Skinny Cinnamon Rolls

Happy New Year's Eve!!!

I know a lot of you are making your resolutions to be healthier in 2013, well just because you're being healthier does not mean you can't indulge is some yummy but health-ish treats! Like my Skinny Cinnamon Rolls! I'm making them today, it gives me a feeling like I'm being "bad" but they aren't bad at all! Only 2 points per roll, and there is only 3 grams of added sugar per roll as well! YUM!!


Ingredients:
1/4 oz yeast
1/4 cup  and 1/2 cup warm water
2 cups flour (I used King Arthur's Unbleached All Purpose)
3 TBSP Light Brown Sugar
1/2 cup oatmeal (I used old fashioned oats)
2 TBSP sweetener (I used Splenda, if you want to use real sugar the points will be different)
2 TBSP non-fat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

Filling:
2 TSP cinnamon
1/3 cup sweetener (again I used Splenda)
1 TBSP Olivo (or any butter or butter substitute)

Mix 1/4 oz yeast with 1/4 cup warm water, mix well and let rise  for about 10 minutes.

As that's rising mix in a large bowl mix 1 1/2 cups of flour, 1/2 cup of oatmeal, 3  TBSP brown sugar, 2 TBSP Splenda, and 1 TSP salt. Mix well.

Add 2 TBSP Greek yogurt and 1/4 cup applesauce. Once your yeast has been rising for 10 minutes add the yeast/water mixture and 1/2 cup of warm water.

Mix very well to form soft dough, if you need to add more flour do so. I added maybe 1/4 cup.

 

On a floured surface knead the dough for about 5 minutes. (The dough is going to be very sticky...you have been warned!)

Spray a large clean bowl with cooking spray, put your ball of freshly kneaded dough in and flip it over once or twice so it is coated with the cooking spray. Then cover and place in a warm spot. Let it rise for an hour, it should double in size.

While you're waiting you could be like me and do your dishes   play on Pinterest!

After your dough is done rising, spread it into a rectangle on a floured surface. Mix your cinnamon and Splenda together.

Spread melted butter onto your dough, and sprinkle on your cinnamon and Splenda mixture.

 

Roll your dough and then cut into 12 equal sections.

Place the 12 rolls into a greased 9X13 pan. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes to an hour.

After they've risen put them in a 375 degree preheated oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

 

 

Let cool and enjoy!!

*Now I didn't put any icing on them because I didn't want the extra points or all that sugar, but I'm sure they'd taste even better with icing!

is it your weigh in day?



Is it your weigh in day?? If so this might be helpful...

 

 

 

 

source

 

I saw this on Pinterest this morning and could not stop laughing! If only it was this easy!



Christmas Recap..

I had such a wonderful time this Christmas (it was more of a week of Christmas), we traveled a lot but it was so worth it. I was able to see the majority of our family and a few friends.

It was a really laid back time, very busy with lots of full houses, but it wasn't stressful (that much) which made it even nicer.

This was the second year my family did "Secret Santa", the adults all pick a name from a hat and we get that one person a gift, we make the limit around $25, none of us really need anything, and it's not about the presents. I should also note we can't keep it Secret Santa, our whole family figures out who has who very quickly.

I'm very thankful KBeaner was very spoiled this year with love and a lot of awesome gifts. Our family and friends are so generous. She was so excited for all the gifts, although I'm pretty sure she'd have been just as happy to open wrapped boxes that had nothing in them.

I hope you had a great time as well. Here are some pictures...



 

 

 

KBeaner opening her "Pillow Pet" I made for her. When opening it she said "*gasp* a pillow pet!!"

 

 

Playing with her new make up kit and giving Minnie a make over.

 

Enjoy her new tea cart! She kept singing "tea for two"

The big gain..

It's weigh in day and if you can't tell from this post's title... I gained this week.

3 pounds.

Ugh.

No excuses though, I did it to myself. I took advantage of it being the holidays. I didn't eat enough veggies and fruit, I ate crappy food a few too many times, I had a few drinks, and I didn't always measure out my food. I also didn't always track my points, I told myself I could just keep track in my head and be fine. Yeah... no.

I also didn't exercise as much as I normally do, I had chances to do some exercise, but I didn't take those few minutes here and there.

Oh well, I just need to get back on track. Proof that weight watchers works if you use it correctly, and if you don't you'll gain. Today is a new day, I am going to track and measure everything! I'm going to try and exercise this week as well, as long as my sciatica isn't bothering me.

I'm going to post a Christmas recap later on, I had an amazing time! I hope you all had a great holiday as well!!

weigh in

Hey everyone!

Last Wednesday was weigh in and I'm down to 161!! That's 2 lbs lost!!!

As always I'm so excited, this week I'm also surprised, I worked out a little bit at the end of last week but then my sciatica was bothering me so I wasn't exercising.  I'm thrilled that having a healthy (mostly) diet has helped me lose even if I did not exercise.

This past week I've been crafting a lot for Christmas presents, I can't show any pictures yet, but after Christmas I'll post a ton!

I know a lot of people will say "TMI Jill" but I don't care ... I've also been working very hard on getting KBeaner potty trained, she was doing pretty well, 2 days in a row of no accidents, then a few accidents the past couple days. Potty training is the worst! At least we are saving money not buying diapers, although the past few months we have gone through a lot of carpet cleaner! haha. I downloaded a free Pull Ups app for potty training, that seemed to help. The potty "calls" you and then it plays music while they are using the potty and they get a sticker when they go, and if they get 9 stickers they get a game. It worked better than using the kitchen timer.


Sorry I don't have any pictures but I promise to put some new ones up. I'm visiting my family, and as you all know the holiday season can be a little hectic.

Hope you have a wonderful holiday!!

100 pounds lost!

It's official I have lost 100 lbs since January 2010!!! I lost one pound today making me 163lbs! I realized today that since May I have lost 37 lbs! That's a lot in 6 months! I feel amazing and so proud of myself, and thankful for all the support from friends and family.

I am so thankful to that day when something in my head clicked and I knew I had to change my lifestyle, and start this journey. Sometimes it is hard, sometimes I want to quit and say screw it, but I remember how far I've come. Yes dieting is hard, but so is being overweight and not being healthy. I think that is harder than dieting and exercising.

This week I made myself get back to the basics, I've been working on getting at least 64 oz of water in a day and trying to get all my fruit and vegetable servings in. The little extra changes I made this week obviously helped because I'd been maintaining for the past few weeks.

P.S. Sorry I didn't take a picture of me but yesterday I was wicked sleep deprived (which is why I didn't post) and today I'm being lazy.

ACCOUNTABLE

Hold yourself accountable.

I think that is a huge part of any weight loss journey. It’s hard to hear but you have to get serious about it, and get hard on yourself at times. At least that has been one of the “secrets” to my success. 

I feel like (and I know) it’s easy to just tell yourself I’ll start tomorrow or I don’t have to journal that piece of candy, or I’m too tired to workout (I’ve been using that last one a little too much lately… guilty!) You need to tell yourself “I AM going to stay on track today” or even a smaller goal like “ I AM going to journal what I eat, even if it isn’t ‘good’” or “I AM going to have an extra fruit or veggie.”  Say that to yourself and do it!

 I’m not going to lie, it’s going to be hard but you can do it, it will get easier and become second nature.  Although some days or weeks it will be hard again, but you just need to keep pushing yourself. The results of becoming healthier and losing weight is amazing, I feel wonderful physically and mentally.  Those feelings start after only a few pounds! It’s a great, empowering feeling to know that you can do this, you are in charge of yourself, and are making healthy decisions for yourself.  

Something that has been very helpful for me is journaling what I eat. Since I do weight watchers I keep track of my daily points, and weekly points in a notebook. I also keep track of how much water, fruits and veggies I’ve had and how much exercise I’ve done.  Whenever I eat or drink something I track it! Then I know how many points I’ve used and how much I have left for the day. For me this stops mindless eating.

my journal

 

Even if you are not doing weight watchers I highly recommend food journaling for a week or even a few days, or even one day!  Just try it!

Another way that has helped is holding yourself accountable by talking with friends and family about your journey. If you tell someone you are going to work out later you are much more likely to actually work out. At least for me I don’t want to let people down, I want to prove to people that you can do this and that it’s not that hard (well not all of the time) and that I am actually doing this and will do this.  Part of the reason I have this blog is that it holds me accountable; I know it doesn’t get a ton of views and I only have a few followers but that is enough to keep me accountable. I have come so far and hopefully I am inspiring others to become healthier,  I can’t just take a “break” from my weight watchers plan and eat whatever I want, if I did that I feel like I’d be letting myself down and you.  I’m not going to lie and say I eat perfectly all of the time, I don’t, and I eat in moderation. Sometimes I eat things that are not that healthy for me but when I do I always track it and write it down.

I know it’s the holiday season, it’s hard to stay on track or to get started, and a lot of people say well I’ll just give up and start over in the New Year. How many times have you said that? I know I used to say that all of the time. Why not start now? Looking back I wish I had started this a long time ago, I didn’t because I think I was too afraid to try and fail. Well I feel like you can’t fail if you are trying.

Take it one day at a time, one meal at a time… one craving at a time. You can do this, trust me if I can do this YOU can do it!

 

Here's some inspiration...

 

source:fitabcities.com

 

 

Maintaining...again

 Hey it's weigh in day and I'm happy so say I'm the same weight...although I'd be happier to say I had lost weight. Just one more pound and I'll have lost 100! I need to keep reminding myself I didn't gain weight so I should be ecstatic!

Even though I didn't lose weight I've had some non-scale victories. I'm wearing size medium yoga pants right now, so comfy and they are not overly tight (which for me is exciting). My sweater dress I bought last year fits and actually looks good! I've wanted a sweater dress for so long but could never find one that did not accentuate parts that I did not want accentuated.

I also saw some people I have not seen in awhile, they noticed my weight loss and complimented me on it. That is always the best feeling! I know sometimes people don't want to say to someone "have you lost weight? you look good!" for fear that the person will be offended, I can't speak for all women out there but I'm pretty sure everyone loves hearing that!

my sweater dress!

 

I was also nice to myself and had my eyebrows waxed, its those little things that make me feel happy and better about myself!

Princess KBeaner is now more of a princess with her new crown and clip on earings! She is loving them! I'm pretty sure she would wear them to bed if she could!

Princess KBeaner in front of our Christmas tree (yes its a fake but I still love it!)

 

This weekend we did some cotton ball crafts (aka playing with glue and cotton balls), KBeaner had so much fun!

 

The finished projects

 

 

These are KBeaners first stick figure drawings!! Future artist? I think so!

 

Hope you're all having a great week so far!

Felt Christmas Tree

Last year I made KBeaner a Felt Christmas Tree since we weren't going to be around most of December I didn't want to get a tree and just have her pulling at it, so I made her own tree she could play with. She loved it!

This year I made her some different "ornaments" since I couldn't find the ones from last year.

KBeaners Felt Christmas Tree!

The Felt Christmas Tree is so cute, and most importantly sooo easy!! Felt sticks to felt so the kids can decorate and un-decorate the tree as much as  they like!

I made some of the "ornaments" with my sewing machine, but I also added detail to other ones with puffy paint.

This was a quick and easy project that has made hours of fun for KBeaner!

 

Decorating and un-decorating...

Popsicle Stick Snowflakes

It's the holiday season!! Which means fun holiday crafts!!

Yesterday my friend Julie and I were inspired by Pinterest to make Popsicle Stick Snowflakes. This is the original tutorial, we didn't follow the tutorial though, we just looked at these pictures from Pinterest.

So armed with a hot glue gun and an obscene amount of Popsicle sticks we got to work!

Julie showing off her snowflakes!

Then since our play date was over (aka the kids were getting cranky) Julie took the snowflakes home and painted them. She found it would be easier to paint your Popsicle sticks first before gluing them together.

The beautiful finished project!

 

*So I made one too but KBeaner broke it this afternoon...so I'll post pics of it after I fix it.

Maintain

Today is weigh in day, I maintained, which I'm pretty pumped about it. I made it through the first big holiday and didn't gain. Now just to get through the rest of the holiday season without gaining. I think I can do it. I know I could probably lose more weight if I was trying harder. I am obviously trying hard but not as hard as I had been before, the past month or so I've slacked on exercise, I have stayed on track with weight watchers and have tracked everything I ate even when I eat almost all of my extra weekly points. I know if I worked out more and didn't eat as many extra weekly points, I'd probably see a larger weight loss.

I keep getting this feeling though thats saying "relax its the holidays, you've come so far already..." I don't want to fall back into my old habits though so I can't relax too much, I am going to keep tracking all the food that I eat. 

What are some things you do when you're starting to feel like getting lax on your diet/workout routine?

I think I might head over to Pinterest to get some motivation! I love all the Fit-spiration on there. If you want to see what I'm pinning follow my boards by clicking here.

I guess I just need to keep looking at every  day as a new day to challenge myself, to make better choices and to be a better example for my daughter.

Thanksgiving weekend

Hope every one's Thanksgiving went well! Mine did! I followed my game plan, and stayed on track.
My family and I went on a walk after the meal, I even ran for a little bit of the walk. While on the walk I met up with one of my friends who was also on a walk so I visited with her for a little bit but my family kept going, so I ran maybe 2/10th of a mile to catch up to them. I know that is not a long distance what so ever, but for me it was a big deal! I don't usually run, and when I have in the past I don't make it very far, or very fast. I don't think I ran that fast, but it was fast for me, and even though I was winded after, I had made it farther than I normally would have. It was an empowering feeling!

Other than that I did not work out that much this week other than running around and playing outside or at the playground with KBeaner and my nieces and nephews.

At the park

Very excited after a ride down the big slide!

I made an exciting discovery yesterday when folding my laundry (I know laundry and excitement?!) I was folding my black dress pants that a friend had given to me and I realized they are a size 8!!! For some reason I kept thinking that they were size 10, I was so stinking excited when I realized they are a size 8! SINGLE DIGITS!! It's been more than a decade that I've been able to wear a single digit size pair of pants! I just need to get into single digit size jeans, now that will be a HUGE deal!

My size 8 pants!

My  parents this week also bought KBeaner her first pet...a beautiful Betta fish! Her name is Pluto, haha KBeaner has had an obsession with the Mickey Mouse Club House lately.

Pluto the Betta fish

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! I hope you're having an amazing day with friends and family.

Yesterday was my weigh in, I am down another pound!!! That's 99 lbs since January 2010. Can't complain about that!

Anyways in the spirit of Thanksgiving I'm going to give thanks..

I'm thankful for a lot of things this year, every year I am thankful for my wonderful family and friends, my amazing fiance and my beautiful daughter.

This year I am thankful also for things related to weight loss.

Thank you...

• Weight Watchers
• Feeling and being healthy
• My new found confidence
• Being able to run around easily and play with my daughter
• My willpower (I didn't think I had that until this past April).
• All of the people who support me.
• You...reading my blog, it holds me accountable.

Woo Hoo 164 lbs!!

I hope you have an amazing thanksgiving!!

Getting Crafty

I've been busy sewing lately. Its fun and it  distracts me from mindless eating. Here are a few things I've been making. Let me know if anyone wants a tutorial on any of these.

 

First here is a Car Holder that I made for my friend's son, I also made one for my nephew but I forgot to take a picture of it.

This is how it looks when its all opened up. Four pockets for cars.

And how you fold it up...

And all folded up! (I forgot to snip some threads before taking pictures)

 

 

Here is KBeaner's new Tutu Skirt! She loves it and it was perfect for dance class.

 

 

Travel Size Tissue Holder

This one might be my favorite, I've already made about 7 of these in different fabrics for family and friends. I love it because I always need tissues for KBeaner when I'm out, but I hate having them thrown in my purse or pockets, and I refuse to buy those small packets of tissues, they're a waste of money! This way I can have a travel pack of them that is cute, and saves money!

 

 

Thanksgiving Day Game Plan

I've decided that if I make a game plan for Thanksgiving I'm less likely to over indulge. I'm excited yet nervous about all the delicious food that will be around.

So far here is my game plan...

First, I'll eat a healthy but filling breakfast. Probably Blueberry Muffin Oatmeal, that way I will be full but won't be using a ton of points.

I plan on drinking a lot of water through out the day and during the meal.

I will eat a ton of veggies and fruit, good for me and filling.  I'm making Roasted Green Bean "Fries" the only point is for the 1 teaspoon of olive oil and that would only be one point if you ate the whole batch. I don't plan on doing that since I have to share with my family, but they are so good that I probably could eat all of them. (I'll try to remember to take pics and make a recipe for it on here).

My Mom makes this amazing frozen pea salad, it has a lot of veggies but also mayo and cheese. I think I'm going to make a smaller size one for me where I can make a lighter version of the salad, and then I'll know the points for it as well.

I'm also bringing measuring cups to the table with me! I want to be able to eat what I want, but I also want to keep the serving sizes in check, it is a holiday but that's not a reason to over eat. This will probably be the first thanksgiving where I do not feel overly stuffed after the meal. I plan to feel happily full and satisfied.

Do you have a game plan yet? Either way, enjoy your thanksgiving!!

Weigh in ramble

Hey everyone! Sorry it’s been awhile, I was visiting family and friends the past week. 

Last Wednesday my weigh in went very well, 165 lbs! That’s another 2 pounds down!! Yesterday I weighed in and I maintained. Thank goodness, this past week I struggled with making positive food choices. Although I kept track of  everything I ate, I ate foods that weren’t the healthiest, I had way too many granola bars, I had burgers twice (my dad makes an amazing burger), and I didn’t eat enough  fruits and veggies. 

 

This past week was the first week that I ate every single one of my extra weekly points. Honestly I thought about just saying "screw it" on Tuesday night and eating over my extra points thankfully, I took a second to think about it and decided not to cheat!

I'm trying really hard to be on my "A" game this week, since next week is Thanksgiving.  It's lucky that my weigh in day is Wednesday so my extra weekly points starts over right before Thanksgiving. I'm going to make a post about my eating game plan in a few days, this way its out for everyone to see, and I can't back out of it and eat a bunch of stuffing... mmmm... ok back on track.

Last week I realized that I only have to lose 10 more pounds to have a normal/healthy BMI! 155 is the highest weight you can have and still be classified as having a normal/healthy BMI (for women my height and age). I honestly have no idea when I was last considered having a healthy and normal weight! I'm very excited for these next 10 pounds to come off. I realize the closer I get to my ideal weight (which I haven't decided the number yet) the harder it will be to lose weight. Even when I get to my ideal weight I know it will be hard to stay there, but I have committed myself to this lifestyle change, there is no going back!!

Thanks for reading my ramble!!

Here's a pic of me at 165lbs!!

Those are my new jeans... SIZE 10!!!!!

Halloween pics... a little late!

Sorry this is late, I just realized that I never put up pictures of KBeaner's Halloween costume!!

She was a mermaid! I made all of her costume (except for the onesie). The whole thing only cost $12!!

 

Showing off her costume! Notice that amazing trick or treat bag? My friend Julie made one for her daughter and KBeaner. So cute!

 

 

And here are our pumpkins! KBeaner is doing her "spooOOOooky" look!

 

Hope you all had a good Halloween!

Quick Workouts

The last few weeks I've been lazy at working out. These are my excuses...
My daughter was sick
Then I was sick
Then my back hurt.

Well I think my back started hurting because I was not being active enough. I've had sciatica issues on and off since 2004, since losing weight its been a lot better. I think it also helps that I'm much more active.

Anyways I started working out again on Saturday. Since I'm a (mostly) stay at home mom and my fiance works a lot I don't get to go to the gym. I mean I'm sure if I tried really hard I could figure out a way to go to the gym but I don't want to spend money on a sitter for KBeaner and I don't want to give up family time.  So since I don't go to the gym, and I'm not a runner, I use workout DVDs.

I'm lucky that I was given the Zumba DVDs as a present (I would have never bought them on my own, I'm too cheap). I also do  Jillian Micheal's 30 Day Shred, you can buy the individual DVDs for only $10 at Target. It gets really boring only doing a few different DVDs everyday though.

When I first started getting into working out again a friend of mine introduced me to Blogilates. A Pilates instructor, Cassey Ho, puts up different workouts onto Youtube (here is a direct link to her You Tube Channel) I love her videos because they aren't too long, challenging and most importantly fun! She has these fun song challenges my favorite is the Call Me Maybe Squat Challenge. The challenges are only as long as a song and like all her videos they are free. There is really no excuse not to workout, who cannot find 4 minutes here and 4 minutes there. If you do 5 of them a day that's 20 minutes of exercise! Even if you just do 4 minutes..that's 4 more minutes than you normally would have done!

I've only done the Blogilates videos and some from Live Strong Woman, but I'm sure there are tons of other workout programs that are available on YouTube.

I hope you check out some of those videos if you're feeling like you're in a workout rut or you're looking to start working out. They really helped me.

Banana Nut Oatmeal and weigh in

Happy Halloween everyone!!

Today is my weigh in day and I lost one pound! I'm very pumped for that one pound since the past couple weeks I have not been working out. Even though I have not been working out I have been tracking all the food I've eaten, even though I have been eating a lot (probably because I haven't been working out) I went way into my extra weekly points this past week. I did however work on getting my 5 cups of fruits and vegetables in every day. Most of the days I get in about 4 servings. I feel better when I eat more fruits and vegetables, so I am going to continue to work on getting all 5 servings a day!

Here is an easy and tasty way to get a serving of fruit in...

Banana Nut Oatmeal (inspired by Banana Nut Bread)

Ingredients
1/2 c  dried oatmeal
1 c water
1 banana (sliced)
1 tbsp almonds (or nut of choice)
1 tsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
dash of ground ginger

Cook oatmeal as directed on package, then add your banana slices, almonds, brown sugar, cinnamon and ground sugar. Stir well and Enjoy!

I love making my oatmeal this way, so fast,easy and fills me up! I like that I get a fruit serving in and some protein for only 5 points! I hope you enjoy your Banana Nut Oatmeal.

Have a safe and Happy Halloween!

Products that Help with Weight Loss

There are a lot of products that can help with weight loss. I'm not talking diet pills and magic potions, but different tools to help you have a healthier lifestyle.

Here's a list of some my favorites that I use all the time (I've linked these to Amazon to give you an idea, but obviously any brand works)



Food Scale- I use my food scale all day long, it helps with getting the right portion and sometimes if you weigh out your food you get "more" than if you had measured it out!

Measuring Cups- kind of obvious but measuring cups make sure you are getting the correct portion of food.

Scale- Your scale doesn't have to be a fancy one, just one that you can use to weigh in each week so you can see how you're doing. Please don't obsessed with what your scale says, sometimes the best way to measure if you're losing is with how your clothes feel on you.

Salad Spinner- Seriously I love this thing! You can clean your lettuce with out having to wait forever for it to dry. I also find it stays fresh longer, which saves you money. Every couple days I clean up more lettuce so that when I want a salad I can just grab some quickly. I buy whole heads of romaine instead of those salad bags, its cheaper!



 



A Notebook- I track all of my points, my exercise, how much water I drink and how many fruits and vegetables in a notebook. It helps hold me accountable and keeps me on track.

 

 

Hope these help you as much as they help me. Tell me in the comments about your favorite products!