WOW we have been busy this week....lots of posts :cheer:
anywho just a peek in cause i wanted to share this with you :)

cause we are all WONDERFUL BEAUTIFUL women!!!

Happy Sunday everyone!
Okay, I am done being depressed with my "failure" but, I am not going to take it as a failure...and I am going to move on. Still...with your support...

It is glorious here in Ohio...beautiful, absolutely!

I just went to two stores, the healthfoods store and the conventional...stocked up on tons of really good wholesome foods...mostly organic...funny, the conventional store has just as much organic/whole wheat etc..as the h/f but not nearly as pricey...they must watch out, ya know?

How are all of you doing today???

My kids are enjoying this beautiful day...it is so nice to watch them...

Well, talk to you all soon..longer tomorrow!

-Sarah-

Argh, I lost my post!! Nevermind, it was my mistake so I am going to try to retype my post the best I can.

Dh took dd to office today so I get a little break. Jess is so happy about the idea because she has always wanted to visit daddy's office that she heard so much about. Dh is not working, just had to write his time sheet that he has forgotten to do yesterday. Ahhhh...so nice and quiet here...I have to admit, it feels a little strange...lol.

Some replies :

SEBRAY : Glad you and your family has fun at the family fun day. Happy Birthday to Kevin. I can almost smell the carrot cake all the way here. I cannot bake to save my life...lol. Have a fun day :) Thanks for the cute frogs...couldn't agree more :)

MONET : I hope you win the recipe contest too. I will post the Portugese Kale soup recipe below. I have tried collard greens at some restaurants and love it! I cooked the frozen collard once at home (sis-in-law gave it to me when she moved out of state) and it didn't taste quite as good as those at restaurants. I know many restaurants put ham hock, bacon or ham in it to make it very tasty. I would definitely make the fresh collard at home, maybe with some ham, what do you think?

BOB : I love fresh asparagus especially when you roast them. Yum! Glad you are feeling better.

COUNTRY : I know Basa fish is not really available in many areas yet but it has quite the same texture and flavour as tilapia, I know you will love it :) You are right about tilapia, it is such a versatile fish, you can cook in anyway you like and it will taste good. Oh, you can also used veggie or chicken broth to cook your fish to add more flavour to it. No, I haven't microwave any fish or seafood because microwave tend ot not cook the food evenly. If I am lazy, I will cook my fish in the oven, broil, steam in a pouch with veggies or bake. If I am not so lazy, then I might pan-seared my fish :)

SARAH : What failure?? Hope it is not about not detoxing. You are so right on....keep moving and we are here for you :) It is a beautiful sunny day here as well. Love this weather! Have a nice day as well.

Portuguese Kale Soup
Yield: 4 servings

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1/2 cup diced onions
1/2 diced turnips (I didn't put this in as I couldn't find it. Not sure if this is legal either)
1/2 cup diced carrots
1 bunch kale, stemmed and roughly chopped
6 ounces chopped chourico (spicy Portuguese sausage), or chorizo (I browned it in the pot first before adding other ingredients which is not necessary)

3 bay leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
6 cups beef stock (I used chicken stock instead and it did turn out good)
1 cup kidney beans (I used the white bean (navy beans) in mine)
6 ounces diced tomatoes
10 ounces diced potatoes (I did add about 3 medium red potatoes although not legal)

In a large stock pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, onions, turnips and carrots and cook for 5 minutes. Add the kale, chourico, bay leaves, parsley and thyme and mix well. Add the beef stock, beans and tomatoes. Bring the soup to a boil, and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring salted water to a boil and add the diced potatoes. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and add them to the soup. Remove the bay leaves and serve hot.

NOTES : I did use potatoes in the recipe but I just dump it all in the pot with the other ingredients instead of cooking it separately and then add it to the recipe later. Too much fuss...lol but it turned out great anyway.

Julia

Tom and I went for a walk. I was not feeling very energetic but he pushed me to go farther than I thought I wanted. I was glad he did. Today is the deadline for submitting forms for the gallery for the arts festival, so its been busy already. People are emailing, calling with questions, and its only going to get worse! I have ten forms in already, and another 6 expected, and that is just the ones I know about. I also will submit two or three pieces, so its going to be a fairly good show. Its going to be hard figuring out how to display all the pieces. :) Its a good problem...

KENG: Thanks for the soup recipe. It sounds good! As for the collards, I would try them with a ham hock, as I have had them that way and its good. We also like mustard greens.

COUNTRY: Wow...$3.49 a pound for tilapia is cheap! I pay about $5 a pound for it. I like to saute it in a bit of butter with seasoning salt on it. I have not tried the basa fish, but I have seen it at Publix, which is where Julia gets it over on the other side of Atlanta. I may have to check it out. :)

SEBRAY: Only one piece of Kevin's cake, ok? :)

SARAH: Its not a failure to have decided not to do the detox! You can use the lemons and maple syrup and make some of the lemonade and drink it for breakfast. It will help clean out your system. Then eat heavy on the fruits and veggies and very light on meats and NO grains, and you will get some detox going without starving. Enjoy the beautiful weather! While we were out walking, I shook a branch on a pine tree and almost choked on the cloud of pollen it let loose!

BOB: What time is dinner?

New Recipe
 

You can teach an old dog new tricks...LOL I tried this recipe because I was out of strawberries. It is soooooooo good.

1 cup Borden skim enriched milk
5 ounces of canaloupe
2 cups crushed ice
2 packets of splenda

Mix the milk ice and splenda in the blender. When most of the ice is smooth addin the canaloupe. Blend till smooth.

It almost taste like ice cream. The best part is it's less than 125 calories and makes a huge glass. I'm not sure what kind of glass if is but I use this oversized one that looks like a wine glass kinda. It makes me feel special..LOL I usually used the strawberries and one packet of splenda.

Julia..thanks for telling me about the broth. I'll have to try that sometime.

Monet...WTG on getting in your walk. Sounds like a plan. I might drag my son out if it isn't raining yet.

Sarah...good deal getting healthy foods. For the most part around here the healthy food are going to cost you a lot. I think it's a shame it's so much cheaper to eat poorly.

Sebray...thanks for the neat little frog graphic.

Time to scoot.

Love,
Crystle

well i got another math assignment done AND my small paper :D gonna go make some spagetti with kelbasa for dinner (so there are leftovers for tomorrow cause kevin HATES to cook when im at school lol) and then im gonna make his cake....and only have a TEENY SLIVER of it i promise!!!!

think ill do another 15 mins on the gazelle before i start cooking though :)

its amazing how much energy i have now that ive gotten some of my school work out of the way hehe

Another beautiful day here. High of 75. Got some more work done in the yard and some errands and a visit to my folks. Now Im just relaxing before its time to hit the hay.

Countrymom4him- Ive been finding the talapi here for about 3.99 on sale and 6.99 not but the orange roughe is 9.99 for three small pieces. And that I rarely see on sale :(

Monet- good for you on going for the walk and being encouraged to go farther than what you wanted. Thats one reason I love walking with my dd , she pushes me beyond what I "think" I want to do.

Sundays menu

b- 1 whole egg and one egg white scambled, slice of ww lc toast
s- 1 oz macadamia nuts( these are my downfall , but now there are no more in the house, thank goodness !)
l- turkey roll ups with 1 slice of swiss, 2 strawberries
d- grilled steak , romaine/spinach salad with red pepper and carb options blue cheese dressing
dessert- small slice of LC almond flour pound cake with 1/4 cup diced strawberries and homemade whipped cream.

Just flying by on my way to bed! I got home from church and took over the sausage biscuit project James had started so he could go run an errand. I ate two pieces of the sausage, and two brown rice cakes. I also had a few pieces of ham. Now I am beat! Its time for bed.

Sweet dreams everyone! :wave:

had some chicken quesidillas for dinner.....very light, which is good cause it was SOOOO HOT today!!!...i still made the spagetti for the guys tomorrow night and im working on the cake now....dont think ill have any tonight but i might have a sliver tomorrow....