Recent Eats

Grace has eaten very well today! She even ate the pancakes I made her. They were made with whipped egg white, banana, and MojoMilk (my new favorite chocolate commodity). For lunch I grated cheese over several slices of pastrami, melted it, then wrapped it up. Served it with baby carrots and pickles. Dinner is going to be shrimp tacos, recipe courtesy of Everyday Paleo.
Also I wanted to share some pictures with you of our recent eats.

Grace & Andy enjoying some homemade popsicles I made for them. Made with unfiltered all natural apple juice, fresh strawberries, and sprite zero

Egg white crepe with some Fage total & blackberries inside

Don't pretend you don't want some of this! Everyday Paleo sexy steak skewers

Everyday Paleo "breaded" baked chicken (made with coconut flour and spices)

Mmm, popsicles!

Liver lettuce wrap with tomatoes and chipotle mayo. Liver desperately needs A1 sauce!

Also wanted to mention a non scale victory today. I am trying to be super good for my checkup on Monday with Clarene. Was at mall with friend & her 2 kids, and they said "Let's get a free fudge sample from Kara Chocolates". I had no idea they did free samples. So I said cool and we went. The fudge looked so good! Cherry amaretto, mint chocolate, toffee, cookies and cream... I let Grace have some, and I wanted some, but I knew even 1 bite would probably send me into a sugar eating spiral binge when I got home. Yay me for not having any!

There's a Wild Fandango in the Zoo!

Okay, I know, random title. If you've been to the movies, you may have seen the commercial with the guy trying to get into the theater & he cries out "THERE'S A WILD FANDANGO IN THE THEATER!" I think it was before Fandango started using the paper bag puppets.
Anyway, we went to the zoo on Saturday with our friends. They had never been, so we excitedly showed them around. My camera died right in the middle of the Elephant presentation, so I missed getting pics of baby Zuri doing HANDSTANDS (it was pretty frickin awesome)
But here are the pics I did get. BTW, please exhibit caution if you visit Hogle Zoo. There are dinosaurs running rampant.

Also wanted to mention a great post I read at Primal Kitchen this morning. I frequently struggle with getting Grace to eat, so this post was reassuring. Healthy Food Methods with Toddlers and Preschoolers

Overcoming The Fat Girl Mentality

This week, despite my fitness accomplishments, I must confess that I have been feeling, well... FAT. I haven't hesitated to let it be known either. Earlier this week I was complaining about the way my thighs squish out. Ever since I was about 10, and aware of my body and the way it looked, I've been at war with my ginormous thighs. I LOATHE them. I can live with a tummy, cankles, and back rolls, but apparently giant thighs are unacceptable to myself. I can see some definition in them, and recently measured them. 20". I looked up what the average female thigh was, expecting something much smaller.
Guess what.
I'm average.
The average thigh is 20".
So I measured my calf, trying to justify my fatness. 15".
The average female calf is 15".
WTF! This can't be right. I AM FAT!
The size 4 shorts I tried on last week beg to argue.
So I go and measure my body fat. My bathroom scale says I'm 36% BF. People always say how notoriously wrong bathroom scales are, so I plugged in some measurements online. They all averaged 26% BF.
For the first time in my life I'M AVERAGE.
Not only that, but I'm HEALTHY.

I was in the shower this morning and had an epiphany.
"OMG, I'm turning into one of those obnoxious skinny chicks who complain they're fat!"
I remember being 248 lbs, and dying inside whenever someone even remotely close to the weight I wanted to be would complain about their weight. I swore I'd never be like them, because, Dude, I'd kill to be you! I'm sure my old self would tell my new self that. But now, I've caught myself in a place where I was becoming the exact thing I swore never to become.
Apparently embracing a new self image is the hardest pill to swallow.
Off to church to shoot the fat, jealous devil on my shoulder ;)

Photo Update

So it occurred to me that I didn't post pictures of Easter or anything, so here's some updates.

EASTER EGG HUNT:

GRACE ACCIDENTALLY KNOCKED OVER HER APPLE JUICE ON THE CARPET IN THE EXACT SHAPE OF A DOLPHIN:

OUR BACK PORCH GARDEN:

Complete with watermelon, tomatoes, raspberries, golden berries, black berries (can ya tell I have a fruit addiction?), cucumbers, purple bell pepper (had to have it, never seen a purple bell pepper!), rosemary, thyme, and summer squash


KEY LIME PIE FOR A PARTY I HAD:

(It's so pretty! Hand-squeezed key limes over a coconut milk chocolate ganache bottom in an oreo pie crust, fresh key lime zest on top)


EPIC TODDLER LOVING ON HER BREYERS:

*Tease* YOU EAT GRAINS & GET FAT, I EAT FAT AND GET SKINNY-- "NEENER, NEENER!"

Thanks for playing along!

I Don't Eat Crap

As much as I'd like to tell you that "I don't eat crap", I confess that, in reality, I do. Now, I don't know why, but I feel compelled to tell you about the processed food in my house. Fresh veggies don't count, same with meat in the freezer. Here's a list:

homemade chipotle mayo (using safflower mayo & canned chipotles in adobo)
stoneground mustard
yellow mustard
miracle whip
salad dressing
bbq sauce
ketchup
ranch dressing
Fage Greek yogurt
cheese
lunch meat
chocolate
coconut flour
almond flour
arrowroot powder
tapioca pearls
popcorn
coconut oil
coconut cream concentrate
coconut butter
almond butter
coconut milk
100% unfiltered apple juice
Sauerkraut
Pickles
Cocoa powder
Carob powder
Olives
Tomato paste
applesauce
hemp protein powder

NON PROCESSED FOOD:
veggies
meat
eggs
chia seed


as you can see, I'm a little bit normal. I have more processed food in the house than unprocessed (like most Americans, LOL). You may notice standard kitchen food staples missing. Let's see if you can name them! Oh, and I only eat 20 of the foods on the list. Can you guess which ones they are?

In My Daughter's Eyes

Every time I hear the song "In My Daughter's Eyes", I well up with tears. As a tribute to moms, sisters, aunts, and daughter's everywhere this Mother's Day, I have created this photo blog post. Several of the photos are taken by my almost-three-year-old daughter. It's truly through her eyes.
Lyrics, of course, copyright of Martina McBride.

I have embedded the youtube video for your listening convenience.


P.S. I confess to blubbering through this entire creation process.



In my daughter's eyes I am a hero

I am strong and wise and I know no fear

But the truth is plain to see

She was sent to rescue me

I see who I wanna be

In my daughter's eyes

In my daughter's eyes everyone is equal

Darkness turns to light and the world is at peace

This miracle God gave to me

gives me strength when I am weak

I find reason to believe
In my daughter's eyes

And when she wraps her hand around my finger

Oh it puts a smile in my heart

Everything becomes a little clearer

I realize what life is all about

It's hangin' on when your heart has had enough

It's giving more when you feel like giving up

I've seen the light

It's in my daughter's eyes

In my daughter's eyes I can see the future

A reflection of who I am and what will be

Though she'll grow and someday leave

Maybe raise a family

When I'm gone I hope you see how happy she made me

For I'll be there

In my daughter's eyes