My thoughts on April 11

Don't dream it, be it. 

- Rocky Horror Picture Show

Today marks my 2nd anniversary as a Lifetime member of Weight Watchers. It's pretty amazing to me to see how far I have come. To think that about 3 years ago I was overweight and unhappy with my body and had terrible eating habits. I took very little care of myself and didn't stop to think about what I was putting into my body. I found little pleasure in exercise and did it only because I felt like I had to. 

I am so proud of all of the ways I have changed my life since then and it has been an ever-changing, sometimes challenging journey. I am grateful to WW for helping me to turn my life around. WW has given me the tools to help change my eating and build better habits. Because of the program I have made some amazing friends and leading meetings each week provides me with such an amazing opportunity to help other people to reach their goals. I have discovered activities that I love like yoga and belly dancing. If I hadn't changed my eating, I wouldn't be in the position I am now to work towards healing my body/Crohn's Disease through this immense change in diet that I am undergoing. WW also uncovered my passion for food and cooking. I'm even thinking of taking some nutrition classes in the fall and seeing where that takes me. 

I thank all of you who have been a part of my journey and I look forward to celebrating many more Lifetime anniversaries in the years to come. We are all capable of many things; sometimes we just need to push ourselves and see what we can come up with. Just as I told my members this morning - if I can do it, you can do it. 

The beginner's humility and openness lead to exploration. Exploration leads to accomplishment. All of it begins at the beginning, with the first small and scary step. 

-Julia Cameron

100th Post, 25th Birthday and 1st Giveaway Winner

If this is not a cause for celebration - I don't know what is!

First off I wanted to celebrate my 100th post! This blog has come a long way in 100 posts and I want to thank YOU, my lovely readers for making this blog such a pleasure to write! I look forward to many more posts in the future. Thank you!

Secondly, yesterday was my 25th birthday! I had a busy day at work, but a lovely evening with Joey. He took me for an AMAZING dinner and got me The Complete Book of Raw Food (and plans to get me my own copy of Eat, Drink and Be Vegan but couldn't seem to find it at 3 different bookstores!) Can I just gush for a minute? Joey is just the loveliest man on the planet and he makes me so happy. After he gave me the raw book he told me he got it for me because he wants me to do what is best for my health and that it is the most important thing to him. I feel so blessed to have him in my life.

I will be posting various pictures of the festivities over the length of my "birthday week" in my meal recap this weekend. It's amazing to think how much my life has changed in the last few years, but I feel really good where I'm at right now!

And last but not least (drum roll please) the giveaway! Thank you to everyone who entered, but there can only be one winner. The random number generator picked.

quiltingreader said...

I'm starting to eat fresh fruits and veggies.

Congratulations! I have sent you an email and ask that you please respond with your address within 48 hours! Look for more giveaways in the future!!

Have a great long weekend xo

Menu (and dining out plan) - Week of April 5

(Iris helping me meal plan...)
Meal Planning Monday

Wednesday is my 25th birthday so this week is full of celebrations and dinners out. I'm looking forward to celebrating with some of my favourite people! I will be posting a recap next weekend with reviews of the restaurants alongside the meals I make this week.

Be sure to check out my giveaway - only a couple days left to enter!

Sunday
Pork chops with asparagus and spiced mashed sweet potatoes (Veganomican)

Monday
Dinner out with Charis

Tuesday

Cauliflower & Tofu Curry (Best Eats)

Wednesday
Dinner out with Joey!

Thursday
Brown rice shell pasta with pesto and veggies(which may turn into cereal or quick take out as I'm filling in for another WW leader that night)

Friday
Chicken breast (with Not Humdrum sauce from ESBM - I'll be substituting agave for honey), brussel sprouts & lemony roasted potatoes (Veganomican)

Saturday
Dinner out with my girlfriends

Be sure to check out some other meal plans over at Orgjunkie

And check out Angela's "Chocolate Filled Giveaway" over at Oh She Glows

Weekly Meal Recap - Week of March 29

Here we are with another meal recap - yum! Lots of great food this week. I tried to take more pictures and I think that pictures will be an important part of the meal recap going forward! I also included some lunch pictures when they were particularly yummy!

Pork chops with herb-scalloped potatoes (Veganomican) & steamed cauliflower

I loved these potatoes! I'm definitely going to be making them for my family Easter dinner next weekend. Joey and our dinner guest also enjoyed them as well. 

Samosa baked potatoes (Veganomican) with with rice, sausage and asparagus

Originally Joey was not supposed to be in town for the first couple days of the week so I had planned some simple things to cook for myself while he was away. When plans changed and he stayed home, I sort of scrambled to pull together some dinners that had a little more substance! I found these sausages at the back of my freezer and helped myself to a tiny piece to enjoy with my meal. The potatoes were amazing!! I really encourage everyone to pick up Veganomican and make some of the recipes. Everything has been great so far. The spice in the potatoes were awesome and they were incredibly filling, so I only needed to eat one of the two halves that I had on my plate! Below is a picture of me trying to feed asparagus to our cat Eric. He wasn't interested in this awesome green vegetable - what was he thinking??

Quick Protein Salad (reFresh) with Leek and Potato Soup

This salad was AMAZING!! I used the marinated tofu recipe from reFresh as well and everything worked so well together. Tofu is here to stay! I also made the sunflower seed dressing from reFresh, which I absolutely love!! It was an awesome meal and I definitely enjoyed this salad for lunch over the next couple days. The soup was from a carton - can't remember the brand but it was organic and yummy. 

Dining Out - Sweet Lulu

On Thursday Joey and I decided to abandon our dinner plans at home in favor of a date night! I was trying to figure out a place where I could have some choices (but Joey would still like) and I remembered Sweet Lulu. I had been there once before and after scoping out the menu online I decided it would be a great option for me. 

The staff were incredibly accommodating with my gluten free, dairy free needs. Our waiter was able to tell us which items were gluten free and dairy free or where they could accommodate these requests. 

I decided on vegetarian rice noodles with malay sauce, cashews and ginger. The waiter even came back to our table to inquire whether I wanted egg included or not. My meal was incredibly yummy and I was definitely not able to finish even half of it! (Joey helped me out with that after he finished his chicken noodles with Thai chili) I'm really happy to know that this place exists and that they can accommodate my dietary needs easily. 

We finished off our date night with Coraline in 3D. Quite an experience. I really recommend it. 

Pizza (chicken, pesto & veggies with cheese on one side for Joey on gluten free pizza crust) with a salad

This turned out so well! I used a pre-made gluten free crust from Nature's Own Bakery, Sunflower Kitchen pesto, with sauteed chicken, onion and red pepper. I added cheese on one side for Joey and it was delicious! I have to say that I didn't really miss the cheese! Everything else had so much flavor and my side salad was great (romaine, cucumbers, avocado, chickpeas, sunflower seeds & currants with sunflower seed dressing) so it really felt like a complete meal. Despite being gluten free, Joey said that he really enjoyed it as well! I will definitely be making pizza again. 

Lunch Out - The Big Carrot

On Saturday afternoon I had a great day of walking (6km!) and shopping with my dear friend Jess. We stopped in at the Big Carrot for lunch where I had roasted cauliflower, tofu and brown rice noodles with sugar snap peas. It was amazing! I love that all the items in the take away counter have all their ingredients listed, so it's easy for me to see what I can and cannot it. It's reasonably priced (this plate cost me just over $7) and there are tonnes of gluten free, dairy free options. 

Support me in the Heel n Wheel a Thon

"I have learned, as a rule of thumb, never to ask whether you can do something. Say, instead, that you are doing it. Then fasten your seat belt. The most remarkable things follow.”

- Julia Cameron

As most of my readers know, I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease last November. It's been an interesting few months but I'm happy to finally know what has been causing me pain and problems for the last two years. Thank you to all of you who read my blog and email me to share your stories, provide suggestions and support. It has helped me tremendously. I feel very blessed to have a great doctor and naturopath who have been assisting me in figuring what I need to do to feel good as well as an amazing support system of family, friends, coworkers and readers who have helped me through this challenging time.

Crohn's Disease is part of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease family. Both Crohn's Disease and Colitis affect the digestive system and cause the intestinal tissue to become inflamed, form sores and bleed easily. Symptoms include abdominal pain, cramping, fatigue and diarrhea. Crohn's disease can affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract, from the mouth to the anus. Patches of inflammation occur, with healthy tissue between the diseased areas. The inflammation can extend through every layer of affected bowel tissue. Crohn's disease can not be cured by drugs or surgery, although either or both can help relieve symptoms. It's estimated that in Canada alone, there are more than 200,000 men and women who suffer from IBD.
This year I'll be walking in the Heel n Wheel a Thon to raise money to help find a cure. Please visit my page and make a donation. I look forward to whatever you can donate - everything counts! Last year these events across the country raised $1.8 million for research!

If you would like to learn more about Crohn's Disease you can visit the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of Canada's website.