Tuesday Menu

slow cooker oatmeal - 4
salmon - 7
mashed yams - 2
oatmeal - 3
veggies and dip - 2
apple - 1
turkey sausage - 4
scrambled eggwhite w cheese - 3
toast - 2
apple crisp - 4

I went over my points by four today... the piece of salmon is so high in calories, but so good for me so I dont feel that bad. The apple crisp was homemade using the topping from the ESBM cookbook so not too bad.

Monday Menu

apple -1
pear - 1
carrot sticks - 0
dip - 2
whole wheat pasta - 4
tomato mushroom sauce - 1
fat free pudding - 2
salmon filet - 9
roast potatos - 3
veggies - 0
dip - 2
banana - 2
peanut butter - 2

Good day today.. I resisted the candy drawer at work and stayed to the meal plan I had set out for the day. I'll be back tomorrow.

For Keeps This Time!!

For the past few months I have been stopping and starting and stumbling and starting and stopping doing all the things I know how to do to take of this last 40 pounds. I have been doing all the things I promised my self I wouldn't. I haven't tracked my food, I stopped measuring and weighing portions, I stopped a regular exercise routine and somehow I decided that I did not have to say no to all the 'special' treats that appear in my life on a regular basis. For the past week I have been feeling my desire come back. I want to feel the rush after a great workout, I want to see the scale go down, I want to feel like my will power is strong and completely within my control. So here I am, confessing my 'sins' and getting ready to start over with a clean slate and forgiving myself for breaking the promises I made myself.

Ok, enough self-flogging! Actually, the damage could be far far worse than it is. I have not gained any weight in the past month and am only 10 pounds higher than my lowest weight (June) so I am going to stop this madness before it becomes 20-30-50-70 pounds. I am not going to ease myself back into it.. starting tomorrow I will track every bite-lick-taste on WW.ca and stay within my points. I will measure and weigh my food, I will drink 2L of water and I will get at least 30 minutes of exercise 4-7 times a week. This plan guarantees me the success I have seen in the past and I DO NOT want to finish this year weighing more than I did at the end of last year.

I truly believe that the only reason I have not gained more weight back in the past months has been my commitment to clean eating whenever possible. I have not been exercising or watching my portions but I have been cooking at home about 80% all natural 'clean' food. I did continue taking pictures of some of my favourite meals so I will post them over the next while. I have been rereading my blog from the start, trying to recapture the excitement of when I was finding this weightloss/life style change so enjoyable and dare I say easy. I was finding myself inspired my my own success. My mind is now full of all the tips and tricks I learned while losing 65 pounds and I wrote down all the successful recipes I made over the past 22 months from various magazines, websites - so often I make things once, enjoy them but don't ever make them again. I love trying new recipes but I am going to pull some old favourites for a rerun.

Here are a couple of new ones we have tried. The first is Salmon Patties from the latest 'Clean Eating Magazine'. I used the salmon I canned this summer (and DH caught himself) and they were delicious. The fruit sauce is made from blackberry preserves from bushes on my in laws property and the squash is from my organic veggie delivery. This is exactly the type of meal we try to have most of the time. Local, fresh and non-processed. Although my progress has stalled I am so proud of the complete change we have made in the things we put into our bodies.

The next picture is a recipe my fabulous cook of a husband found online and whipped up from some salmon that we candied in our little smoker. This was so so so good, the veggies we fresh, the salmon had come out of the smoker only the day before and served with vermicelli it was a really filling lunch (I had seconds!! - still need to work on the portion control!)

Here is the link to the video in case anyone is interested in the recipe.

I will be back tomorrow!! I hope I still have some readers... I need the support!!

I would like to thank the academy....

Thanks Natasha for this blog award! Instructions are to copy these 35 questions and fill them in with the answers that suit you then pass it on to 6 favorite bloggers (notify them that you've given them an award!)

35 Questions:

1)Where is your cell phone? - plugged in on the bathroom counter

2)Your hair? -dyed

3)Your mother?- fun

4)Your father?- smart

5)Your favorite food?-spicy

6)Your dream last night?-forgotten

7)Your favorite drink?-milkshake from Peter's in Calgary

8)Your dream/goal?-to be a mom

9)What room are you in?- living room

10)Your hobby? bike riding, cooking

11)Your fear? car accidents

12)Where do you want to be in 6 years? still living here!

13)Where were you last night?-at home canning salsa

14)Something that you aren't?-negative

15)Muffins?-not worth the calories

16)Wish list item?-No debt

17)Where did you grow up? Vancouver Island

18)Last thing you did? put in a load of laundry

19)What are you wearing?-cotton dress

20)Your t.v.?-small

21)Your pets?- adored

22)Friends?- cherished

23)Your life? stabalizing

24)Your mood?content

25)Missing someone? hubby

26)Vehicle? little cute grey

27)Something your not wearing? Socks/shoes

28)Your favorite store? William Sonoma

29)Favorite color? Orange

30)Last time you laughed? today at work

31)Last time you cried? Tonight watching Biggest Loser

32)Best friend? Patrick/Darla

33)One place that I go to over and over? my sister's house

34)One person who emails me regularly? Dana, Hubby

35)Favorite place to eat? my dining room when DH is cooking

Seven people I will pass this on to:

Janet

Dancing Sweetpea

Julie

TJ

Seashore

Catching Up

This post is long overdue, but I will cram in all of the things I have been busy with while neglecting my blog. I am continuing to can all of the deliciousness my garden has produced.. over the past two days I have made salsa with the last of my tomatoes (and all the green ones) as the weather is about to turn cold and wet here in the next few days. I did this with a friend and we put up 44 pints of yummy spicy salsa!

Hubby has been busy fishing and I have really been enjoying accompanying him on these trips.. I love sitting on the shore with a book, jumping up to help him when he reels one in. It it spawning time so he harvested the eggs from the last two catches and cured the roe to make bait (I did not help with this - yuck! but am happy that the eggs were not wasted)

We borrowed my Dad's smoker and smoked a ton of salmon that we will enjoy this holiday season as well as give for gifts. It is a time consuming but relatively easy process.
I felt that the Fall weather meant it was time for a new look... here is the darker and shorter haired me:
In my constant search of ways to keep myself interested in exercise and to spend some quality time with my sister we joined a curling team. I curled as a kid (20 years ago!!!) and we are having a blast playing in a weekly mixed league - suprisingly all that sweeping is a pretty good workout.

I have been LOVING my organic veggie delivery. Here is a glimpse of last weeks bin... fresh delicious local fruits and veggies.. mmmmmmmm

still here

will hopefully post a long entry soon... just been really busy.. still struggling but never giving up!!

Mixed bag of updates

Another picture collage from my evening walk.

This has been a pretty good week. I only lost .4 at my WI but thats ok, a loss is a loss. The most important thing is that I am still feeling back in control. I went to the gym three times this week including a great yoga class on Tuesday night. My canning is still going well. A girlfriend and I are doing a bunch more this week so the pantry will be full soon.

I signed up for this great organic produce delivery service www.sunshineorganics.ca They deliver a bin of fresh, organic (mostly local) produce right to your door. I am excited about getting inspiration from these great fruits and veggies and love the idea of less trips to the grocery store (and less temptation). Eating fresh, non-processed, chemically free food has become really important to me over the past year. The effect on my mood, energy level, sleep patterns, skin and hair is amazing - not to mention the obvious weightloss benefits. It is not cheap to eat this way so I am trying to be smarter about my shopping - buying in bulk and then canning/freezing for easy use later. I would like to go to the grocery store only once a week at the most - that will hopefully cut down on the convenience foods and treats that inevitably make their way into the cart. Stay tuned for a picture when my veggies arrive!

DH has been taking advantage of the last few weeks of great salmon fishing in our area. We have tons in the freezer and enough cans to last us through the winter but we went out again today to catch a fresh one for dinner. Here is my big fisherman doing his thing and me and my favourite girl hanging out on the shore.