The car debate is still raging. I want something that's highly fuel efficient. I need something with all-wheel or four-wheel drive. As my kids age, I really need something big enough to tote my kids, their friends and everyone's equipment. I'd say I'll have four to six passengers 80 percent of the time I drive. Occasionally, I'll need to schlep eight. And this will be our family-trip car, which means a quick accumulation of miles as we try to tour all the national parks and visit our spread-out family.

That means a big vehicle.

Worse, that means my choice won't be that fuel efficient.

I know I'm going to pay for the choice not only at the pump but also with some moral high ground. I don't particularly wish to be the SUV-driving, CO2-emitting stereotypical American.

But my needs - which are very real - seem to make the choice for me.

We've narrowed it down to about six choices: Acura MDX, Chevy Traverse, Ford Flex, Honda Pilot, Mazda CX-9, and Subaru Tribeca.  I'd like to add a Toyota to the list, but the Highlander did fairly poorly in this nifty safety pdf I found.  The vehicles listed about have at least average reliability and have great safety records (these are in the top nine percent of all vehicles).

Any advice?  I'd love to hear your opinions on the best big family car.

By now, you know I do love a big red. Cupcake fits the bill.

I snagged this bottle on sale at Sunflower Market for about $8.  Not a bad deal.  And it had a $1 off coupon for anything in the bakery.  Gotta love that kind of promotion.

This wine does have a bit of tannin nip, so beware. Yes, it's relatively smooth, but it's mostly about big fruit and the hint of coffee. You will also get a mouthful of oak, which helps to soften the tannin and keep the wine well-rounded and smooth.

We had this with the recommended filet and wine reduction - yum!  I'd definitely do this again.

I didn't know until today that chamomile is packed with calcium and magnesium, two minerals that may improve sleep.  When one is deficient, leg cramps and restlessness may occur.  My pill (which also contains a bit of zinc) is a 2:1 ration.  That's two parts calcium for every one part magnesium.  The magnesium also help the calcium absorb more readily, making it an even better choice.

I may need to start drinking more chamomile (and less wine) near bed time.

I hate to do this. I truly do. I have to take this bottle back.  It's turned. My guess is from bacteria in the cork. Whatever the reason, the wine smells and tastes like vinegar. 

Unfortunately, I am now unlikely to buy another bottle of Black Mountain. It's a sad but true phenomenon (and one that has happened more with Pinot Noir that any other grape): I won't be able to get that original taste off my palate.

I know Pinot Noir is a difficult grape to grow properly - it's needs cool evening temps but enough warmth during the day to ripen into big, juicy fruit. Because Pinot can be very finicky, I've had some incredibly wonderful bottles. When Pinot's on, it's an incredible sip. The nose is full, ripe and the tannins are so softly rounded, it's like drinking silk.  Black Mountain's did not hit that sweet spot. It didn't even come close.  That's why, Pinot Noir, you are being shuffled back down on the list. 

Montepulciano, you and Viognier and next. Please be kind. I need something great after this last experience.

This blog was part of a great tweet this morning.  How could I not like any writing book list that started with Elements of Style?  A fabulous read that I keep on hand whenever I'm at my computer. 

Here are the top 10. If you want the full 25, go to Meryl's blog post.  It's a great site.

1. The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr. and E.B.White
2. On Writing by Stephen King:
3. On Writing Well by William Zinsser 
4. Bird By Bird by Anne Mott
5. Chicago Manual of Style
6. Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg
7. The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron
8. Reading like a Writerby Francine Prose
9. If You Want to Write: A Book about Art, Independence and Spirit by Brenda Ueland
10. Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer by Roy Peter Clark

We have a restaurant nearby that I adore.  It's all whole foods - with some vegan and gluten-free options.  The chefs go to their garden each morning to create dishes based on the ripest bounty.  It's whole, it's real and it tastes marvelous.  The one drawback: it's a little pricey.

I was having this discussion with another mom the other morning (while we were at said restaurant).  Our take was that true food, nourishing food, is worth the extra cost.  That means at home and while eating out.  The biggest issue is adjusting everyone's expectation away from heavily processed, sugary, high-fat junk.  It's easy and its quick, but it is neither good for you (over the long term) nor is it going to help you realize your weight goals.

As a society, we have some decisions to make.  Fruits and vegetables do not get the same R_E_S_P_E_C_T as, say a Big Mac, but they can be more filling and definitely more nourishing.  I'm not saying you can't ever eat at a fast food joint again. I love Chick-Fil-A and will continue to crave their nuggets, but it does mean that I will try to do better each day to at healthily for my body. I only get one, and I'd really like for it to work for a few more decades.

So let me ask you: What do you want to know about quality, nourishing whole foods?  How to cook them?  What qualifies as whole foods?  How to substitute real foods for the processed, already-packaged stuff that's so prevalent in the super markets?  Together, we can make a change.  And your body will be thrilled with the results.

The display said Wine Spectator rated this bottle a 90.  The wine guy at Trader Joe's gushed about it.  For $8.99, I figured it was worth trying.  The wine was nice; the berries were very forward and round - robust even - but the finish seemed a little flat.  Both my husband and I agreed it was nice with the roasted vegetable lasagna, but I'm not sure I'd say it was stellar. 

Maybe it was aforementioned hype. 

I'd rate it good.  Quite drinkable.  In fact, we killed the bottle in one sitting - something we rarely (if ever) do.  But that might have more to do with the fact that we were eating alone.  There is something so pleasant about sipping wine and eating a meal without the constant recitation of "use your fork... wipe your mouth with your napkin, not your sleeve...yes, you have to eat your peas..."

So, yes, I'll be thinking fondly of you, Alamos Malbec. 

My husband is forever teasing me about my desire to create a healthy cookie.  He says it can't be done - and taste good. I've tried to prove him wrong for years.  Most of the time I fail.  But I made these today and they taste, well, like a chocolate chip cookie should. So it'll never be truly healthy. Sugar is still bad for you (but it, like fat, makes things taste soooo good!!!).

A note to remember: The final product is only as good as the ingredients you put into it.  I try hard to use quality organic ingredients as much as possible.
So for all you non-dairy, no wheat, health fanatics, here's a cookie you can actually eat!


1 c. brown sugar
1 c. Demora sugar
1 c. Earth balance buttery spread (get the soy-free kind, if possible)
3/4 c. almond butter
1/4  c. tahini
2 eggs
1 t vanilla
2 c. oats
2 1/2 c. whole spelt flour
1 t. salt
2 t. baking soda
8 - 12 oz. dark chocolate chunks (Whole Foods sells their 365 brand with 70% cacao)

Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit. Cream butters, sugars, eggs and vanilla.  Add baking soda, salt, oats and flour.  Mix until just blended.  Add chocolate chunks.  Drop cookies onto parchment-lined trays and cook for about 8 minutes. Cool slightly on trays then transfer to wire cooling racks.  

I get a lot of cooking magazines and emails.  I have a request of recipe writers: use less dairy! 

Why does everything from granola bars to six consecutive pasta dishes have to be full of cow's milk?  I know the dairy industry is a big one - sitting at about 187.6 billion pounds of milk each year.  That makes a lot of cheese, yogurt, whey and various percentages of cream and milk. But here's the deal: Some a 2005 Cornell University study suggests between 30 and 50 million Americans is lactose intolerant (and as we age as a nation, the percentage will go up). That doesn't include the people with a true milk allergy. 

It's very difficult to read the ingredients in everything one eats.  It's also not fun to miss out on birthday cake and ice cream.  While low-fat dairy is and will continue to be a good source of calcium for millions - especially people of Northern European descent - it sure would be nice for companies to take notice of the millions of people who cannot process the white stuff. 

My daughter told me the other day that the reason I can't remember specific details any more is because I'm loosing brain cells.  My unspoken response was that I'd done a good job killing off quite a few during college at are weekly parties.  Apparently, I didn't know the half of it.

NPR did a story this morning on how binge drinking negatively impacts white matter in the adolescent brain.  The hippocampus - the memory nodule -  is also damaged.  Binge drinking tends to make it more difficult for girls to do well in math- and engineering- related activities and tests whereas alcohol hurts boys' ability to concentrate. 

Back in May of 2009, NPR had another story stating that while overall binge drinking might be declining, the number of kids seen in the ER for alcohol-related problems was on the rise.  And the Century Council suggests that nearly 40% of eighth graders have tried alcohol.  The site has a lot of great information, which I highly recommend reading if you have a child in middle school or older because 10 million kids between 12 to 20 say they've drunk alcohol in the past month. Not surprisingly, a Center for Health Communication and Marketing at the University of Connecticut study of 2,000 15- to 26-year-olds found  that youth who saw more ads drank more. (There's a reason why advertisers pay for the TV, Internet and magazine ads, folks.)

Because the adolescent brain is still developing, abuse of alcohol can have long and detrimental impacts - perhaps permanent ones - on the mind. One of the keys to preventing drinking is being a parent.  By supervising a gathering of kids, you cut way down on their ability to access alcohol. And many kids who do drink say being grounded, having their social networking access curtailed or losing driving privileges impacts their decision to drink again. Parents also have the greatest impact on whether their kids will drink or not: That's why it's so important to talk to kids about alcohol (and drug) abuse.  Not sure where to turn or how to start the conversation?  Check out Stop Underage Drinking or Century Council.