New Food Week 1

It was a very interesting week, foodwise.

So, the first day of my plan went perfectly.  I had my two snacks, my three meals, lots of water, nothing else.  Day two I got HUNGRY.  Day three I was bummed I hadn't stuck to the plan 100% on day two.  Day four was my birthday (how can I say no to cake on my birthday?).  Days 5,6, and 7 were better, but none were perfect.

In short, this plan was way too extreme for me.
I'll admit I was a bit bummed.  I was envisioning me eating my 800 vegetarian calories a day and feeling great and looking amazing.  But this weekend I revamped (again) and realized that I learned so much in this short week of trying out an extreme detox.  So I'm taking that and moving forward.

1. I need a plan.
I LOVED having a plan for each meal, especially lunch and breakfast.  I need that.  Or I fall into my bad habit of not eating breakfast (because I'm too busy in the mornings) eating whatever I make the kids for lunch (my adult body cannot handle sandwiches and hearty soups every day) eating too much dinner and post dinner snacks because I didn't eat enough throughout the rest of the day.  Wine most nights because, well, it's delicious.
A plan is good.

2. I LOVE lots of vegetarian food.
My body doesn't crave too much meat.  I hardly missed it at all. I found a few new dishes that were amazing and totally filling that will become staples for me.

Baked sweet potato with caramelized onions and sautéed greens

So good and so easy.  Bake a sweet potato (or 5 so you can have them ready all week, and for when your kids want to steal your lunch because it's so good and pretty).  Carmelize an onion, add your favorite greens and cook until they wilt.  Add a pinch of salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon.  I also added a dash of my favorite herbed vinegar.  Top the hot sweet potato with the greens and onions.  Enjoy.

Moosewood Vegetarian Chili
chili with basil, cumin, chili powder, LOTS of garlic, bulgur cooked in tomato juice and red kidney beans, so good even Ian had a bowl for lunch this weekend.

3. Onward and Upward.
This new adult body of mine needs less food and more exercise.  I realized something had switched when just three years ago after Louise was born I was back to a normal weight within 6 months of giving birth and with Felix I'm still 10 lbs away 10 months later.  My body needs EXERCISE and this winter has been so hard for that.  So I'm sucking it up and committing to my new favorite workout tapes in rotation until it warms up/thaws enough for me to run again outside.  No more 20 minute workouts, these are the real deal and they take up most of my precious preschool time, but I need it and am feeling so much better.

Kristi Yamaguchi burn workout
Erin Obrien strong body workout
And on my super lazy/really hurting from the hard workouts days 10 Minute Pilates

So like a good student I'm trying to combine what I've learned and keep this plan evolving.  I'm excited about this week.

Meal Plan...

Breakfast::
Think Thin protein bar ( I know I know, but it's better than nothing)
banana and peanut butter
oatmeal with pecans and berries (NO sweet milk or sugar...bummer)
mixed berry and green juice smoothies

Lunch::
baked sweet potato with caramelized onions and greens
vegetarian chili with a dollop of organic sour cream
veggie burger with fruit

Dinner::
curried spinach and chick peas with naan
bacon, caremlized onion, baby chard frittata
lean ground beef tacos with refried beans, black olives, tomatoes, corn, and lettuce
turkey meatloaf with roasted sweet potatoes and broccoli
shrimp vegetable stir fry

I'm still trying to steer clear of most carbs and meats and excessive dairy.  I did buy a three pack of small dark chocolate bars because no chocolate was pretty brutal last week.

So this week I'm trying to find a forever groove.  I'm not thinking of this as a diet but a new food plan for my adult life.  Putting on that new swimsuit in a month in Florida isn't bad motivation either ;o).

Any good suggestions for filling healthy side dishes to go with veggie burgers?  I'm struggling with that one.
I'll keep you posted!

Catching Up

I finally sat down this morning and put my photos on the computer.  I had almost 200.  Whoops.  I guess it's time to do some catching up.

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day was great this year.  We did lots of fun heart-y crafty things in the weeks leading up to the 14th so the actual day felt pretty low key.  I made the girls each a new t shirt dress, and Felix some new quick change trusters.  I knit Ian an authentic Irish felted hat.  It's so great and ridiculous.  I'm going to make him wear it out before the snow melts.

My mom sent the kids a great Valentine's box with treats and fun new clothes.  We celebrated a day early because Ian took the girls to Minnesota on the 14th.  I made steak and twice baked potatoes for dinner and we had cheesecake with berry sauce for dessert.  It's always fun to indulge a bit on the holidays.  I think the low key holidays are becoming some of my favorites.  There's so little expectation that every little thing we do in celebration seems amazing.  It was a great day!

Mommy Felix Weekend

While Ian took the girls to Minnesota I stayed home with my little guy.  Felix is at such a fun, REALLY tiring age, so the weekend was not nearly as relaxing as I had hoped. He's on the move every second he's awake, a very finicky eater and sleeper.  Good thing he's so dang cute and I love him to tiny bitty pieces.

As you can see we still had lots of fun, and lots of it was food based (can you tell this was the week prior to starting that new food plan? I was in a food zone).  Felix suddenly stopped eating pureed baby food and was refusing anything other than pirates booty so I was determined to figure things out with him.  We went to whole foods first thing on Saturday morning and got some good stuff.
We enjoyed carbonara pasta, hummus and pita and olives and cucumbers, stuffed chicken breasts, good liver sausage and lots of other yumminess.  We got out in the sun, walked to the library and swung at the park.  We played lots on the floor and took a bath both nights.  It was fun to work with just one tiny persons schedule for a change, and fully enjoy those two good naps a day.  I had a wonderful weekend with my tiny guy.

General Fun

In between all the birthday and last minute trip and holiday merry making has been a whole lot of good.  We've settled pretty deep into this cold snowy winter and our days are filled with simple joys and lots of love.

So now we're all caught up I do believe.  I'm so excited for the month of March.  More sun I hope?  Clear(er) sidewalks for more (any!) romps.  Florida at the end of the month.
I'm just soaking it all in today.

Thirty

Thursday was my thirtieth birthday.  Thirty.  30.
It's a bit crazy to me that I'm 30.  I think I'm entering that time of life when I'm always going to feel younger than I am.  I hear that happens.  It's odd and a bit magical.

My birthday was a great day.  Ian got to go in a bit later and come home a tad earlier.  He took the girls to school, I got an afternoon pedicure (where I scarcely talked to the technician at all, eyes closed, massage chair on gentle knead.  It was glorious).  Ian gave me three tiny tanzanites from his family's recent trip to Africa.  One for each of our children.  I get to design a ring with them.  It's really the perfect present.  The girls made me the most adorable cards and picked out my birthday cake from our favorite bakery.  We opened out of town family gifts before sushi dinner.  I felt very spoiled and loved.

One of my favorite moments yesterday was lying on the floor looking through the one photo album I have with pictures of me as a baby and young child.  The girls laid down with me and Felix crawled over.  We all sat turning pages looking at mama as a tiny girl, remarking on similarities between them and me, asking questions about my life. It was so sweet and special.

I'll admit there's been a bit of angst on my part entering into my 30th year.  It feels momentous to say goodbye to my 20s.  A decade that held so much greatness.  College, graduation, marriage, moving, home owning, working, birthing, mothering.  What could my thirties hold that could possibly beat that?  Perhaps not as many milestones and changes (please?!) but surely more settling, into this life I started in my twenties, into myself, who I am as a big grown up girl.

I think I'm really going to like 30.  Thanks for sticking with me.