Eggface Spring Sample Giveaway

There's no better way to bust out of winter's deary rut and jump into the spirit of spring than by trying something new. If you've not had a chance to try some of these awesome products now is your chance. If some of these are your old favorites it's just a chance to win a bag full of wonderful.

It's GIVEAWAY TIME...

The Prize: a reusable Yellow Tote Bag filled with some of my post weight loss surgery bariatric favorites and a few new finds to sample...

9 single serving packets of Celebrate Vitamins ENS in Vanilla Cake Batter, Chocolate Milk, and Strawberry flavors, 3 of each flavor (each shake contains a high potency multivitamin, 500 mg of calcium citrate, 4 g of fiber, and 25 g of whey isolate protein in each serving)

3 single serving sticks of Celebrate Vitamins Multivitamin and Calcium Drink Mix (Cranberry Grape, Wild Cherry and Citrus Splash flavors)

Chike Nutrition 6 pack (1 of each flavor: Chocolate Bliss, Very Vanilla, Strawberry Burst, Banana Magic, Orange Creme and High Protein Iced Coffee)

1 Mini Sampler Set of Sugar Free Torani Syrups (4 - 150 ml mini bottles in SF Caramel, SF Raspberry, SF Vanilla, and SF Hazelnut)

Big Train Fit Frappe Protein (1 of each flavor: Mocha, Vanilla, Vanilla Latte, and Spiced Chai Latte)

6 pack of Pure Protein Double Chocolate Vanilla Crunch Soft Baked Protein Bars

1 pouch of Flapjacked Buttermilk Protein Pancake Mix

1 coupon for a Free Half Gallon of any Silk Milk Product (Soy, Almond, Coconut, whatever up to $4.99)

1 Spring Green 20 oz. Blender Bottle Shaker

The pretty orange flower is not included... I bought it for my Mum ;)

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How to Enter: Like The World According to Eggface on Facebook. Come back here and LEAVE A COMMENT (include a name and an email address to contact you if you are the winner and I'd love to hear what you are most excited to try in the bag) on this blog posting. Scroll down to # of comments below to leave yours. That's it, easy peasy.

***Want an extra chance to win?***

* Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway: Hey everyone enter the @Eggface Spring Sample Giveaway http://tinyurl.com/chpsd4k

Contest Period Ends: Sunday, April 7, midnight (Pacific), Monday, April 8th I'll draw a name using a random number generator and announce the winner here on the blog! I will also email the winner at the address provided. You'll have one week (7 days) to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen. Remember winners MUST be a Facebook friend of The World According to Eggface. One ENTRY per person. Blog comments are moderated so there may be a slight delay (up to a few hours) in seeing your comment/entry post. Giveaway is open to anyone in the United States (48 contiguous only.)

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Want to know more about the products included in this giveaway? Check out these Facebook pages: Celebrate Vitamins, Chike Nutrition, Torani, Big Train, Flapjacked, Silk, Pure Protein, Blender Bottle. Much love from me if you LIKE their pages and tell them Eggface sent ya.

Friday Five

A weekly round-up of tidbits, tips, ideas, news articles, random cool things from the weight loss, health, nutrition, fitness, obesity, weight loss surgery world.

1.  If you are like me you toss a protein bar into your purse or carry-on "just in case" and it gets bashed around for a few days (or err ummm weeks) and then when you really need it, it's not the most appealing option. This is the solution:

A hard eyeglass case. How cool is that?! They hold two typical size bars nicely. My current stash: the new Banana Bread Quest Protein Bar and Double Chocolate Vanilla Crunch Pure Protein Bar  and when I go to eat them now they won't be a bashed up, hot mess.

2. Update on the Obesity Action Coalition "Your Weight Matters" Convention - a little bird told me we are getting close to the first 150 registrants. The first 150 get entered into a drawing for 3 nights at the hotel free. Be sure to get in on that. If you have questions about the convention I am part of the Welcoming Committee and happy to answer them...

or chat with any of the other members of the committee: Pam, Amber, Tammy, or Jacqueline.

If you think someone in your circle will benefit from attending please share the video invitation with them. Also if you are member of an online forum or in-person support group please pass on the info. The more the merrier.

3. Some articles I read this week that were worth checking out:

Obesity on the menu’ for kids, group says - from the article the worst offender: Applebee’s grilled cheese sandwich on sourdough bread with fries and 2% chocolate milk kid's meal = 1,200 calories and 21 grams of saturated fat.
Cafeterias become learning laboratories
Menus labels may sway those who need them most
Major weight loss tied to microbe excretions (ewww excretions but at least they are researching)
Hosting Walking Meetings - If you have a staff or office this is a GREAT idea!
and this must read awesome article from a Dr. who is also a weight loss surgery patient. I meant to post on the blog awhile back but looks like I only posted on Facebook & Twitter. I don't want anyone to miss it: Why am I struggling with my weight? I am doing everything right! by Walter Medlin, MD, FACS

4. A few products I've found, used or spotted this week:

In May, I will be attended the Weight Loss Surgery Foundation of America Meet & Greet in Las Vegas and one of the event supporters is EatSmart Products. I wanted to give them a shout-out for helping to support our community events and share with you a few of my favorite EatSmart products. The EatSmart Precision Plus Bathroom Scale is a great product. The weight capacity is 440 lbs. which is one of the highest on the market and it has a nice wide foot space. It has a quick response display, just step onto the scale and in seconds you'll have an accurate readout to the nearest .2 lbs. I'd show a picture of myself on the scale but this is a family friendly blog and I usually weigh myself stark naked. 'Cause hello?! My PJ's are flannel, flannel is heavy. Another awesome product they make is their EatSmart Precision Pro Digital Kitchen Scale, it's stylish so you can leave it out on the counter and measure all your ingredients before adding them to your recipes (or my recipes.) There is even a feature to deduct the weight of the bowl or plate you are using. Proper portion sizes are so important. A kitchen scale is a must have in my book. If you are in the market for a bathroom scale or kitchen scale I highly recommend checking out an EatSmart scale.

Oh and the cute logo on their products is a subtle daily reminder of what we should all be doing... Eating Smart!

I am super excited about this gadget. As some of you know my Mum fell a while back and as part of her therapy she bought this Footsmart Pedal Exerciser. Well she can only do a few minutes a day guess who has been loving it the rest of the day. Me. I put it under my desk and bike as I type. I'm doing it right now. It's got a groovy display with calories burned and speed and all that good stuff. It's an easy way to get in a little extra movement a day and it really fun. If you don't have much room for exercise equipment this is for you.

and some food finds... FlapJacked Protein Pancake Mix. I scored a few samples of these mixes to try out, fortified with Whey Protein Isolate. They come in three flavors: Cinnamon Apple (yum), Banana Hazelnut or traditional Buttermilk pancakes. They are great as pancakes (just mix with water) or you can use them in recipes like my ricotta pancakes for even more protein bang for your buck.

MiO Blueberry Lemonade - MiO has been around for awhile but this is apparently a fairly new flavor. I had tried MiO in the past and it was OK but I never bought it again. This one is really good. It's found in the same area you find crystal light, Costco carries a 3-pack of a few flavors not this Blueberry Lemonade one unfortunately, or online. It's perfect to toss in my carry-on bag (it's under 3 oz. so meets TSA standards) to save me from becoming a shriveled up dehydrated prune or worse on trips. I do a lot of conventions and conferences and most to them have coffee but usually only have half and half which in any larger quantity than a sip or two will cause me discomfort (liquid milk and I post surgery don't get along) and I'm not a lover of plain water (bad I know) so this is great for me.

Check out EatSmart Products, Footsmart, Flapjacked and Mio on Facebook and tell 'em Eggface sent you.

5. Be sure to stop back by the blog this weekend... something fun is in the works!

A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts (I try and post them every few days) to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world. Today's menu...

Breakfast: This breakfast makes me smile. Faux Fried Egg: Pineapple Cottage Cheese (or Sugar Free Torani Sweetened Ricotta) and a Peach or Apricot half.

I took a quick walk around the lake near my house and then head over to the Farmer's Market. I really didn't need much I'm trying to use some freezer supply but I wanted some of that baby bok choy to make my favorite soup this week. My haul: baby bok choy, avocado, oranges, onions, wasabi almonds, asparagus, mushrooms.

Lunch: One of my easy go-to lunches. Turkey, Cheese and Avocado Melted Roll-up with a Caprese-ish Salad (tomatoes, basil, mozzarella cheese, oregano, salt and pepper)

I used Turkey, Muenster, and Avocado this time (what I had on hand) but any combination works. Some favorites are Ham and Swiss with sauteed Mushrooms inside or Roast Beef, Provolone and grilled Onions (Philly Cheesesteak-ish) or Turkey, Swiss, Green Chili.

Yummy as is or saute a few minutes on each side till cheese is gooey. Gooey. Yes, please.

Dinner:  My afternoon was running around town doing errands with stops at Trader Joe's, Wal-mart and Costco on Saturday, why do I do that to myself? I actually got all NY on a guy that was in a big hurry and almost rammed his shopping cart into my Mum.

Me: "Dude, WTF is wrong with you?" (yes I dropped the F-bomb in the store, its been one of those weeks)
Asshat: "There's nothing wrong with me, you should watch your mouth."
Me: "What are you my Dad? Slow down."

I picked up one of those shrimp cocktail platters at Costco and some yummy cheese at Trader Joe's. I came home and packed up a couple of bento box dinners and Mum and I went to the park to eat dinner.

Pink Box (top left): Cooked Shrimp, Lemon Wedge
Green Box (top right): a Tablespoon of Cocktail Sauce (in little blue container)
Blue Box (bottom left): Wasabi Almonds (Farmer's Market find) and a hunk of Creamy Cinnamon Dusted Toscano Cheese (a Trader Joe's find)
Orange Box (bottom right): A hunk of the new Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Quest Protein Bar (my new favorite flavor)

More bento box lunches

Snacks: Coffee and I just made up a batch of my Greek Hummus Rounds.

I'm eating a few now as I blog. Going to take a couple outside and stare at the stars.

More days in my pouch 

You know how I had to replace my computer after Southern California Edison fried it with a huge power surge in my neighborhood. Well my new computer's mouse worked for a day and died. Is there any quality control happening these days?! Anyway... I had of course installed programs and all sorts of things already and it seemed silly to take back a computer for a mouse. I just plugged in an old mouse and put a call into HP for a replacement. You'd think this process would be easy. I'm on the 7th call and still no mouse.

Call 1: Hello my mouse on this brand new computer is broken. Them: Oh you need this other #
Call 2: Hello my mouse on this brand new computer is broken. Them: Let's troubleshoot the mouse (verdict: it's broken) but we can't find your mouse in our system, we'll call you back.
Call 3: We're sorry we can't find that particular mouse in our system will call you back in 2 days.
Call 4: We found the mouse in China, it's ordered.
Call 5: Sorry the mouse is back ordered.
Call 6: Sorry the mouse will take longer than we thought (left a message)
Call 7: (6 AM Pacific time) Sorry the mouse will take longer than we thought.

Without coffee and at 6 AM they got... "WTH I think this is the 6th damn call about this $3 mouse. I got the mouse message. I'm done talking about the mouse. When the mouse gets here, it gets here." Click.

Click... something I can't do without a mouse ;)

OK off to stare at the heavens with my hummus rounds.

St. Patrick's Day Weight Loss Surgery Friendly Menu

Top of the Mornin' to ya! Last weekend, I was almost electrocuted hoping for better luck this weekend. Well, hmmm come to think of it almost electrocuted is pretty darn lucky ;) Hope everyone has the luck of the Irish this weekend.

I have felt lucky every day since having weight loss surgery for my second chance at a healthy life. Here's some of my favorite St. Patrick's Day Weight Loss Surgery friendly foods...

These will be my dinner...

Shelly's Corned Beef & Cabbage Bites

1/2 Yellow Onion, diced
1/2 cup Corned Beef, chopped fine
1/2 cup Cooked Cabbage, chopped fine
5 eggs
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Saute onion till golden. Set aside to cool. When onions are cool mix all ingredients together. Spoon into a lightly greased (Pam works great) mini muffin tin. Bake for 30 minutes at 350. Makes 24. Deli corned beef slices can be used or these are great use for leftover corned beef and cabbage. 



More St. Patty's Day favorites:

Shelly's Nutty Leprechaun Yogurt Dip and Fruit Salad Rainbow
Shelly's Corned Beef Bites (version 1, more Reuben-ish)
Shelly's Pots o' Gold
Shelly's Rainbow 5 Minute Cakes
Shelly's Shamrock Shake


Shelly's Leprechaun Pancakes
Shelly's Mint Chocolate Chip Protein Ice Cream Cakelettes
Shelly's Mini Pistachio Protein Muffins
Shelly's Pesto Deviled Eggs

Shelly's Margarita Mango Fluff Stuff
Shelly's Irish Cream Mochachinno
Shelly's Irish Cream Custard Crumble Cups
Shelly's Turkey Cabbage Casserole

Shelly's Potato-less Potato Pancakes
Shelly's Spinach Crustless Quiche
Shelly's Shepherd's Pie (potato-less)
Shelly's Irish Tortilla Pizza

"May the sun shine all day long, everything go right and nothing wrong. May those you love bring love back to you, and may all the wishes you wish come true!" ~Irish Blessing

A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts (I try and post them every few days) to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world. My yesterday...

Breakfast: Celebrate ENS Strawberry Shake I love these. If you are newer post-op and searching for protein source (plus some added vits and other good stuff) show your medical posse these for the thumbs up. They come in 3 flavors (Chocolate Milk, Vanilla Cake Batter (my fav) and Strawberry) I love them as a shake in my blender bottle or you can add ice and whiz it in the blender and make it more frappe-ish or mix it in Greek Yogurt or turn it into these frozen yogurt cubes.

Lunch: The weather is warming up so I took a walk and ate lunch at the park. They have free WiFi at a lot of the parks in my town which I love. I can still work while getting some Vitamin D and fresh air. I packed my super cool bento box up with some yummy stuff and took off.

Pink Box (top left): Shelly's Garbanzo and Green Bean Salad
Green Box (top right): a few Almonds and Pistachios
Purple Area (bottom left): Mandarin Orange Cup in Juice
Orange Box (bottom right): A hunk of a Double Chocolate Vanilla Crunch Pure Protein Bar

More bento box lunches

Dinner: I had to get back home by 5 PM for phone meeting, I didn't think it would be professional to have squawking ducks in the background. I made a pretty easy dinner. I usually serve these with spring salad greens but there was no Farmer's Market this past Saturday (twice a year Antique Car Show) so I'm running low on fresh veggies. I just ate it as is. I had two.

Shelly's Turkey Avocado Melted Roll-ups

Turkey Breast, slice
Cheese, slice (I used Munster)
Avocado, slices

Lay turkey on plate. Top with cheese and a couple of slices of avocado. Roll-up. Secure with toothpick if needed. Pan saute for a few minutes on each side till golden and cheese is gooey. Variations: sometimes I add a sliced green chili (Whole Mild Green Chilies in the can) instead or in addition to the avocado. Ham is great like this or Roast Beef too. Look for lower sodium cold cuts. Boar's Head brand is great.

Snacks: Too much coffee, a few samples at the Costco Buffet (a square of Irish cheese, a piece of pork jerky, a bite of lemon pepper tilapia) and I didn't eat my hunk of bar in my bento earlier so ate that while I watched Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (guilty pleasure.)

More days in my pouch

Your Weight Matters Convention Registration Now Open

Registration is NOW OPEN for the 2nd Annual Obesity Action Coalition "Your Weight Matters" Convention. If you are interested in weight, health, fitness, nutrition, advocacy, education, support this is a do not miss.

The Official Invitation Video:


To register, view the incredible agenda with more than 45 educational topics, tons of group fitness classes, fun evening events and learn more about the convention: www.YWMConvention.com

You will want to register as soon as you can because besides the early-bird prices, there is also a chance to win a FREE three-night stay at the Arizona Grand Resort & Spa for the first 150 registered.

Convention Facebook Event Page
Convention Twitter Hashtag #YWM2013

Hope to see you there,

Post Weight Loss Surgery Menus: A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts (I try and post them every few days) to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world.

First a little update on my crazy couple of days. On Friday at about 4:12 PM I was sitting at the computer and I heard this loud pop. I mean loud. Then super loud buzzing started and there was a second pop and blue sparks shot out from the side of my computer toward me. I jumped back, hit the floor and pulled the cord out of the wall. The power went out briefly in the house and then came back in most of the rooms. I went outside to check the fuse box and found 1 breaker tripped. I flipped it and went back inside to check. Part of the house was still dead. I went outside again and by then several of my neighbors were outside. They had similar stories... one had lost their microwave, one had her furnace go and her computer tower was on the floor and the rug underneath was black, one lost their ceiling fan. My next door neighbor had the same situation as me... blue sparks from their computer. I heard tons of sirens.

I head over to Starbucks (a block away) to get online, on the way I saw cops and fire trucks everywhere. I found out from a pal on twitter that it was a huge power surge and hundreds of homes were affected. I also talked with a few more neighbors. One lost 3 computers, 2 DVRs. I went home to my computer, speakers, cable Internet box, surge protector all toast and part of house still in the dark. It was interesting peeing by candlelight. I hit Costco Saturday AM and got a new tower and picked up the rest of the things that were destroyed, new cable box and all that. I'm several hundred dollars in the hole. The power company better reimburse. When I was removing all the fried equipment I noticed the carpet under the surge protector was scorched so it could have been way worse. I was thankful. I finally had full power restored at 5 PM today.

In the middle of all the electricity drama, my cat Charlie had to go to the vet. $300 later she seems to be on the mend, she brought me her stuffed mouse as a gift a few minutes ago so I think she's doing better. It's been a very expensive $$$ few days. I might have to start singing on the street corner. Any requests? I do a mean Bohemian Rhapsody.

Well, enough about my drama, let's talk food. Thankfully the kitchen was not one of the rooms affected so I was able to make coffee and cook. Here's what powered me yesterday...

Breakfast: With so many errands to run I tossed a 1/2 of one of those new Double Chocolate Vanilla Crunch Pure Protein bars (OMG yum) in my purse and stopped at Starbucks for a few minutes of Internet access and a Sugar Free Cinnamon Dolce Soy Latte

Lunch: Here was the bright spark in my day (electricity pun) I made a to die for bean salad. So good. This will be a summer staple at my house.

Shelly's Garbanzo and Green Bean Salad

1 (15 oz) can Garbanzo Beans, rinsed & drained
1 (15 oz) can Cut Green Beans, rinsed & drained
1 cup Cooked Chicken Breast, cubed
1/4 cup Feta Cheese, crumbled
2 Tablespoons Red Onion, finely diced
2 Tablespoons Black Olives, chopped
Salt and a few twists of Black Pepper to taste

Mustard Tarragon Dressing
1 Tablespoon Grainy Mustard
1 Tablespoon Tarragon Vinegar (near salad dressings)
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

Mix dressing ingredients together till well combined. Pour over salad ingredients and blend till well combined.

Tip: This would be a great use for leftover rotisserie chicken or when you BBQ next time throw an extra couple of pieces of chicken on for this salad the next day. I think it would be yummy with tuna, cooked shrimp, leftover steak too.

Dinner: Another favorite staple at my house: my Butternut Squash Casserole I buy the peeled, cubed butternut squash to make making this faster.

Snacks: Coffee, lots of it and a bowl of Pistachio Protein Ice Cream. Next week it's St. Patty's Day this one would be perfect or Mint Chocolate Chip.

More days in my pouch.

My Obesity Action Coalition Your Weight Matters Convention Video Invite

On Monday, the Obesity Action Coalition's 2nd Annual "Your Weight Matters" National Convention registration will open.

You will be able to purchase event tickets (event, advocacy training, lunch with the experts) the convention room block with our special low price will open at the Arizona Grand Resort & Spa, the brand-new web site www.YWMConvention.com dedicated to all things convention related will go live, the official 2013 convention invitation video will debut, the official convention registration contest starts (the prize is a great one), and you will be able to see all the topics that will be covered (they are AWESOME) these are peer requested topics... the stuff we really need and want to know.

If you are sitting on the fence about attending please read my guest blog on the OAC's web site and watch my invitation video below.


Now you know I really want you to go because... I HATE MAKING VIDEOS ;)

A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts (I try and post them every few days) to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world.

Breakfast: I filled my blender bottle shaker with a Celebrate Vitamins ENS Strawberry Shake and took off on a walk with 1/4 of a bag of on the stale side Grape Nuts (I use them in my Butterscotch Crunch Ricotta Pancakes) to feed the ducks.

Ducks like Grape Nuts.

Lunch: I had some leftover rotisserie chicken breast so I made a chicken salad and stuffed it into a half of an avocado. I put a half of piece of colby jack cheese on top and broiled it. Heaven. This would be great with crab salad or tuna salad (breadless tuna melt) too.

Shelly's Citrus Chicken Salad Stuffed Avocado

2-3 Tablespoons of Greek Yogurt
squeeze of Lime
1 leftover Rotisserie Chicken Breast, chopped
1 stalk Celery, diced fine
1 Green Onion, diced fine
a few dashes of McCormick Perfect Pinch Salt Free Fiesta Citrus Seasoning
dash of Garlic Powder
Salt & Pepper to taste
Ripe Avocados

Mix together till well combined. Look for that McCormick Perfect Pinch Seasoning in the spice aisle it's a great way to add a ton of flavor without adding calories. They have a few different blends too. Spoon into halves of avocado, pit removed, skin left on (salad is enough for 4-ish halves) Place on foil lined baking sheet.

Tip: I cut a little piece of the avocado skin off to help them sit flat. Place a 1/2 a slice of cheese on top.

 Place under the broiler about 4 minutes till bubbly.

Dinner: I recreated my Chinese New Year menu. Shelly's Chinese New Year Soup (Quick Version)

and Egg Foo Young Bites.

I love this dinner. I think it's one of my favorites.

Snacks: Lots of coffee and a bowl of Pistachio Protein Ice Cream

 

More days in my pouch.