We had a whirlwind visit to NJ to visit my family. We had a great time! I had my first real biological family dinner on Sunday night.
It was a lot of fun and we had many laughs. I felt like I was part of the family and not an outsider anymore which meant a lot.
I was thrilled to finally be in a cousins photo! I am not posting the photo we took because I am keeping my promise of respecting J’s privacy.
The next day, we spent some wonderful time with J. She took us to Costco at our request where we opened an account.
A Costco is coming to Albany, NY in June. We really know our prices and there were a lot of very good deals we took advantage of.
We also went to the beach. No alcohol or drugs could ever make me feel the way the ocean does.
The second I see and smell the ocean and walk on the beach I am in my happy place. I can feel my love of the ocean in deep my soul.
We touched the ocean with our hands and it didn’t seem as cold as I thought it would be.
We went to a real Jersey diner for breakfast and I ate one of my favorite things, a pork roll, egg, & cheese sandwich
My breakfast cost only $7.45 which included home fries. I’ve been living in an expensive touristy state and was giddy when I saw the prices on the menu.
For lunch we ate at a restaurant one block from the beach that has a large gluten-free menu.
I had a steaming hot bowl of award winning New England Clam Chowder and half a turkey club sandwich.
I love that I can get soup and half a sandwich! Again, the prices on their lunch specials menu were reasonable.
We got on the road earlier than planned but we lucked out and didn’t hit that much traffic even though we were going thru the busiest part of the state at rush hour
We stopped to see my sister Jennifer on the way down. I got to see my niece Sofia and my nephew Julian too! Yay!
We were home before 8:30 pm and were so happy to see our girls. Tiredness hit hard and I fell asleep before my head hit the pillow.
The trip was great and my heart was happy. I do have to say, it was way too “peopley” for us in Jersey and we were to glad to get back to Vermont.
Happy Saturday! It’s been a busy week of work and having dinner with friends.
The other night, we had a delicious dinner at our friend Martin’s house. I wanted to show you how lovely his dining table looked.
Today, I have belly dance practice and some cooking to do. I am bringing some dishes with us as we travel to visit my bio mom “J’s” house on Sunday morning.
J invited all of our cousins to Sunday dinner. I’m excited to see the ones I’ve already met and two I haven’t met in person yet.
I’m really looking forward to our visit. It’s been three years since we were at J’s last.
Marty is looking forward to going to the beach and seeing the ocean.
We both need to breathe in that ocean air and the weather is forecasted to be cold of course but sunny.
Our son Sam will be home taking care of Nelly and Roxy for us. They love him and are as comfortable with him as they are with us.
On our way home, we will be making a quick stop at my sister Jennifer’s house. It’s a bonus to the trip to see her as well.
I am planning on disconnecting from our business and social media while we are away and focusing on where and who I am with.
Be well everyone and I’ll catch up with you when we get back. ♥️
*** If the video clip isn’t appearing, please click on the blog post’s title, and then you should see it. Oy, technology!
I’ve been experimenting with my Go-Pro camera filming food demo shorts for our spätzle business.
I made a video the other night and figured out what would improve my videos.
I will have to film the Feta Tomato Spätzle demo again to make it better. The real success was that my recipe was on point.
I’ll share it with you when I am ready to post it on our spätzle social media pages. I will be including the recipe like I’ve done for this short video.
With today’s video, the mise en place and the filming took about 25 minutes, whereas it normally takes less than 10 minutes.
All of the overnight chia oat recipes I have tried are delicious, filling, and satisfying.
The chia seeds add plenty of protein to last you until lunch. When I used to eat regular oatmeal I wanted to chew my legs off from hunger.
On second thought, that’s going a bit too far; maybe a finger or two.
Here is my very first food demo short.
Video
Overnight Carrot Cake Chia Oats
Ingredients
1 carrot shredded
1 cup rolled oats
2 tbsp chia seeds
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
2 pinches of kosher salt 1 tbsp maple syrup 4 tbsp raisins
1/2 cup walnuts or pecans 1.5 cups milk
Additional pecans or walnuts
1/4 cup yogurt optional
Shred the carrot and divide it evenly among your serving jars or containers.
Add the oats, chia seeds, cinnamon, nuts, nutmeg, pinch of salt, maple syrup, and raisins to each jar. Stir well so the ingredients are mixed.
Pour in the milk, dividing it equally among the jars. Stir or shake the jar thoroughly to ensure all ingredients are well combined.
Cover the jars and place them in the fridge to set overnight.
Before serving, give the oats a stir. Top with pecans or walnuts, a dollop of yogurt, and, if you’d like, an extra sprinkle of shredded carrot for added crunch and flavor.
I topped mine with 3 crushed Trader Joes’s Praline Pecans in each jar.
Makes 2 servings
I hope you enjoyed my demo short. I’m tickled pink that I have been able to film and edit videos all by myself.
This my friends is a BFD (Big fucking deal) since I am not a techie at all.
I wrote this post and recipe on my iPhone so the recipe isn’t as fancy as when I write on my MacBook.
I will go back when I have a second and jazz it up a little.
Happy Saturday! Right now, I am eating a delicious breakfast and enjoying a steaming hot cup of Earl Gray tea.
I am also writing a new recipe to share and did some research on the topic of red dye 3.
I’m heading to Bennington to some run errands and belly dance practice with Kathleen.
When I get back, I am planning on filming a demo video for a new recipe which is part of our quick and easy one pan meals for our spätzle business.
If my recipe works, the next thing I need to do is write the recipe. The original recipe was one of those viral Tik Tok things.
I am not on Tik Tok for the very reason why it may be banned, but the recipes are popping up on YouTube and my social media platforms; which cannot be ignored.
Next comes editing the footage and talk Marty into doing a voice over with the instructions.
Marty used to be a DJ and has a great speaking voice, me not so much.
We all have our strengths and weaknesses. He has two left feet and no balance.
It’s a busy weekend for me but I am excited to create and share my projects with the world.
I was at Hoffman Car Wash in Bennington yesterday.
Is going through a car wash a frivolous thing? Living in Vermont, if you care about preserving your vehicle and getting rid of salt that can cause rust, then the answer is no.
I love my pick up truck and we are working on paying it off sooner than when it is scheduled to be.
I plan to keep my vehicle for a long time since it’s perfect for me. It’s the right size, color, space, and gets decent fuel mileage.
It’s a total no brainer. We have unlimited passes to Hoffman Car Wash one of which opened recently in Bennington.
We use the ones in surrounding NY towns whenever we are there, but now I can go every time I am in Bennington.
Why in fuck’s name am I writing about a car wash? It’s no big deal in places other than here.
My writing mentor Jon Katz’s voice is booming in my head in regards to my readers saying, “Why should I give a shit?”
Why should you is right?
I just wanted to post my video for those who may be slightly entertained by how much more exciting a car wash is these days.
Long gone are the dark, brown, murky car washes of my youth. Long gone are the 4 guys drying your car off with towels that weren’t white anymore.
Car washes are eco friendly, colorful and wax your vehicle in a blink of an eye.
Car washes are a must to prevent your vehicle from becoming a rust bucket, which is the biggest pain-in-the-ass nightmare for auto technicians in these parts who work on rusty cars.
Let’s call this post an informative post. I have to go to Bennington today, tomorrow, and Saturday.
Yes, I will be hitting the car wash everyday to enjoy the water and light show that I find amusing.
My truck Skye will be happy to take another shower.
I found this image yesterday and it screamed hygge to me. I could feel what the person who shared this was feeling. I could appreciate all the different textures, colors, tones, and warmth. This image hit me right between the hygge eyes.
People who really know me well are still amazed at how different I am from a year and a half ago; mentally, they mean not so much physically, but that, too.
When I learned about hygge (hue-ga or hoo-ga) I began creating a cozy environment. It changed how I felt about winter in general.
Last winter, I didn’t mind at all with this new sense of comfy-ness, acceptance, rest, and renewal.
My pot of lentil soup was nourishing to my mind and body plus it tasted delicious. This was my first pot of lentil soup I ever made earlier this week. Mmmmm! 🥣
Last winter, planning my gardens, educating myself about gardening, learning to draw, and finding joy in peace and quiet was something new.
That feeling lasted all year. It changed in the summer to watching my veggies and flowers grow, cutting beautiful bouquets, creating a cozy space on our front porch and deck.
The fall is easy to find coziness in almost everything. I found out about coziness during September last year and I haven’t looked back.
I saw this post on a hygge group on Facebook the other day. I immediately answered the question differently than the other 100 comments.
I wrote it’s a state of mind like I knew this my whole life. So many people agreed that it is a state of mind not just a bunch of fluffy pillows, blankets, drinking tea, and candles.
I looked up what a hygge state of mind is and low and behold, it’s described exactly what happened to me and many others around the world.
It’s how the Danish and Norwegian people grow up and are raised to survive their long winters.
In Billy Joel’s song, “New York state of mind,” he romanticizes the state of New York and returning home.
Hygge romanticizes winter and that feeling of home. It touches people who love to be home, preparing comfort foods, reading…you know the rest by now.
Can making a cozy home give you that state of mind? Yes and no. It’s easier if you are happy and content what you have.
Watching the sunrise with Klausie and Nelly.
It’s a lot harder if you don’t see beauty in the little things in life like a bee pollinating flowers or how a candle flickers.
Hygge helped me survive last year during the holiday season and winter like the Danish. This year I looked forward to winter.
I think I finally understand and can put into words why I act and feel so differently. I now accept and appreciate the little things in my life.
If you are unhappy or have the winter blues like I did can this state of mind help everyone? Maybe or maybe not.
People reading this may may say, “I have the winter blues but I am a happy person.”
I know from experience those two things don’t exist together. It’s like saying I am happy depressed person. I was a depressed person period.
Before I heard of hygge I could not find that state of mind when I was in a state of constant depression. I was missing something.
I think if people are looking for help with that hygge feeling, creating a cozy environment does definitely help set the mood.
This is my hygge.
Looking within and finding that cozy, grateful feeling in your heart is even more important.
I can describe it like when the Grinch’s heart grew three times that day.
Hygge is like the song by the band Boston. “It’s more than a feeling.” It’s a state of mind.
I may be late to the game, but during a dinner party at our house over the holidays, a friend of ours, Kelly, brought up a subject we never heard of before, Black Dog Syndrome.
Kelly, a history professor, has spent her adult years working with animal rescues and shelters in Cincinnati, Ohio.
She was smitten with Roxy, our rescued black frenchie and explained to us what Black Dog Syndrome is.
Marty and I were in disbelief but when I researched the subject, Kelly could have written the articles I read herself. Amazing.
According to thesprucepets.com, “Black dog syndrome, also known as BDS, is a phenomenon in pet adoption in which black dogs are ignored in favor of light-colored ones.
Observed by shelters and rescue groups across the world, BDS is an issue negatively affecting the adoption rates of black pets. The reason behind the phenomenon is unclear.
Roxy at an adoption event in Missouri City, TX.
Adopters might pass by black dogs because of a fear stigma against certain breed types—like pit bulls, for instance.
Movies and television shows often portray big, black dogs as aggressive and intimidating, which could also convince potential adopters to avoid them. Some believe it could come down to how photogenic dogs are.
Bath at the foster home.
Notoriously, black dogs do not photograph well. Lighter-colored dogs, on the other hand, do. When shelters or rescues photograph their adoptable animals to post on their website or on social media, lighter-colored dogs may have the upper hand.
Roxy and her brother got adopted the same day here in Vermont through Potters Angels Rescue. Look how cute Roxy’s smile was.
In mythology and folklore, black dogs are regularly portrayed as guardians of the underworld. They’re also represented as bad omens in general.
Those stories date back hundreds of years and they may creep into adopters’ minds when they are perusing the shelter. And some people believe black dog syndrome may be due to potential adopters associating the color black with evil.
Other theories as to why BDS exists include the fact that black or dark coats are less noticeable and that black dogs simply don’t photograph well and, as a result, they don’t always attract adopters.
In addition to a fear stigma against certain breeds that are often portrayed as aggressive, geographic location may also play into BDS.
While some believe it’s genuinely tougher for black dogs to find their forever families, science has not proven or disproven the theory. There are several studies that contradict each other.
In a 2011 study by the ASPCA, appearance was the most frequently cited reason for those adopting a canine.
A study published in the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science in 2002 found that black coat colors negatively influenced adoption rates for both dogs and cats. Researchers said adoption rates were much lower in pure-black animals.”
According to Kelly, black dogs are sometimes immediately sent to kill shelters since they have little chance of ever being adopted.
Seriously? What the fuck? What a bunch of bullshit! The more I read the more upset Marty and I became.
It made us want to rescue more black dogs even though we can’t do that realistically.
I’m interested if you have heard or are aware of this ridiculousness. What are your thoughts?
Have you rescued a black dog or cat? How can such a thing exist in all dog breed not just the so called, “bad ones?” What about black labs?
We love our little Roxy. She is such a loving, smart and funny girl. She fit into our family immediately. Nelly and Roxy adore each other and are inseparable. Roxy was meant for our family.
This photo is so them! ♥️
I have to tell you that when we purchased Nelly from a breeder quite a few Karens gave me an attitude or the cold shoulder because we didn’t rescue a dog.
Fuck you to all the Karens and mind your own damn business! We got Nelly at a time when I was diagnosed with lung disease and didn’t know yet how long I would survive.
I needed a dog I knew everything about from a breeder. I couldn’t have any surprises with a rescue. I was extremely ill and needed an animal that could offer me support not the other way around.
Nelly was the dog for me. Period.
Now, I know I don’t have to explain the whys about Nelly to anyone but have this to say, the right dog that you need at that time somehow finds it way to you and no one should ever question it or worse act like an asshole to you because they disagree with your choice.
This brought up painful memories to me of growing up in with my adopted family who all had fair skin and blue eyes.
Anywhere we went people always remarked that I looked nothing like my parents. Some even hinted if I was the mail or milk man’s child.
How appalling these comments were to me especially when I was young. How dare people say this to a young child who felt sad enough that they didn’t like anyone else in the world.
As I got older I wanted to tell those people to shut the fuck up but I was taught to always be respectful.
As I grew older, that shit went right out the window and I began answering those comments in my Jersey style way.
The bottom line is, we have one designer frenchie and one that was a stray in Houston living and surviving on the streets with her brother for who knows how long.
Both of our girls are adorable, loving, smart, stubborn, funny, playful little snuggle bugs.
They both want to be with us 24/7 and that’s what we expected when we chose frenchies as our breed of dogs.
Roxy is a badass and a protector while Nelly is a naive little princess but both have captured our hearts, our couches, and our bed.
Both of our girls were the right dogs for us at the right time no matter what their color or where they came from. These girls are our ying and yang. 🖤🤍
We held our Annual Holiday Hafla at bellydance on Wednesday, December 18,2024. It was an evening of performing for each other.
Our Holiday Hafla celebrates another year of dance on the last class before Christmas; then we break for the holidays.
My dance partner Kathleen and I performed in front of our students for the first time in two years.
I used to be such a seasoned performer that I seldom got nervous, but after making such a huge comeback since May, I was.
Did I have something to prove? Not to my students but to me.
Kathleen has stuck with me through it all and while I needed to do some serious crawling back up to where we were, poor Kathleen had to also since I slowed us both down.
At this point we are happy where we are at and all the filming and critiquing ourselves we do on Saturdays has paid off.
We are however, not even close to where we were before covid. Our goal in 2025 is to regain our speed again both in dancing and zilling.
Please keep in mind, we dance 100% improvisation. We pick a sing and decide how we are going to start the song such as set, walking in, or facing each other.
Other than that neither of us had any idea what will happen. That’s the beauty of improv we don’t have to remember anything when we dance.
After we performed the songs that we chose I was not thrilled with my performance. Kathleen was “on” to say the least, meaning she performed well.
I was in my head too much which is something I tell my students all the time not to do.
I was trying too hard and didn’t really enjoy myself at times where Kathleen danced like she was having a ball.
When I watched our performances I cringed at how many blunders I made from thinking too hard.
Fuck!!!!!!!
I watch everyone with my critical teacher’s eye but I am the hardest on myself down to the tiniest details such as lifting my eyebrows when I spin.
The day after I watched the two performances I rewatched and decided I did a fair job considering I couldn’t dance fast at all before May.
I was having fun at a lot of points in our songs but there were a couple of areas I didn’t feel comfortable with.
Luckily, that was when Kathleen stepped up and hit home runs.
Of course there will always be technique we need to improve and we always need to shimmy more, but for the most part we were together and in each other’s energy.
We’ve been dancing together for 21 years we better be in each other’s energy. Lol.
I am sharing our two songs we danced to which I hope you enjoy watching.
Another goal of mine is to film with my go pro camera since my iPad camera sucks! This I will have to learn more about and get better at it.
I would also like for us to perform for our students more regularly so we can get back into performance mode or we can put up videos of us on YouTube monthly.
Either way, I am so looking forward to getting back to dance tomorrow with Kathleen and start another round of classes on Wednesday night.
Happy Friday! I didn’t remember today was Friday until about 3 pm this afternoon. 😂
Marty and I are ending this year on a high note! We have a new and exciting plan for our business in 2025 and lots of other things to look forward to.
No matter your year, it’s best to leave it in the past and look towards the future.
If you are stuck in a rut, in a relationship that isn’t working, unhealthy habits, and thinking negatively all the time, it’s time to get off your ass and make some changes.
Change is good and can be scary. Our new business plan for our business is filled with uncertainty as it is exciting. We’ve been in a rut.
The changes I made this year transformed me in mind, body, and spirit. The changes came easily when I finally trusted my guides, the angels, and the Big Guy himself.
At bedtime, I spend time in gratitude. Next, I give all my worries over to the universe.
When I begin to worry during the day I just say, “I give that worry away.” It works every single time.
I have found good things actually happen when I give those worries away. I am very specific regarding my worries.
I know I don’t have to list them off one by one, but I do it for me. It’s like attaching each worry to a red balloon and watching it float away.
When I wake up, I give thanks that I woke up and have another day to live. Each day is a gift and so is waking up in the first place.
I am grateful for all of you who have stuck with me through all my ups and downs.
I am ending this year on a high note and will ring in the new year with our close circle of friends.
