So T and I got away this weekend. And that, as most of you know, means temptation is right up in my grill.. taunting me and teasing me. Um can someone open a drive thru that serves super tasty, super fantastic car food that isnt going to go straight to my ass? like a sushi drive thru? Call it wasabi express and give me a frequent visitor card FOR THE LOVE OF GOD.
Its not even that I was even close to cheating. I ate under my points even the day of the wedding EVEN tho I ate the tiny slice of cake (appropriate cake size..to me tiny lol as i LOVE cake) It was soooooooooooooo good. It took me like 40 minutes to eat it. She kept wanting to take my plate with like 5 crumbs and I was like NO> Im eating those crumbs. I may lick the plate too so Ill flag you over when Im done :)
I boogied enough to have burnt off that little slice anyway.. Im not much of a dancer but T is a born John Travolta wanna be.. so of course we were out there shaking what our momma gave us. It was a really fun time tho :)
Over all I had a really great week. I was gone alot doing prep stuff and running here and there but I stayed on track. I am LOVING the 1pt lavash wraps with a couple slices of turkey for a quick portable lunch for under 3 points. LAVASH!!! Thats it!
Screw Mr. Pita.. Im going to have to open a lavash house. Actually House of Lavash. Or Fat Girls love Lavash.. or Back of the Van Lavash.. :)
Ill only serve WW friendly foods have like 4 different wraps on the menu total. You could get a lavash for 3 points, 20 baked kettle chips for 2 points and a diet for 0 and a serving of grapes for 1. All that for 6 points and a tip and youd be happy and id be putting my kids thru college :)
Keep an eye out y'all.. House of Lavash may be coming to your neighborhood soon :)
Sunday, August 29, 2010
In the naughty spot....
Well...Im writing this post from the naughty spot. Its been a WHOLE week since Ive blogged. So here I sit in the Time out chair to try my very best to make it up to you. I do have lots and lots to talk about tho :)
I had a super busy week last week. T and I had a wedding to go to and there was much to prepare for! We actually got to spend the night away from the whole crew compliments of Auntie Beth and Auntie Teri! So as a chic.. deciding on the outfit is crucial, the shoe decision heart wrenching.. not to mention the packing and organizing and repacking and the MAJOR overthinking (like did I REALLY need 4 pair of underwear for an overnight trip? Was I anticpating peeing my pants with delight or something?) THEN on THURSDAY...T tells me that he hasnt dropped his suit/shirt/tie off to the dry cleaners and I about throttled him. I actually considered it. I was like UGH!! MEN! THey just have NO idea on the preparation BOTH physical and mental that woman go thru when it comes to very special events. We think about stuff, then rethink them and change this and change that and honestly by the time we get to the event we are half drained.. they of course are raring to go cause really all they had to do was dress themselves and get in the car.
But I digress...
Have you ever been to a wedding where you look at the couple who is about to be married and just like of glance at your watch and wonder just how long that couple will be able to deal with each other? While looking at them together you just see an obvious lack of magical chemistry and wonder to yourself....is she in this for the money? the looks? the sex? ...does he consider her a trophy wife? a naive wife ..or even a 'fridays for the girlfriend, saturdays for the wife'kind of arrangement? Ive been to a couple weddings like that and just kind of end up feeling sad. What happens after the big hoo haa of the event is over? After the dress is boxed up and the flowers have all died and the event of their marriage is just a faint memory of the buffet dinner and shitty favors that were painstakenly difficult to make but mostly left behind or discarded?
The wedding T and I were at was the polar opposite of what I stated above.
It was a wedding for the times. Not one that was extremely lavish.. altho very classy and very beautiful. When the bride was being walked down the aisle by her adoring parents she had that Im so nervous but so happy-must smile for the camera but cannot control my lips because they have a mind of their own look on her face. her and the groom kept laughing at something while standing close.. maybe it was little inside jokes.. or maybe those giggles eased their nerves as they knew they were in this together. She wore a stunning dress that had a single cross strap in the back which reminded me of her.. Beautiful in a classy, simple way. No big hair, no train to china, no beading in the wrong spots or 3 veils or GLOVES. Have you ever seen 27 dresses? OR is it 23 dresses? You know, the one with my girl from greys anatomy (kat heigl) ? Remember what that guy says? WHen he says he always likes to look at the groom when he sees the bride for the first time about to come down the aisle?
I actually teared up when I was watching the groom look at his bride to be. He was beaming. Not in that.. oh i better smile for the camera snap snap frown... but a real smile. A smile WITH a gaze. A smile WITH a gaze... in that moment he realized that beautiful woman was his in holy matrimony till death do them part. It is the same look she will see when she delivers their children. When she cooks him his favorite pot roast, when she shows up at his work with their kids. Its the same gaze that will be looking at her when shes not even paying attention- dressed in her jammies and hair in a pony maybe even drooling or snoring. When she stands up for herself he will watch her, when she comforts someone he will stare. The last thing he will see before he closes his eyes for the next 100 years will forever bring that same smile to his face.
That, friends, was the look of L O V E. You cant buy it, you cant even fake it.
1 Corithians 13:13 says
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love"
Congratulations newlyweds.
(p.s raspberry vinegarette was off the charts. If my clutch was waterproof I would have tried to smuggle it home)
I had a super busy week last week. T and I had a wedding to go to and there was much to prepare for! We actually got to spend the night away from the whole crew compliments of Auntie Beth and Auntie Teri! So as a chic.. deciding on the outfit is crucial, the shoe decision heart wrenching.. not to mention the packing and organizing and repacking and the MAJOR overthinking (like did I REALLY need 4 pair of underwear for an overnight trip? Was I anticpating peeing my pants with delight or something?) THEN on THURSDAY...T tells me that he hasnt dropped his suit/shirt/tie off to the dry cleaners and I about throttled him. I actually considered it. I was like UGH!! MEN! THey just have NO idea on the preparation BOTH physical and mental that woman go thru when it comes to very special events. We think about stuff, then rethink them and change this and change that and honestly by the time we get to the event we are half drained.. they of course are raring to go cause really all they had to do was dress themselves and get in the car.
But I digress...
Have you ever been to a wedding where you look at the couple who is about to be married and just like of glance at your watch and wonder just how long that couple will be able to deal with each other? While looking at them together you just see an obvious lack of magical chemistry and wonder to yourself....is she in this for the money? the looks? the sex? ...does he consider her a trophy wife? a naive wife ..or even a 'fridays for the girlfriend, saturdays for the wife'kind of arrangement? Ive been to a couple weddings like that and just kind of end up feeling sad. What happens after the big hoo haa of the event is over? After the dress is boxed up and the flowers have all died and the event of their marriage is just a faint memory of the buffet dinner and shitty favors that were painstakenly difficult to make but mostly left behind or discarded?
The wedding T and I were at was the polar opposite of what I stated above.
It was a wedding for the times. Not one that was extremely lavish.. altho very classy and very beautiful. When the bride was being walked down the aisle by her adoring parents she had that Im so nervous but so happy-must smile for the camera but cannot control my lips because they have a mind of their own look on her face. her and the groom kept laughing at something while standing close.. maybe it was little inside jokes.. or maybe those giggles eased their nerves as they knew they were in this together. She wore a stunning dress that had a single cross strap in the back which reminded me of her.. Beautiful in a classy, simple way. No big hair, no train to china, no beading in the wrong spots or 3 veils or GLOVES. Have you ever seen 27 dresses? OR is it 23 dresses? You know, the one with my girl from greys anatomy (kat heigl) ? Remember what that guy says? WHen he says he always likes to look at the groom when he sees the bride for the first time about to come down the aisle?
I actually teared up when I was watching the groom look at his bride to be. He was beaming. Not in that.. oh i better smile for the camera snap snap frown... but a real smile. A smile WITH a gaze. A smile WITH a gaze... in that moment he realized that beautiful woman was his in holy matrimony till death do them part. It is the same look she will see when she delivers their children. When she cooks him his favorite pot roast, when she shows up at his work with their kids. Its the same gaze that will be looking at her when shes not even paying attention- dressed in her jammies and hair in a pony maybe even drooling or snoring. When she stands up for herself he will watch her, when she comforts someone he will stare. The last thing he will see before he closes his eyes for the next 100 years will forever bring that same smile to his face.
That, friends, was the look of L O V E. You cant buy it, you cant even fake it.
1 Corithians 13:13 says
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love"
Congratulations newlyweds.
(p.s raspberry vinegarette was off the charts. If my clutch was waterproof I would have tried to smuggle it home)
Sunday, August 22, 2010
The weekend sprint...lap 1..lap 2.. and zzzzz
Ok before I even get into writing this I have to say I HATE FLIES. Sadly, my 4 children, 3 of whom can open and leave open the doors of our dwelling must not because they LOVe to give them ample opportunity to enter and fly about. UGH I COULD SCREAM.
Breathing in... and out.. and in..
Moving on.
My GLORIOUS, FANTASTIC, move over butter, pass the fat free gravy, martha stewart you'd be proud weekend :) It was all that. Plus more. It was almost like I bought two great nights and I got the third great night free. Just had to pay shipping and handling :)
Friday....
Shawn and Beth came up for dinner. Brent happened to be here already so what was abotu to be another uneventful night on Breen road turned into impromptu dinner party!
YAY!
So... menu:
Steaks for the boys and kids (very good cuts not kroger garbage)
Shrimp cocktail for all (especially my 4yr old Dom who LOVES shrimp and frequently asks for them for breakfast)
Diver Scallops courtesy of my guests -yumriffic
Tasty low point feta dressing made with rice wine vinegar, 1 tbsp olive oil, oregano, pepper, garlic powder (PHENOM)
Baked potato with the fixins for the boys
Grilled corn on the cob
And we ate. Like piggys. All of us.... but yet Beth and I felt so happy when we were all done because it was a delish meal that was very low in points.
For dessert.. she brought up some of her new remake of coconut creme pie, I bought mini-eclairs which are a touch more than 1pt a piece and I also cut some bananas in half and dipped them in 32 chips of good garadhelli (spelling?) chocolate. And then I froze them... and they WERE SO GOOD.
They tasted like banana custard frozen with chocolate syrup on top. And the whole banana was only 3.5 points but that was techincally for 2 banana pops.
Bahahahahaha... we laughed in the face of that little devil who sits on our shoulder and tries to get us to cheat :) We ate awesome.. and felt awesome for making good decisions.
Round two.. ding ding ding
So Im out and about with another friend and I say something about planning on going home and making spaghetti and mentioned that her and her hubs should come up and eat with us. And whattya know.. she took me up on it! So.. came home.. whipped up some homemade sauce with half ground sirloin, half turkey, lots of onions, carrots, garlic, parsley, italian seasoning and let it bubble away for an hour or so. I also made a regular garden salad that we each could dress ourselves, and took a long leftover baguette from the night before.. sliced it long ways and made a little butter/parsley/garlic powder mixture, applied it, and popped it in the oven. When it was brown and tasty I cut it into about 1 inch slices on an angle which I felt to be about one serving.
For dessert I had some strawberries half crushed marinating and getting juicy in the fridge with some splenda.. and had picked up a sugar free angel food cake. Sugar free angel food cake is WHERE ITS AT people. For 1/5 of that big bundt looking thing the breakdown goes as follows: 100calories, 0 fat/trans fat, 7g dietary fiber.
Thats ONE point per serving. I mean you could have a GIANT piece and still itd only be 2 points. Add a cup of berries for another point and hot dog you have an amazing dessert that only tastes naughty! Add some FREE cool whip (i was out so we didnt get too)
Ok so lets say you had a crazy bad day. If you sat down and ate that ENTIRE cake and like 2 cups of mushed berries ..itd still only be 7 points. Thats INSANE! Like one piece of regular pie cut in 1.16 or 1/8 of the pie is like at least 6 points. See... its all about FOOD choices. Choices choices choices. And doesnt it seem as time goes on we are starting to make better choices?
I mean .. in reality. I had two dinner parties WITH my 4 kids home.. and they both went off without a hitch. We all ate healthy... or at least with healthy options, and took the time to enjoy the gathering for what it was. Do you feel like Im beating a dead horse about this? We are now FEEDING our souls and our minds... INSTEAD of our bellies! That friends.. is what true soul food must be.
So this friday is my little cousins wedding! Tony and I are super excited to go. We not only get to get out of the house together, and have a reason to dress up.. but we get to see two people who are truly in love and seem to be soul mates profess their love in front of God and their families. What is more beautiful than that!
I did end up finding what I think is a super cute black dress. Its black, but a patterned black fabric. The top just has a V and then under the bustline it has black shiny big beads kind of in the pattern of an asterisk. Then the bottom has the fluted material... you know where theres like a layer then another layer, then another layer down until right below the knee. Its pretty comfy and Im going to pair it with a little black arm chub coverer. I found some amazing shoes at TJ mAxx that are a high heel thats kinds of thick.. with a strap around the ankle and what looks like some balck fabric flowing down the top of my foot. Kind of the match the flowing layers of the dress. So as long as I dont fall and bust my ass I should be good to go. Tonys going to wear his black suit and green shirt/tie combo. He looks soooooooooooo good in that combination. I will try my best to not look homly as I stand next to him :)
Alright kids.. Im off to do some pushups till I cry :)
Finish line in T minus 20 minutes...
Breathing in... and out.. and in..
Moving on.
My GLORIOUS, FANTASTIC, move over butter, pass the fat free gravy, martha stewart you'd be proud weekend :) It was all that. Plus more. It was almost like I bought two great nights and I got the third great night free. Just had to pay shipping and handling :)
Friday....
Shawn and Beth came up for dinner. Brent happened to be here already so what was abotu to be another uneventful night on Breen road turned into impromptu dinner party!
YAY!
So... menu:
Steaks for the boys and kids (very good cuts not kroger garbage)
Shrimp cocktail for all (especially my 4yr old Dom who LOVES shrimp and frequently asks for them for breakfast)
Diver Scallops courtesy of my guests -yumriffic
Tasty low point feta dressing made with rice wine vinegar, 1 tbsp olive oil, oregano, pepper, garlic powder (PHENOM)
Baked potato with the fixins for the boys
Grilled corn on the cob
And we ate. Like piggys. All of us.... but yet Beth and I felt so happy when we were all done because it was a delish meal that was very low in points.
For dessert.. she brought up some of her new remake of coconut creme pie, I bought mini-eclairs which are a touch more than 1pt a piece and I also cut some bananas in half and dipped them in 32 chips of good garadhelli (spelling?) chocolate. And then I froze them... and they WERE SO GOOD.
They tasted like banana custard frozen with chocolate syrup on top. And the whole banana was only 3.5 points but that was techincally for 2 banana pops.
Bahahahahaha... we laughed in the face of that little devil who sits on our shoulder and tries to get us to cheat :) We ate awesome.. and felt awesome for making good decisions.
Round two.. ding ding ding
So Im out and about with another friend and I say something about planning on going home and making spaghetti and mentioned that her and her hubs should come up and eat with us. And whattya know.. she took me up on it! So.. came home.. whipped up some homemade sauce with half ground sirloin, half turkey, lots of onions, carrots, garlic, parsley, italian seasoning and let it bubble away for an hour or so. I also made a regular garden salad that we each could dress ourselves, and took a long leftover baguette from the night before.. sliced it long ways and made a little butter/parsley/garlic powder mixture, applied it, and popped it in the oven. When it was brown and tasty I cut it into about 1 inch slices on an angle which I felt to be about one serving.
For dessert I had some strawberries half crushed marinating and getting juicy in the fridge with some splenda.. and had picked up a sugar free angel food cake. Sugar free angel food cake is WHERE ITS AT people. For 1/5 of that big bundt looking thing the breakdown goes as follows: 100calories, 0 fat/trans fat, 7g dietary fiber.
Thats ONE point per serving. I mean you could have a GIANT piece and still itd only be 2 points. Add a cup of berries for another point and hot dog you have an amazing dessert that only tastes naughty! Add some FREE cool whip (i was out so we didnt get too)
Ok so lets say you had a crazy bad day. If you sat down and ate that ENTIRE cake and like 2 cups of mushed berries ..itd still only be 7 points. Thats INSANE! Like one piece of regular pie cut in 1.16 or 1/8 of the pie is like at least 6 points. See... its all about FOOD choices. Choices choices choices. And doesnt it seem as time goes on we are starting to make better choices?
I mean .. in reality. I had two dinner parties WITH my 4 kids home.. and they both went off without a hitch. We all ate healthy... or at least with healthy options, and took the time to enjoy the gathering for what it was. Do you feel like Im beating a dead horse about this? We are now FEEDING our souls and our minds... INSTEAD of our bellies! That friends.. is what true soul food must be.
So this friday is my little cousins wedding! Tony and I are super excited to go. We not only get to get out of the house together, and have a reason to dress up.. but we get to see two people who are truly in love and seem to be soul mates profess their love in front of God and their families. What is more beautiful than that!
I did end up finding what I think is a super cute black dress. Its black, but a patterned black fabric. The top just has a V and then under the bustline it has black shiny big beads kind of in the pattern of an asterisk. Then the bottom has the fluted material... you know where theres like a layer then another layer, then another layer down until right below the knee. Its pretty comfy and Im going to pair it with a little black arm chub coverer. I found some amazing shoes at TJ mAxx that are a high heel thats kinds of thick.. with a strap around the ankle and what looks like some balck fabric flowing down the top of my foot. Kind of the match the flowing layers of the dress. So as long as I dont fall and bust my ass I should be good to go. Tonys going to wear his black suit and green shirt/tie combo. He looks soooooooooooo good in that combination. I will try my best to not look homly as I stand next to him :)
Alright kids.. Im off to do some pushups till I cry :)
Finish line in T minus 20 minutes...
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Lawash or lavash...either way- I like it :)
Ok.. so I picked up some whole wheat lawash at the local Krog. Came out to 2 points for the wrap which isnt too bad even tho I thought it might be one. Tonight I filled it up with 4oz ff turkey lunchmeat, a tomato, some romaine lettuce, mustard and a swab of wasabi. It was delightful!
I figure it was about 4 points for the whole sandwich with the fixins and coupled with a cup of baby carrots it was very filling and very good.
My friend and copartner on this journey the other day made a very low point (5) remake of a coconut creme pie. She said it was magnificent!
Im going to attempt the same thing with a banana creme pie possibly for my holiday party coming up. I find it addicting, and very satisfying to take a recipe and tweak it any way I can to make it lower in points. After all..the more points I save there.. I can spend else where :)
I took the babysitter out to lunch today because she leaves for college tomorrow :(
Im super excited for her to start up her junior year.. but sad because the kids and I will miss her! Anywho... she chose chinese and I was unprepared but I think I did ok.
I chose a cup of egg drop soup
Szhrimp with veggies with no oil
white rice
It came with an egg roll too
I know.. drumroll.
So I scraped off most of the sauce anyway..ate about a cup of shrimp and veggies.
2 forks of rice
TOTALLY skipped the eggroll.
I know! I even cut it open and sauced it up...and I know its around 5 points for that and I had only used 3 points for brekkie on an egg white omelet with tomato and onion. But then I smelled it and kind of squeezed it and I ended up not being very impressed with it. Weight watchers must be getting into my bones because I love me an eggroll. I also love sesame ckn, general ckn, seafood fried rice and the list goes on and on. I actually worked in a chinese restaurant for awhile in college!
Maybe its the stuff that starts to develop once youre completely in this 100percent. Maybe we CAN enjoy treats out to lunch and dinner in SUPER moderation. Maybe we can enjoy the dinner date for the conversation and night out that it actually is. Coco and I had a great conversation...and I actually felt a little bit of victory when on my way home my stomach actually growled. It was almost if it was telling me... hey- good choices in the fried chinese, sauce covered world.. Ive already burnt up what you ate and now Im off to burn your chubb for energy.
Well one can always hope :)
Tomorrow its fiber one pancakes (I found boxes of the buttermilk kind on clearance for 1.00 today) and turkey sausage for brekkie. Ill probably have 2 pancakes or 3 litle ones and 1 sausage.
Lunch will be another lawash or lavash or whatever its called.. a wrap made of clouds and turkey and the fixins... and a serving of baked kettle chips. They are actually 20 chips for 2 points!! And they are very very good. You still get the flavor of the oh so good regular chips.. but on a thicker baked chip. Bravo Kettle chips... Bravo!
Snack.. 1pt jolly time kettle corn (my popcorn crush)
Other snack...homemade pico dipped up with peppers
Din din.... oh my.. i TOTALLY forgot to tell you what you HAVE to buy at Kroger this week:
Honeysuckle...turkey tenderloins 9.99 each but they are Buy 1, Get one FREE this week! Thats 5 bucks each and they are pretty hardy. I grilled two of them yesterday because I wasnt sure how far they would go and we had one whole one left over for today.. they were very juicy, very tasty...and low in points. I tried the rotisserie flavor and italian seasoning flavor yesterday. I avoided the teriayki.
I most definitely will be going back there this weekend and buying 5 more ..getting 5 free and throwing them in the deep freeze. I happened to have $1 off any honeysuckle coupon and you can use 1 each even for the free one so I will end up paying 40 bucks for 10. Sounds like alot but thats meat for 10 meals so once a week for 2 months and if I couple it with low cost or free side dishes.. it will make for a low cost meal.
2nd.. kroger carrots... are on for 10/10
I love these as a snack and grabbed up 5 bags the other day.
I also bought two bags of baby spinach that were reduced to .34 EACH
3 bags of romaine lettuce reduced to .64 each
All still with a week to expire and trust me they will be LONG gone before then
Quaker quakes on for a buck a bag if you buy 8.
SO...this is what I did yesterday. I started out with a coupon for $2 off 5 General mills cereals. They are on for 1.48 each if you buy 8 products (various products)
5 cereals @ 1.48 each = 7.40
3 bags of quakes @ .99/each= 2.97
Total..10.37 MINUS the $2 off coupon so total: 8.37 for 5 boxes cereal and 3 bags quakes. THEN for an added bonus for you mommies out there:
The coupon printer at the register (catalina machine) printed out ANOTHER $2 off 5 general mills cereal coupon AND a code for 10 BONUS boxtops!! I was thrilled!!
Ill be rolling that deal till the cows come home next time I go. Will probably spend about 25 bucks and end up with 15 boxes cereal and 9 more bags quakes and lots of BTFE's!
I know. Some of you are gasping and saying 20 boxes of cereal! WTF! Is she crazy??
Poss
But more likely.. just trying to save when i can :)
If we choose to all eat cereal for breakfast (which in a few short weeks will be what Anthony will get alot of mornings before school) then we can finish a box off no problem. They dont make those boxes very big anymore.. its like 6 bowls and the box is empty.. or you are lucky if you even get 6 bowls!
Speaking of cereal.. also had cascadian organic cereal for kids on sale 2.49 and most had $1 off coupons stuck on them so I picked up a few of those for a 1.50 which is pretty good deal for anything organic.
Guess itd be safe to say Im all stocked on cereal for the next couple months :)
I SOOOO need a good spaghetti sauce deal! I can actually see the back wall behind the sauce :)Might have to buy a bushel of maters and can some of my own.
Just kidding.
I may be domesticated but all that screams to me is 3rd degree burns and stained tile and countertop :)
Ill leave that up to bev and snag a few jars :)
I did make lots of SF jam tho! So im getting there :)
Speaking of domesticated and becoming a farm mother.. my husband wants to get a mini-goat.
More to come about the Great Goat Debate...
I figure it was about 4 points for the whole sandwich with the fixins and coupled with a cup of baby carrots it was very filling and very good.
My friend and copartner on this journey the other day made a very low point (5) remake of a coconut creme pie. She said it was magnificent!
Im going to attempt the same thing with a banana creme pie possibly for my holiday party coming up. I find it addicting, and very satisfying to take a recipe and tweak it any way I can to make it lower in points. After all..the more points I save there.. I can spend else where :)
I took the babysitter out to lunch today because she leaves for college tomorrow :(
Im super excited for her to start up her junior year.. but sad because the kids and I will miss her! Anywho... she chose chinese and I was unprepared but I think I did ok.
I chose a cup of egg drop soup
Szhrimp with veggies with no oil
white rice
It came with an egg roll too
I know.. drumroll.
So I scraped off most of the sauce anyway..ate about a cup of shrimp and veggies.
2 forks of rice
TOTALLY skipped the eggroll.
I know! I even cut it open and sauced it up...and I know its around 5 points for that and I had only used 3 points for brekkie on an egg white omelet with tomato and onion. But then I smelled it and kind of squeezed it and I ended up not being very impressed with it. Weight watchers must be getting into my bones because I love me an eggroll. I also love sesame ckn, general ckn, seafood fried rice and the list goes on and on. I actually worked in a chinese restaurant for awhile in college!
Maybe its the stuff that starts to develop once youre completely in this 100percent. Maybe we CAN enjoy treats out to lunch and dinner in SUPER moderation. Maybe we can enjoy the dinner date for the conversation and night out that it actually is. Coco and I had a great conversation...and I actually felt a little bit of victory when on my way home my stomach actually growled. It was almost if it was telling me... hey- good choices in the fried chinese, sauce covered world.. Ive already burnt up what you ate and now Im off to burn your chubb for energy.
Well one can always hope :)
Tomorrow its fiber one pancakes (I found boxes of the buttermilk kind on clearance for 1.00 today) and turkey sausage for brekkie. Ill probably have 2 pancakes or 3 litle ones and 1 sausage.
Lunch will be another lawash or lavash or whatever its called.. a wrap made of clouds and turkey and the fixins... and a serving of baked kettle chips. They are actually 20 chips for 2 points!! And they are very very good. You still get the flavor of the oh so good regular chips.. but on a thicker baked chip. Bravo Kettle chips... Bravo!
Snack.. 1pt jolly time kettle corn (my popcorn crush)
Other snack...homemade pico dipped up with peppers
Din din.... oh my.. i TOTALLY forgot to tell you what you HAVE to buy at Kroger this week:
Honeysuckle...turkey tenderloins 9.99 each but they are Buy 1, Get one FREE this week! Thats 5 bucks each and they are pretty hardy. I grilled two of them yesterday because I wasnt sure how far they would go and we had one whole one left over for today.. they were very juicy, very tasty...and low in points. I tried the rotisserie flavor and italian seasoning flavor yesterday. I avoided the teriayki.
I most definitely will be going back there this weekend and buying 5 more ..getting 5 free and throwing them in the deep freeze. I happened to have $1 off any honeysuckle coupon and you can use 1 each even for the free one so I will end up paying 40 bucks for 10. Sounds like alot but thats meat for 10 meals so once a week for 2 months and if I couple it with low cost or free side dishes.. it will make for a low cost meal.
2nd.. kroger carrots... are on for 10/10
I love these as a snack and grabbed up 5 bags the other day.
I also bought two bags of baby spinach that were reduced to .34 EACH
3 bags of romaine lettuce reduced to .64 each
All still with a week to expire and trust me they will be LONG gone before then
Quaker quakes on for a buck a bag if you buy 8.
SO...this is what I did yesterday. I started out with a coupon for $2 off 5 General mills cereals. They are on for 1.48 each if you buy 8 products (various products)
5 cereals @ 1.48 each = 7.40
3 bags of quakes @ .99/each= 2.97
Total..10.37 MINUS the $2 off coupon so total: 8.37 for 5 boxes cereal and 3 bags quakes. THEN for an added bonus for you mommies out there:
The coupon printer at the register (catalina machine) printed out ANOTHER $2 off 5 general mills cereal coupon AND a code for 10 BONUS boxtops!! I was thrilled!!
Ill be rolling that deal till the cows come home next time I go. Will probably spend about 25 bucks and end up with 15 boxes cereal and 9 more bags quakes and lots of BTFE's!
I know. Some of you are gasping and saying 20 boxes of cereal! WTF! Is she crazy??
Poss
But more likely.. just trying to save when i can :)
If we choose to all eat cereal for breakfast (which in a few short weeks will be what Anthony will get alot of mornings before school) then we can finish a box off no problem. They dont make those boxes very big anymore.. its like 6 bowls and the box is empty.. or you are lucky if you even get 6 bowls!
Speaking of cereal.. also had cascadian organic cereal for kids on sale 2.49 and most had $1 off coupons stuck on them so I picked up a few of those for a 1.50 which is pretty good deal for anything organic.
Guess itd be safe to say Im all stocked on cereal for the next couple months :)
I SOOOO need a good spaghetti sauce deal! I can actually see the back wall behind the sauce :)Might have to buy a bushel of maters and can some of my own.
Just kidding.
I may be domesticated but all that screams to me is 3rd degree burns and stained tile and countertop :)
Ill leave that up to bev and snag a few jars :)
I did make lots of SF jam tho! So im getting there :)
Speaking of domesticated and becoming a farm mother.. my husband wants to get a mini-goat.
More to come about the Great Goat Debate...
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
4th times the charm..
Ive tried to write this blog four times.. Its been like a beehive here in my house. Things go in these WaVeS during the day... sometimes we are all entertained and preoccupied, and other times I am pulling apart two or three of the boys because they are in all out brawl mode over an incredible hulk toy.
Ive had a great couple of days tho.
I was down another pound yesterday and this morning when I got on the scale again just because Im a glutton for punishment.. I was down another 1.6 pounds. But Im only taking the one pound for the loss for this week and will hope for a HUGE week next monday. I had a snacky bad, temptation filled weeked. I used up a ton of points on friday with some cheese, a coney dog and an ice cream cone. Saturday I stayed within my points but 12 of them were used on pizza. Sunday we went out to brekkie and I had an awesome egg white omelette with onions ad tomatoes and felt fine. When 4 o'clock rolled around I just wanted to eat everything in the whole house. The problem was that I COULDNT FIND anything that was junky! I ended up eating a tablespoon of peanut butter right out of the jar and taking the 10 points for it. It did the trick. But I wasnt understanding why all of a sudden Id been wanting to eat junky food? Id been so dedicated and motivated for 7 weeks now. I have NEVER cheated one time before then, nor had I even touched my weekly 25 extra points. Not once. So I dont know if it all came crashing down on me and I started to go off track with my thinking and my rationalizing or what not.
But I am HAPPY AS HELL that its all over :)
Must have shook it all out of my system cause yesterday I was mortified that I ate a coney dog and followed it down with some ice cream. To be perfectly honest, I got a coney dog and fries. I ate the dog and it was yum. I had about 2 fries and they werent doing the trick so I went over and bought an ice cream and some onion rings. I ate 3 small onion rings (they were delicious but I wasnt even enjoying them). The small ice cream cone I did eat up and I cant lie.. it was really good. A couple hours before that I had eaten some cheese and some turkey jerky. IT really was a hot mess of a day.. but looking back I think if I added up all my daily points and my weekly bonus points that I was still within range. Over the weekend I also ate alot of smoked salmon as the main part of a couple meals. Not like pounds of it but 4-5 oz a meal. It was sooooo good- but it is sooooo salty. By sunday night i couldnt even pull my wedding ring off. I must have been retaining fluid like a porpoise. It was GROSS.
But all in all. I learned my lesson. I have to allow myself to use a few of the extra points here and there if I want to. If I dont and I am this crazy strict girl.. I will end up binging and going a bit off the deep end. Lesson learned.
I actually felt ill friday night and had heart burn all wekend from the shitty food.
When I got on the scale yesterday I was disappointed in my loss because I knew it could have been more if I hadnt eaten a bunch of salty yuck. This week I am cutting out anything other than water to drink or water/lemon. Im also upping the exercise to twice a day AND the killer stuff Tony makes me do. Its sucks while Im doing it but then Im so happy afterward. Kind of the EXACT opposite that I am with food.. happy while Im eating junky but then it sucks after- Hmmm... how profound!
So I drank like 3 L of water yesterday and did my handy dandy exercise and low and behold today Im down another 1.6 pounds. I bet that was 1.6 pounds of water bloaty bloat from the smoked fish and other salt laden weekend choices.
Lest ye learn from my shortcomings!
Hope I learn from my shortcomings too....
Ive had a great couple of days tho.
I was down another pound yesterday and this morning when I got on the scale again just because Im a glutton for punishment.. I was down another 1.6 pounds. But Im only taking the one pound for the loss for this week and will hope for a HUGE week next monday. I had a snacky bad, temptation filled weeked. I used up a ton of points on friday with some cheese, a coney dog and an ice cream cone. Saturday I stayed within my points but 12 of them were used on pizza. Sunday we went out to brekkie and I had an awesome egg white omelette with onions ad tomatoes and felt fine. When 4 o'clock rolled around I just wanted to eat everything in the whole house. The problem was that I COULDNT FIND anything that was junky! I ended up eating a tablespoon of peanut butter right out of the jar and taking the 10 points for it. It did the trick. But I wasnt understanding why all of a sudden Id been wanting to eat junky food? Id been so dedicated and motivated for 7 weeks now. I have NEVER cheated one time before then, nor had I even touched my weekly 25 extra points. Not once. So I dont know if it all came crashing down on me and I started to go off track with my thinking and my rationalizing or what not.
But I am HAPPY AS HELL that its all over :)
Must have shook it all out of my system cause yesterday I was mortified that I ate a coney dog and followed it down with some ice cream. To be perfectly honest, I got a coney dog and fries. I ate the dog and it was yum. I had about 2 fries and they werent doing the trick so I went over and bought an ice cream and some onion rings. I ate 3 small onion rings (they were delicious but I wasnt even enjoying them). The small ice cream cone I did eat up and I cant lie.. it was really good. A couple hours before that I had eaten some cheese and some turkey jerky. IT really was a hot mess of a day.. but looking back I think if I added up all my daily points and my weekly bonus points that I was still within range. Over the weekend I also ate alot of smoked salmon as the main part of a couple meals. Not like pounds of it but 4-5 oz a meal. It was sooooo good- but it is sooooo salty. By sunday night i couldnt even pull my wedding ring off. I must have been retaining fluid like a porpoise. It was GROSS.
But all in all. I learned my lesson. I have to allow myself to use a few of the extra points here and there if I want to. If I dont and I am this crazy strict girl.. I will end up binging and going a bit off the deep end. Lesson learned.
I actually felt ill friday night and had heart burn all wekend from the shitty food.
When I got on the scale yesterday I was disappointed in my loss because I knew it could have been more if I hadnt eaten a bunch of salty yuck. This week I am cutting out anything other than water to drink or water/lemon. Im also upping the exercise to twice a day AND the killer stuff Tony makes me do. Its sucks while Im doing it but then Im so happy afterward. Kind of the EXACT opposite that I am with food.. happy while Im eating junky but then it sucks after- Hmmm... how profound!
So I drank like 3 L of water yesterday and did my handy dandy exercise and low and behold today Im down another 1.6 pounds. I bet that was 1.6 pounds of water bloaty bloat from the smoked fish and other salt laden weekend choices.
Lest ye learn from my shortcomings!
Hope I learn from my shortcomings too....
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Rain, rain go away...
Ugh.
Its raining out. We were just about to load up and leave to hit the fair and it started to pour. I guess its better that it started before we got out and paid the mint to park and for the ride bracelets and such. I starved the whole day so I could eat half an elephant ear! I figured out that a whole one would be 20 points.. so half would be 10 and itd be sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo worth it. Guess thats a tiny sign from the Big Man to not use 10 points on something so terribly delicious. Oh well.. theres always next year.
I'll be honest, I sort of feel like Ive hit a rut. Kind of felt like Ive had the same rain cloud over my head that I can see over my yard. In the last couple days Ive had things happen that have filled up my head and body with anxiety. I used to have alot of problems with anxiety. When I was a junior in college.. I barely left my apartment but to go to class and to come home. In retrospect I probably had some social anxiety disorder mostly caused by weight gain and super low self esteem. Within the first 10 minutes of any class I had Id be all sweating and nervous that somehow attention would be called on me. When I had to give presentations Id just about hyperventilate thinking about it. But when I was up there, as long as I knew what i was talking about.. I was fine. It was just the lead up time that would freak my freak out. Delayed confidence? Is there anything more messed up than that...
Sad, really. Probably should have talked to someone about it instead of letting it wreak havoc on my life. But then I would have been putting myself out there and as we ALL know.. who the hell wants to do that? I was in a bad relationship as icing on that cake and all in all that year was an epic failure.
So in the last couple days when I felt a twinge of those weird feelings I talked it out with Tony. I am not brave enough to take on stress and anxiety by myself yet. I am too weak.
Also.. as a side note. Throughout my many years of growing up and being fat for the last 10 years or so I just wanted to address comments/situations Ive heard or been in so then I can grow past them and not let them bother me anymore. Its all part of the healing process right? After all..this is an honest journal of what I feel and what I do.. if you hate it.. please dont read it. If youre going to read it and then be talking negatively about it... pass on reading it. If youre read it and you disagree/hate/love/question something I post about... call me out on it.. ask me/grill me/interrogate me. But do it to me. Not your neighbor, or your friend.. or someone else. You are all ALLOWED to hate this and think Im searching for attention, reaching for popularity, or venting about nonsense. Youre entitled to your opinion. I am searching for success in a weight loss journey, and hoping to FIND myself along the way.
Going on..
I find out when people say "Oh... she has such a beautiful face." Nothing says wow is she getting fat other than that statement.
I hear about it when you tell someone "She really needs to lose some weight.. or last time I saw Bre.. she has gotten bigger"
It gets back to me when you think things I do are intentionally to spite someone or because Im being selfish. I never have that agenda. If that is how it comes off... then its being read in a TOTALLY wrong way. If you really knew me .. youd know Im a horrible, obsessive PLEASER and I will obsess long and hard about something or someone if I think they are upset or annoyed with me and especially if I KNOW they had been talking shit. Just yesterday I had to call my mom back because when I talked to my dad I thought he sounded a bit offish and that maybe he was mad at something that I had said or did. Not until I got her confirmation that he was not upset was I ok. And I know.. Im sure all of you are looking in your local phone book for the crazy house so they can come pick me up :) I try to not worry and anguish over other peoples opinions and views about me but I cant. Its so deply rooted in my psyche that I will always be like this.
Next. If it is christmas can you please not buy me a diet book. For 4 years, my mother-in-law bought me 3-5 diet books each christmas as my whole gift. Even when I was pregnant. I KNEW I was fat. Its not like we dont know. But please, dont gift me diet books or big boxes of 100 calorie snacks. The throw up gets right to the top of my throat when I have to open those in front of other people. I had to address that- even tho we dont have to be around my mother-in-law ever at holidays anymore.. but maybe it will help someone else not buy diet books or snacks and horrify the shit out of someone. (i actually liked the snacks but maybe not to open them in front of everyone like a huge siren that was screaming HERES A GOOD SNACK CHUBBS)
4thly or 5thly as Ive lost count.
Guess what. talking about me behind my back doesnt really end up making me look bad. It wont help me lose weight, it wont help me to realize I need to make better decisions, it wont inspire me to get healthy so I can live longer. When I find out that youve said these things through various channels.. and there are lots of people out there that do this(this isnt directed at anyone inparticular).. all it does is crush my self-esteem and make me want to eat. SO if you want me to be an overweight, miserable, faking the happy through the days girl, keep on keepin on. But, if you want me to be successful in this life changing journey, and in life in general then--- email me a WW recipe, or post on my fb wall that you see what Im doing and have tried a recipe or fat cutting trick that Ive posted. Maybe youve couponed a bit more or looked for the best price. If you talk to my mom and dad.. maybe you'd make their day and say a positive comment about me. And guess what? Id be eternally grateful that for once in my life I would have HAD your APPROVAL instead of knowing you scoff at me behind my back and love to pounce on any thing bad you can say about me.
Your approval is important to me too. I do not live my life to be disliked by the masses. Potentially the best I can do isnt good enough and youd be horrified if your children or relatives or potential children acted like me. Be that as it may.. I can only be me. Sooner or later Im going to have to learn to love me and accept me and keep on trying to make me be the best me I can be. I may not deserve your approval.. but I would like to earn it. That is the best I can do.
Im working on getting that 10yr old dark rain cloud to float away. Your donations of sunshine are so greatly appreciated. They not only enrich my life, but help me through the days that the overcast moves in and that I feel a little down. For the first time in a long time... I can see the edges of that cloud and I know its shrinking little by little, day by day.
One day..Im gonna wake up and *Poof* its just gonna be clear skies from here on out.
Its raining out. We were just about to load up and leave to hit the fair and it started to pour. I guess its better that it started before we got out and paid the mint to park and for the ride bracelets and such. I starved the whole day so I could eat half an elephant ear! I figured out that a whole one would be 20 points.. so half would be 10 and itd be sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo worth it. Guess thats a tiny sign from the Big Man to not use 10 points on something so terribly delicious. Oh well.. theres always next year.
I'll be honest, I sort of feel like Ive hit a rut. Kind of felt like Ive had the same rain cloud over my head that I can see over my yard. In the last couple days Ive had things happen that have filled up my head and body with anxiety. I used to have alot of problems with anxiety. When I was a junior in college.. I barely left my apartment but to go to class and to come home. In retrospect I probably had some social anxiety disorder mostly caused by weight gain and super low self esteem. Within the first 10 minutes of any class I had Id be all sweating and nervous that somehow attention would be called on me. When I had to give presentations Id just about hyperventilate thinking about it. But when I was up there, as long as I knew what i was talking about.. I was fine. It was just the lead up time that would freak my freak out. Delayed confidence? Is there anything more messed up than that...
Sad, really. Probably should have talked to someone about it instead of letting it wreak havoc on my life. But then I would have been putting myself out there and as we ALL know.. who the hell wants to do that? I was in a bad relationship as icing on that cake and all in all that year was an epic failure.
So in the last couple days when I felt a twinge of those weird feelings I talked it out with Tony. I am not brave enough to take on stress and anxiety by myself yet. I am too weak.
Also.. as a side note. Throughout my many years of growing up and being fat for the last 10 years or so I just wanted to address comments/situations Ive heard or been in so then I can grow past them and not let them bother me anymore. Its all part of the healing process right? After all..this is an honest journal of what I feel and what I do.. if you hate it.. please dont read it. If youre going to read it and then be talking negatively about it... pass on reading it. If youre read it and you disagree/hate/love/question something I post about... call me out on it.. ask me/grill me/interrogate me. But do it to me. Not your neighbor, or your friend.. or someone else. You are all ALLOWED to hate this and think Im searching for attention, reaching for popularity, or venting about nonsense. Youre entitled to your opinion. I am searching for success in a weight loss journey, and hoping to FIND myself along the way.
Going on..
I find out when people say "Oh... she has such a beautiful face." Nothing says wow is she getting fat other than that statement.
I hear about it when you tell someone "She really needs to lose some weight.. or last time I saw Bre.. she has gotten bigger"
It gets back to me when you think things I do are intentionally to spite someone or because Im being selfish. I never have that agenda. If that is how it comes off... then its being read in a TOTALLY wrong way. If you really knew me .. youd know Im a horrible, obsessive PLEASER and I will obsess long and hard about something or someone if I think they are upset or annoyed with me and especially if I KNOW they had been talking shit. Just yesterday I had to call my mom back because when I talked to my dad I thought he sounded a bit offish and that maybe he was mad at something that I had said or did. Not until I got her confirmation that he was not upset was I ok. And I know.. Im sure all of you are looking in your local phone book for the crazy house so they can come pick me up :) I try to not worry and anguish over other peoples opinions and views about me but I cant. Its so deply rooted in my psyche that I will always be like this.
Next. If it is christmas can you please not buy me a diet book. For 4 years, my mother-in-law bought me 3-5 diet books each christmas as my whole gift. Even when I was pregnant. I KNEW I was fat. Its not like we dont know. But please, dont gift me diet books or big boxes of 100 calorie snacks. The throw up gets right to the top of my throat when I have to open those in front of other people. I had to address that- even tho we dont have to be around my mother-in-law ever at holidays anymore.. but maybe it will help someone else not buy diet books or snacks and horrify the shit out of someone. (i actually liked the snacks but maybe not to open them in front of everyone like a huge siren that was screaming HERES A GOOD SNACK CHUBBS)
4thly or 5thly as Ive lost count.
Guess what. talking about me behind my back doesnt really end up making me look bad. It wont help me lose weight, it wont help me to realize I need to make better decisions, it wont inspire me to get healthy so I can live longer. When I find out that youve said these things through various channels.. and there are lots of people out there that do this(this isnt directed at anyone inparticular).. all it does is crush my self-esteem and make me want to eat. SO if you want me to be an overweight, miserable, faking the happy through the days girl, keep on keepin on. But, if you want me to be successful in this life changing journey, and in life in general then--- email me a WW recipe, or post on my fb wall that you see what Im doing and have tried a recipe or fat cutting trick that Ive posted. Maybe youve couponed a bit more or looked for the best price. If you talk to my mom and dad.. maybe you'd make their day and say a positive comment about me. And guess what? Id be eternally grateful that for once in my life I would have HAD your APPROVAL instead of knowing you scoff at me behind my back and love to pounce on any thing bad you can say about me.
Your approval is important to me too. I do not live my life to be disliked by the masses. Potentially the best I can do isnt good enough and youd be horrified if your children or relatives or potential children acted like me. Be that as it may.. I can only be me. Sooner or later Im going to have to learn to love me and accept me and keep on trying to make me be the best me I can be. I may not deserve your approval.. but I would like to earn it. That is the best I can do.
Im working on getting that 10yr old dark rain cloud to float away. Your donations of sunshine are so greatly appreciated. They not only enrich my life, but help me through the days that the overcast moves in and that I feel a little down. For the first time in a long time... I can see the edges of that cloud and I know its shrinking little by little, day by day.
One day..Im gonna wake up and *Poof* its just gonna be clear skies from here on out.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Friends....
Make them.
Treasure them.
Appreciate the ones who ARE ALWAYS THERE FOR YOU.
Rekindle old friendships that have dimmed over time.
Talk to someone that you dont really know.
Ask someone to tell you something youd never know about them.
Adore your friendships as if they were blood bonds- sometimes they are stronger.
This isnt highschool anymore people. You are FREE to be friends with whomever you wish. Ever look back at highschool and realized that the people who were so cool and so hot and who youd die to hangout with/date/be bffs with...are now still living with their mom and dad? Working at the local taco bell serving up some cinnamon twists and sides of pinto beans? Remember when they made you feel like you want to disappear because you were so insignificant in their major world of popularity and fame?
Sad.
I dont have sisters or brothers.. so my friends mean that to me. I have made friends with people who I havent even known since I was in 1st grade and we have and we will make bonds that will not be broken.
Its an HONOR to be considered someone else's friend. I cherish the position, I relish in it.. and I strive to be the best at it I can be.
I know.
Stop soap boxing Bre.
Im done :)
More to come tomorrow..
Treasure them.
Appreciate the ones who ARE ALWAYS THERE FOR YOU.
Rekindle old friendships that have dimmed over time.
Talk to someone that you dont really know.
Ask someone to tell you something youd never know about them.
Adore your friendships as if they were blood bonds- sometimes they are stronger.
This isnt highschool anymore people. You are FREE to be friends with whomever you wish. Ever look back at highschool and realized that the people who were so cool and so hot and who youd die to hangout with/date/be bffs with...are now still living with their mom and dad? Working at the local taco bell serving up some cinnamon twists and sides of pinto beans? Remember when they made you feel like you want to disappear because you were so insignificant in their major world of popularity and fame?
Sad.
I dont have sisters or brothers.. so my friends mean that to me. I have made friends with people who I havent even known since I was in 1st grade and we have and we will make bonds that will not be broken.
Its an HONOR to be considered someone else's friend. I cherish the position, I relish in it.. and I strive to be the best at it I can be.
I know.
Stop soap boxing Bre.
Im done :)
More to come tomorrow..
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Shaq is a very large man...
Wow.
If you're a mom.. imagine pushing that head out. I wonder if he was the size of a 2 year old when he was born? How much can/does that man eat in a day? Its not even like hes hugely overweight. Hes just a beast among men. I'm watching him on VS Shaq right now and I'm just wondering if the opponents he gets to take on are secretly soiling their boxing shorts. Fighting an unknown opponent is scary enough. Fighting an unknown opponent who looks like Shaq would be even more intimidating.
Which brings me in a weird sorta way to my latest point. What does dieting possess that makes it so scary to us? So intimidating? So scaredy chicken to jump into something head first even though we KNOW what the outcome will be? We know if we intake less than we output then the pounds will come off. That's just math. Or physics? Or chemistry? Either curriculum, now that I'm doing this dang thing I sometimes wonder.
In all honesty before I started this I was admittedly very well versed in many aspects of diet and nutrition. I KNEW about the point system for WW and alot of values for different foods. I know how to do atkins, South beach, and count calories and fat. I knew what the healthy foods were.
It was because I was afraid of having to make GOOD and SOUND choices that I would continuously have a new excuse why I couldn't start my journey THEN, right then. Not next week, or next Monday , or after the next holiday. I was scared of the commitment and the hard work and frickin effort that it TAKES to be successful at this. Sad, isnt it? that I would have rather woke up every day with the burden of being overweight as opposed to just jumping up and doing something about it?
So today, I raise my Crystal Light filled glass in cheers to conquering fears...facing our doubts and motivating our bodies to be what we want them to be. I may never be a size 5 or have legs that go all the way up to there. But that doesn't scare me. What I will have is my confidence back, my energy, possibly my self-esteem, and most importantly, the love. The love for myself just for who I am. You know, who we all are on the inside. Which is what matters. It'll just be wrapped up in a healthier, lighter, more spirited packaging :)
This diet and lifestyle change is quite similar to that professional athlete taking on Shaq. He doesn't know the outcome...he doesn't know if it will be an epic failure. But he does his research, sticks to his game plan, practices his skills daily... and more times than not he is able to defeat a gargantuan man--- because in this arena it is OUR game.. OUR life..and OUR success. My WW plan is my method of attack VS the Shaq of the fattening food choice world.
Bring it.
If you're a mom.. imagine pushing that head out. I wonder if he was the size of a 2 year old when he was born? How much can/does that man eat in a day? Its not even like hes hugely overweight. Hes just a beast among men. I'm watching him on VS Shaq right now and I'm just wondering if the opponents he gets to take on are secretly soiling their boxing shorts. Fighting an unknown opponent is scary enough. Fighting an unknown opponent who looks like Shaq would be even more intimidating.
Which brings me in a weird sorta way to my latest point. What does dieting possess that makes it so scary to us? So intimidating? So scaredy chicken to jump into something head first even though we KNOW what the outcome will be? We know if we intake less than we output then the pounds will come off. That's just math. Or physics? Or chemistry? Either curriculum, now that I'm doing this dang thing I sometimes wonder.
In all honesty before I started this I was admittedly very well versed in many aspects of diet and nutrition. I KNEW about the point system for WW and alot of values for different foods. I know how to do atkins, South beach, and count calories and fat. I knew what the healthy foods were.
It was because I was afraid of having to make GOOD and SOUND choices that I would continuously have a new excuse why I couldn't start my journey THEN, right then. Not next week, or next Monday , or after the next holiday. I was scared of the commitment and the hard work and frickin effort that it TAKES to be successful at this. Sad, isnt it? that I would have rather woke up every day with the burden of being overweight as opposed to just jumping up and doing something about it?
So today, I raise my Crystal Light filled glass in cheers to conquering fears...facing our doubts and motivating our bodies to be what we want them to be. I may never be a size 5 or have legs that go all the way up to there. But that doesn't scare me. What I will have is my confidence back, my energy, possibly my self-esteem, and most importantly, the love. The love for myself just for who I am. You know, who we all are on the inside. Which is what matters. It'll just be wrapped up in a healthier, lighter, more spirited packaging :)
This diet and lifestyle change is quite similar to that professional athlete taking on Shaq. He doesn't know the outcome...he doesn't know if it will be an epic failure. But he does his research, sticks to his game plan, practices his skills daily... and more times than not he is able to defeat a gargantuan man--- because in this arena it is OUR game.. OUR life..and OUR success. My WW plan is my method of attack VS the Shaq of the fattening food choice world.
Bring it.
Hello Hello.
Long time no see.
It was a hectic weekend. Check that. It was a hectic week!
We had a couple birthday dinners out, a Tigers game to attend and a mens night raffle. Time consuming, super fun.. alot of driving and ALOT of temptation.
And trust me.. after last week I really could have buckled. Mother nature was due and I was getting hungrier than normal. Plus sitting next to your peers and watching them eat a huge and amazing looking pile of nachos is pretty much all it takes to want some of those. I actually watched a friends boyfriend take a chip, dip it in liquid cheese delight, dip it in salsa, put a jalapeno on it and eat it. And i watched him do that like 20 times. He probably thought I had a mental problem or something cause I was watching him and I was just thinking about how tasty those would be, but how they were probably a zillion points and in the end I decided it just wasnt worth it. That doesnt mean I didnt WANT them.. But watching him gave me enough satisfaction to enjoy my handful of peanuts and diet pop. I skipped the hot dog and other delights and actually ENDED up with 3 points that day.
When yesterday rolled around I was pleased that I had chosen that route because the scale showed a 3lb loss. Now granted, I would have enjoyed the pizza or dogs or nachoes or ice cream in the MOMENT...but when scale time came yesterday I would have been upset. I chose to get my joy from the excitement and from the enjoyment of the company of my friends and that dear friends.. is fat and calorie free.
I did go ahead and get some f/f turkey dogs and 1 pt buns and had 2 for dinner last night. The kids love to eat them sans bun and they are a quick and portable snack.
2 dogs and 2 buns = 4 points. I loaded them up with mustard and a touch of ketchup a couple onion squares and it was delish.
Todays menu:
For brekkie the kids had half scrambled eggs and egg whites and one piece of whole wheat toast with spray butter or low sugar jam. And a banana. I had a smart one breakfast quesadilla for 4 pts. I know I could have eaten the scramble with them but we only had 8 eggs left and once you drain the whites out of 4 it didnt make much.
For a snack they had a piece of string cheese and a couple all-bran crackers.
For lunch which is in a few:
A high fiber, low cal, low fat tortilla
Fat free refried beans
fat free cheese
Some jacks special salsa
Might have some mandarin oranges (low sugar)
Or juice
For Dinner:
Hm....
Might do the hot dog thing again but throw them on the grill. Its so nice out that I hate to turn the oven on and heat the house up. I do have some tasty corn on the cob and thatd be yumriffic with that and maybe some roasted cherry tomatoes.
Well Im glad, as usual, that Im back to writing when I get a 3 minute break. I just figured out dinner and sometimes I am stuck thinking about it over and over until I think its something that everyone will enjoy.
Later on this week we are taking the kids to the fair and this weekend Elliana and Dominic are going up to Gigi and Papa's. My mom called out of the blue yesterday and 2 of the kids are now THRILLED and Im not telling the other two until we are about to leave.. Ill save the devastation until friday :) Sharing gigi?? Its a tough thing for a 3yr old to understand!
ALright.. more to come later. I have alot on my mind and I'll unload it all for your reading delight.
Lets all make good choices today :)
It was a hectic weekend. Check that. It was a hectic week!
We had a couple birthday dinners out, a Tigers game to attend and a mens night raffle. Time consuming, super fun.. alot of driving and ALOT of temptation.
And trust me.. after last week I really could have buckled. Mother nature was due and I was getting hungrier than normal. Plus sitting next to your peers and watching them eat a huge and amazing looking pile of nachos is pretty much all it takes to want some of those. I actually watched a friends boyfriend take a chip, dip it in liquid cheese delight, dip it in salsa, put a jalapeno on it and eat it. And i watched him do that like 20 times. He probably thought I had a mental problem or something cause I was watching him and I was just thinking about how tasty those would be, but how they were probably a zillion points and in the end I decided it just wasnt worth it. That doesnt mean I didnt WANT them.. But watching him gave me enough satisfaction to enjoy my handful of peanuts and diet pop. I skipped the hot dog and other delights and actually ENDED up with 3 points that day.
When yesterday rolled around I was pleased that I had chosen that route because the scale showed a 3lb loss. Now granted, I would have enjoyed the pizza or dogs or nachoes or ice cream in the MOMENT...but when scale time came yesterday I would have been upset. I chose to get my joy from the excitement and from the enjoyment of the company of my friends and that dear friends.. is fat and calorie free.
I did go ahead and get some f/f turkey dogs and 1 pt buns and had 2 for dinner last night. The kids love to eat them sans bun and they are a quick and portable snack.
2 dogs and 2 buns = 4 points. I loaded them up with mustard and a touch of ketchup a couple onion squares and it was delish.
Todays menu:
For brekkie the kids had half scrambled eggs and egg whites and one piece of whole wheat toast with spray butter or low sugar jam. And a banana. I had a smart one breakfast quesadilla for 4 pts. I know I could have eaten the scramble with them but we only had 8 eggs left and once you drain the whites out of 4 it didnt make much.
For a snack they had a piece of string cheese and a couple all-bran crackers.
For lunch which is in a few:
A high fiber, low cal, low fat tortilla
Fat free refried beans
fat free cheese
Some jacks special salsa
Might have some mandarin oranges (low sugar)
Or juice
For Dinner:
Hm....
Might do the hot dog thing again but throw them on the grill. Its so nice out that I hate to turn the oven on and heat the house up. I do have some tasty corn on the cob and thatd be yumriffic with that and maybe some roasted cherry tomatoes.
Well Im glad, as usual, that Im back to writing when I get a 3 minute break. I just figured out dinner and sometimes I am stuck thinking about it over and over until I think its something that everyone will enjoy.
Later on this week we are taking the kids to the fair and this weekend Elliana and Dominic are going up to Gigi and Papa's. My mom called out of the blue yesterday and 2 of the kids are now THRILLED and Im not telling the other two until we are about to leave.. Ill save the devastation until friday :) Sharing gigi?? Its a tough thing for a 3yr old to understand!
ALright.. more to come later. I have alot on my mind and I'll unload it all for your reading delight.
Lets all make good choices today :)
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Ugh.
I made an amazing healthy dinner tonight. It is such a joy to cook and eat healthy and my kids are soo good to me that they always love to eat their veggies and fruits and so DO NOT NEED to eat junk food.
Yes they get an occasional snack here and there. After all, they are just kids and who am I to deprive them of the well deserved treat. But most of you all have seen them, and they are all at a VERY healthy weight, extremely active, and love to eat any fruits and veggies I have.
Just today they enjoyed mango with their lunch. And they really liked it. For dinner, I made an enormous salad with a touch of feta, EDAMAME!!!, and homemade dressing with a Tbsp of EVOO. It was delicious and they each ate up their portion and asked for more.
If I give the impression that all I do is eat and cook healthy for myself, that is far from accurate. I make and bake my own ckn nuggets and "fries" or sweet potato fries, we pick black berries from our own bushes and the apples and pears are soon to come. A cucumber wont last a day in this house and Elliana loves cherry tomatoes so much.
I am disapointed in myself if I led you all to believe that I cast "junk food" to my kids, who are my pride and joy, while I then eat healthful food. That is SO not the case.
More about my complete turkey breast dinner I made tonight..I will share about that tomorrow.. it was amazing! And all for only 9 points complete with "dessert". I feel super bummed out right now and I dont want to write about that awesome dinner with a dark cloud over my head.
Yes they get an occasional snack here and there. After all, they are just kids and who am I to deprive them of the well deserved treat. But most of you all have seen them, and they are all at a VERY healthy weight, extremely active, and love to eat any fruits and veggies I have.
Just today they enjoyed mango with their lunch. And they really liked it. For dinner, I made an enormous salad with a touch of feta, EDAMAME!!!, and homemade dressing with a Tbsp of EVOO. It was delicious and they each ate up their portion and asked for more.
If I give the impression that all I do is eat and cook healthy for myself, that is far from accurate. I make and bake my own ckn nuggets and "fries" or sweet potato fries, we pick black berries from our own bushes and the apples and pears are soon to come. A cucumber wont last a day in this house and Elliana loves cherry tomatoes so much.
I am disapointed in myself if I led you all to believe that I cast "junk food" to my kids, who are my pride and joy, while I then eat healthful food. That is SO not the case.
More about my complete turkey breast dinner I made tonight..I will share about that tomorrow.. it was amazing! And all for only 9 points complete with "dessert". I feel super bummed out right now and I dont want to write about that awesome dinner with a dark cloud over my head.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Green Tabasco sauce- you devil
Im an addict.
A hot sauce addict.
Its becoming insane. Im eating it on my eggs, my tacos, my chicken...and today, for lunch, on my smart ones mac n cheese.
I think at first, I was using it because it was kind of masking the taste of the broccoli, and making every other bland smart one have a little zip. But now, I wont even eat it unless it covered in it. Not just a dash or a smidge..but SATURATED in the green goodness.
Im going to need a food pipe transplant cause between the green tabasco and the wasabi addiction I have.. Im going to burn a hole in that and dissolve my tongue.
But at least Ill be doing it within points range :)
More to come. For now, I must work.
A hot sauce addict.
Its becoming insane. Im eating it on my eggs, my tacos, my chicken...and today, for lunch, on my smart ones mac n cheese.
I think at first, I was using it because it was kind of masking the taste of the broccoli, and making every other bland smart one have a little zip. But now, I wont even eat it unless it covered in it. Not just a dash or a smidge..but SATURATED in the green goodness.
Im going to need a food pipe transplant cause between the green tabasco and the wasabi addiction I have.. Im going to burn a hole in that and dissolve my tongue.
But at least Ill be doing it within points range :)
More to come. For now, I must work.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
A ripe old age
So today I went blueberry picking. Tony and I had a million errands to run and amidst all the chaos, we saw a little sign for a blueberry farm only a couple miles up the road. So we went.
At first, there was no one in sight of the little baby blue painted blueberry shack. Then, only a few minutes later- a very elderly man came walking out of his house. His dog, an antique dachshund as well, was at the edge of the walk, barking and barking, as if to let us know SHE knew we were there- and she was giving us fair warning. The old man got into a golf cart and zipped down that driveway at like 10mph. I was startled. He about 180'-ed into the gravel driveway next to the blueberry shack and immediately greeted us with a warm toothless smile and a story about the acquistion of his dog. "She was an older lady's dog and the lady had cancer. When she passed, I somehow got the dog but shes got all her shots and she does have a license but she gets her paw caught in her collar so I dont make her wear it." I wasnt sure if the old man thought we were dog catchers or the F.B.I, but he went on to tell us how he didnt have his hearing aide in today so he probably wouldnt be able to hear if we asked any questions but he'd be happy to get us a couple pails and we could start picking. We were happy to have met a free spirit like him. He joked with us numerous times about getting old. And when the time came to weigh our booty, which was well over 4 pounds.. he squinted his eyes at the super awesome antique weigh scale and said.. "Yep, well I figure you got yourselves around a pound here....so that'll be about 50 cents." We were quick to correct him in a LOUD voice and proceeded to hand him over as many dollars as we thought was what his actual price should be. He tried to push it back numerous times, and finally Tony told him to use the extra to buy doggy treats for the dog the lovely old man once called Tricky, and the next time called Shirky. He smiled a toothy grin and off we went to take our fresh pick home.
I thought about alot of stuff when I was wondering around that huge field for those 30 minutes. I thought about how that old man could have so much to be upset about. He was obviously aged.. and time was making moving around a bit difficult for him. It looked like he lived alone, as Im sure that dog who as we left he called Ticky, was his newly acquired life companion. He told us he had fallen off the couch a week or so ago and had really banged up his leg.."But thats what happens when you get to be an old man har har har." I thought to myself how those blueberry fields represented alot of things in my life too. For some part of their life they are just a small bush.. not fruit bearing, growing their roots deep to be able to florish with leaves and be jeweled with berries. Then the time comes.. the fruit grows, the pickers pick, and the tree seems to be left naked...fruitless, with nothing but broken branches and dead leaves, and the rejected berries left to rot and disappear. But within that time, that little bush regains its strength and the next year, and the next it is filled with fruit and adorned with lush green leaves.
I bet that man looks forward to berry season each and every year. I bet the different cars and different people that he gets to see bring a smile to that weathered face. He doesnt have that berry farm to make a million dollars, he has it to bring a little warmth to his life. He goes through the seasons much like a berry bush.. waiting and hoping, and wondering what it will be like this year when he gets to feel alive again with a farm full of people, and pickers, and little kids with buckets bigger than their heads.
It was an honor to pick at that mans farm today, and to have met an old soul with a certain sparkle in his eyes. No matter what happens now, day by day, he will relish the fact that he certainly did reach a ripe old age.
At first, there was no one in sight of the little baby blue painted blueberry shack. Then, only a few minutes later- a very elderly man came walking out of his house. His dog, an antique dachshund as well, was at the edge of the walk, barking and barking, as if to let us know SHE knew we were there- and she was giving us fair warning. The old man got into a golf cart and zipped down that driveway at like 10mph. I was startled. He about 180'-ed into the gravel driveway next to the blueberry shack and immediately greeted us with a warm toothless smile and a story about the acquistion of his dog. "She was an older lady's dog and the lady had cancer. When she passed, I somehow got the dog but shes got all her shots and she does have a license but she gets her paw caught in her collar so I dont make her wear it." I wasnt sure if the old man thought we were dog catchers or the F.B.I, but he went on to tell us how he didnt have his hearing aide in today so he probably wouldnt be able to hear if we asked any questions but he'd be happy to get us a couple pails and we could start picking. We were happy to have met a free spirit like him. He joked with us numerous times about getting old. And when the time came to weigh our booty, which was well over 4 pounds.. he squinted his eyes at the super awesome antique weigh scale and said.. "Yep, well I figure you got yourselves around a pound here....so that'll be about 50 cents." We were quick to correct him in a LOUD voice and proceeded to hand him over as many dollars as we thought was what his actual price should be. He tried to push it back numerous times, and finally Tony told him to use the extra to buy doggy treats for the dog the lovely old man once called Tricky, and the next time called Shirky. He smiled a toothy grin and off we went to take our fresh pick home.
I thought about alot of stuff when I was wondering around that huge field for those 30 minutes. I thought about how that old man could have so much to be upset about. He was obviously aged.. and time was making moving around a bit difficult for him. It looked like he lived alone, as Im sure that dog who as we left he called Ticky, was his newly acquired life companion. He told us he had fallen off the couch a week or so ago and had really banged up his leg.."But thats what happens when you get to be an old man har har har." I thought to myself how those blueberry fields represented alot of things in my life too. For some part of their life they are just a small bush.. not fruit bearing, growing their roots deep to be able to florish with leaves and be jeweled with berries. Then the time comes.. the fruit grows, the pickers pick, and the tree seems to be left naked...fruitless, with nothing but broken branches and dead leaves, and the rejected berries left to rot and disappear. But within that time, that little bush regains its strength and the next year, and the next it is filled with fruit and adorned with lush green leaves.
I bet that man looks forward to berry season each and every year. I bet the different cars and different people that he gets to see bring a smile to that weathered face. He doesnt have that berry farm to make a million dollars, he has it to bring a little warmth to his life. He goes through the seasons much like a berry bush.. waiting and hoping, and wondering what it will be like this year when he gets to feel alive again with a farm full of people, and pickers, and little kids with buckets bigger than their heads.
It was an honor to pick at that mans farm today, and to have met an old soul with a certain sparkle in his eyes. No matter what happens now, day by day, he will relish the fact that he certainly did reach a ripe old age.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Content overload....
I have soooooooo much to talk about today. Ill post in sections cause its a super busy day here today but theres alot to talk about.
1st. I saw a proactiv VENDING machine in the local mall. It was next to the mountain dew and chocolate dispensing machine.
That, friends is smart advertising/marketing. Buying acne medicine from a VENDING machine? Seriously?? Whats next...valtrex machine in the bathroom next to the condom dispenser? Rogaine pumps in the gym shower with a quarter slot? Have any of you seen this madness?
Next:
Weigh-in: -1.6 pounds
Really felt the desire to throw down a whopper or some sesame chicken yesterday. Pretty sure mother natures going to rear her ugly head here shortly. Instead I made a huge dinner of baby backs, grilled shrimp (super low in points), grilled zucchini, and a big salad with a touch of feta, tomatoes and onions and a recipe for salad dressing from Ms.Martini :) (red wine vinegar, touch of olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.) Its soooo yummy and it reminds me of many fun birthday party!
Moving on:
My very good friend's husband just lost his father to stage 4 pancreatic cancer. They found out only about 2 weeks ago and thought he had 4-10 months. Ive been keeping them in my prayers and trying to learn from this lesson. Life is fleeting! Its short if you really think about it.. and like Cheryl once said-- We ONLY get ONCE chance at this life. So we better live it up. Surround ourselves with the people who we love and who lift us up. Life is too short to be wasted on the petty stuff and with those who only bring us down. So Im going to make it a point to kiss my hubby before he goes to work and when he gets home and to tell him and my kids how much they mean to me every day-- I know we all say it and some times everyday.. but Im going to start telling each of them why I love them and why they are special to me. It was a real tragedy for my friend and her husband and son.. I am glad they had their small window for some closure and hopefully we all can learn from this real-life example. I'll start.. Blog readers.. I adore you :) Thank you for being there for me.. even if youre just a lurker or occasional reader.. you are helping me to be able to love and live till im older so I will be able to tell my kids how special they are for a very, very long time. You have my crush.
Quote I stole from a dear friends sis-in-law:
Do NOT spoil what you have by desiring what you have NOT; REMEMBER that what you NOW have was once among the things only hoped for! ~Epicurus
Isnt that the truth!!! It rings so true even with this dieting thing. Maybe we fall off the wagon a bit..or start feeling down that its not coming off in a month (even tho it took us years to put it on!)... so then we start to think about having a little treat here or oh this little bite wont hurt us. I was there yesterday. Tony was asleep and the kids were having a little bag of chips ahoy that my mom had brought and the baby kept handing them to me and I kept putting them over on the table but thinking about them and trying to rationalize them and I did eat one. I took a point for it..but then I started to think about food in general and all the stuff I havent eaten in like 5 weeks and I started to resent the fact that I couldnt/shouldnt/wouldnt eat it. I drank some water, got the kids to bed, and went right to bed.. by like 9:30. When I read her quote this morning I was like Bingo. I could have spoiled this progress by wanting to eat something that wouldnt even have been sooo wonderful..and I would have been full of regret...and it is just a FACT that the 14.8 pounds I have lost so far IS IN FACT something I hoped for!!! I mean I hope for alot more.. but still-- it is a stepping stone in the right direction. I could have GAINED 15 pounds!! I was on track to do just that with the bad food choices and lack of activity.
So thank you Epicurus whomever you were..and to you Laura for just the quote and inspiration I NEEDED today. For a fleeting moment, I had my eye on the door of this WW train.. thanks for making me sit back down, buckle up and keep on a-ridin' :)
1st. I saw a proactiv VENDING machine in the local mall. It was next to the mountain dew and chocolate dispensing machine.
That, friends is smart advertising/marketing. Buying acne medicine from a VENDING machine? Seriously?? Whats next...valtrex machine in the bathroom next to the condom dispenser? Rogaine pumps in the gym shower with a quarter slot? Have any of you seen this madness?
Next:
Weigh-in: -1.6 pounds
Really felt the desire to throw down a whopper or some sesame chicken yesterday. Pretty sure mother natures going to rear her ugly head here shortly. Instead I made a huge dinner of baby backs, grilled shrimp (super low in points), grilled zucchini, and a big salad with a touch of feta, tomatoes and onions and a recipe for salad dressing from Ms.Martini :) (red wine vinegar, touch of olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.) Its soooo yummy and it reminds me of many fun birthday party!
Moving on:
My very good friend's husband just lost his father to stage 4 pancreatic cancer. They found out only about 2 weeks ago and thought he had 4-10 months. Ive been keeping them in my prayers and trying to learn from this lesson. Life is fleeting! Its short if you really think about it.. and like Cheryl once said-- We ONLY get ONCE chance at this life. So we better live it up. Surround ourselves with the people who we love and who lift us up. Life is too short to be wasted on the petty stuff and with those who only bring us down. So Im going to make it a point to kiss my hubby before he goes to work and when he gets home and to tell him and my kids how much they mean to me every day-- I know we all say it and some times everyday.. but Im going to start telling each of them why I love them and why they are special to me. It was a real tragedy for my friend and her husband and son.. I am glad they had their small window for some closure and hopefully we all can learn from this real-life example. I'll start.. Blog readers.. I adore you :) Thank you for being there for me.. even if youre just a lurker or occasional reader.. you are helping me to be able to love and live till im older so I will be able to tell my kids how special they are for a very, very long time. You have my crush.
Quote I stole from a dear friends sis-in-law:
Do NOT spoil what you have by desiring what you have NOT; REMEMBER that what you NOW have was once among the things only hoped for! ~Epicurus
Isnt that the truth!!! It rings so true even with this dieting thing. Maybe we fall off the wagon a bit..or start feeling down that its not coming off in a month (even tho it took us years to put it on!)... so then we start to think about having a little treat here or oh this little bite wont hurt us. I was there yesterday. Tony was asleep and the kids were having a little bag of chips ahoy that my mom had brought and the baby kept handing them to me and I kept putting them over on the table but thinking about them and trying to rationalize them and I did eat one. I took a point for it..but then I started to think about food in general and all the stuff I havent eaten in like 5 weeks and I started to resent the fact that I couldnt/shouldnt/wouldnt eat it. I drank some water, got the kids to bed, and went right to bed.. by like 9:30. When I read her quote this morning I was like Bingo. I could have spoiled this progress by wanting to eat something that wouldnt even have been sooo wonderful..and I would have been full of regret...and it is just a FACT that the 14.8 pounds I have lost so far IS IN FACT something I hoped for!!! I mean I hope for alot more.. but still-- it is a stepping stone in the right direction. I could have GAINED 15 pounds!! I was on track to do just that with the bad food choices and lack of activity.
So thank you Epicurus whomever you were..and to you Laura for just the quote and inspiration I NEEDED today. For a fleeting moment, I had my eye on the door of this WW train.. thanks for making me sit back down, buckle up and keep on a-ridin' :)
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