I ♥ Mailbox Surprises

On the way home from work this afternoon I stopped at the mail box…opened it to find a nice surprise from Angie. It’s a little hard to read, but it’s a card congratulating me on 100 lbs lost. How incredibly thoughtful was that? Totally brightened my whole afternoon!! Thanks chickie! :) I feel so lucky to have made such great real-life friends because of blogging.

Today’s eat were on the ball. This morning I woke up to the heavenly smell of coffee, what a way to start off my Monday! (That and I wore my new shoes!!) J has finally jumped on the coffee bandwagon and had a steamy mug all ready for me.

For Breaky, I had an old favourite - 2 slices of ezekiel toast with peanut butter & sliced banana.

Munched on a fresh peanut butter oatcake when my belly started grumbling around 10.


Work was quite busy today; ended up eating lunch away from my desk so I didn’t get to take any pics. It was a bowl of the homemade chicken noodle soup, homemade roll and the other half of the banana from this morning.

Supper was so GOOD! BLT’s, corn on the cob and salad. Mmmm.

The sammie was made out of 2 slices of ezekiel toast, turkey bacon, lettuce tomatoes with a smear of light mayo.

Fresh corn with melty olive oil becel & pepper. Delish!

All About the Comfort Foods

So we survived Hurricane Bill. It was windy and pouring but that’s really all that happened. Pretty much every Winter storm causes the power to go out so I thought for sure we’d lose it but nope, not even a flicker. Was a perfect day of relaxation though – the house was tided/ chores done in anticipation of not having power, so all I did was blog/tweet and watch tv. I needed the rest though.

In exciting news, Jen, Cat and hopefully Amy (plus spouses) will be coming to Halifax in a little under 7 weeks! The Halibloggers have been making some pretty fun plans for their trip including a Thanksgiving Blogger Dinner. Not sure if you know this about me or not but Thanksgiving is my absolute favourite holiday and I’m so excited to be having such a special dinner with everyone! I’m really looking forward to their visit, I missed out on the TO trip this past June and am really glad they decided to come to the East Coast.

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It was still pretty gray/misty out this morning which lead to a day of comfort foods. Breaky was a organic free range egg fried in a little evoo with a slice of ezekiel toast and the last of the fresh blueberries. Flipped though the latest issue of Best Health mag while I enjoyed my meal. Really like this magazine, mainly because it’s Canadian and showcases products, people, places that I know. ;)

Like every morning, I had coffee. The pic is always the same and not really worth showing. It really hit the spot though because I was not in the mood to be awake at all. Ha, who am I kidding coffee always hits the spot! ;)

In anticipation of Hurricane Bill I’d picked up some non-perishables including a box of my fav Kashi Dark Chocolate Cherry granola bars. Mmm, it’s been awhile…yum!


Moving on to lunch, total comfort food again with a bowl of homemade cheesy tomato soup. Thanks to Lynn for posting this terrific recipe! I made a pot the other weekend and froze it in individual servings.

Along with the soup there was some organic veggie crackers for dipping and a side of mixed greens with french dressing.

Wrapping Up Another Weekend

Yup, Sunday evening already. Overall it was a pretty productive and fun one though. Last night Holly & I hung out while the boys had the bachelor party. We browsed a few stores in Bayers Lake and then headed over to see The Time Traveler’s Wife. I thought the movie was pretty good although it wasn’t the best movie I’ve seen recently. Will probably read the book now, just to see the differences.

I scored a hot new pair of shoes, at Walmart of all places, and for only $5.00!! Gonna paint my toes a lovely shade of red and kick off the work week feeling fab! :)

We got in around 3am; I didn’t sleep well at all and was up by 9am. Decided it was a Brunchy type of day so I made a run to the store for some yummy fixings.

On the menu, homemade “McMuffins.” - WW english muffins with melted swiss cheese, egg, turkey bacon, sliced tomatoes & baby spinach. Side of sliced nectarine. Oh, and of course coffee!

Getting Back To Me

I’m trying to not make any other plans for the rest of the week. Want to catch up on my ZzZZZzz’s and get back into my routine. We do have another busy weekend planned – I’ve got a Pampered Chef party at Angie’s on Saturday and then a family BBQ on Sunday, plus we are going to visit friend’s of ours who are going through a really sad time. (Loss of a child.)

Today’s eats were yummy. Breaky was a fried egg with a sprinkle of fresh chives & pepper on a slice of whole wheat flax toast and a side of Nova Scotia raspberries.



On the way into work this morning I decided that I totally deserved an Sbux, and a venti at that! ;) I was in desperate need of my caffeine fix!


Lunch was really about using up the last of stuff. I made a yummy caesar salad with organic baby spinach, 1 tbsp real bacon bits, spinkle of parm, Fresh Gourmet Organic Croutons & Renee’s Light Caesar Dressing. Along with a side of the sweet orange tomatoes from the farmer’s market and whole wheat croissant. Was lacking in the protein area but still managed to keep me full all afternoon. Mmm mmm!

Non-New Years Resolutions

I’ve really been thinking a lot about how unorganized and chaotic my life is. Today, I’m taking the first steps to change that. These are my Non-New Years Resolutions if you will. There are definitely areas that need to be re-prioritized. I don’t manage my time as well as I could which always bites me in the butt.

• I need to unplug and not go online when I please because I end up wasting so much of my free time tweeting, blogging, emailing etc. Don’t get me wrong, you couldn’t pry me away from my wonderful online buddies but I need stop doing 20 things at once and just focus on one thing. (IE: just cooking supper and tidying the kitchen instead of leaving my laptop open while I’m in there.)
  
• I need to start focusing on the people in my life who are important to me. Relationships take work. Nuff said.
  
• I need to be more strict with my spending habits. Honestly, I kind of just buy what I feel like, when I feel like it. :-X
  
• I need to take more pride in my home. Our house isn’t ideal, it’s definitely a fixer up. I’m embarrassed to have people over because of it’s ugliness. There I said it out loud. We need to keep going with the renos but they take time and $$. Also, I’ve really let stuff slide in areas of cleaning. Instead of tidying every day I wait until the weekend. And I stopped composting about 2 weeks ago because our green bin containers are just nasty and I got lazy. WTF. That is not me at all.
  
• And last but not least, I need to get the rest of this weight off so that I’m healthy enough to have a baby.

Phew! That’s a load off my mind. Does anyone else have any Non-New Years Resolutions to share?

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Food today was parfait! Breaky was 2 slices of ezekiel toast with peanut butter & fresh blueberry jam. And, of course coffee. Two cups of it actually. Was hard to get out of bed this morning after the full weekend.

Going With The Flow

Sometimes it just happens. You follow your plan all week and then an unavoidable, last minute invitation is extended. Last night was the perfect example.

We had to meet MIL to do a bunch of errands at Access Nova Scotia. I really did start the night off with such great intentions I tell ya! Beforehand I had picked up Subway so that we could have some supper before heading over to Nubodys for a sweat session after the paper work was complete. It’s nearing the end of my week. I had no WAP’s remaining and only 8 of my daily points left; my 6” veggie and baked lays would’ve been perfect. However, instead of that we ended up at Steak and Stein with MIL & BIL.


I was HUNGRY and tried to make the healthiest choice possible. I ordered a single Del Monico Derby-style steak with the garden salad. By it self, not that bad. But the meal was taking forever, so I had a piece of cheese garlic bread while we waited. And the small roll on my plate may have also been another innocent causality. Sorry guys, no food pics tonight.


It was a rare opportunity for us all to get together and we had a great time catching up and discussing the upcoming holidays.

But two hours later I was hungry again and the poor veggie sub didn’t stand a chance. Not just a little hungry either but real hungry.(I did check and try and listen to my body.) I need to dig out the tracker to be sure, but my best estimate is that I’m over by 10-15 points.

I know this post feels a bit negative but it’s actually not. Last night was a positive experience for me because I was able to chalk it up to life. Life happens. In this rollarcoaster ride that is weight loss there will always be situations that are out of your control. It’s what you do next that matters.

Therefore, my plan today is just to stay focused, on track, eat the best foods for my body, chug the h20 and get in some type of workout this evening.

I’m not worrying and I’m not punishing myself. I was hungry so I ate. If I have a small gain this week then so be it. Means I will work a little harder next week.

Happy Friday!

Simple Gestures

Sometimes all it takes is a cute surprise in the mail to turn a good day into a great one! :)


Thank you Amy, for making my day a little brighter! xoxo

My Favourite Season Is Here!

September 1st already! My favourite month has arrived and what a gorgeous day it was for it! Sunny skies and a nice breeze. On my walk home I just felt so happy and thankful to be out enjoying the beautiful day. Sounds kind corny doesn’t it? :) I’m really hoping J & I are able to get away for a few days sometime over the next month, just to relax and enjoy the lovely outdoors.

In other exciting news Angie was on Live At Five this evening talking about weight loss and the support she received online with blogging/WWs. She did a great interview, very professional and cute at the same time! Lex was awesome enough to put it up on YouTube for everyone to watch, so check it out here!

C25K Update:
I convinced Hubby to join me last night. It was nice to have him there, he has long legs and that pushes me to go faster to keep up with him. But, to be honest it wasn’t challenging at all. I barely worked up a sweat. Amy gave me some advice just to do 2 sets of 10s & 1s so perhaps I’ll go with that tomorrow. Either way, I’m back with the running.

Another day of spectacular eats pour moi! Breaky was an egg sandwich & coffee.

Whole wheat english muffin with a slice of swiss cheese, egg, tomato slices & baby spinach.


Same morning snack again – peanut butter oatcake. I was really hungry by 9am, not sure why. Breaky was pretty filling AND I was busy all morning at work so it wasn’t even boredom “hunger.”


Like I said, famished by Lunch time. I ate and worked at the same time and didn’t really even taste this. (Opps.) Chicken Noodle soup w/ a yummy roll & side salad.



I had a small dish of Liberte Svelte Vanilla yogurt for dessert but the pic didn’t come out AND I forgot to snap a pic of the nectarine I had one the way home.

Was a burger & fries kinda night! Don’t worry, healthy versions though. :) For Supper I whipped us up some yummy black bean burgers. (Recipe compliments of Kath) I used – (1) organic black beans, 1/3c diced green pepper, 1/3c diced yellow pepper, 1/3c diced onions, 4 tbsp of flour, hot sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper & chipotle seasoning.


Oven Taters – diced potatoes (skins on!) drizzled with olive oil & seasonings. Got the funniest compliment (?) from J, when he said they looked and tasted exactly like the frozen ones. Haha.

Another Year….

Can’t believe it’s our 2nd anniversary already. Seems like just yesterday, seriously where has the time gone? I just went back and read that re-cap post of the wedding/honeymoon and I have to say that this is one of the reasons I’m so glad that I blog, you forget the little details of life. Sometimes blogging is time consuming but now I have that special day journaled forever because of it! :)

This week is really busy for us so we’ve been trying to decide how to best celebrate. It won’t be until Saturday night, either dinner out somewhere or a wine/cheese night in.

A little glimpse back…..

Us at my prom - June 2001. No comments about the jersey please!
;-) We look SO young!


[EDIT] Apparently I wasn’t supposed to post those prom pics. ;)

The Big Day – December 1, 2007

Writing this post made me smile. :)

One Of My Favourite Places

For a while now I’ve been wanting to show you one of my favourite places in the entire world. When we went for a leisurely walk on the Musquodoboit Trailways this past Sunday with Holly & her hubby, I was sure to snap tons of pictures to share! I’ve been using this trail for at least 12 years, even before it was officially part of the Trans-Canada trail system.

This post is very picture heavy.

It was a gorgeous, sunny day… Group shot just starting out.

For all you Nova Scotian’s out there, the Musquodoboit Trail is only a 40 min drive from Halifax and is 13km of beautiful scenery. It crosses the river and passes by a gorgeous lake. Plus there are a few “rugged” trails that lead to magnificent looks offs.


As you can see, the trail is very pedestrian friendly. It’s great for running, biking and I’ve seen tons of families with strollers and doggies.

One time we actually saw a doggie in a stroller, which I thought was hilarious! :)



Fun Fact: Nine years ago (OMG doesn’t seem that long ago!) I had a summer job working for the trail – website design and weekly on-site trail maintenance. Maintenance=cleaning the outhouses. ;) At the time I was close to 300 lbs and it took absolutely EVERYTHING out of me to bike the 2.5km to do the maintenance. Now when I walk by it, I just have to smile because it’s SOOO different. My how life is changed.


I’m trying to convince the Halibloggers to come out her sometime for a group hike, maybe one of the rugged ones? Would make for a fun day! AND I know all kinds of random fun facts about the trail that I could entertain you with!

Isn’t this little foot bridge so cute?


The lake was choppy but still so peaceful.

Sometimes I will just come up here to get away from life. This is one of the most relaxing places in the world and I’m so lucky that it’s only a 20 minute drive away.

Was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

Sometimes It’s The Simple Things…

Like this shiny set of new frying pants that totally made my night!

I’ve been saying forever that we need some new pans and it’s gotten to the point where we’ve even been made fun of for only having one crappy frying pan. :-P

We finally gave in and ordered a new set with some points that J had accumulated through his rewards system at work.


Of course I had to try it out right away! So nice to have new non-stick, I always had to use oil on the old one. Cooking up the tacos was a breeze.


PS. Holly you can pass along to your hubby that our kitchen tools should now all be up to par.. ;) hehe

Oh and to top it off, I finally found some icing that works for the tree cookies!! Which means that I’m all ready for the exchange tomorrow night. Glad, because I really didn’t want to give away naked cookies. :)



All prettied up for my girls….

Got a busy weekend coming up. Work all day tomorrow and then we have our Haliblogger potluck and cookie exchange. Saturday, I’ve got an early Weight Watchers meeting, the Santa Shuffle 5K, post run brunch at Coras (?) and then hubby and have got movie + dinner plans in the evening to celebrate the anniversary. Sunday is my birthday but we’re actually going to an extended family brunch at the Prince George.

I’m sad to say that this week has been a write off for me in terms of WW’s. I can’t wait to WI on Saturday and move on. I knew this week would be a struggle and having the gain last week didn’t help at all. This is me being 100% honest with you all. However, looking at this from a long-term perspective, it’s nothing but a small glitch and as long as I keep moving forwarding then I can’t go wrong. :)

Oh, there is a certain goal that I'm really looking forward to achieving in the next 6 months, can’t wait to share all the details with you soon! I’ll give you a hint, it has to do with running……

Re-Training The Brain

Want to thank everyone for their supportive comments from earlier this morning. You have no idea how much they help with the motivation! I’m really struggling to be in the same place head-wise that I was 2 years ago when following weight watchers was new and exciting and the weight was just falling off. What I realize but need to actually accept is that it could take another 2 years to get the rest of this off. Obviously I need to follow the plan to lose weight but my body probably needs time to adjust too. My main focus has always been on my health and it’s staying that way. I hate the feeling of waking up and still being full from last night’s overeating. That is not who I am anymore. But no matter how many books I read on food addiction and intuitive eating, I will probably still struggle for the rest of my life. I let food rule me for so long that it’s natural instinct to go for food when I’m upset. Re-training the brain is hard work but I’m slowly getting there and slip-ups happen. I’m only human right.

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Overall was a pretty decent day; got in a nice 30 min walk in the lovely Fall sunshine; am relaxing now and I’m looking forward to the weekend. Originally, I had a bunch of things planned but have decided to forgo some of them and head to my parent’s place in the country for a night away. There is only dial-up available in their area so I will also be taking a little break from my PC too. The only plans I have are to hit up the trail on the way there, make a batch of salsa with Mom and go out for a few runs on the four wheeler with J, oh and maybe an actual run on Sunday morning. :)

Moving on to my eats….Breaky was an egg wrap with a small dish of vanilla yogurt. Mug of steamy Just Us totally made the meal though!

The ww wrap was spread with light herb & garlic cream cheese, topped with organic baby spinach, egg & tomato slices.

For me, there is no better way to brighten the mood than a great pair of shoes….which is why I wore these lovelies today!

AM snack was a Quaker Caramel Chocolate Chip rice cake. Woulda been better with a smear of peanut butter though.

For lunch I tried to use up a few things from the cupboard including a can of turkey breast leftover from my Hurricane Bill grocery run. Mixed up the can of turkey breast, 1 tbsp Hellman’s mayo, 1 tbsp craisins and 1 chopped pear and spread over another ww wrap with organic baby spinach. Was yummy and I still have the other half of the mixture for lunch tomorrow.


Side of the sweet yellow tomatoes. Mmm, love these guys!

Juicy watermelon for dessert.


Was chilly out which made it the perfect time to pull out the last of my Pumpkin Spice tea! I have a few of these left over from last Winter, they are such a treat.



Supper was comfort food at its finest! Pan fried scallops with angel hair pasta and mixed veggies topped with homemade cheese sauce.



I’m off for another cup of coffee even though I know I shouldn’t because I won’t be able to sleep.