Oh My, Labor Day!

Holy Moly! What a day it has been. It was a crazy day at work...with all the kiddos bring back a weeks worth of ungraded homework. It's going to be an early day tomorrow that WILL begin with a Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte. Let's not get started with how many WW Points+ that is...buy hey, I've worked out three times this week, so I deserve it.

So after this crazy day, I came home to a house that smelt AMAZING. This morning, I put in the CrockPot a beef brisket. Again, a huge shout out to Emily Bites. It seems like most of what I've been cooking has come from that website. Anywho, this was super easy...I prepared it last night, and I threw it in the CrockPot this morning. Here's how it goes.

1 Beef Round Roast (I couldn't find what I was looking for, so I just used a brisket)
1 1/2 cup onion
1 1/2 cup ketchup (uh...me being me, I didn't have enough ketchup, so I had to improvise. I used as much ketchup as I had...and then added water. I think it worked just fine.)
1/3 Worcestershire sauce
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
3 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
2 tsp. salt

Brown the roast a skillet (just brown....don't really cook it at all) then throw everything else in the CrockPot. I put mine on low and cooked all day....like almost 12 hours and it was just fine. :o)

Here's the picture of it...after most of it was eaten. Oh yea....always, as long as you can help it, use the  Reynold's CrockPot liners. It will save you so much clean-up time...all you have to do is wipe the crock out after use.

The serving is about 1/2 cup...and it is 5 WW Points+ per serving. Not bad!

If you were wondering, the gym regemine is going really well. I've been doing Zumba once a week. I'm sure I look like a total spaz while doing it, but it's fun. The one hour work out doesn't even feel like it's that long. Then, I've been going three other days a week in the morning before work. I'm really enjoying it. I guess I like the "me" time. 

There's much of a better way to end this day then snuggling up with my husband and kittens.

Here's a sneak peak of who I'll be hanging out with tonight. :o)

Until next time, blessings my friends!

Jamie

Butt = Kicked

My goodness! What a busy couple of days it has been!

So, let me catch you up. Last Wednesday, I joined a gym. If you are in the Auburn area, it is Auburn Fitness for Women by Hastings....I would highly recommend it. First, there is no contract. I like that because I am really good at being all "gung-ho" at first, and in a few months, I fall off the wagon. If that is the case, which I hope it is not, I'm not tied there for a week. Another reason I really like it is because it is fairly cheap! You can use the gym for $10 per month. If you want to take classes at the gym (they have Zumba, BodyPump, BodyAttack, etc.) it's $20 per month. I really that that is extremely reasonable, and probably the cheapest around here. I really have been enjoying my workouts, and I have even gone before work.

You may be curious as to how this all works in the with WeightWatchers. Well, If I spend 30 minutes on the elliptical, I gain 7 activity points. Those points can go for extra points during the week, but I try not to use them. It's actually a pretty sweet deal. :o)

I spent the weekend with my wonderful friend Dawn and her family. My only real food slip-up was Marathon. If you went to West Georgia or know Carrollton, you know what I'm talking about! She cooked and tried lots of new recipes, but I wanted to tell you about one that was a total winner!

It is a Bacon Cheeseburger Wrap.(I have linked you to the recipe) Oh. My. Gosh. It was delicious.

You should totally try it, and Dawn says that if you make extras, they reheat really well. There are several variations from this recipe that I think would be really good. You can buy different "flavors" of Lite Flatouts, so choose which one you think you'd like. We had the sun-dried tomato, and it was delish. Also, Dawn and I decided it would be really good if you added salsa to the wrap or had some to dip it in. I LOVE SALSA! I love it even more because most salsa is zero PointsPlus.

These wraps were 8 PointsPlus per wrap. Totally reasonable if you ask me.

I hope you guys are having a fantastic week. I'm making it a goal to get to the gym three to four times a week. I went tonight for Zumba, and plan to go tomorrow before work. I'll have to buy new pants before I know it. :o)

Blessings!

Jamie

It's been one of those weeks....

This week, I believe, has been one of the busiest of my life. We had a ton going on at work, and I worked 10-hour days at least 3 days this week, 2 8-hour days, and half of a Saturday. You may be thinking, wow, Jamie, good thing you had Sunday off. NOT! Today, I have been busy with Junior League activities and recruiting new members. 

All that being said, Weight Watching has been about my last priority. I have not really been paying attention to portions....and the complete fatal flaw...we took the Kumon Kids to CiCi's on Friday for lunch. I ate on the buffet like I was homeless. Moral of the story, don't put a PIZZA BUFFET in front of a big girl....she will eat.

Tomorrow, I do not have to go to work until after lunch. I need a day to sleep in and not worry about ANYTHING. Monday mornings are my weigh-in days, and I have decided not to go this week. If any of you are trying out and jumping on the WW wagon, let me warn you, do not do this very often. Don't skip your weigh-in days. I've decided to do so since I know I've had a really bad week, and I don't need to be discouraged right now. 

My promise to you, I'm back on track this week. I'm hitting it hard, and I think I may even join a gym. I plan to go check it out one day after work.

This coming weekend should be very interesting. I am going to visit one of my best friends. Here's the hitch....we both LOVE food and we're both Weight Watching. 

I wanted to share with you a recipe that I made tonight. This one came from a Blog called Emily Bites that I have absolutely fallen in love with. If you are WW, this blog is extremely helpful in finding new WW-friendly recipes.

I made Baked Pizza Spaghetti. Again, I am going to link you straight to the blog. It's much easier that way. 

It was delicious! I mean, what's not to like? Two of my favorite things in the world. Pizza AND Spaghetti. Here are some pictures of what is looked like. 

 This was the first part of the recipe. This was where I mixed together cooked whole grain spaghetti, 1 egg, 2 egg whites, 3 oz. mozzarella, oregano, garlic powder, salt, and milk. Stick it in the oven for 15 minutes.

This was after it came out of the oven. It was delicious! This is supposed to be 10 servings and 7 WW  Points+ for each serving. It's very filling.

I have to keep reminding myself that this week is a new week. I owe it to myself to do better. I hope the rest of you have a fantastic week, as well.

Many blessings,

Jamie

Dinner Tonight: Jambalaya!

I've tried lots of new things this week. Some great, others not so great.

I created myself a new breakfast. First, you should know, I'm not a huge breakfast food person. I don't really like cooked eggs (although, I'll eat them), I could take or leave pancakes and waffle, and I'm not a huge fan of breakfast sausage.

This week's experiment? A Pizza Pita! Here's how it goes:

1/2 Low Carb Pita
1 Mini Babybel Lite Cheese Wheel
7 Turkey pepperonis (I only put 6 in my pita, but I can't help but to eat one by itself)
2 spoonfuls of pizza sauce.

1. Crumble up the Babybel cheese, put it in the pita. Put pepperonis and pizza sauce in pita.
2. Microwave for 1 minute.
3. Eat. It's delicious. That 4 WW Points+ for those of you keeping score at home.

I've been eating that with some fruit in the morning. It's a pretty delicious way to start my day. And plus, is there really anything better than starting your day with pizza? Yea, that's what I thought.

Tonight, I'm making Quick Sausage Jumbalaya. A Facebook friend of mine posted it yesterday, and that's what I decided Chris and I would have for dinner. I'm not sure how it's going to taste, but you can't go wrong with Cajun style sausage. Just saying.

Again, I have posted the link above to the blog where the recipe came from because it has quite a few ingredients and I'm too lazy to type it all out. Plus, credit must be given where credit is due.

Again, for those keeping score at home, I figure this will be good for about 4 servings, and it is 8 WW Points+ per serving. I figured it out through my handy, dandy WW eTools.

Tomorrow is weigh in day--I'm pretty sure I've done well this week. I'm thinking 2-3 lbs. That sounds really small, but it's a huge difference when your pants are already starting to fit better. 

Oh yes, I also plan to start some sort of workout regiment. Chris and I have been discussing joining a gym, but I'm not sure if we'll do that yet. I need some sort of outside workout opportunities because I have absolutely no discipline at home. Ah, I did Zumba on the Wii this week, and my legs felt it the next day!

Until next time, my friends!

Blessings,

Jamie

Week 1: Success

I would say that week one of the Weight Watchers: Round 2 has gone really well.

We've tried lots of new recipes this week. Some good, others not so good. I would love to share tonight dinner. It was delicious, if I may say so myself.

Skinny Chicken Enchiladas--I am just going to post the link to the recipes since there is quite a bit to it...plus, if you go to the link, you can print a printer friendly version. The picture I have posted is after we've eaten half of it because I forgot to take a picture before dinner. :o)

I don't go and weigh in until tomorrow morning, but I believe I have lost about 4 pounds this week. Anyone who has any doubts about the program, I have not felt deprived at all. This week I have eaten at Chick-fil-a twice, Moe's once, and I even had 4 oreos for dessert tonight! All of this has been staying on plan.

On a totally unrelated note, good vibes this week would be appreciated. I may have some big decisions coming my way. I will share as soon as I can. :o)

Blessings!

Tomorrow is the day....no, really, it is. :o)

All right. Tomorrow I continue work on something I started a couple of years ago. Let me explain...

A couple of years, I was at my heaviest weight I had ever been. I've never been thin, and I don't think I want to be like the girls on the magazine covers. That's NOT attractive to me. My goal is to be healthy. Two half years ago, I attending my first Weight Watchers meeting with one of my best friend. Before this, I had thought I had tried everything and nothing would work. Going to the gym every day, Slim Fast, and even salads for every meal. This was my last ditch effort to try something.

Let me tell you, it totally works! (No, they are not paying me to say this!) In a few months, I had lost 20 plus pounds. After I had lost that much, I decided I can do it on my own. I'm here to tell you, 2 1/2 years later, I have gained every pound back.

Tomorrow, I will return to the meetings. There is something about knowing you have to stand on a scale in front of someone every week. With this program, it is also strongly encouraged that you "track" everything you eat. If you don't track it, you don't realize how much you are actually eating. It's crazy!

Since I know how it goes, today, I will be planning out a menu for at least the next week. Let me tell you, it is not an easy thing. I have to find the balance between meals that I will like, meals that I can actually make, meals I will feel like making after a long day of work, and meals that Chris will eat. I love my husband very much, but he is not very adventurous when it comes to eating. He likes the simple meals, and my task for the day is finding the healthy alternatives to the simple meals.

I'm not doing this for anyone but myself. I want to feel better about myself, and I don't want to have to buy new pants (the ones I have now are starting to get a little tight). I want to have a family someday, and I have to be healthy before I can worry about keeping a little one healthy.

In the blog, I hope to share some of the things I find to be helpful in this journey, some delicious Weight Watchers friendly recipes, and the day to day in my life.

Stay tuned kids, as I said before, this will definitely be a journey.