Today is Dedicated to My Husband

Today is a really special day for me and for Pete. No, not our anniversary - that is this Sunday. Today is the culmination of 5 long years of hard work and dedication. Today is Pete's last class of a 5 year sheet metal apprenticeship - GRADUATION DAY!

Back in 2004 Pete and I decided to join a small group at church. We walked up to the table and told them our interests and they assigned us to a group and put us in contact with Carl & Amber Simon. We didn't know a single person and had no idea what to expect. As we bravely knocked on their door we were greeted with warm, smiling faces. Over the next year that group grew to over 6 couples and we met some of our best friends there. All friends of a lifetime. Four of the men in that group were sheet metal workers and they convinced Pete that it was a great career filled with promise and great provisions for a growing family (we were expecting Jordan).

Pete decided that it sounded like a good gig. Who doesn't want a free education and a $45 an hour paycheck after 5 years? Not to mention wonderful benefits and a semi decent pension. Needless to say, he studied hard and passed the entrance test. Let me preface that by telling you that Pete always told me that growing up he was not a good student, made mediocre grades, and essentially hated school. So for him to take that first step, study for this hard test, and pass it, was an accomplishment in and of itself. Not to mention the endless school work and tests he'd endure over the next 5 years.

When we lived in Vegas he had to be at work at 5am, work all day (mind you - this is HARD physical labor - no desk job here) and then drive across town and sit through 4 hours of class EVERY NIGHT of the week. This was a continuous cycle until we moved to Seattle in April of 2008. At that time, he transferred to the school in Everett. Here they do the apprenticeship differently. Every few months the apprentices have to go to school all day for one week at a time. Mind you, they miss work for that week, therefore, missing a whole paycheck. To say it has been an adjustment is an understatement but has been well worth it. At least he's home with the family every night.

The road to becoming a sheet metal journeyman has been challenging. I don't think anyone (except fellow trade workers) understand what it's like to work in a Union Trade. It definitely isn't the cushy concierge desk job that Pete came from. He's on his feet all day, lugging heavy materials, keeping a fast pace, working with sharp metal (if only I had a dollar for every cut he's had - I'd be rich), working with employees who are lazy, rude, belligerant, and could care less about others. Always busting his butt to prove himself so he can keep his job. It was an adjustment. We've had experiences I can't even begin to describe. One cut finger led to an office visit where the doc sterilized his instruments with water ran through a coffee pot to get it hot as they didn't have running hot water in the building. And we don't even live in a 3rd world country here people!  That finger took many painful office procedures and months to heal. Hammers falling from 40 stories above and landing 10 feet from you. Wind storms blowing debris off of a 30 story high rise - basically turning them into deadly projectiles. Falling off ladders, crawling in tight dark spaces, drilling your fingers. Watching co-workers get injured, crushed, airlifted from the job site - knowing that could be you. Multiple layoffs due to lack of work or politics. The latest was the day before Christmas. Did I mention this has been a WILD ride?

Not all of the experiences of the past 5 years have been bad. Actually, MOST of them have been good. We've made great friends, Pete's had the opportunity to minister to people in ways you couldn't imagine. He's known for getting people to come check out church with us and then they never seem to leave :) We've had wonderful family time, he doesn't have to travel for work, he gets paid a great wage and it's been steadily increasing every 6 months for the past 5 years. We have good insurance. Most of all, it's afforded him the opportunity to spend quality time with his family, which to us, is the most important aspect.

Looking back, very seldom have I told Pete how much I appreciate his hard work, dedication, and perseverance. The sacrifices he has made have not gone unnoticed. Today I celebrate all that he has done and all that he has accomplished for the sake of bettering himself and providing for our family. I look back and realize how far we've come and how blessed we truly are. Most of all I give thanks for being privledged enough to have this wonderful man as my husband, my partner, and my best friend. I couldn't have planned this journey better myself nor could I have picked a better person to share it with.

Thank you Pete, from the bottom of my heart for being the best example of what a real man is. Your love, guidance, strength, and courage is an inspiration to me. You are an incredible human being. Today I celebrate YOU and all you have accomplished. Congratulations baby! I love you!

Thursday's menu

Just thought I'd share today's clean menu so you can get an idea of what I'm eating. First, though, I had a random thought that I'll shyly share. I'm not sure if it's my outfit or what, but I FEEL thinner today. It always seems like as soon as I start eating right that the roll on my stomach from having a baby (thanks JJ) seems to be less prominant. It may just be my imagination, but either way, I'll take it! I'm focusing on one positive thought to vocalize and make as my truth each day. Today's is: "This healthy lifestyle is already benefitting me and I can tell because my "baby roll" is shrinking." haha! Love it!

Breakfast

• 1/4 cup egg beaters scrambled with green onion and Mrs. Dash (goes great with eggs and eliminates the need for salt)
• 1/2 cup pineapple
• big glass of water
• coffee with splenda and a tiny bit of f/f milk

Morning Snack

• 1/2 cup f/f cottage cheese
• 1/4 cup pineapple
• 16 oz. water

Lunch

• Tuna mixed w/ dill pickle relish and a small amount of light miracle whip (less than a tbsp)
• Whole wheat pita
• Diet coke w/ lemon

Afternoon Snack

• Handful of almonds (no salt - dry roasted)
• Container of light yogurt
• 1 orange
• 16 oz. water

Dinner

• Spinach salad w/ veggies and a splash of balsamic vinegar & olive oil
• 3/4 cup sweet potato cubes
• 4 oz. grilled boneless pork chop

Dessert

• Either 1/2 cup sugar free / fat free (f/f) jello or a handful of fresh cherries (the latter sounds better actually)

What are you eating today???

Monday weigh in

Ok - being the true lady I am, I won't divulge my actual weight, but suffice it to say that I'm pretty much where I was the last time I gave you a weight update. Pete is at 185.5 and his goal is 178. Only 7.5 pounds to go. He can do that in his sleep! I am so excited that he's almost there. My immediate small term goal is 5 pounds down. I can do that pretty quickly. W-A-T-E-R - must drink lots of it! And keep packin' my lunch. I'm on top of it.....

Here's the nice, professional looking picture I set up just after my shopping trip yesterday. SO PROUD!

Lifestyle re-start

Well, I won't be telling you anything you haven't already heard, but the past month has been really hard for me in terms of keeping up with the Eating Clean lifestyle (the past few weeks have been difficult for Pete, too). There's great news though - I didn't fall off the bandwagon too far and I knew there's never a better time to re-commit than now. In the "olden days" I'd have fallen off so bad that it'd take me gaining back 20 pounds before I'd get depressed enough to re-commit. I haven't gained any weight back and I'm not depressed. What I am is re-committed to eating clean, exercising, and being positive. 

I went on my regular Sunday grocery store expedition a few hours ago. I felt so proud when I got to the check out stand and half of my cart was fresh produce. I don't think there was a single non-clean food on the conveyor belt. I took a picture of a sample of the items I bought and will be uploading it shortly. I've also listed some items below. I noticed that over the past few weeks I've slacked on bringing my cooler of 5 small meals to work and most of the fresh veggies were withering away in the bottom of the crisper. Poor veggies! In an effort to keep that from happening, I took about 45 minutes after I got home to prep a ton of food. I cut up all kinds of veggies, made hard boiled eggs, etc. Now the fridge is full of great foods just waiting within an arms reach. I made a salad for dinner and asked Pete if he wanted green onions on his - he said "nah, that's too much work". I then said "nope - they're already chopped up right in this container - want some?!". It's so convenient when it's all ready and just waiting to be eaten. Almost more convenient than a fast food drive thru!

I will be attempting to write to the blog more often but I can't make any promises. It's definitely at the top of my list though. I may actually begin posting some of my daily food journals for you to check out. I can't wait for tomorrow's weigh in so I can get my new baseline. First goal is 5 lbs down. I also have to work really hard this next week to get all of my water in. We're having nice weather and have gotten our bikes out so fitness shouldn't be hard to get in. My exercise today was a ton of gardening and yard work.

I'll be talking to you soon - below are some foods from my shopping trip today.

Turkey breast, peppercorn pork tenderloin (these are fast and yummy cooked up on the George Foreman), roasted chicken, turkey italian sausages (great in whole wheat spaghetti dinner), hummus, jicama (my 1st time ever buying it - wish me luck!), mushrooms, squash, eggplant, cherries, oranges, sweet potatoes, whole wheat pitas, fresh ground almond butter, eggs, peppers, onions, no sugar added applesauce, lite yogurt, spinach, and so much more.   

Cute reminder we all need sometimes

Monday Update

Yes! I feel so motivated and excited to share this week's weigh in results. I lost 4 pounds last week which brings me back to where I was before my vacation. I didn't work out at all last week but I set a goal with Pete that we will work out at least 2 times this week. I am also on track for super clean eating. We baked a turkey breast last night and now we have it for lunch today. It's an excellent source of protein.

Pete is down to 184. This means he's only 6 pounds away from his goal of 178. Go Pete!

We're going to our aunt & uncle's beach house this weekend. There's lots of steep hills and stuff so I am going to run up and down them a few times a day to get some power bursts of fitness in while enjoying nature.  Have a great and inspired week!

I'm Baaaack!

I've been on vacation lately; both from eating clean AND blogging. For the first half of my vacation I went to Arizona to visit my parents. Eating healthy there was fairly easy because they had most of our meals planned out. My Dad has a celiac disease so he has to eat completely gluten free which, even though it is a terrible thing to have, it does have a few advantages (forces one to eat cleaner). You'd be surprised at what contains gluten. The safest bets not containing gluten are veggies, fruits, and meats - which are also all clean foods. We ate a lot of that - but I won't lie - there was a little candy and GF pineapple cake mixed in there, too. I didn't technically work out but we did do a little 4 wheeling, hiking around their steep mountainous property, and then one day I got ambitious and hauled boulers from the mountainside to their driveway. I wanted to contribute to their house since I didn't get to help with the build of it. So, my self imposed project was to take the rocks and line the looong driveway. It turned out so beautiful. It was very physical work yet so rewarding at the same time. So, that was my Arizona fitness and eating routine.

The California routine became quite different than the Arizona routine. I don't know what it is about theme parks but I feel constantly hungry when I'm there. We were at Disneyland and California Adventure for 3 entire days. What fun it was. We walked and walked and climbed stairs - hopefully it was enough exercise to burn off what I ate. Here's a not-so-brief summary of some of the things I put in my mouth (that I don't normally eat since I've gone clean) and enjoyed so much that I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. Biscuits and gravy,  fish tacos, pizza, meatball sandwich, candy, multiple types of ice cream, fresh sourdough bread, churros, soda, pineapple floats, etc etc. I was so happy to be having all these treats yet my insides were reminding me of why I don't eat like that on a regular basis anymore. Man, it's good going in...and that's all I'll say about that!

I deliberately did not weigh myself when we got home because truthfully, I just didn't want to know what the damage was. I have to say, curiosity got the best of me and I stepped on the scale. The damage wasn't even worthy of being classified as damage. Yes, I gained a few pounds, but nothing major that won't come right off with a little extra work. I'm not going to beat myself up for enjoying my vacation but rather I am going to celebrate. I am celebrating the fact that when we got home I went straight to the store and bought only clean foods. I have also been eating a clean breakfast every morning and taking a clean lunch to work. Dinners are on track, too. The fact that I can jump right back into the swing of my new lifestyle gives me great confidence and pride.

I did want to provide an update on Pete as he is having extremely wonderful success and I couldn't be more proud of him. He told me a while back that at his heaviest - he once tipped the scales at 275 pounds. WHAT??!! My mind was boggled by that because in my eyes he never actually looked that heavy to me. Now looking back at pictures and having him point it out - I can see that he was definitely heavier than normal and at an unhealthy place. His goal since we started this journey was to be at 178. While I was in Arizona he texted me to let me know he weighed in somewhere around 180 or 182. All I know is that he was only a few small pounds away from the huge goal he had set for himself. He was the smallest he could ever remember being. Just thinking about what that means to him brings tears of joy to my eyes. The man has lost almost a hundred pounds over the past few years!!! 100!!!  He is a true inspiration to me and he provides the support, motivation, and strength I need to get me to my goal as well. SO PROUD!