Dark Chocolate in all its Glory!

Yup, we've all heard the good news. Chocolate can be good for you!!

I'd say that's pretty celebration-worthy, yes!?

But did you know why chocolate is good? Besides in flavor, that is?

 The hero of the day is DARK chocolate, made with at least 60% cocoa. It is rich in flavenoids, the natural antioxidants that give red wine it's heart-healthyness. Researchers say that an ounce of 60% dark chocolate a day can help reduce blood pressure, reduce bad cholesterol and even increase the blood flow to the brain. Dark chocolate is also full of anandamide and phenylethylamine, which are compounds that trigger the same feel-great endorphins that are brought on by sex and physical exertion! 

So it is true what some women say .. Chocolate can be as good as sex! 

Remember though. Just because dark chocolate has health benefits, does not mean it is okay to go hog wild on it. Up to two ounces a day is all that's needed to get all the goodness out of it, and to help cure that chocolate craving - and two ounces is not enough to make a difference on your waist line!

Mexi-Can-elloni!

My husband and I love cheese. It's mostly my addiction but it's one that he definitely shares in. I mean, come on! It's delicious and gooey and stretchy and a little salty and did I mention delicious?!


Before, we used to pair our cheese addiction with one of two things: pizza, and Italian foods like pasta. Mmmm pasta ..


Well, we still love to eat pizza (we make our own a lot - check out some of our creations here and here ) and we still eat pasta (on occasion - it's too hot and heavy for the summer!) but now we just absolutely adore pairing it with Mexican food. There are SO many amazing flavors that cheese ties in with so perfectly. You can do so much with Mexican foods too! You'll get to see a few recipes over the next little while featuring Mexican twists .. We're on a big kick right now!

Our Mexi-Can-elloni with a homemade black bean and corn whole wheat spiced rice

We made these Mexi-Can-elloni a couple of weeks ago. We started with whole grain tortilla wraps and filled each with (our sacred) a half portion of light Kraft tex mex cheese mix, ground turkey cooked in taco seasoning, guacamole (I'm addicted!!), bell peppers, spinach, green onions, and diced tomatoes. We then rolled them and baked them at 350 for about twenty minutes, just long enough to heat them through and melt the cheese. Then we topped them with a light tomato sauce and the remaining half of cheese, broiled for a couple of minutes, and served!

Yummmmm!

Guac, and lots of it, please!

It worked out to be about 15 points for the two Mexi-Can-elloni, and that can always be taken down in points with the amounts of cheese and guacamole you put into yours. Daddy Lego and I love our cheese and guac and had the points to spare, so we loaded it in!


Enjoy!!

That Inner Voice ..

Dear Pizza,


You really gave it your all last night.


You knew I'd had a rough day. You knew the heat and humidity were getting to me. You knew I was crampy and headachy and not feeling that great. You knew I'd had a ton of errands to run and was stressed by the end of the day.


It was a trick move you played on me, Pizza, to slip that flyer under my door. You played on my moment of weakness. That was a low blow.


However ...


I kicked your cheesy little butt!!


I chose not to order you! I realized that no matter how much I wanted you, it wouldn't be worth it and that I'd regret you the next day. I've worked so hard to fix my emotional eating habits and didn't want to fall back on that old, icky habit.


So, dear pizza .. Please, let the door hit your butt on the way out. And take that flyer with ya!


Sincerely,


Victorious Mama Lego

Friends Make Exercising THAT Much Better

I had an exercise date the other night with one of my best friends in the whole world.


Let me back track here. This is the same friend that I used to have McDonalds dates with. As in, a Big Mac meal, supersize the fries, hot fudge sundae kind of date. And then sit around watching Friends, talking, and laughing.


Now we get together as often as we can to still talk and laugh, but also to exercise!

I look ridiculous, but isn't she gorgeous?! My fellow YOGI!

She's the one who introduced me to yoga and how amazing it is! And she helped me see that it was okay to not be able to do all the moves correctly (yet!!), to do what feels right and eventually my body will catch up. And she was right. I'm more flexible now than I have been in years. I'm also feeling more toned and stronger than I have in a long time!


So that night we got together to do some yoga in the park .. And it was great (once we were able to stop talking!). The breeze was refreshing and the view was just perfect. Such a calming workout.


Then we went for a walk on the boardwalk at Mer Bleu, which is basically a boardwalk (maybe 1km long?) that winds around a beautiful swamp. We kept an eye out for turtles (no luck this time!) but saw a cute frog.

Such a peaceful place!

A view just off the boardwalk.

The views around us were just breathtaking. Nature is so beautiful. The view and the company both served as a great distraction from the fact that my body was a little achy from our yoga'ing and I was tired from a long day of housecleaning and playing with the kids!

If I wasn't so "icky" about bugs, I could totally live here.

a beaver-less beaver dam!

It made me realize - exercise is great on its own, but with a friend, or a group of friends? It's pretty darned awesome! It's fun, entertaining, and distracting (if you're struggling through your workout!). You can also encourage each other through your exercise so that way, if you feel you're slipping, you have someone there to give you that push you need. 




So ... If anyone is looking for an exercise buddy - I'm ready and willing! Name the time and the place and I'll be there. We can help each other work towards our fitness goals and laugh our way through it! :)

The Week of July 2nd - Find Your Inspiration!

There was no weigh-in this past Monday as the WW center was closed for the Canada Day long weekend .. I really should have gone to another meeting throughout the week but it just wouldn't be the same. I love my Monday Night WW Family!


I get so inspired by the people in attendance, their stories, and my fantastic leader, Leslie. But since I couldn't see them this week, I found my inspiration elsewhere .. Here: http://www.weightwatchers.com/success/index.aspx


Reading the success stories of all these people is a huge WOW for me! They all started where I did: step one. They wanted to lose weight and live a healthier lifestyle, set their goals, found what worked for them, and made their goals and dreams a reality. How inspiring!!


Sheryl's story was wonderful (and how cute is her dress style?!) and had a great quote, "I'd lost enough of my youth and enough of my life," and didn't want to continue on that way. I could definitely relate to that phrase. What a great reminder to keep on going! 


Sheryl also had these amazing tips that I 110% agree with: 

• Make Weight Watchers a permanent part of your life. If you never stop, you’ll never have to start again—and that’s the hardest part.
• Don’t compare yourself to anyone else. Everyone’s body is different. None of us lose in the same way or at the same rate, so don’t judge your progress by someone else’s.
• I know this is hard to grasp, but don’t obsess about the number on the scale. It doesn’t always reflect the behaviors of the week that led up to it.
• Patience, persistence and perseverance will lead to progress—perfection won’t. Don’t try to be perfect because it’s unrealistic to think that you can be.
• Just start! It’s not going to get any better or easier the longer you put it off. Don’t waste any more time. Your awesome new life is waiting for you!

This week is going to be a great one .. I can just feel it! My hard work will pay off .. And yours will, too!

Boxed Mac and Cheese .. Team Lego Style!

My husband and I LOVE Kraft Dinner. Our kids do, too. We rarely eat it because it really isn't that great for us .. It's loaded with preservatives and doesn't have a whole lot of nutrients. When we do decide to have it, we usually buy KD Smart (it's definitely a better choice compared to the regular stuff - it has no artificial colors or flavors and no preservatives!) and we always make it our own. 

We follow the directions on the box (we use light butter and 2% milk) to make the mix, then we add our own ingredients to it. We love to puree cauliflower, onions and garlic (to taste) and throw it into the pot. It adds such a creamy texture and delicious flavor. Then we add (you know it's coming!) our favorite Kraft light tex mex shredded cheese mix. Let it simmer on low for a few minutes (not too long, or the sauce will cook down and you'll end up with sticky pasta instead of creamy) and serve. 

Always make sure to have lots of vegetables on the side of it, since one serving (a 3/4 cup) is seven points. Also remember that if you're going to have bread with it, try and go with a whole grain version! (unlike what I have in the picture - bad decision, me!)

So who says you can't have your old favorite, cheesy, creamy pasta when you're making changes to your diet?! Not me! I'll eat it .. In Moderation!

Long Weekend + BBQs = No Problem!

This Canada Day long weekend sure was an eventful one for Team Lego. We were pretty much only home to sleep! We're so blessed to have great friends and family that wanted to spend some time with us this long weekend!


I won't lie, I was a bit nervous because I LOVE anything barbecued and tend to go a bit nuts when I'm at a BBQ .. But I kept the tips I learned at my WW meeting fresh in mind and actually came out on top!


Saturday we went to a family friend's place for a BBQ. She is also following WW and provided a lot of different points-friendly foods! Fresh strawberries, homemade spinach-parmesan dip, pita chips (I've never had them before - SO YUM!) and the most delicious homemade turkey burgers! I must admit, I indulged a little bit (okay, a lot) on the spinach dip with pita chips (what a delicious snack!) but I actually stayed within my daily points target. I also focused more on the people I was visiting instead of on the food in front of me. Plus, Daughter Lego kept me busy, giving me tours of the backyard! Yay exercise. We had a great time.


On Sunday, Team Lego went to a BBQ / pool party at Daddy Lego's boss' house. The weather was so beautiful, no humidity to speak of, so being outside the entire day was welcome! I wasn't able to go swimming (boo!) since my bathing suit has gone missing .. But Daughter Lego had a blast in the kiddie pool (her first time swimming!) and Boy Lego had a blast in the big pool with Daddy Lego! I kept busy with the kids and focused lots on keeping hydrated to keep my mind off the food. Mind you, they also provided lots of fresh fruits to snack on .. And some wonderful Smartfood Popcorn, which us WW folk know isn't so smart for your waistline .. So I stayed clear of those! We had a really nice time and wound up taking two extremely overtired kiddies back home. On the way home, we stopped to see the fireworks - so pretty!

On Monday we headed to the beach with our best friends. We each contributed towards a picnic lunch. I brought my Caesar devilled eggs, watermelon and some apple cinnamon oatmeal muffins (I forgot to take a picture, but plan to make more tomorrow!) and they brought pasta salad, strawberries and sandwiches. We got to swim a little (I went into the water in my clothes - there was no way I was going to miss out!) and had a great time. In the afternoon, I cuddled Daughter Lego while she slept (so heartwarming!) and spent time with my bestie while the dads took the older kids to the park. I ate a little bit more than I originally planned to (everything was so good!!) and wound up going over my daily points target (by only seven!) but it was day one of a new week and had a fresh allotment of bonus points to use! We had such a fun time at the beach, and definitely plan to go there often over the summer. Needless to say, everyone slept like hibernating bears that night.

Cool water melon on a hot day!

A picture of the pirate boat attraction at Mooney's Bay

And Tuesday was Boy Lego's THIRD birthday!! I can't believe my first born baby is three!! We had a wonderful day of superhero hijinx. For his birthday supper we made him his favorite pasta (KD smart - we make it with light butter, 2% milk and with added puréed cauliflower, onions and garlic .. And of course, our favorite cheese mix!) it was only seven points per serving and so delicious, I just had to go for seconds. Our friends brought a delicious salad and we served garlic buns on the side. Even with my second helping of pasta, and a small piece of Captain America ice cream cake, I stayed within my points for the day. I actually felt sick afterwards, from eating so much .. Yuck. Lesson learned!

Captain America Ice Cream Cake

"Homemade" mac and cheese, a garlic bun, and a delicious salad with a homemade honey mustard dressing

So while food was flying here, there and everywhere throughout our plans for the weekend, I'm proud of myself for not overdoing it. I enjoyed the BBQs and picnics and birthday dinners without needing to worry about any extra weight at the end of the weekend! Big yay :)


I hope everyone had a wonderful Canada Day weekend .. And if I have any readers in the States, Happy Fourth of July!