{ Lifestyle Change }

The title explains it all...this is my new focus. I have been trying to get to this point for quite some time and i am finally there! I read things daily about food and health that is quite terrifying. I have definitely changed the way i have done my grocery shopping and it is an adjustment, but in the long run it will be so much better for all of us. There are still some things with the boys that i have not eliminated but i am going to work very hard to change some of their eating habits. SUGAR is definitely a preference for them (Chayton moreso than Jackson) and i really have to try to work hard on eliminating more processed foods from their diet. I know there will be times that we eat things that we really shouldn't but for the most part, it will be clean.

I got my Mother's Day present early (that i ordered for myself-ha) and it is a food dehydrator. I am so excited about this and cannot wait to use it to make healthier snacks, such as squash, sweet potato and zucchini chips. Those are just a few things that i want to start with. The possibilities are endless with it. I did a lot of research on the different brands and this one had the best reviews of them all (even over the Excalibur). Here is what it looks like...

I have also started back working out. STARTING is the hardest part!! I recently purchased a Fluidity Bar and started the workouts yesterday. 

The focus of the workouts are on lengthening and stretching your muscles using your own body weight. It is a ballet type workout that guarantees to give you a dancer's body. The first workout was a little tough but it was good. I wasn't trying to figure how much longer was left like i have in the past with other workouts. It is only recommended to do the workout every other day so i will do cardio (walking/running) on the in between days. I have not really taken care of myself the way i should in years and i have decided that it is time to do something for me.

I have learned to like quite a few things in the past year. Salmon has been on my list recently. I have tried it before and it was just too fishy. It is supposed to be really healthy for you so i decided to find a recipe that i would be willing to try. I LOVE Sriracha sauce so i stumbled upon a recipe for Seared Salmon Tacos with Sriracha Ranch...and they were TO DIE for! I modified the recipe with fat free ranch dressing and used corn tortilla shells to make it healthier and it was yummy. These will definitely be eaten often. Here is what it looked like...

Our CRAZY, BUSY Life

Oh my goodness...i have not blogged since February!! That is a long time. I have not had any time to do anything that i need to do, much less blog. Baseball season is in FULL SWING with Jackson (and also for JJ) and we literally have not had a free weekend since i could remember. And the next few weekends are no exception. It has been so crazy that we have not been able to do yard work, plant flowers in my yard, clean our house and MANY other things that desperately need to be accomplished. I guess if Jackson is happy, then i would not want things any other way. I would like to mention that it would be much nicer if we were this crazy busy in the Fall rather than in the Spring because things for our yard are already done and blooming and looking good. Right now, things look like they need much TLC!!

My sweet, baby boy Chayton will also be turning THREE on Sunday. I.JUST.CANNOT.BELIEVE.IT. Where has the time gone?? Good thing that he does not really understand that he will not have a party this year on his real birthday because it is not happening. BOO! And guess why?! Because of a baseball tournament. But, we will definitely be having a party in a couple of weekends.

| HAPPY & HUNGRY |

Ahhhhh...Today i am feeling good. I am HAPPY and HUNGRY (ha...will get to that in a minute). I slept fabulous last night and usually do not sleep well. And it is a-mazing how much better you feel when you sleep. Now if i could just get my exercising incorporated into my schedule, i would be even more happy. And i am going to! 

The diet...yes, i am trying some other crazy weight loss plan that is called the "liver shrinking diet." This is a diet plan that bariatric surgeons give their patients 2 weeks before they are scheduled for gastric bypass or banding surgery. It is a diet that involves drinking protein drinks for breakfast and lunch (can add a small salad of lettuce with dallop of fat free dressing), 2 snacks (either a serving of fruit, carrots or 1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese) and a healthy/low calorie dinner. The dinner consists of either 4oz lean protein with 1 cup raw/cooked green vegetables or you can have a healthy microwave meal (Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, Smart Ones) that is between 250-325 calories roundabout. I thought this was going to be a breeze because i enjoy the protein drinks and i like the microwave meals for the most part BUT it is much harder than it sounds. The protein drink if perfect for breakfast on the go. And the microwave meal is a perfect size for lunch. I am starving! I did better last night than i thought i was going to. I was so tempted to just give in and go get Wendy's a little while after having my meal. But, i didn't. And i am doing it today as well. We will see how later goes. They saw that you can lose 10-20 lbs in 2 weeks!! And that is a crazy amount but would be a good jumpstart. This is definitely NOT something anyone could do long term. I enjoy eating healthy foods that are good for you (lean protein, veggies, salads) and these meals are just not the best idea of a healthy dinner for me. I am definitely using will power here because it is not an easy thing to do.

I have also been wanting one of the fitness devices that they have out now that tracks your movement, eating habits, sleeping habits and motivates you to get up and move. There are several and the one that i was really wanting was LarkLife. Here is what it looks like...

Did my research on it and it was fair. 2.5 stars out of 5 was not convincing enough for me to pay $150 for. And the only color option at the time is blue! Don't get me wrong, i like blue but it is not stylish enough for me to wear it with nearly everything and on a daily basis. So i read more reviews and stumbled upon the UP by Jawbone. It basically does the same thing as the one above but the reviews were 4 stars out of 5 and most everything was positive with the comfort of the band, uploading the data, etc. So, i ordered it! And i get it today. There were several color options and i could not decide between light gray or black. But i ended up going with black. And here it is...

These were the only 2 that i could find that also monitored sleeping patterns. And i was really interested in that feature as well. Can't wait to have my package delivered and get it up and running. 

* To Begin *

Well, isn't that the truth?? The only way to finish is to begin. What is wrong with me?? Why can't i just BEGIN? I think that is just like the saying...if you can just get that one foot out the door. And it is the honest truth. Just beginning something is most likely the hardest part.

be·gin

 verb \bi-ˈgin, bē-\

be·gan  be·gun  be·gin·ning

Definition of BEGIN

intransitive verb

1

: to do the first part of an action : go into the first part of a process : start

2

a : to come into existence : arise

b : to have a starting point

3

: to do or succeed in the least degree <I can't begin to tell you how pleased I am>

transitive verb

1

: to set about the activity of : start

2

a : to bring into being : found

b : originate, invent

— to begin with

: as the first thing to be considered

I have been trying to "begin" for months now. I did it back in October and was doing really well. And then Thanksgiving and Christmas rolled around and i have been trying to get started back ever since. But, i am PROMISING that i am going to begin tomorrow! I am going to do it. I am going to get things together today so i can start a journal of my meals and workouts. I used to do that and it totally holds you accountable for what goes into your mouth and what you do to work it off. It works! I cannot-NOT begin any longer!! (i know a double negative- but it explains what i mean perfectly)

(i posted this on this blog because i ended up deleting the other one today...cannot keep up with 2)

~ Striving 2 Be Skinny ~

For some CRAZY reason, i have decided to have a separate blog dedicated to getting skinny again. I cannot really keep up with this blog so i am not sure how i think that i can keep up with two. But, i am going to try. I am trying to have a place that i can document workouts, motivational things and healthy eating to hold myself accountable for what i am trying to do. I wanted this blog to be about my 2 boys and family life and not the other stuff. I really hope that i can make it work. Here is the blog if you want to follow along... http://striving2beskinny.blogspot.com/

The other thing that i am trying to decide about is whether or not i want to try to make things to sell. Yes, another CRAZY idea that i have come up with. I cannot keep up with doing things for Chayton and gifts that i have done to give people much less think that i can make a big production out of it. But, i may see if i can handle it. I REALLY would love to work less at work and try to work more at home! I have created a shop on Etsy that is called The Preppy Paisley and created a Facebook page dedicated to that so i would have the same name. There is nothing listed on either site right now but we will see what happens with that. That is all for now. Guess i need to go figure out something else to add to my plate :o)

Confusion

Ok, so am i the only one that is confused about the workouts that i want to do?? I decided to change things up and start doing my TurboFire videos. I did it last night and it was ok but i was totally lost. There were 2 videos...Fire 30 and Stretch 10. I did both of them just like the schedule says. Fire 30 is a faster paced video that is almost like a dance routine. You do a few moves and then add on to them each time. There were like 3 different sections that you do these moves and add on to them. I.WAS.LOST. Totally. There were some instances where i just had to stand there to watch so i could figure out what was going on. I am not going to lie, i cannot stand being lost and not knowing what was going on. I know after a few times that will get better but it was not a good feeling. The Stretch 10 was fine because it was stretching exercises that didn't take a genius to figure out. I am now totally contemplating just going back to good ole running and doing arm and ab weight training videos. I will not be lost doing those. With TurboFire, you only have 1 rest day and there is no room in the schedule for running. And i really didn't like that idea. However, there are HIIT workouts with TurboFire that i may try to incorporate. UGH...enough about that. Here is what i made for dinner...

Southwestern chicken & avacado salad

And oh my goodness it was GOOD! I am hoping that tonight's dinner is good too. It is called a Harissa Pork Shoulder and roasted butternut squash goes with it. Fingers crossed about the squash part. I know the Pork Shoulder will be good. It was a crockpot meal and has good spices on it. Wish me luck with the Butternut squash...i sure hope i like it!

To Paleo or Not to Paleo . . .

That has been the question? I have been trying to decide if i wanted to eat a Paleo type diet (aka Caveman diet). This diet focuses on eating things that our ancestors ate back in the day before agriculture came along. It basically excludes grains, legumes, starches, diary, sugar, alcohol and refined salt. That does sound like a LOT of things that you cannot have but there are good things that you can have. Some things that i have read say that you can have sweet potatoes in moderation. I have decided that i am going to try my best to follow this way of eating as close as i can because a friend of mine says that once you have been eating this way for a little while, when you do indulge in a cheat meal, you feel like crap! I have joined E Meals as well. This is a company that allows you to choose the eating plan that you are following and they send you weekly meal plans, along with the recipes and shopping lists! This was perfect for me because i do try to plan my meals weekly and this takes the guesswork out of planning. I am sure there will be recipes that we do not like for dinner but we are going to try everything at least once and will mark things off accordingly. I am doing this plan for all of my meals and the boys are going to follow this plan for dinner at first and then see where we can take it from there. I am trying to get my kids off of a sugar kick!!! They would literally eat cookies, candy, cupcakes, candy bars, etc (you get the picture) EVERY meal if they could. I truly believe that this is the reason for some of the crankiness, irritability and tossing at night while they are trying to sleep. I know that sugar is REALLY bad for everyone and has been linked to cancer in many different situations. And i do not want to be the one responsible for any of this! So, i am trying my best to change things for the better in my house. It is going to be hard but i think it will be better for everyone.
Today is Day 1 of my Paleo diet and it has gone well so far. Here is what my meals have looked like:
Breakfast: Green Smoothie (spinach, banana, strawberries), small serving of grilled chicken strips with 2   cherry tomatoes.
Lunch: Salad with leafy green lettuce, broccoli slaw, broccoli sprouts, 3 cherry tomatoes, sirloin steak (about 4oz), juice from 1/2 lime and sriracha sauce on top. YUMMY!!
Dinner: Southwestern chicken w/avacado salad. (and i cannot wait to eat this!! Love everything about it)
I have taken my vitamins like i was supposed to and have been drinking my lemon water. Hopefully things will continue to go good. I have got to get the rest of this weight off!! I will be doing some type of exercise later as well!
Here is a little info on Paleo if you are interested:
http://paleodietlifestyle.com/
http://paleoaholic.com/