Oh let the countdown begin! I am certain there aren’t many folks reading this yet – but soon I hope there will be.  I’ve already begun to spread the word about my involvement in this 3 day 60 mile walk! I am enthusiastic that I can do major good and that excitement has spilled out all over the place!

I made a decision to blog about the road to the event as much as I can – so once a week I will enlighten everyone about the milestones I’ve reached during the prior weeks and share some hopes, wishes, desires about the milestones ahead. I also hope that some folks may use my blog as fuel to participate in one of these walks themselves.  If that actually happens I would love to hear about it!

Last week was my intro post – Read about it here.

These last few days I’ve had to do a bunch of introductory stuff:

• Set up my personal page and edit as needed: Updated version here!
• Register for the “get started” meeting.
• Import my contacts from my address book to the web page that I will be using to send out requests for donations and thank you letters for those donations that I receive.
• Talk to a couple of local business folks about putting up flyers explaining my journey and donation requests.
• Printing out such flyers.

In addition to all of this, Brett made me a QR code for my personal donation page which I used on the flyers.  He also very kindly helped me lay out the said flyers and allowed use of his printer to do the actual printing of the flyers!  We both tried to import the contacts but it didn’t work so well so on my list for the next couple of days is to hand enter most of my contacts from my address book.

Thank you to Anytime Fitness Land O Lakes and Walton’s Coffee and Ice Cream for displaying my flyers!

I got one donation this week!! My first! $35.00 from Jennifer Slater – she is a fellow walker and I had the pleasure of meeting her at Alumapalooza last year. Thank you so much Jennifer!

The other part of the preparation is the physical side.  I am not the most fit girl around so I knew that I would really have to train for this – kind of like a runner training for her first marathon.  Thankfully I had already been working out for a bit before I registered for this so I have a little of a head start.  This is just as hard work as the donation part, except this makes me sweat right now, I am sure I will be sweating over the donations come September! I already have the drive in me to be super fit so its really nice to have the 3 day walk as a goal!

I keep a pretty detailed log of my progress so I thought I would go ahead and add that here as part of the progress blog, so here is how I did physically this week. Bearing in mind this is simply the cardio workout. I do a full strength training regime 5 days a week.  Weekends are relax time.

• Monday – Elliptical machine 1 mile (20 minutes), Treadmill 1 mile (30 minutes), Treadmill again at night 3.30 miles (60 minutes)
• Tuesday – Elliptical machine 1 mile (20 minutes), Stationary bike 1.5 miles (10 minutes)
• Wednesday – Elliptical machine 1 mile (20 minutes), Treadmill 3.67 miles (60 minutes)
• Thursday – Elliptical machine 1 mile (20 minutes), Stationary bike 5 miles (30 minutes), Treadmill 3.65 miles (62 minutes)
• Friday – Elliptical machine 1 mile (20 minutes), Stationary bike 3.25 miles (20 minutes)

Phew. Quite the workout this week – my goal is to better it next week in so far as the amount of miles I accomplished. The total miles for this week are 26.37! I am sure I could beat that if I just sat on the bike at the easiest speed possible, but that is not the way I want to do this!

Goals for next week:

1. Longer times on elliptical machine while still staying at current level.
2. Attempt the stair-climber machine that I’ve been avoiding for a month.
3. Get more donations!
4. Get more flyers out!

Thanks for taking the time to read this, if you made it this far! Feel free to comment, offer suggestions, make fun of me, etc., but please be kind – I am trying to make a tiny difference in the world!

My next update will be next Friday!

Wish me luck!

Last night I had a LOT of sweet stuff. No, I don’t just mean my other half… I mean salmon and maple syrup and honey and sugar — phew. Sugar high with omega 3′s. Is there any other way to do it? Do not answer that! I have been waiting to use the organic maple syrup that Susan gave me and I had some awesome honey (The back label reads: “Made in a cottage food operation that is not subject to Florida’s food safety regulations.”) AKA it is real honey and real good! The salmon came in bulk thanks to Fresh Market’s deal of the week last month – half priced salmon, can’t beat that!!! So I had the perfect storm of ingredients to try to make Maple Glazed Salmon. This is an Epcot recipe, from Le Cellier… I didn’t modify this – they actually had two recipes, I combined them, replacing the bed of watercress with a bed of baby spinach as well as replacing seared with seared and then oven cooked. Personal preference ya know?

And… I didn’t do so well with the candied pecans I tried twice, two different ways and they just didn’t work for me, so I left them out. I think next time I make this, I will just add plain almonds – the glaze was sweet enough – I don’t think extra sugar is necessary!

Maple Glazed Salmon

1. Salmon – 4 salmon fillets, 2 cups hearty greens – Frisee or Spinach works the best.
2. Candied Pecans – 2 oz pecans, shelled and in pieces, 2 tsp unsalted butter, 1 tbsp apple juice, 1/2 tbsp turbinado sugar.
3. Maple Glaze – 1 cup maple syrup (I recommend organic), 1/4 cup light brown sugar, 1 tbsp honey.

Preheat oven to 425.

Start with the pecans so they can cool:

Candied pecans -

1. Heat butter in a small saucepan over a medium high heat until it just starts to brown. Immediately add pecans, stirring continuously. Stir 5-7 minutes until pecans are toasted
2. Once pecans have toasted, add apple juice stirring constantly.  When nearly all the apple juice has been reduced, add the sugar and keep stirring until the pecans have been well coated, take caution not to burn the sugar.
3. Once the pecans are well coated, turn out on to a cooling tray, spaced evenly apart and allow them to completely cool in a low humidity environment.  Reserve for salmon.

Maple glaze -

1. Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and heat over a low heat, just long enough to incorporate all ingredients and for the sugar to liquefy.
2. Remove from heat and reserve warm for salmon.

Salmon -

1. Remove any moisture from the salmon pieces by lightly using 1/4 of the canola oil.  Season both sides of the salmon with kosher salt and pepper.
2. Heat remaining 1.5 ounces of canola oil over medium high heat in a large heavy-bottomed non-stick frying pan (I use my faithful cast iron frying pan) large enough to accommodate the salmon without overcrowding.
3. Once oil has begun to smoke carefully place salmon in the pan, skin side down and lower heat to medium.
4. Cook on skin side until skin is evenly golden brown, turn salmon over and repeat.
5. Remove salmon from pan and blot with paper towels to remove any oil or fat.
6. Transfer salmon to baking pan with raised sides and drizzle each piece with half of the maple glaze.  Place in oven and bake until cooked. Time will vary depending on the thickness of the salmon – average 5-10 minutes.

While salmon is baking, arrange raw baby spinach on plates.  When salmon is done, place the pieces on the spinach and drizzle with maple glaze and sprinkle with pecans!

DONE.

I served this with Jasmine rice and roasted in the oven with olive oil and salt asparagus. YUM.

Thank you Brett for taking the photographs for me and always encouraging me to push past what I think my limits are. I am always thrilled when I try something new and he eats it up and goes back for more.

I’ve made a decision.. I’m gonna get on my shoes and walk for something good. I’ve wanted to do this for the last couple of years… and now I finally have a chance.. So lets get to it. I am not one to be all up in arms about fitness, or much of anything really.. If you know me, you know I have strong opinions about some things and an aloof attitude about most others. Have you found that what mattered before in your life is all of the sudden in the aloof category and what didn’t really phase you is now in the strong opinion category? Yea that’s pretty much how its been for me.. Open brain, drain thoughts, categorize. DONE. (must have Gordon Ramsay reference in here somewhere)

Out of this categorizing has come the desire to do this:

Susan G. Komen Tampa Florida 3-Day.  A 60 mile walk over the course of 3 days. In October.  I just registered to do this today and have committed to raising $2,300.00 minimum before the event starts.  I don’t raise it, I don’t walk.  That’s basically it in a nutshell.

For more information about this event, follow this link:

The 3day walk 

Why am I doing this? Donna is a huge factor in my reasoning. I don’t suppose I need to have a person as a reason, but when I asked myself why, the immediate answer was simply “Donna”  The other reasons are a bit lighter on the emotions such as the exercise factor, the challenge of raising this kind of money for a good cause and the challenge of walking 60 freaking miles in 3 days.  That’s not a day at the mall.

What I hope is that my friends and acquaintances and total strangers will help me achieve this goal. One is reliant on the other.  Raise money and walk.

For those who are interested, here is a link to what is my “personal page” you can make a donation right from the page, if you don’t feel comfortable with that, send me an email or leave me a message and I will work with you on other ways to do this!  Also, don’t forget that your employer might match what you donate. Wonderful employers, keep them in the loop and see if they will help!

My personal page

I will try to document any big things that happen in regards to this over the course of the months.. I have already been walking and getting much fitter – this gives me a goal to work towards and I am extremely excited to be able to have this opportunity.  There are many folks that can’t do this.  I never forget how lucky I am..

Stay tuned and thanks for taking a moment to read this.. Please spread the word!

Sometimes its really nice when we get a cold snap… recently it has meant that I cook soups.. lots of them.. Tonight I cooked Butternut squash soup. As per usual I found a recipe I kind of liked and then “fixed” it. Well this time I “fixed” it so much I completely changed it from its original version that I am simply going to call this my own!

• 3.5 small cans of chicken broth
• one medium large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and chopped into 1 inch pieces
• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 1/2 a small onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons of butter

Melt butter, add onions, saute until soft.  Add squash and 2 cans of broth; just enough to cover the squash.  Let simmer for about 20 minutes or until squash is tender – use a fork to test.  Use your judgement with the rest of stock, add a half a can at a time while you use an immersion blender to puree everything. I like my soup fairly thick but you will need to add a bit more to blend. Once you have the consistency right add the cinnamon and nutmeg and warm throughout again. Serve.

It was really nice to have the creamy consistency without having to add heavy cream!

I really wanted Mexican food tonight. I wanted to go out and eat bad for me food.  Common sense and to an extent, laziness, got the better of me.  This is why I ended up making this tonight.

Something else I want to start doing is blogging about the healthiness of the ingredients in some of my meals.  I am not on a diet so much as I am on “I need a beach body” eating plan. As far as I can tell the ratio is about 70% diet and 30% exercise, at least for me. I am going to the gym and I am concentrating a lot on what I eat and how much I eat.  I am not starving myself at all, I am simply making smarter food choices.  This started a while back with my move to eating some organic fruits and veggies as well as starting to prepare food at home rather than relying on eating out or canned/packaged food.

I do believe that knowing what you eat is very important, so with that thought in mind here is the basic info on the ingredients in the soup:

Broth -  I used Swansons fat free chicken broth.

Butternut Squash – Low in fat, butternut squash delivers an ample dose of dietary fiber. It provides significant amounts of potassium, important for bone health, and vitamin B6, essential for the proper functioning of both the nervous and immune systems. The folate content adds yet another boost to its heart-healthy reputation and helps guard against brain and spinal-cord-related birth defects such as spina bifida.

Squash’s tangerine hue, however, indicates butternut’s most noteworthy health perk. The color signals an abundance of powerhouse nutrients known as carotenoids, shown to protect against heart disease. In particular, the gourd boasts very high levels of beta-carotene (which your body automatically converts to vitamin A), identified as a deterrent against breast cancer and age-related macular degeneration, as well as a supporter of healthy lung development in fetuses and newborns. What’s more, with only a 1-cup serving, you get nearly half the recommended daily dose of antioxidant-rich vitamin C.

As if this weren’t enough, butternut squash may have anti-inflammatory effects because of its high antioxidant content. Incorporating more of this hearty winter staple into your diet could help reduce risk of inflammation-related disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and asthma.

Read More: http://www.wholeliving.com/134734/power-foods-butternut-squash

Cinnamon – Can regulate blood sugar, it can reduce LDL cholesterol levels.  It has natural anti-infectious compounds. It contains small amounts of fiber, calcium, iron, and manganese. t’s been proven effective for menstrual pain and infertility.

Nutmeg- Nutmeg has strong antibacterial properties. It is effective in killing a number of cavity-causing bacteria in the mouth.  Nutmeg can help to combat asthma and It is also used to relax muscles.

Read more: http://completewellbeing.com/article/a-nutty-affair/

Onions – Early American settlers used wild onions to treat colds, coughs, and asthma, and to repel insects. In Chinese medicine, onions have been used to treat angina, coughs, bacterial infections, and breathing problems.  Onions contain a number of sulfides similar to those found in garlic which may lower blood lipids and blood pressure. Onions are a rich source of flavonoids, substances known to provide protection against cardiovascular disease. Onions are also natural anticlotting agents. Onion extracts, rich in a variety of sulfides, provide some protection against tumor growth.

Read more: http://www.vegetarian-nutrition.info/updates/onions.php

Oh and butter – its real, and its good. In moderation except at Christmas, Thanksgiving and my birthday!

Omg. I never get a good enough picture of this animal because he has ADD.. I swear.. so he will never sit still long enough for me to get a “portrait” shot of him.  And he hates the camera.

Let the angels sing, I got one.

Have I said how much I love this little lens Brett?

Typically my Halloween here in Florida consists of two chairs, a table, eight pounds worth of candy and some lively bantering with the neighbors. No doorbell ringing, only driveway camping.  Let’s not forget about the 2 bottles of wine.

And then we had chicken soup. I loved this soup. Never ever will I be tempted by Campbell’s chicken noodle soup again. Really easy to make. I found it on the Food Network website. I didn’t want a crock-pot soup.  I want this soup when I am sick.

I tweaked it, of course, adding red pepper flakes to give it a bit of a bite. I used rotisserie chicken – the entire chicken.  I added way more carrots and celery than it actually calls for! More stock was added and I didn’t have a chance to make my own for this so I used canned low sodium Swansons for the liquid. The recipe as it is written doesn’t call for any flavor melding time so I switched things up and made it a little differently than what the recipe says to do. I actually had this all made up without the noodles and sitting on the stove lightly simmering and sometimes not, while we were giving out free sugar to willing victims.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 medium carrots, cut diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices – OR MORE!
• 2 celery ribs, halved lengthwise, and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices – OR MORE!
• 4 fresh thyme sprigs
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 quarts chicken stock – I used about 12 cups of stock!
• 8 ounces dried wide egg noodles – I used the No-Yolk variety – they stand up well to liquid.
• 1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken - Or a whole rotisserie chicken.
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper -  and a pinch of red pepper flakes
• 1 handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped – oops, I forgot this…

Directions

Organic. Think organic veggies when making soups.  More about that later. Meanwhile, back to thinking about tomorrows dinner..

Classics..Both in title and media.. There is this wonderful music store beside Mazzaro’s, they had tons and I mean TONS of vinyl.  It was quite the sight. 3 million records in the main shop.. this smaller shop was absolutely amazing.  If you’re local to Tampa, you should check this out just for the trip down memory lane..

Mazzaros. How I love you.  Like someone said “I could live here”. Well OK, I won’t go that far but can I have the house across the street please?

I’ll stop dreaming and get to telling ya about what Brett and I got up to last night.  Lots of wine, lots of conversation and lots of food.  Nutella risotto anyone? Oh and the glass making demonstration!

All of this fun and games was to support a local charity. – The Abilities Foundation has helped thousands of Floridians with all types of disabilities obtain jobs and affordable housing, enabling them to contribute to the economic strength of their communities as productive wage-earners and taxpayers.

I like these people! Check them out – help out, contribute. They do good work.

And when they throw a party, they REALLY throw a party!

Part of last nights festivities included a silent auction along with wine tasting.

A picture is worth a thousand (slurred) words…

The left one I won/purchased – silent auction.. the right one I purchased. Everybody is happy! That bottle of wine is really heavy by the way – I’ve never picked up a big bottle of wine like that. Call me a scaredy cat and I would call you right! The proceeds from the silent auction helped Abilities out and I get a wonderful bottle of wine to enjoy…. sometime…Oh and it is signed… I have no idea by who.. That remains a mystery!

The glass art demo was pretty neat too.

Oh, and the food- cheese, meats, egg noodles with white sauce and caviar, nutella risotto and more… the food just kept coming – like this:

Delicious!

Check the links out – Do good. Be good. Get good.

Changes in lives, changes in seasons.. Love to Donna Mom..

Happy fall to everyone! A present arrived in the mail for me yesterday – I was quite excited, and I was even more excited when I opened it. See, being down in the land of warmth and only having two seasons we don’t get the special treats like most in the north do.  I don’t miss many of them… I miss this one. Would I trade my warm(ish) winters for this? Probably not – been there, done that – but it’s really nice to have someone think enough of me to send me this yum yum!

Thank you Susan

I bet I can get you to eat more salmon if I used this, right Bon?

Great and small!

Its not edible!