green secrets and harness amplification

last night when i went to bed, i found one of the hidden rawhide chews..under my cover...oh, silly chaco.

they woke me up early today, so we went for a walk because it was like 80' out. we walked by the dog park because big dog was in there, and when we got up toward the playground, we saw children running over toward the sidewalk, where there was another walker with a boxer. bruno looked up and said, "can we please cut across the lawn?" so we did to avoid the children. and we went through a breezeway toward the ponds and around the office, and by the time we got up toward the office, the boxer and his lady was already up there. the boxer was showing interest in the boys and so she had him sit, then as we walked by, he couldn't control himself and he lunged forward to play, but of course it scared the boys because they didn't know big, scary, so we kept going and the boxer was dragging his lady-she had very little control-he was obviously stronger than she was. so  we walked as fast as we could until we were out of reach.

one of my friend wasn't sure what kale was, so i thought i would take a pic because it's so good for you and i hear it's fairly easy to grow your own...hearty kale!

looks like many other greens-

let me quickly outline the benefits of kale for those who are not familiar:high concentrations of antioxidants-cartenoids and flavanoids-proven to aid in prevention of bladder, breas, colon, ovary and prostate cancers...also contains a wide variety of vitamins and minerals that boost cardiovascular health and detoxify the system. the longer it sits, the more bitter it becomes..smaller leaves will be milder and more tender.

swiss chard-(for visual, click here) significant amount of fiber and protein-helps regulate blood sugar levels after consumption. excellent source of vitamins c, e and k, beta-carotene, and manganese. offers a load of antioxidants.

flax seeds-nutty, crunchy, king of Omega-3 fatty acid, offer healthy dose of fiber and contain organic compounds that help lower cholesterol and strengthen bones.

chia seeds- mayan strength seed contains protein, carbs, fat and fiber, making it an ideal energy booster! high in omega3 and omega6 fatty acids, helping the body stabilize blood sugar and slow carb digestion. also a good source of iron, calcium and zinc.

sesame seeds-packed with nutrients. helps lower cholesterol, prevent high blood pressure, protects body against liver damage. great source of calcium(bone development, reduce risk of colon cancer), anti-inflamatory, arthritis fighting  copper!

the above information is from the nutriblast pocket nutritionist- i got it special with my magic bullet and i love it because it has a lot more information about fruits, other greens and other boost seeds and nuts.

 

today was relatively lazy..we may yet make a trip to petsmart to see about collars. we got a few things done. i was able to make some more green chicken chili (a recipe which i have shared with several-love it), i poached some chicken for later use in the week, and froze 2 breasts (chicken breasts of course)...

i also looked up those cabins i was thinking about staying in , when we go to our family reunion (the ones i mentioned yesterday...well, they would have been great-$35/night, up to 6 people, right there at the park! already reserved. boo. so i looked up some hotels and their ratings and found one that i think will serve our purposes...now to see if mom and dad can get a discount through their membership! i wish we didn't have a stupid training thing at the beginning of august, right in the middle of my plans. that sucks.

so we didn't find any collars that fit at petsmart, so we made our way back to pet plus, and found the matching collar! and the gal who helped us, when she saw what i was doing said, "that's brilliant!" well, i am an elementary school teacher for dallas isd, you learn how to get creative!

you can see where the collar and the harness are connected.

bruno is a little stubborn about getting in the car, then when he realized where we were going he was at ease

but sadly neither store had patriotic collars...what is wrong with this picture? i guess we will just have to find our collars online.

green dreams....

julie

mustard greens...your name is so deceiving...

well, today i wasn't sure whether my student teacher would show up or not (because i had e-mailed telling her she didn't have to-but i was hoping she would). i got called to the principal's office and thought i might be in trouble, but i wasn't-thank goodness, she just wanted to talk about the weather! (wait, when have kay and i ever sat down to talk about the weather?! but it's true.) so, after picking up my kiddos a little late, we got to the classroom, and brooke wasn't there. then she walked in right as breakfast was coming in the door. yea! it's always more fun with another adult in the room!

i had gotten a fun gift of some classroom type supplies that i thought she might be able to put to use, so i pulled it out and she had gotten me a thank you card and a gift card to the greatest teacher store ever-

i am the luckiest teacher ever!

remember the day i talked about getting a sprinkles cupcake?  well, i'm glad i forgot to go, although, on the way home today, i remembered and decided to head over that way and half-way, i decided that it would be even better to stop by nothing bundt cakes instead-closer and even more delicious! i remember gigi telling me it was off royal, so i gps'd it, and drove up preston, then i wasn't really exactly sure where it was, but i needed to stop in to central market for some swiss chard. well, i was in the parking lot after making the purchase, and my phone kept telling me it was to my right. i looked around and didn't see it. i went to the window of celebrity cakes and looked in (like one of those norman rockwell paintings with the little kids) only to realize it was not the right place. i got back in my car and went across the intersection and looked in that shopping area...not there...went back, looked again...it was in a small strip right facing preston road-strangely located if you are unfamiliar...back me up, gigi. but i finally found it as i pulled out onto preston one last time! red velvet, you made my day!

ahhhh!!!!! angels singing halleluiah!

at some point during the day, we were talking about salsa and mango salsa came up, so tonight, i bought a couple more mangoes to try it out because i just ran out of salsa. it was missing something, so i added some cumin, salt, basil....it's all good.

and i got my chard for morning shakes-in case you are not familiar...

they have red stems-love the taste, it is a favorite.

 i got a lot because it freezes well for the smoothies. i tried mustard greens the other day. big mistake. i thought, 'well, everything else i've tried in the greens lately has been ok, kind of nutty, or green-ish tasting....not so with the mustard greens. surprisingly, they taste a lot like...mustard. ew. mustard and strawberries. not a good combo. i took a bite of a leaf before throwing it in, and spit it out and threw the rest away. nas-tay!

and note to self, i have GOT to take the Christmas music out of my phone because driving around in 105' and a random saxophone rendition of 'i'm dreaming of a white Christmas' comes on...aargh. first of all, to me, Christmas is the most romantic season of the year. Christmas music on a cold winter night with snow flakes drifting down-romantic. umm...romantic Christmas music when i have sweat beads on my brow is in no way romantic- taking it off tonight so that i don't ruin it for this winter.

the boys have rawhide chews and chaco keeps getting it and going up to bruno and saying, "no, you can't have it. stop trying to come after it..." and fake growling with his little tail wagging and turning his back to bruno. bruno doesn't even want it, but he'll pretend to grab at it just to humor chaco. then when chaco looks away, bruno looks up at me and says, "was that good? i didn't really want it, but i want him to leave me alone." such a good brother!

now i need to review my lesson because apparently i am under the microscope tomorrow,
julie