Wildcard Weekend – Friday March 18th:
This weekend we’re celebrating a parade that has been retired from two Disney parks – Block Party Bash!
Block Party Bash (BPB) was introduced at Disney California Adventure in May 2005 in conjunction with Disneyland's 50th Birthday "Happiest Homecoming on Earth" celebration. Advertised as a "high-energy party," Block Party Bash features characters from and units inspired by the Pixar films released to that point: Toy Story, The Incredibles, A Bug's Life, and Monsters, Inc. In addition to the characters, Block Party Bash featured a large number of dancers, bikers, and trampoline artists. The parade closed at DCA in January 2008 and was relocated to Disney's Hollywood Studios, where it ran from March 2008 through January 2011.
Have you seen this parade? Share your pictures!
With the Block Party Bash as our theme, let’s talk about parties.
Do you host parties at your home? Do you try to keep the menu healthy? How to you keep yourself from overindulging? How do you stop yourself from overindulging when you attend parties and gatherings hosted by friends and family?
I'm not much of a hostess.... well, that's not really true. I do really LIKE planning parties... but I make myself NUTTY trying to make things around the house perfect and it is SUPER stressful!!
Depending on the holiday/event and group, I stick with varying degrees of "healthiness". For DD's graduation party (and probably DS's) it was more about what I could afford to feed a group, what would be easiest and most appealing, etc, etc. There were DEFINITELY healthy options.... a few different salads, some lighter main dishes and a few vegetarian dishes.
That being said, I have a few things that I really think that MOST of us should NOT be consuming and I refuse to give those companies any of my hard-earned money (primarily things like Coke and Pepsi).... so drinks at DD's party were things that were served from those big spouted containers.... the choices were iced coffee , iced tea, lemonade, and "fancy" water" (with fruit slices).... sweeteners for the coffee and tea were available on the side) and I used old-fashioned glass mason jars for drinks.... a bit of a PITA but I HATE filling the landfill with red SOLO cups!!!
I don't host much because we live pretty far from most of our family (on average about 2-3 hours away from most of them).
It has been a LONG journey learning how to NOT overindulge at every event!! I do things like...... bring a healthy appetizer and a healthy salad so that I KNOW I have something I can nibble on if everything else is a calorie bomb....... stay in another room AWAY from the food and try to visit with people I don't see often........ help with the serving and clean up.... keeps me busy and hustling and keeps my hands too busy to eat...... have a healthy meal/snack BEFORE arriving at the event - I often eat an apple or a banana in the car right before arriving.
All of those techniques really help, but honestly, sometimes it is STILL really hard. But I've also learned that some things, as LOVELY as they look, just AREN'T worth the calories! Store bought cakes and pies.... not so much. Ice cream.... nothing special. Chips and dip... again, nothing special. Tortilla chips and salsa.... I can have that any time. Most basic white carbs (mashed potatoes, dinner rolls, etc).... nothing exciting there.
If I am going to splurge at a party or holiday, I want it to be SPECIAL.... like the lemon meringue pie that my aunt makes just once or twice a year (usually Thanksgiving, sometimes Easter too!). She knows I LOVE it and I truly savor every bite.... and sometimes I have TWO slices if there is any left! SO WORTH EVERY SINGLE CALORIE!
BTW, we LOVED Block Party Bash when we were in California in 2005 !! We had planned our ONLY day at DCA so that we were positioned JUST RIGHT for the bash parade Toy Story section to stop right in front of us! Kids loved it.... the parade dancers even tossed rubber balls out to the kids and DS caught one!! I'll try to post a picture, but I keep running into a "photo file too large" error..... I think the DIS must have recently changed its photos size policy because this is a new thing for me.
Weekly Challenge – Week 3:
We’re introducing something new this month – weekly challenges! Every Friday I’ll post a challenge, and you’ll have until the following Thursday to answer the challenge. Challenges are about sharing with your fellow participants and bringing everyone closer to your favorite parts of living a healthy lifestyle.
Thanks to all those who participated in last week’s challenge – it’s always nice to see people sharing beautiful food pictures and healthy recipes!
This Week’s Challenge:
Let’s get back to talking about working out. Some people love to “dress up” to workout, while others prefer to workout in whatever clothing they have around the house. Anything can be workout clothing – the most important thing is that you're comfortable and feel strong during your workout.
For this week, your challenge is to share the outfit you were wearing during your favorite workout. Did you have a run where you went faster than you thought you would and felt strong from beginning to end? Did you finally start lifting more weight in a session at the gym? Are you starting to feel more comfortable in a new class you just started recently? This week your challenge is to take your workout to the next level – and show us what you were wearing while you did that!
It doesn’t matter whether you were wearing old sweatpants and a ratty t-shirt or a color-coordinated outfit inspired by your favorite character. We just want to hear about your awesome workout and the clothes you were wearing that helped you get there!
(I apologize to the non-clothing-obsessed people here, because this challenge may be a little awkward for you … but I’m hoping that this topic encourages people to go out there and rock your next workout so that you have an awesome picture/story to share with us!)
Challenge Due Date: Thursday, March 24th
I'm going to take a pass on this unless something changes. I do not have anything exciting as far as workout clothes go and no pictures. I am definitely the "old sweatpants and ratty t-shirt" kind of girl! Fabletics... not so much! If I feel inspired to take a picture this week, I will post it, but don't count on it. It's a GREAT idea though Sarah.... I'm just an old fuddy-dud !!
I have been hosting parties but they are strange. It is usually as a holiday such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. I have been cooking at my house and transporting the food to my in laws house. By the time I have cooked, cleaned up, packed up, traveled, unpacked, reheated, cleaned up, repacked the food, cleaned up, traveled and then unpack I am usually too tired to eat. This has now changed since my mother in law died last month. My dh saw his sister this morning and she asked about Easter. He thinks she was trying to get me to cook. He is against me taking over all the holidays especially since his sisters do very little. Luckily last night we decided to go out with my sister and my mother for Easter.
We sometime have a potluck with friends and I just try to watch my portions.
Off to the last three performances of Music Man
So happy that your DH has your back!! Enjoy a RELAXING Easter!!
I also have days where I eat too much of something I shouldn't and leave my self wondering why when I log it - but really did enjoy the eating of it lol. It is so easy when you are a working mum to feel like we don't do much with our kids - I am similar as I have been so exhausted lately, last weekend I slept for 3 hours on Saturday afternoon after my 2 boys hockey games - when I wake up I feel bad that we could have done something - but also think that my body must have really needed the sleep! it is 4 working days till I start 2 weeks Easter break so can't wait. I also empathise on the work stuff I have been super busy and one of the people I have to work with has been with us for over 18 months now and still has no clue - it just makes more work for the rest of us plus doesn't help the 'feel' of our little office.
- try and eat only half the cookies this week and same the other half for next week - then you can prolong the enjoyment!
Working Mom guilt.... it is the WORST!! Dammed if you do and dammed it you don't!! To you AND the OP.... RELAX..... your kids know you are doing your BEST! Just try to be sure that the time you DO spend is quality time.... I'd rather see 2 hours of talking, laughing, and playing board games over 6 hours of "tv babysitter" while Mom is on Facebook!
Hi friends - I safely arrived in Dallas and picked up my bibs for the 5K and Half Marathon remix weekend challenge. I'm ready to rock it this weekend!
I think hubs and I have managed to overcome this obstacle because we'll eat before we go to a party because we never know what food will be served. We grab a diet soda or a water and just mingle with people - they aren't aware enough to notice we don't touch food. If there's a dessert present we mention an 'allergy' and have to pass. Luckily my nut allergy works in this scenario.
Love the "allergy" idea! Somehow it is SO MUCH EASIER to say that and have people back off, versus saying "I choose NOT to eat that"!! DD has to do that with regards to her non-pescatarian eating ALL the time! Otherwise she gets hassled and ridiculed for her choice!
I wore this outfit last weekend when I got my PR in Washington DC.
I like wearing shirts with funny sayings.
SO CUTE! No wonder you ran fast.... how could you NOT, while looking so good!!??
It's been a great past 24 hours.
Last night we ended up trying a new place called "Pizza Ranch". Fun place for the kids, but a pizza buffet with an ice cream machine and dessert pizzas wasn't ideal for me. Ended up eating a big salad and had 3 thin crust slices and stayed under 1500 calories for the day.
When we got home I ran on the treadmill. I was thinking I was going to try two miles again, but once I got to two, I wanted to see if I could keep going and do my first 5K. Nailed it! Not only did I get to 3.11 miles, I ended up going 3.5 miles and I kept the same speed the whole run (15 min miles - nothing to write home about, but for me it's a good start).
And to top it off, my weigh in this morning was a good one. I've officially lost 40 lbs. When I started back in January, my goal was to be at -40 around April 5th, so I'm ahead of the game.
So, my official weight check for the week puts me at 9 lbs down and my goal was 14 lbs this month. I'm at 64% toward my goal.
HUGE celebrations with you!!! WOOHOOO and BRAVO and
CONGRATULATIONS on hitting TWO big milestones!! I can totally understand your feeling about the 5K..... I can honestly remember the first time I tried it and succeeded.... same as you.... just thought..."what the heck... why not try it?" and did it!! Goosebumps moment, for sure!!
And WONDERFUL NEWS on officially hitting 40 pounds GONE FOREVER!!! That deserves another...
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Hey friends! Men are out the door for an important robotics days (unbag day, for those in the know). I've been up for a few hours, but chose to spend most of them on Pinterest...
Breakfast was DELISH and I will be Instagramming it shortly! For those not on Instagram, I had two eggs over easy (yes, REAL WHOLE eggs... not just whites... SPLURGE!) over homemade cauliflower hash. It was so yummy! I couldn't figure out what to have.... so I thought about what I would order if I were in a restaurant.... I knew I would order something a bit indulgent (whole eggs) with something healthy (veggies) and maybe a bit of carbs (going to have some fruit in a bit). And this is what I came up with! I was also thinking about doing a "grits and greens" plate, but opted for the eggs today.... so the grits may show up on Instagram tomorrow!
I have some vegetarian grocery store sushi left from yesterday so that will be lunch.... and planning something nice to have with the men for dinner.... not sure exactly what yet though.
Tempted to run out and hit up a few thrift stores today..... but I"m torn. I've been working SUPER HARD to save every penny for tuition and my Disneyland trip.... but I have stopped a few times this week while I was out and I am 2 for 2 on finding a great deal on some Fiesta for my collection.... I feel like I'm on a roll!! Plus I could stop at the transfer station on the way AND pick up just a few things I forgot to grab at the market yesterday. Hmmmm.... thinking about it. I may dig in my "fun money" envelope to see if I have anything left for a splurge.
GOOD NEWS.... the scale FINALLY made a move in the right direction! I am feeling a huge sense of RELIEF! Now to keep it moving!! I just bought a dress for DS's graduation in June and while it looked pretty good yesterday when I tried it on at the consignment store (I was having a "fat" day plus I had a full bladder), it is BELTED!
As a former heavy girl I NEVER got back into the habit of wearing belts.... I don't even OWN a belt! So this is really a stretch for me!! I need to be AT or BELOW my personal goal number (remember, that is 2 pounds lower than my WW number) in order to REALLY feel comfortable in this dress..... so I need to lose about another 2 pounds or more and KEEP it off until June 11 !! I know, I know.... that sounds ridiculously easy to most of you.... but honestly, I will have to work at it!! It is a constant battle between where my body seems to be comfortable and the 5-7 pounds LOWER than that that I want to stay at!!
Off to be productive!.....................P
...... P
Also, this cat is my one true love and I can't really handle this.
Yeah - Congrats on good movement on the scale. I hope you rock the dress - it is important to feel comfortable in what you are wearing on these special occasions so you can relax and enjoy the experience rather than worrying how we look in person and in the photos that will stay with us for a lifetime.
- whilst I am doing better with breakfasts and I have added activity to my life. I still have a long way to go - I have fallen down with lunches lately, not being organised and having them ready to take to work with me and fallen into old habits there.
