So today was my first big test with my no sugar (and wheat and dairy) diet out in public.
We had our final Christmas party for the year. And I have to be honest, I did pretty well I think. My cheat at the party was the mashed potatoes. I can have potatoes twice a week, and I knew these would have some milk and butter, but I thought it wouldn't be that much (and frankly, there wasn't much else to eat and I'm pretty sure I ate ALL the nuts, cucumbers, and snap peas that were placed out). Anyway, as I took my first bite, I realized cheese was also in it, but I threw caution to the wind and ate it regardless! I don't consider this a cheat so much as a splurge. I have done so well all this week, I had done so well with all the other food. It was like a nice bonus for doing so well so far.
And then, well, I left the party feeling a little blue (which I won't bore you with, but let's just say that at one point my son threw a wooden block over the second story railing and I now have an uncle with a not so lovely bump on his head - ugh). And we were given chocolate as a parting gift. And so I ripped into it. I ate about 10 malted milk balls and one piece of chocolate. And not much later, my stomach hurt so bad.
I blame the chocolate. I blame the sugar. Just as my body was getting over sugar (no headaches in two days! woo-hoo!) I go and eat sugar and chocolate. I now have a tummy ache and a bad headache.
And even if it wasn't the chocolate and I'm wrong, well, I'm not! And next time I want to suck down some sugary goodness, I will remember the not-so-goodness feeling it left me with and hopeful drop the chocolate ASAP.
But aside from the candy of this evening, my diet is moving along very well. Today I started a daily dose of acidophilus. Frankly the name scares me because all I can see in it is ACID, but I'm told it will help and be a good thing. Although it doesn't taste bad, well, it doesn't taste all that great either.
But here's to staying on track now. And here's to all the food I haven't eaten this week. And here's to the changes I am making.
On an unrelated note, grandpa is back in the hospital for a few reasons. Good thoughts and prayers sent his way would be greatly appreciated.
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Friday, January 04, 2008
Favor ...
to spare you from hearing about more food, cravings and all that jazz ... I am instead sharing something from a friend ...
"For the last 13 years, I ran a non-profit that I helped found that brought children with and without disabilities together in play. Through this experience I learned a lot about the importance of play that I want to share with other parents.
After watching how difficult it was for parents (and others) to purchase toys for their kids this holiday, I thought that I could create a personal shopping business where I could help parents and grandparents find the best toys for their kids. I would love to know your thoughts about this.
One of my ideas is listed below along with a link to a really short survey to help me figure out if the idea will work. I would love if you would let me know what you think and pass it along to others. I really am passionate about children playing and having the right tools and I want to determine if this is a vehicle that would work.
Do you find yourself rushing out the day of a birthday party and settling for whatever’s at hand, rather than the quality gift you really wanted to buy? My plan is to create a “Gift Closet” for you to own. The “gift closet” would be 10 birthday party gifts for children 1 to 6 years old. No more having to run out for a gift at the last minute, all your gifts for the year will be waiting for you right at your home. Just grab the one you want to give, and off you go to the party.
When you purchase your “Gift Closet” you would specify the age range you wanted. The toys would all be safe (no lead), creative and interesting. These will be toys that you feel good about giving, and the children receiving them will love them (and so will the parents). The “Gift Closet” would include gift bags, tissue paper and tape. There would also be a card-making-kit so your child can make a card for the birthday child, or to use as thank you notes for his/her own birthday.
I am now doing market research on the “Gift Closet” concept. I have created a simple 14 question survey that I am asking people to complete. You can find it at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=u29qqw4MP01ERLlgw9T0Lw_3d_3d. I am also asking you to forward this email along to as many friends as possible so that I can get an idea whether this will work or not. If you have already passed through the stage of being on the birthday party circuit
- congratulations for surviving, no need to complete the survey -just forward it along and ask your friends, social networks, work colleagues, etc. children, who are have young children. They will spend no more than 2 minutes completing the survey.
Thank you all very much for your help as I move on this journey"
(her original post appears over at the TheMotherhood here if you want to leave her a note there as well!)
Thanks so much =)
"For the last 13 years, I ran a non-profit that I helped found that brought children with and without disabilities together in play. Through this experience I learned a lot about the importance of play that I want to share with other parents.
After watching how difficult it was for parents (and others) to purchase toys for their kids this holiday, I thought that I could create a personal shopping business where I could help parents and grandparents find the best toys for their kids. I would love to know your thoughts about this.
One of my ideas is listed below along with a link to a really short survey to help me figure out if the idea will work. I would love if you would let me know what you think and pass it along to others. I really am passionate about children playing and having the right tools and I want to determine if this is a vehicle that would work.
Do you find yourself rushing out the day of a birthday party and settling for whatever’s at hand, rather than the quality gift you really wanted to buy? My plan is to create a “Gift Closet” for you to own. The “gift closet” would be 10 birthday party gifts for children 1 to 6 years old. No more having to run out for a gift at the last minute, all your gifts for the year will be waiting for you right at your home. Just grab the one you want to give, and off you go to the party.
When you purchase your “Gift Closet” you would specify the age range you wanted. The toys would all be safe (no lead), creative and interesting. These will be toys that you feel good about giving, and the children receiving them will love them (and so will the parents). The “Gift Closet” would include gift bags, tissue paper and tape. There would also be a card-making-kit so your child can make a card for the birthday child, or to use as thank you notes for his/her own birthday.
I am now doing market research on the “Gift Closet” concept. I have created a simple 14 question survey that I am asking people to complete. You can find it at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=u29qqw4MP01ERLlgw9T0Lw_3d_3d. I am also asking you to forward this email along to as many friends as possible so that I can get an idea whether this will work or not. If you have already passed through the stage of being on the birthday party circuit
Thank you all very much for your help as I move on this journey"
(her original post appears over at the TheMotherhood here if you want to leave her a note there as well!)
Thanks so much =)
3 Days ....
and I'm doing pretty good with this whole no sugar thing.
Although as I type this, an Oreo cookie sitting next to me, just asking to be eaten by me. And I'm not gonna lie - I REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY want to eat it.
And maybe I will, because really it's one little cookie. I just have to make sure one little cookie doesn't turn into a whole bag.
I was told today that it will take about 7 days for the cravings to stop. So I'm almost half-way there. Which is so good. Because last night again, I woke up with a huge horrible head ache. And of course, all these freaking cravings all day long. Because I really really miss eating a whole lot of things.
And frankly and honestly, I have NO changes yet. I know, it's been 3 days, right? So what was I expecting. I don't know really, but I was hoping for at least some extra burst of energy. Hopefully that will come. I hope I will feel something for the better soon because I really need more motivation to stay on it.
Aside from that, not much going on here. I feel drained, tapped out and completely exhausted from all the Christmas rush. I need a break from all things. I don't even want to walk into my craft room right now. So not a lot of crafting, creating, or anything of that sort going on. I think I spent most of today thinking about all sorts of foods I would like to eat but am refraining from eating.
I know, this doesn't make the best blogging content. But truly, and honestly, food is about all I can think about right now! I'm sure some other people out there are dieting/eating healthy for the new year, so please, please, I hope someone lets me know that I'm not the only person thinking about food these days! LOL
Although as I type this, an Oreo cookie sitting next to me, just asking to be eaten by me. And I'm not gonna lie - I REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY want to eat it.
And maybe I will, because really it's one little cookie. I just have to make sure one little cookie doesn't turn into a whole bag.
I was told today that it will take about 7 days for the cravings to stop. So I'm almost half-way there. Which is so good. Because last night again, I woke up with a huge horrible head ache. And of course, all these freaking cravings all day long. Because I really really miss eating a whole lot of things.
And frankly and honestly, I have NO changes yet. I know, it's been 3 days, right? So what was I expecting. I don't know really, but I was hoping for at least some extra burst of energy. Hopefully that will come. I hope I will feel something for the better soon because I really need more motivation to stay on it.
Aside from that, not much going on here. I feel drained, tapped out and completely exhausted from all the Christmas rush. I need a break from all things. I don't even want to walk into my craft room right now. So not a lot of crafting, creating, or anything of that sort going on. I think I spent most of today thinking about all sorts of foods I would like to eat but am refraining from eating.
I know, this doesn't make the best blogging content. But truly, and honestly, food is about all I can think about right now! I'm sure some other people out there are dieting/eating healthy for the new year, so please, please, I hope someone lets me know that I'm not the only person thinking about food these days! LOL
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
New Year's Resolutions ...
I'm not one to make new year's resolutions. Or, I guess I should say I'm pretty good at making them and then not actually doing anything about it.
But last year, I decided to read 52 books .. and I did it! Fueled by accomplishing one goal, it made sense to make some more goals for this year. And luckily for me, over at The Motherhood, Becki started a conversation just about this thing! She posted to all of us
And so I responded
Both yesterday and today I have consumed very little sugar compared to my norm. Which is both good and bad.
Good, because I was consuming way too much sugar. I think that my body is over-run with yeast which is probably out of control because of sugar. Of course I'm only guessing this because of the high amount of yeast infections I've had lately. Regardless, too much sugar.
I'll let you guess just how fun yesterday was. First of all, I LOVE sugar. Second of all I LOVE breads, crackers, etc. I would totally happy with bread and butter for dinner most nights, with candy/chocolate/etc for dessert! Both of which I am currently avoiding. I was not happy yesterday. There were SO many foods I wanted to eat. I will admit, I opened up a bag of candy without even thinking of it. But still, even with that, I still had a LOT less sugar than normal. I woke up last night with a killer headache. As in I wanted to just rip off my head and go back to sleep headache.
But I survived. I woke up feeling slightly better, but sad that I was going to skip my favorite breakfast of toast, butter and peanut butter. And so I ate oatmeal - plain mind you because I don't want sugar at all). And suffered through the rest of my day without any sugar today. I am pretty much eating the same diet as my daughter, but much much more strict on all sugar/sweet things.
I promise to complain endlessly about all of this. I promise to whine about all the foods I will refrain from. I can already feel another headache coming on. But I also hope that in a few weeks I will be feeling better and happy about these changes.
I will also admit to letting myself have one thing each day - one can of coca-cola each day. Because, and even my husband agrees with me, I really have no other vice aside from that. I don't drink coffee, not a fan of tea, I don't suck down other juice or cola, I don't drink alcohol, don't smoke, and am cutting out all other sugar from my diet (although I think that will be a temporary move. I think after a few weeks when the cravings subside I will again eat bread - just not as much!). And so, we both agreed that I needed one thing to keep. One thing that I can have. I hope it is the one thing that will keep me going each day. I can give up the bread, the sugar, the sweets, the rest of it, but I get to keep one little can of pop (of course, I have not normally only restricted myself to one can before so one can is still a cutback!).
I have not yet drank my can for today. But if I am going to drink it, I want to do it soon because I also think this will help my inability to sleep these days. Although I've read it takes a while for caffeine to leave the system, so I'm probably still full of it! LOL!
(as a little aside here, I am not making diet modifications in order to lose weight. But secretly, if that would happen, well, I wouldn't be upset and it would help it seem even more worth it. But really, I jsut want to feel better because I haven't felt all that great lately - just run-down, tired, and achey all over. But we can't figure out why because there isn't a medical reason for it all ... so I'm hoping it's diet related!)
In other new year news - I have searched a few places I think I might actually enjoy working at for job openings. Nothing so far. The places I have looked at so far don't have any current openings. According to my husband, now is a bad time to look and I should wait a month and then start. But, I think I will stalk a few places and cross my fingers that something will open up? I can hope anyway!
For now, I will plug on. I might even do some crafting to kill these urges to just eat the whole loaf of bread or to raid the candy drawer. We'll see what happens!
But last year, I decided to read 52 books .. and I did it! Fueled by accomplishing one goal, it made sense to make some more goals for this year. And luckily for me, over at The Motherhood, Becki started a conversation just about this thing! She posted to all of us
Let’s do something we can look back on in a year (or more) and see how our predictions for 2008 stack up and whether our wishes come true. Complete these statements (I will too):
1. The skill I most want to acquire/improve in 2008 is…
2. The habit I most want to give up in 2008 is…
3. The biggest change in my life in 2008 will be…
And so I responded
1. I want to improve my organization skills and improve how healthy I amAnd seeing how we are two days into the new year, it would seem I have made a bit of dent into these goals.
2. I want to give up (okay not give up but decrease greatly) the amount of sugar I consume.
3. The biggest change will probably be that I will need to get a job. Honestly, I am completely dreading it and praying it won’t be half as bad as I fear.
Both yesterday and today I have consumed very little sugar compared to my norm. Which is both good and bad.
Good, because I was consuming way too much sugar. I think that my body is over-run with yeast which is probably out of control because of sugar. Of course I'm only guessing this because of the high amount of yeast infections I've had lately. Regardless, too much sugar.
I'll let you guess just how fun yesterday was. First of all, I LOVE sugar. Second of all I LOVE breads, crackers, etc. I would totally happy with bread and butter for dinner most nights, with candy/chocolate/etc for dessert! Both of which I am currently avoiding. I was not happy yesterday. There were SO many foods I wanted to eat. I will admit, I opened up a bag of candy without even thinking of it. But still, even with that, I still had a LOT less sugar than normal. I woke up last night with a killer headache. As in I wanted to just rip off my head and go back to sleep headache.
But I survived. I woke up feeling slightly better, but sad that I was going to skip my favorite breakfast of toast, butter and peanut butter. And so I ate oatmeal - plain mind you because I don't want sugar at all). And suffered through the rest of my day without any sugar today. I am pretty much eating the same diet as my daughter, but much much more strict on all sugar/sweet things.
I promise to complain endlessly about all of this. I promise to whine about all the foods I will refrain from. I can already feel another headache coming on. But I also hope that in a few weeks I will be feeling better and happy about these changes.
I will also admit to letting myself have one thing each day - one can of coca-cola each day. Because, and even my husband agrees with me, I really have no other vice aside from that. I don't drink coffee, not a fan of tea, I don't suck down other juice or cola, I don't drink alcohol, don't smoke, and am cutting out all other sugar from my diet (although I think that will be a temporary move. I think after a few weeks when the cravings subside I will again eat bread - just not as much!). And so, we both agreed that I needed one thing to keep. One thing that I can have. I hope it is the one thing that will keep me going each day. I can give up the bread, the sugar, the sweets, the rest of it, but I get to keep one little can of pop (of course, I have not normally only restricted myself to one can before so one can is still a cutback!).
I have not yet drank my can for today. But if I am going to drink it, I want to do it soon because I also think this will help my inability to sleep these days. Although I've read it takes a while for caffeine to leave the system, so I'm probably still full of it! LOL!
(as a little aside here, I am not making diet modifications in order to lose weight. But secretly, if that would happen, well, I wouldn't be upset and it would help it seem even more worth it. But really, I jsut want to feel better because I haven't felt all that great lately - just run-down, tired, and achey all over. But we can't figure out why because there isn't a medical reason for it all ... so I'm hoping it's diet related!)
In other new year news - I have searched a few places I think I might actually enjoy working at for job openings. Nothing so far. The places I have looked at so far don't have any current openings. According to my husband, now is a bad time to look and I should wait a month and then start. But, I think I will stalk a few places and cross my fingers that something will open up? I can hope anyway!
For now, I will plug on. I might even do some crafting to kill these urges to just eat the whole loaf of bread or to raid the candy drawer. We'll see what happens!
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
2007 Books ...
Books Read in 2007
- 63. Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister: A Novel
- 62. Dogs of Babel
- 61. Night
- 60a. The Historian
- 60. My Sister's Keeper
- 59. Lucky
- 58. In the Wilderness: Coming of Age in an Uknown Country
- 57. What Comes After Crazy
- 56. Must Love Dogs
- 55. Living Well On One Income
- 54. Return to Me
- 53. Too Much of a Good Thing
- 52. The Over Scheduled Child
- 51. Big Stone Gap
- 50. Total Money Makeover
- 49. Financial Peace
- 48. Scarlet Thread
- 47. Sugar Cookie Murder
- 46. For the Children's Sake
- 45. Half Price Living
- 44. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
- 43. Peach Cobbler Murder
- 42. Redeeming Love
- 41. Fudge Cupcake Murder
- 40. Chocolatherapy
- 39. Velvet Elvis
- 38. 19 Minutes
- 37. Friday Night Knitting Club
- 36. Sins and Needles
- 35. Hanging by a Thread
- 34. The Knock at the Door
- 33. Lemon Meringue Pie Murder
- 32. A Murderous Yarn
- 31. Jamestown, the Buried Truth
- 30. Strawberry Shortcake Murder
- 29. Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder
- 28. Key Lime Pie Murder (Hannah Swensen Mysteries)
- 27. The Faith Club: A Muslim, A Christian, A Jew-- Three Women Search for Understanding
- 26. The Nazi Officer's Wife
- 25. The Bible
- 24. 1000 White Women
- 23. Size 12 is Not Fat
- 22. Embroidered Truths
- 21. Crewel Yule
- 20. 12 Sharp
- 19. Stephanie Pearl-McPhee Casts Off: The Yarn Harlot's Guide to the Land of Knitting
- 18. Cutwork
- 17. Shop on Blossom Street
- 16. Unraveled Sleeve
- 15. A Stitch in Time
- 14. The Honk and Holler Opening Soon
- 13. A Good Yarn
- 12. 13 Little Blue Envelopes
- 11. Devil in the White City
- 10. 24 Hours
- 9. Crewel World
- 8. A Room with a View
- 7. Death of a Salesman
- 6. Virgin Earth
- 5. The Day The World Came To Town
- 4. Canterbury Tales
- 3. The Bookseller of Kabul
- 2. A Farewell To Arms
- 1. Madame Bovary
- 43. Peach Cobbler Murder
- 42. Redeeming Love
- 41. Fudge Cupcake Murder
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