How to Make Rutabaga Fries!

Here is one of my FAVORITE side dishes for any meal!

First, go to the grocery store and pick up one of these ugly looking veggies! (;

When you get home, take a peeler and remove the skin, then cut it into fries. This part will be really hard, because it is thick, but it is worth it, so slice and dice away!

Lightly spray a large pan, then layer the fries evenly across. Next, sprinkle with sea salt and garlic powder. Then coat once more with a calorie free cooking spray.

Pop it into the oven at 400 degrees, turning once after 20 mins. When they look brown on the edges, they're ready for ketchup dippin! Yummy!

Ways to Eat Fat Free Plain Greek Yogurt!

Here are some fun ways that I've been eating fat free PLAIN greek yogurt lately! This is a really big deal because a few months ago I couldn't stand the tartness of greek yogurt at all! I've taught myself to love it by pairing it with yummy toppings!

Splurge for Dinner!

So, I made a nice healthy dinner for Cliff and I tonight,
which included the below food plus lean venison.

My plate

Broccoli nutrition facts

Cliff's plate

Cottage cheese, unsweetened apple sauce, and cinnamon! What an easy, filling side dish!

AND... I also made 2 servings of french fries!

I LOVE Checkers fries... a weakness, I know!

If you make sure to eat a small portion, these are fine!

These are way better than their squeeze-only counterparts!

Two servings!

You see, I did some high intensity interval training on a local running trail with my friend Sam which meant I had extra calories for dinner! I knew I had to use this opportunity to my advantage and make these Checkers fries I've been eying in my freezer for weeks! I made two servings, one for hubby and one for me. Cliff said he didn't want his, so I not only splurged on my serving, but I indulged on his TOO!!! Yummy! I never get to eat like that nowadays, so I am obviously feeling lucky tonight! Thank you intervals (I never thought I would say that)!

Turquoise Punch!

Well, the Turquoise Punch was was awesome! Everyone wanted to know what was in it and they raved about how good it was! After taste-testing with the family, I decided on one quarter Simply Limeade and three quarters Hawaiian Punch! Here is a pic of what it looked like! About as turquoise as a drink can get if you asked me! (; I pre-made the punch and put it in cute mason jars from Walmart!

My 444 Calorie Dinner!

Here is what I ate tonight: Taco Salad and Brussel Sprouts! This meal was so stinking filling! That was mostly because of the brussels sprouts though. Most veggies are that way- low calorie and very filling if you eat enough! The brussel sprouts look like they are smothered in butter, but they aren't! It's a zero calorie butter substitute that I use every once in a long while when I want to feel like I'm indulging when I'm not at all!

The taco salad had the following: fresh lettuce, a fourth of a tomato, sour cream, black bean and corn salsa(from Walmart - LOVE this kind), and
3 oz of venison from my daddy's hunting!

Since I am counting calories, I'm am always looking for healthy foods that not only fill me up, but also have enough protein! I work out a lot and need to fuel my body. When I don't eat enough protein, I feel tired and that keeps me from working out - not good! (=

Bridal Shower Appetizers

My mom and I sat down for a couple hours and brainstormed menu items for my sister's luau shower, and we came up with some cute stuff! My mom especially wanted to make lots of individual serving type appetizers and I really cared about presentation, so we merged the two and here you have it!

Cottage Cheese and Apple Sauce

One of my favorite snacks is cottage cheese and apple sauce! When I measured out the servings for my snack this evening, it nearly filled a bowl for only 140 calories! Perfect low calorie snack to fill my tummy, not to mention the protein!

Something I hope to NOT do...

I hope to never apologize for not posting x times per week or per day. I want this blog to be something I look forward to doing and I hope it never becomes a commitment that I dread. I see people apologizing for that all the time on their blogs and while I understand why they do it, it seems silly to me when blogging is free entertainment for all readers. (=

Randomness - Here is a pick of what I'm drinking right now: Cherry Diet Dr Pepper! I don't drink soda every day or anything, but every once in a while I crave it, so I like to have some Dr Pepper on hand bc it is my fav! Especially the cherry or vanilla flavor which masks the gross diet taste! (;

Best Tasting Protein Bars

Here is a pic of one of my hubby's favorite protein bars. They have more protein than most, which is part of why he likes them! He also likes the taste! I haven't tried them myself yet because they are almost $2 a pop, and I prefer to get my protein from other food sources or protein smoothies... YUM!

Fruit Breakfast This Morning

....Was a BUST )= I chose an apple, a banana, and an orange. First, the apple was sour, which was disappointing because golden delicious(my fav) is always sweet! Second, I had the banana and it wasn't quite ripe, so it wasn't sweet either. It was chalky-yuck. Lastly, I had a big beautiful orange which was dry! It was not juicy at all and that made it gross. Wow, I hope this doesn't come across like complaining, I'm mostly just surprised that not even one item from Publix was tasty because I am normally super impressed by the quality of their produce! (In their defense I'm sure the bananas will taste good when they've ripened a bit.) Anyhow, here is a pic of what looks like a fabulous breakfast! (Don't let these cute fruities fool you!)

How To Save Money At Dollar Tree!

The other day, I was out running errands and shopping for my sister's bridal shower. (Which is coming up this weekend!!) I went into the dollar store to pick up some prizes and supplies needed for games.

I discovered something very exciting while browsing around. Dollar Tree, a REAL dollar store because EVERYTHING is only a dollar, sells bread. Not just any old white bread though... Nature's Own bread, including 100% whole wheat! Not only that, they sell Nature's Own bagels and sandwich thins as well. Here are a few pics of the awesome selection, each only $1! That's better than Publix B1G1 free prices!

I also noticed that Dollar Tree sells seeds this time of year! Check out the pic below to see all the different types!

One more good deal I noticed while shopping was that Dollar Tree sells pregnancy tests for only $1! That beats even Walmart's price! I bought one to throw in with my sisters bridal shower gift!

Salad for Lunch!

Salad is one of my favorite things to eat for lunch! I try to keep a plethora of ingredients on hand to make a huge salad! I measure out the ingredients to count the calories and add it to my daily total because, yes, salads have calories too! Here are a few pictures of my salad the other day.

Turquoise Punch!

My younger sister, Jessica is getting married this summer!!! (= This Saturday night is her Bridal Shower in West Palm Beach, FL at my parents house. She wants a luau theme, so I've been planning fun food items and games that will coordinate. She has already purchased a ton of decor at yard sales that she wants us to use. It saves my mom and I some moolah, so fine with me! Here is a pic of the punch ingredients that I plan to use for the shower. Her wedding colors are black, white and turquoise so I thought turquoise punch was perfect! We'll see how the combo tastes!

Sunset Walk

Last night, Cliff and I went for a walk a little while before sunset! We were out for 1 hour and 5 minutes and I burned 209 calories! On the way back, we were walking west and that's when I captured a few pretty pics with my iPhone. (=