Change is Upon Us

Greetings:

I had an evening that wasn't filled with course prep or grading.   I got more things done around the house, worked further on some correspondence, and sat on my butt watching TV.  (Currently watching a marathon of Roseanne)  I'm pleased to announce that the Halloween decorations are up and I was able to find niches for several of them.  I can't decorate the windows though or put anything outside due to the upcoming construction. 

The contractor and his crew are going to start work on the house on Wednesday.   I just checked the weather though....rain is predicted so we'll see if the Wednesday is actually the start date.   A load of siding was dropped off today and the new windows will be appearing tomorrow.   We get to move everything away from the windows soon so the house will be nice and disorganized.  

I'm excited for the weigh-in on Wednesday as I did a good job with my food choices this weekend.   We did a major shopping trip on Sunday and despite bringing in a lot of tasty food, I didn't find myself snacking tremendously.   I gained last week so I'm still tetering around the 20 lbs mark.  I'd really like to be close to a 30 lbs loss by the end of the year.  

We tried a new recipe today.   I created it yesterday in the crock pot.   Check it out at this link:

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2008/11/crock-pot-chicken-taco-chili-4-pts.html

It was very simple to whip together.   I altered it a little bit.   The recipe calls for two cans of diced tomatoes with chiles and I only added one.   The other can was plain diced tomatoes.   I was worried about the heat and spiciness.   After sampling it tonight, I could have added 2 cans with the chiles.  I also didn't add the optional chili peppers either.  As you can see, you can add sour cream and/or cheese to complete the dish.  I also bought Frito Scoops too and that was a nice addition of salty. 

I'm pleased to announce that I have my permanent crown.  They popped off the temporary crown (literally) and cemented the new one in place.   I'm happy to have that chapter of dental hell over with.   Now I get to whittle down the debt from the process.

I don't have anything real earth-shattering to share but I thought I better blog before work sneaks up and rules my life again.

An October Update

Greetings on this fine Saturday:

I'm hanging out, spending too much time on the Internet (so much for just quickly checking my email), and decided I should create a quick blog entry.   It was a typical week.   Busier than I'd like but I was very productive and tried my best to keep up with all my tasks.  This upcoming week is midterm.   I will have a lot of excess grading to completing as I need to send in any necessary midterm reports for my classes.   Luckily I have a gut feeling about those that need a report already.  I'm sure my math at the end of the week will support that. 

I had a successful weigh-in with Weight Watchers on Tuesday.  I lost another 2.6 lbs so I'm very close to being down 20 lbs.  I was surprised to have lost anything.   It was that "fun" week of the month so I was feeling all bloated but hey, I'll take the weight loss.  It's been easier making better choices.   I'm still not craving restaurant visits but we're also doing a good job of eating out once in awhile so we don't desperately miss a certain food or cuisine.  Hu Hot has been a favorite lately.   If I only get meat and veggies, I can pretty much eat all I want.   We've also visited the new frozen yogurt joint in town.  It's called Cherry Berry and it's just like Orange Leaf in Ames.  You grab your own bowl, fill it with self-serve yogurts, and choose your toppings.   Jon's a lot better about covering his yogurt with fruit.   I'm a sucker for Kit Kat and maraschino cherries. 

I'm trying in general to keep myself moving more at home and work to increase physical activity but structured workouts haven't been a constant in my life.  I'm in the large group of people currently that pay for a gym membership but barely use it.  Bleh.  I'm still lucky that my body is willingly letting me lose weight but I'm waiting for a plateau to hit. 

Gavin had a positive report at parent-teacher conferences.   The only class that was slightly disappointing was his French class.  He currently has a C and I'm hoping he gets up to a B.  He doesn't care for the class much and has felt behind for most of the last weeks as he didn't have the foreign language last year like others in his class.   If he's trying his best I'm happy.   And with the current situation, he probably is just average in the class so the C is a fitting grade.   Sadly I cannot help him much, I know squat about French.  I also learned that he's quite chatty in History class.  

I guess that's enough of a update for now.  

If you're someone that occassionally or regularly partakes in the Smart One meals, do consider the Breakfast Quesadilla.  Holy smokes they are wonderful.   They include egg whites, cheese, veggies, and turkey bacon.  I'm so thankful for those and the breakfast sandwiches.   It's been nice eating breakfast on a more regular basis again. 

Have a good weekend!

Your Thoughts?

So my pal from Mason City brought this clip to my attention.  Take a looksie and share your thoughts.


http://video.news8000.com/watch.php?id=36335


http://video.news8000.com/watch.php?id=36335

 It's also listed on my Facebook page too.   Not sure if the link will work or not.