HERITAGE RECIPE: Nan's Coffee Cake

So, as I mentioned yesterday, I really messed up the heritage recipe I'd chosen to make this week; I wanted another try, though! I was pretty sure I knew exactly what I did wrong (even as I was doing it). I tried again today, and I'm pretty sure I got it right this time ;)

I picked this recipe from my grandma's recipe book. It's called "Nan's Coffee Cake" and when I saw "Nan", I was very curious of who that was. (When I hear "Nan", I immediately think of "Nana", a term of endearment for grandmother--so I thought it sounded like an old recipe!) I asked my mom and she told me that "Nan" was actually her dad's brother's wife.

This led to my learning some very cool stories about my grandfather and his family, but I'll share that at the end of this post in case you are just here for the recipe. I am going to share how I screwed this up, though, because it was pretty funny!

As always, I followed the recipe exactly as written, interpreting the unclear parts to the best of my knowledge. I will write out the recipe here exactly as-written by my grandma, but I'll decipher it it for the printable copy so that it's clear.

If you JUST want the recipe, then just click on the printer-friendly version link below.

Here is a printer-friendly version!

Nan's Coffee Cake

Dissolve 2 yeast cakes in 1 C. water
1 C. milk heated to scalding.
Add 1 stick margarine, 2 tsp. salt
2/3 C. honey
Beat 2 eggs--add liquid and yeast
Add 3 C. white flour and 2 C. WW
Double in bulk
Divide in 4 and roll in rectangles.
Melt margarine. Sprinkle with sugar
and cinnamon to taste. Roll and cut
to put in pan that has been greased,
spread with nuts, syrup (maple).
Place in 9" cake pan--double in bulk.
Bake 10 to 12 min. in 400 degree oven.

Soooo, there you have it! That's the recipe as written by my grandma. Below, I'll write out the steps that I did and then reveal the mess it turned out to be. And finally, how I corrected it the second time around.

I bought fresh yeast after learning my lesson with the sweet rolls I made (when I substituted dry yeast and the rolls did not rise AT ALL). This is what the fresh yeast looks like. It's in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, near the biscuits and butter and all that.

Note: There are two different sizes of yeast cakes. I am glad that I looked at the label before using it! I bought two cakes (as shown above, which are 2 oz. each), but each is the equivalent of three smaller ones. A small yeast cake is meant for a recipe that uses about 3 cups of flour, so it made sense that the recipe called for two small cakes. I used 2/3 of one of the (2 oz) yeast cakes that I bought.

I scalded the milk and then added 1 cup of cold water to it, which would make it warm rather than hot (in order to dissolve the yeast without "killing" it? I don't know--in most yeast recipes, it says to use warm water, so that's what I did.) I added the yeast and stirred it until it dissolved.

In my mixer, I beat two eggs, then added the margarine, salt, honey, and milk/yeast mixture. It looked kind of gross at this point, but I knew it would look better after adding the flour.

I measured out the flour carefully. I tend to use too much flour when baking, so I wanted to be very careful that it wasn't too packed down in the measuring cup. I added the flour to the mixer, and after stirring with the dough hook, the dough was still VERY sticky. See photo below:

I knew there was no way I was going to be able to roll this dough out at this texture, so I figured that when making the recipe, maybe "Nan" just added flour to get the right consistency and estimated the amount when she gave my grandma the recipe. I know when I cook, there are a lot of things that I can't accurately tell you the measurements--I just have to see how it looks or feels as I am cooking.

Anyway, I added some more flour, about 1/4 cup at a time, until the consistency was more like bread dough--where I could knead it and roll it out. It ended up taking 2 extra cups of flour!

I let it rise for a while (and thankfully it did!).

I wasn't sure what type of pan to use--it says a 9" cake pan, but I didn't know if that meant a round pan or a square baking dish, or something else. When I saw how much dough there was, I decided to go with a square baking dish because it's taller. There was a LOT of dough for such a small dish!

I divided the dough into four and rolled each into a rectangle. Then I melted 4 Tbsp. margarine in the microwave and brushed it onto the rectangles. Then I sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar (I can't say how much, but I made sure that the whole surface was coated.

Then, I rolled up each rectangle. This was another thing that wasn't super clear in the recipe--but I guessed that I was to slice it like you would when making cinnamon rolls and then put the slices next to each other in the pan. Well, this is where I definitely doubted myself.

With all of that dough, I was going to have to CRAM it into the pan. But I decided just to go with it and see what happened. I made the slices very wide so that they would stand up tall in the pan, giving more room across the bottom to squeeze in more slices.

I chopped up about 1/4 cup of pecans and sprinkled them on, and I drizzled about 1/4 cup of maple syrup over it. It looked like a disaster waiting to happen when it went into the oven:

But I put it in the oven at 400 F, and set the timer for 12 minutes. When the timer beeped, I could clearly see that it was nowhere near baked through. I kept resetting the timer in 10 minute intervals, and it took over an HOUR to bake! When I pulled it out of the oven, I literally laughed out loud.

Jerry saw it and said, "Holy shit! What happened? Noah, come see this!"

Noah comes in and says, "Ohmygosh, what the heck did you do?!"

Eli (the sweetheart) came in and said, "I bet it tastes good!"

He was right--it actually tasted really good.

But I clearly had done something wrong, because I was sure it wasn't supposed to look like that. Since I had another fresh yeast cake, I decided to try it again today.

I guessed that what I was supposed to have done was to make four separate cakes out of the four portions of dough. Slice the rolls thinner and lay them out in the pan so they aren't crammed in there, but close enough to bake into each other, making one cake instead of several cinnamon rolls.

I followed all the same steps as before, but I was heavier handed with the four (I ended up needing to add 1 cup to the recipe, plus the flour that I sprinkled on the counter when rolling it out). Once I had rolled it into a log shape, I sliced it on the thin side (maybe 1/2 to 2/3 of an inch?) and placed the slices in the (greased) pan. Oh! And I used a round cake pan this time. It made more sense to me.

Popped it into the oven for 12 minutes, and it was perfect! I cut it like a cake rather than pulling it apart like cinnamon rolls (I think that's how it's meant to be done). The slices aren't very tall, so I would say you would get about 4-6 servings out of one cake pan. With a full recipe of dough, you'd get four cakes, meaning 16-24 servings.

My family LOVED it. Noah and Eli ate a whole pan of it right after I took it out of the oven. It's an interesting recipe, too--the only sweetener in the dough itself is honey. I've never seen a recipe like that. Of course there is sugar when you roll it up, but even that was probably only a couple of tablespoons. 

Because I'm counting calories, I entered the info into FatSecret, and it has about 200 calories per piece if you slice each pan into 6 pieces or 300 calories if you slice it into 4. Not bad at all! It was tempting to make cream cheese frosting for it, but I restrained myself ;)

Below, I've written the story I mentioned about my grandfather's family...

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Unfortunately, I never got to meet my mom's father. He passed away from a heart attack on Father's Day, June 21st, 1970 (my mom was only 18; and coincidentally, my dad had asked her dad for her hand in marriage that day!).

From everything I've heard about my grandfather, I really wish that I'd had the chance to know him. His name was DeLand, but was affectionately known as "Pippi" in my family. And I could do a whole series of posts just about the things I've learned about him--he was very well-known in the area where I grew up and did a ton for the city and community (I just learned today that he even purchased the very first firetruck for the Rockwood Fire Department).

I have some very cool stories about Pippi, but I'll save those for another post. When I decided to make "Nan's Coffee Cake", I learned about Pippi's brothers, and my mom showed me a very interesting news article about one of his brothers that I'll summarize here.

Pippi had three brothers: Donald (who passed away at just 17 months old); LeGrand, who was 10 years older than Pippi; and Ronald, who was 10 years younger than Pippi. LeGrand married a woman named Nancy--which is where the "Nan" comes from in regards to the coffee cake. I don't know anything about her (LeGrand married her and lived in Georgia, but my grandma would go visit them sometimes).

Here is a photo of LeGrand, Ronald, and DeLand (Pippi):

This story has nothing to do with Nancy or LeGrand or Nancy's coffee cake; but I still wanted to share it. It's about Ronald, Pippi's younger brother, as well as their father, Daniel. There was a write-up in the Monroe Evening News on February 22, 1935, but I'll summarize here...

Daniel had arrived home from work in the late afternoon when he learned that Ronald (who was 10 years old at the time) needed help on a bridge. So he brought DeLand (Pippi, who was 20 years old) with him. Ronald had been out walking with his dog, Rex, and they were crossing a bridge when the dog slipped. Rex didn't fall, but was he then too scared to move and go back to Ronald, who was on an adjacent bridge tie. Ronald balanced on on the tie and steadied the dog for more than half an hour. If either of them moved, they would have fallen into the river. (I'm not sure how Daniel heard of his son's predicament).

Daniel and DeLand arrived and together they laid narrow planks out to Ronald and Rex, allowing them to be able to safely get back on solid ground. The boys' mom, Gertrude, had driven over in another car, and arrived just after Ronald made it across. Daniel told her that they were lucky to still have their son. He and Gertrude got into one car, while DeLand drove the other car home.

They had joked about the heavy snow and how slippery the roads were, but Daniel assured her that he would get them home safely. They drove only a short distance when Daniel slumped at the wheel. Gertrude shut off the motor and brought the car to a stop so it wouldn't go into a ditch. Daniel was carried into a nearby house (I'm assuming by passers-by) but never regained consciousness--he'd passed away from a sudden heart attack just after rescuing his son and dog. He was only 56 years old.

Isn't that a tragic story? Ronald must have felt terrible after that--it was not at all his fault that his dad suffered a heart attack, but I can imagine that he may have felt that way. When I read this article, I wanted to learn more! So I'm actually getting together with my mom and my Aunt Mickey on Wednesday to learn what they can tell me about my family.

Anyway, like I said--not related to Nan's Coffee Cake! But the coffee cake recipe is what led me to learn of this story of how my great grandfather died.

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Heritage Recipe FAIL

Well, I really failed at the heritage recipe I made today... but I really want to try it again tomorrow! I was so excited to make it, especially because of the familial connection to the recipe. So, I'm going to try again. And I can't wait to share about the "heritage" part of it!

Today was crazy busy so I'm not going to write a "real" post. This morning, I went to the hospital to have all the tests that the rheumatologist ordered. Holy smokes, she wasn't kidding when she said she was going to be "thorough".

See all those tubes? Yes, there are THIRTEEN vials of my blood!

She ordered a urinalysis as well. I wasn't about to take a photo of that, so here is a mirror selfie in the hospital. I wore make-up today for the first time in probably a year! And I totally forgot that I'd be wearing a mask, so the make-up was kind of pointless. Since I've been doing this DietBet, however, I feel better about myself--even if I don't look any different. So that's a plus.

Anyway, I also had nine x-rays: two angles of each hand, two angles of each foot, and a single x-ray of my pelvis (the sacroiliac joint is where I have the most pain; my hip joints are very painful, too).

So, I feel like after all of these tests today, I'm sure to find out SOMETHING about what's going on. And if not, well, I'm pretty sure there aren't any tests left to do (or enough blood left in my body) ;) 

Well, hopefully I'll have better luck with the heritage recipe tomorrow!

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Friday Night Photos

What a week! We went from leaving the windows open to let the warm breeze freshen up the house, to shutting the windows and turning on the air conditioning when it got too hot, to going back to open windows, and today we turned on the furnace.

Pure Michigan.

Eli finished baseball on Wednesday, got his first COVID-19 vaccine on Thursday (yay!), and finished school today. I had two doctor's appointments this week--my psychiatrist on Wednesday (just a regular check-in), and the rheumatologist today.

I didn't get answers from the rheumatologist today, but I didn't expect to just yet. She went over all my symptoms and ordered a ton of blood work, along with x-rays of my hands and pelvis. She prescribed a pain reliever (not a narcotic--it's something I've never heard of, used just for arthritis). Tomorrow, I'm going to go get the x-rays, lab work, and pick up the prescription. I'm am REALLY hoping that the tests will give me some answers. And maybe the medication will give me some relief--I can't even remember what it feels like to be pain-free!

Anyways, I don't have very many photos from this week, but here goes...

Jerry and I watched the Friends Reunion show yesterday, and we were totally excited (that's what we were trying to show in the photo, anyway.)

I was actually disappointed in the reunion, though. I felt like their continued "friendship" seemed forced--like they were trying too hard to sound nostalgic. Matt LeBlanc (Joey) was the only one that seemed (to me) very genuine during the reunion. I felt so old while watching it--I can't believe it was 17 years ago that the show ended! I really liked Joey in the "fashion show" at the end; I loved the episode where he put on all of Chandler's clothes!

I made Chicken Broccoli Lo Mein  earlier this week and it was SO GOOD--I used rice noodles instead of spaghetti noodles like I used to, and it was delicious.

Remember when I had a problem getting the dough to rise when I made sweet buns? Well, the recipe called for yeast cakes; after a quick Google search, I read that a cake was equivalent to a packet of dry yeast. Well, the dough didn't rise at ALL, so I assumed I'd done something wrong. This week, I chose another recipe that calls for two yeast cakes, so I looked at Kroger to see if they actually sold fresh yeast cakes. And they did! (I was surprised.)

I was excited to make the recipe--until I got home and opened them up. They smelled TERRIBLE. I wasn't sure if that was normal for fresh yeast, but then I checked the expiration date--they were over a month expired! So I'm going to see if I can find some to make the recipe tomorrow; Kroger didn't have any that weren't expired.

(When I returned the yeast cakes to the store--they were expensive, so I wanted a refund--I bought a box of CLIF bars. When I got home, I opened the box to eat one when I realized that they, too, were expired!)

I discovered a folder of photos in an app on my phone and I had no idea they were there (they were pictures that I'd collaged together for one reason or another, most from 2017). I found this one of Jerry and it cracked me up. I always tell him that when his hair gets too long, it reminds me of that feathered look from the 80's. He didn't know what I was talking about, so I pulled up this photo of Scott Baio to show him, haha.

I posted this picture of Joey on Instagram and it somehow accidentally posted to my Runs for Cookies Facebook page, too--I didn't even realize it until the next day! So you may have already seen it. But Joey sheds twice a year, and this is what happens each time. Crazy, right?! (Several people asked about the brush--it's called a Furminator. It's kind of expensive, but it clearly works well. Here is an affiliate link to it on Amazon.)

Below is another photo that I found in the collages album. It was my first time playing seven numbers in Keno--and I matched SIX of them! (In Keno, you pick up to 10 numbers between 1 and 80; 20 numbers are drawn, and you win prizes based on your bet. I usually choose 4 numbers because it has the best odds of winning, but I played 7 that day.) I paid $10 to play and was thisclose to winning $2,000 (I still got $100 for matching 6 numbers.) I don't play Keno very often--it's actually been a couple of years!--but it's fun.

I wanted to print out a little fill-in-the-blank chart (I made a spreadsheet) to use as a habit tracker since I've been doing this DietBet, but my printer will not connect to my computer for some reason. It was driving me crazy! So I got out all my old bullet journal stuff and made one with colored pencils and markers. It was actually kind of fun to work on! (And of course, I forgot to take a picture of the finished tracker.)

And I saved the best for last... these two. How stinkin' cute are they?! Can you believe it's been over FOUR YEARS since I became an aunt? Luke turned four in March and Riley will be three in August.

Funny story... you know how I mention sometimes that we have a party store in walking distance? I always try to remember to call it a "convenience store" or "corner store" or something like that because I know that Michigan (or maybe the whole midwest?) is the only place that really calls it a "party store". To a Michigander, a party store is usually a little store that sells overpriced candy, snacks, pop, beer, cigarettes, newspapers, and a few token convenience items like milk and bread. From what I understand, the rest of the country thinks of a party store as a place that sells balloons and streamers and things like that for a party.

Anyway, my mom decided to go on a walk with Luke and Riley (they were staying the night at her house) to the party store. They'd never been to one before (or at least not that they remembered). She let them pick out a snack and they walked home. Later, Luke was trying to remember what the store was called, and he called it a "birthday store". Haha! Becky (his mom) is from Minnesota, where a party store probably IS more like a "birthday store" ;)  But I just thought that was cute!

Okay, I'm going to try to read some of my book tonight--I only have three days left to finish it, and I'm struggling. I'll write about it when I'm done. Have a great weekend!

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Cookies' Summer Challenge 2021

It's only May 27th, but summer kind of begins for us tomorrow--it's Eli's last day of school! He normally would have to go for two more weeks, but the school said that any of the kids who are passing with good grades (he has all A's and B's) have the option to be out on May 28th. The kids that continue to go will be going simply to try to improve their grades enough to pass.

Anyway, summer "officially" starts on June 20th this year... and you know what that means. Cookies' Summer Challenge!

I've done this Summer Running/Walking Checklist since 2016. I tweaked it here and there over the past couple of years, but this year, I'm going to go back to the basic checklist. I want to keep it simple!

This challenge is for those of you who want to run or walk through the summer, but you aren't going to be training for anything big, and you're not sure you want to do a strict schedule. You may just want to loosely follow a plan in order to get you moving through the summer.

Most importantly, exercise should be FUN! Summer is all about fun, but I used to completely dread summer runs. Michigan gets very hot and sticky (the humidity is terrible here, despite what you may think about Michigan weather). And what is more fun than challenging yourself and sharing about it with others? ;)

The object of the challenge is to complete as many of the runs/walks on the checklist as you can. These are all items that just about anyone can do--whether you run or walk. You can go as fast or as slow as you'd like, because these workouts aren't based on speed or distance. They are just lists of things to make your walk or run a little more interesting!

To make things even more fun, I created a Facebook group just for people who want to give the challenge a try. In the group, you can post photos from your runs/walks, write about each experience, tell us about whether it was a good or bad run/walk, etc. Brag, complain, ask questions, whatever you'd like! But it's basically an accountability group for those of us who want to attempt to complete the challenge list this summer.

The challenge starts on June 20th and ends on September 22nd--from the start of summer (the solstice) to the end of summer (the fall equinox). I really hope that you'll join in and follow along with others who are doing it as well!

Here is a link to the (closed) Facebook group (note: You must answer the two questions when requesting to join--it helps to weed out spam accounts):

Runs for Cookies Summer Run/Walk Challenge 2021

I chose a closed group so that only other members can see what you share. You will have to request to join, so please be patient with me. I will approve you as long as you don't look like a spam account (also, please plan to participate in the group--even if it just means "liking" other peoples' posts--to keep it active).

As much as I try, I will not always be around in this group--which is why I need your help to keep it interesting. Share things with each other! Make friends! Once in a while I might do a giveaway or some sort of prize for people who are actively working on the challenge as well as posting in the group (last year, I gave away a Kindle Paperwhite). This is not meant to be super competitive, however--just fun.

Anyway, without further ado, here are the challenge checklists (you can click on the photo to view/print the PDF). They are essentially the same list, but the wording is different between runners and walkers:

          

Once you join the Facebook group (if you want to; obviously, you don't have to), then print out either your walking challenge or your running challenge sheet. Then, starting on June 20th, start working on each run/walk on the list in any order you choose.

There are a few that have to be done on certain days... there is one that has to be done ON June 20th, because it's the summer solstice--the first day of summer. Summer officially starts at 11:52 PM ET, so if you run between 11:51 PM and 11:53 PM, you will have run from spring to summer! . (This is explained on the challenge sheet.)

Like I said, do them in any order you'd like. And then if you're in the Facebook group, it would be great if you posted pictures of your completed runs! The only rule is that you cannot count multiple items for a single run--each item must be completed in its own run/walk. For everything else, if you're not sure what "counts", just use your best judgment. Nobody is going to police the challenge ;)

Okay, and there you have it! I hope you are as excited as I am to knock some things off this list this summer :)  (Every year, I say I am going to complete the entire list, and I've yet to even finish 75% of it! So maybe this will be my year.)

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Starting Strong

Well, so far, so good. The DietBet I'm doing is going well--it's funny how seeing the scale on Monday scared me straight immediately! The actual challenge didn't start until Tuesday, and normally I would have waited until Tuesday to start. But when I did my official weigh-in, I decided to start right at that moment, haha.

I've been counting calories and as much as I thought I would hate it, I actually don't mind it. The fact that I have all of my recipes already entered into the Fat Secret app is a huge help. I used to get stressed out when it was a busy day, time to cook dinner, and I still had to figure out what to make along with how many calories it has. Planning and getting the tedious stuff done ahead of time is super helpful.

I even took the time on Sunday to plan out our meals for the week, then I wrote a grocery list and went shopping. I included lots of grapes, because those were the secret to my success last time ;)  I made chicken burrito bowls on Sunday, beef stew on Monday, chicken broccoli lo mein yesterday, and grilled cheese with bacon and tomato today. (We didn't get home until 9:00 pm from baseball, so it was a LATE dinner!)

I also started the Couch to 5K plan on Monday. I hadn't actually *planned* to do so, but after my weigh-in, I didn't even change out of those workout clothes I'd weighed in on--I went right out for the first workout. 

There are three runs each week; this week, the workouts are: 8 x (run 60 seconds, walk 90 seconds). That totals 20 minutes, and I added on a warm-up and cool down walk as well.

I can't remember if I wrote this before, but last month when I did the first week of Couch to 5K, I couldn't believe how hard it felt. Each time I did the 60 seconds of running, I was super relieved to hear the beeping on my watch to signal me to walk. But then it seemed like the walking portion flew by much faster! I was barely able to catch my breath before the watch started beeping for me to run again. It felt the same for the second run, too.

Well, after that second run, I was looking at my splits on the Garmin app, and I realized a big mistake I'd made. I had set my recovery walk intervals to 60 seconds instead of 90 seconds! So it's no wonder that it felt so short when I was walking, haha.

This time, I made sure to set the intervals correctly. I brought Joey with me both times--he's gotten as out of shape as I have. To keep from dreading my runs, I am making sure to run at a moderate effort (it feels hard, but I'm only pushing myself to about a 7 on a scale of 1-10). I'm not worried about my pace at all--I'll be thrilled just to be able to run 3 miles comfortably again!

I still like to wear my Garmin and look at all my data after my runs, of course ;)  So it will be interesting to see if my pace improves naturally, even if I maintain the same effort. I like looking at my heart rate data the most. I think that's a big indicator of whether I'm improving my fitness.

This is the data from just the first two runs, so there is nothing to conclude by it... but it's still fun to look at. The first picture of each set is run #1 and the second one is run #2.

Anyway, even though the running feels hard right now, I actually really enjoy it. It feels good to be sore for a *reason* (not just the random chronic pain). It helps me to stay on track with my eating throughout the day, too.

Between the better eating habits, feeling prepared for what's ahead, and working on the Couch to 5K plan, I feel a lot better about myself than I did just a week ago. I have hope that I will really see some progress.

I haven't felt this motivated and determined in longer than I can even remember. Let's hope it continues!

By the way, I saw that some of you joined in on the same DietBet I'm doing--make sure you let me know how it's going for you! I'd love to hear it.

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Transformation Tuesday #28 - Porch Makeovers!

I still have several Transformation Tuesday posts in my inbox--thank you!--so I'm trying to group a few each week with a common theme. I noticed that there are a few transformations about porches/decks/outdoor living space. There are just three transformations here, but lots of pictures!

Even though I have enough for a couple more weeks, please keep sending them--as I always say, I'd rather have a back-up of submissions than have to keep begging for them! ;) To submit a transformation, just send a before photo and an after photo to me at: katie (at) runsforcookies (dot) com. And don't forget to include your name and a description of the transformation!

 

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Last spring/summer during COVID, we finally decided the backyard and our sunroom-turned-storage-room should be updated. After being at home for two months we got started.

Backyard: We took down the old fence and cleaned up all the junk in the back. Husband then built a small patio, a shed attached to the house and a tree house play set for the kids. We also have a zip line in the back in the woods.

Sunroom: We had a sunroom (three season) room built off our basement seven years ago. It was concrete floor with a frame attached to the stucco. We used it for junk storage until last summer! Husband took the old fencing and used it to line the entire room. Painted, installed a light/fan and an outdoor TV. Add a rug and furniture and now it's one of our favorite places in the house!

Even though these were pretty big projects, it's made being at home so much easier and gives us so much more space.

- Nicole

[It was hard to post a side-by-side of this transformation because it's more of a progression series, so here are the photos in order:]

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We added a deck onto our home a couple years ago, which is when We bought the patio table and chairs and conversation seating area. I never really liked the red color but, since it came with that color, I dealt with it. I never could find a rug that I liked to match.

Fast forward a couple years and I decided to spend the money on new slipcovers, rugs, and pillows. I also flip flopped the patio table to the other side of deck and I like it much better. I still want to add more plants and flowers!

- Jennifer, Illinois

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At the start of the pandemic I needed a project and decided to strip and repaint my porch. Well, like all of my projects I underestimated the time, talent and treasure needed to accomplish it. I started stripping the paint and it was slow going. I worked on it for a couple months then decided to hire someone to finish it. I am so happy I did. They did a great job--way better than I could ever do.

- Amy

Nicole, what a cozy little nook! I LOVE that your husband used the wood from the fence to line the walls. When I first saw the picture, I thought, "Damn, all that lumber could pay for a brand new car!" ;)

Jennifer, the deck looks great! I adore the rug that you chose. I can't believe what a difference adding a rug can make on a deck. And I like the blue covers, too. Nice!

Amy, I really admire you for attempting such a big project by yourself! It turned out beautifully--and I love the new door color!

Thank you again for sharing your transformations--and please keep them coming! 

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DietBet

Yesterday, I was scrolling through Instagram and I saw someone's post about a DietBet. I'm not sure why it caught my eye--usually I scroll right past the DietBet invites--but I started thinking about possibly joining one. I did it once before as a way to get back on track (I believe it was in fall of 2015) and it definitely helped with accountability.

(If you're not familiar with DietBet, it's a site where various people host a challenge: you place a bet on yourself--the amount is set by the the host--and then you have to lose 4% of your body weight in 4 weeks. After 4 weeks, the pot is split among all the players that reached their 4% goal. (DietBet has asked me to host before, but I have mixed feelings about the whole DietBet thing--especially because they take 20% of the pot before dividing it up!)

I haven't been successful trying to lose this weight on my own lately, so I decided to give it a go. I joined a challenge that is $100 and it starts tomorrow.

To keep the weigh-ins fair, you have to submit a couple of photos (privately) of your weigh-in. One of the photos has to be of your feet on the scale with a codeword written on a piece of paper (a new codeword is generated each day and  you won't know what it is until you're ready to weigh in--proof that the weigh-in is current). The other photo has to be a full-body shot while standing on the scale (a mirror selfie works).

It's not perfect--people could load up on water for their first weigh in to make it look like they lost more at the end, for example--but I think that most people do it for the weight loss accountability. If you're doing it for the money, well, there are much better ways to make money (I think on the one I did before I made less than a dollar at the end--you are guaranteed to get your full bet back if you hit the 4% goal, however. You just might make a few pennies on top of it.)

Anyway, my purpose for doing this is because I want the accountability and a specific goal with consequences if I don't complete it (losing $100 isn't insignificant!). I did my initial weigh-in today (they suggest doing it up to 48 hours before the start of the challenge just in case your photos don't meet the requirements).

You're supposed to dress in lightweight clothing; I wore some running capris and a t-shirt. When I stepped on the scale, I was sure it had to be wrong. I had moved it from the corner of my bathroom to a spot in front of the mirror, so I thought maybe moving it had messed with the calibration. After adjusting positions and everything else I could think of, I kept getting the same goddamn number.

I'm not going to post the number because it was horrifying enough just seeing it. Maybe at the end of the challenge I'll post it, but right now it's still sinking in!

I immediately decided that I was going to start TODAY and not wait until the official start tomorrow. I had asked my friend Caitlin if she wanted to do it with me, so she signed up, too. I texted her about my weigh-in and she said she was unhappy with hers, too.

I figured today would be a good time to start the Couch to 5K plan (again). I'm not injured and taking time off of all activity didn't help my chronic pain, so I am just going to do it. I was already in my running clothes from the weigh-in, so I just grabbed my Garmin and put Joey on a leash, and went out the door.

As far as a diet plan, I'm going to do what has always worked best for me--count calories. I opened the Fat Secret app today and saw all of my recipes in there--I'd already done all the tedious work of entering my recipes and ingredients, so now it's just a matter of planning.

I do still believe in intermittent fasting for health reasons and I'd like to get back to that habit. But I'm going to work on it gradually. At first, I might keep my eating window at 12 hours, and then I'll cut back a little here and there until I'm comfortable with a short window again.

So, we'll see how this goes. I'll update on it periodically (probably on Wednesdays, which is when I used to do my "Wednesday Weigh-In"). I hope this is the kick in the ass I need to finally drop this extra weight I picked up, oh, three and a half years ago!

(Here is a link to the challenge I joined--you can join for up to a couple of weeks after it starts, I think. I'm not trying to recruit people, and I don't get anything for recruiting people--at least I don't think I do--I just figured someone might ask which challenge it is that I joined.)

Speaking of challenges, some people have asked me about doing a Cookies Summer Challenge this year. Yes! I plan on it. It's sneaking up so fast on me. Last year, I made it too complicated with three different challenges, so this year I'm going to keep it simple--a checklist of runs/walks to complete throughout the summer. I hope to get that posted this week!

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2 Kinds of People : Part 3

It's been a while since Jerry and I went through the '2 Kinds of People' book. This is a book I bought for fun a long time ago. It's basically a compatibility quiz in picture form--there are two pictures, and you choose which one best represents you, then see if your partner matches or is the opposite. It's just meant to be fun, and Jerry and I usually end up cracking up by the time we've gone through several pictures.

Here is Part 1 and Part 2. On to Part 3...

Jerry: "I miss the one on the left, but I love the one on the right. I don't have to go to the library anymore, books don't take up any space... Kindle is just better."

Katie: "I think everybody knows how I feel about this! I was a die-hard 'real book' person and couldn't understand how anyone would want to read a book on a screen. My sister kept telling me to get a Kindle Paperwhite, and one day there was a very good deal on them on Amazon. So I figured I'd try it and I could always return it if I really didn't like it. Well, I fell in love immediately. With the backlight turned off, it has the look of a paperback--it's not hard on my eyes. It's lighter than holding a paperback; there is no glare, so I can read it outside just as easily as inside; and you can borrow library books within seconds (or buy books, but I always borrow when I can). Here is the Kindle that I have." (Amazon affiliate link)

Jerry: "Is that beer?" *squints at the screen*

Katie: "A CAN OR A BOTTLE...?"

Jerry: "Oh! Cans, 100%."

Katie: "Ew, why?"
Jerry: "Bottles are just gross; they get swill at the bottom and are heavier. I prefer cans because cans are lighter and it just tastes better out of a can."

Katie: "What the heck are you talking about?! You are a beer snob that insists on pouring his beer into a glass, regardless of what kind of beer it is or what container it comes from."
Jerry: "Plus, you don't need a bottle opener with cans."

Katie: "I think there is something gross about cans. You can't see what you're drinking, so I always imagine things floating around inside of there. Didn't you ever hear of that kid in elementary school whose aunt's best friend's brother-in-law's daughter found a dead mouse inside of her pop can?"

Jerry: "I have, but I thought it was the neighbor; I didn't know it was the daughter."

Katie: "Let's just agree to disagree."

Jerry: "What the hell is that?"

Katie: "It's a beach towel! Do you like an umbrella or no umbrella? I really don't think these pictures are that difficult to understand."

Jerry: "My mind, for the picture on the right side, went to a video game called Resident Evil. That umbrella is the logo for the Umbrella Corporation. Google it. That's the 'guy' in me." *pulls it up on Google and shows it to me*

Katie: "Holy crap, it is!"

Jerry: "So, I choose the picture on the left because the Umbrella Corporation is evil."

Katie: "I choose umbrella. I hate the sun."

Jerry: "I think those towels are gold and white. What about you?"

*This sparks a huge debate about THE DRESS*

Katie: "What do you see here? Do you understand the question?"

Jerry: "I don't see any Vernors."

Katie: "I thought you said it was Coke that makes your throat feel better when you're sick."

Jerry: "Nope, it's Vernors for the throat or Coke for the stomach."

Katie: "Well, I prefer meds. Give me all the meds."

Jerry: "But if I had to choose between meds or tea, I'd prefer the meds."

Jerry: "Ummmm... depends on the size of the bag. If it's a little snack size bag, then I'll just eat them out of the bag. But if I don't want to feel super fat, I'll eat from the bowl. And refill it three times."

Katie: "I always prefer a bowl--I hate getting grease on my hands when reaching into the bag."

Jerry: "But does the grease on your fingertips bother you? Or just on the back of your hand?"
Katie: "I don't like grease on my hands or my fingers at all. When I eat chips, I have to have a napkin to wipe my fingers after each one."

Jerry: "Why can't you just lick your fingers like a normal person?"
Katie: "Eww! I'd rather have grease on my hands than lick my fingers. Man, I really sound like such a stick in the mud." *waits*

Katie: "You're not going to argue and tell me that I'm not a stick in the mud?"
Jerry: "Next question."

Jerry: "So this is a cardigan or a dress shirt?"

Katie: "OHMYGOD, really? It's asking if you like your shirt buttoned or unbuttoned."

Jerry: "Buttoned."

Katie: "This is like asking me to choose between eating dog food or cat food. I can't stand button down shirts! If I HAD to pick, I'd probably say unbuttoned--I do like wearing cardigans over t-shirts, so that works."

Jerry: "Would you fight your attacker off with an umbrella or mace...?"

Katie: "I like the little compact one. But I never have an umbrella with me when I need one, so I have a few of those that are about 18 years old and have never been opened. I can't imagine carrying around a huge one, but I guess when it rains I'd rather have the really big one."

Jerry: "Or you can just put your shoulders up to your ears like an adult."

Katie: "I do that, too."

Jerry: "The one on the left dries out easily; the compact ones are soaking wet and the water gets trapped when you wrap the velcro around and then it flies out all over the place when you open the umbrella up again."

Katie: "Yeah, you're right."

Jerry: "I prefer to eat apples whole. However, I don't like it when the skin gets in between my teeth and cuts my gums."

Katie: "I like to cut them into quarters and sprinkle them with salt."

Jerry: "That's so gross."

Katie: "It's so good! Sweet and salty is a great combo. But unlike the picture, I cut out the core. Nobody likes seeds. Well, except Johnny--he liked them."

Jerry: "Johnny who?"

Katie: "Johnny Appleseed!"

Jerry: "Is he related to Jimmy Crack Corn?"
Katie: "I don't care."

Jerry: "Electric toothbrush, all the way."

Katie: "100% agree! Since we got that electric one, my teeth always feel like I got them cleaned at the dentist. Love it."

Jerry: "I had cavities at my last dentist appointment. But I still love it."

Jerry: "Is this a bath versus shower? I prefer a shower. All day long."

Katie: "I am definitely a shower person, too. Except I take the fastest showers I can--I don't know how you can stand in there all day."

Jerry: "It's so warm and cozy, it's like a hug."

Katie: "And then when you turn off the hot water, it feels like someone threw you into a refrigerator."

Jerry: "Speaking of showers, I have to go take a shower right now. I just got done playing six hours of disc golf and I have to wash this bug spray off of me."

It's so funny how simple pictures like these can spark conversations and even heated debates. Jerry and I are not very compatible, according to the book, but somehow we still work well together ;) There are still lots more questions! So I'll do another part later on.

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RECIPE: Spicy Chicken Taco Pasta

Unfortunately, I did not make a heritage recipe this week. I am planning to write a menu/meal plan for the week tomorrow, and do all of the grocery shopping. When COVID hit and we were in lockdown, I only went grocery shopping about once every two weeks or so. I got out of the habit of meal planning and making a shopping list, and started buying a lot more convenience foods--not a great habit.

I really want to get back in the habit of planning things out. It saves money and it makes dinnertime less stressful; and of course it's healthier. This past week was very busy and I didn't do any sort of planning for meals, so I didn't get around to making a heritage recipe.

However, I had some chicken in the fridge that I had to use. We had pretty much no food in the house, so I had to get a little creative--and I came up with this pasta. It was delicious! I'm definitely going to add this to a regular rotation.

I like to make my own taco seasoning (it's much more flavorful!); I make a big batch of it and store it in a mason jar to use as needed. So that's what I used in this dish. But you could definitely use a packet of taco seasoning instead. You just might want to add a little water to it. (The homemade seasoning doesn't have a thickener, like corn starch, in it.)

Here is a printer-friendly version!

Spicy Chicken Taco Pasta

Ingredients:

1 (16 oz) box of pasta (I used fusilli)
2 tsp. cooking oil
1-1/2 pounds chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1 (10 oz) can Rotel (tomatoes with chiles)
1 cup beef broth
1 (10 oz) bag frozen corn
1/3 cup sour cream
4 oz cheddar cheese
3-4 Tbsp. homemade taco seasoning (see recipe below) OR one packet of store-bought taco seasoning

Directions:

Cook pasta according to package directions. Combine all the spices for taco seasoning in a mason jar and shake to mix will. Set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat and add the chicken. Cook, stirring, until chicken is browned. Add the Rotel, broth, corn, and 3-4 Tbsp. taco seasoning (depending on how spicy you want it) and bring just to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in the sour cream and cheese.

Add the pasta and stir all to combine. Makes about 6-8 servings.

For the Homemade Taco Seasoning:

1/4 cup chili powder
2 Tbsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. black pepper
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (use less, or eliminate, crushed red pepper to reduce heat)

Combine all spices in a jar and shake to mix well. This makes about 9 Tbsp; I like to double it and keep it on hand. Use 2-3 Tbsp. per pound of meat.

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