A Different Kind of Treadmill and Food Item #9

Hi!  Hope everyone has had a great start to the week!  I know I’ve been feeling more cheerful the past few days.  I think that those of you who commented that this time of year can really suck the life outta ya nailed it.  I do not like feeling cold 95% of the time, I do not like that it’s dark so much.  But I think that compared to what some people have (or don’t have), I’m pretty darn lucky.  So moving on….
Friday night we took DS an hour out of town to  really neat sports facility that houses a synthetic ice treadmill.  The goal of this contraption is to strengthen your overall skating, improve your endurance and and to skate with your head and shoulders up.  He was a wee bit nervous at first because he didn’t know what to expect… But he just happened to be on with a boy his age that he plays against.    This fella was SO helpful and really made DS feel at home.  The kids are hooked into a harness type strap so that if they fall they don’t fly off the back end.  I took an action shot to start off with:
As you can see they are placed in front of a mirror so that they can watch themselves.  Seeing as this was his first time he didn’t use a stick, but the other boy did and you could really see where stick handling skills would be improved!  They also film the kids so that while it’s their turn to sit off they can watch it.  The purpose of this is to tell the instructor “2 stars and a wish” or, 2 things they did well and one to work on.  It was so neat to watch his play backs; it was just like video game DS!  Check it out: That’s DS!!  LOL  And of course, I took some video, too!!

Hope you can view this OK!  Overall we were really impressed with this program and DS can not wait to go back again!  Better yet, after just that one session we saw an improvement in his stride at the game on Saturday. 
I have some much better eats to post about this time.  I’ve really been packing my veggies in and have been keeping meals bright and colourful.  Half the battle, right? The jam in the top photo is this spectacular coconut pineapple banana jam that I bought at Knapp’s a few weeks ago: I’ve also been using this new (to me) dressing on my veggies: This is particularly tasty on fish!
I ate Subway for dinner Friday AND Saturday night.  Yum! And being as Christmas is fast approaching, there have been limitless treats at work! And I don’t know who put that chocolate bar in my desk drawer…*whistle*  :)
On to food item #9.  I can’t believe there’s only one week left!!!  And seeing as it’s so cold out I think this item is fitting: Canned soup!!!   If you’re missing an item remember that you can check out the thanks & giving tab above for the whole list.  You should be getting quite the stash of food by now!!
Bye for now!!

Snow, Hockey and Food Item #8

Holy smokes I had a BUSY weekend!  This will be a picture heavy post because I spent the majority of the weekend at various arenas so there’s not too much to say.   We did get a crap load of snow which made the kids pretty happy!  Between games Saturday they bundled up for some tobogganing and snowman making:  
I stayed warm inside with a mug of this: Let’s just say that I don’t share the kids enthusiasm for the snow.  ;)
One of the Dad’s from the hockey team has a fabulous Canon and takes amazing photos at the games.  I asked if I could use some and was told to “knock myself out” so THANKS to Ken for the following photos! (some are from the tournament, some from random games in October & November)
The second (close up) photo has to be one of my all time favourite taken of him at hockey.  YAY!
The games Friday and Saturday were at 8 which meant getting to the rink by 7am.  I filled my belly with a bowl of Nature’s Path Flax porridge on morning and a farm fresh egg over whole grain toast another: This morning’s bowl of oats was eaten a little later in much brighter natural light:
Lunches had been a mixed bag.  Spinach salad at the rink, leftover chilli and the last bit of Greek yogurt with granola: Friday night we went to Boston Pizza after hockey.  I ordered an individual Szechuan chicken pizza which was really yummy! Saturday night the fam had lasagne so I made myself a panini with roasted turkey breast, cassata cheese and some Dijon mustard on the side for dipping; Tonight was burger night which made me feel like it should be warm outside.  Ha-ha!  Mine was a veggie burger with smoky salsa, mustard, mayo pickle, cassata cheese and lettuce: The only snack I had was Friday morning at work.
I tend to always have a morning snack through the week, but very rarely snack on the weekends.  I’m too distracted to think about being hungry so don’t actually eat until I AM hungry.  At my desk at work it’s easy to mistake boredom for hunger.  That and I do need extra fuel for the gym on weekdays.
On to what I feel thankful for this week.  I am thankful for the great parents on DS’s hockey team this year.  We spend so much time at the rink and there’s always company to pass the time with.  We have to be at the rink an hour before the game starts so there’s a lot of downtime waiting around and I’d have pulled my hair out by now without all these great people!  so, THANKS!  And for food item #8?  Check it out… CRACKERS!  My food bank box is getting quite full.  How about yours??
Bye for now!!

Smoked Turkey, Lentil and Kale Soup

My sweetheart of a Mom brought me a smoked turkey leg the other day and I knew right away that I wanted to make split pea soup with it.  Only I didn’t have split peas, just loads of green lentils.  Never to let something so minor stop me, I forged ahead and was rewarded with a terrific pot of flavourful, thick, hearty soup!  Check it out!
Smoked Turkey, Lentil and Kale Soup

• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 ribs of celery, chopped
• 2 crushed garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp avocado oil
• 4 cup stock
• 2 cups water
• 2 cup green lentils
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 smoked turkey leg
• 1 packed cup of chopped kale
• salt & pepper to taste

1. Heat oil in a large pot and add all chopped veggies.  Cook until soft 5-8 minutes
2. Add garlic, bay leaves, salt & pepper.  Cook 1 minute more
3. Add smoked turkey leg, stock and water.  Bring to a boil
4. Add lentils, bring back to boil then turn temp down to a simmer
5. Partially cover and let simmer for 1.5 – 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
6. With approx 45 minutes of cooking time left add chopped kale
7. Remove turkey leg and set aside too cool slightly.  Puree soup with an immersion blender.  **If you  like your soup a bit thinner, add water accordingly.  I added an extra 2 cups**
8. Keep soup on low heat while you remove and chopped all the meat from the bone.  Add turkey back to the pot and cook just a few more minutes to heat
9. Serve and enjoy! I’ve been eating this all week like it’s my job.  And boy have I ever been loving this job!  Haha!  Surprisingly, DS also loved this soup.  I think it was the smoked turkey that really reigned in his taste buds. I went home for lunch on Tuesday and while there decided to throw some wild rice in the crock pot to see how it would cook versus the stove top.   I had approx 1.5 cups of rice to which I added 5 cups of water.  It cooked on low for 3.5-ish hours.  Here are the results: It turned out fabulous!  There was some water still at the bottom so I had to strain it, but the rice itself didn’t get mushy at all.  I now have four 1 cup servings hanging out in the freezer and have been eating the rest over the course of a few days.  YUM!  Do you like wild rice??
   So we’re a little more than halfway through November and I think it’s about high time I showed you what my hubby’s Movember stash is looking like! I think it’s coming along awesome!  DD absolutely HATES it.  She can’t wait until he shaves it off.  LOL  This is what he looked like on November 1:
   If you’ve been following along you’ll remember that he’s growing said stash to help raise money to fight prostate cancer.  You can click on the link ^above^ if you’d like to donate!
   FOOD! The above is wild rice, kale and dried cranberries.
   This was a great meal!  Buffalo chicken shake & bake, sautéed kale and wild rice.  
   Would it surprise you that I ate this bag in 5 days?  Probably not!  Hehe!
   Wanna see something cute?  Here are my niblets in their school photos from last year: And here they are in their photos from this year! Isn’t it amazing how much change can happen in a year?  I see it loud and clear in my daughter.  And yes, she is only 11.  DS is 8.  YIKES!
   Bye for now!!