Category Archives: Blog Carnival

ABC Wednesday ~ D is for…

Photobucket is holding all my photos I stored with them from 2007-2015 hostage. They have blacked out all those photos on my blog posts. OH BOTHER! I’m slowly cleaning up my posts.

My first ABC Wednesday and the letter is D today.

So many choices, I think I’ll share daffodils, dogwood and doors.

 

This photo was taken in England in April 2004.

 

This Dogwood tree is in a garden on Queen Anne Hill in Seattle, Washington, just uphill from Kerry Park. The photo was taken in July of 2007.

 

The photos in this collage were taken in Oxford~England, York, Edinburgh ~ Scotland, South Kensington and the bottom middle one if taken at Ste Michelle Winery in Woodinville, Washington.

To view more ABC Wednesday participants click here.

Photobucket is holding all my photos I stored with them from 2007-2015 hostage. They have blacked out all those photos on my blog posts. OH BOTHER! I’m slowly cleaning up my posts.

Fun Monday ~ Music

The Crown Princess at Ohh a shiny pen is hosting Fun Monday this week.
Ok, here is the assignment.
Music plays a vital role in most of our lives. It is everywhere. I want to hear the ONE song that is you. The song that whenever it is heard, you smile. I am not looking for the soundtrack of your life, just that one song. Your friends hear it and think of you. You can post the video, the lyrics, the wav file. However you want to post it is great.
~
 I was on the phone reading the assignment to my sister Lana G! and she suggested that You’ve Got a Friend by Carole King should be the one I post.  Carole King is a favorite of mine for sure and I love this song.  My husband was listening to my conversation with Lana and he said I should post Smack Water Jack, he’s so funny, he says really it’s only because we were talking about Carole King songs that this one popped into his head, so don’t call the authorities just yet!
~
You’ve Got A Friend
   ——Carole King

When you’re down and troubled
And you need some loving care
And nothin’, nnothin’ is goin’ right
Close your eyes and think of me
And soon I will be there
To brighten up even your darkest night

You just call out my name
And you know wherever I am
I’ll come runnin’ to see you again
Winter, spring, summer or fall
All you have to do is call
And I’ll be there
You’ve got a friend

If the sky above you
Grows dark and full of clouds
And that old north wind begins to blow
Keep your head together
And call my name out loud
Soon you’ll hear me knockin’ at your door

You just call out my name
And you know wherever I am
I’ll come runnin’, runnin, yeah, yeah,
to see you again
Winter, spring, summer or fall
All you have to do is call
And I’ll be there, yes I will

Now ain’t it good to know
that you’ve got a friend
When people can be so cold
They’ll hurt you, yes, and desert you
And take your soul if you let them
Oh, but don’t you let them.

You just call out my name
And you know wherever I am
I’ll come runnin, runnin’, yeah, yeah, yeah
to see you again
Winter, spring, summer or fall
All you have to do is call
And I’ll be there, yes I will
You’ve got a friend,
you’ve got a friend,
ain’t it good to know,
you’ve got a friend,
ain’t it good to know,
ain’t it good to know,
ain’t it good to know,
you’ve got a friend,
oh yeah now, you’ve got a friend,
yeah baby, you’ve got a friend,
oh yeah, you’ve got a friend.

You can hear a rendition of this song by clicking on the url below…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6r1175w_lM

For more Fun Monday Posts click here.

Show & Tell ~ Valentine Decor

Most of my holiday accessories are at my home in the state of Washington. I decided to scrounge around the condo today to see if I could put together some Valentine for Two decorations. I was pleased to find a few things that I brought from Washington and some Christmas clearance items that will work together to make the table look nice on Valentines Day.

 

 

Now I just need to come up with a menu.

So besides these I’ll pick up a bunch of tulips to add to the decor…

For more Show and Tell visit Kelli at There’s No Place Like Home.

Photobucket is holding all my photos I stored with them from 2007-2015 hostage. They have blacked out all those photos on my blog posts. OH BOTHER! I’m slowly cleaning up my posts.

TT #20 ~ 13 Tips for eating Healthier

Photobucket is holding all my photos I stored with them from 2007-2015 hostage. They have blacked out all those photos on my blog posts. OH BOTHER! I’m slowly cleaning up my posts.

These tips are from one of my new favorite sites SparkPeople.

1. Use mustard instead of mayo on your sandwiches. You’ll get lots of flavor with much fewer calories and fat.

2. Select whole wheat bread over white bread. Be sure to read the label to ensure you’re getting whole grains, not just colored white bread.

3. Eat the white meat of turkey or chicken, which is lower in fat than dark meat, red meat and pork. Animal fat is the number one dietary source of unhealthy saturated fat.

4. Start using lean ground beef, pork tenderloin or fish instead of high-fat cuts of meat.

5. Change your cooking methods. Bake, grill or broil your meals instead of frying. Use non-stick sprays—or better yet, non-stick pans—instead of oil.

6. Drink more water. Slowly reduce the amount of soda you drink and replace it with herbal tea or water. Aim for eight cups of pure water each day.

7. Don’t drink your calories. Eat a whole orange instead of drinking a glass of juice, for example. Real food is usually more filling and more nutritious than juices, fruit drinks, and other high-calorie beverages.

8. Serve sauces and dressings on the side. Dip your fork into the sauce, then dip your fork into the food. You’ll still have the flavor but with fewer calories.

9. Gradually switch to skim milk. Milk commonly comes in four varieties: whole (4% fat), 2%, 1% and skim (0% fat). Gradually wean yourself from the higher-fat varieties to the lower fat milk every two weeks. For example: continue drinking your normal 2% milk for two weeks, then move to 1% for two weeks, and then your palate will be ready for the consistency of skim milk.

10. Switch from full-fat cheeses to reduced-fat or fat-free cheeses the same way you would with milk (see tip above).

11. Order vegetables on the side instead of fries. Flavor them with lemon juice or herbs instead of butter.

12. Snack on fruit and nuts instead of sugary treats. The fiber, protein and healthy fats in this combo will sustain you to your next meal and you won’t have the energy slump that comes after eating candy.

13. Reduce your portion size. Most people will eat whatever amount of food is in front of them, so start putting your meals on smaller plates. You will be just as satisfied because your mind “sees” that you’re eating a full plate of food.

For more inspiration on sensible eating check out the Brown Plate Special I’m a part of…

For more TT’s click here.

Wildflowers in Winter ~ Week 4

 

The Wildflower fun is continuing at Elizabeth Joy’s site. This week February 6th thru the 12th the theme is decorating in the home.

Wildflowers in the Home – Decorating with wildflowers. Show us dishes or other decorations made by you or someone else that you have in your home. Save the fabric decorations and paintings or drawings for the next two weeks.

I’m sharing dishes that I have with floral themes. Some may not be true wildflowers. I’m also including two collages of tea-cups that we have given to my mother over the years that have more of a wildflower feel to them.

My china pattern is Moss Rose by Royal Albert.

These are Johnson Brothers English Chippendale (pattern 103232)

These are a few of the Tea-Cups we have bought our mother over the years.

 

For more Wildflowers in the Home visit Elizabeth Joy at Wildflower Morning.

Photobucket is holding all my photos I stored with them from 2007-2015 hostage. They have blacked out all those photos on my blog posts. OH BOTHER! I’m slowly cleaning up my posts.

The Brown Plate Special ~ Week 1

***Please scroll down to the next post if you are here for FUN MONDAY!

I’m joining my friend Kim at Hiraeth for the Brown Plate Special. Along with Lovella and her Walking Club I’m hoping these two accountability groups will help me reach some of my goals for being in better shape and weighing less while enjoying food I love. Today is the first Monday that I will be posting whether I had any weight loss or gain. Yikes. I think this first week should be great because of the typical water weight loss I have at the beginning of any sensible program. So let me run off to the scale and I’ll be right back to tell you what it shows. No not the total weight (I’m not that accountable) just the loss or gain people!!

Woohoo! I am down 4.8#’s. I realize much of this is water weight but who cares I love seeing smaller numbers on the scale. I also realize my weight loss for the next weeks will be closer to 1 lb. a week or less but that’s ok, too. I’m excited to keep going…

Below you’ll find an explanation of what The Brown Plate Special is with links to Kim’s site if you want to join us or just see how this is working.

The Brown Plate Special

In the comments of my recent Recipe Round-up/Snackalicious Super Dishes post my friend, Ellen B, left a haunting question; well, at least a question that’s been haunting me for some time now:

How’s an aging girl who loves food (and LOVES to cook) ever gonna lose weight…?

 

I’ve given it a lot of thought and I think I have come up with a doable plan for aging girls like me and Ellen.  I am calling it “The Brown Plate Special” and I invite you to try this along with me!

I got the idea when I bought a couple of cute little chocolate brown plates on clearance last week.  They are just 9 inches in diameter instead of the standard 10.5 inches and have a little “well” in the center that is 6.5 inches in diameter.  I’m thinking that if I commit to using this little brown plate instead of a regular plate for all my meals, and “load” it only so that it looks visually porportionate to a normal serving of food on a normal plate, slowly but surely I will get portions under control and begin to lose weight without giving up cooking and eating the foods we love.

You can use any small sandwich or dessert plate.  The only other guidelines are just the common sense stuff that most of us in our 40’s and 50’s have already come to grips with:

  • No between meal snacking
  • No evening snacking
  • No second helpings
  • No deserts except on special occasions

Since accountability is essential in such matters, I’ll be weighing in every Monday morning and I’ll confess my weight loss (or lack thereof) in a regular Monday morning post.

If you decide to join me, feel free to invite friends to join us by writing a post and adding this handy dandy button in your side bar.   You can post your weekly progress on a post of your own or in the comments of my weekly post.

So, what have you got to lose

 

Fun Monday ~ The Bucket List…

Tiggerlane, the Neophyte is hosting Fun Monday this week. Here’s her assignment.

Have you heard of The Bucket List? Well, that’s what I want from you! Make a list of things you want to do before you die. It must be at leastfive items – and you can make it as long as you desire. Photos are optional. And let’s hear about some of the wackiest, most bizarre to-do’s on your Bucket List!

These are not listed in order of importance just in order of how they came into my brain.

1. Visit Ireland. And while there I want to visit Trinity College and see the Book of Kells. I also want to tour the Guinness Brewery. A visit to the Jameson Distillery for my husband’s pleasure. I want to eat a good meal in Cork. I’d like to see the countryside. I’d love to do a Pub Crawl with some good traditional Irish music.

2. I’d love to experience grandchildren.

3. I’d like to fly first-class to Australia or New Zealand so the many hours in the plane would feel more comfortable.

4. I’d like to have a great famous cook like Ina Garten or Jamie Oliver cook a meal for me and my friends at my house with a clean up crew.

5. I’d like to walk across England from the Irish Sea to the North Sea.

6. I’d like to meet some of my bloggy friends at a spa resort.

7. I’d like to be living back in my home in the Seattle area.

I’m just not a person who desires whacky or bizarre things in my life. I’m happy with a cup of tea in a beautiful setting.

Or a lovely meal with friends. A worshipful church service where the truth is taught and the love of God is felt. Probably the most out of this world experience I think would be real cool is …

8. The Acts 2:2-4 experience…”Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”

For me that would be an amazing experience.

For more Bucket lists check out Tiggerlane’s site for more links to Fun Monday posts…

Photobucket is holding all my photos I stored with them from 2007-2015 hostage. They have blacked out all those photos on my blog posts. OH BOTHER! I’m slowly cleaning up my posts.