X is for X'ed Out

This post makes me so heartbroken to write.  Today, I discovered a photograph that just a couple of days ago had been on the bookshelf by my bed.  It's now a wrinkled mangled mess.  Some very angry/sad/frustrated child was obviously not happy with me.

Micah and I disagree on who is likely the culprit.  I'm sure it will all become clear in the morning.  sigh...

(Wondering About the) F is for the Fountain of Youth

While driving around the other night, we were discussing various explorers: Leif Erikson, Columbus, Sir Francis Drake, Amerigo Vespucci, and Ponce de León.  That led to the Fountain of Youth.

The Fountain of Youth or similar legends have been around for as long as the 5th century BC.  People believed that drinking from or bathing in the spring or fountain would bring long life.  You can visit The Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park located in St. Augustine, Florida.

I had questions.

If one drinks from the fountain, how young does one become?

If you become a child, do you stay one forever?

Or do you just stop aging at the age you are?

How often do you need to drink from it?

If you stop drinking from it, would you start growing older at a regular rate from the age you became?

Or would you suddenly become the age you would have been (or dead)?

Can it be removed from the fountain and taken somewhere?

So much musing and no answers.  It's fun to consider the possibilities.

C is for "Can You Eat Just One?"

So, I haven't talked much about my weight loss/get healthy journey lately, but I had decided to not knock myself out over the holiday season.  With Halloween candy, Thanksgiving dinner, and Christmas dinner and parties to look forward to, I knew I could get myself into quite a funk over all I was "giving up" to lose weight.  Instead I focused on maintaining my weight loss and finding more ways to keep fit.

I'm pleased to say, I did quite well and rarely felt like I was missing out on anything delicious.  However, I did find these tasty little morsels and decided to enjoy a few.  I did not read the bag before hand and promptly ate 7 (that's seven) teeny, tiny little chips.  Then I put them away, all satisfied with myself for not scarfing down the whole bag.  When I returned to the treats a day or two later, I knew I wanted to pay a bit more attention and was shocked *SHOCKED* I tell you to discover that THREE chips is a serving.  Seriously.  I took out my handy-dandy weight watchers scanner and found out a serving was seven Smart Points.   I totally felt cheated.  The seven chips I ate the other day were more than half of my daily allotment of Smart Points.

I ended up eating one chip each day until those puppies were gone, one 2-point chip.  So the answer to the ancient Lay's Potato Chip question, "Can you eat just one?" is yes.  Yes, I can.  Even if that chip is a tasty dark chocolate coated chip.

And seriously, Google images for Lay's "Betcha Can't Eat Just One" ad campaign from the '80s.

Well, do that *after* you go see what everyone else wrote for the letter C this week.

Other C is for... posts.
C is for Contentment.

Thursday Think - The High Cost of Healthy Food

A while back, I posted this Wondering post comparing the cost of a hamburger to a salad.  The comments on the blog and some of the conversations I had confirmed that most people agree that salads are more costly than hamburgers.  There are generally two thoughts about this phenomenon.

1. Supply and demand.  People want burgers more, so they cost less (relatively).
2. Storing fresh vegetables vs. storing meat and bread.  Meat and bread have a longer shelf/freezer life and can be purchased in larger, and therefore less expensive quantities than fresh vegetables.

Both of these thoughts have merit, but I was looking at this quandary a bit differently.

I don't think the comparison of a $1 hamburger and a $7 salad is valid.  Take fast food restaurants in particular.  A look at the value, or dollar, menu reveals not only a $1 hamburger, but also a $1 side salad.  WHAT?!  A comparably priced salad?  Yes!  And not only that, but the pricier salads often include a piece of chicken or other meat.

When I've dined at a fancier establishment, I've often found that burgers cost more than a salad, *unless* the salad comes with meat.

My assessment brings me to the conclusion that the original quote is faulty, in that it is comparing two vastly different things.

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Wondering - The High Cost of Healthy Food

The only post good ol' Google can find on this quote for me, is a tweet attributed to chi-chi rodriguez @HennyNHandcuffs.  I have my own thoughts about this statement and I would love to discuss it with all of you.  Please comment, letting me know your thoughts about the accuracy of this statement and your opinions about *why* it is/isn't accurate.  Put on your critical thinking caps.  I'll tell you what I think and why next time.

Ready, set, go!

Milk and Eggs with Mr. K

Another fun science day with Mr. K from Exordium Adventure involved milk and eggs. Not as tasty as you might imagine and nowhere near as yummy as the Candy Science class. ;)

Science equipment provided.Xav crushed some egg shell with a large bolt in a small tin dish. Science equipment can be found anywhere.Vinegar made the crushed shell bubble just like it made the baking soda bubble (see naked egg below).Mal took a short break.Spinning an egg to see if it's cooked or raw. Raw eggs wobble.Eggs of various ages to show the buoyancy of fresh eggs vs. old eggs. Fresh eggs sink. The older eggs float because of air trapped in the shell.
Naked eggs (made by soaking the shell off in vinegar) are rubbery and bounce. But be careful! They break.Water tension that kept this water from running out of the cap.Milk and food coloring.If I remember right, we added dish soap and got this reaction.


Ever attentive students. HA! That almost hurt to type! hee hee.

Thursday Think - Egg Yolks

So during French toast preparations for lunch the other day, Xavier and I were surprised by a double yolk. We got the egg from the neighbors. It wasn't that big of a deal to me because we used to have some hens and one laid double yolkers almost daily. But it's always kind of neat to get one unexpectedly.

I was kind of wondering *why* double yolks happen. I googled NoJoed it and found this website that explains not just double yolks, but double shells, no shells, no yolks, and some really unappetizing egg oddities.

It seems our hen had some sort of hereditary ability to lay double yolks. Most of the time though, they happen when ovulation occurs too rapidly and two yolks get wrapped in one shell. Kind of nifty. And now you know!