ACK!! Nightmare ahead!! (and a yummy recipe)

LOL!! Okay, so not REALLY!! BUT, my Dad called yesterday and invited us up to the farm for the 4th of July weekend. This means 3 full days poolside - eesh!!! Oh well, at least it's their pool and we'll be the only ones there, but I confess that the idea of stuffing my bloated person into a swim suit is not one bit appealing. Well, it's my own fault! And Josh has such a great time up there with his Grampa - Dad caters to him so much!!

I mentioned in my last post about the summer rolls. I hadn't taken any pictures of them, but I did on Friday - they were really yummy!!

Summer Rolls

Ingredients
2 rice paper wrappers
lettuce (I used baby romaine, but whatever)
4 strips of red or yellow pepper
1 piece of imitation crab (I think it's called surimi and I found it in the seafood section of the market - it comes in logs), cut in half lengthwise
4 large, cooked shrimp, shell, tail and vein removed
1/4 avocado cut into 4 strips
shredded carrots
2 cucumber cut into long thick strips

Dipping sauce:
1 T sweet chili sauce
2 T soy sauce
1/2 t. wasabi paste

Soak rice paper wrapper in hot water for about 15-20 seconds until it is very limp and pliable. Lay out on the board and layer ingredients on rice paper in whatever order you want. Wrap the rice paper around the filling like a burrito.

Mix dipping sauce. Enjoy!!

Wow, a long time without a post!!

Funny, in my last post I wished to wake up on November 4th and have the election over. Now here we are in late June, 2009 and what I wouldn't give to jump back to September '08 with all the knowledge I have now!!! WOW!!!

So, I really want to re-start the blog. I have been vascillating between eating low-carb and doing a pseudo-Weight Watchers plan - or, more to the point doing nothing at all - except eat, of course!! Over the course of the winter I managed to add a 10 lb layer of excess, which I am now working to remove!!

I am really trying to eat clean and to get at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables in per day, exercise (at least a walk) 4-5x per week, and keep my daily calorie consumption under 1,500. For my efforts thusfar, I have lost 4 lbs in a week and a half.

I've mastered the summer roll - no huge culinary feat, but they are mighty tasty!! This morning, I cleaned out my produce bins and made a really yummy shrimp/veggie stirfry that will easily make 4 servings - well, 3 now, I had some for lunch!!

Politics makes me sick to my stomach

Am I the only one who wishes they could drift off to sleep and wake up on November 4th and go vote already?? I find that as election day gets closer and closer, the knot in my stomach gets bigger and harder!! After essentially a year and a half of the campaign season, I know who I'm voting for already - short of finding out that he performs back alley abortions in his spare time or worships the devil or something like that, my opinion is not going to change in the next 38 days. I normally enjoy the political season immensely, but this time I'm just OVER it. I watched the debates last night and found them pretty blase - nothing great, nothing terrible (except for that little cringe-worthy moment when Obama had to look at his wrist to read the name of the soldier that was on the bracelet he wore - YIKES!!). Anyhow, politics is not what my blog is about, but I just wondered if others were as tired of it all as I am.

Diet news: It's been raining for 2 days, so I didn't get my usual walk in yesterday and only a little elliptical work, but I'll get back on the horse this weekend!! Weighed 153 yesterday morning!! I'm almost back towhere I was 2 months ago - GEESH!!

Have a nice weekend!

Things I am Thankful For

I know Thanksgiving is still a couple months away, but I've been taking some time to be introspective about my life and where I've been and where I'm going and I think it's a good idea to take a minute to just reflect on all the blessings in our lives - I find I have so many, even if, too often, I look right past them.

• I am so very thankful for my family - my beautiful son, who makes my heart sing with joy every day. He is truly God's greatest gift to me and the best thing I have ever done in my life. He is smart and talented and funny and inquisitive and willful and stubborn, but he is fabulous and I am so proud to be his Mom. I thank God each day for the precious gift of my husband. His support makes everything else I do possible and his crooked boyish grin still makes my heart skip a beat after almost 20 years!!
• I am thankful for my Faith. Responding to God's call to return to the Catholic Church after 35 years away has blessed my life in more ways than I could have possibly imagined. His infinite Mercy and the Grace He has bestowed upon me - Grace like Rain - has cleared the head and heart of this poor sinner. May He grant me the patience to rest in Him and listen to His call and follow wherever He may lead me.
• I thank God for the gift of my pastor, Fr. Ken, who inspires me to strive to be closer to God in each conversation we have. Just being in his presence fills me with a sense of awe and wonder that is very hard to put into words - he is truly Holy.
• I am so thankful for my friend, Katy, who is also my Confirmation sponsor. She is funny and challenging and supportive, giving and loving and makes me want to be a better person!!
• I am thankful for my sisters, my nieces and nephew, my parents, my step-mom and even my in-laws!!! ;o)
• I am thankful for all the talents God has bestowed upon me that allow me to make a living and have a challenging and productive career.
• I'm thankful for my employers who appreciate my talents (or at least are nice enough to SAY they do)
• I am thankful for my fur babies who give unconditional love no matter what. Sometimes you just need a good slurp in the face, YKWIM??

There's lots more, but there's a start. I feel very optimistic today!!

On the weight loss front, I had another good day. I didn't end up getting my walk in yesterday, but I DID do my elliptical training, so I gave myself a check mark for exercise. I ate according to my plan, with one exception - I was STARVING yesterday afternoon and despite my best efforts at restraint, I scarfed down about 2/3 of a bag of Pretzel Goldfish on the way home in the car - curse your pretzel-y crunch!!! But even still, my calories came in fine for the day, so I gave myself a second check mark. I weighed 154.5 lbs. this morning!! YIPPIE!!

Okay, seriously now, I'm off for a walk!!!

Odds and Ends

1. I'm happy to report another great day yesterday!! Along with my weight on my cute little kitchen calendar (that has the cutest pictures of my son on it), I'm also adding some check marks - 1 check if I exercise that day and 1 check mark if I stick to my eating plan for the day. Monday and Tuesday I have 2 checks for each day! YAY ME!!!
2. I'm planning my eating for the day and tracking my calories burned on www.thedailyplate.com. I've tried a bunch of other sites, but THIS one has the vast majority of the convenience foods I eat and TONS of restaurant foods listed. The only problem is if I cook from scratch - I either have to guesstimate calories, or run it through a recipe builder program and then input it. Oh well, I like it anyhow!
3. I bought some books at Amazon.com this morning. It's never a good idea to shop early in the morning before the caffeine kicks in, but I did anyhow. I had a $25 gift certificate to use and there were 2 books I've been wanting. Of course, in the end, I was $1.97 short of the $25 mark to get the free Super Saver shipping, so I had to add another book, because if I'm gonna pay the same amount to add a book or ship the 2 I intended to buy in the first place, I'd like to get another book out of the deal. Here's what I bought:

Hungry Girl: Recipes and Survival Strategies for Guilt-Free Eating in the Real World (Lisa Lillien): I've been a big fan of the Hungry Girl website for a long time. Great recipes, great humor on the site (and Weight Watcher POINTS too!!)



Half-Assed: A Weight Loss Memoir (Jennette Fulda): I've been following Jennette Fulda's blog for about a year now and SHE ROCKS - HARD!!!! This woman found herself weighing ~372 lbs at the age of 24. Sick and tired of being sick and tired, she took her destiny into her own hands and lost HALF of her body weight - can you imagine??? Last Saturday I actually sat down and started reading the archives of her blog from the beginning - I finished YESTERDAY!! She is a very prolific blogger!! Although I have never been 200 lbs overweight, I can relate to her story - her struggles and issues with food - so well. More than once in my reading I just stopped and nodded my head, thinking that (but for the witty delivery) I could voice the same things!!! Miss Fulda should be so proud of her accomplishment - I'm certainly proud of her!!

Eat This Not That!: Thousands of Simple Food Swaps That Can Save You 10, 20, 30 Pounds - or More! (David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding): This was the book I picked so I could get the free shipping - it looks interesting!!




I'm going to have to stop getting on the scales every day, but I did get on this morning - still 156. I did get on the elliptical trainer again this morning - WOW - 2 days in a row!!! ;o) Now, I'm off for a walk!

I feel good!!

I got a great night's sleep and woke up - WIDE awake - at 4:38am, so I got up, poked around online, packed lunches, had my coffee and then looked at the clock and it was only 6:30. WOW!!! So, I put on my sneakers and got on the elliptical trainer that has been gathering dust for the past couple of months. I always feel better when I exercise in the morning - more alert, more resolute to have a good day. Plus, I listened to my "Inspirational" playlist on my iPod while I exercised, so I got a good "soul boost" in the bargain.

Now I'm not saying I will be in any shape to pop out of bed at 4:30 in the morning every day, but I AM going to try to be more diligent about getting in some exercise each morning.

Yesterday was very good food-wise and I got in a nice walk in the afternoon, and for my efforts, not that it really matters because weight certainly fluctuates from day-to-day, I weighed 156 lbs. this morning - 2 lbs. less than yesterday. WOOT!!!

Hope everyone else has a great day too!!!

WOW!! Over 2 months since my last post - I AM embarassed!!

To say I fell off the low-carb wagon is an understatement!! I've essentially been on a month-long food, carb, wine binge and it's been UGLY!! I spent this past weekend re-evaluating my behavior and trying to figure out what in the hell I am doing to myself. I didn't really get any great answers, but I prayed a lot and I THINK I have devised a strategy.

First of all, I'm just not doing well on a low-carb plan. I don't know why, but it's just not working for me. I'm not losing weight, I feel weak, shaky, deprived and just BAD - and this is AFTER getting through the induction-flu. SOOOOO, I'm just going to try to eat healthy carbs and manage my portions. If I can manage this, it will be a HUGE accomplishment!! I think God forgot to install the "on/off switch" on my appetite when he put me together. There are couple of issues here: first, I can eat MASS quantities of food - I mean A LOT!!! Like a whole pizza in one sitting, like a whole bag of chips while watching Glenn Beck - it's UGLY and it's unhealthy!! Second, I eat too damned FAST!!! My husband has always been amazed at how quickly I can consume a plate of food. It's a BAD thing!! I need to slow down! Thirdly, I like wine too much. I think I've posted about that before - I can drink a whole bottle of wine and want more. Definite tendencies toward excess in this area. Empty calories and again, it's damned unhealthy! I need to set a much better example for my son!!

I am sick of cooking multiple meals every night - something for me, something my husband will eat, something my kid will eat - it's ridiculous!! I just want to be NORMAL when it comes to food!! Is that too much to ask??? I am a GLUTTON!!

So, what's the result? I weighted in this morning at 158 lbs!! Super!!! I wrote the number on the calendar that is in our kitchen for the whole world to see. I am so mortified, but I need to be accountable to someone - anyone - other than myself, because OBVIOUSLY that's not working so well. So for now, I'll track my weight on my kitchen calendar and this blog for the world to see and I'll also track my food.

Hopefully, something will work. I'm just sick of all this!!