Shedding for the Wedding

We have all heard it before... Don't go shopping when you're hungry, don't go when it's really busy, avoid the middle aisles at all costs.

I must have learned my lesson because last night was a very successful trip to the grocery store.  We stocked up on produce and lean meats and only got one bag of chips eat (baked for me) which is honestly hard to do.  Letting me loose in the chip aisle is similar to letting a grizzly bear out in front of a grill of delicious meats.  Chips are my total weakness.  Truth be told- I once went to the grocery store and bought 6 bags of chips in one trip.  I am not proud about it.  It was not one of my finer moments. 

So, after we got $175 worth of deliciousness and healthy goodness we went home and made lunch, which was a simple sandwich, veggies and fruit spread.  Sometimes it is nice to just have a no-frills lunch.

After lunch I was off to the thrift store.  My new favorite place in the world.  In the past 2 months I have found many treasures at my local thrift store.  I was searching for some unique glassware to try a DIY project for the wedding.  I found a bunch of stuff that was 39 cents and some of it was even half off of that.  When I got home Ron had already mowed the lawn and we were ready to begin our first of MANY DIY wedding projects.

So our wedding is next October and our theme- if that is what you call it- is kind of an elegant Tuscan Romance.  We want it to overall feel elegant and glamorous with touches of tuscan old world charm.  Our colors are plum, gold and moss green.  The bridesmaid dress color shown below is our purple color. 

 

Okay, so moving on to our little prject.. I love the look of gold mercury glasses, but they are CRAZY expensive.  So I found a DIY mercury glass technique on a bridal blog, so I figured that I would give it a shot.  I have heard that it is kind of a long process and it definitely is.  The problem that I am having is that it ends up looking more silver than gold.  We are hoping for more of a silver look rather than gold, so I am not sure if we should just scrap the whole thing and use plain votives.  What do you think?

The first three are our votives that we DIY'd and the fourth one is actual mercury glass.

I think they look pretty good, I am just not sure that they are what we are looking for.  I need some guidance... good thing I am seeing my mom this weekend!

So how is the weight loss going?  This is a weight loss blog right!?  The weight loss is moving along.  I haven't had a gain since the beginning of June.  This last week the loss was smaller than I would like at around 1 pound, but it wasn't a gain.  The only thing that bugs me is that I know that I didn't do my best last week and I still lost 1 pound, so that makes me feel like, "C'MON Shannon! If you can give a mediocre effort and lose 1 pound, what can happen when you give it your all?  So, that is my plan.  I am really giving it my all this week and seeing what the payout is.  Hopefully that gives me the momentum I need to keep it going well into fall and winter!

Today is a perfect example of, "Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail."  I was running late this morning and I almost didn't take the time to pack my breakfast and lunch.  I threw some healthy stuff in a bag and headed to work.  On my way into work I remembered that it was a co-worker's birthday.  What does that mean?  FOOD.  Blah, temptation, don't you hate it!?  So, I made the decision before I even set foot in the door to stay on track and avoid the food.  I have seen it exactly three times this morning and I have walked away exactly three times.  Success is planning!

Brownies and sugar cookies don't taste as good as feeling great on my wedding day will!

Girl's Night, Grocery Shopping and New Food

So, Tuesday night was one of our first girl's nights in a long time.  My friends and I have been really busy moving, traveling and working so it has been hard to get together, but somehow all 7 of us were able to get together on Tuesday night.  To say that we had a blast is a complete understatement.  We laughed until we cried and laughed some more and drank too much wine (okay not me because I didn't want to waste the calories).  My girlfriends are amazing and I love them all!  Some of them I have known since I was 7 years old!  They are all great in their own unique ways, but we all get along so well as a group.

What is the other great thing about hanging out with my girlfriends?  They are all a healthy weight and for the most part they make healthy decisions, so hanging out with them doesn't leave me with guilt.  In fact I am surprised I have gone on this long with skinny friends and I haven't started losing weight sooner.  Anyway, we made veggie and chicken kabobs and fresh corn on the cob and it was amazing!

This was before cooking, but don't they look great!?

After having this fresh, healthy and satisfying meal on Tuesday I was inspired to pull out all of my healthy cookbooks and do some meal planning.  My fiance and I each took a book and looked for 4 recipes that we wanted to add to our list.  I went out grocery shopping yesterday and I got everything on the list and nothing that wasn't on the list.  This is normally hard for me.  I used to go grocery shopping and buy everything that looked good to me (which was pretty much everything salty, fatty, cheesy and not healthy).  This time I avoided all of the bad foods like a pro. 

I got to the check out and the person in front of me was extreme couponing.  I have seen the show, so I know how it goes, but to actually see it happen in front of your eyes is surreal.  This woman bought $600 worth of groceries and paid $23.42 for them.  I was SHOCKED.  My shocked feeling quickly turned to bitterness after I checked out and spent $143.00  Blah.  I packed up my food and drove home crabby.  I got home and set out all of my food and then it hit me. I got a lot of good food!  I have tons of healthy options.  I remembered some of the woman's order in front of me and it was at least 10 bags of chips, 6 packages of cookie dough, 20 frozen pizzas, frozen fries, donuts and about 10 packs of pop.  So, when I think about it like that it is easier for me to think,

"I would rather spend $143 for healthy food, than $23.42 for WAY more food than I could eat or need to eat that will not help me get to my goal!"

Having said all of this, if you know a way to healthy extreme coupon I am all ears.  I am not knocking couponing in the least, but it just doesn't seem beneficial for me to extreme coupon since I only have two people to feed and healthier options don't seem to be as cheap as the other food.  Check out my haul below. 

I think I did pretty good!  What do you think?  I had to take two seperate photos because I couldn't fit it all in one photo.  A lot of the things that I got are items that I normally buy when I am eating healthy, however there are some new things that I have heard about or that I saw in the store and wanted to try.

Shantal over at My Journey talked about Veggie Straws the other day, so I had to try them.  They were not disappointing and perfect for someone who misses her crunchy salty chips.

A couple of recipes call for this.  I have to admit I am a little scared of it.

A couple of recipes call for this.  The word germ is kinda of gross, but I am willing to give it a shot!

Some fresh herbs and some deliciously hot jalapenos.

Do you have Salsa Lisa by you?  If you do go and get it!  It is a local MN company and I always try to buy local.  Even better than that though it is freshly chopped, with limited preservatives and thus less sodium (only 80mg per serving rather than like 200+ in other salsas.

Hmmm, Ginger.  Will I like eating you?  I like ginger ale, but actually ginger is up for debate. 

Stay tuned to see what I use this in later tonight when I post the first recipe from our weekly meal planning. :)

It is costly to eat healthy, but even more costly not to

It is Sunday evening and I just got back from the Science Museum of Minnesota to see the Dead Sea Scrolls while they are in town.  It was pretty cool to see them, but the exhibit was super busy because it is in the last week of showing.  We made a picnic lunch to enjoy on the banks of the Mississippi River before we went into the museum, which was fun, healthy and cheap!

After the museum we stopped at Cub Foods, our favorite local grocery store to get some produce and other items to eat during the week.  I took a picture of the loot, which is below, but I have to say that I am amazed at how expensive eating healthy is.  I am not saying it isn't worth it, because it totally is, but it is not surprising why so many people choose to eat poorly because it is a lot less expensive.  I used to grocery shop every two weeks or so and spend like $150-$200 each time.  Now I grocery shop about twice a week and I spend about $40-$60 each time.  I like going more often so that I can get fresh produce. 

  Driscoll's Raspberries, Eat Smart sugar snap peas, Bananas, Minute brown rice, Fresh Express 50/50 mix, Red onion, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, All natural Popchips, Flatout light original flatbread, asparagus, peppers, Athenos reduced fat Feta cheese. (This is not a paid endorsement for any of these products, I just really enjoy all of these delicious items and will be showcasing recipes that I make using these products on my blog.  Check out the websites above to get other great recipe ideas, product information and nutrition facts). 

WEIGH IN UPDATE

I am now officially down 19 pounds and could not be more happy!  My plan is to make this week another good one!  I hope everyone continues on their journey and makes healthy decisions this week!