Road Trip from Texas to Washington

So after leaving my hubby to visit family I embarked on a long but sweet road trip from Texas to Washington. Our little group consisted of 4 tiny dogs my parents and I all in my dads truck. He pulled their 5th wheel for the journey so we could go anywhere on the trip back. Our first night was in you guessed it Roswell NM! Let's face it...Aliens...Yep the highlight of the whole trip. I took tons of pics (yes even with an alien!) and left with a t-shirt to remember the awesomeness...And it was true awesomeness. I believe Roswell was everyone's favorite haha. We stayed in the cutest little RV park called the Red Barn was really really nice.

Then we headed up stopping here and there at different places but for AZ the meteor crater and you guessed it THE GRAND CANYON. (Notice the large caps for effect...)were our favorite stops. We were on the southern end of the canyon so we missed getting to walk on the glass walkway where you could feel like you were standing on thin air but it was still so beautiful! And the prickly pear honey from the gift shop oh my gosh...wow. My hubs loves honey so it's one of the things we pick up in random places. And don't worry his jar is still intact for him to devour when I see him again. My dad and I snuck into his before dinner one evening.

We spent a couple nights in UT. A friend of the family happened to be where we were going to be staying for his family reunion so we got a real native tour of Ogden. I also happened to have a friend that lived there so it was a busy 2 days. We saw the Air museum on Hill AFB and the Dinosaur Land. Coolest museum I have ever been too. Some of the dinos moved and made noise plus you had the fossils and such. I took some sweet pics there. I have one where I am running from a vilosaraptor I believe it was...After that we buzzed home in one day. In Idaho Butter decided on a stop to roll in something dead and stunk us out the last few hours. My parents are pretty awesome so there weren't angry at all mostly they laughed.

I was worried I'd gain some poundage on the trip since I knew I wouldn't be logging my food everyday on MFP or hitting the gym but surprisingly I lost a couple since my last weigh in so I am one happy girl and so thankful that junk I ate didn't stick to me! Now that I am at my families for the visit I am on a mission of the heath for keeping me on track and helping my parents with theirs lol. I don't mind cooking to help out and make some tasty dishes that are good for everyone's waistline. My mom is excited as she wants to loose some weight and she really likes Atkins and it has worked for her in the past and that fits in really good with they way I eat mostly anyway so I made my weekly meal plan and went shopping today for the week. This week I am also going to head up to the aquatic center and check out their gym and water aerobics classes. I have set up some goals to meet for myself by the time I get to see my hubs again and I am itching to meet them. Well I am off to check my pot roast so I will leave you with a couple of pics from my little trip!

Separation

I know being a military wife means that my hubby will be gone for various reasons and for different amounts of time. This however does not make it any easier and I'm sure lots of other wives will say the same. It just hit me this morning as I watched him get ready for the day. I know we will be fine it's just sad to be apart. And I know that he will be safe and kick ass at whatever he is doing. He is rather awesome at kicking butt.
One thing I do not understand are the spouses who count down the days with excitement and anticipation that their husbands will be gone.  And I'm not talking about a week for training but even deployments. ..I even dread the short trips! Don't even get me started on deployments. ... His last one I wrote him every single day sometimes more than once and sent tons of care packages. My phone was glued to me just in case he called. Hearing his voice is the sweetest thing ever even now together and doubley so why he is gone.
I find myself a couple days before he leaves following him around like he might disappear before I can kiss him goodbye.  Sad I know. It may be because the Army has often changed their plans last minute and taken him days earlier and made him home late. Like way way late.
So as usual while he gets stuff he needs done for work I try to keep busy and not start to feel to sad/anxious about him leaving.  Have to be strong for him so he doesn't worry about me! That and it's good to be strong for your man. But I miss him already!
Well here is to hoping he gets done early today so I can soak up as much time as possible and stay positive:)

Random I know but this would be so cool in my front yard. ..

Phantom fat

Although I'm not at goal weight but have lost over 100 pounds I know I sometimes/often feel this waywhen I look in the mirror which is why I'm trying everyday to be more body positive. 

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/31489881/ns/health-womens_health/t/phantom-fat-can-linger-after-weight-loss/#.U58iNI1dV5

I am the "Great" Log Dragger!

So I missed yesterday since I was outside doing lots and lots of yard work before our friends BBQ. I had the best fire going all day. We got some wood for free a while back and noticed it had termites. We do not want TERMITES! So I burned it all. Every last piece and the little bits from R chopping the wood. I tried to teach myself when he was gone helping a friend get wood to build his fence for a new home he had bought. Lets just say I am not a natural wood chopper. I can start a darn good fire but chop wood. Nope. I was getting better at hitting close to the same spot which is great but after 10 min and not much to show for it I decided to swing the axe one last time and lodge it in really good and then I drug that sucker to the fire and shimmied it up on the hot coals. I still got the job done haha!

They just enjoy watching me work...We woke up this morning to a dead baby copperhead snake in our backyard. That freaked me out really good! I don't want my loves to get bit...R got rid of it first thing this morning and we aren't really sure how it died. It looked as if it had just ate though...Maybe a bird or a bat? It was in our backyard so wouldn't have been an other large animal and I don't think it was one of our pups. Either way....Snake repellant will be in our future.
After that early morning excitement we decided hey lets just chill and relax a bit until we got a wild hair to hit Walmart for a rotisserie chicken. It is a mistake to brave Walmart at 3pm on a Saturday...I mean wow...Crazy town up in there. But in the end we got our chicken. Nothing like some oven roasted cauliflower to go with it and some garlic cheddar chive drop biscuits left over from breakfast this morning (I steal one bite or so off his just for the taste. A whole one would be way way to much carbs!) We munch on a lot of roasted veg in our house. Just cannot get enough of that natural sweetness that roasting brings out.

Our relaxing day was in part due to it being the FIFA world cup (soccer/futbol) My R is a huge soccer and ruby fan so our TV has been glued to ESPN. Today I was rooting for England! Olay! Olay Olay OLAY! The hubs routed to Italy in that game. It's crazy how much he knows all the different players from different countries. I know two and they both are retired lol. And that was because I thought they were delicious way back when. Now though its my one and only R with his sultry accent...Le Sigh***

Well off to log my dinner on MFP (minnievw67 if you want to follow one another) and take our evening walk w/ Butter and Nana. It's the consistent little changes that will make your weight loss stay off. And I sleep better after.

Carrot Poke Cake (not WLS friendly but delicious just the same)

The hubs has a 4 day weekend since it's the Army's birthday. What better way to celebrate than to spend your Friday night at a friends house for a BBQ!  I am in charge of a dessert to bring so I needed something that a bunch of rowdy boys will like. I did my first picture tutorial for this recipe. It's so easy you will be amazed.

Ingredients:

*9x13 carrot cake, cooled (I just used the Duncan Hines boxed one)
    Plus the ingredients called for the cake mix.
*1 can sweetened condensed milk
*1 8 oz tub French vanilla cool whip
*1 8 oz tub regular cool whip
*6-8 oz jar of caramel topping
*3 oz package of chopped pecans

Instructions:

Cook carrot cake and leave in pan to cool. This is not a free standing cake it's far to moist. After it has cooled poke about 25 holes into the cake evenly spaced.

Pour the can of sweetened condensed milk over the top evenly.

 

Mix the 2 thawed tubs of cool whip together and spread evenly over the top of the cake. By this time most of the sweetened condensed milk will have soaked into the cake.

   

 



Pour the jar of caramel all over the top. As little or as much as you would like. I did the whole jar for this cake.

And finally sprinkle the tiny bad of chopped pecans over the top. Cover with tin foil and refrigerate for at least 4 hours but it's best overnight.

For myself I will be munching on some fresh cantaloupe I chopped up and put in a bowl. But I may just have to steal one bit from the hubs tomorrow because it really is that good!

Adventures in waxing

Well waxing my face has gotten so expensive at 55 bucks every week and a half that I thought I bet I can do this! So I set out and did some research on home wax kits for sensitive skin for your face. I ended up getting suddenly smooth for sensitive and fair skin with all the stuff you need to get for a wax job. After a buy one get one free on my wax pot and a 15% off coupon I found online it was only about 20 bucks more than getting my face done where I normally go. And I don't have to hear her tell me every time I go in what a great deal she is giving me, how sad she is about my face hair, and over and over "so much hair" Now come on...I am not an ogre! Sheesh. Not to mention I now have enough wax for a couple years! Who knows I may get frisky and try my underarms or legs...Maybe.

So as you can see I am all set up. I test the wax like they said on  my wrist ok this isn't bad...now I put it on my chin...ok strip on...rub rub rub. and PULL! 3 Hairs came off...only 3!!! There must be an art to waxing I am missing but I am determined to not give up. And trudge along. Rip rip RIP! I am happy to say that I did get a bit better the more strips I tried. But I have some practice to do...I can't seem to get under my chin on my neck area as I can't see it haha! Guess I will have to work something out with that. Thank goodness for tweezers to help after! It took 3 times as long as going to get it done but I am sure practice with help with that too.

 

My face is a bit red but I expected that. I will see if I break out like I do occasionally with a new product on my face. Hopefully not. I also want to look for a cooling antiseptic for my face I think....I rubbed some rubbing alcohol all over it when I was finished and let the burn go! (Thank goodness for a cool setting on my blow dryer to help cool off the sting)

 

Overall I think I made the right choice in going for the at home method. that's 100+ dollars I can now spend on important things like kitchen gadgets or shoes! A girl has to have priorities you know...

 

Now to see what the hubs thinks when he gets home...

What Color Looks Best on You? Color Analysis Tool.

So I thought today I would write a fun post! I was surfing the web and thinking about all the packing I have to do and randomly out of the blue this online quiz for a color analysis pops up. I am thinking ok what the hey lets do this! As we all know I love quizzes. And every woman likes to know what colors look best on her so she can look her best. Now I am a no fuss kind of girl myself. I have a deep respect for the ladies who know exactly what makes them pop and sizzle with a glance at a product and who take 30-60 min for their hair and another 15+ for their makeup. I do ok with the clothes but tend to play it a bit on the safer side more often than not and I seem to only wear makeup on a rare occasion. I have wanted to wear it more often but I have a weird thing about being able to feel things heavy on my skin. I have often wondered if it was the type of product I was trying but am afraid to go to a high end store pay an outrageous amount and still hate it. Or not know how to put it on correctly. I will say YouTube has taught me how to do my eyes a ton better and put some sassy roux on. Who knows. Maybe someday I will be more of a girlie girl. Luckily for me my hubby doesn't mind that I "put my face on" or "paint my barn" for special things like fancy dinners, holidays (where you dress up), and eh I'd say 70% of the time for Church. Luckily we attend a more down to earth non denominational where some people dress up. Some don't and it doesn't matter.
Anywho. The link! http://www.colorenalysis.com/index_original.html

My results in case you were curious are. The woman with Clear coloring has outstanding features that are rather exotic!  (OoOo I am exotic!) With your medium to dark hair, bright eyes, and light to medium skin tone, your best colors will be the brightest shades you can find. 

Having high contrast in your coloring combinations of Dark colors with very light ones will look amazing on you!

Be confident and wear bright colors to enhance your natural coloring!

Color Intensity: Bright Hues

Accessories: Silver is best, but shiny gold works too

Best Neutrals: Black, navy, and deep charcoal gray

Pop Colors: Bright purple, clear red, sunny yellow, hot pink

White or Ivory?: White

Best Shoe and Purse Color: Black

Best Makeup Shades: Vibrant shades of berry, fuchsia, and pink

Hair Advice: Stay as close to your natural hair color as possible. Clears, you should never highlight your hair.
Try a clear gloss to add some shine.

Oooo she even has a beauty boot camp in Myrtle Beach, SC coming up in October...Bit spendy but would be fun I think for like a girls weekend. Now where to find a random almost 600 dollars laying around haha. The hubs would think I was crazy if I wanted to spend that. Who knows maybe we will win the lottery that we never play and I can go! You never know. It could happen :)

BTW I live in fear of this happening!

Sad Panda kind of day. Baking time.

When I am bummed I tend to bake or cook in general. Making something tasty for someone else seems to help cheer me even if it's just a little bit. I took a prego test today and it was negative. We were hoping. Even with my mixed emotions (aka fear of being super big again) I am a lot sadder/upset than I thought I would be. It was our one chance for a while. Oh well. It must not be time yet and I know God will bless us with a little one when it's time. Even if that means we need a little help from the Drs. and a little more time.

So. Back to my quest for some cheer today I decided to make strawberry bars while listening to some Pandora. I made ours with sellou but you can certainly make them with a graham cracker crust which would be just as yummy. I had the sellou already prepared from when my mother in law was here so I will place a link to a sellou recipe if you want to be frisky and make some. It is delish on its own or in yogurt. I mostly eat it in yogurt like you would granola. (video is from Cooking with Alia on YouTube)

Strawberry Sellou Bars

Sellou Soft Crust Recipe

1 cup sellou
6 TBS light margarine or butter
3 TBS splenda brown sugar
2 TBS or so sweet rice flour (almond, coconut, or white would work too)

Melt the butter in a small sauce pan. Make sure the sellou has the lumps mashed out. Mix the brown sugar into the sellou and pour the melted butter over. Stir. Add the rice flour little by little until it has thickened to a brownie batter texture. Pour into a 8x8 dish and bake at 375F about 30 min. When its finished it will be soft but your butter knife should come out clean and look something like this. Let cool completely.



Strawberry Filling

2 pints fresh strawberries hulled and sliced.
1 1/5 cups cold water
2 TBS cornstarch
3 TBS splenda
1 package sugar free strawberry jello (small box)
Light cool whip would be a nice topping when you served but optional.

Place water and cornstarch in med saucepan. Stir until there are no lumps. Heat to boiling and stir constantly about 2 min until liquid thickens. Remove from heat and stir in splenda and jello packet until all combined. Fold in fresh strawberries. Pour over cooled sellou soft crust. Cover for 2 hours to set in the fridge and then enjoy! (It's going in the fridge!)



And after it has set....

To accompany dessert tonight will be an Asian grilled fish salad with the fixins and a homemade rice wine vinegar toasted sesame dressing. And most importantly some much needed snuggle time with the hubs watching Attila we just got in from Netflix.

Calorie Control Council - Weight Maintenance Calculator - Women

Calorie Control Council - Weight Maintenance Calculator - Women



Good info! Give it a try!

Grilled Eggplant

So I have been trying to explore new veggies recently and I was at the local farmers market when I saw these tiny little purple eggplants. I picked up a few and thought grilled eggplant! I love to grill veggies. I had just put the barbeque away so for this recipe I just used our old old George Forman grill.

Grilled Eggplant

4 small eggplants (mine were the size of a small orange)
olive oil
Salt and Pepper
No salt seasoning

slice the stem off your eggplant and cut them into 1/4 in thick slices. Season both sides with just a little little bit of olive oil or a oil spray, salt and pepper and liberally sprinkle the no salt seasoning. place on your grill and cook till completely cooked through. On a large barbeque it would take less time then my little George Forman. On the George Forman it was 3-4 min. Don't forget to flip half way through.

To go with our eggplant I blistered some cherry tomatoes and grilled a couple burgers. The eggplant was amazing.
Before the Grill

After the Grill

We had some left over eggplant and my hubby used it on a sandwich later. He said it was the perfect touch. Now I wish I had some for a sandwich too!

As I mentioned earlier I was looking for ways to help add some extra income to our household. I signed up for Swaggbucks last night and have played around on the site just a bit. Not sure what I really think yet. I will let you know how that turns out and if it is worth all the time you have to put in to earn rewards.

Roadtrip with Fido and Working From Home

So I missed blogging yesterday. I had some food sickness. Hate it when that happens. I can go days now where I am ok after I eat. Then BAM everything that enters my mouth makes me terribly sick. Luckily my hubby was there so I could take a nap on him. Yeah I am spoiled....what?! I am sure he will get me back since tonight we are meeting at his gym on post and he is going to help me create a weight lifting routine. I wanna be buff! Fit is the new skinny you know.

I am happy to report that I woke up feeling super this am. I even slept in till just before 7 am! I am busy getting my lists ready for the day before water aerobics this morning. So much to do. All while trying to figure out our welcome to the neighborhood treat to take to the new neighbors that started moving in on Saturday. It doesn't look like they have finished so lets hope they do before we leave. I had some neighbors once that took weeks before they were moved in. One of our other neighbors says they seem nice. I like nice neighbors :)

During all my busy mad dash planning, packing, and list making I am thinking of looking into some work from home opportunities that don't require me to do a call center job. I am looking for something where I can just sit and do it in my free time or a certain amount of time each day but flexible to when I would be free. I have found a few extra cash opportunities like that but I am going to do some research first to make sure they are not scams. Thinking of trying a few while the hubby is gone for AIT just to give me something to do and earn a little extra cash on the side to help out. I did find a helpful article at http://christianpf.com/legitimate-work-from-home-jobs/ (if you have tried any of these please let me know if they are legit or worth it!)

I am proud to announce that I have finished my pre checks for Butter and Nana's Road Trip Checklist. We will be taking a road trip with the pups coming up and it's always better to be prepared. http://www.gopetfriendly.com/ and http://www.dogfriendly.com/ have some great info and lists for tripping with your pet. I compiled my own list after readying quite a few and picked what I thought was most important gathering from our several cross country road trips. The 2 websites were helpful as well locating a pet friendly hotel for the night.

Preparation for a Road Trip

A Month Before

• If you don't already have one, get a pet identification tag for your dog. It should have your dog's name, your name and phone number. Consider using a cell phone number.   
• Get a first aid kit for your dog. They are easy enough to make or you can buy one  from a vet, pet store, or the internet.   
• If you do not already have a dog harness for riding the car, consider purchasing one for your dog's safety. They are usually sold at pet stores or on the Internet. (We bought a dog hammock for the back seat so they can ride freely. Buster tried to strangle himself with one of the harnesses that clips in the seat buckle. Scariest moment ever. I think they work better for large dogs imo and Butter and Nana love having the whole back seat to themselves.) 
• Make a trip to the vet if necessary for the following:
  • A current  rabies tag for your dog's collar. Also get paperwork with proof of the rabies vaccine. You might need this if you day board your dog.
  • Make sure your pet is up to date on all vaccines and will not need any extra recommended ones for where you are going. 
  • Consider using some type of flea preventative for your dog. This is out of courtesy for the dog-friendly hotels plus for the comfort of your pooch and you.
  • Make sure your dog is in good health and able to make the trip comfortably. If you are driving to Canada or Mexico, you will probably also need a recent health certificate.

 

Week or so before

• If your pup isn't used to traveling start taking them on a few short trips so that they get used to the car and are more able to relax for the ride. You don't want them to be stressed the whole time thinking they are going to the vet or find out they are carsick and have messes to clean up! if your pet does get car sick stop by the vet for a mild sedative.  

 

Several Days Before

• Make sure you have enough dog food for the duration of the trip.
• If your dog is on any medication, remember to bring it along.
• Some dog owners will also purchase bottled water for the trip, because some dogs can get sick from drinking water they are not used to. Talk to your vet for more information.

 

Road Trip Day

• Remember to pack all of your dog's necessities: food, water, dog dishes, leash, snacks and goodies, several favorite toys, brush, towels for dirty paws, plastic bags for cleaning up after your dog, doggie first aid kit, possibly dog booties if you are venturing to an especially cold or hot region, and bring any medicine your dog might be taking.
• If using a doggy seatbelt put it's harness on.

On The Road

• Keep it cool and well ventilated in the car for your dog.
• Stop at least every 2-3 hours so your dog can relieve him or herself. Also offer him or her water during the stops. 
• Before you get out of the car make sure fido's leash is on and you have a hold of your pup. We don't want any accidents! 
• Never leave your pet alone in a parked car. If you are alone traveling and stop at a rest stop I just take them in the bathroom stall with me. According to the Los Angeles SPCA, on a hot day, a car can heat up to 160 degrees in minutes, potentially causing your pet (or child) heat stroke, brain damage, and even death.
• As much as some pups might enjoy hanging their head out the window that is not a good idea. It can be potentially harmful to your pet.

 

Baked Mini Tilapia Balls and Moroccan Mint Tea with Jasmine

I love sipping tea while blogging. Ahh. We just finished lunch and I was going to wait to blog this till tomorrow but my hubby and I liked this recipe so much that I just couldn't wait to share! And I may as well give you my new favorite tea recipe too while I am at it.

Moroccan Mint Tea with Jasmine

Fresh mint 4-5, 3-4 inch sprigs or so (you can use dried as well)
Dried or fresh Jasmine blossoms (2)
1/2-1 tablespoon gunpowder green tea (don't be cheap with your tea it really pays to get a better quality loose tea)
1 tablespoon of Splenda

Boil your water about 12-14 oz or so. So a large mug worth. Fill your tea ball with the rinsed fresh mint, jasmine, and green tea. plop it in the cup with your splenda. Steep the tea for a bit and tah dah! You really only need 2 maybe 3 tops of the jasmine blossoms to taste it (we have a plant but you can buy them online). Often time we add sage. I like the fresh mint better than the dried. But if I have to have dried I prefer the dried mint I make at home from our 4 mint plants rather than the store bought. Mint is so easy to keep it really is worth it to have around and they never die. We have had ours 3 years. My favorite mint is chocolate mint which is also good all buy itself as a tea. Sage is another easy one to keep alive for the tea.

Baked Mini Tilapia Balls
Makes 36.

4 tilapia filet
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
No salt seasoning or Mrs. Dash
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Salt
Pepper
4 eggs
Enough stuffing cubes ran through a blender into a sandy flour to make 1 cup worth

Bake the tilapia filets with a sprinkle of no salt seasoning at 425 for about 10-12 min. Until they are done. Let sit 5 min and then flake with a fork in a bowl. Add the cheddar, then the eggs. Take your sandy flour mix you made and add some salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and no salt seasoning to taste. Mix into the wet ingredients. Taste to make sure seasoning is where you like it.
Either line your mini muffin pan with liners or spray the pan and fill. Bake for 20 min at 425.

These are delicious plain or would be good with some tartar sauce if you like it. They have a texture cross of a hushpuppy and fish stick. 4 balls is about 21g protein as well. If you don't have the stuffing cubes you could use almond flour, regular flour, or bread crumbs.

 

Mix after all blended together

Right before the oven

Right out of the oven

New WLS projection tool. And roasted chickpeas (nom nom nom)

I love busy Saturdays. Feeling productive. Getting a little extra cleaning done out of the way so we can have a clean house ready to go for the weekend. Oh yeah. Feels so good. And of course baking a tasty treat for the hubs always makes me feel good. My hubby is a snacker. Loves to munch on stuff. We always have carrot sticks and some other vegetable like broccoli or cauliflower in the fridge for easy snacking but sometimes you want that salty crunchy treat and what better than oven roasted chickpeas. My hubs mom has made these for him since he was little so even before the fad was around. I have to say they are so yummy. You can find tons of recipes out there for them now a days. Mostly I make them just like his mom used to with a bit of salt and cumin. Sometimes I do a bit of garlic salt and onion powder. I like to keep it simple.  Well we ended up with a full bottle of the Red Robin Seasoning (don't ask) and I had a light bulb go off in my tummy saying DO IT! So I did. I mean who can argue with tummy logic. Oh and this was my morning friend on my back slider door.

Roasted Chickpeas

16oz bag of dried chickpeas or 3 cans
oil (sometimes I use veg sometimes olive.) 1-2 tbs
Red Robin Seasoning 1/2 Tbs or so. Just sprinkle that stuff till it looks delicious! And then sprinkle a bit more!


If you are using the dried chickpeas then soak and cook them first. (I do it this way because it's so much cheaper! And frugal is my middle name.) I like to cool mine after but you do not have to. I usually make the chickpeas the day before. If you are using the canned beans rinse them before you use them and pat them dry.

Pre heat oven to 400. In a bowl combine your oil and spices. whisk together. Add your beans and toss to coat.  On a lined cookie sheet (or 2) spread your beans out in a single layer. Sprinkle a bit more seasoning on top (optional) and roast for 40-60 min. Don't forget to stir them once or twice during cooking. Depending on the humidity sometimes at the very end to get the crispyness I am looking for I up the heat to 450 for 10 min kind of like broiling them.

After the oven

While looking at Melting Mamma's blog this morning she posted about a cool tool for people who are considering WLS and projected weight loss for each of the 3 most common types. And I am a sucker for quizzes. You should see my FB page! They suck me in every time. So I thought Hey what the heck lets check this out! http://www.realize.com/surgery-comparison
I had the Gastric Bypass and I have to say my 12 month projection was pretty darn close! Like almost exact. Crazy! I also clicked to see what my 18 months projection would be just for fun. I have a couple pictures below to show the two. The top is 12 months and the bottom is the 18 months projections.

Missing my good friend sleep.

So I have not been sleeping the last week or so. I miss my sleep! Being up even before my hubby gets up to go to PT in the morning is rubbish I tell you. My hubby and friend V like to tease that I might be pregnant. Every time I have something a bit different than normal they are both like you know that is a sign your pregnant. They even had me on the curious train that I took an online quiz! Cracks me up. In case you are curious the quiz said if I missed my monthly to take a pregnancy test since it couldn't say I was or wasn't.

Don't get me wrong. If it comes out positive I will be super excited and terrified all at the same time. I (we) want a family terribly bad (even though we were needing to wait till November to try for the 18 mos.) but then I have this panic wash over me about gaining back weight. It literally terrifies me with physical symptoms of a panic attack almost. That bad. I read (see no sleep lots of time) that this is a normal response for women who have undergone a WLS surgery. I know if I take a pregnancy test and it does come back positive next week that I will certainly talk to my Dr. about continuing to hopefully loose while I am pregnant but of course being healthy and safe for the baby. The baby is what would be important. But I will cross that bridge when we come to it.

Today I am going to go and visit a friend who's hubby deployed recently. I was thinking of bringing a treat with me. She mentioned a bakery she had been wanting to try a treat from so I may swing by and see what they have. Not sure what I will pick up since most places don't have SF (sugar free) options and I can't even think what a full sugar cupcake with yummy frosting would do to me! Hmmm maybe I will see if they have a menu online or on Facebook. I also thought about hitting the farmers market and picking up a cantaloupe. (I ate an entire cantaloupe basically yesterday) When we get together we drink tea, eat sweet, and chat our little heads off. She has the cutest 3 year old ever. He just loves to giggle and giggle.

Well google said terrible things about the bakery. Maybe I will try elsewhere...sigh. Oh and I will be trying the tilapia tots again this evening with some grilled cauliflower. Keeping my fingers crossed I don't break a glass over this set!

3 YouTube at home workouts by Fitness Blender

Few video choices for an at home workout. I just don't feel like driving to the gym today. That and I am posting the vids so that I can just search and find them again while on my trip coming up! Yep. I am lazy like that and I don't know how to make YouTube bookmark a video....so 2 birds with one stone. 

Fat Burning Cardio Workout

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ultimate Workout for Belly Fat Loss

 

 

 

 

 

 

Total Body Toning Low Impact Cardio Workout

 

 



S4E9 and 10 and a Great video for Lifelong success after WLS by Dr. Matthew Weiner

Well couldn't sleep. After WLS this seems to happen more often then I am used to. Gave me some time to be awake and make the hubby lunch as I forgot yesterday and get him off to work. It's kind of nice seeing him first thing in the morning. Usually I am still in bed asleep when he leaves. I may vaguely wake enough to feel him kiss me before he goes. Even though I don't always wake for my morning kiss I have to say there is something wonderful waking every morning knowing I got one. So while I write this I will sip some coffee and watch some Dr. Who. David Tennant is my favorite from the new docs.

I had a coffee date yesterday with one of my super duper awesome friends V. She has graciously said yes to watering my plants during my visit with my family. So thank you V if you are reading this! I appreciate you tons.

I was going to have either a success or failure story for you about a tilapia tot recipe but during my masterful preparation I dropped and shattered a dessert dish. So it became hey lets go out for dinner as I didn't have anything thawed to make. My hubby and I love Japanese so we went to a local place called Mikotos. Left overs for days! So no cooking tonight wooo!

I was scrolling around and found an amazing video about life after the first year of WLS and how to help fight regain by Dr. Matthew Weiner. It really was an eye opener and I think I am now going to change up my work out routine. I want this new life of healthfulness to be just that lifelong.

Zuccini Noodle Slicer

Admit it. You watch an infomercial and think I NEED THAT! But thankfully commonsense and better judgment get a hold of you and you resist the temptation. Well almost. Because then you are walking down an aisle at Walmart and see it. Your zucchini noodle slicer. Your ticket to pasta! Somehow it ends itself up in your cart. Well it did mine. The whole time I am thinking please work just like that infomercial. Please. Work.

Well luck would have it that it does work! And marvelously! Leading to my spaghetti fix!

Body Love in motion.



What better way to learn to love yourself than to learn to love your jiggly bits while they wiggle while you waggle! I am determined to love the skin I am in and this video I thought was a perfect way to start! And it will be a great change from the same ol same ol! SO LETS Shimmy Shimmy Shimmy!

 

 

 

Also. YouTube was being a stinker and wouldn't let me put this bit up. Who knows why. I am technically challenged ha! But Ozma basically says some wonderful feel good stuff about how belly dancing lets you learn to love yourself no matter what you look like and how to enhance your womanness. I want to enhance my womanliness! hehe. . Here is her link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plth1nT0noE

Mil Spouse Perks and Road Trip Planning

Occasionally as a mil spouse you get an unexpected perk from out of the blue. I along with several other military spouses were given a 10.00 dollar voucher at a local farmers market if we picked up a broacher for a college. No strings attached just pick up a broacher and boom free 10 bucks. Well I jumped on that since who doesn't like fresh local produce! My whole bill after the 10 dollar voucher was 5 dollars and change. Yes please...It came at the best time possible as well. We have to pre pay for the hubs trip to school and that is at least a 2 night 3 day trip so anyway we can skim a little off a bill to save for the trip the better! I also found that another local farmers market was having a buy 2 get one free on fresh strawberries either buy the flat or bucket. Each little white basket held 2.7-3 pounds of berries. They were 7 bucks a bucket. What a deal! I love great deals. I left half of one bucket out and froze the rest.

Another great deal I found while looking for hotels for the Texas road trip was with Best Western. They have a 10% discount for military. Yes! We love Best Western. Super great hotel chain. We have taken several road trips to Washington and they were by far the nicest pet friendly hotels we had stayed in. Here is the link to check it out. http://www.bestwestern.com/deals-offers/special-rates/government-hotel-discounts.asp

I am a planner. I started planning our trip to Serbia over a year in advance. Lists are my bread and butter. I get excited just thinking about it. I plan everything even down to the tasty treats we are going to eat on a trip. On a road trip we try to limit how much junk and crap we eat out so I always pack a cooler and this trip I am toying with the idea of bringing a little 2 quart crockpot for a warm lunch. I know that trip is still a while off but I am starting some of my pre baking tasties that will keep for the trip and stay fresh. So today it's going to be granola granola granola! 2 different kinds. My vacuum sealer will be my trick for freshness for these.  The first is a crumbly granola great for a yogurt topping and the second will be a granola bar kind of like the crunchy nature valley ones that are so expensive and IF I still have some juice in me to bake I will be making homemade chocolate protein bars.

Peanut Butter Granola (Crumbly):

2 cups old fashioned oats

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1/4 cup honey

2 Tbs packed light-brown sugar

 

Directions

 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Pour oats into a mixing bowl, set aside. In a microwave safe mixing bowl (or it can also be melted in a saucepan), combine peanut butter, honey and brown sugar and heat mixture in microwave until runny and smooth, about 25 seconds. Pour mixture over oats in mixing bowl and toss mixture with a spatula until evenly coated.

 

Spread mixture onto a Silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet into an even layer and bake in preheated oven until golden brown, about 18 - 20 minutes, stirring once halfway through baking. Allow to cool completely (it wont be crunchy until it cools) and store in an airtight container.

Granola Bars:

4 cups rolled oats
2 tablespoons flaxseed
1/2 cup unsalted peanuts, chopped
3/4 cup natural peanut butter, melted
1/2 cup honey
chocolate chips
*dried fruit (optional)(craisins are my favorite)
*coconut (optional)

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine oats, flax, and peanuts. Add honey and mix to combine. Add melted peanut butter and mix until moistened. Add in the chocolate chips and any other add ins you want such as the dried fruit or coconut. If dough is still too dry (this can depend on your ingredients) add more peanut butter or syrup (or honey) 1 tablespoon at a time until moistened.

Press dough in a greased (non-stick spray) 9 x 13 baking dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Homemade Chocolate Protein Bars:

7 Scoops chocolate protein powder (Isopure low carb Dutch chocolate is my favorite)
2 c quick oats
5 Tbs sliced almonds
1/4 c choc chips
3 Tbs honey
3 Tbs natural Peanut Butter
* dried fruit like craisins (optional)
water

Mix  all ingredients and add drizzles of water until a moist consistency & press into sprayed baking dish. Bake at 350 for approx 15 min. Depending on size of bars cut they will be about about 170 cal and 32 g protein per serving!

Well off I go!

Maleficient

Yesterday the hubs and I  went to see Maleficent but when we arrived it was announced that the next 2 show times were already sold out...Well with that idea gone we went for some Sweet Frog. Mmm SF Raspberry frozen yogurt. 1/4 cup and I am in frozen heaven. Cool thing about this place they have tons of flavors at least 2 of which are SF (sugar free) and the toppings bar is HUGE! everything from candy to fresh fruit. Well after the creamy goodness it was food coma for me and the pups as you can see...That is Nana just relaxing like she owns the place. Butterbean was up on top of me. She must have gotten tired from all her stick chewing. Silly thing.

 

 Since I missed getting to see the movie yesterday and the hubs was going just so I didn't have to go alone on Sunday afternoon I thought I would catch the first showing after the gym today. Holy cow! If you have not seen Maleficent you need to go run right now to the theater to see it! What a cool original different way to look at the classic Disney tale. I cannot wait for it to come to DVD. It was that good. After I thought hey some Chinese would be tasty hmm. This little Chinese place next to our house has the best hot and sour soup ever and teriyaki chicken skewers. I am really sensitive to greasy stuff makes me terribly sick so most Chinese food I can't have. These two things though oh yum. The soup is full of protein with the egg and tofu and vegies and the chicken skewers are lean and delish! I can make it last a few meals which is great. for 7 bucks and 3-4 meals you can't go wrong really.

And let me tell you. I needed the protein so I could get on with my busy day. We had a run in with fleas! Our babies have never had fleas before. We are really careful about that. But somehow they came home with the baddies. We got rid of them completely by day 2 which is great. And I figure for the next couple weeks I will deep clean EVERYTHING every other day incase there was something we missed. It's been a few days and no baddies have been spotted in the house or on the pups. Poor things didn't know what was wrong. Nana and Butter would just let me go through their fur over and over to comb through to get the fleas out. When I was done they would look at me with this sad face like I itch! Help me! So glad everything is back to normal. They seem much happier now. Here they are helping "Dad" put some tie down hooks on the truck.  (Top is Butter and Bottom is Nana)

 





Faux Tater Salad

I know I know messing with your tater salad. But I told you I was gong to give you a heads up to the salad I made for the BBQ. Oh my gosh. It is delicious! Yes you know it's not potatoes I don't care what anybody says. Yes I did mess with the recipe a bit because I was out of dill pickle relish and I left the onion out since I am weird about raw onion. And yes cauliflower is an awesome substitute for the taters. The link to the original recipe is here: http://bariatricfoodie.blogspot.com/2010/09/they-call-it-tater-salad.html?m=1

My version of the salad I will list down below with suggestions if I was to make it again.

Mindy's Modified Version of Faux Potato Salad

Ingredients:

1 large head fresh cauliflower

5-6 large eggs, hard boiled & diced up

1 cup Greek yogurt

1/2 cup Light mayonnaise (next time I will use light miracle whip I like the tang!)

1/4 cup Prepared yellow mustard 

1/2-3/4 cup Chopped baby kosher dills w/ a drizzle of the pickle juice (Niks recipe called for  1/4 cup pickle relish which I would try next time)

1/4 tsp dried dill 

Salt

Pepper

Garlic Powder

Onion Powder

Vinegar if using mayo (I used apple cider)

 

Directions:

Steam or cook the cauliflower until fork tender. I put mine in a pot of cold water with some salt and simmered until done. Meanwhile Chop up the eggs and pickles. Set aside. Mix the yogurt, splash of pickle juice, mayo, mustard, dill, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders. For the salt through onion powder just sprinkle to taste.

 

Mash the cauliflower in a bowl and fold the eggs, pickles, and mayo mix all together in a lovely bowl and let sit overnight in the fridge. The next day take a taste. I tested it this morning and the cauliflower soaked up a lot of the mayo mix so I added a splash of vinegar, a bit more salt, and an extra spoon full of mayo about eh I'd say 2-3 tbs of light mayo. My hubby likes it creamy.

 

I will definitely be making this again! Especially for the summer BBQ's we have with my family back home. Oh I can't wait! OOO I just had a thought. Just before serving sprinkle some crispy bacon on top. Oh my gosh that sounds so amazing.