Run, Dillypoo, Run!

If someone had told me two years ago that I'd not only be running regularly but I'd be doing so in skin-tight leggings, I'd have laughed in their face.

But that's exactly what I did today.

Dillypoo bought a pair of these yesterday:

And was seen in public wearing them this morning. I went to the park and ran two full miles in 20 minutes 11 seconds.

These things are fast!

I bought them because ... brace yourself ... Dillypoo is thinking about running a marathon. It's going to be one of my 2011 goals.

The Cowtown Marathon is at the end of February. If you've been around long enough, you may remember that I walked the 5K portion of the event last year. It was my first.

This year I'm thinking about running it. But not the 5K.

The 10K.

Which means I need to get serious about training. The Professor thinks I'm silly, but I may pay to train with a group.

I could probably do it on my own, but my biggest fear is injury. I don't want to hurt myself and have to cut back or have a set back in this journey.

So, yeah. It took two years, but I've finally left this fat chick behind for good:

Who'd a thunk it?

Toasted

Since Club WW launched it's new PointsPlus program the week after Thanksgiving, a lot of members have been going bananas for bananas. Fruit had a points value on the old system and a lot of folks ignored them in favor of 100 calorie snack packs.

It was a choice Dillypoo never fully understood. I grew up in California. I like fruit.

No, the food that I virtually eliminated from my daily diet was bread.

Dinner rolls, bread sticks, hoagie rolls, hot dog buns, sandwich bread...you name it, I didn't eat it.

For the past two years, I've eaten my hot dogs sans bun. I cut them up like a little kid and dip them in mustard. And The Professor is used to my pulling a Sandwich Thin out of my purse to replace the bun on my burger when we stop for lunch on weekends.

But bread can be good for you, especially whole grain breads, and the new PP system encourages members to eat it.

So Dillypoo has been going gaga for toast these past few weeks:

I've tried a few different brands and I've settled on one: Sara Lee:

I think I'm in love! Toasted tuna sandwiches, toast with Nutella and sliced bananas, cinnamon sugar toast or plain toast with a few squirts of butter spray.

I didn't realize how much I missed sliced bread. Thank you, Weight Watchers, for reminding me that toast is a good thing!

And if you're curious, two slices of the Sara Lee 45 calorie bread is two points. A Sandwich Thin is three points.

I'm Glad That's Over

Is it just me, or do the holidays get weirder every year?

For many, Christmas is a time to gather with family and eat. Recipes used once a year are pulled out and everyone enjoys good food, booze and company. It's tradition.

This year, all I can say is thank goodness for the booze!

The Professor and I went to my brother's house for Christmas brunch yesterday. Unfortunately, we were an hour late because Dillypoo's watch is running slow and I reset it an hour early by mistake.

Those little numbers on the watch dial are getting harder to see as years go by, but I digress. Suffice to say, I need a new watch battery.

Anyhoo, Dillypoo doesn't like to be late, especially at the holidays. It makes her crabby, but I was trying valiantly to put on a happy face even after I realized we were going to miss dinner.

I knew there was probably enough food there to feed a small army. There always is.

Except this year.

This time, my self-confessed control freak sister-in-law delegated portions of the feast to various family members. I applaud her efforts to let go, but yesterday may have been a set back.

She made a fabulous egg and sausage casserole.

Dillypoo was in charge of pie, which almost didn't happen.

Daddypoo was in charge of mashed potatoes, but he incorrectly thought the potatoes would be provided for him to mash and didn't buy a bag of spuds to boil.

Mom was in charge of the ham, but she forgot to put it in the car when she was loading up the gifts.

I repeat. She forgot to bring the ham. The main course ham.

So this was Christmas brunch:

With a side of egg and sausage casserole. And pie.

Luckily, Dillypoo had risen early for a run and had sense enough to eat a bowl of oatmeal afterwards. The Professor, not so much.

We left "brunch" around 3:30 so I could get our Christmas dinner started. But when we got home, I realized my turkey wasn't completely thawed.

It wasn't frozen solid, but I got frostbite prying out the neck and gizzards. My fingers are still a bit numb today.

I had promised The Professor I could cook a 13 pound turkey in 2.5 hours using a bag. Unfortunately, that assumed my bird wasn't partially frozen.

I got him out of bed at 9:30 to carve.

I'm not sure if that bird was so tasty because of my culinary skill with iced poultry or because we were both starving, but we devoured our Christmas dinner in record time.

I can't recall ever being so happy to see Christmas day come to an end.

At least we have enough turkey for sandwiches this week. Maybe I can trade mom and Daddypoo for some ham.

Life Lesson No. 7

When the recipe for a strudel pie topping calls for cold butter, do not use butter that's been sitting on the counter for an hour.

Pie with weird topping is back in the oven, the back door is open and fans are on. Smoke should be cleared soon.

Happy Christmas!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Dillypoo vs. The Cookie

Dillypoo battled The Cookie last week ... and won!

Yesterday was Weigh Day, and despite four holiday parties and running a gauntlet of cookies worthy of Santa and every one of his elves, Dillypoo managed a .4 pound loss!

It was a hard won victory. There were cookies EVERYWHERE last week.

Homemade cookies.

Frosted cookies.

Chocolate cookies.

Cookies with fruit.

Cookies with nuts.

And an enormous gift basket of gourmet cookies.

I ate 16 over a four day period. I could have easily eaten twice that.

It was the first time in a very long time that I struggled against the urge to snack. My Inner Child really wanted to sample every cookie within reach, but I stayed in control.

I permitted myself to enjoy a few cookies at each party, but only a few. Instead of grabbing three of each kind, I chose three or four cookies total.

'Tis the season, after all.

I also made sure I worked out five days out of seven. Last week, I ran for cookies.

I didn't think I would win the battle, though. I was certain that when I stepped on the scale I'd have another gain, that I'd be more than two pounds over goal and have to pay for my Club WW meeting, something I haven't had to do since September.

But my perseverance in fighting The Cookie paid off! I got that scale to move in the right direction again. I'm still over goal, but by only a pound.

Battle Cookie is almost over. Christmas is three days away. Santa will finally come, claim his cookies and take them away.

Grrls Just Wanna Have Fun

Our new baby is settling into the family:

Stella is the first dog I've ever kissed, although I draw the line at face licking. I'm not keen on dog slobber, even from the sweetest dog in the world.

Luckily, she doesn't seem to be much of a licker.

As much as The Professor and I enjoy having her around, her sisters still aren't too thrilled about the situation:

Stella wants to play with them. She and the cats have daily stare down contests and Stella has tried initiating a few games of tag, but they're having nothing to do with her.

There's quite a bit of hissing and grumbling that doesn't sound like purring in the house these days. I heard The Professor warn Stella to stay away from Lucy and Ethel because "they carry razor blades in their feet."

Stella also likes to chew things, specifically hearing aids and The Professor's shoes:

We're working on setting boundaries. She knows not to nibble on my shoes.

We're also still learning to understand each other's language. She's learned "no", "sit" and "heel", and we're working on "stay" and "lie down." We're also trying to learn her signs for "I gotta go" and "I gotta go NOW!"

She peed a river downstairs right before The Professor's stunned eyes. Twice.

And Stella is starting to run with me in the mornings, although my stamina is better than hers. I thought I had a kangaroo at the end of the leash after a mere .5 mile. I learned that insane leaping while running is her way of saying "STOP!"

So we walked the rest of the way.

And last, Stella has a clean bill of health from the doggy doctor. She's gained about four pounds, her cold is gone and she appears to be parasite free. Even the scar on her back from the abuse she received while a stray is healing well (some asshole burned her with a cigar!!!).

I'm so in love!

The Cans for Comments drive is over! Thanks to everyone who left a comment. I collected 40 cans, a count that we decided to double:

Thank you! As hoped for, my grocery cart runneth over!

How many more shopping days until Christmas?

The Professor realized today that Christmas is next week. He seems a little panicked, too.

The Professor: "Holy crap! Christmas is next week!"

Dillypoo: "Yes, dear, it happens on the 25th day of December every year."

The Professor: "Ha ha. What do you want?"

This is always a dangerous question to ask. The answer means he may have to risk going to the mall or search the interwebs for some unknown oddity.

Dillypoo: "A pair of boots and a magic wand tee vee remote."

Both of his worst shopping nightmares realized!

My list isn't in much better shape. You may notice that the only things under our tree are a banana and a bowl of apples. Dillypoo will also be busy this weekend taking care of her shopping list.

At least we only have each other and our nieces and nephews to shop for. The grown ups in the family agreed last year to make donations to charity instead of buying everyone gifts.

It saves us all some cash, gives money to worthy causes that need it and lets us focus on spoiling treating the kiddos.

That doesn't help with the calendar, though, because, holy crap! Christmas is next week and I haven't bought anything for The Professor!

There's also only two more days for you to leave a comment for a can of food!

Hip Hop Kitsch

Dillypoo and The Professor went to a dance recital tonight:

The smiling child in the blue shirt is my little cousin. She and her friends just finished their hip hop routine, and it was a riot.

Because watching little girls dance is kind of like watching little boys play baseball. There's a lot of wandering around, confused looks and awkward stances:

The weeks of practice and hours spent shopping for neon hair extensions and bedazzled sneakers culminate in three minutes of forgotten choreography.

I loved every minute of it.

And not just because one of my favorite little dancers was dancing, but because the recital was held in a place I thought existed only in the memory of kitschy Americana:

An Elks Lodge! Who knew they were still around? I thought they were part of a bygone era, like men's only golf courses and Oldsmobiles.

They even had antlers on the wall:

And an electric Santa flying from the ceiling:

The tackiness was truly spectacular. I was mesmerized by the surroundings and deafened by the blown speakers in the room's sound system.

And just when I thought the evening couldn't get any more entertaining, the world's oldest cloggers took the stage:

Average age of this dance line: 85.

I think I found a new hobby for my mom and Daddypoo.

Don't forget! I extended the Cans for Comments deadline to December 18, so please leave a comment on this or any post and make my grocery cart runneth over when I go shopping this weekend.

Points Challenged

Dillypoo is not happy.

I've been doing Weight Watcher's new PointsPlus plan for two weeks now and I'm gaining.

Yes, I had one day of excessive drinking and yes, I had four pieces of See's Candy. But I thought I was doing pretty good at being good the rest of the time.

Apparently not.

I spoke to my ClubWW leader after the meeting tonight and gave her printouts of my last two week's journals. She's going to give them a peek and let me know what she thinks is going on.

But I suspect I'm eating too many points, even though I think I've made healthy changes since starting the new program.

I'm tracking daily. I've cut out almost all processed foods. I'm eating my fruits and veggies. I'm exercising.

I'm 1.4 pounds over goal.

I have two holiday parties this week, tickets to see The Nutcracker on Sunday (which will probably include lunch before or dinner after) and Christmas is next week. I need to plan better and decide what is more important: eating a tasty treat that's probably out of my points range, or staying the course to move the scale in the other direction.

This is just another reminder that my journey is not over because I reached goal. Staying there is going to be a struggle at times. A struggle with that petulant Inner Child who won't go away.

Inner Child Dillypoo: "Let's check out the dessert tables before making a final decision about those parties."

Grown Up Dillypoo: "Bad Dillypoo!"

Inner Child Dillypoo: "You can run some more. It's not that cold out."

Grown Up Dillypoo: "That's not the way it works and you know it!"

Inner Child Dillypoo: "But it's Christmas! I want chocolate."

Grown Up Dillypoo: "I want skinny thighs."

I'm rooting for Grown Up Dillypoo.

I extended the Cans for Comments deadline to December 18, so please leave a comment on this or any post and make my grocery cart runneth over when I go shopping this weekend.

Lazy Sunday

Dillypoo is taking a cue from the cats this morning:

We're not in any hurry to get moving.

I'm still recuperating from a day of holiday cheer on Friday. I took the day off from work to enjoy some time with good friends, food and wine.

Mostly wine. And a Bloody Mary. Or two. And maybe some champagne.

Dillypoo sometimes forgets that she isn't a big drinker, but it was all in good fun.

Although I think I owe Kathy an apology for calling her dog a nutria. I blame the booze! Your pooch is darling.

I need to get up, tho. I have laundry to wash, a tree to decorate and cookies to bake. I've a busy day ahead.

Just as soon as these cats get off my lap.

Just a few more days for you to leave a comment and send me grocery shopping! Just post a comment on this or any post by December 15, and I'll donate a can of food to my local food bank.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Fairy Lights

Dillypoo and The Professor spent this evening looking at Christmas lights with the family. We do this at least once a year. We pile in Mama's sleigh van, crank up the Christmas music and head towards some destination lauded in the paper or the interwebs for it's display of holiday cheer and fairy lights.

We saw trains:

And horse drawn carriages:

And a giant blue tree:

We got out and walked around in the cold:

And then went to Starbucks for hot chocolate and coffee.

It's these moments that make the holidays special. Spending time with family, getting silly and giggling for a few hours.

Happy holidays!

Don't forget that for every comment I receive on this or any other post by December 15, I'll donate one can of food to my local food bank. So please leave a comment and send me to the grocery store!

Life Lesson No. 6

Don't leave your brand new, $2700 digital hearing aid lying around where your brand new dog can find it.

Guess I'll be using the one-time replacement insurance for loss, theft or damage. Can't wait to call the doctor tomorrow and let him know that the dog ate my hearing aid.

Don't forget that for every comment I receive on this or any other post by December 15, I'll donate one can of food to my local food bank. So please leave a comment and send me to the grocery store!

Weigh Day Distraction

If it's Tuesday, then it's Weigh Day.

Dillypoo tries to eat really well on Tuesdays. I avoid heavy meals at lunch and drink extra fluids throughout the day. I don't like to confuse the scales with a lot of sushi or a Subway sandwich.

I want the scale to weigh me, not lunch, and there are very few things that can sway my resolve on Weigh Day.

A ginormous box of See's Candy is one of those things:

I've had three pieces. So far.

My apologies if you're looking for the dark chocolate caramels.

Don't forget that for every comment I receive on this or any other post by December 15, I'll donate one can of food to my local food bank. So please leave a comment and send me to the grocery store!

Brrrrr!

Mother Nature is testing me again. It's supposed to be 31 degrees at 6:00 tomorrow morning.

Will Dillypoo run? Or will Dillypoo hide under the electric blanket?

Maybe if I stop looking at LOL pets and go to bed I'll be more inclined to get out of it in the morning, no matter how frigid the temperature.

Don't forget that for every comment I receive on this or any other post by December 15, I'll donate one can of food to my local food bank. So please leave a comment and send me to the grocery store!

PointsPlus

Club WW pulled a fast one last week and changed up their program. They introduced the PointsPlus plan the week after Thanksgiving, to the horror of many a member and the 100 calorie snack pack food industry.

Dillypoo, however, was pretty excited about it. The higher powers at WW headquarters must be reading my blog because they finally had the same epiphany I did earlier this year: not all calories are equal. A 100 calorie pack of Cheetos is not the same as a 100 calorie banana.

It's The Crap Theory mathematically manipulated into a system that encourages healthy eating over processed crap.

(Yes, Dillypoo did just take credit for PointsPlus. Ha!)

In fact, the "C" word (calories) isn't even part of the equation any more. It's all about nutritional value -- points are now based on fat, fiber, carbs and protein -- and fruits and vegetables can be devoured all day long without spending any precious points on them.

Because nobody ever got fat eating too many strawberries. Or apples. Or bananas.

So I decided to jump on the PP bandwagon and try out the new program. Dillypoo needed a challenge to pique my interest, which has been waning a bit since reaching goal. Tracking in my food journal has been less than stellar the past few weeks.

That also means I decided to finally utilize my $12.95 per month WW eTools subscription. It was the easiest way to access all of the new program information without dropping another paycheck on new pocket guides, journals and other gadgets.

It took the better part of a loooong lunch on Thursday to enter in 23 months of weigh-in data, but it was worth it because I got to see my journey mapped out like this:

Pretty neat, huh?

And I've been tracking my points through my iPhone, which is easier than I thought it'd be. I like seeing my extra activity points rack up:

I've already noticed that I'm thinking twice before opening a snack bag to curb the munchies, which is the whole point of the new program. Since last Tuesday, I've eaten my way through a package of fresh blackberries, most of a box of red grapes, one bunch of bananas and half of a bag of apples. I even paid $10 for a bag of out-of-season cherries. And though I may be giving up bags of chocolate dipped graham crackers and chewy granola bars, I'm keeping my beloved VitaTops and Cheezits.

Because life isn't worth living without my muffins and Cheezits.

Weigh Day is Tuesday. We'll learn then if I followed the new plan properly. In the meantime...

Don't forget that for every comment I receive on this or any other post by December 15, I'll donate one can of food to my local food bank. So please leave a comment and send me to the grocery store!

Cans for Comments

Did you know that 1 in 6 Americans is hungry tonight?

Did you know that 14 million children live in homes that are considered "food insecure?"

Did you know that more than 49 million Americans do not have access to enough food because of limited funds and resources?

Did you know that you can help?

It's easy. You can make a donation to Feeding America. You can give groceries to your local food bank. And you can post a comment on my blog.

For every comment I receive on any blog post between today and December 15, I will donate one can of food to my local food bank.

So leave a comment! Help end hunger.