More Of The Same

I was up and out early this morning to make my WW meeting. Not that I was in any rush to get weighed or anything. No big excitement on the scale. It was exactly the same. I can't be upset about it. I haven't been keeping up with my "following the program to the T" strategy. Too much picking going on. But, I spoke with the receptionist while I was there. She has lost 100 lbs. and has kept it off since 1984. I talked with her about my frustration with myself and about getting to goal. I am coming up on 2 years at the end of July and I really hoped to get to my goal and be on the way to achieving Lifetime status. She told me it took her 4 years to get there. Wow. That made me feel a little better. I'm declaring the high end of my weight range for my goal weight even though it's probably not where I would want to settle in at. But, at the rate I'm going, I don't want it to take a lifetime to get to Lifetime! I can see it now. I'll be a real looker when I get to goal at age 90. I might not have teeth, but I'll be the hottest chick in the nursing home ;P In my thong. Eeeewww. Sorry, did you just throw up a little bit?? Okay, in an effort to erase that visual from your damaged mind, I will get to the food...


After the meeting, I came home and made a breakfast wrap with a La Tortilla Factory Tortilla, 3 egg whites, baby spinach, center cut bacon and a slice of 2% cheese for 4 POINTS...


For lunch I tried these new veggie burgers that I picked up the other day...

The nutritionals are great...

These burgers are made with beans, corn, zucchini, string beans, oat bran and a host of other good veggies. They have a nice kick to them and taste a whole lot like the California Veggie Burger also made by Dr. Praeger. I served mine on an Arnold Sandwich Thin with lettuce and a squirt of lite ranch along with a serving of soy crisps and a fuji apple. A healthy 6 POINT lunch...

I took the daughters to see a play this afternoon at little daughter's school. It was very cute and entertaining. When we got back, I made a snack of 1/2 c. TJ's nonfat greek yogurt, 1/2 c. Kashi Go Lean Crunch, 2 strawberries and a tsp. chocolate syrup for 2 POINTS...

Dinner was pasta and salad for the husband and daughters, but I wasn't in the mood for pasta. Well, I was, but not only 1 cup of pasta! It's just too little of a serving to make me happy. I searched around the freezer and came upon this guy...

It has been in my freezer for an eternity. I'm trying to make sure I eat the freezer stock, so since the date was okay, I decided to eat it for dinner. It's a pretty good bargain for 4 POINTS, but I wasn't having high hopes that it would be good!

I made these to go along with it...

Altogether, a 6 POINT dinner...

But, I only ate some. Here's what I left...

That was one yucky frozen dinner. The chicken was rubbery and "fake", the pasta was flavorless and the sauce was weirdly spicy. The flavors didn't jive. Ick. The TJ's Potato Medley, on the other hand, was terrific! I should have just eaten a big dish of that!

I picked on a roll from the family's dinner, then cleaned up and moved on to dessert. I thought I would give the VitaHearts another try. I had the idea of icing them, so I thought that may redeem them. I made a Chocolate Espresso Glaze by mixing 1 tsp. unsweetened cocoa, 1 tsp. powdered sugar, 1/8 tsp. instant espresso powder and 1/2 tsp. skim milk and spread it onto the VitaHeart...

Well, the hearts are still dry, but the glaze was amazing!!! The espresso gave it a prominent flavor making it taste like dark chocolate. So good! I can't wait to try this on the Deep Chocolate Vitatops that I love! Come back tomorrow night; I'll let you know how it is!!

I ended the night with a giant latte made with skim milk for 2 POINTS...

Decaf, of course! Goodnight =)

Sad News:(

Hi guys. I'm gonna make this a quick post. I just got some sad news - my old college roommate's dad passed away, so I'm a bit distracted. Here's a rundown of the day...

Breakfast was 1/2 c. TJ's Nonfat Greek Plain Yogurt (I don't like plain, but I added a bit of Splenda and it was great), 1/2 c. Kashi Go Lean Crunch and 1 c. sliced strawberries for 3 POINTS. This took me a while to eat and held me over for hours...


I went out to lunch with Mom and Gram at a local diner. I ordered a salad with chicken, bacon, mandarin oranges, red onion with a raspberry viniagrette (I used the "dip fork" method). It was a small serving (well, an appropriate serving!) so I estimate it at 5 POINTS...

Afternoon snack was a Bluebran Vitatop and grapes for 2 POINTS...

I tried an interesting recipe tonight involving this...

I got the inspiration from this old Weight Watchers cookbook that I picked up at the Used Book Sale last weekend...

I reworked the recipe so much that I guess I can call it my own now! It was Polenta with Smoked Gouda and Mushroom Sauce....

It was 8 POINTS and out of this world good! I have leftovers, so I will be eating this again. I'll post the recipe the next time for you all :)

For dessert, another serving of Chocolate Banana Cake with Cocoa Glaze...

One word of advice about this "cake"- don't overbake it! Mine was cooked a little too long and it's more on the dry side. If you try it, start to check for doneness around 18-20 minutes. It doesn't take that long to set up and it's definitely better when it's moist! Dry cake sucks :P

Sorry to rush through this. See you tomorrow =)

Making It Through Day 2

I woke up to another nice morning. I was tempted to go for an outdoor run, but my ankle has been bothering me a little, so I opted for the elliptical instead. I did a weighted 35 minutes and 20 tricep dips. The weighted vest makes a big difference. I don't realize how heavy it is until I take it off! And it's only got 18 lbs. in it right now!


After the workout, I made a quick bowl of cereal: Kashi Go Lean Crunch, Fiber One, strawberries and 1/2 c. skim milk for 3 POINTS...

I was in the kitchen after that doing some "cook ahead" meals. I was in the mood for some coffee, but after I made it, I decided I would rather have something cold. I dug out the blender and made a "frappucino". I used 1/2 c. skim milk, 1 c. brewed coffee, 1 tsp. instant espresso powder, 1 tbsp. sugar free caramel syrup and lot of ice. This was definitely a big serving - like a "venti" ;) All for only 1 POINT...

Lunch was al fresco since it was so nice. I had a hummus sammie made with 2 tbsp. hummus, baby spinach, tomato and pickles on an Arnold Sandwich Thin. A sweet fuji apple and barbeque soy crisps were great sides for a 6 POINT lunch...

After lunch, we headed to the movies. The daughters each wanted to see something different, so the husband and I decided to divide and conquer. The husband and little daughter went to see Monsters vs. Aliens and big daughter and I saw The Hannah Montana Movie. I enjoyed the movie, although her "twang" seriously gets on my nerves. And once again, thanks to Disney for making yet another movie where the mother is dead! Sheesh! Anyway, there was no out of control popcorn shoveling thanks to the fact that big daughter wanted Twizzlers instead of popcorn. I'm safe with Twizzlers, so it was all good :) By the time we got home, I was ready for a snack. I went with 1 oz. Penny Sticks honey wheat pretzels and a lite string cheese for 3 POINTS...

An hour later, my stomach was growling! Seriously growling, not just "hmmm... I feel like eating something". I drank a bucket of water, but that didn't help with the growling, although it did help me stay out of the kitchen because I was spending loads of time in the bathroom!

I got dinner going before any crazy snacking could occur. I made garlic thyme chicken thighs on the grill (technically, the husband is grill master!) and sauteed kale and white beans with hearty Italian bread for the family and a slice of Trader Joe's Sprouted Flourless Wheatberry bread for me. What a delicious 7 POINT dinner...

I wasn't in the mood for a big dessert, but I still wanted a little sweet. I decided on these...

I love these little chocolate chip cookies! What I think is neat about them is that they are very crispy, but yet have not been baked! They have not been heated to more than 75 degrees which helps keep the nutrients intact. I think because of that, they can be considered a "raw food". They are made with soy protein and fruit and vegetable concentrates made up of apple, broccoli, carrot, cranberry, orange and tomato.. All I taste is sweet yumminess! A serving is 5 little cookies for 130 cal., 4 gr. fat and 3 gr. fiber which is 2 POINTS...

Perfect with a cup of tea which I did not feel like making! Just as perfect on their own :)

Well, I made it through Day 2 of my "fresh start"! My stomach is having the nerve to growl right now! I guess it got used to having tons of crappy snacks shoved into it, so now it's complaining. But, *fingers in my ears* la la la la la, I can't hear you!!!!!!!!

Going to bed to dream of ..... six pack abs =)

Lost That Losing Feeling

I think I'm in maintenance mode. Although, not officially since I haven't reached my goal yet. I just wanted to strive for my Weight Watchers goal so I could finally, after the bazillion times of joining Weight Watchers, become a Lifetime member. I'm not even considering my personal goal yet! But, for some reason ....*singing* I've lost that losin feeeeling, whoa, that losin feeling. I've lost that losin feeling, now it's gone...gone...gone... wooooh. Ah, where's Tom Cruise when I need him ;)

I had to head out early this morning, so no time for exercise. I had a dentist appt. during which I got bad news about one of my crowns. Even though it's not bothering me, it seems an infection of epic proportions is growing under there, so I'm going to need to have that cleaned out and go on an antibiotic. My teeth suck. They look okay, but it's just an illusion. Cavities, crowns and root canals are everywhere. I know my dentist must live in a White House sized mansion and take exotic vacations since I have become his patient. Anywho, before I went to my personal hell, I wolfed down a breakfast of 1 c. Kashi Go Lean Crunch Cereal with 1 tbsp. dried cranberries and 1/2 c. skim milk for 4 POINTS. Yum! Crunchy and chewy; an excellent combo for bad teeth...


After the stinky dentist appt., I had some errands to run. I sulked around the stores while picking up what I needed. My stomach started to rumble, so I knew it was time to head home for some lunch. I grabbed a leftover serving of Ziti with Three Cheeses to which I added a hefty serving of leftover broccoli. A nice 6 POINT pasta lunch...

Less sulking and more shopping went on in the afternoon. I picked up the daughters from school and spent most of the afternoon doing homework with little daughter and SNACKING!!!!

Snack #1: 15 whole wheat Triscuits and 1 tbsp. white bean hummus (3 POINTS)...

Snack #2 (not pictured): lite string cheese (1 POINT)

Snack #3: these "Righteous" cookies which are only Righteous when you eat the right amount (i.e. not 2 handfuls)...

Yucko. My stomach hurt after all this crappola. Dinner was late tonight, but frankly, I could have went without it. But, I felt like I "should" eat a healthy dinner. Not exactly a good example of listening to my body, but in a way, it helped me refocus. It was that "get back on track with the next meal" attitude. I felt if I skipped dinner, I would just be reinforcing that bingeing behavior. So, I made it a light dinner of 1 c. Trader Joe's Organic Creamy Tomato Soup topped with a couple Cheez-its and a ham, spinach and cheese panini made with 2 slices of Sprouted Flourless Wheat Bread, spiral ham, slice 2% cheese , handful of baby spinach and a squirt of cranberry honey mustard. A "makin it righteous" 6 POINT dinner...

And for some reason, I also had to carry on with dessert. The last of the No Pudge Brownies

(a bit of an oxymoron don't ya think??) for 2 POINTS...

*bring back that losin feeling.... don't ...don't...don't let it slip away......*