Look What I Did!!

I am actually at a turning point in my life.  Divorced for 3 years this December, I have worked at Life Family Chiropractic since August of ’09.  If wasn’t for the flexibility of my boss, Dr. Chris Akey, I wouldn’t have made it these three years!  He always wrote ‘thank you’ on the bottom of my check and I loved that!  I only worked part time, but I really felt like my kids needed me home more, so I gave my notice and now I am a very blessed stay at home single mom.  The budget is very tight, but we manage.

The kids and I went on a houseboat vacation of which a blog is in the works, but SO many photos to choose from, so be patient with me. After watching a video of myself going down the slide off the top of the boat (because, yeah, I am that cool mom!) I was horrified looking at that person, saying to myself “That is NOT me…it can’t be, she is …. FAT”.  I was talking just two weeks ago to a friend of mine that had started the C25K running program (which I did several years ago and Heidi did last year) and she was quite an inspiration!  Susan has lost over 80 lbs!  When I talked to her at the grocery store, I told her that I needed to do something and she said “You will when you decide it is time.”  Guess What?? I DECIDED!

This is a quote from one of my favorite authors Andy Andrews in his book “The Noticer”:

 “Despite popular belief to the contrary, there is absolutely no power in intention. The seagull may intend to fly away, may decide to do so, may talk with the other seagulls about how wonderful it is to fly, but until the seagull flaps his wings and takes to the air, he is still on the dock. There’s no difference between that gull and all the others. Likewise, there is no difference in the person who intends to do things differently and the one who never thinks about it in the first place. Have you ever considered how often we judge ourselves by our intentions while we judge others by their actions? Yet intention without action is an insult to those who expect the best from you.”

I did some research, because coming from a Chiropractic background and being dubbed the “crunchy mom” by some of my friends, I knew that I wanted something natural.  No supplements, no special shakes, no quick promises…I’ve been down those roads before and nothing stuck.  Part if it was because those things didn’t seem like a good idea for my kids, so it wasn’t anything I could do long term.  (Which seriously is a whole other topic that I want to cover soon…if it isn’t good for kids and nursing moms, WHY on earth is it okay for the rest of us?) But I digress…

It took me a little bit, but I found Beyond Diet.  The good news is that I have an amazing friend and confidant taking this journey with me!  Her name is Ellen.  I introduced you to her earlier in my Eggplant Parmesan post.

She and I actually started our own website to chronicle this journey, but due to the before photos and intimate details we are posting there, it is for ‘our eyes only’ right now… We took a little ‘quiz’ and found out that I am a Protein Eater and she is a Carb Eater.  We still eat the same foods, but I eat more of one kind and she eats more of another.  It is a pretty amazing plan, and I am on Day 3 and feel great!  No hunger, and eating regular every day foods!  Here are some of the meals that I have had so far:

The cool thing about this lifestyle change is that my kids are participating!  This morning we cleaned out the pantry and they helped me read labels, and anything that had ‘partially hydrogenated oil’, ‘high fructose corn syrup’, and ‘msg’ in the list of ingredients we got rid of. It was painful to do, simply because it was easily over $100 worth of ‘food’, but it felt great doing it!

(Oh, and by getting ‘rid of’, I mean I called my sister and told her to come get it.)

She hasn’t subscribed to my way of eating…YET!

The reasons this so awesome, and I am so excited about it are:

• The kids are on board.
• This is the FIRST time that I have ever emptied my pantry in this manner.
• We are making a LIFESTYLE change!  

I am so excited to see where we are a year from now…

I will keep you posted for sure, and be sending recipes your way!

1. I sauteed some chopped up red pepper and onion in olive oil, then put a teaspoon into each of 12 muffin cups.
2. I whisked 12 organic eggs (these are high in the omega 3 that is so good for you), added a touch of dill and dry mustard as well as a handful of shredded cheese.
3. Pour egg mixture over the top of peppers and onion.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

These are so great because you can put them in the fridge and then pop one in the microwave to reheat the next day!

 Very hand to have around!  Plus the kids liked them too!