Eat to Beat Alzheimer's offers a practical guide and an empowering tool to bring nourishing, healthful, and delicious food into the lives of people concerned about Alzheimer's and other cognitive problems. Almost 9 million people in the U.S. suffer from Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia, and the toll is rapidly increasing. This book will appeal to everyone concerned about dementia and memory loss in either themselves or a loved one.

Recent research makes clear that the impact of aging on the brain can be reduced by simple diet and lifestyle modifications. The delicious food choices and easy-to-prepare recipes in this book are based on the latest findings showing that they can help slow the progression of Alzheimer's and other conditions like it, or prevent them entirely.

Readers will gain the knowledge and tools to take charge of their health by incorporating tasty, healing foods into their diet. The information in this cookbook will be as relevant and useful 20 years from now as it is today. And the recipes will still be just as delicious.

Stats, Facts and Super Efforts!
Below are our collection of stats, facts and super efforts from the 2016 Great Cycle Challenge.

• The average ride distance was 15.7 miles.
• Your miles collectively lapped earth (along the equator)88.74 times during June.
• Over 58,858 donations have been made to fight kids' cancer!
• 205 riders pedaled over 1,000 miles for their challenge
• The leaderboards have been viewed 112,364 times.
• Rides were recorded in 29 countries, including Canada, Australia, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, India, Japan, South Korea, Italy, Germany, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, the United Kingdom and more!
• Cancer took Sabrina Reiswig's leg 28 years ago, but she still logged an incredible 200 miles to kick cancer's butt!
• Our oldest rider was 80 years young, she still clocked up a massive 102 miles.
• 140,795 individual rides were completed throughout the challenge.
• Our top fundraiser Arden Virnig, raised $18,271 and rode 984 miles in memory of his daughter Mary, who lost her fight to cancer in 2010.
• 2,052 riders were part of a team.
• The average donation made to sponsor a rider is $52.02.
• There were 254 riders from Chicago (Illinois).
• Billy Gogesch rode an incredible 1,813 miles as part of a much larger challenge - riding across from Nevada to Ohio to attend his high school reunion.
• 215 kids took on the challenge to kick cancer's butt for other kids!
• The website was viewed 857,445 times in 174 countries
• We've received countless messages from the families affected by cancer to thank you for your incredible efforts.
• 655 riders have raised $1,000+ and become members of thepeloton club.
• There were 291 riders named Michael and 276 riders named Jennifer
• Riders from Rhode Island have raised an average of $191.48 - the highest in the country.
• 2,264 participants celebrated their birthdays in June!
• The GCC team is experiencing post challenge blues...but we can't wait for next year!
• There are a total of 73,027 fans on our Facebook Page.
• 1,087 participants have been personally affected by cancer.
• Donations have been made online to sponsor a rider from 81 countries.
• 98 riders went international by clocking rides across the world.
• Team Tarlow was the highest fundraising team with 34 members raising a total of $24,819 and pedaling a massive 16,805 miles.
• With 26,699 riders registered, there were approximately1,708,736 spokes turning to kick cancer’s butt throughout June.
• $9,000 is the largest single donation to date.
• For a single person to cover the miles YOU collectively covered in June, they would need to average 3,069 mph non-stop for the entire month…that’s 4 times the speed of sound!
• Together, we've been in the saddle for the equivalent of 6,202 days, 2 hours and 19 minutes.
• 6,614 riders took part in the challenge in memory of a loved one affected by cancer.

Yesterday started by sleeping in, rather than an alarm to go for my daily morning walk. It felt good to sleep in until later last night when I never got an afternoon or evening walk in. As much as I enjoyed the sound of silence and waking up on my own, I missed the energy and peace gained from the short three and a half miles we walk each morning. Today, the alarm went off at 5 a.m. so not only will I get my walk in before 7 a.m., but I'l also have my shower and laundry done. Today is the first day of summer school, I look forward to the kiddos we'll have in our class. It's only a few weeks but it is perfect timing, I am missing the kids and school. It's only a half day, so summer activities are still possible.

I titled today's blog, "Day Two: Confirmation #RegainControl" because as I sat in church listening to our pastor's message, God confirmed my motivation and hope in setting goals, cleaning the house, reorganizing, and regaining control of my life and home. The verses Pastor Dan focused on are from Hebrews, chapter twelve:

And today is Monday, so it's really a third day! How funny is this? I'm blogging in my head, noticing God's workmanship around me, and wishing I had my camera. Feels good to feel good from the inside out again. Don't get me wrong, I haven't been living in a dark cloud or hiding in my house but this cycle after losing my Mom "kicked my butt" for a lack of a better wording. BUT God is bigger, more loving, and always with me...so with my eyes fixed on Him, I move forward in faith, love, and hope. Tomorrow will be a better day and this girl is ready to make the most of the opportunities.

Good Saturday Morning everyone! I typically would start with an apology for my absence on the blog and social media BUT NOT TODAY! Instead, I'll share an explanation but no regrets.

As most of you know, my Mom was in and out of the hospital at this time last year. Her pain, terrible. Her diagnosis, undetermined for more than a month. Then, the word so many dread to hear, C-A-N-C-E-R. An inoperable, metastasized stage 4 cancer. Due to her rheumatoid arthritis (RA), her white blood counts were always elevated. We also learned that cancer and arthritis look very similar on scans, it's only with biopsy that you can determine the difference. Sadly, my mom's RA has been bad for years so it was "too late" to slow or stop the cancer by the time her team of doctors realized it was cancer creating havoc in her system, not RA. We learned a lot last summer. 

We've always been the family choosing to make memories and live in the moment because after Heidi's kidnapping, we understood all too well that tomorrow, or even an hour from now, are not guaranteed. My attention and desire to blog or write dwindled last summer, something I do not regret. It was an honor to join my Dad to care for Mom. We never expected she'd pass so quickly, leaving us on Heidi's birthday, September 14th, 2015. On this day I lost more than my mom, a great friend, and role model...I lost my inspiration and motivation to write. 

​It's taken me a year to work through the loss of my Mom. If you've lost a parent then you understand more than I can explain. It doesn't matter how old we are when we lose our Mom, it hurts on a deeper level than I ever understood. I don't know how my friend Karen was able to return to high school after losing her mom at such a young age. Life is so much better when we keep things in perspective AND when we accept some things need to be worked THROUGH before we can help others. And this is where my renewed motivation and inspiration to write and share is founded.

So...this summer has been spent #Regain(ing)Control in our home. The first project was to clean the hall leading to the deck. This week I tackled our bedroom, it is an oasis again. LOVE it! Now I'm working on the living room/family room/dining room, since it's a 3-in-1. Not only am I cleaning (finally got the vacuum out) but I'm SORTING and PURGING! 13 gallon garbage bags of stuff gone! Empty boxes, recycled! Unread newspapers, (some from June!) Adios! Dust bunnies and spiders, relocated! This girl, that's me, is ready to #RegainControl of my spiritual and physical health. In order to do this, our house needs to be a home again. One step and one day at a time, this is happening. 

I hope you are still reading and haven't written me off as one of those hypocrite Christians because the fact is this, to be a Christian means I believe in God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. It means I acknowledge I'm a sinner and strive to eliminate the sin in my life. It means I believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins and rose again three days later, and is in heaven preparing an Eternal home for me (and you). I believe and accept there is a God and one day I'll be in heaven. 

To be a Christian doesn't mean we are perfect or that we don't struggle, on the contrary, we suffer and move through life, just like everyone else. The difference is that we understand and KNOW we aren't alone, regardless of how we might FEEL at the moment. Although I haven't sat down daily for my quiet time and coffee with God, my praises, thanksgiving, and prayers continued. I didn't forget to look up or to express my true feelings, God knows what I'm really thinking anyway. 

I don't know why I had to lose my Mom but I know I'm not the first person to experience this. I get frustrated to think she had to take her last breath not knowing where Heidi is but instead of letting this frustration develop into anger and hatred, I choose to pray and seek peace. Franklin Covey reminds us to focus on our "circle of control". I couldn't control my Mom's cancer, illness, or death BUT I can choose to share joy, hope, and encouragement with those in my "circle of influence". 

So this morning, after a 3 1/2 mile walk and a very long blog, I want to introduce myself. My name is Lisa Buske - daughter, wife, mother, sister, niece, aunt, friend, educator, author, speaker, and most importantly...a child of God. Today, with the Good Book in hand, I vow to #RegainControl in all I say, think, and do...starting with transforming our house back into a home. 

The first time I read this blog tours title I almost deleted the invitation from Renee, after all this is a family friendly and Christian blog, right? BUT WAIT, can't anyone find love, especially when they aren't looking for it? In an unimaginable place? I thought so too.

Bloggers have the creative freedom to share a story or picture about finding love in an unimaginable place. I could talk about how I knew my husband as my friend's-brother's-best friend and knowing the day when I looked at him and told my friend, Von, I'm going to marry him one day. We both laughed, yet, here we are twenty-three years later happily married.

I could express how much I loved our kittens after we found them in my aunt's barn. For me to love a cat is unimaginable, but now I'm hooked, so much so that although our two older cats are gone, we let our daughter get a kitten and she is a great addition to the family.

But there is ONE Unimaginable place we can find Love...at the foot of the cross! For some, this is the easiest thing to visualize but for others I sound like I'm talking a foreign language, right? If you feel beaten down, depressed, discouraged, overwhelmed, discouraged, and just plain yucky then the most unimaginable place you will find love through faith and a relationship with Jesus. Plain and simple. John says it best, "Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions." 1 John 3:18

I haven't read Michael French's book, I know as much as you after reading the "about the book" section below. So I don't have a personal recommendation or word of warning, I do have the most unimaginable place to find love though...with God, at the feet of Jesus.