Hello everyone, we had a wonderful time camping!!! It felt so wonderful to be able to hang out with the family and relax. I guess I will start with run down of the bfc friendly food I brought.


My parents dog Sadie on the river

The river in the morning

• Everyone loved the chocolate almond protein bites, no one thought they were "weird, or too healthy tasting" my only complaint is that if they were left out of the cooler too long they made a mess. I will defiantly be making these again.

• The crust less mini quiches were perfect for snacks and breakfast. In mine I put frozen spinach, sauteed asparagus, turkey breakfast sausage and cheddar cheese. In my opinion they are good  served cold or hot.

• The lemon coconut bread was a perfect snack for us, when it was our turn to cook breakfast for the clan I served it along with rudi's English muffins, eggs, sausage and bacon...I didn't get much feedback so I don't think it was a big hit with the others, but no big deal it was worth bringing it because I think it helped me to stay away from other high sugar treats.

Sugar Free Marshmallows

• I also made two batches of marshmallows one sugar free and one regular. In my opinion it's not hard to make them, just time consuming. Regular marshmallows are basically sugar and corn syrup heated on the stove and then added to unflavored gelatin and beatten until white and fluffy (15 mins). I found a recipe for sugar free marshmallows on Lauren's Healthy Indulgences blog when I first started the bfc and I have been waiting for a  good occasion to try them out. Making sugar free marshmallows involved boiling xylitol and honey (I used natures hollow honey) and then adding the hot mixture to unflavored gelatin and beating until white and fluffy.

• I first tried making marshmallows two years ago for Christmas from a recipe from a book I was given for my wedding Autumn by Susan Branch. She says "roast 'em at a hayride, bonfire or melt them in hot chocolate" They are delicious in hot chocolate but I wanted to see if they roast up nicely over a fire....I was VERY disappointed that both my sugar free and regular marshmallows do not roast up nicely at all, in fact many fell into the fire and only several made it for smores.

I guess that's all for now. Have a wonderful day everyone :)

Goin Campin :)

Good morning everyone!!! Today we leave to go camping...yeehawww!!!! Yesterday I spent all day in the kitchen making belly friendly goodies to take, last year I came home 4 lbs heavier, so I really put some thought into how this year can be better. I made: lemon coconut bread, almond protein bites, mini crust less quiches, and sugar free marshmallows that I have been wanting to try for a long time. I also made a batch of regular marshmallows for everyone else.

On Saturday we went to a bbq with our out of town friends and some other friends in town we don't see very often, I was a good girl no beer for me :) And surprisingly I felt great and I didn't feel left out at all. We had cheese burgers and kaboobs so there was plenty of things to eat, it was a good get together.

I love how I feel when I am good and I just have the discipline to stay away from belly bad foods. My jeans still don't fit the way I want :( but I know they will if I keep having more good food days, keep up going to my exercise classes and get in more cardio. Sometimes it's frustrating that I'm not just there now, but I know that some of my small cheats this summer, are the reason I'm not there.

Well, I guess that's all for now have a wonderful week everyone :)

Hello friends, Happy August!!! First of all things are moving forward with our house (for anyone who doesn't know we are in the process of buying a house that is in short sale) nothing official to share just yet but it's looking like it could be soon.

Yesterday hubby commented that my shorts are much loser than they were when I first put them on this summer...I said yes when they didn't fit it was a small crisis...he then said that when my clothes don't fit I don't treat it like a small crisis...LOL. SO TRUE. That reminded me that I have made some progress and I need to keep it up, because it's easy to make some progress then slack for a bit because I think I can. This weekend we have friends coming into town and we are hoping they will come over for dinner Friday if their schedules allow. Whenever we hang out with these friends we usually drink, I have been not drinking at all lately because my slim down goals are important to me and at this stage in the game I feel like alcohol throws me off my game. I have been giving myself pep talks all week about how I can totally hang out and have a good time and not have anything to drink.

Instead of having a cold beer I will have lots of water or iced tea. I am not just trying to lose a couple of pounds I am trying to work on my self-discipline which is a large part of the bigger picture. It's easy to think "I need to be skinny" but I am more concerned with being healthy. Eating right and getting enough exercise is sooo important, I hope that by taking good care of myself I can avoid some  health problems later on in life. :) Big hugs to everyone :)

Good news for the end of July

Good morning everyone, it's early here but right now it's the most realistic part of my day to share. Good news!!!! I have meet my goal for July and I am down from 145 to 140!!! Whoo Hoo!! My next goal is to get to 135. I've been working hard hitting the gym, I love group exercise classes, I find that I work harder in them than I do on my own. We have basically been doing the fast track for the past several weeks so we can eat some of the yummy summer fruit, but starting next week we will go back to the regular bfc. We are going camping with our family and hubby told me last night he wants to be able to eat some sandwiches while we are camping.

I have been sitting on an article from a free weekly paper the Pinch that has some helpful tips about weight loss in the summer. "5 Surprising Summer Habits that Pack on the Pounds"

1. Load Up on Sugar (duh lol) most processed foods are full of sugar, but added sugar can also be found in processed meats.
2. Skimp on Protein and Fat: people who eat protein and fat in every meal are less likely to overeat.
3. Eat more Breakfast Cereal, which won't keep you full very long.
4. Fill up on Fruit and Fruit Juice...sugar sugar sugar. A good way to balance out fruit and vegetable intake is to eat 3-4 servings non-starchy veggies with each serving of fruit.
5. Reward Yourself after every Workout: it doesn't take much to offset what you burn in a workout.

Number 5 Don't reward yourself after every workout is the tip that works best for me it is so easy for me to think "I worked out this morning and a little of ___ won't hurt" I have been good lately not giving in to that thought, I have been staying away from all the sugary carby goodness at work.

I hope everyone is doing great and enjoying the wonderful summer weather while we have it!!!!

Hello friends, I know I have been absent for awhile but don't worry I haven't fallen off the wagon I've just been enjoying summer. Today hubby and I went to an Oil and Vinegar store and bought some yummy olive oil and balsamic vinegar to make our own dressing...I am so excited to try it on my hearty salad for lunch tomorrow.

I just started reading a book called "Cooking with Coconut Flour" by Bruce Fife N.D. that my Mom gave me to borrow. In the first several pages he says some interesting things that I did not know:

• Most gluten-free products are high in carb, few gluten-free alternatives are gluten free and low in carb
• Coconut flour is low in digestible carbs and full of fiber
• Coconut flour is considered hypoallergenic because few are allergic to it

I found that info very interesting because I often find myself, like many others thinking that gluten-free is somehow healthier, just as we used to think that anything low in fat, or fat-free was healthier. I also have a paleo cookbook and an almond flour cookbook to look at from my Mom. When I am finished I will share my thoughts. I know many of you are getting away from the coconut and almond flour goodies because you feel they are too fattening. At this point I'm not sure what I think.

That's pretty much all for now, I want to get some more reading in before bedtime. I hope everyone has a wonderful day tomorrow. Big hugs :)

Hello everyone, this afternoon I listened to "The Truth About Sweeteners" by Dr. David Getoff...WOW. I agree with what Rosalie said the other day about never buying truvia again, I honestly had no idea that not all stevia products are not created equal. I am trying to wrap my mind around all that he said.

I am proud to say that I have been staying away from the wheat thins and cheez-its at work!!!! Whooo Hooo! I have been drinking a ton of water, I read that if we are not well hydrated our metabolism goes down 3%. My discipline is paying off I am down 2.5 lbs :) yeah!!! I feel super motivated to keep being good, my goal is to be 140 by the end of July.

That's about all I have to say for now I just finished making lunches for tomorrow and after I jump on pinterest it's time for bed.

Things are good

Hello everyone, I have had a hard time thinking about what to blog lately. I haven't fallen off the wagon actually hubby and I are doing great food and exercise wise. I looked back at my journal for June and I was surprised to see that I did better than I thought I did. I drank less and exercised more, although I didn't write down every time I cheated at work, but this is a new month and I am being more disciplined. I am not letting the cheez-it's and wheat thins have any power over me :)

We have been eating a lot of grilled food and salads lately and I can tell a difference in both of us. Instead of throwing away my old sugar I have been making sugar scrubs I got the idea from pinterest. This morning I made one with brown and white sugar, grape seed oil, coconut oil, vitamin E oil and jojoba oil. My skin feels soft and amazing, I would really rather go to the lake than work this morning :) Well, I guess that's all for now I need to finish getting ready for work. Have a wonderful day everyone :)

Good morning everyone!!! First of all have you guys noticed that it seems tons of words are underlined and now have links to them???? What's up with that??? And does anyone know how to disable it? ???It annoys me that the things I say have links to them that I did not put there.

What a week it felt like it draged on and on, mostly because work was slow but I had several late days because although it was slow things did not end early. Monday we looked at the house that we are in the process of buying :) The renters recently moved out so we were able to see it empty for the first time, which was very helpful to get a better picture of what shape the house is in. Things have been moving VERY SLOWLY because the house is in short sale. Our parents came with us on Monday and they had a lot of good ideas and suggestions, even though hubby and I are entering our 30's it still feels good to get our parents opinions on things :)

Foodwise it was  a good week for me I did really good staying away from all the sweets and carby things at work, and I stayed strong in my decision to not have any alcohol for awhile. The quote I posted from Dr. Atkins about alcohol postponing weight loss really hit home with me. This will be a challenge for me because I really enjoy a nice glass of wine after a long day, or a cold beer on a hot summer day.....but I am ready to stop making excuses and just to make some sacrifices to get to where I want to be. I feel like I talk about alcohol a lot and if any of you are wondering if I have a problem I want to assure you I don't. It is just a struggle for me because it's something I enjoy.

So that's what I've been up to lately, just pluggin along trying to be good, waiting for news on our house. I hope everyone has a nice weekend :)

Hello everyone, I am so happy to share that the past several days have been very successful for me!!! I have stayed strong and I haven't eaten any snacky junky food at work. Even though there has been plenty of opportunity do so. Sometimes I feel like I work in Sugar City in the State of Carbohydrates, there is always something sweet and very belly unfriendly. I keep telling myself that I just need to stay away, no cheating allowed. I have realized that it is just easier to stay away all together than to have just a bite or a taste of anything, doing that just makes me want to eat more.

7g of sugar in these mini sugar cookies

Last week when I was cheating at work I ate one mini lofthouse sugar cookie, I thought it's just a mini cookie and when is the last time I had a sugar cookie. I totally justified it to myself. Anyway, that one stinkin mini sugar cookie had 7g of sugar. Eating that much sugar in one little cookie is not what I need to be doing to get where I want to be. I want to be healthy, fit, toned, firm, happy and at a good pre-pregnancy weight for the time that hubby and I start trying to have babies. All of this requires putting in work, setting goals and sticking to them. Tomorrow we are having another pot-luck at work I'm sure there will be tons of tempting goodies, but I am in a better place than I was during last week's pot-luck, and I know I won't be cheating with those mini sugar cookies.

Much better today

Hello everyone, thanks for the great supportive comments!!! I am feeling much much better about things. Yesterday I went to the gym and had a good workout, I then spent a good portion of the evening journaling. I am in the process of making an action plan for myself in 6 months I turn 30, I want to be in a good place to start a new decade. I am setting goals and making a step by step plan of how to reach them. I feel that I am finally setting myself up for SUCCESS!!!

As far as food goes I have decided to make some delicious filling veggie soups or salads to fill me up at work, and practice some discipline when it comes to wheat thins and cheezits...I like how Trina put it that like an alcoholic she can't have just one of anything she shouldn't. I think that is a good way to look at things and it will help me to stay away from the junk. I also agree with Kay, I have had my best success when I give up alcohol for awhile. Alcohol gives us calories with no other nutrition, and it loosens my resolve to lose weight. I saw a quote yesterday from Dr. Atkins that makes a ton of sense to me:

"Here's the problem with all alcoholic beverages, and the reason I recommend refraining from alcohol consumption on the diet. Alcohol, whenever taken in, is the first fuel to burn. While that's going on, your body will not burn fat. This does not stop the weight loss, it simply postpones it." Dr. Atkins

With that said I have picked myself up from my cheating ways, and I have decided that NO cheating is ok. My goal is to be fit, slim, healthy, toned and cheating simply won't help me get there. I am gonna work very hard to get back into the zone and get away from emotional eating. I hope everyone had a nice weekend, I will talk to you guys later :)

Hello everyone, I am frustrated and annoyed with myself and I have had a hard time wanting to even get on blogger to read your blogs and to share. I was doing great until last weekend. Saturday we had my folks over for dinner we had lots of yummy bfc approved food I just ate too much...we had burgers I ate a whole wheat bun 5g of sugar, homemade fries, salad, wine (2 glasses) and a clemmy O for dessert. Nothing too crazy but I know between the carbs from the hamburger bun, potatoes it was too much. Sunday we had a bbq at my in-laws for Father's day, I ate too many cheese potatoes and several glasses of wine, although I did good resisting pie and ice cream for dessert.

I wasn't much better during the work week, I ate wheat thins with my lunch and when hubby and I went out to dinner on Wednesday for a much needed night out I drank an Italian Sidecar which is a vodka drink my co-worker has been raving about with pellegrino orange which had 20g of sugar alone....What is wrong with me? Where has my discipline and self-control gone? I have been listening to the voice in my head that says "It's ok,  you never eat this, you deserve it and it won't count" I don't know what to do with myself. I am back on the straight and narrow again but I need to put the kabosh on all this cheating. I feel crummy from all the extra carbs and sugar. If anyone has any helpful suggestions on how to quit cheating so much I would love to hear them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My mood matches our weather, I feel gray and gloomy...so after I finish this I am off to the gym for a good workout. I am drinking lots of water today and I am hoping to feel better tomorrow.

Checking in Short and Sweet

Hello everyone, thank you for the nice comments. It feels so good to be back in the swing of things. Yesterday we went over to my folks for dinner my Mom made salmon with natures hollow apricot jam and horseradish, and we had zucchini and asparagus and clemmy o's for dessert. It was a very belly good meal. My folks are doing the bfc and they look good, I am proud of them :)

I am also very proud of my hubby he got his lab results back from his yearly physical and he lowered his cholesterol from last year :) We are working together to figure out how to make the bfc work the best for us and to be the healthy and fit people we want to be.

Well, I guess that's all for now I just wanted to check in and share some observations on how the bfc is positively affecting those close to me.

I love peonies and I have some that look just like these sitting on my dining room table.

It has been a good week :)

Hello everyone, things over here are good hubby and I are practicing some discipline and we are being faithful to the BFC. I am really proud of us, we are on the straight and narrow and we haven't been cheating. Yesterday we went and saw the alien movie Promethus no high sugar or carb snacks for us we had a cup of coffee because we went to the 10 o'clock showing. I think I like watching movies at home better, I like to stretch out on the couch and  be able to pause the movie for potty breaks.

Today we were both sore from working out and we decided to go to the gym and sit in the hot tub, sauna and steam room...and it was heaven. We came home feeling so relaxed and refreshed. It felt good to relax in a way that didn't involve food or drinks.

I have been on pinterest pinning diet/fitness inspiration like a mad woman, it may sound corny but I am really finding it inspirational and helpful. It was last Saturday when I really realized that I wasn't doing as good as I thought I was when I realized my jeans were too snug. Since then I have been making better choices I have written everything down that has gone in my mouth, I have measured food instead of eyeballing it no cheezits or wheat thins at work even though they were calling my  name, lots of water, blogging more frequently, less wine and consistent exercise. It feels sooo good to be back in the swing of things, I like knowing that I am doing good not just thinking that I am doing good.
 I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, it's rainy and cold up here which gave me a good excuse to take a long nap :)

Here I am for the weight loss party

Hello friends, thanks for the encouragement. Right now I feel pretty good that I am following through with being more present in the blog community. I am finding it very helpful to use my food journal again. For me it's an outlet where I can vent about everything, I have come to realize that there are a lot of things that I don't want to keep bottled up inside, but I need to be careful about what I share. When I have been faithful about journaling in the past I have felt more at peace and I have been more successful with my weight and fitness. I have a quote from Kay that I absolutely love and I have written it on the inside cover of my journal: "I really think we all do better when the BFC is forefront in our minds. Blogging, reading the blogs, getting inspired...they all go together" Her words really inspire me I agree we all do best when the bfc is forefront in our minds, if it's not it is so easy to get sidetracked and fall off the straight and narrow.

I have been looking for diet/fitness inspiration on pinterest, here are some of the things I found that inspire me :)

Honesty

Hello my friends, I'm embarrassed to say that I have gained weight :( It's crazy that I didn't notice I feel good, but Saturday I went to put on my jeans and it was not good, then to see what the real damage was I got on the scale...yikes 145. I realized that I must have been living in the famous state of Denial. Denial because I really thought I was doing good except for little cheats here and there because I just plain wanted them and I thought I deserved them. Since I haven't been fully plugged into the bfc community lately I was a little out of touch with what I was really up to. Well, I had the "come to Jesus" talk with myself over the weekend and I decided that I need to get back to purposeful, mindful eating. I've also started food journaling again, if it goes in my mouth I have to write it down, doing that really makes me aware of what I am really up to.

I am glad to be out of denial, I plan to be more plugged in by blogging and commenting on others blogs. I am journaling my food and I am taking advantage of our new gym membership. I feel actually kinda refreshed to have had this epiphany about myself and my plan to lose the extra lbs and get back on track.

I am not discouraged or depressed about the extra weight, I am committed to getting back on track and figuring out better ways of making this work long term. I turn 30 in January and I've been doing a lot of thinking about where I want to be then and how to get there.

If you have been living in a state of denial like I have, it's ok...just pick yourself up and start again. Start being mindful and intentional about what you put into your mouth. I will be more faithful in posting about my journey to getting back on track, together we can do this.

Thank you everyone for the nice comments on my last post, Kim I would love to know how you make greek yogurt :)

Hello everyone, can you believe June is here, where did May go? May was a good month for us, the bank did not accept our offer on the house (which is fine becasue we gave them a low offer to see what they would say) but we accepted their counter offer :) :) :)  Sometime this summer we could be in our first house :) Last week was my last body fit and zumba classes that I took through the parks and rec program :( Hubby and I decided that since I have come to love the group exercise classes it would be more cost effective to join a gym. Last weekend we became members at our local YMCA :) I have already taken two zumba classes and I look forward to trying out more classes. This is the first time that I have worked out in a gym since hubby was in the Marine Corps and I worked out on base.

Hubby and I have been having a more of a cold cereal version of the make ahead oatmeal smoothies I talked about recently.
327 calories, 26.5g carb, 2g sugar and 7.9g fiber.
1/4c old fashioned oatmeal
1c unsweetned coconut milk or almond
1T chia seeds
1T whole flax seeds
1T barleans
1/4c Trader Joe's 2% Greek style lowfat plain yogurt

I love Trader Joe's Greek Style 2% lowfat plain yogurt. It has the lowest ammount of sugar that I have found in plain greek yogurt. For one cup it has 5g sugar, 9g carb, 24g protein and 160 calories. I often just use 1/4c or 1/2c at a time for even lower sugar. And for 16 oz I paid $2.79.

I guess that is all for now, I hope eveyone is having a nice weeknd. P.S. this is my 300th post :)

Pinterest Party

Good morning everyone and Happy Hump Day :) I was glad to share the make-ahead smoothie recipe that I found on pinterest. I love having food ready so that I don't  have to worry or make a big mess in the mornings. Yesterday I instead of a smoothie I had more of a breakfast pudding. Monday night I put almond milk, chia seeds and a little oatmeal in the food processor, I added a squirt of strawberry banana barleans, and a scoop of whole flax seeds, I ate it with some redi whip and two slices of lemon coconut bread. Yum :) Hubby and I talked about adding some protein powder to the smoothies/pudding...the options for these smoothies/puddings are endless.

Last night my Bible Study girls and I had a Pinterest party, everyone brought food from recipes found on pinterest and some girls brought crafts. It was so FUN. I brought mini caprese bites that I made with mini heirloom tomatoes, basil and mozzarella all from Trader Joe's. One girl brought a bird house craft to do, another brought tissue paper to make flowers which she is making for centerpieces for a friends wedding, and another brought fabric to make flower hair clips. The night was a huge success and I hope to host my own Pinterest party when we have a house of our own.

Hello everyone, Happy Monday :) It's a beautiful rainy day up here in my neck of the woods. Thank you for the feedback on my question about allowing friends/family to read the blogs and your opinions about sharing personal information. I have decided that I am comfortable with what I share, but I will remember to be cautious in what I say.

This weekend I made some lemon coconut flour bread which delighted hubby since I haven't made it in awhile. Our local health food store Huckleberries had their quarterly sale on their natural living section, so I picked up some strawberry banana barleans and the lemon barleans for my Mom. The past several days I have been making a recipe I found on Pinterest :)  From the yummylife.com make-ahead oatmeal smoothies. It's a wonderful idea, used the recipe for strawberry banana as a starting point

make-ahead smoothies from theyummylife.com

Strawberry Banana Oatmeal Smoothie from theyummylife.com:

1/4 cup uncooked oats (old fashioned rolled oats recommended; do not use steel cut oats)

1-1/2 teaspoons dried chia seeds

3/4 cup skim milk

1/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup low-fat yogurt (Greek yogurt recommended)

1/2 cup fresh quartered strawberries

1/2 cup fresh banana slices

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1-2 teaspoons honey, optional (or substitute preferred sweetener)

Here is what I did:
1/4c uncooked old fashioned oatmeal
2 T chia seeds
3 strawberries
3/4c unsweetened almond milk
3 fresh strawberries
a squirt of barleans strawberry banana

The options on the make ahead smoothies are endless...hubby is very happy that I have started experimenting making them. He was especially happy when he woke up late on Friday and as he was rushing out the door I handed him a smoothie and a lunch.

Hello everyone, sorry I haven't posted in awhile my mood has been much better I've just been busy with the usual stuff. The other week my Mom and I were having a discussion about my blog, she thinks I share too much personal information and it might come back and haunt me later, she also dislikes facebook and texting. (this is not a dig on my Mom in any way) Since she feels that way I have asked her to please not read my blog, she agreed not to but she thinks she should be able to because it is on the Internet and available to everyone to read. This discussion all started because back in Feb or March I said that "I had fallen off the wagon" referring to falling off the bfc wagon not referring to the alcohol wagon. So that makes me wonder how do you guys feel about sharing personal information on your blogs? And how do you feel about those close to you in your personal life reading your blog?

Lately I realized that the group dynamic is really helpful for me. I love this blogging community and I recently discovered I love taking group exercise classes. I personally think the group dynamic is a big part of why WW is so successful. The bfc/ft is successful for myself and hubby when we stick to it. I'm sure you know what I mean about that. Having chips around is just asking for trouble for us. We have decided to be extra good until the end of hubby's school quarter in the middle of June. Extra good for us means no beer for hubby or wine for me. We are not giving these things up because we have a problem, it is that we want to be extra mindful in our eating and when you cut something out for a time or cut back we have found that to be helpful.

Things are good up here in our neck of the woods, the weather has been beautiful and I love seeing the trees and flowers in bloom. We are hearing good rumblings about our house, nothing official to share yet, just things are moving in a good direction :) On Saturday I was at the mall trying to exchange some work shoes and I decided to pop into Bath & Body Works to see if they had any deals....boy howdy they had their large candles on sale 2 for 1. My hometown Spokane, WA is also known as the lilac city. There are tons of beautiful fragrant lilacs in bloom all over right now. Lilacs have a strong but lovely scent, but often when their scent is manufactured it smells terribly. The slatkin & co. candle that I bought at Bath & Body works is delicious. I also purchased a coconut candle that smells like summer. :) Have a wonderful day.



Hello everyone, sorry it's been a week since I last posted. Last week I was in a terrible mood I think it was a combination of pms and the full moon. Whatever you want to call it I was cranky pants. Anyway I want share some of the delicious things I have been making.
I made a double batch of the turkey pumpkin chili in the crock pot from skinny taste at hubby's request. Lately I have been making it with Italian turkey sausage and that adds some nice spice. We put several containers in the freezer which is perfect for hubby's lunch on days that we don't have leftovers.


Chicken stir-fry with quinoa (left) Katie's meatball broccoli quinoa delight (center) turkey pumpkin chili (right)

6g of sugar for the whole jar.

I made a delicious new dish this week that is a keeper in my book :)
"Katie's Meatball broccoli quinoa delight"
 First I made meatballs based off a recipe from allrecipes.com "meatball nirvana" This is my version:
1 lb extra lean ground beef
1 tsp. powdered garlic
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 T. worcester sauce
1/2c panko instead of bread crumbs
1/3c  unsweetened almond milk.

Preheat oven to 400, mix all ingredients until blended, form 1 1/2 inch meatballs placing on a baking sheet. Make sure to use a baking sheet with raised edges or else the grease will run off your pan and make a big mess in your oven, I learned this the hard way. I personally use a pampered chef baking stone. Bake meatballs for 20-25
While my meatballs were baking I steamed several heads of broccoli and their stalks I added a cup of cooked quinoa and  a jar of trader joe's pomadoro pasta sauce which has 1 g of sugar per half cup which comes out to 6g of sugar for the whole jar. I then combined the broccoli, meatballs, quinoa, sauce and lots of fresh basil and let everything simmer for several mins. I served it topped with more fresh basil and mozzarella cheese. Delish.

Mini Crust less Quiches:
Last night I made crust less mini quiches, so easy and delicious. I thawed and drained a box of chopped spinach, cooked some turkey breakfast sausage's, added some bacon, fresh basil and ricotta cheese and eggs. After every thing was mixed I sprayed my muffin pan with pam and spooned the mixture in. I baked it at 350 for about 45 mins. Depending on your ingredients it doesn't always take that long I set my timer for 25 mins but when I put a butter knife into them they weren't done yet.

Balsamic Vinegar stir fry with quinoa:
Last night I also made a delicious green stir fry. I sauteed asparagus, kale, celery, broccoli and portobello mushrooms in olive oil. I then added fresh garlic, garlic salt and balsamic vinegar. I topped it off with leftover pork chops and quinoa, I portioned it out and...bam lunch and enough to freeze for a later date.


Left mini quiches, Right quinoa stir-fry

Hello everyone, what a refreshing weekend :) So many good things are happening I hope I remember to share them all. First of all I walked to work for the second time on Friday, it feels good to get out and enjoy the beautiful spring sun before work. Friday night we had dinner at my folks, we had taco salad which was delicious. My Dad is still doing the fast track and he looks great, he doesn't want me to share how much weight he has lost but I am very proud of him. My Mom won't be doing another zumba class with me because she is going back east to help my great aunt move. My Mom is such a sweet heart and I am very blessed to have her as my Mom.

Saturday I gave our apt a good cleaning, took a long nap went grocery shopping with hubby and got some new sunglasses. I have been looking for sunglasses that cover more of the delicate skin around my eyes. Hubby and I had another taco salad. Today we went for a long walk which was really nice I love how everything is starting to pop. Weight wise I haven't gotten on the scale lately but I put on a pair of jeans that I haven't worn for awhile because they had gotten too sung...and holy moly they fit :) yeeehawwww:)

Foodwise I am mostly doing the fast track and I feel this works for me. I am exercising more and still drinking less, I feel good about what I have been up to in April. Hubby and I are taking a financial class at our church by Dave Ramsey called Financial Peace, we are so blessed by what we are learning. His premises are simple save, don't spend money you don't have and budget. He breaks is down in a bunch of baby steps. That way of thinking is really helping me in how I view diet/health/exercise. Our class is literally right after work so I have been working on having food available for us to eat so we don't get fast food or go hungry. Tonight I made a crutsless quiche, and a broccoli, spaghetti sauce (low sugar from trader joe's) and meatball dish for us to have for dinner and lunches this week. I feel like this week is off to a good start already. I will let you know how my quiche and broccoli dishes turned out and if they are keeper recipes I will post them. I hope everyone had a nice weekend :)

I love how this blog community is growning

Hello everyone, I love how this blog community is growing I love finding new blogs or blogs that are not new but just new to me, to learn from and to provide support and encouragement :)

Today I started to to journal my food again, I would have started yesterday but honestly I kinda forgot. My food has been good Sunday I made a delicious veggie soup with quinoa and chicken, Monday I added to it with spinach, baby bok choy and mushrooms. I love soup!!! I was inspired to make it after reading an article in Women's World about a new version of the cabbage soup diet. I've done the cabbage soup diet in the past and I actually liked the soup but it was hard to stomach morning, noon and night. Soup can be such a filling and satisfying meal and if it is low in sugar and sodium it's great for weight loss.

For this soup I sauteed a little onion and garlic, 1 carrot, savoy cabbage, 1 tomato, daikon radish, broccoli and asparagus. I then added water and a little sea salt, powdered garlic, and fresh basil. Then I added leftover quinoa and cubed chicken. The next day I added baby bok choy, sauteed mushrooms and a package of frozen spinach, more fresh basil and fresh Italian parsley.

100 calories, 16g carb, 5g protein, 5g fiber,1g sugar

I tried a new veggie burger for lunch today it was a nice addition to my veggie soup with chicken, I used a flax muffin and 1/2 avocado for a sandwich, it was yummy and I only ended up eating half. This burger has a nice flavor and is not very spicy at all.

I think I have shared before that I struggle being productive in the morning, this is an area I am working on  and I am happy to say that I did a good job this morning. Last night before bed I made a realistic list of things that I wanted to accomplish before work: exercise, Bible study, and doing my breakfast dishes before work. This morning I did a 20 min zumba ab workout, eventually I would like to work out more in the morning but this is a realistic start for me. Yesterday was my zumba class that I take with my Mom, I LOVE it and I want to do more. This is the first exercise class I have taken, I was always held back by my own insecurities to ever take anything before. I am so glad that I went out of my comfort zone to take this class because I love it! I have to say I even tried zumba because Kay talks about it on her blog, I was curious and wanted to see what all the hype was about. Happy Tuesday :)

Making this weekned count

Hello everyone, this past work week was a busy one for me I currently have three after work evening commitments, zumba, bible study and a fincial class with hubby. So I was very grateful when Friday rolled around, I recently realized that I have been treating the weekends like they don't count food/drink wise. In my head I know that they are the same as any other day but lately hubby and I have been going out to eat more on Fridays and when we go out to eat it is easier for me to cheat and eat higher carb and sugar items. I think that is because when I make food at home I know how it is prepared and how much fat/sugar/salt is in the meal. I need to be more purposeful to eat good when I eat out because little cheats add up to big cheats and bad behaviors. Another thing about the weekends that we are working on is our alcohol consumption, I feel hesitant in talking about this because I know my Mom sometimes reads my blog and she commented on it the last time I talked about it. Anyway, lately we have been having about two extra glasses of wine at a time and it is getting in the way. So for now I am committing to not drinking and getting back to the basics, focusing on food journaling, and low sugar and better carb eating, and being consistent with my exercise.

Last night we had a delicious salad for dinner with a dressing I made with a little greek yogurt, vinegar, olive oil, chives and oregano, I put everything in the food processor and it was delish. After dinner we were productive instead of sitting on the couch enjoying wine and a movie, I cleaned/organized my closet (a big thing for me because I hate doing it) and hubby worked on organizing his study room.

It feels good to treat this weekend like it counts right now instead of my usual wine on Saturday I am enjoying green tea and hubby is in the study working on homework. As I reflected on 2012 so far I realized I had gotten lax and straight up lazy with some of my habits. Starting with the superbowl hubby and I lowered our guard and ate and drank too much causing both of us to gain weight, once I had to reckon with my weight gain I vowed to do better in March, and I mostly did except I was still treating the weekends like they didn't count, and it has truly only been in this last week that I have realized that I need to start treating the weekends like they count or I will never make the progress I desire. I guess that's all for now, I hope everyone is having a nice weekend :)

Happy Easter

Happy Easter, thank you for such wonderful comments on my last post, you guys are so awesome!!! It feels like a lot has happened since I last posted, Thursday hubby and I celebrated our 4th anniversary we joke that it has been four LONG years, being able to laugh with each other and at each other is a wonderful part of our relationship.

Today we had a nice day with my folks after church we had a ham and quiche brunch, my Mom made a quiche with almond flour that was delicious, and no one could taste a difference. Almond flour is defiantly a keeper in my book, yesterday I made two almond flour pizzas which turned out so yummy, I only put 1/2 tsp of salt in this time instead of 1 tsp. I still love coconut flour but it doesn't seem as versatile as almond flour because everything has a coconut taste to it.

I am looking forward to my second zumba class tomorrow with Sandy. Did I mention that my Mom and I are going together, It's fun that we are trying this together. Hubby and I are still working out together, but it is getting a little challenging now that he is back in school, but it feels good every time that we make the time to do it because we want to be healthy in shape people, and we don't want to keep using the excuse "we don't have time" because our lives will only continue to get busier and there will never be a time that is the "perfect time" to exercise.

Kay said something that really inspired me on my last post " I really think we all do better when the BFC is forefront in our minds. Blogging, reading the blogs, getting inspired...they all go together" Amen to that! I have been thinking a lot about being purposeful and mindful lately concerning my diet/fitness. I realized that I do my best when I am really plugged into this community, I really think being able to share, encourage and inspire is what helps us to be healthy and to get to where we want to be weight wise.

Hello everyone thanks for the great comments, I really appreciate your feedback. I agree with Diana I don't really like Conda she comes across as controlling and bossy. It felt so good so share with all of you how I have been struggling and the steps I am trying to take to get back on track and to basically find  good healthy habits and a good groove. I was looking at my posts and during the time that I was struggling in Feb I hardly posted...I guess I didn't want to share what was happening that made me turn to high carb food (mostly the initial stress about putting an offer on the house....fyi we still haven't heard anything new) Any way I should have been sharing more because this community is so helpful, being able to share involves success and struggles.

Anyway I want to let you guys know that I appreciate your constructive criticism, I am really helped by your honest insights. So please feel free to offer your insights and don't worry about offending me. Helen, your comment was great and I appreciated your take. Tonight I heard something that made me think of our blog community...we can't see the blind spots in our lives, and we need others to point them out for us. So, friends please help me to see my blind spots, because I want to reach my goals of being overall healthy but also having a strong core that has minimal belly fat.

On a different note I am also excited to be able to wear sandals again :) I also found a zumba class through the parks dept that fits into my work schedule...Yay! Last night was my first time and I loved it. I got a better workout from the class than I do at home when I do it by myself. No wonder zumba is so popular it's fun and you don't feel like you are working out.

Hello everyone, March just slid on by didn't it? I didn't make as much progress as I wanted to (the scale doesn't say what I want, and my jeans fit better but not the way I want) But I have no one to blame but myself, only sometimes I was really good about portion control, exercise basically the usual offenders. Hubby and I have started watching the Biggest Loser together, and boy howdy this season is really speaking to me. In case you don't watch this season's theme is "no excuses" each week they tackle some of the most common excuses for not taking the appropriate steps to being healthy. Watching it shines a bright light on all of my excuses, some of my personal favorite excuses: I deserve to eat ___ because I never do, I had a stressful day and I need/deserve a glass of wine, I can make up for my lack of exercise or good eating tomorrow, I'm too tired to get up and work out in the morning or after work" Do any of these sound familiar to you?

Exercise is a funny thing isn't it? I am thankful that I have a hubby who shares my feelings on health/wellness. We want to be healthy fit people and hopefully by good habits we avoid having heart attacks that run on both sides of our family. I have been thinking about Diana's question about Tracy Anderson the past week, in some ways she is like Jorge because her workouts are unconventional, she works your larger muscle groups to exhaustion and then works the smaller accessory muscle groups. I know a lot of people are critical of her but I really enjoy her workouts. I recommend her Method Mat Dvd, because it involves minimal equipment (a chair and small hand weights) I don't dread it and I haven't gotten boared by it. And my hubby who knows much more about fitness than I do thinks it is a good workout. So that's my two cents on Tracy Anderson's Method Mat workout.

On other news life is good, things are starting to green up around here and I am looking forward to the Spring flowers. On Saturday we had a homemade pizza night at my folks I made the almond flour pizza for the first time and everyone thought it was tasty. I tried to take a picture of it with my new phone, but I didn't know what I was doing and I ended up taking unflattering pictures of myself and videos. LOL, I am hoping to figure things out so I can more easily take pictures to add to my blog. I guess that is all for now I hope everyone is having a nice first week of April :)

Happy Spring

Hello everyone, Happy Spring!!!! This past week has been a good one for me and I am excited to share. One of the biggest things that I accomplished this week was exercising every day with my hubby. I was having a hard time finding the motivation to exericse and the discipline to make it happen, and honestly I was full of excuses as to why I didn't. I realized that my pride was getting in the way of asking for his help, I felt that I should be able to get it done on my own. We did Tracy Anderson together this week and holy crap it was so much harder doing it with him because he pointed out that I wasn't doing a lot of the exercises properly. His criticism even though it was constructive was hard to take and I found myself getting pretty defensive. I never thougth that this would be something I would struggle with. I am trying to be less prideful and to recognize that asking for help is not a sign of weakness, and it gives more opportunity for growth. On my March goal poster I have some slim down tips that I cut out of a magazine to help motivate me, one of them is "use the buddy system: friends can be accountability partners for you- use them! Support each others goals"

Sorry it took me so long for this post, I started it on the weekend, but for some reason it took me forever to finish it. Life is good over here, hubby is on Spring break and we have been having much needed fun together. Saturday and Sunday we got some really nice walks in. Sunday was the most beautiful day we have had so far all year and it felt divine to get an iced americano and enjoy a walk. I hope everyone has a wonderful Tuesday :) lots of love to everyone :)

This is something I found on pinterest, talk about motivation :)

Baby Steps

Hello everyone, my blog is under construction, I came to the realization that I need a change. I also need to change my approach to diet/fitness. I need to stop making excuses and I need to sit down and plan for my short term and long term goals, and make a list of the baby steps I need to take to get there. My March goal poster was a good start, but it got me thinking that I want and expect more from myself.   Last week I did ok in my diet and fitness, but frankly I drank too much wine to really see a difference, so I have some ideas for how to be more successful this week.

This Week:

• I asked hubby to exercise with me in the morning, because I have been having trouble finding motivation to exercise before work. To get the fit/toned healthy body I want I know I need to consistently exercise.
• To continue to take the stairs at work on breaks
• Eat lots of green veggies/ green soups.
• Stop using watching tv shows on hulu as an excuse not to exercise, read, and blog.
• To stay connected with my bfc friends via the blogs and fb's bfc page.

My goal poster is awesome :)

Hello everyone, sorry I wasn't on the blogs much last week my computer is having some problems, I got a virus but hopefully hubby can fix it for me. I am loving my goal poster it's it is helping me to get back on track with consistent diet and exercise. I didn't get as much exercise in as I wanted hubby and I were both tired last week and we had a hard time getting out of bed, but I did get two good days in. I have also started doing the stairs at work on my lunch break.

• Last Sunday the scale was 139.5 yesterday it was 136 :) Several changes helped me to lose weight this week, First of all I hubby and I went back on the fast track, chips were a big contributor to our February weight gain. I tried to drink a ton of water each day and for flavor I added cucumber and lemon slices.
• I made a weight watcher veggie free inspired soup with a little onion, garlic, asparagus, spinach, celery, and kale and low sodium chicken stock. I added chicken or shrimp for protein.
• I started doing the stairs at work on my lunch break. I was inspired to do that when I saw in a magazine that Jordin Sparks from American Idol used stairs to help her get started on her 30 lb slim down :)
• I ate the flax muffin for breakfast with some eggs, turkey sausage and I had one for lunch with my soup.
• And I ate only the food I brought to work and didn't nibble on any wheat thins or cheeze-it's.

Goal poster

Hello everyone, I'm sure it's no big surprise but February was a little rough for me I fell off the wagon and I gained about 5 lbs :( I ate way too many chips, and I didn't watch my portions, drank a too much wine, yada, yada, yada. I think I allowed myself to emotionally eat and drink because I had been doing good and I thought I deserved it, and the more I did it I lost sight of what was once in awhile became too frequent. I am annoyed with myself 5 lbs means my jeans don't fit the way I want them to and that really irritates me. Don't worry I'm not having a pity party I thought about my bad choices and I came up with a plan to help me get back on track.

As you can see I made myself a goal poster for March, I bought several health/fitness magazines and cut out pictures and words to inspire and motivate me. I made a calender where I plan to write down my exercise and on the back I plan on tracking my food. I am excited and motivated!!! I am glad to be back on the wagon, and back to our blogging community :)

Concerning our house I don't have a lot of news, the house is in short sale so the bank can take as much time as they want before they review our offer and get back to us. This is a little frustrating but we are optimistic.