Update, Update, Update!!

Okay, I know, I know... it's been a while, right? Nearly a week since my last update, but I am still here and kickin'!Some updates...Tried a new recipe from one of Joy Bauer's books. My awesome nutritionist allowed me to borrow the book, and man, did I get some good recipes.

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Feast your eyes on "General Joy's Chicken"!However, don't be fooled by appearances. It may look tasty, but it... wasn't? It wasn't

awful

, but it wasn't the most delicious thing I've ever tasted either. I'm not sure if I did something wrong with the recipe, or if it was something else, but man... it

tasted

salty. Which is odd, considering that the majority of the ingredients had no salt or were low sodium.Ah well. Joy, you've given us some tasty recipes, and we still need to try out a few more, but I don't think I'll be adding this one to the repertoire.Something else new that I tried this week!I present to you... DESSERT HUMMUS:

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I know how it must sound, but look, it's

delish

. 80 calories for 2 tablespoons, paired with graham crackers and it's... -mimes kissing fingerprints- Haven't tried it with fruit, but I'm sure it will be really good!Full disclosure, Zumba last Sunday truly kicked my butt. I've continued to exercise, but I don't think I've fully recovered from the ordeal. I decided to rest Monday, today, and tomorrow. My joints feel like an old granny's (apologies to any old grannies reading this). I'll be back at it again, sweating with Jillian Michaels, on Monday!In addition to the delicious WIN of the dessert hummus, one dinner this week

was

a success. Take a gander at these zucchini boats:

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Ignoring the burnt bits of cheese that conveniently fell off and crisped up on the pan, these zucchini boats are super good, and fairly low cal! The "guts" of the boat are pieces of chicken, mushrooms, and summer squash, all in marinara sauce and topped with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. I can't tell you enough how good this dish is.Also, my mom was craving carbs, so we added a little bit of noodles to curb that.All of this suffering through tasteless "healthy" Chinese food hasn't been in vain. I did get to do some cool stuff. Here are the results from my Marvel night masterpiece!

I'm no Van Gogh, but this came out pretty cool. Not sure what I'm going to put in it though...Another big event, and yes, it is a big event, was that I was graced with my cat's presence one morning.

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This never happens. Let me tell you. She's not at all cuddly or likes to be petted. When she gets this close to me, I take it as a victory.This is Minerva, my dilute torti cat. I love her, even though she hates me, and I'm pretty sure there are times that she wants to actually kill me. Probably in my sleep.Camp NaNo, at this point, might as well just not have happened. I am slowly but surely writing for a different project than the one I declared for Camp, but that's okay, because I'm writing! I'm not writing a lot, but

I am

writing. I'm sure my Now Novel mentor is chomping at the bit for the next chapter, so I better get on that, right?You guys ever heard of Dietbet? Basically, you bet money on yourself to lose weight, and after the challenge is through, if you won, you get to split the 'pot' with other winners. A co-worker and I signed up for one of the challenges! It's 4 weeks long, and we are challenged to lose 4% of our weight. For me, the number to lose is kind of daunting for 4 weeks, but I am determined to try!I promise I will get a little better with updates!Ciao, friends!

Still Here!

HAPPY FRIDAY!I am still here! It's been a few days since I posted. I promise that my silence has not been because I fell off the wagon and have been ashamed to report that. On the contrary, still going strong, even though most mornings I'd rather stick pins in my eyes rather than exercise. But I'm making it! I'm surviving!Yesterday, my mom and I did a little shopping at a local farmers' market. We got a ton of fresh veggies! For dinner, we steamed up the green beans we purchased, and man, can you tell the difference! It's amazing, really!This weekend is actually a free weekend for me! Not entirely sure what I'll be doing with myself tomorrow, but Sunday I get to spend with my BFF! We have made it a habit that when we get together, we do an escape room. They're so much fun, and we've been super successful. I think besides one time, we haven't been able to get out of the room in time, and that's with just the two of us!Tonight is Marvel paint night at a local art studio. There's going to be trivia, and of course, you paint something Marvel-ific! I've been to this studio before, and I think I have a good idea of what I'm going to paint. I am a huge Captain America girl, and what I have in mind is very Cap themed. So, I'm excited!Hopefully, I'll get to do some writing at some point. My Camp NaNo word count is just horrendous. But, in other news, my Now Novel mentor is super excited to read the next chapter of that particular novel in progress, so that's exciting to hear what she'll have to say!Well, that's all I have as an update! Each day is creeping ever closer to the first day of my first big girl job! I'm excited to get started!Ciao, friends! 

Back At It Again

Another Monday has come and gone. At my weigh-in this morning, I found that I was down 0.8 pounds.I should be excited, right? I lost, and didn't gain!I guess after the high of the first weigh-in, 0.8 pounds is kind of a disappointment. Which brings in that little voice in my head that's called Crippling Self Doubt. Maybe I should just quite while I'm behind? The food cravings were intense today because of it.But you know, I didn't give in. I kept under my calorie count for the day.Tomorrow is a new day. Another day to stick to healthy eating, and another day to get back in the saddle of exercising. I guess I'm just going to have these days. Where it feels hard, and you get discouraged because you're not seeing results. I should know by now that weight loss doesn't happen over night, no matter how much I really want it to. Patience is the key. Patience and perseverance.It's kind of amusing the things you can be patient about, and the things you can't be patient about. This is one of those things I can't be patient about. I want that LBD tomorrow.But nothing good has ever come with minimal effort and attention.So, that's just what I have to continue to tell myself in this journey. That there will be days better than other days. That I have to be patient with myself, and to not get discouraged. That I have to persevere, even on the days and weeks where it feels like I should just binge eat everything that makes me feel better.What's that old cliche? Rome wasn't built in a day.I am Rome. The Eternal City. Birthplace of a culture and a history that has endured for millennia up to this very day. I am the Republic. I am the Empire. I am Julius Caesar. I am Marcus Aurelius.I will be patient.I will persevere.I will do this.Ciao, friends!P.S. Yet again, zero writing was done. However, my mentor over at Now Novel has sent me feedback on the first chapter of a novel I am working on. She says I have TALENT, and that she is looking forward to working with me. So, I guess, can't bitch too much about today, can I?

Friday the 13th

OH SNAP! LOOK OUT! THERE'S JASON!!JK.Today was Day 9 of 12, well, 14, I guess. It was fairly uneventful. I managed to get a tiny bit of writing done on this short story I'm working on. Short stories are a whole other ball game for me, but hopefully it'll turn out... coherent?Today was better in regard to cravings and getting up to exercise. So, I guess I just gotta roll with the punches as they come, right? Went grocery shopping with my mom after work and it was an interesting experience. Kudos to us for having tons of produce in our cart. One thing we did splurge on were those cake in a mug things. It's just confetti cake, and it's about as many calories as I would have for a snack, maybe. Not going crazy here, but a girl's gotta have her cake and eat it too... on occasion.You know what else is great and refreshing for the soul? Getting your hair did. My hair used to be about chin length, maybe a little long, because I have these crazy curls, right? For the past year or so, I've been trying to grow my hair long. And OMG, it's long!

Left is 2016 (I think), and right is 2018, today. Cray! I've never had my hair this length before, and I'm loving it!There was no wordage on my Camp NaNo project. However, my awesome Now Novel mentor is reading the first chapter of one of my other works, and I'm excited to get feedback from her!Anyway, I'm off to watch some more How to Get Away With Murder.Ciao, friends!

How Did I Measure Up?

Weigh-in today. Drum roll, please...-insert drum roll here-286.6!That's 6.4 pounds down from when I started last week. I couldn't believe it when I got on the scale! I'd say that's motivation enough to make sure I keep this up.This blog post is going to remain short, as I have nothing much else to report other than the weigh in results, and that I was back to exercising today.In an effort to get us more hours at my work place, I was given a couple of shifts at another work site in the city I work for. It's a Civil War era home, so I get to give tours and such. So far, I'm still only in training, but sure did a lot of walking today. More walking than I would normally do. My activity tracker on my Apple Watch says I had 8 flights of stairs and 2.71 miles.More mileage to add to my walk to Mordor!Made it to TOOKLAND! Next milestone is "Encounter with Black Rider." Oh boy, hope Aragorn comes to bail me out!Another milestone for me is to close ALL of my rings on my iPhone Activity app! Holla!

Camp NaNoWriMo Update: I've written about 200 words today. I'm about 3k behind where I need to be. I'm still trying to be optimistic that I will make it.Also, another note about my writing. I signed up for 1 month of Now Novel to see how it all works. It is an online platform to help you plan out and complete your novel. They even offer you, as part of one of the higher tier packages, a mentor! You get to email with them and such. You also can submit parts of your novel for critique from other users. I'm going to give it a go, and see how it is! I'll write more about this as I use it.Ciao, friends!