New Resolutions

Every year for my resolution; I try to find a simple way to improve my life so I will stick with it.

Last year I said I would eat at least one thing green every day. I did that and will continue because I feel so much better when I do.

This year I will try to have more fun for my cardio sessions. Instead of the typical treadmill, elliptical or bike for calorie burn/heart strength; I will try to add some laughter in with my workouts. While these machines work great- it always helps to keep things fun.

More bike rides or runs on all the great trails that Tallahassee has. Speed golf- where you run in between holes with 3 clubs (I know I will get some grief for this but this is a great workout & fun).



In this picture- I would run up the hill with my little girl then ride on her scooter down the hill. Or I would push her up. Try that 20 times- talk about a great workout.

Happy Healthy New Year!

-Tara

Enjoy Holiday Treats Without Extra Pounds With These Tricks

1. Hard Boiled Egg - I always eat one before a holiday party. This will keep you from making bad food decisions because you are starving. The egg has complete protein that will satisfy your hunger and keep you satiated.

2. Don't Deprive Yourself - Life is too short to miss out on the yummy stuff. If you don't allow yourself to have something you really want; you will over indulge. The key is to just have one or one small bite. Quality not quantity.

3. Stay Active - Go for a walk, play with the kids, run or anything active that you can enjoy with the family. Activity cuts the appetite, sets correct hormone levels for when you are truly hungry and burns calories.

Hope you all have a wonderful Holiday!
Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

Cool Christmas Projects with Popsicle Sticks

Arabella and I wanted to do something fun on a rainy day for Christmas. We only spent a dollar on these popsicle sticks. Here is our snowflake and manger scene.
Happy Christmas Crafting!

:) Tara

Golf

I love the game of golf. To be able to walk in beautiful settings, play a fun game and spend time with fun people makes for the perfect day for me. My new favorite coarse is The Capital City Country Club for obvious reasons for people that know me but also the fact that it has amazing oak trees and a wonderfly peaceful setting right in the heart of Tallahassee.
Here are some tips to help any Golfers out there. :)
Golfers need to exercise if they want to improve their stroke.
The legs are your base and stability. You need to do exercises that with create strength, endurance and balance. Such as lunges, specialty squats and balance exercises.
The core is crucial for your accuracy and power. Your core is where you create energy to your extremities. See below for two key exercises.
Also, you need to build strength in your arms and back for the perfect golf swing. Your back strength is crucial to protect against any aches and pains. Arm exercises will give you more control and help you accurately connect with the ball.
Flexibility is a whole other post because of its importance.
Happy Golfing! :)

-Tara

Eat Something Green Every Day

I make it a priority to eat something green every day. Your body needs the power nutrients and fiber found in dark, leafy greens for energy, immune support, cleaning out toxins and weight control. The darker the greens the more nutrients they hold. During the summer I eat more salads and also drink green smoothies for my greens. In the colder months I stir fry kale, collards or any other fresh local, organic greens, which are widely available at Farmers’ Markets and health food grocery stores. Sautéing these local greens with garlic and onions in olive oil (just cook lightly) will also boost their nutrition and strengthen your immune system during the cold and flu season.

My latest favorite green is Wheatgrass Juice, which has amazing benefits in just one 2 oz. shot. The fresh juice has 90 out of 102 vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients and is equal to the nutrients in 3 lbs. of organic vegetables. It helps bring your body into an alkaline state. Studies have shown that when your body is acidic you have more aches and pains. Wheatgrass Juice helps keep it from being too acidic, thereby reducing inflammation. I have so much more energy after I get my fresh Wheatgrass shot from New Leaf Market.
Cheers!

-Tara

How To Balance

Balancing on two or one legs is so important! Most of the time we don't realize we have lost our balance until it is gone and an injury occurs. Why not work on your balance before then.

After the age of 30, we loose 10% of our muscle mass every 10 years. Muscle is where our balance comes from. The core muscles are the main balancing muscles but today we will do an actual balance exercise.

This first exercise is standing on one leg and bringing your foot up to your knee. After you find a spot to focus on, try to straighten your leg out in front of you. Keep your core tight and think of a string pulling you up through the top of your head to make you stand up tall. Try to bring your foot in and out 10 times on each leg and repeat 3 times through.

Good luck! This will help you balance while you put those undies on without having to hop all over that bedroom. ;)

-Tara

10 Minute Maxi Dress- Eco Friendly

These maxi dresses only take 10 minutes and they are Eco-friendly too. :) I went through Arabella's and my closet and gathered any shirts of hers that were getting too short and any skirts or baby doll shirts of mine that I didn't like the way they fit. I then cut the bottom of her shirt off and the top of my skirt or baby doll shirt. Sew them together and Voila you have a Eco-friendly maxi dress in 10 minutes. :)

What's for Dinner: Roasted Red Pepper Mousse with Seared Salmon and Sautéed Green Beans

What's for dinner at the Posey house tonight? Well, we got a bunch of red peppers from our CSA at Full Earth Farm (who has the most beautiful produce). So I was trying to figure out what to do with them. I decide to roast them.

Roasting Peppers:

Preheat oven to 375. Cut the peppers in half & remove the seeds. Rub them generously with organic olive oil. Place them in a glass pan with plenty of room between them ( I used two 9/16 pans). Roast for 30-40 minutes or when you see some brown or black spots coming up. Take out of oven & put them all in one pan & cover them with tin foil. Let sit for 10-15 minutes. This process helps the skins lift off. Peel the thin, clear skin off.

Roasted Red Pepper Mousse:

Put the roasted peppers in a blender (you could use a food processor but I don't like to put anything hot in plastic). Sauté 3 garlic cloves in 1/4 cup organic, grass fed butter. Pour in blender. Add 1/2 cup organic, grass fed milk or raw if you can. Add 3/4 cup organic Greek yogurt. Add 1/2 teaspoon thyme, salt and parsley. Add 1/2 hot pepper. Blend until smooth.

Salmon:
Make sure you find a salmon filet that does not use dyes. Mine is from our local Co-op. Heat caste iron skillet on med/high heat with 3 Tbs. olive oil and 3 Tbs. butter. Salt and pepper your filet. Sear each side then turn skillet to low. Let sit for about 5 min. or until your liking.

Place the mousse in a bowl or plate then place the salmon on top. Put a dollop of Greek yogurt on top with a little green garnish (I had arugula).

Yummy to our Tummy! :)

Enjoy!
Tara

Learn How To REALLY Sew

I am so excited that I have a chance to learn how to REALLY sew.  I have been winging it for long enough. : )  One of my lovely clients daughter is a very skilled seamstress and has taken me under her wing.  I know all of you skilled sewers take a big sigh of releif that you don't have to look at any more of my silly projects.

Miss Laurie (as Arabella calls her) helped me make this pillowcase dress.  The version takes pillowcase dresses to a whole new level with the different horizontal panels and the satin strip on the bottom.  The toule bow is my touch to it.  If you don't have a tutu you can still have toule somewhere. : )

Arabella LOVED her new dress.  She wore it on our vacation to The Greenbrier in West Virginia where they have a stricked dress code.  But she passed and danced for hours in the grand ballroom in it.

These are some of the other projects Mrs. Laurie will teach at her new class this summer.  She is starting off everyone very easy.  She is also versatile.  She will change projects if you would rather make something else the whole class wants to make.

 She will be at Hobby Lobby (my favorite place) in Tallahassee, Florida every Thursday starting July 12, 2012 from 5:30 to 7 p.m.  The class is $15 and you will need to bring supplies.  So just do a little shopping at Hobby Lobby beforehand.  You will also need to bring your machine.  She will have one extra one with her just in case.

 I hope everyone can make it.  It has been such a wonderful creative outlet for me to be able to sew.  Also, there is nothing like being able to make things for your family and friends.

 I love these little cell phone holders in the above picture.  Remember, you can make any of these things and more but add a touch of your style by picking out your own fabric.

Hope to see you a there with your thimbles on! : )

-Tara

p.s. Please e-mail Laurie at artofsewing1@gmail.com to register.  Thanks!

How Do You Explain Death To A Toddler

This is a question I find myself asking al ot lately.  Recently we lost two wonderful people in our lives.  First, John who you see in the pictures below with Arabella and I.  He was one of our beloved clients and friends.  John and Arabella had a special bond.  She would help him workout by handing him his weights, holding his hand or simply make him laugh while I gave him his dreaded workouts.  He didn't like to work out but as long as I had my secret weapon (Arabella : ) with me, we could make it through.

 He was a great listener.  He had to be because when you got me and his daughter, Claire together, we became chatty Cathy's : )  He had such a gracious heart.  He would always give both of us a hug after the work out and tell us how much he loved us.  We love you, John.

 Jill passed very shortly after John.  You can see them both in the picture below.  I am so thankful that we were able to have them both over to our house this past Easter.  Their children are best friends, so they became friends too.

Jill is my adopted Grandmother.  She holds a special place in my heart.  You can see that is made a big impression on Arabella too. : ) 

Jill was an amazing dancer aside from being an AMAZING person.  I promise to carry on her "lovely hula hands" dance even though I could never do it as beautiful as she did.  Jill, I will miss your amazing insight, love and compliments.

Back to the question- How do you explain death to a toddler?  I don't know the answer to this but I try to follow my intuition and feel things out on things like this.

When Arabella and I were going to visit John's daughter for the first time after he passed, she asked if John was still sick.  I said (deep breath) he actually went to heaven.  She said "my friends are dead".  Moment of shock by what she just said, but then thought how intuitive that was of her.  She then went on to talk about her baby dolls.  When we got to John and Claire's house she asked where John was.  I got down on the floor with her and told her he went to heaven.  She seemed fine with that and went on to play with her toys.  Later, she told me she was glad John and bunny (their 25 year old beloved cat that past away last year) were able to play in heaven together. tear. 

I'm still not sure the right or wrong answer on this but I know following your heart and intuition is always right.  And, I am always open it suggestions and ideas.

We will miss you greatly, John and Jill.

Love,

Tara

How To TuTu

Nothing is better than a tutu to brighten your day.  Arabella would wear one everyday if she could.  I have made her several versions and put them with T-shirts to make them more everyday wear. 

I made this (pic below) European style tutu for my friend Mandy.  We did a dance competition together and she needed a tutu for her part.  The typical European style tutu's cost around $400 so I decided to try to make hers.  It was only $35 when the tulle went on sale at Hobby Lobby.

Arabella had to have one after she saw Mandy's.  This is Arabella practicing her dance before we competed on stage.   Not to brag but we did win platinum and got a 5 out of 5 on costumes. : ) 

If you have read my blog before, you know that I am not a skilled seamstress.  I just try to be creative with the skills I do have.  I hand sewed this one because the tulle is so thick. 

I made pleats with 8 layers of tulle.  Sewed it to elastic then flipped it upside down to created a tutu that stands out more.  That is what is different about a European Tutu- they stick out.

This multi-colored tutu that you can see below is made by knots.  I bought tulle at Hobby Lobby on the spindle and cut four strips at a time.  I doubled the length that I wanted the tutu to be and made a knot in the center around her elastic.

I think it makes it more fun if it isn't perfect, even lengths all the way around.   Or that is what I tell myself so I don't stress over it being perfect. : )

Happy Tutuing!

-Tara

Easiest Summer Popsicle Ever!

 This is the easiest summer Popsicle ever!  All you do is take any kind of organic fruit, (bananas, strawberries, grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe, even blueberries) put on a Popsicle stick (you can get these from Micheal's or Hobby Lobby) and freeze.  I put ours on chopsticks to be a little more Eco-friendly. 

This is a great way for kids to get the whole fruit.  It helps them not have the sugar spike when they have the fiber in the fruit too.  Fruit juices typically don't have the fiber in them so they just get the sugar.

Nice treat for Mama too. : )

Enjoy!

-Tara

Our Spring Garden 2012

Sunflowers make me so happy.  Our garden this year is full of them.  I planted one packet of red ones but all the other ones were volunteers from my compost.  Not only are they great for pollination but also the stems are used for medicinal uses to ward of colds and fight a cough when steeped in a tea.  I have also found that they ward off pest.  I don't use any pesticides and these work great!  Thank you my lovely Sunflowers! : )

I am soooooooooo thrilled to have so much garden space!  I went crazy with my planting.  Mostly experimenting.  I planted about 6 different lettuces.  My favorite is Butter crunch.  Garlic, Onion, Basil, Thyme, Radish, 4 kinds of Greens, Celery, Parsley, Watermelon, Carrots, Yellow Squash, Sweet Peppers, Seminole Squash, Tomatoes and Cucumbers.  I don't know much about gardening but I have had good luck when I enrich my soil with my own compost, mushroom compost, dried manure and make manure tea (I know- sounds yucky but it works- just put a dried cow patty in water and let the sun heat it up, then poor over the plants.  The leaves of the plants love the nutrients too.)

We have had so much fun taking baskets of goodies to all our wonderful neighbors.

This is our Strawberry Patch.  It is so much fun to see Arabella discover the new Strawberries that are ripe every day.  She can get from 8-10 a day. : )

This is our Corn, Tomatoes and Okra.  Can't wait for some fried okra!

Of course we need a good bath after all that gardening. : )

Happy Gardening!

-Tara

Miracles

I believe in Miracles.  This miracle may seem small to some but all miracles are a big deal to me.

For Arabella's 2nd birthday she was given a caterpillar in a little carrier.  The instructions said to feed the caterpillar parsley every day and clean out it's home.  Arabella and I did that and she loved visiting with it.  I explained to her that it would make a cocoon and then turn into a butterfly.  The chrysalis stage was suppose to last about 8 days.  When he went in to his cocoon, it looked very gray and dry.  Not alive looking.  But I had never studied one before so I just hoped that is what it was suppose to look like.  Well, 8 days came and went.  We still visited Arabella's "raccoon" (that is what she called it : )  She would carry it around with her, we would place it in a nice cool spot with greenery around it.  Still looked pitiful.  It made me so sad but I couldn't break it to Arabella.  In the mean time, Arabella's friend got one too.  It's cocoon was green and alive looking. : (

During this time we had the chance to move to a new home in the country.  We were busy moving and kind of forgot about our "raccoon" sitting in the garden after 3 months.

On the last day of our move, Cory did one final walk through to make sure we got everything.  He came running to Arabella and I with a big grin on his face.  He showed us the little carrier with a BEAUTIFUL butterfly inside.  I started crying.  A miracle!

This butterfly wanted to wait to come with us to our new home.  It waited patiently for 4 months.  This is Arabella helping it practice flying before we let it go.

I love miracles.

They are happening every day, all around us, just believe.

Love,

Tara

What To Do With Those Bridesmaids Dresses

There is a way to wear those bridesmaids dresses again.  All you have to do is chop the top off, find a thick piece of elastic and a tank top. Voila. : )  Cute dress.

This one here, I cut the top off, sewed a 3 inch elastic waistband to it and then attached my tank top.

Even the unskilled seamstress like me can handle this project.

Good luck and enjoy your new Spring/Summer dress. : )

-Tara

How To Have A Eco-Friendly Birthday Party- Plus Pics From Arabella's 2nd Birthday

I think the first key component to having a great Eco-Friendly Birthday is to pick a great location.  If you have a wonderful setting, you don't have to do a ton of decorating.

I am so thankful to my friends for letting me have Arabella's eco-friendly 2nd birthday party at their beautiful home.

Her party was a "Winged Theme".  So anything that had wings was there.  Butterflies, Fireflies, Dragonflies, Fairies and Sprites.  All of the kids were welcomed to wear their wings too.

The second key component for me to have a wonderful party is to have great friends and family there.  Of course Dada in the top pic gets the kings of guest.  The bottom picture is one of Arabella's best friends, Brooklyn.  Her mom and I have been best friends since we were about their age. : )

I love how all of her guest dressed up in some way in the bottom picture.

Jo Jo (Arabella's Grandpa) gets the other crown for king of guest.

For some actual decorations.  I used all my old sewing scraps and tied them to my Christmas lights.  We hung them in trees and then lined the walkways with them.

You can re-use these decorations for Christmas too.

In the bottom picture, I took old egg cartons and made flower petals out of them.  Arabella, Helene (my friend that shared her birthday with Arabella) and I used finger paints and painted them.  We also sprinkle glitter on the wet paint.  I then made a hole in the bottom and put more Christmas lights in holes.  We strung these in all bushes.

For the food, I used all organic ingredients.  Here we stuffed raspberries with chocolate chips and called them "Bugs and Berries".

I bought organic gummy worms, dipped them in chocolate and then put them on lollipop sticks.  I used pieces of raspberries for the eyes.  These were "Chocolate Caterpillars" to go along with the Wing Theme.

I bought yogurt covered almonds to be the "Caterpillar's Eggs".

We made rainbow fruit sticks that could also be "Rainbow Caterpillars".  Just put fruit on skewers and stick into a melon.

For Arabella's cake, I used all organic ingredients.  I would love to try the fondant cakes at some point but I have to research on how to not use those dyes.  I used some all natural dyes for Arabella's cake but not sure if it would work for a fondant.

: )  Found these at Hobby Lobby.  No, not eco-friendly but you have to break the rules sometimes for cuteness.

I made Arabella's top out of organic cotton fabric.  My favorite selection is from Fabric Worm .com.

The best eco-friendly gift Arabella got was a caterpillar in this little holder.  They are suppose to turn into a cocoon then a butterfly after about 8-10 days.  This didn't happen with hers but I will share that story another time. : )  She LOVED this gift and so did the other kids.  Brooklyn had to go get one the next day.

These are the wings I made for Arabella.  I used a  pair of Helen's old wings and just added all sorts of goodies.

Mama and Dada deserve a good kiss after pulling that off. : )

Thank you again to the O'Hagen's for allowing us to make some wonderful memories at their house! And thank you so much to Chisty Baldwin Photography for capturing these moments for us!  She was amazing.  She would hide away in the corner snapping her pics and you wouldn't even know she was there.  I realized now what a blessing it is to have someone take pictures for you while you get to enjoy the moment.

Happy Birthday planning!

-Tara