I Am A Lion

I became a Lion last night.  Just one little person among 1.3 million Lions around the world.  As minor as that might seem.... I plan on making a difference. 

For someone who does not like attention.... be the center of attention.... be recognized.... be honored.... last night brought tears to my eyes.   

But today I am thankful for many things.  For my husband for giving me the time I needed to make the decision to become a Lion.  For Lion Neil for always being supportive of my hair-brain ideas even though I was not a Lion, and for all the incredibly nice things he said last night.  For the MFLC as they're an incredible group of people that have always made me feel welcome even though I wasn't "one of them." 

It's taken me awhile to make the decision to join the MFLC.  I've been sitting in the sidelines, watching... listening....learning.... taking note of the dynamics of the club.  To be perfectly honest, I've been waiting to see if my husband would get tired and drop out, but he hasn't.  His passion has gotten stronger and stronger as each year passes.  This made me look at the club harder and harder, to see what there was about it that got my husband so fired up.  What it did was make me realize this club and the members in it were something special, doing special things, making my town a better place and I decided I wanted to be an official part of this. 

This is what you need to know about me.  When I get involved, I will throw myself in 150 percent.  Please don't hold this against me, or anyone who has a passion for what they're doing and believe in.  I will use my strengths to the benefit of the club and learn from my weaknesses.  Hopefully. I hope to come up with ideas the club feels are worthwhile and have merit and will work as hard as I am needed and then some. 

I look forward to becoming a better person, for isn't this what Lionism is all about?  Personal growth?  Stepping out of your box?  Helping others?  Making a difference?

Here's what you might not know about me but will give you a better understanding of who I am and why I do what I do.  I gave the State of Alaska (Department of Administration) everything I had for 30 years.  I was one of those dedicated State employees who loved going to work every day.  For eight years I was the Commissioner of Administration's Executive Secretary; taking care of people, sharing information, ensuring tasks got done, being the keeper of all things and an organizer.  For many years I wrote a technology newsletter for the department and others who wanted it.  I was a trainer for computer software programs and department policies.  I created and maintained an Intranet (internal web page for employees) and a web-based newsletter for the department as well as policy manuals. 

This is who I am.  This is what I love to do.  These are my strengths.  We won't mention my weaknesses....

I hope to bring fresh ideas to the club that utilize these strengths and passion I have for doing them.  But I'll be just as happy to pick up trash alongside the road three times a year.  

Easter Memories

When I was little.... probably 7 years old.... I heard the Easter Bunny....  I didn't see him, but I heard him!  I remember how excited I was, but I didn't get out of bed.  I was sleeping with my mom at the time, as our dad was in the Veteran's Hospital.  We lived in an older home and my mom had a great, big kitchen cabinet.  I'm pretty certain I heard the Easter Bunny hop from the top of the refrigerator down to the kitchen cabinet.  I'm 100% certain. 

Now, I know.... there is no such thing as an Easter Bunny, but I will never ever forget the sound, the excitement, the joy I felt that night.  I guess that's why today, I still believe.  I believe in the Easter Bunny, in Santa, in the Tooth Fairy.  Because you just never know....

Later!
Nancy

When Life Gives You Lemons

When Sur la Table gives you lemons.... There's something about lemons.  Maybe it's their color.  Yellow.  Sunny.  Bright.  But when I saw these lemon plates on the Sur la Table website, I knew I had to have them.  Why?  Because I'm a plate junky.  There, I said it.  I love plates!  They are my weakness.  I would have a set for every occasion and holiday if I could.  I usually buy a set of four salad/dessert plates so it's not too bad.... but some times I just have to splurge and buy dinner plates too. 

Then, when I saw this lemon background for my blog, I knew I had to use it!  For now, anyway.  It's cheery and bright and will get me through winter and into summer. 

Aren't these plates yummy?

Later! 
Nancy

What's in it?

As I've gotten older, and more wiser.... I tend to take better care of what I put in my body.  Okay, it doesn't hurt that some of it is because of doctor's orders.... like flaxseed for extreme dry eyes or vitamin D because of sun deprivation here in Alaska or less sugar because of high glucose levels.  Maybe that's what started it.  But I am more conscience now of what I eat, how it's grown, where it's grown, and how it's prepared.

But my latest journey for a better life is to check ingredients.  I try to buy organic but it's quite expensive where I live and we don't have the luxury of farmer's markets.  I do grow vegies in the summer but because of our weather, we're restricted to cold weather crops--lettuces, kale, spinach, chard, peas, etc. Growing our own salad ingredients is a great way to know what's going into our body, and knowing that it's pesticide free.  But because gardening can be very challenging here, every year I say "this is the last year for gardening," but then spring rolls around and next thing you know, I've got lettuce, chard, and peas planted!   

Anyway, growing my own leafy vegies is one way I can keep track of what we put in our mouths.  The other is to check the ingredient list which hasn't become an automatic thing for me yet.  I just assume.... because we are mindful of what we eat and why I choose the products I do.... that it's good for us.  But yesterday, as I was putting my Yoplait No Fat yogurt into my grocery cart, a new yogurt caught my eye.  Liberte. 

I thought what an odd name for a yogurt.... But the coconut flavor ingrigued me so I picked it up and by some miracle, I turned the container around to look at the list of ingredients.  Now, note, I have NEVER done this to Yoplait yogurt.  Like I said, I just assume that what I choose to buy at the grocery store is bought because it's best for my body.  In this case, it was because of the "no fat" content. So now I pick up the Yoplait and turn it around to look at the nutritional value and list of ingredients.  This is what I found:

Look at the list of ingredients in Yoplait, most of which I have no idea what they are!  This simply is not acceptable any longer.  The list for Liberte is simple:  whole milk and cream, sugar, coconut and a handful of other somewhat familiar ingredients.  The question is.... will I trade the "no fat" content for 13 grams of fat now....?  Maybe once in a while it won't hurt me...?  Will I trade the higher carb content? Possibly.  Liberte yogurt is THE BEST yogurt I have ever eaten in my life. It is so smooth, and creamy, and yummy it just caresses my mouth with the better things in life. Yes, once in awhile won't hurt me....  After all the list of ingredients IS better....

Later! 
Nancy

How many times have I stopped and started blogging again over the years....  I have to say, I miss it when I'm not posting. 

I've been writing most of my life.  When life was tough, I resorted to putting my thoughts down in a journal.  One journal led to two and then another and another.  Over the years, I had quite the accumulation of my thoughts on paper.  And a lot of them weren't anything I wanted to share with my kids so when they grew up, I tossed most of them.  I regretted doing it... as it was my life.... but so much of it was my married life of which wasn't good.  I didn't want my kids to read about it.

Then I found blogging and fell in love with it!  What I find interesting about it all is that I hate to talk.  I'm not much a talker.  I don't pick up the phone and call people.  I don't like groups of people.  I don't find myself amusing, interesting, or especially intelligent, yet I can usually find something interesting to blog about! I feel like I'm a totally different person when I blog as the words just flow out of me.  Go figure. 

I might try blogging again.  I have alot to report since my last post so very long ago.  I need an avenue to express myself and this fits.  Plus, it's a lot faster than keeping a written journal! 

I hope you come along for the ride and see what we're up to here in the Far North.  Maybe you'll find our lives amusing... maybe pathetic!  Maybe you'll have a good laugh or two over the antics of our babysitting career....  This is our life and I wouldn't change it. 

Later! 
Nancy

Good Reads

Fall is hitting us head on!  The leaves are falling.  It's windy.  The days of all daylight are turning into shorter days with less daylight.  Pretty soon we'll be winterizing our gardens and tidying up the place in preparation for winter. 

Then I can sit back and read. 

I don't have a lot of free time in the summer.  I mean, it's daylight all night long.  We're busy busy.  We're trying to get projects done and enjoying life while the weather is nicer.  But I don't generally read much in the summer. 

This time of year, though, I start thumbing through my piles of books to select the next few to read.  I'm a light reader.  I don't like to invest a lot of energy into reading a book that I have to contemplate and I certainly don't like books where I have to analyze what's being said!  Just give me a good read.  It can be a romance, a western, a comedy, a true story, a mystery.  It can be about dogs, or other countries, wars, or the Oregon Trail.  It just needs to be light otherwise they'll only put me to sleep.  Actually, all books do, put me to sleep.  As soon as I start reading, my eyelids will get heavy. 

I've read some really good books this past year.  I actually keep a list of the books I've read throughout the year and rate them with stars.  Yes, I'm pathetic, I know!  But those books that I rate a three of four star (****) are books I will keep in my library to reread. 

Like Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay.  Good.  Good.  Good.  This was a 4**** book. Sadly, I did give this book away and I don't know why.  Now I'll have to buy another copy.


Some of my other favorite reads are books that are centered around cooking, like Francesca's Kitchen by Peter Pezzelli and .  And The School of  Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister.  I love books about cooking because they're always centered around love, family, or romance. 

I also love book series.  The Mitford series by Jan Karon is one of my long-time favorite series.  Every year when the next book comes out, I re-read all the previous books before I'll read the newest.  Course, after doing this every year, they get to be pretty fast reads because I already know all the characters and what's going to happen next.  But series draw me in and I feel like I know the characters.  The Cedar Cove series by Debbie Macomber is another favorite series of mine.  These series take me away into a place where I'm comfortable. 

I love romance novels....  I'm such a sucker for a good romance.  Like Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks. I love all Nicholas Sparks books, but just recently got rid of all of them.  There are some books that I love, but don't re-read over and over because they're so similar to any other romance book out there.   They're a dime a dozen. 


Then there's books about dogs.  I have a couple in my library that make me laugh and cry.  Running to the Mountains and A Dog Year by Jon Katz.  If you're a dog lover, check out these two books. 


I'm also drawn to historical novels.  Not non-fiction, but fiction about the real events.  One of the best I've read recently was Moloka'i by Alan Brennert.  A good, good book about the Leper colony of Hawaii. 


So there you have it.  Some of my favorite reads.  These are all books I'll keep in my library.  The books I didn't keep, aren't worth mentioning, I guess! 

What are some good books you've read recently?  Nancy

Morning Time Granola

I love my mornings.  I love getting up early and waiting for the morning to happen.  I love sitting at the table, sipping my coffee, reading through emails, checking my Facebook page, reading my favorite blogs and watching the bird and squirrel activity outside. I love my quiet time.  Those mornings when I don't have to be in a hurry to get going, to get dressed, to be ready for the day. 

Those days are far and few in between though since I babysit grandbabies many days of the week which does not allow for any morning loafing on my part.  And now I'm trying to squeeze in a 30 minute walk before the kids arrive, which gives me hardly any "me" time.  Well, I suppose it's all "me" time, but it's "me being busy" time, not the quiet time I love in the mornings. 

But I cherish those quiet mornings when I have nothing pressing to do but sit and enjoy the morning. 

I have a wonderful recipe for granola, and a perfect breakfast is a little granola with a little yogurt on top and some blueberries and/or bananas on top of that.  With my cup of coffee.  And my quiet time.  The only detail I'm missing is the tropical breeze and early morning balmy weather of Hawaii.  But THAT'S my ideal morning. 

If you like granola, try this recipe that I got from my sister, who got it from our cousin.  It's fantastic. 

FRUIT AND NUT GRANOLA

In large bow, combine: 

6 cups regular rolled oats

2 cups almond (or pecans)

1 tsp cinnamon

In smaller bowl, whisk together:

1 cup honey

3/4 cup canola oil

1 TBS vanilla

Stir honey mixture into oat mixture.  Spread on lightly oiled cookie sheet.  Bake 350 until brown, about 20-25  minutes.  Stir, scraping sides and bottom.  Reduce heat to 225 and continue baking about 1 hour, stirring occasionally.  Let cool completely in pan, then scrape into air tight container or Ziploc bag.

In smaller airtight container, combine:

2/3 cup dried cherries

2/3 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup slivered almonds

You can mix or match this dried fruit to whatever you like.  When ready to serve, just add the dried fruit. 

This is so yummy.  I don't usually add the dried fruit, though, but opt for fresh fruit instead.  Enjoy! 

Later!  Nancy

A Little About Me

When I started blogging in 2007, I was very committed.  The stories just rolled from my fingers.  For those who don't blog, it can be quite time consuming and could be considered a full-time job by those who are successful at it.  I'm not one of those people but still enjoy doing it.  You're not just writing a story and posting it.  You're sharing your life, some times the most personal side of it.  The good, bad, and ugly.  Like this post of me titled, "It's only  Monday." Seriously, where else would I expose myself to such silliness except as an anonymous person on the Internet?!  And I'm sure there are much worse "confessions" than this.   

Some blogs are picture perfect.  You drool over their homes.  Their perfect homes.  Not a stitch out of place.  All the linens are ironed.  The bed is perfectly made, layer upon layer of beautiful vintage linens.  Their nicknacks are sparkling.  My home isn't one of those.   We have clutter and messes.  There's always dog hair and dust.  And I'm not ashamed to show it as you can read at the real me! 

I don't usually have have problems coming up with things to write about.  My problem stems with the fact that I have trouble shutting up!  Some times my posts get too long and I'll be the first to admit it.  Like this post titled, A  Rainy Day for Reading.  This time around I'm trying hard to keep them short, but still personal. 

I love blogging.  I guess because I love writing.  I've kept journals for most all my adult life so this comes easy.  Chatting to no one in particular.  It intrigues me because in the real world I don't care to talk much, but in the blogging world I can write about anything.  Why is that?

But I love blogging.  Sharing little glimpses into my town and my life.   Like the story titled "Friends" about the connection between my precious grandbabies Hunter and Ellis.  Best friends for sure. 

But blogging is time consuming.  You need to take pictures to include in your post, and then there's the downloading, storing, selecting, saving, and sizing. This is the part I don't care so much for.

And if you want to have a successful blog, you need to visit other blogs, leave comments, invite people to visit yours.  It's a give and take endeavor.  I don't have the time to be a full-time PR person for my blog.  I want people to read it.  I hope they read it.  But I also look forward to the comments they leave.  It lets me know others were here.  You can visit some of my favorite blogs by clicking on the links at the right, like Lilac Lane Cottage and Kathy's Cottage. 

But even if you come and visit and don't leave a comment, that's okay.  Here's a post from a couple years ago--Tag, You're It!".  I was "tagged" by another blogger to share eight things about myself. 

Enjoy!  Nancy

The Garden of Life

Why is it I have way more to talk about and share than there are days in the week?
I could combine them all into a Week in Review collage and still not be able to cover it all.
It's not that my life is full of exciting adventures and stories to tell.
I'm not even one of those people who lives life to its fullest.
I just live a full life.

I live a quiet life.

A life centered around family and a few good friends.

Each week a rerun of the previous week.

I garden.

I babysit grandkids.

Then I garden some more.

We go for rides, getting a glimpse of our neighbor's lives through the gardens they tend.

Then I babysit some more.

We have family dinners.

Then I garden some more.

Occasionally we travel South to visit family.

Or head to exotic places and dream the life we wish we had.

Many of our travels are just across the street, visiting good friends and drinking wine on their porch. 

We pick berries along the side of the road and weathered glass on the beach.

We read.  Watch tv.  Play games.

I bake.  And eat.... Then bake some more...

Then we visit with the kids and laugh with the grandkids.

No, I certainly do not live an exciting life. 

I live a full life, a life I'm content with most of the time.

 My cousin's wife passed away a year ago.  She wasn't very old. 

He posted the following on his Facebook wall:

"Her message to you would be - if you have always wanted to do something and you’ve been waiting for the right time. It’s now."

Every time I read that passage, it brings tears to my eyes. 

Here's a woman who lived life, she just didn't have enough life to live.

That statement hits home because, you see, I'm still waiting for the "right time...."

I'm not certain what I'm waiting for, but I'm waiting....  

It seems I've been waiting most all my life for something.

To move south to live near family.

To travel across the U.S.

To live in a little cottage on the water. 

To learn to play the piano.

To travel to Maine to eat lobster.

Yes, that's me.... always waiting to experience life.

For the freedom and gumption to go, do, and be. 

I know my day will come to go, do, and be.

And I also know I'm supposed to be right here, right now.

Living in the present. 

But still, that statement makes me uneasy because it's so true.

We don't know what tomorrow will bring.

Or if there will BE a tomorrow.

Many people feel that since we're retired, we should be traveling the world.

Doing exciting things!  Being exciting people!

Or at least not being so tired from babysitting. 

And I have to agree that babysitting grandbabies was not on my list of things to do when retired. 

But I also believe this is where we're supposed to be at this time in our life.

This is who we are.

This is our chosen life. 

Family.

For now anyway.

Before we know it we'll have the freedom to pursue our dreams.

We can be those people others think we should be. 

More importantly, we can be the people WE think we should be....

It'll be interesting to see how our life will change....

I know one thing. 
In my next chapter, I do plan on seeing if the grass really IS greener somewhere else.
And I do plan on traveling the world, or at least the United States.
And I do plan on living a fuller life, living life, experiencing life, learning about life. 

My life will always be my children and my family but it's time to start checking things off my Life List.
I don't want any regrets.

Laundry Day

I'm not particularly fond of doing laundry....
all the sorting, bending, folding, and putting away. 

But I do love hanging laundry outside to dry.
Why is that? 
It certainly isn't a quicker process. 
It takes more time to hang clothes than to throw them into the dryer.

I think part of it is saving money on electricity.

The other part is I love the smell of fresh hung laundry.
Do you? 

hot dog roast

The other night we feasted on fresh King Salmon!  There's a new seafood market in town and we were able to buy whole salmon for $8.50 a pound!  We bought three whole salmon. 
Mike grills THE BEST salmon.  Here's his secret ingredient--Hickory Smoked Salt.  Yes, you heard it here, first. 
Sprinkle a generous amount on both sides of the steaks.  These steaks are "butterflied." 
Then you grill on a hot bed of coals for literally a couple minutes, just until the salmon is no longer raw.  You want to get it off the grill while the oils are still oozing out.  That's what makes it so good.
The salmon flakes away just so....  and it's so good you'll think you died and went to Heaven. 
Yes, it's THAT good.

Anyhow, that was two night's ago. 
Last night we had Ball Park All Beef Dogs roasted on an open fire in the back yard!

I'm not too keen on hot dogs, but it hardly gets any better than this!

 

It started like this, with the coals just perfectly right. 

Mike made this new fire pit this year and it's so much nicer to sit around.
Our other one was just a pit of rocks and blocks and used more to burn yard debris than to enjoy.

Mike's first dog ended like this....

Yea.... he overcooked his dog.... or maybe it was the stick....
No matter, the dog ended up in the coals.

 It looks pretty disgusting here.... 

 Smores anyone? 

It was a good night.

Patriotism

As we were driving around town today, I snapped some pictures of my favorite patriotic moments.  Enjoy! 

This was on an island off Douglas Island.  Those trees?  They're huge Spruce Trees.  Look at the size of that flag hanging over them!  Way cool!

This gets Most Patriotic of a Business!

 This house got Most Patriotic! 



 Sadly, once we left Douglas Island, we didn't see much patriotism....  Especially downtown Juneau. 
Why is that? 

 Some homes felt two flags were better than one....

 And some snazzed up their porch with pretty flowers which is always a winning combination. 

 I give myself Patriot of the Year!  Actually, I give that award to my husband, because he makes me so.  And I love him for that.  Actually, we should be voted Most Patriotic Couple!
I love that I teared up today when I heard the song, "God Bless the USA" by Lee Greenwood. 

 There isn't enough Patriotism in our country today.  I think there should be a grassroots movement to get it back!  YES! 

I'm proud to be an American, and I may just leave all this red white and blue up all year.