Meet Abby

* Abigail Elizabeth Clark *

* 7 lbs 2.5 oz *

* 21 inches *

* Beautiful *

Abby is clearly already a Clark as illustrated by these pics:

A napper....

A Chargers fan...

A thinker....

And an intelligent look in her eye...

Welcome to the Family, Abby!!!

*To give credit where credit is due, Tiff's friend Katie took these pics- see more of her pics at: http://katisimmonsphotography.blogspot.com/

The Best Feeling Ever

I want to know what your some of your most favorite feelings ever are!

I am not talking about emotional feelings and I am not talking about the obvious ones -let's assume getting hugs and kisses from your kids, hearing "I love you" from those you care about, winning money, and well, anything that happens in the bedroom with your significant other, are all some common favs so let's skip the obvious ones.

I will go first.

One of my favorite feelings is a long, hot shower after not showering for a few days (you know, like after camping or something).

And another... brushing my teeth after not being able to for the whole day. Oh and going to sleep knowing that I don't have to set an alarm!

Ok... your turn...

Mexican Meatloaf

If you are looking for a spicy, yummy twist to your boring meatloaf, I have a solution for you: Mexican Meatloaf.

Ingredients:

- Cooking Spray
- 1/2 lb extra lean ground beef
- 1/2 lb lean ground turkey
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 cup cornbread stuffing dry mix (ie: Cornbread Stove Top Stuffing)
- 1 medium chopped onion (pick your favorite color)
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 4 oz green chili peppers, diced
- 8oz canned enchilada sauce


Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat a broiler pan with cooking spray. In a large bowl, mix beef, turkey, egg whites, stuffing mix, onion, chili powder, cumin, chilies, and half of enchilada sauce together. Shape into an oval with your hands and place on prepared boiler pan. Cook for 1 hour. Top with remaining enchilada sauce and bake for 5 more minutes. Slice into 6 pieces and serve.

For those of you on Weight Watchers, each serving is 3 points (6 servings per meatloaf).

I'm A Loser

And so are my dad and 3 brothers (mom and Tiff are turds b/c they never have weight problems).

After 3 of the 4 siblings had separate discussions with our parents about our desire to lose a few pounds that creeped up on us this winter, my dad suggested having a "Clark Family Weight Loss Challenge" so that we could encourage and motivate each other. Let's face it, no one likes to face the challenges of losing weight alone.

So, my dad sent us "kids" an email with the terms and conditions. I won't get into the details of "incentives" (other than the obvious weight loss incentive) of the terms and conditions, but if any of you know my dad, you will know there are always terms and conditions when it comes to making a deal with my dad :)

Our challenge goes from February 22- May 22. We all reported our starting weight to my dad as well as our goal weight. He sent us back what our target weight loss percent is and an excel spreadsheet chart that we can use to track our weight loss each week. Each Monday we report our weight loss to my dad and he sends the results to all of us so that we all know how everyone is doing.

I am not sure about brother 2 and 3, but brother 1, dad, and I are using the weight watchers (WW) program. I find that, for me, this provides the structure I need while allowing flexibility of food choices. I can follow this plan and not feel deprived or like I am dieting. Well, maybe it feels a little like dieting but not as bad as having to follow a plan where I am sent a processed meal to eat 3 times a day.

Not only do I have the support of my family and friends, I also have a few co-workers going to the WW meetings with me on our Monday lunch breaks. And a few others from work are trying to get healthy by following various programs. Needless to say, I am surrounded by encouragement and motivation!

So this first week, I lost 4.6 lbs. This is pretty typical for the first week. Your body goes into shock and you typically lose a lot the first week. Next week I am not as optimistic but as long as the number on the scale keeps getting smaller I will be happy!

In case anyone is wondering or concerned, my reasons for wanting to do this is simply to feel more comfortable in my own skin. I'm doing this for me; no one else.