BUTTER GIRL GOES ORGANIC

It's  true...I think that I have died and gone to Coffee Creamer Heaven!  Last night I headed to the kitchen (aka: My Office) and excitedly whipped together two of these delish made-from-scratch coffee creamers.  I felt like a little kid on Christmas eve last night...I couldn't wait until the morning to try these creamy delights in my coffee!   I have always felt a little conflicted with my passion for eating a healthier/clean diet, while still consuming those calorie/chemically laden coffee creamer concoctions that we buy at the store.    I have never been a..."I'll take mine black" kind of coffee girl.  I have always went with the "I'll have cream and sugar please" kind of girl.  Maybe that's  because when I was a young girl, my grandmother would fix for me a treat: a little girl-sized cup of coffee.  It was probably one tablespoon of coffee, 3 tablespoons of sugar and 1/4 cup of milk.   At the time, I thought I was pretty big stu

Written for the River Current publication, August 22, 2012 BACK-TO-SCHOOL PEANUT BUTTER POWERHOUSE COOKIES Well, it is already that time of year again…the kiddos are heading back to school.   Don’t ask me why, but it still excites me.   As a friend said yesterday… ”Why is it that we always complain about the first day of school, but each year it still feels like Christmas morning!”   I had the assignment of helping my niece get all settled at OSU yesterday.   (Today, my muscles are sadly reminding me of the three flights of stairs that this assignment entailed!)      As we were sifting through her boxes and boxes of ‘stuff’ and desperately striving for organization; I told her how cool it was for students each and every year to be given a new fresh start.   If last year wasn’t all that great, then they all have the opportunity to re-evaluate and make things better than the year before.   Perhaps as adults we should all re-evaluate and strive for the same.   Get you

Last week I found myself in the throes of a silly yard sale.   I can’t explain why, but I found the entire experience exhausting.   I vowed that I would never do it again.   Never say never, I thought to myself as I tucked the signs deep in the back of the garage.   My father laughed when I said, “It’s like childbirth Dad.   Eventually we forget how painful it was and wind up doing it again!”   The only positive that I can muster up, is the fact that I was able to get rid of some items that have been sitting around here; unnoticed for quite some time.   If it was quietly tucked away in a box for the last five years, my strong guess is that I didn’t really need it! On top of the agony of the yard sale itself, I was very much aware of the fact that I had little or no energy to prepare anything even remotely healthy for us to eat.   We reverted to the old standbys…pizza, doughnuts, drive through dining and snacks of unknown origin...ugh. My body was quick to announce its

Written for The River Current publication, August 1, 2013 I was up early this morning and have been pondering ever since...what shall I write my column about this week?  Often I spend much more time researching what I will write about, rather than the actual writing...the writing somehow just seems to take care of itself.   Thank goodness! As I was pondering the possibilities, I was munching on a toasted piece of the whole wheat cinnamon swirl bread that I made over the weekend (along with some fresh fruit).    Why not share this, because in all honesty, it is rather delish…and good for you too! Our Saturday last weekend (if you recall) was a rainy one.   Rainy and cool.   I can’t remember ever wearing a sweater in late July!   It was comfy.   What better way to entertain myself than with the magical alchemy of transforming flour, water and yeast into a fragrant, great-tasting loaf of bread! I have always loved making bread, but have never had great success with makin