Digging in the Snow

Cheeky, our dog, is enjoying the winter. She loves bounding through the snow, although sometimes her hips give her some trouble and she finds it difficult to pull herself out of the deep snow.

She also seems to have a great nose or maybe it's ears, as she often hears gophers and mice under the snow. It's not uncommon for her to start digging in the snow in the park by our house, right where I know there is a gopher hole in the summer.

Recently she did some digging when out for a walk with our friend and her dog, Conan.

I don't know what we'll do when she can no longer pull herself out of the drifts, they give her so much pleasure.

Maybe tomorrow she'll find a rabbit to chase. (Don't worry, she'll never catch it.)

Walking home from the park. It's beautiful!

Leadership

The only real training for leadership is leadership. ~ Antony Jay

Counting Sheep...

Here's a crazy thing...

I was up tonight, not able to sleep, and decided to watch a recently recorded episode of Dr. Oz. Of all things, the episode was about sleep issues and the dangers of not sleeping enough.

Lack of sleep causes:

• Higher blood pressure
• 50% more likely to be overweightobesity
• Double the risk of heart attacks
• 1 in 6 fatal car accidents due to fatigue

There are likely a number of things to consider in getting a better sleep. For instance, exercising right before bed isn't great, either. Tonight was ringette night. We play at 9:00 p.m. and to be honest, most nights that's when I'm getting ready for bed. On ringette night I'm getting my heart rate really going, making it hard to settle in for the evening.

But, that's only one night a week, and I'm sleeping poorly almost every night. Most nights I fall asleep fairly easily, but I have difficulty staying asleep and getting back to sleep.

I work hard at going to sleep at the same time every night. I don't watch tv or use the computer in bed. There are no lights on in our room, I've hidden the alarm clock and I've removed all other electronics. (these are just some of the many suggestions that they have on various internet sites.)

What's left? Well, I know that hormones are also an issue, but that's not something I have a lot of control over. I'm watching my diet, but I'm not going to take hormone replacements. Been there, done that, and got lots of headaches to go with them.

So, I'll keep watching for solutions and keep working at counting sheep!

Dr. Oz and Weight Loss

Dr. Oz had some tips on losing weight on Monday.

There are some good ideas, check out the video below.

Vision

If you do not look at things on a large scale, it will be difficult to master strategy. ~ Miyamoto Mursashi

MicroCredit and Muhammad Yunnis

Protein Snacks

A few days ago a friend was telling me about protein balls that she makes. I never seem to eat enough protein, or fiber in the day, so I thought I'd try a version of my own.

I don't know the calorie count, but they're just snacks not full meals.

Protein Snacks
1 cup almond butter
1 cup cashew butter
1 cup peanut butter (organic, unsweetened)
1 cup sesame seeds

1 cup pumpkin seeds
2 cups shredded coconut
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup pine nuts
1 cup hemp seeds
1 cup nutella
(add more sesame and pumpkin seeds and almonds if desired)
(optional, more hemp seeds to coat balls)
Mix all ingredients together. Chill for one hour or more. Scoop out small balls (1 inch diamater) and roll in hemp seeds. Refrigerate and use them for that mid afternoon snack/energy boost.

I'm enjoying them, almost too much!