Day 4

As you can see, there was no Day 3 post. I was lazy yesterday. In all aspects. I didn't drink any water. Actually, I didn't drink much fluids at all. I had 3 cups of coffee, one can of soda and a 20oz Minute Maid Lemonade. Shame on me.

But, I am starting today right. I skipped the coffee and instead had hot green tea. I used my little tea cups, which actually holds 6oz of liquids. Which made sweetening the tea much easier. I only needed 2 packets of Truvia. Wow it was so much more pleasant than the coffee!! I'm not really saving any money by making the switch, but I am saving the calories.

I'm still making myself eat something for breakfast. Today that was simple, I actually woke up hungry. Which was perfect since I made Overnight Cranberry Oatmeal. That stuff was yummy! I only ate half cup worth. Which seemed plenty at the time. I love oatmeal, and it's a healthy choice. Though I'm sure the add-ins were not that healthy. I'll share what I added [to the slow cooker].

1 cup steel cut oats
2 cups 1% milk (it's what I had, normally I use skim)
2 cups water
2/3 cup white sugar
2/3 cup whole cranberries (if using frozen, reduce liquids by 3/4 cup--either milk or water)
1 tsp nutmeg

*cook on low for 6-8 hours. I recommend using a slow cooker liner*

Looks like I can't post much more. I'm about to grab some water and play some Wii Tennis. I'd like to make note that I have already done 34 minutes of Wii Routine Workout. I should probably skip the tennis, but I like playing that game. So, I'm actually doing that for fun, not to workout. That's just an added bonus.

I'll try to come back later and update. But if not, then at least we all know I did workout for at least 34 minutes, plus whatever I get from Wii Sports (tennis).

Signed,
Super Mom
{who is getting fit}

Day 2

Today was easy, and hard. It was all over.

I kept track of most my calories taken in today. Sad to admit I consumed roughly 1900 calories. I was aiming for 1700. It was that second grilled cheese sandwich that did me in. I blame the grapefruit. I wanted a snack, because I was truly hungry (not starving, but actually hungry). I thought I'd go with the grapefruit since it was not only healthy and sweet, but big. Sadly, it wasn't any good. Which is how I ended up with two grilled cheese sandwiches.

That said, I didn't do too bad today. I only drank one Sprite. I'm currently on my fourth 10oz bottle of water, and I had 2 cups of green tea. Speaking of Sprite, I tried the Sprite Zero, it's not bad. Not great, but not horrible. I'm not keeping with that though. Simply because it is gross if it reaches room temperature. And my sodas always do. One can will last me at least 2 hours, if not longer. I don't chug them. And when the "diet" sprite isn't cold, it taste diet.

I didn't do a lot of snacking. I had a few mints, because I am addicted. And the grilled cheese sandwiches. I almost caved and opened some Thin Mints. I need to figure out how to do this. I don't want to give up my Thin Mints. But, I know I can't eat them every day. Maybe I will use them as a motivator. If my daily calorie intake is no more than 1700, I can have 4 cookies! Haha, how sad. I'm not bribing myself to eat less (or at least make better food choices).

As for exercise, I may have gone overboard. The kids and I walked the neighborhood for 30 minutes with the dog. And then I did 35 minutes of workout on the Wii Fit. Not bad, but way too much. I'll probably have to take a lazy day tomorrow. I can already feel the pain.

Did I mention I have chronic back pain? That makes exercising daily a struggle as it is. But I'm forcing myself to push through it. Hard part is I don't register any pain while moving. It's not until I'm done that I realize I hurt.

Really, that's it. I just wanted to log how I did today. I'm off for a shower and some much needed sleep. Have to wake up early to get the kids out the door for school.

Signed,
Super Mom

New Beginnings

How many times have I said that? How many times have I said I was back, and staying put? Don't worry, I lost track too. But I'm hoping to change that today. Hoping to include this into my new routine. No promises. But, it really would work into my new challenge.

I'm on the edge of hitting that "overweight" phase. I'm not there yet, but I'm damn close. So close that my Wii Fit tells me to drop a couple pounds to lower my BMI. It was scary to watch it sit just below the overweight bar. I'm sure plenty of people would tell me not to bitch. That I don't need to lose weight. I look great. Whatever. Problem is, I'm not happy with me. Do I think I'm fat? Sort of. I have that "mommy belly". Where all my excess weight sits in my belly. Go figure. The hardest fat to lose. Of course, a good collection of it is from having twins. And then failing to be active. Don't worry, I'm not throwing out the "I had kids" excuse. That only works for the first year, max. And really, that's pushing it.

My current weight is 142 pounds, in my light weight clothes (some yoga pants and a tank top--no shoes). I want that to be 130, so just 12lbs to down. I do understand I may gain weight, not lose. But the gain would be muscle mass, not fat. Or at least, I hope to do that. It's harder than I thought.

I made small changes last month. Of course, not enough. And then I got lazy. I'm not a big meal eater, but I do like my snacks. Who can resist those damn Girl Scout cookies when your freezer is stuffed with about 7 boxes of thin mints? See my problem? Still, the change I made, I hoped to see some difference. I dropped the sugar in my morning coffee. And lessened the creamer. I switched to Truvia sweetener. Personally, it doesn't taste like diet sugar. Making that change, I went from nearly 1000 calories daily from JUST coffee, to an average of 100 calories daily. I guess I was making up the difference with all those thin mints. And birthday cake.

As of yesterday though, I decided to make a bigger change. I can't expect weight to disappear sitting on my butt eating thin mints and Easter candy. In addition to working on my eating habits, I'm adding in some light exercise and trying the Green Tea Diet. Well, okay, I don't know the extent of that diet. But I'm drinking green tea now. Not as much as they suggest (something like 4-5 cups daily). I'm drinking more water, and less soda.

I'm new to all this. I will have good days and bad days. I'm still working out the kinks. Finding what works for me. I'm using my Wii Fit to exercise. I like that it gives me workouts based on where I want to focus. But it also has general "free play" workouts. Plus, it keeps track. I like looking at my calendar and seeing my blue star (why couldn't they make it a gold star?).

Ok, that's all for now. I'm going to make another cup of tea and post about today.

Signed,
Super Mom

Volcanoes and Kisses!

Saturday was Vesuvius Day.  For those that don't know, it's a volcano.

On August 24, 79 A.D. Mount Vesuvius erupted in a huge explosion.  When it erupted, it destroyed the Roman cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Stabiae.  In it's aftermath, it was estimated over 3000 people were killed.

It exploded a second time in 1631, claiming the lives of approximately 3500 people.

So on to the sandwich!  It's not *too* terrible.  It isn't pretty, but I think I get points for trying!  We used gummy worms for the "flowing" hot lava.  And Cheez-Its to surround it.  The dark spots on top are 2 red jelly beans.  My 7 year old thought it needed them, I couldn't argue with her.

Vesuvius Day--Volcano Sandwich

Today is Kiss and Make up Day.  I can't seem to find the origin of this "holiday".  However, here are a few fun facts about this day (August 25th) in history:

1939:  The movie "The Wizard of Oz" opened around the United States.

1718:  City of New Orleans is founded.

OK, so there are a lot of things that happened on this day in history.  However, it appears the twins are not letting me sit and search and type.  So for now, you'll have to settle for 2 random facts.

And to end the post, here is today's sandwich.

Kiss and Makeup Day--Lips

Spongecake Day Brings Something New

I'm happy to report, I have created a NEW sandwich!  Ok, new for this family at least.  If you do a quick search, you'll find many other versions.

Today is spongecake day.  Having a theme certainly makes it easier on me to create a sandwich.  I've been using a list of random daily holidays.  Earlier in the month I created a binder.  That helps also.  I have sandwiches already planned out for the next couple months.

And now for the sandwich...

Ok so this was pretty fun.  I've not made a Spongebob Squarepants sandwich before.  It was pretty simple too!  A piece of orange cheese for the body, a piece of white cheese for the eyes and teeth.  If I had white bread, I would have used that for the eyes and teeth.  However, I didn't.

First Day of School--Be An Angel Day

Today is the first day of school.  In addition to that, it's also Be An Angel Day.  How perfect for the start of a new school year!

So, with it being angel day, I made sandwiches to match!

Ok, so I'm not perfect.  Anyone who knows me, knows I have NO art skills.  However, the children don't seem to mind.

Victoria recently became a vegetarian.  And because of that, she is no longer eating the school lunches.  And, surprisingly, she has requested I please shape her sandwiches.  Not something I expected from my 11 year old 6th grader.  But I don't mind!

I have an entire year to get those faces right!  I wonder if I can find smaller candy eyes?

Easy Silly Face Cupcakes

 Today my daughter turns 11 years old.  I can't believe it.  Where has the time gone?  She's all grown up now!  Yesterday, well more like last night, she asked if she could take cupcakes to school.  For some reason, the thought just didn't cross my mind this year.  It was about 9:30pm when she asked me this.  What's a mom to do?  Well, scavenge the pantry of course!

This took me a few hours to complete.  But, I was also distracted.  As it was late at night, I was playing around on the computer and didn't keep track of time.  But, there was about 10 minutes of prepping, 40 minutes of baking (24 cupcakes--but only 12 at a time).  Then an hour to cool down.  Another 20 minutes for an idea to pop into my head.  And about 30 minutes to make it happen.

So here's what I came up with!  Not too bad for last minute baking and only using what I had on hand.  Keeping going for "instructions" for these fun cupcakes kids of all ages are bound to love!

Materials Needed--
Cake Mix (plus whatever the box says you need for making the cake)
Frosting (duh, right? lol)
Cupcake liners
Food Coloring (if you have white cake or white frosting) (don't use chocolate for this, it won't look as fun)
Mini M&Ms
Regular M&Ms
Colorful licorice twists (you can use just red, I happened to have "fun size" multicolored twists)
Clean scissors or knife (I have scissors I use ONLY for this type of stuff)
Frosting spreader/knife/thingy (what IS that thing called?)
Mini Oreos

Bake your cupcakes according to package directions.  If you have white cake mix, add some food coloring first.  This is totally optional.  I just think colored cupcakes are more fun.  Plus, it's for a birthday!  (well, mine are at least)

 Frost your cupcakes.  If you hold your spreader kinda at an angle and swirl around the cupcake, it gives it a better finish.  Hard to explain.  Have the bottom edge of the spreader on the edge of the cupcake.  It helps to evenly distribute the frosting.  Then add your oreo cookies as shown below.

**If you're like me and don't want to waste half a cookie just because it doesn't have "filling" on it, find a way to use that half.  You could smear on some white frosting for a background.  Or leave it without a background and move on to the next step.  In my final pictures, you'll see 2 other ways I did the eyes using the cookies**

Add your MINI M&Ms to the cookies.  Use the same color, 2 different colors.  Doesn't really matter.  Be sure to "glue" them on.  Just dab a little frosting to the back of the candy.  Don't worry about making the eyes even, these are supposed to be silly cupcakes.

Place a REGULAR M&M (any color) between the eyes, as shown.  You want to place it in there sideways.

Here's a side shot of the "nose".  Does that help?

Now peel a piece of your licorice twist off.  Doesn't matter what color you are using.

Cut to the size you want/need.  Since mine are fun size, I cut it roughly in half.

And place it on the cupcake, as shown.  And you're finished!!  Now admire your cupcake and be sure to take a picture before eating them!!

Mine finished cupcakes.  See the one with the green eyes?  I used the half of cookie that didn't have filling.  Didn't give it a background, as the only frosting I had on hand was the strawberry.  Tori thought it was cool and like it better than the "filling" eyes, haha.

Another option for the cookie eyes is to use, well, candy eyes!  You can find them in specialty baking stores.  I was actually lucky enough to find these at Kmart, in there bake-ware section.  Haven't checked Walmart yet, but they may carry them too.  

I imagine you could also use mini marshmallows on the cookies.  Just cut it in half and smoosh it a little.  Then add either a mini M&M or a mini chocolate chip for the eye (again, using your canned frosting as the "glue").

**Just a quick tip.  If you are making these ahead of time, either hours or a day ahead, put them in the fridge!  Especially if it's warm.  Not just outside, but in your house also.  I once made these Corn on the Cob cupcakes (see picture below) and the frosting sorta melted.  I made them at night and left them on the counter so my husband wouldn't forget them for work (they were having some holiday lunch thing).  He said when he went to get them the toppings were sliding off.  It was a cozy 72 degrees in our house that night/morning.**

Aren't these Corn cupcakes cute??

It's just topped with candy and sugar crystals!