Pop

I live just outside of Pittsburgh. Around here we like to think we have our own language. Rubber band is gum band, Vacuum is sweeper, and Soda is pop. This has nothing really to do with this post except to translate why I am writing about this mysterious drink, pop.

About a year and a half ago I started weight watchers with my mom. I was hesistant to have someone weight me every week and wasnt sure if I would see any results. Well low and behold I lost 5 pounds the first week and about 2 pounds every week after. I kept it up for abut 5 months and ended up losing 20lbs. I was so happy and felt like I was ready to tackle the maintaining part on my own. I just have to look back and laugh because WOW was I wrong! I am not going back to weight watchers now because my budget is pretty tight and I just can't justify spending $30 a month for something that I should be able to do myself.

The biggest thing that helped when I did weight watchers was not drinking pop. By switching to diet pop (which I know is just as bad) and water alone I could be losing a few pounds a week. Regular coke is like an addiction to me! I just need to cut myself off before It gets too late but recently with Jason being out of town and work being crazy I have been making excuses to myself as to why I NEED just one coke, which turns into two or three. So starting tomorrow I am going cold turkey. No more regular coke. I am going to drink only water and the occasional diet coke.

I will post on here to let you guys know how it is going! In the mean time does anybody have any tips or drink suggestions?

Flip Flops and Muffins

My life has been extremely uneventful this week. My typical schedule has been work, come home, eat, sit outside with the dogs for a bit, sleep. What can I say, Im living the high life! However on Wednesday I did manage to break my routine and go out after work for a drink with a few people from work. We went to a place in shadyside that has an awesome rooftop deck. It was beautiful! We went out and walked around Shadyside and window shopped since thats the only shopping in Shadyside that fits my price range. We went into Ann Taylor and I found the most beautiful flip flops that I have ever seen. They were heavenly. I almost cried when I saw the $69 dollar price tag. Who pays 70 bucks for flip flops? I may keep my eyes on them though and if they drop below 40 they're mine! I also found this adorable top which I feel like would make my shoulders look like a line backer but is adorable. I also found a cute dress at Gap which I feel would be perfect for this cook out I am going to on Saturday. Its even on sale for $34 but I passed because I feel like I can find something cheaper at TJ Max. Why am I so cheap? I often see things I love but don't buy them because I feel like I could find it somewhere else for less. Ultimately I never find it and end up with something I just like but don't love. The only plus is that I have a few extra dollars left in my pocket at the end of the day. Ive been thinking lately about buying less items but spending more on quality pieces. This is something I struggle with because I love clothes and I love shopping. Maybe this is just my subconcious telling me to go buy those $69 flip flops. Hmm...

Anyway here's a recipe for some awesome pumpkin muffins that are low fat. These are SO easy to make and they are only 2 weight watchers points per muffin, which means they are about 100 calories per muffin.

Low Fat Pumpkin Muffins

1 vanilla cake mix

1 16 oz can of pumpkin

3 tbsp of ground flax seed (This is optional but it adds more fiber and makes the muffins very moist)

Combine all ingredients thoroughly, however be careful not to over mix. Fill muffin pan 3/4 full with batter and bake according to directions on cake mix for cupcakes. NOTE: I have a hard time finding a 16 oz can of pumpkin so I usually end up buying the big 32 oz can and making a double batch. These muffins freeze really well!

This is why I'm fat

So this week/weekend pretty much flew by. Last week I was in Harrisburg for a training. We stayed at a Hilton and to my demise they had warm chocolate chip cookies every single night. I dont even like chocolate chip cookies that much, until they are stairing at my every single night. But I did manage to resist the muffins and danish's every morning for breakfast. Instead I ate a ton of fruit and tea. So when I got on the scale this week I wasnt really looking for a loss. In fact I had already made up my mind that I was going to be 1-3 pounds heavier. As it turns out resisting those muffins did me some justice and I only gained .4 pound. Had I taken off my shoes, completely dried my hair before leaving the house, and/or not taken that sip of crystal light before weighing in I feel that I would have been the exact same weight as last week. This weekend I got my new dishwasher installed, YAY! It amazing to not have to stand in front of the sink and scrub dishes for 20 minutes.

For lunch today I tried a new vegetarian restaurant by work. It was so good to have an ENTIRE menu of food to pick from. Not just a veggie burger or fettucini alfredo. It was called the quiet storm and if you are ever in Pittsburgh I highly suggest that you check it out. The prices were amazing as well. For 8 dollars I got a huge seitan sandwhich with onion jam and cheese, tortilla chips, and some amazing cold potatoes with vinegrette dressing. It was a great meal. And it will probably contribute to another week of my not losing weight. But I am going to try and be good for the rest of the week. We'll see how that goes...

Why I hate my life right now

Why I hate my life right now:

1. Saturday I went to weight watchers and lost .6 of a pound. Not even a full pound. I shouldn’t be surprised though since I ate Einstein’s the day before I weighed in!

2. Sunday I dropped my phone in a puddle of water- that’s the second phone in 5 months that has succumbed to my abuse. But to my defense neither or these incidences were my fault. Really, they weren’t!

3. Monday Jason left for San Diego… and he will be gone for 3 weeks. 3 whole weeks. Insert saddest face ever here.

So my plan for while he is gone is to eat really healthy, follow weight watchers religiously, and lose 10-15 pounds. This sounds pretty far fetched but one can only hope.

Today is the first day of my new plan and today’s lunch is… stir fry broccoli and mushrooms, roasted potatoes, and grilled brussel sprouts. Yum! Its only about 3 points for the whole meal. I find it really helps to keep me on track if I plan out my meals so here they are (feel free to skip over/quit reading this mundane-ness at any time)(and yes I totally just made up the word mundane-ness)

Monday:
Lunch- roasted potatoes, grilled brussel sprouts, stir fry broccoli and mushrooms.
Dinner- Lean cuisine and salad

Tuesday:
Lunch- Salad with tomatoes, potatoes, and broccoli and yogurt
Dinner- Vegetarian Chili

Wednesday:
Lunch- Left over chili
Dinner- More chili and some salad

Thursday:
Lunch- Salad and yogurt
Dinner- Pasta with tomatoes and basil

Friday:
Lunch- Left over pasta
Dinner- Lean cuisine

Saturday is my weigh in day. Hopefully I see more results today then I did last week!

Did I mention I was fat?

So I joined weight watchers a 2 weeks ago. Thats right I pay someone to weigth me every week and either tell me hey fatty, not everything needs gravy or Hey your a little less fat this week! Last Saturday was my first weigh in and voila 4.2 pounds gone! Only 35.8 to go! Notice my mock excitement. But it is a step in the right direction. This week- not going as well. Lets just say the Einstein Bro’s need to quit putting crack in their bagels. I have no will power. But I have been busy working out side in the garden and running around with the dogs! Ahh I love warm weather! Speaking of warm weather, we are having a cook out this weekend! I am very strapped for cash right now due to the latest addition to our family- Hello Beautiful.

So I am keeping our bbq budget low! The menu is… (Veggie) Hot dogs and veggie burgers, broccoli pasta salad, roasted ranch potatoes wedges, cantaloupe and strawberries, and for dessert a new recipe for cobbler- the recipe is as follows:

$3 Fruit Cobbler

1 can of fruit pie filling (I’m using cherry but use whatever you like!)
1 box of cake mix
1 stick of butter

Directions: Dump, yes dump, pie filling into a casserole dish. Next, spread dry cake mix over the pie filling. Next melt the stick of butter and drizzle over dry cake mix. Bake for about 45 minutes at 350 and voila cheap and yummy cake dessert. Hopefully I can snap some pictures before we devour it on Saturday!