Life and Eats

Happy Cold Monday everyone! Are you staying warm wherever you are? Here it is COLD, although it is a balmy 12 degrees outside! Last night we had wind chills in the negatives. It is crazy how many people in the USA are having colder than normal temperatures. I am not looking forward to getting my next heating bill as our furnace has been working non-stop. I also pulled out one of our space heaters as the furnace in our rental stinks. Oh, well I can only do what I can do, and making the weather change is one thing I can't control. 

Today, is MLK Jr. Day and I have the day off of work. The kids are off from school as well. I have been puttering around, making cookies (from frozen dough I had in the freezer), cinnamon rolls (from a can that was lurking in my fridge) and starting on a new painting project. I have decided to do a "Temperature Painting." It is based on the idea of a temperature blanket, but since I don't crochet or knit, I thought this would be a cool idea. I also had a 12x36 empty canvas hanging around that I wasn't sure what to do with. This will be a fun little project I think. 

This weekend, I spent time doing laundry and resting. I also went to the grocery store yesterday in the negative wind chill. That means that I also meal planned. I am going to be completely honest and say that I didn't do so well with my goals last week about eating salads and exercising each day. It was a LONG week full of extra appointments (including one with a lawyer to discuss my divorce) and crazy work hours. I was feeling overwhelmed and I just didn't have it in me. I am going to not beat myself up though. I am just going to do the best that I can and move on. I did receive my Niagra Falls Conqueror Medal in the mail and hung it up in my bedroom to hopefully help me with my motivation. 

This coming week is promising to be just as busy. I have extra trainings at work, a work event, a home visit for a new student, an online training to complete, Rebecca has driver's ed 3 days. It will be another busy week. I am hoping to get back on track with eating healthier and working out. So let's get back to menu planning.

So with that being said here is what I ate last week:

Sunday: I wasn't that hungry so I just had leftover salad with cheese and ham added. 

Monday we had chicken alfredo pasta and salad. (The pasta was very dry.)

Tuesday, we had bratwurst on buns, mac-n-cheese and salad.

Wednesday: I had to take Rebecca to Urgent Care for an ear issue and we got out late. I gave her a choice between tacos or McDonalds and she chose McDonalds. 

Thursday: the boys were with their dad and Rebecca had driver's ed. I had a doctors appointment and chose to order Subway for Rebecca and I on their app. $9.99 for 2 footlong subs? Yes, please. I used a gift card that my mom gave me for Christmas. I had a tuna sub. 
Friday, was pizza night. Frozen pizza for the win. 

Saturday, I made Mississippi Pot Roast, mashed potatoes, green beans and cut up cucumbers. It was so good on a cold, gray day! 
 

What is the menu plan for the new week? 

SUNDAY: The boys are with their father. Rebecca was with her Aunts. I ordered Chinese Takeout-- sweet and sour chicken, egg rolls, and crab rangoon. 

MONDAY: My sister and sister in law are bring Rebecca home and making pizzas with the kids. ( I am meeting my ex to go over dissolution paperwork.) 

TUESDAY: I work late. Boys are with their dad. It will be your on your own for Rebecca and I. 

WEDNESDAY: Soft ground beef tacos, refried beans, and cucumbers

THURSDAY: Chicken enchiladas and salad

FRIDAY: Mac-n-cheese (or something else. Not sure if kids are with their dad or not)

SATURDAY: ??? This day is up in the air as Rebecca has OMEA Solo and Ensemble Competition. 

What will you eat this week? 

Have a good week everyone! 

The Conqueror Challenges

One of the goals in 2024 is to lose weight and to do so by exercising everyday. I know that some people would warn against this, saying that I need a rest day. However, I feel that the best thing for ME is to exercise in some capacity every day. I am going to do this by switching up what I do daily. My plan for the cold winter months is to work out using my exercise bike, my rowing machine, my dumbbells, and YouTube videos. 

I am also planning to use The Conqueror Virtual Challenges to earn medals. 

Like I posted in a previous post, I started using these late in 2022, as a challenge with my mom. We completed the Mt. Everest challenge, using steps taken during the day, walking, and in my case using my stationary bike as well.

We also started the Niagara Falls challenge in early 2023. My mom completed it using her steps at work, however with everything that was happening in my life last year, I never completed it. ( I will admit that over Christmas break I did complete the challenge using my stationary bike! So, YAY!) 

The challenges are different lengths and you are allowed to do any type of exercise that you would like to do to complete the challenge that you signed up for. They basically allow you to travel the world without leaving the comfort of your home or area. Each challenge has postcards and visuals that show you the trail that you are traveling. 

There is a charge for each challenge. That cost allows you to receive a finisher's medal when you are finished with the challenge. These medals are beautiful!  These challenges also have a feel good factor to them as you can choose an environmental cause to work towards as well. The Conqueror Virtual Challenges allow you to work towards planting trees or keeping plastic out of the ocean since the Conqueror Challenges partner with 2 different organizations to help the environment.

So with that being said, I am planning on using these challenges, at least for the first half of the year, to help myself get healthy. I do not have to put any money out for the first 4 challenges that I will work on, as I had prepaid for a group of 5 challenges at a significant discount back in 2023 and I still have 5 challenge join codes to use. (So that also helps with financial goals!) 

That being said, I am currently going to be working on 3 challenges.

I am working on the Jesus Trail challenge. This trail is 39 miles. For this challenge I am going to be completing strength training and flexibility challenges. I am going to allow myself 1 mile for every 30 minute session. This would include dumbbell workouts and yoga/stretching type workouts. 

The second trail that I am working on is the Great Barrier Reef Trail. This trail is 100 miles. For this trail I will be completing workouts on my rowing machine. I figured out that with my workouts, I would do the equivalent of 1 mile every 10 minutes on the rowing machine.

Finally, I am going to be working on the Ring of Kerry challenge. This challenge is 124 miles long. This trail has a personal meaning for me as my paternal Great-Grandparents immigrated from Ireland and I would like to get back to my roots. My ex-husband always made fun of my Irish heritage, especially around St. Patrick's Day. I am proud of my heritage and would like to connect that with ME! For this challenge, I will be logging the miles that I use my stationary bike for. (My bike keeps track of time, miles, heart rate, etc. when I am using it.) 

So this is how I am going to go about keeping up motivation for my exercising. I am pretty excited to complete these challenges and earn my medals. 

What do you use for motivation to exercise? 

What We Ate + What We Will Eat

Happy Sunday everyone! Hope everyone has had a good weekend so far. I have decided that for 2024 I would like to continue to record what we have eaten and what we will eat (or our menu plan for the week.) Not only is this for accountability for me, but it is also maybe a tool that we can use to help each other find new foods or recipes to eat. 

What did we eat this past week? 

New Year's Day dinner was Pork and Peppers, Steamed green beans and salad. One of my goals for January is to have at least one salad (side or main) every day. 

Tuesday's dinner was dinner for 1 as the boys were with their father, and Rebecca fixed herself something separate. I had chicken enchiladas (from the freezer) and salad. 

Wednesday's dinner was loaded baked potatoes, leftover green beans from New Year's Day and salad. The kids also had fruit cocktail. 

Thursday's dinner was spaghetti (made with red sauce, ground beef, peppers and onions) and french-style green beans. ( I did not have a salad with dinner, as I had a side salad with lunch at work!) 

Friday night we had pizza and salad! 

I had baked chicken tenders (baked in a bag with baby carrots and a red onion), corn casserole, and a side salad.

What is the menu plan for the new week? 

SUNDAY: The boys are with their father. So I am going to make Trader Joe's orange chicken, rice and a salad. 

MONDAY: Chicken alfredo pasta (using leftover chicken tenders from Saturday night) with a side salad. 

TUESDAY: Bratwurst, macaroni and cheese, side salad

WEDNESDAY: Soft ground beef tacos, refried beans, and side salad

THURSDAY: Boys are with their dad. Might be leftovers. Whatever it is it will have a salad with it ;) 

FRIDAY: Pizza and salad

SATURDAY: Mississippi Pot roast, green beans, mashed potatoes, side salad

What will you eat this week? 

1st week of 2024 was a success

 Happy Saturday! We survived the first almost full week of 2024! 

It was a super busy week for me. After spending time on New Year's Day puttering around, it was time to go back to work for me after having 2 weeks off. This week was crazy at work. Not only because it was back to work, but we had a new student who didn't realize the time and came an hour early the first day, we had parent teacher conference for another child, a home visit that took 1.5 hours as the dad was half an hour late coming home from work. Add in lots of trainings were being scheduled and it was a LOT. It was a good week though. I got lots of preschool hugs and the kids were super excited to be back at Head Start. 

My own kids were on break until Thursday. They did not want to go back to school. HA HA. That is what happens when you reach middle school and high school. But they survived and were glad to see their friends at school. Rebecca has finals next weeks so she is freaking out a bit, but I am sure she will do fine. 

As far as the rest of the week, I did really well sticking to my goals for 2024. I exercised daily! I actually decided to take advantage of an online virtual exercise challenge program to help me with motivation. I had done one and a half of another with my mom last year, but with everything that happened in my life I didn't finish the 2nd challenge. I had prepaid for 5 other challenges and never used them. Well I decided that this year is the year. I will talk more about them in a separate post in the upcoming week, but let's just say I am excited to use The Conqueror- Virtual Challenges to help me get healthy. 

As far as my other goals, I ate a side salad every day! I was off my phone at 9PM each night, and rediscovered my love of reading before bed. I also took ALL my medications every day! So I am 4 for 4 for this week! 

My mindset has changed. I am excited about life and the changes that I am making. I look forward to the opportunity to exercise everyday and try new things... yesterday I tried a chair yoga youtube video and it was so much fun and I was so relaxed when it was done. I look forward to meal planning and eating healthier. I even ate blueberries at work yesterday (I eat breakfast and lunch with the kids and eat what they are having-- yesterday was sloppy joes on whole wheat buns, tater tots, and blueberries.) I realized that food is tasting better and I look forward to the variety. I am feeling better. I noticed last night and the night before I was sleeping better, only waking up once and going right back to sleep at night. That is definitely an improvement. 

Today, I have exercised (used my rowing machine for the first time in ages), showered, started laundry and am planning on working on laundry, meal planning and paying bills today. It was snowing earlier, but none really stuck and now it is just grey and cold outside. What are you up to today? How was your week? Any youtube exercise videos or channels you would recommend? 

Until next time, here is a gentle reminder for the new year...

Ending 2023, Hello 2024

Happy Monday and Happy 2024! I hope this is a year of blessings for all of you readers. 

We ended 2023 by spending time with people that we love. Friday night the boys spent the night with their father. Rebecca had her best friend over to spend the night. I took them out shopping at Hobby Lobby (Rebecca had received a gift card from her dad for Christmas) and we had dinner at Fazoli's. 

Sunday, we went out to my parent's home to play board games and hang out with family. We had a ton of fun. We came home around 11:30 so that we could ring in the new year in our own home. The kids, especially Ben, loved the New Year horns that I had picked up at Hobby Lobby. 

It is 2024. Today I have spent some time puttering around the house. I also went to the grocery store, picking up some veggies and lots of healthy things. I came home and spent some time making up a salad for a couple days and processing some of the veggies. 

Part of that is because of one of my January challenges that I would like to do. I have decided not to make resolutions actually. Instead, I have decided to do monthly challenges that will focus on my priority for this year, which is... MY HEATLH. This year, I want to focus on ME. 2023 was a hell of a year to put it lightly. It was hell physically, mentally and emotionally. So this year I want to prioritize getting back to a better physical, mental and emotional me. 

For January my monthly challenges are going to be: 

1. Exercise EVERY day. I know, I know. I should take a rest day, but I need to work on consistency and each day will not be cardio. Instead I will also have days of strength training and stretching days, etc. 
2. Eat a salad with one meal every day. I want to work on nutrition this year as well and I need to eat more veggies, so I think this would be an easy way to get more veggies in. 
3. Off my phone and all electronics by 9pm. I spend a lot of time in the evenings scrolling facebook, etc and I think it interferes with my sleep. 
4. Take my meds every day. There are days I forget to take my beta blocker at night time and I really need to do better. 

I do have some yearly goals that I want to achieve but I am not setting a certain time limit on them. These include: 

• Finalizing my divorce. 
• Finishing online virtual races. I started a few in 2022 and then wasn't able to finish them. 
• Get new furniture for my living room. 
• Follow monthly challenges. 

So hopefully 2024 will be a much better year for everyone, including myself. Has anyone else made resolutions or goals for 2024?