I'm back at Weight Watchers. 'Nuff said, right? When I was in WW before (two times) I did very well. Now I'm not trying to jinx myself or anything, but I lost around fifty pounds both times. Once I quit because money got tight and WW became an extra. The other time I quit because I got pregnant. Know what happened? Each time I started I weighed about the same. What I weighed when I first joined is the same amount I weighed when I re-joined the second time. That's also within ten pounds of what my starting weight is this time. This time I'm ten pounds less than the two previous times so I guess I got sick of my clothes not fitting a little sooner this time. What I'm getting at is this: I am very good at counting points, exercising, and all that stuff...when I am a meeting attending member. When I "count my points on my own" I gain the weight all back. That is not something that works for me. If I take the money I spend each week going out to lunch and add it up I'm more than paying for my weekly meetings. Plus I found out that my insurance company will reimburse me up to $150 a year for my WW meetings. Sweetness.

I'm going to post pictures and recipes of dinners if it's something I think you'd be interested in...plus it's an easy way for me to catalog the dinners I've figured out the points for. So to help out my fellow WW members (and myself) here goes the first one:

Chicken with Cherry Salsa, Sweet Potato Fries, and Asparagus

First, I forgot to take the picture until I had started eating...so picture another piece of chicken on there. I had two (because I actually just took one breast and split it thickness-wise so they'd cook quicker).

The chicken (after I split each breast) was super simple. Each side got salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Place in a skillet that's preheated on medium with about 2T. EVOO. They only take about 5 minutes on each side. If you're using a regular sized chicken breast then it's going to take longer...probably about 10-12 minutes on each side. I like to feel like I have a large quantity of food, and two small pieces seems like more than one big piece.

The sweet potato fries are peeled and cut sweet potatoes that I sprayed with cooking spray and sprinkled with cinnamon and nutmeg. No exact measurements or anything...just sprinkle until they look nicely coated and toss them on a cookie sheet. They'll bake at 400 for 20 minutes.

The asparagus gets drizzled with EVOO and three to four cloves of sliced garlic on top. Sprinkle on some salt and pepper and roast in the 400 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.

I saved the cherry salsa for last because it was so freaking delicious and I always save the best for last. I made the salsa earlier today and popped it in the fridge to let it marinate and chill and then put about a tablespoon or so on each piece of chicken. I was a little hesitant to try it because I don't like hot stuff and it called for jalapenos...trust me when I say that this is super awesomely yummy. The original recipe for the salsa said you could dip chips in it, but I can't vouch for whether that's good or not.

Cherry Salsa
2 Cups Bing Cherries, pitted and coarsely chopped
1/4 Cup Cherry Preserves
Juice of a Half a Lime
1/4 of a Red Onion, finely chopped
1/2 of a Jalapeno Pepper, finely chopped

I chopped everything in my mini chopper. I did the cherries by themselves and just pulsed them so they weren't too small. Store in an airtight container.

WW POINTS: 8
Serving: Two small pieces of chicken (3 ounces), 2T. salsa, 1 Cup Potatoes, 8-10 Asparagus Spears.

Posted by Courtney at 6:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Because that would be better than the morning I had. Picture it now...enter dream sequence...que the wavy lines and bloop bloop bloop sound effects...

It's 5:45 am. I am sleeping. I am not a morning person. I get up at the. last. possible. moment. I don't enjoy having coffee whilst reading the newspaper, and I sure as hell don't get up for an early morning jog. So there I am, comfortably slumbering when I hear the most annoying, high pitched, WHINE coming from the dog...who is in the kitchen...stuffing her whining nose in the crack of the doorway to our bedroom. Apparently she wants in to sleep on the bed. Wonder who started allowing THAT bad habit while I was in California last month? Any guesses?

I begrudgingly got up to let the stinking ass whiner in the bed.

I snuggled back under the covers, noticed that it was now 5:55, and said a small thank you to God for the hour more sleep I'd get before it was time to get up for the day. To what do my wondering ears do I hear? Nora rustling around in her bed...potentially moments away from waking up. Most likely she heard the damn dog whining, too.

Know who didn't hear the dog? The man that allows the dog to sleep in our bed in the first place. The man who was oblivious to the rustling around of the child. The man who was now snoring in my face. Very loudly.

Fan-Freaking-Tastic.

Now the dog is sprawled out in our bed...pushing me so far to the side that one butt cheek is hanging off. Nora is rustling around on the baby monitor. And my ears are being assaulted by the snores of a thousand snores. Oh yeah, and the cat's in the kitchen bitching because she wants fed...since we're all awake for the day and all.

I forcefully grabbed my blanket and pillow to head to the couch. That did nothing to wake the dog or the husband. I stalked out of the room with one last goodbye to the dog...the one that started it all. It went something like this...

Dog. I'm gonna rip off your head and take a shit down your neck.

Did I mention I'm not a morning person? Yeah. I thought so.

Posted by Courtney at 7:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

At the store today:

Ooooh. That Mildew Cleaner with Bleach is on clearance for $1.99. That stuff is usually four bucks. I should totally buy that for Larry.

Yeah, cause I'm such a thoughtful wife like that. Wait until you see the really cool dish towels I'm gonna get him for his birthday this year!

Posted by Courtney at 2:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

You know you're no longer single and therefore have no one to impress, when:

It's Friday night and you're snuggled in a blanket (bra-less, of course) on the couch watching a tivo-ed Dr. Phil episode at 8pm...thankful that the baby is asleep...and that your husband doesn't want to use the TV to watch baseball...knowing full well that you'll both be asleep by 10pm. And you know what? You don't care. In fact, topping it off with a slice of that red velvet cake in the fridge makes it the perfect evening ever.

Posted by Courtney at 8:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Note to the Supremo Asshat Sales Manager at ABC Warehouse: I don't appreciate your freaking attitude. I am thankful that the salesman I talked to was of a higher class than yourself...even if he couldn't work the TV I was looking at...which is strange since he told me TVs are his specialty. Something tells me that washers would've been his specialty if I were shopping for one of those...but I digress. After completing my browsing, where I had told said salesman that I was price checking and I'd have to check with my husband, I was headed out the door to the next place on the list. This is the moment that I was slapped in the face by your dumb ass comment of, "What's the matter, ma'am? You have to wait for your husband to pick a TV? Can't you make that decision yourself?" And you know what? You said it in a rather snotty tone...that was borderline bitchy. Gotta tell you, that did nothing for me. In fact, it helped make my decision about purchasing the TV much easier...it eliminated the possibility of buying the TV from your store. It turns out I could make the decision of which TV to buy by myself. I am capable of deciding things. However, a $700+ purchase is not something that our household takes lightly. A $700+ TV is probably not something you'd want your wife picking out (assuming you kept your trap shut long enough to snag someone of the opposite sex), and buying without your input. We actually bought a TV that cost more than yours...at your nearby competitor...because they treated us respectfully. Your smart mouth cost you the sale. So put that in your pipe and smoke it, jerk.

Posted by Courtney at 7:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)