No Processed Foods

This week, I started my first New Year's Resolution. In an attempt to eat healthier and make a lifestyle change instead of going on a diet, I decided to give up on processed foods. In theory, this wouldn't be so difficult since we don't eat boxed dinners, with the exception of a frozen pizza twice a month and veggie chicken nuggets for lunch every now and then.

Since I've been home, instead of at a job, I have found myself eating canned soup, chips, crackers, and boxed meals for lunch. I don't eat breakfast and then grab whatever is closest and closely related to food for lunch. I was drinking more soda and more coffee. I wanted to this to stop. Committing to not eating processed foods seemed like the right solution.

Here are the challenges I've faced so far:

• Everything is processed. Cheese, sour cream, ground turkey meat. So, even the foods I rely on, that I didn't consider processed, actually are.
• There is nothing to replace chocolate.
• There is nothing to replace red wine.
• I'm using more butter since it's processed but closer to natural than other oils.
• I love chips and am not sure that buttery, salty popcorn is any better. I'm assuming it is since I'm popping it in my popper and adding my own salt and butter. But still, am I just playing games with myself?
• It's difficult to eat salad without dressing.

Here are this past week's accomplishments:

• I roasted a whole chicken and we used all of the meat. For an after school snack, my kids ate chicken instead of junk.
• My daughters have had homemade oatmeal with bananas and brown sugar instead of boxed cereal for breakfast. Score!
• I made bean soup for dinner and we all liked it. This indeed is an accomplishment since I have a history of being a terrible cook.
• I made my own marinara sauce (from canned tomatoes - processed, right?).
• My daughter and I snacked on boiled eggs instead of junk.
• I'm eating more fruits, veggies, and protein.
• I'm drinking more water since I'm not drinking soda and I've put juice in the processed category.
• I'm enjoying it! I don't feel guilty at the end of the day, even if I did indulge in a handful of chips or a spoonful of ice cream. These small indulgences happen only once a day and are less than a serving.

What I ate/made for breakfasts

• Banana and brown sugar oatmeal
• Turkey kielbasa with scrambled eggs (I realize how processed kielbasa is but I had it in the fridge and wasn't going to throw it out to prove a point to myself)

What I ate/made for dinners and lunches

• Roasted chicken
• Bean soup with Italian sausage and roasted chicken
• Sweet potatoes (instead of pasta) with homemade marinara
• Boild eggs
• Celery with peanut butter (pb-where do I draw the line on processed? -this is my biggest hurdle)
• Cabbage rolls are coming this weekend. Can't wait!!

I may post some recipes. Two of things I made this week were pretty good and would be worth re-making.

Next hurdles

• Where do I draw the line on "processed?"
• Making my own dressings. Is there a way to have your mayo and eat it too?
• New recipes for breakfast
• New recipes for snacks. I'm a salty, crunchy craver but need some sugar every now and then.
• Exercise??

Paint Colors

Two months ago, I bought a red couch from a friend. I have loved this couch since she bought it. When she moved to a boat and sold all her furniture, it's what I wanted. The red couch.

Careful what you wish for. Isn't that what we always hear? I love the couch. Still do. It doesn't fit in my living room and I have no idea how to choose paint colors because of it but I still love this couch. The red is deep and and dark. The fabric is soft. The shape is unique. And, it's protected under the manufacturers warranty for two more years.

But what colors do you choose for a red couch? Our living room space is open with the dining room and kitchen all in one long rectangular shape. The long wall of the rectangle is south facing and is drenched in light, even when it's raining. Where I live, it's always raining. So, there are beiges (boring), greens (tricky), and golds (?? maybe). I chose Thunderous as an accent and Sandstorm as my main walls (colors from Sherwin Williams) but no one likes the Thunderous.

This is where all of my insercurities come to play. Should I change the Thunderous? I love the colors, but I'm not sure if I love them together. Can I work them together in other ways. I don't know. I hate decorating. This is a big area where I've never had confidence. Decorating myself or my home. I have no fashion sense. I can't pull it together so things always look OK not polished. I want a cozy, polished look that makes you want to sit down and talk or read a book or take a nap. Like a library.

But how do I get there?

Same Me but Different Life

It's been three years I've written a post here. Three years ago, my two daughters were five and one. I had been married only two years. Three years ago, I had been out of school for two years and was a Project Manager. I was aspiring to grow in my career and have wonderful things in my life.

Today, my marriage is five years old. My children are eight and four. I'm currently unemployed and am aspiring for happiness. In my daily life I make breakfast for my girls, run them to school, chat with other moms, clean my house, work in my yard, search for a job, and bring my girls home from school. Everyday, I see my parents. Several times a week I see my sister. I've spent time with my aunts and uncles. I even made a pot roast dinner for the first time. Never in my life have I been so gloriously happy.

And yet, nagging underneath the surface, there is an incredibly annoying fear about not having enough. Will my girls have enough stuff, will we have enough vacations, will there be enough left over to decorate my house? The list is long and the fear makes me stale. I don't want to be afraid, I want to live and thoroughly enjoy this happy time.

My husband is giving and hardworking. We are in a young, happy marriage. My children are still young and want me around. My parents are still young and enjoying life. These truly are the best years of my life. How can I get the nagging desire to accumulate to dull roar? God has blessed us and without fear, I should accept His blessings. Lord, please show me how.

Going Green-er

Since I was a child, recycling and using less has been a part of my life. The city I grew up in had recycling cans since the early 1980's. My mother always told us to turn off the water, shut off the lights, not to waste paper, and not to waste food. She has always been about conservation and for me, it's always stuck.

While I've always done what I can to live conservatively (at least in the sense of waste), I want to do more. So, I'm going to chronical what we're doing, what I read and hear about doing a bit more, and any progress we've made. Here's what we do now.

1) Recycle paper, plastic, glass, aluminum
2) Use a manual push mower
3) Use minimum lights in the house
4) Have installed 2 flourescent light bulbs
5) Try to use rags and towels instead of paper towels (when we remember; I'm knitting some now)
6) Use organic fruits and vegetables
7) Try to not buy plastic packaging when other options are available
8) Reduced our meat consumption by no longer eating beef and eating vegetarian twice a week
9) Use old t-shirts as cleaning rags
10) Try to not use plastic disposable zipper bags when other non-disposable containers are available

It's a good list. But, we want more. Well, we want to use less and conserve more. Let's see what we can do.

plants and progress

I just talked with some co-workers about plant possibilities in my front yard. I love other minds. They're so much more useful than mine sometimes. Their ideas. Do some potted edibles like cherry tomatoes and strawberries. Plant in ground some heather, rosemary, pansies and peas. I love having a starting point. Another lady suggested thyme. I want things that are edible, beautiful and ready to take a beating from the sun.

Taking out the rose bushes has proven more difficult than I first imagined. First of all, the thorns. drr. You'd think this would be a no-brainer but they're pretty hard to work around. Then, the roots. Those things are thick and run deep into the ground. Lastly, the disposal. Garden trash. Am I not allowed to put it in the garbage? I do it anyway. Where else am I supposed to put it?

So, house renovations have begun. After a busy weekend, I cleaned out our "office" and am left with only a couple boxes of miscellaneous stuff. I'm concurrently working on these goals:

1) Clean out the basement
2) Redecorate the bathrooom upstairs
3) Revitalize our front yard with new plants and better grass
4) Declutter the house

#1 and #4 are my favorite. I love throwing stuff out. I love not having stuff stored up or stacked up.

What I really really need to work on is a great working file system. I threw out a bunch of old paper work that I didn't need. Now, I just need to organize a filing system to put in the current year's stuff. There was a website somewhere about how to file your bills, statements, and receipts. They had a great logical way of organizing different things into one cohesive system. Oh, it was great. But, I can't find it.

Then, there's this store across from my work with the most beautiful filing materials. I want them. Oh, I want them so bad. But, that's for another day.

Ah ha-I found it. It was something I read on Oprah. Make Money, Not Excuses. Amusingly enough, I found it in my favorites. Sometimes, I'm more organized than I think.

And that 2nd tooth is out

Just one day past a week, B's lost her second tooth! She just called me so excited and said thank you for the pillow case I made her. She said I'm such a nice mom. It's always nice hear that. She said she can't wait to see what the Toothfairy's going to bring her. This time Grandma pulled out the tooth. Last time, she did it by herself in the bathroom. She's so bold!

Dealing with the tooth fairy

B was so excited to have lost her first tooth. She couldn't stop talking about it. It was very cute. At bed time, we got out the pillow case I embroidered for her and put her tooth in it. She was very careful in the way she carried to it ensure it didn't fall out as we climbed the stairs. She asked me how much money the fairy was going to leave her. She said she hoped it would be $10. Ha! The tooth fairy doesn't have Santa's funds. I told her when I was a kid, I only got a quarter so it probably wouldn't be as much as $10. She said, "well, that's because your teeth are kind of yellow and fairies don't like yellow teeth." Well, ok. True.

So, this morning she woke so excited she could hardly contain herself. She got $1 and a little purple bracelet. Over the past week, she's gotten shoes, tights, a dress, and a bracelet. She won't wear any of them until Easter. She wants them to look nice. Instead, she wears her dirty red shoes with the holes in the toes, just waiting for Easter. This morning she said she was the luckiest kid in the whole world. I think we're the luckiest parents in the whole world. She actually shows appreciation for the things she has and is always grateful when given something new. She's such a rare gem.

On Sunday, we went shoppping to Toys R Us, with her hard earned money. We went through the entire store searching for what she wanted to buy with her own money. It was cute. Of course. Everything is cute. But, she searched and compared things, and finally settled on the one thing she wanted for her $10. The problem is, the thing she picked out didn't have a price tag and I knew it was more like $15. But when I was searching for the price and she stood there with her hands clasped to her chest and said, "Oh, I hope it's only $10. I can feel the hope growing inside me," I lied. I told her it was $10 threw in some plastic Easter eggs to mask the price difference and she bought her first toy with her own money. She was very proud of herself. Some for tithe, some savings, some for fun. She's digging this.