Home Safe but Tuckered Out

I am home and tuckered out! Jack is too because he didn't even want dinner - he has laid in his "bedroom" since we got home! I think it was all the attention and spoiling my parents gave him. We went on lots of walks too- and he had lots of treats. He was kinda bad only because the parents let him up on the furniture:

I must be so tired from all of that baking I have been up too ... Creme De Menthe Brownies, my personal favorite is Chocolate Chip Irish Cream Pound Cake , and Mocha Swirl Light Cheesecake-

In fact, I doubt my fatigue had ANYTHING to do with the freezing, 1 hour wonderful walk this morning, 3 hour drive, 2 loads of laundry, and unpacking 8 bags of a bullet smoothie mixer my mom gave me ( thanks!!! woohoo!), leftover baked goods, clothes bought while shopping with my mom, and luggage! Right ?


Body:
Walked with my mom and Jack , 3+ miles this morning! It was very chilly compared to yesterday's walk gees! My knee is a little sore from the run yesterday but nothing major at all really- I am gonna get a heat pack now and ice and alternate to get the blood flowing- hopefully get rid of any swelling!

Mind:
Read more in the morning but only a little bit!

Read some new blogs!! I am so excited to receive comments from readers I was unaware of! I love that people are enjoying my blog as much as I enjoy writing it! I would certainly like to add to my blogroll but I always end up closing the browser and can't find the exact addresses again! So feel free to send me a comment so I can add you/ or you can add me etc. etc.

However, most all of my mental energy went towards my 3 hour drive on the highway with Jack! I fought off sleepiness by drinking water and singing to Jack, he is not a fan. Oh well.

Soul:

I am the type of person that feels MUCH better if I unpack immediately- otherwise the stuff lays around for a week or longer! So I got everything going right away into its place- except the laundry- however I folded AND ironed what is done! Hooray for that

Jeff is home and I am home ! Yah! He LOVES his new sweater/shirt that I assured my mom he would like! Also, two of the pairs of pants fit fantastic and he loves them! The third pair were jeans by the SAME brand, SAME size as the other two pairs- and clearly 2 inches too long!!??!?!? What the crap ? oh well, I will go see if I can get a shorter pair. I hope they aren't too short though!

After I got back and put everything away, I caught up on this premiere week of shows I remembered to record before I left! 90210, Priviledged, and The Biggest Loser!

Dinner with Nate and Andrea! Andrea picked me up and we met the men at the restaurant! Both of us had not seen our significant others' in four days! and... both Andrea and I ordered the same exact meal, both Jeff and Nate ordered the same exact meal too- how coincidental!?!

****** Jeff got a great deal on a BRAND NEW vehicle thanks to his uncle Jeff... it is a truck and he wanted a truck! it is 4 wheel drive and he wanted 4 wheel drive so we could take it onto the beach for camping at the ocean and it has more too! The bet part is it is brand new with a full warranty and he is getting it for what the used vehicles cost that he was considering recently! I won't reveal too much because there are some logistics involved - he/we should be bringing it home Monday so I will reveal all the details and photos then! ****** Thank you to everyone who has been commenting, keeping up with this situation for us, and hoping along with me that things work out post accident! ( Erica , Mads, Veggie Girl, Strong and Healthy, Hangrypants and I hope I am not forgetting anyone else...)

I am so excited that Jeff's uncle Jeff ( his namesake and practically his identical twin as far as personality goes) and aunt Darlene are visiting this weekend. This happens to work out nicely with the car deal since Jeff can ride back with them sunday and drive back his new truck! They are great fun so it will be a family oriented weekend of wine, laughter, and who knows what!

On to the food:
Breakfast:
Egg whites with hummus, Oats with Bluberries, Bananas, Pears and Peanut Butter.

Oh and if you haven't already checked her out- Lee of For The Love of Peanut Butter - made a version of my Pumpkin French Toast for breakfast today- She loved it and I am so happy!!!! Thanks for the tag Lee!


Lunch: (sorry it wasn't pictured I had already packed everything into the car)
Leftover pasta bake from last night ...



Snack:
A small banana with peanut butter and greek nonfat yogurt. I also crumbled a bite of a Luna Sunrise Bar that I have never had before. It was yummy!

Dinner:

We went to a hot dog/greek place that has a great sandwich and salad menu! I got the Greek Salad ( iceberg, onion, tomato, greek olives, feta, beets, pita) with Grilled Chicken. Jeff ordered the special hot dog and chili fries. I did have some of the chili fries - meh - pretty good- I liked the fry part better than the chili part.




TGI almost F !

Sweet Potato, Chicken, Brussel Sprouts and Healthy Fried Onion Rings

I know, you are probably thinking, healthy fried onion rings ?

Well, I consider them healthy. Here's how:

Batter ( in separate bowl):
2 Tablespoons Nonfat Greek Yogurt
2 Tablespoons Egg Beaters ( no cholesterol!)
Mix very well to a batter consistency

Breading (in separate bowl):
equal parts yellow cornmeal and flour- For one small onion ( me and Jeff), I used about 1/3 cup of cornmeal and 1/3 cup Organic Whole Grain AP Flour.
Salt and Pepper to Taste
Dash of Parm Cheese

Prep:
Heat 1 tablespoon smart balance oil in pan on medium. Slice onions into rings. Separate Rings. Dip and shake em in the batter...

then dip and cover them in the breading bowl...

Drop em in the hot pan! A few minutes on each side.

I microwaved brussel sprouts, then popped em in the toaster oven. While all of this was going on, I was browning chicken breasts in a pan and then microwaved a sweet potato for 5 minutes in the microwave.


I topped the potato with Nonfat greek yogurt because the chicken serving looked too small (I prefer to eat a lot of lean protein )


So that was dinner for four/two. I made four chicken breasts (two for lunch tomorrow for each of us and enough onions and brussel sprouts too)!

Body:
Dancing with the stars Latin Cardio: I did 3 of the 4 dances and the toning/strength section.
Gym: Elliptical 45 minutes.

Mind:
I played suduko, read some of my never ending wonderful book, and had to comprehend the dance steps! I am getting better every time!

Soul:
Shopping! Well, sort of. I returned something to the store and bought Jeff a sweater and shirt I had been eyeing up, they were now on sale even more than before. He likes them!

I really enjoy and miss dancing. I am still looking for a new gym with classes, but also trying to sort out finances etc.

I like grocery shopping too, usually spending money bothers me a ton. For groceries though, I almost always feel better knowing I am buying healthy things that will give me energy.

We tried to book our romantic getaway trip but the website didn't let us through. So try try again tomorrow.

Happy Eve of New Years Eve!! Does anyone have exciting plans? W

-we still haven't made any definite plans.

Mish Mosh Lunch and Chicken Salad Dinner

Lunch:

Asparagus spears in sicilian sauce with a little cheese (Sargento Reduced Fat Mexican)

Apple crisp sprinkled with cheese, I heard about apple pies with cheddar on top and figured I'd give it a whirl. Honestly, it was delicious but you couldn't taste the cheese at all.

On the side I had a chobani nonfat greek Strawberry Yogurt with half of a whole wheat British Muffin.

The Snowman says "Yay!"


Dinner:

Super Easy Super Healthy Chicken Salad

Ingredients:
I sliced up red grapes, length wise (about 2 cups)
Chopped Organic Celery Hearts ( I used 1 bunch)
1 green onion chopped
Boiled Chicken Breasts... (I did three here and it took about 20 minutes). let them cool, then pulled the chicken apart and into the bowl ( boiling makes it super easy to pull apart for "shredded chicken" )
Then I binded everything with:
1 container of Chobani Plain, Nonfat Greek Yogurt ( the 5.3 oz size , but I could have used the bigger tub)
1 big Tablespoon Helmann's Fat Free Mayonaisse ( its about 25 calories, 0 g fat)
Salt
Cracked Black Pepper
Stir and let sit in the fridge for about 2 hours.
That whole bowl ( it is big! it holds 8 cups) is total less than 600 calories, 108 g protein, No Fat ( well, about 1 g from the chicken but i took off what I could see). It also offers fruit, veggies, and calcium!

It was delicious!
I used a whole wheat wrap and added sliced purple cabbage, sliced raw almonds and hot sauce!

Dinner at Kanki

Entree: Rice and Veggies... cooked in front of us...with separately cooked Salmon and Filet Mignon. ( I am allergic to shellfish so I had to have the meat cooked separately in the back, everyone else had their shrimpees cooked on that grill in front of us.)

Appetizers: Salad with Ginger Dressing and Soup ( I had about half of each) and a glass of Merlot.
The logical side of me told me I shouldn't have gotten the wine with my migraine earlier today. The excedrine helped wonders and caffeine as well ( coffee i took with me on campus ) however, I really wanted it! And I hate to deprive myself given that I felt in the mood for it. I drank lots and lots of water too. So I am feeling much better.

It was FANTASTIC to have dinner with Jeff, Andrea, Hanz, Ed, Nick,and Dan.I love all of our friends dearly, they are just the most wonderful amazing people and I would spend everyday with them if I could.

Long day of studying ahead tomorrow. Hopefully I wake up without a migraine!

Christmas Party 08

Appetizer Hour:
My Glass #1 of Sonoma Merlot, Jeff's Glass of Bass

Oh My gosh... quite possible this was the best cheese I have ever had

Brie with Cranberries ( they were fresh softened deliciously cherry like), and Goat Cheese with Pesto

Here is mine: It was soooooooo satisfyingly delicious

I should have taken a picture of everyone at our table! I warned them when we sat down that I take pictures because I write a blog about food and nutrition. I was completely surprised that everyone was genuinely interested in knowing why and what it was like and they all want to get the link to the site- so whenever they stop by- Hi Michelle, Justin, Melissa,Woody, Christ, and Gretchen!

Glass #2 and Bread

I am not a huge bread person but I like to try things. I ripped off a hunk but it was too chewy

Salad: This was a very interesting way to do a Caesar Salad. A rib of romaine, anchovy slices on top, thin strips of parm cheese, that little wafer tasted like cardboard.

Entree:

Chicken on top of creamy mushroom risotto, zuchinni, steak. Last year they had a similar dish only with chicken and salmon. I mentioned everyone at our table being interested in my blog, well we had quite the discussion about this entree! My steak was medium-well. There was no pink at all. However, Melissa's was bright vibrant red, Justin's was a rose/blush, Jeff's was a mix of Melissa's and Justin's- It was incredibly odd how the same dish came to 8 people at the table but the steaks were cooked all different. Mine was so well-cooked that I could not even chew it. My chicken was very tasty, however, Michelle's chicken was very dry-

Congratulations Michelle ( she is having a baby girl!).


Dessert:

I ate the whip cream, the nuts, and that chocolate stick coming out towards you! I had a few bites ( again I like to try things) but I am not a huge fan of pudding AND I was full!

Overall Recap and Review:
I think the cheese was phenomenal and made my night! Everything was "tasty" otherwise so I hate to bring up the negative because it was "over-the-top"! It is definitely a fancy place and I love being able to attend. On top of that, to hang out with Jeff's co-workers because they are all about our age and really funny was fantastic! Last year, Jeff and a few others formed a secret band that played a great set of cover songs. They were outstanding, however, this year shortly after they began practice the drummer caught pneumonia. He had to be hospitalized and has some permanent damage but is overall fine now. Unfortunately, they couldn't do it without him. So we missed out on that but I got to spend more time with Jeff since he wasn't playing.

Jeff and I at the Tree

Initiation of the New Employees: Teams had to dress up one person like Frosty The snowman. We cheered for this guy because they were right next to our table- and one of the new employees sat with us. (They won, so they had to sing Frosty The Snowman)

I had so much fun chatting with Emily, Christy, Jennifer, Amy, Stacy, Michelle, and Melissa! Hi, Ladies if you stop in!!

Earlier Friday...
Lunch:
I know it is not as "spectacular" as the food above- Leftover pasta and chicken from the other night.

Mid-Afternoon Red-White-Green Snack( actually at about 4 because I did NOT want to go to the xmas party starving)
Red and Green Peppers, Mushrooms and a little blue cheese dressing (full fat deliciousness)
Chobani Strawberry with Pistachios

Body:
Cardio: A fantastic run. A wonderful run.

I "sprinted" 4 miles. I stretched for a few seconds at each mile but jogged in between all the sprinting so no walking for this lady!

My general treadmill pace: 6.5 mph (recovery/slow jog) 7.5-7.7 mph (usual, comfortable pace) 9.3-9.8 mph (sprint)

9.8 felt super sonic- I felt like I was going to fall off the treadmill, which made it even more exciting hahaha. I didn't keep track of much else aside from running for at least 2 minutes of each mile above 9 mph... So it was mostly at a 7.5 speed, I would sprint when a good song came on during each mile at 9.3 bump it up to 9.8 then recover at a 6.5 for no more than 2 minutes... back up to a 7 + then back up to a spring etc.

My goal was to run the entire time, sprint during each mile and I met my goal.

Mind:
I turned in my paper, I only studied a little. I felt a little burnt out from the three papers due total this week. I have this weekend to study so I wanted to pace myself.

Soul:

Fantastic evening. After the holiday party we went downtown to a bar - one of our friends' birthdays- so we danced with them and had a phenomenal evening!

Paper # 3 Done!

"Eat me Eat me Eat me" said my breakfast to me:

British Whole Wheat English Muffin ( from Trader Joe's)- meh its okay

Slice of Healthy Canadian Ham

1/2 cup Cage Free Egg Whites (Trader Joe's)

w. hot sauce and

Black Coffee in my snowman mug from college

Banana with Smucker's All Natural. I have been eating Smucker's All Natural since freshman year of college (8 years!) and I have never gotten tired of it. So yummy, the only ingredients are peanuts and salt.

The banana was really small...

2 Lunches ?

I normally do not have a mid-morning snack- most of the time I am writing or reading or exercising before lunch and just never hungry. I think it has alot to do with habit because when you are used to not snacking mid morning, you usually aren't hungry. But today, I was heading to campus mid morning (10:30) in hopes of getting as much of my project due tomorrow done as I could. So I had this Chobani Blueberry to hold me over..

SO GOOD! I swear, this is by far my favorite yogurt. I strive to consume organic dairy products ( Check out the Tag "CLA" for info why) but this yogurt is just soooo delicious. I have tried stoneyfield organic, fage, and Trader Joe's brand and Chobani just beats all of them in texture and taste ( in my opinion!). I for sure like all of the others but Chobani ROCKS!

I was so involved in my project, I realized I needed more fuel by 2 pm- grabbed an Odwalla Protein- another yummy mini-meal

( sorry for the repeat photo - didn't have my camera today on campus)
Good news- I finished my project at 4 pm!!! Woohoooooooo!!! It is due tomorrow by 5 but I am not even going to look at it anymore since I need to spend all day studying for either/both of my finals next week AND... getting ready for Jeff's work's Holiday Party. It's at the Umstead Hotel and Spa... Gorgeous new, total upscale, ritzy place.



Quick Dinner:

Big Delicious, In Need Of Veggies Salad

( greens, red pepper, green pepper, mushrooms, snap peas, EDAMAME, hummus from the other day)
Smoked Salmon from TJ- this brand was SUPER SALTY... i mean "country ham" salty... ick
Garlic Twists ( I used TJ pizza dough with garlic herb seasoning and cheese)

Body:
Gym trip Late Afternoon: Elliptical 30 minutes, Bike 4 miles

Mind:
Paper #3 FINISHED!! It was actually a series of small papers combined for this project on College Women Food Choices. I will make a separate post to explain it!

Studying tomorrow for Research Methods Final and/or Nutrient Metabolism Final ( Lipids)

Soul:
I got a big ol chocolate bar (hershey's dark pic tomorrow) and Jeff and I are watching "Tropic Thunder"...

I am getting in trouble for writing and not watching so its boyfriend-time

Goodbye Thursday Hello Weekend

Breakfast:

Pumpkin Pie for 1!
Oat crust, filling as usual, and organic oikos vanilla on top and a half of a banana on the side.. with flaxseed butter

Here is the explanation:

"Crust":
1/2 Cup total of Irish oats ( I mixed flaxseed cereal with it too)
Put into an Oven AND Microwave safe dish (I used this corningware dish) with
1/2 cup water ( so that the oats are soaked but not floating in water)
Microwaved for 2 minutes
Spread out oat crust to the sides of the dish so that its a flat crust like shape
Put oven-safe dish into (toaster) oven at 375 for about 5 minutes

"Filling"
Mix following ingredients into a separate bowl
1/4 cup organic pumpkin (puree not filling)
1/3 cup egg beaters- or I've used carton egg whites only or 4 egg whites
pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon Brown sugar
1 teaspoon of Maple Syrup (or more brown sugar)
1/2 teaspoon of Baking Powder
Microwave for 2 minutes or until slightly firm all over

Put-It All-Together:
Take out crust dish w/ oven mitt!
Spoon this slightly firm mix into the crust dish
Put back into oven for another 5-7 minutes + at 375
Topped with a spoonful of "cream" aka nonfat greek yogurt, sprinkled with cinnamon

On the side I had a half of banana with pb


Lunch: Whole Foods Salad


If you often read my blog, you can tell that I NEVER treat myself to lunch out. Mostly because I enjoy preparing my own food, secondly because I HATE to spend the money when it is so much healthier and CHEAPER to plan a tiny bit and have foods for lunch. However, being sick and being on campus until 1 pm ( and having class at 3:45) I knew it would be the best option to either stay or head to Whole Foods less than 1/4 mile from campus! So, I thought it would be a nice treat to myself to get a yummy made-my -own salad!
Broccoli

Roasted and non, Red Bell Pepper

Quinoa

Chicken

Mixed greens

Feta

Purple Cabbage

Cucumber
Corn and Black Beans
Two quarters of roasted potatoes ( top right)

And, an artichoke

Pineapple and Strawberries

Dinner:


leftover Whole Wheat Pasta and Sauce, Half of a whole grain bun for a mini-tofu sammy, extra veggies (peppers, cauliflower), parm cheese, some chicken in there too...

Body:

I certainly DID NOT feel well enough to get in a workout after class ...ARGH! I barely had a voice and felt really tired after the interview and lunch. But I needed to stay for class. Calling the doctor in the morning for meds!

Mind:
Met April on campus at 9:30 to get equipment, then we met our freshmen interviewee for our project on College Freshmen Food Choices. The interview we conducted took about 30 minutes, then we went to the library and transcribed the interview. Apparently this takes a looonnngg time, ( it took about 1.5 hrs)

Class: we talked more about TG, but mostly cholesterol and phospholipids and went over our exam from last week. I did alright ( I got a B)... but so many people in the class did worse than the last exam and we all studied so hard. I think it was because there were SO many places to mess up, SO many enzymes for each pathway - so he gave us an extra credit opportunity to work in groups and re-do the first problem. We did great!

Soul:

It was so nice to treat myself to Whole Foods, $8 for lunch is outrageous but I never do it! I sat outside too, the sun was really warm but the air was cool.

It was also SO nice to be out of the house all day! Even though I still felt ill and was exhausted, i have been "couped up" in the house all week being a total bum on the couch! ( i needed to be but..)

After lunch i searched for articles to support my metabolism research paper and found a bunch!

Another lake trip to Nana's is in store for this weekend since she is having "thanksgiving" early, but I am un-sure if I will go mostly because I have been so sick that I haven't been able to get alot of my research done. I also would hate to bring my cold with me and get nana or any of jeff's sisters/neice/nephew sick!

It's Thursday!!! Grey's and Ugly Betty soon and I am catching up on Private Practice right now...

monday monday

Breakfast:
Breakfast Pumpkin Pie for One

- I put a little cranberry fruit sauce on the side ( frozen wild organic blueberries, frozen organic cranberries, frozen pineapple- heated up in the microwave!) and
- a half of a tiny banana w/ Naturally More Flax Butter! ( I haven't gotten this stuff in about a year- but its yummy- it has more protein (10g) than regular peanut butter, Less sugar, and less overall fat... which is a tough combo to actually make! I enjoy the flaxseeds in their as well !

Close Up...looks like a mini -pie slice...

Like my pjs!?
Yum Yum Yum!

Lunch:
Spaghetti Squash for One ( small guy)
I used it as my "serving dish" and put all the spaghetti in one half, with extra mixed veggies and vegetarian crumbles in the other
Chobani

Dinner:
Grilled chicken breast
Leftover spaghetti squash and veggies
Sweet Potato Fries!



Body:
Rest...
( I also did an intense yoga and strength session after my short 3 mile run yesterday so I wanted to focus on my work today anyway)

Mind:
Finished up both presentations but still have to rehearse them tomorrow

Soul:
Woke up early! I am hoping to wake up early again tomorrow and start a morning workout schedule... I HATE working out in the morning! I love working out in the afternoon as my "reinforcement" for a good day- but I want to adjust to the mornings because it just works out better with the rest of my life if I can get to it since classes are in the afternoon 4-7 and my homework usually gets done best before those hours.

Meeting my mom on friday! We also have friends coming into town this weekend! My best friend I grew up with got engaged! A girl I knew in college just got engaged last week too!
My newlywed best friend Andrea just got back from Hawaii and is pretty sure she is pregnant! Wow!
see you in the am

single tear...

Dinner: I made a pizza!! I went to Trader Joes for some grocery shopping after class so that I would be stocked for next week! I made whole wheat crust ( refridgerated dough is only $1 at TJ!) and topped it with Brie and Smoked Salmon on one half, Tomato and Turkey Pepperoni and Mozzarella on the other... All sprinkled with Parm/Reggiano.
Yum Yum Yum! I had a quarter with the salmon and a quarter with the pepperoni/tomato.


Lunch:

Organic Gala Apple

Salad: Organic Spring Mix with tomato, onion, Herb Garlic Starkist Tuna, and some Annies Organic Mac n Cheese ... ( I did only a half of one serving but it looks like ALOT more in my picture!)

Body:

Run! It was absolutely GORGEOUS weather I couldn't resist ! 68 degrees, breezy, sunny!
I took the brown dog, Jack, with me on all the hills right around our neighborhood for a quick 20 minute run then we walked another 1 mile or so ( he needed to cool down!)

Strength Training: BBQ and Abs ( not too heavy though) and then Yoga !

Mind:
I have SOOO much work to do next week for classes- Big Nutrient Metabolism Exam Thursday-(glycolysis through the pentose phosphate pathway), Yogurt Presentation Tuesday, Presentation Wendesday on Increasing Childhood Obesity Rates in Northern Plains American Indian Children

I am a good way through my wednesday presentation- I need to finish that tomorrow and practice it over the weekend...

Soul:
I talked with my brother for 52 minutes!!! ( it was his birthday) I love him SOO much and miss him SOO much ( as I do my other brother and my sister too) and I wish he would move closer than 1,000 miles away. Anyhow, we talked about everything from classes, his life, my work, my running, nutrition, fitness, hurricanes, presents, holiday plans...

I haven't seen him in over 2 years ( at my sister's wedding!) We spent this amazing thanksgiving together when I was out of college.... I had just moved and he lived about 30 minutes from me. I drove to his new apartment and we spent hours chatting. We searched all over the city for this one restaurant that he was told was fabulous. We couldn't find it though! We tried going to this one building but it turned out to be apartments! We were walking back to the car when we both spotted the sign for the restaurant! So we finally got there and waited for a table. It was by far the most fantastic meal ever- they had this gigantic thanksgiving buffet, you know the kind with thirty different desserts ?! Five layered tiramisu cake, five layer red velvet, etc etc pumpkin pie galore, salmon, turkey, chicken, steak, all the veggies, four different salads, baked potatoes, potato gratin, sweet potato souffle, the list goes on. It was an amazing display and amazing in taste! The best part, over any food that night, was that I shared it with him. We laughed so much my stomach hurt. I know I will never forget it and wish I had more times like that with all my family, but I was so thankful to have that thanksgiving with family, with him...

Tuesday

Lunch:

The leftover tuna from yesterday mixed with Annies Organic Mac n Cheese (1/2 serving) mixed with some heated up veggies ( broccoli, peas, asparagus). I made the Annies Mac n Cheese Sauce with 1/2 cup nonfat greek yogurt and the last of our nonfat sour cream ( 2 T ish)

Almond Joy Fun Size and An Apple!

Dinner:
("down low"... "how low can you go" )

Steak with loads of veggies (onions, mushrooms, bell p

epper blend, broccoli) with salad (Earthbound Organic Spring Mix) and mushrooms and tomato and some of me leftover Annies from lunch


"Up High Now yall...take it back one time... two hops two times" ( its from a song that popped into my head when I took the pictures)


Anywhooo....Yes, I am a big leftover person! I hate wasting food and don't mind the redundancy ever so often- I think I eat enough variety overall so I'm not worried about it. To be completely honest though, I usually make enough so that there will be leftovers so Jeff can take it to work for lunch ( save some $$$). i.e he doesn't like tuna or kashi pilaf or having yogurt or pumpkin oats for lunch and I do so we make it work!

Oh my... such a big election and I have to voice my opinion because I can, because this is my blog, and I really don't like EITHER candidate! Gasp!

I strongly feel that Obama has absolutely no clue how to make these so called "changes" that he is all about saying he will do- he has no experience and has yet to discuss any specifics on HOW he is going to change ( other than saying hes going to give 95% of people a tax cut) ! Biden I believe is a great choice and has experience. At the same time, Mccain does have a history agreeing with Bush (who I never voted for) but Palin I believe can make strong gains with the areas of Special Needs Education/Families ( a cause close to my heart). The biggest dissapointment with these two candidates was that BOTH their campaigns were AWFUL in negativity and pitting against each other to make "Americans" believe they are a better choice. Neither candidate gave me a sense of what they will actually do to make change happen- they just said that their opponent couldnt.


Anyhow, those are my feelings and I certainly would be happy with someone other than Bush in the hot seat for the next 4 years!