Last night I made some Spaghetti for supper. After beginning to saute' the ingredients for the sauce, I realized that needed something to go with it. Usually we have Salad, and Bread. So I thought why not Fry Bread?

I took my fry bread recipe and upgraded it to add spices and garlic which made it so great. It was enjoyed by all!

Hope you enjoy too! 

INGREDIENTS
2 C Flour
1 tsp Salt
2 Tbs Italian Seasoning
2 tsp granulated garlic
3 tsp Baking Powder
1 C Milk

Mix flour, salt, spices, and baking powder together. Add milk and stir to make a stiff dough. Turn onto well-floured surface and pat down to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into squares. You can adjust to size you prefer. Roll out on lightly floured surface into round shape and pat to remove excess flour. 

Fry in oil of choice at 375 degrees, turning as needed until golden brown. Then place onto paper bag or paper towels to remove excess oil after cooking. I use clean dish towel to keep warm until serving.

​Enjoy!
​

There is nothing like a seasonal cake to brighten your day. We love trying new things here and today it's going to be Tangerine Dream Cake!

​I'm so excited to taste it! 

 ​INGREDIENTS

• ½ cup softened butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1½ cups unbleached flour
• 1 cup organic sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 tablespoons Finely grated tangerine zest
• ⅓ cup tangerine juice fresh from the fruit (blended with all pulp)
• ½ cup sour cream

FOR THE GLAZE

• 4 tablespoons tangerine juice fresh from the fruit
• ½ cup organic sugar

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350ºF
Prepare a loaf pan by greasing it with butter.
in a large mixing bowl, beat together the eggs, flour, sugar, butter, baking powder, zest, sour cream, and juice until smooth.
Fill the pan evenly with the batter.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 20-30 mins, or until golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean.
Leave to cool 5 minutes in the pan.
While the cake is cooling in the pan, mix together the juice of three tangerines and 1/2 cup of sugar to make the drizzle.
While the cake is still warm, transfer to a wire rack and prick the warm cake all over with a skewer and then pour over the drizzle – the juice will sink into the cake and the sugar will form a lovely, crisp topping.
Leave to cool 5 minutes in the pan before transferring to a wire wrack.

1/2 cube Butter
1/2 Onion quartered
2 16 oz cans of diced Tomatoes'

Season to taste:
Garlic Powder
All season 
Alpine Touch

Melt butter, Add Onion and saute, Add Tomatoes, and season with Garlic powder, All seasoning, and a touch of Alpine Touch Seasoning. Boil and then reduce to simmer for about 30 min. Place into blender and puree... Serve with a garnish of cheddar cheese, and Grilled Cheese Sandwich! It's amazing and fresh. 

​Enjoy! 
Suzi & Marc  

I have brief spots of memory from that day;’ 

• asking who’s house we were at, 
• asking who’s vehicle was at the house, 
• asking who the little girl standing there was (Brittany my daughter), and 
• asking why someone would have that much dog food. 

Even when I woke fully, I just thought I had a concussion and would get over it. I was out of consciousness for 13 hours after the fall. Oh I was talking to everyone but had no recollection, asked the same questions over and over, and lost 13 hours of my life on that day. I had no idea how 30 seconds would have such an effect for the rest of my life.

On that day my left brain was damaged. You see, the left half of the brain is responsible for verbal and cognitive functions including language (listening, reading, speaking, and writing), balance and coordination skills, thought and memory involving words. It helps a person with decision making, logical thinking and reasoning most people take for granted. These are controlled by left brain. It is your memory also. On this day, I lost big blocks of memory back to childhood. I cannot remember whole vacations, or things I did with my older kids when they were little, their first day of school or even their graduation from middle school. It’s all gone. I can see myself with the family during vacations, or photos of myself and my children, and I feel so strange because in my mind I was never there. That is probably the most difficult part of dealing with a TBI. It affects many areas of our lives. 

The physical effects were so great. I was diagnosed at the time of the fall with a severe concussion. But I had all these strange things happening like the loss of memory, the dizzy spells, and physical weaknesses that I’d never dealt with before. I would go to say something and couldn’t find the words. They were in my head, but I couldn’t speak them. I would type and it would be gibberish. My brain couldn’t communicate with my fingers.

Seven years passed before I awoke one morning and physically could not get up and on my feet. I was stuck. Marc and Brittany had to help me get to the bathroom, shower and dress. I would walk into walls, and my head would drop and I’d go to sleep at computer when not tired. I was afraid to drive because I would go to sleep so easily. I still had the issues where I just couldn’t stand and walk. 

The doctors tried at first to label it fibromyalgia, or Chronic Fatigue syndrome. But it just would not get better. Medications did not help. They finally sent me to a specialist and after a Cat Scan, and MRI, they found the severe damage on the left side of the brain. The effects of moderate to severe TBI can be long lasting or even permanent. ... Because polytrauma is common with moderate to severe TBI, many patients face additional disabilities as a result of other injuries. Even patients who appear to recover fully may have some long-term symptoms that never go away. 

In my TBI it was determined with time to be permanent damage, and that I would need to learn how to live with it. This meant months of physical therapy and retraining how to walk with a focal point, and how to recover from a dizzy spell. I also had to strengthen my body as I was down a year by this time, most days unable to get up by myself, so I lost muscle tone and had to work on strength. I have PTSD due to the TBI, and still have episodes of dizziness where I have to stop and refocus, and if I’m tired these symptoms are worse. Stress, timed pressure, and expectations, always make it worse. :) 

I was taught to use a focal point to walk a straight line. I walk, always looking ahead to where I am going. If I’m having a bad day, Paite goes with me to stores. She is my block, and keeps a cushion of space around me when I get dizzy to allow me to regain composure and get moving  She is very good at her job and keeps me safe. 

These are the things I deal with on a regular basis:

• Spasticity (muscle stiffness) or uncontrolled movements
• Problems walking, and talking
• Nausea and Dizziness
• Difficulty carrying or moving objects
• Vision problems
• Loss of fine motor skills, such as typing, writing
• Difficulty thinking, reasoning, and remembering
• Difficulty taking part in recreational or leisure activities
• The decreased ability or inability to keep a job or attend school
• Difficulty with conflict resolution (seeking to hide from)
• Difficulty learning new things

Cognitive Effects I deal with are:

• Difficulty with attention, focus, or concentration
• Distractibility
• Memory problems
• Slow speed of processing and thinking
• Confusion
• Perseveration, which is the abnormal persistent repetition of a word, gesture, or act
• Impulsiveness
• Difficulty with language processing
• Problems with executive functions, which include planning, cognitive flexibility, abstract thinking, rule acquisition (determining right from wrong), initiating appropriate actions, and inhibiting inappropriate actions, and reactions

So… the craziest part of why I sit and write this article is that I find it so hard to say I have a disability or that I am disabled in any way. Why is this so hard? Is it pride? Is it part of the disability to be in denial? I deal with so many different symptoms all the time that I can see and feel it daily. Why do I find it so hard to admit? Do other people find this hard to?

I thought if I put it all in writing, and share, this may be my first step to coming to terms with this, and living my life the best way I can. And just maybe I can help someone else in the process. 

I do have to add that Marc is my Rock. Sometimes he has to help me pick up the pieces when things don't go as planned (or are mistakes on my part) and I am very grateful for my best friend. 



Thank you for reading,
Suzi
​

Hi all! I'm sharing our Sunday family favorite! We try to have a family meal that is comfort foods, and we can enjoy each other's company. Our Collies love their bite of Marc's homemade biscuits too. 

It's a great way to spend family time and catch up a bit from the week.

1 lb Country Sausage
2 T Butter
1/4-1/2 C Flour 
Milk slowly added to desired thickness.
Pepper to taste.

Brown sausage and add butter. Sprinkle flour to absorb any drippings and butter making a bit pasty. Then add milk slowly until desired thickness is reached. 

Enjoy! 

2 C All purpose Flour
2 C Whole Wheat Flour
1/3 C Oil
4 T Baking Powder
1/8 C Organic Sugar
Dash of Salt 
​2 C Milk

Mix all Dry Ingredients
Then add oil and Milk
Mix well and make a ball of dough
Pat down to 1" thickness on lightly floured counter
Cut with biscuit cutter
Bake at 425 for approx. 17 minutes until golden brown

Hope you like them!

aka
​Beef Noodle Soup

With fall coming and the days cooling back, we find ourselves looking toward a hard winter anticipated. This makes us crave comfort foods. Foods that warm from the inside out. Soup is a favorite for this. It's kept warm all day so when you're starting to get tired and cold you can warm up by having a cup on the run. 

INGREDIENTS 1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour (I have used white or wheat. I use all purpose.)

Combine the egg, milk, and salt with a whisk. Then stir in the flour a little bit at a time.
Keep stirring until dough is stiff.
​Cover dough and let rest for about 15 minutes. (this is important)
(after resting dough) Lightly flour the surface you’re going to be working on. Take the dough out of the bowl and roll it flat.
Roll to 1/8" thickness, and let rest 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, cut the noodles. I use a pizza cutter. (there is nothing fancy about soup for the soul haha) 
Place on rack to dry for 2 hours.
Then you can place directly into soup when ready.

Note: You can let your noodles dry while beginning your soup base. This makes everything quick and easy.

1 T coconut oil
1.5 lbs diced up chuck roast
2 cloves garlic minced
1 onion diced
8 C Water
2 T beef broth base
2 T brown gravy powder
1 bay leaf
4 celery stocks diced
6 Carrots diced
Salt and Pepper to taste

Heat Coconut oil in pot, add roast, garlic, onion and brown for 2 minutes stirring.

Add Water, broth base, gravy, bay leaf, celery, carrots and simmer for 2 hours on low heat.

Add fresh noodles, and continue cooking on low.

We keep in crock pot on counter for a quick pick me up.
 

Make sure and let us know how you like it! 

Enjoy!
Suzi & Wind Whispers Family

(Photos will be added tomorrow)