Feelin hopeful for tomorrows weigh in

Hello friends and Happy Saturday!!! Thank you for the great comments concerning my dinner out. I don't know why I didn't think to ask for veggies instead of pasta, in the moment I felt like I would be missing out by not eating the pasta....I know that doesn't make sense and I need to purpose to not think that way. I put the leftovers in the freezer so I wouldn't be tempted to pick at them.

I just signed up for myfitness pal and I am excited to try it out. I am also very very excited to try the coconut pumpkin muffins Amber posted they look sooo yummy. Today hubby and I got hot americanos from our favorite coffee shop I wish I had made the pumpkin muffins before our walk so we could enjoy them with our coffee. A good cup of coffee is one of my favorite pleasures, hubby and I are BIG coffee drinkers.  We enjoyed our coffee during our walk to get out and enjoy the fall sun.

Tomorrow is hang out day with the folks/laundry & weigh in. I am hoping to see good numbers on the scale despite my Thursday cheat, I'm not really sure what to expect. I  hope everyone is having a nice weekend :) Big hugs to all my friends, I really appreciate all of you!!!!!

P.S. Last night I watched Bridesmaids and I was delighted to see these cherry canisters in Annie's kitchen. I love love love everything cherry, I just can't get enough. These are just so sweet I wanted to share them with my blogger buddies.

I cheated on the FT :(

Hello friends, I think I might need to get myfitness pal to help me calculate the s/c in recipes such as the pumpkin bread recipe I found yesterday. Sometimes I wonder what we did with ourselves before the internet. I love having this blog and meeting so many new friends I think this low-sugar lifestyle is one I will try to sustain for the long haul. I am enjoying having a little  more fruit on the FT, I have been putting around 1/4 pear or apple into my salads...delish! Hubby and I have been having stir frys for lunch the past several days, but I burnt us out on those lol....back to my old standby salads. Today I made a yummy one with tri tip steak, sunflower seeds, avo, blue cheese, kalamata olives, pear and pomegranate seeds...delish.

I am feeling pretty guilty right now because we went out to dinner for my MIL's bday and I was naughty. I had buttered garlic bread and some pasta with shrimp....FT bad. I brought home most of my pasta and I plan to freeze it for another day. I hope I didn't mess up any progress I have made too badly. The only things that were available without pasta were salads, and I don't usually get a salad at a restaurant because I can make my own bad ass salads at home. Tomorrow I am going to exercise before work even if I have to force myself to do it. I have been wearing the lazy pants on the exercise front and I need to stop it.

I am so thankful that tomorrow is Friday, I could use a nice weekend to re-group and plan. I heard the weather is supposed to be nice, I would love to drink some yummy coffee and take some nice walks to enjoy the beautiful fall trees. As for the no poo thing I did it on Sunday and my hair still smells like vinegar when it's wet, I'm not sure if I could get past that enough to do it some more. I guess that's all for now have a wonderful night friends :)

Hello peeps, thanks for the great comments I really appreciate all of you so much! Life is good, today my boss told me that my co-workers think I am doing a great job and they enjoy working with me :) :) :) Sunday I made the maple chocolate version of coconut bread...yummy although I baked it a little too long, next time I'll take it out sooner. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen these days while hubby is doing homework. The only downside is I have to clean up all my messes.

One of my co-workers turned me onto the site http://pinterest.com/, if you aren't familiar with it check it out it's filled with beautiful things. I searched low sugar pumpkin bread on pintrest and found a recipe from the comfy belly that looks promising using xyiltiol as the sweetener.

Pumpkin Bread: http://comfybelly.com/2011/10/pumpkin-bread/#more-6927

Ingredients

• 1 cup of pumpkin puree*
• 1 cup of honey (or other sweetener; I used maple syrup)
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil (optional)
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice (or cloves)
• 2 cups of almond flour
• 1/2 cup of walnuts (optional)

* Pumpkin Puree

1. Slice the pumpkin (or other squash) in half (from stem to bottom), take out the seeds (and make toasted seeds).
2. Roast the pumpkin for about 1 hour (at 350 degrees F), face down, in some water that covers the bottom of the dish. You can also steam the pumpkin. Alternatively, you can dry roast it by wrapping it in foil and placing it in the oven. That would also reduce the moisture in the puree.
3. Cool the pumpkin, peel the skin off, and puree it in a blender or food processor.

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Combine all the ingredients (in the order listed) in a bowl and blend well.
3. Bake in a bread pan (I used a Pyrex glass dish, 5 inches x 9 inches) for 60 minutes or until the outside is very brown. The darker you go, the better it tastes (in my opinion). It might take a longer or a shorter amount of time depending on how moist your pumpkin puree is. When it’s done, a toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean.

Thank you Dawn for sharing your decision to go poo free and why peanuts are a no go on the FT. I guess when I read that part it just didn't sink in. I hope everyone is having a great week, whatever you are doing bfc, ft, ww keep it up, don't cheat and don't give up. If life is good and you are happy share it, if you are discouraged with your life/weight share it. The blog community is a wonderful place to seek support and encouragement. We only have one life and no one can live it for us, so we better make the best of it. :)

Fast Track Weigh in Day :)

Hello friends, hubby and I have been on the FT since Monday Oct 3rd we weighed ourselves yesterday and big drum roll..... hubby lost 8 lbs & I lost 1.4 :) :) :) I think I am even more excited than hubby about his weight loss he just looks so good. Making food ahead of time has been the key to our success. Before starting FT I thought it would be strange and a big departure from what we usually eat, but it's really not. We have eaten salads, stir fry's, chicken soup, coconut bread, nuts & seeds, chicken, breakfast turkey sausage, eggs, baby bell cheese, and a little steak.

Yesterday I woke up feeling like I wanted to make a treat everything on Lauren's healthy indulgence's blog looks so amazing and I often have the ingredients on hand that she uses the most. I made grain free chocolate zucchini bread, and it was yummers. Instead of flour I made an nut meal by grinding up some almonds and pecans, a little almond flour, and a little flax meal. I also used coconut oil and zucchini from last years garden. It was so delicious and other than grinding up some nuts it wasn't any more work to prepare than a regular zucchini bread. I am wondering if pumpkin bread would work well with almond or coconut flour and xylitol. As the weather changes I am craving pumpkin bread!!!

Since doing the bfc/ft I have lost 3 inches from my waist and 2 from my hips and around 10-15 lbs. I feel good about myself I hope to continue to lose fat and tone up my poochie and hips. I also hope to not gain it all back during the Fall/Winter/Holiday Season, I'm sure everyone can relate to that. I want to be able to navigate all the sweets and breads that are full of sugar and white carbs, that make us feel like we need to eat them because they only come out at the holidays.

4th Day of FT

Hello friends in blogger land, boy howdy today was another busy busy day at work. I am not used to working 12hrs, but I'm a team player and sometimes things just work out like that. I am grateful to have a job, if I didn't we wouldn't be able to afford hubby going back to school. He is starting out really strong he has 103 % in his math class and he feels really good about himself. I am glad he agreed to do the FT with me I can tell in how his clothes fit his belly is getting smaller.

Breakfast: 2 fried eggs, 2 turkey breakfast sausage, black coffee
Snack: coconut bread
Lunch: stir fry with chicken, asparagus, mushrooms, celery, broccoli,  baby bok choy and cashews. 1 baby bell cheese
Snack: Greek yogurt with hemp seeds and pumpkin seeds
Dinner: chicken soup

3rd Day of FT

My Wednesday was also gray and gloomy and very busy. Work is busy my co-worker who had surgery did not come back this week as originally planned. Today was my Dad's bday we went out to breakfast just the two of us. I was mostly good I had an omelet with sausage, ham and bacon but I ate some hash browns...oops not FT friendly.

Last night hubby and I took pictures and measured ourselves. I hope the FT is just the little boost we need right now. I don't know if I feel any different doing the FT except I am craving mac'n cheese, nothing like being told you can't eat something to make you crave it lol.

Breakfast: 1/2 a big omelet with ham, sausage, and bacon, jack cheese, several bites hash browns, coffee
Lunch: big spinach salad with last night's leftovers, hamburger, broccoli, mushroom, moz cheese, cashews
Dinner: rest of omelet, coconut bread
After dinner red wine

2nd Day of FT

Hello peeps, first of all I want to reassure all of you that I did eat enough yesterday. I made a big hearty spinach salad with protein and fat from pork chop, cheese, nuts and seeds and a little fruit. My soup was hearty with roasted chicken, celery and green beans. I usually eat more in the morning but I worked early and I was in a hurry. If I had taken pictures you would have been able to see that it was plenty of food.

Today was a good 2nd day of FT for both of us. Hubby had hard boiled eggs, turkey breakfast sausage, coconut bread, Jay Robb chocolate protein shake with almond milk, baby bell cheese, almonds and a hamburger to eat from the time he left he house early in the morning until he came home from work.

What I ate today:
Breakfast: 2 fried eggs, 2 turkey breakfast sausage links, roasted zucchini, broccoli and mushroom.
Snack: coconut bread
Lunch: hamburger patty, spinach salad with pear, fig, blue cheese, cashews, olives, pumpkin seeds
Snack: cheese stick with a little peanut butter
Dinner: sauteed broccoli, mushroom and ground hamburger, & a spinach salad.

Tomorrow is my Dad's bday and I am taking him out to breakfast. I hope everyone has a wonderful day :)

1st Day of Fast Track

Hello peeps, thank you for  such nice comments yesterday. I am feeling so much better today whoo hoo!!! When I woke up on Wednesday with the yuckies I took some airborne and continued to take it several times a day I think that helped me to get better quickly. Yesterday I made my chicken soup, but I didn't get around to making almond flour biscuits because we went to costo and did our grocery shopping.

Hubby and I started the FT today, it feels a little weird because it is so new. I have a feeling that hubby will do really well because he eats a lot of the grain and starches that we have to give up. He is especially disappointed to give up potatoes for awhile lol. We are finding our groove in our new schedule. Hubby goes to the gym before class, after class he goes to work and the goal is for him to get off work around 6. He is doing really well in his classes and I am proud of  him.

I don't think we are going to stick strictly to the 14 day menu that Jorge has provided, trying to get in halibut, salmon and steak would be a little expensive for us especially now that hubby is working less while he is in school. Yesterday at costco we bought a bag of chicken tenders, and some tri tip steak (we will portion the steak out, foodsaver and freeze it to make it last).

Today I ate:
Breakfast: 2 fried eggs
Snack: almond milk
Lunch: homemade chicken soup (no noodles) 1/2 spinach salad with pork chop, blue cheese, hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, cashews, figs, newmans dressing
Snack: the rest of my lunch salad and a square of dk chocolate
Dinner: chicken soup and coffee.

I think tomorrow will be a good day, I made lemon coconut bread, hard boiled eggs, cooked some turkey breakfast sausage links, and made hamburgers. I hope everyone has a wonderful day :)

I've got a case of the sniffles

Hello friends, I'm still feeling a little under the weather I have a case of the sniffles. There is nothing like being a little sick to make me appreciate feeling good. The work week was long and we were short staffed because a co-worker had gallbladder surgery and was out for about a week and a half. Hopefully she comes back to work on Tuesday as planned because another co-worker has surgery on Friday.

I am thinking of making chicken soup today, I've had several cans of progresso but at $2.49 a can I know I can make a better soup myself. I didn't feel up to it the other days but I think today would be a good day for that. I've been drinking lots of tea, hot water with lemon and taking airborne. I really like a lot of the traditional medicinals teas, and I especially love the cold care tea right now.

Wednesday is my Dad's bday and the following Wed is my MIL's bday. I really don't know what to get my Dad, I asked him what he wanted and he said we could bring over a bushel of money LOL. My MIL will be easy probably a gift certificate for a pedi/mani, even though she said no presents. Getting your feet and nails done is so relaxing and enjoyable I know she would love it, and she doesn't do stuff like that often because she doesn't work.

Thank you Beth for putting the almond biscuits in your food tracker. I plan on making some more to go with my chicken soup at 6g carb, 1g sugar and 3g fiber I think it would be totally worth it.

I hope everyone is having a nice weekend. Cheers to a new month, may we have lots of success despite all the candy temptations that October has to offer.

Almond flour biscuits

Hello bfc peeps, I am a little under the weather so I plan on keeping this short and sweet. Yesterday I made some delicious almond flour biscuits from Lauren's blog healthy indulgences http://www.healthyindulgences.net/2008/08/low-carb-gluten-free-biscuits.html . They were so easy and delicious, and they went perfect with a roasted veggie soup I picked up for dinner. Hubby was very impressed and appreciative. Yesterday I also made coconut bread with coconut oil instead of butter very yummy. Last week I made Dawn's peanut butter cookies and I put a touch of sea salt on top of each cookie...delicious salty and sweet. The change in weather makes me want to bake more and make yummy soups. I guess that's all for now :)



                                                           

Almond flour biscuits

Made out like a bandit shopping

Hello friends, Saturday here is hot and amazing I absolutely love the early part of fall. Hubby and I went shopping and we made out like bandits. We both got new clothes and I got Fast Track at Costco for $11.59. American Eagle was the place to be today I got a sweater, a hoodie and sweatpants, undershirts and a top. Hubby got a pair of jeans, two button up shirts and a long sleeve t-shirt. Kay I thought of Kaycee when I learned that American Eagle now offers a 10% discount with military I.D. :) It felt strange to spend so much money on ourselves, but we both needed some new things for fall/winter.

I am enjoying my new Fast Track book, I really like that Jorge takes more time to explain things in this book. One of the features I like is the highlighted boxes where he gives the definition of key words, very similar to vocab words in school (very helpful). In my opinion Chapter 3 Ensuring your success: is the best chapter in the book. In this chapter Jorge discusses fiber and probiotics. His description of dysbacteriosis, a condition in which our bowels lose our healthy bacteria was something that I had not heard before. Even if you don't chose to do FT I recommend reading this chapter what he has to say about fiber, gut flora and probiotics is amazing and life changing. I truly mean life changing, I come from a family of GI issues my Dad's Mom had colon cancer and my Dad has his own GI issues and my Mom has diverticulitis. I am hoping that my folks will find this chapter informative and helpful, I love my parents and I want them to live long healthy lives.

Well, I guess that is all for now. I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend...whatever you do make good choices :)

Just wanted to touch base

Hello friends, what a week TGIF. Hubby and I are adjusting to his new school schedule. We don't watch tv in the evenings anymore on school nights so hubby can study, I am amazed at how much free time I have with out it. I need to find something productive to do with myself. :)

The more I read the Fast Track the more I like it. I plan on doing the two week challenge and I hope hubby will join me. It's kinda strange to think about changing things up I really like what we are doing now, but I have a feeling that my system could use a shake up.

Well, I guess that's all for now I just wanted to touch base with y'all. Hubby and I are having a nice Friday, after work we drank some wine and watched the sunset, for dinner we had wraps and nuts and now we are catching up on a little Rescue Me.

A beautiful sunny Wednesday

Hello friends, I hope every one's Wednesday was as beautiful as mine was. Linda, I am so sorry about Wille my heart breaks for you. My parents last dog Abby an eleven year old golden retriever had to be put down while hubby and I were in CA, it's never easy to lose an animal family member.

The wedding was beautiful and I am grateful that hubby and I chose to go instead of my reunion. It baffles me that people wear ball caps and jeans to weddings these days, when did we become such a casual society that we dress up for nothing? I did pretty good food wise for the weekend and I only had several bites of cake, although I had more than two glasses of wine...bad me. We had a great time, hubby even danced with me even though he didn't want to because he was our driver and did not have any beer or wine. We stayed at a beautiful B&B although we didn't get to spend very much time there, it would have been nice to stay an extra day.

I got the Fast Track last night on our kindle and started reading it today. It was my first time using the kindle and it felt kinda weird, I kinda wish I had a regular book. I looked for one when I went out to do some grocery shopping but Walmart only had a Fast Track, Tracker combo pack and I already have a Tracker (even though I never use it) I guess I need to give the kindle more of a chance. I am thinking of trying the FT after I read more about it. In a way it feels kinda strange because it is different from the bfc.

Well, I should go start dinner I've had the day off and it would be nice to eat when hubby gets home. Today was his first day of school, life is changing in the McCoy household. :)

Hello everyone, I have to say I really enjoyed Kay's "confession time" and Dawn's "why is that" posts. I love our little blog community, I love hearing how you all are doing in your personal lives your success's and stumbling blocks. Sticking to our low sugar/better carb diet/lifestyle is hard especially when there are so many yummy things to eat.

I believe that diet soda is terrible and even if it helps with weight loss and maintenance everyone should stay away from it. My biggest reason for saying that is that diet soda consumption is linked to depression, which is such a serious thing and should not be taken lightly. Plus all the stuff Jorge says about why we should avoid fake sugar. From a vanity point diet soda can cause hair to thin.

I agree with Kay I hate how the posts are getting farther and farther apart. I wonder if it is because a lot of bloggers feel that if they don't have positive sunshine and roses like things to say about the bfc and how they are doing no one will care. I admit I have felt this way sometimes, as if I need to toe some kinda line to be able to share.

On the meatless front I think it's good to have several healthy bfc meatless meals on hand. I wish Jorge talked more about how to do a vegetarian version of the bfc in the book. He addressed being veg in the Q & A section of the book, but most of the recipes and meal plans rely on meat.

I guess that is all for now, today is our friends wedding and I need to start getting my stuff together to go out of town. Have a wonderful day friends :)

Hump Day

Hello friends, happy hump day! Life is good and I am feeling pretty positive today. I have been taking evening primrose oil and probiotics for around two weeks and my mood and tummy are much better. I weighed myself today at my folks 135.4 the same as last week, but my jeans fit better now than they did a week ago...go figure.

I am doing much better on the bfc, I have learned that little cheats add up to my clothes not fitting the way I want them to, and my tummy being upset.  Since the bfc I am more sensitive to highly processed carbs last week I had several pretzels at work, and boy howdy I paid for it big time.

Do you guys know when the fast track is available in the bookstores? I am considering doing the fast track to help get me down to 130, I don't know I just want to lose a little more fat in my tummy. I can really relate to Kay's post the other day, I wonder if I will ever feel satisfied or happy with the way I look. Hang in there friends we can do this :)

Hello friends, it's crazy that it has been ten years since 9-11. My heart is very sad for all the families who lost loved ones and everyone who has health problems due to exposure to all the nasty stuff in the wreckage. I am also very grateful to all the first responders all over the country who are willing to put themselves at risk to help others.

 First of all our college football team the University of Washington won their game against Hawaii on Saturday which is wonderful for me because hubby gets cranky when they lose, I'm sure many of you can relate to that :) We had my in-laws over for dinner last night and it was a big success I even served lemon coconut bread for dessert.  I love how having company over gets us to make our place sparkle, it is so nice in here.

I guess I don't have too much else to say, it's a hot one up here in my neck of the woods. We went to the park this afternoon but it was too hot so we came home and I took a nice nap. Yesterday I got some Adams peanut butter to make Dawn's pb cookies, I was going to make them yesterday for our company but there wasn't enough time after I made the lemon coconut bread. I hope everyone is having a nice relaxing Sunday :)

Beautiful Friday

The chocolate cake was a success, whew!!! Next time I think I might put a little more stevia into the cake and frosting and try using ghiradelli coco powder instead of hershey's. I thought the cake was a little bitter for my taste, but it was a good first go at baking belly friendly goodies. We were going to go out for dinner for my Mom's bday, but she wasn't feeling 100% so we stayed home and had some papa muphy's. Papa murhpy's is a take and bake pizza chain for any who don't have them in your neck of the woods. I had two slices of the deLite (thin crust) and ate the toppings off a regular piece, much better than last time I ate papa murhpy's. Regular crust makes my tummy hurt but apparently the thin is ok.

I was feeling really good yesterday, my tummy didn't hurt and I was regular again. On my afternoon brake I ate two slices of coconut bread with a little peanut butter. I was still feeling snacky so I ate several pretzels and dipped one pretzel in nutella, right away my tummy hurt even after what I thought was a small amount of pretzels and nutella. I felt really frustrated with myself that I did that to my poor tummy, but lesson learned my tummy doesn't tolerate some things very well even in small amounts.

Linda, when I went to Seattle I could not find any of the nature's hollow or other bfc products except clemmy's at Whole Foods. Maybe Trader Joe's would have some of the bfc products you are looking for. I found my nature's hollow in my local health food store on the east side of the state. I'm sorry not to be more helpful, I hope you have a wonderful time in Seattle when you go.

Kay, I don't know why I haven't been blogging so much I feel I am in a bit of a slump. I try to start writing and I often feel I don't have anything worthwhile to say. I will work on being better because I really value our little community and all the support and encouragement I receive. Thank you for checking up on me I really appreciate all my fellow bloggers and readers. I hope everyone has a wonderful Friday. My plan for today is to bust out some chores so it looks nice when hubby gets home, he did that for me last Friday :) and then to get out and enjoy the beautiful day. Big hugs to all my friends :)

Good afternoon friends, Monday I made my second batch of coconut bread and it was much better this time. I used the mini loaf pans and  cooked it for 32 mins instead of 40... yummy. I took two slices to work yesterday with a little natural peanut butter and raspberry natures hollow and it was a perfect morning snack. Monday hubby and I made the chocolate cake from Lauren's healthy indulgences blog for my Mom's bday today. I am really hoping that everyone likes it, I had a little nibble last night and today and it was good...fingers crossed everyone. :)

I have noticed that my mood is better now that my tummy is mostly better and I am regular again. I am hoping that the next time I weigh  myself the scale will be down. I am really loving the chia seeds and shelled hemp nuts pre-bfc I don't think I would have tried them. They are both a good source of fiber and omega-3's which are needed for overall health, especially heart health. One of the biggest reasons hubby and I want to be healthy is to avoid having heart attacks. His Mom and my Dad have both had heart attacks and we both have family histories of heart disease. I think it is important to think about heart health from an early age.

Happy Labor Day

Hello everyone, sorry I haven't been around much I have had a hard time posting this last week. Everything in my life is good I've just been cranky and irritated, it must be hormones and the usual stress. I don't know what is up with my weight but I've been trying to get lots of fiber in. I've also started taking probiotics again and that seems to be helping. I went to pick up some more chia seeds and they were out :( probably because they were on sale, so I picked up some shelled hemp seeds. Which I have been adding to my salads.

"Hemp seed may be one of nature's most perfect foods. With a pleasant nut-like flavor and creamy texture, our hulled hemp seed is a nutritious and delightful addition to cereals, salads and baked goods. Hulled hemp seed is high in Omega-3 and Omega-6 essential fatty acids and an excellent source of protein- containing all of the essential amino acids. "
http://www.bobsredmill.com/hulled-hemp-seed.html#ReviewHeader

Today I am hoping to have a nice relaxing day reading, baking, maybe some shopping. Saturday I went to Boarders to see if there was anything I wanted since they are going out of business and I got Drink This Not That by David Zinczenko and the Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone. Both books have a lot of helpful things to say about sugar and at 60% off I felt they were worth buying.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Labor day, keep it belly good friends :)

Back from our get away

Hello everyone, our mini get away was wonderful. We left early on Saturday and got to Seattle by early afternoon, we went to Pikes Place Market which is so much fun! It seems there is always some fruit and veggies that I have never seen and hubby and I like to try new things. Last time we bought fiddle head ferns, this time we bought garlic spears.  Fiddle heads are the furled fronds of a young fern and have a grassy taste. Garlic spears are the flowery tops of the elephant garlic plant they have a spicy garlic flavor.

Garlic Spears

Fiddle Head Ferns

Now that we back it's time to get a little stricter on the bfc. I haven't been tracking my food or fiber for awhile but it's time to start again, I haven't been very regular and my weight is up 4.4 lbs :( I am going to be super good this week and hopefully the extra weight is just false belly fat and bloat. Well, I guess that's all for now I am working early today so I have to go and make  a belly good breakfast and lunch. I hope everyone has a wonderful belly good Tuesday :)

       

First batch of coconut bread

Good morning everyone, thank you for the encouraging comments yesterday. After venting I went to work and had a great day. My hubby qualifies for finical aid for school but because he applied late we have to pay for school upfront and will get reimbursed, not ideal but better than having to come up with all of it on our own. Anyway, today is Friday whoo hoo!!!! Hubby and I are planning a mini weekend get a way  :)....tomorrow we are going to Seattle to see some Marine Corps friends. In my opinion getting away is getting away even if it's just a "mini" one.

I made a batch of the coconut bread this morning and it taste's kina eggy to me I'm not sure what I think of it yet I followed the recipe that Rosalie put on her blog. I used my 9 x 5 loaf pan, would a different size be better?

Well, I guess that is all for now I need to start getting ready for work. I hope everyone has a WONDERFUL bfc friendly day :)

Fake it till you make it

Good morning everyone, this is my third time trying to write this post I've been cranky all week. I think it's because hubby is going to school in Sept and it's a big change for us. Especially since things are not working out the way we originally thought. Hubby will not be using the GI bill right away at community college because if he uses it now he won't have enough to graduate from a four year school. Anyway I'm sure things will be fine it's just a little stressful for us as we figure it all out. Money = stress

Yesterday I watched some of Rosalie, Amber and Jorge's youtube videos, I was feeling down before work and I needed a boost. I felt pretty inspired and if hubby and I can find our video camera I think I might make a video of my own. I have also been thinking about trying the Fast Track when it comes out in Sept, I am very interested in what he has to say. I remember when Helen was still a part of our community she loved it and was very glad that she had taken the class.

Well, I guess that's all for now I have to get ready for work. I hope everyone is having a great day, if you are cranky and a little stressed like me just fake having a good day until you make it...fake it till you make it LOL.

Papa Murphys makes my tummy hurt :(

Good morning everyone, thanks for the nice comments yesterday you guys have been key to helping me stay with the bfc and have helped me to learn to be kinder to myself. I have been finding more bfc products lately which excites me, I really believe that a lower sugar diet is better for everyone. Yesterday hubby and I stopped by the grocery store to pick up some things for my sis-in law on our way over to hang out, they are re-modelling the store so we had to go all over to find what we were looking for. We were walking down the condiment aisle and I saw natures hollow jam and I got excited to see it in the regular grocery store next to all the other jams, and then I saw the natures hollow honey and I got even more excited. I have been looking for the honey to make hubby some granola. The recipe I have calls for 1/4 c honey and 1/4c butter to the oats, and I have wanted to try it with the natures hollow honey.

Yesterday we picked up some Papa Murphy's for dinner with sis in law, we got a vegetarian and a deLite. I had one slice of the veg, picked the toppings off the second, and had a small slice of the deLite. Not long after that my tummy hurt, and was bloated :( I thought I could have a little and be ok but apparently not. The pizza also made hubby's tummy hurt. I guess I can add that to the list of things I don't plan to eat again even in small amounts. Hubby's family fries their corn tortillas for tacos (hubby and I never have) but a couple of weeks ago my mother in law made them as a special treat, we hadn't had them in two years, that made both our tummies hurt. It is amazing that when you make some changes like eating lower sugar and better carbs that when I eat bad carbs I feel that my body is rejecting them.

I love the bfc, I feel great and I think this is a realistic lifestyle. Hubby and I went to the lake for the day and took ezekiel bread sandwiches with chicken, cheddar, basil and a slice of heirloom tomato...delish, we also shared a peach. I felt great in my bathing suit and didn't even wear my little board shorts as a cover up. I have not felt this good about myself in YEARS!!!  I hope everyone is having a wonderful belly friendly weekend :)

Chia and Clemmy's

Hello everyone, things are much better now that I am back on track. It's amazing what a difference low sugar/ better carb and enough fiber makes, my jeans fit the way I want them to again and I feel better. A bite here and there and "I'll just have a little because I never eat it" really adds up. We had dinner with my folks last night and 132.4 which is amazing since I wasn't very good for  a week. I was hoping to get down to 130 during the 30 day challenge, but right now I am just happy that I didn't gain weight.

The chia seeds and chia fiber have helped so much. I love the whole chia seeds, I have made the chia seed pudding by mixing 1/4c chia seeds, 1c almond milk and a packet of truvia. I prefer to let it sit until it thickens instead of letting it sit in the fridge all night as some recipes suggested. It has a strange texture but I like it and it is a nice change of pace. (and it helps get rid of false belly fat) I have also started adding  the seeds  to one of my favorite afternoon snacks, 1/2c Greek yogurt, chopped celery, cucumber, tomato, and a dash of garlic salt. It is a refreshing filling afternoon snack that I often have around 3 at work.

 Hubby and I love clemmy's snack size ice cream-os I found on sale at Huckleberry's one of our local health food stores. I am so happy that they started carrying clemmys, when I first started the bfc the only place that carried clemmy's was Whole Foods and there are no Whole Foods in my neck of the woods. One ice cream-o  contains O sugar and 12g carb and the box contains 12.

I have been thinking about what Dawn said in her Thursday post titled "the bad d word". I do not think of the bfc as a diet I think of it as a lifestyle. I tell people I am doing a low sugar/better carb thing, I have a hard time truly explaining the bfc to others. While camping I started writing down how I would explain the bfc when I finish it I will share it. I want to be able to share the bfc in a way that is not preachy. I am very sensitive to a preachy condescending tone and I think that is accomplishes nothing.

Well, I guess that's all for now. You guys are awesome and I truly value and appreciate all of you. I hope everyone is having a wonderful Saturday :)

I was a little naughty, but I'm back on the wagon now

Hello everyone, I've been a little naughty and my jeans are letting me know it :( I think it all started last Tuesday with a family bbq for hubby's grandma visiting from CA. I had some beans even though they were high in sugar, some fruit and some of the dessert (popcorn topped with chocolate and kiddie cereal) even though it wasn't very good and super high in sugar. I don't know what I was thinking...it's as if I thought I could have a little of everything and I would be fine. The rest of the week I ate fruit, beer and Saturday hubby and I indulged in tequila and light coronas. It seems I never fully got back on the wagon after cheating on Tuesday and what I think did me in was portion control and by that I mean drinking more than two beers several days in a row. Anyway I have come to terms with my week long slip up and I am back on the wagon. I am more aware of portion size and the number of servings. I know I need to make sure to drink less beer, it was just so easy because it was in the house and a cold beer is so nice when it is hot....but that's not a good excuse I have learned in the past six months that I can drink a little wine, but I should only drink beer once in a while.

After work today I went to the store to get some fiber I have been having problems since Friday when I ate several slices of pizza at Chuckie Cheeses with the fam. I got chia fiber and seeds on sale, chocolate clemmy's ice cream and the snack size clemmy o's also on sale :) :) :) And things just got better when I saw that they had started carrying natures hollow....whoo hooo!!!! I am excited to be back on the wagon with all the exciting loot I found and most of it was on sale.

Thank you everyone for such nice comments you guys rock!!!! I hope everyone has a wonderful Wednesday, and if you have cheated like I did nip it in the bud and get back on the wagon :)

Friday

Hello everyone, what a great Friday!!! I had the day off and I cleaned my kitchen and bathroom. Hubby and I met up with my cousin Mark and his family and  had a great time at Chuckee Cheese's, I used to love going there as a kid and it was fun to be there with family. I am also excited to see my cousin Jenny her kids and my aunt and uncle (who we were going to go camping with last week but we were unable to because they had an accident) when they come for a visit in 2 weeks. I am feeling much better about my decision to go to the wedding instead of my reunion and I put my rsvp in the mail today. Thank you for the advice about the wedding I am glad I made the decision to go.

Well I guess that is all for now, I hope everyone had a wonderful Friday. I also got to play with a golden doodle puppy today her name is Ellie and she is super cute, although I forgot how they have such sharp teeth. Life is good, and I feel more comfortable in my skin now that I am doing the bfc and have lost around 15 lbs. :)

Bittersweet

Hello friends, I have really been enjoying the blogs tonight I especially enjoy it when there are personal pictures involved it makes me feel like I understand a little more about my fellow bloggers. In my opinion camping is a rather acquired taste, while I am camping I always miss taking showers which are one of my favorite things to do, but if you are by a water source that helps. My folks and my in laws both have truck campers and on the third day my Mom helped me wash my hair which felt amazing. Hubby and I both grew up camping which makes things easy. Hubby and I met five years ago after he had graduated from the School of Infantry at Camp Pendleton he was home on leave, he was hanging out with a mutual friend and she invited me to come hang out on his parents deck and have a beer, well long story short hubby's parents and my folks both had the same truck camper and that broke the ice :)

Kay, I do like the St. Joseph's cookies everything in the pic I bought at the commissary along with my Ezekiel bread and smart and delicious tortillas, you should check it out with your daughter I am sure a lot of the products you like are better prices especially the chips. The St. Joseph's cookies are in the "health food aisle" they only carry the pecan shortbread and chocolate chip cookie. I personally like the pecan ones better because they are soft, but hubby likes both.

Anyway, I guess that is all for now. I am feeling bummed because I have to rsvp to a wedding that is at the same time as my 10 yr HS reunion :( The wedding is out of town and is for a family friend who I have known my whole life and is more like a cousin to me. I was talking to my Mom tonight to see if it was realistic to go to my reunion and then drive out for the wedding reception...she told me what I already know which is I can't do both. AHHHH it is a bittersweet moment and I am feeling frustrated. Well, I guess that is really all for now, sometimes life just sucks. I hope everyone has a wonderful day tomorrow :)

Back from camping

Belly Good Camping Snacks

Hello everyone it's been a busy several days since we got home from camping on Sunday. We had a wonderful time, the weather was perfect to be camping by a river, we spent our days rafting or playing down by the water. We had a disappointing change in plans, my aunt, uncle and cousins were in an accident on the way over no one was hurt, but their truck and trailer was damaged so they were not able to come :( So we invited my in laws and we had a wonderful time with them.

Camping food was great, for breakfast one day we had Rudi's English muffin sandwiches with turkey sausage patties, cheese and eggs. Hubby and I had tacos on smart and delicious tortillas, and instead of having pancakes I had and Ezekiel bread breakfast sandwich. We also snacked a lot on mission tortilla chips and spinach artichoke dip and jalapeno artichoke dip from costco that our folks brought super yummy!!!

Life is good back on the ole home front, it's been fun catching up with what everyone is up to on their blogs. I am excited to see Sherri and Lindsay back!!! This little blog community is pretty amazing. I hope everyone had a wonderful hump day Wednesday! :)

Enjoying a beer on the river :)

Going camping today

Good morning everyone and thank you for the nice comments yesterday!!!! Yes my jeans are 7's we bought them Jan 2010 at costco and they have been sitting in my closet ever since. I love them and it feels amazing to finally fit into them. Now that my belly is smaller I wonder if I can ever get it flat, I've never had a flat tummy I've always had a poochie. I plan on keeping up the bfc and exercise and I will see what happens.

I am excited to go camping today but I hate packing, I hope I can get all my crap together before hubby wants to leave this morning. I didn't get around to making the marshmallows for this trip, I just kinda took on to much and ran out of time :) Anyway I have to go I have lots to do this morning. I will miss you all very much I love checking in with everyone and reading all the blogs. I hope everyone has a great week :)

Getting ready for a BFC camping trip/ progress pics

Hello everyone, can you believe it is August? It is finally hot here and it feels and smells like summer  AHHHH :) Hubby and I are getting ready to go camping  on Wednesday with the fam and we are very excited. We bought a tent yesterday at Walmart ( hubby had one but it was from the Marine Corps and it was small). Anyway, we got the smaller smart and delicious tortillas at the commissary I'm sorry that doesn't seem very helpful. When you enlist for for years you sign a eight year contract, four years active duty and four inactive reserve. While in the inactive reserve you get commissary privileges, so that's how hubby and I got our small smart and delicious tortillas on base.

Hubby took some progress pics of me on Sunday in the park across from our apt. I have never worn the jeans I am wearing because they never fit, and I am happy to say that they just need to be hemmed now(WHOO HOO). I feel good about myself and I am glad that I have taken progress pics along the  way,  although I wish I had taken some when I first started sometime in January, well hindsight is always 20/20. Anyway I guess that is all for now I took a some pics of the bfc snackiety food I bought and I will post them soon. In the meantime I think you guys are awesome and it makes me feel good that I have so many nice people who read my blog. Big hugs to everyone!!! :)