9 juillet

As promised, a daily accountability thread:

Dietary Honesty:

0730: coffee (w/ sf Davinci’s syrup and light soy mlk) and a banana
1010: another coffee with 9 strawberries
1200: bowl of vegetarian chili, one piece of sourdough bread, and vegan “buttery” spread, iced tea (no sugar, lots of lemon)
1300: decaf tea with light soy milk and half a splenda packet
1730: (here’s where things get dicey) a couple sips from my husband’s beer, a slice of gouda, 3 cherry tomatoes, the crusts off half a grilled cheese sandwich, and two spoonfuls of tomato soup. ((kids’ supper time, since J had to rush back into town for something and I’ll be eating later with him)
1900: rice (brown and white) topped with zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes, and pine nuts (a pretty large portion, but pretty low-cal, all things considered; and, of course, a glass of red wine
2045: about two cups of popcorn, no butter, water

Exercise:

push up challenge: level 1, week 1, day 3 – completed
sit up challenge: level 1, week 1, day 3 – completed
step count: 14,330

That’s a night for me. I’m sure I’ll walk a couple hundred more steps, and may have another glass of wine. If so, I’ll let you know tomorrow. Reflections: the mess up of timing around supper time gave me a bit of a problem. I certainly didn’t need that early-evening snack. I’m used to eating fairly early, around 6PM, with my kids. Roughly, this puts me at 1600-1800 calories, which seems a little high, but not weight-gainingly so. I guess that’s what tracking is all about. REALLY seeing how much I’m eating, and what I can do to adjust it.

weekly weigh in

I could make all kinds of excuses, but the truth of the matter is my heart was elsewhere this week. I didn’t give my diet and exercise the attention it deserved. I didn’t put anything into it, and as a result I have nothing to brag about.

Last week: 163.0
This week: 163.0

I tend to be an all-or-nothing kind of person. I’ll devote myself completely to my latest passion, then kind of brush it aside when I get embroiled in something else. I can NOT let that happen this time.

So… my plan to combat my lackadaisical efforts… I will be tracking here, everyday, for the next week:

what and how much I eat — knowing someone may be reading should help me stay on track!
pedometer readings — 10,000 steps per day as a minimum.
at least two weight workouts.
push up challenge participation.
sit up challenge participation.

**note: all this tracking will start tomorrow, because Wednesday is my “day off” so to speak!**

Queen Half-Pound

The great news: I have adiosed my size 14s from the closet, never to be worn again! I’m back in my size 12s, and feeling much better now that I don’t look like the saggy-baggy elephant every time I get dressed..

The good news: I ate well all week and didn’t touch a single glass of wine. You don’t know the dedication that took, believe me!

The bad news: it’s been in the 80s here, and horribly muggy, so I’ve been doing really poorly at getting my exercise in. I know 80s is nothing to many of you, but here in Belgium it’s really something we’re just not used to. Oh, and I know no one with A/C. So a pretty bad job on the exercise this week.

The meh news: I lost another half pound, putting my weight now at 163.0. I had really hoped that by cutting out my nightly wine(s) I’d see a better result. I think the lack of exercise cost me what I might otherwise have seen.

I am dubbing myself the Queen of the Half-Pound Loss. Every week, half a pound. Let’s see, I’ve got about thirty more pounds I want to lose. That means that by NEXT September I should be looking great.

our new bathtub

Ready for it?

As excited as I am?

Here you go!!!

OK, so technically we do have a bath upstairs now, we are not allowed to use it. I KNOW! Trust me, I KNOW. It’s only the shell of a tub. We have to wait four to six weeks for the casing and the shower door to come in. We have to wait a few days to use even the shell of the tub, because the cement is still setting. Apparently, tub installation is done much differently here than in the states. Who knew? Not us, apparently. If I’d known, I sure as hell wouldn’t have planned to have a new tub/shower installed during the summer.

Yes, I know. Short, chubby women should not wear capris. You don’t have to lecture me. But it’s in the 80s, and muggy 80s at that. And I haven’t shaved my legs in over a week. And THAT, above, is the closest I’ve gotten to a bath since last Friday. AND I’ve given up wine for this week.

….only twenty-four hours to go…

weekly weigh in

Hey, look over there. <—– See that button? It's about freakin' time!

Last week: 164.0
This week: 163.5

Small changes, I know. Apparently I am the tortoise in this race. But isn't he the one that wins in the end? I need to keep reminding myself that weight lost fast usually comes back. And that slower is surer, and probably healthier. Yadda, yadda, yadda. No, really, I am pleased. Just we've all heard all those things, so many times before, haven't we?

What? You think if I gave up my nightly glass(es) of wine I might be moving a little faster? Well, you want to know what I think??

Sigh. I think you're right. Tell you what, I'll give up my wine for a week if you pledge to give up something as well. Your evening screwdriver, or that little bowl of ice cream you've been indulging in nightly, or those chips you've been sneaking. Yeah, that's right, I'm talking to YOU. Takers?

Tofu Tuesday

Brought to you by…
Kaci@Ellyphant & Kelli@Gohn Crazy

A day late, but I promise you not a dollar short! We sampled a new recipe from my oldest vegetarian cookbook — the first one I ever bought. It’s fromThe Vegetarian Family Cookbook by Nava Atlas. I highly recommend it! The cookbook, that is, but also the following recipe! A couple other recipes that have been kid-tested, mom-approved from this book to whet your appetites: Veggie Pot Pie, Southwestern Baked Rice Casserole. Pasta with Sneaky Marinara Sauce… I could go on and on. Check out Nava’s website above. She’s got a recipe section so you can “try before you buy.”

Here’s one to get you going: Gingery Japanese Noodles with Mushrooms and Snow Peas

5 cups of veg broth
1 8oz package of soba noodles
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1-2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 cups (about 4 oz) snow peas
6-8 ounces sliced mushrooms
2-3 scallions, thinly sliced

Bring the broth to a simmer and cook the noodles at a boil until done. Meanwhile, heat the oils and 1/4 cup of water in your stir-fry pan (I use simply a deep-sided skillet). Stir in the ginger and soy sauce, then add the snow peas and mushrooms to the mix. Cook over med-high heat, stirring frequently, for 3-4 minutes. You know, until the snow peas are lightly cooked but still vibrant green, and the mushrooms are starting to look yummy.

Add the cooked noodles and broth and scallions to the pan (I didn’t have any scallions) and simmer for another couple minutes. Serve in shallow bowls.

This was incredibly good! I used the lesser amount of ginger, and next time I’ll use a tad more. But absolutely delicious! If you like mushrooms at all, you HAVE to try this. My kids are on a no-mushroom kick, so lucky us, my husband and I got to enjoy it all ourselves!

Home Improvement

I’ve been wanting, pleading, begging for a new bath and shower since we moved into our house a little more than a year ago. Can you imagine living in a house without a shower? Me neither. Oh, one more thing. The bathroom is pink. PINK. Not little pink accents, not pink curtains. P.I.N.K. Pink. The sink, the toilet, the tub, the tile. When we first moved in, the mirror, the shelf under the sink, the toilet paper holder, the soap dishes — PINK. And plastic to boot. Oh, the floor tiles are a shade of pink as well.

I’m not a pink girl. My husband and two boys are not pink men. We quickly replaced the accessories. But the rest we’ve had to live with. A couple months ago, we finally decided to invest the money into replacing the bath with a bath/shower combo, in refreshing WHITE. Something to lighten the overwhelming pinkness of it all. We’ll slowly and methodically replace the other major fixtures as time goes by.

So, my bathtub two days ago, when I was giving my littlest a bath. Because, really, how exciting is a picture of a tub?

My bathtub today:

Yeah.

My husband’s eye is completely twitching right now. Apparently, the tub is the wrong dimensions for the area. We’re not sure how that happened, as we measured meticulously, and we took the measurements to the store with us when ordering the tub, AND the contractor was out and did a survey of the site, knowing what we were putting in. We have an appointment with the contractor and the store TUESDAY to ORDER a new tub that will fit.

Oh, one more thing. It’s almost July. The height of summer is still to come. And we’re going to be washing up in the sink for at least a few weeks would be my guess.

Yeah.

Twitching.

for you, team BLUE

Somewhere, over the rainbow, skies are blue, and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.

Do you see? Do you see what I’ve done for you? Yes, you – Heather, Anita, Ann, Thea, and Mel! I’ve overhauled my blog to show my support of our team. I, Karena, who am actually much more of an earth-tone-leaning-toward-red kind of girl. I went blue for you! And I quoted from a sappy old movie that my son just happens to be watching for the first time. For you.

I could break out into a cheer or two if it’s necessary. I was a cheerleader in high school. But I think it would be rather sad to see a nearing-40 year old woman, 30ish pounds overweight, try to relive her high school un-glory days. So please don’t make me do it.

Let’s give it our all this week. Be active. Stick to your workout schedule. Don’t be tempted by the cookies you make for your kids. Don’t stop at Burger King on your way home because you’re too tired to cook. I’m going to be rock solid this week. And if I can do it in Belgium — the land of superb chocolate, and the original french fries (frites), and super-good and super-cheap wine and beer — then you can too!

You’ve got a dream. I do too. Let’s do what we can to achieve them together.

I want that button!

I’ve been at the Sisterhood for five weeks now. I’ve met some great women, been inspired, been encouraged, and been more focused on my health than I’ve been in a long time.

Unfortunately, I still haven’t been as focused as I ought to be. My big issue in recent weeks has been exercise. Making time for it, making it fun, making it not hurt, making it a habit. I haven’t done well here. Shredding and jogging have proven too much for my over-abused knees. Step aerobics bore me, exercise DVDs as well. And if you’re hurt by or bored with what you’re doing, you won’t keep at it.

Luckily, Thea came to my rescue. She posted here about how her pedometer helps her to stay on track. And also about an online tracking tool for logging your steps and following virtual trails. Hey! I’ve got a pedometer….somewhere. I’ve also got a state of the art jogging stroller — or at least it was top of the line back when we bought it almost six years ago. And I’ve got a five year old with boundless energy.

So now we’re walking, every day. I’m just getting started with counting the steps, as it took me four days to finally track down my pedometer. But we’ve been doing more walking and fewer car trips. We walk to the local market every other day for fresh fruit and veg. We’re beginning to explore the neighborhood and side streets and the towpaths along the canal. And it’s been nice. And I haven’t been feeling exasperated that because I’m in Mom-mode 24/7, I can’t fit in exercise.

Will I lose weight as quickly as I would if I was shredding, or running, or going to the gym? Most likely not. But this is something I can stick with, I can do with kids in tow, and I will enjoy. Progress may be slow, but progress it will be.

My starting weight at the sisterhood: 168.5
last week: 164.5
this week: 164.0

Only half a pound down this week. I’m not surprised. DH was gone, now we’re all sick with a head cold and don’t have much energy to move. But, aside from that, do you see the problem? I’ve lost 4.5 pounds. That’s great! But I so desperately wanted to hit 163.5 this week, so I could proudly display that #5 button! Next week it’s mine!

stretched

Remember when Bilbo said “I feel…thin. Sort of stretched, like butter scraped over too much bread?” I can SO relate to that right now. Well, not the thin part. But the feeling of being unable to cover everything you’re supposed to be covering.

I’m having trouble balancing and prioritizing my ever-growing to-do list. There are so many things I really want to accomplish. But, because there are so many, I don’t even know where to begin. And so nothing gets accomplished.

In between the cooking, cleaning, being a mom, being a wife, cuddling, reading to little boys, blogging, and all the other necessities of life, here’s a list of the major things I’d like to do:

1. Perfect my French so I can carry on real conversations. Like chewing out the plumber that keeps putting off coming and installing our new shower.
2. Learn Latin before I need to start teaching it to my son in three years.
3. Get organized with the homeschooling thing. Figure out a way to give my Lego-loving, problem-solving boy the classical education we want without breaking his spirit.
4. Lose about thirty pounds and be fit.
5. Actually read our collection of Great Books. Or at least start them.
6. Learn how to sew. Not make simple curtains, which I did just last week. But really sew.

When I write it down, it doesn’t look like all that much. But I’ve been planning to do these things for years now. So why are they all still on my to-do list?

I used to think maybe I was just lazy. Or a procrastinator. And there are times that those terms apply. But really I think that it is more a matter of organization. And perhaps biting off more than I can chew. I’ve seen some blogs that have a 101 in 1001 section. Perhaps I should try breaking these goals out into manageable, measurable steps and making my own list.