Warts and All

Will you love me still if I have fallen from grace?

Boy, have I fallen! After weeks and weeks of nearly pristine eating, I have really dug myself into a whole, and it started on this most recent trip out of town. My mother put a platter of chips and dip in front of us when I was hungry, and it's all been downhill since then. Right on down to the filled donuts. (My arteries are begging for mercy).

Remember my elation when I came back from my mother-in law's house and had lost a pound? Well, I was equally emotional when I came back from my mother's up a pound. These were less desirable emotions than before.

So I'm hoping to crawl out of this hole, and I know God is more than able to help. Prayers are always appreciated.

While I bare my soul, I might as well lay it all out there, right?

I was literally talking about a wart in my post title. I have a warty beauty right on my foot, and I've been fighting it for years now. No dermatologist has been able to conquer the little beast. I heard about laser wart removal, and drove an hour to a doctor who uses lasers for this purpose.

She warned me that it would hurt. Well, yes indeedy it did. She warned me it would turn black. It's grey now, and darkening by the hour. I would post a photo of it, but many of you like food as much as I do, and (as much as some of you might want help destroying your appetites) I don't want to cause involuntary regurgitation.

But I plan to update the progress of the wart removal, as well as my quest to leave this pitiful weekend of food blunders in the past...

Bye-Bye Boobies

I feel juvenile using that term. If you're a guy, feel free to skip this post as I ramble about my mammary glands.

They're shrinking. I knew they would, but having to shop for a smaller bra because the one I was wearing was beginning to laugh and snicker, "Yeah right, honey" each day was not nearly as fun as shopping for smaller pants.

I honestly don't care about bust size. If I were alone on a deserted island, being flat chested would be preferable, because boobs make running, jumping, and shimmying down trees less feasible.

But since I don't live on a deserted island (and hardly ever shimmy down a tree, for that matter), I am inclined to appreciate what God gave me, because my husband appreciates what God gave me. It's not much, but it'll do, and now it's less than before.

Fortunately, I'm shrinking in proportion to the rest of my body, however. I began to realize that if I kept the boobs I had while heavy, I'd begin to look fake; top-heavy; like the ladies at the gym who have been altered. And I'm all about being natural, so I should be happy about this, right?

Something's Fishy...

at Publix!

They've been carrying the most amazing Sockeye Salmon, and I've eaten it four times this week. I just can't seem to get enough of the stuff. Prince Charming doesn't like seafood, but my girls have been enjoying it with me, and it's been so simple to prepare. The time I ate it with the fresh pineapple, I put some of the pineapple juice in the dish while it baked, but otherwise, I pop it in at 300 degrees for about 15 minutes with a little pepper and it's perfect.

I usually prefer fish that has a mild flavor, and sometimes salmon is too much for me, but for some reason, this fish has had the most amazing, subtle flavor. And, it's on sale :)

Big One loves hummus, and I hadn't made it in a while (Sabra made me lazy!), so I decided to whip up a batch. I had some nice organic lemon juice around for the salmon, so into the blender I threw:

• About a can and 1/2 chickpeas (without the liquid)
• a few good squirts of lemon juice
• several shakes of salt
• 10 twists of pepper
• a good drizzle of olive oil
• small pour of Cumin
• and a slosh of the chickpea liquid

The blender handled it all fairly well, and Big One approved. I cook by feel and taste, so I didn't even try to guess accurate measurements for everything :)

I like my hummus on toasted-until-crispy whole wheat pita bread, but the girls had it on organic corn chips today. I did too, since we're all out of pita. And pity me, salmon too.

Icky, Sticky, Potty Seat Covers

They're just one of the things you'll encounter at Six Flags!

We took our girls for a fun day at the park. It was a mere 95 degrees in the shade, but daunted, we were not.

What happened right before my favorite hat flew off my head? My husband told me I shouldn't worry about my hat flying off my head, so no need to take it off. There it lay, in the grass below the tracks of the roller coaster, looking helpless while I gave my husband evil looks for doubting my wisdom in gauging the risk of high-hat-removing-winds on a roller coaster...

Then, after sweating a fair amount, the girls and I stopped in the ladies room as we all needed a little relief. I took Little One with me, and Big One took the stall next to ours. I dutifully placed the paper potty cover on the seat, and plopped LO on the pot. After she peed, she and the cover stood up. Together. As in, they took vows to never part ways, no matter how much swatting, picking, scrubbing I did with a nice clean wad of toilet paper.

So I was left using my previously clean fingers to pick little pieces of potty-cover-paper-laced-with-kid-sweat off my daughter's rear end and upper thighs.

But I still had to pee, so not learning from history, I too, sat on the seat neatly covered by a paper protector. And it stuck to me too (amazing!). But for some reason, even though I was just as sweaty, if not more, the paper came off in one piece instead of 3,000. Fortunately, Little One was there in the stall to verify that I was pulling my shorts up over a paper-free behind.

I asked Big One about her experience, and she too was accosted by her potty cover. There must be a way around this...

In better and more fun news, I'm almost in the 150's!!!! This, despite taking three whole days off from working out. I haven't done that in months, but I really needed the break. I almost shrieked when I hopped on the scale today! Reward massage, here I come!

Big Sweaty Men

I usually am not bothered by them. But I've learned to steer clear of them at the gym during group fitness classes. Not because they're any smellier than I am, mind you, but because they share the wealth...

Their wealth of perspiration. If this weren't a health hazard, I wouldn't mind so much. But I am a germ conscious person, and when the guy in front of me flings a few droplets ON MY LIPS while he's kicking 'corner to corner' on his step? Well that's just too much for me to take.

I thought this was an isolated incident, so I didn't think to much of it when an entirely different guy plopped down on a bike next to mine in a spin class. There's not much arm flinging that goes on in those classes, so I thought I was safe.

Well this guy got rather enthusiastic toward the end of our class and clapped his drippy hands up high. Where did his sweat fly? Right at my water bottle which was happily perched in front of my bike in the cup holder thingy. I was so darn thirsty too.

So if you're a guy at my gym, who takes a position near mine during a class, please don't be offended if I surreptitiously relocate. I just can't take it anymore

Sporting a Nursing Shirt, and I'm Not, eh-hem, Nursing Anyone

I'm back in town, but while I was packing, realized that I'm running terribly short on shirts that fit. Many are too big. Many are too small, and I didn't really want to do laundry while we were away, so I packed an old nursing shirt that fits right now and looks cute.

Fortunately, my 7 year old didn't remember it; nor did she look at my chest and salivate. My husband is another matter ;)

So, what's better than an evening out without the kids with the man of your dreams at the Melting Pot??? (Where I ate all four courses... and my husband can't eat gluten so I gobbled up all those unhealthy but very yummy dipping treats for the chocolate with no competition)?

Coming back home to see a new low weight on the scale!!!

I have a hunch though, when it comes to figuring out how that happened, in spite of our fondue-fun.

Although I ate well, and didn't really eat more than my share of the 4th of July festivity-food, I did work out. I ran three miles on my treadmill at home the day we left. Then I ran three more on my sister-in-law's treadmill a couple days later. Which, by the way, must have a minuscule incline to it even when it's set to zero, so I think I worked harder than I usually do.

But the real deal involves my first outdoor run in, oh, about 15 years. I don't know what got into me. Perhaps the slight incline of the borrowed treadmill. Or maybe it was the lack of a fan to blow on my face (my treadmill has one of those built into it, and it is AWESOME!) that drove me to run outside in South Florida at noon.

Let's see: treadmill inside with A/C and overhead fan, or outside with no fan (barring the breeze brought on by the plethora of passing cars) on one of the hottest days of the year in the tropics. I earn every one of my blond hairs on some days.

I didn't know how far to go, so I just decided to run out for 20 minutes, and then run back. The kicker was that the slight headwind that kept my face from burning, disappeared on the way home (with the cars at my back) and my upper arms started getting chills. I was wondering about heat stroke, and if goose-flesh is one of the symptoms. The clouds that formed a nice overcast layer when I left, miraculously parted and I got a sunburn on my chest.

My husband is not a runner, and when he spots someone running along the road he jokes, "Where's the fire?!"

Well, two fire trucks passed me on Del Prado while I ran, and I wanted to chuckle, but was too hot to expend the extra energy. He told me later that he heard them too, and was worried that I'd killed myself running. I was the only runner out that day...At first I thought that was just because elderly folks don't seem to run that often. But then two young bikers rode by. And now I have come to believe that only an idiot (or a natural blond?) would opt for a mid-day run in South Florida in July.

But I sweated. A lot. And this may be how I lost the weight this vacation :)

Off to Grandmother's House We Go

Travelling and not losing my momentum has been a real challenge in the past. I don't know if it's because trips were one of the times I was allowed to eat junk food growing up, or just because I feel justified in taking a "vacation" from my healthy eating plan too. But in either case, I have to really plan not to make a mess of things when I travel.

Add travelling to staying with in-laws, and we have a recipe for some real upsets if I'm not super careful!

I'll be bringing protein bars with me when we go so that I always have a measured quantity of food that will fill me up and keep me on the straight and narrow. Other than that, I'll probably visualize some difficult situations and plan how I'll deal with them before-hand.

The fact that my kids are "clean eaters" is a real help to me though. They don't eat any of the typical junk foods that I might enjoy, so just knowing that they're watching how Mommy eats should help keep me accountable. My husband is also a healthy eater, so he's always good company when everyone else in our extended family is downing the stuff that's not part of our usual fare.

The best part of my plan? I've got a work-out plan in the works. My gym has reciprocal privileges with others around the country (Gold's) so I plan to go to a couple of classes.

How about you? During vacations; especially ones to places where you have little control over the menu, what tricks do you use to increase the chances that you'll come home with a proud smile on your face?