"This is it, I thought, the absolute sweet spot of motherhood- these unguarded moments of pure intimacy, love assumed, the delicious hour when time slows at the end of a day and parents and children come together, reweaving their connections with one another."
-Katrina Kenison
Losing... my temper this week after months of doing so good. I sure didn't miss that terrible feeling I had afterwards! Determined to get back on track this month.
Taking... care of Jack who came down with what Logan & Wyatt had last week. Bless his heart, he ended up with an ear infection and a nearly-ruptured ear drum and was oh-so-sick. Thankfully he was able to get an antibiotic shot which works extra quick and we avoided that ruptured ear drum. It's been one sick kid after another around here, so we are upping the probiotic intake (to get our guts healthy again after all these antibiotics!) and our vitamin D intake (which also supports healthy immune systems) and washing our hands like it's going out of style!
Tossing... out homework for Wyatt after fighting with him for two days and deciding my relationship with him wasn't worth four pages of math. It was a hard call to make, but I know it was the right call.
Writing... about Carly at a little over two years old. She is full of character and fun stories and there are certain things she says that I hope she never stops saying. Like, "My okay!" when she falls down. It's just so darn cute!
Reviewing... February's books and highly recommending two: Turtles All The Way Down and The Wisdom of Sundays. Go read my reviews!
Sending... Wyatt to class by himself (!) and letting Logan riding to school by himself (!). All the independence over here at the Cunningham ranch! It's SO hard for this mama! Josh was joking last night that I'm over here trying to helicopter parent and he keep shooting me out of the sky. #butseriously
Feeling... grateful that it's March! February was long and grey and sick and boring and brutal. I am ready for a fresh month and some fresh goals (which I'll be sharing tomorrow!) and spring! Bring on the daffodils and tulips!
Tallying... up our total weight loss for the month of February and continuing to be inspired.
I am down from 188 pounds to 184 pounds -4
Josh is down from 218 pounds to 213 pounds -5
Logan is down from 108 pounds to 106 pounds -2
Jack is down from 120 pounds to 118 pounds -2
Wyatt is down from 86 pounds to 84 pounds -2
We are eating pasta (noodles, rice, or macaroni) maybe twice a week as a side dish now as opposed to 3x a week and are enjoying veggies more than ever. The kids are eating salmon without complaint (hooray!) and love the new cheesy cauliflower dish we make instead of noodles once a week. Overall, the changes have been really doable for our family and I am super proud of us.
The boys know that the weigh in is just one of many ways we are tracking our progress towards a healthier life, including being more active, eating together as a family every night (with more meat and veggies, less carbs & sugar), healthier lunches & healthier shopping trips made as a family.
We enjoy a "splurge meal" every week, which is our family movie night, where we enjoy homemade pizza and dessert, so the boys don't feel deprived in any way. It's important to all of us that this change feel sustainable and realistic and not at all like a diet.
I would never have imagined that I could do it. That we could do it. But here we are. Making meals that are healthy for our family, that support Josh in his diabetes, that are making our kids healthier, and that are eliminating all the excess sugar from our lives. It feels so empowering. And it started with just taking dessert out of their lunches. And increasing veggies at dinner. Then slowly but surely we increased the health value in the house. And now here we are, dropping LB's and feeling amazing. I guess I say all this to say, if you feel overwhelmed or like you aren't sure you can make a whole lifestyle change, don't try to change everything. Pick one thing to change. Drop the soda. Or stop buying fruit rollups. Seriously. Eliminate one sugary thing. It can make a difference. A week later, eliminate one more. You can do it! I believe in you. (Okay. Stepping off my soap box. Ahem. Sorry.)
Quote I'm loving this week:
"It is a way of being.
A domestic, considered attention
to familiar routines
and the small, essential details
of everyday life.
I would create it by being present.
I would try to do better."
-Katrina Kenison
***
3 comments:
I am about a month short of joining Weight Watchers 3 years ago. In that time I have been successful in losing 35 pounds in my first 6 months and have been successful in keeping it off. At 62, it is for my health that I wanted this weight off. That being said, I just read that Weight Watchers is going to start focusing on Health & Wellness vs just weight loss.
Your family is on the right track!
Also love reading about Carly as my granddaughter will be 2 in 9 days.
I am SO proud of you guys and your new way of eating! The hardest part really is starting and little changes bring the confidence to try more and more...it's like you find a sweet spot and suddenly, you can't believe how far you've come!
Great job, I know how hard that is when you enjoy food (I know we all do!). I agree, the way we eat needs to become a way of life. Diets never last long. We have to teach ourselves to eat healthy, not necessarily low calorie. That'll come as a consequence. And cutting out one small thing at a time can make a huge difference.
We try to eat pasta/rice about twice a week like you. We eat lots of vegetables, legumes, grains and we are also trying to eat less processed carbs. We all love meat (and fish), but try to eat it only about twice a week and when we do, we buy the really good stuff. Eating it once or twice a week is a health choice for sure (especially when it comes to red meat) but also a financial one, as feeding a family organic, gras fed, wild caught, is really expensive. In the winter we make lots of soups, stews, curries with legumes and vegetables. Another thing we have started doing is cooking in a more 'Asian' way, meaning we will use meat or fish, but in much smaller amounts and bulk it up with vegetables/legumes/grains. For example last week I made a kind of shepherd's pie using very little meat, lots of vegetables and instead of covering it with mashed potatoes I made mashed cauliflower with a little garlic. You could barely taste the difference!
Fiona
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