5 Essentials of Losing Weight

found these tips in an old *ediets* newsletter:
A weightloss buddy posted these elsewhere and I thought they might benefit some of you.

Strategy #1: Awareness is the key to catching the extra calories you eat and drink each day before they show up on the scale. Are you dining at the drive-thru, slurping sugary sodas or cleaning your kids' plates? It's time to take a look at your actions and make smarter choices that won't take your thighs by surprise.

Strategy #2: Education helps you know what's healthy and what's headed straight to your hips. Take the time to read labels and choose real foods instead of processed pretenders. Once you know about healthy eating, you can find delicious foods that will leave you slim and satisfied.

Strategy #3: Determination is the desire to make a long-term change, rather than relying on a quick-fix fad. You must be ready to makeover your life...before you can makeover your look. Once you're fed up enough to get fired up, then nothing can stand in your way.

Strategy #4: Action is the moment you make the changes that will make a difference. Be sure to take action every day...whether it's choosing a salad instead of a sundae, taking the stairs instead of the elevator or relaxing with a good book instead of a gooey candy bar.

Strategy #5: Motivation means staying strong even when life and lasagna get in the way. Prepare for those tough times by planning rewards to keep you going. Buy a new outfit when you drop 10 pounds or take a cruise when you lose 20. Think of them as well-deserved splurges that won't leave you feeling guilty.

5 Ways to Boost your Metabolism

from ediets.com

Strategy #1: Begin with Breakfast
Your body has gone without food for at least 8 hours - and it's starving. Skipping breakfast keeps your body in "starvation mode" and slows down your metabolism so you don't burn any needed calories. A morning meal revs up your metabolism and keeps your body burning fat all day.

Strategy #2: Stop Starving
Skipping meals and eating too little actually lowers your metabolism. Cutting too many calories puts you in a fasting state, which causes your body to hold on to fat and calories to survive. This drastically decreases your metabolism and makes it much harder for you to lose weight

Strategy #3: Small Meals for a Big Boost
Eating smaller, more frequent meals provides a steady source of energy to your body, which boosts your metabolism and increases your energy throughout the day. By eating five to six small meals instead of three large ones, your body burns calories as you go, rather than storing the extra as fat

Strategy #4: Burn Calories with Cardio
Cardiovascular exercise raises your metabolism and helps your body burn fat. Any exercise that gets your heart pumping, from aerobics to walking to vacuuming, gives you calorie-burning benefits that last all day

Strategy #5: Muscle Matters
Muscle burns more calories than fat. The more muscle you have, the faster your metabolism gets and the more calories you burn, even at rest! Try to strength train two to three times a week. This is as easy as lifting light weights or even carrying groceries!

Candy Cane Cookies 2 Versions

Version 1
(this one Mom made me as a child! Brings back memories just thinking about it!)
Mix 1 cup shortening
1 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Sift and stir 2 1/2 cups flour (This recipe does not do well with whole wheat!)
1 tsp. salt
 Divide dough 1/2 and color one 1/2 red.

 Shape into canes.
Bake at 375 degrees for 7 to 9 minutes. Sprinkle with crushed peppermint candies on top if desired. (Mom never did this!)

Version 2 a peppermint flavored variety
1 cup sugar
1 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. Peppermint extract
1 egg
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (This recipe does NOT work well with Whole wheat, even the white hard)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. Salt

Mix dough. And divide evenly. Make one batch red with food coloring. Take one ball of red, one of white and roll into snakes, then twist into candy cane shapes. Put on greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 375 degrees for 9 to 12 minutes.

Cool Nativity Find!

I was thrift store shopping and found this awesome Nativity!!! And for $.75.

Toddler Slippers

I have been looking for slippers for my ds 3 and just couldn't find anything that wasn't cartoon related. So I decided to try to convert the baby bootie pattern to a toddler. They fit perfectly with some adding. The pattern is soooo easy,it's all one piece,  It will definetely be baby presents in the future!  Plus I'm using up all  that extra 100% cotton yarn!

My Baby Blanket is Finished!

I choose to trim it in Purple my favorite color~

And with the extra yarn I have made a matching  hat and 2 pairs of booties.
I plan to make 1 more pair in green like the yellow pair.

The Blanket Pattern I adapted from a Scarf pattern in this book.
Crochet Scarves

The other patterns were on the skeins of yarn. And I don't remember the brand sorry!

Hippos and Donkeys for Christmas

My children adore the Hippo Christmas song. I was looking online to see who did it and found you can hear it online!!! 

Hippo Christmas song online    



Found this information interesting! Had no idea it was this old! 1953
"I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas," Gayla Peevey (Columbia)

And another Family Favorite!

Dominic the Italian Donkey 

It's Beginning to look alot like Christmas

 

Quilting Project

This picture doesn't show it at all but I hand quilted around the people, stars, animals, and border. It is hanging over the couch in the living room and this years addition to our christmas decorations.

Healthy Holiday Eating Tips

• Don't go to a party hungry: we often eat
  faster and more when we are hungry - therefore eat a wholesome
  breakfast and lunch on the day to avoid overeating at the party.
  
  
  
  
• Watch your portion:
  treat yourself a nice drink, dessert, chocolate or sweets without
  guilt, but always watch your portion.  Go for small portions. This way
  you can sample all the different foods. Moderation is always the key.
  
  
  
  
• Make a conscious choice to limit high fat items:
  high fat food items can be found in fried food, cream-based soup,
  cheese-filled casseroles, pies, processed meats such as salami and
  sausages, some pastries and baked goods.
  
  
  
  
• Try different versions of egg nog:
  traditional egg nog is usually made with egg yolk and thick cream.
  Google "low fat egg nog" and you will find lots of low fat egg nog
  recipes. If you buy commercial egg nog, you will be delighted to find
  low-fat or fat-free egg nog out there - we can even find soy nog!
  
  
  
  
  
• Drink plenty of water: Pop and coffee can dehydrate your body.
  
  
  
  
• Physical activity: take nice brisk walks with your
  loved ones and enjoy their company in the
  holiday season.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

I found this recipe at www.kerflop.com  We made them last night and it was very very good!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Pre-Heat oven to 375 degrees F.

Cream together:
1 C. Shortening
2 Eggs
3 C. Sugar

Add:
2 C. Pumpkin (15 ounce can)
and mix well.

Stir in:
2 t. Baking Soda
2 t. Vanilla
1 t. Salt
2 t. Baking Powder
2 t. Nutmeg
2 t. Cinnamon

Gradually stir in:
5 C. Flour
You may need to add an additional cup of flour or so, dough should be - and I quote, “kind of stiff, not really stiff, but medium stiff. Not so sticky that it won’t push off a spoon onto the cookie sheet without sticking all over your finger”. See why I find baking difficult? This apparently, is not an exact science.

Stir in a bag of:
Chocolate Chips
Best if they are milk chocolate, unless you actually LIKE semi-sweet, which I don’t because they discourage me from eating them by handfuls directly out of the bag.
You may also add nuts or raisins but then the cookies would be gross.

Do not grease cookie sheet, drop a tablespoon or so of dough and drop them about an inch apart, they don’t spread out flat.

Bake at 375 for about 12 to 15 minutes.

They are soft and chewy and to die for! Also, we discovered that you CAN leave out the shortening for um, healthier? cookies. They are kind of spongy that way but are still good and stay soft.

 

One Quilt is Finished!

It's time for A break and a cup of Tea with Scones, lemon curd and cream

My scone recipe came from Emilie Barnes

Basic Scones
2 cups flour (I use whole white wheat flour, fresh ground) You can use the kind you prefer
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
6 Tbsp butter
1/2 c. buttermilk, or plain milk
1 lightly beaten egg

Mix dry ingredients. Cut in 6 Tbsp butter until mixture resembles course cornmeal. Make a well in the center and pour in buttermilk. Mix until dough clings together and is a bit sticky. Do NOT overmix. Turn out dough onto a floured surface and shape into a 6 to 8 inch round, about 1 1/2" thick. Quickly cut into pie wedges or use a large roung bisquit cutter to cut circles. The secret to tender scones is a minimum of handling. Place on ungreased cookie sheet, being sure the sides of the scones don't touch each other. Brush with egg. Bake 425 degrees for 10 to 20 minutes or until light brown.

* You can add cut-up apples, currants, ginger, orange, almond flavoring, cinnamon, apricots, fresh blueberries, cherries, cranberries, or even chocolate chips.

Yield: 8 pie shaped scones.


Lemon Curd
3 eggs, beaten
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 Tbsp. butter, softened

Combine eggs, sugar, lemon juice and butter in NON-aluminium saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until thick and bubbly. If you don't stir constantly the eggs will start to cook. It only takes minutes to thicken. Let cool. Chill thouroughly.
Yield:2 cups

Whipping Cream
You can buy premade whipped topping but we like to make the good old fashioned kind. I personally skim the cream off my milk. I buy raw. But I realize that isn't available to most of you. You can buy whipping cream. A pint is plenty.
Put cream into mixer. (I use kitchen aid) WHip until you get stiff peaks. If you over whip it will start falling and start turning into butter! WHen you have the stiff cream add a cap of vanilla extract and sugar to taste. (I use turbinado but any will work!)

Serve one scone with lemon curd and cream on top! YUMMM!!!

Listen to Your Body

Tip for the Week!

Listen to your body- Your body will signal you with what is wrong and what it needs. Sometimes it will scream at you for help. For example, women report craving certain foods (usually chocolate) about a week before their menstrual cycles. Research indicates that this is due to a deficiency of magnesium. In another fatigue may mean that more protein is needed in their diet. Also craving "Comfort" foods like bread, pasta, or crackers could simply indicate boredom or stress.

Felting Slippers

Jingle bell Slippers

Just found that these are online also! They are from Martha's  new special Craft edition.

Simple Quilts

Well I am off and running on a new project. Although my oldest dd has alot to do with this one. We are making quilts for each child. 1 child's blanket was finished about 1 year ago. Now that dd has cut out 1,300 something blocks later we are laying out the quilts to sew together. They will be knotted together.
This is dd who wanted lots and lots of flowers!

This is ds who designed a chipmunk reading
Curious George tucked in bed!
(I will add eyes while sewing)


We forgot to take pictures of one ds.
 Those will have to wait until it's assembled!

 

Felt Roses

I went to my local Yarn store. And they had this cool felted rose.

My Granny is having a birthday so I made her a rose corsage!
And while I was at it a red and purple one for me!
Here are the shapes of the pieces you will need if you want to make a rose.


4 petals, 3 leaves, and one center piece to roll smallest to largest.

 

A Gem of A Magazine is now FREE online!!!

Crowned with Silver Magazine is having problems with their printers and are now offering the magazine online. Free to anyone who wants it!!!
If you are interested just follow these steps...
1. Go to www.crownedwithsilver.com
2. Click on the magazine picture and enter your name and email address so they can automatically notify you when your issues are ready.

They will no longer be accepting money for their ministry. They wish to bless you in a new way.

More Felting Ideas, Thanks Martha!

Well the latest issue (nov. 2006) of Martha Stewart has an 8 page article on felting!!!

And she has provided online templetes and instructions  for ideas.
I am currently working on the mittens for the youngest dc.

 Will show photos when I am done. There is also a cute hat to make to match. I think that will be next.
Mittens link.

There are also more animals to make! A different sheep, which I think I will alter into a goat. A chicken and a little piggy. Here's a link!
There can never be too many cute animals.



And this basket is just too pretty!!! I think I want one of these too! Gonna have to find more wool to shrink soon.

Just to sneak in some more exercise!

Hidden forms of exercise

Ever wonder why you're huffing and puffing after vacuuming? It's because you're burning about 200 calories an hour! Here are some other daily activities that can get your heart going and make your body stronger.

• Kissing: 58 calories an hour

• Playing with a toddler: 216 calories an hour

• Washing windows: 200 calories an hour

• Walking the dog: 238 calories an hour

• Gardening: 324 calories an hour 

• Heavy cleaning: 432 calories an hour

Give your Body a Break

Give your Body a Break.

You should take 1 day off every week for your body to rest, recover and recuperate from exercising. You will actually see better results this way!

From an article online
Peak performance results when you balance exercise with plenty of rest and good nutrition. Asking your body to do more than usual creates an overload. The overload stresses your body, and as your body recovers and adapts to the overload, you become stronger, more muscular, faster, or a better athlete in whatever capacities you are training.
Without rest, your body cannot adapt and performance suffers. So does your health. Symptoms of overtraining include the following:
*Decline in performance, e.g., you can't run your usual distance as fast as usual
* Change in mood, increase in fatigue, irritability, depression, apathy
*Persistent aches and pains
*Elevation in resting heart rate
* More frequent colds and flus
*Trouble sleeping

Take at least 1 rest day a week. A day off doesn't mean you must stay in bed. Just do something low intensity and different: walk on the beach, take your kids to the park. Just hang out at home.

Progress on the Baby Blanket!

Well I am almost 1/2 way with it.  (Just ran out of purple, time for a new ball)
Here is an updated photo of my blanket. I am really enjoying this pattern.
 

Weekend Distraction!

A dear friend wanted some towels for fall for her kitchen. So this weekend I put the baby blanket aside and worked on 6 crocheted towels.
Here is the pattern I used. I did create the apples myself, so they do not have a pattern, but here's the basic pattern.
Button-less Towel Topper
Here is how they came out.

 

Fun Ecards Site

I discovered this site for designing a cartoon version of yourself and then you can send ecards through their  board. They even have a pregnant choice.
Design Her Gal
They also sell stationary and stuff but it's expensive.

It's time for some Tea with Cookies!

We are making cookies. And they are one of my absolute favorite cookies so I thought I would share.... While they are traditionally an easter cookie we baked them all my life, any time of year. As a baby/child I lived on the island of Crete.

Don't  they look good? Oh and isn't the teacup lovely. A dear lady from church found it at a thrift store and thought of me. I love it!

Koularaki Cookies
(Greek Easter Cookies)

1 lb. butter (no subst.)

1 1/4 c. sugar

6 eggs (divided)

1 c. heavy cream

2 tsp. vanilla

3 heaping tsp. baking powder

8 to 10 cups flour

sesame seeds



Cream butter. Add sugar and cream it until smooth. Beat 4 eggs until frothy. Beat into creamed mixture until smooth. Beat in heavy cream. Stir in vanilla and baking powder. Beat to thoroughly blend. Gradually stir in flour, 2 cups at a time, until dough is soft and pliable. Form into twists. Place on greased cookie sheets. Beat 2 eggs and 2 tsp. water. Brush over cookies. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake in 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes until cookies are lightly golden.