What am I eating?

Ok, for those of you wondering what on earth I'm eating, here's are links to some recipes that I'm using.

Acorn squash and Apple Soup
African Kale and Yam Soup
Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake
Homemade Lara Bars
Raw Avocado Lime Pie
Quiche with Greens

The squash soup is insanely easy and delicious. Even Cyrus was grabbing to have some more off the spoon. The African Kale and Yam soup is also easy and very flavorful. The coffee cake smelled so good while baking and was extremely tasty. I found my homemade Lara bars to be by far superior to the commercially made ones.

The lime pie deserves its own paragraph. Holy cow. It was so delicious. It takes some time to prep as zesting 10 limes isn't a quick chore, but the pay off is amazing. Even Brad was asking for more. Jack informed me that he didn't want to eat it. I asked why, and he said that he doesn't eat green things. I reminded him that he loves broccoli and lime flavored things. He thought for a minute, and then told me that he likes those things, but he doesn't like green pie. I couldn't help but chuckle.


I really enjoyed the quiche. It started my day off right with lots of kale, and it really stuck with me. What is doubly awesome about it is that it too is insanely easy to make.

So this is proof that I'm eating way more than simple baby carrots and celery sticks.

Sunday weigh in

178! I'm so relieved to be out of the 180's. I've met my first goal, which was to get back down to my pre-pregnancy weight with Cyrus. Now, I'm ready to move onto my next goal, which is 165. This is what I weighed when I got pregnant with Jack.

I want to start really exercising. I need to do something for myself. I feel like I've been giving so much to the kids, Jack in particular lately, that I need to do something just for myself. I've thought about running, but I'm so out of shape that I feel like I need to exercise my way to some kind of endurance before I can even entertain the idea of running. Besides, if I want to run, I've got to take both kids with me in the double stroller. That's a lot of extra weight, and Timberville is loaded with hills and we live at the top of one of the steepest. So, basically I need to exercise in order to exercise.

I have happily fitting back into pre-pregnancy jeans. I feel like a whole world of clothes has been opened to me. I'm donating my post pregnancy jeans and shirts to Gift and Thrift this week. I don't ever want to be that size again.

So, goal for this week: exercise, in any form I can get it. I'm going to try and make all my food for the week today. And Jack. Lord. I need to do something. He's intense. I love him so much, but there are times when I am just overwhelmed by frustration. I'm trying to parent peacefully, but he sees right through me! He's a smart kid, and when his mind is made up, it's hard to convince him to change it. And I'm not talking about anything unrealistic. I'm just asking him to get dressed, or eat or drink. I do know that things will get better soon. They have to.

Fresh skin!

Since I've got some seriously short hair now, my skin is really on display. I realized that I no longer have the skin of a 22 year old, and I need to start taking care of it if I want to continue to look awesome as I get older. I've been looking for homemade facial scrubs. I refuse to add yet another container of something to our bathroom. We've got way too much as it is.

So I searched a number of times, and finally found one that I like on a blog called Crunchy Betty. I juiced a lemon, added a lot of white sugar, and scrubbed. Not only was it incredibly tasty, it actually worked! I ran into the living room and had Brad feel my face because it was so smooth. I'm still rubbing my chin today.

I had a good bit of the scrub leftover, so I stuck it in the fridge to keep the fruit flies out. This morning, I added some olive oil to it, and used it as a body scrub in the shower. Again, fantastic skin lay under my much neglected skin.

So instead of spending an arm and a leg on two separate facial and body scrubs, I used one lemon, several tablespoons of white sugar, and a little olive oil and I now have some fresh skin to show the world. Score 1 for frugality!

Sunday weigh in and Highland County

181. I'll take it. I wish it were a little less, but a month ago, I could only dream of fitting back into my pre-pregnancy clothes.

Highland County. Oh, geez. There is no way in hell I would want to live back there right now. There's nothing there! I would go absolutely stir crazy. Maybe if I were a retiree, I would feel differently, but for now, I would view it as a prison. It's at least 45 minutes to a grocery store. There's a Family Dollar there, and that's about it. Even McDonald's hasn't made an appearance yet.

So, my bald head and I arrived Thursday afternoon. The apartment was nice, but water pressure was non-existent. Thankfully, I had a bald head. We went to the fair grounds and boy did I draw stares! And I decided that I was going to stare down everyone who stared at me. It was kind of nice to be so confrontational. I'm normally trying to make sure that people like me, but I can't say I tried to do that this weekend.

Another thing I noticed is that there was not one baby being held. Everyone pushed strollers. I can't understand why some people think that pushing a stroller through gravel is easier than just carrying your baby. There was also a lot of stellar parenting on display as well. I felt sorry for these little kids that were constantly being yelled at and having arms yanked.

Jack loved, loved, loved the demolition derby. He stayed there watching it until 10:30 or so. Brad said he was completely captivated by it. Thanks to our friend, Rachel Chavez, Jack had proper ear protection and was able to enjoy it without being deafened.

Maybe next year Brad will take just Jack and it will be a special weekend for just them. I can't say that I want to go back. The highlight of the whole trip for me was on the trip back. We stopped at the top of the mountain and hiked around the Confederate breastworks. We all had a great time.We need to hunt up some more kid friendly hiking paths. Jack walked the whole thing. Next time, I will make sure to put Cy on my back as opposed to my front. I thought my back was going to break.

All in all, not a bad week.

Update

I realized earlier this week that I had missed my Sunday weigh in. Part of it was accidental, but part of it was intentional. I did really forget on Sunday, but chose to ignore it Monday. I didn't have a great week. I failed to have food ready for me at meal times, which resulted in eating too many seeds and nuts and I ate too many border foods. By border, I mean that while the foods are vegan, they may have possessed too much oil, or the food was a little too processed.

I also had my plate full getting ready for Sam's Remission Party. Friday, I spent the day making three chocolate cakes. Me deciding to make these cakes is like putting an alcoholic in charge mixing drinks at a party. It was hard, but I didn't eat too much of it. The frosting was a completely different story. Chocolate mousse frosting from The Joy of Cooking. This is quite possibly the best frosting. Ever. I didn't have any until after I was done frosting the cakes, and then the shoveling commenced. I just couldn't help myself. I had tried so hard to resist, but I knew how good this frosting was, and I knew how much I liked it. So I had some. Then some more. And then some more.

I didn't have time to eat lunch, so I ended up eating two small pieces of pizza at Plan B after I had my head shaved. Oh, yeah, my head is shaved now. It's pretty much the best decision I've ever made. I digress. Anyway...

So, I have been losing weight and inches. I'm fitting into my clothes that I wore before I had Cy. I've got a little more that 15 pounds left until I meet my goal weight. I'm feeling really happy about this. Progress is the best motivating factor. I want to keep up the pace that I've started.

So, tomorrow will be my weigh in and my adventures in Highland County.