Tuesday, August 30, 2011

I'm a loser.

of 2.7 lbs, that is.  Yes, it is good to be back on the correct side of weight loss.  I've lost a total of 12.4 lbs, which still isn't the 17 I HAD lost but at least I'm headed back in the right direction.

Life is busy and I was very uninspired this week, so meals are kind of blah.  Monday (yesterday) I actually was bad and had the crust of my daughter's pbj (school lunch) for "dinner" and then had chocolate cake with peanut butter cream cheese frosting at a meeting (so worth it!).  Tonight we are supposed to have turkey tacos.  I will have a taco salad to avoid the taco shell points.  Wednesday is the usual leftover night, so I'll find something to eat that is either leftovers or some sort of "diet" frozen meal.  Thursday we'll have pork chops, and Friday I'm thinking chicken sausages on the grill.

I love chicken sausages.  3 pts without a bun and they taste good.  And they're easy.

Since my school has started I'm thinking I may need to make 2-3 weeks worth of menus for "warm" weather, then 2-3 of "cool" weather menus, and just rotate them.  It would be easy, spaced out enough that we don't get bored, and the shopping list would just be ready to go.  I'll get right on that, after I stop procrastinating doing my school reading. :)

Hope you're having a good week!

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Slight Deviation.







I thought I'd mention here that I've become a Barefoot Books Ambassador.  My kids had been given a couple of Barefoot's books in the past, and I was very impressed with their quality.  Since joining the company, I have been overwhelmed by how thoughtful, well-written, and beautifully illustrated their books really are.  The company emphasizes multiculturalism and diversity and features stories from around the world, as well as more traditional stories.  This fall they are launching an easy reader series as well as more challenging titles for advanced readers.

Clicking on the graphic above will take you to the Barefoot website, where you can browse their collection and place an order.  If you use code AMBTEN when you check out, you'll get 10% off your order, and shipping is free for orders over $60.  Let me know if you'd like suggestions!

On the diet front, day one of counting points is going well.  Only 4 million to go!


Sunday, August 21, 2011

Back to School Week--and back to points!

Next week I'm counting points for the first time since . . . probably since we started our remodel.  It's also the little geek's first week of Kindergarten, and we have lots of other things going on as always.  For that reason, all of this week's dinners are super easy and may not really be that low-point, but I'll compensate by being reasonable during the day and using my weekly points.

I also have a really organized, easy to use pantry now, which means I've discovered lots of stuff in there I need to use.  For some reason, I owned a lot of lasagna noodles.  I'm trying to find a lower-point use for them this week.  I made one low-point recipe, but The Big Geek rejected it (and honestly, it was not tasty).

Monday:  Crock Pot Pulled Pork Sandwiches.  4 pts for filling, then add pts for bread/buns/cole slaw as needed.  Spray with cooking spray, chop an onion, and throw in a pork tenderloin.  Cover it with a bottle of your favorite barbeque sauce (check individual point values).
Tuesday:  Chicken with Orzo and Dill.  9 pts for a big serving.
Wednesday: Big Geek is out, so we eat leftovers.
Thursday:  Stovetop Lasagna.  11-ish.  I'm working on making up this recipe so I'll post results and the actual recipe if it works out.  I am going to try to decrease the points, maybe by cutting down on the ground turkey or something.  We'll see how it goes.  I want to use up all the broken lasagna pieces!
Friday:  Out at an event.
Saturday: Out, friend's birthday dinner
Sunday:  Big Geek is firing up the smoker.

Obviously, even with a kitchen this week has challenges, but I think that counting points will make me be more mindful of what I eat during the day and help me lose weight even with all the challenges.  I am really looking forward to getting into a routine and making healthier meals.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Remodel is finished.

My remodel is finally done.  It feels like it took forever, but the important thing is it is finished and looks great.  (See?)  I was hoping for 3 weeks or so to get back in the swing of things before school starts, but alas, that is not to be, as school starts Monday for the little geek and Wednesday for me.

The final tally is that I gained back 7 lbs, but have kept 10 off.  Not as bad as it could be, but not great.  I start counting points again on Monday, so expect a menu on Sunday for the coming week!