Q: How Did Day One Go? A: It Was A Success!

Hey folks, I have a quick little update.

First, I don’t need more reasons to get back on track – a 15-pound weight gain is enough, thankyouverymuch – but another one presented itself midway through my Friday when I popped a button on my pants. Ugh.

I’m handy enough with a needle and thread to reattach this, but it does not feel good to literally break an article of clothing. I’m thankful those pants also had a decorative drawstring that lasted me throughout the rest of my day!

As I mentioned in my last post (read it here if you missed it), I set two healthy living goals for Friday, and

What’s in the Crockpot? Part Eight

We haven’t played ‘What’s in the Crockpot?’ in months! Time to fix that. Ready for a new installment? It’s easy to play. I won’t even have to explain the rules – you’ll pick it up as you go. I promise!

READY TO GO? LET’S PLAY!

What’s in the Crockpot?

Exciting TV Announcement PLUS My Awesome New Kitchen Toy PLUS A Tasty Easy Dip Recipe!

Is your DVR remote control handy? Or pen and paper? I just want you to be prepared, because I have exciting news: I’m gonna be on TV again!

I’ll be a guest on “The Doctors” next Monday, January 28th! It’s a show about weight loss, featuring the one-and-only Richard Simmons. As part of his segment, they wanted to feature success stories of people that have worked with Richard to drop pounds. I’m one of 5 success stories, along with my friends Joanne, Marcia, Iris, and Lori, that are there to inspire a woman in the studio audience who wants to lose weight.

We taped the show in late December (and I’ve kept my mouth shut about it per the confidentiality agreement they asked me to sign), and it was a lot of fun. I’m in the very first segment at the start of the show, and also onstage at the very end of the hour as well. “The Doctors” is syndicated, and to find out when it airs in your area, click here. I actually don’t know right now if my appearance will be available online. There’s a good chance it won’t be, so if you don’t have a DVR or a VCR or the ability to drop everything and watch it when it’s actually on, then you have about a week to figure out a solution! TUNE IN!

FUN FACT: This is actually my second appearance on “The Doctors” – I appear, briefly, in a segment taped at Slimmons that aired about a year ago. You can watch it online right here.

Moving on… I got a fun new kitchen toy as a Christmas present, and I’ve been photographing it in action!

Return of the Produce Haul!

I haven’t done a produce haul post in an eternity, if you define ‘eternity’ to mean a few months. But it sure seems like an eternity has passed since I’ve carefully arranged the contents of a shopping excursion on my coffee table, and it’s time to do something about that. I was inspired to do a produce haul this past weekend, when I noticed my cupboards were nearly completely bare. My fruit bowl had 3 heads of garlic and two lemons, and check out my fridge:

Nothing but condiments, egg whites, water, 1 yogurt, and some low-sodium V8 in there!

Allison

My family was in town recently, for what turned out to be a really wonderful weekend. We headed down to Anaheim and did the whole Disney thing. It was my second time in each of the Disney parks, and it was a really fun and busy time. And even though the family has long since returned home, I can’t stop thinking about my four-year-old niece, Allison.

First, a picture of Allison, along with me, my sister Sarah, and Ariel from “The Little Mermaid.” I’m still wet from Grizzly River Run, the Disney California Adventure water ride we were on immediately preceding our meet and greet with Ariel:

October Weight Loss Chart Update AND Crockpot Ratatatatatatouille

I’ve been trying to focus on the positive the past few days, because it regards to my eating and exercise, it hasn’t been a fantastic few days.

I delayed this post a day so I could include the results of my October 1st weigh-in. Let’s see what the ol’ weight loss chart has to say, shall we?

Up three pounds. That’s five pounds that I’ve gained over the past two months. No bueno.  And here’s the crappy part about having a weight loss chart… it only took me approximately 15 seconds to realize that this is the heaviest I’ve been in about 18 months. The last time I weighed 241 pounds was March 2011.

My New Roommate, Part IV

That’s right, I’m bringing Roman numerals back to the blogosphere.

I take having roommates very seriously. My family and friends are welcome to stay with me whenever they want, but houseguests are one thing, and roommates are a completely different matter. I’ve been lucky in that I’ve never had any horrible roommate situations, but now I’m at a point in my life where I prefer living alone. I don’t want a roommate, I don’t need a roommate.

But there are always exceptions. And that brings us back to the Roman numerals.

Athlete?

There’s a big question I’ve been pondering lately, but before I get to it, I have a little housekeeping to do.

1) Weight Loss Chart. It’s September! It’s the end of summer… and back-to-school time… the start of the new television season… and time to update my chart with the results of my most recent weigh-in!

I stepped on the scale Saturday morning, and I’ll let my chart show you the number I saw:

Black Velvet Apricots

I stumbled across a variety of fruit the other day at the store. The sign said they were Black Velvet Apricots, and my ears perked up. Apricots are one of my favorite stone fruits – they’re the perfect size for a snack, and I can literally tear them in half with my fingers and remove the pit without my hands getting covered in juice. And you know me, I’m a sucker for never-before-seen produce items! So I bagged up 5 of these Black Velvet Apricots and brought ‘em home.

Hami Melon & Recipe

My most recent produce haul post featured a quick mention of my purchase of a hami melon, a variety of melon that I hadn’t heard of before. It’s a good lookin’ melon, don’t you think?

Hami melons are named after the Chinese region where they were cultivated, in the northwest part of the country, near the Mongolia border.