Christmas Hangover

Oh, my aching belly...yet I can't seem to stop!
First though...my "decorating" at home...


Enjoyed the last day (and Thursday...forgot to eat it) of the Advent Calendar. Mmmmm...Lindt Chocolate rocks.

After waking up, hanging with my kitties, baking some cookies for my mom (kitchen disaster ensued), I went and got Mom and we all headed south of the city to Okotoks, where my older brother held reign over the kitchen. He seriously missed his calling!


The dining room table...hum...where are we supposed to eat?!

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Christmas Palm tree...I am SO getting one of these for next year!!!

Presents piled carefully under the tree. You'll note the lack of toys. That will be solved next year, as my nephew and his fiancee announced their happy news.

Some of the critters that reside here...Nirmac and Jackass. I hear the latter was named after my brother! They are very cute and apparently quite amorous with each other...we're on egg watch!

Tried to get a picture of the other 4-legged family member, Bandit, but she was camera shy. That, and there were so many people and so much food, she just didn't know where to go first! She is a beautiful Siberian Husky and very well behaved. Just doesn't like her picture taken!

This is the turkey platter, with a side story. I hand painted this 10 years ago. My SIL loves to do cross-stitch, as do I (haven't in years) and my mom. So I found a pattern I had, and I "stitched" it onto the clay before it was finished. Did it at Fire Escape, an establishment very close to my house (well, they did move last year) that I spent countless hours and pay cheques at!! When I saw the platter, I remembered all the time and effort that went into it. My hand ached for DAYS as I literally put each individual x on with a little squirt bottle.

My SIL taking a picture of me, taking a picture of her!

Started with a pickle and cheese platter while we waited on dinner. Pickled snap-peas (freaking amazing!), herring (love, love, love!!!), dills, hot olives, cheddar cheese cubes, Boursin with garlic and herbs, crackers. Most yum-a-lishiss!

Finally dinner is served...turkey, maple-infused ham, smashed potatoes, turnip and carrots, Brussels sprouts (steamed...told them to roast next time for a real taste treat), roasted sweet potato slices, corn, stuffing (plain and giblet), "doctored" brown beans (my family adds sliced salami, hot pepperoni, brown sugar, etc to a can of brown beans to take them to the next level...OMG).

We pulled crackers (new to my family, but my SIL and her daughter have done it for years), and wearing our hats, sat down to clean the table!

My plate looked very similar to my neice's. She's here from the south Pacific - she lives in Indonesia, Australia and most recently New Zealand, as she bops from place to place. She is a surfing fanatic, so will be heading "home" soon, to get back to the waves. Had to fill up on home-cooked goodness first!

With full bellies, we sat around and exchanged gifts, shared fond memories and laughed till we cried. That's the one thing about my family...we may be small, we may not have a lot of traditions, but we do know how to laugh. A good, hearty, from the belly laugh! That was my exercise yesterday.

Since part of my gift included home-made "peanut" brittle (I say "peanut" because some pieces are pistachio, some are cashew and some are macadamia nut), I MUST go for a good, long walk today. And since it's a beautiful Chinook winter day, I will head down to the river for a spell. Enjoy it while we've got it. I am not one of those insane Canadians that go Boxing Day shopping...there is nothing I want that badly!

Hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas.

Later,

I'm in love

Granted, it's with a little piece of chocolate, but O.M.G!!!!! The people are Purdy's are pure geniuses! Sweet caramel, wrapped in delicious chocolate (I prefer the dark!) with a smattering of sea salt. It is a PAR-TAY in your mouth!!!

Go get some, and try to stop at one...dare ya!

Merry Christmas Eve...

Run by post

Actually made it out for a run tonight, but I made the mistake of trying to keep up with a group that normally runs about 30 - 45 minutes faster than I do!! I did not bad, if I do say so myself, but they did have to drop back a few times and wait for me..."leave no runner behind"...this is our clinic motto.

Tonight was the last run club before Christmas, so there was hot chocolate and egg nog and cookies to be had back at the shop. And for those of us that really got into the spirit (I pulled out the Elf costume, again), a gift card. Yay me! I can always find something to buy at the Running Room!!

Dinner tonight was very simple...just two dippy eggs and a chiabatta to dip in them. I wasn't feeling too inspired, but figured this was still better than eating at the pub later. While others noshed on fries (nary a one passed my lips), and other items of deep-fried goodness, I sipped my Guinness and told myself that it really is the Irish Meal Replacement Plan. Came home, and plugged the numbers into the Points Plus. Now, there's a website that I looked up the stats of a pint of Guinness on, and per ounce, it boils down to 1.1 carbs, 0 fat, 0 fibre and .1 g of protein. That works out to 2 pts for a pint! Down from 3 points on the old plan. This actually made me happy!!! Very, very happy. Add that to the 11 points I earned trying to keep up with the other runners, and I actually have weekly allowance and activity points leftover tonight. Let's see what the digital devil has to say about it tomorrow.

I do have a headache (elf hat...I hate wearing hats for this very reason) so I am about to medicate up and go to bed.

Later,

Almost a full week

I've been following the new PointsPlus plan online for almost a week now, diligently entering my data, and wondering at the math formulas in the recipe builders. How 15 + 2 + 1 could equal 22, for example?! Or how a simple bowl of pasta becomes 11 points in total - I actually weighed out the pasta, so make sure I had it right. And yet we're not supposed to shy away from certain foods! Still some bumps, I guess. But I am trying.

Breakfast was milk, multigrain cheerios and a banana. Lunch was last night's leftovers, which were okay. As I decided last night, the next time I make the Brussels sprouts, I'm skipping the chestnuts and using pine nuts instead. The chestnuts just did not like day 2. I also decided I put too much spinach in the barley, and next time will stir in the roasted asparagus at the last minute, so it doesn't get all soggy. The salmon was nice the next day, but hard to reheat without "cooking" it more. There is nothing nastier than overcooked fish!

Dinner was something simple and from my own recipe book in my head. While some whole wheat penne boiled, I fried shallots and garlic in evoo and added a cup of grape tomatoes, halved, and some brocolini. Lastly I threw in a handful of thawed shrimp and fresh basil. Once the penne was cooked, that also went in the pot, and it was topped with some shredded parm to eat. Nom, nom, nom!!!

Leftovers are already packed away, waiting to be eaten tomorrow at lunch time. I am planning on heading to run club tomorrow, which will feel good. Last run before Christmas. Then I need to sit down, chose some exercise goals, register for a race (or two!) and get my priorities back on track!

That's it, that's all for me.

Later,

Full belly and special treats!

My wonderful friend M. brought these back from Hawaii with him! O.M.GEEEEE!!!!!!! One bag is officially gone, but the other will be carefully hidden away from myself, until I can figure out another supply source! These ones are so cute too, as some are stamped with mini umbrellas, palm trees...I tried to take a picture, but they were either too bright or too dark. Sad...so I ate them!

:)

Lunch today was last night's leftovers, and was really good the second day! The burger was still nice and moist, although next time I will remember some chili sauce to schmear on, to make it even spicier! Rounded out the meal with a handful of beautifully ripe grape tomatoes. Yum, yum, yum.

Came home, and pulled the salmon from the freezer to thaw. One the menu tonight:

Salmon and Asparagus with Citrus Gremolata (pg 175), Balsamic-Glazed Brussels Sprouts and Chestnuts (pg 225) and Barley with Spinach and Asparagus (pg 243). I did skip out on the double asparagus, leaving it with the barley and just roasting the salmon with a simple sprinkle of S&P, and a squeeze of lemon juice at the end. The Gremolata was a mix of garlic, parsley, basil (they called for tarragon, I had basil), lemon zest and orange zest. It was yummy. Meanwhile I started boiling the chestnuts...can't do anything easy in my world, but this is what the instructions at that store said to do. Still a pain in the butt, and quite frankly, I'm not sure what all the fuss was about. Next time I'll throw in pine nuts. The Brussels were fabulous though, as I love, love, love roasted Brussels. Caramelly, crispy goodness!!

Lastly, I cooked onion, garlic and the barley in evoo, and added some vermouth (intriguing) and chicken broth, then the roasted asparagus and some spinach that I had thawed earlier this week. That was also quite yummy and quite filling. The plate was looking a little too green, so I threw on some tomatoes to brighten it up a bit.

Tomorrow's lunch is already packed away, and I did dishes (I really need to buy a new dishwasher!) until my back couldn't take it anymore. I'll tackle the next pile soon...it's all soaking right now. Planning out dinner tomorrow night...thinking a simple pasta dish of some kind. I've got tons of tomatoes and basil, so I think a pasta toss with hot cooked tomatoes in garlic and basil. Just have to plan out the protein. I'm with Amy on this one...I think the new plan is going to make members shy away from certain food groups, and therefore fall into the "diet" mentality...I'm hoping to stay away from that myself, but also understand the importance of protein at every meal. Maybe a simple grilled piece of chicken or some shrimp. Oooo...shrimp. Just made up my own mind!

Enjoy your evening,

Later,

PointsPlus cookbook

All right...second and third recipes of the day from the book...

I made the Thai Ginger Chicken Burgers (pg 165), with the Thai Curry-Coconut rice (pg 236) and a simple coleslaw that I "Asianed" up with fennel, black sesame seeds and ginger-miso dressing. The burger, with bun, was 9 pts while the rice was 3. My slaw is another thing though...I typed it all into the recipe builder, with only the dressing counting as 1 point. However, the total points for the salad...3. WTF?! I didn't multiply the servings...it was as I listed...I just don't know how 1 became 3 at the end. And this is the second recipe that this has happened, where the math doesn't add up. At least not in my favour!

But the burger was really good, and quite easy to make. The rice was also good, but I'll add a bit of water to it tomorrow before I reheat, to moisten it up a bit. Found it a tad dry. The slaw was also good, but for lunch tomorrow I'll switch to a baggie of grape tomatoes. They were on sale, so I bought 3 boxes!

Tomorrow night will be salmon and asparagus, Brussels sprouts and spinach. The trouble with most cookbooks is that they feed 4 or more, so I'll always be cutting the recipe in half and leaving myself with lunch for the next day. That will be a good thing.

Can't believe it's Sunday night already and it's time to return to the office. It'll start being quiet though, as most people begin to take time off for the holidays starting this week. I'll be working through, but that's fine too. It's so quiet and peaceful with everyone away, I can actually get work done!

Later,

Headache

I think maybe the weather is changing, as I have quite the headache today. Woke up with it and despite coffee and food, it's still hanging on. Okay, so Advil would be a good thing too...just haven't got there yet.


Breakfast started as coffee in my new Hawaii mug, courtesy of H-woman! I feel just like Jaime, as I begin to build my Starbucks collection. Okay...so I'm only up to 3, but I can build on that!


Flashback to yesterday...got up and met up with H-woman, and we both headed to the south end of town to sit in on Leader Faye's Saturday morning Weight Watcher's meeting. I didn't think she was back from Hawaii (walked the marathon with her hubs) yet, but she flew back on the same flight as H-woman, as fate would have it! I needed that meeting. I admit I am struggling/fighting against the new program, so needed to hear all about it from the leader I trust the most. After the meeting, we sat through the getting started session too, and then H. and I went back to her place (me, with Starbucks in hand) and read through the material, discussed at length and browsed through the newest PointsPlus cookbook. I'm feeling a little better about this, although I still feel this is Core program (which did not work well for me!) whether we like it or not.

Got home and signed up for the two-week etools trial, although I think it should be even cheaper for existing weekly members than the $18/month it is. We'll see how this works for me. So far, I have tracked everything up to date, and entered a few recipes. Not the fastest system, but hoping it does it's job and truly helps me with this. On the way home from H's, I stopped at the grocery store and picked up a few (okay, a lot) of healthy food options to get me through the week. Lots of vegetables and some fruit...I'm still not going crazy over that. I ate it before, I'll continue to eat it now, free or not. Dinner last night was the last of my pork stew that I made earlier in the week. I added a dollop of low-fat sour cream, salsa and a sprinkling of cheese. And one of my snacks was the juiciest Asian pear I've ever had. Didn't like it cold out of the fridge though, so next time I'll let it sit for a bit.

Breakfast was a whole grain chiabatta that I toasted, with a little PB and a banana. Simple, and something I have enjoyed long before Elvis deep-fried it in butter! Glass of milk and another coffee, and I was set for the morning.

Caught up on some TV that I had recorded, one being X-weighted Families. Turns out this week's episode was the family of a guy that I work with, and whom I've noticed the weight loss. Awesome guy and I'm so happy that this appears to be working for him...and it looks like he's still losing weight, long after the trainers and cameras are gone. Good for him!

Started to get a little growly, so I opened up the new cookbook and decided on a brunch item of Eggs and Polenta with Black Beans. Pretty simple, actually. Bake off some slices of pre-rolled polenta (you can buy it in the pasta section of most grocery stores). The recipe did say to spray with non-stick canned spray, but since I don't like eating propane or butane, I just used my little clay baker instead. Did just as good a job. You bake it till it starts to get a little golden. Meanwhile, in a pan, mix black beans, salsa and some chili powder till hot and bubbling. Pour over polenta and sprinkle with some shredded cheese. Fry up an egg (in my non-stick pan, so no butter or oil) and place on top. Mine was dippy perfection! And the recipe was really good. Granted, I don't eat fat-free cheese (shudder) so I'll take another point or two for the real stuff, but the whole thing is 7 points! And I've eaten to my satisfaction level.


I do need to go outside and clean up the sidewalks...I'm feeling guilty listening to all the snow-blowers out there, but then again, it's only about an inch worth of snow. I'm not in a hurry. I think I'll let the headache ease first (yes, I have since taken painkillers). And plan out dinner...my goal this week is to cook something from the cookbook each night, so that the leftovers are lunch the next day. No group lunches or potlucks to worry about this week, so I should be good to go.

I may post dinner pics later. Have a happy Sunday.

Later,