Okay, I know, I know... it's been a while, right? Nearly a week since my last update, but I am still here and kickin'!Some updates...Tried a new recipe from one of Joy Bauer's books. My awesome nutritionist allowed me to borrow the book, and man, did I get some good recipes.

Feast your eyes on "General Joy's Chicken"!However, don't be fooled by appearances. It may look tasty, but it... wasn't? It wasn't

awful

, but it wasn't the most delicious thing I've ever tasted either. I'm not sure if I did something wrong with the recipe, or if it was something else, but man... it

tasted

salty. Which is odd, considering that the majority of the ingredients had no salt or were low sodium.Ah well. Joy, you've given us some tasty recipes, and we still need to try out a few more, but I don't think I'll be adding this one to the repertoire.Something else new that I tried this week!I present to you... DESSERT HUMMUS:

I know how it must sound, but look, it's

delish

. 80 calories for 2 tablespoons, paired with graham crackers and it's... -mimes kissing fingerprints- Haven't tried it with fruit, but I'm sure it will be really good!Full disclosure, Zumba last Sunday truly kicked my butt. I've continued to exercise, but I don't think I've fully recovered from the ordeal. I decided to rest Monday, today, and tomorrow. My joints feel like an old granny's (apologies to any old grannies reading this). I'll be back at it again, sweating with Jillian Michaels, on Monday!In addition to the delicious WIN of the dessert hummus, one dinner this week

was

a success. Take a gander at these zucchini boats:

Ignoring the burnt bits of cheese that conveniently fell off and crisped up on the pan, these zucchini boats are super good, and fairly low cal! The "guts" of the boat are pieces of chicken, mushrooms, and summer squash, all in marinara sauce and topped with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. I can't tell you enough how good this dish is.Also, my mom was craving carbs, so we added a little bit of noodles to curb that.All of this suffering through tasteless "healthy" Chinese food hasn't been in vain. I did get to do some cool stuff. Here are the results from my Marvel night masterpiece!

I'm no Van Gogh, but this came out pretty cool. Not sure what I'm going to put in it though...Another big event, and yes, it is a big event, was that I was graced with my cat's presence one morning.

This never happens. Let me tell you. She's not at all cuddly or likes to be petted. When she gets this close to me, I take it as a victory.This is Minerva, my dilute torti cat. I love her, even though she hates me, and I'm pretty sure there are times that she wants to actually kill me. Probably in my sleep.Camp NaNo, at this point, might as well just not have happened. I am slowly but surely writing for a different project than the one I declared for Camp, but that's okay, because I'm writing! I'm not writing a lot, but

I am

writing. I'm sure my Now Novel mentor is chomping at the bit for the next chapter, so I better get on that, right?You guys ever heard of Dietbet? Basically, you bet money on yourself to lose weight, and after the challenge is through, if you won, you get to split the 'pot' with other winners. A co-worker and I signed up for one of the challenges! It's 4 weeks long, and we are challenged to lose 4% of our weight. For me, the number to lose is kind of daunting for 4 weeks, but I am determined to try!I promise I will get a little better with updates!Ciao, friends!