Mrs Furious Heartily Endorses...

Mike's Hard Berry ;)

Sure it's what puss babies drink.. what of it?!

And We Are Off

The Furious clan is packing up and shipping out. This is our first trip out to my in-laws since we had Baby Furious. So of course I spent about 2 hours trying on all my clothes and trying to decide which outfits I looked optimally thin in. I'm kind of afraid that my actual weight loss might not measure up to the hype... it is so hard to have any perspective when you see yourself everyday. All I know is that surprisingly few people ever say anything. But then I'm not a fair judge as I'm one of those annoying people who is always in your face with "You look GREAT.. what are you doing!?!" And then try and memorize what they say verbatim so I can Google all their dieting buzz words when I get home... "hmmm... what exactly is medical weight loss..."
I mean obviously I'm thinner, but some of these people haven't seen me since before I was in pregnant so they aren't going to be as impressed as they might have been if they had seen me like this.. Jesus Christ I look like The Beast!... (and yes I mean as in Beauty and The...) If they had seen me like this then they would all be like "Damn girl you look hot!" Okay... they are a bunch of Irish Catholics so they wouldn't actually say that... or anything (to me at least) even if they did notice...


Never fear I will try my best to post while on location in Connecticut.... God knows I'll need to vent ;)

Mrs Furious and Her Fashion Quest Continues

Well I got my next Missus Smarty Pants newsletter today. I almost didn't even want to open it, but hell I needed a laugh... and boy did I get one! This week the clothes are from La Redoute an online store I have never even heard of. That made me a little nervous. Missus Smarty Pants recommends I buy this shirt. But that is not what is funny. What almost made me spit my hot chocolate all over my computer is the shirt that La Redoute "suggests" in the upper right hand corner (you can see it better here). My nursing baby would surely appreciate this top.. but can you just imagine me showing up at preschool in that! And I mean as it is featured people.... now that is freaking hilarious and worth every penny I spent on this thing!


Disclaimer:
I know a lot (okay like 5!) people have been hitting my site from Googling Missus Smarty Pants.. and I feel bad that I have been bashing her site. You might love her site. You will especially love it if you are a hooker or are over 50. I didn't mean to go there again but in case you forgot she did recommend this top too! And that is not to say women over 50 want to look like hookers... I mean that she seems to have a split personality. If you are over 50 I might go so far as to say I highly recommend her.

It's A Munity

"I'm gonna move the line" Kid Furious announced
"No you're not... because that line is there so I don't kill people" Mrs Furious warns

I had clearly underestimated Baby Furious and Kid Furious, as they are small but wily, and I was quickly overtaken...


I have been overthrown in a meticulously planned coup!


I have been warned not to cross this fortified line (now why didn't I think of that?) and yes that is the international "No Mrs Furious" symbol.

I Will Not Lead You Astray

If you have a few minutes at your disposal this Emmy's review is HILARIOUS... and I didn't even watch the Emmy's!

Update:
Mr F thinks this is not funny.

The Camera Don't Lie

I have been struggling to have the energy to get on the treadmill the past few nights. And I found myself back in the old.."maybe this is as good as I'm going to be able to get" mental place. For obvious reasons my weight loss is slowing up and even my measurements aren't really showing a significant difference. But the camera don't lie folks... and these pictures are keeping me going.

Start taking your "Before" pictures NOW because this is what they can do for you...

The last time you saw me I looked like this:

And today (drumroll please) I look like this:

These pics are just under 2 weeks apart.

And for a little refresher (and I kind of gag when I see this) ... This is what I looked like Exactly 2 months ago!

And in case you are wondering there is only a 13 pound difference between today's photo and this one! And the really disturbing thing is that I actually thought I looked good in this picture!

(Please note that I have just worked out in all the pictures... and in this last one my post work out braid is rather unfortunate looking! I don't look that bad in real life I swear!)

This Week The Plan

It is probably not a good sign that I keep having to post this further and further into the week! This has been a rough few days for me. Baby Furious has a bad cold and is up literally every hour on the hour all night. Kid Furious is fast approaching five and also a serious beat down... (just kidding about the beat down!) In truth she is pushing my buttons non-stop and pushing me to the brink of sanity. On top of one of the longest most trying days of my life Mr F decided to ride his bike to work today... and stay a little late doing personal stuff (needless to say not a lot of heads up on this one!)... and came home 45 fucking minutes late! Why is it (and I know there are other stay at home parents out there who are feelin' this one) that the days that I am most likely to freak out and get all Mommie Dearest on my young brood are the same goddamn days that Mr F is freakin' late!?! I mean is it some kind of test from God or what? So... when he jauntily rides up the drive and I haven't been able to get dinner on the table, since of course I didn't know when he was coming home, and Kid F is yappin' non-freakin'-stop and the Baby is exhausted so can't be put down I hit the wall. I was at the point where I no longer knew whether to start slamming doors or sobbing. Being the Superhero that I am I did neither, I "filed some complaints" with Mr F about not being able to workout now because he was home so late (true... you know I'm on a tight schedule with that... and if ever I needed an endorphin rush it is now) and fed my family a restaurant quality meal goddamn it! Long story short I didn't make a menu this week. Shopped without a list and ended up buying treats....ugggh... I need to get my life back!!

Here is what we had tonight. I've posted this before. I am not joking.. if you want to really test my kitchen prowess out this is the dish to do it with. This is as good a dish as you would get at any fine restaurant. I'm completely serious. It is fabulous. Even if you don't think you like salmon... you will like this.

Brown Sugar and Ginger Salmon

salmon filets
minced ginger (I use jarred pureed ginger... 1/2 t-2 t per 6oz of filet)
ground coriander
s&p
dark brown sugar (1 T per every 6 oz of filets)

Heat oven to 400

line cookie sheet with tin foil (do it!) and lightly grease the foil
Place filets (I get a 12-16 oz for the three of us) on the prepared cookie sheets. Salt and pepper the filets and then dust with the coriander (like you are putting cinnamon sugar on toast). Schmear (yes you NYers will know what I mean) the minced ginger over the filets. This is totally a taste issue on how "hot" you want the salmon to be. Apply sparingly (1/2 t per 6 oz) if you don't like spice and more (2 t per 6 oz filet) if you do. Then take a tablespoon of brown sugar for each 6 oz or so of salmon and evenly crumble and press this on top of the ginger. Pat the sugar to cover the whole filet and kind of moisten it from the ginger. Place in oven for 10-15 mins until desired doneness. The brown sugar should have melted into a glaze. THIS IS FANTASTIC!

175 calories for 4 oz portion


UPDATE
my grocery store isn't selling the jars of pureed ginger (might have been Christopher Ranch or some such brand like the garlic) anymore... they now have it in a tube "Gourmet Garden Ginger Spice Blend"

Also I use Wild Sockeye I find it has a stronger flavor and a firmer texture. Lately I've been buying the vacuum packed frozen filets so I can make this whenever I want.. I just put the filets in the fridge the night before. Whole Foods and TJ's both have these at about $9.99/lb. If you buy it at the fish counter it is often over this and since they've thawed it for you (well for those of us who do not live in Alaska).. you don't have a lot of flexibility in terms of when you're going to make it.


If you have technical questions regarding the prep of this dish please ask! I make these things up and sometimes, and this is the case with this, it is an eyeball thing and not an exact measurement.

Mrs Furious Lays Down The Line

Mrs Furious has very little personal space... Very. Little. Personal. Space.
I have a desk in a corner of the living room. Kid Furious has her own room, an entire playroom, a doll house in the dining room and another right next to my freakin' desk. Kid Furious is having one of those days where she can't back off! She has pretty much lost her complete bleepin' mind and is driving me nuts. I tried in vain to set an imaginary boundary. Kid saw right through that (Ha!) and so I had to think on my feet. Behold.... The Line!



"I'm serious you may not cross that line... EVER!"

Kid Furious proceeds to lie on the floor and put her feet over the line...

"Anything that is over the line is getting cut off!"

Tantrum Aftermath... take 1000

Mrs Furious "Do you want me to turn that CD back on?"

Kid F grumbles some kind of affirmative

Mrs Furious "Yes Please Mom".... see I do model polite genteel language usage ... I even demand it!

Kid Furious dutifully repeats "Yes Please Mom"

Mrs Furious "Are you done being a Freak?" .... okay not all the time...

Kid Furious "I think so..."

In The Kitchen With Kid

Well as hesitant as I was about this venture it all went smoothly. Monkey bread seemed like a great idea and the perfect compliment to the chicken soup she wanted to make. I made the dough (used the mixer... why the hell haven't I done that before... wow! so much faster and easier!) and after it rose cut it into the pieces and Kid then helped me shape them and arrange them in the bundt pan. I was able to control my need to place the monkey bread balls in a symmetrical fashion and let Kid Furious put all the seasoned oil on the same spot over and over and didn't say a word (I was, however, silently screaming). The soup was actually a great experience. Kid Furious peeled carrots (and was very proud of herself!) and she dumped all the ingredients in the pot.. what else is there to do?



Kid's Chicken Soup (adapted from "C is for Cooking Recipes From the Street")

3 carrots, peeled
2 celery stalks
1/3 c peas
1 onion
1.5 pounds chicken drumsticks
1 can chicken broth
5 c water
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 t dried thyme
1 c uncooked alphabet noodles
1/2 T honey
1/2 t dried dill
1/2 t salt or to taste

In large saucepan, combine one carrot and one celery stalk cut into large pieces, the water, bay leaf, 1 t salt, thyme, and chicken legs. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for 1 hour. Meanwhile halve and thinly slice the 2 remaining carrots and celery stalk. After one hour drain the chicken stock through a sieve or fine colander and into a clean pot. Add the thinly sliced vegetables, pasta, peas, honey, remaining 1/2 t salt, and dill. Return to a simmer for 10 minutes. Separate the chicken meat from the bones and skin. Chop the meat and add back to the soup pot and heat through before serving.

6 - 1.5 c servings at 235 calories each

The original recipe lacked the honey, dill & peas. We have a much more elaborate chicken soup recipe that we usually make around here. Funny thing is by adding these 3 things to this I achieved almost an identical soup, with 1/2 the prep, 1/2 the ingredients, 1/2 the expense & 1/2 the cooking time!

Compliments To The Chef

Last night for dinner I made Tomato & Meatball Soup. After devouring two bowls of it Kid Furious said "Mom could you make this soup every night...except without the tomatoes?" Hmmm... that will be hard since it is tomato soup...

Now this is a 15 minute instant meal using only three ingredients that you can always (and should!) have on hand in your pantry. Do Not Judge Me! When I was making it last night I heard "Ohhh I know what you are making!" from Mr F and "I love meatball soup we haven't had that in a long time" from Kid F. There was not a drop left in anyone's bowls. This is simple and good... not prize winning. Stay tuned for that soup recipe next week.


Tomato and Meatball Soup

1 -32 oz carton Imagine Organic Creamy Tomato Soup (I'm sure you could use a different brand... but this is the best!)

3 oz elbow noodles (dry).. I use Barilla Plus elbows.. nutritional wonders and the texture is still good

12 party style meatballs (frozen) ... Ikea style meatballs (this week I used Trader Joe's)... little beef/pork blend meatballs

1/2 c water


Dump the soup, the noodles, and the meatballs in a sauce pan. Pour the water in the soup carton and shake to dislodge any remaining soup and add to the pot. Bring this to a simmer and continue simmering for 15 minutes. Be sure to stir occasionally while heating!

makes 4 - 1.5 c servings for 263 calories each

we of course eat it as 3 large servings for 350 calories each! I cut the meatballs in half in the kitchen (in the bowl) before serving it to Kid Furious.


You could easily extend this by adding 1 c chicken broth, 3-4 meatballs, and 1 oz of noodles for each additional serving! If you are adding more than 2 extra servings just double the original recipe (obviously... right?)