A child of Colorado, Delaware, Oregon, and California – where she obtained her first college degree and became a Nursing Home Administrator – Deidre Edwards now resides in North Carolina. While helping her husband start a video production business and raising their two children, Deidre returned to college to earn her nursing degree.
A teacher at heart, she soon applied her nursing skills and knowledge to helping high school students expand their medical career interests through the Health Science Program she established.
After retiring from teaching, Deidre wrote her first book – Toolkit for Wellness – as a response to the health issues she witnessed while working. She witnessed both students and staff had struggling with excess weight, diabetes, poor food choices, and stress issues – yet everyone shared the desire for a healthier life.
Her easy-to-understand explanations of body functions and how foods break down, clearly show her passion for teaching others.
Deidre’s dual passion in learning about habits and habit formation is expressed in her books and regular blog writings so others can learn how to make big improvements through daily small changes.
Life took a dramatic turn when Deidre’s husband became confined to bed under Hospice care at home for over two years. With all of her nursing skills on board, and a deep love between them to sweeten the moments, she provided the loving, quality-of-life care he needed.
Still the teacher at heart, Deidre realized there was a huge need to light the way for others as they walked the path of caregiving for a loved one. Hence, she wrote Toolkit for Caregivers and Love Lives Here, Toolkit for Caregiver Survival. Together, both books address the caregiving processes, skills, and issues for before, during, and afterward.
Deidre continues to be involved with her community through choral singing groups, volunteering for the North Carolina Symphony, Chamber of Commerce, church functions, and activities with friends and family. She also enjoys the time she spends promoting her books and speaking with others about health and caregiving.
I’m excited to share that I will be participating in, “The Complete Private Caregiving Event,” on November 16, 2021, featuring expert speakers in the field of elder caregiving and the self-care of a caregiver. This event is designed to discuss key topics around the many facets of caregiving and the caregiver to help minimize the unknown, take care of yourself as a caregiver, and move with strength and ease while serving our elders.
Simply click the link below to register to get FREE access to “The Complete Private Caregiving Event” on November 16, 2021 starting at 1:00 EST.
I can’t wait to share this life-changing day of stories with you — see you there on November 16th from 1:00 – 4:30 EST!
And while we’re at it:
We at Toolkits for Wellness, would like to thank you for joining our free seminar, Complete Private Caregiving Guide. As a means to reward you for your interest, we are offering three lucky people our most popular publication, Toolkit for Caregivers.
Toolkit for Caregivers blends the demands associated with caring for another, with a calmer atmosphere and self-assured peacefulness – creating a remedy for a more purposeful, soothing atmosphere, beneficial to both you and your patient.
Please take the time to sign up for our drawing. We would love for the winner to be you!
Honoring Caregivers … I’ve come to call it Soul Work.
Caregivers do a lot of it. The grieving do it. Those suffering from the PTSD of having been a caregiver do it.
Guess, we all do it at most any stage of living on this beautiful blue orb.
It’s the process of figuring things out, releasing past hurt and pain, to take ahold of the present moment.
We cannot grab the life we are living today if our hands are full of stuff from the past – so, yes, we all do soul work.
This month, we recognize family caregivers who are juggling a mind-numbing amount of mental, physical, and emotional issues each day.
The last two years have been a challenge – at best – for most of us, and simply brutal for caregivers of loved ones.
Caregiving is isolating enough without the added constraints of a global pandemic. To go through those years that I did previously, but in the present time? No thanks.
So, what do we do to help the caregivers in our community?
Send them a card every so often.
Call them.
Get vaccinated and masked so you can more safely visit them and their loved one.
Offer your vaccinated and masked self as a fill-in so they can step out of the house for a bit of exercise or for an errand.
Offer to do some chores so they do not have to.
Drop off a meal so they do not have to cook.
Help them contact their local Area Agency on Aging in the United States to make sure they have the resources they need.
This month, I have lowered the price of my book, Toolkit for Caregivers, to make it even more affordable to those who are caring for loved ones. It is a great gift to a caregiver to show them support when you can’t be there.
Please reach out to a caregiver near you to offer a lifeline. Every little act and deed go a long way to keep their heads above the raging sea that threatens to drown them.
In health-
Deidre
#RAISEcaregiving (ACL’s official tag for RAISE activities)
#CaregivingInCrisis (CAN’s 2020 observance)
#NFCMonth (Annual observance hashtag)
#FamilyCaregiver (A larger conversation on family caregiving)
#Caregivers (Broadest conversation around caregiving)
The MORE button below will let you share this post with your friends. It’s also an excellent time to start gift purchases for the coming holidays. Why not go to this link HERE and get copies of my books for your friends and loved ones.
It all started with a nice, big pizza. I lived in Sacramento at the time and had the high metabolism of youth.
Ah, those were the days …
There was a new place in town called Pizza and Pipes. Not the smoking kind of pipes, but those associated with a BIG pipe organ. Yes, there was a massive pipe organ inside, with a zillion pipes placed around the walls to surround the patrons with sound.
Pipes from the massive organ
Dining there was a memorable experience that culminated each night in the organist playing, J. S. Bach’s, Toccata and Fugue in D Minor.
Oh, my!
He let all the stops out, and our pepperoni vibrated in jubilation!
Fast forward to present day, when I am seeking inspiring ways to change my exercise routine; pizza is a rare – now gluten free – treat, and I have learned about the benefits of creative movement.
That’s right. Creative movement. When you let the music speak through your body; inspiring original motions prompted by the tempo, lilt, and quality of the sounds.
Maestro Grant Llewellyn
Maestro Grant Llewellyn’s Enchantment of the Elves, mentioned in a previous post, is a gentle pre-coffee wake up for movement and stretch.
Later in the day, however, Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor has long been a favorite for a full body workout.
Standing in the kitchen, it’s so easy to be carried away through bends, stretches, dips, squats, kickbacks, arm circles, and other movements that fit what this genius music is telling me.
Maestro Grant Llewellyn’s Enchantment of the Elves
When a larger space is available, I can use my gymnastic-inspired tool to keep ribbons suspended and moving through the air as Bach’s melody rises and falls.
Now, that’s an aerobics workout that will challenge you.
Constructing these ribbons was enjoyable for me and could become a fun family activity for you. Follow these steps to create colorful ribbons suitable for exercise.
Exercise Ribbons
Supplies
Doweling that feels comfortable in the hand – I used one with a 5/8-inch diameter. Doweling is available in craft and hardware stores.
Sandpaper
Craft paint
Eye screws
5-foot lengths of 1 1/2-inch ribbon
Method
Saw doweling into 6-inch lengths
Sand all surfaces of each length
Paint all surfaces using craft paint – two or three coats of paint may be needed, lightly sanding between coats
Screw in an eye screw into the center of one end – one on each piece
Tie on about 5 feet of colorful ribbon
Head out to the backyard to jam with your music.
Get your heart rate up; increase your ease of motion and let your spirit soar. A pair of these would make a thoughtful, affordable, and helpful gift.
In health through movement-
Deidre
#RAISEcaregiving (ACL’s official tag for RAISE activities)
#CaregivingInCrisis (CAN’s 2020 observance)
#NFCMonth (Annual observance hashtag)
#FamilyCaregiver (A larger conversation on family caregiving)
#Caregivers (Broadest conversation around caregiving)
The MORE button below will let you share this post with your friends. It’s also an excellent time to start gift purchases for the coming holidays. Why not go to this link HERE and get copies of my books for your friends and loved ones.
Welcome to the world of tangling! In this world, you will doodle your way through Cantebrands, Auras, Dexes, Dewdrops, Hollibaughs, Poufs, and my two favorites, Dingblatz and Dingsplatz creations!
Are you feeling like a wizard costume is needed? These terms I’m learning about sound like a Halloween story or something from Hogwarts.
Costumes are optional for this world of organized doodling that I recently discovered through my friend, Mary, who shared her first foray into this art form:
This method provides the soothing mental and emotional benefits obtained through creating easy artwork, by taking all those thoughts and emotions darting around our brains and replacing them with learning how to use simple steps for creating elaborate drawings.
I’ve shared my story here, and in my book, Toolkit for Caregivers, about how using adult coloring books helped ground my jumbled thoughts and emotions during the challenging years of caregiving at home.
This artform may be even easier and more portable than adult coloring because the required supplies are small and few:
Tortillons
Super fine-tipped pen
Graphite pencil
White graphite pencil
Tortillons for blending
Small squares/pieces of drawing paper
These supplies can be conveniently tucked into a simple zip bag and taken wherever you go – as opposed to my array of 100 colored markers and full-sized coloring books previously used.
Besides, how cool is it to use a “tortillon”?
After googling Zentangle, I landed on a one-stop-site that has enough information and how-to videos to last me a long time: HERE. Video #023 guided me along a restful journey to complete my first drawing:
I will tweak the kind of paper I use, perhaps – it’s no big deal – and I am looking for a brighter, white pencil to increase the depth of field and general sparkle.
This is a thoroughly satisfying and absorbing experience for all ages, and the therapeutic aspects of this activity did not disappoint.
Whether you desire an escape from stress, or are looking for something better than another reality show on TV, entering the world of Zentangles falls into the realm of TREAT at Halloween or anytime.
Please share your Zentangles with us through comments and share this post with your friends by using the MORE button below.
Yeah, yeah, yeah – mindful this and mindful that … give me a “mindful” break.
Ever thought that?
With visions of people in a lotus position – “ohhhming” – all day, I frankly didn’t used to understand what mindful really was.
A little enlightenment – pun intended – helped me appreciate how “mindful” has supplanted so many other words:
My Noom experience since February of this year has lead me to more than just a 20 pound loss in weight; it has opened up a world of understanding and mindfulness in countless aspects of my life.
With holiday and special event eating temptations already calling to us like sirens from the deep, a reminder about the whys and wherefores of eating could do us all some good.
Fuel Eating
According to Noom, there are four kinds of eating:
Fuel Eating – When we are seeking food that will “do my body good.” Think clean protein, veggies, fruit, high fiber starch – without added fats and sugars.
Joy Eating – When foods delight our palate and soul. For many of us, this kind of food has become very different from foods that will, “do our body good.” Sure, it might be great to eliminate such eating, but realistically, it’s going to happen. Just make sure it’s not more than 10% of our consumption.
Fog Eating
Fog Eating – This is mindless grazing and munching on whatever is around. This can be easily controlled and modified by eliminating candy dishes, junk food cupboards, and replacing what is available with healthier alternatives. Asking ourselves why we are eating – being mindful – may reveal a lack of hunger (fuel needs) so we can remove ourselves to do another activity while we’re fogging-out. Think a walk to the mailbox, playing with the dog, or taking a few minutes to move and stretch.
Storm Eating
Storm Eating – Results from a psychological response to a situation, or from food denial. Think eating to excess, knowing you are doing it, and then beating yourself up about it later. I have found that eating a consistent diet of fuel foods, coupled with mindful and measured joy foods on occasion, help lower any desire to this, “I don’t care, I’ve been good too long and I deserve to go off the deep end,” kind of eating altogether.
So, WHY are you eating and what can you DO about it?
Today, we move on from crema – which is the runniest of the creamy elements we discussed HERE – to crème fraiche, which fits snuggly in the middle of the consistency scale. Sour cream, you will remember, is the thickest of our trifecta.
As you might guess, from its French name, this fresh cream is specifically under European labeling regulations, requiring it be made from cream and a bacterial culture only, whereas sour cream may contain thickening agents.
Hence, if you followed the crema recipes I shared previously, usage of any ingredients other than cream and a bacterial culture, pushed that recipe into the realm of crema.
With just two ingredients, the recipe for crème fraiche would seem simple, but opinions vary as to proportions. I’m thinking the variable may be length of time available for the fermentation process.
Those using 2 Tablespoons/ 30 ml of buttermilk for each cup/ 237 ml of heavy cream may have gotten quicker results, (12 hours), than those using just 1 Tablespoon/ 15 ml, (24 hours). Some sources split the difference and used 1.5 Tablespoons/ 22.5 ml of buttermilk per cup/ 237 ml of heavy cream.
You choose how you may want to tweak this basic recipe.
Crème Fraiche
1 cup/ 237 ml heavy cream
1-2 Tablespoons/ 15-30 ml of buttermilk
Combine ingredients in a glass container. Cover either with a breathable top – such as a clean kitchen towel or a lid/plastic wrap. Leave at room temperature for 12- 24 hours. Use. Refrigerate to keep for up to a week or two.
This recipe is easily doubled. In fact, many recipes call for 2 cups/ 474 ml of heavy cream because they are using that much crème fraiche. I’m not cooking for a large family, so a smaller quantity would be enough for me.
Where to use crème fraiche?
Readers who are entering the warmer seasons of fresh fruit, may want to whip their crème fraiche with a bit of sugar to adorn a bowl of fresh fruit.
With cooler seasons upon the rest of us, I’m anticipating adding this to beef stroganoff soon. This higher fat content crème fraiche will not separate when cooked/boiled like sour cream does.
Beef Stroganoff
Speaking of beef stroganoff with crème fraiche, I want to close by sharing a link I just discovered – Beef Stroganoff with Crème fraiche – YouTube by Daddy Cooks. His engaging, laid-back style is down-to-earth and easy to follow, and will be my guide when preparing beef stroganoff next time.
Not this … *haha*
As we start preparing special meals for any holiday experience, remember to be mindful of portion control and in surrounding the meal with colorful, high fiber veggie side dishes that are not so calorie dense.
Have you ever had Pink Cadillac Syndrome? It’s based on the idea you never knew how many pink Cadillacs were on the road until you bought one … or earned one through your Mary Kay business.
I haven’t seen a pink Cadillac in years; but I have bought something I thought unique, only to find many other people had the same idea. Where was I? Why didn’t I see all of those before?
My recent experience involved thinly sliced apples in a green salad. Simple enough idea, but new to me. Long a proponent of blueberries or strawberries tucked into a scrumptious, green salad – possibly graced with bits of walnut, tossed with a savory, balsamic vinaigrette, and topped with feta. Wow!
When recently dining in Mason Jar Tavern in the Piedmont area of our state, I enjoyed a flank steak salad that delighted all my five senses.
Anytime a meal can be delivered in salad form, I’m all in!
What made this delicious salad unique, (or so I thought), was the addition of thinly sliced apples. The presentation alone was amazing – and the subtle flavor and crisp texture of the apple slices multiplied my gastronomic experience.
Honeycrisp Apples
Not a week later, my daughter-in-love shared Half Baked Harvest’s recipe HERE for a salad featuring thinly sliced Honeycrisp apples, along with pomegranate arils. I have it on good authority this is a delightful addition to make your meal memorable.
A few days after that, Sunday’s newspaper National Magazine insert featured thinly sliced apples in a salad. Who knew?
Where have I been? Pink Cadillac Syndrome, undoubtedly, but I’m delighted I have finally woken up to the world of sliced apples to make my salads sparkle!
So that’s this week’s tip. Use some sliced apples to give your salads a new flavor and texture profile this season.
Off to slice some apples for tonight!
In health-
Deidre
The MORE button below will let you share this post with your friends. It’s also an excellent time to start gift purchases for the coming holidays. Why not go to this link HERE and get copies of my books for your friends and loved ones.
As temps in the Northern Hemisphere are hinting at fall, our thoughts are turning to warming, savory soups. Added to that, kids are off to soccer practice, friends and families are tailgating, and many are gathering around the screen for golf or football.
Our readers down under are probably getting hints of spring with thoughts of fresh fruit and vegetables making your mouths water, but in Eastern North Carolina, my garden is down to 2-3 okra pods a day.
We’re on to soup weather! Bring on the crockpot, please.
Plus, the recipe I’m sharing today is an excellent opportunity for using the Mexican Crema recipe that was featured last week.
What’s cooking? An easy, adaptable recipe featuring canned beans, chopped tomatoes, salsa, and frozen or fresh chicken. Easy peasy.
Many thanks to my daughter-in-love for this inspiring recipe and for assisting in our photo-shoot. The delightful soup bowls are frequently filled with her and my son’s creations – chili, soup, gumbo, and more. I’m on the look out for special bowls to add that extra panache to lovely meal presentation.
But even in plain bowls, this soup is a winner.
The recipe is best shared as a simple photo of all the ingredients.
No or not enough black beans? Grab a can of garbanzo beans/chickpeas, pink beans, pinto beans, or cannellini beans instead. Mix and match. No problem. I like mixing them up.
We prefer using chicken thigh meat because of its tenderness and flavor. Yes, the breast meat has less fat, you can use that as well – again, a nod to versatility.
Another nod to crockpot convenience is that frozen chicken works just fine – just keep it cooking a little longer.
2 – 10-ounce cans (283 g) Ro-Tel Original Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies
1 – 4.5-ounce can (127 g) chopped green chilies
1 – 15-ounce can (425 g) tomato sauce
8 – Ideally boneless, skinless chicken thighs – can use 4 large chicken breasts – fresh or frozen
Method
Open the jars and cans. Start filling the crockpot with something wet – tomato sauce or salsa – then add some beans with their juices, chicken, and finish with the remaining wet ingredients and beans.
That’s it. Put the crockpot lid on, plug in, set to low for 6 – 7 hours – longer if frozen meat is used.
When time is up, stir the ingredients and remove the chicken to a cooling bowl.
Using two forks, gently pull chicken apart to shred. Return the shredded chicken to the pot.
Stir all ingredients to combine and keep warm until time to serve.
Serve with chopped fresh tomatoes, avocado slices, sour cream, grated cheese, Mexican Crema, and a few tortilla chips. We were fortunate enough to score some fall-themed corn chips from Trader Joe’s.
There’s just enough heat to keep this warm and spicey; but it will not send you to the milk jug to put out a fire.
Seasons of transition – fall and spring – create such flavor and texture excitement to food. I’m waiting for my order of pumpkin spice coffee to arrive soon!
Snuggling in with snuggles –
Deidre
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Just what is a crema? What, exactly, is crème fraiche? How does sour cream fit into this trifecta? Does mascarpone deserve a seat in this conversation?
My inquiring mind wanted to know …
I hear experienced chefs on the cooking channel throwing out creamy terms right and left and my knowledge base is left in the dust.
It was time to expand my repertoire beyond the familiar dollop of sour cream on top of a spicy bowl of chili. The sour cream serves to cut some of the heat found in the chili and adds visual appeal to toppings added to tacos.
What’s on board for all of these is cream plus some form of a bacteria element. Sounds simple enough, but the lines blur amongst the different forms of creamy admirability desired, but I’ll do my best to tease out the facts for you.
Welcome to Creamy Fascinations 101.
Crema Fraiche
Consistency is one variable. Of the actual creams, sour cream is the thickest, crème fraiche is in the middle – followed by Mexican crema, which is the runniest. Mascarpone more closely resembles cream cheese but has two times the fat, a softer consistency, and a slightly sweet taste.
Heat stability is another concern. Crema and crème fraiche are better options for cooking into creamy sauces. Who knew?
Homemade Enchilada Sauce
Apparently, my former beef stroganoff efforts resulting in the sour cream breaking up was not due to my poor technique, but rather to using the wrong creamy ingredient. Online comments suggest using crème fraiche for stroganoff and crema for enchilada sauce.
Fat content varies and contributes to the heat stability. Sour cream at 20% at is best used as a last moment garnish to hot dishes. Crème fraiche at 30% – 45% and is an excellent thickening agent for soups and sauces (heat stability) and is also used over fruit and baked goods. Mexican crema is in the middle with a fat content between 18 – 30%.
Tangy factors modify our selections. Sour cream pegs the tangy scale, which makes it a favorite option for anything Tex-Mex for garnish. Crème fraiche is milder and smoother – making it perfect on raw fruits, whipped with sugar and vanilla as a whipped cream variation, or can become savory when combined with herbs and citrus for meat toppings. Variations on crema can uptick the tang when adding lime.
Putting this information together is where lines blur. The ingredient list is easy but can easily cross over lines. Here are some recipes for crema.
Sour Cream
Basic Crema 1.0
1 cup/ 237 ml sour cream
1 cup/ 237 ml heavy cream
1 teaspoon/ 5 ml salt
Combine, cover, keep at room temp 3 hours. Use. Store in refrigerator.
Heavy Cream
Basic Crema 1.5
1 cup/ 237 ml heavy cream
2 Tablespoons/ 30 ml buttermilk
Combine, cover, keep at room temp 12-24 hours, then add:
1 Tablespoon/ 15 ml lime juice
Pinch of salt
Use and store in refrigerator.
Basic Crema 2.0
1 cup/ 237 ml sour cream
1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5 ml garlic powder
Juice of one lime
Combine, use, and store in refrigerator
Mexican Crema 3.0
I was recently introduced to a Mexican crema recipe that provided its own heat element through roasted poblanos and jalapenos.
4 poblano peppers
2 jalapeño peppers
3 cloves of garlic
1+ cup/ 237 ml sour cream
1 lime cut into quarters
Pinch of salt, optional
Coat peppers and cloves of garlic with olive oil, place on a rimmed cookie sheet in a preheated 450-degree oven, and roast. Avoid burning peppers and garlic by turning every 8 minutes – the goal is to blister the skin of the peppers on all sides. When sufficiently blistered in about 20 minutes, remove from oven.
Transfer roasted peppers into a glass or metal bowl, and cover tightly with foil or plastic wrap to allow for steaming. In about 30 minutes, the outer skin may easily be peeled and pulled from the peppers. Remove stem, most of the seeds, and any interior pulpy structures.
Place peeled pepper skins, roasted garlic, 1 cup of sour cream, and juice of 1/4 of the lime into a container or bowl. Using an immersion blender, pulse to combine all ingredients until smooth.
Check for the flavor balance to suit your taste. Add salt, dollops of sour cream and/or additional lime juice as you create a flavor profile to your liking. It’s amazing, but you’ll get adept at this process and become skilled at getting the combination “just right.” It’s ready to use and can be stored in the refrigerator.
When added to the top of an effortless crock pot recipe for frozen chicken, bean, and tomato soup, this spicy version of crema added a depth of flavor that took our meal to a new level. Recipe next week for this amazing soup.
Enchiladas w/spicy sauce/lime
In the meantime, practice your crema-making skills and variations. This is so delicious on spicy soups, chili, tacos, taco salad, and makes an egg on toast shine in the mornings.
We’ll do the crème fraiche recipes soon so there can be some beef stroganoff in our fall menus.
In creamy health-
Deidre
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No time for something fancy to take to a gathering? Too tired or rushed to put much effort into a sharing snack? My “daughter-in-love” is the master of two-or-three ingredient appetizers that pack a big punch for flavor and appeal.
We needed such a hat trick the other day when nerves from life events were stretched thin, time was short, and there was an end-of-season community pool social time in a couple of hours.
We longed for a relaxing event of outdoor conversation, drinks, and shared snacks, but lacked the bandwidth for something requiring much thought or effort.
Sharing this extended vacation time post is as easy as this recipe. Expect to be dazzled!
Two-Ingredient Cheese Spread
Ingredients:
One 8 ounce/226 grams package of full fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature
Approximately 9 ounces/258 grams Trader Joe’s Corn and Chile Tomato-less Salsa
Method:
Combine with a fork. Refrigerate to meld the flavors 30 minutes. Stir and serve. Done.
Notes:
This Trader Joe’s product may not be available to everyone, so you can use a local equivalent that features “a sweet combination of corn, red peppers, onion, and a touch of heat.” The gentle heat comes from jalapeño peppers.
This recipe represents using approximately 2/3 – 3/4 of a 13.75 ounce/390 gram jar. I plan on stocking up on several jars of this Trader Joe’s salsa to take back home with me.
Serve with gluten-free crackers, whole wheat Ritz, or your favorite selection of bell pepper strips, celery, or zucchini slices.
This tastes like you spent considerable time and effort into creating. Don’t tell anyone it was a last-minute miracle!
