I say that every year.

As I struggle to remember where the year has gone, I want to remind you that October is "Breast Cancer Awareness Month." I have found many facts about breast cancer that I will be blogging about throughout the month. Here is the first:

• Breast cancer incidence in women in the United States is 1 in 8 (about 13%).

I think it is amazing the amount of awareness that breast cancer has gotten in the last few years. It seems that no one is afraid to wear pink anymore. The University of Nebraska sported pink hockey jerseys. The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association routinely does a "Tough Enough to Wear Pink" night which raises money for breast cancer research. Who is going to tell this bull rider he isn't "tough enough to wear pink?"

I think that it is great that so many people can see the color pink and automatically think of the breast cancer cause. Remember: "Think Pink", "Feel Your Boobies", and "save the ta-ta's"!