Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Mom On Timeout: Broccoli, Bacon & Cheese Soup {Recipe}

Mom On Timeout: Broccoli, Bacon & Cheese Soup {Recipe}: My Broccoli, Bacon, & Cheese Soup recipe takes a favorite classic ( Broccoli and Cheese Soup ) to a whole new level with the addi...

Christina here--I am making this right now and can't wait to try it...

Have you ever tried Oregon Chai Tea?

This stuff is delicious in my opinion. But is also good for you. With the ingredients in it - it helps to rev up your metabolism. It comes in a canister like this, dry style so all you have to do is add hot water and you're good to go. Or it comes in a box of liquid form. I prefer the dry form. 
Well anyways this stuff isn't cheap at $4.99 a canister. So I searched online and found a recipe I could make at home. I am all about saving money as most of you know. It does take several ingredients but most we already have at home if you bake. 
I have to admit I really hoped the recipe would taste as good as the real thing. WELL it came pretty close. So this is in my cupboard now instead of the expensive priced item. One batch lasts Mr. L. and I one week. That's with us each drinking about 2 cups a day. We only use 1 heaping spoonful in our cup- it tastes that good.


1/2 c. instant tea
1/2 c. instant milk (powdered milk)
1/4 c. powdered creamer (coffee mate or the like)
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tea. cinnamon
1/2 tea. ginger
1/4 tea. nutmeg
1/4 tea. ground cloves
1/4 tea. allspice
1/8 tea. white pepper

Mix all together and mix well. Put in tight sealed container. 
Use 1-2 heaping spoons per cup of hot water. ENJOY...
This can be doubled if you'd like to make a bigger batch.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

English not so well written around the world...

Wonderful English from Around the World

In a Bangkok Temple :
IT IS FORBIDDEN TO ENTER A WOMAN, EVEN A FOREIGNER, IF DRESSED AS A MAN.

Cocktail lounge, Norway:
LADIES ARE REQUESTED NOT TO HAVE CHILDREN IN THE BAR.

Doctor's office, Rome :
SPECIALIST IN WOMEN AND OTHER DISEASES.

Dry cleaners, Bangkok :
DROP YOUR TROUSERS HERE FOR THE BEST RESULTS.

In a Nairobi restaurant:
CUSTOMERS WHO FIND OUR WAITRESSES RUDE, OUGHT TO SEE THE MANAGER.

On the main road to Mombassa , leaving Nairobi :
TAKE NOTICE: WHEN THIS SIGN IS UNDER WATER, THIS ROAD IS IMPASSABLE.

On a poster at Ken com:
ARE YOU AN ADULT THAT CANNOT READ? IF SO WE CAN HELP.

In a City restaurant:
OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK AND WEEKENDS.

In a Cemetery:
PERSONS ARE PROHIBITED FROM PICKING FLOWERS, FROM ANY BUT THEIR OWN GRAVES .

Tokyo hotel's rules and regulations:
GUESTS ARE REQUESTED NOT TO SMOKE, OR DO OTHER DISGUSTING BEHAVIOURS IN BED.

On the menu of a Swiss Restaurant:
OUR WINES LEAVE YOU NOTHING TO HOPE FOR.

In a Tokyo Bar:
SPECIAL COCKTAILS FOR THE LADIES WITH NUTS.

Hotel, Yugoslavia:
THE FLATTENING OF UNDERWEAR WITH PLEASURE, IS THE JOB OF THE CHAMBERMAID.

Hotel, Japan:
YOU ARE INVITED TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE CHAMBERMAID.

In the lobby of a Moscow Hotel, across from a Russian Orthodox Monastery:
YOU ARE WELCOME TO VISIT THE CEMETERY, WHERE FAMOUS RUSSIAN AND SOVIET COMPOSERS, ARTISTS AND WRITERS ARE BURIED DAILY, EXCEPT THURSDAY.

A sign posted in Germany 's Black Forest :
IT IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN ON OUR BLACK FOREST CAMPING SITE, THAT PEOPLE OF DIFFERENT SEX, FOR INSTANCE, MEN AND WOMEN, LIVE TOGETHER IN ONE TENT, UNLESS THEY ARE MARRIED WITH EACH OTHER FOR THIS PURPOSE.

Hotel, Zurich :
BECAUSE OF THE IMPROPRIETY OF ENTERTAINING GUESTS OF THE OPPOSITE SEX IN THE BEDROOM, IT IS SUGGESTED THAT THE LOBBY BE USED FOR THIS PURPOSE.

Advertisement for donkey rides, Thailand :
WOULD YOU LIKE TO RIDE ON YOUR OWN ASS?

Airline ticket office, Copenhagen :
WE TAKE YOUR BAGS AND SEND THEM IN ALL DIRECTIONS. (Just Like British Airways!!!)

A Laundry in Rome :
LADIES, LEAVE YOUR CLOTHES HERE AND THEN SPEND THE AFTERNOON HAVING A GOOD TIME.

And finally the all time classic:

Seen in an Abu Dhabi Souk shop window:
IF THE FRONT IS CLOSED PLEASE ENTER THROUGH MY BACKSIDE.




This is so why people needs to think before they write things down and re-read it aloud. 
I know that we have a cleaners in our town that has * Drop your trousers here for a better deal* sign on their building and it has been there for years. I never did see the reason in it but I guess they like it. 


Just wanted to share these with you as I got them in an email from a friend. 

My washer motor stopped working..

It has been on it's way for over a month now. But I have been babying it now. I was worried because the place (Rex) we bought it from had closed. Much like so many places that have over the years that have had low customers and now I needed to find their headquarters. See I had bought a 5 yr. warranty for it like I do all my NEW Appliance purchases. So I looked over the receipt and no # for me to call. So onto the internet I went. Only to find out they no longer have a headquarters. *Oh No*  Now what do I do? No way am I going to pay to get this fixed as I still have 3 months til the end of my warranty. I am going to get my monies worth.  So more searching I am doing. That means more reading. 
So I finally find that they are still in business but have changed their business from sales to alternative energy. 


But since I didn't find this information until after their business hours last night, I had to wait until this morning to call them. Much to my surprise they were very polite and when I explained what was wrong with my washer she looked everything up to verify I had bought from them and bought the extended warranty. After verifying that she said she would get someone out within 48 hours to take care of the problem. 
That made me happy. But before I could get to far into my day she called me to tell me I would have A & E Appliance Repair would be out tomorrow between 8am and 5pm. 




That was fine but couldn't I at least get a better pin down of time?? Well I guess I can't complain at least I have someone coming to fix my washer.  Since I do about 3-4 loads a week and I really don't want to run to the laundry mat.  Well I guess I will have to go to bed early tonight so I can get up early and wait for this guy to come. My usual bedtime is around 3am. But tonight will be much earlier. I just hope I won't be waiting all day long for him to come. You know like when you are waiting for the cable guy. They give you a 4 hr timetable and he doesn't come til at the end of that time. Why do they do that???? They don't like it if they have to wait for you.. Don't get me on that == that's a whole different rant there.. 
Hope your day/week is going better than mine... 

Monday, February 27, 2012

300 calorie meal -- yum yumm

This is 1 Johnsonville pork n chicken kielbasa with Green Giant red potatoes and green beans with cream sauce. Now we didn't defrost the kielbasa before putting it on our George Foreman (our mistake) so it did burn a bit, but still tasted fantastic. This whole meal was only 300 calories. Can you believe it? It was so filling. There are 5 kielbasas in a package so this will make 2 meals for each of us plus a meal for me while Mr. L. is working. I will definitely be adding this to our meal plan for the future. 
The plates we eat off of are the smaller Corelle dinner plates. NOT the big dinner plates. By doing this you see that the plate is full so your brain thinks you are eating a lot of food.  Also we eat slow and try to chew each bite. It is a known fact that it takes longer for your brain to register that you have eaten so taking longer to eat will give it that time to register. 
Along with these healthier meals we have added fruit to our daily intake. The one we really enjoy now is Clementines or Cuties  (oranges). Not only are they small but easy to peel and sweet tasting. Whenever I get the urge for a snack I just go for an orange. Strawberries have been on sale lately so we have been having lots of them. They can be sliced and frozen for later also. 
Bananas have found their way back to our house. We use to eat them all the time but we got away from them until I found the mini ones. I blogged about them a bit ago. Them and strawberries are great in a smoothie.
We do still set in front of the tv to eat but have gotten the results we want by eating right and adding exercise into our daily routine. 

Ps... We only do 10 minutes of exercise daily, with Sunday being our rest day, but it has had a great benefit. We do our exercises from youtube from Hasfit. Coach Josh Kozak has many to choose from. He is great and works right along with you. He doesn't yell and scream like other trainers do, he encourages you and it makes you want to succeed. All his exercises are FREE and he asks that you pass them on to your friends so they can enjoy them too. He has his own gym and he knows what he's doing. 
Google his name and check out just who he is--
                        ** Josh Kozak **

This is what I made with my Ninja...

Don't get me wrong, we are NOT vegans. But this is a veggie burger. It is called a black bean veggie burger.As you know beans give you a lot of protein so this is very good for you. 
                     Not to mention tasted G R E A T.


I put it on a 40 gram, 6 carb per slice whole wheat bread with flax seed. You are not going to believe this but it smells like a hamburger and even tasted like a hamburger only very soft with a crunchy crust. I fried this but you can also bake this and let it get a crust on it in the oven. 
It is one more way we have been eating more healthier. This will be added to our menu of foods for healthier living. 
This is the recipe if you'd like to try it yourself....


Ingredients

  • 1 (16 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 3 cloves garlic, peeled
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon cumin or tumeric
  • 1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce or hot sauce
  • 1/2 cup bread crumbs or crackers (can add up to 1 cup to help absorb the liquid)

Directions

  1. If grilling, preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil. If baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C), and lightly oil a baking sheet.
  2. In a medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty.
  3. In a food processor, finely chop bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Then stir into mashed beans.
  4. In a small bowl, stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, and chili sauce.
  5. Stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide mixture into four patties.
  6. If grilling, place patties on foil, and grill about 8 minutes on each side. If baking, place patties on baking sheet, and bake about 10 minutes on each side.

Nutritional Information

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 198 | Total Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 53mg

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Look what came today


I needed a new blender because mine wasn't doing a good job any more. So I set off searching for another one. I read all the pros and cons of many online. Then I came across this one. I seen this guy from Canada doing videos where he was making shakes, ice cream and even chopping up meat into meatballs. In one video he even did up a cake mix and added some extra items to make it his own recipe. Now I like making things all in one bowl for easy clean up. So then I went on the search looking for that blender. I found it in different places but when I came across it on QVC, it was not only cheaper but had 4 containers instead of 3 like everyone else. How great was that!
Hubby picked it up on the way to work at the P.O. - now I am just waiting til he gets home from work to make us fruit smoothies. 
 Not a bad deal for $49.62 if I say so myself.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Have you seen these???


These are mini bananas. Tiny, small, what ever your grocery store may call them. Mine calls them mini. I had seen them but never tried them until a few weeks ago when they happen to be cheaper than my regular sized bananas. Boy was I in for a surprise. These little guys are sweet, soft and have such a great taste. Just the right size so they don't fill you up too much when you add them with your meal.
They are fantastic in shakes. Add such a flavor. Plus how cute are they? They fit in the palm of your hand. Even though they look like they are getting over ripe, they aren't- they only taste better. How great is that? Plus you can eat these when they are green and they still taste great. I just can't say enough about these little guys......

Monday, February 20, 2012

MIA

I know---
I have been MIA for a few days. I just couldn't find anything to blog about. Nothing came to mind. I just found myself doing the normal. Dishes, laundry and regular-housework. I get that way in the winter time. I hate the cold weather. I hate going out in it. No matter how high I turn the thermostat up it does not seem to get warm enough in the house. I has gotten worse the older I have gotten. Once my bones get cold they just don't seem to get warm. No matter how many layers I have on. 
I even have 3 puppy dogs that pile up around me and they can't get me to warm up. 
H E L P --- spring get here soon.....


So I ask for you to forgive me for not posting these past few days. I hope you have had a great weekend and your week that follows will be a good one for you. 

Remember to think before you speak, as your words will ring loudly in that's persons ears and last a lifetime in their heart. 

Tell the truth because that lie will surely be found out and then it will hurt like nothing else has ever hurt before. It will never let you be in the same light again. 

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Protein Shake Face

We have recently started adding protein shakes to our breakfast routine. It only takes a few minutes to make and one makes this while the other makes the eggs for the wheat muffins with spinach and a bit of shredded cheese. That will make up our breakfast. It is filling and takes us til snack time a couple hours later. We have done very well at eating better and sticking to it. It was hard at first because we were always hungry but that went away. We feel more energetic and lively. 
But to bring you back to the shake. Everyday when we have our shakes we have 3 little dogs who think they should have some too so we give them a few licks out of our glass. But we have one baby that always ends up with a chin left over. SO today I decided to share it with you.
Don't mind my jewelry making supplies in the background. He didn't want to hold still so he needed a little help. He thought he was in trouble so his ears weren't perked like always. But he is cute just the same. He's our youngest of the bunch-Aquila. We got his name from the bible.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Okay I have the new link to replace GFC, come follow me by it....

I have things taken care of so we can stay in touch. It's called Linky Followers.  Let's become Linky Followers!! Look to my left, on the sidebar....see it? <<<------ Down below GFC, there it is....
Please follow me & add this to your blog & I will follow you back!! Come on everyone, I would hate for us to lose touch just because of an oversight.  :) You need to do this soon as Google Friend Connect will be leaving us the 29th of Feb they say if you don't have blogspot. Then we will be unable to find each other. I would hate it if I couldn't follow your posts. I enjoy checking in with you, even if I don't do it on a daily basis, or leave you a message letting you know I stopped by. But I do stop by. I don't always have a lot to say. But when I do I will let you know. :-)

You can go to Linky Followers to sign up and get the link to put it on your blog. Please do it soon.

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

I hope everyone knows Google Friend is leaving us this week...

So in order for us to be able to stay in touch we will need to follow by email subscription ( which I have on my left sidebar ) or unless we find something else. I was looking into something else but was having trouble. I will continue to check it out and see if I can get it fixed and let you know when I do. So *PLEASE* do sign up by follow me by email subscription so you can continue to get my blog updates. I will do the same and visit everyone on my friend list so we can stay in touch. I would hate to miss any updates from anyone. 


Sunday, February 5, 2012

Just when did we become so lazy?

I have to ask this because I had noticed after we had gone out to eat at one of our favorite places a number of times, they immediately give you your check before you even finished your plate. The place is a Chinese Buffet. I later learned that in their culture it is normal to immediately finish eating then *leave* and NOT relax after eating. Something we Americans do with not thinking one bit about it. 
So I was wondering how far back in our society it came about that we started lounging about after eating? Rather than getting up and getting to whatever we needed to get doing to. Which may explain to why we actually have gotten to our being over weight. Instead of all these excuses of too much sugar, carbs., and fats will contribute to our being over weight. 
All I did when I was a child was have fun playing outside. There wasn't much Tv. watching except a few hours every saturday morning of those special cartoons I just didn't like to miss. I spent most of my time riding my bike or playing hide and seek. Came in for supper and then right back out till time for a bath and bed. 
The kids now don't move from in front of the Tv. or the computer. They have their video games to keep them company and don't even know what friends are now days. Or they spend time texting on their phones that their parents buy them by the time they are 8yrs old.