Happy Halloween

Some Celebrations are easy to find! Halloween is a special day where kids and grown ups alike dress up and enjoy candy. This Halloween I am Trunk or Treating with the little ones and hoping to avoid the really tempting candy. Halloween can be a time to laugh, be silly, and try new things. Have your loved ones dress as a theme, make homemade costumes, go on a costume hunt and see how many different types of costumes you can take pictures of, and of course my favorite two: eat spooky foods and tell ghost stories.

No matter how you chose to do do so enjoy this last day of October by enjoying one of life's spookiest celebrations.

Wind and Rain

The Storm has hit the East coast bringing rain and wind to my life. The weather outside is now matching the mood inside. The past couple of weeks have been a little rocky. A sick child, a family adjusting to a new schedule, a few personal issues popping up. The windy emotions swaying back in forth in my life making celebrations seem small and not as often as I would like.

Sandy reminds me that storms come and they pass. We have to be prepared for the rest, hope for the best and live through what is. I am thankful that the weather is bringing me a calm feeling with the noise outside I can drown out the clutter from with in and move on with what is. I cannot stop the rain and the wind but I can celebrate living through it.

Be safe with Sandy and all of life's storms.

"There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm." -Willa Catha

America Makes Dinner

October 17, 2012 is a day to meet in the kitchen and cook as a family. This day is America Makes Dinner night. This is a great campaign to encourage us all to drive past the drive through and head into the kitchen to cook up something great.

Family dinners are a great treat for my memory. I remember the smells from the kitchen as my mom cooked up something delicious. My brother and I would sit at the table and wait for my mom to lay out the goods. I remember laughing and smiling during meals and loving most every moment.

My family is young but we eat together every night. My two little ones love this part of the day. I don't yet have the busy chatter of events and news but we do go around the table and share our best and worst moments of the day. My children love this part of dinner almost as much as they love finding out what is for dessert.

On this day celebrate the joys of family over a great home cooked meal. For ideas visit
 America Makes Dinner  or enjoy what my family will be eating with the recipe below!*receipe from Parenting Magazine

And as always Please, share any ideas/recipes you may have!

Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:

• 1 cup teriyaki sauce (or enough to cover the chicken during marinating stage)
• 1 lb. boneless chicken breast
• ½-lb. strip steak
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
• 4 cups cooked brown rice
• ¾-cup thinly sliced green onions
• 1 cup frozen green peas
• ¼-pound snow peas, trimmed and cut lengthwise into thin strips
• ¼-cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
• 1 (15 oz.) can pineapple chunks in juice, drained
• 1 large tomato, chopped
• ¼-cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon chopped unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts
• 2-3 tablespoons bottled teriyaki sauce (or, to taste)
• 2 scallions, sliced
• Sesame seeds, for garnish

1.Cover chicken with teriyaki sauce and marinate for at least an hour, or as long as overnight. Remove from marinade, heat oil in pan, and sauté chicken until cooked through, about 7 to 8 minutes per side. Cut into diagonal slices, about two inches thick.
2. Prepare all of your ingredients before starting to cook--do your chopping and dividing and slicing first thing. While you do this, let your steak come to room temperature. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
3. Heat a heavy skillet to medium-high and coat your steak in a bit of the oil. Salt and pepper to taste.
4. Place your steak in the hot pan, and let cook for five minutes on each side. Remove from pan and transfer to the oven (transfer to a cast iron grill pan, if you have one, or just another oven-proof pan).
5. Heat remaining oil in the original steak pan, which should still be on medium-high heat.
6. Add remaining ingredients, through teriyaki sauce, one at a time, sautéeing for 15 to 30 seconds each time you add an ingredient. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes or until everything is heated through and the portions in contact with the pan become a little bit crispy. Stir again, and turn heat to very low to keep everything warm.
7. Remove steak from oven and check for doneness; if it's pinker than you prefer, pop it back in for a minute or two more. If it's done, let it sit for five minutes, then slice thinly.
8.Remove fried rice from stove. Arrange steak on top of adult portions, and sprinkle sesame seeds and sliced scallions over the plates before serving (or omit from kids' portion, if so desired).

Apple A Day

We have all heard the saying an Apple a day keeps the doctor away and with so many types of apples and ways to eat apples who wouldn’t want to celebrate the whole month of October with Apples.  Not only are they tasty research has proven apples can help with a many things.

-the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry say the fruit’s flavonoids have antioxidant properties that may help reduce the chance of cancer.
-Studies have shown that women who snack on an the high fiber snack three times a day lost more weight than those who ate a different snack of equal fiber content.
-Apples act as a toothbrush helping to clean teeth between meals

A yummy Apple Treat  from France

Individual Apple Tart Tatin 1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease the inside of a 12-cup muffin tray set on a rimmed baking sheet. 2) Place the puff pastry on lightly floured surface and use a 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut out 12 circles. Place the circles on a tray and prick all over with a fork. Chill. 3) Pour ½ cup water into a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the sugar and honey and increase heat to high. Swirling the pan occasionally, cook until the sugar is dark amber, about 10 to 12 minutes. Take the pan off heat and whisk in butter one piece at a time until completely emulsified. Divide the sauce amount the muffin cups. Divide the apple slices among the muffin cups, breaking them if need to.

4) Cap each muffin cup with a circle of puff pastry dough. Bake for 20 minutes, the reduce temp to 350 degrees and continue baking until the pastry is golden-brown and the apples are tender when pricked with fork, another 20 to 25 min. 5) Transfer muffin tray to a wire rack to partially cool for 20 to 30 minutes. Use spoon to help scoop out tarts, invert them onto a platter. Or, let cool and reheat in a 340 degrees oven for 3 to 20 minutes before inverting onto serving dish.   Nutrition per tart 238 Cal 2g protein, 42g carbs; 13g fat; 1g fiber; 1g iron; 48mg sodium Recipe from Melissa Clark, author of In the Kitchen With a Good Appetite

 

Fall

Depending on where you live it may not feel like it but today September 22nd, is the first day of fall. I have mixed feelings about this season. Ever since graduating from high school (some few years ago) I have become overwhelmed with emotions during this time of year. The smell of fall made me miss the sounds of high school – the football field with the flags flapping in the wind, the beat of the drums, and the spirit of being a part of something great. I would always become sad no matter what was going on in my life but now I no longer long for those days I celebrate where I am now.
 
I still enjoy the spirit of high school sports and relish in some high school memories but I treasure the changing seasons and treasure the celebrations each season brings. Fall has so many wonderful reasons to celebrate and being weighed down by sadness of old times does no one any good. So this fall I prepare for my many celebrations and hope you will join me.

 


Please, share any celebrations or ideas you may have for fall! Here are a few to help you get excited!

Fall Celebrations:
Election Day
Apples
Columbus Day
Bosses Day
Day Light Savings Day
Halloween
Veterans Day
Thanksgiving

Positive Thinking Day

This day, September 13th, is Positive Thinking Day! This is a definite day I need to celebrate. I let too much negative thinking seep in my thoughts and my whole self can get bogged down because of this. I will try to day to block out negative thinking and keep positive thoughts in my mind.

Grandparents Day

My mother's parents were a huge part of my life! Both have passed away but both have given me gifts that will last my entire lifetime.

My Grandfather was one of the few positive male role models I had in my childhood life and boy what a great role model he was. He possessed so many qualities that I hope my son will possess. He was strong yet gentle and made me feel oh so special.

My Grandmother was a character and over the years we shared so many great memories. I always turned to her when I needed a strong ear and a great prayer partner. She loved her family and prayed for us night and day even when we didn't think we needed it.

I have been blessed with these great two people. To have them as grandparents is such a great thing.

Today on National Grandparents Day we need to celebrate our grandparents even if they are no longer with us. Make cards for the nursing home, plant a flower in their honor, or share with someone a memory about them. If your grandparents are living call them and tell them how much they mean to you. Love them, send them a card, eat dinner with them, whatever you do show them your love and appreciation.

Enjoy the following grandparent quotes:

Grandchildren are God's way of compensating us for growing old.
Mary H. Waldrip

Grandparents are a delightful blend of laughter, caring deeds, wonderful stories and love.
 Author Unknown

They say genes skip generations. Maybe that's why grandparents find their grandchildren so likeable.
Joan McIntosh

It's funny what happens when you become a grandparent. You start to act all goofy and do things you never thought you'd do. It's terrific.
Mike Krzyzewski

Grandparents make the world...a little softer, a little kinder, a little warmer.
Author Unknown

Internationl Literacy Day

Literacy is and always has been a huge part of my life. My grandmother taught adult non-readers how to read in her living room while my cousins, brother and I played in the den. My mom is a teacher and has always loved reading and shares that love with many students, co-workers, and her family. Reading has been a joy for me and while I do not always read adult material as much as I would like there is nothing like slipping away into a great book. Even children's books can be a great treat.

Today, September 8th is International Literacy Day. On this day we should all read a book, magazine, or even a blog or two...just read. Do not take for granite this gift we have been given. Not all learn how to read and it is a fact that can be changed. Help eradicate illiteracy by visiting your local Literacy Council, school or library and asking how you can help in your community.

For More Information and ways to help visit one of the following sites:

ProLiteracy - A national literacy organization that certifies trainers and provides instructional materials and support. http://www.proliteracy.org/

National Center for Family Literacy- A non-profit organization that supports family literacy services through programming, training, research, advocacy and dissemination. http://www.famlit.org

Literacy Powerline - Works to increase literacy levels through effective and sustainable community collaboration and engagement. http://www.literacypowerline.com

Literacy.org –A resource for research and development on literacy in the U.S. and worldwide. This site is jointly sponsored by the International Literacy Institute (ILI) and the National Center on Adult Literacy (NCAL) at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education. http://literacy.org/

What's for Breakfast?

I love breakfast food but as a person that does not like mornings I do not really enjoy eating breakfast in the mornings. September is Better Breakfast Month and this gives me a reason to try and enjoy a healthy breakfast in the morning. Now to kick of the month we enjoyed breakfast for dinner which is always a big treat. Eggs, turkey bacon, toast with jam and OJ in the evening just seems like a celebration all in its self. But for this month I have tried to plan out healthy breakfast treats for our mornings.

This morning English muffins with cream cheese and strawberry preserves topped with strawberries. Yummy! Fast, easy, and not to bad for us. My kids love cereal and oatmeal so I can not take those staples out of the rotation but our new muffins with strawberries has been added in. We also have enjoyed Omelet bites which are easy for me to make than a traditional oven and just the right size for my little ones.

How ever you decide to start your day remember a healthy breakfast should be included. Even if you do not have time for a sit down meal there are ways to eat healthy breakfasts every day. Below our some links and the recipe for omelet bites. Hope you enjoy a month long celebration with wonderful breakfast treats!

 please share any recipes!

Omlet Bites: (Found on superhealthykids.com)

3 Slices of  Chese quartered (We use American)
9 Eggs
Precooked bacon slices, pulled into pieces (we use Turkey Bacon)
salt peper to taste (we use none)
Preheat Oven: 375degrees
Spray muffin tin with cooking spray
Mix eggs, bacon, salt and peper
Poor into muffin tin evenly
Top egg with one peice of chese
Bake 20 min
Cool for 5 - 10 min before serving

http://www.choosemyplate.gov/ Visit for helathy food options for breakfast and All day!

Celebrate Yoga!

 September is National Yoga month -Yoga helps us mentally, physically, and emotionally and is a practice that I really enjoy. When I first heard of Yoga I thought it equaled skinny, youthful looking women chanting and placing their bodies in unheard of ways. This may be true in some practices but my experience with Yoga has been challenging, rewarding, and oh so calming. I have taken some classes and try to learn new moves on line when I can. Yoga helps me feel strong and emotionally regulated so it’s a practice that I am incorporating in my lifestyle and I’m excited to celebrate Yoga this month. Many places are offering free Yoga classes during this month so try it out for the first time or try a new Yoga style (there are six styles of Yoga by the way).I’ve been trying the Daily Dozen, 12 simple poses, try the daily dozen or visit http://www.yogajournal.com/ for great information all about Yoga.

Find YouTube videos if not familiar with the poses.

Sara Ivanhoe's Basic Twelve or Daily Dozen

Cat
Mountain
Standing forward bend
Lunge
Tree
Standing side stretch
Downward facing dog
Downward facing dog
Cobra
Child's pose
Seated spinal twist
Seated forward bend

Day of Knowledge

Russian schools recognize Day of Knowledge on September 1; students take flowers to their teachers to help start of the new academic year. This is a great reason to celebrate. School years are an important part of our lives and teachers play a huge role in our school experience. Let us celebrate our teachers (old, new, or just a teacher you know) by giving flowers. Let us celebrate knowledge and show our thanks to those who help us learn!

Cut flowers and take to a local school or give to a teacher you know
Plant a flower garden at a local school (with permission of course)
Send flowers to a teacher from your past with a thank you note
Make flowers and give to your child’s teacher

 

National Marshmellow Toasting Day

August 30th takes me to a middle school memory:

While at a church sleep over I entered a marshmallow eating contest. You might think the contest was to see who could eat the most...nope! To win this game you had to stuff as many marshmallows in your mouth as possible at the Same Time. The winner well is a sticky mess and gets no other reward but maybe the title of having a big mouth. I did not win in this memory but I do have a reason to celebrate life today.

I'm thankful for all the joyous church memories I have from over the years even the ones that include marshmallows!

So today find a way to enjoy a marshmallow or two!
Campfire treat or S'mores are nice but if no campfire you can still heat some up in the microwave under some chocolate and graham crackers. However you eat them Celebrate today with a marshmallow treat!

Happy Monday

In college I had an instructor that would always say happy Monday no matter what day of the week. He would say that Monday had a bad rap but Mondays were a day that did not have to be bad. I like this way of thinking. How many co-workers and friends do we know that "have a case of the Mondays?" It can be an unpleasant day but it could also be a reason to celebrate. Monday is a new start. Second day of the week but first day of the work week and a nice time to start putting into action a desired goal or plan. Monday can be a time to spread love to others. Start fresh this Monday, celebrate a new week, a new chance to improve, learn, and Celebrate life!

Happy Monday!

“Things turn out best for the people who make the best out of the way things turn out.” – Art Linkletter

An expert said of Vince Lombardi: "He possesses minimal football knowledge and lacks motivation." Lombardi would later write, "It's not whether you get knocked down; it's whether you get back up."

Michael Jordan and Bob Cousy were each cut from their high school basketball teams. Jordan once observed, "I've failed over and over again in my life. That is why I succeed."

Babe Ruth is famous for his past home run record, but for decades he also held the record for strikeouts. He hit 714 home runs and struck out 1,330 times in his career (about which he said, "Every strike brings me closer to the next home run."). And didn't Mark McGwire break that strikeout record? (John Wooden once explained that winners make the most errors.)

Hank Aaron went 0 for 5 his first time at bat with the Milwakee Braves.

Stan Smith was rejected as a ball boy for a Davis Cup tennis match because he was "too awkward and clumsy." He went on to clumsily win Wimbledon and the U. S. Open. And eight Davis Cups.


Tom Landry, Chuck Noll, Bill Walsh, and Jimmy Johnson accounted for 11 of the 19 Super Bowl victories from 1974 to 1993. They also share the distinction of having the worst records of first-season head coaches in NFL history - they didn't win a single game.

Johnny Unitas's first pass in the NFL was intercepted and returned for a touchdown. Joe Montana's first pass was also intercepted. And while we're on quarterbacks, during his first season Troy Aikman threw twice as many interceptions (18) as touchdowns (9) . . . oh, and he didn't win a single game. You think there's a lesson here?

After Carl Lewis won the gold medal for the long jump in the 1996 Olympic games, he was asked to what he attributed his longevity, having competed for almost 20 years. He said, "Remembering that you have both wins and losses along the way. I don't take either one too seriously."

Try Try Again

Albert Einstein did not speak until he was 4-years-old and did not read until he was 7. His parents thought he was "sub-normal," and one of his teachers described him as "mentally slow, unsociable, and adrift forever in foolish dreams." He was expelled from school and was refused admittance to the Zurich Polytechnic School. He did eventually learn to speak and read. Even to do a little math.

Louis Pasteur was only a mediocre pupil in undergraduate studies and ranked 15th out of 22 students in chemistry.

Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before he succeeded.

R. H. Macy failed seven times before his store in New York City caught on.

F. W. Woolworth was not allowed to wait on customers when he worked in a dry goods store because, his boss said, "he didn't have enough sense."

When Bell telephone was struggling to get started, its owners offered all their rights to Western Union for $100,000. The offer was disdainfully rejected with the pronouncement, "What use could this company make of an electrical toy."

John Garcia, who eventually was honored for his fundamental psychological discoveries, was once told by a reviewer of his often-rejected manuscripts that one is no more likely to find the phenomenon he discovered than to find bird droppings in a cuckoo clock. (sort of a cute critique actually)

Rocket scientist Robert Goddard found his ideas bitterly rejected by his scientific peers on the grounds that rocket propulsion would not work in the rarefied atmosphere of outer space.

Daniel Boone was once asked by a reporter if he had ever been lost in the wilderness. Boone thought for a moment and replied, "No, but I was once bewildered for about three days."

Never Give Up

As a young man, Abraham Lincoln went to war a captain and returned a private. Afterwards, he was a failure as a businessman. As a lawyer in Springfield, he was too impractical and temperamental to be a success. He turned to politics and was defeated in his first try for the legislature, again defeated in his first attempt to be nominated for congress, defeated in his application to be commissioner of the General Land Office, defeated in the senatorial election of 1854, defeated in his efforts for the vice-presidency in 1856, and defeated in the senatorial election of 1858. At about that time, he wrote in a letter to a friend, "I am now the most miserable man living. If what I feel were equally distributed to the whole human family, there would not be one cheerful face on the earth."

Winston Churchill failed sixth grade. He was subsequently defeated in every election for public office until he became Prime Minister at the age of 62. He later wrote, "Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never - in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never, Never, Never, Never give up." (his capitals, mind you)

Socrates was called "an immoral corrupter of youth" and continued to corrupt even after a sentence of death was imposed on him. He drank the hemlock and died corrupting.

Sigmund Freud was booed from the podium when he first presented his ideas to the scientific community of Europe. He returned to his office and kept on writing.

Robert Sternberg received a C in his first college introductory-psychology class. His teacher commented that "there was a famous Sternberg in psychology and it was obvious there would not be another." Three years later Sternberg graduated with honors from Stanford University with exceptional distinction in psychology, summa cum laude, and Phi Beta Kappa. In 2002, he became President of the American Psychological Association.

Charles Darwin gave up a medical career and was told by his father, "You care for nothing but shooting, dogs and rat catching." In his autobiography, Darwin wrote, "I was considered by all my masters and my father, a very ordinary boy, rather below the common standard of intellect." Clearly, he evolved.
Thomas Edison's teachers said he was "too stupid to learn anything." He was fired from his first two jobs for being "non-productive." As an inventor, Edison made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb. When a reporter asked, "How did it feel to fail 1,000 times?" Edison replied, "I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps."

Knock, Knock

August 16th is unofficially National Tell A Joke Day!

This is a wonderful reason to celebrate. How many times have you pulled up your email to a great joke and laughed out loud right at work? How often can you not wait to get your friend on the phone to share that great joke you heard at the gym? How many times have you been the reason for a blond joke to be created? Okay, you get the picture -jokes are a great way to celebrate with friends and even if we are the cause of a few new jokes its okay we all need a good laugh. So get to that phone or email and share the best or worst joke you have every heard someone may be in need of that laugh.

A few of the good and bad ones I've heard.

What time is when an elephant sits on your fence?
Time to get a new fence.

A bird in the hand is always safer than one overhead.

Make it idiot proof and someone will make a better idiot.

New jokes Welcomed! Please, share!!

Child in The Middle

Today, August 12th, is a special celebration day!! Today is National Middle Child's Day. My mother is a middle child and I'm sure we have all heard of the Middle Child Syndrome. True, not true doesn't matter. Today we Celebrate all the Middle Children of the world. So call them up, write them a note, send a card how ever you do just celebrate those born in the middle on their day of celebration!

Famous Middle Children:
Princess Diana
John F. Kennedy
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Bill Gates
Julia Roberts
My Mother

"give me some more" please!

August 10th is National S'mores Day! Now who wouldn't want to help celebrate this day? I can associate this chocolate messy treat with camping. Camping is not something I have participated in much but the times I have bring joyous memories. It has been said that S'mores gets its name because kids would sit around the campfire and chant "give me some more." Although it is not an official holiday (no stamp of approval from Congress) it is a reason to Celebrate August 10, 2012.  How to make S'mores: Ingredients:

• Chocolate candy bar
• Honey Graham Crackers
• Marshmallows

Instructions:

• Break off a square of Graham cracker
• Add a piece of Chocolate.
• Toast a big marshmallow over the campfire.
• Add the hot marshmallow.
• Top it with another graham Cracker.

Enjoy, and  join the celebration by sharing any S'mores stories!

Celebrate with a Dance

I recently had the privilege of becoming a member of a new family -the DanceN2Shape family. I became a certified DanceN2Shape instructor on Saturday August 4th and I couldn't be more excited to embark on this new life changing adventure. The ladies welcomed me as if they had been waiting on me and taught me so much about the DanceN2Shape philosophy.

I have started trying to put more positive light in the world and what better way than by joining this family of talented, passionate, dancing women. I look forward to building this blog and to building my DanceN2Shape career. Dancing while learning, socializing, loosing weight AND having fun is a great positive move for any and all of us!

I hope this blog helps brings positive light into your life and please, join me in finding reasons to Celebrate life every day!!

Journey

Life is a journey filled with many obstacles, u-turns, and sad moments on the way. The world if filled with so much negativity I would like to dedicate this blog to positive words; actions, and light. I would like to offer a reason to celebrate each and every day. The goal is to give you a reason to celebrate the journey of life each and every day. Share your reason to celebrate!