Suday Weigh-In, Topher's Birthday, and Recipes

Today's Weight: 254.6
BMI: 43.7
Weekly Loss: -.8 lbs
Total Lost: 18.4 lbs

I was expecting to gain this week with all the festivities going on, so I'm actually happy with it being less than a pound.


So now it's time for the really long birthday update.  On Friday (Topher's actual birthday), we went to Toys R Us to use his birthday coupon, and he got to wear a crown and carry a balloon around the store.

He used his birthday money to get a toy broom, a bubble camera, and a little airplane fan (the propellers spin and light up).  Then we went to Chick-fil-a for lunch.  Topher enjoyed his nuggets, fries, and ice cream immensely.  We also ran into our friends Daniel, Courtney, and Hollis.  It was lots of fun!

Then we went home and Topher had his nap while Daddy worked and Mommy cleaned and went grocery shopping.  Grandpa Shackley came over for dinner, and we ate mini pizzas and skyped Auntie Steph and cousins Emi and Katie.  The kids had a great time talking to each other.  After dinner we opened presents, and Topher got some cool stuff including an animal train, some books, a pool floatie, and a thing that makes giant bubbles.  Here he is playing with one of his favorites, a car set from Uncle Andy and Aunt Kristin:

Then we had cake (this one came from Publix).  Topher loves cake!

On Saturday, we went to Topher's friend Gabriel's party in the morning.  Then the boys napped while Mommy and Daddy cleaned some more.  Then it was time for the big party.  We had a great time swimming at the pool with our friends!

Then it was back to the house for dinner and cake.  Here is my homemade truck cake in all its messy glory:

It may not be the prettiest cake, but it sure was tasty!  Topher got a ton of cool presents.  He was so excited about each one that he wanted to open and play with it right away instead of opening the next one.  Here he is amongst his new toys:

Uncle Grady got him a matching jersey:

Now Topher can cheer on the gamecocks in style!  He had such a fun time, and I'm so glad we have such great family and friends who could help make his day so special.


And now... I've been meaning to post a couple of recipes that I tried this week that were super yummy.  Unfortunately, I did not take photos, so you will just have to imagine the yumminess.  This first one is of my own invention to try to use some things we had on hand or were on sale this week:
Sweet & Spicy Turkey Chili
1 lb ground turkey, browned
3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 can kidney beans, drained & rinsed
1/2 carton of chicken broth
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 square unsweetened baking chocolate
minced garlic to taste
cumin to taste

Mix all ingredients in crock pot and cook on low 6-8 hours.  This has quite a kick to it, so you can adjust the amount of chipotle peppers to your liking.  So yummy!

The other recipe we had this week that was really awesome came from pinterest.  You can find it here: http://www.salad-in-a-jar.com/family-recipes/scooters-spaghetti
I used ground turkey instead of beef, and I substituted some Italian herb cooking creme (If you haven't tried these flavored cream cheese mixes for cooking, you should!  They have a ton of flavors that are all awesome!) for the regular cream cheese, omitting the milk since this is softer than a block of cream cheese.  This was awesome!  I had to start my meal out with a big salad to keep from over eating this stuff!