It's a New Year and a New Me!

Well, I have to say that I really had hoped that January 1, 2010 would not include for me the desire to lose more weight *sigh* maybe next January I can say that. What I can say is that I spent all of 2009 working on a better me! I focused on Bible Study, cleaner eating, and exercise! Although I have only lost about 10 pounds this past year (that sounds really sad), I do think that I can see I some improvement from the first picture to the second. Can you?

I'm glad that I made the effort. I'm glad I made the effort to continue to improve ME! I have worked very hard at educating myself on what is really food. I mean because about 85% of what they sell at the grocery store is only masquerading as food but it isn't actually real. I have eliminated things like hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup, and white flour from our food supply here at the Dickey house. I am proud of that. I think my family is only better for that and they haven't even really noticed the change!

What frustrates me is that I haven't reached my lifetime goal with Weight Watchers! I mean, I wonder what size I will be when I finally do reach that goal. I was a size 20/22 when I joined. The jeans that I am wearing in the picture above are an Old Navy Sweetheart Jean in a size 4 Tall! Did I just say that about myself.... a size F-O-U-R? (yes, they are snug but I didn't want them too big since I am still getting smaller... and I have that fat roll around my middle even when 'nekked' so the jeans don't really cause that muffin top on me) I really though I would be thrilled just to see a single digit size inside my clothes!!! And yet here I am....

I am trying really hard not to be hung up on the number that looks back at me from that Digital Demon (the scale). I am focusing on working out even harder and lifting even more weights. Why? Because when that is my focus then I feel accomplished rather than defeated!

So, here we go.... bring it on 2010! I have some exciting things coming up in the next few weeks. I am going to make an effort to blog more regularly because I find that I NEED your support!

So, did you accomplish what you set out to do in 2009?

Happy New Year!

What does New Year's Day mean to you? To me it is rooted in tradition!

My family has ALWAYS shared this meal together on New Year's Day. It is my favorite meal of the year, way better than Easter or Thanksgiving or any other of the eating holidays!

I also think the symbolism in this traditional meal is fun! Do you know what each of these foods symbolizes for your year to come?

Black-eyed peas: Good Luck! You are supposed to eat at least one pea for each day of the new year.... I don't count mine but don't worry, I had plenty!

Corn bread: Wealth/Gold! I mean who doesn't want to have plenty of wealth for the new year?

Greens: The spicier they are the spicier your sex life will be! My greens are actually steamed spinach with lots of garlic, onion, and red pepper.... bring it on!

Ham: Moving Forward. A pig uses its snout to dig in the ground searching for food in a forward direction. It is said that you shouldn't eat fowl (turkey, chicken) on New Years because they have to scratch for their food and no one wants to just "scratch by for a living", they want to be associated with the plump and well fed pig.... give me prosperity but I am still working to get rid of the plump!

So, tell me, what is your New Year's Day tradition?

Thanks so much to all of you for your love and support in 2009... Here's to a fabulous 2010!

Merry Christmas!

We pray that each and every one of you have a fabulous time celebrating Jesus' Birthday!!!

Special Visitor

Tonight for the very first time the tooth fairy will be making a stop at our house!



Kirstyn is beyond excited about finally losing her first tooth!

James was way too funny after I pulled Kirstyn's tooth for her. He ran over to David and said, "MINE OUT TOO!" and then threw his mouth open. Silly boy is afraid of nothing! Hopefully, it will be a while before the tooth fairy needs to visit his room!


Here's a picture of Miss Kirstyn without her bottom tooth! The other picture was taken this morning before church. Kirstyn wanted her picture taken in her new dress and then James went running over there and said, "hold my hand sissy". Too cute. Oh and no, I didn't zip his sweater up like that... he did. It is either all or nothing with that boy in more ways than one!

Both Hands!

Not the best picture, took it with my iPhone.... will download my real camera later. :-)

Today is Kirstyn's Happy Birthday! She went to bed excited last night and woke up even more excited this morning to be facing the day as a Birthday Princess!

I made the shirt that she is wearing. I waited until the last minute and made it yesterday but it was finished before dinner and not at midnight so I was pretty proud of myself for that. What's funny is that she picked out the princess ribbon that she is wearing a few weeks ago when we were picking out plates and napkins for her birthday party this weekend. I had forgotten about it but she hadn't and promptly produced it this morning. I was not excited about it but am working on not being a control freak.... David called me laughing after he dropped her off at school because he said that ALL of the little girls crowded around her marveling not at her shirt that I worked so hard on but at the tacky little princess ribbon. I guess Kirstyn wasn't the only one that thought it was special!

We had a special breakfast together this morning that included pancakes with a candle in them. Then James and I went and had lunch with her in the lunchroom at school. James had so much fun eating with his Sissy and her friends. He did NOT however want to leave her at school when it was time for us to leave. Soon we will go back to get her and enjoy the rest of her super special day!

Happy Birthday Kirstyn! We love you sooooooo much! I can't believe that you have been in our lives long enough to need to use both hands to show your age!

High and Low

This morning at my Weight Watcher weigh in, I weighed in down 1.4 lbs for a grand total so far of 80 lbs lost! Talk about an all time HIGH for me! Yeah.

Thanks for sharing in this journey with me so far. SIX more pounds will get me to my lifetime goal with Weight Watchers! I would really like to get there before the new year....

Meet the Flinstones!

We had a yabba dabba do time, we had a good time, we had a gay old time!

Pebbles and Dino had a fabulous Halloween weekend! They loved their costumes. James would only bark while wearing Dino and if I called him James while he was wearing the costume he would say, "I no James... I DINO... ruf ruff ruf!" Too cute!

Now go visit the costume parades over at SITS and 5 Minutes for Mom.

Giddy

I am just giddy with excitement that it is the Holiday Season! David and the kids carved pumpkins for the pumpkin carving contest at MiMi and Grandpa's country club where we are going to party tonight. Didn't he do a GREAT job! Kirstyn picked out her haunted house design and we found this spooky tree design for James'. He has this Scooby Doo book that he loves and on one of the pages there is a tree that is making a "scary" shadow. I always pretend to be scared and James always tells me, "its otay mommy.... its just a TEE (tree)!" So cute!

I am a theme kind of girl and I find it fun to prepare foods around a theme. I am also hosting a little Halloween get together tomorrow night that may or may not include some of the following:

A Meatloaf Hand, some Graveyard Gravel, adult Candy Corn Cordials, and even some Snake Bites Sandwich since I'm pretty sure the kids will not be willing to eat the hand!

I have to say THANKS to Skip To My Lou for gathering many of these ideas that I fell in love with!

Fall Traditions

This past Saturday we loaded up and took the kids to Six Flags for our annual Fright Fest day of fun! These are the only two "family" shots that I got. I was supposed to have one of us with Scooby but the girl dressed as Raggedy Ann apparently didn't actually push the button all the way down on the camera because she thought she took three shots but I got NONE! Oh well...

That morning, David and I made a potentially risky decision and decided to leave the stroller at home. We packed our few necessary items (pull ups, change of clothes, and waters) in a backpack and took off. Not having the stroller turned out to be a fabulous choice because when we left the park that afternoon they were both MORE exhausted that we were!

That night at dinner we talked about every one's favorite part of the day. David and I both said that our favorite part was the kids GETTING ALONG and NOT FIGHTING! Yes, I have proof in pictures! Lately I have been feeling as if I should be wearing stripes and carrying a whistle. Seriously there have been some major squabbles around our house. James has learned that he is allowed to have his own opinion and big sister is not quite to terms with that! Ugh.

Anyway, I give you Exhibits A-D! My kids got along great all day long!

But the main reason it was our favorite part? We were able to walk around the park holding hands and having a blast too!

When we asked the kids what their favorite part of the day was, they both answered Trick or Treating from the WB characters! I agree, that was fun too and I got some really cute pictures!

Yeah! I love this time of year!

Do you have any fall traditions? All the bloggers that are linked up over here do!

Also, say a prayer today for the Kaylor family. Today is the day that last year my friend Jessica went to be with Jesus.

One on One

David asked me today if I had stopped blogging. The answer is NO. I still love the support and encouragement that I get from the blogging world although that I have to admit I am spending more of my time lately on Facebook. I blame my iPhone. :-)

One fun thing that I have done in the past two weeks is spend some much needed ONE on ONE time with my two kiddos! I went on Kirstyn's Kindergarten field trip and then on another day took James to the Dallas Arboretum. So much fun!



I have LOTS more pictures from each outing that I might get around to posting.... We had tons of fun!

What have you been doing?

Fish Tacos

The other night I made a new recipe and it was a HUGE hit! I was so excited that BOTH kids and David were ALL eating and saying things like "YUMMMM" and "WOW" that I pulled out my phone and snapped a couple of pictures of the children eating a healthy meal happily so that I could remember the moment!





So now I am sharing my recipe* for Fish Tacos with you. We have also made this exact same meal with shrimp and the kids loved that too!!!



Fish Instructions
Fish Marinade (I used trout that David caught this summer but tilapia or any other white fish would work great):
Lime Zest
Lime Juice
Cajun Seasoning
A little Olive Oil
Fresh cracked black pepper and sea salt



Take fish out of marinade and bake until fish flakes.


Coleslaw Instructions
Coleslaw Dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil mayo (the kind with real ingredients and no HFCS, etc)
1/4-1/2 cup white vinegar
chipotle in adobo to taste
garlic powder, salt, pepper


Mix well and add to big bag of shredded cabbage/coleslaw mix.


Pico Instructions
Chop the following:
tomatoes (roma work great)
red onion
tons of cilantro
(you can add a jalapeno pepper, but I am the only one that would eat it so I skip that in the family recipe)

Mix in a bowl with lots of lime juice, salt, and pepper


Build and EAT
Heat up corn tortillas and build your tacos with the fish, pico, and coleslaw! I was REALLY feeling adventurous and we made our own corn tortillas. Making our own was fun and well, messy. The kids really enjoyed helping with that but it took FOREVER to make like 10 of them but they were very very tasty.



*I am a cook, not a chef so my recipes are "winged" at best...feel free to take my recipe and "wing it" at your house!



So, tell me, do you have a healthy meal that your kids enjoy, I mean really enjoy?

Is it November Yet?

October is not going too fabulous for us right now, but it could always be worse I guess.

Last Monday, our living room TV went crazy. I mean really crazy. I would put it on channel 52 and it would change itself to channel 51. I would change it back, then it would start scanning all of the channels. Then I couldn't even turn it off at the TV, never mind the remote. I finally got mad and unplugged it all together. The next morning when plugged back in, it would not turn on. There were tears. Mostly from the children, mostly.

Wednesday, I went to Whole Foods to do a little shopping. I wanted to get some vitamins for my kids that weren't full of chemicals. I mean really, crap. Here I am trying to feed them real foods that don't contain HFCS or hydrogenated oils but it never dawned on me to read the label on the bottle of chewable vitamins. Anyway, when I left Whole Foods with my new kid vitamins made from real foods I was involved in a car wreck. NOT MY FAULT at least. Turned into an uninsured motorist claim for me though because when I asked for his insurance, he got in his car and sped away. My car ended up with almost $2,000 worth of damage. I ended up VERY sore! I have a chiropractor that is fabulous and he is fixing me.

On Thursday afternoon we were finally able to find an available rental that wasn't a compact car (David is 6'4").

Friday, we went to Arkansas to see my parents for the weekend. We took the kids to my homecoming football game that night and they had a great time! I enjoyed seeing some friends and letting my kids experience some hometown football spirit. Kirstyn at one point did ask when the fireworks would happen and we had to explain that she wasn't at the Texas Rangers Ballpark. Funny.

Saturday we went to Hoo-Rah Days Festival and wandered around shopping, eating, playing games, and visiting with friends. Then after nap time we celebrated my dad's birthday. (I have pictures but am too tired right now to bother downloading the camera...)

Sunday, Kirstyn woke up with a HORRIBLE cough so we decided to go ahead and pack up and head home to be closer to our doctors in case she got worse. She ran a low grade fever and coughed a lot but seemed okay.

Today, Miss Kirstyn woke up SICK. Poor baby has a very high fever and horrible cough.

I am exhausted..... This week has been very busy and trying and it isn't looking any better yet.

Please pray the rest of us don't get sick!!!

In the RIGHT Direction!

I am so excited to share with you that this morning at Weight Watchers I weighed in at an ALL. TIME. LOW! Yeah. I was so excited to move my little ticker over on my side bar. I am now only 7.2 lbs from my Lifetime goal weight there!

Tonight to celebrate I am going to Taste of Arlington on a date with David. Last year, when David and I went I remember being super excited to pour myself into wear jeans in a size 10 and this year I will be attending in the exact same jeans but in a size 6! WOW! I seriously never thought I would be able to wear a single digit size, much less a 6.

Today my WW leader Kim asked what I was going to do to celebrate my all time low and I answered "Go to Taste of Arlington". Then she asked how I will manage that. Easy, actually, I will not be drinking frozen drinks that are 1 point per ounce, I will skip on past the booths for restaurants that I have eaten at before and I will share every sample intended for one person with David. I also plan to pick just one dessert rather than trying to get "my money's worth" in high fat food that will make me feel really yucky later tonight or tomorrow. Plus there will be other things to focus on like a silent auction and games and door prizes!

Well, gotta go get ready for my date night! Do you have a "traditional" date night like us?

Perspective

As I am struggling to loose this last 10 pounds I have been doing much evaluating of my exercise routine and eating. I don't know about you, but I love watching The Biggest Loser. I don't however love the fact that they can lose 3% or more of their body weight in just one week. I find myself jealous.


Anyway, last week on the show they talked a lot about their specific calorie burn targets and food intake calorie targets. They mentioned that their target burn was 6000 calories per day and their goal intake was 1400 calories per day. WOW. Crap. Really? Ah, NO wonder!


So now for the perspective in Weight Watcher Language:

Approximate Points Eaten per day: 22
Approximate Activity Points earned per day: 46


In conclusion, I think I will stick with saying good bye to my unwanted weight one tenth of a pound at a time! (Unless someone wants to volunteer to be my maid, nanny, and personal chef? Then, I might could spend enough time in the gym to burn 6000 calories per day!)

Also, after watching tonight's episode I have to say that I am excited to finally see someone on TV that professes to be a Christian AND at the same time HE ACTED LIKE IT TOO! Thank you.

What are your thoughts?

Balsamic Chicken

Last night at Bible Study we had a little potluck. I decided to make something that is one of my family's favorite dishes. Everyone seemed to love it and some even requested the recipe, so here it is for all of you!

Balsamic Chicken

marinade:
2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup Newman's Own Balsamic Vinegar
granulated garlic
dried onion flakes
fresh cracked black pepper
pinch red pepper flakes

Cut chicken breast into large bite size pieces and put into gallon size baggie with marinade. "Smush" around until all of chicken is covered. Let marinade in the refrigerator for at least 30 min.

cooking instructions:
Bring non-stick skillet up to heat.
Add chicken to pan. Add salt to taste.
Brown in batches until chicken has nice brown color on both sides.

Sauce:
1 can low sodium chicken stock
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
Bring to boil and allow to reduce down while cooking chicken.

When all of chicken is done and sauce is reduced, put chicken back in pan and pour sauce over chicken and simmer for a few minutes.

Enjoy!
My family loves this chicken and sauce served over whole wheat cous cous with green beans.

Waiting...

Lord, please give me patience... AND HURRY!

I feel like I am in a current or perpetual state of waiting.

My mom had a nuclear stress test done yesterday. Now we are waiting on the doctor to call with results. The good news is that they didn't rush her up for immediate surgery! But, we are still waiting on all of the results.

***UPDATE: Mom talked to the nurse and there is NO sign of blockage and her heart is in good condition! I am working on her right now and she says she will dig back out her weight watcher materials because I feel like her blood pressure will come down naturally if she will just loose a little more weight. Until then, they have her on a new blood pressure medicine that should do the trick. PRAISE THE LORD!!!***

On Tuesday I weighed in at exactly 10 lbs from goal. (I have been weighing "heavier" this time around on Tuesdays because I am going to my body pump class at 5:30am, then eating breakfast, drinking lots of coffee, and then weighing in!) Anyway, when my leader Kim saw this she handed me a piece of paper asking me to apply for a job with Weight Watchers. Since I am within 10 lbs of goal I can get a job as a Weigherinnerlady, aka Receptionist. When I am within 2 lbs of goal I can apply to get my own meeting. Anyway, I submitted my application and resume. They emailed me with a link for a "personality" test. I took it. Now I am waiting to hear from them again.

I think filling out the application may be just what I need to get out of this state of maintaining (which I view as a major accomplishment) on toward my goal! Already this week I have thought twice about what I put in my mouth because I have no wiggle room. I can't even gain 0.2! I must stay where I am or go down!!! Cheer me on will ya!

Okay, so for now I am waiting. What are you doing???

Featured!

Have you checked out the Tip Junkie? I love that she collects the creativity from around blog land and puts it all in one place for me!

Oh and guess what?!?!?


She featured me earlier this summer too but for some reason I never got around to telling you!

Balanced vs. Healthy

Well, so far we have been in public school for two days and Kirstyn and I have had to have several conversations about the difference between a "Balanced" meal and a "Healthy" meal. Just to be clear, the school serves "Balanced" meals to the children. Kirstyn has been taking her lunch and it is a "Healthy" meal.

On day one our conversation went like this:

Me: Kirstyn, how was your first day of Kindergarten?

K: Mommy, they serve gravy for lunch! And the gravy came with chicken. Not like we make but the kind that Daddy gets at 'chickalay'!

Me: Kirstyn, remember that is not healthy to eat gravy. That is a food you get to eat sometimes when you go to Dee Dee's house.

K: I know Mommy, but they said it is a "good" meal....a...ummm, a ummm, not messed up, no, not crooked.... um. Do you know what I'm saying?

Me: Did they call it a "balanced" meal.

K: Yes. Does that not mean healthy?

Me: It should, but apparently it doesn't.

And then today on day two:

K: Mommy, today I saw gravy at breakfast time.

Me: What else did they have with the gravy.

K: Scrambled eggs...but I can't eat those.

Me: Right. Good thing you ate a good breakfast at home this morning.

K: Yeah, Mommy, thanks.

To compromise we are going to look at the school menu and I am going to let her buy her lunch sometimes. I will let her decide... I don't want to dictate and control her decisions but I do want to POSITIVELY influence them. After all, I was very overweight in elementary school and I don't want her to suffer the same fate.


Any suggestions for me?