Question of the Day - February 5
Let's talk... snack foods.
Guests living onboard the Axiom have only the best options to choose from for food - just kidding!
They're drinking Buy n Large slurpees flavored with pizza, hotdogs, and burgers. Um... yuck!
How do you manage snacking and snack foods?
What are your go-to snack foods? What are your weaknesses?
Bonus: Would you want to try a hamburger flavored slurpee, like those featured in Wall-e?
First of all.... I don't think I'd like anything in "slurpee" form... EWW! Not a fan AT ALL! And I'm not a fan of meat either. Can't imagine anything much less appealing!
Snacking and snack foods..... well, after being on this journey for what feels like a LONG TIME, my snacking habits and go-to snacks have definitely EVOLVED from where they were in 2008. Right now most of my snacks would be considered pretty healthy and not particularly indulgent. During the day I tend to stick with fruit and vegetable and protein (mostly in the form of cheese or hummus) snacks... apples, bananas, pears, carrots, celery, red bell peppers primarily.
"Treat" type snacks for me are usually homemade microwave popcorn (made in a brown bag without added fat or salt.... I add what I want after), the OCCASIONAL handful of tortilla chips and salsa, the rare WW snack (crunchy or sweet... probably less than one a week), or a frozen treat (current favorite is the Yasso coconut). My kids usually get me Lindt truffles (salted caramel) for Christmas and I honestly try to forget that they are in my drawer. I try to stick to one or two a month until they are gone. At 5 SP each, I really need to work them into my day and SAVOR them! Plus those little buggers are expensive! I also have a sweet "hot beverage" that is a combo of a few sugar-free/caffeine-free instant coffee drinks that I like. If I am looking for something sweet at night.... or if I can't decided between sweet or salty, I will have a cup of that with some homemade popcorn.... that hits both notes perfectly! I love nuts and while I know they are healthy, they are just TOO HIGH in calories/SP for me! If I am really craving nuts, I will scoop out 1 Tb. of real organic natural peanut butter (the Teddy's is the best) and slowly lick it from the spoon or dip apple slices in it or smear it on a half a banana.
Honestly, I do not keep anything like chips, cheetos, oreos, or any other kinds of white sugar/white flour/corn treats in the house. I don't want to be tempted, DH doesn't want to be tempted, and I do not want my kids (even though they aren't really "kids" any more) eating them! Once in a great while I'll buy a small bag of grocery store cookies for DS, but honestly, he doesn't really care about them and they end up going stale before he eats them. He is more of a salty-snacker.... he is the only reason that there are tortilla chips and pretzels in the house. He loves chips and salsa and avocado (yeah to healthy fats!) and adores hummus.... but mostly with pretzels. Wish I could get him to eat the hummus with celery..... but baby steps!!
My WW group came up with a saying about having snack foods in the house.... they say "Say no ONCE at the grocery store and you don't have to say no DAILY in the kitchen!" Basically it breaks down to ...."don't buy it and you won't eat it!" But that is easy for me to say.... I live 40 minutes from a grocery store and 5 miles from the nearest thing that would resemble a convenience store. If I want a treat that isn't in the house, it is a LONG trek! I don't even have to worry about passing anything between work and home because other than a little "snack shack" that is mostly open in the summer, I pass NOTHING food related.... not even a Dunkin Donuts! Even when I head a town away for my Tuesday WW meetings, I still pass NOTHING. If I want a coffee I have to go PAST my meeting location by about a mile to a gas station/quick mart.
Hum Motivation.. I feel like I have none.. I of course want to feel better, get my diabetes under control and be more active but I can't seem to make myself move.. I keep telling myself once I lose some weight with WW it will be easier or once it's nicer outside it will be easier but IDK.. Hubs and I are just not all that active.. we are couch potatoes.. and especially this time of year (altho we have had a non-winter winter) I have just started a new diabetes medicine and I am hoping that will lower my A1C so I will feel better (not so darn tired all the time) and have more energy so I can get something done.. My goal of hula hooping 3 times a week hasn't happened yet (I've got a visitor) and can't seem to get out of my own way this week.. I will keep tracking all foods and work on getting some energy for Hooping. Off to a 1.5 hr meeting soon.. it's our yearly announcement of the Aspire Trip that lucky winners (I won in 2012) get a trip to Disney for some work some play! they put us up in the Yacht and Beach Club, give you 3 day hoppers, night in room gifts and pamper you in complete and total Disney style.. unfortunately the girl in our department who is the winner is out today but the theme for the meeting is " Follow the Yellow Brick Road " should be lots of fun and a great way to end my day..
Note - the year I went we had a Good vs. Evil dinner the first night, the second Night we went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter for dinner and rides and the third night we had dinner backstage of the Indiana Jones show.. Food, Drinks, everything free of charge!
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Hugs and Smiles to all. Michelle
First of all... that work trip sounds amazing! I imagine you had a WONDERFUL TIME!! Love the picture!!
Praying that your motivation picks up.... wish I could help you with it. Just keep remembering that you are WORTH IT.... you are worth the BEST LIFE POSSIBLE! And getting your A1C under control through medication AND weight loss will give you that, right??? How about BEING THE EXAMPLE for your DH??
How are things going with the new home??? Any word?
Good Friday afternoon. We had an unexpected snow storm this morning. I woke up about 5 and there was maybe a lite dusting on the cars. When we looked out again at 6:30 the roads were covered and it was really coming down. I don't have any classes on Friday so that was fine with me. Dh was supposed to go to a meeting about his mother but that was 45 minutes away and he called his sister and told her he wasn't coming. She wasn't happy. She told him that there was no snow on the roads at her house but he just told her no he would not risk the drive. I was so happy to hear him say that. It stopped about 1 and we went out about 2 to do the sidewalks and sweep off the cars. Then we walked the dog.
I am trying not to snack too much. I can't in the morning since I usually have class. If I have something in the morning it is just a cup of tea. I have found that if I use a lite string cheese(50calories) and 3 triscuits I am at 110 calories. Maybe a small piece of fruit but that is all I have been trying this week.
I restarted this journey on Monday morning. I had a great weigh in this morning but I am really not using that as my goals for this month.
My goals for this month
1. Check in here each day and answer the QOTD (4/28)
2. Record all my food into Sparkpeople (5/28)
3. Try to get to 8000 steps at least 3 days a week. More if I can fit it in (1/13)
Have a happy and healthy day.
Lots of goals to calculate.... and I saw that Courtney asked you to figure out a percentage and I thought....."Dona's got this... she a MATH GIRL!" Me.... I'd be like "duh... what?".... math is such a struggle for me! Glad you were both able to stay home and stay safe. Our roads were bad yesterday!
I finally got my turkey, bacon, avocado sandwich!!!!! So yummy.
We got snow. Weird snow. It was like a snow apocalypse this morning and now by 4:30 the sun is out and blue skies. Here's to the roads not being too icy tomorrow.
As far as the QOTD I don't actually snack all that much which is a bad thing. I used to not eat most of the day and would then nearly binge for dinner and eat so many calories till I was uncomfortablely full and go to bed.
Now to make myself snack I'll have an apple, rice cakes(I actually like them), or just one serving of actual snack foods like goldfish crackers. I'll eat veggies too. I'm big on green beans and carrorts. A hand full of either and I'm good to go! Hummus or laughing cow cheese make great snacks as well.
We also had a bit of "Snow-mageddon" here yesterday. Our town was one of the only ones in this area to NOT have a snow day and of course buses got stuck, parents were mad, kids were late! It was a nutty day to be working in the school office. And then by 4pm the sun was shining brightly! It actually was a beautiful (cold) evening!
I will do that for you.
I am at 14% for the month
Oh, man, I love snacks. And I love the worst possible snacks. Swedish Fish, Sour Patch Watermelons, White Chocolate Reese's, White Chocolate Covered Oreos (thank goodness they're only around at Christmas!), Sour Cream & Cheddar Ruffles.... Omnomnom. Plus white cheddar popcorn, and so many other things I can't even think of. Basically I'm always munching and it's always something awful for me... I also love green grapes and bananas and green apples, though. Looking at it, I love things that are quick and easy and yummy. And I wait too long to eat, so I end up getting holy @:!,'?&$ hungry and just eating whatever I can find or giving in to cravings and DH runs down to the gas station on the corner for sweets. Especially if I'm frustrated, which happened last night. Sigh. Hello, 215 pounds.
Also - no, I'll keep my hamburgers in solid form, thanks! Blech.
Come on..... you GOT THIS!! How about setting that alarm to get up and move and have a HEALTHY snack every hour or two.... so you don't end up with the "hungry horrors" or being "hangry" enough to eat a bear!??
Discussion of the Weekend: February 6-7
Disney Chat: Disney California Adventure
Celebrating 15 years! - 2001 (left) - 2016 (right)
This thread will take a break on Saturday and Sundays to discuss something of relevance to Disney Parks. The spotlight for this weekend will be all things Disney California Adventure. This weekend marks the 15th anniversary of Disney California Adventure theme park - the second park at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim. Located across the promenade from Disneyland, this park was built on Disneyland's former parking lot. The park has changed a lot during its first 15 years, particularly in the last 3-4 years with a new facade entrance, the addition of Carsland, and having most of its rides/attractions re-themed to be more "Disney" than "California".
Now is the time: share your stories about Disney California Adventure!
Have you been? What is your favorite ride? What do you like about the new overlays?
Did you go while it was in its former, more "themed California" state? What did you like/dislike about it?
If you haven't been, what are you looking most forward to riding?
WOOT, WOOT! I've been there!!! Just once, but I've been!!
Here goes......
we got a call in late 2004 that DNiece in New Mexico was getting married the following July. She asked if DD would be a flower-girl. Of course DD was delighted and this was the first niece on DH's side to get married, so we had to say HECK, YES!! So the original plan was just a quick 3-4 trip to NM and back. Then I started thinking about seeing MORE out west. I am a wanna-be/frustrated-with-the-budget WORLD TRAVELER and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to see/do a bit more while we were out there. So I did some research and we decided to travel to the Grand Canyon (definitely a BUCKET LIST item for me!). And of course, why get that far and NOT see the Hoover Dam, right? But of course, where to stay when seeing the Dam? Well, Las Vegas, of course!!
And heck.... since we are ALL THE WAY out there, well Disneyland is just a "hop, skip, and a jump" away, right????
It took some heavy persuading and campaigning (and some financial adjustments, like me going back to a "real" job after being a SAHM for 9 years.... although I always had some sort of at-home job along the way), but I managed to convince DH that we had to do this!! And I've NEVER, EVER, EVER regretted one minute of it or wished for a dime of it back. It was, what I consider, our TRIP OF A LIFETIME (so far) with our kiddos.
We flew into NM and rented a car. Spent about 3 days there ( arrival day, one day for sight-seeing and the rehearsal, wedding day) and then drove (in one swoop) to AZ, about 45 minutes from the GC. Spent less than 9 hours in a hotel and woke bright and early and drove to the GC (but not early enough to experience sunrise
). Spent the day there (it was spectacular, despite local wildfires and smoky areas), left late afternoon and drove (in one swoop again) to LV. Checked into the Luxor and walked the "Strip" with the kids. Stopped to see the fountains in front of the Bellagio and checked out a few hotels, took a billion pictures and then collapsed into our beds near midnight. Rose the next morning early, had a HUGE breakfast buffet at the hotel and then drove to the Hoover Dam (btw, heat warnings that day with temps predicted to reach 115°F). Toured the Dam inside and out and left shortly after noon for our drive to DISNEYLAND! That was a LONG drive and SUPER BORING. I had to do all of the driving for this trip but it was worth it! DH had had surgery in May to help with an autoimmune disease he has. We knew he'd be tired a lot and it didn't seem worth it to pay the extra to put a second driver on the rental car. So I drove every minute of this trip. But again.... NO REGRETS!
Um...... I'm sorry. What was your original question????
Oh yeah... DISNEY'S CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE!
Obviously DL was my main goal. I wasn't even sure if we would bother to go to DCA, but of course, how could we NOT!?? For one reason and another, we only spent about 3/4 of one day at DCA. But we really liked it. That is where I fell in LOVE with Soarin'! It was a new ride there at the time. We all also loved California Screamin'! I think we rode it something crazy like 5 times that day!! And of course we saw the parades.... the (wait.... gotta go check the scrapbooks... cannot remember the name of the daytime parade!).......Block Party Bash and then in the evening we saw the Main Street Electrical Parade! OH MY! How excited I was!
Honestly, the ONLY thing I would say I disliked about it was..... that most of the rides seemed like "carnival" rides.... Jumping Jellyfish sticks out in my mind. And I remember that the pavement seemed SO HOT right through my shoes that day! It was the last day of our trip and we were DETERMINED to push through and NOT take our usual mid-day break, despite the heat and building crowds (this was the day before the official 50th anniversary.... crowds were definitely building!).
Liked.....obviously Soarin' was my favorite. And I think California Screamin' would get 2 thumbs up from my family. I didn't mind the California theming because after all, I was visiting California. But it seemed like a bit of a "duh". I'm already IN California, so why do I need a theme park ABOUT California?? But it was a FUN park and great to experience something NEW from Disney!
And guess what..... I'M GOING BACK!!! Unless something DRASTIC happens with our finances in the next few months, I am DEFINITELY going to California with DD in September for her conference and we plan to spend 2 days at DL/DCA! I've got the hotel reservations made on Harbor Boulevard! Flights open on 2/18, so fingers crossed that I find an AMAZING price for a flight that fits our schedule! And I cannot WAIT to experience Radiator Springs and PRAYING HARD that our schedule works out and we can experience WORLD of COLOR!! I'm sure it will make me.....
with happiness!!
Here is a picture or two from our 2005 trip...... Okay... NOPE! There are exactly TWO pictures of me taken in DCA. In both I am sitting on the sidewalk leaning on a trash can looking a hot sweaty mess waiting for a parade. HOW SAD! I never even REALIZED until now that I never got a (decent) picture of myself (or DH) in DCA! I will have to remedy that this year!! I know I was unhappy with my weight (200 lb) and mad that I had let my weight rebound after getting down to about 175 in 2003-2004 and DOUBLE MAD that I had nearly NINE MONTHS to lose the weight for the trip and didn't lose a pound.
Well.... that took quite a while! Sorry to ramble!
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Hey all! Sadly reporting a small gain this week, so now my goal for the month will be 3.2 pounds off! I know we don't report negative percentages, so I am at a solid
0% this week.
Guess the butternut squash and cornbread hash caught up with me!
Home alone today as the men are off to robotics. Got to catch up on housework, as I am the "adult-in-charge" for robotics tomorrow so will be gone from home for several hours. I'll be back later to chat more!.............P
