Saving time is sometimes just wasting time....

When saving time is really just losing time.

Back in August, I fell down some stone steps by stepping into a hole that a woodland creature must have made.  It was all in slow motion, my ankle got stuck in this hole and as I fell I turned my body over to land on my back instead of my front.  You see I broke my wrist years ago and am so paranoid of doing that again that I automatically turn to avoid using my hands.  Both ankles hurt and I got lots of lovely bruises and scrapes.  The right foot swelled up the most and really hurt, the left one not so much.  A couple of weeks later when the swelling went down that foot stopped hurting but my left one, the one that barely swelled or bruised kept on hurting.  I really didn't want to bother with the doctor because I'd have to wait forever to see someone and then they would send me for x-rays and tell me there is nothing broken, nothing to do, just wait for the foot to heal, approximately 6 weeks.  I "knew" this from other visits for myself or the kids.  One of my daughters was in competitive gymnastics, then wrestling, then rugby....I had spent a lot of time waiting for her Dr. and x-ray appointments.  I just didn't want to wait, I thought it would be a waste of time.

Now this left foot hurts when I turn it a certain way so I just avoided doing that.  Late September my right hip started hurting and just got worse and worse,  I hurt standing still, the only relief was in sitting or constantly walking forward.  I finally caved and called the Dr., of course, she wasn't available (Canada's healthcare is great but you have to wait a while to get an appointment)  So I requested to see the nurse practitioner, it took two weeks to get an appointment with her.  I get so frustrated, waiting for an appointment to wait in a waiting room where I'll catch someone elses cold.

The nurse prescribed me anti-inflammatories and told me to see a physiotherapist in a week, the anti-inflammatories didn't help, still in pain.  Just saw the physiotherapist yesterday, after a lot of poking and prodding and pulling my leg in all sorts of ways she told me she thinks I had sprained my left foot and had been overcompensating for it and ended up putting everything off-kilter and now the small of my back was all tight, angry and sore.  Aaaargh, it's going to take a while to get this hip better and then we'll deal with my left foot.  It is the end of October now....so the lesson is go to the dr. even if you think you know what they are going to say....I could have been better Mid September, now we are almost in November.  Just so frustrated with the time lost and wasted feeling bad.  Frustrated that my body isn't as resilient as it used to be.  Is this one of the new interesting things in our 50's, our auto-fix doesn't work anymore.  Looking forward to simply standing with out thinking about it again.

Lost and wasted time, I feel like getting older makes me more desperate to not lose any time. I guess I need to prioritize self care over time-saving and get over the annoyance that my body just doesn't behave the way it used to anymore.  Looking forward to embracing my new age, looking for some advice on how to do that.

Gluten Free Thanksgiving - Leftover Turkey Pot Pie!

Leftovers are one of my favorite challenges..... Don't you just love feeling like everything has been used, nothing has been wasted, THIS makes me feel like I've accomplished something.

I really love this pie crust, it is so versatile, you can switch up the herbs to complement different fillings.  It is a great all-purpose crust for any pie.

Gluten-Free Herbed Crust for Pot Pies

Yield - 1 top crust     

Double recipe if you want to make a bottom crust as well.

1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour blend 

        (I use Presidents choice all-purpose flour, it has never disappointed me, a blend usually works better than one that is only rice flour or chickpea flour)

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1/2 teaspoon ground sage

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup butter (still cold)

1 large egg

2-4 tablespoons cold water

Instructions

1. Mix together flour, herbs and salt in a medium bowl.

2. Slice in small chunks of butter and mix into flour mixture with a fork until crumbly.

3. Whisk the egg in a small bowl and add 3 tablespoons of it into the dough.  Keep the rest for brushing onto the crust.

4. Add 1 tablespoon water, mix well, then add another tablespoon water and mix well continue adding water like this until dough can be made into a ball.

Wrap in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge until pot pie filling is ready.

Leftover Turkey Pot Pie filling (gluten-free)

Please don't follow this to a T as everyone has a different amount of leftovers, : )

Remove meat from leftover turkey bones and put the bones in a pot of water to just cover, bring it to a boil and then simmer for roughly 1/2 hour...in the meantime

- cut-up leftover turkey meat (approx. 2 cups)

-cut-up leftover cooked veggies and/or add frozen mixed veggies to make roughly 2 1/2 cups

- remove bones from water, remove 2 cups of the water ( freeze that for use later)

- optional, I add an envelope of gluten-free gravy mix or any leftover gravy (although, I can't say there has ever been any leftover gravy?) and whisk that into the water. 

- season to taste with salt and pepper.

-add the turkey and veggies to the pot and bring to a simmer for 5 minutes.

-butter inside of 1.8-litre casserole (or 9x9 square pan)

-Add vegetables and turkey to the pan with a slotted spoon, sprinkle salt and pepper on top.

- Preheat oven to 400℉ 

Now for the Crust

1. Roll out dough on a floured piece of parchment paper to easily lift and flip over pie.

2. Decorate with leftover dough (a great way to cover flaws)

3. brush top with leftover egg.

Place in preheated 400°F oven, middle rack.

Cook for 35-40 minutes until the crust is a golden color and you can hear the filling bubbling.

Serve with leftover cranberry sauce and gravy if you like.  Enjoy

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Thanksgiving Weekend

I love Thanksgiving weekend.  Besides being thankful, which I am, it has so many other meanings.  It's a day where I can finally accept that summer is done.  It was such a wonderful summer this year, next to no huge upheavals and traumas.  My dad was healthy-ish, the kids were happy, the sun was out but it was the first time in a looooooooong time that I actually felt bored ?!  I turned 52 and am officially in menopause, two of my kids are in college, the youngest is in grade ten.  I find myself in a place where I'm no longer in charge of my kids lives, they want a lot from me but I don't seem to have any clout anymore.  It is a weird place to be.  Like this blog, I find myself jumping back and forth and all over the place trying to find a purpose or goal.....

Things I am Thankful For

1.  Always my kids

2. My patient and funny husband

3. My faithful dog Bella

4. My moodie cats Teddy and Fozzy

5. My dads interactive moments

6. My friends

7.  The beautiful fall colors

8. Falls windy and clean air

9. Pumpkin pie 

10. Red wine

11.  Thanksgiving dinner leftovers!

12. Bumblebees, butterflies and birds

13. The comfort of my home

and I could go on.  How about you?