The hammer is down.

     It has been so long since I have written and with no babies this weekend I just may have to get this blog "a movin". One thing if you do happen to drift onto my blog you will notice that I am not a professional writer (although I have had poetry published) and that my writing style is pretty laid back.  I am not a grammar and punctuation Nazi so if mistakes bother you, this may not be the blog for you lol.  

     So yesterday I made two videos and sat down last night to edit them and was so horrified by the way I looked that I immediately deleted the footage and decided I would redo them today when I had the chance to tame my crazy hair.  Something completely off subject here but do any of you notice that people with curly hair hate it and want straight hair and the people who have that almost always want the opposite.  We as humans are never satisfied it seems.  (Insert big sigh)  So hopefully by this evening I will have at least one of those videos edited and up.  Anyway back to where I was going besides the whole Medusa looking video footage…In the video I was talking about certain criticisms of my little "addiction" with Chipotle.  I enjoy it and it doesn't make me gain weight unless I am there everyday (trust me if I could I would) but if you know chipotle.  It isn't cheap.  You are talking about 10$ or more a visit.  Okay, okay let me get the mental images of deliciousness out of my mind and get to the point.  My point is that I know that people are going to criticize just about everything I choose to put on the Internet about my journey.  Just realize that as I say all the time in my videos, this is MY JOURNEY.  This is what works for me.  A quote that I like to remember is "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."  Yes, I used the word ain't… :O
I am not saying I am forgoing my goals to limit my love for the bowls but what I am saying is I am going to stop beating myself up for days if I choose to go get it.

     I have been trying to really change my "negative" thinking.  It does nothing but make me stress and who needs more stress in their lives?  Not me, that is for sure.  It is November.  We should all be getting into the mindset of being thankful.  I am THANKFUL I am able to even lose a pound.  I am THANKFUL I do not weigh very close to 300 pounds anymore.  And while I mention that, let me just say, I am quite sure I did hit 300 pounds at one point but didn't actually see it because I was so scared of the scale and in denial.

     I just want people to realize that a person on a weight loss journey, or any journey through life probably will not be perfect and it does not make them failures in what they are doing.  This is my journey and it has been filled with many hills and even some deserts but I continue to move and will forever continue to plow forward with or without any ones approval except my own.  It is my turn to be just a little bit selfish.  At 39 it is finally MY TIME.

May 2012 at nearly 300 pounds

Letting it go!

If you are friends with me on my facebook where I do my weight loss challenges you know the end result of something I have been dealing with for well over a year.  It saddens me and stresses me out to no end. But ANYWAY, we will be moving.

Four years ago we started to "rent to own" a townhouse.  I LOVE this house.  Braiden and Andrew (my grandchildren) both were brought home to this house from the hospital.  Last September 5th we received a knock on the door.  It was a man from a real estate company letting me know that the house that we had paid faithfully on had been bought by a bank because of foreclosure.  My husband and I immediately went to a lawyer and found out our rights and thankfully there was a law in place that protected "renting tenants".  Mind you, we had to come to the realization that the 32,000$ that we had paid the previous 3 years was gone.

A week later we got a strange call from the real estate company.  It was the owner and she was asking really odd questions.  To make a long story short, the real estate agent that we had dealt with was terminated for fraud.  He hadn't even been reporting that the property was still being managed by that real estate firm.  He had been pocketing our money since the very beginning.  He had been giving the owner less and less money and stating that we weren't paying.  Then the last year he had told the owner that he was trying to evict us but we were never home and the papers couldn't get served all while taking our payments each month.  We had just paid him for the month of September, 2012 3 days prior and the owner didn't even own the home any longer.  We also found out that we were not the only ones he had done this too.  There were 7 other clients that he had been taking from. r

The bank took over our lease and said we were free to stay until the market improved and they were ready to sell.  Our new lease ends October 31st and we just received news that they were indeed going to sell.  It breaks my heart that I have to move from so many memories and that I was so faithful in paying. 

At first when I received the letter that we would have to move, all the old anger toward this agent back rushing back.  Then this morning it dawned on me that I need to forgive this man.  I cannot hold anger in my heart because I do not know his situation.  I mean I do know he was arrested and that he lost his real estate license and his home but I didn't walk in his shoes.  Now I am not saying it gave him any right to steal from us or anyone else.  What I am saying is it ISN'T my RIGHT to judge him.  The anger in my heart doesn't change the situation so I am letting that go.

I will be moving in the next 7 weeks or so and hopefully I can find a home that I love just as much as this one and I can make new memories.  I will be stressed until I find a place no doubt and I am praying and determined to not let it have an impact on my journey. If you could offer any prayers I would surely appreciate it.  I believe in the power of prayer.  I have seen too many miracles happen not too.

Wish us luck!

Overnight Oat recipes

 

I LOVE OATMEAL.  I also love variety in my food.  "Boredom" is one of the main reasons people fall off the wagon. 

So I wanted to share a new love I have.

It's called "Overnight Oats".

Now the concept is not mine.  I found many delicious pictures on instagram but you had to buy the "ebook" to get most of the recipes.

So I have been experimenting and creating my own simple Overnight oats.

 

These can be eaten as a dessert or even as breakfast, lunch...whichever you choose.

Just remember every single thing you put in your oats will contain calories.

 

 

 

#1 with peanut butter and chocolate chips (dark)

 

 

You will need:

 

1/2 cup of dry oats (can be regular, steel cut, etc)

1/4 cup of skim milk or almond milk

2 tablespoons of plain yogurt

 (you can use the flavored but remember most flavored contain artificial sweeteners.  But it's up to you)

1 tablespoon of natural honey

1 tablespoon of cinnamon.

(Make sure it's not cinnamon sugar that is bad bad)

1 packet of stevia (optional)

1 tablespoon of NATURAL peanut butter or almond butter

6 DARK unsweetened chocolate chips (optional)

 

 

Mix all of the ingredients together EXCEPT the peanut butter and chips.

Cover in refrigerator overnight or at LEAST 30 minutes while the oats soften.

 

Get a container (mason jar or glass containers are my favorites)

Put a table spoon of oats then a half tablespoon of your peanut butter

Then another layer of each

On the top you can save a tad of pb then add chips

 

 

#2 Overnight oats with PB and Greek yogurt

 

 

 

1/2 cup of dry oats (can be regular, steel cut, etc)

1/4 cup of skim milk or almond milk

2 tablespoons of plain yogurt

 (you can use the flavored but remember most flavored contain artificial sweeteners.  But it's up to you)

1 tablespoon of natural honey

1 tablespoon of cinnamon.

(Make sure it's not cinnamon sugar that is bad bad)

1 packet of stevia (optional)

2-3 tablespoons of greek yogurt

Chocolate chips (dark) (optional)

 

 

 

Mix all of the ingredients together EXCEPT the peanut butter and chips.

Cover in refrigerator overnight or at LEAST 30 minutes while the oats soften.

 

Get a container (mason jar or glass containers are my favorites)

Put a table spoon of oats then a half tablespoon of your peanut butter,

A layer of 1 table spoon of yogurt

Then another layer of each

On the top you can save a tad of pb then add chips

 

 

I will tell you personally I did not add the chocolate chips or stevia to mine and it tasted great!  It's all up to you.  You can add granola, nuts, flax seed, your own pureed fruit

This allows you to be so creative.

Just REMEMBER EVERY SINGLE THING ADDS calories

but this WILL keep you full for hours.

 

 

IF YOU WOULD LIKE ME TO ADD THE NUTRITIONAL FACTS ABOUT THESE TWO SPECIFIC recipes let me know.



Get out of your comfort zone!

When I told my daughter about Amanda's spin class I didn't realize I would be going with her lol.  Can you imagine my 230+ pound arse spinning?  I shocked myself today when she suggested going by going with her!!!  I will tell you it was HARD.  I will tell you that I didn't NAIL every move.  I will tell you that I didn't stop.  I will tell you I was drenched.  I will also tell you I loved it!

If you take a spin class know that those bikes are hard on your tush and you will probably get cramps and cramps in your feet.  I STILL loved it.

I challenged myself and I did something out of my comfort zone and now I cannot wait for next Monday <3

P.s. Girls do NOT look like this during or after a spin class lol!

Ask.Fm

I had been hearing a lot about a new phone app for people lol who are obviously bored.  It's asked ask.fm .  You can have people ask you questions anonymously or you yourself can go ask someone a question and they will "never know who you are." Yes my first thought was this will be a trolls dream app. and it is.  I went ahead and got one just for the reason I said above.  I was bored. 

A few days went by and then a few weeks and surprisingly no rude comments or questions.
I got on a mom's and was reading her questions and answers and as realistic as I am I was still shocked at how rude and cruel people can be.  Talking about someone is one thing but attacking a beautiful, innocent child is another.  The behavior of some of these people just honestly make me fear what this world is heading toward. 

So then...lol a few questions started to filter in about Lindsey.  I answered them with honesty and without being rude.  That is until they started to TRY to lie in their questions.  I won't go into the lies just because I deleted the app and well it's just not worth it.  What I am writing this blog for is for one accusation in particular and a question I would like to throw out there for people to ponder.

The accusation stated that it was my fault that Lindsey got pregnant.  Now first anyone that has teenagers or has already gone through that stage knows that if a teenager wants to do something they will do it regardless of how strict a parent is.  Do I accept some responsibility for her pregnancy? Yes, of coarse I do.  I think EVERY parent will blame themselves for a hard time their child goes through.  I could sit here and tell you every reason I am or am not responsible but honestly if you already have a judgement in your head it isn't likely I will change it now.  But I will say is this, Is it YOUR parents fault that they raised a bully and a coward?
                                                                                        



What's in my kitchen?

I thought I would make a list of things I keep in my kitchen at all times during my weight loss journey and then a list of things I want to add. 

• Bananas
• low fat cheese
• whole grain pita bread
• protein shakes
• avocado
• Weight control oatmeal
• raw oats
• fat free milk
• olive oil and olive oil spray
• brown rice
• chicken breasts
• ground turkey
• egg white
• Whole wheat bagels
• Natural peanut butter
• Black beans
• Green tea
• Yogurt

What I want to add:

• Chia seeds
• Almonds
• Almond butter
• More fish

Do you see anything missing?  Let me know.

Inspiration

If you think you cannot do it please watch this video.  It is not mine.  I am not taking credit for it but I was asked to share it.  WOW!

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