Falling off, and getting back on again

Both Will and I have fallen off the wagon, both diet and exercise wise. Not enough to gain a lot of weight, we're both still staying put or yo-yoing up and down a pound or two.

But, we start back this week. All over again. No more binges, no more doing nothing. Our Halloween festivities are over, so there won 't be any more late night Waffle House runs. I refuse to undo all the good work I've done by being irresponsible and weak.

I'll be bottle feeding newborn puppies for a couple of days, so won't be going to the gym until the next person takes over on Tuesday, but I can at least do some stuff here. Pain is not an excuse. Neither is fatigue. I will be at least doing some yoga, since I also asked to become part of the Burning Desire Fire Theater and need to get stronger and more limber so I can perform.

Maybe all I needed was a goal; besides just losing weight. I'm fitting into smaller clothes and want to get more toned, stronger and shapely by DragonCon 2012. Since I'm planning to make a Steampunk Borg costume, I have to able to fit into something rather form-fitting. 

Oh yes, it is going to happen.

Getting there

My first big sewing project, and it's very slow going. Granted, I've put it aside a few times due to life or other things getting in the way. But now, since Halloween is around the corner, I need to get moving on it and get it done.

I have a few buttons still to put on the jacket and make the bustle but I finished the skirt today after having to redo the entire ruffle. Thankfully, I didn't have to replace the fabric, just pick out a ton of stitches.

Here it is so far:

Beef, Mushroom and Barley Stuffed Tomatoes

This was made completely out of items I had in my kitchen. Surprisingly good, although I used mild cheddar instead of feta because that's what I had. Using feta will give it more of a tang, which was missing with the cheddar. Oh, and it's 6 Weight Watchers points per serving! Can't beat that! :D

Ingredients:
1 pound(s) 90% lean/10% fat raw ground beef
1 medium onion(s), chopped
2 clove(s) garlic clove(s), minced (medium)
1/2 cup(s) mushroom(s), chopped
6 large tomato(es)
1 tsp dried oregano
1 cup(s) parsley
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/2 tsp black pepper, or to taste
1/4 cup(s) fat-free beef broth, enough to moisten mixture
1 cup(s) cooked barley
1/2 cup(s) reduced-fat feta cheese
1 tsp olive oil
1 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350. Cook barley according to instructions.
2. Brown meat and drain well. Set aside.
3. Spray same pan used to brown meat with some cooking spray. Saute mushrooms, garlic and onions over medium heat until mushrooms have released their moisture and onions are tender.
4. Cut the tops (1/4 - 1/2 inch) of the tomatoes. Using a small spoon, carefully hollow out the tomatoes, keeping the tomato shells intact. Save the tops and pulp for other uses.
4. Add meat, barley , spices and broth to vegetables and cook, stirring until heated through.
5. Remove from heat, and stir in feta cheese. Stuff into tomatoes carefully.
6. Drizzle small amount of olive oil over tops of tomatoes, then sprinkle some parmesan cheese.
7. Arrange tomatoes in a baking dish so that they are held securely in place. Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes or until tomatoes are tender and cheese is lightly browned.

New projects

Now that my shoulder is mostly back to normal -- I have about 95% range of motion back, all except being able to get my arm behind my back. Truly, if I'm never able to do the cow pose in yoga, that's fine by me -- I'm back to doing all the stuff that's been waiting for me.

So far, I've canned 6 quarts of plum tomatoes, 9 pints of salsa, 11 quarts of dill pickles and 5 quarts of bread 'n' butter pickles. Out of all that, only the jalapenos came from my own garden. My tomato plant is producing, but only enough for eating here and there and my cucumbers died off completely. I've planted some seeds and will see how they go, along with more green bean seeds. I'm not counting on being able to harvest much from them, but we'll see. The extreme heat is really taking it's toll except on the peppers which love it.

I've also (FINALLY) start sewing my Steampunk costume. I'm using this Simplicity pattern as the base. It's my first time REALLY sewing something since I was 13-14, and my mother was there to help me. I'm moving very slowly, with 5 books and various web pages to guide me. OF COURSE, I not only choose a pattern that requires princess seams and darts and such to allow for the curves of  the body, but also a fabric that is slippery (in this case, I'm using a shantung.) Not quite the thing to do for a first sewing project but since when do I do things the easy way?? So far, I've gotten the back panel and two front panels finished.

I think I'm actually getting the hang of it. I've figured out how to clip the edge to allow for curving, overstitch the edge to keep from unraveling and press the seams correctly. Since I've started losing weight, it'll probably be too big for me, but I'll make adjustments as I go. I'd rather it be too big and have to take it in that make it too small.

I've also finished a few knitting projects I was working on. One tank top was finished a while ago, but I forgot to take a picture. The other tank (the purple one) I finished a couple of weeks ago and have mostly finished a Give it Forward project -- that one just needs some finishing and it'll be off in the mail.

For the purple one, I had to make adjustments in the pattern because it was obviously written for people without boobs. One inch for the bust is NOT going to cover me up! LOL So I added a few inches of the bust band as well as to the straps. The green one is slightly short on me, but hopefully as I lose weight, it'll settle better on my body.

So I've gotten quite a bit accomplished lately. I'm feeling rather proud of myself.

My garden is not a happy garden

The extreme heat is taking it's toll on my little garden. It's a container garden, which is harder to maintain than a conventional garden but I've been diligent in watering the plants either early in the morning or late evening so the sun doesn't burn the plants.

The only plants that are still thriving is the patio tomato, the jalapenos and the oregano. The bell peppers are holding on, as is the Stevia, but everything else is dying. There's no way I can salvage the cucumber -- it's dead. The roma tomato isn't doing well, I had to cut down the basil and hope it can recover and my green beans are hanging on by a thread.

This is sad. Last year, it rained so much most of the plants drowned. Yes, I have drainage holes in the pots and also use perlite or small pebbles to allow for more drainage. This year, they're wilting from the heat and there's no where I can put them to make it better. When it's 97° in the shade, it's just a bad summer. And it's not even really summer yet.

*sigh* Guess I'll have to shop the farmer's markets again for enough produce to make pickles and such.

Mexicali Pork Chops

I made this up a few years ago, and I'm glad it fits within the Weight Watchers points system.

	1 14 oz can tomato sauce
	1/2 can black beans, rinsed and drained
	1 can sweet corn, drained
	1 medium green pepper, chopped
	1/2 sweet red pepper, chopped
	1 small raw onion, chopped
	2 tbsp Goya sofrito sauce
	4 lean boneless pork chop
	1 small can chopped green chili peppers

Instructions

Sprinkle chops with salt, pepper and garlic powder (or use Goya Adobo powder). Saute over medium heat in pan coated with cooking spray, about 2 minutes per side until browned. Add rest of ingredients, bring to slow boil.

Lower heat and simmer, covered, about 20-30 minutes until pork chops are cooked through.
Serve over spanish style or yellow rice.

Pirate hat?

This latest project is a reworking of some horrible hat I found in a thrift store. It's a peach straw hat that had a ribbon rose thing around it. Perfectly terrible, but good bones. It started out looking somewhat like this, minus the netting and in a bridesmaid peach color:

I had found some funky paisley fabric in the remnant section, and used that to cover it after trying to dye the straw failed. Then, I sewed a ribbon to the brim and stitched the sides up to the crown to make it more in a tricorn shape.

Added some rosette trim to the top of the brim and braided trim to the bottom. I cannabalized a Halloween hat I had for the black roses and net in the back and added a few feathers, a button and a pin. Voila! A sort of pirate hat/Victorian style ladies hat.