You CAN Have It All

I have spent much of my dieting life saying, "I can't have that" or being asked by someone if I can "have that" when I was on a diet. This is one reason why I loved the Weight Watchers program so much. I was able to have whatever I wanted as long as I fit it into my POINTS allotment. But, what I noticed starting to happen was I would find ways to finagle fitting in less healthy choices just to prove to myself that I could have it. I rearranged my menus often to accomodate that sweet treat at the end of the night regardless of whether or not I wanted it. Or, I would make sure to save enough POINTS for a cookie or chips with my lunch or even to have an afternoon snack.

Years of deprivation diets and skipping meals led me to believe that I wasn't allowed to eat certain things. It became ingrained in me that there are good foods and bad foods. And knowing this , of course, made me only crave those bad foods even more. There the cycle began of killer cravings, caving in to those cravings, eating mass quantities to get my fill for the next however long and then the crescendo of crushing guilt and failure. Massive blows to the self-esteem.

What I am beginning to realize is that there is no good or bad. Well, okay, there are deep fried oreos which I'm pretty sure are bad ;P But, really I look at it as better and best choices. Nothing has to be off limits. If you are commited to living a healthy lifestyle, you CAN have it all. In moderation. Just acknowledging that has been a huge change for me. It has changed how I fill my plate and the choices I make. It has curbed those feelings of deprivation because now if I see a brownie or a bag of chips, I know I can have them. I have been taking half the portion that I think I would want because I know that I can always have more if I truly want it. More times than not, I am feeling satisfied with what I had and don't reach for more. But, I know it's there if I want it and that takes all the pressure away =)


Playin' Pool

More hot, soupy weather today! This called for a pool day for sure! I did some house stuff this morning and settled in to a great breakfast of Post Trail Mix Crunch Cereal (love) with some strawberries and unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze...

Before heading to the parents' pool, I served us up some lunch. I had a turkey hummus wrap with baby spinach and roasted peppers and a side of sweet red grapes...

At the pool, I did a noodle riding workout (so silly looking!), swam a few laps and carried the daughters on my back around the pool. Pretty good strength workout, there!

I stopped for a late afternoon snack: some Triscuits and a plum...

That tied me over until dinner time. Tonight was leftover/ eat the freezer stash night...

The Chicken and Broccoli with Garlic Sauce reheated nicely...

I paired it with a TJ's stir fried vegetable egg roll...

I ended up leaving a few bites of egg roll and brown rice on my plate; another first! I have always been the President of the Clean Plate Club ;)

I might have to send my resignation letter...

Have a great night everyone!

An Afternoon Visit

Hey, guys! Thanks for showing the husband some love on his first ever blog post! He was a good sport about doing the review and trying one of my healthy creations!

While the hubs was "blogging" this morning, I got right to my workout. It totally sucked. I tried to do Level 1 of The Shred but was feeling a little dizzy again, so I finally opted out. Right in the middle of dumbell rows. I'm not sure what's up with that; I'm thinking there's a sinus issue going on. Oh well. Nothing stops me from eating, though! I moved on to breakfast: 3/4 c. Trader Joe's High Fiber O's, 1 c. sliced strawberries, 1/2 c. unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze and a tsp. of sliced almonds for 3 crunchy POINTS...


I cleaned up a bit and got ready for our lunch guest: Aunt Linny! My sister-in- law came over to spend the afternoon with the daughters...



We chatted while I made us all some lunch. Of course, it was PB+J for the daughters, but Aunt Linny was willing to eat "my kinda lunch". I made us hummus, cucumber and baby spinach sammies and ,to go with them, some carrots, watermelon and a 1/2 serving of Kettle Brand Baked Potato Chips. All this for only 4 POINTS...


For our sammies, I used a new (to me) bread - Pepperidge Farm Light Style Extra Fiber Wheat Bread...

The nutrition facts are terrific - a serving is actually 3 slices (2 POINTS), but I just used 2 slices for 1 POINT...

Aunt Linny entertained the daughters the rest of the afternoon with puzzles, stories and play time. Thanks, Linny the girls had a ball! When it was close to dinner, we said our good-byes and I finished up making dinner while snacking on some Triscuits crackers - I think about 4 POINTS worth.

Nothing fancy for dinner tonight, just roasted chicken and a green salad with Kraft Light Three Cheese Ranch dressing. A simple 7 POINT meal...

I didn't feel much like dessert. My stomach was a little off, but then it wasn't. Weird. Then, I saw these PhillySwirl SwirlStix pops in the freezer and thought they would be just what I needed...

These are some great popsicles. I love the fun flavors! And the stats (click pic to enlarge)...

I chose the Orange Dream and it was the perfect 1 POINT ending to my eats today...

I looking forward to getting in bed! I'm hoping to try out a long run in the morning =)

Have a great night!

Blog Business

Happy Friday, everyone! Well, I'm gonna get right to it. First, I have some blog business to get to. The winner of the Dogtoys Giveaway is Julie from The Tale of a Southern Belle! Thanks so much to all of you for entering. This was a fun giveaway to be able to highlight getting healthy with our dogs! Dogtoys.com has thousands of cool items, so be sure to check them out for your pet needs!

Next up is this award...

I was given this award from Kelly, The Incredible Shrinking Family and MoraPiggy. Thank you guys so much! I think you are also SUPER! I would like to extend this to Rebecca at Fat Fitness Food, Kari at Taking Back Control and Kathi at Ever Winding Road. I would love to name a thousand more! You are all so wonderful and I enjoy reading all the blogs!

Okay, on to the food...


The sun was shining this morning and I could not wait to get out and RUN! I am still amazed that I say that! I popped in my tunes and went for a nice 35 minute run around my hilly neighborhood. I felt great but, I still get the hip issue when I'm done. I'm gonna work on the stretching exercises that Rebecca and Manderz recommended. When I came in, I decided to try a variation of my bulgur cereal. This time I made Banana Apricot Bulgur Cereal. This one was so good! This mix was...

• 1 c. water
• 3 tbsp. bulgur
• 1 tbsp. oat bran
• 1/2 ripe banana, diced
• 2 dried apricots, diced
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract (optional)
• 1 packet Splenda (optional)

I loved this; it was filling and sweet! A hearty 3 POINT breakfast...

After breakfast, I rushed off to help out at Gram's apartment. Still lots of unpacking and arranging going on. She's almost set up, though. My parents had to run to the hardware store for a few more things and they stopped to pick up lunch, too. Mom made me a nice salad from the supermarket salad bar. She made sure to include all my favorites: baby spinach, carrots, mushrooms, broccoli, cucumbers,hard boiled egg, tomatoes, a sprinkling of chicken and edamame! She got a side of lowfat Sundried Tomato dressing, too. A filling lunch; I estimated at 4 POINTS...

I also snacked on some of Gram's Triscuits for another 2 POINTS. Sorry no pic!

When I headed home, I felt hungry and had a Weight Watchers Strawberry Yogurt with 1/2 Kashi TLC Fruit and Grain Raspberry Chocolate Bar...

Yummy 2 POINTS...

The husband and daughters were doing pizza for dinner, so I decided to go with a relaxed "burgers and fries" dinner. I made oven baked sweet potato fries and discovered something to help crisp them - after you cut the sweet potato into fries, soak them in water for about an hour, then dry and bake. They come out more crispy that way. Along with the fries, I had a Chickpea Spinach Almond Burger on and Arnold Sandwich Thin with sliced cucumbers, red onion and a tsp. nonfat sour cream. I threw in some leftover veggies, too but, I have to admit, it was a bit too much. I was pretty full and didn't finish the veggies. My eyes were bigger than my stomach for this 8 POINT dinner...

Since I was so full, I didn't want to force myself to eat some dessert "just because" I'm used to eating it. So, no dessert for me. Hmmm.... do you think my Vitatops are getting lonely in the freezer?? I've dissed them 2 nights in a row!

Tomorrow is my WW meeting and weigh-in. I'm hoping for some scale love:) I'll let ya know!

Have a great night :D

Sunday Around The House

I love lazy Sunday mornings. We had no where to be today, so I slept in until 7:30 but didn't get out of bed until 8:30! Love it! I worked on things around the house and helped the husband clean out the garage. I finally got around to eating breakfast around 11. I toasted up 2 slices of TJ's Sprouted Flourless Wheatberry Bread and topped it with a wedge of Laughing Cow Light for 3 POINTS...


A while after breakfast, I did The Shred for my workout. I haven't done it in quite a while, so I went with Level 1. Totally kicked my butt. I forgot how hard it was! I upped my weights and used 5 pounders and my arms were burning. I even had to stop a time or two! I have gotten all pansy-ish again! Jil would not be happy ;P

After that workout, I deserved a nice big lunch! I decided on a tofu scramble. Are you tired of hearing me rave about these??? I can't help it; they are so good! Really! Tofu can be yummy :) This scramble was made with 1/2 block of Nasoya Lite Firm Tofu, red onion, sliced button mushrooms, baby spinach, roasted peppers and a slice of 2 % cheese. I crumble and brown the tofu first, in nonstick cooking spray, then add the remaining ingredients and cook through. Couldn't be easier or more delicious. Using the lite tofu makes this really low POINTS. The entire block comes to 5 POINTS; I count half as 3 POINTS. The veggies are zero and the addition of the cheese is 1 POINT. So, this giant serving comes to 4 POINTS! So awesome! I had room to add a serving of Triscuits for 2 POINTS and some grapes for 1 POINT. This was one filling 7 POINT meal...

Later in the afternoon, I broke out the popcorn for everyone to snack on. I always forget about this. It is a great volume 1 POINT snack...

Dinner was a Salmon Roulette, Gram's green beans and 1/2 c. brown rice. A quick tip for brown rice- boil it like pasta! I know that sounds strange and not the traditional way to make rice, but if you just put your desired amount of brown rice in a pot of boiling water for about 30-40 minutes, then drain it; it comes out perfect, fluffy and with a great texture! It got 2 thumbs up from the family. A nice, healthy 8 POINT meal...

Okay, now for the dessert. I ditched the Vitahearts and tried out my Chocolate Espresso Glaze on a Deep Chocolate Vitatop...

SCORE!!!! This was so amazing! Rich, chocolatey and very decadent-tasting! And only 1 POINT! You'll be seeing this a lot :D

I'm clocking out early tonight. I have my friend's Dad's funeral in the morning and I know it's gonna be a tough day, so I'm going to get some extra rest. But, come back tomorrow night for a really FUN giveaway!!! Have a great night!

Sunshine, Shopping And Sweets

I am diggin' this weather. Something about the warm sunshine really makes me happy! I planned on getting out for a walk this morning, but since I had to do a catch up post, I didn't make it out. I did a weighted treadmill walk instead. I tried to get my heart rate going by really pumping my arms. Boy, that works!

After my workout, I had a Weight Watchers Petite Bagel with 1 tbsp. homemade almond butter and a side of cantaloupe for 4 POINTS...




For lunch, I went with a yummy tofu scramble. This mix was 3 oz. tofu, red onion, mushrooms, spinach, roasted peppers, salsa and 2% cheese. Mmm.. my mouth is watering just writing about it! Seriously, it's that good! I had side of Triscuits for a salty crunch. A super filling 7 POINT lunch...


I went out to do a little shopping after lunch. I am in need of some summer clothes, mainly shirts. I tried on a few things and am still in amazement at the fact that I now wear a size M shirt. Comfortably. I can even get away with a Small here and there. In my mind, I still see myself as that 2x girl! Note to self: work on body image, girl!

When the daughters came home from school, I had a snack of lite string cheese, pretzel rod and clementine for 2 POINTS...

I felt like having something sweet after that. The munchies were gearing up for a visit. I decided to break out some armor...Arizona Pomegranate Green Iced Tea...

This tea comes in individual tubs that you mix with water. Each tub makes 2 Quarts. It is sugar free but, sweetened with Splenda. It is really good and helped kick the sweet munchies to the curb...

Dinner was low key tonight. The husband was traveling, so the daughters had free choice for dinner. They chose mac n chreeze (it's made with nutritional yeast instead of cheese), paninis and fruit. I decided on a panini and this new soup I picked up at my second home...

Sorry for the blurry pic! One cup serving is 1 POINT. This is a bit high in the sodium department, but has a ton of potassium!

I have to say that this soup is yuck -e. I think it is basically V-8 juice in a carton. I hate V-8 juice. Badly. Eeew. Gross. Okay, sorry. However, if you are a V-8 fan what is wrong with you? , you will definitely like this =)

Thankfully, my panini was the redeeming part of my meal. I made a ham and smoked gouda panini using 2 slices Trader Joe's Sprouted Flourless Wheatberry Bread, 2 oz. ham, 1/2 oz. lite smoked gouda, baby spinach and dijonnaise. A good 4 POINT dinner ( minus yucky soup)...

I had plenty of room for dessert and decided to conjure up a cake recipe using some overripe bananas that I had. I came up with a Chocolate Banana Cake with Cocoa Glaze. Basically, I used my whole grain Banana Bread recipe replacing the chocolate chips with unsweetened cocoa. When the "cake" was cooled, I drizzled it with a glaze made with 1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa, 2 tbsp. powdered sugar, 1/4 tsp. instant espresso powder and 1 tbsp. water. Here's the result...

I played around with the amounts of the ingredients so as to keep it to 2 POINTS per serving(I run everything through my Weight Watchers Etools Recipe Builder). Even with the glaze, I was able to accomplish that. Here's the recipe, if you'd like to give it a try...

Chocolate Banana Cake with Cocoa Glaze
(8 servings)

• 1 1/2 c. whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1/4 c. Splenda
• 1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder (such as Hershey's)
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 4 tbsp. unsweetened applesauce
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 medium bananas, very ripe, mashed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix mashed bananas, applesauce, vanilla and egg in a large bowl. In another bowl, combine dry ingredients. Gradually add dry ingredients into wet ingredients until well combined. Spread batter into a 8" square baking pan sprayed well with nonstick spray. Bake for 20 -25 minutes. Let cool completely before adding glaze.

For the Cocoa Glaze, whisk together 1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 tbsp. powdered sugar, 1/4 tsp. instant espresso powder and 1 tbsp. water. Drizzle over cooled cake.

You can have your cake and eat it, too - even with a little lite whip ...

Have a sweet night ;)