Girl's Weekend

Last weekend, three of my girlfriends and I rented a cabin in Brown County, Indiana. It just so happened to be the same weekend as the "Taste of Brown County."




We arrived in Brown County a few hours before it was time to check in, so we decided to find somewhere to have a drink. We ended up at the Big Woods Brewery. Leslie and Macy shared a "flight" of 6 beers, while Kim and I each ordered something a bit safer (I think it was something about a Yellow Dwarf).



After checking into our cottage and enjoying a couple of drinks, we decided to head back to town for the "Downtown Getdown." They had advertised drink and food specials at several restaurants, but after a brief stop at the Chateau Thomas winery, we decided to head back to the brewery.












The brewery was packed, so we settled for the Big Woods Pizza Company (owned by the same people). We had a nice dinner with lots of laughs before heading back to the cabin for s'mores and a soak in the hot tub.






We were in no rush to get out of the cabin on Saturday. We woke up and made brunch and mimosas before heading out to the "Taste of Brown County."







Being able to participate in the tasting was a lot of fun. I think my favorite thing was this strawberry shortcake:




It had all the normal elements of a great strawberry shortcake, plus a layer of "fluff" - powdered sugar, cream cheese, cinnamon and nutmeg. It was delicious! We also tasted bacon caramel corn (it was okay), lavender lemonade, chocolate dipped strawberries, fried biscuits with apple butter, hummus, steak tacos, sangria and more. It was a great deal and a lot of fun! After a full day of eating, we took a nice drive through the state park before heading back to our cabin for some more fun.




On Sunday, we cleaned up the cabin and headed a few miles north to the outlet malls. It was a wonderful weekend - exactly what this tired momma needed. There is just something to be said about women and their friends. There is no other bond like it and I couldn't be more grateful for ALL of the wonderful friends in my life. I laughed, I cried, and I pray that we are able to do it all again.

Here are some more pictures from the weekend.

Back on Track

I'm finally back! The girls and I had an amazing weekend in Brown County, but since returning, I've had a hard time getting back on track. I've gone to the grocery and prepared some meals to get me through the week. Once again, I see what happens when I get out of my routine. It's almost as if I just stop thinking. But those days are over and I'm back to being accountable. The weekend was a wash. Between the awesome brewery that we found, the bottles of wine we consumed and the "Taste of Brown County," I'm praying I didn't gain any weight when I weigh in on Friday. This week hasn't been all bad, but it hasn't been all good either (food wise that is....I'm enjoying every second of my vacation). Here's my meal tracker for today.




I also had strawberries with lunch and dinner and a slice of cheese (2 pts) and crackers (2 pts) for a snack. I'm under my daily points target for today. I'm considering having a cup of sherbet (6 pts.) but am holding off for now.

I earned 5 activity points by walking 2.3 miles through the zoo this morning.

Life Otherwise

There is more to my life than just following Weight Watchers, but not much more than spending my time with this sweet girl. She is in the throes of the terrible twos. She can be the sweetest, most loving child and then turns into a little monster out of nowhere! Tonight, she had to go to time-out because she keeps trying to lick me and was spitting. Last night, she sat at the dinner table for about an hour until she decided to take ONE BITE of chicken. I don't want to force food on her if she's not hungry, but when she's devouring goldfish and not touching her chicken, something's gotta give! I'm leaving her for the longest period of time ever this weekend. I'm packing up and heading to Brown County on Friday with three of my best girls and won't be back until Sunday afternoon. I'll miss her (and her daddy) like crazy, but goodness, I need a break!

This is our sweet Maggie. I just adore her. And so does Sophie. Sophie is so incredibly sweet and gentle with her. I love watching her "play" with her.

Tuesday tracking

Another solid day on plan.

Breakfast:
2 Banana Chocolate Chip Baked Oatmeal Singles - 6 pts.

Snack:
Special K Strawberry Cereal bar - 2 pts.

Lunch:
Spicy Sausage Pasta - 9 pts.
Strawberries - Free!
Oikos Strawberry Greek Yogurt - 3 pts.

Dinner:
Chips and Salsa (just can't help myself!) - 4 pts.
Spicy Sausage Pasta (trying to finish it off!) - 9 pts. 

A grand total of 33 points for the day. I still have a few left, so I might still help myself to a snack or glass of wine after the little one goes to bed. 

Weekly Weigh-In

I have decided to change my weigh-in day to Friday (used to be Monday - yuck!). I weighed myself this morning and have lost 3 pounds since Monday! It will be a good day!

Starting over, again

I have been on and off WW for more than a year now. When I first joined, I was enthusiastic. I counted every last point, tracked everything and met my initial short-term goals very quickly! All together, I've lost about 50 pounds with WW. The past several months have been stagnant. I haven't gained much weight, but I haven't lost it either. I've stayed in the same 8 pound range for a while. I'm frustrated with myself and I KNOW that I deserve better and that I can do better.

So, where does this leave me? Well, I am looking for a greater sense of accountability. My plan is to post what I eat every weekday for the month (I'll try for the weekends, too but I'm trying to be realistic). Not many people read this little blog of mine, but someone might and that someone might give me the accountability and encouragement I need to stay focused.

I have set a goal to lose 40 pounds by my birthday in August. That's 3 full months of tracking and exercising. We will see if I can stick to it this time.

My current daily Points Plus allowance is 38 points. Here's how today went for me.

Breakfast:
1 c. Special K Fruit & Yogurt Cereal (4 pts)
1/2 c. Skim Milk (1 pt)
1 serving Smart Ones Egg and Sausage Wrap (6 pts)
(I decided to eat more for breakfast than usual today so I wouldn't feel hungry early in the day. If I get hungry when I'm alone in my office, I'll snack on anything around without thinking about it. This was a good idea today.)

Lunch:
Trader Joe's No Guilt Mac and Cheese (7 pts)
Banana
Water

Dinner (my splurge for the week):
I met two of my girlfriend's at Chuy's for dinner. It's incredibly difficult to find nutritional info for Chuy's on-line. I'm not sure that what I found was accurate, but here goes. 
Chicken Combo (Chicken Chalupa and Chicken Fajita Soft Taco) - 14 pts
Texas Martini - I have no idea how many points this is.
Chips, salsa, queso, etc. - here's my downfall. I had my meal planned before I even got to the restaurant. But, that didn't stop me from indulging in a ridiculous amount of chips and dips (darn you nacho bar!). All that to say, that was definitely my splurge for the week.

My food total for the day was 32 (plus the Texas Martini and chips/dips). WW allows you to have 49 Weekly Points that you can either use at once or spread throughout the week. When I've been serious about tracking in the past, I would have a splurge meal, and just not use any of the weekly points. This worked for me and I lost weight. So, since I'm not really sure how much I went over my daily points allowance, my plan for the week is to not use any of the weekly points. If I go over  my points allowance for any day, I will have to earn activity points in its place. I know this isn't the technical way that WW teaches, but it does work for me.

So there you have it. Day 1 of tracking and being accountable down.