What is on your menu today (Photo Friday) RNYers?

Hi All!

this morning I have my last class on Islam in Iran. Next week I start a new one on Russian History. I took a Russian history class years ago, but it just went up to Catherine the Great. This one covers a later (as in more modern) period. Really looking forward to it! After class I'm meeting a friend for lunch.

DH and I are going to try to get free or cheap hockey tickets for tonight (game is sold out - but often people with season tickets who can't use them kindly bring them to the arena to see if someone else can use them). If so, we'll take our Turkish friend with us, as he's never seen a hockey game is really pumped about it. If we can't get in tonight, we'll try again tomorrow and perhaps do a movie tonight with him. Tomorrow - my usual sunrise yoga class, afternoon hockey game with the Turkish guy if we can't get tix to tonight's game but can get some for tomorrow instead. Otherwise? There are some good movies that are opening at our second-run cheapo place today, so maybe we'll hit one of those tomorrow. Sunday we were invited to an Oscar party by this new person I met at the coffee social I went to yesterday. We'll go as long as the weather holds out (doesn't sound to promising as of now, though - more snow and freezing rain - ugh). If we go to the party, I'll need to make something to bring along - so there's my Sunday morning/early afternoon....

Accountability was great, weight down a notch again

QOTD: pre-op, it was definitely savory - salty, crunchy things like chips and nuts. I really wasn't into sweets at all. Now...well, I'm not sure. I do like sweets now more than I did pre-op, but we have things around for DH all the time that I almost never touch - cookies, ice cream - he even had a cake in the basement fridge that I never had a piece of. I crave chocolate sometimes, though, so I have SF fudgesicles and FF/SF hot cocoa mix on hand all time. Or sometimes I'll mix unsweetened cocoa powder into vanilla Fit & Light or Carbmaster yogurt and throw a few raspberries on top. This is weird, but when I have cravings, it's often for stuff like my protein oatmeal (oats, vanilla protein powder, cinnamon) with L&F creme brule yogurt on top. Or for awhile I was really into crustless protein pumpkin pie (recipe was on OH in Nov 2017). I seem to like creamy sweet dairy things the most now. Sometimes I'll take a thing of L&F (or Carbmaster) yogurt and mix a tablespoon of tahini into it - or top it with some TJ's High Fiber cereal - just so I get the creamy dairy thing I crave PLUS something in it that's super filling to stop the damn eating!!!

3 years 8 months out:

B: three protein pumpkin pancakes topped with 1/3 C plain Greek yogurt and 1/2 C homemade apple/cinnamon compote (no sugar added - just SF Torani syrup), coffee with half & half

MS: protein shake

L: Meeting a friend at a bistro. They have a pulled pork platter that I'll most likely go with.

AS: raw veggies with either hummus or ranch Greek yogurt, light yogurt

D: probably a salad topped with TJ's grilled chicken strips. Or leftover pulled pork.

ex: I'm still a bit achy from all the shoveling. I went to a water aerobics class yesterday (and sat in the Jacuzzi afterward) which i think helped - or at least didn't make it worse - and did some yoga at home last night. I'll probably do yoga again today. It won't aggravate the aching - and will probably help it.

Sounds like a busy fun weekend! I hope you can get some tickets for the game, that sounds like a lot of fun.

Tell us your secret Trish, you crave "protein" things! I am soooo jealous!

Enjoy your yoga

I actually require a lot of protein. We discovered early on that I malabsorb it (I might have before WLS, too, but we didn't do a baseline on that, so we don't know). I have to get 100+ grams a day, or my pre albumin level tanks. I usually get 100-150 grams. I'm having phase 2 of PS at the end of March, so he's going to want me at the high end of that (150- ish) for a week or two before and for a few weeks after. I can do it - but I'll have to be really conscious of pushing it to get it that high consistently.

Here's another really high protein sweet thing I like (calories, though - so if I have it for a snack, I only have half a cup and throw some raspberries on it):

3 C cottage cheese

2 scoops vanilla protein powder

Enough unsweetened almond or cashew milk to get it going in the blender

Unsweetened cocoa powder and artificial sweetener to taste

Whip it up in a blender or food processor to mousse- like consistency.

I usually refrigerate it before eating it - it gets a little thicker in the

fridge

Your classes sound so interesting; Russian History is one of my favorite subjects!

me too! At one time I considered doing a PhD in European history ****il I realized there were basically no jobs in it - I didn't want to spend my life being an adjunct professor - or worse yet, not being able to use my degree at all!!). My two favorite areas were Russian history and British history. Loved them both!!!

Daisy, that salad though! Yum! Now I want a pear goat cheese salad with walnuts...yes please!

QOTD: savory savory savory. I would literally give up chocolate for the rest of my life if you told me I could eat pizza, pasta, and nachos and not gain weight! Normally we are food twins but in this sense, we diverge, my friend!

B: Leftover tuna concoction (tuna, feta cheese, diced shallots, Aldi artichoke salad (artichokes, roasted red peppers, green olives) black olives, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper

L: 2 Aidell's habanero chicken sausage that we grilled last night

D: It's a hodge podge. Fettucine alfredo for Kris and the kids. The kids will have chicken tenders, Kris will have leftover salmon from last night. I may broil my crab that I didn't get to last night.

S: Mini peppers with greek yogurt/ranch seasoning. I am obsessed with this snack.

E: Nada. Yesterday I did 50 minutes of spin and then 30 minutes of a circuit training/cardio class. I had to leave halfway through - I was just exhausted!

Have a great weekend, everyone!!!

For photo Friday, here are two new Iceland pics from last week (my god, it feels like a lifetime ago, did I really just get back on Sunday???). The first photo is me at lunch - I ordered Icelandic fish stew and could not even eat half despite giving a huge scoop to Kris so of course the restaurant was super concerned I didn't like it (I didn't like it - I LOVED it!) and the second is Kris and I on our snowmobiling trip on Langjokull Glacier (I am on the right, and wearing about 11 layers, not normally that marshmallow looking!).

I never ever thought I would want to travel somewhere,Em,but after seeing all your pictures I now want to go to Iceland. It looks amazing!

I meant travel somewhere cold above--no coffee yet so brain is not working yet either.

Looking great Em!

Haha to the restaurant- haven't had one of those in awhile.

Em, I know our tastes differ when it comes to our "cravings." Now don't get me wrong, I love me some Mexican, Indian, Thai, Lebanese food, I love spicy and really flavourful food. But my first love lies with SUGAR

Your pics from Iceland are INCREDIBLE. It makes me want to travel. But man did you & Kris ever pack in a ton of things in what 5 or 7 days? All those things you did would take me a month to do! The snowmobiling trip is wicked. I love to snowmobile (My parents were hard core sledders when I was a kid so I spent a lot of time on them and love it!).

Have an awesome weekend