Vampire Diaries Anyone?

This is what I saw on my walk today. I love to walk through an old, historic neighborhood five minutes from my house and close to the town square. Today they were filming a scene for the show Vampire Diaries. They actually have some of the store fronts on the square set up for the show. This wasn't the first time they came to film, they are actually filming most of the show 5 minutes from my house. However, today I actually saw them filming. Usually they film inside and late at night (Hello, it is a show about vampires!). Today they were filming in the yard of one the historic homes and I stopped walking for a minute to watch. I happened to be pushing my one year old in the stroller. Right in the middle of one of their takes, my daughter lets out the most excited, high pitch, glass shattering scream. (she was fascinated by all the lights). Well, that is a way to get attention. The entire cast and crew looked in our direction and I was like, "That's our cue!". The walk was great today, not only due to the excitement buzzing on the street about the show, but also because the weather was so nice. And because I saw many people I knew walking up and down the same street as I was. We live in a small town, so that is not unusual. I love the sense of community here. I can't wait to walk again tomorrow! Maybe I can score an autograph!

Does Anyone Have Experience With a Liquid Diet?

I am thinking of doing some sort of liquid diet. Before you begin lecturing me on how a liquid diet doesn't work and you always gain the weight back, let me explain what I am considering. I would have a smoothie for breakfast. a healthy mid morning snack, a smoothie for lunch with maybe a side of fresh veggies, and then a mid day snack, then a healthy dinner, and a small after dinner snack. I would replace two meals with smoothies. The reason I am wanting to do this is not out of desperation, but out of time issues. In the morning, I am always rushing out the door. A smoothie that I could take in the car with me would help instead of finding some sugary snack when I got to work. At lunch, I pick up my one year old which leaves little time to eat a meal. I could have another smoothie and maybe some veggies or a granola bar for lunch while I am going to get her. Does that sound OK? I don't want to do some fad diet that may cause health issues, extreme hunger, or doesn't teach you the proper way to eat. Has anyone every tried a liquid diet? If so, I would love to hear your successes and tips. Thanks!

Adopt Me Please!

What a week!? Remember when I said I was a stress eater and I was going to work on that? Yea, God gave me quite a few opportunities this week. I have to say that I did not stress eat though, so I am quite proud of myself in that respect. However, I do feel that I struggle alone sometimes. When you were little and you were scared, who did you run to? Your mom and dad. When you got your first broken heart, did your mom take you shopping or watch movies with you and eat ice cream? Now as you are raising your kids, who do you call for advice? Your mom. I, unfortunately, do not have that kind of relationship with my mom. I have tried so hard to bond with her, but it just isn't happening. I am adopted (have been since birth) but I am nothing like my adoptive parents. I love them and always longed to hear "Good job!" or "I'm proud of you." I rarely got it. I have led quite a successful life- going to college, getting degree after degree; starting a family of my own; having a great career. My brother is a jobless mooch who plays on the computer all day and lives at home with my parents even though he will turn 30 this year. They treat him like he is such a gem. I don't want him to be treated worse, I would just love to have a relationship where I can go to my mom for things. I am going through a difficult situation in my life- one of the toughest ever. I really need my mom to be there for me. Instead, she adds to my stress and grief by complaining that I should have my daughter's 1st birthday party on a different date so she could watch her favorite football team play on tv. She actually threw a fit about it. I tried to do what I could, but it was too late to change the date. She told me how disappointed she was. Moms are supposed to comfort you and tell you things are going to be ok, not be selfish and add to your stress. I tried to talk to her about it. I was trying to be so kind and loving, spilling out my heart that I wanted the kind of close relationship that we never had. The response I got was heartbreaking. She told me that she had the right to feel however she wanted and she wasn't going to lie about her disappointment. She didn't get it. She is like this with everything. My husband feels so sorry for me. He has a great set of parents. They love me, but they don't want to overstep their boundaries. So, I am looking for a mom figure. I need that. I never had it growing up. I think I deserve to have a mother figure that I can talk to and learn from. My relationship with my own daughters is such a blessing. We are so close. But no matter how old you get, sometimes you just need your mom.

This Girl Was Made For Walking & That's Just What I'll Do!

Loathe, abhor, despise, detest, refuse, reject, repudiate, revolt, SPURN! These words would normally describe my feelings for walking. I found walking plain old boring. I could not understand why anyone would do it voluntarily. I love interacting and changing things up when I exercise. Exercise classes, the Wii, team sports- that's all me. Walking? No thanks. That is until today. Here are some things that (dare I say it??) made my walk successful & enjoyable. (GASP)

1. The weather- autumn is such a great time to take up walking. The weather is finally cool enough where you don't have to be afraid of sweat stains showing up in weird places!

2. Pick a spot worth walking by. The last thing I want to hear on my walk is that neighbor's dang dog barking at me again. Ugh! Today I parked my car at our historic town square and chose one of the historic streets to walk down. It is one of my favorite streets. I always imagine what it would be like if I had the money to buy one of these southern beauties. I never actually get to slow down enough in my car and take in all of their beauty. Today, as I walked by, I noticed things about these gorgeous homes that I never had before.

3. Once I got started, I couldn't stop. Half way down the street I thought to myself, "What am I doing?". However, I couldn't just stop. I couldn't turn off the tv or get off the treadmill. I was forced to continue. I was so proud of myself when I was done!

4. Serotonin- I got some lovely color today. Being in the sun lifted my mood. It is all around good for you!

5. Good company- I pushed my sweet baby girl today in the stroller and she loved it! Half way through my walk she fell asleep and then I loved it! Tomorrow I am meeting a few friends to go on the walk with me. I never get to see my best friend enough and now we get to spend time together while getting fit! Bonus!

I hope I have inspired you guys to get out your walking shoes! If I can be converted, anyone can!

Appreciate, enjoy, respect, like. A new attitude for a new me!

Help! Anyone Experienced in the Art of Tofu?

Ok, I think I have worked up the courage to finally try tofu. I have heard you can do some amazing things with it. And if I could get used to it, it would be a great supplement in my diet. However, I don't know where to start. I mean up until I was in my early twenties I thought tofu was actually what the green sprouts were on the salad bar at a restaurant. See? Totally oblivious. I don't want to start out not doing it right, not have a good experience with it, and give up. I read that I should start out with extra firm tofu, but beyond that I am clueless. I would love your suggestions on how to start out with tofu. Recipe suggestions would be awesome! If I find that I like it, I might get my family started on it too. Maybe sneak it in their  meals at first. I really want to be able to say I heart tofu, but we will see. Thanks in advance for your suggestions!

Down, but NOT Out!

I am coming back from an absence of about 7 months. I would love to say that I had kept up with  healthy eating and regular exercise, but for the most part I would be lying. I did keep up with my fitness routine until about 4 months ago. Since then I have gained all my weight back. So, I am starting over. I do not feel defeated, only encouraged and excited that I did not give up completely. I am coming back to my goals of fitness much wiser. I have learned a lot about myself and my habits that will help me to succeed.
          One of my first downfalls, when it came to eating healthier, was my husband. When I first met him I barely ate at all. I just wasn't that hungry. This is not good either. I have never truly been taught to eat healthy. He opened my eyes to how good food actually tastes (and how bad it can be for you!). When I am trying to eat healthier, he thinks I must be starving so he always offers me food. One day I tallied it and he offered me food 15 times in one day! Just think of that temptation. So we had a talk about it and he is forbidden to offer me anything. At first it was hard for him, but now he is used to it and there is much less temptation around the house.
           Second, I am a stress eater. I didn't think I was until one day I ended up standing in front of the pantry wondering what I was doing there. Coming to that realization is half the battle. The other half is knowing what to do instead. I am working on that now.
           Third, I am a perfectionist. If I mess up at one point, I get so frustrated at myself that I feel like giving up. I need to stop this or I will never get anywhere. One thing that kept frustrating me was that I felt like I was not doing well with Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred the last few times I tried it. I LOVE the work out, but I felt like my body couldn't handle it. I need to take baby steps!

            These are my goals for fitness:  

1) Find another way to deal with stress.

2) Work up to a high intensity work out.

(I will start by walking our town square for 1 month)

3) Plan what you are going to eat and be realistic about your time and ability

(I am going to utilize my crock pot more to prevent unplanned emergencies where it becomes to late to cook and I would typically go through a drive thru.)

I think as I begin dealing with these issues first, I will see results and be encouraged to keep going. What is making me try again is that I feel horrible physically. I feel like I look horrible. My clothes are ill fitting. I am lethargic. Basically, I feel like my body is dying. I have terrible brain fog which can be caused by poor nutrition. I need to be revived with good health! If you have any ways that you deal with stress instead of food, please let me know. Also, I would love to hear of any healthy crock pot recipes you might have. Thanks!

CelluLITE??? There's Nothing Lite About It!

What grown woman doesn't have even a little cellulite hanging on her? There are so many options such as creams, laser treatments, liposuction... It is hard to know what really is effective. I am the type that hates any kind of procedure unless very necessary. Today I watched a video by Dr. Oz. It gave me hope that I wouldn't have to get any procedure to get rid of the evil cellufat. I am including the video. It is really good. My next question for him would be, "Are there any foods that work to not only prevent cellulite, but break up these fat cells??" Because if there are foods out there that work better at other breaking up fat cells, I want to eat it like there is no tomorrow! I am going to do some research and get back to you. That will be one of the next few posts. Knowing that cellulite can be reduced/eliminated with diet and exercise gives me hope that my left over baby bulge can be toned by the diet and exercise also?? Is that true? Or will I really have to have lipo to get rid of the bulge? I am all for all natural methods. One thing I do want to say is that Dr. Oz is talking about permanent results. Some of these methods may work temporarily, but if you don't change your lifestyle it is just going to come right back. Hope you enjoy the video!

Cellulite Video

P.S. I received a blogger award from Happy Texans! I love their blog. I will be doing a posting about that later on today.