100 Ways To Cook A Chicken

I blogged about some of my favorite things before, but it kind wasn't a good blog and I quit after a few things, so I thought I'd do it again.  If I was rich, or had a super famous blog I'd give something away.  But I am neither rich or a famous blogger, so therefore you can just read about my favorite things and maybe purchase them for yourself.  Trust me, I think they are awesome or I wouldn't be wasting my time telling you about them. Julep Deep Clean  This is my newest find.  I got it in my Julep Maven box (I'll get to that in a second).  This sells for $40.00 on their website . This is an excellent face cleaner.  It cleans all the make up off your face, literally.  It smells a little bit like furniture polish, but I actually kind of like it. Back to the Julep Maven box, if you have 19.99 laying around every month this is a good investment.  You take a short quiz, they tell you what your style profile is.  Every month they send you a box with t

I can't sum it up much better than that right up there. Today is a bad day. Nothing really terrible happened, just a lot of bad things. I'm getting mighty tired of this cold.  I actually really want to go run, but I'm afraid I'll hack up a lung if I do.  And I'm pretty sure I'll need that lung later in life. I'm also hungry.  Like really hungry.  I want Chicken Nuggets and French Fries.  Only guess what?  I said no fast food for December.  So that means I don't get Chicken Nuggets and French Fries.  Maybe I should have given up something easy...like dates.  No dating December.  Seems to be the way December will go down anyway.  Yea I got stood up today...... And I'm still hungry. And I still want McDonald's. Or Starbucks. Or anything...anything with grease, sugar, loads of calories and yummy goodness. And can we talk about this for a minute?  What the crap? I have grand plans for this weekend.  I am supposed to be in

So after I got on the scale Friday and realized I gained a total of 7 pounds, I got a little upset.  So I decided to do something about it.  Well, since I'm sick there's not much I can do as far as working out, but I can start eating right and stop eating everything in sight.  I decided I would make a list of December goals. No Fast Food.  Not that I eat fast food a lot, but I have been known to eat McDonald's every so often.  I am not going to be eating any fast food. No Candy.  Again, I don't eat much candy, but I eat it every once in a while. Make it to the gym 3 days a week Take one minute of my 5k.  That might not seem like much but it will be to me. Only order salads when going out to eat (or from the "light" menu).  I will be going out of town next week so I will have to eat out but I can at least make smart choices I know that isn't much of a list of goals, but it's at least something obtainable.  I have set realistic goals before and

I guess since it's Thanksgiving I feel obligated to do a "thankful post" today.  I have a very blessed life and I know it.  I am lucky to have the things that I have and even though I don't seem like it all the time I am very grateful for it.  Today was a great day with family.  My parents, my brother and I went to my grandparents house for lunch.  We had a delicious fried turkey, ham, green bean casserole, hashbrown casserole, broccoli and rice, slaw, and pecan and sweet potato pies.  My grandmother and mother are excellent cooks.  After lunch we lounged around and talked. Then my mother and I went to Wal-Mart, with everyone in Trumann, to rack up on some Black Friday (even though it's really Thursday) deals.  It was a great day. Luckily I went through old facebook photos and found one from last Thanksgiving before I ate a third piece of pie.  I will not post it here, because my mother said "Ew, don't post that on Facebook," (thanks mom).  Even th

Today after school, I will load up and head to Little Rock to walk in the Race for the Cure for the third year.  I hate that I haven't done this more.  I am excited though, as this is the first year I will go and actually be in shape.  We don't run it, we walk.  We walk with my mother, who is a 16 year survivor. My mother and I don't get along all the time, in fact we were mad at each other last night and I'm pretty sure I kept telling her I wasn't going to Little Rock today.  And even though we don't get along everyday, I can't help but think how different of an occasion this walk would be. I could have lost my mom 16 years ago.  I could have grown up without my mother.  That idea really scares the crap out of me. I could be one of those girls that has "In Memory of My Mother" instead of "In Honor of My Mother".  Things could be completely different, I am glad it's not.

So, school started and I haven't had the time to update.  I am a slacker.  Enough about that. Here is an update for you guys (I know you're excited). So school started.  I am teaching second grade for the first year.  I love it! I made a trip to Nashville, went to the Johnny Cash Museum and it is amazing.  You should go.   I have told Canesa I will do a marathon in March.  It may turn into a 10K instead of a marathon.  13.1 is a lot of miles.   I have lost 40 pounds. I had a root canal, that was no fun. The Walking Dead starts next week and that excites me. I am going to The Race For The Cure on the 19 in Little Rock.  I am so excited to get to go again and walk with my mom and our friends! I am currently obsessed with How I Met Your Mother. I'm also obsessed with Piko tunics, leggings, and my Champs hi/lo dress from Kiki La Rue. I also love a good photo booth, like the 1980s one they had at Flashdance at the Orpheum. Piko tunic top from Obsidian,

Finish The Sentence With Jake & Holly Hey!  I've never done a link up before but I thought, why not.  My page sucks and I'm almost embarrassed to link up and have some really cool "professional" type bloggers look at it, but oh well.  Make fun if you want, I'm a stressed out teacher, that hasn't even had time to blog in ages. Anyways I read these link up things all the time, always wanted to join in the fun.  This one looked fun...so here it goes.  I hope I don't suck.  BTW, I'm such I loser I don't know how to link up right, sorry I'm a failure My happy place... Walking down Broadway in Nashville, TN.  I love all the live music you can hear from every honky tonk.  Or at a musical.... Or at a live concert... Or the beach...  Pretty much if you get my out of the house or work I'm friggin' happy. Whatever happened to... Andrew Keegan.  I may google that later.  (and yes the Full House song popped in my head too)

I posted the following picture on Facebook and Instagram last night. I posted the following caption with it:  I wish I could explain how it feels to look at these pictures. I'm sure I should feel proud, but I feel disgusted. I remember being that girl. I remember how I felt.... Miserable. Look at that stomach. That isn't normal. That's not how a woman is supposed to look. I am disappointed in myself that I did that to myself. I am also disgusted that I've come so far and I've been slacking. I hate it. And I hate what I've done. Turning around again. ‪#‎ progress‬ ‪#‎ motivation‬ ‪#‎ fightingtheinnerfatgirl‬ My Instagram friends took this post for what it was worth, leaving comments such as "We all fall down and get back up" and "I understand how you feel,I've been slacking too".  My Facebook friends, however, just kept telling me how I was beautiful before and now and that beauty is not defined by a size and not to be to

I feel like I need an update.  It's going to be a mixture of things, get ready. First off, I may have found my missing motivation.  I completed my 2nd 5K on Saturday, been to the gym twice.  It's slowly creeping back!  More on that to follow. The last few days have been full of excitement.  Last Wednesday, Katie came over and we turned our bad day into a creative day and painted.  I am not a very talented painter, to say the least, but I had a great time.  Finish Products Friday, I had a friend call me and tell me to get ready they were coming to get me to take me to see Gary Allan.  I was very excited, well that may be an understatement.  I was thrilled.  Honestly, I hadn't been that happy in a while.  I got ready super quick and went to Tunica for a fun night.  Gary Allan is seriously one of the best, I should know I go to a lot of concerts and buy a lot of music.  He literally puts on a better show every time I see him.  Now, while nothing is going to compare t

So, lately..... I have been...... what's the word......  slacking. I have been to the gym once. And I have eaten everything that hasn't eaten me.   I have gained 3 pounds. I know why my motivation left, I just don't know how get it back. Most people love me (or tolerate me) for my honesty and openness.  So I am going to be both things, open and honest.  I could say my lack of motivation came from anywhere.  But, if we are being honest, it came from a boy letting me down.  You don't need the details, and this isn't the place to air them, but let's just say it went from really good to really bad really fast.  And I was not really happy. When bad things happen, it is so easy to  go back to old, bad habits and I have many old, bad habits.  Two of the main ones are sitting on my butt and watching TV and eating my feelings, which I have done the for the last few days. Even thought I'm over the initial shock and embarrassment of the situation,

Lately, I have had several people ask my for advice on their diet.  They are asking me what I have been doing to lose weight.  I have written about how I got started and you can read that by clicking this .  I want to have a place to direct folks so I don't have to keep typing out the same thing over and over again, so I thought I'd type this out here. The first question I get a lot is about my feelings about Weight Watchers.  My feelings about Weight Watchers are this:  I had success with the program years ago, it is an excellent program, a good way to stay motivated and it is easy to be successful with the program.  However, I'm a cheap-o and don't want to pay for it this time around.  If you are just starting out and unsure what to do, go to a Weight Watchers meeting. Since I knew the program, I started out using the guidelines. However that route didn't work out for me in the long run. I began simply counting calories.  I used the Lose It App on my iPhon

Good Tuesday Morning to you all! I am up bright and early to go to a workshop today.  It was hard to get up, which is funny because I get up early every other day. Anyways, this blog isn't about my workshop, it's about Transformation Tuesday.... I literally just read a quote on facebook while I was looking for a picture to use, that sums up transformation:  Transformation is not easy. It starts on the inside before you see it on the outside. There are struggles. It comes with pain. It comes with a lot of hard work and effort. Without going through the tough stuff you aren't able to enjoy true transformation. Don't be discouraged but the rough days. Greater things are on the other side! ♥   That's the honest truth.  Transformation isn't easy, but it is the most enjoyable thing I have experienced.  And the thing about transforming your body, you also transform your mind.  Everything changes.   This is me.  This is me before transformation

It is no secret that I love to shop.  I have always loved to shop.  Even when I was at my heaviest shopping was fun.  However, I mostly stuck to buying shoes. I always bought shoes because they fit.  They fit if I gained 5 pounds or if I worked out.  The shoes would always fit. I honestly can't tell you when the last time I bought a pair of shoes was.  Maybe May?  I don't remember.  I don't remember because now clothes shopping is as fun as shoe shopping.  I can go into stores that I haven't been able to shop at for years and buy things. I know walking into the Gap and getting a pair of pants may not seem like a big deal to some, but to me, it's a big deal.  I am so proud of myself as well as excited.  While I was in Florida, I did like most people do in Florida and wore flip flops and walked barefooted.  This became a problem because of my foot.  I am now having bad pain in my right foot.  I guess there's another trip to the doctor in my near future.

I want to be a runner. I have, over the years, started the Couch to 5K program and made it through the first two weeks, then I quit. This year I joined Women Can Run and attempted to be a runner.  I get on the treadmill and run at the gym.  I did a 5K.  However, I cannot run.  I am not a runner.  It makes me super sad. I see people running and I want to do that.  I enjoy it when I do it and it's such a release, almost like therapy.  I do ok when I'm running on the treadmill, but the most I can make it is 2.5 miles.  Which is ok for me and I take time off my 5K every time I run. I just tried to run outside and I can't do it.  I can't run outside.  The pavement kills me.  It hurts my feet and my knee. I feel so down on myself because I want to be able to do it so bad.  I just feel like I can't do it.  It's so discouraging and I can't stand it.    Maybe one day I'll be able to be a runner, but when I've been attempting to be one since Ja

Since I have updated this blog, I have had an eventful time.  I'm not going to get into all the gory details, if your my friend, you can ask and get all of them :). My week included a lot of lounging by pools with friends and eating out and some shopping.  It did not, however, include a lot of gym time....womp womp.  I made it to the gym a total of two days last week, but that's ok. I started the 30 day squat challenge yesterday, so I did 50 squats yesterday and 55 today.  It wasn't too terrible.  Ask me how I feel when I break 200. I have recently developed an addiction to Pretty Little Liars and I'm already halfway through Season 2 (this addiction started last Monday, thanks Katie). This weekend I drug my BFF Katie with me on and adventure.  We got all dressed up and went to eat on Poncho's in West Memphis.  It was just as good as I wanted it to be.  Then we went to the Cheesecake Corner for some terribly delicious calorie overload goodness.  Then we ve

If you are my friend on Facebook or follow me on Instagram (and I'm sure most of you are) You saw I was at the beach last week.  This has become a tradition for my friend Allison and I.  This is our third year to go.  We normally stay in Destin, this year we stayed in Fort Walton and it was great.  We were at the Ramada Resort on the beach.  A quarter of a mile from the hotel was a boardwalk with shops and places to eat.  It was fantastic.  I tried extremely hard to stick with my clean eating and working out while I was in Florida.  I would love to say I succeed, but I didn't.  I didn't fail either, if that makes since.  Luckily, I love seafood and I love grilled fish so that helped me a lot.  I will not tell a lie and I did have some fried shrimp at Bubba Gump's and it was well worth it.  I planned on getting up the four days I was there and working out.  That lasted two days.  The first day I was there I got up, went to the gym, ran a mile and did some body weight