Hey y’all… I’m doing another episode of “Things I Like” and today I’m featuring Chobani Champions. I know, I know, it’s a kids yogurt. I get that. However, much like some grown adults like kids chewable vitamins, I like this kids Greek yogurt.

One of my biggest complaints with yogurt is the fruit. I know, sounds dumb, but I don’t like whole pieces of fruit in something that’s supposed to be creamy. It’s weird. I have a friend that mixes granola in her yogurt and I tried it and I just can’t do that either.

I think it’s the cold factor. I mean, I like fruit cobbler and I like oatmeal. I just can’t do something cold with lumps. SO, I’m left with very few choices in the yogurt aisle. Enter: Chobani Champions.

Both Greek yogurt and regular yogurt are low in calories and packed with calcium and live bacterial cultures which makes them an essential part of a balanced diet. However, Greek yogurt, in roughly the same amount of calories, has half the sugar and almost double the protein of regular yogurt.

Craig eats regular Fage (pronounced “fa-yeh”) and it’s just too plain for me. I love that the Champions are blended well and yet are still yummy. I get the packs and bring them to work and that is my 10 am snack. It works well, keeps my digestive track normal, and tastes great.

Not that I have to mention this… but I am in no way compensated for my thoughts on the “Things I Like” but I just feel the need to share with you and I do so on this here blog.

Hope everyone is having a great week!

My birthday is next week and I’ll be 32 years old. I know that doesn’t sound very old to some people but as a person who has never been married, has no children, and is still in the same place in my life (for the past 10 years)… it feels old to me. Also, being on the beach made me really more conscious of the need to get my butt in shape! Right now, as part of Lent, my church is fasting on Monday’s. I wasn’t able to truly fast last week because we had a work retreat so I’m starting fresh today. I thought, also, that I would extend a modified fast through the entire week as a way to detox in preparation for my upcoming birthday festivities.

Last night in my ladies small group I mentioned how I have been drinking this green smoothie mix that looks GROSS but actually tastes really good. It is filling enough and has enough fruits and veggies that it helps to make a fast bearable. I know that traditionally you should be fasting with nothing but water but I’m slightly hypoglycemic among other issues so I know that realistically if I’m going to make this work I’m going to set a goal to only have a liquid diet.

On Monday’s I’m going to have just the smoothies and obviously my morning coffee and then after sundown I’ll eat a small dinner. The rest of this week I’m going to do the smoothie thing but I think I’ll also allow for a small healthy lunch and some yogurt and/or grapes. We’ll see how I feel. I’m being realistic and not trying to starve myself but to truly detox my body from the unhealthy eating I’ve been doing lately (so much so that my face is breaking out… YUCK). Here’s the information about the smoothie in case you’re interested…

“Bolthouse Farms® Green Goodness® starts with wheat grass, spirulina, spinach and blue-green algae. We add apples, kiwis, mangos, bananas, pineapples and dragon fruit to make it a good source of iron and Vitamin B6, naturally rich in Vitamins A, C, and B12, and packed with powerful phytonutrients found in nature’s most nutritious greens.”

• Blend of 8 delicious juices/purees.
• Packed with 14 powerful nutrients delivering unmatched healthy green phytonutrients.
• No preservatives and nothing artificial.
• Flash pasteurized and cold-filled for longer shelf life and superior nutrition.
• 100% Juice, 100% Natural and no sugar added.

So there you have it… my good friend, Gretchen, introduced me to the stuff and when I have the courage I buy some. It looks gross but if you just close your eyes it actually tastes pretty good!

Y’all… I know I’m going overboard on the Christmas stuff but I just absolutely love this holiday so much and I’d totally be that crazy lady who leaves her Christmas tree up all year if I could get away with it. But, y’all, I can’t get away with it. I already start listening to the music in October each year and no I don’t subject it to those around me. I listen to regular music when I’m in the car with other people, etc. I just can’t get enough of everything surrounding this holiday.

So, today I’m going to list all my favorite versions of Christmas songs. As much as I like all the different groups and their different takes on the songs featured… these are my favorites.

What are yours?

White Christmas – The Drifters

Some Children See Him – James Taylor

(Everybody’s Waiting for) The Man With The Bag – Kay Starr

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas – Judy Garland

What Child Is This/The Holly And The Ivy – Bing Crosby

I’ll Be Home For Christmas – Josh Groban

The Christmas Song – Nat King Cole

12 Days of Christmas – John Denver and The Muppets

Jingle Bell Cha Cha – Pearl Bailey

Jingle Bells – Bing Crosby with The Andrews Sisters

Rockin Around The Christmas Tree – Brenda Lee

Winter Wonderland – Ella Fitzgerald

Santa Baby – Eartha Kitt

Christmas Time Is Here – Vince Guaraldi

Let It Snow – Michael Buble

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town – Johnny Mercer

Christmas Waltz – The Carpenters

Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) – Darlene Love

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus – The Jackson 5

(There’s No Place Like) Home For The Holidays – Perry Como

Honorable mention: I also dearly love the Barbra Streisand version of Jingle Bells. Gotta love when Jews rock some Christmas music!

So, come on folks, share with me your favs and don’t forget to tell me why!

I hope that everyone is enjoying the holiday with friends and loved ones. I hope that you are able to watch the parade and some football and that you stuff yourself full of home-made wonderfulness. If you are stuck in a foreign country or somehow unable to have the traditional fare, well, I’m sorry. I wish that I could invite you all over so we could share in our Thanksgiving together!

Today, I am going to list some things that may seem trivial but are things that I am so very thankful for. I started this list a while ago and have been adding to it. I’m sure that I’ll continue to add to it and will have a longer one next year. I am constantly reminded how very blessed I am. I have family and friends that love me and an awesome church family. I never want to forget just how many blessings I have, even the silly ones.

So here goes (for now):

Family (of course)

Kitchen sprayer

Quilted Northern toilet paper

HVAC (even though things don’t always work out the way you’d like)

New LCD HDTV

Adult beverages (that really should be first on the list LOL)

Brita filters

Purdue OWL

Sonicare toothbrush

Massages

Pedicures (I can’t rave enough about this place)

Dancing

Boots (and especially Autumn when I get to wear said boots)

Kashi Heart to Heart

Document shredder

Books

Music

2004 Toyota Camry LE

Coffee

Amy’s Mexican Casserole

Church

Friends

Carmex

Ann Taylor and LOFT (for clothes that actually fit me)

Organic Milk

Sliders Seafood Grille

Ceramic Flat Iron

Neutrogena body oil

The ocean

Things that make me laugh out loud

CBS Sunday Morning

NPR (especially on the way to and from work)

Fiber One Bars

and Coca-Cola Classic

In closing I’d like to share Linus’ Thanksgiving prayer from “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving”… may you remember the humble roots of this holiday tradition and how blessed we truly are!

So, today I’m sharing a few clips of my favorite tap dancing and tap numbers from movies and Broadway shows.

Lets start with both of my fav performers at once… demonstrating some tap improvisation just in case you’re wondering what the heck tap dancing is and what exactly I’m talking about.

OR, even better, here is a clip of Savion Glover on Dancing With The Stars:

If you have never tap danced before you may not know how INCREDIBLY hard it is to do those moves. Having danced for a very long time I still struggle with repetition and rolls and some of the timing. I’m very out of practice but watching him dance makes me want to do it again like you wouldn’t believe.

This link shows a clip of Savion Glover on The Colbert Report discussing the origin of tap dancing, explains its decline in popularity and then performs on the show.

So, without further adieu, here we have the movie (but was first a Broadway show) that started it all for me:

One… singular sensation every little step she takes.
One… thrilling combination every move that she makes.
One smile and suddenly nobody else will do.
You know you’ll never be lonely with you… know… who…

Seriously folks. I think I have that whole movie memorized. That movie made me want to be a Broadway dancer and sparked an interest in acting. I wanted to be a ROCKETTE. Yes, a Rockette. I wanted it so bad. Of course, once I never got above 5’2″ and they never would give me adult roles like I wanted… I realized that I could never really make it and gave up on the dream.

Moving on…

Here, we have the Nicholas Brothers in Stormy Weather performing what Fred Astaire once called “the greatest dance number ever filmed.”

And for fun… let’s watch Gene Kelly tap dancing in roller skates from the movie, It’s Always Fair Weather. Now that’s what I call talent!

Here is Fred Astaire and Eleanor Powell in Begin the Beguine from The Broadway Melody of 1940.

From the Tony Awards back in 2001 (I think) here is a clip showing a compilation of dances from 42nd Street. My sisters both performed in this musical at a little dinner theater in Orlando one year. It was quite good for being WAY off-Broadway.

How can you watch that and NOT want to dance!?! I mean, it’s hard for me to just sit still in my seat watching the clip. Especially knowing a lot of the moves, time steps, etc. SO GOOD.

Okay, well, that’s all I’m going to show on here. Feel free to browse the internet for more lovely tap dancing and I will leave you with what I never thought would happen but evidently has happened… there is an actual Wii game called Dance on Broadway. Interesting.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Hey y’all … My boss graciously allowed me to work from home yesterday so I was able to take frequent naps, frequent trips to the bathroom, frequent coughing, frequent blowing nose noise and guck all in the comfort of my home. I’m sure that my co-workers appreciated me not grossing up the place.

So, one of the thing I enjoyed while my throat was sore was this new ice-cream called Häagen-Dazs five™ which only contains (as you guessed it) five ingredients: milk, cream, sugar, eggs, and the flavor. I am always one who believes it’s best to be natural with moderation rather than unnatural in excess. For example, I only drink regular Coca-Cola Classic and never Diet Coke. One, I believe that aspartame isn’t good for you*, and two, by having the original and limiting myself to one only once in a while I don’t have the problem with calories.

Same goes with ice-cream. I buy real all natural ice-cream and eat in moderation. I think one of the best things you can do for yourself is to practice moderation. Keep the ice-cream in the fridge and only allow yourself small amounts now and then. It is amazing how much willpower you actually have if you just put it to good use!

Well, this ice-cream is delicious… let me tell you! I got the coffee flavor and it’s been perfect as an afternoon or evening snack. I find that the flavor is so rich that I really only need a few spoonfuls. It’s heavenly.

* Please note that aspartame itself is not the problem… there is more and more research out that shows people who drink diet drinks have a higher risk of obesity… they believe it is because those who drink the diet drinks drink more in one day than those who drink the full flavor drinks and the empty calories and acidic properties are causing all sorts of health issues. Just myself I know several people who drink over 5 diet drinks A DAY. Ridiculous. People think that because it’s a diet meal or drink or whatever that they can have more of it but instead it should still be limited as you would anything else.

Okay, I’m down off my soap-box. Hope y’all are enjoying your week… it’s almost Friday!

Y’all… today I’m seriously missing me some Ocean City, Maryland… more importantly I’m craving some Thrasher’s French Fries.

Ocean City has one of the nations most outstanding boardwalks.

From their site: “It’s like a buffet that’s three miles long. Or a shopping mall. Or a stage. Or all of them put together. We call it the boardwalk. And the Travel Channel and USA Today both named it one of America’s best.

Bike it, stroll it, or ride the tram. However you do it, you’ll soon see what all the buzz is about. Foods of every description: wonderful Maryland crab cakes, sizzling French fries, fresh, hot pizza, overstuffed sandwiches, and luscious saltwater taffy.

Duck into an arcade and try your hand at your favorite game. (Or try a new one.) Scream with delight on the rollercoaster, or enjoy a ride on one of America’s oldest working carousels.

Ready to shop? The boardwalk is ready for you with beachwear, T-shirts, toys and any number of surprises. And in summertime, the street performers turn all the world into a stage – where you may become a player at any moment.

Need a little respite? Head down to the inlet, and watch the fishing boats head in and out to sea.

In short, the Ocean City boardwalk is three miles of concentrated, family-friendly fun, where ocean breezes are scented with the lovely aroma of French Fries and caramel popcorn, and adventure waits at every turn. You just have to experience it for yourself, ASAP.”

Every summer my family had two time share weeks that we’d use… one in June and one in July. We’d head to Ocean City and always have the best time. I miss those family vacations as a kid. I sure hope that I get to do the same things with my children (should God bless me with that opportunity).

Today, as it is now Friday and soon the weekend will start (finally!) I hope that you remember the simple joys in life and that you cherish every memory as they shape you into the person you are and the person you will be. All the experiences in my life, good or bad, have made me the person I am today and I am grateful.

Have a wonderful weekend y’all!

I’m really liking the Planters NUT-rition snacks, especially the South Beach Diet Recommended Mix. I keep them in my drawer at work and it helps give me a boost in the afternoon when I’m feeling sleepy. I know that these cans cost more than just regular nuts but I can’t find another mix that doesn’t have the stuff I don’t like. If that makes sense. Although lately I’ve been lazy and just buying a can of cashews. I know that they’re not as good as the almonds but I like them better… hee hee.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m a strange dichotomy of extreme optimism and extreme pessimism. I am the type of person who jumps right in the deep end without checking to see if I’ll be in over my head and then it’s too late. I have always been a “feeler” and have always taken things way more personally then I should.

I love this quote: If an optimist had his left arm chewed off by an alligator, he might say, in a pleasant and hopeful voice, “Well, this isn’t too bad.  I don’t have my left arm anymore, but at least nobody will ever ask me whether I am right-handed or left-handed,” but most of us would say something more along the lines of “Aaaaah! My arm! My arm!”  ~Lemony Snicket

So, here I am watching this movie, and completely relating to how he’s feeling … and then at the end it hits me. It all came out in the wash. It all ended as it should. Things weren’t as rosy as they seemed and it was for the best that things moved on.

I know that there is a plan for my life. I know that things happen, good or bad, and we learn from them and grow and life goes on. In all, I’d say this was a terrific movie. If you haven’t seen it, please do. And remember, life … happens.

Here comes Peter Cottontail,
Hoppin’ down the bunny trail,
Hippity, hoppity,
Easter’s on its way.

Bringing every girl and boy
baskets full of Easter joy,
Things to make your Easter bright and gay.
He’s got jelly beans for Tommy,
Colored eggs for sister Sue,
There’s an orchid for your Mommy
And an Easter bonnet, too.

Oh! here comes Peter Cottontail,
Hoppin’ down the bunny trail,
Hippity hoppity,
Happy Easter day.

Here comes Peter Cottontail,
Hoppin’ down the bunny trail,
Look at him stop, and listen to him say:
“Try to do the things you should.”
Maybe if you’re extra good,
He’ll roll lots of Easter eggs your way.

You’ll wake up on Easter morning
And you’ll know that he was there
When you find those chocolate bunnies
That he’s hiding everywhere.

Oh! here comes Peter Cottontail,
Hoppin’ down the bunny trail,
Hippity hoppity,
Happy Easter day!