Just Cricket: 7/15

No Willow this week since Cricket is the star.  Our clown dog thinks that all bubble packing needs to be destroyed.  No one believed us so I made this video to prove how he thinks an unpopped bubble is a horrible thing.

Enjoy!

Willow & Cricket Wednesday - 7/8

Really Mom?  You have to take a close up of my nose?

I sleep how I want. 

Happy 4th of July!

Photos from happy4thofjuly-2015.com, scrapsoftime.typepad.com,  
happydayquote.com, wellmindedpets.com, pdx.daddyforever.com, 
chiff.com, clipartpanda.com, and 4thofjulyquotes2015.com

Low/No Sew Reindeer Pillow {DIY Project}

Pinterest is, as you all know, an amazing amazing place filled with cool stuff.  It is also a great place to get inspired.  I love looking for possible things I can recreate in an easier way or with my own twist.

This beautiful pillow from Dear Lillie is exactly the type of thing I am looking for.

You see, I love the pillow but don't have a screen printer, or know anyone with a screen printer and I am in no way talented enough to paint it on a piece of fabric.  So what is a girl to do?

I have three words for you! Felt and Drop Cloth! 

With those 2 things and a reindeer silhouette, like this one it is easy to make a pillow.

Here is the result.  I made two so they could jump toward each other.

I think they look great, don't you?

Want to make one or two or three for yourself? Here's how.

Materials

• Reindeer silhouette printed on a sheet of 11x14 paper (I used Google images to find one that looked good to me)
• Scissors
• Fabric glue
• Laundered drop cloth
• Felt (I used red)
• Straight pins
• Pillow Insert (mine was 18x18)
• If you want to sew, a sewing machine (If you don't, heat-n-bond)

Directions

• Cut out your paper silhouette
• Pin silhouette to your felt (you can also use double stick tape)
• Cut out your reindeer
• Make yourself an envelope pillow (I used this tutorial from Teal and Lime, though I cut my fabric 17.5x42) using  the drop cloth as your fabric
• Insert your pillow into into the cover
• Lay your reindeer on pillow positioning it exactly as you you wish
• Pin felt reindeer to pillow by inserting the pin trough the felt into the pillow
• Using the fabric glue, glue the reindeer to the pillow
• Done!!

Yes, it is that easy!  I am pretty sure that cutting out the reindeer was the lengthiest part.

I think it is a great addition to our holiday decorations.

One quick note, if you live near an IKEA, you can skip the whole make a pillow cover part and pick one up for cheap there, like this one.
  

Parmesan Sage Pork Chops {Recipe}

Another part of our eating local, knowing where our food comes from, getting away from factory farm meats is buying our pork from a local farmer.  In February, D and I bought a whole pig we named Wilbur 2. Not to keep at out house but to keep in our freezer so we would have tasty pork for the rest of the year.  Wilbur joins Ferdinand 2, the 1/4 steer, who also lives in the freezer.  (We had previously bought a pig and steer so that is why they have the 2 after their names.)

We like that we supported both a local farmer, the same folks who run the CSA that we have taken part in in the past, and we know how the animals were cared for.  We also have a great local butcher who processes the meat and makes the best bacon and brats ever.  Seriously, we can't eat regular store bacon after eating Wilbur bacon - it is that good.  Don't worry, I will have some bacon-y recipes coming soon but today it is about the chop...the pork chop.

Growing up my family never had pork chops for dinner. We were more of a beef, chicken and fish family.  So I always wondered what my friends were talking about when they said it was "pork chop night." When I got older, I tried making pork chops and always ended up with something tough and dry. I think shoe leather may have a similar texture. 

D has shown me that this isn't the normal state for a pork chop.  That they can be juicy and delicious.  He finds the tastiest recipes.  This is one of them.  

Parmesan Sage Pork Chops
Source: Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (we used a smoked salt - so good)
• 1 pinch ground black pepper
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 3/4 cup bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon Italian Herb Seasoning blend
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 1/2 teaspoons powdered sage
• 2 boneless pork chops
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter

Directions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Spray a square baking pan large enough to fit pork chops without touching.
• Combine flour, salt, and ground pepper in a shallow dish.
• Combine bread crumbs, Italian herb blend, Parmesan cheese, and sage in a 2nd shallow dish - a pie pan works great for for the shallow bowls
• Place beaten egg into a 3rd shallow bowl. 
• Heat skillet over medium heat with butter and olive oil 
• Rinse and dry pork chops.
• Gently press pork into flour mixture to completely coat, shaking off any excess flour.
• Dip into beaten egg, making sure to coat entirely.
• Press one side firmly into bread crumbs. Repeat on opposite side.
• Gently shake chop to remove any lose bread crumbs.
• Place breaded pork chops in skillet.
• Brown pork chops about 4 minutes on each side, then transfer to the baking dish.
• Bake in preheated oven for approximately 10 to 15 minutes(or until juices run clear and a meat thermometer inserted into the middle of pork reads 160 degrees). 
• Let sit for a few minutes before serving. 

Willow & Cricket Wednesday - 8/27

What To Do Before Starting C25K

Before D and I started C25K, we did a few different things.

First, we talked to our doctors.  Before starting something strenuous like this, especially when you are overweight, it is always a good idea to make sure there are not any concerns that may impact you.  Both of us got the green light so we were onto our next To Do, good shoes.

Since I have been working on the "run only when chased" model of running for the last 10 years, I went to my local running store to get fitted for new shoes that would work best for my gait and weight.  I didn't want to start off with bad shoes that would result in injuries later.  If you aren't a runner but would like to start, I would suggest getting professionally fitted.  The guy who helped me looked at my shoes, had me walk and then jog a bit in the different shoes he suggested.  It was amazing how different they felt.

Another confession here, I was a little worried about the shoes since I didn't want anything crazy colored.  Have you been in a sports store lately?  The display looks like rainbow blew up.

Source

Thankfully the pair that worked best for me is much more bland.  I mean, no one wants to see size 10 wide hot pink shoes coming at them.

Here are my new skips.  They are the Brooks Ghost 7.  I love them.  They are light and have a lot of support.  Perfect for someone just getting back into running.

So shoes in hand, it was onto my next To Do.  Good bras.  I had been getting by with so called high impact ones from Target. But now that I was going to be running, they just weren't going to cut it.  Even with doubling up, there was still a lot of locomotion, if you know what I mean.

I got a bunch of recommendations from various community boards and ordered 3 different sports bras for large breasted women that had good reviews from both the community boards and Amazon.  The Enelle, which looks a bit like a breast plate and two from Glamorise, the No Bounce and the Sport Double Layer.  The Galmorise both worked out best.  So they are keepers.  I took the Sport Double Layer out for a test run for Week 1, Day 2 yesterday and it was glorious how little movement there was.

So now I have the shoes and the bras so there is no more excuse for not getting out there.

Source

There was one final To Do - downloading the free C25K app onto my phone.  It is available on both Android and Apple.  This is a great tool and keeps track of your time so you don't have to.  It notifies you with both a vibrate and a voice alert when your transitions are.  This is very helpful on the last running minute, which feels like a whole lot longer.  :)  It also works with your music apps.  Start your music first and then start the app, the voice alerts come on over the music so you don't miss them. 

Week 1 is now done, though I did repeat Week 1/Day 3 since my knee was quite sore and I couldn't do all the runs the first go round.  But tomorrow begins week 2.  Each session is 5 minute brisk walk to warm up, 90 seconds followed by 2 minutes walking (for 20 minutes), followed by 5 minutes of cool down walking.  It will be interesting how that extra 30 seconds will go. 

If anyone else has done C25K, I would love to hear from you about your experiences, successes, trials and tribulations.