This unhealthy plant has been giving up delicious Aunt Ruby's German Greens for the last couple of weeks I picked this Brandywine today- From this plant and it was delicious. It actually looks worse in person- But this one is the worst case scenario. It is the most unhealthy plant that I have and it's been giving up tasty Green Zebras and in fact I won 3rd place in our county fair last week for green tomatos with fruit from this plant. So I would say unless there's mold growing all over the plant and fruit, to go ahead and eat them.

Ok, I'm going to try to answer your questions for me: How do you create balanced meals? I usually make sure I have a good source of protein, try to only have 1 carb, and usually some vegetables. If it's a one-dish meal, I try to be cognizant of ratios. You won't find me eating a bowl of fried rice with one ounce of chicken in it. I don't put noodles in the soup if I'm going to want crackers with it. I think eggs and bacon are a better breakfast than cereal. I think I eat a lot more fat and fewer carbs than most people. I also give myself permission to do whatever meets my nutritional needs. Sometimes I eat tuna out of the can because what I really want is to get the lean protein out of the way so I can eat some cheese pizza. Sometimes I dump shrimp and peas into my pasta water and call it a meal. Sometimes I eat an entire bag of beef jerky in the middle of the day. I think it's important to name and rank your priorities out loud, and being a foodie is on the list, but not #1. Do you follow a weekly rotation of menus? Definitely not. I'd get bored. I might plan on cooking three nights and buy three proteins, or have a vague idea that I'd like to do something with tomatoes and ground beef, but I don't think I ever know exactly what I'm cooking before that day. Do you designate some items as must haves on a weekly or daily basis? Nope. But if I realize I haven't eaten vegetables in two days, I take myself firmly in hand :-D Do you have rules for children and adults on what to eat, when to eat etc? I try to have a bare minimum of 20 grams of protein in a meal. Usually much more than that. For me, that usually translates to meat. I use beans, but not as the main protein. It's probably no more than one or two meals a week that don't have a hefty amount of protein. I try not to eat just carbs or just dessert when I'm genuinely hungry- I have a real meal first, then I'm satisfied with a reasonable portion. I have to have some sort of chocolate in the house, even if it's semisweet chocolate chips, because I'll end up eating more of something I don't really want otherwise. If I'm having a randomly starving day, I'll often eat pickles, artichokes, baby corns, or hearts of palm. Something that distracts my mouth long enough for my stomach to realize it's full. Do you actively plan meals to maximize nutrient value for vitamins, minerals etc? (Like Tomato for lycopene or X for Vitamin A or Y for iron etc.) Nope. I am so over those lists of superfoods. Ever notice that every single one is different? Fresh produce is good for you. Variety and different colors are good for you. That's the end of it, for me. What else? I keep a mental list of things that make me feel spoiled, but are good for me. Seafood is a big one. Ahi tuna, especially. I find it really important to buy quality produce. If it ends up disappointing despite my best efforts, I throw it away. There are starving people, but shoveling unwanted calories down my gullet doesn't do them any good, and I will just end up overeating something else to undo the disappointment. Ever notice how many poor people have weight problems? When we aren't getting quality, we tend to make up for it in quantity and/or sugar and fat. It would be helpful if you told us about any challenges or specific questions you're having. Are you planning to cook, but getting short on time or energy and going out for takeout? Having trouble with portion control? Dealing with a picky kid, or finding that everyone in the family likes different things? If you look back over the past couple of weeks, were there any times when you felt particularly unhappy with how a meal played out?

I used to eat toast or English muffins, french toast (still whole wheat) a bagel, that sort of thing for breakfast. I don't eat that anymore. The healthy bread is for when I want a carb but I cut the bread in half and after baking freeze it. I'm not inhaling it the way I used to and it's primarily for weekend breakfasts. I haven't bought a ciabatta loaf or baguette in nearly a year. We stopped eating most pasta, rice, potatoes, pretzels, popcorn and other carbs mindlessly. I still eat some carbs every day but I do think about it and have to really want it. I had a slice of spinach, meatless pizza from Whole Foods today but only one slice not two and I don't get any of those tempting desserts (a gelato cup) to go with it. If my weight creeps up, I skip or heavily cut back on the carbs. For every carb I skip, I eat some natural, toasted nuts. I buy raw cashews and almonds and toast them myself. I also eat more lean meat: smoked oysters, grilled chicken breast, non fried fish, sirloin, pot roast, etc. No rotisserie chicken anymore- I loved the skin too much. I stopped baking sweets. No more brownies, cakes, scones and pies around all the time. I used to bake because it was just fun. I still make something for special occasions, but that is what it is, a special occasion. No ice cream in the house all the time or cake squares in the freezer. No constant availability of homemade brownies. I do keep my favorite dark chocolate around for when I want some. I still eat some cheese but not as much. I eat a lot of Greek yogurt and spend more money on the vegetables I could eat all the time: asparagus and fresh wilted spinach. I rarely eat fruit. I rarely eat sandwiches and stopped getting fast food a couple times a week. I'm 161 right now at 6' and right in the middle of the bmi. I would like to be 140 ultimately but then I will have to buy all new clothes again. Probably a whole lot more than you want to know, but I am so happy to have lost weight!!

Well I'm in debt and not ashamed to admit it. I'm not proud, but not ashamed. It's due to a long divorce and I'd rather be where I am now than where I was then! I know I will get things cleaned up eventually. And if you look at the whole picture (my retirement account, my emergency fund, some other things I was left with) I'm really not that far in the hole and most of my debt is at a low interest. I paid for my college education, fortunately at a time when there were more grants and education was not that expensive. My student loans were only about $15K for a four-year degree that took more than four years since I starting working full-time before I finished. They were paid off before I was 30. I've been on my own since my junior year of college (went home the first two summers during college and that was it) and mostly lived alone before I was married, even in a big city. I had no debt besides a mortgage and car payment before the divorce and that was with 2 young children in daycare. Oh, and I am only on my second car ever (I am 42!) and it's just a Ford Focus - not an SUV. So I don't like having this extra debt but it is what it is right now. We actually had decent equity in our house at one time but it was just bad luck that the market was at it's worst when we finalized the divorce settlement. I did get something at least. I am actually quite happy renting now, considering how little I accomplished financially by being a responsible homeowner for so long (we bought before the bubble, didn't over improve, paid ahead on the mortgage before we had two kids in daycare, etc). My ex kept the house and is starting to face expensive problems but I only need to worry about my fridge, washer and dryer in my rental. (Moni, don't forget - even if you pay for that house outright you are going to be paying taxes, insurance and maintenance on it.) The way child support works out and with shared custody, since I make more money, the ex keeps all of his money and I have to spend the difference in our salaries (plus a little more)on daycare and health insurance for the boys (I pay both 100% - and he tried and failed to get more child support on top of that!) It's hard to get ahead financially right now but I have other things going for me and I sleep well at night knowing I am providing for my boys whereas the ex is depending on me and his parents to keep it all going. I do have have trouble with willpower, when it comes to money and food, but I keep trying to keep some sort of balance in both respects as best I can, never expecting to achieve perfection in either but still enjoying life.