Getting Ready

Joe and I bought a bunch of groceries today and I am very happy with what we bought. Instead of our usual junk, high fat dairy and treats we bought a bunch of vegetables, chicken breast and fruit. We are off to a good start!
The other night I also started preparing an idea of menu ideas for after baby comes.
Can't wait to get this weight off!

See You Soon!

Hello everybody! Yes, I'm still pregnant but tonight have started to try to get my mine back into the swing of things with my weightloss. I've gained a whopping 60 lbs that NEEDS to come off by our wedding, October 5th, 2013. So I'll see you all very soon!

Announcement

Finally announcing my pregnancy! Obviously my weight loss journey is on hold for the time being. Check or my new blog here :-)

Chicken/zucchini "muffins" with sweet potato"icing" lol ;-)

Food, Food, Food!

Breakfast: Gluten Free Pancakes, 2 Hardboiled Eggs, Tomatoes with salt, pepper, garlic powder and paresan

Dinner: Curried Butternut Squash Soup OMG delicious!  

Homemade Baked Vegetable Spring Rolls!

My life has changed overnight. More to come soon...

How Full is Your Bucket?

In my Kindergarten class, we are constantly helping our children to gain personal, social and emotional skills.
One way we have done this is through the book  "How Full is Your Bucket?" by Tom Rath and Mary Reckmeyer. If you are not familiar with this book or concept it was based on the book of the same title written for adults about positive strategies for work and life. The concept is that everyone has an internal "bucket". There are things that fill it, and things that take from it. Compliments, good company and positive enrgy fill your bucket, while criticisms, rude comments and negative energy take from your bucket.  Our goal in life is to have full buckets and fill others buckets. When we take from someone elses buket we are also taking from our own. That's why it's impossible for people who are negative towards others, to have full buckets.

Lately, I have had a pretty full bucket. I'm not going to toot my own horn or anything, but I really try to fill others buckets in my daily interactions. Even if one of my students does something inappropriate, I always try to address it in the most respectful way possible and in a way that helps them to gain self-esteem. Even though lately, I have been feeling good about my bucket, today  one interaction made me feel a little empty. It is likely that I take things a little too personally and that even though I may have had my bucket filled 20 times in one day, that scoop taken from my bucket has me feeling shitty. I have decided that for now on I am going to try and record my daily bucket fillers and emptiers and hopefully put it in perspective.  If you want more information about how to utilize these books in your classroom, with your kids or in your own life, shoot me an e-mail...or Google it, lol. 'Til next time! xo

                      

I am the Luckiest Girl in the World!

Look what I get to wake up to...

I am the luckiest girl in the wrold :)

I Feel Grrrreat!

I ate awesome today and I went to the gym for two whole hours! I was feeling really guilty about not being able to go at all last week (even thought it wasn't my fault) that I told myself that tonight I'd put in double the work. Here is a run-down of how I spent my two hours:

• Stationary bike (20 min)
• Weight training circuit (30 min)
• Elliptical (15 min) Joe's mom joined me at the gym at this time :)
• Treadmill (20 min) Walking on an incline starting at 1 and increasing by 1 each minute. Last minute waas spent walk flat)
• Weight training circuit (30 min)
• Crunches (5 min)

Here is what I ate today:

Breakfast:
Kashi GoLean (1 cup)
Skim milk (1 cup)
Banana

Lunch:
Cabbage roll
Cauliflower soup

Snack:
Yogurt
Strawberries

Dinner:
Cabbage rolls (2)

Snack:
Frozen yogurt :) (2g of fat!)

Two of my students engaged in some building, drawing, writing and team-work. Makes me smile :)

Tonight's Dinner

Cabbage rolls and stuffed peppers with brown rice, ground beef, tomato sauce, peppers, onions, eggplant and garlic :-)

My old favorite thing and my new favorite thing:-)

My wonderful "mother in law" picked me up the Brita water bottle I wanted :-)  Used it at the fun today, it's pretty cool :-)

Back to the Gym! :D

OMG! So happy that I got my gym membership back! I've been having a rough week with temptations because as you may already know, when I'm "bad", I'm bad, when I'm "good" I''m really good and not being at the gym all week has made me feel a little "bad". (If that makes sense...) Joe's sister and mom woke me up this morning and we all headed off to the gym while Joe and the puppy stayed home to play Xbox, lol Plan on going 3-5 times a week. Joe's mom has been working alternating weeks on day shifts so those weeks we can go together which is nice :) On the other weeks I will go alone which is no big deal to me, gots my iPod to keep me company lol. On another note, we bought  new couch set today :) I love it! I need a life, lol. Here is a pic of it, but both in chocolate brown :)

We went to Joe's mom's for a roast beef dinner today... Yummy! Brenda and Nicole are hardcore Leaf fans so I thought I'd make 'em proud and rep the jersey lol

 

Oh and this is Nicole at our sushi night last night. Yummmmmyyyy!!! :)



Attention Fellow Bloggers!

So there are a few blogs that I follow and one of my friends, Meghan, tagged me in a post. I think the way it works is that one person asks a few questions and tags people and then those people answer the questions, tag a few more friends...If that's the way it works then here we go!

1) What is your biggest dream?
My biggest dream is to have the whole pacakage. A man who loves me more than anything, as many children as I can have, a nice house, health, family and a great eaching career.

2) Favorite restaurant?
Mmmm, I love Milestones! Grilled Chicken Penne Asiago., but now I replace the penne with gluten free spaghetini

3) Guilty pleasure(s):
Horrible cheesy reality shows: Jersey Shore, Toddlers & Tiaras, Teen Mom, 16  and Pregnant,  I didn't know I was pregnant, Say Yes to the Dress, Four Weddings, Rich Bride/Poor Bride, etc.


4) What websites are you addicted to?
www.pinterest.com, www.facebook.com

5) Current creative inspiration(if any):Home decor! Found a bunch of great things on Pinterest that I need to try!

6) Goals for your summer:
Lose another 20 lbs and be out in the sun as much as I can! 

Ok I am going to tag 4 more people!
Dr. Reginia
Catherine
Madame Coco Dubois
Cassie

If anyone else feels like answering go ahead and reply to this post!!! :D

My Boyfriend is the BEST!

Came home to this lovely dinner:
Beef/chick pea burger
peas and bok choy
Left over quinoa

I love him :-)

Tonight's Dinner!

Stuffed mushrooms, Lean Beef meatballs and Quinoa Mac and Cheese! Check it out here and follow me on Pinterest!

Inspired by Nonna :)

So we went to my Nonna's yesterday and as usual there was tons of food. My dinner tonight consists of some inspiration to lighter versions of Nonna's
 lunch:

Chicken roll ups made with a small piece of Fat Free Kraft Singles and a piece of cold cut, baked in the oven.
Rolled Zucchini and Eggplant rolled with a 1/2 tsp of fat free cottage cheese and a piece of Italian sausge.
The Bruschetta on a whole wheat pita was my own, lol.

So my 1 month Gooldife membership ran out and I renewed renewed but it's valid starting February 4th. That means a week no gym! :( Hope I don't go back to my old ways and get lazy lol.

23 More Weeks!

So my cousin, Steph is getting married July 7th. That means 22 weeks to get in shape! I am making myself a goal: 20lbs before the wedding! Can I do it?!

Look at those GUNS!

Ok, so for the last week I haven't lost any weight and I've been feeling a little down. I actually gained a pound over night! This confused me because I feel like my clothes are fitting better. A few people I was talking to it about said "oh you're probably just gaining muscle". I've heard that a million times before but this time I think I believe it. This is new! I found a muscle! Look at it! Isn't it cute? ;) lol



Cauliflower Soup!

1-2 boxes of low sodium chicken stock (I just used water and a boullion cube)

1 large cauliflower (chopped)

1/2 log of goat cheese (I didn't have any so I used light Philadelphia Cream Cheese)

Black cracked pepper

Boil chicken stock.

When it starts to boil, throw in chopped cauliflower.

Boil until soft.

When soft, remove from heat.

Blend until smooth.

Put in half  of the goat cheese.

Add pepper to taste.

Top with a little more goat cheese.

Voila! Delicious!

Me Today...

Tonight's Dinner

Salad with sunflower seeds and Greek dressing, two hard boiled eggs,two slices of rice bread with imitation crab salad. Yum!

:-(

Why can't I break this 230 lb mark? :-( Been here for about a week now...

An Okay Day :P

Hello everyone! Had a an okay day today. The dizziness is a little better, my knee stills hurts and my dog destroyed my glasses while I was out today...but , a decent day, lol.

Here is what I ate today:

Breakfast:
Kashi GoLean (1 cup)
Skim milk (1 cup)
Banana

Lunch:
1/2 cup of quinoa
tuna-bean burger
salad with fat free, sugar free dressing

Snack:
Grapes
Banana

Dinner:

1/2 cup of brown rice with oyster sauce, chicken breast and vegetables (red and green peppers and onions)

The ohter day, I posted about my reward system and I said that once I hit 200lbs, if I wasn't engaged yet, I'd buy myself a nice ring :) This is the one I want...


You like? :) I wanted one that shows the my new-found love for myself (hence the hearts, lol). One that reminds me that I love myself enough to take care of myself. Also, something I can look down at and be reminded about how far I've come. I really hope I can get down to that weight soon :) Only 30lbs to go!

Tuna-Bean Burgers

Joe's Creation...


Tuna Bean-Burgers! lol We were going to make tuna burgers tonight (a Todd-Luciani) household fav, but Joe suggested we add a can of beans... So we did, lol. Yummmm!
1 can of black beans
2 cans of drained tuna
2 eggs, breadcrumbs
1 tsp of cumin
garlic, salt, pepper
The rest of our dinner includes quinoa and brocolli with a Kraft single slice.

Today my good knee has been bothering me :S Not sure what I did to it but its cracking and feels twisted. I've also been having some crazy dizzy spells again. Likely from my low blood pressure. I have some supplements that Dr. Som gave me last time for it, I better start taking them again. Going to the gym with Joe's mom again tomorrow, should be fun! :)

Updated Reward System

Recap on my reward system:

240lbs - New jeans!

230lbs - Pedicure

220lbs - LuluLemon sweater

210lbs - Bench sweater or jacket

200lbs - A ring with white gold and diamonds :)

180lbs - New swim suit (2 piece?)

160lbs - Trip! Europe or NYC. Depending on the finances, lol.

New reward system:

240lbs - New jeans!

230lbs - Pedicure

220lbs - LuluLemon hoodie

210lbs - Laser hair removal

200lbs - A ring with white gold and diamonds (If I am not engaged by then, lol) If I AM... A new tattoo :)

180lbs - New swim suit (2 piece?)

160lbs - Trip! Europe or NYC. Depending on the finances, lol.

If you recall, I received my Lululemon sweater as a hand-me-down from Heather just before I hit 220lbs. It is the "yoga-material". When I was there last, I tried on the heavy sweater material and I can finally fit into a size 12! :) So THAT is my new 220lbs goal.

I quite a few Bench sweaters so I have changed my 210lbs goal to laser hair removal. Haven't decided where though, lol. My 200lbs reward is explained, lol.

Yay!!! I've lost 177 lbs!!!

...Ya, I wish! Imagine my surprise when I got on it with my eyes half open! lol. Pretty sure my scale is having technical difficulties lol. I'm hoping it's just the battery...

Jillian Michaels

Although Jillian Michaels tells it like it is and she may seem like a bitch sometimes, I think it's what people need to hear. I found some quotes from her that I need to remember to look to when those plateaus and frustrations hit. Here it goes...

"Transformation is not five minutes from now; it's a present activity. In this moment you can make a different choice, and it's these small choices and successes that build up over time to help cultivate a healthy self-image and self esteem."

"Unless you puke, faint, or die, keep going!"

"Visualize what you want out of life and think big. Don’t feel undeserving. We're all deserving of living our dreams—some of us realize it and some don't. You’re not doing anyone any favors by living small. Embrace these truths and step up. The world is waiting."

"Failure is all a matter of perspective. Think of all the people you admire. I guarantee you they all failed at one time or another. The key is to recognize setbacks for what they really are—entry points for learning, not validation that you aren’t good enough. After a disappointment analyze your actions, get feedback from friends, and take inventory of what you could do better next time. This type of self-reflection and improvement will ultimately make success inevitable."

Apple-Cinnamon, Gluten Free HEALTHY Muffins!

Apple-Cinnamon, Gluten Free HEALTHY Muffins!
 


2/3 cup of unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup of brown rice flour
1/4 cup ground flax seeds
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1é4 cup of raisins ( didn`t have that much so I added sunflower seeds as well. Added a nice crunch :))
2 tbsps of honey (I used agave nectar)
1 tbsp of sugar (I used Splenda)
1 tbsp of cinnamon

Mix all ingredients together until smooth.
Put in muffin liners or greased muffin tin.

Bake for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees.

My boyfriend loves my muffin, lol

Ahhh, the Weekend! :)

Here is the breakfast I made for Joe and I this morning:

Omelet turned scarmbled eggs lol

2 eggs + eggwhites, peppers, onions and sausage 

2 slices of rice bread with Greek Yogurt spread

Made sushi for dinner:

California rolls...


...and Sausage Sushi! lol grilled peppers and onions, sausage and BBQ sauce...Mmmmm...

My Week of the Gym!

Yes people! I must celebrate! I went to the gym every day this week! Monday to Friday! I started charting it on our calendar. I'm a very visual person, lol. I circled all the dates in yellow :)



Today we had a Professional Development conference so the ladies and I went to grab lunch at the mall. I ate a 6" chicken breast sub with lots of veggies and light mayo :) When I was the gym, the Food Network was on (ya, I know eh? lol) and even though I had my iPod playing, I noticed the chef on tv was making Shepherd's Pie. Mmmmm, I haven't had Shepherd's Pie in ages...until today that is ;)

My Shepherd's Pie...Lightened up!

Ground chicken, lots of vegetables and mashed yams :) Soooo good!!!!

Hello Thursday!

It was a pretty great Thursday today :) It snowed so the children at school had an awesome time outside, I was able to beat temptation in the staff room today too! There was a huge cake and pizza for staff from the principals. I was even able to grab two pieces and take them home for Joe :)
I went to the gym every day this week and I plan going tomorrow too. Trying to get over this slight hump. Next week I think I will go back down to three days per week. On the way to the gym I got rear-ended but the damage wasn't bad so I told the girl not to worry about it. It felt good to be nice to someone, haha! Tomorrow is a P.D. Day at school so I will be sitting in a conference room all day. I better bring some snacks to keep me sane!

Here is what I ate today:

Breakfast:

The usual!!!

Kashi GoLean (1 cup)

Skim milk (1 cup)

Strawberries (3)

Lunch:

Salad with the fixins

Spelt wrap

Chicken breast

Light mayo

Snack 2:00pm:

Grapes

Snack 5:00pm:

Apple

Dinner:

Ground chicken meat balls

Brocolli with a tsp of margarine

Roasted yams and onions

Ketchup :)

Delish!!!

Me: 1, Stress: 0!

Hello everyone!

So I had a pretty good day today except for a few work things and the fact that my brand new phone is a piece of crap. Trust me, I was thisclose to ordering a pizza! lol Anyways, I got through it and ate very well today. Before I tell you about my meals today, I forgot to share my new find...

Spelt tortillas! Wheat free (not gluten free) and they are actually decent! I'm so excited! I used to buy these ones from Fiddleheads but they just didn't hit the spot.

Here is what I ate today:

Breakfast:

Kashi GoLean (1 cup)

Skim milk (1 cup)

Strawberries

Lunch::

Rice noodles with pesto (1 cup)

Chicken breast

Brocolli

Fat Free Kraft Singles (2)

Snack: (Before tutoring)

Fat Free Yogurt

Strawberries

Snack: (Before the gym)

Apple

Dinner:

Quinoa (1/2 cup)

Stir fry veggies

chicken breast

Tomorrow for lunch I will have chicken in a spelt wrap with a salad... Mmmm...

My Meals Today

My lunch! 

Chopped chicken breast cooked in salsa, chopped quinoa/black bean burger, fat free Kraft Single on a Spelt tortilla.

My dinner!

1 cup of rice noodles with pesto sauce, chicken breast, onions, peppers and mushrooms!

I Want This!

Can someone please buy this for me, lol

The Brita Water Bottle!

 http://www.brita.com/products/filtering-bottle/brita-bottle-aqua/

Quinoa Burgers

So tonight I attempted Quinoa Burgers. They turned out pretty good! Must be served warm though... with a square of fat free Kraft singles, lol.

Here is the website I got the recipe from:
http://www.canyoustayfordinner.com/2012/01/04/loaded-quinoa-veggie-burgers/

Here is my attempt :)

Here is my dinner:

Salad with all the fixings :), chicken breast baked in salsa and with a 3/4 slice of fat free Kraft Single and quinoa burger with 1/4 slice of fat free Kraft Single. I`m feeling prrrrrrretty satisifed :)

Mmmm... New Healthy Dips!

Just wanted to share this new dip Laura found! It's at Sobey's, it's healthy and it's delicious! 45 calories per 2 tbsps, and 2 grams of fat! I tried this one "Artichoke & Asiago", but there was "Crumbled Feta", "Cucumber" (which I'm guessing was like a Tziziki sauce) and Laura said at the Sobey's in Brampton, there was "Jalapeno". Mmmm... ate 2 tbsps with 8 rice crackers.

Tonight's Dinner

Stuffed peppers: Onions, garlic, salt and pepper, peppers, mushrooms, ground chicken and brown rice.

First time making them and they were amazingggggggg...

Sushi Night with Laura

Laura came down tonight and we attempted to make sushi! We made Califorina rolls with crab, one with shrimp and one with chicken. For amateurs I think we did an awesome job! Oh, and we also put on some Roasted Red Pepper dip...Mmmmm..... Made sure I drank at least a litre of water after, lol