How it happened...As you may know, we eat a lot of vegetables in our house. With our quest to eat more healthy, we're now trying to choose fresher and healthier vegetables and meat.
Well, we now get our milk and a few other products delivered from Shaw Farm (www.shawfarm.com). Yes, delivered! We've got the porch box and everything! From this farm, we are getting Country Hen organic/free range eggs and Shaw Farm organic milk. They're also delivering ground hamburg from Blood Farm and a couple of Shaw Farm soups. The soups are just a nice to have for the family. I even had a qt of pumpkin ice cream delivered for the family last week. I won't really be eating the ice cream since it is full fat and I still have some more weight to lose, but a spoon of it once in a while is ok.
This past weekend I went to Whole Foods and bought my free range turkey for Thanksgiving. It's not organic, but close. I also went to the local farmer's market and bought a few vegetables from a local farm and apple cider from a local orchard.
So, it's new to us and a work in progress, but it feels good to try to be doing something more than we were.
Aurie's Healthy Choices
Great recipes, exercises, and other insights into my world. Initial and primary focus will be eating healthy, exercising, and losing weight. This is a great new adventure for me.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Armed with Vegetables this Week!
Monday thru Friday, I plan out both my breakfast and lunch and these come to work with me. I try to arm myself with zero or one point veges. They are usually filling or at least satisfy an urge (like the crunchy pickles) So, let's talk about this week's veges that I prepared over the weekend and I'll be able to enjoy for at least a couple of days. I'll probably supplement with a salad at least once this week.
Spaghetti squash. Cooked. One cup of spaghetti squash with a little bit of salt and pepper is zero points. Sometimes I'll add some spaghetti squash and this bring it up to one point. How much sauce depends on which kind it is - sometimes a 1/4 cup and sometimes 1/2 cup.
Butternut squash. Cooked and mashed. 3/4 cup of this squash is zero points. Again, with just a bit of salt and pepper. Nothing else needed.
Cauliflower. Cooked and mashed. One cup is zero points, with a bit of salt and pepper. I typically make this like mashed potato and it will have some milk and a little butter for a creamier texture. But not this week....
Dill gherkin pickles. I fill a snack-size ziplock bag with these. Zero points. You can have up to 6.5 ounces for zero points, but I think I can only fit around 4.5 oz in the snack size bag.
Oh, and let me tell you about Sweet potato fries. Peel a potato and slice into fries. Place onto sprayed cookie sheet. Spray on top of fries and sprinkle a little garlic salt and pepper, and a touch chili pepper. Bake at 375 degrees until cooked to desired texture. I do this with white potatoes too (without chili pepper for my non-spicy people). Alas, none left! Family loves these too much - need to cook more of these!
I have an extra butternut squash that I did not cook up yet, but I think this may be slated to go into a soup with a sweet potato.... stay tuned!
Laura
WW Total 10/22/10 = 50.4 (first weigh-in = 2/24/10)
Total = 54.5 (since 2/1/10)
Spaghetti squash. Cooked. One cup of spaghetti squash with a little bit of salt and pepper is zero points. Sometimes I'll add some spaghetti squash and this bring it up to one point. How much sauce depends on which kind it is - sometimes a 1/4 cup and sometimes 1/2 cup.
Butternut squash. Cooked and mashed. 3/4 cup of this squash is zero points. Again, with just a bit of salt and pepper. Nothing else needed.
Cauliflower. Cooked and mashed. One cup is zero points, with a bit of salt and pepper. I typically make this like mashed potato and it will have some milk and a little butter for a creamier texture. But not this week....
Dill gherkin pickles. I fill a snack-size ziplock bag with these. Zero points. You can have up to 6.5 ounces for zero points, but I think I can only fit around 4.5 oz in the snack size bag.
Oh, and let me tell you about Sweet potato fries. Peel a potato and slice into fries. Place onto sprayed cookie sheet. Spray on top of fries and sprinkle a little garlic salt and pepper, and a touch chili pepper. Bake at 375 degrees until cooked to desired texture. I do this with white potatoes too (without chili pepper for my non-spicy people). Alas, none left! Family loves these too much - need to cook more of these!
I have an extra butternut squash that I did not cook up yet, but I think this may be slated to go into a soup with a sweet potato.... stay tuned!
Laura
WW Total 10/22/10 = 50.4 (first weigh-in = 2/24/10)
Total = 54.5 (since 2/1/10)
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Yummy Pumpkin Spice Cake
Long time .... yes... but we are at 45 pounds and still counting!! I've even vacationed in Europe and Maine (two separate vacations), and have survived summer time food... so far...
Just wanted to let you know about one of the latest desserts I made... it works out well for a light mid-week snack!
Pumpkin Spice Cake (two ingredients)
Spice cake cooked with a can of pumpkin/squash - these are the only
ingredients!! And it is very yummy! Has a sponge-like texture, which
is unexpected, but really tastes good. Some of the family added whipped
cream on top and another family member was thinking about adding some caramel sauce
on top...
The recipe came from the following page:
The Great Cake Debate (FIVE 2-Ingredient Recipes!):
http://www.hungry-girl.com/girls/biteoutdetails.php?isid=2126
I've tried three out of the five recipes on this page. This is the best one so far.
The kids hated the one with the diet soda. I liked the brownie mix with the applesauce, but it didn't fly with the kids.
Enjoy!
Just wanted to let you know about one of the latest desserts I made... it works out well for a light mid-week snack!
Pumpkin Spice Cake (two ingredients)
Spice cake cooked with a can of pumpkin/squash - these are the only
ingredients!! And it is very yummy! Has a sponge-like texture, which
is unexpected, but really tastes good. Some of the family added whipped
cream on top and another family member was thinking about adding some caramel sauce
on top...
The recipe came from the following page:
The Great Cake Debate (FIVE 2-Ingredient Recipes!):
http://www.hungry-girl.com/girls/biteoutdetails.php?isid=2126
I've tried three out of the five recipes on this page. This is the best one so far.
The kids hated the one with the diet soda. I liked the brownie mix with the applesauce, but it didn't fly with the kids.
Enjoy!
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Still Losing!
I had my weigh-in today. Lost another 1.6 lbs! I need to find more records of my weight (may talk to my doctor), but I think I haven't been at my current weight for at least a couple of years...
In today's meeting we discussed the support of family and friends. I definitely cannot complain about my close family's support. My husband tries to add things into the menu that he knows I would feel more comfortable about eating. My mother-in-law too. My oldest daughter shows lots of interest in what I am doing also. I appreciate all of their help and I love them all very much!
Of course, I haven't told some of my good friends. I don't want their disapproval... I don't want any negativity at all. It's probably all in my head, but they've never had the kind of weight problem I have had - they can't understand what I have gone through. I saw them a couple of weeks ago and I was down over 20 pounds. But it wasn't enough for them to notice. This didn't upset me - I figured this would happen since it takes a certain amount of weight loss for people to notice. Hopefully I will be down enough for them to notice the next time I see them and I will feel more comfortable with telling them what I am doing.
Right now, my focus is on next week. I am 0.6 lbs away from 25 WW lbs. (I lost 5 lbs before joining WW, so the total weight loss is close to 30 lbs!) Lots of milestones happening right now!! Yay!!!
In today's meeting we discussed the support of family and friends. I definitely cannot complain about my close family's support. My husband tries to add things into the menu that he knows I would feel more comfortable about eating. My mother-in-law too. My oldest daughter shows lots of interest in what I am doing also. I appreciate all of their help and I love them all very much!
Of course, I haven't told some of my good friends. I don't want their disapproval... I don't want any negativity at all. It's probably all in my head, but they've never had the kind of weight problem I have had - they can't understand what I have gone through. I saw them a couple of weeks ago and I was down over 20 pounds. But it wasn't enough for them to notice. This didn't upset me - I figured this would happen since it takes a certain amount of weight loss for people to notice. Hopefully I will be down enough for them to notice the next time I see them and I will feel more comfortable with telling them what I am doing.
Right now, my focus is on next week. I am 0.6 lbs away from 25 WW lbs. (I lost 5 lbs before joining WW, so the total weight loss is close to 30 lbs!) Lots of milestones happening right now!! Yay!!!
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Lost Pounds and Inches!!
Wow it has been crazy!!
Weigh in last Wednesday... lost another 2.4 pounds! I'm up to 28 pounds (total including pre-WW)!
And on the Sunday before that I got measured in Jazzercise. Since February 1st, I've lost 9 inches! They measured my bust, waist, and hips. I actually want to measure myself once a month and I want to include my arms in these measurements.
Of course, I have another weigh-in tomorrow. I didn't journal Friday through Sunday! I was camping with my Girl Scout troop and we were super busy. I definitely burned lots of calories, but I know I did not drink enough water or get enough sleep. I ate way too much popcorn (cooked in oil) on Sunday (Mother's Day). I love popcorn - I would choose this over chips....
Actually tomorrow's meeting is week 12 and last one in the current series. We're hoping to get another round of people together so we can have meetings here at work. If not, then I will have to join the Chelmsford Weight Watchers.
See ya!
Weigh in last Wednesday... lost another 2.4 pounds! I'm up to 28 pounds (total including pre-WW)!
And on the Sunday before that I got measured in Jazzercise. Since February 1st, I've lost 9 inches! They measured my bust, waist, and hips. I actually want to measure myself once a month and I want to include my arms in these measurements.
Of course, I have another weigh-in tomorrow. I didn't journal Friday through Sunday! I was camping with my Girl Scout troop and we were super busy. I definitely burned lots of calories, but I know I did not drink enough water or get enough sleep. I ate way too much popcorn (cooked in oil) on Sunday (Mother's Day). I love popcorn - I would choose this over chips....
Actually tomorrow's meeting is week 12 and last one in the current series. We're hoping to get another round of people together so we can have meetings here at work. If not, then I will have to join the Chelmsford Weight Watchers.
See ya!
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Kids' Vacation Week is Good to Me!
Lost another 3 pounds!!
My daughters were away last week and I had the opportunity to eat out a couple of times, as well as had some ice cream at Friendly's, but I still lost! Even on those days that I ate out, I was very aware of what I ate. This seems to be the thing that is really working for me right now.
Cafe Madrid (local restaurant): I had fried green plaintains topped with tropical salsa and chopped garlic shrimp. Very filling and seemed pretty healthy!
India Palace (local restaurant): Shrimp biryani. Yummy, but not much shrimp. Think I would try something else only because there wasn't much shrimp at all. We halso had a vegetable appetizer, but they were fried. I know... I know...
Friendly's: Coffee ice cream with sugar free fudge topping. Definitely hit the spot.
On top of all of this, I have to get measured this week at Jazzercise. I'm in this "Take It Off" program, which ends this week. It began on Feb 1st. We see how many inches we can lose during these three months. I have no idea how I've done. So, stay tuned!
My daughters were away last week and I had the opportunity to eat out a couple of times, as well as had some ice cream at Friendly's, but I still lost! Even on those days that I ate out, I was very aware of what I ate. This seems to be the thing that is really working for me right now.
Cafe Madrid (local restaurant): I had fried green plaintains topped with tropical salsa and chopped garlic shrimp. Very filling and seemed pretty healthy!
India Palace (local restaurant): Shrimp biryani. Yummy, but not much shrimp. Think I would try something else only because there wasn't much shrimp at all. We halso had a vegetable appetizer, but they were fried. I know... I know...
Friendly's: Coffee ice cream with sugar free fudge topping. Definitely hit the spot.
On top of all of this, I have to get measured this week at Jazzercise. I'm in this "Take It Off" program, which ends this week. It began on Feb 1st. We see how many inches we can lose during these three months. I have no idea how I've done. So, stay tuned!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Down 4.6 More!
I was reminded yesterday that I did not post last week.
Last week, I was down 2 lbs. I can't remember what I did and didn't do. I think after being up a little the previous week, and there was no more ham left and I put away the Easter candy.. Dunno.
This week, the first half was tough, but I lost another 2.6 lbs. I can tell you that on one day, I just wanted to eat everything and it was a struggle not to. And I know this was tied to my emotions. I was trying to at least eat lower point items, but I know I still went over that day.
I've continued to go to jazzercise when I can. I've added in mowing the lawn (walk behind the mower) and walking the dogs (they love that!). And I am trying to not eat until I am completely stuffed. The hubby helped with this - I couldn't finish my dessert on Sunday night, so he gladly helped me. :>) And the kids are away this week and we definitely eat differently without them around. David was perfectly happy last night with the brown basmati rice and soybeans.
Last week, I was down 2 lbs. I can't remember what I did and didn't do. I think after being up a little the previous week, and there was no more ham left and I put away the Easter candy.. Dunno.
This week, the first half was tough, but I lost another 2.6 lbs. I can tell you that on one day, I just wanted to eat everything and it was a struggle not to. And I know this was tied to my emotions. I was trying to at least eat lower point items, but I know I still went over that day.
I've continued to go to jazzercise when I can. I've added in mowing the lawn (walk behind the mower) and walking the dogs (they love that!). And I am trying to not eat until I am completely stuffed. The hubby helped with this - I couldn't finish my dessert on Sunday night, so he gladly helped me. :>) And the kids are away this week and we definitely eat differently without them around. David was perfectly happy last night with the brown basmati rice and soybeans.
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