I’m home!! And finally, close to being unpacked while slowly getting back into the swing 
of real life as opposed to vacation life. Well, I would be if I wasn’t struggling with what I thought was my MS. I’ll be quick as I really don’t want to complain about it because I am keenly aware that my situation could be so much worse. However, when you feel yucky, sometimes no matter how hard you try, it still gets to you. Being true to my goal of wanting to get a bit more exercise (not extra fries (story for another day), I bought a bike when we were on our 3-month winter siesta. I may have rushed into it but, I got the bike without even knowing if I could still RIDE a bike, because balance is one of my many MS issues. I’m happy to report that after some practice and no training wheels I might add, I got the hang of it. They were right, it’s just like riding a bike, although now that I think of it, I only ever remember riding a horse as a kid, not a bike but I’m sure I rode one at some
time (my brothers would know, they are the ones with the amazing ability to remember stuff from our childhood), maybe I was the one doing all the work on the farm and they were playing around on their bicycles, I don’t know but anyway, I don’t remember having a bike myself. I won’t be riding down town or the 3-mile loop around the island we were camping on any time soon but roaming around the campsite was doable and I felt like such a big girl riding my bike. One particular day I was riding and stopped at my campsite and went to get off my bike (on the right side which turned out to be the very wrong side, thank you MS brain), I apparently had stopped right next to my neighbors lovely little rock path to her Taj Mahal RV and when I went to get off the bike, I stepped on a rock, lost my footing and fell. It wasn’t a hard fall, just a normal roll on the ground and jump to your feet looking around hoping nobody saw kind of fall. 5 days later, on our way home, I noticed I was having a 
considerable amount of pain in my rib area when I went to take a deep breath. By the time we arrived home 3 days later, I was really hurting. When the pain first started, I thought maybe I was having the dreaded MS Hug, which I have never had so don’t really know what it feels like and because the fall was so insignificant that I kind of forgot about it. But, Like a good little soldier, I made a doctor’s appointment as soon as we got home to check it out. Luckily, I had my annual MRI scheduled for the day I went to the doctor which is something my Neurologist would want prior to treating me for an MS related relapse (thankfully, they aren’t wanting to treat you if something else is going on). So, we waited for the MRI results before coming up with a game plan on how to deal with it. Well, we have the results (STABLE BRAIN, yay me!!) but we don’t have a game plan to address the rib pain. I’m happy it doesn’t look like it is my MS (however, now they want a spinal MRI), but the pain is still there, and I need to figure out how to deal with it. I’ll tell you, sometimes stuff happens when you really don’t want it to. I am all pumped and ready to go with a new activity and nutrition plan to start managing my MS symptoms better and BAM, 
most activity is hurting me. I am making some progress with the food part of it though and I guess walking will have to suffice for now, I’ll keep you posted on the rib situation or maybe I will just wake up tomorrow with the pain gone and I will forget to keep you posted, so how about we just say that no news is good news?
I’m going to sit down and write a post in the next couple of days about an interaction my husband and I had with a stranger on the ferry on our way home, it really made an impact with me and I feel the need to share it. It’s funny how sometimes you meet people and you get something out of the interaction that was more than incidental. This was one of those meetings so bear with me while I wrap my head around what I want to say about it please.
Anyway, when I was in Vegas for a couple of days with my girlfriends, I had a Buffalo Chicken Salad and couldn’t get it off my mind so when I got home, I went to the kitchen (which I missed more than I admit) to try to recreate the tasty experience and I did! So today, I am going to share the recipe for the Homemade Blue Cheese dressing and for the amazingly easy Buffalo Chicken. Make them both……today, they are that good!
Easy Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing
This creamy dressing is a perfect complement to Buffalo Chicken or any salad for that matter.
Ingredients
- 4 Ounces Blue Cheese (Crumbled)
- 1 Cup Mayonnaise
- 1 Cup Heavy Cream
- 2 tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar (or any vinegar you have on hand)
- ½ Teaspoon Freshly Ground Pepper
- ¼ Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ¼ Teaspoon Dried Parsley
Directions
- Combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Add more salt or pepper if desired.
Crispy Buffalo Chicken Tenders
Yummy, that’s all I have to say!
Credit: cookingincowboyboots.com
Ingredients
1 Lb Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (butterflied and halved)
½ Cup All Purpose Flour
¼ Teaspoon Chicken and Rib Seasoning (or steak spice if you prefer)
3 Large Egg Whites beaten with 2 Tablespoons Hot Sauce (I use Franks Red Hot or Cholula Sauce)
1/3 Cup Dried Breadcrumbs
1/3 Cup Panko Crumbs
2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
½ Cup Hot Sauce (Franks or Cholula
Directions
Preheat oven to 400° Spray a wire rack with cooking spray and set it on top of a large cooking sheet- Put Flour and Chicken and Rib (or steak seasoning) in 1 bowl.
- Place Egg Whites and 2 Tablespoons hot sauce in another bowl.
- Place Bread Crumbs and Panko in another bowl
- Lightly dredge each half of chicken breast in flour shaking off the excess, then dip in the egg and lastly press into the bread crumb / panko mixture and place on a plate.
- Repeat with all chicken pieces.
- In a large non stick pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the Olive Oil over medium heat and cook half of the chicken being careful to not overcrowd the pan. Cook the chicken until they develop a nice crispy coating on one side and flip to cook the other side (about 3-4 minutes per side). Transfer to the coated baking rack and cook remaining chicken.
- Once all chicken has been cooked in frying pan and transferred to baking rack, place in the preheated oven and bake until the chicken is crispy and completely cooked through (about 8-10 minutes).
- Fill a shallow bowl with ½ cup of hot sauce and dip each piece of chicken in the sauce just to coat.
- Serve immediately with Blue Cheese dressing or have on a salad of mixed greens with blue cheese or ranch dressing
Aaargh. I hope your docs can sort out the cause of the rib pain. 🙁 But in the meantime … welcome home! Sending good thoughts your way.