It's gonna be a wild ride!

Happy New Year friends! Well Christmas has come and gone, the New Year is here and it was snowing just a minute ago. Something tells me we are in for a wild year!

Christmas seems like a faded memory, something that happened a few months ago, never mind last week. I have just finished editing my photos from the holidaze, and have posted them on FLICKR. You can click here if you are interested in seeing what true chaos is. I was really proud of a few of them. The one below is of Beth, me and my sister Melissa. Beth is 6 months out from surgery, and both my sister and myself are less that 2 weeks out. Dad really put things in perspective when he said that between the 3 of us and RJ, we have lost over 300 lbs. this year alone. All I can say is…”WAIT TILL NEXT CHRISTMAS”.

Every thing is going well with my surgery. The pain pretty much does not exist at this point. I am learning to eat all over again. As of this post, I am on full liquids, but rapidly approaching the pureed stage. Let’s get a Hip Hip Hooray for mushy foods. I wonder what it will be like to actually chew food again. I have caught myself though. RJ came through the room with some Cheetos the other day. I grabbed one and then thought about it. Yes, the Cheeto went back and did not cross the lips of my liquid diet! Yeah for me!

Another aspect of the surgery I am dealing with is “head hunger”. This ugly monster rears its nasty head at the most inopportune moments. Such as when you are driving down the road and all the fast food restaurants are calling your name! You know what I mean! Burger King says you can have it your way. Mickey D’s screams you deserve a break today. And Dairy Queen, don’t even get me started about their Blizzards!

But guess what? I am going to make it! No, I am not Superman, nor have I found his energy. But I am going to make it. I have decided that I am going to be a Loser with a capital L. So stand back, move to the side, or jump on this guys train, because I am coming through!

Have a great week!

Are you ready Christmas?

I don't know about you, but we are almost done! R.J. has finally decided that Santa does not exist. Can he be that old already? Anyway, 99% of the shopping is done. Everything is in place for my surgery. And of course, we have been prepping for the holiday season daily. In fact, you can click on the link below and watch all the festivities involved. Now, be patient, it takes a while to load.

Merry Christmas!

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Click here for ther O'Neal Family Exercise Video

Holiday Quiz!

This is what people do that have too much time on thier hands! Not that I'm bored or anything!

Merry Christmas!

1)What's your favorite holiday TV show?

2)Best gift under $20 (to receive or give)?

3)Ever take a pic with Santa? Do you still have it ?

4)Do you send the same holiday card to everyone or pick out different ones for different people?

5)What's on the Christmas Dinner menu?

Just copy and paste in the comment section!

A couple of good eats!

Chili Relleno Puff

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1 pound ground turkey, browned, crumbled and drained

1 small onion, diced (cook with ground turkey)

5 eggs, beaten until lemon-colored (about 3 minutes)

3 Tablespoons flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 to 1/2 cup salsa (I saved this to put on top)

2 cups lowfat ricotta cheese

1 large can (7 oz.) diced, mild green chilis

1 cup shredded cheese (Jack, Colby, Mozzarella or a mixture)

1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar

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Brown meat and onions, drain and pat into a 9x9 baking dish. Beat remaining ingredients together (except for the last 1/4 cup cheddar--it is for the top.) Pour onto the ground meat and onion. Top with cheddar. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes until golden brown and puffy (a knife will come out clean.)Makes 9 servingsPer serving: 320 calories, 29 grams protein

Sugar Free Pumpkin Cheesecake

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Crust
3/4 cup gingersnap cookie crumbs

3/4 cup crushed fat-free graham crackers

2 tablespoons SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

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Cheesecake Filling

2 (8 ounce) containers block-style fat-free cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

1 1/2 cups canned solid pack pumpkin
3 tablespoon Cinn-a-bliss

1/2 cup nonfat evaporated milk

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

4 eggs
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Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour an 8 inch springform pan.
Using a fork, combine gingersnaps, graham crackers, 2 tablespoons SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener, and melted butter. Press mixture onto the bottom and two inches up the sides of the pan to form the crust.
With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and 1/2 cup SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener until light and fluffy. Stir in the pumpkin. Mix in the Cinn-a-bliss, evaporated milk, cinnamon, allspice and vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing until smooth.
Pour batter into prepared crust. Bake in the preheated oven for 90 minutes, or until center of cheesecake is set. Allow to cool in pan for 30 minutes, then refrigerate overnight.

Happy Labor Day !

Well, it’s Labor Day! That must mean I have some labor intensive things to do!

Before going to bed last night, I had to fight with a clogged dishwasher that didn’t want to cooperate. Working on pipes filled with slimy water is not my idea of fun! Around 3:00 this morning, I noticed a smell coming from the air conditioning vents. Got out of bed to find my basement wet with water. The drains in my central unit were clogged. Guess what? The air is not working at all right now! We are waiting got a technician as we speak. Then my wife informs me the check engine light is on in our SUV. Now to top all of this…the cable television just went out.

So I assume that this only means one thing! It must be Labor Day, and someone has to labor.

_

As long as it’s not my wife going into labor we are all right!

I wish everyone a very nice Labor Day!