gkashmira

Quote: Originally Posted by Alisarosenbaum I was married at the Hilton in November and only used outside venders. I hired Maye as my WC, and paid $675 TOTAL for all her services. She got us venders for all three nights of events, plus did all the day of coordination. She saved me WAY more than $675 because she got such good prices. My trio for the beach bonfire hired through her was great, and I think they were $300/hr, which was 50% cheaper than the Hiltons. I did the same and it was money well spent (and saved!). The Hilton's vendors have ridiculously high prices and in some cases they may actually be the same vendors that Maye gets for less. They mentioned a few times about the "we're not responsible for outside vendors" and I was like - "I know. Maye is responsible for them and it's going to be great!" And it was.

I love WW. I did actually lose the 10 pounds I wanted to before my wedding and that was great. It was so nice not to have to worry about sucking in my gut or how my love handles looked all night! Sadly, since then I gained it all back (because I stopped doing it and basically ate everything in sight and stopped exercising... gee I wonder why I gained weight?). But I restarted the middle of January and i haven't lost a ton but I am already feeling better!

OK - I think I'm going to get some paper cups - that way I can take them out and save them for eating later (of course - I mean it does make 24!)

Quote: Originally Posted by mdw2dtw Thanks for figuring that out. That makes me so happy. I could eat this soup everyday...but then again I guess I should add a little variety. You laugh but I really have been eating it almost every day! It's so delicious! I had it with a LaTortilla factory 1 point tortilla last night (and a glass of wine...). Yum!

OK so I recalculated it with the celerry, 1 green pepper, 2 jalapeno peppers (optional) added in and guessing that it makes a total of 18 servings and it IS 1 point! Here's what I entered into the WW recipe builder to determine this: Taco Soup main meals POINTS Value: 1 Servings: 18 Preparation Time: 20 min Cooking Time: 30 min Level of Difficulty: Easy Course: main meals Ingredients * 16 oz Old El Paso Fat-Free Spicy Refried Beans * 2 cup Del Monte Diced Tomatoes With Basil, Garlic And Oregano * 1 cup celery * 5 clove garlic clove(s), crushed or finely chopped * 1 large onion(s), finely chopped * 2 cup canned black beans, undrained * 5 sprays cooking spray * 2 cup Del Monte Whole Kernel Golden Corn * 2 cup Eden Organic Diced Tomatoes * 2 Tbsp McCormick Taco dry seasoning mix * 16 oz canned kidney beans, undrained * 1 medium green pepper(s), chopped * 2 small jalapeno pepper(s) Instructions: Saute onion, garlic, chopped celery and chopped green and jalapeno peppers in cooking spray until soft. Add all other ingredients to pot and simmer 30 - 40 minutes. So eat up!

Quote: Originally Posted by mdw2dtw Are you sure this is only one point? It is so good. I made it for the girls for the superbowl but all the guys were eating it over the other 'reg.' chili. I passed the recipe along to all my friends and family. I did add 1/2lb lean turkey and a little low fat cheese on top. It makes so much we froze some of it and it makes perfect quick lunch. Thanks so much I may try the cupcakes for Valentine's Day Well I'm not 100% sure actually. My WW person passed it out and said it's one point but when I plugged it into the WW recipe builder it came up 2 points... ahhhh! I am so confused! Basically what I do now is added a lot of no-cal veggies (celery, green peppers, jalapeno peppers) so it makes more and I figure that now it's 1 point a cup since it makes more than 15 cups. Does that make sense. And of course with added ground beef/turkey/soy (I recommend Yves for a veggie chili version!), cheese etc. it will be more. I have been having this problem a lot recently. i wonder if the online points calculator counts things different than the WW leaders? Has anyone else had this problem? I'm going to go update the taco soup recipe now in the WW calculator and see what I get...

Quote: Originally Posted by MikkiStreak And to sum it up---- because of those two items.... I AM OFFICIALLY CHALLENGING DREA, JAMY AND CHRISTA ON THE TITLE OF 'KEG STAND CHAMPION'!!!! Goddamn it, I didn't build my tolerance for drinking to lose that title right about now!!! Hahahaha!!!! Ha! I am not throwing my hat in he ring (I never did like keg stands - too foamy!) but I promise I will show up to watch wherever you ladies decide to do this!

Quote: Originally Posted by Heidi HA! too funny!!! I did this in Jan 07 when I was in Dominica. We hiked to a gorgeous waterfall. There was an enclosed pool at the base, we swam in it and climbed up a cave to a cliff - just about 15 feet high. And yeah, I jumped off the cliff. Terrifying, but exhilerating! Thanks for the votes! hehe! That is a creepy coincidence! I guess us BDW girls really know each other well!

Yippeee! Dan bought my diamond from Blue Nile as well and I love it!

Also my favorite restaurant in the area (I wonder if they cater? They are SO, SO, SO good!): Los Olivos Cafe California Wine at the Los Olivos Cafe - 1-888-WINES4U - Buy Wine Online :: Best Restaurant for Wines - Santa Barbara County, CA

I just wanted to let people know about some really beautiful places in Santa Ynez Valley (20 miles north of Santa Barbara)! I love this place - this is an amazing option for So Cal or other peeps who want to have a Napa/Sonoma type wedding down here in SoCal! I have no idea what the prices are (though I imagine they aren't cheap) but the wine is delicious, it's convenient to both LA and Santa Barbara there's tons of hotels, the countryside is simply breathtaking... sigh... I love it. My favorite place is: Sunstone Vineyards - $7500 location fee: Weddings Gainey Vineyard - $5500 and below (depending on day of the week) http://www.gaineyvineyard.com/events/weddings.asp My friend went and checked out (but the location fee is >$10K!!!) The Crossroads Estates at Firestone Vineyards - Firestone Vineyard | Visit Firestone | Private Special Events

To make these should I get those paper liners or do I pour the batter right into the muffin tins?

Awww... thanks for remembering me guys! I will try and be around more!

Fantastic! I am so glad everything went so perfectly!

Quote: Originally Posted by Alyssa I i have been watching and listening to everyone's comments and opinions and i feel compelled to comment on a particular statement that i keep seeing pop up "I'm not sure if the country is ready for a black president or a woman" i am not attacking anyone personally, IMHO this is another form of the kind of thinking that has held back change and social movement for women and minorities in this country for many years. this is not about whether we are ready or not, this is about social evolution. There will be people who will always say ‘we are not ready’. This line of thinking somehow implies that race or gender are a determining factor in regards to what is ‘good enough’ or right. It is shocking to hear that statement coming from women, particularly since we as woman have been denied basic human rights and persecuted for having belief systems that ‘men were not ready for’. Would the conservatives still say ‘we are not ready’ if the black candidate was Colin Powell? Have you ever considered that historically white males had have easier access to education and the elite clubs that have garnered candidates ‘presidentially ready’ in our country? When is the time ever right for change? What are we waiting for? As I said I am not attacking anyone personally, just jumping in the discussion / debate and putting my 2 cents in. and i was clearly just on a soapbox so i will step off it I couldn't agree with you more. Please continue standing on your box and telling truths!

Quote: Originally Posted by jilly76 Could it be if the person calculated it, just calculating 1 serving and not that of the whole box? I read on hungry girl that if you're making a recipe or using more than one serving of something, you're supposed to add up all of the calories, fat and fiber and then calculate the points, I think like the calculator on WW. Because the point value comes out different. I haven't tried these yet. That's possible but I didn't calculate the whole box - just the 1 serving size (which is according to the box 12th of the box). Maybe it just makes a lot of cupcakes!

Quote: Originally Posted by mauraw girl, i feel your pain. remember our priest gave away my ceremony time? it all worked out in the end. yours will too! deep breath. your TA should be handling this and needs to be absolutely crystal clear on what you want, so make sure you deal with her via phone and not email. details seem to get lost through email with WCs! the WC shouldnt have cancelled your date... it seems so many people working at these resorts are not the sharpest crayons in the box. vent away, getting it off your chest makes it feel better, i promise! let us know if theres anything we can do to help! It's true - vent - get it off your chest and then just wait and see what happens before you start freaking out. The good thing is that the two hotels are related and that even if the WC "gave your date away" she will need to "get it back!" I mean that kind of thing happens all the time (I know cause if the beginning it happened to me!). The WC tells someone "yes I have this date" and then emails them the next day to say "I made a mistake. Sorry that dake is booked. But I have..." So that's it. Your TA just needs to make sure that if necessary that is what they will do. And if they won't do that then they must refund everyone's money in full (since it's their fault in the first place). Hang in there - you may not need to do any of this!

Quote: Originally Posted by LC_Rachel Crap I don't know how to multiple quote but Martha said the ones she made for only 12 cupcakes, she counted as 2 pts each. Maybe the 1 point recipe was for 24 cupcakes. Quote: Originally Posted by LC_Rachel Now how did I do that? ahahaa I only just figured out MQ-ing myself! Maybe you guys are going to kill me for possibly ruining this recipe for you but I have to tell you I still don't see how it's only 1 point ...even if you make 24. According to the box the unprepared mix has 180 calories, 4 grams of fat and 1 gram of fiber. If you put that into the WW calculator that means that 1/12 of the box is 4 points. So if you make 24 cupcake then they would be 2 points (still pretty good though!). Sorry for being a about it! It's still great - cupcakes for only 2 points!

I have to admit I am totally confused! The box says that it's like 150 calories per serving (pre-mix with other items) - so how does it become 1 point? Should I spread it out over more than 12 cupcake cups?

I just wanted to throw in that can you believe that this is the first time in history that a woman is actually running for president and has a chance of winning? I mean how behind the times! Countries all of over the world have had amazing (and not so amazing) female leaders for so long and now in 2008 we have a female running for office... Whether you love her or hate her (I have a theory about why so many powerful women are so painfully hated... even by other women I might add) it is certainly inspiring for all our future daughters and granddaughters!

Quote: Originally Posted by carlymcmullen Or these are only $12.99 Tortoise Capiz Shell Curtain at World Market I think the capiz ones are more beachy - plus I really don't think anyone will be able to tell they're not real! They look great!

perfect - and the price is almost as great as the cards!

That sounds like SO much fun! I've been thinking the two of us should do something like that too. We're always complaining that we don't have any new recipes. Let us know how it goes and of course give us some hints please!

I love that look! And what a great idea to buy the curtain from Target and just cut off the individual strands - that would be way cheaper.

I imagine you could call the local police station and they would be able to point you in the right direction. But I will be honest I feel very scared for you and your mother. I don't know if calling his parole officer is the right thing to do - what if they don't do anything and he finds out you called him in? Just please be very careful and I think you and your sisters are 100% doing the right thing by being there with and for your mother. Good luck - we will all be thinking about you and praying that everything works out alright!