The Role You Play In Your Family

Have you ever sat down and really thought about just how important you are in your family?  I mean honestly thought about the vital role you play in the everyday lives of your family? 

Now this can go one of two ways, here is the first way. 

The other day I found myself sitting there thinking (in a negative manner at the time), I have to admit I was bothered. 

If I didn’t know better I would say they all take me for granted.  I thought does anyone know how much I do?  I think I would have to throw my hands up and quit or Bigfoot would have to come and kidnap me for them to see exactly how much I bring to the table.  The sacrifices I make every day, the endless things I do.  Do I not make sure the bills are paid on time? Who does all the shopping, by the way has anyone seen how much money I saved on groceries hmm? (Pause)  Anyone?   I work a full time job and as soon as I get home I cook the meals, delicious meals to I might add!  I clean up whether I am taking out the trash, shoveling the snow or raking the leaves, I wash the dishes and clothes I handle the finances, I help with all the little reminders, and make sure everyone has what they need hopefully when they need it, these are some of the many things, is there no end to what I do!  

And what do I get in return?   You forgot the stamps!  Ugg!

Calgon if your there you better up and take me away!

And now here comes the second way to take things.

OK I suppose we all have our breaking points, and I have the right to act out every now and again to!   After all those thoughts and feelings poured out of me, I took a deep breath and I was able to gather my bearings, now I could see clearly.  

I am looking at this all wrong, just as my mom was the centerpiece for me growing up all my years it is my turn, now I am the centerpiece of my family, I am the very focal point of my families lives. 

Think of all the things you make possible.  It’s like we are superheroes of some sort, we just need an outfit! 

Wait!  I don’t think we need to go that far, but still you see my point?    

If we were not there playing that key role in their lives and they had to somehow fend for themselves they could very well crumble, simply fall apart.  All reasonable functionality would be at a loss, maybe not right away but inevitably yes! 

What I am trying to say is that, as the centerpiece we are in the central position, we have the control.  We have the ability to point out the right directions for our families we make decisions that affect their lives in so many ways.  We have the answers and when we don’t shoot, we know where to go to find them!  That is how good we are at what we do!  Think of all the things we do each and every day, how we just know it we have that instinct.  The way we are able to multi task juggle and prioritize the needs of everyone and everything in our family.

This amazing ability that often goes without the praise and thanks we would love to demand at times is a gift!

They depend on you, when you’re their they know you will make it all OK they sleep tight knowing that you are there and when they look around you are everywhere because you are the center you play a key role in making it all possible.  And if you haven’t heard lately, you are appreciated J

So tell me, what role do you play in your family’s life?

Sweet Potato Goodness

Smashed sweet potatoes with a golden crunchy topping

Sweet potatoes are always a wonderful side dish serve at the Thanksgiving Day table.  It tastes fabulous with just the right amount of sweetness from the potatoes mixed and then with the added buttery sweetness of the topping it is a perfect side dish you have to have on the menu!  I like to prepare this dish in a 9x9 inch baking dish and serve in a serving bowl topped with the topping ingredients.

Ingredients

    1/4 tsp salt

    1/4 cup butter

    2 eggs room temperature

    1 tsp vanilla

    1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

    1/2 cup white sugar

    2 tbsp milk

    1/4 cup butter, softened

    4 tbsp all-purpose flour

    3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

    2 15 oz cans sweet potatoes

Topping

    1 cup packed brown sugar

    1/3 cup flour

    1/4 cup butter melted

    1/4 cup pecan

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).  Lightly grease a 9x9 inch baking dish.
2. Mix all but the last ingredient together for 2 minutes, add the canned yams blend until mixed.  Pour into a buttered casserole. 
3. Bake for 30 minutes
4. Transfer sweet potatoes to a bowl and mix the topping ingredients together and sprinkle over casserole

This is one of my son's favorites, every once in awhile he gets this craving for it!

Edibly Delicious Stuffing

A hint of sweet twist to stuffing

When you bring together the salty flavor from the sausage with the sweet taste of the Golden Delicious apple and cranberries to the bread cubes and top it off with the vegetables and aroma from the herbs all combined you have an edibly delicious stuffing for your turkey!

Ingredients

2 boxes Mrs Cubbison stuffing

1 lb ground turkey sausage

1 cup diced onion
1 clove garlic pressed

3/4 cup chopped celery

2 1/2 tsp dried sage

1 1/2 tsp dried rosemary

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 Golden Delicious apple, cored and chopped

3/4 cup dried cranberries

1 cup chicken stock

4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).  Spread the white and whole wheat bread cubes in a single layer on a large baking sheet.  Bake for 5 to 7 minutes in the preheated oven, or until evenly toasted.  Transfer toasted bread cubes to a large bowl.  
2. In a large skillet, cook saute the pressed garlic and onions over medium heat for 2 minutes, add sausage stirring and breaking it up into pieces until evenly browned.  Add the celery , sage, rosemary, and thyme; cook, stirring, for 2 minutes to blend the flavors.
3. Pour mixture  over bread in bowl.  Mix in chopped apples, dried cranberries, parsley.  Drizzle with chicken stock and melted butter, and mix lightly.  Spoon into turkey to loosely fill. 

Try this recipe with a dish of Sweet potato deliciousness

Jasmine Rice

I can all but guarantee if you try jasmine rice it will win you over and you will switch to it from whichever kind of rice you make today! Jasmine rice has this hint of sweet aroma and a delicate yet clean and delicious taste.  I love jasmine rice it is a must have in my home!   


Did you know that rice is the staple food of more than one-half of the world's population?
 

A Feast With Less Fuss Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving is all but here everybody, and with it can come all the fuss and stress.  Are you ready?  In the past you could find me spending Thanksgiving slaving away in the kitchen dish after dish!  From sun up to sundown you name it, you would find me slicing and dicing my heart away, frying, baking, broiling, cleaning and putting things away, just a running around with my head cut off!  Then like a stampede the family would arrive!  Sometimes I was ready sometimes I was not!  They come in, I finish preparing and setting the table we eat and rest, some of us eat some more, they chit chat for a bit watching some T.V. and then it's time for the family to be off and about, I prepare leftovers and they leave me to my own devices, the leftovers and clean up, ugg!

Not these days, not me anymore!  I want wonderful food and a lot of good times!  I love Thanksgiving and all that the holiday can bring and I want to really enjoy them.  I do not plan on missing a thing, now I try to make sure I am able to take it easy, spending less time in the kitchen and more time in the living room with family and friends.  The work is still there trust me, but it is better time spent. 

And do not think I do not put my own unique little twists of flavor and special touches in my Thanksgiving dinner we have to have that!

Now for me to ensure I reach my goal, planning begins early.  This year I have already sat down and decided what the menu will include.  I try to select the less time- consuming dishes or ones I can buy or make days ahead when at all possible.  I did my shopping for ingredients last week I have the turkey thawing in the fridge as we speak, all 22 pounds of it, and I took some shortcuts along the way instead of making a pumpkin pie I bought one, instead of the bake-from-scratch rolls I will buy bake and serve delicious rolls!  I plan to make a pie and I will be using some readymade ingredients, like canned and frozen pie crust ingredients. Trust me the change of pace and additional time spent with everyone will be more enjoyable!

Beginning when I get off work today (Tuesday) I will start preparing as much food as I can, I will make my casseroles and freeze them.  Peel, slice, chopped and refrigerate vegetables and fruit.  Bake all of the desserts and anything else that can be warmed up and served.
My honey helps me with the turkey my lifesaver, he always offers to help and I accept the offer gladly!  He doesn't mind, he has his own little twists he likes to add and we get to spend more time together side by side.

Forget about setting the table lining it with plates, silverware, food and drink!  I will be serving our Thanksgiving food buffet style, and let my family dig in I have disposable dinnerware to help save me time cleaning up afterwards. While I think I have bought way too much food I have worked to keep things simpler this year and I will be all smiles and spend more of Thanksgiving Day enjoying time with my family.

The Intense Colors Always Seem to Calm Me

One of the many things I love about the location of where we live is the vibrant views of the sunsets we have.  The intense colors always seems to calm me, for those brief moments as the sun sets below the horizon the sky becomes filled with these deep dramatic colors I pause to take it in before it disappears. 

It seems the past few days maybe the last week or week and a half, every night at sundown the sunset has set so bold and beautifully it completely changes the color of the sky to this emotionally intense colors almost as if the sky was on fire. 

Transition From Fall To Winter

I love the colors that come with the fall so beautiful so bright and vibrant!  Take a look at some of the pictures we captured of the fall transitions to the winter conditions, where you can see the warm autumn-hued leaves one minute and the next  blankets of white fluffy snow covering the ground. 

Beautiful!

Eggs

With the typical American eating 263 eggs a year I thought this would be a necessary ingredient to talk about.  Eggs are an ingredient that are used in many recipes.  And while there has been much concern expressed over the negative health effects, with the exception for those with heart disease eggs are actually good for most of us in moderation of course.  With  the exception of vitamin c, eggs are home to a ton of essential nutrients.

• Choline is stimulates your mental function and memory, and is necessary for healthy cell membranes in the body, it is also linked to lowering rates of breast cancer.
• Selenium is a powerful antioxidant.
• B vitamins folate and riboflavin are needed for your body to convert the foods you eat into energy.
• Vitamin A supports general cell growth, healthy skin and helps with good night vision.
• Vitamin E is an antioxidant that prevent damage to your body from free radicals.
• Lutein is found in the yellow pigment of the egg yolk. Lutein and zeaxanthin are concentrated in the retina of your eye and will help prevent muscular degeneration.

A whole egg is about 3 tablespoons worth of liquid, the egg yolk measures about 1 tablespoon of liquid. There are about 70 calories in an uncooked egg and 77 calories in a cooked egg.

Click here to see my Creamy Deviled Egg recipe

Creamy Deviled Eggs

Makes a great side dish

One of the wonderful things about the holidays is the delicious food that is served to go with it!  When I think of deviled eggs two times come to my mind.  Thanksgiving and Easter but really there is no bad time for deviled eggs!  I love me some protein packed creamy deviled eggs!   They can be served as a appetizer, a snack or as a side dish the choice is yours.

Ingredients

6 eggs

    1 teaspoon apples cider vinegar

    1/4 teaspoon sugar

    1/4 cup light mayonnaise

    1/2 tsp chives

   salt and pepper to taste

   paprika, for garnish

Directions

1. Place eggs in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and cook for 13 minutes. Immediately remove from heat, drain and let eggs stand in cold water for 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from cool water, and peel.
2. Cut eggs in half. Remove yolks and place in a medium bowl. Mash together with apple cider vinegar, mayonnaise, chives, sugar, and salt.
3. Stuff the egg white halves with the egg yolk mixture. Sprinkle eggs with paprika. Chill covered in the refrigerator until serving.

I always try to use light or reduced fat when I can.  I have to put out a special thanks for this egg inspired dish to my boys grandma, thanks for the tip wsm!

Try this great side dish with the Edibly Delicious Stuffing

Pumkin Delicious Cookies

It is fall and Thanksgiving is approaching!  If you are a busy mom like so many of us are and want some thing quick yet sweet and delicious for you and your family to just melt over, give these a try!  I love these cookies because they are quick and easy to prepare and the family just loves them!  You will have them melting in your hands! 

Ingredients

• 1 (18.25 ounce ) package spice cake mix preferably Betty Crocker
• 1 (15 ounce) can solid packed pumpkin
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 ginger
• 1/8 cinnamon
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips
• 1 cream cheese frosting icing
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C.)  Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the cake mix and canned pumpkin, folding the wet into the dry until well blended.  Add the pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and chocolate chips, stir an additional 10 seconds until well blended  Drop by 1 tbsp spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheet. 
3. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes in the preheated oven.  Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes in the preheated over.  Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
4. Top with cream cheese frosting and sprinkle clove spice on top of each cookie.

Lychee

Have you ever tasted a lychee?  A lychee is a fruit with this wonderful sweet goodness!  The lychee fruit is around 1 1/2 inches big around with a type of knobbly brownish, thin brittle skin and enclosed is a white juicy inside with a texture close to that of a grape.  And in the center of the fruit there is a large dark shiny seed.  They have a wonderfully scented aroma and a sweet juicy flavor.  The first time I had them was when I was little and we had went on vacation to Thailand.  I have not seen them available fresh here so I buy them in the can from just about any International or Asian market. 

They can make a refreshing end to any meal.  I typically eat them as you would any other fruit as a daily snack.  They are excellent in a fruit salad.  It is said that they have the second highest level of heart-healthy polyphenols of all fruits tested and could play a roll in the prevention of degenerative diseases such as cancer. 

Garlic

Garlic is readily available in fresh, jarred in oil, dried, or in a powder form, I use fresh when ever possible but have used all of them in many of my dishes, it is a flavor essential in my families diet! 


My family loves the aroma that you get when the essential oils are released whether I am crushing, chopping, pressing or pureeing garlic it seems to have this magical power to pull everyone in the house toward the kitchen like a magnet, they immediately want to know what I am cooking and when it will be ready then hunger sets in! 


If you are not growing garlic yourself and would rather buy it from your local store look for bulbs that are covered with a lot of the thin paper like covering that surrounds it.  Stay away from the garlic with the green shoots as they are probably too old or they were stored improperly.  The bulb is what you would consider as the whole garlic and with in each bulb or head there can beanywhere from 8 to 20 cloves of garlic. 


Eat garlic live longer!  So you may have wondered, what are the health benefits of garlic?  It has been said that garlic provides or assists in many positive and beneficial ways. In fact garlic is quite healthy for you.  The most potent medicinal compound derived from garlic is allico it is only present when it is released when garlic is crushed. In addition. is a powerful natural antibiotic that the body doesn't build up a resistance to.  This makes it a positive health benefit that can continue for time to come.  Garlic has a powerful antioxidant effect helping in protecting the body against damaging "free radicals".


Here are some positive benefits of garlic.

• Prevent the common cold and or flu. 
• Used to treat symptoms of acne.
• Act as a mesquito repellent
• Help to manage high cholesterol
• Assist with blood pressure management

Garlic in the convenience of your back yard

While we were planting the tulips and daffodils we thought why not try out some garlic for the garden!  We had moved into our beautifully landscaped home and with it on the side, the original home owner had the builders put this 3-tier space for a garden.  We have been so busy bringing everything up to par (this is a whole other story) we have not had the time to begin our garden until now.

I chose garlic because well, I love garlic!  And it just so happened to be the perfect time to plant them.  Garlic adds this something special to so many of my meals I just have to have it!  So here it is the Fall why not try my hand at garlic?  Why not have my own supply of nice fresh cloves to use when making my families meals?

I did some reading and found out that the best time to grow garlic is during the cool weather.  The idea is to plant it in the fall, around the first frost date, to mature the following summer.  In warm-winter areas, you can plant until January.  In cool climates, you can also plant in spring as soon as the soil is workable, but just know you may end up with smaller bulbs. 

I chose Elephant Garlic.  I planted it in well drained soil as it has a good chance to rot in poorly drained soil amended with compost or other organic matter.  I set the individual cloves pointy side up, about 2-3 inches deep, and 6 inches apart.  This is my first time so because I went with the larger garlic I just bought one package of three.  I did not need to do any rows but if I did I would do it in rows 1-2 feet apart.

We did it at just the right time, we planted them the night before the storm moved in.  That should help to provide these elephant garlic a good amount of moisture to start out.  Garlic needs to have regular moisture and a water-soluble plant food may help once a week until the foliage starts to turn brown before harvest.  But since mine will be buried in at least three feet of snow I will just have to see.  Come on Spring 2011!
 

Sustainable Garden Beginning with Tulips and Daffodils

We love our yard but we don't necessarily love what it can cost in time and man hours. Without a doubt we are in harder times I hear about it every day, it seems like so many of us are feeling it one way or another.  So my thinking is to take a step back, access my spending habits and try to zero in on where I can achieve the same or similar results and spending less.

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A Busy Visitor at Snowbasin's Earl's Lodge

Wow, so guess what! I am having another proud moment!  The other little lady in the house has quite the gift for capturing a moment with a camera!  As we drove up and enjoyed the view she snapped quite a few shots on our mini get-away day trip to Trappers Loop and they turned out pretty impressive. 


We talked about her submitting a couple of them in, she really did a good job some looked like something out of a magazine.  The more she thought about it the better she felt,  so she took a leap and decided to submit a couple of them, and guess what!  Her picture was chosen!  I love that she just went with her thoughts and stepped outside of her comfort zone to step out and do it! 


Take a look and see what you think!  Photo of the entire month!    


Here are a some photos taken.  This photo is the face of Snowbasin.  I had never seen it without snow, beautiful!

Below is a photo taken along the way, there is just something about it.  I like the way the shot was taken, it was plain and simple yet it seemed to capture that certain something to me. 

This whole area through Trappers Loop has grown so much.  To drive up there is like this well hidden mini Oasis, you wonder how come you didn't know about this and when it all happened.

 

And here it is below... The One! The won that was spotted and featured in the Xplorer Outdoors for the month!  That was awesome!  The busy visitor at Earl's Lodge up at snow basin.

A Busy Visitor at Snowbasin's Earl's Lodge



I love the look of this with the focus on the bright flower against the mountain



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The Dew Tour Come's To Snowbasin 2011

Teens, Money and a Plastic Planet

Am I alone or does it seem like we have evolved into a kind of plastic planet?  I can’t think of a place off the top of my head today that does not accept some form of plastic.  In fact the more I look around the more I am seeing that checks are becoming a thing of the past and are often not accepted in establishments as a form of payment. 

Here is a fun fact for you!  Did you know that in McMurdo Station in Antartica where there is a population of 200 there is a ATM!  An ATM in the middle of no where!  What does that tell you?

Day trip through Trappers Loop

We have been so busy with the remodeling of our home that leaving the state for any type of travel get-a-way was really not in the cards, not at this time.   But we had just finished some major projects the essence of tile and the laying of the carpet.  So it was very necessary to celebrate with a break, a break away from the home. 

With Fall having had arrived a trip out to one of the many mountain passages sounded like the perfect idea.  There are so many beautiful scenic road trips you can take that are just breathtaking.  In North Eastern Utah you can go to the Big Cottonwood Canyon Scenic Byway Scenic drive up a 15-mile highway, the Dinosaur Diamond Prehistoric Highway Scenic drive and the Dinosaur National Monument Scenic Drive, as well as the Flaming Gorge Uintah Scenic byway scenic drive there are many more these are just a random few.

 For this trip we chose to go on a road trip through Trapper’s Loop Road for our day trip (Highway 167)

It is a scenic back way that runs between Huntsville and Mountain Green along the eastern side of the wonderfully landscaped Wasatch range that stretches about 9 miles.  At the right time you can see a wonderful view as the leaves change colors, if you’re lucky you may have a chance of spot some of the wild life that live along the hillsides.  In the past we have seen deer, and moose but we were not so lucky this time.

We thought we would stop up at the official venue of the 2002 games, Sun Valley Resorts Snowbasin.  On the way we spotted some wild turkey, about a dozen bobbing their heads up the mountain side as they walked.  That was neat, all things not remodeling!   It was really just great to take in that fresh air with the wonderful views on a beautiful day.  The last time we had been through their it was covered in more hills of land but on this trip new homes had popped up everywhere.  Beautiful homes with breath taking views, what a set up!  These homes were large and well thought out, when did all this happen, have I been blinded to my house that long that I missed all this! 

Piece of mind!  We took some pictures take a look at the Busy Visitor at Earls Lodge post.