The Bull and Thistle

I have a passion for community and economic development work. This is one aspect of my work with the Cooperative Extension Service that is relatively new to me within the past four years. I am still learning the "ins and outs" of CED work, but I want to see communities thrive, work together on common goals, and be successful in meeting their challenges, dreams, and aspirations. I love to see communities at work improving things for the well being of their citizens. Fired up communities create jobs and expand into new markets and industries. They are willing to change and be forward thinking. I love seeing communities alive and bursting with energy and excitement. When community stakeholders, government, and local citizens see their own local potential within themselves the possibilities I believe are endless! I enjoy helping and serving in whatever capacity necessary to help play my part in the process too. What about you?

I believe here in Tompkinsville we have a lot of great things going for us right now. Change is slowly happening downtown and around the county, but it is going to take time and more investments. It is time we all get fired up about the now and the future, not the past and how it has always been done before. Dreams turn into goals which when carried out develop communities and change our future. I hope that we can locally here in Tompkinsville keep this momentum going and possibly create more of a buzz. Are you willing to help? We need your help! If it takes a village to raise a child...then it is going to take an entire county plus many others to invest in our communities future. In a few weeks there is going to be a "Community Forum" on April 18th at 6:30 p.m. If you want to help be a part of the envisioning process & hear about the possibilities of our future please make plans on attending the Community Forum on April 18th. We want you there! We need you there! My future...your future...your children's future...and our communities future depend on your input and investment in Monroe County.     

Now that I'm all fired up, let me tell you the real reason why I got all excited about community and economic development today. Yesterday I got the privilege to have a family date night with my awesome parents. My mama mentioned that the "new" restaurant finally opened in Gainesboro and I just had to go. She had been giving me updates on this "new" restaurant for the past year or so...so needless to say I was excited about going. We packed up and traveled there for dinner last night and boy were we in for a treat!    

We got the opportunity to visit a community where one family had a vision and a dream to help be a part of reviving a suffering community in order put it back on the map. This community is Gainesboro, Tennessee.  The town is now hustling and bustling with new life. One whole corner of the town square just recently went through a multi-million dollar complete remodel. Gainesboro now is the home of two newly renovated buildings with a third one on its way soon. The Vault Boutique opened its doors last year and offers ladies jewelry, apparel, fashion accessories, and home décor. The Bull and Thistle, an Celtic/Irish pub & restaurant, opened its doors a few weeks ago with a five star chef from Ireland. This restaurant is one you must go check out! (This is the reason we went to Gainesboro!) And word on the street is that a bakery is in the works for the near future.

I urge you to make the drive from wherever you live and travel to Gainesboro, Tennessee. You will not be disappointed. I would recommend you call ahead and make reservations if you plan on eating at The Bull and Thistle before making the drive though. 

Here are a few photos that I took while we visited yesterday.

The main reason we traveled to Gainesboro, TN...to eat at The Bull & Thistle! Yummy! They have an awesome chef.

 

 

They have lots of antique shops around the square in downtown Gainesboro, TN. We couldn't help but stop at a few along the way!

 

 

 

Cool signage around Gainesboro, TN.

 

 

 Mama and I at dinner! We both got ready at our own houses...and we matched without ever talking about it. LOL. Like mother...like daughter.

 

 

The cool original ceiling they restored.

 

The awesome surroundings of the newly renovated restaurant. These photos do not do the building justice!

 

 

Ploughman's Lunch. This is what mama ate...she said it was good, but not exactly what she expected. I think next time when she comes she plans on her and daddy sharing the 22 oz. T-Bone Beef Entrée Special. My mama is a planner!  

 

 

Dad was a little skeptical when his "Traditional Fish and Chips" came all wrapped up in newspaper. He really enjoyed them, but this Southern Boy never had had his fish arrive in newspaper before! We were proud to see them wrapped in a local newspaper with an ad from Celina (our hometown).

 

 

I got the Bangers and Mash...it was a perfect comfort food for the Savage Girl!  

We could not leave without trying one of their delicious sounding desserts "Steamed Chocolate Fondant Pudding with hot chocolate sauce and chocolate ice cream". It was heavenly!

 

 

In closing, I hope that everyone makes a drive to Gainesboro, TN to check out what's new in their town and if you are a Monroe Countian please come to "town" and attend the Community Forum on April 18th at 6:30 p.m. at the Monroe County High School Gym. Let me know if you have any questions about either of these above mentioned topics. 

Cool link to information about this downtown renovation & community and economic development project in Gainesboro, TN.

My Water Aerobics Ritual + Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake Tutorial

A weekend ritual for me is to go to the gym and do water aerobics with my mom on Saturday mornings and then again on Sunday afternoons. This has been our little ritual for more than a year now. We also try to do this at least a few other times during the week if our schedules allow it. I enjoy taking a class every now and again also. Mom and I have our own little routine that we do in the water at the gym and this is our special mother daughter time to catch-up and fill each other in on what has been happening. We usually try to sneak in a 45 to 60 minute workout. What I love about water aerobics is that it does not even feel like you are working out while you are doing it. 

 

Water aerobics is a great exercise that is non-weight bearing, easy on the joints, resistance training, and aerobic exercise that is done in the water. Anyone can do it and it does not matter what limitations you have. It is a total body workout that helps tone and shape muscles you never knew you had before! The added bonus is that you don't sweat and I'm all about that!

 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake Tutorial

 

Today after water aerobics I decided to fix a shake for lunch. My cousin Abbie sent me this recipe a few weeks ago and I adapted it to my taste. She uses Chocolate Nesquik & ice with unfrozen banana, but either way it is a must try! Trust me...you will become addicted if you like chocolate and peanut butter.   

 



 

1/2 cup vanilla yogurt or frozen yogurt

1/2 cup skim milk

1/2 scoop slim fast chocolate drink mix

1 tablespoon peanut butter

1 frozen banana

Place all ingredients into your blender and blend until smooth and creamy.

 



 

Enjoy! It's yummy and addicting!

I calculated this to be 7 Weight Watcher Points.

Tip: Whenever you have bananas that are going bad, slice and freeze them for your next shake or smoothie.  

 

 

Do you have a ritual that you do regularly that you enjoy? Do you have a favorite shake or smoothie recipe? Please share if you do...it might motivate me to try something new! 

A Savage Girl’s Confession: 1 of My Guilty Addictions

I am addicted to Diet Coke.

This is an honest confession...seriously.  

I am a “Southern Girl” with all the southern goodness, southern charm, and southern accents you could ever want! So whenever I say “Diet Coke” I am meaning any beverage that is diet. “Coke” is the general name for any carbonated canned or bottled beverage yet “Coke-Cola” is a brand name. In the South, it is not soda, pop, soft drink, or soda pop…it is simply coke and in my case here diet coke. LOL.       

It has been 1 month and counting since I drank my last carbonated artificial sweetened calorie free drink of goodness. To be more specific and exact it has been that long since I drank any carbonated beverage unless it was in some punch secretly added without my knowledge! Tea, coffee, water, milk and lemonade have been my drinks of choice for the past month. Why you might ask? Well, this Savage Girl is trying to live healthier and make wiser lifestyle choices to improve her overall health and well-being.
 
So let me get all technical on you now. Research shows that sometimes one dietary change in one’s daily habits will decrease ones calorie intake 100 calories, which will in turn help you lose weight. There is also strong evidence that shows those individuals who drink more carbonated and sugar-sweetened beverages are heavier when compared to individuals who consume less. More research shows that non-nutritive sweeteners cause ones appetite to increase and in turn cause more calorie consumption, which would lead to weight gain. People think they can drink a diet coke and eat a piece of cake, but what we need to keep in mind that the diet coke isn’t causing us to gain weight it is everything else we are consuming with it! And yes the Savage Girl is guilty of this!  

Then there are studies where consumers lost weight drinking diet cokes. Therefore, the evidence to drink diet coke or not to drink diet coke is undecided. If you are like me and want to lose weight & have a healthier lifestyle then choose whatever drink you want but do not forget about your lifestyle, eating habits, and physical activity.

I had been hanging onto weight since Thanksgiving. Technically speaking I hit a plateau from November through February. A plateau is a stall in the weight loss journey but one should not get discouraged! Deep down I knew that in order to get back on track and lose the last 25 pounds to reach my goal I had to make a change, take charge again, and it was not going to be easy! It did not matter how much or how little food I consumer. It did not matter how much I moved or when I exercised. I was stuck so I made the big decision to cut out my “Diet Cokes” from my daily drink consumption. In addition to the research, I mentioned above, I also know that diet cokes contain sodium and artificial sweeteners, which cause fluid retention and blooding according to the FDA. I am happy to report an update on my recent health and lifestyle change…admitting to myself that I have a diet coke obsession and addiction helped me refocus and get back on the healthy lifestyle bus.
 
As of today, March 29, I have lost 50 pounds! In the last 8 weeks since I last updated the blogging world on my success I have lost an additional 7 pounds, 1 inch in my waist, 2 inches in my hips, and 1 inch in my bust while gaining a ½ inch of muscle in my arms and staying the same in my thighs. I am 3.7 points away from reaching the BMI that I desire to put me in a healthy range to avoid the chronic diseases associated with being overweight and obese. I know I cannot run from my inherited genetic pre-deposition in life but I know the choices I make can have a direct effect on my current health and future lifestyle. I know that I can not prevent the inevitable but maybe I can prolong it or lessen the affects.

Making the small change of cutting out my diet cokes I believe can be a testament to my success and moving off the plateau! It is a pleasure I miss, but I know I can do without it. We were warned in 2 Timothy 3:4 about being lovers of pleasure instead of God. In Ecclesiastes 2:1-2 we are told that pleasures, like my Diet Coke addiction, are meaningless because it does not accomplish anything. On a series note and with keeping with all those things I mentioned above...what guilty addiction or pleasure are you hiding in your closet? You might not want to blog about it like me, but maybe you need to admit and confess your addiction to yourself or maybe God…Just a thought.            

Resources:

The Power of One Dietary Change in Losing Weight

Rethink Your Drink

Are Drinks Making Us Fat

FDA

Low Calorie Sweeteners and Weight Gain...Do Diet Drinks Make You Fat?

Making Healthy Beverage Choices: What You Don't Know Can Hurt You

 

 

Service

 

 

For those of you who do not know this pledge it is the "4-H Club" pledge. I learned this pledge in the 4th grade at Celina K-8 and it has been something near and dear to my heart since. I got the opportunity to share my 4-H passion as a 4-H Youth Development Extension Agent in Franklin County, Tennessee from 2006-2009. My favorite line is "My hands to large service". Service is an act of helpful activity, help, or aid. My parents taught me this from a very young age long before I was a 4-H'er. Serving and giving is a passion of mine. I love giving back and helping others. Sometimes I have a hard time saying NO. I know Jesus says that it is better to give than to receive according to Acts 20:35. Matthew 5:16 says, "In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." I don't think God would give me more than I could handle, so I'm up for the challenge!

 

Today I got to help out a fellow Christian sister. She has been under the weather for the past few days and she asked if I could fill in for her. So I said yes! Tonight I got the opportunity to help her out and teach the teen girls class during the bible study hour. My normal teaching quarter is July-September and I've always taught elementary kids bible classes, so tonight was a little different, but I enjoyed the challenge and new opportunity to teach the teen girls class. 

 

On the agenda tonight was to start a character study of the women in the bible, so we kicked it off learning about Eve tonight. I challenged the girls to not blame others like both Adam and Eve did when they sinned and ate the forbidden fruit in the garden. I challenged them to stop the blame game and own up to their sin. "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" 1 John 1:8-9. I know that I am not perfect and I am as guilty as everyone else about playing the "blame game" of blaming others for my sins. We must own up to our sins and confess them instead of blaming our friends, parents, spouse, job, your circumstance, finances, God, etc. We can enjoy forgiveness and peace when we confess our sins. 

 

I am thankful for Eve and the possibilities that I might one day be given because of her sinful act in the garden (thinking about a future family one day...). Because of Adam & Eve and their sin we get to experience childbirth, husbands being the head of the household, hard work, labor & service, and death. These are just a few thoughts about all the future possibilities that lie ahead in life for me and possibly you...   

My Dig Deeper

One of my goals this year was to put God first in my life. This should be on every Christian’s list of priorities and goals annually…just saying, but I’m not your judge...God is. And sometimes even I need a reality check about this and lately I’ve had several check-ups on life priorities! I feel I lack in this area some so this year I wanted to focus more on my spiritual life and dig deeper into my faith and what I believe. I’m striving to become a godly follower of Christ, daughter, sister, friend, county agent, student, and one day future wife and mother if Mr. Right arrives. So to dig deeper this year I have been trying to focus more on this part of my life. To help me stay focused I thought I needed to review and check-in on what I’ve been doing thus far into the year…and no this is not to brag...it is just a self-reality check-up for myself...and I thought my blog readers out there might enjoy the read.

1. Daily Bible Reading & Devotional—This year I decided I wanted to try reading the bible in its entirety cover to cover. At the age of 28 I’ve never done this before, so I thought it was about time that I did this! I’ve started many times, but got off the band wagon. I know that reading your bible daily is an easy way to stay close to God and have Him on your mind, so I put this on my daily to do list this year. The great thing is that the scripture verses and devotional are emailed to me each day. Thus far I’ve been successful at keeping up with this!
2. Pray More—I’m trying to talk more to God each day...in the good times and the bad. 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18 says to “Pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”.
3. Attend regular worship services & bibles studies AND seek out OTHER opportunities when possible to either SERVE or BE SERVED—I'm there whenever the doors are open for services but I know that's not enough. Sometimes you need a little "extra". This weekend I got the opportunity to attend a Young Ladies Day at a local congregation here in “town”. Hannah Colley Giselbach spoke on "Mean Girls to Godly Girls" and how we are not to be overcome with evil, but overcome evil with good, Romans 12:21. This service helped to edify, uplift and rejuvenate me spiritually because of how she applied biblical girls to how we are today. It was just what I needed…at the right time in my life! I also look for ways to serve others so my eyes and ears are open of how I can be used of service. I got a lead today for something to do on Wednesday, if everything works out I'll be happy to serve someone. I’m not always the best, but I strive to be a giving person and do unto others as I would like for them to do unto me, Matthew 7:12.
4. Watch and read spiritually focused materials. The Bible mini-series on “The History Channel”—I love…I’ve been watching this on TV and it has helped bring the bible to life in motion picture like never before for me! The real bible is the inspired word of God, but this mini-series is the Hollywood take on “The Bible”. Yes, I know some things aren’t 100% accurate in the mini-series, but it’s a pretty good account of the big “highlights” in the Bible with a few mini changes. I get a magazine bi-monthly called “Christian Woman” and usually whenever it arrives I read it cover to cover…great spiritual food for the hungry. I’ve added several blogs to my rss reading list that are spiritually focused. Plus, I have been trying to read other spiritually focused books this year, check out this link to see what I’ve been reading.

 

 

So this is how I’ve been digging deeper this year. I’ve been juggling this with all my other obligations, but I feel that these simple additions to my daily routine have been wonderful! These additions have been keeping me focused on the ultimate prize…getting to heaven one day which would be the ultimate true success in life.

What spiritual focus have you set your eyes onto this year? How is your progress coming along?