Check out more tips at /living/tips.html and send in yours today to Tina@arthritisinsight.com

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Cooking With Char!

Hello everyone! The weather here in the heartland has cooled off in the last few days, and looks like it will stay that way for a bit. 

The Iowa sweet corn is just now coming on strong. The varieties they use nowadays are so sweet and good! DH and I have been indulging. I won't post a recipe, because the best way to eat it is just dropped into boiling water for 3-5 minutes. Then served with butter. So its hardly a recipe at all. LOL

But this is a cooking column, so I guess I better type up a couple of recipes!

Here is one from a friend, Jan.

Cheesy Potatoes
I pkg. frozen hash browns
1 16oz. pkg of Velveeta cheese
1 pint heavy cream
1 stick butter or margerine
Melt cheese, cream, and butter over low heat. Pour over hash browns in a 9 by 13 pan. 375 to 400 degrees. My oven works with 400. Cover with foil for 30 minutes, remove foil, bake another 30 minutes. I sprinkle dried veggie in for a little color.
You can add ham, sausage, or cooked chicken for a one dish meal. I always have it for Christmas breakfast along with an egg casserole.
It sounds yummy and would work well for a brunch.

And here is a recipe from Cindy (who got the recipe from her Mom)-

Crock Pot Pork Chops
Take about 4-5 bone-in pork chops*
Flour them and then put them in a skillet to brown both sides (you do not cook them all you do is brown the outside)**
Take them out of the skillet and put them in a crock pot
Add 2 cans of Campbell's Chicken and Stars soup
Turn the crock pot on low and let it cook for about 6 hours (you can cook it for about 4 hours but the longer it cooks the more tender the pork chops are)
About 20 minutes before the pork chops are ready prepare some Stove Top Dressing as directed on the box
When it is finished cooking you add the dressing to the crock pot, stir and let it sit for about 10 minutes
The dressing will soak up the juices from the pork chops and the soup If you feel the pork chops or dressing is too dry, you can add a little bit of water at any time
After the dressing has been in the crock pot for about 10 minutes it is ready to be served
Note: my mom always likes to serve this with mixed vegetables but you can make a meal of this without anything else
*I prefer boneless, butterfly pork chops
**I usually skip this part and just put the pork chops in the crock pot; I haven't really noticed that it alters the taste any

Please send comments or suggestions to Char@ArthritisInsight.com. And if you have specific recipes you are looking for let me know and I will see what I can do. Or if you have recipes you wish to share, sent them along to me.

October Happening In Ohio

When...October 12-15 
Place...Wooster, Ohio
All the information is now on a website thanks to Kimmy! http://fadedjeans.com/ohio 

It's a Baby Shower!

Many of you know that Amy, AKA Lake Goddess is very impatiently awaiting that phone call that will send her to China to pick up her new baby daughter. We're going to host a Cyber Baby Shower! 

When: Thursday July 27th at 9pm Eastern time 
Where: The Arthritis Insight Chatroom.
RSVP: Krissyjo@aol.com  or kelly@idmail.com 

Thank You!

A big thank to Wanda James. In her book, Getting Up is Hard to Do-Life with Rheumatoid Arthritis, Wanda gives us two thumbs up!
"A beautifully designed website with a personal touch! Two thumbs up!"

Special Offers for Arthritis Insight Members
Whenever possible we will try get to our sponsors to agree to discounts and the like for our members. Here are our current special offers:

KAS Enterprises (http://www.kasenterprises.com/theraband.html?ai) has graciously offered to help us out in our quest for fitness. They have put together a special package of Thera-Bands? and accessories. All for $19.99 with free shipping and a free instruction manual. If you mention Arthritis Insight you'll get double Frequent Buyer Bonus Points so you can earn free products!

Sore No More gel (http://www.sorenomore.com/) will send a free sample of the pain relieving gel to any Arthritis Insight Community Member who emails them at dma@glogerm.com . 

Therabath Paraffin Therapy Bath is offering $30 off of their regular price of the Therabath unit. Visit http://www.wrmed.com/special_offer.htm  for more info.

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A Closing Thought

The Cost of a Miracle

Tess was a precocious eight years old when she heard her Mom and Dad talking about her little brother, Andrew. All she knew was that he was very sick and they were completely out of money. They were moving to an apartment complex next month because Daddy didn't have the money for the doctor bills and our house.

Only a very costly surgery could save him now and it was looking like there was no one to loan them the money. She heard Daddy say to her tearful Mother with whispered desperation, "Only a miracle can save him now."

Tess went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its hiding place in the closet. She poured all the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The total had to be exactly perfect. No chance here for mistakes.
Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the cap, she slipped out the back door and made her way 6 blocks to Rexall's Drug Store with the big red Indian Chief sign above the door.

She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention but he was too intently talking to another man to be bothered by an eight year old at this moment.

Tess twisted her feet to make a scuffing noise. Nothing.... She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound she could muster. No good..... Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the glass counter...... That did it!........

"And what do you want?" the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of voice. "I'm talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven't seen in ages," he said without waiting for a reply to his question.

"Well, I want to talk to you about my brother," Tess answered back in the same annoyed tone. "He's really, really sick... and I want to buy a miracle."

"I beg your pardon?" said the pharmacist.

"His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing inside his head and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle cost?"

"We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I'm sorry but I can't help you." the pharmacist said, softening a little.

"Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn't enough, I will get the rest. Just tell me how much it costs." The pharmacist's brother was a well-dressed man. He stooped down and asked the little girl, "What kind of a miracle does your brother need?"

"I don't know," Tess replied with her eyes welling up. "I just know he's really sick and Mommy says he needs an operation. But my Daddy can't pay for it, so I want to use my money.

"How much do you have?" asked the man from Chicago.

"One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered barely audibly. "And it's all the money I have, but I can get some more if I need to."

"Well, what a coincidence," smiled the man. "A dollar and eleven cents -- the exact price of a miracle for little brothers."
He took her money in one hand and with the other hand he grasped hers, and said "Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let's see if I have the kind of miracle you need."

That well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in neuro-surgery. The operation was completed without charge and it wasn't long until Andrew was home again and doing well.

Mom and Dad were happily talking about the chain of events that had led them to this place. "That surgery," her mom whispered. "was a real miracle. I wonder how much it would have cost?"

Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost... one dollar and eleven cents.
... plus the faith of one little girl.