I hope you're sitting down..

Well, A LOT has happened to me since the last time I posted in June.. Where do I even start??

In june nothing really happened.. Honestly! It's July that was exciting! My best friend got married to a wonderful young woman, who is dangerously close to becoming another best friend. (I'm a girl. We have to have 18 best friends at a time, otherwise we don't know how to classify our relationships!) They wed on the 11th of July. It was awesome!

I got engaged on the 17th of July while camping in Tahoe with Kyle. I was very happy, and very excited. Immediately after, we called our family and our friends, and we tried to tell as many people as we possibly could. And then when we got home, I was very overwhelmed by how many questions proceeded to come at me. The usual suspects, I'm sure, but none that I was prepared to answer. Questions from customers at work were- Where is it? Whats the date? What are your colors? How many in your party? Et cetera.. It was very overwhelming for a girl who never thought twice about her wedding before all of this.
Questions from my family were pretty formal. Does his family like you? What did your dad say? Who's going to be your maid of honor?
And from the few friends that realized that I WAS engaged(because apparently my text didn't reach everyone, and I guess they didn't notice the 50 comments on my relationship status change on facebook), wondering who was going to be in the bridal party seemed of utmost importance. In several cases, where they stood was extremely important, even though I hadn't really thought about many of them even being in the party at all... It was all quite an ordeal..
Especially since I wasn't feeling so good about the whole scenario. I suddenly had too many people trying to help me with my wedding, and not enough people trying to help me with my messed up relationship. Neighbors were suddenly my 'best friends', friends came out of the woodwork, and people that I never thought would ever have approved of Kyle and I were ready to donate to the cause.
All through August I swirled around the idea of marrying Kyle, and was constantly asked questions. I felt pressured, and applied pressure to Kyle to get answers to the questions. But pushing him made everything harder. We both decided, with a little help from our friends, to not talk about the wedding until Kyle had bought his house and moved in. And I started to tell my customers that we were waiting to talk about it until we could afford it.

But by September, I started to realize that there were a lot of issues that Kyle and I just couldn't agree on. And no matter how much I wanted to make it work between us, I just couldn't compromise the way I would have needed to for the rest of my life.
So, on September 11th, I had to make an extremely difficult decision. But I know that God has a plan for both of our lives. Whether or not we're in each others plans is another question.. But it's all in His hands, and I have to trust in Him with everything, my relationships included.

So I've made another oath to myself.. I am planning to stay single for a while. I have a lot of stuff going on in my head, and I have to straighten out my own life before I can even THINK about sharing it with someone else right now. I am working on spending more time with Jesus, too. Because, if there's one thing that I've realized through all of this, it's that I can't do anything on my own. I have absolutely no control over my life. And if I want to feel even a tiny morsel of control, I need to get with God more. Because He's the one holding the remote control. And no matter how much I turn off the TV, He still know's what on. And He knows how it's going to end.

So, that's what's been going on in the last couple of months.

You do WHAT??

So I was at work this morning, and a regular customer that I see a few times a week came in between one of our typical morning rushes. I was goofing around and asked him rhetorically if he wanted his 'usual' latte with one of every artificial sugar packets. I rattled them off, raw sugar, cane sugar, equal, sweet and low, splenda, and honey. He nodded, not really paying too much attention and then he stopped and looked at me.
Wait, that actually sounds pretty good, he says, with his almost serious face on the verge of cracking into a smile.
Especially the honey part, I responded, as I put only one splenda into his skinny caramel latte, the way he actually did take it.
He didn't seem to agree with me that honey was a very good idea, and I told him how much I love honey and how I like to use to substitute for sugar when I make bread.
At this he was surprised that I made bread.
Of course, I ended up promising to bring in a loaf for him to try.. Shame shame, Cheryl, now you actually have to make bread again.

Which actually makes me think..

Why is everyone so shocked when others, or myself, make their own bread? It's truly very easy to do. It's just time consuming. I've only messed up bread once by leaving it to rise too long(it got a yeasty flavor and reminded me of beer).
The only thing I can think of that turns people off from bread is the fact that it's time consuming. I don't think people give it enough credit. Making my own bread has always been exciting, no matter how long it took me to do. I mean, really, all you do is mix milk, water, and flour together with a bit of sugar and yeast. If you left it to rise and went to the grocery store, and when you came back you punched it down, it wouldn't really be a problem, would it?

I guess I'm just crazy.
But then again, I had to be taught how to activate yeast and what-not. I guess a lot of people, particularly in my own generation, don't really know how to use yeast, or even what it likes.

For future reference, yeast likes luke warm water and a touch of sugar. If you put it in too hot of water, the yeast dies, and if it's too cold, the yeast takes forever to grow. Quick test of whether or not it's too hot- if you can put your finger in the liquid for 3 seconds without burning yourself, it's perfect! Let it sit in there until the yeast gets foam on the top of the milk/water. If it's taking longer than you would like, add a pinch or two of sugar to the water/milk/fluid. If the recipe calls for sugar, put some of that measurement toward the yeast. EG- a teaspoon or so.
If it never foams, your yeast is either killed or dead already. If it's too old, it probably died long before you opened the packet.
Patience is key.

So, anyway... I challenge you to make some bread. Cuz, seriously, it's not that hard. I pinky promise!

-Cheryl

So Much FOOD!

Alright, so last I posted, I had gotten some skates. Since then, I've fallen(several times), slid, skidded, bounced, tripped, and rolled. And yet, I still suck. :) And I still love every bruise, ache, pain, and scrape of it!
I probably wont make a team, but I'm still planning on trying out. In fact, I will probably be going to meet a few of the girls who are in the pre-tryouts class at Golden Skate tomorrow. It's Christian Music night, so I might actually hear some Flyleaf or Kutless and get excitable. :D Maybe they'll show me how to be a better skater.

On another side of life, I've made 5 new dishes since we last chit chatted. First was friendship bread. Made from the amish starter that friends pass around. I made a few variations of it, and the first batch was a hit. But I made it a second time and it ended up being a little messed up. It stuck to the pan a little, and ended up coming out in chunks... Sort of. But it tasted great!

The second dish I made was some super fluffy, delicious pancakes! I was hungry when I went to visit my friend, Kimie, and she showed me where everything was. I loaded up my handy dandy 'all recipes' application on my phone and whipped up some of the most delicious pancakes I've ever had! Made one with chocolatey chips in it for Kim, and her face pretty much said- Nom nom nom! It was pretty successful, if I may say so myself.

The third dish was an attempt to convince my boyfriend, Kyle, and his dad, Alan, that most food is better when its not from a can. And since they were men, and thinking about camping, they were dead set on sloppy joe's. SO! I made sloppy joe! Honestly, I never thought to make sloppy joe's naturally.. It just never came to mind, opening a can is so much easier than looking up a recipe and buying all the supplies. Let alone looking in your own pantry for the supplies, yeesh! No thank you, sir! That's a trip down memory lane.. My mom's pantry was an organized chaos. I knew where the basic things were kept, but beyond that, she had so much stuff going on that I didn't even know what most of it was. And aside from that, not only was it chaotic in one pantry, we had not just one pantry, but two when we lived in oakley. And if you couldn't find what you were looking for there, any number of the cupboards probably had what you were looking for. Anyway.. I made some MEAN sloppy joe, and everyone loved it. And they even said I should make it again. :) I'm not going to lie, that made me a little proud, and puffy. Delicious dish, I suggest you all try it!

The fourth dish is probably my favorite. Well, maybe, I'm not sure. Kyle and I went to visit my sister, Tabitha, and my grandmother. I had promised to make them dinner, and only had two ingredients to draw inspiration from. Grandmother had italian sausage and cheese(TONS of cheese!!) in her refrigerator, so 're thinking,  decided to make pizza. I know what you're thinking.. WOW! PIZZA FROM SCRATCH?? Not quite. I called Kyle, and he told me how his mom used to make pizza for him when he was a kid. So I went to the store to get some sauce, veggies, and something to make dough with.. Which, in Linda's, Kyle's mom, tradition was Pillsbury's Grands biscuits flattened out with a roller. SO GOOD! We put most the topping, mushrooms, bell peppers, sausage, garlic, and olives, under the cheese. But we put the shrooms and olives on top of the cheese. :)
It was delicious. :)

The fifth dish was swedish meatballs. With peas, salad, and noodles(with gravy). My friend Lauren and her husband Mark came over so we could all catch up with each others lives. And so I could actually MEET Mark. :/ I felt bad for having not met him for the year or more that they've been married. Shame on me! But the meal was great! I've never technically made meatballs from scratch before.. Kind of reminded me of meatloaf. Not gonna lie. But it was fun! Swedish meatballs stand apart because they are fried instead of baked. I'm not really sure what other real differences there are, but the fact remains that they are delicious.  Although, I wasn't too impressed with the noodles and sauce.. There are some definite improvements needed there, but Lauren put in some garlic and it was a HUGE improvement! :) And the dinner conversation was awesome. Absolutely loved them.

Well, that's all I got for this episode of Cheryl the Chef(no, just cook).. Tune in next time for.. Uuuuhh... Who knows what!
Keep spicin things up!
-Cheryl

Skates and Laces

So I signed up to try out for Roller Derby about 3 weeks ago, and didn't hear anything back yet about it.. So last night I signed up again, just to be sure that the form actually sent...
Today I found a Google Group specifically FOR the 2010 tryouts for BAD(Bay Area Derby), and then I realized that maybe my sign up form really DIDN'T send.. Which would be very depressing, let me tell ya.. There was a list posted on the site with names of girls in the pre-tryout training classes.. And my name wasn't on it.. And it was posted on the 8th or so of may.
A sad moment in the history of Cheryl. Especially since I just spent nearly $400 on skates and gear.. BUT! I'm not going to give up! I'm going to visit my brother one of these weekends, and he's going to teach me how to stop, and how to fall! And then we'll go over all the fun stuff, such as whips, hip checks, and blocks.
I'm not going to let anything deter me.

I put on my new skates yesterday after Kyle so graciously changed the wheels from indoor to outdoor for me.. Ok, I actually put on only one. And I let myself glide across the garage for not but a moment and it was all bad. I was only wearing one skate, and I still lost control and flew backwards! Luckily, no one saw the windmill debacle, but the fact remains that I need to learn some control.

So, I got my skates at Cruz Skate Shop. Word is they are the best place to get some quads, and they also have skate boards and accessories. So, for future reference, I wear a size 6 skate, which makes my foot look like a bound chinese woman's feet when I'm wearing my jeans over them. Because my arms are small and wrists are abnormally tiny, I wear small elbow pads, and small wrist guards. And my knee pads are medium, much like my helmet.
I'm really rather excited about it. I got toe guards that are orange, and my mouth guard is orange.. I almost got a brown and orange helmet, but it came in every size BUT mine. Lame potatoes.. So I got a black one with yellow clasps. :)

Can you tell I'm excited? I've got some derby fever in my veins.. I keep thinking about my friend, Lisa Z, who plays for the Cherry City Derby Girls. She's apparently a very good player, according to my brother and twin sister, who have seen her bout. She's the one who really introduced me to derby, even though all she did was talk about it. But Lisa has a passion about derby that is unquenchable, and she cannot say enough good things about it. And after all that, she would add, 'You should do it.' And I would think- I'm not tough enough.
I still tell myself, and get told, that I'm not tough enough.. Especially by my coworkers, who have seen me knock my knee against a counter and say OUCH. They're pretty sure I won't make it onto a team, much less to the tryouts. But I'm pretty determined to do this. It looks like everyone has a ton of fun, even though they are competing against each other and knocking each other onto the floor. Plus, I've never played a competitive sport on an actual team before. I've never played ANY sport before.. I played Tennis at DVC, but it was just a beginners class.. And when I was growing up, Carl would use me as a goalie when he'd play roller hockey, and he once tried to teach me how to play baseball.. I was never very good at it.. I'd miss even when a T Ball was in front of me.. Kind of pathetic, huh?
So needless to say being a part of Roller Derby would be something entirely different for me. Something that I have never experienced, in any point of looking at it. In any case, it makes for a great story.
And I can't WAIT to try out! Even though I totally suck right now.

Oh, Evil Shenanigans, when are you coming back to the bay so you can smack me around for such bad form?

WHAT? No Pastizzi Yet??

Well, the plan was to make Pastizzi as my recipe of the week.. Suffice to say that plan didn't work out. I wanted to, and I still want to, but it's been put on hold for now. Instead, I made Zucchini Alfredo and Wheat French Baguettes. Super delicious! I love to bake, I realized, although I am impatient to wait for the dough to rise. Sad days. Altogether, this dinner cost about $20. I was pretty impressed.

The zucchini alfredo was a little bland for my liking. The cream sauce was made using milk and cream cheese, which is a variation I've never used before. Thickened up very quickly, and adding Parmesan on top of the dish really gave it a bite that made the whole plate more enjoyable, but it was still pretty boring. Next time I'll use powdered garlic as it is more potent in a sauce than fresh minced garlic can be sometimes. I didn't cook the zucchini long enough, so they were a  little crisp, as were the onions I added, but I think I liked it that way. I'm not a fan of soggy veggies, really. Not in pasta. Plus, making things soggy cooks all the nutrients out anyway, so it's better to have them a little crisp.

The baguettes were a hit with the roommate! The recipe was simple and easy. Although, I didn't have any white flour or sugar, so I had to substitute wheat flour and splenda. Still super delicious! Light, fluffy, and amazing. Although, I messed up this recipe, too. I didn't pay close enough attention to the directions, and put the egg yolk in the batter instead of using it as a glaze to make the crust crunchy. My bad! Definitely didn't compromise the bread, though, because it still turned out great. Just not as crispy as it should have been, but I like my bread soft inside and out. :)


The other night my sister, Tabitha, came over spontaneously, and I had to make her something to eat. It's just how I am, someone comes over, I have to make them dinner. Kind of strange, but I love doing it! So I asked what she wanted, and she said she wasn't really that hungry. So I asked my roommate, Chris, and he said that Enchilada's sounded pretty good. SO! Off to the store we went, grabbing all the ingredients and a few other items we needed. Altogether spending about $35 on the food.

We got home and made the Chicken Enchiladas. Tabitha and I decided early on to substitute the cole slaw dressing they suggest you use for the filling for sour cream. I'm pretty sure a cole slaw dressing would have made it sweet, and I've never heard of a sweet enchilada. Ever. Turned out the sub was a really good idea! We took a bite, and we all about died of food joy. They were that good!
It's a pretty easy recipe, although if you're a beginner, the directions don't tell you when to preheat the oven or when to cook the chicken if you bought it raw. Cook the chicken first, and preheat second. Then follow the rest of the directions, otherwise you'll end up waiting for everything and will have wasted at least 10 minutes of your time.
DELICIOUS recipe, I suggest you try it out. But, definitely use sour cream instead of cole slaw dressing... It just sounds like an inter-racial joke waiting to happen.. Cole slaw is Dutch or something isn't it? Doesn't bode well with Mexican cuisine..

Don't forget to suggest some recipes for me to make! I don't care if you don't cook, if you ate something and liked it, and want to see me try it, let me know! So far we have Pastizzi, and a friend suggested Miso Soup. I'm also not opposed to friends suggesting dishes for me to make that want to come over specifically for that meal. Let me know!

Food Challenge, Perhaps?

Many years ago I discovered a love for food. A few years ago, I discovered that I love to make food as well. I've recently become very curious about what my limits are when it comes to the kitchen. I know I can bake, roast, saute, boil, steam, stir, and barbecue. But can I flambe, stew, grill, fry, smoke, or braise?

That's exactly what I intend to find out!

Over the next year or so, maybe more, I'm not really sure, I would like to make one new recipe a week. Maybe more than one a week, I'm not really sure. I don't want to bite off more than I can chew, you know?

So now I extend an invitation to you.

I'm absolutely certain that I am going to run out of ideas for new things to make. So, if you have a recipe that you would like to share, or know of a recipe that you would like to see me TRY, let me know! I'm fair game!

I think my first recipe to try will be...

Maltese Pastizzi!

The inspiration for this particular recipe originates from my best friends, Ryan and Laura. Laura has grandparents who immigrated from Malta, and her Nana makes Pastizzi from scratch for all her children and grandchildren, and Ryan loves to eat it.

I don't think I could ever make it as well as she does, because she has many years of experience. But that's what makes all of this such an exciting adventure! To test the waters and make an attempt at something new!

I've heard it's really hard to make.. But I'm up for the challenge!

Bring on the Pastizzi!!

After It All

So, my adventure with Kinetix ended about a month ago. A little depressing, and yet at the same time, I felt really rather accomplished. I lost 12 pounds in 2 months! YAY!
The awesome thing is, I can KEEP on the training and meal plans as long as I want. :) Although I can't really afford to do much of anything anymore, because I'm pretty broke. But I still have my gym membership, and will still be frequenting the 24 Hour Fitness.

A lot's gone on, and I really haven't been keeping up on this blog like I wanted to.
   I had my 6 month review about a month ago. Went pretty well, all things considered. I found out that my coworkers think I'm nit-picky, bossy, and easily distracted. I also tend to interject into other peoples conversations with customers. But on a lighter note, I'm also the most punctual, and one of the top 3 better workers at our store, so that works out.

I got to hang out with my dad a few days ago. He's doing pretty well. Although, I think I might have bored him a little bit.. It was raining the whole time he was here, and I didn't particularly want to go to San Francisco.. Felt a little bad, since his girlfriend's never been there, but I'm sure she'd rather go when it's NOT raining and ugly out.
But we had a lot of fun. Ate a lot, laughed a lot, reminisced a lot.. It was good times.

Kind of excited about this tidbit, and yet embarrassed at the same time.. I was making dinner and I was getting pretty agitated at the state of the pots and pans I was using. My roommate has some pretty sad looking, well used, 'had their day' pots and pans. Particularly the pans.. He has a tendency to scrub until nothing's left, and then put them in the dishwasher. Which I've been told is incredibly BAD for your pots and pans.
Anyway, I had mentioned to Carole that I needed a new pan, rather flippantly. The last day they were here, we went to the mall instead of San Francisco, because it was raining. And they wouldn't let me leave the Macy's until I'd picked out a brand new SET of pots and pans. The Calphalon Unison Nonstick 10-Piece Cookware Set. I wasn't sure whether to smack them both for spending so much, or to cry because someone was actually buying me something so COOL AND AMAZING!
I'm leaning towards cry right now.
We pre bought so that we could get another 25% off.. So I can't even touch them until Wednesday.. :(
I'm so excited, though! I've been contemplating what to make, and I'm not even sure! It's gotta be something amazing! It's the christening run.. I just stole me African Cuisine cookbook back from my brother.. Maybe I'll find something from there that I'd like to make..
Just gonna say, it's more than likely.
There's a red rice recipe I'd like to try.. And a few fish recipes in there that look pretty good..
Who want's to come over for dinner?
I'm making myself hungry.

Chili Or Ziti?

Well, the last couple of days have been pretty interesting. I'm currently putting off going to the inevitable cooking I have to do today. But I just wanted to talk about my day.

I went and helped my friend, Chris, make Bacon today. Now, I know what you're thinking.. Doesn't he know how to cook? And my response to you is- Chya! Chris actually MADE bacon. He marinated the meat, smoked it, and sliced it. He used the shoulder, and called it 'Buck Board Bacon'. I kid you not, he is a genius with his smoker.

I'm going to a Roller Derby bout for the very first time on April 3rd. I'm super excited and I absolutely cannot WAIT! It's a meet between the San Francisco ShEvil Dead and the Oakland Outlaws, and I'm pretty sure it's their first bout of the season.. Not certain on that, though.. I invited about 60 people to go, although I only expect maybe 5 to actually show up. But on the basis that I invited them as a birthday bash event, a few more might come that I wouldn't have expected to. That's the way it always happens, oddly enough. But that's life, I suppose.

Alright, well, I'm off to make some Chili! Or should it be Baked Ziti? I haven't tried the chili recipe yet, but it looks REALLY good.. I made Baked Ziti for dinner when my sister, Dana came to visit. I'll post again with some pictures later.. I'm leaning towards Chili..

In the Middle of the Beginning

Hey all! I've gotten a lot of questions about my adventures with a company called Kinetix, so I thought I'd start a blog to include all of my mini adventures. Especially since, for some odd reason, I'm not comfortable posting this information in notes.. Maybe it's the thought that everyone and their cousin can see it pop up in their news feed. If someone wants to read anything, they should have to get to it, not have it smothered in their face.

Thus, the blogspot. Oh yes, I am now one of those people. I talk enough to make it work so here goes!

Lets start at the beginning, shall we?

In December, I really started to take notice of how much weight I had gained throughout the previous year. It was really draining on my self esteem and my wallet, with having to get new clothes 3 or 4 sizes larger than I already had. At my all time high, I weighed 160.8 lb. When I saw that on my sisters wii fit plus, I about choked.  It really explained my lack of energy, my new perspiration habits, and my portly belly. My theighs, hips, and even love handles were getting red stretch marks from the dramatic change my body was making, and I was NOT liking any second of it! But I didn't know how to change.

Eating out several times a week was cut from my routine, and I stopped eating and drinking Starbucks beverages and pastries. But it wasn't enough. My body was still plumpish and holding the ugly weight I didn't want. I parked farther away from my destination in an attempt to get more exercise into my day.

By the time January rolled around, I had lost merely 3 pounds in the entire month, and I was desperate for a change. I started talking about my weight openly with my coworkers and customers, only to be mocked and ridiculed when I made poor choices on my meal breaks.

By the mid January, I received an email from Starbucks Perks program. They were offering the first 3,000 partners a free starter kit if they joined with this program based in Seattle called Kinetix. Desperate to try something, I signed up, not realizing that I was one of the first 3,000 to sign up. In fact, I'm pretty sure I was in the first 500.

So what is Kinetix?

It's a fat loss program designed to help people get in, and stay in, the best shape of their lives. That's their tag line. They teach you how to eat healthier, and multiple times a day(6 to be exact) to keep your metabolism up and running. They also have you work out 30 minutes a day, 6 days a week. Three of those days are strength, and three are cardio. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays are strength days. Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays are cardio. Every strength day, you work out a different part of your body- your core, arms, or your legs.
 There are a few perks with being on a Kinetix diet. One of them is that Sunday is a day to rest your body. So there's no working out on that day, so your muscles can recuperate. Also, twice a week I can eat whatever I want. So instead of having a meal and a snack, I can go out to my favorite restaurant and have a glass of beer and a giant steak. Of course, I have to be careful, even then, to not over indulge. Especially with alcohol, as it lowers your metabolism and stores bad fats. So instead of having a drink off, which aren't any fun for me anyway, I'll stick to one beer with that steak. Or, I could go to IHOP and have four waffles with a ton of syrup. MMmmmm...

So far, I am in week 6 of my 8 week adventure with Kinetix. And I have lost 9 pounds so far. This is a healthy rate of loss, and I'm not just losing weight, but FAT! Which makes me really excited!

I'll post more later, since there's a TON I have to share about! Next, I'll tell you guys about the Kinetix Recipes! SO GOOD!