Weight Loss Reflections For 2008

My Weight Chart:

I don't blog much about weight loss journey which began in November of 2007. As much as I love checking out other weight loss related blogs, I just hate talking about my ups and downs on the scale in such a public forum. Still, confession is good for the soul and I think the end of the year is an appropriate time to look back on successes and issues and think about future goals.

The high point (pun intended) for me this year was being diagnosed with high blood pressure again and being able to get off of the blood pressure meds in only 7 weeks. Major exercise and minor diet overhauls were responsible for my blood pressure now being back to normal.

Admittedly I am a little discouraged that I am not closer to the 200lb mark. I had a plateau for several months in the spring and summer where I was stuck at 250 for months. One health problem after another cropped up. None were weight related but they all had me under doctor's orders to lay off the workouts weeks at a time. Thankfully that's all over and I even walked 10,635 steps on Christmas day.

We decided to try and be a bit more "green" this year and that carried over into health benefits as well. We're growing our own veggies and salad greens again. Chopper is certainly not complaining about all the organic produce he's getting at mealtime. The gardening chores get us out in the fresh air and gives ample exercise opportunities thanks to all the weeds. I have also started mowing the yard with the push mower to get in more aerobic activity that is helpful to the environment.

Food around our house has been interesting this year. We made the switch from white to brown rice and it was much less painful than I expected. I really enjoy it now. I've been experimenting with some new (to our palates) herbs and spices that are proported to have antioxidant qualities. We've had some hits and some misses but it hasn't been dull. I found time to rework a few recipes into lighter and healthier versions to suit our new way of eating. (see sidebar for 'Recipes')

On the whole I think I did okay with my weight loss under the circumstances but hopefully next year will be better. I'm looking forward to more time walking around the neighborhood now that the crazy guy down the street has moved out. For 2009 I need to work on taking my vitamins regularly, drink more decaf green tea and take my lunch to work more often.

Merry Christmas!

Chopper supervises as Posh decorates for the holidays.

From our home to yours, Merry Christmas and best wishes for a happy and healthy holiday!

From The B Family - HuzBen, Leanna, Pearl, Foster, Chopper, Posh, and Danica

Leanna's Christmas Cheese Spread

I have been making this recipe for over 20 years and it's always a hit at parties or potlucks. It's also a very forgiving recipe. If you need to make it for a larger crowd you can use more cheddar cheese or red bell pepper without altering the taste. For a fancier version, you can shape the finished product into a ball and coat the outside with slivered almonds.

Leanna's Christmas Cheese Spread

2 - 8oz pkgs cream cheese (room temp)
1 - 4.25oz can of Underwood Deviled Ham
1 pkg dry ranch dressing mix
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
1 cup diced sweet red bell pepper (do not substitute green bell pepper)
1/2 cup finely sliced green onions

Mix the cream cheese, deviled ham and the ranch dressing mix in a bowl. Fold in the remaining ingredients. Chill for at least 2 hours prior to serving. Serve with crackers or mini toasts. Can be made up to 2 days in advance.

The Best Casserole Cookbook Ever

Wow! The Best Casserole Cookbook Ever came yesterday from Amazon.com. This was an early Christmas present from HuzBen.

I took it to work today and skimmed through it in between calls. About 30 purple Post-It notes are now sticking out the top, marking recipes that I can't wait to try. I found lots of recipes that use brown rice and chicken breasts and a few vegetarian recipes that sound good. The book has fast and easy recipes that contain canned cream of "whatever" soups and more involved recipes that have detailed sauces. You'll find the often talked about no knead bread recipe that ran in a New York Times article two winters ago. This book boasts over 500 recipes and is more than worth the price.

I think The Best Casserole Book Ever is going to be my new "go to" book when I can't think of anything to make for dinner.

Roasted Pork Loin With Potato Chip Crust

Roasted Pork Loin With Potato Chip Crust


One can of vegetable stock

1/2 cup of brown sugar

1/2 cup on kosher salt

10-20 peppercorns, lightly crushed

3-4 lb pork loin

1/4 cup brown mustard

1 - 10 1/2oz bag of salt and vinegar potato chips



Make the brine by mixing the stock, salt, sugar and peppercorns. Simmer in a med saucepan, stirring until sugar and salt are dissolved. Simmer but do not bring to boil. Remove from heat and let the brine cool.

Rinse pork loin, place in plastic sealable bag and pour brine mixture over the pork loin, refrigerate overnight, turning once or twice.

Remove from fridge and let it sit for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
Crush the potato chips, take pork loin out of brine and rinse under cold water. Coat the pork loin with the mustard and roll in the crushed potato chips.

Place in oven. Roast until internal temperature reaches 170 degrees. Let sit for 10 minutes before slicing.

Buyer Beware

I took a trip to Joann's on Sunday to purchase some contrasting fabric for the pockets of an apron I'm making out of this fabric from my kitchen curtains.

On the remnants rack I can often find small amount of fabric at a big discount so that was my first stop. I didn't see anything that would work for the apron but I did spot a colorful fleece fabric, just perfect for a blanket for Chopper. This is what it looked like when it was all rolled up at the store. Cute, right?

Back in the quilting department I found a suitable fabric for the apron and I found an awesome flannel print that will be turned into a Christmas present for someone. (I'll post about that after the holidays) I took my purchases home and started to launder everything when I unwrapped the fleece for Chopper and discovered that it wasn't exactly what I thought.


OMG!!!

Even Danica had to get a look at it. I did not imagine there would be skulls all over the print. Skulls for my sweet little Chopper?! There is no way to return remnants so it looks like my bunny is going hardcore. At least he doesn't seem to mind.