Settling Into Routine

My aunt makes grape jelly from grapes that, get this, she grows herself. It's so delicious, too. So, this week for breakfast I've been having a light english muffin with a little of her grape jelly. I know I said that I was going to start the morning with fresh squeezed grapefruit juice but the grapefruits I got just weren't producing enough juice. I'm not going to forget about my juicer though. Citrus season is coming soon.

Lunches for me are a bit more complicated. I don't get time for a real lunch break most days so it's best for me to put together a bunch of low cal snacks to nibble on in the car. My favorite this week has been these completely awesome single serving packages of Popchips. I do like the single serving packages. Very convenient. I try to always get a baggy of carrots or grapes but sometimes get forgetful.

As I'm thinking about it, I've become really good at putting together my little lunch bag. I'm going to go ahead and list some really great foods that work in the car or when when stopping for a meal just can't happen.

• 100 Calorie Snack Packs - Yes, it's obvious and you can't rely on them but they are probably the most convenient.
• Low Fat String Cheese - I sometimes will wrap them in a nice deli meat but mostly it's just about the cheese.
• 100 Calorie Almond Packs - So good it needs to be listed on it's own. We all know nuts are good. I don't need to sing the praises of a small serving of nuts. 
• V8 - Shoulda had a V8? Yeah. Just make sure you have an insulated lunch bag with an ice pack in it.
• Fiber One 90 Calorie Bars - Make sure they're the 90 calorie kind. Brilliant! They're filling but sweet and almost candy bar like. Well, if you haven't had a candy bar in a while.
• Tuna Cups - Like the kind by Chicken of the Sea. I don't eat as much of these but they're shelf stable so I can actually leave on in the car for emergencies. (With a fork. These are much less useful without a fork.)
• Fruit Cups - I like the cups of pineapple in juice, pears in light syrup or mandarin oranges.

I used to eat sandwiches, but I get bored with that pretty quick. The problem with boredom is that, like forgetfulness, it leads to fast food.  At least in my world it does. In fact, when I find myself slipping or struggling with my weight it usually goes hand in hand with not packing my lunch.