Nervous

So tonight is my final weigh in for the month.... this month my quota to lose was 5.25 lbs.- Same as last month.... my first month I had to lose 8 lbs... to date all total I am down 21.5 lbs. which means tonight all I need to lose is .25 lb. no big deal right?!


Unfortunately this past weekend we had a family wedding-outside of Atlanta. All of our family stayed in a 6,000 sq. ft. cabin which was absolutely beautiful! It was great seeing all of our family and being together!  My family had not seen me since I had lost the weight so they were all very complimentary- said I looked great etc. which was nice, but let me tell you- it was stressful.

The wedding went great after a few minor problems, the bride & groom(our nephew) looked happy & in love- all in all it was great! With one exception...


It was a dieter's form of hell on earth...


First off we were so busy helping with "wedding" stuff that most days we ended up eating only breakfast & dinner. The breakfasts I had a handle on, but the dinners... *sigh* all buffets....with "traditional" southern cuisine.... including fried chicken, mashed potatoes, macaroni & cheese, ham, grits, scalloped vegetables, rolls, chicken wings, fried jalapeno poppers, fried okra, peach cobbler.... you get the idea.

I did not drink any alcohol the entire weekend... no wine, mixed drinks etc... I had a small piece of wedding cake Sat. night but other than that did not cheat- AT ALL.  This in and of itself was a major accomplishment for me!
However there was no way to know any calorie counts etc. and there were times that there was very little for me to choose from. I ate as much salad as I could, ate lots of green beans, boiled collard greens... only ate the egg portion of a quiche- no crust... drank as much water as I could given the circumstances. 
My SIL said she gained 4-5 lbs. over the long weekend. I got home and yesterday morning was up a half lb. from last week. :(  That meant from yesterday til tonight I HAVE to lose .75 lbs. or I am kicked out of the diet group. 

Yes I said kicked out.

I have to say my hubby was an absolute saint- each time we hit another buffet he would say "OK what are we eating"? and he would eat only what I ate! What a trooper! The only exceptions were when I made him try some of the hor'deurves the one night. He kept telling me all weekend what a great job I was doing and how proud he was of me for the choices I was making. It really meant a lot to me. 



Yesterday after school I put on hubby's old "sweat" top- one of those things you wear to try and sweat off the lbs. - and mowed the lawn for an hour with our push mower. I cut all my food intake yesterday and today to lean protein and basically just salad. 


I have done everything I possibly can to "make" my weight requirement. After school I am going for an hour walk with the rubber shirt on again. But I don't know if it will be enough.


All I do know is that in or out- I am not stopping with this weight loss trek of mine. I would love to be able to still be a part of the group and meet with the other women and support each other, but if it is not meant to be then I will go it alone. 


I will post some pics tomorrow and let you know if I make it.

UPDATE:
I lost 2.5 lbs! So I am safe for another month! Here is me & hubby before the wedding :)

 

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SUCCESS is...

SUCCESS is...

• Having a really stressful morning, day, week etc... and not turning to food chocolate to get through it.
• When one of your kids tells you they wouldn't know what they'd do without you...
• Seeing your 18 year olds laundry baskets filled to the brim... but not doing his laundry because you know you won't ultimately be doing him any favors by constantly doing everything for him (especially because you won't be there @ college next year)...
• Not measured by your bank account, but rather in knowing that you do a good job in your chosen profession...
• Having one of your children telling you that they realize what a good parent you are/were as they are off at college and hearing stories from their peers...
• Fixing something if you have screwed up...
• Doing what you have to even when it sucks..
• Smiling at someone and being kind even when you are feeling terrible inside... 
• When you keep trying even when you have failed...
• Seeing the glass as half full...
• Is different for each of us ...

You can choose to be successful 
no matter what you do
or who you are.

I'm a LOSER!!!!

So I mentioned briefly in a previous post that I have been trying to lose weight and joined a group that focuses on behavior modification. Well I am happy to report that I made it through the first month (kinda like boot camp for dieters) and am now an OFFICIAL member!  woo hoo!


Last month I was required to lose 8 lbs. to be able to stay in the group.
I lost...


*DRUMROLL*


wait for it...


9.25 lbs!


Yay for me!!!!!


I also made up a blog for our group if anyone is interested...
We're called the Wed.night Losers.
It's my hope that our members will post recipes etc. so stop by sometime! :D
I did cheat and put my Skinny Chicken Marsala recipe as our first post... but hopefully there will be more recipes soon!

11 questions and 11 random facts about me...

I was tagged to answer 11 questions by Skippy over @ I Make Soap and then to provide 11 random facts about myself. I honestly don't think I have that many people who read my blog  since I do not blog on a regular basis-so I am not going to tag anyone-but Skippy here ya go...

Skippy’s 11 questions:

1.  What is your favorite childhood memory? Hmmmmm… this one was tough. I would have to say my favorite childhood memory is time spent with my mom playing beauty shop and “doing” her hair and makeup on our screened in porch. I was around 7.

2.  What is your dream job? My dream job would be to be self-employed and to be able to work from home doing something artistic or maybe as a party/wedding planner.

3.  Who is your best friend? Besides my hubby; Tobie- she was my college roommate- no matter how long we have been apart we can pick up like we had just talked the day before. I miss her daily as we do not live close to each other.

4.  Have you ever been finger printed? Why? No

5.  Have you ever been at fault in a car accident? No

6.  If you could be a citizen of any country other than your own which would you choose? I would probably choose Canada, because I feel it is most similar to the US.

7.  If you could have one talent which would earn you money, which would you choose? I think I would enjoy being either a wedding planner or an interior decorator and spending other people’s money.

8.  What thing do you find to be highly overrated?  Why? Pro sports, I think it is indecent the amount of money spent on sports salaries, especially with the state of our economy right now.

9.  Who did you like better growing up - your Mom or your Dad? Hands down my mom, she was and still is my rock. I love her to death and rely on her wisdom. She rarely if ever yelled- she and I are very close.

10.  How often do you laugh? Not often enough unfortunately.  I actually cannot remember the last time I REALLY laughed hard about something.

11.  What is your favorite holiday? I would have to say Christmas- because I enjoy everything about the holiday and it is a time when we generally get to see more of our family. Plus I enjoy going to church on Christmas Eve, and then the excitement of the kids opening their gifts the next day.

11 Random facts about me:

1.   I have been told that I have an excellent singing voice.

2.   My favorite color is blue- a turquoise blue like the ocean in the Caribbean.

3.   I am DEATHLY afraid of snakes. The only good snake is one you can wear (aka boots) or carry (aka a purse).

4.   My favorite fruits are strawberries & blueberries.

5.    I do not like rides at amusement parks and am terrified of roller coasters.

6.    I can touch my nose with my tongue.

7.    I love to swim and really love it when I have the opportunity to go snorkeling.

8.    I used to wear only Fendi perfume all the time- until they stopped making it... and now wear only Juicy Couture "Viva La Juicy"..

9.    I would love to own (or retire to) a home in the woods overlooking a large lake.

10.  I enjoy cooking and baking if I have the time to do it at my own pace- I do not enjoy  having to whip something up quickly.

11.  I usually “talk” for my dogs at home and have been known to carry on conversations with immediate family members talking as one of our pups. ;)

Skinny Chicken Marsala

Skinny Chicken Marsala

As you can probably tell from this and my last post I am trying to lose weight (again) and have been trying to eat healthier all around.... I've joined a weight loss group that relies heavily upon behavior modification and is able to boast an 80% success rate- you are given a quota of how much weight you need to lose each month and how many calories you may eat each day etc.

Last week was my first week- and I lost 4 lbs! :D YAY!!!! My goal is to lose 75 lbs. Hopefully I will have 25-30 off by Jenny's wedding...

The other night I tried a new recipe- unfortunately I can't remember where the original was from-but I altered it slightly..... It was delish!!!!!

Skinny Chicken Marsala

6 boneless chicken breasts
1 regular sized bottle of fat free Italian salad dressing.
1 TB flour
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp. McCormick Perfect Pinch Mediterranean  herb seasoning
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 TB olive oil
1/2 c. low sodium chicken broth
1/2 c. *Marsala wine       *do not substitute*
8 oz. sliced fresh portabella mushrooms
1/2 c. chopped fresh parsley

Using a plastic bag- marinate the chicken breasts with the fat free Italian dressing for at least 6 hours. Later...
Drain and discard the salad dressing. Combine the flour and dry seasonings and using a sifter cover both sides of the chicken breasts.  Using a large non stick skillet coated with cooking spray cook the chicken in one tablespoon of the olive oil along with the 1 TB of butter for approximately 2 minutes on each side until browned. When done transfer the chicken breasts to a large 9x 13 baking dish which has been coated with cooking spray.

Add the wine and chicken broth to the pan and bring to a boil, scraping the browned bits till loosened.  Cook and stir while boiling for about 2 minutes. Then transfer the sauce to a small bowl.  Using the same skillet put in the remaining 1 TB of olive oil plus some cooking spray and cook the mushrooms until browned.  Then stir sauce into the mushrooms and heat through. Pour the sauce with the mushrooms over top of the chicken breasts and top with the chopped parsley. Bake uncovered in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.  6 servings; each serving 375 calories.

Weight watchers blueberry muffins
2 1/2 cup(s) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup(s) sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp table salt
3/4 cup(s) buttermilk
1/2 cup(s) low-fat milk
1/3 cup(s) part-skim ricotta cheese
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
1 large egg white(s)
1 large egg(s)
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
6 Tbsp preserves, blueberry
Instructions Preheat oven to 400°F. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine buttermilk, milk, ricotta, vanilla extract, almond extract, eggs and oil. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Stir gently until just combined. Mixture will be slightly lumpy. Spray 3 mini muffin tins (36 muffin cups total) with cooking spray. Fill each cup 1/3 full with muffin mixture. Add 1/2 teaspoon blueberry preserves to each muffin cup, and top with remaining batter. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until done. Stand for 5 minutes. Remove muffins to a wire rack to cool. 2 pts each

Weight watchers Banana Chocolate-Chip Mini Muffins 
1 cup(s) light artificially sweetened vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup(s) fat-free skim milk
1/2 cup(s) uncooked quick oats
1/2 tsp vanilla extract 1 large egg(s), beaten
1 large banana(s), mashed
1/4 cup(s) unpacked brown sugar
1 1/4 cup(s) all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup(s) mini chocolate chips
1/2 tsp table salt
Instructions Preheat oven to 375ºF. Combine yogurt, milk, oats, vanilla extract and egg. Set aside 5 minutes for oats to soften; stir in banana. In a separate bowl, stir together brown sugar, flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir flour mixture into yogurt mixture to moisten ingredients. Do not beat. Dough will be very thick. Stir in chips. Spoon batter by heaping tablespoons into 3 mini-muffin tins coated with cooking spray. Bake until golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes. Yields 1 muffin per serving. 1 pt. each