Carlton's new haircut

I just wanted to thank all of you who have been so supportive during this difficult time in Carlton's life. Many of you have asked me how he's doing so I thought I would update you all. The cancer is gone! We are so thrilled and we feel so lucky! He is finishing out his treatment of radiation just to be safe. He has lost a lot of his hair as you can see in the video. I couldn't believe how much he lost just within a few days. It breaks my heart to see him so sick but I know there is a light at the end of the tunnel and can't wait for him to be himself again. My brother Bradon made this video and thought I'd share it with you.
P.s. Carlton was such a great sport letting his niece and nephews help shave his head. Carlton you are more brave than I could ever be! :)

Like Father, Like Son

Alan and I were headed to a Christmas Party Saturday night.

Brynnly: "Well guys, I need to got get pretty for my party."

Justin: " But you already are!"

Awe! I love this kid! He's just like his father that way. Always so full of compliments and so sincere.

At our Christmas party.

With my girls Heather and Rachel. I love you girls!

How amazing is this dress?!!!

My cousin Katelyn got married today. I just had to post about it because I'm in love with her dress! Don't you think it is amazing?! She pulled it off perfect. Congrats to Katelyn! We are happy for you!

Me and my sister Annalisa after the sealing. Awe! :)

Work out you can do at home.

I know some people that don't work out because they don't have a gym membership. What a lame excuse people! ;) I also know of some people who don't work out because they feel if they can't put in 110% effort whats the point? So they sit on the couch with their McDonald's and watch reruns of Biggest Loser wishing they had that kind of time to work out. ;) If you are busy busy busy and don't have a lot to time to work out then just do 10 minutes 3 or 4 times a day. That makes a big difference at the end of the day. Do a bunch of push ups, then do a bunch of ab work, then do a bunch of lunges, etc... You get my point. If you are watching a TV show, work out during commercials. So now you have NO excuse for not working out. ;)
Here is a work out you can do at home. It does require more than 10 minutes. This is a work out for anyone who doesn't have a gym membership and doesn't have much equipment at home. If you want to do this workout and only have 20 minutes just do one set. Better than nothing. All you need is a resistance band. If you have Dumbells, great! If not, no worries. Just use the band and that is great too! This is a circuit train which means do one set of one exercise and move to next without stopping. When you finish, rest for a minute and do it again. Depending on your fitness level and time you would do it 1-3 times total. Circuit train is great if you are in a time crunch but it's also great because you are burning more calories. Your heart rate is elevated longer which means you are burning more calories and will blast fat fast! Ok enough talking! Here it is:

1- Do 20 push ups (yes you can do girl push ups BUT do as many regular as you can. If you can't do girl push ups because you haven't workout in so long, start by doing them against the wall and work your way to regular push ups.)
2- Seated back row with a resistance band 20 reps- Sit on the floor and wrap the band around your feet. Start with the band on the front of your feet and wrap it around at the balls of your feet. Sit up start and pull the band squeezing your shoulder blades together. Sit up so your back is flat. Have the band wrapped up enough times around your feet so when you pull there is resistance. Keep your elbows in close. Band should be even on both sides. I hope that makes sense. If not, let me know. I'll try to explain it better. Oh also, keep your knees slightly bent through the whole move.
3-Shoulder press with resistance band 20 reps. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart standing on the middle/center part of the band. Keep knees slightly bent. Stand up straight and have your arms out to the side with your elbows bent to a 90 degree angle. Now just do a shoulder press bringing your arms straight above your head and then lower back to a 90 degree angle. Can't do both arms together? No problem. Do one arm at a time giving yourself a little more give with the band so its not as hard.
4-Lunges 20 each leg- Just do a stationary lunge 20 times and switch legs. Make sure and come down so your knees are at a 90 degree angle and keep your upper body straight and aligned with your hips. Don't lean forward. Keep the weight in the heel of the foot not the ball. Too easy with out weight? Try doing more of a split squat. Put your back leg on a chair or bench and do the same movement. Do 20 reps and then 20 pulses.
5- Bicep curls with band 20 reps- Same position as shoulder press but arms are down to your side. Extend your elbows and keep them in close by your hips. Bring arms up just past a 90 degree angle. Don't come all the way because you are relaxing the muscle. Then come all the way back down extending elbows. Not enough resistance? Wrap band around your hands until there is.
6- Dips 10-20 reps. This can be a hard one so work up to 20. Just make sure you keep your back straight and close to the bench or chair or whatever you are using. Keep elbows close to your back and come down so your elbows come to a 90 degree angle. If its too hard keep your knees bent to a 90 degree angle as well but keep the weight on your triceps and not your legs.
7- Pelvic thrust (one of my fav's!) 20 reps each leg. Lay down so your glutes are right close to a step. Just use your stairs. Dig your right heel into the first step with your left leg straight up in the air. Arms are out to the side. Lift your torso up so your hips are straight up digging your heel in the step. Can't do 20? Do as many as you can working up to 20. Still too hard? Do both legs at the same time. Right and left heel digging in to step.
8- Wall sits. Work up to 1 minute. Squat, leaning against the wall. Squat down to a 90 degree angle. Keep the weight in your heels and make sure your knees stay behind your toes. Keep your back flat against the wall. Hold it as long as you can.
9- Planks. Oh my fav! Otherwise known as forearm bridges. Lay down on your stomach. Now balance on your forearms. They should be in a 90 degree angle. Come up on your toes so your body is flat and you are balancing on your forearms and toes. Keep your back flat. Don't sink down and keep your neck neutral. Keep your core tight.Hold this as long as you can! Might only be 20 seconds. Every time you do this add a few seconds. You will be able to do up to 4 minutes eventually if you keep at it. This is an amazing workout for your abs and lower back for all you ladies out there who have kids and have lost those muscles. This is also an amazing move for your upper body. Every muscle.

If you don't have time to do this whole thing do as much as you can. Like I said before, something is better than nothing.
Want to take it up a notch? After every 2 exercises add in some sort of interval. This is great to burn more calories and for those of you who need more of a challenge. Here are some interval ideas. You will do this a total of 4 times in one circuit train so do something different each time:
1- Jump rope for one minute
2- Jumping jacks for 1 min.
3- Plyo jump up and down on a step. Use your stairs and with both feet at once jump up on the step and down. 1 min.
4- Just stand in the same spot and jump as high as you can come down in a squat and jump up and down. 1 min.
5- Lunge, squat and leap forward. Then lunge on the other leg, squat and leap forward for 1 min.
6- Mountain climb. In push up position bring your right knee into your chest then extend it back to starting position. Now do it with your left knee. Now go fast like you are climbing a mountain fast for 1 min.
7- I call this speed skating move. Jump laterally to the right so your left leg kind of comes behind your right leg. Right leg is bent. Now bend over to the right and touch your left hand to your right foot. Now repeat to the other side. Go fast for 1 minute.
I hope I make sense in this post. I hope it is helpful to any of you wanting to work out but don't have a gym membership and not sure what to do with little equipment at home. Do this work out 2-3 times in a week. The other 2 or 3 days do your cardio for 20-40 minutes. Whatever you have time for. Do any kind of cardio that gets your heart rate up for that amount of time. Even if you only have 10 minutes. Run up and down the stairs, jump rope, go walk around the block, anything.
Please let me know if you do decide to do this work out and have questions with it. Good luck! :)

Our Thanksgiving Day

We had such a memorable Thanksgiving this year. I spent 29 years of my life single and went from that to being a wife and part time mom. I've never been this happy and have so much to be grateful for.
My day was busy and started at 5:30 am. I went to the gym with 2 of my friends. We worked out hard for 2 hours. It was an amazing work out. I felt like I was on happy pills because I was so excited for the day and was proud of myself for waking up so early to work out. I hurried home, showered and Justin and I were off to the airport. We helped deliver pies to crew members who had to work that day. Justin got such a special treat after that. He got to tour a plane and even sit in the captain seat and 'pretend' to turn on the plane. He had such a great time and was a bit overwhelmed with excitement. He turned to me after about 10 minutes and asked if we could go. He talked about it the whole way home and wanted to call Alan's mom and his mom. It was a pretty fun morning.

That afternoon we went to my sisters house for the day. It was one of my favorite Thanksgiving yet. We sat around, ate, joked and talked about the things we were grateful for this year.

Carlton was a sport. He tried to eat as much as he could but got sick from it. He laid on the couch and although he felt sick he still interacted with us and had a good time.

It's official, my sister is a dork! What is up with these glasses?! Love ya sis! ;)


Here is where the kids ate. Isn't Justin so dang cute?! I think it's funny how different kids are than adults. It's such a chore for them to eat. Justin kept asking me "how many more bits to I have to eat?" You never hear an adult asking that.

I love this picture. This was after we ate. We were sitting around talking about what we were grateful for. I just had to take a picture. Awe!

If you haven't spent time with my family you don't know how crazy we can be. I don't know how my parents raised 7 kids who are all hyper. As we were cleaning the kitchen Annalisa put some Cold Play on and we danced around.

This one is my favorite! I just love my dad. He's so funny!

Annalisa had us write what we were grateful for and put in on this

wreath.

What I'm grateful for this year:

1- Being married to Alan. He really is such a wonderful husband. He is perfect for me. He loves me for me and encourages me to do the things I want to do. He overlooks my faults and is always complimenting me on the things he loves about me. I am lucky!

2- Justin. He has been such a great sport with his situation. He had such a hard time with his dad being married at first but little by little our relationship is growing. He was so sweet this week. We got to see him from Wednesday through Saturday night. We bonded so well. He has such a big heart and is really a great kid. He's setting the bar high for the kids Alan and I have.

3- Carlton. I am so grateful that Carlton will make a full recovery. I am also grateful that he was in a car accident months ago. I know it was the Lords way of blessing him. If that car accident hadn't happened, his tumor wouldn't have been found and who knows what would have happened. I am grateful he is going through this trial because we have seen such a change in him for the better. This boy is not emotional at all and for the first time in a long time he cried on Thanksgiving. He told us how grateful he was for us. It was such a touching moment to see him so humble and so grateful. We feel so blessed for technology these days to cure him.

4- My family. I LOVE my family more than anything. They mean so much to me. We are so close and would do anything for each other. I am grateful for all of them.

5- Knowing the Lord has blessed me with all I have right now. I have felt his hand in my life blessing me and guiding me.

6- I feel grateful for a beautiful home, car and so many other things despite the way the economy has been.

I could go on and on and keep being cheesy but I'll stop here. I love this time of year and have much to be grateful for. I am now getting really excited for Christmas! Now if I could only get Alan to get our tree up! :)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! -Tips to help you not gain weight this holiday

I love Thanksgiving! It is one of my absolute favorite Holidays. It's so fun to sit around and eat delicious food, hang out and just be together with family. Plus it gets me so excited for Christmas. I just love holidays and traditions.
I also love to eat and eat on this day. Haha! I'm sure most of us do! So I wanted to post a few tricks I have that help with this problem.
1- Work out that day. Get it in some how even if you are super busy that day. It's really important to do it this day above any other day since we eat too much. Don't just do Cardio either. Lift! Cardio is good but you only burn calories for at most 4 hours after. Lifting will burn calories up to 4 days after! I either like to lift legs that day or full body. Do a circuit train and burn tons of calories!
2- Eat smaller portions more often. The good thing about this is you can eat your favorite foods a couple of times that day. Not stuff it all in in one meal and be sick!
3- Don't eat your pie alone. It will spike your blood sugar levels. You don't want that. Eat your meal. 3 hours later have some pie with a little protein. Have a little turkey and then eat some pie.
4- Don't skip breakfast because you are 'saving your calories'. What this does is make you store every last calorie of Thanksgiving dinner as fat because your body will think you are starving yourself. Get up, eat breakfast and eat every 3 hours. :)

Summary: Burn some calories by lifting that day and eat every 3 hours.

I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving and happy eating!

What's for dinner?

I've been eating this dinner this week and it's really good! I know you'll love it too and it is really easy to make. Even for you 'none cookers' out there.

HEALTHY SPAGHETTI:

1 lb. Ground Turkey
Cook this like you would meet in a pan and season with taco seasoning

2-3 zucchini's and 1 onion (or more) slice veggies up and cook in a pan. I do this with Pam spray and a little garlic. I also cook the onions for a bit before adding the zucchini- I use a whole zucchini just for one serving so add as many as you want. Don't skip out. Great way to get your veggies in. ;)

Whole wheat pasta. I use the Healthy Harvest Ronzoni all natural whole grain pasta (extra wide noodle style) Cook as directed

1/2- 1 jar pasta sauce. I use the Silver Palate Home style Marinara Sauce.

(side note: When looking for a healthy pasta sauce look at the ingredients. That goes with anything you buy. The less ingredients, the better. Look for ones that don't have a ton of added junk to it. This is natural and is the best natural sauce I've tasted. I get it at Harmon's.)

Cook everything separate and add together. It is really good! I hope you love it as much as I do.

*For those of you who are watching your starches at night, do it without the pasta. It's still really good! Enjoy!

Now I'm off to watch last nights Biggest Loser. I love this show! Love it! But don't love so much Heba and Vicki. Really I don't! ;)

Whats the best recipe for pain? Chocolate chip cookies!

Alan had double knee surgery done on Friday. Yes double knee! Poor guy. He had a lateral release done on one knee with a little bone shave since he hardly has cartilage in his knees. He had the same thing done on his other knee last February and it's been infected so the doctor cleaned that one up. He's been in a lot of pain and he has a very high pain tolerance. He stopped taking his pain killers because they make him really sick. So he's been laying around all weekend in a lot of pain. I took this picture to put it on my blog and he quickly covered his face. I guess he doesn't feel too pretty today. ;)
I decided to make him some cookies. A little comfort food ;) He loves these cookies. We love them so much I thought I'd posted them because I know you will too. Just don't eat too many. Haha!

BIG FAT CHEWY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES:

2 c. all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 c. unsalted butter, melted
1 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. white sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 c. semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:
1-Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
2-Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
3-In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon. Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.
4-Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

2nd Rule of Nutrition

Sorry it's been awhile since I've posted nutrition facts. The second rule of nutrition (and I'm not doing these in any particular order) is to drink your water. You already know this but do you do it? Drinking water is one of the most important things you can do when it comes to taking care of your body.
Drinking water actually boosts up your metabolism. How cool is that? When you first wake up drink 2 glasses. You have dehydrated your body all night so you are hydrating yourself and it'll boost your metabolism. Also, it can wake up a lazy stool. Another great reason to drink water is because it's pulling toxins out of your body. The more water you drink= the more toxins your body gets rid of. The more toxins you have in your body, the harder it is to be healthy. Which makes it hard to maintain a healthy weight. When you have too many toxins in your system it doesn't allow your body to get the oxygen it needs. The more oxygen you get= the more you lose weight, less stressed you are and the happier you'll be. :)
When you don't drink enough water you are creating so much havoc on your system. It will cause headaches, create more toxins, cause your organs to overwork (especially your kidneys) slow your metabolism, etc....The best way to tell if you are drinking enough is by checking your urine. What color is it? If its darker than the color of lemonade, you are dehydrated.
So how much water should you drink? AT LEAST 8 glasses a day. I don't really like that number because that is the minimum you should drink just to get by. I say closer to a gallon. I drink a gallon a day and it makes such a difference. If you aren't drinking even 8, work up to a gallon. It's hard a first but your body adjusts to it.
A question I get a lot is if any liquid is ok. Some people hate water. What is wrong with you?! ;) Water is the best way to go. Juice has a lot of sugar in it, soda makes you more dehydrated. Water is the best way to go. Try putting lemon in it. And none of this flavored water stuff. It has ingredients that are not good for you. Such as fake sugar. Did you know when you consume fake sugar your body creates more fat around your organs to protect them. It also makes you crave more sugar. Not good! So stick to water to hydrate yourself. Suck it up people! Suck it up! ;)
Hope this motivates you to drink more water! Good luck!

Salad Recipe

Lately I've been getting sick of salads and getting bored with vegetables in general. I came up with this salad last week to get my veggies in and actually enjoy them. I thought I would post it because it's my new favorite salad. I'm sure you will love it too. I just kind of put whatever together. Add or take out what sounds good to you.

For 1 Serving:
- 3 oz.Ground turkey cooked with onions and taco seasoning.
3-4 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1 plum tomato chopped
chopped red, yellow, and green peppers
about 1 tbsp or so of avocado
sliced cucumbers
mix in a bowl and put salsa on it. Sometimes I drizzle a little low fat ranch too but it's great just with the salsa.
I haven't done this but would also be good with some corn and black beans. Alan and I love this salad. I hope you do to.

Count your blessing...

I keep singing the hymn 'count your blessing' today. I was watching the news last night and the thought that came to mind was, count your blessings. Your trials can always be worse. The Lord doesn't give you anything you can't handle. When you focus on your blessings, you start to realize all you have and how blessed you really are.
Carlton is doing well. He had a biopsy yesterday. Which means, they went in his brain for a tissue sample. It takes 72 hours to get the results but the doctors are pretty sure it's the same type of cancer as testicular cancer. They seemed hopeful that they can cure him through radiation. It'll be a long road ahead for him but there is light at the end of the tunnel. He will be able to go home tomorrow and start radiation later. He's feeling good and even told me he doesn't feel sick anymore. I think it's because he's eating well, getting proper nutrition and it never hurts to have cute nurses your age waiting on you hand and foot. ;) Why would anyone want to go home?
We are so lucky he got in that car accident months ago. Otherwise, who knows what could have happened to him or how long it would have taken to catch the cancer.
There is the update. Thank you all for your support. The emails, the calls. All of it. Just asking has meant the world to us. We are blessed! We all are! Count your blessing. We have a lot more than we
realize.

AFTER SURGERY YESTERDAY

Faith...

Faith is something greater than ourselves that enables us to do what we have said we will do, to press forward when we are tired or hurt or afraid, to keep going when the challenge seems overwhelming and the course is uncertain.

- Gordon B. Hinckley

My sister Crystalyn took this picture last night and it makes me cry every time I see it now. I love it! Thank you Crystalyn for taking this. It's so perfect!

Elizabeth Smart's aunt is my parents neighbor. She has really been a support to my parents right now. She gave my mom the quote that is above. We all cried when we read it. It really does bring comfort to us. The Lord works miracles and we can only live by faith right now.

We love you Carlton! Hang in there buddy!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, ALAN!!!!

THEN.....

... AND NOW

Today is Alan and my 1 year wedding anniversary. I can't believe a whole year has gone by. The first picture is from our first date. Awe! Ok, our first official date. We went on a group date to Market Street Grill. Little did I know that night I was going to married him. The second picture is from last night. Alan was being obnoxious because he didn't want to take a picture. Hence, the face. I feel so lucky to be married to Alan. He is so perfect for me in every way. I never expected marriage to be this great. I always heard when I was dating that I should only marry my best friend. I had never dated anyone that was my best friend before Alan. I really didn't know that I could. I really did marry my best friend. I'm so comfortable around him. I tell him everything. Even the things you think but would never tell anyone. We have been through a lot together and it keeps getting better.

Since today is Sunday we celebrated yesterday. It started when I got home from the gym yesterday. He handed me a CD that said "Happy Anniversary Baby. Love, Alan." I watched it and cried. Alan is not the most sentimental person. I don't mean that mean. He knows he's not. :) That's why it meant the world to me that he did this for me. He really put a lot of thought into it. He told me how he felt about me in it and he put together a bunch of pictures of us. I want to upload it but am still working on how to do it that.

After that, we went to an early movie then dinner. Pretty low key. It' been a stressful few months getting his business up and running that we thought it'd be great just do relax. It was perfect.

I love you so much Alan. You are so good to me and continue to make my life better and better. Thank you for your hard work and for loving me no matter what. Here's to many more years!

P.s. Last night we went to see my brother. I cried all night last night because it broke my heart. He's so skinny! He has no energy and just lays on the couch. The couch has become his bed since he doesn't even have the energy to go upstairs to his bed. He's been such a good sport about all this. Didn't complain once. It also meant the world to me that Alan sat with him and watch TV with him. Joking around and just giving Carlton some company. My dad called me this morning. The doctor has ruled out Sarcosis which most likely means a tumor. They are admitting him in the hospital tomorrow for observation and to keep an IV in him since he is not getting any nutrition. We are going to my parents tonight to be with him and have a family prayer. Please keep him in your prayers for us. We are really worried for him. I will keep you updated. Thank you all of you for your support.

Carlton Update

My little brother is not doing well. The doctors thought his car accident had caused his pituitary gland to stop functioning. He went back for another MRI this week and they decided his car accident had nothing to do with his condition. They found a swelling in his brain that keeps growing. It is either a brain tumor or something called sarcosis. This usually happens in the lunges but in his case it's his brain. If it's sarcosis, there is a chance he will go blind and the life expectancy is not very long. They didn't say how long. I don't know if it's 5 yrs or 50 yrs. My heart has been broken for him. He's only 21! He throws up 3-4 times a day. Can't keep anything down. He sleeps all the time and has massive headaches. He's such a good kid and it's hard to watch him go through this. He has even kept his job through all this. My parents have tried to get him to quit but he won't. He only last about 1 hour at work and has to come home and go to bed. The hardest part is I can't do anything. All I can do is let him know that I love him and pray for him. Not much more we can do.

Tag, you're it!

My friend Debra tagged me on this...look out, you might be next! (thanks Debra for tagging me. I had a good laugh putting my facts together.

The Rules:

• Link the person(s) who tagged you
• Mention the rules on your blog.
• Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours. ( I did a few facts bc I've said all my quirks just to the right on my blog.)
• Tag some fellow bloggers by linking them.
•Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger's blogs letting them know they've been tagged!

1. Interesting fact about myself. I had a rough start in life. I was born dead. True story. My mom almost died. They had to do an emergency C-Section. The cord was wrapped around my next and now I'm alive. I broke my collar bone twice when I was a baby. I got rushed to the hospital for eating moth balls. Rough start! Might explain to a lot of you why I am the way I am. ;)

2. I met Alan a few weeks before I turned 29. Therefore, I've dated a lot in my life. Not so much quality guys. I could write a book about some stories I have. I'd crack you up and you wouldn't even believe half of them. Disclaimer, If I've dated you, OF COURSE I don't mean you. I'm talking about some other guy. ;) P.s. I'm just dying to tell you this one. I went out with a guy ONE TIME! Literally ONE TIME!!!! He called the next day and I told him I wasn't interested and he cried. He kept begging for another chance. He told me he needed to go to Vegas for the weekend to get away because of this hard break up. I don't even know why he was interested in me. I didn't really talk on the date or anything. He must have thought I was someone else. ;) To be fair, I'm sure some guys I've been out with could tell a story about me. So there!

3. I started doing this just this last year or so but when I feel a bit down, I clean. It makes me feel better. A clean home is a happy home, right? It's funny because every time I do this and Alan comes home, he hugs me and asks me whats wrong. I keep our house clean as it is, but I spot clean when I'm sad. It's pretty funny but it always gets me out of my funk. I've also learned I need to stay busy. I get down more often when I don't have much to do. And just a side note, this happened last week. Alan came home and could tell by how clean the kitchen was that I was down. He hugged me and took me out that night, even though he is crazy busy these days. Then we got home and he ordered Sex in the City, the movie, and watched it with me! Wow, that's a good hubby right there!

4. I have the worst knees known to man! I had my first knee surgery when I was 15 and my second just this year. It sucks because when I had my last surgery, I was told I had arthritis in my knee and hardly any cartilage left. This means no more jumping, running, squatting, plyo work, etc... I was so heart broken because I used to love running! I love my double step class. Now I'm an old lady that can't do anything! Our kids don't have a chance because Alan's knee's are worse than mine. ;(

5. People always ask me what my nationality is. They don't believe me when I tell them I'm a boring white girl. When I was a flight attendant, I had Fez from That 70's show. You know who I'm talking about? Anyway, I had him on my flight and he asked me what my nationality was. He guessed Polynesian. I always like to ask, "What do you think I am?" I always get Polynesian, Hawaiian, or Asian for the most part. A few people go as far to say half African American or Latin. If you saw my family, you'd be confused. I am the black sheep and my sister Crystalyn would always try to convince me I was adopted. I believed her a few times.

6. I am probably the worst singer ever! I always thought it'd be fun to go on American Idol and be one of the bad singers everyone laughs at (I mean with. ;)) I am so bad that my stepson notices it. You know you are really bad when a 5 year old tells you that you are. We were driving somewhere and a really good song came on the radio. I was beltin it good! I turn around and Justin is laughing. I asked him why he was laughing and he said, " You can't sing at all!" True story! It's ok, I'm not sensitive about it. I had a good laugh over that.

I tag: Rachel, Heather, Kerrie, Sarah, Kelsey and/ or whoever wants to do this.

1st rule of nutrition

I'm glad you guys are interested in some health posts because it's motivating to me as well. I'm going to post some basic nutrition rules. I will do one at a time. I figured no one wants to read a novel. It's better to read a little here and there. Hope these tips help. Do these and you will be one sexy lady! (Or guy.)

EAT EVERY 2-3 HOURS. NO EXCUSES!!!

This even means if you ate a bit too much at breakfast and want to skip lunch because the calories will cancel out. BIG MISTAKE! What this does is slow your metabolism. When you eat again your body stores it as fat. Who wants that? The best thing to do in a situation like that is to eat a small snack. NEVER NEVER skip a meal! Every 2-3 hours. No excuse. Plan ahead. Plan what you will eat that day and have snacks on hand. No excuses! I even packed snacks on my wedding day and ate while we were taking pictures. Haha! This will use your calories as fuel and burn it off for energy. It's like putting gas in your car. If you are out of gas, you will ruin your car if you keep fuel in it, it will run great for you! Plus, you'll have more energy and feel better. You feel tired if you don't eat this way. You gain weight easier. Your blood sugar levels are all over the place. If you haven't eaten this way before, you'll start to notice how hungry you are for your meals. This is a good thing. This means your metabolism is working. Plus, by doing this, you will burn fat because you are speeding up your metabolism. So eating= burning fat. How great is that?!

The best example I have for this was last night watch Biggest Loser. I love this show! One of the guys was not dropping weight. He was talking to his trainer about it and his trainer figured out he wasn't eating very much. The guy told him it was because he wasn't that hungry so why eat if he's not hungry. He wasn't hungry because his metabolism was slowing down. He started eating again that week and had a 13lb lose! Believe it people! Eating= losing weight! Got it?!

Tips:

1- Cook extra chicken (or whatever). This way, you have something on hand.

2- If you work full time, pack your food the night before. It only takes a few minutes and it's worth it.

3- Meal replacement bars aren't the best for you but they are better than nothing. Keep one in your purse for an emergency.

4- Fail to plan, plan to fail. I can't emphasize this enough. On Sunday, plan your food for the week or at least your basic foods you'll have on hand. This way, when it's been 3 hours and you are starving it'll be easier to go for what you've already planned than for something unhealthy. Keep raw almonds, string cheese, crackers, yogurt, etc...

London Baby!!!

My sister Laralee and I went to London last month and oh my! What a fun trip! I might even go as far as to say it was in my top 3 trips I've ever been 0n. I can be pretty obnoxious, yes it's true. I bet you are shocked to hear that. ;) But when I'm with my siblings, it is obnoxious x 1000! No joke! I think we gave the US a bad name in London. They already view Americans as obnoxious and we just confirmed their thoughts. My brother lives there so that is why we went. Thank you, thank you Bradon and Dave for making this trip so fun. I know you put a lot of work into it and because of you, we had the most amazing time. I think my favorite part was the Tower of London. The reason I loved it so much was because it was fun to see the real London way back in the day. The way it used to be. We walked through the castle, saw the village, and learn a lot about London. We also saw Big Ben, took the London Eye (wow what a view!), went to a farmers market, took the Jack the Ripper tour (very interesting) and took a double Decker bus for my first time. Things that are different in London than here:

1- Places are so small! Restaurants, hotels, everything seems so small. We went to Subway one day and there was 1 table. So different than here. I was surprised.
2- The food, not so much. There was some good food but overall, just different.
3- The people were more rude than I thought. But I guess you can get that anywhere you go. Granted we were really obnoxious but still! I was surprised. If someone is walking towards you, they don't move. You just better get out of their way. They all cut each other off and the craziest thing to me was if you are crossing the street and a car or bus is coming, they speed up to make you get out of the way. I was almost hit once or twice because A. confused on which way I'm supposed to look and B. I was running fast but some how a car would still be right there honking at you. Scary! :)
Over all I did love London! It was a fun experience! I've posted a lot of pictures. We took a lot and I tried to narrow them down. P.s. Don't mind the way I look. I couldn't wash my hair because the blow drier in my hotel room was broken and the shower was too small to even attempt that. Plus, with the humidity, we were sweating so much that the make up fell off my face and lets just say, it wasn't pretty. Then to top it off, I had under 30 minutes to shower, get ready, pack and leave for the airport to go. Long story on why that happened. Needless to say, I pretty much only packed 2 outfits and grabbed the first stuff I saw. Yes, we looked like tourist. Laralee, what's your excuse. ;) Just playin!

I took this picture at a mall for Alan because for 2 or 3 days before I left I was being a 'girl'. I think he was really happy to see me go. :) I felt really bad and thought this picture would make him laugh. :) Hey, at least I can admit when I'm being irrational, right?

I'm just glad he had forgot all about it when I got home and was excited to see me.

This is in JFK. We had to take the 3:55pm flight to JFK. Got in at 11:00pm eastern time and had to wait until 8:30am to leave for London. What a night!

First class is the only way to fly international. What a way to fly! They feed us every 3 hours. We feasted like kings or should I say queen's? What a way to start a trip. I hope you aren't laughing as hard as my friend when she saw this picture. Thanks Rachel! Apparently I look really scary with out make up on.

Laugh it up Rachel!

I LOVE this picture! This was after we landed. We were getting ready to get on the subway and Laralee took this. I thought it was really cool.

This was in front of the Shakespeare's theater.

I love this picture because it sums up our whole trip. Laughing none stop over nothing and everything. I'm still laughing over this trip.Yes, I dance in public sometimes when there is music playing.

Awe! I love Dave so much! He is such a great guy. Good people. Dave, you better be coming to another fondue party at my house next time you come to The States.

We went to 'We Will Rock You' play. Good time!


This is in front of The Tower of London. I couldn't help but pose. Bradon takes his camera out and watch out!


This was one of the guards there. He approached us and was laughing with us and then the next minute he threated to kick us out because he didn't want to talk to us anymore. All I thought was 'um, do we have issues?'
I'm a natural ;)
London's version of American pancakes. Tasted just like it looked too. Their traditional breakfast is beans on toast and stewed tomatoes. We might find that different but I'm sure our traditional breakfast is odd to them.
Don't be jealous of my hair. ;)

I'm thinking, next cover of Vogue. Thoughts?

Yes, No?

I paid this women 3 whole pounds to read my hand. She spent about 30 seconds and told me the love of my life starts with a J. Um, Justin? My step son? Ok sister! Don't quit your day job!

Big Ben

Bradon took this picture. I just loved it.

The London Eye

Awe, I'm an angel. Bradon took this too.

Pole dancing in my future? If I want Alan to divorce me. ;)

yeah, don't ask.

Awe, I love my brover (as Hanna would say.)

My first Double Decker bus experience. I took a liking to it. Can you tell?


This was at the farmer's market. I had to take a picture of my favorite table.

Ok, this picture is priceless! Bradon trying to help me up on the lion. (Never thought I would ever say that in a sentence.) We were laughing so hard, I couldn't get up!

Finally!
I thought this picture was fun. For any Mary Poppins lovers out there, this is where the 'feed the birds' song was filmed. This was exciting for me because that was my favorite movie when I was a little.


I loved their telephone booths.

She had no idea I was behind her. I have a habit of doing this.

This was our whole hotel room. No joke, this small. We had to squeeze our suit cases between the beds.

I wanted a picture of the shower to show how small it was. Bradon, you're such a nerd! The shower was much smaller in person.

That pretty much sums up our trip. Thank you again Bradon and Dave for showing us such a great time and thank you to my wonderful husband for making it all possible for me to go. What's the best way to end such a great trip? For my sister, who is the Regional Flight Attendant for the whole West region of the states, to tell me she's putting me on her benefits as her companion. This means I get to fly anywhere I want, any time I want and just pay taxes. I guess Laralee thought I was fun to travel with. My trick worked. :) Thank you Sista for being so good to me. I love your face!!!