Disney Takes a Stand

This week Disney has announced that they will run ads that follow strict nutritional standards in order to help in the fight of childhood obesity. They have also said they will be offering more nutritional choices with less sugar and sodium in their theme parks.

I think it's great that they are making this bold move to say that we need to pay closer attention to how our children are eating. They are taking a stand for the kids. I still say it is up to us as parents to help our children make good choices. Even if the junk food is out there, we don't need to choose to eat it or feed it to our kids.

On the other hand, I think that Disney is such an influential part of our society and they are deciding to role model healthy eating for kids. I think that's great.

Hey, how much money will they really lose with this change when they sell more than half of the toys, movies and entertainment in the world. They'll do just fine without a pack of fries and a coke in their Mickey meal and I am sure a slice of watermelon will cost more than parking.

Here is an article about Disney in the NYTimes.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/05/business/media/in-nutrition-initiative-disney-to-restrict-advertising.html


What are your thoughts?

A Little Sugar in Your Omelette

The Sweet Life

My son, Ben, has been talking a lot about exercising and eating healthy. Maybe its a 9 year old thing. He is watching different types of athletes, their body types and asks a lot of questions. Mind you, this is surprising because none of our children, including Ben, has ever taking a strong liking to sports. We have them play to learn the sports, to learn about teamwork and commitment and healthy habits. Though, as he gets older, he has started liking it more and more. He is artist. He gets it from me. I am afraid of any round object flying at my face. Maybe I got that from the Brady Bunch, "My Nose!".

This morning, he was asking his dad about healthy foods and such. His dad was making him an omelette and asked him what he would like in it. He would ask about each choice whether it was healthy. His dad had said that sausage is healthy in small amounts. Ben chose not to have it in his omelette. His dad slipped one little bite into the omelette to be funny.

Here's the discovery:

Ben: Did you put sausage in the omelette?

Dad: Yes. (with a sneaky grin)

Ben: Well, everyone needs a little sugar in life.

From the mouth of babes. How cute is that? He cracks me up. He says the darnedest things.

Make sure you put a little sugar in your life!

Pinterecipe Adventurist: Chicken in Your Coconut

This is my second installment of my Pinterecipe Adventure.

Let me start by saying I am an everyday-mom-meal "sheph". 

My husband is more of a "chef". I like to try recipes that are easy and have a nice picture. 

Pinterest has been a great resource so I've decided to become a 

 Pinterecipe Adventurest. 

This recipe looked yummy and I had most of the ingredients in my kitchen. 

I am trying the Coconut Chicken Salad. 

You'll find the recipe here:

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/03/coconut-chicken-salad-with-warm-honey.html

These are the steps I took.  Coconut, Cornflake, Panko mixture. Egg Beaters.

Dip and coat and bake. Really easy.

Look at that deliciousness!  I added some mandarin oranges.
Warmed the dressing (which was delicious on the spinach and the chicken).
and poured it over the top.

 My whole family liked it, even the kids.

Nice light dinner for summer. My husband said to put that on the

summer rotation. I enjoyed it as well.

1st Pinterecipe Adventure: http://amberhousey.blogspot.com/2012/04/pinterecipe-adventurest-new-recipe.html

Capellini D’Angelo Roma

Don't Flip Em' Off, Look At the Flip Side!

My husband is my biggest supporter of my books and looking a the Flip Side. We remind each other all the time to look at the flip side. It is such a powerful thing to stop and look at another perspective before judging someone or reacting to something undesirable. It happens every day. Here on my blog, I will share my experiences as I journey to the Flip Side. It is NOT easy to take the time to look at the flip side as it is human nature to be quick to judge, get upset or be impatient. But if we take a moment, a breath and step into someone else's shoes, you might find that you'll see things a different way. Empathy (identify with the feelings of others) will take the place of apathy (having no concerns towards) or antipathy (negative feelings towards). Empathy will begin to soothe anger. Empathy will begin to encourage the spirit of giving or helping someone in need. Empathy will begin to make waiting a little easier. Empathy allows us to feel for another person or thing.  It allows us to feel  sadness or hurt even if it isn't visible on the outside.  It allows us to reach out when someone is need of our help. It allows us to forgive when we are being hurt. It allows us to dig deeper when goodness is buried beneath insecurity and pain.

Again, I don't claim that this is an easy thing to do. I struggle with it daily but putting this thought first and foremost has helped me be more patient and less frustrated. Like I said, my husband and I remind each other all the time, "Hey, look at the flip side.". Quite frankly there are times that where I am upset and he says "Look at the Flipside." and I want to tell him to...well you know. But his words always make me pause. I will share these moments with you here and if you have any to share, I would love to hear them because the more I hear them, the more it makes me look at flip side and appreciate life and the people I love.

Here is a brief example of my husband, Paul reminding me to look at the Flip Side. We were driving down the freeway actually talking about Flip Side Stories when a speeding car cut us off startling me. I immediately without thinking start yelling at the other car (I'll let you imagine what I might be saying) when he interrupts me with, "Don't flip them off, just look at the flip side." I looked at him and smiled.

Maybe they were late for something very important or someone was sick. We don't know. Was it safe? Absolutely not. Is cutting someone off the right thing to do? Maybe not. But I don't need to waste energy getting upset over something that is out of my control. This may not be the best example of the flip side but it is a funny way of looking at it.

"Don't flip them off, look at the flip side."

 Funny really. My publisher thought it was funny but thought it wouldn't be a good tag line for a children's book series. I agreed. A picture of me with my middle finger up might not go over well. It's funny though.

So, when you find yourself getting hot under the collar or frustrated, try to look at the flip side. There is always another side to every story or situation. Have a great day!

Cashier in Training

I was in line at the cashier a while back. There was a young man that was clearly new at the job and looked terrified. Behind him was an older woman (compared to his young age) peering over his shoulder. There was another veteran cashier within 2 feet from him and the bagger who was a just bit older than he. Then, there was me and a line of people waiting. This was going to be a long uncomfortable shift for this young man. 

 I felt bad for him. I've been there before being new at a job and unsure of myself. So, while glancing at his supervisor looking over his shoulder,  I said, "Do you ever feel like someone is looking over your shoulder?" He smiled and said yes. The woman behind him smiled and laughed. 

The young man continued checking me out (I mean, checking out my groceries, not checking "me" out). He clearly didn't know what most of the produce was. He learned what the hairy green fruit was and the difference between a green pepper and a jalepeno pepper.  I continued to make light of the situation. I told him it was a good place to learn what all this stuff is. I also told him I'd be back to test him. His supervisor said I could tell him how to cook it, too. 

So we all chatted and made light of his uncomfortable situation. He was smiling by the time I left and was happy to let me relieve some of his discomfort. The customers behind me heard everything and they were smiling and appeared willing to play along. I was sure they would help him out too. I stepped onto the flip side to help him feel more comfortable and made it comfortable for the others around me to join us on the flip side as well. 

That young man was going to have a very uncomfortable day and I hope the five minutes I spent with him helped him to feel more confident as he was learning how to do his job. I had empathy and compassion for him. Share some empathy and compassion for someone today and/or help someone feel appreciated.

See you on the Flip Side!

Pinterecipe Adventurest- New Recipe

Capellini D’Angelo Roma by Chef Dennis

This is my first installment of my Pinterecipes.

This recipe looked yummy and I had the ingredients in my kitchen. 

I followed the recipe by Chef Dennis which can be found at this link: 

http://www.askchefdennis.com/2012/02/in-my-restaurant-kitchen-capellini-dangelo-roma/

Let me start by saying I am an everyday-mom-meal "sheph". 

My husband is more of a "chef". I like to try recipes that are easy and have a nice picture. 

Pinterest has been a great resource so I've decided to become a 

 Pinterecipe Adventurest. 

In following this recipe, here are some things that I found or did. I used portabella mushrooms because they are heartier and, well, I had them already. I had a party this weekend and we had the Costco 

tri-meat Italian pack with the salamis and proscutto. I used the rest of the proscutto from that. 

Chef Dennis says that if the sauce is too thick, add chicken stock. I, Sheph Adventurest, found it too watery, so I added corn starch (two Tbs in 4 Tbs of cold water and add to sauce). Campanelle noodles aren't that easy to find. I found them at Home Goods believe it or not. I had them in my cupboard because I searched high and low for them for another recipe and never made it. hmph. 

I have checked many grocery stores. I couldn't even find them at Whole Foods. 

   Adding crushed tomatoes to the mushrooms and chicken stock to that.

 The wine is important in the fourth picture.

 The food is likely to taste better after a nice glass of Chardonnay if the recipe isn't good 

or the "Sheph" isn't that good. 

Be sure to give your guests some too, just in case.

This is my final presentation. I topped it with extra proscutto and parsley.

Our family's new name for this recipe is 

Campanelle de Marne
because Marne pinned it on Pinterest.

 

I had extra sauce that I will freeze. 

 This is what it looked like after dinner. My husband and kids loved it. My husband hates peas but ate them.

I thought it was delicious, too. My husband and I actually added a little cayenne pepper to spice it up a bit. 

 

I say, give it a try. You'll love it. it's creamy and delicious. You can make the sauce as light as you'd like. My husband especially like the Campanelle noodles. Let me know if you try it. Here is the link again:

http://www.askchefdennis.com/2012/02/in-my-restaurant-kitchen-capellini-dangelo-roma/

Follow me on Pinterest:  http://pinterest.com/ahousey/  

Adversity to Adventure

I often go out to schools to talk to children about walking in someone else's shoes, about my journey as an author, seeing another point of view and about looking at the Flip Side. I really love my job. As a former Elementary School Teacher, I am enjoying teaching children again and sharing my passion for writing and looking at the Flip Side.


After my presentations, the children are very excited about me as an author and how they relate to my stories. Many schools send me packets of letters from the children that touch me and make me laugh. I often receive an email or two from kids who really connected and feel the need to further communicate with me. Many will say that they want to be writers someday and share some personal experiences. I LOVE to receive letters from the children.

Last week I visited a school of near 400 kids. I had a great visit. When I shared that I was a twin, a young lady raised her hand to share that she is a twin as well and her brother was in the front row. I acknowledged what we had in common and moved on. Later that day, after I got home, I received an email from this young lady, "S. the Twin".

hi I have been looking at you're websites and on one there were no comments so I felt the need to write something so that's me S. the twin with the green headband my email is xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

p.s. I LOVE WRITEING TOO BUT AS YOU CAN SEE I'M BAD AT SPELLING.

S.

I was delighted to hear from her. I wrote her back (and told her that her spelling wasn't as bad as she thinks) and I told her that I was so happy that she had written to me.

About a week later, I got another email from "S. the twin" (cute). It touched me right down to my smallest heart string. I shared it with my husband and later my family at our Easter dinner. It touched everyone. It was the epitome of what Flip Side Stories is all about and further what "Just Because" is all about. Let me share:

"thanks so much for emailing me it really means allot I actually love writing I have written tons of story's that i think you might like but I still love you're story's because of the message its suppose to send I think I might be good at writeing story's like that because when I was two my parents got divorced and my mom was the custodeal parent we went to salivation army for most of our clothes and we went to the good fellows this is because there were two two year-olds one four year-old and another 6 year-old and my poor mom was a stay at home mom who had just recently at the time gotten a job as a waitress but we never knew anything was ever wrong because she always said it's going to be an adventure just like when we lost our house and had to move thats what she said its going to be an adventure but we got through every thing we may not had everything we wanted but we sure did have lots of love and thats what it's all about. 
 love,S.                                                  
p.s. we did finally find out about the it's going to be an adventure my sister C."

She and her family are an example to be followed. She saw herself in the second family in "Just Because". She could relate and see the FLip Side of a difficult situation with the help of her brave mother. I can't thank her enough for sharing her story.

Because of her story, I have decided to create a place for kids to share their stories and their connections with Flip Side Stories. I will share their stories and how they saw the Flip Side of Adversity.

I will share this blog post with her.  If you would like to leave her a comment, she will see this. I am sure she would love to hear from you. Thank you.