Ok, before you even start, I know I haven't posted in a week. I'm sorry!! My internet was down. Don't get me started on Time Warner Cable in WI. It sucks. A lot.

Oh.... and I GOT ENGAGED. Yup, the boy proposed. I wasn't expecting it at all, but he asked me Thursday night. We have kinda been in a whirlwind of telling everyone. He didn't even have the ring yet, but he said he couldn't wait any longer to ask me. My mom is giving us my Grandmother's ring which means a lot to me. We are having the families meet for the first time (which is really odd that my mom hasn't met them yet when I think about it but they do live in different states) on Sunday for a picnic.

For my weigh in on Wednesday I lost 3.8lbs which brings me in at 178.6. I was very happy about this! BUT let me tell you with all the celebrating I did this weekend, I probably will see a gain this Wednesday. I really need my WW online to stay on track with points!! I tried to do it on paper but I just don't do as well with it.

So this last week, I also started my new job. Yup working in an office again! But let me tell you, we are so busy! I really like the school I am working for and I am so busy that I don't get that bored hungry which is good!

I will kinda go over some of the food we had this week.

Here is a pic of the slow cooker lasgana I made last week with some light garlic bread and a side salad. Yum!

I like to make calzones. They are easy, can be low point, and taste awesome. I make my own whole wheat dough.

Don't be afraid of yeast doughs. They can be tough but pizza dough is a good place to start.

Makes 2lbs

1 packet of active dry yeast

1 and 1/2 cup room temp water

1 tsp sugar

1tbsp olive oil

3 cups all purpose flour

1 and 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp salt

Mix sugar and water. Sprinkle the yeast over the water. Do not mix the yeast into the water yet. Let it sit for 5 to 10 mins.

In a large bowl, mix the flour and salt. Add the olive oil to the water mixture and mix. Slowly add to flour mixing with a wooden spoon. Combine and knead dough in bowl until elastic for about 10 mins. Let it rise covered loosely with plastic wrap in a warm area (I just do mine on the stove) for about an hour and half.

Then I divide the dough in half and put into gallon plastic bags. I freeze a lb to have on hand and I used the other lb to make the calzones below for 1/4 of a lb of dough it is roughly 4pts.

I rolled it out and put in spinach, RF ricotta and mozzarella cheese, some garlic powder and Italian seasonings and some turkey pepperoni I had on hand.

Crimp the edges of the dough so they are shut and poke a hole in the top. Bake in an oven at 400 for 20 mins.

I dipped mine in pasta sauce and had veggies as a side.

For lunch everyday, I pretty much had a turkey, wheat thin, RF cheese, and mustard. Some cut up mixed berries, a RF string cheese, 100 cal almonds, and an apple.

Bad food choice wise I had a ton of sushi with the boy to celebrate on Friday night with 3 drinks and a piece of flourless chocolate cake. It was amazing.

Saturday, I went to my future sister in laws baby shower which meant more good food, meatballs and cake.

Sunday, we went to church and stayed for some pastries (come on we had to tell people we were engaged.... right?... right?) Ok it kinda spun out of control at this point. When we stopped at the mall so I could get new work pants (cuz I am done a size! Which is a miracle as I list all this food LOL) and we got gelato.

Then I was tired after laundry, so we got gyros with some onion rings and a raspberry shake.

Um yeah my stomach was done this morning. lol.

Today I had:

Breakfast:

oatmeal prepared with water a

a mango

Coffee

Lunch:

Apple

Yogurt

Ham, cheese, wheat thin sandwich

String cheese

Snack:

almonds

Dinner

2 eggs with RF mozzarella cheese

berry smoothie made with yogurt

2 low fat wheat waffles with 1 tsbp maple syrup

I did a 2 mile run and walked 2 miles today for 522 cals or 5APs

I promise to be more on task this week for pics and updates!

Oh I might include wedding stuff in here now too!

Oh the furbabies! Can't forget the cats!

They are currently eating a new kind of food that was on sale at the Whole Foods. They seem to like it just fine but I think Lily liked the oatmeal I made for her one day when I ran out of the dry food.

:-)

Weekend Update!

This was my first weekend without working in about 9 months. Boy, is it nice to have a weekend!!

This is going to be a combined update:

Saturday:

Breakfast

Coffee

Water

Banana-Peanut Butter French Toast

I took 1 slices of wheat bread spread 2 tsp of peanut butter on one side, topped with a sliced banana, and covered with another slice of wheat bread. Beat one egg in a bowl with a dash of cinnamon, vanilla extract, and skim milk. Dip sandwich into egg and cook on stove in nonstick pan until golden brown. Covered with one tbsp of pure maple syrup. Give me the real stuff! I don't deal with fake SF maple syrup!!

Then I had a great 5 mile run completed in 45 mins. Burned 667 calories = 6.5 APs. The weather by the lake was beautiful, and I even stumbled into other runners doing a 5K!! It was funny b/c I was going teh opposite direction. Opps! :-)

Lunch:

Turkey Burger on Wheat thin

Spinach salad with 1 tbsp light dressing and peppers

Banana Ice Cream:

Freeze 1 broken down banana peeled then blend with a dash of milk to make a frosty treat.

The boy was doing a weapons display at an event for the Marine Corps at the Harley Davison museum so I stopped by and saw him for awhile! Need to get better with taking pictures at this point in the weekend! I promise to post a pic of me and the boy soon!

After the boy got home, we went grocery shopping, and we were very hungry since it was about 7pm when we got home.

Dinner: (used some WP on this!)

1 Turkey cheddar dog on a whole wheat bun

1 serving whole wheat mac and cheese

1 cup green greens

1 cup baked beans

2 cups Chocolate pudding fluff

I forgot to take pics, and the boy very valiantly offered to have thirds so I could take a pic but I said it was okay! :-) Throughout dinner Lily really wanted scraps, and she literally tried to take a bite out of the boys turkey sausage. We started to watch where she was after that!

~Saturday 38.5 points used - 6.5 Aps earned~

Sunday:

Went to early morning church then stopped by at the boy's parent's house. Took their huge 110lb golden pooch for a walk. I tried running with him once, but he will only go once around the block before he is exhausted!

Stopped by a local bakery that is really well known to get a treat for breakfast.

Got 2 cinnamon rolls and 2 pieces of tiramisu for dessert tonight.

Breakfast:

Scrambled eggs

1 cinnamon roll

1 cup fresh pineapple

Coffee

OK at this point, I need to address my severe addiction to caffeine. I don't have that "oh haha I'm a little groggy in the morning until I get my cup of joe" coffee need. I become a different and extremely moody person without coffee. Due to church, I didn't have any coffee for about 4 hours after waking. Usually, I drink coffee immediately and have about 6-7 big cups through out the day. I know its bad! but that is why they call it addiction.

So I am going to need to start cutting back. But really not this next week with the new job. New life goal: Cut back on caffeine need. It got this bad in college, and I had to reduce back then as well. Le Sigh!

Lunch:

1 Turkey Cheddar dog with whole wheat bun

1 cup red grapes

1 cup strawberries

The boy had to go color guard a funeral for an retired marine this evening (which he does a large amount of). I painted my toes and planned out my outfit for tomorrow. (Green colored light sweater with black pants and comfy black shoes b/c I think there will be a lot of walking tomorrow)

If WW has taught me anything, it is you will always feel more in control if you plan ahead!

For dinner tonight, I am making a WW slow cooker lasagna with a side salad and light garlic bread. Then we have that Tiramisu for dessert. Here is a pic of the lasagna in the slow cooker. It actually turns out really well in there! You top it with cheese when its done.

I am taking today off for running, but I think the boy and I will either do yoga tonight or take a walk when he gets home.

~45 Points used (Not sure if I am earning any APs)~

I still have 6.5 Aps left for the week plus those I will earn on Monday and Tuesday so I should be good to go!!

Lily loves all her cat toys while she sleeps in her bed! She is also the guard of the WW scale :-)

Spring Cleaning Done!

This is the cleanest my apartment has been, umm.... ever. I vacuumed, scrubbed, and wiped down every surface in my apartment. No more stray cat hairs in my life!

I also went through my closet and got rid of everything that I could either pull off of me without unzipping or clothes that were just plain out of style. I have 3 huge bags to give to Goodwill. I still have a lot of clothes in my closet though so don't worry! I did have to ask my WW boardies for help with getting rid of the clothing guilt I was experiencing. I was feeling very guilt for getting rid of once expensive clothing but with their advice it helped me realize that I will be helping out someone else find good clothing. As soon as I took the bags out to my car (to bring to the Goodwill), I felt so much better! I don't even remember what I had in the bags so the old clothes won't be missed.

Bogart was helping me organize all the old clothing.

Lily was just being a blob on all the hangers.

Good News!

I stayed within my daily points for the day! Hoot hoot! I haven't done this in a looong time! (but I didn't get in all my GHGs in though! Those elusive oils!!!!)

Breakfast:

Smoothie with 1 banana, 1/3 cup mixed berries, 1 cup skim milk

Oatmeal prepared with water

Lunch:

Grilled ham and RF cheese Sammy on a wheat thin

1/2 cup leftover pasta salad

1 gala apple

Dinner:

I made a batch of cornbread muffins. I always make breads and cakes that I might binge on in muffin form so the portions are exact and controlled. Plus then each top of the muffin gets that good cracked top!

I had 3 (2pts a piece) cornbread muffins with a can of low sodium Amy's organic tomato soup. My mom gave me a can while she was clearing out her cabinet! Sweet!

Cornbread Recipe

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Spray 12 muffin pan with cooking spray.

In a bowl, mix 3/4 cup yellow cornmeal, 3/4 cup all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup whole wheat flour, 1/4 cup white sugar, 2 tsp baking powder, and sprinkle of salt. (It is always good to use a sprinkle of salt whenever using baking powder. At least that is what my Grandma taught me!)

Then add 1 egg, 1 cup skim milk, 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce and blend with hand mixer until just combined.

Pour into muffin pan and bake for about 15 to 18 mintues or until tops are cracked and browning.

No run today. Just vigorous cleaning! That is okay though saving up my energy for my long run on Saturday!

The boy did a color guard for a indoor football game and his car got parked in so we had to wait until 10:30pm to get it out. Not cool dude. That tested my patience (since we all know mine sucks) and lets say I was pretty cranky (not at the boy but the mean dude who parked the boy in). So to kill time we went to the boy's parent's house. I had a good convo with his mom about how his sister (2 are currently preggo) is having her 3rd boy. No female offspring for this family so far. ekkk no pressure there right? :-)

~25 DP used - 0 APs~

Early Night

Missed my Thursday report last night but here is a recap!

Progressing with my Spring cleaning! Should be done by today! Thank goodness.

Found some cat toys and gave them to the furbabies. I think Lily was a little tweaked out by the catnip b/c she jumped into a closed window bounced off then got tangled in the curtain. I have to admit I laughed. A lot.

For the goals I set for myself yesterday: Don't go over my DP and get in my oils. I did okay. I got in 1 oil and went 2.5 over my DP but it was a choice to go over and not a binge so I am good with it.

Breakfast was pretty standard.

Coffee

Smoothie with Skim Milk, banana, mixed berries

Oatmeal prepared with water

Lunch

Bagel with egg and WW cream cheese

Greek style yogurt with 1 cup pineapple and 1/2 cup strawberries

Snack

100 calorie choco almonds

Dinner

Chicken Breast with BBQ Sauce

Green Beans

The pasta salad I made yesterday (even better after it sits a day!)

1 tsp Olive oil added to pasta salad

I made the boy shredded chicken breasts in BBQ on 2 whole wheat hot dog buns.

Bogart and Lily demanded quite a bit of attn from the boy. Lily kept pushing me out of the way to get to him. I better watch out!

Had a great run! Ran about 4.25 Miles in about 40 mins. Burned 522 calories = 5APs. A man walking his dog stopped me while I was stretching and had a convo with me about how he was a runner too (Wait, that means he thinks I am a runner! Ekk!) but had to take it easy due to a knee injury. He mentioned how this new lakeside park was a great 2 mile circle to run! I think I will add that into my run either Friday or Saturday!

WI Day

*Poke - poke - poke*

That was my cat Lily's paw poking me in the eye to wake up this morning. The trick is to not move or change your breathing or she will start mewing for breakfast.

*shift*

*MEOW*

This was the start to my morning :-) So the cats got their breakfast, and I started with mine. But first to Weigh In. I was not looking forward to this. The boy and I had eaten at three buffets this week. ANNNND.... I gained 2.2lbs so I am back up to 182.4.... NOT GOOD. But at least I get all my weekly points back!

Breakfast:

Coffee

Smoothie made of 1 Cup Skim Milk, 1/2 cup of frozen mixed berries, 1 frozen banana.

Old Fashioned Quaker Oats made with 3/4 cup Skim Milk with cinnamin and a sprinkle of brown sugar.

Went for a run outside. It was still cold about 45 degrees but at least it wasn't raining anymore. My current favorite song on my running playlist is "Naturally" by Selena Gomez. I know the boy would hate that song (b/c he hates pretty much any music after 1988) but it just gets me moving! Only ran about 2.5-3 miles today for 418 calories or 4APs. Had a serious TMI moment (you runners get the picture). This was very frustrating to me because I felt like I could do more.

Went to the Chiropractor today and the back is holding up pretty well even with the outdoor runs so I was very glad to hear that! I have bone spurs and arthritis in my spine so I often have back pain and swollen joints.

Lunch:

Thomas 100 calorie Bagel

1 thin slice deli ham

1 Egg

1 Slice RF Colby Cheese

1 Cup Strawberries

1 Cup Pineapple

Extra tip: I love Greek Yogurt but hate the price of almost $7.00 for a container. I buy Dannon All Natural Plain Nonfat Yogurt which I bought for $2.00 and strain it so that the texture and flavor matches that of Greek Yogurt. It is thick and tangy. I'll show you how I use it later in the week.

Put paper towel in mesh strainer over bowl to catch excess whey and let sit in fridge to drain for about 3 hours. Viola! Cheap tasty yogurt!

I made pasta salad to take over to a friend's house tonight.

3 cups cooked whole wheat pasta

1 can black beans (rinsed)

1 can low sodium sweet corn (rinsed)

3 mini red and yellow peppers

1 cucumber with the seeds removed and cubed.

1 cup FF Italian salad dressing

Combine and refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving. It made 7 heaping 1 cup portions.

Had an awesome time with my friend. Had a turkey burger on a wheat thin with my pasta salad. Then we played some Mario Kart and Guitar Hero on the Wii. Excellent time. Her dog the Ry pooch (who is friends with my Bogart) kept wanting to sit on our lap while we were playing.

Came home and had a bit of a problem of munching while watching Top Chef Masters. Ate about 2 points worth of chocolate chips and made a micro cupcake with strawberries.... Already 8 of my WP are gone..... WAH!

I am going to be more consciene of getting in all my GHG this week. As you will notice, I did not get in my oils today or enough veggies in my mind!! I struggle the most with getting in my oils everyday. I am considering starting to do the shot glass techicque which some of the girls on the 20 something boards do to get in oils.... hmmmm.

Goal for tomorrow:

DO NOT GO OVER DP!!!

The boy has been at work for the last couple of days, and Bogart the cat is already asleep in bed... See!

I think I will stretch for a few mintutes since my joints are very sore with all the moisture in the air.

~33 Points used today, 4APs earned~

Glee Night!

Good Afterevening!

Had a very messed up schedule today. The boy had to get up to go to work at 5am. Needless to say, the cats and I were still asleep when he had to go.

Woke up just in time to get my cholesterol tested at my doctor's appointment today. I am very interested to find out what my results are. With all my weight loss, I hope that I am at a healthy level!

Came home and had a Green Monster Smoothie for Breakfast and a mini-bagel egg sandwich (Thomas 100 Calorie Bagel, WW Whipped Cream Cheese, 1 thin slice deli ham, 1 egg in a mug microwaved for 45 secs). And I had coffee. One can never forget the coffee.

Green Monster

1 Cup Skim Milk

1 Cup Spinach

1 frozen banana

1/2 Cup frozen mixed berries

Put into my magic bullet blender until combined.

Usually, I like spinach - in salads or on sandwiches....

Didn't dig it in my smoothie. I have tried a few other combos, but I think I am going to leave it out from now on.

After all the fun at my doc appts, I went to the gym to get a work out in. Wanted to focus more on weights. I wore my Polar F6 HRM, and burned 403 calories today = 4APs. Hoot!

Ran 2 miles on the treadmill and lifted weights for an addt 20 mins. I wanted to make sure I am continuing to lift weights in addition to my new outdoor runs. Can I just say that those 2 miles were so boring on the treadmill after my two most recent runs outside! Can't wait for it to get nicer out again!

After my run, I had a cup of fresh pineapple I cut last night and put into tupperware.

For dinner, I had 2 leftover pieces of homemade roasted tomato and onion pizza with basil on whole wheat dough (from a WW cookbook).

Sooooo good.

I make whole wheat pizza dough and put into a baking sheet.

Roast 2 pints of grape tomatoes, 1 red onion, 2 cloves of garlic and spray with Pam and 1 tbsp of Balmasic vingear at 375 for 35mins. Then spoon this mixture over the dough and bake at 500 for 15 mins. Sprinkle fresh basil and parm over the hot pizza. YUM! Had it with a bag of steamed veggies.

Then for dessert I had Pumpkin Fluff. I have such a love for this it is redic.

Got this off the WW 20-something boards :-)

1 pkge instant FF SF Cheesecake pudding

1 cup skim Milk

1 15 oz can of pumpkin

8 oz Cool Whip Free

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp nutmeg

With hand mixer, blend pudding and milk until combined. Then mix in pumpkin and spices. Blend for 2 mins. Fold in Cool Whip.

Usually, I do not support products like Cool Whip since I try to mostly eat whole, unprocessed foods, but I have had such a terrible sweet tooth lately. This just hit the spot! I ate like half of it tonight.

I have Lily the cat curled up next to me, and Bogart the cat is waiting at the door for the boy to come home.

5 days left until I start my new job! I need to finish the spring cleaning of my apt!!

Night!

Opening Day

Hello!

Today is my first day, well night, of blogging!

I should introduce myself:

Sarah Here.

I'm tall. 6'1 to be exact, and why yes, I did play basketball in high school! Usually, that is the first impression I make on people when I meet them in person.

What else? I follow Weight Watchers Online and my Weigh In (WI) days are Wednesdays. To date, I have lost 61lbs over two years well on the program. So it works! I plan to post what I eat and any new creative ways to get in healthy foods. I hope to lose about 10 to 15 more pounds and then tone. I will post how each of my weekly weigh in's go!

Here is where running enters into my life. In high school, I ran because, like I mentioned above, I played basketball. I got no real joy from it and soon when I went to college, I gained weight. A lot of weight. I had 243lbs packed onto my 6'1 frame by my junior year of college by eating a 4th meal every night after rehearsal. My college graduation picture at my mother's house are an epic example of how large I had become. ((Now, that picture is hidden behind a lovely picture of my boyfriend and I at the Marine Corps Ball in 2009.)

WAIT freeze frame- rehearsal? college? boyfriend? Marine Corps? I have some explaining to do! In good time my friends! We were talking about running here!

Now that I have lost 61lbs, I have found a new found love for running. Indoors mostly, but most recently I have gotten great pleasure from long runs by Lake Michigan now that it is nicer out. Through these outdoor runs, I am learning how to listen to my body, enjoy the city, and frankly how to wait and process my emotions. I always have been an impatient person, and desperately, I am trying to remedy this. Hence, handling life a mile at a time. Running eases my stress like nothing else I have come across before so I want to document the changes it makes in my life.

Okay, unfreeze frame. I went to college, and I graduated with two degrees, one in psychology and the other in technical theatre. Basically, I am in charge of the backstage stuff for a professional theatre in Milwaukee. It's the bee's knees.

Next week, I am starting a new day job in Financial Aid at a University. I am nervous to go back to the corporate world but think it is ready to add this to my life.

Marine- I knew you wouldn't forget about this part! I have a great boyfriend who we shall call, the boy, and I couldn't ask for anything more in a significant other.

Lastly, I have two tiger cats who pretty much rule the house. The boy and I love them anyways though!

That is a lot of info right away, but I know you can handle it!