Grilled Eggplant Parmagiana AND Other big News!

Another recipe, twice in one week!  I know, crazy!  But was so easy, so good, and low in points.  I couldn't resist posting it.

I've been craving eggplant parmagiana, but, number one, obviously didn't want to do the breaded and fried eggplant, and secondly, didn't want to light the oven because it's been so awful hot here!
But I did have a few eggplant from the garden that I needed to do something with.


So last night, I got out the indoor electric grill.  I sliced the eggplants in half-inch slices, sprayed both sides of the grill and the eggplant with cooking spray, seasoned with salt and pepper, drizzled a tiny, tiny bit of olive oil over each slice and then grilled until done.


Then I layered a slice of eggplant, a tablespoon of jarred spaghetti sauce, fresh basil from the garden, a tablespoon of shredded part-skim mozzarella, a teaspoon of shredded romano cheese, and then another layer of those ingredients on top.  Placed it on a piece of foil and took it over to the toaster oven.

Set the toaster oven to like 400 degrees and let it bake in there (really don't know how long it took, maybe 15, 20 minutes), until it was all melty and brown on top.

Oh, my gosh, it was so good!  I can't wait to make these again.  And only came to like 3 or 4 points.

The other big news is I made the commitment official.  I am now registered to run my first full marathon in November.... and now wondering whether I'm a little crazy. I guess I am!  But excited at the new challenge.  

Recipe!!! Tuna Stuffed Tomatoes

Been a long time since I posted a recipe.  Why not today, right?


Lunch today - Tuna Stuffed Tomatoes.  

These are tomatoes from our garden.  We call them "golf ball tomatoes" because they're the size of a golf ball.  Also in the salad, Hellman's light mayo, fresh chives, celery, chopped radish, chopped sweet pickle, and a little fresh ground pepper.



The WW recipe builder says 6 PP, although the ingredients add up to 5 PP.  I'm tracking it as 5.

Decisions...Decisions...

I went to bed last night with a plan for today, my usual Saturday plan.  Wake up at 7:00, one cup of coffee, get showered and dressed and hit my weekly Weight Watchers meeting, then home to work for a few hours this afternoon.

Woke up this morning and don't want to go.  Just don't want to.  Feeling very, very sleepy.  Would like to just sit around for a few hours and enjoy the entire pot of coffee, wander around the vegetable garden to see what needs to be picked, and then get to work.

Would it hurt to skip a meeting just because?  I'm Lifetime.  I don't need to check in every week, although I am battling right now to get back to a lower weight.  But I am doing everything right, and I could hit a meeting during the week, AND there is a meeting during the week that I've been wanting to check out.

There, I think I just made my decision.  Second cup of coffee,  here I come!

Don't Put Obstacles In Your Way!

So I had a conversation with someone yesterday that really struck a chord with me.  After I hung up the phone, I thought, wow, that's my next blog post!

My friend, Aimee, talked me into registering for a New Jersey running event called the Sea Isle 10-miler.  It's down at the "Jersey Shore", and obviously, is a 10-mile run, about 7 or so miles of which is on the beach.  I've only run on the beach once so far, and that was only a mile.

So anyway, in the phone conversation, this person told me when she found out I was doing this event, she said, "She's lost her mind".  Now, it wasn't meant to be said in a mean way, just that she knows how difficult that run will be.

My response was this.  Why?  What's the worst thing that could happen?  I end up walking on the beach, right?  So how can that be bad?  I LOVE walking on the beach.

And then I said this.  Remember, my goal is to run a full marathon.  I AM NOT going to put obstacles in front of me by saying I CAN'T DO a 10-mile run on the beach.  If I put that obstacle in front of me, what's next?  Saying I CAN'T DO a full marathon?

Now, I know there are things I cannot control that may prevent me from running, but I REFUSE to let a self-imposed obstacle be one of them.

Kicking and Screaming...

Once in a while, I have to drag myself kicking and screaming to get out there and run.  This morning was one of those mornings.

Original plan was to run tonight with a friend, but due to scheduling issues, that's getting rescheduled.  Since it's still going to be warm tonight, I decided late last night to set the alarm and get my run in early.  Alarm went off, and I had absolutely no desire to get up.  After a few minutes, I realized that this is what I chose to do and I was not going to give it up.

Should have been out the door by 6:30 a.m., but it was almost 7:00 by the time I got out.  I still had this little thought in my mind that maybe I should just relax, have my coffee in the garden and get to work.

But I fought that desire and stuck to my plan.  This is what I wanted.  This is the choice I made.  Stick to it.  Don't give in to temptation (wish I could do that with ice cream).

Finally got out, put the music on, and started.  My legs felt like lead for the first few miles, but then I eased into a nice pace and finished what I set out to do.

And I feel good knowing that I stuck to my plan and accomplished my goal this morning.  

Do you have those days when you battle with yourself to get out there and get it done?  What are your secrets to fighting those demons and motivating yourself?

Getting Back to the Sweet Spot

Good morning and HAPPY 4TH OF JULY...okay, and Happy Birthday to me!!!

Before I get out early this morning for a run, I wanted to update my blog and "come clean".  I am feeling very frustrated.  I gained a few pounds in the past few weeks as a result of not paying close enough attention (or any attention at all) while my Mom was visiting.   It always happens.  Every time I'm visiting with Mom, whether she's here or I'm at her house, I gain a few pounds.

But now I'm really struggling to "get it back".  I am now a few pounds above goal and a few more pounds away from "the sweet spot".  The sweet spot for me is my comfort zone, where my clothes are loose fitting, I didn't feel or look "puffy" and where I had a little cushion between my current weight and goal weight.

I am battling back.  This week is tough.  Big picnic last weekend, July 4th, birthday week, big picnic this coming weekend, and also our wedding anniversary.   But I know what to do and I am doing it, and I know that I will get back to that sweet spot, hopefully sooner rather than later.

So how am I dealing with it?  Well, I am dealing with it.  That's the answer.   I know what the answer is.  I am tracking "everything", drinking lots of water, eating lots of fresh fruit and veggies, and getting in lots of activity.  I normally wouldn't run three days in a row, but Monday and Tuesday, I just felt like I needed to move, and this morning I am going for a short run alone for my birthday.  It's sort of like my birthday gift to myself.  I might make it an annual thing, before any parading or barbecuing, the usual 4th of July stuff, I will go out and run (because I can) to remember where I was in life physically and where I am now.  I hope that ten years from now, I will celebrating my 10th Annual Birthday Run!