Trying new things

This week (this week as in yesterday and today;), I've been trying to incorporate more fruits and veggies into my lifestyle. The fruits aren't so bad, although I've never really been a fruit lover. The veggies on the other hand... UHG. I'd rather eat a... well a cupcake.

There are so many health benefits from eating your daily serving of fruits and veggies. I'm starting to feel like I'm robbing myself if I don't eat the healthy goodness that nature has to offer.

Here are just a few of those benefits:

• Lowers your blood pressure
• Helps your digestion system
  
• Helps your body to burn more calories
• Lowers the risk of several types of cancer
• Reduces the risk of heart disease and stroke
• Reduces the risk of Type 2 diabetes and better control of blood glucose

I know it's worth it. I just have to re-train my little taste buds. And my taste buds are snobs, so it might take a little while.

Since I don't want to eat my vegetables in the first place, it's hard for me to find the motivation to actually prepare them. These steamfresh bags have been a lifesaver. You just pop it in the microwave for 5 min. and you have perfectly steamed veggies. They're also the perfect size for the hubs and I to share. But since I love the guy, I give him the majority of the bag. There's no "I" in marriage. Oh wait, there is!

Another little thing I tried this week were brown eggs.
I always thought there was something "special" about brown eggs. They're more expensive, and they're brown...so that has to mean something, right? Apparently not. The only difference between a white egg and a brown egg, is that the white egg comes from a white hen, and the brown comes from a brown/red feathered hen. And that's it. But it was a fun little adventure ;)

THIS is a great article by Paula Deen.com, that explains the difference between healthy eggs, and not so healthy eggs.

P.S. It's my dream in life to own chickens, and a cute little chicken coop.
Chickens are the new dog. So naturally I have to get some.

What new healthy things have you been trying?
Do you love your fruits and veggies?

Stupid pharmacy...

The month of March was supposed to be my
first month on Clomid, a fertility drug that will stimulate my ovaries to ovulate. 3 days into my "cycle", I was to start taking the medicine, and continue taking it for 5 days. Remember this photo? Well, there were supposed to be two of these little packets.

Since you take the medicine for 5 days, and there were only 5 pills, I assumed that meant that I was supposed to take one pill a day, which I did. A few weeks later, I was "late". My period was MIA, and I started picking out baby names. After a few days of waiting to make sure it wasn't coming, I took a pregnancy test. I thought for sure I was finally going to see a positive... instead I saw what I always see: A negative pregnancy test. I called my fertility doctor upset, and explained that my period was late, and the pregnancy test came back negative. I told her it must mean that I didn't ovulate this month, which meant the clomid didn't work. She started telling me what our next plan of action was, which is when she asked me what my dosage was. I told her I took one pill a day, for 5 days... and that's when she told me I was supposed to be taking 2 pills a day, for 5 days. She looked up the prescription, and confirmed that I had taken the wrong dosage. She then explained that the pharmacy must have gotten it messed up.

I am now reverting back to my 5 year old ways, and calling the pharmacy a butthead. While I stick my tongue out at it.

Right now I'm taking Provera, a drug that will make me have a period, so that I can start taking the clomid 3 days into the cycle. For real this time.

Normally I would have drowned my sorrows into some kind of unhealthy goodness. Instead, I ate 2 of these deliciously healthy chocolate chip cookies, with a small glass of low-fat milk.
(I can't for the life of me upload pics from my camera, so I had to use my phone)It did just the trick. These cookies are free of white flour, and oh so yummy.

Trials will come. That is life. But I will NOT drown my sorrows in food, and let it get the best of me.
I deserve to be healthy, and it's up to me to make that happen.

I know that I will be a Mommy someday. It just wasn't this month.

Stupid pharmacy.
It's going to take me a couple days to stop saying that ;)

Putting almond butter to the test.

I had been wanting to try almond butter for a while (like a year), but they don't carry it at my normal grocery store. That meant that I had to go to a "special" store to get it. That = waiting an entire year until I finally talked myself into going to two different grocery stores to do my grocery shopping, so that I could get me some almond butter. Yes. I am that pathetic. I hate grocery shopping. It's a character flaw.

When I finally had the almond butter in my kitchen, I took one taste of it, said I didn't like it, and put it in my pantry closet as I bitterly mumbled under my breath about the $4 wasted.

It seems that everyone likes almond butter. I started to wonder if I was one of the rare few that didn't like the stuff, or if I had possibly been too hard on the poor almond butter. So, I took it back out, and
put it to the test.

If I was going to bring almond butter into my life, it needed to be just as good as peanut butter, on the things I normally put peanut butter on. (did that make sense?) So, I tried almond butter and peanut butter, side by side on the things I usually put PB on:

Crackers:Peanut butter: Delish as always.
Almond butter: Not too shabby. I can definitely see myself doing this.

Apple slices:Almond butter:
DELISH!
Peanut butter:
Good. But I liked the almond butter better.
I was as shocked as you.

And last, I had to see if AB could replace the PB in my PB and J:And it did.
Deliciously.
Here are the facts:
Peanut butter:Almond Butter:Almond butter has less saturated fat. It has significantly less sodium, which earns it some brownie points from me. And it has more vitamin E, calcium, and iron.

I've decided that the almond butter can stay.
No body was more happy about this then the almond butter.

Do you like almond butter?
What do you like to spread your peanut butter, or almond butter on?

Blog shy

Yes. It has been 2 weeks since I last blogged.
I've had lots to say, over the past 2 weeks, but every time I would sit down to write a post, I would get.... shy. Blogging made me nervous all of a sudden. It was seriously weird.

But I'm back.
Hello world.

Here's just a few random things from the past 2 weeks:

I went to whole foods for the first time:I have been on this weight loss journey for over a year, and I had never gone to a whole foods. I don't believe it myself.

I've been trying some new, clean and healthy products, as a result of my recent trip to Whole Foods:

Cinnamon raisin bagels:Love.

All different kinds of butters: Dislike all of the above.

All natural chocolate chip cookies: Not the best I've ever had, but it's nice to have something chocolaty and "clean" in the freezer, for when I turn into the cookie monster.

Luna bars:
Love. The only problem is, so does my husband. Doesn't he see the label? Women only! ;)

I have developed a love/hate relationship with ovulation tests:Every morning I get a sense of rejection/failure when a little stick tells me I'm not ovulating.
I have yet to see a positive test. My fertility Doctor told me that my PCOS can prevent these tests from working right, but that she still wanted me to take them.
I think I may have ovulated this month, as I had all the "signs" THIS article pointed out.
How many sticks does a girl have to pee on to get pregnant?

I bought this, Clean Eating cook book:
I heart this book. Not only does it give you lots of clean eating recipes, including desserts (none of which I have tried, because I am currently too lazy to bake), it's also a whole guide on how to eat clean. Why I didn't buy a clean eating book from the get go, is beyond me.

And I have developed a small crush on 50 Cent:
That is all.

Do you ever get blog shy?
What healthy foods are you currently loving?

I Heart Costco...

(and yes, that is our Christmas tree in the background. Don't judge. We've taken everything else down, but can't find it in us to take down the tree. We will. I promise;)

***

On a side note:

I've been doing good on this weight loss path. Walking at a slow and steady paste. I've been eating healthy. I've had slip ups, but nothing to cry over, or get me discouraged. I just move on, and do better next time. And next time is always better. I'm enjoying this walk, for the first time ever.
It's the perfect temperature outside, the birds are singing, the scenery is beautiful, and I'm not obsessing over every little step. Sure, sometimes I trip over a rock, or step in a puddle, get pooped on by a bird, or smell somebodies hot dog as they walk by. I have my emotional moments, that make me want to run up to that person, tackle them to the ground, and take off with their hot dog...and there are the times that I do (keep an eye out for the crazy hot dog snatcher lady on the loose, in the news;) but, I get over it. I don't let it stop me from continuing on my journey. I regather myself, and I keep on walking.

I haven't weighed myself yet. Crazy right? Every time I go on a diet, I'm addicted to the scale, weighing myself a minimum of twice a day. But like I said, I'm doing good on this little walk of mine, and I'm not quite ready to look at numbers. I'm building myself up first.
I'm thinking next Monday?

I'm LOVING my two new books, by Bethenny Frankle! They've been very helpful! When I'm finished, I'll give a complete review.

I hope you are all doing well on your own weight loss paths. And if you've had a little fall, detour, or that stupid guy with a hot dog keeps circling you, tell him to beat it, and don't let it get you down. Just keep on strolling... It'll pay off. I promise :D

New Books, and a New Motivation!

These past few days, I've been feeling a little discouraged, because I can't workout much, due to my RA. What I'd give to be able to go running, even just for 10 minutes. Or workout long enough to be drenched in sweet, and really feel my heart pumping. I try to workout, but the pain is just too much to work through, and I can't stand the feeling of it. A lot of my joints are almost completely bone on bone, and in some areas, they are bone on bone. The joints that are the most damaged are: Both my knees, my right shoulder, and both my wrist. When I try to work out, I can feel my joints cracking and grinding in the areas that it's bone on bone. Not only is this very painful, but it's a lot like nails going down a chalk board. It grosses me out, and it's hard to work through. It just feels wrong!

How in the world am I going to lose 75lbs, when I can barley workout? I know losing weight seems like a huge mountain to climb for anyone, but for me, I sometimes feel like I'm trying to climb a mountain without any tools or gear. Sometimes I feel like it's hopeless, impossible, not fair, and just too dang difficult. Sometimes it makes me just want to give up.

Then, my darling husband, who I'm convinced Heavenly Father sent to this earth just for me, came home from work last night. He walked in the door, and said, "Close your eyes!" I was thinking, "Please tell my your not about to hand me my favorite temptation, because I've been crying all day, and I'm just not strong enough right now to turn any kind of chocolate away. I will most likely swallow it whole, like nobodies business!" I opened my eyes, bracing myself, and I saw this:My husband did not come home with a delicious, chocolaty temptation for me to sink my teeth into, when I'm trying to lose weight (He's been known to do this). Instead, he came home with the Bethenny Frankle (I seriously love her), "Naturally Thin" book that I've been wanting, AND her, "The Skinny Girl DISH" book, to help me on this journey. He came home with a tool, and piece of gear, to help me climb this mountain.
I heart him...

As I looked down at the books, I thought to myself, "This is what I CAN do."

I can't change the fact that I have RA. It's the cards I've been dealt. I can't change the fact that I can't go jogging, or even go walking for a long period of time. But I know whining about it isn't going to make me any thinner, and getting discouraged is only going to send me on a completely different path, going the WRONG direction! I don't have control over the things my body simply can't do, but I do have control over what I put into my body. I have to do what I CAN do, and stop focusing on what I CAN'T do!
I can eat healthy. I can be positive. I can be grateful. I can educate myself, by reading books on how to live a healthy life.
"This is what I CAN do."
And this is what I'm going to do.

I'm ready to conquer another weekend!
This weekend, I'm going to have my head in my new book, and not in the fridge saying, "Hmmm. I wonder what I can eat in here?" I'm going to try some new recipes this weekend, and I'm going to do lots of research on things I CAN do with my RA.

Happy weekend everyone!