Escaping The Fog In The Land Of The Trolls

This is one of my favorite places to go hiking and one of the largest heather highlands in Northern Europe. The landscape reminds me of where I imagine trolls would live. Marsh lands with rolling hills and deep lakes left from the last glacier. Sheep on the hillside, the great views you get from the different tops and of course the bonus is a good workout since you are either going up or down, for the most anyway.

Mom and I did a part of this hike just a couple weeks ago, but we wanted to do the whole round this time when the weather was so nice and the ground had gotten a chance to dry out a bit. Parts of the trail go through wet spots so chances are you’ll get really muddy if it has been raining a lot. We got an early morning start and were out hiking for about 2 hours. The whole round is about 8 km (5 miles). We stopped at the last top to relax in the sun, get a much needed drink of water and eat som fruit we brought with us. The view was gorgeous as always, but extra special today because the fog hanging over the ocean was making a shiny silver strip in the horizon. Since we live right by the ocean it was very nice to get up in the high country where the sun was shining. 

I really wish everyone had a chance to experience this special place!

Enjoy the pictures J  

Para-Para-Paradise, Para-Para-Paradise

Today was absolutely beautiful! Once the sun managed to chase the fog away it started to warm up and there was no wind, which is very unusual for this part of Norway. It really felt like spring today. I walked from Brusand to Ogna and back again along the coast. The rout is one of my favorites because in includes walking on the beach, in the sand dunes, climbing mountains and not to mention the never ending gorgeous view. Doggy’s were with me as usual and although they got a little hot in the sun their energy was up and they really enjoyed their walk. They went crazy on the beach and had lots of fun running through the shallow water in one of the creaks. It's like the cold water gives them a kick! Very entertaining :)

I think I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves... Enjoy :)



Hiking in the High Country

Don't you love the feeling when spring is on its way, the air is warming up, birds are singing, flowers start blooming and the sun actually warms you again? Ahhh :)

Mom and I went hiking in the high county yesterday. The sun actually showed its face after being absent for longer than acceptable, nice to feel it has regained some power though. It felt good and warm to have the sun shining on us again and the weather and scenery couldn’t have been much better J The trail was not crowded at all, met an older couple on our way up, that’s it! Very peaceful except for mom chattering behind me, doing her best to keep up and keep talking at the same time J 

On our way we heard birds singing their song of spring. The singing birds combined with the sound of running water here and there and the wind made for perfect, relaxing background music. Other than that (and mom’s occasional babbling) there was complete silence. Not a whisper of a sound :) Ahhh...        

The beauty

Reaching our distination

Taking in the great scenery, breathing in the fresh air

Blanca knows to enjoy the scenery too

Mountains to the East and a fabulous view of the ocean to the West

Dogs Need Proper Dental Care Too

Just before Christmas last year I noticed our oldest dog Blanca (now 8) wasn’t feeling to good. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what the problem was though. To be quite honest I had been noticing her lack of energy and usual spiff for a while and voiced my suspicions about her not being her happy, healthy, usual self. I suggested having a vet look at her, but no one seemed to hear me or take my concerns seriously. Since Blanca isn’t my dog I didn’t push the matter like I should have.

I must admit I was not paying too much attention to either Blanca or Itza’s teeth. We just never thought it necessary...  And it turned out that they were infact both dealing with tooth problems. Especially Blanca! One thing I had also notices was Blanca’s BAD breath. I thought it was because she’s a dog and doggys do have doggy breath. That was not the case, tartar was the reason. Have you ever seen a dog that had very yellow'ish or even black teeth at the top where the tooth meets the gum? Well that’s tartar buildup and it can lead to increased gum disease, inflamation of the gums and, ultimately, to tooth loss! When I finally realized I should take a look at Blanca’s teeth I was disgusted, shocked, saddened, and very angry, to the point of almost being furious, at both myself and the rest my family for overlooking this issue! She must have been in so much pain, poor thing! Her gums were terribly inflamed and some of her teeth were even starting to loosen. I called the vet that same day and got an appointment for the next day to have her teeth looked at. We were worried sick because we read on the internet that this problem could lead to blood poisoning if it had gotten way to out of hand. In Blancas case we were not sure what to expect. 

At the vets the day after I could tell she wasn’t pleased to see the shape Blanca’s teeth and gums were in. Although she isn’t my dog I felt very ashamed. The results were that Blanca lost 3 of her front teeth and had to go on an antibiotic cure for 16 days to get rid of the bacterial infection and inflamation in her gums. My dog Itza also had inflamed gums, without me even being aware of it, so she also got her teeth cleaned and an antibiotic cure that lasted 8 days. Luckily she didn’t have to give up any of her teeth!

All this could have been avoided with the proper dental care. Some dogs manage fine their whole lives without. Other dogs, especially smaller breeds, need to have their teeth checked on more frequently and require that the owner also does what needs to be done to prevent these problems. 
Old dogs that have had tooth problems over a longer period tend to get very grumpy and snappish! I would to it it were me in that situation! So if your dog is grumpy, not feeling good or not acting like its usual self it could be a good idea to have its teeth checked. Dogs with healthy teeth and gums live longer, happier lives J  

- Some good rules for keeping your dog’s teeth and gums healthy are:

- Stick to dry dog food. The wet stuff makes for more tartar buildup.

- Have a vet check your dog’s teeth as soon as you suspect something might be wrong.

- Get your dog used to tooth care and brushing from he/she is a puppy.

- Give your dog chewy toys that stimulate the gums and dental sticks that forestall tartar buildup.

- DO NOT throw stones for you dog to catch in its mouth! Have seen a few terrifying examples of mouths full of broken teeth.  

Let his be a warning to every dog owner, please do not overlook you dogs dental health!

Blanca is back to her old, happy energetic self and not missing her 3 teeth to much :) Both dogs are now getting their teeth brush on a regular basis. I even use dental floss on Itza!

You can buy a lot of different stuff on amazon.com to keep you dogs detal health in check. I highly recomend the greenies and getting a tooth brush and tooth paste :)

http://astore.amazon.com/www.thingsuneed.com-20/search?node=19&keywords=greenies&preview=

http://astore.amazon.com/www.thingsuneed.com-20/search?node=19&keywords=tooth+brush&preview=

http://astore.amazon.com/www.thingsuneed.com-20/search?node=19&keywords=tooth+paste&preview=

http://astore.amazon.com/www.thingsuneed.com-20/search?node=19&keywords=chewy+toys&preview= 

Why Pescetarian?

It’s starting to get close to a half a year now since I decided to go strictly pescetarian, meaning I do not eat meat except for fish and seafood. I’d like to explain why I came to the decision after being a meat eater for over 20 years of my life.

Reason 1: I love animals and have never been comfortable with the thought of eating them. And I didn’t want to support an industry that’s based on inhuman treatment of millions of animals every year just for the benefit of chewing on something tasty... when it really isn’t necessary.

Reason 2: I did some research and became more knowledgeable about how negatively the meat (and dairy) industry affects our environment. One large pig farm in the US with a million pigs produces the same amount of waste as the city Los Angeles… In ONE day!! That’s only one farm, but it’s A LOT of waste! It's hard to believe, but it's true.


Reason 3: I don’t feel good about eating meat because I know how much resources and energy go into producing it. Resources, like grain for instance, could have been used to feed hungry mouths elsewhere, instead it is used to produce meat for people who really don’t need it. (Need and want is not the same thing) 1 kg meat = 8 kg of grain! And a lot of good could have been done with that grain! 


Reason 4: My own health and the animal’s health! In my opinion some of the worst aspects about eating meat are the hormones and antibiotics. And frankly it doesn’t come as a surprise to me that the animals need antibiotics after having witnessed their living conditions. I remember driving past a huge cattle farm in Iowa once while visiting family there. The animals were and probably still are up to their knees in their own feces. We could smell the place before we saw it! So basically they live their whole, miserable, short lives in a muck hole almost on top of each other for the lack of space, and some of them were noticeably injured and were limping. A considerable amount of their food consists of garbage, which the stores can’t sell because it has gone out on date! I mean it, I saw their “food” with my own eyes and we’re talking candy that hasn’t even been unwrapped! So they are chowing down candy wrappers… that’s just great! Shocking to say the least, and I still find myself confused about why this sort of production is even legal. Anyway I decided never to eat a burger again after that experience, unless it was a vegetarian burger, and to think twice before ordering a steak. I started asking where the meat came from before ordering... I mean the restaurants should know where their products come from, right? Yeah, trust me that was not always the case and that is BAD. There’s also the fact that meat contains unhealthy fats, more or less, that may lead to a variety of health problems.

Reason 5: I don’t see why my own life should hold more value than an animal’s life? Who gave humans the right to breed animals for the purpose of slaughter alone and misuse them and their lives in the way we do? What gave us the power to control the life and death of living, breathing, feeling creaturess? We have just taken it for granted that we are supposed to eat animals and that it's okay. I feel very differently about it.

I'd never want to eat my horse, it's unthinkable! I had to ask myself why I felt differently about eating other animals?

My reasons are many and the list could go on and on… but I don’t want to bore you :) This is not meant to criticize anyone for eating meat, I simply want to cast some light on the subject and explain my reasons for not eating meat from any land living creature. I’m not saying that everyone should become vegetarians, but I think a huge amount of people could cut down drastically on their meat intake. And perhaps more people will become more aware of how out of control the meat industry has become and how it’s affecting all of us, humans and animals. I could explain it all in detail but I feel it’s best to let everyone explore the subject on their own. But I hope some of my yabbing has made sense J

Itchy Ponnies

Now is the time of the year when our horses, who currently look more like bears, are starting to shed. Ohhh nooo! I am looking forward to them being sleek and shiny again but definitely not the shedding process! Anyway, this is what happens when it starts warming up and they get all itchy and sweaty with their thick winter coats :P

Veggie Sheperds Pie

I absolutely love this recipe! I’m sure most people associate shepherds pie with meat and lots of cheese but I’m very confident that the combination of texture and taste in this pie will make you forget all about the “missing” ingredients. And it’s no doubt a lot healthier! :) If you’re a vegetarian or simply a veggie lover this is a great dish you just have to try!

Don’t let the long list of ingredients scare you off, it’s a piece of cake!

300 g (11 oz.) kidney beans (be sure to prepare your beans on forehand if you buy them dry)

300 g (11 oz.) big white beans

1 dl (1/2 cup) green or red lentils

800 g (28 oz.) Heinz chopped tomatoes with garlic flavor. (Use regular tomatoes if you prefer less garlic taste)

3 small or 2 large carrots

1 red paprika

1 onion

3 garlic cloves

3-4 sweet potatoes

1 large cauliflower

2 celery stalks (1 is okay if you aren’t a big fan of celery)

1 red chili

150 g (5 oz.) peas

2-3 dl (1 ½ coups vegetable stock)

1/3 cup red wine

Worcestershire sauce (do not overdo)

Tabasco sauce (again do not overdo)

Balsamic vinegar
1 Rosemary twig or a tbsp. dried (the fresh gives more taste and should be taken out before the pie goes into the baking pan)

Salt

Pepper

Any other spice you want to add J


I start by putting the beans in the bottom of the pan and mixing  them together with olive oil and some balsamic vinegar. (Be sure you pan is big enough… this is a lot of food!)

Big white beans and kidney beans before the balsamic vinegar

Get your lentils cooking if you buy the dry, like I do. Peal your sweet potatoes and get them and the cauliflower cooking as well. You are going to mash both the cauliflower and the sweet potatoes so you want them pretty soft.

Chop your vegetables, whatever size you like is okay but I recommend not making the pieces to large.

Here we have our fresh vegetables :)

When you have done that drizzle some oil in a sauté pan and add the onion and garlic. It’s important that you don’t overheat the garlic; this will make it taste bitter. Add the red wine and let the onions soak it up for a couple minutes before adding the crushed tomatoes.  

Add the vegetable stock, the balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, tabasco sauce and the rest of the vegetables, except the cauliflower and sweet potatoes those are our toppings. Let the vegetables soak up the flavors for about 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste and any other spice or herbs you may want to ad!  

After letting the vegetables simmer on low heat for at least 10 minutes pour them into your baking pan over the beans. Simply spread the mashed sweet potatoes over the vegetable mix then finish of with the mashed cauliflower over the sweet potatoes. For those who want a smoother mash just add a little milk or milk substitute like soy milk or soy cream. I like putting some freshly ground pepper in the cauliflower.

Now you just have to bake the pie in the oven at 200 C or 390 F for about 20-25 minutes or until the cauliflower starts to look a bit golden. Let it cool down for at least 5 minutes before serving. And that's it :)

Decorate with some fresh parsley or celery leaves

Bon appetite J