Food Diaries, Funfetti Cake with Icing, and Weigh-In

Hello Everyone!

 

I'm sorry I have been absent. I tried to keep up with my blog but I just did not feel very well. So I did my best during the week and took pictures when I could. So now you can see some of the things I ate last week. I know you are so happy I did this. You're welcome.

 

Inspired by a fellow blogger, Thank you Lauryn Roth. Whole Grain Waffle's spread with Peanut Butter and I sliced banana to put on top. Very good and very filling!

 

Since my throat was sore and I felt poopy, I drank a lot of chamomile tea with honey. I did have a Yo plait Light Strawberry Yogurt too.

 

I love taco dip or layered dip. I had some Fage Total Greek Yogurt Plain. I heated up my refried beans and spread them on a plate. I mixed about 1 Tbsp of low sodium taco seasoning in with about 1/4-1/3 cup of the yogurt. Then I spread that on top of the beans. I chopped up some romaine and added that with some WW Mexican blend cheese and Pace Medium Salsa. I used Whole Grain Tostitos Scoops to eat it. It was pretty good and very filling. I didn't eat all of it but now I know another option instead of sour cream.

 

I woke up Friday morning and checked on Caleb. This is how is was Sleeping. He is so much like his daddy. Jerry hugs a pillow at night, Caleb hugs his Mickey Mouse or a blankie. Too cute!

One morning when I was feeling a little better and had a good few doses of antibiotics in my system I made this amazing breakfast. Two Egg Whites, 2 slices of bacon (I didn't eat the fatty parts, ha I know it's bacon but I still cut off the extra fat), 2 slices of Sara Lee 45 Calories and Delightful Whole Grain Bread with a little butter and jelly, 1 cup skim milk with 1 Tbsp of Carnation Instant Breakfast Chocolate powder. It was very good!

I was craving a sandwich like this with these chips and magically we had them on hand since it was deer season. I used smoked turkey, 2%  cheese, and Dijon mustard. It satisfied my craving. :)

 

Since I was not feeling well, my hubby picked up St. Louis Bread Company for Dinner. I had the You Pick 2: French Onion Soup (no croutons) with a french baguette, half Italian Combo with no sauce, and an iced tea. I didn't finish all of the soup, I was full.

 

Skinny Funfetti Cupcakes Recipe - made into cake
recipe from Six Sister's Stuff

This cake was pretty good. I made it for a little girl's birthday and she devoured it. I am not sure I will make it again but it is okay for a one time thing. It does not taste like it would when using the cake box directions but that was to be expected. The icing was okay too. I kept this cake in the fridge since I used cool whip in the icing. I am not sure if you should keep it refrigerated but I did to be safe. I read some reviews on the recipe from Six Sister's Stuff and someone mentioned adding a cup of milk to the icing. I did not try this but it is an option. Also, I believe I read on Hungry Girl's recipe for vanilla cake that she has tried using diet cream soda for vanilla/yellow cakes. When I made the icing, it started to thicken after a few minutes so try to spread it on the cake as soon as it is mixed thoroughly.

Skinny Funfetti Cake:

(Serves 12 slices of cake, 5 Weight Watchers Points Plus Values)

Cupcake Ingredients:

1 pkg. Pillsbury Funfetti Cake Mix (just the powder, not the recipe on the box)

1 (12 ounce) can Sprite Zero

Cake Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13" pan and set aside.  In a large bowl, combine cake mix and Sprite together. Continue to mix until the batter is smooth without any lumps.

 

 

Pour mixture into pan and spread evenly. Bake at 350 degrees. Following baking time directions according to type of pan you use. I think I baked the cake 30-35 minutes.  Let cool before frosting.

Frosting Ingredients:

1 (8 ounce) container Fat Free Cool Whip

1 (1.5 ounce) pkg. Fat Free Vanilla Jello Instant Pudding (just the powder, not the recipe on the box)

Frosting Directions:

In a mixing bowl, add Cool Whip and pudding. Mix with a whisk by hand or an electric hand mixer until smooth. Spread over cooled cake. 

 

This was a nice snack I had one day last week. Healthy Choice Greek Frozen Yogurt. It came in a pack with 3 individual yogurts. It tasted like strawberry ice cream. Pretty Good!

 

This is my little man. Isn't he adorable? Yes he is. Thanks! My hubby was leaving to go hunting and Caleb decided he wanted to wear a hat like daddy. So he put on his Red Head Bass Pro Shops hat and did not take it off until we had a late lunch around 2pm. He is so awesome!

 

Caleb and I went to Kohl's to use my Kohl's cash to buy him a new pair of shoes. I also picked up a few outfits for him. Then we went to Wal-mart to grab a few things. I had a gift card for Old Navy from my Birthday so I went in to grab a pair of Skinny Jean's so I can wear my boots. Just to see if I could, I grabbed a size 12 with my size 14 to try on. I tried on the 12's first. Below is the 12's, zipped and buttoned. I was so excited! They are still a little snug in my belly but they fit! I couldn't believe it! Crazy!!!

 

Saturday Weigh-In Day: November 17, 2012
Weight: 194.8
I lost 2lbs this week. I was sick all week and didn't really track my food but I also didn't really eat much either with my throat being sore. This week was also my 16th week so I received my 16 week charm. They say it takes about 16 weeks to get used to a new plan and keep up with good routines. You start to notice you make different choices and have different habits.

I think I need to have bad weeks and sick weeks. They teach me that I am making progress. I do not eat near the amounts of food that I used to eat. The day that I made bacon, eggs, and toast. I really wanted a fried egg, over easy. But I changed my mind and just made egg whites. I still order diet soda or water when I am out. I notice that I make better choices. They may not always be the healthiest but they are much better than they were in the past.

I am starting to see what my husband sees when I look at myself in the mirror. I see a pretty girl with kind eyes and a nice smile. I am starting to enjoy every day and that is good with winter around the corner. Depression tends to settle in for some people during the winter months. Dark on the way to work and on the way home. Home is dark. Not much sunlight. Cold outside. So with that, I am hoping to beat that old way and make each day better. Now I will have to allow some snuggle time by the fire with Caleb but not every day, all day. :)

I am looking forward to Thanksgiving. I love spending time with family. Then the holiday season really starts to feel like it is in the air. :)

Caleb and I window shopped on Friday night to see what he would like to ask Santa for for Christmas. It was fun. :) I think he enjoyed it too.

What do you do for the holiday's?

Weigh-In Day Saturday

Happy Saturday!

Well I weighed in this morning.

My weight: 196.8.

I gained for the first time since August. I feel like I deserved so much more of a gain with how bad I felt my week was.

I also figured my time was coming after doing so well for so long...I just need to get back on track.

I went to bed pretty late last night and I am very, very tired today. That seems to be happening a lot lately.

I had an apple and a WW string cheese during the meeting. With a bottle of 25oz water.

After my weigh-in and meeting I found out my husband got  a doe!!! Woo Hoo! I am so happy for him! He didn't get one last yeara because it was just too warm and windy. I felt like he was getting discouraged and he enjoys hunting so I didn't want to see him down. Wishing him luck on getting a buck! :)
Caleb and I went to Bread Co/Panera with Bobbie. I had their breakfast power sandwich. It is a half sandwich made with whole grain bread, ham, cheese, and an egg. It is so good and filling! I also had a mocha latte made with skim milk and no whipped cream.

We headed home to meet my niece. She is due to have her baby boy around the 28th!!! I am so excited for her and her husband! She wanted to drop off her house key so when she does go into labor we can pick up her Collie to take care of while she is in the hospital.

We visited for a while and after she left I made a bean burrito with 2% cheese. I didn't finish it all. I also shared a slice of the HG Chocolate Cake that I made the other night with Caleb. We didn't finish it.

I also finished the fudge covered pretzels and the cracker jacks.

I tried to take a nap and so did Caleb...that did not happen. :/

We went to my nieces house to see the baby's room. So adorable and loved the colors of green & orange. It made me excited to think about a future little brother or sister for Caleb.

We visited for a while and left to grab some dinner. On the way home Caleb fell asleep so I put him to bed. Unfortunately it was 6:30pm and I knew he would wake up later and be up for a while...

I had 1 Jack In The Box taco and 3 Jalepeno poppers with ff ranch. Full. I also had a chocolate shake with no whipped cream to help with my sore throat. My sinuses and allergies sure took off like a rocket today...BTW...I have been sniffling, sneezing, and sinus pain/headache too.

My friend Becky stopped by to watch a movie with me. I feel so special that she has came by 2 weekends in a row. :) We were going to watch Now & Then..great movie! I couldn't find it any where. So we settled on Practical Magic. Another great movie!

I was getting super sleepy but I chatted for a while with my friend before she left. Right as I was waving good-bye to her, Caleb woke up...10pm. Poor guy looked as tired as I felt. I got him some milk and I heated up his dinner. Of course he didn't want it and sat on the floor and whined about nothing for 10 minutes. Sigh...I wanted to join him.

I think it is only because it was late and I needed to stay up for a little while with Caleb that I decided to eat a package of brown sugar pop tarts with milk.

This needs to stop!

I turned on 90210 to finish catching up on last season and started to read a few of your blogs.

So tomorrow being Sunday...After I catch up on sleep, I need to walk and plan out my meals for the week.

Pretend I am a new WW's member. :) Today wasn't so bad but I just need to start controling myself again. It will be better when I have a clear head and sleep tomorrow.

Have a good evening!

I'm Back...Halloween, My 30th, & Under 200lbs...

Hello my fellow friends.
 
I am sorry for my long absense. I have been so busy and have not have a free moment to update my blog. I have lots of pictures and stories to share. Here goes...

 

Weigh-In Day: Saturday October 27, 2012

 
Weight: 199lbs.
Down a total of 30lbs. I was so excited! I received my 5lb sticker too.

Showing that I now have a "1" in front of my weight.

 

 

Later we went to Grants Farm for their fall activities. It was fun except the parts where Caleb through fits over not wanting to wear gloves and wanting to be held.

 

Caleb and our neighbor Jaylen

 

Jack the Pumpking King (Nightmare Before Christmas)

Caleb's 2nd Jack-O-Lantern

Caleb's 2nd Jack-O-Lantern back view

Caleb's 3rd Jack-O-Lantern

 

My Batgirl Costume

 Caleb's Batman Costume

 

 

Halloween 2012 at our House. Caleb and I after Trick-Or-Treating for the first time. He did great! He walked the loop (About 25 min walk up and down hills) for over half of it. I had to carry him up the dreaded hill. lol. I need to take a picture of the hill one day and show you all. The irony is that I just lost 30lbs and I carried Caleb up the hill...he weighs about 30lbs. LOL.

 

 

This is a house at the front of our subdivision. We went to the library for Trick-Or-Treating Story Time and on the way back I had to take a picture. The little girl on the swing is new this year. Love it!

Happy 30th Birthday to ME! I celebrated my birthday with no sleep from the night before and a trip to the Museum of Transportation, St. Louis. My birthday gift arrived from UPS on Halloween...I later realized what it was without meaning to because it was shipped in its box with Kindle Fire on the side. I didn't expect that at all! I got it out and charged it after the hubby got home and realized I knew what it was. My dear friend Bettina sent me a gift card. She has been following me a long with my weight loss journey. She wanted me to buy something for me. She is such a great friend. I was also surprised with a birthday cake from McArthur's Bakery (a great place here in St. Louis). I only had a few small pieces and let Caleb and Jerry finish the rest. I was proud of myself for being able to resist. :) I had the school aged kids I watch all day Thursday and Friday, so they went to the Museum with us. It was really neat. We rode a miniature train. I think the kids loved it...I know Caleb did! We could have done Creation Station but I didn't think that Caleb would want to leave after an hour. So maybe next time. We rode a trolley up the hill to the automobile museum. Lots of cool cars in there. Then walked up to the train yard and saw tons of trains. Some we were able to walk through. That was neat, seeing inside of them. They are huge! I never realized how big trains actually were.

I was so tired after this and I needed a nap. That didn't happen. :( We went to my in-laws for my birthday dinner. While I enjoy going to their house and their company, I wished I wasn't so tired. I felt sickly, that is how tired I was. Friday morning came too soon. Again I was tired. My mom came to visit me. YAY! I haven't seen her since September because she is taking classes and working 2 jobs. She made me peanut butter chewies. OMG! They are so good! Peanut butter, syrup, cornflakes and I'm sure a few other ingredients are in there. LOVE THEM! So bad for you though. I had to throw them out Sunday because they were getting yucky and I needed to not eat anymore.

I went through the bags of clothes that I put away after I tried them on back in September. First I tried on the clothes that were a little big. They were too big now. In to the goodwill pile they went. Second I tried on the bag of clothes labled fit but a little tight. They all fit. I got a few pairs of jeans out of that pile. The rest were summer clothes so I set them aside to put away for winter. Third I tried on the bag of clothes labeled too small. All but 4 pairs fit!!! Of course they are all summer but still exciting! The 4 pairs that didn't fit were zipped and buttoned but not quite comfortable yet. So I labeled everything with Friday's date and how they fit so I will know for summer.

Now I look in my closet and I have t-shirts, tank tops, and long sleeve t-shirts. I have nothing to wear. Literally lol. Time to shop!
 
My hubby went hunting on Friday and didn't have any luck. :( He went hunting Saturday afternoon and didn't have any luck. Send us some luck please. We need to get a deer this year. We didn't get one last year and our meat supply is running low. :) Thanks!
 

Weigh-In Day: Saturday November 3, 2012

 
My Weight: 196.0lbs

Another 3lbs gone. I can't believe it! I didn't work out this week really. I walked danced,and ran at Grants Farm. I cleaned like a crazy person for 3 days. I walked around for trick-or-treating and for the museum of transportation. I guess those all counted towards activity. :) I'll definitely take it! I know my days of losing 3lbs a week are coming close to the end the closer I get to my goal.

I finally treated myself to a spa day to get my toes and nails done. I was going to go shopping too but decided to wait until Sunday so my sister and step-mom Jane stopped by to see me for my birthday. Later Caleb had a sleepover with this buddy Trevor. I ordered Papa John's Pizza. I got the Garden Veggie on thin crust. It was good. The problem is I couldn't stop eating the darn candy from Halloween. My friend Becky stopped by with a bottle of blush wine from Crown Valley Winery. She shared that she will be a homeowner soon so we celebrated. I only had one glass of wine but still ate chocolate. And those darn peanut butter chewies. The boys enjoyed watching Scooby Doo and playing. They had a lot of fun. When they woke up they had donuts and played some more. I went shopping for clothes. I purchased a few bra's since I now need a smaller size and a running bra. I purchased a few new shirts, pajama's, and a few track pants. I'm excited to wear my new clothes.

 

I haven't been excited about shopping for myself in a while. I usually get hot in the store and that makes me not want to try on clothes. This was the first time I did not get hot. I didn't mind trying on clothes. When I tried on my size 14 jeans a few week ago, I was hot. But that could have been because I was chasing Caleb around trying to get pictures of him. lol.

 

I struggle with temptation...chocolate. I should just get rid of it but I feel guilty because it is my son's. He doesn't eat much but I feel if he wants it, it is there. I am worried about falling back into my old ways. I ate like a pig all weekend! When I came back from shopping I had left over pizza and more peanut butter chewies. I threw them away after that...ugh! I was miserable. Then about an hour and a half later Jerry wanted dinner...it was about 4pm. I was not hungry. I asked him to wait  a while. When we did have dinner, we went to our favorite mexican restaurant and I ate very little. I was not hungry. I think I just keep having cravings and can't control myself. Hopefully this will pass.

 

This is very hard! It seems so easy to just slip back into my old ways. Especially with the colder days, longer nights. Depression lurks in the shadows for me. Reminding me of times when I succomed to it. I am fighting it. I do not want to be where I was. I need to keep going. Everyone has bad days, weeks, months...I just need to get through this.

 

Thank you for your support!

 

Until next time...

 

Have a great week!

 

Quote of the Day:

Julius Erving: If you don't do what's best for your body, you're the one who comes up on the short end.

 





Weigh-In Day and Before Photos

 Saturday October 20, 2012

Weight: 200.4 lbs (So Close!!!)

Shirt: Large Tank from ON

Capri's: Large from ON

 

Good Evening Everyone!
 
I hope you are all having a great week so far!

I had a rough week last week and I was surprised that I still lost 3lbs on Saturday. I am for sure going to make it to ONEderland this Saturday!!! I am so excited and happy!

I am confused yet again by WW though. When I signed up for the monthly pass I was told I could go to as many meetings as I wanted through out the week or something like that. So since I have been busy on Saturdays I went to a few Friday morning meetings and weighed in on Saturday morning. This Saturday I was told that I could go to any meeting but I had to weigh-in before the meeting. Geez! It's almost like I am being tested.

After I weighed-in I headed home to change for the pumpkin patch.

Shirt: XL Novelty Halloween from Wal-mart

Under Shirt: XL from Wal-mart

Jeans: Size 14 from ON

 

We took a hay ride. Caleb was not pleasant for most of the morning. So this is the best photo we got.

 





Here is a photo of one of the pumpkins carved into a Jack-O-Lantern on Saturday Evening.

 

 

This is my view of this gorgeous tree from my back window. I love the colors. Today the leaves are mostly gone from the top and it wont be much longer before the rest fall.

 

I had a bad weekend as far as food goes. I did okay on Saturday for lunch. CC's pizza...I had 1 slice of veggie pizza and a salad with a few bites of garlic bread and a brownie. Not very good. Made me feel like poo. Thinking we need to change the place we have lunch after the pumpkin patch for next year.

 

After a glorious nap I vacuumed out my new car. Then Caleb and I went to Target for a few things before we headed to the Pumpkin Carving Party we were invited to.

 

The food at the party was pulled pork on a roll, veggie platter, party potatoes or casserole, buffalo wild wing dip with chips, deer sausage with cheese and crackers, pasta salad, & brownies. I only had a little and I was not stuffed but all of the points still added up. It was all very good too.

 

On Sunday I did not have breakfast and met my dad for lunch at Bandana's. I had the turkey platter with french fries (which I did not eat they were for Caleb) and a side salad with the dressing on the side. I used the sweet n smoky bbq sauce and only had a few bites of the garlic bread. I did not stuff myself.

 

Dinner was Bread Company. But some how I still managed to go over for Sunday.

 

Monday I was just hungry all day. I was tired too. I had a pep talk with myself. I talked myself into walking despite how I had lack of motivation. I felt better but was still hungry and went over. NO MORE EXTRA WEEKLY POINTS LEFT and it's only Monday. Sigh!

 

So I made myself make today a better day. I worked on my laundry. Played with the kids. When the kids were napping, I headed downstairs to walk. I managed to jog for 17 minutes straight and for 5 laps. So I ran a mile today. AHHH! So happy for that. I pushed myself to keep going. Testing my limits. I had pains in my legs. They felt tired. I had aches in my side and I tried breathing in my nose and out my mouth to help. I had pain in my hips. I kept going. Telling myself that I can do this. I have done this before. I was so proud afterwards.

 

I feel much better about my weigh-in this weekend. I feel confident that I can at least lose .5 lbs after the rough start to the week. I feel like I renewed my belief in myself that I can do this.

 

It is so hard to keep going. Some days I just want to quit. I feel go about myself. I am starting to see who I am again. I like to see photos of myself again and my reflection in the mirror. I am noticing so many positive changes in my body. I feel great. So I feel like I can just stop and it will be okay. But I can't. If I do I will end up right back where I started and possibly weigh more. I found photos from last year around this time. I did not like myself in these photos and I still don't. I could pick myself apart in these photos. I am glad my husband took them though. For one, I was enjoying family time with my son. But also, now I can use these photos for motivation to keep me going and believing. To help me to never want to be that girl again.

I am sharing these with you. It is hard. I don't want others to see my like that. Even though that is how I was, walking around every day. Here goes...

 

This photo was actually from Easter 2011. I had been working out since January and had lost weight but gave up when the summer days got too hot. Then I just completely stopped. You can tell that by the way I look in the next photos.

Pumpkin Carving after we went to the pumpkin patch. Probably around 235 ish. The shirt I am wearing, now swamps me.

UGH! Why in the H3LL did I think that shirt looked good on me??

My face just looks full here...My son was not happy riding the ponies last year.

Oh The HORROR!

Yuck! But my son sure looks adorable!

 

Old Whitney                                                           New Whitney in progress

 

I can kind of see a difference in my before and during photos. I just know that I feel much better for sure. In the before photo: the jeans I had on are in a bag to go to good will now and the shirt is too big, so I probably need to do the same with that. HAHA Aly photo bombed both of these photos. LOL. Girl loves her picture taken.

 

I can't say enough how happy and proud of myself I am. In the past (before Aug 2012) I wouldn't have kept going if something upset or bothered me. Like all the stuff going on with WW. I would have stopped going because it was becoming a conflict. If something negative happened I always got upset and then had a pity party. I can proudly say that I am stronger now. I may get upset still but I kick myself in the butt and say get over it...move on...WORK OUT...lol. But it is the truth and I am still going because I have found that strength within myself to push myself to keep going.

 

I make healthier choices. I stop and think before I take a bite or drink. I ask myself if I am really hungry. But if it's something I really want or like then I allow myself to have it. I watch my portions. I track everything even if it is frustrating to look up foods that I don't normally eat then can't find it so I have to wing it. OCD anyone. Everything has to be so-so and if it isn't then it makes me aggravated and I just want to say screw it! BUT I stick to it. I had an extra point or 2 to what I have found similar and move on.

 

I have started to see myself next year for my friends wedding...Skinny...Cute...Beautiful. I have started thinking about how my husband won't be able to keep his hands off of me, even more so than now. :D I even had a crazy thought about doing what another blogger I follow did and buy a bikini just to see how it would look on me. I have never liked bikini's on my body. Even when I had the body to wear one. Just felt too exposed. We will see...it may be a behind closed doors kind of deal if I do.

 

I imagine nice legs and a nice butt. I imagine nice arms and no muffin top. I am hoping my belly firms up a little but I gained a lot of weight then got pregnant so I feel like there is no hope for my belly. Thank goodness for spanx! haha

I also imagine my wedding and engagement rings getting re-sized. I imagine I am able to wear my class ring and the ring my step-mom gave me for graduating high school.

 

I look forward to many things. I want to keep going. PRAY for this winter to go smoothly... pretty please! :)

 

Quote of the Day:

Work Hard Stay Humble
 

The only person you should try to be better than, is the person your were yesterday.
 

You're not as breakable as you think.

 

Just because today is a terrible day doesn't mean tomorrow won't be the best day of your life. You just gotta get there. 

 

Have a great rest of the week!