Life in the 407

FOCUS

2011-07-04T06:15:00.000-07:00

Time to re-focus on my life changes. I have stalled at weight loss and have reverted back to old habits. Not sure why, except that it is easier...or maybe I am self sabbotaging. Not sure. So this week I am refocusing on lean protein, veggies and fruit! I have started drinking coffee and think I will keep that new habit for now. I really have begun to enjoy it and drinking the coffee does reduce my appetite. So here we go again...

It's Been Three Months

2011-06-18T06:10:00.000-07:00

WOW...can't believe that 3 months have flown by since my last update. Weight Watchers has been going OK...I am down 20 pounds! Hooray! I did start cooking again. I have made several dishes that I will try again. Have tried new foods. Didn't love them all but did really like some. My menu choices have changed so much, that I didn't realize until I was at the grocery store with my list that all of my dinner plans were a type of seafood. Too funny from a beef loving girl to a sea food lover. Well, I have always loved seafood, just never cooked it...just ordered it when I was out like it was supposed to be a treat! Will get back to updating my recipes again soon. Last night we had grits, fried eggs and cornbread waffles...so good!

Time Out

2011-03-15T18:47:00.000-07:00

OK...so I have been slacking and contemplating, instead of cooking! Tomorrow I am starting the Weight Watchers program, AGAIN. So for the first few weeks...I doubt I will be cooking much. Will be sticking to pre-portioned meals in order to get my life under control. Will update how things go and will eventually start cooking again!

Gumbo & Spaghetti

2011-03-06T06:50:00.000-08:00

Well...it's been a while. I have been slacking on blogging and on cooking. We did try a few new recipes of the past few weeks. I guess they just weren't good enough to motivate me to blog about them. The first was a re-make of a recipe I tried over a year ago. Florida Mullet and Black Eye Pea Gumbo. Found the recipe while I was getting some fresh seafood at Charlie's Fish House in Crystal River. We didn't have any mullet but we did have some fresh Gulf shrimp and oysters. Last time we tried this, it wasn't spicy enough so I upped the jalapenos from 1 to 3...same result. Good flavors, just not spicy enough for my taste. Maybe next time we should add some spicy sausage in to kick it up a notch. The second dish we tried was Spaghetti and scallops. Came across the recipe in a Woman's World magazine. Same result as above...good flavor, just not spicy enough for me...it would be really good for those who prefer a more bland palette. Until next time...

Chicken & Pork Chops

2011-02-18T21:16:00.000-08:00

This is a late entry...this is actually from last week. Actually tried 2 new recipes...my Sister-in-Law was in town and we have a new house guest...so it's been a while getting back to my computer. We tried a Chicken & Dumplings recipe out of the Southern Living magazine...it was OK...used refrigerated biscuits as the dumplings. Not feeling that...next time I would leave everything the same and try the frozen dumplings my Mom uses. Next was Honey Mustard Pork Chops from the Weight Watchers magazine...Mark grilled them and they were AWESOME! Definitely a keeper recipe.

Beef Brisket

2011-02-08T16:26:00.000-08:00

OK...first FAIL! Not loving the Country Brisket recipe from "Some Like it South" cookbook. It was very dry and tough...followed the recipe to the letter! Even the flavor was a little bland...so won't be trying this one again!

Southern Living's Roasted Tomato and Feta Shrimp

2011-02-01T17:44:00.000-08:00

Yum...and so much fun in the kitchen with my honey! This dish was in Southern Living's December 2010 issue. It didn't take long and has such a light fresh taste...I think we will have it again and again. This "trying new recipes" is fun and exciting! I love to cook and my honey is enjoying it too! Til next time...

Giada's Orecchiette Recipe

2011-01-19T17:06:00.001-08:00

Tonight we started our journey of trying new dishes. A few months ago I saw Giada on the Today Show. She made a dish that sounded easy and delicious. So tonight we gave it a whirl. I have to say Giada's Orecchiette recipe is superb! It was just right. The flavors blended well. This was the first time we had used lemon zest, so that was an experience in itself! Mark and I both loved the results and it is definitely a keeper for our future menus! And the bonus is...no meat! It will be great for Meat free Mondays! Looking forward to next week's experiment!

New Challenge for the New Year

2010-12-31T06:02:00.001-08:00

I read a blog from the "Fresh from Florida" group. Melissa stated her New Year's resolution was going to be to eat at home more. What an awesome idea. So I thought about how I could incorporate that into our lives. My daughter is headed to college in a few days and it seems like the perfect opportunity for my husband and I to start a new challenge. I am going to dust off some cookbooks and start trying new recipes. We enjoy working together in the kitchen, so this should be a good thing. I think we will start out slow and try one new recipe a week. Who knows where it will lead, maybe I will discover that we are super chefs! Then again, I am just hoping we like the foods we cook! That is our New Year's resolution...will check back and report on how it's going!

Nerves!

2010-10-26T04:12:00.000-07:00

OK...so now it's over a month since my last blog...still struggling. Accountability group never came through. Strong start yesterday to get refocused! Have a birthday coming up in a few days...gonna turn the big 45! Sounds so old when I actually say it out loud...man where does the time go?

My daughter has a new boyfriend. Guess it's about time to meet him and I am nervous as a hen in a room full of roosters. You never know, this could be my future son-in-law. Want to make sure we make a good impression...and that just makes it more nerve racking. She is still waiting to hear from the college of her choice on admission...I am a bundle of nerves about that too. She's afraid she won't get in, I am afraid she will. Wondering how we will pay for this enormous expense and how will I get along without her here...I guess it will take faith, and I have plenty of that...so I should just tap into that to calm my nerves...easier said than done!

It's Been a While!

2010-09-19T15:32:00.000-07:00

OK...so it's mid-September and I have been failing miserably at weight loss and at blogging. Not sure how it will get much better. I have just been invited to join an accountability group...not sure how it will work, but I should be getting information soon. It's online, so we will see if it can keep me honest. Heading out to the grocery store and intend to buy only stuff that is good for my body. Of course I am the one who will determine if I think it is good for me or not...

Football has started and so far it has been an interesting season. I opted not to join a fantasy football team this year. I am enjoying just watching! Go Gators and 49ers!

Tomorrow night I have a meeting with my United Daughters of the Confederacy chapter. It is our first regular meeting since we received our Charter in June. I'm excited and nervous...I have 3 meetings worth of minutes to read and of course need to take the minutes of this meeting too. Always afraid I'll miss something. So far the group is interesting...definitely a diverse group of women!

Curly Girl No More

2010-07-25T03:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I did something I have wanted to do for a LONG time. I had a keratin treatment on my hair, which in theory is supposed to straighten your hair. When I walked into the salon, I asked the stylist what this treatment was going to do to my hair. He said he believed it would be "pin strait". That scared me and I almost walked out. For the past 44 years I have been a "curly girl". Instead, I assured myself, this treatment would only last for 4 months and then I could be "normal" again if I didn't like it.

It was a very interesting process. It started with my hair being washed twice with a clarifying shampoo. Then the stylist blow dried my hair straight. Then came the application of the keratin treatment. A very painstaking process of applying the product on my hair in very small sections. It then rested for 10 minutes. The stylist repeated the blow drying process. The room filled with smoke...the product was burning off. The smoke wasn't bad. It reminded me of a fog machine and was quite interesting to see smoke rising from my hair that way. This was followed by the stylist using an extremely high heat flat iron to seal in the keratin. The same painstaking procedure of very small sections was completed. The stylist informed me that after one hour I could wash my hair and I scheduled a follow-up visit for a trim for next Thursday.

Afterwards, I had lunch with my daughter and her friend and then went to visit my Momma and Nanny in Plant City. My hair was perfectly straight from the flat iron, but was interested to see what it would look like after washing it. Arriving home about 7:00 PM, I went directly to the shower. I could tell immediately that my hair would not be "pin straight". The front and top of my hair were straight, but the bottom third of my hair had waves. I was actually very happy, afterall I hadn't been too fond of the "pin straight" idea anyway. Letting my hair air dry without using any styling products and low and behold...it didn't turn out half bad. Now I am looking forward to trying new things with some styling products and maybe a new hair style is in order when I go back on Thursday for my follow-up. All in all...a very successful day at the salon.

Starting Anew

2010-07-14T04:20:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting here in Baton Rouge, Louisiana having some of the best food on the planet nearby and all I can think of is my failure. In January I set a goal to lose 60 pounds by June, thinking I could certainly lose 10 pounds a month. I'm sure I could have. But I didn't. I made bad choices and ate them all! I did manage to lose 25.5 pounds. It wasn't a complete failure and I am glad that I have been able to maintain that.

In January (at work), we started a "Get Fit Club", the first phase was to lose the weight by June and the second phase is to maintain that weight loss through our busy season, which ends in mid November. My new goal is to meet my original goal while everyone is maintaining their weight loss. I don't think any one in our group actually met their "GOAL". But I now want to do it for myself.

It is going to take some real hard choices for me as I go forward from here. I think I am ready for them. I am going to put my faith into action and give it a real go...after I get home from Baton Rouge. While I am here, I will still try to do better. This morning I will have an apple for breakfast and unfortunately I don't have complete control over lunch and dinner, as I am here with 2 colleagues. But I will try to make wiser choices, that at least help me stay where I am until I get home on Sunday night!

Water is my friend...water is my friend...water is my friend!