A Healthier Dessert

Store bought ice cream desserts tend to be loaded with sugar, fat and corn syrup.  Stay away from those unhealthy options and try this homemade dessert recipe instead.

Ingredients:

1.    Popsicle molds

2.    Your favorite juice

3.    Berry of your choice

Directions:

1. Go to your local grocery store and purchase some inexpensive popsicle molds.  They are very cheap and last for a very long time. 

2. Place a berry of your choice (strawberry, blueberry, raspberry) in the mold and fill the rest with your favorite juice.  Top the mold with the plastic popsicle stick.

3.) Put the mold in the freezer for several hours.

4.) Once frozen, pour some warm water over the mold and pull out your delicious treat!

These wonderful homemade popsicles taste great and offer you and your family a healthier option for dessert.

Enjoy!

At Ryan, vehicles may be our profession, but people are our passion.

Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

 

How many times in your life have you heard the phrase, “Don’t sweat the small stuff”?  We would guess probably more times than you can count.  It is sometimes hard to see past those various “intense” moments and realize that life will go on and the sun will in fact come up tomorrow.  Letting stress control your life can increase your chance of:

·       Sleep disorders

·       Heart disease

·       Obesity

·       Weight Loss

·       Depression

·       Memory Impairment

These are just some of the negative effects.  Unfortunately, there is no way to completely eliminate stress as it will always find a way to creep back into your life.  You are better off keeping the effect of small stresses to a minimum.  People, we challenge you to smile, laugh and enjoy each one of your days.  We have one life to live; let’s relish each moment.

Have a great day!

The information on stress was gathered from the attached Mayo Clinic site.

At Ryan Motors, vehicles may be our profession, but people are our passion.

Bleach It! Helpful Household Tips

Hey everyone, it’s time to take out that bleach and start using it outside of the laundry room.  Bleach is cheap and can be very helpful around the house.

·        Sanitize Garden Tools- Wash your garden tools with ½ cup of bleach and 1 quart of water.  This mixture will help keep any garden diseases from spreading.

·        Clean Butcher Blocks and Countertops- Dilute 1 teaspoon of bleach with 2 liters of water.  Dip a brush in the mixture and scrub in small circles.  Wipe clean with damp paper towel then a dry towel.

·        Keep the Flowers- Increase the life of your flowers by mixing ¼ teaspoon of bleach per liter of water in the vase.

·        Brighten up Your Glasses- Adding a teaspoon of bleach to your normal dishwashing mix can increase the sparkle of your glasses.

·        Sterilize Items- Make sure that the items are waterproof.  Mix ¾ cups of bleach, a dash of antibacterial dishwashing liquid and a gallon of warm water.  Rinse the items in the mixture and let them air dry in the sun.

·        Kill Walkway Weeds- This spring pour some bleach on any weeds that are in your sidewalk cracks.  In a few days you should be able to pull them right out.  Be sure not to get any bleach on your lawn.

There are more great uses for bleach at the following Reader’sDigest site where this information was gathered.

At Ryan, vehicles may be our profession, but people are our passion.

Fun and Easy Arts and Crafts for the Kids: Handprint Tree

The cold January weather can make it difficult for kids to go out and play, so we found a fun activity for those bitter days.  Not only are these easy to make, but they are inexpensive:

The List:

1.      1 sheet light blue construction paper

2.      1 sheet white copy paper

3.      Brown acrylic craft paint

4.      Glue stick

5.      Scissors

6.      3 tablespoons granulated sugar

Directions:

1.      Lay white paper sideways (landscape) and cut the paper in half using a curvy cut. Place paper across the light blue construction paper. Use the glue stick to attach it to the bottom third of the blue paper. Use scissors to trim off any excess white paper.

2.      Paint child's palm and fingers with brown paint. Have child spread out his/her fingers then press his/her palm and fingers down onto the paper. Wash off child's hand.

3.      Use finger to paint on a "tree trunk" under the palm print.

4.      Use the glue stick to apply glue to the fingers (branches) and snow (white paper). Sprinkle all glued areas with granulated sugar. Carefully lift paper and tap off excess sugar over the sink or a piece of wax paper.

5.      Use glue stick to draw dots or small circles onto the blue paper, sprinkle with sugar again and tap off excess.

Have fun!

This information was gathered from the following site.

At Ryan, vehicles may be our profession, but people are our passion.

Quick Chicken and Rice Dinner

Are you in a crunch and need to put dinner on the table?  We can help!  This chicken and rice recipe tastes great and is easy to make. 

Ingredients:

·         1 1/2 pounds skinned and boned chicken breasts

Click to see savings

·         2 (8.8-ounce) pouches ready-to-serve long-grain rice

·         4 bacon slices, diced

Click to see savings·         1/2 cup chopped onion

Click to see savings·         1/2 cup frozen green peas, thawed*

·         1 (4-ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained

·         3/4 teaspoon salt

·         1/4 teaspoon pepper

·         Garnish: fresh parsley sprigs

Directions:

1.      Cut chicken into 1/4-inch slices, and set aside.

2.      Heat rice according to package directions; set aside.

3.      Sauté bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat 8 minutes or until crisp; remove bacon with a slotted spoon, reserving 1 tablespoon drippings in skillet.

4.      Sauté onion in hot drippings in skillet 3 minutes or until tender. Stir in chicken, and sauté 8 minutes or until chicken is done. Stir in rice, bacon, peas, and next 3 ingredients; cook, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Garnish, if desired.

5.      *4 ounces (about 1 heaping cup) snow peas may be substituted for green peas. Microwave snow peas and 1/4 cup water in a microwave-safe bowl 2 minutes before adding to chicken mixture. Proceed with recipe as directed.

6.      Note: For testing purposes only, we used Uncle Ben's Original Long Grain Ready Rice.

This recipe was found from the following website.

Enjoy!

At Ryan, vehicles may be our profession, but people are our passion.

The Awesome Q-Tip: Helpful Household Tips

The helpful household tip of the week is focused around the famous Q-tip.  The small cotton swab on a stick has been around since the 1920’s and it still graces the bathroom of most houses.  What are Q-tips mainly used for?  Makeup application and removal, cleaning ears (even though it is not recommended) and other general bathroom uses top the list but hold on, they aren’t done yet!  Q-tip usage extends far past the bathroom, including:

·       Candle-Lighter- If the wick on your candle is burned out, dip the end of a Q-tip in rubbing alcohol, light the end and you can now reach that burnt down wick.

·       Dust Buster- Use a Q-tip to dust the creases and cracks of a picture frame or statue.

·       Zipper Un-sticker- Is your zipper stuck?  Dip that cotton end in olive oil and rub on the zipper for an easy zip.

·       Tech Cleaner- Q-tips can be used to clean CDs, DVD players, cameras and computers.

·       Kid Paintbrush- It is obvious; kids make a mess when painting, so they might as well use a brush that you can throw away.  Use a Q-tip to eliminate a mess.

·       Painless Face Paint- Try a Q-tip when applying face paint to your child.  The cotton should glide nicely.

These tips were found on the following site where more uses can be found.

At Ryan, vehicles may be our profession, but people are our passion.

2013: The Year for You

What a year! 2012 was filled with an abundance of exciting news including the supposed “end of the world.” We are sure glad that did not happen! What else stands out from 2012? Barack Obama was re-elected to his second term as president, the Olympics were held in London, the San Francisco Giants won the World Series, Justin Bieber released his 3^rd album and Adrian Peterson came within 9 yards of breaking the single season rushing record. The list goes on and on as it truly was a great year. Now is the time for most of us to make, and eventually break, our New Year’s resolutions. If you have some time, we would like to extend the following challenge to you: take some time for yourself this year. We are often trapped in the hustle of everyday life that we forget to do something fun, or simply take 20 minutes to do whatever makes us happy. Enjoy each day of this new year. The staff at Ryan Motors wants to wish you the best for the 2013 year.

At Ryan, vehicles may be our profession, but people are our passion.