Winners!

This is me (in the back) with most of my Extreme Fitness Challenge group. This was taken just after we finished our 3rd and final group challenge. I have to brag a bit when I say, we won all three group challenges.... and our team took 3 of the 5 individual challenges. Kelly (the man with the goatee) won for most weight lost with 20.5 pounds. I was runner up with 16. The other teams didn't even come close to our results!

We loved our trainer, Jeanette, so much that we forced her to sign up to teach a group fitness class for us until the next EFC starts in January. I will be seeing her and 9 more of my teammates for the next 6 weeks!

On Saturday, Lyle and I went out to Monte Carlo night at the club. My favorite chief, Rita was dealing blackjack, so that is where I stayed all evening. Lyle wandered and played a couple hands of Texas Hold 'em. We each started the night with $3000 of funny money, and I ended the evening with $30,000. We didn't want to stay for the prize giveaway at the end, so our cash was donated to a friend. It was a fun night, and I have to say, Rita is the best BlackJack dealer EVER!

Just Cleaning out the camera

It has been forever since I did a real update post. Mostly because I have been working full-time, taking 3 college classes, taking a cake decorating class, enjoying my Extreme Fitness Challenge workouts for an hour a day 5 days a week, and then trying to recover on the occasional minute off.

But I don't have quite so many excuses now, 2 of my three classes are finished, I have a week before my new face to face class starts, so instead of writing my business final paper, I decided to update you with pictures from September to today!

I put them on the slide browser, just because Blogger has been difficult about pictures the last couple of weeks.

Enjoy the show

Update!

I have a lot of things to post about, but have decided to hold all that for something more newsworthy.... Tonight's dinner.

My BFF (Best Foodie Friend) Susan posted a recipe yesterday that sounded yummy. She gave the link and some advice about trying to add a can of black beans. I checked the pantry and noticed we had all 6 ingredients needed, so I dropped them in the crockpot for tonight's dinner.

The recipe: Slow Cooker Tex Mex Chicken

I added the 1 can of black beans, drained and I used a can of corn, rather than frozen.

The result:
And for dessert: Cherry Almond Angel Roll

I substituted Strawberry Pie Filling for the Cherry, since Lyle doesn't care for cooked (aka Mushy) cherries. It was incredible!

And it even looked pretty:

Thank you again Susan, for an incredible dinner suggestion!

A Winner and A Loser

I am usually up early to exercise, but it has always been on my own, or with my workout buddy, Rita. After a year (yes a year!) of seeing the ads for "Extreme Fitness Challenge" I decided to give it a try. I paid my fee, decided on the 5 - 6 am class, and waited nervously for the first day.

That day was September 14th. I met my trainer, Jeanette, and the rest of my group. We all got our Blue Team t-shirts and started with a bang. Jeanette is very motivating and always full of energy, even when we aren't quite there. I love every workout even when I am dripping with sweat and every muscle in my body is screaming STOP!

Yesterday we had our first challenge against all of the other teams. The challenge was a dead hang from a pull up bar. I held on for 1 minute and 42 seconds, the average for our whole team was 1:54, and that was enough to declare Blue Team the winners! My prize: A brand new workout towel, embroidered with the fact that I am a winner!
Today was our first official weigh in, which also made me a Loser. Since our start 3 weeks ago, I have lost 7 pounds, but that wasn't the surprising number, I also lost 1 inch off my hips, and 5 (yes FIVE) inches from my waistline. I credit that to Jeanette and her evil "waist-shapers". Those numbers were enough of an incentive for me to get down the box of size 12 jeans I have had in my closet since we arrived on Okinawa. The result:

They fit!

I still have 5 weeks to go, and I am sure Jeanette has more in store for the Blue Team.

On a sadder note, today I had to say goodbye to an old friend:My first "biggest loser" win, with my good friend Tanya, has come to the end of it's usefulness. My favorite shirt lost it's battle with the sweat monster and had to be put down. It was for its own good, but it will be sorely missed.

I do have more updates to do, but homework beckons. Writing a paper a week has really put a damper on my "fun" writing, but I only have one more paper to go for writing class and one final paper for Business Management, then I will be back.

Nutter Butter Banana Pudding Trifle

All I can says is YUMMMMMMM! I saved this recipe, because it sounded like it would be good. Nutter butters in banana pudding? Why didn't someone think of this sooner? But then I made it and it was OOOOOOHHHH so good! Unfortunately, everyone else thought it was good too, so there wasn't any to bring back home after the picnic.

The recipe:
Nutter Butter Banana Pudding Trifle
Southern Living Magazine
February 2009 (page 86 if you have the mag) or use the link

Prep: 35 min., Cook: 20 min., Stand: 30 min., Chill: 2 hr. This homemade pudding is divine, economical, and uses on-hand ingredients. The pudding has thickened enough when a distinct trail is left in the mixture when you stir with a spoon. The cookies will soften the longer the dessert chills.

Yield
Makes 8 to 10 servings

Ingredients
3 cups milk
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
5 medium-size ripe bananas
1 (1-lb.) package peanut butter sandwich cookies
2 cups sweetened whipped cream


1. Whisk together first 4 ingredients in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook, whisking constantly, 15 to 20 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla until butter is melted. 2. Fill a large bowl with ice. Place saucepan in ice, and let stand, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes or until mixture is thoroughly chilled.

3. Meanwhile, cut bananas into 1/4-inch slices. Break cookies into thirds.

4. Spoon half of pudding mixture into a 3-qt. bowl or pitcher. Top with bananas and cookies. Spoon remaining pudding mixture over bananas and cookies.
Top with sweetened whipped cream. Cover and chill 2 to 24 hours. Garnish, if desired.

Shortcut Nutter Butter®-Banana Pudding Trifle: Omit eggs, sugar, flour, and butter. Substitute thawed extra creamy whipped topping for sweetened whipped cream. Reduce vanilla to 1 tsp. Place 3 cups milk and vanilla in large bowl; add 2 (3.4-oz.) packages vanilla instant pudding mix. Beat with an electric mixer at medium speed 2 minutes or until thickened; let stand 5 minutes. Stir in 1 (8-oz.) container sour cream. Proceed with recipe as directed in Steps 2 through 4.

My notes on this recipe: This will serve more than 8-10 people as it is pretty rich. I made the full-fledged, make-your-own pudding version. It tasted much like a vanilla custard. I think the quick version would also taste good, but not nearly as rich and creamy. When I make this again, I will layer the cookies and bananas differently as it was a bit too much mass in the middle. Next time: 1/2 the pudding, 1/2 cookies and bananas, remaining pudding, remaining cookies and bananas, then the sweetened whipped cream. I sweetened my heavy whipping cream with powdered sugar. No measurements, I just kept sprinkling in spoonfuls, until it was thick.

Back to school

It took me a while but I finally figured out what I want to be when I grow up! I enrolled in college and have finished my first week back to school. Granted I am only taking 2 real classes (and 1 one credit "required" class)but I am still a little worried about how well I will do.

I am already having a little anxiety about my writing class. I like to write, and I don't think I totally suck at it. I also have opinions, and I am usually good at sharing them. So why is it that as soon as my writing teacher handed out our course list and I saw that we had 4 papers to do, my mind went blank. And it still is...totally and utterly blank. What do I know? What should I write about? Can I actually convince anyone to see my point of view in 600 words?

My business class is an online class, and the instructor just posted our first information this morning. I glanced at it, printed out and am getting ready to actually look at it, but I am a bit afraid. Do I really have what it takes to be a college student? Am I putting to much pressure on myself?

I guess only time will tell. I have already enrolled for my next term classes, so I have commited myself until the end of December. Maybe by then I will be more confident that I am doing what I need to do.

Off to study.... wish me luck!

Ohayo Gozaimasu

....means Good Morning in Japanese, but on Okinawa it means Nice to see you. And after such a long time it is nice to see you!

My computer troubles were a bit more than I thought and we ended up having to dump my whole computer and start it from fresh, so I have busy updating software, reinstalling programs, trying to figure out why my CM Software quadrupled my photo bank, and resigning myself to spend the time deleting said photos!

These last few weeks have been extremely full. Stephanie participated in the DEFY program (Drug Education For Youth), spending a week touring jails, climbing walls, visiting parks and having fun.

Chris went to a Survival Camp (called NIKO, but I have no idea what that stands for) for 4 days. He camped in the jungle on the northern end of the island. The highlight of the trip for him was roasting a whole pig in a ground pit. He came home battered, bruised, dirty and stinky. He can't wait to do it again next year!

I am loving my new job. I should have started up in the craft section to begin with! I am in crafters heaven! I love the people I work with and am so much happier than I was in the frame shop. I also took a giant step and enrolled in school. That's right, at 38 I am a freshman! Today is my first day of school and I am more than a little nervous.

Lyle is still Lyle. He has been busy working as well as helping me with the regular house stuff and running kids from here to there. He plans on taking some time off in September, but we will see.

That is about all the news that's fit to print. I didn't want you thinking we fell of the face of the earth!