Bacon Jalapeño Poppers

This recipe has pretty much become a go-to for holiday snacks in our house. We sometimes make them before we take off to go camping, or before the weekend begins. They can be made up ahead of time and placed in an airtight container in the refrigerator and popped into the microwave, air fryer, or oven for a short time to warm them back up, because they are best served hot.

• 20-30 jalapeño peppers (seeded and cut lengthwise in half) **use gloves for this**
• 3-4 (8oz) blocks of cream cheese (room temperature)
• 1 tablespoon of onion powder
• 1 teaspoon of pepper
• 1 teaspoon of salt (to taste)
• 1 tablespoon of jalapeno juice (this adds some additional spice to the mix)
• 10-12 jalapeno seeds (more or less to your own spice tolerance)
• Cooked bacon (entire package)

Mix cream cheese, onion powder, pepper, salt, and seeds together in a bowl and fill each jalapeño shell with mixture. Be sure to overfill to your desired amount. Cut bacon into small diced pieces and sprinkle on top of cream cheese mixture. 

Place on baking sheet and bake for 20-30 minutes in a 350 degree oven, or until the tops are browned and bacon becomes crispy.

Enjoy!

Five Simple Things (May 26)

 Hello.

Here are five things this week.

1. This pottery.

Skylar brought these home from his class at LBCC and I just love them. Pottery is such a fun thing and if I had my own kiln I would be making it every day.

2. These fortunes.

The best part of Chinese take out is the fortunes, right?

3. This day.

It was a good day.

4. This coop.

This duck coop has been such a great addition to us having ducks, but the time has come to replace it with something new. We loved this duck house from the moment we set it up, but unfortunately these types of coops don't last long in the elements. The sides are made from a thin wood and aren't setup to last for long periods of time. Even if this coop was out of the elements, the overall construction isn't great. We have had to fix, repair, and even reconstruct a lot of the coop over the years and every time we cleaned out one part of the coop, it seems another part would need to be repaired. We are currently looking at getting a small shed, but right now we are limping the coop by until we decide.

5. This garden.

Our garden is coming along nicely and we see plants breaking through the soil. We are anxious to see what all is successful this year and what we are going to have for a harvest. This will be the last year that our garden is in this location. We already have plans on where to move it and start with fresh new beds. We can't wait, but for now, we are expecting a good harvest from this year's garden.

One last thing:

I've been working with a dietitian on foods to help me stay at a certain weight, but also help me stay on track. I've been working with her ever since my car accident happened where I lost a lot of weight and the hospital was worried that I would go back on old habits of an eating disorder. I have to eat a weekly determined number of calories every day and sometimes I have a hard time meeting those goals. I hate cooking, so Jeff and Skylar have been keeping me with those calories so that I can meet my calorie goals. I will be honest, sometimes it's really hard, but we can all do hard things. Especially things that help us stay health. Below is a couple of food options that were on the list of calories. Rice with one tablespoon of butter, and two tablespoons of nutritional yeast. The other option was four strips of bacon cooked in the oven and four protein pancakes with one tablespoon butter, one tablespoon jelly/jam, syrup, or honey. This day's calories were hard to get through. I don't like bacon that much, so I wasn't able to eat the entire plate, but I did the best I could and that's all that matters. If you too are struggling with having a good relationship with food, it is going to be tough some days, but overall it's so rewarding to reach a goal, even if it's small. 

Positive affirmations this week:

I have started leaving my phone in the kitchen to charge on the charging strip each night and I have gotten Skylar to do the same. We noticed one important thing when we started doing this, we get so much better sleep at night. I mentioned it to Jeff to do, too, but he uses his for his alarm in the morning, so that's a no-go for him... or is it? Using you phone for your alarm clock is one of the biggest issues with people sleeping with their phones next to their heads while they sleep. But breaking that happen only takes you removing the cell phone from the room. No one says you have to use your phone for that, you are choosing to do that. There are so many different alarm clocks on the market that can help you wake up just as efficiently. The best step would be to try it out on a day that you don't have to be at work, or any appointments. Give yourself some learning curve days, too. It's hard to break a habit, but that first step is all it takes. Your sleep will be so much better.

You can do this! 🌈

Have a nice weekend.

Our First Cold Plunge Experience

 My therapist recommended giving cold plunging a try, so I got Skylar and Jeff to do it with me. It was quite an experience, but I will say, all three of us felt amazing afterward and for a few days following. We have started with a galvanized metal stock tank that is large enough for us to sit with our legs completely submerged in the water. We are going to get into a routine of cold plunging at least twice a week and also incorporate cold showers into our daily routine, so we get into a pattern of where our bodies benefit from both.  We are being consistent with it, because my knee pain is almost nonexistent and I experience less headaches, backaches, and my mental health issues seem to be less intense when I do have a panic attack. Jeff said his arthritic shoulder and injured wrist feels about 80% better, and Skylar said he experiences better mental health and helps with his endurance when running. We will see how long this setup works for our needs and we will be upgrading to one that has a regulated chilling system, so we don't have to keep using ice. There is nothing wrong with this setup, if it's something you've been wanting to try, but our feedback on this setup is the constant using of bagged ice, or frozen ice blocks you can make yourself. 

Five Simple Things (May 19)

 Hello.

Here are five things this week.

1. This pie.

These pies are made here locally and are some of the best ones we have ever tasted. They are available through our local food co-op and I grab one once a month and surprise everyone with it. This one was marionberry and it was incredible!

2. This surfing.

We randomly took off this week for a surfing day and it was much needed. The stress of the week seems to fade away once we are in the water and we are so grateful to live this close to the coast to be able to take off whenever we want or need and spend the day on the waves.

3. This box.

Kinder Beauty introduced some new brands and products in this month's box. My favorite product in this shipment is the Lavido Thera Intensive Body Cream. It has a nice lavender and tea tree scent, but also works well for really dry areas, like feet. 

4. This game.

This game is also featured in my Shop page, but this week we played it and it's a lot of fun. These little games are available through Lowe's and offer kids the ability to learn how to build something, give them confidence in seeing what they can do, and also create something that they can actually use. These little DIY construction kits help keep kids and adults off their phones for a short time and create a family time that can create memories that last a lifetime.

5. These items.

A few more items headed to be donated. Hopefully, these items will become someone else's treasures through the humane society here.

One last thing:

This week we went to eat at Café Yum on the Oregon State University campus. While we were eating there was a race car parked across the street. We waited to see the driver, but he never showed up. We enjoyed making up stories while we ate. Skylar made up that he was the driver of the car and was driving across the country to leave his city job for the green pastures of New Hampshire. Ha!

Positive affirmations this week:

I've been using the guided meditation through Op e  n for about three months now and the takeaway has been so rewarding. Meditation is a great way to help with mental health issues, especially anxiety. I have PTSD induced anxiety, and at times it brings about panic attacks so bad that I feel like I am going to die. Meditation has helped a great deal with panic issues from anxiety attacks and also helped me relax my brain at night when I can't seem to slow down from a day of anxiety issues. There's a lot that Op e  n offers and below is a diagram that can get you started. Even if you don't use Op e  n, I highly recommend starting a mediation practice of your own.

You can do this! 🌈

Have a nice weekend.

Nuts and Seeds Banana Bread

• 1/2 cup melted salted butter
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon, or more to taste
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground or grated nutmeg
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract (not imitation)
• 4 very ripe bananas, mashed (about 2 cups)
• 1/2 cup, or more of seeds and nuts (peanuts, pumpkin, flax, sunflower, almond, cashew, chia)

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C), and butter a loaf pan.

In a mixing bowl, mix together the ripe bananas and melted butter. Mix in the baking soda and salt. Then add in sugars, eggs, and vanilla extract. Mix in the flour last.

Pour the batter into greased loaf pan and sprinkle 1/2 of the nuts on top. Halfway through baking, sprinkle the remaining nuts on top and finish baking.

Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely before slicing.

This recipe is customizable in so many ways. Instead of bananas, try canned pumpkin, zucchini, even watermelon. Instead of nuts, add raisins, cranberries, currants, blueberries, or even strawberries. The possibilities are endless. We have tried all different ways to incorporate foods into this recipe. It should be called, "Everything in the Cabinet Bread."☺ I hope you enjoy it, because it's a huge favorite in our house! If you give it a try, let me know by tagging me on social media. I would love to know what you think of it, or if you added something fun.