03 April, 2008

Week Two

Well, the Little Goat had her first misadventure yesterday. I was in the kitchen making biscuits and she was sitting on the couch with Mr. J. Well I guess she got a little excited about her fake credit card she was playing with and started rocking back and forth with a little too much vigour and "flew off" the couch into the coffee table. Argh. There's just a mark on her forehead now - no bruise and no big bump. Phew!

I contemplated staying home from my La Leche League meeting, or at least leaving the LG at home because I felt like such a bad parent, but guess what? There were four kids there including the LG. Johnny, the youngest isn't sitting on his own yet. That leaves the other two girls, BOTH of whom made significant contact with...THE COFFEE TABLE! Hah! I mean, okay, it wasn't funny really at the time, but it was a little coincidental, don't you think? At least I felt better.

Anyway, it's been just over a week since I last posted and in that post I told you about our plans for a refined-sugar 'fast' for the month of April. Okay, not all of April, just until the 27th (I'm not giving up sugar on our Anniversary thank you very much.)

Things have been going okay so far. I thought I would take a minute to clarify what's still on the menu versus what's been taken off. I already mentioned pretty much what's been taken off: cookies, pies, cakes - desserts in general; pop (which we don't drink much of anyway), and candy. Still on the list: certain cereals that aren't blatantly full of sugar like say, Fruit Loops, muffins (the recipe I usually make has about 1/3 cup of sugar in the whole batch), and a reasonable amount of sweetener in coffee or tea. Honey, in small quantities, is also allowed since it's unrefined. Mr. J. is also allowing himself the occasional graham cracker.

As with any adjustment in eating, one must take the good with the bad. As in, my cravings for sweets are BAD, but overall (the GOOD), I'm feeling a lot...healthier already. NoMo asked in the comments if I could document my weightloss, but we very intentionally, do not own a scale. Wait. No, we do, but it can only weigh up to one pound and it's the scale Mr. J. uses to weigh out coffee beans before roasting. (Yes, he roasts his own coffee, my Renaissance Man.) I can tell you though, that last time we did this, the results must have been noticeable because after just one month, people started to comment. And of course, I'll let you know if my jeans feel any looser. (I also found out at my doctors appointment last week that I've lost five pounds since I was there last. I kept asking if it was a mistake and finally stopped when the nurse looked like she might slap me if I asked again. That in itself is a little bittersweet - could I have lost more if I'd actually been trying?)

Jenn asked what I find hardest to stay away from. There's not one specific food item that I find hard to stay away from....we do still have candy in the house, but as mentioned in the last post, it's 'hidden' away in the back of the freezer. Generally for me, if it's out of sight, it's out of mind. And if I know I can't have it and other people are going to be checking on me, I find it pretty easy to avoid. It becomes almost like a game. I am definitely most tempted in the afternoon though. I hate not having something sweet to finish off my lunch so when I made muffins the other day, I made some mini ones that are about two-bites-big so it's just enough sweet to make me feel satisfied.

So far, my most exciting accomplishment on this fast is an apple tart I made last week with apples, walnuts and honey...and it was wonderful!

It is now nearly naptime. The LG and I are off to visit Mr. J. at work today. He, or a 'volunteer' from his department is going to watch the LG while I go and get bloodwork done, have some x-rays and an ultrasound (which is not in ANY WAY PREGNANCY-RELATED). Yippee!! See you later!

P.S. How's everybody's Spring coming along? It has been sunny here for three days in a row and *GASP* the snow has begun to melt!

12 comments:

erin k said...

Apple tart recipe please...

bren j. said...

ERIN!!!!!! HOORAY!!!

Jess said...

Yesterday and Monday were cold but today it's supposed to get up to sixty and tomorrow SEVENTY AND SUNNY. OH I am excited.

By the way, Torsten got that stripey sweater at Macy's, and I don't think it's a particular brand. I can check at home, if you want.

bren j. said...

Ooh...70! Nice, Jess!

Macy's, hey? Thanks!

Beth said...

Did I totally miss something? Are you pregnant?!

Beck said...

That first time your baby gets hurt is SUCH A HEARTSTOPPER. I remember feeling guilty for just WEEKS afterwards! Poor munchkin.

Refined sugar fast, eh? I should probably do that, too.

Kellan said...

So glad to hear that the fast is going well - good for you. And congrats on the 5lb weight loss - wow! Have a good Thursday - see you soon - Kellan

Space Monkey said...

Now a poem,'Dark Wednesday' by Baron Hamilton Stakallen.

LG and Mr. J went up the couch to fetch a pail of refined sugar,
LG fell down and bumped her crown and Mr. J came tumbling after.

So goes insomnia.

sugarplumfairysugarplumfairy

Run ANC said...

I hope you don't think that I'm that nosy - I just wanted to know about the weight in the hopes that it would make me want to give up sweets. I'm hopeless!

Geez, for a moment there, I really thought you were preggo.

bren j. said...

NoMo: Goodness, no! I didn't think you were being nosy at all! If we owned a scale, I would totally be into letting you know how much I lost. I really do FEEL better though which is almost as good as losing any weight. And part of me really likes the challenge of trying to create sugarless or almostcompletelysugarless treats to eat!

Kellan said...

Hi Bren - thanks for coming by today - nice to see you. Hope you are having a good Monday. See you later - Kellan

Jenn said...

That's great that your sugar fast is going good.
I miss my old LLL group now that we've moved, sigh. I'm glad you have one.