8 Days and Counting

8 more days and school is out. I started this blog a year ago. For the three summer months I kept it going and then school started. My life spiraled out of control. My husband was in and out of the hospital. The winter was long and cold. My husband is now out on a stress leave from his job. Our home is on the market. Somehow I have to find a balance. I have to find that "place" where I was last summer.

Lost in Life

I hate when my life takes over my life. The beginning of the school year is always crazy for a teacher; throw in a high schooler who plays sports, football season ( JFK, OSU, and the Browns), and a husband who will not listen to anything the doctor says and ends up in the hospital twice (July and October), and once again I fall into the habit of everybody and everything comes before me. And I said I wouldn't let that happen ever again. The best laid plans of mice and men.......

So, here it is, October 28th, and I am trying to regroup. Thankfully, I managed to partially control my eating habits and semi daily continue to get to the gym. Going to the gym helped balance out the fact that I wasn't eating as cleanly as I should have been. My clothes still fit fine even though the scale went up 12 pounds. I've been back on track for eight days now and the scale as gone down 6 pounds. Seems impossible, right? Not really. I simply went back to drinking water, and lots of it.

The eating is actually the easy part. Never in all my life did I think I would be able to say that. I craved food. I needed chocolate. Now, I just fill my plate with vegetables; any and all kinds. (Well, no mushrooms. I'm not eating fungus that grows in the dark.) I can live without pasta. I don't miss it. When I crave carbs its the bread I want.

The hard part is getting to the gym. Now that I can no longer start my day at the gym I find it terribly difficult to get there. I was going at 8:30 at night which I really enjoyed. I would get home by 10:15, take a shower, and go to bed and sleep like a baby, while my metabolism worked all night. However, schedules have changed and that time isn't as convenient as it was.

I love autumn. The colors, the smells, football, etc. I need to embracr the changes in my life the way I embrace the change in season. I can, and I will, continue this journey.

                                                                             

Back to Reality

Summer is officially over. The farther into August the calendar showed the crazier the days became. Back to school shopping, doctor appointments, sports physicals, fundraisers, scrimmages, putting my classroom back together, etc. It became harder and harder to get all my meals in. And harder and harder to eat at home. Thankfully, I never missed a day at the gym.

Today was the first day back to school. Sat at the computer half the day and sat in the auditorium the other half. Neither was good for my back or neck. And so it begins. Went to the chirpractor after work and then got to the gym. Spent 45 minutes on the treadmill, 20 on the bike, and 25 on the machines. I have to create a new routine.

I need to re-read The Little Engine That Could...."I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.....I know I can!

Nature's Bounty

Fall will always be my favorite season....the crisp in the air, changing leaves, jeans and hoodies, high school football, but summer comes in a close second with the bounty of Mother Nature. Today my husband and I went to the local Farm Market. There is an Amish family that comes in every Saturday with organic produce. The grape tomatoes in the above picture taste like summer itself. They're like Mother Nature's version of candy!

A friend drove out to Amish country and actually went to a farmstand. I'm going with her next Saturday. She gave me the green peppers and hotpeppers pictured above. She said they have purple peppers as well. I can't wait to get those next week.

The goal is to make stuffed peppers and strip peppers and onions to freeze for this winter. I need to fill my freezer in the garage with easy single servings so my husband and son can have quick, but delicious and nutritional meals while I hit the gym right after work. If they're schedules don't allow them to wait for me to get home they can still get good dinners while I'm trying to sweat off the pounds!

Words to Live By

I stepped on the scale today after a two week period. I have been at the gym every day for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. I watch what I eat. I drink water by the gallons. The scale says exactly the same thing it did two weeks ago. So....I needed to spend some time finding inspiration. Here's what I found:

I CAN DO THIS!

Water, Water, and More Water

When you're trying to avoid Pepsi and other carbonated beverages, and you don't like coffee or tea, plain water gets old after awhile. So I went looking on Pinterest and found two really great recipes posted by http://tonetiki.com/

Lemon Cucumber Water

Makes a Pitcher

1/2 Lemon thinly sliced

1/4 Cucumber thinly sliced

Ice

Water

In a large pitcher add the lemon and cucumber, then the ice and then water. Let sit in the fridge for a few minutes before serving. Once the water is down to only 1/4 full refill with water. You can do this several times, keep in the fridge.

The cucumber acts as an anti-inflammatory and the lemons boost immunity.


Apple Cinnamon Water

Makes one big pitcher, re-fill water 3-4 times before replacing apples and cinnamon

1 Apple thinly sliced

1 Cinnamon Stick

Drop apple slices in the bottom of the pitcher (save a few to drop in your glass later) and then the cinnamon stick, cover with ice about 1/2 way through then with water.

Place in the fridge for 10 minutes before serving.

Nutritional Info:

Calories: 0
Fat: 0
Fiber: 0
Protein: 0
Carbs: 0

Quinoa Cookie Balls

I found this recipe on a Dr. Oz link a few weeks ago. It credited Danielle Omar for the recipe. I bought the ingredients weeks ago and finally got around to making it this afternoon. They're healthy, and yet sweet enough to satisfy the craving for dessert.

1 cup cooked quinoa
1/3 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup oats
1/3 cup dried cherries ( I used cranberries)
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut

Mix the above ingredients in a large bowl.

Add

1/3 cup maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla
2 Tbsp. almond butter (I used low fat peanut butter)

Mix well.

Add

1/2 cup chocolate chips (I used carob chips)
1/2 tsp sea salt

Mix well.

Using wet hands, gently roll mixture into golf ball-sized balls. Let chill for 2 hours before eating!