I ate at a real restaurant for the first time tonight!

I feel successful in my very first outing and only full meal off of the DTG plan. Tonight, my wife was out of town so when I picked up my young son Hudson from kindergarten we decided to go out to eat. His school uses a smiley face system to gauge conduct and so far this week he has 3 green smiley faces. I felt he needed a reward so we went out to the local O’Henry’s restaurant. It's one of those places where you can throw the peanut shells on the floor and nobody yells at you so Hudson loves it. I stuck to the plan as best I could and ordered from the Lite Side Menu of grilled chicken breast, broccoli and a small salad with a delicious balsamic vinaigrette. My son had a cheeseburger and fries…more along the lines of what I would have order in the past. They grill a pretty good burger…piled high with lots of shredded cheddar and a mound of well seasoned French fries. You be glad to know I didn’t pilfer even one fry! He finished his coloring (also supplied by the restaurant) and we walked across the parking lot to the Baskin and Robbins Ice Cream Store. I ordered him a scoop of chocolate in a sugar cone and watched in delight as only a six year old can revel in such a treat. Again, not even a single lick for me. So after a bit of Guitar Hero III, I’d say it was a pretty successful night for all involved.

I’ve missed a couple of days posting but want to catch you up on what I’ve been eating so here we go! Today’s lunch of Hummus with Pita, string cheese and a fruit cup was a perfect change-up to lunch and worked out really well with the toaster oven. If you haven’t heard me say it enough by now, buy a cheap Wal-Mart toaster oven because some of the dishes are better heated with it rather than the micro. I crisped up the pita and re-seasoned the hummus to my liking and it was really good. Another tip I’ve given is saving a few of the side dishes for a later time. Often, for breakfast, if there is a yogurt or piece of fruit that accompanies the bagel, scone or muffin, I will save that for later and have it as a snack when the belly starts to rumble. Most diets are recommending 5 or 6 small meals a day over 3 larger ones. Doing this really helps me not only get through the day by spacing out the times that I eat but in most cases, cutting a few extra calories by forgetting or not needing to eat it. I have also decided to try and keep my sugars better in line by leaving off the marmalades, apple butter or sweet spread and skipping the juices too. By including them I find it really spikes my pre-lunch glucose check.

I’ve had a couple of really good dinners, too. The Cioppino seafood medley was a delicious mixture of shrimp, small scallops and a few pieces of whole fish in a delicious broth that at first I didn’t think Id like but could easily eat that a couple of times a week…and that’s not because it comes with the ever popular, lick the container clean, chocolate pudding! Honestly, the seafood was that good. I also really enjoyed the Vegetable Ravioli. Being that I’m not a mushroom fan I wasn’t fond of the ratatouille but it was easily pushed to the side. Oh, and did I mention there was chocolate mousse with this meal…another crowd pleaser. Tomorrow will complete my fifth week on the program which means I will have tasted all 5 menus. I made a few substitutions along the way but for the most part there were very few meals that I just flat out didn’t like or wouldn’t eat. And, I can honestly say I have enjoyed this meal plan better that any other I’ve been on in the past. It works for me because it’s easy to follow and there is very little needed from the store. I’ll talk more about how it’s affected my family, being that I don’t partake in the groceries that they are eating but that’s a blog for another day. It’s a weigh day for me tomorrow and another shipment arrives…I’ll let ya know how I did.