Tag Archives: healthy eating

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Hard Fought Progress

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I have to tell you this is the hardest I have ever worked in my life to take off weight. Each pound, heck, each ounce, is slow, steady work. I do feel stronger than I did ten weeks ago. I have to make an appointment to see my Doc though. After having high blood pressure for years and being on meds, suddenly my blood pressure is low. I’ll keep checking for a few days just to make sure.

All this work. All these healthy, calorie conscious meals. Taking two walks each day. This is hard work for me. But I am happy being 18 pounds down in my ten weeks on Noom. Is all the work worth it? You betcha!

I have visions of Disneyland Paris dancing in my head. It’s still nearly two years until we hope to visit there. I might have just enough time to take off a few more pounds. 🙂

Meet me at the Kingdom!

Donna

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Disney Dreaming

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Today I received a package in the mail. The return address showed that it was from Pixie Dust Delivery Service! My heart beat a little faster, my pupils dilated, and I let out an involuntary, “Woo hoo!”

A little over a week ago I messaged Amy at Pixie Dust Delivery Service and requested three, new Old Key West Resort things: a magnet, an ornament, and a shirt. (See photos below this blog.)

I really dig the new emphasis on the lighthouse, the palm trees and of course Mickey and Minnie Mouse! It was a real “treat myself” kind of moment and a much needed shot in the arm to my exhausted-from-working-out body.

You see, even though I’m being careful when I take my walks: knees slightly bent, rolling from heel through toes, tucking my pelvis under, staying as relaxed as possible, and above all breathing, breathing, breathing, I am tired! This is hard, sweat inducing, knees aching, ankles and hips protesting work! At my weight and at my age, a simple walk exhausts me.

This package today helps me to refocus, to embrace this new more active lifestyle, to savor healthier food choices. My trip to Disneyland Paris is ever closer to becoming a reality. And I am renewed in my determination to be a healthier me when I get there.

Meet me at the Kingdom.

Donna

P.S. Thank you to http://www.disneyfoodblog.com for the photos! This is my favorite blog, and I check it out every day.

P.P.S. Thank you to Amy of Pixie Dust Delivery Service! I’ve ordered many time from Amy, and she has never let me down. Check her out at http://www.pixiedustdelivery.com.

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Meatless Monday Accomplished

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I managed to have a completely meatless/vegetarian food day yesterday. I’ve done meatless dinners before, but rarely managed a completely meatless day.

Breakfast was Oats Overnight Strawberries & Cream with a banana and water.

Lunch was half a vegetable omelet, a piece of marbled rye toast with butter, a small lettuce salad with Italian dressing, a plum and water.

And dinner was a wonderful surprise. I had N0-Sugar-Added marinara sauce and added sauteed onion, garlic, sweet peppers, and Gardein Meatless Meatballs. I put the sauce over spiralized butternut squash (in place of noodles). And completed my meal with cut fresh veggies, and a piece of rye bread with butter.

The surprise of the entire day was the meatballs. If I hadn’t seen the bag myself, I wouldn’t have known that they weren’t meat. They were perfectly spiced, for my taste, and absolutely textured like meat. Really just so tasty.

Will I have them again? Absolutely!

I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks. Meet me at the Kingdom.

Donna

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Loving Myself

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Nine (9, IX, nueve, yhdeksan, neuf, GAH! single digits) nine days to go in striving to be a healthier me when I meet up with Mickey in WDW.

Here is my renewed mantra:

Eat like you love yourself.

Move like you love yourself.

Speak like you love yourself.

Act like you love yourself.

Thanks to hplyrikz.com on Pintreest!

I have not lived my life this way.  But now I am convinced that I have to love myself, so I can better love those around me.  If I eat, move, speak and act like I love myself, then perhaps I’ll can put my self-destructive ways in the rear view mirror once and for all.

  1. Eat like you love yourself–Healthy, nutritious foods that fuel my body.  Bye-bye sugar and salty treats.  Hello veggies, lean proteins and other complex carbs.
  2. Move like you love yourself–Move my body through space everyday.  And get involved in strength training of some sort.  Bye-bye couch potato.  Hello walking and BodyGym (with special thanks to Marie Osmond).
  3. Speak like you love yourself–This one will takes time.  Bye-bye all negative self talk.  (I’ve been so good at this.)  Hello positive self talk.  No more I can’t.  I am an Ameri-CAN!
  4. Act like you love yourself–this one moves into other areas of my life: spiritual, mental, financial.  I will move toward loving myself in all these areas of my life.  This will take much contemplation and planning.

That’s enough to chew on today.  Meet you at the Kingdom!

Donna

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Making Lemonade from Lemons

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There are only seventeen days until our Old Key West Family Reunion. Seventeen days until I can hug my daughter, son-in-love and granddaughter. How exciting!

I am exhausted tonight:

  1. My increased walking has my muscles sore and tired.
  2. I watched my sweet baby granddaughter today, so I am weary.
  3. I tried a new recipe tonight for dinner, which took way longer than I expected, so that by the time we finally ate, I was super hangry (hungry + angry).
  4. And I am grieving for our dear friend and patron who passed away two days ago.

But here’s the thing:

  1. My muscles are sore, but it’s good sore. They are sore from exercising, instead of sore from being sedentary. Result!
  2. Each minute with Linnie, my baby granddaughter, is precious. It’s exhausting and exhilarating at the same time. I always feel so blessed after my time with this amazing baby!
  3. I tried a new recipe (my assignment from Noom) from Diabetic Living Magazine called Chicken & Wild Rice Casserole. There was a lot of pre-cooking, chopping, measuring, mixing, and finally baking. We ate over an hour later than usual, and by then I was cranky and famished. But dinner was absolutely delicious, and it turns out, well worth the wait. I will make this recipe again and again. It will be perfect for a cold winter’s night.
  4. I am grieving, This recently departed soul gave us so much, including a wonderful place to raise our kids and encouragement for Mike to be the best furniture designer and maker possible. But I am not without hope. “Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”-Romans 5:5

And so I carry on. Meet me at the Kingdom.

Donna

PS: I highly recommend Diabetic Living Magazine. It has been such a help for healthy eating. And Noom is working out very well, too.

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Carrying On

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Hello Dear Readers,

I hope this post finds you healthy and at peace.

In just 5 days I will call Disney and schedule our next trip to Walt Disney World. We hope to go on October 20 of next year. Because we are Disney Vacation Club members, we can call and book our home resort, Old Key West, 11 months in advance. Lord willing and the creek don’t rise, we will have 8 nights and 9 days at Disney: Mike, Emi, James, Ida, Jake, Eliza, Baby Jarvi and me.

This time it won’t be so much about time in the parks, although we will have tickets for 5 days. This time it will be all about the babies. Ida will be 2 & 1/2 and Baby Jarvi will be 8 months old. Dumbo, Prince Charming Carousel, Meeting Mickey, It’s a Small World and splashing in the water fountains will be the focus of our days. Probably just a few hours in the parks and then time at Old Key West.

I take none of this for granted. I know that if we are all there it will truly be a gift from God. I am doing my part to be there. As of this morning, I am 54.4 pounds down since May. I am learning how to eat as a diabetic. Now I just need to start moving more. Please pray that I can and do move more.

May God bless and keep you, dear Readers. Meet you at the Kingdom.

Donna

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Waiting for Weight

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I heard on one of the doctor TV shows last week that a study shows that it is a good idea to weigh yourself every day. Apparently this way you keep honest with yourself about your eating habits and your exercise regime. I think this is a great idea for those who are at or near their healthy weight.

However, for those of us who are big girls (boys), it may not be the very best idea. Case in point, I have been scared straight (no disrespect to the Scared Straight program) by my last visit to my family physician and by my recent diagnosis of diabetes. So a week ago today, I began paying very close attention to the variety of healthy foods that I am eating and especially to the portions of said food. I bought a Fitbit Alta HR which let’s me know by vibrating on my wrist, when I’ve been sitting too long. So to make a long story short (I know, too late. 😉 My habits have changed drastically for the better.

Because I heard that it would be good to weigh myself every day, I did so.  First five day? Down, down, down more than ten pounds, which may give you an idea of how very much I have to lose. News flash: well over 100 pounds to get to a healthy weight.

Yesterday, my weight stayed the same. Today I am up six tenths of a pound. Now my usual reaction to a gain has been to say, “Well, crap, what use is it to even try!” Then I would go to the nearest sweets outlet and gorge on cakes and candies. Since I have been scared straight, that is no longer an option. Now I am faced with a conundrum. Do I keep weighing myself every day, and find a new coping mechanism for dealing with temporary weight gains? Or do I weigh myself less often, weekly or monthly, so I’m not faced with that possible problem daily? I’d really like to check in with friend Wayno. He is a family physician/general practitioner (I don’t know the difference.) I might just have to give him a jingle this week. If I do, I’ll let you know what he thinks. In the meantime, please weigh in (excuse the pun, with a nod to Linda Vallier who tickles us everyday on Facebook with a new pun) with your weighing habits. Every day? Or somewhat less often?

Thank you faithful Readers! It means a lot that you read these.

Donna     PS: Thank you to my son Jake and daughter-in-love Eliza for the iPhone accessories for early Mother’s Day. How fun! A personal fan that connects to my phone, which is gonna be so great in church this summer and a karaoke mic that works with my phone. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! I already sent my daughter Emi and grandbaby Ida a video of me singing Happy Little Working Song from the movie Everlasting. This thing is a blast!

2017 Goals

Being Accountable

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The thing that bothers me about blogs, is that they seem so narcissistic. “This is me. This is what I know. This is what I do. Me, me, me, me, me….blah! I think of that each time I make an entry here. Even I get tired of reading about me, thinking about me, examining me. I am not writing this blog because I NEED an audience. I am writing this blog to keep myself accountable for the choices I am making everyday. Will I really move more? Will I really take control of the portions that I eat? Will I really make better food choices to actually feed my body and not just stuff myself with empty calories? Will I really test my blood glucose every day.  So this is my way of being accountable.

In that vein, let me share that I am having a very good day. Two meals consumed so far, nutritious and appropriately proportioned. Activity? I vacuumed the living room, changed the 4 ink cartridges in the printer, bagged some clothes to give away, worked the cat litter (Ugh!) and I plan to do some laundry today.

Now, why is this still called a Disney blog? Because it is a wonderful motivation for me. We had planned to go and spend four days at Disneyland Paris in the fall of 2018; however for our same amount of DVC (Disney Vacation Club) points, we can spend 8 nights in a Grand Villa at Walt Disney World in Florida. I want to be able to enjoy that time as much as possible. Watching my first grandchild (Ida, sweetest and smartest baby girl!) discover all things Mickey is a very exciting prospect! And sharing that time with the family? The best! I will use some visualization of that reunion when things get tough; it will help me to carry on. It may sound ridiculous, but Old Key West is my “laughing place.” (“Everybody has a laughing place, a laughing place to go-ho-ho.” From the movie Song of the South. Hmmm… no wonder I like Splash Mountain so much.) When I finally get there, I exhale and truly relax.

My latest Disney discovery is a book titled, “the easy guide to your Walt Disney World visit.” I really like it because it is snippets of info, rather than long tomes and epic-sized missives. In the Twitter universe where we want our info fast and short, I find this book very appealing. I highly recommend it; check it out.

Enough for today. Love and peace to you dear readers with prayers for our great country and the world.

Donna

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Shocked Back to Reality (Get Real)

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OK, here’s the deal. I stepped on the scale this morning, and received a huge shock. I have been living in denial…again. My weight has crept back up to an alarming number. I have been making some really lousy choices, and they have caught up with me. I love watching “The Real,” a talk show on the Fox network with a diverse group of young women. They hold each other accountable for “getting and being REAL” everyday.  I am going to GET REAL and hold myself accountable for every bite I take and for every step that I physically take.  I won’t do it to beat myself up; but to consciously make better decisions. I felt so good when I dropped some weight and was eating well and moving more; and I will strive for that again.

I had a doctor’s appointment scheduled for today. Just a routine check-up to get my high blood pressure meds renewed. I called this morning to double check on the time, and they have no record of an appointment for me.  Now I remember very well calling and making an appointment, but my doctor’s office recently moved. I’m just gonna chalk up the mix-up to their move. So I rescheduled. You see, I am prediabetic, so I always have my blood sugar checked when I go in. I have to make these lifestyle changes before I am a full blown diabetic on meds. For now it is controlled with diet and exercise. (How long is that gonna last, if I keep making bad choices?)  So…here I go again.

  1. No more sugar (I am a full blown sugar addict currently out of control) Help me, Jesus! And he will!
  2. Keep my portion sizes down (Aim to quit before I’m stuffed…eat to live, not live to eat)
  3. Lots and lots of veggies (Aim to eat veggies throughout the day, not just at dinner)
  4. Water and more water (Less coffee and more water)
  5. Walking a bit everyday (Even if it’s just back and forth in my porch, or around my house in the AC on high ozone days when my asthma kicks in)

I must admit, Dear Readers, that I am feeling a bit discouraged, but not defeated. As long as I keep do-ing, (To quote Yoda, “Do or do not. There is no try.”), I am not defeated. All prayers and words of encouragement are welcome.

Let me know what’s up in your life. Really, I want to know.  Blessings on you!

Donna

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Reason and Raving

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After much deliberation I have decided to keep the name of my blog as Donna’s Destination Disney.  Here are the reasons why:

  • As a member of the Disney Vacation Club, I plan/hope to get to a Disney destination every three years.  In 2015, I went to Walt Disney World for 8 glorious nights in October. In 2012, I went to Disney World for a week in December. In 2018, Lord willing and the creek don’t rise, I hope to go to Disneyland Paris for 5 nights with the family in September.
  • The thought of visiting and walking around a Disney destination is great motivation for me to eat well and move more.
  • I am a mega Disney fan, so from time to time, I will post Disney related info, like…

Frozen Ever After and the new Soarin’ opened this week at EPCOT.  The wait for Frozen Ever After is over 3 hours long as I type this.  Holy cannoli!! I can hardly wait to ride those rides, yet there is no way I would stand in a three hour line to do so.  Geesh! What an exciting time at the Disney parks what with Shanghai Disney opening this month, too.

Now on a more serious note: the senate today voted down 4 pieces of legislation that would make it tougher to mass-shoot Americans.  Shame on them!!  I really do believe that those who voted down this legislation are representing the NRA, NOT their own constituencies.  Election time is coming and it’s time to take a stand voters; these NAY voters on this legislation have to go!

I believe in the right to bear arms. I do. If you need a pistol to feel safe in your own home, I have no problem with that. If you hunt and need a specific rifle to get it done, I have no problem with that. [I am a carnivore, too. ;)] But enough is e-bloody-nough! These assault rifles should not be readily available. And if you are on the terrorist watch list or the no fly list, you should have a hard time purchasing a gun. That just seems like common sense.

Thanks for letting me get that out of my system.

I am striving to eat better by planning our menus and by trying out HelloFresh, a home meal-delivery service.  Here’s what they say on their website:

1. We create amazing recipes. Each week our chefs create amazing recipes for you that are easy to prepare. Our meals are interesting yet simple. And we ensure that your diet is balanced and varied.

2. We do the shopping for you. Tired of wasting time at the grocery store? We do it all for you; from creating the recipes and planning the meals, to grocery shopping and even delivering all of the pre-measured ingredients right to your door!

3. Free Delivery! We deliver everything straight to your door, so you can skip the trip.

4. You prepare delicious meals in your own home. We are More Than Food. Quick and easy recipes, no fancy equipment or techniques, and no obscure ingredients. Our mission is to help you get nutritious and delicious meals on the table.

Sounds great, right? I’ll let you know what I think in a few weeks.  I am expecting my first delivery tomorrow.  I ordered 3 meals per week. I figure this will help us to try some new and interesting recipes for awhile.

As for exercise this week: I only made it to the Rec center on 2 days last week, but I did move around a lot more at home.  My walking buddy hurt her back, so she can’t come with me for awhile.  It’s so difficult to get myself up and out without her to hold me accountable. However, “I am responsible for me. I need to be the change I want to see.  I need to get up and walk.” Hmmm…not a bad mantra.

Today I got up and emptied out my closet, because there is a leak in our air conditioner in the attic and the entry to the attic is through my closet ceiling. The leak is bad enough that there is water pouring into our guest room.  Yuk! I think I walked a mile back and forth with all my stuff: clothes, books, pictures, memorabilia, etc… I was sweating like I’d had a full body workout, and now I have the aches and pains to prove it.  My walking for today will be a run to the grocery store to finish out our week of grocery needs.

Then we need to batten down the hatches, because the weather is supposed to get ugly all day tomorrow, thunderstorms, possible tornadoes and much heavy rain. Help me, Jesus!

That’s about it for today.  Thanks for reading and following me on this journey of my senior-citizen life.  You, dear reader, are precious to me.

Donna

PS: I am LOVING the Grandma gig! My grandbaby Ida is so amazing! I can hardly wait to hold her again. She’s already 4 and a half weeks old. She has a head of beautiful dark hair. She likes to hear singing (especially her mama’s voice). She’s learning so much everyday. *happy sigh* My heart is so full, as I see pictures of her growing. I am so very thankful!