Afternoon Snack

My husband wanted me to make him a strawberry cake so I did…I have made 3 of them now since Saturday.  One was for my Bunco group and unfortunately it got dropped when I was getting it out of the van and was a big mess inside of the Tupperware container.  I didn’t stay for Bunco because I was feeling kinda loopy from some ear issue.  They said that it tasted good but I really don’t think they ate it…(If any of my Bunco friends are reading this, it is ok if you didn’t eat it! LOL)  The other one I made that day was left for my family to eat. They loved it.

I had some left over icing and have a get together with some church friends tonight so I decided to make another one. I bet you thought I was gonna tell you I had some of that cake as an afternoon snack didn’t ya?  HA HA! Obviously this recipe is NOT on my healthy eating plan.  It is a Paula Deen recipe…she loves butter you know! I am trying VERY, VERY hard to NOT eat things that will not help me reach my goal so I made myself a smoothie using the leftover strawberry puree and I added a banana to it.  Yummy! 

Countdown…20 days!

Every morning when I wake up, I ask “What is today? What is the date?” This morning was no different. I remembered that it was Sunday so I knew I needed to get up and get ready for church. Then I remembered that is was March 6th…20 days from today, I will be walking in my next 5k, the Jackson Culley Mito What in Millington, TN.

If you recall, I am participating in various walks this year to keep me on track to reach my weight loss goal of 100 pounds gone by November 30th (my birthday). I haven’t been training as much as I had planned on so I have to really kick  it into high gear for the next 20 days.  Countdown with me and hold me accountable!  Leave me comments to encourage me to walk. I need your support 🙂  Thanks!

Week in Review

Last Sunday was my middle child’s 14th birthday so I had asked a girl we go to church with to make him a cake to surprise him with before Sunday School.  She came up with this really cool camouflage design. After church we went to eat (he chose Burger King) and then to the movies to see Yogi Bear.  Of course, he wanted to spend his birthday money so we took him to his favorite place, Game Stop.

Monday was the first Monday since before Christmas that we were on our “normal” routine…meaning both preschoolers were coming and we could do what we would normally do.  My kids got their school work done and the little girls learned about Winter.  Andrew read them a book about getting ready for Winter and they made winter collages.

Tuesday was a bit stressful as we waited to see if it was going to snow.  We are really kind of tired of it by now since we have had some every week and when that happens, many things get canceled. My kids did their school work and the little girls learned about winter clothes.  They made cute pictures of paper dolls wearing the proper clothing for winter.

They also drew pictures to send to a little boy named Trey who is awaiting a heart transplant. It did start snowing in the late afternoon but I still made it to Weight Watchers (lost 3.4 lbs!) and then went to Kroger for my regular weekly shopping trip.  Driving home in the snow wasn’t bad.  It was kind of pretty and almost hypnotic.

Wednesday, I didn’t have one of my preschoolers but had the other one and her sister since the schools were closed. I was already a little stressed and aggravated because of the snow and was wondering if my kids were going to get their school work done or fight me to play in the snow…I posted about how that went already.  Like I said though, I was a little bit stressed that morning and I kept having to repeat this verse “Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving Message into the night http://bible.us/Phil2.14.MSG“…I was trying!  Well, around 1, I received a special surprise from thatsmyJesus.com, who I have been working with to launch their new website which made my day and reminded me that I am making a difference to someone.

Thursday night I went to pick up some stuff for Junior Auxiliary before going to the Kick Off party for the Tipton County Relay for Life.  I am serving on the committee and am really looking forward to the event.  I hope we have a lot of participants this year.

Friday, my goal was to get everything done that I needed to because I was going to go to an overnight scrapbooking retreat that my Creative Memories Consultant, Carla Robertson, was hosting with some other CM reps in the area.  I needed this time away to work on my albums and to be with some friends.  I arrived at the campground around 6:30 and after dinner and putting my stuff where it needed to be, started working.  I stayed up all night long working on that album!  I watched the sun rise on the lake that was right outside the window where I was sitting.  It was a beautiful view! Later on that day (Saturday) I took this picture Around 1:00 Saturday afternoon, I finally felt like I was going to crash and my friends suggested I take a power nap so I did.  I slept for about 30 minutes and then got back to scrapbooking.  We started packing up around 3:30 to head home and I almost fell asleep while I was driving.  When I got home, I asked my hubby if he minded if I went to bed for awhile.  He didn’t care. While I slept for a couple of hours, my dear, sweet hubby and kids prepared dinner. We ate and then he and the kids went to get a movie from Redbox.  I tried to stay up with them to watch it but was not able to…I was asleep by 9:30.

Today in Sunday School, my class worked on their notebooks.  They have gotten very creative in their pages.  They were told to make a page showing what they learned in City Lights last week which was to not be afraid of storms.  Here is what three of them came up with:

The rest of them will finish their pages next week and I can tell you from what I saw, they are going to be amazing too!

Well, now that I have gotten you all caught up with what is happening in my life, I am heading to bed.  Have a great night and an even better week.

Planned 5K Walks for 2011

Ok, as you know I plan on walking in a 5K every couple of months in 2011 to keep me on track to get my 100 pounds off. Knowing that I will be doing these reminds me to keep losing and walking.  I found this Leslie Sansone 5K Walk DVD that will be great to use on those days that I can’t get out of the house.

I have been making my list of ones that I want to participate in.   I would LOVE to have my local friends join me in these walks.   Check out the list and let me know which ones you are going to be doing with me.

3/26/11  – MitoWhat 5K, Millington, TN

5/6/11- Relay for Life, Covington, TN (Not a 5K but will be walking with a team that has someone on the track the entire time)

9/24/11 – Autism Speaks 5K, Memphis, TN

12/3/11 – St. Jude 5K, Memphis, TN

What’s Going On?

I have been so busy doing blogs, websites and social networking sites for others that I haven’t even thought about my own blog but here I am…let me fill you in on what has been happening around here.

I wanted to get back on our family schedule on Monday and discovered Saturday that the county schools were not starting back until Tuesday so that kind of threw me off. I had the school-ager that I keep when schools are out but we still did school work. Of course my kids wanted to know why we had to do school when the other kids didn’t. I guess they forget about those times when the public schools are in session and we take a day off…oh well.

Tuesday was good. We got a lot done in school and around the house during the day. While the little girls were napping, I did the Leslie Sansone Walk Away The Pounds 1 Mile Walk.  Later on,  I went to Kroger and stocked up for the week. I couldn’t believe it but I actually spent close to 2 hours in that store. I told a few more people about the coupon class that we are having this month so it took me a little longer than normal but I got a lot of great stuff though!! That evening, I went to my Weight Watchers meeting and was happy to see a loss of 3.4 pounds!! Woo-Hoo!

I have done very well with keeping up with what I put in my body and am feeling great!  Which is what I told the listeners of The Everything Wellness Show today.  I know to some of you, it is like “DUH!” but I realize now that some of the junk I was eating was making me feel horrible.  Moody…swollen…just blah!

I spent most of the day away from home today running some errands and picking up things I need for this week.  I am looking forward to next week when I do my Winter Theme with the preschoolers.  I will post my lesson plans soon for that.  The thing is, we are actually expecting snow Sunday evening so we may get to play with real snow and not have to make our own with shaving cream or shaved ice! Check back next week for the pics.

Healthy New Year’s Eve Dinner

So my plans for my New Year’s Eve had to be changed.  Originally, I was going to order Chinese and scrapbook the night away but when I told my friend, Tracy Knight, of Core Door Fitness of my plans, she said UH…NO! See, what happened was this…

I mentioned to Tracy that I LOVE Chinese food but that every time I eat it, my face, hands and feet are super swollen the next day.  I asked her if a food technique she had taught me a few days before would be good to do before I ate the Chinese food.  She asked me what I planned on ordering.  I said fried rice and egg rolls.  I could tell by her brief pause that she didn’t think it was a good idea.  So I asked her what I should do.  She told me not to order fried rice!  WHAT?!? That is what I want!!    So, I mentioned that I had seen a recipe on SparkRecipes for Vegetable Fried Rice and I asked her if I could send it to her and let her tell me if it would be ok.  She said yes.  I sent it and she told me that the only thing I needed to change was to not use the olive oil but to use canola oil instead or use the natural oils produced by bell peppers. I chose the canola oil. I also added a little chicken breast to it.  Since I was making my own fried rice, I decided to make the Egg Rolls I had found a recipe for also.

It looks pretty good huh? How did it taste??  Great!  Of course, it wasn’t JUST LIKE the Chinese restaurant makes but it was good.  I am proud of myself for making myself a healthier version of one of my favorite foods.  I am very thankful to have Tracy helping me with this goal.  If you are looking for someone to guide you through and help you, be sure to check out her website.   She is passionate about helping people be healthier.  If she hadn’t told me to not order my favorite food and go for a healthier option, I would have been puffy tomorrow and miserable.  Thanks Tracy for setting me straight!

Ok, now to get to work on those scrapbook pages.  Want to finish the 2008 album tonight!!

Welcome Everything Wellness Listeners

If you just listened to my progress report on the Everything Wellness show and are popping in to see what I look like and learn more about me, I welcome you! It is my pleasure to have you stop by.

I hope that your visit here will encourage you to reach for your weight loss goals.  By me posting, it is making me accountable to a LOT of people and pushes me to do my best.

As you heard on the show, I am following the new Weight Watchers Points Plus program.  Because I am committed to being able to attend the meetings and get the support I need, I pay for a monthly pass.  I can’t use the excuse of not having the meeting fee to keep me from going because I pay a month at a time…which actually saves money AND I get the e-tools included.  I love the e-tools because it allows me to track everything I eat and the activity I do right from my Droid.  I don’t have to worry about how many points something has, I can look it up anytime, anywhere. If you don’t have a need to attend meetings (I do right now) then you can check out another online system at Spark People. It is completely free! They have tips and recipes. I am still using it for these features but haven’t been tracking on it since I have been using e-tools.
Along with all of these tools, I hear the voice of Tracy reminding me to eat breakfast and reading the tips she posts on Facebook. I also look at people who I know personally who have lost a lot of weight and see how their lives are changed. That inspires me so much!

I spoke about some challenges I have faced. It isn’t as much fun to get out and walk when it is so cold so I have not been doing my morning outdoor walk in the past 2 weeks.  I have been dancing with the kids and using my stepper while I watch TV. I wanted to get some workout games for our Wii but it quit working last week so I guess I need to come up with another idea. The food challenges have not been that great so far but I know with Christmas here, this next week is going to a little more difficult. I will just take what I have learned and try to stick with my plan.

Please be sure to subscribe to my blog, follow me on Twitter and friend me on Facebook.  I know that the more people I have keeping up with me, the harder I am going to work and the more successful I will be.  Imagine the celebration we will all have together next November when we celebrate the achievement that you have helped me with!  Let’s do this!

Update

I just wanted to give you a quick update on how I am doing with my goal of losing 100 pounds by November 30, 2011 and my walking efforts. I have bad news and I have good news.  Bad news first- I decided to take a week off of walking to let my body rest after the 5K and that week has turned into two…Not good huh?  I haven’t wanted to get out this week with the temps not going over 35.  I promise you this, if it is too cold tomorrow, I will use my Leslie Sansone Walk Away the Pounds DVD and get some walking time in. Deal?  Ok!  Now for the GOOD NEWS…ready?  I have lost a total of 8.6 pounds since I started my goal.  Woo-hoo!!  I told myself that when I got my first 10 pounds off, I was making an appointment to have my nails done at Nailz by Kelley so you better believe that I am gonna work hard this week so I can have my nails looking great by Christmas!

Thanks for checking in.  Keep pushing me to succeed.  I need the motivation and encouragement.

The Day After

So you are probably wondering how I am doing the day after I walked my first 5K…well, I gotta tell ya, I was soooo sore this morning! I kinda figured I would be so I sent my Sunday School director a text yesterday to let her know that I was calling in “immobile”.  My legs weren’t that bad but my ankles were hurting.  I soaked in some bath minerals to see if it helped.  It did a little.
You may be thinking that this means I am not really going to do another one but I am.  I am still committed to my goal of walking at the Jackson Culley Mito-What? 5K in March. I know now what to expect and how to try to prevent the soreness and alleviate it if it does occur.
I have spent today resting my body & drinking water.  I have to keep getting up and moving around though because if I sit too long, it hurts more to get moving.  I have folded clothes, worked on Christmas cards, went through my coupons and watched last week’s The Biggest Loser.  I tell ya what, watching that inspired me even more.  I love when they do the challenge where they make the contestants strap the weight they lost back onto their bodies.
I have done well today with my food.  I didn’t eat breakfast until almost 11…so it was brunch. My husband made bacon and eggs…turkey bacon of course! He made fried eggs for himself and the kids but I made my own. I just scrambled 2 egg whites & 1 whole egg. I put those on bread with my turkey bacon and a slice of cheese. I also had yogurt, an orange and of course, my coffee.  I used more points than I like to for breakfast but since technically, it was already lunch time, I still have a lot of points left for today.
For dinner tonight, I am making Chef Meg’s Potato Soup which is so perfect for the 36° weather we have.
If any of you have any good tips or recipes that you would like to share, please do. I need ideas and advice during this journey.  Thanks!

My First 5K

Well I did it! I walked in my first 5K this morning. Here I am with my friends, Amy and Renee, standing at the starting line when it was still dark and early outside.

These two are really the reason I did this. Last year they ran in the 5K and Amy, the one in the green shirt, challenged me to walk it this year…so I did. I have to tell you, she is just amazing. Although she ran it last year and could have very well gone at a faster pace than I did, she stayed with me the entire time and cheered me on to the finish line. At one point I started feeling like I couldn’t make it and thought they were going to close the finish line before I could complete and I wanted to cry. I could feel the tears coming and my throat felt tight. I said “My throat is closing up because I am going to cry” to which she replied “Well quit crying then!” LOL Yeah, I needed her to be there. She said she was going to turn “Jillian” on me. No, she wasn’t all tough and mean…she was an encourager too by reciting Philippians 4:13 over and over. She promised that we would cross the finish line together and we did! Then I asked her to take this picture of me.

When we were done, Amy went to go cheer Renee on in the half Marathon and I talked to My Memphis Mommy’s Shana Moland and Tracy Knight, host of The Everything Wellness Show on AM 990 about my experience of my first 5K and my plan to lose at least 100 lbs by my next birthday (November 30th). I plan on achieving this goal by following the new Weight Watchers PointsPlus program and walking a 5K every 3 months. I have already picked out my next one. It is the Jackson Culley Mito-What? 5K in Millington on March 26, 2011. By committing to doing it, I will be motivated to keep walking.
Thank you to all of you who motivated me to do this today. Please don’t stop encouraging me. I need it! I look forward to keeping all of you up to date on my progress of shredding these pounds with each step I take.