Men – Stop Wearing Carpi Pants!

I do now know what it is but for some ungodly reason the fashion industry created extra long shorts on men that look like Capri pants. They are extra baggy, men pair them with sneakers and white socks, and there is probably about an inch or two between the sock and shorts. Please stop wearing these. You look like a complete douche bag. I saw a guy sporting this look yesterday on my way into work. It took everything for me not to open my mouth and tell him how ridiculous he looks. Your shorts should land somewhere around your knee. In exhibit A below I've seen men wear shorts even lower and baggier than this.


Exhibit A: Male Capri Pants - You look stupid

While I am on the topic lets discuss what it is with the extremely over sized pants. I remember baggy pants in high school. I even wore them during that horrid fashion era but now these morons are actually pulling them all the way down to the bottom of their butts. WTF? No one wants to see your underwear or your ass crack. Even funnier is how these idiots have to walk to keep their pants from falling completely down. Get a group of them together and it looks like march of the penguins.

Exhibit B: With how low those are lets hope the front of his boxers do not open up.

Easter Celebration

Friday we met up with Tony's cousin Paul and his wife Emi. We have not seen them since summer of 2008. It was nice to visit with them again. They live in Washington DC and were passing through.

Tony and I celebrated Easter on Saturday night with his Aunt, Uncle, and cousins. Tony's Aunt and Uncle are from Maine, one cousin lives in Charleston with her boyfriend, and the other cousin also lives in DC. I did not do a Easter style dinner. I made pulled pork, pasta salad, bread with dipping oil, and Hungry Girl's banana cream pie. The pie was really good for a low fat banana cream pie. It better have been good since I dropped the whisk on my toe and burned myself. Very nice blister!

Link to Banana Cream Pie: http://www.hungry-girl.com/chew/show/1925

Sunday Tony and I relaxed around the house. He went for a ride with is friends during the day and I laid out hoping to get my first tan of the year. That plan was quickly interrupted by wasps flying every where. I hate those things! For whatever reason they love our hammock. I was out for an hour with SPF 4 on. No tan. Not even a dash of color on my porcelain skin. I should have stayed out another hour but I was so scared of burning. We took Sydney and Jack hiking at Eno River State Park. I would love to take Oscar with but he just cannot make those rigid hikes. Sydney barley can with her old age.

I did give in to my no spend challenge this weekend. I bought a $13 cardigan at BJ's. Not upset I did because that was on my list of things to buy next month since mine have holes about to be worn in the elbows.

Extreme Couponing

I use coupons all the time when shopping. I probably save around $100 - $150 a month on groceries. Mom told me about Extreme Couponing so I had to record it. These people are f'ing crazy. One episode I watched the lady had around $1800 in groceries and paid around $103 for it. She bought about 70 things of mustard because it came to 39 cents. Who needs 70 mustards and how in the world are you going to use it before it expires?! I maybe use one or two a year. Why not just buy 2 or 5 but 70? Instead she spent and extra $25 on mustard she did not need and will likely spoil. Oh, and I just loved how she had to constantly touch up her make up for her image. Make up does not cover up crazy. I did not see any fresh fruits or vegetables except for the lady that had a coupon for bananas.

There is a reason this show comes on TV after Hoarders. These people are hoarders and let their couponing take over their house. I have one shelf and my pantry for items I buy on sale. Items I know I need. Not 100 things of Excedrin PM because they are free. These people have an addiction to how much they can save and in doing so buy way more than they need. The two shows I watched none of these people donated to charity. Another lady bough 90 bags of croutons because they were free. What in the world are you going to do with 90 bags of croutons that expire in 6 months? I did not see any decent meals these people can make. Lots of sugary cereal for the kids. I completely understand stocking up on laundry detergent, toilet paper, paper towels, and other cleaning supplies if they come out to be nearly free BUT they should not take over your house and your living space. There will always be more coupons in the future so 100 things of paper towel is unnecessary. One lady even stored them in a shower! Even deodorant has an expiration date.

My take on this is couponing is great when done within reason. Buy what you need and if there is a great sale there is no need to buy 100 of each item. Depending on the item maybe max it out at 5, 20, or even 30. There will always be more coupons and another sale. Do not let the feeling of how much you saved overtake reality and over take your house. I like to cook and have homemade meals. I like variety. I like fresh fruits and vegetables. No way could I eat like these people.

Engagement Chicken

I am sure many of you have seen the stories lately about the engagement chicken by Glamour Magazine. Women claim to become engaged after making this chicken for their boyfriend. This leaves me with five words: “Are you f'ing kidding me?” I mean come on! Were these women shit cooks prior to making this easy recipe? Men are simple but they do not think “oh that was a great chicken my girlfriend cooked; I need to propose now.” Around 70 women got engaged after making this chicken. What they fail to mention is how many tried and how many of these couples were already discussing marriage.

When Tony and I got engaged I do not think I cooked much for him. I was very young and inexperienced in the kitchen. I think at that time the only thing I cooked for him came out of a box but I cooked it in my underwear. We were only dating for three months before he popped the question. What attracted Tony to me as his future wife was my nurturing instinct yet bad girl attitude. I had my first tattoo before we were dating. We had great chemistry. Tony knew I was very young and probably not ready for marriage but saw a young woman with a good head on her shoulders, a woman that does not take anyone’s crap, a woman that can take care of him when he is sick, a woman that wants to have fun in this journey we call life, and many other things.

It takes more than a chicken to get a man to marry you. You need to have the qualities he is looking for and the undeniable chemistry.

April No Spend Update

I am still doing great with my April No Spend Challenge. Another weekend down and no unnecessary spending. I did buy my nieces birthday gifts and some wrinkle creams but still not unnecessary. I am starting not to miss shopping and definitely do not miss that feeling of guilt after I bought too much stuff. I am not falling for the coupons retailers send me. Before I would not pass up 15, 20, even 30% off and Kohls or Macys but now I realize while it is a great discount, I do not need anything. With all the cutting back I've been doing it does look like Tony and I will be able to buy the rest of the materials for our covered porch this month. He also has been putting in a lot of overtime to help pay for the recent vet bills and and taxes. We are so lucky Tony has the ability to put in overtime and that he is willing to do it for the family. I am so grateful to him for everything he has been doing lately.

I participated in a Mary Kay, Thirty-One, and Tastefully Simple open house on Sunday. For a small party my sales were not bad and I have one party booked out of it. Possibly one more. For about 3 hours worth of work I made $60 put had to put about half of that back into the party kit for the next party. It sounds like the party I am going to have next month is going to be huge. My friend Leigh and I are going to do a combined show again. It is nice to give people a variety for shopping.

Tuna Noodle Casserole and Pina Colada Cupcakes

Saturday I made Pina Colada cupcakes and Tuna Noodle Casserole from Gina's Skinny Taste. The cupcakes were so easy. I bought sugar free yellow cake mix and a 20 oz can of crushed pineapple. Mix the two together and follow the cup cake directions on the box. They are fine without the frosting or with. Tony helped me make the cupcakes and in doing so probably ate about five cupcakes worth of batter. Tony does not like coconut so he did not use the frosting. Instead of low fat cream cheese I used fat free. Follow the link below to the recipe.

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/04/pina-colada-cupcakes.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+weightwatcherspointsrecipes+%28Gina%27s+Skinny+Recipes%29

For the Tuna Noodle Casserole Tony found it hard to believe this was low fat. The only thing I changed in it was I added some shredded Swiss cheese to the top of it. I was shredding the cheese for the Tastefully Simple Spinach and Artichoke dip and had some left over. Tony loved the added Swiss on the top.

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/01/skinny-tuna-noodle-casserole.html

Change in Vacation Plans

Well Savannah is off the vacation plan for now. We were supposed to go there in a month for a four day weekend but our poor little boy Oscar has an ulcer in his eye and a few days later they had to remove two teeth when doing his dental cleaning. That blew the vacation budget for next month. I am fine with it since we are going to Aruba for our anniversary and we just had the Charleston trip. We can always visit Savannah in the fall and maybe gas will be cheaper by then. Looks like we will be taking the dogs camping in place of Savannah. They LOVE camping and did not get to go last year so this should be fun for them.

Good-Bye All My Children

This morning on the news they announced All My Children will be canceled in September. I have been addicted to this show since 2000 and remember my mom watching it when I was a kid. I will say in the last couple of months the story lines have gotten horrible and it leaves me fast forwarding through most of the show. How many more times can someone be kidnapped, go crazy, kill someone, get married, screw someone else’s partners, etc. Even with these bad moments of writing I still follow the show.

When Tony heard the announcement this morning he practically was jumping for joy and had a hard time controlling his excitement. I watch the show while I exercise every night I am home. It is the last thing he wants to exercise to. Maybe we can agree on some DVR’ed comedies to watch together while we work out.

My Rude Monday Morning Awakening

I park on the 6^th floor of the parking garage at work and take the stairs down and back up for a little added exercise. My Monday morning was mad a very bad Monday morning when I got to the 4^th floor to realize a homeless person shit on the landing. It was one of those moments you think there is no way that really is what I am seeing. Not sure I will be taking the stairs anymore.

April No Spend and Weight Up Date

Other than the few items Tony bought me last week, my no spend challenge this month has been going great. There was a jacket on sale at BJ’s I tried on but put it back on the rack. A year ago I would have bought it without even thinking twice. I am pretty proud of myself with how well I am doing. Saturday I went to The Southern Women’s Show with a friend and Tony went to the Cigar Expo with her husband. While in there I did not even think about spending money on anything. Pat on the back for me. However next month when I allow myself to buy something it is going to be new cardigans for work. I wear them everyday since the office is cold and I am wearing out the elbows.

I did not try out any new recipes this weekend. I really love the Greek Turkey burgers I made a few months back and made those Saturday. If you have not tried this recipe yet you really need to. They are amazing. I’ve been focusing more on eating what we have to keep our grocery bill down this month. I do have a large stock of nonperishable items and meat in the freezer.

I am down to 133.8 pounds now! I am only 3 more away from my lightest last year. Now I have to lose another weight watcher point though. I am already hungry enough the way it is and to lose another point is going to be hard. Really I would deduct the point at 130 pounds but my implants weigh about 4 pounds so my real weight is 129.8. Once I get to a comfortable weight I would not mind trying the Mediterranean diet which focuses on healthy oils, nuts, greens, and seafood – which I will not be eating the seafood.

Three years ago or so I asked Sprint to block picture mail and internet access on our phones since we do not have that plan. Yes I am too cheap to have internet on my phone. Lately I noticed we were getting billed for picture mail. They were small charges so I never really paid much attention to it. Tony and I never even receive notification we received picture mail so we do not know who was sending it to us. I went back through two years worth of Sprint bills online and found in November 2009 we started getting billed for picture mail again. Over the about year and a half it came to $7 in charges. Not a whole lot but I was mad we were being billed for them especially since we were not receiving notifications. I called Sprint to find out what was going on and my contract changed in 2009 and they did not roll over the internet and picture mail block. She credited me $75! I would have been happy with a $7 credit. Thank you Sprint!

Surprise for Me

Tony had a nice surprise for me. Saturday morning he helped me clean and the said he would go grocery shopping with me. But before we left he said we had one stop to make at Macy’s to buy me a dress! I was surprised he read the blog post and so quickly wanted to buy me the dress. We went to Macy’s and unfortunately the dress was not what it looked like on line. I looked like a cow in it. Not form fitting at all. Tony did not want me to leave empty handed and we continued to look for a dress with no luck. I ended up going to practical route and bought a pair of dress pants, jeans, and a shirt on sale. With my weight loss jeans and dress pants are in high demand. The shirt was something Tony really liked and insisted I try it on. He loved it so we bought it. The total cost for the three items came to about what the dress would have cost. Not sure if this counts against my April no spend challenge but I know this was important for Tony to do for me. He really was surprised I did not pick out a different dress and went with practicality.

We really did have an amazing weekend together. Friday we ate at our favorite Asian restaurant and then went to Black Belt Friday at Karate International. It is a promotion ceremony for the black belts and a performance show. Really fun to watch. Hard to believe but the next one I may be performing in it as a black belt!

Saturday after we finished cleaning and shopping we spent the rest of the day just chilling around the house and watching our favorite show, Ghost Adventures. It was a very relaxing day together and definitely one we needed.

Sunday was our landscaping day. It was pretty nice outside. We planted a few more bushes and trees…like we really need any more. Our back yard really has to be one of the best in our neighborhood. We put in more Cyprus trees that will eventually grow and provide more privacy. The deer were also eating some of the bushes we planted in front of our fence so we replaced some of them with bushes they do not like. I can’t wait until our grass is green again.

Ole Southwestern Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas

I just submitted this recipe to Tastefully Simple. This was so amazing! One enchilada will have you so full! I served it with Tastefully Simple Taco Cheese Ball that I made with fat free cream cheese, Tastefully Simple Simple Salsa, and low fat tortilla chips.

Ole Southwestern Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas


Ingredients:
1 ½ pound chicken breasts (about two breasts)
½ of a Green Pepper - sliced
½ cup chopped Onion
3 tsp Simply Southwest Seasoning & Rub
¼ cup water
1 can black beans – drained and rinsed
Ole Ole Fiesta Sauce
2 cups Weight Watchers Mexican cheese
6 low carb tortilla wraps - I used Ole Xtreme Wellness high fiber low carb

Some of the ingredients I used.
The two cans of tomatoes are for the Simple Salsa mix

Directions:

1. Spray slow cooker with cooking spray. Add chicken breasts, sliced green pepper, chopped onion, Simply Southwest Seasoning & Rub, and water. Cook on low for about 5 hours. Remove slower cooker mix and shred chicken.

Chicken, peppers, onions, and seasoning in the slow cooker

2. Spray a large cooking pan with cooking spray. Add shredded chicken mix, 1 1/3 cup cheese, black beans, and 1/3 cup plus 1 tbs Ole Ole Fiesta Sauce. Cook on medium heat for about 5-7 minutes until cheese is melted.

3. Coat 8x11 baking dish with cooking spray. Add enchilada mix to tortilla wraps. About ¼ cup per wrap. Place in 1 baking dish.

4. Drizzle remaining Ole Ole Fiesta Sauce over the enchiladas. Top with remaining 2/3 cup cheese. Cover with tin foil.
5. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

6. Top with your favorite topping such as Simple Salsa, sour cream, jalapenos, lettuce etc.

The finished product

Per Enchilada
Calories: 294
Fat: 7
Fiber: 15.5
Protien: 28
Carbs: 37.5
WW Points: 5
Points +: 7