Have you ever set out to make dinner with a grand master plan? Alright. Tonight, I am going to make a black bean and corn soup with some potato and spinach balls. Fast forward several hours later, post visit to the park on this beautiful spring-like winter day, when I realized, "oh crap! It's 5pm!"
Don't you just love it? There is nothing you can do, you can't turn the clock back, you just have to suck it up and throw dinner together.
I promised L last night, that I would make soup for dinner. He really is a soup nut. Instead, I opted for a quicker spaghetti frittata. It was super quick, boil pasta, mix in canned pumpkin puree, basil, oregano, garlic powder and Parmesan cheese (okay, its not vegan, but it needed the cheese), then throw it under the broiler after the bottom browns on the stove. Quick and easy. Everyone loved it. But, L was bummed it wasn't soup.
Tonight, the plan was a Mexican inspired black bean and corn soup. In my rush though, I forgot to cook my sprouted black beans, so after quite the length of time, boiling them with the veggies, I realized I had made a mistake. What to do now? I considered picking out all of the beans, so I could microwave them, thinking that might do the trick. I considered letting everyone eat them raw, sucking it up.
I decided to finally use my immersion blender to puree the beans, carrots, celery, tomatoes, onions, bell pepper, tomatoes and green chilies to make the beans smaller. That helped them cook a whole lot quicker. Now, though, I had this mush, instead of soup. I added some cumin, about 1/3 a bag of frozen spinach (just because I had it), and 1/3 of a bag of frozen corn. Now, it really looked like mush.
Oh, and a great benefit to blending the soup? The kids didn't complain that there were red peppers or tomatoes in there soup. We always get those complaints/cries. Today, it was just the mushy appearance of it.
L was destroyed because I said it was going to be soup and it didn't look like it at all. We topped it with cilantro, avocado and lime juice. And, when the kids finally agreed to try it, they loved it! Score! P even thought it was good.
In the end, it was a successful last minute meal. I'm calling it Black Bean Mexican Sloup because instead of looking like soup, it looked like slop. Good thing it tasted better. And, L decided that he is no longer going to look at his food before he tries it, instead, he's going to close his eyes and take a bite to determine if its worthy of his belly. Goodness! Love that boy!
Recipe for Black Bean Mexican Sloup (you may want to serve this over rice)
Ingredients:
2 cups of sprouted black beans, cooked
2 carrots, sliced thin
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 boxes of stock
1 Tbsp. cumin
1 can diced tomatoes, the regular size
1 small can of diced green chilies
1 1/2 cups chopped spinach
1 1/2 cups organic corn (do me a favor and use organic when it comes to corn and eat it as God intended. It really is so much better!)
Garnish with: fresh cilantro, avocado, lime wedges, sour cream and cheese (if not vegan)
Directions:
1. Throw all items into a pot, up to the green chilies. Bring to a boil, reduce and simmer until veggies are soft.
2. Use immersion blender to puree.
3. Add frozen spinach and corn. Bring back to boil and cook until warm.
4. Serve with several garnish options.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Making our food more Digestible
Ever heard that eating healthy is expensive? IT IS! Holy hannah! In an effort to save money, I started looking into beans. Not only are they inexpensive dry, but they are a great substitute for meat.
PROBLEM! Sorry, but I have to say it. Beans make our home one stinky place. Oh. My. Goodness. I'm sure I don't need to elaborate any further.
Briefly, our bodies have a hard time breaking beans down. They get stuck in our intestines where they begin to ferment, causing a build up of gas which we release. Not good.
One way to combat this is to sprout your beans. Essentially, you allow the bean to sprout, to grow another bean before you eat it. For more information, click here. Basically, you soak the item over night, then you rinse and keep damp for the next 1-3 days, rinsing once every 12 hours, until the little sprouts form. Its pretty easy. To date, I've sprouted brown rice, chickpeas, black beans, oats and lentils (I think).
Do they taste different? I'd be lying if I said no, but not too noticeable. Does it help with the fermentation? Yes. Yes, it does. I defiantly have noticed when I've eaten canned beans, as opposed to sprouted beans.
When I was reading about sprouting, I also read that you should soak your nuts, too. Okay, are you done giggling? hee hee. Get your mind out of the gutter. The other day, I decided to do just that and soaked our raw almonds over night. After soaking, I dehydrated them in our oven. Yum! These tasted so much better than unsoaked almonds. The flavor was more developed and they weren't as mushy, if you could describe a nut that way. Okay, I think I should just call this topic done. Eek! hahaha
I'm interested in whether or not anyone else sprouts/soaks their foods to improve digestibility. Does it work for your family?
PROBLEM! Sorry, but I have to say it. Beans make our home one stinky place. Oh. My. Goodness. I'm sure I don't need to elaborate any further.
Briefly, our bodies have a hard time breaking beans down. They get stuck in our intestines where they begin to ferment, causing a build up of gas which we release. Not good.
One way to combat this is to sprout your beans. Essentially, you allow the bean to sprout, to grow another bean before you eat it. For more information, click here. Basically, you soak the item over night, then you rinse and keep damp for the next 1-3 days, rinsing once every 12 hours, until the little sprouts form. Its pretty easy. To date, I've sprouted brown rice, chickpeas, black beans, oats and lentils (I think).
Do they taste different? I'd be lying if I said no, but not too noticeable. Does it help with the fermentation? Yes. Yes, it does. I defiantly have noticed when I've eaten canned beans, as opposed to sprouted beans.
When I was reading about sprouting, I also read that you should soak your nuts, too. Okay, are you done giggling? hee hee. Get your mind out of the gutter. The other day, I decided to do just that and soaked our raw almonds over night. After soaking, I dehydrated them in our oven. Yum! These tasted so much better than unsoaked almonds. The flavor was more developed and they weren't as mushy, if you could describe a nut that way. Okay, I think I should just call this topic done. Eek! hahaha
I'm interested in whether or not anyone else sprouts/soaks their foods to improve digestibility. Does it work for your family?
Vegan Experimentation ~ Fighting Fatty McFatFat
Obesity is a problem in our country. We hear it all the time. The solution? Get moving. Yep. That's it. Congress, the schools and the 1st Lady all tell us that we need to exercise each day. I've done it. I've done it and felt great. I've loved it. But, I've learned a lot. The most important thing: It doesn't really help you lose weight if you are still eating crap.
That's right! Weight loss is more what and how much you eat than your workout ethic. I exercised for 5 months and dropped 2 pounds. That's it.
This time around, I've decided to focus on our food first, partly because I know it works and mostly because I'm a little bit lazy right now. In the last 3-4 weeks, I have lost 6 1/2 pounds. That's not tons, but I'm trying to lose weight responsibly, since I am still breastfeeding. Also, I've been kind of lazy and had a few fat girl days where I've enjoyed way too many of the sweets.
Here are a couple of great recipes that P, the kids and I have tried and really enjoyed. These are all easy things that you would probably have in your house any given week.
Vegan French Toast (adapted from the Engine 2 Diet)
Ingredients: Banana (mashed), Cinnamon, Vanilla, Almond Milk, Whole Wheat Bread
Directions: Combine all ingredients in a pie plan, dip bread in the mixture, cook on griddle pan.
Vegan Lemon Blueberry French Toast
add the zest and juice of a lemon and a handful of mashed blueberries to the above recipe
Veggie Latkes
Ingredients: 1/2 head of small cabbage, 2 carrots, 2 scallions, 2 potatoes, ground flax seed, water, flour, garlic powder, ground hot red pepper, salt, pepper
Directions: Mix 3 Tbsp. ground flax seed and 9 Tbsp water. Set aside until it gels. In the food processor, shred the cabbage, potatoes and carrots. Drain as much water from them as possible. Season with spices and add diced scallions, flax goop and approx. 5 Tbsp of flour. The flour is kind of there to suck up the water and the flax seed acts as an egg to help keep them together. Put mounds in a hot skillet, cover and cook on both sides for about 8 minutes total.
Variation: I added some left over mashed sweet potato and it was delicious!
Serve with an Asian flavored sauce (soy, rice vinegar and ginger) or even just ketchup.
P's Stir Fry
Ingredients: 2 packages of Shirataki Tofu noodles, cabbage (bok choy is a yummy choice), mushrooms, carrots, red bell peppers, edamame, scallions, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, rice vinegar
Directions: Cook all veggies until desired softness, add rinsed noodles, 1 part soy sauce, 2 parts vinegar, and freshly grated ginger (to taste).
Sprouted Hummus
Ingredients: 2 cups of cooked sprouted chickpeas, 1/4 cup tahini, juice of 1 lemon, 1 roasted red pepper, 1 big bulb roasted garlic, 1 small onion (caramelized), salt to taste
Directions: Throw all ingredients in a food processor and process until desired texture
Veggie Panini
Ingredients: whole wheat bread, spinach, tomatoes, spicy mustard, salad blend (I like the herb blend from Olivia's Organics), hummus, marinated artichokes
Directions: Spread generous amount of hummus on both slices of bread, pile the veggies high in between the 2 slices, put on a griddle pan and put something really heavy on top of the sandwich and cook for 3 minutes on each side. Dip in mustard, if desired.
Banana Ice Cream
Ingredients: Frozen bananas, dark chocolate chips (if you are having a craving)
Directions: Place ingredient(s) in blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy!
Homemade Pizza
Ingredients: Homemade pizza dough, tomato sauce (seasoned with basil, oregano, garlic, onion) or coconut curry sauce, spinach, artichokes, black olives, garlic, any other veggies of choice, cheese (if desired)
Directions: Top the pizza dough with a generous helping of sauce, especially if you aren't using cheese, add veggies and bake according to the pizza dough instructions.
We've had a lot of trials with this whole vegetarian/vegan/plant strong diet that we've been working on. Some foods have been harder to give up than others, like hot dogs for P and the kids, and cheese. Cheese and milk. I've been more successful than the rest of the family, but probably because my true struggle is sweets...chocolate and sugar, in general. I've never been huge on meat, and the cheese/milk urge has pretty much been decreased immensely by the documentary, Forks Over Knives.
P has been doing really well, but admits that he doesn't think he'll ever be able to give up milk. That's understandable, he's been drinking milk in his tea since he was a wee lad in jolly ol' England. hee hee
I'm looking forward to trying some more veggie dishes, continued weight loss and some increased success and motivation on the exercise front. Stay tuned!
Monday, January 16, 2012
Playing Catch Up
Its been quite a few days since I last tracked both my and my kids' progress with our new little life changes, so I thought why not just do one quick entry and catch everyone up, as well as keep myself honest.
Q: On Friday night, the 5th night after starting the cry it out method, Q slept through the night for the 1st time in a long, long time. I didn't sleep through the night, but she did, and well, that's all that matters. Saturday, we all slept through the night. Ah-mazing! I felt so refreshed on Sunday morning. Let's just say that I am so happy that I finally decided to do this. Its something this mama (and daddy) really needed.
L: The eye patch has no longer become a fight. Instead, L seems to be doing really well, reminding me that its time for him to get his patch. I normally don't hear the can I take this off question until at least 3 hours into it. The only problem lately is that his eyelashes seem to start to bother his patched eye. I'm hoping that we can figure out a way to avoid this in the future, but our efforts so far have been for naught.
Fighting Fatty McFat Fat: Friday through Sunday were not too good for me with the diet and exercise. Not good. P left tons of junk food (potato chips and crackers) and I had leftover baking goods (marshmallows, cake mix, chocolate chips) that for some reason were just calling my name. I swear, they were literally calling my name as I walked by the pantry. Eat me! Eat me! Come on, you know you want to have just a little bit. Look, I'm not bullet proof. I'm just human, and I gave in! I gave in hard. Tsk! Tsk!
Regardless, I did lose 1 1/2 pounds. Okay. That's not great, but its not bad either. I mean, really, its healthy to lose 2 pounds a week, and with nursing, I don't want to be too ridiculous. Okay, I'm not thrilled by the number, but every little pound counts.
What went wrong the last few days? P was out of town, so I didn't have to make dinner. The kids are perfectly happy with sandwiches and cereal. I also had a dinner party to attend. The problem was that I was then really tired towards the end of the day, each day, getting more and more exhausted and therefore, more and more lazy.
This week, I'm going to be more focused. Even though P will be out of town 2 nights, I will make sure that I make dinner. I have 3 dinners in the freezer that will be easy enough to pull out and defrost. I also have some great dinner ideas tagged on my pinterest boards and I've learned a lot this weekend about how to more easily eat a whole food, plant based diet, including a great resource on the Engine 2 Diet website. P and I are hoping to really make this a lifestyle change that will stick.
Q: On Friday night, the 5th night after starting the cry it out method, Q slept through the night for the 1st time in a long, long time. I didn't sleep through the night, but she did, and well, that's all that matters. Saturday, we all slept through the night. Ah-mazing! I felt so refreshed on Sunday morning. Let's just say that I am so happy that I finally decided to do this. Its something this mama (and daddy) really needed.
L: The eye patch has no longer become a fight. Instead, L seems to be doing really well, reminding me that its time for him to get his patch. I normally don't hear the can I take this off question until at least 3 hours into it. The only problem lately is that his eyelashes seem to start to bother his patched eye. I'm hoping that we can figure out a way to avoid this in the future, but our efforts so far have been for naught.
Fighting Fatty McFat Fat: Friday through Sunday were not too good for me with the diet and exercise. Not good. P left tons of junk food (potato chips and crackers) and I had leftover baking goods (marshmallows, cake mix, chocolate chips) that for some reason were just calling my name. I swear, they were literally calling my name as I walked by the pantry. Eat me! Eat me! Come on, you know you want to have just a little bit. Look, I'm not bullet proof. I'm just human, and I gave in! I gave in hard. Tsk! Tsk!
Regardless, I did lose 1 1/2 pounds. Okay. That's not great, but its not bad either. I mean, really, its healthy to lose 2 pounds a week, and with nursing, I don't want to be too ridiculous. Okay, I'm not thrilled by the number, but every little pound counts.
What went wrong the last few days? P was out of town, so I didn't have to make dinner. The kids are perfectly happy with sandwiches and cereal. I also had a dinner party to attend. The problem was that I was then really tired towards the end of the day, each day, getting more and more exhausted and therefore, more and more lazy.
This week, I'm going to be more focused. Even though P will be out of town 2 nights, I will make sure that I make dinner. I have 3 dinners in the freezer that will be easy enough to pull out and defrost. I also have some great dinner ideas tagged on my pinterest boards and I've learned a lot this weekend about how to more easily eat a whole food, plant based diet, including a great resource on the Engine 2 Diet website. P and I are hoping to really make this a lifestyle change that will stick.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Progress Crying
Q has cried it out 3 nights in a row at this point. The 2nd night went so much better than the first, with crying during only 2 one hour stints. All of the other kids slept right through it, me, on the other hand, not so much. When she woke up in the 6 o'clock hour, I got up and fed her. She was such a smiley girl, but very hoarse, sadly.
The third night, I had even more resolve because I could see that it was working. The problem was that I had to go out, so my mom fed her formula and then put her down. I wasn't sure how to proceed when I got home at 10, but ultimately decided to wake and feed her. She got up once, but this time, she woke up her big siblings. J was crying , so I told her to come to bed with me. Then, l woke up, "Mom, Q is crying and woke me up. I can't sleep with her crying!" After sending him back to bed, she cried a little longer and then fell to sleep. She didn't get up until 6:30. Yay!
Its working! Hoping tonight comes with even less crying.
Published with Blogger-droid v2.0.3
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Cry it out...both of you
Q had her 6 month well appointment yesterday. She's a healthy 16.2 pound baby, 25 3/4 inches long. We thought she was a little chub, but apparently, she's in the 44th %tile for weight, 40th for height and 65th for brain growth (of course she's a genius, look who her mom is). Everything was going swimmingly well until the dreaded question, "How's she sleeping?"
Uh...How does one answer that? Um...she goes to bed around 8:30/9, and then she's up at midnight, 1, 2:30, 3:15, 4, 5:30, 6:30 and 8 am. "Not good. She used to sleep 9 hours at a time, but now she's up several times a night," I responded.
Now, her doctor is great. Really. But, I knew it was coming. "Well, you can keep getting up with her every night until she's a cranky 2 year old, or you can all start getting a good night's sleep now."
His recommendation? Let her cry it out. Nevermind that J and C are in the room with her because they'll figure it out. In a week, they'll all be sleeping through the night. Well, its now or never, right? I mean, she just cut her first tooth 2 days ago, so that's done, and her ear infection is cleared up. No more excuses.
Last night, P put her to bed around 9. Around 12, C woke up with croup and joined us in our room so that she could have a nebulizer (I know that's spelled incorrectly, but I'm tired, so I'll deal with it) treatment. 12:15...cue Q. There was no point bringing her into our bed to get sick from C, so we let her go. And go she did. She cried all night long. Okay, perhaps she stopped for little cat naps and from about 4-6:30, but my little angel cried so long.
P got so frustrated that he went to bed in L's room and shut the door. I laid in my bed, next to a noisy, sleeping C and cried. I cried because I knew it was okay to let her cry. She's in a safe place. I cried because I knew that I could comfort her, just by picking her up. All of her sadness would disappear if I just went in and got my baby and fed her. I cried because this is my last baby...ever. Why can't I just savor the moments of complete baby-ness?!
But, the doctor is right. I am miserable during the day because I am so beat. I am having a hard time losing weight because I am so tired. I lack patience. I lack understanding. I pretty much lack my niceness because I can't focus on not snapping. I can't even carry on a real conversation with others because I can only focus on myself and what's going on with me. I'm too tired to focus on anyone else. This is how I feel.
Day 1 of cry it out is done. When P got her from her crib this morning, I was in the shower. When she saw me, no big smile, just sadness. Broke my heart. Regardless, I am definitely going to do it again tonight because, well, let's face it, if I don't then I just tortured my baby last night for no reason. I'm hoping that this will all be resolved and I'll have my 9-hour-a-night girl back in no time.
Uh...How does one answer that? Um...she goes to bed around 8:30/9, and then she's up at midnight, 1, 2:30, 3:15, 4, 5:30, 6:30 and 8 am. "Not good. She used to sleep 9 hours at a time, but now she's up several times a night," I responded.
Now, her doctor is great. Really. But, I knew it was coming. "Well, you can keep getting up with her every night until she's a cranky 2 year old, or you can all start getting a good night's sleep now."
His recommendation? Let her cry it out. Nevermind that J and C are in the room with her because they'll figure it out. In a week, they'll all be sleeping through the night. Well, its now or never, right? I mean, she just cut her first tooth 2 days ago, so that's done, and her ear infection is cleared up. No more excuses.
Last night, P put her to bed around 9. Around 12, C woke up with croup and joined us in our room so that she could have a nebulizer (I know that's spelled incorrectly, but I'm tired, so I'll deal with it) treatment. 12:15...cue Q. There was no point bringing her into our bed to get sick from C, so we let her go. And go she did. She cried all night long. Okay, perhaps she stopped for little cat naps and from about 4-6:30, but my little angel cried so long.
P got so frustrated that he went to bed in L's room and shut the door. I laid in my bed, next to a noisy, sleeping C and cried. I cried because I knew it was okay to let her cry. She's in a safe place. I cried because I knew that I could comfort her, just by picking her up. All of her sadness would disappear if I just went in and got my baby and fed her. I cried because this is my last baby...ever. Why can't I just savor the moments of complete baby-ness?!
But, the doctor is right. I am miserable during the day because I am so beat. I am having a hard time losing weight because I am so tired. I lack patience. I lack understanding. I pretty much lack my niceness because I can't focus on not snapping. I can't even carry on a real conversation with others because I can only focus on myself and what's going on with me. I'm too tired to focus on anyone else. This is how I feel.
Day 1 of cry it out is done. When P got her from her crib this morning, I was in the shower. When she saw me, no big smile, just sadness. Broke my heart. Regardless, I am definitely going to do it again tonight because, well, let's face it, if I don't then I just tortured my baby last night for no reason. I'm hoping that this will all be resolved and I'll have my 9-hour-a-night girl back in no time.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Veggie and Chickpea Curry
Yes, yes, yes! I used my sprouted chickpeas and they didn't taste any different from the others, except that they didn't taste a strong. I made a veggie and chickpea curry with it.
If you want to give it a try, here's what I threw into the crockpot on high for 6 hours:
1 onion
1 cup of frozen french cut green beans
3 Tbsp curry powder
2 Tbsp cumin
4 chopped cloves of garlic
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
3 cups chickpeas
2 carrots, sliced
1 chopped red pepper
1 (14 oz) can of veggie broth
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp brown sugar
A couple of minutes before serving, I threw in 3 handfuls of spinach and 1 can of coconut milk.
This was so good! The original recipe called for no cumin and only 1 Tbsp of curry powder, but believe me, it needed more.
I even threw a ladle of the curry into the food processor so that Q could have some. And guess what, she liked it! Yay! The other kids though, they whined and whined and whined about having to eat it. Ugh! C was going to eat hers until she noticed the other 2 refusing, then she joined in on it. Eventually, L decided to try it and then ate the whole bowl. I had to throw J and C's in the food processor like Q' s to get them to eat it. It was frustrating, but they ate it, so I was thrilled.
Give it a try!
If you want to give it a try, here's what I threw into the crockpot on high for 6 hours:
1 onion
1 cup of frozen french cut green beans
3 Tbsp curry powder
2 Tbsp cumin
4 chopped cloves of garlic
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
3 cups chickpeas
2 carrots, sliced
1 chopped red pepper
1 (14 oz) can of veggie broth
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp brown sugar
A couple of minutes before serving, I threw in 3 handfuls of spinach and 1 can of coconut milk.
This was so good! The original recipe called for no cumin and only 1 Tbsp of curry powder, but believe me, it needed more.
I even threw a ladle of the curry into the food processor so that Q could have some. And guess what, she liked it! Yay! The other kids though, they whined and whined and whined about having to eat it. Ugh! C was going to eat hers until she noticed the other 2 refusing, then she joined in on it. Eventually, L decided to try it and then ate the whole bowl. I had to throw J and C's in the food processor like Q' s to get them to eat it. It was frustrating, but they ate it, so I was thrilled.
Give it a try!
Fighting Fatty McFatFat: Day 8
Today was actually okay. I stepped on the scale and got several different numbers, the highest being 186. That's 3 pounds down in 1 week. I'm good with that. In the past, I've been able to drop more in a week, but I'm nursing and need to be very certain that I am losing this weight responsibly. So, thank you, 3 pounds. I'll take that!
The food was okay today.
Breakfast: oatmeal with apples, peanut butter and raisins
I was quite hungry this afternoon, so I ate big lunch: salad (greens, cucumber, tomato, balsamic, avocado), 5 pecan cookies (pecans, dates, coconut, 8 chocolate chips) and a slice of sprouted bread with hummus
Needless to say, dinner was just 1 small bowl of Veggie and Chickpea curry.
As far as my workout went, I did my 5 burpees, along with walking (jogged only a short time) for 200 calories on the treadmill, and did a few strength training exercises before my one hour time limit was up.
I'm feeling great and looking forward to another 3 pound loss this week. Fingers crossed!
The food was okay today.
Breakfast: oatmeal with apples, peanut butter and raisins
I was quite hungry this afternoon, so I ate big lunch: salad (greens, cucumber, tomato, balsamic, avocado), 5 pecan cookies (pecans, dates, coconut, 8 chocolate chips) and a slice of sprouted bread with hummus
Needless to say, dinner was just 1 small bowl of Veggie and Chickpea curry.
As far as my workout went, I did my 5 burpees, along with walking (jogged only a short time) for 200 calories on the treadmill, and did a few strength training exercises before my one hour time limit was up.
I'm feeling great and looking forward to another 3 pound loss this week. Fingers crossed!
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Fighting Fatty McFatFat: Days 5, 6, 7
Day 5: No exercise today :-( Well, I did my 2 burpees, in the waiting room at the car dealership, but that's about it. I was just running from one appointment to the next all day long. By the time I figured out what was going on, it was 8:30 and I was ready to hit the hay. I had a healthy breakfast, but that had to last until 2:30 when I finally made it home to have a quick lunch before quick leaving to get the boys from school by 2:40. Paul ended up bringing dinner home, so I ended up with a veggie burger to end my blah day. Food was good until then.
Day 6: We focused on getting Christmas put away, so I didn't have time to get to the gym. Instead, I did my 3 burpees upstairs in the hallway and then did some strength training in the bathroom in an effort to entertain Q while C and J were in the shower. She laughed every time I bent over her. It was a great little workout and even better, it was a fantastic time with my baby.
Breakfast: small bowl of granola with almond milk and a banana
Lunch: ants on a log, apple with peanut butter, raisin and rosemary crackers, and a fantastic salad with avocado, carrots, cucumber and balsamic vinaigrette
Dinner: homemade pizza on a homemade whole wheat pizza crust. I made 2 pizzas, both with spinach and artichokes. 1 with tomato sauce, feta, Parmesan and ricotta, the other with a coconut curry sauce and roasted red peppers. I went really easy on the cheese to reduce our animal product consumption and our caloric intake (for the adults only). These were really good pizzas!
Day 7: I did my 4 burpees this morning before taking J to the hospital (she has an UTI which presented as blood in her urine), but that's about it. Crappy on the exercise again today. I can't wait to hit the gym tomorrow.
Breakfast: peanut butter toast and a spinach/strawberry/almond milk smoothie
Lunch: 4 pancakes (which I inhaled because I had to run back up to the hospital), 5 carrot spears, 1/2 orange
Dinner: 2 veggie sushi rolls made with brown rice and 1/2 an avocado roll made with white rice from Wegman's
Today, I'm not feeling too successful. I know they say to "stop with the excuses and just get it done," but I am really having a hard time managing my schedule, sick kids and this new whole, real food aka no processed food thing I'm trying to do. Perhaps I've taken on too much. Either way, I know that I need to tackle the food thing first, or I can work out until the cows come home and I won't drop anything.
Day 6: We focused on getting Christmas put away, so I didn't have time to get to the gym. Instead, I did my 3 burpees upstairs in the hallway and then did some strength training in the bathroom in an effort to entertain Q while C and J were in the shower. She laughed every time I bent over her. It was a great little workout and even better, it was a fantastic time with my baby.
Breakfast: small bowl of granola with almond milk and a banana
Lunch: ants on a log, apple with peanut butter, raisin and rosemary crackers, and a fantastic salad with avocado, carrots, cucumber and balsamic vinaigrette
Dinner: homemade pizza on a homemade whole wheat pizza crust. I made 2 pizzas, both with spinach and artichokes. 1 with tomato sauce, feta, Parmesan and ricotta, the other with a coconut curry sauce and roasted red peppers. I went really easy on the cheese to reduce our animal product consumption and our caloric intake (for the adults only). These were really good pizzas!
Day 7: I did my 4 burpees this morning before taking J to the hospital (she has an UTI which presented as blood in her urine), but that's about it. Crappy on the exercise again today. I can't wait to hit the gym tomorrow.
Breakfast: peanut butter toast and a spinach/strawberry/almond milk smoothie
Lunch: 4 pancakes (which I inhaled because I had to run back up to the hospital), 5 carrot spears, 1/2 orange
Dinner: 2 veggie sushi rolls made with brown rice and 1/2 an avocado roll made with white rice from Wegman's
Today, I'm not feeling too successful. I know they say to "stop with the excuses and just get it done," but I am really having a hard time managing my schedule, sick kids and this new whole, real food aka no processed food thing I'm trying to do. Perhaps I've taken on too much. Either way, I know that I need to tackle the food thing first, or I can work out until the cows come home and I won't drop anything.
Adventures in Sprouting: Chickpeas
There is a nutritional school of thought known as essential eating. Briefly, the idea is to eat only real foods and in their most nutritious form. This means buying organic and eating your legumes and grains in a sprouted form. The idea is that when you sprout legumes and grains, they become easier to digest and increase their nutritional value. If you want more information, click here or here.
Since P and I have decided to reduce our animal consumption, we need to increase our consumption of legumes for their protein. One of our favorites is garbanzo beans, aka chickpeas. I have a recipe for a chickpea curry that I really wanted to try, and I want to make some hummus, so I figured I would give this sprouting a try.
2 days ago, I opened a bag of Full Circle Organic Dried Garbanzo Beans, rinsed and then soaked them for 12 hours.
Next, I rinsed them in a colander and laid them in a pyrex baking dish, still moist, and set them in my oven so they'd be out of the way.
12 hours after that, I came to give them another rinse when I noticed that my garbanzo beans had sprouted. WooHoo!
As P said, I am really boring. This has truly excited me. They are cutie patooties; chickpeas with little white tails.
I also have black beans that are currently in the oven, hopefully sprouting. Every 12 hours, I will rinse them and drop them back in the dish. I'm hoping that in another 36 hours, they will be as beautiful as my chickpeas.
Oh, and let me not forget my brown rice. I soaked them overnight and now, they too have little white buds on the ends, too. I feel like a sproutingqueen princess. Those black beans are still iffy. I'm going to store my babies in the fridge for 3-5 days in an airtight container.
Next, I am going to try to sprout some wheat berries and make my own sprouted bread. Now, to find some more time....
Since P and I have decided to reduce our animal consumption, we need to increase our consumption of legumes for their protein. One of our favorites is garbanzo beans, aka chickpeas. I have a recipe for a chickpea curry that I really wanted to try, and I want to make some hummus, so I figured I would give this sprouting a try.
2 days ago, I opened a bag of Full Circle Organic Dried Garbanzo Beans, rinsed and then soaked them for 12 hours.
Next, I rinsed them in a colander and laid them in a pyrex baking dish, still moist, and set them in my oven so they'd be out of the way.
12 hours after that, I came to give them another rinse when I noticed that my garbanzo beans had sprouted. WooHoo!
As P said, I am really boring. This has truly excited me. They are cutie patooties; chickpeas with little white tails.
I also have black beans that are currently in the oven, hopefully sprouting. Every 12 hours, I will rinse them and drop them back in the dish. I'm hoping that in another 36 hours, they will be as beautiful as my chickpeas.
Oh, and let me not forget my brown rice. I soaked them overnight and now, they too have little white buds on the ends, too. I feel like a sprouting
Next, I am going to try to sprout some wheat berries and make my own sprouted bread. Now, to find some more time....
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Goal for It and Money Savings
Today was a great day! Thanks to getting Q's prescription filled at Price Chopper, I was able to save $1.10 per gallon on gas. That worked out to a whopping $20.29 off of my Sunoco bill this morning. It made standing in the freezing weather with the wind whipping around me so worth it. Want to know what was even better?! When I got the prescription filled that day, I used a coupon to get $10 off my grocery order. Oh, and let's not forget that Price Chopper offers some antibiotics for free, including the amoxocilian Q was prescribed. You read that right! That means that Price Chopper paid me $30.29 to take the amoxocilian out of their store. Thanks!
The kids were also pretty darn good, thanks to a new website I found to help get the kids more disciplined, Goal for It! Its a web-based behavioral/chore chart that you can customize for each child...and parent. You pick the background, which chores or behaviors you want to focus on, and then assign a point value to each goal you've created. I gave each of the kids and myself 5 goals.
L: make my bed, do homework, practice my reading, put my clothes in the hamper, go to bed on time
J: make my bed, put my clothes in the hamper, clean my room, no whining, go to bed on time
C: make my bed, put my clothes in the hamper, no whining, no tantrums, go to bed on time
Me: drink enough water, exercise, make good food choices, go to bed on time, get some laundry done
I assigned each goal a moolah! point value of 1, except for the key goal which got 2 points. When the kids earn 10 points, they will get a prize. When they accomplish a task, they get a sticker to show a job well done. They were so thrilled to get their stickers today. Though the girls didn't earn their no whining sticker, they tried nonetheless. I must admit, I even exercised and got some laundry done so that I could get a sticker. When I get 25 points, I am going to reward myself with something. Not yet sure what I'll get, but I'll get something.
For the kids' prizes, I'm thinking I'll offer non-material rewards: you pick dinner, 1 hour of alone time with parent of choice, 30 minutes on DS, mommy will make your bed...those types of things. Of course, I'll have to put a couple of trinkets in the basket to get them interested, but I'm hoping that they will like the free stuff better. Fingers are crossed.
Oh, and the best thing? I found out that my sister is pregnant with a little girl! Yay! She already has a boy, 11 years old, so this is just awesome. I know this baby will be dressed to the nines and so cute and frilly. Just can't wait to see how adorable she is.
The kids were also pretty darn good, thanks to a new website I found to help get the kids more disciplined, Goal for It! Its a web-based behavioral/chore chart that you can customize for each child...and parent. You pick the background, which chores or behaviors you want to focus on, and then assign a point value to each goal you've created. I gave each of the kids and myself 5 goals.
L: make my bed, do homework, practice my reading, put my clothes in the hamper, go to bed on time
J: make my bed, put my clothes in the hamper, clean my room, no whining, go to bed on time
C: make my bed, put my clothes in the hamper, no whining, no tantrums, go to bed on time
Me: drink enough water, exercise, make good food choices, go to bed on time, get some laundry done
I assigned each goal a moolah! point value of 1, except for the key goal which got 2 points. When the kids earn 10 points, they will get a prize. When they accomplish a task, they get a sticker to show a job well done. They were so thrilled to get their stickers today. Though the girls didn't earn their no whining sticker, they tried nonetheless. I must admit, I even exercised and got some laundry done so that I could get a sticker. When I get 25 points, I am going to reward myself with something. Not yet sure what I'll get, but I'll get something.
For the kids' prizes, I'm thinking I'll offer non-material rewards: you pick dinner, 1 hour of alone time with parent of choice, 30 minutes on DS, mommy will make your bed...those types of things. Of course, I'll have to put a couple of trinkets in the basket to get them interested, but I'm hoping that they will like the free stuff better. Fingers are crossed.
Oh, and the best thing? I found out that my sister is pregnant with a little girl! Yay! She already has a boy, 11 years old, so this is just awesome. I know this baby will be dressed to the nines and so cute and frilly. Just can't wait to see how adorable she is.
Fighting Fatty McFatFat: Day 4
We went to a play date today. Oh, what's that have to do with anything, right? Wrong. In my world, a play date = a sweets feast. Yes, there were 2 kinds of blueberry bread, mini cinnamon rolls, fruit snacks, grapes, cheez its, pita chips, hummus and carrots, along with coffee and several creamer choices, juice and water. Eek!
Yes, there were healthy options, but let me tell you, it is so hard to sit at a table with yummy yum yums, knowing that you shouldn't eat it. Not only because its not good for your waistline, but also because its just poison to your body.
That being said, here' what I ate today:
Breakfast: Oatmeal (soaked overnight in water), with some peanut butter, apples and cinnamon
Lunch: spinach and artichoke hummus with carrots, coffee with "all natural" creamer
Dinner: Organic beef stew, ants on a log (celery with peanut butter and raisins), and some homemade whole wheat bread with a little peanut butter, herbal tea.
Holla! I didn't eat junk, besides the coffee! WooHoo! Okay, though, I messed up the order again. I know that my biggest meal should be lunch, but I just can't seem to get there. I'll try my hardest tomorrow. Usually, while I'm making dinner, I snack because my lunch wasn't big enough. Today though, dinner was in the crock pot, so I didn't have that problem.
Exercise: I took a zumba class this evening and did 1 burpee. 1 burpee? Why yes. My girlfriends and I are doing the 100 day burpee challenge. That means that you do 1 burpee on day 1, 2 on day 2, 3 on day 3...100 on day 100. If you miss a day, say day 10, you have to make it up on day 11 by doing day 11's 11 burpees plus all the ones you've done to date and the ones you missed. So, day 11, you would do 11+10+9+8+7+6+5+4+3+2+1. You get it. You don't want to miss a day.
I also signed up for the Dirty Girl 5K mud run on May 5 to motivate me to start giving my workouts more attention and direction. We'll see if it works, but I'm hoping so. I've already got a great team of ladies that are doing it with me, so hopefully we can keep each other motivated.
Yes, there were healthy options, but let me tell you, it is so hard to sit at a table with yummy yum yums, knowing that you shouldn't eat it. Not only because its not good for your waistline, but also because its just poison to your body.
That being said, here' what I ate today:
Breakfast: Oatmeal (soaked overnight in water), with some peanut butter, apples and cinnamon
Lunch: spinach and artichoke hummus with carrots, coffee with "all natural" creamer
Dinner: Organic beef stew, ants on a log (celery with peanut butter and raisins), and some homemade whole wheat bread with a little peanut butter, herbal tea.
Holla! I didn't eat junk, besides the coffee! WooHoo! Okay, though, I messed up the order again. I know that my biggest meal should be lunch, but I just can't seem to get there. I'll try my hardest tomorrow. Usually, while I'm making dinner, I snack because my lunch wasn't big enough. Today though, dinner was in the crock pot, so I didn't have that problem.
Exercise: I took a zumba class this evening and did 1 burpee. 1 burpee? Why yes. My girlfriends and I are doing the 100 day burpee challenge. That means that you do 1 burpee on day 1, 2 on day 2, 3 on day 3...100 on day 100. If you miss a day, say day 10, you have to make it up on day 11 by doing day 11's 11 burpees plus all the ones you've done to date and the ones you missed. So, day 11, you would do 11+10+9+8+7+6+5+4+3+2+1. You get it. You don't want to miss a day.
I also signed up for the Dirty Girl 5K mud run on May 5 to motivate me to start giving my workouts more attention and direction. We'll see if it works, but I'm hoping so. I've already got a great team of ladies that are doing it with me, so hopefully we can keep each other motivated.
Adventures in Patching: Days 3 and 4
Day 3: Though hesitant, L put the patch on like a pro, and A was all excited about it. I think it made L feel better. An hour and a half into it, though, he was ready to take it off. We made it to 7 pm, but from about 4:30 on, it was a constant, "Mom, is it time yet?" Poor little man.
Day 4: Today, we forgot to put the patch on until nearly 4 pm, an hour late. Since bedtime is 7:30, it makes having 4 hours of the patch quite difficult. This is the first time that we had a problem with the patch folding along the sides and letting in light. As I ripped off the patch, every cheapskate bone in my body was screaming, "just put tape on it," but I figured that would probably upset L too much. I didn't cheap out and he got a new patch that served him better. Again, an hour and a half into it, the questioning began. I'm hoping that he's getting more accustomed to this process so that it doesn't bother him so much. I guess only time will tell.
Day 4: Today, we forgot to put the patch on until nearly 4 pm, an hour late. Since bedtime is 7:30, it makes having 4 hours of the patch quite difficult. This is the first time that we had a problem with the patch folding along the sides and letting in light. As I ripped off the patch, every cheapskate bone in my body was screaming, "just put tape on it," but I figured that would probably upset L too much. I didn't cheap out and he got a new patch that served him better. Again, an hour and a half into it, the questioning began. I'm hoping that he's getting more accustomed to this process so that it doesn't bother him so much. I guess only time will tell.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Fighting Fatty McFatFat: Days 2 & 3
Day 2: Well, let's see. I got not even 1 hour of sleep the night prior, so this day was a complete bust as far as working out goes. I did okay with my food though, but could have done better.
Breakfast: cheese and turkey roll
Lunch: portabello mushroom sandwich on 1/2 a kaiser roll with roasted red bell peppers and grilled onions from Cara Mia's...YUM
Snack: 1/2 turkey sandwich
Dinner: Salad with feta, cucumber and carrot
Day 3: Today was okay. I think I got about 1 1/2 of sleep last night. Got to the gym and did 30 minutes on the elliptical machine and some core weight training, for just about 10 minutes because I was out of time. I spent some time talking with the owner of the gym about nutrition. P and I are going to take the nutrition course from him, I believe.
I'm also going to order some wheat berries and a grinder so that I can sprout my own wheat and make sprouted bread. I'll place the order tomorrow because I am beat.
Breakfast: SMALL bowl of granola
Lunch: Salad with carrots, walnuts, cucumbers, feta and peanut butter and jelly on a slice of homemade whole wheat bread
Snack: 50 calories worth of Trader Joe's ABC cookies, carrot
Dinner: Homemade Chicken Noodle soup and a smoothie
I must say that the kids loved the smoothie...and I mean loved it! Here's what I threw in the blender:
1/2 frozen overripe banana
1/4 c. (probably less) frozen organic blueberries
1 c. almond milk, unsweetened, vanilla
1 big handful of spinach
I think I've just been way to tired to do anything. I've got so much running through my head that I need to kind of figure out how to focus...and SLEEP!
Breakfast: cheese and turkey roll
Lunch: portabello mushroom sandwich on 1/2 a kaiser roll with roasted red bell peppers and grilled onions from Cara Mia's...YUM
Snack: 1/2 turkey sandwich
Dinner: Salad with feta, cucumber and carrot
Day 3: Today was okay. I think I got about 1 1/2 of sleep last night. Got to the gym and did 30 minutes on the elliptical machine and some core weight training, for just about 10 minutes because I was out of time. I spent some time talking with the owner of the gym about nutrition. P and I are going to take the nutrition course from him, I believe.
I'm also going to order some wheat berries and a grinder so that I can sprout my own wheat and make sprouted bread. I'll place the order tomorrow because I am beat.
Breakfast: SMALL bowl of granola
Lunch: Salad with carrots, walnuts, cucumbers, feta and peanut butter and jelly on a slice of homemade whole wheat bread
Snack: 50 calories worth of Trader Joe's ABC cookies, carrot
Dinner: Homemade Chicken Noodle soup and a smoothie
I must say that the kids loved the smoothie...and I mean loved it! Here's what I threw in the blender:
1/2 frozen overripe banana
1/4 c. (probably less) frozen organic blueberries
1 c. almond milk, unsweetened, vanilla
1 big handful of spinach
I think I've just been way to tired to do anything. I've got so much running through my head that I need to kind of figure out how to focus...and SLEEP!
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Adventures in Patching: Day 2
L was not very eager to patch today, preferring to put it off until later as opposed to getting it "over with". But, as always, the pull of the ever mighty video game was there to encourage patching sooner rather than later. No tears, whining or eye rubbing today. Instead, he served his time without complaint, only wincing during the removal. "It wasn't as bad today!"
Tomorrow will begin a more scheduled patching as school resumes. We will have the new challenge of getting homework done first thing so that we can get the 4 hours of patching in before bed. We will also have A here, another Kindergartener that I watch. I'm not so much concerned about A's reaction to it, as much as I am about L's reaction to having a non-family witness.
Guess we'll see!
Published with Blogger-droid v2.0.2
Monday, January 2, 2012
Fighting Fatty McFatFat: Day 1
I got up this morning, eager to begin this weight loss journey. Then, Q threw up all over me, my head started to hurt from sleep deprivation, and I just essentially lost all the motivation with which I started the day. In an effort to manufacture some additional motivation, I decided to take a drastic step. My girlfriend, Karen had mentioned that her husband took some before shots of her. I thought that was a great idea. Right? Who doesn't love to see absolutely hideous photos of themselves (well, to be honest, her before shots are my hopeful after shots, but we all have our goals, don't we?!), especially posted on the internet? She didn't post hers, but I'm thinking that its the only way to hold myself accountable for my gross negligence. Yep. Gross, disgusting and just plain right unacceptable negligence.
Karen turned me onto the Body for Life fitness plan. It looks great. I did a couple of days of toning with her, but not enough to make a dent in the damage I've done. I've gained 7 pounds since Q was born, all since the beginning of December. I can thank my lack of willpower and my love of sweets for that. So, I decided that I'm going to do the 12 week challenge, without the supplements because I'm nursing.
This morning, I attempted to do the cardiovascular workout. About 5 minutes into the run, I got bored. I really can't say that I couldn't do it because I don't believe I even gave it enough time. Its strange. Its like I gave up before it got too hard because it was getting a little hard and boring. Instead of doing the 20 minute prescribed workout, I ended up doing 25 minutes of my own little interval training. It was quite pathetic. I even had Forks over Knives playing, a documentary about the link between nutrition and poor health, and I still couldn't stay motivated.
I kind of had a mini emotional moment with P later, expressing my wishes to go back to my summer of 2010 life. That was me, at my thinnest, loving to workout with my girlfriends, and really focused on my diet and that of my family. If only there was a rewind button.
Yet, there isn't. Now, I've got a lot of work to get done and so many different ways to go about it. Here's my plan:
The next 3 weeks: The 21 Day Total Body Transformation
The 12 weeks after that: The Body for Life Challenge
Of course, none of this will work if I continue to consume garbage, so our diet is a primary focus. We will be reducing our meat consumption and focusing on a more plant-based diet. This doesn't mean that we are removing meat from our diets completely, but I'm going to be pushing for no more than 10% of our daily consumption to be from animals. Not to mention, we are going to be increasing our veggie and water intake. Sundays will become our free days, to keep the metabolism pumping.
Here's what I ate today: Ham and cheese sandwich with Dijon mustard, lots of water, coco pops with peanut butter and a little strawberry preserves, and a salad with feta, cucumbers, carrots and balsamic vinaigrette
Not the healthiest of days, as I should have increase my veggies and water, but okay given that I took a nap and didn't wake up until 5 (probably coming down with something again), absolutely starving.
Here are the pictures of my starting weight, at a whopping 189 pounds. Yikes!
Let me tell you. I am nervous as all get up to post these and let you in on my dirty little secret. My hope is that you can help to motivate me on this journey, and that I can possibly help to inspire you on yours because you'll know that if my chunky butt can do this, then you know you totally can!
Karen turned me onto the Body for Life fitness plan. It looks great. I did a couple of days of toning with her, but not enough to make a dent in the damage I've done. I've gained 7 pounds since Q was born, all since the beginning of December. I can thank my lack of willpower and my love of sweets for that. So, I decided that I'm going to do the 12 week challenge, without the supplements because I'm nursing.
This morning, I attempted to do the cardiovascular workout. About 5 minutes into the run, I got bored. I really can't say that I couldn't do it because I don't believe I even gave it enough time. Its strange. Its like I gave up before it got too hard because it was getting a little hard and boring. Instead of doing the 20 minute prescribed workout, I ended up doing 25 minutes of my own little interval training. It was quite pathetic. I even had Forks over Knives playing, a documentary about the link between nutrition and poor health, and I still couldn't stay motivated.
I kind of had a mini emotional moment with P later, expressing my wishes to go back to my summer of 2010 life. That was me, at my thinnest, loving to workout with my girlfriends, and really focused on my diet and that of my family. If only there was a rewind button.
The next 3 weeks: The 21 Day Total Body Transformation
The 12 weeks after that: The Body for Life Challenge
Of course, none of this will work if I continue to consume garbage, so our diet is a primary focus. We will be reducing our meat consumption and focusing on a more plant-based diet. This doesn't mean that we are removing meat from our diets completely, but I'm going to be pushing for no more than 10% of our daily consumption to be from animals. Not to mention, we are going to be increasing our veggie and water intake. Sundays will become our free days, to keep the metabolism pumping.
Here's what I ate today: Ham and cheese sandwich with Dijon mustard, lots of water, coco pops with peanut butter and a little strawberry preserves, and a salad with feta, cucumbers, carrots and balsamic vinaigrette
Not the healthiest of days, as I should have increase my veggies and water, but okay given that I took a nap and didn't wake up until 5 (probably coming down with something again), absolutely starving.
Here are the pictures of my starting weight, at a whopping 189 pounds. Yikes!
 |
| Okay, ignore the wet marks. This was immediately following my rendezvous with Q's vomit. |
 |
| Freaky! |
 |
| Okay, not horrible at the back, but whoah! Don't look at the purple! |
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Adventures in Patching: Day 1
We decided to start patching today, so we can monitor L's reaction to the patch, in the event that it were to make him cranky or tired. Before we got started, I let him select 1 of 3 styles of patches. The lucky patch was white with flames on it.
The patches we purchased are of an adhesive variety, as I received several warnings against the ones that slip over the glasses. Apparently, they are more likely to allow light to the good eye, reducing the efficacy of patching.
After 2 attempts, I was finally able to fit the patch to his left eye, his good eye without any light coming through. I don't know why I didn't anticipate this, but putting the glasses back on was a little difficult because the patch didn't contour to his face, meaning that the glasses didn't sit on his face in a normal manner. Luckily though, L was as happy as a clam as he resumed video gaming with P. I was starting to think that this patching thing would be easy.
30 minutes into it, "mom, can I take this off yet?"
1 hour into it, "how much longer do I have?"
90 minutes "its itchy! I want to take it off." This was followed by constant rubbing of the patch. He even took his glasses off and went to bed, in an effort to avoid any more of a requirement to focus his right eye. It took about 20 minutes of bedtime whining to finally get him to agree to come downstairs so that we could go to pick up J from her sleepover and go to my parents' for New Year's dinner. I ended up having to carry him down the stairs because he just wouldn't cooperate. Then came the tears because he didn't want to leave the house with the eye patch on. Broke my heart.
The whole car 35 minutes or so in the car, he put his head down and closed his eyes. I know that that kind of defeated the purpose of wearing the patch, but I figure we can start slow.
3 hours after patching, we arrived at my parents' and L reluctantly went inside. I was tickled pink at everyone's reactions. My brothers, A and G, was there, along with my niece and nephew. They went on and on about how cool L looked, and bragged about how they have glasses, too. It really lifted his spirits. I didn't hear another complaint or word about the patch until we reminded him that it was time to take it off.
Not sure what tomorrow will bring, but I'm pretty sure it won't be smooth sailing.
After 2 attempts, I was finally able to fit the patch to his left eye, his good eye without any light coming through. I don't know why I didn't anticipate this, but putting the glasses back on was a little difficult because the patch didn't contour to his face, meaning that the glasses didn't sit on his face in a normal manner. Luckily though, L was as happy as a clam as he resumed video gaming with P. I was starting to think that this patching thing would be easy.
1 hour into it, "how much longer do I have?"
90 minutes "its itchy! I want to take it off." This was followed by constant rubbing of the patch. He even took his glasses off and went to bed, in an effort to avoid any more of a requirement to focus his right eye. It took about 20 minutes of bedtime whining to finally get him to agree to come downstairs so that we could go to pick up J from her sleepover and go to my parents' for New Year's dinner. I ended up having to carry him down the stairs because he just wouldn't cooperate. Then came the tears because he didn't want to leave the house with the eye patch on. Broke my heart.
The whole car 35 minutes or so in the car, he put his head down and closed his eyes. I know that that kind of defeated the purpose of wearing the patch, but I figure we can start slow.
3 hours after patching, we arrived at my parents' and L reluctantly went inside. I was tickled pink at everyone's reactions. My brothers, A and G, was there, along with my niece and nephew. They went on and on about how cool L looked, and bragged about how they have glasses, too. It really lifted his spirits. I didn't hear another complaint or word about the patch until we reminded him that it was time to take it off.
Not sure what tomorrow will bring, but I'm pretty sure it won't be smooth sailing.
Goals for 2012
2011 has come to an end. It was a trying year, but I wouldn't trade it for anything because I got the best gift anyone could ever receive, my Q!
This morning when I woke up, I said to C, "Happy New Year, honey," and she responded, "You got me a present?!" Guess I know what she considers holidays to be about, my little pistol.
A brief review of the year~
L started Kindergarten, got his 1st pair of glasses, tried out kung fu and joined basketball
J performed in her first dance recital and started a new pre-K and tap
C became her own little independent person, and turned from sugar to piss-n-vinegar
Q was welcomed into this crazy, crazy family, learned to roll and sit while becoming very vocal. She went from sleeping 9 hours at a time to barely sleeping at all.
P and I hit a rough patch, but have gotten back on track...having 4 kids will do that, especially when people are so quick to ask, "are they all yours?!" and make you feel like a leper for answering, "yes"
We have moved to eating more organic foods and have tried to remove corn from our diet because it is so prolific and has been so greatly modified from how God created it. We have also started purchasing fewer processed foods and making more of our own things, like bread.
I also switched from working out 5 days a week at the YMCA to 2-3 days a week at a local gym. Boo! Its been quite the adjustment, socially, mentally and physically. Yikes!
Just like last, this year is going to bring about a whole lot of new experiences for our family.
Q~of course this year will be monumental for her...crawling, standing, walking and eating non-baby food.
C~In February, we will learn whether or not she needs surgery to correct an anatomical defect which has resulted in grade 4 bilateral vesicoureteral reflux, causing her to need a daily antibiotic. In September, she will also begin her first year of preschool, hopefully at the school in our neighborhood.
J~this year will bring her first tap recital and the start of her elementary school career, and probably her first year in tee ball and soccer.
L~Patching and eye training will consume most of 2012 for my little man. Of course, he will also transition from K to 1st grade and move from tee ball to coach pitch.
With all of these changes, our family will need to make some adjustments in order to thrive, bringing about my personal and family goals for 2012.
1. I will drop 20-30 pounds. This is mostly baby weight, but I'll be honest, this year has brought about much stress-eating on my part. I know I can do it, now I simply need the motivation. I'm thinking that the fact that I don't fit any of my clothes may do the trick. I plan on blogging about this process, my strengths/weaknesses and my successes/failures.
2. I will find new ways to decrease our monthly expenditures and stick within some kind of a budget. Having 4 kids is difficult, especially when the cost of healthcare increases each year and paychecks don't. I plan on saving money by taking couponing more seriously and seek out coupons for items that my family uses, eating out less, and menu planning. I've dabbled in menu planning several times, but have found it cumbersome to keep up with. I plan on shopping for my menu, instead of cooking based on what I can find in the kitchen, hopefully reducing the excess and the waste.
3. I will decrease my family's footprint. We have 6 people in our brood which could create quite the footprint, but I plan on trying to keep it as low as possible by reducing our water, gas and electric consumption.
4. Have you heard of geo-caching? A fantastically interesting and wonderful woman and mother I know told me about it. Its like a treasure hunt meets modern day technology, where you use GPS locations and clues to locate a particular item that has been hidden. Sounds like so much fun and a way to get the family more active outdoors. A bonding moment, if you will. Well, this year, we are going to give it a try!
5. I will drive my car less. That means putting all my errands in as few days as possible, getting C into school in our neighborhood, and walking more. This should save on our footprint and save money and mileage.
6. We will grow a garden, only bigger and better than the one we had a year and a half ago. It'll be full of organic veggies (and hopefully fruits, too) that the kids and hubby will actually eat. That should save us some dough, reduce our footprint, reduce the dependence on our vehicle, and hopefully foster a sense of responsibility in the kids.
7. My house will be cleaner. hahahaha...That shouldn't be too difficult. I have found some great tools and I plan on using them to bring my chores to the forefront on my thought, with scheduling and delegating as key tools. We'll see how it goes. I'm just tired of all the mess.
8. I will get my baby into her own bed, sleeping through the night!
9. I will continue to focus on my marriage, and not just the kids, as I have found that being a better wife makes me a better mother, and P and better husband and father.
10. We will get some things accomplished around the house, including, but not limited to painting the walls and ceilings and staining the decks and doors.
11. In 2007, when my brother was killed, I made a goal: run the Marine Corps Marathon. Well, there was no way it was going to happen that year, as I gave birth in June. The next year, I was a blob, depressed, a shell of my former self, pregnant, and then I gave birth again in 2009. In 2010, I was in the best shape of my adult life, but ended up getting pregnant and giving birth for the final time in 2011. Fast forward to the blob I am now. Yuck! Well, this June, I will be participating in the Warrior Dash with my husband, and hopefully, either this October or next, I will be running in the USMC Marathon. I will run to honor the thousands that have died and the millions that have served our nation. I will run for my brother. I will run for healing. I will run for me. My ultimate goal is to run it this year, but I am not naive. I know that running in a marathon is a huge undertaking, mentally and physically, and that it requires a huge time commitment. If I am able to do so this year, I will tackle that goal, though it is probably more realistic to attempt it in 2013. This goal...up in the air. All I know is that I will accomplish it in my 30's.
I think that all of these goals really tie into the whole, be more self-sufficient and less wasteful approach that I'm trying to take, as well as being more environmentally and health conscious. Wish us luck because it should be quite the journey.
From the W family to yours: May 2012 bring you joy, happiness and good health. May we all learn that it is not what we have, but who we have in our lives that will bring us closer to achieving that goal.
This morning when I woke up, I said to C, "Happy New Year, honey," and she responded, "You got me a present?!" Guess I know what she considers holidays to be about, my little pistol.
A brief review of the year~
L started Kindergarten, got his 1st pair of glasses, tried out kung fu and joined basketball
J performed in her first dance recital and started a new pre-K and tap
C became her own little independent person, and turned from sugar to piss-n-vinegar
Q was welcomed into this crazy, crazy family, learned to roll and sit while becoming very vocal. She went from sleeping 9 hours at a time to barely sleeping at all.
P and I hit a rough patch, but have gotten back on track...having 4 kids will do that, especially when people are so quick to ask, "are they all yours?!" and make you feel like a leper for answering, "yes"
We have moved to eating more organic foods and have tried to remove corn from our diet because it is so prolific and has been so greatly modified from how God created it. We have also started purchasing fewer processed foods and making more of our own things, like bread.
I also switched from working out 5 days a week at the YMCA to 2-3 days a week at a local gym. Boo! Its been quite the adjustment, socially, mentally and physically. Yikes!
Just like last, this year is going to bring about a whole lot of new experiences for our family.
Q~of course this year will be monumental for her...crawling, standing, walking and eating non-baby food.
C~In February, we will learn whether or not she needs surgery to correct an anatomical defect which has resulted in grade 4 bilateral vesicoureteral reflux, causing her to need a daily antibiotic. In September, she will also begin her first year of preschool, hopefully at the school in our neighborhood.
J~this year will bring her first tap recital and the start of her elementary school career, and probably her first year in tee ball and soccer.
L~Patching and eye training will consume most of 2012 for my little man. Of course, he will also transition from K to 1st grade and move from tee ball to coach pitch.
With all of these changes, our family will need to make some adjustments in order to thrive, bringing about my personal and family goals for 2012.
1. I will drop 20-30 pounds. This is mostly baby weight, but I'll be honest, this year has brought about much stress-eating on my part. I know I can do it, now I simply need the motivation. I'm thinking that the fact that I don't fit any of my clothes may do the trick. I plan on blogging about this process, my strengths/weaknesses and my successes/failures.
2. I will find new ways to decrease our monthly expenditures and stick within some kind of a budget. Having 4 kids is difficult, especially when the cost of healthcare increases each year and paychecks don't. I plan on saving money by taking couponing more seriously and seek out coupons for items that my family uses, eating out less, and menu planning. I've dabbled in menu planning several times, but have found it cumbersome to keep up with. I plan on shopping for my menu, instead of cooking based on what I can find in the kitchen, hopefully reducing the excess and the waste.
3. I will decrease my family's footprint. We have 6 people in our brood which could create quite the footprint, but I plan on trying to keep it as low as possible by reducing our water, gas and electric consumption.
4. Have you heard of geo-caching? A fantastically interesting and wonderful woman and mother I know told me about it. Its like a treasure hunt meets modern day technology, where you use GPS locations and clues to locate a particular item that has been hidden. Sounds like so much fun and a way to get the family more active outdoors. A bonding moment, if you will. Well, this year, we are going to give it a try!
5. I will drive my car less. That means putting all my errands in as few days as possible, getting C into school in our neighborhood, and walking more. This should save on our footprint and save money and mileage.
6. We will grow a garden, only bigger and better than the one we had a year and a half ago. It'll be full of organic veggies (and hopefully fruits, too) that the kids and hubby will actually eat. That should save us some dough, reduce our footprint, reduce the dependence on our vehicle, and hopefully foster a sense of responsibility in the kids.
7. My house will be cleaner. hahahaha...That shouldn't be too difficult. I have found some great tools and I plan on using them to bring my chores to the forefront on my thought, with scheduling and delegating as key tools. We'll see how it goes. I'm just tired of all the mess.
8. I will get my baby into her own bed, sleeping through the night!
9. I will continue to focus on my marriage, and not just the kids, as I have found that being a better wife makes me a better mother, and P and better husband and father.
10. We will get some things accomplished around the house, including, but not limited to painting the walls and ceilings and staining the decks and doors.
11. In 2007, when my brother was killed, I made a goal: run the Marine Corps Marathon. Well, there was no way it was going to happen that year, as I gave birth in June. The next year, I was a blob, depressed, a shell of my former self, pregnant, and then I gave birth again in 2009. In 2010, I was in the best shape of my adult life, but ended up getting pregnant and giving birth for the final time in 2011. Fast forward to the blob I am now. Yuck! Well, this June, I will be participating in the Warrior Dash with my husband, and hopefully, either this October or next, I will be running in the USMC Marathon. I will run to honor the thousands that have died and the millions that have served our nation. I will run for my brother. I will run for healing. I will run for me. My ultimate goal is to run it this year, but I am not naive. I know that running in a marathon is a huge undertaking, mentally and physically, and that it requires a huge time commitment. If I am able to do so this year, I will tackle that goal, though it is probably more realistic to attempt it in 2013. This goal...up in the air. All I know is that I will accomplish it in my 30's.
I think that all of these goals really tie into the whole, be more self-sufficient and less wasteful approach that I'm trying to take, as well as being more environmentally and health conscious. Wish us luck because it should be quite the journey.
From the W family to yours: May 2012 bring you joy, happiness and good health. May we all learn that it is not what we have, but who we have in our lives that will bring us closer to achieving that goal.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)