Coming Soon...

Where to begin? This last week Scentsy made some HUGE announcements.  Very, very exciting ones.  As a consultant, I had been eagerly anticipating what these announcements would be since convention last summer.  I'm thrilled to say that Scentsy will be expanding their products with TWO NEW LINES in March 2012.  This will be a great opportunity to hop on board with Scentsy, whether you want to buy, host or join.  Why are the new product lines so great?  Sincerely Scent offers a way to create customizable, SCENTED greeting cards online for just $2.85 (no extra postage!).  That sounds pretty great to me, considering the price of greeting cards in stores and the fact that postage keeps going up!  Layers by Scentsy will provide body spray, solid perfume (new in Fall 2011), body lotion, body butter, hand cream, shower gel, shower cream, and laundry care products (Washer Whiffs and Dryer Disks) in some of the most-loved Scentsy fragrances.  I'm very excited that Luna will be in the Layers collection!  You also may have heard about Scentsy's new ScenTrend.  For 2012, Pink Pepper will be the up and coming fragrance note.  I got to sample it the other day, and it is fabulous!  It's specially designed to mix with many of Scentsy's fragrances to add another note of fragrance.  Check out this article about the Pink Pepper ScenTrend on Yahoo! Shine.  Going beyond fragrances, Scentsy will be launching a whole NEW BRAND in May 2012.  I was pretty surprised when I found out about Velata--stylish fondue pots met with Belgian chocolate.  I know what your thinking... If Velata uses the same safe, low-watt technology that Scentsy warmers do, why can't I just start melting chocolate in my warmer?  Answer: the dish of a Velata fondue pot is specially designed to keep you chocolate at just the right temperature, and it is completely microwave, dishwasher, refrigerator, and food safe.  Check out what Yahoo! Finance has to say about Velata. 

I'll let you know what else will be new in March, after I get back from Spring Sprint next Saturday!  (Although, I can already tell you that baby Scentsy buddies will be coming!)  

I have a big Scentsy goal to reach this month, and I'm doing a fundraiser for some ladies in my social service club.  (They are trying to raise money for plane tickets for their mission trip to Tanzania this summer.)  SO, I have some INCENTIVES for you: when you order online, your name will be entered in a chance to WIN a half price item and/or FREE product for every $25 spent.  Also, orders of $100+ will receive an extra special surprise from me as well as 4+ chances to win!  Your support is much appreciated!

{NEW} 2012

Somewhere along the road, someone decided that January 1st would be like a reset button--a chance to start over, try something new, be better, etc.  (Yeah, I know it's the 20th, but I didn't have resolutions on the 1st.  Also, blogging is way better than writing care plans.)  Generally, I've made it a point not to make New Year's Resolutions.  Maybe it's because I don't generally like cliches, or because most "resolutions" are never kept.  With that said, I think I will just call them goals.  I like goals.  I believe that to achieve goals, you have to be very specific.  It's great to have a goal, but how are you going to get there and what's your time frame?  

For example, say you want to start working out to be in better shape.  

• What workout are you planning to do?  
• When will you workout?  
• How fast do you want to see results? (within reason, of course)
• Why do you want to be fit? (motivation is key)

For your sake, I will save you the details on how I plan to reach my goals.  (Okay, I may not have thought these ALL the way through...yet.)  Here's my list (in no particular order):

• Spend more quiet time with God.  This is a big one for me.  It's kind of sad that I will religiously dedicate 30 minutes to Jillian Michaels or an hour plus to Tony Horton EVERYDAY, but I can't be still enough to even just spend 5 minutes alone with Him.
• Spend more time with my friends.  Sounds simple, right?  You should see my schedule.
• Keep up the exercising and also try to eat better.  I mean, I don't eat terribly, but I have a weak spot for baked goods.
• Continue to pass my classes.  Maybe actually study for real.
• Do something crazy--unexpected.
• SCENTSY...more parties, more recruits, more customers, more fundraisers... I love the opportunity I have with Scentsy to meet new people and have fun selling products that I'm a fan of.  Really, I have gotten to know several great ladies that I wouldn't have known otherwise!
• Stop hating my alarm clock...everyday is a NEW DAY, a fresh start, a second chance.
• Be more consistent with blogging!

I think that pretty much sums it up.  And now it's on my blog...so I better do it!  I hope you all enjoyed reading something a little different from me.  I'm going to try to work in more reflection-type posts among the recipes, Scentsy, and workouts.  Make sure to come back tomorrow for a sneak peek at some pretty fabulous Scentsy news!      

X2 Quick Review

I told you that I would go through all the P90X-2 workouts over break and let you know how it went, so here you go...

X2 Core, X2 Total Body, and X2 Balance + Power do not qualify as average strength training....Well, nothing about P90X-2 is average, but you get the point.  Yeah, there's weight lifting, push-ups and pull-ups, but there is a ton of CORE action going on at the same time.  It's really pretty great.  Crazy, but great.

Chest + Back + Balance is good too, but not my favorite...mostly because I don't like push-ups or pull-ups...  It still works your core too, just not with quite as much focus.

X2 Shoulders + Arms gets back to more traditional P90X...sort of.  I liked this one.

Base + Back is pretty neat.  I kind of expected it to be like P90X Legs & Back, which it really isn't so much.  You alternate pull-ups with plyo leg moves.  It's good times.

P.A.P. Lower is definitely one of my new favorites.  It's crazy how much sweat comes from this workout.  You do four moves, four times, back to back to back.  Then, you do four new moves, four times, back to back to back.  It's pretty wonderful.

P.A.P. Upper is decent, but not as wonderful as P.A.P. Lower.  I might feel this way just because I was running out of "break" days, so I did it like 30 minutes after finishing P.A.P. Lower.  (I don't recommend doing two of these workouts back to back...ever...bad plan...but you do get to eat a lot of food.)  It's set up the same way as P.A.P. Lower, but obviously it works the upper body instead.

X2 Yoga has it's very own blog post!  Check that out.

Recovery + Mobility is nothing like the X-Stretch I know and love.  I was initially disappointed, but it focuses on myofascial release, which is pretty great once you learn how to use the foam roller. 

Plyocide is crazy hard, but in a really good way.  Fantastic.

X2 Ab Ripper is cruel.  I mean, I can do Ab Ripper X all the way through, not a problem... and this hurt so bad.  It's definitely a solid ab workout.  Like, seriously.

Well, there you have it! P90X-2 in a nutshell (minus the 2 bonus workouts).  I hope I will have time to do the full 90 days this summer.  I know it's not happening anytime before then!  Spring semester is going to be insane.  I started my OB rotation today, which was pretty neat.  I got to see some extra tiny humans.  Tiny humans are the best.  The worst part is having to get up at an obscene hour in the morning...more like the middle of the night!  Okay, I have to stop rambling and get to bed...another early morning tomorrow!

Cranberry Orange Scones

While in Minnesota for Christmas, I made some Cranberry Orange Scones.  If you don't know what a scone is, it is kind of like a sweet biscuit in the shape of a triangle.  They are pretty tasty, and there's many different varieties of scones.  I made these towards the end of our stay, and wanted to use some of the things left over from previous dishes.  We had craisins, oranges, and orange zest mixed from sugar.  I also had a brown butter glaze left from making Paula's Loaded Oatmeal Cookies (see "Cookie Craze" post).  I searched for a recipe to kind of go on, and ended up with one from Tasty Kitchen.  (Shocker, huh?)  I'm pretty sure my version ended up with a little more sugar, but I couldn't tell you how much.  And, since I already had a glaze, I didn't make the one in the recipe... I just added some more of my orange zest and sugar mix and milk to the glaze I had from the cookies.  Click here to get the recipe from Tasty Kitchen.  Below is the picture fresh from the oven (before they were cut).  Enjoy!

Pierogies with Kielbalsa & Sauerkraut

Tonight I got a little adventurous and tried something new, something Polish: Pierogies with Kielbasa & Sauerkraut.  Until recently, I had never heard of Pierogies.  Thanks to one of the cookbooks I got for Christmas, "I Can't Believe It's Not Fattening," I now know.  Pierogies are kind of like ravioli, except in a different shape and filled with potato.  It was a surprisingly tasty, solid dinner.  I mean, I'm not even sure if I can correctly pronounce the ingredients, so I wasn't sure if it'd be good, but it was!  The brother even approved, which is major.  While it is relatively low-fat, it's not low sodium...so I wouldn't recommend eating it on a regular basis.  Here is the picture and the recipe:

Pierogies with Kielbasa & Sauerkraut:

1 (2 lb.) package of potato and cheddar pierogies (I used Mrs. T's)

1 (14 oz) package Turkey polska kielbasa, cut 

2 cups sauerkraut (the kind in a jar--NOT canned)

Follow preparation instruction on bag for pierogies.  Spray skillet with nonstick cooking spray and saute pieces of polksa kielbasa and sauerkraut until polska kielbasa is warmed through with a few brown spots (more depending on how you like it).  Throw it all together once it's cooked!  (Serves 8--3 pierogies/serving)

Jumbo Cherry Chocolate Chip Cupcake

I'll admit, I did not actually make this myself.  It was a surprise from my mother.  Generally, I do not like surprises...unless they are carefully planned...by me.  So when my mother tells me on the phone that she has a surprise for me, I kind of flip out.  However, I was glad to find a giant cupcake sitting on the kitchen counter.  I was even more glad to find out that it was a "real" cherry chocolate chip cake and not the box kind with the fake cherry chips.  The cake tasted amazing, and it was super moist.  Like, you-could-eat-it-without-the-frosting MOIST.  And that's impressive.  Because, if you know me, you know I generally like a little cake with my frosting...or just the frosting.  The recipe for the cake is below the picture.  I don't have one for the homemade butter cream frosting--you just throw a combination of butter, confectioner's (powdered) sugar, vanilla, and milk together until it's right...helpful, I know. 

Did I mention?  One of the best parts is you can take a piece from the back and nobody knows!

Cherry Chocolate Chip Cake:

1 box (18.25 oz) yellow cake mix

1 box (3.4 oz) vanilla pudding mix

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, melted and cooled

1 cup milk

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 jar (10 oz) maraschino cherries, drained, dried and roughly chopped

1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Baking Directions (for jumbo cupcake):

Preheat oven to 325*F.  Prepare Jumbo Cupcake Pan with vegetable cooking spray.

In a large bowl, beat cake mix, pudding mix, butter, milk, eggs, vanilla, and almond extract with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds.  Stop mixer, scrape sides of bowl, and continue beating on medium speed for 2 minutes.  Fold in chopped cherries and chocolate chips.  Pour 4 cups of batter into the bottom cavity of the cupcake; pour remaining batter into top cavity.  Bake 55-60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of bottom cavity comes out clean.  Cool in pan 15 minutes; invert onto cooling grid and cool completely before decorating. 

Recipe courtesy of the back jumbo cupcake pan box!

Memo Board

Today I got crafty.  I used an old frame that my mom picked up somewhere...I think actually she found it in someone's "big trash."  Really, when I first saw this frame, I vomited a little in my mouth.  I thought it was really awful, and NOTHING would save it.  However, I decided that the walls of my apartment were looking very white and undecorated.  And we have this black-and-white glam theme going on, so I thought in black this frame could work (it's originally a horrendous creamy gross color).  I came across some fabulous fabric at Hobby Lobby for 30% off.  I found matting, a thin board, and a staple gun in the garage.  Picked up some glossy black spray paint and sheer ribbon, and I had everything I needed to make a memo board.  

I really meant to take a picture of the frame before I painted it, and then take pictures of the whole process, but I forgot.  Sorry!  In addition to getting this done today, I installed a couple bathroom vanity lights and other random things.  There are still a lot of things on my list, and only like 3 days before I go back to school, so we'll see how much else I'm actually able to check off.  I hope everyone has a great evening! I'm about to hit up P90X-2...