Thanks for the Gift!

Thank you everyone for the package sent by Aunt Emily! I got this morning and it made me happy to read the letters you guys wrote at the Halloween party. The blanket is fuzzy, though I have yet to open it.I am enjoying the candy especially =).  It was very thoughtful, and I am so grateful to have such a wonderful extended family. A thanks especially to Emily for sending it! =D
Merry 18 days until Christmas!

The Twinkie Diet

Imagine, if you will, eating a Twinkie, or chocolate cupcake, or some similar type of sugary cake every three hours for two months, and that these snack foods make up two-thirds of everything you eat, the other meager one third  including protein shakes, multivitamins, and a few vegetables. Now imagine that you lost 27 pounds as a result. Sound impossible? Except it's not, because a nutrition professor in Kansas did this experiment to prove a point, and yes, he did lose 27 pounds, putting him from almost-obese to a normal weight.

Mark Haub wanted to prove that weight loss was only dependent upon caloric intake, rather than the nutritional value of what we eat. He strictly regulated how many calories he ate, up to 1,800 rather than the 2,600 calories he would usually consume. And the results are pretty astonishing, which is probably why when word got around about how he had lost weight eating basically all sweet cakes, it easily made international news

When my group for science had to write a paper on some kind of controversial health belief, we chose the "Twinkie Diet." I will mention that my group is unconvinced about how healthy this "diet" would be over the long term, though I think it is an interesting study to consider.Personally, I think it is a pretty funny story, though it is not the type of diet I would ever go on; I can only imagine how gross I would feel full of sugar and preservatives.

If you want to read the article about Mark Haub's diet, click here. Or you could simply type in "the twinkie diet" into Google, and I assure you that you will find plenty of information about it.

Christmas Wishlist 2012

Happy December everybody! This year I am putting my Christmas list on my blog, since I actually have one this year, and so my family can see it. Now keep in mind that these are simply brainstorm ideas, and I love happy surprises, so it's not like I have to have all this stuff. I'm just making a list of the things I've thought over the semester "that would be nice to have." Anyway, here it is:

• Laptop (completely optional, because I know it is expensive, but I 'm putting it on here anyway)
• Potato masher
• Brownie/cake metal spatula (the small square ones that make it easy to get them out of the pan)
• Headphones
• Large bowl
• Frying pan
• Photoshop
• Muffin tin
• Flash drive
• Rice cooker
• Something to keep my ears warm when it's cold
• Some cute shirts
• Scarves and sweaters

Also, a list of things I am always happy to receive:

• Books (my favorite authors are Diana Wynne Jones, Roald Dahl, and Brian Jacques, and I also like Brandon Sanderson and I'd like to read more by Terry Pratchett) some specific ones are:
• Searching for Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede
• Calling on Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede
• The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
• Cute earrings (like animals, food, holidays, etc. I would love to have little turkeys hanging from my ears for Thanksgiving, and when I say that I'm being completely serious)
• Fluffy Socks
• Video games
• Movies
• Art supplies

I encourage other people to make a Christmas wish list too, because it helps people come up with gifts to give. It does no one any good to hide what you actually want, other wise you may end up with something strange. But overall, don't forget to be thoughtful in giving, and gracious in receiving. Merry Christmas!

Semester End

Nearing the end of the school semester, things are both speeding up, and slowing down. There is so much that can be done and needs to be done! Fortunately, I do not have too many tests to take, but there are many final projects to be perfected, including the website I have created (and that I am almost finished with). I have enjoyed the past few months of school, which have kept me very busy; however, I am ready for the break for Winter so I can spend more time with my family again.

I hope everyone is doing well, and have a wonderful day!

Grateful for Thanksgiving

I am so happy to be able to be home for Thanksgiving! I have been missing my family and looking forward to it for weeks. Pie Day was a lot of fun, Aunt Kim came and joined us this year, and we also ended up with about 30 pies total. I will write the count-up later of the pies we made.
For Thanksgiving this year, we had two new people join in the feast, my two older sisters' husband and soon-to-be husband. It was wonderful to have our whole family together for a few days, and I at least enjoyed myself.

Happy Thanksgiving!