recipe swap, such a great idea! I love how you adapted the sour cream/cream of mushroom/chicken dish and freeze it in small containers. Perfect for people who need a grab on the go meal, make ahead and freeze! I'm going to try that one of these weekends. I love using those ziplock snack bags for things (half pound of raw ground beef, 3oz grilled chicken or shredded beef, taco soup, etc) throw them in the freezer and you're never out of meals! heres a couple of my favorites Marinated Grilled Shrimp 3 cloves garlic, minced 1/3 cup olive oil 1/4 cup tomato sauce 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper 2 pounds fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined skewers In a large bowl, stir together the garlic, olive oil, tomato sauce, and red wine vinegar. Season with basil, salt, and cayenne pepper. Add shrimp to the bowl, and stir until evenly coated. Cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour, stirring once or twice. Preheat grill for medium heat. Thread shrimp onto skewers, piercing once near the tail and once near the head. Discard marinade. Lightly oil grill grate. Cook shrimp on preheated grill for 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until opaque heres my newest creation... un-fried beans 3 cans of your favorite beans, rinsed (I've been using red kidney beans lately, but you could use pinto, navy, black, whatever tickles your fancy) Put those in a pot and fill with enough water to cover them, add a few cloves garlic (whole) and a small onion (peeled, but whole), add a couple dashes of cumin and Old El Paso taco seasoning (I use the one in a jar since you probably wont use a whole packet). Cook for 15-20 minutes (enough to season the beans) then take out the garlic and onion. pour out juice, but reserve it incase you need to add it back in. Use either a food processor or a hand "boat motor" as Emril calls it. and puree the beans to refried bean consistency. Add water back a little at a time until desired consistency (remember you'll be adding enchillada sauce so you don't want them too liquidy). Season to taste with more taco seasoning and serve with cheese and enchillada sauce

ok I really dont know what the icon is doing with his eyes closed and mouth opened but I'm pretending (atleast I hope thats what its doing ) that its a sleepy person like I am every morning lol hopefully they have coverage for the student id machines and I'm stuck at my desk all day to continue catching up on things I missed over vacation (and the posts of course ) vacation was WONDERFUL!! Rick, you forgot to mention the transition back to walking on even ground after the cruise ends lol The cruise departed on Saturday morning, it was stressful getting everyone to the airport (bf, his brother, mom, myself and his 2 nephews), the transfer from orlando to the port and bording the ship, but once we were on we could all relax! As the ship sailed, we enjoyed lots of food with his family and the pools until we reached Nassau on Sunday. We were there for about 4 hours so there wasn't enough time to check out everything. We did a little shopping and it was back to the boat (that was my one paranoia, missing the ship ). Monday was a day at sea, it was our first actual day to venture off to each deck and explore the ship. I can't believe how big this thing was!! Most of the people stayed on the first floor, our room was on the 6th. We walked most of the floors checking out the shops (see the transfer addiction here ), casino, the other pools, arcade, gyms, lounges, a beautiful atrium, great sounding jazz bar and sports bar. One of the best parts of the ship was the people! Everyone was so friendly and relaxed, coming from all walks of life, different parts of the world, young and old, working or retired we were all there to have fun! You would sit at the pool or the restaurant and conversation was instantaneous. Where are you from, are you enjoying the ship, highlights of islands from the experts, what to do and what not to on the ship, etc, etc. It was a lot of fun. Tuesday we stopped in St. Thomas from 10-8, it was also the day of the wedding. We were able to get off the boat in the morning, but returned for the wedding and then ventured off again after the reception for more shopping of course ;) Such a beautiful island! The people were nice, they love tourists (and our money lol) we relaxed on the beach for a little while, took in the sights and then returned to the ship for the wedding. The wedding was beautiful, very private (in a room instead of outside by the water which was a little puzzling), the reception went well. It was a half our ceremony and a 2 hour reception. Very enjoyable. Wednesday we were in St. Maarten all day and had a blast!! We stayed on the Dutch side (now wished we visited the French side as well, all the more reason to plan another vacation? ;) ) We went on jet skis for an hour, relaxed on the beach, shopping was incredible, such deals there on jewelry, coach bags , alcohol, clothes, everything was cheap and if it wasn't you could haggle them with the price and get it for cheap. I bought a lose tanzanite stone to either put in an omega pendant slide or a ring. BF bought me another ring (kind of like an anniversary band, maybe it is since its almost that time and we've been together forever ). we walked into the coach store and I swear I heard the music from the verizon fios commercial when the guy opens the closet and the light shines out no prices on anything because you name your price, my eyes nearly jumped out of my head! a wallet, tote bag, pair of shoes and purse later BF dragged me out against my will to check out more of the island! We went to a store where they make fruit rums. They give you samples to try and its amazing. They mix fresh fruit in the bottle, the rum looks cloudy but tastes so creamy. Needless to say we left with plenty of it. Off to the linen store next. The prices were so low that bf even made the face. needless to say we bought more, ventured back to the ship with our bags, dropped and went back to the island for relaxation. There was a spa by the port, massages within eavesdrop of the ocean were less than half the price they were on the ship. BF and I spent an hour relaxing on the tables, listening to the waves crash and enjoying the fresh ocean smell, soon after we were back on the ship. Thursday and Friday were days at sea. Lots of relaxation at the pool, spending time with his family, gambling in the casinos and of course... eating and drinking WAY too much. The foods on the ship are unbelievable, Rick mentioned the foods and how plentyful they were, but I didn't expect it to be like this!! There was a buffet for every meal. Breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner and when there wasn't a "meal" buffet, there was a snack buffet, pizza buffet, burger buffet, omlette or..... A CHOCOLATE BUFFET I couldn't believe my eyes when we walked in there. I thought I left earth and landed in Willy Wonka's chocolate factory! Chocolate fountain, chocolate foods, chocolate desserts, chocolate in solid forms, chocolate in liquid forms, you name it, they had it. I think I lasted about 25 seconds before saying... LETS GO. I couldn't handle the temptation anymore. I brought all kinds of foods with me (protein bars, trail mix, nuts, dried fruits) and decided to skip breakfast with them and have a protein bar instead. Lunch I did buffet style with everyone else and dinner was mostly trail mix or another protein bar.. I knew if I'd go to buffets with them every meal I'd over eat. Its bad enough I feel like my pouch is bigger than a few months ago (I can eat more and drink way more than I use to ) I also knew on the ship that drinks flowed more than the ocean below us so I brought some sugar free margarita mix. This stuff taste just like real margaritas and come in little crystal light 2 go looking packets. I didn't drink, but most nights yes and completely confessed to the nutritionist last week! She was ok with it since its not an everyday thing and now that vacation is over, I wont be doing it anymore. I was nervous about getting sea sick, but surprisingly I didnt. On thursday I felt a little queasy, but I put the sea bands on and it went away instantly. Those things are incredible and if you're ever going on a cruise, buy them at the closest pharmacy before the cruise. We bought them at CVS for $6.95, they were selling for $32 on the ship!! All in all it was a great vacation, much needed rest. It took a few days for the sense of still being on a boat to leave and my stomach was a little grouchy when I got hom, but soft foods fixed that and now its back to the grind! Thanks again Rick for your posts a few weeks ago, it really helped get me ready for my cruise and know what to expect! ok now that the book is over.... below is wdiet post (what did I eat today) BF's brother took pictures with his camera so when I see him, I'll make sure to grab some and post! I have 1 from bf's camera phone that I posted in my profile so far

I'm so glad you liked the turkey shepherd's pie and that you found the Great Grains bagels. I know!! There is tons of fiber in those things. I forgot to buy them this week...silly me...so I'm going to have eat oatmeal in the mornings until I can get there. I'm glad that hubby liked the recipe too. It is yummy and much better for you than the original version. Hugs, Stephanie

#1 i weigh everyday it's an addiction...funny they say to do it now, when we 1st started out they told us not to. #2 LOL!!!! I work in an office I spend a good 6 hours a day infront of a computer #3 well I've got you guys woo hoo!!! #4 ok I could do much better here...guess i need to get back on my carrott kick #5 well thanks to barb's walk across america this should help get me moving #6...wellll gotta go read the next post

Emily - I am SO proud of you - what an excellent start to our Walk-a-thon. I only got in a little over 10,000 steps yesterday and about 4 miles. You are awesome! Plus an hour of strength training. I don't know about the fat in the hips - mine seems to be retained in my stomach and I suspect only plastic surgery will cure that - so I don't have any suggestions for you - maybe some of these gym people in our forum will have a suggestion. We are so happy to have you with us and glad you got your new pedometer! Congrats again on such a great day...keep it up! Barbara