Funnel Cake

The girls roped me into getting them a funnel cake on the way back to camp...can't imagine why they wouldn't sit still afterwards ... bzzzzz ... bzzz ...

Do you believe in horse barns?

Sign posted on the horse barn near the public showers at the campground. Maybe the dirty hippies were encroaching on the horses?

TENET –noun any opinion, principle, doctrine, dogma, etc., esp. one held as true by members of a profession, group, or movement.

Pig Tails

Sporting pig tails for the remainder of the festival so that I don't have to fuss with it....it being my hair...loving the music at the neighboring camp sites. Haven't checked out any of the stages thusfar...

Follow Da Leader

We did Zumba today instead of tomorrow because of scheduling conflicts with the conference room and the class felt a little different. Could have been that the auto thermostat was 5 degrees higher which had us melting in our workout clothes way earlier than normal. I kept tripping and moving more awkwardly than usual and I caught the teacher laughing more than once when she looked my way. To be fair, I was laughing too at how long it took me to get into the groove (which was just as we were transitioning into the next move). I like to think that the instructor was laughing WITH me not at me, but I also bet she was thinking How can ONE person BE so clumsy? Still love the class and the instructor is awesome!!!

I'll be back...

Marathon...

...and NOT the "marathon" that many of you may have on your Life List to do.

Following a busy day at work, the whole fam went to Target to shop for groceries. For dinner we ended up eating a nice variety of sushi and then things got busy! busy! busy! I cooked a huge batch of Curry Chicken to freeze for near future camping meal, baked this mouth watering recipe for Cheesecake Marbled Brownies to share at the campsite, made a big batch of Turkey Chili to also share with the camp; multiple loads of laundry and dishes, etc!

So ready to get outta town!

Pig Tail

Outdoor Challenge

And So Begins "Girls Night"

The aftermath of our Chocolate Chip Molten....sweet bliss!

Market Education

Twice last week I was hit with some interesting information on grocery shopping so I thought I'd share.

The first tidbit came via my Peaceful Daily tip that automagically arrives in my in-box daily and involves PLU (Price Look Up) codes on produce:

"Note that each one is composed of four- or five-digit numbers. What do these numbers mean to us? As a matter of fact, they are very important:

A four-digit number means it's conventionally grown.

A five-digit number beginning with 9 means it's organic.

A five-digit number beginning with 8 means it's genetically modified."
The second bit comes from my Rachel Ray mag that I neglected to read this summer (so I missed out on the Summer recipes!) and it involves the tactics used by grocery stores to get you to buy things you might not necessarily need. I have long suspected Wal-Mart of these shenanigans when while grocery shopping one day with my then toddler, I was forced to look upward following her gaze. Lots of stuff going on UP in stores. Try looking up for a minute next time you hit the store. There are "security" devices hanging down in the aisles and I suspect they emit barely audible messages in an effort to get you to buy more Oreos.

And apparently stores use theatrical lighting to make their produce look better (And WHY don't they use this same lighting in department store fitting rooms?) so be sure to squeeze and sniff your produce before purchasing. Also, they play that old-timey musak in an effort to make you purchase things based on nostalgia and feelings. Those attempts are futile when my daughter is in tow -- she can talk over the best of piped in music (favorite TV shows, important conversations, etc).

The Descent

Somehow the descent didn't seem as scary as the ascent. Maybe because it was pitch dark when we got there Friday and the window was stuck open (sorry, Stina) and we were looking out for bear...

Death at Every Turn

Late breakfast at Pam's Diner in Talihina and a quick check of the shops on the main drag, then back to the cabin. We checked out the creek on the way back to try to get some cool pics of the water and plants and a neighbor's rock work but instead...

The first time we happened upon the water moccasin he was on the bank only a few feet away from us as we were looking at the plants. After he struck out at us, we ran to the Jeep and drove back to the cabin, adrenaline flowing. When we let the guys know about the encounter with death, they asked if we shot the snake. They were not impressed that we instead opted to crack open some beers and do our nails...and play Guitar Hero...


and commune with nature...


Later we hiked up to the bear trap and camera at dusk scaring ourselves numerous times walking through spider webs. No bear sitings (thank God) even though we smelled bear (or deer?) urine along the trail.

On the Way to the Cabin

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Cabin Girls

We had a great time at the cabin. It was a little unnerving getting up there (and I mean UP) late Friday night after a windy detour at dusk; navigating a steep, rocky incline on the dirt road up to the cabin and immediately squashing (Stina) a nasty scorpion upon entering the cabin. But we cracked open some Modelos and a bottle of champagne and settled in for the evening. We also made (with love) a batch of hot spinach and artichoke dip and dove into Christina's decadent chocolate raspberry cake to settle the nerves and celebrate Stina's BIG 4-0. We then "camped out" on the porch for the rest of the night getting in touch with nature and our beers...

Sneakers

So we were chunking stuff into a flower bed we've been using as a compost dumping area and were surprised to see a couple of canteloupes hiding in there. Also found in the "garden": a box turtle (How he got into our back yard I still haven't pieced together.) and another fertile vine that looks suspiciously like a zucchini plant. Have I mentioned that Emi hates both of these?

The Guardian

With so many reports of H1N1 hitting the local schools - many of Emi's schoolmates have been out with some sort of illness - and hearing about so many friends across the country with their kids staying home with fever and aches, I've fired up the old Germ Guardian in my cubicle. (2 months earlier than in the past)

September Morn

I can't believe it's already September but it's time to get off our lazy duffs and get back into shape. We finally dusted off the TDS after a summer hiatus and started back up on Level 1. Actually, we have never made it past Level 1 and do not see a need to try to make it to Level 3 considering the fact that we don't play pro football. That workout looks way too intense!

I've been trying to walk 2 miles twice weekly and do Zumba 1x weekly, but it doesn't always work out for me. (i.e. Last Week) My walks are great because they get me out of my chair and I get to catch up with a really good friend (dual purpose) and Zumba is great because I get to see another really good friend. Not that we can talk during class but we CAN pretend to kick each other Karate Kid style while we catch our breath... and the dancing is FUN! My instructor sent me our playlist last week (Thanks, Pam!) so I now have the songs safely on my iPod so I can practice the dance moves solo. I want to teach Emi some of the moves and am hoping that it will help me look a little more graceful in class (I can hope).

Now that Emi is back in school there is more hope! Hope that I can dust off my trusty old steed of a bike and bike to work while the biking is good. Maybe with this variety of exercise I might be able to whittle down the waistline and drop the pounds that the Wii says I've packed on this summer. As Jillian says in the Level 1 workout, "we'll see".

Emi and I start this class called Move For Life tonight in the city. Her pediatrician recommended it some time back because Emi is a big girl and we want her to be healthy. She's grown a foot in the 4 years we've been in this house so that accounts for some of the weight, but she's got a belleh! The class starts off with a healthy snack and we will be edutained by a nutrition counselor and P.E. teacher and someone else. I will post more after class. I am hoping that the information will seep into Emi's brain more readily coming from someone else other than her parents who can be "boring" and "health freaks" (Come on!). We'll see. Soccer starts up for her tomorrow that that's another step in the right direction....