When Did I get Voted Off of Skinny Island #2: Castaway's Land Ho!!!!

[indimom]

I'm just curious - does your family eat a lot of green beans? Don't take this the wrong way - it seems like a quart a week is a lot. Of course, I only like green beans fresh out of the garden and raw, so what do I know? Do you can other veggies too?
Actually, they do like green beans. And honestly, we are all Big Eaters. So a quart would probably only make one meal for the four of us with some sort of meat... And, nope, I didn't take it the wrong way at all. If someone told me they canned spinach, I'd be like . That's only good fresh in a salad, IMO.
We had a nice garden this year, everything grew really well. Much better than last summer.
We froze sweet corn (more than green beans, but I lost count) and zucchini (maybe 12 qt or so?).
We haven't harvested the potatoes or carrots yet, we let them go as long as possible, then put them in a potato bin in the barn at my parents' house. We had enough last year to carry us through to about May. This year's harvest looks about as good.
We canned stewed tomatoes (for soups,etc), and my mom put up some salsa and spaghetti sauce. We had a LOT of tomatoes this year. YUM!
We also grew cucumbers and cantelope. Last year I canned dill pickles, but we don't use a lot, still had 12qt left, so I didn't can any more this year. Mom canned some bread and butter pickles.
We also grow peppers and have kept some frozen, but they are only good for adding to other things, not eating by themselves.
Dad also planted radishes, but he and DH are the only one who will eat them.
We froze several qts of shredded zucchini for zucchini bread and sliced zucchini for zucchini bake (this was a trial run, but I think it worked out really well).
Oh, and we have wild blackberries at my parents. Froze several gallon bags of those also.
DD and I love asparagus and brussel sprouts, which the boys are NOT fans of. I've never grown asparagus or brussel sprouts, but I may give it a try next summer. I can probably freeze brussel sprouts, but doubt the asparagus would be very good canned or frozen, I've only eaten it fresh.


How did you prepare the zuchini w/ parmesan? I just acquired 4 small ones and would love to try them in a different way. Most of the time I just make zuchinni bread.

I just slice it in little 1/4" circles (I don't peel it, but you could if you don't like it), spread it out on a cookie sheet or similar, spray with 0 calorie butter spray, sprinkle it with parmesan to taste (I like a lot, so I go a little overboard here). Then I put it in the oven or toaster oven on 375 until the parmesan is crispy/browned and most of the liquid has baked off (maybe 30 minutes or so??). I'm definitely loving this right now.
My mother swears you have to par-boil the zucchini first, but I never have and it tastes fine to me?? Hope you like it.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Wow! That's awesome! I imagine it would save a lot of money on veggies!
When you do the tomatoes for sauce, do you have to blanch, peel and de-seed them? Sounds like a lot of work.
I'm always impressed with people who do all that canning!! When I was a kid, my mom used to do dill pickles, but she usually had to get the cucumbers from the farmer's market because we could never grow enough. I think she did tomatoes too.
The zucchini recipe sounds great. I'm going to try it. I even have a chunk of parm in my fridge, so I can grate it fresh! Thank you for sharing.

 

[Duchie]

Here's the same pic I posted on FB for those that didn't see it:

I think it looks cute! Finding the right hairdresser is hard! If it goes right, you'll have a wonderful long-term relationship. But if not.... whooo!

 

[indimom]

Wow! That's awesome! I imagine it would save a lot of money on veggies!
When you do the tomatoes for sauce, do you have to blanch, peel and de-seed them? Sounds like a lot of work.
Yeah, it's not that bad, but it's more time consuming than stewing. (You notice which option we chose?) We run most of our canning like a factory line, one person does the first step, passes to the next, passes on, etc. We also used two pressure cookers at the same time, which makes it quicker (although the kitchen gets pretty hot).
I'm always impressed with people who do all that canning!! When I was a kid, my mom used to do dill pickles, but she usually had to get the cucumbers from the farmer's market because we could never grow enough. I think she did tomatoes too.
We only started canning again last year. Before that, my parents hadn't gardened in about 10 years. DH and I had a couple small gardens, but it was harder when the kids were little. We couldn't keep up with it like we would have liked to. They were always a little sad and pathetic. Now that the kids are older, they help too. It's been fun watching them learn the process. They were pretty ignorant before last year.
My parents are now retired, and my dad is a real work-aholic, so he enjoys puttering around in the garden. He installed an electric fence to keep the coons, rabbits and deer at bay after their first visits last year. And a couple days early in the season this year, he went through the beans removing bean beetles and smashing them. Not my idea of a good time.
The garden would not have come out half so well without him doing these little extras. It's his own challenge and it gives him some work to do. He was a general contractor and very active and I think he hates being retired/just sitting around.
The zucchini recipe sounds great. I'm going to try it. I even have a chunk of parm in my fridge, so I can grate it fresh! Thank you for sharing.

Your welcome. Enjoy!

 

[Duchie]

Kind of a scary day here today.....

Got an email earlier from my youngest DS's elementary school. There was a group of kids who were approached on the way to school today by a man who then tried to make them get in his car. DS was on safety patrol and the boys ran by him and told him about it, so he went and told his teacher.

The email from the school also referenced a similar incident last Saturday in a nearby area. I just learned that one of the boys approached in that incident was one of my Webelos Scouts.

Everyone is fine, all the kids (in both incidents) did the right thing. But still, this is hitting a little too close to home for me.

Maybe I'll drive DS to school for a while, rather than let him ride his bike.

 

[bunkkinsmom]

Ditto on the creme brulee cakes!

Tracking:

Breakfast: Lean Pockets Sausage and Cheese
Lunch: Chicken and Roast Beef Sandwich Thin w/ RF Provolone
Dinner: Homemade Tuna Casserole
Desert: Sugar Free Jello Pudding

Total: 1362

September 2 DONE!

 

[2_Eagle_Mom]

PixiePlanner – maybe they will all forget about the Zingers and you can put them in a food barrel for a food drive.

Sheree – I have a fantastic recipe for zucchini. Cut them into strips (like fries) dip them in fat free ranch dressing, roll them in bread crumbs and bake at 350 till lightly browned. Even my kids (who hate most veggies) will eat them. They are messy to make, but OH SO YUMMY!

Barb – how scary for you. Hopefully some of the training that you’ve given your scouts about how to handle situations helped. Might be a good topic of conversation at your next meeting.

Did pretty good here today.

Breakfast: yogurt and blueberries
Lunch: tuna with spinach salad
Snack: dried apricot (won’t be having those again, WOW what a lot of calories)
Dinner: spaghetti, banana bread
Dessert: Skinny cow ice cream sandwich

September 2 DONE - VEGGIES DONE!

I guess it’s a good thing I held off on the starches for breakfast and lunch.

We did go to the Y tonight and I did 35 minutes on the treadmill. I increased my speed while running to 5.5 but then only did 4 minutes total. My heart rate just didn’t go back down during the walking and when I ran it went WAY off the scale so I didn’t want to push my luck. I think next time I’m actually going to take my swimsuit and after doing the treadmill go and do some easy laps in the pool to cool off.

 

[gellybean]

As for our routine, I'm wondering when it's going to start. This is the second week of school and most days I feel like I"m running around like the proverbial headless chicken. Every night this week we have had something going on, be it meet the teacher night or Scouts or whatever. It has made dinners very challenging and we've had to resort to fast food, leftovers, sandwiches, or whatever else I could throw together fast.

I had a funny little incident the other night. I was at parent night at the school. I was sitting next to a friend of mine that I haven't seen in a few months. At one point she mentioned that she noticed I had lost weight. Then she looked at me all serious like and said, "Are you OK?" I was puzzled and said, "Um.... yes?" Then it dawned on me what she meant was whether I was losing it because I was sick. I laughed and assured her that this was all very much on purpose. She laughed and said, "Oh good! Then I'm very happy for you!" It was really sweet and funny all at the same time.

That's awesome ! I don't know if I would have known how to take that!

I hear ya on the routine thing. It's been crazy on our end too and I only have one child in school and we aren't in Cub Scouts for that very reason. It took over EVERYTHING! to you for juggling it all!

Much better food choice day yesterday. I just listened to my DS9's advice - "Make smart choices, Mom". From the mouth of babes....

My 7 yr old saw the bowl of soup I had for lunch today and said "Wow that's a huge bowl of food!" After I scowled at him he was like, I just meant you must have been really hungry Mom.

AHEM

It was an 8 pt bowl of Stuffed Cabbage Soup that hubby made, with hamburger meat and rice and cabbage. Very filling and all I had for lunch. But apparently the soup bowl I had it in made it look HUGE!

Out of the mouths of babes, indeed!

Whew!!

It's been a busy (and slightly stressful) couple of days.

We had two of my nieces (aged 3 and 5) over for a bit of a stay the last couple of days and it's been rather LOUD and chaotic at my house with twice as many kids as usual.

Not that there was an misbehaviour (other than a little too much energy after lights out) but it's been interesting, to say the least.

The 3 year old only made it one night, so DH had to drive her home last evening (it's 2 hours round trip) and I'm bringing the 5 year old home in an hour. When I called my sister to let her know, she was upset that it was such a bother to us to make an extra trip. She thought we should just make the little one tough it out.

But she was CRYING for her mom! What could we do? And when we told the 5 year old that we were bringing them both home she started crying AND OUR TWO JOINED IN!! She loves sleep overs and had been ecstatic to learn that she was staying two nights in a row!! And the kids have been looking forward to this all summer long so it was quite a blow to them to learn it was going to be called off.

Anyway, Randy offered to make the trip last night if I would make the one this morning. As I was doing this in the first place, it made no difference to me. We told the kids and there were smiles all around but the little one had her shoes on and was practically out the door within five seconds. Too funny!! Good thing I didn't take it personally.

Consequently, I used up most of my remaining flex points last night on popcorn and leftover pizza but called it quits with about three points to spare. Close one. And yet, I know something has changed since I began this thread because:

A) I don't feel guilty at all for using up my flex points and I always used to hate myself for doing it at the beginning.

B) I stopped before they were truly ALL gone and didn't just throw caution to the wind and pig out as I felt the urge to do.

C) I didn't feel the same emotional connection between the stress and the stress eating as I've done in the past. I still ate in response to the feeling, but if was more out of habit than out of feeling the "need" for it, if that makes any sense.

So, I'm totally fine with last night, although slightly nervous that I'm up the creek without a paddle if I feel stressed again this week. I don't have many exercise points to use up so I'll have to either resist or go over and going over is NOT an option so I guess I'd better only engage in zen activities until Monday.

I remember being the kid crying to go home to see my mom! Y'all did the right thing. Hoping things settle down for you guys!

Sounds like you are really turning some pages in this journey we call weight loss! Super proud of you!

Good morning, all!

Dawn- I tried the creme brulee quakes...there was only one bag left on the shelf!! They ARE yummy! Thanks for the heads up


Ok so now I'm gonna have to try those puppies!


Aimee- I love your haircut, very cute!


Thanks! It's growing on me. Both literally and figuratively!

Okay day here yesterday. Piper's lung function is down to 48%, we're going to give it a couple weeks on a different inhaled antibiotic and see what happens. Dr Froh did say that her lungs didn't SOUND horrible, so that's a positive.

Glad there was some positive news out of your visit!

She & the Nutritionist were both on board with cutting Piper's cals and continuing the exercise to try and get some of the extra weight off.


I bet the nutritionist is gonna give y'all lots of great information. I learned a lot from mine (and thought I knew a lot already when I went to her )
when I had gestational diabetes!

Exercise- Walked 4 miles.

4 miles!!??

That's awesome!

He noticed they weren't put away because when I left they were still in the bag. When I got home, they were sitting on the table. Did he realize I was angry? I'm sure he didn't... noticing emotions is not his forte. However, I do stand corrected. There was only one box of Zingers; the other was a box of Scooby Snacks... still junk but atleast they're more along the size of a Teddy Grahm.

Noticing emotions aren't many men's fortes I don't think. But at least he noticed you didn't put them away. Maybe it rang a bell somewhere in his subconscious!

Bad, Bad day yesterday No one to blame but myself. I had to run over an hour away to get supplies for my business and took my Mom which is fine but we always go out for lunch. Anyways I figured we would go to McD's (as it is really the only thing around where we go) and if you remember my comment from the other day I love thier salads. Well Mom is a health nut and I figured I would be safe with her. Well didn't she say, you know I feel like some fries and a hamburger. I could have easily said fine and gotten myself a salad but I didn't, I caved, I got a double hamburger, small fries and a coke zero. As I was standing waiting I looked at the nutritional info. Big mistake...almost 600 cals total. I caved in... then later she wanted an ice cream also from McD's so I had an ice cream...then when I got home hubby didn't want the pork chops that he had pulled out for dinner so off we went for Mexican I think if people were trying to test me yesterday I failed badly. It is healthy for the rest of the week. It is my nephew's b-day on the weekend so I will have a small piece of cake but that is it. Why is it you think, okay I can have this for lunch and then have a lighter dinner and I will be okay and then whamo things don't work out as planned? AAAGGGHHHH! Okay I feel better now and I better get back to work.

We all have days like this. Weeks even. The worst thing you can do is let the guilt consume you and roll you into more bad days!

Channel your inner Scarlet. We're all gonna have bad days! It's the long haul that counts!

Kind of a scary day here today.....

Got an email earlier from my youngest DS's elementary school. There was a group of kids who were approached on the way to school today by a man who then tried to make them get in his car. DS was on safety patrol and the boys ran by him and told him about it, so he went and told his teacher.

The email from the school also referenced a similar incident last Saturday in a nearby area. I just learned that one of the boys approached in that incident was one of my Webelos Scouts.

Everyone is fine, all the kids (in both incidents) did the right thing. But still, this is hitting a little too close to home for me.

Maybe I'll drive DS to school for a while, rather than let him ride his bike.

HOLY CARP Barb! That's nuts and very scary! I reinforced with DS7 AGAIN what to do if something like that happens. Hopefully all the parents will be extra vigilant when around the school and keep their eyes peeled!

I think it looks cute! Finding the right hairdresser is hard! If it goes right, you'll have a wonderful long-term relationship. But if not.... whooo!

Thanks!!! I'm scared to start trying people. It's one thing to waste 12 bucks on a bad cut, another thing to waste 60!

But it's a necessary evil. I've been back in ATX for 4 years now. IT's TIME!

Sheree – I have a fantastic recipe for zucchini. Cut them into strips (like fries) dip them in fat free ranch dressing, roll them in bread crumbs and bake at 350 till lightly browned. Even my kids (who hate most veggies) will eat them. They are messy to make, but OH SO YUMMY!

YUM!!!! I love fried zucchini unfortunately. I'm gonna have to try these. Have you ever tried it with summer squash?



I guess it’s a good thing I held off on the starches for breakfast and lunch.

We did go to the Y tonight and I did 35 minutes on the treadmill. I increased my speed while running to 5.5 but then only did 4 minutes total. My heart rate just didn’t go back down during the walking and when I ran it went WAY off the scale so I didn’t want to push my luck. I think next time I’m actually going to take my swimsuit and after doing the treadmill go and do some easy laps in the pool to cool off.

Good idea about bringing your suit and getting a swim in after your treadmill workout! and smart thinking not pushing yourself on the running business!



Things are going pretty well on my end. 4th day in a row tracking and staying within my points! Haven't used flex at all. I'm trying to save them for Sunday. We're driving to San Antonio to eat at my brother's new restaurant. Chips and salsa will kill me I know. So saving up and planning ahead!

School is settling in some for DS7. I'm enjoying being in a routine again and getting up in the morning hasn't been too awful. The fact that I lay back down for a morning nap with DS2 is probably helping, but man is it screwing up my evening sleep pattern. More time to DIS though right?


Tonight on the way home DH called me as he usually does and we were talking football and work and stuff and all the sudden he starts cursing loudly and I'm thinking there's a cop behind him or he has a flat or something and he's all squealing "There's a baby lizard in my sleeve, there's a baby lizard in my sleeve!"




Mr. 6'5 big ol tough boy was scared of a little lizard.

Apparently in the process of trying to get it out of his sleeve, he damaged it behind repair. The little lizard met his maker. Which I think skeeved him out even more having a dead lizard in his sleeve.

I met him at the car when he got home to switch the carseat between vehicles for tomorrow and he was still shivering with the heebie jeebies!





Thought I'd share!

Have a good weekend everyone!!! College football started today!

You'll probably hear more about this from me than you want to! I'm a huge Texas Longhorns Fan! HOOK em!


Night y'all!

 

[hanutedmansionmomma]

Just doing a drive by to say TGIF!!!

Looking forward to a nice long weekend - lots of exercise and water

Got accepted into a group thru health insurance plan at work for weight loss; 10 weeks, you have blood drawn pre/post, watch videos, online counselor to talk to...could this possibly work? Could I break the 5 pound barrier??

 

[tebi73]

Woo hoo! I had a good food day again yesterday. However, I feel like a little bloated toad frog this morning. I think it's the combination of lots of salad and then Wendy's chili too late last night. Maybe lots of water today will help that.

My boys (DH & DS) will be gone to the eastern part of the state this weekend, so I get some nice quiet ME time! I have to work on printing and matting 5 of my photos and 3 of DS's photos to enter in the fair next week, so that will take up a little of my time.

Tracking for yesterday...

Thursday, September 2nd...
Bfast: Turkey & Cheese Sandwich (403)
Lunch: Lean Cuisine 3-Cheese Chicken & Broccoli, Huge Salad (360)
Dinner: Wendy's Baja Salad no dressing (630)

Total Cals: 1393

SEPTEMBER 2ND DONE
VEGGIES DONE

 

[PixiePlanner]

Tracking for yesterday:

B-fast: Breakfast burrito
Lunch: Grilled Chicken Ponyshoe- I was sssoooooo bad!
Dinner: Grilled Chicken, Tater Tots, Corn, fresh tomato & banana peppers
Snack: Small bowl of cereal
Drinks: 2 Diet cokes, 24oz of water & 8oz of 1% milk

9/2/10 tracking DONE
9/2/10 veggies DONE

I had a lunch meating yesterday and couldn't resist the temptation to have a ponyshoe. Anyone ever come thru the Springfield area, horseshoes (the full size version) are a must try at least once. The dish originated here in Spfld supposedly. It is all about the cheese sauce if you ask me. Dublin Pub has a good one too. Yum... Yes it was probably a day's worth of calories in a lunch but I will not have another one for a long time.

Again, another victory last night. DS & DD both did not ask for those stupid zingers! DS actually went in the pantry to see what we had! He chose 2 Swedish fish & a small bowl of grapes as his snack instead! Then DD said, "That's what I want too." Yeah! Maybe DH will learn from this? I can hope!

 

[stayhomemom77]

Another recipe from WW online Canada:

Poached Salmon with cucumber dill sauce

POINTS® Value: 7
Servings: 4
Preparation Time: 15 min
Cooking Time: 12 min
Level of Difficulty: Moderate

Use a foot-long English cucumber or pickling cucumber in this recipe—they have fewer seeds and are less watery.


Ingredients

1 medium cucumber(s), seedless
1 small onion(s), red, peeled and thinly sliced
1/4 cup(s) red wine vinegar
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp table salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 Tbsp dill, fresh, minced or 1 tsp dried
1 medium garlic clove(s), minced
1 1/2 tsp horseradish sauce
3 cup(s) vegetable broth
3/4 cup(s) wine, white, dry
1/2 item(s) lemon(s), cut into 3 slices
2 Tbsp dill, or 4 sprigs
1 1/4 pound(s) Atlantic salmon fillet(s), four 5 oz fillets
8 oz plain fat-free yogurt
1 Tbsp capers, optional
Instructions
• To make sauce, cut cucumber in half lengthwise; scrape out any seeds. Cut halves diagonally into very thin slices; place in a large bowl with onion. Add vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Drain cucumbers. Into yogurt, stir dill, garlic and horseradish. Stir yogurt mixture into cucumbers. Chill in refrigerator.
• In a deep skillet, bring stock, wine, lemon and dill to boil. Reduce heat; simmer liquid 5 minutes to blend flavours. Add salmon, cover and simmer until just cooked through, about 9 minutes per inch of thickness. Using two spatulas, transfer salmon to individual plates.
• Spoon sauce alongside salmon. Garnish with lemon wedges, dill sprigs and capers, if desired.

 

[indimom]

9/2/10
Breakfast: cream of wheat, grapefruit, coffee. 6pts.
Lunch: grilled chicken, salad, corn. 7pts.
Dinner: beef stroganoff (lite). 10 pts.
Snack: cheerios. 3pts.
Total: 26pts.
Excercise: 3 miles.
Water: 70 oz.

9/2/10 DONE
VEG DONE

 

[bunkkinsmom]

Tracking for 9/3

Breakfast: LC Breakfast Quesadilla
Lunch: Shredded Beef Burrito w/ Chips and Salsa
*** I DIDN"T EAT THE RICE AND BEANS!!! YAY!!!***
Dinner: half of Steak and Shake Grilled Chkn Salad

Total 1338

Tracking 9/3 DONE!!

 

[lizzyb5280]

Hey gang! Just a quick hello while I'm waiting on pizza to get here. (FWIW, mine is thin crust white pizza with spinach, onion, and tomatoes - my new regular!) DH's grandma came home from the hospital today! They got her biopsy back yesterday, and it is definitely cancer, but they didn't get enough tissue to determine what type. She has elected to do chemo and radiation as long as she can tolerate it, so hopefully that can get rid of most of the mass, and at least get her through the end of the year.

Doing mostly well on making good food choices. Going to try to keep busy this weekend - more to do means less time to eat!

 

[indimom]

9/3/10
Breakfast: cream of wheat, grapefruit, coffee. 6pts.
Lunch: chicken sandwich, brussel sprouts, banana. 8pts.
Dinner: 0 (Went straight from work to running yard sale, so no time)
Snack: popcorn. 8 pts.
Total: 22pts.
Excercise: 0 Again, no time.
Water: 50 oz.

Not my best day. Have to work a little harder tomorrow, but since we're running the yard sale most of the day, I don't know how I'll do. We'll see.
On the upside, we brought in $111.00 tonight! Woo Hoo!

9/3/10 DONE
VEG DONE

 

[tebi73]

Tracking for yesterday...

Friday, September 3rd...
Bfast: 1-1/2 Breakfast Burrito from McD's (450)
Lunch: 1/2 serving Chicken Fajitas, 3/4 of a chimichanga, salad (529)
Dinner: Penne w/ Marinara Sauce, tossed salad w/ ranch (580)

Total Cals: 1559

SEPTEMBER 3RD DONE
VEGGIES DONE

 

[stayhomemom77]

WW Online Canada recipe of the day:

Chocolate Pudding

POINTS® Value: 2
Servings: 4
Preparation Time: 12 min
Cooking Time: 4 min
Level of Difficulty: Moderate

Don't toss the yolks! Whip up a special treat that makes use of the yellow part.


Ingredients

2 1/4 cup(s) fat-free skim milk
2/3 cup(s) unsweetened cocoa, powder
1/3 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp table salt
1 large egg yolk(s)
1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
• In a large, heavy nonstick saucepan, bring milk, cocoa, sugar, cornstarch and salt to a boil over medium-low heat, stirring constantly for 2 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, lightly beat the egg yolk.
• Whisk in 1 tablespoon of the cocoa mixture; whisk the egg yolk mixture back into the remaining cocoa mixture, whisking constantly.
• Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, 2 minutes. Do not let mixture boil. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
• Pour pudding into 4 dessert bowls or 1 serving bowl. Refrigerate, covered, until chilled, at least 1 hour.

 

[stayhomemom77]

Further proof I'm doing something right:

Yesterday, in my laziness I neglected to ensure that DS had a veggie with his lunch (pb&j sandwich). Once he finished his "entree" he declared, "okay Mommy! I'm ready for my carrots now."

I was sort of taken aback quite frankly and stammered out, "why do you need carrots?"

"Because I need to have a vegetable with lunch," he replied. "You know, because it's healthy."



Out of the mouth of babes!!

I won't forget to give him his ENTIRE lunch next time.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Further proof I'm doing something right:

Yesterday, in my laziness I neglected to ensure that DS had a veggie with his lunch (pb&j sandwich). Once he finished his "entree" he declared, "okay Mommy! I'm ready for my carrots now."

I was sort of taken aback quite frankly and stammered out, "why do you need carrots?"

"Because I need to have a vegetable with lunch," he replied. "You know, because it's healthy."



Out of the mouth of babes!!

I won't forget to give him his ENTIRE lunch next time.

He's doing better than I am!!