The Sweet Life of Sierra Sugar

It's that time of year where Christmas Carols are on every radio station, “Its a Wonderful Life” is playing on TV, and all the little children are anxiously awaiting what wonderful surprises might be under the tree come tomorrow morning.  It truly is the night before Christmas.  And did you know you can now track Santa and his sleigh as he makes his way around the world?  Just go here and find out how close he is to your house.  He really puts those reindeer through a workout this one night of the year; a 24-hour midnight race around the world.

Ever wonder how those reindeer train for such a demanding event?  I'll let you in on a little secret.

My mother was an amazing woman.  She was smart, soft-spoken, friendly to everyone unless they gave her a reason not to be... and then watch out.  She didn't take anything from people.  She had a her own sense of style, an understated elegance that was tasteful and classy, and very feminine.  Part Irish and part Cherokee, she had a beauty that matched her style.  She had the long, silky, thick, straight hair of the Cherokee, liquid silver in color unlike any other I've ever seen, along with the high cheekbones so prominent in the American Indians.  And yet her skin was covered in freckles.  She was a lady.  She was a wife.  She was a mother.  And she is missed every single day.

The holidays are always a busy time of year.  People rushing from work, home, stores, and other various places getting ready for what ever festivities are included in their traditions.  The roads always seem more crowded and plagued with accidents.  We all like to think we are safe drivers.  “It”, meaning an accident, would never happen to us.  But chances are in your lifetime you will be involved in at least one automobile accident of some kind.

Slow down.  Be aware.  Leave space between vehicles.  Look for an out.  Don't text/talk on the phone and drive.  These are all common sense driving tips everyone is familiar with. 

One of the hardest things to get used to while being over the road in a big truck is not being able to take a shower every day. When you're under a load that has a tight time table finding time to stop and shower isn't always possible. Every time we get fuel we earn shower credits at places like Flying J, Loves, Petro, and Pilot truck stops. But we can't always stop at those when he has to drive until his time is out.

Last night was one of those no truck stop nights.  Instead we stopped on a "get on ramp" off the interstate in the middle of the desert. 

One of the things I love about being over the road is getting to see all the terrain and climate differences from across the country.  I've seen the white sands of the Gulf Coast, the foliage filled mountains and winding hills of the Appalachians, the crop covered rolling hills of the great plains, snow topped mountains, painted skies, the intricately wind-carved ridges all along the Colorado river, wide open skies of Montana, and the arid desolation of the Mojave desert.  Each trip out is 

Morning in the mountains, 11/07/2014

The year was 1993. I was barely 21 and getting ready for my first day at a new job and what turned out to be the start of a new career. Mornings were hard for me. I was lucky to get my clothes on right-side in and forward most days. There I was standing in the tiny kitchen of my rented house trying to figure out if I had everything before walking out the door when suddenly there was a knock.

Send tumbly right over.

How many of you remember playing Red Rover in elementary school?  You would wait for the other side to call your name and then run as fast as you could to try and break through their held hands. If you broke through you went back to your team. If you didn't break through you had to join the team that called your name.


Driving down the highway in southern Colorado I finally saw a live tumbleweed.  

It's funny how the mind works.  I was drinking my coffee this morning and poking around on Pinterest, two of my favorite addictions, when I stumbled across an Emmet Kelly figurine post under the "Everything" option in Pinterest.  So, I started looking up Emmet Kelly figurines, which somehow also added a Precious Moments clown figurine in the search.  So of course I had to reminisce and look up Precious Moments, as my aunt, my mother's sister and whom I am named after, used to cross stitch Precious Moments scenes.  Many of the PM kids reminded me of another childhood character, Holly Hobbie.  I bet you can guess what I had to look up next!

This is what the needlepoint work originally would have looked like on my quilt.

"Vow Vox Box"? Don't Panic!

You haven't missed any invitations or save the date notices.  There are no wedding plans, secret or otherwise.  However, #Influenster recently had another vox box program of products to sample that would go well with the pending blushing bride or possible potential maybe perhaps one day bride. Anyway, breathe.....

This was a smaller vox box but it was packed with some pretty great items from #SallyHansen, #Ecotools, #Puresilk, #Tide, and a coupon for a wedding website by #Riley&Grey.  So let me give you guys the run down.

A tale about why coffee is good for you...

We have a salt water fish tank and our fishy eats frozen fish food.  Every morning I get up, let the p3 out to go potty, turn the light on the fish tank, and put a cube of the frozen fish food in a cup with some water to melt while I get coffee started.  I know.  I know!  That process of events is backwards.  Coffee should always come first.  But the other is a better use of time and keeps me from walking in circles.   Usually, I fix my cup, then take my coffee along with the plastic cup of fish food to the living room where Lt. Dan (our surviving fish) gets fed and I sit and sip my coffee enjoying the sunshine from the open door. This morning The first part of my routine flowed normally without problem.

That is until I went to fix my first cup of coffee....  I poured my cup of coffee, added creamer and sugar, grabbed the spoon, stirred, picked up the cup to take my first sip and paused.  Thank GOODNESS fish food has a fishy smell.  I had stirred the fish food and nearly took a long, not so comforting, first sip of.... fish food soup, mixed with creamer and sugar.  Talk about gastric disaster.  Fish cup emptied and rinsed, new fish food defrosted and fed to Lt. Dan AFTER I had a full half a cup of coffee.

Remember folks... Safety First - Coffee before anything!

~sierra

It's summer time.  The weather is warmer.  The sun is out.  And you want to be out in that fresh air enjoying life.  Sunshine and the subsequent Vitamin D from sun exposure has its benefits.  We need a little bit of those UV rays to prevent things like Rickets and Depression. Not all sun exposure is bad.  Moderation is the key to life.  But this post isn't about the pros and cons of lazy days out on the beach, in the sand and salt water, soaking up copious amounts of natural Vitamin D in the form of refreshing, warming tropical sunshine...... sorry, got a little sidetracked there with my day dream.

Ok, so you want to be out enjoying the summer life.  Lazy days on the beach, or lake, or any other outdoor activity.  But, if you're like me sunshine puts a nice spotlight on any problem areas on your face.  It's embarrassing to admit, but I have always struggled with acne and large pores.  

I was excited to try these protein shake samples received in my‪#‎GoVoxBox‬ from Influenster. 




Having used Whey protein shakes in the past to help manage my weight and blood sugar levels, I am hypoglycemic.  I also used them as nutritional supplements for my mother when she was struggling with cancer and unable to eat.  There are many benefits to protein supplements and they come in a variety of types and flavors.  Even weight loss brand names have gotten in on the hype - Weight Watchers and Adkins.  

Having used many different brands in the past and tried almost every flavor, I have learned that I am not a fan of most flavors besides chocolate. That being said I started with the flavor I usually like least.  Just like our mother's used to tell us when there was something on our plate we didn't like... eat it first.  

Ok, so it is no secret that I LOVE #Influenster! In the most recent GoVoxBox I received two items from PROFOOT to try, ProFoot Triad Orthotic shoe inserts and the ProFoot Pedi-Rock. They are both wonderful!

Muller display at the Publix in Tampa, Florida. I got the strawberry (YUM!) using the complimentary coupon sent to me in the #Influenster #GoVoxBox to try.

In this age where fast food, processed foods, GMO's, "Low fat" but high sugar or sugar substitutes abound, choosing healthy food options is a must, yet often times a challenge.  I like to cook from scratch and avoid boxed or canned goods that are heavily processed and contain preservatives and artificial ingredients.  I also prefer natural sugar over sugar substitutes.  And along those lines I avoid "High Fructose Corn syrup"  (HFC's) like the plague!  Many of the popular brands of greek yogurt have lots of extra added sugar, and even *gasp* HFC!  So they never make it into my shopping cart.  

Yogurt is one of those healthy food choices that always find its way into my regular shopping.  Being hypoglycemic (chronic low blood sugar) I have always been advised to follow a high protein/low carb diet.  In a fast-paced world this is sometimes difficult to do.  Enter greek yogurt.  

Working out of town last week and I took my +Influenster #GoVoxBox items with me, including +Aqua Spa Bath Salts to help me relax after traveling over 400miles to work then busy days in a strange office processing 360 charts.  Whew!  

I am usually a shower person and not very big on Lavender. HOWEVER, I have to say the #Lavender  + #Chamomile  Bath Salts

I have been a member of Influenster for some time now, thanks to my friend both in and out of Second Life, Ashley Dickerson for introducing me. This latest VoxBox makes it four times now in the past year that I have had the pleasure of testing several items sent to me from Influenster. This latest being Colgate® Optic White™ Toothbrush + Built-In Whitening Pen. I know from past testing that the Optic White toothpaste works great. I actually like the new built in whitening pen. Colgate uses a gel inside of a pen. Turn the base of the pen two clicks to push a bit of the gel up into the built-in soft plastic brush of the pen the smooth across your teeth. The gel takes a little getting used to, but once you do it's not bad. The gel, while it doesn't stay on as long as the strips for obvious reasons, doesn't have a bad taste and still gets the job done. Other whitening brands use whitening strips. To me those feel funny and after a couple uses the concentration of the chemicals actually makes my teeth hurt. While I brush my teeth twice a day and try to have good oral hygiene, I also tend to drink a fair amount of tea, coffee, and Dr. Pepper. A little extra whitening power never hurts. ‪So many thanks to Influenster and Colgate for introducing me to another wonderful product. Give it a try and see for yourself. Before Day 4 #‎Influenster‬ ‪#‎BrushWhitenGO‬ ‪#‎Colgate‬ ‪#‎Voxbox‬