Wednesday, May 27, 2015

What I Ate Today...Round 2

I know you’ve been so stressed out this week wondering why I haven’t posted and what I’ve been eating! Just kidding of course, but in case you were, I’ll take care of your stress right now.  Honestly, doing a post like this is the ultimate motivation.  Have you ever shared what you’ve eaten in a day with hundreds of people?  You’re not crazy, so probably not.  But because I love to over share and did such a good job taking pictures of my food this time, here you go…

Breakfast:
3 scrambled eggs
Smoothie:
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup OJ
½ cup frozen pineapple
½ cup frozen mango
Approx. ¼ cup greek yogurt
1 scoop protein powder
Handful of spinach

I’ve eaten the exact same thing for breakfast for the past month or so and am not sick of it yet.  I mix up the fruit in the smoothie and sometimes have two eggs with some ham or turkey sausage mixed in, but basically the same.


Snack after dance class:
Think Thin Protein Bar

These are really good, and although they have a little sugar, I feel like they are still a good, balanced snack.


Lunch:
Turkey Burger (Simple Truth frozen)
Baked Sweet Potato with a little bit of butter and cinnamon


Snack:
Sargento Reduced Fat cheese stick
1 cup Skinny Pop popcorn


Dinner:
Ground Turkey & Cheese Quesadilla w/ avocado and sour cream
½ cup steamed corn


Dessert:
Outshine Fruit Bar

Besides water, the only thing not mentioned is my iced coffee with a little creamer.  This was a necessity today after a family party at 1am last night. 

Calorie total for the day: 1,884 (goal is 1820 without a workout, so this is great considering I took an hour dance class)
Protein: 129 g
Carbs: 133 g
Sugar: 47 g
Sodium: 1546 (really it’s higher though, because this doesn’t count the small amount of salt I used in cooking)


This has become a pretty average day for me, and I can honestly say I feel satisfied.  I don’t always and if that’s the case, I eat something.  I’m down 25.5 pounds so far, so I think it’s working!

Thursday, May 21, 2015

Health Update: Food is Not the Enemy

Let’s talk food today.  I think about food A LOT.  Everything I put into my mouth is entered into MyFitnessPal and I am always thinking ahead to allow for enough calories for my daily cup of coffee (aka creamer with some coffee).  Maybe this is a little OCD, but it’s been working for me as I’ve consistently been losing about 2 pounds per week, which is a great pace for long term results.  I am slightly really competitive, even with myself, so trying to eat good food that I enjoy and stay within my goal caloric intake is a fun challenge for me.  Most of the time.

Yesterday I was driving home from the zoo, where I had eaten a healthy packed lunch.  I didn’t pack enough though and was pretty hungry in the car.  That is a dangerous combination for me.  In my previous lifestyle, I would have hit up a drive thru for a milkshake or some French fries.  Yesterday, all I wanted was an Arby’s roast beef sandwich.  I literally had an argument with myself from downtown to the dreaded exit where I’d have to get off to fulfill my craving.  I drove past it though, went home and had an avocado and tomato salad.  This (not that exciting, sorry) story made me think yesterday.  Am I being too hard on myself?  Too strict?  Will this backfire?  My goal has always been to eat food in moderation and not restrict myself, so do I feel restricted? 

I came to the conclusion that restricted is not the right word.  I do feel like I have made food my competition, or my enemy.  It’s been my goal to beat it everyday and lose weight.  I see something at the grocery store (usually of the sweet, cake like variety) and convince myself that I’d rather continue to see progress than eat a cupcake.  It sounds crazy, but I actually think I then get mad at that box of Betty Crocker!  How dare she tempt me?  Before you admit me to a psych ward, let me give you two more examples.  Last night, I ran to Target for a few things and Andrew requested ice cream.  I stood in the frozen section for a good ten minutes trying to talk myself out of getting the kind I like.  I ended up buying this…which actually has more calories and sugar per serving than Andrew’s regular chocolate chip! (Note to self.)

Yes, I recognize the irony here ;).
Today, I went through the Panera drive thru to get my favorite salad for lunch.  Got home and realized they gave me the grossest salad ever made instead…talk about depressing.  I ordered Jimmy John’s instead and actually got the sandwich with the delicious bread instead of a lettuce wrap.  Even after enjoying it, I felt guilty.  I’d say you could classify me as an emotional eater. 



I was hoping by writing this out on here, I’d come up with some way of solving this issue, but I think it’s going to take more than a half hour of typing.  The truth is, for some people, food is not a big deal and they don’t give it much thought (lucky ducks).  But for me, and so many others, it’s tied to our emotions, it’s fuel, it’s nourishment, it can sometimes be the enemy.  I am going to choose to partner with food instead of making it my nemesis.  Ice cream and French bread are both delicious and are not out to get me.  I can eat them, maybe not everyday or every meal, but it’s OK to have them.  I can honestly say I was satisfied sticking to one serving of ice cream last night instead of the entire pint.  And you know what?  I was still down another two pounds this morning.  Here it comes, that buzz word…balance.  It’s cliché, but balance in eating and exercise really is key.  I am living an active lifestyle now and eating well more than 80% of the time.  I feel better than I ever have, and am not afraid of slipping down a slope or going backward.  I’m not working on a new lifestyle anymore, I AM the lifestyle.   And in this lifestyle, there is no room for enemies. 

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Aiden Paul - 2 1/4 Years Old

Our Aiden is two years, 3 months old today.  After his 2 year old post, I figured I’d wait until 2 ½, but he has changed so much these past several weeks, I felt an update was necessary.  Two years old is wonderful, exhausting, silly and challenging, all wrapped up in one little body that never seems to stop.  Aiden’s personality is reading loud and clear now and I love that we get to know him better everyday.  He has learned how to push my buttons and he definitely has “terrible two” moments, but overall (as long as he’s engaged) he’s a blast to be around.

A few snippets of Aiden at 27 months…

He still wins the award of “Child Who Hates to Sleep.”  He does sleep in his bed most of the time now, but he often climbs in with us around 4 or 5am.  I also have to sit with him until he falls asleep AND he usually wakes up at least once.  On the plus side, he’s an excellent snuggler and is much better at sharing a bed.  Napping still has to start in the car.  He climbed in bed at naptime all by himself the other day, and stayed back in his room for 20 whole minutes.  I will call that progress.

Aiden loves the zoo and playing in the dirt.  Not always in that order, but those are his two favorite things to do right now.  His favorites at the zoo are the giraffes, elephants and the rhino.  He hates the monkeys because they make too much noise.  Oh and the train.  Thank goodness we bought a pass and can ride this multiple times each visit.  And Aiden has yet to find a pile of dirt, a mud puddle or a mulch filled playground that he doesn’t like. 

His vocabulary and counting skills have really taken off.  He speaks with such confidence, even when I have no clue what he’s saying.  He randomly counted to 15 the other day while playing with some toys.  Thank you Mickey Mouse and Jake & the Neverland Pirates.  I wish I could take credit for his number skills.  Although, with so much time outside, our TV watching has decreased tremendously.  Probably a good thing for all of us.

Aiden and Audrey.  They already have such a complicated relationship :).  I wish I could say they are best friends and Aiden just loves to play with and snuggle his baby sister.  Not really the case, though.  And that’s okay.  While most of the time he tolerates her, there are many moments when he reads her a book or holds her hand.  I know the past 8 months have been very hard for our baby boy, so I’m letting him take his time.  It will be funny, though, in a few short months when Audrey can chase him around.  They will be pretty evenly matched!

Current Aiden favorites… trains, his stuffed Giraffe, diggers, watching airplanes take off, dirt, running, Ollie (he calls him Owie), peanut butter, cottage cheese, milk and the zoo.

Current Aiden least favorites…sleep, vegetables, sharing, Target (much to my demise), haircuts and time out. 


Aiden clearly has his daddy’s personality with his mommy’s emotions.  This makes one passionate toddler, who keeps life interesting.  We love you big boy!

Three months in pictures...












Thursday, May 14, 2015

Shaking the Restlessness

Everyone always talks about living in the moment.  Enjoy where you are in life, right now.  But Gandhi also said, “The future depends on what we do in the present.”  So how do I do both?  I am a planner and a daydreamer and as much as I try not to, am always thinking about what’s next.  I’ve had a major case of restlessness the past few months, and I’m not exactly sure why.  It probably has to do with the somewhat mundane life I’m leading now compared to the past few years.  I was pregnant with Aiden, he was born, was pregnant with Audrey when Aiden was ten months old, Audrey was born and then prepared for open heart surgery.  So yeah, life seems a little slower pace at the moment. 

#tbt to a Halloween when I was definitely not feeling restless ;).
I honestly can’t remember the last time life felt this way.  Definitely not in high school or college and after graduation I worked several jobs, was looking for a full time job, worked three of them and then was laid off.  In the middle of that, Andrew and I started dating, were engaged a year later and married the year after that.  And we bought a house.  There was also that other surgery, two miscarriages…you get the picture.  Life never felt settled and now that it does, why am I restless?

While I definitely have some fun things to look forward to, it’s weird to think that I don’t really have any major life events coming up in the foreseeable future.  We are done having kids, we aren’t moving anytime soon and I will be staying home for at least the next year.  But I can’t help think, now what?  I can’t shake that feeling of needing to plan something or get ready for something.  I want to redecorate our house, buy a new wardrobe and go on a big vacation.  Unfortunately, those things aren’t quite in the budget right now, so where do I turn?  Well, for starters, writing this blog has helped.  I’ll also be contributing to the Cincinnati Moms Blog, and that has already started my creative juices flowing.  It may just be a hobby, but using my brain and interacting with other adults is definitely part of my solution.


To shake the rest of this feeling, I think I’m going to have to be patient.  I can’t help but feel that something (hopefully good!) is going to happen, or maybe just a lot of little somethings.  In the meantime, I really am going to try and live in the moment.  My babies are already changing into real kids and I want to hang on to these days as tightly as I can.  And I think by focusing on right now, I will positively impact my future.  We don’t know about tomorrow, but by treating today well at least we’re not wasting any precious time.