Yes, I’m alive!!!

…And still goin’ strong!

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT????

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I have been on this Low-Carb thingy for 6 ½ weeks!  Only a week and ½ to go!  Wahoo!

When I first started this diet, 8….weeks….seemed….like….forever!  But, it really has gone fast.  I’m ready for it to be over though.  I’ve been pretty diligent, but I have “cheated” just a little bit here and there.

…but I don’t feel guilty!

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For the first 5 ½ weeks of this diet, I officially give myself an A-.

Yay.

But, for the past week, I give myself a B-.

Lame.

For the first 5 ½ weeks, I only had a “little” cheat once a week.  Like, when I made dinner for a friend who just had a baby.  I made her brownies for dessert….well….I had to try a little crumb….and then a bigger crumb….it probably ended up being the equivalent of a small brownie.  But, it tasted so freakin’ good.  It was worth every bite!

The next weekend, I was at my mom’s house and my sister came over with chocolate chip cookies and brownies (holy COW!)  I tasted just a little bit of both.  And, I didn’t feel guilty.

So, I kind of went like that for the first 5 ½ weeks.  I ate pretty much “to the letter” and then had a small indulgence on the weekend.

But, this past weekend was terrible!  I didn’t fall completely off the wagon, but I just kind of chugged along.

Kev and I went to Sizzler for dinner on Friday.  I got the 6 oz. sirloin steak with broccoli on the side.  It also came with their yummy salad bar.  I did great and just got a small salad with all “legal” toppings.  But, after my meal was done, I indulged on a small portion of their Oreo pudding.  It was yummmmy, but probably not worth it!

Well, the NEXT night, we took the kids to Chuck-a-Rama for dinner.  I ate all legal things, but then ended with a sugar-free cookie, some sugar-free pudding and a piece of cinnamon pull-apart!  What the???

Then…(yes, more!)…we took a quick trip down to Cedar City (3 1/2 hour drive) on Sunday to visit Kev’s brother’s family.  They served marshmallow brownies and cake and ice cream at their house.  Freak!  It looked so good….but I didn’t have ANY!  Yay! 

However, when we left to go home, they sent us with all these YUMMY treats that were leftover from a bake sale they had….sugar cookies, chocolate cookies, caramel apples, caramel corn mix, etc.  I was dying!  All my FAVORITE THINGS!

I had one tiny bite of a chocolate cookie and then a little bit of the caramel corn mix.  I also had a few Skittles that I had in the car to keep the kiddos good for the drive!  Crazy!  I didn’t eat a TON of anything, but I just kept tasting things all weekend long! 

So, there are my confessions.

The one thing I WAS happy about though was that I didn’t give up.  I didn’t feel defeated.  I jumped right back on the wagon and went on eating all my yummy low-carb fare.

I think that is the kind of lifestyle I want to live forever.  Eat healthy most of the time, but have a few indulgences here and there.

Oh, FYI, I’ve lost about 8 pounds on this little endeavor.  Not as much as I hoped, but progress nonetheless.  I’m gonna keep pluggin’ along until I reach my ideal weight (whatever it may be!).

I’ll let you know when I get there.

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So, a few weeks ago, I was feeling bugged that I hadn’t lost more weight.  I analyzed my diet and tried to see what I could improve on.  I realized I was having too many of these….

Yes, these Peanut Butter Cookies are the bomb.  Yes, they are low-carb and “legal’, but no, they are not LOW-CALORIE!

I think I was enjoying these a little too much.
So, I decided to replace my “legal” sweet indulgences with this…

Sugar-free jello.  Yum!  0 carbs and 10 calories per serving.  You can’t beat that!  topped it off with my some fresh whipped cream.  Yummo.

Another diet tweak I adopted was this…

Yes, “mystery meat” Turkey hotdogs.  I know they are not the epitome of health, but they fit the bill.

Sometimes for lunch, I like to slice hotdogs up, fry them in a frying pan and enjoy them with mustard.

Looks gross, I know.  But they are yummy, low calorie and very filling.

They are rather good.  I’m sure there are higher quality “turkey dogs” out there, but these are only 70 calories and 5 grams of fat.  Not bad.  Not exactly “healthy”, I know.  But, when you’re eating low-carb you have to be creative.

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Well, because I haven’t posted for a while, I have SO MUCH to put on here!  I don’t want this to be a novel, so I will just post a yummy recipe we had for dinner the other night….

K???

K…

We had Chicken Cordon Bleu.  One of my favs!

Here’s my recipe…

Chicken Cordon Bleu

• Boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts; trimmed, cut thin, and tenderized
• Ham; cut in thin slices
• Swiss Cheese; cut in thin slices
• Salt
• Pepper
• Garlic Powder
• Parsley
• Canola or Olive Oil
• Breadcrumbs or crushed almonds

I set up a little assembly line…Chicken, Ham, cheese, spices, olive oil, and “breading”

Take a piece of chicken, top it with ham, cheese and then all the spices.

Roll it up and secure it with a toothpick…

Brush it with a little oil…

Then roll it in breadcrumbs or crushed almonds…

Place in a greased (with Pam) baking dish and bake at 350 for 45 minutes or so.
I always check the biggest one to make sure it’s cooked completely through.

Way yummy.
We served it with Cauliflower Potatoes and fresh veggies with guacamole.

Well, ’till next time!  Hang in there!