BUTTER GIRL GOES ORGANIC

Written for the River Current Publication, June 27, 2013 Being a ‘foodie ’ is something that must run in my genes.   My brother has had a successful catering business for years and is well-known for his accomplished skills with amazing grilled meats and all of the yummy foods that go along with that sort of fare.   Once in a while; if he is short staffed or expecting a large crowd, he will ask me to help him out.   It is always a hoot to spend time in his kitchen, prepping food in such large quantities.   I have always said I feel as though I am preparing food for the Jolly Green Giant…huge bowls, mixers and always such large quantities of food…it is all an amazing feat for me, who is now most often cooking for only one or two. A couple weekends ago I helped him at a street festival in Marysville.   It was fun to see and chat with people from the town where I grew up so many years ago.    I was having a good conversation with a gal who was proudly holding onto a cupcake th

  Written for the River Current Publication; June 20, 2013 Many times during my nutrition coursework, we were told that our family members would be the last to listen to what we had to say about their health and nutrition.     I am now experiencing this frustration with my father.   As I have shared before, my father struggles with his sugar.   He is a Type II diabetic, who monitors his sugar closely.   He has a couple “little white pills” that he uses if needed, according to his fluctuating sugar levels.   One he pulls out if his sugar levels are too low; another he uses if too high.   In the last couple of weeks his sugar levels have been all over the place.   This is concerning to me because my father lives alone…well, along with his loyal feline companion, Suzy.   He has wisely learned to listen to his body, recognizing the symptoms (dizziness and/or weakness) and I admire him for his diligence in working with this difficulty. Out of respect to my father, I have t

  It has been a week since I have sat down to share my random thoughts with my Butter Girl  friends.  What's up with that??  I have once again been in what I will call; A Readjustment Phase....or let's call it a Fork in the Road.   Funny, as much as I bickered and moaned about my school work and study time, I had no idea that it was actually serving a two-fold purpose for me.  Not only was I acquiring great nutritional knowledge, it apparently was also keeping me company!  Now that I no longer have the Study Monkey (I don't know why I called it that!) on my back, I find myself feeling a little lost.    It appears that the silly Study Monkey had been my scape goat as well.  There were so many things that "I could not do", because I needed to study.  Always studying.  And now that I am done, dear Lord, I feel alone.    No worries.  I will re-adjust.  I always have and I always will.  I just need to get in a new groove...take a long look at that for

  Never doubt your ability to pull off a delicious 30 minute meal.  I know Rachel Ray has been showing us how to do this for years; but I have always thought to myself...yeah right, she has a talented staff behind the scenes helping her.  Well, I'm here to tell you it can happen...with or without a talented staff of many.  As goes with most things in this life...it's all about the timing.  I picked my son up Sunday evening after his life guarding job and because it was already 7:00, I suggested we grab something to eat on our way home.  (Come on...it's always an easier option!)  He said, "Nah...you've been talking about grilling shrimp, so let's do that".  OK, shrimp it is and we headed home.    It was true; I had a recipe that I wanted to try and had all of the ingredients to make it happen.  The one thing he failed to tell me until we got home, was that he needed to be somewhere in 30 minutes!!  Are you serious??  Step back...this girl has

  Saturday night after our class was over in Austin, most of our large group headed out for a celebratory dinner together.  Even though we were tired and full, most of us were determined to also check out a local ice cream shop called Lick.  (What a great name!)   This was a privately owned little shop full of character, promise and delicious homemade ice creams!   When we arrived, we were greeted with a line wrapping around the parking lot, as well as throughout the inside of the shop.  Quite obviously, this was some good stuff!  The time went quickly...the crowd being kind and chatty...Texan hospitality.  (I would do well with these people!)    The appeal for my group, was that Lick's ice cream was made with all local organic ingredients and they also featured ice creams made with coconut milk.  Once inside the store, the dilemma was to decide which flavors to try; they all sounded delish!!  Being indecisive, I chose 3 different flavors.  I know...it was a splurge. 

Picture tour of Whirlwind Weekend in Austin Saturday night in Austin.  The city was alive!  I  was lucky that a gal in the class insisted that this time while in Austin, that I get out of my room and see the city.  Thank you Cynthia for being a terrific travel guide!       I can't help myself...food pics!   A highlight of the weekend; after all  of the testing was completed, a group of us went to brunch at The Driskell.  I love 'all things old', so I found the environment amazing.  Huge and majestic, full of character and pride.     Standing on the beautiful winding staircase at The Driskell.  Perhaps looking a little worn out...but happy nonetheless!  The Driskell is the oldest operating hotel in Austin, Texas.  Built in 1886, it's four stories occupies half a city block.   A cattleman, Jesse Driskell spent his fortune constructing the hotel.  The completed cost...$400,000!     This was a picture that a staff member took for me. 

      This morning I'm feeling tired and brain fog-ish after a whirlwind weekend in Austin, Texas.  (Sort of how you might feel after a big weekend of drinking, only I wasn't drinking!)  With extreme relief (and pride) I will share that I passed all written and functional testing to become a Certified Nutrition Therapy Practitioner!!    Words could never express the panic that I was feeling prior to each testing session over the weekend.  I stayed up until the wee hours of each night studying/cramming info into my brain; always hating to stop and turn out the lights.  I had such a sense of fear, thinking if I studied just a little bit longer, it would somehow make a difference.  My brain was on overload.  We talk a lot about adrenal fatigue in this program and I will have to say, last weekend my poor adrenals were put to the test!   To be certain, I wasn't the only student in the program feeling this intense stress and worry.  We have all been passionately