Yard Sales are Relaxing and Therapeutic

I like to shop at yard and garage sales. I find it therapeutic and so relaxing. Why?

Yard and garage sales take me into close-by neighborhoods where the flowers, shrubs, trees, and landscaping are in full bloom. Everything is colorful, prolific, and so fragrant. It's simply beautiful to just take the time to ride through the neighborhoods and take in the beauty as a locate my destination.
Look at all my finds.

Anti-Aging Morning Routine with Qi Gong

My Anti Aging Morning Routine

Looking for a way to energize and feel better?

Qi Gong is an easy age old exercise to help relax, center, ground, and rejuvenate - I find it much less strenuous to do than yoga or pilates and according to many sources a daily practice of Qi Gong provides amazing anti-aging benefits to the body.

According to the Monterey Bay Holistic Alliance ( see their article)  Qi Gong can help loosen muscles , build bone density, reduce stress, balance emotions, improve circulation, improve posture, flexibility, balance, memory, and help with better digestion. See all the videos below

Kohlrabi - What is it ?

Are you familiar with kohlrabi?

Its a very tasty vegetable that is becoming an increasing popular. It's been eaten for years in Germany and  now its' available in most American supermarkets and  quite plentiful in the fall if you belong to a CSA farm.  It is so versatile that I use it in salads, soups, crudite, and side dishes. It is delicious but it's the health benefits that really keep me coming back for more kohlrabi!

What is Kohrabi?

Kohlrabi is a cruciferous vegetable in the same family as cauliflower, kale, broccoli, brussels sprouts, and cabbage sharing many of the same nutrients and phytochemicals that help nourish and fight disease. So, if you try to eat more kale, make room for kale's cousin- kohlrabi!

What are it's Nutritional Benefits? 

• High in fiber
• Low in fat 
• High in vitamin C
• Low in Net Carbs ( carbs per cup 8.3/fiber per cup 4.9)
• High in disease protective phytochemicals
• Potassium, B-6, calcium, phosphorus, folate

How Does it Taste? 

It tastes like a cross between a broccoli stem and jicama. Kind of juicy, crunchy and a slightly sweet.

Quick, Easy, and Healthy Recipe

I enjoy kohlrabi raw or cooked. Uncooked I like to grate it and add it to salads or cut it into sticks and use it for crudite. In addition, I've peeled and cut kohlrabi like I would a potato and added it to soup recipes.Kohlrabi and Red Lentil Soup

Why add it to your vegetable menu ?

Seasonal vegetables are great for your health. It is often said that it is important to eat local produce to get a boost for your immune system so get it from your CSA or local farmer's market.
Don't be afraid to try something new. It is available in most supermarkets ( it comes in purple and light green varieties which taste just about the same. It's so easy to add some to salad or a crudite platter.. 

How to Peel

Kohlrabi has a tough outer peel. I cut off the top and the bottom and then use a sharp vegetable peeler to peel the remainder. Make sure to take off all the tough skin. My favorite way to eat it is in this quick and easy slaw.

Juicy Kohlrabi Carrot Raisin Slaw in 5 minutes 

Kohlrabi and Red Lentil Soup

In searching the Internet I found these articles that explain more about the nutritional and great health benefits of kohlrabi. The first article by Dr. Axe explains how and why the nutrients in kohlrabi are disease fighters. The 2nd article gives some insight into how this vegetable helps with weight loss- just saying!!

Kohlrabi: A Disease Fighting Phytochemical Powerhouse 

Health Benefits of Eating Kohlrabi ( good article) 

Tarnish gone is seconds with this tip

Tarnish is gone from silver  in seconds with this  common household product! I will never buy silver polish again!

Have you ever set the table for a dinner party or a holiday and realized that your silver has some tarnish spots and you were out of silver polish? Try this

Memories of July 4th in the 1960s

When I was a young girl, we lived near the inner city. A place that didn't know from BBQ'a or special color coordinated red, white, and blue dinners for the 4th . Our celebration of the National holiday began as we stepped onto the T2 bus that happily took us to downtown Trenton (NJ).

It was a familiar ride, one we often took to the five and dime store, the automat, the truly majestic movie theatre that had been converted from an opera house, and a few department stores.

 As the bus throttled down the wide lanes of historic West State Street, passengers gazed through open windows breathing in the fragrance of flowers and fumes in awe of the numerous grand old flags that hung from every porch of the grand old houses that lined the main street into the city.

The bus driver dropped us off among the crowds of mothers, fathers, grandparents and children excitedly waving their American flags. Once we located " our spot" to view the parade, we hoped to get a taste some of the popcorn, hotdogs, and soda that was being sold on the street.  In unison, we cheered as the proud soldiers, veterans, and local politicians strutted by.

Cars, jeeps, and tanks wrapped in red, white, and blue decorated the parade path as they took their place in the parade line up.

Teenagers of local high school bands marched triumphantly to the sound of their loved ones cheering

When the last brigade disappeared from our sight, we reluctantly gathered our belonging and prepared to leave. Feeling satisfied that the parade was really over, we returned home to sit and chat  on the "stoop" with neighbors and share pitchers of homemade lemonade.

My mother had no red, white , and blue  special foods for the occasion It just wasn't part of our celebration . We had no special theme for dinner. We just had dinner.

However, later that night, my father would drive us to the outskirts of the city where we would hang out from the back of our station wagon and watch the illustrious annual fire works at the local fair grounds!

We were patriotic and grateful that the grand old flag still waved!! 
That was how we celebrated the 4th of July in the early 1960s. 

I made red and blue vitamin water drinks for the 4th 

How did you celebrate?? 

shared on Beth Fish Reads linky

Why I eat Celery Every Day

What's all the fuss about celery ?
I recently visited the website of Anthony Williams. He is a medical medium who gives nutritional advice on Hay House Radio. He says that celery is one of the vegetables that can help alkalize and mineralize your body- so it's great for healing what ails you. Many sources say that disease doesn't like to live in an alkaline environment- and guess what celery creates? ( alkalinity) . For healing, he recommends a large glass of organic celery juice daily and drank on an empty stomach first thing in the morning.

My morning juice

Celery is a Part of my Morning Juice

I've always included organic celery in my morning fresh vegetable juice.
I use carrots, celery, cucumber, beet, romaine lettuce, parsley, kale. I switch around greens as each green offers a different benefit. Sometimes I use collard greens instead of kale or butter leaf lettuce instead of romaine lettuce, cilantro instead of parsley. In addition, I recently started adding green sprouts. Anthony Williams says that the tender butter leaf lettuce is offers a lot of nutrients.

Although I had always used celery, I never really knew until reading his blog that it has such value. Some other sources say that celery can help improve one's overall health since it contains significant amounts of water which are full of minerals and vitamins. Read my post on getting more energy from juicing 

Have arthritis? 
Celery is also an anti-inflammatory 

In addition, celery is felt to fight inflammation and reduce joint swelling which may be of benefit for anyone suffering from arthritis or gout. It also contains many antioxidants and flavanoids as well as phthlides, and coumarin that are all key in the prevention of disease. I also didn't know that celery provides a substantial amount of Vitamin C as well. 

Celery is Low Calorie but adds fiber, flavor and crunch to soup, salads, stuffings, and entrees.

In addition, Celery is low calorie and low carb but high in fiber. This mildly flavorful light green vegetable is a welcome addition to soups, salads, stuffings, and entrees. Since celery is also low in calories, fiber and carbohydrates, it makes a perfect food for those wishing to lose weight. Its high in fluid makes it helpful to keep you hydrated as well. 

Have you ever had celery stuffed with peanut butter? Great vegan and gluten free Snack!!! 

Why I buy only organic celery

Celery is on the dirty dozen list for foods that have the highest amount of pesticides. Therefore it is one of the foods that I always buy organic.

Strawberries are the #1 Dirtiest with the heaviest pesticides!

The following list gives you the foods that are recommended to purchase organic because of their high pesticide exposure. 

Want to know about the Clean 15 List  which are the foods that get the least pesticide exposure and are safer to buy if not organic? Read Clean 15

Do you like celery? Do you buy organic? What is your favorite way to use celery?

Try some of my vegan and gluten free soup recipes that contain celery- I usually add celery to most of my soup recipes. Because of it high liquid content it imparts a nice flavor to the soup.  Remember all of my soups are fast and easy to make! 

Asparagus Soup

Golden Cauliflower Soup in 25 minutes

Spinach Vegetable Soup

Simple Spinach - zero point soup

Tomato Coconut Soup

 I feel like I should start making  celery soup! Anyone have a good recipe?

This post will be linked to my blog carnival list  of blog parties with lots of shared recipes.

Where Have I Been?

I apologize to all of my loyal regular readers. 
I have not been posting my usual recipes for healthy gluten free fast and easy vegetarian meals because I have been literally traveling for last two months and I had limited WiFi In addition  I've been eating but not cooking! I've been to quite a few exotic Caribbean Islands and have been enjoying the warm beautiful weather and magnificent beaches.

Photo Above was from a Batik factory in St Kitts? 
, 

I left home ( Pennsylvania) on December 7 and pointed my car towards I-95 South on route to our first of many destinations -the charming city of Charleston, South Carolina.

Charleston South Carolina

After a 12 hour drive ( stopping along the way for a few meals and bathroom stops), we pulled into the parking garage of our hotel in the historic area of the city.  I remember reading a post on Deborah's blog, Healthy Green Natural , How to Plan a Relaxing Trip to Charleston  that highlighted the points of interest in Charleston; I got some good ideas.
la
We were only there 3 days , but it was enough. We did a 2 hour guided tour of the city on a trolley bus, ate in some interesting restaurants, visited a museum. Our favorite restaurant was 39 Rue de Jean  which was off of the famous King Street. The service was good, the French style food was memorable, and we enjoyed the atmosphere. They paid close attention to my gluten free needs ( although they did not serve GF bread)

In addition, we found a charming neighborhood bar and restaurant on King Street for happy hour. Wine at Joe Pasta was just $3 glass and the appetizers were very reasonable. We didn't eat there for dinner.

We left Charleston and continued to drive to Orlando to go to Epcot! We were are the Swan Hotel at Disney ( Fabulous ) and enjoyed their beautiful floor to ceiling Christmas tree made of entirely white Poinsettias !

Orlando Florida at Epcot- Disney

From Epcot, we traveled to Boca Raton, Florida area for 3 weeks to spend time with friends and family through the remainder of December and then on January 2 we  left for a 27 day Princess cruise to visit sixteen different Caribbean Islands!  Yes, I did say 27 days! It was fabulous . No food shopping, no cooking, no cleaning.. pure relaxation.

27 Day Caribbean Cruise - 16 Islands

We went to gorgeous beaches as well as tours of the islands. I bathed in volcanic hot springs and cover ed myself with the mineral rich ash, ate fresh exotic fruits like passion fruit, dragon fruit, and fresh coconut all right off the trees! I understand why they say, " Don't worry, Be Happy"The islands and the cruise were very relaxing.

We cruised on Princess and it worked out well for my gluten free diet. I had to order my dinners the night before, but they assigned a person to me to oversee my meals who was very careful, gave me homemade gluten free delicious bread, desserts, and lots of variety. I was happy!

They also had gluten free bread at the buffet breakfast and lunch buffet . I had to ask for it, as they kept it behind the counter to keep it from getting contaminated. The buffet's were a little trickier as nothing was really officially gluten free. It was best to order in advance to be sure.

I also found gluten free desserts in the buffet in the evening that were designated gluten free.

So there you have it.. I'm back and I've spent the last few days shopping for groceries, making some simple meals, and  cleaning. Back to the normal routine.

I will be starting to post again regularly just as I did before my 2 month winter vacation.

I'll be looking for some healthy skinny recipes that I can share with you (since I overindulged a little!)

If you are new to gluten free eating and living. would you like more basic information on how to shop and what to cook daily? Please respond in the comments.

What have you been up to ? Which healthy foods have you been enjoying over the past 2 months
 ? Please share in the comments!











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Tribute to My Dad on Father's Day + Potato Salad

Father's Day is a time to acknowledge dad and celebrate his awesomeness!

On Father's day in our family, our traditional family celebration is to bring all of the fathers and their families together for a BBQ.  Over the past few years, my daughter in law Wendy has been hosting! The list includes, my husband, my brother in laws,  and my sons, Wendy's father and step father and uncles as well as everyones spouses and children of course.

Despite the happy occasion, it still reminds us that some of our fathers are not with us; that includes my father. My dad has been gone for 29 years, but I still remember his devotion to our family and the many sacrifices he made for us! He was fun to be around, and he liked to cook. When I was little, he owned a deli where he made homemade potato salad to sell every day! I don't have his recipe, but at the end of the post I linked some of my favorite potato salad recipes.

My dad was called Al ( a more secular name than his birth name of Abraham and his childhood name of Abee) .
I called him Dad;  his grand kids called him Pop Pop, my mother called him honey.

Things I remember about my dad:

• He made his own Italian spaghetti (sauce) gravy every Sunday for a spaghetti and meatball dinner.
• He was the oldest of five : 2 brothers ( Hyman and Lou)  and 2 sisters ( Annabel and Ruth)
• His parents were immigrants from Russia
• His father ( Reuben)  died of heart failure when my father was  only 12 years old
• My father died at age 73
• His mother ( Fannie married 3 times) outlived my father and died at age 107
• Being the oldest, my father helped support the family
• He was very neat and organized
• Played basketball on the school team in high school for Trenton Central High School 
• He graduated high school in 1929 and attended Rider College for 1 year
• Attended his 50th high school re-union ( died 4 years later) 
• Loved to dance, danced often, and was a good dancer
• Grew outstanding yellow, red, an pink roses along the entire side of our house
• Loved to play cards ( poker and pinocle) and played with a group about 2 nights /week
• Loved dogs
• He never shouted
• Was very generous to family and friends
• His favorite meal was roast beef, mashed potatoes and gravy
• Loved homemade potato latkes, prune hamantashen, and kosher brisket
• Brought me chocolate as gifts and paper cut out dolls to play with 
• Was very likeable and had lots of friends
• Was handsome 
• Worked hard at two jobs to make a living
• Loved and was devoted to family and extended family
• Liked to have fun
• Had two daughters-  Rita Lee from his first marriage to Harriet; Judee from his second marriage to Rae
• Three grandchildren- Howard ( Rita's son) , Jonathan, Jason ( Judee's children) 

Potato Salad Recipes:

Vegan Potato Salad ( healthy) 

Easiest Homemade Potato Salad

Slim and Trim Potato Salad

My Skinny Potato Salad Alternative


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