TGIF

Seriously. I'm so glad the weekend is here. However, I'm not so happy that the temperature was only nine degrees over here in Ohio on my way to work this morning. And it has been freezing here in the office the entire week. It needs to warm up... STAT!

I bought this book a while back...

And I really like it. I'm thinking of purchasing the others.

So, has anyone tried the South Beach Diet? I attempted this several years ago, but didn't stick with it. Sugar and carbs, especially, seem to be a problem for me and I'm wondering if the South Beach Diet is something I should try. I know cravings will be ridiculous at first, but it's been my experience that it's only bad during the first week. Thoughts?

Have a fabulous weekend, everyone!

Time Out

Let's talk about Haiti for a minute. I know this is probably going to be unpopular with some of you, but I have a few things to say...

I recently read this comment in an article:

“We need so much. Food, clothes. We need everything. I don’t know whose responsibility it is, but they need to give us something soon.”

What the EFF? Really? How about holding your OWN goverment responsible.

This headline says it all - “US takes charge in Haiti - with troops, rescue aid”

What happened in Haiti is awful... devastating. Sad. I get it. I think it's great so many are coming to their aid. I'm not even opposed to our country helping out a little bit.

HOWEVER.

Enough is enough already.

What about our own country, America? Last I checked, our economy still sucks. There are no jobs and more and more people can't afford to just live. Yet, commercials on TV are asking me to text to donate $10 to the Haiti relief fund and it will be added to my phone bill?? Riiiight.

Mr. Obama, instead of using so much of your time getting America to help with the problems in Haiti, maybe you should work on that "change" you promised to the people who elected you as President of their country. So far, you haven't done much in that area (no, I'm NOT an Obama fan at all... but that's another post). The President even stated that "it will take years for America to rebuild Haiti." Excuse me, but why is this America's job? We certainly have enough problems of our own, that's for sure.

And all the celebrities who have stepped forward to help? That's great and all... but why didn't we receive the same response to Hurricane Katrina that happened right here in the U.S.? Sure, celebrities donated to this relief as well, but it is nowhere near comparing to what is being done for Haiti. It's all very frustrating.

Yes, Haiti is a poor country. And it is no secret that it's mostly due to their corrupt government. A government who has continuously stolen from the Haitians. So why should America support it with our money? And what guarantee do we have that the money given by the U.S. won't end up in the wrong hands?

All I'm saying is that in a situation like this, yes, we need to use our hearts... but for God's sake, we need to use our heads, too.

Weekend Update And Weigh In...

I'm finally back to work after a four day weekend and oh so busy. But since it's Tuesday, it's time to give you guys an update.

The weekend was fun. We celebrated my sister in law's birthday both Friday night and Sunday evening. This involved quite a few cocktails and amazing Italian food. Not so good for losing weight, but her birthday is only once a year, right?

We also went to the Cavs game on Saturday. It was M's first Cavs game and I haven't been to one in a very long time. I'm not a Lebron fan, at all... but that's for a different post, but I do love Shaq.

So... on to the weight loss topic. Tuesdays are weigh in days. I'm down 2 lbs. Am I disappointed? A little... but I realized I wasn't going to have a huge loss with the festivities over the weekend. Just looking at pasta makes me gain about 5 lbs! I'm kind of surprised there was any loss at all, honestly. But, I'm back on track and will be better this weekend!

Well, I hope all of you had fabulous weekends. I'm off to catch up on your blogs.

A Recipe For You

I'm somewhat of a picky eater... somewhat. So sometimes it's hard to find foods that are healthy, fill me up, and taste good. Here is a recipe I love, so I thought I would share.

six can chicken tortilla soup

1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained

2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth

1 (10 ounce) can chunk chicken

1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 (10 ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers

Fresh Cilantro - to taste

Tortilla chips

1. Pour everything (except chips) into a large pot. Heat on stove until simmering and the chicken is heated through.

Count out a serving size of tortilla chips and toss into your bowl. Save the rest of the soup for the rest of the week.

This makes 6 servings

Without the chips, this is 215 calories, 4.9 grams of fat, and 17.2 grams of protein.

Enjoy.

As Promised...

Ok, so here is what I weighed in at this morning...

196 lbs.

This is 2 lbs up from 2 weeks ago. I've been paying close attention to my sodium levels lately and it's obvious that I consume too much of it. And although my carbs aren't completely out of control, some cutting back in that area can help, too.

Here are my goals for every 10 lbs I lose:

10 lbs - Massage (M has been wanting to do this. He has a gift certificate and wants me to go along, too)
20 lbs - The somewhat expensive hair dryer I have been wanting
30 lbs - A piece of jewelry
41 lbs - M is buying me new clothes!

That should bring my weight to 155 which I think is completely acceptable. I need to be realistic about this and this is where I should note that I have a larger body frame. I already mentioned in my last post that people always think I weigh less than I actually do. Even our personal trainer we were working with told me he didn't think I weighed more than 178 lbs. As you can see, he was pretty far off. I think 155 lbs is realistic and when I get there, if I decide I still want to lose more, I will re-evaluate then.

By the way, I notice on some blogs I read that there is no mention of the person's height which is definitely a factor in considering if your goal weight is reasonable. If you were wondering, I'm 5'7''.

Thanks to all of you for helping to get me motivated!

Here's a picture of M and I, because it makes me smile.