Hi All:

I'm just checking in. I've been very tired from work, then had a busy day today.

In the lost messages I had said that I was having trouble planning meals. I'd appreciate any ideas about combinations you're finding to be particularly good. I think I'm just a little bored.

Sloan, you're doing so well. It's wonderful to read.

Paula, I do hope this passes for your father. Have you done any internet searching on swallowing problems with elderly people? What's the doctor saying about it?

I'm signing off to try to get some sleep. I've been having insomnia lately.

Rhonda

Rhonda-sorry you're having the blahs When you're tired, food planning usually takes a back seat. How about some simple things like whole wheat spaghetti with core sauce, burgers on the grill with oven fries, bbq chicken with core potato salad and corn on the cob, oven fried fish and core onion rings or steak and baked potato? Just look for simple things that you've always liked to eat. I love to use the grill in the summer. You can put almost anything on it, and it doesn't heat up the house.

My friend recently gave me this recipe, and my whole family loves it.
Grape Salad
Blend 4 oz ff cream cheese, 4 oz ff sour cream, & 1/4 c. splenda
Stir in 2 lbs grapes (green or red or a combo of both)
the original recipe (not core) had nuts, so if you wanted to add them you could just count points.

Don't forget to do something nice for yourself-you're worth it !

...That grape salad recipe sounds delicious!
Tejas: I know what it's like to feel bored with food ideas. The only thing that saved me last week was that my "grouplet" friend and I cooked for eachother one night. She sent over some core soup, a main dish and some snacks that I'd never had before. I did the same for her. So while I cooked for her, I cooked for myself too and stored in the freezer. It was fun to make her new things like "spiked popcorn" and those roasted chickpeas since I know snacking is her downfall. The soup she sent me was a carrot butternut soup... and I don't think I've ever bought a butternut squash from the supermarket in my life.
I guess that's one way to shake things up?

That's some good advice...go back to simple. I think I'll do burgers and oven fries, with a green salad for tonight. DH likes simple. I'm the one who likes to get too fancy and complicated for my own good! I had written in the lost pages that I actually fell asleep the other night trying to plan the week's menus!

I like the "grouplet." I have two friends who share some cooking and we should do it more often.

Today I'm going to go see my former MIL in the nursing home and then do a little shopping. I have to buy a new rug. My poor doggie is taking some medication for his annual spring-time allergies (he itches all over, licks himself raw and pulls out his hair!). The meds make him thirsty, he drinks and pees like crazy. We were out for 4 hours last night and he had peed on the rug in the study. Poor puppy!

Hope you all have a good day...BBL

Rhonda

Challenge day for me! DH and I have a small group at church, and tonight is our bi-monthly meeting. The couple that will be cooking tonight very excitedly announced we are having pancakes!! I am going to try and eat some core foods before I go, and politely indulge in a very small amount so as not to be insulting. Any other time I would just take my own food, but the looks on their faces when they were talking about their "family specialty" was so sweet I just can't hurt their feelings.

Noussa-I like the cooking swap that you did. What a great idea!
Rhonda-glad to hear about the burgers. See, simple is good!

I'm starting to plan in earnest for eating at camp next week. I have a list of things I will take for breakfasts and lunches. I plan to choose some frozen dinners either from ww or some other company that look like they consist mostly of core ingredients. I don't plan to use my wpa, so whatever is "extra" in the dinners should be covered. I'll let you know how it turns out.
One good thing is that camp is over on Thursday, so I'll only be away 5 nights. Also, I imagine I'll be a lot more active during those days so that should help.

GTG to small group. Wish me luck!

Hello everyone. Just want to let you know that ff cream cheese is not core. So you would have to count that in the grape salad, and if you add nuts, you would have to count the whole thing because it would be 2 non-core items in the salad.
I totally blew it this weekend. We went fishing, and the last time we did that and I was drinking my water, I kept having to go back and go to the bathroom because the water was going right through me and it was not making my boyfriend very happy having to leave our spot and paddle me all the way back to the cottage(we go out in a paddle boat). So I kind of cut down on the water, and didn't end up getting it in yesterday and hardly any yet today. Plus I ate a lot of none core things. And I also had some cocktails. So I went way over my points. Oh well, my first real set back. I got on the scale and it says I gained 5 pounds! I'm sure a lot of it is water weight. How can anyone gain 5 pounds in 2 days? Any way I'm trying to get in my water today and will also be drinking water it like crazy tomorrow because I wi tomorrow and I don't want a huge gain.

Rhonda, how about a chicken (or tuna) salad made with core ingredients? Just a thought.

Also, have you tried pan grilled salmon patties made with core ingredients?

Noussa, I love your quote in your signature. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Sloan, and thank you for the grape salad recipe. It sounds yummy.

Tracie, you would need to count the points, but it sounds like it would be well worth it.

Hi everyone. Well, my niece was leaving her house to come down for the bbq and her daughter threw up all over and had a fever. So, they did not come down. DD was dissapointed, but like any 5 year old, it was quickly forgotten. My sister came by so I still cooked stuff that I had planned. The buffalo chicken burgers are wonderful!!!! I need to write down the correct reciepe for you all. Very good.

I ended up just sitting outside having a nice visit with her while dd played in her water slide. It was a nice afternoon.

Sloanie, good luck at camp. Sounds like you've planned well. you should do fine. Hope the pancakes weren't too good! I don't think I could eat a bit of those if they were!

Not much else here. Have a quiet night.

Tracie, Don't worry about the 5 pds, Its just bloat.

Tracie- it is impossible for you to gain 5 pounds of fat in two days.....it's just water weight. Don't beat yourself up! Also, thanks for the info about the ff cream cheese.

Noussa-I love your tracker!! It is so cute!!!!

Paula-I did well with the pancakes. I had two pancakes w/o syrup and one link sausage. According to ww that is a total of 9 points. Not too shabby! Also, I found someone to walk with at camp. We plan to get up early and walk before the kids are up. Sorry to hear about the bbq, but the burgers sound great! Can't wait to try them.

Hope you all have had a restful weekend!

Hi All:

The burgers were good and salmon is on tomorrow night's menu.

Tracie, a few days of indulgence isn't going to kill your plans. You'll be fine! Sloan, good for you and the pancakes. I agree that a few points is worth not hurting someone's feelings!

If I'm up early enough, I'll start the thread tomorrow..but, if I'm not, I'm sure someone will be.

Vickie...are you being affected by the awful weather?


Rhonda

What??? Fat Free Cream Cheese isn't core??????? My world is falling apart!
I guess that makes sense now that I read the label... the first ingredient is sugar!!!!
Thank you so much for sharing that and saving us all from a potentially huge downfall!
How's everyone doing?
Sloan: Good luck with that pancake breakfast!
Twestra: I haven't been fishing since I left North America! I actually enjoy it! Did you catch anything at least?
Tejas: Give your dog a good scratch behind the ears for me!

Thanks girls, you have made me feel better about my splurging weekend. I am just trying to drink the water, but I think I will go to ww and wi with my girlfriend on Wednesday instead of today. Give myself a few days to lost this water and get an actual weight on what I really did gain.
Noussa, sorry to have burst your bubble on the cream cheese, but I don't want you getting steered the wrong way. It's still not that many points I wouldn't think, since it's ff.
We didn't catch many fish. We caught some blue gills and sunfish. We normally will catch 30 or 40 in a day, well we only caught about 9 in two days. Just weren't having any luck. But it was a very relaxing weekend.