10 years...




Jason and I ready to go to the reunion

  While I was home on for Thanskgiving my high school had our ten year reunion. I wasn't sure what to expect especially since many of them I really have not seen in 10 years. It was really great to see some of the people I had not seen in a long time.





Sara and I



 My good friend Sara and her husband Joe came. I have remained friends with Sara since high school and was a bridesmaid in her wedding. Many of the others though I had not seen in a really long time. I think almost everyone who attended agreed it was a really great time.



I started thinking about how much my life has changed in 10 years... So I decided to give a top 10

10. I attended and graduated from the University of Cincinnati.

9. I have lost over 47 pounds and maintained this weight loss for two years plus.

8. I have not only run several half marathons but also completed a full marathon this year.

7. My lifestyle is much more active. I am willing to try almost anything. In fact I started a 20 day holiday shred with my sister this week. We are feeling the pain yet accomplishment from it.  Below is one of my softbal pictures... This is about as active as I got when I was younger.


One of my famous softball pictures.. can you find me?



6. I am not afraid of anything. I must admit I held back in my younger days. Today I feel like nothing can stop me from achieving anything I really want.

5. The relationship I have with my mother is much different than it was 10 years ago. The older I get the more I appreciate everything she has ever done for me She is truly amazing.



4. Currently I am leading two meetings per week for weight watchers. I am very proud of this. I am so proud of all members who step into that meeting room every week. I hope to inspire them weekly as much as they inspire me.

3. I am Aunt. My sister had a baby just over a year ago. I never knew what an amazing experience this would be. She is such an amazing little girl... To hear her say "Dee" just warms my heart.. 

2. I enjoy life. There are many times when I was overweight I was not enjoying my life.



Some of my favorite girls from high school



1. High School wasn't the time of my life... There is a country song by Brad Paisley and he jokes about high school not being the time of his life. Honestly for me it was what it was. There are been many more memorable days since then. I wouldn't take any of the great times from high school but my life is so much more full now.



I can cook!

Oh yes and here's the proof. I helped my mom on Thanksgiving... Look at me go. It was actually a lot of fun spending the afternoon with my mom. After we got home from the Thanksgiving morning race my sisters had to take off for another family function. So my mom and I started the cooking. I felt good knowing that I was able to help prepare the meal and spend quality time with my mom.
















Of course I made the Weight Watchers recipe I shared before thanksgiving. I did try something I read online I added a tiny bit of Splenda brown sugar to the top. I think it turned out great. I even heard from people at my moms that it was great! Yay! I love when people say they love something and I know it was a Weight Watchers Recipe.

You can find a link to the recipe here... http://deannamg.blogspot.com/2011/11/i-love-sweet-potatoes.html

I had an amazing day with my family.

I am so thankful for everything about this year's Thanksgiving.


My Favorite Girls



I also attended my 10 year reunion this past weekend. I will post more on my thoughts about it as soon as I get a chance.

How are you reflecting on this year's Thanksgiving?



What are you Thankful for?

I am thankful for many things including my family, friends, and health. I feel so empowered. This morning my mom, sisters and I went to a Thanksgiving day walk and run. I am so proud of them for getting up and going. What a better way to start the day then with three amazing women whom I love very much. Take time to appreciate things like this today.

Life can change so fast. I am so thankful to be spending the day with my amazing family. I am so reflecting today on many things. Only 3 years ago I was a new weight watchers member who still had a significant amount of weight to lose and didn't even bother thinking of getting out of bed to run. Today I ran 6.10 miles and have maintained a weight loss of over 47 pounds for two years now. (that's about two and half turkeys) WOW! I feel very empowered by everything that has changed. I am also trying to remain focused on all of these things and remind myself today is about spending time with my family not stuffing myself (the turkey should be only one getting "stuffed" today)

More updates about our meal today and shopping tomorrow to follow.

What do you want from Thanksgiving?



Thanksgiving 2010

 Last week in Weight Watchers meetings we discussed making the most of our Thanksgiving "plates." We discussed points plus values of typical Thanksgiving meals. I think there are many ways we can approach the holiday. I told many of my members and even discussed with a fellow leader that is will prove to my most difficult Thanksgiving since I joined the program. I have never had the pleasure to go home to Ohio since I joined. Every year I have been able to setup a really good plan to tackle the holiday. Although I have still planned a few things to set myself up for achievement this year.



My sister Jenna

 1. My sister Jenna and I are going to run her first ever Thanksgiving 10K. My mom and other sister Kristen also plan to come and walk the 5K. I really believe that getting in a good I workout sets you up for some really good success on the day. I am really proud of my sister Jenna for being willing to tackle something she has never done before. Although I  know I can do really well at this race I am choosing to run every step along side my sister Jenna for support. If you don't have an event to attend  then make your own... I have to give credit for this idea to my friend Sara setup her own 5K for her family since there were not any events near the home of her sister. Don't let something like this stop you from getting out there and being active. Go around the block and make it a fun event for everyone!


2. I plan to one point friendly dish that I know I can enjoy without the worries of the points. Even if no one else wants to enjoy it I can.


3. Since this is my first Thanksgiving home in nearly 4 years I plan to make the most of the time with my family. I have told many people that I really love Thanksgiving for the fact that we do get to  enjoy so much time with family. I plan to make the most of every second with my amazing family.



My Amazing Family



4. SHOP TIL I DROP. I love black Friday. I cannot wait to spend the day with my sisters and mom getting great deals and seeing all the crazy people out.

What do you want to make out of your Thanksgiving? .

I love SWEET POTATOES!

I love that they are on sale right now. I love that they are filling and really good for you! I also really love that you can do so much with them. Cut them up make them fries... mash them and make "mashed sweet potatoes" or just make them.

Do you like sweet potatoes? What is your favorite way to make them?

Here is my favorite weight watchers sweet potato recipe... It is a great replacement for the famous sweet potato casseroles at Thanksgiving. I have made this the last few years and it turned out GREAT!!

Ingredients


4 Sweet Potatoes (8 to 9 oz. each)

1 1/2 cups Weight Watchers Nonfat Yogurt

1/2 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 1/2 Kosher Salt

2/3 cup Low fat Granola

Cooking spray, butter flavor

Place washed sweet potatoes in oven and bake at 350° F for approximately 40 to 60 minutes, until they are soft to the touch. After the potatoes have cooled, remove the skin.

Place the sweet potato flesh in a mixing bowl. Add Weight Watchers® Vanilla Nonfat Yogurt, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Whip on medium speed until all of the yogurt is mixed into the potatoes.

Coat glass or ceramic baking dish (1 1/2 to 2 quarts) with cooking spray. Scoop potato mixture into the prepared baking dish.

Sprinkle granola evenly across the top of the potatoes and lightly coat with cooking spray. Bake at 350° F for approximately 40 to 50 minutes. Remove from oven and serve.

Serving size: 1/2 cup PointsPlus™ 2*

Marathon Recap

Well over all it went way better than I ever expected. We started in downtown Indianapolis and we went by the state fair grounds, the museum park, Butler University and many other beautiful areas in Indianapolis. I felt great from the start until around 13-15. Started to have pain in my right foot. By 20 is was really bad.



Bryan, Myself and Nora at the start line



I loved all the crowd support and my "Marathon Virgin" shirt was a hit. The weather was amazing. The last 3 miles felt like 100. A crowd supporter started pumping up a runner near me and her words really encouraged me.

My mom and Nanny came up from Ohio to see us race... I am so glad they came. The support was amazing!

Nanny and I



Mom and I





As soon as I saw the 26th mile marker tears began to flow... I just couldn't believe I did... I am so proud I finished a marathon. I ended up finishing in 4 hours 22 minutes. I was the 1,596th person to cross the finish line. I was 90 out of 188 females aged 25-29. I was also 513 out of 1038 females. 

Post race I got to celebrate with one of my very good friends Michelle. She lives near Indy and we got to hang out the rest of the day. Support like this is amazing. I am so lucky!



Marathon Ready?

So I have know what race nerves are... I get those little butterflies every time I run a race. I have been doing a lot to prepare myself mentally and in other ways. I got out my overnight bag and I started putting things into it I knew I wouldn't need before race day. I even made my own shirt so that my friends and family can spot me. Today I started increasing my carbohydrate intake.

Today's Menu

 I had a piece of toast and an orange before work. Of course Coffee also

Then I had some Oatmeal with Almonds and canned pumpkin with a banana.

Snack 1 is going to be: yogurt with cereal and blueberries.
Lunch: Turkey Wrap, Quinoa with black beans and corn, Carrots, Apple

Snack 2 Crackers maybe even some dried fruit before I run

Dinner... I am thinking about having tacos....

Today's run is 4 miles...

I really would like to get most of my packing done today. I need to eat my big carbohydrate dinner tomorrow.... What sounds good? Pasta, Pizza... something homemade... haven't decided.