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Well, I’ve been at it again. I was trying to clean house, and I ran across a cookbook I had gotten at the thrift store. See, that's what happens when you're cleaning house instead of quilting like you should be! It was a book with a new dessert recipe for every day of the year ( A Year of Diet Desserts.) Oh saints preserve us. But it actually had very low calorie recipes in it. It was written in 1987, so has some of the typical cooking that seemed to be popular in that era. The recipes were very low fat, and had a minimal amount of sweeteners. Honey was the sweetener of choice in most of the recipes. Most of the recipes were under 200 calories, well within the range I allow for treats.

So that got me in the baking mood. I tried a few of those recipes, and also developed a couple of new ones myself--a roasted butternut squash pudding and apple blueberry baked oatmeal. And I made a made a single-serving lasagna that was killer!

It is actually possible to enjoy baking and still lose weight. You just have to be a little creative. To read more about my adventures in (healthy) baking and see the recipes, check out my blog, Debby Weighs In. 

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Well that covers it all doesn’t it? I can hardly believe that its been eight years since I started this last journey of weight loss. And it doesn’t seem like its coming to an end anytime soon.

When I am in Haiti or Nairobi, it seems absolutely ludicrous that I or anyone else would spend a minute of time thinking about food. What’s the best food to eat, and at which time? Should certain foods be eliminated and which ones should you eat for the fastest weight loss? I’m telling you, it seems ludicrous. There's just a lot more to life than food and diet. And yet, here I am, home for a week, and this topic looms large in my mind. I can’t help it.

A friend of mine (who has successfully maintained a 100 pound weight loss) recently stated:

“real maintenance is not clutching to weight with white knuckles, but learning to live with the ups and downs that come with it.”

And that seems to be what I am doing right now. I have done the clutching and the white knuckle thing. I have been embarrassed that as a “successful maintainer” I have been not so successful at maintaining the 100 pounds I lost. I have tried to lose some of that weight, and only succeeded in gaining a little bit more. I have eliminated certain food groups, and I have eaten mindfully. I have refined and changed my diet over the years so that now I eat mostly unprocessed food (that’s a good change!) And all that time I observed myself, and made note of what worked for me and what didn’t, sometimes IN SPITE of what the ‘experts’ said. And right now, it seems, I am once again in weight loss mode.

So I guess what I started out to say is that sometimes weight loss is PART of maintaining. That’s just life.

If you'd like to read more of my musings on this subject, click on over to my blog, Debby Weighs In.

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Since I just came back from a trip to Haiti, where I was kind of forced to 'travel light,' I thought I'd write about two of my favorite topics--quilts and food--and how I fit them together while traveling. 

While Haiti was not a quilting expedition (you can read about it here and here,) food was a concern for me. I'm in losing mode right now, and I didn't want to go off the rails, as can so easily happen when you travel. The only food I brought with me was protein bars, and boy howdy, did they come in handy. I chose bars that did not have any melty coating because I knew it would be warm there. So it was easy to grab a bar for lunch or breakfast and take it along as we traveled. At dinner, I enjoyed the native cuisine, and just ate moderate amounts.

But what I really wanted to share with you is how easy it is to go to quilt shows or retreats, and still eat good healthy food and NOT gain weight! When I travel, I try to choose hotels that have a mini refrigerator and a microwave. I can either pack an ice bag with some of my favorites (cottage cheese, yogurt, fruit, baby carrots) or I can just hit up the grocery store on arrival. I do know some of the restaurants that have healthy choices available, and plan to eat out once or twice during a long trip (Baha Fresh and Chipotle have some really great salad choices, and Jamba Juice includes calories on all their offerings. They also have really great irish oatmeal.)

If you are just making a day trip, like I sometimes do when going to Pacific International Quilt Festival, you can still very easily pack a nice lunch. I have a couple of those little blue ice packs in my freezer, and I just pop one of those in the bottom of a plastic bag and put in a container of cottage cheese and fruit, and maybe some baby carrots, and a protein bar for a snack later in the day. It will stay plenty cold until lunchtime. And its so nice to find a chair and enjoy a good lunch without wasting time waiting in line for food that is too expensive and not that good.

Do you have some tips for "traveling light?"

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Aging gracefully has become a mantra of sorts for me in the past year or so. I want to age gracefully. I think about it all the time. I think it is something that I have to actively work on. I have to work on  accepting the inevitable aging process. But I also have to work to take good care of this aging vessel. That means getting those pesky doctor's check-ups and lab work done. And then addressing the things that I can work to improve. 

The latest thing I've been doing is going to physical therapy a couple times a week for a badly damaged arthritic knee. As the doctor said, "our goal is to keep you from needing knee replacement surgery until you are 65." Because they only last 15 years. Oh joy. But you know what? I am taking this seriously, doing all the exercises as well as I can, and doing them at home in-between appointments. And my knees really have improved.

In addition, I am taking seriously the doctor's suggestion that losing some weight will also help. I already make healthy choices for the majority of my meals, but now I am paring back some of my favorite recipes to just the 'bare bones.' Click here for a new version of my favorite blueberry scone recipe, pared down to just the essentials of a scone. It is still a very enjoyable treat for breakfast, and only 155 calories each. I made a batch of raspberry scones using this recipe as a Christmas treat.  

If you'd like to read more of my musings about aging gracefully over on my blog, Debby Weighs In, click here.

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Me Time. That seems like a funny thing for a person who lives alone, and is retired, to need. Isn't all her time 'me time?' Well, in one way, it is. But most days I am doing a lot of things that "must be done." Once in a great while I will mark a day on the calendar to do just exactly what I want to do--"me time." Sometimes it turns out that what I most want to do is my laundry, and in between sit in my chair with my dogs on my lap. That's mostly what I did on my recent 'me day.' Other days I let myself go to the gym and spend as much time as I want working out, followed by a nice session at Starbucks. And some days, of course, it is quilting from morning until night. Sometimes I let myself start a brand new project or just play with fabric and colors without feeling guilty about the myriad of unfinished projects waiting in the wings.

I know that most of you quilters have lots of responsibilities and wear many hats. But try to take a little 'me time' now and again. It does wonders for your soul. The people closest to you will thank you for the new and improved you.

For more of my thoughts on living a whole and healthy life, visit my blog Debby Weighs In.

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Did everyone have a healthy and happy Thanksgiving celebration? Do you still have some leftovers you are trying to use up? Here are a couple of healthy and so-delicious post-holiday recipes for you.

I was watching The Food Network during my bicycle session at the gym, and I saw a pumpkin bread pudding. That really ignited my imagination, and I started dreaming about how I could create a "healthy pumpkin bread pudding." I think I was very successful on my first attempt! Basically using the ingredients for pumpkin custard and my healthified french toast (that I make with whole grain English muffins) I came up with this recipe.  It is good enough that I have eaten all four servings!  I’ve had it for dessert, a snack, and breakfast. Now that’s what you call an all-purpose food! At 140 calories, its a darn good caloric deal.

My favorite after-Thanksgiving meal is this delicious salad. Bare bones, it is like a deconstructed turkey sandwich:  lettuce, laughing cow light cheese, cranberry sauce, and turkey. Originally I added some avocado, but I did not have that tonight. Basically you could add anything you want to this salad.  

So, the cranberry sauce! I had planned to just buy some at the store. But the stores were all out the day after Thanksgiving. I found a lone package of cranberries in the produce department and then set about finding a recipe I wanted to try. Cranberries are darn tart on their own. I know that’s why most of the recipes have so much sugar in them. I looked and looked for a lower sugar recipe. And then I thought APPLES! Apples are naturally sweet. So I googled apple cranberry sauce, and found this recipe. (I sub’d fresh orange juice for the apple juice.) And to be honest, it was STILL quite tart. And then my brilliant BF said, why don’t you just add a little Splenda to it? Bingo! For me, this was perfection. At 35 calories for 1/4 cup, it is quite the caloric bargain! Plus, it is very fun to see the cranberries turn into sauce–kinda magical.

If you'd like to read more of my ramblings about living a whole and healthy life, come on over and visit my blog, Debby Weighs In.

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What if you’re not in control of the Thanksgiving Feast? What if someone else is in charge of all the cooking, and you have no say over what is going to be served? What if the person doing the cooking doesn’t think the same way you do about food and healthy nutrition?

What do you do?

• Do you fight and whine?
• Do you just give up and go with the flow?
• Or do you have a plan?

Admission:  control freak here. And I find myself in the position I described in the first paragraph–I am not in control of the Thanksgiving meal! And then I found myself going through the process I listed above. Gah! It was almost like going through the stages of grief!

All of us are in different places in our relationship with food. Right now I am at a point where I am very serious about trying to lose some weight and eat as healthily as possible. So after I got over being mad/sad/whining/giving up, and after my good friend reminded me that it was my responsibility to moderate my intake, not my hosts, I made a plan.

I looked at the menu and noticed that there was no fruit. I will ask nicely if I can bring a fruit salad. I have all the fruit ready and have a terrific recipe in my head. I also bought a bag of baby carrots to add to the hors d’oeuvres’ platter. If they don’t want a fruit salad, I will bring an apple with me, and eat it in the car on the drive over. That way I won't be too hungry and it will be easier to make good choices.

If all else fails (meaning, I eat too much,) I will be kind and remind myself that it is one day. And that is what it is. I am not eating differently up to the day, and I will not eat differently after the day.

Oh, and maybe I should spend a little more time thinking about the real meaning of the day…

If you want to read more, check out my blog, Debby Weighs In!

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One of my friends calls the holiday season--Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas--the Trifecta of Diet Doom! It can seem like that. We can be tempted to just give up and indulge this time of year.

With just a substitution or two, you can turn your Thanksgiving feast into something just as delicious, but a whole lot healthier. Here are two of my favorite "special" vegetable recipes from the past year.

First up is a green bean recipe that will put that old green bean casserole recipe to shame. I cannot tell a lie. I had nothing to do with this recipe, except to enjoy it. It is Balsamic Glazed Green Beans and Pearl Onions.  A most worthy side dish at only 53 calories per serving!

Next is one of my all-time favorite "comfort food" recipes. The original recipe came in my health insurance newsletter--so it has to be healthy, right? It is Cauliflower Potato Bake--somewhat reminiscent of potatoes au gratin. It is definitely healthified, at only 66 calories per serving. I actually think this dish is perfect paired with baked ham. Because everybody knows you have to have MASHED potatoes with turkey, right? Tada! I give you Mashed Cauliflower. Don't turn your nose up at it until you try it. It only took me two years of hearing about it before I would try it! And now its one of my favorite veggies. I felt especially vindicated when I heard some of the top chefs on The Food Network mentioning 'cauliflower mash.' Its so good and creamy that you don't even need gravy. (But at only 40 calories per serving, you can enjoy a little gravy on top!)

I've started a discussion topic in the Forum under The Healthy Quilter, where we can all share some of our favorite healthy Thanksgiving recipes. If you have a good one, I'd love to hear from you.    

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Hi All!  For my first post, I thought I'd share my most favorite (and necessary!) snack for watching the latest episode of The Quilt Show!  I've been a member since the show first started, and somewhere along the way, it became a firmly entrenched habit that I MUST. HAVE. POPCORN! when watching The Quilt Show.  

Over the years, I've tried them all - every type of microwave popcorn known to man. My current favorite is also the tastiest, and healthiest, (and cheapest!) option possible. All you need are some popcorn kernels and a paper lunch bag (available at the grocery store.) 

Measure out about 3 tablespoons of popcorn kernels into the paper bag, fold the top over twice, put it in the microwave, and hit the popcorn button on your microwave.  Be sure not to wander too far.  If the kernels stop popping for more than a second or two, its done.  

And now, here is my 'secret ingredient'--spray oil and Morton's Popcorn Salt. I do like a bit of salt on my popcorn, and it just wouldn't stick to this plain stuff. So I simply put a third of the popcorn in a bowl, give it a spritz of Pam (or whatever spray oil you keep around) and then a shake of salt. Repeat twice more. Ah - popcorn perfection! I am all ready to settle in and watch the latest episode of The Quilt Show! Are you?

I'll be back during the week to share some of my favorite Thanksgiving substitutions!  In the meantime, you can check out my blog Debby Weighs In...on living a whole and healthy life.