Tag Archives: family

Hare Racing Experience

Posted on by Run DMT
8

Among my running friends, I had heard such great things about the Hare Racing Expereince at the University of South Florida (my alma mater) and I was excited to finally be able to participate in the race this year.  Especially, since the race benefits children living with epilepsy by offering “scholarships for kids with epilepsy to attend a medical-friendly camp, scholarships for families of kids with epilepsy to attend a family weekend retreat, medical and college/technical school scholarships for persons affected by epilepsy, seminars that promote new initiatives and partnerships in the field of epilepsy and funding for medical support services” (Epilepsy Services Foundation, Inc).

Since my niece, Meghan, lives with epilepsy, the Hare Racing Experience became a family affair.  We all wore purple to represent ourselves as “Team Meggers” to honor Meghan.

Kirsten brought her “Talk About It” sign to remind everyone to talk about the reason behind the race.  We were here to raise money and awareness for epilepsy.

But I really need to talk about this race!  From the start, I should have known I was in trouble when I realized there was no start line.  Instead of an official start, a small crowd huddled around a man with a bullhorn.  I could barely make out what he said, “Stay to the left of the orange flags!”  Orange flags. Got it.

A faint gun pop gave the crowd the signal to start running.  As I followed the crowd through the grass, I realized we were headed for a trail run.

Then, panic set in.  I haven’t trained for a trail run!  I’ve been resting for a week!  I hope my heels are ready for this!  But the wet grass and sand is going to ruin my new shoes!

Once I allowed myself a brief moment to panic, I took a deep breath and decided to embrace the trail run.  After all, the soft sandy terrain would be good for my recovering plantar fasciitis heels.  Plus, it wasn’t a chipped race so I wouldn’t have to worry about my time.  Besides, I was here for Meghan and a good cause, not a great finish.

With that, I focused on where I planted my feet while trying to snap as many photos as I could.

Honestly, running a trail was tough but fun.  I loved running through the woods even if we had to do it twice.  Still, I wished I had trained for a trail run.

We winded through the woods to a path that led us to the soccer field.  We ran through the plush green grass into the sunshine.

Then, it was back the through trail again to the 1.5 mile water stop and another loop through the trail again.

Second time along the trail, a few of us lost our bearings and began following some USF track students.   By following these runners, we were off-track and off the race route.  Once we realized what had happened, we had to double back to the race.  The whole misguided mistake added 15 seconds to my time.

One more time around the soccer field and as we exited the field, we passed a volunteer holding a Mile 1 sign.  “This is mile 2, right?”  I asked panicking all over again as I ran past her.  Although she assured me we were nearing the finish, I felt confused and frustrated and ready to be done.

As we exited the trail a second time, the volunteers pointed us in the direction of the USF Track and Field.  The last leg was half a lap around the track.  As I neared the finish, I still had some sprints left in me and I pushed it to the finish.

Focused on fast footwork, I forgot to look at the clock and stop my Garmin when I crossed the finish line.  Since the race wasn’t chipped, we were asked to record our own time.  Frustrated once again with this race and my performance, I tried to see the clock in my mind’s eye.  I think it said 31:07.

When I remembered to turn off my Garmin, it read 31:39.

According to the results listed on coolrunning.com, my official time is 30:51.  Not quite under 30 minutes like I had hoped to finish, but better than I thought for my first trail run race.  And I came in 5th place for my division (F/age 40-44)!  I’ll take it!

Jarrett did great for his first trail run and finished at 30:22.  My sister, Simone, my BIL Erich, Rachel and Grandpa Bill all finished between 42:00-44:00, which is fantastic for their first 5K!

*Photo by Aaron Stopford*

After a quick 5K cool down, Simone and I joined Meghan and the rest of the gang (Kirsten, Allan, Allana and Emmalynn) for the one mile fun run, which were four laps around the track.  I knew my girls would do great as their used to running in circles for running club.

*Photo by Aaron Stopford*

Allan, Allana and Meghan finished at 13:01.  Kirsten and Emmalynn finished just a few second behind them at 13:05.

Even though after the race my shins would tell you otherwise, running for a reason always feels good.  Despite being a bit unorganized and a few hiccups with the logistics of the race, I would run this race again for my niece, Meghan.

Sometimes it’s not about the time or the course, but the cause and encouraging people to talk about it…

*Photo by Kirsten*

…and giving a shout out to your alma mater, too.

*Photo by Kirsten*

PhotoStory Fridaythe hollie rogue Look whooooo’s snapping Unknown Mami

Denise Mestanza-Taylor+

Random Thoughts about Skipping a Beat, 10 Burpees, Some Shoes and a Few 5Ks

Posted on by Run DMT
2

I’ve spent the past two days recovering from Spring Break which has been mostly spent sweeping and tidying away the fallout from Easter and Spring Break.  It’s amazing how dirty and unkempt my house looks even though we spent so little time in it over the past week.

I’ve been so busy trying to play catch-up to my housework that I didn’t even blog yesterday for Music Monday.  Gasp!  I had a post in my head complete with photographs showing all our fun in the sun which I was going to link up at Kristi’s Leap into Spring! Photo Challenge at Live and Love Out Loud.  However, time just escaped me while one Little Lion Man wouldn’t leave me side, so I couldn’t swing it.  Maybe I’ll work on it for Wordless Wednesday, minus sunny day song.

We’re on day 10 for the 30 Day Burpee Challenge, which means we’ve moved hit double digits.  Truth be told, ten burpees about did me in today.  I am so out of shape, which why I need to do burpees.  It’s a vicious cycle.

Have I ever mentioned that I assist with my kids’ running club after school?  Every Tuesday, I run about 3 miles with my stroller and close to 50 kids.  Besides spending quality running time with my girls, it’s all part of my evening training plan to help me train for upcoming evening races in warmer weather.  And you thought I was trying to be a good mom!  Nope.  I’m just trying to be a better mother summer runner.

I officially registered for my first summer race: Oldsmar 5K (formerly the Oldsmar Taphouse Run) in June.  Even though it’s hotter than hell, this is one of my favorite races.  I love the flat course and its beautiful view of the bay.  It’s not chipped, but the first 50 finishers get “Das Boot” and since that will never be me holding Das Boot, I’m just going to have fun with it and get my drink on after the race.  I get to do my thing, taking photos running happy and snappy as usual and I’ll have a beer or two or three when it’s all finished.  Did I mention that there is free beer for all runners at the finish?

My new Brooks Trance 10 running shoes arrived last Thursday afternoon and I unfortunately didn’t have the chance to break them in before the race.  In other words, I wore brand-spanking new shoes for a race, which incidentally was 5K trail run.  I had no idea it was a trail run!  So not only was a panicking about not running for over a week due to plantar fasciitis, I began panicking because I hadn’t trained for a trail.  And on top of it all, I worried that I would dirty my pretty new white shoes.  Such a girl!  I’ll tell you more about the race in another post.

Speaking of shoes, our new pup chewed through my pink Spenco flip-flops.  Son of…!  They were about a year old anyway and I was long overdue for a new pair as they had lost some of the support in them, but still.  UGH!  Thank goodness it wasn’t my new Abeo shoes but I’ve been hiding those out of the dog’s reach.  Oh well.  Now, I have an excuse to buy a new pair.  Maybe I’ll go for the pink (honeysuckle) cork shoes?

Before I forget, WordPress is hosting a Automattic Worldwide WP 5k.  The WWWP5k is set for Sunday, April 29, but you can do your run/walk anytime from April 23rd-29th, which means you’ve got a week to fit it in.  If you’ve never done a 5K, the WWWP5K is the perfect no-pressure 5K, because like the Automattic gang put it so eloquently, “you can run, walk, or skip the 3.1 miles. It’s up to you. There’s no time limit and there’s just one requirement: that you participate! You can do it inside or outside, on a treadmill or on a track, or even do a swim or a bike ride instead of running/walking – just get moving!”

So, will you join the WWWP5K on April 29?  Of course, I’m down with WWWP5K. Yeah you know me. It should be a lot easier than 10 burpees.

*Proudly submitted to Stacy Uncorked, because when I blog about my training, it’s usually pretty random.*

Stacy

Denise Mestanza-Taylor+

Random Thoughts about a Break or Two, Burpees and My New Shoes

Posted on by Run DMT
4

My plantar faciitis began bothering me again which I believe to be a result of old shoes.  I’ve put a lot a miles on my shoes since November when I bought them.  Since my left heal has been giving me trouble, I haven’t ran since last Wednesday and I ordered myself some new lavender Trace 10 running shoes from Brooks.com.  They should arrive tomorrow, so hopefully I can get at least one 3 mile run in and break them in before my 5K on Saturday.

The Hare Racing Experience this Saturday is the only race I have one this month.   Although I never ran it before, I’ve heard great things about it so I’m excited about it.  This race will be even more fun since I’ll be joined by family members running/walking their first race.  We’re all participating in this race to benefit epilepsy in honor of my niece, Meghan.

I’ve had some amazing opportunities fall into my lap lately and I’m feeling so blessed for each of them.  I’m a grateful for every opportunity and the doors they have opened for me.  Thank you.

And speaking of opportunities, did you hear that I was featured on Another Runner Mother?  Go read my interview and leave some comment love.

On the subject of things I love…last week I received some new sandals from The Walking Company which my PF feet totally love. My ABEO sandals are so supportive that I don’t feel any heel pain at all.  I’m going to do a full review of the shoes, but here’s a sneak peek.  I really love them. 

shoe

 My girls are on spring break this week and we have lots of fun planned, however, my husband thought I was planning too much fun and the girls would need a break from their break.  So, today we’re having a quiet lie in and we’ll go to our community pool around lunch time.  I’m really looking forward to swimming since I haven’t run in almost a week and I have all this energy pent-up inside.  I’m going to have to tread water to expend some of it.
Speaking of expending energy, I’m almost finished with my push-up challenge.  I finished Week 6/Day 3/Level 1 yesterday, but I still have to complete another exhaustion test tomorrow.  I’m really nervous about it, which is so silly because it’s not like I could “fail” the test, but I’m afraid I won’t be anywhere near 100 push-ups.  At my last exhaustion test, I did only 50.  I’d like to be somewhere between 60-70 push-ups and beyond the half-way point, but we’ll see.

I’m excited about my next challenge for April! This month, we’re ”Springing into April with a 30 Day Burpee challenge“!  Yay.  *sound of crickets chirping*

 Although I received a lot of resistance to this challenge at first, the response has been quite the opposite which is really motivating.  Follow #30burpees on Twitter if you need some motivation.  People hate burpees but their strong detest for burpees pushed them to be part of the challenge.  It’s pretty funny.

Basically, we started with one burpee on Day 1 and we’ll add one burpee each day after that, ending with 30 burpees on Day 30.  Simple, right?  hee hee  Find out more information here and join the linky party while you’re there.

*Proudly submitted to Stacy Uncorked, because when I blog about my training, it’s usually pretty random.*

Stacy

Denise Mestanza-Taylor+

Grape Soda Cupcakes

Posted on by Run DMT
13

PhotobucketWhen Kirsten and I planned a purple picnic for our girls to celebrate Purple Day, purple cupcakes were on the menu.  And since I’ve become quite the baker these days, I wanted to try my hand at a new cake recipe.

So as I perused the aisles of my favorite Publix supermarket to pick another box of King Arthur Cake Flour, I spotted a special low price for Publix Grape Soda (2 for $1) and then my wheels got to spinning.  How could I do something really different besides a plain ol’ white cake with purple frosting?   I’ve heard of cupcakes with Mountain Dew as an ingredient, but can you make cupcakes with grape soda?  With a quick Google search in supermarket (yet another reason to love smart phones), I stumbled upon a Grape Soda Cupcakes by The Kitchen Magpie.

Once I purchased all my ingredients including Publix Grape Soda and a package of purple Peeps, I had a little look around The Kitchen Magpie later that day and I adored her site, her stories and all her recipes.  However, for this particular recipe, I had to tweak it a bit because the directions were hard for me to follow as it was written like she was telling the recipe over the phone to a friend rather than actual directions.  Since I’m new to cooking and baking, I lack the intuitiveness that most bakers have (or are even born with) to know how create a cake masterpiece.  Therefore, I had to really read through it, understand it and reword it to where I could follow it with ease.

With my modifications, I also used less purple food coloring than the original recipe stated as I was trying to limit my kids’ overexposure to Red #40 and Blue #1.

For icing, I followed the Joy of Cooking “Quick White Icing”, which can also be found at theJoyKitchen.com.

In the end, I had the grape soda cupcakes I hoped for our Purple Day Picnic and the results were perfectly purplicious and delicious.

Grape Soda Cupcakes
(Adapted from The Kitchen Magpie)

Ingredients

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

4 cups cake flour

1 tsp vanilla

½  tsp baking soda

½  tsp of salt

½  tsp baking powder

1 ¾  cups Publix Brand Grape Soda

Neon Food coloring pack

24 cupcake liners

Butter cream frosting (see below)

Purple Peeps or purple cake sprinkles

 

Directions

In a standing mixer, cream the butter and sugar until well blended.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each.  Add vanilla.

Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together in another bowl.

If using purple liquid food coloring, add a few drops to the egg batter to achieve desired color.  (Add a few drops for a lavender shade.  Add more drops for a darker violet shade.)

Then add the flour mixture and grape soda to the batter in mixer, alternating and ending with the flour mixture.

Ladle batter into cupcake liners about three-quarters full.

Bake at 350 degrees for 22-25 minutes. Cool completely.

Once cooled, add icing and decorate as desired.

Yields 24 cupcakes.

Thanks for joining our weekly Friday Food Fight! Can’t wait to see what everyone is flinging this week!



*Also submitted at*

Sweet Tooth Friday

Denise Mestanza-Taylor+

The Song of Purple Summer for Purple Day

Posted on by Run DMT
12

In support of Purple Day (March 26), Kirsten and I have planned another purple picnic for our girls.  For the special occasion, I’m busy preparing a purple pasta salad and baking purple cupcakes and any other purple provisions I can think of for our little picnic.

The purpose behind Purple Day and our pint-size purple picnic is to spread epilepsy awareness.

*Purple Day Picnic 2011*

Did you know that “epilepsy affects over 50 million people worldwide or approximately 1 in 100 people? That’s more than multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy and Parkinson’s disease combined.” (Statistic borrowed from purpleday.org.)

My niece, Meghan, is one of the people affected by epilepsy.

In a few weeks, our entire extended family will participate in the Hare Racing Experience to benefit epilepsy awareness.  We’ll wear matching purple shirts and represent ourselves as Team Meggers in Meghan’s honor.

We gladly give our support and hearts to each of the causes because someone we love needs a cure.

*Purple ribbon photo by Kirsten*

Please consider wearing purple today to help spread epilepsy awareness.

Have a purple song or photo to share? Join our Music Monday Purple Day Blog Hop. Link up and share. Linky will stay open until Sunday, April 1.

Additional facts about epilepsy from PurpleDay.org:

  • Epilepsy affects approximately 1 in 100 people.
  • At least 1 in every 10 people will have one seizure in their lifetime.
  • There are approximately 300,000 Canadians living with epilepsy.
  • There are approximately 3 million Americans living with epilepsy.
  • There are approximately 50 million people around the world living with epilepsy.
  • Epilepsy is NOT contagious. Epilepsy is NOT a disease.  Epilepsy is NOT a psychological disorder.
  • There is currently no “cure” for epilepsy. However, for 10-15% of people with epilepsy, the surgical removal of the seizure focus – the part of brain where the person’s seizures start – can eliminate all seizure activity. For more than half of people with epilepsy, medication will control their seizures. Additionally, some children will outgrow their epilepsy and some adults may have a spontaneous remission.
  • Not everyone can identify specific events or circumstances that affect seizures, but some are able to recognize definite seizure triggers.

Some common triggers include:

Forgetting to take prescribed seizure medication
Lack of sleep
Missing meals
Stress, excitement, emotional upset
Menstrual cycle / hormonal changes
Illness or fever
Low seizure medication levels
Medications other than prescribed seizure medication
Flickering lights of computers, television, videos, etc., and sometimes even bright sunlight
Excessive alcohol consumption and subsequent withdrawal
Street drugs

Denise Mestanza-Taylor+

Spring Sprint 5K

Posted on by Run DMT
11

“Mom, do you plan to run this race easy or hard?”  Allana asked.

“I was planning to run with you, so whatever pace you want to do.”

“Well, Katie, Jackie and I are going to run easy, so you should just run how you want to, Mom.”

Before the start of the Spring Sprint 5K, my pre-teen gave me the “all clear” to run the race hard, but in reality I think she chose to be with her friends over me.  It was my first taste of the teen years to come.

Honestly, for the time being, I’m o.k. with it as this was a chipped race and selfishly, I wanted a good time on my Active.com profile.  I’ll worry about being blown off for friends another day.  This mother runner needed to finish a 5K in under 30 minutes!  (Just call me Domino’s, because I can get there in 30 minutes or less.)

Although the race was in its second year, this was our first time participating in the Spring Sprint 5K, race to raise funds for autism awareness and education projects.  What a great little charity race from start to finish!

As logistics go, the race event coordinators had it together.  Oakstead Elementary hosted packet pick-up the evening before the race which was a smooth operation. Parking on race day was also smoothly orchestrated.  As any runner will tell you, packet pick-up and parking are HUGE factors for any race and the organizers behind this race worked out every detail beautifully.

The start line was clearly marked as well as visible.  Both the 5K and 1 mile Fun Run had their own start line banners.

As for the course, it was right in my backyard, so to speak.  The 5K course wound through the flat and scenic streets of my neighborhood, the very same streets I train on.  We ran past my kids’ school, the middle school and high school.

We even ran past my Publix and my favorite running store, Suncoast Running, who cheered for us as we ran by.

The sunrise was like any other running day in my neighborhood, but the sun seemed to be shining just a bit more brightly today.  Maybe the sun knew it was a great day for a race?

For a small race with less than 500 participants, there were a great number of volunteers and spectators, many I believe to be faculty and staff of Oakstead Elementary.  The finish led us back to the high school where we ran a half lap around the track.

DJ Elvis called out our numbers as we ran past and people in the stands cheered for us as we crossed the finish line.

*Photo provided by Suncoast Running.*

Gun Time 28:39

Chip Time 28:34

Ave Pace 9:14

Division Place 10/35

Overall Place 139/415

 As for Allana, she did GREAT.  She ran it without stopping, a first for her.  However, I missed Allana crossing the finish line as I had to be at the start line for the 1 mile Fun Run with Emmalynn.  My husband snapped these photos of Allana and her friend, Jackie.

Allana’s Stats

Gun Time 50:16

Chip Time 50:00

Ave Pace 16:11

Division 26/27

Overall 409/415

For the 1 Mile Fun Run, we ran back onto the road in front of the high school and then looped back onto the school groups to finish on the track once again.

Of course, I was so proud of both girls, but I was extremely proud of Emmalynn.  She held onto a nice pace and avoided side stitches.

By doing so, Emmalynn earned a personal best for this race and redeemed her Gasparilla Jr. performance!  Way to go Emmalynn!

The sun was right.  It certainly was a great day for a race.  Even my friend, Chrissy, did well and finished  6th in her division with a chip time of 29:23.

On a side note, with this race falling on Saint Patrick’s Day, I thought everyone would be all decked out in green.  I totally expected to see others wearing sparkly green running skirts and silly St. Patrick’s Day hats or runners dressed as leprechaun look-alikes.  Um…not so much.

I did not expect to be one of the very few people wearing green not to mention being the only one wearing a green tutu.  Talk about feeling like the belle of the ball and making a spectacle of myself.  Wow.

Kermit wasn’t kidding.  It’s not easy being green but then I don’t think Kermit ever wore a tutu and a little leprechaun hat.  Well, at least I’ve raised the bar for next year.

And we’ll definitely be back next year.

Denise Mestanza-Taylor+

Losing Our Lucy

Posted on by Run DMT
22

Tuesday morning I wanted to run.  I needed to run to clear my head after the evening’s turn of events, but I also wanted to be here when my daughters woke up.  I knew they would ask about Lucy and I wanted to be here to hold them when we delivered the sad news.

Our dog, Lucy, passed away on Monday evening.  There were no signs that the end was near.

We explained to the girls that Lucy was older than we thought and sometimes older dogs (much like older people) have strokes when the end is near.  It’s just their bodies breaking down and telling them it’s time to go.

We adopted Lucy one year ago.  Less than two weeks ago, we celebrated the anniversary of her adoption into our family.  I never wanted a dog but after repeated begging from my children and against my better judgment, I agreed to a pet.  So we searched the shelters for a Pomeranian similar to the one we rescued.

We eventually found Lucy on Craigslist, which was as shady and strange as you would imagine a pet adoption through Craigslist to be.  With blind faith, we took the previous owner’s word about her health as well as her age, but it was certainly obvious that this poor dog had been used as a puppy mill.

This dog that I never wanted wagged her fluffy little tail into my heart.  She followed me from room to room like a pack leader and was with me every minute of every day.  Lucy became my dog.  I eventually transformed into a crazy dog person as I began taking Lucy shopping and to restaurants and baked her pupcakes.

I keep playing moments in my head, like Liam hugging Lucy and dragging half her tiny body along the floor as he loved on Lucy.  I regret never catching a photo of those funny loving, but torturous moments for poor Lucy.

I also regret not praying with my children at bedtime Monday night.  Instead, I made jokes to lighten the mood and to fill their hearts with happiness so they wouldn’t worry all night long about our beloved pet.  But, I should have prayed with them to help ease Lucy’s pain as well as the pain they were feeling in their hearts.  I feel I failed them as a mom and as their spiritual leader.  I feel I failed my Father and Lucy too.

Like most dogs, Lucy had simple tastes and loved life.  Everyone should learn to love life through the eyes of a dog.  Next to the food dropped from a highchair, she loved Chinese food.  Lucy also loved being outdoors, long walks and car rides.  She even loved camping with us.

Although we didn’t know much about Lucy when we adopted, we simply loved her.  I believe we gave her the best last year of her life.

We miss you, Lucy.

Rest in peace.

Irish Oatmeal Leek Soup

Posted on by Run DMT
10

PhotobucketI have to confess.  I found this recipe in a place other than Pinterest.

*gasp*

Remember that social network everyone was obsessed with before Pinterest?  You know, the one where you collected friends instead of ideas, objects, bodies, food, home décor, etc.  you wished you had?

Remember Facebook?

Sometimes I remember to visit Facebook too, which is where I found this tasty soup.

I follow Fila Toning and you should too if you love motivating discussions and recipes related to fitness and healthy living.  Someday I hope to be part of the Fila Toning team.  Until then, I’ll keep lurking following the Fila Toning Facebook page.

Last week, the Fila Toning Team shared a recipe.

Sounds interesting and different, doesn’t it?  My family loves Potato Leek Soup, but it’s not the healthiest soup.  But Irish Oatmeal Leek soup sounds like a healthy alternative.  So, of course I pinned it…

…which led me on a path exploring skinnytaste.com, but that’s a whole other post.

I shared Skinny Taste’s Irish Oatmeal Soup with my non-Pinterest hubby, Iron Chef Allan, to hear his thoughts on it and he thought the same. “That sounds interesting.”

One trip to my local Publix and I found all the ingredients.  You know, the whole six ingredients in the soup.  You have to love a recipe with only SIX ingredients!

Although we don’t use light butter, I opted for the full fat of 1 Tbsp of butter, so my finished soup isn’t quite as healthy as Skinny Taste’s, but the results were tasty nonetheless.

So this once referred to as an interesting Irish Oatmeal Leek Soup can now be called a simple, tasty, slightly healthy soup.

And one we will definitely eat again.

Just out curiosity, I visited Spark People to calculate the nutritional contents of my full fat version.  Incidentally, there is only one fat gram difference between using regular butter over light and no difference between the saturated fat content between light and regular salted butter.  Plus, regular butter has less sodium!  So go on and drop small slice of full fat butter when making this soup or opt for canola oil instead.

Also, the original recipe states to cook the oats for 45-50 minutes, but I found the oats still too raw and chewy after that cooking timeframe.  I continued simmering the oats on the lowest setting for a few hours which allowed the soup to become thicker and creamier (more mushy), but that’s a personal preference.

Irish Oatmeal Leek Soup
(From skinnytaste.com)

Ingredients

1 Tbsp butter

1 ½ cups (3 large) leeks, white and pale green only, sliced thin

1/2 cup Irish steel cut oats

4 cups fat-free reduced sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth

1 ½ cups non-fat milk

Fresh cracked pepper and salt to taste

2 tbsp fresh chives for garnish


Directions
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over low heat.  Add the leeks and cook, stirring occasionally until the leeks are soft (about 15 minutes).

Add the broth and then milk to avoid scalding the milk.  Raise heat to high and bring to a boil.

Add the oatmeal and fresh cracked black pepper to taste.  Return to a boil, stirring occasionally. Once a boiling, reduce heat to lowest setting, cover and simmer until oats are tender, 45-50 minutes.  For a thicker creamy soup, allow soup to simmer for three hours.

Serve garnished with chopped chives and fresh ground pepper.

Thanks for joining our weekly Friday Food Fight! Can’t wait to see what everyone is flinging this week!


*Also submitted at*


Denise Mestanza-Taylor+

It Happened at Disneyland

Posted on by Run DMT
7

It happened at Disneyland.

Code Adam.  Words you never hope to hear.  With my second daughter and middle child, Emmalynn, it has always been the inevitable.

For years, my family and I participated in the taping of Disney’s Christmas Parade at the Magic Kingdom.  Although our one-day park tickets would be free, the cost would be more than we were willing to pay.

Since my husband attended graduate school on Saturdays, my parents joined me and the girls this year.  It had been decades since my parents visited the park and could now relive the magic through their grandchildren’s eyes.  We arrived early and had a wonderful day taking in all the sights of Magic Kingdom.

Several of our friends were there for the taping as well and it felt like one huge family reunion.

As to not make for a long day with young children, my parents and I decided to leave the park around 6:00 p.m.   For cutting our day short, we promised my oldest daughter a toy from the Emporium on Main Street when we left the park.  To avoid any Houdini moments from my clever little two year old escape artist, Emmalynn wore her monkey harness most of the day or sat buckled in her stroller, however, once inside the Emporium, I unbuckled Emmalynn from her stroller so she could choose a toy in the shop.

My mom, Allana, Emmalynn and I made our way to the check-out while my dad stayed with the stroller. I bought Allana’s toys and my mom waited behind me to purchase Emmalynn’s toys. Then, in a blink of an eye, Emmalynn ran off.  My mom tried to chase her, but she was too slow and Emmalynn vanished.

I was finishing my purchase when my mom returned without Emmalynn. With clothing racks positioned throughout the store like walls of a labyrinth and an exit door leading to a mob of people strolling down Main Street, we didn’t even know where to begin looking.

I grabbed a cast member and explained what had happened. I described Emmalynn’s clothes, her features and displayed her image on my digital camera. (This was years before I owned a cell phone with a decent camera.)  My heart sunk. I thought I was going to be sick.

How would I ever find my child in a sea of a million people?  How would I explain this to my husband?

The Disney Security Team reported to the scene. I was advised to stay in one place while the team located Emmalynn. And then, he said the words no parent should ever have to hear, “We have a Code Adam.”

I called my husband, who was waiting for us at the hotel, to explain why we hadn’t arrived yet. I tried to utter the words, but he couldn’t understand me. Other guests saw my uncontrollable sobbing and tried to locate her in the store, but there was still no sign of her.

Forty five minutes later although it felt like a lifetime, two guests found Emmalynn following strangers down Main Street still holding two small stuffed toys.

Years later, she still holds those stuffed Minnie Mouse and Mickey Mouse toys which prompt her to ask me to retell the tale of the time we lost her at Disney.

“Were you sad, Mommy?”

“I couldn’t stop crying.  Even Allana cried for you,” I reply with a lump in my throat as relive the horror.

Since that first Code Adam moment, we’ve lost her countless times and by the grace of God, she’s always been found within a few minutes.  Rest assured, if you ever hear a Code Adam, it’s because I’ve lost one of my children again.

Yes, I am that mom and my path to neglectful parenting happened at Disneyland.

*This “It happened at Disneyland” post was inspired by Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop.*

Mama's Losin' It

Denise Mestanza-Taylor+