Day # 32-The End...Well Not REALLY...

Hello my blogging buddies...

Well, I have reached day 32! I was wondering when I was going to stop blogging about/taking pictures of my various meals. Sadly, I have decided that tonight will be the last. This DOES NOT mean that I will be giving up this healthy lifestyle...It just means that you will be seeing less of it. I will continue to share my weight loss progress with you every Monday. From time to time I may share a wonderful meal we have had as well. Or something new we have done. :)

As you can see, I did take a picture of this meal. It was supposed to be Baked Salmon but I didn't have salmon. I used cod. It had spinach, fresh tomatoes, mushrooms and some Italian dressing mixed together and placed on top of the fish and baked. The cod tasted very strong but the flavor that was on the fish was very nice. Again with it was some rice, beans & carrots. The sauce from the fish would have been really nice on the rice but I just wasn't that hungry. Now...To conclude my time of sharing this journey I would like to share some things I have learned and will take from this.

1-Anyone can change how they eat and live. We are VERY busy people yet we still managed to make time to eat healthier and to get some family activity in. I have learned that I am worth it! I need to take the time to take care of myself and my family. YOU are worth it too! YOU should take care of yourselves!! Don't use the "I'm too busy to make prep for meals..." etc. because the truth is, you CAN do it. You may just have to adjust how you spend some of your time. I was so impressed with myself (sounds like I am bragging a bit) because not once did we eat out because "I ran out of time..." if we ate out, we chose to earlier in the day. :) So You CAN do it! You ARE worth it!!

2-I am shocked that I have eaten chips only twice during this whole time!! If you know me, you KNOW I LIKE my chips! Once was at camp and I only ate maybe 5 tops! The second time was because I was curious as to how my body would react. So I sent the hubby out to get the chips. Not just any chips...Salt & Vinegar! They blew my mind! The amount of salt was CRAZY! I drank so much water that night! Same kind of deal with the sugar. We have used pure maple syrup and honey (actually from a man who makes it here) which is the purest form. I have had one chocolate bar during this time and I have to say that I got a headache from it. I couldn't believe it!

3-Potatoes. In the old days, I would have made potatoes at least 3-4 times a week for meals. :0 I have not made potatoes once for a meal during this time. Whatever I ate for potatoes came from eating out. Now we did try eating couscous and quinoa and my family was alright with it but they sure enjoy the rice. I may add potato once a week but I know I will try different types of grains and rices.

4-I REALLY like beans.

5-I have not missed milk all that much.

6-How I eat determines how I feel. As a Mom I have felt so good knowing that I am teaching my impressionable little girl how to choose foods wisely. We have involved her with the shopping and we have discussed why some foods are not the best choices. As a wife, I feel great. I know that I am making choices for my family that will enable me and my hubby to be around longer. This means we can enjoy life together and most importantly, serve God and be good stewards of what God has given to us, this means our bodies as well.

7-Losing weight has been great, but feeling healthy is better!

Well, I thank all of those who have journeyed with my family as we did this challenge. I want to thank Alison for challenging us! We have changed our diets and we have changed our lives. We no longer eat out of cans or boxes, we have introduced beans and legumes into our diets, we have let go of sugar and salt and we have benefited for it! So, although the journey of blogging faithfully about this journey is coming to an end...Our new lifestyle will live on! I will be sure to update you when I feel the need. :) As I said I will continue to share my weight loss progress. This will also help me remain accountable...

Alright...If you are interested in learning how to begin this simple yet life enhancing change, just look at my blog roll and click on "Hospitality Haven" and ask Alison to hook you up with your personalized plan!! You won't regret it!

Again, thanks for following and continue to follow as I continue to share about our lives! God Bless!

Day # 31

Our girl was sooo hungry she almost ate the plate!!
Hello...I will apologize in advance for this quick post. I don't have so much to tell you really. Our supper was good. I have made it before it was cantonese chicken, rice, corn and broccoli and cauliflower. Of course I made enough for left overs. I am super tired now because my family and I went out for a loooooong walk. I am about to sit down and do as little as possible! :)

OH I do want to tell you more about another switch our house is making. We are investing in some non toxic cleaning supplies, shampoo, toothpaste, even our vitamins are changing for the better. These products are so safe that none of the products have saftey caps on them...I know they won't hurt my kid/pet. But like I said, I am tired but I will tell you about them in another blog. I actually don't have them yet...They were shipped today and should get here on Monday...Until then, Chat later.

Day # 30

Hello. Another busy day. I managed to get home and make supper tho! We don't have too long before we have to be out again so I wanted to get this update to you. Our lives will be pretty busy until...Well who am I kidding? We will ALWAYS be busy and I love it! Anyhow, I wanted to let you know that since we have taken up this challenge to eat only wholesome food, we have felt so good! I even managed to prep tomorrows supper.

Tonight we had Creamy Qunioa Primevera. Ummm, at first sight of it, I was not impressed. The taste was good tho! It was qunioa cooked in chicken broth and after cooked I added some cream cheese. I sauteed some garlic, onion, carrots, red & yellow peppers, mushrooms and added some spinach then after they were soft we added them to the qunioa and then topped it with a bit of cheese! It is a very filling dish. Well, I have to go and get ready for the next item on my agenda. We will chat tomorrow! =)

Day # 29

WoW! 29 days have passed by fast! Today was a super crazy busy day. We had a "day off" today. Well what we call a day off anyways. We went into the office not in uniform and I cleaned part of the basement. Well a corner of it anyways. LOL! I made an area for our kids in the basement complete with two love seats a mat, and area for playing, a book shelf, a TV for some of our lessons...I am very happy with the little area. I am SURE my kids will love it too. Now, my body is sore! I did hard labor and it was worth it!!!

After our "day off" I can home for a short rest and then went grocery shopping so I could be prepared for our suppers. I was SO tempted to go out for supper but I really wanted something from home instead. So I grabbed some herb and garlic salmon from the freezer (M&M Meats) It was just sitting in the freezer and I needed to use it up. I was running out of time before our prayer meeting at the church so I just took some left over rice and threw in some peas and then did the left over corn. It was quite good. I also managed to make some bread...I substituted 1/4c of flour for flax seeds so we will see what happens with that recipe!

Have you tried anything new?

Day # 28

Hello People.

Just thought I would tell you that today was a very busy and unpredictable day. I didn't get home today until 8:30pm. I left the house at 9:15 this morning. It seemed as if everyone needed us today! Anyhow, I didn't even get a chance to get home to make supper so we went out. I had a pork slovakia with a baked potato and some peas and a slice of garlic bread. It was good. I couldn't finish the baked potato, it was so big!

Anyhow, I am looking forward to being home tomorrow to make a yummy supper! Take care. I am tired. Going to unwind for a bit before bed. Take care!!