Day 43

I am really struggling. That caramel in the fridge is calling my name. I cannot throw it out, and tonite I have had two small teaspoons of it. Other than that, I am doing fine with the eating plan. At church this morning I brought gluten free pretzels and crackers, gouda cheese, and satsumas. Someone else brought gluten free muffins. I ate only the satsumas, even though the muffins smelled so good!

Breakfast:
Omelet and Bacon

Lunch:
Barbequed Pork Ribs, Baked Sweet Potato, Raw Carrots, and Applesauce.
I made the ribs yesterday; I am not all that fond of barbequed foods. They were ok, but I won't make them again.

Supper:
Leftover Meatball Soup
I added potatoes, more carrots, and celery. Nice and hearty now.

Exercise: Yard work

Day 42

No pics again today. I had sugar today. I made a very small batch of caramel sauce for ice cream; daughter had a friend over for supper and a movie. We have ice cream in the freezer, and it is getting old, so I made the sauce for it. I did lick the spoon afterwards. It tasted really nice. Unfortunately, that is all I can think of now. Husband offered to dump it in the garbage for me. Nope.

Later, daughter did not feel so well after eating so much sugar.

Breakfast:
Scrambled Eggs and Bacon

Lunch:
Ham, leftover Cabbage and Leeks, leftover Roasted Butternut Squash and Carrot sticks.
The ham has been in the freezer since November. It was leftover from a spiral cut ham I brought to a gathering. It has sugar in it as well, I am sure. It did not taste as good as it did three months ago, maybe because it has been frozen, or maybe because I did not care for the sugar.

Supper:
Vegetable Beef Soup

Exercise: None

Day 41

No pictures today. I got up rather late and the whole day has seemed off as a result. Again, I was not hungry for breakfast, but I did have a little to eat.

Breakfast:
A Slice of Bacon and Half of an half-rotten Avocado

Lunch:
Oven-roasted Chicken Drumsticks, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, and Green Beans

Supper:
Leftover Beef Stew

Exercise: Walk 1.5 miles

Day 40

Had my first "cheat" today. I put one tablespoon of balsamic vinegar in the beef stew tonite. Balsamic vinegar is ok on the Whole30, if you can find it without sulfites, which I have not been able to do. I did some research online, which was a bit confusing. Apparently balsamic vinegar results in sulfites as part of the process; manufacturers will add additional sulfites as well. Whatever. I avoided balsamic vinegar for 39 days, and today is my first official "cheat". I am o.k. with that!

I was not at all hungry when I got up this morning and really did not want to eat anything. But I remember from a post or two ago that I need to eat three meals a day. So I ate something.

Breakfast:

Fried Egg, Avocado, and Bacon

 Lunch:

Leftover Mexican Chicken Soup

 Supper:

Beef Stew

This recipe was from http://www.onelovelylife.com/slow-cooker-beef-stew/. I cooked mine on top of the stove, letting it simmer for about 4 hours. I halved the amount of stew meat but did add extra carrots!It was good, even though I did not really feel like eating.

Exercise: None

Day 39

Breakfast:

Omelet and Bacon

I added some green onion to the eggs this morning. I think I need to add a few more. I should really see if the chives have come up in the garden, that would be good too!

Lunch:

Chicken, Roasted Sweet Potatoes,
Steamed Red Cabbage, and Applesauce

The chicken was leftover from Sunday; I heated it up in a small skillet in some clarified butter. When hot, I removed the chicken and added chicken bone broth with some parsley, sage, and thyme. I let it reduce to half, then poured it over the chicken. It tasted like Thanksgiving turkey leftovers! The cabbage was an experiment. I had a leek in the fridge, so I chopped it up and threw it in the steamer with the cabbage. It tasted really good, to have that extra bit of flavor in there!

Supper: Sorry, no picture....

Meatball Noodle Soup from http://www.healthstartsinthekitchen.com/2014/01/20/meatball-noodle-soup/
This is a most unusual soup. Just meatballs, a carrot, four mushrooms and a little chopped onion. Serve it over the 'noodles', which is actually spaghetti squash. Well, I like lots of veggies in my soup so I used five carrots and a few more mushrooms. I used beef bone broth for half the liquid. Daughter could not stand the smell of the broth, and she could not eat the soup. Husband and I ate it, but I have to say that the beef bone broth is not the most enticing. It is rather greasy to me, even though I did remove the fat when I made it up a couple of weeks ago. I would not make this soup again. There are leftovers, and I will add potatoes and celery and forget the squash.

Exercise: Walked 3 miles.

Day 38

I keep waiting....

Everyone says when you eat right and exercise, you start to feel really great. Lots of energy. Great sleeping.

I am not experiencing feeling great. I feel weak. I feel tired. When will I feel great?

 

 

Breakfast:

Scrambled Omelet, Bacon, Satsuma

 

 Lunch:

Apple Mustard Pork Burgers, Roasted Butternut
Squash, Steamed Broccoli, and Applesauce

The apple mustard pork burger recipe is found here: http://www.multiplydelicious.com/thefood/2013/01/apple-mustard-pork-burgers/  These were good, daughter especially liked them, but I expected them to be a bit sweeter; no mustard taste at all, which is fine with me! The squash was tossed with olive oil and two cloves minced garlic, then roasted at 425 degrees for 40 minutes. Delicious!

 

Supper:

Leftover Mexican Chicken Soup

Exercise: None, unless you count hauling four large loads of laundry into the Laundromat, then hauling four large loads of wet laundry back home.

Day 37

I must be missing some nutrient in my diet, for I have been experiencing charley horses in my left leg when I am in bed. This is completely new for me, so I am assuming it is the change in diet; I need to do some research to see what I am missing that might be causing this awful condition!

 

My hot flashes are back as well. No where near as severe as last year, but a nuisance for sure. I wonder if it is the diet changes as well?

Breakfast:

 

Omelet and Bacon

I really need to watch the Julia Child's video again. This was a great omelet with creaminess, but it does not look very omelet-y!

 

Lunch:

Roasted Chicken, Baked Sweet Potato,
Beans, and Applesauce (not pictured)

This was a whole chicken, roasted in an oven bag. I set the oven to start while we were in church, and then it was ready to eat when we got home! I remember when I was young, we came home from church and could always smell what was for Sunday dinner!

 

Daughter commented today that she likes eating whole meals for a change (as opposed to pizza or "you-are-on-your-own, fend-for-yourselves" kind of meals). I think it helps that there is nothing to snack on, so when mealtimes come, we are all hungry! I've noticed she is eating whole servings of food, and she is not hungry an hour after eating.  

 

Supper:

Mexican Chicken Soup

 Just as tasty as yesterday! Love this soup!


Exercise: Walked 3 miles!