Workout for six pack abs

Peach Margarita

Ingredients


2 parts silver tequila

1 lime, juiced

1 1/2 parts peach schnapps

1/4 cup white peach puree

Ice


Directions

1.Fill a cocktail shaker 1/2 of the way with ice. Add all of the ingredients. Shake hard to combine.

2.Strain into a margarita glass filled with fresh ice. Enjoy

My morning Elixer

So from my previous post i had mentioned i am trying to find my beauty routine everything from vitamins, facial, hair, and body care, exercise and vitamins. anywho i also posted a morning smoothie recipe. true smoothies are good but a little thick for my taste. but to get too the point i went to a jamaican restaurant yesterday and they made homeade fruit punch so i decided to create that for my morning routine!

i took mixed frozen berries (strawberries, raspberries, blue berries, and blackberries), 100% apple juice, 1/2 lemon, a little spurlina powder, and maca powder. blender poured in glass and added a little more juice to liquify the consistency.

rave reviews from my family, next time i am going to add a little pineapple and peaches Yummy

Here are pics, Z liked it too.

spurlina has sooo many nutrients and minerals

maca gjves you energy, regulate your hormones, and raises your libido

Paloma

Fill a tumbler with ice. Add 1 ounce silver tequila and 5 ounces grapefruit soda, such as Squirt. Garnish with a lime wedge. Makes 1 drink.

Dig It

Listen to this

Taalam Acey this is impressive

Nia Long Body Obsession

i think she has timeless beauty and she has a beautiful body she is a true woman.

ladies let this motivate you

i like the fact that this is more realistic

Hello is any one out there....

i came across a blog talking about Beauty Routines. OMG I dont have one is that weird woman in her 30's with out a routine maybe that is why i have so many problems with my skin and hair. It all goes back to me being non disciplined. anyway I want anyone who reads this blog to post a beauty routine PLEASE!

Hey Did you know

You can read classics on line for free
check it out Bartleby


Happy Reading

Tips for Buying and Storing Summer Fruit

STRAWBERRIES



How to Buy

Strawberries vary in size, shape, and color. Look for locally grown berries that are brightly colored and plump. They should have the green caps attached and be uniform in size. Avoid soft, shriveled, or moldy fruits. If the strawberries smell sweet, they will most likely taste sweet too.



How to Store

Sort and remove any bruised or damaged berries as soon as possible. Do not rinse fruits until you are ready to use them. Refrigerate strawberries in a tightly sealed container, preferably in a single layer on a paper towel, for two to three days.



RHUBARB

Rhubarb has long, thick stalks, similar to celery. There are two main types of rhubarb: hothouse, which is grown indoors and sold year-round, and field-grown, which has a bit more flavor and is available from April to July.



How to Buy

Rhubarb ranges in color from deep red to pinkish tinged with green. Choose crisp stalks that are about an inch wide, with no brown spots.



How to Store

Refrigerate in a plastic bag for up to one week.



How It’s Used

Because it’s very tart, rhubarb is always cooked with sugar (or other sweetener). It is often combined with red fruits, such as strawberries or raspberries, to enhance the color and complement the flavor.



How to Prepare

Rinse well, then trim the bottoms and tops. If there are any leaves, slice off and discard (they are toxic). If the stalks are stringy, remove with a small paring knife, as you would for celery.



PEACHES



How to Buy

July and August are prime time for peaches. Choose fruit with a fragrant aroma and flesh that yields a bit when pressed gently. If a peach has cuts or tan spots, or if it’s rock-hard or mushy, don’t buy it. Color has more to do with variety than ripeness. Peaches that are tinged with green, however, are usually underripe. For the best flavor, look for locally grown, tree-ripened peaches.



How to Ripen

Place peaches in a paper bag, with an apple, if you have one. Keep them at room temperature until they’re ready, and check them frequently.



How to Store

Ripe peaches are best eaten right away, but you can refrigerate them for three to five days.



BLUEBERRIES



How to Buy

You can find cultivated berries all year; wild (and locally grown) berries are available primarily during July and August. Wild blueberries are much smaller and often more intensely flavored than cultivated ones. The berries should be firm, uniform in size, and deep blue in color, with a silvery or white sheen. Avoid any packages that appear stained or damp, as the fruit inside may be spoiled.



How to Store

Remove any twigs or leaves along with any berries that are soft or moldy. Refrigerate in the original container up to five days. When you’re ready to use them, rinse berries under cold water; drain and pat dry.



How to Freeze

Spread rinsed and dried berries on a rimmed baking sheet; freeze until firm, one hour. Transfer to resealable plastic bags (label and date); store up to six months.



PLUMS

Plums are cultivated in temperate regions all around the world. They come in a wide range of sizes, colors, and tastes; more than 100 varieties are sold in the United States alone. Most types of plums are grown for eating out of hand. Others, selected for their high level of sugar, are cultivated to be dried; they’re then called dried plums or prunes.



How to Buy

Domestic plums are crimson to black-red with a yellow or reddish flesh; they are in season May through October. European varieties, which peak during the fall months, range from green to blue to purple and have a golden yellow flesh. Look for plums that are even in color and plump, yielding gently to pressure. Stay away from fruit with wrinkled or broken skin or extremely soft spots.



How to Ripen



If too firm to use, place in a closed paper bag at room temperature for one to two days.



How to Store

Once ripe, plums can be kept in a plastic bag in the refrigerator up to three days.



MELONS



How to Buy

Look for those that are fragrant and heavy. Press end opposite stem to feel for a bit of give. For watermelon: Avoid those with flat sides. Presliced, it should be deep red with about an inch of white rind.



How to Store

Store whole melons in a cool spot or, if cut, in the refrigerator.



Source: Martha Stewart. View the article on MarthaStewart.com

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How to Get The Butt You Want

Do this fast workout to get a firm butt, flat abs, and toned thighs. Get started with three sets of this workout, twice a week.

Brazilian Butt Sculpter

What you’ll need: A pair of 3- to 5-pound dumbbells and a stability ball.

Targets: Shoulders, triceps, abs, glutes, legs
•Lie facedown on ball with palms on floor, abs engaged, back flat, legs extended 3 feet apart and toes on floor.

•Squeeze glutes to lift legs as high as you can.

•Hold up for 1 count, then bring feet together.

•Separate legs; lower. Do 15 reps


 

Ball Run

Targets: Biceps, glutes, abs, quads

•Sit on ball with back straight, abs engaged, feet on floor and a dumbbell in each hand, elbows bent, palms in.

•Keeping upper body still and right knee bent, lift right foot 6 inches while swinging left arm forward and right arm back (as if running).

•Return to start. Switch sides; repeat. Do 20 reps, alternating sides.\
 

Crossover Squat

Targets: Obliques, glutes, legs

a. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, abs engaged, hands behind head, elbows out. Squat.

Curtsy Lunge/Lateral Raise

Targets: Shoulders, abs, obliques, hips, glutes, legs

a. Stand with feet hip-width apart, a dumbbell in right hand, right arm by side, left hand on hip. Lunge left leg back behind right leg.

Glute Swoop

Targets: Abs, glutes, legs

•Stand with feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent, arms extended in front of you at shoulder level.

•Keeping back flat and abs engaged, hinge forward from hips and slide right leg back, toes pointed out.

•Lift right leg as high as you can.

•Curl right foot toward butt; release.

•Return to start. Do 15 reps. Switch legs; repeat.

Smoothies 101

There IS a delicious way of getting your daily dose of vitamins and minerals.
The answer? Smoothies.

They are tasty and nutritious drinks that you can make at home and enjoy at any time of the day. With smoothies, it is easy to have that “5 a day” servings of fruits and vegetables.

Anatomy of a Smoothie
Did you know that on average a 20-oz serving of strawberry smoothie only has 155 calories? From the strawberries alone you get 2 grams of fiber. Add a few more ingredients such as flax seeds or a few slices of banana and you’ll have a high-fiber, low-calorie snack. That’s not all. Drink smoothie with your dinner and you’ll make the most out of your meal.

Here are the health benefits you can get from smoothies:

Fiber which improves digestion
Calcium which leads to stronger bones
Vitamins and minerals significantly reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases and cancer
Anti-oxidants which prevent aging and strengthen the immune system
Nutrients that increase stamina and improve overall health
And the list goes on…

The amount of nutrition you can get from smoothies can potentially exceed the ones you get from solid food.

Use Proteins to Make Smoothies into a Complete Meal
Sources of protein like yogurt, cottage cheese, or tofu both thicken and bulk up the nutritional component of a smoothie. These ingredients can be a key to satisfying hunger. Smooth and soft tofu works best and is easiest to blend. For dairy eaters, there’s the old classic: yogurt, but cottage cheese also whips up into a very nice smoothie base. Sweetened yogurt can eliminated the need for additional sweeteners.

Protein/Thickener Options: yogurt, tofu, cottage cheese, and more

Fruit Makes the Smoothie Fun
High in vitamins and natural sweetness, flavor combination possibilities are endless when incorporating fruit into smoothies. Frozen fruit gives smoothies nice ice cream consistency and can be used instead of ice to make smoothies cold. Using frozen fruit also makes incorporating exotic or out-of-season fruits easier

Be wary of seeds and textures when adding fruit. Skins on pears or peaches and seeds in blackberries or raspberries are not necessarily bad, but they do affect the texture and may not pass through all straws or sippy cups used by children. Generally, juicier fruits are a better choice than fruits like apples. Bananas work well as an alternative to thickening smoothies with proteins. Very fibrous fruits can clog blenders and make for a fibrous smoothie.

Fruit Options: bananas, strawberries, mangoes, peaches, blueberries, papaya, or other favorite fruits

Smoothie Liquids Ease Blending
No need to get fancy with liquids. Water works just fine. Juices can be used in place of or in addition to other sweeteners. Milk or soymilk provide added protein. Alternative milk beverages add flavor.

Liquid Options: water, juice, soymilk, ricemilk, almond milk, hemp milk, cow's milk.


A Spoonful of Sugar Helps the Smoothie Go Down
But, don’t use granulated sugar, it does not dissolve well in cold liquids. Liquid sweeteners like honey, agave syrup or even maple syrup work great.

Sweetener options: honey, agave syrup, brown rice syrup, maple syrup.

Extras Can Boost Nutritional Value and Flavor
The list of possible extras at the average smoothie restaurant is quite long but vitamin powders and protein powders are common. Vitamin powers like Emergen-C come in a variety of flavors that can help mask a sharp or strong green. Protein powders from whey or soy are available in most natural food stores.


Smoothie Making Instructions
Add ingredients to blender in order presented, holding back at least half the liquid. Add additional liquid as needed to ease blending or reach desired consistency. Pour. Enjoy.

Lemon Raspberry Smoothie
1 cup lemon yogurt
1 cup raspberries, fresh or frozen
½ cup lemonade
2 cups ice cubes
Combine all ingredients in blender and mix until smooth.


Banana Strawberry Smoothie
1 cup vanilla yogurt
½ banana sliced
4-5 strawberries, hulled and cut in half
2 cups ice cubes
Combine all ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth

Berry of Youth Smoothie Recipe

1 cup low-fat cherry yogurt or yogurt of your choice
1 cup pitted cherries (frozen preferred)
1/4 cup cold cranberry juice
1 cup blueberries (frozen preferred)
Pour the cranberry juice in the blender first, then add the yogurt and the rest of the ingredients into the blender and blend until smooth.
Berry of Youth Smoothie Nutrition Facts (serving size – 1 cup)

Blackberry Apple Smoothie Recipe

1/2 cup of low-fat yogurt
3/4 cup of cold apple juice or juice of your choice
1 to 2 cups of blackberries depending on your taste (frozen)
1 medium size banana (sliced in smaller pieces)
Add ice cubes if needed
Put all the ingredients in your blender and blend until smooth, serves about 2 people.

Coconut Pineapple Smoothie Recipe

1 fresh banana (frozen and sliced into smaller pieces)
1-1/2 cups fresh pineapple (diced)
1/2 cup light coconut milk (unsweetened)
1/2 cup fruit sorbet of your choice
Add ice cubes if needed
Put all the ingredients in your blender and blend until smooth, serves about 2 people

Get Juiced Smoothie Ingredients:

1 medium banana
1 cup of passion fruit
1 cup of pineapple juice
1 cup of frozen orange juice concentrate
1/4 cup of water
1 cup of ice
Squirt of lime juice (optional)

recipes from http://www.smoothieweb.com/

Breaking Habits that Block Blessings

Mikki Taylor

Editor-at-Large for ESSENCE

Founder of Mikki Taylor Enterprises,LLC

"Stop in the Name of Love"

***** I copied this post from someone else********


Breaking Habits That Block Blessings


When I tell you she spoke so well..

like she inspired me to keep moving in my life regardless

of what people my say about me..

Notes from the Event:

1. Know Your Value

"Work is what you do, not who you are"

"The Beauty you possess is more than skin deep" Mikki Taylor

2. Be on purpose

"Our purpose is to be with God"

3. Do not conduct yourself according to men standards

"stay focused on the manual (the bible)"

Phillippians 4:13

4. Keep your head on straight

Phil. 3:13-14

Rom. 5:3-4

1Pet. 1:7

5. Commune with God and not your challenges

Heb.13:6

Psal. 91.1-2

6. Take your quest from the right resources

Psal. 1:1

7. Build up your spiritual muscle

"no test, no testimony"

"pain is weakness,leading the body"

8. Wait on the Lord

Psal. 25:4

9. Do not let Satan bait on you

James 1:19

1Chro. 16:22

Pro. 25:28

10. Be Strong in the Lord and the power of his might

Dig it

Dig it

Easiest Roast Chicken in a Cast Iron Skillet

Ingredients

one 3- to 3.5-pound chicken
1 tablespoon kosher salt
coarsely ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

Place your oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees.
Get yourself a good chicken — 3 to 3.5 pounds is ideal — and rinse it inside and out under cold running water. Using paper towels, dry the bird thoroughly inside and out. The chicken must be bone dry or it will steam rather than brown.
Set it in a cast-iron skillet and generously season it with 1 tablespoon kosher salt and coarsely ground black pepper to taste.
Place the skillet in the preheated oven and go about your business.
For doneness: Slit underside of thigh — juices must run clear (about 45 minutes). The high heat turns the chicken a golden brown, and it's juicy as hell.
Serves 4.

Dear God

I dont know why i always come to this point, trusting others more than trusting in you. I have protected myself thus far but i believed in this person. According to your word I am suppose to follow him whole heartedly. Submitt and follow, but what if the person i follow doesn't love me like Christ loves the church. Or maybe he does love me to the best of His ability but it is not enough for me.

Our goals and how we deal with life, situations, and children are all different than what or how i deal with them or how we originally talked about. How do we compromise when a situation is uncompromisable. How come woman always have to compromise and be the bigger person with more common sense. You sent a messenger that revealed to me that I am a helpmate and that was our divine gift. But who or what is suppose to relieve my stress when i dont have the strength to help.

I remember older and wiser woman telling me dont let the left hand know what the right hand is doing and always stash something for a rainy day NO ONE knows about. I fail to take head to these precious words, I was sooo tired and worn out i needed a break for about a year, free from wory, work and responsibility. Because of that i am now in this ridiculous situation of let down feelings that can or may turn in to bitterness or resentment. But the year has gone and passed and I need to get back on my grind.

Please lord help this goddess focus.

coffee filter uses

 Coffee filters ..who knew!
And you can buy 1,000 at the Dollar Tree
for almost nothing.

 1. Cover bowls or dishes when cooking in the microwave.
 Coffee filters make excellent covers.

 2. Clean windows and mirrors.
 Coffee filters are lint-free so they'll leave windows sparkling.

 3. Protect China.
 Separate your good dishes by putting a coffee filter between each dish.

 4. Filter broken cork from wine.
 If you break the cork when opening a wine bottle, filter the wine through a coffee filter.

 5. Protect a cast-iron skillet.
 Place a coffee filter in the skillet to absorb moisture and prevent rust.

 6. Apply shoe polish.
 Ball up a lint-free coffee filter.

 7. Recycle frying oil.
 After frying, strain oil through a sieve lined with a coffee filter.

8. Weigh chopped foods.
 Place chopped ingredients in a coffee filter on a kitchen scale.

 9. Hold tacos.
 Coffee filters make convenient wrappers for messy foods.

 10. Stop the soil from leaking out of a plant pot.
 Line a plant pot with a coffee filter to prevent the soil from going through the drainage holes.

 11. Prevent a Popsicle from dripping.
 Poke one or two holes as needed in a coffee filter.

 12. Do you think we used expensive strips to wax eyebrows?
Use strips of coffee filters.

 13. Put a few in a plate and put your fried bacon,
 French fries, chicken fingers, etc on them. Soaks out all the grease.

 14. Keep in the bathroom.
 They make great "razor nick fixers."

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healthy and easy crab salad

& Easy Crab Salad
Elie Kruger The Food You Crave
I stumbled upon this easy crab salad while flipping through Ellie Krieger's cookbook The Food You Crave. If you don't already own this book I suggest you snag one for your cookbook collection. It's full of awesome recipes that are lighter and healthier, yet oh so yummy.



Ingredients

For the Salad
1/2 pound lump crab meat, picked over for shells and cartilage
1 stalk celery, finely diced (1/4 cup)
1/2 cup peeled and finely diced ripe mango
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro
1/4 cup coarsely chopped radicchio

For the Dressing
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions
In a medium sized bowl, gently toss together the crab with the celery, mango, scallions, cilantro and radicchio. For the dressing, in a small bowl whisk together the lime juice, lime zest, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Next, slowly whisk in the olive oil until an emulsion begins. Add the dressing to the salad and gently toss to combine