Pumpkin Crazy

With all of the holidays coming upon us, everybody and their mother is making pumpkin cookies, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin bread...etc. Well here's yet another Pumpkin Bread recipe.This has been in my family for years and is absolutely DELICIOUS! Please try it. You will not be disappointed. You do, however, have to make the altitude adjustments if you're over 6,000 feet as follows-

For each tsp., reduce baking powder 1/2-1/4 tsp
For each cup, reduce sugar up to 2 tbsp
For each cup, increase liquid 2-4 tbsp

*Delicious Pumpkin Bread*

Ingredients;

·         3 ½ Cups Flour

·         3 Cups Sugar

·         2 Tsp. Baking Soda

·         1 ½ Tsp. Salt

·         1 Tsp. Cinnamon

·         1 Tsp. Ginger

·         1 Tsp. Cloves

·         1 Tsp. Nutmeg

·         1 Cup Cooking Oil

·         4 Eggs

·         2/3 Cup Water

·         2 Cups Pumpkin

Sift together dry ingredients in a large bowl. Then add all remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into 3 greased and floured 9x5 loaf pans. Bake at 350^o for 50-60 minutes.  Scrape around sides of panwith spatula as soon as the bread comes out of the oven- this will help life the bread from the pan. Then put bread on a cooling rack.

If you want to get really crazy, you can also add this wonderful Icing that I use on everything

*Yummy Icing*

Ingredients;

·         1/3 Cup butter

·         1 ½ Tsp. Vanilla

·         2 Cups Powdered Sugar

·         2 Tbsp. Water

Brown butter carefully in saucepan; add vanilla. Stir in powdered sugar, and add 2 Tbsp. Water, adding more as needed. Don’t get the icing to thing or it will make your dessert soggy.

Death By Stress

Rest. Relax. Rejuvenate. Stupid words to you? Story time!


 Last October I was checked into the ER due to a severe migraine, loss of vision, numbness in both arms, inability to comprehend or formulate words and nausea. My sister and mom were afraid that I was having some sort of heart attack- Let me just say that it was a really bad day. The doctors gave me two anti-nausea drugs, oxygen and liquids and 4 hours later I was released, little did I know that this was the beginning of a massive problem that put me out of school for a semester, multiple doctors and problems that are still following me. My parents found huge knots in my back, neck and shoulders that could definitely cause nerve compression so I went to a massage therapist to help loosen my back up, and it helped! But because it was releasing so many toxins at once, it made me really sick and I had to stop. The migraine was so intense that we think it damaged something in my brain that disabled a lot of my reading and comprehension ability so school was a nightmare, I was nauseous almost all the time, fatigued, dizzy, and was having a hard time forming thoughts. I went to my homeopathic doctor and a nutritionist and they helped with a lot of things- lactose intholerance, wheat intolerance, a really high level of metal toxicity (I'm still trying to figure out where that came from) and several other things. This went on for a year. The intensity of the symptoms lessened over time but I still can't read for longer than about 10 minutes, can't speed read anymore, get easily fatigued, feel nauseous most of the time, and have to consistently rest so I don't over do it and end up with this stuff again. It has ruled my life for the past year- I try and push through it but it regularly puts me out. People get frustrated with me when I don't jump into activities that involve a lot of action and stuff - saying I'm a "party-pooper" but what they don't realize is that I have to protect myself. I know my body's limits....Fast forward to yesterday, when I experienced almost the exact same thing that I had experienced 1 year ago. Thank God it wasn't the same intensity as before but it really scared me, I was thinking, "Seriously! This is not happening again!". This time I didn't have as bad of a headache till later but my whole left side went numb- leg, arm and even face. I was so scared. I was afraid that my body was gonna really be a mess afterwards.






Let me tell you something; All of this stuff happened because of STRESS. I wouldn't let my HEAD relax. The knots in my back got there because of the amount of stress I was putting myself through. I know my body's limits but had know idea what my emotions' and brains' limits were. In America there is a huge problem with people not letting themselves Relax. It is not a selfish thing to relax. God had a day of rest. Not 10 minutes- a whole day. And He created nights for us to rest ALSO. You have to take advantage of the times of rest. Get yourself into a regular sleep schedule! 


 Short Sleep duration is linked with;

• Increased risk of motor vehicle accidents
• Obesity
• Increased risk of diabetes and heart problems
• Increased risk for psychiatric conditions including depression and substance abuse
• Decreased ability to pay attention, react to signals or remember new information.

A healthy amount of sleep is between 9 and 10 hours. I can pretty much guarantee that you aren't getting that much. On top of sleeping, you should also be taking time throughout the day to relax. Just take ten minutes every couple of hours and do deep breathing exercises, give yourself a body lotion rub down (Maybe a lavender scented lotion since that is a natural relaxant). Resting is not a selfish thing! It's selfish not to relax. I understand if you have children and there is just no time- but I say this out of the love in my heart. MAKE TIME. They need you to be the best you can be. They need you to be healthy and live a long life. Stress can cause- Depression, Diabetes, High blood pressure, Weight gain, Low immune System (or susceptibility to disease), Heart Disease and even Cancer. You are no good to ANYBODY if you aren't functioning properly, not thinking clearly, and not being as healthy as you can be. Allow yourself rejuvenation! Your body can only take so much, I'm pretty sure that even Wonder Woman went to the spa every once in a while. Your kids will understand. They will probably thank you for it!




Take the time to relax. It's a gift. Unwrap it.

"The time to relax is when you don't have time for it. "

 ~Attributed to both Jim Goodwin and Sydney J. Harris

We live longer than our forefathers; but we suffer more from a thousand artificial anxieties and cares.  They fatigued only the muscles, we exhaust the finer strength of the nerves.  ~Edward George Bulwer-Lytton

The mark of a successful man is one that has spent an entire day on the bank of a river without feeling guilty about it.  ~Author Unknown

Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save.  ~Will Rogers, Autobiography, 1949