Bugs and Me

What’s that expression “Once bitten, twice shy” – well I have had enough thank you.  Ten days ago I was bitten by a fire ant and posted a picture here of my swollen hand.  Well this week’s exciting adventure had me at the Urgent Care office to have the remains of a tick removed.  It was at my hairline behind my right ear.  Not a place I could get to very easily.   John very bravely tried to get it out with a pair of tweezers but unfortunately didn’t get all of it.  Once again I called my doctor and she said to go to Urgent Care and have it removed.  Success.  I now have a small hole in my neck but no more bug.   That is one very good thing about the colder climates up north.  The cold kills the bugs so we don’t have them around in the winter.  I will spare you any pictures.

Done and Done & Hints for the Holidays 

Monday brought the final test.  I took it, passed and put my books away.  It was November 30th and I declared a month off from all things having to do with school and career.  The relief at having completed this year is wonderful.  So, I thought I would pass on a few tips for the holidays.  This is such a busy time for everyone and the days are just flying by.   I loved this hint about NUTMEG.  Be generous with it and reduce your stress.  There really is nothing more delicious than a homemade eggnog with nutmeg and of course your favorite additive.  In our little town of North Hatley on Christmas Eve Joey LeBaron, who owns the local grocery store, makes her own eggnog and serves it to anyone who comes into the store.  She will not share the recipe but suffice it to say the locals are lined up to taste it.  It is served next to the cash register so you can’t miss it.  It is her way of thanking everyone for buying local.  We all will miss it this year but maybe in her honor we will serve a little here with lots of nutmeg.

Birthday Celebration

Katie’s birthday was a huge success.  Her sister surprised her by flying from North Carolina to Boston where she had arranged for some of Katie’s closest friends to join them for a celebration.  Wish we could have been there to see her face as her friends kept appearing.  It was fun to get texts from them as people arrived.  I still cannot believe that I have a daughter who is 45 but then I guess we never do.  It is rather strange to think about age.  I truly don’t think of myself as being any older than 45.  It seemed to me to be the perfect age to be.  Old enough to know better but young enough to keep trying.  When I count my blessings I start with my family and I have been extraordinarily lucky to have two beautiful daughters and a husband who loves me despite bug bites and heart attacks and I have two gorgeous, smart and funny grandchildren.  What’s that expression, “You are as old as you think you are, age is only a state of mind”, so true.

Hints for the Holidays Part 2

Try to remember to eat fresh vegetables and greens and fruit – berries.  If you can’t find fresh berries then go for the frozen ones without added sugar.  You can find them in the freezer section of your grocery store.  I learned this week that not only are walnuts good for your brain, they lower cholesterol too.  Just 10 a day.  Add them to your salad or your granola at breakfast, put them in your oatmeal or just eat a handful.  In addition I also learned that artichokes are extremely good for lowering your cholesterol so if you are a salad lover, which I am, then add them to your salad every day.  The little chart at the right is helpful for remembering to eat lots of colors every day.  It is nice to know that the benefits go beyond weight management to help you support your immune system, heart and blood health, nervous system, and your skin.  You can also help lower inflammation in your body and detoxify your body.  Greens help.  I have just added drinking a tall glass of warm water with half a lemon squeezed into it first thing in the morning.  It helps with supporting your body get rid of toxins and gives you a good shot of Vitamin C.  If you can tolerate a full lemon then do so.  It’s a good way to support your system especially if you are eating out or going to a lot of parties.  Try it for the holidays and see how you feel.

Recipe of the week

Thanks to a client who recommended I try Jamie Oliver’s  Curried Fish Stew.  I tried it last night and it was delicious.  I did not use the shrimp heads and I couldn’t find curry leaves so I just used curry powder.  It was wonderful.  If you click on the title above or the picture at left the link will take you to the recipe on his website.  Oh, the other change was I used fresh Cobia for the white fish and it didn’t have any skin on it.  The skin helps the pieces stay together but it didn’t matter one bit.  The smells in the kitchen were heavenly.

I served the stew with a beautiful, colorful spinach and strawberry salad with homemade poppy seed dressing. Homemade lemon poppy seed cake with a berry sauce made from blueberries, blackberries and raspberries for dessert.  Add a few good friends chatting over tea and coffee at the end of the meal and voila you have a perfect evening.

Decorating for Christmas

Our first every Christmas in the south and it was time to think about decorating.  After so many years up north in Lakeside Cottage, I had the decorating down to a science.  Here I have to invent what I am going to do.  Pictured is my first effort decorating the mantle.  I wanted a magnolia swag which I could not find so the nice lady at our wonderful local hardware store showed me how I might make my own from scratch using the silk flowers.  Yes, I even made the bows myself.  Quite crafty here in the south.  No small pine trees here so the Lowquat tree gets the lights.

Enjoy your week.  Try the fish stew if you get a chance and let me know how it comes out.  Eat lots of greens and get lots of rest.  The next couple of weeks are going to be very busy.  We are off to Asheville and The Biltmore Estate for their annual Candlelight Christmas Evening this week and we are really looking forward to this treat.

Here’s to a Healthy You!