Tuesday. again!

1. Had another really great weekend. I love that I can say that over and over and it never gets old. Whether we stay at home or go off on an adventure, being together doesn't seem to get old to me. I spent so many weekends over the last 4 years alone. Well, with just me and the kids--since Pete was always at the ranch. I absolutely love that we're all together so much more now. And bonus: our weekends are always three days long. Pete gets Friday's off. ♥♥♥

2. Saturday I was able to go off on my own though. I went and visited with some of the girls I used to work with. It was fun to see everyone again. But sort of odd too, since I'm the only one who doesn't work outside the home. It's weird because it's like I still fit in....but then again I don't. Hard to explain I guess.

3. My friend Christine, who hosted the party, has lost over 150 lbs!! For serious! All on her own. She looks amazing. If her voice didn't come out of her face, I would hardly know it was her. I hadn't seen her in about a year, except for an occasional pic on Facebook. But there's nothing like 'in person'. Wow! She is just truly an inspiration. She has worked so hard and proved so many people wrong in so many ways. I really love her and I'm so glad she is living a much more healthy life.

4. I have met my weight loss goals too. Well, actually, I've exceeded them by about 20 lbs. I've had many people say "I didn't know you had that much to lose!" Heck, I didn't either. I didn't even think it was possible. But here I am...the same weight I was when I got married. I can hardly believe it myself. I don't mean this to be boastful, but I can not tell you how good it feels to put clothes on and they just....fit. Without feeling like I'm about to burst. Or without worrying about my muffin top (wait, lets be honest here: huge inner-tube spare tire) hanging out the top of my jeans. I finally feel like me again. Which is weird and probably only I understand that statement. I don't have any formal before and afters, but this one here on the left is me about a week into my weight loss and on the right is me about a week ago.

I need to get back into working out though. I haven't made it a priority since moving. There just seems to be other things to do. I'm very good at putting off the stuff I don't like. And even after 6 months of working out every single day, sometimes 2 or 3 times a day. I still don't like it! But it is important and if I want to keep myself looking this way I'm going to need to make it a priority again.

5. Ok so this one SO does not belong right after I just told you all how I lost all kindsa weight and want to be health and all, but it's too good not to mention. For your next gathering you MUST make this dip. For reals. If you're married already, your husband will propose to you again. If your single, someone is bound to propose to you after they eat this. I'm not kidding, it's so good!

Jalapeno Popper Dip (tastes just like a jalapeno popper!):
(adapted from Annie's Eats)

Ingredients:
2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup mayonnaise
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chiles, drained
1 (4 oz.) can diced jalapeño peppers, drained
½ cup shredded Mexican style cheese
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Cooking spray

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. In a medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, mayonnaise, green chiles, jalapeños, and shredded cheeses. Mix thoroughly with a spoon or spatula until smooth and evenly combined. Spread the mixture into a baking dish (approximately 9 x 9-inches).

In a second bowl, combine the Panko and Parmesan and stir with a fork until combined. Sprinkle over the cream cheese mixture in the baking dish. Spray lightly with cooking spray. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the mixture is hot and the topping is golden. Serve warm with baguette slices, vegetables, etc. as desired.

I made this for our party Saturday. It was a huge hit. I used LOW FAT everything and no one, not even Pete who notices everything, noticed. If you can control yourself, it's really not all that bad for you. But it's really, really hard to control yourself with this stuff. I had to walk away.

6. We're still truckin' along on this homeschool thing. I am still liking it, and I think Jake is liking it more too. We've been writing and essay on Jamestown (the first settlement here in America). So far he has three pages written! I have guided him some in paragraph structure. I still think he could not do that on his own. But all the sentences are his. He's very proud of himself. He said, "the 2nd graders at my old school would never write this much!". And he said it with a big smile on his face. :)

7. Oh! here's another really good, super simple, very frugal recipe! See that's the thing about Weight Watchers: it totally makes you obsess about food way more than you ever did before. you think about it constantly. at least I did...but it's getting better...maybe.
Take a package of lean, boneless pork chops; sprinkle them with a little salt and pepper and then stick em in the crockpot. Cover the chops with about a cup-cup and a half of salsa verde (the green stuff) not the green enchilada sauce, but actual green salsa. Just enough till they're covered. Stick the lid on and turn the crockpot on low for....i dunno...all day. Right before you're ready to eat, take em out and shred the chops, then stick the meat back in the juices. Then, make tacos or burritos or whatever. It's so yummy! And healthy! And Cheap!

8. I know I wrote this on Facebook the other day but it's still so funny to me: The fact that Megan calls the cat's litter box the "glitter box". It makes me laugh every time. Yesterday she informed me that Miss Kitty had "no food, no water, but a wheely clean glitter box!".

9. Confession: I like all the shows on the CW network. Really. One Tree Hill, The Vampire Diaries, yes even 90210 and that silly Hellcats show. I can't help it.

10. Halloween camping THIS weekend! YAY! praying it doesn't rain....it's supposed to :(