Love, Love, Love...

I had all these plans yesterday morning that got foiled or at least delayed a little. It was about 11:00 and I was just about to start making some chicken salad and rice pudding when all of a sudden the power goes off. WHAT?!?!? The sky was blue, no rain, no snow, no wind. I hooked up the trusty "old" phone (the cordless doesn't work without power) and called the power company to report it. They already knew but I did it just in case they didn't. I was told by a recording that it would be out for about 7 hours. So I got my Sudoku puzzle book out and settled in on the couch. The phone rang and it was my sister-in-law from Virginia.

I had a banana with peanut butter for breakfast and wasn't looking forward to a cold lunch and possibly a cold supper but there was nothing I could do about it. While talking to SIL the power came back on. It was only off for a little over 2 hours, YAY!! By then my tummy was growling a bit so I decided I'd hop up and start supper. I was so hungry and was going to try a new recipe and decided to have it for lunch instead. I made Grammy's Cabbage Burgers, YUMMMM. I made way too much filling for them so I ate a few of the burgers for lunch (they were real small) and had the left over filling for supper with a salad. Never did get the chicken salad made but did get the rice pudding done. Chicken salad is on the agenda for today for sure.

David tagged me with a love thingy.

The rules are that you list 7 things you love and tag 7 bloggers that you love.

1. I love my daughters (does that count as two?)
2. I love my dogs (there goes another two)
3. I love God.
4. I love my cabin.
5. I love my mountain.
6. I love reading.
7. I love ALL of my blog buds.

Sorry happy to say that there are way more than 7 bloggers that I love so I couldn't choose. I have tagged you ALL.

Have a great, great weekend out there.

Spring? Weather...

Yesterday's weather was down right eerie. As I've shown you before we get fog in the valley in the mornings and I've even shown you the fog around the cabin. Well yesterday was different than any thing I've seen so far in my 6 years up her on top of my little world.

This fog was in the valley ALL day. Poor folks down there didn't see the sky at all. It even crept up between the mountain across from me. And stayed there.Then there was this beautiful sunset, still with fog. I tried to take a picture of it but couldn't capture it.

At one point I ran outside because I saw smoke billowing up from just below me. My neighbors across the road have been burning brush and I was afraid it had gotten away from them, and it was fog. Really a strange day out there.

The deer were back and drove my dogs crazy. I wouldn't let the dogs out to chase them, so they just sat on the top of the couch at the window and barked for over an hour. I tried to get a picture of them through the window but it didn't turn out with the screens in the way so here's one that I took last year while riding my ATV.

But the same ole same ole in here. Eating was good again yesterday. I made bran muffins to freeze and had a couple before freezing them. YUMMMMMM.

Have a great weekend y'all.

The Weekend's Getting Closer...ARGH...

Yesterday was a great day! Eating wise that is. And that's the only way it was great. I don't want to become one of those old ladies that tells everyone about their ails so we'll just leave it at that.

Anyway back to the eating part. I had a ham sammie (210 calories) for breakfast then talked my self into heading to town to grocery shop. (And believe me that was a long and hard talk I had there.) I had intended to eat out while there even though it wouldn't have been healthy eating. I just thought it would perk me up a bit. I was on my way home when I realized I hadn't stopped to eat. Well, I wasn't going to turn around and go back so I just came on home and fixed myself a frozen french bread pizza (432 calories) as a treat for lunch. Then the ails came and I took a short nap. I had a large salad for supper with creamy Parmesan dressing and an ounce of whole cheddar cheese (169 calories). My snacks included a serving of rice pudding (60 calories) and a banana (106 calories) with peanut butter (190 calories) on it. Bringing my total to 1167 calories. And I wasn't hungry when I went to bed! Got a good nights sleep last night so maybe things will be better today.

It's so funny about me and grocery shopping. I hate it like the plague and put it off until I just can't wait any longer. Then when I get home and get everything unloaded it feels like Christmas. I'm so happy that it's done and the cupboards and fridge are full. I've been that way all my life.

I was a little disappointed with myself last night. While talking to a friend that is having trouble with his cholesterol and weight. I was sharing a couple of recipes with him and realized that I'd forgotten to get any turkey smoked sausage. Bummer! But there's no way I'll go back into town today and pick it up. It will just have to wait until next week. I'll get it when I head to Lewisburg for my bone density test and mammogram on Wednesday.

Anyone ever had a bone density test? Wonder what they do to you? I really don't think that I need one since I'm prone to calcium type kidney stones but the doctor suggested it and one of my daughters talked me into keeping the appointment to use it as a baseline. And I guess at my age I should have stuff like that checked out.

Hope everything's rosy out there your way.

Tears on My Pillow...

Goodness, gracious! Does any one else out there need to make sure the box of tissues is handy when you get ready to watch The Biggest Loser? This is my first season watching the program and it's the first series I've ever watched that has made me cry so much. Have they all been like this? I despise Tara and I think it's because she reminds me of my brother's wife, or does anyone else feel the same?

My eating wasn't so good yesterday, after I went and bragged about how it was going great. I ended up going to bed with a really full stomach and I knew I'd pay for it. I did. NIGHTMARES! It seems that I just can't find what satisfies me and I continue to try to find just the right thing. Maybe it's because I'm just tired of my own cooking. There just isn't any where around here that I can go to have a healthy meal out. Does that mean that I have to have an unhealthy one once in a while to make me stay on track at home? I don't know... I'm really bumfuzzled about this one.

Hope you are having a stellar week!

Better Eating and Phone Problems...

Thanks for all the well wishes and suggestions in your comments yesterday about my binge. It sure does help to get it all out here and especially to know there are those out there that understand.

I think it's hormonal. Not sure so I'm keeping a diary for a week documenting my cravings, sleep habits, times that I eat and what I eat to see if there is a pattern. I may keep that up for a month and see if it is hormonal or not.

I am more bored than usual on the weekends. Since I'm retired I don't have a set schedule during the week that is much different from the weekend. But my girls are busy with their families and I don't get to talk to them much then. Weekends have always been especially hard for me. Usually when I get really bored I can turn on the TV and watch a movie or some old reruns of NCIS or JAG or something I've saved on my DVR from the nightly programming and the boredom goes away. But on the weekends there isn't much on to watch unless I have some stuff taped. My hobbies are crocheting, reading and drawing but unfortunately they don't keep my mind off food.

Yesterday was a whole lot better eating wise and so far today it's been great.

Been having phone problems today. It's been cutting off while online or talking and when I try to redial I don't have a dial tone. Then after a few minutes it works again. This went on for several hours this morning. The repair man just left and of course he couldn't find anything wrong. But at least he did give me his card with his local number and cell number so I can call him directly if it happens again instead of having to go through the 800 number and waiting for a scheduled appointment. He said that if it happened again he'd try to get right over to catch it while it was occurring. Guess it's like when something happens with your car intermittently. If it's not happening when you take the car in they can't find the problem.

Had planned on going to the grocery store but had to wait for the repair man and now I'm just out of the mood. Will have to go tomorrow for sure because I'm almost out of TP and that's just one thing you can't run out of. For some reason my list is twice as long as it usually is so I'm not looking forward to the trip. I HATE grocery shopping.

My daughter and son-in-law have created a new website.



It's really cool. Go check it out!!

Hope you're having a great Tuesday.

Monday, Monday...

This has been a rough weekend. Food addiction took over my life yesterday and the day before. Whew, I'm glad I'm back in control today. I wasn't perfect today but a whole lot better. I sure do know now what an alcoholic feels like. Yesterday by 3:00 in the afternoon I had already had breakfast, lunch and dinner. I was wondering what I would do the rest of the day and contemplated just going to bed and staying there but I wasn't sleepy. So I just had another breakfast, lunch and dinner after that. The worst part about it was that I wasn't hungry just craving so badly that I couldn't resist eating. I never did find anything that would satisfy my cravings and that's probably why I continued to eat all day and evening. I'm ready to take back control completely tomorrow.

That reminds me of a TV doctor I listened to a couple of Sundays ago. He said that Monday is the time to start eating healthy. He said to just make it through Monday. Then think about Tuesday when it comes and continue what you did on Monday. He said to keep that up every day and if you falter one day try the next and if that doesn't work there will be another Monday at the beginning of next week to start all over again. He stressed that even if you can't keep it up all week that the days you did succeed will help greatly in increasing your health.

Hope your week was better than mine :o)

Mental Vacation...

Hey, there!! I'm still among the living!!

Sorry I've been away for a few days. Actually I haven't been away physically but mentally. Just wasn't in the mood to blog or read blogs. You know how that goes sometimes.

My life has been pretty boring this week. The highlight of my week has been receiving the Biggest Loser cookbook that I ordered. Wow, it is a great book. It has lots and lots of great recipes in it. And to beat it all they don't have weird or hard to find ingredients. There are some spices that I don't usually keep in my cupboard on my spice shelf, but that is easily remedied. One other ingredient that is used a lot is whole wheat low fat tortillas and I can't find them here, but I'm going to check into ordering them from somewhere if they don't need to be refrigerated. And if that's not possible I'll just use what I can find.

Yesterday morning while I was using the bathroom first thing, I glanced out one of the windows and there were 4 deer on the bank behind my house. I stood at the window and just watched for a while. Then went into the kitchen to gt my cup of coffee and there were 3 more in the front. I ran back and forth to see if it was the same ones or not but it wasn't. That was a real experience to find my house surrounded by deer. I really love where I live!!

True Confessions...

I was too embarrassed to let you all know what I did last Wednesday, but it's been bothering me so I must 'fess up.

I bought cookies last Wednesday at the store. There it is out in the open. I've been thinking about them for so long and I do love cookies. I'd prefer homemade but I have found out with experience that homemade cookies have a real hold on my willpower. So I decided to try store bought. And before you ask, I did get my favs in the cookie category. The first and second nights I dove in...but...I did stop myself at 4. I just kept telling myself they would still be there tomorrow and that worked. Since then I've "allowed" myself two per day, again telling myself they'd still be there tomorrow. And I have had a day or two without cookies at all. I've put them out of sight so they are not reminding me they are there but in the back of my mind I know I can have one if I want. It's working! And I'm counting them in my daily calorie intake, and enjoying a little treat.

I did this same thing with potato chips and now I don't buy chips often at all. As a matter of fact I haven't bought them in well over a month.

I used the 100 calories snacks in the beginning of this journey and got to the point that I was having several packs a day and decided that wasn't a good way to lose weight much less healthy for me. I broke myself from them by having a piece or two of cinnamon toast as a sweet. Using Splenda instead of sugar and light butter on the toast. It really worked well and the whole wheat bread was so much better for me than the processed stuff. Now I do buy a box of 90 calorie Quaker Oat granola bars about once a month but they don't have the hold on me that they did in the beginning. Maybe it's the fact that I do keep them in the house and know I can have one once in a while if I want but they have lost their hold over me.

Now I'm trying the same thing with the cookies to see if I can get them to release that hold.

We all have to experiment on this journey and find out what works for each of us. I've found that if I am too strict on myself and cut out ALL "treats," I won't stick with this at all.

I also got some strawberries and made my Strawberry Pie last night. Haven't had any yet but am looking forward to a piece tonight after supper. If you're on WW, the pie is only one point per piece!!

In the past I've always said that I wasn't addicted to sweets but I'm beginning to reevaluate myself. I must be addicted to sweets or I wouldn't be wanting them so often.

I still miss my salty snacks but I have found substitutes for them. Mostly I use roasted, lightly salted almonds. When I'm having a craving for salt I grab a very small hand full (about 10) of almonds and eat them slowly one at a time. That does it for me and I'm getting such wonderful nutrients from them. When I started this I did it about 3-4 times a day but now it is down to 1-2 times a day. I can't find almonds locally so when I go to Wal-Mart I do have to stock up. Thank goodness they are sealed and have a good shelf life.

Next I'll have to find a substitute for the cookies. I haven't made my bran muffins in a long while and maybe that will work. After the cookies are gone I will give it a try.

Fog on the Mountain and Run Boys Run...

Things were so strange here yesterday evening. I've never seen this before. We got about 4 inches of snow and it got warm enough to melt some of it during the afternoon. Then in the evening the fog set in. I've never seen fog after a snow before. Woke up in the middle of the night to tinkle and the fog was still there with the full moon visible through the trees. It looked just like it was just before dark when it was actually 3 AM. I picked up the camera and went outside in my jammies and tried to get a pic for you but it didn't turn out.

We get really dense fog here often. Actually I think it's the clouds that are just hanging around on top of the mountain because when it happens I can't even see my car which is only about 50 feet from the front door.

Silly me, I've already eaten the left over smoked sausage. I had it for breakfast. I just couldn't help myself because it was calling my name really really loud (or is it loudly).

Not much on my agenda this weekend. Well, actually there's nothing on my agenda this weekend. Don't you wish you were me and didn't have anything to do? Well, I don't. I wish...never mind what I wish. I could change my life if I wanted to but I'm just to lazy to do that.

Hope you have a great weekend.

PS: I sure wish blogger would fix what ever it is that causes extra line breaks or no line breaks to occur when adding pics. This is driving me crazy!!

PPS: Cammy's having a giveaway so go check her out.

This is weird for me to post twice in one day but I just couldn't wait until tomorrow to let you know how W-O-N-D-E-R-F-U-L my supper was.

It took all of about 15 minutes to make and was worth a whole lot more time if it had taken me longer.

I cut up an onion and a green bell pepper into one inch or so pieces. Sliced the turkey smoked sausage into bite sized pieces. Sprayed my skillet with Pam and tossed it all in. I cooked it on medium low with a lid until the veggies were tender.

I even had to put a couple of hot dogs in the skillet for a little while for the doggies. They were smelling it and drooling so I decided to give them a little treat.

As you can see from the first picture I had Brussels sprouts and a small lettuce salad with a tablespoon of my Creamy Parmesan Dressing on it.

I used 7 oz. of the sausage with the green pepper and onion and have enough for tomorrow night. Or maybe for lunch tomorrow :o)

Nutritional information for peppers, onions and sausage.

1 serving

239 calories

10.3g Fat

70mg Cholesterol

1084.4g Sodium

294.9mg Potassium

17.7g Carbs

2.7g Fiber

7.4g Sugars

17.9g Protein

I added one more thing to my plate after I took the picture. Didn't want to do it before because I didn't want you to throw up on your keyboard. I like ketchup on my Brussels sprouts :o)

A Reminder that Spring Isn't Here Yet...

Gosh, yesterday was a long day. Not time wise but it sure seemed like it to me. I was hungry all day. I had one of my usual breakfasts, a ham sammie on light whole wheat with light mayo and mustard and less than an hour later I was starving. It usually lasts me 4 hours. And I don't mean just hungry I mean stomach growling pain starving. I tried water and it didn't help. It went that way all day with everything I ate. This morning I've been thinking about it and wonder if it was the Wendy's partial meal the day before, that got the body wanting that greasy yucky stuff. Well, it ain't gonna get it. I kept it healthy with every thing that went in my mouth even though there was a little too much consumed. Hope today's better!

Woke up to about 3 inches of the white stuff on the ground. Supposed to turn to freezing rain sometime today. But I'm gooooooood. Stocked up and ready for anything. Errr, better make sure I have water drawn in case the freezing rain takes down a power line. But I do have a couple of book lights so I won't have to balance the flash light on my shoulder to read. I'm talking about this because the last time I did the power didn't go off with our freezing rain. Maybe that will help this time too.

Got some turkey, smoked sausage links the other day and am going to try that with sauteed onions and green peppers tonight for supper. Will let you know how it was.

TGIF bloggers!

The Evolution Continues...

Good grief, yesterday was a hectic day.

I didn't find out until I stopped at my mail box that yesterday was my Orkin appointment. They just say they will be here the second Wednesday of every other month and being the "oldtimer" that I am, I just can't seem to remember that. I've been relying on the bill they send in the mail to give me fair warning. It's going on my calendar after I'm through here so I won't forget again. And to beat it all I never can remember what time of day they are coming.

I dropped the dogs off and headed to Wal-Mart (an hours drive). Called Orkin as soon as I got within cell service and found out that the last two times they came between 3:30 and 5:00. Whew. That gave me enough time to do what I needed to do and get the dogs picked up and home before they arrived. Got home in time to unload the car and put away the cold stuff, run the sweeper and get started on the dishes in the sink and here he came.

He is such a nice young man. I told him that I had tried to time it to where we would both arrive at the same time so he could help me unload the car and he said he would have been glad to do that for me. He even fixed an elderly lady's bathroom sink last week for her during one of his scheduled appointments.

Now on to the "evolution." I was so stressed and getting really hungry that I stopped at Wendey's and got a single and fries with water. I figured since I'd been really good that it wouldn't hurt to do that once in a while. I could only eat 1/3 of the burger and fries and I was full AND disgusted with myself for not making a better choice. I think the main reason I was full so soon was that it just didn't taste as good as I remember it tasting. When oh when will one of my favorites taste good like it used too? Guess my palate has changed along with my body. I'm really wanting to try a Taco Bell Burrito Supreme but there is none anywhere near me. I think Tex/Mex is my favorite food and I just can't find the stuff here to make my favs or I'd make it myself.

Okay, back to the hectic day... When the Orkin guy left I was exhausted and tried like everything to stick it out until bedtime. I couldn't and crashed on the couch at 6:00 and woke up around 7:30. And I was sore all over! My back hurt, my thighs hurt, my calves hurt and the bottoms of my feet hurt! I hobbled around the kitchen to fix myself a salad and sandwich and sat down to eat thinking that I'd probably be up all night after the nap. Boy, was I wrong! At 10:30 I couldn't keep my eyes opened long enough to read more than a couple of pages of the novel I keep by the bed. Guess that was too much of a day for an old person. I sure miss all the energy youth has to offer. And now I realize why my Mother couldn't keep up with me as she got older.

Lesson leaned. From now on I'm not planning a full day like that one. When the dogs need grooming that's the only thing I'm putting on my plate for that day and a trip to Wal-Mart will be the only thing I'll plan for that day.

It's really hard for me to leave the dogs at the groomers because it really stresses them out and they are as exhausted in the evenings as I was yesterday. I don't think they mind the grooming and all but the groomers helper has two little Chihuahua's that yap at their heals the whole time they are there and they are just not used to being around other dogs. So when I put them in the car to take them I never tell them where we are going :o) But I'm sure by now they know because that's the only place I ever take them. My little boy hates riding in the car but the girl loves it. So to keep from stressing him out I just don't take them for rides. Just in case you wonder why I don't just take her, it's because they act like they are joined at the hip and I don't want to make either of them sad because the other one is not around. I guess I should start separating them some to get them used to being without the other for when I loose one of them.

Happy Thursday, blog-buds!!

Off to the Races...

Got a lot of running around to do today.

Didn't sleep well because I was afraid I'd oversleep and not be ready in time to get the dogs to their beauty appointments. I refuse to use an alarm clock in my retirement unless absolutely necessary. So I was wide awake at 6:00 AM. I've been catching up on some of your blogs and will get to the rest of them this evening.

Thanks so much for the flattering comments about yesterdays pictures.

I got a bug up my butt yesterday and hit the kitchen with a vengeance. Started with the dishes that had piled up and then scrubbed the appliances with my new best friend (Mr. Clean). I'd never bought that product in all of my 60+ years until last week. It really is a great cleaner, but I digress... Then I started a pot of Taco Soup and made some Pumpkin Custard. Yeah, yeah, now more dirty dishes. I did wash some as I was going, which I never do when I cook. But after everything cooled and I could put it in the freezer or fridge I didn't feel like washing dishes anymore. So, I've got some facing me when I get back this afternoon.

Have a great "hump day!"

Enough is Enough...

Durn you all are relentless. Don't you get as sick as I do of seeing my "puss" on this thing? Now when I was younger I didn't mind looking at a picture of myself.

Here, I am in my 20's (right after my first bout with weight loss). That's a whole lot better to look at than the first one. That's my Daddy Bob (grandfather). The cake says, "21 is a good age...Wasn't it?" It was his birthday and I made the cake. Sure wish we could take our grandparents into our old age with us. He's the one that taught me how to tell time and tie my shoes among other 'portant things. He had the patients of Job when it came to me. Course he was always a calm person with anyone. He even let me "help" him build their house when I was 3 years old. There are some nails in that old house pounded in by a 3 year old, by golly. (And for Kristisummer and anyone else that missed my "New Do" post here is where you can see it.)

Last night was my first good nights sleep in a week. Finally! For some reason lately I've had some horrible dreams and couldn't sleep the whole night through. That's just not normal for me. I even slept a little later than I have been lately. Sure hope that doesn't happen tomorrow because I have to have the dogs at the groomers by 10:00 tomorrow and it takes my bathroom at least a half hour to heat up for a shower, then it will probably take me another half hour to "style" my hair :o) Next thing you know, I'll be wearing make up! EEEEKKKKK I'm turning into a girly girl. I'm for sure not giving up my jeans, so there.

I think that was the most horrible thing about being a teacher...we couldn't wear jeans very often. On those occasional, rare days when we would have "jeans day" I was the bestest teacher of all. The kids even said so. But you know the system. Gotta set a "good" example for the younger ones. I should have gone on to get my masters so I could teach college and wear anything I durn well pleased. I was within 6 hours of my masters but that's a story for a another time. I've even told my girls to make sure I'm buried in jeans. I'm not crazy about dressing up and that's the way I'm most comfortable.

Have a great day out there in blog-land.

Hair Update and Yet Another Recipe...

I've been playing with my new hair cut and finally have it figured out. Thanks for all the suggestions for styling and products to use. Unfortunately the only products I have in the house are mousse and hair spray so that's what I used while playing beautician. Now all I need is someplace to go to wear my new do.

I had a really delicious meal last night. I made Pepper Steak with a Twist. I got the recipe from the corn starch box and didn't have any green peppers but had some left over cooked cabbage. I didn't even use the corn starch nor broth they suggested because it already made a lot and didn't want the extra calories. This recipe makes enough for two with another side or you can eat the WHOLE big plate full like I did. And the best part is that it was only 477 calories for the whole thing. I wasn't hungry all evening after that great meal. And if you don't like cabbage you can go ahead and use the green pepper but you'll have to add 4 calories and you won't get as much. I thought that was really interesting that a cup and a half of cabbage is fewer calories than one green pepper. So, if you're interested, go on over to my recipes and check it out.

I think I'm gonna head for the big city (population 7,676 but they do have a Wal-Mart) sometime this week 'cause I'm out of almonds and a few other things that I can't find in my little town.

Hope you make it through Monday and have a great rest of the week.

PS: Please forgive any misspellings. My spell checker won't work for some reason.

Another Recipe...

I'm feeling some better. Thanks for all your well wishes. You don't know how much that meant to me.

Don't know about the rest of you but I really miss creamy salad dressing. So, I decided to figure out how I could have some that was light. And I'm not crazy about the bottled stuff. I discovered Carrabba's a couple of years ago and was addicted to their creamy Parmesan dressing. Went searching the web and found a recipe. So I tweaked it to make it healthier. You'll find the recipe here. Now if I could just figure out how to make my Mother's wilted lettuce dressing in the low calorie/low fat format. I don't think that's gonna happen since the main ingredient is bacon grease and I know for a fact that another kind of "good for us" oil wouldn't taste the same. But that doesn't mean I won't try.

The funny thing about this bug I had is that the appetite didn't falter. Sure wish it had a little, just a little. Actually I ate every thing I could get my hands on the first day. That may have been just one of those days that hit me once in a while, oh well.

I did get out of the house a little yesterday in this beautiful weather. Walked all the way from my back door to the garage, taking some stuff out there that had piled up. Then a couple of times I just enjoyed the warmth and sat on the porch while my doggies were doing their business and smelling the wild life that is up and about. I have a really hard time talking them into going out when it is bitter cold out there, just like everyone else does, I'm sure. But I had a hard time keeping them in yesterday. The deer were really abundant yesterday (I saw 8 in one bunch) and they love to set and bark at them. They even chase them a little ways into the woods but they don't get too close or chase them to where ever they go when being chased, thank goodness.

Hope your weekend is going well and you remembered to set your clocks ahead last night (I didn't).

Short and Sweet...

This is going to be short and sweet. 'Cause my feel bad hurts.

Just wanted to let you know that I'm not feelin' much like bloggin' right now. Guess I picked up a bug when I went to town on Tuesday.

Be back when I feel better.

Oven Fried Chicken...

No beating around the bush here...I'm just jumping right in...

I had my fried chicken last night. And it was sooooo yummy. I even did it healthy!!

I started with the fried chicken recipe from the Biggest Loser show on Tuesday and tweaked it to meet my needs.

Like I said in yesterdays post I did opt for thighs because I just needed the extra taste and I know it made it a little more in calories and fat but I am on maintenance.

I made my own bread crumbs from my whole wheat light bread. After toasting the bread the night before and letting it set out all night to get good and hard, I put them in the food processor and ground he heck out of them until they were almost a powder. The whipped egg whites really helped the coating stick to the chicken and gave it a consistency more like the crusty chicken I used to fry. I then coated my baking dish with about a half tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and placed the chicken on that. I baked them on one side for 30 minutes at 350 degrees then flipped them and continued baking for another 30 minutes. (I baked them this long because I'd left the bone in.) When I took them out they looked just like my homemade! I was so excited and had a hard time waiting for my cabbage to get done so I could eat. There were a little drippings in the pan so I scraped it out and into a small skillet and made a little gravy. When I say a little I mean a really little. It made about 3 tablespoons of gravy but that's all I needed for a taste. I then baked a potato in the microwave and after scooping it out and mashing it with a little soy milk, salt and a little light butter, I poured the gravy over it. It was the best meal I've had in a long time.

The funny thing about my new eating habits is that when I fix myself something that I haven't had in a while I hit the veggies on my plate first. And it's not a conscious action either. My eyes just go to the veggies first and my mind thinks, "This cabbage (or what ever the veggie is) is really going to be goooooooood. So I ate about half the cabbage first. I first noticed this new habit during Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner this past year. Talk about new "good" habits.

Now comes the bad part. I made 2 thighs with the thought that I hadn't had fried chicken in such a long time I was going to have 2. One was enough!! Unlike in my previous life, I took my time eating and was really full after one piece of chicken. So, the bad part is that I have another piece of chicken in the fridge. I will have it all by itself today for lunch. Well, I may have some cabbage with it.

Had one serving of rice pudding left so that was dessert. Gonna make more of that today.

I'll be putting the fried chicken and gravy recipes on my recipe blog after I finish this.

It's so nice to see the temperature getting higher. It's supposed to be up to 70 here on Saturday. I can hardly wait!! I have some stuff that needs to be done outside and I have just been refusing to put on a coat and brave the cold we've been having.

Have a great day!!

Sleepless in West Virginia...

Don't know what it is but I just can't sleep. Reading didn't help, even finished my book and a snack didn't help. I've tried several times and just decided to get up and come blog instead.

Now, what to blog about...hmmmm...

After watching Biggest Loser tonight I decided to try the fried chicken the way they suggested. I had already decided to make it oven fried chicken but I'm going to use the whole wheat bread crumbs instead of flour. So I've got some whole wheat bread toasted and drying out for tomorrow. I did pick up thighs this time instead of breasts as a treat. I rarely ate a chicken breast before I started on this healthier life style and I've gotten to where I'd rather have beans than chicken lately. I'm really tired of chicken breast.

I was so looking forward to fresh strawberries when I went to the store but they were half rotten. The price was so high they just couldn't sell what they had put out. I did get a big head of cabbage and think I'll cook the whole thing and freeze some for later in the week. I almost bought cookies. I've been dying for cookies lately but I didn't do it. I was good. And my local store doesn't carry Hershey's dark chocolate kisses, durn. I think I only have about 5 left and that won't last me until April first when I go to Wal-Mart again. Don't know what I'll do without them. Not to worry, I'm always good with them. I only allow myself 3 at a time and only have them 2-3 times a week. That takes care of the chocolate urge for me.

Well, that was a boring post, but hey, it's my blog and I can write anything I want too, so there.

Guess I'll sign off and play some mindless card games on this 'puter to try to make myself sleepy.

New Do...

This is what I asked for (without the blond)...
And this is what I got...

I really need to find a new hair dresser.

Fright Night...

I had a scare last night. I was setting here watching some inane TV show at around 9:30 and heard a vehicle coming up my driveway. Flying low!! Horn honking!! My doggies were outside and I am so grateful they stayed on the porch. They usually head for the driveway to greet whomever comes up my driveway. If they would have done their usual behavior I would have had two squished dogs.

The truck just whizzed by my front door (I have a circular driveway) and kept on going. I got to the door in time to see it leaving and knew who it was. It was the same idiot that did this same thing about a month ago at 2:00 AM. I stayed on my porch and watched to see where he would go next and he went to a neighbors house (his girlfriend). She is out of town but he has a key and went on in. I waited a little while and called down there. He wouldn't answer the phone, so I called the friend, out of town. I asked her to ask him to quit doing this. While I was talking to her he called me back and was drunk as a skunk. He swore that he didn't honk the horn that it was the heater in the truck making noises. Like I don't know the difference between a horn and a heater. I tried to get it through his drunken stupor that the horn wasn't the point. I tried to get it through his head that I didn't want him driving up here again, period. I even told him that I had my gun in my hand by the time I'd gotten to the door and he was lucky that he didn't get shot. Which was a lie. I'd forgotten to pick up the shotgun, again. But he didn't know that. And maybe that will keep him from doing it again.

I've got a "no trespassing" sign posted at the beginning of my driveway but it is weathered and not as visible as it should be. When I go to town this week I'm getting a new one. And the next time this idiot does this I'm calling the police on him.

I live about 200 feet off the road and no one has any right driving through my driveway unless they are coming for a visit.

It took me about 2 hours last night to quit shaking and as I'm typing this I'm shaking again.

My eating has been alright. Not great and not bad. My weight is fluctuating up and down within a 3 pound range. And I'd say that's good for maintenance. But boy am I ever craving the good stuff, like fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, fried liver and onions, fettuccine Alfredo, and spaghetti with lots of garlic bread. Think I'm going to have to fix myself some in a small amount or it will get the best of me and I'll binge. But I'll be careful and not fix it all in the same week. Maybe I can have one of these meals once a week and do alright. Those of you on maintenance, do you think that will be harmful?