We are in the home stretch! As you are reading this we only have 3 more days of school. In case you are curious, each of my classes has a final round table discussion in Spanish about winter break and holiday plans, a vocabulary test over all the vocabulary we learned this semester, and a multiple choice grammar test. Sometimes I also do a reading and a listening test, but that was too much for this year. I also am asking them to do a reflection on the semester; I gave them questions about their experience with school in general, my class, and their assessment of their own learning. Anyone want to grade all this for me? I am so happy that our first day back after the break is a teacher day. This should always be the norm.
Here are a few things I have worn lately. First, I wore my new Amazon top with a Michael Kors vest (old from TJ Maxx) and my scotch tape leggings. I probably won’t wear this outfit again.
My Loft blouse came in! A girl told me it look like her grandma’s quilt. Yes, chica, you are correct; it is a quilt pattern and I love it!
Here I wore my new Madewell sweater. It is my first and only piece of Madewell clothing. Target Universal Thread is my Madewell if you catch my drift. I wanted a cream sweater with a polo collar and buttons and that I got. Madewell is super expensive, no?
I am in love! I think I will get my $20 worth out of my new Costco short lined booties.
Another view of the sweater:
I went into Loft to exchange sizes of my new Wine and Cheese sweater; they had to order it for me so I can’t show it to you yet. But, I did see this pleather skirt and took a chance by trying it on and I love it! Anyone able to pick me up on their bike later? It is not as short as it looks and I am only 5’4.
On my way to meet Victoria last week, I stopped in to my fave consignment store and I hit the jackpot. The salesclerk asked if I came in looking for Chico’s. I did not, but that is what I found, and two of the items were new with tags! The other two were like new. I got all of this for less than $60. One item had an original tag of $130. One person’s shopping mistake is another person’s treasure, you feel?
Chico’s So Slimming girlfriend jeans:
Let’s hope they live up to their name. You gotta love Chico’s sizing, right? That will probably be the only way I am ever a 2. Chico’s jokes – I am sure they hear that one multiple times a day.
This vest:
This vest:
I like to wear stuff like this to school to make the students wonder if I killed multiple animals. A little fear/mystery is always a good thing as a high school teacher.
Yes I do like me some vests. They hide your love handles on the sides if you know what I mean.
And, finally this basic layering piece:
Chico’s makes great basics like this. The fabric is really nice and you know that you are getting high quality. It washes well, too.
My co-worker said her 70 year old mother-in-law shops at Chico’s. Well, now that I am 50, I can, too. But, the vibe of the items I found is much younger. There is old lady Chico’s and there is younger old lady Chico’s, if you know what I mean.
So…do you have a favorite outfit of mine from the last week? Are you tired of them? I kinda am.
Which is your favorite purchase of mine?
I know I said I wasn’t going to shop for clothing but I am just so easy to buy for.
I have been weeding out my too big clothing and I am now working with much fewer things. I do believe that you should feel your best along the way, too.
I always keep a donation bag or two in my closet. This past weekend I got to donate to the tornado victims in Western Kentucky and Tom also really came through with lots of his cast offs that are all super nice. We found coats, too, that we thought might be needed. My sweet former student put out a call for donations and she came and picked it up. She goes to college in the city that was hit hard. I was glad I had put off taking them to donate elsewhere.
Alright guys, I will be back tomorrow with another edition of Eating Lately and my holiday/break strategies. Friday will be Favorites!
O.k. – drop everything and go get the stuff to make this! I.am.obsessed and I am getting 15-30 grams of protein, baby!
I think I came up with this totally on my own so I am extra proud.
You need: half or whole chocolate Premier Protein, pure peppermint extract, and
instant coffee crystals.
Mix your crystals with a bit of water. I probably use about a tablespoon of crystals and a tablespoon of water. It depends on how strong you like the coffee flavor. Add about 1 tsp. of peppermint extract (again you can make stronger if you like). Mix it well, add ice, and then pour your chocolate shake over it. The flavors of mocha peppermint are now yours to have. If you use half of the shake it is one WW point and if you use the whole it is two WW points.
Happy Friday to all! But, time slow down – we are at 15 days until Christmas! Eeeeeek! I am linking up today with Andrea,etc. right here.
I had to laugh at Tom using 2 leaf blowers at once and I posted this on social media saying “Can you tell Tom is a twin Dad or what?” I have so many funny pictures of him holding both boys at once.
Our weather has been crazy!
It went from high 60s Sunday to really, really cold on Monday. Sunday evening I turned on the patio lights for a bit.
My decor is almost done. It is very simple and minimalist this year. I just don’t have a lot of surfaces for stuff and I really don’t like a lot of stuff. I decided to stop doing what I thought I should do and only doing what feels right for me and my home.
I want lights and candles and cozy. I like to put more time into gift shopping, cooking, and baking.
I have also taken the time on weekday mornings this week to turn the lights on and burn a candle. Why save those simple pleasures for just the weekends?
I used the skinny pizza dough this week to try a small buffalo chicken pizza using the buffalo chicken dip, a bit of cheese, celery, and some added buffalo sauce. Um…. yum!
I also made a normal one. Has anyone tried the dough from My Bizzy Kitchen yet?
Tom won a really big project for his company and I wanted to celebrate him. I have been using my retro Target plates that I just love and I put some Arizona tea…
in a champagne flute. He thought it was sweet!
I made the pink meringues! This is a family recipe that screams Christmas to us. I made them for Spanish Club for our cookie exchange.
Erica and I (another Spanish teacher and my meal prep partner) have had a week of amazing meals!
We had Greek bowls with cauliflower rice, chicken, cucumbers, tomatoes, feta, and tzatziki one day.
One day we had mushroom chicken, broccolini and potatoes.
The Spanish Club cookie exchange. Each person brought 24 cookies and I gave them all a container from The Dollar Tree – some were poinsettias (native to Mexico) and some were snowflakes. They wore a rubber glove and chose one of each type of cookie so they went home with 24 different cookies. It was a big hit!
We also made cards for hospitalized kids as shared by Andrea. I emailed the contact and asked if we could do them in Spanish and they were very happy to have us do that!
It warms my heart to see kids give up their after school time to do stuff like this. It sucks to have to do this in masks but it is our current reality and I feel that I need to model the attitude of “we are doing life normally except for the mask”.
Our local catholic schools dropped their mask mandate this past Monday. What are schools in your area doing? I am in a very large public school district so I fear we will be in masks for a long, long time. My sister is in Ohio but she thinks we might even be in them next year. At what point will we consider that the damage by being in masks too long might be worse? Honestly, I don’t know the answer. I guess it is a small thing, but is it? I’m just thinking out loud here.
I have been having this as my morning snack. I open a laughing cow and sprinkle a bit of everything seasoning and then dip a few celery sticks in. I love it!
I think I have learned to never order a skinny margarita or any margarita out because I think mine is so much better. After last weekend, I think I have learned the same about avocado toast. I have this as an afternoon snack many days after school. I hope you don’t find these two statements to be bragging; I just really love my versions!
What were your faves this week? I hope you had many!
Here is a snapshot of what I’ve been wearing lately…
On this day I wore my Lucky brand black booties, my light Target jeans, an old Old Navy short sleeved black watch plaid, and a Land’s End cardigan (old).
On this day I wore my same black booties, my new black jeans, an old Old Navy black boho top, and an Old Navy hot pink vest.
Here I wore my TJ Maxx leave blouse that I bought back in August, I think. It has little greenery that looks kinda Christmasey. I have on darker Target jeans, my Amazon belt, and old cognac Jack Rogers booties.
Saturday I wore a different pair of jeans, black booties, and my knit leopard duster for my day with my niece.
Sunday I ran to Anthro and wore the lighter jeans, the cognac booties, and another TJ Maxx blouse from early fall.
And, a school outfit…I wore my Tieks, my Matilda Jane velvet pants, a knit cardigan, and my Feliz Navidad t-shirt from Target.
And, another school outfit…my new Loft blouse came (only one of the three items I ordered came in) and it is perfection. It is super soft. I wore it with my Matilda Jane layered flairs and booties.
Meh…I guess my favorite outfit was the third one – the blouse with the greenery. I am anxious to wear the new Loft blouse with something else.
I am working my way through my winter clothes to see what fits my body and my style. My goal was to wear 15 different outfits before the break. I don’t have much energy to put together cute outfits for school right now to be honest. I just want to be comfortable.
Wow – that weekend sure went by quickly! I am linking up today with Heather, etc. right here. (I am trying not to use so many exclamation points. I had to just change that last sentence. Can one person really exclaim that much? )
How was your weekend? Ours was unseasonably warm. Basically it was the weather we were supposed to have had on Thanksgiving Break.
Friday after school I busted out of those doors just as quickly as I could because it was 60 freaking degrees!
Erica came over for a quick margarita and to borrow some vests for her family photos and then Heather below took her spot for some charcuterie, conversation, and cocktail. I made her an Aperol Spritz. We fancy?
Tom came home and the three of us sat on my back deck until it was quite dark – around 6:00.
After Heather left I went and did my Kroger pick up and then an even better pick up….Mason! Jack needed the car so I was happy to be the Lyft driver. Mason wanted to come home for a distraction free environment to write his final semester papers.
Night driving…I hate it. I have an astigmatism so the lights look distorted. I need to find this meme that shows the difference between no astigmatism and astigmatism. Anyone else?
Mason and I watched a Gilmore Girls and then he worked Friday night and most of the day Saturday while Tom went hiking with a buddy and I had a shopping date with my niece Morgan.
We went to Butchertown Market/Work the Metal which I have mentioned before. It is a really large space with kid stuff, kitchen stuff, clothing and accessories, and more. It is a really great place to find gifts.
Um….and they have $1 mimosas. Morgan had an apple cider and I had a cranberry.
Then, we headed to the area called NULU which I have also mentioned. It is an abbreviation for New Louisville – an area of downtown that has been revitalized. We went in about 3 or 4 shops but I only bought a candle. I was looking for the Pickwick Mahomes for the Holiday candle and I knew the plant store Mahonia carried it. They only had Holiday so I got that and it smells amazing. Use your candles, people! Do not save them! Ha – just a little PSA.
We were both curious about this new business that only just opened a couple of weeks ago.
We tried a flight of a few different flavors. They are alcoholic but they also have non-alcoholic.
The vibe was super cute but honestly the seltzers were not fizzy enough for me or maybe anyone. I wished I had brought a Topo Chico in my purse to liven it up. It tasted like you had had a party and someone drank half of a White Claw and left it there and you were a slob and left it there for maybe 7 days and then drank it.
After that, we were hungry and headed to Frankfort Avenue which is a cute street of restaurants and we picked The Hub.
You gotta have fries!
Morgan got chicken and grits and I got…
tiny little avocado toasts.
We parted ways after lunch and I went home.
Around 6, Tom, Mason, and I went to try a new to us place called Falafel House. Sadly, they had no indoor seating.
We had to eat in the car before going in to a beautiful church as part of Bardstown Road Aglow to hear Jack sing.
They were awesome and it was the first time we have gotten to hear Jack sing in person because everything was live streamed last year due to Covid. Jack decided to come home with us for the night and it was already 10 by the time we got home.
I slept in until 8:00 a.m.! Teacher Tired!
I had my coffee and read and then jumped right into meal prep.
I did my 5 breakfasts for the week, Greek bowls, and this turkey sausage vegetable mixture. Erica has 3 lunches this week. It takes me a good amount of time but it really is so worth it to have all of my containers ready to go.
I also made the Trader Joe jumbo cinnamon rolls that I forgot to use for Thanksgiving for the three guys. Kim told me to get them and she is right again. I had to test a bit of one for quality control.
So, speaking of teacher tired and so many things I have to accomplish before December 17 in my professional and personal life, I am going to reduce my blog posts to 3 per week for now. I will be back Wednesday for What I Wore and Friday for Friday Favorites.
I hope you had a great weekend! Let me know in the comments what you did if you feel inclined.
I had pizza, one breadstick, broccoli, and potato wedges for dinner one night.
I have been trying to wear my winter stuff this week. As I get dressed in the morning, I am finding so many things that are just too big. I decided to look at a Loft sale and ordered enough to get free shipping. I will let you know what works and what I end up returning to my local store.
This was a true impulse purchase:
This was love at first sight! I love the color and pattern!
And, I love a black and white plaid!
I’m also taking a chance on an Amazon top recommended by Honey We’re Home blog.
I had my students write a thank you letter in Spanish last week and apparently some other teachers had their students make cards. I also got a few cards that kids did on their own. Basically I have never gotten thanked so much in the month of November! I think the kids feel more appreciation to us after the pandemic.
High school students think it’s funny when they know what cars their teachers drive!
I was invited by a sweet girl to her college sport signing day this week.
I have so much to do this weekend! I have to decorate and shop on top of the general house chore stuff. December is always so crazy and the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas are so packed. Jack and Mason are taking finals right now and move home next week.
It is time! The dough deserves its own post! I have been mentioning it often in my posts and I realized I just needed to dedicate a whole post to it.
A big thank you to Kim, my blog reader and friend, for sharing this with me when I started my journey! Also, a big thank you to Biz of My Bizzy Kitchen for developing this dough. Ever heard of the WW 2 ingredient dough? Well, Biz made it way better with a couple of additions. The reason why this dough is so amazing is that it is only 1 WW point per ounce. You can do other things with it, too. I have made breadsticks and bagels but I know you can do cinnamon rolls, buns, empanadas, and more!
It is really, really hard to eat regular pizza without blowing your daily points allowance. I love my pizza made with this dough so much that I really haven’t missed “real pizza”.
You need: 2 cups of self rising flour, a half of a cup of greek, non-fat yogurt, a teaspoon of yeast, and a half teaspoon of salt. You also need 1/2-3/4 cup of water. Start with 1/2 cup and then add a bit more if needed. I try to always keep these ingredients on hand.
Mix those 5 ingredients together and let rise in your bowl with a towel over it for a few hours. I then transfer it to the fridge and it really gets better the longer you wait to use it.
I roll mine out on a bit more flour and then add sauce and cheese and whatever vegetables I have ready. I bake mine at 450 for about 8 minutes but I am going to try it in my new air fryer on the pizza setting next time.
I have also made little breadsticks if I feel that I need some carbs to go with my meals.
And, the dough makes great bagels.
I am excited to experiment more with this dough. Honestly, one should maybe always have this dough on hand in the fridge.
Be sure to check out the My Bizzy Kitchen for more ideas; she has way more than just the dough.
It is December! If I can muster the energy after school today I will start getting my Christmas decor out.
Here is a little snapshot of what I’ve been wearing along with a bit of fashion talk.
This is what I ended up wearing on Thanksgiving Day. It was rainy and I knew I would be hanging in my sister-in-law’s kitchen so I went with something not too hot. I would have never chosen jeans in the past I don’t think because I do like to dress up normally. But, the jeans felt good and served as a bit of accountability for me.
The next day I wore my new black jeans with another blouse and a vest. It got much colder out so I needed another layer.
I tailgated Saturday in my leggings and sweater – both from Amazon and influenced by my blog friend Jen! I bought both last year and Jen really does pick well from Amazon. I added an old Old Navy quilted vest and my Amazon purse with my Fucci strap (faux Gucci).
Sunday night I did a mediocre red paint job.
And, Monday for school I broke out my December plaid a bit early. I got a lot of comments that I looked Christmasey.
I have lots of vests that I have had for forever. They are great for teachers because of the pockets and because they add a little bit of warmth without adding too much warmth!
And, another teacher ‘fit. I have had this pink Burberry-esque cardigan from Amazon for several years. The pants are Matilda Jane.
I am going to try to wear a unique outfit for each of the remaining days until winter break because I am seeing what still fits my body and my style. I think I can do it and it will be fun!
Over the break, I was way too proud of myself for making my own raw hem on my too long jeans. I actually think it looks more modern to have this type of hem. I’m not really into the distressed jeans anymore, but I do like the raw hem. I picked up a new pair of black jeans last week and I am excited to have black jeans to wear again.
Also, I ordered two funnel necks that are sooooo soft inside. They are super warm so I don’t know if they will work for school. I ordered them from J.Crew Factory and I sized up one. I could have sized up two sizes I think and I’m hoping they don’t look too boxy. I will try to style them soon. I was influenced by Whitney who has great taste!
I may try to wear the tan and white one with white jeans. I’m not big on white jeans in the winter but I do have a pair that is brand new from J.Crew clearance that were too small.
At this point in the year I get tired of all the oranges, mustards, browns, and other fall colors in my closet so I switch to my plaids, velvets, and lots of red, black, green, burgundy and my winter palette.
My classroom is an oven so I have to be careful not to dress too warmly. Like, I cannot teach in a sweater but I can do a cardigan over a top. Add in the mask and the heat from my computer projector and I am not comfortable if I don’t dress correctly.
I keep telling myself not to buy anything for winter. I really have enough and winter clothes are my least favorite to buy. It has been fun to see what now fits or fits better. I am having to send a few things on because they are too big but for the most part my winter stuff is accommodating to multiple sizes. Also, I am trying to re-discover my style. I don’t want a packed closet anymore. I want to have a more curated collection. I’m also trying to stop with so much Amazon, Old Navy and cheaper brands. Don’t worry, Target. I probably can’t ever quit you!
Happy last day of November! Hard to believe, right?
I mentioned a few things yesterday in my Hello Monday post, but today I plan to go more in depth about what I’ve been eating since we last spoke about the topic.
I keep saying I hope I don’t talk too much about this topic, but you, my dear sweet readers, seem to comment the most about this topic and I get the feeling you want the deets? If you don’t, just click away and I won’t be offended!
I am doing WW Personal Points and I still haven’t figured it all out yet, to be honest. The plan just came out at the beginning of November. I did WW Purple before that and got 16 points per day with 42 extras that I used on the weekends. Now I get 22 points a day with 28 extras. You can now earn extras for drinking water and eating a cup of vegetables. You can also change your plan by taking the assessment and getting different zero point foods. Anyway, it’s a lot but I think I like it. I’m still eating pretty much like I did while doing the Purple plan – low carb, lots of vegetables, lean proteins, lots of water, and not much sugar. I am also trying not to rely on too many packaged foods or artificial sweeteners; this is a personal preference for me. The app is amazing and lets you record what you are eating and tracks your points for you.
My goal going in to the holiday was to enjoy myself but not go crazy. I had two Thanksgiving meals – one on Thursday and one on Friday.
Here were my strategies:
-I made a pot of vegetable soup to help me not go to the meals too hungry – or as something healthy to have in the evening after the meals.
-I ended up wearing jeans both days just because I wanted to and…maybe as a bit of accountability and to remind myself that I have gone down 3 jean sizes? I wasn’t uncomfortable at all in my jeans but I learned last year that leggings were not my friends.
-I only put foods that I love on my plate. I didn’t request any special foods or act fussy. I don’t want to be that person ever. I ate slowly and enjoyed every bite but I did not stuff myself.
-I ate a great healthy breakfast both days that happened to be zero points.
-I made WW buffalo chicken dip and celery as an app to take that doesn’t feel like diet food to me.
I plan to employ these same strategies again because I think they really helped!
Another thing that helped is that I didn’t have any tempting leftovers.
On Saturday morning, I needed to re-stock my normal, healthy foods…
It felt good to go inside the store (rather than do pick up) to kinda peruse the healthier choices after the decadent Thanksgiving foods. I went at 8:30 and had the place mostly to myself. I primarily shop at Kroger and we have a Kroger credit card that we use for gas and groceries. I had $100 in rewards coupons/checks and only paid $3 for this order! Woohoo! That is the only credit card I have, by the way. I do have a debit card and Tom has one other credit card.
This is the vegetable soup I made:
Most Sunday mornings I work on my meal prep for the week. I take my breakfast and lunch to school everyday. Well, I take 2-3 lunches a week and my meal prep partner, Erica, does the other. Erica has now lost almost 30 pounds! I recently hit the 46 pound mark on the Wednesday morning before Thanksgiving! Erica started in July and I started in April.
I am trying to eat a cup of vegetables at breakfast and this is what my breakfast prep for the weekdays looks like. I made a mixture of yellow squash, green zucchini, mushrooms, and onions. I included two Jimmy Dean turkey sausages for protein, and then I add…
my low carb egg casserole on top. It has 6 eggs, a half cup of low fat cottage cheese, and a can of green chilies. The original recipe called for a bit of flour and lots of shredded cheese but I don’t find that I miss those and they would be more points. I am definitely an egg for breakfast type of person. And, I love breakfast.
I eat this around 8:00 a.m. at school during my planning period. I’m also still doing a half of Premier Protein with instant coffee in the mornings, too. Bananas are now 3 points for me so I don’t know what else to do for a morning snack around 10? I love vegetables way more than fruits so I recently changed my Personal Points to get more zero point foods and that made the fruits cost points now. It’s kinda confusing. I may change back to fruits being zero for me.
Dinner is a variation of whatever I make for Tom. It’s probably easier for me right now because I’m only cooking for two and I am not hung up on us eating the same thing. Tom works out like a mad man but he is NOT on board with all of my healthy foods. It’s kinda weird, but whatever. He wants a meat at every meal with two vegetables or the classics like spaghetti, tacos, etc. He is very easy to please. He eats lunch out every single day at work and often has leftovers that he is happy to eat.
Some recent foods:
I am not great about sharing recipes in these posts; it’s more like giving ideas, I guess.
This was a variation of Alice Springs Chicken from Outback – grilled chicken, honey mustard, mushrooms with broccoli and potato wedges. Yes, I usually eat one potato a day!
This was a dinner of skinny pizza dough breadsticks, apple gouda sausage, brussel sprouts, potato wedges.
Salad with…
a chicken wrap on a low carb tortilla and a light twice baked potato.
I actually took a Chick Fil a breaded patty and took it off the bun and put it in the wrap. The flour tortillas I use are La Banderita brand and are one WW point.
A bagel sandwich with the skinny pizza dough in my air fryer…
A Boca burger wrap…
Erica’s lunch of copycat Olive Garden zuppa tuscano soup…
burrito bowls…
I am a big believer in putting your food on pretty plates. I would never eat a Lean Cuisine or a frozen meal in the container because I just think it tastes better on a plate! Another trick I do often is to cut things in more pieces so it seems like more. I’m weird.
This is what I use for creamer – no sweetener. You get used to it! Now I love my coffee this way!
I started adding this a couple of times a week. This may be TMI but we have a doctor friend that says everyone should be doing Metamucil everyday.
A great sweet treat for the cold evenings – one WW point.
This is what I buy for my breakfast – a great price at Costco and I put in the freezer.
This is my favorite bread at one WW point…
I often make avocado toast for an after school snack with this bread…
I love these!
Popcorn almost every day…
Ok – new to me… these are so good! I added some mayo and pickles and…
these buns for one WW point and it was like a faux CFA sandwich!
I plan to make 2 WW point egg rolls in the air fryer! I can use my egg roll in a bowl mixture inside and one of my readers reminded me about making buffalo chicken egg rolls.
As you can see I have been eating a lot of low carb tortillas and potatoes! And, I do repeat the same things quite a bit. Or, maybe it’s that I go in stages where I eat the same thing for a while before changing?
I am not really eating brown rice, whole wheat pasta, or other grains much now because it’s not zero for me anymore. I just need to learn this new plan a bit better and then I will add more variety I think.
Anyway, I love what I’m eating. It’s not perfect, but it’s a big improvement. I was eating way too much – mindless snacking, “tasting” while cooking, drinking too much alcohol and caloric coffees, eating way too much sugar… you get the idea.
If you have been on the fence about joining WW, I say do it! I feel so great heading into the new year for the first time ever. It feels so good to have already started working on my health goals pre-January 1, you know? There is no need to wait for a magical date on the calendar, and honestly, there is never a perfect time. Life is always gonna be crazy. While I have lost weight, I have gained so much. I am happier and more extroverted. I say YES more. I think I will have less Seasonal Affective Disorder this winter, maybe because I feel better? As far as vanity goes, everyone wants to be in shape and look good for the summer, but it is such a good feeling to look better in your winter clothes, too!
A word about the air fryer… I am using it so much! I think it’s especially great for people trying to eat healthier. It is also great for empty nesters who aren’t cooking for a large family.
If I can be of any help, let me know! This was a long post and I probably repeated what I have said in other posts but I always appreciate a followup, so…
Amy
P.S. – I would like to lose 4 more pounds before the end of 2021 to hit the 50 pound mark, but I am really just going to try to maintain through the busy holiday season.
It’s back to the grind today for most of us, right? Today I am linking up with Heather, etc. here for Hello Monday.
I had a nice 5 days off. My hopes were time with family and friends, time to read and relax, time off from the computer, not to eat too horribly – lol, and that’s about it. I did not do Christmas decor and I didn’t do much shopping and that’s perfectly alright with me.
I love a slow morning. I took the time each day to light a candle and read blogs or my books.
I made a vegetable soup to have for lunch before the big Thanksgiving meal. This is zero points for me and I am also bringing this with some turkey sausage (2 points worth) for our lunch today. I am doing 3 lunches this week and Erica is doing 2. I am doing chicken enchiladas one day and either Greek bowls or egg roll in a bowl on the other day. I weighed Wednesday morning and achieved my lowest weight to date! I won’t weigh again until this Friday morning, December 4th.
Wednesday I had to try out my fall sangria. I used this Trader Joe’s spiced cider and I love the extra bite it gives.
It was pretty cold all 5 days here, but I did manage to sit outside a couple of times.
I had a cider mimosa the next morning, too!
I finished this cute Hallmarky book. The end – or really most of it – was super predictable but it was just what I needed.
I started this and I am liking it so far! I love to get in the mood for the season with my reading!
These are so fun and the perfect little sweet treat – 2 WW points each – lol. I made some to take to both of our celebrations.
On Thursday around 2:00 we went across town to Tom’s sister’s house. I made this caramel cake using a yellow box mix (add an extra egg for a true homemade taste) and homemade, real deal icing – lots of butter, brown sugar, powdered sugar and milk. You have to cook the icing, too, and it is amazing.
My sis-in-law requested that I made mashed sweet potatoes and OMG – I will be doing this again. I roasted the sweet potatoes in my oven at 400 for a long time – like 1.5 hours. You let cool, scoop out the innards, and then mash and add a touch of milk, butter, and brown sugar along with some spices. The roasted aspect makes them not require much.
My 22 year old niece Morgan and I. She was my first niece and I am so proud of her. She is a nurse now and works the night shift.
My second niece, Brooke, is almost a nurse, too! She just got a paid internship with a big hospital group.
Tom and Mason – awww
Jack and Tom’s mom – love that I caught her looking at him like that!
The feast – It was so nice after taking last year off. We had a great meal and a nice day.
On Friday it was time for round 2 with my family and again, this would be our first Thanksgiving since 2019. My mom lives an hour away so we headed there around 11.
I made mashed potatoes,
WW friendly buffalo chicken dip to snack on,
and roasted potatoes that my mom loves.
My sister Kate and I:
Nieces Nora and Samira playing Scrabble with Jack and Mason after our meal:
My nephew Silas was hard to get a photo of because he was busy!
We had a really nice day, but it was also a bummer because my other sister’s family was quarantined. My brother in law tested positive for Covid on the Sunday before Thanksgiving, and then my sister Molly tested positive on Monday. They were both pretty sick and the whole family had to stay home, of course. Prayers that we can be together for Christmas if you don’t mind?
The sky on our drive home was beautiful!
Jack and Mason really just wanted to be at home, sleep in, lounge in pjs, and do a bit of homework. It was so nice to have them home. They only have a few more days of classes until Winter Break. It’s hard to believe they are almost halfway done with college. College really does go by faster than high school and that seemed so fast to me, too.
One of my besties, Heather and I cooked up a plan to do “Shop Small Business Saturday” but it really just turned into a boozy brunch and one store. I love one on one time because I feel like we can really talk, ya know? We ended up at Wild Eggs which is in a small shopping center with all locally owned places.
We had a pomegranate mimosa…OMG! This would be great for Christmas! You can’t tell at all that I love a mimosa, can you?
I stuck with my regular farmer’s market skillet!
I’m trying to get better at always asking to take photos!
Tom got invited by his brother-in-law to go to the big rivalry football game between University of Louisville and University of Kentucky. I tagged along to tailgate with my sister-in-law. The game didn’t start until 7:30 and both of us are not late night people. Plus, the tailgate is the best part, ya know?
Proof that we were there…
Jessica, my sister-in-law and I…
And, Sunday was a lazy day at home that also included meal prepping for the week.
I went to the store at 8:30 Saturday morning to stock back up on the healthy foods! Post coming tomorrow about what I’ve been eating/meal ideas. I do plan to buckle down for the next 3 weeks or so. I’m still learning the new WW Personal Points plan. I re-took the assessment and now I have 22 points a day. I was only getting 16 a day on WW Purple. I think I like the new program? I walked one day and did an exercise video indoors one day.
Erica (my co-worker and meal prep partner) hates the cold but I am hoping we can walk at least 2 days a week until the break. I am also trying to start Epic Heat on YouTube, which is free. I don’t think I’m in good enough shape to do the whole thing, but maybe I can work up to it. Any other suggestions are welcome! I do believe it’s about 80% diet, 20% exercise or something like that. I am trying to drink more water and eat more lean protein, too. I tried hard to stay dedicated without being obsessive. I hope you don’t think I talk about it too much here, either.
How was your Thanksgiving Break? I hope you were happy and healthy!
Coffee and Cocktails at the Casa 