Time in the garden

I am sorry you can not comment on my blog. Help Group is helping me figure out why. If you have any suggestions you can email me. You cant post a comment but it will let you email me?? Or you can email me your comment LOL We'll get there! I am just not computer savvy and need step by step instructions to fix my problem.

Well today's overcast weather makes it a perfect day to do some more planting. I will plant some more herbs and okra.

I had my coffee this morning and did my exercises. Had my grits with too much pepper LOL

While doing my exercises, my way, I have come to the realization that if I were to take dance lessons ( I like Dancing with the Stars) it would probably take me more than 6 weeks to learn a dance or even part of it !! LOL Anyway, the instructor is so peppy and thinks that it is fun. I am exercising because I have to not because I am one of the people that loves the exercise. BUT it is necessary so might as well make the best of it! Time does go by fast and her favorite part is my favorite part! The cool down and for me the ending! :) I do feel better, look better and am happier so I can deny exercises benefits but I don't have to like it!

I am not sure what we are having tonight. Dh will be at church, ds #1 has a late class and ds #2 has a tennis game. HE WON yesterday! so happy for him. It is his first win. I wont get home till almost 7pm so whatever we eat will be quick. I might heat up a sweet potato.

In my desire to know more about calcium and Vitamin D I have learned that too much sodium and protein can deplete your calcium..!.. Now I am trying to find out how much of the sodium and proteins it takes to deplete the calcium, to make sure I don't over do it.

If I can keep this new stuff up for 6 weeks or so I will have a routine and a good for me habit! Dh seems to be enjoying the effects! :)

On a different note, I have started the voting phase of a challenge we are doing at acharmingplace and I am so impressed with the entries! It will be fun to watch the voting and determining and decision making processes.

I have a few more ideas for my store and have a doz or so items made for it. A few more and I am all set to open up.

Have a great Tuesday

a breezy Monday morning

First off MY Steak, that I had Saturday night, was so very good!

We had a cool front come through yesterday and shower us with some much needed rain. The cool weather made for a very nice morning in the garden. I am fair skinned so I need to get my Vitamin D in the Off peak sun hours. My veggies jumped up from that rain and grew several inches.

I got my guys their breakfast. Had my coffee while watching Monk. Dh calls it my "murder lite" show. lol Promptly after the show I got dressed to exercise. I did 2 sets this morning. yay me. At the end of the first set I skip the cool down and then skip the warm up of set two and continue my aerobic walking. It is about 4 miles. I am not that coordinated so when she does the arms to the half beat and feet to the beat, I just get all Phoebish (Friends) and mess up so I do the arms to the beat along with my feet. It works for me and I think the instructor would be okay with it since she says "she doesn't care which foot I start with or which direction I go just as long as I am exercising. " Well today I tried the half beat! LOL I had the arms going and looked down to realize I was concentrating so much on my arms that my feet quit walking! hahahahahaha So I had to say to my feet "come on feet back to it!" and went back to doing things my way!

I ate my grits this morning. No butter (but that is okay cause I never have been a butter lover. I don't use butter unless it is in a cake or something. Now I use Smart Balance. I don't even like lots of dressings or Mayo! ) I also had a full glass of water. I am bad about drinking my water. I also had a cup of Mulberries fresh off the tree. They have lots of vitamins, some calcium and are on my "heart healthy" side of the diet.

Over the weekend, with the family get together I made some Bruschetta. I added a twist to make it healthier. Here is what i did.
I took Cuban bread and sliced it in half inch slices.

I sliced Roma tomatoes in about quarter thick slices. and placed them on top of the bread.

I took about a cup of whole fresh basil leaves and diced them up with some chives (both from my garden) and added a table spoon of Olive oil( full of Good for you fats and good cholesterol). I scooped that out, less than a tablespoon and put the herbs on the tomato.

Next I added Artichokes( not from my garden but I am growing them) . I steamed them earlier and used a spoon to clean each petal. Then I mashed them with a fork added a squeeze of lemon and salt and pepper and fresh garlic. You can use marinated canned Artichokes or even frozen ones. I put the artichoke mixture on top of the herbs.

Next layer is a quarter tsp of crushed black olives ( the Greek ones- better for you).

Finally, Ultra thin piece of Mozzarella cheese on top.

I threw them in the oven on 350 until the cheese was melted. Well because power went out at my parents house we cooked these in the grill.

I had fish on Sunday and successfully avoided the homemade milkshakes and desserts. I did have a few homemade french fries but they were cooked in Canola oil.

Tonight we are having Salmon. dh will be at the "Passion" Play at church all week so dinners will be quick.

Okay I gotta get cleaning house. I have ds's Tennis game to go to this afternoon so I better get busy. My dad also gave me 2 metal cabinets and a tall round shelve thingie so I have to get in the art room and do some rearraging. this stuff will come in very handy when I get my store on Etsy going, to store my items. I need to get creating too! My friend Christine and I got together frequently and web crafted before Christmas and now we are kinda out of our groove. My recent creations are for an ATC swap I am in.

A quiet morning

My guys are out hunting and the house is to myself.

Okay so I have started this blogging. I hope I can keep it up. It will be a menagerie of health and diet, my latest stuff from Inkfulthinking Designs, my crafting, gardening and what ever floats my boat. I do NOT have all the setting components figured out. That part will be a work in progress. I have web site links I want to add, my store and what not... I am the most computer savvy in my household and that does not say much at all. :)

About me, has the beginnings of why I started this blog. The positive side of this whole thing is, since starting this diet I have lost around 35 lbs. I am much healthier, happier and don't have to take naps everyday. Now if the diet would help me procrastinate less I would be set. :) I try very hard to look at the positive aspects of the diet and not look at it as a penalty. It isn't really a diet for me but rather a "life change" for the better. I will confess that it took me 9 months to stop needing / craving chocolate. I have a little cheat system from my diet. I am allowed 4 slices of bacon and 1/2 a sweet roll so I just added up the calories, fat and sugars to determine that I could have 4 Hershey's kisses. It took me 6 weeks or so to get into the swing of my life change. My immediate family has joined me in healthy eating and they have enjoyed the changes in their bodies and the way they feel.

I am on the Berkley Heart Healthy diet, Cholesterol med, multi vitamins, grape seed extract, iron, calcium and other meds. I have an organic veggie garden and it has been beneficial in getting fresh Vitamin D from the sun, not to mention the fresh veggies.

Currently I am eating grits for breakfast. Grits contain 45% of daily iron needs. I don't like Cream of Wheat. I try to be true and consistent with my Cholesterol diet as well as increasing my iron, B12 or Bs and calcium. It is quite a juggle since some of the foods that have Calcium and Iron are not on my Cholesterol diet. Such as liver, but that is okay because I don't like liver! I exercise every weekday. I have a walking and toning video that I watch and follow. My doctor said that I needed to do "bone jarring" exercises such as walking to increase my bone density. It is nice to be able to do this in my own home because when I loose step or she changes the beat I can yell at the tv and no one gets hurt.

I am excited about this evenings meal. I get to have steak. WELL, I do need increased Iron. LOL I have been extra good this week in my eating habits to allow for this treat. I eat a lot of fresh fish and skinless chicken so every now and then a girl has to have red meat!

Okay that is enough of a start. I have learned a lot about foods and will try to post as I go. IF you know details that I would benefit from I would love to hear them.

Have a great Saturday.