The Kaziows

Showing posts with label Family Time. Show all posts

7 Seriously Silly Tips to Keep Your Sanity During a Big Move

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Yesterday I shared 7 Seriously Important Tips for A Smooth Move and I totally recommend reading it or pinning it to read later if you ever plan to move house.

If you're one of those lucky people who gets to stay in one spot and put down roots, please know that I aspire to one day join your ranks but, alas, that is not my life today. One day, one day....

Ok, so we're in the middle of a move from Germany to California (we don't do things by halves around here!) and here are my best tips for keeping your sanity when nothing is going your way.

Because there will be days like that. Today may or may not have been one of them for me; I admit nothing.

#1 - 3 Minute Dance Party

Turn up the music and get your groove on. Don't worry about what you look like, just get that angsty energy out. By the end of a song or two, you're going to feel like a whole new person.

Family won't join you? Who cares!? You're going to be so happy in 3 minutes it won't even matter. Who knows, your dance party might last longer than 3 minutes and that's fantastic! You're releasing all that stress and burning calories! You go, girl! Or guy, whatevs.

#2 - Have Your Favorite Cereal for Dinner

It's fast, easy, and inexpensive. It's easy to clean up. And if you have a kids cereal, it's colorful and fun and the milk at the end tastes like candy.

I am not responsible for the sugar headache or tummy ache that may follow.

#3 - Play a Prank on Someone

This is only limited by your imagination. Have a rubber snake? Put it in someone's bag. Fake spiders are fun, too, in all sorts of places. Mix Orajel and toothpaste on your significant other's toothbrush in the morning... after all, you're just being helpful.

Be prepared for payback, though. It will come.

Playing pranks is only a good idea if you & the people in your household enjoy that sort of humor. If the person you're pranking wouldn't like it, then you've crossed the line into meanness. That's not the way to diffuse stress. Please don't be mean.

Some harmless ideas: Hard boil all of the eggs and replace them in the fridge. Set several random alarms throughout the day on their phone. Or give all of their contacts code names. Change something on their Facebook account if they stay logged in. A few years ago, I switched Mike's city to Sexy, Peru. We had a little laugh and he hasn't changed it back.

#4 - Water Fight

Load up on water balloons and squirt guns. Have everything prepped and declare "war" on your family.

Make sure you have some private stores hidden just for you.

#5 - Camping in the Living Room

The house is already a mess, so pull a mattress into the living room, drape some sheets from the boxes and have a family movie night or curl up and read your favorite books together. Block out the rest of the world and just spend some time being together.

You don't have to bring a mattress in, but your back will thank you if you do.

#6 - Sneak Out

If you need to be alone for a little while, do it. Make sure the kids are safe, of course, but the family will survive without you for a bit. Have your nails done, grab a coffee, do some window shopping, see a movie no one else will be interested in.

Take time for yourself and don't feel guilty for doing it.

#7 - Buy A Bag of Oranges

I read somewhere that peeling oranges reduces stress. The motions are repetitive which helps us calm down and the scent released is good for relaxation as well.

Added bonus: Oranges are high in potassium. Potassium can help relax blood vessels which may lower blood pressure. You can read more about that here.

When you're done with the peels, drop them in a small saucepan with water, some cloves and a dash of vanilla. Heat it up and let it simmer on low and your house will smell heavenly all day. Keep an eye on the water level, though.

Life gets stressful sometimes, especially when you're undergoing a major life change. Moving house is one of those changes; don't underestimate the effects it will have on you and your family.

But likewise, don't underestimate the effects your attitude will have on the outcome. Your attitude is contagious. If you stay positive and find ways to laugh every day, the journey will be a pleasant one for everyone... at least mostly. If you need to do that by being silly, do it! Don't be ashamed of your goofball side; flaunt it! Your family will thank you and you get to keep your sanity. I call that a win-win.

If you're moving soon, feel free to pin or bookmark this post so you can refer back to it when the road gets rough. If you know someone who is moving, share the love with them! Sharing is caring, after all!

Snapshot Sunday: A Cute Advent Calendar Idea

Sunday, December 7, 2014

Mike and I spent the weekend traveling around to some Christmas Markets we haven't visited yet, walking around in the cold rain... and today we've both got a bit of a cold.

But, as mentioned here, I signed up for a blogging challenge 27 days ago where I promised a new post every day for 30 days. A little head cold might slow me down, but it's not going to stop me.

So here is today's snapshot. It's a small piece of a homemade Advent calendar from one of the Christmas Markets we've been to. I think it's super cute and I'm sure some of you crafty folks out there could have some fun with the idea. If you do, link up in the comments and let me see your awesomeness!

I hope every one of you is having a great December and your holiday plans are coming along nicely.

However, if you find yourself facing a cold like we are, I rounded up some natural remedies and shared them here. My favorite one that we turn to every time we start to feel a little icky is simple: Honey + Cinnamon (enough to make it thick like paste). We take it by the spoonful a few times a day and sometimes mix it into an Apple Cider Vinegar hot toddy, which is just a shot of ACV + hot water + Honey/Cinnamon mixture. Easy peasy and it works without yucky chemicals.

Happy Sunday, everyone!

Travel Extravaganza Recap

Saturday, November 22, 2014

What's up, party peeps?! Please don't be offended by my calling you a "party peep"... I'm not actually cool enough to use terms like that in real life so I try them out here on the blog. It's entirely possible I'm not cool enough to use them here, either, but I've had a lot of sugar today.

Actually, I've only had part of one sweetened tea so I'm not sure where the over-hyper mindset has come from, but over the last hour or so these are the topics I've ~~talked to my husband about~~ annoyed my husband with: {{Please stick with me, this post does have a point. I promise.}}

Oh my gosh! Look at those cute boots. But I already have cute brown ones and these aren't as cute in black.

Did you get that shirt? I really liked it. I think you need it.

We should go to Paris. Paris is always a good idea.

Do you think gold is a color I can wear? Do you think it washes me out too much?

Oh LOOK! These boots are adorable AND black.

I think a gold sweater would be nice for Christmas. And it would look good with my normal make up, right?

Awww, these boots are too big. But they fit kind of like my favorite brown ones. Maybe it's a sign.

If you don't want that shirt, you should get the sweater. I think you'd like it a lot.

Do we have bread? I think I'm out of yogurt.

I've really been wanting black boots; I think I'm going to get them.

At this point I feel like I should tell you that my poor, dear husband has barely done more than stare blankly at me and occasionally nod his head. He does like the black boots and the idea of a gold sweater, by the way. But I'm not sure if he just agreed to shut me up or if he knew I wouldn't have registered anything he said anyway. I am pretty certain he regrets going shopping with me.

As you can see, I am in no state of mind to write a proper blog post for you lovely people (ADD at it's finest right here!) BUT I did share a LOT of information this past week and in case you missed anything, I'm going to recap it all right here for ya!

On Sunday, I shared a little Ireland Sneak Peek with you. I can't wait to show you all of the beautiful places we saw while we were there, but this week I have a little something planned to help even the Grinchiest among us get in the holiday spirit. And it's one of the coolest parts of Germany - but you'll have to check back for that!

Monday was very popular here on the blog with my post about Giving Yourself Grace and Never Apologizing for who you are. I cannot tell you how humbling it is and how happy it makes me that those words resonated with so many of you. Keep celebrating your awesome selves, sisters! And misters! Hey, guys are awesome, too!

Tuesday kicked off a 3-part series with My Top Tips for Getting Around Europe.

Wednesday followed it up with My Favorite Ways to Find Great Hotels.

On Thursday we started learning how to Pack a Little Lighter.

And on Friday, I wrapped it all up with a good laugh about My First Misadventure on a Budget Airline.

There ya have it, folks! All those great tips in one easy to find spot. I hope you found something helpful in there.

I'm going to go try to calm down now. Or maybe go for a run, since I have so much energy to spare today.

Oh, who am I kidding? I don't run.

6 Great Mother's Day Gift Guides

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

I am, without a doubt, the world's WORST gift giver.

I have good intentions; I really do. Every year, without fail, I "organize" myself with lists or databases so I don't forget any birthdays or special occasions. (Organize is in quotations because I never actually follow thru on the plan-du-jour so how organized am I really?) And to be fair, I don't forget those occasions. I know they are happening. I recognize them in my own head and might even remember to tell Mike. But I can guarantee you that I won't remember to mail a gift or card in time. I probably won't remember to call on the correct day. I miiiight post on Facebook if I pay attention to the little notification window thingy.

So there I am with my pretty new printable or my colorful database (loosely related sidenote: I just love Excel. I know it's for number crunching but I use it for all sorts of stuff. Those neat little rows and columns get me every time. Plus I don't have to plan how many columns I will need before I start) and I've even created systems so that I don't accidentally duplicate gifts from year to year.

But do I keep up with any of this? Nope. Sure don't.

And now - like pretty much every year around this time - I'm facing Mother's Day and the start of our birthday season (from May through August we have about 3,472,981 birthdays to celebrate) and I'm feeling stressed out. I have no good gift ideas for people and I still haven't mailed Christmas or Easter gifts. This madness has to end.

For the past few days I've been scouring the interwebs and local stores looking for good Mother's Day gifts, but this morning I made a decision: If I can't get it right, maybe I can help you.

So I give to you my #1 Mother's Day shopping helper:

Yup, that's it. So simple, so convenient, so effective. If your mom (or sister or best friend or whoever you're shopping for) likes to pin stuff, check out her boards and you'll probably find some gems that she'll be happy to receive. Ok, ok, full disclosure: I stole this idea from my sister who is the World's Best Gift Giver. (It's really unfair- she got the good hair and the good gift giving genes. She's super creative, too.)

But, alas, neither my mom nor my mother in law are Pinterest mavens so raiding their boards isn't an option for me. Luckily, Pinterest has a great search bar where typing in "Mother's Day Gift Ideas" gets you great ideas like these:

50 DIY Gifts for Mom - lots of really cute stuff here, especially if you sew. Neither of the moms I'm shopping for really enjoy crafts but I know lots of moms who do and my grandmother would like several of these projects.

Shanty 2 Chic Printable and Gift Idea - oooh, this one is super cute! I would like to receive something like this and I could maybe tweak it for a birthday idea but it's still not quite right for our moms.

I should probably have told you from the beginning that both of our mother's are difficult to shop for. They both buy pretty much anything they want and they are both rather opinionated about home decor stuff. Neither of them like smelly bath stuff and it's nearly impossible to find jewelry they like. Now back to shopping. (:

Skinny Mom's Healthy Gifts for Mom - I'm loving some of these! Especially the sunflower birdbath and the fruit infusing water pitcher, the reusable shopping bags, the L'Occitane Dry Oil... wait, am I shopping for me or the moms?

Chic Coastal Living's Mother's Day Gift Ideas - a lot of great things here for the chic mom. I especially love ... well all of it, but that Tory Burch tote has me drooling and I totally think I need those J.Crew pjs. Again, though, probably shopping for myself.

These Long Distance Mugs are fantastic! What a cute idea!

These Photo Gifts go beyond the normal photo books and calendars. I especially love the coasters and the gift wrap.

That's what I've found so far. The blogosphere is full of some really great ideas and I hope you've already wrapped up your mom's special gift (and mailed it if necessary).

For the record, if I lived closer I'd plan special dates with our moms because that's my favorite kind of gift - spending time with someone special. I'd take them out for a special meal and spa day or something else ridiculously girly. Maybe do some shopping, check out the botanical garden, that sort of thing. But for now, I'm shopping for something special that will remind them that we love them and appreciate everything they have done for us over the years and to let them know that they are always in our thoughts.

If it's not a secret, what did you get your mom? What kind of awesome ideas did you come up with this year?

Please! Inspire me! I've only got four days left to nail this!

Home Sweet Home

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

I love to travel. That probably goes without saying, right? But you know what else I love?

Coming home.

I love my house. I don't own it, but it's definitely mine - at least for a little while. Military spouses generally fall into 2 camps: the first are just moving through. They don't really decorate or move in and get comfortable in their community. Maybe they don't even build good friendships. That's sad to me, but I've been there, too. Sometimes it just hurts too much to say goodbye and start over again. The second camp knows that home is what we make of it; home is where we are at the moment. We might be here only a year or two, but for now we can make this a home. We don't just live in this house - WE.LIVE.IN.THIS.HOUSE.

We yell and fight here.

We love and hug and kiss here.

We laugh here. A lot.

This past weekend we went to Amsterdam and of course I came home with treasures. The town we stayed in was having a community yard sale for Koningsdag 2014 (King's Day for you non-dutch speakers) so I'm really not to blame for my lovely new ... vases? Sure, we'll call them vases even though they will never hold flowers. ~~I'm just lucky~~ Mike's just lucky I got out of there with only a couple of things. It helps that we were rolling in a convertible and it had less than zero trunk space!

Now for the past ~~three~~ ~~four~~ five days (yes, it took me 2 extra days just to take a picture of them and finish this post- I'm the worst) I've been trying to find them a home in my home. We're working on our issues and I haven't found their sweet spot just yet. I have noticed, though, how very different my house is from where we started out.

When Mike and I got married, I had all the plans. All of them, I tell you. I bought real furniture (vs. temporary furniture that doesn't make it past a move or two) with goals in mind. I knew I couldn't afford the dream home in my head, but I bought pieces I thought would give me time to build that dream. For the record, that dream was all clean cut lines and warm woods and slightly over-sized pieces. I was all about a Tuscan color scheme - all of those rich earthy colors that make every room so warm and cozy. Then it morphed into what I lovingly call "coffee shop couture." Somewhere along the way- in Texas or Florida, I think- I moved more towards blues and browns and bronzes. Still earthy'ish but different from where I had been. Everything matched. It all flowed from room to room with a nice cohesiveness that perhaps I needed then. I upgraded some of our wall art and accessories and I thought it was really coming together. I almost felt like a grown up.

If you had told newlywed me (or even 30 year old me) that one day I would live in an eclectic German cottage with random pieces from yard sales mixed with Ikea furniture and curtains I painted myself (and did a really poor job with, if I'm being honest) and some of that original furniture (it really has held up well) and the world's most comfortable leather chair that we picked up beside a dumpster, I would have laughed you under the table. I read all of the home decorating magazines and perused all of the best websites and I was a girl with plans.

But you know what? I'm happy with my home. I like being here. It's a comfortable space and it has good energy. It's welcoming and warm and full of colors I never expected. I have an orange-red ceramic picture frame I love that I would never have bought 10 years ago. And Stoner Dave, our buddha from the Target clearance aisle - he's pretty awesome. I just don't want to pigeon hole my space right now. Maybe this is another phase for me, but right now I have no plans for our decor. I'm just letting it morph into whatever it wants to be. I'm letting go of that control and it feels so good.

Perfection really is overrated. Or misunderstood, I'm not sure which.

The Man Behind the Madness

Monday, August 19, 2013

Today is the Mister's birthday and we are celebrating ... with a nap. (He has to work tonight.)

But I thought I'd share a few pictures of my main squeeze from our trip to Croatia. This is him pretty much in his element- being silly on a beach.

Babe,

I'm thankful for another year with you. You make me smile; you keep me laughing. You fight with me when I need it. You push me to push myself and I'm grateful for that. You're my bestie and life with you is pretty awesome, even when it sucks. There's no where else I'd rather be and I hope you have a great birthday.

And I hope you enjoyed Prague enough because I didn't get you a gift to unwrap this year.

I love you. Quite a lot, actually.

Katrina

Polska | Polen | Poland... No matter how ya say it, I can't wait to go back!

Monday, August 12, 2013

Ok, but seriously, folks. Poland is so beautiful. Definitely one of the prettiest places we've been to. I always laugh when people tell me they are a little afraid to visit. I get it; I really do. Eastern Europe sounds scary - is it in Russia? Or just near it? Is it still Communist? (Answers: No, Poland is west of Russia in Eastern EUROPE. It is sort of near Russia, I guess. I mean, it's closer than Tennessee is. And Poland wasn't Communist; it was Socialist. And, yes, there is a difference.) Well, all of that and the complete lack of being able to ready ANY sign at all... unless, of course, you read a Slavic language, but not many of us do. In reality, though, Poles are some of the kindest, friendliest people I've met. They're happy and funny and just ... nice.

And the food. Oh. The food. Have you had authentic Polish cooking? NO? You're missing out. If you live in southern Germany, I know there's a Polish restaurant in Frankfurt that's pretty good. Kaiserslautern and Mannheim both have Polish markets if you're just looking for some yummy ready made barszcz or sausage. But if you visit Poland (and I really cannot recommend it enough), don't worry about not being able to read the menu. Just point to something random and enjoy. It's all delicious.

So while we were there - happy surprise - they had a wine festival! I live in Germany's wine country so this shouldn't have been a big deal to me, but it was lots of fun. All over Rynek Square (aka Market Square) vendors set up gardening ideas and furniture to try out. Everything was decorated with flowers and they were kind enough to provide information about where you could purchase these goodies if you so chose. I thought it was really thoughtful. They even had a couple of sandboxes for kids to play in or to rest your feet in and dream of the beach.

We spent too much time at the wine fest to revisit the cathedral and island, but maybe next time.

Oh! And I haven't told you yet about the gnomes, have I? You know how some cities have statues of cows or horses or whatnot and they are usually painted different colors by local artists? Well, in Wroclaw, they have gnomes. They are mostly small and are scattered all over the city but there are quite a few gathered in the downtown area - most likely to make mischief together, I imagine. Isn't that what gnomes do? They're tons of fun to find. Some are easy to spot, others hide from you. They even have their own website if you'd like to learn more about their history and get a map of where to find them. And don't worry, you can switch the website to English in the top right corner.

Our trip culminated in a wedding. Is there any better way to end a long weekend than with two young lovebirds dancing the night away? Probably not. I had never been to a Polish wedding, and let me tell ya- these guys know how to throw a wedding. I'm very fortunate I had never been to one before I had my own wedding because it would have too expensive for me to have in America and I would have been heartbroken.

All of the food - yes, the food again - is served family style and there is always a full meal available on the table. And we're not talking about for a couple of hours, either. From 6pm to around 4 or 5am, we partied. We danced. We ate. We drank. We ate some more. We laughed. We talked. And we ate. Every couple of hours the servers cleared the tables and brought out another round of deliciousness. There were at least 3 tables of desserts and vodka on every table. I think Mike & I went to bed around 3 because we had a 9 hour drive to make that afternoon. Or maybe it was because my dress was too tight from eating so much. Either way, we woke up the next morning for brunch and the whole thing started again. It was fantastic!

Now I'm off to convince the Mr. to take me back again!

Ultimate Reset: The Recap

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Three weeks ago Mike & I started Beachbody's Ultimate Reset Cleanse. You can read about our start here.

The Ultimate Reset is a program from Beachbody. Learn more on their website. This is just my experience.

The idea behind this program is that we live in a toxic environment and sometimes we need to "reset" ourselves and get back to what we probably already know is good for us. That statement is a little weird. I would say it's true for most people, but I certainly understand that plenty of people simply don't know much about nutrition or healthy living. Or perhaps they have different ideas about what those things mean.

In any case, Mike & I do know a bit about health and nutrition- but sometimes we choose to ignore our knowledge and eat pizza and drink sodas instead. Because they are tasty. And we are lazy.

Before starting this cleanse, I had several specific goals in mind. If you ever try this program or any other, or just want to change something in your life, try writing down your goals so you'll have something to help keep you on track. How else will you know if you've been successful if you have no criteria to judge by?

Fresh, yummy staples. I actually cooked with them!

So these were/are my goals and how the Ultimate Reset did (or didn't) help me achieve them:

Eat at home. We all know eating at home is healthier than eating out. Fresher ingredients, more control over preparation, and better portion sizes are the big reasons why. One of the reasons I was most excited about this program was because of the meal plan. Beachbody told me what to cook & eat every day. It took very little effort on my part and considering how lazy I've been in the kitchen lately, it was exactly what I needed. Most nights pre-cleanse went something like this:

What do you want to eat?

I don't know. What do you want?

I don't know. Do you want to eat here or go grab something?

I don't care. I don't really want to go anywhere but I don't want to cook either.

Yeah, winning! <-- I SO need a sarcasm font. That's NOT a great way to eat healthy or to enjoy time with your spouse.

So did the cleanse help? Heck yeah it helped! It was awesome! Having a predetermined menu was fantastic and the fact that it was all healthy, fresh food was a major bonus! The food was so delicious and we both felt so satisfied that we're going to stay on this eating plan for a while longer. We were never hungry and there was plenty of variety for us. I mean, we LOVE food and neither of us would be happy if we had to eat the same thing day after day.

Determine the effects of sugar/grains/bread/dairy/meat on my digestive system. My reasons for this one are too complex to go into on a blog, but I have been concerned that my diet is the source of some issues I've had for some time now. I struggled with which ones to eliminate first. Beachbody took care of that for me. During the first week, the program starts eliminating animal products and breads. By the 3rd week, it's totally vegan. Now I have the joy of adding things back and paying attention to how I feel as I do so. I firmly believe that food is either our greatest medicine or our slowest form of poison. I want to continue shifting towards the former.

My results? After 3 weeks, I feel fantastic. I have had no GI distress except for the one time I cheated (more on that below). Living without meat, wheat, sugar and dairy isn't so hard. In the spirit of full disclosure, I continued to have some Greek yogurt in the morning (not every morning, just on days I wanted it) and sometimes I still put a little Feta cheese on my salads. I don't overdo it in either area and I've noticed no negative effects from either one. I'm also going to keep fish in my diet a couple of times a week or so. It's delicious and I love it and it doesn't make me feel bad, so it stays. As for red meat or lamb, I don't know. Since I usually only crave them once a year or so, it may be a while before I eat them again. I'm not a big fan of chicken and even less so after cutting it out for these past few weeks. I just don't care for the texture.

So, yeah, the Ultimate Reset gets another great big thumbs up for this one, too!

Have more energy, without stimulants.

Result: Yup! Done! My list of projects completed over the past three weeks: 2 bathrooms reorganized, all of the laundry kept up with and put away (I didn't know this was humanly possible until these past few weeks), planning a living room redo is well in the works, my long term clothing storage cleaned out (well, I've finished the first clean out; I'll look at it again in a few days to see what else I can cull), my daily closet cleaned out and reorganized, my entire house is mostly clean on a daily basis, I cleaned out the junk drawer (I only ever do this when we're moving), the dog has been to the groomers, my library/sitting room is cleaned out, my home files are sorted, and I'm sorting stuff for either a yard sale or donation.

Seriously, I don't usually have that much energy. Cleaning out ONE room might take me 2 or 3 weeks after I finally got motivated enough to do it. Some days I just couldn't stop moving. And, no, there was no jittery, over-stimulated feeling like diet pills cause. My body just felt like it was functioning properly.

Exercise daily- at least some yoga, a nice long walk with the dog, and something more challenging. "Challenging" could be running or lifting weights, an exercise video or a swim- whatever I feel like doing that day, but I need to Move Every Day.

Ok, I failed here. I did yoga most days and I kept moving almost all of the days. Lola was walked regularly (but I can't swear to every day). I completely failed at the "challenging" part. I have big plans to do better in this regard, but in the spirit of full disclosure, some days I felt ... worn out. I wasn't tired, exactly, I just didn't have that abundant energy every single day. I'm chalking it up to detoxing. Overall, I felt great but some days I just needed a nap. So I took one.

The good news is I can totally get on track now! There's nothing holding me back. I feel fantastic.

Losing a few pounds and/or inches would not come amiss. I mean, I do have a bridesmaids dress to wear soon! And my over-achieving, already gorgeous sister is doing crossfit to get in shape for the wedding. CROSSFIT! Shaking my head....

Isn't this what most of us care about? Show me the numbers! So, did it work? A big, fat heck yeah! I'm down just over 2.5" from my waist and 2" from my rump, a full inch from my upper arm and about 1.25" from each thigh- and keep in mind that I didn't exercise hard. I didn't even exercise lightly every single day. I'm calling it a win.

You can't tell me that doesn't look delicious! (Oh, and it was! This salad was a favorite for us.)

Just for S's & G's this is what I wrote weekly:

Week 1: At the end of week #1, I am down about 3" - 1.5" from my waist and 1.5" from my ghetto booty. I have no idea if I've lost pounds because I don't own a scale - they are SO 80s! Even though I realize it's mostly water weight, that's not a bad start. Also, I feel great! I'm not hungry and have more energy than normal - without coffee. GASP! I did try a cup of coffee one day with Truvia and almond milk (rather than sugar & creamer) but it just didn't taste good. In addition, my KP (keratosis pilaris) is clearing up. It's just a vanity issue, but I love that it's going away. My seasonal allergies are also much better. OH! And my house is clean! I have so much energy it's easy to keep things nice & tidy. The worst part of this week has been avoiding chocolate. I've realized that I eat when I'm bored. The moment Mike leaves for work, I turn on a movie or TV show and I want to snack. I've gone to the pantry several times this week and stared down the chocolate but it hasn't beaten me yet!

Week 2: Confession: I cheated. This week has been harder. We've been busier so I haven't been prepping and cooking as much. We've eaten a lot of salads because they are fast and easy, but even with that option we got caught out too late one night and we got way too hungry. We went to a restaurant for dinner where I had a chicken cesar wrap, thinking it was probably the healthiest thing available and what was the big deal since I could have a couple of pieces of toast last week? Well, let me tell ya about my reaction. Three hours later I had a splitting headache, my sinuses were stuffy, my neck and shoulder hurt like the dickens (they don't normally hurt if you're curious). The next day my KP was back on my arms and I had a new patch on my stomach. 2 days later, I'm still bloated. What the heck, man? So I'm sensitive to either wheat and/or gluten. I'm going to get my diet nice and clean for a while and then try some instant oatmeal. Why oatmeal? It's wheat free but still has gluten. If I react to that I'll know gluten is a culprit. If not, it's probably just wheat.

Week 3: If I thought last week was hard, this one has been harder but in different ways. We're pretty much operating on salads and apples right now because this week suddenly got crazy busy. I don't crave the junk food or the convenience foods like I did the last 2 weeks, but I miss having the home cooked meals from week 1 so I need to get back to that. But you know- Mike & I talked about it and we're both pretty happy eating this way. I know he misses meat - I see his eyes light up when he sees me pack a chicken breast with his lunch. It's very satisfying and the food is delicious. Also, I had a bit of chocolate last night. I just had such a long day and needed something comforting. Enter dark chocolate with sea salt caramel filling. But you know what? I had one square and it was enough. Normally I would have had the whole bar and then maybe another one. Followed by some chips. I'm not going to feel guilty about it.

Update from the next day, RE: Chocolate splurge. Apparently a square of chocolate isn't a terrible thing. I'm not bloated today and I didn't gain 5 pounds overnight. My measurements are exactly the same today. Guess it's true what they say about moderation.

That's it for the Ultimate Reset. Think it sounds awesome? It is. I think this is definitely something we will come back to from time to time. We're definitely keeping the food plan and recipes, but to varying degrees. Mike isn't interested in being vegan at all but I feel good when I eat less meat & dairy. He seems fine with wheat and rice; I do better without them and - more surprisingly - I don't even miss them. We both thrive on fruits & veggies and I've learned lots of new ways to cook them and fun new combos!

It's all about finding what works for your body and finding balance.

One of our favorite recipes that came in the Ultimate Reset Book: Roasted Corn & Edamae Succotash.

That picture above? You can't tell me it doesn't look delicious. (Oh, and it is!) And it only takes about 15 minutes of easy prep to prepare. It's supposed to have red bell peppers and cilantro as well, but I forgot to buy them and I'm not going back to the store right now.

All the disclaimers:
We're all adults here, but just in case: I'm not your doctor. I'm not a doctor at all and this is not intended to be medical advice. I have no idea if this is a good program for you. If you have concerns, speak to your health professional of choice. The Beachbody website (linked above) does state that this program isn't recommended for those who are pregnant.

About gluten sensitivities & intolerances: If you suspect you suffer from either one, talk to your doctor while you're still eating gluten. A simple blood test can tell you if you're producing the antibodies required for diagnosis but you must have gluten in your system for it to show up. For more info, check out The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness.

My doctor wouldn't run the sensitivity test; she'd rather blame my GI problems solely on my pancreatic trouble. I have no idea if she's right or not. What I do know is that wheat & gluten cause chronic inflammation. Inflammation isn't good for your pancreas (or at least, it isn't good for mine). I don't know for certain if the two are related, but I do know that I feel 100% improvement from not consuming either wheat or gluten for the past 2 weeks. I've had ZERO pancreatic pain. And neither wheat nor gluten is required for a healthy diet or lifestyle. (Worried about folic acid? Take a vitamin. <-- Again, just a suggestion. Not intended to be medical advice.)

I'm not your lifestyle guru, either. I don't know if yoga and clean eating is something that will help you physically or spiritually. I don't know if they will balance your karma or your chakras or buy you points in heaven. Those are questions for someone far smarter than I am. My guess is they could have as much impact as wearing a red kaballah bracelet, but I've never worn one so I don't know from personal experience. (Please don't get your panties in a bunch, that was a joke.)

This blog is a personal account of what I did and my results from it. That's it. Nothing more, nothing less.

So now that that part is out of the way, let's talk! What are your thoughts about this program or programs like these? Are they awesome or just a waste of money? Do you like eating clean or do you find it too hard to maintain every single day? Do you ever do random things partly to torment your husband (or wife) just because you secretly find it amusing?

My Mom Visits Europe, pt. 1

Monday, June 17, 2013

I'm still more than a little surprised that my mom actually came to Europe. I knew she wanted to, but I really didn't think she would. I am thrilled she did, though! It was nice having some time with her without having to drive all over Memphis visiting family and friends as well. (Next time we're in Memphis, I'll try to remember to document a normal day for us- it's exhausting!)

I wish I could say it was a nice relaxing trip for her and that I was a thoughtful hostess who didn't stress her out at all, but let's be honest here: I'm a nutcase and I love to do things! ALL.THE.TIME. I'm not sure she was quite prepared for all the walking I made her do (so much to see! let's go there! NOW! what's over there? SQUIRREL!) and I know the culture shock was a little overwhelming. I had forgotten how scary it can be in a new country where no one speaks your language (this isn't entirely true around here, but it certainly feels that way at times) and where you feel intimidated because the people give you dirty looks a lot (also, not entirely true, but that's another post for another day). I wish I had found a better way to help her deal with that, but the truth is- sometimes you just have to jump in, especially if you're only visiting for a short time. And, unfortunately, I'm not an overly sympathetic person. That's something I should work on. It's on the list.

I feel pretty fortunate that not only do I have a mom willing and able to travel but also that we had the opportunity to see some new places together. I wish we could have done more, but we had truly awful weather most of the time she was here. I really wanted to take a day trip down to Karlsruhe and over to Triberg to see the waterfalls, but between the mini-monsoon season we had and a nasty spring cold I caught, that didn't happen. I also planned a 4 castle hike for one day- 4 gorgeous castles all along the Rhein River but when I told mom & Mike my plan, I got The Look. You know - the one that says, "have you lost your friggin mind?! We do NOT want to be in a car all day and we do NOT want to walk up 4 mountains and around 4 castle grounds IN.ONE.DAY." So, um, yeah... I mentioned that I'm an over-hyper nutcase, right? In retrospect, that was probably a lot to try to accomplish in one day.

Despite my crazy ways and my nasty cold and my crappy weather, we were able to take several day trips to some of our favorite spots, though. We saw Mannheim, Heidelberg, Strasbourg, and Cochem, all of which are within a couple of hours of here. Here are some of the highlights:

Day trips from Rheinland Pfalz: Strasbourg, France

Strasbourg is a gorgeous little town in the Alsace region in France, about an hour and a half from where I live. It's one of my favorite places to visit and we took my sister, Jessica and her fiance, Kevin, there at Christmas time, too. Every time I've been it's been raining (I think I'm just used to it by now), but one day I really do want to go back when the weather is nice and get some good shots of this city.

The main attraction of Strasbourg, for me, is the cathedral. It's one of my favorite churches to visit. It's not as big or overwhelming as some of the others, but I love it. It's magnificent to me to think how long these monstrous structures have been standing and how long they took to build. Talk about dedication. Other than the cathedral there are cute little shops and restaurants. They have a whole little section with tons of chocolate shops that's pretty awesome! If you're able to visit in the wintertime, they make some really fantastic hot chocolate.

Day trips from Rheinland Pfalz: Mannheim, Germany

A lot of people overlook Mannheim for a day trip, but I gotta tell ya, folks, Mannheim is pretty fun! The city center near the train station has some great shopping (blocks and blocks of it!), several nice parks, and a REAL Starbucks. Yup. I said it. The secret is out. In less than 45 minutes I can hold in my hand a real Caramel Frappuccino. Mannheim also boasts at least 2 American style shopping malls and a movie kino (theater) with movies in English. And that's just the stuff I've found. One of the best parts? It's a short train ride away if we don't feel like driving.

Day trips from Rheinland Pfalz: Heidelberg, Germany

Heidelberg. Oh, Heidelberg. How I wish we could live there! If you ever get the chance to come to this part of Germany, consider visiting this city. I can't think of anything truly spectacular about it, but we always enjoy visiting. It's just pretty. Heidelberg is one of the few cities that wasn't hit too hard during the World Wars. Understandably, a lot of this area was obliterated and has been rebuilt, but Heidelberg wasn't a main target and a lot of the city is original. This was our first time to go up to the castle and I'm so glad we did. Even though it's under renovation, it was still phenomenal. It's HUGE! I wasn't expecting that. That picture of my mom above? That's probably my favorite one of her from this trip. I think it might be the only one I got with a "real smile." Usually she gave me the cheesy grin or made a goofy face or hid from the camera. In case you're wondering about my goofball tendencies, I come by them honestly!

Day trips from Rheinland Pfalz: Cochem, Germany

Remember those 4 castles I wanted to visit? Cochem was one of them. We got a bit of a late start this day because we were ~~relaxing on a lovely Sunday~~ arguing over where to go and by the time we finally got there, things were closing up. We couldn't figure out how to get to the castle- the GPS kept taking us up the world's tiniest road that went in a circle. It didn't go near the castle, so I don't know what the GPS was trying to do. In any case, we saw it from a distance and from the neighboring hill and I think Mom was happy with that. I was thankful to just have a day of nice weather to be outside in.

So that's it for our day trips with my mom. We also took some pretty cool over-nighters. Next up: Paris!

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Showing posts with label Family Time. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

#1 - 3 Minute Dance Party

#2 - Have Your Favorite Cereal for Dinner

#3 - Play a Prank on Someone

#4 - Water Fight

#5 - Camping in the Living Room

#6 - Sneak Out

#7 - Buy A Bag of Oranges

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Sunday, December 7, 2014

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Saturday, November 22, 2014

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Wednesday, May 7, 2014

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Wednesday, April 30, 2014

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Monday, August 19, 2013

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Monday, June 17, 2013

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