One Of The Ways I Combat Daily Stress

I've always been a big fan of Aromatherapy. It started many years ago, when my children were babies and I went through one of the most stressful times in my life. 

That's a story for another day, but suffice it to say, I used Aromatherapy regularly as one of the things that got me through that terrible time.  Candles, essential oils, linen mists, body sprays and lotions....you name it, if it was scented with essential oils, I used it.  It's amazing how a particular scent can lift your mood or calm your mind.

Oh, and then there was wine. That helped, too.

Natural Ways to Combat Seasonal Allergies

As I get older there are more and more things happening to my body that make me crazy. One of the biggest challenges right now is dealing with these seasonal allergies that have appeared in the past few years. 

Sigh. Isn't it enough that I'm getting wrinkled, sore, tired, hot flashes, and all the rest? Must I also deal with constant congestion in my head and throat?

Sausage and Bean Crockpot Stew

I made an incredible stew in the crockpot yesterday that was not only super easy to make but oh, wow, the flavors were amazing!

 As an added bonus it's healthy, to boot - what's better than that? 

This time, not only did I take photos, I also took note of measurements. 

I hope you will add this to your recipe bucket list - it's worth it for sure!

Ingredients

13 oz Hillshire Farm Sausage, Hardwood Smoked, Chicken, Sliced. 

28 oz can crushed tomatoes

1 large onion, chopped

1 bell pepper, chopped

1 cup sliced carrots

4 garlic cloves, minced

2/3 cup celery, chopped

15 oz can Bush's Cannellini Beans, drained and rinsed 

2 cups fat free reduced sodium chicken broth

1 1/2 tsp McCormick Mediterranean Herb Seasoning

2 cups chopped greens - I used beet greens that I had chopped and froze at the end of gardening season. You can substitute any greens you prefer, such as Spinach, Kale, Escarole. 

Throw all ingredients except for the chopped greens into the crock pot, set it on low, and go do something else for the day. I went to work. 

When I came home, the house smelled divine! 

I took some cornbread out of the freezer, and the beet greens, and poured a glass of wine. 

When it was time to serve dinner, I threw the beet greens in a few minutes before we ate just to wilt them. 

I topped the soup with freshly grated Parmesan and served with warm cornbread. 

And the rest of my wine. 

It was a very, very good meal. My tummy was happy. 

This made 8 portions, which makes this a very inexpensive meal. 

And if any of you are following Weight Watchers (the current Oprah version) this stew is only 3 points per serving. 

Guess what's for lunch today? 

I can't wait. 

~~~~~~~~~~~

Sharing at

Simple Saturdays

Inspiration Monday

Share It One More Time

Tweak It Tuesday

Tuesdays at Our Home

Inspire Me Tuesday

Friday Weigh In and Happy Things

The Irish believe that things happen in threes. 

Bad things tend to happen in threes. 

But good things also happen in threes. 

Last night when I got home from work there were three deer in my back garden. I was happy to see them as I had been hearing the hunters in the woods not so long ago. 

This morning when I was leaving for work there were three turkeys at the end of my lane. Which is rather unusual as they generally travel in much larger groups, known as a rafter of turkeys. 

And this morning when I weighed in (remember, Friday is weigh in day!) I lost exactly three pounds. 

YIPPEEEEEEEEEE!!

Is there some significance in the number 3 on this day? I don' t know. 

But I was happy. 

I feel much better than I did at the start of the year. 

My body is no longer craving cookies. Instead it craves fruit and greens. And whole grains. 

Yes, I still eat cheese. 

Yes, I still drink wine. 

But I have been trying to eat more whole foods and stay away from processed foods. I still eat 'regular' dinners - I just eat smaller portions. 

I am mindful of what I am putting in my body. 

And it's working. I'm down 7.4 lbs so far this month. And I feel so much better for it!

Other things that made me happy on this beautiful morning:

The sunshine through the kitchen window making the bottles glow. 

The daffodil that my daughter brought home from Trader Joe's last night and put in the kitchen window to make me smile. The rest are in her room. She adores daffodils!

The new fridge magnet the pups bought me for Christmas. Bold little furbabies!

And the one I bought for myself! Ha ha, I could have written this one!

The way the sun was streaming in the guest room window this morning. No wonder those plants are so happy!

The reflection of the Swiss Dot Sheers on the Big Green Monster. I have always, ALWAYS loved Swiss Dot Sheers on my windows!  And my paperwhites are starting to respond to all that morning sunshine. 

And both horses came to my bedroom window to say good morning on this fine day. 

What made you smile today? 

Recipe Roundup

I can't believe I've been blogging for just about 6 months now! And I've 'met' so many amazing new friends - what an incredible bonus that has been!

I know many of you have just recently found my blog and I am so happy you did! I truly cherish each and every one of your comments and I feel so incredibly blessed to have so many folks following my little blog. 

I have created a Facebook page for my blog which is interesting because I am NOT a Facebook person in the least! However, it's a great place for me to share some of the various articles that I find interesting as well as some recipes, cooking and house tips, and incredible houses. Please click on the link on the right side of my page to like me on Facebook - this way my posts will come right to your page. 

At least I think that's how it works!!  :) Correct me if I'm wrong....

Since so many of you are new to my world I thought I would do a little recipe roundup where I gather all the recipes I've posted so far into one convenient location. The link to each recipe can be found below the photo. 

Most of my recipes are fairly easy to make and are made with healthy ingredients like lots and lots of veggies! 

And cheese....always cheese. 

Enjoy!!

Tortellini with Fresh Tomato Basil Sauce

Roasted Tomato Soup

The Easiest Tomato Sauce Ever

The Very Best Veggie Lasagna

Farm Fresh Bolognese

Crock Pot Chicken Broth

My First Quiche

NuNu's Pizza

Deconstructed Lasagna

Bourbon Vanilla Cranberry Sauce

Mouth Watering Meatloaf

Red and White Winter Salad

My Favorite Butternut Squash Soup

~~~~~~~~~~~

Sharing at

Simple Saturdays

Inspiration Monday

Share It One More Time

Tweak It Tuesday

Tuesdays at Our Home

Inspire Me Tuesday

Friday Weigh-In and Inspiration

I was disappointed with my weigh in this morning - I gained almost a half a pound since last week. I knew I wasn't quite as "good" this week but I was hoping for even a tiny loss, not a gain. 

It's tough being a foodie. I love to cook....and I love good food. I can't help it, it's in my blood. 

And there was a small issue with some amazing chocolates that my sweetie gave me for Christmas. 

I mean, come on - look at these!! Have you ever seen such beautiful chocolates?

This is from a company called Christopher Elbow - I read about them a few years back and ordered a gift box for my sweetie for Valentine's Day. 

And we were hooked. 

This is the holiday collection that we've been working our way through, slowly. The round ones are a soft caramel center with the flavors indicted and the square ones are more of a truffle. 

Every one of them is amazing. My favorites are the soft centers, but my sweetie prefers the truffle centers. 

We try to limit our intake of treats like this, and this box is still around and not finished yet so we're doing pretty good. 

But then sweetie opened a bar of white chocolate from the same company - also part of their holiday collection. Eggnog flavored. 

And I thought I died and went to heaven. 

I think that was my downfall this week. 

That and the rice pudding. It was sooooooo good. I may have indulged just a little too much. 

But you know what? Today is a whole new day. 

And next week I'll hope for a better weigh in. 

I'm not going to beat myself up over it.  I'm still down 4.4 lbs in only 2 weeks. 

Via

Making progress....baby steps. 

Just keep on keepin' on. 

Red & White Winter Salad...and Weigh In

As you know, I've been trying to incorporate changes into  my diet and life to have a healthier me in 2016. 

Making healthier choices. Incorporating more whole foods. More fruits and veggies. 

I know it's only the first week, but so far so good. 

Friday has always been my weigh in day. And woo hoo!! I am down 4.8 lbs! I have no doubt much of that is water weight....but either way my eyeballs were super happy to see that number on the scale this morning!

Great motivation to keep going!

Last night I made a lovely winter salad that I thought I'd share with you today. This would be a great salad for a nice winter lunch. We had it as a starter before our main meal, which was Deconstructed Lasagna - one of my favorites! 

I based this salad on some of the veggies I bought when I was prepping for my no-spend month (which I'll post my progress on weekly, beginning on Monday!)

I have never purchased Endive or Radicchio before, but they looked so lovely sitting in the produce section I just had to give them a try. 

When I got them home I honestly didn't know what I would do with them! But I knew I'd come up with something. 

And I did. Something lovely!

I started by cutting the ends off the Endive and the Radicchio. I pulled all the leaves off the Endive and cut it into strips. 

The Radicchio I chopped into rough strips as well. It's so beautiful with all that glorious color!

Next came a small red onion, peeled, cut in half, and then into thin slices. 

A red pear, just ripe enough and super juicy and sweet, also cut into strips. 

Red grapes were cut in half and tossed into the mix. 

Just look at all that good stuff in there! 

I tossed in a handful of shelled pistachios for crunch and protein. 

Next came some good Gorgonzola. Because lets face it, there's no way I'm giving up cheese entirely. And Gorgonzola and fruit is the most amazing combination!

A drizzle of olive oil, some balsamic vinegar  - I used Blackberry Ginger Balsamic from the Saratoga Olive Oil Company - it's so amazing!

Some freshly ground pepper and sea salt and you're all done. 

The sweetness of the fruit balances out the bitterness of the Radicchio. The Endive has a great fresh crunch. And the onions gave just enough bite. Add the crunch of the pistachios and the creamy tart Gorgonzola and this was a match made in heaven!

The salad as a starter meant I only took half as much pasta as I would have without that fiber filling my belly. 

My body thanks me for this wonderful goodness I nourished it with. 

And it showed on the scale. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sharing at

Inspiration Monday

Best of the Weekend

Share It One More Time

Tweak It Tuesday

Tuesdays at Our Home