"What's on the Menu Tonight?"

Well, If you have been following my blog or me on Facebook, you know that this year I vowed to make a life change. I did not call it a resolution, because resolutions can be broken, thus the reason I am calling it a life change, it makes it become a commitment. So since the first of the year I have changed my eating habits. It is still going well and I am seeing the benefits. I will not share how much I have lost with you today, for I had my first weigh in about a week and a half ago, and my next weigh in will be on Friday. After that weigh in I will share my weight loss with all.

It is sort of funny, because it doesn't seem to matter to me how much I have lost! It isn't such a big deal. Rather, it seems like a big deal that I have been sticking to this 'life change' for an entire month. that is really good. As I would tell my math students that is 1/12 of a year of sticking to something that has been hard for me to stick to in the past. Why I don't know, I guess it is just my time.

So tonight I made a couple of recipes I found on Pinterst, I LOVE PINTERST! I love all the cool ideas I find for my home, garden and school. I have also found some really great recipes, and tonight I tried two of them, I think these main course and vegetable recipes are a couple of the best I have ever tasted.

Tonight I made 'Garlic Parmesan Chicken and Parmesan Roasted Green Beans. Both were very quick and easy to make. I served my dinner with a piece of garlic toast and a glass of Michigan Moscato Wine. A perfect paring for an absolutely perfect meal.

Garlic Parmesan Chicken
1/2 cup butter

4 chopped garlic cloves

4 boneless chicken breasts

3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Salt & Pepper

Melt butter, add chopped garlic and saute.

Place chicken in a single layer of a shallow baking dish.

Mix the cheese and Italian seasoning.

Cover the chicken with the cheese and seasoning mixture.

Pour garlic butter over the cheese covered chicken breasts.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees until chicken is no longer pink.

Recipe from cheese.food.com

Roasted Parmesan Green Beans

12 oz green beans, trimmed (make sure they are dry)
2 tsp olive oil
salt + fresh cracked pepper to taste
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tbsp shredded Parmesan

Preheat the oven to 425°F.

Line a baking sheet with aluminum for easy clean-up.

Lay green beans out on the baking sheet and drizzle oil over them.

Season with salt, pepper and garlic powder and toss to evenly coat.

Spread them out on the sheet so that they all lay flat.

Place on the lower third section of your oven.

Bake 10 minutes, shake the pan to turn.
Bake 5 additional minutes.

Remove from the oven and sprinkle with grated cheese.

Recipe from skinnytaste.com

Well, be sure to check back after Friday when I share my news of how much weight I lost in January. February is the month to increase my activity. Yes, that means it's time to start a regular routine of exercising, and remember, if you see me out or around, please keep encouraging me on my 'Life Change' journey this year. I need the support of my family and friends to make my journey a success.

New Year-New Me Update

Well, it's been a couple of weeks since my post and I've been working hard to stay true to my words. It is not easy to make a life change. The first week was pretty easy, I think mainly because it was new and right up front on your mind, but slowly my old habits start to creep in telling me, "It will be okay to just have one hershey kiss." Then at school I walk into the faculty lounge and it's just another manic Monday and someone has brought in dougnuts. I automatically reach for one, it's so second nature to just do it. Another moment comes when I'm making dinner and of course I'm hungry and the next thing I know I find myself reaching for one of those Mars cherry bites that I husband has (and they aren't even my favorite). Then I have to stop and remind myself of that promise I made to myself and shared with all my friends. I am going to make this change in my life and I won't let my old habits win! I have some very special reasons to make it work this year.

I have family that is very important to me. I want to be around for a long time to see grandchildren graduate, attend their weddings, even hold their children. I want to be able to walk up a flight of stairs without huffing and puffing. I want to be able to fit into some of those clothes hanging in my closet. I want to go shopping for something other than extra large or 1X, and wouldn't it be nice to slide easily into those desks at school with the chair attached to them! I will one day (sooner than later) hit my golden years. I want to enjoy them! It would be so nice to be healthy enough to travel around this country with Mark as we go through that golden time together and be able to truly enjoy it.

So my first weigh-in will be Friday. ( Several of us at school are weighing in every two weeks.) Hard to say how it will go. I step on my scale every morning. It has been looking good. I have been eating much healthier, especially at lunch and snacks. I found some wonderfully scrumptious sweet red peppers at Sam's Club, so I've been cutting one of them up every day for lunch and snacking. I've also make a sandwich every day, and have cut that to 1/2  of a sandwich. I 've been taking a couple servings of fruit and celery with me. I've also been drinking more water. I have been feeling better, more energy at night. I have not made much progress on the exercising. That has to be my next step. So that is my goal for the next several weeks to start an exercise program that I will be able to stick to. I won't try to take on the world, but rather start with something I know I can stick to and build upon. I have a CD by Kris Freytag that has multiple ten minute workouts. I feel that will be a good place to start, as I think I can probably hang in there for at least 10 minutes.

Well, that's it for now. I will report in again in a couple of weeks to let you know how everything is going. Wish me luck and if you happen to be around me, please encourage me to do this. Help me by not offering me chocolate, for if you know me, you know it's my downfall. Offer me some fruit, raw veggies or a diet pop. If I look like I'm having a rough day, give me a little bit of encouragement, and most important, just be my friend when I need one.

Not a Resolution, Rather a Life Change

Scale, measuring tape, cookbooks and workout video-all tools to help wearing the dress

 

      Well the first week of January has come and gone. I've never been real great at making New Year's Resolutions, mainly because most of the times people in general do not stick to them. So this year I am not making one either, rather I am making a life change. I know I need to lose some weight, and I would really like to lose some weight. I also know in order to do that, I have to make some life changes. It would be great if there was some 'quick fix' for my weight dilemma, but unfortunately there just isn't a magic pill I can take one night to wake up thin the next morning. I have often thought how nice it would be to be able to do that, but then when I really contemplate the idea, realize there is not much reward in anything that doesn't take a little work getting to. I have contemplated the protein shake idea, read up on many different diets and have come to one conclusion, Weight Watchers will be the best for me. I know that part of my problem in being overweight is not just taking the weight off, but learning how to eat properly all the time. I like the taste of food. I like the experience of having different textures, tastes, spices hitting my tongue. So I will begin to monitor what I put into my mouth and how much of it I actually consume.

     Along with that, I will have to begin a regular routine of exercising. I am going to aim for the little exercise sessions at this time. I know myself and if I commit to anything to much, I will not do it, so I am opting for short workouts 2-3 times a day. I am out of shape and need to get back to being more active and know I can only accomplish this by taking those baby steps. We have a new Snap Fitness in Rice now, and I would like to join that. Both Mark and I have talked about it, so we will have to look into it. It would be convenient because of the location, and I don;t think it would be too packed ever either. Again, baby steps will needed to be taken, otherwise it won't happen. Start small and work your way up Monica. I don't want to start this by doing so much that I give up in the first couple of weeks. I would also like to get Mark and i to do some games with he Wii to get our bodies moving a bit versus sitting on the couch with our computers.

     I have taken a big step in making this a commitment, as I am weighing in at work every two weeks with two co-workers. We are also sharing our weight with each other, no that's a BIG leap. It will be good to have the accountability with someone else. It will also be great to have the support from these two good friends. Both Dawn and Mandy have great personalities and can bring humor to any situation. That may be helpful when I hit those plateaus that I know will come along my way during this journey to a new, more slender, healthier me.

     In the picture above, there is a black dress that has been hanging in my closet waiting to be work for a couple of years. When I bought it, I thought I would lose some weight and be able to wear it soon. Well soon came and went now for several years and that dress is still waiting to hit the dance floor. It is now my goal to not only get the dress on (you see it has a little stretch in the fabric), but to look smoking hot in it from all directions with no fat rolls or tummy pouch showing.

     So I will be posting my updates throughtout the year as how I am doing on my life change. Please give me encouragement throughtout the year as I begin this hew journey in my life. I;ve taken this journey before, but it will be different this time, for I am not as young as I once was when it was easier to make these changes. Hopefully, the body will respond in a positive way and support me along the way. I hope that everyone else that made some time of resolution this year will be able to fulfill their hopes and dreams also.

Welcoming in 2012

     Another new year has begun. I would like to reflect over the past year. It was a good year. My grandchildren celebrated growing another year older, and I was able to make birthday cakes for them to enjoy. I also grew a year older, but it really wasn't as big of a deal as the grandchildren's birthdays. For me, it's just another year, although I'm very grateful to be able to have that extra year added onto my life. I hope I can do good by the gift of starting another year by eating healthier and starting and maintaining an exercise routine. It is very important to me to do those two things, as I would like to have many more years to be able to make cakes for my grandchildren's birthdays.

     This past year did have it's sad moments. At my school, STRIDE Academy, we had several children experience illness. One little girl was completely paralyzed and in the hospital for over three months with Guillian Barre Syndrome. I am happy to announce that she returned to school in June, and as of this date, it would be hard for anyone to detect that she was ever hospitalized. On a sad note, the week she returned, our school lost another young girl. She had an immune disorder that is very rare and at the stage they detected it, was incurable. I am proud to be associated with a school that gave the family so much support from staff and families. It was a very sad funeral to attend, but wonderful to see our school choir perform 'The Climb, and to see so many staff members, parents and students attend. At the end of the school year we learned of another young student battling kidney cancer. He had surgery and continues to have chemo and is doing alright. I have him in my literature class, and he recently wrote that his high in life was simply life itself. Very simply stated, but so true. I also lost an aunt this past year due to a car accident. My Aunt Edna was a strong lady in so many ways. She worked up until the age of 87 and remained active since then volunteering. She walked her dog at least two times a day around the streets of Monticello. She was always so upbeat, even when she had obstacles in front of her. We also lost a father of two of our young students this fall. It was very comforting to have the mother bring the boys to school the day after the accident and tell our principal that the school was the best place for them that day as it gave them both the structure and support that was important for them. Lastly, a young three year old was hit by a stray bullet in North Minneapolis the day after Christmas. He was the nephew of a lady I worked with when I taught at New Visions School in Minneapolis. The mother of the young boy stated that she didn't let her children play outside, because it wasn't safe, but thought that her home was a safe place. It is so sad that the innocent victim was a young child. We will never know what great things he could of accomplished on this earth.

     I hope that we all can learn from these events. I hope that we can begin to live each day as if it were our first and also as if it were our last. Live as if each day is a new beginning. In doing so we do not need to carry baggage from our past with us. We can do whatever we have to to set that baggage free. That may mean having to forgive someone, making amends, or picking up the pieces in some relationship with others. In doing so we will be able to live as if it is the first day of our lives every day for we will wake up refreshed and light hearted. Live each day as if it is your last chance to make your mark on this earth. Try to smile more often, even at the grumpy people. Be sure to tell those important to you that you love them each day. Offer a kind gesture to someone every day, and it does not have to be someone you know. Try to brighten the world around you, only you can change the world around you, so do it!

     I wish everyone the best of 2012. Please check back for I will be posting on a regular basis. Look for pictures of the future birthday cakes I will be making, and remember to make 2012 a great year for your self, you deserve it.

Wishing all my family and friends a Happy New Year!