A new season...

I know that January 1st is technically the first of the year, but I have always thought of fall as my new beginning. I love fall. I look forward to everything about fall. New weather, new school year, yummy pumpkin candles, our anniversary, and my very favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. This year, fall is marking a huge season of change for us. Brian got a new job with the State Geological Survey, I got a new job with Weight Watchers, & Carter is starting his last year of Pre-K. The Lord has been so faithful to answer our prayers and provide our every need.

I have been meditating on our church women's retreat scripture, "His divine power has given us everything we need for this life..." 2Peter 1:3-8. As we start this new season of our lives, my goal is to continue to focus on that passage of scripture. I will make every every effort to add to my faith goodness, knowledge, brotherly kindness, and love.

So excited to see all that the Lord has in store for us over the coming months and to be able to be a blessing to all who enter our home.

Love you all! Blessings :)

Elizabeth

Menu Plan Monday

Hi everyone! It's been forever since I updated the blog. Here's what is on the menu this week.

Monday: CROCK POT DAY!!! Pasta Fagioli (from the crock pot 365 website), garlic bread, and salad.
Tuesday: Gorgonzola Fettuccine (Cooking Light), salad
Wednesday: Maple Glazed Salmon (Cooking Light), brown rice, sesame green beans.
Thursday: Chicken Tamale Casserole (Cooking Light), salad
Friday: PIZZA NIGHT! Buffalo Chicken Pizza, salad.

Recipe: Chicken Tamale Casserole

I love to share new recipes :) Here is a delicious one we have tried out several times. I got it from Cooking Light. Here is the link, but I will also post the full recipe with NI below. It's about 6-8 WW Points depending on what ingredients you use.

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1854020

Ingredients

• 1 cup (4 ounces) preshredded 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese, divided
• 1/3 cup fat-free milk
• 1/4 cup egg substitute
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
• 1 (8.5-ounce) box corn muffin mix (such as Martha White)
• 1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
• Cooking spray
• 1 (10-ounce) can red enchilada sauce (such as Old El Paso)
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
• 1/2 cup fat-free sour cream

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Combine 1/4 cup cheese and next 7 ingredients (through chiles) in a large bowl, stirring just until moist. Pour mixture into a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

3. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until set. Pierce entire surface liberally with a fork; pour enchilada sauce over top. Top with chicken; sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. Cut into 8 pieces; top each serving with 1 tablespoon sour cream.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

354 (36% from fat)

Fat:

14.1g (sat 7.1g,mono 3.3g,poly 1.2g)

Fiber:

2.5g

Menu Plan Monday!

It's been a month or so since I posted my menu, but I am back on track today! Here is my menu for the week. If you want any of the recipes, just email me and I will tell you how to get them. Don't forget to head on over to Orgjunkie.com for more menu ideas :) Have a blessed day!

Monday: Asian Style Pork Roast (Weight Watchers, crock pot)

Tuesday: Creamy Swiss Chicken (Taste of Home)

Wednesday: Hunan Pork and Peppers (Weight Watchers, made form Mondays leftovers)

Thursday: Chicken & Artichokes (Light & Tasty)

Friday: Greek Spaghetti (Light & Tasty)

My Journey with Weight Watchers.

In 2008 (from January to June), I lost about 30 lbs with WW. Yayee me! The program is great and if you need to shed a few lbs, I highly recommend WW :) I kept a blog last year of my progress with photos and such. If you want to check it out it's www.freewebs.com/spagirl79. Sad to say that once I made Lifetime Membership, I got WAY lazy. In fact, a 6 month bout of lazy resulting in a 15 lb gain. I'll never make that mistake again! However, I've lost 8.4 lbs in January! Only 7.6 until I am back where I like. I am hoping for a lb a week from here on out. This month was just over 2 lbs per week and I am fairly certain I will slow down, but I also didn't think I could bounce back this quickly. I guess my body doesn't like being chubby! I am determined to stay at my happy weight this time. Getting lazy got me no where! I guess I was hoping the weight would just magically stay off, but know I know I will actually have to work just as hard when I get back to goal. In an effort to help me maintain my goal weight, I am re-doing My 21 Meals and my Google Calendar to reflect all the yummy, healthier (point friendly) dinners I've made this month. I will also mention a GREAT new cookbook I got at my WW meeting. I do not typically love WW cookbooks, but this one is a keeper! It's called "Now & Later" and it's GENIUS! You make 2 meals from one by making a bigger batch of something one night and then portion some out to use in a totally different recipe a few days later. Great time and money saver. We have tried 3 (really 6!) recipes already and loved each one! Stay tuned for Weight Watchers tips and yummy recipes!