Study participants: 15 women whose partners lacked the CF gene mutation, normal fertility except for failing to conceive, aged between 24 and 36.

Outcome: 17 pregnancies in 13 of the 15 women, resulting in 12 live births, two ongoing pregnancies and three miscarriages. Only one of the women needed a caesarean section, but 50% of the study participants had diabetes during pregnancy. Researchers also observed a slight decline in lung function during the year of pregnancy. All children, aged 10 years to one month, remain healthy.

The new study on ART and CF was presented recently at the 25th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Amsterdam.

Dr. Sylvie Epelboin, who led the research, said:

“The results of our study are good news for women with cystic fibrosis because they show that ART is a hopeful option for them and does not increase the risk of medical problems or death for either themselves or their children. Furthermore, the possibility of ART for this growing population of young adults with cystic fibrosis has a positive impact on their quality of life by satisfying their wish to become parents. These women had given mature consideration to their desire for a child and were fully supported by their families.”

(Image via stock.xchng)

Post from: Blisstree

Cystic Fibrosis & Safe Fertility Treatment

Image: sxc.hu

There are fireworks in a neighboring town on Friday night.

A parade also is held there on Saturday morning.

We prepare special foods that have become a family tradition, including a barbeque. 

If the weather is good, we also may hold a yard sale this weekend.  Yard sales have become traditional over summer holiday weekends in our town.

I’ll see what photos and memories I can find from my childhood, my daughter’s and the grandchildren.  I should begin compiling them into a scrapbook/journal. 

When I was growning up, my mother’s family always gathered on July 4th.  In later years, as the older generation passed away, my parents established traditions at our home.  I shouldn’t let these family heritage memories disappear into the past.

What do you do to save Fourth of July memories?

Post from: Blisstree

Happy Fourth of July - Saving Memories

During the summer I love recipes where the prep is done ahead of time, then just pull it out at meal time and with minimum effort supper is on the table. With this recipe from Thai Kitchen you can put the steaks in the fridge to marinate early in the day, then just pull them out when it’s time to grill and be ready to eat in less than 30 minutes.

Roasted Red Chili Flank Steak
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Refrigerate: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 16 minutes

Ingredients
2 tablespoons Thai Kitchen® Roasted Red Chili Paste
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon black peppercorns, crushed
1 tablespoon cumin seed, crushed
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1 1/2 pounds flank steak

Mix chili paste, oil, peppercorns, cumin seed and sea salt in small bowl. Coat steak evenly on both sides with mixture.

Refrigerate 30 minutes or longer for extra flavor.

Broil or grill steak over medium-high heat 6 to 8 minutes per side or until desired doneness. Let stand 5 minutes before slicing. Cut steak across the grain into thin slices.

Makes 6 servings.

Post from: Blisstree

Roasted Red Chili Flank Steak

The last time I cooked mahi-mahi, I gave in to my Husband’s request of baking the fish. This time around, I decided to just pan-fry the mahi-mahi steaks. I marinated it in a simple olive oil based marinade first of course.

Pan-Fried Mahi-Mahi (Image © Dexie Wharton)

INGREDIENTS :
2 mahi-mahi steaks
1/4 cup olive oil
juice of 1 wedge of lime
sprinkle of garlic powder
sprinkle of ginger powder
sprinkle of dried parsley
sprinkle of red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
butter for pan-frying

Combine the olive oil, garlic powder, ginger powder, lime juice, dried parsley, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Which everything together. Pour over the mahi-mahi steaks. Coat each sides of the fish. Marinate for 10-15 minutes or so.

Melt butter in non-stick pan. Fry the fish, skin side first. About 8-10 minutes on each sides.

Serve the fish with Uncle Ben’s Wile Rice and sauteed spinach.

Post from: Blisstree

Pan-Fried Mahi-Mahi Steaks

Photo: SXC

Printables4Kids.com has a cute Happy Birthday USA coloring sheet and a variety of related worksheets.

DLTK-Kids.com has a whole stack of Independence Day printables, including Bingo sheets. (By the way, there were a couple of pop up ads.)

Kaboose has a variety of coloring sheets , including an American Eagle sheet that is sure to appeal to older children.

For older children, you may want to check out Kids Holiday Crafts . The 4th of July craft projects look like they’ll keep kids well entertained for a few minutes!

Post from: Blisstree

Independence Day Printables

I mention this because every so often I’ll run into what I call an Green-Nazi. In Humboldt it happened a lot. In Portland it happens less, but it still happens. Green Nazis think they’re greener than everyone else and criticize you on lots of lame little things. You use a reusable water bottle, live in a small house, use reusable grocery bags, and make all homemade cleaners - it still isn’t enough for the Green Nazis, they’ll just whine about the fact that they found one piece of plastic in your fridge or a clothing item in your closet made from conventional cotton.  If you have kids it can be even worse because the crunchier than you parents descend in and attack.

To be fair, Green Nazis types are good in a way because they do remind you of what you could be doing to be greener. But on the far bigger cons side, these folks use shame and guilt to make you feel like you should be greener, not education and support. Personally, I hate that these folks turn some people off to green living and make other green-happy people look bad. Lastly, as noted above, the Green Nazis are just plain wrong; they aren’t perfect. It’s totally impossible; well, maybe not totally, but in today’s society, being perfectly green and leaving zero footprints would be a huge feat.

If you’ve run into folks like this, or if green living is frustrating you because you’ve made mistakes, take heart and keep on trucking. To make you feel better I’ve made a list of ten anti-green things I did this week.

1. I left the coffee pot on overnight: This mistake surprised me because I’m normally really good about turning stuff off, and even unplugging items when not in use. When I noticed the coffee pot had been left on for about 24 hours, my first thought was HOW not eco-friendly. The second - um, I could have burned the house down (see how my priorities are screwy).
2. I used toxic Raid to terminate a spider and trust me I will again.
3. I bought non-organic apples: I HATE doing this. Apples are one of the dirty dozen but the organic apples at the store this week looked like someone ran them down with a semi, so I bought conventional.
4. I bought non-organic, non-fair trade coffee along with the apples. The organic was too expensive this week where I was.
5. I bought my son a Lunchable. One, not organic. Two, so much excess packaging it’s crazy.
6. I forgot to refill the water bottle in my fridge so I let the water run before filling my glass when I should have just gotten ice.
7. I drove to the store for just two items. Could I have lived without them - yeah probably.
8. I threw a toilet paper tube in the trash. I suck with toilet paper tubes.
9. I ran one load of wash that could have been fuller had I tried.
10. I bought a toxic car air freshener. Stupid because duh, I know how to make homemade and or non-toxic ones.

Do I feel guilty? Actually yeah somewhat. I usually realize when I make green mistakes and it eats at me a bit. Some mistakes bug me more than others, especially when they affect my son (like the non-organic apples). BUT I don’t let the mistakes get me too down. I’m pretty good about green living overall and more importantly I try. If you make mistakes, but try, you can’t really let yourself get too down about it, or you’ll get so frustrated that you’ll give up. Giving up is the worst green choice you can make. Small steps are better than no steps. Tell yourself that the next time you feel bad about a choice you make, avoid the Green Nazis, and trust me, it’ll all be fine.

Do you ever feel green guilt? How come?

[image via stock.xchng]

Post from: Blisstree

How to be perfectly green - just like me!

IMG: The Life of a Home Mom

that I’ve come clean I can tell you that I’m slowly, very slowly, learning to let them go…ya know let them do things on their own and grow doing it.

In the past I remember the worry I felt when (living on the base) I allowed my oldest son to walk to the gas station by himself. Now on the base this was the hot spot for kids to get snacks, candy bars or the occasional milk for moms. I remember watching the clock and everything and just waiting to see him return. Once he did I got such a relief but knew he could safely walk across the main road and be okay, he knew the rules.

Today, he’s 12 and I’ve finally allowed him to ride his bike down to the local Wal-Mart. This was no easy task for me but I knew he’d been wanting to go. Once his dad was going to allow it but due to the busy main road right there I was hesitant, we are still new to being out of the military and city life that I wasn’t ready. My son was hurt by my saying no, today he was so excited and I knew it was the right thing to do. However with that being stated I will not lie, I did make him take my cell phone as I waited on the computer. He called when he got there and called when his tire blew. He’s home now and once again I’m at ease but I know he can do it again. Of course the first thing he did was come in laughing about his bike blowing both tires and asked, “So are you blogging about this yet?” hehe. Yes he knows me well but knows I love him and am only protective and learning how to let go. Hey, he’s the first I think he’ll be the hardest.

How did you deal with the letting go?

Post from: Blisstree

Learning to Let Go

On the day that the video was taken, June 2, the two officers were driving back from Cincinnati, where they picked up a burglary suspect, to their town of Perry Township, 50 miles away. In the video, the female officer is seen checking to make sure that the suspect in the back seat was asleep. The dashboard camera’s red light, that signals that it is active and on, was tampered with, so the officers did not know that they were being taped. An anonymous tip brought the tape to attention.

Have you ever been involved with a co-worker?  Either while single or in a relationship?  Have you been tempted?

When I was very young (19) I was engaged and my boyfriend was away at boot camp. While he was gone, I went down to Southern California to live with my dad for a few months. I worked in a restaurant there and a guy that I worked with seemed to find my engagement a challenge. He worked me day after day, in an attempt to get me to cheat on my fiance, but I never did. One time, after a particularly bad argument with the fiance (we argued a lot an he is now married to someone else - I believe happily and for a long time 18+ years), I thought, hey why not, maybe I should do it just this once. I did not follow through with it, I did not cheat at that time.

People spend a lot of time at work and they form connections with the folks they spend that time with.  Sometimes these connections are a distraction and a way to escape the stress or even boredom of Real Life. In the case of my restaurant boy, I was lonely and young, away from my friends at that time, and this boy was very cute. It was tempting, but cheating sucks and I have rarely even come close to doing it.

I’d like to say that I’ve never done it, but that would not be completely honest and I’ve made a habit of being honest with you readers.  I did make a few mistakes in the past (way, way, way in the past), but they were not with someone at work (which does mean that it was alright). These days, nothing could be farther from my mind. The boyfriend that I have is all that I can handle.

Being in a committed relationship is like a job in that you have to work at it every day. You have to remind yourself what you are there for and reaffirm your commitment. You have to be a good co-worker or you run the risk of a bad performance review or possible termination - I’m talking divorce or breakup here, not death.

“Canoodling.” Isn’t that a silly word? 

Image credit: Sxc.hu

Post from: Blisstree

Cheating At Work - Cops Caught Kissing

While I normally don’t like creamy, cold pasta salads, this one from Betty Crocker is delish! It doesn’t have that heavy mayo taste, and also isn’t drenched in salad dressing. The cooked chicken give it some depth, and the croutons and Parmesan topping make it really unique. Also very easy to make.

Image: sxc.hu.

Post from: Blisstree

Chicken Parm Pasta Salad

Fresh 4th of July Veggies:

Fourth of July Roasted Tomato Salsa Recipe

Orzo Super Salad

Southwestern Style Potato Salad

Crispy apple coleslaw

Mushrooms, tofu, red onions, lemons (and more) grilled kabobs

Corn on the cob three ways - be brave and just click one - make whichever one you land on…

1. Corn on the cob
2. Corn on the cob
3. Corn on the cob

Juicy & Fruity:

Savory Apple Onion Tart - not too juicy, I know, but I defaulted the apples into the fruit category over the onions.

Watermelon stars

4th of July fruit kabobs

Grilled Pears with Currants

Spicy Fish Tacos with Pear Mango Salsa

Watermelon and Tomato Salad

Got fruit trees? Try Grilled Summer Fruit

4th of July Treats:

Ice pops are the best starting point for 4th of July garden treats. For one thing, they’re icy cold goodness during a hot day, and secondly, you can seriously use almost ANYTHING from the garden to make these. I’m talking carrots, herbs, tomatoes, berries, and so much more. You can even make plain old ice water pops with tiny edible flowers embedded for some beautiful and refreshingly easy pops. See 32 Unique Homemade Popsicle Recipes & Ideas to get started.

Red, white, and blue summer berry trifle

Lemonade Mousse

Caramel Apple Pie

Ecstatic Organic Rose Vanilla Ice Cream

Little Extras:

Dilled Cucumbers

Edible flowers galore - put them on cakes, in salads, and more!

Blueberry-Lime Habenero Sauce

Organic herbal sun tea

[image via stock.xchng]

Post from: Blisstree

4th of July from the Garden Recipes