Dropping Sugar Like A Bad Habit...

Oh, I sound real tough, don't I?

But honestly, this is a big one for me.  And it has several factors going behind it.  I have read more than a couple articles recently about how we eat way too much sugar and how the white stuff isn't good for us - far past rotting my teeth out like my parents used to threaten.  It can be linked to not only the obvious health culprits and obesity but also depression, heart disease, acne and cancer.

I know...yikes!

Aaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnnndddddddddd last week, I might have eaten a whole bag of Hershey Kisses by myself.  And a half batch of oatmeal cookies...and some rice krispie treats....and a large sweet tea from McDonalds.

Actually, it was the sweet tea that did me in, as I sipped on it while reading the last and final article on the badness of sugar that pushed me over the edge.  

It's not that I don't think that sugar is fine in moderation - I do...I just also know that I have no moderation when it comes to sugar.  Therefore, I decided to join some other bloggers I follow that have been providing positive peer pressure and go without.  Well, sort of...

I told two people when I decided to start this:  Scott and my best friend.  I no sooner typed the email to Amanda when she called in a panic.  "What do you mean, you're going off sugar?"

You see, she was around when I went off sugar the first time.  Back in college when I had an elbow that wouldn't heal and I didn't want to miss pitching my entire junior season so I went to a chiropractor that told me that my diet was horrible - too much sugar, too little protein or complex carbs, too many hydrogenated fats, blah blah blah.

I know...what did he know... *pshhhh*

The 20 year old Annie and her friends viewed it all as a bunch a bull-hockey, but I wanted to pitch so badly that I thought I would give his theory a try and went off my beloved sugar, Poptarts, and crackers.  I learned to read labels and plan my meals.  It really was a learning experience, and even though I did eventually go back to the dark side (once I was able to pitch again - HA!), it taught me a lot about nutrition.  

But anyway, a week into my new diet and my best friend showed up at the door with what would save me:  sugar-free Jello with fruit cocktail mixed in and enough spoons to go around for us and my roommates.  We ate it right out of the bowl and it was the best thing I swear I had ever tasted. 

The whole situation became quite hysterical - as we sat and ate the entire bowl and laughed.  I think we'd been studying...for a very long time...AND if you never hear from me again after this post, they have massacred me for posting this picture!

And I was just darn loopy from no sugar...I couldn't tell you what I was doing here.  All I know is that I would LOVE for my forehead to have that few wrinkles again!

So, understanding her concern, I tried to talk her down.  "Yeah, I'm getting a little out of control and I don't want to gain a million pounds with this pregnancy,"  I told her.

"Tell me how you're doing this," she delved. "I mean, are you avoiding everything with sugar because you know pretty much everything HAS sugar in it."

Looking down at the peanut butter I was smearing on a piece of toast, I gulped.  She was right.  So right then and there, I decided that I was giving up sweets and soft drinks - the obvious stuff.  My husband was in full support of my decision - having seen the Kisses bag in the trash and knowing that he didn't eat any - but convinced me to just go during the week, giving myself the weekends to cheat.

Which sounded perfectly logical to me, considering that I am deeply in love with fall sweets.  (Cue Homer Simpson voice)  Mmmmm...pumpkin and apple ANYTHING....mmmmmm...

Now supporting me and being in love with me can be two different things though, as my sweet hubby called on the way home yesterday and was running through Sonic to get something to drink as a pick-me-up.  Did I want anything?  Oh, temptation washed over me like a flood.  But I sighed, "No...I'm not doing sugar.  Can you get me something unsweetened?"

So he came home with a little strawberry lemonade for Elizabeth and Rachel, a drink for himself and an unsweetened tea for me.  And, you know, it wasn't too bad!

Now, the question remains about other sweeteners and, currently, all I'm using is either honey or maple syrup.  I don't trust any other, although I haven't read all the research on Stevia yet.  And I really don't want to fool with it while being pregnant because I'm not really looking at this as a weight loss answer.  So it's not like I've traded my beloved baked goods in for items that are "diet" or "fat free."  Honestly, I'd rather have the sugar and just deal with the side effects I know. 

Other people who try this have claimed improved complexions, loss of excess weight, more energy and just a better overall feeling.  All those things sound just about awesome to me right about now.  

So I am wrapping up my first week of this and have noticed a couple things.  One, I have dropped a couple pounds.  Now, don't fuss at me and tell my I'm depriving my baby because I'm not.  Mysteriously, I gained five fast ones that week that I went on my binge-o-sweets.  So I am just losing the crap I put on.  I think the baby weighs about an ounce right now...I assure you, IT'S FINE.  

Two, I am forced to snack better and I realize that my go-to when I was hungry was something sweet.  All.the.time.  Now, I grab a piece of fruit or cut up some raw vegetables or heat up some leftovers.  At the same time, my kids are snacking better because Lord knows a mama can't eat a thing without a little bird coming up and wanting a bite.  

Three, I am looking forward to the weekend and enjoying what is forbidden during the week.  Gluttony is dangerous and to just throw things in your mouth isn't good...so I really think that I will savor what I choose to eat this weekend.  

So...anyone up for joining me?  Do you think allowing cheat weekends makes it more "do-able?"  Or perhaps you could use a 30 Day No-Sugar Challenge??  (Which, consequently, should wrap up right at Halloween?! ha!)  Let me know!  Maybe we'll start this full swing on Monday. 

Rocking Babies

There is just something about rocking your baby that I can't describe.  I have a couple friends who are pregnant with their first baby and have been asking for suggestions and must-haves for their registries and my common answer is that you'll need diapers and a glider.  

Everything else is just gravy to me.  (Ok, fine...I guess a couple of sleepers and blankets are NECESSARY, but you can see where I'm going here.)

I guess that's because I lived in my glider during their first few months of life.  Especially Rachel was a grazer-type eater and I was pinned to the chair for most of the day.  But it's hard to complain with a precious baby cuddled in your arms.

That's also why I never fuss about the girls waking up at night with bad dreams or something bugging them now.  This is a rare occurrence, to say the least, but there is something about picking them up, carrying them downstairs, and feeling them relax against me that is so gratifying to me...filling that deepest mother-need.  

Yesterday was just a day in this house.  Elizabeth was a terror and Rachel was following suit.  We had accidents and fits and boo-boo's and tantrums.  In the middle of that, we had a plumber and lessons and a feeble attempt to get some sort of dinner on the table.  Needless to say, Scott and I were ready for bedtime and rushed the girls through baths and pj's.  While tending to Elizabeth's end of the day fit, I put her down and rubbed her back until she fell asleep - leaving Rachel to her daddy.  Normally, these rolls are reversed, but Elizabeth was just so upset, I stayed with her.  She gave up the ghost after a couple minutes, but Rachel was upset and still crying in her crib a half hour later. 

And then it dawned on me.  We hadn't rocked.  

So I went in and gathered up my disgruntled little girl and we rocked until she relaxed and dozed off in my arms.  It was the closure I needed after such a crazy day - almost God's way of bringing me back to center.  

I think that this de-stressing is an important element to wellness that is easy to take for granted.  I pray that you are able to find your place of comfort and take the time to cuddle your baby, hold your loved one, snuggle with your dog, or just be at peace for a while after what might have been a hectic 12 hours.  And that that peace stays with you when things begin to get hectic once again.

Because they always will...

Have a great day!

Just Another Day in Paradise...

My friends, we have officially hit the dress-up stage in our house.

And I'm just not really sure how I feel about that yet.

We've avoided it thus far and honestly, it's probably my fault because I didn't really have any clue that Elizabeth was even remotely interested in playing dress-up.  Well, until we went to a friend's house to play and she came out of the room with a boa and high heels and refused to take them off...Diva that she is...

So, when a friend asked if we would like her outgrown princess play dresses, I jumped...because those suckers are expensive.  

Little did I know that my daughter would turn into a teenager in front of my eyes.

This is her princess pose...look at her hands!    How do you learn that?  We have a Little Mermaid dress and a Sleeping Beauty dress as well and she takes turns peeling them on and off and twirling around the house in them.  Of course, we had a small spat once Rachel woke up from her nap and came downstairs to discover the new additions.  Upon seeing her little sister fingering one of the dresses, Elizabeth came over yelling, "No, no, no, Rachel...that is not yours, that is MINE.  Here...this is YOURS,"  shoving a little tu tu in her face.  

Rachel took one look at the tu tu and another at the dress and then yelled, "No!" throwing them both down to the floor and running off to play with the beloved Dora puzzle that had been forgotten by the once possessive older sister.

I don't think she's quite ready yet...

Last night, I was making dinner and Elizabeth was on hour number five of playing with the dresses when she came in the kitchen and said, "Oh Daddy is just going to LOOOOOOVE this dress?"   And I was thinking looooooove?  Where in the world did that come from?

Then I watched the three-year-old, going on 16, go into a frenzy upon hearing her daddy's car pull into the driveway and strip off Sleeping Beauty for Belle because, "It just wasn't right, mama."  Then run in and strut and twirl for him as he walked through the door.

I hadn't had a chance to warn him about our princess inheritance, so he came in the kitchen and kissed me and said, "Why does our daughter have a little ball gown on?  And why is she holding her hands like that??  Is this normal?"

Which took my brain back to about 29 years ago when I clearly remember dressing up in some get-up my Memaw bought me from Goodwill that had sparkles and frilly skirts and coming down her stairs pretending I was my favorite singer at the time, "Olivia Neutron Bomb" (as I called her).

I also remember having a Mickey Mouse Club workout tape that taught a dance and then showed the kids performing at the end on stage under the lights and in costumes.  I was lucky enough to grow up across the street from three little girls so we would pause the tape and then all six of us would sprint to the back bedroom and get our "costumes" out of a box of dance outfits that someone had given my mom.  Then we would parade through the house and perform the dance with the tape as if our life depended on it.  

So I patted my husband on the back as he watched Elizabeth strip off one dress to only wiggle into another and assured him that I thought she was pretty normal...

...and that I was probably going to look for a pair of plastic high heels the next time we go to the store... 

Bisquick, Granola and Energy Surges - Happy Monday!

I have been waiting for this for about 15 weeks now...

My energy to come back! 

No longer do I feel pukey, queezy, weezy, exhausted, ready to keel over, and just all over bleh...

It happened Saturday - marvelous, marvelous Saturday.  I ran for my full 30 minutes.  I did lessons.  I played with my children.  And we hosted a rocking UFC party and stayed up until midnight like  teeny-boppers (complete with my mug of hot tea and honey...).  Ah, second trimester, you are wonderful and rewarding and I shall enjoy you until I get huge and ready to pop.

Now, that being said, there are some things around my house that immediately need addressed.  Things I've turned a blind eye to for quite a while...like my desk.

Quick...look away!  Look away!!

So I've got a job ahead of me.  I leave you with the Highlights granola recipe and link to the Bisquick recipe, both of which I made reference to yesterday.  It is rainy and cooler here today and just the perfect weather to bake up some granola.  Or banana muffins, in my case.

That is, if I ever find my stove...

Happy Monday!!

Homemade Granola*

3 C oatmeal (I used whole oats)
1/2 C dried cranberries
1/2 C black raisins
1/2 C golden raisins
1 C chopped nuts (I didn't have these so I didn't add them)
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 C sunflower seeds
1/2 C canola oil (I used coconut oil instead and I think it gave it a touch more sweetness, plus a lot more good-for-you-ness)
3/4 C maple syrup (I used the good stuff because 3/4 of my house are syrup snobs, of my husband's influence.  Me?  I am tight with Mrs. Butterworth...mmmm, maple flavored water...)

Preheat oven to 300.  Coat the dry ingredients with the liquid.  Spread the mixture on a cookie sheet lined with foil and sprayed lightly with oil.  Press down on the mixture until it's about 1/2 inch thick.  Bake for 20 minutes, then turn the cookie sheet and bake for an additional 20-25 minutes or until mixture is golden brown.  Once it cools, break into small pieces and store in airtight container for up to a week or more (although it rarely lasts that long in this house!).

*  Gunst, Kathy.  Highlights High Five Magazine, May 2011.  (For my fellow mass comm snobs.)

Homemade Bisquick and my favorite pancakes recipe 

Things I L-O-V-E...

Well, at the moment at least...

Being Southern and all, I love me a good Mason jar and was looking for a container for my homemade Bisquick when I ran across this beauty at a yard sale for $1.  It holds 6 cups and I couldn't be more thrilled!  It stays in the fridge and takes up waaaaaay less room than the container I was using before.

And speaking of the fridge...

This could be the saving grace of pregnant women everywhere searching for a mock-tail.  It is sweet and bubbly and looks so pretty in a glass of ice with a little bit of lime... mmmmm....  Oh, and the Dora yogurt is Rachel's, who was in such a crabby mood today that she skipped lunch and Go and went directly to bed for a much needed nap.  Dora's waiting on her to get up.  This is real life, people.

Oh, and speaking of drinks...

This has become my new nightly ritual and not only is it tasty, but it also keeps me out of the snack cabinet.  You know, because I'm starving and all...and I watch Diners, Drive-In's and Dives religiously on the Food Network...which is not a good combination.  This tea has the perfect taste of fruit and a spoonful of honey makes it just right.

And speaking of snacks... (I know, I'm reaching...bear with me.)

Homemade granola.  This intimidated me for the longest time and my mom helped me make it when she was in from a recipe from a Highlights magazine, of all things!  Our new favorite snack is granola mixed with vanilla yogurt and frozen blueberries and strawberries.  I've even turned Scott on it, and I've never seen the man eat yogurt before.  Ever.  It also makes for a nice little sweet something to grab by the handful...not that I would ever do that... *ahem*

And speaking of little sweet somethings...

I love new friends - especially those with kids the same age as our kids because they almost act as built in babysitters while playing is going on, allowing adult conversation to be had.  This is their youngest, Kendall, inspecting Elizabeth's shirt.  Elizabeth held so still and just let her check her out.

They have three beautiful blonde girls so we've already formed a band.  Here they are marching and "practicing."

And they even have rockin' dance moves.  I love it!

Well, and listing the things I love, you know I wouldn't leave out...

Frick and frack.  Shortly after this picture, Elizabeth colored all over her sister's head.  At least they look cute and innocent, right?  Oh, and yes...I am a matchy-matchy mom.  Sue me.

Peace out and enjoy your day!

Alternating Limb Exercises Worth the Time - Who Knew??

You're going to have to forgive me for my lack of technical terminology on this one...I'm not sure what it's TECHNICALLY called when you do an exercise that involves one limb and then the other except that when they're listed on a workout sheet, they're called one-arm...or one-legged...so wouldn't alternating limbed make sense?

It did in my head, but then again, I am pregnant so I swear that my brain is getting sucked out a little bit more every week.

Normally when I write anything regarding a workout, I call my husband in and go through the motion of the exercise saying, "What is this called again, honey?"

To which I receive an eye roll and a correct, technical answer.

But alas, he's at work and you are stuck with me and my own terminology...which you're probably just fine with since you've stuck with me this long and you know I'm not one of those trainer-people...I'm just a mama who likes to workout.

So anyway, back to my point...I have an hour in the gym and normally try to squeeze some form of cardio and weights into that time period.  Now, I have used this excuse of crunched time to avoid any exercise that calls for one-limb to be used at a time because I know you then have to workout the other limb next and it takes DOUBLE the time than if you would have just done both things together.  At the same time, I have mumbled and grumbled about my biceps, quads and calves especially, criticizing them for their lack of focus and definition.  Well, because it couldn't be my fault.  ha!

I started following a couple programs that called for lunges - really the single exercise I had been avoiding like the plague because they really "take a long time" - and I began to notice an immediate difference in not only my quads but also my rear-end jiggle.  Thinking that perhaps there was a trend to the idea, I began adding in one-armed bicep curls, single-leg calf raises, one-armed rows  and single-leg extensions on the machine.  Eureka!  Progress, finally!

Now, the key also was within the fact that I was using a weight that challenged me - meaning that I really couldn't get more than 10-12 reps if I wanted to - and that I kept moving onto a different exercise immediately afterwards.  Because I like to super-set my workouts, I began mixing up my single-limbed exercises with regular lifts.  So Biceps and Triceps would look something like this:

1-arm DB bicep curls alternated with

Tricep rope push down

Barbell curls alternated with

One-arm tricep extensions

Alternating DB hammer curls alternated with

Tricep bench dips

Mixing the exercises up like this eliminates much need to take a break and also gives the other body part an active rest - which also burns more calories in my short time span.  Oh, and speaking of time span, my workouts now take me no more time than the old ones...I was just being a Negative Nelly and avoiding harder movements, which also provided more results (go figure).

This would be so easy to apply at home - as you can do lunges anywhere or single-legged calf raises off the floor or front stoop, or (if you're up for the physcial challenge) even one-arm push ups (yikes!).  When I was younger, my mom and I would walk on the track at the high school and would finish doing walking lunges from one end of the track to the other.  We were very anti-rear-end jiggle back then.

Good luck!

No Smore Smores, Mama!

Ah yes, the random stuff you get to read when I am too tired to write anything of any sort of intelligence...  Although I feel like I could put my poor family and the dinners I've been feeding them in the same category...stuff I make them eat when I am too tired to cook and plan.  If only I had gotten into this whole batch cooking mess BEFORE I had gone and gotten myself pregnant, we would have a freezer full of wonderful meals.  But no...now, I only daydream about what I would cook if I had the energy and then take a quick snooze on the couch. 

Good thing we have lunch meat...  mmmm, sandwiches...  

Anyway, Scott and I had a ridiculous idea a couple weekends ago that it would be fun to build a little fire and make s'mores with our two little children.  It all comes from staying up too late, watching the Food Network feature some restaurant that specializes in s'mores and being pregnant and laying in bed afterwards in Homer Simpson mode...

MMMMM...S'mores....*drool*

Anyway, it worked out that it had started getting cooler in the evening and we had a pretty good pile of scrap wood that was beginning to make my husband, the minimalist, feel a little claustrophobic in our very substantial backyard.  So a evening fire was on our to-do list.

The girls had never had s'mores and I'm not really sure they had seen that many fires, but they were so excited for the prospect of doing something different that they were actually compliant as we strolled through the grocery store aisles to get what we needed.

Now, let me pause here and ask you if you have priced graham crackers lately?  Holy Moly...the not-on-sale-of-course-because-we-needed-them Honey Maids were $5 a box!!  Which caused a conflict between my taste buds and wallet because graham crackers are on that list of things that I hate generic and have pledged never to buy off-brand again...    The cheapo won out and I am happy to report that Harris Teeter's brand was not utterly horrible and stand up quite well in the whole scheme of s'mores.

Anyway, that Saturday night, we ate dinner early, bribed the girls in picking up the house, and  marched out into the backyard to have our adventure.  Scott had stacked the wood and pulled out the fire pit and arranged our chairs around in a semi circle.  He had even found a couple perfect sticks and see them aside, just waiting for marshmallows. 

Really, it looked like a perfect evening...for us.

And that is when I saw two small children turn around and look at me with the expression, "This is it?  We cleaned the house over this?  Why are the deck chairs on the grass?"

They gave it the once over and then sprinted to the playground.

After the 50th trip down the slide, they were ready to give s'mores a try, so we gathered around the campfire, Scott and I excited for this family experience.  He showed Elizabeth how to put the marshmallow on the stick and put it in the fire, then blow it out (suddenly, I have Sandlot running through my head...first you take the mallow...).  I put together the first s'more in my lap, so proud of how pretty it looked, all smooshed together and handed it to my first born.

She licked it.  No, I'm not kidding.

"I don't yike smores, Mama."

So then I tried giving it to Rachel...which erupted in a fit and sprint to her daddy.

So to make a long story short, Scott and I ate s'mores and I ate most of them.  The girls ate graham crackers and chocolate...as in separately...turning into piles of chocolatey grossness rather quickly and then raced back to the playground to get their little paw marks over everything.

What?  Is there something in my hair?  I just rubbed that gooey white thing all over it...

Um, I just want that piece of chocolate please.  I don't yike s'mores...

Blowing this Popsicle stand...

Probably too dark for you to see that my husband has an entire s'more in his mouth...this is his "oh well, more for us" pose.

We ended up going inside and directly to the bathtub shortly thereafter and Scott and I ventured back out and enjoyed burning up the rest of the firewood after the girls were asleep.  It was a cool evening and the quiet was so nice against the crack of the fire - plus, I had the rest of those s'mores to finish up...  What a wonderful kickoff to Fall!