EZGreatLife.com

Get Your Healthy Groove On At Trader Joe’s

John — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 10:49:57 +0000

Ever heard of a cool little grocery store chain called Trader Joe’s? Okay, maybe I’m the only one who hasn’t. We just had our first store open here in Virginia Beach a few months ago. I must say, I am impressed. I had a very positive experience on my first visit and have returned several times since.

The relatively small, clean store is packed full of products. Fresh, unusual and healthy items. I have been pleasantly surprised by the very reasonable prices. Trader Joe’s actually makes it affordable to eat healthy meals. Their prices on “health food” beat all other stores, hands down. In my opinion, they are going to give the other supermarkets in our area a run for their money. Also, they offer free coffee samples and have a different food sample everyday. Oh, and did I mention they have a great wine selection? They do.

Everyone in the store seems knowledgeable, courteous and ready to help. The shelves are well stocked and the store is absolutely immaculate. The atmosphere is very rustic and decorated in a tropical motif. Lots of natural wood. Sort of like shopping in paradise. Trader Joe’s rocks!

If you haven’t visited a Trader Joe’s, you should! If you have, what do you think?

5 Tips For A Stress Free Family Camping Trip

John — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 02:49:36 +0000

Let’s face it. By it’s very nature, camping can be stressful. You are basically relocating your family and belongings into the outdoors, living in primitive conditions, and then relocating everything back home. All this, in the span of a few days. A little longer if you’re lucky! That just sounds stressful! And it can be. But there are some things you can do to make your family camping trip a much more pleasant experience.

When we first started camping years ago, it was an unorganized mess. We would spend hours trying to find all the camping gear. After arriving at the camp ground, late, we would unpack in the dark. AND then we would haphazardly go grocery shopping, spending way too much and forgetting necessary items. We didn’t have a plan. So along the way we started instituting the following 5 tips. These few simple steps have greatly reduced our stress and made all of our family camping trips much more enjoyable.

5 Tips For A Stress Free Family Camping Trip

1. Make Reservations Early

This may sound silly, but we have found as each year passes, the need to make our reservations earlier and earlier. My wife tried to book our usual campground for Memorial Day weekend, in December, only to find it was sold out! No kidding. December. Maybe it has to do with the economy? Where else can you stay for $15.00 a night? Luckily, we were able to reserve a couple of sites at another campground, on the same lake. In any case, there is nothing worse than planning on having a great, long weekend, only to find that it’s completely booked.

2. Pack Everything In Advance

This is a huge time saver and STRESS REDUCER. We bought plastic bins and store all of our camping supplies in them. We keep these, along with the tents, tarps and other necessities together in the garage. Gone are the days of trying to find and gather all that is needed for the trip. We just grab and go! Also, we pack all of our personal items, clothes and non-perishable food in the days leading up to the trip. This one step has made the entire trip less stressful and more enjoyable.

3. Plan Meals And Shop Prior To The Trip

We plan all the meals in advance and shop accordingly. About a month prior to the trip, I start buying snacks, canned goods and anything else needed, on sale. For instance, I buy hamburger in bulk, make all the patties and freeze them in zip lock bags. I buy chicken on sale, marinade it it for a day and freeze it in bags. When it’s time to go, we just throw the bags in an ice filled cooler. The payback on this is two-fold. We save a ton of money buying everything on sale and we are not cutting into our fun time trying to shop at some over priced camp store.

4. Plan Activities For Kids

I don’t know about you, but I can’t think of a worse experience than sitting in the woods with whinny kids complaining they are bored! Depending on the campground, there are plenty of activities to occupy your little ones (or not so little ones). Some items you may want to consider: corn hole (bean bag toss), horse shoes, hiking, biking, swimming, roasting marsh mellows, making S’mores, camp fire stories, camp fire songs, bubbles, board games, deck of cards, star-gazing, hide-n-go-seek and the list goes on. Use your imagination. Some campgrounds we have visited have had swimming pools, tractor hay rides and live music. Call ahead and see what is offered.

5. Set Up Camp Site Before Dark

Our favorite campground is about 3 hours from home. We used to get off work at 5:00 P.M. on Friday and arrive as it was getting dark. Let me tell you, it’s no fun setting up tents in the dark. Before it was over my wife and I wanted to sword fight each other with the tent poles! One of the smartest things we’ve done to reduce the stress is taking turns getting off-work early. The “lucky one” takes one of the kids to the site to set things up. When the others arrive, things are just about done, just in time for dinner!

So there you have it. I hope you will give these tips a go and take your family camping! It incredibly fun and will create many lasting memories. For those of you who have already been bitten by the camping bug, what do you think? Do you have any other tips to share with us? We would love to hear it!

Here are some pictures from our 2009 Memorial Day Weekend trip:

Oh No, Momma’s Got A Broken Toe!

John — Fri, 22 May 2009 04:36:47 +0000

Those sexy toes belong to my wife. Granted, they are much better looking without all the bandages. And that “push pin” in her pinky toe is actually a 3″ long metal rod. It’s a story of Easter candy, broken bones and blood. Yes, blood.

On the evening before Easter Sunday, my wife was scrambling through boxes in our attic. She was on a mission to find the kids old Easter baskets. This, because our 21 year old son was feeling nostalgic and wanted mommy to make him a big basket of candy. Is this a phenomenon familiar to anyone else? Anyway, after looking around for a while she located the bunny paraphernalia and started to descend the stairs. She turned, arms filled, placed her foot on the second stair and lost her balance. She did the boot-scoot-boogie down the stairs, landing on her back.

It was about 6:30 P.M. and I was working in the garage. As I walked out into the yard, I heard a series of screams. My son came running out onto the deck yelling, “Mom just fell down the stairs!” I ran into the house and found her sunny side up. She was visibly suffering from some excruciating pain. She told me to check her foot and then screamed at me when I touched it. [It's okay honey, I understand.] I removed her sock and found her pinky toe trying to exit stage right. It was mangled. She asked us what we thought. “Is it broken?”, she said hesitantly. My son quickly said “No Mom it’s fine.” He then turned to me and lip-synced “OMG! It’s broken!!!”

As we began to help her up, we noticed blood on the floor. “Where is that coming from?”, my son asked. “Where is what coming from?’, asked my wife. “Nothing!!!”, we both instantly answered. It was too late, she had seen the blood. “OMG John!!! What’s bleeding?!?”, she exclaimed. I frantically tried to determine the blood’s source. As it turned out, she had a deep cut on the under-side of her 4th toe, straight across the joint. Looks like we were headed to the emergency room.

Now, flash forward to the picture. This was taken minutes after surgery, three days later. That’s right, surgery. As her orthopedist put it, “her toe suffered the equivalent of being amputated. The bone was completely separated from her foot.” So, the doc decided to open her toe, fix the bones and insert a giant “push pin” into her poor little piggy. And, oh yeah, stitch up that cut under her 4th toe. Which, btw, the doc says was caused by the toe bending backwards and the skin just “snapped”. There, I said it, no more gory details.

How about those pretty toes? Everyone at the hospital thought she had them done for surgery. We must have heard that two dozen times. Actually, she had a pedicure just two hours before the fall. “Thank goodness I had my toes done!”, she laughed.

Last Thursday, she had an appointment to get the pin removed. However, on Tuesday night, she was changing her bandage and accidentally pulled it out! I was working in the garage [I am building a Tiki Bar] when she came crying hysterically out the back door. “The pin came out!!! The pin came out!!!”, she screamed. That’s not good, I thought…”It will be fine honey”, I forced myself to say. She called the 24 hour emergency number and was told this is actually common and to keep her appointment on Thursday. They wanted to take a final x-ray and make sure everything was going well.

She had a great check up. However, it’s going to take another 2-3 months to totally heal. She went back to work Monday after 5 weeks of “bed rest”. In other words, Daddy has been the chauffeur, cook, errand runner, water boy, you name it. BUT, I’m not complaining, cause Momma took damn good care of me last fall when I broke my arm. It’s kind of strange, neither of us has ever broken anything and then both of us have accident’s within 6 months of each other. Oh well, ’tis life. We are just thankful everything turned out the way it did. It could have been much worse.

So I guess the lesson learned is you need to break the bad news about the Easter Bunny to your children early. The alternative could be your adult children expecting Easter baskets filled with goodies…leading to broken bones, blood and plenty of pain.

All You Moms Out There, Have A Wonderful Day!

John — Sat, 09 May 2009 11:14:22 +0000

I hope everyone has planned a special day for the moms in your lives. I am taking my wife to brunch in the morning. In the afternoon we are having a get together for all the moms in our family. We are grilling and plan on having a good old time! Happy Mother’s Day to my Mom, Wife, Grandmothers, Sisters and all the mommies out there! Hope you have a great day!

Make Everyday Earth Day

John — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 17:47:31 +0000

Practice the 3 R’s: Recycle, Renew and Reuse and help make a difference.

Happy Easter!

John — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 10:57:35 +0000

Compost Your Organic Waste

John — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 16:30:42 +0000

What do coffee grounds, egg shells, carrot tops, leaves and grass clippings all have in common? Give up? They can all be found in my backyard compost pile. That’s right, as in decaying organic matter used to improve soil. How’s that for a definition? (thanks Webster) Composting your organic waste is a great way to deal with your yard debris and kitchen scraps.

It’s that time of year again. We tilled our garden last weekend to prepare for planting. Part of this annual ritual involves turning our compost pile. As you can see from the picture, it’s not elaborate. No fancy compost machine. But it works. We have been composting in that spot since 1994. Basically, we just remove the most recent debris and use a tiller and shovels to dig out that beautiful, black compost. We make a pile in the garden that we will eventually spread around and work into the soil. Our bounty this year, about a cubic yard. Not bad! After removing all the “good” compost, we replace all of the debris that we originally removed and start all over. We will continually add organic material until this time next year.

Break It Down

First of all, we use a bag on our lawnmower. Grass clippings are a premo composting material. Grass is high in nitrogen, a key ingredient in helping to accelerate the organic breakdown. Next, we add leaves, small twigs, etc, from around the yard.

And finally we add kitchen waste, mainly vegetable scraps. I never add meat, bones or grease. These take longer to break down, smell horrible and attract animals. Every few days, we turn the pile with a pitch fork or shovel. This allows oxygen to move around more freely, helping with the breakdown. That’s it! Really. It’s not rocket science. Easy as 1,2,3!

Don’t Have A Backyard?

Fear not. When I first moved away from home, I had a townhouse with a 10 by 10 patio. I took a plastic garbage can and drilled holes around the bottom. I began recycling my kitchen waste. I grew potted tomatoes, green peppers, jalapenos and cucumbers up the fence. Where there’s a will, there’s a way!

So John, Why Do You Go To All That Trouble?

I got the gardening bug from my Mom and Grandfather, both of whom composted. So, I guess in the beginning I did it because my family had always done it. Over the years I have come up with several reasons to compost.

compost fed veggies

It’s A Wrap

Are you ready to start composting? This is something you could literally begin today. And if choosing a spot in your backyard does not appeal or is not feasible, you could always buy a compost bin. These are readily available all over the web and in your local hardware store. So what are you waiting for? The fruits of your labor will be well worth the small effort and sacrifice you will put forth. I promise. Awesome veggies await you!

Already have a compost pile. Do tell! Want to start one, but have a question, please ask. If you would like to learn more about composting why not pick up a copy of Let it Rot!: The Gardener’s Guide to Composting

The EPA website is a great place to learn more about composting. Check it out!

Snow Storm, Beach Style

John — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:25:13 +0000

It’s 5:00 AM, I’m in a deep sleep and having an awesome dream. Much to my discontent the phone rings. I jump up, eyes wide shut, clamoring to see the clock. “Who could be calling at this hour?”, I thought. “Has someone been hurt? Stranded. Disabled?” These thoughts pass as I hear the answering machine pick up. “This is the Virginia Beach Public School System. All students are to report 2 hours late today due to the inclement weather”, says the computerized messenger. “Great”, I thought as I slammed my head against my pillow. Traffic on the way to work will be a real joy. The last time we received one of these calls, it never even snowed. School closed for the day and the kids got a freebie.

Curiosity got the best of me and so I decided to check out the “snow storm”. Maybe we really got nailed this time. Six inches or even a foot! As usual, however, I was disappointed. It would be pushing it to say there was a 1/2 inch on the ground. I flipped on the TV to the local news. There was this reporter standing on some street corner, trying to scrape together enough snow to prove we had been blanketed with the white stuff. “Poor guy”, I thought, as I turned him off. Knowing how everyone reacts to snow, I decided to get an early start for what I knew would be a miserable commute.

On my ride into the office, I passed no less than six accidents involving three or more vehicles. My usual 20 minute drive turned into an hour and a half. Many accidents, very little, if any, snow. Listening to the radio, I hear they are calling for a drop in temperature, more “snow” and freezing roads over night. Great, the entire city may shut down tomorrow. It will be like I am Legend, only different. That’s how we do snow storms, beach style.

January Top 10 Droppers

John — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 00:53:52 +0000

Thanks to everyone that advertised and dropped on EzGreatLife in January. Once again I’m giving some Link Love to the top 10 droppers. Life gave me a run for my money in December and so I didn’t get around to posting my top droppers. With that being said, I’m going to pick 2 blogs this month using Random.org, to receive 1000ec each.

Thanks to everyone for all the visits, ads, drops and comments! Don’t forget, EzGreatLife is a “Do Follow” blog, so if you have a thoughtful, relevant addition to the conversation, please, “Do Comment”!

This months random 1000ec picks are: 4 & 6 – The Ad Master & Entreblogger – Congratulations!

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How Do Your Resolutions Compare?

John — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 02:34:43 +0000

I hope everyone is staying on track with your New Years Resolutions. I know, we’re only two weeks into 2009, but sometimes its tough to stay focused. I have had my share of ups and downs this past week. At the end of the day, it’s important to push forward and stick to it!

How are your resolutions going? How do these popular resolutions compare to your list?

TOP 5 NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS*

Lose Weight
Manage Debt
Save Money
Get a Better Job
Get Fit

*According to usa.org