Ok so the haircut isn't exactly new........same inverted bob that I got last time...not too short, but not to long. But my hair grows super fast, and after about 2 weeks, my bangs quit looking like bangs and start looking like a misplaced hunk of hair. Any ideas on how to make growing-out bangs cuter?
So last night was super fun!!!! They are the nicest people and we had the best food ever!!!!!! Steak w/ potatoes, roasted veggies (even roasted pumpkin!!), rice, shrimp and salad!!!! Sooo tasty! Seriously, if any of ya'll ever happen to be in Recife, I can cook for you. Or just take you to all these awesome restaurants. Or both.=D Its probably a good thing that I exercise, because I pretty much love food.
So I have another question to ask. Anyone have a good english muffin recipe? We don't get them in Brazil and I looove 'em. I am actually eating one as I type this. Soo doughy and good. And goes well with oatmeal. Because oats clearly don't have enough carbs.
I absolutely cannot believe that today is the last day of 2010!!! Can you? This entire year has gone by so incredibly fast. Personally, it's been a year of both trials and of spiritual and emotional growth. Even though we've definitely fought about my eating disorder, my mom in particular always told me when I needed to eat more and she always listened to me, even Iif I wasn't making much sense. Even her Christmas gift of nike tempos, a pedometer, and some other fitness gear shows her support of my running. I am actually planning on really working on running during 2011. I would really like to be able to run a half-marathon without feeling like I'm about to die afterwards. I also want to learn to love myself and to accept myself at any weight.
What are your goals for 2011?
On that note, I must leave to go do my hair.......
Happy New Year!
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
A Taste of Home
First of all, thanks for all of the book suggestions!!!!!!!!! I'm going to start looking into them today! =D
Well, taco night was a success!!!! We had a great time visiting with the family! =D
I have a quick question for those of you who are reading this:
What are some of your faaaavorite snacks?
I usually eat granola bars, yogurt (greek or yoplait....it just depends =P), fruit, cottage cheese, and fruit w/ pb. I guess I just want a little something different. Oh and does anyone have a good homemade granola bar recipe for when I'm in Brazil? I mean, we have these really awesome granola bars that have chocolate on the bottom and fruit-y granola on the top, but I don't think that they're the best-ever workout fuel.
So, speaking of workouts, here's the one that I'm about to do:
KBC (Kickbox, Booty and Core =P):
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/kbc-kickbox-booty-and-core-3433#
And then I'll probably just do the 10 minute jump rope. I've been trying to work up the nerve to do this workout that Lindsay posted not too long ago. Tell me if you manage to complete this! =D
Well, tonight, we're going to visit some people from church. The cool thing is: They're Brazilians!!!! So we're going to have a brazilian-style meal! =D They're relatively new at our church, so we've only met them recently, but they're super nice!
Well, that's about all I've got for now....
Have a great Thursday! =D
Well, taco night was a success!!!! We had a great time visiting with the family! =D
I have a quick question for those of you who are reading this:
What are some of your faaaavorite snacks?
I usually eat granola bars, yogurt (greek or yoplait....it just depends =P), fruit, cottage cheese, and fruit w/ pb. I guess I just want a little something different. Oh and does anyone have a good homemade granola bar recipe for when I'm in Brazil? I mean, we have these really awesome granola bars that have chocolate on the bottom and fruit-y granola on the top, but I don't think that they're the best-ever workout fuel.
So, speaking of workouts, here's the one that I'm about to do:
KBC (Kickbox, Booty and Core =P):
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/kbc-kickbox-booty-and-core-3433#
And then I'll probably just do the 10 minute jump rope. I've been trying to work up the nerve to do this workout that Lindsay posted not too long ago. Tell me if you manage to complete this! =D
Well, tonight, we're going to visit some people from church. The cool thing is: They're Brazilians!!!! So we're going to have a brazilian-style meal! =D They're relatively new at our church, so we've only met them recently, but they're super nice!
Well, that's about all I've got for now....
Have a great Thursday! =D
Taco Night (take two)
Good morning!!!!
First of all, I would like to thank everyone for stopping by to say happy birthday yesterday! =D Thanks, Janae for the birthday shout-out!!!! I had an awesome day!! We hung out at home, then went out to eat and rented a movie to watch! =D
So tonight, we're going to go to my dad's side of the family's house to celebrate a late Christmas and to eat tacos! =D We were originally going to go a few days before Christmas, but my aunt was sick, so we postponed. She's feeling much better now, and we decided to get together tonight! =D It'll be fun!!!!
Oh I have a question for ya'll. Some friends gave both my sister and me a Nook for Christmas. Its sort of like the Amazon Kindle, but Barnes and Noble makes it. Anyway, since I live out of the country most of the time, I have no idea what books to get. What are some good books that you've read recently? I've already downloaded John Grisham's latest, "The Confession", because I had already read some of his books before. Its pretty good!
Oh last night I tried Edy's Apple Pie Ice Cream, and it was ok, but I think I'll stick with good old Double Fudge Brownie from now on. Apple Pie had like chunks of cinnamon apples and pie crust in vanilla ice cream. So really it wasn't very pie-like in flavor....mostly just vanilla. Not bad, but in my world, chocolate trumps vanilla everytime. =D Just a matter of personal preference,I guess.
Well, I have to get going....
Happy Wednesday! =D
First of all, I would like to thank everyone for stopping by to say happy birthday yesterday! =D Thanks, Janae for the birthday shout-out!!!! I had an awesome day!! We hung out at home, then went out to eat and rented a movie to watch! =D
So tonight, we're going to go to my dad's side of the family's house to celebrate a late Christmas and to eat tacos! =D We were originally going to go a few days before Christmas, but my aunt was sick, so we postponed. She's feeling much better now, and we decided to get together tonight! =D It'll be fun!!!!
Oh I have a question for ya'll. Some friends gave both my sister and me a Nook for Christmas. Its sort of like the Amazon Kindle, but Barnes and Noble makes it. Anyway, since I live out of the country most of the time, I have no idea what books to get. What are some good books that you've read recently? I've already downloaded John Grisham's latest, "The Confession", because I had already read some of his books before. Its pretty good!
Oh last night I tried Edy's Apple Pie Ice Cream, and it was ok, but I think I'll stick with good old Double Fudge Brownie from now on. Apple Pie had like chunks of cinnamon apples and pie crust in vanilla ice cream. So really it wasn't very pie-like in flavor....mostly just vanilla. Not bad, but in my world, chocolate trumps vanilla everytime. =D Just a matter of personal preference,I guess.
Well, I have to get going....
Happy Wednesday! =D
Monday, December 27, 2010
Birthday Workout
Good morning!!!!
Yes, I'm working out on my birthday. Wanna know why? It is Tuesday. I workout on Tuesdays. Creature of habit and all. I probably need to work on the whole flexibility thing.
Well, anyway, in honor of my birthday, I chose some new vids, so here are the links:
Booty Burn: (its Cindy Whitmarsh, and I have loved all of her workouts so far)
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/body-sculpting/booty-burn-s9799
Sculpt and Burn:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/cardio-sculpt-and-burn-9880
And one of the 10 minute cardio workouts....I haven't decided yet.
So I really have no idea what I'm going to be doing today....except go out to eat........and eat ice cream. I've never been a big fan of birthday cake....I mean, I'll eat it, but I was the one with the giant chocolate chip cookie instead of a cake. Or fondue. Or in today's case, ice cream. And maybe some chocolate something or another...because surprisingly, my ice cream has absolutely NO chocolate in it. But it's Apple Pie ice cream, which sounded good.
ICE CREAM!!!!!!!!!!
Do you like birthday cake, or do you eat some other sweet on your birthday?
I've already had my party, so today's just going to be relaxed, I think. I might even read the driver's manual at some point (ack!). I have to take that test before January 11th....so I'll probably just end up spending the day in my pjs studying. Fun stuff. I honestly have no idea why anyone even reads this blog, seeing as I'm so incredibly boring. But you do, and as long as someone reads this, I'll be here. =D
Well, I should probably get going.....what with my busy schedule, I just don't know what to do first today! =D
Happy Tuesday!
Yes, I'm working out on my birthday. Wanna know why? It is Tuesday. I workout on Tuesdays. Creature of habit and all. I probably need to work on the whole flexibility thing.
Well, anyway, in honor of my birthday, I chose some new vids, so here are the links:
Booty Burn: (its Cindy Whitmarsh, and I have loved all of her workouts so far)
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/body-sculpting/booty-burn-s9799
Sculpt and Burn:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/cardio-sculpt-and-burn-9880
And one of the 10 minute cardio workouts....I haven't decided yet.
So I really have no idea what I'm going to be doing today....except go out to eat........and eat ice cream. I've never been a big fan of birthday cake....I mean, I'll eat it, but I was the one with the giant chocolate chip cookie instead of a cake. Or fondue. Or in today's case, ice cream. And maybe some chocolate something or another...because surprisingly, my ice cream has absolutely NO chocolate in it. But it's Apple Pie ice cream, which sounded good.
ICE CREAM!!!!!!!!!!Do you like birthday cake, or do you eat some other sweet on your birthday?
I've already had my party, so today's just going to be relaxed, I think. I might even read the driver's manual at some point (ack!). I have to take that test before January 11th....so I'll probably just end up spending the day in my pjs studying. Fun stuff. I honestly have no idea why anyone even reads this blog, seeing as I'm so incredibly boring. But you do, and as long as someone reads this, I'll be here. =D
Well, I should probably get going.....what with my busy schedule, I just don't know what to do first today! =D
Happy Tuesday!
Party Fun Stuff
This post will be quick because I can barely think straight, and when I mix sleepiness and blogging, its not pretty.
Last night was super-duper fun! We had Jimmy John's (I got the Turkey Tom unwich), and then lots and lots of fondue! Played Apples to Apples and watched part of a movie. Bought popsicles and a pint of Blue Bell Vanilla w/ strawberries ice cream. We randomly made a trip to the workout room at 11 PM, just for the heck of it. Consumed lots and lots of caffeine. Scared the other people staying at the hotel. Lots of fun! =D
I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!!!!!! I promise that tomorrow's post will be back to normal! =D
Last night was super-duper fun! We had Jimmy John's (I got the Turkey Tom unwich), and then lots and lots of fondue! Played Apples to Apples and watched part of a movie. Bought popsicles and a pint of Blue Bell Vanilla w/ strawberries ice cream. We randomly made a trip to the workout room at 11 PM, just for the heck of it. Consumed lots and lots of caffeine. Scared the other people staying at the hotel. Lots of fun! =D
I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!!!!!! I promise that tomorrow's post will be back to normal! =D
Sunday, December 26, 2010
A Cold, Snowy Day
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!!!!!!!! We went to church at 11:30 on Christmas eve, and the service was awesome!!!!!!!!!!! Jesus is the true reason for the season!!!!
So its snowing right now, and I'm absolutely freezing!!!! I'm already small, and I get cold really easily, so now I feel like a popsicle!!!! I have a pedometer/pulse thing and my fingers are so cold that it doesn't even register a pulse for me. So basically, according to my pedometer, I'm either dead or a vampire! =D
Today's my birthday party, too!!!!! I'm going to a hotel with a couple of close friends and we're going to watch movies and have fondue!! I bought slippers as a party favor! =D Its going to be a lot of fun!!!!!!!!!! I bought pretzels, apples, bananas, pineapple, and marshmellows to dunk in the chocolate. We actually have 3 different "recipes" for fondue, so if one doesn't work, we have a backup. The first is evaporated milk, cocoa and sugar, the second is just some melted chocolate bark, and the last is chocolate chips that will be melted in something or another....maybe some evaporated milk or something! =D Anyway, I'm super excited!!!!!!!
So what did ya'll do on Christmas?????
I haven't been blogging for very long, but I already love it!!!! I just want to thank everyone who reads this blog!!!!! =D
Hope you have a good rest of the day!!!!
So its snowing right now, and I'm absolutely freezing!!!! I'm already small, and I get cold really easily, so now I feel like a popsicle!!!! I have a pedometer/pulse thing and my fingers are so cold that it doesn't even register a pulse for me. So basically, according to my pedometer, I'm either dead or a vampire! =D
Today's my birthday party, too!!!!! I'm going to a hotel with a couple of close friends and we're going to watch movies and have fondue!! I bought slippers as a party favor! =D Its going to be a lot of fun!!!!!!!!!! I bought pretzels, apples, bananas, pineapple, and marshmellows to dunk in the chocolate. We actually have 3 different "recipes" for fondue, so if one doesn't work, we have a backup. The first is evaporated milk, cocoa and sugar, the second is just some melted chocolate bark, and the last is chocolate chips that will be melted in something or another....maybe some evaporated milk or something! =D Anyway, I'm super excited!!!!!!!
So what did ya'll do on Christmas?????
I haven't been blogging for very long, but I already love it!!!! I just want to thank everyone who reads this blog!!!!! =D
Hope you have a good rest of the day!!!!
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Happy Christmas Eve!
Well, all of my family's plans for yesterday basically went out the window. My aunt is feeling really sick, so we didn't go to my dad's side's house for taco night. But, we did pick up my beeeeest friend and had an awesome afternoon and went to her house for our Christmas celebration there. And we had mexican, which I sort of think is funny.
So yesterday my friend asked me what I wanted for my birthday, and I jokingly said "world peace". So then we went window shopping and tried on sone stuff, and later we went to Gracie Bleu's frozen yogurt. It was our first time there, but it was like a self serve froyo place, and the guy working there gave us a TON of those little ketchup containers so that we could taste all the different flavors. Their setup was pretty cool, with about 4 stations with 2 separate flavors and 1 mixture of the two each. For example, there was a strawberry froyo and a birthday cake flavor, and the mixture was strawberry shortcake. Then there were tons of toppings and stuff to choose from. While we were sitting, my friend handed me a box with a bracelet inside. She then said that when we went into one of the stores that we visited, there were "world peace bracelets" at the front door for sale. So guess what I am now wearing? I got world peace for my birthday! =D
World peace! =D
So today, we're hanging out for most of the day and tonight we have church, which will be nice!!!!!
So, recently I've been thinking about going vegetarian. However, my family is pretty much worried that I won't get enough key nutrients. Because of this, I've decided to pick one day a week to be a vegetarian to sort of show everyone that I would be able to eat a balanced diet. I'm thinking that the day might be today, but I still have to actually talk with my parents. And once or twice a week vegetarianism might be all I can do for now, I want to see how it works out for me personally, though.
Well, what are your Christmas/Christmas eve plans?
Happy Christmas Eve!!!!
So yesterday my friend asked me what I wanted for my birthday, and I jokingly said "world peace". So then we went window shopping and tried on sone stuff, and later we went to Gracie Bleu's frozen yogurt. It was our first time there, but it was like a self serve froyo place, and the guy working there gave us a TON of those little ketchup containers so that we could taste all the different flavors. Their setup was pretty cool, with about 4 stations with 2 separate flavors and 1 mixture of the two each. For example, there was a strawberry froyo and a birthday cake flavor, and the mixture was strawberry shortcake. Then there were tons of toppings and stuff to choose from. While we were sitting, my friend handed me a box with a bracelet inside. She then said that when we went into one of the stores that we visited, there were "world peace bracelets" at the front door for sale. So guess what I am now wearing? I got world peace for my birthday! =D
World peace! =DSo today, we're hanging out for most of the day and tonight we have church, which will be nice!!!!!
So, recently I've been thinking about going vegetarian. However, my family is pretty much worried that I won't get enough key nutrients. Because of this, I've decided to pick one day a week to be a vegetarian to sort of show everyone that I would be able to eat a balanced diet. I'm thinking that the day might be today, but I still have to actually talk with my parents. And once or twice a week vegetarianism might be all I can do for now, I want to see how it works out for me personally, though.
Well, what are your Christmas/Christmas eve plans?
Happy Christmas Eve!!!!
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Taco Night!!!!
You know how on Sunday I said that my dad was singing a song in church???? Well, a couple of years ago he recorded it and yesterday made a video of "Mary did You Know?". Its not a video of him singing, but here it is anyway:
Yes, I like bragging about my family! =D
Well, tonight we are going to my dad's side of the family's Christmas and we're having tacos. You know, because they are so Christmas-y. But anyway, its going to be fun!!!! =D
So what go ya'll do for Christmas? Do you go to families' houses before or on Christmas?
Usually, our families have Christmas celebrations before the actual day, and then we also visit some close friends of ours. Then, on Christmas eve, if we're in the States, we go to an 11:30 PM service at our church. Then, we spend most of Christmas at home, together.
What is your favorite Christmas tradition that your family has?
I love goig to the 11:30 service and I love that we spend time just as a family on Christmas day.
So, I'm gonna workout to a new video today, so you know what that means....here's the link:
Fighting the Freshman 15 (silly name, but the workout got lots of great reviews, so I'm trying it out):
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/fighting-the-freshman-15-9493
Along with this workout, which is about 20 minutes long, I'm going to do the 10-minute Bootcamp workout that I've already put on my Workout page. Then maybe some yoga to cool down, and if I end up doing that, I'll post the link tomorrow!!!! =D
Is there another website besides ExerciseTV that has good free workout videos? I don't have many DVDs, plus the online vids are good for when I'm on the road. =D
So I'm off to workout and later eat tacos! Whoo!
Have a wonderful day!!!!
Yes, I like bragging about my family! =D
Well, tonight we are going to my dad's side of the family's Christmas and we're having tacos. You know, because they are so Christmas-y. But anyway, its going to be fun!!!! =D
So what go ya'll do for Christmas? Do you go to families' houses before or on Christmas?
Usually, our families have Christmas celebrations before the actual day, and then we also visit some close friends of ours. Then, on Christmas eve, if we're in the States, we go to an 11:30 PM service at our church. Then, we spend most of Christmas at home, together.
What is your favorite Christmas tradition that your family has?
I love goig to the 11:30 service and I love that we spend time just as a family on Christmas day.
So, I'm gonna workout to a new video today, so you know what that means....here's the link:
Fighting the Freshman 15 (silly name, but the workout got lots of great reviews, so I'm trying it out):
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/fighting-the-freshman-15-9493
Along with this workout, which is about 20 minutes long, I'm going to do the 10-minute Bootcamp workout that I've already put on my Workout page. Then maybe some yoga to cool down, and if I end up doing that, I'll post the link tomorrow!!!! =D
Is there another website besides ExerciseTV that has good free workout videos? I don't have many DVDs, plus the online vids are good for when I'm on the road. =D
So I'm off to workout and later eat tacos! Whoo!
Have a wonderful day!!!!
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Birthday Coupon
I had signed up for the "DeliGrams" McAlister's email thing a while back in hopes of getting a coupon at the time. Well, yesterday, I checked my email and there was one from McAlister's. I got $5 off our next meal there!!So guess where we had dinner last night???????? Hello, Chicken Tortilla Soup! =D Oh and because I had signed up for the On The Border email club back when we took my sister there, also hoping to get a coupon then, I also have a free brownie sundae from there!
So yesterday we visited with my grandmother. She's out of the hospital now and doing better! We had a fun time!
Today my sister and I are going to our church to work on a video thing that the youth leader is shooting. We're going to be filming separately, and each video will take 30 minutes to an hour. So we'll be at the church from 1 to 3, more or less. I don't know what the videos are about yet, but when I do, I'll let you know.
I really haven't been able to bake even half as much as I wanted to. And now, there are even more recipes that I have bookmarked! I guess that's the way it works when you don't actually have any money and a lot of your recipes call for special ingredients that your parents have never heard of. Oh well. I'll probably still bake a little bit. =P
=D
Oh guess what? I made Erika's Single Lady Sugar Cookie, inspired by Katie's recipe, for my sister!!! Actually, I've made both versions for her! =D Of course, I always come up with the idea to make one right after I've had a snack, but that doesn't mean that a few bites trip and fall into my mouth. Stupid cookie. =D Anyway, I've actually made these in the microwave, and they turned out pretty good. I just combined all of the ingredients and nuked for about a minute. That, my friends, is the lazy version of this cookie, because I didn't feel like turning the oven on. Oh and in the chocolate chip one, I added some melted pb in place of about 1/3 of the oil, and it turned out really tasty!!!!
Well, that's about all I've got for now!
So yesterday we visited with my grandmother. She's out of the hospital now and doing better! We had a fun time!
Today my sister and I are going to our church to work on a video thing that the youth leader is shooting. We're going to be filming separately, and each video will take 30 minutes to an hour. So we'll be at the church from 1 to 3, more or less. I don't know what the videos are about yet, but when I do, I'll let you know.
I really haven't been able to bake even half as much as I wanted to. And now, there are even more recipes that I have bookmarked! I guess that's the way it works when you don't actually have any money and a lot of your recipes call for special ingredients that your parents have never heard of. Oh well. I'll probably still bake a little bit. =P
=DOh guess what? I made Erika's Single Lady Sugar Cookie, inspired by Katie's recipe, for my sister!!! Actually, I've made both versions for her! =D Of course, I always come up with the idea to make one right after I've had a snack, but that doesn't mean that a few bites trip and fall into my mouth. Stupid cookie. =D Anyway, I've actually made these in the microwave, and they turned out pretty good. I just combined all of the ingredients and nuked for about a minute. That, my friends, is the lazy version of this cookie, because I didn't feel like turning the oven on. Oh and in the chocolate chip one, I added some melted pb in place of about 1/3 of the oil, and it turned out really tasty!!!!
Well, that's about all I've got for now!
Birthday Coupon
I had signed up for the "DeliGrams" McAlister's email thing a while back in hopes of getting a coupon at the time. Well, yesterday, I checked my email and there was one from McAlister's. I got $5 off our next meal there!!So guess where we had dinner last night???????? Hello, Chicken Tortilla Soup! =D Oh and because I had signed up for the On The Border email club back when we took my sister there, also hoping to get a coupon then, I also have a free brownie sundae from there!
So yesterday we visited with my grandmother. She's out of the hospital now and doing better! We had a fun time!
Today my sister and I are going to our church to work on a video thing that the youth leader is shooting. We're going to be filming separately, and each video will take 30 minutes to an hour. So we'll be at the church from 1 to 3, more or less. I don't know what the videos are about yet, but when I do, I'll let you know.
I really haven't been able to bake even half as much as I wanted to. And now, there are even more recipes that I have bookmarked! I guess that's the way it works when you don't actually have any money and a lot of your recipes call for special ingredients that your parents have never heard of. Oh well. I'll probably still bake a little bit. =P
=D
Oh guess what? I made Erika's Single Lady Sugar Cookie, inspired by Katie's recipe.
So yesterday we visited with my grandmother. She's out of the hospital now and doing better! We had a fun time!
Today my sister and I are going to our church to work on a video thing that the youth leader is shooting. We're going to be filming separately, and each video will take 30 minutes to an hour. So we'll be at the church from 1 to 3, more or less. I don't know what the videos are about yet, but when I do, I'll let you know.
I really haven't been able to bake even half as much as I wanted to. And now, there are even more recipes that I have bookmarked! I guess that's the way it works when you don't actually have any money and a lot of your recipes call for special ingredients that your parents have never heard of. Oh well. I'll probably still bake a little bit. =P
=DOh guess what? I made Erika's Single Lady Sugar Cookie, inspired by Katie's recipe.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Got my SAT Scores!!
I just got my SAT scores this morning!!!!! Ya'll are the first to know. =D
Here they are
Critical Reading: 740 98th percentile
Math: 600 75th percentile
Writing: 620 86th percentile
Multiple choice: 63 (score range 20-80)
Essay: 8 (score range 2-12)
It all adds up to be 2031!! Not bad for a 10th grader, I think...especially when you don't do so well on timed tests.=P Anyway, at least now I know what the SAT is like and could probably do better next time. Especially on the Math section.
Anyway, I'm gonna workout today, but will probably just use videos that I already have: The Bootcamp Body Makeover from Exercise TV and the Jump Rope Cardio from Sparkpeople. I must say that I really like the bootcamp, because it really worked my entire body, and the next day I felt sore. Which to me, is a positive thing! =P
So I've decided on fondue for the party!!! (Thanks Erica! soo sorry! =P) I still need a good recipe though. I've seen ones that use evaporated milk and marshmellows with chocolate, and I've seen heavy cream and chocolate.....what is the best way to make fondue?
How's that for a deep, thought-provoking question, huh? =P
Oh and I just wanted to thank everyone who commented yesterday and told me what their faaavorite Christmas movie is!!!! I now have a list of movies to watch! =D
Gotta run....have an awesome day!
Here they are
Critical Reading: 740 98th percentile
Math: 600 75th percentile
Writing: 620 86th percentile
Multiple choice: 63 (score range 20-80)
Essay: 8 (score range 2-12)
It all adds up to be 2031!! Not bad for a 10th grader, I think...especially when you don't do so well on timed tests.=P Anyway, at least now I know what the SAT is like and could probably do better next time. Especially on the Math section.
Anyway, I'm gonna workout today, but will probably just use videos that I already have: The Bootcamp Body Makeover from Exercise TV and the Jump Rope Cardio from Sparkpeople. I must say that I really like the bootcamp, because it really worked my entire body, and the next day I felt sore. Which to me, is a positive thing! =P
So I've decided on fondue for the party!!! (Thanks Erica! soo sorry! =P) I still need a good recipe though. I've seen ones that use evaporated milk and marshmellows with chocolate, and I've seen heavy cream and chocolate.....what is the best way to make fondue?
How's that for a deep, thought-provoking question, huh? =P
Oh and I just wanted to thank everyone who commented yesterday and told me what their faaavorite Christmas movie is!!!! I now have a list of movies to watch! =D
Gotta run....have an awesome day!
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Christmas is Near!
I just can't believe that Christmas is Saturday!!!! Still in shock, here. =D Saturday at 11:30 my church does a midnight service, and I think we'll be going to that. It is soo awesome!!! And then, on Christmas morning, I have a special surprise planned for my family! (Can't say what it is yet for fear that someone will read....but I'm soo excited!)
Last night we visited with some friends, and guess what? We ended up making those holiday pretzels again! Thanks for the recipe Julie! We love it! =P
Last night I also borrowed a book from my friend, "A Walk to Remember" by Nicolas Sparks. Have any of ya'll ever read it???? I've seen the movie, which I loved, and am super excited to read the book!
So next Tuesday is my birthday and next Sunday is my party. My best friend, her mom, my mom, and I will go to a nice hotel nearby and watch girly movies, eat plenty of chocolate...that sort of thing. One thing I can't decide on is what I want for my dessert: fondue or chocolate cobbler???? Both sound sooo yummy!!! I might have to do one for the party and one on my actual birthday. Hmmmm....which sounds better to ya'll?? Does anyone have a tried and true fondue recipe? =D
I am finally going to be done with school today......and I'm super glad about that!! =D All that I have to do is write an essay about the 3 key things that I learned from taking my SAT prep course.
1. Never, ever take a prep course again.
2. I learned not to reccommend the SAT prep to anyone.
3. I hate taking long tests.
Sorry about the negative list....my teacher apparently couldn't come up with a final, so he basically lumped together all of the work I've done this semester into 7 parts and called it a test. Section 2 had me online taking 25 practice tests which basically took up my whole day from 11 AM to 4 PM. Exactly what I wanted to do during my Christmas break. Oh well, at least it will be done and over with....
A couple more random questions for ya'll:
What is your favorite Christmas movie?
I really have no idea....we just watched The Family Man and that was cute, but I don't know if I have an all-time favorite. =P
What are some of your family's Christmastime traditions?
Well, we usually spend Christmas day at home. My sister and I get an ornament every year. Whenever we're in the States we go to the 11:30 Christmas eve service.
Well, I have to go write an essay...
Happy Monday! =P
Last night we visited with some friends, and guess what? We ended up making those holiday pretzels again! Thanks for the recipe Julie! We love it! =P
Last night I also borrowed a book from my friend, "A Walk to Remember" by Nicolas Sparks. Have any of ya'll ever read it???? I've seen the movie, which I loved, and am super excited to read the book!
So next Tuesday is my birthday and next Sunday is my party. My best friend, her mom, my mom, and I will go to a nice hotel nearby and watch girly movies, eat plenty of chocolate...that sort of thing. One thing I can't decide on is what I want for my dessert: fondue or chocolate cobbler???? Both sound sooo yummy!!! I might have to do one for the party and one on my actual birthday. Hmmmm....which sounds better to ya'll?? Does anyone have a tried and true fondue recipe? =D
I am finally going to be done with school today......and I'm super glad about that!! =D All that I have to do is write an essay about the 3 key things that I learned from taking my SAT prep course.
1. Never, ever take a prep course again.
2. I learned not to reccommend the SAT prep to anyone.
3. I hate taking long tests.
Sorry about the negative list....my teacher apparently couldn't come up with a final, so he basically lumped together all of the work I've done this semester into 7 parts and called it a test. Section 2 had me online taking 25 practice tests which basically took up my whole day from 11 AM to 4 PM. Exactly what I wanted to do during my Christmas break. Oh well, at least it will be done and over with....
A couple more random questions for ya'll:
What is your favorite Christmas movie?
I really have no idea....we just watched The Family Man and that was cute, but I don't know if I have an all-time favorite. =P
What are some of your family's Christmastime traditions?
Well, we usually spend Christmas day at home. My sister and I get an ornament every year. Whenever we're in the States we go to the 11:30 Christmas eve service.
Well, I have to go write an essay...
Happy Monday! =P
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Holiday Pretzels and Going to Church
Last night was a looot of fun!!!! I'm so glad that I got to see a few people who I hadn't seen for at least six years. I made those holiday pretzels with the chocolate wafer candy and m&ms. Sooo yummy!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There was a TON of food there!! 3 different types of cookies, the pretzels, a ding-dong cake, ham and turkey, veggies, sausage crescent roll baked thing, bisque, and some other stuff that I can't even remember. Notice that I mentioned the desserts first and the actual food last. =D Of course, at one point, I managed to choose the mountain dew can that sprung a leak as soon as I opened it....niiiiiice. I don't usually drink soft drinks and now maybe I never will again! =D
All of the snow is gone, and in my opinion, that's a good thing! It is still freezing outside, though. Can't wait for the warm weather!!!!!!!!! =D
Today my dad's going to sing a song called Mary Did You Know at church. Its such a gorgeous song!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot believe that Christmas is next week already!!!!!!!! This year has absolutely blown by!!!!! Anyway, here's a video of someone singing that song.
So today, I have to write an essay for the last of those tests and I will finally be done with school!!!!! Yipeeeee! =D
So glad ya'll liked the guest post!!!!
I have to get going....
Happy Sunday!!!!!
All of the snow is gone, and in my opinion, that's a good thing! It is still freezing outside, though. Can't wait for the warm weather!!!!!!!!! =D
Today my dad's going to sing a song called Mary Did You Know at church. Its such a gorgeous song!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot believe that Christmas is next week already!!!!!!!! This year has absolutely blown by!!!!! Anyway, here's a video of someone singing that song.
So today, I have to write an essay for the last of those tests and I will finally be done with school!!!!! Yipeeeee! =D
So glad ya'll liked the guest post!!!!
I have to get going....
Happy Sunday!!!!!
Friday, December 17, 2010
Christmas with the Family
Morning!!!!
Glad ya'll liked yesterday's guest post! Ann Claire is awesome, and I personally thought that her 5 minute fudge look wonderful! Go check out her blog, The Flourishing Foodie! Today, I have a guest post up there!!! Here's the link:http://theflourishingfoodie.wordpress.com/2010/12/18/being-a-healthy-teen-today/.
Anyway, tonight I have Christmas with my mom's side of the family. There are people who just moved back from New Jersey and who are coming in from Texas, so I'm super excited to see everyone! My mom's family is really large. We even have to write our names on cups so that we know whose cup is where. And also so we don't go through 15 bags of plastic cups. =D
We're doing a gift swap and a light dinner. It's gonna be fun!!!!
So last night we went to see "The Tourist" with Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp. It was entertaining, not lifechanging or anything, but there were a couple of twists in the story. Then we came home and watched "The Family Man" with Nicolas Cage, which was cute, too.
So all in all, it was a pretty fun Friday, and I think that we're gonna havea pretty fun weekend, too!
Guess what? I just found out that it snowed last night. Brrrr
Is anyone having warm weather? If so, could you send some to me????
Glad ya'll liked yesterday's guest post! Ann Claire is awesome, and I personally thought that her 5 minute fudge look wonderful! Go check out her blog, The Flourishing Foodie! Today, I have a guest post up there!!! Here's the link:http://theflourishingfoodie.wordpress.com/2010/12/18/being-a-healthy-teen-today/.
Anyway, tonight I have Christmas with my mom's side of the family. There are people who just moved back from New Jersey and who are coming in from Texas, so I'm super excited to see everyone! My mom's family is really large. We even have to write our names on cups so that we know whose cup is where. And also so we don't go through 15 bags of plastic cups. =D
We're doing a gift swap and a light dinner. It's gonna be fun!!!!
So last night we went to see "The Tourist" with Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp. It was entertaining, not lifechanging or anything, but there were a couple of twists in the story. Then we came home and watched "The Family Man" with Nicolas Cage, which was cute, too.
So all in all, it was a pretty fun Friday, and I think that we're gonna havea pretty fun weekend, too!
Guess what? I just found out that it snowed last night. Brrrr
Is anyone having warm weather? If so, could you send some to me????
Thursday, December 16, 2010
First Ever Guest Post!!!!
Hey everyone!!!!!
Ann Claire over from http://theflourishingfoodie.wordpress.com/ wrote an awesome guest post and here it is:
Hey Everyone!
Ann Claire here from http://http://theflourishingfoodie.wordpress.com/. Thanks for letting me do a guest post Gen!
In general, healthy eating and the holiday season go together about as well as chocolate and broccoli. While only a very small percentage of people might enjoy chocolate and broccoli (ew!), it is entirely possible for everyone to eat healthfully during the holiday season. Of course, there's absolutely no reason not to enjoy your favorite holiday treats. Thanksgiving without pie? Christmas without cookies? Umm… no thanks!
I strongly encourage you to eat your favorite foods and enjoy them too. Food is a very social thing and many memories are associated with yummy foods. It is my personal belief, that it is impossible to be totally healthy and eat a perfect diet. I mean no one wants to never eat dessert or never eat what their friends are eating. That would be totally not fun! That being said, I'm not saying you should throw all healthy eating habits out the window. Absolutely not! So, here are 5 healthy holiday tips.
1. Be sure to eat lots of vegetables, whole grains, fruits, and other healthy things when you are at home to make up for when you indulge a bit much when you’re out.
2. Hydration, hydration, hydration. It's easy to stay hydrated in the summer when it's hot and you feel thirsty often, but when the cold weather hits we often forget about drinking water. Be sure to drink plenty of water. I suggest carrying a reusable water bottle around.
3. If invited to a Christmas gathering, offer to bring a dish. That way you can take something that you enjoy and know what's in it. Take something healthy, don't tell anyone and after they rave about how great it is you can mention how healthy it is :).
4. Don't stress! So you eat like 10 cookies in 1 sitting because they're your favorite cookie ever and you love them so much. Don't worry! Overindulging once doesn't ruin all your healthy habits. Just make sure it doesn’t happen again.
5. Make healthier suggestions of your favorite recipes. Of course, sometimes you need to have the real thing, but often it is entirely possible to make a recipe healthier without sacrificing any flavor.
Such as my 5 minutes vegan chocolate fudge
1 cup extra dark chocolate chips*
1/3 cup plus a splash of coconut milk (full fat)
A shy 1/4 cup peanut butter (about 1/6th a cup)
1/2 tsp vanilla
Mix all ingredients together in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds. Stir. Continue to to microwave and stir for 15-30 second intervals until everything if fully melted. Pour in a small foil lined pan. Put in the fridge to harden for about an hour. Cut into squares and enjoy!
*depending on the chocolate you use the recipe may or may not be totally vegan
*doubled this recipe would fit well into an 8x8 pan
Or how about some yummy chocolate chip cookies?
Have a very Merry Christmas!
~Ann Claire
Thanks Ann Claire!!!!
Does anyone else have any heathy eating over the holidays tips????
Ann Claire over from http://theflourishingfoodie.wordpress.com/ wrote an awesome guest post and here it is:
Hey Everyone!
Ann Claire here from http://http://theflourishingfoodie.wordpress.com/. Thanks for letting me do a guest post Gen!
In general, healthy eating and the holiday season go together about as well as chocolate and broccoli. While only a very small percentage of people might enjoy chocolate and broccoli (ew!), it is entirely possible for everyone to eat healthfully during the holiday season. Of course, there's absolutely no reason not to enjoy your favorite holiday treats. Thanksgiving without pie? Christmas without cookies? Umm… no thanks!
I strongly encourage you to eat your favorite foods and enjoy them too. Food is a very social thing and many memories are associated with yummy foods. It is my personal belief, that it is impossible to be totally healthy and eat a perfect diet. I mean no one wants to never eat dessert or never eat what their friends are eating. That would be totally not fun! That being said, I'm not saying you should throw all healthy eating habits out the window. Absolutely not! So, here are 5 healthy holiday tips.
1. Be sure to eat lots of vegetables, whole grains, fruits, and other healthy things when you are at home to make up for when you indulge a bit much when you’re out.
2. Hydration, hydration, hydration. It's easy to stay hydrated in the summer when it's hot and you feel thirsty often, but when the cold weather hits we often forget about drinking water. Be sure to drink plenty of water. I suggest carrying a reusable water bottle around.
3. If invited to a Christmas gathering, offer to bring a dish. That way you can take something that you enjoy and know what's in it. Take something healthy, don't tell anyone and after they rave about how great it is you can mention how healthy it is :).
4. Don't stress! So you eat like 10 cookies in 1 sitting because they're your favorite cookie ever and you love them so much. Don't worry! Overindulging once doesn't ruin all your healthy habits. Just make sure it doesn’t happen again.
5. Make healthier suggestions of your favorite recipes. Of course, sometimes you need to have the real thing, but often it is entirely possible to make a recipe healthier without sacrificing any flavor.
Such as my 5 minutes vegan chocolate fudge
1 cup extra dark chocolate chips*
1/3 cup plus a splash of coconut milk (full fat)
A shy 1/4 cup peanut butter (about 1/6th a cup)
1/2 tsp vanilla
Mix all ingredients together in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds. Stir. Continue to to microwave and stir for 15-30 second intervals until everything if fully melted. Pour in a small foil lined pan. Put in the fridge to harden for about an hour. Cut into squares and enjoy!
*depending on the chocolate you use the recipe may or may not be totally vegan
*doubled this recipe would fit well into an 8x8 pan
Or how about some yummy chocolate chip cookies?
Have a very Merry Christmas!
~Ann Claire
Thanks Ann Claire!!!!
Does anyone else have any heathy eating over the holidays tips????
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Cookin' and Workin' Out
Morning everyone!! Thanks for all your fun comments about being short! I loved reading them!!!!
So I'm going to do some new workouts this morning, and the 10 minut bootcamp that's on my workout page already.
Here are the links to the new vids:
Cardio Sculpting:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/cardio-sculpting-7197
Cardio Core:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/cardio-core-5621
As ya'll can probably see, my workout is going to be a little more cardio than usual, but I think that both of these videos incorporate strength training, which is good. Especially the Cardio Sculpting one. I read the reviews and apparently I've got a lot of squats and lunges in my near future. I'll tell ya'll how it went tomorrow!
Seeing as today is a workout day, I have an exercise-related question for ya'll: What do you eat before and after a workout?
Personally, I always workout in the mornings, but I don't like working out on an empty stomach. So I'll have a filling but lighter breakfast, like today I had instant grits (butter flavor), orange juice and coffee with 1 scoop of Aria protein powder. Afterwards, I'll have a nice sized snack, usually something with plenty of protein. But I want ya'll's opinions on the matter! =D
I cooked last niiiight (with my mom!)!!! We made turkey burgers, with baked fries, and steam-in-the bag veggies in cheese sauce. Doesn't sound like a whole lot of food, but believe me, it was filling!!! We had never made turkey burgers before, but I had read that they need extra seasoning, so we used pepper, seasoning salt, and diced onions in the patties to add flavor to them. They turned out delicious!!!!! Later, I also tried my new favorite yogurt (besides greek yogurt!). It was the Archer Farms Honey Almond Yogurt, and it was really tasty. I was surprised that the ingredient list was relatively short as well, and had actual honey listed.
Here's where I bought it! =D
Well, I did take one of the tests that I had yesterday, and will take the other one today and tomorrow, and then I'll be done with school! =D
Have a wonderful Thursday!!!!
So I'm going to do some new workouts this morning, and the 10 minut bootcamp that's on my workout page already.
Here are the links to the new vids:
Cardio Sculpting:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/cardio-sculpting-7197
Cardio Core:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/cardio-core-5621
As ya'll can probably see, my workout is going to be a little more cardio than usual, but I think that both of these videos incorporate strength training, which is good. Especially the Cardio Sculpting one. I read the reviews and apparently I've got a lot of squats and lunges in my near future. I'll tell ya'll how it went tomorrow!
Seeing as today is a workout day, I have an exercise-related question for ya'll: What do you eat before and after a workout?
Personally, I always workout in the mornings, but I don't like working out on an empty stomach. So I'll have a filling but lighter breakfast, like today I had instant grits (butter flavor), orange juice and coffee with 1 scoop of Aria protein powder. Afterwards, I'll have a nice sized snack, usually something with plenty of protein. But I want ya'll's opinions on the matter! =D
I cooked last niiiight (with my mom!)!!! We made turkey burgers, with baked fries, and steam-in-the bag veggies in cheese sauce. Doesn't sound like a whole lot of food, but believe me, it was filling!!! We had never made turkey burgers before, but I had read that they need extra seasoning, so we used pepper, seasoning salt, and diced onions in the patties to add flavor to them. They turned out delicious!!!!! Later, I also tried my new favorite yogurt (besides greek yogurt!). It was the Archer Farms Honey Almond Yogurt, and it was really tasty. I was surprised that the ingredient list was relatively short as well, and had actual honey listed.
Here's where I bought it! =DWell, I did take one of the tests that I had yesterday, and will take the other one today and tomorrow, and then I'll be done with school! =D
Have a wonderful Thursday!!!!
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
I Got Tricked.
Guess what? I've got two more tests, which I found out I was going to take yesterday. Not talking about it any more. =D
So, anyway, I'm still having a pretty great time just vegging around but I can already tell its gonna get old. fast. I need stuff to do!!!!!! =D Hence the baking extravaganza that will begin as soon as my tests are taken and I have the necessary ingredients. Because baking for other people is therapy for me. I also like to cook meals, which I might do tonight!!!! Yipee! Another boredom-buster is reading all of you're awesome blogs! =D
Well, I ended up working out to two of my already posted videos: the tried and true 10-minute jump rope video, and the Exercise tv Total Body Bootcamp. It was a pretty dang awesome workout, if you ask me...especially for a 30 minute one!
Oh good news! I'm halfway to my weight goal! Yipeee!!!! 10 pounds down, 10 to go! Then I'll be at 115, which is a great weight for my height....especially since I'm 5'3 and have a smallish build anyway. Oh, and my sister, who is three years younger than I am is almost as tall as me. People think that we're either twins or that she's older. Being short stinks, if you ask me. At least I'll never have to worry about being taller in heels than my date. =P
Random...sorry.
So, I'm sorry that I'm putting ya'll through all of my random nothingness...this is what really goes on inside my mind. I swear, I'll be listening to a conversation, and someone will say something that will make me think about something else that's completely random, and I'm not even able to contribute to the conversation because my mind is ping-ponging back and forth between different topics.
So basically, I just type out all of the ping-ponging going on, and you poor people end up with a big, long post on nothing, really. =D
Well, guess I had better go study....
happy Wednesday!
So, anyway, I'm still having a pretty great time just vegging around but I can already tell its gonna get old. fast. I need stuff to do!!!!!! =D Hence the baking extravaganza that will begin as soon as my tests are taken and I have the necessary ingredients. Because baking for other people is therapy for me. I also like to cook meals, which I might do tonight!!!! Yipee! Another boredom-buster is reading all of you're awesome blogs! =D
Well, I ended up working out to two of my already posted videos: the tried and true 10-minute jump rope video, and the Exercise tv Total Body Bootcamp. It was a pretty dang awesome workout, if you ask me...especially for a 30 minute one!
Oh good news! I'm halfway to my weight goal! Yipeee!!!! 10 pounds down, 10 to go! Then I'll be at 115, which is a great weight for my height....especially since I'm 5'3 and have a smallish build anyway. Oh, and my sister, who is three years younger than I am is almost as tall as me. People think that we're either twins or that she's older. Being short stinks, if you ask me. At least I'll never have to worry about being taller in heels than my date. =P
Random...sorry.So, I'm sorry that I'm putting ya'll through all of my random nothingness...this is what really goes on inside my mind. I swear, I'll be listening to a conversation, and someone will say something that will make me think about something else that's completely random, and I'm not even able to contribute to the conversation because my mind is ping-ponging back and forth between different topics.
So basically, I just type out all of the ping-ponging going on, and you poor people end up with a big, long post on nothing, really. =D
Well, guess I had better go study....
happy Wednesday!
Monday, December 13, 2010
How Time Flies
Can you believe that it is mid-December? I know I can't!!!!! We're headed home(South America) in less than 1 month, and it honestly doesn't seem like its been 5 months since we arrived! I've really enjoyed being able to see all of my family and friends in the States, and I will definitely miss them when we leave, but in truth, my whole family is a little homesick!
Well, thanks everyone for wishing me good luck on my exams...I offically finished them yesterday!!! Chemistry and World Lit. So now I don't have anything to do but sit around and read all of your blogs, bake, and just hang out. Which is definitely not a bad thing! =D
I'm about to workout because its Tuesday and that's what I do on Tuesdays and Thursdays (hopefully I'll be able to workout more often in the future!) Probably just do two of the videos that are already on my workout page. I really don't know yet.....if I do anything different, I'll let you know!!!!
I really can't wait till we get home and I can join a gym! There is one within a 3 minute walk from our apartment, and they offer tons of cool classes, which would be nice if I wanted to switch thing up sometimes! Now, I love the videos that I do, but still, being in a class is just different, don't you think????
How do you prefer to workout? In a class or at home, alone?
That's really all I've got for now....but beware, I don't have any school to do, so I might just post again later! =D
Byee
Well, thanks everyone for wishing me good luck on my exams...I offically finished them yesterday!!! Chemistry and World Lit. So now I don't have anything to do but sit around and read all of your blogs, bake, and just hang out. Which is definitely not a bad thing! =D
I'm about to workout because its Tuesday and that's what I do on Tuesdays and Thursdays (hopefully I'll be able to workout more often in the future!) Probably just do two of the videos that are already on my workout page. I really don't know yet.....if I do anything different, I'll let you know!!!!
I really can't wait till we get home and I can join a gym! There is one within a 3 minute walk from our apartment, and they offer tons of cool classes, which would be nice if I wanted to switch thing up sometimes! Now, I love the videos that I do, but still, being in a class is just different, don't you think????
How do you prefer to workout? In a class or at home, alone?
That's really all I've got for now....but beware, I don't have any school to do, so I might just post again later! =D
Byee
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Freedom is Close!
Last day of school-related stuff until January!!!!!!! Yipee! =D I know I've talked a lot about school and it being over and done with, but I promise to mention it no more!
Over the past few weeks, I've managed to accumulate dozens of holiday baking ideas....now I have to choose the ones that I will actually make. Boo! =( Wish I had time to bake them all, but honestly, by the time I'd be finished with all of my goodies, Christmas would be over. Oh well, I can always bake myself something on my birthday, Dec.28...hmmm there's an idea! =D
So anyway, Saturday is my mom's side of the family's Christmas party thing. I'm probably gonna make these chocolate-m&m pretzels that I saw on Peanut Butter Fingers. All you do is take pretzels, place a chocolate wafer on them, and bake them until the chocolate is melty. Then, you take them out of the oven and stick a red or green m&m in the chocolate part. Cute, right?
Sort of what they would look like! =D
As for that guest post I told ya'll to be expecting...it'll be up sometime this week!!! I'm sooo excited, because as ya'll know, my blog is pretty new, so I've never done one of these things before. And its the closet thing I'll ever have to actually meeting a fellow blogger, as I'm pretty sure that none of you live in South America. Oh well....=D
I want to ask ya'll some questions....nothing too deep or anything, just some random things!
What is your favorite thing to do in order to relax?
For me, cooking is extremely relaxing....baking is too, especially if I'm baking something chocolate.
If you could go anywhere, where would it be????
Personally, I don't have an answer for this. I'd love to see the world, and have a had time deciding where I would want to go first!
Sorry about the super random questions....guess I want to get to know a little more about the folks who are reading my blog!!!! =D
Oh, and a quick poll:
I'm having trouble deciding what to bake, so here are some of my options....which sounds better to you?
These aren't even all of my options, just a little something to get me started baking! =D
Happy Monday!
Over the past few weeks, I've managed to accumulate dozens of holiday baking ideas....now I have to choose the ones that I will actually make. Boo! =( Wish I had time to bake them all, but honestly, by the time I'd be finished with all of my goodies, Christmas would be over. Oh well, I can always bake myself something on my birthday, Dec.28...hmmm there's an idea! =D
So anyway, Saturday is my mom's side of the family's Christmas party thing. I'm probably gonna make these chocolate-m&m pretzels that I saw on Peanut Butter Fingers. All you do is take pretzels, place a chocolate wafer on them, and bake them until the chocolate is melty. Then, you take them out of the oven and stick a red or green m&m in the chocolate part. Cute, right?
Sort of what they would look like! =DAs for that guest post I told ya'll to be expecting...it'll be up sometime this week!!! I'm sooo excited, because as ya'll know, my blog is pretty new, so I've never done one of these things before. And its the closet thing I'll ever have to actually meeting a fellow blogger, as I'm pretty sure that none of you live in South America. Oh well....=D
I want to ask ya'll some questions....nothing too deep or anything, just some random things!
What is your favorite thing to do in order to relax?
For me, cooking is extremely relaxing....baking is too, especially if I'm baking something chocolate.
If you could go anywhere, where would it be????
Personally, I don't have an answer for this. I'd love to see the world, and have a had time deciding where I would want to go first!
Sorry about the super random questions....guess I want to get to know a little more about the folks who are reading my blog!!!! =D
Oh, and a quick poll:
I'm having trouble deciding what to bake, so here are some of my options....which sounds better to you?
- Black and White Striped Cookies (cooking light)
- Chocolate Cobbler (How Sweet it is)
- Double-Chocolate Snowquakes (Country Living)
- Peppermint Bark (Allrecipes)
- Toasted-Almond Meringues (Eating Well)
- Cinnamon Chocolate Shortbread (SparkPeople)
These aren't even all of my options, just a little something to get me started baking! =D
Happy Monday!
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Whoohoo!!!!!
Can you tell I'm happy????
The thin mints were a success!!!!!
Here's the recipe I used (from Cakespy):
Cookies:
2 and 1/4 cups flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
6 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt (I used less, and didn't notice a taste difference)
1 C sugar (I used the full amount this time, but I could definitely reduce it in the future)
1/2 C butter (I used a "light" butter because that's what was in the fridge)
1/3 C milk of any kind
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (could be omitted)
3/4 tsp peppermint extract (More or less depending on preference)
For chocolate coating:
10 oz dark or semi-sweet chocolate (I used semi-sweet chips)
1/2 C butter
Note: The dough is incredibly thick, and I ended up not even using the mixer while adding the flour mixture to the butter-sugar mixture. I kneaded it pizza-style, and trust me, if you do the same, you can call it your workout for the day. The next morning, you'll have arms so toned that Madonna will be green with envy! =D
Makes about 40 smallish cookies.
I wish my cookies looked this good... at least they're yummy!!!!
So besides baking, yesterday I took one test and studied for another. Then we went to our friend's house, and brought some cookies with us!!!! This is the same friend that recently had surgery, and she's doing really well!!!!!
Today, its super-duper cold outside (like 17 degrees) and I'm really dreading getting out!!!! But, we're going to church, so its not like its something unimportant or anything...=P.
What has been your favorite thing that you've baked recently?
Hope ya'll have a wonderful Sunday!!!!!
The thin mints were a success!!!!!
Here's the recipe I used (from Cakespy):
Cookies:
2 and 1/4 cups flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
6 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt (I used less, and didn't notice a taste difference)
1 C sugar (I used the full amount this time, but I could definitely reduce it in the future)
1/2 C butter (I used a "light" butter because that's what was in the fridge)
1/3 C milk of any kind
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (could be omitted)
3/4 tsp peppermint extract (More or less depending on preference)
For chocolate coating:
10 oz dark or semi-sweet chocolate (I used semi-sweet chips)
1/2 C butter
- Whisk together flour, cornstarch, salt, and cocoa.
- In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar. With mixer on low speed, add milk and extracts. Gradually add in flour mixture until fully incorporated.
- Shape dough into two even logs, wrap in plastic wrap, and freeze for at least an hour and a half. The longer you freeze the dough, the easier it is to cut.
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Remove dough from freezer. Slice into rounds. For a more "thin mint" texture, make sure that the rounds are no thicker than 1/4 inch. They won't spread very much, so you can place them closer together on a lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes, remove from oven and set on a wire rack until cooled.
- Melt butter and chocolate together in a medium saucepan. It will make a nice, thick chocolate sauce. Drop in cookies, turn with a fork to coat with chocolate. If the sauce begins to harden, you can heat it up until its back to the right consistency.
- Place dipped cookies onto parchment paper, and let cool until chocolate hardens.
Note: The dough is incredibly thick, and I ended up not even using the mixer while adding the flour mixture to the butter-sugar mixture. I kneaded it pizza-style, and trust me, if you do the same, you can call it your workout for the day. The next morning, you'll have arms so toned that Madonna will be green with envy! =D
Makes about 40 smallish cookies.
I wish my cookies looked this good... at least they're yummy!!!!So besides baking, yesterday I took one test and studied for another. Then we went to our friend's house, and brought some cookies with us!!!! This is the same friend that recently had surgery, and she's doing really well!!!!!
Today, its super-duper cold outside (like 17 degrees) and I'm really dreading getting out!!!! But, we're going to church, so its not like its something unimportant or anything...=P.
What has been your favorite thing that you've baked recently?
Hope ya'll have a wonderful Sunday!!!!!
Disappearing Act
Happy Saturday!!!!
Well, apparently I fell off the face of the earth yesterday....sorry about that! =D
We ended up leaving Texarkana at like 3:40 and arriving home at 8:30. We were all kinda tired...I did originally mean to post yesterday, but I guess I fell asleep before I got the chance to do so.
Anyway, we had an awesome time visiting our family!!!! It had been 3 years since we had seen them last. My aunt, who is a personal trainer, gave me some study material that she said she doesn't need anymore, and told me about some programs that I can already get a cert to teach. Even Beachbody has a program, BodyGospel, that if I buy and learn all of the DVDs, I am automatically certified to teach. So that is pretty cool!!!!
We also played board games like Apples to Apples and Boggle! I looove both of them. Apples to Apples is sooo funny when there are more people playing it, that we ended up playing the game twice! =D All in all, we had a good time, and I'm glad that we had the opportunity to visit some more of our family!
Today, I do have a couple of tests left over from last week, because it stinks to take a test while visiting. So, I'm probably going to study a lot and take most of them today, so that the Christmas baking extravaganza will begin!!!! Are any of ya'll beginning to bake for the holidays? If so, what has been your favorite thing that you made so far?
Thanks for all of the positive feedback on my last post! It is a subject that I care a lot about, and probably one that will come up again in the future....but if I ever begin to ramble on about anything ya'll feel free to tell me exactly that! =D
Well, I guess I had better go....
Have a great weekend!!!!
Well, apparently I fell off the face of the earth yesterday....sorry about that! =D
We ended up leaving Texarkana at like 3:40 and arriving home at 8:30. We were all kinda tired...I did originally mean to post yesterday, but I guess I fell asleep before I got the chance to do so.
Anyway, we had an awesome time visiting our family!!!! It had been 3 years since we had seen them last. My aunt, who is a personal trainer, gave me some study material that she said she doesn't need anymore, and told me about some programs that I can already get a cert to teach. Even Beachbody has a program, BodyGospel, that if I buy and learn all of the DVDs, I am automatically certified to teach. So that is pretty cool!!!!
We also played board games like Apples to Apples and Boggle! I looove both of them. Apples to Apples is sooo funny when there are more people playing it, that we ended up playing the game twice! =D All in all, we had a good time, and I'm glad that we had the opportunity to visit some more of our family!
Today, I do have a couple of tests left over from last week, because it stinks to take a test while visiting. So, I'm probably going to study a lot and take most of them today, so that the Christmas baking extravaganza will begin!!!! Are any of ya'll beginning to bake for the holidays? If so, what has been your favorite thing that you made so far?
Thanks for all of the positive feedback on my last post! It is a subject that I care a lot about, and probably one that will come up again in the future....but if I ever begin to ramble on about anything ya'll feel free to tell me exactly that! =D
Well, I guess I had better go....
Have a great weekend!!!!
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
On the Road to Texarkana and a more Serious Topic
Hey ya'll!!!!!
I'm headed to meet up with my aunt, uncle, and cousin in Texarkana (the Texas side)! Haven't seen them in forever, so I'm really looking forward to it!!!!
Oh, my mom's friend went home yesterday!!! She is still healing, but is doing better! =D
So anyway, I've got 5 hours in the car to look forward to. Mom says I should take tests to study for, so I'm now trying to come up with something else that is productive but doesn't involve tests!!!! =D Hmmm...any ideas????
I have absolutely no inspiration for this post......guess I needed more sleep! =P So I hope you all don't mind ramblings on nothingness.....because you may just get that! =D
You know what? I'm gonna write about something serious. Because that's what you do when your tired, obviously. Sleepiness is the state in which your best thinking is done! =D
Anyway, I want to address today's society's relationship with food. There are really two sides to it. On one hand, you have people who turn to food for everything, and on the other, you have those who avoid it like the plague. Then, there are those who insist that you must live according to a certain diet plan, and if you don't, well then, you are wrong and completely unhealthy. Something that I have learned so far in my journey to well-being is that everyone is different and functions better on different diets. Personally, I feel my best when I eat most of my carbs in the morning, and my percentages look about like 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fats. But there are some who feel better on a low-carb, high-protein diet, or a high-fat diet, among others. Some can adopt a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, while others may feel sluggish without a source of animal protein. It is all very relative, and in my opinion, it is wrong to try to force a certain "diet" on others.
As for the disordered relationships with food, I believe that both overeating and anorexia are a growing part of the struggles that we deal with in society. People either turn to food for comfort, or take comfort in the fact that they can resist it. Extreme behavior in either direction is extremely unhealthy and hurts not only the one person, but also their friends and family. I speak from experience. I think that all of what I have talked about has made me develop a true passion for living what really is a healthy lifestyle, and to teach others how to do so. I believe that everyone has different nutritional needs, and also that if you want that brownie or ice cream cone, go for it! Life is too short to cut out stuff you love!!!!!
For more on nutritional relativism, check out this post:
http://theflourishingfoodie.wordpress.com/2010/12/05/nutritional-relativism-chocolate-chip-cookies-and-guest-posts/
Sorry about the uber-long post, I guess being tired really does result in deeper thinking. =D
What are your opinions on this topic? Agree or disagree??? Please comment below!
On a lighter note, this weekend commences the Healthy Chocoholic Christmas baking extravaganza!!!! Whoooo!
Stay happy!!
I'm headed to meet up with my aunt, uncle, and cousin in Texarkana (the Texas side)! Haven't seen them in forever, so I'm really looking forward to it!!!!
Oh, my mom's friend went home yesterday!!! She is still healing, but is doing better! =D
So anyway, I've got 5 hours in the car to look forward to. Mom says I should take tests to study for, so I'm now trying to come up with something else that is productive but doesn't involve tests!!!! =D Hmmm...any ideas????
I have absolutely no inspiration for this post......guess I needed more sleep! =P So I hope you all don't mind ramblings on nothingness.....because you may just get that! =D
You know what? I'm gonna write about something serious. Because that's what you do when your tired, obviously. Sleepiness is the state in which your best thinking is done! =D
Anyway, I want to address today's society's relationship with food. There are really two sides to it. On one hand, you have people who turn to food for everything, and on the other, you have those who avoid it like the plague. Then, there are those who insist that you must live according to a certain diet plan, and if you don't, well then, you are wrong and completely unhealthy. Something that I have learned so far in my journey to well-being is that everyone is different and functions better on different diets. Personally, I feel my best when I eat most of my carbs in the morning, and my percentages look about like 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fats. But there are some who feel better on a low-carb, high-protein diet, or a high-fat diet, among others. Some can adopt a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, while others may feel sluggish without a source of animal protein. It is all very relative, and in my opinion, it is wrong to try to force a certain "diet" on others.
As for the disordered relationships with food, I believe that both overeating and anorexia are a growing part of the struggles that we deal with in society. People either turn to food for comfort, or take comfort in the fact that they can resist it. Extreme behavior in either direction is extremely unhealthy and hurts not only the one person, but also their friends and family. I speak from experience. I think that all of what I have talked about has made me develop a true passion for living what really is a healthy lifestyle, and to teach others how to do so. I believe that everyone has different nutritional needs, and also that if you want that brownie or ice cream cone, go for it! Life is too short to cut out stuff you love!!!!!
For more on nutritional relativism, check out this post:
http://theflourishingfoodie.wordpress.com/2010/12/05/nutritional-relativism-chocolate-chip-cookies-and-guest-posts/
Sorry about the uber-long post, I guess being tired really does result in deeper thinking. =D
What are your opinions on this topic? Agree or disagree??? Please comment below!
On a lighter note, this weekend commences the Healthy Chocoholic Christmas baking extravaganza!!!! Whoooo!
Stay happy!!
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
I Found It!!!!!!!
Good morning!!!!!! Hope you are all doing well today! =D
Last night I had every intention of making myself protein pancakes from Peanut Butter Fingers. But this morning, I wanted breakfast and I wanted it now. So I turned to something I only use in dire food emergencies: instant oats. They taste nothing like old-fashioned, but I mixed in enough PB and cinnamon that they were alright! Plus I had my usual coffee protein drink with it. So now, I'm fueled for my workout this morning!!!!
I'm doing two brand-new videos, so here are the links:
10 minute Jump Start Cardio Workout:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M38HDCGmhm4
Major Metabolism Booster:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/body-sculpting/major-metabolism-booster-0464
Well by now, you are probably asking yourself what the heck did I find that was so important that I called this post: "I Found It", and then didn't mention finding anything until halfway through the post. So, here it is, I found the PEPPERMINT EXTRACT!!!!! Whoo! Now I can make thin mints, peppermint bark, oooh a peppermint mocha like from starbucks and lots of other Christmas-y things!!!! =D I'm pretty excited about it, if you can tell.
[caption id="attachment_110" align="alignnone" width="259" caption="I'll be making these soon!!!! =D"]
[/caption]
Now I want to thank everyone who commented yesterday. Your input on both a serious thing (my aunt's idea) and a goofy one (to eat or not to eat the bread bowl) was wonderful!!!!! I think that one of my favorite things about having a blog is getting to know other people out there who have similar interests, i.e. baking, eating, and oh yeah, exercising!
As for my disordered eating, I feel that, for the most part, my relationship with food is better. Its the emotional side of things that caused it in the first place that I really need to work on now!
Well, I don't think that I've got much else to say right now....shocker, huh? Usually, I can go on much longer than this, but only in written stuff. When I have to actually talk, I'm a two-words-at-a-time kind of girl! =D
Oh, I do have some exciting news!!! Very,very soon, Ann Claire from The Flourishing Foodie will be writing a guest post on my blog, and I will write one for hers!!!! Neat, huh?
So, now I think I've really said everything there is for today! Byee
Last night I had every intention of making myself protein pancakes from Peanut Butter Fingers. But this morning, I wanted breakfast and I wanted it now. So I turned to something I only use in dire food emergencies: instant oats. They taste nothing like old-fashioned, but I mixed in enough PB and cinnamon that they were alright! Plus I had my usual coffee protein drink with it. So now, I'm fueled for my workout this morning!!!!
I'm doing two brand-new videos, so here are the links:
10 minute Jump Start Cardio Workout:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M38HDCGmhm4
Major Metabolism Booster:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/body-sculpting/major-metabolism-booster-0464
Well by now, you are probably asking yourself what the heck did I find that was so important that I called this post: "I Found It", and then didn't mention finding anything until halfway through the post. So, here it is, I found the PEPPERMINT EXTRACT!!!!! Whoo! Now I can make thin mints, peppermint bark, oooh a peppermint mocha like from starbucks and lots of other Christmas-y things!!!! =D I'm pretty excited about it, if you can tell.
[caption id="attachment_110" align="alignnone" width="259" caption="I'll be making these soon!!!! =D"]
[/caption]Now I want to thank everyone who commented yesterday. Your input on both a serious thing (my aunt's idea) and a goofy one (to eat or not to eat the bread bowl) was wonderful!!!!! I think that one of my favorite things about having a blog is getting to know other people out there who have similar interests, i.e. baking, eating, and oh yeah, exercising!
As for my disordered eating, I feel that, for the most part, my relationship with food is better. Its the emotional side of things that caused it in the first place that I really need to work on now!
Well, I don't think that I've got much else to say right now....shocker, huh? Usually, I can go on much longer than this, but only in written stuff. When I have to actually talk, I'm a two-words-at-a-time kind of girl! =D
Oh, I do have some exciting news!!! Very,very soon, Ann Claire from The Flourishing Foodie will be writing a guest post on my blog, and I will write one for hers!!!! Neat, huh?
So, now I think I've really said everything there is for today! Byee
Monday, December 6, 2010
An Inspiring Phone Conversation
Morning, all!!!!! Thanks for all of your comments on my mom's friend!!!! She is in recovery right now, and mom and dad will visit her later on today. I also want to thank ya'll for the tips on where to get the peppermint extract!!!! Depending on how school goes, I'll be out shopping for it today! =D
So Thursday we're going to Texarkana to meet up with my aunt, and yesterday she called to confirm everything. Well, my parents weren't here, so I ended up being the one to answer the phone. We chatted for a little while, and then she asked me what I was planning on doing in college. I told her that I want to be a dietitian or major in kinesiology and specialize in nutrition and wellness. Anyway, she is really interested in all of that, and told me that if she were my age again, that she would want to major in the same area. She also told me a wonderful idea of hers: to start a fitness/healthy living camp, to get people away from processed foods and teach them how to live a healthful life, with the occasional indulgence, but also to minister to them. So you would be helping someone both physically and spiritually. I thought that it was an awesome idea!!!!!!
Last night, my mom went to spend the night with my grandmother, who is out of the hospital but still having a hard time getting around. So, my dad took my sister and me out to McAlister's for dinner. I've already mentioned the Chicken Tortilla Soup that I love there, right? Well they didn't have it. So, I tried their Country Vegetable Soup, and it was really very tasty!!!! I got it in a bread bowl, too. =D I do actually have a bread bowl-related question:
Is it weird to eat the whole bread bowl? Are you just supposed to eat the cut out center parts?
Of course, I go for the whole dang thing, and probably still will no matter what you're supposed to do. The McAlister's bowls aren't ginormous, so I don't feel stuffed after eating them, but they do keep me full longer than just eating soup does. =D Plus they taste amazing!
Well, I had better be off.....another day full of studying to look forward to!
So Thursday we're going to Texarkana to meet up with my aunt, and yesterday she called to confirm everything. Well, my parents weren't here, so I ended up being the one to answer the phone. We chatted for a little while, and then she asked me what I was planning on doing in college. I told her that I want to be a dietitian or major in kinesiology and specialize in nutrition and wellness. Anyway, she is really interested in all of that, and told me that if she were my age again, that she would want to major in the same area. She also told me a wonderful idea of hers: to start a fitness/healthy living camp, to get people away from processed foods and teach them how to live a healthful life, with the occasional indulgence, but also to minister to them. So you would be helping someone both physically and spiritually. I thought that it was an awesome idea!!!!!!
Last night, my mom went to spend the night with my grandmother, who is out of the hospital but still having a hard time getting around. So, my dad took my sister and me out to McAlister's for dinner. I've already mentioned the Chicken Tortilla Soup that I love there, right? Well they didn't have it. So, I tried their Country Vegetable Soup, and it was really very tasty!!!! I got it in a bread bowl, too. =D I do actually have a bread bowl-related question:
Is it weird to eat the whole bread bowl? Are you just supposed to eat the cut out center parts?
Of course, I go for the whole dang thing, and probably still will no matter what you're supposed to do. The McAlister's bowls aren't ginormous, so I don't feel stuffed after eating them, but they do keep me full longer than just eating soup does. =D Plus they taste amazing!
Well, I had better be off.....another day full of studying to look forward to!
Sunday, December 5, 2010
One Week Left....
One more week of schoooool!!!!!!!! I' m singing about it in my head right now. I would sing out loud, but as usual I'm the only one awake, and I believe that singing while others are sleeping is frowned upon in this household (hi, dad). =P
Anyway, I'm actually going to workout today and wednesday instead of tomorrow and thursday, because Thursday, we'll be out of town, headed towards Texarkana to meet up with my aunt. I'm thinking that I'm going to do the ExerciseTV bootcamp that's already on my http://fitchocoholic.wordpress.com/workin-it/ page.
Anyhow, I had a delicious, if random breakfast to fuel myself for the upcoming workout. I had an Eggo Multigrain Waffle with Dark Chocolate Dreams PB(if you haven't had this yet, you should, I'm addicted =P), a hot coffee protein drink where I mixed a bunch of coffee with a serving of Aria protein powder, which tastes awful on its on but decent mixed with something, and a poached egg on the side. Seriously, I just learned how to poach eggs and its pretty easy, but just saying that you ate a poached egg makes you automatically 60% fancier than anyone around you. It's true. Google it.
So anyway, I'm basically really ready for school to be over and done with for the semester. I tried to convince my mom that it is really alright to just blow off this last week and take all the tests in January. Surprisingly enough, it didn't work out so well. So now I have more time to look up recipes to bake!
I want to make homemade Thin Mints, but don't know where to buy peppermint extract. Do any of ya'll know?
A close friend of my mom's is having surgery today, so if ya'll would please pray for her, that would be great! I'm going to bake the thin mints for her, because she ,looooves them. =D
That's all I've got for now...
Byeeee ya'll! =D
Anyway, I'm actually going to workout today and wednesday instead of tomorrow and thursday, because Thursday, we'll be out of town, headed towards Texarkana to meet up with my aunt. I'm thinking that I'm going to do the ExerciseTV bootcamp that's already on my http://fitchocoholic.wordpress.com/workin-it/ page.
Anyhow, I had a delicious, if random breakfast to fuel myself for the upcoming workout. I had an Eggo Multigrain Waffle with Dark Chocolate Dreams PB(if you haven't had this yet, you should, I'm addicted =P), a hot coffee protein drink where I mixed a bunch of coffee with a serving of Aria protein powder, which tastes awful on its on but decent mixed with something, and a poached egg on the side. Seriously, I just learned how to poach eggs and its pretty easy, but just saying that you ate a poached egg makes you automatically 60% fancier than anyone around you. It's true. Google it.
So anyway, I'm basically really ready for school to be over and done with for the semester. I tried to convince my mom that it is really alright to just blow off this last week and take all the tests in January. Surprisingly enough, it didn't work out so well. So now I have more time to look up recipes to bake!
I want to make homemade Thin Mints, but don't know where to buy peppermint extract. Do any of ya'll know?
A close friend of my mom's is having surgery today, so if ya'll would please pray for her, that would be great! I'm going to bake the thin mints for her, because she ,looooves them. =D
That's all I've got for now...
Byeeee ya'll! =D
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Should I Change the Name of the Blog?
Heey!
Sorry that I didn't post again yesterday......I actually came home after we went out for lunch and took a two-hour nap!!! =P
So the test went well, it ended up being more like 5 hours, so it was looong, but not too terribly awful. I'm pretty much just glad that it is over....=D. Afterwards, we went out to the Mellow Mushroom for a late lunch. Mellow Mushroom is a pizza place, but they also have sandwiches and salads. The coolest thing there is that you can order what's on their menu or you can make your own pizza, sub, or salad. We got a buffalo chicken pizza that came with ranch dressing instead of tomato sauce, and I got a delish grilled chicken salad that I loaded up with veggies with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette on the side. Everything was tasty!!!!!
So today, my sister and I are going to say our proclamations of faith in front of the congregation.....last night, our parents gave both of us a ring with a Bible verse on it, which was really awesome! =D Its a simple ring, which I like, because I don't usually wear rings, especially ones that shout: "Hey, look at me! I'm a ring!!!!".
Then, we're going to some friends' house after lunch to hang out and chat for a while.....these people have visited us in South America, so we have loooots of stories. I'm actually looking forward to it.....and I don't usually like to get out very much. My parents always joke that if I'm ever grounded, I'll be forced to leave the house instead of being forced to stay inside. =P Maybe I should change the name of the blog to "Musings of an Antisocial Chocoholic". Hmmm, or maybe not. =P
So that's pretty much all that is on the agenda today......tomorrow the last week of this semester of school begins!!!! Test week.....which is never very fun, but at least its the last week and then I can start on my Christmas baking! =D
See ya later =D
Sorry that I didn't post again yesterday......I actually came home after we went out for lunch and took a two-hour nap!!! =P
So the test went well, it ended up being more like 5 hours, so it was looong, but not too terribly awful. I'm pretty much just glad that it is over....=D. Afterwards, we went out to the Mellow Mushroom for a late lunch. Mellow Mushroom is a pizza place, but they also have sandwiches and salads. The coolest thing there is that you can order what's on their menu or you can make your own pizza, sub, or salad. We got a buffalo chicken pizza that came with ranch dressing instead of tomato sauce, and I got a delish grilled chicken salad that I loaded up with veggies with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette on the side. Everything was tasty!!!!!
So today, my sister and I are going to say our proclamations of faith in front of the congregation.....last night, our parents gave both of us a ring with a Bible verse on it, which was really awesome! =D Its a simple ring, which I like, because I don't usually wear rings, especially ones that shout: "Hey, look at me! I'm a ring!!!!".
Then, we're going to some friends' house after lunch to hang out and chat for a while.....these people have visited us in South America, so we have loooots of stories. I'm actually looking forward to it.....and I don't usually like to get out very much. My parents always joke that if I'm ever grounded, I'll be forced to leave the house instead of being forced to stay inside. =P Maybe I should change the name of the blog to "Musings of an Antisocial Chocoholic". Hmmm, or maybe not. =P
So that's pretty much all that is on the agenda today......tomorrow the last week of this semester of school begins!!!! Test week.....which is never very fun, but at least its the last week and then I can start on my Christmas baking! =D
See ya later =D
Why Were 4-hour Tests Invented Anyway?
Guess where I am riiiight about now???? If you said sitting in a room with a bunch of other people, taking my SAT, you were right! I prewrote this post, so that the good ol' blog wouldn't be unupdated (not a word, I know =D) this morning.
Well, I got up at 6 this morning, left at 7, so I could be at the school where I'm taking the test at 7:45. I figure that I'm just about as ready as I'll ever be....I mean you can't really study for the SAT a whole lot, except to review some stuff. I'm just taking it now to see where I am, you know, because South American schools don't exactly offer English and U.S. History classes. Now, ask me any Portuguese or Brazilian history questions, and I'm good to go. Anyway, its a whole lot easier to take the SAT in the States than it is in Brazil.
Now on to my new favorite snack!!!!!!!!! Cocoa roasted almonds in a cup of plain greek yogurt!!!! Yuuuummy!!!!! I promise, this is an amazing combo, especially for those of you who don't like the flavor of plain yogurt. The cocoa sweetens it up just enough, and the combined protein of the yogurt, fiber and healthy fats of the almonds keep me full for a good long time!! =D
Well, for right now, that's really all I've got!!!! I'll update ya'll after the test!!!! =D
Well, I got up at 6 this morning, left at 7, so I could be at the school where I'm taking the test at 7:45. I figure that I'm just about as ready as I'll ever be....I mean you can't really study for the SAT a whole lot, except to review some stuff. I'm just taking it now to see where I am, you know, because South American schools don't exactly offer English and U.S. History classes. Now, ask me any Portuguese or Brazilian history questions, and I'm good to go. Anyway, its a whole lot easier to take the SAT in the States than it is in Brazil.
Now on to my new favorite snack!!!!!!!!! Cocoa roasted almonds in a cup of plain greek yogurt!!!! Yuuuummy!!!!! I promise, this is an amazing combo, especially for those of you who don't like the flavor of plain yogurt. The cocoa sweetens it up just enough, and the combined protein of the yogurt, fiber and healthy fats of the almonds keep me full for a good long time!! =D
Well, for right now, that's really all I've got!!!! I'll update ya'll after the test!!!! =D
Thursday, December 2, 2010
It's Almost the Weekend!!
Awesome giveaway alert!!!!! Head on over to Lovely as Charged for a Chobani greek yogurt giveaway:
http://lovelyascharged.wordpress.com/2010/12/03/giving-mornings-a-second-chance-giveaway/
Can you tell I soo want this week to be over????? Due to our road trip, I have both this week's and last week's Algebra test to take today. I'm sort of hoping that both of my parents will have temporary amnesia and forget all about them. Yeah, I know its not gonna happen....and really, now that I think about it, tomorrow I'm gonna take the SAT at 8 AM, so Algebra is starting to look pretty good.
Well in other news, I COOKED last night!!!! Yipeeee! It was pretty simple stuff: chicken cooked with some italian herb seasoning, elbow pasta w/ optional cheese garlic cream sauce (it had maybe 1 tbsp butter, to full tsp minced garlic, maybe 1 C milk, 1.5 tbsp flour, and maybe 1/4 C shredded mozzarella), roasted summer squash and zucchini (tossed with 2 tsp oil, garlic salt, and pepper, and roasted in a 410 degree oven for about 25 minutes) and baked sweet potatoes. Pretty tasty, and I only did one klutzy thing: while flipping the veggies halfway through their baking time, I burnt my arm on the top of the oven. But its not a bad burn, so I'd say that all in all, it was a success!!!! My little sister really liked the garlic cream sauce (I madeit mostly for her because she looooves pasta), I didn't have any, but I used both my mom's recipe (garlic, butter, milk, flour) and my "aunt's" homemade mac n' cheese sauce for inspiration. My mom was exhausted from being at the hospital, so it worked out well that she didn't have to plan an entire meal. I really loved the roasted veggies; they almost have a carmelized flavor, and the garlic salt made them taste yummy!!!!!!
Right now I'm downloading those free WildTangent games to play later because I'm cook like that. Honestly, if any of my friends ever found out that in my spare time I play stuff like "Cookie Domination" or "Cooking Dash" or even "Nancy Drew", I would never hear the end of it. Not that I really care what they say. As far as I'm concerned, they are missing out! =D This whole paragraph was completely random, but what do you expect when you blog before your morning cup o' coffee kicks in???? I mean, come on.
Sooo what do ya'll have planned for the weekend?? Anything special or out of the ordinary????
I've gotta go study......if I suddenly quit blogging, you'll know that I'm in a test coma, and will have to take time to recover.....
http://lovelyascharged.wordpress.com/2010/12/03/giving-mornings-a-second-chance-giveaway/
Can you tell I soo want this week to be over????? Due to our road trip, I have both this week's and last week's Algebra test to take today. I'm sort of hoping that both of my parents will have temporary amnesia and forget all about them. Yeah, I know its not gonna happen....and really, now that I think about it, tomorrow I'm gonna take the SAT at 8 AM, so Algebra is starting to look pretty good.
Well in other news, I COOKED last night!!!! Yipeeee! It was pretty simple stuff: chicken cooked with some italian herb seasoning, elbow pasta w/ optional cheese garlic cream sauce (it had maybe 1 tbsp butter, to full tsp minced garlic, maybe 1 C milk, 1.5 tbsp flour, and maybe 1/4 C shredded mozzarella), roasted summer squash and zucchini (tossed with 2 tsp oil, garlic salt, and pepper, and roasted in a 410 degree oven for about 25 minutes) and baked sweet potatoes. Pretty tasty, and I only did one klutzy thing: while flipping the veggies halfway through their baking time, I burnt my arm on the top of the oven. But its not a bad burn, so I'd say that all in all, it was a success!!!! My little sister really liked the garlic cream sauce (I madeit mostly for her because she looooves pasta), I didn't have any, but I used both my mom's recipe (garlic, butter, milk, flour) and my "aunt's" homemade mac n' cheese sauce for inspiration. My mom was exhausted from being at the hospital, so it worked out well that she didn't have to plan an entire meal. I really loved the roasted veggies; they almost have a carmelized flavor, and the garlic salt made them taste yummy!!!!!!
Right now I'm downloading those free WildTangent games to play later because I'm cook like that. Honestly, if any of my friends ever found out that in my spare time I play stuff like "Cookie Domination" or "Cooking Dash" or even "Nancy Drew", I would never hear the end of it. Not that I really care what they say. As far as I'm concerned, they are missing out! =D This whole paragraph was completely random, but what do you expect when you blog before your morning cup o' coffee kicks in???? I mean, come on.
Sooo what do ya'll have planned for the weekend?? Anything special or out of the ordinary????
I've gotta go study......if I suddenly quit blogging, you'll know that I'm in a test coma, and will have to take time to recover.....
The Attack of the Crazy Coffee Pot
Good morning! I hope you all are doing well!!!!!
This morning, when I got up, I did what I always do: turned on the coffeepot as soon as I got to the kitchen. I went about making my breakfast, when suddenly I heard this strange sizzling noise. I looked over at the coffeepot, and noticed that even though it had been brewing for a few minutes, there were only 2 cups of coffee in the pot. So I took the pot out of the maching and guess what? Somehow the coffee that was being brewed had missed the coffee pot entirely and was spewing out onto the little heater thing on the coffeemaker. Wonderful. I cleaned it up, and just to make sure that I wouldn't have another mess on my hands, I held the coffee pot for the entire time the second batch of coffee waas brewing. What a way to start a Thursday. Does anyone else have any crazy cooking stories?
So anyway, I had my coffee (finally), ate breakfast, and worked out.
I did two whole new videos today!!!!!!!! I broke out of my Jump Rope Cardio Rut!!!!! Yipeee!!!
Here are the links:
Sparkpeople Bootcamp Cardio Workout :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eOdcFVrFSw&feature=BF&list=PL2905BC7E65EF9A50&index=3
Exercise TV Fat Burn Strength Interval:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/fat-burn-8205
All in all, the two combined gave me a pretty awesome total-body workout. I ended up sweaty and stinky, which are both signs of a good workout, if you ask me.
So now, I'm basically avoiding my schoolwork. I've actually worked ahead a lot, and yesterday I took the free SAT test online for practice. Saturday, I get to take the real deal, and Sunday, my sister and I are doing our proclamations of faith in front of our church congregation! Big weekend. And I still have 3 Algebra II lessons to do before Friday. So you can see why I am avoiding it. Eventually, though, I'll have to finish the lessons, and when I do, I'm eating the single-serving cup of Mocha Almond Fudge ice-cream sitting in my freezer. I bought it last night!!!! Yummy!
Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!!!!!!!
We made our grocery store run last night. Dad hates it, and Mom is still with my grandmother at the hospital, soooo it was the fastest-ever grocery trip. Guess what else I bought???? Cocoa-Roast Almonds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They are heavenly!!!!!!! I promise! I ate a bunch!!! And you don't get chocolate on your hands because the cocoa is baked into the almond. =D
Well, I guess I had better let ya'll get back to your normal lives....
Oh guess what? I'm cookin' toniiight!!!! Yipeee
This morning, when I got up, I did what I always do: turned on the coffeepot as soon as I got to the kitchen. I went about making my breakfast, when suddenly I heard this strange sizzling noise. I looked over at the coffeepot, and noticed that even though it had been brewing for a few minutes, there were only 2 cups of coffee in the pot. So I took the pot out of the maching and guess what? Somehow the coffee that was being brewed had missed the coffee pot entirely and was spewing out onto the little heater thing on the coffeemaker. Wonderful. I cleaned it up, and just to make sure that I wouldn't have another mess on my hands, I held the coffee pot for the entire time the second batch of coffee waas brewing. What a way to start a Thursday. Does anyone else have any crazy cooking stories?
So anyway, I had my coffee (finally), ate breakfast, and worked out.
I did two whole new videos today!!!!!!!! I broke out of my Jump Rope Cardio Rut!!!!! Yipeee!!!
Here are the links:
Sparkpeople Bootcamp Cardio Workout :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eOdcFVrFSw&feature=BF&list=PL2905BC7E65EF9A50&index=3
Exercise TV Fat Burn Strength Interval:
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/cardio/fat-burn-8205
All in all, the two combined gave me a pretty awesome total-body workout. I ended up sweaty and stinky, which are both signs of a good workout, if you ask me.
So now, I'm basically avoiding my schoolwork. I've actually worked ahead a lot, and yesterday I took the free SAT test online for practice. Saturday, I get to take the real deal, and Sunday, my sister and I are doing our proclamations of faith in front of our church congregation! Big weekend. And I still have 3 Algebra II lessons to do before Friday. So you can see why I am avoiding it. Eventually, though, I'll have to finish the lessons, and when I do, I'm eating the single-serving cup of Mocha Almond Fudge ice-cream sitting in my freezer. I bought it last night!!!! Yummy!
Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!!!!!!!We made our grocery store run last night. Dad hates it, and Mom is still with my grandmother at the hospital, soooo it was the fastest-ever grocery trip. Guess what else I bought???? Cocoa-Roast Almonds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They are heavenly!!!!!!! I promise! I ate a bunch!!! And you don't get chocolate on your hands because the cocoa is baked into the almond. =D
Well, I guess I had better let ya'll get back to your normal lives....
Oh guess what? I'm cookin' toniiight!!!! Yipeee
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