Happy New Year....Back on the Wagon

I took a break from the whole weight loss thing over the holidays, because nobody likes somebody at their Christmas party who won't touch the cheeseball. And with all the extra holiday stress/travel/shopping I didn't think it would be a good idea to add any extra pressure to that. So I went in with the plan that I would be happy, as long as I didn't gain any weight between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day.

Success!

Most people gain around 7 pounds during that particular 6ish weeks, but (through no real effort on my part) I managed to avoid that, and have maintained my 30 pound weight loss. So yay, me. Or something.

I'm officially back on the wagon, counting calories this week, but I'll probably cheat tomorrow (Saturday) since we are just now getting around to Christmas with my dad's side of the family, and we're having a Mexican fiesta. Yeah, you can pry my enchiladas from my cold dead hands.

Hopefully I'll be back to posting regularly here again, although, I admit, I've been rather at a loss for content lately. Maybe it will pick up.

Anyway, time for the mandatory New Year's Resolutions:

1. Continue to lose weight. (I'm not putting a number on this, but I'm hoping for at least 50 more pounds. That's just a pound a week, surely I can manage.)

2. Be up by noon every day. (I know this doesn't seem like it should be a big deal, but J works nights, and I tend to fall into that same schedule. This should be an easier resolution to keep this semester though, because I have class in Amarillo one day a week, and clinicals at a local funeral home at least 3 days a week.)

3. Achieve honor roll this semester. (I have in all previous semesters, except one, so I think this will be an easy one too.)

And that's it.

Happy 2015, y'all!

xo

Day 51: November Love With Food

My back is still giving me all kinds of trouble, and I can't stand to ride in the car, or walk around much, so shopping (even for food) has been out of the question. You can imagine how happy I was then, yesterday, to open my door and discover the November Love With Food box on my front porch. It's a good one too!

Without further ado, here's the loot:

The theme for this month is "Baby It's Cold Outside." I hate that date rape holiday song, but since we got our first real taste of winter this week, and it actually is cold outside, I'm okay with it.

This box has a TON of stuff in it. I haven't tried any of it yet, because J is working this week, and I like for us to try the treats out together, but there are some products that are obviously going to be amazing.

The product that I am most excited about, and one that I probably won't end up sharing with J, is this packet of Fruit Bliss soft dried mini-figs. I love figs, and feeling these through the package, they seem soft and chewy and I seriously cannot wait to tear into them. And, I know it shouldn't matter, but the packaging is adorable, and I'm definitely somewhat swayed by that. (Not that they didn't have me at "fig.")

The next goodie is this Marlo's Midnight soft baked chocolate biscotti. I'm a fan of regular, crunchy biscotti, so I can't imagine that I won't also like this little jewel. I've never heard of soft biscotti, but seriously, it's a cookie. How could it possibly be bad?

I also got this packet of Laiki red rice crackers. This is a product I've never heard of, but you know I love salty snacks, and again, the packaging is great, so I'm looking forward to trying this. One of the things I love about this box is that they try to include snacks that might not be the first thing you notice at the grocery store. I don't even know if anybody carries these here.

I think this will be J's favorite thing in the box. These Chipz Happen Cinnful Sweet Heat tortilla chips are right up his alley. They feel like they might have gotten a bit crushed in transit, but they'll still taste yummy. 

We got a kind kids' lunchbox treat too, and while it's not something I would likely buy, if I saw it in the store, I'm sure these are really tasty.  They are Dick & Jane Smart Snacks, and I think they are sort of similar to vanilla wafers. Maybe vanilla shortbread? I don't know, but they're cute, with pictures of the states and their capitals printed on them.

We got two of the next items, so there doesn't have to be sharing, and it's a good thing too, because they are chocolate. The first chocolates are these Jer's Groupies milk chocolate and peanut clusters, which are my favorite kinds of chocolates (except apricot creams, which are impossible to find). 

The other chocolates are these Guylian truffles. We got a milk truffle and a dark chocolate praline one. I think they both sound yummy, but J will probably get the praline one, because he prefers dark chocolate, and I like ALL chocolate.

The last food item in the box is something a bit different for Love With Food. It's a packet of gourmet all purpose seasoned salt from Whole Spice. The ingredients say that it contains sea salt, sugar, celery, chili, onion, tumeric, black pepper, garlic, oregano, and citric acid. I have no idea what to put this on. A rub for steaks or pork chops, maybe? Sprinkle it over popcorn? I don't know, but I'm pretty excited to try it on something, especially since my mom bought me new pots and pans as an early Christmas present, and I'm ready to start cooking winter meals. 

Speaking of winter meals, LWF also included this small Rachel Ray cookbook. It's got 30 recipes in it, and most of it looks like stuff that I'll be able to make, and that J and I will both like. This is the first non-food item I've ever received in a Love box, and I like it. I hope they continue to include stuff like this. 

So, what do you think? Is this worth $10 a month? I definitely think so, particularly for since every box ordered, Love With Food gives a meal to a hungry child. So far, they have donated more than 321 thousand meals. If you want your very own treat box, click this link, or the info box on the right, and get your first box for free!

xo

PS: I've lost 28 pounds, if you're wondering. 

Day 46: Injured

I'm down 24 pounds, which I'm pretty proud of. That's a pretty big bag of dog food. Or two bowling balls. Or 24 footballs. So yeah. Awesome.

The weight loss, for both of us, has increased our sex drives (sorry parents!), and made us generally more...athletic, which has resulted in a pretty sever back injury on my part. The lower intercostal (between the ribs) muscles on my back have been strained (possibly torn), and has resulted in about as much pain as that sounds like.

Anytime I twist, or bend, or go down a step, I'm in agony. Trying to roll over in bed is the worst possible thing I can do. Occasionally, when I'm just standing around, or walking, the muscles spasm, and my torso thrusts forward, pushing all the air out of me. It sounds sexy, let me tell you. So yeah, I can pretty much lay flat on my back and that's it. If I take my muscle relaxer and pain medication as prescribed, and not just when I think I need it, obviously it's much more manageable. However, they make me sleepy, so I don't take them as much as I probably should. Based on today though, I'm going to have to take them as instructed.

The good news is that they took so many X-rays that I now glow in the dark, which is a pretty cool super hero power. I think I'll call myself The Glowing Groaner, since that's the noise I keep inadvertently making.

I think a tightly laced corset may provide some support for my back and make me feel better, so we're going to try to do that later.

xo

Day 43: Somebody Felt Left Out

After I posted yesterday, J wanted me to post old and updated pictures of him for comparison too. His changes are much more pronounced than mine are:

Again, the new pic is on the left, and the old one (from May, the same time as my old one) is on the right. I took the liberty of editing out the zombies in the one on the right.

Here's also just face pictures, again, old one on the right. I think he looks weird in both of them, because he doesn't have his beard. I'm not sure why he's making a mug-shot picture in the one on the left.

So, there ya go! Progress!

xo

Day 42: TWENTY-ONE

I'm officially down 21 pounds as of this morning, which makes me a little over 17% of the way to my (initial) goal! All of my once-too-tight clothes fit again, I'm sleeping better, which may or may not be related, and I'm feeling pretty proud. I rarely, if ever, feel deprived, particularly since I got crafty, and have something to do with my hands. I finished my first cross-stitch tonight, and it looks pretty good, if I do say so myself.

On the left is a current picture, although, I really don't think there's that much noticeable difference. People do keep asking if I've colored my hair (I haven't), so I think they are noticing something, but can't put their fingers on it. On the right, is a previous, similarly posed photo from May, as a comparison. As far as I can tell, my cheekbones are more extreme, and my chin is pointier. Maybe my neck looks longer? Possibly my boobs are smaller? I don't know. I do know that I'm wearing the same jeans in both pictures, but they are far more comfortable in the one on the left.

J. went to the doctor today, and she was quite impressed with his weight loss, and is considering taking him off of some of his medications, if his various labs continue to improve.

Onward!

xo

Day 40: Busy Hands

I've discovered that it's much easier for me to avoid my major pitfall, which is thinking I'm hungry when I really just need to be entertained, by making sure I have something to do with my hands. In the past, I've tried to crochet, but for whatever reason, I can't seem to count those stitches, and end up with a wonky mess.

Today I went to the craft store to find something to do that a) I'm actually capable of doing correctly and b) doesn't involve glitter, otherwise known as the herpes of craft supplies. I picked up a little beginner's cross stitch kit, and started this afternoon. So far, it's worked wonderfully, the pattern is actually coming together, and I haven't snacked out of boredom once. Win! If I manage to make this a success, I'll get some cool patterns on Etsy or somewhere, so that my house doesn't get covered in items displaying flowers and birds and cartoon characters.

I can't show you a picture of what I'm actually working on, because if it turns out well, it's going to be a gift, sorry!

xo

Needed This