A longggg while back, Foodbuzz sent me a sample of Nabisco’s new Newton Fruit Thins as part of their Tastemaker Program.

Thanks www.nabiscoworld.com/newtons/fruit-thins-fig-honey.aspx

Not to be confused with Nabisco’s Newton Fruit Crisp bars, which have received truly awful reviews.

Way to rebound Nabisco because I thought these light snappy cookies were divine. Yep, that’s right, divine.

Sublime even.

But you’re talking to a weirdo who prefers vanilla over chocolate and oatmeal-raisin over most anything else.

While I was dreaming up fun ways to use these crisp, figgy gems, our hands kept reaching into the bag. But not in a bad way, in a couple-a-day-keeps-the-doctor-away kinda way. I caught Chris with his hand in the cookie bag more than once, and he is not a sweets person (but I married him anyway). What we loved most about these cookies was the spice and the subtle fruitiness. They are certainly not overly sweet, but more like a tea cookie.

Which made them the perfect compliment to some over-the-top, sweet overload that is Ben & Jerry’s Cinnamon Buns ice cream (sue me, I had a coupon):

Seriously fun site: http://www.benjerry.com/flavors/our-flavors/

Behold the gloriousness that is the marriage of Fig and Cinnamon:Its celebrity name is Figamon, and it’s damn sexy.

Fine Print: Though I received the Nabisco product for free through Foodbuzz, all opinions are my own though sometimes I listen to that guy I married, but not very often.

For those following WeightWatchers PointsPlus, Danica calculated the Thins at 4 PP for 3 cookies (I trust her). Half a cup of Ben Jerry’s is gonna cost you EIGHT PP, which includes 28 grams of sugar! (I just lost the Belly Fat Cure people too.) Like I said, I had a coupon for B&J’s and ate it 1/2 a cup at a time, counted the Points, and, before the carton was empty, I grew tired of it so the rest went in the trash. Big whoohoo for me.

I know I said I was recommitting to my WeightWatchers plan after a bad week. Well, I have to confess that the week after I said that was no bueno too, and that’s not even counting my Droolworthy Weekend! There seems to have been an epidemic among folks (including my WW Buddy) who fell off the wagon HARD. When I finally weighed in last Friday, after skipping a week, it was the single biggest gain I’ve had and a significant percentage of the total weight I’ve lost on the program since January. Facing it was hard, and I warned the receptionist, “This is not going to be pretty.”

(On Twitter, someone reported that their receptionist blurted out, “Oh my God, how could you have put on so much weight overnight?” At least my gal didn’t say that!)

The thing that bothered me and my Buddy the most was that it wasn’t like we’d spent the weekend in Paris eating fantastic creamy cheese along the Champs-Élysées. We’d just been eating crap in our own houses for no compelling reason. We know we are smarter than that.

www.popcornindiana.com

Not crap. Totally delicious. Bought with a coupon for killer deal, but I ate the whole bag. Wanh wanh.

The other thing was that I knew this weight gain wasn’t totally real. Some of it was, and I needed to own that, but I knew about half of it would be gone as soon as I flushed out the salt, etc. (Let’s just call it “etc.”) I’m guessing that half of my gain is real and will set me back a few weeks. I can recover from that. It actually motivates me just a little bit more to work harder.

This is when I really rely on the amazing bloggers who inspire me every day. Here are some of my new-to-me favorites:

Loser for Life – Marisa has been doing great on WeightWatchers, and she posts terrific photos and recipes. I cannot wait to make her Breakfast Bakes!

Shannon’s Kitchen Creations – Shannon posts the Points on her recipes and reminds me that I have to give Zumba another try.

Gina’s Skinny Recipes – Otherwise known as SkinnyTaste, Gina posts gorgeous, easy recipes and includes the Points count on each. I made her Chicken Divan, a dish I would never have thought of in a million years, and it was awesome!

These lovely ladies make cooking on WeightWatchers a no-brainer. Which is great when we’ve been acting, er, not so smart.

Have you discovered a new site recently that’s put an extra spring in your step?

As much as I hate to admit it, my name in the same sentence with camping is laughable. But I try. I try. And we do have all the equipment. It’s only been used once after the Dave Matthews concert three years ago, and I regretted every minute of it.

But the bags are out again, and the official poll results are in!

(Drumroll please)

Two out of two pets prefer the pink sleeping bag!

(Thunderous applause)

Have a great weekend!

These are my feet:

Sporting the purple pedicure!

These are Chris’ feet:Each little piggy gets his own little home in Chris’ new Vibram Five Fingers!

It was the weirdest scene at the REI flagship store: these shoes weren’t even on display but EVERYONE was trying them on. It was spooky. They are spooky. But you know what, like any new, weird thing, you get used to them.

Chris has worn them in the yard and to walk the dog. He kept them on for most of the day and when he took them off, his exact words were: “Now it just feels weird to be walking barefoot without them.”

I’ve come to realize that Chris is a bit of an early adaptor when it comes to footwear. He’s also a big fan of the Sanuk and says they’re some of the most comfortable shoes he’s owned:Meanwhile, I’m sticking with barefoot for as long as I can.