Make-Ahead Food Ideas for 4th of July Entertaining
Are you planning a small shin-dig for the 4th of July? With the health crisis that is going on, you may be planning a smaller gathering or something in the backyard. Either way, consider some of these make-ahead food ideas for 4th of July entertaining. Making some of the food up to a week before the big day will enable you to relax and enjoy yourself. Make a Budget Begin by creating a budget for your event. Choose which foods you will serve and decide which ones can be prepared beforehand. Try to determine a schedule to begin making the food so you have very little to do the actual…
Can Journaling Solve All Your Problems?
I write about journaling a lot on this blog. There are so many ways that a regular journaling practice can help — especially when times are tough. With that, people are learning the benefits of journaling, how to create journaling habits, and the different ways they can use them. But it is also easy to assume journaling is going to solve all your problems. It won’t. To make that distinction, I thought this was a good time for me to chat a little about that. Benefits of Journaling While journaling might not be able to solve all your problems, it does help with a lot. There are many benefits, including:…
30 Ways to Reclaim Your Messy Desk and Office Space
Since many of us are now working from home, I thought this post would be helpful. I have posted about how to create a workspace but for those of us who may have been doing this for a while, clutter may have taken over your desk and workspace! This can improve our productivity as well as our moods! Depending on your personality and your work habits, clutter and disarray in your office CAN affect your productivity. And when productivity is down, so are profits. Clutter can also cost you money if you replaced something that was later found under a stack of papers or in a random drawer. For those…
Chewy Ginger Snap Cookies
Hello July! And today July 1st is National Ginger Snap Day! As a child, I ate a lot of ginger snaps while my great-grandmother was alive. She loved ginger snaps so we — the grandchildren — would get into the box when she got some for herself. They were tasty and crisp but not as good as homemade. And little did I know that ginger snaps are somewhat healthier than other cookies — a bit lower in calories. Plus the ginger and the spices of cinnamon and cloves have some anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. Ginger can help with digestion and cinnamon may affect glucose in the bloodstream. I think knowing…
Self-Care Tips to Manage Emotional Eating
Outside of the normal physical things that people do to maintain their health, there are a number of ways in which the emotional state of a person can influence what they are able to achieve in their day to day lives. This is especially true of health goals involving food, weight loss, or any other goal that relies heavily on maintaining some kind of discipline. Having a healthy mindset should be the foundation of any plan for success, so this article will include some tips on self-care to manage emotional eating. Keep Track of Your Achievements One positive form of reinforcement can be found in the simple method of recording…
The Different Phases of Journaling
When you first start committing to writing in a journal, there are a few different phases you will likely go through. While not everyone’s experience is exactly the same, this trend in the phases of journaling is fairly common. Understanding them will help you to prepare and hopefully be able to work through them and find your motivation to keep going. Beginning Stage – Getting Ready and Excited The first stage of journaling is typically the planning stage and when you are getting really excited about the prospect. You can start shopping around for journals, think about what you will write about, dream, and imagine how your life will change.…
Garden Veggie Mason Jar Salad with Homemade Dressing
Since one of the focuses of this month is fruits and veggies (National Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Month), I thought this would be a good time to post about Mason jar salads. Even though we may not be working outside of the home as much right now, it would be great to have lunch lined up in the fridge — just grab and take your break! The beauty of Mason jar salads is they offer the perfect solution for a satisfying, nutritious lunch on the go or as a quick and easy weeknight dinner. The key to success with Mason jar salads is the order you add your ingredients. Always…
Emotional Eating: A Primer on Intuitive and Mindful Eating
As the need for dietary options has become massive as obesity rates climb higher and higher, new research suggests that there are people who could benefit from dietary plans that avoid employing the same strategies that other diets do. These methods involve changing the way you think about eating. If you knew that you could work a program where you can eat all kinds of different foods, lose weight, and feel happy, would you be excited to try it? If so, check out this guide on how intuitive eating and/or mindful eating can help you. Most Diets Fail Most of the reason that the majority of diets fail is that…
Ice Cream Soda with Homemade Chocolate Syrup
June 20th is National Ice Cream Soda Day. And National Vanilla Milkshake Day… as noted in a post earlier today. If you love ice cream, today is a day full of choices. I remember making ice cream sodas as a child. No measurements or advanced planning… My mom would offer some ice cream for dessert — if there was a little of whatever I was drinking for dinner left — Voila! ice Cream Soda! Ths recipe adds a homemade chocolate syrup to your ice cream soda. Once again, a simple treat becomes a lovely dessert. Did you make ice cream sodas as a kid? What was your favorite combination?
National Vanilla Milkshake Day
June 20th is National Vanilla Milkshake Day. I know it is summertime but doesn’t it seem like there are a lot of ice cream days this month? Not that I am complaining — at all! But ice cream is a star player in quite a few national days in June. Today’s star is the vanilla milkshake. Seems basic right? Today’s recipe adds a bit of flair so that the basic vanilla milkshake becomes a full-fledged dessert. A little chocolate and sprinkles around the rim. Whipped cream and a cherry? Definitely a delicious summertime dessert. Pro-Tip: The in-process photos for this recipe show how the ramekin is positioned prior to melting…
