Playland = Smiles :)
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
cheap and easy..Operation Update the Apartment!
No, not me!! Get your mind out the gutter!
Seriously, I have been on a mission to freshen up the decor in our home - especially before my surgery. I want something less khaki and dark wood and more white and everything cohesive. I am aiming for a chic-cozy-yet fresh kind of vibe. When I get home and MUST rest, I don't want my mind starting with "I wish I did that before surgery". I only want to be cozy and rested and heavily medicated....I digress...
Step one in Operation Update the Apartment....
So after taking them all down, I brought them outside in batches since I only had three cans of my favorite spray paint left and about 30 frames in total.
I am going to go nuts and spray paint this cork board frame too.
With all the tarps spread out on my roof. Let the spraying begin!
I have a pair of flip flops just for painting...they can get sticky and the occasional wind will ensure some off spray. $1 flip flops are a must have.
I was especially excited to get all the leather frames sprayed white! I want white all white, but I'm thrilled that there will be layers of white and textures.
I am going to go nuts and spray paint this cork board frame too.
With all the tarps spread out on my roof. Let the spraying begin!
I have a pair of flip flops just for painting...they can get sticky and the occasional wind will ensure some off spray. $1 flip flops are a must have.
Cool, right? It needed many more layers :)
I can't wait till they are dry and filled with new pics!!
Up tomorrow: My girls room!
xoxo Christine
I {heart} Sunday
Hey there and Happy Monday!
I'm going to get right to the highlight of our weekend.....Sunday Family Dinner: Braised short ribs, masked Yukon gold potatoes and gravy with Apple Puff Pasty w/whipped cream for dessert.
I always cook on Sunday, an early "fancy" dinner. Or at least I but ingredients to buy for Family dinner on Sunday. I really like the way my hubby prepares them, so I just help him set it all up (aka..I went grocery shopping therefore I'm done :) thankyouverymuch.......
He does a French style recipe, braising them in a vegetable broth mixture, wine etc. They cook for about 5 hours and the longer the better. Nothing better than meat that cuts like butter with a fork!
And regardless if I make the actual meal (ya know, cause I did the grocery shopping) I will make dessert. I was inspired by the Pioneer Woman episode yesterday, but I took it a step further:
1. I peeled the apples, this is a no brainer for me. I don't enjoy skin on my cooked fruit. Like ever.
2. added a bit of vanilla extract.
3. a hearty dash of pumpkin pie spice
Other than that I pretty much followed the cooking time, etc. It would have been cruel to keep that beautiful apple puff pastry without it's match made in food heaven, homemade whipped cream.
Do you make a special dinner on Sundays? I feel like that makes up for all the 30 minute or less meals during the week. Logical!?
Tomorrow I'm showing you one of my tricks for decorating on the cheap.
I'm going to get right to the highlight of our weekend.....Sunday Family Dinner: Braised short ribs, masked Yukon gold potatoes and gravy with Apple Puff Pasty w/whipped cream for dessert.
I always cook on Sunday, an early "fancy" dinner. Or at least I but ingredients to buy for Family dinner on Sunday. I really like the way my hubby prepares them, so I just help him set it all up (aka..I went grocery shopping therefore I'm done :) thankyouverymuch.......
He does a French style recipe, braising them in a vegetable broth mixture, wine etc. They cook for about 5 hours and the longer the better. Nothing better than meat that cuts like butter with a fork!
And regardless if I make the actual meal (ya know, cause I did the grocery shopping) I will make dessert. I was inspired by the Pioneer Woman episode yesterday, but I took it a step further:
1. I peeled the apples, this is a no brainer for me. I don't enjoy skin on my cooked fruit. Like ever.
2. added a bit of vanilla extract.
3. a hearty dash of pumpkin pie spice
Other than that I pretty much followed the cooking time, etc. It would have been cruel to keep that beautiful apple puff pastry without it's match made in food heaven, homemade whipped cream.
Do you make a special dinner on Sundays? I feel like that makes up for all the 30 minute or less meals during the week. Logical!?
Tomorrow I'm showing you one of my tricks for decorating on the cheap.
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
better days ahead.....
Well, here's hoping..
Yesterday, I met with the specialized surgeon - surgery scheduled for early September. Looking forward to this getting taken care of! In the meantime, he said I could walk - but that is it! I'll take it. Not working out has been like cutting off a life line! I miss it so much. I miss my gym, the staff and most of all my trainer, Mac.
In happier news, we adopted a little kitten two weeks ago. Minnie is a long haired teeny little thing and is just a sweet little lovey. Little B is completely obsessed and rarely lets her go! She even brings her to her food and waits for her at the litter box until she does her business. I was assuming she would let up a little, but not so much..
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...she is a very tolerant kitten. So happy she is ours - as long as she doesn't forget where the litter box is! I'M KIDDING, NO I'M ACTUALLY NOT!
Tomorrow I'm sharing some cool finds I scored yesterday and my newest crafting obsessions.....:)
Hope you are having a great day, it is gorgeous here and plan on bringing the kids to the beach later. Expect photos!
xo
Christine
Yesterday, I met with the specialized surgeon - surgery scheduled for early September. Looking forward to this getting taken care of! In the meantime, he said I could walk - but that is it! I'll take it. Not working out has been like cutting off a life line! I miss it so much. I miss my gym, the staff and most of all my trainer, Mac.
In happier news, we adopted a little kitten two weeks ago. Minnie is a long haired teeny little thing and is just a sweet little lovey. Little B is completely obsessed and rarely lets her go! She even brings her to her food and waits for her at the litter box until she does her business. I was assuming she would let up a little, but not so much..
.jpg)
...she is a very tolerant kitten. So happy she is ours - as long as she doesn't forget where the litter box is! I'M KIDDING, NO I'M ACTUALLY NOT!
Tomorrow I'm sharing some cool finds I scored yesterday and my newest crafting obsessions.....:)
Hope you are having a great day, it is gorgeous here and plan on bringing the kids to the beach later. Expect photos!
xo
Christine
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
i'm back........for now
Hey there!
I fell off the face of the earth. Well, sort of.
I am having a few complications from my hysterectomy back in April.
They took two months to catch up to me.
When I started this blog, I really truly wanted this to be about my weight loss journey, delicious and easy recipes, crafty stuff and not some blog bitching about hysterectomies and menopause. Well, as much as I have tried to avoid just that, that is what life keeps throwing back at me.
I started feeling great about 2 weeks after my surgery. No pain, I was doing my Visalus and started walking about three weeks post surgery. I continued to feel good, and got back on the elliptical. Five weeks out I started working out with my trainer again, who avoided any core moves. I knew my stomach still needed to heal.
Well, heal it did not. Back in July, I was working out with my trainer and I noticed while I was lifting weights, that my shirt would get caught on my belly. Now, I have mastered the art of sucking it in for years, so when I couldn't I was like, start sit ups!! start working that core!! start running!! I was committed to getting smaller, no matter what it took. I even participated in a boot camp. I was an idiot not realizing that while everything else was shrinking, my stomach was growing - duh, Christine something was wrong!!
Speed up to the first week in August, I had started my couch to 5K app and couldn't do it. I would cut my 60 second intervals down to 40 and 50, and it just hurt to run. I follow a few fitness blogs and everyone says run to lose weight. I was so mad at myself that I couldn't do this. If a 280 girl could run, shit, well then a 220 girl should be able to run too. Here begins the emotional cutting cycle for me.
I started having serious pains across my stomach and above my belly button that were cray cray bad.
My stomach continuted to swell. And it is rock hard!!! It swelled to the point of me looking seven months round. AWESOME.
I thought maybe it was an issue with scar tissue. I had heard one of the doctors back in March say the last thing they wanted was my bowel to be obstructed by scar tissue. So in my mind = that is what it was. The first appointment I had was with my gastro who wanted to do a colonoscopy but when he examined my stomach, I said "you don't think this thing I can make bulge out of my belly with a tiny push is a hernia, do you?" He confirmed it was a large hernia and that I need to see a surgeon....soon.
So I walked to the next office over, and told the girls at the desk what my doc just said. Okay, two weeks is our soonest appointment!
Fast forward to last Thursday = I had a catscan. My OB/GYN who did the surgery had his next in line see me immediately that day. The head guy came in as well, and he said I see your fasha/facia muscle is not healed and that is why you are 1. hurting, 2 looking like you are seven months pregnant. THANK YOU!
Why does it take so damn long to get an answer!!! Sunday night I landed in the ER from pains so bad, I was typing all my i love you's on my phone, telling my kids how much I loved them ... I literally thought I was dying. As it turns out......it was, um..........gas. The pain meds they gave me on Thursday - basically shut everything down. We left and I got gaxX and senekot. They worked like a charm (wink)!
I am meeting with a new surgeon today that the head OBG/YN said I should see.
Wish me luck............I'll promise to update soon!
I fell off the face of the earth. Well, sort of.
I am having a few complications from my hysterectomy back in April.
They took two months to catch up to me.
When I started this blog, I really truly wanted this to be about my weight loss journey, delicious and easy recipes, crafty stuff and not some blog bitching about hysterectomies and menopause. Well, as much as I have tried to avoid just that, that is what life keeps throwing back at me.
I started feeling great about 2 weeks after my surgery. No pain, I was doing my Visalus and started walking about three weeks post surgery. I continued to feel good, and got back on the elliptical. Five weeks out I started working out with my trainer again, who avoided any core moves. I knew my stomach still needed to heal.
Well, heal it did not. Back in July, I was working out with my trainer and I noticed while I was lifting weights, that my shirt would get caught on my belly. Now, I have mastered the art of sucking it in for years, so when I couldn't I was like, start sit ups!! start working that core!! start running!! I was committed to getting smaller, no matter what it took. I even participated in a boot camp. I was an idiot not realizing that while everything else was shrinking, my stomach was growing - duh, Christine something was wrong!!
Speed up to the first week in August, I had started my couch to 5K app and couldn't do it. I would cut my 60 second intervals down to 40 and 50, and it just hurt to run. I follow a few fitness blogs and everyone says run to lose weight. I was so mad at myself that I couldn't do this. If a 280 girl could run, shit, well then a 220 girl should be able to run too. Here begins the emotional cutting cycle for me.
I started having serious pains across my stomach and above my belly button that were cray cray bad.
My stomach continuted to swell. And it is rock hard!!! It swelled to the point of me looking seven months round. AWESOME.
I thought maybe it was an issue with scar tissue. I had heard one of the doctors back in March say the last thing they wanted was my bowel to be obstructed by scar tissue. So in my mind = that is what it was. The first appointment I had was with my gastro who wanted to do a colonoscopy but when he examined my stomach, I said "you don't think this thing I can make bulge out of my belly with a tiny push is a hernia, do you?" He confirmed it was a large hernia and that I need to see a surgeon....soon.
So I walked to the next office over, and told the girls at the desk what my doc just said. Okay, two weeks is our soonest appointment!
Fast forward to last Thursday = I had a catscan. My OB/GYN who did the surgery had his next in line see me immediately that day. The head guy came in as well, and he said I see your fasha/facia muscle is not healed and that is why you are 1. hurting, 2 looking like you are seven months pregnant. THANK YOU!
Why does it take so damn long to get an answer!!! Sunday night I landed in the ER from pains so bad, I was typing all my i love you's on my phone, telling my kids how much I loved them ... I literally thought I was dying. As it turns out......it was, um..........gas. The pain meds they gave me on Thursday - basically shut everything down. We left and I got gaxX and senekot. They worked like a charm (wink)!
I am meeting with a new surgeon today that the head OBG/YN said I should see.
Wish me luck............I'll promise to update soon!
Friday, July 5, 2013
Friday Favorites!
Good morning!
It's Friday favorites!!
I'm sharing a recipe that is a favorite recipe of my girls. I took the base of the recipe from Giada de Laurentis and made it my own. They request them often, and it contains ingredients I use and almost always have on hand. Simple, quick and scrumptious! I have even served these as a appetizer for adults and they loved them too!
The B's spaghetti nests:
1 pound of angle hair pasta - cooked
2 eggs
2 tbs milk
1/2 cup shredded basil
1/2 grated Parmesan cheese
mini mozzarella balls or large ball cut up in to little dices (same size as meatballs)
8-12 meatballs quartered dice
2-3 cups marinara sauce
Olive oil for drizzling
cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Butter the bottom and sides of cupcake baking pan.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and
cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes.
Drain the pasta and place in a large bowl.
Add the basil, cheese, oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Toss well until the basil is
wilted. Set aside to cool.
Beat the Parmesan, milk, salt and egg together in a large bowl until smooth.
Pour the sauce over the spaghetti mixture until well combined. Twirl 1/2 cupfuls
of the spaghetti mixture around tongs or a large fork and transfer to the
prepared pans. Make an indentation in the middle of each nest of pasta and
drizzle with olive oil. Bake 15 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes before removing the
sides from the pans. Remove the bottoms of the pans from the nests using a
thin metal spatula.
Spoon 1/2 cup of the marinara sauce on each of 4 serving plates.
Place the spaghetti nests on the sauce.
Place the meatballs and mozzarella balls in each nest and serve.
Have a great Friday!
It's Friday favorites!!
I'm sharing a recipe that is a favorite recipe of my girls. I took the base of the recipe from Giada de Laurentis and made it my own. They request them often, and it contains ingredients I use and almost always have on hand. Simple, quick and scrumptious! I have even served these as a appetizer for adults and they loved them too!
The B's spaghetti nests:
1 pound of angle hair pasta - cooked
2 eggs
2 tbs milk
1/2 cup shredded basil
1/2 grated Parmesan cheese
mini mozzarella balls or large ball cut up in to little dices (same size as meatballs)
8-12 meatballs quartered dice
2-3 cups marinara sauce
Olive oil for drizzling
cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Butter the bottom and sides of cupcake baking pan.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and
cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes.
Drain the pasta and place in a large bowl.
Add the basil, cheese, oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Toss well until the basil is
wilted. Set aside to cool.
Beat the Parmesan, milk, salt and egg together in a large bowl until smooth.
Pour the sauce over the spaghetti mixture until well combined. Twirl 1/2 cupfuls
of the spaghetti mixture around tongs or a large fork and transfer to the
prepared pans. Make an indentation in the middle of each nest of pasta and
drizzle with olive oil. Bake 15 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes before removing the
sides from the pans. Remove the bottoms of the pans from the nests using a
thin metal spatula.
Spoon 1/2 cup of the marinara sauce on each of 4 serving plates.
Place the spaghetti nests on the sauce.
Place the meatballs and mozzarella balls in each nest and serve.
Have a great Friday!
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
keeping track
is really hard for me! I have the best intentions of recording it all, but between the kids, laundry, Facebook did I just admit that??? etc, it ends up not getting fully recorded.
I thought I would document a few things in this post starting with my measurements:
Arms: 13
Waist: 45
Hips: 46
Thighs: 25
When I started this journey back in April, this was what I was starting with:
Arms: 14.5
Waist: 48
Hips: 49
Thighs: 27
Not bad, not as good as I was hoping on my stomach, but the hysterectomy has left me with a bloated feeling and I have to be careful working out my core for another 3-5 weeks. My awesome trainer, Mac, assures me we will work this hard as soon as I have the okay from my doctor.
Moving on to food,
Here is what a typical day looks like for me:
Breakfast:
Visalus shake with almond milk and 4 pieces of frozen pineapple and a few blueberries:
Shake mix: 90 calories
Almond milk: 60 calories
fruit: 50 calories
that equal about 200 calories for breakfast
Then I have a snack either a Think Thin bar at 190 calories or a Greek Yogurt also at 190 calories. I usually need something like a cup of carrots and a Kirby duke quartered with a sprinkling of sea salt.
Lunch:
Shake mix: 90 calories
Almond milk: 60 calories
Visalus flavor enhancer: 4 calories
Snack: 1/4 Acorn squash 90
1tbs of organic butter spread 100
1 kirby cuke with sea salt and pepper
Dinner:
Grilled chicken breast or seasoned ground turkey seasoned added to a large (mostly lettuce) salad with a vinegar based dressing. I try to keep it under 400 calories.
Dessert:
Pinkberry or some other kind of frozen yogurt - no toppings etc.
Water: I am up to drinking 100 ounces a day.
And there you have it. My somewhat clean eating under 1500 calories a day eating plan.
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