14 for '14

Well, I am officially 2 months behind.  I have made zero goals for myself this year.  Why?  I'm not really sure, but some of the reasons could be:  I didn't want to face the truth about where I am physically, I have a lot on my plate, I'm working, life is crazy, taking care of 3 children and the house, did I mention...life is crazy??

With that said...my '14 for '14

1. Find the joy in me.
2. Calm the crazy.
3. Become the independent woman I know that I can be.
4. Start running...again.  Gosh I miss it!  Who would ever have thought those words would cross my lips???
5. Find time to do things that I enjoy.  This is hard for me because every time I have the time, something comes up that requires immediate attention.
6. Hike more.  I have a new hiking buddy and I just bought me some hiking boots.  I'm giddy about getting out there and not worrying about my sneakers being plastered in mud or sinking into mud up to my ankles  :)
7. Find more ways to be frugal.  I thought I was frugal before, but I need new ideas.  Things that I already do include:  homemade dishwasher soap, homemade laundry soap, bake my own bread, hang my clothes outside to dry, base my meals on sales, shop at Savers & Goodwill, uh...the list could go on, but my brain is drawing a blank.  You get the idea though.
8. Be passionate about life.
9. Love deeply.
10. Encourage my girls to enjoy life to the fullest.
11. Drop 1 clothes size.  Let's not be too zealous.
12. Be patient with myself when things don't seem to be going the way I want them to be.
13. Take pictures.  Lots of them.
14. Be a good friend and encouragement to others.

Fairly good list I think.   So, I'm pretending that it's January 1st...and...I'm off!  Let's do this thing!

Back At It-Day 2

I think completely blowing it, has really helped me to see the bigger picture.  I have had such tight control over this particular area in my life that I think I needed this 'fall' to let go just a little and refocus on what is most important.  Just staying healthy.

Today was a busy day.  My morning was spent buying our monthly groceries, getting them home, putting them away, and separating meat for the freezer.  I needed to get into town and back in time for my hubby to be to work.  I left for town around 7:30.  With that thought in mind, I grabbed a 'quick' breakfast = a granola bar and some water.

When I got home, I was starving.  Instead of grabbing something terrible, I grabbed a bowl of granola *are sensing a theme here so far?* and milk to tide me over until lunch.

Lunch = 2c lettuce, 1oz fat free feta cheese, 1 radish, 1/2 of a green onion, 2 tbsp of sunflower seeds, some cucumber and zucchini all tossed with 2 tbsp of light raspberry vinaigrette.  I also had 2 tbsp of peanut butter.

Snacks = yogurt and an apple.

Dinner = turkey and veggie meatloaf, 1/2 c quinoa, and a salad.

The girls helped me make some tasty muffins.  I'm choosing not to have one tonight.  I might have tomorrow.  I am going to make overnight buckwheat groats for breakfast tomorrow and I'll have some egg whites to go with it.

If you've already seen my meals, then ignore this, but it helps me to write it all down.  :)

13 for '13

Here it is!!  The long awaited 13 for '13.  That's 13 goals for 2013.  If you're not sure why I don't dig resolutions, you can check out my last post here.  I reviewed the goals that I made for 2012.  I'm looking forward to a new year.  I think it'll be a year of continuing to strengthen my body and renew my mind.

Without further ado, my 13 for '13:

1. Continue to maintain my goal weight.  And, I need to give myself a 5 pound buffer even though it pains me to say so...I need that.  It's more about being up 5 pounds rather than down 5.
2. I want to keep running...to remain dedicated no matter what!  It's hard, but I enjoy it far more than I ever thought I would.
3. I want to spend time with my hubby at night at least once a week *I guess I should clue him in on this too, huh?*  I just bought Battleship *the game* for he and I to play.  We've also played Othello recently.  This is an adjustment over this year's goal of going on a date night 1x per month.
4. Take time for myself.  I really need to continue to do this for myself.  I need to be vocal about it too.  I'm hoping that I can do this once every other week or so.  Hoping to.
5. Spend less time on the computer.  I typically spend some time on the computer in the morning while I drink my coffee/tea; some time while I eat lunch and then again after dinner.  The goal?  I need to limit it a bit more.  I'm going to set the timer and spend no more than a half hour in the morning and at lunch.  Then I can spend a bit more time on the computer after the girls go to bed.
6. Do more crafty things with my girls.  I did quite a few things with them just before Christmas and I'd like to keep doing fun things with them.  They loved it!
7. Bake more with the girls.  They enjoy the baked goods that I make, so I'd like them to help more in the kitchen.
8. Write one letter/card by hand a month.  I am modifying this one from this year as well.  A handwritten note can make someone's day so much better.  Have you tried it recently? *no I don't mean a personal e-mail either!!*
9. Continue taking my girls outside to do things like sledding, bike riding, and walking.  I have a blast too.  We've gone sledding several times already.  We just love it!
10. Express my feelings better with my friends, husband and girls.  *A repeat from this year.*
11. Read at least 3 books this next year.  I enjoy it...I need to do it for myself.  I need to make time for it.
12. Encourage others who are continuing their journey or starting a new journey.  It's a hard road, but one that is worth it!
13. Laugh at myself, laugh at my children and roll my eyes at my husband *another adjustment from one for this year.*

Do you have some new goals for this year?  What do you want to work on?

No giving up!  It's not allowed!

And...HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!  I hope and pray that you all have a very blessed and happy year in 2013!

It's December!!!

There are only twenty-three days left in the month of December.  Can you believe that?  Nearly a year ago, I started this blog to be an encouragement to others.  I've tapered off a bit in the last several months, but I think about my blog almost daily.  It taunts me and tells me that I need to write.  I just don't always know what to write.  And last year, on the 31st, I wrote this post about my 12 for '12.  I'm not going to review those now, but I will when I get to the end of the month and get ready to write a whole new set of goals for the New Year.

My running is going great!  I've had a lot of interesting moments since August, but there is always a new challenge.  My pace is typically around 12 to 13 minute miles.  Today's training had me: warm up for 5 minutes, run at a fast pace for 10 minutes, walk for 5 minutes, and finish off with another 10 minute fast paced run.  The part that makes me laugh?  The fast pace part.  I don't do fast paced anything.  Let's just say that I ended up pushing myself more than usual.  The other part that had me laughing while running?  The strap for my HRM needs a new battery.  So even though I was panting and figured I'd keel over?  My heart rate was only registering at 70-something!  With all that, I managed to haul in 2.6 miles *even though my ticker to the right isn't letting me add it in*.  My pace *including my 5 minute warm up* was a bit less than an 11.5 minute mile.  Woot!

In addition to my running, I am sending spontaneous e-mails to a friend to remind her to get up and do:  jumping jacks, crunches, leg lifts, push ups, etc.  Not only is it good for her, but it is also good for me since I am also doing the same thing immediately after hitting the send button.  It is a reminder for me to keep moving.  Every little bit helps!

It is also that time of year when I get my new calendar.  I got it this last week.  It's still pretty stark looking, but I haven't sat down with it and added in birthdays, anniversaries, etc.  I also need to meal plan for the month of December--ick YAY!  I've usually gotten my grocery list put together and shopped by now, but it's been a bit chaotic this week.

Also, I finally got my birthday present this past week and I've been wearing it for nearly a week.  I have to say that now I know I slack on Friday's when the girls are home.  Yikes!  Oh yeah!  What is it?  It's a Fitbit One.  This is it:

It is pretty tiny.  And normally, it's clipped on my bra.  And no, I'm not taking a picture of it clipped where it should be.  So there!  I love this thing so far.  The picture above is showing how many steps I took today. 

It also tracks your mileage:

your calories burned,

your activity level *by growing a flower*,

and how many floors you've climbed.

The story on the number of floors I've climbed is this...we don't have stairs in our house.  The one floor that I got today was because of the elevation changes on my run this morning.  I even tried going up and down the stairs on our porch to get some more floors.  No dice.  Oh and it also has a silent alarm that you can set before you go to bed.

Speaking of bed...I need to go in that direction!  We have a fun day planned tomorrow.  We have friends coming over and I need to be peppy!  Don't forget to get your rest too!

Obsessed?

Oh great friends in the bloggosphere, I have been told that I am obsessed about my weight loss.  I'm not sure that I'm obsessed, but if I don't stay on top of things *logging my points/calories*, checking in here, and making my fitness goals, I feel as though it will all begin to creep back.  If by saying, "I don't want to go back there" makes me obsessed.  So be it.  I don't want to go back there.  I am happy where I'm at and I feel more like my peppy self...the one that my beloved hubby married nearly 11 years ago.

By losing the weight, I've been able to do things I'd never thought I would be able to do.  I don't post here to 'toot my own horn', but because I'm proud of what I've accomplished.  I don't post every day about things like that.  I most often post tips about things that have worked for me, things that I'm trying or tweaking.  Or I post about things that I tried, but that didn't work for me.  Everything that I post about won't always work for everyone.  The only thing I suggest to folks on this journey is to be sure that you pick something *diet food moderation program, or the like* that you know you can stick to for the long haul.  I say this, because, if you are anything like me, you need to feel like you're not restricted.  And if you struggle with food, a lot, then it can't be something you focus on for just 6 months or a year.  Make sense?
I don't bug people about their weight.  If you ask, I'll share from my experiences.  I've never blogged about anyone *aside from my hubby* and myself.  Oh and I did blog when I did the 'climb' with my friend.

Another friend of mine said that we all have to be a wee bit obsessed if we're going to make it to goal and stay there.  In the beginning of any journey, you are 'obsessed' with figuring out what you need to do, knowing the points values of your favorite foods, etc.  Once it's become a habit *of sorts* then it's like old hat.  You already know *without looking* what the points value is for your favorite food, you can fly a little more easily from the seat of your pants, and have fun playing with different recipes, etc.

In other news, I have completed 8 weeks of C25K.  I just completed week 9 of C210K (couch to 10k).  When mornings are going to be tight, I get up early to take to the road.  It also allows me to get out on my own without trying to push the jogger stroller.  And honestly, 5:30a.m. isn't terrible.  It certainly has been quite chilly at that time of the morning.  In the last week or so, it's been below freezing.  I am making it work because I'd rather run in the cold then during the hottest part of the day too.  Determination people.  Determination.

It is getting colder and we are approaching winter, what will be your go-to exercise get moving options?

Week One Recap

Here's a mini recap of the last week.  I started going gluten free on Friday, September 28th.  I had a flub on Tuesday *the 2nd* by taking a bite of the organic pop tarts I'd gotten for the girls.  Other than that, I've been on the straight and narrow.

How am I feeling?  Amazing!  My face has cleared up and my stomach isn't telling me how awful I am.  I've lost a little bit of weight and don't feel nearly as crazy as I normally do.

A couple things to note.  1)  It's amazing how many times I just grab a little scrap of bread *that's fallen off in the bag* while I'm making lunches 2)  How many times I've 'tasted tested for quality assurance' something I make for the girls for lunch *ie: pasta*  3)  A gluten free diet food modification plan doesn't have to be difficult.  I think it's only difficult if you make it out to be that way.  4)  Just like any low-fat diet food modification plan, the food doesn't need to taste bad...season it up with any seasonings you have on hand *provided that they are also gluten free*.

Last night we had rosemary roasted chicken with potatoes served with broccoli and a salad.  Yum!  We are having meatloaf tonight.  Tomorrow night we will have leftover meatloaf made into a Shepherd's Pie.  Fish is on the menu this week, pork, and a couple other things that I can't think of off the top of my head.

On another note, I've talked my grandmother into going gluten free.  She's had a lot of problems since February and while she hasn't tested positive for celiac disease, she's going to give gluten free a whirl.  I'm really hoping that it will make her feel better.  I will update on that too as time goes by.

And before signing off, I completed day 2 of week 8 in my C25K venture.  In my 38 minutes this morning, I did get a total of 3 miles, but that included my 5 minute warm up and 5 minute cool down.  I may not be getting the distance they want me to get *a 10 minute mile...ha ha ha*, but I am definitely running longer than ever before.  You will notice that I'm still logging my miles.

If you're still struggling, now is the time.  Don't wait to get back on the wagon.  Sometimes, circumstances may not change from one day to the next, but you can change how you treat your body.  Get moving!

After a week...

I've been back to counting points for a week.  My week didn't start out so great after having some of my pancakes that I normally make on Friday night *it's our breakfast for dinner night.*  I wasn't exaggerating when I said that I was over by a lot.  It wasn't 20 points, but it was at least 10 points over.  Yikes!

So, after a week of hard work *and still dipping into my weeklies...not my activity points, but my weeklies*, I'm happy to report that I was down 1.8 this week at my morning weigh-in.  When I say my weigh-in, it's just me...and the scale.  I don't have anyone standing over me.  Well...I do have my children standing in the room most often when I'm weighing myself.  They don't really count though.

I'm sad that I haven't gotten in as much walking as I was in the prior month.  It just hasn't been possible.  I can walk with my shortest of the short people, but the older two don't like being 'held up' by me if I walk *and they ride*.  And if I have them walk, there's lots of whining *yes, even from a 9 and 5 year old*.  By the time hubby gets home, it's his time to run, and so I go without.  I have walked twice this week.  We have also taken a ride twice this week, so I'm not without any exercise, just not as much as I would like.  On Monday, I'll be back into it with vigor!  The oldest two are slated to get on the bus at 7:15 *or there abouts*.  The shortest of my shorts will be in the jogger stroller ready to go when we walk them to the bus stop that morning.  We'll be hitting the street as the bus pulls away.  She loves going for walks with momma.  She was with me when I did my first 10 mile walk.  If it's a longer walk, she ends up conking out in the stroller.  We'll see how she does on Monday.  She may chat the whole way and that would be okay too.

I'm ready for a new week.  A week from tomorrow, I'll be walking with my friend up Snowbowl for the American Cancer Society.  I can't wait!  It's about 7 miles up *and I mean up*.  And believe you me, I'll be wearing my heart rate monitor to log every morsel.  School starts.  A new amount of crazy begins.  Hubby and I are preparing ourselves for what could be some difficulty with our middle kiddo on homework.  Deep breathing.  In.  Out.  In.  Out.

Are you hanging in there?  Are you tweaking as necessary?  Are you getting out and getting your move on?

*A shout out to Granny...I know you're reading...and I miss you!  I hope all is well in your small neck of the woods.  Are you hanging in there?*

Summer Grillin'

I love summer and one of those reasons is because I can use the grill...a lot!  Out of all the meals that I have planned *for last week and this week*, only two of them did not include the grill.  I love using the grill because it is so versatile and you can do just about anything on it.  Last summer I made a roast chicken on it, but it wasn't a favorite.

So what have I made so far?  This week we had on the grill:  chicken, hot dogs, beef sausage kabobs *with apples, summer squash & onion*, and pizza.  Yes, I said pizza.

When I was menu planning, I was getting ready to axe our weekly pizza night, but wondered about making it on the grill.  Some restaurants serve 'fire-grilled' pizza, so why couldn't I make pizza using the grill?  Google to the rescue!  What I came up with was this recipe.  When I looked more closely at it today, I decided to just make my own pizza dough like I normally do in the bread maker.  I always add my own homemade pizza seasoning and garlic, but this time I added in some fresh chopped basil.  While my dough was being made, I went for my walk *if you didn't know, I'm kickin' 7 miles now...who would have thought that I'd ever be walking that long??*

I came home from said walk, did my stretching, tracked my calories on MFP, chugged some ice cold water, vegged for a few minutes, and got busy making our pizzas.  I lit the grill, rolled out my first piece of dough into something that resembled a rectangle.  I then wrapped it around my rolling pin *loosely* and carried it out to my already lightly greased grill.  My dough puffed nicely and once it was brown *and I had put my oil on the up side of the dough*, I carefully flipped it over.  I put a light basting of my olive oil/garlic mix on the now browned up side, put a light coating of sauce, and then put my toppings on.  Once the cheese had melted *just a few minutes*, I pulled it off the grill.

Hubby and I both agree that it was better than oven made pizza.  It was the bomb!  Seriously.  The crust was fluffy.  The toppings weren't overly cooked...they were just right.

Here is my first one:

This week, we're planning to have turkey burgers in addition to other yummy things.  When we cook boneless, skinless chicken, they turn out so tender.

I'd also like to give cooking fish in foil packets on the grill this summer a whirl.  It.  Will.  Happen.  It's just another adventure in food prep in our house.  And, it's fun!

Step out of your comfort zone and try something different on your grill this summer.  You won't be sorry!

When staying up late...

...don't make the same mistake that I did last night.

Here's the background.  I went to the store to get milk and a few other items that we needed.  I had plans to make yogurt...again, since we've all been eating it *including me*.  This last batch was 71 calories per 1/2 cup.  I digress.  Milk was on sale for $1.57/gallon, so I figured I'd make yogurt using the entire gallon *because you can.*

I put the milk in the crockpot *I used a bigger one; it's 5 or 6 quarts* at shortly after 8.  The girls were put to bed and I started making granola.  I made this delicious granola that can be found here.  I didn't make the 30 servings that it suggests, but cut it in half.  For my purposes, it still made 30 servings *I'm figuring about a 1/4 cup per serving...you probably could use less*.  I also didn't use all of the ingredients listed *I didn't have:  sunflower seeds, oat bran, pecans, or maple syrup.*  Instead of the oat bran, I used flaxseed meal *but only a 1/2c instead of 3/4c* and instead of the maple syrup, I used sugar free breakfast syrup.  I also used 2 tablespoons of regular butter and 6 tablespoons of light butter instead of the vegetable oil.  I omitted the raisins.  After baking it and allowing it to cool, I needed wanted to taste-test for quality assurance, so I had some of our homemade yogurt with the granola on top.

At about 10:30, I checked the temp on the milk.  It wasn't there yet.  At this point, I was already fading.  I'd had some decaf coffee and some dark chocolate.  Then I had... and ....

Are you seeing a pattern?  I was having difficulty staying awake long enough to get the milk ready to go in the oven.  My coping mechanism for staying awake is food.  I did this in college...often.  When it finally  got to temp, I then needed to cool it.  Ugh!  More waiting!  I got the wrapped crockpot into the oven shortly after midnight.

There are several morals to this story.  #1--It takes quite a bit longer to get a gallon of milk to temp than a half gallon...so start early.  #2--If you're not wrapped up in making yogurt and you're very tired...Go.  To.  BED!!

If you get caught up in this dilemma, remember to track everything.  Things like this happen and we just need to keep ourselves accountable.

**Edited to add:  1/2 cup of my yogurt *the one I made with myself in mind* works perfectly with 2 tablespoons of the granola.  Yum!

The next great food adventure!

So, I tried something new that I had wanted to try before, but always thought you had to have some type of 'special' contraption to make it.  A friend of mine posted about making it in the crock pot and I thought, "No way!!"  So...I googled it.  I stumbled across this recipe for making yogurt *yes, you read that right...YOGURT* in the crock pot.  My friend also posted this recipe.

As I looked over both recipes, I thought...I can totally do this.  It looks like a piece of cake.  So, I went to the store and picked up a half gallon of 2% milk ($1.99) and 32oz container of plain yogurt ($2.69 I believe).  This will be the most expensive batch because from here on out, I can save 1 cup of yogurt from each batch that will get added to the following batch.  Cool, huh?

I started the process at 8pm and based on a little of both recipes, and knowing that my crock pot runs hot, I opted to run it for 2 hours on low. 

After using my food thermometer, it told me that the temp was only at about 140 degrees.  So, I turned it up on high for about another 10-15 minutes just shy of boiling.  I turned it off, leaving the lid off, and every so often walking over to stir it.  After a half hour to 45 minutes, it was ready to add the 1 cup of yogurt *for the live & active cultures* and my 1/2 cup of dry milk. 

Then I put the lid on and wrapped the crock pot.  The whole thing went in the oven.

It stayed in the oven the whole night.  We took the middle kiddo to school and came home to check out the finished product.  All told, our yogurt stayed in the oven for about 9 hours.

Just a note, the yogurt is not as thick as store bought because they use things like pectin to make it thicker.  While it has a 'runnier' consistency, it is still yummy!  You can immediately put in containers and put it in the fridge, or do what we did.  We made up flavors right then and there.  Since I have home canned fruit, we opted for some peaches and cherries.  We also decided to use homemade raspberry jam since we had it on hand.  In the half a cereal bowl that I had left after filling 9 pint jars, I used vanilla extract and a touch of splenda *you probably could use stevia or another alternative sweetener like honey*. 

So here is what we got for $1.99 *basically*:  the green lid container is my 1 cup for the next batch, my half a bowl full of vanilla yogurt, 2 pints of peach yogurt, 2 pints of cherry, and 1 pint of raspberry.  Not bad if I do say so myself.  My girls get 1/2 cup of yogurt as a serving.  That means there is 21 servings for now and 2 more that will be used in the next batch.

The next adventure was going to be using 1% or skim milk to make our yogurt next.  Well, another friend has already mastered that and I was there to see her pull it out of the oven.  It looked great!  I had told her about the yogurt adventure earlier today and she decided to give it a whirl.  The other difference she had was that she put it in a pot and heated the milk up on the stove *stirring often* and achieving the 180 degrees.  She may very well be a new convert as well.  It also seemed that her kids loved it as much as mine did!

This is such a neat adventure and I'm so glad that I've learned about it.  I'm excited to try new flavors and experiment with this new found love.

**Edited to add:  Safeway has their sale ad out for next week *tomorrow* and their half gallon of milk is $.99!  If their full gallons were on sale for $1.57, that would be the better route, but $.99 for all of that yogurt?  Crazy!!  Also...frozen yogurt pops?  Yum! 

Eye Candy

We are a very visual society.  I think we've been like that since the beginning of time.  Often times you hear about someone looking like 'eye candy' and I can relate to that on a food level.  Seriously.  It can be pretty bad, especially at night when I'm hanging out, checking the ole facebook page.  We don't have TV, so there aren't commercials, but if we did, I'd be in trouble at night with all of the dopey food commercials that get flashed across the screen.

So, here I am, checking the ole facebook page, and some of my sweet friends are posting pictures of sweet cupcakes.  Bah!  Of course, if you're reading this, don't feel like you can't post pictures of your beautiful cupcakes that you sell, but sheesh!  It sure makes me want to whip out my mixer and go to town.  Of course, I wouldn't go through all of that effort just to make a cupcake, but there have been times when I wanted something yummy and actually went to the store to get it.

This is part of the reason why I won't buy things and have stuff in the house.  It's because I know that I wouldn't be able to leave it alone.  I also know that my hubby wouldn't be able to leave it alone, nor would my children be able to keep themselves from asking to have some of whatever it is that I had to have in the house.

If you see something that looks good, what does that do to you?  When you're watching TV at night *if you have TV* with all of those evil lovely commercials that come across during prime time, how do you react?  Are you the type of person that can completely ignore them?  Or do they spark some deep desire want that sends you into the kitchen for the next best thing?  And, if you do decide to venture into the kitchen for something, what do you do if you don't find what you're looking for?  Are you the type of person to go out and get something *or maybe send your hubby/significant other* for it?

By knowing what triggers you to indulge in things that are less than beneficial, you might want to try some strategies to keep you busy during those times.  It's so hard and I'm right there with you...minus the commercials.  Some people say that keeping their hands busy by working on a craft, quilting, scrapbooking, etc. helps them to stay away from goodies at night.  Maybe you might even have to forgo watching TV at night to avoid those commercials.  Learn what your triggers are and fight the eye candy!

I'm a little nutty!

Yes, it's true.  I'm nutty...over nuts.  I've really started to incorporate nuts in a lot of things lately.  If you're allergic, then disregard this entire post. 

Nuts in moderation can actually be very good for you.  What am I talking about?

The benefits of nuts can include:

1) They are good for your heart (check out the Mayo Clinic)
2) They help to curb your appetite (listed here in ways to curb your appetite)
3) They help to increase your fiber intake (a list of foods to help with fiber can be found here)
4) They are a natural weight loss food (as seen here)
5) They are a good source of protein and minerals (as found here)

To eliminate some of the sodium in my diet, I tend to opt for the dry/unsalted varieties if I can.  My favorite go-to nuts/seeds right now are almonds, walnuts, and sunflower seed kernels.  I've started putting a half serving in my oatmeal in the morning, along with another half a serving on my salad for lunch.  If I have calories to spare, I may sprinkle a few on my dinner salad too.

Yes, they can be expensive, but if you are portioning them correctly, they should last for a while.  I picked up a large bag of unsalted almonds at Sam's Club and it lasts me several months.  The walnuts I picked up in a large bag *on sale* at Fry's and that has lasted me over a month as well.  Sunflower seeds are a bit less expensive and are a fun treat on a salad.  Yum! 

I'd imagine if you're nutty, like me, you might like to stir in some chopped nuts in your yogurt.  Where else do you incorporate nuts/seeds in your diet?  Do you eat them by themselves or with something?

It's good to be nuts over nuts.

Fear

So, I took a walk today.  It's beautiful out.  I'm rocking the tunes.  And as I turn to complete my first mile, and I'm fighting against past memories in my brain...I start to cry.  I'm sure I was quite a sight to see.  Crying and sweaty, but walking it out.  The tears?  A walking revelation.  It seems as though I've been getting those a lot lately.  Moving on.

The revelation?  I have a fear of gaining weight again.  A fear of what other people see me as.  I'm not sure if this is an unhealthy fear or a healthy one. 

I also learned another important tidbit.  I wear my heart rate monitor when I do most of my exercises.  I just found out that a good portion of my exercises are considered to be in the 'vigorous' category.  If I base my numbers on this site, then my max HR is 186, my 50% of HR would be 93, 75% would be 130, and 85% would be 158.  My vigorous range is between 130 and 158.  The moderate range would be between 93 and 130.  Generally speaking, my HR is over 140 when I walk and it's been logged as high as 157.  This is very helpful information for me.

I'm feeling some better today.  It is certainly a process. 

I'm looking forward to dinner.  Pork tenderloin, quinoa, fresh cauliflower, and a salad.  So, I guess if we're going to eat it, I better make it.

A New Goal?

I never thought that I'd need a new one.  I've continued to work on my 12 for '12, but I'm not really thinking about those kinds of goals.  I'm thinking more along the lines of a new health goal.  I'm not even sure what that could be.  I think subconsciously *or so my hubby says* that I might be feeling 'off' because I worked so hard to attain my goal and now that I've reached my goal, I don't know what to do next.

Maybe that is it.  Just a little.  I'm missing my purpose.  My drive.  As of late, I don't feel like things are filling that void of 'I need to make goal.'  Does this even make sense?

I started cutting back on my caffeine a couple of days ago.  So far, no headaches from whittling it down.  I've been drinking half caff at breakfast and then nothing else after.  I do like to have *from time to time* some decaf coffee at night, so I've been having that.  When I was at the store picking up lettuce and spinach today, I stared longingly at the Coke Zero *another guilty pleasure from time to time.*  I didn't get one. 

Last night when I made pizza, I did the entire dough with whole wheat flour, and I only ate 2 slices.  And?  I was satisfied after those 2 slices.  This is a huge step for me as normally I'm incapable of stopping at just 2 slices.  I count what I eat and move on. 

I bought a dark chocolate bar *78% cocoa* and if I'm feeling like a little something during the day, I have just one *yes one* square of it.  That's been helping me from feeling like I'm 'deprived.'

I also like to have yogurt every day.  It's truly tasty to get Greek yogurt *plain/0% fat*, peel and core an apple *I eat some, but cut the rest up into bite size pieces and nuke it*, I stir 1 teaspoon of honey into the yogurt, and then add the heated apple...YUM!  Those of you point counting, it's 3P+ for 6oz Greek yogurt, honey, and the apple.  Yes, you could buy Greek yogurt with fruit already in it, but this cuts out some of the preservatives, and gives you fresh fruit.  A WW friend taught me that trick.

And one more change recently...I've stopped having peanut butter every day.  I love, LoVe, LOVE peanut butter, but I've been thinking that it has been somewhat of a trigger food.  I'm not always happy with just the tablespoon that I put on my bread at lunch.  I like to have a spoonful.  Yep.  I'm one of those people that like peanut butter right out of the jar.  I'll walk by the jar of peanut butter, open it and spoon a little out.  Cutting it out, has been a great release!  I'm also making sure that it goes back in the cupboard *after making lunches* instead of letting it sit there and stare me in the face.  I am instead choosing to have a slice of homemade bread *or the organic nine grain bread from Bountiful Baskets* with a teaspoon of real butter on it.

All of this to say, I'm still learning new things.  And, I'm searching for a new goal.  It's something to think about.  Hubby and I are going to put our heads together to see if we can figure something out.  In the meantime, bear with me.

Day 5

I definitely skipped posting yesterday.  I had a lot of moments of weakness and counted every morsel.  This is me being the best sugar addict I can be.  Yikes!  Maybe at some point I can say that I'm a recovering sugar addict, but for now, I'm a straight up, hard-core, sugar addict.  Who wouldn't love pancakes made with white flour instead of wheat?  Who wouldn't love milk chocolate over dark?  *Wait...maybe there's a select few that love those subtle differences...*  Not that I had all of that mind you, it's for illustration purposes.  The point being, there are times where I like to buck the system.  Maybe you could call me evil, bad, or some other vicious name, but I'm a redhead.  There's something kind of ingrained when you're a true redhead that makes you just a bit fiery, if you know what I'm saying.

Today has been a much better day.  Then again, I've been busy.  I printed off my checklist *again* and went to town.  Nothing says wahoo like checking stuff off your list *at least for me.*  I even hung our laundry out on the line today which is so ridiculously early for us, it's not even funny.  But, this momma is trying to not have a $100+ electric bill again next month...it's just not in the budget.

We got our basket today which means trying something new *usually* for dinner.  Here was our basket from today:

So many fun things, so little time.  What we ended up trying tonight was the kale.  That is the green stuff between the carrots and the romaine on the right hand side.  I made kale chips.  Umm...it was like eating potato chips without the guilt.  I'm so there!  So tasty and so easy to make.  I will definitely be picking up kale again on our own!  We also had cucumber and banana peppers in our romaine salad tonight.  Our salad was definitely a happy one tonight.

I shared my fun new tip about regrowing the green onion with the lady picking up her basket next to mine this morning and with my friend Sarah.  I'm still using the same green onion that I bought about a month ago.  Now, I have some fresh stuff to alternate with.  And what do I mean by this?  When you get down to the white part of your green onion, throw it in a glass of water *with part of the stalk sticking out of the water*...it would look like this:

This is after just a couple of days being in the water.  Another friend of mine told me that she actually throws hers in a pot with soil and continues to grow hers that way.  I know that green onion isn't terribly expensive, but sheesh!  If only people knew of this little trick...

Oh and the kamut rolls were okay, but I felt like they might have been missing something.  They'd be good if you were dipping them in something, but they seem a little 'salty'...maybe too much baking soda/salt.  Who knows?  I'm not good about tweaking things like that in a recipe.  This is what they looked like:

And I have to say that our meal turned out so amazing that night *Thursday*.  I stuffed the chicken with lemon, garlic, rosemary and marjoram.  It was the best chicken I have ever roasted *if I do say so myself.*  The girls all had seconds.  That's how good it was!  Our chicken:

The full meal:

And lastly, after we'd enjoyed our dinner, some kickin stock got made as well.

I said to hubby after our meal was finished, that I was a pretty good cook when we got married, but I've gotten better over time.  He agreed *although, he didn't have much to compare me to anyway...except maybe his grandma :) *
Now that I've overloaded you on pictures, I'm off to put the oldest kiddo to bed.  It truly has been a lovely day today and I'm hoping that tomorrow is equally as nice with a little less of the cleaning stuff.

Day 2

Well, day 2 is shaping up to be a good one.  It's now afternoon and I'm feeling a little more energy than I did yesterday.  For breakfast, I made the same scramble that I had yesterday, but this time I remembered my 'greens'.  I did throw the spinach in at the end to cook it a little since eating eggs on fresh spinach didn't exactly appeal to me.

My snack consisted of light Activia yogurt and 14g of almonds *and yes, I measured those*. 

Lunch was some lentil soup that I made.  I did prepare all of my veggies that I needed for my soup and for dinner this morning.  I figured, why not?  I was standing there at the cutting board, I might as well.

Tonight's dinner will be homemade sloppy joes.  This particular recipe doesn't come from the new cookbook, but it doesn't have too many 'sugary' items in it.  I am going to have mine on nine grain bread.  The girls can have the buns. 

I've now picked up my kitchen...again.  I've got enough soup to put in the fridge and some in the freezer.  I pulled the buns out of the freezer, set up the ingredients by the stove for tonight's dinner, and I'm having a cup of hot decaf tea because it's cold today.

As for exercise, I've taken the week off.  I'm still doing my "Mad Abs" *a new challenge I started with the gals on the 1st*, but I'm just focusing on my food this week.  I need to focus on my food.  I need to find my energy.  When you are lacking energy, it's difficult to get some of the 'easiest' things done around the house.  It's frustrating.  And yes, I know that I have 3 children home most of the day, but I want to be a better momma.

Thank you for sticking with me while I get my thoughts out.  It helps me to write things down...kind of like a journal of how I'm feeling with the subtle tweaks that I'm making.  So hang in there!  If there is something else that you'd like me to discuss, don't hesitate to ask.  I don't want to bore you with my daily stuff.

Keep on friends, keep on!

Yesterday

So I had my WI yesterday and it really wasn't terrible.  I gained .7, but it only took me .2 above my goal weight.  When you're in maintenance, anything less than a pound above goal, isn't terrible.  It's all part of the process.  And, it is a process.

It was certainly a busy day yesterday.  We had school work to do and normal house chores.  Then, my oldest and I got dolled up and headed out the door.

On our way, we stopped at McDonald's for dinner.  I ordered...a salad.  My oldest said to me, "Mom, why do you always order a salad?"  Well, because it's the best option for me and because I know how many points it is.  And also, because I'm sure if I sat down and had the greasy-ness of what they serve, my stomach would be really unhappy with me.  After finishing, we headed on our way to the concert.

If I'd known how easy it was to get to the college, I might have looked into other things there.  I followed the signs for the college and then there were other people pulling up too, so that helped.  We went to see The MozART Group.  If you don't know they are, you can check out their website here or see one of their videos like this one on youtube:



This one cracks me up!

After the show, my kiddo got their autographs and this:

Needless to say, she was thrilled!

On the long drive home, we stopped at the same McDonald's to get her dessert and me a diet Coke.  Yep, no dessert for me.  It was a truly lovely evening and I'm so glad we had the opportunity to go.

To continue on with my culture weekend, I'm going to see "Wicked" tomorrow with a bunch of gals.  Whew! 

In the midst of everything...stay the course!

Eating well on a budget!

My sweet sister asked this question:  "How do you get special things for yourself diet wise without driving up the cost of your grocery bill?"

We started couponing again in January.  We have cut our bill just about in half.  This helps us to buy the things that we don't eat, at a much better cost, allowing us a little wiggle room to get things that cost a bit more.  I have also been able to get some things that we do eat for a much smaller amount.  Example?  I picked up 5 boxes of whole grain pasta for 25¢ a box.  Also, getting our 'basket' every other week for $15...that saves us quite a bit in the veggie/fruit department!  I am also having to learn that just because that cut of meat seems expensive, it's really not that bad when you break it down into price per serving.  If I can get a pound of meat *beef for example* at $2.99/pound and am able to stretch that to feed all five of us, then it's only 60¢ *roughly* per serving, plus whatever we have for sides.  The goal for me is to have meals that cost less than $1/serving *gosh...I'm starting to sound like my hubby when he's at work!!*

I am constantly comparing the sale ads to Sam's Club too because there is often a savings at one or the other.  The example?  I'm planning our menu for March and 90/7 ground beef is on sale for $2.99/lb, but I can get ground turkey at Sam's for $2.75/lb.  Yeah it's only 24¢, but if the ground beef is sold in larger value paks, then I'll end up paying a wee bit more.  And, we prefer ground turkey over beef anyway.  Sam's also has the best deal on flour *at least right now.*  I'll be snagging another 25lb bag of flour this month.  I can't believe that in 2 months time, I've gone through an entire 25lb bag, but I have!  Between the pancakes, the bread, and the pizza dough...we've certainly used it.  And *just a small pat on my own  back*, I told hubby that I wasn't going to buy bread for the girls in January and I've now gone 2 months without buying a loaf of bread for them!  I've been leaning heavily on my delay timer on my bread machine.  Why would I ever make bread any other way again?

So what's on our menu for March?  The staples:  chicken *I'm getting a couple of roasting chickens this month too as I am about out of stock (aka broth) in the freezer*, pancakes, hot dogs, and the new favorite staple...mom's homemade pizza.  I know you're probably getting sick of this same list, but my girls don't.  It's a little predictability.  To round out our menu, we're getting some pork, we're having the aforementioned pasta, and we'll alternate between tacos & sloppy joes *the homemade kind.*

Sometimes stuff just isn't on sale, but you do the best you can.  In some ways, when you coupon, you can stock some things away for later use, especially when it's really cheap or in some cases, free.  I picked up 3 tubes of toothpaste for free and we won't have to worry about that for a while.  And like I said, if it's not on sale, sometimes one store carries it at 'regular' price, but it's less than their competitors.  It can also be trial and error.

I think shopping should be fairly easy this month.  That's certainly a change for us!  I am happy that I haven't had to labor over the menu too much to come up with the healthy options that we can enjoy.  Do what's best for you and your family.  Budgeting isn't easy, but it is so worth it in the end!

Less than 24 hours!

If you plan to enter into my giveaway *a more healthy version of a cookie*...you have approximately 22 hours to do so.  Remember to visit this post here to comment and tell me what your favorite cookie is.  I will randomly choose a name tomorrow.

I was worried about consuming an additional 6 points per day since I hit maintenance, but so far, it hasn't been a huge problem.

Tomorrow I get to have fun at the dentist.  I'm not sure how my eating will be, but it will probably be semi-limited.  We'll see how it goes.  I'm also not sure how my exercise will be tomorrow.

In the meantime, comment and stay the course!

Post #50! <<--I lied!

This is my 50th post...already!  I can't believe it!  Just another instance of persistence paying off.  **After my initial excitement over my 50th post, I realized that I had 1 draft post that I hadn't officially posted yet.  Shucks!  Have no fear...there will be a #50!*

I would love to hear what you would like to know about.  Do remember that I am just a gal who has been there, done that a fair number of times, that I can only tell you what has worked for me, and give you tips and recipes.  And boy, do I love recipes!  I'm serious now people, write something in the comment box!  I mean it!

Today has been great and productive.  I like productive days!  I also figured out why my lower back is sore.  There is this scissor leg move that 'Debbie' does on Slim in 6 that's meant to strengthen your lower back and work your butt and thighs.  Umm...yeah, guess I need to modify that.  So, I did that today.   I also swept off our porch and stairs, picked up some trash around the yard, and swapped bikes for the middle kiddo.  I also did dishes *with help from the oldest* and picked up some.  Have you ever noticed that your kitchen is forever a mess??

Would you all like a little baked goodie give-away?  Sadly, I think this one would have to stay within the U.S. though as I don't think it would ship fast enough over-seas to be tasty.

Oh and I tried another new recipe last night.  It was Pumpkin Spice Cream Cheese from Skinny Taste.  I believe that my family thought they were eating creamy golden deliciousness.  I spread it on Ritz crackers...mmm...yeah, that was good stuff!!  I think I have a tiny obsession  love with pumpkin and am thankful that I stocked up when Sam's had a 3 pack of the big cans for something like $7.  I like pumpkin in a lot of things.  I LOVE, love, LoVe...this pumpkin spiced latte from Hungry Girl.  I also love throwing 2 tablespoons of pumpkin *not to be confused with pumpkin pie filling* in my oatmeal, with a dash of cinnamon, nutmeg, and Splenda brown sugar.  It tastes a bit like pumpkin pie.  You could even use pumpkin pie spice in your oatmeal.  Mmm...yum!  Also, I won't ever buy pumpkin pie spice again, because I use this little recipe and love it.  I also make a killer pumpkin brownie recipe, but it isn't entirely healthy.

Do you all love pumpkin?  Do you have a favorite recipe?  I'd love to hear about it!

Also...goodie give-away??  Yes?  No?  And in addition to that...what would you like to know about?

^^^All of this...write in that little comment box below this post *or click on comment.*  I don't want to bore you with day to day stuff like:  Today I worked out and I ate this for breakfast, lunch, dinner.  I'm sure you'd like to know more than that.  Right?

So...get crackin'!