BBQ Preparations

Currently sitting here organising two separate playlists on Itunes - one for the "Family" BBQ, and one for the "Friend" BBQ. A little extravagant, maybe, having two..... but there are a HUGE amount of people who want to see the new House - not to mention a gathering of sensible adults possibly shouldn't mix with a gathering of pissed-up 20-somthing friends with a cocktail shaker and a collection of 60 shotglasses. Obviously I'm dead excited, but just a little nervous about the Food side of things. How can I possibly arrange a good old fashioned BBQ without breaking the SlimmingWorld rules? The best thing I can think of is just to let Joel lob meat on the grill, and maybe get Mum's help handmaking some SlimmingWorld chips and healthy burgers..... maybe a good old salad. Hmmmm..... Need to make a list to get thoughts in order.

HEALTHY BBQ FOODS (that will not alienate everyone):

Chicken, Salad (feta, maybe?), Potatoes (new), Lamb, Chilli Prawn kebabs (oooh! Where did THAT idea come from?!), Cheesy Pasta, Sausages

Hmmm, already out of Free food ideas - need to consult the book. Anyway, I'm sure it's a common practice for people to take meat to a BBQ, so maybe I could just stick to my own stuff and be good. At least Mum'll be there to keep me on track, too. I'm thinking as well of just demurely sipping the old Diet Coke all evening - saving the well-and-truly-getting-drunk for the "Friend BBQ"..... which we're thinking of having, for convinience, on the Bank Holiday weekend.

If that actually happens though, I'm going to have to be SO careful for the fortnight leading up to it - if I'm doing Pride on the Saturday (where I will undoubtedly be getting wasted, as am meeting friends after the parade) and having the "Friend" BBQ on the Sunday, I will pretty much, by my calculations, be drunk for at least 3/4 of the weekend. Hmmm. I feel some MAJOR Syn-saving is needed pretty soon. That said, I had the worst fortnight ever and actually lost weight, so maybe if I keep exercising (and dance a lot throughout B.H Weekend) then maybe I'll get lucky again!

On a side note, nothing of interest to report today. Had a cheese and pickle sandwich with maize crisps (and a Twirl, gulp) for lunch, and spaghetti with cheese on toast. Hmmm..... having WAY too much cheese and bread in my diet recently, maybe a cutback is required. Also, need to check the Syn value of that smooth Branston Pickle spread - haven't been able to stop eating it lately.

Souperfreak

As it was my day off, didn't really get up to much. Would love to say I spent my whole day carefully selecting, planning and even MAKING a ton of Super-Free yummy meals for me and my man..... but being that I'm currently poorer than a church mouse who's gone bankrupt - it aint likely. Oh well, only 2 days till payday, and then let the healthy home-made meals roll!

That said, I DID try a recipe for SuperFree soup that Mum gave me after group last night - tinned tomatoes, beans, carrots and chicken stock all blended up and seasoned. Served it as a starter before tea, but being honest, it was VILE, no matter HOW much salt you put on it. Tried to force some of it down, but still..... hmm. Could tell Joel wasn't that keen either. Still, saved the rest to take to work, gonna need all the help I can get if I'm going to be stripping off by a sunny pool in a few months......

Oh, also did some exercise for the first time since moving in - such a relief being able to stomp away without worrying about denting the neighbour's ceiling. It's fabulous having such a huge lounge to give yourself space to manoevre. Stuck on my Davina Fit workout DVD but got bored after a while, so switched to the classic technique of putting my Ipod in and flailing around to the music instead. So not exactly a wasted afternoon!

Unexpected surprise

LOSS: 1.5 POUNDS

I do not believe it. I've gone past the initial rounds of Slimming-World-Disbelief and come right out in Stunned-Ville. After the worst 2 recorded weeks known to MAN...... 2 weeks of stress, arguments, moving house, travelling back to the flat every evening and tidying the house every night - accompanied by a frequent helping of comfort food with everything.... I have STILL managed to lose weight.

Was absolutely thrown, when I got weighed. Strolled into group after stopping at Mum's for tea, enjoying being back and waving to familiar faces. I was dreading getting back on the scales, and immediately started rambling on to Joan as I removed my Ugg boots, about my awful 2 weeks, how I'm expecting a gain of at LEAST 4 pounds, etc.... etc..... Until she calmly stopped me with the words every Slimming World-er wants to hear: "You've had a loss, actually." 1 and a half pounds! This is too perfect. Obviously, I'd rather have lost more, but beggars can't be choosers, and it means I've now worked off exactly what I put on 3 weeks ago!

Feeling very confused about the whole thing, but was reassurred by Mum and Louise that maybe all the running around, up and down stairs, hauling boxes and un/packing was the reason behind my loss. If I'm honest as well, a HUGE part of me feels very guilty and cheeky that I've managed to eat so much utter crap and still do well. Not that I'll be making a habit of it, mind. Especially since I get paid on Thursday, and can therefore afford proper food from then on. Mmmmm..... approaching healthiness......

Found out Louise is attending Gay Pride in 2 weeks as well - as part of a Line Dancing group! So hopefully going to try and meet up on the day (I'm volunteering with work) and make sure neither has too much Syn-filled alcohol (yeah right, it's my first night out in 2 months, I'm planning to get BEYOND hammered)!

Mum won Slimmer of the Week AGAIN - so she gave me all the food she won, plus some extra articles when we got back to hers..... prawns, tinned tomatoes, smoked salmon pate, measuring jug, etc.... Actually I'm thrilled about that last one, recipes will be SO much easier now I can actually measure liquids - see the Banoffee Pie Disaster if you don't believe me! Had a lovely Free tea before we went to Group, of gamon, fried egg, and SlimmingWorld chips. Absolutely GORGEOUS - and totally inspired me to be a less boring cook from now on. Good times!

A new hope

Not much to report of late. Been eating the same old crap for lunch every day, and making very little effort at night. Got Sky+ today, which might be a bit tricky in the old not-sitting-in-front-of-the-telly-every-night battle - but we'll see. Shared a make-your-own 14" loaded meat pizza from Asda for tea, and we've been having chocolate every night. It's not been the best week. Not only that, I actually FEEL fatter. I always smirked a little at people who said that, because it seems like such a ridiculous notion. How do you FEEL heavier, how do you NOTICE that extra pound? Well damn, somehow it's possible. I feel HUGE this week, and not as great as I felt a few weeks ago when I'd lost 9lbs. Hmmm.....

Have agreed to go for a big walk to explore the area and local clough tomorrow - which should hopefully energise me a bit more. I'm looking forward to returning to Group in a few days as well - although kinda dreading Mum's reaction when she finds out I've put on weight this last few weeks. Grrrr...... I haven't even been drinking! That said, we've worked out a new plan from now on - on Mondays I'll get the tram back to Mum and Dad's, have a healthy Free tea, and then drive to Group with Mum.

Fully resolving from now on to work harder, and stick at the damn thing as much as I was before. Starting Monday, I'm doing EVERYTHING I can to get back to my former speedy weight-loss glory. I WILL get to a stone before the 1st of September.

Thinking about it though, I may not have stuck to my designated Healthy Extras, but I've still been eating cheese, bread, pasta..... Maybe I've unknowingly incorporated my calcium, fibre and Free foods without even knowing it. Maybe everything will be ok after all!

And again......

I won't lie, things have been pretty grim recently. Had several more rows with Joel over stupid, stupid little House things - including a MASSIVE one last night, featuring sobbing, storming out at 11pm, the works. Being the beginning of my "Star week" sure didn't help. Still, we both apologised and resolved to both be more mature, patient and chilled out. Well, after I drew a cute "I'm sorry" card and hand-delivered it to his office today.

But I'm digressing. I meant that things have also been grim on the SlimmingWorld front.

Having taken a 2 week sabbatical to focus on the House (Mum's suggestion), I'm wondering if it's the right thing to do. I've been told you're allowed up to 6 weeks holiday per year, and that's exactly how I've been treating it - a holiday. I'm eating chocolate again, we've had pizzas, crisps, you name it. Of course they're Asda Smartprice crisps (being that we sacrificed proper food for a carpetted bedroom) but still probably count as Syns. With no more manual labour I can't cling onto that bit of hope - and the 8-minute walk up the hill every morning isn't even feeling like a challenge anymore. I was given a bottle of Rose as a housewarming present, which I've already polished off, and I've had to skip tonight's Group as well, as I can't afford them until Thursday. I won't lie, I'm not exactly too focused at the moment.

The words "comfort food" spring to mind - something I've been eating in SPADES recently. It doesn't help that I've done virtually NO exercise either - Joel's been WAY too tired for sex recently, and I've even stopped doing my Pitbull-themed bedroom dance sessions at night. Our evenings are consigned to slumping in front of the telly, and scoffing. I hate myself for it, I really do. But we're too skint to afford proper food, and I don't have either the time, energy or brain-power to come up with delicious, healthy, cheap meals we'll both enjoy. OK, that's a lie, I probably DO have the time, but for the most part, I can't be rammed.

It's clearly some kind of mental slump I'm in at the moment - I'm determined to claw my way out starting by going to Group next week...... but things can't go on like this. Either I'll dig my bike out and start cycling again, or go on walks with Joel. I don't know. ANYTHING.

Speaking of Him Indoors, after we made up outside his office this lunchtime, he took it even further this evening by whisking me off to TGI Friday's for a surprise meal! Felt a pang of guilt at missing class for this, especially since it felt like a much more fun - but maybe not entirely BETTER - use of my time. I mean, better for ME because I enjoyed it, but not for the DIET. Oh, you know what I mean.

Troublesome times

On a side note - being back at work officially sucks....... especially after you've just had the week off, assembled an Ikea bed without even a pleading phone call for help to Dad, and your entire mind and thoughts are colonised by New House thoughts. Not to mention the sheer stress and annoyance forgetting one-tiny-bit-of-DIY-equipment-that-you-just-apparently-CANNOT-do-without can cause..... plus arguments with your partner so trivial and yet so frustrating, you wind up wondering if you're even doing the right thing moving in with him. Obviously we've made up and cheered up, but if I've not burnt off at least 3 pounds through stress, crying and sheer physical labour, I'll be severly disappointed.

Money trouble

Being now officially moved in - I've now realised a devastating fact...... I have no money. I mean, literally. Till payday on the 18th, at least. This is bad because not having money is terrible, and truly limits what you can do. On the plus side - we're now living off Supernoodles, pasta, vegetables and incredibly cheap things..... which I suppose won't exactly be a HINDRANCE to weight loss. Hmmmm. Hated missing Group tonight, though. Without the moral and support and constant messages being drummed in, it's hard to stay in the zone, sometimes. Plus, I kinda missed the other women. But hell, I can't even afford the tram ticket to get there, let alone subs.