Healthy Meals on Vacation

by Lois Breneman, © 2006, Heart to Heart

        In our home we are trying to change our eating habits, little by little.  This year for our annual family beach vacation we planned more healthy meals and it worked out great!   Basic meals contained no sugar, artificial sweeteners, white flour, bad fats, etc.  Sugar and coffee were available for those who couldn't live without them.  Our future daughter-in-law, Rachael,  gave me a copy of the book, Greater Health God's Way, by Stormie Omartian, which gives seven steps to greater health - God's way, and it has had an impact on me.

        My husband suggested we take our water distiller along, rather than the countless gallons of water that we would all consume.  Because of higher prices at the beach, we saved money by taking almost all our food, including orange juice and some milk.  Some jugs were frozen to help keep other food cold, and nothing thawed out during our long drive.

         Before the planning I asked for meal suggestions and made it a point to take favorites of family members, and they appreciated that.  We were all glad for Rachael's suggestion to make homemade ice cream at the beach, and took our electric ice cream freezer along and made it twice!  We served it with various healthy toppings (sliced toasted almonds, toasted unsweetened coconut, natural peanut butter, natural granola, crushed strawberries, and carob chips).  We also had hot fudge and caramel available for those who didn't want to have a sugar withdrawal.  Once you go off sugar though, you will find that you don't desire sweets nearly as much, and other foods have much more flavor.  Of course, the health benefits are endless!

        Using whole spelt flour and Montana golden wheat, whole grain loaves of bread and Pennsylvania sticky buns (using butter, sucanat, cinnamon, nuts, honey and pure maple syrup) were made ahead and frozen.  Specially-made pizza crusts, homemade pizza sauce, and taco shells were brought along by Rachael.

        Homemade pizza was a favorite, with whole spelt pizza crusts and lots of toppings choices, including ripe olives, mushrooms, and crushed pineapple.  Joy and Wayne cooked that night and took topping orders before they assembled the pizzas.  A green tossed salad completed the meal, as we all enjoyed the cool breeze on the deck that evening.

        Another evening Jeff and Rachael prepared tacos with lots of toppings lined up for everyone to help themselves and build their own, plus a green salad.  James and Emily put together a fantastic green salad with plenty of varied toppings to pass around.  Everybody pitched in during cleanup time and it always went very fast!

          Other dinners that we took along - prepared as much ahead of time as possible - were garlic lemon ginger chicken, brown rice with veggies, pulled roast in broth (quick to serve for the evening we arrived).  Side dishes such as red parslied potatoes, frozen stir fry vegetables and others rounded out the meals.  We enjoyed the mealtimes so much and only ate out once.  We also took along cooked and sliced turkey breast for sandwiches.

        The bun buggie veggie dip was lots of fun and enjoyed by the adults too!  I'd encourage you to try that recipe.

        Homemade Granola was used for breakfast and as a snack.  I used my mother's recipe (oats, honey, olive oil, sliced almonds, unsweetened coconut, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts, raisins, cranberries).  It was packaged in a large freezer bag, as well as in individual bags, each with a plastic spoon to take to the beach for snacking.  The plan was to take these "snack packs" on the sailboat too, but those ocean waves keep us far too busy to think of food!

You can find the recipes on the other Recipes blog for:

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream
My Mother's Granola
Bun Buggie Veggie Dip
Green Garden Salad
Oatmeal Raisin Walnut Cookies
Honey-Wheat Bread
Brown Rice with Veggies

Vacation Packing List / More Travel Tips / Vacation Humor

VACATION PACKING LIST

by Lois Breneman, © Revised 2007, Heart to Heart

Lists are great!  For smoother planning and packing, why not copy and paste this packing list, then revise it to suit your own family's needs?   The best thing about making a master packing list is that you will be less likely to forget something important.  This list will fit on one page and can be filed in your "Vacation" or "Packing List" folder for easy access whenever you need it.  I also keep a few printed copies handy in a file.  There are always "Last Minute" items to pack the morning you leave - things that are being used until the last minute.  Add those at the bottom of the page where designated.  If you need to make arrangements to hold or cancel your newspaper, add the local phone number to your master list. 

If your husband does his own packing, help him make a list of his own.  This brings a smile to my face as I think back to one summer day when my very organized engineer husband and I were leaving the house for a relaxing day of sailing at a nearby lake.  We were a block away from home when I went through a memory check list, asking my husband, "Do you have the life jackets?  U.S. flag for on top of the mast?  Wind gauge?  Bungee cords?  Sails?"  You should have seen the look on his face!  We died laughing, because he forgot to load the sails on the boat!  Just imagine!  Going sailing without the sails!  We went around the block and back home again to get the sails, laughing all the way!  He has a sailing list now that he checks before leaving the house, but we still laugh about that day!  I told him he's a good sport for allowing me to share this example with you.  He said I could write, "Used by permission!"

If your children are old enough, have them make up their own packing list.  This is a practical way to teach them responsibility.

For shorter trips, you can use the same list and cross off all the things you don't need, unless you want to make a shorter version.

Some headings I include in our "Packing List" are the following:

Personal and Toiletries
Clothing
Winter/Summer Items
Items to Keep Handy in Vehicle
List of things to do before leaving, such as Vacation Stop for the mail and newspaper, water plants, unplug computer and sewing machines.

You get the idea.  Make a one-page packing list for yourself and make copies for each time you go on a trip.  I keep a copy on file in my computer so I can print off a copy before packing.  It helps knowing everything I need is on the list.  Of course, every now and then the list needs a little tweaking.

MORE TRAVEL TIPS
Used by permission

Activity Bag for Each Child ~ Before leaving on a long trip, pack an activity bag for each child.  It will help transform long boring hours into exciting, fun and more peaceful hours for the entire family.  Enlist your child's help, asking for ideas of some favorite small toys and supplies he would enjoy playing with while traveling.  Sneak out and visit a dollar store without the children and choose other things they would enjoy, but keep those items inside your own little surprise bag!  Pipe cleaners are a suggestion for forming into people, flowers, animals, cars, bicycles, etc.  Decide when you want to dole out your surprises during your trip - maybe one a day.  A padded desktop makes many activities easier while traveling.  Take a lengthy book that would interest your children, and read aloud, a chapter at a time, while riding in the car.  Take audio tapes or CD's of music and stories as well.  Notes: If you take crayons that would melt in a hot car while you're out doing something else, just stick them in the cooler with the snacks. Some other items that will help make your trip more contented are the following: wipes, antibacterial hand cleaner, note pad and pen, small trash bag, pillow cases for hanging at windows if too sunny.

Traveler's Alert ~ If you are like me and do not fly much, you sometimes are not sure what you can take and not take on the plane. I had knitting needles with me on one trip and they were allowed, but then on another trip, they were denied and my boarded bag had already gone to the bottom of the plane. Now, I carry a self-addressed envelope with me so I can mail the items back to me without a financial loss. -  Susan W. -  www.stretcher.com

Airlines - Carry-On Restrictions ~ Use these key words to do a search for the airline you are using - before packing - ie:  http://www.united.com/page/article/0,1360,1032,00.html

In Case of a Lost Suitcase ~ My son and daughter-in-law are traveling to Rome in a few weeks and are allowed only one suitcase each. They are packing half of her clothes and half of his clothes in each of the suitcases just in case one is sent to some other airport.  They are also carrying a backpack for passports, a change of underwear,  their medications, and the rest of their pockets' regular contents.  Hope O. in Charleston, SC - www.stretcher.com

The Trickle Down Method ~ This spring I have been collecting plastic water bottles. I poke a small hole in the bottom (for slow drainage) and plant them in my garden, just deep enough that I can fill them with water. This way I am recycling and I use less water in the garden. The bottles allow the water to get to the deeper, more vital roots of my vegetables. It works great! - Katy W. - www.stretcher.com  (Note: This would work well to refill jugs before leaving for vacation too!)

A Little Vacation Humor ~ Pat and his wife, Martha, were getting ready to leave home for a vacation. Martha started out the door, then stopped and said, "Pat, this time you check to see if the coffee pot is off, television plugs are pulled, burglar alarm on, doors locked, and I'll go out and blow the horn." - Cited on WITandWISDOM -  http://www.witandwisdom.org  

A "Plan B" Family Vacation

by Lois Breneman, © 2007, Heart to Heart Newsletter

Our family vacation is already over for this year and it's not even summer yet!  Last Christmas our daughter, Joy, gave us the wonderful news that they were expecting another baby!  Then she mentioned how they wouldn't be able to go to the beach with the family this year, as we always do.  She would be in her third trimester by then, and traveling that far was not permitted.  She said we should just go without them this time.  She tried not to sound disappointed about their family not joining us, though of course, she was absolutely thrilled about a new baby! 

At the time of their announcement, we were visiting with our older son and new daughter-in-law.  It only took a few minutes for her dad to check a map, remembering there was a nice lake an hour away from their home.  Her dad called back and asked how they'd feel about the family vacationing close to their home, so Joy could still be near her doctor and the hospital.  She was so touched that we would think of giving up the beach trip to include their family, but as far as we're all concerned, a family vacation just isn't the same without all of the family.

As it all turned out, our daughter and son-in-law invited our whole family, totaling 9 3/4, to spend the entire week in their home, which is what we did!  Comfortable queen size air mattresses filled in for some of the beds and that worked out fine. 

Joy was our social coordinator ahead of time and found the best discounts on tickets for day trips to the zoo, the magnificent aquarium, and another fun-filled family day.  We also went swimming,  walking, enjoyed a stenciling demonstration by Joy as she made two large canvas pictures for the baby's room, ate at the Cheesecake Factory, made homemade ice cream on the sundeck twice, and celebrated four May and June family birthdays within thirteen days. 

Most meals were planned ahead of time, making them as healthy as possible.  I took a lot of the food, and we all pitched in, so Joy wouldn't have to do too much.  Some of the food was prepared and frozen beforehand so we'd have more time together.  We grilled a couple meals on the sundeck, including shish-ka-bobs, that were marinated in our home, frozen and transported.

During vacation four year old Justin's Aunt Rachael found a new and interesting way to help him try some new foods, since he's a rather finicky eater.  She encouraged him to eat a new food by telling him she would take his picture eating it, then she would allow him to take a picture of someone with her digital camera!  It worked!  He tried several new foods at one meal, then said, "I think I'll try another tomato!"  He was flashing pictures left and right and his aim was quite good!  Last week Rachael sent Justin a package of her special homemade granola, and asked his mommy to take a picture of him eating it, then e-mail it to her.

It was a great time of vacation, even if it was Plan B, and it worked out just great!  And now we await the birth of another precious grandchild this summer!

Memory Planning: The Art of Documenting Your Family Vacation

by Colleen Langenfeld ~ Copyright (c) 2003 ~ Used by Permission

You have saved and planned for your family vacation.  You are drooling with anticipation.  You dream of idyllic time spent with your spouse and children.  Of course, you'll be taking photos to remember this great time spent together.
Maybe using a video camera, too!  

Would you consider doing one more thing?  Locking in those great moments forever with a little 'memory planning'?  What's that, you say?  Memory planning. Simply put, plan the 'taking' of your memories and you will end up with a more vibrant and satisfying collection of momentos. Much better than just a few rolls of film or cassettes of videotape. Intrigued? It's easy!

- Start by collecting brochures, postcards, ticket stubs.

- Keep a small notebook or assign a family member to take notes. At moments when someone says 'this is the best time ever' ask him or her to describe their feelings & jot down the details.

- If using a video camera, narrate what was exciting or compelling about the event you are taping.

- Try to identify scents and sounds with events as well as visual clues. Write these things down in your notebook and collect samples when possible.

- Be a reporter; always ask yourself and others 'why' when they say they love something. Identifying the why helps to stamp the event firmly in our memory.

Doing these steps faithfully will really help later on when you are pulling all of these independent parts together. Your accurate journalizing will make all the difference, says Lygia Brown, Independent Scrapbook Consultant: 'After safely preserving our photos, the most important part of scrapbooking is journalizing. Compare a beautifully  decorated album with no words, to one with words and you will see the value of documenting events, people and places. Journalizing adds meaning. Use the questions of a journalist as a guide. (Who, what, when, where, or why?). Journalizing is a priceless enhancement.'  ( For scrapbooking questions Lygia can be reached at Lygiabrown@yahoo.com )
 
So make sure you plan your memories this vacation with as much care as you plan your route. Pack a small bag designed to hold the memorabilia you will collect plus your journal. Schedule the time now that you will need after your trip to complete the archiving of your vacation memories.  You'll be so glad you did!

Colleen Langenfeld delivers deals, tips and creative resources to working moms who want the most out of their homes, families and careers at http://www.paintedgold.com. Sign up for our free newsletter and get an online Creativity Toolkit as our gift to you!
  

A Dozen Tips and Tidbits

A DOZEN TIPS AND TIDBITS

A Small Bottle in Your Purse ~  Carry lavender or melaleuca oil in your purse or pocket for so many things, especially skin irritations.  Research the many additional uses of this natural "liquid gold" product.

Cloud Pictures ~ For something fun to do on a partly cloudy day is to lie on your back with your children and look for objects in the clouds!  This past Saturday my husband and I spent most of the day doing something we really enjoy - sailing.  The wind was perfect, and although it was a sunny day, there were beautiful puffy clouds in the sky.  John was the "captain," operating the main sail and doing the steering.  On long stretches down the lake when I didn't need to be operating the jib or moving from one side to the other because of the wind shifting, I enjoyed lying down, looking for pictures in the sky.  At different times I saw a running reindeer, fish, two elephants (one was a baby), a dog, and a little girl.  Test your imagination with popcorn as well and have fun together as a family! 

Quickly Pretreating Laundry Stains ~ Remove the paper wrapper from a bar of Fels-Naptha soap.  Wrap all except one end of the bar in a washcloth and secure with two rubberbands.  Then when you find stubborn stains, wet the stain and rub with the bar of soap.  Rub the fabric and rinse out.  This works very well!!  If Fels-Naptha bars of soap can't be found in the laundry aisle of your grocery store, ask to fill out a form to get it on the shelves.  This is the bar of soap also used to make homemade laundry soap which is so popular because it does such a good job for only pennies per load.  I figured my cost to be 3 cents per large load, and that's using a full cup, rather than half.  It's good stuff!

You can find the recipe for homemade laundry soap on the Heart to Heart Recipe Blog on the Miscellaneous page.  Just click at the top right of this blog to land on the Recipe blog!

Windex can be used for quick spot cleaning on carpets.  Spray and rub with a clean terry cloth.  Windex also helps remove rings from swollen fingers!  Spray around the ring and it should slip off much more easily.  Jewelry shops use this method. 

Good Quality Solid Wood Furniture can easily be found at yard sales and auctions for good prices.  Clean it with Murphy Oil Soap, cover scratches with Old English scratch polish and polish with Lemon Oil to bring restoration and shine to most pieces.

Great Savings on Supplements ~ I bought a bottle of supplements at a health foods store for $15, but was able to purchase the identical supplement for half the price at www.i-herb.com!  By ordering a certain amount, the shipping was free, and it also arrived very quickly!  Higher quality supplements are available at i-herb, compared to drug stores.

Charming Older Couple ~ YouTube - Mayo Clinic atrium piano, charming older couple...

Our Ever-Changing World ~ The following very enlightening and educational YouTube exposes the current demographics in the countries of today's world.  It shows how the world in which our children and grandchildren will grow up in is not the same world in which we grew up!  Amazing facts are shown!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-3X5hIFXYU

Ideas for Kids on Long Car Trips ~ We were planning a week long trip with 4 young children, so for each day, I had a story tape (the story was continued for several days) and each day we would listen to one more.  Also, I wrapped a small toy or book for each day, and a snack, so 3 times a day or so, we would reach into the goodie bag and pull out something new!  To make sure we discussed something from the Bible each day, I made a picture of something ( bag of money, sheep, etc.) and held it up (one each day) for everyone to see. No talking was allowed for several minutes, while each one thought of a Bible story it reminded them of.  It was very interesting.  Even young children grasp the stories, and every day, we each thought of a different story! Fun! ~ Regina Landis in Pennsylvania

Sunny Yellow Yolks for Hard Cooked Eggs ~ Yolks that turn green is the result of cooking eggs too long.  Turn out hard cooked eggs with sunny yellow yolks every time by cooking in this way.  Put one layer of eggs in a pan and cover with cold water.  Cover with a lid and bring to a boil.  Immediately turn off the burner and let set (covered) for 20 minutes.  Set the timer.  You will save electricity with this method as well.  After 20 minutes, plunge eggs into cold water and peel.  

Easy Clean-Up When Crafting ~ Use a plastic tablecloth or shower curtain from the dollar store to cover the table before doing arts and crafts.  This way no paint or glue will ruin your table or regular tablecloth.  When finished, fold it up for next time.

Creative Water Color Gift Wrap ~ Buy a roll of white paper and let your children go to work at creating wrapping paper for all occasions.  The dull side of freezer paper can also be painted.  Wet the paper first to help the paint run and blend into beautiful splotches of color for creative wrapping paper!  Not only will this give your children something fun to do this summer, but they will feel accomplishment when going to birthday parties with gifts wrapped in their own creations.  Adults can have creative fun too!