Fat Ticker Friday!

It's already Friday again? What the heck?!? I seriously have no idea where this week went. SERIOUSLY NO IDEA! Anyways, I'm half asleep writing this and had every intention of writing a super fantastic post filled with grandeur, but it's not to be. I have say, I was really looking forward to doing the photo question thinga ma jig for HFH, but my tiny brain and the few brain cells I have left can barely force out this post. 

ANYWAYS, I'm rambling. What I mean to say is I wanted a good post, but have run into obstacles that have made it nearly impossible to get on my lovely computer this week. Now, the weekend has come and it's my hubby's birthday and I need to get something posted now or it's just not gonna happen. We have tons of errands we need to do, not to mention parties here and there! It's gonna be fun! YAY! Hopefully, I am gonna be strong and eat healthy and have NO REGRETS! 

As for my weigh in, I guess it's officially Friday here! Not the best loss, but it's a loss. I bet if I weighed tomorrow, it might be a lil bit better. I  just tend to weigh less in the morning. Oh well, we'll go with what I got as I've got to get to bed. Are you all still reading? WOW, I'm boring and tired and BLAH! LOL! The loss this week is .5 lb! Man, next week WILL be better. Now that I've got my Wii fit, I'm gonna go crazy mad with the whole exercise thing. I LOVE the fit! LOVE IT! 

Alright, I'm gonna stop rambling away. The time it took to write this post, I could've done the picture question thingy huh? I'm pathetically tired! Hope everyone did good this week. I'll be by your blogs early next week for sure. I'm not thinking I'm gonna get much computer time this weekend, which in this case (my hubby's birthday, etc) is a good thing!

Happy weight loss everyone and sorry for the incoherent ramblings!

P.S. THANKS TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE STOPPED BY AND COMMENTED ON MY BLOG! I'm USUALLY really GOOD at coming back and VISITING and commenting on your blogs! It's been one of those weeks! I PROMISE to be by soon! I feel I've missed out on so much and that there's MOTIVATION to be got out there! THANKS AGAIN! You're comments keep me focused, motivated and determined!!

I got a Wii Fit!

Can I tell you all how excited I was to get the Wii Fit? I've wanted it for sometime now. The funny thing is I've never seen one in action or even used one, but just the concept of it totally intrigued me! A new and fun way to exercise? I'm all in!

Anyways, my sweet husband found me one this weekend and I was finally able to play it tonight! OH my gosh, I LOVE IT! LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! I exercised for 2 hours without even realizing that much time had gone by. I really love the step aerobics and the strength training is awesome too! The balance games are not yet my friend as I'm a total klutz, but I really LOVE this Wii Fit! Have I mentioned I love it? 

I'm so excited to get this new exercise motivation! It's at such an opportune time where I feel like I've hit a plateau and keep staying at the same weight plus or minus a pound or two here or there. Therefore, I'm ecstatic to have something to bring back my motivation to push myself that much more! Plus, The Biggest Loser is on again on Tuesday, YAY! I'm gonna totally do the Wii Fit the whole time I'm watching the show! Yes, you can totally do that!!! How cool is that? OH AND I SUPER LOVED Christie's post about adding weights and alternating the weights with aerobics. I'm totally gonna do this too! I'm planning on purchasing some weights this week! YAY! 

Alright, you all know now that I LOVE the Wii fit! I'm super pumped to see great numbers on the scale this coming Friday!! YAY! 

Say out loud to myself again:

I WILL BE HOT FOR THE HOLIDAYS!! 

FAT Ticker Friday!

Key word here being FAT! Man, I feel so gross right now!! I feel FAT, I feel gross and I need to be held accountable. I didn't lose or gain, but nonetheless, I feel BLAH! I feel like I could've tried SO MUCH harder and done SO MUCH BETTER!

I'm so glad that we have this Hot for the Holidays though. It's seriously helping me to re-evaluate and re-gain my focus and motivation! 

I WILL lose this week and it's gonna be an AWESOME loss! I'll be a major contributor to this 500 lb weight loss goal. I'll not feel blah, but feel motivated and inspired! 

I'm excited for the week to come and SUPER excited to get around to all your blogs and read about your weeks, whether you lost or gained or stayed the same. It's hearing your story of weight loss and the struggles/triumphs and everything in between that keeps me going!

Here's to a great week everyone!!

A CONTEST! YAY!

Alright, as if you all didn't already know how much I love Weight Watchers from my blinky and the fact I talk about it ALL THE TIME, I now need to tell you my love for it has grown! 

I love their products and LOVE LOVE that they keep coming out with new things pretty regularly. WW products have saved me in so many situations and I'm just glad they have them!

This being said, I would REALLY love to win some WW coupons. I spend WAY TOO MUCH on their products and could use some discounts here and there.

Lucky for me (and you all), Lorie over at Honey I Shrank our Spending is holding a contest. It says on the post that it ended on September 10th, but she just emailed me and told me to go ahead and enter! YIPEE! I bet if you all hurry, you can enter as well!

A Meme by Bikini Bound! YAY!

So, I've been asked to do this by Brittany meme and am excited to fill it out. I found Bikini Bound's blog via Hot for the Holidays and her blog is fantastic. Feel free, any of you, to fill out this meme as well! It's fun to get some background on all our weight loss buddies! 

Here it goes!

1. What's your name? Or at least something we can call you that's less of a mouthful than the name of your blog. :)

My name is Jen. You can call me Jen, Jennifer, that girl with the weight loss blog, whatever. I'm good with pretty much anything :)

2. Give us a paragraph (as much or as little as you'd like) about your weight loss story, including at least your goal. (You don't have to give actual numbers if that's not your style. :) We'll try to read back through your blog as much as possible, but just get us started. 

Well, let me think. I have always felt like the "bigger" girl my entire life. Granted, I'm not overly obese or anything like that, I've just always seemed to make friends/associations with girls that are rail thin. I've always had a horrible self esteem and what people say "skewed" body image of myself. However, after getting married, I did start to actually pack on the pounds. 

One day, I saw a picture of myself at my heaviest weight and wanted to cry. I had no idea I looked like that. It was totally and utterly disgusting to me. A few weeks later I started Weight Watchers with my MIL. I found this program to work for me and not only be a "diet" but literally a way of life. It's easy to follow and allows me to eat what I want, within reason. Nothing is off limits, just got to prioritize and plan my day.

I lost over 40 pounds with Weight Watchers and felt incredible! Seriously, I was on top of the world. Soon after this loss, I got pregnant with my first child. Obviously, I gained weight with this and it took some time for it to come back off. I eventually got back down to my goal weight and once again, felt wonderful. (However, most moms will tell you, your body is just not the same after giving birth no matter how much you lose!)

Not to long after I got down to goal again, we decided to try for another baby. It took us years with my first, but my second pregnancy was basically on the first try. Once again, I gained the weight. The dreaded weight. 

Now, it's been a year since I gave birth to my second child and I'm technically down to my goal at Weight Watchers. However, I DO NOT feel fabulous. I don't feel like I did when I was originally at goal the first time. Mind you, my body went through some major change and destruction with the birth of my two babies. Anyways, although at goal, I long to lose more. When I originally set my goal at WW, I set the bar towards the top of my acceptable weight range. I wanted to be sure it was something I could obtain, but also give myself room for improvement. When I originally lost all the weight, I got down to 10 lbs below my WW goal. That is where I'm trying to get now. It's proving to be rather difficult though, but I'm gonna try. I would LOVE to get down 15 more pounds. (ps, don't worry, it's still within my acceptable weight range for my height :)

That's the story in a nut shell. . . or not. I tend to babble. Sorry!

3. What kind of exercise do you do? What works best for you? What doesn't work for you?

Well, I wish I could say running or something cool like that here, but alas I can not. My main form of exercise is biking and I love it. Although I need to get out more often and do it! The winter months are coming and that will make it really hard to get out and bike in the snow. I do have a treadmill in the home when the weather is bad, but it's not as fun. I like a change of scenery.

I do like doing the treadmill once the Biggest Loser starts up again (season premier tonight. . . YAY). Last year, I made a goal to run/walk on an incline the entire 2 hours of each episode of this show. For some reason, I'm able to do that as this show motivates me a ton. I plan on doing something similar, starting tonight.

Obviously,  I lack in the exercise department and need to find something that gets me moving more. Maybe then, I'll get down to the "dream" goal weight I have! ;0

4. What are your biggest struggles? 

My BIGGEST struggle is eating under stress and I've been under a lot of that lately. We're living with my Mother in Law and there is only 1 kitchen and 1 bathroom. Nuff said!

I need to do better at controlling my eating when I stress out. I need not stress out as much. It's a work in progress!

5. What are three of your hobbies that aren't weight loss-related? We probably have far more in common than just a desire to be "hot for the holidays." :)

Shoot, hobbies I have now or wish I still had time to do?

1. Well, I LOVE riding bikes. It's something that is relaxing to me, even if I am working up a sweat.

2. I LOVE LOVE LOVE to play the piano. I took piano lessons for about 11-12 years and this is my primary source of stress relief and relaxation. I play by ear and it's something I really truly enjoy to do. However, I don't own a piano, so I haven't been able to officially practice/play in years. Perhaps, this has something to do with all the inability to manage my stress mentioned in question #4 eh?

3. I love watching funny shows, whenever I get the chance. I'm super excited for The Office to come back on! I usually am watching it at 2 am once I have the kids to bed and have done my cleaning for the night. That show seriously CRACKS me up! I guess though, tv isn't really a hobby though as I can't remember the last time I turned it on. I guess I should say here, I like to laugh. I like doing things that make me laugh and make me happy, be it watching a funny show like The Office or hanging out with good friends/family!

7. Tell us one cool, unique thing about you. 

Well, I'm SO NOT cool so this is a tuffy! I guess I'll just say hmmmm. Does that answer your question? I'm so not unique or cool or original! You all still wanna be my friends? I'm such a lame case! Oh oh oh, I've traveled to New Zealand and it's my most favorite place in the entire world. My MIL is a New Zealand native. 

Hopefully, I can think of something better than that later . . . 

The 1st Fat Ticker Friday

Alright, I'm having to write this up real quick as I have 2 sick babies who are crying their eyes out right now. However, I wanted to be sure I posted this right now as I don't think I'll get to it tomorrow. It's my hubby's day off! YAY!

I just want you all to know that I'm MORE than excited to do HOT for the Holidays and love all the motivation this is gonna bring me! 

Since starting HFH

I've lost 1 lb! Yay!!!

To answer this weeks question, "What do you want your legacy to be?"

Wow! Well, that's a really good question that makes me question a lot about my life right now and my life in the future. To keep it simple and sweet, I basically want my legacy to be one that my kids will admire. I want to have goals and accomplish them. I long to be one of those people who "just knows" when someone needs a hand and is always willing to put others first. I wish to be a mom that my kids can confide in, laugh with and love forever and ever. Simply put, I want to be the mom my mom was to me! 

I say was because my mother passed away unexpectedly when I was 18 years old. This was traumatic and horrible, but I feel blessed to have her legacy to look up to and to have had her for the 18 most impressionable years of my life! My mom was one of those people that I don't believe a soul in the world could say one bad thing about. She was honest, generous, kind, loving, compassionate, charitable. . . the list goes on and on. I could (and have and my other blog) go on for paragraph after paragraph about the great woman, mother and friend my mom was, but figure it is best put forth by just saying the following: If my legacy could be half what my mother's has been to me, I will have done well and feel I have done at least a little bit of good in the world.

That being said, I use this question today to look forward and to dream big. I want to attain my goals. I want to live life to the fullest and show my children how to do the same. I want to greet each morning with a smile. If I can do this, I will at least know one person will be smiling down upon me and when I greet her once again in the life after this, what a sweet reunion it will be!!

Alright, that's all for now. If you've read this far, thanks for staying with me. I can't wait to come around and meet other people who are on this weight loss journey as well as read all your answers to this poignant question! 

Jen :)

Watching What We Eat Wednesday

This week, there isn't a theme, so I'm just gonna post the first recipe that pops into my head! Hmmmm, it's after midnight, so it's not coming as easily as I thought it would. . . Ah ha! Here's one!

Enjoy!

Pierogies with Creamy Mushroom and Sherry Sauce

Points for WW = 5 

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms

1 onion, sliced

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

2 tablespoons dry sherry (I just used the some more chicken broth here)

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

2/3 cup low fat (1%) milk

1/4 cup reduced sodium chicken broth

1 (1 pound) package of frozen low fat potato pierogies, THAWED

to thaw frozen pierogies quickly, cook them uncovered in boiling water 3 to 5 minutes, then drain before proceeding with recipe!!!!

 2 tablespoons light sour cream

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the mushrooms, onion, salt and pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and lightly browned, about 4 minutes

 

Stir in the sherry and cook until it evaporates.  Sprinkle the flour over the mushroom mixture, stirring to combine.  Stir in the milk, broth, and pierogies; bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and stir in the sour cream

 

THAT'S IT!  Really easy.  You can add some chicken breast pieces or turkey or whatever to make the meal more filling or just leave as is. 

 

per serving (about 1 1/2 cups) 249 calories, 5 grams of fat   

 

Hope you like it!

HOT for the Holidays!

So, I was over reading at Bye Bye Fat Mom and found this AWESOME idea! I'm totally gonna do this! Not that I will necessarily be "hot", but I'll be on my way if I do this! It's seriously a great idea! See that Hot for the Holiday's thing over on my sidebar? Ya, click there and it'll tell you all about it! Or ya can just click HERE!

It started yesterday, but you can start anytime and it's totally easy. You just have "weigh in" on her blog every Friday and you're eligible for a prize! Prize or no prize, I'm SO IN! I love finding new things that give me more motivation to get my rear into gear! 

YAY!

Real Quick!

Is anyone as EXCITED as I am that the Biggest Loser is starting up again? YIPEE! I love the motivation this show gives me! 

That's all for now. It's 2:38 am and I'm freaking tired. Just had to get that out! Off to bed. They say a good night's rest helps with the weight loss process. Maybe that's why I seem to be stuck at my current weight! 

G'night all!

Watching What We Eat Wednesday

CROCKPOT EDITION!!

Well, I have made the recipe below TONS of times and it's easy and delicious! I did, however, get this exact recipe off of DWLZ.com. I'm too lazy to run upstairs and grab mine when I can just copy and paste this one. Did I mention it's yummy and easy? I can't wait to get some more crockpot recipes. It's a method I love to cook with, but don't know too many crockpot recipes that are low in points! Bring em' on! :)

Chicken Stroganoff - Crockpot Method

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

1 pound frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can fat free cream of mushroom soup
16 oz. carton fat free sour cream
1 envelope dry onion soup mix

Put frozen chicken in bottom of crockpot. Mix soup, sour cream, 
onion soup mix and pour over chicken. Cook on low for 7 hours. 
Makes 6 servings. (serve it over rice or noodles, but be sure to add those points)

POINTS:  4

I'm Back and full of Motivation!

Well, we had a wonderful vacation in Yellowstone. Now that we are home, I'm even more eager to lose more weight!! I feel really good right now, but know that my weight can get lower on the scale. I'm about 2 pounds from my WW goal, which makes me ecstatic! So, that is my focus right now. Once there, I have a goal to get 10 pounds below that. I originally set my WW goal at the higher end of the spectrum. I know I feel good at goal, but know I feel even better 10 pounds below that. It's funny because I don't feel as "skinny" as I did when I have been at goal before. I know it has a lot to do with having 2 kids. There are just some things that don't go back to where they were. I just have to come to terms with that. It's just hard to still see a roll when I sit or whatever. I want it GONE! I think another 10 pounds will help ease that frustration a bit. 

It has been nice to start doing some shopping. I have bought 2 new pairs of jeans. It's been a long time since I've done that. Not because I haven't had the money or have been told I can't, I just didn't want to. I felt gross and fat and had NO desire to shop. I love that the desire to shop and look good is slowly coming back. The best thing is to grab jeans off the shelf and think they're gonna be too small and tight and to realize that you can put them on and pull them off again without unzipping or unbuttoning! That is an AWESOME feeling. I can say I had a HUGE smile on my face when I had to go not only 1 size smaller, but 2 sizers smaller than I thought I was when I walked into the store! YAY!

Another great bonus of my weight loss journey is that my husband has decided to start his own weight loss journey. This makes me SO HAPPY! I love my hubby dearly and love him no matter what he looks like, but also want him to be healthy and around for a long LONG time. It makes me so happy that he's deciding to try to lose weight and is starting with little goals and going from there. He's already lost 8 pounds in a week! I'm thrilled that he's having this new outlook on life and health! 

Well, that's about all I have to report right now. I'm sorry I haven't been around for awhile, but plan to be back full force and checking out all of your blogs. I hope to find even more weight loss buddies and get even more motivation!

Have a great week!