Challenge progress

On New Years Eve I posted my Challenges on my Pastoral Dreams Blog and I am happy to announce that things are going quite well.

I was highly motivated on January 1st and worked my butt off on a project I have been needing to do for a while. Cleaning out the supply room. Again. When I started working here I got it mostly cleaned up and organized how I wanted it, then I became lackadaisical and let it slide a bit until it was almost to the point of starting from scratch! I was so frustrated at myself for letting it go but at the same time it was becoming a bigger and bigger task every day and I just didn't know how to begin again. I am still working on it but have made a ton of progress thus far.

I am also doing well with my 2 hours off my butt challenge. I have been using that time to clean mostly and am very happy with my progress.

I have managed to limit my computer time successfully and have used the extra time from that to work my way through my first book. I should have it finished by tomorrow and will post a review on Pastoral Dreams. I have a knitting project cast-on that I am hoping to finish this week as well.

On a similar thread, my friend over at thepoopdalek posted today about themes for the past year. This got me thinking about how I would describe the past year in one word. I have come to the conclusion that last years theme was travel. We moved from Michigan to Nebraska to Kansas and landed in Iowa. Who knows where this coming year will take us.

Do you have a theme for last year?

It can be discouraging to check your blogger stats.

It made me realize that I have been at this a long time and am still no better at posting regularly. It also made me realize that I miss my old blogging friends. Glaven! Xenia! I'm sorry I went away. Where are you?

Updates, Challenges, Christmas, and New Years

1. Whole 30 was not the success I was hoping for. There is nothing wrong with the program, I just could not manage it. It was too strict and limiting for me, I wanted everything that I could not have. (No potatoes and no cheese makes Jenn something, something.) I think I am going to switch to a lighter approach to Paleo. Still basing my diet on meat and veg I will give myself permission to have non-paleo foods once a week. I will not do a whole day or even a whole meal, just an item that I want as long as it is not processed, from a box or a bag. If I want it, I have to make it myself. This should help to keep me from slipping too much and will still make my "treat" much healthier than most SAD treats.

2. I had a great Christmas at home with the man that I love. The Lineman gifted me with a mountain dulcimer a while back as part of my Christmas present. I love it and have enjoyed learning to make music on it. He also gave me a little pink (!!!!!) iPod Shuffle. I love listening to podcasts like Adventures in Odyssey and News from Lake Wobegon. I have been downloading them on my computer and listening to them in the office, but this little beauty means that I can take it with me! When I am cleaning rooms, doing laundry, whatever else, I can be listening to the soothing voice of Garrison Keillor or getting motivated and scolded by Jillian Michaels. :D
I also received tons of books that have been on my list for a while now! I can't wait to dig into them. I got my favorite guilty pleasure of Redken All Soft hair products (don't judge) from The Lineman's mom along with lots of other great little goodies! We got several new Wii games and movies to enjoy together. The Lineman used his gift cards to get some music stuff for his guitars. (I used mine for books of course!) We were very blessed this year, and made out like little bandits in the gift receiving department. As for giving this year we did a lot of gift cards. We are so far from home that we thought it would be easier to let everyone decide what they wanted for themselves. It is not our favorite way to gift but it is practical.

3. And now for the New Year! I will not be making resolutions this year. It seems like every year I get so bogged down in trying to keep my resolutions that it becomes a chore that feels to big to conquer and I give up. I have had a few successes but not many considering how many I have made in my 32 years on this earth. So this year it will be Challenges. I will be Challenging myself to accomplish little things throughout the year. Some will be daily Challenges and some will be weekly. None of them will be about Weight loss. I can only fall for the same trap so many times before I understand that it is indeed a trap! There will be Challenges that will help me get and stay healthy but weight is a tertiary benefit. Not something I am aiming for but something that may happen as a side effect to the other things I am working on.

I want to get a little closer to my dreams and goals this year. I need to have a plan. This is something that I will be working on.

love and encourage each other,
Jenn

Whole30 progress and stuff.

I am doing really well with my Whole30 program. I had one slip up on a very stressful day but otherwise I have stayed strong! I am finally over the detox slump and am feeling better and better. My cloths are already fitting more loosely and I have lost almost 6.5 pounds. (I know I am not supposed to be on the scale but it is hard to give up all of your addictions at once)

I have not started an official exercise program yet but my job has had me out walking around the property a lot.  I had planned to start this week but due to having a lot of work to do around here, I have not started yet. I will.

I am already thinking that I will extend the Whole30 into a Whole60 and start the new year off right for a change. I am realizing that I don't need the crap in my system to survive and I feel so much better without it.

I will already be doing a Whole30 Thanksgiving, why not a Whole60 Christmas and New Year! We shall see how I feel at the end of November but as of now, I think I could make it work.

In other news, I am attempting to read several books right now including Michael Pollan's "The Botany of Desire" and "You on a Diet" by Dr. Oz.  I am finding "You" fascinating! I love learning about the biology of how your body works to turn the stuff you eat into energy and nutrients. I don't necessarily agree with the diet itself but it is still an interesting read and I am sure that I will be referring back to it often.

Well, I think that about covers it. I was going to list all the food that I am eating but decided that is not the kind of blog I want to have. I may occasionally post recipes but they will mostly be other peoples and not my own. I don't create recipes, I throw stuff together and see what comes out. :D

Hope ya'll are having a wonderful week!

Whole30 Days 1 and 2

I finally started the Whole30 program. Yesterday was a bit difficult as I had not gone shopping yet and too much of the food in our pantry is filled with sugar and grain and processed until calling it food is like called a drag queen a lady. I mostly managed to make it through the day with only one hitch, store bought jerky. Breakfast was scrambled eggs and an apple. When I left to go shopping I had not eaten lunch. It is a 30 minute drive to the city and by the time I was done checking the items off my list I was starving! I bought a small package of cashews and a bit of jerky to tide me over until dinner. For dinner I baked an acorn squash, balsamic chicken breasts, and asparagus. Then I had another apple for desert which put me over the top on my fruit consumption and sorely lacking on veg!

Today started with scrambled eggs and pineapple. (I do love protein and fruit in the morning). For lunch I am having a salad with some turkey breast as soon as I find a recipe for Whole30 approved dressing! Dinner tonight will be steak and steamed broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots. My snack tonight will be a small handful of raw almonds.

Half way through day two and I am feeling the detox. I have zero energy as my body is dealing with relearning how to burn fat instead of carbs and my head is pounding. I have plenty of things that need to get done but am taking it easy instead. We are getting our first snowfall of the season today which makes me want to curl up and knit something. :D I think I will pursue that instinct tonight along with watching a movie with The Lineman.

Stay tuned for more of my journey as I will start to implement an exercise plan on Monday, hopefully after most of the detox effects have gone.

Back to work, then lunch! Yum!

The good, the bad, and the ugly

Sorry for the lack of posting guys. The internet here is kind of iffy most of the time and trying to post from my phone is an exercise in frustration! Today it seems to be working alright so here we go.


~The Good
I have a job. I am so excited to be working again and contributing to our income. I am starting out as a part-time housekeeper at the Inn and RV park we are staying at. I will also be learning the front desk and gleaning any other information I can get from the current manager. The reason behind the gleaning is that she is leaving in 3 weeks and I have applied for her job. The housekeeper gig is so that I can get my foot in the door and make some money now. It also means that I can start to learn the different aspects of the job now and she can evaluate how I work and report back to the owner.

If I should get the manager's job, we will be moving into the 2 bedroom apartment that is included with the job. We will not be paying rent, utilities, internet, or cable. I will also have a monthly salary. Wish me luck! The current manager is pretty sure I have this in the bag but you never know. All of this is made possible by the fact that The Linemans current job has him staying in one place for over 2 years. It is hard to convince someone to hire you when you have no idea how long you are staying.

~The Bad
I am totally off the diet right now. I don't feel great at all which happens every time I go off this diet but there is not anything I can do about it for the time being. I do plan to start again when time and money permits but for now I will just make do as best I can and look forward to being able to rejoin the Paleo community in the future.

~The Ugly
Butter had an allergic reaction to something and ended up with a nasty rash on her rear end. We are not sure what caused it but it was pretty ugly back there. We took her to the vet and she was shaved and medicated and collared. After a week of treatment with some antibiotics and ointment she is feeling better and her rear is healed up nicely. The unfortunate part though is that she was only shaved in the rear where the rash was and the rest of her fur is long and scruffy! Poor thing looks ridiculous from behind! (enter your so ugly joke here) She is in desperate need of being groomed!

I did not take a picture of her rear end, but I do have one of her on the ride home from the vet with the e-collar on. She just looks sad and pathetic!

She was pretty ticked off at us for a while.

And here is something to remind me that life is good. (click to supersize)

Peace out people!
Love Jenn

Frustration, Realization, and Execution

Hi there Peeps! (or Peep?),

I have had my ups and downs in this life I have chosen.

Recently I have been doing a lot of reading about nutrition and how your body is supposed to be fueled. I started following a mostly Paleo/Primal diet and after a few off days I started to feel amazing! It was like waking up from a bad dream. My head was clear, my digestion was normal, my energy was high and I was happy!

Then we ran low on money. I am still unemployed at the moment because we just have not been anywhere long enough for me to get a job. So with funds running low I started eating some of the off plan foods that where left in the cupboard. Now I am tired, achy, and cannot focus. My head is pounding and my digestion is bad.

I used to live my whole life like this? How did I function? I cannnot even imagine getting through anything that requires me to stay awake and pay attention right now. I cannot live like this anymore.

While in Norfolk, NE I started going to the gym everyday. I loved it! It was the best part of my day. I would go in there and I would pick a machine to conquer then I would pound it out as hard as I could for as long as I could. I would make bargains with myself. "Just 5 more minutes then you can stop." "Come on, you have almost completed that mile." "Lets try that again, I know you can do better." Every day I went in there and tried to go just a little farther and a little faster than the day before. I felt good.

Then in Kansas I would walk most days. If I could find a park that was great, but if not, I just took to the streets. Kansas is where I discovered the Paleo/ Primal solution.

Now we are in Iowa and it looks like we may be staying for a while. My goals right now are to get a job, get a gym membership (more on this later) and take a crack at the Whole30 challenge to reset my system and start the process of healing. I wanted to start it on July 1st but that is most likely not going to happen. I will be trying to get back on course though and hoping for August 1st as my Whole30 start date. We shall see.

In the mean time I will try to do better about keeping this blog updated and using it as a way to keep myself accountable.

Lots of love to the 2 people who accidentally read this. I hope you stick this out with me, but if not, I will understand. ;-}
Jenn