What a title ~ but I guess that accurately describes us right now. This all liquid (except for sugar free jello..does that count as chewing?) is getting to us ~ big time. I can successfully make it all day...till about dinner time. I am not really hungry ~ but just feel hollow...so we have cheated, a little.
We have bought 2 salads from Subway on 2 different days. They contain lettuce, spinach, bell pepper, a little tomato, turkey & cheese. Each salad is 110 calories & we split them...so 55 calories each. We do our own dressing with is sugar free, carb free, cholesterol free, etc....and amazingly not taste free. Or we do the red or white wine vinegar. We've also baked some fish and split the fillets.
So with all that being said....this last week I lost 4.8 pounds. Added to the previous week and what I lost before we even started, I am up to 16.8. Whoo hoo....throw the confetti....pop balloons or whatever! So that's the total for the month of July ~ I pray August is just as successful~
So far, so good!
Monday, July 29, 2013
Friday, July 26, 2013
A little bit of Everything
My green beans are flourishing ~ well the plants are lush and healthy, the beans are few and far between. I did pick enough yesterday to can 4 pints. I also canned some butter peas I had in a huge bag in the freezer, got 7 quarts of them.
I am trying to clean out the freezer and can a bunch of stuff. Next is a huge bag of peaches we bought for jelly/jam. They are thawing now. After room is made in the freezer, Amy is going to have a cooking day for her and Will. Since Greg and I started this diet/lifestyle change, she has taken over the cooking. Then she can make some larger batches of food and freeze in smaller portions for lunches or dinners.
We took our 32 pound "puppy" to the vet the other day for her last set of puppy shots. She won the vet and nurse over with her sweetness & then got home and went crazy again. She has got lots of energy. Chasing tennis balls and swimming in the pool are favorites of hers.
Pssst, I've made it to the last side of the quilt ~ the end is near! But I am not rejoicing too loudly yet ~ just when I think I am nearing completion, I usually find a block I missed.
I've got some sewing projects going. Amy and I have a glorious mess upstairs....buts its our mess ~ and we mostly know where everything is. Amy is working on a machine quilted baby quilt to put in the fair & she made a cute owl potholder the other day that she is going to hand quilt.
Evenings are spent quilting, reading, or looking at goodies on Pinterest. I've got far more projects and ideas that I've got time or money! Inspiration is fun!
I am trying to clean out the freezer and can a bunch of stuff. Next is a huge bag of peaches we bought for jelly/jam. They are thawing now. After room is made in the freezer, Amy is going to have a cooking day for her and Will. Since Greg and I started this diet/lifestyle change, she has taken over the cooking. Then she can make some larger batches of food and freeze in smaller portions for lunches or dinners.
We took our 32 pound "puppy" to the vet the other day for her last set of puppy shots. She won the vet and nurse over with her sweetness & then got home and went crazy again. She has got lots of energy. Chasing tennis balls and swimming in the pool are favorites of hers.
Pssst, I've made it to the last side of the quilt ~ the end is near! But I am not rejoicing too loudly yet ~ just when I think I am nearing completion, I usually find a block I missed.
I've got some sewing projects going. Amy and I have a glorious mess upstairs....buts its our mess ~ and we mostly know where everything is. Amy is working on a machine quilted baby quilt to put in the fair & she made a cute owl potholder the other day that she is going to hand quilt.
Evenings are spent quilting, reading, or looking at goodies on Pinterest. I've got far more projects and ideas that I've got time or money! Inspiration is fun!
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Just stuff!
We are plugging along here! The temps are a little cooler than normal for the summertime ~ but that's ok with me....its still in the 90's just not the 100's.
I guess our bodies are adjusting to the diet. We seem to have a bit more energy and for the majority of the time, we aren't hungry. It was a bit discouraging yesterday to step on the scales at the dr. office and their scale only showed a 2 pound drop. But, it was late morning and I had already had my morning shake, 20 ounces of water, and a coke zero. Next week, we are going at 8...this is too hard to be discouraged by a scale. But our scales at home show a 12 pound loss since the end of June!
Back to school stuff is everywhere ~ I think its funny that in the middle of the aisle of back to school supplies is a huge display of candy. Lets pump them full of sugar and then expect them to listen....that isn't going to end well for the teacher or the students! Here in Miss., school got out in May and will resume in 2-3 weeks. I just think it was much easier when we were little....we got out the Friday before Memorial Day and resumed the day after Labor Day. We are slowly cleaning out some of our homeschool supplies and gifting others. But there is lots more to clean!
We've got another wedding on the horizon ~ the end of September. My Allen & Jennifer are getting excited about their big day. 2 more months and I will have another daughter! I'm working on some projects for them, but can't share any details yet.
My hand quilting is coming along. But I really think those squares are multiplying and dividing overnight ~ everynight. The quilt only has 4 sides...but everytime I "think" I am finishing a side and about to start the last one...it isn't the last side. So at this point, I am going to be shocked when its actually done!
Time to go get something done!
I guess our bodies are adjusting to the diet. We seem to have a bit more energy and for the majority of the time, we aren't hungry. It was a bit discouraging yesterday to step on the scales at the dr. office and their scale only showed a 2 pound drop. But, it was late morning and I had already had my morning shake, 20 ounces of water, and a coke zero. Next week, we are going at 8...this is too hard to be discouraged by a scale. But our scales at home show a 12 pound loss since the end of June!
Back to school stuff is everywhere ~ I think its funny that in the middle of the aisle of back to school supplies is a huge display of candy. Lets pump them full of sugar and then expect them to listen....that isn't going to end well for the teacher or the students! Here in Miss., school got out in May and will resume in 2-3 weeks. I just think it was much easier when we were little....we got out the Friday before Memorial Day and resumed the day after Labor Day. We are slowly cleaning out some of our homeschool supplies and gifting others. But there is lots more to clean!
We've got another wedding on the horizon ~ the end of September. My Allen & Jennifer are getting excited about their big day. 2 more months and I will have another daughter! I'm working on some projects for them, but can't share any details yet.
My hand quilting is coming along. But I really think those squares are multiplying and dividing overnight ~ everynight. The quilt only has 4 sides...but everytime I "think" I am finishing a side and about to start the last one...it isn't the last side. So at this point, I am going to be shocked when its actually done!
Time to go get something done!
Monday, July 22, 2013
Testimony from Street Reach
The following testimony was written by the site Missionary ~ the site where our kids served last week~
" It was a great week at Whittier! Grace Baptist Church came with an unstoppable passion to see these kids change. Several times in the week, team members expressed their desire to keep going despite the opposition*, they followed through perfectly. Its almost as if the spiritual attacks were heightened this week against Whittier, which only encouraged the team more. Knowing they were being opposed because something great was happening at Bible club, the team gave every part of themselves and poured loved on the kids in an amazing way. And this love was evident to the kids. They retained the Bible stories and were able to tell me the moral of the lesson each day, and each kids loved this weeks crafts, which enforced the Bible stories further. The kids kept coming back each day despite the increasing heat, probing that the team had something they likes. This wee, a lot of kids seemed to be broken hearted over the fact that summer is nearing its end, and many of them begged Grace Baptist to stay until the end. This week in itself was a testimony to what God can do when we keep going and keep trusting Him, and because of this kids were able to be reached for Christ in a unique way, and a couple of the kids even ended u getting into one-on-one conversations with the team about who Jesus is and how to know Him." Hannah
Our team got back Friday ~ honestly ready to go again. And I think given the chance...they would not have come home. The attacks against the group were quite intense last week ~ started with a leader stepping in a hole and badly spraining her ankle, first thing on Monday morning...then proceeded to one of our youth falling and dislocating his knee, another with a stomach virus, several colds and runny noses & and the temperature outside increased steadily. Amy came home with a cold/allergy and has been taking meds all weekend. All of these were spread out over the week. One of the Street Reach Summer Missionaries told out team that they held the record for the most "injuries" to one team during a week ~ not really a record anyone wants to beat!
They gave a report to the church yesterday morning on the trip ~ sniffling, sneezing, on crutches, and one in a wheel chair...looking a little battered and still tired. The slide show right after the presentation was wonderful, lots of our kids lovin' on and playing with these children.
At the end of the service the Pastor read the above testimony to the congregation!
I am proud of the dedication, determination, courage, and energy our team had ~ for the whole week ~ in spite of the building opposition from the enemy. What the enemy meant for harm & evil ~ the Lord used for His Glory.
" It was a great week at Whittier! Grace Baptist Church came with an unstoppable passion to see these kids change. Several times in the week, team members expressed their desire to keep going despite the opposition*, they followed through perfectly. Its almost as if the spiritual attacks were heightened this week against Whittier, which only encouraged the team more. Knowing they were being opposed because something great was happening at Bible club, the team gave every part of themselves and poured loved on the kids in an amazing way. And this love was evident to the kids. They retained the Bible stories and were able to tell me the moral of the lesson each day, and each kids loved this weeks crafts, which enforced the Bible stories further. The kids kept coming back each day despite the increasing heat, probing that the team had something they likes. This wee, a lot of kids seemed to be broken hearted over the fact that summer is nearing its end, and many of them begged Grace Baptist to stay until the end. This week in itself was a testimony to what God can do when we keep going and keep trusting Him, and because of this kids were able to be reached for Christ in a unique way, and a couple of the kids even ended u getting into one-on-one conversations with the team about who Jesus is and how to know Him." Hannah
Our team got back Friday ~ honestly ready to go again. And I think given the chance...they would not have come home. The attacks against the group were quite intense last week ~ started with a leader stepping in a hole and badly spraining her ankle, first thing on Monday morning...then proceeded to one of our youth falling and dislocating his knee, another with a stomach virus, several colds and runny noses & and the temperature outside increased steadily. Amy came home with a cold/allergy and has been taking meds all weekend. All of these were spread out over the week. One of the Street Reach Summer Missionaries told out team that they held the record for the most "injuries" to one team during a week ~ not really a record anyone wants to beat!
They gave a report to the church yesterday morning on the trip ~ sniffling, sneezing, on crutches, and one in a wheel chair...looking a little battered and still tired. The slide show right after the presentation was wonderful, lots of our kids lovin' on and playing with these children.
At the end of the service the Pastor read the above testimony to the congregation!
I am proud of the dedication, determination, courage, and energy our team had ~ for the whole week ~ in spite of the building opposition from the enemy. What the enemy meant for harm & evil ~ the Lord used for His Glory.
Friday, July 19, 2013
Eating Low Carb
So eating low carb is going to be our new way of life, after the "diet" portion of this weight loss journey ~
Greg found these recipes online and shared them with me ~~~~~
So how come they both sound good? Even though I haven't gotten a Big Mac in years & years and I don't even like cauliflower?
Greg found these recipes online and shared them with me ~~~~~
- Fake Big Mac
| Description: | Craving a Big Mac? I was too, this did the trick! |
| Ingredients: | 1/2 lb hamburger 2 cups shredded lettuce 1 tbs dehydrated chopped onions 10 dill pickle slices (chopped) 2 slices american cheese 3 tbs low carb Thousand Island dressing |
| How To Prepare: | Place dehydrated onions in a small cup of warm water to rehydrate. Place lettuce and pickles in a bowl. Brown hamburger over medium heat. Drain, leave in a little of the grease, then stir in cheese until melted. It should coat the hamburger. Immediately pour hot hamburger over salad and stir. Drain chopped onion, and stir into salad. I like to microwave my salad for a minute to warm everything up. Stir in Thousand Island dressing. Enjoy! |
| Number of Servings: | 1-2 |
| Carbs per serving - include all nutritional information if known: | 4 |
| Preparation Time: | 10 minutes |
| Effort (Easy, Average, Difficult): | Easy |
AND
- Fake Potato Salad
| Ingredients: | 3 cups cooked cauliflower 3-5 cooked,chopped eggs 1-2 cup mayo 1/2 cup diced dill pickles 2 TSP diced onion 2 TSP pickle juice Yellow Mustard to taste Salt and pepper to taste |
| How To Prepare: | Cook the cauliflower and eggs then drain, then add all the ingredients and put in the refrigerator overnight. This recipe tastes so good, you will have a hard time believing it is not the real thing! |
| Number of Servings: | 4-6 |
| Effort (Easy, Average, Difficult): | Easy |
So how come they both sound good? Even though I haven't gotten a Big Mac in years & years and I don't even like cauliflower?
Oh well~ this is an interesting journey....all 5 days so far ~ and many, many more to go!
Who knew that sugar free jello could taste so scrumptious? Or all the flavors they have now.....lemon, lime, black cherry, strawberry, orange, cherry, etc.
Tips to help with this journey ~ have lots of variety on hand of what we can eat, or drink, the powder mix-ins for water are wonderful, and I unfollowed all my "food" or "recipe" boards on Pinterest.
Thursday, July 18, 2013
So What Do You Do?
Greg took off from work, the first 3 days of our new lifestyle ~ which was great!
We've had our ups and downs, have been tired, have drunk gallons of water, swam/floated in the pool, read books, worked on my quilt, clipped some bushes, walked the dog, washed all our cups/spoons/bowls from our liquid nutrition. Oh, and lost weight. I am up to 8 pounds now (since returning from the mission trip) and Greg is up to 18 (I think!) ~ motivation to keep going!
We've also amassed a large collection of sugar free jello, been through the grocery store reading labels, cleaned out the fridge, rearranged all the fridge shelves to be Greg/Donna friendly, and put our blender through a workout.
So far we like the chocolate shake (my fave), the vanilla shake (Gregs fave), the hot chocolate (both of us like this), the cheddar broccoli soup, the cream of chicken soup, and Greg likes the lemon pudding. There is also a chocolate pudding and its ok ~ the first night it was nasty, the second night I added some of my Honduran Vanilla and that made it better but still not quite good. We can add spices to stuff as long as we read the labels and keep up with carbs/calories etc...so we added some of our homemade taco seasoning to the cream of chicken soup ~ yum!
Oh....we've also been texting/talking to our kids at Street Reach ~ they are having a great time! Mondays afternoon project was The Senior Center, Tuesdays was playing outdoor games with the kids at one of the sites, and yesterdays was the community center. Last night was their free night for fun so they went to play lazer tag and went out to eat dinner.
Friday morning will be their last day at the site. And after lunch they will head home.
Happy Thursday!
We've had our ups and downs, have been tired, have drunk gallons of water, swam/floated in the pool, read books, worked on my quilt, clipped some bushes, walked the dog, washed all our cups/spoons/bowls from our liquid nutrition. Oh, and lost weight. I am up to 8 pounds now (since returning from the mission trip) and Greg is up to 18 (I think!) ~ motivation to keep going!
We've also amassed a large collection of sugar free jello, been through the grocery store reading labels, cleaned out the fridge, rearranged all the fridge shelves to be Greg/Donna friendly, and put our blender through a workout.
So far we like the chocolate shake (my fave), the vanilla shake (Gregs fave), the hot chocolate (both of us like this), the cheddar broccoli soup, the cream of chicken soup, and Greg likes the lemon pudding. There is also a chocolate pudding and its ok ~ the first night it was nasty, the second night I added some of my Honduran Vanilla and that made it better but still not quite good. We can add spices to stuff as long as we read the labels and keep up with carbs/calories etc...so we added some of our homemade taco seasoning to the cream of chicken soup ~ yum!
Oh....we've also been texting/talking to our kids at Street Reach ~ they are having a great time! Mondays afternoon project was The Senior Center, Tuesdays was playing outdoor games with the kids at one of the sites, and yesterdays was the community center. Last night was their free night for fun so they went to play lazer tag and went out to eat dinner.
Friday morning will be their last day at the site. And after lunch they will head home.
Happy Thursday!
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
The Journey Has Begun
I blogged Friday about us starting our weight loss journey! And I appreciate the supportive comments very much!
Monday was our blood work, counseling, dr. appt., etc. We had to "fast" for the bloodwork...which was fine but our appts. weren't until 1 pm. That made the morning just a little rough.
We got there filled out everything and had all our sessions with everyone. Oh, they did an EKG on each of us. First I have ever had done. They tried to do Greg's bloodwork but his veins were not cooperative ~ at all. My bloodwork went well.
We got all our liquid nourishment packets and headed to the car. This diet is liquid meal replacements. Shakes, puddings, and soups. Its all formulated to give you all the vitamins, minerals, carbs, etc. that you need for a day.
We had bottled water and Coke Zero in a cooler in the car. We immediately set to mixing our first shake in our handy dandy blending cups. By this time it was 3 ~ first anything we had all day and it was yummy!
Then we have 10 carbs we can "add" on our own...along with a list of ideas. I am very thankful that iced tea sweetened with Stevia is a "free" food. After not chewing anything at all since Sunday night ~ I have thoroughly enjoyed my piece of Trident gum and my sugar free jello!
We went back to the office today and got Greg's bloodwork done. So we are done with bloodwork for 2 weeks!
After a week or 2, there are some meal bars that we can add and not have to just drink everything.
Every week we go weigh in, get our meal packets, and see a nurse. Every other week, we will have bloodwork done along with the other stuff...and see the dr.
And speaking of the dr. ~ turns out she has been on mission trips with our family dr. and she & Greg were on the same team in 1996....small world!
We are going to use this blog as our journal, of sorts.
Heres to liquid meal replacements! CHEERS!
Monday was our blood work, counseling, dr. appt., etc. We had to "fast" for the bloodwork...which was fine but our appts. weren't until 1 pm. That made the morning just a little rough.
We got there filled out everything and had all our sessions with everyone. Oh, they did an EKG on each of us. First I have ever had done. They tried to do Greg's bloodwork but his veins were not cooperative ~ at all. My bloodwork went well.
We got all our liquid nourishment packets and headed to the car. This diet is liquid meal replacements. Shakes, puddings, and soups. Its all formulated to give you all the vitamins, minerals, carbs, etc. that you need for a day.
We had bottled water and Coke Zero in a cooler in the car. We immediately set to mixing our first shake in our handy dandy blending cups. By this time it was 3 ~ first anything we had all day and it was yummy!
Then we have 10 carbs we can "add" on our own...along with a list of ideas. I am very thankful that iced tea sweetened with Stevia is a "free" food. After not chewing anything at all since Sunday night ~ I have thoroughly enjoyed my piece of Trident gum and my sugar free jello!
We went back to the office today and got Greg's bloodwork done. So we are done with bloodwork for 2 weeks!
After a week or 2, there are some meal bars that we can add and not have to just drink everything.
Every week we go weigh in, get our meal packets, and see a nurse. Every other week, we will have bloodwork done along with the other stuff...and see the dr.
And speaking of the dr. ~ turns out she has been on mission trips with our family dr. and she & Greg were on the same team in 1996....small world!
We are going to use this blog as our journal, of sorts.
Heres to liquid meal replacements! CHEERS!
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