Putting almond butter to the test.

I had been wanting to try almond butter for a while (like a year), but they don't carry it at my normal grocery store. That meant that I had to go to a "special" store to get it. That = waiting an entire year until I finally talked myself into going to two different grocery stores to do my grocery shopping, so that I could get me some almond butter. Yes. I am that pathetic. I hate grocery shopping. It's a character flaw.

When I finally had the almond butter in my kitchen, I took one taste of it, said I didn't like it, and put it in my pantry closet as I bitterly mumbled under my breath about the $4 wasted.

It seems that everyone likes almond butter. I started to wonder if I was one of the rare few that didn't like the stuff, or if I had possibly been too hard on the poor almond butter. So, I took it back out, and
put it to the test.

If I was going to bring almond butter into my life, it needed to be just as good as peanut butter, on the things I normally put peanut butter on. (did that make sense?) So, I tried almond butter and peanut butter, side by side on the things I usually put PB on:

Crackers:Peanut butter: Delish as always.
Almond butter: Not too shabby. I can definitely see myself doing this.

Apple slices:Almond butter:
DELISH!
Peanut butter:
Good. But I liked the almond butter better.
I was as shocked as you.

And last, I had to see if AB could replace the PB in my PB and J:And it did.
Deliciously.
Here are the facts:
Peanut butter:Almond Butter:Almond butter has less saturated fat. It has significantly less sodium, which earns it some brownie points from me. And it has more vitamin E, calcium, and iron.

I've decided that the almond butter can stay.
No body was more happy about this then the almond butter.

Do you like almond butter?
What do you like to spread your peanut butter, or almond butter on?

Ring PoPsicles! (and a giveaway!)

Today I was roaming around Ross, looking at all the things I'd love to buy if I had the Doe (Have I ever told you how much I LOVE Ross?).

I saw a stack of Ring Posicle molds that were on hold, and I was told there were none left.

"Nerds!"

"But wait! What's that?"
2 boxes were on some random shelf! 2!(I couldn't get the price sticker off. Don't judge;)
So, I grabbed one for me, and one for you!!

I went home, and made yummy, all natural,
Deliciously Healthy Ring PoPsicles!:
Although you don't need ring popscile molds to make these. You can use any popsicle mold, or make your own with popsical sticks and candy cups like bakerella did!

These were so much fun and simple to make! But most of all, they were fun and yummy to eat!

Here's the scoop! :(the box said to fill them half way, because they would expand, but they didn't expand that much, so I think I could have put more in)
In a blender put 1 cup of sliced strawberries (you can use any fruit you want), 1/2 a tbs of sugar, 1/2 a tsp of fresh lemon juice, a pinch of salt, and blend until smooth.
I put vanilla yogurt at the bottom of some of the molds, then poured the strawberry goodness into the molds.
Into the freezer they went for 4 hours (that part was hard;).
When the 4 hours was up (and not a second later) the hubs and I dug into those ring pops like two 5 year old kids on a hot summer day!
The yogurt and fruit ones were our favorite!
If you would like to enter to win this adorableness, just leave a comment on this post (even if it's your first time. Don't be shy!;) telling me what your favorite flavor Ring Pop is! Mine is grape!
I will announce the winner next Friday (8/06)!"He makes my heart melt, like a popsicle on the 4th of July."
Name that movie! ;D

And the winner is...

Sara!
She said, "Oh those are so fun!
I am so with you....mine is grape too!
-Sara"

CONGRATULATIONS Sara!!

Thank you to everyone who stops by my blog, and entered the giveaway!
xoxo

It's Ice Cream Season...

Every time I hear the jingle of the ice cream truck coming down my street, I'm reminded of it.
I swear Mr. Ice Cream Man drives extra slow when driving by my house.
He's saying to himself, "Hmm, wasn't there some chunky girl who would always run out of this house, waving money in the air, as she chased me down the street?"
Yes Mr. Ice cream man, that was me. But "WAS" is the key word there.

The new (and slimmer) me, comes up with Deliciously Healthy ways to enjoy the summer. Like fruit parfaits, in ice cream cones:

Here's what you'll need:

• All natural, low fat vanilla yogurt
• Blueberries
• Strawberries
• Waffle ice cream cones

This is what you do:

• Wash, and slice strawberries
  
• Wash blueberries
• In waffle cone, add a spoon full of vanilla yogurt, then fruit, another spoonful of yogurt, and top it off with fruit. I wouldn't recommend doing more then 2 layers. It gets kinda messy if you do... trust me ;)
• Put cones in the freezer, just until they're chilled..right before they start to freeze (about an hour) **or you could just eat em' up, and skip the freezer :)
  

Here's What I'm Thinking:

• Calories: About 110 for one cone

Or you can add almonds to the mix:

(Calories: 190)

Or some dark chocolate chips!(Calories: 190)

Or you could buy those little tiny waffle cones, fill them with yogurt and fruit, and serve them as little appetizers at a party!
You with me?! :D

Take that Mr. Ice Cream Man!
I no longer need you, or your fudgesicles!
These are way better!

Movie Night, With Deliciously Healthy Popcorn!

Tomorrow night, I'm surprising my husband with a
movie date!
(I got this super cute idea from Love, Actually!)(Believe it or not, my husband has actually wanted to see this movie since it came out, but we've never got around to watching it!:)

I made up the movie ticket for him on the computer, and tonight I taped it to his steering wheel, so he'll see it as he's leaving for work tomorrow morning!
SHHHH! ;D


Today I had to figure out what movie type snacks we would have on our date!!
I may want to have a date with my sweetheart, but I don't want to gain any love pounds! So I've been in the kitchen experimenting with
Deliciously Healthy popcorn ideas!

Here's what I came up with:

Cheesy Popcorn:

Here's What You Need:

• 1/3 cup popcorn kernels
• 1 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese
• salt

This is What You Do:

• Add 3-4 popcorn kernels to 2 TBLS oil.
  
• Heat on stove top with pot covered
• Wait for those 3-4 kernels to pop (The reason for the test kernels is to have your oil hot enough to pop all the kernels. This method helps to reduce the chance of burning your popcorn.)
• Pour 1/3 cup kernels in the pot
• Once you pour the 1/3 cup kernels in the pot, cover pot again and shake the pot so the popcorn doesn't burn. I shook the pot about every 5-10 seconds. The kernels will soon start popping all at once. Be sure to leave lid on! Those things pop pretty high with out it!
• When the popping starts slowing down, remove from heat.
• Gently stir in cheese and salt.
  

Here's what I'm thinking:

• Servings: 8
• Serving size: 1 cup
• Calories per serving: 109
  

Coconut Popcorn:

Here's What You Need:

• 1/3 cup popcorn kernels
• 2 TBS coconut oil
• Salt
  

**Note: I haven't tried this yet, but I think it would be super good if you added shreds of coconut to the mix, to add a little more coconut flavor.

This is what you Do:

• Add 3-4 popcorn kernels to 2 TBLS coconut oil.
  
• Heat on stove top with pot covered
• Wait for those 3-4 kernels to pop (The reason for the test kernels is to have your oil hot enough to pop all the kernels. This method helps to reduce the chance of burning your popcorn.)
• Pour 1/3 cup kernels in the pot
• Once you pour the 1/3 cup kernels in the pot, cover pot again and shake the pot so the popcorn doesn't burn. I shook the pot about every 5-10 seconds. The kernels will soon start popping all at once. Be sure to leave lid on! Those things pop pretty high with out it!
• When the popping starts slowing down, remove from heat
• Add salt to taste
  

Here's What I'm Thinking:

• Servings: 8
• Serving size: 1 cup
• Calories per serving: 59

Kettle Corn:

Here's What You Need:

• 1/3 cup popcorn kernels
• 4 TBS sugar
• Salt

This is What You do:

• Add 3-4 popcorn kernels to 2 TBLS oil.
  
• Heat on stove top with pot covered
• Wait for those 3-4 kernels to pop (The reason for the test kernels is to have your oil hot enough to pop all the kernels. This method helps to reduce the chance of burning your popcorn.)
• Pour 1/3 cup kernels in the pot, and the 1/2 cup of sugar.
  
• Once you pour the 1/3 cup kernels and the sugar in the pot, cover pot again and shake the pot so the popcorn doesn't burn. I shook the pot about every 5-10 seconds. The kernels will soon start popping all at once. Be sure to leave lid on! Those things pop pretty high with out it!
• When the popping starts slowing down, remove from heat.

Here's What I'm Thinking:

• Servings: 8
• Serving size: 1 cup
• Calories per serving: 81

Making the popcorn is really quite fun!! It would be a great activity to do together, or a fun family activity!

Along with the popcorn, I also got some candy that you might see at the theater!
Mike and Ike for the hubs, and Junior Mints for Moi! I know, I know, not the healthiest thing in the world. Out of the all the (chocolate) candy that's out there, I think York Peppermint Patties, and Junior Mints, are a couple of the lower calorie options. I'm excited!

Psst... If there are any guys out there reading this post, you will simply melt your lady's heart if you do this for her, and she'll love you for ever and ever!
I guarantee it! ;D

My Deliciously Healthy Memorial Day

Today I made chicken, fruit, and dessert shish kabobs for memorial day!
They were delish! I was able to escape memorial day, without hamburgers and ice cream cones!For the fruit shish kabobs, I used srawberries, watermelon, and blackberries (I had a sudden craving for oranges, and wish I had bought some to add to the mix).

Then, for the dessert shish kabobs, I dipped strawberries, and marshmallows (cut into 1/3) in dark chocolate (I dipped the strawberries, and marshmallows half way into the chocolate)! It started out with strawberries, marshmallows, and bananas, but I wasn't feeling the bananas, so I left them out.
They were yummy! :
On a side note: I think it would be cute to put strawberries, marshmallows, and blueberries on a skewer for 4th of July!

Later on in the evening, the hubs took me shopping to get some workout gear!
Why do I need workout gear you ask?

Because I got me one of these! :A gym membership to Bally Total Fitness!

I've wanted to join a gym for forever but didn't because, A. with my RA I thought I wouldn't be able to really do much there, and so I was worried it would be a waste of money. And B. because I was/am horrified to go!

Now, after losing 35+ pounds, my knees have been feeling a lot better! I think I may actually be able to incorporate working out, into my weight loss plan! That's so exciting and rewarding for me! I've come so far (a tear;)! I'm proud of myself for facing my fears, and taking the first step: Getting the membership! Tomorrow I'm going to take the second step, and actually go workout!

My original plan was to get a gym membership, just so I could use the pool to do laps. That's still my main plan, as I think it'll be a great workout, and easy on my joints. Although while I was taking the tour of the gym, I saw some workout machines that I may be able to do with my arthritis. That would be a great bonus, if I'm able to take advantage of those spiffy little things! ;D

I'm still pretty darn nervous for tomorrow, but I'm working though it...
I feel like I'm in 1st grade, and tomorrow's my first day of school, lol!

I'm mostly nervous to swim. I can swim, but I don't know how to do the professional kind of swimming. I feel like a complete armature, and I totally don't know what I'm doing! You get a free session with a personal trainer, so I'm wondering if I can ask them to teach me how to use swimming as a workout. I feel stupid asking for that. I'm going to try talking to someone about it tomorrow. Hopefully I'll get it all figured out soon.

I also did my weigh in, on this Memorial Day.
171.
That's a 1 pound loss. I did pretty darn good this week, so I'm kinda confused. I know that the further you get in your weight loss, it tends to slow down a little bit. That's why it made me nervous that my weight loss started out at about 2 pounds a week. I thought, "Oh great! What's it going to slow down to?!" I feel that after losing 36 pounds, my weight loss has slowed to 1 pound a week. Although thus far, I've had little to no exercise. I'm hoping working out will give me the boost I need, to get back to a 2+ pound loss each week!

Well, that's it for me!

Wish me luck for tomorrow!

Hope you all had a great Memorial Day!(Flickr)

**Workout Update!**

I just got back from the gym! I survived!
It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Everyone didn't stop what they were doing to watch me enter the building, or pull up chairs to watch me workout, like I thought they would!
That's good ;D

I did 10 minutes on that thingy... what's it called? The elliptical?
And 10 minutes speed walking on the treadmill (well, at least speed walking for me)
I had planned to do more, but by the end of it, I seriously thought I was going to pass out! I have to take baby steps, to get to my goal... I'm not sure what that goal is, but I know it's more then 10 minutes on each machine, lol! I'd say for the first time working out in years, I did pretty good! It felt good to work up a sweat, and feel my heart racing!

I'm pretty darn proud of myself!

Tis The Season For Strawberries!

This past week, our local grocery store, had Strawberries on sale, for 10 for 10!

It was such a beautiful sign, that Winter is finally over!

I headed over to the strawberry stand, and picked out 10 beautiful cartons of strawberries!

Hmmm. What to do with 10 cartons of strawberries?

First, my husband and I and ate almost an entire carton of strawberries, all by themselves! Gosh, they are so good!
After our little strawberry feast, I froze 3 of them, to make yummy strawberry smoothies later! Can't wait for that goodness!

The next day, I met up with two of my friends, Betsy and Jill, so Jill could teach us how to make strawberry freezer jam! I was blown away at how easy it was!To make one batch, you need 45 strawberries, which for me, was 3 cartons.

First, you put about 15 strawberries at a time into a blender, and pulse until it's a chunky/smooth consistency. Then you pour all your blended strawberries into a bowl. In another bowl, mix sugar, and fruit pectin together. Then just add that to your strawberries, mix for 3 minutes (stirring constantly), pour into 4 containers, and then put them into the freezer! You can keep them in the freezer for up to a year, and it lasts in the fridge for up to 3 weeks!(When you buy the pectin, it has the directions on the back. I bought Ball no cook freezer jam fruit pectin, and these were the instructions they had on the back (in a little more detail of course;) If you buy another kind of pectin, the instructions may be different)

It's easier then it sounds...and it sounds pretty easy!
It's so easy, a cave man can do it! ;)

And seriously, it's the BEST strawberry jam, I've ever had! It tastes so....fresh! Having an english muffin with jam on it, has become a must every morning with my breakfast!It's also very economical!
I used 3 strawberry cartons, which were $1 each, and then I just had to buy the fruit pectin which was $1.50. So for 4 jars of strawberry jam, I spent $4.50!! Dude!

So, if strawberries go on sale where you live, you simply have to make some strawberry freezer jam! K?

The next thing I made with my strawberries, was a strawberry and spinach salad! :I got 1 bag of spinach, about 1/2 a cup of cubed mozzarella, a handful of sliced almonds, and 1 carton of sliced strawberries.

I got the idea to make strawberry dressing from another blog I read.
In a blender, I put in 5 large strawberries cut in half, fresh lemon juice from 1/2 a lemon,
drizzled agave nectar, added a dash of salt, and blended it all together, until it was nice and smooth!

I poured it over my salad, mixed everything together, and dug in! It was so light and fresh, and absolutely yummy!

Strawberries + mozzarella= HEAVEN!!
I had 2 cartons left.
So what did I do?
I dipped em in chocolate of course!I chopped up some semi-sweet chocolate, put it in a bowl, and put it in the microwave for 10 seconds at a time, until it was melted.

I was a little worried about using semi-sweet, since dark chocolate is the only kind of chocolate I don't like. I discovered that dark chocolate with strawberries is the exception! I also only dipped half the strawberry in chocolate to save on calories, but it also made it so the dark chocolate didn't overpower the strawberry.

I put them in the fridge, so I could have a perfect chocolaty, and deliciously healthy, quick snack, whenever I wanted!!

If you have some strawberries and chocolate left over, you should make Ellie Krieger's strawberry and chocolate stuffed french toast! Can you say, yum?!

I heart strawberries...

***

Today was weigh in day!

Today, I'm at 178!!

I already knew I had hit the 178 mark on Friday, when I weighed in for Tammy's weight loss challenge, so I wasn't that surprised this morning. BUT, I'm very excited to be 178!! I made it past my 180 mark (woo hoo), and I lost 2 pounds this week! Yay me!