Why do I want to lose weight?

Hmmmmm...my need to lose weight boils down to:

• general health
• self-esteem
• wear more clothes in my closet (instead of having to buy new ones)
• reduce risk of pregnancy complications (the Brachial Plexus Injury that affects my youngest son is more common w/overweight people.
• look like "myself" again
• my husband would never say anything but I know he would appreciate me thinner
• choosing to exercise self-discipline (pun-intended)
• my body is the Lord's but it sure wasn't looking like it :)
  
• more energy

I have always tried to be an active person. I have not always tried to be choosy about what I put in my mouth. I've been convicted spiritually about taking care of my temple and not just being OK b/c I don't smoke or do drugs. The saying that "you are what you eat" is so true and I've battled junk food addiction and emotional eating for a long time.

Can you say medium pepperoni pizza w/ a rootbeer and braum's hotfuge sundae every week for a year while watching ER (about 9 years ago)....bad habits add up!

and last but not least...

post baby stomach blues - it's amazing what a 10 pound object can do to your stomach wall :( ...not to mention a c-section...it's a mess...

Saturday Weigh In....Yippee!!!

This week I dropped 3.5 pounds! Yea! Technically I dropped 4.5 from last week's weigh in . I didn't count that one pound gain cuz I drank a liter of water before weighing in. Bottom line...I'm in another "tens" category! I haven't seen this "tens" since my last baby. I feel like I have really accomplished something now!

I started a candida cleanse this week - basically cutting out carbs (including fruit!). Trying to limit meat and dairy. It's been really hard. I am going to do this for another week and then I'm going to add back in God's food (fruit, all veggies) but I'm gonna limit my carbs versus cutting them completely out.

Figuring out what to eat this week was a mess :)

This Week - Working Out/Eating Less 10/22 - 10/28

OK...here we go...

Monday - 30 minutes on the "Gazelle". I still don't know what that thingy is really called :)

Tuesday - Ran two miles w/ a couple of small breaks and then did resistance training on arms. Finished up with Abs

Wednesday - 30 minutes on the "sit-down" bike (I needed to get some reading done) & 20 minutes on the Elliptical machine

Thursday - Spin Class. We had a sub. She was GREAT!...I was really challenged. TR evening...walked to WalMart -30 minutes there and back.

Friday - 10 minutes on the bike to warm up. Resistance training on legs. 20 minutes of intense elliptical training (interval training). Basically I moved my level of resistance up a notch every minute. Every 5 minutes I would take it back down and start over again.

Eating...trying to ease into a candida cleanse. Didn't dive all the way in b/c I need more time to get acclimated and put the right things in my house. Basically Lo-Carb, No-Sugar, No-Meat (or minimize and make as lean/organic as possible)maxing out on the veggies & protein, kind of eating. Close to the concept in the Maker's Diet.

Monday

Breakfast - Boiled Eggs

Lunch - Salad (Romaine) w/ Tuna, Lettuce & Cucumbers

Dinner - Another Salad and a "taste" of what I cooked for everyone else...Beef Tips over Rice

Tuesday

Breakfast - Boiled Eggs

Lunch - Amy's Enchiladas (Organic Frozen Food)

Dinner - Lunch was soooooooo filling I didn't eat much at all. Fixed Rosemary Chicken for my family. Gracie fixed the roasted potatoes and I warmed up some canned (ugh) green beans. I ate some of my "raw" coleslaw and then nibbled on the dinner everyone else was eating :)

Wednesday

Breakfast - Oatmeal (no sugar, no butter...purely eating b/c I have to :)

Lunch - Garden Burger from Red Robin w/a Caesar Salad (dressing on the side). I have to admit I nibbled on about five fries.

Dinner - Went to our Harvest Festival - called Hallowed Be Thy Name - at my church in place of Halloween.

Thursday

Breakfast - Boiled Eggs...again

Lunch - About 1/3c of Beef Tips over Rice (didn't want to waste the leftover). Some of my "raw" cabbage, black beans and salsa. Sounds so boring but it was so good.

Dinner - a 6-inch Turkey subway sandwich.

Friday

Breakfast - one pancake w/real maple syrup

Lunch - I wasn't feeling well. Not sure if my body is reacting to the cleanse. I've heard that sometimes various cleanses will leave you feeling sick as your body HAS to deal with the toxins in your system. I'll have to research this.

Dinner - Went out to Cotton Patch Cafe. Ate a Caesar salad, then followed with an entre' of grilled salmon and steamed veggies.

Saturday (so far)

Breakfast - two scrambled eggs. Got donuts for my kids and ate two donut holes (so far)

Lunch - (Planned) Turkey Sandwich

Dinner - (Planned) Salad w/tuna

Teaching Writing....already?

Yesterday, I mentioned that Sumo and I made a "D Book". Thought I'd give details today on what we did and how we did it.

There are three pages. The first page has the letter "D" and all of the figure to cut and paste.

The next two pages are the book. Sumo and I colored the "D" page together. Then Sumo did the cutting of the figures while I held the paper and turned it this way and that way so that his cuts would be on the line.

I cut out the book pages. Sumo glued on the figures on their respective pages and then I stapled the pages together and glued on the "binding".

Here are the pics of our finished project:

and no...my digital camera isn't fixed. I just remembered that I can use my digital cam to take photos. Technology is wonderful!

A Perfect Day...

Our schedule was a hit today! This happens only every blue moon so I wanted to make it a point to share it!

Now, today was perfect but not perfect IYKWIM. The dishes in my sink right now have been there all day. I'll get them in the morning :)

Today's Activities.

- 5:00am – S-L-O-W-L-Y wake up and head to 24 Hr Fitness
- 60 minutes in a Spin Class

- 6:45am - back home to shower and get ready for the day
-7:00am - Boiled some eggs then sat down to spend a few minutes playing around online (this was a mistake, I procrastinated on my quiet time :(...priorities...priorities...)

- 7:30am - Shower and Dress

- 7:45am - quiet time shared with Gracie; Sumo woke up. I have been teaching him to play quietly when I'm studying God's Word. He did pretty good today!

-8:15am - shift into breakfast

-Dress "buttered eggs" & make toast

-Feed Boys

-Straighten up and Move upstairs

-9:00am - Boys to their Room to get dressed

-9:30am - Outside; trampoline/sidewalk chalk (Sumo wanted me to show him how to write a "B"/basketball/ANOTHER GECKO

-10:30am - Snacks and Table Time - Sumo did puzzles; Kano did "Lauri"shapes

-11:00am - Kano went to this crib for room time (independant play in his crib). Me and Sumo got busy and made a "D Book". Great fun! I'll share more details and some pics tomorrow.

-12:00pm - Gracie to coop then back home to do lunch with the boys. Read three books to them while they were at the table.

-1:00pm - Kano down for Nap then Sumo and I did a reading lesson. He didn't feel like it today :) Oh well, we'll do the same lesson over next week.

-2:00pm - MY QUIET TIME...YEA!!! I played online for a little bit and then started clearing my desk, paying bills, making some calls...basically office time.

-5:00pm - Boys awake. Gracie dropped off at home. Change dipes/Potty/Dress

-6:00pm - Off to the Municipal Court to take care of my ticket :( Drove back home to unload the stroller and WALK TO WALMART.

-8:00pm - Boys to Bed and Grey's Anatomy/lounge time/chat w/Gracie

-11:30pm - Going to bed soon...

Walking...Weird or Normal?

Tonight for exercise and for fun, my kiddos and I walked to Wal-Mart. We needed the exercise, fresh air, and some stuff from the store. It was a 30 minute walk there and then another 30 minutes back. My littles were in the double stroller and Gracie and I took turns pushing it.

We've done it before. Tonight though I felt a little different. It just dawned on me that NOBODY was walking on the sidewalk of our residential neighborhood. You would think with a grocery store on the corner you would see lots of folks taking advantage of a beautiful Texas fall evening - not so...

Growing up, especially during the summers, we walked up the street to the library or down the other major cross-street to go to McDonalds and eat it on the way back :) People just don't do that anymore...the walk I mean.

I found myself being self-conscious and wondering if the people driving past us in their cars thought that our car was "broke-down" or that we didn't have any gas money.

Truth is...it was a nice way to spend time with my family. The boys had a ball (they LOVE going to the store) and we got some great exercise (Wal-mart is down the hill which means coming home is UP the hill).

Earlier this week, we took a walk before dinner. Our neighborhood has a beautiful creek trail. No one else was walking that either. Maybe we are just weird.

Halloween or Harvest...

I'm plagued again this year by the same battle I have every year. Should we do Halloween? I've read all the commentaries and I've heard all the debates but I'm still not sure.

Now, there are so many things to do INSTEAD of Halloween. We have a harvest festival at our church every year (called Hallowed Be Thy Name) and the kids have a great time. They would never know they were missing anything. We can even dress up for this event if we choose.

Right now, the issue is I do the church activity and just don't deal with my position on Halloween. I don't have to. My kids aren't asking to trick-or-treat....so we don't....less for me to worry about. I mean...goodness...my kiddos have never even done the costume thing :)

But...because I'm me...I feel like I ought to have a position. I don't have one yet. While some dogmatically say that Halloween is a pagan holiday and we shouldn't participate, others say that it can still be enjoyed by the kiddos w/o having to delve into the depths of the theology behind it.

My dilemma, if we don't do Halloween, then what's next...Christmas?...That's another discussion :).

For now, we don't do "Halloween" in it's more traditional form, but it's more right now out of laziness than principal. I hope to "get into" the season next year and enjoy the celebration of harvest time by buying a couple of pumpkins and making pumpkin bread, decorating my house in the spirit of the fall season, and creating some traditions for my kiddos. Hopefully they will learn to appreciate the season for the season and I'll never have to come up with a position.

Getting the Plank Out...

God has really been dealing with me about being self-righteous. There...I said it. Yup...I am self-righteous. It's almost a relief to admit it.

I regularly look down upon other members of my household for all the stuff I do versus all the stuff they don't. I trump up in my head all of the good that comes from the work of my hands and how it is so sad that the brunt of the work falls on me.

Blame is the name of the game. It actually comes second nature. If my plans do not go off without a hitch, it's someone else's fault. If I find myself looking for a dish in the kitchen that has seemingly disappeared, someone else must of have broken it and not replaced it. If I have worked hard cleaning and the next day things are helter/skelter again, then other people around this house must have messed things up. If anything is out of place, figure out who the culprit is and NAIL 'EM.

A few days ago, I was searching high and low for my 24 hour fitness card. I remembered clearly the last time I had it and knew...just knew...I had put it in it's place. I was intent on finding it b/c after three visits to the gym w/o it, I'd be forced to buy another one.

I figured that someone else must have moved it, or that it had been mistakenly swept out of place by someone in their carelessness. I just KNEW that I put it in it's place.

Around this same time, my husband was looking for his phone charger. He searched high and low. No charger. He asked me multiple times if I had seen it. No, I hadn't. In my head I was wondering, why couldn't he keep up with his stuff and put it in it's place?

Digging in my purse, looking for my membership card, guess what I found....you guess it...his charger. Not 10 seconds later, guess what else I found...my membership card, tucked behind some papers on my desk...completely NOT in it's place.

it was almost like the Lord was saying to me...."see when you become aware of your own error, and admit your wrong doing, then I am free bless you".

The Lord has been dealing with me HARD on this issue of self-righteousness. He is asking me to be willing to be humble. He is also asking me to be willing to view others the way HE sees them and to treat others the way I want to be treated.

So my prayer this week is "Lord, help me see others with your eyes and reach out to them with your hands".

I do not want to be a older, bitter woman b/c I spent years and years counting up the failures of others around me and storing up nothing but criticism, sarcasm, and unforgiveness. I can't give up on people...especially the ones I love...Jesus didn't give up on me. My job as a mom and a wife does require a lot of sacrifice and selflessness. This is a fact. But so did Jesus' job of being my Savior.

OK...this was a bit of a ramble but I just had to get this out.

My Binge is OVER!!!

It all started with my visit to the Texas State Fair on Friday. I went, knowing that I would eat some things I shouldn't and that a day of freedom as it relates to food was OK. Well, although I didn't do terribly, I still went overboard.

This led into Saturday, my husband gave me the day off (I'm still paying for it today :) Well, I figured that on my day off I ought to be able to take myself out to eat - right!!!...And then my Mother called me and invited me to join her at P.F. Changs. Well...I went outside of my boundary lines then too...you know the portion sizes there are way too big... I ate every last drop....AND THEN...

I decided that I owed myself some custard from Sheridan's...just cuz I hadn't had any in awhile. I got the Mt. Rush'more w/extra pecans...mmmmmmm....just the way I like it....THEN....

Sunday, went to Luby's and they had CHOCOLATE cake....I mean...this was just getting out of control and you know what????

It wasn't even that good...I mean all of it...I ate a little of this and a little of that OUT OF HABIT...and after every thing that used to make me feel good...I felt terrible. Terribly guilty, and terribly fatigued. My body and my tastes are changing. All I want now is a big salad :)

Good News - I'm changing....

Bad News - Old habits die hard and I'll have to work EXTRA HARD this week to make up for

my little indiscretions...

Lesson learned...yielding to temptation results in guilt...not satisfaction. And....the little satisfaction I got from the sugar was EXTREMELY short-lived :(

Am I the only one whose ever LOST IT in the food department? I'm talking about nonsensical...don't-even-really-want-it kind of eating....

Maybe I was just rebelling against my no-weight-loss situation from Saturday...little good it did me :)

Exercise & Food Diary for 10/15 - 10/21

Here's my workout from last week (all at 24 Hour Fitness):

• Daily - some kind of ab workout
• Tuesday - 30 minutes Gazelle + 17 minutes on the treadmill + 30 minutes Elliptical (I almost killed myself)
• Wednesday - 30 minutes Gazelle + 30 minutes Elliptical
• Thursday - 60 minutes Spin Class
• Friday - 10 minute warm up run + 30 minutes with Personal Trainer, Cophie (I'm doing the 24 Hour Fitness $49 Training Special. I have two sessions left) + 30 minutes on the Gazelle
• Saturday - 30 minutes Gazelle + 10 minutes on the Stairmaster

Sunday

Breakfast - Oatmeal

Lunch - Chicken & Rice

Dinner - Fasted

Monday

Breakfast - Hot Cereal (7-Grain)

Lunch - Snacked on thick-cut deli meat and cheese cubed for my littles. Maybe 2 oz each. Also had a chicken caesar w/italian dressing (salad had fried chicken). Green Tea. Snacked on a few cheetos

Dinner - a cup of Hamburger Helper w/ a salad

Snack - two Snackwell cookies

Tuesday

Breakfast - Smoothies w/toast

Lunch - Wheat Pasta w/spaghetti sauce & okra

Dinner - Chicken Curry, Rice, and Salad

Wednesday

Breakfast - Scrambled Eggs w/ sliced/fried hot dog (so it wouldn't go to waste :) & toast

Lunch - Leftover Chicken Curry & Rice

Dinner - A GREAT SALAD a friend made for me when she visited (romaine, apples, granola, Italian dressing, almonds, Mmmmmmmmm) AND a about an hour later...Turkey & Cheese Sandwich w/mayonnaise, mustard, & lettuce. Lite Cole Slaw and two Oreo Cookies, Grape Juice. I was really proud of myself this day b/c I ate the salad at 6pm and then got too hungry at 7:30 pm...wanted to get a pizza. BUT...I was watching the Biggest Loser and decided to do something healthy and cheaper instead.

Thursday

Breakfast - Maple & Brown Sugar Oatmeal

Lunch - Ate out @ Friday's. Lo Phat Grilled Chicken Salad (used cabbage instead of lettuce); one quesodilla, and one breadstick.

Dinner - The second half of lunch (I brought what I didn't eat home)

Friday

Breakfast - One pancake w/maple syrup & a banana

Lunch & Dinner - THE TEXAS STATE FAIR (I don't even want to talk about it)

Saturday

Breakfast - I'm typing this at 11am and I haven't eaten yet. I'm gonna have a bowl of Honeycomb to take the edge off

Lunch & Dinner - Haven't figured it out yet but my hubby gave me the day off so I'll eat out and TRY to be good.