Hello My Name is Esther. I am a 60 something mother to two beautiful daughters, grandmother to my AMAZING grandson, Nathaniel, a retired music teacher, a choir director, and a craft and food
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Yes, I LOVE Fall!
I love the beautiful, brilliant, yet toasty colors of fallen leaves. I love the crisp, cool mornings and warm afternoons. I love comfort foods like vegetable or bean soup, chicken and dumplings, and the fragrance and soothing taste of hot apple cider cooked with a cinnamon stick.
What do you enjoy about fall? I’d love to know.
Another love of mine, especially during this time of year, is crocheting. I taught myself to crochet as a teenager.
I love to crochet for my 15 month old grandson, Nathaniel, family, friends and for charity. My project inspirations come from online patterns saved on my Pinterest Boards. I usually crochet directly from patterns, but sometimes I customize them. The beanies above were made for a friend’s friend who is presently undergoing chemo treatment; the hoodie is for Nathaniel; and the froggy bib and rattle was made for Suraiya, my cousin’s 5 month old daughter.
Below are a few projects from the 2015-16 fall and winter.
Row 1. dinosaur hat, two beanies, sockeye hat Row 2. puppy hat, Samuel models the minion hat, I model the pom-pom hat Row 3. Nathaniel wearing the penguin hat, hoodie, Nathaniel wearing the hoodie Row 4. hoodie, jester hat, jester collar and booties Row 5. Nathaniel wears jester costume, Nathaniel playing on the monkey around baby blanket, monster hat Row 6. Nathaniel wearing the monster hat, Santa hat and booties, Nathaniel wearing the Santa outfit
Enjoy your week.
Up Next: AMIGURUMI
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The past two months have been busy, hence my blogging lull. But I’m back!
Well, I am way past my initial 22-day revolution. That particular phase of my NewAGE60 initial journey ended somewhere around October 4. And the journey continues……..
The initial 22 day journey began with a vegan, soy-free, gluten free diet. I added some personal goals: drinking plenty of water, getting more sleep, exercising, and keeping a daily journal of my meals.
I have enjoyed researching and preparing meals that are vegan, soy-free, & gluten free. I will continue to share the recipes and my favorite sites for healthy meal plans and recipe ideas. Also, you are invited to follow me on Pinterest.
I lost 12 pounds to date, journal almost every day, and drink plenty of water. I continue to work on going to bed at a more reasonable time and exercising regularly. (Now I have to say, I am a political junkie during election time, and stay glued to the television and to online news regarding this most contentious presidential race. It will be easier after November 8th – I hope.) I still lean toward a vegetarian meal plan, purchasing quality, fresh foods, and eating less processed foods. Everything in moderation, of course. And so, the journey continues…………
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I am a very project oriented person. About two years ago I started making my own natural skin care, dental, hair care and cleaning products. When my choir celebrated its 10th anniversary at a local restaurant I gifted a jar of lemon sugar hand scrub to each choir member. (Sidebar – I was still on the 22 – Day Revolution Program at the brunch. But I was really, really – REALLY disciplined. I stuck to the plan.)
Making the hand scrub was very simple. I bought the 4oz. jars at AC Moore for $1.00 each. I filled each jar about 3/4 full with granulated sugar, then added a couple tablespoons coconut oil or almond oil, fresh lemon zest, and a few drops of essential oils (lemon & grapefruit). Mix well.
I purchased Avery labels from Walmart, then designed and printed them from here. You can find the “bless your sweet hands” tags here. I printed them on card stock(reducing the size first for the smaller sized jar), put a tiny hole at the top and secured it around the lid with jute.
Try making the scrub yourself. After washing and rinsing your hands, use a heaping teaspoon of the scrub and gently massage it over your hands for a minute or two. Rinse and pat dry with a clean cloth or hand towel. Your hands feel so soft and smell so clean and fresh. Enjoy! Let me know how you like it.
Stay well! See you soon.
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“Mistakes are the portals of discovery”. James Joyce
Mistakes help me to assess what and how something went wrong, whether in the planning or the execution. It allows me to seek help when needed, and change strategies to go forward. What do you think about this quote? Let me know in the comments section below.
Hello, today is day 7 in my 22 – Day Revolution. Saturday and Sunday were exhaustive yet exciting and fun! I did manage to stay on the program for the most part. Tomorrow I will evaluate my first week, and set goals for week two. Hope to see you.
Here’s my meal plan for today.
Breakfast: Zucchini Fritters ( adapted from Vegan Zucchini Fritters found on Tina Dawson’s site, “Love Is In My Tummy”.
Grate a 1 large, or 2 medium zucchini. After straining you should have 2 packed cups.
Sprinkle zucchini with a little sea salt and let it strain in a sieve for 20-30 minutes.
This is the liquid that drained from the zucchini.
Mix 1 Tbs. ground or milled flax seed with 3 Tbs. of the liquid strained from the zucchini. Let it sit for about 15 minutes until it gets a little gooey. (I ground flax seed in my spice grinder.
Chop fine 1/4 cup each onion and red bell pepper. Add 2 tsp. chopped parsley and one garlic clove minced.
Add spices: 1 tsp. sea salt, 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, 1/2 tsp. cumin, 1/2 tsp. chili powder.
Add 2 Tbs. brown rice flour, 4 Tbs. garbanzo bean flour (You can use all purpose flour.), and 2 Tbs. nutritional yeast.
Add the chopped/minced veggies to the zucchini and the flax seed “egg”.
Mix zucchini, veggies, flours, and seasonings until well blended. Divide mixture evenly into 6 portions in the bowl.
Heat 1 Tbs. oil. Fry fritters until thoroughly heated, around 31/2 – 4 minutes each side. You want the vegetables inside to have an opportunity to cook.
Enjoy! I garnished the fritters with cashew sour cream and sliced green onion. Yum!
Lunch: Chickpea Shawarma Sandwich (This was really good. I garnished my spicy chick peas with garlic cashew sour cream instead of the garlic dill sauce in the recipe, and added thin slices of avocado, lettuce, tomato and red onion. Delicious!)
Dinner: My plan was to have a large garden salad with a light vinaigrette, but I ate a late lunch and wasn’t hungry. Felt like something sweet later on and made a little apple crisp with a sliced granny smith apple. The crisp was a combination of a old fashioned oatmeal, about a tsp. of brown sugar, 1 Tbs. chopped pecans, a tsp. of Earth Balance and a drop of vanilla extract. It’s still in the oven and smells divine.
Have A Terrific Tuesday! Tomorrow I will evaluate my first 7 days on the 22-Day Revolution program.
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Hello My Name is Esther.
I am a 60 something mother to two beautiful daughters, grandmother to my AMAZING grandson, Nathaniel, a retired music teacher, a choir director, and a craft and food enthusiast that is thoroughly enjoying life post 60. I decided to start this blog to share and document my journey post 60 and inspire my young at heart contemporaries!
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If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.
Some attribute this quote to Benjamin Franklin. Others say Winston Churchill paraphrased Franklin’s quote. Whoever the author, this quote makes a lot of sense.
Happy Friday Everyone! I trust you had a very pleasant week. The weather was absolutely delightful. Wouldn’t it be great if we could bottle the weather now until next spring?
(Photo Credit: Ty Mac Photography)
This weekend is very busy. I have a rehearsal tonight, a service and concert tomorrow, and a service to play for on Sunday. Whew! Do I mind? Absolutely not! I love music, and love to perform. I have also been invited to lunch tomorrow but may decline because I need to stick to the planned foods on the program during this 22 – Day challenge. I can eat out, sure. But I need to plan for it.
Now I’m saying all that to say this. Should I should have planned and probably prepared my weekend meals to avoid impulsive, thoughtless eating this weekend? Absolutely! Did I? No! Oh, and by the way, there is a reception before the rehearsal tonight. But I am coming home and fixing my diy, gluten-free and vegan pizza. (Hmm, that should be interesting. I’ll let you know how it turns out.) I know it’s late eating again. But we’re gonna get better. I did have my salad before going as not to get hungry and be tempted to eat something else.)
5:03 pm I will make every effort to blog tomorrow if time permits. On my way to the rehearsal now. Will finish this post when I return.
9:10 pm I’m home. Awesome rehearsal! Didn’t feel like making the pizza for dinner tonight though, so opted to make a green smoothie. Here’s the recipe: 1 cup homemade almond milk, 1 cup baby spinach packed, 1 medium frozen banana, 10 medium strawberries (2 for garnish), & 2 T wheat germ. I also ate about a 1/4 cup of black beans left over in the fridge. Kind of a weird combo, huh?
Today’s meal plan:
Breakfast: Chia pudding with sliced strawberries (see recipe from yesterday’s post.)
Lunch: Zucchini, carrot and cucumber salad. I pulled out my Spiralizer (had not used it in quite a while) and spiralized my vegetables.
I placed the veggies in a bowl and tossed them with a dressing made with 1 T tahini, 3 T fresh squeezed lemon juice and a dash of sea salt. I must admit I did not care for the dressing much. Not enough seasoning for me.
I’ve been asked how I make almond milk and cashew milk. First I soak raw almonds and/or cashews.
Then I use my Vitamix (1 cup nuts to 3.5 cups filtered water) to blend the nuts and water for 30 or so seconds on graduated speeds from low to high. Pour milk through a nut bag, squeeze bag over, and store milk in a glass pitcher. It will last for 2-4 days. I use it plain, mostly for recipes like vegan mac and cheese.
Well, I’ve got to get some rest. You do the same. See you tomorrow.
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“If you dream of something worth doing and then simply go to work on it and don’t think anything of personalities, or emotional conflicts, or of money, or of family distractions; it is amazing how quickly you get through those 5,000 steps.” Edwin Land
Hi, it’s Thursday, and Day 3 of my 22-day revolution into the NewAGE60.
So often we set goals for ourselves and foolishly allow people and circumstances to disrupt the time we should spend in pursuit of those goals. I got up early this morning as if going to work. Had some energy that I usually, as a retired person, get later on in the day – closer to the noon hour. lol
My aim was to get out on the track early so I could get some other planned tasks done and rest before a rehearsal this evening. Dat blasted Ipod wasn’t charged as I was ready to walk out the door! But not today – Nothing was going to keep me from getting my exercise on. This morning was cool, just the right temperature for getting in a good walk. I was determined. So even though I could not go out (I like to listen to the Tom Joyner Morning Show when I walk, and the Ipod was dead, remember?) I took out my Wii and Exerbeat . Exerbeat is a variety of really fun workouts including Latin Dance, Aerobics, Boxing, Hip-Hop and Martial Arts strategies. I even broke a sweat this morning as I danced to the Latin beat. Yes, there was a pep in my step afterward, and though it hadn’t been in my routine in over a year, it let me know that maybe I should mix it up instead of doing the same exercise routine every day.
Again, as yesterday, I ate all meals later than I should. However, it was important to me to get everything in so my nutrient levels are at least close to being met. Remember, I log everything I eat in MyFitnessPal. So I can tell when I over and under do. So here’s today’s report on meeting my goals:
Water: 8+ glasses Exercise: 3o minutes Journal: Yes! Sleep: 7 hours (good)
Here was my meal plan for today.
Breakfast: Chia Pudding (2 cups of homemade almond milk, 1/2 cup white chia seeds, 1 T maple syrup, 1 teas. pure vanilla & 1 teas cinnamon). Whisk the chia seeds into the almond milk. let it sit for 3-4 minutes. Whisk again. Let it sit for another 3-4 minutes. Add the maple syrup, vanilla and cinnamon. Whisk again. Put it in the refrigerator for an hour or so. Overnight is fine. I add a few sliced, fresh strawberries on top. If too thick, add 1 T almond milk until it’s the consistency you like. 2 Servings
Lunch: Lentil soup. Start with mirepoix (roughed chopped vegetables, usually onions, carrot & celery.
Saute 1/2 small onion, a small carrot, and 1 stalk of celery in 1 teas EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) for 3-4 minutes over medium heat. Add 1 minced garlic clove and cook for 1 minute. Add 1/2 – 3/4 cups chopped zucchini in big chunks. Cook another 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add 3/4 cup cooked lentils, 1/2 cup tomato puree, 1 1/4 cups water or broth. You may use the broth from the lentil only if you cooked them yourself. I did. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder to taste. Heat another 5 minutes. Serve with avocado and fresh basil. Yum! And guess what? This is one serving. You won’t go hungry after eating this – Enjoy!
Dinner: Artichoke, Tomato, and Avocado Salad (This was actually on yesterday’s plan. But I didn’t eat dinner yesterday. Also, I added some roasted cauliflower sprinkled with nutritional yeast as a side dish.
Salad (I made one serving instead of the whole recipe): grape tomatoes, 1/2 medium Haas avocado, 1 oz. BPA-free artichoke hearts, 5 Kalamata olives (Tiffany and Ashleigh, my daughters hate olives!), a little lemon juice and a dash of paprika.
Roasted Cauliflower: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Separate cauliflower florets into bite sized pieces. Wash and dry in a salad spinner, or drain and dry with paper towels. Spread florets on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle with a little EVOO, salt, pepper and garlic powder.
Place sheet into the preheated oven, watching it carefully and turning every few minutes after about 15 minutes. It will gradually turn a beautiful brown on the top. It should be done in about 25-30 minutes. Check for doneness. It should be brown and crisp tender.
When it’s done, sprinkle with a little nutritional yeast flakes. Nutritional yeast gives it a somewhat cheezy taste. Yum!
Nutritional yeast Roasted cauliflower
Quite a tasty and goal fulfilled day, I must say!
Thanks for stopping by.
Rest well, See you tomorrow.
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Listen to the voice of your inner spirit and do that which you know is right.
Another beautiful day – for a trip to the Grand Opening of the new Whole Foods in my area, that is. Whole Foods is probably my favorite supermarket. I was there for the breaking of bread and introduction to the Whole Foods Team, and other VIP’s that made this store possible. It’s been several years in the making. I felt like a little kid in my favorite candy store with all my favorite eats. Well………..I listened to my inner spirit and resisted the free bread and all samples at the taste testing stations. Victory 1! I did purchase oils and castile soap for making my skin care products. Oh, I forgot to tell you. I make body butters, hand sanitizer, shampoo, lip balm, deodorant, toothpaste, mouthwash etc.
Today’s meal plan
Breakfast – Kale smoothie (1 cup each baby kale and baby spinach, 1 granny smith apple, 1 medium frozen banana, 1/2″piece of fresh ginger, 2 pitted dates, 1/2 cup filtered water.)
I enjoyed the smoothie – very tasteful. But I was hungry again in less than an hour. I resisted crackers and other junk food and selected sweet and juicy green grapes. Victory 2!
Lunch – Black Bean Salad over Baked Sweet Potato (1 cup black beans, 1 green onion, 1/4 cup sweet red pepper, 2 T shredded carrot, 5 quartered cherry tomatoes, chopped parsley & a squeeze of lime juice to dress it, 1 medium baked potato)
I had a late breakfast and lunch at dinnertime. So I passed on dinner because it was just too late to eat. Tomorrow I will eat all meals
I spent a good portion of the day crocheting a doll (amigurumi) – another passion. No exercise today, but plenty of water.
Sleep well. See you tomorrow.
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“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” Lao Tzu
I am excited about beginning this journey today. One day at a time.
Awakened this morning by the sound of a text notification at 5:30 am, guess what I am turning OFF tonight. Even worse, I actually started engaging in a “text conversation” instead of turning it off and trying to rest a little longer. Oh well, not to belabor that point. On to meeting my goals for the day.
I like to read interesting articles. “50 Ways to Start Fresh for Fall” is one I’d like to share with you. Hope you get something from it.
Tod
ay was a good day. Face Timed with my grandson early, then went for a nice, brisk walk on the track. The weather was beautiful with a cool breeze blowing; the children were already in school; and rush hour was over. Real peaceful.I took time today preparing each meal from scratch, and sitting down to enjoy everything without the interference of any technology. I have to admit that I was thinking about what to write on the blog today. But I also took my time paying more attention to food textures and taste.
Below is today’s menu. Everything was made from scratch, yes including the almond milk, taco seasoning and cashew sour cream.
Breakfast: Old fashioned oatmeal, 1 cup almond milk, 1 cup blueberries & medium banana sliced
Lunch: Quinoa and lentil salad over baby spinach with apple cider vinegar and mustard dressing.
Dinner: Walnut lentil tacos.
Here’s how I built the taco: 1. romaine lettuce 2. walnut lentil taco meat 3. onions & peppers 4. avocado, tomato & cashew sour cream
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Sleep well and have a wonderful Wednesday! See you tomorrow.
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Weight has been a challenge since I was a little girl. Through the years, having tried multiple diets, and occasionally experiencing success through lifestyle changes, (exercise, group programs such as Weight Watchers, etc.) I know what to do. However, through my 38 years of full time teaching, working part time jobs as a professional musician – church choir director at two churches and giving private piano lessons, raising my two daughters, housekeeping, shopping, car pooling, and doing volunteer work, consistency with eating plans and exercise were at the bottom of my priority list.
Retired for three years now, I have settled into a sedentary lifestyle, doing what I want when I want, and not doing what I did not want to do. Not good! I continue to love to teach my choirs and private students, and nothing gets my juices running like preparation for concerts and recitals. I attend lectures and workshops, and other classes of interest. But it’s time to make some permanent, healthy lifestyle changes, getting and remaining at my goal weight, and living the best “NewAGE60” till death do us part.
I was inspired by my daughter, Carmen Ashleigh, to adopt a plant based Vegan diet for the next 22 days. She’s been Vegan for a year and I’ve enjoyed trying out new recipes that accommodate her diet. (Love to cook!) So, I decided to try it myself.
Today, September 14, I begin this 22 Day Revolution, and would like to share my journey with you.
My main goal this week is to journal, not just on my NewAGE60 blog, but on my food journal as well. I use MyFitnessPal for that. Check out the link. You might find it very helpful as I have.
Other goals include: exercising for a minimum of 30 minutes a day (just getting back into it); drinking water equivalent to half my body weight (I read it somewhere – and it won’t hurt, to be sure. I like water.); go to bed at least an hour earlier than I normally do (I’ve been keeping some pretty late hours with the excuse that I don’t have to go to work, so why not?); and paying attention to the food I eat with no distractions (computers, tv, books, etc.). Of course other goals will come as I continue on this particular journey.
Let’s Go!
