Happy Weekend All!  I have missed you all so much the past few days.  This week was packed with super long work hours and a lot going on with life.  The good news is I see the light at the end of the tunnel (maybe), but, the not so great news is there is still so much to be done!  I always look forward to ending my day chatting with you all so I am glad to be back to “normal” with dailies this upcoming week along with another giveaway. 

On that note, let’s get down to it….I couldn’t wait to head out to the Farmer’s Market this morning.  Summer fruit is officially here in California and I am so excited for all it.

I promise I didn’t buy everything at the market, just……

Organic Berries…..

and more organic berries!

I am so excited that my favorite Blueberry vendor is back this year.  I might be slightly impartial because her and her husband are Weight Watchers too, but, they always have to biggest, sweetest berries that are crunchy.

Cherries x’s 2! Ok, so the prices are ridiculous on these right now, but, I HAD to have them.

I bought 4 lbs of peaches, nectarines and apricots…..believe it or not, This will only get us to Thursday because The Husband eats like 3-4 pieces of fruit a day.

Breakfast involved snacking on fruit at the market and as I put everything away.

After the Farmer’s Market I headed over to get a Pedicure at this new place that just opened up by us….I LOVE new places ~ she gave me a 90 minute pedicure. 

Even though I stocked up our fridge, I brought The Husband lunch from Subway. Did you all know that they have a meal builder so you can calculate the nutritional stats based on what you order? So cool ~ every place should have meal builders!

Turkey Bacon Avocado on 9-grain wheat with all the veggies (10 points+)

Plus Baked Lays (2 points+)

I snacked on 2/3 oz cashews midafternoon as I ran around getting caught up on everything I didn’t get accomplished this week. (3 points+).

Dinner involved everything I have been craving all week long.

BBQ Chicken (3 points+)

Trader Joe’s Mac n Cheese (7 points+)

Kale ~ is it weird that I crave kale?!  I would eat it all the time if I could convince The Husband it is as good as I think it is

I am seriously behind on all your emails, comments, Facebook messages, etc., but, I am going to do my best to catch up with you all this week. Thanks for being patient.

STATS (12 am – 9 pm)

• 2,588 calories burned
• 8,874 steps taken
• 25 daily points+

See you all tomorrow with My Weekly Menu and Goals.

Night all!

Happy Monday all!  Thanks to all of your for your comments on yesterday’s post.  You all seriously have a way of motivating and inspiring me by sharing your struggles with me.  Oh and The Husband said thanks for the comments on his Mom’s Day Cards.  He definitely is a hoot!

This morning I was back at it with my 5 AM workout ~ I hopped on the treadmill and rocked my 30 minutes of Couch to 5K!  As crazy as it sounds, it is my 5 AM workouts that make it a million times easier to tackle any challenges that my day brings.

On my way in, I stopped for a Dirty Coconut Coffee!  I am so excited that Starbuck’s has their coconut syrup back ~ it’s the little things! I’ve been waiting for this syrup ever since they stopped making it last fall!

(iced coffee with 1 pump mocha + 1 pump coconut with a splash of 1/2 & 1/2) 2 points+

You know the totally random part about my Dirty Coconut Combo ~ I do NOT like Almond Joys or Mounds Bars, but, I totally imagine this drink is what they probably taste like

Breakfast involved a Maple Morning Star Veggie Sausage (2 points+)

Eaten with a big bowl of melon while I packed up The Husband’s Lunch.

No matter how many times I am rushing to get out the door, I always make his lunch even if it means I “have to” buy mine at the café.

I ended up with my new favorite thing ~  Mini Ham and Cheese.

On my roll, 1 slice Ham, 1 slice swiss, lettuce and baked lays (7 points+)

Plus Veggies on the go! 

Sometimes it is the simple things that are so completely delicious.

Dessert x’s~ the “secret” to portion control ~ making sure they are sitting in a bowl in front of your co-worker (2 points+)

The Husband had dinner ready as soon as I walked in the door!  I knew all I had to do was buy his FAVORITE Bill Bailey Carne Asada and he would be all about cooking for us

I made up TWO Carne Asada burritos topped with 4 oz Grilled Carne Asada and 1 oz of reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese.

Then, I topped them with a bunch of spice and crunch ~ jalapenos, romaine blend, tomatoes, green onions and 1/4 avocado.

12 points+ for both!  I added hot sauce and drizzled with 0% Greek Yogurt post picture.

STATS (12 AM – 9 PM)

• 2,565 calories burned
• 7, 198 steps taken
• 25 daily points+

Q’s

Let’s all focus on the positive.  Name one good thing about your Monday.

I have to say having dinner on the table as soon as I walked in the door made everything right in my day….then, seeing your comments on my post yesterday put everything in perspective and made my day!

Night all!

Happy Friday Eve all!  This morning I was up bright and early to fit in my last Couch to 5K workout for week 1 ~ a 30 minute jog walk.  It always starts my day off on the right note to get my workout checked off my list even if it means making a few trade offs like running out to time to prepare everything I would need to Grab-n-Go.

I have to say Thank You a million times to Catherine for sending me a bunch of Grab-N-Go ideas.  For anyone ever needing some ideas, check these out:

“You asked for grab-and-go ideas for your day tomorrow. I found that just about anything stuffed into a low point tortilla works well for those rush days. I mean, let’s face it, that Cheesy Sausage Breakfast Burrito is perfect grab-and-go fare. A couple low-point Ham and Cheese Crepes are great to keep handy as there is no need to heat them up. If tortillas or crepes aren’t handy, the pita pocket thing works well, especially the mini ones where you split them in half and gorge them with whatever you feel like: low-point Waldorf Salad, tuna or chicken salad (homemade of course), hummus with sprouts… My idea of grab-and-go foods are mini foods portioned out, that can be made in advance, and just stuffed in my work bag before leaving the house in the morning.”

Thanks Catherine ~ you are awesome! 

Now, if I would’ve only done a little preparing last night…..LOL.  As I rushed out the door this morning without a plan, I stopped at Starbuck’s for a Venti Iced Dirty Coffee (2 points+)

I was completely starving and knew I couldn’t go without breakfast and picked up a Chicken Sausage & Egg White Wrap (7 points+).

It’s actually REALLY good ~ the roasted peppers and mushrooms in the wrap totally reminded me of eating a pizza pocket.

My morning flew by and I made sure I stopped by the Café on my way out to the Open House to see if there was anything to grab-n-go.

I ended up with this super cute MINI Ham & Swiss Sandwich.  I shared a bag of Baked Lays with my co-worker since we both agreed we could not eat sandwiches without crunch.

On my roll, 1 slice Ham, 1 slice swiss, lettuce and baked lays (5 points+)

Plus Veggies on the go!  I have to admit it’s hard to chomp on veggies and eat them fast quietly.

My cup of veggies is bigger than my cute MINI sandwich ~ so funny.  I think I was really hungry because this tasted SO GOOD and totally hit the spot.

On our way back from the Open House, we stopped by Starbuck’s where my niece was working.  It was so cool to see her in action

Grande Iced Nonfat Decaf Latte with Caramel Drizzle (3 points+)

As soon as I drove up to the house, The Husband hopped into the car to head over to the first Farmer’s Market of the season.  This year is going to be such a great year because the City partnered with the Farmer’s Market to bring even more vendors to the market this year.

After stocking up at the market, we headed over to Panera to Pick Two.

1/2 a Chicken Fuji Apple Salad that excluded the apple chips and instead of super stinky cheese (Gorgonzola) they added kinda stinky cheese (feta). 6 points+

Chicken Noodle for 2 points+

All together with a whole grain baguette (5 points+ and worth every single one!) I LOVE the chew factor and nuttiness of the whole grain baguette.

STATS (12 am – 9 pm)

• 2,526 calories burned
• 8,130 steps taken
• 30 daily points+

We have too many fun things planned this weekend ~ I cannot wait.   Have a fun Friday all and I will catch up with your comments, emails, etc.soon.

Night all!

Happy Biggest Loser Finale Day all!  I actually haven’t been following along with every single episode this season like I have ever season in the past.  The show just isn’t the same without Jillian, but, I still love how it motivates me and seeing all the changes in the finale.

It doesn’t hurt that it was total motivation to get up at 5 AM this morning to earn my “butt-time” tonight.  I hopped on the treadmill for day 2 of Couch to 5K and checked that off my list first thing. 

Before heading out this morning, I whipped up 5 minute Cheesy Sausage Breakfast Burritos for The Husband and I (6 points+).

Since I knew I’d be in training all day, I stopped and “fueled up” for class with a Venti Iced Coffee with 1 pump mocha, 1 pump vanilla and a splash of half & half (2 points+)

When I made up the Slow Cooker Chipotle Beer Baked Beans, I portioned out a few containers that included 1/2 cup Brown Rice with Sautéed Kale and 1/2 cup beans for a few quick grab and go meals for days like today.  7 points+

I forgot to show you all the flowers I bought these orange flowers at Trader Joe’s this weekend.  I have to say there is something about seeing these bright orange flowers that makes me smile every day.

All afternoon I kept eyeing the candy pile on the table in our classroom.  I decided it was worth it to indulge and had 2 fun sized M&M’s after my cheesestick LOL.  I didn’t snap a picture but tracked them! (5 points+).

I LOVE nights when I do not have to cook because dinner is already made!

3 crispy, crunchy, refreshing and delicious Thai Coconut Lime Lettuce Wraps for 9 points+

STATS (12 AM – 8 PM) ~ not too bad for a Training Day where I literally sat all day.

• Calories burned 2,545
• Steps taken 7, 786
• 29 Daily points+

Q’s

Did you watch Biggest Loser this season?  If so, who are you rooting for?

Off to finish watching the finale! 

Night all….

Happy Tuesday all! Today was a lot like yesterday, but, I decided that I would start off with a bigger breakfast to see if it helped my hunger levels throughout the day.

I made sure to “power up” for a day with a lot of protein and this Spicy Sausage Egg-wich.

For all those wondering about Trader Joe’s Fat Free Multi-Grain Bread ~ it has been discontinued! I am SO SAD and have been trying to bribe everyone at my local TJ’s to get it back in.  I think we all need to write or petition or something to get it back (side note) lol.

• 2 slices Trader Joe’s Fat Free Multi-Grain Bread (3 points+)
• 1 “fried” egg (2 points+)
• Hot & Spicy Morning Star Sausage sliced in half to cover the bread (2 points+)

ONE delicious sandwich that kept me full for 4 hours ~ YES!

Plus a cup of coconut coffee for here & to go (double fuel!)

Before heading out for my 3.4 mile lunchtime power walk I snacked on a banana plus a Trader Joe’s Light String Cheese (1 points+).

I LOVE days that I can get out to get my walk on at lunch and enjoy the sunshine ~ SUCCESS! Today was a perfect balance on sunshine with a crisp breeze.

When I got back to my desk I couldn’t wait to dig in.  Lunch was a repeat of yesterday plus some.

Butternut Squash Soup (4 points+)

A LOT of Veggies with 2 Tbsp Lite Ranch (3 points+)

I actually brought yogurt and granola to add in protein with my lunch.  However, after thinking about what I really wanted, I decided to go with these……

1/2 oz Sea Salt & Vinegar Almonds  ~ I LOVE these, but, know I can ONLY bring a 1/2 a serving or I will eat the entire can (2 points+)

The Husband was in charge of dinner tonight because he said he wanted to “cook” the easy meal this week LOL.

He started us off with 1 cup Trader Joe’s Organic Roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Soup. 

This soup is so completely delicious ~ it’s not too sweet and you can taste the pepper and tomatoes (3 points+).

Then, he created his own “take” on BLTA’s because the AVOCADO he bought was totally hard lol.

SIMPLE, DELICIOUS BLT – G’S! Any guesses on the “G”??

Trader Joe’s Guacamole!

Layered with organic mixed greens and super sweet tomatoes.

And 2 thick slices of crispy, uncured applewood smoked bacon!

I am not sure which I LOVE more BLTA’s or BLTG’s, but, both are pretty darn amazing any day or night of the week to me! (9 points+)

I can’t decide which I want to look through first ~ My new Everyday Food Magazine, Food Network Magazine or my new Everyday Food Light Cookbook.

Decisions, decisions……

Night all!

Have a day that is so absolutely amazingly delicious that you cannot wait to tell everyone you know about it?!  Ok, well, that was my yesterday ~ it was so hard to “just post a recipe” when I really wanted to share all the delicious foods I ate! So, today is my daily and tomorrow I will get back to the brunch recipes with that Breakfast Pizza!

My day started with a delicious “Sausage Egg McMuffin”! (8 points+)

• 2 slices Trader Joe’s FF Multi-Grain Bread topped with ICBINB Spray
• 1 “fried” egg
• 1/2 oz melted low-fat sharp cheddar because it’s always better with cheddar! CHEESE!
• 1 Morning Star Veggie Sausage

100 million % Better than the real deal ~ The Husband couldn’t even tell I fed him a Veggie Sausage McMuffin. 

Rounded out with orange slices!

Mid morning I fed my salty crunchy craving with Sea Salt & Vinegar Almonds (2 points+)

Lunch started with my usual lunch salad topped with 1 Tbsp sunflower seeds & dried berries (2 points+) plus 1 Tbsp Trader Joe’s LF Spicy Peanut Vinaigrete & 1/2 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar to “stretch” my dressing (1 points+)

Then, finished with two Gigantic Turkey Meatloaf Muffins (6 points+)

I know I shouldn’t even look at or touch The Husband’s Cheeze-It Snack Mix since it has an ingredient list that is half the size of the box.  But, I couldn’t resist using my Weight Watchers Bar Code Scanner to see the points+.

You actually get a whole lotta cheesy, crunchy, salty goodness for 3 points+ a serving.

Before heading out the door this morning, I put this Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Recipe in the Crock Pot.  It smelled amazing all day long and we both couldn’t wait to dig in when we walked in the door.

Hands down the BEST Pulled Pork you will ever make…..(1/2 c bbq pork = 4 points+) plus 3 points+ for my bun!

Especially when you top it with 0 points+ Asian Slaw!

I could honestly eat this slaw for a meal with grilled chicken & toasted almonds ~ it’s THAT good!

Thanks Zesty Cook for one of the BEST Healthy BBQ Recipe Ideas that I LOVE every single time I make it!

See what I mean?! Totally one delicious day that ended with a Reese’s Mini Heart ! (2 points+)

LAST CHANCE TO ENTER MY EGGSELLANT GIVEAWAY ~ Go here & enter now!

Night all!

Happy Friday Eve all!  I was wondering yesterday if my “Wordless Wednesday” might require words this week to make sense.  I say that because I was totally cracking myself up as I took the picture this weekend and The Husband was like, Um, It’s not “that” funny LOL. 

As we were walking along at Universal Studios we saw This Hot Dog Vendor that I thought had a creative sign mocking McDonald’s Billion’s Served with their “Dozens” served ~ funny, right??

Ok….moving on….This morning started with my favorite combo ~ an Eggwich! (5 points+)

• 2 slices Trader Joe’s FF Multi-Grain Bread (2)
• 1 “Fried” egg (2)
• 1/2 Tbsp Whipped Butter (1)

Consumed with probably wayyyy too much coffee

Lunch today involved leftover Chicken Noodle Soup that The Husband whipped up to make my cold better (5 points+)

Plus Ak-Mak Crackers for CRUNCH!!! (3 points+ for FIVE)

The best cracker dipper ever ~ Pea Pesto!!! Don’t knock it til you try it all you non-pea lovers….it is really delicious, promise (2 points+ for 1/2 cup)

Yup, he totally made the pesto despite his aversion to peas…..that IS LOVE!

Sometimes, you just have to acknowledge the mini Twixes in the jar that is by your desk every single day….I made sure not to eat it until I was driving home because I knew one MINI would make me eat another, then, another….. (2 points+)

I have been craving burgers forever ~ not just any burger, but, Bacon Cheddar Burgers!

Toasted sesame buns with a little BBQ sauce.

Grilled TJ’s 96% Beef Burgers topped with BBQ sauce and 1 oz LF Sharp Cheddar Cheese.

All the “fixin’s” ~ lettuce, onion, tomato.

BACON! (Trader Joe’s Peppered Turkey Bacon)

BBQ, BACON, CHEESEBURGER ~ 10 points+ and totally worth every single one.

Served up with a simple side salad topped with Newman’s Lite Lime (2 points+)

Sometimes the shortest weeks are really the longest weeks!  One more day til the weekend and I cannot wait. I will catch up on all your emails, comments, etc. this weekend!

For now…..what is your FAVORITE Burger Topper?

Ummmm, BACON!!! I LOVE BACON, but, I also think you all pretty much knew that

Night all!

Hi all ~ it’s me again, just in case you were wondering   I was up this morning at 4:17 am, not really by my bodies choice, but, my brain decided to be WIDE awake.  What’s up with that?!  I took FULL advantage of it though and hopped out of bed for a 3.5 mile run/walk using 5:1 ratios (5 minute jogging, 1 minute walking).  I honestly wasn’t feeling the run this morning, but, I have to say having those 1 minute walking breaks every 5 minutes actually made it turn into a GREAT run with a faster time

I probably waited way too many years before breakfast, since I didn’t have it until I got to work.  I was STARVING, but, my SMOOTHIE Rocked!

It started out with TWO new products! 

Trader Joe’s NOW makes a HUGE 1 lb container of 0% VANILLA Greek Yogurt (My favorite vanilla loving friend ~ I am so going to have to smuggle this one to ya!)

The stats might seem a little scary, but, if you calc it like the usual 6 oz containers (vs 8 oz in 1 cup) they are approximately the same.

Super THICK!

Product #2 ~ Sobe YumBerry (anyone know what that is?) Pomegranate Life Water.  I only used a splash as the liquid to thin out my smoothie.

YUM BERRY SMOOTHIE!!!

1 c frozen blueberries & strawberries (the ones I froze during the summer!)

1/2 c TJ’s 0% Vanilla Greek Yogurt

1 small banana

1 Tbsp ground flaxseed

a few splashes of YUM BERRY Sobe Life Water

Whipped up into a frothy thickness using my Magic Bullet.  My smoothie was so thick I had to spoon it and super tasty for only 4 pts!

The only problem I have with smoothies for breakfast when I am STARVING is that I feel like I haven’t “eaten” anything.  I am sure I am just a mental case, but, I had the REST of the TJ’s Pita Puffs (x’s 2) for 2 pts.

I stayed full for my usual 2-3 hours, then, broke out the Kashi Chewy Trailmix bar I received in the mail.

You know what, it totally looks like the picture! 

This bar was only 2 pts (score!) but I thought it was only OK.  I felt like it needed some saltiness with the WHOLE almonds, bigger pieces of fruit and maybe some dark chocolate chips.  Um, maybe, I just need a different bar

I braved the rain at lunch to go to WalGreen’s and pick up the ice pack they talked about on Biggest Loser. Yes, I am a total sucker for the advertisement, but, since I use a towel and ace bandage to ice after every run, I thought an upgrade was needed

When I came back, it was time for another 7 point SAVORY WAFFLEWICH a la Melissa.

2 Kashi Strawberry Flax Waffles (s/b honey flax), toasted

1 Laughing Cow Lite Wedge

1 Morning Star Chick Patty, toasted in the toaster!

Handful of TJ’s Organic Herbed Mixed Greens

Cucumber Slices

Half #1  I LOVED the dill & cilantro in the mixed greens.

Half #2 ~ Spicy Buffalo Crispy Chick Patty!

Plus Triple Crunch on the side ~ Cucumbers, Carrots and…..

BBQ PopChips for 2 pts!

Lunch was SO, SO, SO good and worth every point!  I can definitely see making this combination again and getting creative with the toppings.  Different veggies, sauces, AVOCADO, etc.  Thanks, Melissa ~ you are seriously a genius!

I wasn’t really hungry this afternoon, but, I wanted something sweet.  I have been eyeing the Lacey DARK CHOCOLATE ALMOND TOFFEE Cookies ever since my co-worker brought them in AGAIN. 

I LOVE that they are only 3 points for that ENTIRE cookie.  120% worth it all the way!

I figured I have been lacking in the recipe development department lately, so tonight’s dinner is all new for you all

We started off with a quick salad……

* 1/2 red & 1/2 green bell peppers, chopped

* 1 cucumber, halved and sliced

* Handful Cherry Tomatoes, halved

* Dashes of Garlic salt & freshly ground pepper

* Drizzles of Extra Virgin Olive Oil & White Balsamic Vinegar (about 1-2 tsp each)

Simple, delish and 0 points!

The main course was AWESOME!!!!  It’s an old favorite that I renovated to be healthy ~ BUBBLE UP PIZZA CASSEROLE!!!

Total HEALTHY comfort food and one of the BEST spins ever on Pizza for 9 pts a svg!  Should I keep you all guessing or post the recipe ASAP? Hmmmm…..I’ll post it for you all soon

I think we are watching a NETFLIX Movie tonight and they are both chic flicks – lucky Husband   He will probably find something else on I am sure

So glad tomorrow is FRIDAY….now, if only the sun would come out it would be perfect!

Nite all!

Woohoo ~ I am posting twice in one day.  Ok, well, that’s not really what the woohoo is for….THE BIGGEST LOSER is on ~ Woohooo!  Yeah for not having to wait until spring for the next season.  Ok, so this is going to be snappy because I want to sit down with my NEW BOOK (more on that in a sec) and indulge in the show

FIRST TIHNGS FIRST

Yesterday I signed up to run my SECOND ever HALF MARATHON! ~ The Shamrock Half Marathon on March 14, 2010!! I was first encourage by one of my AMAZIMG ex bosses who is for the first time ever running a half and now my AWESOME sister has decided to join in too!  It is her first race and I am so pumped to do this together with them both….yeah!  I am a bit nervous because I ran my first half marathon (Napa to Sonoma!) 3 years ago and did a Tri-Athlon (Tri-Girl-Tri) last year.  But, THIS YEAR, I’ve done nothing, in fact, I took December off from exercising ~ oops!   Anyway, I am PUMPED and ready to do it! 

Here is my schedule EASING into things.  I combined Hal Hidgon’s training plan with Jeff Galloway’s run-walk-run philosophy.  I have a short time frame to work with so I modified it a bit I may throw in some speed work and/or hills, but, my main goal is really just to finish and maybe beat my prior year time  

Feel free to share any thoughts, advice or what not.  I’d LOVE to hear what you all have to say   I NEED all the help I can get for sure. Ohhhh and if you are training for any event now, I am open to helping to motivate each other.  Comment away, email, twitter, facebook, g-chat ~ all of the above anytime

NOW SPEED POST!!!

Ok, I guess I am not doing so good on the FAST POST part…so here it goes….onto my eats and workouts for the past few days

EATS:

Warm Oat-y-ness!

1/2 c old fashioned oats

1 c water

1 mini organic Fuji Apple

1 Tbsp ground flax seed

dashes of cinnamon and vanilla extract

TWO BEST TOPPINGS ever ~ 1 Tbsp Crunchy Almond Butter and 1 Tbsp Organic Apricot Preserves

The Husband surprised me by showing up and taking me to lunch ~ LOVE him!  We went to Mamarella’s and I ordered their FANTASTIC Beet Salad with Grilled Chicken ~ delish!

After work I came home and hopped on the treadmill ~  3 miles run/walk/run doing 5:1 intervals.  Yup, I pretty much felt like I was going to keel over….I MUST remember to not take time off like that again

Dinner was FAST and easy involving some of my FAVORITE things since I wanted to watch The Bachelor

ANNIE’S PEACE PASTA!!!

I am a sucker for FUN shaped pastas.  I LOVE this flavor as a change from the white and orange sauce, but, I still like the traditional versions best

New frozen veggie ~ This one is my FAVORITE I think it’s the roasted almond slivers:)

CLEAN INGREDIENTS!

GREAT STATS!!

I ate an entire box of green beans  

Plus a serving of Annie’s Peace Pasta

with a Trader Joe’s Chile Lime Chicken Burger toped with tomato, cucumber chips, ketchup and mustard.

Delicious, fast and EASY!

TUESDAY!!!

I woke up starving and pretty sure my stomach was going to eat itself.   I toasted up 2 Kashi Strawberry Flax Protein Waffles and topped one with Artisana Organic RAW Cashew Butter and the other with Crunchy Almond.

With some “banana chips”

I was STILL starving but held out a few hours for snack.  My mom had these Flat Bread Wheat Thins out over Christmas and I actually LOVED them.

Decent stats ~ 1 point for 2 BIG crackers.

I am super proud of Nabisco for using some REAL ingredients and getting rid of the HFCS  and using brown rice syrup instead.

Topped with 1 Laughing Cow Lite Cheese Wedge and a mini organic fuji apple.

I didn’t realize until now that I am the total product reviewer on this post   I saw these Chicken-Less Stuffed Cutlets at Trader Joe’s the other day and had to try them.  I was sold on them when I saw that they were stuffed with corn and black beans – YUM!

I have to admit they looked a little funky when they come out of the package.

But, I quickly remedied that by topping it with a slice of light provolone and my mom’s homemade chipotle salsa.  I LOVED the combination ~ smokey, BBQ, cheesy good!

And since I didn’t seem to get enough green beans last night, I had some more

I was too full for my cuties, but, they still wanted their picture taken.  I am missing the cute little stickers on this batch….don’t they know that is WHY people buy them?!

I am trying to fit in BOTH bananas and MILK since the potassium helps to get the lactic acid out of your muscles and relieve soreness.

We had a LONG afternoon meeting today so I knew that would require a Starbuck’s.  I had a tall FF Chai Tea Latte for my afternoon snack. 

TODAYS WORKOUT 2 easy miles run/walk/run with an easy 2:1 ratio since my legs are uber sore.  My run was actually awesome and I felt great after lots of stretching.

Dinner tonight was a Pizza Compromise.  The Husband wanted both Turkey Pepperoni and my FULLED LOADED VEGETABLE PIZZA.  The top layer was turkey pepperoni and the bottom layer was all veggies

I had two slices (FYI – the turkey pepperoni only adds ONE Weight Watcher Point!)

Plus a side salad with Annie’s Cowgirl Ranch….delish!

Everyday should include a little chocolate especially when it is for a good cause, right?   I received this bar as part of my Christmas present from one of my FAVORITE people ever

I had 3 squares and savored each one slowly.  I LOVE it but you don’t really taste the blueberries

NEW BOOK~ I LOVE Tosca Reno and have ALL of her books (and her cookbooks too!).  She is the person who got me started eating clean with her very first book a few years back.  She has updated her original book so I had to check it out!  I will post a review for you all when I finish….Yeah!!!

P.S. AMAZON has it on sale super cheap ~ click HERE to check it out!

SPEED POST, RIGHT? Haha ~ oh well….Off to read, relax and enjoy The SHOW!!!

See you all tomorrow for a NEW YEARS GIVEAWAY!

NITE!

Happy Monday all!  This weekend and my mini vacation flew by. The good news is we got a TON of stuff done around the house including add brick to our front and organizing/cleaning out every room, the garage and our storage!  Do you all remember when we renovated our garage with the brick?  I will have before and after pictures for you all of the front of our house too soon – it looks so good!  I am sad to see it end and of course I want another day.  Isn’t that funny ~ whenever you have time off, I always wish I had one more day   I feel really accomplished but I also think “just one more day” and I’d have it all done.  Ok, maybe not, since I didn’t spend anytime on my computer/blog….but, I think it was more important to organize my life.  I guess all good tings must come to an end…..

Saturday my eats were not too exciting ~ it was pretty much the same thing you saw on Friday.  I LOVE leftovers

Sunday started off with my FAVORITE thing….Almond butter on Cracked Wheat Sour Dough

Plus a banana and Starbuck’s Christmas coffee on the cute placemat The Husband’s mom made us. (5 points)

We didn’t stop for lunch until about 2 PM and I was STARVING.  I had picked up these Eating Right BBQ Snacks at Safeway the other day to give them a try.  I was wondering if they would be like my beloved PopChips.

I LOVE the ingredient list ~ look at all the great seeds (including Quinoa and Chia!)

SEEEDS!

Great stats.

You get a TON for a serving ~ this is 18 chips/28 grams.  I always way my dry foods because I feel like you get more when you weigh versus counting them out

The verdict ~ I LOVED them.  They do not taste like Popchips at all though. They sort of remind me of a rice cake a bit, but, they are super thin, light and airy.  I really like the sweeter BBQ flavor they have.  These were inhaled while I whipped up lunch.

I started off with a quick salad topped with Trader Joe’s LF Cranberry Gorgonzola Walnut dressing.

Then, I moved on to the MOST incredible burger ever.

TJ’s Chile Lime Chicken Burger (my favorite!)

Tomato

Cucumber slices

Annie’s Ketchup & Mustard

All on top of my new favorite bun from Earth Grains ~ Thin Buns.  Seriously – who doesn’t love that name and want Thin Buns   I actually like them better than the Orowheat/Arnold Thin versions because they taste more like whole wheat and are sweeter.  They do NOT have that light bread taste to me either.

All together, my 6 point lunch (not including my snack), hit the spot.

I am usually not a fan of all the 100 calorie snacks because they never satisfy me and always leave me wanting me.  However, while we were busy working away, these were dropped off for us to try out.  I LOVE salty/sweet things.

There are actually about 20 of these cute mini circles.  They are pretty tasty, but, you have to remember to eat them slow or they go away fast.

I paired them with a little protein/dairy ~ Sargento LF Colby Cheese.

I was completely exhausted by the time we came inside and I only had about an hour to whip up something fast before the Iron Chef Super Chef challenge began.  I cooked up another one of the frozen veggies I picked up a few weeks back.

I picked them up because the stats are great for a cheese vegetable, but, I was pretty bummed to realize I won’t be buying these anymore.  Their ingredient list includes TRANSFATS ….Anytime you see the word “hydrogenated, it means it has transfats.  I know alot of companies are replacing transfats with palm oil (which has saturated fat) so not sure really which is better *sigh*

My mom used to get me to eat veggies by putting cheese on them.  So, this definitely brought back memories   Love you Mom, yours are definitely better but these were tasty.

I served it up with Trader Joe’s 3 minute Organic Brown Rice (which I saw that Safeway is now carrying ~ FYI) and BBQ Chicken (topped with Annie’s Sweet & Spicy BBQ Sauce)

We ended the night watching the Iron Chef Super Chef Challenge and I passed out watching the Worst Cooks.  Did you all watch either show? I LOVED them both (or what I saw of the second).

Have a great day all!  I will be back later tonight with that Slow Cooker Lasagna Recipe and a New Year’s Giveaway is coming up this week!

For now….must go to work