WEIGH IN 3-12-18

179/167/135

Weight is hanging in there. I didn't accomplish much of anything last week. A bit of house cleaning but mostly just enjoying the quiet. I did run errands three days last week. One was really stressful. On that errand I realized I am not a stress-eater. I'd never thought about that aspect of how I eat or don't eat. I was hungry so I went to Coltons. I was so stressed I couldn't enjoy the meal. I ate the 6 oz steak and brought everything else home... giving me two meals at home over the course of the weekend. Not bad for $22.

Which brings me to this week's question. When you go out to eat, do you eat everything? Leave some on the plate? Bring leftovers home?  I'd love to hear your thoughts. Sometimes vocalizing what we do puts things in perspective so please share.

Me. I seldom eat everything. Don't get me wrong, there is an occasion when I devour. But for the most part I eat half and bring the other half home. Experts say a good thing to do is to order your to-go box when you place your order. As soon as your meal arrives, put half in the to go box and set it aside. Aside from preventing us from over-eating, this gives us the opportunity to get more bang for our buck. .. and leaves  room for dessert :-D

I'll be scheduling recipes this week. I've done a couple of things. I also have the editorial calendar done, I just didn't do any writing to speak of last week. The month is ticking away and I really need to accomplish something.

Oh, and I got the Gazelle set up again. Not sure it will see activity today but I'm going to start with two days a week and build from there. I have started wearing my pedometer again. Seems like I walked a lot on my errands last week yet barely logged 3000 steps each of the three days. I've also switched to a better walking shoe. This one has an rocking arch support, forcing me to walk heel-toe or rock forward on my nose. :-P

Whatever's on you plan for the week... remember

Enjoy the Journey!

Kelly

WEIGH IN 10-23-17

185/172/135

Not a number I expected to see on the scale this week. With all of the traveling, family visiting and my husband's birthday yesterday I have managed to stay on point. I didn't overeat at any of the places I ate out and there wasn't even cake for Bob's birthday yesterday. He did get a hot fudge sundae at Colton's from the staff and I only had two bites of his ice cream. So let's back up.

The last time I stopped in, I was headed for the Ozark Creative Writer's Conference in Eureka Springs AR. My sister, Kitty, our friend Linda and I arrived early enough on Thursday to enjoy the lunch buffet. I ate mostly protein and no cream soup. We also ate there on Thursday night. I had the hot roast beef with - but didn't eat the mashed potatoes.

Friday was breakfast at the same hotel restaurant. two scrambled eggs with bacon and toast. For lunch I had a sandwich and the salad bar. Now dinner, was a bit different. Friday and Saturday's meals were part of the conference. Friday night is always BBQ. I ate a small portion of the scalloped potatoes, green beans and 3 chicken thighs. I wasn't able to eat the brisket or the ribs without risk loosening my teeth. I passed on dessert.  

Saturday was more or less a repeat of Friday. The banquet fare was comfort foods. I enjoyed a piece of meatloaf and two pieces of their famous fried chicken with corn and green beans. While I drank water the entire weekend at all of my meals, I did stray and have a double shot of Peach Schnapps on the rocks. It's a tradition for my sister and me. 

Sunday, we had the brunch buffet. Made to order omelet with all the vegies, bacon, ham and chicken.  Sunday night, I threw together Hamburger Helper when I got home.

Monday, Bob and I drove into Springfield to meet his brother/ wife. Dean and Rhonda drove over from Oklahoma to spend the week with us. We ate at The Hill, an Italian Buffet named for the same heritage district in St. Louis. Tuesday we ate at Hemmingway's Blue Water Cafe at Bass Pro. While the past was a bit off course, I will say you can't eat as much as you think you can. Pasta fills you quick. At Hemmingways, I only made one trip and only proteins. No soup, no dessert.

Wednesday - Friday we ate here at home. I made basic comfort foods and never had seconds. Though I probably drank more soda than I should have. And thus the culprit. Bob has quit having a pitcher of tea in the fridge when he's home. He's been drinking more water. 

So my plan for this week, put a pitcher of unsweet tea in the fridge and keep the water jar filled and cold. 

The other thing I've started doing is making a weekly menu. I bought a Week on 2-pages planner specifically. If I've not shown that to you, that will be my post for Recipe Wednesday. Otherwise, I'll be showing you a recipe. I'm going to trade off between a Recipe and Flylady.

Bob is looking at being home more  as the weather changes and work on the river slows down. So there will be less cash-flow and I'll be making use of what's on hand for most meals. As we are fast approaching National Novel Writing Month, I see a lot of crock pot meals in our future. 

Do you have a go-to crock pot recipe? I'd love to know. Please share!

Enjoy the Journey!

WEIGH IN 9-18-17

185/169/135

And I'm back up. Well, all things considered I am not surprised. I spent three days in Springfield with my sister last week. Springfield always includes food. 

Wednesday night we went to The Hill.  This is an all you can eat Italian buffet with foods similar to what you would find in The Hill district of St. Louis.... Little Italy if you will. I take a little of this and a little of that. One dish I love is their cheese ravioli in a mushroom/ wine sauce. Man, is that dish rich and full of flavor. I also tried the Tiramisu cake. Kitty was done eating and had her dessert but I gave her a taste of mine.. next thing I know she's asking our waitress, Andrea, for a new fork and was going after her own piece. LOL yeah.. the food is THAT good.

We went to Colton's Steakhouse for lunch on thursday. Just something light to hold us til dinner.I ordered the Honey BBQ Boneless wings. Kitty ordered the catfish and we shared an order of Onion Tanglers:

For dinner, she indulged my desire for seafood. We went to Hemingway's Blue Water Cafe in Bass Pro. While you won't see it on their menu, on Thursday nights they up the price of their buffet if you want the all you can eat crab legs. I am a sea food fanatic.

 I know the calories in sea food are high but I don't get to this treat in Springfield as often as it sounds by my blog posts. ;-)

She left Friday morning and I hung over an extra day to finish my errands. Friday night I had crab legs and mussels in black bean sauce at Asian King - my favorite Chinese buffet in Springfield. I will tell you this. I've read some of the reviews on yelp and I'm not sure we are eating at the same place. My servers are always smiling and friendly, the food is always good... though some days are better than others but I chalk that up to whomever is in the kitchen. Face it, some people are better at their job than others. The complaint about waiting for crab legs is legit. But that is not the only thing coming out of the kitchen and they expect you to eat other things on the buffet. One thing that would be helpful is if some people would show consideration and not pile their plate with legs as I as possible so that only 2 or 3 people get crab legs while the rest of us wait for the next round. Show some courtesy, people!

While I do eat at a lot of buffets, I am able to step away before the point of misery. I have decent self-control. It isn't the quantity that raises the scale but the types of food. And they are treats.

While in Springfield I went out to a thrift store I'd been in several months ago. They are in a strip mall across the street from my dental office. When I was their last time, they had a Tony Little Gazelle. Like a nitwit, I gave away my knock off- cloud walker several years ago, thinking I'd use the treadmill more and we didn't have room for everything. I've regretted that decision a hundred times over and wanted a replacement. This time, the treadmill is going!

While they didn't have the Gazelle I'd looked at before, they had gotten one in the day before. The price for this piece of equipment ranges from $175-$229 new. I picked this one up for $8.88 before Senior discount. I thought maybe those numbers were a code but the team member assured me that was the price! Umm... load me up please!  

Here's a YouTube video taking you through an entire work-out, with Tony!

Wednesday, I'll be back to show you what I accomplished in the Living Room yesterday. Flylady is keeping me on track and motivating me to GET THINGS DONE so I can decorate and enjoy the holidays.

Whatever's on track for your week.... Enjoy the Journey!

Kelly

WEIGH - IN

185/178/135

As you can see, I'm down a pound from last week.

Bob came home on Wednesday night and we did our weigh-in on Thursday. I hadn't changed from the initial (even though I fluctuated 2 pounds the whole time he was gone!) He went up 2 pounds. So with no loss for either of us, the next time he goes out will be worth $200.  As it looks right now he won't be going back out until early March. 

I didn't get the impression for my permanents. The top gum area is still shrinking. Maybe in February.  In the mean time, I'm trying to use them more. Some foods are still an issue. I could probably eat some of them if I chewed with my mouth partially open but I've always thought that to be really gross... since about the 2nd grade. I keep trying new foods.

We went to Colton's yesterday and I tried a salad. If I could have chewed with my mouth open, I might have been able to make it work but trying to eat with my mouth closed, I couldn't get the lettuce positioned correctly and I kept trying NOT to strangle on it. When I explained to the manager (via typing a note on my phone as I was still trying not to choke) my issue she was kind enough to swap it for a different side option of my choice... that I could eat. 

And so the Journey continues... 

Enjoy YOUR Journey!

WEEKLY PLAN - Week 9 & 10

Okay... so these two weeks haven't been perfect.
Bob and I made a weekend trip to Springfield, which usually involves food. While it is possible to eat out and stay on target, sometimes you just choose not to. I'm not saying we went overboard - okay one night. And by myself I could have done without but sharing dessert was better than the alternative other than just not ordering one at all.

We ate at Red Robin. I have fallen in love with this place. They have THE BEST burgers. Their Campire sauce is amazing. I'm allergic to Heinz Ketchup - which sadly is what most restaurants offer and why I don't eat a lot of fries. But this Campfire sauce is a blend of Ranch and Catalina dressing. Yum!

Then this dessert - the Mountain High Mud Pie-  is the cherry on top.

Bob saw one delivered to a neighboring table and decided we needed to share one. I'm not big on ice cream - I've determined this is a 'guy' thing. But the oreo cookie crust and the caramel sauce was reason enough for me to help him eat this cold and creamy mound of calories. 

Thanks to their handy dandy Customizeable menu & nutrition calculator I know the Whiskey River Burger came in at 1408 calories while the killer dessert rounded out at 1372.  I did eat a few fries, though I'm not a fry person either. I eat maybe 5 or 6 then I'm done. But their sauce is what makes them the best. There are 

With their customizeable menu calculator you can find out what your items total based on whether you add or leave something off. 

Over the course of days of eating out I only gained 1 pound so wasn't too upset. Bob and I only do this kind of thing once a month - sometimes only once very 2 months. The rest of the time we eat at home and keep each other on task.

This next week will be interesting. I'm on the road to Linden Texas where I'm covering the Texas Music Awards. I love my job! I will be trying to curb spending as much as possible. Since I will have a microwave in the hotel room I plan to stick to my Lean Cuisine meals whenever possible. I have Morning Glory muffins (Recipe coming tomorrow) as well as my coffee and plenty of bottled water. Though I will have to try some local foods. I hope to do lots of walking so that will help.We'll see what happens. 

188/189/135

Enjoy the Journey