I guess being sick really did help me on this journey- this was a great WI. I am 8.8 lbs over my WW goal- so just 6.8 lbs away from being FREE again... I have confidence in myself, so I cancelled my Monthly Pass- effective 2/27. I asked about it, because I wondered if I had to get back down to goal before the 2 lb leeway went into effect (I don't!). The gal told me to figure out where I thought I would be on my expiration date and make sure to cancel on time... and that it would be worth it, even if I ended up paying for a week. I figure that even if I'm not quite there by the last day of my MP, I should be able to be there by my first March WI (if I can't lose 7 lbs in 3 wks, I should be able to lose it in 4 wks).
I don't have much planned this month that would deter me from my planned menus. I'll be teaching two full Saturdays, which will suck food-wise, because I usually run to Quiznos for the best sandwich ever- with added tomatoes. The stats on that thing are insane, so I'll have to make sure I take leftovers or something. I do have a class scheduled every Tuesday/Thursday night (starting next week), but as of yesterday it was going to be cancelled due to low enrollment. That class would have allowed me to have dinner at home, and would have had me moving more and getting in more activity than normal- I'm pretty bummed that it isn't going to happen (and the money really would have been nice, too).
Do you know the details about canceling your MP? YOU HAVE TO DO IT IN THE FIRST HALF of your MP month!!! They bill you about halfway through your month, and if they've already billed you, your cancellation won't go into effect until the end of the NEXT month! Of course, there are a couple of exceptions, but that's their normal procedure. This means that you MUST PLAN AHEAD when you think you might be ready to cancel. If you're canceling because you hit Lifetime, that's one of their exceptions, but (from personal experience) CALL THEM RIGHT AWAY when you get LT- don't dawdle.
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Wonton Pizza Bites
I made these tonight, using Roni's recipe as a guide, and they were a hit! I only made 12- mainly because I was afraid they wouldn't all get eaten/they wouldn't reheat well- and I wish I'd made more. Everyone wanted more!
The fam was starving again (seriously, they eat constantly, yet they're always STARVING!), so no pictures tonight- sorry!
WI tomorrow... I'm interested to see how I do. I ate some outrageously high point foods (mainly this) a few days ago, but I also haven't eaten much period. (Do you eat when you don't feel good?)
That's all for now. Have a great night!
The fam was starving again (seriously, they eat constantly, yet they're always STARVING!), so no pictures tonight- sorry!
WI tomorrow... I'm interested to see how I do. I ate some outrageously high point foods (mainly this) a few days ago, but I also haven't eaten much period. (Do you eat when you don't feel good?)
That's all for now. Have a great night!
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Turkey
Happy Shrove Tuesday! We were supposed to go to church for a Shrove Tuesday Mardi Gras celebration tonight- dinner included- but due to lots of snow and me feeling icky, we skipped out. While it would have been a great time, I know that I wouldn't have eaten anywhere near on plan.
So instead, I made a turkey... it was 'scheduled' for last Thursday. I've had this bird sitting in my fridge since I brought it home a week ago, and figured I'd better make it soon. If you've never made a whole turkey, IT ISN'T HARD. I make one every Thanksgiving, and I usually make one at Christmas, too. Today I just tossed it into the roaster, added some juices and spices, and let it go... it was done cooking by about 3:00. (A fully thawed turkey only takes about 3-4 hours to cook. I have no idea why my grandmother used to get up at 5 AM to start the turkey.)
I pulled it out and pulled off the meat, then decided to try something I've never done before- make turkey stock with the carcass. I put the carcass/bones/random scraps of meat into my stock pot, filled the thing with water, and let it boil. I lowered the temperature and covered it, and am going to let it simmer at least until I go to bed. This gal suggests letting it simmer overnight!
The bowl of turkey meat, covered in juices, went into the fridge to wait for dinner... when it was served with the remaining sweet potato fries from last night.
A nice Core dinner. It was so simple to prepare, and pretty tasty, too.
So instead, I made a turkey... it was 'scheduled' for last Thursday. I've had this bird sitting in my fridge since I brought it home a week ago, and figured I'd better make it soon. If you've never made a whole turkey, IT ISN'T HARD. I make one every Thanksgiving, and I usually make one at Christmas, too. Today I just tossed it into the roaster, added some juices and spices, and let it go... it was done cooking by about 3:00. (A fully thawed turkey only takes about 3-4 hours to cook. I have no idea why my grandmother used to get up at 5 AM to start the turkey.)
I pulled it out and pulled off the meat, then decided to try something I've never done before- make turkey stock with the carcass. I put the carcass/bones/random scraps of meat into my stock pot, filled the thing with water, and let it boil. I lowered the temperature and covered it, and am going to let it simmer at least until I go to bed. This gal suggests letting it simmer overnight!
The bowl of turkey meat, covered in juices, went into the fridge to wait for dinner... when it was served with the remaining sweet potato fries from last night.
A nice Core dinner. It was so simple to prepare, and pretty tasty, too.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Funny Little Story/My Kids Eat Healthier Than Yours Do
ThirdKid is usually at our house for lunch, but his mom usually sends him a lunch (it's SO cute to see him carrying his lunchbox!!!). Today he was coming at a different time, but leaving right after he and my kids usually finish lunch. His mom asked if I could just feed him with my kids if she wasn't able to send him a lunch (long story, she's having health issues).
I had every intention of serving the kids clementines, peas, and Spaghetti-Os. Except I couldn't find the Spaghetti-O's in pantry. Anywhere. I knew I didn't have enough chicken nuggets for all three of them (because my kids have eaten so many lately), so I decided to stick with fruits and veggies. They all had 2 clementines, 1/3 can of peas, and 1/3 can of corn for lunch today. They loved it and they ate almost everything. Not a big deal for my kids, they love fruits and veggies. ThirdKid was a bit more of a struggle, but even he ate most of his peas- the one thing he told me that he didn't like!
When his dad came to pick him up, I explained what had happened, and that the Prince's favorite lunch is a can of corn and a can of green beans. (I am SO not kidding!) ThirdKid's dad was really surprised, and rather impressed that I got his kid to eat all of that for lunch! (He rarely eats even 1/4 of what his mom sends, and I NEVER let him have the "fun" stuff before he finishes his healthy stuff. That's the rule I use with my own kids, and if he's going to eat with us he can follow my rules. His parents think it's a good rule, but they don't use it.) ThirdKid's dad then says "I hope he doesn't grow out of that soon" or something to that effect. I responded by saying how that's what my kids are used to- they eat a lot of fruits and veggies.
Until I was sitting down to type this out, I didn't really realize just how much healthier my kids eat than pretty much anyone else we know. The Prince's friends always have cookies and juice and other treats at their houses- even strawberry milk! My kids know that these things are treats. They love cookies and juice, but we rarely have them in the house. I don't buy juice... if they're thirsty, their options are milk or water. When we go out, SOMETIMES I'll let them have a non-caffinated soda, but usually they get chocolate milk (and that's a nice treat for them!).
I am NOT saying that they don't eat junk, because they do. But I think my idea of them eating junk is a lot different than most people's. They snack on popcorn and fruit, and sometimes I'll make them chocolate milk or lemonade to drink. Sometimes I buy them crackers or yogurt to snack on. I buy Honey-Nut Cheerios and Fruit Loops and they love those. When I buy them fast food, I usually choose the fruit option (and yes, the Prince does use the carmel dip for the apples at McD's)... or I'll get one meal with fruit and one with fries, and they'll split both. Good grief, as I'm typing this I'm feeling more and more like my kids don't eat anything fun... but that's certainly not true, it just isn't the norm at our house.
The Prince had a friend over a while back, and when the Prince wanted a snack, his friend said "Me too! Let's have cookies!". He was almost confused when I said that we didn't have any cookies- like it was something that never happens at his house. My SIL always has tons of junk (yes, junk- candy bars, bags of sweet snacks, juice boxes, etc) at her house, available for the kids to help themselves.
Is this the norm? What is it like in your house? In the houses of your friends?
I had every intention of serving the kids clementines, peas, and Spaghetti-Os. Except I couldn't find the Spaghetti-O's in pantry. Anywhere. I knew I didn't have enough chicken nuggets for all three of them (because my kids have eaten so many lately), so I decided to stick with fruits and veggies. They all had 2 clementines, 1/3 can of peas, and 1/3 can of corn for lunch today. They loved it and they ate almost everything. Not a big deal for my kids, they love fruits and veggies. ThirdKid was a bit more of a struggle, but even he ate most of his peas- the one thing he told me that he didn't like!
When his dad came to pick him up, I explained what had happened, and that the Prince's favorite lunch is a can of corn and a can of green beans. (I am SO not kidding!) ThirdKid's dad was really surprised, and rather impressed that I got his kid to eat all of that for lunch! (He rarely eats even 1/4 of what his mom sends, and I NEVER let him have the "fun" stuff before he finishes his healthy stuff. That's the rule I use with my own kids, and if he's going to eat with us he can follow my rules. His parents think it's a good rule, but they don't use it.) ThirdKid's dad then says "I hope he doesn't grow out of that soon" or something to that effect. I responded by saying how that's what my kids are used to- they eat a lot of fruits and veggies.
Until I was sitting down to type this out, I didn't really realize just how much healthier my kids eat than pretty much anyone else we know. The Prince's friends always have cookies and juice and other treats at their houses- even strawberry milk! My kids know that these things are treats. They love cookies and juice, but we rarely have them in the house. I don't buy juice... if they're thirsty, their options are milk or water. When we go out, SOMETIMES I'll let them have a non-caffinated soda, but usually they get chocolate milk (and that's a nice treat for them!).
I am NOT saying that they don't eat junk, because they do. But I think my idea of them eating junk is a lot different than most people's. They snack on popcorn and fruit, and sometimes I'll make them chocolate milk or lemonade to drink. Sometimes I buy them crackers or yogurt to snack on. I buy Honey-Nut Cheerios and Fruit Loops and they love those. When I buy them fast food, I usually choose the fruit option (and yes, the Prince does use the carmel dip for the apples at McD's)... or I'll get one meal with fruit and one with fries, and they'll split both. Good grief, as I'm typing this I'm feeling more and more like my kids don't eat anything fun... but that's certainly not true, it just isn't the norm at our house.
The Prince had a friend over a while back, and when the Prince wanted a snack, his friend said "Me too! Let's have cookies!". He was almost confused when I said that we didn't have any cookies- like it was something that never happens at his house. My SIL always has tons of junk (yes, junk- candy bars, bags of sweet snacks, juice boxes, etc) at her house, available for the kids to help themselves.
Is this the norm? What is it like in your house? In the houses of your friends?
Meatballs and Sweet Potato Fries
for dinner tonight- yum. I didn't end up making meatballs yesterday, I started feeling pretty bad again and decided (once again) not to bother cooking.
The meatballs were just as I posted yesterday, I ended up with 64 meatballs. If my calculations are correct, that means that 5 of them are Core + 1 pt- not too shabby! I served them with a side of spaghetti sauce for dipping.
As promised, here is a picture of my "meatball pan":
See the nice grooves? These are great for collecting the grease, but they make this thing a royal pain to clean. My mom has something similar to this that she's had forever, she only uses hers for meatballs and bacon in the microwave. Shortly after I got married, we were having company over for dinner and I was making spaghetti and meatballs. I realized I didn't have one of these pans, crossed my fingers and ran to Wal-Mart... thank goodness I found this!
I also did sweet potato fries, using suggestions found here and here. I ended up using 3 sweet potatoes, the kids munched while I cooked. Unfortunately, I overcooked a few fries:
Ready to go down the disposal
Still a little burnt on the bottoms (these did get eaten, though!)
After a little trial and error, I found what I liked, though I would have preferred them to be a bit crunchier (the slightly burnt ones were crunchy!). Someone on Roni's food blog suggested double-cooking them, I might try this next time.
The best batch, though a bit soft for my taste
Roni suggested using a big knife to cut the sweet potatoes. She wasn't kidding. I love this big knife, but don't use it very often... cutting these things definitely called for it!
She also suggested curry powder on sweet potato fries. I did try that, but was not impressed. I really preferred just the kosher salt. Please realize in the pictures that I didn't clean the pans in between uses, I just laid new raw sweet potatoes on top of where I'd already cooked some- so the pictures look like I used a lot of baking spray and salt. (I didn't use as much as it appears!)
Everyone was happy with dinner tonight. I was surprised that I ended up needing all 3 sweet potatoes. Had the kids and I not munched while stuff was cooking, one probably would have done the job, but at the end of the night, we only had a handful left over (so three was a good number). Will definitely make these again.
The meatballs were just as I posted yesterday, I ended up with 64 meatballs. If my calculations are correct, that means that 5 of them are Core + 1 pt- not too shabby! I served them with a side of spaghetti sauce for dipping.
As promised, here is a picture of my "meatball pan":
See the nice grooves? These are great for collecting the grease, but they make this thing a royal pain to clean. My mom has something similar to this that she's had forever, she only uses hers for meatballs and bacon in the microwave. Shortly after I got married, we were having company over for dinner and I was making spaghetti and meatballs. I realized I didn't have one of these pans, crossed my fingers and ran to Wal-Mart... thank goodness I found this!
I also did sweet potato fries, using suggestions found here and here. I ended up using 3 sweet potatoes, the kids munched while I cooked. Unfortunately, I overcooked a few fries:
Ready to go down the disposal
Still a little burnt on the bottoms (these did get eaten, though!)
After a little trial and error, I found what I liked, though I would have preferred them to be a bit crunchier (the slightly burnt ones were crunchy!). Someone on Roni's food blog suggested double-cooking them, I might try this next time.
The best batch, though a bit soft for my taste
Roni suggested using a big knife to cut the sweet potatoes. She wasn't kidding. I love this big knife, but don't use it very often... cutting these things definitely called for it!
She also suggested curry powder on sweet potato fries. I did try that, but was not impressed. I really preferred just the kosher salt. Please realize in the pictures that I didn't clean the pans in between uses, I just laid new raw sweet potatoes on top of where I'd already cooked some- so the pictures look like I used a lot of baking spray and salt. (I didn't use as much as it appears!)
Everyone was happy with dinner tonight. I was surprised that I ended up needing all 3 sweet potatoes. Had the kids and I not munched while stuff was cooking, one probably would have done the job, but at the end of the night, we only had a handful left over (so three was a good number). Will definitely make these again.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Super Bowl food
On my planned menu for today, I have onion rings, spinach/artichoke dip, and sweet potato fries.
Because I just did onion rings this past week, I think I'm not going to be making those. I bought some wonton wrappers this week, (thinking I'd make some Pizza Bites) but then I thought about making Spinach/Artichoke Bites- putting some of the dip in the wrappers! I was also thinking about making mini meatballs today, as they were also on my menu for last week... which has been totally ignored due to the sickness at my house.
In all honesty, though- none of this really sounds good to me today. Hubby went back to the Dr. yesterday morning and was diagnosed as having the early stages of pneumonia... I have either a really light case of the flu or a nasty cold... and the kids are fine, just suffering from a few coughs and runny noses. Hubby has spent the better part of the last FIVE days sleeping... I have been pretty ok, except Friday when I was really dizzy most of the day. Mine goes in waves, alternating from being almost fine to wanting to crawl under a rock.
The kids have been eating a lot of chicken nuggets and canned veggies, we've been taking a lot of pills and vitamins. We're not going to even talk about the number of points I've eaten in the last few days. I figure that my body needs the calories to fight whatever this is. :)
At this point, I'm still planning on making the meatballs today. Those are SO good, and will get eaten. They are ALMOST core- the only non-core item in them is the stuffing. The entire box of stuffing is 12 pts, so depending on how many I make, these will be 1 pt for maybe 3 or 4. I'll figure it out and let you know how I do. The recipe is here (as a meatloaf), but I usually make it into small meatballs. I got a very similar recipe from a WW leader about a year ago, so I think that maybe this one has been floating around the WW circles for some time.
For some reason, the link to the meatloaf recipe isn't working- it appears that the entire site is down right now! I found this recipe on the Bootcamp Buddies- Weight Watchers Support Forum, under the heading "Stove Top Meatloaf":
2 lbs 96% lean ground beef
1 box Stove Top Stuffing
1/2 cup egg substitute (I will use 2 eggs)
1 cup water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and add a bit of ketchup and dijon mustard (optional). Divide into 2 loaves, coat with a thin layer of ketchup or barbecue sauce and bake for 45 minutes or more until meat is no longer pink.
Serves 8
WW Winning points- 4.75/serving (Winning Points indicates that this has definitely been around a while!!!)
Total recipe is 38 points so you can choose to get more or less servings depending on how many points you have to spend. ***Be sure to adjust points if you use a different grade of beef.
Like I said, I make these into mini meatballs. I cook them in the microwave, on a pan that I know of as my "meatball pan"... but I don't know what it is really called. It isn't easy to describe, so I'll post a picture of it when I post pictures of the meatballs. I've also made this recipe in muffin tins (as someone on that forum suggested), but my family wasn't too impressed with them.
Because I just did onion rings this past week, I think I'm not going to be making those. I bought some wonton wrappers this week, (thinking I'd make some Pizza Bites) but then I thought about making Spinach/Artichoke Bites- putting some of the dip in the wrappers! I was also thinking about making mini meatballs today, as they were also on my menu for last week... which has been totally ignored due to the sickness at my house.
In all honesty, though- none of this really sounds good to me today. Hubby went back to the Dr. yesterday morning and was diagnosed as having the early stages of pneumonia... I have either a really light case of the flu or a nasty cold... and the kids are fine, just suffering from a few coughs and runny noses. Hubby has spent the better part of the last FIVE days sleeping... I have been pretty ok, except Friday when I was really dizzy most of the day. Mine goes in waves, alternating from being almost fine to wanting to crawl under a rock.
The kids have been eating a lot of chicken nuggets and canned veggies, we've been taking a lot of pills and vitamins. We're not going to even talk about the number of points I've eaten in the last few days. I figure that my body needs the calories to fight whatever this is. :)
At this point, I'm still planning on making the meatballs today. Those are SO good, and will get eaten. They are ALMOST core- the only non-core item in them is the stuffing. The entire box of stuffing is 12 pts, so depending on how many I make, these will be 1 pt for maybe 3 or 4. I'll figure it out and let you know how I do. The recipe is here (as a meatloaf), but I usually make it into small meatballs. I got a very similar recipe from a WW leader about a year ago, so I think that maybe this one has been floating around the WW circles for some time.
For some reason, the link to the meatloaf recipe isn't working- it appears that the entire site is down right now! I found this recipe on the Bootcamp Buddies- Weight Watchers Support Forum, under the heading "Stove Top Meatloaf":
2 lbs 96% lean ground beef
1 box Stove Top Stuffing
1/2 cup egg substitute (I will use 2 eggs)
1 cup water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and add a bit of ketchup and dijon mustard (optional). Divide into 2 loaves, coat with a thin layer of ketchup or barbecue sauce and bake for 45 minutes or more until meat is no longer pink.
Serves 8
WW Winning points- 4.75/serving (Winning Points indicates that this has definitely been around a while!!!)
Total recipe is 38 points so you can choose to get more or less servings depending on how many points you have to spend. ***Be sure to adjust points if you use a different grade of beef.
Like I said, I make these into mini meatballs. I cook them in the microwave, on a pan that I know of as my "meatball pan"... but I don't know what it is really called. It isn't easy to describe, so I'll post a picture of it when I post pictures of the meatballs. I've also made this recipe in muffin tins (as someone on that forum suggested), but my family wasn't too impressed with them.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Sick today
I got it, too. I woke up this morning and it was rather obvious that I'd finally succumbed to the flu that has hit my house... so I won't be posting anything else today.
I hope everyone else stays healthy and I hope to be back here and posting my food journals again soon! (I have yummy stuff in store this week!)
I hope everyone else stays healthy and I hope to be back here and posting my food journals again soon! (I have yummy stuff in store this week!)
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