Happy Memorial Day!

Weight Report:  Down another 1.3 pounds.  I am now down 36 pounds total.

It's the kick-off to summer, the day to celebrate loved ones and heroes, the day to spend with family and friends!  Tonight, my husband and I ate what I call "True Summer" for dinner.  We had all-American Bacon Tomato Sandwiches!  I know, I can hear you now...., "BACON???  I thought she was on a diet!"  Well, I am!  Oscar Meyer Prepared and Ready bacon has 2 points for 3 slices.  I fixed 6 slices for 4 points.  I put it on my Pepperidge Farms Deli Thin Bread (100 calories) for 3 points and added my free tomato and my free 1/2 tablespoon fat free mayo.  MMMMMMM!  Summer!  I added 1/2 cup mustard potato salad for 4 points and enjoyed my 11 point meal!

Sadly, my extended family will not be celebrating Memorial Day with us.  Our school just had graduation and there are a lot of graduation parties to attend, so hubby, Emma, and I are going to hang out at home alone.  We are grilling tomorrow night though.  I have been DYING to break out the grill and fix BBQ chicken!  Our little menu tomorrow night will be grilled BBQ chicken, mustard potato salad and baked beans.  I am looking forward to smelling that grill cooking chicken, sipping on homemade lemonade, and playing around with Emma in my bare feet!

Things are winding down with work.  I have 3 days of professional development this week and I can honestly say, I AM DONE!  I am so ready to be functioning on my own time without a care or schedule to follow!  Pray I get through the next week quickly! 

In honor of Memorial Day, I am sharing a Red, White and Blue Cake recipe!

RED WHITE AND BLUE CAKE
You need:
*1 Sugar Free Angel Food Cake (store bought)
*2 cups Sugar Free Vanilla pudding made with Skim Milk
*8 oz. tub of fat free cool whip
*16 strawberries sliced
*1 container of blueberries
*1 small can crushed pineapple in its own juice (drained)

Directions:
1.) Slice the angel food cake lengthwise through the center to make 2 layers of cake.
2.) Mix the pudding with the skim milk and allow to firm in the refrigerator.
3.) Mix the pudding with the cool whip till well blended.
4.) Add the strawberry slices and blueberries to the pudding mixture.  Stir mixing well. 
5.) Add the drained can of crushed pineapple and mix well.
6.) Divide the pudding mixture in half. 
7.) Put 1/2 the pudding mixture on the bottom layer of angel food cake.  Top the pudding mixture with the other layer of angel food cake.  (Making what looks like a stacked cake)
8.) Top the cake off with the remaining pudding mixture. 

Makes 16 servings at 4 points each!

Well, that's it for me!  I am hoping this week brings me another good weight loss!  I walked today for 60 minutes.  It is amazing how the further in your walk you go, the more energy you have to keep going a little more.  Wish me luck!  Have a great week!  Stay safe!

Great Week!

I am getting that fever for summer break!  It is so close, I can smell it!  Only 4 more days of school with the kids!  Then only 3 more work days after that and I am done!  The days of sleeping in and enjoying myself doing whatever I feel like doing are just around the corner! 

This has been a very busy but exciting week for me.  I lost another 1.4 pounds.  I am right at 35 off and getting closer and closer to my goal.  I am very proud of myself today.  This morning I was telling my husband how difficult it was going to be for me this week.  I have a birthday party to go to tonight, the 1st grade grillout/picnic on Tuesday, a friend's retirement party on Wednesday, and the staff annual grill-out on Friday. 

In the midst of this discussion, I heard the old shoulder friends whispering in my ears!  Good Conscience was saying, "Well, you have enough points for tonight, you can take your own turkey sausages to grill on Tuesday, you can just visit on Wednesday, and Friday is your cheat day...you can do this."  While on the other shoulder, sat Mr. Bad Conscience saying, "It will be so hard, you should just take this week off and enjoy yourself!"  I made the decision to go with Good Conscience.  I was going to the grocery and could get stuff for the picnic and knew I could take care of the other things with good old will-power. 

Then, Bad Conscience decided he would test me again.  I have a regular routine, on Saturday mornings as I go to the grocery, I go through McDonald's and order just an egg mcmuffin to eat.  This morning though, while I sat in line, Bad Conscience was telling me I wanted a caramel frappe or a hashbrown.  I kept telling myself, "No, you don't want to do that."  Then you won't believe what happened next.  He actually began to get to me.....it was like a movie being played in slow motion.  The lady at the drive-thru said, "Can I take your order?"  I said, "I would like an egg mcmuffin and".........(I hesitated).........(and again hesitated some more).......and slowly said, "....and thaaaaaaat's alllllllll."  It was as if Bad Conscience had ahold of my mouth trying to get me to say, "and a hashbrown please."  But I didn't.  I was so proud of myself for tackling that demon!  It helped me to see how making good choices has become a habit for me.  Bad Conscience disappeared and I haven't heard from him anymore today.

This week my book came out.  I am excited to introduce you to my book! 

You can view it at http://www2.xlibris.com/bookstore/bookdisplay.aspx?bookid=96446
Please check it out and let me know what you think!

Have a wonderful week everyone!  Hoping there is less of me to report to you next week!

It's Broke!

I did it!  I did it!  I did it!  Hooray, hooray, hooray!  I broke that stupid plateau finally!  I lost 3.4 pounds today which puts me up to the total weight loss of 33 pounds!  YEEEHAW!!!!!  If you read last week's post, I told you what I planned to do this week and it worked!  I changed my exercise up a bit (added an incline on my treadmill and worked in some high cardio dance in 10 minute sessions), I changed my diet by getting rid of all those process snack foods and replacing them with high protein foods, and I cut out eating after 7 pm.  So guess what this means.....I am continuing these next few weeks with the same strategies and hopefully I can make up for the lost time.

I have to admit though, this week I have been craving, believe it or not, Chinese food!  My recipe this week is a healthier version of my all time favorite item on a Chinese Buffet!  I am posting a recipe for Chinese Crab Rangoon that is 2 points for 2 rangoon pieces.

Chinese Crab Rangoon

Makes 24 servings (2 rangoons each) – 2 points

*6 oz. imitation crab meat

*2 green onions/scallions chopped

*1 clove garlic, minced

*2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

*1/2 tsp. soy sauce

*48 wonton wrappers

*8 oz. block fat free cream cheese

*1/4 cup sugar

In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients except the won ton wrappers.  Mix well.

To keep skins from drying out, prepare one or two rangoons at a time.  Place 1 tsp. filling in the center of each wonton wrapper.  Pull top corner down and overlap slightly the bottom corner.  Moisten one of the corners and press to seal.  Lightly spray baking sheet with the non-stick cooking spray.  Arrange the rangoons on the sheet and spray lightly to coat.  Bake at 425 degrees for 12 – 15 minutes, or until golden brown.  2 rangoons is 2 points. 

This week my class went on an exciting field trip to the Krohn's Conservatory in Cincinnati, Ohio to see the butterflies from Brazil.  I got to take some wonderful pictures while there with my new camera.  I just love all the special features on it!  You will have to check out the pictures below! 

Here is a book update:  My book will be released Monday!  I will recieve my first copy hopefully within the next 2 weeks!  I am very excited to have a published children's book and call myself an author! 

I am hoping to have another great week with weight loss.  I need it now because I know I will probably struggle with temptation once school lets out and I am home all day. 

Here are those pics I got!  Hope they inspire you!

Have an awesome week........hope there's less of me to report next week!

Keepin' It Moving

Well, I lost another pound this week.  Actually it was 1.2 pounds and I did say I wanted more than 1 pound.  I just expected it to be closer to 2 pounds than 1 but I will take it none the less!  I am now 1/2 pound away from being 30 off!  I really wanted to hit that this week but looks like next week will be the week I hit that mark.  I ABSOLUETLY WILL LOSE NEXT WEEK!!!!  (or my scales are going in the trash!)  Just kidding! 

I am changing a few things this next week to see if that helps.  I have been doing some research here the past few days about weight plateaus.  A weight plateau is when your weight remains the same or fluctuates close to the same mark for several weeks in a row.  My pounds that I have lost in the last 4 weeks have been very close pounds.  By that I mean, I had to weigh several times to get the lowest possible weight.  I have a set a digital scales and as many of you know, your body weight fluctuates from the time you get up to the time you go to sleep.  On weigh in days, I would step on the scale (not like what I saw), go to the bathroom, and get back on the scales.  (You girls all know what I am talking about......we have ALL done it!)  If I didn't like that weight, I took a shower and tried going to the bathroom again!  (Don't laugh.....I know you have done this too!)  Now, this week, my 1.2 pounds was a true loss.  I weighed 1 time. 

Now, if you have hit a plateau or you are struggling to keep the scales moving in the right direction at a good pace, you might want to jot down these next few tips. These tips are all from my research (and I am trying them this week to see what happens).

Tip #1:  Don't eat after 7:00 pm!
I have been reading that you actually want your tummy to be a little hungry when you go to bed so that your body dips into the stored fat within your body instead of processing a food at night.  And whether you believe it or not, your body is supposed to burn calories while sleeping.  I would much rather my body burn those stored up calories than have to work overtime to burn the ones I put in my body just before bed.

Tip #2:  Exercise more or differently!
Yep, that dreaded word.  Just like your body can become accustomed to your daily foods, it can also become accustomed to your workout routine!  As if exercise wasn't bad enough.....now I have to add variety to it!  Geesh!  I have been regularly walking on my treadmill on flat surface.  This week, I plan to either add a cardio/dance workout on alternate days of my walking or add an incline to my treadmill when I walk.  Also, the more fat and pounds you lose the harder you have to work out to make up for the weight you lost.  It is like walking with hand weights but then suddenly not walking with the weights but expecting to get the same results.  It won't happen right?!  That is why the intensity of your workout must increase with each 10 pounds you lose.

Tip #3:  Change your daily diet!
ALL dieters do it.....they fall into the fat free/processed food trap!  Why?  It is more convenient.  However; with all those processed foods comes a lot of sodium and a lot of carbs!  I am the first to admit, that even though I am still eating a lot of fruits and veggies, I too am eating a lot of processed snack foods!  They may be the root of my slow loss struggle.  This week, I have planned out my grocery list to include higher protein foods such as fat free refried beans, cottage cheese, hummus, apples, peanut butter, tuna, eggs, turkey sausage, string cheese, chicken, roast, and almonds along with vegetables and fruits.  I am going to try and avoid eating too many bananas as they have more sugar than the other fruits and could be contributing to my slow losses as well.  I plan to do more strawberries, pineapple, apples, and grapes instead.

So........
In spite of it being Derby Day weekend as well as Mother's Day weekend, I still plan to lose a signicant amount of weight next week when I weigh in.  We will see how these changes in my diet plan affect my weightloss.  Fingers crossed!

Now, I know you all enjoy my Weight Watcher's recipes, but the first recipe is DEFINATELY NOT a Weight Watcher's recipe!  It is a recipe in honor of the Kentucky Derby!  (Which by the way, my horse pick is "Pants on Fire" for 2 reasons:  I love the name and a female jockey will be riding that horse!)

Kentucky Hot Brown  (So many points, I gained 2 pounds just typing the recipe!)

2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups whole milk
½ cup Romano cheese,divided (Can use fresh parmesan)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Sliced Roast Turkey Breast
8 slices white sandwich bread or 4 slices Texas Toast, crusts removed
8 slices bacon, cooked crispy
4 Roma tomatoes, sliced in half
Sprinkling of paprika
Chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Directions:

Cook the bacon until crispy. Set aside.

Preheat the oven set to broil.  In a medium size saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the flour and cook for about two minutes, stirring constantly (you want the flour taste to cook off).  Add the milk, whisking vigorously until all lumps are out and mixture has thickened and is smooth.  Add ¼ cup of cheese and stir until the cheese has melted… remove from the heat and add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Remove the crusts from the bread (2 slices of regular sandwich bread or 1 slice Texas Toast).  Place bread in an oven safe dishes (individual dishes for each person).  Put the desired amount of turkey on the bread.  Place ½ of a Roma tomato on either side of the bread and turkey.  Spoon sauce over each sandwich.  Sprinkle each sandwich with a little cheese (make sure you save some for garnish.. see photo).  Place dishes under broiler until cheese begins to brown and bubble.  Remove from the broiler and cross two strips of bacon on each sandwich.  Sprinkle with paprika and chopped parsley.  Serve immediately.

And for those of us counting points:

Peanut Butter Pie Cups
Makes 12 cups at 2 points each

*2 Tblsp. creamy peanut butter
*1 small (8 oz.) container fat free cool whip
*12 foil lined muffin cups
*Hershey's chocolate syrup
*12 Nilla Wafers

Mix the peanut butter into the container of fat free cool whip.  Mix it until well blended.  Place foil lined muffin cups inside muffin pan holes.  Put 1 Nilla Wafer in the bottom of each muffin cup.  Top with 2 Tblsp. of the peanut butter mixture.  If more is left, evenly distribute it amongst the muffin cups.  Drizzle just a bit (about 1/2 tsp.) of the chocolate syrup over the top of the peanut butter mixture in each cup.  Place in the freezer for 4 hours or until firm before serving.  Store in the freezer.

Have a great Derby weekend and Mother's Day to all of you out there!  I'm gonna do my best to stick to plan this busy weekend!