After-Christmas Blues

Hello, and happy Monday! We’re still on Christmas break so I’m not even going to pretend like this feels like a Monday, at all. It is just another day on Christmas break over here!

The kids are having so much fun playing with their new toys, which means my dining room table is rarely clear. You can see some of the fun we’ve been having in the midst of this photo I took of my sparkly nails this afternoon!

I don’t know if anyone else gets this way but I was hit with a little bit of the after-Christmas blues. I’m mostly feeling better, now. 

These long, short winter days can bring on a rollercoaster of emotions. I’m desperately missing my time in nature and in the garden right about now.

The way that I’ve been working through the down moments has been by making a gratitude list, writing down everything I’m grateful for, and praying. I also make sure to take a little bit of time for myself each day (which was done by painting my nails today).

Today has actually been pretty great despite being a grey and harsh winter day. It was just the girls and I at home today and we had some birthday prep to do for my husband’s birthday tomorrow! We went shopping this morning for some decorations and, grabbed subway for lunch, and timbits as a treat.

In the morning, the girls played Polly pockets together and then made a giant blanket fort in the living room. This afternoon they have been taking some solo time, and relaxing mostly.

I’m trying to focus on tracking my nutrition and forcing myself to drink more water to try and reach my challenge goals. Cold days don’t really make me very thirsty but I know I’ll feel better for drinking my water!

New Year Challenge (Dec 26 - Jan 16)

Hello, and happy Friday! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! We sure did!

Today, I’m starting a new 21-day challenge to help get myself back on track after indulging in all the Christmas goodies this past week!

Here’s what I’ll be focusing on these next few weeks.

Challenge Tasks:

• Drink 90-120 oz of water daily

I am dehydrated because I have not made water a priority this past week! I am looking forward to getting more water in each day!

• Walk for 30-60 minutes/week

I am reducing my total minutes per week from previous challenges just to try and keep things real. It’s cold and I’m unmotivated to move this time of year, so any bit of extra movement will be a win!

• Track nutrition daily, 5/7 days each week

This has been most beneficial in my challenges so far! In my last challenge I consistently went above and beyond to tracking 7 days a week. I won’t be upping my goal though because I’m aware that we have two birthdays to celebrate in our family, as well as a quick overnight trip planned. Progress over perfection!

• Blog weekly challenge updates

I’ll be checking in weekly for accountability!

Weight Loss Goal:

I ended up gaining a few pounds this week as I indulged in all of the Christmas goodies. So, I’m up from 224 to 227lbs. 

My first goal of this challenge is to get back to 224 lbs and maintain that weight until my next challenge starts. My “shoot for the moon” goal is to lose 7 pounds because, why not?

Challenge start weight: 227 lbs.

Challenge goal weight: 224 lbs. - 220 lbs.

This “New Year Challenge” will only run a few weeks before I dive into a more lengthy “Winter Challenge” that will run Jan 20 - March 20. Please feel free to jump in on any of these challenges along with me! They’ve proven to be a helpful accountability tool in my weight-loss journey!

Holiday Challenge: Week 4 Update

I can’t believe it’s time to wrap up this challenge! I am so glad that I had this challenge to help keep my focus on making healthier choices the past 4 weeks! 

My friend said something encouraging to me recently when I told her about my progress. She said if I am able to lose weight during this time of year with all the holidays happening, I’ll be able to reach my weight-loss goals moving forward as well! 

I sure hope so! Here’s my final week’s update:

Challenge Tasks:

• Drink 90-120 oz of water daily

I got at least 60 oz every day, but only reached 90 oz a few times.

• Walk for 60-90 minutes/week

I went shopping in the mall - does that count? Haha. I did 20 minutes of intentional walking outside this week, and did a lot of “running around” completing Christmas tasks.

• Track nutrition daily, 5/7 days each week

I went over and above - 7/7 days! I even stayed within my nutritional range for a calorie deficit 5/7 days! (1500-1800 calories)

• Blog weekly challenge updates

I met this goal, with today’s update!

Weight Loss Goal:

Maintaining my current weight was my first goal. My “shoot for the moon” goal was to lose 5 pounds, and I DID IT!

Challenge start weight: 229 lbs.

Week 1 weight: 230 lbs.

Week 2 weight: 227 lbs.

Week 3 weight: 225 lbs.

Week 4 weight: 224 lbs.

I am so glad that I “shot for the moon” with my weight-loss goal during this challenge! For those who don’t know, my “shoot for the moon” goal is based off the quote “shoot for the moon, even if you miss you’ll land among the stars.” I am proud of myself for reaching this goal!

I’ll be taking a break from challenges until the New Year, but I won’t be taking a break from making healthier choices 80% of the time. That habit is here to stay!

Full Day of Eats - Well Balanced Breakfast

If you’ve been seeing my “full day of eats” post lately this may come as a surprise to you but I did not eat (or drink) my breakfast while running out the door yesterday! I also didn’t have any takeout food yesterday, which was happening a lot this week. 

Christmas prep is in full swing and battling sickness in the house amidst it all threw us off a bit. It’s okay, though. I’m still doing a good job balancing it all even though our days lately have been spent in reaction mode.

My oldest daughter went back to school after being sick all week and, I actually had the time to make myself a well-balanced breakfast. It was so nice to start the day this way!

I made myself an omelet with 1 egg, 1 egg white, 2 thin slices of Virginia ham, 1/2 slice of American cheese. I also grabbed a small handful of tomatoes and 1 oz. of my homemade sourdough bread for the side with a little pat of butter. ~ 260 calories.

For lunch, I had a salad made with 1 cup of Maple Bacon Salad Mix from Taylor Farms, 3 oz of rotisserie chicken (a staple lately) and 1/2 oz of feta cheese. ~ 360 calories.

In the afternoon, the sun came out and so I went for a 20 minute walk with my youngest daughter.

For an afternoon snack, I had an oat milk latte. Of course. ~ 140 calories.

For dinner, I made a Chicken Sausage and Broccoli Orzo dish. It was delicious! ~ 500 calories.

For dessert, I had (3) .5 oz chocolate peppermint cookies made with sourdough discard. They were so fluffy and amazing! ~ 180 calories.

My total calories for the day ended up around 1,450 calories!

Full Day of Eats - Winging It Before Christmas

Are you ready for another recap of a day when I was just winging it before Christmas? Okay, let’s go!

Yesterday my oldest daughter was still home with us as she recovers from a double ear infection and strep. She’s on antibiotics now so she’s doing much better!

My youngest daughter had preschool and was still feeling well so I grabbed a premier protein for the road, and dropped her off at school first thing in the morning. I offered to keep her home but she wanted to go! I am happy that she loves preschool!

When I got back home, it was 40° outside which felt like a heatwave this time of year, so I took the opportunity to “walk around the block” for 20 minutes, outside. That was a nice pick-me-up.

After that, I played some Mario World on the Switch with my oldest daughter. It was great to have some fun, one-on-one time with her!

After I picked my youngest up from preschool, we all went out for lunch at Subway.

In the afternoon, I made myself my usual oat milk latte.

For dinner, I ate a little bit more of the Subway leftovers and some honey mustard wings. 

I told my husband I’m at the point of Christmas prep where I can either make Christmas cookies or make dinner but I can’t do both. He was okay with that because it was 75 cent wing night!

For dessert, I had two of the peanut butter blossom cookies I made that afternoon.

Then, later on as we were wrapping Christmas gifts, I was feeling snacky and cut myself an ounce of smoked Gouda, and paired it with a zero calorie Fresca. Just trying to keep it all within a calorie deficit.

All said and done my total calories consumed came in around 1,720! This is sticking within a calorie deficit while winging it!

Full Day of Eats - Weary and Grateful

Today’s post is being written by one weary, yet grateful, mother. My oldest daughter has a double ear infection and strep throat, the week before Christmas. None of us had this on our Christmas list. I am praying that it doesn’t go through our whole house. She started antibiotics yesterday, and can go back to school tomorrow.

This week hasn’t gone how I imagined it would, obviously. I have been running around a little extra and not being as intentional with my food as I was the week before. Here’s a peak into what I ate yesterday while taking my daughter to the doctor’s office, going into work for a meeting, and Christmas shopping in the evening.

The day started with the quick realization that I needed to get my daughter seen by a doctor, so I sent them a message and was asked if we could be there within the hour. Yes, we could! But I’d be fasting for breakfast because there was no time for that. No problem, I was too worried to be hungry. Not an ideal plan, but this was the case on this day.

We got out the door, and she was seen by a doctor before noon. Thank you, Jesus! Afterward, we grabbed sushi to-go because it was nearby and it’s also my daughter’s favorite lunch.

With the sushi being brunch, I had a snack plate in the afternoon followed by an oat milk latte. Yes, I have one latte a day, and no I’m not looking to change that habit right now.

I nearly forgot about a work meeting I needed to go into the office for, and so as soon as my husband got home I rushed out the door with my handy premier protein, which has been saving my booty quite a bit this week!

After work, I went to the mall to grab some gifts for my in-laws. It was 7pm when I realized I didn’t have dinner and I was getting pretty hungry. I remembered that I had a chik fil a reward for a free sandwich. So much for not going through the drive thru much. This week has been something else! I enjoyed the treat, nonetheless!

After all said and done, I was still in a calorie deficit for the day. My total calories consumed was around 1,525 for the day. This was done by me telling myself I did not need an even later nighttime snack when I got home and comfy for the night. 

By 9pm, I really wanted to eat something to soothe my nervous system, but I drank a Coke Zero and snuggled up with my heating pad and husband, instead.

What I Ate After A High Calorie Weekend

As promised, here’s part two of my post. Today I am sharing everything that I ate the day after a high calorie weekend! Here are couple of things I was keeping in mind on this day.

“One weekend of overeating doesn’t change my body, but how I respond does!”

“I don’t fix the last meal, I just eat the next one normally.”

Breakfast was a premier protein. This wasn’t an intentional choice, this choice was made because I unexpectedly had to leave the house and hadn’t ate my breakfast yet, so I grabbed one of these to go! Such a life saver!

After I dropped my youngest daughter off at school, I was running around most of the morning. Once I picked her up from preschool, my daughter asked for McDonald’s. We don’t do this too often. I actually have been avoiding drive thru’s lately. 

I had a free 6 piece nugget available to redeem in the app so I grabbed myself one, and paired it with a salad when I got home.

In the afternoon, I baked cookies with my daughters. I ended up eating a cookie before bed for dessert.

Before dinner, I had a delicious oat milk latte made with my husband’s homemade butter pecan simple syrup.

In the evening, we went to a Christmas party. I actually forgot that we had this planned for that evening until afternoon came and I started thinking about what to make for dinner. 

Everyday has been an adventure lately - haha. I still managed to do pretty well for eating out of the norm, again. 

I took a picture of the appetizers I had, and the entree. I didn’t eat the stuffing on top of the chicken, and I only ate half of the loaded potato.

Overall, I’d say I ate about 1,620 calories which is a decent calorie deficit for the day. 

Not making up for going over calories over the weekend, just continuing on the journey!

What I Ate This Weekend

Hi! Happy Monday! Today is part one of a two-part post. Today, I am sharing what I ate this weekend! Tomorrow, I am sharing what I ate the next day (which is currently in the works, because that’s today).

This weekend, I had an egg nog latte, and a few cookies from our homemade cookie tray we made from scratch because, ‘tis the season!

I made a few loaves of sourdough bread and started experimenting with add-ins. I made a pepperoni and mozzarella bread, and a Gouda bacon bread. Of course I had to try some!

I also met a friend out for coffee (another latte, really) one afternoon, and then we met up with some other friends for dinner out! I ordered a Stromboli and my husband ordered BBQ pulled pork poutine. We picked from each other's plates, and it was so good!

We also went to my mom’s for lunch on Sunday, where I had some salad and chicken tenders. That’s also where I had another cookie from our platter seen above.

This of course wasn’t all that I ate, but it was a glimpse into some of the things I had this weekend. I definitely was not in a calorie deficit this weekend. 

It’s okay though, because it was just the weekend! It’s good to acknowledge it, and move forward. Which is exactly what I’m working on doing, today.

I’ll update with a full day of eats soon, as part two of this post!

Dinner’s Lately During Winter

I haven’t been posting a full day of eats as frequently as I once was, but I have still been taking pictures of my food pretty regularly. 

It helps me to have the visual to see everything I ate for the day, and it’s a quick fail safe for tracking my calories. If I don’t have enough time to log what I ate, I just take a quick snap to remind myself to log it later.

Today, I wanted to share some pictures of our dinners lately. Sometimes I don’t know what to cook, and I know I’ll appreciate coming back to this post for inspiration.

Salisbury Steak, Mashed Potatoes + Vegetables

Beef + Broccoli + Jasmine Rice 

Burger Salad

Honey Sesame Chicken + Jasmine Rice + Vegetables

Chicken Sausage + Roast Potatoes + Green Beans

Stuffed Shells…

Zuppa Toscana 

Roast + Potatoes + Vegetables

Out of all of the meals, we have been repeating the beef and broccoli dish the most. We’ve also been making a lot of soup of course, because it’s cold outside! 

There is definitely more that I could have shared but these were the meals that I had photos of currently. Hopefully this helps to inspire your menu this week!

Holiday Challenge: Week 3 Update

I made some serious weight loss progress this week! I lost 2 more pounds and I’m only 1 pound away from my lowest weight as an adult (a weight I reached once before having my youngest daughter 5 years ago).

My primary motivation to stay on track this past week was my desire to stay healthy. Winter is hard in general where we live. The sun doesn’t come out much, the cold weather is brutal, skin issues flare up with the dry conditions, etc. I want to eat well to feel well. I want to lose weight to gain better health overall.

Challenge Tasks:

• Drink 90-120 oz of water daily

I got at least 60 oz every day, but definitely slipped up on this and could improve next week! It’s hard to drink water when it’s cold outside, but I feel so much better when I’m well-hydrated!

• Walk for 60-90 minutes/week

I strained my hip shoveling early this week, and so I didn’t log any walking. My hip is feeling better now though, so I hope to incorporate walking this next week!

• Track nutrition daily, 5/7 days each week

I went over and above - 7/7 days! I even stayed within my nutritional range for a calorie deficit 6/7 days! (1500-1800 calories) 

• Blog weekly challenge updates

I met this goal, with today’s update!

Weight Loss Goal:

Maintaining my current weight is my first goal. My “shoot for the moon” goal is to lose 5 pounds.

Challenge start weight: 229 lbs.

Week 1 weight: 230 lbs.

Week 2 weight: 227 lbs.

Week 3 weight: 225 lbs.

I am 4 lbs down from my start weight! I’m so excited to keep working on this challenge!

What’s Working and What’s Not

You guys. I’m losing weight. In December! I weighed in at 225lbs today! Losing weight around the holidays is unheard of for me. I need to keep track of what’s working right now so I can come back to this when needed!

What’s working:

• Having bagged salad mix on hand (for quick lunch, or sides for dinners)
• Premier protein available in the fridge (for when I run out of time for breakfast or when I’m hungry but running out the door, helps to avoid drive thru while I’m out.)
• Focusing more on protein with each meal
• Having a rotisserie chicken picked apart in a container in the fridge for a quick protein option (add to salads, etc.)
• Fresca, it’s so good!
• Focusing on meeting my water goals each day
• Choosing between an afternoon latte or a snack, not both
• Eliminating night snacking, aka second dinner
• Tracking my nutrition, taking pictures of what I eat
• Blogging for accountability 
• Sharing progress with my spouse
• Having a challenge in place (Fall Challenge, Winter Challenge)
• I’m taking my vitamins
• Giving myself grace
• Seeking God for strength 

Since I talked about what is working, let me address what is not working - or what is working against me.

What’s not working:

• Stress is high, ‘tis the season
• Motivation to move my body is low
• Self care is close to non-existent

These are the “lights on the dash”, if you will. If these things aren’t addressed soon, it might cause me to “stall”. The next challenge I give myself will have a focus on each of these things.

Readjusting the Balance Plate

It’s Tuesday and I’m still reeling from our weekend. Let me tell you about it!

On Friday, my husband took me on a date night at a barbecue restaurant. I ordered a water and the pulled pork nachos. I enjoyed them so very much! I had some leftovers which I finished over the weekend.

After dinner, we braved the snowy weather as we walked across the way to the coffee shop next door. We ordered Ginger All The Way and Egg Nog lattes. We laughed and enjoyed each other’s company in that warm and cozy coffee shop. Time could have paused there for a bit longer and I wouldn’t have minded one bit. If a sigh of relief was a moment, this was mine for the entire week.

On Saturday, we celebrated our youngest daughter turning 5 at Chuck E. Cheese! We had pizza and cupcakes, and lots of fun!

On Sunday, we went to Disney on Ice, which was a birthday present from my mom. Our kids had a blast and the adults had fun, too!

I am feel thankful for all of the fun we had this past weekend, and thankful for this quiet Tuesday after such an adventure-filled time! 

I am also thankful that I maintained good balance in my eating over the weekend. I enjoyed a cupcake, pizza and pulled pork nachos and still lost weight according to the scale yesterday morning! Can you believe it? I can, because I know that I balanced the rest of my days well around those special treats. 

That seems to be the difference in my mindset right now; I’m not getting discouraged when I go “off track” because it’s not really going “off track”. It’s more like readjusting the balance plate to make it all work!