AMANDA'S BASKETS: TULIPS, EXERCISE & BLOGGING

Thursday, April 21, 2016

TULIPS, EXERCISE & BLOGGING

TULIPS
While on my walk today, I once again found tulips in bloom...all sorts of tulips. It's like discovering a bagful of colorful gems. Check these out...

EXERCISE
I don't know about you, but I try to get some exercise in each day. I was pleasantly surprised to find out about the optimum amount of exercise in a New York Times article which you can read here. The article was written by Gretchen Reynolds and is called The Right Dose of Exercise For A Longer Life.

It looks like about 450 minutes a week at moderate exercise, basically walking, is about the right amount. About an hour a day which is what I aim for every day. Additionally, I am trying to walk further each hour.

I also do a few basic routines with weights for strength and a few routines for balance.

What about you? Are you exercising daily? If not, you might want to think about it.

BLOGGING
I was looking for ways to update my blog and increase readership when I discovered a magazine about blogging. It's called iBlog Magazine which you can get either digitally or in print. I just read the magazine for the first time and found it full of ideas. By the way, I have no connection to this magazine other than subscribe to it. If you're interesting, check it out here.

CHALLENGE ART TAGS
I have a couple more tags to share. One is a collage of magazine tear outs and the other is a fiber one with decorative trim, felt background and a crocheted flower.

Looks like it is getting dark out...clouds moving in...

Thanks for visiting...
Have a great evening...
Talk to you tomorrow...

CRAFTING IDEAS

I am always looking for a small piece of paper to write down something which will later be disposed of. I decided to use some of the scrap paper of which I have a ton. I mostly use the paper for glueing projects. I decided to cut the paper into a small size. (Six pieces from a piece of copy paper.). But just having them sitting on my desk would get messy without a container. So, using a cardboard box, I cut it down to size and using a hot glue gun I glued the ends together. Using a picture from a magazine cut into pieces and stick craft glue, I glued the pieces to the box inside and out. I also used some decorative tape for the outside edges. And to finish the top corners which were not covered, I used straight pins with colorful tops. Looks nice and works well.

MAGAZINE IDEAS

(New) One article in the Farmer's Almanac 2024 is a list of trends. One I knew about is the trend to downsize in just about every area. Another trend that I was surprised about was called ''The Human Library' which offers people on loan to talk about specific subjects. Finally, more folks are adding pets to their family and as a result, stores are adding more pet food, toys and medication to their offerings. There's also a nice garden article which suggests mixing vegetables and flowers together for success.

RECIPE IDEAS

Have you every made Cherry Dump Cake. It calls for 2 cans of Cherry Pie Filling (21 ounces), a white cake mix, 1/4 -1/2 cup butter, melted & 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans. In a 9 by 13 pan, spread both cans of cherry pie filling. Add the melted butter to the cake mix and break apart the resulting mixture and crumble it evenly over the pie filling. Sprinkle the pecans evenly over the mixture. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 - 45 minutes until the topping is golden brown. Serve with vanilla ice cream. Fast, easy and very delicious.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

What if you want to establish better habits, then decide what habit you want to work on. Again, try an easier one first for that good feeling of success. Let's consider more exercise. Start small. Don't try to run a marathon right away. Set the amount of time, the type of exercise and when to do it to begin making sure that it is within your reach. If it works for you each week add a bit more. Walking is one of the best ways to get good overall movement but there are many exercise videos on YouTube of varying lengths and difficulty to check out. Change your exercise routines to eliminate getting bored. For hardcore exercise with weights, give yourself a day in-between to recover. Even on days you would rather not exercise, do it and see if you feel better. It takes an average of 66 days to establish a habit. Just think 66 days to establish a good habit for a lifetime. Sounds like a good thing to me...how about you?