Naps and Snacks

I just attempted a nap.  I failed.  Why is it so hard to take a nap??  I am amazed at how some people can just decide to take a nap and they do.  Brad can come home from work, sit down, put his head back, and go to SLEEP.  Snoring sleep.  Meanwhile I'm making noise cooking dinner, kids wandering in and out, and he SLEEPS.  Doesn't work that way for me.  I've tried.  Today I needed a nap.  Very little sleep to be had last night, due to someone's snoring sleep. Instead of getting any restorative sleep, I wasted a half hour trying. Not a fan of wasted time. Or of lack of sleep.

On a happier note, I have been such a good girl with my eating.  I've had my 5 servings of fruits and veggies, and mostly veggies at that, every day for almost a week.  Hey, that's a big thing for me.  And I haven't completely banned sweets, but I've cut way back.  I'm getting all my water in.  And in three weeks I haven't missed one day of my vitamins!  I'm doing the work, baby stepping to better health.  Imagine how great I would feel with some good sleep!

So, in honor of my eating better, here are some things I've been enjoying:

*the green grapes at Costco right now are everything a grape should be.  they are plump and sweet and firm and explode with freshness in your mouth.  yum.

*Tzatziki Yogurt Dip with cucumber and garlic is a yum, yum, yummy veggie dip. I'm a little confused by the "yogurt dip" description, because the main ingredient is sour cream and it has zero protein, but it's still a yummy dip that makes it worth eating all kinds of veggies: carrots, cucumbers, broccoli, peppers...mmmm.

*Did you know you can make your own microwaved popcorn out of regular kernels?  Using a lunch-sized brown paper bag!  Just put 1/3 cup kernels into the bag, fold over the top and tape it closed (just one small piece of scotch tape will do). Use the popcorn setting on your microwave and the magic just happens. No oil necessary.  No so-called "butter" that is in the store bought microwave packages.  Now, after it's popped you can drizzle it with some real melted butter if you like.  You can even sprinkle in 1 TBSP sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon and shake it up to make snickerdoodle popcorn.  Just heard that might be pretty good.

*I've been making salmon patties to keep in the fridge for a quick lunch or snack.  They remind me of one thing my mom use to make that I liked, and are great crumbled over a big green salad or eaten burger style or just eaten plain.  I just mix 2 (6 oz each) cans wild salmon, some crushed saltines (or some seasoned bread crumbs), diced onion, Johnny's seafood seasoning and a slightly beaten egg.  Mix together well, shape into patties and cook in a non-stick pan a few minutes on each side.

*a salad with mostly spinach, some greens, chopped yellow peppers, carrots, cucumbers, broccoli, and a crumbled salmon patty = yummy lunch.

*Quaker multi grain hot cereal is a great jazzed up oatmeal.  I love this stuff.  More fiber, too.  I know I'm not totally where I need to be, because I ate my first bowl of that and thought, "Ooooh, I wonder how oatmeal/chocolate chip cookies made with this cereal would be???"  Then I had cookies on my brain all day.  But none in my mouth, thank you very much. (Not that I'm forbidding cookies, just trying to not give in to every whim.  But I will try those cookies soon.  Gotta see how they'd be.  Plus they'd be so HEALTHY!!)

*And my very favorite description of self-control comes from Beth Moore:  Self-Control is not always "no", sometimes it's just "that's enough for now".  Isn't that so gentle?  I can say "that's enough for now" to myself.

I've found that one of my biggest pitfall to eating well is just not having the good stuff conveniently ready.  The days get so busy, and all of a sudden I'm hungry NOW.  I've never been one to slowly realize I need to eat.  Once I'm hungry, I get a bit cranky and panicky. So if I have this kind of stuff sitting there ready to be eaten, I'm much more likely to grab that.  Fruit washed and ready to grab.  Veggies chopped and ready to eat. Something with protein sitting there smiling at me.   This container idea from Real Simple caught my eye. The only potential trouble I see is my son, who would remove the entire tub as a pre-meal appetizer.  It would have to sit in my fridge with clear rules.  Like "touch it and you lose the ability to taste food for 14 days" or something like that.

Now I'm going to start blasting my music and see if I can summon up enough creativity to choreograph a wee bit more of my dance.  Oh, I do hope this goes well...