Weight Watchers Recipe Cards From The 70's - Really you HAVE to check these out!!!

AB just sent me this link to a site called Candyboots.com which has a hilarious link to some 70's Weight Watchers recipe cards. Brilliant!! Thanks AB (and Ren who I think they originated from)!

They are seriously disturbing - not so much the food which is disturbing in it's self but food stylist must have been on some kind of trip!!! Really, WHAT WERE THEY THINKING!!

So for a slimmers culinary trip from the 70's click HERE!

Thanks CandyBoots

The Lazy Blogger - Part Three

After a look at all my clothes in my wardrobe today I was reminded that I should really be watching more what I eat now that Summer will be here in 3 days time and I might have to squeeze into come swimming attire. I was going to blog about my on going weight issues and then remembered I already had....before I had any readers! And so another instalment of the Lazy Blogger is born.....

The Weight Debate
I am currently attending Weight Watchers Meetings. Yes, hello, my name is Amanda and I have an eating problem. Well it's not a problem as much as a niggle (or jiggle) in my side.

I have never been ultra slim although looking back at photo's of me when I was at school I was pretty average and would be happy to be that average again. My weight started creeping on after I left school. I blame this on not riding my bike once I got my licence and having a disposable income to spend on takeaway. In my early 20's I realised that my height (158cm) was not conducive to my weight so I joined Weight Watchers and lost 5kg which was great and I felt fantastic, fitted into my old clothes etc.

At 23 I moved out of home and slowly it all started to creep on again, went to the UK a couple of times and added some Heathrow kilo's and so on and so on.
6 months before I got married I joined a gym, went everyday and lost a bit of weight but the change was mostly inches and toning of my muscles which I liked. A few months after I was married I fell pregnant with Grotbag and it's all been going down hill ever since.

After Grotbag I gave myself some leave and then we started trying for another baby so naturally my attitude was "well what's the point I will be preggers soon" and low and behold 18 months after Grotbag I did fall pregnant but unfortunately miscarried. The messing with hormones, the unhappiness of it all plus still wanting to fall pregnant again made weight loss a very low priority. 9 months later I fell pregnant but again miscarried. It was all too much, but I suddenly realised I needed a new focus as the baby making was all consuming.

So again I joined Weight Watchers along with Bling (my cousin, who is more like a sister and will make many an appearance in my blogs. So called as she likes a bit of Bling!). I lost 9kg just in time for my work Christmas party and felt fantastic. Then Hubby and I were told that to have another baby we would need IVF. I will probably talk about this in detail another blog but needless to say it involved lots of emotions, lots of drugs and lots of luck. And lucky we were. First time lucky and 9 months later Bugalugs entered this world! Through my pregnancy I got gestational diabetes and also had a hemorrhage which meant I couldn't do anything that raised my heartbeat which meant no exercise or even walking too far.

And so here I am again, carrying baby weight, emotional weight and the occasional Hungry Jacks weight. It's coming off. A lot slower this time and fluctuates depending on the time of the month but I have managed to shed to date 3.1kg (6.8 pounds) and feel much better for it too. I know I have to lose the weight. Having gestational diabetes means I am 50% more likely to get Type 2 diabetes when I am older and this is something that I really want to avoid. I have no more excuses, no more babies on the way and I need to be fit to keep up with my two growing boys, and I want to be a good example for them.

Some days are harder than others. I love food and love cooking so it's all about balance. But I will get there...because at the end of the day I have no alternative!

*** Post Script

I stopped going to Weight Watchers and the fluctuating weight (I was told this was to do with my hormones still correcting themselves after having Bugalugs) each week was doing my head in even if I had had a great week I would sometimes have put on half a kilo - it was too devastating. I realise that what I really need to do is exercise but so far it's just a theory! So the saga continues....

Commitment Phobic

In July I wrote a post about how I was a Quirky Little Gemini. It was before I had stalkers..ahem I mean Followers as can be attested by the amount of comments left...er that would be zero!

Go ahead I will wait here while you read it.......

Can't be bothered? OK then....

Well in the post I touched on the fact that I am scared of commitment. Not the marrying kind of commitment (obviously as I have been happily married for 5 years...wow that went quick) but of committing to 'doing' something at the same time every week. I think it is why I never joined any clubs as a kid or did extra curricular activities that required me at 'training' or anything similar.

There are exceptions to my weird little quirky rule.

1. Relationships - I am committed to all relationships in my life to a fault sometimes.

2. Mum's Group - I relished meeting the mums every week and have made some awesome friends. We don't meet as an entire group anymore which is a shame but still keep in touch via Facebook or meeting more on a one on one basis!

3. My kids commitments - Well the only commitment Buglalugs has at the moment is sleeping through the night for mummy, but Grotbag does have commitments like school and Tae Kwon Do which is 3 times a week. I have only ever missed TKD a few times but that was due to illness, a storm and once when my brain was it's usual sievey self.

Now I am talking about regular commitments at the same time every week. Not social engagements or appointments (although I did cancel my dentist appointment two weeks ago) and I do not cancel one engagement because I another better one comes along. No, I am talking about regular commitments....like say....Meatless Monday.

Two weeks ago I started Meatless Monday. To much fanfare, I blogged about it and really love the ideology behind it. It was decided much to Hubby's annoyance, but I made a lovely Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni.

But...

Last Monday I forgot.

This Monday I have remembered but have suddenly gone all commitment phobic on the idea. Is this something I want to do F o r e v e r? It's hard enough figuring out what to have for dinner at the best of times let alone a decent vegetarian meal. And I do love a variety of veggie meals but have had salad with my meal for the last three nights and am a bit over it. I do not I feel like a veggie meal tonight.

And this is where the problem in my head starts. Having made the 'commitment' I then want to rebel and feel that I shouldn't have to do what I don't want to do. I start resenting the 'thing' I have to do so walls start to go up. It was the same with Weight Watchers and really any kind of diet (apart from when I had gestational diabetes I stuck to that diet but really that was a form of a commitment to my child not me). If you tell me I have to do something my initial reaction is to run the other way. It's a form of self sabotage I know and a flaw in my personality I am readily able to admit.

So how do I over come it and stop listening to the voices in my head? How do I really commit to something and stick to it without resenting and hating it?

I really would like to start doing some exercise. I need to do it. And that word need in itself is making me procrastinate and not start. Oh yeah, procrastinating is another personality flaw that I currently possess. Like I should be putting clothes away and not blogging.

What am I scared of in committing? Especially when there are benefits involved.

OK yeah I know I might need some therapy on this one because I really would like to figure it out. And it is probably more deep rooted than I think. But in the mean time I will just have a veggie meal when I want one not just because of the day of the week. And I better go and fold and put the washing away!

Well at least Hubby will be happy!

Are you commitment phobic about anything? Do you feel burdened by having to do the same thing, at the same time every week/fortnight/month?

If The Genes/Jeans Fit….

Hubby and I are off to a Wedding next weekend so for the past month I have been saying to myself “What the f**k am I going to wear???”

I really can’t afford or justify a new purchase so have decided to go with one of the many dresses I own. I am not a dress kinda girl. Or a skirt kinda girl. I blame my Mother for this as she put me in LOTS of dresses and shiny shoes as a kid when all I really wanted to wear pants and sneakers. So in my 30’s it seems I am still rebelling!

So of course I had to enlist my BFF to help me choose. My dilemma started because although it is Spring here in Perth it is still quite cool and has been a bit wet too. All my dresses are short sleeve/shoe string strap dresses so was scared I was going to freeze my butt off. AB (said BFF) has the solution in owning a rainbow selection of pashminas so bought them over for me to try with different dresses.

After a small fashion parade we settled on my favourite LBD (Little Black Dress). Teamed with my red heels, red pashmina (which was also mine, the only colour AB didn’t have!) and cute little red cluch bag. Gorge! I feel great in the dress, have worn it to quite few weddings and formal dinners and is always a winner (I wonder why I bought all the other dresses!!) So I was feeling happy.

But what I was most happy about was the fact that the said LBD was originally bought for Hubby’s and mine Engagement Party. 7 YEARS AGO!!! So after 7 years and 2 kids later it still fits and looks good. Yay for me!

Hubby & Me at our Engagement Party August 2002

And that was where today’s post was going to end.

Until this morning when in the shower I began thinking. The fact that the dress still fits me (and did I mention looks good) after 7 years means (and I calculated) that for the past 7 years my weight has only really fluctuated about 9 kilos/20 lbs, apart from when I was obviously pregnant. I realized my dress size has been pretty much the same for the past 7 years too. So does that mean that this is the size I am supposed to be?

When I started getting fitted for my wedding dress I remember the dressmaker saying that I will probably loose quite a bit of weight before the wedding. I clearly remember telling her that actually I probably would just stay pretty much the same. Even though I was watching what I was eating and working out nearly 5 times a week at the gym I really just toned up rather than slimmed down. So when the final fitting came there really wasn’t that much to alter much to the dressmaker’s surprise, but obviously not to mine.

There is no doubting myself that I probably need to be at the lower part of that 9 kilo/20lbs to be healthier and at the moment they are around the middle third of my body, which health wise is not good. In July I blogged about my Weight Debate as I had just started weight watchers for the umpteenth time. I am currently no longer attending now as my weight loss was up and down even if I had the most angelic of weeks.

I think I actually eat pretty well nutrition wise. I eat whole grains, fruit and lots of vegetables. Takeaway is not a staple in our house and I make a majority of my meals from scratch. But I have suddenly realized that what I really need to do is exercise. I really don’t do enough (read any!). When I was going to the gym the 6 months before I got married I really toned up and felt good even though there was no dramatic weight loss.

I have also had a look at my family tree. My mum has 6 sisters & 1 brother. My mum and all her sisters have exactly the same body shape, the same one I have inherited. Most of my girl cousins are the same (and some of the boys too). I have to think that some of the blame has to be genetics so I have realized I will always have the same body shape.

So what does this all mean? I don’t think it is a get out of jail free card that’s for sure but I am a little relieved at my revelations. Mostly I think it means I need to move my butt and get some exercise to tone up and give the muffin top back to the muffin man. I still think I need to eat in moderation and watch my portion size.

But mostly I think I just need to smile and be happy with myself because if the genes/jeans fit (or in this case the LBD) then that’s OK by me!!

Banoffie Pies - Yum!

Look divine don't they!

Let me start by saying that I can actually take no

credit for this "recipe" or really it should be called a "Put Together". My BFF Anastasia Beaverhausen (lets call her AB) brought them to my house as a desert for a dinner party I threw.

The best dinner parties are always when the guests bring there own little something something!!

Another guest had commented that she had made them herself a few weeks before and it took her 2 hours. AB snorted and said "these babies took me 5 minutes and 4 teaspoons!!"

We all leaned in closer for the secret to these delicious little morsels of delight. I LOVE to cook but am not that keen on baking so this was heaven to my ears. So today I share the secret with you. The ones in the picture above are ones I made this morning to take to my Auntie's birthday get together this afternoon. My step-dad has one of the sweetest teeth I know so really they are for him. He loves it when I "bake"!! (Shhh!)

AB's Banoffie Pies

12 Shortcrust Tartlet Cases

1 Can of Nestle Top'n'Fill Caramel

1 Banana

1 Tub of Thick "Dollop" cream (no whipping here!!)

1 Cadbury Flake

Method

Open packet of tartlets.

Open can of Top'n'Fill.

Spoon caramel into tart cases.

Cut banana into thin slices and place on top of Caramel

Dollop cream on top of bananas.

Sprinkle flake onto cream! Refrigerate till needed or scoff at will!

Voila - Banoffie Pies!!

Some notable notes. I used light cream to be a bit more virtuous and also made two with canned light whipped cream as Bling will be there today and she is on Weight Watchers (they work out to about 5 points). But AB made hers with double thick cream and they were delicious. I didn't actually use the whole can of the caramel there was still some left at the bottom and I only used half the carton of cream.

So, please feel free to make your shortcrust pastry, boil your can of condensed milk and whip your cream - but for me I am more than happy to say that I "threw these together" and literally mean it!

Now I have more time to do my hair!

Middle Monday & Banana Muffins

I am a day behind but yesterday was Middle/Hump Monday. I only mention it because I have mentioned the other two Monday's in my life and didn't want Middle Monday, like a middle child, to feel left out.

Middle Monday marks the half way point of me being the only parent and only a week to go to Happy Monday and Hubby coming home. Middle Monday this week was also the start of the school holidays, something I am still coming to terms with. I went back to work 3 days a week when Grotbag was 10 months old and up until the first term school holidays this year I had not had him 24/7 since he went into day care. I was beside myself and also had a new baby to boot!

Still day 1 of the school holidays this time was spent at home as the weather was cold and rainy. We played Play Doh which is a treat in my house and something that I keep back to make it a bit special. However, it ended in disaster when Grotbag mixed the blue and green together. A pet hate of mine. I know...I should just let it go!!! Then I made Grotbag help me clean the bathroom....holiday memories he will cherish!!

Today we went to an indoor play centre with some other Kindy kids and then something I do not do with two children very often if I can help it....food shopping. When we got home we were both exhausted but Bugalugs had a sleep (rare) so grab the opportunity so spend time alone with Grotbag we made some Choc Chip Banana Muffins. He loves cooking with me and pretends he is Sam on Masterchef. I have a secret wish for him to be a great cook. He just wants to lick the bowl!

I have shared the recipe link below which I got from taste.com.au as it is a good one, most regular bakers would have the store cupboard ingredients to hand without having to venture to the shops. I always have a few brown bananas hanging around and the recipe is easy to alter depending on what is in the cupboard.

You could easily swap the banana's for other fruit combinations and I used Wholemeal flour and white chocolate buttons today as I had no dark chocolate ones. I have also used broken bits of Easter egg chocolate in the past and substituted the sugar with low GI diabetic sugar when I had gestational diabetes.

They taste great, and for those of you who have read my weight watchers blog they are 5 points a muffin - 3 points if you leave out the chocolate!!!

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/15298/choc+chip+banana+muffins

Enjoy!

Our batch of Banana Muffins

The Weight Debate

I am currently attending Weight Watchers Meetings. Yes, hello, my name is Amanda and I have an eating problem. Well it's not a problem as much as a niggle (or jiggle) in my side.

I have never been ultra slim although looking back at photo's of me when I was at school I was pretty average and would be happy to be that average again. My weight started creeping on after I left school. I blame this on not riding my bike once I got my licence and having a disposable income to spend on takeaway. In my early 20's I realised that my height (158cm) was not conducive to my weight so I joined Weight Watchers and lost 5kg which was great and I felt fantastic, fitted into my old clothes etc.

At 23 I moved out of home and slowly it all started to creep on again, went to the UK a couple of times and added some Heathrow kilo's and so on and so on.

6 months before I got married I joined a gym, went everyday and lost a bit of weight but the change was mostly inches and toning of my muscles which I liked. A few months after I was married I fell pregnant with Grotbag and it's all been going down hill ever since.

After Grotbag I gave myself some leave and then we started trying for another baby so naturally my attitude was "well what's the point I will be preggers soon" and low and behold 18 months after Grotbag I did fall pregnant but unfortunately miscarried. The messing with hormones, the unhappiness of it all plus still wanting to fall pregnant again made weight loss a very low priority. 9 months later I fell pregnant but again miscarried. It was all too much, but I suddenly realised I needed a new focus as the baby making was all consuming.

So again I joined Weight Watchers along with Bling (my cousin, who is more like a sister and will make many an appearance in my blogs. So called as she likes a bit of Bling!). I lost 9kg just in time for my work Christmas party and felt fantastic. Then Hubby and I were told that to have another baby we would need IVF. I will probably talk about this in detail another blog but needless to say it involved lots of emotions, lots of drugs and lots of luck. And lucky we were. First time lucky and 9 months later Bugalugs entered this world! Through my pregnancy I got gestational diabetes and also had a hemorrhage which meant I couldn't do anything that raised my heartbeat which meant no exercise or even walking too far.

And so here I am again, carrying baby weight, emotional weight and the occasional Hungry Jacks weight. It's coming off. A lot slower this time and fluctuates depending on the time of the month but I have managed to shed to date 3.1kg (6.8 pounds) and feel much better for it too. I know I have to lose the weight. Having gestational diabetes means I am 50% more likely to get Type 2 diabetes when I am older and this is something that I really want to avoid. I have no more excuses, no more babies on the way and I need to be fit to keep up with my two growing boys, and I want to be a good example for them.

Some days are harder than others. I love food and love cooking so it's all about balance. But I will get there...because at the end of the day I have no alternative!