I want to share a very yummy, very healthy chicken salad with you. Maybe you're like me where you aren't a mayonnaise fan. Or maybe you DO love the sinful mixture, but are looking for alternatives to making chicken salad. Well, try plain yogurt! I like Stonyfield Farms brand plain yogurt. It's very healthy and has lots of good stuff in it. :-) Hope you enjoy the taste just as much as I do! Here's the recipe:
Yogurt Chicken Salad-
1-1.25lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
approx 20-30 grapes, red or green
Half a tub of PLAIN yogurt
1 small bag slivered almonds
lemon juice (in yellow bottle)
lemon pepper seasoning (I like Mrs Dash blend)
Cook chicken in a crockpot on low for 6hrs or high for 3 hrs, with a trace of water at the bottom. Or you may opt to boil the chicken in a pot of water over med high heat for about 20-30 min. Allow chicken to cool for a bit, then transfer to large bowl, sprinkle with lemon pepper seasoning and shred with 2 forks.
Slice grapes in half, add to chicken, along with the slivered almonds. Sprinkle approx 1 tsp lemon juice over chicken. Add plain yogurt and mix well. If mix isn't creamy enough for your liking, just add more yogurt.
Serve with rolls, whole wheat bread, and/or Sunchips (my fave). Enjoy!!
Monday, February 14, 2011
Monday, January 31, 2011
Life is rough sometimes. Especially when you shoot yourself in the foot.
Literally.
I often have to fight the urge and bite my tongue.
If you posses any kind of weapon, be it a gun, shouldn't it come with a requirement for a common sense license? One must know what the trigger would do if you pull it. Yes, it will go off and the bullet inside of your 9mm hand gun will then burst out of the barrel and into whatever solid object it strikes. That's the way kinetics works! You sure are lucky, sir. That it was your foot in the way and not say, your face.
And don't call 9-1-1 screaming at me to "hurry up." First, I am not the one coming to save you, oh damsel in distress. Second, just because your foot is throbbing doesn't mean I can press the "easy" button to turn on the turbo speed to the ambulance who is on its way (which, by the way, was coming since about 20 seconds since you dialed our 3-digit number).
And don't think I can't understand any Spanish, sir. Cussing yourself out doesn't make the pain any better.
And please stop yelling in my ear. That does no good either as I can't really understand your hollering, whining little weasel voice you imitate.
Sunday's are meant for laziness and church. Not playing with guns and cursing in Spanish. Didn't your mother teach you any better? Maybe he didn't have a mom.
Either way, his finger pulling trick was still smarter than the gentleman who recently experimented with sticking a couple of gerbils up his rear end just for the heck of it.
"Did you just say gerbils?"
"Unfortunately, yes."
Long pause.
(instructions for caller)
"ok sir, please put away any family pets. Gather up your medications, unlock your door, turn your outside lights on"
I coulda swore he had already put up his family pets.
**side note**
I swear on behalf of everything I believe in that I only post stories that are true in nature. Anonymous, but true.
Literally.
I often have to fight the urge and bite my tongue.
If you posses any kind of weapon, be it a gun, shouldn't it come with a requirement for a common sense license? One must know what the trigger would do if you pull it. Yes, it will go off and the bullet inside of your 9mm hand gun will then burst out of the barrel and into whatever solid object it strikes. That's the way kinetics works! You sure are lucky, sir. That it was your foot in the way and not say, your face.
And don't call 9-1-1 screaming at me to "hurry up." First, I am not the one coming to save you, oh damsel in distress. Second, just because your foot is throbbing doesn't mean I can press the "easy" button to turn on the turbo speed to the ambulance who is on its way (which, by the way, was coming since about 20 seconds since you dialed our 3-digit number).
And don't think I can't understand any Spanish, sir. Cussing yourself out doesn't make the pain any better.
And please stop yelling in my ear. That does no good either as I can't really understand your hollering, whining little weasel voice you imitate.
Sunday's are meant for laziness and church. Not playing with guns and cursing in Spanish. Didn't your mother teach you any better? Maybe he didn't have a mom.
Either way, his finger pulling trick was still smarter than the gentleman who recently experimented with sticking a couple of gerbils up his rear end just for the heck of it.
"Did you just say gerbils?"
"Unfortunately, yes."
Long pause.
(instructions for caller)
"ok sir, please put away any family pets. Gather up your medications, unlock your door, turn your outside lights on"
I coulda swore he had already put up his family pets.
**side note**
I swear on behalf of everything I believe in that I only post stories that are true in nature. Anonymous, but true.
What is the ADDRESS to your emergency??
Someday, more likely than not, you will have to call 9-1-1 (if you haven't already). I want to inform those people who are not in the life-saving or dispatch business of some important things. But first, let me inform you that depending on where you live, every 9-1-1 dispatch is a little bit different.
If you live in the OKC and surrounding area (EMSA's coverage area) then this definitely applies to you!
We have procedures and protocols like most companies do. We must adhere to these policies, mostly because this is the most effective way we can make sure our job is done right. What we do is accurate and the information we seek to obtain is very important for all involved.
When you call 9-1-1, the person you initially talk to is a police dispatcher. They shunt your call to the most appropriate agency whether it be for a fire, medical emergency, or they'll remain on the line for other matters. So, when you get to us this is the first thing we say:
"this is EMSA, what is the address of your emergency?"
What should the typical response by the caller be, you ask? What would you say?
Hmm...maybe your ADDRESS? You'd be surprised at how many people immediately scream in my ear or start spouting off a bunch of mumbly jibberish that I cannot comprehend. And it's quite frustrating when all I asked for was your address!
Ok, so maybe sometimes people's brains get mushy when they're stressed. But if you call 9-1-1, please be cooperative! There is nothing we can do for you if you are a-demanding b-not listening c-interrupting me, and d-cussing me out.
These are the responses I typically get when I answer the phone with the opening question as mentioned above:
- "well, it's not really an emergency, but..."
- "yeah hi, my momma, yeah she been hurtin' in her back for about 2 weeks and..."
- "now listen, I don't want you coming with your lights and sirens now..."
- "Oh my God, #*$&@! *$&@! #($@)! She's not breathing! Please! Just help! Hurry up!"
- "Ugh...my what? Oh, I don't know my own address, ugh..."
- "Hi, yeah I need a ride to the emergency room because I don't have my own car..."
If I had to choose, the most frequent response we get out of people is similar to the second one listed. People don't even tune in to what the person on our side is saying. We don't want to know what's going on with you just yet, it's kinda important to know where to send help first, don't ya think?!
Don't assume that when you call for help that we know where you are. In these days and ages, cell phones are the majority of our communication. I personally do not own a home telephone. If you ever call 9-1-1 from a cell phone, we do not necessarily know where you are at. Your cell phone will hit off of nearby phone tower, and within usually a 1-2 mile radius you are located from that tower. So when seconds count and you have no clue what address you're at, or a cross street you're standing at, what do we do?
One other note: if you or someone nearby needs an ambulance and you are talking to one of us on the phone, we need to ask you a series of questions. Our job isn't just to get an ambulance to you, but to also obtain important information about what is going on. Even if it's something as simple as an elderly man falling and hurting his leg, it could also be something serious and dangerous like a drive-by shooting. We ask lots of questions so we can let our paramedics know what they are coming into, that way they can be prepared mentally and grab extra equipment if needed. If there is a serious emergency going on, we are also trained and certified to give you very helpful and important instructions to start immediate care to the patient. We also do it to keep our emergency crews safe. Our protocol is that we do not enter a crime scene (assaults, shootings, stabbings, etc) without the police on the scene first.
Therefore, please be patient with us when we ask you questions. It is for the good of the whole situation if you let us do our job to help you! Just know that while we talk, it is NEVER holding up the help that is on the way to you. Once we have your address verified, and ambulance already starts coming throughout the rest of our conversation.
This business is more than meets the eye. So many misconceptions about my job that I hope everyone I know can understand just a little bit better. You may only call 9-1-1 very rarely in your lifetime. But when you do, your experience can literally mean life or death for someone, and I hope you can understand how important simple listening skills can be!
If you live in the OKC and surrounding area (EMSA's coverage area) then this definitely applies to you!
We have procedures and protocols like most companies do. We must adhere to these policies, mostly because this is the most effective way we can make sure our job is done right. What we do is accurate and the information we seek to obtain is very important for all involved.
When you call 9-1-1, the person you initially talk to is a police dispatcher. They shunt your call to the most appropriate agency whether it be for a fire, medical emergency, or they'll remain on the line for other matters. So, when you get to us this is the first thing we say:
"this is EMSA, what is the address of your emergency?"
What should the typical response by the caller be, you ask? What would you say?
Hmm...maybe your ADDRESS? You'd be surprised at how many people immediately scream in my ear or start spouting off a bunch of mumbly jibberish that I cannot comprehend. And it's quite frustrating when all I asked for was your address!
Ok, so maybe sometimes people's brains get mushy when they're stressed. But if you call 9-1-1, please be cooperative! There is nothing we can do for you if you are a-demanding b-not listening c-interrupting me, and d-cussing me out.
These are the responses I typically get when I answer the phone with the opening question as mentioned above:
- "well, it's not really an emergency, but..."
- "yeah hi, my momma, yeah she been hurtin' in her back for about 2 weeks and..."
- "now listen, I don't want you coming with your lights and sirens now..."
- "Oh my God, #*$&@! *$&@! #($@)! She's not breathing! Please! Just help! Hurry up!"
- "Ugh...my what? Oh, I don't know my own address, ugh..."
- "Hi, yeah I need a ride to the emergency room because I don't have my own car..."
If I had to choose, the most frequent response we get out of people is similar to the second one listed. People don't even tune in to what the person on our side is saying. We don't want to know what's going on with you just yet, it's kinda important to know where to send help first, don't ya think?!
Don't assume that when you call for help that we know where you are. In these days and ages, cell phones are the majority of our communication. I personally do not own a home telephone. If you ever call 9-1-1 from a cell phone, we do not necessarily know where you are at. Your cell phone will hit off of nearby phone tower, and within usually a 1-2 mile radius you are located from that tower. So when seconds count and you have no clue what address you're at, or a cross street you're standing at, what do we do?
One other note: if you or someone nearby needs an ambulance and you are talking to one of us on the phone, we need to ask you a series of questions. Our job isn't just to get an ambulance to you, but to also obtain important information about what is going on. Even if it's something as simple as an elderly man falling and hurting his leg, it could also be something serious and dangerous like a drive-by shooting. We ask lots of questions so we can let our paramedics know what they are coming into, that way they can be prepared mentally and grab extra equipment if needed. If there is a serious emergency going on, we are also trained and certified to give you very helpful and important instructions to start immediate care to the patient. We also do it to keep our emergency crews safe. Our protocol is that we do not enter a crime scene (assaults, shootings, stabbings, etc) without the police on the scene first.
Therefore, please be patient with us when we ask you questions. It is for the good of the whole situation if you let us do our job to help you! Just know that while we talk, it is NEVER holding up the help that is on the way to you. Once we have your address verified, and ambulance already starts coming throughout the rest of our conversation.
This business is more than meets the eye. So many misconceptions about my job that I hope everyone I know can understand just a little bit better. You may only call 9-1-1 very rarely in your lifetime. But when you do, your experience can literally mean life or death for someone, and I hope you can understand how important simple listening skills can be!
Sunday, August 29, 2010
It's a Race!
On August 14th, I "competed" in my first 5K run. I use the word "competed" very lightly because I wasn't running to beat other people. Luckily, EMSA pays for anyone from our company who wants to run together, to pick one benefit run a month in the metro. This August, we chose to run the "Midnight Streak" 5K. And no, we didn't have to run naked (thank God!). :-)
This is one of the only night runs around in the country, and it was alot of fun. There were only 6 of us that participated in this month's run, but everyone did a fantastic job!
But I wanted to dive in a bit deeper about my experience during my first 5K:
I've never been a fantastic runner. God gave me short, stubby legs- it's just a fact. But I've been down the road of unhealthy, and not taking care of the body in the life that I've been blessed with. So, running I do! I try to keep it fun and interesting, which includes finding new paths to run, and working towards goals like these 5K's. It amazes me to see people who can run whole marathons, those who don't mind taking a 3 mile jog in 102 degree pure melting heat. Those who run in the rain, during their lunch break, an extra mile just because, etc...
I have to work my mind up to go out and jog. But once I do, I feel great! Then I am reminded of even that blessing God has given me- able legs to run and jump and chase my son around.
I am pretty excited about this 5K. I do a *bit* of training for it, though nothing much more than my usual jogging routine. I show up to the race, and it hits me: what in the world did I get myself into??? I've never really run more than 2 miles in a row, at a time! 5 K? That's 3.2 miles folks! In the middle of August I may add. Even though the race didn't start until 11:00pm, it was a scorching 93 degrees out still! But I breathe deeply, and stand in the sea of 1,100 people waiting for the gun to go off.
*BOOM!* And we are off. Ok, things are all right. My adrenaline is pumping, I'm excited- let's do this! I get going at a good pace. The sun is down, so I can deal with the heat and humidity. I'm weaving through the crowd of runners, getting closer to the front. Once I find my stride, the object now is to run in a spot where there aren't people brushing my shoulders to whiz by.
I'm feeling great for my first run. 2 water stations go by- the second one I snatch a cup and guzzle half of the water, then pour the rest down my back. Ahhh. Feels good. Keep going!
I start to get pretty hot at around 1.5 miles. I haven't stopped yet- and I haven't looked back. But everything is starting to get uncomfortable. I feel as if my body is going into slow-mo. "Still not at 2 miles yet...really?!?" I ask myself. I can hear each foot strike the pavement. It seems to get louder with each stride. The pavement burns at my feet. There's no denying it's a hot summer night now. A few people here and there start to pass me, and when I see that I become slightly discouraged.
"I can't stop now- I won't stop!" I say to myself.
As the race comes to a “turnabout,” as I am on the other side of the barriers, there is a group of US Marines running together. Their loud chants endorsed cheers and hoots from the other runners, including me. It’s like they sent a message straight to my adrenaline saying, “MOVE IT!” So I did. I picked up the pace a bit, after grabbing for another cup of water.
I picked up my pace, now being the one to pass around others. I observed the faces of each person I passed- some looked hopeful and fearless, but most of those people were probably found at the very front of the pack! But many- including myself- looked like they had been running for 5 hours, or 20 miles. Sweat poured from our bodies with each step we took, and the humidity within the wind slapping our faces.
I kept up my good pace for about 5 more minutes until I feel my feet start to burn again. I slow down, but it’s ok. I’m working back into a good pace again. Then I see a lady cheering everyone on as they passed. She yelled out that there was only about ¾ mile left to go. Yippee!
I continued my pace a little more, then as I felt the end nearing, I sped up. But my mind felt that ¾ mile has already passed since I saw that woman. I felt deceived! I wasn’t sure whether to believe my feet and mind, or the woman who so cheerfully supported all of the runners, comforting our minds in the fact we were nearing the finish line.
Probably the last half mile of my run, I started reminding myself of Jesus’ long journey to Calvary’s cross, where he died. Not the fact that it was probably only about a half mile he traveled- but he carried the heavy cross on his back, he had a crown of thorns on his head. He was beat as he walked down the road. He bled, he ached- I’m sure his feet burned. The exhaustion spoke through his body, and each breath he took.
This gave me peace of mind and a humbling experience. Once I realized the story I was seeing in my mind, each step became easier. Before I knew it, I had been really striding and then I see the finish line. Nothing could stop me now! The last 200 meter stretch, I pumped it out. I passed about 10 more people before crossing the finish line.
Never once did I stop to walk. This was my ultimate goal of the whole race, was to run it all the way through without stopping. And I succeeded! Prayer and reflection are better than an iPod any day.
"1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." Hebrews 12:1.
This is one of the only night runs around in the country, and it was alot of fun. There were only 6 of us that participated in this month's run, but everyone did a fantastic job!
But I wanted to dive in a bit deeper about my experience during my first 5K:
I've never been a fantastic runner. God gave me short, stubby legs- it's just a fact. But I've been down the road of unhealthy, and not taking care of the body in the life that I've been blessed with. So, running I do! I try to keep it fun and interesting, which includes finding new paths to run, and working towards goals like these 5K's. It amazes me to see people who can run whole marathons, those who don't mind taking a 3 mile jog in 102 degree pure melting heat. Those who run in the rain, during their lunch break, an extra mile just because, etc...
I have to work my mind up to go out and jog. But once I do, I feel great! Then I am reminded of even that blessing God has given me- able legs to run and jump and chase my son around.
I am pretty excited about this 5K. I do a *bit* of training for it, though nothing much more than my usual jogging routine. I show up to the race, and it hits me: what in the world did I get myself into??? I've never really run more than 2 miles in a row, at a time! 5 K? That's 3.2 miles folks! In the middle of August I may add. Even though the race didn't start until 11:00pm, it was a scorching 93 degrees out still! But I breathe deeply, and stand in the sea of 1,100 people waiting for the gun to go off.
*BOOM!* And we are off. Ok, things are all right. My adrenaline is pumping, I'm excited- let's do this! I get going at a good pace. The sun is down, so I can deal with the heat and humidity. I'm weaving through the crowd of runners, getting closer to the front. Once I find my stride, the object now is to run in a spot where there aren't people brushing my shoulders to whiz by.
I'm feeling great for my first run. 2 water stations go by- the second one I snatch a cup and guzzle half of the water, then pour the rest down my back. Ahhh. Feels good. Keep going!
I start to get pretty hot at around 1.5 miles. I haven't stopped yet- and I haven't looked back. But everything is starting to get uncomfortable. I feel as if my body is going into slow-mo. "Still not at 2 miles yet...really?!?" I ask myself. I can hear each foot strike the pavement. It seems to get louder with each stride. The pavement burns at my feet. There's no denying it's a hot summer night now. A few people here and there start to pass me, and when I see that I become slightly discouraged.
"I can't stop now- I won't stop!" I say to myself.
As the race comes to a “turnabout,” as I am on the other side of the barriers, there is a group of US Marines running together. Their loud chants endorsed cheers and hoots from the other runners, including me. It’s like they sent a message straight to my adrenaline saying, “MOVE IT!” So I did. I picked up the pace a bit, after grabbing for another cup of water.
I picked up my pace, now being the one to pass around others. I observed the faces of each person I passed- some looked hopeful and fearless, but most of those people were probably found at the very front of the pack! But many- including myself- looked like they had been running for 5 hours, or 20 miles. Sweat poured from our bodies with each step we took, and the humidity within the wind slapping our faces.
I kept up my good pace for about 5 more minutes until I feel my feet start to burn again. I slow down, but it’s ok. I’m working back into a good pace again. Then I see a lady cheering everyone on as they passed. She yelled out that there was only about ¾ mile left to go. Yippee!
I continued my pace a little more, then as I felt the end nearing, I sped up. But my mind felt that ¾ mile has already passed since I saw that woman. I felt deceived! I wasn’t sure whether to believe my feet and mind, or the woman who so cheerfully supported all of the runners, comforting our minds in the fact we were nearing the finish line.
Probably the last half mile of my run, I started reminding myself of Jesus’ long journey to Calvary’s cross, where he died. Not the fact that it was probably only about a half mile he traveled- but he carried the heavy cross on his back, he had a crown of thorns on his head. He was beat as he walked down the road. He bled, he ached- I’m sure his feet burned. The exhaustion spoke through his body, and each breath he took.
This gave me peace of mind and a humbling experience. Once I realized the story I was seeing in my mind, each step became easier. Before I knew it, I had been really striding and then I see the finish line. Nothing could stop me now! The last 200 meter stretch, I pumped it out. I passed about 10 more people before crossing the finish line.
Never once did I stop to walk. This was my ultimate goal of the whole race, was to run it all the way through without stopping. And I succeeded! Prayer and reflection are better than an iPod any day.
"1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." Hebrews 12:1.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Rylinn
Birthday girl Rylinn turns 2!
Notice how I made her beautiful blue eyes stand out in this one...captivating!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Beyond Measure
I have been so blessed, God has really chosen me for reasons
Reasons I can't explain.
I look all around me and I am simply speechless for all I've got, you might not think it's alot.
But when I look into my baby's big blue eyes, and when I touch my child's hand to me it's no surprise
I am blessed, I feel free, when I'm down and feel like all is lost I look at them and He shows me what I've got- the whole world! Take it in and show them everyday, the love I give in every way. I am so blessed
Reasons I can't explain.
I look all around me and I am simply speechless for all I've got, you might not think it's alot.
But when I look into my baby's big blue eyes, and when I touch my child's hand to me it's no surprise
I am blessed, I feel free, when I'm down and feel like all is lost I look at them and He shows me what I've got- the whole world! Take it in and show them everyday, the love I give in every way. I am so blessed
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Why must these walls I have so carefully built
Why must they come on down?
When I have stacked them for years
Filled with abuse, disregard, and tears
Why must they come crumbling down?
I don't really want the unfamiliar around
It's a cold, lonely feeling
There's only so much I can take
Then eventually I break
Can't I just handle the things that I know?
Will the feelings of emptiness within me erase
Or does it just fill more?
I try to tell my heart what it should feel
But that just leads to more time spent to kneel
Well, is that enough?
I long for the answers that humbles my heart
Create inside of me more than just a scar
Go ahead and tear all of my walls on down
Please help me break them down
I simply cannot do it alone
Peel back the layers of my description
Show me the blessings of this blended place I see
Reflect upon me what is worth salvaging
And what I need not worry
And prove the unforeseen possibilities
Why must they come on down?
When I have stacked them for years
Filled with abuse, disregard, and tears
Why must they come crumbling down?
I don't really want the unfamiliar around
It's a cold, lonely feeling
There's only so much I can take
Then eventually I break
Can't I just handle the things that I know?
Will the feelings of emptiness within me erase
Or does it just fill more?
I try to tell my heart what it should feel
But that just leads to more time spent to kneel
Well, is that enough?
I long for the answers that humbles my heart
Create inside of me more than just a scar
Go ahead and tear all of my walls on down
Please help me break them down
I simply cannot do it alone
Peel back the layers of my description
Show me the blessings of this blended place I see
Reflect upon me what is worth salvaging
And what I need not worry
And prove the unforeseen possibilities
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