~~~The Importance of Drinking Water~~~

ABOUT DRINKING WATER? The following will probably amaze and startle you.. It explains a lot about me.....

One glass of water shuts down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University study.


Lack of water is the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.


Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.


A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen.


Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.


Are you drinking the amount of water you should every day?(No kidding, all of the above are true...) Of course, too much water may have strange side effects.

Now that I have your attention, go get another glass of water!

BUT BE VERY CAREFUL.

Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

And if you have friends who makes you laugh, spend lots of time with them.

Until Later

~~~ I am still here ~~~

I know I have been a bad bloggin' buddy lately but so much has been going on.... First it was the problem with my back which led to a problem in my left knee ... I am getting a series of shots in the knee every week for 5 weeks to help relieve the pain ... Then my hubby had surgery last Friday.... Getting old isn't for sissies is it? We are both feeling a ton better and I hope to get back on regularly very soon...

We are also busy planning our next BIG adventure which will last for a year and a half. Eight months of that time will be with our good friends Chris & Norm whom a lot of you know from her blog Chris's Corner ... Then our oldest daughter Denise is getting married on June 19th, so we can't leave for our trip until July 1st this year... Usually we are on the road by May 1st every year... Our youngest daughter Jennifer will be coming down for the wedding... bringing my 2 beautiful granddaughters and of course her handsome hubby. I know I'll have a ton of pictures to share with you of the family and the awesome tropical wedding which will be held on the beach at beautiful Clearwater Beach. Then we will watch the TWINS for about 10 days while they are away on their honeymoon to the Western Caribbean...

Back to the BIG adventure... First let me say it will be the longest amount of time we have stayed away from our home base in Florida... We start out making our way to Arkansas which will take us about 2 months... We are keeping our youngest granddaughter Alyssah with us after the wedding for the trip... We will be going to North Florida, then across the Florida panhandle, through Mississippi and finally into Arkansas.... this will take about 2 months...
We will be staying in Arkansas until just after New Years where we will head out for the great unknown of Texas, Arizona ans New Mexico.... March we will be heading up the center through Colorado on our way to meet our friends (Chris & Norm) in April to visit South Dakota & Montana... After spending 2 months in these states we are heading for a 3 month adventure through Canada into Alaska. After Alaska we will be heading down the west coast through Washington, Oregon & California.... Turning right and going back through Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and finally back home to Florida. That is 14,000 miles just in Tassie alone... Not counting the miles in our cars sightseeing... This will be the trip of a lifetime for All of us.

Miss you all

~~~ Outdoor Wednesday - Arches National Park in Moab, Utah ~~~

Susan at A Southern Daydreamer is the host of "Outdoor Wednesday". If you are interested in this event....link on the logo picture....and learn about what it is all about. Join the fun.....and visit Susan and all the participants who are sharing "Outdoor Wednesday". You will not be sorry... Thank you Susan!

In 2004 we were fortunate enough to visit Arches National Park in Moab, Utah. We traveled there with our good friends and had a wonderful time visiting inside the area for several days... I have so many pictures of this magnificent park that it was very hard for me to choose which ones to share with you... As you can see I still got carried away... I hope you enjoy them and remember this is just a bit of the beauty this country of ours has to offer. Hope you get to visit here sometime soon.

Welcome to

Arches National Park

Arches National Park preserves over 2,000 natural sandstone arches, like the world-famous Delicate Arch, as well as many other unusual rock formations. In some areas, the forces of nature have exposed millions of years of geologic history. The extraordinary features of the park create a landscape of contrasting colors, landforms and textures that is unlike any other in the world. The arches are beautiful and it is amazing what erosion & time can produce.... ENJOY!

Happy Outdoor Wednesday

Until Later

♥♥♥Hi Friends♥♥♥

I am alive and on the mend.... I had a great time away until I came down with a lousy cold and then a simple task of feeding the dog put me down for weeks... I bent over to pick up the dog's dish and threw my back out... It pinched a nerve and caused problems with my left knee & leg... After a visit to a small town emergency room that we were near and follow ups with my own doctors when we got home I am finally on the road to recovery... I couldn't even sit up long enough to be on the computer but today I am feeling much better (thanks to great drugs) so I thought I would update you all.... Thanks so much for all the concerns that you sent... I will be doing a post very soon.... Love you all

Until Later

~~~Foodie Friday # 3 - Chuck Wagon Cheeseburger Skillet ~~~

Thanks to our dear friend Gollum @ Designs by Gollum for hosting this fun event which will hopefully have us all cooking up new recipes in no time... She not only can whip up some great meals but she is fantastic at Tablescapes & decorating. Probably due to her immense collection of dishes. Go check out her blog to see who else is posting tasty recipes for you to snatch up and make. Come join in on the fun!

I am a huge fan of One Pot Dinners and I recently tried this recipe from Pillsbury. Hubby was wild about it... It had everything he liked in it... I think the next time I cook it I will put in some diced rotel tomatoes and crushed red peppers for a little kick.

Chuck Wagon Cheeseburger Skillet

INGREDIENTS
4 slices bacon
1 lb. lean ground beef
3 tablespoons chopped onion
3 tablespoons oil
2 1/2 cups frozen hash-brown potatoes, thawed 1 (11-oz.) can Green Giant Mexicorn Whole Kernel Corn, Red and Green Peppers, drained
1 (4.5-oz.) can Old El Paso® Chopped Green Chiles, drained
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
8 oz. (2 cups) shredded Cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt, if desired
1/4
teaspoon pepper, if desired
1 (16.3-oz.) can Pillsbury Grands! Refrigerated Buttermilk, Southern Style or Reduced-Fat Buttermilk Biscuits

DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oven to 400°F. Cook bacon until crisp; drain on paper towel. Crumble bacon; set aside.
2. In 12-inch cast iron or ovenproof skillet, cook ground beef and onion over medium heat until beef is thoroughly cooked, stirring frequently. Drain. Place beef mixture in medium bowl; cover to keep warm.

3. Add oil to same skillet. Heat over medium-high heat until hot. Add potatoes; cook 3 to 5 minutes or until browned, stirring constantly. Add cooked ground beef mixture, corn, chiles, barbecue sauce, cheese, salt and pepper; mix well. Cook until thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with bacon.

4. Separate dough into 8 biscuits. Arrange biscuits over hot mixture.
5. Bake at 400°F. for 16 to 24 minutes or until biscuits are deep golden brown and bottoms are no longer doughy.

Until Later

~~~Outdoor Wednesday - Big Lagoon State Park~~~

Susan at A Southern Daydreamer is the host of "Outdoor Wednesday". If you are interested in this event....link on the logo picture....and learn about what it is all about. Join the fun.....and visit Susan and all the participants who are sharing "Outdoor Wednesday". You will not be sorry
Thank you Susan!

Welcome to Big Lagoon State Park in

Pensacola, Florida

We visited Big Lagoon State Park last May... Staying there for a little over a week I had hundreds of pictures that I took. I had a hard time selecting ones for this post and I am sorry but since I couldn't make up my mind this post is a big one. It is a beautiful area for relaxing and enjoying the Florida Gulf Coast. There are many things to see and do in this area... The Gulf Islands National Beach, Fort Barrancas, National Naval Aviation Museum located on Pensacola Naval Air Station, Fort Pickens and Perdido Key (Johnson Beach) just to mention a few. The trees in the park were a little bare because of the hurricanes that had gone through in the last couple of years but it was beautiful just the same...

Sit back and enjoy the photos of our campsite,the park, the bird trail and Johnson Beach. The sunsets were fantastic and the waterways were serene & peaceful ...

The Great Florida Bird Trail at Big Lagoon State Park is a great adventure. Here are a few photos of the trail, also some of the birds and wildlife we saw while visiting there.

Once again another beautiful sunset near the lagoon

Just outside Big Lagoon was the beautiful Johnson Beach, where the sand doesn't get any whiter or softer, or the dunes any more spectacular, it is the access point to the seashore at Perdido's east end. The beautiful dunes with stark white sand and the shimmering of the emerald waters bring me to a peaceful place that I so love to be... I could spend many hours just sitting here watching the birds

and the listening to the water.

Big Lagoon State Park is located at 12301 Gulf Beach Highway, approximately 10 miles southwest of Pensacola. Interstate 10 Exit #7 (old Exit #2 - Pensacola), south on Pineforest Road follow signs to Big Lagoon State Park.US Highway 98 to CR 293, south on CR 293 to Big Lagoon State Park.

I know this was a pretty big post but I wanted to share this beautiful place with you all. I so hope you enjoyed these pictures as much as I enjoyed sharing them with you

Until Later