Putting a voice to your soul helps you let go of the negative energy of fear and regret. ~Shannon Alder *** When I was a little girl, I was shy. Not your typical, run of the mill shy. I'm talking shy with a capital S-H-Y! The mere possibility of having to speak to a stranger sent me into a state of panic. There was this little Italian Delicatessen called Natoli's a few blocks from my house in Secaucus. It was one of hundreds, maybe thousands, that dot the streets of Northern New Jersey. My Dad and I would occasionally walk to Natoli's to pick up our weekly Friday night pizza pie. The owner of Natoli's was a big jovial guy named Steve - and Steve scared the shit out of me! Wait, what? How does jovial equal scary? Steve would always give … [Read more...] about Talking to Strangers
Positively Selfish
This post was inspired by my beloved massage therapist, Bryn. She simply exudes joy, kindness and optimism. Just like an "it" girl! Here's Bryn's Facebook status from a few days ago. The one that got me thinking.... "I was telling a friend today that I'm a totally selfish person and she disagreed. So I had to clarify, I'm not the negative kind of selfish, I'm positively selfish." Confused? Isn't selfishness, ANY kind of selfishness a bad thing? I'm not surprised you feel that way and you're not alone. We're programmed from day one to believe that thought. Let me elaborate. I was watching an episode of Oprah's Life Class with Iyanla Vanzant when I heard these brilliant words... "It's self-full to be first. To be as good as possible … [Read more...] about Positively Selfish
Cooking Made Fun, Chickadee Style
I'm not going to give you a long spiel about the reasons you should cook at home. Let's just cut to the chase. Who knows what the heck is going down in that restaurant kitchen! Restaurants buy food in bulk, which typically means poor quality. When you cook your own meals, you know exactly what you're eating. But, I don't have time Robyn! Oh, if I had a dollar... Cooking at home is actually faster than dining out. Add up the time you spend driving to a restaurant, waiting for a table, deciding what you want, waiting to order, waiting for your food, waiting for the bill, and then driving home. In that amount of time you could have prepared a healthy and delicious dinner at home and avoided all that waiting! Here's the deal-io … [Read more...] about Cooking Made Fun, Chickadee Style
Lightened Up Sunday Sauce (aka Italian Tomato Gravy)
While my family isn’t Italian, I grew up in a predominantly Italian neighborhood in Northern New Jersey. I know what authentic Italian food made with love tastes like - and I won’t settle for less. Most Sunday sauces use ground pork and beef and a heck of a lot more oil than this one. But you won’t miss the fat, because this sauce is GOOD and good for you. Just the way I like it. Ingredients: 2 (28 oz) cans diced tomatoes 1 medium onion, minced 1 teaspoon olive oil 6 garlic cloves, minced 2 tablespoons tomato paste ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 pound 93% lean ground turkey 1 cup chicken broth 2 bay leaves ½ cup minced fresh basil leaves salt ground black pepper LOVE (the magic ingredient) Directions: Process 1 can of … [Read more...] about Lightened Up Sunday Sauce (aka Italian Tomato Gravy)