Life's Adventures continues on......

2012 was certainly a crazy and busy year for this chica and 2013 is already been a whirlwind of craziness as well.  During the summer, I will be doing my recertification for my Wilderness First Responder (WFR) course, as well as continuing teaching Pet CPR, First Aid and Pet Care Classes.

I never thought I would say this, but my son, Justin and I have something in common to talk about now......medicine/medical issues.  It's ironic, I now turn to him when I have questions on medical issues and he seems to get really excited when explaining the medical world to me.  In fact, 5 years ago I would have never thought in my wildest dreams of pursuing anything in the medical field, let alone learning animal and human medical medicine. 

Learning about the different medical issues that pertain to animals and humans can be quite tricky when learning vital signs for a human vs. a dog/cat, for example.  Did you know that a normal pulse for a cat is 225+?  I think that's because cats can get so crazy agitated in such a short time, but that's a resting pulse.

As a hiker since 2004, I decided to take my first Wilderness First Aid course, so I could help other hikers that were distressed on the trail.  Who knew that very first class would take me to where I am today.  Growing up, I thought I wanted to be a veterinarian, but decided against it when I witnessed my equine vet do knee surgery on my horse and I thought I was going to pass out.  I am still not gung-ho about seeing my own blood, but show me a person with blood oozing out of all their pores and I am okay with that....funny huh?

I have several certifications in medical, as well as rescue, that it's time to bite the bullet and finally go for my EMT Certification this year.  I will start classes in August, which means very early morning and late night studying and really getting no sleep.  This had actually been on my list to do in 2010, but life got in the way and it's time that this 52-year-old female (no, you're never too old, according to Justin) grew in her medical knowledge.  As a WFR (think of an Wilderness EMT), I can make a splint out of anything I can find out in the wilderness (think McGyver) as well as deal with hypothermia or hyperthemia and other issues.  

Justin seems to think I should work for an ambulance company part-time with my certification, but I just want it to increase my knowledge and who knows perhaps I will do more in the medical field.

Day 43/181 Days / 6-Months 600-Mile Challenge

Day 43 Training Adventure:

I am on day 43 of my 181/6-Month 600-Mile Challenge.  Before I even begin, I am sure some of you are asking yourselves, “Really, Teri Ann…. 600-Miles, I think you have lost your mind.”  If any of you know anything about AZ, the best time to do outdoor activities is between November and April.  This challenge is quite easy.  For example, last year’s challenge was 100-Miles per month, still bringing the total to 600-Miles by the end of April.  However, I decided to change it up a little, by having the grand total challenge of 600-Miles.  This way, one of us could only do 50 miles in one month, but be able to make up for the missing miles in the upcoming months. 

I am sure your other question is, what’s in it for those that make this challenge?  Well, gratification for one and knowing that you did an awesome job in completing this goal.  Plus, I will be having a nice dinner party with those that completed the challenge and giving away door prizes. 

At this moment, this challenge is only for my group, “AZ Hiking Gals”.  There are 15 of us in the group, very small.  I think there is only four that have committed to this challenge, but hoping others will join in.

I am preparing for the Iron Girl 10-Miler Race on Sunday in Fountain Hills.  My friend, Angela, and I will be taking on this challenge.  In November, Angela and I completed the Women’s ½ Marathon in 3 hrs & 22 minutes and 25 seconds with a 15:30 minute/miles.  We actually beat our goal for this event (3.5 hours) and were excited that we were able to keep up with that pace.

Today’s training hike was #3 this week.  I hiked Bear Mountain in Sedona on Sunday (4.75 miles with over 3,100 feet elevation gain); Mormon Trail-Hidden Valley Trail-National Trail-Mormon Loop Trail; and a secret trail in South Mountain that I completed today.  Yes, I have trails that I keep secrete.  They are only for the fit and still kick my butt.  The mileage ranges from 2.75 to 6 miles with quite a bit of elevation gain that will get your heart pumping and you wishing that you had those oxygen masks that they use on Everest (just kidding….but not really).

My hike gained 1,000 feet in just .95 miles and then on a scary-ass ridgeline that had these crazy steep descent sections, that it made me glad that I was not scared of heights.  However, there was a little twist to the hike.  A storm was coming into the valley and there were crazy, gusty winds up on the ridgeline so bad that I thought it was going to blow me off the mountain.  In fact, at one point, if I wasn’t sitting my butt down on the trail bracing myself, I actually ducked into a boulder cropping area and praying if there were any snakes in there with me that they be very quiet and let me just sit for a moment.  I finally continued on the trail and actually had to take my hat off because of the forced winds. Did I say it was crazy on the ridgeline?  I finally made it down to the third trail on this loop and once I turned west, the mountainside was to the south of me, keeping the wind from me.  I decided to do some trail running at this point because I had to fight my way up the trail and ridgeline that I didn’t get any running in until this point.

Tomorrow’s Adventure:  Biking (easy) and perhaps Zumba

Scrambled Tofu & Veggies (Gluten-Free Vegan)

Tofu Scrambled – Gluten-Free/Vegan

One of my favorite breakfast items and very filling:

Serving: 1 (add more to make 2+ servings)

Ingredients:

Sprouted Super Firm Tofu

100% Corn Tortillas (2)

Peppers (Green/Red/Yellow)

Onions (White/Red)

Red Potatoes (I boil these the day before)

Mushrooms

Soy Sauce (Gluten-Free)

Chopped up ingredients and place in skillet or wok.  You can actually add whatever vegetables you like to this recipe.  This is a very healthy recipe for all to enjoy.

New Adventure: Dealing with Migraines & becoming a Gluten-Free Vegan

I've been a Vegetarian for over 20 years, and on May 15th of this year, I decided to go 100% Vegan.  I don't like the taste of milk and rarely use eggs, so those were easy to give up.  However, giving up cheese has been the toughest.  I know they have Vegan Cheese, but it's just not the same you know 

:-)  

I am also a migraine sufferer since the age of 13-years-old.  I still remember my first episode like it was yesterday.  I was riding home on the school bus and was preparing for a choir concert that evening.  While riding home, I felt funny and my vision started getting blurry.  After arriving home, I called my mom at work and she rushed home.  Apparently, she had spoken to the doctor and realized that I was suffering from a migraine, like my father had for several years.  She had to help me dress into my PJ's because my hands were so numb that I was unable to hold them to dress myself.  She also gave me something for my stomach because along with the numbness and blurry vision, I was now throwing up.  Gosh, I can't believe it's been almost 39 years since that first episode.  Throughout the years since then, I have had good months and also horrible months with several migraine attacks.  They are normally not as bad as my first one, but I occasionally still suffer numbness, blurry vision, and upset stomach.  It's the headache part that is getting worse and worse.  Sometimes the headache will be above one eyeball or both, which really sucks.

Last week, I had one of the worse migraine attacks in a long time.  For over 4 days, I suffered with a horrific headache over both eyeballs and laying down made it worse.  No matter how much Tylenol and Ibuprofen I took, it wasn't making it go away.  People say to try this migraine medication or that migraine medication.  However, for migraine medication to really work, and believe me I've tried several brands, you must take it on the onset of the attack, which is hard at times.

My sister, Tami, who also suffers from horrible headaches, suggested that I might want to cut out my Gluten, which has helped her tremendously with her stomach issues and headaches.  My first thought was that I just became a Vegan and now you want me to become Gluten-Free?  How on earth was I going to do that?  I was very excited that Boca burgers have a line of Vegan products, but once I read the labels carefully all of them contain Wheat, which is Gluten.  Rye and Barley is also considered Gluten.  There is a Meat-Less Gluten-Free/Soy Free product, but it contains eggs.  Speaking of eggs....did you know eggs are not considered Dairy?  My first thought on that was....why they in the dairy case then LOL!!  

Before I decided to officially become a Gluten-Free Vegan, I wanted to do my research on this subject.  I was amazed on the articles that I found linking Gluten to Migraines.  This is the best article that I found so far:

Migraines and Gluten

I learned that a lot of migraine sufferers had an intolerance to wheat, so perhaps my sister was correct, but I still didn't want to go that route because of the less choices I would have as a Vegan.  However, last night I decided to put it to the test and be a rebel.  I went Vegetarian last night and ate a large Macaroni and Cheese Dinner.  Well, Moose (a dog that I am caring for) & I did.  I ate way too much and went to bed early.  At 4:00 a.m., I woke up with a horrific headache over my left eyeball.  It was so intense that I immediately took 4 Tylenols and had to sleep sitting up because of the intense pain.  Even though the headache has calm down a bit, it's still there.  So, perhaps my sister and the research is correct.  

As of today, I am now a Gluten-Free Vegan.  I found a cookbook "The Gluten-Free Vegan 150 Recipe Cookbook from Amazon:

Gluten-Free Vegan Cookbook

I learned last night, while shopping, that it takes a long time to read all the label ingredients on the box for Gluten items.  I ended up purchasing some Gluten-Free Hot Cereal and Gluten-Free Pasta.  I had the Gluten-Free pasta, along with vegetables, for lunch today and it wasn't too bad.  I think, however, I am going to have to make my meals from scratch (thus, the reason for the cookbook), which is healthier for you anyways.

So, now the fun begins....can't wait to go out to eat at a restaurant.  I do know that most of them now carry Gluten-Free menus with all ingredients listed, so that will be a help.  I will post an update on my new adventure in two weeks.

My sister's stupid bull Romeo goes LOCO

My sister had surgery this morning, so I am taking care of her animals while she is in the hospital as well as when she comes home to recover. As I was walking towards the horse area to prepare their feed, I heard our wonderful coyote family out in the south pasture doing their feeding frenzy call. I was a little concerned that they were down from South Mountain in the daylight, plus the fact that our older cow Suzi is having issues with walking and was afraid that they had cornered her and took her down.

I began walking through the middle pasture that would lead me to the south pasture. Our bull, Romeo, greeted me and I continued walking. Romeo is a young bull that has been fixed & dehorned since he came from a petting zoo, so he’s always been gentle with children and all of us. As I made my way through some trees and brushes I could tell I was getting closer to the pack, but all of a sudden I heard running and turned around and saw Romeo coming straight at me.

My first thought was that this is weird, why is he acting funny. He was running and bucking. He stopped a couple feet in front of me and just stared at me. I said, what the heck is up with you, you silly boy? I began turning around to continue walking when I heard him pawing the ground. I turned around to face him again and realized he had his head down, while pawing the ground. I knew instantly what that meant. All of a sudden he charges me and head butts me in my front LQ and slams me against the fence. It literally took the breath out of me. As I was trying to catch my breath, I put my arm up in his face hoping that would deter him away from me and began side-stepping, but not before he head butted me in the side/back area making me fall. I had to do a double-roll to get away from his hooves. So, now not only was I covered in cow poo & stickers and grass but my heart was beating a 1,000 x’s a minute.

I jumped on my feet and began backing away again when Romeo starting pawing the ground & I ran and jumped over these steel beams that were holding up the garage. He slammed into the bean and just looked at me. My heart was pounding so hard at this point and I was literally stuck in the middle of a pasture with a crazy bull. I kept yelling at him to get away, but he just didn’t seem to want to listen to me. I looked up and saw Suzi in between the fields and told her to come get this crazy man of hers. She just stood there. At least I knew she was safe from the coyotes. Not only was this bull crazy at the moment but also he was smart. All of a sudden, he walked around the beams and began walking into my safety zone….OH SHIT!!!!

I ducked under the garage and began crawling to the other side where I knew my BIL, David, had a truck. I ran towards the back of the truck and jumped on the back of it. Believe it or not, Romeo came running over to the back end and just stood starring at me. At this time, I was so upset, shaking, and trying not to break into tears because I knew that I had to stay calm, I reached into my pocket to call David. My intent was to tell him to come rescue me out of his pasture because his bull had become loco. However, that was not to be. You see, my cell phone was not in my pocket. In fact, it was in my SUV. I had broken my #1 safety rule….always carry your cell with you. But, hey how was I to know that doing a simple thing for my sister was going to end up with my life in jeopardy.

As I stood there trying to calm down, I heard crackling below me and saw Cesar (Dawn’s puppy dog) running up to me. I thought, MY HERO. He began barking at Romeo and he began backing away from him. I thought this would be a good time to sneak away. As Cesar kept him busy, I began stepping away. Unfortunately, with every step I took, the branches/leaves would crack beneath my feet & Romeo’s attention would be back on me.

However, my hero continued to bark around Romeo, which made him spin away from me, allowing me to run full force towards the pig area. I could hear Romeo running behind me, but I didn’t care, I was determined to get to a safe spot. I lunged over the back pig area & turned around and saw Romeo butting the gate with his head. At last, I felt a sigh of relief and Cesar followed me into the pig area, which wasn’t a great thing for the pig or duck. I ran to the front of the pig area, then through the front yard and out to the street calling for Cesar to return to me the way he came in. He squeezes through the gate and came underneath the front fencing area to me. As we left Romeo just staring at us, Cesar and I continued feeding the horses, but I was still shaking and hurting from where he head butted me.

After feeding, I told Cesar to return home (where I live down the street) & I drove to my pet sits, shaking so bad and crying that I was just thankful that I didn’t cause a crash. STUPID BULL!!!!

Our female cow, Suzi, will only butt head us if we have food in our hands. I had absolutely no food in my hand at the time that I entered the pasture area. All, I wanted to do was to make sure Suzi was safe from the coyotes.

Hydrate the Homeless May 25th thru June 25th

Hiking AZ with Teri Ann and Laveen Tanning is proud to host

"Thirstaid"

Help Hydrate the Homeless -- donate cases of bottled water or

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Laveen, AZ 85339

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Hiking AZ with Teri Ann Spring Classes Posted

Hiking AZ with Teri Ann
Spring Classes now posted
on website:

Beginner Hiking Clinic
Intermediate Hiking Clinic
Climbing Mt. Humphrey's
Hiking with Fido
Children's Hiking Class

to view all of our classes,
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Hiking AZ with Teri Ann