Menu for Sunday August 15, 2010....

Today got started a little late. Last night I had just crawled into bed and laid my head on the pillow when my phone rang. It's never a good thing when my phone rings after 9pm because all my friends and family know that I am not a night person so no one calls me just to chat at night. It's always because something is wrong. Last night was no different. I picked up the phone and my oldest son, Chris, was on the other end of the line saying, "Mom, I think Courtney's (my middle son) hurt. He broke his ankle or something."

You know, can I just tell you...it makes very little difference if your child is two or thirty two...those words hit your heart the same way! Your child is hurt and your heart kicks in to "I need to get to him" mode!

Chris explained to me that Courtney had somehow hurt himself at the bowling alley and his friend Mike had taken him to ER. But Mike couldn't stay because he had his little boy with him and Chris couldn't go because he had Autumn...of course, at the words, "Mom, Courtney's hurt" I was already putting my clothes back on and getting ready to make my way to the hospital!

So, to make a long story short, I spent a few hours in the ER with my son. It turns out his ankle wasn't fractured, just badly bruised. He smacked himself in the ankle with his bowling ball while he was bowling...OUCH!!! When I got to the ER he was in so much pain he was shaking. But a good dose of narcotic pain reliever injected into the muscle of his upper arm, some x-rays, and a very pretty young nurse had him on the road to recovery in a few hours.

I slept in a little bit this morning...I made us almost late to church...

So....I skipped breakfast. Not the healthiest way to start the day but it happens. I was making us late and Vern was playing on the worship team so I had to just go...So breakfast was coffee....and more coffee when we arrived at church. Thank goodness our church serves coffee!

After church we had to go to Costco to garb some fresh fruits and vegetables for the week. My cat Fred LOVES tomatoes and he won't leave them alone when they're on the kitchen counter...and putting them in the frige makes them yucky. So I had the brainstorm idea to store them in the plastic container that the apples come in! I felt pretty clever for coming up with this solution!



Lunch was a wrap made with a LaTortilla Factory Multigrain Smart Wrap, a wedge of Laughing Cow Cheese, a couple of slices of turkey breast lunch meat, lettuce, & tomato. I had some snap peas, carrots and apple slices on the side. This was a very filling lunch and I didn't finish all the snap peas or carrrots.



While I was at Costco, these caught my attention and I picked up a bag. I munched on a handful...actually I munched on an exact, weighed out portion...while I fixed my lunch. These are pretty good and have a nice crunch.





After lunch I went over to vicit my Mom and my older sister. We sat and drank Iced coffee and chatted for a couple of hours. Honestly i forgot to take a photo of my iced skinny vanilla latte so I found one on line...mine looked just like this one and set me back 4 points....and it was worth every single point!



After I came home I made up a big pot of lean ground turkey taco filling meat and of course made tacos for Vern and I for dinner. I found some extra thin corn tortillas at the grocery store that are 80 calories and 1 gram of fat for two tortillas! SCORE!! The "refried" beans are just some canned pinto beans that I dumped in a pan and smooshed up. These were really good and Vern didn't even know that I fed him lean ground turkey! I was left with lots of taco meat to portion out into individual portions and freeze for meals on the go. That is one of the things that helps me to stay on track....making up meal componants and freezing them in individual servings sizes with the points marked on the outside of the freezer bags.



Lastly, for an after dinner snack I had a peach and a plum cut up in a bowl and topped with greek yogurt.




These last two photos are simply here because I think I have the most adorable cats in the world! These are two of the three cats we share our home with, Fred & Ethyl.

Earlier today I walked into the living room and found Ethyl snuggled down into a shoebox watching televison very intently. I thought it was completely adorable so I captured the moment to share here!




Here are the two of them watching the world go by outside our window. See...I told you they are the cutest cats ever!

Saturday August 14, 2010...

We had some work stuff to take care of in the morning and then spent the rest of the afternoon down at Mission Bay, riding our bikes and having a picnic. It was so nice!

Breakfast was a Vitatop, apple crumb flavored with 4oz of Fage Total 0% Greek yogurt mixed with PB2 and drizzled with Walden Farms 0 calorie pancake syrup.
3 points



We rode our bikes along the bike path for 7 or 8 miles and then stopped, spread our picnic blanket on the grass near the jetty and had a picnic lunch I had packed. We are getting this whole bike ride/picnic thing down to an art. Maybe I should write a post about our picnic stuff and how we have learned to carry it all in the baskets of our bikes!



Now I wish I would have taken photos of our bike ride and picnic...note to self...take more photos! I snapped this photo so I could have it in my phone the next time Vern asks me, "Do you remember which bike I put on the car first?" I can never remember!

Anyway, lunch was a sandwich on a multigrain sandwich thin spread with a wedge of laughing cow swiss cheese spread, with Turkey breast lunch meat, lettuce, tomato, and a tiny smear of mustard (I like just a touch...I hate too much mustard!)

I had some baby cut carrots, and a half of a pink lady apple as well.
4 points



I wanted a little something more after lunch so I had some pretzels
2 points




Dinner was a chicken quesadilla. A 100 calorie tortilla spread with 1/2 cup leftover black beans, 3 oz diced, baked chicken breast, 2 oz fat free cheese, and pico de gallo. This was so good and really hit the spot as I was hungry after our long bike ride!
7 points




This photo taken after I ate some of my quesadilla shows what was in it a little bit better.




Of course there was popcorn after dinner....it's becoming sort of a habit...LOL.
6 points




I don't know how we managed to do it but we found ourselves riding against the wind BOTH ways! I am always amazed at how much harder it is to ride against the wind. It feels something like I imagine riding in mud would feel like. By the time we finished our 14-15 mile ride my legs were like rubber! The activity tracker said it was a six point ride but that seems awfully high to me so I gave myslef 4 activity points.

Total points used 22
Target 24

Friday August 13, 2010....

So did anyone else notice that Monday's date was 8/9/10...
and Friday was Friday the 13th..in the same week...I just find that to be interesting and cool!

Ok Yesterday's Menu...
Breakfast was another pumkin concoction. I needed to use up the rest of that crazy expensive can of pumpkin that I bought. It was the small can, the one that's the size of a soup can or a vegetable can...and it was $3.49! Yikes!! But I wanted it.

So anyway...

2/3 cup of pumpkin
1/2 cup egg substitute
1/2 cup Fiber One
1 large apple
Walden Farms Pancake Syrup
3.5 points




Lunch...I almost forget to snap a photo! It was a crazy busy day and I threw this lunch together and started eating before I realized I hadn't taken a photo! So, the plate, before I snapped the photo included 3 oz of baked chicken breast. A serving of green beans and some mandarin orange segments.
4 points



Dinner...Can you tell I've used up all of my lean protein choices I had prepared and stocked the freezer with, except for baked chicken? I need to take a day and cook up some stuff and freeze it.

3 oz Baked Chicken Breast
1 cup "refried" black beans (This photo shows 1/2 cup but I added more after I took the photo)
Steamed broccoli
Pico de Gallo
6 points




Snacks...

Popcorn and a diet cherry limeade
3 points


Golden Spoon frozen yogurt and PB2 powder
4.5 points




Total Daily points used 21
Target 24

I planned on going to the gym and walking on the treadmill but we had to work late to meet a deadline. I swear...we are working so much harder now that we own the business than we did when I was an employee!!

Today we are going to take care of some work stuff on the morning and then we are going to head out for a bike ride and picnic.

Friday Morning Weigh In...and other stuff...

So, I faced the scale and to my surprise I didn't gain. I actually lost .2 pound...POINT 2. The meeting topic was about the all or nothing attitude that can so easily cause us to throw in the towel and have a free for all when we slip off plan. And we discussed strategies for ending that mindset. It was a very timely topic for me.

I am committed to being very diligent about staying on plan, tracking...and getting myself back to the treadmill at the gym. I am going tonight after work...PERIOD!!!

OK...Lesia my very best blog buddy...(who I am also very sure would be my best girlfriend EVER if we lived in the same city...or even the same state...LOL) asked what PB2 and Stevia are, after my last post. So, here you go...





PB2 is powdered peanut butter. It's made from the part of the peanut that's left after they squeeze all the peanut oil out of it. Well, 85% of the oil anyway. You mix 2 tablespoons of the powder with 1 tablespoon of water to get a spread similar to peanut butter. I'll be honest...it's NOT peanut butter...but it's a really acceptable substitute in my opinion. It seems to be one of those products that people either love or hate. I love it. It has 45 calories/1.5g fat/2g fiber per serving for 1 point. Real peanut butter has 190 calories/16g fat/2 fiber for 5 points.

I use it to make peanut spread...obviously. But I also use to to flavor my yogurt. I sprinkle it on freshly "baked" (nuked) apples. And sometimes I sprinkle it on popcorn.

I get it directly from the manufacturer, Bell Plantation. I order 4 jars at a time. I think you can also get it at Netrition if you want to try just one jar.




Stevia is an herbal sweetener that is way sweeter than sugar yet calorie free. I use it whenever I can to cut back on the amount of purely artificial sweeteners I use. I am not completely opposed to artificail sweeteners at all. I just like the idea of using more stuff that grows in nature than stuff that's created in a lab...LOL.

I buy my Stevia at Henry's Marketplace. I don't know if this is a local grocery chain or if they're nationwide. They have a bulk spice aisle and they have bulk, pure, stevia that isn't "cut' with dextrose or whatever. It's super strong and I use a tiny, tiny amount of it at a time. The trick with it is to learn to use just enough because it's so sweet that it's bitter if you use too much.

You can read more about Stevia here.

Thursday August 12, 2010....

....so that means that tomorrow is Friday the 13th you know...just sayin... :)

Ok...today's menu...

This absolutely does not look as delicious as it was! Notice that this was cooked in my handy microwave omelet maker!

This was a half cup of egg substitute, a cup of canned pumpkin, a dash of stevia, and cinnamin all mixed together and poured into the omelet maker which had been sprayed with non-stick spray. I popped it in the microwave for 4 or 5 minutes until it was cooked through. I topped it with a half cup of Fiber One Cereal to give it some crunch, and then drizzled the whole thing with Walden Farms 0 calorie pancake syrup. It was so good! And it's a big, satisfying breakfast! It ends up being sort of a cross between a custard texture and a pumpkin pie.....so good and only 3 points



A little later in the morning I had a cup of chai tea made with almond milk and sugar free Chai tea mix. I had forgetten how much I love this! 1 point.



Lunch was 3oz of baked chicken breast, broccoli (also steamed in the microwave in my omelet maker), sliced tomato and a reduced fat string cheese stick. 4 points



My afternoon snack was Fage 0% Greek Yogurt mixed with PB2 and stevia on top of a deep chocolate Vitatop and drizzled with a touch of Walden Farms 0 calorie pancake syrup. I love this snack! 4 points



Vern and I had a date to meet with my son, Colin, and his wife, Christina, at Ikea for Swedish Meatballs after work. Christina and I split a plate of meatballs and I added a salad to my meal. Dinner was 9.5 points



Total daily points 21.5
Target 24

I have a couple of points left and I just might use them!

Thursday August 12, 2010...

So, I'm most probably going to be all over the place with this post. I have lots of thoughts tumbling around in my brain...I actually have a mental image of clothes tumbling in the dryer as my jumbled thoughts go around and around...


Here's one thought that keeps coming around. I took this photo in church on Sunday. We we getting ready to take communion and I looked over at the communion cup in Vern's hands and was immediately awestruck at the goodness and faithfulness of God! Vern and I were both so lost, wounded and battered when we met. I was fresh out of a horrible marriage and an awful church experience....I was a Christian.....or maybe I hadn't REALLY bowed my knee yet. That's one of those things I'm not really sure of in life.....was I backslidden or had I not completely surrendered yet....I don't know. As I get older I am less and less sure that I have all the answers. Funny how that happens. But anyway, I was a mess. Vern was an athiest...well, at least he claimed to be but he was awfully angry at a God he didn't believe in. He was angry about a lot of things. Somehow in the midst of all the heartache, pain, anger, and woundedness we found each other....and we clung to each other like one clings to a life preserver in troubled waters.

Fast forward 9 years and somehow God has taken all of that, turned it around for our good, drawn us to Himself, and set our feet on solid ground. As I looked over and saw Vern's hands cupping a communion cup I was reminded in an instant how far God has brought us....





Then there's the situation with my sister that I mentioned here. My sister has a lifelong history of "running." She began running away from home as a young teen and at 49 years old is still "running." This has caused considerable heartache to our family....especially to her sons. This time she chose to sneak out of town without telling anyone. She mailed card to her sons saying basically, "I love you and I've moved to Arizona to build a new life." Her sons live ten minutes away and she couldn't be enough of a mom to go and face them and tell them what she was doing. She moved out while Vern and I were at work and left a note on the table. (We had given her until the end of the year to find a place)

I am deeply disappointed in her for the way she chose to run away once again...chasing after rainbows or the greener grass...or whatever it is she's looking for that she will never find until she stops to realize that SHE is her own problem and that wherever she runs off to to "build a new life" it's not going to be any different because she takes herself and all her issues...that she refuses to come to terms with...along with her. Actually, "deeply disappointed" isn't really the right terminology to express how I feel about my sister right now. I am mad. I want to be done with her. I am so tired of watching how she hurts everyone who has the misfortune of caring about her. I think she should have to see the pain on her sons' faces as they realize that once again their mother has cast them aside to go chasing after a fairytale. I know that I have to forgive her as Christ has forgiven me...but I am struggling with some really ugly feelings toward my sister right now...sigh...


Finally, there's this...I have been sort of screwing around this week...being on plan one minute and off the next. I haven't been going to the gym to walk on the treadmill. I've been having a bite of this and a bite of that. It has to stop!

I need to get myself back on track and DO THIS! Life is always going to throw things in the mix that threaten to detract and derail me from my committment to live a healthy, controlled life. I can't control what life throws my way but I can control how I live and the choices I make in the midst of everything that happens. So this morning I am re-committing to staying on track, eating healthy foods, staying within my points allotment,meeting my Weight Watchers "Good Health Guidelines" and exercising on a regular basis. Yes, that's it....another line in the sand but this time it's for myself!

Here are some photos I've taken of the HEALTHY choices I've made over the past couple of days. I haven't taken photos of the "not-so-healthy" choices...so that's another committment I am making. If I eat it, I photograph it...the good the bad the stupid...it's all going to be recorded here!

















Tomorrow is my weigh in day. I am pretty sure I will show a gain. I feel boated and full. Part of me wants to skip my meeting and not face it. But I will not do that. I will not hide from my poor choices and pretend they will go away. I will go to that meeting. I will step on that scale. And I will face whatever it tells me.

Microwave Omelet Maker...

Debbie asked me, in her comment on my last post, about the microwave omelet maker and where she could get them. I added a couple of photos below so you can see what I'm talking about. The photos are just photos I found on the internet but mine are exactly like this.

I bought my first one at Walmart but I haven't been able to get any there for a while now. I actually found my most recent ones at the grocery store. They were hanging from hooks in the bread aisle, of all places! You know, how they have stuff hanging on the shelves for impulse buying. Anyway, I paid around $4.00 each for them and I have two at work and two at home. I use them all the time!

I freeze leftovers in sandwich size zip top bags that I sort of roll down so that the food freezes in a long cylinder shape so I can heat them up in these little omelet makers. They are also the perfect size for green beans, asparagus, carrots, etc. I also microwave Broccoli Slaw mix in these and add a little Brummel & Brown butter spread for a quick side dish.

I don't have a photo but I also have a round egg cooker thing, similar to these, that I use for cooking egg substitute into a "patty" for breakfast sandwiches. Oh...and sometimes I actually make omelets in my microwave omelet maker!