Avocado Pudding Recipe

When I see something a little different I want to try it.

Recently I saw a recipe for Avocado Pudding on facebook. Travis was making a Mexican dish, so I thought I'd try this for desert.

Avocado Pudding Recipe

I looked up recipes for, "Avocado Pudding" there are a lot of recipes. Apparently this isn't a new idea.

It's super easy to make. Everything goes in a food processor in any order really. I left the amount of sweetener up to you. At first I just added a drop of plain liquid Stevia. That was fine for Travis that doesn't have a sweet tooth. The boys and I wanted a drop more added to each of our own servings.

Avocado Pudding by AlissaSpiehs-Apel on Scribd

Options: 

I thought just like chocolate bars come with different flavors, you could add flavors into this recipe easily for a different variations.

• NuNaturals Nustevia has different flavors for their liquid Stevia. You could try using a flavored Stevia instead of one without any flavor.
• We just got chocolate bars that had a sprinkle of Cayenne Pepper in them. I could see that in the Avocado Pudding as odd as that sounds, it could work. Just don't add too much. Just a sprinkle!
• Another thought was to add peanut butter powder if you're a peanut butter lover like I am. 
• If you don't like Stevia you could use any sweetener really: White Sugar, Brown Sugar, Syrup, Agave Syrup are just some ideas.

Cool:

You will want to make sure it's chilled before eating. I thought the cold milk would chill it enough. I tasted it when I was done making it, and it needs to be chilled more for sure.

I won't say it tastes just like the pudding from the box. It has more of a Mexican Chocolate kind of a taste. It's healthier for sure!

It makes enough for 4 servings. Perfect for my family. If you are making this for just 1 person consider cutting the recipe in 1/2. You can serve it in ramekins like I did, or the Avocado skins like I saw on facebook. 

Do you like to try different things like I do, or do you stick with eating what you already know? 

Random Tid Bits

1. I love listening to the stories of the Dalai Lama in a CD I won called The Book of Joy. I won it off of Mom's Own Words. He's all about peace, which is what we need right now. I get sick of negativity, people being put down, and being called names: left wing, right wing, and so on. I say it's name calling because those terms are generally used in a negative context. Even our president, and last president I've heard being called names. If one doesn't agree with someone, does it give them the right to call that person a name? I don't think so. We learned that when we were in elementary school. I wish just once that we could see that we all have differences. I wish we could see one another from all sides like Picasso drew. Maybe our differences is all we have in common. That's ok. I wish you all even though we may be different - peace, love, happiness, and understanding in this difficult thing we call life.
   
   
   
   
   
2. Lately I've been swiped - unfriended on facebook by two people. Most normally I wouldn't care. I do care. Why does it bother me? I just wish they'd message me a heads up, so I could understand what I did wrong. After all we're adults. If I said something offensive I could apologize. I have no way of knowing what I said, posted, or did to swipe me from their friend list.
   
   There was one person I unfriended. The reason? She attacked another friend on a thread I posted. I won't stand for attacking others. Especially when they didn't know each other. Typically I'm for free speech. Even if I disagree with you - I won't defriend you. That's just not in my character. 


3. Mica has an interesting way of looking at things at times. Yes sometimes I learn things through my own children. He said, "Mom I just don't understand why kids my age (11) would have a facebook page. It's not legal to have one at my age. You have to lie about your age to have one." He's very matter of fact about everything. On safety patrol if someone is not following the rules they get written up by Mica. It doesn't matter if they are friend or foe. I like that neutral quality about him. He's very by the book.
   
   There are times when his loved trait can be a not so good trait. Everything has a little yin and yang to it. He points out when he thinks something isn't fair. He said, "Mom the leader at camp only gives candy to some kids who win. That isn't fair. They should give it to all the kids in my opinion." I said, "Mica then all the kids in the camp would have nothing to work toward. There would be no goals to achieve. By only giving candy to the winners, others will try harder the next time." I think he got it. Remember he was raised in a society where all the kids get a ribbon no matter if they won something, or not.
   
   If you're a rule breaker, or not a very fair person stay clear of Mica. If you a fair person that follows the rules he'll be your best friend ever!


4. Isaak is sweet and sour. Don't cross him! He won't let you forget it. Be nice to him, and he'll have your back like he has his own back. He's managed to hang on to his friends for all of elementary except 1. That 1 has issues at home, feeds off of negative behavior, so he lost the whole group.


5. There's always one student in every class that seems to want to call the teacher out on their mistakes. I have one in each class right now. I'm far from perfect! I will admit that. One I can handle. The other I steer away from. She called me out last week. I was going over multicultural design. I was talking about how we don't eat bugs here, but how they do in other countries. I had a video that was featured on Fast Company's blog some time ago that had a company that was proposing the idea. She looked it up on her cell phone trying to figure out if the company went anywhere. Apparently they didn't get the company off the ground. I did find it, but the design was horrible. Part of me wonders if the company that proposed the big idea got bought out. First off they are not supposed to be on their cell phones during lecture - period. Second I never said the company went anywhere. I only proposed it as an idea. Third I connected it to the news that discussed a few weeks ago that a group at University of Lincoln is making bug products to sell for protein. The way this student says things is like - ha I got you! It's like she's trying to make someone feel small. Have you ever had anyone in your life try to push you down, and make you feel small?

Rock On! Giveaway

Things that we've always collected are: Rocks, Arrowheads, Fossils, and Mineral Specimens.

We got the spelling of our son Mica from the mineral Mica, which is a shiny silicate mineral with a layered structure, found as minute scales in granite and other rocks, or as crystals. It is used as a thermal or electrical insulator.

We have arrowheads hanging up in shadow boxes in our hallway.

I was super excited to review and giveaway Rock On! The Geology Game of Brains and Sheer Determination. 

What the Set Includes:

• A Fun Learning Game
• A 15 Specimen Rock Collection
• 60+ Small Polished Rocks
• Cards with Fun Facts on Rocks and Minerals
• A Hard Plastic Carry Case

The Game

Mica liked the set because Mica is in it. He enjoyed playing the game with me as well. The game reminded me of bingo.

There are 5 levels for up to 6 players. The game is educational. It's filled with science. It's meant for elementary ages, and beyond.

If you don't care for games, it's just cool to look through the rocks and minerals. 

 

The rocks are fairly small, and are all polished. 

Identify:

The set comes with card to help identify everything. 

Cost:

$26.95

Win It:

One of my readers is going to win Rock On! The giveaway is open to residents of the US, 18+, and will run through 3/23. Winner will have 24 hours to respond to the email before a new winner is selected.


No PO Boxes. Open to the US.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Disclaimer: I received Rock On! to assist with this review. I wrote this post, and was not influenced at all with an opinion. I only review things that I find interesting, or that would benefit my readers or family. 

WW: Us {Linky}

Just a photo of us:

I'm Still in a Fog

I scheduled my ENT appointment for later this month. That's when they could get me in.

I've already messaged my allergy/asthma doctor twice. The first time was to get a sheet that they forgot to give me at the office. I don't blame them for forgetting. I kept them there an hour past closing time.

Here's my original post if you feel like you're reading this, and you're lost.

Here's a list of foods I shouldn't have during season where their counterparts are in bloom or in seed:

First column is spring, second is summer, third is late summer and early fall, and last is fall.

I can have any one of these things. Just not when their relative is in seed, or in bloom. 

We were very successful with growing tomatoes last year. Luckily we don't have them very much during the summer. We canned most of them late fall and winter. The tomato liquid was frozen into ice cube trays, and we use them for soups, beans and rice, and dishes like that.

We can make sauerkraut with the cabbage we grow. Then we can have cabbage at any time.

Fruits that shouldn't be consumed in one season can be frozen for smoothies for another season. 

I like peanut butter, but should stay off it now. Almond butter would be ok though.

Isaak and Mica should stick to this pretty well too. They don't have the asthma I have, but did get some of my allergies. Not nearly as bad as me. Both can be around dogs. Isaak can be around cats with no problems. Mica sneezes and his eyes itch around cats. They both have seasonal allergies. Isaak's poor eyes get it bad! 

I've been waiting for a list like this my whole life. They never had this when I went to an allergist before. 

Another message was sent in to Doctor Shakir. I was to be off my meds for 5 days prior to seeing my him - my allergy, asthma doctor. I need to know if I should be off anything before seeing my ENT. Doctor Shakir was very clear that he wanted to get my polyps down in size. If I go off my meds they will get bigger. That's good because then the ENT can see what he's up against surgery wise. It's bad because he won't really know their real size. I know they've gone down. I can breathe through my nose a bit.

I still have a cloudy WTH feeling going on in my head. That's from the powerful steriods I'm on. They're stronger than a typical inhaler used for asthma. 

Of course it's hard to focus on school things. It's midterm week. I couldn't even read papers one day last week. I did get through them the next day. If I can just finish writing the tests, I should be good. They are already there from last year. There's a computer program that grades them for me - YAY! 

Have you ever been on a med that made it hard to concentrate? 

Random Tid Bits

1. We went out to eat a few times lately. We wanted to try someplace new and different, so we went to Adana's Kebab House. It was really pretty good! I had something called dönerdürüm, turkish coffee, and we each got a piece of baklava.













Then not by choice well kind of by choice we went to Burger King. That's the day I had allergy testing done. I didn't think we'd get out of the doctor's office as late as 7:30. I actually had something made that we could just warm up, but we were so far from our house and hungry.

Here's the boys into Women's Wrestling. They were so into it I had to remind them to eat many different times.







This cracked me up! This little boy wanted to get the same hair cut as his friend, so his teacher couldn't tell them apart. Ha! I think it worked. I'm blinded by their cuteness, and can't tell them apart either. You can find the story, and the pictures here.











Do you think racism is something we're born with, or a learned thing?




I was pissed on Wednesday when I got home from work. I was already in a foggy mood from being on Steroids.

Then Travis greeted me with, "Isaak got punched in the head today at school."

I was like, "By the same kid that's been bothering his small group of friends?"

Travis, "No that kid is all talk. He would never do something like that. This kid was saying, 'Isaak ate worms in Kindergarten.' Isaak said, 'No I did not!' and the kid clocked him. The teacher on duty saw him punch Isaak, but he said Isaak punched him first. She was going to make them both sit out for recess, but Isaak claimed he didn't hit the kid. This kid's Dad is a real piece of crap! He's one of those parents that honks until his kid gets in the car. He never gets out of the car to pick him up, and he doesn't care if anyone has to wait on him."

Isaak stood at the door with his head hung down like he was in trouble.

I went up and said, "You did nothing wrong. Even if you punched him back you wouldn't have done anything wrong in my book. That kid is a jerk Isaak!" 


Travis saw the teacher talk to this kid's parent. Of course she had to go to his car to talk to him. This folks is what many in our future will be like. Asshats! Isaak's a good kid. He doesn't cause trouble, he does his homework, gets good grades, and is does what we tell him. He's had problems with jerks this year. I almost wish it was socially acceptable for him to punch the kid back. If he did he wouldn't be in trouble with us. Even if he was suspended. At this point I think I'd praise him for standing up for himself. The kid in question got a detention. Isaak said, "He got dispended Mom."

Mica never had those issues as much because he kind of sits back to observe things. If trouble arises he moves away. 

#Allergy, #Asthma, and #Polyps Oh My

I mentioned I had my big allergy asthma appointment on Monday. I scheduled the appointment at the end of the day, so I wouldn't miss work. I kept them way past their work day, and feel bad for it. They closed at 6:30, but I was there with me from 5:30 to 7:30. Saying the boys and Travis were hungry by the end of my appointment is an understatement. We never eat that late!

History

I haven't been to an Allergist Asthma Specialist, since about 2003 or so. I got shots for about a year. Then their office moved way far away.

My Dad talked about his allergies acclimating themselves - meaning that he got shots for certain things, became less allergic to those certain things, and more allergic to other things.

Before that I got allergy shots when I was a kid from about the age of 4 to about the age of 10. My Mom used to give them to me. She was an RN for years. I was annoyed as an adult because all the sudden I couldn't have my Mom give me my shots. They made me go in the clinic to get them, then wait 20 minutes afterwards to see if I had a reaction. I get it. They didn't want a law suit if someone died from a reaction. At the same time diabetics give themselves shots. They too could have a reaction.

Feeling annoyed about my Dad's allergies acclimating themselves, spending money on shots, gas money on driving, my Mom not able to give me my shots I quit.

Fast Forward to Two Months Ago

I got sick with an upper respiratory infection something. I went to my primary doctor. He gave me some antibiotics, and an inhaler for my asthma. I've been hoarding inhalers in case I need them.

I kept get an asthma attack each and every night. It wouldn't stop. The inhaler gave me relief, but I was puffing one every night. I was so done with it. That lead me to make the appointment to go to the clinic.

Allergist Asthma Specialist

I have a new doctor: Ebrahim Shakir. I love him. Travis said, "Am I going to have to watch you with him?" Ha! No. He is informative, supportive, concerned, and handsome. My husband is handsome as well. :)

He looked in my nose and said, "Has anyone ever told you you have polyps in your nose." I'm like, "No. I thought that was snot." He said, "They are the biggest polyps I've ever seen. I'm going to send you to an ENT. One that I'd only send my own family to. I'm going to treat you with ibuprofen, and allergy meds." I said, "I can't take ibuprofen. I'm allergic to it." He said, "What? What does it do?" I said, "Well I start sneezing, then my lungs close up." He said, "WOW! Well that changes things. You're at high risk for getting polyps because you can't take ibuprofen to reduce swelling for you asthma and allergies." I said, "Well this would explain why I haven't been able to smell anything for a few years."

Medicine:

I'm on 2 inhalers, Zyrtec in the morning, Singular (off brand) at night, a nasal wash at night followed up with Flonase. That is only until I can visit the ENT doctor to discuss surgery to remove the polyps and more than likely fix my deviated septum I've had since birth.

Testing:

I failed the first breathing test. They gave me a breathing treatment, while they testing me for my allergies. I'm 70% down in my breathing for the little branches in the picture. I'm 20% down in the bigger branches. Basically I'm not able to breathe properly. I don't smoke, I'm not around smoke, I don't own any pets, I don't have carpet, and I wash our bedding regularly.

10 minutes of this...

Dr. Shakir questioned if I should do the back prick test at all. He didn't want to throw me into an asthma attack. They decided to do it anyhow. One good thing...I'm not allergic to milk like I thought I was all these years.

...while this was going on.

28, 29 30, and 31 are all grasses.

Luckily it doesn't really hurt to get the back prick test done. It just tickled. My back is really ticklish. It didn't even itch that bad. Maybe I'm just used to itching. Ha! I had my breathing treatment going on, and my kids in the room to take my mind off the itching. 

This is after the test is done, my back is wiped down, and calamine lotion is put on it:

Dr. Shakir says I'm a special case. As if I didn't know that all ready. ;) After I meet with the ENT doctor, I meet again with Dr. Shakir. He has 2 plans of action I could do: 1. I can't remember exactly. 2. Allergy shots. I explained my frustrations with them. He said he could send them to a clinic close to me. 

Right now I'm tired, even when I'm sitting up. I would think steroids would get me moving! I kept falling asleep at 8 last night. Maybe I'm catching up for lost sleep. I also feel like I have small bees buzzing in my head. 

Later in March I see my ENT doctor. I was hoping it was earlier, but nope that's when they could get me in.

Gold Women Nail Grooming Kit, Stainless Steel Nail Clipper Set Review

I've always wanted a kit that everything in it to take care of my nails. Those type of kits look so convenient to use.

I just got a Gold Women Nail Grooming Kit, Stainless Steel Nail Clipper Set to review.

Convenient to Use:

I love that it can be put in my purse, in a suitcase, or on a shelf. It's just a small compact size. Nothing is going to fall out of it with the clasp that it has on it. The case is made with a synthetic leather that is easily opened with a push of a button. 

I like that I can take this to work, on vacation, camping, or wherever else I need. 

Very Versatile:

This is a 12 in 1 Grooming Kit, which includes all the essentials for proper nail maintenance and beyond! I could see using some of these tools to help with a hang nail, an ingrown nail, and more.

Tools:

• 1 x Tweezers 
• 1 x Cuticle Clipper 
• 1 x Eyebrow scissor 
• 3 x Nail Clippers (small one, big one, bevel one) 
• 1 x Nail file 
• 1 x Ear pick 
• 1 x V shape Cuticle pusher 
• 1 x U shape Cuticle pusher 
• 1 x Pealing knife 
• 1 x Pealing fork 

Each item is stainless steel. That means that nothing in this kit will rust.

Cost:

$24.99 and on sale for $14.99.

Disclaimer: I received this grooming kit to assist with this review. I wrote this post, and was not influenced at all with an opinion. I only review things that I find interesting, or that would benefit my readers or family.

WW: Proud of Isaak {Linky}

I thought about mortifying you all with my allergy photos that were taken yesterday, but decided to save that for another day. I had back prick tests done, breathing treatments, and a huge talk. Needless to say I'm more than likely going to need surgery. I have the biggest polyps in my nose that the allergist/asthma specialist has ever seen. I can thank my allergy to Ibuprofen for that. Ibuprofen basically gets me sneezing, and then my lungs start to shut down. If you're an allergy/asthma sufferer like me you kind of need to reduce swelling, but I can't because I'm allergic to what would help me. Therefore polyps happened. I now have an appointment to see an ENT doctor later next month. In the meantime I have a bag of meds. Enough about my breathing problems.

I'll focus on this little guy Isaak:

This is an image in a dressing room. Isaak from different sides.

Isaak doesn't really have a medal for what all he's done. I'm super proud of him. A kid joined his school that only speaks Spanish. His teacher paired up the child with Isaak. Isaak helps him connect with his favorite learning websites in Technology class, he eats lunch near him, he points to things to tell him what they are in English, and he plays basketball with him at recess.

The child's name is Benjamin, but the j is pronounced like a h. Isaak calls him what he wants to be called. His teacher calls him the English version of his name.

I'm just proud that he's a little leader. I think it makes him proud as well.

British Soccer Camps

Mica has a new found love: Soccer. He keeps talking about playing it at recess. It makes since that he likes this sport over others. The boy has always hated catching a ball, but he loves to kick them.

I have to admit I've always liked soccer over football. Sorry football lovers!

British Soccer Camps are the most popular soccer camp in the US. 

With an innovative curriculum that develops skills, speed and confidence in players ages 3-18, The British Soccer Camp provide boys and girls with the rare opportunity to receive high-level soccer coaching from a team of international expert's right in the heart of their own community.

In addition to teaching new skills and improving game performance, each British Soccer Camp provides lessons in character development, cultural education and is the most fun your child can have learning the sport they love!

Enroll Your Child in a British Soccer Camp Today:

Register for camp & get a FREE soccer jersey, soccer ball, t-shirt and poster! 

Use the Code:

CAMP17 .@ChallengerCamps https://www.challengersports.com/british-soccer/.@usfg

Disclaimer: If I'm one of 200 bloggers to post about this - one of my children will get to participate in this camp. I will write a follow up to this post if that is the case. I wrote this post, and was not influenced at all with an opinion. I only review things that I find interesting, or that would benefit my readers or family. This was provided to me by US Family Guide.