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Operation Stay Young
So we are a month in to our New Years Resolutions or Goals. How are you doing? I’m feeling pretty good. Hubs bought me a pedometer, a basic Fit-Bit, for Christmas and it has been a wonderful motivator for me. It reminds me if I want to meet my goal by the end of the day I need to move. That may mean doing a little running in place while I fold laundry, having a mid-afternoon dance party in the kitchen with the kids (making sure I move my feet to keep those steps going) or just a couple extra jogs up and down our steps. For me it’s the…
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Taking Life by the Reins
It was going to be a long week without my main squeeze. Hubs had JAG training at Fort Belvoir for a week and I knew for sure we would miss him. Truth is, it’s hard when your best friend leaves, even if only for a week. (And yes, I have done the year long deployment… but that’s not my point. Sometimes, I miss him when he is only sitting in the other room. Get it?) When he proposed that we tag along I admit I was a bit nervous at first. Tag along? Hang out in a hotel with the kids all week? Hit DC with just me and the kids, tackling…
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Staying Connected
I love to be connected, don’t you? Just a quick Friday morning post to remind you how you can connect easily, right from where you are, with the MilitaryAvenue.com team. Continue Reading to learn how to stay connected with the military family We are real people, real military families, that want to help you the military member, spouse, child, parent. So if you are using these social network tools then join us! We’d love to help anyway we can!MilitaryAvenue.com on PinterestMilitaryAvenue.com on FacebookSubscribe to “Our Letters to You”,a military family blogMilitaryAvenue.com on LinkedInMilitaryAvenue.com on TwitterMilitaryAvenue.com on Google+ Where are you that we aren’t? Let us know so that we can take a…
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The Heritage of a Military Brat
*E*, 9 years old, came home very excited. “MOM! We have a big project at school and it has to be about our heritage, where we come from. I want to do the country of Iceland!” What is interesting is *E* is about 25% Hungarian, 12.5% Norwegian, a splash of Irish, Danish and French and the rest German. Icelandic? There is none in his blood. But it does run in his veins. I lived in the country of Iceland from 10th grade through 12th grade at the now closed Naval Base in Keflavik. My dad flew helicopters out of the 56th Rescue Squadron with the US Air Force. So when I talk about…
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Finding the Best in a Situation
Valentine’s Day. I know some call it the “Hallmark Holiday” but I’m the romantic type [much to my hubs chagrin ;)] and don’t see it that way at all. I find joy in celebrating being a couple. Because there are some days, some hours, some moments when it is just. not. easy. So making a big to-do about Love… I think its necessary. I think it is a great reminder what it is supposed to be. I think it’s too easy to take advantage (not on purpose!) of your spouse in the hustle and bustle of our crazy days. Taking a day to really say “I Love You” is needed.…
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Seasonal Light Disorder
“Seasonal Light Disorder”. Winter is tough. Winter in northeast Ohio is dark, dreary, cloudy. My mood can plumit into depths of darkness in an instant. Today at the grocery store I picked up a fresh basil plant. I came home, washed my kitchen window, put my new little ray of sunshine on a little plate. I BREATHED in the fresh spring air, the aroma of fresh gardens, sunshine and so much more all in a tiny little pot. What do you do to help with the dark dreary winter days? When we were stationed in Iceland we put lights on timers to help keep our ‘clocks’ on cycle. As those…
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Tradition, Home, Strength and Character: Sears Heroes at Home Registry
Do you remember your kitchen growing up as a kid? I can see the Kenmore refrigerator… a prize possession in the corner. No other color available at the time than white. Mix Master purchased as a huge anniversary gift to Mom along with a variety of small appliances. Items that made it possible to have family gatherings of the magnitude that the Johansens did. Food streamed from our kitchen in Palisades Park, NJ. Mom learned to fill the house with marinara sauce from the Italian neighbors to the right, Polish stuffed veal pockets recipe came from the left. We never had boiled potatoes an fish without a fresh Norwegian remoulade…
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Up North Shrimp Gumbo
Creative instincts can be great… can get you into trouble… and open doors, or in this case a pot lid. We lived in all 4 corners of the US (CONUS). We savored some great taste sensations. We learned to like produce, fish, fruits that we not on our plates as children. Some were fantastic and some… we just couldn’t invite back again! Legumes (any sort of dried bean or pea) are just not my friends! And on that no fly list in capital letters, is okra. Tried it, and believe we are incompatible. Both Dale and I can live with that. But then there is gumbo. I love the idea.…
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Lessons of the Season
Well Summer is here! The calendar doesn’t affirm that but the weather, sun and laughter sure do. We upgraded our Intex ‘blow-up’ pool this year after trying to fill last year’s pool and finding /multiple/ holes. (It was two or three years old so quite possibly the holes were inevitable from all the fun ‘n sun of years past!) This year’s pool is 15 x 42 and quite possibly the PERFECT size for my fish… ahem, boys, ages 5 and 7. They can actually swim if they want to and stand up at any point. There is a certain feeling of safety for them that encourages them to swim harder,…
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Tasty Tuesday: Tarragon Potatoes
Thinking about which spices to plant in your herb garden this year? Stake out a square foot for some French tarragon. You will love the scent, the taste and this recipe. It truly is a favorite and a most requested recipe.Tarragon is a French herb with a horrible second name: “Dragon wort”. Not my first choice of a dinner ingredient. Tarragon is related to wormwood… my goodness it gets worse and worse! 🙂 But… leave the names behind and look at directly at the plant. French tarragon has slender branched stems, similar to rosemary. Because the plant does not have flowers, it cannot be grown from seed, therefore a trip…
