Dorothy and Toto

I can't help but think of my all-time favorite movie,Wizard of Oz. Picture this: hail balls the size of quarters at times ( picture does not prove this) and....

Wind that blew our giant birch tree sideways. Also, there was sideways rain and thunder and lightning.

 

Now as any caring and loving mother of a fur baby would do, she lets her darling cat meander around town in the summer to play with neighborhood friends and other prey. Until the storm rolls in. Now my little Leonard is no tough guy so I ran out into this storm like Aunty Em searching for Dorothy, afraid he may get sucked into a cyclone. And all I could think was that the neighbors can safely claim I am insane. 

Thank Bob, because Leonard was fine ( just in need of a blow dryer) and I wasn't struck down by Zeus's lightning bolt.

Chicken and Sun-dried Tomato Penne

A woman at work raved about her friend's pasta dish so I attempted and made a bunch of changes, so I'm not really sure what the original is. However, whatever came it was delicious and flavorful. 

8 oz. cubed, cooked chicken

1 onion chopped

2 garlic cloves chopped 

2-3 c. Spinach leaves 

1 T each: parsley, basil, oregano, marjoram

2 T butter

1 T flour

1/2 c. Sun-dried tomatoes

10 oz. chicken broth

8 oz. penne

1/2 c shredded Parmesan cheese

1. Melt butter and add flour and cook one minute

2. Add 3-4 oz broth and cook garlic & onion

3. Add dried herbs, tomatoes, spinach, and chicken

4. Cook pasta to al dente

5. Add broth little by little as sauce thickens

6. Add pasta to sauce and cook another 2 minutes until done. Melt cheese

This was very yummy and something quite simple that I would do again for sure. Plus, it looks like the Italian flag.

Cold Summer Hot Soup

Since this has been an overall cold summer, I've been craving fall dishes in July. I had a lot vegetables that needed to be used before they were on the verge of rot and fruit flies, so I made this veggie soup. 

Also all you savers, I throw my veggies in the freezer for soups and stirfrys. Anyone else do this? 

Needed foods:

5 c beef broth (5 c water & 5 t. better than beef bouillon base)

1/2 c red wine

1/2 white onion

3 cloves of garlic

1 c broccoli

2 c. Kale 

1c mushrooms

3/4 c carrots

1 T olive oil

1 1/2 c. cooked orzo

Spices ( s&p, garlic powder, celery salt-- already so much flavor from the foods in this)

 

1.Chop all veggies 

2.Heat oil and sauté onion and garlic until soft. When oil is soaked up, deglaze with wine.

3. Add mushrooms, carrots, broccoli, and kale. Heat through

4. Add orzo

I have never used orzo before and it was a nice addition to the soup to bulk it up since it is meat free. This can easily be made vegetarian (sub vegetable broth), paleo friendly and add chicken or beef and get rid of the pasta.. The possibilities are endless when you're cooking by cleaning out your fridge.

Running For A Reason 5K

I'm not sure why Mother Nature hates me, but every race I run, the weather is terrible. This race was no different: 45 degrees and raining in July!!

However, it was a great cause, raising money for Alyssa Paro and her incredible fight against breast cancer. The weather may have been bad, but it was still a lot of fun with family and friends.

My goal for this race was to hit under 30 minutes and I snuck in at 29:56, taking 29 seconds off my last 5K time.

My broham and his gf, who I trailed the whole time. Thanks Anna for setting a good pace. 

And, I present... The Ruppes (and Paul)

Tutu Much Fun

One of my favorite things about my weight loss progress is the different activities I've been able to or willing to participate in. I was either too lazy, self-conscious, or too out of shape to do anything like this. However, my brother's girlfriend invited me on the Tour Da Lake event. This is a bike ride around Lake Gogebic which is 38 miles including five total stops at bars/restaurants. I was surprised about how I was able to do it considering I didn't even have a bike until I signed up. 

About 2,000 calories burned later and one sore bum, we finished. Did I mention we had costumes?

The costumes are of course optional, but ReRe and I dress up whenever we get the chance. We were the fourth of July Fairies. And we were joined by other super heroes:

If you would like to make a tutu, it's quite simple, but a bit tedious (just the cutting). From other sites, they suggested 10 yards of fabric for an adult tutu. It was a bit too much, but it's better to have more. I bought 25 total yards, mixing between red, white, and blue. First, you cut the strips to be 6 inches wide (this was an adventure as I didn't buy 6" tulle). The length is up to you. I chose 28 inches, making the tutu 14 inches long. After all the strips are cut, the simple part begins.

Cut elastic to your waist and subtract 2-3 inches, so it fits snugly. I tied the elastic around a chair to work easier. Fold your tulle in half so the length is half of what you started with (so I went from 28" to 14"). Place this folded piece behind the elastic. Pull both ends of the tulle up through the loop that is at the top. Continue moving around the elastic alternating colors. The knot should look like above. In the end, I fastened a cute bow!