Start of Summer-ish

Warning: Yes, I'm going to talk about the weather again. 

Memorial Day weekend is typically the start of summer in  many parts of the US.  Not exactly the truth when you're this far north.  First, the kids don't get out of school for another couple of weeks, but that's to be expected when you don't start until after Labor Day.  Second, we're still wearing pants and coats.  Granted we're wearing light coats and don't need them in the afternoon, it still seems wrong that we're wearing coats in May. 

But it's Memorial Day, so we decided to get out and explore a bit. 

 

First up on our holiday weekend: the Northwest Trek.  The Trek is part of the Point Defiance Zoo, but is dedicated to preserving wildlife found in the PNW.  We had a wonderful day - the animals were out, the sun was out, and we had a nice walk through the rugged park.  And the visit isn't complete unless you take the tram through the free-range area. 

Sunday brought us some more nice weather.  After church, we decided to blow the dust off our bikes and head for the Chehalis-Western Trail.  The trail is actually an old lumber rail line that leads through Lacey and on to the Sound.  The entire trail is 22 miles and links up with some other rail lines.  A few years ago, Thurston County acquired the remainder of the line from about the middle of town to the Sound -- this is what we rode.  Again, it was a lovely day: not too hot or cold and just peaceful.  The girls did really well on the 7-ish mile ride -- they only stopped because one of my pegs broke (odd, but whatever...). 

Of course, when we got back we tended to the garden...  Hoping something starts popping up soon!!!  With the weather we've been having, it won't be long now.  

52-Week Challenge - Week 22

How did going organic, or closer to the source, go for you?  I went ahead and took a pic of our basket we got on Saturday from Bountiful Baskets.

Here's what I got for my $15 contribution: a bunch of bananas, 9 peaches, 2 pints of blackberries (I traded my 6 tomatoes for another pint), a cantaloupe, 4 navel oranges, 18 apples, 5 carrots, a head of romaine, 2 yellow bell peppers, and 8 ears of corn.  The furthest anything had to travel was from central Mexico (bananas) - everything else is from California or closer. 

I also wanted to share these with you:

These are my strawberries and my garden plot in the backyard.  We have carrots, cucumbers, lettuce, watermelon, and green beans planted in the raised beds.  I also have green onions, pumpkins, and chamomile planted elsewhere in the yard.  Hopefully soon, we'll have a garden bounty! 

Again, it's just something to think about...   Buying local is a great way to support the economy in your neighborhood, reduce your carbon footprint, and best of all eat fresh.  So, what can you do to get closer to your fruit and vegetable source?

Building on that theme brings us to this week's challenge: Downshift Your Dairy.  The idea this week is to consume lower fat dairy, as you will reduce the amount of saturated fat you consume if you switch.  According to the Dairy Council of California, whole milk contains 146 calories per cup and 7.9 grams of fat. Two percent milk is a reduced-fat product containing 122 calories and 4.8 grams of fat per cup. Skim milk is also known as nonfat milk and provides 86 calories and less than 1 gram of fat in each one cup serving.  The same research can be done on cheese and yogurt.  

We already consume lower fat milk products in our home.  I drink 1% milk, the girls and Ronnie drink 2%, with the occasional splurge on raw milk for Ronnie.  We eat non-fat or 2% yogurt and reduced fat cheese.  Here's my twist on this week: how wholesome is your dairy?   Are you consuming cheese or processed-cheese products?  What is in that yogurt you're eating?  How local is your milk?   

Again, tune in next week for what the Oliver clan does.... and I have an interesting anecdote to share with all y'all about cheese products.

Other Resources:

Read more about milk: http://www.livestrong.com/article/552990-what-are-the-advantages-of-milk-the-differences-in-whole-milk-vs-skim-milk-vs-2-percent-milk/#ixzz1wNHSnxIl

The book we're following: http://www.amazon.com/52-Small-Changes-Healthier-ebook/dp/B0056J4ER0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1325722556&sr=1-1

Jenn's blog: http://thewoogies.blogspot.com/search/label/52%20Small%20Changes

Photo Friday

Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life...  Enjoy!!!

Enjoying a day at the fair, Puyallup, Washington, April 2012

52-Week Challenge - Week 21

Happy healthy living everyone!  So, did you figure out your purpose in life last week?  I'm going to tell you - it's not something you can figure out in a day or a week.  Finding your purpose is a continuous process of evaluating and reevaluating your life and it can only be done if you really truly know yourself.   Here's what I know:  I have found that you will feel the most fulfilled when you are allowing yourself to serve God and others.  I have found that if you discover that one special gift that He gave you and use it to help your family, friends, and neighbors you will burn with desire to do it again and again and again.  And it is something that I am still working on. 

I am so very luck that I know what my passion is - I discovered it along the way and it wasn't a big AHA! moment for me.  One day after reading Good to Great I went, "Hmmmm, that is what makes my little light inside burn bright isn't it? Go figure!"  I am so thankful for being blessed with it because it brings so much joy in my life and the lives of others.  But there is a selfish part to me that wants to only keep it to myself and use it to further my life.  And that is not what He intended.  Again, I'm working on it but am getting better and better everyday.  My final thought is if you didn't get far with last week's challenge, keep working at it.  God has given you a special gift, but it is up to you to figure out what He gave you and then use it to glorify Him. 

This week's challenge is something near and dear to my heart - Go Organic. First let's clear things up: in order to be certified organic, a product must undergo a certification process that generally involves a set of production standards for growing, storage, processing, packaging and shipping that include:

• no human sewage sludge fertilizer used in cultivation of plants or feed of animals
• avoidance of synthetic chemical inputs not on the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances (e.g. fertilizer, pesticides, antibiotics, food additives, etc.), genetically modified organisms, irradiation, and the use of biosolids;
• use of farmland that has been free from prohibited synthetic chemicals for a number of years (often, three or more);
• keeping detailed written production and sales records (audit trail);
• maintaining strict physical separation of organic products from non-certified products;
• undergoing periodic on-site inspections.

There is a lot of research out there on the pros/cons of organic foods and I'm sure that this isn't the first place you have read about the benefits of organic foods.  But there is a bigger reason why "organically" grown foods can be better for your health - they are grown closer to the way they should be. 

I don't eat organics all the time, and I won't practice this challenge the way the author indended.  However, what we will and already do in our family is eat seasonably grown vegetables available from a "close" source.  The way we do this is by participating in a CSA and frequent a local farmer stand. 

This week, I encourage you to think twice about that apple or corn you are picking up.  Think about how far it had to travel to get to you.  Is it from the other side of the country?  What is the carbon-footprint?  Is there a better locally-sourced alternative?  With the farmer's markets in full swing, it's worth thinking about...  And something we did a lot of thinking about when we were in Korea and drinking ultra-pasturized milk that had a half-life for shelf-life yet the yogurt might be spoiled and the Thanksgiving turkeys showed up in October.  *shudder*   Of course, you could also focus on adding more organics to your diet by focusing on the Dirty Dozen and Clean 15.  Either way, do some research on organic foods and local food sourcing.  I promise, it is some of the best thinking you can do all day. 

Other Resources:


Dirty Dozen:  http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/eat-safe/dirty-dozen-foods

Clean 15:  http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/eat-safe/Save-on-Sustainable-Gallery-44032808

Bountiful Baskets (CSA):  http://www.bountifulbaskets.org/

CSA Finder: http://www.localharvest.org/csa/

Pick Your Own: http://www.pickyourown.org/

The book we're following: http://www.amazon.com/52-Small-Changes-Healthier-ebook/dp/B0056J4ER0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1325722556&sr=1-1

Jenn's blog: http://thewoogies.blogspot.com/search/label/52%20Small%20Changes

Field Trip: Pioneer Farm

Holly's class got to go on a great field trip this past week.  They have been studying the Oregon Trail and the early pioneers that settled this area.  They went to Pioneer Farm... is a hands on working museum that you can experience homesteading.   Even better is Ronnie chaperoned her class.

They had a great day exploring the farm and learning how the pioneers lived, went to school, and worked as a community. 

Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a photo from our lives...  Enjoy!!**

Happy 1st Birthday, Sarah-lara!!!!  Wichita Falls, Texas, September 2007

Beach-Bound and Down

May has come to the Pacific Northwest.  Meaning spring... right?  Well, kinda.  You just never know about the weather up here. 

What I've been missing lately is the beach.  It seems that my friends and family in warmer parts of the world have been posting a lot of pictures of the beach, and pools, and of kids wearing flip flops....  I'm such a Florida girl and have been itching to get some sun on my skin for weeks now.  However the weather has been up and down, bouncing between highs of mid-60s (yeah!) to low-50s (boo) and the lows in the 40s/30s.  But have you ever known that to slow us down? 

Luckily it didn't and I booked us a room out at Pacific Beach for Mother's Day weekend.  We could not have asked for more lovely weather, more beautiful scenery, or a more relaxing time.

First, the weather was FANTASTIC!  By the way, you'll have to get used to me and talking about the weather in these parts.  While the PNW has a reputation for being rainy and overcast, which it is a lot of the time, the sunny days more than make up for the rain.   And by fantastic I mean we finally broke into the 80s for the first time this year.  Woohoo - Spring!!! 

Pacific Beach is out on the coast and started as a sawmill town in the 1900s.  Since the rails were going that way, word spread quickly about the wide areas of sand and the town started booming as a tourist destination for folks seeking to escape Seattle.  During WWII, the Navy and Air Force moved to town and built facilities for anti-aircraft training.  The base sat idle for a while until someone intelligent in the Navy decided to turn it into an MWR resort and set about a full renovation.  Yes, folks, that's right - there is a Navy Lodge out on Pacific Beach.

 

 

We sure enjoyed our visit out there!  The girls played on the beach, went beach combing and became sand dollar millionaires, flew kites, and went exploring in the dunes.  We decided to have a cookout on Saturday night and roasted hotdogs and marshmallows over a campfire.  The girls watched a movie while Ronnie and I watched the sun slowly sink into the ocean.  Then we got up and did it all over again on Sunday. 

 

Suffice to say that we will be back to take advantage of the Navy facilities....  They even have full up cabins you can rent for the week (otherwise known as remodeled base housing). 

How Does Your Garden Grow?

I'm so excited to have raised beds in our backyard.  It's just one of the many, MANY reasons I love this house.  The girls and I have decided to plant carrots, cucumbers, green beans, lettuce, and watermelon.  Now,  this is in addition to the strawberries we have in a container, the chamomile we started a few weeks ago, and all of the other berry bushes and fruit trees that were already in the yard. 

 And Ronnie was awesome - he went ahead and bought a tiller attachment for his Ryobi.  The girls were a big help in turning the garden over and amending the soil. So this is what we have so far:

Of course, we will have to see how this experiment holds up....  

52-Week Challenge: Weeks 19 & 20

I hope you will forgive me for not posting last week.  I am finishing up this term and was working on my term paper.  Luckily, weeks 19 and 20 can be done in tandem. 

First, how was getting more exercise in your life?  Did anyone try anything new?   I thought this would be a good time to add that I absolutely LOVE my new running shoes.  I mentioned in a post a few weeks ago that I had switched to a pair of minimal shoes.  I haven't had a bit of problems running in them at all.  So much so that Ronnie questioned if my feet were hurting after my runs; when I told him no, he was surprised.  Then again, I'm not going very far or very fast (my run pace is about a 9:30 mile).  I also don't wear shoes unless I'm going somewhere, so I walk around barefoot most hours of the day.  I seriously love these shoes and am so glad I made the switch. 

On to the next two focuses.  First up: eat more fruit.  The challenge is to eat two to four servings of whole fruit per day.  There are so many good things fruit provides us and our bodies.  But the big thing is that fruit is a natural sugar craving killer.  I have been working to reduce my sugar consumption and fruit has played a large part in that for me. 

Finding fresh fruit right now isn't going to be a challenge because spring is upon us.  Have you seen all the strawberries in the markets?  It's also close to blueberry season!  Try adding strawberries to your cereal in the morning.  Pick up an apple on your way out the door to munch on while driving.  Blend up a fruit smoothie at night for dessert.  Replace that glass of juice with a piece of fruit instead.

While eating the fruit, you can ponder the next challenge... and the author has a doozy of one for us.  The focus is to ind your purpose in life and live it every day.  Oh my!  Now this is more than just a what do you want to be when you grow up exercise.  This is truly connecting with your calling.  Now, the author gives all sorts of advice on how to do this: start a journey of self discovery through reflection, writing a personal mission statement, and then putting that plan into action and living it everyday. 

I walked through an exercise similar to this a few years back.  There are some pretty fantastic business books out there that are as applicable to personal development as they are to professional development.  Good to Great, First, Break All the Rules and its follow up Now, Discover Your Strengths, and The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership are all fantastic business books that can be easily applied to your personal life.  For example in Good to Great, Jim Collins discusses finding the one thing that your company is good at and can do better than anyone else out there.  He argues that businesses become great when they figure out that one thing and then build everything around excelling in that one area.  What about FISH!, where even the fishmongers in Seattle have a fantastic time working in less than fantastic working conditions.  My point is you don't have to read a new-age book from the self-discovery aisle in B&N, as there may be a more applicable book for your life in the business aisle. 

So that's it for this week: eat more fruit and start to figure out what your passion in life is. Easy right?  I'll share my thoughts on passion and drive with you next week....  don't want to give you too many leading statements now.

Other resources:

The book we're following: http://www.amazon.com/52-Small-Changes-Healthier-ebook/dp/B0056J4ER0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1325722556&sr=1-1

Jenn's blog: http://thewoogies.blogspot.com/search/label/52%20Small%20Changes

Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.... enjoy! **

Chorus line at the Nine Fine Irishmen, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 2002

You know those pictures that you look at and laugh immediately because it was such a good time?  This is one of those photos.  Ronnie had just gotten done with the B-Course and was doing some training in Vegas, while us wives were left to our own demises in Tucson.  So, we hatched a plan and invaded Vegas for the weekend.  I am so glad we did, because I look at this picture and still laugh my butt off.  It was such a good night and weekend with awesome friends.  



Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.... enjoy! **

Happy Birthday to my fur kid, Cleo the Cat!  She's 11 years old tomorrow. 

We got Cleo while Ronnie was in pilot training in Oklahoma.  She's been an active member of our family since, PCSing right along with us all across America and forgiving us when we brought the kitty-obsessed Holly home from the hospital. 

She forgave us again when we brought Sarah home...

She didn't move with us to Korea, as there was a pet quarantine in place.  She was exiled to Grandma and Grandpa's house while we were gone and was quickly reintegrated into our family when we got back to the States (or as she may put it, she was cat-napped from paradise).

Happy Birthday, sweet kitty!