Milestone Met!

Hello Slim Readers!!!  I am so happy to finally announce that I have met a major milestone in my weight loss journey.  I lost an amazing 4.2 pounds last week to put my total at 26.2 and I am officially at wedding day weight!  I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am!  Another 5 pounds and I will hit "Lifetime" status with Weight Watchers.  I plan to lose 10-15 more once I hit Lifetime, but once you hit that point, you don't have to pay for it anymore!  I couldn't wait to share that exciting news with you!

So I haven't posted a recipe or anything lately, and last night, I mad a great dinner that was so easy and very low points.  Jay gobbled it right up and comment several times on how good it was.  Here's the picture:

Grilled Pork chop (3 ounces) - 3 Points
2 Tbsp Jack Daniels Spicy Original BBQ sauce - 1 Point
Spicy Green Beans - 1/2 Point
Meal Total = 4.5 Points

So here's how I make the Spicy Green Beans.  I cut the ends off of the green beans.  You don't have to do this, but I tend to choke on the little stringy ends sometimes, so I cut them.  I put 2 cups of the beans in a non-stick skillet on the stove top and heat it over medium low with 1/2 cup of water, 1 tsp of olive oil and red pepper flakes, stirring often.  I think they were on the stove a total of 5-7 minutes.  Then you just divide them up on the plates.  That's it!  It's a nice spicy twist on snap green beans.

Until next time...
Eat to live, don't live to eat.

ENCHILADAS!!!

So Jarren ate the last of the enchiladas last night before I could get a picture.  Typical!  But I will give you the recipe.  It's so basic, you really don't need a picture.  Here we go!
You will need:
12 oz of cooked and chopped (or shredded) boneless, skinless chicken breast
6 wheat tortillas (or flour if you prefer, but you will have to add 1 point per enchilada for this)
1 can of Campbell's 98% Fat Free Cream of Chicken Soup
1 can of Campbell's Fiesta Nacho Cheese (you get this in the soup section...I know Kroger has it)
1 8-oz container of fat free sour cream
1 cup of Kraft 2% milk shredded Mexican cheese blend
1 finely chopped jalapeno pepper
1 tsp. of crushed red pepper flakes

What you do:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
Lightly grease with Pam a 9x13 Pyrex dish
In a pot over medium low heat, combine the cream of chicken soup, fiesta nacho cheese soup, sour cream, and finely chopped jalapeno.  Mix it all together until smooth and heat thoroughly - about 5 minutes.
In a bowl, add the 12 ounces of chicken breast.  Pour a little more than half of the cheesy soupy mixture over the chicken and mix well.
Divide the chicken mixture evenly among the six tortillas.  Fold the ends over and roll them up.
Place each enchilada in the Pyrex dish so they are all even spaced, but not quite touching.
Pour the remaining cheesy soupy mixture over the enchiladas.
Sprinkle evenly with the red pepper flakes.
Top with the shredded cheese.
Bake approximately 15-20 minutes, or until everything is melted and bubbly.
5 Points per enchilada.

Let me know if you try this and how it turns out!!!

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!