Category Archives: Food

Snow Day Fun at the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery

Sunday was a very snowy day with about 8 inches of the cold white stuff falling. We had made plans with our friend Sean to go to Fort Collins to see the Museum of Discovery there. We weren’t sure if they would be open or not, but when we called and they said they were and Sean said he would drive in his 4×4 truck we said we were up for the adventure! And it was a bit of an adventure…

We actually got a flat tire on the way in! Thankfully we were all the way to Fort Collins and were stopped at a gas station because he noticed the tire pressure slowly draining away. So I went in the store and got a hot tea and Britton and Sean changed the tire out in the snow.

Then we arrived at the museum and had a lot of the fun. The main station we spent the most time at was the music one. It was fun playing with all their hands on exhibits and learning a little bit about different musical instruments and the science behind music.

Britton Bass
Britton and the upright bass

Cassie and Sean
Me and Sean at one of the music exhibits

They also had some nature science exhibits with an emphasis on the flora and fauna that is or was native to this area. Including this bison!

Buffalo Gal
Just feeding the (taxidermied) buffalo

Britton in the dome
Britton playing in the beaver house

It’s been a long time since we’ve gone to a museum but this one was fun and interactive. There were a lot of little kids around, but since we didn’t have any to watch ourselves, we got to act like them instead! 🙂

Afterward we went to our favorite restaurant in Fort Collins and I had the most delicious Harvest Squash Ravioli and we topped the night off by splitting some tiramisu. The roads were icy as we drove home, but we made it back just fine even with the new tire.

Overall it was a great Sunday snow day adventure!

 

What do you think of this post?
  • WOW (0)
  • Awesome (2)
  • Interesting (1)
  • Useful (0)
  • Bummer (0)
  • Whoa (0)

We’re in the News…Again!

What a cool way to mark the start of the new year…to be on the front page of the newspaper (in a positive way).

Cassie and Article

This week we were interviewed by a Greeley Tribune reporter about our experience with the Weigh and Win program, a program that truly is a Win-Win proposition: lose weight and get paid an incentive! Today, the story came out in the paper and online.  They charge to read the whole thing, so we took pictures of the hard copy if you want to read it (click to enlarge below).  As you may remember, we were on the cover of the paper a few years back after the whole backyard chicken debacle, but this time it is much less controversial.

Tribune Front Page Weigh and Win Last page
Click images to enlarge and read full article

Britton and I have really enjoyed being a part of this program and wanted to spread the word about it, and so we didn’t hesitate to help out with the article. We both have lost almost 10% of our initial body weights -me around 14-15 lbs and BK around 16-18 depending on fluctuations. We were both slightly overweight (but not obese) for our heights and now are very close to a healthy range.

Here are our then and now pictures from the Weigh and Win kiosk (after all what’s a good weight loss story without before and afters! 🙂 )


   bkbeforeBK After
Britton Then and Now

cassie beforecassie after
And me…

A few minor things to clarify from the article: It says we did it without exercising and that is not exactly what we said, we said that we didn’t add any extra exercise to achieve this weight loss. Even before attempting weight loss, we have always made walking or some form of movement a daily part of our routines and lately we have done a few yoga classes here and there too. It’s just that 80% of weight loss and maintenance comes from our food choices. Exercise is awesome, but it takes a whole lot more effort to run 20 minutes than to just not eat that extra cookie. 🙂

Also, a note on the incentives: we each make about $15 every quarter for each 5% bodyweight loss we achieve (it’s more for people with more to lose).

I would encourage anyone in Colorado (or if they expand elsewhere) to sign up for this program. I truly believe that most things in life are win-win situations if you simply change your frame of mind, and in this case, the win-win is not too hard to find in losing!

What do you think of this post?
  • WOW (2)
  • Awesome (4)
  • Interesting (0)
  • Useful (0)
  • Bummer (0)
  • Whoa (0)

Christmas Surprises

This morning we awoke to a white Christmas which is somewhat unusual in this dryland prairie area of Colorado that we live in. It added a sparkle and glitter to an otherwise very cold day (high of 18!). We slept in and enjoyed a late breakfast and made Christmas cookies to give out with the presents.

IMG_2535

Kitty was appreciative of being inside and the chickens mainly stayed in their coop except when they let us know they needed their water warmed up and were tired of eating snow.

White Christmas and chicken
The White Chicken on White Christmas

Later that afternoon we went over to Britton’s family’s house to open presents and then headed over to my grandma’s for ham dinner and a little more gift exchanging.

IMG_2560
My grandma and aunt at dinner

And as Britton promised in the last post, we have a little Christmas surprise for all of you as well.

Drumroll….

We got chopped! Here we are before:

Cassie with Long Hair
My long hair (before)

Britton before
Britton’s hair and November mustache

And after:

Britton and Cassie Haircuts
The new sleeker usBritton shaved down and I’m without about 9 inches of hair

Me and B at Grandmas
What do you think? A good Christmas surprise?

Big changes have been happening a lot lately and we felt compelled to do our part through our appearance. It’s always fun (and a little scary) to try something new. We hope you all had some wonderful surprises and a great time with family and friends. Merry Christmas!

 

What do you think of this post?
  • WOW (3)
  • Awesome (6)
  • Interesting (0)
  • Useful (0)
  • Bummer (0)
  • Whoa (0)

Rocky Mountain Oysters at Bruce’s Bar in Severance

As we finish up our time here in Colorado, we have come up with a few other “Bucket List” items we have to do in Colorado before leaving. One of them is right in our backyard: eat Rocky Mountain Oysters. For those of you who don’t live in Colorado, you may not know what this infamous food is. It is most definitely NOT seafood (or even Colorado Lobsters). Rocky Mountain Oysters are …drumroll…bull testicles!

The most famous place to try Rocky Mountain Oysters is Bruce’s Bar in Severance.
Bruce’s Bar Severance, Colorado


Very Unfair! Murals

We went there with our nephew and my mom and her boyfriend Anthony.


At Bruce’s Bar


Bruce’s Menu includes Cow, Buffalo and Turkey “oysters”

Bruce’s would make a good place for a bar scene in a movie. Very simple cafeteria layout, lots of bar food and filled with cowboys and small-town folk. Because this was our first time ever trying Rocky Mountain Oysters, we asked if we could see what they looked like before they were breaded and fried…


They come whole and frozen (but skinned and somewhat processed)


Then they are sliced and thawed before being breaded and fried


They come out looking like chicken strips and are served with cocktail sauce


A long strip


Chewy!


Must not have been too bad!


They even had a live 3-piece band that night!

Overall, we had a great time and suggest everyone add “eat bull testicles” to their adventurous bucket list! 🙂

 

What do you think of this post?
  • WOW (1)
  • Awesome (0)
  • Interesting (3)
  • Useful (0)
  • Bummer (0)
  • Whoa (0)