One Dish Wonder

Tonight we had another successful one dish dinner.

Taco Salad:
Chopped Lettuce
Rice and Beans
Tomatoes
Avocado
Fritos (hey, they only have three ingredients and none of them sound like substances Hazmat is required to handle.)
And Ranch dressing with some taco seasoning mixed in.

Bonus, you can make this as high or low calorie as you want.

We had chilled homemade (sugar-free) applesauce for dessert.  Good Times.

Channeling Churchill

Today started strong and fell apart in the middle.


All too often, my afternoon slumps extend till bed-time.  Not today.  Dr. Seuss tells us, "un-slumping yourself is not easily done" (Oh, The Places You'll Go) and this is true.  Fortunately I have fortitude imbued quotes like Churchill's "Never, never, never give up," and "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts,"  floating around in my head.


With those great thoughts ringing between my ears, I squared my shoulders and launched into 45 minutes of solid productivity.  Those 45 minutes, which at the time felt like a last-ditch effort, revitalized the night. I guess John Woden got it right "It's not so important who starts the game but who finishes it."

Reminders

Loosing focus on this goal of becoming a stronger, healthier person is almost second nature. But life gives me wonderful nudges and reminders of what it is I really want. One of these came to me in the form of a song by Chris Rice called "Here Come Those Eyes." I want to feel like the girl in that song.

My husband is a pro and making me feel like the most beautiful woman in the world. Nonetheless, I would love to be able to raise his heart rate even more than I do now. Granted, right now I have the silhouette of a duck and till this new little one arrives there is not a whole heap that I can do about that. Still, it is so good to be reminded of what I really want.

Quotes to Motivate

"The odds of hitting a target go up dramatically when you aim at it."

Mal Pancoast

"If we defend our habits, we have no intentions of quitting them."

"It's not about how good you are, but about how bad you want it."

"Discipline is remembering what you want."

No idea who wrote those last ones, but they pack a wallop.

The Source of Wisdom

The Chinese say that the source of wisdom is to call things by their proper names. The Bible says "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." For me, the source of much wisdom is doing the same stupid thing over and over till the pain just isn't worth it anymore. Tell me I am not alone in this.

For example: only when pregnant does Parmesan-garlic chicken and mint ice-cream sound like a good combination. It is not a good combination, as I can now declare with the conviction of first-hand experience. Well, it was a good idea for about a nano-second, but now I heartily regret it. I hate indulgence regrets. They totally ruin the hedonistic afterglow of true indulgence. And I only have regrets when I act on impulse without listening to what I really want or to how much I really want.

This particular 2x4 is nearly paper thin. I need to gain a little wisdom before I have to get a new 2x4. And would someone please tell my crazy hormones that onion rings and cherry pie aren't a good idea either?

Viva la Cucumber

It had been a very big day. My family needed a special dinner. Child #1 and I hit the grocery store. Into the cart went deli-turkey sandwiches, milk and apples. Then we passed a chip display. "Mom," gushed child #1, "those are Cheetos. I adore Cheetos." I made some noncommittal noise and pushed past - all the while thinking that chips really do go famously with turkey subs. Fortunately, my commitment to making a few healthy substitutions every day won out. Hello produce section.

That night our meal was rounded out with sliced cucumbers (which we love with salt and pepper or dipped in hummus.) I felt a momentary longing for some potato-esque substance fried in oil and salted within an inch of a heart-attack - but it felt empowering to consciously choose a crunchy, green veg. over a chip, especially since there had been some indulging going on that morning. Whatever else may have happened that day, we ended strong. Cucumber power!

Priorities

"When we put God first, all other things fall into their proper place or drop out of our lives. Our love of the Lord will govern the claims for our affection, the demands on our time, the interests we pursue, and the order of our priorities."

~Ezra Taft Benson,

Conference, April 1988

One Dish Dinners

Once upon a time we had some friends and their kids stop by one night just as we were finishing dinner. I had made brown rice, beans and seasoned, baked sweet potatoes. This very dear, meat and potatoes couple, looked at our dinner, exchanged a few looks and asked a few carefully worded questions - their impression clearly being "This is what our friends are eating for dinner? This is it?! There is no ground beef or condensed soup here! Have they fallen below the poverty line?" I looked at the meal and saw a complete protein, lots of vitamin A, and super fiber. I tell this story, because I am once again embracing the one or two dish dinner. Who says you need three to five separate dishes to make a dinner? Well, lots of people, but not me.

So here is one of my favorite dinners. I made it last night and it was the perfect counterpoint to the blue-gray drizzle outside. We had brown rice topped with three kinds of peppers, chicken and onions in a curry sauce. I love curry. It is so fast and flavorful and versatile. We also like to put potatoes, peas, carrots, etc. in our curry. You can add just about any veggie and it turns out great every time. Even when you do it wrong (I added too much water last night) it turns out marvelously. And you get veggies, protein and a great carb in one dish. Add a little fresh fruit for dessert and voila! So here's to fabulous, simple, one dish dinners.

(Okay, I guess you could say that rice plus curry equals two dishes. As you see, I still cling to the rudiments of my math education. But when served together they look like one to me. And simple is so very very good.)

Own It

Yesterday I deliciously devoured three Cadbury eggs while reading a Bill Bryson book and for perhaps the first time, I feel completely fine about owning the experience. Every calorie, every sticky finger every bit of happiness is mine all mine. It was an indulgence that I chose, not that my addiction chose for me and that makes it easier to own. Owning the experience (as opposed to burying it) makes me feel more satisfied than the chocolate could have alone. Food can create amazing experiences. For me, hiding behind a door scarfing M&Ms before the kids see me does not qualify as an experience worth having. A leisurely moment with a favorite candy that I haven't indulged in for the last two years while reading some pithy prose - that is an experience worth having.

I am on a crusade to own more of my life. I want to own my choices, own the consequences, own the life they give me. This seems so rudimentary. When did I get cut off from these parts of my life? On a brief psychological note (no time for deep analysis), I am learning that owning my life means accepting me for me - flaws and all. This is tough. Accepting other people is much easier. But, as any retail clerk will tell you, if you want to change something, you need to own it first.

Dessert

Golden, juicy, vibrant delicious pineapple for dessert tonight. Everyone loved it.

Mastery

How boring would it be, if this journey to health revolved solely around calories and exercise?

My friend Shyla and I have been talking quite a bit about mastery lately. For both of us, life has pulled our focus away from slim for a while. That has made me feel like I haven't had much to write about, hence my lack of posts. But I have come to realize that mastery in any area is mastery. Strength of will is strength of will.

For the last six weeks I have been focusing on improving the quality and quantity of my scripture study and I have been doing a major home clean-out. (Somehow, admitting that I only have enough focus for two areas at a time feels weak. I know it is the best that I can do, but still, admitting to limitations in public is hard. I feel I should be able to do it all. How dumb is that?) But I am learning that mastery over my time will help me have mastery over my appetite. The will to prioritize and make tough choices about my closets will help me prioritize and make tough choices about my menus. An increase in spiritual strength will help me make the choices that lead to physical strength.

Health is a whole person way of being. Plus, Feng Shui gurus say that de-cluttering your living space is a great way to begin weight loss. So if you, like me, have taken a mental hiatus from exercise and calories, bravo! Here's to new beginnings.

Recess

Have you ever witnessed children running out to a playground? They can't wait to get outside. They climb. They jump. They run. They skip and chase and hang on monkey bars.

I love this way of looking at moving and exercise. It is fun. It is a change of pace. It is refreshing. And (again) it is FUN.

Now this is not how I feel when looking at a "work-out" DVD. This is not how I feel about crunches and curls. But maybe that is an indicator that not only my mind-set, but my routine needs to change. If exercise is drudgery, then my consistency is patchy and my efforts half-hearted. When I am doing something fun like hiking, dancing or walking I want to do more and more and more. I look forward to it. I make special arrangements to make sure it happens.

I want to have a daily "mom recess." To me, that sounds like a treat.

If any of you have some ideas that work for you, I would so appreciate hearing them.