Monday, June 11, 2012

All the Pretty Flowers

The last time I planned petunias was 2 years ago.  They were hot pink.  Last year I got a pleasant surprise, "volunteer" lavender petunia came up next to my drive way.  I was surprised again this year by this...



There are 2 shades of pink and a very light lavender/white blooms. I wonder what color they will be next year? The rain really perked these beauties up!

Four years ago Honey and the kids gave me a hydrangea bush for Mother's Day. The first year no blooms, but it was still alive. The next 2 years, 1 single pink bloom each summer. This year....



I got an explosion of blossoms! Blue, pink, purple and some are multi-colored! Maybe next year my lilac will bloom!

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Eating Healthy...Again

We're on another healthy eating lifestyle plan. I'm not calling it a diet because diets are temporary. We're trying to find something that will work for both of us for the long haul. We've been doing a low carb/ high fat plan for the last 2 weeks. Honey hadn't been feeling 100% lately and wanted to give this a try. There is more information at this website. Honey is more strict with what he's eating, me not so much. It cuts out carbs (potatoes, pasta, bread, cookies, sugar, did I mention cookies?) and what you're left with is dairy, meat/nuts and some veggies.  We can have veggies that are lower in sugar, great for me I love veggies! Honey doesn't like many vegetables, that has been a bit of a challenge. The high, healthy fat part causes me trouble. My entire adult life, low or no fat has been what I've heard, so this is a hard adjustment.

The first few days were very hard, we both were tired and a bit cranky. Around day 5 things started getting better. I noticed I wasn't as tired during the day and wasn't craving as many sweets around 3:00. Honey noticed he was losing more weight than with just exercise and not having the ups and down with his blood sugar.

We've been doing this for 2 weeks now. This week has been a challenge because Honey is traveling and I'm cooking for mostly just Bean and me. I've been eating eggs, peanut butter toast, cold cut lettuce wraps,  greek yogurt w/fruit and a lot of vegetables for most of my meals. Last week we were trying some new recipes from a low carb cookbook or just eliminating potatoes, rice, corn and bread from our regular meals. Snacks have been nuts or fruit and peanut butter.

The biggest change I've noticed this week is not craving sweets. The proof is the Chips Ahoy cookies still on the top of the fridge and the candy bar on the table. I noticed my clothes were fitting better before I lost any weight. Honey has lost quite a bit of weight. He's also doesn't get as hungry, but when he does he doesn't get a headache and jittery.

Over all I think it's working for both of us. I also think it will get easier as we do this longer and find new recipes for some of our old staples. As with all diet and exercise plans this isn't for everyone.  Before changing your diet, check with your health care provider.