Told ya so...

Told you I would gain.  Saturday at weigh-in, I was up 3 pounds bringing my total down to 22 (instead of the lovely 25 it was sitting at 2 weeks ago).  But honestly, I was OK with that all things considered...which includes eating my way through Destin on the "No Hush Puppy Left Behind" quest.  Seriously...I ate hush puppies at every meal that involved a restaurant, which was 4 dinners and 2 lunches.  Just in case you wanted to know, 2 hush puppies are 4 points.  So...yeah.  On the subject of hush puppies, though, we were at Dewey Destin's one night for dinner (if you have never been, seriously, go there next time you're in Destin) and they were mentioning a world record hush puppy.  Turns out it had just been done the night before...a 31 pound hush puppy!!!  How did I miss this???  But, it's pretty good that I did, because 31 pounds of hush puppy are 1,038.5 Weight Watchers points.  You know, just in case someone offers you one... : )

Made an extra yummy version of an enchilada recipe that is all low fat/fat free options.  One enchilada is only 5 points, so I'll be sure to take a picture of mine tonight and include the recipe tomorrow. 

Promise.  Yeah, you've heard that before, but I will try!

Life's a Beach...when you're at the beach!

Hello readers!  I know a neglected you last Monday.  I'm so sorry, but it was my only day of work for the week before heading to the beach with my in-laws for the week.  But...

I lost 1.4 pounds on Saturday (the 24th) and hit the coveted 25 pounds lost mark!  YEA!!!

I can't believe it, but I hit the 25 pound mark right square on the head.  What an amazing feeling that was.  I swear I walked on Cloud 9 all day with pride.   The journey hasn't always been easy, but I feel healthier and better than I have in a really long time.  In celebration of hitting that mark, I'm going to let you see a "Before" and "Current" picture.  Granted, I think the week at the beach is going to put me up a few pounds, but I'll just deal with that at weigh-in Saturday.  I missed weigh-in this past Saturday on account of, well, the BEACH (have I said that enough times to make you jealous yet?)!!!  Here's the pic:

The one on the left is me on January 31st of this year at the Georgia Aquarium.  I started Weight Watchers on February 6th.  The picture on the right is of me this past Friday before heading to dinner at Dewey Destin (my one fried meal of the week-was it worth it?  TOTALLY!).  This picture marks the "Half Way" point in my journey and lifestyle in changing the way I look at food.

I'll share a few pictures from the week at the beach...if you're friends with me on Facebook, you can see all of them there a little later when I find time to upload them.  Here a few from our day at Crab Island:

My really handsome hubby navigating the boat to Crab Island.

The honey and I in the water at Crab Island

THIS is paradise...for those of you not familiar with Destin, this is what is called "Crab Island".  It is this area just northwest of the bridge that separates Destin from Ft. Walton Beach that is really shallow...no more than 2-3 feet deep in most areas.  The area is HUGE and easily capable of a few hundred boats congregating around.  Everyone just anchors the boat, jumps out, and plays around in floats, drinks beer, etc.  The water is crystal clear and turquoise blue.  I recommend packing a few sandwiches and lots of beer and head out!

And since this is a food blog, here is my lunch one day (needed a break from the sun).  Those are mahi mahi tenders, gumbo, and hush puppies (Jay and I split all that-I didn't eat it myself)!  I eat hush puppies at every meal at the beach.  It is just one of those things I let myself splurge on.  This particular meal is from a FABULOUS little hole in the wall on the north side of Old Hwy 98 called Kenny D's.  Went there with my dad for years when it was called Wahoos.  I highly recommend it next time you're in the area.  Food is amazing!

Other places we ate were Bayou Bill's Crab House (shared a bucket of crab legs with new potatoes and corn on the cob here), the Tommy Bahama Restaurant (shared the fish tacos and a crab cake here), Dewey Destin (YOU MUST EAT HERE...had a crab cake basket with two crab cakes, fries, and hush puppies...this was clearly my major "splurge" meal), and Captain Dave's (this is my absolute favorite restaurant and I had the blackened mahi mahi with a twice baked potato and salad).  If you're wondering why I don't have the points listed, it is because I went on one little 4-night vacation and I didn't eat everything in sight, and I tried to make smart decisions, but I also let myself something if I wanted it.  Like I said earlier, I may pay for it at weigh-in Saturday, but I have some GREAT food memories from this trip!

Sorry this post is long, but I had a lot to cover!  Probably won't post again until next Monday.  I love reading your comments, though, so leave them if you feel so inclined!  : )

Drumroll, Please....

I lost 2.2 pounds!  YEA!  You all have no idea how THRILLED I was with this!  My total weight loss now is finally at the biggest number so far on this journey!  23.6 pounds lost!  What an accomplishment my friends!  I would LOVE to lose 2.4 this upcoming Saturday (which would put me at 26 pounds lost and finally at my wedding day weight!) at weigh-in, but I have to be realistic also that any loss is great.  I finally feel like I'm back on track.  It really is true that when you count everything that graces your lips, even if you estimate a little high (which is what I do), it really pays off on the scales. 

Here is something I made last Saturday that we got several meals out of because it has 8 servings in it and it keeps really well!

Pasta Salad with Chicken
8 oz cooked (boiled) and chopped boneless skinless chicken breast
1 box of cooked Ronzoni Garden Delight Spiral Pasta (drained and cooled with cold water)
Half a can of drained black beans
1 can of sliced black olives
1.5 cups of chopped broccoli
8 tsp of shredded Parmesan cheese (like the Kraft kind)
Half a bottle of Kraft Light Parmesan Asiago Vinaigrette dressing
Mix all the ingredients together and toss it in the dressing.  Chill for about an hour before serving
8 servings per batch = 5 Points per serving
The good thing about this is the chicken and fiber make you feel really full and between the garden vegetable pasta and broccoli, there are 2 servings of veggies in every serving!

This recipe also makes a great meal in the summer when you don't want anything heavy or hot.  And it is so yummy!!!  Enjoy!!!

Up, up, and away...

I've been dreading this blog post for 2 days now.  Sadly, my dear followers, I was up 2 pounds.  Yes, 2 WHOLE POUNDS.  How in the heck does that happen?  I mean, I know I ate a little more than normal...but no 2 pounds worth!  I think there was something wrong with the scale...  I'm totally not just saying that.  I had to weigh on a different scale last week, and I think that makes a difference.  They could be calibrated differently.  Either way, I'm back on track this week and have already added 2 days of exercise to my routine!  I also have a recipe for a DELISH pasta salad that I have made several times to the enjoyment of practically everyone who has even seen it.  I made it up and will be sure to post it for you this week!

Drink Up, Buttercup!

I cannot believe "summer" is almost half way over.  I know technically it isn't because it didn't technically begin until June 21, but in my little world, summer is June and July...and sometimes August.  But when school has already started back, I consider summer over.  With summer, though, comes all the fun of grilling out, BBQ's, cool food, and my favorite...fun, summery drinks!  I've got a break-down for you of some of my absolute favorites with the points break-down (as well as I could figure up anyway).

I'll start with BEER...what goes better with grilling meat on the grill and some summer tunes on the stereo than a cold beer?  Nothing, that's what.  Of the domestic "lights", these are the two I drink:

Miller Lite - 2 Points (per 12oz bottle)

Coors Lite - 2 Points (per 12oz bottle)

I also have been known to "treat" myself with the following higher point beers (these two are actually my two favorite beers):

Woodchuck Amber Cider - 3 Points (per 12oz bottle - this one also has a higher ABV at 5%)

Landshark (brewed by Jimmy Buffett) - 3 Points (per 12oz bottle)

Now I also LOVE wine.  It's the perfect compliment to the Bachelorette on Monday nights.  It's also the perfect compliment to...well...life!  Barefood is my brand of choice.  They make just about every variety and it is very tasty and very reasonably priced ($10.99 with my Kroger Plus Card for the double-size bottle).  My favorite is the Pinot Grigio.  I like the green apple, peach, and citrus flavors that go along with a Pinto Grigio much better than the vanilla and peach flavors that go with a Chardonnay.  Here's the breakdown of the Barefoot line (PS - the picture does not show every variety and my description came from the Barefoot website):

Pinot Grigio (green apple, white peach, floral blossom, citrus)

Moscato (peach, apricot, lemon, orange)

Chardonnay (vanilla, honey peach, Fuji apple)

Riesling (fruity, with orange, apple, and lemon)

Sauvignon Blanc (honeydew, nectarine, white pear)

White Zinfandel (or the white trash of wines as I call it - peach, pineapple, strawberry, and pear)

Pinot Noir (black cherry, raspberry, dark spices)

Cabernet Sauvignon (currant, raspberry, blackberry, vanilla)

Shiraz(blackberry, blueberry, and mocha)

Merlot (red cherry, boysenberry, and plum)

Zinfandel (cherries and raspberries)

Each flavor is 2 points per 5 oz glass (but I will seriously think there is something wrong with you if you can manage to only drink one glass!)

Finally, the cocktail.  Jarren and I just sort of stumbled over this one over the 4th of July weekend when we couldn't find all the ingredients for a Bama Breeze.  I've named this one His & Hers because it involves banana (hee hee!), coconuts (tee, hee, hee) and oranges (got nothing here...).  

It's about 5 points per cup, but oh-so-worth it!  Mix 1 part banana rum, 1 part coconut rum, and 2 parts orange juice.  Serve over ice...but be careful!  It's half alcohol so this one will slip up on you!

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer like we are!  So much fun stuff coming up for us and I will continue to update you as always with my weight-loss success and what I'm eating!

Eat to live...don't live to eat!

Eclipse Review

If you know me, you know I'm a Twilight fan.  Fan might be not quite the right word...but neither is obsessed.  I'm not obsessed, I just really have always loved reading and those books really sucked me in.  I know, I know, this is mainly a FOOD and WEIGHT LOSS blog, but I can't help myself.  I just do this post. 

So I saw the movie last Friday with Jay (yes, yes, he deserves an award for going with me, etc...please keep those comments to a minimum as I've heard them all about a hundred times...).  And now I'm going to review it for you...WARNING: MY REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS!!! 
But seriously, who is seeing the movie who hasn't read the book?  In which case, you already know everything that happens in the whole series.

Favorite Part:  Bella & Jacob FINALLY kissing (I consider this all part of the tent scene).  It was passionate and romantic and I have a Team Jacob side of me screaming to get out!  The tent scene on the whole was great!


Best Line in the Movie:  When Edward is taking Bella to the treaty line to drop her off with Jacob for safe keeping while he goes hunting.  Jacob is waiting there in all his shirtless glory and Edward says to her, "Doesn't he own a shirt?" Vampire with a sense of humor...gotta love that!

Least Favorite Part:  I guess the graduation scene, but I think that's because I had had 3 glasses of wine at that point (the theater we went to have a VIP 21+ section where they serve drinks) and had to go to the restroom and missed most of it.

Biggest Complaint:  Not enough time spent on Rosalie and Jasper's back stories.  I honestly would have liked to visually see more of both of them.  And the fight sequence was really cool with all the CGI and special effects, so I would have enjoyed more of that.

Biggest Letdown:  Honestly, I think the way it ended is my biggest complaint.  They just ended New Moon SO perfectly with Edward asking her to marry him and her gasping and then the screen going blank and credits rolling.  I mean, seriously, ANTICIPATION built big time with that ending.  Eclipse just sort of ends with them making out in the meadow talking about forever.  Blah blah.  I guess it was just really really boring for an ending.  And since the movies haven't exactly followed the books exactly (honestly, what movies do?), I was expecting something a little more...something to keep me wanting more until Breaking Dawn comes out (in two parts) starting 11•11•11.
On a side note, my second biggest letdown was Alice.  She was one of my favorite characters in the whole books series and she was rarely in the movie at all.  Bummer.

Thing I Though Would Bother Me That Didn't:  Going to break this down as a list:
1.   The role of Victoria changing actresses.  Rachelle LeFevre was Victoria in Twilight and New Moon.  But due to some may-jah drama, she was recast in Eclipse and Bryce Dallas Howard (most recently she played John Connor's wife, Kate, in Terminator: Salvation).  I actually didn't really pay that much attention to it...they managed to make it not very obvious in my opinion so it didn't bother me.
2.   Bella's wig.  In the pictures that were leaked on the internet while they were filming had me really nervous because it looked BAD.  For those of you (again) under a rock, Kristen Stewart (the actress who plays Bella) had a role in between New Moon and Eclipse where she played Joan Jett in The Runaways.  She cut her hair and dyed it into Joan Jett's iconic black mullet.  Clearly they have some AMAZING film re-touchers at Summit because I didn't really notice it at all.  Rosalie's, however?  TERRIBLE.

Biggest Anticipation for Breaking Dawn:  Seeing how they do Renesmee (for those of you living under a ROCK, she is Bella and Edward's half vampire, half human child).  She grows at an alarming rate in the books and even as an infant, has a full set of teeth.  I want to see how they do this!  And the actress they choose because she is supposed to be breathtakingly beautiful.

On the whole, I'm going out on a limb to say Eclipse was my FAVORITE of the 3 so far...there, I've said it!  Are you a fan?  Have you seen the movie yet?  Give me your thoughts!!!

Wednesday is the New Monday...

Good Wednesday morning!  So my Monday morning post should have been on Tuesday (since my office was closed Monday).  But I was busy and just plain ole forgot.  So now it is Wednesday and I'm wondering where the time went!!

So first things first...I lost another 1.2 pounds at weigh-in on Saturday and was feeling great!  23.4 total (only 1.6 away from a major milestone - 25 pounds!).  However, Saturday evening really kind of threw me for a loop with all the yummy foods available for devouring at Pyro on the Pond.  Pyro on the Pond is a major fireworks show put on by my aunt and uncle in their front yard, which has a huge pond, hence the name.  I think this was either the 12th or 13th year we have done it and it has gotten pretty big...150-200 people that we feed.  Not to mention the extra 50 or so that line up across the pond to watch the show.  And everyone brings something and there is a ton of food.  And I didn't really hold back.  I portioned everything, but I sampled pretty much everything.  WAY over my points already for the week...like 35 points OVER my 35 bonus points.  SERIOUSLY?!?!?!  Not going to have a good weigh-in this Saturday I fear, but I'm hoping I can fix it a little by trying to cut out 3-4 points a day until then.  I know you aren't supposed to do that, but I'm desperate here, people!!!

I fully plan on later this week doing a post on cocktail options and honestly, I'm surprised I haven't done this yet.  Summer is the only time I really enjoy a nice cocktail and a book outside in our little outdoor seating area.  So look for that coming soon...probably Friday.

Here are two meal updates:

2 slices of Nature's Own Light Wheat Bread - 1 Point
2 oz. Boar's Head Lemon Pepper Sliced Chicken Breast - 1 Point
1 slice of Sargento Colby Jack Cheese - 1 Point
Mixed Fruit - 1 Point
8 Rold Gold Honey Wheat Pretzel Braids - 2 Points
TOTAL = 6 Points

1 chicken breast - 3 Points
Goya Mojo Carillo Marinade (this is like a Caribbean marinade) - 0 Points
1/2 cup brown rice - 1 Point
1 cup of steamed broccoli - 1 Point
5 oz Pinot Grigio - 2 Points
TOTAL = 7 Points

And I'm adding this picture to show you how freaking spoiled my dog is.  When we're eating, he sometimes manages to weasel his head up there and lick around for crumbs.  We try really hard not to condone this behavior, but Jay managed to snap this picture (since the camera was already on the table and on) before I could push him back down.

Now these next few pictures are just to brag on our mad party planning skills!  My mother-in-law and father-in-law celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary in early June and we had a party for them at my sister-in-law's house June 26th.  These are just a few pictures of how we transformed her backyard into a twinkling party!

View of the back of the house.  Those are my Christmas lights strung across the top and in the trees!

Close up of the tree lights and drink table

That is a real chandelier we wired electricity to that hung from a tree!  You can also see the band setting up in the back left...

Close-up of the chandelier...

 

 

 

That's all for now!Hope everyone is having a great short week!