An SCC Kind of Day (Snowshoeing, Chili & Cornbread)

The weather man said bitter cold temperatures were headed our way again, so our friend Caryn called to see if we wanted to snowshoe before Old Man Winter returned.  Snowshoe?  Of course, we'd LOVE to!  Our other friend, Carol, also joined us for a 4-person snowshoeing team along Caryn's enchanted forest.  Well, that's what I call it.  Caryn's land gradually winds down to Tainter Lake or the mouth of the Hay River.  I call it the "enchanted forest" because there are some really nice large, old trees.  We always stop to admire the old trees....maybe just to give them some respect for hanging in there for all these years and all those bad storms they survived!  It's also fun to look for animal tracks in the snow.  We saw lots of deer tracks in the snow along with a coyote that must be hunting nearby. 

Of course after snowshoeing we are all hungry.  Caryn had a nice pot of chili warming for us when we returned back to her house, along with skillet cornbread Bike man made. Top it off with a nice glass of red wine, and we were all cozy warm again.

The skillet cornbread recipe came from Bike man's favorite cookbook, that just happens to be back from 1940-1957.  The copy we own was last published in 1957.  Do you remember Meta Given's cookbooks?  There were volume 1 and 2 of the Encyclopedia of Cooking.  Her recipes are classic.  Our poor cookbook is starting to fall apart and I wish we could find a replacement at a yard sale or estate sale.  If you look online, her old cookbooks are selling for a pretty penny.  Oh, by the way, that's a picture of my mother-in-law, Winnie, and me at our son's wedding in August 2015.  Winnie is now 96 years old.

The cast iron skillet makes an absolutely delicious cornbread with a nice crisp crust.  I posted this recipe in my Turtle Recipes.  FYI, this recipe contains no flour, so it's perfect for anyone with a gluten intolerance.  My favorite optional  ingredients to add to this recipe are blueberries or bacon.  Please try this recipe, you won't be disappointed.

Snuggle Up and READ

Time to read.  The plant books I ordered through the library finally came in today, so now I can sit at home and read about succulents and cactus.  However, I think I'll wait until this weekend when the temperatures turn bitter cold again. Cold weather is perfect for coffee/tea, books and blankets.  The weather forecast is calling for 30 degrees below zero windchills in about 3 days or so.  No worries....this is January and I expect this kind of weather here in the Midwest.  It's in my Wisconsin blood ya know???  Now give me a 90 degree day and I can't handle that kind of extreme heat anymore.    

Bike man resurrected this lonely cactus from his mother's house.  The poor cactus had fallen over in it's pot years ago, so he finally brought it over to our house for a re-potting session.  It looks beautiful now...yeah.  Can't wait for it to produce a flower.

The other day I talked to Bike man about building a south-facing sunroom/greenhouse off our bedroom where we could grow LOTS of plants.  We are lovers of plants that's for sure, but we just need more room in our house for plants.  I think this sunroom idea might be a good thing to research for the winter months.  Dreaming is free right???

No, no Abby girl, stay away from the cactus!!! 

Benefits of Herbal Tea

It doesn't matter if its hot or cold outdoors, I still crave herbal tea all-year round.  About thirteen months, I started drinking half my body weight (in oz) in liquids.....mostly herbal tea.  It's actually not hard and pretty easy.  So, take your body weight and divide in half.  That is the number of liquid ounces you should be drinking everyday, or at least shoot for that number.  For me, this means I should be drinking 56 ounces a day to feel hydrated and healthy.  You can choose to drink strictly water, or drink a combination of other liquids throughout the day.

I mainly set out over a year ago to shed a few pounds, plus the doctor switched my medication and now I'm suppose to drink more fluids because the medication can make me dehydrated, so it's a win win situation for me.....just drink lots.  Herbal tea was just my choice to drink since I find water totally boring!!!

The Yogi teas are one of my favorites and I especially like anything minty, lavender or lemon.  Most of the Yogi teas contain chamomile flower, Rooibos leaf, lemongrass, green tea and Stevia leaf.  Checkout the Yogi website to see ALL the different teas  

I also started drinking the Arbonne Detox tea, which I've grown to love and crave.  Detox tea is great for the health of your liver and kidneys.  I especially just like the herbal combination that gives you a nice gentle and calm feeling after drinking a BIG cup of this tea, plus it does act as a diuretic to help flush any toxins out of your body.  This particular tea contains a cleaver combination of milk thistle, peppermint, dandelion, sweet fennel, elder flower, parsley, Uva Ursi and licorice!  Since I drink this tea often, I know it has helped me maintain the ten pounds I lost in 2015.  Of course I have to mention that I am an Arbonne Independant Consultant, so I guess that makes me a little bias to this tea, hee, hee!  Checkout my own Arbonne business webpage if you are interested in purchasing the tea or any other products  From time to time, I will be blogging about my absolute favorite Arbonne products, but I promise not to saturate you with too many posts or become superfluous with product details!

There are so many more tea retailers out there, but I like to stop by my local food Co-op to pick up tea.  If I find any further good sources to purchase from, I will be sure to pass that along to you.  My daughter bought me a nice variety box of herbal teas from Trader Joe's for Christmas, so you can find tea in many places, other than the grocery store.

 I guess this makes me a Tea-Aholic!  I confess that I'm now now moving on to decaffeinated Earl Grey and Lady Earl Grey.  Maybe next month it will be Darjeeling tea.......

PS.  I still need my coffee in the morning and that will NEVER change, ever.

Winter Arrived

After two days of windchills and subzero temperatures, I finally ventured out today in 6 degree weather to get a much needed run in to feel normal and re-energized.  I really can't complain because November and December were very mild months for us here in the Midwest and we all got a little spoiled.  So, when the subzero temperatures finally struck us this past weekend, it was a reality check......what???  Winter is finally here?

So, here I am all bundled up this afternoon coming back from my little 3-mile run.  Dang it, I forgot that I wore mascara today, so my frozen eyelashes were dripping black droplets when everything began to thaw.  Note to myself:  don't wear mascara on a run with single digit temperatures......you will look like a zombie and every passing car will slow down and look at you with disgust, or maybe laughter!

Even with a zombie face, it sure felt good running today.  Don't worry, I wasn't cold.  With my multiple layers, wool socks, Gortex jacket, chopper gloves, neck turtle, knit penguin hat and silk face mask, I was plenty warm.  It took me 15 minutes to get my layers assembled before I headed out the door, but hey, I was warm!
  

Miniature Garden Fun

It seems like every five years or so, I dabble in a new hobby.  That's just how I'm wired....always trying something new to keep life interesting.  This particular hobby kind of fell into my lap if you know what I mean. So,back in June 2015, I couldn't find anyone to do a miniature or fairy garden program at the library.  I called a few local people, but nothing worked out.  Then I said to myself, hey Lis, you can do this!  So, I planned out my own one- hour informational program at the library.

Luckily, my co-worker, her name is also Lisa, agreed to help me with the program and all we had to do was order resource books about creating your own miniature garden and come up with a shopping list of supplies.  About that same time in late spring, Bike man surprised me and ordered a nice terrarium bowl that I could practice with at home.  My first attempt was the picture you see above.  Since last June however, I've had to make a few changes because several plants didn't survived, but I recently stopped at the local greenhouse and purchased several new miniature plants.  One of the new plants is that very small succulent in the center of the bowl.  The other thing that didn't really hold up in the terrarium since last June was the green moss I used from my own yard, but that's ok.

I then went out and search yard sales for some ordinary containers to use for various miniature plants.  Basically, you can use anything.  The espresso cup, votive candle cup and little glass dessert cup you see in this photo, were all items from my house!  It's always great to upcycle if possible.

Isn't this the sweetest little dessert cup? 

This glass bowl cost me 50 cents from a yard sale.  The rocks you see inside were picked from my yard and the plants inside the bowl were purchased at a local greenhouse.  I divided most of the greenhouse mini plants that I purchased, so I could use them in multiple containers.  This was actually a door prize we gave away at the library program.  The gal who won this bowl was so thrilled that her name was picked.

This glass container was a little more challenging since it was deeper.  I believe I used a tweezers to arrange the plants in this terrarium.  I ended up putting a stick inside to hold up the little plant.  This terrarium sat on my desk at work for 7 months.....I really miss this one.  I think I got a little too attached to my miniature garden containers at work and found myself fussing over them all the time.  I was always worried they would dry up or wilt!  Now that I'm gone from the library, I miss my little miniature gardens.....there are two more large garden projects we made during our library program that sit on a desk in the library.  Sorry, I don't seem to have a photo to show you.....Lisa BH and I outfitted the gardens with miniature furniture.

This container was just an additional one I made from the Sedum in my yard.  You see, once you start, you can't STOP.  I'm already planning and plotting my new miniature gardens for the summer, or create some new ones for gifts.   

And lastly, I made this terrarium for my daughter-in-law for her bridal shower back in mid-June.  The last time we traveled to Roseville, Minnesota to visit Chris and Trisha, I peeked inside to see how the plants were doing.  The plants looked pretty good and as long as the glass lid is on tight, the moisture level stays constant.  Isn't Trisha pretty in this photo???  It was such a fun bridal shower.  The kids were married on August 1, 2015.....that will be another blog post!!!

I highly recommend this miniature gardening book and can be checked out at most public libraries:  Gardening in Miniature; Create Your Own Tiny World by Janit Calvo 

Winter Brings Comfort Food

Steel-Cut Oatmeal

There's something about winter that makes us think about comfort foods.  Comfort foods that make you feel toasty warm and satisfied.  I do have to admit to you however, that some comfort foods are not totally healthy and are loaded with fat and sugar.  But don't feel sad, because I'm telling you that I have a comfort food recipe that will make you smile and feel happy.....it will actually make you excited about waking up in the morning!

So what is my comfort food?  Steel-cut oatmeal cooked with love and happiness.....plus my little secret ingredient too.  Well, actually there's several secret ingredients thanks to Bike man's wisdom and ability to change a simple recipe!

Are you just a little curious?  Want my recipe?  Checkout the Turtle Recipes in my top menu.

Enjoying Winter

Galloway Creek, Menomonie Wisconsin

For about 5 or 6 years now, my hubby has been monitoring the salt levels in the creeks around the city of Menomonie Wisconsin.  With winter upon us once more in the Midwest, our city and county crews either brine the roads/streets or use salt to help melt the snow and ice.  Unfortunately, the high levels of salt run-off can be very devastating to the little creatures that live in those waters.  The health of a stream, creek or river is so important.  So, that's why Bike man volunteers his time to monitor the creeks for the DNR.  He's a true environmentalist.  

And guess who accompanies Bike man on these salt monitoring trips?  Yup, ME!!!

It usually takes about 2 1/2 hours to complete all the creeks and involves lots of walking since you have to hike down to the creeks. For me, it's just about the exercise, fresh air, peace and quiet and moving my body!

Oh, and I'm the official photographer too......