Day 29: Best Meal Ever!

Wow, one full day left of Whole30. And then what will I do with myself!? Probably eat the same ol' paleo stuff. :) I like love eating healthy... pretty challenging and fun and... healthy! I never worried about reading labels, but this diet has helped me to see all the weird things they put in food.

Meal 1: Sausage, spaghetti squash with spaghetti sauce
Meal 2: Chicken (a bite or two; gave the rest to Jimmy), then cooked myself a hamburger with riced cauli.
Meal 3: Grilled chicken with mango salsa. And Beanitos bean chips... which I probably shouldn't have had, but hey, we'll know what made me sick tomorrow. ;)

Just been snacking throughout the day... and, I know, my veggies have been lacking... I noticed that. There could be worse things. >.<

Finally went to Giant and bought more groceries. I brought Jae with me not realizing the time. Brought him during dinner time and he was starving and sleepy LOL! He was laying his head on the handle to the cart, so bored and so tired and so hungry. Poor! Joey wasn't fed when I got home, so Jimmy cooked a pizza for the boys and himself. Jimmy must have been having withdrawals and put a bunch of JUNK food on the list. I was bummed it actually all fit in the freezer(s) lol. Oh, well. He will never eat the way I do, but at least my kids can eat like me someday! :) Still working on Joey!

{mango salsa}

I have been wanting mango salsa for the past 24 hours. I'm glad I was able to go to the store today and buy a mango. Oh, my... this was DIVINE! I ate and ate and overate! SO good!
{recipe here}
I didn't add avocado because we didn't have any ripe ones. I did not add jalapeño. I did not add red onion, just used a yellow onion.

BTW, if you saw on the interwebz about eating raw onion leftover in the fridge is bad to eat... it's not. "Don't believe everything you read on the internet." --Abraham Lincoln

These are the Beanitos chips that Bonnie told me about. I once was at the health foods store and asked her if she needed anything. She wanted a bag of these black bean chips, but there weren't any on the shelf! Anyway, they are made of: Whole Black Beans, Whole Grain Rice (Brown and/or Long Grain White), Pure Sunflower Oil, Guar Bean Gum, Sea Salt. I don't think the Guar Bean Gum is Whole30 approved and I know the Rice isn't either. Oops. But, Jimmy even liked them! YES!

They also have Pinto Bean Beanitos. The Chipotle BBQ kind has sugar in it, but I probably wouldn't have bought those ones anyway. ;)

Good meal. I'm so satisfied! Nom nom nom!

Day 18: Good Day!

Meal 1: I believe I had Kalua Pork with some lettuce? I am stopping rice again. Makes me bloated, so I should probably add that in later. Ha--if only I would just stick to the Whole30, eh?
Meal 2: Curry chicken from the freezer that Bonnie made.
Meal 3: More Kalua Pork with Romaine lettuce and kale, tomato, balsamic vinaigrette I made (thanks to Amber's giving me the idea), and some sauteed carrots and onions in coconut oil.

Man. I love coconut oil! So good! I will eventually get to have more baked goods and this stuff is so yummy melted on top!

I took the boys outside today. Just on some playground equipment around our apartment. The first one we went to was just some steps to a slide that NEITHER boy went down. :|  Then we walked a little further to another playground and the boys went down the open slide. For some reason they don't like the tube slides.

I did laundry and should probably finish folding it and write my Thank You cards. I have pictures to post, but I don't know where I put my camera. I'll post them tomorrow!

Day 8: Support for Whole30

I am thrilled that I now have a friend doing Whole30 with me! It's been so awesome to eat healthy {expensive} food! Amber and I just went grocery shopping at Wegman's and Walmart in Mbg. Basically I'm going to fall asleep while I type this. I need to stop abusing my body and let it rest! I was walking so slow in the stores, but picked up the pace when Amber was haulin' lol. She probably wanted to get home, too! Neither of us had eaten dinner. My legs are aching and my arms are starting to hurt and I am beyond tired. It was fun, though, actually going out to find these random things for this diet. I'm glad we were able to go together because I don't know if I'd ever end up finding good foods to switch things up. She was getting sausage and peppers and tomatoes... (I thought we couldn't have the latter two lol.) I would text Bonnie and ask her where this and that were located. She was totally awesome! Pretty sure I called her 5x and texted her just as much. Thank you, Bonnie! So, so awesome of you to help us n00bs out! I'm so proud of Amber for doing this diet because she wants to. It will be great to have a little support system and do meals together! We were a little disappointed to find NO bacon we could eat! They all had sugar in them! (Let me remind you that Whole30 is stricter than Paleo.)

{meals}

Meal 1: Leftover pork loin (I finally bought coconut flour to make some coconut tortillas; at least some form of bread-like substance I can have with my meals! I saw a recipe in a cookbook Bonnie let me borrow and then my friend was looking for coconut wraps, but the store didn't sell them.)
Meal 2: I don't even think I ate! I had a late lunch. Maybe some mac nuts and almonds. Oops! You have to understand that mornings are really tough to get up and make breakfast. I'm hoping with these new ingredients I can make some awesome "muppins" to eat with some broth and sausage!!
Meal 3: Another hamburger! I love this organic, grass-fed beef! I would eat a hamburger for every meal if I could! I didn't have it like a hamburger, though.. just put it over lettuce w/ tomato, with sauteed onions & mushrooms (cooked with ghee! oh my yummy; I will be sooooo embarrassed if that jar is gone before I'm done with the 30 days!), with a side of nectarine! I had a picture, but I realize all my food photos don't look the least bit appetizing. I think sea salt adds TONS of flavor to it and that ghee is heavenly LOL!

{oot and aboot}

I am exhausted! For my 29 Gifts, I made this cute card (with my Silhouette Cameo..that took forevs), then ran out to the store to grab a treat, and then to drop it off. Then I got home and wanted to nap, but knew I was going to be going out again shortly.

It was an exhausting time at Wegman's and Walmart. I am trying so hard to keep my eyes opened as I type this. I got home, put groceries away, made my yummy dinner, and relaxed in bed. I really hope I can fall asleep early tonight! It's already almost 10 and I am SO ready to sleep. Last night I tried going to bed at 10:30; ended up being 10:45, then 11:30, then midnight, then before you know it, it's 1am and I'm finally out. Anyway, after I much exhausting day (why, why do I do this to myself??), I came into the kitchen and found this:

What!? Flowers for ME!? Oh, it was so, so sweet to come home to this surprise! I asked Jimmy (skeptical, of course) if he got those for me and he told me who they were really from LOL! Beautiful, and THANK YOU! I'm so bummed I wasn't home for it and to greet who gave these to me, but I love them!

It is Spring Break for Jimmy, so I'm glad he will get to help me out more around here. Hopefully we can venture out and do something fun. Maybe Gettysburg. I need to find a wheelchair. I can't even handle grocery shopping. Mostly I want to do some Spring Cleaning. I am so tired of this mess. We need to bag up toys to sell at the Consignment Shop next month and hide them so the kids don't make messes with them. Wait, I'm rambling. I'm totally going to bed now! Mmm, after I write about Gift 3. 

Day 7: I'd Give My Right.. Arm

[too exhausted to proof read. maybe later.]

I don't feel like I can write very well tonight. I usually type from Jimmy's laptop from the comfort of my own bed while my legs scream at me. Tonight I am sitting on a wooden kitchen chair at the desktop that's breaking down.

Meal 1 & 2: Hamburger with lettuce and some peach or orange. (I know, I'm creative.)

Meal 3: Pork loin (I forgot to cook the cauliflower) and I don't remember what else I had. I was kind of snacking on mac nuts and almonds again. Oops!

A sister in the ward took time out of her busy day at work to start up this yummy crockpot pork loin meal. SO, so thoughtful! It was fun to talk with her and get to know her a little better. It's always wonderful to have adult conversation, too, ha ha!

{energy}

I woke up this morning worrying that I wouldn't be able to get out of bed until 10:30 again. My legs were heavy, but Jimmy left early to go to York, so I just had to grin and bear it today. Super lightheaded getting out of bed at first, but I was OK after that. I felt amazing! My legs were still sore and I was a little tired, but my body was so energetic. I wanted to do SO much today, but I focused on the boys today. Last night as I read more about the 29 Gifts, I thought about what my gift for today would be. You can read about it on the 29 Gifts tab, but I chose to teach and play with my kids today. They wore me out by 2:30pm, but it was so worth it! I'd give my right arm for those two! Ok, probably just both my legs. ;)  Enjoy the pictures of the fun we had... it has been MONTHS since I've been able to get the energy to do this. Loved every minute of it!

Joey is eating candy in my bed. That's how much I care when I'm tired. >.< But, the good news is that the Christmas/Halloween candy is gone! Jae at least will still ask for fruit, but Joey won't know much about candy in this house. :) I hope this energy continues because it's exhausting to make meal after meal. Ha, even for someone who has a healthy body! And, the boys will stop asking for candy. :)

Jae is working on his Thomas worksheets:

I love the way he draws his "lines":

 (Sorry for the upside down photo.)

He colored his laminated coloring page of himself. I enthusiastically asked, "Who is that?" He smiled so big and said, "Jae man!" That's right, buddy. :) 

The boys enjoyed watching the snow/rain/sleet pellets fall from the sky:

 Working on the alphabet and sounds with Joey:

Aa>Aquarium>Point to fish>"Ish"

Dino>Point>"ROAR!"

Dog>Point>"Mow"

(gotta work on cat vs. dog)

Ff>Fish>"Ish"

Lion>Point>"Roar!"

Everything else is a "didda" or "dooduh".

Art time:

These two aren't turned right, but I asked him what the name of each picture was. 

For sale, starting bid $1.

 "Pump Air" by Jae

"Froshgunk" by Jae

Jae wanted a birthday cake.. wouldn't stop telling me he wanted that and a birthday. I asked him what he wanted his piñata to look like. "McQueen? Thomas?.." He thought carefully and said, "a pwesent!" Ha, of course.. why not make it look like a big present? :)  Sad part is, he has 5 more months. Either sad for me to keep hearing it or sad for him to keep waiting.

We looked through the gluten-free almond flour cookbook I borrowed from Bonnie. He chose "tawwot take" over "tuptakes"! I was impressed! He loooves carrots! We will make carrot cake cupcakes as soon as we get the rest of the ingredients. I ventured to Walmart tonight; feelin' risky! I couldn't find grapeseed oil, agave nector, and coconut flour (which they probably didn't have). I texted Bonnie and called Jimmy, but forgot to check for the responses because my legs were killing me by then.

I really feel like this diet is helping me get better along with the Young Living Essential Oils. Thanks, Bonnie & Quin! I know, I know.. I never thought I'd be "one of those" people, but I am starting to be. Jimmy's fond of Thieves and Lemon, but soon he will be a believer (not to be mistaken by a Belieber even though he has posted a Beiber meme on my FB wall one time...ew) and we can do without most, if not all OTC drugs. And, I never thought I'd be "one of those" paleo-diet people either. Thanks, Mom! ;) I feel so weird buying that {organic} stuff, but if it's helping me feel better, by all means... I'm going to buy it. I just can't wait to put us all onto healthier eating! There are really some awesome recipes I want to try (without telling Jimmy what it is) and see if he likes them. The {only} thing I miss is sticky rice. I don't get tempted to eat it because I know I can try to add it back in later, but I'm Asian.. it's.. in my blood? Ha ha..

So, overall it was a pretty dang good day. The boys ate all their lunch and I was much more calm today. Well, until Joey body-slammed into me multiple times tonight. I made Jimmy take him. He didn't listen very well because that's where the multiple times comes in.

{amazing}

I'm super {amazed} by the sudden change from yesterday to this morning. It was like night and day (sorry, had to be punny). I feel so blessed as I've struggled through this for so long. (Most of the time not even knowing what was going on.) It was amazing to feel almost normal again. Busted through 4 hours of energy today with my boys and enjoyed every minute! It makes me sad to think about all of those months, days, and moments that I missed out on. I'm thankful to my Heavenly Father who hears my prayers. Jimmy gave me 2 blessings recently and both times he said, "I bless you that your body will heal so that you may be able to take care of your family." I believe in the power of the Priesthood and am grateful to have it in my home. I know this isn't the end of my bad days, but having this day with my handsome, adorable, funny, crazy boys made me SO happy! I thank you for your prayers, too! I know Jimmy and I weren't the only ones praying for my health.

Thank you.

Day 3: Headache All Day

I think I am dehydrated and my head has been hurting all day. Even now. Lame. I slept a lot and the heater was on too high (didn't notice until Jimmy got home from Church), so I didn't drink enough water. I missed church today because me and the boys are sick. I had a sore throat, Jae's throat is scratchy, too.. so I rubbed a drop of Lemon Oil on our throats and I kid you not, in 2-3 minutes my sore throat was GONE. Ha, why didn't I think of that 2 days ago?

Meal 1: Shredded chicken, nectarine, and a couple of mac nuts. Sounds gross, and maybe it was? I was too tired to even care; I just had to eat something.
Meal 2: Hamburger salad (?) and the rest of the nectarine from bfast. It was ground up beef on shredded lettuce with, yet again, sauteed onions and mushrooms. Sad part is, I'm too tired to care what I'm eating. (I need to go shopping I guess. Get some peppers; which I forgot at Costco.)

Exhibit A

Snack: I had a couple of macadamia nuts because I was feeling so sick and needed something until I had dinner.

{sidetrack}

I don't think I had a Meal 3. I was too busy getting the boys fed and making my chicken stock (from the chicken that Bonnie cooked). Come to think of it, I don't think Jae had dinner. He's a grazer and I need to be better at giving him 3 meals a day. :| I'm sure he will be up early in the morning wanting to eat. FAIL. Anyway, I'm so full by the time the next meal rolls around, that I don't want to eat. I guarantee It's not much on my plate (see Exhibit A), but I'm FULL. I'm going to have to eat less than that I guess so I can get all 3 meals in. O___o  You're not supposed to weigh yourself on this program, but I did anyway. I've already lost 3 pounds in just 3 days! Don't worry, I won't wither away.. Probably all just water weight anyway. ;)

Jimmy did the Raindrop Technique on me tonight. LOVE it! This blog can tell you more about what it is and what it can do for my Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV). My body is in total detoxing mode... I feel it. I need rest and I need to relax. Jimmy hates being my slave, but lucky for him, tomorrow is Monday.

My next step is to buy a little trampoline so I can "jump on it! jump on it!"

So, Rie called me today to let me know when she was bringing me a meal. So sweet! (I hate missing church because I love my ward family!) It was a treat to talk to her! The Compassionate Service sisters have arranged extra help for me so I will be able to rest a little more and kick this virus. I love the Relief Society organization and am so grateful to be a part of it. My poor boys get so bored. They bring all their toys into my room so they can play and then my room gets so messy. I know, I know.. just have them clean it up... I don't even care. Someday soon things will change! That's all for now--thanks for reading!

P.S. Your bedtime song:

{symptoms}
headache
tiredness
tingling legs/arms
nausea

Day 1: With A Little Help From My Friend[s]

So, I felt miserable this morning with a sore throat and feeling very tired. I didn't eat breakfast, but I will start tomorrow! Bonnie came by this morning and cooked up a storm! I am so grateful for her service to me! I just hope she had energy herself to continue her day.

She brought over a yummy Crockpot Chicken Curry dinner that cooked for a few hours and in the meantime, she cooked a delicious Whole Greek Chicken with Roasted Garlic in the oven (this is seriously the best chicken I've ever had. I will post the recipe below), chicken broth/soup, and a couple burgers (one to save for tomorrow; but Jimmy ended up eating it because I told him how good it was). She had broth going and we added chicken juices; it was so yummy! I bagged up the broth so I can have it for breakfast or whatever meal. (In the book they call it Meal 1, Meal 2, Meal 3; so you don't limit what you eat for mealtimes.) After Bonnie left, I was going to boil the chicken bones, etc. I was too wiped out (probably from watching her cook!), so that will be a project for me tomorrow. I still need to get more chicken off the bones, too.

Meal 1: Skipped.
Meal 2: Bonnie cooked me a hamburger with sauteed mushrooms and onions served on lettuce. It was great! Seriously, I owe her!
Meal 3: Crockpot Chicken Curry. The chicken was so tender, the curry was mild, and the carrots, onions, and celery were amazing! I cooked a pot of rice for the boys, and I just ate mine plain. Jimmy isn't a fan of curry, but he ate it with no complaints.

I bought the boys coconut milk and wasn't sure if they'd drink it or not. (A straw is always an incentive!) Jae loves it and even Joey will drink it. I, myself, have not had more than a taste and Jimmy tasted it, but not enough to "taste" it. (If that makes sense.)

Not only did Bonnie feed me today, but she gave me some food for my spirit as well! Some good reads to strengthen my spirit and some good cookbooks with recipes to cook to strengthen my body.

(picture wouldn't rotate)

Thank you, Bonnie! I'm so grateful to know you and meet you! It's just what I needed today; to talk, start figuring out a system, get meal ideas, and motivation. Of course, there is always the interwebs... my Aunt Sheila told me about http://www.elanaspantry.com.  One of the books in the photo I posted is by Elana Amsterdam.

I'm not supposed to create "desserts" with the food allowed in this diet. I don't have a sweet tooth anyway, so it's easy to pass on desserts. I did, however, sneak 3 almonds in when I was getting the boys to bed.

It was a {great} day... tiring, but great to get things rolling! I pray for strength, health, and energy every day. I hope it comes within this month. Even if it's not 100% by the end, I know there will be SOME improvement during all this.

And, of course I can't post this without thinking of The Beatles (see blog title). :)
Recipe for Whole Greek Chicken with Roasted Garlic

The skin gets so crunchy and so full of flavor. SO good! Make it.. right now!