A wonderful Free place to visit in South Florida

One of the first things that we did when moving to South Florida was to look for things to do as a family. Since we had no idea what my husband's work schedule was going to be, I wanted to find as many fun things to do together for the times that he wasn't on the boat. By a lovely accident we happened upon Pinecrest Gardens. http://www.pinecrest-fl.gov/gardens.htm

This is a lovely Botanical Garden that is free to the public and offers walking trails, a petting zoo, a playground, and a splash pad. The Splash Pad costs $3 per child but the rest of the park is free and breathtakingly beautiful. The park also offers different programs for all ages, and of course is available for rental for the perfect wedding location.

I think my favorite park of this amazing place was how wonderful everything smelt. Being a girl who loves the forest, I was beginning to miss the fresh air being in this large city area. But walking into Pinecrest Gardens just smells amazing! Just so clean! Both of my children loved it here, be it the beautiful flowers and awesome greenery, the fun pathways or funky trees to climb in, or the massive amounts of lizards and turtles and all sorts of fun things for little boys to chase after. You definitely have to make this a stop on your list.

Remember to send in your favorite places from where you are stationed to coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com

Super Saver Sunday!... Well Monday

Back when we first started this blog Nicole added her bit on a Super Saver Sunday which included the advice of looking around and asking for ideas. Truer words could not be spoken. With the advances of the internet we now have the world and all of it's crazy ideas at our fingertips. Now they have even created a search engine to combat our information overload from other search engines!! Crazy!!

It is always nice to find a site that is easy to navigate and has much of the information that you want. Well I have one for you. www.frugallygreen.blogspot.com

We are in the throws of a resource and energy overhaul in this country and many companies are capitalizing on the going green movement. This blog dispells all of their commercialism and gets back to the tried and true methods of living life with as few chemicals and waste as possible without draining your wallet. Check it out and see if one or two of their ideas and recipes would work for your home!

Pizza and BBQ?

Who would have thought? Apparently Nicole did since she sent in the recipe this week as a contribution to Family Dinner Friday. And you know what? It looks REALLY yummy!!


Here is her recipe and comments...

This is my personal favorite meal I make. It's SO delicous and easy :) I personally use Cattleman's bbq sauce and the wal-mart brand pizza dough. It doesn't roll well though so I just leave it in the square form it comes out in and bake it like that. It works great! :)




BBQ Chicken Pizza

1 package (10 oz) refrigerated pizza crust
1 1/2 cups (6 oz) shredded Colby and Monterey Jack cheese blend, divided
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1/2 cup barbeque sauce
1/2 cup diced green bell pepper
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Roll pizza crust into a 12-inch circle. Sprinkle crust with one cup of cheese.

2. In small bowl combine chicken and barbeque sauce; toss to coat. Dice bell pepper and thinly slice red onion. Top crust with chicken mixture, bell pepper and onion. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese.

3. Bake 15-20 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Yield 8 servings

Food for Thought.....

Ok to be honest I was not the most careful or paranoid person when I was pregnant with my kids. I drank sodas with caffeine, ate whatever it was that I wanted and listened to my body if it said I was doing too much. Basically I did what my mom did so I figured I was safe. Right?

Moving to South Florida has really changed my perspective on looking at the foods I eat and how they are grown and my family and I have begun to focus on purchasing things that are more responsible for our bodies, our planet, and our pocket book. It just seemed like the right thing to do for us because of all the junk they spray and taint foods and things we use with today. I came across this article today on Sparks people so I thought I would share.


Q. Does eating organic foods before and during pregnancy reduce medical issues for the baby?


A.Research has yet to prove an adverse health effect from consuming the low levels of pesticides commonly found in U.S. food. But for the most vulnerable groups -- children and pregnant women -- going organic whenever possible for fruits and vegetables that carry the heaviest pesticide load makes sense. For organic meat, poultry, eggs, and milk, the direct health benefit is less clear.

Pesticide contaminants pose the biggest risk to children and fetuses. Pesticides have been shown to cross the placenta during pregnancy, and a study by scientists at the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health in New York found a link between pesticide use in New York apartments and impaired fetal growth. Another study, from the University of Washington in Seattle, found that preschoolers fed conventional diets had six times the level of certain pesticides in their urine as those who ate organic foods. A 2003 report from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention detected twice the level of some pesticides in the urine of children as in that of adults.

Few doubt that high doses of pesticides can cause neurological or reproductive damage. With infant reproductive organs still forming and the brain developing through age 12, and with young livers and immune systems less able to rid bodies of contaminants, eating organic is more important for children and pregnant or breast-feeding women.

Just some food for thought on the matter. I would say 97% of our produce is organic or grown out of out little garden in our backyard. When we first started buying organic I panicked at the cost. But then we found organic co-ops and buying clubs. I have been involved in two since being down here and they are great! It's a wonderful way to meet similar minded people and get organic foods at lower costs than in the grocery store.

Like I said I have been involved in 2 organic co-ops since moving down here the first one being K-N-D Organics co-op http://groups.yahoo.com/group/K-N-DOrganicCo-op/ which is founded by a friend and a really sweet deal.

The othe that I have been involved with is Annie's Buying Club http://anniesbuyingclub.com/ this one is a bit bigger of a group but just as yummy food.

So if you are n South Florida check these out for yourselves and your families. And if you are not check yahoo for local organics groups or just google your area to see what comes up! Because who cares if your kids eat their veggies if they are coated in poison!!

Ok that may be a bit harsh, but you get the idea! Remember the old saying, "You are what you eat!" It doesn't just apply to pizza and icecream anymore!!!

Super Saver Sunday!

Oh thank goodness for Nicole!! These past few weeks have been crazy! I will tell you all about it when it is situated and a positive outcome is resolved (because I have faith that it will), but in the meantime here is Nicole Elliot's contribution to Super Saver Sunday!


Super Saver Sunday

At a Coast Guard bbq we were having in celebration of our Ant. Ft. Macon boys coming in 3rd (woo hoo!!!!) we were all discussing phone bills and prices and it got me thinking. I was surprised to find out that the other Coasties there didn't realize that many cell companies provide a substantial military discount. We have Verizon and they give us a 15% discount each month which was super easy to get, I'm not even sure what we did but I think all they required was either a LES or a copy of your military ID. There are so many ways being in the military can benefit you if you only know about them! On our move out here we only stayed in motels that gave a military discount. We recently went to the on-base movie theater and paid $9 total for 2 tickets, a popcorn, and 2 drinks. You can't even get in to the (not very nice) civilian theaters around here for that!!! So what I'm saying is, be sure to always ask about military discounts!!! It can't hurt and might save you a bunch of money!

As always if you have any goodies to post e-mail me at coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com

Family Dinner Friday---Only one day Late ;-)

This week's dinner come's from Nicole and boy does it sound good!


"Here's my contribution for the week. This is a sure kid-pleaser but my hubby LOVES it as well. I would have taken a picture but it's so popular in our house that they devored it before I could get my camera! One thing I love about it is the fact that you probably already have all the ingredients at your house! I usually always serve baked beans with it. "

Crunchy Honey Mustard Chicken Fingers
Serves 4 hungry kids—double up for the rest of the family!

4 small, boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup honey, warmed
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 cup corn flakes, crushed

Preheat oven to 425. Lightly grease a cookie sheet

In a small bowl, mix Dijon and warmed honey together till well mixed.
Put crushed corn flakes in a separate bowl.

Slice chicken into 3/4 inch strips. Dip in honey mustard mix. Then
roll in crushed corn flakes and put on cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until done.


As always if you would like to contribute please send me an e-mail @ coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com! Have a wonderful day!

Ever been to the Everglades?

If you are ever stationed in South Florida or Florida period you must visit the Everglades. There are various locations to hit up but we personally like the one with the most guranteed wildlife sighting. And by wildlife I mean GATORS!!! No there are no cages keeping these large lizards at bay, and if you come out at night you may come across one a bit closer than you want, but the experience is to die for. Close to our house in Homestead, Fl is the Anaghina Trail. I know I have not spelled it correctly but oh well! LOL It is amazing!!



I suggest if you are living down here for any period of time you buy the year pass for $25 since it's $10 a car to get in. That way you can go back anytime, plus it's always great to take your family to and completely freak them out! Also NEVER go during the summer/rainny season unless you want to be carried away by the mosquitos. The wildlife doesn't come out as much anyways because it is so darn hot. But here is a tantalizing shot!!! (BTW no zoom was used in this picture!!)

Oh my goodness!!

As you have probably noticed I haven't posted anything for a bit. It's not totally because I have been slack. We have been in the hospital with my daughter for respiratory distress for the past week. It was so scary and although I am not going to dwell on this issue I must say that with all of the craziness and issues that we have to go through for our "free" health care in the military, it is wonderful to know that they cover emergencies 100%. Because when dealing with this...

You don't want to think about anything else!! (And yes my daughter refuses to wear clothes quite often!!) I will catch back up soon!

Super Saver Sunday!

Ok to be honest I am not in a Super Saving mood today due to some unforseen broohaha with our Home Owner's Association, which completely ruined my cool plans for today of making laundry soap. But I will make it and send out the photos and recipes for next Sunday. Oh well, life happens right?

Ok my big saver tip for this week has to do with party planning. As summer gets closer we tend to have more friends over and get together for those backyard bar-b-que's. One way to cut down the cost of those parties is to make it a potluck. Now for some this may seem like the most common sense idea in the world, but if any of you are like my husband you may benefit from these few tips.

1. When planning a potluck write down all the essentials (plates, spoons, forks, etc.)
2. As the host you should provide the meat ONLY!! (well maybe one side)
3. Don't be afraid to let people know what to bring
4. Always enlist 2 people for the same item (just in case)
5. Keep your list by your phone because there is always going to be that person that calls last minute wanting you to suggest something to bring. This way you know exactly what you may need.

We just had a potluck party at our house this weekend and it went beautifully. My husband coordinated this one and he did do a great job of getting everyone here. Unfortunately quite a few of our guests were at a loss as to what to bring so they called me for suggestions. This is where the list comes in really handy. There were probably 20 people at our house and on our end the whole thing cost $50. Yay for delegation!!

If you have a Super Saving tip that you would like to share, send it in to coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com Have a great day!

Family Dinner Fridays

These are such important posts for me because growing up we always were blessed to eat dinner mostly as a family. My dad worked a lot during the week but he would eat with us when he could and always on the weekends. This was the place where we caught up on the week, talked about our passions and plans, and all in the company of good food!

Admittedly we would always whine as kids to go out to eat, or in my case to just eat "normal" food (my mom likes to try the most off the wall stuff), but I am very greatful that my parents didn't succumb to this all the time. We spent so much quality time around our family dinner table, and I hope to pass this on to my children.

This week's dinner will feature my hubby's birthday dish. He is originally from Texas and comes from a little border town called Del Rio. Needless to say he and his family grew up on and completely love Mexican inspired dishes. So for his birthday I decided to make him Navajo Tacos ( a personal favorite of mine). And of course a sinfully delicious cake.

Navajo Tacos;
Bread: 3c flour, 1tsp salt, 3tsp baking soda, 2tbsp shortening, warm water
Combine all ingredients except water first. Then add water one tablespoon at a time until dough consistensy is achieved. Knead up and let sit for about 20 min. Take tablespoon size pieces of dough and roll them out to form a flat circle. Fry in hot vegetable oil on both sides for about a min or less on each side.

Toppings:
For this dish I used refried beans. I cooked the pintos according to the instructions and then mashed them up with onions, and garlic and let sit in a warm crock pot until time to serve. Wala! Homemade refried beans!!

The other toppings are just favs from the fridge. I wanted to make some guacamole but the avocados were not ripe yet. :(

Better than Anything Cake (The actual name!!)
German Chocolate Cake Mix and ingredients required therein
Caramel Syrup
Toffee Bits
Heavy Whipping Cream
Sugar
Vanilla Flavoring

Bake Cake according to box. After baking poke holes throughout the cake at about 1/2- 1 inch spaces and drizzle caramel Syrup over warm cake. Be generous with the Caramel! Chill cake in fridge until completely cooled.
For the Topping take a chilled metal mixing bowl and pour in about half a pint of Heavy whipping cream, a tsp of vanilla and about half a cup of sugar. Whip on high for a few minutes until whipped cream consistancy is achieved. Be sure to tast the topping to make sure whether or not you need to add more sugar or vanilla.

Spread topping over chilled cake and sprinkle with Toffee bits. Yum Yum!!!

I actually got this recipe from another Coastie wife I met a few years ago. Our kids have been the best of friends for years now and she always made my husband this cake for his birthday. I wanted to continue out little tradition (and have an exuse to indulge).

If you would like to share your Family Dinner recipes and photos please send them to coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com

What to do in DC?

Since I have NEVER been there let's ask Nicole...

Things to do: Come on people--it's DC!!!!!!!!!!! There's a wealth of fun, educational, mostly FREE stuff right at your finger tips. Just hop on the closest metro, ride to downtown DC, and enjoy everything it has to offer from museums, to the monuments, to art galleries, to the botanical gardens. There's even an aquarium! That's actually really nice :) As long as you go in the day time and stick to the main tourist areas it's super safe as well. I went to the Museum of Natural History all by myself and had no problems at all. The place is swarming with police and tourists, so get out there and have some fun!!!

One of the hardest parts about moving to DC for me was the fact that I had lived in Wyoming my whole life and the sheer volume of how much there was to choose from kind of overwhelmed me at first! Plus the cost of living made doing much on an E3 salary pretty hard! The best place I found to shop is the commissary and PX on Ft. Belvoir. SOOOOO much cheaper than anywhere else! Ft. Belvior also has a great gym that's free, you just have to register with them and swipe your id card when you walk in.

Finding a nice place to live can also be a challenge. We and several other Coasties all lived here: http://www.rent.com/rentals/washington-dc/washington-dc-and-vicinity/lorton/the-fields-at-lorton-station/440402/ and were extremely happy with it! It's low income housing but sooo much nicer than all the other "non-low income" housing in the area.

Our favorite part of DC was the amazing church we went to. They helped us out so much as newlyweds and Pastor Bishop is one of the best preachers I've ever heard. They're literally 5 minutes away from the CG TISCOM base so if you're a Baptist, or just looking around, definitely check them out!!!! http://www.lbcforyou.com/

So there you have it!! Go check it out! And remember to send your "goodies" contributions to coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com Thanks!!