Travel Disasters=Great Memories

   

   Why is it that the bad things that happen when we travel often make for the greatest stories? Typical vacations where everything goes well and everyone is happy, gets stored in that quiet memory bank in our brains. 

  Maybe my ability to laugh at travel disasters is an inherited trait. My parents love to tell the story of their honeymoon which began with a hurricane, continued with the car breaking down and ended with my mom being sick. They laugh and call it a great time. 

   I remember when my kids were little we went to Disney World. I spent days packing suitcases with everything they would need. What I didn't prepare for was a freak cold front that hit Florida that May. I also didn't plan on one of my kids bringing Lice along for the trip. One full day was spent in the hotel room battling Lice. The next day was spent shopping for warm clothes. I found out Florida does not sell jackets in May. These had to do:

   Our recent mini vacation was riddled with terrible weather, flooding and hurricane strength winds. However, the memory of standing in six inch deep water, in flip flops, fishing from a gazebo will always make me laugh. 

Those are the times we remember, the craziness, the unexpected, the monkey wrench in our well planned out vacations. 

Do you have any vacation disaster memories? I'd love to hear about them. 

Book Review- The Wild of God by Eric Hanson

   Thanks to Story Cartel I was given an opportunity to read and review another book that I normally would never have heard of. Being an adventurer at heart, the title drew me in. I thought, "Oh yeah! Travel and Adventure!". 
   This is a true story about the journey of Eric Hanson. He decides to join a group of people on a mission to several countries to spread the word of God. He is also searching for a closer connection to God. He leaves his middle class life and travels to some of the poorest places on earth. 
  I laughed at so many of the situations Eric and his friends found themselves in. The trail of toilet paper had me laughing so hard I had tears in my eyes. I found myself wanting to know more about some of the people that Eric met, wishing that I could get an update on how they were doing now. 
   Eric kept asking God for signs on the trip. He wanted to get closer to God. Every person and every village gave Eric the signs he was looking for. I found myself saying, "He is giving you a sign! You aren't listening!". This book is not about a certain religion. It is not preaching for anyone to join any type of religion. It is about one man's journey of faith and the people that changed his life. 
Adventure, travel, search for faith, and of course, romance..... This is a book that will warm your heart. 

Amazon- The Wild of God by Eric Hanson

Italian Pasta Salad

Italian Pasta Salad

Ingredients

1 pound pasta (use any type you like)
1 cup of cherry tomatos, chopped
8 oz. mozzarella cheese, cut into bite size pieces
3 oz genoa salami, chopped
3 oz pepperoni, chopped
1 small can of sliced black olives
2 bell peppers (Orange and Yellow look nice)
1 small onion, chopped
1 can artichoke hearts
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup ITALIAN OLIVE SALAD

Italian dressing



Directions:

1. Cook pasta for 10-11 minutes. Pasta should be     firm. 
2. Slice mozzarella cheese into cubes
3. Slice pepperoni & salami into small strips
4. chop onion and bell pepper, mince garlic
5. Cut artichoke hearts into small pieces
6. Combine all ingredients in large bowl
7. add dressing to taste, mix thoroughly
8. Put in refridgerator for a couple of hours before serving

Wordless Wednesday- Scooters

I Heart Scooters!

I'm stuck working all weekend. *insert sigh*. I thought I would share what I am daydreaming of...

Oyster Patties

Oyster Patties

Ingredients: 

4 dozen oysters
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 white onion finely chopped
3 Cloves of garlic finely chopped
½ cup finely chopped mushrooms with juice
Creole seasoning, to taste
pinch of cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons minced green onions
¼ teaspoon lemon juice
12 pastry shells (individual sized)
Instructions
In a large skillet, cook oysters in their own liquid. bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. in a separate pan Sauté green and white onions and garlic in butter. Add mushrooms and stir.  Blend in flour until smooth, stirring constantly. Add oysters and remaining ingredients to flour mixture. Mix well. 
Cook 5 minutes, then spoon into pastry shells,  Bake at 375ºF for 5 to 8 minutes. 

Aurora Fire Starter Review

Disclaimer: Adventures of Piglet Scooter has personally reviewed the product listed above and has not received any monetary compensation for her review. Adventures of Piglet Scooter did receive a free product to try out so she could evaluate and use it for her review. Adventures of Piglet Scooter's thoughts & opinions in this review are unbiased & honest and your opinions may differ.

AURORA FIRE STARTER 

by Solo Scientific

A few days ago I received the Aurora Fire Starter to test and do a review. I was curious about it and was thinking about getting one for my Husband for Father's Day. 

The Aurora Fire Starter is built to last. It is not made cheaply like some fire starters. Solo Scientific created it for outdoor adventurers and pilots. The striking blade is so strong you can sharpen a knife on it. I had watched the video and wanted to see if it really sent off sparks like the video showed. 

 My son and I could not wait to try it out. It rained for two days so we had to delay our fun. Finally a clear day emerged. 

My son is an older teen but I still supervised while he used it. 

We did a test run before trying to light the fire. It sent a big spark on the first strike. My son gathered some dry grass and used a cotton ball in the center. One strike later and this was the result.

The fire lit immediately. 

This is such a great product for anyone that loves the outdoors and camping. It is also a survival tool must have. 

 It comes in Silver or Black Anodized. See the video here:

Aurora Fire Starter Video

 Check out the other great products by Solo Scientific.

Outdoor Hands Review

I had seen Outdoor Hands Skin Therapy at our local Tractor Supply but had never tried it. I contacted the company because I was really interested in their product. Hubby and I are outdoor people. We love to fish and go geocaching. Hubby also loves to hunt and has a huge garden. His hands are always dry and cracked, but like most men, refuses to use anything to relieve it.   

When I gave him this product to try he said he would give it a chance. 

We were on a fishing trip so I figured it was the best time to get him to try it. He was surprised that it wasn't greasy. He liked that he could still work on the boat and fish without it making his hands slippery. The best part was that his hands were not dried and cracked at the end of the day. Finally a product he could use.  

The best part is that since we have been home he keeps it next to his chair and I've seen him use it every day. When I asked him about it, he said that he was sunburned and it relieved the itching.

Outdoor Hands also has several other products that I'm excited to try. Check out their website for more information:

OUTDOOR HANDS

CYPREMORT POINT STATE PARK REVIEW

   My birthday was fantastic. Hubby and I had so much fun fishing and crabbing for four peaceful days. We went to a little known Louisiana State Park called Cypremort Point. There are only six cabins at the park. The cabins are not really what you would think cabins were like.

Everything is provided from towels, linens, pots and pans, utensils and more. There was two bedrooms and even a fireplace. 

It is about 45 minutes to the nearest store or town. So be prepared to bring your own food. We grilled some burgers and chicken outside. There is a full kitchen with everything you need if you want to cook inside. It came in handy when we boiled crabs.  

There is a 3/4 mile beach and pavillions for family outings.

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The weather wasn't ideal for boating while we were there, but we did get one day on the water. 

We had our own private dock for our boat and found out that even though the water was rough, we could catch some fish from the dock. 

Crabbing was really good too...

The views were perfect from the front and back of our cabin. It gave the feel that we were completely alone.

If you are looking for a secluded spot to just get away, this is the place for you. If you don't plan on fishing or crabbing, walking along the beach is the perfect thing to do. 

We even did a little Geocaching while we were there.

Yep, there's a geocache in this tree. 

Visit Cypremort State Park for yourself. Trust me you will love it. 

 

I SURVIVED CERVICAL CANCER! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

Happy Birthday To Me!!!

I thought it would be fitting for me to tell the story of why each one of my birthdays are even more special now. 

                 A little over two years ago I started having some issues. I went to my gynecologist and told him all of my problems. He ran a few tests. My Pap came back clear. I had a few other issues that I had to face. Due to my age and my choice of not having anymore children (I have three), he recommended that I have a hysterectomy. Another test came back and he said they would have to take one ovary out too. I was nervous and read everything I could find on the internet but felt good that this would cure all the problems I had been having. 

    The day of my surgery came and went. Surgery went fine. Hubby took great care of me. A couple of weeks later, I received a call from my doctor. The post-surgery test showed Adenocarcinoma. He said that it was too far up the cervical canal for it to have showed up on the original Pap test. 

 To say that I was stunned is putting it mildly. I was too shocked to ask all the questions that later came into my mind. I just answered all of his statements with "Ah huh". When I hung up the phone I fell apart. I didn't understand how it could happen. I did not have HPV and there was no history in my family of Cervical Cancer. 

    My doctor sent me to an Oncologist. She was fantastic and was able to help me sort out all of my questions. She never tired of answering everyone of them. After months of tests and WAITING for results that seem to take forever, I was told that it was gone. I had been lucky. All of it was removed during surgery. I wasn't sure if I could believe it. I wanted to, but after the Pap missed it, how could I be sure? I would have to get tested every three months for the next few years. What I found out was that Adenocarcinoma is aggressive, careful watching and testing would be necessary. Not a problem, this Chick would be at every one of the appointments!

  

Fast forward to the present...

It has been two years now since that phone call. Two years of clear tests. Two years seems to be the celebration point. The chances of it coming back drop drastically after two years. My appointments are now every four months. Hubby, my kids and I celebrated. This didn't just scare me, it had an impact on everyone in my family. 

  What I have learned from this journey was to be your own advocate when it comes to your health. If you know something is wrong, don't give up and don't always believe the tests. I have learned that HPV is not the ONLY way you will get Cervical Cancer. If you think something is wrong, push for answers. Don't give up.

  I won't go into all the details of how Cancer changed me or how it changed my family. I'll save that for a different post one day. But when everyone says that "I survived", I have to correct them. My family survived. 

New Wave Enviro Products Review

Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received these products, free of charge, from New Wave Enviro, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about them. As with any product, my experiences may be different than yours. 

Thanks to the wonderful people at New Wave Enviro I was sent some of their products to try. Everything I was sent is reusable which I love. 

Do you know that the energy used to transport and produce water bottles every year in the United States is the same as 54 million barrels of oil a year.  People in the United States throw away half a billion water bottles a week.
New Wave Enviro wants to help change that.  Their products are all Eco Friendly and Reusable. Water filters, reusable lunch boxes, water bottles and more.

The Panda bottle above is just adorable. It has become my favorite water bottle. I take it to work and the gym. A portion of the sales from that bottle go to Pandas International to help endangered Pandas. I used my Panda bottle when I went fishing and it kept my water cold as ice for over an hour. 

The Stainless Steel Food Container is great to take along on a picnic or to take to work. It has a locking lid to keep everything inside. A guy at work said that you can warm up you lunch on a radiator of a car in the Stainless Steel Food Container. I had to laugh. I don't plan on trying that, but who knows? 

New Wave Enviro has a great line of Eco-Friendly products. Here are just a few: