Photo Story

We had a great time hosting a tea party for FIL's 90th birthday.  He lives in Wilmington, NC and we and all our progeny (kids, in-law kids, and grands) went there to help him celebrate.  Daughter Laura made this beautiful cake and it was possibly the best cake I've ever eaten.  Awesome.  I tried to limit myself, but suspect that this cake was largely responsible for the 2 pound gain my scale reported the day after the party!  (fortunately gone within a few days)

The grands (12, 10, 8, 4, and 2) worked on this banner and we think it turned out wonderfully well.

These are the world's best brownies.  The recipe was my grandmother's.  I made and froze 4 batches of these and never had even one until the birthday party.  Um, they might have also contributed to that 2 pounds.  But they're all gone now. :-)

We put son John in charge of the helium balloon kit.  He got them blown up and the kids were delighted to find places to attach them around the party room. (We had reserved the poolside party room at FIL's condo complex.)  Granddaughter Ella is eying the platter of scones as she looks for a place to tie her balloons.

Grandson Ben is a talented chess player.  His opponent was in his mid 90s, has played chess for decades and was surprised to lose 4 out of 5 games to a 10 year old.

After the party, the children gathered up all the balloons and took them outside.  No, they didn't let them go, they had fun popping them and disposed of them in the trash.

Laura gave the grands a push on this neat swing in a large Wilmington park (Greenfield Park).  They climbed trees (live oaks, I think), enjoyed the Spanish moss, saw an alligator in the lake, caught a small box turtle, and collected some large pine cones for future art projects.

DH and I love being surrounded by our gang of grandchildren.  We love each and every one!

More smiles!

Grandson Jack (almost 3) gets up close and personal with the little box turtle.  He waited patiently for it to come out of its shell and chortled when it scuttled into the water.

Granddaughter Jeannine scrambled right up this live oak.

We brought granddaughter Rose (8) back to Virginia with us.  We took her up to Lancaster County PA to a play about Jonah at the Sight & Sound theater there.  We drove through beautiful countryside and saw a dozen horse drawn vehicles.  There were also horses powering the farm machinery.  

The play was so well done.  It was a musical and the staging, special effects, and costuming were every bit as good as at plays I've seen in NY and at the Kennedy Center.  It was a fun day.

Rose loves to shop.  Here she is modelling an outfit we found at Kohl's.  Gotta love those 75% off racks!

Can you spot the dog in this picture??  I seem to be the only one in my family who has noticed the dog who is always out in this yard in our neighborhood.  Here's my photographic proof.  Remember, you can click on the picture to enlarge.

My new favorite meal.  Tish's Eggplant Parmesan .  I made up this recipe with what I had on hand one night and it's a definite keeper.  (lean ground turkey, lots of veggies, grilled eggplant, fresh mozzarella).  Only 275 calories per serving.  The recipe is in the RECIPE page in the sidebar to the right.

My little Nike+ is not reporting my running right now because the Nike+ site is being renovated.  But I'm doing really well with the running.  I ran 5 times last week, averaging just under 4.5 miles per run.  I'm running farther and faster which makes things better as I can allow an hour for transportation to and from plus the run rather than the hour and three quarters it took me for the same run a month and a half ago. I've been getting up early to accomplish my run before Rose wakes up and the other grands arrive.  The weather has been wonderful recently, but I noticed that the 90s and even a 100 degree day are in the 5 day forecast.

I'm not biking as much as I'd like now.  Mostly because Rose is not yet a confident biker and we don't leave her alone.  We'll get back to our long after-dinner rides in a few weeks.

I'm continuing to lose at my weigh-in's.  I'm down over 30 pounds since Christmas.  Happy days.  I've had some great "closet shopping" sessions and reclaimed some cute outfits that hadn't seen the light of day for over a year and a half.  I still have 23 pounds to lose to achieve my WW goal, but I feel confident that I'll get there.

Today is DH's and my 39th anniversary.  No big celebrations today, but we are very thankful for our wonderful life together.  We're hoping to get in a bike holiday weekend next month.  Maybe that will be our celebration!

Watching my Step(s)

I got a new pedometer for Christmas and am trying to join my sister and daughter in accumulating 10,000 steps a day. They are both champion steppers. I'm not, yet, but I'm getting there.

One of the hurdles I need to overcome is remembering to wear my pedometer every day. Another challenge is fnding it. One day this week I realized I hadn't put it on. I was pretty busy, but I ran back upstairs and did a quick search. No pedometer. I took little Jack up with me later and got him looking for it, too. He and I searched under the bed, on the bathroom counter, and on my closet floor. No ped that day. I think I got a goodly amount of steps, but have no record. The next day (still no ped) I was doing the last couple loads of laundry and I heard a thumping from the dryer. I did what I usually do in such a case and ignored it. You may be smarter than I am.  Yes.   My ped was washed (heavy duty cycle) and tumble dried for about 40 minutes. The amazing thing is . . . it works just fine! AND it registered 1472 steps on it's journey through the laundry!

I lost 3 pounds at my WI on Wednesday. I'm hoping to continue the trend this Wednesday. I made WW Classic Chicken Noodle Soup for dinner tonight and made an extra pot for Johnny's family. Soup is always welcome on a chilly day.

I'm going gangbusters on drinking my water. The 24 oz drinking bottle is working for me. I drink at least 9 cups a day and keeping so hydrated helps me keep on plan with my eating.

For your viewing pleasure:

Laura's family, DH, and Jay in Austin.  I was on the other side of the camera.

16 miles to report for last week--NOT counting the 1472 steps registered in the washer and dryer!  No more biking until the weather is a little lot warmer.  YTD=45 miles

Are you watching your step(s)?

This is the day!

I really like that children's song based on Psalm 118:24.  This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.  That's what I'm going to do doing today.

I got up early (for a Saturday) to let in the guy who's installing the last of our energy efficient windows.  The rest of the job was finished in early December, but they ordered one window the wrong size, so it's going in right now.  We're expecting unseasonably warm weather today, but let me tell you, at 7:30  this morning it was too cold to stay toasty-warm in the house with a large window-sized hole in the wall.  Thank goodness for the snugly wool socks my Laura gave me for Christmas!

Guess what DH and I are going to do today!  Here's a hint:   You got it.  We're going to take advantage of the great weather (near 60 is the predicted high) and go for a bike ride.  And I'm going to ride my "Pearlie."  DH gave me a road bike for Xmas last year, but with the winter weather and then my surgery in March,  I've only ridden it three times.  I mostly rode my hybrid bike this year because the road bike has the rider lean over the handle bars more and I was leery of stressing my neck where I had the surgery.  Now, though, I'm ready to ride Pearlie again.

I'm feeling good on the WW front.  I bought three 24 oz BPA-free water bottles at Costco yesterday.  I'm drinking 60+ oz of water a day and tracking my eating on the WW site.  Morning weight augers a happy face at my Wednesday WI.

Laura made applesauce during our Christmas vacation.  Amazingly easy, fast, delicious, AND fills the house with a wonderful aroma.  Here's the recipe:

Core and slice 10 Fuji Apples (Laura uses a mixture of several varieties) (one of those apple corer thingamajigs works well.  No need to peel the apple.
Fill a large pan with 1 inch of water. Bring water to a boil. Put apples in pan, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
Blend apples until desired consistency.  (I use my new immersion blender!--Cuisinart Smart Stick SB 77)
Add cinnamon (optional).
Serve warm or cold.
Oh, and ZERO WW points!

I'm making pork tenderloin tonight and Laura's applesauce is definitely on the menu.

See you soon, I'm going to get moving and continue rejoicing and being glad in this day!
(Tish is my nickname.  I love knowing that Tish, Tisha, and Ticia (as I spell it) mean "glad." I think my parents did well in naming me.)

So far, so good

Dashing in to report that things are going fine.  Things are busy, busy, busy here as I imagine they are in your house.  We're leaving tonight for Texas.  We're going to drive two long days and then rendezvous with our Laura and her family and with my brother who lives in Austin.  We've rented a house in Austin and will have a terrific time including a 5 day jaunt out to west Texas (Big Bend) over Christmas.  We have Christmas day dinner reservations at the Gage Hotel and have rented a large private home to accommodate our group of 10.

The angel cone choir awaiting their big moment!
The recipe is from Sandra Lee.  But I used melted
lifesavers for the halos.   Yes, edible.

Little Jack, aka The Eyelash King,
surveying his new fleet of vehicles.

Last week we hosted three Christmas gatherings at our house.  On Sunday I had my annual Christmas Tea Party for the little people in my life.  We were 11 total: a one year old,  2 twos, 2 fours, and a 6 plus 3 moms and 2 grandmas.  Iced cookies, angel cones, crustless little sandwiches, cranberry bars, green grapes, dried apricots, baby carrots, and cheese sticks.  Then on Wednesday we hosted a Christmas potluck for our couples' Bible Study.  A true potluck.  I made my Cooking Light Seafood Lasagna.  Then, yesterday, after church, we celebrated an early Christmas with our family here.  We opened presents and then had a light brunch with my scones and Tami's (Nutmeg Notebook) Sausage, Cheese, Egg Muffins (a new family favorite, great for a special occasion or for a grab-and-go breakfast).

Despite all the yummy food that came through our house in the past week, I've managed to lose just over two pounds in the past week and a half.  I missed my WW meeting last Wednesday, but my daily morning scale visit confirms the downward trend.  I'm hoping that the next two weeks, away from my everyday temptations and with a ratcheted-up level of exercise, will continue the trend.  Hiking in Big Bend and rental bikes on the beautiful bike paths in Austin.  Oh yes, gotta pack my biking shorts . . . .

Gotta go.  I promised DH that I'd have the car packed and ready to go by the time he got home from work.  The laundry is done (!) but I have to pack suitcases, load the cooler, remember all the electronic devices and their respective cords and chargers (2 phones, 2 ipads, kindle, garmin, 2 ipods, laptop and camera) and I have two little guys as "helpers" today!  LOL,  I'm counting on a good 3 hour nap for both of them today!

Go Away, Mr. Munch

It's that temptation time--a few hours after lunch, too soon to eat dinner and Mr. Munch is on the loose, knocking at the doors, peeping through the windows and trying to take over my house.  I've got the electric tea kettle turned on with some of my favorite tea (Bigelow Vanilla Caramel) almost ready and thought I'd come here to enlist your aid in my effort boot Mr. Munch out of the area.

The kiddos are having a snack (beautiful little baby carrots from Costco) and watching a Veggie Tale DVD.  I've made a bit pot of turkey noodle soup that's nearly ready (my chicken soup with noodles, but I made it with turkey and added some chopped collard greens and mushrooms this time).  I'm sifting through WW recipes for biscuits to go with it and think I settled on one that has some crisped turkey bacon added to the biscuit.  Oops, the kids are both finished with snack time.  We just read Epossumondas (by Coleen Salley) and now they're doing some parallel play with a big bunch of wooden blocks.  Ella is pretending her tiny doll is Rapunzel and is walling her up in a tower with only the yarns of her hair sticking out a tiny window.  Jack is building a more utilitarian garage for his little FedEx truck.  I love their imaginative play.

I had a good week last week, for the most part, and was rewarded with a 1.4 loss at my WI on Wednesday.   It has really helped me to track my eating.  I have to confess that even though I've been continuously enrolled in and a pretty faithful WW attendant, I'm still not really conversant with the points plus of the food that I eat.  Part of that is that I followed CORE for so long, but also, because I haven't tracked.  This spate of tracking is helping me.  I'm still trying to do mostly CORE--all my pasta and rice are whole grain.  I buy very little processed food and concentrate on the lean meats, fish & poultry and fruits and veggies still.  I have, though, decided to allow some previously verboten food to make it's way into our meals occasionally--bread (whole wheat thin Pepperidge farm), butter (light) used very sparingly, for flavor.  The difference with the past few months--when my weight chart looked a lot like the Dow Jones average, dramatic losses and then huge gains, all making for a fairly flat average--is that now I'm tracking those "extras" and fitting them into my daily and weekly points.  Amazingly, this works.  Biz--over a My Bizzy Kitchen is a great inspiration.  She posts her WW meals, with pictures and recipes, every day.  Her meals are fantastic, and she doesn't stint on using whatever she needs to make them, but she is doing a super job on her weight loss goals and is keeping healthy.  I'm enrolled in her latest challenge and have challenged myself to lose 20 pounds by Jan first.  Three and a half gone, 16.5 to go!

Oh, last week I suddenly remembered my wonderful baked apple recipe that my sister (hi Missy!) shared with me last fall.  Buy Fuji apples, core and slice them 8-12 slices per apple, layer them on a large cookie sheet (use foil for no clean up mess), sprinkle generously with cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes until they are tender.  These are great just for snacking on (NO points), wonderful on oatmeal, loved by the kiddos, and make a very nice dessert with a dab of fat free cool whip.  Try 'em, you'll like 'em!

DH has arrived home and is happily playing with the children.  DIL is due here any minute and then I'll get  those biscuits started and we'll eat in about 30 minutes.  I think Mr. Munch has taken a powder for the time being.  And, just to get all my boxes checked on my tracker (and, of course, because it's good for me) we'll go to the gym tonight

Stay tuned,

a Pinch of Salt--supermarket finds

I've posted before about the inevitable, disappointing temporary weight gain whenever I go out for Thai food or indulge in popcorn.  I haven't yet solved the Thai food out problem, but I'm thrilled with my new popcorn fix.

I make my popcorn in the Presto Power-Pop Microwave Popper, read this post for my review.  I still love it.  Until yesterday, I'd always used a sprinkle of Jolly Time Buttery Seasoning with the popcorn.  A quick look at the nutritional info disclosed that JTBS has a whopping 540 mg of sodium per 1/4 tsp serving.  That's what probably caused my temporary weight gain--a big jolt of salt.

Fast forward to Wednesday.  I went shopping at Wegman's, a huge, well-stocked grocery with Whole-Foods type merchandise.  I checked out their popcorn seasoning (usually located next to the popcorn) and found this!  Kernel Season's Popcorn Seasoning. 
 It came in two flavors, regular and white cheddar.  (The quoted price is for a pack of 6.)
Our friends at Amazon.com have five flavors.  Anyway, the white cheddar has 75 mg of sodium per 1/4 tsp serving, less than 1/6th the Jolly Time.

DH and I made popcorn last night.  We shared a batch.  The verdict?  Awesome!  We had the white cheddar.  It's a keeper.  I'm tossing the other high-salt brand in the trash.  Oh, and yes, both DH and I had a nice little loss from yesterday to today--who knew?  WW works if you really do it right!

The other low-sodium find was  Pacific Natural Low Sodium Chicken Broth.  I was delighted to find this at Costco.  They used to only have the regular (not low sodium).  I bought it because it was a good price.  When I checked out the nutrition info I was amazed.  My regular brand of low sodium chicken broth (Swanson) has 570 mg per cup.  The Pacific Natural has only 80 mg per cup.  This makes a big difference.  This is, by the way, also fat free, although it doesn't tout that info on the front of the box.   I'm a believer.  And, of course, our friends at Amazon have this available online in case you don't shop at Costco.

I use a lot of chicken broth in my OP cooking.  Tonight I made a herb crusted braised pork tenderloin with vegetables (carrots, parsnips, and celery).  I gladly added the 3/4 cup of required chicken broth and know I am well within my target sodium level. That recipe is from the recipes at WW online.  It was good.  I rated it a solid B.

If you're sensitive to high doses of sodium, you might give these a try.

I have no connection with any of the companies that make these products and they don't know that I exist.   I just like that they help me with my goal of healthy eating.

For your viewing pleasure.                                                      On a recent visit to Mount Vernon, I asked Jack to pose with the statue of one of George Washington's step-children.  Here he is trying to get the little boy statue to hold his hand.

Happy New Year, final Hot 100 Update

Happy New Year!  As an optimist, I always love that clean slate, full-of-promise feeling that comes with a brand new year.  I have not made resolutions or goals set down on paper yet, but this, for sure, is going to be the year I reach and stay at my goal weight (and maybe work on the procrastination issue!).  Last year had some ups and downs, but I weigh 20 pounds less today than I did one year ago.  That's progress.

After my gym workout on Thursday night, I swam.  I was able to add one more lap (both ways!) to my workout.  Yay.  Swimming does NOT come naturally to me.  I had a shoulder injury more than 10 years ago and think that some of the aches I've had recently are probably due to the swimming motions that involve that shoulder.  I'm taking it easy and a little bit at a time.  I was pleased to win a "sneak-race" with the man in the next lane.  [Sneak Race = spotting and racing someone who doesn't know s/he is in the race.]

J, trying to hold both his and E's new balls.  Note E's French braids.

We had the kids over last night so that the grands could open gifts.  Yes, yes, this is the Xmas I'm really behind.  They loved it anyway, perhaps moreso in spreading out the presents over a longer time.  Little J's favorites were a ball and a sweater with a big red fire engine on the front.  E loved her pink sweater with hearts and her new snow boots that light up when she steps.

For dinner I made an old fashioned roasted chicken (5 lb chicken, rub w/ olive oil & salt & pepper, roast in 500 degree oven for 1 hour--perfect every time), mashed potatoes, peas & corn, and, my new favorite, baked apples  (I've made these EVERY day since we returned).  We ended up not having dessert because the kids were very anxious to open their presents.  I confess, DH & I had WW latte bars after they left.

Capital Crescent Trail

Today DH and I are going to go on a long bikeride on the Crescent Trail.  Our temps are getting up to the mid 50s and we wanted to start the year off right and get some mileage in, too.

I'm back in the saddle with the new WW PointsPlus program.  A few small veerings off-course, but I just track them and use my generous allotment of weekly points.  Interestingly, my WW leader said that during her 2 month long trial of this program, before it was presented to us, she NEVER gave back any of her alloted points and still lost 4 pounds.  (remember, she was already at her goal weight).

My Hot 100 Update:  I did not reach my goal weight by today, but I am content that I did the best I could under trying circumstances.  I did firmly establish the 6/7 workouts per week plan--this feels just right to me.  Also, I think I have the chocolate under control. One ounce of dark chocolate per day, and I seem to be able to keep the remainder in the cupboard until it's needed.  Yay.  Thank you Steve for organizing this and keeping me accountable over the past few months.  I'll be back next year with a maintenance goal.

New thought.  Does anyone here have a Kindle?  I'm considering getting one.  We gave our daughter, Laura, one for Christmas.  I didn't realize it played games (scrabble, etc) until recently.  The other option is an iPad.  Ideas?  Comments?

Have a great day and a Very Happy New Year.

(my little bike rider next to my signature is from Andrew and is used with his blessing--thanks, Andrew)

Two Good Days--Is that a streak??

I'm loving the new WW plan.  I looked it up online and followed it the best I could yesterday.  Today I went to my WW meeting and heard the official introduction.  It has come at the perfect time for me.  I'm feeling strong and confident about being able to stay on plan and reach my goal weight and I haven't felt that way for a month or two.  This is all good.

I think I mentioned that I'm going to do the new program "PointsPlus" as written for a few weeks at least, before I go back to my "CORE" (Simply Filling) variation.  This means that I can eat whatever I choose as long as I stay within the daily points allowed (29--everybody I've met has 29 which is the fewest number of points allowed--oh, except for guys--they get more--about 36 I think).  It also means I need to track points for everything I eat (as opposed to Simply Filling where I'll only need to track the non-power food points).  Power foods are what used to be called CORE foods and don't count against the 49 extra weekly points which they intend for you to use and I will use them.  Points on many of my go-to foods have increased a bit.  Fruit and veggies (except for starchy veggies--corn, potatoes, etc) are all 0 points.  Anyway, I'm looking forward to my favorite ever breakfast tomorrow--a soft boiled egg, and toast with ICBINBJ.  I'll have a nice cup of mint tea to round it out.  (2, 3, 1, and 0 points, respectively, for a total of 6 points.  I may splurge and have a nice chilled half pink grapefruit sprinkled with Truvia. (0 points!)    

I'm a convert to Truvia.  I had tried it once last year and found it bitter, but I read on a blog (one of yours?) that if it seems bitter it means you're using way too much.  I like it and it doesn't taste bitter at all. One packet is just right for the grapefruit though I usually like grapefruit without anything on it, too.  I especially like the way Truvia tasted "granulated" like sugar rather than powdery like Splenda.

For you viewing pleasure:  Laura with her three J,B&R and J&E

Tonight, for dinner, I made a new recipe:  Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Spring Vegetables.  I know, I know, it's not spring, but I was able to buy beautiful fresh ingredients at Whole Foods and, believe me, this was wonderful.  The recipe is from the brand new WW cookbook:  Weight Watchers Points Plus Cookbook.  

Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Spring Vegetables

prep time:15 min      cook time: 30 min      Serves 4 

1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed  (power food)

1 T chopped fresh chives (I used 2 T of finely diced shallots)

3/4 t salt

1  pkg frozen artichoke hearts (9 oz), thawed

1 pound baby potatoes, cut in half  (my baby potatoes were large-ish so I cut them in quarters)

1/2  pound asparagus, trimmed

1 c baby carrots

2 c small fresh mushrooms (optional, but very good!)

2 t olive oil

1/4 t black pepper

1.  Preheat oven to 475.  Spray large shallow roasting pan with nonstick spray

2.  Sprinkle pork with chives (shallots) and 1/4 t of the salt.  Spray large nonstick skillet with nonstick spray and set over medium high heat.  Add pork and cook until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes.

3.  Transfer pork to roasting pan.  Combine artichokes, potatoes, asparagus,carrots, oil, and remaining 1/2 t salt and the pepper in large bowl; toss to coat.  Arrange vegetable mixture around pork.  Roast, stirring vegetables once, until vegetables are tender and instant read thermometer inserted into center of pork registers 160 F, about 25 minutes.  Let pork stand 5 minutes before slicing into 12 slices.  Serve with vegetables.

Per serving  (3 slices pork with 1 1/4 cups vegetables):

352 g, 293 calories, 6 g total fat, 1 g sat fat, 0 g trans fat, 62 mg Chol, 549 mg Sod, 31 g total carb, 3 g total sugar, 7 g fib, 28 g protein, 57 mg calcium.

Okay, today's WI.  I gained 1.6 from two weeks ago.  It's okay.  My morning weight this morning (after 1 day on the new plan) was down 1.4 from yesterday morning.  And it's going to be down again tomorrow and way down next week.  I'm very confident.  Do you remember this great post  from Charlie about the On/Off switch?  My switch has apparently toggled back to ON!  Two days may not constitute a streak, but just keep watching.  I'm going to DO this.

I put the turkey wings into my crockpot with an onion, some peppercorns, a bay leaf, celery, and a couple of carrots.  The beginnings of a(nother) good turkey soup that I'll have on hand for the next few days.  (broth--0 pts,  2 oz turkey--2 pts,  carrots--0 pts,  celery--0 pts, onion--0 pts, 1/4 c cooked barley--1 pt, mushrooms--0 pts)  Three points for a bowl of great turkey soup.  YES!  Did I mention that I cooked a 27 pound turkey???

I have been tagged twice with the question quiz.  I will work on that while the kiddos are napping tomorrow.  I am also really missing spending time on your blogs and that's the other thing I want to do tomorrow.

Thanks for your good wishes for my Dad.  I went to see him today and spent about an hour singing to him (Christmas hymns which I know he loves) while he slept--his pain meds keep him very sleepy.  I saw his leg and the site of the break doesn't have any bruising and the swelling has almost all gone. His pain is being well controlled and he seems comfortable and they report that his appetite is good.  

I had a short session with the exercise bike this morning--I don't love it, but it beats the rain, wind, and very chilly temps outside today.  I think I may go upstairs now and do my 10th kettle bell session.  I'm looking for those guaranteed results right after!  :-)

G'night.

186.4
hoping the light color makes the gain less noticeable!