I'm Just A Kid Pretending To Be An Adult

Friday:
~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1 Stick of string cheese - 1g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Cashew Chicken - 10g carbs
~2 Sugar Free Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate mini bars - 8g carbs

Saturday:
~Sonic grilled chicken wrap - 16g carbs
~Balsamic roasted tomatoes with fresh mozzarella - 6g carbs
~3 Sugar Free Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate mini bars - 12g carbs (I'm bad)

Sunday:
~Scrambled eggs, ham, and green bean casserole - 12g carbs
~~Balsamic roasted tomatoes with fresh mozzarella - 6g carbs
~3 Sugar Free Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate mini bars - 12g carbs

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 Sticks of string cheese - 2g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Cashew Chicken - 10g carbs
~Broccoli w/ cheese, pork loin, eggs, and tomatoes - 10g carbs
~2 Sugar Free Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate mini bars - 8g carbs


I don't eat as much on the weekends because I sleep later...a lot later. Oh oh, I briefly hit 11lbs this weekend. I'll "officially" get down there this week. It's been a little over a month and I have lost 10lbs. I am very satisfied with that. At this rate, I may only need to be on the diet another month or two. I do look forward to the day that I can have a bowl of spaghetti :-D

Terry made dinner for me last night :-) When I got off work, he had all my low carb staples cooking (broccoli, pork loin, eggs). I think I'm going to make another batch of balsamic roasted tomatoes tonight. The recipe is on facebook, but I'll put it on here too.

12 plum tomatoes, halved, seeds removed
1/4 cup olive oil
1.5 Tb balsamic vinegar
4 cloves minced garlic
2t sugar
1.5 t coarse salt
.5t black pepper
10 large leaves of basil

Heat oven to 450*. Arrange tomatoes on rimmed backing sheet, cut sides up. Drizzle with olive oil and vinegar. Sprinkle with garlic, sugar, salt, pepper. Roast 25-30 minutes or until tomatoes start to caramelize. Sprinkle basil over tomatoes and serve warm or at room temperature.

The recipe doesn't call for fresh mozzarella, but I add it to whatever I can. It's like butter, it makes everything taste better. So I just melt a 1/4 slice of mozzarella in the microwave for 30 seconds, then set the tomatoes on top.

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1 Stick of string cheese - 1g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Eggs with bail cream sauce and broccoli w/ cheese - 10g carbs
~Green bean casserole - 6g carbs
~Sugar Free Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate mini bar - 4g carbs

See, I'm adding variety and veggies to my diet ;-).

My paranoia is better today. I got my eggs and my car fixed (thanks to my wonderful husband), so I don't have to worry about that anymore. Also, my sweet mommy scheduled a massage for me this weekend. I all of a sudden got an e-mail saying "Thank you for scheduling a massage". It didn't take me long to figure out who did it...she has been wanting me to get one these last few days. I used to get one every 2 weeks...that was back when I was single and didn't have a mortgage to pay though :-).

Tonight I plan on counting beads, doing invitations, and thinking about working out (not working out, just thinking about it).

While we were at Wal-Mart last night, Terry came up with such a wonderful idea. We use red towels in our bathroom. I chose red because he likes it...I don't really care about red. He decided that we should start using 2 different colors (one for me, one for him). Apparently when he's sleepy in the morning, he sometimes grabs mine since they are the same color. For some reason, this idea made me so freaking excited. He didn't care what color I chose...so I was in heaven. I had a hard time choosing between "My" color pink, a pretty purple, and "Kimberly's" color purple. Kimberly and I like specific colors. I chose Kimberly's purple...it's a dark plum. I thought about calling her to see what she thought, but I already knew the answer. Btw, I love Kimberly's color purple almost as much as my color pink. Yes, all this excitement over a couple towels...

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1 Stick of string cheese - 1g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Eggs with bail cream sauce and broccoli w/ cheese - 10g carbs
~Sugar Free Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate mini bar - 4g carbs

Yeah, I ate pretty much the same thing yesterday as I did the day before. But guess what?? I hit the 10lb mark today!!

Besides the weight loss, I'm having a bit of a rough time. First of all, the old cat my mom took in died last night. It was not unexpected, but very sad. I intentionally tried not to get close to him, but I still cried. Eddie was a good boy.

Second, I have become a money pitt. Since getting married, I have racked up medical bills (I have NEVER had any kind of medical bill in my life) and my car has decided it wants some attention too. The window got stuck half way up, half way down a couple weeks ago. It cost $350 to fix. Now, my battery could possibly be bad. I have had to get a ride to work 2 mornings this week. If it's bad, it will cost $160 to get a new one. Apparently the new beetle batteries are expensive and a pain in the butt to change. I am very grateful that we are financially stable and able to handle these situations without going totally broke.

Third, the paranoia gets worse. I'll just go out and say it...I quit taking my birth control pills a few weeks ago. So now, I am not on ANY Rx medications...I'm all natural. But anyway, my paranoia is maybe a combo of lack of prozac and hormones going crazy? I don't know, but this is not fun, but I have to laugh at myself. Last night, I was scared to eat the last 4 eggs we have. After I ate them, I was so worried because I didn't have anymore eggs!! How ridiculous is that?? It's not like I can't go get more. It gets better. I was in bed reading the news about the China earthquake last night. I am now paranoid that we are getting close to the end of the world. Specifically, that we will be hit by an asteroid. Omg, how bad is this? I'm embarrassed that I'm even typing this out for everyone to read. I hope I'm giving someone a good laugh. It is weird, my heart is telling me I should be worried about this stuff, but my head is saying "WTF, snap out of it". That is why I think it might be hormone related. Oh, and I was outside loving on my plants when I heard the bushes in our yard rustle. It was after dark, so I couldn't see anything, but Yogi growled at the noise (at least that means I wasn't hallucinating). I freaked out and ran to Terry. He got a flashlight and looked around for me, of course, there was nothing there. Guess what my first stupid thought was? It was the robbers trying to look into our sunroom to see what they could come by and steal. Again, I FEEL paranoid, but I KNOW I shouldn't be. Yes, it has to be hormones. BTW, Terry is an amazing husband...he hasn't gotten frustrated with me at all :-D

Terry is going floating this weekend...I can only imagine what kind of things I will make up to be worried about. I think I need some chocolate.

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1 Stick of string cheese - 1g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Eggs with bail cream sauce and broccoli w/ cheese - 10g carbs
~Sugar Free Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate mini bar - 4g carbs (and totally worth it)

My mom and Terry are really noticing the weight loss now. I guess I can see it a little. I'm sooo close to 10lbs I can taste it...hopefully by the end of the week I can hit that mark.

I have learned that I am a a little paranoid w/o Prozac in my system. Since my mom got robbed, I am scared to leave our blinds open. I try to hide our laptop before I go to work and I am scared to leave lamps on while I'm gone (I'm scared Heidi will knock them over and start a fire). And now since my mom saw someone die on a motorcycle, driving around makes me nervous. It always made me a little nervous, but man, it terrifies me now. Terry's driving never scared me much before, but now I am always putting my foot on my invisible break pedal. I'm also startled pretty easily. Terry can just walk into a room and I will jump and yelp. I know those are valid reason's to be a little more cautious and aware, but not super paranoid about). I hope that goes away with time. Poor Terry had no idea what he was getting himself into when he married me :-).

Thursday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 Sticks of string cheese - 2g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Chicken and beef from a chinese buffet - 15g carbs
~Sugar Free Jello - 0g carbs
~Pickle - 1g carbs

Well, I have realized that if we want to go on a vacation anytime soon, we need to do it before the end of June. We have a huge software release at work and they are expecting everything to just explode (in a good way). So, it would probably be best if both Terry and I were around for that. So, where do we go? I have told him we could always go to Disney World and get the free dining plan promotion ;-). He will be sick of that place soon. Maybe he would want to go to NYC.

^^I actually wrote this on Friday and forgot to post it...oops^^
__________________________________________________________

Friday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 Sticks of string cheese - 2g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Grilled cheese (w/o the bread...pretty much just cheese) and tomato basil soup from Hammontrees - 15g carbs
~Sugar Free Jello - 0g carbs

Terry and I went on a date on Dickson. We ate at Hammontrees then walked down Dickson and to Scarpinos. We hadn't been back there since we were married...so it was neat to go back to the exact spot we stood when we got married. Gosh I loved our wedding :-)

Saturday and Sunday:

~BBQ pulled pork - 5g carbs
~Green eggs and ham - 2g carbs
~Hazelnut chocolate chip cookies - 5g carbs
~Some other stuff, but I stayed on my diet

We went and helped my grandparents out this weekend. My grandpa broke his arm and my grandma has been busy helping him. Me, Terry, my mom, Ben, and Laura went down there to help out. We fixed his computer up, cut hair, planted tomatoes, and hung around so my grandma could get groceries.

Terry and I also got some of Gary's BBQ (the best in town) and went to the park to eat. We then drove around with the top down. Somehow we ended up at his parent's house. They gave us some garlic and a few other plants to put outside our house. My uncle gave us his upside down tomato planter. It's one of those where you can grow herbs and stuff on top too. So I have a few tomato plants and garlic in there right now. Soon I will put some basil and bell peppers in there...that is if I don't kill it first :-) I'm not exactly a green thumb, but I'm trying.

Oh, and my weight is down a constant 9lbs now! And what's better? I'm down 1 jeans size!! My waist is down 1.25 inches and my hips are down 1.25 inches.

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 Sticks of string cheese - 2g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Eggs with basil cream sauce - 5g carbs
~Sugar Free Jello - 0g carbs


Wow, I pretty much at the same thing yesterday as I did the day before. I have discovered that eggs are amazing. I mean, I knew they were awesome already, but dang! The last 2 nights I have eaten 4 eggs (without the yolk) with cream sauce. I will eat around 6pm and won't get hungry the rest of the night. I will usually munch on Jello throughout the night, but that is pretty much like drinking water...there is nothing in it. Not only that, but I have energy to work out for about 40 minutes or longer. I am so amazed with how this diet is going. I wish I knew exactly why it is amazing this time around. Seeing carbs and not being able to eat them is the worst part. My gut is still telling me it's the D3 and other vitamins. Going off of Prozac has probably helped too. I think I need start eating more veggies...eww. Maybe I can eat some if I smother them in cheese. Cheese makes everything better, just like butter.

I got the rest of my blood test results back (I was tested back in February). I was thinking it was only a test for B vitamins, but apparently not. I had to pay $170 as a copay for the test, so I was wondering why it was so expensive. Now I see, and I don't regret it at all. They tested all of my vitamins. Surprisingly, I wasn't deficient in anything but B1 and D3. Specifically, I was tested for:

~B Complex Vitamins
~Amino Acids
~Metabolites
~Fatty Acids
~Other Vitamins
~Minerals
~Carbohydrate Metabolism
~Antioxidants

There were a few levels that were normal, but a little low. The lab results packet came with suggestions as to how I can raise those levels. That being said, I'm going to start taking a few other supplements for a little while. Now, my regimen will be:

~My awesome multivitamin- Nature Made Multi For Her Multivitamin
~B1 supplement - 100mg
~Magnesium - 500mg
~D3 - 5,000 IU
~CoQ10 - 100mg
~Acai extract - 500mg

I just ordered a bunch of stuff from swansonvitamins.com. My mother-in-law uses them and loves them. So I will give it a try. Apparently I saved $99 by purchasing through them. Yeah!

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 Sticks of string cheese - 2g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Eggs with basil cream sauce - 5g carbs
~Sugar Free Jello - 0g carbs
~1 low carb cookie - 5g carbs


It is ridiculous how much Jello I have eaten in the last week. I'm guessing it's around 3 boxes. You can't get much better than a sweet snack with 0 carbs. I will usually eat 1/2 box in 1 sitting. I wonder if there is anything bad that comes from eating so much Jello...I'll have to research that.

I'm getting closer the the 10lb mark! Hopefully by tomorrow morning I will have lost a good 9lbs. I worked out for 40 minutes last night...I hated every second of it. Haha I really hate working out.

Etsy is being good to me. I have already made 4 sales since yesterday morning, two of from returning customers. I also have another order in the works right now...hopefully it will go through later today.

Not much else today

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 Sticks of string cheese - 2g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~BBQ pulled pork w/ a few bites of potato salad - 15g carbs
~Sugar Free Jello - 0g carbs
~1 low carb cookie - 5g carbs

Well, I at least worked out last night. I didn't work on invitations much, but I got a few things done for work. I have also decided to start selling beads on Etsy again...for a little while at least. I listed some last night and have already made 2 sales! Yay! I sold enough beads to pay for a Disney World trip in 6 months once...but it totally consumed my life. I would come home from work and count beads until I went to bed at midnight. I don't want to do that again even though the extra money was great. Hopefully I can just "casually" sell them this time. The people buying and selling on Etsy are so pleasant to work with...that is also where I spend a lot of time. I just chat in the forums all night.

Our house is so pretty in the spring! This is the first spring since being in the new house, so we are finding all these beautiful things that have been hidden all summer, fall, and winter. We have tons of daffodils out front. Terry planted tulips last fall so they are starting to come up too...and they are pretty pinks and purples. We also have a birds nest by our front door. Terry sent me a picture with 4 eggs in the in it today! Something not so new, but nice is all the birds. I put a bird feeder outside our bedroom window mostly for Heidi, but for me too. We have at least 2 cardinals (male and female) that I have affectionately named RED-G and RED-Gina. Yes, I'm a dork. Heidi and I will lay in bed, cuddle, and watch the birdies each morning before work. Heidi chirps/meows weirdly along with them.

Friday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 Sticks of string cheese - 2g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Teriyaki Chicken - 10g carbs
~1 Box of Sugar Free Jello - 0g carbs

We said goodbye to Rachael and Brandon...gosh, that sucked! As you can see, I drowned my sorrows in Jello. I have to substitute that for chocolate.


Saturday:

~Coffee (or should I say "creamer with a little coffee") - 6g carbs
~Mushroom burger w/o the bun - 3g carbs
~Broccoli cheese casserole - 4g carbs
~Jason's deli ham and cheese wrap w/o the wrap - 3g carbs
~Broccoli cheese soup - 16g carbs

Yeah, I had a lot of broccoli cheese stuff. The soup wasn't very low carb, but since I hadn't had many carbs during the day, I was able to eat a few for dinner. The cool thing is, I never went out of ketosis!


Sunday:

~Creamer with a little coffee :-) - 6g carbs
~3 Deviled Eggs - 5g carbs
~1/3 sugar free chocolate bunny - 10g carbs
~Teriyaki Chicken and Edamame - 15g carbs
~Chicken and eggs with basil cream sauce - 4g carbs
~1 low carb cookie (dough) - 5g carbs

I had a few more carbs than I really wanted, but it was Easter! I had a hard time with the chocolate bunny...I needed chocolate. The low carb cookies aren't bad considering they are what they are. I'm a cookie dough eater, so I didn't want to wait until they were cooked.

Easter was kind of rough. My mom saw a guy get killed. There was a wreck at Joyce and Crossover. A car ran the light while a guy on a motorcycle was going through. She said the guy went up in the air and fell on the ground hard. The guy did in fact die. She was very shaken up after that, but went on with her day. She came over to our house, along with my brother and sister-in-law. While we were opening Easter baskets and munching on food, my mom got a text saying my grandpa just fell. My uncle was visiting them, so he was able to get them to the ER. My grandpa suffered a broken arm, which is not good for any 89 y/o (I think he's 89). We were ready to head down to Ozark, but everything was under control. So far, he has been in a lot of pain, but is ok. This month has been terrible for my mom.

On a happier note, I have plants! My butternut squash, spaghetti squash, roma tomatoes, and bell peppers sprouted! I don't really like to eat any of those, but Terry will :-). I have also planted yellow onions, lettuce, pumpkins, rosemary, chives, strawberries, garlic, and basil. Hopefully the 3 kinds of basil I planted will come up soon. Let's just say our sunroom is full of plants right now. I will move everything outside as soon as I'm sure it won't get too cold again.

Tonight I need to work on invitations and work out...I HAVE to.

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 Sticks of string cheese - 2g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Coconut soup and spring rolls - 15g carbs
~Sugar Free Jello - 0g carbs
~Edamame - 5g carbs


I have some hazelnut mill(to use in place of flour) and low carb chocolate chips that I may make cookies with tonight. Oh my gosh I wish I could have some Nutella right now.


Rachael and Brandon came over last night for the last time :-( We watched a couple movies and worked on invitations. I will post pictures of them once they have been sent out.

That's about all for now...

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~3 Sticks of string cheese - 3g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Popcorn (not low carb, but didn't have much) - 10g carbs
~Double cheese burger w/o bun - 4g carbs

I have lost 1 more lb. That makes it 8 total (or 5 taking water weight into consideration). So my average is about 2 lbs a week so far. That is exactly where I want to be.


Gosh I need to travel. Every part of me wants to follow Rachael and Brandon up to Missoula, MT when they leave here. I would go eat at that wonderful Italian place and shop around for a while. The boys could go hike up to the "M" or something. When we went to MT last time, I was into jewelry making. There are flowers that I saw at Glacier National Park called "Glacier Lilies". I was so inspired and ended up making Glacier Lily earrings.



Real Glacier Lily:



To this day, they are my absolute favorite earrings I have ever made. It would be so awesome to just pack up and leave for a week on Saturday. ::sigh:: a girl can dream...

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1 Stick of string cheese - 1g carbs
~Cashews - 12g carbs
~Meatballs and fresh mozzarella from Mellow Mushroom - 10g carbs
~Sugar Free Raspberry Jello - 0g carbs

Diet is going great, well, as great as a diet can go. Something odd, but not alarming has happened (female issues). I'm not sure if it is the testosterone or diet or what but I won't go into detail about it on here. I have a call into my doctor just to see if I need to change something up. But other than that, I'm still feeling great. It is amazing how good I feel compared to last time I did the diet.

I don't remember if I mentioned it or not, but I'm not taking 5HTP anymore...and haven't been for weeks. It made me feel foggy and just plain crappy. So I am not on ANY mood stabilizers! Whoo hoo! I can feel normal and happy without medicine. Also, my PMDD is sooooooo much better when I take 500mg of magnesium. The magnesium will also help prevent kidney stones. That should be nice since they run in my family and I have already gone through the excruciating pain twice.


We had a lot of fun with friends at Mellow Mushroom last night :-). It is wonderful to have more fiends in town right now. Rachael and Brandon are so friendly and seem to get along with everyone...I hate it that they will be leaving soon.

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 String cheese sticks - 2g carbs
~Cashews - 7g carbs
~Chicken, portabella mushrooms, and boiled egg with leftover basil cream sauce - 5g carbs
~6 meatballs - 4g carbs
~Sugar Free Raspberry Jello - 0g carbs

First of all, the chicken with mushrooms and egg was REALLY good. I made it up as I went and it turned out to be a really tasty combination. The jello was fantastic! I replaced half of the water with Sprite Zero, so it would be a little carbonated. It sort of burns your tongue(in a good way) as you eat it(just like all soda does). I actually think I prefer the sugar free stuff. Oh, and not only am I 7 lbs lighter, but my waist has gone from 29 inches to 27.5 :-D. Unfortunately the weight loss will slow down from here. Well, that is actually good because losing too much weight quickly will just cause you to gain it back quicker...and it's not very healthy in general.

Last night I worked out. Maybe I will do that again tonight...maybe.

I have a wonderfully busy week ahead of me. It is Rachael and Brandon's last week here, so we will be getting together for dinner a few nights. Then Saturday I have another one of Kimberly's showers to go to. I plan on visiting my grandparents on my way home from the shower.

You know, I have been constantly doing something for weddings since January 2009...like all my spare "craft" time! That isn't bad, I just don't remember the last time I did a craft or something that wasn't wedding themed. I worked on my wedding for 10 months. Then my brother got engaged while we were still on our honeymoon. Not long after we got back, I offered to make his invitations. I worked on those for a little while, then Kimberly got engaged the weekend before my brother's wedding. So as soon as we finished with that wedding, I moved onto Kimberly's. It is interesting how they all bunched together like that. Gosh, after May is over, I don't know what I will do! Maybe I will look into soap making...Rachael, you have inspired me :-).

I don't remember what all I ate over the weekend. I stayed on my diet...but it was haaaaarrd! Why?

Friday: I did my usual at work, but after work was crazy! Rachael and I had to get everything ready for the shower. So we needed to go to Wal-Mart, the party store and JC Penny. Then go home and cook for a while. That doesn't sound impossible until you think about the facts that we are girls and we don't see each other very often. We got a little "distracted" at JC Penny. Let's just say we didn't get to start cooking until 10pm. We were up until 4am, but it was a lot of fun. Rachael made some amazing Russian teacakes and cupcakes made from scratch...even the icing. I only had 1 teacake (they are really small) and a tiny bite of the cupcake. I didn't even lick the bowls! It is a miracle that I didn't lose control and eat a whole lot more.

Saturday: The shower went really well. The food was super cute if I say so myself. The Easter basket deviled eggs were OK. There is definitely a learning curve, but the last few turned out really cute. Kimberly had fun, and that is all that really counts. The rest of the day was kind of a blur since I was so so tired. I stayed on my diet though.

Sunday: We ate at Savor with my mom for brunch. Oh man, that place is beautiful and the food is really good. I stayed on my diet and ordered a ham and cheese omelet.

I am down 7 lbs! My measurements are a little smaller, so I am starting to lose actual fat. I still say about 3 lbs will always be water weight...so I have actually lost 4 lbs. :-D

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 sticks of string cheese - 2g carbs
~Lasagna w/o the noodles - 6g carbs
~Chinese food...different kinds of chicken and beef - 9g carbs
~2 Strawberries - 2g carbs

Last night was somewhat productive. I got some good work done on the invitations and I worked out...for 10 minutes :-/. I planned on working out for 30-45 minutes, but my mom came over to work on curtains with me. So I at least did a little bit of each task on my "to do" list.

Tonight is going to be crazy as soon as I get off work. Rachael and I are going shopping for food and other stuff for the shower. Then we are going to cook as much of the stuff tonight as we can. I need to clean the house a bit too. After that, we are going to have some much needed girl time...facials and all :-D. At some point my mom will be by to help do curtains. I doubt all of this will get done, but I am going to really try. Oh yeah, and I need to get several wedding invitations totally done so we can pass them out at the shower. What am I going to wear??

I don't talk about Terry much on here...not sure why. He is (obviously) a huge part of my life and I love him more than anything. I don't think there could be a more perfect man for me. He is the type guy that I always dreamed of having, but never thought I would actually find. I think I had it right in the first e-mail I sent him. Even though we work (and always have) within 5 feet of each other, I sent him a message on myspace. The message was totally innocent and I had no intention of trying to date him. I just wanted to let him know that he was a really, truly nice guy. He was the one that was so nice to me on my first day of work. The funniest thing is that I added a goofy line to the message that jokingly said "and I think we are soul mates because you have a space heater under your desk too." I was right :-D Gosh I wish I still had a copy of that message!

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~2 slices of pizza, toppings only - 5g carbs
~2 String cheese sticks - 2g carbs
~Lasagna w/o the noodles - 6g carbs
~Salad w/ dressing - 2g carbs
~Spaghetti Squash with basil cream sauce - 4g carbs

Still feeling pretty good. I used my Spaghetti Squash recipe. I would not eat it if I wasn't on a low carb diet...yuck. The only way I can eat is is to smother it in a yummy sauce. All you do for the squash is cut it in half and take out all the seeds, put it in a pan face down in a little water, then cook it on 375* for 30-40 minutes in the oven. When it's done, you can just "comb" it with a fork and it comes apart in strands. Or you can cook it in the microwave for 6-10 minutes. It tastes nothing like spaghetti, but it is interesting.

Rachael came over and cooked us lasagna last night. Not only was the food wonderful, but the company was great too :-)

Ok, tonight I HAVE to work out and I HAVE to work on the invitations tonight. I would like to hang the curtains in our sunroom and bedroom before the shower, but I don't think that will happen...oh well. So much to do, so little time!

Yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1/2 glass of Spark (energy drink high in B vitamins) - 7g carbs
~3 String cheese sticks - 3g carbs
~Chicken in a Marsala cream sauce - 9g carbs
~1/2 avocado with 3 low carb Genisoy chips - 6g carbs

My appetite seems to be getting smaller. I eat when I get hungry, so I guess that is ok. I promise I will start a regular exercise routine soon...as soon as I get the wedding invitations done. My nights will be devoted to invitations this week...I need to get them done.

You know, after hearing about other peoples' weddings lately (and watching those wedding shows on WE), I am SOO grateful how ours turned out. It ran as smoothly as a wedding could run. Yeah, there were a few things that didn't get done (they didn't put enough chairs out, my wedding cake had little braids on it that I requested they leave off, and there were a few white table cloths around...I did not want any white). All of which our wonderful wedding coordinator didn't have control over. But by the time I realized it, I was walking down the aisle. Those issues were so little and I was so RIDICULOUSLY calm, that it didn't bother me. That is another amazing thing about the wedding, I have social anxiety, yet I was pretty calm. Sure, you could see my bouquet shaking with my heartbeat at first, but that's it. My bridesmaids were amazing. They kept me hydrated and were right there the whole time. The ceremony was PERFECT...Don, the officiant, was great. We knew nothing about what he was going to say except for the vows (which we chose). The music was great (thanks to Terry, my mom, and Daniel). People were asking for a CD of the music :-D. My mom rented a condo across the street from Scarpinos to use as the bridal suite. That was a great idea! The flowers were totally breathtaking. And the colors, omg, the colors of everything...PERFECT! It was so neat to see my vision come to life. I can't take all the credit for it though. My mom and Sally (wedding coordinator/florist) streamlined it very well. Probably the most importing thing is everyone was actually happy and relatively stress free. There were no spats or disasters. It was perfect. I don't think there is 1 thing I would have changed. Some memories from the wedding:

Our Vows:

I, NAME, choose you NAME
To be my husband/wife and my best friend
My love and my partner
I will be honest and faithful to you
In plenty and in want
In sickness and in health
In laughter and in tears
I will cherish and respect you
Comfort and encourage you
And accept you for who you are
I dedicate to you alone
The best of myself
This is my vow
According to God’s holy word


NAME, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love for you. Let it be a reminder that I am always by your side and that I will always be faithful to you.
____________________________________
Important Music:

Processional Song: When You Wish Upon A Star by Steve Tyrell
Bride Entrance Song: My Girl by the Temptations
Recessional Song: Banana Pancakes by Jack Johnson

Yesterday:

~BBQ pulled pork for both lunch and dinner...from two different places - 7g carbs (in the BBQ sauce)
~4 Strawberries - 4g carbs
~Fresh mozzarella wrapped in ham - 1g carb

Once again, I didn't eat much yesterday. However, I got a late start since we were traveling and didn't eat until 2:00. I am back on my normal schedule now though.

My mom says she can tell I have lost weight in the face and upper chest area! This is amazing, I am seeing results only 1 week after starting! I am down 6 lbs now, but only a small part of that is actual weight. As I have said, before, it would take at least 3-4 weeks to see any change. I'm not sure if it is all the vitamins I'm taking or the testosterone, but something is working. My gut is telling me it's the vitamin D and/or testosterone. A huge number of Caucasian women in America are vitamin D deficient, btw.

This week will be super busy, especially Friday-Saturday. Rachael and I will be experimenting in the kitchen with all kinds of purple shower foods. We are going to test some sort of eggplant dish on our husbands on Friday...I don't think they know that yet. If it's good, we will serve it at the shower. I have never given a bridal shower before, so hopefully it won't be a total wreck. We also may attempt some of these super cute deviled eggs:



I am so mad at myself! I forgot to record Dancing with the Stars! I was able to catch the last hour of it, but I guess I will have to watch the first hour online. Pamela acted like she was on drugs or something.

It looks like we missed a big snow! We only saw about 30 seconds worth of snow, the rest of the time it was just cold and rainy. We ended up not going to SDC :-( However, we had so much fun. We took old time photos, which was really fun. The girls were flappers and the boys were gangsters. We also saw the Acrobats of China show...which was awesome!



Guess what? I stayed on my diet!!! I only had about 4 bites of a chocolate mudball dessert.

~1/2 rack of ribs - in the car on our way to Branson :-D
~Marsala Chicken Saturday night
~Peanuts Saturday night

~A burger without the bun Sunday afternoon
~4 bites of a sinful mudball dessert Sunday afternoon
~Grilled chicken wraps without the wrap Sunday evening
~Peanuts Sunday evening

I am now realizing I didn't eat much...hmm, not sure if that is good.

What I ate:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~Egg white salad wraps - 3g carbs
~1 String cheese stick - 1g carbs
~Fresh mozzarella wrapped in ham - 3g carbs
~Several kinds of chicken and beef at a chinese buffet - 10g carbs
~Mousse - 4g carbs
~Cashews - 5g carbs

So far I am down 4lbs, but my water weight is still shifting, so maybe .5lb is real weight loss. My waist measurement is just slightly smaller (that is where I lose weight first...always). I'm still feeling good, which is a really good thing.

Oh man, last night was rough. I don't want to say exactly what happened here online for everyone in the world to see(for those of you who know me, call me or send me a message if you are curious and don't already know). We were out until about 1am making sure everything and everyone was ok. It has been a looong time since I was that scared and I don't want to experience this again. If my life was a reality show last night, it would have been Cops...my life is, in fact, exciting enough without reality tv.

That consumed most of my night, so I have nothing else to report. I didn't work out or work on invitations...or watch tv.

What did I have yesterday?

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1/2 glass of Spark (energy drink high in B vitamins) - 7g carbs
~Egg white salad wraps - 3g carbs
~2 String cheese sticks - 2g carbs
~3 Strawberries with Splenda - 3g carbs
~Fresh mozzarella wrapped in ham - 3g carbs
~Meatballs covered in Swiss cheese - 5g carbs

I am down 3lbs, but that is water weight. My measurements have not changed yet. I don't expect to see any actual weight loss for at least another week or two. I am still trying to decide if I will cheat a little this weekend or not. I know SDC has some super yummy food, and I haven't been there in 20 years. I'm doing such a good job though, so I don't know if I want to ruin all the good I have done.


Ohh, I ordered a bunch of low carb foods from Netrition.com last week. I should be getting them today :-D I have ordered from them before and had great luck. The food is really good considering it's low carb. I got stuff like cheese crisps, chocolate mousse, cookie mix, pancake/waffle mix, chocolate chips, etc. The pancake mix actually isn't that bad...and it truly is low carb.

So, if you know me very well, you know I am a sucker for reality shows (and especially trashy reality shows). I'm embarrassed by it, but man, there is nothing like watching totally ridiculous people. Last night, I was watching one of the less trashy, America's Next Top Model. This poor girl was doing a runway challenge and bombed it BIG TIME. Not only did she fall on the stairs, but she decided to make up for it by being really "fierce" and making a mean face...yeah, that didn't work out for her. She just looked really mad. Then, when she was walking back, she fell off the runway and ripped her dress. I was laughing so hard and felt bad about it. If I was a model, I know I would end up doing something like that.

Then I watched 16 and Pregnant. I'm not sure if it is the hormone change or what, but I cried! Maybe I'm mean, but I rarely cry for people. I cry at the drop of a hat for animals though. It seems I am becoming more empathetic towards people...which is good I think. But anyway, they ended up giving the baby up for adoption. That was the best choice, but it broke my heart. I don't even want a baby right now, but thinking of giving one up kills me! I had to go find my kitty, Heidi, to hold while watching it.

Project Runway and The Office come on tonight. Survivor doesn't come on tonight, does it? It's probably because of some sports event, bleh!

I actually don't like to watch a whole lot of TV. After and hour or so, I start to feel restless. That is when i do something crafty and creative or read. I feel like I am turning into an old lady :-/

What I ended up eating yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1/2 glass of Spark (energy drink high in B vitamins) - 7g carbs
~Egg salad wraps - 3g carbs
~2 String cheese sticks - 2g carbs
~7 Strawberries with Splenda - 7g carbs
~1/2 Jello cup of dark chocolate mousse - 3g carbs
~Chicken and avocado in a Sherry cream sauce - 9g carbs

I'm also trying to stay more hydrated than usual so my kidneys don't have to work as hard with the increase of protein and lack of carbs in my system. I didn't work out since I was working on wedding invitations, but that isn't a big deal.

Three years ago today, Terry and I were on our first big trip in Chicago. We saw a little bit of the green river and hung out for the St. Patrick's Day parade. I don't remember what we did the rest of the day.

We have Daffodils blooming in our front yard flower bed! There are also some Tulips coming up that Terry planted last fall :-D. I can't wait to see what colors they are.

That is all for now...

The first day wasn't bad. I only had a few weak moment's at the end of the day...I was REALLY wanting some Dibs, but I pulled through it. I stuffed my face with a little cheese instead :-/. Since this blog is keeping me accountable, this is what I ended up having yesterday:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1/2 glass of Spark (energy drink high in B vitamins) - 7g carbs
~Egg salad wraps - 3g carbs
~4 String cheese sticks - 4g carbs
~A few cashews - 3g carbs
~6 Strawberries with Splenda - 6g carbs
~1/2 Avocado - 6g carbs
~1/2 Jello cup of dark chocolate mousse - 3g carbs
~Chicken in a Sherry cream sauce - 3g carbs

That equals out to be about 10% DV of carbs. If you want to count net carbs, it would be less than 10%. Oh, and I also did 3.5 miles on my elliptical. I know all of my meals will soon become very unsatisfying...that is where it becomes hard to stick to the diet. I am going to try to snack on stuff all day like I did yesterday. That way I won't get ravenously hungry and really crave the carbs. If I stay relatively full, maybe I won't crave carbs as much. I'm thinking my diet may make Terry gain weight. Like last night, I got in his lap and asked him to eat 1/2 of my chocolate mousse cup so I wouldn't eat all of it. If I keep asking him to eat 1/2 of whatever I am eating (on top of what he is eating), we might have a problem :-).

We are trying to figure out where to go for a summer vacation. It seems Seattle, WA might be the place. We are trying to find a place where Terry and his dad can go hike around, but also a place where me, Terry's mom, and possibly my mom could shop around. I would love to go there, but I'm afraid it may just rain and be ugly out the whole time...us girls would rather stay in if it rains. But on the other hand, I hear there are a lot of bead stores and craft stores. Then we have the issue of what to do with our dogs...we would have to put them in a kennel somewhere. The other option is for my mom and I to go to NYC and Terry and his dad to go to Glacier National Park (or somewhere like that). But then Terry's mom is left out since I don't think she want's to go to NYC. It would be great for the whole family to go somewhere together though. Gosh this blog is boring!

So, today is the first day of my diet :-/. Last night I tried to make a few foods that will last me for the week. I made some really good egg salad wraps and cut some strawberries. Here is a tentative menu for the day:

~Mocha Latte Shake - 5g carbs
~1/2 glass of Spark (energy drink high in B vitamins) - 7g carbs
~Egg salad wraps - 3g carbs
~String cheese - 1g carbs
~3 Strawberries with Splenda - 3g carbs
~Avocado - 12g carbs
~Ham and cheese lettuce wrap - 3g carbs

Tonight I am going to try to make some meatballs to eat the rest of the week.

I don't know if it is the vitamins or what, but my complexion has been looking GREAT the last few days. I have never had an issue with acne or bad skin, but wow, something has changed. Surely it's not the compounded testosterone...if anything, I would think that would make my complexion worse. Oh well, I'll take it. Speaking of testosterone, I feel a world of difference. After taking it for a week I feel motivated and this haze from my Prozac withdrawal has lifted. I am still a bit more forgetful than usual - hopefully that will pass soon.

The forgetfulness was pretty bad a few weeks ago. This was before I started taking any vitamins and testosterone and a few weeks after I stopped taking Prozac. I went to go get some fabric one Saturday morning. Terry was still in bed, so I went alone. When I walked out of the store, I unlocked my car and got into the passenger side. I sat down, then realized how much of an IDIOT I was. I was ALONE! Why was I getting in the passenger side of my car??? I was simply not thinking and out of habit, I got in on that side. I was too embarrassed to get out and change sides, so I just crawled over. Also, in that same week, I would forget to zip my fly...I walked around work and Wal-Mart with my fly unzipped. I'm so cool...

I am looking forward to this weekend. Rachael and Brandon are going to be in town for 2 weeks!! We are going to meet them in Branson on Saturday(yes, I'm going again this weekend). All of Sunday will be spent at Silver Dollar City. I haven't been there in almost 20 years, so it should be interesting. The week after Branson will be filled with planning Kimberly's linen/bridal shower. Rachael and I are planning to have purple and/or green in all foods. At the moment we are planning on doing strawberry/raspberry/blueberry/grape kabobs, guacamole with blue corn chips, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, cupcakes, and any purple and green Easter candy we can find. There is more, I just can't think of it at the moment. Everything will be served on super cute sparkly green chargers and trays I found at Hobby Lobby. I'm no "Domestic Diva", so there are no guarantees it will turn out well. Hopefully that is where Rachael can help :-)

Wow, I'm pretty upbeat seeing that it is a Monday morning...maybe things are starting to get better.

Oh, and I apologize now for my scattered thoughts and horrible writing. I'm writing for myself, not to impress :-).

My mom and I had an amazing time in Branson. We at at Macaroni Grill and Famous Daves and did some shopping. Terry went camping this weekend, so that is partly why we went to Branson...to get away since he was going to be away.

When I got home, he had already taken a shower (so he wouldn't smell like a homeless man) and cleaned the house. He not only took a shower, but he got all dressed up, gelled his hair how I like it, and was wearing cologne. Since he was all dressed up, we decided to just go eat somewhere. We ended up at Taste of Thai...I had forgotten how good it was.

So, tomorrow I am going to try to make up some low carb foods to have ready for this week. When I come home from work, I'm usually hungry and will grab whatever is quickest and easiest. This is where I end up going off of my diet. That is why I plan on making several foods one or two days a week, then just heat them up on the days I don't want to cook. Here is what I plan on buying/making:

Avacados - to eat straight
Egg Salad
Ham
Lettuce
Cheese, cheese, cheese
Strawberries with Splenda
Chicken with a marsala sauce
Meatballs in Worcestershire sauce

I have also ordered several different low carb foods online.

So, I have started this blog mostly to keep myself accountable. I have been going through A LOT of changes recently and want to stick to it.

First of all, I was put on Prozac and birth control pills to help with my PMDD. I was able to get off Prozac (YESS!)with only 4 weeks of bad withdrawal symptoms. So, now that I'm off Prozac, I can feel the wrath of Brook coming every month. PMDD is so frustrating and ridiculously hard to get through each month. I went to see a great doctor who tested my TSH levels, vitamin D levels, and vitamin B levels. As expected, my TSH was normal and my D levels were low. This was all done on March 1. He recommended I take:

~Magnesium to help with PMDD
~5HTP for PMDD
~Vitamin D supplement
~Multivitamin

He is also having me use a compounded testosterone cream. One of my complaints was that I could NOT lose weight for anything. It takes a low carb, low calorie, portion control, and extensive exercise program to see any results. Testosterone and vitamin D should help, but if it's not good enough, I will be looking into changing forms of birth control.


Second, I am going to attempt to do a low carb diet again for a little while. The first time I did the diet, I lost 25lbs in 6 months. I would like to do that again, but not totally kill myself with the whole low carb, low calorie, portion control, and extensive exercise program. So I am just going to casually low carb it. The reason I'm doing this? My self esteem is at an all time low. Now that I'm married, I owe it to Terry to be at my best. So I plan on doing this for a while and hopefully I will see some results sooner than I did last time. I will use this blog as a food journal...and a place to vent.

Now, off to the post office and Branson. My diet starts Monday.