You're AWESOME

Wow, you guys are amazing! I put out a "hello, anyone out there" and many of you gave me an encouraging word, a hello and even a follow to boot.

And as a thank you I'm going to share one of my favorite recipes. Now, I'm not a chef by any means and it is  just a simple modification from a higher fat option but it was a favorite at our house.

Stuffed Zucchini

Zucchini split in half, lengthwise
1/4 fat free ricotta cheese
1/4 low fat mozzarella cheese
1/4 Parmesan cheese
squeeze of lemon juice
garlic, pepper, Mrs. Dash or whatever seasonings that you and your family like

Scoop out the pulp from the zucchini to leave a nice shell to replace the new mixture. Place the pulp, and your cheeses, squeeze of lemon and seasonings into a mini food processor and push the handy dandy button that does all the work for you. Rescoop mixture back into the zucchini shells and place on a baking sheet. Bake in the oven at around 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes until zucchini is tender. Voila...it's done!! Take it out and let it set for about 5 minutes or so and then enjoy.

 My husband and I usually each eat half of it since my 3 year old is not a fan of any type of zucchini (surprise, surprise.) It is VERY filling and we usually just pair it with salmon or grilled chicken and skip any type of "starch" with that meal since you really wouldn't need it. I'm not a big bbq'er but I'm wondering if it would be easy to do on the grill as well? What do you think? From what my bodybugg program tells me it would be about 50-60 calories per serving, dependant upon the size of your zucchini and the calories on your specific brand of cheeses.

Sorry for no pictures of the final product but next time I make it I'll definitely take a few shots so I can add it to this entry.

Bon Appetit!!

Anybody Out There???

To all my faithful followers ( all 5 of you, ha ha),

Sorry it's been so long for an update. I find that I do so much better at being active and involved in life if I stay away from this wonderful, but time consuming computer! My son and I took a road trip (11hrs one way) over Mother's Day to visit my mom since my hubby had to work. We had tons of fun, did a lot of shopping/mall walking, walks by the beach, and hung out in the backyard.  I even indulged a bit on Mother's Day at Outback and it was DELICIOUS!! I still made smart choices, but avoided the bloomin' onion (only took two bites) but thoroughly loved every bite of my steak. Overall, between MANY McDonald's salads and trying to take walks at rest stops, I stayed even steven, which I was really proud of.

Fast forward to the present...I'm down a total of 22 pounds. HOORAY! I'm feeling good, still have the drive to do better and have an amazing support group including two great friends who are on the same journey as me. I have a much farther road than they do but as a team, we're all doing great things.

I'm hoping that by the end of June to be down another 10-15 pounds and that my steps will be closer to 10000 daily. While most people are enjoying summer-like weather, here in the Pacific Northwest we're dealing with unusually COLD temps, major rain downpours combined with hail and wind. Fun times, huh. Needless to say, my step count has been dwindling since I started my weight loss journey.

Have a great next week everyone.