backsliding

So...I'd let myself slide by here and there with not eating the way I should, and then with the kidney stones, I did a lot of justifying about how I needed a little comfort (from food). So, I didn't weigh myself this week. I'm afraid. I wouldn't be surprised if I'd gained back five pounds. Ugh. I need to rededicate, but I haven't done it yet. Why is it so hard???

I've still been cooking, just not as healthfully as I should.

Um...

Okay. In other news, B and I just celebrated our second valentine's day. This year we decided not to buy one another valentines, but to exchange ones we made for one another. She made me this really sweet card with stitching and a fancy button, and I embroidered her a ladies handkerchief. But, she said that she wouldn't ever blow her nose on it, so framed it instead.

We also went to the Pittsburgh Glass Center on Valentine's Eve, and did this couples' workshop on pulling glass flowers. Really fun! We get to pick them up today, and I can't wait to see how they turned out.

On the day itself, I made Barbara some valentine's pancakes with blueberry syrup and veggie sausage (the pancake recipe was, guess who's...Heidi's!).


And, then for dinner, I made the Vegetable Wellington I'd been planning on making last year for V-day dinner (before the comedy of errors set upon me, and we just ordered pizza instead).

The wellington is based on this recipe from Vegetarian Times magazine. I didn't use the pesto or tomato sauces, and used Cypress Grove Purple Haze goat cheese (oh dang, that's good cheese), and the veggies were onion, broccoli, red bell pepper, mushrooms, carrots, spinach and parsley. Barbara made some garlic green beans to accompany it. So yummy.


On Sunday, I made West Virginia delicacies--pepperoni rolls, vegetarian style (using LightLife faux pepperoni slices). I used this recipe for the dough (almost ALL the recipes I found called for frozen dough or canned biscuit dough, but this dough was easy and slightly sweet and just worked out swell). I used the faux pepperoni, a little grated parmesan, provolone, mozzarella, and in some of them, hot pepper jack. I had to bake them longer than the recipe said (about 22 minutes), but they turned out so well. Seriously, they taste just like the best versions of the real thing.




Incidentally, has anyone heard anything about a successful Pepperoni Roll Diet? If so, I'd be eager to hear about it. Just sayin'.

the best of times, the worst of times

It really has been a mixed bag lately. On the positive side, things with my lady have never been better, I got my tax refund within 5 days, and bought myself a brandy-new laptop, had a stellar dinner out at Kaya the other night, and am still slowly making progress towards my goal (15 pounds down). But, now I'm laid out with the slow and steady descent of a kidney stone through my system. Luckily, it's not this kidney stone (thanks, Kramer). But, I just feel pretty cruddy. And, I had a dream last night that I passed it, and it already had a little thingy on it so that it could be put on a necklace. Weird.

I want to write more, and show off my new laptop, but I just don't feel very well. So, I'll do that later.