Okay, I have to rant!

I am participating in the relay for life as most you know by now and I have to get some stuff off my chest (nothing bad about the relay or the ACS!)

I put an ACS Relay for Life donation can at my sister's school...and the secretary told us she would put the can in the teacher's lounge. Now I wasn't expecting that much, maybe a few dollars...but when I went to pick up the can (A MONTH LATER) there was absolutely NOTHING in there...not even a penny!!!! I couldn't believe it. I help the school out SO much...I am there helping at the christmas parties, I help out the teachers, my mom and I give goodies for class parties, we chaperone for field trips, we have helped whenever the school has asked, and NOT ONE PERSON donated a lousy penny! I mean you find pennies lying on the sidewalk, in the street, everywhere! Nobody could just pop a penny in there? I was furious...I am sorry, but I cannot help it!

Then...another thing that aggravates me...the silent auction I was supposed to have. I had literally over 20 people contact me to tell me they were going to donate things...and I have only recieved 5 of the items...I have tried to contact the other people who were supposed to send items...and nobody writes me back. I think this is very sad...I mean the money that was going to be made from the silent auction was going to help the American Cancer Society (100% of the money!).

Then I have been having trouble with "scam" conversations on etsy. I have had 2 people contact me and had me post a reserved listing (the first was for 10 dozen cookies for this woman's daughter's bday party...the second was for 2 dozen cupcakes and 2 mini loaves of bread)...and then when I'd post the listing, they wouldn't buy it...so I would go to write them and find out they weren't even on etsy anymore.

I do want to give everyone who has purchased from my store a HUGE THANK YOU for being supportive and for sharing their very touching stories with me. :) If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have been able to raise the money I did for the American Cancer Society and Team Hole in the Wall. Much love to you all!

But I also want to ask, why aren't there more good hearted, honest people out there?

That is the end of my rant for now.

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weekly emailings
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Sunday

Today has been a tiring day since the moment I woke up. I woke up with a horrible kink in my neck and back...and now I have to sit here at the desk and study for the whole day since I have my college placement tests tomorrow. I know as far as math goes, I am going to do badly...math is my worst subject. I am confident about the other tests though.

Today my goals for working out are: Pilates this morning with yoga. This afternoon I am doing Chalean Extreme Burn Circuit 3 and Turbo Jam. I had to put off P90X until next month because of my chest...but I really can't wait to begin it!

I have been getting asked what I eat during the day...well here is what I had for breakfast:

5.3 oz of Strawberry Greek Yogurt
1/4 C Bear Naked Vanilla Almond Crunch Fit Granola
1 Whole grain english muffin
1 tsp Smart Balance Omega on my english muffin

Yum! Plus, Bear Naked Granola is 100% pure and natural! There are NO artificial colors, flavors, cholesterol, hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup, artificial preservatives, or trans fats!

I also found out something horrifying about shredded cheese...the preservative in there is derived from formaldehyde!! Check out the ingredients...you see where it says preservatives? Since it's such a small amount, it is not required that food manufacturers add it to the ingredients...so instead they are allowed to just say, "preservatives". Real cheese (blocked cheese) is the best if you have a cheese craving....just grate it yourself!

Here's a great recipe for a yogurt parfait:

1 (5.3 oz) Greek Yogurt (plain or vanilla) (or if your vegan...try silk yogurt!)
2 tbsp. Bear Naked Granola
1/4 C Blackberries
1/4 C Blueberries
1/4 C Strawberries
1 Small Dash cinnamon (optional)
1 tbsp. slivered almonds

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl! Enjoy! Great amount of protein and antioxidants to start your day off right!

Updates

I haven't wrote on here in a while...

My aunt passed away last saturday and it has been very hard on my family and me. I went to her wake and funeral this past week. This whole week has been extremely difficult to get through and I have just been feeling really sad :( Also, on top of everything, my brother had his appendix removed which was scary as well...but he is recovering very nicely. My Thea (greek for Aunt) was a wonderful lady and I will miss her very much. RIP 'Thea' Annetta Sarpos :( In memory of Thea, my family and I are organizing a walk for next summer (2011) for the Brain Aneurysm Foundation...more details on that soon!

Also, another name to add to people lost this month...Peter Steele...one of my favorite musicians (he was the singer of Type O Negative).

As far as myself...my pleurisy is not getting any better and today I have had bad chest pains. It is just getting even more aggravated by the fact that I have begun weight lifting again (I had to take a small break because I couldn't breathe due to the pain from putting strain on my chest). Not to mention I have to inhale deeply every few minutes which makes me sound like I am annoyed 24-7....so I have been having to explain that I am not sighing or annoyed...it is just difficult to breathe! I am just taking that one step at a time...I know it will eventually go away and everything will go back to normal (hopefully!) Other than the pleurisy acting up, I have been feeling okay (physically).

My mom bought me this really nice food/exercise journal at Barnes and Noble today...I thought that was really nice of her :) Thanks mom!

Well I can't think of more to say at the moment (without repeating myself)

Take care...hope everyone has a good weekend

Update on my Thea :(

I have an update: I have been told that my aunt isn't going to make it. She will only live 24-48 hours while on life support...but if they take her off, she will live for less than 24 hours. The bleeding is so horrible in her brain that it is causing the left and right side of the brain to squeeze together. The blood is starting to pool in her brain stem as well. There is nothing more the doctors can do. I am so upset right now I can't even handle it. Please keep my family in your thoughts. Thanks to everyone who has sent messages and support to my family today

My Thea Annette

Everyone, I need your help...please keep my aunt in your thoughts. Last night my aunt was found unresponsive and had very shallow breathing. She was rushed into the hospital and the doctors found that she had an aneurysm that ruptured in her brain. She has massive bleeding in her head and her brain is so swollen that it is pushing against the left side of her skull. They predict that it happened Friday night. Right now, she is on life support...there is still a 1% chance that she could survive, and that 1% means that there IS a chance!! Please keep her in your thoughts today. :(
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I JUST recieved an update on my aunt: she had two breaths above the machine that are her own...and a small amount of brain activity! We're told not to get our hopes up...but this is a dramatic improvement! It sounds like she is fighting to try and live. I am not giving up hope!

Relay for Life Meeting

I attended the Relay for Life meeting yesterday and it was amazing (as always). I learned a lot, as I usually do :)

At the end of the meeting, they were showing us how our money goes to help the American Cancer Society with research. They brought in these lung models (which are used to educate children and adults about the dangers of smoking). One lung was pink and healthy, the other was black and had nodules all over it. It was pretty scary! Then there were these jars...one was filled with this tarish substance and the other had greenish stuff (which I found out was flem..ew!) But the tarish jar was filled quite high and the question was, "how many cigarettes would you have to smoke for a whole year to get this effect in your lungs?" It was only half a pack a day!! Then the flem in the jar was how much flem a smoker coughs up in a year! I have never smoked anyway, but after seeing that, I really clenched the NO SMOKING policy! My grandma died from lung cancer and I can only imagine her lungs must've looked similar :( It was a sad truth.

If you go to http://www.cancer.org/, you can look up all different types of cancer. Take a swing by the lung cancer sections and check them out. You will see different diagrams and get a picture of what lung cancer really is.

But just in case you don't check out the website...I will share a picture with all of you...

If you know someone who smokes, please help them quit. If you smoke, please quit. NO ONE is immune to lung cancer! I have lost my grandma to stage 4 lung cancer. Don't go around thinking you are superman (or superwoman)...your lungs will look like that as well, if they don't already. Also, by your smoking, you are putting other people in danger. Just put it out, walk away from the cigarette and NEVER look back!

If you need more help to quit smoking, I urge you to go to the American Cancer Society's website: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/content/PED_10_13X_Guide_for_Quitting_Smoking.asp?from=fast

Thank you for reading xo

Gia's Bowtique

I just recieved my mail and I got the package from Gia's Bowtique for my silent auctions. Her bows are beautiful!

This is the link to her store:
http://giabowtique.etsy.com/

You should check her store out!

Free Mini Dessert Bread to all who...

Hi again!

Ugh, today has been such a busy day! I have been running around nonstop. So, to make things fun and interesting, I figured I'd offer up a little something fun for everyone!

If anyone donates $5 or more to my March for Babies team or Team Hole in the Wall, I will send you a FREE mini loaf of dessert bread (will be ONE of the following: blueberry, banana, mixed berry, pistachio, or lemon!) (FREE Shipping as well :p )

If anyone donates $10 or more to my Relay for Life team, I will send you a FREE mini loaf of dessert bread (will be ONE of the following: blueberry, banana, mixed berry, pistachio, or lemon!) as well! (Free shipping as well of course! :p )

March for Babies: http://www.marchforbabies.org/personal_page.asp?pp=2877010&ct=4&w=4018688&u=candiedhearts

Team Hole in the Wall: http://www.teamholeinthewall.org/amckillip

Relay for Life: http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFLFY10IL?team_id=600911&pg=team&fr_id=22209

Be sure to check out the sites to read my personal story as well as find out how these amazing places help people and their families!

Wow!!

So far I have recieved two of the silent auction packages in the mail and all I can say is WOW!! The items are so gorgeous!

Thank you so much (so far!) to:
JustUsGirls
http://www.etsy.com/shop/JustUsGirlsStudio

&

Suwanee's Adornments
http://suwanee.etsy.com

Be sure to check them out! They both have amazing stores! :)

Thank you so much!

WeekEND

My Easter went really well and I'm so happy for that! This past week has been so stressful with everything that has been going on and today just ended my weekend perfectly! It was a beautiful day today, I got to spend time with my grandparents, and then I went to dinner with my boyfriend to his parents house.

Also: I am on a poll to become Shop of the week! Will you please vote for my store? http://funkeyjunkdesigns.blogspot.com/ 2ladiescharitybakers is my store! :)

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter/Weekend!

Hugs

Easter

Happy Easter Everyone!!