Day 12

     I tried the chicken nuggets again and they turned out MUCH better! I added more spices and I cooked them in a frying pan with the oil instead of covering them in oil and baking them. I liked them...the problem...I forgot to put them in the fridge and couldn't finish it later!

      We enjoyed a nice evening at the OC Tanner Amphitheater for my brother's concert. It was HOT but a fun evening! It is my favorite concert he does and I look forward to it every year. He brought sugar cookies for everyone and that was extremely hard to pass up, but I DID IT! Wouldn't have done that two weeks ago. I also had Rob get me a 44 oz drink of water and ice from Maverik (I can't go in...TORTURE!). The lady charged $.25. SO much cheaper than the bottles of water my kids got and I kind of felt like I had a real drink. I am getting closer to introducing new foods!!

Day 11...HALFWAY!!

     Wahoo!!! I can't believe I made it this long! I have been working on finding some kid-friendly recipes to try out while on this diet. My family has been great about trying some of the foods I am eating. They are ok with the smoothies...it's just a kid thing I guess. I got a NutriBullet today so I am going to start working on some green-smoothie recipes that include my protein AND my vegetables. Check back for those! My kids really haven't liked anything I offered them this past week and a half. The foods I am eating are pure and natural. I am a little sad I let my family eat so much bad food up this point. They are used to the unhealthy ways I have been teaching them. I agree that it all tastes SO good! I love butter and salt and sugar!! That is normal in our super-sized society these days. I do think with some of these changes I am making, they will slowly come around. Rob actually ate dinner with me this evening! We had turkey tacos with romaine lettuce. I know he didn't love it but he ate it all so that must mean something, right?! I am so grateful for how supportive he has been and I recognize how many things he has been giving up in support of me. We don't eat out anymore. We don't make our Maverik stops. We don't eat ice-cream or chips or candy. Rob and the boys went to Subway yesterday and after he texted and told me, I had a little tiny meltdown over not being able to eat there but realized this isn't forever and once I have answers, I will only have to avoid certain things rather than everything. :-) I tried to pretend my turkey sausage was a cheeseburger and my cabbage was fries but my brain and my taste buds were NOT having any of that. :-)
     Back to my kid-friendly recipes! I found one for sweet-potato fries that I will try out and post another day. I found MANY for chicken nuggets but they all had one or more ingredients I can't have. So, I made up my own and it turned out better than I thought. Normally, I wouldn't have like it, but in my quest for health, any new foods are exciting! Next time, I will add more seasoning, but it was a nice change! Here is what I did:

Chicken Nuggets 

2 chicken breasts, cubed

1 C quinoa flour
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp tumeric
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp ground mustard
5 Tbs. olive oil

Put the seasoning in a Ziploc bag or container and mix it up. Put cubed chicken in the seasoning and shake it. I could have cooked it at this point with very little seasoning on it. Add the oil and shake it again. Pour or spoon out pieces of chicken and bake for 12-15 minutes on a foil-lined cookie sheet.

Fake Honey-Mustard Sauce
1 C unsweetened applesauce
2 Tbs. Dijon mustard (or add until you like it)

It was simple and sweet but still a little tangy. (I can't have honey)

Keep in mind, I am still experimenting, but there you go!!

Small victories...Day 10

The food find for today is going to keep me going! I told my mom how bored I was getting with eating the same meal combinations with buckwheat and quinoa. I am supposed to have a protein and a veggie with each meal. She told me to try turkey sausage with cabbage. I laughed a little inside and thought that sounded a little strange.  (Sorry I doubted you, Mom!!) She gave me a head of cabbage and I graciously took it home. She told me how simple it was to make and I thought I might try it if I couldn't find something else to eat. Well, I was bored with the food choices I had, so I tried it. I am HOOKED!  I really can't believe how good and how satisfying it was! AND simple! I've had it twice already! This diet is definitely challenging my creativity and my patience. I have some really frustrating moments and some small victories. I know this is what I need right now and the changes I am already seeing are amazing. I have been headache free since I started eating this way and many of you know I have been having headaches/migraines DAILY! My neck has not been hurting AT ALL. I have not had to take ibuprofen or Tylenol to make it through the day. I haven't had to take medication to sleep at night. My blood sugar is lower than it has been in 1 1/2 years and is holding pretty steady instead of being all over the place. Most importantly, I have energy to play with my kids!! I know I will just continue to improve!

Turkey Sausage and Cabbage
(2-4 servings as a side dish...I ate it as a meal with a side of fruit)

Turkey sausage (ground, patties cut up, whatever you want and how much you want-mine was pre-cooked patties)
Cabbage
Seasonings...I used garlic powder, sea salt, pepper, and dried basil
Light Olive Oil

Heat the sausage in a little oil in the frying pan. Cut the cabbage into small squares and add to the turkey sausage. Add seasonings. Cook it all together for 5 minutes or to desired consistency ( I liked it still a little crispy).

I have been thinking of variations to this dish and maybe other things to add. I will post if I change it!

Water...Day 9

     My daily intake of water has increased so much that I think the amount now outweighs my previous daily intake of Diet Dr. Pepper...I know...NOT good that I was drinking SO much! I think that was how I coped with not feeling well. I love water but only if it is ice-cold. I have a cute plastic cup I refill with ice and water throughout the day and I feel better about drinking it.  I did think about going to Maverik, filling up a plastic 44 oz cup with ice and water and seeing if going through the motions of getting a drink would trick my brain into thinking I was having a "drink". I don't even go into gas stations right now...too much temptation!
      I think going off diet soda has been the most difficult part of this experience, and not necessarily because I crave it. I really just want a drink...of something sweet...anything! I have been using fruit to flavor my water and that helps a little, but I am just getting used to drinking plain water. I also tried coconut water. I like it ok...don't love it...not sweet enough. :-) I know water is good for me! Not having sugar, sweetener, splenda, etc. is really going to help me feel better. However, even though I know the logic AND medicine behind it, I am still looking for that secret drink that will satisfy my sweet drink cravings!

Day 8

     Time is an interesting creature! When I first started this 21-day journey, it felt like forever! Now that I am already on day 8, I am starting to feel like I can handle this. I look back at where I was and realize 21 days will pass SO quickly and is nothing compared to the years I haven't felt good.
     There are a few changes I believe may be permanent. For example, milk. I LOVE almond milk and didn't know what I was missing. I don't love regular milk but I never thought about other options. I went to Natural Grocers (yes...again!) and I discovered a whole aisle of flavored milks. Almond, coconut, etc. and in vanilla, strawberry and on and on! Awesome!!
      I also love my breakfast of buckwheat, almond butter and blueberries. It isn't difficult either if I make the buckwheat ahead of time. I will continue to eat this for breakfast...and maybe lunch. :-)
     One more change I am loving...fresh fruit! I have to be careful with my blood sugar and it is a delicate balancing act but fruit in the summer is delicious! 
     Dinner and lunch are both feeling a little boring, but I am ready to venture back into the world of internet-land and search for more ideas. Coming soon...

Hunger and faulty can openers...DAY 7

There is nothing worse than a growling stomach while looking at food you cannot open and NOTHING else in the house that fits in with your diet! I came home from summer camp and started to prepare my salad.  I got out the ingredients to use with my salad. Tuna fish (in water) and salad beans. I opened the tuna and got it ready. Then my can opener stopped working! What I mean by "stopped" is it just would not run anymore...it is battery operated...one of those automatic ones. It is also my only can opener since my manual can opener broke a couple of months ago. At this point,  I had the lettuce ready, the tuna fish was smelling pretty good and I started at the unopened can of beans. While debating if the lettuce and tuna were enough veggie and protein for my meal requirement, the cat smelled the tuna and came running. She started howling so I gave her a little bit of tuna fish on a plate. She gulped it down and then stood on her hind legs and clawed at me trying to get more. I also had kids running around wondering what they were going to eat. It was a MESS!! I ended up using some leftover white beans with the tuna fish and it turned out ok. So now I just need a recipe to use up the salad beans and I definitely need a new can opener.
I tried instant buckwheat this evening...not nearly as good as the regular. Blueberries are my best friends right now!

Day 6

I faced the most challenging temptation so far and handled it MUCH better than I thought I could! We went to the movie as a family and I drank water and ate sunflower seeds ( sorry...I did sneak them in!) while my kids each had an Icee and popcorn. I also curbed the desire to munch on popcorn with Spry gum. It is sugar free, soy free, tastes good AND is made in Utah. Yay!! This was a major hurdle and I am one step closer to good health!