Important Wordy Bits

Some layouts, My Dinner Menu's and reviewing Wii Just Dance

Morning Peeps!

Some great stuff coming out of Little Dreamers today. Leora Sanford just outdid herself with her two collab kits. You can find the kits here and take a look at my layouts:

 

 
 

It's a bit snowy in Chicagoland so I can add clearing the driveway on my to do list. So, by now you all know that I am doing the Weight Watchers program. This is my second time doing it and this time I am finding recipes that I would make even if I wasn't on the program or having what I normally eat, BUT I control my portions. This time I don't feel like I am missing out anything. I've also been planning my dinner menu for the week. It's a bit flexible yet I know exactly what I am having this week. Planning is also important for one, shopping. You don't buy just to buy something. Two, by planning you are more likely to stay on plan. On to what my menu is for this week:

Monday - BLT's (center cut bacon 2 slices 2pts, heirloom tomatoes, spinach, lf mayo and my one cheat of stone ground wheat)

Tuesday - Sweet Potato Pancakes.....I'm winging this and it's a first time recipe so I'll let you know how it goes

Wednesday - Homemade Pizza....I use Pillsbury pizza crust since it's low in points and I make my own pizza sauce. I'll give that recipe later this week.

Thursday - Crockpot Meat and Potatoes...super simple and super yummy

Friday - Moo Shoo Lettuce Wraps....new recipe from my brand spanking new WW Crockpot Recipe

Saturday - Salad night.......Weigh in is the next day :) so I am keeping it light.

Yummy stuff. 

 

On to my review of Wii's Just Dance. This "game" is so incredibly fun and a really good workout. I was literally dripping with sweat which is awesome. Even better is that I had a blast doing all that sweating. One of the things that I like is that these are not songs redone by session singers. If you are dancing to "Hot and Cold" you are really dancing to Katy Perry singing that song. I think the only one that has a different singer is "Womanizer" by Britney. 

When you start the game you can go right into dancing or you can do a warm up. I warmed up because I'm oooooooold. :) After that you can pick your song and there are stars to indicate the difficulty of the song. I'd say it's pretty accurate. Once you pick your song you can do a short or long version of the song. Pick your version and then you follow the dancer on the screen and try to match the choreography. I am the first to admit that I am rhythmically challenged, but I did pretty well. I also admit that I have to get the arm movements down before I even get my feet involved otherwise it's a disaster. Luckily the moves are repeated so my brain can catch up to the moves. 

Some other songs on Wii Just Dance are: "Can't Get You Out of My Head", "Kids in America", "U Can't Touch This", "Groove is in the Heart", "A Little Less Conversation" and so much more.

This is a great game for kids too. My son absolutely LOVED that "Who Let the Dogs Out" and "Cotton Eyed Joe" were part of the set list as is "I Like to Move It". My son got up and danced even though it looked like a monkey dancing in a barrel. He had so much fun doing each routine. 

Lastly, you can have up to four people dancing to the songs and you do get scored for how accurate with each dance. Pretty cool and I highly recommend this game for pure fun and to get a good sweaty workout in. 

Just Dance.........with some green beans

Hey there!

So I am patiently waiting for my Wii Just Dance. I'm kind of excited to be able to dance and exercise at the same time. I am soooooo dancing to "You Can't Touch This" by MC Hammer. My son, who is 6, is still not convinced that Just Dance will be fun. This coming from the boy who makes his own dance routines. Great song list:

 

1. Acceptable in the 80’s – Calvin Harris
2. A Little Less Conversation – Elvis Presley
3. Bebe – Divine Brown
4. Can’t Get You Out of My Head – Kylie Minogue
5. Cotton Eye Joe – Rednex
6. Hot n’ Cold – Katy Perry
7. Dare – Gorillaz
8. Eye of the Tiger – Survivor (Rocky)
9. Fame – In the style of Irene Cara (cover)
10. Funplex CSS – The B 52’s
11. Girls and Boys – Blur
12. Girls Just Want to Have Fun – Cindi Lauper
13. Groove is in the Heart – Dee-Lite
14. Heart of Glass – Blondie
15. I Get Around – The Beach Boys
16. I Like to Move it – Reel To Real
17. Jerk it Out – Caesars
18. Jin Go Lo Ba – Fat Boy Slim
19. Kids in America – Kim Wilde
20. Le Freak – Chic
21. Louie Louie – Iggy Pop
22. Lump – The Presidents Of The USA
23. Mashed Potato Time – Dee Dee Sharp
24. Pump up the Jam – Technotronic
25. Ring My Bell – Anita Ward
26. Step by Step – New Kids On The Block
27. Surfin’ Bird – The Trashmen
28. That’s the Way (I Like it) – Kc & The Sunshine Band
29. U Can’t Touch This – MC Hammer
30. Wannabe – The Spice Girls
31. Who Let the Dogs Out? – Baha Men
32. Womanizer – In the style of Britney Spears (cover)

Next! My green beans. I made these green beans with my Tasty Fish recipe. 

Mediter-Asian Green Beans

Fresh green beans, trimmed, about a frying pan size worth (depends on the amount you are feeding)

1 TBSP olive oil

2 seeded, cubed tomatoes (could use diced tomatoes in a can, but drain)

1 clove garlic

Italian seasonings...to taste (McCormick has "Italian Seasonings", but you could use fresh basil and oregano)

1 TBSP balsamic vinegar

3 splashes of soy sauce

1/2 lemon, juice and grated rind

1 splash teriyaki

salt or garlic salt to taste

pepper

In a medium pot fill with water and blanch your green beans. It should take about 10 minutes until they are not crunchy, but have some bite. Drain green beans. Heat large skillet on med. high. Heat oil; add tomatoes. Cook for about 5 minutes; stirring every once and a while. Add everything else to the skillet. Cook for additional 5 - 10 minutes. It really depends on how soft you like your green beans. I like mine to not be mush. After I made this I thought of putting grated parmesan on at the end. I really liked these green beans. They would really go well with some steak or pork chops. I didn't get the calories, but they can't be that high. I think I figured it was 2 pts. per serving, but I cannot remember.

SUPER yummy........Weight Watchers Giant Chocolate Cookies and Cream bars. 2 pts. and oh so awesome. Also, VitaTops Golden Corn Muffin Tops for 100 cal. are awesome and have a good texture. They're not cheap (about $4.50), but really good. You can find them in the freezer section.

This weekend I will be trying some Sweet Potato Pancakes. I'm thinking grated sweet potatoes used with Fiber One pancake mix. I'll give it a go and let you all know how they were. If they're good I'll put the recipe on the blog.

Wii Fit and Chicken Bruschetta Bake

Howdy!

     This has NOTHING to do with Wii, but did you see American Idol tonight? Yeah, I cannot get "Pants on the Ground. Pants on the Ground. Looking like a fool with your pants on the ground," out of my freakin' head. 

     Ok, back to the Wii :D. I will admit that before I started Weight Watchers my exercise regime was non-existent. We had the Wii in the house and I even had the Wii Fit and balance board. I just never used it. So one day I decide that I'm gonna give a whirl. Yeah. The first day my real age according to the Wii Fit was 63 years old. Well, isn't that a kick in the gut? I started with just three days a week and twenty minutes each day. Now I average about 4 days a week for about 30 minutes or more. I burn about 200 calories with each workout. Not bad. The great thing about the Wii Fit is that it makes it fun. Who doesn't like hula hoop or hitting a soccer ball with your head???? My favorite calorie burners are the hula hoop, step aerobics and the boxing. I now do the 10 minute advanced boxing and it kicks my butt. I upgraded to the Wii Fit Plus. Absolutely love the bike riding for aerobics. Definitely gets your heart going. There's some fun games like snowball fights or flapping your arms like a bird too. So many different ways to workout....a FUN workout.  

     As I built up my resistance I needed something a bit more challenging. I decided to get the Wii EA Active Sports. EA Active is a great way to exercise. You get a resistance band that really gets those bicep curls, back rows, etc. to work even harder for you. The best thing about EA Active is the different kind of exercises that it has. You can work specific body parts, dance, run, play basketball, volleyball, do some boxing or take a 30 day challenge. You can also make up your own workout routine. One day I can work my arms, then I can do cardio, then work my legs (jump lunges are the devil!), etc. You do what works for you. The biggest plus is that I tend to burn more calories with the EA Active as compared to the Wii Fit/Plus. It's a great addition to your Wii exercise discs. 

There are other Wii discs I'd love to try like Just Dance or the Biggest Loser one. They're both on my wish list. I like to mix it up. If you have any favorites let me know. Wii has been great because it has been a catalyst to get my butt going. I am getting up off the couch and making my body move. I never thought I'd LOVE boxing or running for that matter. There is no better feeling than getting all sweaty from working that booty. I know that I am getting healthy. I know that I am making sure that I stay healthy. I know that I am losing weight......all from burning those calories. I took responsibility for my weight and only I can do this. Everyone can it's a matter of just making that decision. 

My recipe for tonight is Chicken Bruschetta Bake. Simple and good.

14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes, undrained

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 pkg. Stove Top Stuffing Mix - Chicken

1/2 cup water

1.5 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced (I leave whole too if I have no time)

1 tsp. dried basil (can be fresh)

1 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat over to 400 degrees. Place tomatoes with liquid in a medium bowl. Add garlic, stuffing mix and water; stir just until stuffing is moistened. Set aside.

Place chicken in a 13 x 9 in. baking dish; sprinkle with basil and cheese. Top with stuffing mixture.

Bake 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Makes 6 servings. 6 WW points