I’d be fine with the consolation prize.

Last week I told you about the Halloween Trivia Contest at A Dozen Eggs. I was sure I was going to win the 3 tins of Halloween cookies. And by sure I mean I was absolutely positive I was going to win. I had already picked what I wanted.

As it turns out, I didn’t win. And neither did you apparently because I said that if any of you won, I wanted the “Witches Brew” set and I haven’t been notified as to when I’ll be getting your cookies. I will, however, get a cool consolation prize: something from Vermont and one of these cool Day of the Dead skull cookies.

One cookie isn’t going to do it for me though. So I’m going to take advantage of A Dozen Eggs shipping special and get me that “Witches Brew” and maybe the “Haunted Graveyard.” And if you think you’re getting one of my coveted treats, you’re probably wrong (I could be swayed but it’s doubtful).

It wouldn't be ironic to share a cookie contest with you.

I’ve been reading “A Dozen Eggs” blog for months now, drooling over beautiful iced sugar cookies, Vermont, and yummy savory dishes. Well, right now you can enter a Halloween Trivia Contest simply by answering a few fun questions. The winner will be chosen on Saturday and you’ll get 3 small tins of Halloween Cookies.

I’ve already picked which ones I want and if I don’t win, you can order the “Witch’s Brew” for me. Thanks!

I could have 2 servings of ice cream in a day and feel no guilt.

Since I keep putting off going to the grocery store, we're about out of food here. All of my frozen stores, minus 20 tiny portions of really fatty and really delicious tomato basil soup, are gone. Yesterday I ate the last of the frozen french fries at lunch (meaning I really couldn't have chicken nuggets again because there'd be nothing to eat with them--yes, I am 5). Thus, I had to eat a Lean Cuisine Flat Bread Sandwich that I had picked up a few weeks ago just to try. I will say it was pretty good (not amazing or anything but good nonetheless).

And yet a little while after lunch, I needed something more. I charged right into the kitchen a got a mug of ice cream (please note that it was Mayfield Light Vanilla Frozen Yogurt but it tastes just like regular ice cream) with Hershey's syrup (fat free my friends).

For the last week I have been suffering with "it's almost Spring and the weather is wacky" allergies. I've been taking my meds regularly but my nose is still a little stuffy and now there is drainage which means my throat is a little raw.

After dinner, the rawness was really getting me and I remembered that there was a little bit of sherbet in the freezer from when I had the flu (that my loving husband so nicely shared with me). I got the tub and finished it off (really there was not so much left). The frozen orange goodness eased my pain, though it still hurts and tomorrow there will be no sherbet relief, unless I drag my butt to the store...if we're planning to eat something other than canned corn, I'll have to do that anyway!

I wouldn't be mad at my grocery store.

There was a time in my life, probably most of my life, when I didn’t consider buying low-fat or diet foods. Now I am always looking at labels, reading calorie and fat content, and checking out things that scream on their packaging, “Reduced Fat” or “Fat Free”.

Over the last year or so I discovered a love for Doritos Light and Barbeque Lays Light. These chips are made with Olean (known as “poop chips” amongst my circle of friends), which when I was in college was the highlight of many snack discussions as we read the disclaimer about loose/runny stool. There was no way, back then, that I would ever touch food that might change my digestion.

I didn’t see “poop chips” for a while and when I noticed them again, I decided they must have gone away, gotten reformulated, and returned without the nasty side effects and must be fine for human consumption. They had brand new packaging and fewer calories than the bland baked variety. So I grabbed a bag and didn’t feel the least bit guilty indulging in as many as I wanted because they were low in fat and calories (and no messy side effects).

These have become my go-to chips, the barbeque being my favorite. Anytime I looked for chips, those were what I wanted. The last few times I’ve been to the grocery store, my favs have been missing. They have light versions of plain Lay’s, Ruffles, and Tostitos but no Doritos or Barbeque. And there’s not even a space for them. So I am coming to believe that my grocery store is no longer stocking them.

If I wasn’t concerned about such things as calorie and fat content, this wouldn’t be a problem but since I seem to be, what am I going to do now? I cannot resort to eating plain chips. I don’t like the lame flavor of potato and salt. I’d be forced to make/buy sour cream and onion dip and by the time I did that, I might as well buy full fat Doritos. Can I blame the grocery store for the downfall of my weight-loss? I think so.

I wouldn't think about cooking low fat.

Tonight I made, entirely from scratch, vegetable soup. I don’t even like that stuff but this particular soup was delicious.

A few weeks ago I made homemade chicken stock and put it in the freezer (we’d had a rotisserie chicken and some veggies that were about to go so stock it was). On Saturday I did a homemade vegetable stock (same deal minus the chicken).

My husband is really pushing us to eat better (which should help with my birthday present but I’m not always into it…technically it’s not March yet so I have a few more days not to be concerned). He keeps asking for low fat foods and checks what I’ve made for dinner…was it made with low fat cheese, etc? So with a fridge full of vegetables and a freezer full of stock, I decided to make soup. Please note once again that I do not like vegetable soup. I do like the broth and I will eat that with crackers in it but once you get those veggies in there, no thank you. The problem is that there is usually tons of Veg-All in that soup and I really can’t stand that. Since I don’t like Veg-All, I don’t have it on hand. I only keep veggies we both like. Meaning that this veggie soup had only things I would actually eat. Once they were all brought together, it really was delicious. And while I didn’t eat any of it except for the broth (with two pieces of corn), I seriously thought about it. I had already thawed some tomato-basil soup I’d made in the summer, also from scratch.

I wish I had thought about this post before dinner (I love all the blogs with pics of dinner in progress) but I didn’t. So the best I can do is the recipe:

2.5 cups homemade chicken stock
2.5 cups homemade vegetable stock
1.5 cups water
1 small onion, diced small
6 creamer potatoes, diced small (these are small like red potatoes)
2 carrots, diced small
1 cup pearl onions
½ cup corn kernels
1 tsp thyme
Salt and pepper to taste

In medium pot, sauté onions in tiniest bit of canola oil, medium high. Add potatoes, salt, pepper, and thyme, cook for 5 minutes. Add carrots and water. Deglaze pan with water as carrots and potatoes cook. Add stocks and bring to boil. Boil for 10-15 minutes until potatoes and carrots are done. Reduce heat to medium low. Add onions and corn. Simmer for 5 minutes. Serve with crusty bread or Zesta crackers.

Carrots would not be considered snacks.

2008 is the year I turn 30. This is not something I am looking forward to. I’ve kind of been dreading it for a while (not every day or anything but when I think of 30, I groan). I think I am dreading 30 because I am not where I always imagined I’d be and 30 seems to be the point of no return.

I grew up in the country. People were married in their early 20’s and by the time they were 30, they’d had all their children. I thought I’d get married the summer I graduated from college. It didn’t happen. Then the prospects dwindled and I wasn’t sure if I’d ever get married!

A few years ago my mom attended her 30th high school reunion. When she went, there was no need for a babysitter or pizza money or anything because all of my mom’s kids were grown. This was not the case with a few members of her class, including my father (my half-sister is 13 years younger than I am). I remember thinking how freeing that would be. And then I did the math and discovered that I would have to meet and marry a man and then have all the children we were going to have by the time I was 27 (I think I was 25 and very, very single).

I finally met (maybe just after I had my high school reunion realization) and married a wonderful man (two months before my 29th birthday).

All of this is to say that my 1st life-plan got squashed. But I can’t get the idea out of my head so really 30 is old and I don’t want to be it. And I really don’t want to be 30 and 80lbs overweight. For my birthday I decided that I wanted to lose those extra pounds. 10 months, 2lbs a week=80lbs. Technically, it’s doable. Practically, it means when I am looking for a snack, I should eat carrots, celery, pickles (with plenty of water of course). We’ll see how it goes. Right now, I’d rather have chocolate than carrots!

The Whys of a Blog

I've been contemplating this blog for a long time. I've even composed a number of entries in my head...haven't written a single one but composed them nonetheless.

Basically I have found myself a little bigger than I would like...maybe a lot bigger. In high school, I was pretty athletic (a runner). In college, I did not gain the freshman fifteen. In graduate school, I was still fairly healthy. All the while I had a very poor image of my body. Boy was I wrong!!!

My final year of grad school I had to take a prescription that "forced" me to gain 40lbs. I worked at getting rid of it but wasn't very successful. This last year I was under great stress...so much so I would wake up in the morning with my teeth bared together. I was getting a transfer for work, waiting on my boyfriend to "pop the question", moving to a new city, and selling my house. At the end of the year I did get married (question was popped and I answered) and tried to get settled in new job, new house, new life. And I gained another 40lbs.

So here I am 80lbs after high school trying to live in a world full of low-rise jeans, clothes made entirely of stretch, and skinny-minis everywhere. I have thoughts on diet, exercise, walking the mall, and what life would be like...if I were skinny.