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WIAW~May 22~The Food Made Up For It

Posted on May 22, 2013 | 9 Comments

Good Morning and welcome to the May 22 edition of What I Ate Wednesday! Ok, so I’m being excessively cheery.  I’m trying to make up for my less than cheery Week In Review on Monday.  I’m happy to say that the food will sound better than the week did.  Isn’t it all about the food anyway?!   ;-)  Well it is on Wednesdays!!

Be sure to visit Peas & Crayons when you’re finished here.  Thanks to the lovely and exuberant Jenn for starting all of this craziness.  Don’t forget to leave some comments while you nose around in all of the wonderful food posted there!

Peas and Crayons

We were happy to spend last Wednesday afternoon with our monthly group of Ralph’s family, sisters, cousins, nieces…and of course there was food!

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This was a wonderful layered Caprese salad.  So good!  There was a drizzled balsamic reduction on it that was just enough, I didn’t need to use the dressing they gave me on the side.  Yum.

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Ok…so there was birthday cake.  This was really delicious, very chocolate-y.  Glad I got a “smaller” piece.

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A mixed cheese salad with balsamic vinegar.  Really tasty and very filling.  One of my favorite choices which is why I have it so often!  :-)

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I actually fed myself once…an apple with cinnamon…breakfast, lunch…I don’t remember, but I love it this way.  It lasts longer which makes it very filling.

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Saturday (after recovering from the Relay) Ralph and I headed to the diner.  I got my fave…egg white omelette with mushrooms and spinach.  I was feeling the need for some extra protein, so I added a side of cottage cheese.  Great combo!

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Ok, so we also felt the need for ice cream. This was key lime pie…so yummy.  I’m allowing myself one visit on the weekend.  It’s so good, I’d be in trouble if I didn’t restrict myself!

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Sunday night, Ralph and I were in need of some comfort food.  This is an example of “If you ask for what you want at a restaurant, you just might get it.” I remembered that one time, Ralph had one time gotten an entrée at this pizzeria that had mixed sautéed vegetables for his side.  I asked it they could just mix those veggies with pasta.  The answer was yes! The veggies were cooked in garlic olive oil and this was just yummy! Filling too, I had to save half and bring it home.  I was very happy with this!

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Monday was my sister Ele’s birthday (Happy Birthday, Ele!!) and we took her to the local Chinese restaurant.  This was called Family Style Bean Curd.  Sounds appetizing, right?!  Of course, it was tofu with veggies.  I asked for brown rice on the size.  This was very good and I did NOT take any of it home.  I purposely didn’t get any soup,  just wanted my entrée.

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My fortune cookie from the Chinese restaurant.  I liked my fortune…very true…

I have to admit, there was also ice cream after this, but no pictures, please…I was trying to fool myself, but I need to do true confessions here.  Caramel Apple…they had to scrape the bottom of the tub to get my serving out.  Is that sort of like Broken Cookies and therefore doesn’t count?!?!  I think that should be the rule!  ;-)

So that’s What I Ate Wednesday for this week.  Let’s hope that next week is better in general and that the food continues to be so good.  Well, I do need to cook more, but that’s an ongoing give and take!  Be sure to visit Peas & Crayons to check out some other blogs and leave some comments!

Happy What I Ate Wednesday!!

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Week In Review~May 20

Posted on May 20, 2013 | 20 Comments

I do believe that I’m finally getting the hang of this Week In Review thingy and I like It!!  Of course, WIR was thought up by that crazy pixie Meghan over at Clean Eats, Fast Feets and I’m so happy to be joining in.  I’m just going to have to keep with my program of writing it as the week progresses.  ONLY way I’ll keep up.  I’m starting this on Wednesday and I’m already sure I’m going to miss something.  Ok…Here Goes!

Week In Review Button Final

MONDAY~

–Ok…how can it only be Wednesday and I can’t remember what I did on Monday?!  I must have done something…well I do remember going out to lunch with Gail and Alice.  Of course we went to Taco Bell which is our favorite and SO cheap.  Then we made a few stops at the post office, a lawyer’s office, Aldi…we try to get Everything done in one trip.

–Maybe by the end of the week I’ll remember something else from Monday. I’m feeling pretty dumb about now…maybe I’ll improve as the days go on!

TUESDAY~

–Tuesday is So much easier.  Started the day with a fun and informative coffee meeting at Barnes & Noble with my new friend, Martie.  She’s behind the Be Still and See photography group.  We had the opportunity to talk, get to know each other and toss around some ideas for the group.  I love photography and I want to do more.  Also had the chance to try the Starbuck’s blonde roast coffee.  I like it, a lot! So much better than their regular roast!

–Afternoon found Ralph and Me handling some family issues.

WEDNESDAY~

–This week is not seeming to be as productive as last week.  However… Our main focus for the day was lunch out with Ralph’s sister and brother-in-law, cousins and niece.  We always have a good time when we get together.  This time it seemed especially enjoyable.  Yummy salad for me…then birthday cake…Woops!!

THURSDAY~

–See, I’ve got to get this WIR under control.  Due to various issues (boy do we have issues) I haven’t been keeping up and here I am on Sunday playing catch-up again.  Well…let’s say I did Something on Thursday.  Well…Ralph and I watched the season Finale of The Big Bang Theory…does that count as something?!  I think it does.  Sorry the season’s over…can’t wait for fall now!

FRIDAY~

–Friday I was working on getting my act together to head to the Relay For Life on Friday night.  It tends to get cold overnight so we try to pack warm things and blankets to help keep us warm overnight.

–Ralph and I spent Friday morning dealing with some more issues from earlier in the week.  Worked out? Not sure but I guess time will tell.

–Late Friday afternoon my sister Ele and nephew Michael headed to Chestnut Ridge Park for our annual Relay For Life.  We have a great team headed by our niece, Carrie.  We were also joined by Diann and Terri, lovingly referred to as The Moms.  Our team was smaller than usual, but we still had Big Spirit!

Elvis in the Attic~2013 team lap

–Sun shining-we’re all dressed in our Relay tee shirts and carrying our team banner, which of course, Carrie made.  It was a beautiful day/night for a Relay.  The weather was good.  The park is located in a dip in the land so at night it can get cold.  This year it was chilly but not nearly as cold as other years.  Truth is though, when you’re tired-after walking throughout the night-it feels pretty cold no matter what.

SATURDAY~

–We survived the night.  I walked six miles.  That’s chump change compared to what some people walked.  I decided that I would do my best to match what I walked last year and then I would rest.  I could have done more, but I was pretty worn out from all of the “issues” of the week.

Elvis in the Attic~2013 Tired but Happy

–Just before dawn, our whole team, tired but happy.  We are wearing our team hoodies that Carrie made for each of us.  Carrie is showing the logo on the back with our team name.  The front says Relay for live and our names.  Funny thing is that Diann and Terri didn’t realize their names were on the sweatshirts and wore each other’s sweatshirts all night.  The Really funny thing is that none of the rest of us noticed!!  Turns out from what Carrie tells me that we ended up on the local news Saturday morning.  She sent me a clip.  If I knew how to add video to the blog, I’d share it with you.  It’s pretty funny because Hand Jive from Grease is playing and Carrie was doing the Hand Jive!  I was skulking in the background.

–We got home at about 5:45am and I was pretty beat.  I tried to sleep but only got about 3 hours.  Then Ralph and I went out to breakfast-which should have been lunch by the time we got to it.  Then we headed into another issue filled day.  Don’t you love it when I’m cryptic?  Such fun.  There was some ice cream involved…is that less cryptic?

SUNDAY~

–I slept in this morning and feel somewhat caught up on my sleep.  The majority of my body parts still hurt.  It’s not really the walking that makes me feel bad after the Relay, I really think it’s the lack of sleep and the fact that when we’re not walking we’re sitting in beach type chairs that just aren’t very comfortable.  I think that next year I need to make sure I get out and walk a month or so beforehand to get myself used to it.  Maybe I should try staying up all night, too.  Just in preparation… ;-)

–Not sure what the rest of Sunday holds.  I should be heading to a fun event, but that may have to go by the wayside.  We’ll just see.

–I think that the best thing I can say about this Week In Review is that I can’t wait for the new week to start.  It will Have to be better than this one!!

Don’t forget to visit Clean Eats, Fast Feets to join in WIR.  I hear Meghan is on the road, so that should be Really interesting!

Happy Monday!  Happy Birthday, Ele!

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Snapshot Saturday~May 18

Posted on May 18, 2013 | 39 Comments

I hate to miss a chance to participate in Snapshot Saturday sponsored by Alyce at At Home With Books.  I’m writing and scheduling this on Friday.  Not sure what time on Saturday I will actually be able to link it up.  The reason for that is  I will be participating in the American Cancer Society Relay For Life at Chestnut Ridge Park in Mantua, NJ.  This will be our fourth year walking in the Relay…we walk all night…we even did it in the rain one year. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate this year.

If anyone is interested in donating to support our team, please go to my fundraising page.  It’s simple and easy.  Your support is greatly appreciated.

On to the photography!

I’ve talked before about living in an old house that had belonged to my Grandparents.  One of the things left over from them living here besides the creaky floors and damp basement are some flowers.  Iris are my favorite flowers and Gram left some of them.  I’m sharing two photos today.

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With the blue bells…at least that’s what we always called them…I’m not sure of their official name.  The green surrounding the flowers are day lily plants that haven’t bloomed yet.  I like the depth that the green adds to the photos.

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Taking center stage!!

I wasn’t sure if I thought these photos were very good when I first took them.  But the more I look at them, the better I like them!

Be sure to stop by at At Home With Books to see the work of some terrific photographers.  Leave some comments, too, because we all love comments!

Happy Snapshot Saturday!

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Strange But Good~May 17~Taco Soup

Posted on May 17, 2013 | 14 Comments

I love Strange But Good, the creation of Laura at Sprint 2 The Table.  It’s great fun and lets me get some of my stranger foods out of my system.  This one might not sound so strange, but for some people it might.  All I can tell you is that it is Delicious!

Sprint 2 the Table

You may remember me talking about the fact that while in Florida we were attending a wonderful Weight Watchers meeting.  That leader has a Facebook page.  Someone from Florida posted this recipe and I found it and shared it with my friends Gail and Alice.

Well, before I had the chance to get the ingredients, they had both made the soup and told me how great it was!  Only problem with the recipe was that it was listed as counting for 2 Points on WW for a cup of the soup.  Alice recalculated it because none of us thought this was right.  It wasn’t and the recalculated count showed that it was 4 Points per cup.  Regardless, it’s delicious and packed with protein.

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I had just made a crock pot full of black beans so I was set for them and didn’t have to use canned.

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All of the other necessary ingredients lined up and ready to go.

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Pot o’ Soup…cooking away. This is so quick and easy.  Almost the most time-consuming thing is opening the cans!

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The finished product! This is so delicious and truly filling.  This was a 2 cup serving and in truth, I couldn’t finish it.  This on a night when I sat down to eat being Very hungry.  This is just a great, tasty and Cheap recipe.

Taco Soup – 4 pointsplus values per 1 cup serving

1 large onion, chopped

1 package of taco seasoning

2 cups whole kernel corn

1 can fat-free chicken broth (I of course, used veggie broth)

1 can black beans, undrained

1 can Great Northern Beans

1 can Fat Free Refried Beans

1 can Diced Tomatoes

1 can Spicy Seasoned Tomatoes, like

Tomatoes with Jalapenos

Saute the onion until soft in a large pot Sprayed with nonstick cooking spray

Add the other ingredients to pot and Simmer for 30 to 40 minutes.

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Between Gail, Alice and I we all made it just a bit differently.  Alice made it with the tomatoes with jalapenos.  Gail made it with tomatoes with green chiles.  I made it with 2 cans of diced tomatoes because the spicy tomatoes I Thought I had were used for something else.  :-(   I think it would have been tastier with one of the spicier tomato varieties, but it was just delicious the way I made it.   It is absolutely something I’ll try again. The great thing is that you can have everything in your pantry and with the addition of the one fresh ingredient (the onion) you can have a hearty and tasty meal ready in no time at all.  I hope you’ll all give it a try, then let me know what you think after you’ve tried it!

Be sure to stop by at Sprint 2 The Table to check out the other strange offerings.  Don’t forget to leave some comments!  I do admit that this is not as strange as it might be, but it’s really kind of a blank canvas of a soup.  Lots of things can be added and you can make it your own!

Happy Friday!

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WIAW~This Is More Like It!

Posted on May 15, 2013 | 22 Comments

I know, I know…Last week I was lamenting how few food photos I had when I posted for What I Ate Wednesday.  This week, I’m trying to decide Which photos to use…seems like I have an over abundance.  Regardless, I will NOT miss a chance to be part of the Fabulous Food party created by Jenn at Peas & Crayons.  Be sure to check it out and leave some comments.  Just be careful of drooling all over your computer!

Peas and Crayons

Let the Food Fun Begin!!

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One of my old faithfuls and one of my favorites!  Caramel corn rice cakes with a quarter cup of low-fat cottage cheese split between them and liberally topped with cinnamon.  This is a great quick lunch for me when I’m working on my many projects around the house.

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For our short road trip on Tuesday, Ralph and I stopped at a pizza shop that we love but only get to visit once in a while.  This is a hot veggie wrap. You have your choice of wraps, I chose the tomato (because I knew the color would be pretty!) It has broccoli, mushrooms, onions pepper and provolone cheese.  It is So good.  It comes with a pickle and chips.  I got the pickle, Ralph got the chips.  Yum!

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Made a crock pot full of black beans…well, because I Love black beans and I’ll eat them all!

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Nothing like a salad in my Big Purple Bowl that is filled with home cooked black beans.  So good.  Keeps me full for hours!  More Black Bean fun later in the week.

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Look familiar?!  Yes, it’s my fave…spinach and mushroom omelette with sliced tomatoes.  Funny thing, here.  I’ve been getting egg white omelettes lately and forgot to ask for it this time.  It tasted so different with the full eggs.  I’m thinking I like the egg whites better!

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An unexpected visit to one of our favorite diners for one of my favorite meals…the Athenia burger.  Greek salad along side of a yummy veggie burger.  Just love it!

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Back at our usual diner, something I’d never tried before.  My friend, Gail had suggested it.  They call it a “veggie cheese steak.” It’s grilled veggies-mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, romaine lettuce and some other things I’m sure-all cooked together on a roll.  It comes with American cheese underneath, but I asked for Provolone.  It was Delicious!!  Expect to see this, again!!

Ralph and I took Ele out to dinner for Mother’s Day.  Back at the diner again…ok…we Like the diner!!

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Salad first, with ranch dressing eaten with the dip method…dip your fork in the dressing, then pick up the veggies.  You don’t use nearly as much dressing but you still get the flavor.  An old Weight Watchers trick.

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And THIS is what passes as a mini-meal at this diner.  Huge! I was proud of myself that I only ate half, but I must confess I had it later.  So very good.

Now here comes the real true confession part of this post…

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Our favorite place in the world…Ice Cream Kids…is open for the season.  Since it was Mother’s Day, we thought we’d splurge.  This is a new flavor, to me at least…not sure if they’ve had it before.  Caramel Apple…I’m drooling thinking about it.  It was just wonderful. I’m proud of myself that I asked for a small and it was just enough (although in truth if I’d been left alone with a spoon and the tub of the ice cream…it would not exist anymore!!) A great treat to end the day.

So that’s it for me for WIAW this week.  I feel so much better that I have some actual food photos to share!  It makes me really feel like I’m part of the party.  Be sure to check out the other posts at Peas & Crayons.  It’s the best deal for your food dollar!   ;-)

Happy WIAW!!

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Week In Review~May 13

Posted on May 13, 2013 | 20 Comments

I had such fun last week joining in with Meghan’s Week In Review!  Lots of great comments and I appreciate them all.  It’s always fun at Clean Eats, Fast Feets, whether it’s the Monday Madness of Week In Review or not.  I like giving myself credit for what I accomplish.  In general, I don’t think we do that enough…we always think we haven’t done anything and certainly never enough.  I think Week In Review is good for proving us wrong.

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MONDAY~

–Up early with butterflies in my stomach, I made a phone call for necessary information.  Got the info I needed and immediately felt better.  Sorry to be cryptic, it’s just something that’s been hanging there for a while and it was my job to take the first step.  First step taken, there are more to come but I’m so happy the process is started.

–In the afternoon, the Traveling Circus went to the Chiropractor! Gail, Alice, Margo and I all go to the same chiropractor so we make our appointments together and turn it in to a road trip.  It used to include a stop for ice cream, but we’re being good so, no ice cream…

–After that, I regained custody of my car that had been at the mechanic’s for several days.  Expensive, but it was work that needed to be done.

TUESDAY~

–Road trip to the township where Ralph’s house lives to pay insurance and taxes.  Lots of green and looking for wisteria hiding among the trees.  Everywhere we turned there were trees engulfed in the wisteria.  Beautiful, although I know it damages the trees.  Also the first sight of the cocoons that Grandmom always said meant a really hot summer.  Guess we’ll see.  A yummy lunch but I’m saving that for WIAW!!

WEDNESDAY~

–Laundry and LOTS of work in the basement.  Sorting things to go to the yard sale and finding more treasures.  Finding the treasures is the best part of doing all of this sorting out!

THURSDAY~

–Changed the sheets on the bed.  Ok, that doesn’t sound like much of an accomplishment, but it is.  At least I didn’t tell you about cleaning the bathroom last week…oh, wait…I just did.

–A bit of a wild goose chase…annoying and unfortunate, but we’ll keep working at this project.

–Lunch at the diner and more laundry when we got home.  Not much else accomplished.  Funny how when one thing doesn’t work out it sort of puts a damper on your day.  On to better things.

FRIDAY~

–Some things have to come to an end…

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–Sad to say that my pair of knock around the house/ride my exercise bike shoes finally bit the dust.  The liner came out of one and I really felt like I was walking on Nothing…I had worn the soles out so badly.  They went into the trash.  Sorry to see them go.

SATURDAY~

–My visit to Weight Watchers brought me continued happiness.  I stayed the same at 13.4 pounds UNDER my goal.  I’m pretty happy about it. It was what I thought of as kind of an off week.  I don’t really want to lose any more, I’m just really excited that I’m staying right there.

–Breakfast out with the Girls after WW and then lunch with Ralph…same restaurant/same booth/same waiter!!  Very strange.  But I found a new favorite item to order.  Saving that for WIAW, too!

–Goofed off for most of the rest of the day.  That’s ok sometimes, right?!   ;-)

SUNDAY~

–I’m sitting here at the computer finishing up my Week In Review! I’m liking this.  Coffee at my right hand and the sun is coming out after 2 dreary rainy days.  I think this could be a day to enjoy some outside things.

–I’m going to a spiritual Gathering this afternoon with Ele, then Ralph and I will be taking her out to dinner for Mother’s Day.  I’m really looking forward to both!

I’m enjoying participating in WIR.  I have to admit though that the only way I can do it is to write it as it happens.  Start a post and save it as a draft throughout the week so that I can add to it.  I’d never remember ANYTHING otherwise!!

So that’s this weeks installment of Week In Review.  Can you handle all of the excitement?  I’m not sure I can!  ;-)

Happy Monday! Happy Week In Review!  Thanks, Meghan!

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Snapshot Saturday~May 11

Posted on May 11, 2013 | 30 Comments

A trip to a local nursery has given me lots of fodder for my next few installments of Snapshot Saturday, hosted by Alyce at At Home With Books.

I love flowers and since I’m not much of a gardener, I jumped at the chance to visit the nursery with my friends Gail and Alice.  The sights were incredible and I’m going to get the most mileage from them that I can.

Beautiful hydrangea…

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I like this photo because the not quite bloomed flower in the center appears to be wearing the blooming flowers as a head-dress.  Ok, so that might sound a little strange to you  but that’s what it looks like to me!

I love the full pink color of the surrounding flowers and the yellow to green to pink of the one in the center.  I also love the touch of green from the leaves.  Hydrangeas are one of my favorite flowers and I love to see the bushes when they are full-grown and covered in blooms.  I’ll have to check the neighborhood to see if I can find one of those!

Happy Snapshot Saturday!

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Strange But Good~Couldn’t Be Quicker~May 10

Posted on May 10, 2013 | 10 Comments

So with all of this Blogging A to Z Challenge and having no food in the house stuff going on lately, I haven’t had the chance to participate in Strange But Good.  I’ve missed all the fun I have when I link up with Laura and the Gang at Sprint 2 The Table. So I decided I needed to hang out with the cool kids again.  Here goes!

Sprint 2 the Table

Life has been interesting lately what with a less than perfectly functioning fridge/freezer and generally having no food in the house (you heard me whining about this in my What I Ate Wednesday post) but we’re working with it.  Interesting how you can be more creative when you have fewer resources.  Wow…that sounds deep, doesn’t it!

As it turns out, for this particular meal (can’t really call it a dish…) I already had what I needed in the house, so I could have made it at any time.

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No scary banana photos today.  Just a cup of couscous and a can of Margaret Holmes tomatoes, okra and corn.  I was very hungry and had no enthusiasm for cooking or preparing this day. Not a good combination if I want to keep myself on track with Weight Watchers.  But I had sufficient Points left to work this in.

Just heat up the t/o/c and when it’s boiling add in the couscous.  Turn off the heat and let it sit for a few minutes (no idea how long…just until you can’t wait any longer!!)

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Top it with some Romano cheese and dig in.  Now actually, I didn’t have the cheese in the house prior to shopping and I could have eaten this without it, it just wouldn’t have tasted as good.  This was really tasty and filled the bill.  Also comes under my heading of Couldn’t Be Quicker.  It took longer to measure the couscous and open the can than it did to put it all together.  That’s my kind of meal!

I’m back in the swing of things, there’s a crock pot full of black beans crocking as I type.  I can never go wrong with those!

Be sure to check out the rest of the wonderful strangeness at Sprint 2 The Table.  Leave some comments and consider joining in…I know you all have something strange hiding in your recipe book!!   ;-)

Happy Friday!

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WIAW~A Girl Could Starve~

Posted on May 8, 2013 | 12 Comments

I love, love, LOVE being part of What I Ate Wednesday hosted by Jenn at Peas & Crayons.  It is such fun to be part of something that brings so many people from all over together with one purpose…to share the food they’ve eaten.

I like it so much that I’ve even joined in on weeks when I’ve had no food photos to share.  That may be cheating, but I Talked about food, isn’t that sufficient?!   ;-)  Because of the fact that I’ve actually done this with No food photos, I guess I can’t be embarrassed about posting when I don’t have many photos.

Peas and Crayons

I decided to use the WIAW logo that has the photos so I’d be showing just a little more food.  Oh, who really cares…I just want to be part of the party!

My lack of food photos is based on two things.  Refrigerator issues that have forced me to have very little food in the house.  Meals that were so quickly put together and consumed that I would afterwards say…Phooey…I was supposed to take a picture of that!  And the fact that Ralph and I were away over the weekend with a group of people who really would have been confused if I whipped out my camera and started taking food pictures.  It’s a shame because the food was pretty good.

There is one from the weekend.  Ralph and I were off on a short road trip to one of his military reunions.  We got a little bit turned around in our directions and weren’t sure where our next turn should be.  When in doubt, stop at a diner!

We did that and since breakfast had been pretty early, we were hungry but didn’t want too much to eat.

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We both opted for a toasted bagel with cream cheese and jelly, coffee too of course.  It was all pretty tasty and kept us full until later.  We got our directions and we were even led out of the diner to the right direction by some other customers who heard us asking the waitress for directions. Such nice people!

The other issue we were dealing with was that my car was in the shop most of last week.  Ralph’s is also not doing too well, so we were limited in our transportation.  We were finally able to pick up the car and knowing our food limitations at home, we headed to the local pizzeria.  It’s actually within walking distance if we’d needed to get there without a car. Anyway…I opted for my usual.

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Pepper and egg sandwich with American cheese.  This is so good and so filling that I was set for the evening.

So having picked up my car, my first trip out in my newly repaired car (she purrs like a kitten now!) was to Verchio’s produce market and to Aldi.

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Car chock full of goodies!!

I quickly consumed an apple too quick to take a photo and a banana.

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Ok…so there’s really no GOOD way to photograph a banana.  I did it as I was turning on the computer to finish this post.  It was delicious and I’m SO happy to have fruit in the house again.  It has become my go to snack anytime of day and I’m sure it’s been helpful in keeping me on track with Weight Watchers.

So that’s it for What I Ate Wednesday this week for me.  Now that I’m back in the swing of things, I’ll have many more photos for you next week.  Be sure to stop over at Peas & Crayons…you’ll find Lots of food photos there!  Don’t forget to leave some comments.

Happy What I Ate Wednesday!!  I have Fruit!!   :-)   :-)

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Week In Review

Posted on May 6, 2013 | 22 Comments

Ok, so now that I have been loosened from the shackles of the Blogging A to Z Challenge (how descriptive!!) I’ve decided to plunge into another link up that I’ve been loving for a while but never joined in. It’s Week In Review thought up by the wild and crazy Meghan at Clean Eats, Fast Feets.

In a way, it kind of figures in with what I was doing during the Challenge. I’m trying to accomplish a LOT right now and sometimes I know I don’t give myself credit for the things I do during a day or a week.  This may help me see more clearly what I do accomplish. So here goes!

Week In Review Button Final

–Since I’m just starting out with this, I’m going to start back a bit.  Last week I was invited to join in with an interesting group of people.  It’s a group of photographers and we’re looking for a new way of looking at things.  Gosh there’s a lot of looking there, but it’s necessary!

–I hit a very interesting milestone for myself when it comes to Weight Watchers.  I haven’t talked much about how I’ve been doing since I got back from Florida.  Being totally immersed in the plan down there (there were 4 of us working it together) I came back to New Jersey feeling pretty strong.  Well, I was working the program so well that I started to lose weight again.  I went down week by week.  This past Saturday at weigh in I was 13 and a quarter pounds UNDER my goal.  That makes me only 3 quarters of a pound from my Original Goal from 25 years ago! At a certain point, you’re allowed to raise your goal which I did some years ago.  I never dreamed I’d be at this weight again.  I’m pretty darned excited.  I keeping myself motivated by working hard and trying to keep Gail and Alice motivated.  I think it’s working!

–Got to spend a wonderful afternoon with some old friends who we haven’t seen in a long while. They used to be clients of mine when I was a travel agent. Bob is a phenomenal photographer and Anne is an incredible water-color artist.  Ralph had Bob as a math teacher years ago at the local county college.  They live way out in the country. We had lunch and spent the day catching up on life, sharing art and friendship.  Quite a day.

–Much sorting and packing going on as promised!  I’ve been through a lot more things in the basement and am doing my best to organize what’s going out for the yard sale as I go through things.  I’m really happy with my progress in this regard.

–Saturday, Ralph and I drove to Exton, Pa to be part of an Eastern regional reunion for his Army unit.  We’ve gone every year for the last 12 years to the national version of these reunions, but we’ve only had the chance to make a few of the regional ones.  We had the best time.  Because there are fewer people attending, we had the chance to meet some people we’d never met before and to better get to know some we already knew.  It was a great short getaway.  It also gave us some good information that we need and we can make use of.  We’ll see how that all works out. Both Saturday and Sunday were great days for a drive.  The Pennsylvania countryside is just so beautiful this time of year.

So that’s about it for my review for the week.  Once I get the hang of this, I’m sure I can be more creative with it. As it is, just wanted to get my feet wet and get to hang out with the cool people sharing their Weeks in Review.  I’ll be trying to make my week much more exciting so that it will look better on here!   ;-)

Happy Monday!!

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