Expectations

Will post basement results soon.

Since my mom is in town, I've been thinking a lot about sewing. The other day, I took a bunch of fabric over to her and we played, "What should this be?"  I got some great ideas and it was a lot of fun. Yesterday, she came over for a few hours so she could help me with some more concrete things, like taking in some shirts and making some skirts.

I tried on the last skirt I made, the blue six-gored. She immediately said, "It's too big." and we discussed how to make it better. It'll mean taking the waistband off, but I should do that anyway since I did a pretty sloppy job of it. I'll take the gores in at the top, but leave the bottom as is. I'll also make the elastic smaller.

I have this really pretty, batik-y looking rayon in blues & white. Very summery, very drapey. I was thinking circle skirt. My mom said the for a circle skirt to really look right, it needed a proper waistband and a zipper. I've been putting off working with this fabric since I got it weeks ago, because the thought of a circle skirt was intimidating to me. I didn't want to deal with all that bias finishing. She suggested a slightly gathered skirt. I could get it cut out of one piece (selvedge to selvedge), with one seam, an elastic waist, hem, and done. I've made skirts like that a bazillion times before and knew I could whip it out in my sleep, so I got started.

I made it, and tried it on.  It looked nice, but not the full, drapey, flowy, girly skirt I'd had in my mind. And therein lay the problem. I had an expectation of what this fabric should be, and this wasn't it. It's not bad; it just isn't what I want for this fabric.

So my time with the seam ripper is going to be longer than I thought. I don't really mind taking it apart. I have enough left over to add to it to make another six-gored skirt, which I know will be flowy and drapey and girly the way I want. I'll even be able to use the measurements from the one I already made once I get it fixed. This also gives me time to bite the bullet and get the Serger fixed.

The ironic thing is that I have a plaid seersucker that I love (used it to make golf shorts for the girls a couple years ago) that will be perfect for a simple gathered skirt. I will easily have three new skirts next weekend.

Of course, I have no idea what I'm going to wear to church this morning.

Home Stretch

The kids will be back on Sunday afternoon. I'm not working again until Monday. That means I have today, tomorrow, and Saturday to get the basement as done as I can.

This week's Purple Heart pickup:

 This week's garbage pickup:

This week's progress:

Most of the stuff that had to go out has gone out. There will still be extra garbage next week, and another Purple Heart pickup sometime in July. But most of what is still down there stays down there, and that's the really hard work--figuring out what to do with all the stuff that stays. Finding room for it, keeping it tidy & organized.

Today is mostly about clothes & fabric.  I have laundry to do, clothes to sort, and fabric to fold. It's a good thing it's cooler down there!

Realization

So even though I've removed 12 metric tons of crap from my basement, it still looks like a garbage truck exploded.  But now I think I understand a little better why that is, and what to do about it.  Also:  a weight loss correlation.

Essentially, what I'm doing is sorting into two categories:  stay and go. The "go" can be either garbage or donations, but it gets out of the basement.  But all the "stay" stuff is still there.  Yes, I know:  duh. I've been so busy trying to just get through the masses of piles (Jeff called it a berm) and move forward, deeper into the basement, that I didn't do much with what's left behind. I didn't really have a plan for what to do with the stuff that stays. 

But I think that I've made as much forward progress as I'm going to for a while. I've gotten quite far back, all the way to the stuff that has been in boxes for years.  This kids can't be blamed for that stuff, but it's fairly neat and contained, and I'm willing to leave it for the time being.

Now it's time to go back. Back over the pile of shoes and start figuring out what will go where. Back to the books and toys that I do want to keep. And that's where I get stuck. I don't know what to do with it all. We have a couple shelf units (full) and bookshelves (fuller). There are some plastic storage bins, also largely full. So I'm not sure exactly what will happen to all the stuff we still have down there. That's my next big challenge, and it's what I'll be working on this weekend.

The weight loss correlation:  I've been working through the basement by taking one area and just getting through it.  "When I'm done with this section of floor, I'm done for the day, and it will look so much better without that big pile."  But when I am done, I don't see the difference. All I can see is what isn't yet done.  There's a similarity to looking in the mirror. I know I've lost weight. I know my clothes are smaller. But when I look in the mirror, I don't really remember what I used to look like.  I see old pictures, and just feel perplexed.  I don't remember how that felt. The only difference is that I know I'm happier when I look in the mirror than I was a year ago.  I guess that'll have to do.

How is this possible?

While the kids are in Florida, I'm cleaning out the basement. This is a truly Herculean task--fully half the basement wasn't even accessible.

This is just the front part of the basement. It doesn't even begin to show the true measure of the worst part.
I've worked on it every day, sometimes only for an hour, sometimes longer. 

Purple Heart has come out once so far.

This is actually only about half of what they took today.  I managed to get a lot more toys and a few more bags of clothes out before the truck came.

A friend came out to pick up dozens of books for a book exchange she's having this weekend, saving me an extra trip.

(OK, turn your head to the side, because I can't get the picture to rotate.)

I've dragged countless bags of garbage up the stairs.

And the result?  The basement looks worse now than it did before.  Seriously!

Yes, I can see a lot more floor than before. Yes, I know that it's better.  But I'm so tired, and there is so much left to do. The clothes, the toys, the SHOES.  I have until the end of the month until the kids come back, and I'm determined to get it in really good shape before then.  I'll update again next week.

Recipe Review: Skinny Taste Snickerdoodles

We're going to a friend's today for a pool party. Yes, I'm aware that it's 55 degrees out. Luckily, the friend also has a hot tub. We're hoping this will be a recurring event, and when talking with the mom in charge, I suggested that (since we're all trying to be healthier lately) we make a point of bringing healthy foods and the recipes.

When I suggested this, I was thinking of things like Cold Sesame Noodles. Middle East Panzanella. Corn and Black Bean Salad. All delicious things on a hot summer day. Um. Did I mention the bipolar Michigan weather?  I decided to make cookies instead.

Specifically, Gina's Skinny Taste Snickerdoodles.  And yes, I did modify the recipe. I don't have cream of tartar (subbed baking powder for it & the baking soda) or agave syrup (subbed honey). Also, I think I let them cook a little too long. Once they're cool, they're pretty crunchy, and I strongly prefer a chewy cookie.

They're very tasty, though, and the kids really like them.  This is one that goes into the "make again" file.

More Sewing

Some good, some bad.

First, the good. I have a bunch of shirts that are 2X from last fall that are now too big & rather sloppy. I decided to see if taking in the side seams would help any.
Example #1:

I turned it inside out, and drew a new line, then cut and pinked the edge. I just eyeballed it to see how it would go. 

Example #2:

Pretty much the same thing, but with a knit/t-shirt instead of woven/button down style.

So far, I was pretty pleased. I had taken two shirts that I never wear and turned them into items that I could wear to work or church. My wardrobe is pretty limited, and my budget is very limited, so I was happy to get extra use out of these things.

Next, I wanted to re-purpose a particular skirt. It's a long, somewhat A-line, very light & floaty fabric, kind of an ethnic print. Very nice for summer, and would go well with that orange top above. I carefully pulled out the waistband, and took out the side seams, then took it in along the sides and reattached the now reduced waistband. I had considered just using the fabric itself to make a totally different skirt, but decided to keeping the original style was the most expedient thing. I was hoping to be able to wear it to work tonight.

I'm not wearing it to work tonight. The hem is a mess--very uneven--and the waistband is still too big. I Skyped my mom to get advice, and she said that the issue is that I still don't know how to properly fit things. I agree with that, but the real issue is that I wanted to get a skirt done today. I've put it aside and will try something with it when she's here in July.  This is a better alternative than chucking the whole thing in the garbage, which was the direction I was heading.

I do still have plans for other fabric, though. There's the new stuff I bought at JoAnn's, and I have an actual Liberty Print from Nassau. I think I'm going to make a circle skirt for myself out of that one. I also have some blue that looks vaguely like denim. Short/skirts are what I really need right now, because I only have three pairs of shorts, and two of them are a bit too big.

In the meantime, I need to go find something to wear to work tonight.

Sewing Day

(Note: I don't know why my pictures are all on their sides--I edited them so you don't have to turn your head, but blogger is ignoring that. Sorry!)

I really wanted be able to take all day yesterday for sewing, but distributing the mulch out front took all day Tuesday, and distributing the peat out back took all day Wednesday (also, the kids had Field Biology at U of M Dearborn). So no sewing until today.

First, I started with some cool fabric that Sarah's been in love with forever. I don't even remember where I got it. It reminds me a little of the Russian nesting doll design. It was very easy--a seam up the back, being sure to line up the border part of the print. Then I put in an elastic waist, and she was done. I didn't even need to hem it, because the print ran all the way to the selvedge edge, so I used it. She's very happy with it.

Then I started on Lauren's skirt with some fabric she found in the basement this morning. I don't know where I got that from, either (this is a continuing theme, apparently). I was talking with a friend the other day about circle skirts, so I decided to give one of those a try.

I've never actually made a circle skirt myself, but I understood the general principle, and my stepmom made a few for me when I was in college and I loved them. I looked up a couple youtube videos, and started cutting. After I cut the circle and shook it out to show Lauren, then refolded it , I noticed that there was some overlap, so it wasn't truly a perfect circle. I didn't want to start trimming and trimming, though, because I was afraid that before I knew it, I'd have a micro mini circle skirt, and that's really not what I was going for!

I cut out the waist circle, had her try it on, and then shaved a tiny bit more off because it was a skosh tight going on. I really wanted to avoid making it too big, though. I used bias tape to bind the waistband, then added elastic inside it. I used more bias tape to bind the edge. I thought about turning it under, but I kind of like the border look to it, and it went much fast that way. I had a bad moment where I was sure I wasn't going to have enough. Seriously, it had never occurred to me that a brand new package (3 yards!) of bias tape might not be enough to run around the hem of this little skirt! Luckily, I had just enough left over from the waistband to finish.

After she tried it on, I realized that it really is quite uneven. It isn't noticeable if she's got the longer part in the back, but if it's off to the side, she looks a little cockeyed.  If (oh, who am I kidding? WHEN) I made a skirt like this for myself, I'm going to be very careful to make sure my circle is absolutely perfect. But Lauren likes it, and it's a nice play skirt--very twirly! 

Oy

I am so tired. I woke up at three, and couldn't get back to sleep. I was on the computer for a while, then watched a little TV, then dozed on the couch until 7. I'm really dragging today. Also, my knees are very stiff, I'm sure due to all the salt & junk I ate at the party last night.

I still have a busy day planned--I need to get a (slow) walk in, and there is a lot of yard work and laundry to do, and of course school work. I'm also working tonight.

The plan for dinner is to grill up a bunch of stuff that we can then eat throughout the course of the week. I have some small steaks for us to eat tonight, but I also got brats and will make some hamburger patties. I might also marinate a couple chicken breasts, and slice some zucchini to put on as well.

Time to wake up!

Recipe Review: Martha Stewart's Tiramisu Cupcakes

Last night was Sarah's Girl Scout end of year party. She volunteered for me to make tiramisu (with cupcakes as a backup plan). Uh.  OK. I love tiramisu, but I've never made it. I found a few recipes that looked reasonable, but realized I'd have to hit Meijer to get the mascarpone cheese. I avoid Meijer whenever I can, and only go when I needs several things I can't generally get at my regular stores (kosher salt, bulgur wheat, whole wheat flour, etc.). Since I was going, I decided to get other stuff as well. Grrr--I hate paying higher prices for things I know I can get cheaper at other stores.

To top it off, they didn't have mascarpone cheese. I was irked, but decided to hit Westborn Market on my way home, because they have a whole ROOM for cheese, and I was pretty sure they'd have it, as well as ladyfinger cookies. As I pulled in the Westborn parking lot and saw no cars, I realized that they were closed. D'oh!

I decided that cream cheese would have to suffice (which I already had at home), and that I could run down to Randazzo's produce market for the ladyfingers--I've seen them there a million times, but never gotten any. I dropped the groceries I already had at home, then got back in the car.

Dun dun DUN! Randazzo's had also closed!  I growled the whole way home, and googled "Tiramisu cupcakes." Of course, good old Martha Stewart had a recipe. It called for a few things I didn't have, like vanilla beans & of course mascarpone, but I had decent substitutions. It looked a little complicated, but whatever, right? The next morning, I copied it and holy cow! Are you kidding?  That's one complicated recipe!  I thought to myself, "these had better be some STELLAR cupcakes for all this work."

I made them, and took them to the party, and they were good. Sadly, they were not stellar. I didn't use enough of the coffee syrup for fear of them being soggy, so most of them were a little lacking in oomph. Again, not bad, but not worth the work.  Know what would have been stellar?  Yeah. Tiramisu. If I ever have a need to make it again, I'll plan a little farther ahead and just make the real thing, which seems worlds easier.

Hello Again

So I have some catching up to do, eh?

The CropWalk went great. The weather was just right, and aside from one monster hill, actually not too difficult. Yes, I was tired and my feet were sore when I was done, but I made it through. As I rounded the final corner, I looked at my phone to see how long it had taken me:  130 minutes.  Really? I was expecting a little faster than that. Then I realized that when we started, we were at the back to the pack, and it was hard to move ahead. That's fine if you're just strolling along, but I think that next year, I'm going to make a point of being closer to the front so I can maintain my natural stride the whole time.

As for my weight, I've gotten back in the groove. I made a goal to get at least half an hour of exercise every day this month, and I haven't missed a day yet. The first week, it was mostly on the Wii, but I realized that I really manage my stress better when I walk outside, so I've started doing that in the mornings again, and I'm glad. I did something to my ankle today, though--it's kind of sore, and I don't know why.

As of this morning, I'm officially down to 206.1.  I don't plan on even trying for "onederland" before Memorial Day, but by the time my mom & stepdad bring the kids back at the end of June, I should be there.

Up tomorrow: another recipe review.

It's All Good

Surgery was fine. We got in early, but still had to wait a bit.  Injecting the anesthesia into the IV was the most painful part (and that only lasted a few seconds before I was out.  I've got a monster bandage on my neck, but it doesn't hurt much at all, and I'm actually hoping that I don't have to cancel class tomorrow after all. We'll see how I feel in the morning. I'm kind of tired, but not as tired as Jeff, and am getting around just fine.

Still going to milk it for all it's worth, though. :)

Brownie-Off

I love me some brownies. When I first made the Drop 5 Pounds brownies, I loved them, but I'm always on the lookout for something with fewer calories. I saw in my Cook Yourself Thin Faster cookbook that they had a recipe for "Fudgy Brownies" that looked pretty good, and are only 89 calories each (adjusted for 12 servings instead of 16).

I made a batch Friday, and they were ok, but definitely lacking that chocolate hit from the other recipe. I think that the extra cocoa powder and the coffee make a big difference. I'd still like to try and find a brownie recipe that smacks me in the face with chocolate flavor but is fewer than 100 calories per serving--I might have to just develop it myself . . .

Week 16

I know--I said I wasn't going to weigh in again until May 1st because I wanted to concentrate more on just being healthy and living the way I know I should. And I have been doing that. But I still need that accountability and that validation from the scale occasionally.. I wish I didn't; maybe someday I won't. I plan to take next week off and weigh in again on the 29th, since that's a Sunday.

Official results:  207.9. That's 141 pounds total, almost 12 pounds this year, and 3.5 from last week.

The Crop Walk is in three weeks, and I can do 4 miles without too much difficulty. I realized today that I'm not really pushing myself on these walks. I don't run at all, and although I am tired when I get home, I know I could do more. Depending on how surgery goes, I need to step it up.

Ignoring the Scale

I've been eating really badly lately. Like, a whole box of Girl Scout cookies in an afternoon level badly. It's been a pretty stressful week, for a variety of reasons.

I'm back in the groove, but I'm still going to ignore the existence of the scale until May 1. I'm having minor surgery on Monday to remove a lymph node (docs assure me that they don't think it's serious, but they want to check it more thoroughly), and I know I'll be retaining some water after that. I think a couple weeks off from the pressure of the scale will be helpful.

Whatever the number is on May 1st, I'll deal with.Until then, I'm just going to do my best to be as healthy as possible.

Shopping

Yesterday, I took the girls shopping for Easter clothes at Kohl's. They each managed to find something they liked--Lauren a sundress & cardigan ("I can really run in this") and Sarah a racerback dress with a t-shirt to go under it--and since we were there anyway, I tried a few things on myself.

I got four dresses, all of them in this general style. They all looked like tents. They looked cheap and flimsy, and I couldn't stand how I looked in any of them. If I'd had more time, I would have looked for more and different options, but the kids were getting restless.

So I ended up being frustrated and annoyed that I couldn't find anything that I remotely liked, but I did come away with renewed motivation to eat better and get more exercise, because I really did not like how I looked in those dresses. Hopefully things will go better at Macy's, and I have gift cards there, which is a bonus.

Edit: I love Macy's. I loved the first thing I saw at the top of the escalator--a springy watercolor skirt. I found one in a size 16, knew it wouldn't fit, and grabbed it anyway. A yellow basket weave detailed top in XL to go with it, and I hit the fitting room.  I was right; it didn't fit. But it almost fit. And I loved it as much on as I did on the hanger, even though it was too tight. I could barely get the zipper up, and I knew I'd never be able to sit in it.

I went out to see if they had it in an 18, and the nice salesgirl called three times to try to find one. Finally, they realized that there was one out in Ann Arbor. I really didn't want to hike out there tomorrow, so I reluctantly kept looking. And looking. At one point, I did head up to the plus department on the third floor, but saw nothing I liked at all. Back on the second floor, I found several skirts to try on, and a sleeveless sheath style dress with flowers printed down one side. That's another one that almost fit that I loved.  But nothing else was really grabbing me. There was plenty that did fit, but none of it was appealing enough to buy. I was heading back to the counter to see if I could work something out where I could get the sale price on the original skirt at the other store tomorrow when I saw another rack of dresses. I grabbed one similar to this, but a different pattern. The neck was a pretty deep vee, but I figured I'd give it a shot.

Sure enough, it was way too low cut for me. But other than that, it looked pretty good. So I realized that I'd use the same solution that Sarah had--a tank underneath, and problem solved! I quickly found one, tried them on together, liked it quite a bit, paid, and was out the door just before closing time.

It's not a perfect dress. The colors aren't as bright and sunny as I was hoping for, and the waistline does hit a little high, but it's pretty and it works for now, and both pieces were less than $50. I think I can wear my sandals with it, and I'll find some earrings.

But the memory of that one flowered dress is really going to keep me on the straight & narrow for the foreseeable future. That was a killer dress, and someday I'm going to be able to wear that kind of thing. And I will rock it.

Week 14

That was faster than I expected. The previous gain came off, and took a friend with it. Down 2.4% (5.3 pounds) to 211.2.

I got some exercise, but certainly not every night, and last night, I ate way too much while Jeff's brother & sister-in-law were over (chips and dips and dessert, oh my!).  I didn't weigh in this morning, and am going to resist the scale until at least Thursday, or maybe for a full week, before I weigh in again. I want to focus on good habits: exercise and good eating. 

I still have a LOT to do this week, but I'm only working one night. I don't have all the week's dinners planned out, but I have some ideas. The weather should be warm enough to get back to walking outside. The CropWalk is in barely a month. I've walked four miles a couple times, and it was long, but manageable. I'd like to do that walk once a day this week.

Facing the Music

I haven't weighed in for ten days. I almost didn't weigh in this morning, but I knew I needed to see what the damage was. I'm up four pounds, which when you consider how I've been eating during those ten days, isn't bad at all.

The biggest problem has been in the evenings. I'll start out great during the day, but then keep on eating after dinner. There's a reason I made myself a rule that I won't eat past 6PM. Last night, I did manage to talk myself out of making popcorn to watch during a movie, which I see as a sign of a better mindset.

I still have a ton of stuff looming over me, but I'm trying to get on top of it this week. It's cold again, so I don't know how much outdoor exercise I'll be getting, but I'll make sure to get on the Wii tonight, since I don't have a class to teach.

I do feel more energized and empowered, and I'm determined to kick this. I'm not going to make a timed goal for how much I want to lose, but I'm going to shoot for at least 1% of my weight each week until I break 200.

Week 12

I am not weighing in this morning. I'm tired and crabby and ate way too much the past two days. Lauren's had a substantial fever since about 3AM Saturday, and I've kind of gotten behind the 8 ball. I'll get back on it this week.

Week 11

I'm officially weighing in a day early this week because I'm spending the night with the girls at my Dad's house (my stepmom is going to be at a wedding several hours away, and doesn't want him to be alone all night, just in case). I can't weigh in there, so I'm taking today's weight.

212.3 is pretty good--that's down 1.5 pounds from last week, which was my goal. Is there part of me that still wishes I was losing faster? Uh, YEAH! I think about what weight I'd like to be at Easter and by Memorial Day. But I'm trying to keep the big picture in mind here, and just keep plugging along, doing what I need to do.

Speaking of which, if I don't get out for a walk now, I won't at all. Later!

Not This Time

So I've been thinking more about the Corktown 5K this weekend. Schedule conflicts abound, and I just can't see spending $30 for what essentially amounts to a t-shirt. I can run/walk 5K any old time on my own, so that's what I'll do.

The May Crop Walk is free, though I will be fundraising for it, so that's still in the works. That is a BIG one. 5K isn't much more than I'm already doing, but 10K is twice that. I was trying to plan a route around my neighborhood that would get me up to that. I'll have to go quite a ways to get to that point. I have about 8 weeks until then.

My "daily training plan" is as follows:

• 1st week (to March 16):  at least 2 miles of walking or 45 minutes of Free Step 
• 2nd & 3rd weeks (to March 30): at least 3 miles of walking or 60 minutes of Free Step
• 4th & 5th weeks (to April 13): at least 4 miles of walking or 80 minutes of Free Step
• 6th & 7th weeks (to April 27): at least 5 miles of walking or 100 minutes of Free Step
• 8th week (to May 4): at least 6 miles of walking or 120 minutes of Free Step

Free Step is only if the weather is bad or there is no time otherwise. Walking outdoors is preferred.  I can take no more than one day a week off. I think this is a reasonable plan, and if I can stick to it, I'll be able to finish the CropWalk. I'm not going to even think about my speed this year.

Edited because I realized I didn't have a "4 mile" increment!

Exercise

Yesterday was gorgeous, so I went outside for a walk. I've gotten a few half hour walks with Jeff, but nothing near the hour I'd regularly do last summer, so I decided to step it up just a little bit. I added a couple extra blocks, which took my time from 29 minutes to 37 minutes. Not a lot, but I did feel the difference.

An hour later, Jeff got home, very stressed about work. Dinner was just about ready, and he said, "Do you mind . . ." At this point I was steeling myself to hear, "get takeout," but he finished with, "go for a walk." I paused for a second to turn the burners off the stove, slap some lids on, get the fish in the refrigerator, and get my shoes & coat. I knew the broccoli would be oversteamed, but it was a small price to pay. We did the basic half hour, and I had to jog a little to keep up with him, but it was a good walk.

I'm hoping to go out again this afternoon. It's windy but warm, so I'll make sure I have a hat. I also tried a plank for the first time today. I was relieved that I could actually do one, but I only held it for about 30 seconds. I also did ten pitiful girly pushups and 20 barely sit ups. I'm going to start trying to incorporate more strength training. I was watching Our Big Fat Weight Loss Story, and realized that if my family were to do that fitness test, I would definitely slow everyone down. I can't do squats or lunges, and I'm weak in general. I'm starting to get to the point where I care less about being skinnier and really want to be stronger. I need to form a plan and start keeping track of what I'm doing.

Song I don't yet have on my iPod but really want: Kelly Clarkson's Stronger. There's a girl at our church about Lauren's age who says that when she gets married, that's going to be the song playing when she walks down the aisle. Can't wait for that wedding!

Week 10

Down 3.6 this week, to 213.8. That's officially overweight, yay!

I had my follow up doctor's visit today. Predictably, the lumpy gland is still lumpy, so she wants a CAT scan. She reassured me that it was just a precaution, which I understand. It's just a pain to schedule. She was thrilled with my blood pressure, which was 110 over 66.  I joked that Jeff would tell me to eat something salty now, and she got seriously alarmed. "What? No! Why would you do that?  This is great where it is!" I reassured her that it was just a running joke with us. Jeff cracked up when I told him about it.

Plan for this week is to step up the walking--the 5K is this Sunday, and assuming I can scrounge up the necessary $30, I'm in. But I've only been walking about half an hour at a time, and this will take at least twice that. The friend that I'm going with usually walks about an hour a day, and I don't want to slow her down.

Recipe Review: Chocolate Almond Meringues

Originally from Ellie Krieger, but (all together now!) "I tweaked it." I didn't have almond extract, so I used vanilla. And I like dark chocolate much better than semisweet, so I used two of the little 70% bars I get from Aldi (almost two ounces). I also didn't have cream of tartar, so I just left it out. I didn't bother to blend the sugar down to superfine, either. The eggs were the only thing I didn't alter.

I'm so glad I have a stand mixer, because it made the whole process a breeze. Separate three eggs, putting the whites into the mixer, and beat on medium. Once the egg whites get foamy, add a teaspoon of vanilla and a third of a cup of sugar (slowly), and keep beating to soft peaks. Finely chop the chocolate, then add it in and keep mixing like crazy to stiff peaks. No, I didn't take the time to fold in ever so carefully. I thought about just spooning mounds onto the parchment paper, but did use a sandwich bag to pipe them out.

The piping went ok, but my technique needs work. They came out looking a little . . . um . . . scatological, if you know what I mean. . I got 33 out of the recipe instead of 20, but they're pretty small. I could have made them bigger, but I really like the smaller size.

The verdict?  SOOOOO GOOD. I'm bringing these to potlucks from now on. The bits of chocolate (which sometimes got stuck in the piping bag) are wonderful. The crispy edges are my favorite part, but the chewy centers are good, too. Next time I'm at Meijer, I'm going to get some coconut extract and a lime, and zest the lime into the sugar. Mmm, tropical!

Since I got 33 cookies out of this (they're not all the same size, so these numbers are just an average), they're each 19 calories, 2 carbs, 1 gram of fat, and 1 gram of protein. I've already eaten five. 

A Day of Rest

Well . . . kind of.

Monday was a very busy day. We left the house at 9:30, ran an errand for my Dad, had annual checkups for both girls, dropped off Girl Scout cookies to my sister, visited my Dad and looked through a mountain of old pictures, went to Lego Robotics, and then got home by 6:30. Schoolwork was light that day. We had tomato soup (made early that morning and reheated when we got home) and grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner.No exercise.

Yesterday was a busy day. Schoolwork in the morning, then I took Lauren and a friend to another friend's house to work on Girl Scout stuff. I stopped to get groceries on the way home, had lunch & did more schoolwork with Sarah. Then we picked up Lauren & the friend and went back to the friend's house to ooh and aah over her new baby sister. Then we picked up a friend from Sarah's Girl Scout troop and her mom and went down to the library so the girls could go camping with the troop. Dropped friend's mom back at her house, then came home to finish schoolwork with Lauren. Pot roast for dinner. I had potatoes, rutabaga, onions & carrots in with it, but I also baked some sweet potatoes and roasted a little cauliflower. We have lots of leftovers in the refrigerator today. Exercise was a half hour of Free Step on the Wii after dinner.

Today, I don't have to leave the house, at least until after dinner, when we'll head out to Lent service at church. There's still a lot to do, of course. Two of Lauren's friends are coming over to hang out and work on writing their plays. I'm sure they'll also get some time in on the Wii and in the basement. Schoolwork for Lauren before & after that. I want to roast some almonds, and--as long as I've got the oven heated up--make granola and meringues. I also have to make a bunch of phone calls, and get some exercise. Dinner will be beef and noodles, left over from last night, although I'll probably have beef & barley myself.

Guess I'd better go get dressed!

Week 9

Up a pound and a half this week--no surprise, since I partook in a fabulous fish fry yesterday. The happier news is that I've flirted with "Overweight" instead of "Obese" three times last week. I'm hoping it will stick around this week.

I'm also hoping for more exercise this coming week. I did 30 minutes of Free Step on the Wii today, and then got a half hour walk around the neighborhood with Jeff. The weather is supposed to be moderate this week, and snow isn't forecast for several days, so I'm going to try getting out walking more frequently. It was 34 degrees when we went today, so any temp above freezing is obviously doable for me.

Looking forward to a better result next week!

Recipe Review: Pasties

I make pasties a few times a year. They're not hard, but are rather labor intensive, so it's something I make to stash in the freezer. A friend wanted to come and make some with me, but our schedules don't mesh very well, so I decided to do a Pioneer Woman style post, with as many pictures as I could. I got the original recipe concept here, but of course have tweaked it.

First, the crust. I use a standard pie crust recipe of 3 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 cup shortening, and about a cup of water. Mix the salt & flour together, and cut in the shortening. Add the water a bit at a time. You might need more or less depending on the day. If you add too much, you can add more flour later. My dough was a little wet, and I had to use a fair bit of flour when rolling it out. Once the dough is all mixed, stash it in the refrigerator while you make the filling. You can use any crust recipe you like, or even buy premade from the store, but crust is easy and cheap to make yourself.

I like to use a pound of ground beef and half a pound of ground pork for my filling, but I've also used all beef in the past, and it's still good. Since ground pork generally comes in one pound packages, I use the other half pound for Szechuan Pork & Green Beans. You also need potato, carrot, onion, and rutabaga. I started with a half cup of each, diced pretty small, but had a lot of veg left at the end, so for official purposes, I'd just use 1/3 cup of each. A good pinch of salt, few grinds of black pepper, and a couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce for seasoning.

A note about rutabaga--it's a classic ingredient in pasties, but can be hard to find. It's also pretty annoying to deal with. You only need a small amount, so feel free to leave it out. If you are going to use it, the leftovers can be mixed in with mashed potatoes, or added to soup. I only used less than a fourth of mine. You need to cut slices, then cut the skin off, then chop up pretty small.

Once all the vegetables are diced, mix them with the meat & seasonings. Stash that bowl in the refrigerator, covered, while you roll out the dough. Be sure to use enough flour so that the dough doesn't stick to the board. I used a 3 1/2 inch cutter, which is a really nice size. In the past, I've used a small plate to cut circles and folded them in half over the filling, but I like this way much better. Once you have a bunch of circles cut out, put a scant quarter cup of filling on half of them. Use the remaining circles to cover the filling. Since the filling is mounded up, bring the bottom edge up to meet the top and pinch together.

Once they're all made, brush with beaten egg and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes, until golden brown. In the past, the pasties I've made have been yummy but not much to look at. These look almost professional!  Jeff commented that they look like little bundles of goodness. 

I got 21 pasties out of this batch--more than I expected!  Another bonus of making them so small. Just out of curiosity, I put the ingredients into MFP's recipe tool to see what the stats were (since I had a fair bit of crust left over--another first!--I adjusted the measurements a bit). For each: 207 calories, 14 carbs, 12 g fat, 9 g protein, 1 g fiber. That's a lot of fat, but the overall calories are considerably lower than I anticipated.

Recipe Review: Salmon Two Ways

I'd like us to eat more salmon. Lean protein, omega-3 fats, etc. But it's expensive, and not a family favorite. I got a slab of frozen salmon on sale last week and cooked it up last night. Again, I'm sad to report that this is NOT the dish that will convert us to fish lovers.

I used the Honey Mustard glaze recipe from Cook This, Not That (which also had a bit of butter, brown sugar, and soy sauce) on half and a store bought Asian Orange Ginger glaze for the other half. There were problems right off the bat. First, it wasn't fully thawed from being in the refrigerator overnight, so I did a speed thaw under cold running water. That works fine for thin tilapia fillets, but it wasn't so great for this.

The recipe called for roasting at 425 for about 10 minutes. I know from watching Top Chef that if the white protein comes out of the fish, you've overcooked it. Well, that started happening with mine before it was even done cooking. It looked very unappetizing, as you can see from the picture.

The taste was ok. Lauren did like it, but didn't have seconds. I liked it, and will have the leftovers cold on a green salad today. I thought the honey mustard was good, so I'll make a dressing of that to go over the top (equal parts of each), along with the greens, tomatoes, and red onion.

The search for the elusive "yummy fish recipe that the whole family likes" continues. I haven't given up, but I don't have anything in mind for my next try, either.

Week 8

Ha. So there. Down to 215.8, which is over five pounds down from last week, and half a pound less than my previous lowest. I stayed on track this week, even yesterday when we had ribs for Jeff's birthday dinner. I did half an hour of Wii Free Step every day except Friday, when there was no time in the day.

I'm going to keep with this plan for another week. I don't expect a big loss this week, because I don't have a big gain to bounce back from. Yeah, I'm OK with that.

Challenges for this week: I'm working less (only one day), but Sarah's chosen Chinese food as her birthday dinner. Instead of me picking my own entree, I'm going to have a little of whatever everyone else gets (there's always plenty), and some wonton soup. I think I'll make some brown rice to go on the side instead of the plain white rice the restaurant provides. I might even have a potsticker, depending on how the day has gone.

For exercise, I'm going to keep doing my daily half hour of Free Step. For recipes, I want to try recipes for salmon and meringues (no, not together).

The Doc

I finally had my doctor's appointment today. Weigh in was 220. Not where I wanted to be, but it's where I am. Doc is happy with my progress, wanted to know how I was doing it, if it was healthy. I assured her that I was counting calories, etc.

The only issue was that one of the glands under my chin was a little swollen. I can't specifically remember being sick recently, so she wants to see me back in two and a half weeks to check it again. If it's still swollen, she's going to send me to an ENT to check it out.

"What would they do?" "Probably a CAT scan or a biopsy." Urrrrrrrrrrrrgh. Anyone who knows me knows that more doctor visits is the absolute last thing I want. Yes, we need to be sure everything is OK. But right now my main goal is to boost my immune system as much as I can.

Off the top of my head, that means:

• elderberry syrup
• chicken broth (got some brewing in the crockpot right now)
• garlic
• ginger
• my standard vitamins 

We'll see how it goes. 

Recipe Review: Lighter Brownies

The Cooking Channel has a new healthy living show out called Good Housekeeping Drop 5 Pounds. I watched the first episode, didn't hate it, and set the DVR to record it. It's got cooking, exercise & general healthy living tips, from a few different hosts. The recipes are generally the kinds I like--easy and healthy, without many Franken-food ingredients (Hungry Girl, I'm looking at you!).

The Lighter Brownie recipe looked especially good, so I copied it and tried it yesterday.

Holy cow, I need to buy more cocoa powder. They were really good. I did change things a little bit, but only out of necessity. I don't have "trans fat free vegetable oil spread," but I do have butter, so I used that. And I (sadly) don't have an 8x8 baking pan, so I used my old 7x9 pan. I also cut them in 12 instead of 16. So the calories are a little higher than the 95 listed on the website. Mine came out to 129. Yes, that's about a third higher, but it's still pretty good for a brownie.

Now, these are not massive, thick cakey brownies. These are fairly thin, chewy, fudgy brownies with pretty intense flavor. There was barely enough cocoa powder in the can, so I added the last of it, and it might have been just a hair too much. But they're goooooooooooood. They definitely have that "oomph" that I'm looking for, the "I'm done" signal.

I looked in my Cook's Illustrated Best Light Recipe as well, and there is also a brownie recipe there, for 130 calories. I'm wondering how it'll stack up, so I might give that a try as well in the future. But for now, this recipe is my go-to for brownies, and I'll be making it frequently.

Digging Down

I didn't weigh in all last week. I figured, "I'm doing this for health, and I know how to be healthy, so I'm going to do the right thing. The number on the scale isn't the point. And I'm trying to slow down my rate anyway." I got on the scale Saturday, expecting at least a pound or two down, because I really did stay on track last week. When I saw that I was down not even half a pound, I was disappointed.

Yes, I know. The number on the scale isn't the point. Uh huh. Still disappointed. I ended up eating way too much that day, all day long. I actually felt physically ill. Who does that to themselves?  I don't get it.

So Sunday I was back up at 221. Not surprising. But still frustrating. This is about the same point I've gotten to before, and then lost my drive. I don't want to do that anymore. I don't like being that person who eats mindlessly.

So this morning, I'm digging down and seeing what I can do. I'm rededicating myself. I realized that all this talk about a gym and a treadmill and walking outside and how I can't do it is really dumb, because I have this thing called a Wii. That's right, the thing I used all last spring before I could start walking. The thing that may not be the best, but is a whole lot better than the alternative, which is nothing.

Plan for this week:  stay on track with the eating, of course, but also do half an hour of Free Step on the Wii every day. I've already done it today, and although it wasn't a big hard workout, it was a reminder of being mindful. Mindfulness and dedication are what I've been lacking recently, so that's where I'm going to focus.

Recipe Review: Egg Rolls

When I make stir fry, which is fairly often, I always have egg rolls for the family. I get the pork ones from Aldi, which are $2.50 for a package of four. They're 170 calories each, so I usually skip them.

I saw that 400 Calories had a Vegetable Egg Roll recipe up that looked good and was 162 calories for two, so I decided to try it. It turned out pretty well (the filling was great, and I'm going to start buying more cabbage), except for the cooking. I decided to pan fry with cooking spray  instead of bake, because I'm always looking for things to be as crispy as possible. The problem was getting even browning on all sides. It just didn't happen. They were still tasty--in fact, mine didn't even make it to the table, because I ate them up while I was cooking the rest of dinner! I shallow fried the ones for everyone else, and had the same issue.

The next day, I decided to try again, this time baking in the oven. I also added a little shrimp to the filling to make it a more complete meal instead of a side dish. Again, tasty. But again, not the texture I wanted.  Baking made the edges a little tough.

I do think that deep frying is the way to go on something like this. You get more even coverage, and if the oil is hot enough and you take it out at the right time, the food doesn't get greasy.

Deep frying is something I don't do often, merely because of the large volume of grease necessary that you then have to dispose of. And I certainly won't do it every time we have Chinese for dinner. But as a special treat, I'll certainly make these again.

Recipe Review: Elvis Cookies

I've seen several recipes floating around lately for cookies made primarily from fruit & oats. They're very versatile--you can really make them your own, as long as you start with those two ingredients.. I tried one with banana as the fruit, with cocoa powder & raisins, but the taste of the banana was still pretty strong.

So I thought, "If the banana is going to dominate, find something else that will really work with it, like peanut butter." And what else would you call a peanut butter & banana cookie but an Elvis Cookie, really?

I started by mashing up a banana and adding two tablespoons of natural peanut butter, an ounce of milk, half a teaspoon of vanilla, two tablespoons of brown sugar, and a few shakes of cinnamon.  I added a heaping half cup of oatmeal (I started with a level half cup, but it was too soupy) and mixed it all up. I used my mini scoop to portion them out, and got 14 out of the batch. Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes, but they stay pretty chewy, even the next day. (the picture shows them on the Silpat, after I'd moved them a little so they wouldn't stick)

Per cookie: 41 calories, 6 carbs, 2 g fat, 1 g protein, 1 g fiber.

They turned out pretty well. Sarah liked them, Lauren didn't. I liked them, but realized I kept going back to eat more. When I have a couple Hershey's Dark Kisses after lunch, I'm done.  I had four of these and still kept wandering around the kitchen with the munchies.

Will I make them again? Yes, certainly, but I'll keep tweaking them. I think it's a good start for a "breakfast cookie," which is kind of the Holy Grail for me. I might try applesauce instead of the banana (Lauren will like that better), but then I'd cut the milk to keep the moisture balance. And I might blitz some of the oatmeal in the food processor to get a different texture/consistency. Adding dried fruit, chopped nuts, or even chocolate is another option. All that would up the calories, but if I want something more substantial, that isn't a bad thing.

Recipe Review: Curry with Cauliflower & Butternut Squash

I got two Cook This, Not That! cookbooks for Christmas, and there are so many recipes in there I want to try. It's really hard to decide where to start. I also like doing vegetarian meals occasionally, though I've yet to find one everyone really likes.

Last week, I decided to give Curry with Cauliflower & Butternut Squash a try. I make a pork & fruit curry dish that everyone likes quite a bit, but it's fairly sweet, between the apples, pineapple & bananas. Also, serve it with spaetzle, which the family can't get enough of.

Unfortunately, I can't say the same for this dish. Even I didn't like it all that much. Yes, there was coconut milk, but it didn't add a lot of flavor. The tomatoes didn't seem to "go" and although I liked the vegetables, the whole thing just wasn't doing it for me. It didn't make tons, so everyone had a little (Jeff had two pasties later that night), and I had the leftovers the next day for lunch.

I think that flavor combination just isn't going to work for us--I deleted a bunch of similar recipes from my "want to try" list.

Coming soon: my egg roll experiment, and Elvis Cookies.

Week 6

Up 2.2 pounds this week. I really feel like I need to get beyond the 210 mark to feel like I've kicked this to the curb. That's going to take a while, but that's ok. I'm leaving my calories at 1400 for the week. The number of calories I shoot for isn't the issue--it's when I go way over that number!

Groceries

I was talking with a friend the other day about coupons. Ive never gotten much into coupons--they just don't fit how I shop. I tend to get basics at Aldi, which doesn't accept coupons, and produce at Randazzo's. Yes, I get meat and other "special" things at Meijer (brand name things and ethnic stuff, mostly), and coupons would work there. But catching a sale on something you have a coupon for seems to me like making an extra trip. Also, when I see coupons, they mostly seem to be for packaged stuff which I don't usually get anyway.

But I was curious. I have in the back of my head that I generally spend between $50 and $100 per week on groceries. I checked the bank records and found that in January, I spent $212 on groceries. That sounds impressive until you realize two things:

1. I already had a lot of meat in the freezer.
2. Our "dining out" totals for January were about the same amount

Oy. Now, a lot of that can be laid at the door of drive through food for breakfast & lunch for Jeff, and I've asked him what I can do to help him reduce that number. He's got oatmeal at work that he can make for breakfast, and he's always good about taking leftovers for lunch. The issue is when there are no leftovers.  So I need to stay more on top of making sure he has a lunch.

I don't like to send packaged food with him, mostly because of the sodium. Also, those things tend to be pricey for the amount of food you get. It's still cheaper and healthier than a Wendy's double cheeseburger & fries, though, so maybe I should rethink that as a backup.

I went shopping today, stopping at Kroger so I could get pot roast. I also picked up a slab or salmon for $8--we'll see how that goes. The kids haven't cared for salmon in the past, but I want to give it another try. If they don't like it, I'll just have leftovers for lunch all week, which won't bother me a bit. Total spent:  $18

Then I stopped at Aldi to stock up. We were out of milk and eggs, almost out of cereal, etc. I also got a few "splurge" items, like French Bread Pizza and Pringles. Add to that bratwurst for Superbowl Sunday and Italian sausage for spaghetti and then minestrone soup, and cheese & crackers and peanuts for snacking. Total spent: $58

Last stop at Randazzo's to get kale (which they didn't have!) and apples. They also had a great deal on red & yellow peppers, so I got a couple of those. A can of chickpeas (minestrone soup) and some green beans finished it up. Total spent: $5

So that's $80 in groceries so far this month. I'm going to keep a close eye on things and see if I can keep the "dining" part of the bill lower. Dinners planned for this week include spaghetti, homemade pizza, minestrone soup, pot roast, and Curry Cauliflower & Butternut Squash (review coming soon).

365 Days

This morning I weighed 218.7 pounds.  That is 37% less than I weighed this day last year. Tonight, I am celebrating my one year anniversary of better living with a Coney Dog and french fries.

Part of me thinks, "You can't have a Coney!  You just binged yesterday!  You weigh the exact same you did a month ago!  You haven't earned that Coney!"

Shut up, voice. I have made many good decisions this year. I've made plenty of bad ones, too. This is a celebration of time spent, not a number on the scale. Time spent is what I really need, in fact. In the past, I've never been able to sustain loss.  I need to remember to keep working, keep moving forward.

Oh and the fact that I'm having a Coney and half an order of fries is miles ahead of the patty melt and full order that I would have gotten last year. It fits in my calorie goal for the day, and I'm going to enjoy every bite. So there.

January Review

At my official weigh in this morning (not tomorrow, duh), I'm down 2.9 pounds since the 1st. Since I had a huge upswing in the middle of the month, coming out down almost three pounds isn't bad. But it is a lot less than in previous months, which leads me to think more about this whole "slowing down" business.

I tend to be an "all or nothing" kind of gal. When it comes to weight loss, in the past I've either been "Full Speed Ahead" or "Full Reverse." Yes, the FSA path can include little splurges, but even if I get off track, I get back on again. The FR path, however, is just that. Frequent binges, and just not caring about what I'm eating. It's the not caring part that really characterizes FR.

What I need to find is the "Mindfully Moderate" path. This is the path that lets me consistently eat 1500 calories a day without going crazy over or under. The MM path is ok with losing only half a pound a week, which is kind of counter to where I've been for the past year.

For the past year, I've been so far in the groove, that I can only think about what maintenance will mean in a very abstract way. For me, it's been either losing or gaining. There is no in between. The MM path, the in between, is totally uncharted territory for me. I'm going to need  a machete to hack my way through all this. Wish me luck!

Week #5

Somehow, I managed to lose another 1.3 pounds this week. Considering how I ate both Sunday and Tuesday, that's a gift. But really, between 1 and 1.5 pounds lost per week has been my new goal. So I'm right on track. Kind of. Except for the binge eating.  That's not really part of the plan, even when I do manage to wrangle it back down to the ground again.

I'm going to leave my calorie goal at 1350 for another week. I know I want to start slowly bumping it up, and I don't mind if I go a little over, as long as it's with healthy choices.

My next official weigh ins are Wednesday (to get my total for the month) and Friday--my one year anniversary of being healthier. I know that no matter what the numbers are, I'm in a much better place than I was in the past, and that's what counts.

Recipe Review: Chicken Soup & Dumplings

Al of us have been hit with winter colds lately. Even Sarah, who is normally the healthiest of us, is miserable. No fever, just a drippy nose & the sore throat that comes with it, and really tired.

My first line of defense is always food. I go through tons of ginger, honey & citrus in tea. I put enough garlic in chicken broth to make our whole house repel vampires. And I've lately become a big fan of elderberry syrup.

Yesterday, we saw an episode of Mad Hungry that had Lucinda making chicken & dumplings. I'm really enjoying that show--she doesn't cook über healthy stuff, but it isn't over the top unhealthy, and it's generally aimed at families.

Sarah said it looked good and asked if I could make some, so I got the last of the chicken broth out of the freezer. I only made half the recipe, because there were only 4 cups of broth. I only used garlic, onions and carrots in the broth, and I didn't add any herbs to the dumplings.

Here's how they look while cooking:

And in the bowl.:

I remember making drop dumplings with soup from Bisquick when I was a teen--they seemed fluffier than this. Maybe my baking powder is getting old? At any rate, they weren't as fluffy as I remember, which was a little disappointing. Sarah liked them, Lauren didn't. I thought they were ok. I might give them another go, but it's not high on my list right now.

I'd like to try my hand at matzo balls next. I've never made those, but my grandmother did. I think I'll get some matzo and keep them in the cupboard. I don't have any more chicken stock in the freezer, but I make it on such a regular basis that it's not a big deal.

A Reprieve

After two disastrous days of eating this week, I was a just a week away from my doctor's appointment, where I'd hoped to be "Overweight" instead of "Obese."  Just one week to lose 3.5 pounds. That's a lot to lose in just a week . . . wait a minute. Today's Friday.  Next Friday?  We have co-op next Friday! 

I called the office to reschedule and got an appointment for the 16th instead. So I now have plenty of time to hit that mark--almost three weeks!  I'm tempted to adjust my goal down a little, and I might still do that. But I'm  interested to see what I can do by next Friday as well.

I know it's just a numbers game, and making healthy choices is more important. But it's still gratifying when the numbers reflect those choices, too.

Another Option

I've slowly realized that there is another option besides Planet Fitness or the fitness room at the community center. We could get a treadmill. Treadmills can be gotten for about $100 off Craigslist, but it would be available any time, and any of us could use it (the kids get a big kick out of using Grammy's treadmill when they're up there).

We had a treadmill before, but I hadn't used it in so long, we gave it away. If we were to get another one, I'd have to get rid of a lot of stuff in the bedroom--I put a hope chest in that same area, and it would have to go back down to the basement. But I also think we could get rid of one of our dressers (we mostly use the closet, and some stuff could go in bins under the bed), so that would free up some room.

When I mentioned all this to Jeff last night, he said, "I said that! Like, twice!" Oops. Sorry, honey.

So we'd have less junk in our room, I could exercise whenever I want, the whole family could use it, and the price would be reasonable.

Excuse me, I have to go buy trash bags in bulk.

Craft Hope Project 16

I love Craft Hope's concept, and I've wanted to do many of their projects, but I have a terrible time with getting things to the post office. I think their latest project is something I need to kick myself in the butt to do.

For Project 16 :: The Littlest Warriors, we will be collecting handmade beanies and bags for kids just like Pierce who are fighting cancer.

We need BEANIES for babies through teenagers. All noggin sizes. They can be knit, crochet, fabric. You name it. They can be embellished with flowers and bows. But don’t forget about the boys. They need hats too. It’s very difficult to find adorable hats and we think this community is the best place to get them. There are a hundred and one patterns online for beanies. If you have one you’d like to share post it in the comments and I’ll put up a post to share with everyone.
And…
We need BAGS for the kids to take with them to the hospital. They can be simple tote bag style or whatever suits your fancy. And if you are so inclined fill them up with goodies for the kids. Some ideas are books, puzzles, crayons, coloring books. The opportunities are endless.

 I think I need to get another sewing day rolling at church. And I think this is good enough reason to shell out the $ to get my Serger fixed. The deadline is March 12--I need to get going on this!

Shopping

I know; I said I wasn't going to go shopping until spring, because I don't really need any winter clothes. But Kohl's had a great sale on winter coats--Jeff got one for $53 that was originally $180.  My winter coats are getting too big, and by next year, they should be really big. So it makes sense to get a new one now, while they're cheap, instead of waiting until next fall, when they're full price.

Yep, makes perfect sense. Here's the problem: I don't know what size I'll be next fall. I tried half a dozen coats on, in various sizes, but the fact remains that if it fits me now, I'm hoping planning that it won't fit me next year. So picking a size now is a crapshoot, and not worth it, even for a good deal.

I also did some more "closet shopping" yesterday. I was looking to see what I had, and pulled out a blue striped button down shirt that I used to really like. I checked the tag. 3X--really? I knew it would be too big, but some things do run small. When I tried it on, it was really too big, even too much for me to consider altering the darts that are already in it. Time to call Purple Heart again!

I've been wanting a black or white wrap style shirt to go with the black & white skirt I got back in December that almost fits, but haven't seen anything "just right" (this is a problem with me--I get something very specific in mind, and then nothing else will do). But at the back of my closet I saw a couple silk t-shirts I used to wear with skirts to work back in the '93 or so. Why do I still have these? But one was black, so I shrugged and decided to see how close it was to fitting (size XL). I expected it would be far too tight, and it was too tight, but not by that much. The shoulder pads were a little linebacker-y, but I can take those out easily.  I'm hoping that this is an outfit I'll be able to wear by sometime this spring.

So even though I didn't get anything new this weekend, I do have clothes waiting for me. How long it takes before I can wear them is up to me. :)

Week 4

I'm happy to report that last week's six pound gain is gone. I really didn't expect to lose it that quickly, but no complaints! I've been weighing every day again. I'd like to get to the point where I only weigh once a week, but apparently I still need that daily accountability, at least for a while. I have just over three more pounds to lose to get to "overweight."

I had set my calories back down to 1300 this week, to keep a tight rein on things. I'm bumping back up to 1350 this week. An extra 50 calories per day isn't a huge amount in the grand scheme of things, but it does give me some more wiggle room.

Wiggle room is just what I need today. We're having dinner with Jeff's family, and although his mom cooks good stuff, I can't exactly weigh my portions the way I do at home. Actually, it's a good exercise in estimating and making good choices without the crutch of the food scale.

Still no exercise this week. I've gotten to the point where I sincerely don't know what I'm going to do about that issue.

Recipe Review: Garlic Lime Tilapia

I'm always looking for new ways to make fish. So far, fish is generally a hard sell for the family. They eat it, but grudgingly. When I saw Garlic Lime Tilapia, I thought it sounded pretty good, and made it last night. Sadly, this is not the recipe that turned my family around on fish. Again, they ate it, but only what was served to them.

I eat tilapia pretty frequently for lunch. I dust it with Old Bay or Cajun seasoning, and fry it in a pan with cooking spray. I either put it on a piece of bread for a sandwich (a little low fat mayonnaise is a bonus), or just have it with some veggies and maybe a carb.  Sometimes I put salsa over it, too. Tasty, low fat, low cal, good protein, and cheap.

Maybe I need to try a different kind of fish for the rest of the family. I've got a pan-fried catfish recipe with a cornmeal crust that looks good. . .

Acapulco Pancakes

Most days, I have eggs for breakfast. Other times, it's oatmeal. Once in a while it's cold cereal. But sometimes I make pancakes. It's ostensibly a treat for the kids, but I always have a few, too. I use my mom's buttermilk pancake recipe, but since I rarely have buttermilk in the house, I use milk with lemon juice as a substitute.

But if there's orange juice around, I invariably make Acapulco Pancakes. Acapulco Pancakes replace some of the milk with orange juice, and it makes a really nice, light pancake.

Why are they called Acapulco Pancakes?  Because back in the 90's, my dad & stepmom used to go to Acapulco and stay with friends at their condo. The cleaning lady/cook would make these pancakes, so that's how they got the name.

The recipe itself is very basic:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 Tablespoons oil
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3/4 cup orange juice

Mix the dry, then the wet. The pancakes will be rather thin, not thick and fluffy. Also, don't make them too big, because they can be hard to turn if they are. I got 22 pancakes from today's batch.

They came in at 49 calories, 5 carbs, 2 g fat, 1 g protein.  I had five today. Not my healthiest breakfast, certainly, but acceptable.

Go check out a bunch of other orange/orange juice recipes at Eat at Home! 

False Advertising

A few months ago, I saw a blog post with the title, "Want to eat a BIG bowl of cookie dough?" 

Duh. The only point of making cookies is to eat the dough before you bake it. Well . . . maybe not the only point. Anyway, I couldn't wait to make this recipe. Sadly, no nutritional information was provided. When I put it in the recipe calculator at My Fitness Pal, I was dismayed to see that the calories for the entire bowl were just over 1300. OK, so I wouldn't eat the whole bowl. I could share it with three friends.  That's still over 300 calories per serving, and that's a lot more than most of my snacks or desserts. It's worth trying again, with a  rework of the recipe, because I thought it was pretty good. Sarah hated it, but Lauren and a bunch of her friends wolfed it down. But I felt misled. One fourth of that recipe does not qualify as a "BIG bowl."

Last week at our co-op, the cooking class made baked vegetable chips. The baked kale was amazing. Crunchy, mildly salty, interesting (not strong) flavor. The kids hated it. I couldn't get enough. We had a potluck at church Saturday, so I decided to make them myself.

I ripped the stems out of one bunch of kale and ripped them into bite sized pieces. Then I spread them on two rimmed baking sheets and poured a Tablespoon of oil on each sheet and sprinkled with kosher salt. I baked at 350 for about 15 minutes. You want to make sure they don't burn, but dry out and get crispy.

There were some minor complaints about the smell, no one else in the family liked them, and there was some doubt as to how they would be received at the potluck. "If no one else likes them, then more for me!"

Not everyone did like them. They weren't the runaway hit I'd hoped for; almost half of what I took came back home with me. I'll admit, something that looks odd and isn't your typical saucy potluck offering is a hard sell sometimes. But I'll definitely be making this again. I'll probably spray with cooking spray instead of the olive oil, because the salt didn't stick well, and that much oil just wasn't necessary.

Oh--the calories? 365 (which will be less next time when I use less oil) for an enormous amount, easily as much as a big bag of chips. Did I mention that the kale only cost 69 cents? Now that's a good deal.

Week 3

Oy.

I knew it wouldn't be a loss this week. I've had too many days of eating too much. But a six pound gain is never nice to see, no matter how much you know it's coming.

So now it's time to get going. Again. History says that after a gain like this, I'll have a few weeks of big losses, but I'm not sure that I'll hit that first goal at the time I wanted. I do still hear that little voice that says, "Nope. This is it. You'll never get past that number again." That voice needs to shut the bleep up.

Week 2

218.3 this morning. That's about four and a half pounds from goal #1 and about 8 weeks to goal #2.

I'm hoping to join the community center fitness room next week, so exercise is still going to be low this week. I will do the Wii for at least half an hour every day, whether it be Wii Fit or Just Dance.

I'm increasing my daily calorie goal from 1350 to 1400. An extra 50 calories a day isn't a lot, but I'm looking to increase slowly. I'm going to see how this goes for a few weeks. Of course, this also means I need more protein & fiber, which can be difficult for me to get sometimes.

I'm also going to go back to planned out meals. The whole "lots of food in the house and everyone can grab whatever" does not work for us. It doesn't hurt that people have been dealing with the aftermath of stomach flu (not severe, but not fun). It's time to use up those leftovers!

What I'm Reading

I'm rereading Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card before I give it to Sarah. I've always planned to have her read it, because it's great, but I don't know where my copy of it is. Her Literature class read it last sememster (before we started with this group), so I decided it was a good time to check it out of the library. Both girls are at a sleepover tonight, so I'm going through it again, so when she starts ranting about something in it, I'll be able to respond.

And boy, is she ever going to rant about it. She hated the first few chapters of The Hunger Games, but liked it by the end. This one is going to make her even more crazy. But I think she'll also like it by the end. I need to find some study questions for her to think about as she finishes each chapter, too.

Once I'm done with that, I'm going to jump into Spontaneous Happiness by Andrew Weil. I have his Spontaneous Healing from a few years ago, and always liked it. I saw that he had this out, so I checked it out of the library. Well, it fell to the bottom of the pile and I kept forgetting about it. I put it in the bag to go back today, but I started glancing through it and realized it deals a lot with nutrition, anxiety, and other stuff that I'm really interested in. So I turned it in, and then checked it out again with Sarah's card. Bad mom! I'll get through it and get it back by the end of the week, I promise.

Oh, and in non-reading news, we went to see Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy today. I was the one who chose the movie, and I chose that because we always see action movies, and I wanted something a little different.  Sadly, it was a complete snooze-fest. Tin Tin or the latest Mission Impossible would have been better choices. I won't go so far as to say Chipwrecked would have been a better choice, but . . .

Recipe Reviews: Rice Pudding

Last night, I made the Cherry Vanilla Rice Pudding from the Cook Yourself This Faster cookbook. I'd never made rice pudding before, and I don't think I'd even eaten it before, but was pretty sure I'd like it. It's rice, people. With sugar & dairy. What's not to like?

The recipe itself is quite basic: 4½ cups of 1% milk, ⅔ cup white rice, ⅓ cup sugar, a little orange zest, and some vanilla extract and dried cherries at the end. Serve warm or cold.

First off, I didn't have 1% milk, so I used the 2% that I did have, and 4 ½ cups of it seemed crazy, so I only used 4 cups. Even then, I wasn't convinced it wasn't too much, but of course it all came together beautifully in the end. I thought it was insanely delicious, and Sarah also loved it. Jeff thought it was good, and Lauren didn't even want to try it. My only complaint was that at six servings, each portion was a little small.

Of course, since there were enough leftovers, I had some with breakfast this morning, too. Not as good cold as warm, but still good.

227 calories, 41 carbs, 4 g fat, 7 g protein, 0 fiber, 2 g saturated fat.

Hm.  What can I do differently next time?  I think it would be worthwhile to make a point of getting 1% milk, and I'd use the full amount (there were a few grains that were just a bit too al dente for me). I think I'd also nix the dried fruit--it's tasty, but there wasn't much of it, so it just didn't add much. And I'd make 4 servings instead of 6.

All these changes would change the numbers to 296 calories, 53 carbs, 3 g fat, 12 g protein, 0 fiber, 2 g saturated fat. Still not an everyday dish, but it's so rich that I'd be satisfied with a really light dinner beforehand if I were getting a full quarter of the whole pot.

Someone's In The Kitchen

Oh, that's right--I'm in the kitchen. Or at least I will be when the dishwasher is done.
Plan for today:

• chicken in the crockpot
• chicken carcass in the crockpot for stock (I need more onions)
• Szechuan Green Beans with Pork with brown rice for dinner 
• leftover ground pork + ground beef + potato + onion + carrots + rutabaga + pastry = Cornish Pasties

Pasties are fairly labor intensive--I only make them once or twice a year, but Jeff loves them, and it's a good time to have them in the freezer.

This is looking like a "grab whatever you want" week for food (you'd think that would have been last week, but no).  We'll have the chicken meat & chicken broth, there is fish and shrimp in the freezer, the pasties will be in the freezer, and I'm doing boneless country pork ribs with BBQ sauce in the crockpot and Asian style on the grill tomorrow.  So there will be lots of food available, but eveyone will be responsible for their own meals. There are always lots of vegetables available (I need more peppers, too), so I'm confident that we'll be able to figure it out.

I've gotten more interested in desserts lately. I'm making rice pudding tonight, and keen to try a lighter chocolate mousse soon. 

Week 1 and Goals

Weigh in at 219.8

Goal #1: under 214 by doctor visit 1st week of Feb
Goal #2: Corktown St. Patrick's 5K (no time goal here--just do it)
Goal #3: under 200 pounds by Easter
Goal #4: Farmington 10K Crop Walk in May (again, no time goal--just finish it)
Goal #5: 190 pounds (tentative goal weight) by Memorial Day

I'm going to be slowly increasing my calories over the next few months.  I think my maintenance calories will be between 1500 and 1700.  Right now my daily goal is 1350. I want to start losing weight more gradually, so that by the time I get to my goal weight, it's just natural to be eating at an appropriate amount.