What I Ate Today

 

These were my carrot fries (recipe from paleoomg.com). 

   Today I ate very little due to my stomach and intestines waging war with each other. The past week I have had to miss work and school due to severe abdominal stress, throwing up, chills/fever, and just feeling crappy. I went to see my nurse practitioner Laura who was a God send!! Instead of telling me to go home, she took action. She had my blood drawn, stool samples taken, and went over my long list of symptoms. Laura thinks it might be irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), celiac disease, etc. Personally, I find these options a bit comforting because it validates my symptoms and my gut instinct (could not resist). In a few days I should have answers and hopefully an easier time with my stomach troubles.

   In the interest of saving myself from doubling over, I refused pizza from my husband. Severe gastro symptoms have taken away any craving for junk food. While perusing my new cookbook +Michelle Tam Food for Humans , I found a recipe for baked carrot fries. My bountiful basket gave me lots of carrots and I have olive oil, Himalayan pink sea salt, and crushed red pepper. This recipe is so easy a girl sick as a dog can do it! Pre-heat the oven to 425 and slice up 6 carrots, spread them on a parchment lined baking sheet, pour olive oil over the carrots, add sea salt and spread mixture evenly over the carrots. I added crushed red pepper flakes for fun and because I live in Texas :). Bake for 15 minutes, flip over the carrots, and then bake for an additional 11 minutes. Viola! Easy, healthy, and very delicious. My fries did not upset my stomach in the slightest and I can't wait to make them again.   For dinner I made a beet smoothie that also played nice with my insides. The website www.paleomg.com gave me the recipe for the smoothie. This is a great website if you are curious about Crossfit or paleo. 

Stomach friendly beet smoothie.   

Here is the recipe from paleomg:

Serves: 1

Ingredients

• 1 large beet, peeled and diced (equivalent to 1 cup diced beets)
• 1 banana, peeled and diced
• ½ cup frozen berries (I used strawberries and raspberries)
• ½ cup canned coconut milk
• ½ cup water
• 1 scoop egg protein (or protein powder of your choice)
• 1 tablespoon raw honey (optional)

Instructions

1. First you gotta roast your beets. Try biting into one of those raw. No fun. So preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2. Wash and peel your beets and dice them up.
3. Arrange pieces on a baking sheet then drizzle with about 2 tablespoons of coconut oil on top.
4. Bake in oven for about 45 minutes or until they are tender.
5. Let cool.
6. Once your beets are cooled, add all ingredients to a food processor and puree until smooth. Add more coconut milk or water if needed.
7. Drink up!

Bountiful Baskets

My bouquet of kale and parsley    

   Last night I picked up my bounty from Bountiful Baskets in Midland, TX. I always end up with way more food than I need so, I give some to my parents, my father in law, and brother in law. Not only do we all get fresh and healthy food, we also support our local farmers. Winning!

Look at all this food! So pretty! 

  I recently bought a book by an amazing blogger +Michelle Tam, NomNom Paleo, Food for Humans which is a great read and has tons of yummy recipes. The kale from my basket will be made into crispy kale chips with the recipe from NomNom Paleo. So excited to try out all the fun new food ideas from this great book. Y'all should check it out!

Shopping and Craving Junk Food

   I am so excited because today I have placed an order with Steve's Original Paleo Kits! I have heard nothing but great things about this company, which makes wonderful products and also gives back. My box full of goodies will have: Grass Fed Beef Jerky, Berky which has Jerky & Berries, and a Paleo Krunch Bar (shredded coconut, raw pumpkin seeds, raw sunflower seeds, raw almonds, and honey).  After consuming all the deliciousness I will report back with a post Paleo Snack Glow.

   Today marks Day 13 of the 24 Day Challenge and I feel fantastic but like most people I battle cravings. I have been an emotional eater for many years and a carboholic that loves ice cream for breakfast. However, yesterday was payday and I did not give in and buy ice cream or candy. Instead I went to Target and bought new lipstick because makeup makes me happy and is calorie free, and I also bought new jeans.Spending hundreds of dollars on things whenever you crave junk food won't do your wallet any favors. But I think treating yourself every now and then to a new outfit or a spa treatment is much healthier than cleaning out the office candy bowl. My lovely coworker has a candy bowl on her desk which calls to me on a daily basis. So I have decided to keep nuts and beef jerky at my desk to help keep me on track. I am not determined to be perfect or to never eat sugar again, I only want to help my body feel amazing.

  

I identify with this child.

I love bacon and I love these adorable pups :).

   

Day 8 of the 24 Day Challenge

   It is day 8 of my 24 Day Challenge and things are looking up. My energy levels have evened out and I feel less lethargic than I did on days 1-4. I started this whole process out of vanity, yep I can admit that when my "fat jeans" are snug I get desperate. Being from Texas I live in jeans and a great pair make my heart skip a beat. I could not ignore the fact that I allowed my hectic schedule and emotional eating packed on a few pounds. A few pounds amounted to around 18 on a 5 '2' frame which A) is not a good look for me and B) my knees were not appreciating the extra weight. Besides vanity reasons I also just wanted to feel good. You are what you eat unfortunately. Eating like a 16 year old boy made me feel like crap.

   Advocare came into the picture via my lovely classmate Ashley. At first, I was completely skeptical and tried out a few products before jumping in headfirst. I'm glad I did because I feel better which is important. My gut can be on the sensitive side and when I don't take proper care of her, she turns into a raging bull. The challenge has been a great tool that helped me to curb my bad eating which has made my stomach feel fantastic. I am no longer bloated or in pain because I am choosing to eat whole foods, even when my wonderful spouse gets pizza, I now abstain. In my opinion the Challenge is a great way for people to get back on track with eating well.

   Abs are made in the kitchen. The Challenge works by having people cook most of their own food. The kitchen can be a fun and happening place to be, with the exception of grease fires. I am not a professional cook but I can at times cook things that are edible and healthy. If I can do it, anybody can!

Release the Kracken!

   I have been officially released from post-op care! I feel as though I am making huge gains in my recovery and today just made life a little better. Physical therapy is going well and I am being allowed to use more weight and do new things. I have finally gotten to a point where I can start working out on my own in addition to what I do in PT. I am so ready to punch a heavy bag and feel like myself again!

  This evening I held plank for 2 minutes and down dog which makes me a very happy person. I find that for me doing a very light workout before bed allows me to put aside the day and go to sleep. Hope everyone has a lovely evening!

Here's Looking at You Kid

   My husband has really impressed me and thus deserves some pomp and circumstance for his efforts. Friday, I come home in a piss poor mood and really just wanted to be alone, in our bedroom watching Netflix. Instead my husband with a gleam in his eye, excitedly tells me to pack an overnight bag. With arms defiantly crossed over my chest I refuse. I had a date with Netflix and I was adamant about being left alone. He packed a bag for me and before I knew it, we were barreling down the road to somewhere. Steven refused to let me know our destination. I sat in the passenger seat seething and moody. PMS is a bitch and coupled with stress makes me an animal that should be caged for the good of humanity. A few hours into this adventure, I figure out we are headed to Dallas. Steven suggested I look up things I might want to do via +Google. Grudgingly I comply with this request and find that a ton of great things are happening, next weekend. I found several operas and symphony shows I wanted to see which of course, were not showing the night we would be in town.

   We get into town around 5:30 PM and check into our hotel. After freshening up we decided to walk around the galleria which is a three story mall and has several amazing stores that don't exist in Odessa. I found a +LUSH Cosmetics store which is a personal favorite of mine. Lush is the organic version of Bath & Body works and everyone needs to check one out! While I looked around Steven bought me two of my favorite products. Ocean Salt is a shower scrub that softens while evening out skin tone and he also bought me a shampoo called daddy-O. This shampoo helps to brighten blonde hair and leaves your strands silky soft. He scored so many husband points. We walked around for awhile and drooled over the very expensive things we could not afford. Our lovely night ended with an Amazing dinner at Ruth's Chris which is my favorite steakhouse. This restaurant has superb service, the food is always delicious and they have a remarkable wine list. Steven and I always drink Silver Oak which is a Cabernet but our waiter suggested we try something new. We were introduced to a new wine called Scarlet, if you drink wine then you must try this one. Steven ordered a New York strip with garlic mashed potatoes and I had shrimp cooked New Orleans style, with white wine and butter. A Cesar salad and garlic green beans rounded out the rest of my meal.

    I wrote this very long blog post because my husband deserves a ton of credit for making me a happier individual. He drove us 5 hours just to have a very fine meal, and sight see for a few hours this morning. The last few months have been very tough for me emotionally due to several things happening in my life. All he wanted was to make me happy and give me a night away from home. Words alone cannot express how thankful I am to have this man as my husband. Keep up the great work Steve!!

This is the wine we had at Ruth's Chris.   

Lush products that I am in Love with!

Kitchen Adventures

   Hey y'all! Yesterday kicked off the beginning of my +AdvoCare 24 day Challenge and today hasn't been half bad. This morning I mixed my fiber packet into my spark drink and the taste was phenomenal but the consistency was awful. Dear Sweet Baby Jesus I finished the drink off using my spoon due to the thickness. Then I drank a chocolate mocha meal replacement shake which was so good that even my husband had one. I am so happy that I listened to the wonderful Ashley Doran when she suggested the chocolate mocha. Hopefully, the next 23 days will go as smoothly as Day 1 did.

   The rest of my day was filled with grocery shopping, visiting with my mama, and cooking dinner. I hit it out of the ballpark with dinner! As I was perusing my kitchen cabinets and fridge I noticed that I had all the ingredients for chicken Florentine. Being the rebel that I am, of course I changed the recipe a little. I thawed out four chicken breasts, cut them into bite size chunks and threw them into a hot pan with olive oil. Salt, pepper, garlic, and crushed red pepper dressed the chicken as it cooked through. A 14 ounce can of tomato sauce went into the pan along with finely chopped brussel sprouts. This lovely concoction simmered for 15 minutes while I tried to work on my essay exam. I am a firm believer in hiding vegetables in most of the meals that I prepare for my husband. Steven likes to believe that man can exist on pizza and +Monster Energy drinks alone. That darling husband of mine ate his entire meal and never once noticed the brussel sprouts which he despises. Winning!

My version of Chicken Florentine

      Another winning moment came when I bought a very adorable octopus from +Bath and Body Works that holds hand sanitizer. This little beauty clips onto my new purse. This was a winning moment because I did not buy several chocolate chip cookies that looked equally delightful.

My new purse buddy. What should I name her?   

  Today has been both productive and satisfying in that I checked off several things on my to do list. Tonight we are taking mama out for her birthday at a nice Italian restaurant which will be so much fun! To top it off the weather has been glorious. Have a lovely evening everyone :).