If you are reading this article early Wednesday morning, Feb. 3, then you still have time to get over to the Brewton Area YMCA for FitFest 2016. We are celebrating our 21st Annual Celebration and it promises to be the best one ever!

Invite your sweetie, family members, good friends, church members and/or your coworkers to come with you. It will be worth it.

Free health screenings (Thanks to the generosity of D. W. McMillan Memorial Hospital) for FitFest will be held first, from 7:30 a.m. until 9 a.m. Screenings include cholesterol, blood pressure and blood sugar. Be sure to FAST (no food after midnight) is recommended for accurate lab testing. After the screenings, enjoy refreshments and stroll through medical service exhibitors, fellowshipping and great door prizes. You must be present to win. Please wear something red in support of February Heart Health Month.

The educational programs begin at 9 a.m. “Mental Health for Seniors” will be presented by Tommy Smith, director of Pathway Professional Counseling and Vivian Layton, senior director of Brewton Area YMCA will present, ”Don’t Wait, Get Moving.”

Here is one homemade soup recipe that’s perfect for these cold winter days.

During these cold winter days, nothing is more satisfying than a warm bowl of homemade soup. Try these two quick soup recipes that are sure to keep you warm and cozy this winter. The recipes are also Heart Healthy too. They are called:

 

Quick Potato Soup

3 cups skim milk

1 cup instant potato flakes

2 tablespoons corn-oil margarine

1 tablespoon instant onion flakes

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon celery seed

1/8 teaspoon black pepper or to taste

Directions

Pour milk in a heavy saucepan and heat over medium heat. DO NOT BOIL. When milk is hot, add remaining ingredients and stir until well blended. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Makes 4 servings. One serving: ¾ cup

This recipe and many others can be found in the Auburn Cookbook, a publication of Alabama Extension.