Good News

Hello Everyone,

Check out two new recipes in the entries below this one.

I also wanted to catch you up on my weight loss. I am at a 22 pound loss and working towards 25. It is a wonderful feeling. Hey, I think our Thanksgiving turkey weighted that last year!! I can't believe this turkey lost a turkey!! I couldn't have done it without your support and I thank you for that. I pray you are doing good in your attempts to get in shape as well. Please keep me informed as to your progress.

What has really helped me these past two weeks is that I increased the number of times I exercise. Leslie Sansone "Walk Away the Pounds" goes in every morning. I now do her two mile walk on a regular basis and have recently added in the three mile. Guess what I can do the three mile without feeling like I am going to die. Next week my plan is to do the three mile twice a week and the two mile three times a week. I don't know you Leslie but I thank God I found you!!

TIP: Increase your exercising it does help but do it gradually so your body can adjust. Never lose site of your goal and stay focused.

Weigh yourself just once a week. Record it in a secret place and then say good bye to that number for you will never see it again.

Good for you Muffins

1 cup ground flaxseed

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup wheat bran

1 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons of cinnamon

1 1/2 cups of shredded carrots

2 medium MacIntosh Apples cored and chopped

1/2 cup walnuts chopped

1/2 cup raisins

3/4 cup low fat milk

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix flour, flaxseed, bran, sugar and rest of dry ingredients together.

Shred carrots, chop apples and add these along with milk and eggs to dry ingredients and mix well. Stir in vanilla.

Add nuts and raisins. Blending in well but do not over mix

Pour into paper lined cupcake pans and bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes

Makes 24 muffins

Each muffin is only 94 calories has only 2 grams of fat and 1 gram of fiber

They freeze very well.

Who says you have no time for breakfast?

Grab one of these on your way out the door with a banana and you have yourself a good healthy breakfast.

They also make a great pick me up snack in the middle of the day with a cup of coffee or tea

Asparagus Salad

1 cup cooked brown rice

1 cup cooked wild rice

1/2 of a red onion sliced

1 pound of asparagus

1 red bell pepper

1/4 cup of chopped fresh parsley

2 stalks of celery

1 oz of silvered almonds

Cook brown rice and wild rice in separate pans. Allow to cool

Cut off approximately 1 to 2 inches off the bottom of each spear of asparagus and discard.

Cut the remaining section of each spear into 2 inch pieces

Place in a glass bowl with enough water to cover the bottom of the bowl. Cover with waxed paper and cook on high in microwave 4 to 5 minutes or until tender but yet still firm. Cool

Chop remaining vegetables.

Place all ingredients into a large bowl and pour on the following dressing.

Dressing

1/3 cup of red or white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 teaspoon of granulated sugar

Mix together and pour on salad.

Let set 15 to 20 minutes at room temperature before serving or can be kept in refrigerator and served the next day.

I have used 1/4 cup Brianna's Blush Wine Dressing on this salad and it tastes very good

Great summer salad!

This recipe serves 8 people has just 145 calories per serving and 2 1/2 grams of fiber

Great way to get in those veggies and makes a great side dish to grilled chicken, fish or steak

TOO MANY ROOMS

Last week in the middle of the night I woke up with this thought on my heart and have decided to share it with you now. I became aware that my body (God's Temple) had too many rooms. It was as if God whispered in my ear. You need to strive harder to rid your body of all this excess space that has been created by the sin of over eating and lack of exercise. I added a wrap around porch with an overhang in the front. It really needs to go. The place is starting to look run down with age. It needs to be freshened up. I must never forget that my body is God's dwelling place

I Corinthians 6:19 & 20 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. I know I have shared this verse with you before, but I needed to be reminded of it myself. God must be tired of being crowded out of His space by sin. Yes, I am trying to remodel this temple, but every once in a while I get off track. The whole problem appeasing myself with the thought that it's only once in a while, is that sometimes those every once in a whiles come too close together. Making it a habit. I figured out this morning that I am seven pounds off my goal of losing one pound a week in a year. It is because of those "its okay once in a while." The good news is that God stands ready to forgive me from my failings. As He will you too upon the asking. He will pick us up and we can start fresh. Not tomorrow but NOW!!!

What I want to hear when I reach my final goal is that God will whisper in my ear again and say "I love what you've done with the place."

More good news for me is that I am now just 1/2 pound away from losing 20 pounds.

TIP: Healthy choices need to become just as natural as brushing your teeth. Build those good habits one at a time. Don't forget to drink at least 4 to 6, 8 ounce glasses of water a day. Eat foods that rid your body of water naturally (see previous blog tips) . Exercise on a regular basis and above all don't give up!!!

Please let me know how you are doing.

Visit my daughter Susan's blog as well, www.thewhatsfordinnermom.blogspot.com she has some wonderful inspirational entries and great recipes along with some neat projects.

BERRY CRUMBLE

Fast and Easy to prepare making it a great summer dessert.

2 cups of fresh strawberries

2 cups of fresh raspberries

1 cup quick oatmeal

2 tablespoons of Smart Balance

2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 cup sugar

Spray a 9x12" pan with Pam

Cut strawberries in quarters

Mix in raspberries

Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of sugar from the 1/4 cup

Mix oats, smart balance , rest of the sugar and vanilla together

Sprinkle on berries

Bake in a 350 oven for 35 minutes

This makes 12 servings with only 96 calories a serving and 2 fibers, 8 grams of sugar and no sodium.

You can vary it by using blueberries, peaches or rhubarb

Another Bird Lesson

A few weeks ago Bob came into the house and told me there was a bird trapped in our garage. I could hear it frantically chirping and flying around. When I went out to investigate the problem. I just couldn't understand how this little bird could not see a way to freedom with a huge garage door opening clearly in view. Here was the fresh outdoors and blue sky just a few feet away and the little bird could not find it. He just kept flying up in an attempt to get out. He was depending on what came natural to him. When I checked in my bird book I recognized this bird as a little Chickadee. The bird book said that the Chickadee is very friendly and some have been known to actually eat from a persons hand. Bob got on a ladder with some seed in one hand and a butterfly net in the other hand. The little Chickadee came closer and closer to Bob, but when he tried to snare it in the net so he could set it free, the frightened bird would just fly away. After several attempts at this we decided if we just left it alone it would find its own way out. We came back into the house for about 15 minutes but it remained trapped. We tried the same tactics as before without success. I kept trying to think of a way for the bird to see the opening and a way out. Finally I thought of a broom. If we could get the bird to land on the broom and bring it down a foot or two he would be able to see the blue sky and the way out of its problem. Finally it worked! The little Chickadee landed on the straw end of the broom . Bob carefully lowered it until the chickadee saw the natural light and flew towards it, releasing itself from the prison of our garage. I tucked this little story into my memory bank and God just brought it back to me. He reminded me of how much we as a people are just like that little bird. We feel trapped and don't know how to get out of our mess. God has provided a way for us, but we are too caught up in our problem, and our own inadequate solutions, that we don't see the blue sky waiting for us. We keep doing the same thing over and over looking for a way out. If God had hair surely I must sometimes make Him want to pull it out. However, he doesn't get impatient with me or you. He just waits patiently for us to see the blue sky and smell the fresh outdoors and move towards it and be released from our prison. Sometimes we make our own prison by trapping ourselves in an unfit body making the same foolish mistakes and expecting different results. Sometimes we get trapped just because we live in a sinful world. Either way we get trapped but you know what? We don't have to stay there. God always has a way out.

Isaiah 48:17 This is what the Lord says- your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go. Friends we should not get trapped in a prison, be it one of our own making or one that it caused by living in a sinful world. God's desire is for us to be free. He knows the way out. We just have to ask him and then open our eyes to see His way to freedom.

TIP: Did you know there are many foods that are natural diuretics? Watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, asparagus, celery, artichoke, tomato, cucumber, parsley and tea are just a few of them. Excess water in the body can cause bloating and added pounds. Eat these sources of natural diuretics and not only will you lose that excess water you will be eating more healthy and your whole body will function better. On a side note I am now at an 18 pound loss and going for 20. Please let me know how you are doing. One of my followers has informed me of a 9 pound loss and she has only been at it for two a months. Go girl!!!

3,500

3,500 is the number of calories in one pound. If it is your goal like it is mine to lose one pound a week. Do the math, you will need to decrease the amount of food you eat by 500 calories a day. Now if you couple that with exercise you can burn off some of that 500 calories. Walking and biking at a moderate speed for one hour will burn off 200 to 220 calories. Walking briskly will burn off 300 calories. To be healthy it is best to eat less and exercise moderately.

Buy a book that lists the number of calories in the food that you like to eat and then you will be able to see if these foods are the best choices for you. I have been on so many diets, at one time I could tell you by memory how many calories were in foods because I used to count them. You can kind of tell by instinct what you should and should not eat. If it looks really good and your conscious is saying better not than you probably shouldn't.

Here are some tips:In order to cut down on those calories I find an age old idea is just to simply take less and eat slower. Sounds simple and logical and it is. Why is it so hard?

When having salad your best choices for dressing are never the creamy ones, always chose vinaigrettes, or an Italian. Have your dressing on the side and dip your fork in it and then put on your salad. If you can stand the taste of those low fat dressings I suppose that would be best.Myself I have a strong dislike for them.

Watch those salad toppings. Too much cheese and croûtons can be bad choices.

Remember that a serving of meat should never be bigger than a deck of cards. I am not talking about those huge Old Maid decks ladies just the standard decks.

Watch those liquid calories. I just read that a Long Island Ice Tea has 400 calories!!! Most table wines have only 100 but even those can add up. Water or regular ice tea are better choices. They clock in at zero. A 12 0z can of regular pop has 150. If you are a diet pop person, that isn't always your best choice either. I am going to be doing some research on those artificial sweeteners and I will follow up in another entry.

Confession time!!! We had a very big weekend. We had a graduation party and a wedding on Saturday. I did well with food choices on that day. Sunday we had a family gathering at our daughters. We celebrated Fathers Day, and four birthdays! I didn't do well on Sunday. So much good food, it was hard to tear myself away from the buffet table. Does anyone have a plan to keep under control at a buffet table filled with good food? It so enjoyable to sit around the table with your family and their company and a good meal. I need to find a little less enjoyment in the meal and a little more with family.

I guess what we all need to remember is found in I Corinthians 10:31 Whatever you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. It all comes back to taking care of our bodies and making sure that we are bringing glory to God in all that we eat, drink and do. Take care ladies and make it a great week. I am praying for you to be less of a person. Just a little joke.

Looking for tips. If you have any please help me out and put them on the comment line or email them to me

caroline_11469@att.net