21 Day Meditation Challenge

I am so excited!

Today I start my journey in meditation.  This is something I've wanted to do for a while now.  Did y'all see Oprah's Next Chapter where she went to Fairfield Iowa, which is like the epicentre for transcendental mediation in the USA?  It was phenomenal!  It really got me thinking.

My blog title is Try To Keep Up!  and it stands/represents for a lot of things I try to keep up with.  I have always felt like I can never keep up with my mind.  My mind is always on the go and jumping around from thought to thought.  It's a personality trait I love but I know it is difficult for my loved ones to deal with.  My Dad was one of the best people who could see the invisible threads of where my thoughts came from (most of the time, not always!) Even Tyler says "I can see the hamster wheel turning", and he's right.  My hamster is always running.  So I am going to meditate.  At least 15 minutes once a day for the next 21 days!  I hope to do it twice a day, but maybe I'll work up to that.

The more I've learnt about mediation in the last week or so is that it's not about tuning out (which I definitely thought that it was about), but more so about tuning in.  Listening to your heart, literally, breathing, bringing awareness to your body and ..... just being.  The mantra you use in meditation is "I am" or "soham" in Sanskrit and I love it.  I just watched a video from Deepak (oh yeah we're cool like that, first name basis and everything) and he explained that by mentally saying "I Am" or "soham" you enter a state of just being.  He was much more eloquent than that, but it really resonated with me.  The concept of just being, living in the gaps between thoughts, recognizing the infinite possibility, infinte wisdom that exists in those gaps, that's the spirit.  That's the connection to the Lord.  

And I so need that right now.

During this 21 day challenge I will mark one year since my dad's passing.  I am not looking forward to it - in fact I dread acknowledging the reality of how quickly an entire year went by.  I am looking to find peace.

If you want to know more about the 21 Meditation Challenge or sign up click here.  And if you do choose to join the challenge let me know! I want to be supportive in your meditation journey too!

Mo-vember Craftiness

My sister Jill, who blogs over at Envirocraftiness, is having a Movember Craft event.  Movember (instead of November) is when men in your life around the globe start growing (or try to grow) beards or any facial hair really in support of mens cancer, particularly prostate.  For the official info about Movember, click here.

Anywho, she invited me to share a moustache craft with her lovely readers - easier said than done.  But I found one I really liked and you can go check it out today!

Spaghetti Squash

Tis the season for squash.  In an impulsive moment I bought a spaghetti squash a week or two ago.  And I displayed it proudly on my table for a while and then decided it was time to bite the bullet and cook it.

First things first...you have to cut it.  Well that's an adventure in itself.  I tried to cut it with just my big 12" Henkel chef's knife and it wasn't enough.  I grabbed my rubber mallet and boy howdy did that make it easier!  Pound on the knife with the mallet and watch that bad boy split open.  It's amazing how much easier it was to cut when I used the mallet.

Make sure to scoop out all the insides (like you would a pumpkin) and keep the seeds.  You can roast the squash seeds just like pumpkin seeds.  And they are so delicious.  I baked them along on the same pan as the squash for about 15 minutes. 

Then all I did was rub in cut side of the squash with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. Bake for 50-60 minutes at 400*F.  

Once the squash is cooked let it cool at room temperature for a bit so you can handle it.  I used my handy 'Ove Glove!  Hold onto the squash and with a fork scrape the flesh out of the gourd.

The recipe I was following made you "fry" the spaghetti squash in a pan with olive oil, shallots, garlic and top with parmesan cheese.  I tried to fry it but because of the oil it never really got crispy, which was fine.  I didn't use parmesan cheese either, but mostly because Tyler doesn't love it.

You can also serve spaghetti squash like spaghetti with tomato sauce.  I heated up leftovers with some spaghetti sauce and it was scrumptious!