Sunday, February 28, 2010

Spring is here!!! (at least on the West Coast)


Gardening has always been a part of my life. I grew up on a 40-acre farm in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley seeing grapes drying in the hot sun on their way to becoming raisins, picking the best-ever apricots from a tree that grew along a canal bank and trying to keep from falling into the water, watering crops like alfalfa and walnuts...always having fresh fruit and vegetables for meals.

So, no matter where I have lived, be it an apartment in San Diego in my 20's to here on the Central Coast of California with it's challenging clay soil, I have had a garden. I love it when seed catalogs come in the mail. I can look at them for hours, put them down and a few days later look again envisioning my garden in all its glory. I ordered a dwarf blueberry and cherry from Gurneys a few months ago and they just arrived, budding in all their beauty. We have had so much rain this year, I'll need to keep them watered and give them a daily dose of sunshine until the soil dries up a bit before I can plant them outside.

The dwarf blueberry with what looks like flowers. Can it be?

Here's how they arrived, already budding!!!

Whether you head out to a garden shop or shop on-line, it's time to Spring into action and plant a garden or even one plant. I haven't had the chance to chat yet with Dr. Earth, Milo Shammas, but I love a quote on his website that I totally agree with - "I personally believe the best thing you can ever grow is a gardener." Love it!

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Yummy & Healthy Valentine BBQ Pizza





Yummy BBQ Pizza

Pizza on a grill, but of course, it makes a nice crispy crust and lets you get lots of fresh air!

What You’ll Need
English Muffins
Pizza Sauce
Low-Fat Mozzarella Cheese
Spoon
Heart Cookie Cutter
BBQ
Tongs
Your Favorite Toppings!

How To Make It!
1. Start the bbq.
2. Place the cookie cutter on the English muffin and press down.
3. Spread pizza sauce on English muffin with the back of a spoon.
4. Sprinkle on cheese and add your favorite topping.
5. Place on bbq. Keep an eye on your pizza and remove from bbq with tongs when cheese is melted.

Calorie Calculator

I LOVE olives!!! I remember when I was a kid, my dad had a friend who made his own olives and thankfully our family received large jars for years!!! And, there were my younger days of sticking olives on my fingers at holiday celebrations!!! I can still picture Little Joan wiggling her black-tipped fingers for all to see.

I subscribe to CalOlive.org where they tempt me with beautiful pictures of olives and amazing recipes, but they also have a Health Section (and a Kid Section) with wonderful ideas from Cold Busters to Slimming Down Deliciously!

Check out the Calorie Calculator on the site too - Have you ever wondered how many calories you burn playing ball? Staring at the tube? Catching a few zzzzs? Taking a swim? Well, wonder no longer. With this fun and easy calculator you can measure calories burned for every form of activity and some things you never thought counted! Use it to calculate your entire day's activities, or simply measure them one-by-one.
http://calolive.org/health/calorie-calculator/index.aspx

I'm off to the store to buy some olives...yum!

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Monday, February 1, 2010


I found this article very informative. Take the same way you run a business and apply it to your health.