So as I said last week, I basically need to come up with a different plan or diet approach, since it's been a month and I've barely lost anything. And nothing has changed over this past week. I'm still in the same rut that I was in the week before. My weight loss is almost nonexistent and definitely not consistent. My friend Stacie told me that as a 35-year-old woman, I'm eating way too many carbs. That even though I've been choosing "healthy" options such as yogurt and hummus and soup, I've been choosing items that are low calorie but yet high carb. She told me that one of her friend's nutritionists told her that women over 30 (especially those of us with kids and those seemingly permanent mom bellies) should follow a 40-30-30 lifestyle.......40% protein, 30% carbs and 30% fat. If I were to follow a 1,500-calorie diet, that would mean I could have 150g of protein, 112g of carbs and 50g of fat per day. And even though I'm super against a strict diet of any kind, it looks like being a bit stricter than I would like is what it will take to get me to my goal.
So I plan to focus on my carb intake this second month. That's my new kind of goal - a low carb diet. I know it won't be all the time (I eat out a lot so sometimes it's a gamble on what's healthiest, or sometimes I just eat what I want), but at least I'll hopefully be close most of the time. I also know it won't be easy. And I'm going to fail some days. But I definitely need to decide on a different focus than just "eating healthier" (because just eating healthier obviously hasn't been working).
Day 29 (Monday, February 16th):
Total weight loss: 1.2 lbs (I'm really just hoping this is a fluke from the weekend)
Breakfast: Chobani Greek Yogurt flip cup (250 cal)
Snack: Handful of Blackberries
Lunch: Can of Progresso Soup: Chicken Pot Pie (280 cal)
Snack 1: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Power Chicken Hummus Bowl from Panera Bread (270 cal), along with a few tidbits of catered food (just a few bites of meat)
*Late-Night Snack: Multi-grain 6 seed crackers with hummus and some Hershey's kisses
Beer/Wine: Yes
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 30 (Tuesday, February 17th):
Total weight loss: 0.6 lbs (grrrrrrrrr.....this whole day is a bit of a "loss" in the food dept)
Breakfast: Serving of shaved deli chicken (50), 1/2 slice of reduced-fat colby jack cheese (30 cal), a handful of blackberries
Snack: None
Lunch: Can of Progresso Soup: Italian Wedding Soup (240 cal)
Snack 1: 6-seed multi-grain crackers with hummus (~6 crackers), 5 Hershey's Kisses (this Valentine's candy has GOT TO GO)
Snack 2: evol. Chicken Enchilada Bake (380 cal)
Dinner: Leftover Crab Mornay over a baked potato
Beer/Wine: Yes
Run: 5-mile treadmill run
Workout: Day 1 of the 10-Week Workout Plan (minus the lunges....I've discovered they hurt my knees)
Day 31 (Wednesday, February 18th):
Total weight loss: 1.8 lb
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake (~200 cal)
Snack: Black beans and rotel, 1/2 an avocado
Lunch: Can of Progresso Soup: Chicken and Herb Dumplings (180 cal)
Snack 1:
Snack 2:
Dinner: Tuna salad sandwich with avocado and capers on whole wheat, Vicki's sea salt chips, a few bites of catered food
Beer/Wine: Yes, 1 Guinness
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 32 (Thursday, February 19th):
Total weight loss: 1.6 lbs
Breakfast: Chobani Greek yogurt with oats (170 cal), a banana
Snack: 1/2 an avocado and a large navel orange
Lunch: Mom's homemade chicken and veggie soup with a few Townhouse crackers
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Soba Noodle Bowl with chicken (390 calories), 1/2 Power Chicken Hummus Bowl (140 cal) and an apple from Panera Bread
Beer/Wine: Yes
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 33 (Friday, February 20th):
Total weight loss: 4.6 lbs
Breakfast: Chobani Greek yogurt with oats (170 cal)
Snack: None
Lunch: BLT on Texas toast, sweet potato fries, a couple of Delano's steak fries and a Sprite at Jenkins Deli (Cleveland)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Corned beef and cabbage, turnip greens and pinto beans at The Epicurean
Beer/Wine: No
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 34 (Saturday, February 21st):
Total weight loss: 1.6 lbs (darn it for yesterday being a fluke!)
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, 1 sausage patty and 1 biscuit
Snack: None
Lunch: Can of Progresso Soup: Chicken and Noodle (220 cal)
Snack 1: 1/4 of an avocado
Snack 2: None
Dinner: "The Rembrandt" (grilled chicken salad) and a cup of tomato artichoke soup from Rembrandt's Coffee House
Beer/Wine: Yes, 1/2 beer and 2 glasses of pinot grigio while reading Fifty Shades Darker after work. ;)
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 35 (Sunday, February 22nd):
Total weight loss: 1.6 lbs (same as yesterday)
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, bacon and 1 piece of toast
Snack: None
Lunch: 1/2 "Reuben the Great", a couple of Lay's chips and part of a cup of fruit (that Lucy didn't eat) from Jason's Deli......oh, and a small cup of ice cream. :)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: I don't even want to discuss it! It actually wasn't all that bad.....catered food from Big River, and I really only ate protein, but then I ruined it with a cupcake that was gifted specifically to the staff.
Beer/Wine: Yes, wine
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 36 (Monday, February 23rd):
Total weight loss: 2.6 lbs
Monday, February 23, 2015
Monday, February 16, 2015
Operation Lose The Baby Weight: Days 22 - 28 (Accountability Log)
Well......it's been almost a month, and I have barely lost any weight. I was really hoping for a 6-8 lb loss at this point, but it looks like I typically hover between a 2-4 lb loss every single week. That is just not going to cut it to get me back to my primo weight by beach vacation time in May. So it looks like I'm once again at the point of "you can't keep doing the same thing and expect different results". Therefore, I need to decide exactly what I want to change to make results happen the way I want them to. I would tell you what my plan is for Month Two, but I don't know what that plan is yet. I'll have to think about it! I don't want to do anything extreme and unrealistic (because that's just not my jam), but I need to do something different. But here's how the past week went.....it started out good, then the weekend hit.
Day 22 (Monday, February 9th):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake blended with frozen berries
Snack: None
Lunch: Soba Noodle Bowl with Edamame and an apple from Panera Bread (370 cal)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Power Chicken Hummus Bowl from Panera Bread (270 cal)
Dinner #2: Rotisserie chicken breast, corn, baked beans and potato salad from Sticky Fingers (they catered my work event)
Beer/Wine: Yes (wine)
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 23 (Tuesday, February 10th):
Total weight loss: 2.4 lbs (Dinner #2 last night did that, I'm sure)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: 1/2 Chicken Cobb Avocado Salad from Panera Bread (320 cal)
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: 2 dill spears (so half a pickle) and Super Berry Fusion Organic Dried Fruit (snacked out of the bag while reading)
Dinner: Meatloaf, peas and mashed potatoes
Beer/Wine: Yes, 2 ciders
Run: 2-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 24 (Wednesday, February 11th):
Total weight loss: 2.8 lbs (slowly creeping back down)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Savannah Chopped Salad from McAlister's Deli (440 calories, plus the dressing)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Pretzels and hummus
Dinner: Meatloaf, peas and mashed potatoes
Beer/Wine: Yes, 2 ciders
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 25 (Thursday, February 12th):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs (back to Monday!)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Scrambled egg (1), black beans and Rotel
Lunch: Mango talapia meal from Chili's (520 calories)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: 100 calorie popcorn bag and a few peach gummy rings
Dinner: Southern Style Soup
Beer/Wine: Yes
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 26 (Friday, February 13th):
Total weight loss: 4.2 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Hummus with multi-grain 6-seed crackers
Lunch: Homemade chicken and veggie soup
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: 6 multi-grain 6-seed crackers with 6 slices of smoked kielbasa and 6 squares of cheese, 2 clementines
Dinner: Vaca Flaca Lo-Carb Quesadilla at Amigo, plus some chips & salsa
Beer/Wine: Yes, 2 margaritas at Amigo (2 for 1)
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 27 (Saturday, February 14th - Valentine's Day!):
Total weight loss: 1.6 lbs
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, 1 biscuit with syrup, 1/2 piece of sausage
Snack: None
Lunch: Chef Lin ('nuf said)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Crab Mornay over a baked potato (hubby's V-Day dinner for me)
Beer/Wine: Yes, white wine and champagne
Run: 4-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 28 (Sunday, February 15th):
Total weight loss: 1.8 lbs
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, smoked sausage, Everything bagel with cream cheese
Snack: None
Lunch: Buttermilk oven fried chicken, broccoli and corn from the Cracker Barrel Wholesome Dinner menu (510 cal), plus half a serving of cheese grits that Lucy didn't finish (~75 cal)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: ~6 Hershey's kisses
Dinner: Broth-based shrimp soup my mom made, along with 1/2 ham sandwich and a homemade Rice Krispie Treat
Beer/Wine: Yes, 2 beers
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 29 (Monday, February 16th):
Total weight loss: 1.2 lbs (BOOOOOOO)
Day 22 (Monday, February 9th):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake blended with frozen berries
Snack: None
Lunch: Soba Noodle Bowl with Edamame and an apple from Panera Bread (370 cal)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Power Chicken Hummus Bowl from Panera Bread (270 cal)
Dinner #2: Rotisserie chicken breast, corn, baked beans and potato salad from Sticky Fingers (they catered my work event)
Beer/Wine: Yes (wine)
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 23 (Tuesday, February 10th):
Total weight loss: 2.4 lbs (Dinner #2 last night did that, I'm sure)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: 1/2 Chicken Cobb Avocado Salad from Panera Bread (320 cal)
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: 2 dill spears (so half a pickle) and Super Berry Fusion Organic Dried Fruit (snacked out of the bag while reading)
Dinner: Meatloaf, peas and mashed potatoes
Beer/Wine: Yes, 2 ciders
Run: 2-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 24 (Wednesday, February 11th):
Total weight loss: 2.8 lbs (slowly creeping back down)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Savannah Chopped Salad from McAlister's Deli (440 calories, plus the dressing)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Pretzels and hummus
Dinner: Meatloaf, peas and mashed potatoes
Beer/Wine: Yes, 2 ciders
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 25 (Thursday, February 12th):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs (back to Monday!)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Scrambled egg (1), black beans and Rotel
Lunch: Mango talapia meal from Chili's (520 calories)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: 100 calorie popcorn bag and a few peach gummy rings
Dinner: Southern Style Soup
Beer/Wine: Yes
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 26 (Friday, February 13th):
Total weight loss: 4.2 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Hummus with multi-grain 6-seed crackers
Lunch: Homemade chicken and veggie soup
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: 6 multi-grain 6-seed crackers with 6 slices of smoked kielbasa and 6 squares of cheese, 2 clementines
Dinner: Vaca Flaca Lo-Carb Quesadilla at Amigo, plus some chips & salsa
Beer/Wine: Yes, 2 margaritas at Amigo (2 for 1)
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 27 (Saturday, February 14th - Valentine's Day!):
Total weight loss: 1.6 lbs
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, 1 biscuit with syrup, 1/2 piece of sausage
Snack: None
Lunch: Chef Lin ('nuf said)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Crab Mornay over a baked potato (hubby's V-Day dinner for me)
Beer/Wine: Yes, white wine and champagne
Run: 4-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 28 (Sunday, February 15th):
Total weight loss: 1.8 lbs
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, smoked sausage, Everything bagel with cream cheese
Snack: None
Lunch: Buttermilk oven fried chicken, broccoli and corn from the Cracker Barrel Wholesome Dinner menu (510 cal), plus half a serving of cheese grits that Lucy didn't finish (~75 cal)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: ~6 Hershey's kisses
Dinner: Broth-based shrimp soup my mom made, along with 1/2 ham sandwich and a homemade Rice Krispie Treat
Beer/Wine: Yes, 2 beers
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 29 (Monday, February 16th):
Total weight loss: 1.2 lbs (BOOOOOOO)
Monday, February 9, 2015
Operation Lose The Baby Weight: Days 15 - 21 (Accountability Log)
I started out this week with a bang, but then got off track a bit. My food choices weren't that bad most of the time, though there are a few not-so-healthy choices tossed in. I only did 3 of the 5 days of core work, which is better than the week before, but still not all 5 days. But after the events of Thursday evening, I just didn't feel like doing the last 2 days. So here's to trying again next week!
Day 15 (Monday, February 2nd):
Total weight loss: 4.0 lbs (YAY!)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Chicken Apple Sausage Scramble with fresh fruit and an English muffin from The Egg and I (only 470 calories!)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Homemade Rice Krispie Treat (small square)
Dinner: Pot roast, carrots, onions and potatoes
Beer/Wine: 2 Highland Oatmeal Porters
*After-Dinner Snack: I didn't eat much dinner (Lucy ate most of my veggies), so I had a handful of pretzels (not even a serving), 1/2 a porkchop and 1/2 a duck burger (meat only) all left over from Beast & Barrel, and 2 ribs left over from Sticky Fingers (EAT ALL THE MEAT)
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 16 (Tuesday, February 3rd):
Total weight loss: 2.4 lbs....probably all that meat late last night
Breakfast: None (oops)
Snack: None
Lunch: 2 grilled fish tacos with chips and salsa from Beef O'Brady's (NOT nearly as healthy as I had thought it would be......something healthier for dinner for sure!!!)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Pot roast with potatoes, onions and carrots
Beer/Wine: Yes
Run: 2.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: Days 1 AND 2 of the 10 Week Workout Plan
Day 17 (Wednesday, February 4th):
Total weight loss: 4.8 lbs
Breakfast: 1/2 whole wheat bagel with strawberry jelly (Delano's rejected breakfast)
Snack: 1 scrambled egg and a Greek yogurt
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Stuffed Flounder, broccoli and a salad with red wine vinaigrette at Red Lobster (which claimed to be less than 600 calories on their light menu). I also had 2 biscuits, because who can resist??
Beer/Wine: No
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 18 (Thursday, February 5th):
Total weight loss: 2.0 lbs (After yesterday's 4.8 lbs, this is a bummer)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Soup/Salad/Pizza bar at Portofino's. I had 1 bowl of chili, 1 salad with Greek Vinaigrette dressing, 1 serving of seafood salad, and 1 slice of pizza (no crust)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: A clementine
Dinner: Southern-Style Chicken & Sausage Soup (almost 2 bowls)
Beer/Wine: Yes, beer
Run: 4.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: Day 3 of the 10 Week Workout Plan
Day 19 (Friday, February 6th):
Total weight loss: 2.4 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Graham crackers (4 crackers, so 4 sandwiches) and some nacho cheese Bugels
Dinner: Southern-Style Chicken & Sausage Soup
Beer/Wine: Yes, beer
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 20 (Saturday, February 7th):
Total weight loss: 2.0 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Nemo Burrito with chips and salsa from Mojo Burrito
Snack 1: Red velvet cake at Lily's bday party
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Southern-Style Chicken & Sausage Soup
Beer/Wine: No
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 21 (Sunday, February 8th):
Total weight loss: 2.0 lbs
Breakfast: Eggs and sausage
Snack: None
Lunch: None
Snack 1: Hummus and Triscuits, a handful of Cheez-its, 2 clementines
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Roasted chicken, potatoes, carrots, broccoli, strawberries and a biscuit with honey
Beer/Wine: 2 margaritas with dinner followed by a beer (cider)
Run: 1-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 22 (Monday, February 9th):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs
Day 15 (Monday, February 2nd):
Total weight loss: 4.0 lbs (YAY!)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Chicken Apple Sausage Scramble with fresh fruit and an English muffin from The Egg and I (only 470 calories!)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Homemade Rice Krispie Treat (small square)
Dinner: Pot roast, carrots, onions and potatoes
Beer/Wine: 2 Highland Oatmeal Porters
*After-Dinner Snack: I didn't eat much dinner (Lucy ate most of my veggies), so I had a handful of pretzels (not even a serving), 1/2 a porkchop and 1/2 a duck burger (meat only) all left over from Beast & Barrel, and 2 ribs left over from Sticky Fingers (EAT ALL THE MEAT)
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 16 (Tuesday, February 3rd):
Total weight loss: 2.4 lbs....probably all that meat late last night
Breakfast: None (oops)
Snack: None
Lunch: 2 grilled fish tacos with chips and salsa from Beef O'Brady's (NOT nearly as healthy as I had thought it would be......something healthier for dinner for sure!!!)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Pot roast with potatoes, onions and carrots
Beer/Wine: Yes
Run: 2.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: Days 1 AND 2 of the 10 Week Workout Plan
Day 17 (Wednesday, February 4th):
Total weight loss: 4.8 lbs
Breakfast: 1/2 whole wheat bagel with strawberry jelly (Delano's rejected breakfast)
Snack: 1 scrambled egg and a Greek yogurt
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Stuffed Flounder, broccoli and a salad with red wine vinaigrette at Red Lobster (which claimed to be less than 600 calories on their light menu). I also had 2 biscuits, because who can resist??
Beer/Wine: No
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 18 (Thursday, February 5th):
Total weight loss: 2.0 lbs (After yesterday's 4.8 lbs, this is a bummer)
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Soup/Salad/Pizza bar at Portofino's. I had 1 bowl of chili, 1 salad with Greek Vinaigrette dressing, 1 serving of seafood salad, and 1 slice of pizza (no crust)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: A clementine
Dinner: Southern-Style Chicken & Sausage Soup (almost 2 bowls)
Beer/Wine: Yes, beer
Run: 4.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: Day 3 of the 10 Week Workout Plan
Day 19 (Friday, February 6th):
Total weight loss: 2.4 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Graham crackers (4 crackers, so 4 sandwiches) and some nacho cheese Bugels
Dinner: Southern-Style Chicken & Sausage Soup
Beer/Wine: Yes, beer
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 20 (Saturday, February 7th):
Total weight loss: 2.0 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: None
Lunch: Nemo Burrito with chips and salsa from Mojo Burrito
Snack 1: Red velvet cake at Lily's bday party
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Southern-Style Chicken & Sausage Soup
Beer/Wine: No
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 21 (Sunday, February 8th):
Total weight loss: 2.0 lbs
Breakfast: Eggs and sausage
Snack: None
Lunch: None
Snack 1: Hummus and Triscuits, a handful of Cheez-its, 2 clementines
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Roasted chicken, potatoes, carrots, broccoli, strawberries and a biscuit with honey
Beer/Wine: 2 margaritas with dinner followed by a beer (cider)
Run: 1-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 22 (Monday, February 9th):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs
Friday, February 6, 2015
Southern-Style Chicken & Sausage Soup
The past 24 hours have been rough, with Ollie passing away suddenly and the news that both of my other dogs may be poisoned as well (blog post about all of that here). But since there is nothing further I can do about Ollie, and since I'm doing the only thing I can do to attempt to save my other two dogs (Vitamin K tablets), I'll blog about what I was originally going to blog about today before this horribleness all went down: Thursday night's dinner.
I've been super excited all week about the meal I was going to cook on Thursday. I even posted an Instagram photo of the front of the recipe card to make people jealous of our upcoming feast.
The back of the recipe card looked like this (blown up to jumbo size so you can read it): (ALL PHOTOS REMOVED BC GOOGLE+ IS STUPID)
Here's how it was to prep:
First let me just say, I may have only used ONE pot to cook in (my beloved rockcrok), but I used about 47 dishes to prep with. My kitchen was a DISASTER from all of the prep items. I had a plate with paper towels on it for the bacon; I had two bowls holding the chopped greens (my fault - I didn't grab a big enough one when I started) and a cutting board used for chopping the greens and chopping the garlic (along with a dirty chopper); I had one bowl holding the raw cubed chicken (which was cut on a separate cutting board); I had one cutting board holding the onion; and I had a measuring cup holding the flour. That doesn't sound like a lot, but it was a big mess. And yes, I ended up using three cutting boards. It was either three cutting boards, or two cutting boards and a bowl. Same amount of dishes.
Let me also say that the quoted prep time was WAY off. The card says 20 minutes of prep with a total time of 1 hour and 15 minutes. It took me a little over 2 hours from start to finish. So if you decide to make this and you haven't pre-prepped anything, be prepared to spend about 2 hours in the kitchen. Unless you're just a crap-ton faster at prep than I am.
Here are some ingredient changes I made:
Instead of collard greens, I used kale, for no other reason than the fact that kale is in season. Plus, kale's yummy. And collards are yummy. So it was a win-win either way. I also used dried thyme leaves instead of fresh thyme leaves, because I already had a container of dried thyme on my spice shelf. And instead of red bell pepper, I used green, because I already had some in the freezer. And finally, I drained the black-eyed peas as instructed, but I didn't rinse them. Because seriously.......was it really that important that they be rinsed?
I also used "low sodium chicken stock" instead of "unsalted chicken stock", which I didn't even see as an option. I'm sure they're the same, right?
Here is how it all went down:
I cooked the bacon in the pot, and then set it on paper towels to dry. I was behind on having all the greens trimmed and chopped, so I turned off the stove eye while I finished this part up. I peeled the greens from both sides of the stem, tore them in half (they were long!), and then chopped them up. Not into tiny pieces, but just into decent-sized soup pieces. Once I had all of my greens cut and placed into bowls ready to cook, I decided to go ahead and prep some of the other ingredients before getting started on the greens. I went ahead and peeled and chopped the garlic (with my veggie chopper, which saved me a ton of time), sliced the onion (not into "thin slices" as directed but more just "diced" it), scooped out 1/4 cup of flour, got my thyme and red pepper flake containers within reach, and chopped up my chicken. Once I had these items ready to go, I poured the bacon grease out of the pot and into a glass, leaving a little bit in the pot to use for the first round of greens. I turned the stove eye back on to medium and tossed the first half of greens in the pot, stirring to coat them with the bacon grease. While they cooked, I chopped up the sausage, turning the greens every 20-30 seconds (that's just guessing). After the greens were nice and wilted (about 5 min), I put them back in the bowl, poured a little more bacon grease back into the pot, and went for Greens Round 2. This is when I remembered that I needed to drain the black-eyed peas, so I popped the can of peas open just a tiny bit (it had a pull tab) and propped it up over the sink drain to drain. I removed the second set of greens from the pot, added them to the first set, poured a little more bacon grease into the pot, and then tossed in half of the chicken chunks. I sprinkled on salt and pepper after I put the chicken in the pot, but tossing it around in salt and pepper in the bowl would have been good, too. The directions said to brown the chicken for 4-6 minutes, "turning once".......I didn't do this. I definitely cooked the chicken longer than 4-6 minutes, and I flipped it and turned it many times. It doesn't really matter how you do it.....just cook your chicken. You want it juicy and tender, but not raw. Once the chicken was done, I put it into one of the empty bowls that I used to hold greens, and tossed the sausage in with it. Then I added more bacon grease to the pot and cooked the second half of the chicken. I also tore up the bacon and added it to my bowl of meat while the second set of chicken cooked.
After the chicken was done, I realized that I had not left myself enough bacon grease for the next step. I had divided my bacon grease into 4 portions instead of 5. But have no fear......as a true southern woman, I have a coffee mug of bacon grease in my fridge. So I just scooped some out and tossed it into the pot along with the garlic, onion, thyme and red pepper. I let my onion soften a little, but once it started to threaten to burn (or rather, the thyme was threatening to burn), I moved onto the next step of tossing in the flour. The recipe said to stir the veggies and flour for 1 minute......I lasted about 8 seconds before I started pouring chicken stock in to keep things from burning. I'm also not so sure I poured "slowly" like the recipe writers requested. I'm pretty sure I just went for it. And I'm pretty sure I ended up pouring more than 3 cups in. Ah well. It is a soup recipe!
I added my meat bowl to the pot, put the lid on, and stuck it in the microwave for 14 minutes (which I'm sure if you don't have a rockcrok, some time spent simmering on the stovetop is just as good). While this 14 minutes was going on, I cleaned up my kitchen disaster. After the pot came out of the microwave, I stirred in the greens and tossed in the bell pepper and then covered it and let it sit. Here's what it looked like when I was done. It was PURDY.
The verdict:
I thought this dish was DELICIOUS. My husband thought it was "ok". I was actually shocked at first that he thought it was just "ok". But he said that he felt like it was more trouble than it was worth, and it turns out that he's not really a big fan of kielbasa sausage (I didn't realize this or I would have chosen a different sausage). Another thing I think is probably true regarding my husband's lack of enthusiasm about this dish is that he's not a big fan of salt, and the soup is a little on the salty side (because of the sausage, maybe?). But I don't find this dish to be that salty and I think it turned out YUM YUM IN MY TUM TUM.
Things I would have done differently/will do differently next time:
The #1 obvious thing I'll change for next time is the type of sausage I use, since the hubs apparently frowns upon kielbasa. I think it turned out EXCELLENT with the kale, so I may or may not switch up the greens next time. Maybe that will all depend on what's in season. I WILL plan ahead for prep......maybe get the greens, chicken, garlic, onion and sausage all chopped and ready ahead of time. And MAYBE even take it a step further and cook the bacon ahead of time. I would also choose to saute the bell pepper with the onion instead of tossing it in at the end. I like texture contrasts in my dishes, but it just didn't feel like the bell pepper should be semi-crunchy in this dish - that it would be much better suited soft and sauteed.
I'm definitely saving this recipe for later. With a few minor changes, I'm sure I can make it faster as well as more desirable for the hubs. But it's just too good to toss aside. We had it for dinner again tonight and still have probably a half a pot left.
Lucas is thrilled. ;)
I've been super excited all week about the meal I was going to cook on Thursday. I even posted an Instagram photo of the front of the recipe card to make people jealous of our upcoming feast.
Here's how it was to prep:
First let me just say, I may have only used ONE pot to cook in (my beloved rockcrok), but I used about 47 dishes to prep with. My kitchen was a DISASTER from all of the prep items. I had a plate with paper towels on it for the bacon; I had two bowls holding the chopped greens (my fault - I didn't grab a big enough one when I started) and a cutting board used for chopping the greens and chopping the garlic (along with a dirty chopper); I had one bowl holding the raw cubed chicken (which was cut on a separate cutting board); I had one cutting board holding the onion; and I had a measuring cup holding the flour. That doesn't sound like a lot, but it was a big mess. And yes, I ended up using three cutting boards. It was either three cutting boards, or two cutting boards and a bowl. Same amount of dishes.
Let me also say that the quoted prep time was WAY off. The card says 20 minutes of prep with a total time of 1 hour and 15 minutes. It took me a little over 2 hours from start to finish. So if you decide to make this and you haven't pre-prepped anything, be prepared to spend about 2 hours in the kitchen. Unless you're just a crap-ton faster at prep than I am.
Here are some ingredient changes I made:
Instead of collard greens, I used kale, for no other reason than the fact that kale is in season. Plus, kale's yummy. And collards are yummy. So it was a win-win either way. I also used dried thyme leaves instead of fresh thyme leaves, because I already had a container of dried thyme on my spice shelf. And instead of red bell pepper, I used green, because I already had some in the freezer. And finally, I drained the black-eyed peas as instructed, but I didn't rinse them. Because seriously.......was it really that important that they be rinsed?
I also used "low sodium chicken stock" instead of "unsalted chicken stock", which I didn't even see as an option. I'm sure they're the same, right?
Here is how it all went down:
I cooked the bacon in the pot, and then set it on paper towels to dry. I was behind on having all the greens trimmed and chopped, so I turned off the stove eye while I finished this part up. I peeled the greens from both sides of the stem, tore them in half (they were long!), and then chopped them up. Not into tiny pieces, but just into decent-sized soup pieces. Once I had all of my greens cut and placed into bowls ready to cook, I decided to go ahead and prep some of the other ingredients before getting started on the greens. I went ahead and peeled and chopped the garlic (with my veggie chopper, which saved me a ton of time), sliced the onion (not into "thin slices" as directed but more just "diced" it), scooped out 1/4 cup of flour, got my thyme and red pepper flake containers within reach, and chopped up my chicken. Once I had these items ready to go, I poured the bacon grease out of the pot and into a glass, leaving a little bit in the pot to use for the first round of greens. I turned the stove eye back on to medium and tossed the first half of greens in the pot, stirring to coat them with the bacon grease. While they cooked, I chopped up the sausage, turning the greens every 20-30 seconds (that's just guessing). After the greens were nice and wilted (about 5 min), I put them back in the bowl, poured a little more bacon grease back into the pot, and went for Greens Round 2. This is when I remembered that I needed to drain the black-eyed peas, so I popped the can of peas open just a tiny bit (it had a pull tab) and propped it up over the sink drain to drain. I removed the second set of greens from the pot, added them to the first set, poured a little more bacon grease into the pot, and then tossed in half of the chicken chunks. I sprinkled on salt and pepper after I put the chicken in the pot, but tossing it around in salt and pepper in the bowl would have been good, too. The directions said to brown the chicken for 4-6 minutes, "turning once".......I didn't do this. I definitely cooked the chicken longer than 4-6 minutes, and I flipped it and turned it many times. It doesn't really matter how you do it.....just cook your chicken. You want it juicy and tender, but not raw. Once the chicken was done, I put it into one of the empty bowls that I used to hold greens, and tossed the sausage in with it. Then I added more bacon grease to the pot and cooked the second half of the chicken. I also tore up the bacon and added it to my bowl of meat while the second set of chicken cooked.
After the chicken was done, I realized that I had not left myself enough bacon grease for the next step. I had divided my bacon grease into 4 portions instead of 5. But have no fear......as a true southern woman, I have a coffee mug of bacon grease in my fridge. So I just scooped some out and tossed it into the pot along with the garlic, onion, thyme and red pepper. I let my onion soften a little, but once it started to threaten to burn (or rather, the thyme was threatening to burn), I moved onto the next step of tossing in the flour. The recipe said to stir the veggies and flour for 1 minute......I lasted about 8 seconds before I started pouring chicken stock in to keep things from burning. I'm also not so sure I poured "slowly" like the recipe writers requested. I'm pretty sure I just went for it. And I'm pretty sure I ended up pouring more than 3 cups in. Ah well. It is a soup recipe!
I added my meat bowl to the pot, put the lid on, and stuck it in the microwave for 14 minutes (which I'm sure if you don't have a rockcrok, some time spent simmering on the stovetop is just as good). While this 14 minutes was going on, I cleaned up my kitchen disaster. After the pot came out of the microwave, I stirred in the greens and tossed in the bell pepper and then covered it and let it sit. Here's what it looked like when I was done. It was PURDY.
The verdict:
I thought this dish was DELICIOUS. My husband thought it was "ok". I was actually shocked at first that he thought it was just "ok". But he said that he felt like it was more trouble than it was worth, and it turns out that he's not really a big fan of kielbasa sausage (I didn't realize this or I would have chosen a different sausage). Another thing I think is probably true regarding my husband's lack of enthusiasm about this dish is that he's not a big fan of salt, and the soup is a little on the salty side (because of the sausage, maybe?). But I don't find this dish to be that salty and I think it turned out YUM YUM IN MY TUM TUM.
Things I would have done differently/will do differently next time:
The #1 obvious thing I'll change for next time is the type of sausage I use, since the hubs apparently frowns upon kielbasa. I think it turned out EXCELLENT with the kale, so I may or may not switch up the greens next time. Maybe that will all depend on what's in season. I WILL plan ahead for prep......maybe get the greens, chicken, garlic, onion and sausage all chopped and ready ahead of time. And MAYBE even take it a step further and cook the bacon ahead of time. I would also choose to saute the bell pepper with the onion instead of tossing it in at the end. I like texture contrasts in my dishes, but it just didn't feel like the bell pepper should be semi-crunchy in this dish - that it would be much better suited soft and sauteed.
I'm definitely saving this recipe for later. With a few minor changes, I'm sure I can make it faster as well as more desirable for the hubs. But it's just too good to toss aside. We had it for dinner again tonight and still have probably a half a pot left.
Lucas is thrilled. ;)
We'll Miss You, Ollie. People SUCK.
My dog Ollie passed away last night.
In December 2010, I ran across a Facebook post that had been shared by one of my animal rescue friends. The post originated from a "pit bull rescue" in Charlotte, North Carolina, and included a photo album full of adoptable dogs and their descriptions. The rescue had a detrimental family emergency (I never knew what that emergency was) and so all of their dogs needed to be homed or boarded ASAP. Mecklenburg County, where Charlotte is located, is a "no pit" county......in other words, if a "pit" hits a shelter, it will be immediately put to sleep because the county is not allowed to locally adopt him/her out. The only hope for a "pit" in a county that practices BSL (Breed Specific Legislation) is that a qualified rescue comes in and scoops them up before D-Day arrives. And then that rescue has to find homes for them outside of the county. I never knew Ollie's back story....but he was one of the "pits" in the rescue. I saw this photo of a gangly, young, adorable dog......not a little puppy but not quite an adult.....with a description that basically called him dog-friendly, cat-friendly, kid-friendly, house-trained, crate-trained and knows simple commands.
P.S. There's actually no such thing as a "pit bull" breed. This term has been given to dogs that have a certain image, but these dogs are usually some breed or mix of terrier. And sometimes dogs deemed "pit bulls" don't have any of these breeds in them at all. But Ollie was likely an American Staffordshire Terrior mix.
I didn't even ask Lucas about it, because I knew he would say no to Dog #4. I just contacted the rescue owner, filled out an application, and made arrangements to come and get Ollie (his name given to him by the rescue, which he knew was his name so I never changed). I got up super early a few days later, drove to Charlotte, picked up Ollie, called Lucas on the way to let him know I was bringing home a dog, and drove back home. The rescue owner was so sad (but also happy) about giving Ollie up that she was crying and hugging him the whole time during our meet-up. And she waived the adoption fee ($100) because I had driven as far as I did to come get him.
Ollie fit right into the family. He was just as described: dog-friendly, cat-friendly, kid-friendly, house-trained, crate-trained and knew simple commands. He was overly submissive on the regular but didn't put up with crap if someone (aka his super bossy sister, Piper) tried to start a fight with him. For the longest time we weren't even sure if he could bark, because he was just always so quiet. He loved to run and play in the yard with the other dogs, and on warm days he loved to bask in the sun in the middle of the yard, but his favorite place was always inside with his humans. My kids would sit beside him and bring him their toys to play with and lay on him and pet him and roll over him and do whatever else that would annoy most dogs....but he would just sit there and take it like a trooper. If it got too annoying, he would simply get up and walk away.
P.S. I don't normally EVER advise that it's okay for a child to poke, prod, annoy or climb on a dog. In fact, I won't let it happen with my other two. Not because they're not kid- and baby-friendly (because they are), but because I know their personalities and that they're more likely to "snap" if something accidentally hurts or passes beyond the point of just being annoying. Ollie was just different, and anybody who had witnessed it would agree. If Lucy was sitting by his belly, he would change the way he moved his feet around so that he wouldn't accidentally smack her in the face with a paw. He was always a gentle giant, but he became absurdly gentle around the kids. Every move around them was precise and calculated. He never ONCE hurt them or upset them, even on accident. I'm fully aware that every creature has its breaking point, but his was sky high.
The past few weeks have consisted of on-and-off cold weather. Ollie didn't like the cold. So in the mornings, if the temperature was in the 20s or 30s, I would feed the dogs and then let them outside to pee/poop/run/bark/whatever, but then let them back inside 10-15 minutes later until it warmed up enough for them to stay outside for the afternoon. Ollie would instantly curl up on the floor blankets for a nap. The other two usually ended up following me around (for those of you who know Daisy, you know she's my shadow) and would usually end up outside for the day way before Ollie did, because he often made NO EFFORT to move towards the door to go outside. He would pretend to be asleep.
Yesterday wasn't any different. I let the dogs out of their crates, I fed them, Ollie spun in circles like normal for his breakfast (which he ate all of), I let them outside, and then a few minutes later I let them in. Piper and Daisy went out about an hour after that, and Ollie went out (forcefully, because it was still in the 30s) around 11:00 or so. My mom had come over to run an errand with me, and Ollie was the normal "happy skipper" to see her as he always was. I conned him into going outside since we were about to leave, and that was the last time I talked to him.
I heard him outside barking at random times throughout the rest of the day (like normal), so I never worried about a thing. I normally let the dogs in as the sun's going down, but since I was working on dinner and Lucas was running around entertaining the kids (and it was, according to my phone, 39 degrees and therefore not freezing), I left them outside until after dinner. We got the kids ready for bed, and then I went downstairs to let the dogs in and feed them. Ollie is usually the first one at the back door, unless he happens to be sleeping in the barn.....then it takes him all of a few seconds to get up and run inside. Tonight, Piper and Daisy ran inside, but Ollie never came. I stuck my head out of the garage and called for him....nothing. I waited and listened (barking, crying, whining, anything)......nothing. So I went out in the yard to call him and investigate. That's when I saw the white stripe of his nose lying on the ground. I ran over to him, called his name over and over, shook him, squeezed on his armpit for a heartbeat......but I knew. He was gone.
This morning, I dropped of the kids at my mom's house while I took Ollie to the vet. I knew I wanted to have him cremated, but I also wanted to inquire about finding out what happened. The vet said he couldn't find anything initially wrong with him from a physical exam, and offered to do an autopsy, which he said he would start right away. About an hour or so later, he called.
The vet said that Ollie's abdomen was full of non-clotting blood. He could not identify the source of the blood (he said that all of Ollie's organs looked normal), but that blood that won't clot is typically associated with poison (such as rat poison). He asked me if Ollie could have eaten a rodent that had ingested poison. I told him that if this had been my hound dog Piper (who IS known to catch and eat mice, moles, opossum, chipmunks and squirrels), that I wouldn't be at all surprised. But that Ollie has NEVER been known to kill or eat rodents......he thinks they're pretty gross. The vet asked me to bring in one of my other dogs so that he could test their blood. I immediately went home, grabbed Piper, and returned to the vet. He took a vial of her blood and waited for it to clot (which he said should be within two minutes). Piper's blood NEVER clotted. During our entire conversation, her vial of blood stayed the consistency of water.
The vet said that due to the fact that two of my dogs (and likely Daisy as well) have blood so thin that it won't clot, it is HIGHLY suspicious that they have been intentionally poisoned. Piper and Daisy have each been prescribed a large dose of Vitamin K, which should work towards clotting the blood and returning it back to normal. IF they survive long enough for it to work, that is. The vet said it typically takes 20-30 days to get the blood to normal. I take Piper back to the vet in a week to see how the Vitamin K is doing. Meanwhile, I've been instructed to keep the dogs inside as much as possible.....don't leave them unattended for long periods out in the backyard.
I know that there is at least one neighbor in my neighborhood who has been annoyed by my large dogs. They bark at other dogs walking by, they bark at people walking by, they bark at squirrels in the trees, they bark at each other, and so on. They don't bark all the time or just bark to be barking (they sleep a lot of their time outside), but they definitely bark if there's something worth barking at. Which is why I typically don't let them outside until between 8:00 and 9:00 am and make sure they're inside by 9:00 pm. And in the wintertime when it's cold out (or if it's raining), they hang out indoors a lot more throughout the day, sometimes almost ALL day. And Ollie might have looked scary to some, but he was ABSOLUTELY HARMLESS. If he could have been a 70 lb lap dog, he totally would have. He was the best dog that I have EVER had and he did NOT deserve this. And for that matter, neither do my other two.
I walked the yard and found zero evidence of foul play. No discarded containers inside or outside of the fence, no food bowls or food containers that shouldn't be there....nothing. But I also didn't really expect to find anything. The vet said that if my dogs were indeed intentionally poisoned, it could have actually been done weeks ago.
I've had other pets die for various reasons (some avoidable, some not), and they have all made me very upset, because they were all my babies. And I've never really gotten over any of their deaths. But this whole situation is just SO SAD. Something unexpected (cancer, a tumor, a parasite, a heart attack, etc) would have been just as heartbreaking......but the fact that it's looking like a human INTENTIONALLY did this makes me not just incredibly sad, but sick to my stomach. And the fact that my other two dogs are also fighting for their lives without even knowing it also makes me sick to my stomach. I live in a GOOD neighborhood. I live in a NICE neighborhood. I live in a SAFE neighborhood. So this is like a punch to the gut.
There will never be "justice" for what happened to Ollie. I sent out an email to the neighborhood communications guy to disperse to the community, and I also posted the same email to our community Nextdoor website. I wanted to alert other neighbors with dogs that they might want to get their dogs (or even cats) checked out since there are apparently NO symptoms for a warning, and that if they had any info as to who might have done this, to please let me know. I'm sure I'll never find out who did it or that there is even anything I could do about it if I did, but at least the neighbors would know (or be suspicious of) who the asshole is.
We'll miss you, Ollie. You had a great life up until the very end, and I'm glad for that.
Now to keep tabs on the other two.....let's all cross our fingers that the Vitamin K does the trick and we don't have any other unhappy endings!
In December 2010, I ran across a Facebook post that had been shared by one of my animal rescue friends. The post originated from a "pit bull rescue" in Charlotte, North Carolina, and included a photo album full of adoptable dogs and their descriptions. The rescue had a detrimental family emergency (I never knew what that emergency was) and so all of their dogs needed to be homed or boarded ASAP. Mecklenburg County, where Charlotte is located, is a "no pit" county......in other words, if a "pit" hits a shelter, it will be immediately put to sleep because the county is not allowed to locally adopt him/her out. The only hope for a "pit" in a county that practices BSL (Breed Specific Legislation) is that a qualified rescue comes in and scoops them up before D-Day arrives. And then that rescue has to find homes for them outside of the county. I never knew Ollie's back story....but he was one of the "pits" in the rescue. I saw this photo of a gangly, young, adorable dog......not a little puppy but not quite an adult.....with a description that basically called him dog-friendly, cat-friendly, kid-friendly, house-trained, crate-trained and knows simple commands.
P.S. There's actually no such thing as a "pit bull" breed. This term has been given to dogs that have a certain image, but these dogs are usually some breed or mix of terrier. And sometimes dogs deemed "pit bulls" don't have any of these breeds in them at all. But Ollie was likely an American Staffordshire Terrior mix.
I didn't even ask Lucas about it, because I knew he would say no to Dog #4. I just contacted the rescue owner, filled out an application, and made arrangements to come and get Ollie (his name given to him by the rescue, which he knew was his name so I never changed). I got up super early a few days later, drove to Charlotte, picked up Ollie, called Lucas on the way to let him know I was bringing home a dog, and drove back home. The rescue owner was so sad (but also happy) about giving Ollie up that she was crying and hugging him the whole time during our meet-up. And she waived the adoption fee ($100) because I had driven as far as I did to come get him.
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| The freedom ride home. |
Ollie fit right into the family. He was just as described: dog-friendly, cat-friendly, kid-friendly, house-trained, crate-trained and knew simple commands. He was overly submissive on the regular but didn't put up with crap if someone (aka his super bossy sister, Piper) tried to start a fight with him. For the longest time we weren't even sure if he could bark, because he was just always so quiet. He loved to run and play in the yard with the other dogs, and on warm days he loved to bask in the sun in the middle of the yard, but his favorite place was always inside with his humans. My kids would sit beside him and bring him their toys to play with and lay on him and pet him and roll over him and do whatever else that would annoy most dogs....but he would just sit there and take it like a trooper. If it got too annoying, he would simply get up and walk away.
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| Shortly after arriving to his new home (our old rental house). |
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| All four doggy kiddos. Massai (bottom left) passed away two years ago this March. |
P.S. I don't normally EVER advise that it's okay for a child to poke, prod, annoy or climb on a dog. In fact, I won't let it happen with my other two. Not because they're not kid- and baby-friendly (because they are), but because I know their personalities and that they're more likely to "snap" if something accidentally hurts or passes beyond the point of just being annoying. Ollie was just different, and anybody who had witnessed it would agree. If Lucy was sitting by his belly, he would change the way he moved his feet around so that he wouldn't accidentally smack her in the face with a paw. He was always a gentle giant, but he became absurdly gentle around the kids. Every move around them was precise and calculated. He never ONCE hurt them or upset them, even on accident. I'm fully aware that every creature has its breaking point, but his was sky high.
The past few weeks have consisted of on-and-off cold weather. Ollie didn't like the cold. So in the mornings, if the temperature was in the 20s or 30s, I would feed the dogs and then let them outside to pee/poop/run/bark/whatever, but then let them back inside 10-15 minutes later until it warmed up enough for them to stay outside for the afternoon. Ollie would instantly curl up on the floor blankets for a nap. The other two usually ended up following me around (for those of you who know Daisy, you know she's my shadow) and would usually end up outside for the day way before Ollie did, because he often made NO EFFORT to move towards the door to go outside. He would pretend to be asleep.
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| A warmer, summer day. |
Yesterday wasn't any different. I let the dogs out of their crates, I fed them, Ollie spun in circles like normal for his breakfast (which he ate all of), I let them outside, and then a few minutes later I let them in. Piper and Daisy went out about an hour after that, and Ollie went out (forcefully, because it was still in the 30s) around 11:00 or so. My mom had come over to run an errand with me, and Ollie was the normal "happy skipper" to see her as he always was. I conned him into going outside since we were about to leave, and that was the last time I talked to him.
I heard him outside barking at random times throughout the rest of the day (like normal), so I never worried about a thing. I normally let the dogs in as the sun's going down, but since I was working on dinner and Lucas was running around entertaining the kids (and it was, according to my phone, 39 degrees and therefore not freezing), I left them outside until after dinner. We got the kids ready for bed, and then I went downstairs to let the dogs in and feed them. Ollie is usually the first one at the back door, unless he happens to be sleeping in the barn.....then it takes him all of a few seconds to get up and run inside. Tonight, Piper and Daisy ran inside, but Ollie never came. I stuck my head out of the garage and called for him....nothing. I waited and listened (barking, crying, whining, anything)......nothing. So I went out in the yard to call him and investigate. That's when I saw the white stripe of his nose lying on the ground. I ran over to him, called his name over and over, shook him, squeezed on his armpit for a heartbeat......but I knew. He was gone.
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| A previous happier drive to the vet. |
This morning, I dropped of the kids at my mom's house while I took Ollie to the vet. I knew I wanted to have him cremated, but I also wanted to inquire about finding out what happened. The vet said he couldn't find anything initially wrong with him from a physical exam, and offered to do an autopsy, which he said he would start right away. About an hour or so later, he called.
The vet said that Ollie's abdomen was full of non-clotting blood. He could not identify the source of the blood (he said that all of Ollie's organs looked normal), but that blood that won't clot is typically associated with poison (such as rat poison). He asked me if Ollie could have eaten a rodent that had ingested poison. I told him that if this had been my hound dog Piper (who IS known to catch and eat mice, moles, opossum, chipmunks and squirrels), that I wouldn't be at all surprised. But that Ollie has NEVER been known to kill or eat rodents......he thinks they're pretty gross. The vet asked me to bring in one of my other dogs so that he could test their blood. I immediately went home, grabbed Piper, and returned to the vet. He took a vial of her blood and waited for it to clot (which he said should be within two minutes). Piper's blood NEVER clotted. During our entire conversation, her vial of blood stayed the consistency of water.
The vet said that due to the fact that two of my dogs (and likely Daisy as well) have blood so thin that it won't clot, it is HIGHLY suspicious that they have been intentionally poisoned. Piper and Daisy have each been prescribed a large dose of Vitamin K, which should work towards clotting the blood and returning it back to normal. IF they survive long enough for it to work, that is. The vet said it typically takes 20-30 days to get the blood to normal. I take Piper back to the vet in a week to see how the Vitamin K is doing. Meanwhile, I've been instructed to keep the dogs inside as much as possible.....don't leave them unattended for long periods out in the backyard.
I know that there is at least one neighbor in my neighborhood who has been annoyed by my large dogs. They bark at other dogs walking by, they bark at people walking by, they bark at squirrels in the trees, they bark at each other, and so on. They don't bark all the time or just bark to be barking (they sleep a lot of their time outside), but they definitely bark if there's something worth barking at. Which is why I typically don't let them outside until between 8:00 and 9:00 am and make sure they're inside by 9:00 pm. And in the wintertime when it's cold out (or if it's raining), they hang out indoors a lot more throughout the day, sometimes almost ALL day. And Ollie might have looked scary to some, but he was ABSOLUTELY HARMLESS. If he could have been a 70 lb lap dog, he totally would have. He was the best dog that I have EVER had and he did NOT deserve this. And for that matter, neither do my other two.
I walked the yard and found zero evidence of foul play. No discarded containers inside or outside of the fence, no food bowls or food containers that shouldn't be there....nothing. But I also didn't really expect to find anything. The vet said that if my dogs were indeed intentionally poisoned, it could have actually been done weeks ago.
I've had other pets die for various reasons (some avoidable, some not), and they have all made me very upset, because they were all my babies. And I've never really gotten over any of their deaths. But this whole situation is just SO SAD. Something unexpected (cancer, a tumor, a parasite, a heart attack, etc) would have been just as heartbreaking......but the fact that it's looking like a human INTENTIONALLY did this makes me not just incredibly sad, but sick to my stomach. And the fact that my other two dogs are also fighting for their lives without even knowing it also makes me sick to my stomach. I live in a GOOD neighborhood. I live in a NICE neighborhood. I live in a SAFE neighborhood. So this is like a punch to the gut.
There will never be "justice" for what happened to Ollie. I sent out an email to the neighborhood communications guy to disperse to the community, and I also posted the same email to our community Nextdoor website. I wanted to alert other neighbors with dogs that they might want to get their dogs (or even cats) checked out since there are apparently NO symptoms for a warning, and that if they had any info as to who might have done this, to please let me know. I'm sure I'll never find out who did it or that there is even anything I could do about it if I did, but at least the neighbors would know (or be suspicious of) who the asshole is.
We'll miss you, Ollie. You had a great life up until the very end, and I'm glad for that.
Now to keep tabs on the other two.....let's all cross our fingers that the Vitamin K does the trick and we don't have any other unhappy endings!
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
2015: A Better Year For Food!
This year is going to be a great year (I hope!) in the food department for the Simingtons.
I've signed us up for a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) with Fall Creek Farms. So for 25 weeks between June and November, I'll be picking up a basket of local and sustainably-grown seasonal veggies, fruits and herbs. The list of what Fall Creek Farms grows is HUGE, so I'm super excited to see what will be in our basket every week! It also means that I'll be experimenting with a lot of new recipes since I'll have to figure out what to do with the vegetables I've never cooked with (or just need to make sure I use). I signed up for a 2/3 basket this year to see how it goes. If it seems like we could use more, I'll sign up for a full basket next year.
Crabtree Farms also offers a CSA program for full and 1/2 baskets, and they are REALLY local, as the farm is located just minutes from my house. However, their 1/2 basket option is a full basket every two weeks instead of a 1/2 basket weekly. Since I didn't want to sign up for a full basket for my first year, and since I'm not sure how long I can make things last over a two week period, I decided to go with Fall Creek Farms and their weekly 2/3 basket.
I haven't done it yet, but I also think I'm going to sign us up for a dairy cow herd share with Fall Creek Farms. The farm has both cows and goats, and they offer herd shares to care for the animals and sell the milk. A herd share would give us a gallon of fresh and local cow's milk a week. I may even sign us up for 2 herd shares since Lucy goes through over a gallon of milk a week all on her own! The herd shares happen year-round, so I could start it at anytime. If I can make it to the Main Street Market on time today, I'll go buy some milk and hopefully also some other items for my upcoming recipe.
Speaking of my upcoming recipe, I am really excited to try out this Southern-Style Chicken & Sausage recipe from Pampered Chef, specifically created for the rockcrok. Thanks to the Pampered Chef party I had back in December, I now own one of these beautiful 4-quart pots (along with bunches of other Pampered Chef goodies!).
Another thing I plan on doing this Spring towards eating better (and living better) is buying a portion of a cow. My mom has done this the past 2 years, and I bought in on the first year. I don't remember the name of the farm (or I would link it), but my mom knows the people personally. And let me tell you, a half a cow is a LOT of meat, y'all. Whether I go for half a cow or split a half a cow with someone, that's on my list this year.
Another way I plan on making it a better year for food is by getting a membership to Costco. How does a membership to a corporate bulk store help out my cause? Well, I've been in Costco a few times the past couple of months, and I would say that EASILY half of the food in the store is organic. And since they sell in bulk, not only are their prices really good but buying in bulk has less of an environmental impact. I've been highly impressed by Costco and feel that we could benefit from a lot of the things they sell, so I think a membership would be a smart move for our family.
Finally, I plan on making more of an effort to buy food from our local farmer's markets. I wrote about (and provided links for) all the area markets in a previous post, which I can't seem to find right now. But locally, the Main Street Market happens year-round during a short time window on Wednesdays, and once it warms up, the Brainerd Market happens on Saturdays and the Chattanooga Market happens on Sundays. The Main Street Market is where I'll be picking up my CSA basket starting in June, so I'll be at a farmer's market at least once a week anyway through the summer and fall. And if I buy in on a herd share for milk in the near future, I'll be at the market once a week for that. It looks like the Main Street Market and I are about to become close friends.
So those are my plans for making 2015 the best year so far for food consumption at our house! :)
I've signed us up for a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) with Fall Creek Farms. So for 25 weeks between June and November, I'll be picking up a basket of local and sustainably-grown seasonal veggies, fruits and herbs. The list of what Fall Creek Farms grows is HUGE, so I'm super excited to see what will be in our basket every week! It also means that I'll be experimenting with a lot of new recipes since I'll have to figure out what to do with the vegetables I've never cooked with (or just need to make sure I use). I signed up for a 2/3 basket this year to see how it goes. If it seems like we could use more, I'll sign up for a full basket next year.
Crabtree Farms also offers a CSA program for full and 1/2 baskets, and they are REALLY local, as the farm is located just minutes from my house. However, their 1/2 basket option is a full basket every two weeks instead of a 1/2 basket weekly. Since I didn't want to sign up for a full basket for my first year, and since I'm not sure how long I can make things last over a two week period, I decided to go with Fall Creek Farms and their weekly 2/3 basket.
I haven't done it yet, but I also think I'm going to sign us up for a dairy cow herd share with Fall Creek Farms. The farm has both cows and goats, and they offer herd shares to care for the animals and sell the milk. A herd share would give us a gallon of fresh and local cow's milk a week. I may even sign us up for 2 herd shares since Lucy goes through over a gallon of milk a week all on her own! The herd shares happen year-round, so I could start it at anytime. If I can make it to the Main Street Market on time today, I'll go buy some milk and hopefully also some other items for my upcoming recipe.
Speaking of my upcoming recipe, I am really excited to try out this Southern-Style Chicken & Sausage recipe from Pampered Chef, specifically created for the rockcrok. Thanks to the Pampered Chef party I had back in December, I now own one of these beautiful 4-quart pots (along with bunches of other Pampered Chef goodies!).
Another thing I plan on doing this Spring towards eating better (and living better) is buying a portion of a cow. My mom has done this the past 2 years, and I bought in on the first year. I don't remember the name of the farm (or I would link it), but my mom knows the people personally. And let me tell you, a half a cow is a LOT of meat, y'all. Whether I go for half a cow or split a half a cow with someone, that's on my list this year.
Another way I plan on making it a better year for food is by getting a membership to Costco. How does a membership to a corporate bulk store help out my cause? Well, I've been in Costco a few times the past couple of months, and I would say that EASILY half of the food in the store is organic. And since they sell in bulk, not only are their prices really good but buying in bulk has less of an environmental impact. I've been highly impressed by Costco and feel that we could benefit from a lot of the things they sell, so I think a membership would be a smart move for our family.
Finally, I plan on making more of an effort to buy food from our local farmer's markets. I wrote about (and provided links for) all the area markets in a previous post, which I can't seem to find right now. But locally, the Main Street Market happens year-round during a short time window on Wednesdays, and once it warms up, the Brainerd Market happens on Saturdays and the Chattanooga Market happens on Sundays. The Main Street Market is where I'll be picking up my CSA basket starting in June, so I'll be at a farmer's market at least once a week anyway through the summer and fall. And if I buy in on a herd share for milk in the near future, I'll be at the market once a week for that. It looks like the Main Street Market and I are about to become close friends.
So those are my plans for making 2015 the best year so far for food consumption at our house! :)
Monday, February 2, 2015
Operation Lose The Baby Weight: Days 8 - 14 (Accountability Log)
Day 8 (Monday, January 26th):
Total weight loss: 2.6 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Black beans and Rotel
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: Triscuit Thins and Sticky Fingers spinach dip
Snack 2: Greek yogurt
Dinner: Chicken Tetrazini (made with organic whole wheat pasta)
Beer/Wine: No
Run: 2-mile treadmill run
Workout: Day 1 of the 10 Week Workout Plan
Day 9 (Tuesday, January 27th):
Total weight loss: 2.6 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Part of my leftover Steak Avocado Salad from El Meson (with salsa)
Lunch: Avocado Salad (cottage cheese, avocado, cucumber and tomato)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Slim-Fast shake
Dinner: Homemade meatballs with rice, corn and peas, followed by a gigantic navel orange
Beer/Wine: 1 small glass of port wine after dinner
*After-Dinner Snack: Triscuits and hummus (I was up late tagging for consignment)
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 10 (Wednesday, January 28th):
Total weight loss: 3.0 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Slice of homemade banana bread
Lunch: Chick-fil-A Grilled Market Salad (reportedly 310 calories WITH the dressing I chose), lemonade
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: About 2/3 of a Slim-Fast shake
Dinner: Leftover Sticky Fingers pulled pork (no sauce), baked beans and green beans
Beer/Wine: No
Run: 2.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 11 (Thursday, January 29th):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Triscuit Thins and Sticky Fingers spinach dip
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: Nutra-Grain Granola Bar
Snack 2: 1/2 serving of trail mix
Dinner: Taco Bell Crunch Box (I went ALL out....so hungry after work!! But I did end up tossing the drink)
Beer/Wine: Pinot Grigio (2 glasses) and a Blue Moon
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 12 (Friday, January 30th):
Total weight loss: 3.0 lbs
Breakfast: None (no Slim-Fast today! Needed a break)
Snack: Greek yogurt
Lunch: Soup and Salad from Olive Garden (1 plate of salad, 2 bowls of soup, 1/3 of a breadstick)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Leftover homemade meatballs with a little leftover rice and a little leftover corn. Also a handful of blackberries and strawberries.
Beer/Wine: One Vodka and Cranberry after my evening run
Run: 1.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: No (I've been SUPER slacking on core work this week! Next week will be better.)
Day 13 (Saturday, January 31st):
Total weight loss: 3.8 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Sticky Fingers pulled pork (no sauce) and a handful of blackberries
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Triscuit Thins and cheese, and an orange
Dinner: Grilled pork chop with marsala sauce, boursin polenta and swiss chard at Beast and Barrel
Beer/Wine: 2 delicious stout beers with dinner (we were there over 2 hours!), 1 Blue Moon at home
Run: 1.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 14 (Sunday, February 1st):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake blended with bananas and strawberries
Snack: None
Lunch: 2 small slices cheese pizza (no crusts), a piece of cake and a Sprite (birthday party)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Quarter Pounder w/ Cheese and fries, no drink (I was starving and McD's was the only thing open!)
Beer/Wine: Yes, Pinot Grigio
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 15 (Monday, February 2nd):
Total weight loss: 4.0 lbs
Total weight loss: 2.6 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Black beans and Rotel
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: Triscuit Thins and Sticky Fingers spinach dip
Snack 2: Greek yogurt
Dinner: Chicken Tetrazini (made with organic whole wheat pasta)
Beer/Wine: No
Run: 2-mile treadmill run
Workout: Day 1 of the 10 Week Workout Plan
Day 9 (Tuesday, January 27th):
Total weight loss: 2.6 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Part of my leftover Steak Avocado Salad from El Meson (with salsa)
Lunch: Avocado Salad (cottage cheese, avocado, cucumber and tomato)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Slim-Fast shake
Dinner: Homemade meatballs with rice, corn and peas, followed by a gigantic navel orange
Beer/Wine: 1 small glass of port wine after dinner
*After-Dinner Snack: Triscuits and hummus (I was up late tagging for consignment)
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 10 (Wednesday, January 28th):
Total weight loss: 3.0 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Slice of homemade banana bread
Lunch: Chick-fil-A Grilled Market Salad (reportedly 310 calories WITH the dressing I chose), lemonade
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: About 2/3 of a Slim-Fast shake
Dinner: Leftover Sticky Fingers pulled pork (no sauce), baked beans and green beans
Beer/Wine: No
Run: 2.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 11 (Thursday, January 29th):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Triscuit Thins and Sticky Fingers spinach dip
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: Nutra-Grain Granola Bar
Snack 2: 1/2 serving of trail mix
Dinner: Taco Bell Crunch Box (I went ALL out....so hungry after work!! But I did end up tossing the drink)
Beer/Wine: Pinot Grigio (2 glasses) and a Blue Moon
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 12 (Friday, January 30th):
Total weight loss: 3.0 lbs
Breakfast: None (no Slim-Fast today! Needed a break)
Snack: Greek yogurt
Lunch: Soup and Salad from Olive Garden (1 plate of salad, 2 bowls of soup, 1/3 of a breadstick)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Leftover homemade meatballs with a little leftover rice and a little leftover corn. Also a handful of blackberries and strawberries.
Beer/Wine: One Vodka and Cranberry after my evening run
Run: 1.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: No (I've been SUPER slacking on core work this week! Next week will be better.)
Day 13 (Saturday, January 31st):
Total weight loss: 3.8 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake
Snack: Sticky Fingers pulled pork (no sauce) and a handful of blackberries
Lunch: Slim-Fast shake
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: Triscuit Thins and cheese, and an orange
Dinner: Grilled pork chop with marsala sauce, boursin polenta and swiss chard at Beast and Barrel
Beer/Wine: 2 delicious stout beers with dinner (we were there over 2 hours!), 1 Blue Moon at home
Run: 1.5-mile treadmill run
Workout: No
Day 14 (Sunday, February 1st):
Total weight loss: 3.2 lbs
Breakfast: Slim-Fast shake blended with bananas and strawberries
Snack: None
Lunch: 2 small slices cheese pizza (no crusts), a piece of cake and a Sprite (birthday party)
Snack 1: None
Snack 2: None
Dinner: Quarter Pounder w/ Cheese and fries, no drink (I was starving and McD's was the only thing open!)
Beer/Wine: Yes, Pinot Grigio
Run: No
Workout: No
Day 15 (Monday, February 2nd):
Total weight loss: 4.0 lbs
Sunday, February 1, 2015
My Slim-Fast Needs A Makeover.
I've been logging my weight, meals, snacks, runs and workouts everyday to keep myself accountable (which I will publish on Monday) and I have to admit......I am a SLACKER when it comes to any sort of workout besides running. And in reality, I can also be a slacker at running if I don't keep doing it on the regular.
This is nothing new, which is why that sentence didn't say "I have discovered that I am a slacker......" I've known for many years that I have a really hard time sticking to any sort of workout regimen for the long haul, and it was only 3 years ago that I discovered that running was an exception to that rule.
So it's no surprise that I've only done my daily core workout ONCE this week, and that was last Monday. It's not hard, it doesn't take a lot of time, and I can do it after the kids go to bed or during their naps (I tried it once while they were awake but I became a jungle gym instead). But for WHATEVER REASON, I have slacked. So this coming week, I'm going to really put my foot down and do all 5 days!
The Slim-Fast shakes are becoming hard to swallow. They're a good-tasting shake and I have nothing personal against them, but I've been drinking them twice a day almost every day for two weeks straight and so they're starting to become unappealing. Which means I need to change things up for a bit. This morning I broke out my single-serve blender (which hasn't seen daylight in years, but I was glad I still had) and blended my shake with some sliced banana and strawberries. On the plus side, it revamped my Slim-Fast into a whole new shake. On the negative side, both of my kids wanted my breakfast! So I had to blend them their own non-Slim-Fast shakes, which they sucked down.
I googled Shakeology (my cousin has been drinking Shakeology daily and doing the Insanity Max 30 DVDs), but the shake is super expensive compared to Slim-Fast (~$4.00 a shake compared to ~$0.50 a shake) and a popular weight loss review website doesn't rate it nearly as high as this other shake I had never heard of known as 18Shake. The 18Shake is about half the price of Shakeology, but still 3x the price of Slim-Fast. It does sound like a way better choice than Slim-Fast for various ingredients reasons (I checked out the website's review of Slim-Fast - it wasn't great, which I totally get), but I just can't imagine tossing out that kind of money for meal replacement shakes, especially when I can't buy them in small quantities to try out. It's either buy at least a month's worth or don't buy any at all. Plus, I figure I'll get tired of them in a couple of weeks just the same as now!
I could do just regular healthy fruit/veggie shakes without adding any meal replacement shake powder, but the purpose of the powder is to provide certain nutrition aspects of a meal (calories, fat, carbs, protein, vitamins, etc) as well as serve as an appetite suppressant, since it's supposed to be basically a "meal in a glass".
And as I've said before, this whole meal replacement shake plan that I'm on is definitely a temporary thing and a bit of a "quick fix". I'm aware that they're actually NOT all that healthy for me, no matter what they claim. I'm also aware that once I stop replacing my meals with shakes, I'm going to have to really focus on meal nutrition and portion control to keep the weight from piling back on. But for now, shakes are my weapon of choice for battling this baby weight!
This is nothing new, which is why that sentence didn't say "I have discovered that I am a slacker......" I've known for many years that I have a really hard time sticking to any sort of workout regimen for the long haul, and it was only 3 years ago that I discovered that running was an exception to that rule.
So it's no surprise that I've only done my daily core workout ONCE this week, and that was last Monday. It's not hard, it doesn't take a lot of time, and I can do it after the kids go to bed or during their naps (I tried it once while they were awake but I became a jungle gym instead). But for WHATEVER REASON, I have slacked. So this coming week, I'm going to really put my foot down and do all 5 days!
 |
| I mean, seriously.....it is not that difficult to make an effort to do this every day! (I'm preaching to myself here.) |
The Slim-Fast shakes are becoming hard to swallow. They're a good-tasting shake and I have nothing personal against them, but I've been drinking them twice a day almost every day for two weeks straight and so they're starting to become unappealing. Which means I need to change things up for a bit. This morning I broke out my single-serve blender (which hasn't seen daylight in years, but I was glad I still had) and blended my shake with some sliced banana and strawberries. On the plus side, it revamped my Slim-Fast into a whole new shake. On the negative side, both of my kids wanted my breakfast! So I had to blend them their own non-Slim-Fast shakes, which they sucked down.
 |
| I added dying blueberries to the kids' shakes, too. |
 |
| One for Delano and one for Lucy. Mama already drank hers. |
I googled Shakeology (my cousin has been drinking Shakeology daily and doing the Insanity Max 30 DVDs), but the shake is super expensive compared to Slim-Fast (~$4.00 a shake compared to ~$0.50 a shake) and a popular weight loss review website doesn't rate it nearly as high as this other shake I had never heard of known as 18Shake. The 18Shake is about half the price of Shakeology, but still 3x the price of Slim-Fast. It does sound like a way better choice than Slim-Fast for various ingredients reasons (I checked out the website's review of Slim-Fast - it wasn't great, which I totally get), but I just can't imagine tossing out that kind of money for meal replacement shakes, especially when I can't buy them in small quantities to try out. It's either buy at least a month's worth or don't buy any at all. Plus, I figure I'll get tired of them in a couple of weeks just the same as now!
I could do just regular healthy fruit/veggie shakes without adding any meal replacement shake powder, but the purpose of the powder is to provide certain nutrition aspects of a meal (calories, fat, carbs, protein, vitamins, etc) as well as serve as an appetite suppressant, since it's supposed to be basically a "meal in a glass".
And as I've said before, this whole meal replacement shake plan that I'm on is definitely a temporary thing and a bit of a "quick fix". I'm aware that they're actually NOT all that healthy for me, no matter what they claim. I'm also aware that once I stop replacing my meals with shakes, I'm going to have to really focus on meal nutrition and portion control to keep the weight from piling back on. But for now, shakes are my weapon of choice for battling this baby weight!
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