TIP OF THE DAY - THURSDAY

CULTIVATE A GARDEN. Planting, watering, pruning and caring for a garden relieves stress, beautifies your home and increases your daily activity. This we do. Calvin likes to plant all kinds of thing and even though my main jobs are to start the seeds inside and then water twice a day the other work is done by him. My main concern is my pumpkin patch. Last year we grew 7 extra large pumpkins and the grandchildren living in Oregon each got one. I was quite pleased at how well they did last year. It was lots of fun. Try it.

TIP OF THE DAY - WEDNESDAY

PLAN AN ACTIVE VACATION. Schedule a trip around activities that you can't do anywhere else-whitewater rafting, mountain climbing, scuba diving, walking tours, canoeing and more. I think this up coming campout and party fit into this tip just perfectly. I can't wait to see everyone again.

TIP OF THE DAY - TUESDAY

TAKE THE STAIRS. Skip the elevators, escalators and other "people movers" and move your own body. You'll burn calories and avoid lines in airports, malls, and offices.
NOW this tip I agree with 100%. There is just something about taking the stairs that makes you feel good. In this town we have no malls, airports or offices that have anything like elevators, or escalators to use so it is easy around here but I do enjoy taking the stairs at dad's in Myrtle Point.

TIP OF THE DAY - MONDAY

CARRY MORE WEIGHT...At the store, use baskets and a little muscle, instead of the assistance of a shopping cart. Carry your own bags and unload the car yourself to build strength and independence.
Okay this one makes no sense to me at all. Shopping carts were invented to assist me in my shopping. It cost the stores big money to provide them and it would be just plain rude not to use them. Besides we go shopping just once a week and there is no way I could carry all that stuff even with one of those sissy baskets the stores sometimes provide. No I will keep my cart and build up muscles just pushing that thing around.

A PERSONAL NOTE...OR BEANS, BEANS, THE MUSICAL FRUIT

NOW THAT I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION, As I have said before I should to eat more veggies but don't. I have been thinking a lot about mom's baked beans. Calvin loves beans and would love to have some at the picnic. I did send an email to all my sisters as you may remember and no one had mom's recipe. I have been looking on line and in all kinds of cook books but nothing. Then I got out the Betty Crocker cookbook and found a recipe like what I remember mom's tasting like. It is very hard to fix a recipe just going by what the taste in your mind tells you. It has been 40 years since I tasted mom's beans last but I knew in my mind what I wanted them to taste like. I remember mom soaking the beans over night so I did that yesterday. I remember her boiling the beans for just a minute or two and then letting them simmer while she started her laundry and other housework. I remember mom not adding onions so I too left them out and I remember mom adding extra brown sugar so I did too. The last thing mom always did was tip up the ketchup bottle and squirt ketchup till she felt like stopping. I did too. That was fun but very tricky. I then added water to cover everything in the pot. I then put the beans in the oven and waited. GUESS WHAT???? THEY TASTED JUST LIKE MOM'S. It was so cool. I even made cornbread like mom to go with the beans. Needless to say Calvin is thrilled. We will have this meal more often. I am going to make some for the picnic and now I am on the hunt for a bean pot like mom had. Haven't seen any around but I am going to start looking. I will just settle for making them in the dutch oven for the campout. I guess what I am trying to say is that even if you don't like veggies or fruit there are many ways to eat healthy and enjoy it. Some times it just takes a trip down memory lane.

TIP OF THE DAY - SUNDAY

MAKE TIME FOR MORNING FITNESS...Spend just 5-10 minutes doing pushups, lunges,jumping jacks and stretches before you shower. You'll strengthen your muscles and feel more energized each morning.

TIP OF THE DAY - SATURDAY

FOLLOW A RECIPE...Cooking more meals at home keeps you on your feet and burns more calories than picking up the phone to order takeout. Plus, homemade food is usually healthier. This is good advice for me, but I just follow a basic recipe then I add what ever I am in the mood to add. I make whole wheat bread, 2 loaves every week but it never tastes the same. I add oatmeal, or broccoli, or peanuts or carrots or whatever and it is really good. It is also fun to see what it is going to taste like and what color it turns out. I think the purpose of the tip is NO TAKEOUT...Cook at home.