Monday, January 30, 2012

Lunches, and other dull topics.

Week one ended on Friday, and friends, I dropped 7 lbs - enough to make my jeans loose.

And then I celebrated with a basket of homemade chips at Mequisito and two margaritas.  Oops.

Back on that horse, yesterday I was under my point count and today I intend to be as well.

A few tips of late:

Local Veggie Burger Saves Lunch

Hilary's Eat Well is a local Lawrence, KS company.  Their veggie burger is 4 pts and their spicy adzuki burger is 3.  Sara Lee Healthy Heart Whole Wheat Buns are 3 Points Plus. I only eat the bottom half, for 1 point.  With some spicy mustard and onion, it's a tasty lunch.  Because it's so low point anyway, I even added a piece of provolone cheese for 3 points.  A bit of dairy (they want you to have it) and added deliciousness.  7 points for a "burger" with cheese - NOT BAD.  I had a bowl of tomato spinach soup (zero points) and a bunch of steamed veggies (also zero) with it.  Filling 7 point lunch.  Easily could have been only 4 had I opted out of cheese.

Margaritas are the DEVIL


Restaurant margaritas are full of an unmentionable amount of points.  Like, 9 or something.  Lordy.  Drink your margs at home, 2 pts.  Fill glass with ice.  One shot of tequila, fill with Diet Sprite, a few shakes of margarita flavored Crystal Lite. (can get the Wal Mart brand )

No, they're not the same, but you can have 10 of them for the same number of points as the two I had on Friday night at Mesquisito.  QUANTITY, people. ;)

Bananas Feel Like Cheating


I know bananas are zero points, but they are so good and filling, I feel like I shouldn't be having them.  I'm trying to keep it to one a day, but I love them so.

Free State Brewing Company


It's hard to eat out, but the Copperhead Chicken Tenders at Free State are yummy and pretty decent - not to mention filling. If you just have the chicken and sauce, it's 8 points.  If you eat the onion strings it's another 5.  Maybe just eat half of them?

Carry on.


Monday, January 23, 2012

Recipe planning

This is harder than it looks. ;)  I have a hungry meat-and-potatoes husband to keep happy!

Tonight:  Vegetable beef soup. I think I can make this pretty much according to my usual recipe.  Mr. Meat and Potatoes can have a grilled cheese sandwich to fill him up.

Tomorrow:  Chicken enchiladas.  Mission corn tortillas are only 2 points, and I will use 2 percent cheese and lots of chili sauce.  Maybe throw an egg on.  I think I can do it for about 10 points for 2 enchiladas.  Put a salad on the side, I should be good.

Wednesday: Maybe we'll eat leftovers.

Thursday: I'm going to drop Johnny with my mom at Mc Donalds in Emporia so he can spend the weekend with her.  Curses!!  What do I do? I'll be starving.  I'll have to go check out their menu and see what my options are.


Fat Loser

So, I've started Weight Watchers.  It's been 3 days.

The good news is I've been able to pretty much stay on target, point-wise, without feeling overly hungry or cranky.  Fantastic!

The bad news is it's been demoralizing as a cook.

I am used to 95 percent of what I cook coming out beautifully and tasting how I expected it to.  I'm used to making GOOD FOOD.  It's sort of my thing.

Over the weekend, I tried a few "new" recipes out, subbing my old no good very bad ingredients for a few more healthy choices.

I made chicken stir fry.  The chicken, sauce, and vegetables were delish and I could actually just eat them plain, and I think I will. Because I also made brown rice with coconut milk.  MEH.  The rice took an hour to cook and still didn't seem done.  Lindsey says it never gets really soft and fluffy like jasmine or basmati.  It's always going to have sort of a "tooth".  I hated it.

Then that night I made spaghetti and meat balls.  The meatballs were good, albeit salty, but that is my fault.  I used whole grain pasta.  Mr. Meat and Potatoes, in all of his supportive goodness, said the pasta didn't bother him at all, but I found it slimy and disgusting.  Again, #FAIL.

Do you know what it's like to be a "cook" and have two meals in one day come out unsatisfactory?

I have a lot to learn, I guess, about how to make this work.

The beauty of Weight Watchers is you can eat whatever you want; it's about moderation.  So I could go back to using regular pasta and rice, but I'm going to have such small portions I'm afraid I'll be hungry all the time.  So, for now, I believe I'll be on a mostly carb-free diet.  The carb choices are just too disgusting.

I've been reading about low-point tortillas, and I guarantee I'll go waste some money on some and try and hate them, but this is a journey and I'll (hopefully) soon learn which "light" products I can tolerate and which I can't.

So, dieting sucks.  But being thin doesn't. Here we go.

Friday, January 20, 2012

Wherein I sort of show that I'm a reality tv/internet junkie.

Dooce is separated.

I, apparently, care about this more than I probably should.  It is possible that I have spent a tiny bit of time searching around the internet for possibly stories relating to it.  Was he cheating? Was she?  Is she checking back into the mental hospital? What possibly could have provoked this?

Why. Do. I. Care?

I've put a fair amount of thought into that question as well.

Here's what I've come up with so far:

1) I care because I've been reading her faithfully for ten years.  I have seen the evolution of that relationship happen in real time, I've "been there" for the birth of their children, their foibles, struggles, and successes.  I can't help but care a little when I see it fall apart, especially for their children.

2) She's my age.  And while we have little in common in terms of career (she's wildly rich and famous, and I am, well, not), we do have a few things in common.  We were pregnant at the same time.  We're bloggers.  We share a need to overshare.  She's hilarious, and in many ways has helped me shape my own writing.  She's smart and insightful, and I find her inspiring.

3) I don't want it to be true.  I hate stories of families dissolving.  HATE THEM.  Even when I don't know them, really.

I know too many "real" families that are divorcing or talking about divorce.  I know how easy it can be to say to ones self, "I only live once, and this isn't working.  I need to be happy."  I know that marriage is often very complicated, and often very simple.

I'll tell you this: I think the Blurbodoocery is experiencing sort of a "Jon and Kate Plus 8" situation.  Somehow, moving to the "big house" and striking it rich seems to be the kiss of death for these families.  Somehow, the expectations get all out of whack.

Regardless, it's sad.  It makes me want to squeeze my husband, my middle-classness, my marriage very close.  It makes me know that all of the flaws in my marriage, which sometimes seem insurmountable, don't amount to a hill of beans when I look at the big picture.  It's a forest and trees situation, to be sure.  And when we are caught up in the details of "he did, she did" or "I need, you need" sometimes we miss the big picture.  We are better than the sum of our parts.  As a unit, we are stronger, wiser, and our love is exponential.

I wish for Heather and Jon a journey back to home.  I wish for them a moment of forest.  The trees, they are tall and scary.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

2 People

There are two people inside of me.

One writes lists and congratulates herself for accomplishing so many tasks in a day.
The other one puts things off and defiantly sticks out her tongue at "trivial" things.

One resents everyone who judges, who compares, who thinks they know "the best way".
The other one is thankful for them, and how they motivate her to do a little better at some of those aforementioned tasks.

One person inside me is an uncompromising feminist who wants to march for equal pay.
The other person inside me would like to be a stay at home mom and perfect a bread recipe.

One of the people inside me cares deeply about her appearance and wants to diet, work out, get expensive haircuts and facials, buy a great wardrobe
The other person inside me is practical, and couldn't really care less.

One person loves pets, mess be damned.
The other has new furniture and hates sweeping the floor.

One person wants to go out, see and be seen, run amok.
The other wants to snuggle under the blanket and watch reruns of Law and Order forever.

We are exhausting.