Where in the Heck Have I Been?

I've been on the dirt road, getting run over by the wagon. That's where I have been. So, what happened?

The weekend happened. Ah, the weekend. The cliché of the stringent dieter. The weekend totally knocked me off my routine and ran me over. The weekend extended into "I don't give a shit Monday because it's hard enough to deal with Monday let alone trying to run and jump back onto the wagon". Am I trying to make excuses? Nah. But I am trying to explain. And I do feel stupid for having been sucked into the weekend mentality.

So, let's start on Friday, shall we? Friday I was actually amazingly well behaved. After work I was set to have dinner and drinks with friends and then we moved on to a wine tasting. At dinner we shared a plate of nachos and maybe the salsa had sugar in it but who could really say for sure? I tried not to have too much of it. At the wine tasting I was extremely well behaved. Of course I had wine! But I had zero chocolates or sweet things they had out. The closest to the border I got was Stilton flavored with cranberries and another Stilton flavored with oranges. (The orange Stilton was delicious, by the way!) I will call Friday a total smashing success for a fun night out with the girls.

On Saturday I woke up late and ran around like a crazy person in the morning trying to get my son to his art lesson. I didn't eat as well as I should have, meaning I wasn't as regimented in my eating every 3-4 hours. My son and his art teacher had picked up these gourmet cheesecake and chocolate cupcakes while visiting the art museum. The smell of them in the car was absolute torture! He bought one for me and I reminded him that I had quit sugar. "Oh, sorry," he said. Poor kid. I started cooking dinner (pork stew) around 4:30. Of course I had to open a bottle of wine to do so. Soon I had consumed the whole bottle, minus what I put in the stew. In my semi-inebriated state I decided to cut the aforementioned Cupcake of Doom in quarters and try some. I tried less than a quarter and, to my surprise, it tasted awful! Hooray! Success, right? Perhaps. I went to bed after eating some chips from Switzerland (I couldn't read the ingredients but the sugar content - I can read the word "sucre" - was very low).

Sunday was much in the same vein as Saturday. I did have sugar because I had a breath mint and then a butterscotch hard candy at night. I went to the Rufus Wainwright concert, had some vodka, and then had the mint so as not to have vodka breath on my fellow concertgoers. I had the butterscotch after the concert but before I got to the car (and my water) to moisten my mouth. I really should find a good sugar-free alternative for breath mints.

Monday was a complete f-ing disaster. I was all set to have a salad for lunch but the refrigerator here at work is turned to the coldest setting so my salad, which had sat in the fridge all weekend and should have been fine, was half frozen and crappy. Instead of being sensible I went to McDonald's. And then I went again after work. And then I made Tuna Helper for dinner and had that. Yes, friends, I am hanging my head in shame. Monday was not a good food day for me.

BUT!

Instead of wallowing and letting the bad eating choices plague me and weigh (har har) me down I have taken a running start today and am jumping back on that wagon even if it is rolling along at 45 MPH. So far today I have had a string cheese first thing in the morning and then an orange once I got to work around 8. It's almost 10 and my stomach is telling me it's time to eat. I'm going to make a yogurt parfait. I have brought my lunch (Cedarlane's Enchilada Pie) so all should be okay there.

I'll try to post tonight so I can stay on that wagon.

Day 5 Evening

I made the kids mac & cheese for dinner. It was so difficult not to take a bite! I was good, however. Trader Joe's makes a reduced fat mayonnaise that does not have sugar in it. I mixed some with a can of tuna. I toasted two pieces of the Ezekiel bread, split the tuna mixture between the two, and topped with some reduced fat white cheddar and tomatoes. I broiled it for a few minutes. It was delicious!

I think I have been overusing the word "delicious". Must think of synonyms!

In related news, I have learned to sit and wait for my food to digest. Immediately after eating dinner I thought I wanted something sweet. I thought I was still hungry. After letting the food settle I found that I am not hungry. This is a big lesson for me.

One More Thing!

I totally forgot to share what I made for dinner last night. It was so yummy!!

Tortellini
Boil the tortellini until done (I used frozen but you could also use dried). Drain then return to the pot. Have the heat on low, add three wedges of Laughing Cow (original flavor) and a splash of milk...about 1/4 cup. Sprinkle in some kosher salt, grind some pepper into the pot, and add some garlic powder. Stir until the cheese is melted and everything is all incorporated. Deliciousness!

Veal Shoulder Chop
Heat olive oil in an oven-proof skillet. Sprinkle the veal with Emeril's Essence or whatever spice mixture you'd like. Brown for about 5 minutes per side then finish in a 375 degree oven for about 5 minutes.

I added Texas garlic cheese toast for the kids and husband and steamed asparagus for all of us.

It was so wonderful!

(P.S. I should totally put this on my cooking blog...!)

Day 2 Evening

Do you know how hard it is to not eat one little spoonful, one tiny spoonful, of prepackaged rice mix while preparing it for your family? Well, I'll tell you: it's really difficult. Extremely difficult. But I didn't do it!

I had 1/2 cup of brown rice, 1 cup of green beans, and four small boneless skinless chicken thighs.

This afternoon I had a snack of an apple and almond butter. Also, I oddly had more energy than I've had in a while. It was brilliant!