My best friend and I have a standing date on Sunday afternoons, and I love it. We get together (alternating one weekend at her house, the next at mine) and cook–we each make a main dish and take turns making a dessert. We sample all the food, then pack up the rest for our lunches during the week. These are our selections for today.

The bowl at the top contains Spring Tabbouleh, which was also my recipe of the week for the 101 Things project. The next bowl down contains a cauliflower and bell pepper salad with tahini and parsley dressing. One word. Delicious. The pot (I ran out of big bowls) at the bottom is the rice pudding recipe from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch. Most people either love or hate the Skinny Bitch books. I happen to love the no nonsense “stop eating crap and expecting to look good” message, but fair warning to those who haven’t read it–it can be hard to stomach. The rice pudding on the other hand… INSANELY GOOD.

It finally arrived!!!

(Note about the picture: I took one of my own, but something weird happened and it disappeared. So this is a subsitute picture from the interweb.)

I ordered Michael Thurmond’s Six Week Body Makeover last week after reading about it at The Fit Shack. I’m super excited to try it out! It was expensive (about $120) BUT you can get a full refund if you’re not satisfied after six weeks. It’s pretty cool–you take a quiz to determine your body type (you can take it for free online). I’m Type E: Ecto-Endo, which means I have a pretty high metabolism (true), but also tend to have more fat and less muscle. Basically, I’m skinny fat.

The program gives you a tailored eating plan (lots of protein for me) and exercise routine. My official start will be on Monday, May 5, which is also the day I being my marathon training program. That’s right–I registered for this year’s Marine Corps Marathon!!

I’ll be blogging about my six-week makeover journey, so stay tuned for weekly updates (and probably daily pleas for support and encouragement)…

Inspired by Zandria, I’m creating a list of 101 things to do in 1001 days. As anyone who reads this site knows, I’m a huge believer in setting goals. I think a list like this is a great way to do some long term planning/prioritizing in my life. So… I have from Sunday, March 9, 2008 until Sunday, December 5, 2010 to complete the following goals (items in red are ones I’m working on):

Writing:
1. Finish a complete first draft of the novel I’m working on now.
2. Revise my work until I’m happy with it.
3. Send the manuscript to at least three friends/family for critiques.
4. Send out at least three query letters to agents.
5. Finish one of the novels I started and abandoned.
6. Revise my work until I’m happy with it.
7. Send the novel to at least three friends/family for critiques.
8. Send out at least three query letters to agents.
9. Enter a short story contest.
10. Attend a BlogHer conference.
11. Attend a writer’s workshop or conference.
12. Submit an article to a print magazine.
13. Research and write a nonfiction piece.
14. Attend an author’s reading.
15. Buy a MacBook.
16. Spend an afternoon people watching to get story/character ideas.

Giving Back:
17. Volunteer once a week for three months.
18. Buy tickets to a charity gala and attend.
19. Adopt a personal cause.
20. Donate blood.
21. Do something nice for a stranger.
22. Send anonymous flowers to someone who’s having a tough day.
23. Donate $5 for every item I don’t complete.
24. Give someone a piece of art.
25. Send a kid to summer camp.

Exercise:
26. Run a marathon.
27. Get a personal trainer to help me develop a strength training workout.
28. Do that workout three times per week for three months.
29. Do at least 25 full pushups in a row.
30. Take a yoga class.
31. Take a cardio striptease, belly-dancing, or other dance class.
32. Go jogging in the rain.
33. Go jogging outside when it’s <30 degrees.

Personal Development Challenges:
34. Wake up at 5:00am every day for 21 days.
35. Meditate every day for 21 days.
36. Go one week without television.
37. Go one week without the Internet.
38. Fast for 24 hours.
39. Go one week without complaining.
40. Keep a gratitude journal for one week. (1/7 days)
41. Go one month without shopping.

General:
42. Take a photo every day for one month.
43. Make a wedding album.
44. Make an album for our trip to Germany.
45. Make an album for our honeymoon.
46. Eat dairy-free for one week.
47. Watch the sun rise and set in the same day.
48. Send a message in a bottle.
49. Host a dinner party.
50. Read three of the classics.
51. Get busy every day for a month (hubby should like that one).
52. Buy a piece of art.
53. Sell something on eBay.
54. Get acupuncture.
55. Get a psychic reading.
56. Take a cooking class.
57. Memorize a poem that I love.
58. Watch five classic movies. (1/5: Chinatown 3/10/08)
59. Eat raw for one week.
60. Try one new recipe a week for three months.

Travel/Recreation:
61. Spend the New Year in Scotland for Hogmanay.
62. Go on a beach trip with the girls.
63. Take a vacation with Florence.
64. Take a vacation with my sister.
65. Spend a weekend with my grandmother.
66. Go to the fair.
67. Go to a circus.
68. Attend a concert.
69. Go on a road trip.
70. Visit five states I’ve never been to (AK, AR, HI, ID, IA, KS, MN, MO, MT, ND, OR, SD, UT, WA, WI, WY).
71. Visit two new countries.
72. See the Northern Lights.
73. Go to a parade.
74. Go skiing.
75. Sing a song at a karaoke bar.
76. Go to a driving range.
77. Play hookie from work.
78. Go away for a weekend by myself.
79. Go rollerskating.
80. Go on a picnic.

Friends & Family:
81. Call one cousin per week (doesn’t have to be the same one) for three months.
82. Write a letter to my grandmother.
83. Cook dinner for my parents.
84. Carve a pumpkin for Halloween with my husband.
85. Make a gingerbread house for my niece.
86. Start a family holiday tradition for my husband and I.
87. Make a will.
88. Make a family tree.
89. Have a real Christmas tree.

Fashion:
90. Go shopping with a friend & let her pick out an entire outfit for me. Buy it and wear it at least once.
91. Wear fishnets–and not to a costume party.
92. Wear a non-sexy Halloween costume.
93. Buy a designer suit.
94. Buy a really good pair of shoes.
95. Buy a really nice handbag.
96. Wear a dress to work.
97. Get a cool pair of glasses.

Finances:
98. Pay off all credit card debt.
99. Pay off all private student loan debt.
100. Cut federal student loan debt in half.

101. Make a new list!

Did you make a list? Let me know–I’d love to read it!