Tag Archives: healthy eating

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Planning Ahead

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Day 59 in my trek toward terrific times with Mickey at the Magic Kingdom

Well, faithful readers, tomorrow I leave my cozy, controlled environment to travel to party central.  Woo hoo!  We are headed to the UP (Michigan’s gloriously beautiful Upper Peninsula) for a family wedding.  I’m a bit nervous, because I can already hear it calling to me: “Donna, come and get me, Donna!  I’m waiting for you.”  It’s the wedding cake calling.  🙂

Thankfully, the reception will be well patrolled by many whom I love, who know what I am trying to accomplish and who want the best for me.  Hopefully if they see me stumbling toward the cake table with glazed eyes, they will intercede and talk me down.  Tee hee!  It’s really not that dire; I exaggerate because I know myself.

So anyway today’s plan is to think ahead and plan ways to stay on track.  I really do want to make the healthiest choices possible.  I just feel better.  59 days in, I still have miles to go in the marathon toward a healthier me, but I already feel better than I did when I started.  My blood sugar numbers are truly impressive for me, and many days I just have more energy than I’ve had in a long time.  I really want to fight to stay the course and be the best possible me at Walt Disney World in October 2015.  I WANT IT!  (Even more than I want wedding cake…and that’s a lot!)

Thank you, dear readers and encouragers, for taking this journey with me.  It’s a real pip!  See you at the Kingdom!

BTW: The internet connection can be an issue in the great north country.  I’ll do my best to blog every day, but I may end up posting when I get back.  We shall see.  😉  I’m so-o-o-o-o excited!  I can’t wait to catch up with family and friends!!!

 

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A Day of Charming Choices

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Day 56 in my marathon to mambo with Mickey

Victory number one today: we met Jake and Eliza at Walker Brothers Pancake House in Highland Park.  I ordered the “Healthy Plate.”  It consisted of scrambled egg whites, fruit, and wheat germ granola pancakes with sugar-free syrup.  It was delicious!  I left two of four pancakes on my plate and some of the egg whites.

Victory number two: today’s plan was to walk for twenty minutes.  Because Emi had some shopping to do at Target, I stood and walked for 35 minutes!  Mischief managed, dear readers!   Or done deal, Dudes!

Victory number three: while we were there I shopped for the ingredients for “Weight  Watchers Chili.”  So good!  Tomato juice, black beans, dark red kidney beans, green beans and pinto beans tonight.  I usually include lean ground beef or ground turkey, but Emi is a vegetarian, so tonight’s version will just be extra beanie.  🙂  And I usually add a can of bean sprouts, because it’s like having noodles in the chili, but they didn’t have bean sprouts at Target.  Plus I’ll sauté onion and garlic first and add spices: chili powder, oregano, basil, red pepper, black pepper.  I don’t add salt to the pot because of the salt in the tomato juice and some of the canned beans.  I did manage to find some low-sodium beans though.

So all in all another fabulous day in Lake Bluff.  A special shout out to Jake and Eliza who are running their first 5K tonight…in the dark…through a graveyard.  Sounds about like a 5K that Jake would run, hey?  Love it!

Meet you at the Kingdom!

 

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Respectable Rewards

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Day 55 in my pilgrimage to the Magic Land of Mickey

What a wonderful, joyous day, dear readers.  My daughter Emi is here, so we went in for a real pampering today.  Emi, my daughter-in-law Eliza, and my dear fried Joan: there we were, the four of us, like pumpkins on a fence, all lined up for manis and pedis this morning at Graphic Nails.  It was complete luxury and a delightful reward for the hard work of living a healthier life.  About 55 days ago, my rewards were filled with sugar.  Cupcakes, candy bars, ice creams, brownies, mochas, pumpkin spice lattes, chocolate, chocolate, chocolate…  And I used plural words because I ate and drank plural amounts of copious foods to satisfy a hunger that could NOT be satisfied by sugar.

No more.  Instead I’m going to be good to my body.  So today my plan was to trade in rotten rewards for some respectable rewards…and I did.  I enjoyed delightful conversation with some of my favorite people in the world while being massaged, scrubbed, clipped and painted.  It was bliss!  Then off to a very healthy lunch with Emi and Joan.  (Eliza had a previous lunch commitment with Grandpa Toser.  Hi to Tom!)  Wildberry.  Do you know it?  Delicious, organic ingredients in dishes that you can build yourself.  I had a veggie, omelet, rye toast and fruit.  Now I’m home feeling completely sated and pampered.  It was a respectable reward, and  I am so grateful for this day.

Love to you and yours, dear readers.  Blessings on you, too.  Meet you at the Kingdom!

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Prioritizing Celebrations

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Day 54 in my race to rendezvous with Mickey at the Magic Kingdom

Today is a very exciting day!  My daughter Emi is coming in for twelve days from Bristol, England.  She is married to a very wonderful Brit named James, so she lives there.  (Wish you were coming to visit too, James!)  I am jacked!!!  (Of course, I did also drink a cup of caffeinated coffee from MacDonald’s this morning.  That probably isn’t helping.)    🙂

I began this Disney quest, because I want to thoroughly enjoy our trip to Walt Disney World in October 2015 WITH Emi & James, Jake (our son) & Eliza, Mike (my husband) & me.  I want to be able to walk around and really relish the parks with my family this time.  What a celebration it will be to have the whole family together in such a fun place!

Today is also a day of celebration.  When Emi comes we always celebrate by going to The Silo for dinner.  It is our local watering hole, and they make the best pizza I’ve ever tasted.  So here’s today’s plan: I will drink Diet Coke or iced tea or water this evening, and I will order a salad for dinner.  The BIG celebration next October has to remain my main goal, so I will make healthy choices tonight and save the pizza for another day.  I can not eat pizza today.  I can do that for this one day.  (Thank you, Jesus!)  And who knows?  Maybe I’ll enjoy a slice in Florida.  🙂

Meet you at the Kingdom!

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Research Reading Round 2

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Day 53 in my Disney quest to meet Mickey at the Magic Kingdom

I am happy to report that I took my 20+ minute walk after work yesterday, and it did not bust me!  Hallelujah!  My honey Mike dropped me off at the end of the long stretch at Crab Tree Farm and I walked home.  Talk about incentive!  I knew that at the end of that walk I had a tall glass of cold water and my recliner waiting for me.  And sure enough they were there waiting when I arrived.

Today’s plan: I will continue my research in Birnbaum’s Disney World, The Official Guide and The Skinnytaste Cookbook.  I barely scratched the surface yesterday, so I will dive back in after work today.

And I will attempt to resurrect the remaining filling from our Leftover-Turkey Quesadillas that we had a couple night’s ago.  They were so good, and I don’t think it will be too hard to bring the filling back to life for round two.

Meet you at the Kingdom!

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Rampant Research Reading

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Day 52 in my moves toward meeting Mickey

Today’s plan is a no-brainer.  I received in the mail “Birnbaum’s 2015 Walt Disney World” The Official Guide.  Am I excited?  Oh, yeah!!!  I will look it over and begin to read it in earnest tonight.  Then I will begin to plot our parks schedule for 2015.

I also received “The Skinnytaste Cookbook” by Gina Homolka with Heather K. Jones, R.D.  In previous blogs I have mentioned the website skinnytaste.com.  I love the light recipes that I’ve found there, so I am pretty excited about the new cookbook.  I will also give this book the once over tonight to start getting some new ideas.

It’s a very chilly 55 degrees here today, so settling in with two good books sounds just about right for this evening.  First though, I am going to go for a walk when I get home, 20 minutes or bust…I might just bust.  🙂  No more fear!

Meet you at the Kingdom!

BTW: The quesadillas last night were outstanding!

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Working on Work Days

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Day 51 in my destiny to dance with Mickey

Today’s plan is all about the lifestyle:

  1. I will remain sugar-free.
  2. I will move more often at work.
  3. I will cook us a healthy, nutritious meal tonight.  (I think “left-over turkey” whole-wheat quesadillas with a salad)
  4. I will spend some quiet time reminding myself that I am precious in God’s sight, therefore, I have value as a human being.  (In other words, the work is worth it!  And if God loves me, then maybe I can love me, too, by taking care of myself.)
  5. I will visualize myself walking around the Magic Kingdom, as I take a little walk after work today.

This is pretty much the way my work days look now.  So different from just 50 days ago!  And so much better!

Thank you for reading, dear friends.  Meet you at the Kingdom!

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Shopping and Walking…Walking and Shopping

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Day 50 in making my way to meet Mickey

Today’s plan is to go grocery shopping and pick healthy, low-sugar, low salt products, and to take a walk.

We had breakfast at Denny’s this morning.  They now have a a FitSlam which is egg whites scrambled together with fresh spinach and grape tomatoes, plus two turkey bacon strips, English muffin and fruit.   I only left one half of the unbuttered English muffin and half the fruit.  It was a delightful find.

Then we shopped at Trader Joe’s for our groceries.  We found everything except olive oil (They only had EVOO which is not great for cooking.) and a few specialty items.  (unsweetened pumpkin puree, unsweetened shredded coconut and vanilla powder)  Off to the health food store for me this week.

When I finish my blog, I’m going to start walking to the farm for a sauna.  Mike will pick me up in 20 minutes this time.  However, far I make it, I make it.  Period.  It’s a warm, beautiful day here today, about 78 degrees and sunny.  Actually a bit warm for me, but bring it on!  No more fear!  [I talk so tough, hey?  🙂  ]

Wish me luck/blessings, dear readers.  Meet you at the Kingdom!

BTW: Shout out to Jean.  I am really enjoying reading “Trim, Healthy Mama” by Pearl P. Barrett and Serene C. Allison   I don’t understand it all yet, but I am in there swinging and learning all I can.

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Whistling While I Work (Around the Soreness)

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Day 49 in my moves toward meeting Mickey

When I spoke with my Mayo Clinic Health Coach on Wednesday, we decided on a two step goal for the next three weeks.  1) I would attempt to walk for 20 minutes three days a week, and 2) I would dance while listening to my iPod for five minutes every hour on my days off while I putz around the house.

Since I’m off today, my plan was going to be a 20 minute walk and some dancing. However, I think I hurt myself yesterday with my rather vigorous trek at the mall.  My back and side are very sore today.  (Although the side might be my diverticulitis kicking in.)  So instead, I will cook Mike and myself a primo turkey breast dinner tonight with baked sweet potato and steamed green beans, with plenty of fresh veggies and hummus dip.  And I will research a menu for this next week with at least two new, healthy recipes.  Thanks to Eliza, I have found some new recipes in “I Quit Sugar” by Sarah Wilson.  I hope to make a “Breakfast Casserole” for dinner one evening this week.  The recipe has rutabaga in it, should be interesting.

I’m off to research, dear readers.  Meet you at the Kingdom!

BTW: The Destination Channel is playing shows about Walt Disney World today.  Woo hoo!  I’m loving seeing some of the new things to see and do on our trip!  Instant inspiration!  And a great reminder of why I’m on this quest.  🙂

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NO MORE FEAR!

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Day 43 in my charge to meet Mickey

Confession time again.  There’s just something about Sunday’s that bring out the confessions.  Hmmm…  I did pull off yesterday’s three phase plan and even added some extra minutes on my feet at Walgreens.  It felt good.  However, what I wanted to do yesterday was to go and work at the AJ Katzenmaier Back to School Carnival in North Chicago.  St. James pairs with some other churches to bring some support to the staff and kids at a school in North Chicago, which is an economically challenged town.  I was determined to go and work the carnival this year.  But when it came time to go and do it, I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to stand up long enough to be of any help.  Sad, but true.  My fear stopped me.  That makes me downright angry!  I let my fear stop me.  NO MORE.  The next time I want to try to do something, dang it, I’m going for it!  If I run out of steam in the middle of something, then that’s just too bad.  I’ll stand there and sweat and pant until I recover, and then I’ll keep on keeping on.  I’m done being afraid.  The bible says, “Perfect love casts out all fear.”  I know Him.  I know that perfect love, and I claim it right now in my life.  “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

Now today’s plan: I planned my weekly menu and went and shopped for the ingredients.  BTW: Have you seen the Roasted Cauliflower recipe going around on Facebook?  It looks amazing!  That is definitely in my future.  Emi, let’s try it when you’re here, OK?  And I might try to squeeze in a little walk today, just to get out there and   breathe some fresh air.  (20 minutes a day walking in the sun for vitamin D, right Wayno?)

Love to you all, dear readers.  Meet you at the Kingdom!