40 Pounds Gone Forever! Project Fit-Into-Dress Complete!

I have a 5 gallon bottle of water in my basement.  It's one of those water bottles that you find people standing around at work when they say they are "going to the water cooler."  When Joy was a newborn, lightning struck the power transformer down the road and thrust us into a 3 day power outage, which is a problem when you have well water which requires electricity to run.  So we have learned to stockpile water should we lose power again.

Today, after 2 weeks of following the strictest eating style that Trim Healthy Mama purports called the Fuel Cycle--a pattern of eating the different fuel types which is meant to rev up a lazy metabolism--I stepped on the scale to discover I AM DOWN 40 POUNDS!!!      

So what does that have to do with my water bottle in the basement?  According to my quick internet research, a 40 pound weight loss is equivalent to losing a 5 gallon bottle of water.

Have you ever tried to lift one of those water bottles??  They're heavy!!  I look at that water bottle and I can't help thinking to myself...I used to carry around that much extra weight every single day??  Wow!  No wonder I was always so tired and my joints hurt when I walked.  

The other day I went to put on a belt I haven't worn in a few weeks--I had to notch it an inch smaller to keep my "goal jeans" up.  That's right--when I started this THM journey, I bought a pair of size 14 jeans at a garage sale (they were brand new with tags still on) and decided that these were going to be my "goal pants."  Back in April 2013 I couldn't even imagine ever fitting into these comparatively tiny pants.  I went home and tried them on and could barely get them up over my thighs.  I admit it was rather discouraging, but I folded them up and put them in the back of my closet to be pulled out every month or so just to see if they fit.

At the end of the summer the pants finally fit.  They were tight, but I could button them and wear them without cutting off my air supply.  Today they are close to falling down if I wear them without a belt.  Thus my "goal jeans" are now about to become my "cast off jeans" as I am not done yet.  15 pounds more to go to get to my goal weight.

But the best part is that the dress I was determined to fit into, the dress I wore on my honeymoon and could zip up three weeks ago but left no room for breathing??  It fits!!  Like for real fits!!  With room to breathe and everything!  I may not like the dress (I'm not sure it actually goes well with my coloring, but whatever), but it fits and I can wear it!  

If I could impress one thing upon someone who is just starting out on their own weight loss journey, or who wants to lose weight but thinks it's hopeless so why even try, it is this:

You really can do this.  I tried all the other diets out there.  None of them "stuck."  I spent 2 years being in the "obese" category according to the BMI indexes.  I felt completely hopeless and that this was just the way I was going to be forever.  

But then I saw this diet being advertised.  It was a new one (it came out in November 2012), so there wasn't a lot of information out there on it, but those who had been using the program since the beginning were posting significant losses and reporting major health overhauls.  The $35 price tag on the book put me off for a few weeks, but then that nagging feeling just kept coming back that I should buy this book.  

I started the diet figuring it would be another program I started but failed.  Who ever sticks to a diet plan long enough to actually lose all the weight, let alone keep it off long term??  

Thank you Lord that I listened to that nagging voice and started on the path to becoming a Trim Healthy Me.  Because I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  This time last year I was resigned to being obese forever.  Today I am 15 pounds away from being in my healthy weight range.  Despite cheating.  Taking breaks over the holidays.  Being lax in my exercise.  Trim Healthy Mama really makes it almost easy to lose weight.  You can eat fat, you can eat carbs, you can eat dessert--and I sure do love my dessert.  I eat cake, cheese cake, cookies or chocolate for dessert almost every single night.

It is not hopeless.  You don't need to resign yourself to being overweight forever.  You can do it one meal at a time.  One day at a time.  One week at a time.  One month at a time.  Until you reach that goal of being trim and healthy and no longer a heart attack or diabetic waiting to happen.  If I can do it, anyone can.

Successful Kid Training

Isn't this how everyone uses a salad spinner???

Back in April of 2013 I made a radical decision--my kids up to that point all helped by putting their own dishes in the dishwasher, but I was ready to teach them to hand wash dishes so that they could do all of the dishes by themselves without me having to help.  I admit that things were rocky at first.  I had to rewash many dishes after the kids went to bed (I learned to never, ever re-clean things in the presence of the original cleaner because that is a total motivation killer, so I now only do it in secret).

After a few months, David learned how to wash dishes well.  Lizzy picked up on the skill about three months after David.  Joy...well, she's young.  Which means that two nights out of every three, I only wash the hardest dishes and the rest gets done without me.

Except I found that I didn't like my old system of David doing dishes every Monday and Thursday, Lizzy every Tuesday and Friday and Joy every Wednesday.  I was always forgetting who was on which day.  Plus, the kids would fight over who had to set the table.  And left to their own devices, Joy was the only child who was eager to help with preparing dinner.  The other two would help when forced, but I usually didn't and just let Joy help me every night.  Which was fine for a while, but then I started thinking that my other two kids really need to learn how to cook even if it's not their passion, so I needed to come up with a system that forced them to help me.

Enter the spinning wheel.

We now have a system where we spin the wheel one spot every day so you do each chore every three days.  I know some people prefer to assign chores on a weekly basis, a school year basis, or by age--but I'm not a big fan of that system.  Even though each child becomes proficient at each skill at a different point, I am okay with it taking more time with Joy.  And I would have hated having to wash dishes every night for a week when I was a kid.  So a daily rotation it is.

Today was one of the "good" days.  This would be the day that David is on dinner preparation, Lizzy is on dishes, and Joy is on set table.  (My least favorite day of the cycle is the day that Joy is on dishes, which really means MOM is on dishes, but she's learning.)  I already had a roast in the crock pot, so all that needed preparing was a salad and canned biscuits being warmed up in the oven.  David did both of these on his own while I only chopped the sweet pepper for the salad.  Lizzy did all the dishes, and Joy set the table.

But then the fighting over dinner cleanup ensued.  Lizzy had this elaborate plan where the table setter swept the floor and the dinner prep person cleared the table.  I let that one go for a while until I actually thought about it--that is completely unfair as setting the table and sweeping are the two easiest jobs!  Nope.  Not going to work.  So then I changed it where the table setter was in charge of clearing and the dinner prepper got the sweeping job.  Which worked okay.  But it led to "that's not my job so I'm not going to help" and other selfish attitudes that I didn't like.

My most recent change that has helped to improve the selfishness bug is that both the table setter and the dinner prepper BOTH help clear the table until it's done, and then the table setter washes the table and the dinner prepper sweeps the floor as their final job.  This generally results in all three kids working together and doing more than is "required."  I am happy with the way things are going now.

In the beginning, training my kids to do dishes and help make dinner was a real chore on my part.  I had to stand right over them, instructing them on every minute detail of cooking and dish washing, which made the task take even longer.  But all that training paid off because now I can walk away and the older two can handle almost all of it on their own.  Kid training is definitely worth it in the long run.

Lego Mastermind

Make a checker board and I will play a game with you

As part of our homeschooling day, we have what I call "Productive Free Time."  This is the time of day where my kids can do whatever they want as long as it produces something either physical or mental--build with legos, blocks, a puzzle, read, a craft, play piano, sew, draw, cook, write, etc.  Basically it's anything that helps build the brain or improve on a skill and doesn't involve a screen.

This is a new part of our day just since we started back to school after Christmas break.  I have been doing some reading on adopting a Lifestyle of Learning and am gleaning some really helpful information about helping my kids both learn how to learn and to enjoy it.  And yes, there is a difference between learning something and learning how to learn.  One of these methods leads to retention, ownership, and the ability to self-educate down the road.  The other leads to the ability to take tests and pass.  My aim is for the former.  

As part of establishing a Lifestyle of Learning is the introduction of productive free time.  I used to let me kids do whatever they wanted once their schoolwork was done.  Which is fine, but often led to boredom in my kids and begging for screen time.  Something was missing.  When I first introduced the PFT idea, I had each of my kids make a list of things they like to do so that if they needed ideas down the road, they could look back on their lists.  

I am going to share a bit of what my kids have been up to and what they have produced during their PFT because I think it's pretty exciting.  As we get further along in our PFT routine, my kids have been coming up with things to do and ideas for projects that I never even considered for them.  Today I will focus on David and one of his interests.

David loves to play with legos.  Except he is kind of a weird kid in that he only likes regular bricks--"Please don't buy me kits, thank you very much."  He doesn't want a prepackaged kit to make a lego city or a jail or a space ship.  He wants to build them his own way from his own imagination.

At first I thought that was kind of weird.  What kid wouldn't want the death star or a huge aircraft carrier kit???  But then I just let it go and let David do his own thing.  And I'm glad I did.  Because what he comes up with continues to amaze me.  

"Mom, what should I build?  Lizzy, what should I build?  Joy, what should  build?"  One of us gives him a suggestion and he locks himself in his room for a while and then emerges with something pretty awesome.

I honestly have no idea where this ability to design things out of legos will take him later in life.  At this point he says he wants to design and build things when he grows up, so maybe this lego ability to imagine something in his mind and build it out of legos is the precursor to a future in architecture or some sort of engineering.  But for now, I will just keep taking pictures and enjoying what he comes up with.

Make Mt. Vesuvius (He figured out the design based on a trip
last winter to a museum and seeing an example)

A frog

A cell phone, complete with buttons, a screen, and it flips open

Dora the Explorer--his sister's idea

A coral reef

Fish to play in the coral reef

A green house garden center

I think this one is self explanatory

Stalling Out--Motivation Refound

Honeymoon--June 2002

I have been doing this healthy eating thing since April 2013.  That would be 9 months with a few weeks here and there off plan due to life--vacations, summer camp, appendicitis, holidays.  I've lost 37 pounds so far, with most of that being quick and painless.

But here I have sat, gaining and losing the same 3 pounds for the past--oh, probably 4 months.  Nothing I've done has budged the scale.  Exercise, faithful, 100% compliance with the eating plan, mixing up my fuel types so I am eating more E-carb meals versus S-fat meals (I have a tendency to lean toward S meals.  Okay, it's more than a tendency.  I have an addiction to S meals.  But without the switching up of fuel types, our bodies get used to the one way of eating and that causes the metabolism to sloooooowwww down).

I have gone back and forth about this stall.  My thoughts range from "37 pounds is nothing to sniff at.  I have done good and am happy with where I'm at.  I can just sit here at this weight and call it good enough" to "I have come this far, this weight is not my goal weight, I need to kick it in high gear and get past this stall and lose the rest of the weight."

So when Hubby decided that we were going to go on a vacation this spring, and then booked our trip making it a reality, I realized a few things:

1. We are going to an all-inclusive resort near Cancun just like we did for our honeymoon.

2. Said resorts require nice attire to eat in the non-buffet restaurants.

3. I have two sizes of dresses hanging in my closet--size Tent and size Tight.  Tent is clearly out; in fact, they need to really clear out and go the way of the rest of my too big clothes and be purged.  Tight would be the dresses that I wore 11.5 years ago on my honeymoon that zip up but leave little room for actual movement.

Which led to my determination:

I am going to wear those Tight dresses in Cancun and they are going to fit.

I am going to be the same size as I was on my honeymoon.  

I am within 10 pounds of it now; I can do this thing.  

Enter new-found motivation.  Which I kicked off with a Fuel Cycle.  A Fuel Cycle is a specific pattern of eating the various style meals in such a way that it kick-starts the metabolism.  It is 3 days of S meals, followed by 2 days of Fuel Pull (low carb and low fat) meals, and ends with 2 days of E meals.  Rinse, repeat.  This cycle can be repeated for a total of 3 weeks before you need to give your body at least a 6 week break by eating freestyle before doing again.  

I am on day 5 of my first week.  So far I am back to my original low weight.  The scale isn't really moving at all.  And I admit, it's a little discouraging.  But I am not a quitter and I am going to repeat the cycle two more times.  Add in restarting my daily exercise routine.  And hopefully, by the end of it, my metabolism should be a flaming hot blacksmith's forge.  

Because I am wearing those dresses.  I refuse to come this close to my mini-goal only to fail.




Linked up with Trim Healthy Tuesday--All things Trim Healthy Mama

Finding Me

This is the face of my very self-assured daughter

It's funny how you can be lost almost your entire life and never even know it until suddenly...you're not.  This is that story.  The one where I realized I was lost until I wasn't.

The Hubs and I have had quite a few conversations recently about our early days of dating, marriage, and back when we were just friends.  (If you want the whole background on our relationship, read this.)  Sometimes the words that Hubby speaks are hard for me to hear, even though I know they are true.

Things like how I was really flighty when I was younger, always flitting from thing to thing and never really focusing on anything.  Or how I was so wrapped up in what other people thought of me that I neglected to just be Me.  

I've been thinking about these two comments specifically because there is a whole lot of truth in them. I was very concerned with what others thought of me--with a perfect example of this being my freshman year of college.  I was so worried about looking good and not messing up my hair that I refused to wear a hat while walking across campus on my way to class despite it being one of the coldest winters on record.  Stupid.  I wear a hat now and make my kids as well.

Or how I bought a butane curling iron so I could do my hair on a mission trip to Honduras when I was in high school because God forbid I not have my hair perfectly done while painting and sweating in 100 degree weather.  What if a boy saw me with undone hair???

As seen in the Sunday paper--I couldn't resist as this used to so be me

Or how I flitted back and forth, driving myself crazy, trying to pick the perfect homeschool curriculum, or the perfect parenting method, or the perfect shade of nail polish.  Decision making was agonizing for me because I had to research every minute detail about everything and needed input from everyone and their hairdresser before I could make a choice.

Almost two years ago I made the decision to ban myself from online homeschool forums.  All they did was make me doubt myself and the choices that I had made for my kids.  I stopped reading homeschool curriculum catalogs because there is always something different, possibly better, and it only served to drive me crazy wondering if I had the right product to teach my kids.  I put an end to asking for advice from everyone and their mother (okay, I do still occasionally ask for advice from my parents, my in-laws, and my Grandma, but they're family and it's their job to advise me).  Now when I have to make a decision, I pray about it, I research it, I pray some more, and then I choose.  No more second guessing myself.

I don't worry that all my friends will suddenly stop liking me if I walk out the door without wearing makeup--which is good because I rarely wear it anymore.  I don't care if people think I am weird or slightly off balance because I homeschool my kids.  I don't care if people think I have bad taste because I am painting my kitchen "Gleeful" lime green instead of the safer sage.  Because I like "Gleeful" lime green and that's what matters.  

I discovered that I have opinions--I will pick the restaurant when Hubby and I go out for dinner.  I don't like violent movies even a little bit and I refuse to watch them.  Hubby finds other people to see them with and I'm okay with that.  I like my pink tennis shoes even if they look like shoes my girls would/do wear.  

I used to be so afraid of what other people thought of me that I tied myself up in knots in social situations.  Parties were agony.  I stuck to Hubby like glue.  A few weeks ago we went to my mother-in-law's birthday party where I knew all of the people, but as they were pretty much all our parents' age, they weren't exactly my normal circle of friends.  On our way home Hubby commented how he looked over at me throughout the night to see if I was doing okay, but I was always talking with someone and having a good time so he didn't feel the need to rescue me.  Nope.  Not very often anymore.

I don't know when it happened.  I didn't set out for it to happen.  But somewhere along the road in the more recent past--I found myself.  Didn't know I was lost, but here I am.  Comfortable in my own skin.  Okay with being Me.

Going On Vacation--Sans Kids

A real beach vacation is in my near future

The only reason I didn't freak out when it came time to go on my honeymoon to Cancun, Mexico was because my new Hubby was going with me.  And I was super thrilled and distracted by the whole "Marriage" thing.  But in reality, vacationing to new places, especially foreign places, had a tendency to produce a whole lot of anxiety in me.

Like, the kind of fear that resulted in me brushing Hubby off every time he suggested going on a real vacation sans kids.  Because it involved going to an exotic location--exotic as in anywhere outside of the state of Michigan.

At Epcot Center

We talked about a trip for our 5th anniversary, but then I got pregnant and we had Joy (and we don't regret that one bit).  We talked again about a trip for our 10th anniversary, but then my inlaws offered to take us to Disney World so we happily did that instead.  So here we are, 11.5 years into our marriage, and the biggest trip we have taken without kids was an infamous camping trip to Lake Michigan with 5 other couples.  Infamous because it involved a whole lot of rain, flooded tents, branches falling into fire pits and lighting on fire, crazy wind, and my vowing to never, ever, EVER go tent camping again--a promise I have not gone back on yet.  The only other trips we have taken were weekend getaways to the Lake House, which is always nice.

Hubby started talking about a trip yet again, but then we agreed we should put it off as we are planning to do some major remodeling this spring and we weren't sure if we'd have the money.  Somehow our decision to put it off was one-sided...I put it off, Hubby started making plans.  Two days ago he told me that we are going on a trip and to get my passport renewed (it expired four years ago and was issued in my maiden name as my last international trip was our honeymoon).

We will NOT be hiking the Appalachian Trail because
we're not crazy and I don't. do. tents.

Crazy, unafraid Lisa didn't even blink.  I didn't think about the expense of the trip.  I didn't worry about how my kids would handle us being gone for a week in a different country.  I didn't stress over leaving the country, going somewhere I've never been before in a place where I don't speak the language.  I didn't even feel anxious about what I would eat and if it would make me sick (this used to be a huge and real fear for me as I have gotten sick many times when eating away from home).

I just said okay, filled out the passport form, and dug out my marriage certificate.  Today, as I was blow drying and straightening my hair for my passport picture, Hubby laughed at me.  Hey!  I may not do my hair very often (as in like five times a year), but I'll be darned if I'll immortalize myself for the next ten years with my hair in a ponytail because I do have a small shred of vanity left deep down inside of me somewhere.  Truly.

Someone is having fun playing with
Mom's straightened hair

I got my picture taken at the post office, filled out the priority mail envelope, paid my money, and sent my application on its merry way.  I didn't even look back.

Because I am brave.  I am not afraid of traveling to a new place.  Just because I will force Hubby and Myself to finally sit down and make out a Will before we leave, just in case, isn't fear talking, it's being smart.  It's not like I think we're going to die in a plane crash or that a drug lord is going to plant drugs in our luggage resulting in us being locked up in a jail in Mexico.  No, I am not worried about that.  I used to be.  But not anymore.

All I am thinking about is me and Hubby lying on the beach in the glorious sun doing nothing but relaxing.  And maybe some site seeing.  Because we will be in some exotic location after all.

The Best Homemade Bread Ever (And It's So Easy)

To all the people who have asked me how I make my delicious Italian bread, this post is for you.  To the rest of you who have never tasted my bread and only now know what you're missing, you will thank me for this tutorial.  You're welcome.

I like to bake.  I especially like to bake things that consistently end up tasting good.  I have been baking bread for over ten years now.  I started out using a bread machine, which resulted in a product that more closely resembled a brick than bread.  I tried kneading bread by hand--but I hate this method because my hands end up hurting really bad and are extremely sore the next day.  Plus, the bread only turns out sometimes.  And it also has a tendency to produce brick-like bread.

My next method was to make the dough in the bread maker on the dough setting, take it out and shape it, let it rise, and then bake it in the oven.  This was my most successful method of bread baking for quite a few years.

But then I discovered the Artisan Bread In Five Minutes a Day method.  A whole new world opened up for me.  Bread that was both easy and delicious!  Over the past few years I have added in new tools and techniques which have resulted in a consistent product that is as close as you can get to bakery bread without owning a steam oven.  And now I am going to share my recipe with you.

This bread is easy enough for a 6 year old to make all on her own

Step 1.  Get out your kitchen scale.  You can use measuring cups if that's all you have, but if you own a kitchen scale, now is the time to use it.  I did an experiment with the kids where we weighed 1 cup of flour after scooping it several different ways.  We ended up with a 50 gram spread between the results.  This experiment convinced that when it comes to baking, weighing ingredients produces the best, most consistent results.  As I read somewhere: Cooking lets you use a little of this and a little of that without a big difference in the end result.  Baking is chemistry.  You need to measure accurately because every ingredient works together in a specific ratio.  A little too much or a little less and your entire project can flop.  Okay, lecture over.

Step 2.  Get a 5 quart container.  I was using a gallon ice cream bucket but my parents bought me these nifty 6 quart storage containers for my birthday which are awesome.

Step 3.  Add 675 grams of hot water to your bowl.

Water added

Step 4.  Sprinkle 15 grams of active dry yeast onto the surface of the water.

Yeast is sprinkled over the top

Step 5.  Sprinkle in 20 grams of salt.  (I use Real Salt--brand name--now, but I used to use kosher salt)

Pouring salt into the bowl

Step 6.  Stir the salt and yeast into the water.

Stir it all up just to blend

Step 7.  Add 910 grams of all purpose flour.

Yes, I do just pour it in

Step 8.  Stir it all up with a wooden spoon or with a danish dough whisk (these things are amazing for any batter stirring) until all the flour is incorporated.  No need to stir more than that.

A big gloppy mess, but it's supposed to be

Step 9.  Lightly cover the bowl and let the dough rise 1-2 hours until it doubles.  The warmer it is, the faster it will rise.  Sometimes an hour is enough, sometimes it takes longer.

Usually doubled is enough, but this batch I made up and
then left the house, leaving my 6 year old in charge of
putting it in the refrigerator when the timer went off

At this point you can do one of two things:  You can use the dough immediately or you can put the lid on tightly and store it in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.  The longer you store it, the more "sourdoughy" it will taste.  The beauty of this recipe is that you can pull out just the amount you want and leave the rest in the refrigerator to bake on another day.  Or you can bake it all at once.

Now you are ready to bake your bread.

Step 1.  Wet hands in water.  This keeps the dough from sticking to your hands.  When the dough starts sticking again, re-wet your hands.

Step 2.  Grease your pans.  I use cooking spray.

Best Goodwill find ever--Italian loaf pans

Step 3.  Divide the dough as you desire.  Sometimes I use the dough to make rolls.  Sometimes I use it to form my pizza crust.  I also have formed it into rounds.  But mostly I use it to make Italian loaves in my Italian bread pans (similar to this one) which I do by dividing the dough in half, forming two long loaves, each being about two pounds.

Step 4.  Shape the dough into your desired shape.  I just fold it under over and over until the top is nice and smooth, and then I squish and pull the dough until it's a nice long loaf.  Set it on your greased baking pan.

Step 5.  Cover the loaves with plastic wrap and let rise about 30 minutes if the dough is warm, longer if it just came out of the refrigerator.  It should be nice and puffy when you put it in the oven.

Step 6.  Put a shallow pan on the bottom rack of your oven.  Preheat the oven to 450 F.  The original directions say to preheat the oven for a half hour, but I tend to fudge that instruction.

Broiler pan on shelf under bread, ready for 1 cup of boiling water to be added

Step 7.  Now that the bread is ready to bake, and the oven is fully preheated, and the shallow pan is piping hot, put a cup of water in the microwave and bring it to a full boil.

Step 8.  Put the bread on the top rack in the oven.  Pour the boiling water into the shallow pan beneath the bread (Use hot pads for this!).  Shut the oven quick to trap all that wonderful steam that will produce a deliciously crunchy crust on your bread.

Step 9.  Bake for about 30 minutes.  My method is to bake it for 25 minutes and then insert a meat thermometer into the middle of a loaf and bake the bread until the middle of the bread reaches 200-210 F.  This is the easiest way to know when the bread is really done.  If you don't have a meat thermometer, then you can bake it until the top is nice and golden brown and the bottom thumps when you knock on it (so I've read in other places).

This bread was baked until it reached 205 F.  

Step 10.  Remove bread from the pan and cool on the counter.  I personally wrap my bread in towels and cool them on a cookie rack, but that's just me.

Step 11.  Eat and enjoy!



Printable Recipe


Really Delicious Artisan Bread

Adapted by Lisa at ladybugfarms.blogspot.com 
from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day

3 cups warm water 675 grams
1 1/2 T active dry yeast 15 grams
1 1/2 T kosher salt 25 grams (I use 20 grams)
6 1/2 cups all purpose flour 910 grams


In a 5 quart container or bowl with a lid, add water. Sprinkle in yeast and salt. Stir.
 Add flour and stir just until the flour is fully combined. Cover with non-tight fitting lid
and let rise for 1-2 hours until dough is doubled. At this point you can either use the
dough immediately or refrigerate the dough for up to 14 days.

To bake: Shape dough and place on greased pan(s). Cover loosely with plastic wrap.
 Let rise 30-60 minutes, longer if your dough is cold, until nice and puffy. Place empty
broiler pan on bottom rack of oven. Preheat oven to 450 F. Once oven is fully
preheated, place bread in oven on top rack. Pour 1 cup of boiling water into broiler
tray (use oven mitts!). Bake for about 30 minutes until the crust is golden brown and
the internal temperature of the bread is 200-210 F. Remove from pan and cool on
baking rack.





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