17 Years Together!!!

      I am writing this about a week after my and my husband's 17th wedding anniversary.  I can't believe it has been 17 years, yet at the same time it does not seem like long enough.  As I reflect over this past year of marriage it has been one of great loss in our family.  We lost my mom, his aunt, and his step dad.  We had a scary couple of weeks of our youngest son being in the hospital, and him have two surgeries.  Marshall was in a car wreck that totaled our car, and another wreck that was an assault and hit and run.  That is right 2 car wrecks in less than a year.  The second one was very little damage to the car, but Marshall was punched twice in the head by the other driver before they took off.  We have like all of you lived with being quarantined, wearing masks, and dealing with a new normal.  We have had many things canceled over the past few months.  As a family we have been blessed to spend more time together, appreciate each other a little more, and to appreciate our extended family and friends more.  

     So how do you celebrate 17 years of marriage during a global pandemic?  Well good question,  we have not completely celebrated yet. Mostly because our anniversary was on a Tuesday. So we are going to be doing something this coming weekend, because life is busy.  We will not be doing something over the top like in years past.  We will most likely spend time at home, but the point is not to make a big production out of it, for a couple of reasons. One being we live in an area that has a high case counts and the numbers are raising. So we rather stay at home.  The other being a like being at home just spending time together.  I am hoping to order from one of our favorite restaurants, cuddle up and watch a movie. The point of any anniversary is to be together and to be thankful for another year together. Sorry for the rambling everyone, but I am just writing from my heart.  I know this is probably  boring to everyone else, but I really want to remember to take time and be thankful.  

Until Next Time,

Pitters

 

Packing for IOLS Training

     As I am writing this I am packing for an adult leader training for Scouts BSA.  The training is called Introduction to Outdoor Leadership Skills.  I am super excited to be camping again soon.  I have not been camping since February.  That is right my friends I said February.  I camped with our girls and our boys troops at a winter camp.  We slept in 9 degree weather over night.  But that is a different story for another time.  

     So for this weekend camp out I will be learning outdoor leadership skills, to help me be a more effective leader to my girls troop.  So as I sit here getting things together I thought I would take a moment at write something up for all of you. In this blog I will share with you what you need to pack for a camp out with scouts.  Many of these this are essential for camping just with your family as well.  

    You are going to want to have a backpack a sturdy one. Clothing for every day you will be camping, depending on how many days I am camping depends on how many pants or shorts I take.  If it is a two night trip I take one plus the one I am wearing.  Most jeans or shorts you can wear twice.   I do pack one shirt for each day plus and one extra. I pack one set of pajamas, usually sweat pant and t-shirt.  Socks and under clothing for everyday plus one.  A hat, two pairs of shoes, I like one pair of tennis shoes and a pair of hiking boots, you never know if it is going to rain, rain gear, jacket or hoodie, any other seasonal clothing.  So when we winter camped I had a winter coat, gloves, stocking camp, snow boots.  I do sometimes sleep in a stocking camp at night if we are camping in early spring or in the fall.  You loose heat off your head.  I also have socks to sleep in for spring, fall and winter camping.  You want a good sleeping bag for all seasons, a mess kit for eating, water bottle, fist aide kit, flash light or head light, toothbrush and tooth paste, brush or comb, soap and wash cloth, I like having dry shampoo, small fire starting kit, sun screen, bug spray and a small pocket knife.  This is a good personal list of gear for camping.  

    I like to pack my clothing in gallon zip lock bags. I also put personal care items in a baggie.  This helps you to find what you need in your backpack and keeps them dry if it rains and your tent gets wet.  I like to wrap my extra shoes in a plastic bag like for the store or if your car is close by I keep them in the car to stay dry.  I also pack a large trash bag or by a backpack rain cover to try help keep the contents of my backpack dry incase of a large rain storm. 

Our family loves camping and I can do more blogs about camping. I can do one on cooking, how to set up camp, how to plan a camping trip, setting up camp, to name a few.   If you have any you would like me to focused on let me know. 

Until Next Time,

Pitters

The Loss of a Mom!

     In early December 2019, I had to say goodbye to my mom.  She had spent most weekends at the hospital from late October until her death.  They would send her home after a couple of days only to have her weaker then before.  The last really good meal she ate was our late Thanksgiving dinner. The Saturday of Thanksgiving week.  The next day she was back in the hospital for an over night stay.  They sent her home telling us she just had a UTI.  They gave her medication and sent her on her way.  On Thursday of that same week she collapsed.  I called the ambulance because we could not get her to her feet.  On the way to the hospital her blood presser dropped drastically.  They could only keep it ok with medication.  I went home from the hospital that night thinking she will be good by morning like before.  I received a phone call around 4 am asking for permission to have my mom receive a blood transfusion.  I then received a call around 8 am telling me to start calling family because they did not expect her to make it.  One of the hardest things to do is be an only child and have to call family to have them come say goodbye to a sister, aunt, friend. 

     All day long we had family and friends up to the hospital to say their goodbyes.  I can't thank many of our friends enough.  So many of them made sure we ate that day, brought meals in the weeks that followed, and did so much more.  It was a long day from the time I got the call to come to the hospital until we left it was 14 or 15 hours.  She passed away at about the 13th hours mark.  But there is so much you have to do after.  I had to make the decision when to stop the medication that was keeping her a live.  It was hard because she was in pain the last few hours until we took her off the medication.  In the end they were able to make her comfortable.  During the day we read Bible passages, prayed and sang worship songs at her bed side.  She was in ruff shape and only my oldest two who are both adults came to say good bye.  We did not want the younger kids to see their grandma like that.  We wanted happy memories to be the lasting ones.

     In the days that followed there was a lot of things to decided.  I am glad to have known her final wishes.  I am glad I was at her bed side when she took her final breath.  I am glad it was just Marshall and I at that time. I know that might sound harsh, but it was peaceful and quiet.  I feel she waited until it was just Marshall and I. The rest of the family and friends had all gone out to the waiting room.  I remember the nurse came in and asked if everyone had said their goodbyes and if any one else should be in the room because it was getting close to her time.  She barely said those words and my mom took her last breath.  Before we could even let her sisters know.  They had been in and out of her room that day.  They had said their goodbyes. 

     Here I am six months after my mom went to be with the Lord. I am just barley able to write this blog.  But I feel this is a good a necessary part of my grieving process.  Sorry if this blog is all over the place, but i am writing from my heart.

Until Next Time,
Pitters

Chicken and Bread Cheese Salad

Ingredients:
1Lb Bread Cheese or Grilling Cheese
1Lb Chicken Tenders unbreaded
1Lb Baby Spinach
1Lb Baby Arugula
1 Lemon
1/2cup,plus some for drizzling
 Olive oil
1Pint Grape Tomatoes
1-2 Zucchini
2-3 peeled Sweet potatoes
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 medium size red onion
1-2 avocado depends on size
1 clove garlic minced
Salt and pepper

1. Pre heat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.  Wash, peel and cube up sweet potatoes. Wash and chunk zucchini. Chunk the red onion.  Place on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 25 minutes or until veggie are soft.

2. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, grill on a grill pan. Use a drizzle of olive oil for cooking.

3. Zest the lemon and juice.  Chop the cilantro, and mince the garlic. Mix the lemon zest, juice, cilantro, garlic, cumin, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.

4. Sliced the bread cheese in 1/2 in thick and 2 inch long chunks. Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan and lightly brown the cheese on both sides.  Drain on a paper towel.

5. Mix the spinach and arugula in a large bowl. Cut the grape tomatoes in half and place in a separate bowl.

6. Plate: place spinach and arugula mix on a plate. Place all the other ingredients on the plate and top with the chimichurri dressing. Enjoy!

Starting a New Adventure!!

     In May of 2019 I started feeling pulled of deciding what extra curricular activity my daughter would be doing in the fall.  She has been in American Heritage Girls for 6 years and we enjoyed the program.  We felt that she had gotten out of the program what she could. So we started praying about if she should continue.
   
     So in June we got our answer,  we found out that the Cub Scout Pack our boys had been apart of for many years was changing to a family pack.  What that means is that they were welcoming girls into the pack. We found us being pulled to help start a girls troop, a linked troop with our current boy troop.   In 2018 Boy Scouts of America announced they adding girls to all the programs.  Girls have been apart of BSA since the 1970's in Venturing Crews and Sea Scouts.  In Fall 2018 the Cub Scout Program added girls and in February of 2019 the program welcomed girls into the older scouting program, know as Boy Scouts.  With this new addition to the program the name changed to Scouts BSA.

     Now let me explain the program how it looks.  A family pack has both boys and girls.  They do opening flags, announcements, Pack meetings, and "field trips" together.  During regular meeting nights the boys dens and girls dens meet separately.  The older Scouts BSA program is different in that boys troops and girls troops are two separate troops.  We have linked troops in our group.  What that means is, we share the same charter organzation.  We can share some adult leadership, except for Scoutmaster.

     So back to June of 2019, I talked with my husband and told him what I felt we were being pulled to do.  We decided that we would talk with our daughter and our boys to see what they thought.  We also prayed for away to bring up what we thought to the troop families.  Many of the Cub Scout families already voted to add the girls to the pack and many had daughters that could not wait to start.  Later the same day I received a text from one of the scout moms.  She did not intend for me to recive the text.  This was because a year earlier we had expressed we did not like the fact that girls were being added to Boy Scouts, mostly from lack of information of how the program would look.  The text was about the fact they had reviced names of families  that would like to know if we would be starting a girls troop.  So in July we started the process of getting the approval to start a girls troop.  By mid July we had enough girls to start a troop.  The first week in August we had all our paperwork in and started meeting.

     Our girls troop has eight girls in it.  Since starting we have camped 3 times, done a handful of service projects, and gone on a 5 mile hike.  The girls have all earned a rank and are working hard for their next one.  The girls have taught me so much and have pushed me to challenge myself.  They inspire me to better myself every day, and I hope that I can in turn inspire them to reach their full potential.  I am looking forward to all the adventures I am going to have with our troop.  I am glad I can help my daughter and the other girls forge new paths for girls in Scouts BSA.

Ushering at the Nebraska Cornhusker Football Game, with Scouts BSA

My New Fitness Routine

THIS IS NOT SPONSORED, THIS IS JUST MY EXPERIENCE!

     Back in October 2018 I started to work out for the first time in years. I started out strong and then tapered off. We had joined the YMCA and we mostly used it for swimming and a little bit of cardio. I was see a little weight loss but not a lot. So I stopped going.  Fast forward to June 2019. I knew I needed something different. So my husband and I joined Planet Fitness. At first I was just doing cardio. I was intimated by all the other machines.  Our oldest son also joined, between him and husband they convinced me to try the 30 minute room.  I started off doing the minimum weight and did only a couple of the steps. Now almost 3 months later I am going to the gym 3-5 times a week and I actually like it. I have been seeing good results.

 
     The results are part going to the gym regularly and part my life style change as far as food. Since the start of June I have reduced the amount of soda from 2-5, 12oz can a day to 1, 7.5oz can a day. I have added in drinking more water.  I am keeping track of what I am eating and not over eating.  I have been stopping and asking myself am I really hungry? Many times I am eating because I am board. I am choosing more healthy options when eating. 

   
     So back to what I do at the gym. I try to start with the total body fitness machine. This has a program that combines ultra red lights and a vibration plate you stand on. I like starting with this to help warm up my muscles. This is a 12 minute program with changing it is about 15 minutes.  I then go stretch, this usually takes about 4-5 minutes.  Now some days I do the 360 workout that is 3 sets of 60 minutes. Some workouts are ropes, cow bells, medicine ball, and some others. What I do will be explained in the photos below.  Then I always do the 30 minute room.  This is a circuit room. There are 10 steps and 10 machines. You do one minute one and 30 seconds off, to rotate to the next machine or step.  There will be pictures below. Some days I then do 5-10 minutes of cardio.  Now I am a black card member so I have access to things like the total body, massage chairs, hydro massage and tanning bed/booths.  So I go back and forth with one of the massage things. One thing I have been learning is that it in not about dieting,  it is about a life style change.  So since starting in October I have loss 26lbs.  Of those I have loss 16lbs since cutting back on soda and starting at the new gym.

Total Body Fitness 

Streching 

Stretching the inner thigh and outer thighs 

360 Workout

Ropes I do each o these for 30 seconds each to equal the first minuet of my 360 workout

Medicine Ball I do this for 1 min for the second min of my 360 workout

Cow Bells, I use these for 1 min when doing walking lunges to make the last min o my 360 workout

Steps

My Daily Cleaning Routine

     I will start off by saying I am still working on my consistency on this. Sometimes life just gets a little off track.
Cleaning Routine:
* Make our bed, unless it is laundry day.
* Breakfast dishes
* Wipe off the table and counters
* Start a load of laundry or have the kids depending on the day. We each have a set laundry day.
* I vacuum every other day
* I dust on vacuum days
* I wash windows once a week
*Lunch dishes
* Trash as needed
* Sweep the floor once a day unless needed more.
* I mop a couple times a week
* Dinner dishes
* I try and do a pick up before heading to bed.
* I also do bathrooms a couple times a week. But we wipe things down everyday.
* I clean out the fridge once a week
* Also deep clean the kitchen, dinning room once a week.
* I do a general pick up in our bedroom as needed.

The kids are responsible for cleaning their rooms, doing their laundry, and they help with dishes and trash.  Also they take turns mowing the lawn and helping clean up the yard.  We live on a very busy street and people toss trash from their cars all the time into our yard and the neighbors yards.

The main thing is that you find a schedule and routine that works for you.  To work at being constant and finding what works.