Author Archives: Judith

About Judith

Judith is a retired Reading Resource Specialist with a Masters in Education. She is a published author and also a regular columnist with monthly articles in Pink Magazine and other publications. She and her husband Bill live on Hilton Head Island and, when not sailing their 36ft. yacht Serenity, they both volunteer at The Deep Well, Habitat for Humanity and the Boys and Girls Club on a regular basis. For many years they have also sponsored and produced a children's educational TV program called The Reading Room which is aired on WHHI each week and which is supported by their educational no-advertising web site, www.readroom.com.

Let’s Talk About JOY!

A dear friend just sent me a beautiful picture of a little puppy frisking is a water puddle. The caption was “We all define JOY differently.” How true is that? These guys look like they have joy to share and so do we all. Let’s try to make 2024 as joyous as we can. It takes all of us to do this, because so far it doesn’t look that good. Shall we give JOY a try?? Are you in???

Three Bean Salad Plus 1

Everybody makes 3 Bean Salad, right? Well, I am proposing that we step it up a bit and add a fourth ingredient.

1.One can of beans-I use pinto beans, but others use kidney or black beans

2.One can of green beans-I use the French cut and yes, I use canned

3. One can of well rinsed garbonzo beans-These add a real texture and crunch if you lightly toast them in the oven for about 5 minutes.

4. My last ingredient? You know that I love corn, especially in the summer. Add a little can of kernel corn, scrape two cobs of fresh corn, or if you love corn too, add a bigger can.

I dress this with Newman’s Own Raspberry Walnut Vinaigrette Dressing. This is yummy and I take it everywhere in the summer!

Brain Health??

Doctors and behavior specialists are saying that things like jigsaw puzzles and crosswords are good for maintaining brain function. So, to that end, I have taken up crossword puzzles as one of my hobbies. Boy, it has turned out to be not only fun, but a communication tool as well. For example, I can ask my friend in California what a 6 letter word for FUN could possibly be and when she answers, she also recalls some of the fun things we used to do together. It is quite easy to build a little network of crossword pals as it turns out. Who Knew???

Pooh Says Muffins Are Better With Honey!

Yes, Pooh likes honey with his muffins, but also, how about making those muffins with pancake mix? I used Krusteaz but I bet you could also use Bisquick or any other pancake mix as far as that goes. Give it a try!

Pancake Muffins

  1. 2 cups pancake mix-As I said, I used Krusteaz, but I think any pancake mix will do, but watch the envelope mixes like Martha White because they do not equal 2 cups.
  2. 2 Tablespoons sugar-I used 4 but I like things pretty sweet
  3. 1 large egg
  4. 1 cup milk-I use 2%
  5. 1/4 cup melted butter or marg.

Combine all ingredients and pour into greased muffin pan or use paper muffin cups. Bake at 400 for about 15 min. Enjoy with butter and jam!

Keep That Positive Thought!

You can’t get much happier than this!

This is almost my favorite section of this blog. I love to seek out and share positive thoughts. Some days it it tougher than others to simply fine something good to say, but today was a good day, I have many good thoughts to share:

  1. Don’t let the ugly in others get in the way of your own beauty!

Never try to talk anyone out of their feelings. Rather try to listen to them share with you who they are. Listening to someone is like giving them a present.

2. Learn to HOPE, not expect. Hope is love in a slightly different form.

3. A problem may be an opportunity for you to shine. Check it out and give it time.

Right here, right now, today, you are right where you are meant to be. Think about it.

Beauty Grace Friendship Hope

Peace Contentment Wellness Care

Love Joy kindness Heart

Your favorite partnerships?

Be at peace

Many Zucchinis!!

One of my favorite things about summer is zucchini. Yes, those big long green things are among my favorite veg. They can be used in salads, stuffed, made into breads, and pureed into any vegetable smoothie. One of my favorites is this easy recipe for Zucchini Casserole that I found a long time ago in an old cookbook. I love to share it, so here goes!

Zucchini Casserole

  1. 1 1/4 cups cracker crumbs-I like to use RITZ, but any kind will do.
  2. 1/4 cp. melted marg. Do not use vegetable oil!
  3. About 2 large zukes or 3 small. You need about 2 1/2 cups grated
  4. 1 cup very sharp shredded cheddar cheese-add a bit more if you like a cheesy flavor
  5. 1 beaten egg
  6. A little finely chopped red onion (Optional)
  7. A couple of dashes of garlic powder or salt

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Combine cracker crumbs and butter but save out a bit of the crumbs for topping,. Stir together the remaining ingredients and combine all. Pour mixture into an 8 inch square baking pan and sprinkle with remaining cracker crumbs. Bake at 350 for one hour and 10 minutes or so. Tap the center to check for doneness. ENJOY, and use up your zucchini while you are at it!!

Are We There Yet? Is happiness really a journey?

Being “HAPPY” is a choice. How we see ourselves, our surroundings, our friends and our loved ones can be cast as either a positive or a negative. The happy guys above are a bit much I grant you, but if you find yourself always seeing the down side and things look bleak frequently, you may chose to seek help in the many forms available to us nowadays.

Double Duty

Two Is Better Than One!

This is just an idea and it worked for me. I make chicken pot pie although not with cauliflower crust, but with lots of veggies and my QUORN vegetarian chicken pieces. So today I was making a big veggie salad for lunch, and it dawned on me that I was cutting way too many vegetables. So, why not make two dishes while I was at it.

  1. thin sliced carrots
  2. broccoli
  3. cauliflower potatoes are optional BTW
  4. snow peas
  5. green onion sliced thinly
  6. spinach
  7. corn
  8. yellow squash out of my garden

As I chopped away I simply kept on chopping as I did each item. At the end of it all I had ingredients for not only my salad (I added romaine lettuce, of course) but all of the chopped veg I needed for pot pie. I steamed the pie veg and layered that with low sodium cream of broccoli soup and added a bit of parm. cheese. If you are a vegetarian and you use soy products or whey based products, add some c’ken and I like to top with a crust that I make out of Bisquick. You may prefer some type or biscuit dough or pop biscuits too. I like Pillsbury Grand myself. This is a quick healthy dish and sooo good.

Why not let your veggies do Double Duty?

Have You Heard About…..?

All right, so this is not exactly a new word, but the idea and the results were a lesson learned for the good!

My new word for the day today is MAGNESIUM and I will be featuring it in my upcoming article for PINK next month. I have had quite a health awakening and I would like to share.

Recently, I went to my DR. for muscle cramps/spasms, that had become quite severe. Right away she recommended magnesium and I picked it up right away. 250 mg. (OTC)which is 60% or my daily need. I figured that was the correct dose based on the foods I eat.

Well, to make a long and happy story short and still happy, it worked. Not only are my muscle cramps and spasms gone, but I am sleeping better and I feel tons better mentally. I am not one to be down hearted usually, but now I must honestly tell you that even my outlook on life has perked up a lot.

I would never have imagined!!