DDPP - 80 minutes of unleashed dancing glory!

When I was in Minneapolis last week for Kari's graduation from the U, Lindsay (alias DJ Lux) took me with her to Dance Dance Party Party (DDPP) for a fun night.  It's held every Thursday night - and here's the deal:  No booze, no boys, no judgement (especially no judging yourself!) and no talking.  

Just 80 minutes of unleashed dancing glory.   It was great exercise and tons of fun.  What a great group of dancing gals who I look forward to seeing again in June!   

Like Daughter, Like Mother

Posted on May 7, 2010 by ddpptwincities

It’s almost Mother’s Day. Some people buy their moms flowers, others take them out for a nice dinner. But DJ Lux decided to give her mom a big bouquet of booty shakin’.

That’s right; tonight DJ Lux came with Mama Lux in tow. And you know what? The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree; Mama Lux shook it, both by herself and with her daughter (which was freakin’ adorable!). I’m so proud of her, I was thinking of getting this tattoo to commemorate her awesomeness:

And it only got better, because DJ Lux cranked out another 80 minutes of incredible dance tunes. Some were shout outs to her mom, and all of them got us ladies in the groove. So ladies, if you want to give your mom something special, give her the gift of dance. Thanks again, DJ Lux! You are a three-scoop sundae of wonderful!

Tune in next week, when we have special Chicago DDPP DJ Sex Frosting working the tables. Not only that, but DJ Lux’s sister and dance vet extraordinaire, Kari, will be making a final appearance before she leaves us for Honduras. Let’s show them a warm welcome and fond goodbye next week!

Until then, the mix any mother would be proud of:

Filed under: Uncategorized

Strawberry Blueberry Trifle - it's a celebration!

I originally posted this almost a year ago to the day, but feel it needs repeating as we head into Memorial Day weekend and summer picnics. This is an excellent choice to make for friends and family! Enjoy the holiday and God Bless!

Festive Angel Food & Berry Dessert

We made this gorgeous and delicious recipe for my daughter-in-law's wedding shower and it was of course a huge hit. I've been looking high and low for the actual recipe and can find it nowhere, so here's a picture and the ingredients are to the best of my recollection. I do remember that we used SF, FF Vanilla pudding that day because we were unable to find the SF, FF White Chocolate Pudding at the store. I also remember that we doubled the recipe and then forgot to layer the pudding/cool whip as often as we were supposed to. With this recipe I believe you can't go wrong - layer it as much or as little as you'd like and it will be a hit! Be sure to use a clear bowl because as you can see part of the fun is in the presentation of this one.

1 Angel Food Cake cubed
Strawberries - may want to slice or quarter depending on size of berry
Blueberries
Tub of Cool Whip - I always use the fat-free one
1 package sugar-free, fat-free white chocolate instant pudding mix
3 cups skim milk
(Remember we doubled the above ingredients to fill the punch bowl pictured above)

Prepare the pudding according to the package. Cube the cake, wash and prep the berries. Start layering with pudding first and then the other ingredients. Repeat the layers as many times as you can and finish with cool whip and a couple "perfect" berries to top it all off.

Enjoy!

Update: My wonderful daughter-in-law had the official recipe handy and here it is!

Strawberry Blueberry Trifle

3 C. fat free skim milk
2 oz ff sf instant white chocolate pudding mix
1 pound angel food cake
3 C. strawberries
3 C. blueberries
8 oz light whipped topping

In a bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix for two minutes or until slightly
thickened. Place a third of the cake cubes in a trifle bowl or 3 1/2 qt.
serving bowl. Top with a third layer of the pudding, 1 C. sliced strawberries,
1 1/2 C. blueberries and a third of whipped topping. Top with remaining cake,
pudding strawberries, blueberries and topping. Garnish with quartered
strawberries. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

"I tore up 4 miles of single track!"

I tried something yesterday that I have never done before. I went Mountain Biking! Check one more thing off my "fun-things-to-do-list". It was way fun and I'm looking forward to going again!

My younger brother is big into Mountain Biking so when he came to town to visit yesterday I grabbed the chance. The weather was gorgeous, we loaded up and went out to the Reforestation Camp. The trails are well marked and we rode about 4 miles of trail winding in and out through the woods. It was great! Very invigorating.

I'm learning the lingo - single track is when there is a single groove for you to ride on through the woods. Double track is more the style that a car could drive on and two bikes can ride side by side.

I found out that I'm more comfortable going up hill instead of down...I decided that's the control freak in me. I was careful. I didn't want to kiss a tree.

I'm a little sore today. It feels good - after all, I tore up 4 miles of single track.

Angel Food Delight!

Festive Angel Food & Berry Dessert

We made this gorgeous and delicious recipe for my daughter-in-law's wedding shower and it was of course a huge hit. I've been looking high and low for the actual recipe and can find it nowhere, so here's a picture and the ingredients are to the best of my recollection. I do remember that we used SF, FF Vanilla pudding that day because we were unable to find the SF, FF White Chocolate Pudding at the store. I also remember that we doubled the recipe and then forgot to layer the pudding/cool whip as often as we were supposed to. With this recipe I believe you can't go wrong - layer it as much or as little as you'd like and it will be a hit! Be sure to use a clear bowl because as you can see part of the fun is in the presentation of this one.

1 Angel Food Cake cubed
Strawberries - may want to slice or quarter depending on size of berry
Blueberries
Tub of Cool Whip - I always use the fat-free one
1 package sugar-free, fat-free white chocolate instant pudding mix
3 cups skim milk
(Remember we doubled the above ingredients to fill the punch bowl pictured above)

Prepare the pudding according to the package. Cube the cake, wash and prep the berries. Start layering with pudding first and then the other ingredients. Repeat the layers as many times as you can and finish with cool whip and a couple "perfect" berries to top it all off.

Enjoy!

Update: My wonderful daughter-in-law had the official recipe handy and here it is!

Strawberry Blueberry Trifle

3 C. fat free skim milk
2 oz ff sf instant white chocolate pudding mix
1 pound angel food cake
3 C. strawberries
3 C. blueberries
8 oz light whipped topping

In a bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix for two minutes or until slightly
thickened. Place a third of the cake cubes in a trifle bowl or 3 1/2 qt.
serving bowl. Top with a third layer of the pudding, 1 C. sliced strawberries,
1 1/2 C. blueberries and a third of whipped topping. Top with remaining cake,
pudding strawberries, blueberries and topping. Garnish with quartered
strawberries. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

Strawberry Cheesecake Bites

Strawberry Cheesecake Bites

8 oz package fat free cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup powdered sugar

2 tsp lemon juice

44 medium strawberries, whole

1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs

In a small mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar and lemon juice until smooth and creamy, set aside. Using a paring knife, hollow out the top of each strawberry to a depth or approximately 3/4". Gently fill each with cream cheese mixture using a pastry bag just slightly above the tops. Place them on a cookie sheet as you do this. Once all of the strawberries are filled, dip each top into the graham cracker crumbs and place back onto the cookie sheets. Place the cookie sheets into the refrigerator and leave them for a few hours or overnight to completely chill.

4 strawberries= 1 point
Thanks to Deb for this one!

Lindsay and Her Mix It Match It Cookbook

The following excerpt comes from Lindsay's (my daughter) blogspot. Enjoy!

February 23, 2008

Adventures in Cooking

I tried making a new recipe from the cookbook Mom gave me for Christmas - this one is Crunchy Peanut Noodles with Tofo (altered).



It's a homemade peanut sauce, which was the reason I wanted to make it in the first place. I love peanut sauce, but it's really fattening so making my own sauce allowed it to be a lot healthier. I used reduced sodium soy sauce instead of regular and low fat creamy peanut butter as opposed to regular (plus I like crunchy so I had to buy new pb anyway). It's got green onions, red pepper, and cucumber. It's also supposed to have cilantro, but Trader Joe's didn't have any, which I consider a blasphemy. It's pretty good, but I'd have to say that instead of the green onions the recipe suggested, I'd put some other vegetable in. I also didn't put any tofo in, but I'd bet chicken or beef works as a substitute as well. Consider it should also have the delicious cilantro flavor, I'm excited to try it again. I still have left over peanut sauce, so I'm going to play around with that in the upcoming days as well. But I'm definitely leaving out the green onions next time, which also begs the question of what I'm going to do with the large pack of green onions I bought - another disappointing thing about Trader Joe's.

Making the sauce

Cut up vegetables and finished peanut sauce

Assembly of the noodles and vegetables, waiting for sauce.

I was cooking while I listened to music I have to do a presentation about on Wednesday. I'm presenting on Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald, so it was pretty fun listening to jazz and the scatting while I cooked. I'd recommend it to anyone.

Waterfall Tour via Snowshoes

'In the solitude of a winter landscape you might expect the sound of falling water to be absorbed by the cushioning buffer of a carpet of snow. But what you hear actually is more pronounced, due, perhaps, to the absence of much competition save for the faint clomp of your snowshoes.'

I was so intrigued as I read the above excerpt while researching snowshoeing! Can you see yourself tromping along through the snow with the reward being a beautiful waterfall tucked back in the woods? I want to go there.... I'm going to go there!

It's so very appealing that I MUST share this golden nugget with you! Check it out at TravelWisconsin.com.

Several years ago, we traveled to many of the waterfalls on the tour during the summer months and it was a blast. We took along a picnic lunch and it was great fun, so if you are unable to make it during the winter... it's a great summer activity also.

(Feeling stressed? A day in a place like this will help! Can't physically go today? Then close your eyes, take a few deep breaths releasing slowly and imagine yourself there. The mini vacation can be a great tool to expel pent up emotions and energy.)

The Fun List

Here it is... The Fun List that I've been telling you about! Whether you are trying to fill 10 minutes or a whole day I'm sure you'll find some great ideas to help you stay excited about life and to avoid eating due to boredom.

(Many thanks to Wanda for sharing the bulk of the list and to the members of my meetings this week for brainstorming several additions.)

Physical

• Archery
  
• Balance Ball
• Basketball
• Backpacking
• Bike around your local university campus
• Bike ride
• Billiards
• Bodysurfing
• Bouldering
• Bowling
• Bungee jumping
• Canoeing
• Croquet
• Cross country skiing
• Dance lessons
• DDR dance off
• Dog – walk, play fetch, etc
• Double Dutch jump rope
• Downhill skiing
• Enter an adventure race
• Fencing (the sport, not the act of building one)
• Firing range
• Fishing
• Fly a kite
• Frisbee golf
• Go hang gliding
• Go to a waterslide
• Go to the playground
• Golf
• Handball
• Hiking
• Hockey
• Hot-air balloon ride
• Ice skating
• Jet Skiing
• Jog at sunset
• Jumping off sand dunes
• Jumping rope
• Kayaking
• Kickboxing
• Kitchen Dancing
• Lacrosse
• Laser tag
• Learn a new sport
• Mall Walking
• Marathon
• Master’s swim practice
• Motorcycling
• Mountain biking
• Mud football
• Night Swimming
• Organize a flag football game
• Paintball
• Paragliding
• Pick up Basketball game
• Pilates
• Ping Pong game!
• Platform diving
• Play Frisbee at night
• Play hopscotch
• Play in Waterfall
• Play on the beach
• Race in a regatta
• Racquetball
• Repelling
• Ride a horse
• River rafting
• Rock climbing
• Roller skating, roller blading
• Rowing
• Running
• Sailing
• Samurai sword fighting
• Scuba diving
• Sculling
• Skeet shooting
• Skydiving
• Sledding
• Snow shoeing
• Snowboarding
• Soccer
• Softball
• Spelunking
• Surfing
• Swimming
• Swing on a swing
• Tai Chi in the park
• Take a moonlight bike ride, cross-country ski or walk
• Tap dancing
• Team sports
• Tennis
• Tobogganing
• Toilet Paper Dancing
• Train for and enter a triathlon
• Treadmill
• Ultimate Frisbee
• Volleyball
• Walking – Trails, Neighborhood, Mt.Bay Trail
• Water-skiing
• Weight lifting
• Windsurfing
• Yoga
• Ziplining
  
• Zumba
  

Alone

• Baking Bread
  
• Bubble bath
• Build a fire and watch the flames
• Build something
• Call a friend
• Chat rooms and IMs
• Color hair
• Crank up some music
• Crochet or knit
• Curl up with small book that you can read in an hour
• Dance
• Daydream
• Do some woodwork
• Embroider
• Garden
• Go for a walk
• Great music to groove to/ clean to
• Hang a bird feeder & watch
• Have breakfast in the morning sunshine
• Keep a sketchbook
• Learn to knit
• Leather tooling
• Listen to Christmas music
• Listen to music outdoors
• Make a “100 things I want to do” list
• Make Jewelry
• Makeover
• Manicure
• Meditation
• Nap
• Nap outside
• Online puzzles
• Origami
• Paint
• Pedicure
• Pet your pet
• Photography
• Play an instrument
• Play the piano
• Play Wii
• Prepare a great salad
• Read
• Refinish an antique
• Rent a great movie
• Research your family tree
• Scrapbook
• Sew
• Sing
• Sketch or draw a landscape
• Star gazing
• Start quilting
• Take a mud bath
• Take photos
• Watch a comedy
• Watch a foreign film
• Write
• Write a letter
• Write a movie script or book
• Write some poetry
• Write songs

With another

• Ask a grandparent about their wedding day or some of their most favorite fun moments
• Attack a household chore as a team then go out and celebrate as a team
• Board games with friends you haven’t seen recently
• Bunko night with friends
• Family games: Tag, hide and seek, kick the can
• Film a movie short
• Fly a kite with a kid
• Fondue Dinner Party
• Geocaching
• Go for a walk
• Go to breakfast or lunch with a friend
• Have a bonfire and roast marshmallows with friends
• Have dinner with old people you know
• Hugs from people you love
• Ice Cream Party
• Meet someone for a picnic
• Murder Mystery Party
• Play cards
• Play in a Band
• Play Twister
• Play Wii
• Puppet show
• Scavenger hunt
• Sex
• Sing in a small group or chorus
• Stage a gallery show
• Teach a class
• Teach a skill to someone else
• Throw a huge party
• Water Balloon fight

Purchases

• Buy new towels or sheets
• Get some flowers for yourself
• Jewelry
• New clothing
• New lipstick or perfume
• Paint something in your house
• Replace socks and underthings
• Visit a new restaurant

Service

• Babysit someone you love
• Family History Research
• Missionary Splits
• Read to children in the hospital
• Take lunch to a friend at work or an older relative or neighbor
• Volunteer: Red Cross, museum, 10K, etc.
• Worship
  

Out of the house

• Antique shopping
• Attend a concert
• Attend a lecture or book signing
• Attend a musical
• Attend a sporting event
• Audition for a play
• Bird watching
• Botanical Garden
• Celebrate an unusual holiday
• Eat your dinner on the beach or by a lake
• Escape to a Bed & Breakfast
• Feed the ducks at the park
• Foot massage
• Get a book on tape to keep in your car
• Get a great book list and check out 3 books from the library
• Get a haircut
• Get a massage
• Go camping
• Go on a trip
• Go out to dinner
• Go rummage sale shopping
• Go sketching downtown
• Go to a comedy improve
• Go to an Oprah taping
• Go to the all night drive in
• Go to the museum
• Gourmet cooking class
• Historical Tour
• Karaoke
• Oxygen Bar
• Pick a favorite place to watch the sunset or sunrise and go there often
• Planetarium
• Play Chess in the park
• Poetry reading (presenter or attendee)
• Read the newspaper at a park
• Rest under your favorite tree
• Road trip!
• Send a message in a bottle
• Shop for new foods
• Spa day
• Take a dance class
• Take a home improvement class
• Take a new class at the Y
• Take a pottery class or other university class
• Travel to a new state or country
• Visit a circus
• Visit a park or conservancy
• Visit a rodeo
• Visit the zoo
• Volunteer for a charity
• Walk the trails at the nearest state park
• Watch a race (regatta, etc.)
• Waterfall Tour

Geocaching!

Just learned tonight about Geocaching and it sounds like a fun way to move more and get some exercise in an entertaining way. Check it out:

What is Geocaching? (You pronounce it Geo-cashing, like cashing a check.)

Geocaching is an entertaining adventure game for GPS users. Participating in a cache hunt is a good way to take advantage of the wonderful features and capability of a GPS unit. The basic idea is to have individuals and organizations set up caches all over the world and share the locations of these caches on the internet. GPS users can then use the location coordinates to find the caches. Once found, a cache may provide the visitor with a wide variety of rewards. All the visitor is asked to do is if they get something they should try to leave something for the cache.

Find out more about it at Geocaching.com