found in my reader

I have some new blogs in the sidebar on the right side of the page - we're not talking sponsorships or paid space, just things I've been reading lately. Check them out if you're looking for something new! Yes, you'll have to click out of your Google Reader, but I promise it's worth it.

Our Suburban Cottage

Newlywedisms by Bryn

The Newlywed Diaries

Living with Lindsay

wan life to live

imperfect

Hooked on Houses

All Things G&D

Little Green Notebook

Centsational Girl

Copy Cat Chic chic for cheap

First Comes Love Then Comes Marriage

86'n It

TiffanyD

Working Woman's Guide To Domestic Success

veggie couscous: a weight watchers-friendly recipe

Tonight for dinner I made veggie couscous, a recipe that has evolved over the years. I think it originally started with a Cooking Light recipe but I wasn't able to turn up anything. I'll have to check through my recipe binder to see if I can find where it came from! My mom and I make different variations and I think it deviates from the original recipe more and more each time. I love it because although it has a fair amount of veggies, it doesn't taste like a salad to me. I like salad, don't get me wrong, but I like to mix it up.

Veggie Couscous
serves 6ish

one box of couscous (Near East is a popular brand), I usually use Parmesan or original flavor
half an English cucumber, diced
one red pepper, halved and seeded
1 large zucchini or 2 small ones, cut lengthwise
10-12 stalks of asparagus
one container (8 oz) of fat free crumbled feta cheese
one can chick peas, rinsed
one pint cherry tomatoes, halved
one lime, squeezed
2 T olive oil

Prepare couscous according to package directions. While that is cooking, get out a grill pan (if you have one - if not a skillet is just fine) and spray with nonstick spray. Grill asparagus, zucchini slices, and red pepper halves until lightly cooked and still a little under done. DO NOT OVERCOOK! Dice up grilled veggies and add to large bowl. By this time, the couscous should be done. Uncover and fluff with fork, and add to bowl with the rest of the veggies. Add 1 T olive oil and squeeze lime into mixture. Add cucumber, tomatoes, feta, and chickpeas. Add salt and pepper to taste. Can be served room temperature or cold.

According to Weight Watchers, each serving of a little more than a cup has 4 points. If you're a WW expert and you think it might be wrong, let me know! I inputted the items into the recipe calculator but it's the first time I've done it.

I've made variations with oregano and basil to season, adding chicken for some more protein, cannellini beans in lieu of the chick peas, and fresh mozzarella boccocinni instead of the feta. I also add veggies based on what I have, so it varies based on what's in my fridge. The only change I might suggest is using low fat feta instead of fat free - it tastes so much better! But I don't know what the difference in points would be... I should look that up. Happy eating!

sad day with no Samoas

I have started to write this post no less than nine times,

"Nine times?"
"Nine times."
"I don't remember him being sick nine times."
"That's probably because he wasn't sick."

not because it's difficult but because I've been busy. And tired. And tired of being busy. (Gold star if you get the reference above.) Although I have a million and one ideas for posts, I got up at o'dark thirty this morning and I'm just out of gas. And also, out of thin mints. As in I never got any. As in the girl scout took our order but has NEVER DELIVERED THEM. I want a Samoa so bad I could taste it. And thin mints. I love me some thin mints. It doesn't help matters that we ordered from a neighbor's daughter instead of from coworker's kids, only to have coworker's kids already deliver the cookies in front of me at work and neighbor's daughter not deliver a single cookie. Speaking of calories...

Weight Watchers has been going alright. I'm down 5 lbs. but didn't lose any last week. I'm not terribly surprised, as Valentine's Day was in there, but it was a bit disappointing. On the plus side, I wore a dress that was previously tight on me around Christmas this week, which feels fab-u-lous. I'm surprised that I actually like the whole WW thing. I looked at it as a necessary evil but now I'm very glad about it.

Also fabulous is a trip the husband and I booked to Mexico in the month of May. I finally bit the bullet and just did it - and I'm very excited. May also brings our second anniversary and the husband's first mini marathon. And me laying on the beach drinking a Corona! I've never been to Mexico, but I'm excited to break out my subpar Spanish skills and put them to the test.

"¿Nueve veces?"
"Nueve veces."
"No lo recuerdo ser nueve épocas enfermas."
"Eso está probablemente porque él no era enfermo."

Just doesn't have the same ring to it, does it? Hopefully I didn't butcher the language too much, lo siento. But here's one I'm sure of: Tres cajas de Samoa, por favor. Muy gracias.

what's mine is yours, unless you touch my food

The husband and I are a team. We share everything. Bank accounts, passwords, a toothbrush.... kidding. Or am I....

But we do not share everything. Case in point? My 100 calorie packs, English muffins, or any other diet food I have declared to be mine. Now that I'm doing Weight Watchers, I know what I want, how many points it's going to be, and when I'm going to eat it. And you don't mess with this hungry girl and her points!

After asking around, I'm not the only one who goes to great lengths to keep the husband out of my stash. It's not like I'm the food Nazi either, there is plenty of food in the house. The husband is not going hungry. And I'm generally not hard to get along with - as long as you stay out of my Lorna Doones and Mr Salty packs, we'll get along just fine. But if you eat the last Skinny Cow ice cream sandwich, there will be hell to pay. And don't even think about touching those No Pudge brownies.

seriously, jcrew?!

I love you, JCrew, but you're hit and miss lately. Ain't no way I'm wearing this jacked up mess. Seperately, I'm sure the items look good, but together? And with wrinkles in the shirt?

I'll take my Juliet pumps and Jackie cardigan and be on my merry way.

Love,
Brittany

valentine treats

I'm tired. This post is going to be quick and not at all witty. One of those days!

I try to make care packages for my grandma as well as the husband's every now and then. For Valentine's Day, I made sugar cookies, cake pops, and cake balls. I made royal icing for the hearts - I made waaaay too much but it worked out really well. I piped the outside edge with my Martha cake decorating kit. Apparently they don't sell it anymore at Macy's but it looks like this.
Here's a not-so-great photo of one of the boxes. The foil isn't a hat - it has the cookies inside. On the left are the cake pops and on the right (in the plastic box) are a few cake balls. It looks cuter in person - you'll have to take my word for it!

I used a Martha recipe for the royal icing and one from Bakerella for the cake balls and pops. I don't know how Bakerella does it - my pops don't look anywhere near that cute but I'm trying!

checking in!

It's been 2 weeks since my last blog post, and I owe some sort of an update to assure you that I haven't fallen off the face of the earth! My miscellany, as of late:

• The Colts lost last night. Because they're my home team, of course I wish the outcome had been different. I take comfort in the fact that our loss was not to the Patriots, however.
• I've spent the past two weekends taking apart an old curio cabinet from my grandma's house, priming it, painting it gray, and now installing a wine rack into the middle section that I picked up from World Market. I think the project will end well. I certainly hope so!
• I made about a million cake balls and pops a la Bakerella. I have a few observations: 1) Bakerella must be magic because my balls were nowhere as even as hers; 2) the use of low sugar cake mix doesn't make for round balls; and 3) i feel somewhat dirty typing out "balls" as many times as I have in this paragraph. I am a 14 year old boy. But not really.
• I can't get into the Bachelor. Playing the field with that many girls at once is reeedonkulous. And it's only worked once - with Trista and Ryan on the Bachelorette.
• Apparently their new daughter's name is Blakesley - to each their own I guess. And all that.
• I still remember their wedding. The flowers were amazing. I can't find a picture of their ceremony setup but it had shades of pink row by row. I know a few of you remember!
• You know what dating show I miss? Temptation Island. That show was horrible and fascinating at the same time.
• The last baking project I have for Valentine's Day is to ice my sugar cookies with royal icing tomorrow night. Then I'm ready to mail packages to grandmas.
• The National Weather Service is predicting more snow for us tomorrow through Wednesday. I'll believe it when I see it.
• I've lost 4 lbs. so far on Weight Watchers in the 2.5 weeks since I've started. I'm pleased I've lost weight but frankly, I thought it would be more! Especially because there are times that I am STARVING. But slow and steady is good - that's 2 lbs. per week, which is reasonable.
• I joke with the husband just about every day that I need to get a vacation on the books in order to feel right with the world. I'm not joking. I really need to constantly work towards a vacation. It's motivation, right?
• Big Bang Theory and Better Off Ted are two of my favorite newer shows. I love Portia del Rossi in Better Off Ted, she's hilarious.
• I really want a card catalog from a library. I have no idea where I'd put it - spare bedroom for craft items, maybe? But I need to find one. I've been searching Ebay and Craigslist but no dice yet.
• I got the cutest fabric online at fabricguru.com. I'm skirting the big plastic utility sink in the laundry room and doing a treatment for the window.
• I was so excited to read the comments on the silver leafing! I don't have a permanent place for the table but I'll make sure to let you know. Right now it's still under our flat screen in the master, but I did add a vase of pink tulips, which are beautiful.

Well, that's about it for now. Work is busy and it ain't easy being Betty Crocker every night! All two nights in a row, that is.