Springtime and the warmer weather will be here soon. The warm weather
will finally bring us outside to start cleaning up the yard. It's a time to
get the deck or patio in shape, clean up the lawn furniture and get ready
for a beautiful summer.
Once the yard is cleaned up, you’ll want to get the flower beds and garden ready to plant.
This usually requires a lot of digging, bending, and raking. I can’t think of a better tool than the Mantis Tiller/Cultivator to help you with all of this work. Well, you’re still going to have to do some work, but this tool makes it so much easier.
I’ve had my Mantis Tiller for more than 10 years now, and it still runs like it’s brand new. I’ve used it year after year to till my garden, flower beds, and around shrubs.
We planted a brand new garden for my daughter, and it easily tilled through the untouched sod. The handles just fold down and the Mantis fits in the trunk of my car or stores easily in my garage.
Easy fast start technology.
Comes with a handy carrying handle.
Weighs only 21 pounds so it's easy to move around.
A 9-inch wide pattern for digging and weeding.
Tines dig down 10-inches for cultivating.
Reverse the tines for weeding and only dig down 2-3-inches
What I like the best is that the tines pull off of the shaft with a simple pull of a cotter pin, and can be reversed for two different jobs. One position is for cultivating and will dig about 10 inches deep for planting your flowers or plants in your vegetable garden. The other position will only dig 3 to 4 inches deep, this is really handy for easy weeding around plants and shrubs.
My Tiller also has the border edger attachment with a wheel; this makes short work of edging around walkways and the driveway for that nice clean look.
A few years ago my outside drains were clogged with mud, and not draining,
causing the rainwater to just settle around the foundation of my
house. I decided to abandon the old drain on the side of the house that was
clogged and replace it with a new PVC pipe to the street. This required me
to dig a trench from the edge of the house to the street a total of about 30
feet.
So, short of digging this trench with a shovel and pick, I used my
Mantis Tiller to do the digging for me. I set the tines in cultivate
position and shoveled the dirt out as I went along, this made the job so
much easier.
If you have a garden, and flower beds and like to keep a neat lawn, I
highly recommend The Mantis Tiller Cultivator.
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Mantis 7920 2-Cycle Plus Tiller/CultivatorChech the Price
I recently made a meal that was both decadent and almost too easy to believe. Phillips Maryland Style Crab Cakes are delicious and were the star of show. Because they were from the local grocery freezer section, I was eating like a queen in 20 minutes with no work beyond popping the crab cakes into the oven and frying an over easy egg. That's all.
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| look at that chunk of crab meat! |
Maryland is known for it's blue crabs. Fresh crabs and crab cakes are a favorite here. I am not a native Marylander so I did not begin to fully appreciate seafood until I moved here as an adult. However, even I immediately learned that a Phillips restaurant is an excellent place to grab a delicious crab cake.
The Phillips Family seafood story began 100 years ago on the Chesapeake Bay. In the community of Hooper's Island where most families made a living on the water. Mr. Phillips owned a seafood packing plant (wild crabs, fish, and oysters in season) and they shipped their fresh seafood by steamship to Baltimore. In 1956, Bryce and Shirley Phillips opened a small carryout in Ocean City, Maryland.
One day recently, my son messaged me. He said that my young grandson wanted crab cakes with over easy eggs. What?! First of all, I was surprised that my grandson would list crab crakes as a meal request, let alone with an egg on top. After all, I was in my 30's by the time I had a good understanding of the deliciousness of crab cakes. But then again, their family had lived in both Florida and on the Gulf coast of Texas. Of course my grandchild would know about crab cakes. But the over easy egg addition? Hmmm.
The more I thought about it, the more I craved crab cakes! And once I crave crabcakes, I must have them. I went straight to the grocery and bought a box of Phillips Crab Cakes from the freezer section.
This was the first time I've bought frozen crab cakes. Frankly, I thought they wouldn't be very good. But with all of the social distancing and such, I really wasn't up to picking up fresh crab cakes from one of the local restaurants.
The frozen Phillips Crab Cakes were easy and DELICIOUS! I was so pleasantly surprised.
My son and family ended up making a fancy version of the crab cakes and eggs. It included beef in a surf and turf version. My version was ridiculous simple.
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| My grandson's recipe: filet mignon, crabcake, egg, and bacon (photo courtesy of my son) |
My Crab Cakes with Over easy Eggs and Guacamole
Ingredients:
Directions:
Prepare the two crab cakes following the directions on the box (I baked mine in the oven using a small bit of butter in the pan and baking at 425F for 12 minutes, turning once and baking for 4 more minutes - until browned on each side)
After flipping the crab cakes, fry two eggs to over-easy; salt and pepper to taste (remembering that crab cakes contain salt and spices).
Plating: place the crab cakes on a plate. Gently place the eggs on top of the crab cakes. Top with Guacamole to taste (I used just over a tablespoon).
Enjoy!
Imagine all of the variations on this meal - from super easy (crab cakes alone or on a simple bun) to more advanced as my son and grandson made (filet mignon, crab cake, egg, bacon, on a bed of spinach).
Related Links:
For more information about the Phillips family history or their foods (past and present) please visit their official website here.
My son enjoys cooking and making interesting and beautiful meals. Once, I stated that I was going to have fish sticks for dinner. My son immediately sent a recipe for avocado cream sauce and suggested that I make fish tacos. I followed his advice and had an easy and quick dinner of Fish Tacos.
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| Fish tacos with avocado cream sauce |
I am not the only Review This! contributor who uses frozen fish or seafood for an easy and delicious meal. Our Wednesday Elf has reviewed Sea Pak's Budweiser Beer Battered Cod and Gorton's Roasted Garlic and Butter Grilled Tilapa. She recommends both and I am especially interested in her comment "It's like having your kitchen become your new favorite pub". It has been far too long since I've had good pub fish and chips. I've been watching for the Budweiser Beer Battered Cod and will snatch some up as soon as I am in a grocery store that stocks them.
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| Long Distance Friendship Lamps - Review for a Great Gift Idea |
I've been reading about these lamps for over a year now but haven't jumped in yet to get one. However, this one is on my list of original gift ideas.
I've been thinking about getting this gift for both a friend of mine and my mother.
When I first read about this lamp, I was confused about how it worked. I won't pretend I've seen it in action, but I had to share this funky lamp with you all today.
When you buy the lamps in pairs, you give one lamp to a friend, grandparent, parent, or anyone for that matter, and you keep the other lamp at your place.
Each of you set-up your lamp via WiFi. Yes, you both need WiFi.
When you touch your lamp, it lights up at the other end to let the other person know you're thinking of them.
Apparently, it cycles through colors when you touch it.
Plus, you can assign different people different colors. For example, each grandkid could have their own color that lights up when they touch the lamp to let grandma or grandpa know they're thinking of them. Popular grandparents could have these things going on and off all day!
Here are a few things that come to mind:
Lisa Unger's Latest Novel
You may remember the novel by Patricia Highsmith called “Strangers on a Train” which became a famous Alfred Hitchcock movie in 1951. It was a psychological thriller about two men who meet on a train and whose lives become entangled after one of them proposes they "trade" murders.
Days after the strange 'confessions', Selena's nanny disappears and soon Selena's near-perfect life begins to turn upside down. The fractures in her marriage become deeper and the mystery surrounding the missing nanny intensifies.
Be careful to whom you tell your darkest secrets
In the midst of all that is going on in her life, dealing with her husband who admits he had been sleeping with the missing nanny and with the police who are investigating, Selena receives a text message from Martha. Before she can figure out how Martha got her phone number, another text arrives saying:
It's Martha, by the way.
From the Train.
Selena begins to wonder, who was Martha, really? But she is hardly prepared for what she’ll discover…
The chapters of this book are labeled by names as the plot unfolds. There are chapters called SELENA, and other chapters labeled PEARL and ANNE. Who are these other women and what do they have to do with MARTHA? Deep into the book we have a chapter called HUNTER. Each of these people have a role in what happens in the story.
Confessions on the 7:45 is a riveting thriller by master of suspense author Lisa Unger about a chance encounter that unravels a stunning web of lies.
Book Review of Confessions on the 7:45 written by (c) Wednesday Elf
Years ago I learned the secret to getting some relief from migraine headaches by using rice filled cold compresses directly on my forehead. Used behind my neck, it will often relieve the nausea that accompanies migraines.
I made cold rice compresses with kitchen towels for myself and to give as gifts for Christmas over 25 years ago. I simply made the kitchen towels into "bags" by sewing the sides and ends together and filling them with a package of rice. I used mine for decades. However, I recently purchased eye pillows on Etsy filled with rice to replace my threadbare towel rice packs.
The rice packs can also be heated in the microwave for 15 - 20 seconds to apply to aching muscles or sore shoulders. I made one towel rice pack for heating.
Rice will mold around the area of your body which helps distribute the heat or cold. In both cases, the rice "weights" the pack and holds it in place, unless you move.
While the cold packs will not cure a migraine, they do bring some relief while waiting on medication to work its magic. The cold rice packs are absolute miracles themselves on their effectiveness to relieve nausea.
I love these extra-large eye pillows! Because these eye pillows cover forehead and checks, they effectively shut out light, which is also imperative to migraine sufferers.
I keep my eye pillows in my freezer at all times. Therefore, they are immediately ready when needed.
XL eye pillow/face rice pack:
Migraine & sinus relief hot/cold packCheck Price
You can opt to have your eye pillows scented. I chose "Scent: none" because fragrance of any kind will increase the pain of my migraines.
I purchased two eye pillows. That way, when the first one starts to warm to room temperature, I can grab the second one from the freezer when returning the first to re-chill.
My migraines normally last for hours but the pain lessens after the first hour or so once my medicine kicks in. Unfortunately, some other family members suffer with them for days. Granted, mine were much longer lasting when I worked full time and couldn't immediately grab a cold press and medicine. I have vivid memories of coming home from work in great pain and sticking my head in the freezer for relief. It really is easier to lay down with a cold rice filled eye pillow than to stand with your head in the freezer.
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Carolina Wren enjoying the Heated Dog Bowl |
I finally discovered the joy of wearing comfortable yoga pants and workout leggings as an alternative to jeans or pants after beginning a successful ketogenic diet journey that culminated in a nearly 60–pound weight loss. After purchasing several different styles and sizes of yoga pants over the past 21 months, there have been three (so far) that I can recommend highly, each for different reasons. The pair I've chosen to feature in this product review, the IUGA high-waisted workout leggings, are by far the most comfortable yoga pants for women I've tried.
They not only feel wonderful and are available in a choice of several, they're also flattering, even on those of us who aren't blessed with model-perfect bodies.
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| There's no bunching, bagging, or binding with these ultra-soft, ultra-comfy workout leggings! |
The fashion experts at Vogue magazine just released this year's Vogue Wardrobe Essentials Guide. and black workout leggings are one of the editors' 34 wardrobe staples for 2021. (Who knew?)
Originally, yoga pants and workout leggings were made specifically for yoga practice and working out, respectively, and had different fabric and design features. But as they have evolved from fitness-only to fashion, those distinctions have gradually eroded, and now the terms "yoga pants" and "leggings" are often used either together or interchangeably in product descriptions.
My first time buying a pair of yoga pants wasn't until shortly after my 65th birthday, when I began a health-driven weight loss journey and switched to a clean, ketogenic approach to eating. I completely eliminated sugars, grains, and highly processed foods from my diet, and between May 2019 and August 2020, I lost 59 pounds and went from a size 16-18 to a size 6-8. Every two to three months (even less, at the beginning), I was dropping a size, and boxing up my almost-new clothing to donate. Having to buy them again in a smaller size every few months meant limiting my clothing purchases to a few, basic wardrobe staples—underwear, jeans, black pants, shorts, and a couple of tops—until I reached my weight loss goal.
As you may have noticed, neither yoga pants nor leggings were on my initial list of wardrobe staples. I had always associated them with much younger, slimmer women and girls, with taut, toned bodies and cute figures, so they weren't even on my radar at that point! However, my attitude toward this type of clothing changed significantly once I accepted that my commitment to healthier living would require becoming more active, in addition to nourishing my body better.
One of the most important benefits of losing weight and follow a clean, ketogenic diet was the amelioration, and eventual elimination, of the chronic, acute pain in my knees, hips, back, and feet that I had been living with for decades. Being able to go for a walk or a Segway ride with my husband without being in agony was not just liberating, but life-changing! As I was searching online for a new, smaller pair of classic, high-waisted, basic black pants (which I wore more often than anything else I owned), I was surprised to see more high-waisted leggings and yoga pants than regular pants in the search results. It occurred to me that it might be a good idea to expand my list of wardrobe staples to include a couple of pieces of activewear, to support and encourage my efforts to make physical activity part of my new, healthy lifestyle. In fact, it might even be time for me to consider a pair of workout leggings a try.
Of course, I could wear them...but should I? Would it be possible for yoga pants to look attractive (or, at least, not unattractive) and age-appropriate, on this out-of-shape senior? I debated with myself for a while, but finally acknowledged that I couldn't see myself objectively, and decided to ask my husband what he thought, knowing he would give me his honest opinion. He encouraged me to order a pair and try them on.
When I did, I was surprised and delighted at his reaction, which was more positive than I could have imagined! You could have knocked me down with a feather. I also was thrilled to discover how much more comfortable and less restrictive those yoga pants felt, compared to the jeans and tailored pants I had always worn, Before long, I found myself wearing them several days a week, not only for walks and Segway rides, but also for routine, everyday activities, like working, reading, cooking, or watching a movie. They quickly went from being completely off my radar to becoming a staple in my new wardrobe.
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I'm pulling my hamstring and calf muscles together as far as I can,
the fabric doesn't bind or cut into them, it simply conforms to the
compression I'm creating |
Since that first pair, I have purchased other pairs from different brands and with slightly different features, and my IUGA high-waisted workout leggings have been the most comfortable yoga pants I've owned to date.
Super Comfortable and Flattering Yoga Pants for Women review by Margaret Schindel
Being an unabashed Christmas movie Hallmark fan there can be a Hallmark movie letdown after the holidays. While the Hallmark Christmas movies remain my favorite - the winter brings some entertaining Hallmark movies not to miss.
I'm no fan of winter, but winter is a bit more tolerable with a Hallmark movie to view after a day battling the snow, ice, salting and shoveling of a typical winter day in the Northern United States.
Ice Skating, another winter sport I enjoy, is the backdrop for this Hallmark movie with Hallmark favorite Andrew Walker. He plays a figure skating coach hired to continue a young skaters' ascent through skating competitions. However, Hallmark fate steps in as he finds a former figure skater teaching at the same rink. The three combine to skate, compete and begin their collective journey to the figure skating championships. Figure skaters and figure skating fans will appreciate the nod to their sport in this delightful Hallmark movie.
This is a very cute winter movie with two of the popular Hallmark leads Lacey Chabert and Tyler Hynes. The story revolves around a displaced event planner who inherits a beautiful Vail home. She teams with the local to preserve the history of his family business and the business itself. Strudel, beautiful scenery and quick banter are the theme of the movie which keeps true to the Hallmark romantic theme.
New for 2021 is Taking A Shot At Love with Alexa Penavaga and Luke McFarlane. Alexa plays a ballet instructor with the unexpected side gig of rehabbing a professional hockey player. Ballet, wit, and hockey play out through this charming and entertaining movie.
Also new for 2021 is Two For the Win. I love skiing so this movie was fun to watch. The local ski instructor and professional skiier have a long history and the Hallmark sparks fly when she is hired to coach the professional after rehabbing an injury. Picturesque winter scenes and plenty of snow dominate the background of this ski loving movie.
Have you ever dreamed of taking a vacation to an Ice Hotel? Hallmark veterans Kevin McGarry and Emilie Ullerup are at the Ice Hotel to attend the destination as the best man and maid of honor. The scenery is gorgeous as this was filmed at the real life Hotel de Glace in Quebec. Staying at an ice hotel is not for the timid traveler! Enjoy the ice hotel backdrop with the Hallmark romance intertwined.
More Hallmark Christmas Movies Reviewed
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