Hi all! I hope you’ve had a great an enjoyable week on our weight loss journey. And the fact that I wrote that sentence is such a contradiction.
A big contradiction! Because as much as my week has been enjoyable—both at work and otherwise, I still would just about kill for a Peanut M & M or a Snickers bar. And the worst part about it is that I can’t eat just four or five M & M’s or one of those little miniature Snickers candies. Like a crack addict or an alcoholic, a tiny bit of candy would trigger something in me off. It is just better to drink water and let the desire leave—as well as relieving my bladder!
But I’m proud of myself this week. I’m down to 155.8 from the 157.6 from last week. That’s two ounces shy of two pounds! That number is inspiring me to keep eating healthier and also to not “pick” when I get home from work.
I reaped the benefits of making better food choices, not snacking and not overeating! This number made me truly happy!
Bonaparte has become my biggest supporter in really helping me and keeping me from snacking which I appreciate. He also suggested that when I lose another ten pounds, I should take the rest of the weight loss very slowly.
This coming Saturday night we have been invited to Bonaparte’s daughter’s for dinner. I’m bringing dessert and will actually be thinking about my loss this week. Under normal circumstances I’ll lick the bowl and the mixer attachment with reckless abandon. This time, I’ll reach for an apple!
I’m going to make shortbread with a layer of caramel and a layer of milk chocolate. I’ll be good and won’t like the remnants like a dog. But I will treat myself to a bit of dessert after dinner! A treat once in a while isn’t the end of the world!
Willpower is beginning to be my friend. I mean, really, how sick is it that I ate a half bag of spinach this week the way I would eat a bag of potato chips?
I can’t make this up. Oona and I had our first “What-are-we-doing-for-Thanksgiving-and-Christmas-conversation”. I was so stressed that I ate half a bag of spinach. I’m still trying to decide if that was a good thing!
Anyway, last weekend I was watching my friend Ina—The Barefoot Contessa. She had a recipe that I don’t think is in any of her books that I have. It was a Haricot Verts Salad. I made a variation. I blanched a bag of Haricot Verts and cooled them down. When cooled, I added chopped mushrooms and peppers mixed in oil and vinegar that I purchased at Wegmans. I made a large quantity and have been taking this for lunch every day. It really is good and I’ll make Ina’s version this weekend!
There is still plenty left over. I can have some with dinner tomorrow night.
I’ll have a salad!
And on Sunday evenings, Bonaparte likes his “American” food. He changes it up between hot dogs with “American” mustard (i.e. French’s), and sauerkraut and hamburgers. I’ve been making turkey burgers for myself. And my “bun” of choice is the 3-point, Arnold Sandwich Thins. Some spinach, a slice of tomato, a slice of red onion (to give me heartburn) and a thin slice of low-fat mozzarella fills me up.
Yum! It isn’t a hamburger, but a turkey burger is the only turkey I like! No mustard. No Ketsup! Just flavor!
I’m not starving myself but I have cut down so much. For pasta cravings, I’ve had the Weight Watchers Mac & Cheese. It sates the craving.
My clothing is starting to fit better too. This journey is bringing back the fun in dressing. I’m back into a makeup/dressing routine before work and I’ll tell you. I’m enjoying the process of getting ready in the morning.
Here are a few outfits I wore this week:
I brought out the black watch plaid twice this week. A skirt one day and pants today!
Let’s start off with the outfit on the left. Remember the outfit on the right from last week? Look how much better the outfit on the left looks! I’m wearing a Tippi Sweater with the plaid skirt and the look is more flattering and body slimming than the tucked in shirt! It was also another victory “moment”. I hadn’t worn that skirt on the left in a year because it got too tight. Fits nicely now!
While doing my makeup, I realized that my cream blush had hit pan. My bright idea–I took my iT cosmetics Lip Vitality lipstick and glided it over my cheeks. The “Je Ne Sais Quoi” color was the perfect pink and now…
I’m using it as blush and lip color. While I have you, this sweater is hunter green (it looks more blue in this photo). Hunter is not one of my “colors” but with a white fake pearl statement necklace, the sweater works because of the white near my face!
I stinkin’ love the yellow/navy combo. I wore this J. Crew Factory skirt with a J. Crew shell. The skirt is wool and doesn’t have stretch but I am happy to say that it fits much better than it ever has! I was hesitant to wear it because of the bees. But then I figured if I got stung, it would be in my ass and I would run like hell, therefore giving me some great exercise!
I also wore a navy cardigan over the shell because the weather is finally getting cooler. And another thing. You CAN wear a shorter skirt when you are over 50, 60, 70 and older! This is a classic look! Don’t let the “experts” tell you that you can’t wear a short skirt!
Today I wore the same black watch plaid in pants. Thank God for the year J. Crew decided to use this plaid! The pants are a wool blend and are lined all the way. There are side pockets and the length is just above the ankle. It truly is a great pair of pants! I put a 4-clip hair extension in today to give my hair a bit more fullness. Very ’60’s! The necklace is from Forever 21 from forever years ago and the earrings are the cheapo Walmart hoops. I’m starting to love the pointy-toed ballet flats. The ones I’m wearing are from J. Crew and are extremely comfortable!
I went with a really dark eye today (you can’t tell from the other pics due to the glare) and decided on a nude lip. I “rediscovered” an old Nyx Butter Gloss. The color is Tiramisu. My likey. Imagine that. Tiramisu with no calories or WW points!
So now I want to talk about body image.
Yeah. CAN we???
My sister sent me a picture that was taken 28 years ago at her wedding. It’s me and I was dancing with one of my brothers. She kind of used one of those apps that distort your body a bit so I have a big head. Well, bigger than it usually is. She asked if I wanted to be as thin as the picture.
*sigh* I wish my hair was that thick again. I can’t dye it auburn anymore because of my scalp–and those curls are natural. It sickens me to think I hated the way I looked! LOL. I didn’t need to wear my glasses everyday back then either! Fun times!
And when I saw it, I realized that at that time, I thought I was fat. I’m not kidding. I remember feeling somewhat self-conscience because, as a bridesmaid, I could have been thinner. WTF was I thinking???? My weight was around 125. We really need to stop beating ourselves emotionally about that. You don’t need to be thin to look good. I’m losing weight simply because I want to be healthier. I don’t want to lose more than 15 more pounds. That’s it.
We need to love ourselves more and accept our shortcomings. My eyes will never be straight. I will always be cross-eyed. I will always see double in some instances. And that’s ok. It’s who I am.
And that is what makes us unique. We’re not like anybody else!
Today I give you a song I was listening to on the way to work. It’s from one of my Kinks CD’s. Dave Davies sings it and I love it because “I’m Not Like Anybody Else” and neither are you! XOXOXOXO
Have a wonderful week and let’s all strive for trying!