CUPCAKES

Friend of mine is starting a business.

SUGAR
Cakes, Cookies, Pies and More!

Andrea
972-658-1912
AndiC125@msn.com

her website is coming soon. www.SavedBySugar.com

I can attest to her awesome coconut buttercream icing cupcakes. Amazing!

I like this . . .

It's a long read but a good one. At least I enjoy it.

I can believe things that are true and I can believe things that aren’t true and I can believe things where nobody knows if they’re true or not. I can believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny and Marilyn Monroe and the Beatles and Elvis and Mister Ed. Listen-I believe that people are perfectible, that knowledge is infinite, that the world is run by secret banking cartels and is visited by aliens on a regular basis, nice ones that look like wrinkledy lemurs and bad ones who mutilate cattle and want our water and our women. I believe that the future sucks and I believe that the future rocks and I believe that one day White Buffalo Woman is going to come back and kick everyone’s ass. I believe that all men are just overgrown boys with deep problems communicating and that the decline in good sex in America is coincident with the decline in drive-in movie theaters from state to state. I believe that all politicians are unprincipled crooks and I still believe that they are better than the alternative. I believe that California is going to sink into the sea when the big one comes, while Florida is going to dissolve into madness and alligators and toxic waste. I believe that antibacterial soap is destroying our resistance to dirt and disease so that one day we’ll all be wiped out by the common cold like the Martians in War of the Worlds. I believe that the greatest poets of the last century were Edith Sitwell and Don Marquis, that jade is dried dragon sperm, and that thousands of years ago in a former life I was a one-armed Siberian shaman. I believe that mankind’s destiny lies in the stars. I believe that candy really did taste better when I was a kid, that it’s aerodynamically impossible for a bumblebee to fly, that light is a wave and a particle, that there’s a cat in a box somewhere who’s alive and dead at the same time (although if they don’t ever open the box to feed it it’ll eventually just be two different kinds of dead), and that there are stars in the universe billions of years older than the universe itself. I believe in a personal god who cares about me and worries and oversees everything I do. I believe in an impersonal god who set the universe in motion and went off to hang with her girlfriends and doesn’t even know that I’m alive. I believe in an empty and godless universe of causal chaos, background noise, and sheer blind luck. I believe that anyone who says that sex is overrated just hasn’t done it properly. I believe that anyone who claims to know what’s going on will lie about the little things too. I believe in absolute honesty and sensible social lies. I believe in a woman’s right to choose, a baby’s right to live, that while all human life is sacred there’s nothing wrong with the death penalty if you can trust the legal system implicitly, and that no one but a moron would ever trust the legal system. I believe that life is a game, that life is a cruel joke, and that life is what happens when you’re alive and that you might as well lie back and enjoy it.

by Neil Gaiman

Making it through

This was not a week of sabatoge! Yet the scale was not as giving as I would have liked. I gained nothing. I also lost nothing. But I suppose that is better than nothing. I ate out once, it wasn't the best meal on the menu I could've chosen. It consulted of eating half a cheeseburger and fries, which I split with a friend. Feeling absolutely miserable I decided not to do that again. Well last night for dinner my dad made Lengua tacos. They were delicious, and I had 4. They were the small corn toritilla tacos, not big burrito type things ok. I was good and full after that. However it just stayed with me too long. Coming to the conclusion, beef is rebelling against me. Lame! So steering clear of such this week all together. I even told J please don't make anything heavy for dinner tonight. He loves to cook and he loves to do special meals when I go over, but no big meals. Honestly a bowl of cereal would suit me just fine tonight.

Gonna boost up my game at the gym this week, heading there after work and plan on being there every morning this week. That scale better give it up damnit! I have a good month and a half to lose at least 10 more lbs before I leave for Seattle. Which reminds me I need to buy tickets. I discussed buying a "goal dress." A dress I can wear once I reach my goal. But I have decided against that. In May I will either be shopping for a new dress to wear to Wish Night or having one of my old dresses from one of the many weddings I've been in altered. *crossing fingers* August is Kel's wedding and I have to get a black dress to wear since I am in the wedding party. Here is to toned arms, flatter stomach and an incredible ass! Will work on the boobs later on down the road. Figure I will throw that on top of the student loan debt after I have had children. Ha! Ha!

Finally figured out J's 30th Birthday plans. I have been through a million and one ideas making it exceedingly difficult. Its hard when you bf is past the stage of going out but he still likes having a good time with friends, but you don't have a space big enough to just throw a party, ugh I can't wait to have a house someday. I can just make dinner and invite people over rather than trying to figure out where the hell to go. Sending out the facebook invite this week hopefully all can attend and he will be happy. He should be happy because I am getting his dang XBOX fixed. Not the best present in the world but what do you want we have 2 yr anniversary 2 days after his bday. Yea we planned that well. Just like my Birthday is 13 days before Christmas. At some point we're gonna have to remedy these events.

Miss Me Yet?

Hello happy people! Are we happy today? I am!

Put on my clothes this morning and there was a noticeable difference in how they fit. Its hard to tell when you wear scrubs all week if you're losing or not. The scale has been kind too. Says I lost 7 lbs so far. I hope it gives me good news this weekend when I do my weigh in for the week. I find this working together at work business has been a blessing. Still no real eating out unless you count subway and no bringing in bad for you foods. Decided wolfing it on the treadmill was the way to go for me. I did that yesterday and my abs, my legs and ass hurt. Whee, its some major pain! Just a thought. They should really make some underwear that eliminates booty sweat! Just sayin'

I am excited about some upcoming events. Today I get to go to my first meeting for Wish Night. Wish Night is Make A Wish Foundations, big fundraising event they do each year. One of the many reasons I am having all this incentive to lose weight. Thennnn there is a Society of Professional Journalists conference this month that will provide information and networking opportunities. Annnnd I am going to an informational meeting about working for DISD and them paying for your teaching certificate. I am really hoping something comes of that. I hear DISD can be rough and typically they make you sign to teach in their school district for 2-3 yrs. But I feel like I have something to offer in that realm, and am confident that I could handle it. I need to get my foot in the door.

My problem is I have too many things I would like to do. And I have been trying to narrow them down so I can be more productive in making those things happen. I want to write in any capacity really. I would love to be a teacher, I think I would've been really good at that. Then there is anything non-profit relation to children. Oh and event planning, primarily weddings. See what I mean!

Good Morning People

I will try to be diligent about continuing to write. But I have a trainee that will start this morning and it seems that my time will be taken up during the next three weeks. Sorry guys the price I pay for being so awesome at my job. HA! HA!

This morning was dreadful to try and wake up this morning. Didn't hit snooze but I surely wanted to. Stupid J keeping me up late talking. He was in a retardedly goofy mood last night, it was borderline annoying. Anyways so went to the gym and I am curious as to whether all machines accurately tell you how many calories you are burning. When I spent 45 minutes on the elliptical yesterday with arms I burned 455 calories, put in my weight and age and that. Today I rode the bike for 30 minutes and burned 244 calories same deal. However riding that bike burned my thigh muscles like you wouldn't believe. Where working on the elliptical got my heart rate up and I could tell it gave me a good cardio work out. I don't it deserves some research but not today.

This week has already been slightly worse than last week. I ate out twice. You already know about my trip to heaven, but then last night I had Lobster Ravioli. It couldn't be avoided it sat their on the menu taunting me and it was dinner with my old roomate. Great conversation needs great food . . . right! I am so proud of my old roomate she got an internship with Tom Landry for cardiac rehab. She is getting her Masters, sometimes I really think I should go back and do that for real.

My old roomate's wedding is Aug. 28 and I am in the house party. Surprise surprise Maria is in another wedding. But it is incentive for more weight loss. I could lose a lot by then. I lost 4 lbs at my weight in this week and I won't weigh in again until Monday morning. I can only hope I am as successful this week. I would like to lose 10lbs by the time I go to see my doctor next month. Weight is something they always mention at every yearly visit and with the my bp as it is here lately I need to show her that I am trying.

I found Heaven today!

Thats right, I used to know of a place like this. A place that breeded creativity and relaxed me and made me feel as if the rest of the world didn't exist. A place where I could do what I loved for as long as I liked and no one would ridicule or make me feel any less responsible for doing it. A place with the kinds of distractions I liked. Low music playing in the background. Good music at that! Oooh how appropriate Belinda Carlisle's Heaven a place on earth is playing. Me likes.

Its a coffee shop people. And I don't think you all realize how much I seek little mom and pop shop places for coffee and wifi. In Denton they were all over the place and it was impossible to not find a place to write. Of course then I was writing for the paper and my creative stuff rarely got onto the screen. BUT NOW! As part of my New Year's resolution to write, here I am.

I was sick yesterday. Awful in bed sick all the live long day. Think of the worst possible headache on the top of your cranium baring down and trying to squash your brains to smliterings! Something like that. The when I finally got up and ate something I threw it up. Don't know what that was about. Anyways my blood pressure was up all weekend and to be honest the headache had come and gone since Thursday. So going to work and being yelled at by mean callers was not something I thought was in the best interest of my head or my bp plus I still wasn't sure what food would do to me the next time around. So I sucked it up took and occurrence and was a bum most of the day. Went to the doc and they will be increasing my bp medicine. Yay increase dosage of bp medicine at 25. Got to love it! Then I took my happy self to dare I say this out loud where my co-workers can read . . . coffee shop. Spoons cafe to be exact. I had a BLTA and potato soup. And this was not just any BLTA the Bacon was thick and of the applewood sort and the lettuce was crisp with tomato thin and the avacodo fresh! The soup had crumbled of bacon and cheese in it. Not sure how good an idea it was for the diet. But I don't give a flip, it was goood. The just as I was leaving the beautiful waiter who kept calling me sweetheart and I swear he was flirting with my eyes. Well this blonde cutie directed me where I sit currently. He told me it was more comfortable and had free wi-fi. The restaurant and coffee shop owned by the same peeps. And let me tell you this jasmine tea is divine and there is a strawberry cupcake calling my name loudly. God I want it! Not gonna give in though.

My book is about to break 1,000 wds, now that is nothing but its the most I have accomplished in months.

Helpful YAHOO Health

This was featured on Yahoo Health's page. Just good info.

Top Weight Loss Foods for 2010By David Zinczenko, with Matt Goulding - Posted on Tue, Jan 05, 2010, 10:05 am PST

Eat This, Not That
by David Zinczenko, with Matt Goulding a Yahoo! Health Expert for Nutrition
Visit Nutrition Home »

More By This Expert
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If you're like most Americans, you've gained about 5 pounds since Thanksgiving. Each small holiday-season indulgence may have seemed like no big deal at the time, but added all together, they created the perfect storm for a juggernaut of jiggle. Don't believe us? Consider the caloric damage of typical holiday activities—weekly parties, with buffet tables lined with goodies and treats; cookies and cakes delivered by your well-intentioned neighbors; and seasonal beverages, from holiday lagers to rum-spiked eggnogs, that had you washing down those hundreds of extra calories with, well, hundreds of extrea calories. It’s no wonder Baby New Year always makes her debut toting a gargantuan gut!




In 2010, vow to eat better—not less, just better. Add these 9 best foods for weight loss to your daily (or weekly) diet, and watch as the pounds melt away. The best-selling weight loss series Eat This, Not That! shows you how to make a weight-loss resolution worth sticking to.




Full-Fat Cheese
This dairy product is an excellent source of casein protein-- one of the best muscle-building nutrients you can eat. What's more, Danish researchers found that even when men ate 10 ounces of full-fat cheese daily for 3 weeks, their LDL ("bad") cholesterol didn't budge.


Bonus tip: See which cheese won the distinction of “best” in the annual 125 Best Supermarket Food Awards.




Pork Chops
Per gram of protein, pork chops contain almost five times the selenium--an essential mineral that's linked to a lower risk of prostate cancer--of beef, and twice that of chicken. And Purdue researchers found that a 6-ounce serving daily helped people preserve their muscle while losing weight.




Ice Coffee
Coffee reduces your appetite, increases your metabolism, and gives you a shot of antioxidants. A study published in the journal Physiology & Behavior found that the average metabolic rate of people who drink caffeinated coffee is 16 percent higher than that of those who drink decaf. Caffeine stimulates your central nervous system by increasing your heart rate and breathing. Honestly, could there be a more perfect beverage? Plus, frequent mini servings of caffeine (8 ounces of coffee or less) keep you awake, alert, and focused for longer than a single jumbo one would, according to sleep experts. When you quickly drink a large coffee, the caffeine peaks in your bloodstream much sooner than if you spread it out over time. Start your day with an 8 ounce coffee (the "short" size is available by request at Starbucks). Or, ask for a large half caf. Then keep the caffeine lightly flowing with a lunchtime cappuccino (it's got only 75 mg, which is about one quarter of what you'd get in a 16 ounce coffee).


Bonus tip: Don't derail your diet. See our indespensible list of the 20 Worst Drinks in America.




Grapefruit
In a recent study, Louisiana State University scientists discovered that people who ate half a grapefruit three times a day lost 4 pounds in 12 weeks, even though they hadn’t deliberately altered any other part of their diets. Although the mechanism isn’t clear, the researchers speculate that grapefruit’s acidity may slow your rate of digestion, helping keep you full longer.




Apple
Turns out, an apple a day may also keep the extra weight away. Penn State researchers discovered that people who ate a large apple 15 minutes before lunch took in 187 fewer calories during lunch than those who didn’t snack beforehand. (The apples had around 128 calories.) What’s more, they reported feeling fuller afterward, too. Sure, the fruit is loaded with belly-filling fiber, but there’s another reason apples help you feel full: They require lots of chewing, which can make you think you’re eating more than you really are, says study author Julie Obbagy, Ph.D.



Eggs
Skip the cold cereal: Eating eggs and bacon in the morning can help you control your hunger later in the day. Indiana University scientists determined that dieters who consumed their biggest dose of daily protein at breakfast felt full longer than those who ate more of the nutrient at lunch or dinner. The upshot: “They were less likely to overeat the rest of the day,” says study author Heather Leidy, Ph.D. To fend off hunger, shoot for at least 20 to 30 grams of protein at breakfast.


Bonus tip: Just because it’s made with eggs doesn’t make it good for you—see our worst omelet in the list of 20 Worst Restaurant Foods in America 2009.




Beans
If you're not a legume lover, consider this: In the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, scientists found that people who consumed beans were 23 percent less likely to have large waists than those who said they never ate them. The bean eaters in the survey also tended to have lower systolic blood-pressure measurements, says research Victor Fulgoni III, Ph.D. Legumes are rich in belly-filling fiber as well as potassium, which helps fight hypertension. Aim for half a cup of cooked beans 3 or 4 days a week.




Salmon
Fish isn't just good for your heart; it's good for your gut, too. That's because omega-3 fatty acids help you feel full longer, report scientists from Iceland. In the study, dieters who ate salmon felt fuller 2 hours later than those who either didn't eat seafood or had cod, a fish with little fat. The researchers found that eating foods high in omega-3s (like the ones to the left) increased blood levels of leptin, a hormone that promotes satiety. Hate fish? Take a fish-oil capsule every day - one that has 500 milligrams of the omega-3s DHA and EPA. It offers the same benefits as salmon.




Milk
Instead of fruit juice, reach for moo juice in the morning. Drinking milk at breakfast can help you eat less at lunch, Australian scientists say. In their study, overweight people who downed about 2 1/2 cups of skim milk in the morning consumed 8.5 percent fewer calories at an all-you-can-eat lunch spread than people who drank the same amount of fruit juice. Both beverages had an equal number of calories, but the milk contained 25 grams of protein while the fruit juice had virtually no protein and 63 grams of sugar. Those may be big servings, but the principle remains: Protein helps you feel fuller throughout the morning.


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