Childhood Memories

Source: http://yvonnebyattsfamilyfun.blogspot.com/2010/12/marry-poppins-party.html

      Today I woke up and thought I would do a little brain expanding. Afterwards, I was left laughing so hard and amazed I had to share my results. I was reviewing "some of the longest words in the dictionary," when I came across a childhood favorite:  

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious 

I definitely got the later part of that word wrong when I attempted to spell it as a child. But ladies and gentlemen, that is how the dictionary(.com) says you spell it! Okay, for the best part. I was looking at this word and couldn't believe that it actually was a real word! It only got better when I looked up the "official" definition:

"used as a nonsense word by children to express approval or to represent the longest word in English" (source: dictionary.com) 

(My favorite part of that definition is italic!) Another dictionary reported this word's definition as meaning "god," or at least that was what Mary Poppin's intended it to mean. (Source:http://www.placementor.com/resources/longwords.htm)

  Oh the joys of childhood! I wonder if I ever quoted that word correctly?

But for all of you wondering what is the official longest REAL word, well most sources claim:

Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis

(Sources: dictionary.com, wikipedia.com, and oxfordictionaries.com)

Does anyone else get a bit of a head ache trying to even pronounce that 45 letter word?! It represents a type of lung disease caused by silica dust. It is so long that my Iphone Dictionary.com application can't even fit the whole word on the screen. It simply cuts the word off with "..." HA!

I would definitely like to see these two words in the next spelling bee! 

 

High Occupancy ?

What is the overall idea of why you should be able to drive in the HOV lane? This morning as we drove into work, my boyfriend, Tylan, and I had an interesting discussion about HOV rules. It all came up when I saw a motorcycle heading into the HOV only lane. Is the idea that they want "high occupancy vehicles" or less cars in Boston? Either way a motorcycle takes up less space and with only one person half its "occupancy" is full. But with that last comment, why aren't two "seater" cars whose occupancy is "high" aka "half," not allowed in the HOV lane also? Food for thought. Plus, it's very lovely to wake up in the mornings and have someone to commute with. It's even enjoyable when your partner is half asleep. (Just make sure the person most awake is DRIVING!)

A Wonderful Walk

I'm currently reading a great book called THE  RIVER WHY by David Duncan. Today I came across an interesting passage,

" (The main character, Gus, is  revisiting a  river of  his childhood  which he use to fish at often.)  But I  saw  that those days were  long  gone...  "Water," according to the Randsom House Dictionary, has forty definitions ranging from liquid H2O to urine,  with cosmetics, adulterated whiskey and  tears in between.  Poor Sisisicu looked like it was full. Of all forty of them."

This excerpt really made me appreciate the clean water that comes out of my faucet. Many of the schools my recent work has taken me to have filtered water coolers set up through out the school due to the poor water quality their facet water produces. It also saddens me to think about all those "filthy creeks(or other bodies of water)" that people/mothers are always yelling at children for playing in or around.

This book describes it best.

"It's a problem of semantics at this point: "creek" isn't accurate anymore, but there isn't a word yet for what creeks become once they die."

I am happy other places I have visited in my recent travels do have cleaner looking lakes and streams.

The pictures included are of an adventure Annie and I went on through what we called "a garden of Eden" in Atlanta.  It was quite the adventure full of log passing's, crumbling castles, waterfalls, suspension bridges, and hidden entrances.

Snow to Sun!

I've boarded a plane taking me to where the warm salty air will make my skin smile. A destination full of rolling sand dunes, sun kissed skin, warm afternoon breezes, drinks with umbrellas and magnificent sunrises. A destination many avid readers are familiar with through Jimmy Buffets songs and books, the Florida Keys.
My partner in crime, my mother, is meeting me there for a girls week of sun, swimming, bicycle riding,delicious food, good company, and sand between our toes. Oh yeah and a little bit of relaxing.

Our mission....
Our Bucket List
- Swim with Dolphins
- Drive through the Florida Keys

Besides that I plan on creating more fantastic memories with my mom. Living far away from my family prevents our lives from intertwining as much as I'd like. So off we go on a ladies trip where we don't have to worry whether the boys will have surf, but for once take advantage of those other kind of beaches.

Here go,

Cheers to a vacation with one of my best friends, my mom!

(Stories to come!)

Where on Where are you winter!

Where oh where is winter? I walk down the streets and expect to see scenes like below, but no. Instead I feel like I'm walking in through the streets of some where stuck in limbo between Fall and Winter.

[Photo re-posted from drunkliterature.com blog site]

The things kids say.

I work at a ski resort (which I will leave un-named) where every weekend I work in the kids department teaching skiing.

Currently, I am working a ten day stent over the holiday. Luckily this year I am part-time, so I am not required to work straight through the holiday busy week! (Those were not fun 10 day stents.)

One of the most interesting parts of my job is the clients I interact with.

Typical Client Profile:
Little humans with overactive imaginations; vary from extremely sensitive and shy to overwhelming adult like loud personalities in a little human bodies; Void of possible personal injury due to the sport they are trying to learn. Easily scar-able memories (words and actions); male and females ranging from 2-8 years of age.

A large majority of my day is spent skiing, while the other portion involves interacting/talking to my little human clients. I might be paid to teach and entertain these little humans, but ultimately they end up entertaining me.

Below I have listed a few of the fantastic comments I had the pleasure of witnessing:

- "If I could be one animal, I would be a sea slug."

- "Does this snow suit make me look fat?"

- "Girls can marry girls or boys.... right?"

- "Boys says I like you to other boys. Boys say I love you to girls."

- "Why do you want to kiss him? Do you want to marry him? You kiss people you want to marry."

Meals to Please the Palate

When you want to make something for dinner, but want it to last for more than one meal that week, here is what you should do:

Theme- Ground Turkey
Meal 1- Turkey Meatballs, Steamed Broccoli and Rice
Meal 2- Turkey Meatball Sub
Meal 3- Meatballs and Spaghetti



Asian Turkey Meatballs With Lime Sesame Dipping Sauce
(Reblogged and only slightly modified from Gina's Skinny Taste Recipes)
This meal is delicious. I took turkey meat balls and combined it with steamed broccoli and served it over a small portion of brown rice. YUM!

Meat Balls

1/4 cup panko crumbs (Any other bread crumbs taste good also.)
1-1/4 lbs 93% lean ground turkey
1 egg
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 scallions, chopped
1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil

Dipping Sauce

4 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
2 tbsp water
2 chopped fresh scallion

Rice and Vegetables
1 cup uncooked brown organic rice (I used Texmati Brown Rice.)
2 1/4 Cups of water
1 teaspoon butter (optional)
4 cups of frozen/fresh Broccoli


Preheat oven to 500°F.

Prepare brown rice. Combine all ingredients for rice in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir once. Cover pan with a lid, reduce heat and let simmer for 45 minutes.

Mix ground turkey, panko, egg, salt, scallions, ginger, cilantro, 1 tbsp soy sauce, and 2 tsp oil and mix with your hands until combined well. Shape 1/4 cup meat mixture into a ball and transfer to a baking dish. Repeat with remaining mixture. Bake until cooked through, about 15 minutes.

For the dipping sauce mix together lime juice, water, soy sauce, and remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in a bowl. Add scallions and mix again.

Steam broccoli until it reaches your desired texture. (I like mine slightly crunchy! About 3.5 minutes.)

Transfer rice, broccoli and meatballs to a serving dish. Stir sauce, then drizzle over top of the dish with 1 tablespoon sauce. Chances are you won't use all the dipping sauce.

Serve the dish with remaining sauce, about 1 tbsp per person.

Makes 12 meatballs.

The Health details of the Meatballs:
Servings: 4 • Size: 3 meatballs • Old Points: 6 pts • Points+: 7 pts
Calories: 229.1 • Fat: 11.1 g • Carbs: 8.5 g • Protein: 24.3 g

Leftover meat balls can be stored in the fridge till tomorrows lunch/dinner where they can be re-used to make a delicious meatball sub or meatball spaghetti.

If you want to make the meatball sub don't forget to purchase a bulky roll and your favorite red sauce when you are grocery shopping. A delicious sharp cheddar cheese is a great topping option also!

Or if you are more interested in a tasty pasta dish, pick your favorite noodle and combine with a tasty red sauce. Personally, I would pick up some vegetables like mushrooms and onions to add to this delicious leftover makeover!