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okay, so I have been really busy!!! I currently have all kids enrolled in school..between homework,cleaning,laundry and everything else I haven't had time to breathe..But I wouldn't trade it for the world..these kids are changing my life..they make me see the important things in life..you have to be a better person but still be yourself..treat people with respect..and keep your friends and family close!!.. OK bye for now!..hopefully it wont take a month for me to write again!!!

Still gaining!!!

This thyroid problem is driving me nuts!!! No matter what I do I gain weight!!! I just want to be comfortable in my clothes.

<3 full house

Hello!!! It's been awhile but I'm still here..things are pretty busy here..my weight keeps going up..my thryoid is kicking my bum!!! I have been dieting but I don't lose any weight. Hopefully soon it will work out. Until then I will try anything I can. Other than that our house has been busy..we are in a battle to bring five children into our home..they are my husbands brothers and sisters..they are currently in foster care and will be separated so we are trying to bring them to our house..hopefully soon they will be with us:) the youngest is going into first grade..then the others are in second,third,fifth, and sixth..plus my son is going into preschool!! The first day if school will be tough but I'm also excited for them..they are changing my life and making me want to be a better person. These next few weeks need to fly by!!!!! Until next time....<3

Life is...life

Well I'm back!!! It's been a rough couple of months...but I'm still standing!! Between health issues and lifes surprises I've been MIA. It seems like these past couple of years have thrown me so much. Some is just too hard to handle. And I've learned I handled it all the wrong way. When something happens I just pretend it didn't and I block all my feelings..that was a mistake because it seems like all those emotions are all creeping up on me at once..and thats no good..as of my diet plans they have slowed down to my thyroid problems. It's very difficult to lose any weight...and now I have to worry about calcium so I don't have seizures...but that's life..in all its beauty it throws curveballs..but I know I'm strong and I will push through everything that's going on..life is always worth fighting for..nobody has a perfect life. All you can do is go through life the best you can and try to be an understanding person..treat people how you wld want to be treated and try to be an overall good person..and yet as I write this I just want to curl up in a ball and watch lifetime movies all day!!! But that won't fix anything..so I will put a smile on my face and keep moving forward...live..laugh..love...be yourself because at the end of the day theres only one you!!!!

Marilyn Monroe...<3

Courtesy of about.com

Marilyn Monroe Biography

Marilyn Monroe, whose name was Norma Jean Baker in childhood, was born to Gladys Mortenson, a film technician, whose husband, Edward Mortenson, deserted the family. Norma Jean's natural father may have actually been another studio employee, C. Stanley Gifford. Gladys' mental illness surfaced shortly after her daughter's birth, and she was institutionalized much of Norma Jean's growing years. Norma Jean was placed in a series of twelve foster homes, and once in an orphanage. She attended Van Nuys High School in Los Angeles, California.

At sixteen, Norma Jean escaped the foster system by marrying 20-year-old James Dougherty. A year later, in 1943, he joined the U.S. Merchant Marine. Norma Jean took a job in an airline plant, part of the World War II factory effort, and worked first as a parachute inspector, then as a paint sprayer. When the government came through to take promotional photographs of the women working in the plant, the brunette Norma Jean learned that she photographed well, took a modeling course, and began working part-time as a photographer's model.

Success as a photographer's model led her to her dream of becoming an actress. In 1946, she divorced Dougherty and bleached her hair to become a blond. She signed a one-year, $125/month contract with Twentieth Century-Fox on August 26, 1946. Ben Lyon, casting director, suggested that she take the name Marilyn, and she added her grandmother's last name, Monroe.

Marilyn Monroe played one bit part that year, all of which ended up on the cutting room floor. The next year, she signed another one-year contract, this time with Columbia. The results weren't any better.

In 1950, Marilyn Monroe posed for full-length nude shots, which the photographer Tom Kelley sold for a calendar. That same year, she appeared in a bit part in The Asphalt Jungle, and though her name wasn't even mentioned in the credits, her appearance generated a huge amount of fan mail. Her reputation as a blond bombshell had begun to be established.

So Twentieth Century-Fox signed Marilyn Monroe to a new contract -- this time, for seven years. She appeared in All About Eve. In 1953, she had her first starring role, in Niagara. In Gentlemen Prefer Blondes she sang and, for the first time, she had her own dressing room.

In January, 1954, Marilyn Monroe married the famous baseball player, Joe DiMaggio. The marriage was short-lived; they divorced in October.

For the 1955 movie The Seven Year Itch, Marilyn Monroe appeared in the famous photographic stunt, in a white halter dress, with her skirt blown up by a draft from a sidewalk grate, leaning down to catch her dress so that her cleavage showed. The photograph was used to advertise the film, and has become one of the iconic images of Marilyn Monroe.

After filming The Seven Year Itch, in which she plays a prototypical "dumb blond," Marilyn Monroe decided to work more seriously on her acting skills, to the skepticism of many critics. She broke her movie contract, and moved to New York to study at the Actors Studio with Lee Strasberg for a year.

In 1955, she founded her own company with Milton Greene, Marilyn Monroe Productions, and signed a new contract with Twentieth Century-Fox. She made the 1956 movie Bus Stop, which wowed the critics, but she'd begun to lose herself to self-doubt, depression, drugs, and alcohol.

Marilyn Monroe, whose mother and maternal grandparents had all struggled with mental illness and institutionalization, began taking sleeping pills for her insomnia. She regularly consulted psychiatrists. She drank heavily, and began a habit of arriving late to work, and sometimes not being able to work at all.

She married Arthur Miller, the playwright, shortly after Bus Stop was released, and for the marriage converted to Judaism. She lived quietly for two years with her new husband. During that time, Miller was fighting his conviction for contempt-of-Congress for refusing to answer two questions before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). The marriage, and several miscarriages, added to her self-doubt and depression, and to her use of drugs and alcohol.

Marilyn Monroe's next movie, The Prince and the Showgirl, brought mixed reviews. That was followed by Let's Make Love, and an unhappy romantic liaison with co-star Yves Montand.

The Misfits was written for Marilyn Monroe by her husband, Arthur Miller. She performed well in the final product, though, during its filming, she was often under the influence of alcohol and pills, and she was notoriously late to the set. Marilyn was affected by the death, two months after the film was completed, of her co-star, Clark Gable.

In early 1961, Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller divorced. During this period, she was also bothered by many rumors of affairs, including with the President, John F. Kennedy, and his brother, Robert F. Kennedy.

Filming her next project, ironically titled Something's Got to Give, Marilyn's lateness and addictions led to her dismissal after a month. She was briefly committed to a mental hospital. She was approved to return to the film, but never resumed filming.

Two months later, in her home in Los Angeles, Marilyn Monroe was found by her housekeeper, dead, with an empty bottle of sleeping pills next to her body. The coroner found the death was caused by an overdose of barbiturates, and pronounced it a possible suicide. No evidence of foul play was presented to the coroner.

Marilyn Monroe's funeral was planned by Joe DiMaggio; Lee Strasberg delivered the eulogy

That is to sum up her life. But marilyn Monroe was probably the biggest sex symbol back in the day. She was always between sizes. She ranged from a size 8 to 16!!! Nowadays models consider that overweight!!! Marilyn was so beautiful and the fact that everybody looked at her as a sex symbol is amazing. In todays world sexy is seen as a size zero by critics. I wish we all had the mindset like they did back in the day. We are all beautiful. :))).

Eating habits around the world.

The Chinese diet is generally regarded as a healthy one. The Chinese are very concerned about eating habits which are seen as an important factor affecting health.

A typical Chinese diet, which includes a lot of vegetables, fish and seafood but very little sugar or dessert, is proved to be healthy. Besides stir fry and deep fry, the Chinese use a wide variety of cooking methods: steam, boil, stew, roast, bake, and generally avoid excessive greasy food.

There are several Chinese concepts of healthy eating habits. The most basic one is the balance of yin (feminine) and yang (masculine). Failure to maintain this balance is the root to many illnesses: excessive yin leads to weakness and excessive yang to restlessness manifested in inflammation and ulcers. Yin food includes fruits and vegetables whilst yang food includes meat.

The concept of yin and yang encompasses other dichotomous concepts of liang (cold) and (hot), ruan (soothing) and zao (irritating), xu (weakening) and bu (strengthening), qing (clearing) and du (contaminating,) etc.

Only Chinese herbal doctors and specialized books will be able to give an exhaustive list of foods falling into each concept mentioned above. However, it is a fact tbat the Chinese pay attention to what they eat. Healing by eating (following an appropriate diet) is very popular and widely accepted by the Chinese. Occasionally they prepare a soup of special ingredients to maintain the balance of yin and yang.

Diet is a particular concern for people who have fallen ill. It is not uncommon to see Chinese patients refusing, to take meals from the hospital and their families bringing in food especially prepared for them.

Courtesy of chinesediet.com. this is one diet I found from another country. Here is more:

Chinese consume many more vegetables, grains and fruits that Americans or Britons.

The daily fibre intake of the average Chinese is three times that of the average American.

The average Chinese derives anywhere from six to 24 percent of their daily calories from fat, compared to 39 percent for the average American, and a shocking 45 percent for the average Briton.

The Chinese eat more calories daily than Americans per pound of body weight, but suffer less obesity.

This seems to square well with current nutritional practice in the West, which advises that grains and complex carbohydrates should be the basis of a healthy diet, supplemented with vegetables and fruits, with dairy products and animal proteins used in smaller proportion and fats, oils and sweets used only sparingly.

Food facts

Ninety percent of the Chinese selected for the study were from rural areas where they ate locally raised food and stuck to a 'traditional diet'. What then is a traditional diet? Very generally, Chinese medicine suggests that we should eat mostly vegetables and grains, with small amounts of everything else. The ancient medical classic Suwen recommends 'five grains for nutrition, five fruits, five meats for benefit, five plants for fullness'. Cooked and warm food is preferred as cooking is a form of pre-digestion on the outside of the body. Food should not be too sweet, as according to Chinese medicine excessive sweetness overwhelms and weakens the spleen. Also food should not be excessively oily, or too 'damp'. 'Dampness' refers to the extent to which different foods generate body fluids. In Chinese medicine, excessively damp foods are believed to interfere with the digestion.

The Japanese diet courtesy of webmd...

Eat with your eyes. "The magic of Japan-style eating is a healthier balance of filling, delicious lower-calorie foods, presented with beautiful portion control in pretty little dishes and plates," Moriyama says. This way of dining encourages you to "eat with your eyes" by enjoying the beauty of your food. The result? You'll want to slow down to savor every bite, which means eating less, because it gives your brain time to realize your body is full.

According to Moriyama, the average Japanese person eats about 25% fewer calories per day than the average American, which could partly explain their lengthy lifespan. Eating just 8% fewer calories per day, while moderately increasing your activity level, may be enough to promote longer life, research from the University of Florida College of Medicine suggests.

And cutting calories doesn't have to be painful. The secret is to replace energy-dense foods (those containing a higher number of calories per gram), like chocolate, potato chips, and cookies, with those that are less energy-dense, like fruits, vegetables, and broth-based soups (all, not coincidentally, a daily part of the Japanese diet). In a study from Pennsylvania State University, researchers served women meals that were 25% smaller than average and contained 30% fewer calories according to the principles of energy density. They ended up eating an average of 800 calories less per day -- all without even missing the extra food.

Germany diets courtesy of webmd...

Breakfast (Frühstück) commonly consists of bread, toast, and/or bread rolls with cold cut, cheese or jam ("Konfitüre" or more commonly called "Marmelade"), marmalade or honey, eggs, and (often strong) coffee or tea (milk, cocoa or juice for children). Deli meats, such as ham, salted meats and salami, are also commonly eaten on bread in the morning, as are various cheeses. A variety of meat-based spreads such as Leberwurst (liverwurst) are eaten during breakfast as well.

Traditionally, the main meal of the day has been lunch (Mittagessen), eaten around noon. Dinner (Abendessen or Abendbrot) was always a smaller meal, often consisting only of a variety of breads, meat or sausages, cheese and some kind of vegetables, similar to breakfast, or possibly sandwiches. Smaller meals added during the day bear names such as "Vesper", "Brotzeit" (literally bread time), or "Kaffee und Kuchen" (coffee and cake). However, in Germany, as in other parts of Europe, dining habits have changed over the last 50 years.

Today, many people eat only a small meal in the middle of the day at work, often also a second breakfast, and enjoy a hot dinner in the evening at home with the whole family. [citation needed] This is also the reason why the availability of cheap restaurants close to the office or the existence of a factory canteen cannot be assumed automatically.

For others, the traditional way of eating is still rather common, and not only in rural areas. Breakfast is still very popular and may be elaborated and extended on weekends, with friends invited as guests, the same holds forcoffee and cake. Since the 1990s the Sunday brunch has also become common, especially in city cafés.

This all makes you wonder why Americans are considered obese. Maybe if we learned about others cultures and countries we could help improve ourselves. Maybe this will help you :)

Marilyn Monroe!!

Here's a few pictures of my idol:)) my blog about her will be up soon!!!!:)

A million and one diets....

I don't know how many times I've said I will start a new diet on Monday...or I want to lose such and such weight by ??? Then when that time cones I haven't lost any weight. It's about time to stick with it. It's normal to have a bad day but you just have to pick up on it the next day. In all I've lost 8 lbs. And I feel stuck. The scale isn't moving but I have to stick to it. Either change my methods or do better. So tonight I am going to once again Google different diets for some advice. I know I've said I am tired of googling, but I am desperate. I want to study different diets in different countries. Maybe this will help. No diets that say lose 30 lbs in 30 days!!! These never work and I particularly don't want to go down the road of starvation again. I want to be healthy. I'm beginning to love me for me but want to be healthy. I would be lying if I said I didn't want to lose weight. Of course I do. I just need a different mindset. A healthier fitter me. So I am going to do some research and see what other countries are doing..wish me luck!! I will let you know!! Ohh and happy anniversary to my husband!!!#6 yrs. :)

Societies pressure to be perfect..

I was on Facebook when I seen a story about Kim kardashian. It talked about how she was photoshopped. The picture is attached. But why PhotoShop? I mean Kim k is a very beautiful circum woman. And I'm sure millions of girls would kill to have her body. But by photoshopping it, it just shows that even a celebrity isn't "good enough"in the publics eye. These days being sexy and beautiful means being a size zero with no curves. Haha. Sorry critics out there but I believe all women are beautiful and that curves are amazing!!! We should all celebrate who we are. Any size,color,or age. Be who you are. Have confidence in yourself. Be the best you!! Nobody can or will PhotoShop me!!! What you see is what you get!!

The weekend!!!!

Well the weekend is here and surprisingly I'm doing good with not eating anything and everything:) I made enchiladas with half the cheese!! I don't know what I'm going to have for dinner but I'm sure I will do good. As for exercise I haven't yet I will probably take a break today and do it tmrw. As of everyday life I'm okay. Wish people didn't believe everything they hear. Rumors are for high school but for some reason grown adults like to spread them. But I know who I am and that's all that matters. Yes it bothers me but it just makes the rumor starters look bad. Ppl need to get a life and stop worrying about others..enough ranting for a day. Enjoy your weekend and be yourself!!!!!

....

The feeling of never being good enough can be overwhelming. We just have to believe in ourselves and not let others get to us!! It's difficult,but possible.

<3

Ohh marylin Monroe, I love you!!!

Be who you are!!!

Okay. My diet is doing great. I basically had what I ate yesterday :P. And I am drinking more water. The scale is stuck but can't complain with losing three pounds in 5 days:). There is so much on my mind today. For a long time I always worried about what other ppl thought and always tried pleasing everyone else. But so many things have happened in this past month that has made.me realize a lot. It's like I'm  free. Not to get corny but its like I'm a butterfly who is finally out of its cacoon. I love who I am as a person. I won't be fake with you and I definetly won't go with the crowd. I wish other ppl could see the good in themselves. I'm not saying I'm perfect. I know I have self confidence problems but I'm getting there. I just wish my friends cld see how great they are. For instance my friend yesenia is very wise and she is different than most of my other friends and that's why I love her. She is comfortable with who she is and I admire her. And my friend tresha is such a hard worker and is great to her family and friends. My friend kayla is spunky and out there and full of life as is Emma:)) now if I could combine all of us into one person we wld be kick butt. Haha. But in all seriousness each one of my friends teach me something and shows me how to live without even doing so. And my guy friends do so too. Between Dennis and Joe they teach me to be tough and to suck it up:) and Travis teaches me to live day by day and that it is okay to be carefree everyonce in awhile. And of course my hubby teaches me what true love is and keeps me in check..haha. I love everyone who is in my life. They make me who I am today. I become a stronger person everyday because of them..<3 all of you..thanks for teaching me something new everyday without even knowing it...everybody needs to hold their friends close and never let go.

Eating disorders...

Everywhere you look..magazines,movies,celebs,and everyday life you see slim beautiful women. For some reason society makes young women think that beautiful means being a size zero!! Because of this many people suffer from eating disorders. Most don't mean to. Because at the end of the day it is a disease. It takes over your mind. At first you skip a meal, then two, then all meals. Pretty soon months go by and you lose a great amount of weight but you still look in the mirror and see a large person even though everyone around you says you look sick. But in your mind you still need to lose. Everyone else just doesn't understand and see what you see. I talk about this in that point of view because that's what I saw. I have suffered with anorexia since I was 17. I have recovered though. But its not easy. Thereafter not a day that goes by that I don't think of how I look or what I should eat. But the point is I eat. I'm definetly not a twig anymore. I used to be so sickly looking and fragile. I was sick for a long time too. My husband then boyfriend helped me to become better. And when I started eating again I became pregnant. And I was so happy and worried about my babies health that I got my appetite back. So much in fact that I gained 85 pounds!! But between my husband and son they saved my life..then when my son was 2 yrs old it happened again. It's not Like I planned it it just happened. Two months went by and I lost 40 lbs. I had the mindset that I was okay because I was still 140 lbs!! But once again my husband came to my rescue. Needless to say I gained all the weight back. And I've had a problem everyonce in awhile. But I am proud to say I feel great and I have been eating well!! I wish more women wldnt worry so much what society thinks. I believe now that thick is beautiful. We are all beautiful. Yes I still have issues with confidence but who doesn't?!?!once we all realize not to listen to society but listen to ourselves it will be a better place! If you suspect a friend is anorexic or bulimic try to talk to them in a suttle way. You could just save their life like my hubby did mine:))

Dayy four!!!!!

Okay. I'm still doing really good and what I love is that I don't feel like I'm on a diet at all. I've lost 3 lbs in four days and I'm so happy with that so far. I'm hoping to lose at least five lbs in a week. That would be nice. I had biscuits and gravy for breakfast...because I had leftovers:)) and I missed lunch on accident because I feel asleep!!! Oops. But I had half of a hotpocket and some salsbury steak. I can already tell that I'm not always hungry and I get full a little faster. And get this!! I had 3 bottles of water so far. And for me that is rly good!! You would be proud of me Robin!!! Haha. And as for exercise today I am planning on doing some more crunches and things. I was talking to my friend Travis yesterday about exercising and he's supposed to show me some 'drills'. Haha. Let's see if it happens. Well let's see if the scale moves tmrw!!!have a great day:))

Day three of my diet challenge:)

Okay so its been three days so far since I started and I can already feel a difference!!! I've lost 3 lbs in 3 days!!! Woo hoo. I've been eating smart and of course I love my lean hotpockets:). Then for dinner I'm making biscuits and gravy. But get this..its with skim milk and turkey sausage!! And I found some biscuits that are low calories. You know the ones in a can. Haha. But they are so good and you can't tell the difference. And as for exercise today I walked two miles. I only live a mile away from a tanning salon and I just started. It's my third day going:) and I love it. But anyways two miles in all I walked and I made sure to speed it up some. You wld be surprised how out of breath you can get just from speed walking!! I will probably do some crunches and things later. But so far I love my diet. I'm doing it my way and with enough calories that it doesn't feel like a diet. The only thing I miss is mountain dew:( but o well its a small sacrifice to have the body I want!! I can't believe how well this is going and its so cheap and not Like all the fancy diets. I'm hoping the scale will move again tmrw:) I just feel so good and my love handles feel like they are shrinking!!! Oh and by the way diet Pepsi vanilla is amazing!! It's so good and no calories. I also have been drinking no calorie tea. I need to incorporate more water though. I will try my best!!!

This is what I looked like at my lowest weight..

I would love to get back to this weight!! This was about two yrs ago..

Day two of my diet challenge:)

Hello my name is Brandy. And I wanted to start a blog about diets because I'm tired of googling different diets. So I decided to have a diet challenge. I'm going to go in a diet using only my common sense and what I've learned throughout the years. I am 22 urs old,married, with a son. And I have put on too much weight. My goal weight is to be 135 pounds. The weight I was before I had my son. I weigh 180 pounds now. I know my title says day two..I started it yesterday. And so far it wasn't too bad. I'm not starving to death or feel any different. The only difference is that I feel good about myself:) .so yesterday for breakfast I had a toaster struddle!! It's only 170 calories!! And for lunch and dinner I had a hotpocket each. And in between meals I had a bite sized hersheys bar. I don't know bout you but I love sweets. And since they are so small I figured it would keep me in check. And it did!! I also had cottage cheese with both lunch and dinner. By the end of the day I had almost 1200 calories. That is my calorie goal. And I also did 20 mins of exercise. Nothing special just leg lifts,crunches..stuff like that. Nothing fancy and nothing I have to pay for. Everything I do is at home. Seeing I am a stay at home mom. As my diet progresses I will exercise longer. And hey..get this ...I lost 1 lb in 1 day!!!and so far today I am doing good. I had a banana for breakfast and toast with a little peanut butter. Believe it or not it filled me up! And of course for lunch I had a hotpocket. They are easy and if you buy the lean ones they are great for you! Plus my friends all know I'm addicted to them:) I will write more tomorrow to see what the scale says and how I feel!! I rly do hope this blog will help ppl. This isn't like most sites where you have to buy expensive things or do weird exercises. I am going through this diet and telling you how it goes step by step. No holding back.