So I've been trying to get Hubby to eat healthier for awhile. He wasn't thrilled when I began introducing more vegetables into our diet. He likes broccoli, broccoli and broccoli. I am a veggie fiend - I love just about all of them. Except, of course, lima beans.
Our diet consists of mostly chicken and rices. Occasional pastas. Lots of sandwiches for lunch. Ice cream is a staple. I started introducing veggies and salads, but due to the lack of enthusiasm from the non-veggie camp I've let those slide a bit.
Somehow, we both found ourselves along an intersecting path of thought this past week. I had already made the decision to bring back the salads into our nightly meal and begin having bigger salads for lunch. I had been working on giving up extra sugars...eliminating sodas, using only creamers in my coffee and stifling my inner Southerner and going with *gasp* unsweet tea. Suddenly, last weekend Hubby announced his intention to start following the Atkins diet on Tuesday. He was at least considerate enough to account for the roast that I planned in the crock pot on Monday.
I thought very briefly about picking up the diet with him, but then remembered the glorious food extravaganza planned for "Employee Appreciation Week" at work. I'm no fool...so I picked up the Atkins diet starting with diner on Friday night. :D
So here I am...day 2. Dinner Friday night was rosemary chicken with salad. We were on a road trip all day Saturday so lunch was a giant cobb salad topped with steak strips and vinaigrette dressing on the side, and dinner was a mushroom jack cheese burger (minus the bun) with a salad...ranch on the side. Unsweet tea for both meals. And string cheese with bottled water for snacks.
What I have stumbled with the most so far is my inability to stomach eggs. I used to love them, but a few months ago I suddenly couldn't stand the thought of eating them anymore. So this morning I got up and went to the grocery store...picked up some sausage and veggies to make snacks from. I'll eat either a burger patty for breakfast or prepare some recommended veggie snacks like sliced tomato/mozzarella/basil under the broiler or cucumber boats filled with chicken salad. Maybe cucumber sticks wrapped with lunch meats.
What am I hoping for? Lost weight, of course. Hubby is already down over five pounds. I'm also hoping that we both start feeling better about ourselves. Hubby no longer suffers from after dinner lethargy. And after his stomach surgery in 2005, he's suffered from some pretty awful side effects that we've pegged to have been caused by carbs. He has reported no issues this past week and that he actually feels better after meals.
So...hello Dr. Atkins. Welcome to my life and my refrigerator. Let's make this a good journey, shall we?
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Cabin Fever + Spring Fever = Garden Gnoming
This happens to me every year right around my birthday. As the winter chill begins to thaw, and the temperatures warm up just a bit…I start wanting to get outside and bask in the springy weather.
Every March, my thoughts start turning towards gardening and it becomes an obsession with me. I start imagining gorgeous flowers and lush greenery surrounding us in our outdoor living spaces and I feel a warmth inside of me that I cannot wait to let out. I want to go to the garden centers and browse their enormous selection of plants and I start daydreaming about what will look good placed in my gardens.
Two years ago, we put up a patio cover and suddenly our patio became a pleasant place to be. With the necessary shade on our west-facing patio, we were able to sit outside and enjoy the outdoors, and I was able to get things to grow in containers on the patio that made it a much more enjoyable place to be.
About a year ago, we pulled out a bunch of established plants in our front and back yard garden beds. Most of what we pulled were shrubs that did nothing other than sit there and be green. That’s all fine and good, but I want colorful flowers, too! So up came the shrubbery and in went roses, lilies, lavender, hydrangeas rhododendron and heavenly bamboo. Everything survived, except for one hydrangea, the rhododendron and one rose. And the survivors are flourishing, along with my previously planted confederate jasmine!
This year, I am determined to finish the front garden bed (only half-planted last year) and have been looking into shrub-like plants to plant between our yard and the neighbors’ driveway. I came up with Sweet Broom (yellow, fragrant flowers) and am giving an Azalea a try under the tree. I still need to decide what will work at the base of the tree next to the sidewalk…that area has become overrun with grass and needs to be cleaned out.
I think that I am going for a cottage look in the front of the house…the lavender that I planted next to the front door thrived and grew…I had to cut it back substantially a couple of weeks ago and can’t wait for it to start blooming with the coming warm weather. Sadly, one of my hydrangeas didn’t survive, so I went out and bought two more and planted them in front of our windows in the front of the house. Both purple roses are doing well…once everything in that bed begins to mature and expand, it will make a nice, lush garden of flowering fragrant wonder to enjoy.
In the back garden beds, I replaced the failed rose with a hibiscus. I do so love these plants and hope that this coral beauty grows and thrives. Especially since I will be able to view it from the bedroom window.
I continue to work on my annual container garden. This year, hubby helped me design a cinder-block and wooden shelving structure to place in the corner of our patio against the fence…creating a tiered unit to house a variety of plants…half of which will receive some form of sunlight, and half of which will not. I spent a few days arranging pots in an artful yet practical way, and Hubby put in a drip irrigation system for me so that everything will receive water in the coming months. This will be especially important during the baking summer months.
I spent yesterday filling pots and getting the container garden set up. I have a wonderful assortment of fuschias, begonias, impatiens, strawberries, tomatoes, English ivy, ferns, marigolds, stock annuals, columbine, dianthus, delphinium, coral bells, lobelia and a purple potato bush filling my pots and I am hoping for another resurgence for my mums. I still have pots to fill, but think that I will wait to see what else comes out at the garden centers as the season progresses.
I even tackled the small patio garden bed and put in what I hope to be permanent vines…pink jasmine. I chose them because they’re so fragrant and grow quickly…I look forward to sitting around the fire pit on the patio and basking in their scent!
I still need to find the energy to get everything mulched…that means at least one more trip to the garden center this week. And I have more pots to place and fill…I may finally tackle the empty spot at the end of the driveway, but need to look into converting the existing sprinkler into a drip system for the plans that I have in my head.
I do so love to plan and organize my little gardens. I wish that we had more space…I’d work in a vegetable garden and spend the spring and summer months tending to vegetables and herbs. Alas, that will be something for the future. In the mean time, I spend my time concentrating on the little pot of land that we have and putting together a pleasant little area for us to live in and enjoy.
Spring fever always gets to me.
Every March, my thoughts start turning towards gardening and it becomes an obsession with me. I start imagining gorgeous flowers and lush greenery surrounding us in our outdoor living spaces and I feel a warmth inside of me that I cannot wait to let out. I want to go to the garden centers and browse their enormous selection of plants and I start daydreaming about what will look good placed in my gardens.
Two years ago, we put up a patio cover and suddenly our patio became a pleasant place to be. With the necessary shade on our west-facing patio, we were able to sit outside and enjoy the outdoors, and I was able to get things to grow in containers on the patio that made it a much more enjoyable place to be.
About a year ago, we pulled out a bunch of established plants in our front and back yard garden beds. Most of what we pulled were shrubs that did nothing other than sit there and be green. That’s all fine and good, but I want colorful flowers, too! So up came the shrubbery and in went roses, lilies, lavender, hydrangeas rhododendron and heavenly bamboo. Everything survived, except for one hydrangea, the rhododendron and one rose. And the survivors are flourishing, along with my previously planted confederate jasmine!
This year, I am determined to finish the front garden bed (only half-planted last year) and have been looking into shrub-like plants to plant between our yard and the neighbors’ driveway. I came up with Sweet Broom (yellow, fragrant flowers) and am giving an Azalea a try under the tree. I still need to decide what will work at the base of the tree next to the sidewalk…that area has become overrun with grass and needs to be cleaned out.
I think that I am going for a cottage look in the front of the house…the lavender that I planted next to the front door thrived and grew…I had to cut it back substantially a couple of weeks ago and can’t wait for it to start blooming with the coming warm weather. Sadly, one of my hydrangeas didn’t survive, so I went out and bought two more and planted them in front of our windows in the front of the house. Both purple roses are doing well…once everything in that bed begins to mature and expand, it will make a nice, lush garden of flowering fragrant wonder to enjoy.
In the back garden beds, I replaced the failed rose with a hibiscus. I do so love these plants and hope that this coral beauty grows and thrives. Especially since I will be able to view it from the bedroom window.
I continue to work on my annual container garden. This year, hubby helped me design a cinder-block and wooden shelving structure to place in the corner of our patio against the fence…creating a tiered unit to house a variety of plants…half of which will receive some form of sunlight, and half of which will not. I spent a few days arranging pots in an artful yet practical way, and Hubby put in a drip irrigation system for me so that everything will receive water in the coming months. This will be especially important during the baking summer months.
I spent yesterday filling pots and getting the container garden set up. I have a wonderful assortment of fuschias, begonias, impatiens, strawberries, tomatoes, English ivy, ferns, marigolds, stock annuals, columbine, dianthus, delphinium, coral bells, lobelia and a purple potato bush filling my pots and I am hoping for another resurgence for my mums. I still have pots to fill, but think that I will wait to see what else comes out at the garden centers as the season progresses.
I even tackled the small patio garden bed and put in what I hope to be permanent vines…pink jasmine. I chose them because they’re so fragrant and grow quickly…I look forward to sitting around the fire pit on the patio and basking in their scent!
I still need to find the energy to get everything mulched…that means at least one more trip to the garden center this week. And I have more pots to place and fill…I may finally tackle the empty spot at the end of the driveway, but need to look into converting the existing sprinkler into a drip system for the plans that I have in my head.
I do so love to plan and organize my little gardens. I wish that we had more space…I’d work in a vegetable garden and spend the spring and summer months tending to vegetables and herbs. Alas, that will be something for the future. In the mean time, I spend my time concentrating on the little pot of land that we have and putting together a pleasant little area for us to live in and enjoy.
Spring fever always gets to me.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
My Dirty Little Secret
I’ve got a dirty little secret…it’s something that I’ve managed to suppress for some time, but recently I gave in. It’s not really my fault…I can’t help it…I can’t control it…this is just one of those things that I cannot overcome.
I bought a Snuggie.
And it’s blue.
You can’t tell, but I’m hanging my head in shame right now.
Stop laughing. I’m a sick person.
We’ve all seen the same commercials…silly woman on the couch, fighting to free her arms so that she can reach the remote…entire families out in public at sporting events waving frantically at the camera…people playing board games…all wrapped up toasty warm in their Snuggie blankets. There’s even an idiot on the couch “raising the roof” and “cabbage patching” in his Snuggie. You almost feel sorry for his wife…until you see that she’s wearing one, too.
Here’s my excuse. I’m cold…almost all the time. Hubby and I define “comfort” as different things…he likes to be as cold as possible…I like to be so toasty that I’m on the verge of sweating. We sleep on a king sized bed with two different twin comforters…his is so thin that it is almost non-existent…mine is stuffed with down feathers. He keeps it much colder than I would prefer in the house…so I bought a Snuggie.
I had debated about the Snuggie for some time…at first making fun of them…until I realized that I’m cold all the time. I cover myself with a blanket when I’m lounging on the couch with Hubby, but when I want something from the kitchen, I have to emerge and expose myself to the cold air in the house. Brr! It was when I started taking a blanket with me to the computer that I suddenly decided that maybe I should give in. A Snuggie sure would be convenient…just stand up, wrapped in my fleece surround, and walk over to where I want to go. And because it has sleeves, I wouldn’t even have to worry about holding the blanket in place!
So after work one night, I stopped at Target. I wandered through the store and found them on the “as seen on TV” endcap…a box full of blue Snuggie goodness. Looking around me, I picked one up and made my way towards the register. I put my single purchase item on the counter and paid or my purchase. Because I didn’t bring one of my reusable bags in with me, I turned down a plastic bag at the register. Which means that the security guard had to check my receipt at the door. I swear that he muttered “Snuggie” under his breath as he waved me through the door.
When I walked in the door at home, Hubby immediately burst out in laughter when he saw what I carried in. I’m in for many, many years of being made fun of for this purchase, this I already know.
Now as I plug away on the computer at the dining room table…I no longer have to worry about freezing. I wear my wool socks, wrap myself in the Snuggie (wrapped up tight, so that my back is no longer exposed to the window behind me, allowing more cold air to sneak in and chill me) and debate whether or not I should go find some gloves to keep my fingers warm. Hubby sits on the couch laughing at me, but I don’t care…I’m warm, dammit.
I bought a Snuggie.
And it’s blue.
You can’t tell, but I’m hanging my head in shame right now.
Stop laughing. I’m a sick person.
We’ve all seen the same commercials…silly woman on the couch, fighting to free her arms so that she can reach the remote…entire families out in public at sporting events waving frantically at the camera…people playing board games…all wrapped up toasty warm in their Snuggie blankets. There’s even an idiot on the couch “raising the roof” and “cabbage patching” in his Snuggie. You almost feel sorry for his wife…until you see that she’s wearing one, too.
Here’s my excuse. I’m cold…almost all the time. Hubby and I define “comfort” as different things…he likes to be as cold as possible…I like to be so toasty that I’m on the verge of sweating. We sleep on a king sized bed with two different twin comforters…his is so thin that it is almost non-existent…mine is stuffed with down feathers. He keeps it much colder than I would prefer in the house…so I bought a Snuggie.
I had debated about the Snuggie for some time…at first making fun of them…until I realized that I’m cold all the time. I cover myself with a blanket when I’m lounging on the couch with Hubby, but when I want something from the kitchen, I have to emerge and expose myself to the cold air in the house. Brr! It was when I started taking a blanket with me to the computer that I suddenly decided that maybe I should give in. A Snuggie sure would be convenient…just stand up, wrapped in my fleece surround, and walk over to where I want to go. And because it has sleeves, I wouldn’t even have to worry about holding the blanket in place!
So after work one night, I stopped at Target. I wandered through the store and found them on the “as seen on TV” endcap…a box full of blue Snuggie goodness. Looking around me, I picked one up and made my way towards the register. I put my single purchase item on the counter and paid or my purchase. Because I didn’t bring one of my reusable bags in with me, I turned down a plastic bag at the register. Which means that the security guard had to check my receipt at the door. I swear that he muttered “Snuggie” under his breath as he waved me through the door.
When I walked in the door at home, Hubby immediately burst out in laughter when he saw what I carried in. I’m in for many, many years of being made fun of for this purchase, this I already know.
Now as I plug away on the computer at the dining room table…I no longer have to worry about freezing. I wear my wool socks, wrap myself in the Snuggie (wrapped up tight, so that my back is no longer exposed to the window behind me, allowing more cold air to sneak in and chill me) and debate whether or not I should go find some gloves to keep my fingers warm. Hubby sits on the couch laughing at me, but I don’t care…I’m warm, dammit.
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