Werewolves vs. Vampires

When I was in high school and college, I loved everything-vampires. Blame it on Anne Rice, she fueled the obsession. But even before then, I thought vampires were the absolute coolest, scariest, hottest thing in the world.

I even visited our "local vampire" in Potomac (world's best basement shop EVER).

But then something shifted...I can't pin point exactly when. God knows it wasn't from watching that Twilight shit (yes, I read the books, but damn it was hard...I can't even sit myself through the movies...there isn't even alcohol in my bloodstream to survive that).

But one day I picked up a book, because I'm a reading whore, and it was about werewolves, and I thought "damn, not bad." So I read some more, and let's face it, they were Porn With Plot....and they were good. So I checked back with the vampires and....eh. Didn't do it for me.

I wonder if it's a maturity thing? Perhaps when a person hits 30, hot vampires turn into hot wolves?

Hmmmm, someone must have a research paper written about that somewhere....

In other news, I am still a gluten free vegetarian and doing FABULOUS :)

Lovin' it

I am loving being gluten free. And guess what? I've lost 8 pounds! And I am not even exercising!

And I love Silver Diner...they have a great gluten free menu :)

Pics

Hey! Posting pics is easy with this app :)
So in that case, let me update with pics of my kids!
Julius is now 9, and Isabella is 4 (will be 5 in November).

Paleo cake and more

Yesterday I made a paleo chocolate kitty cake. If I ever out how to load a picture using this blogger app on my phone, you'll be able to see it.

Though I am not 100% paleo, I am happily enjoying being 100% gluten-free.

It hasn't been an inconvenience, and today I am going to try some gluten-free pizza over at Potomac Pizza.

Update

I feel GREAT without gluten. I love this!
And I don't miss wheat at all!

Friday!

I love Fridays. And I am finally starting to feel better...less itchy!

For breakfast I had strawberries and bananas. For lunch I had a greek salad, and for dinner I am going to have spinach & artichoke dip with veggies and a side of gluten free sweet potato fries!

I am really proud of myself :)

Slow and steady

Thanks to the wonderful powers of social media, it was recommended that I try adding Xantham Gum next time when attempting to make coconut pancakes...and, I received an easier recipe that sounds super delicious!

http://detoxinista.com/2012/01/paleo-pancakes/

Of course, we are peanut and tree nut free here, so I would minus that part...or maybe use sunflower butter?

The above website also has a yummy snack recipe using dates.

So I decided to just aim for being grain-free for the moment. Once I am comfortable enough with it, then I can start removing dairy. I didn't have any dairy today, and I may not have any tomorrow...but I think keeping that possibility open makes this all the easier.

Back to square one

Today is the day.
For breakfast I had a hardboiled egg, and then later, sliced bananas in raw honey.

For lunch, I was excited to try making vanilla pancakes out of coconut flour. Guess what? NOT as fantastic as it sounds. Very grainy. The first bite felt like coconut flavored sand.  Not sure how to fix that.

So I am still trying to figure out lunch, but I know I can do this. I am just going to go through this one day at a time.

Try again

I decided to try again. My skin is on fire. I hadn't notice the connection between my dry skin and what/dairy until I eliminated them from my diet.

Yesterday after the chips, I ate some crackers with cream cheese and then the itchiness started. It was so bad I jumped in the shower and put the water as hot as I could stand it.

This mornings I ate a bowl of cereal, had a bag of chips, a slice of cake, and some pasta for dinner....and now my skin is killing me! Cream won't work, I am this close to throwing myself against the wall.

So...I am doing this paleo veg diet AGAIN.

Failure 101

This must be what a drug addict feels like. I could SMELL the carbs...it was slowly destroying me....

I gave in.

Yes, I know, I suck.

I couldn't even stick it out a week. That's pretty pathetic.

Day 5

After a weekend full of carb temptations, I had hoped to treat myself this Monday morning with pancakes made of coconut flour.
Sadly, after walking the dog, packing the kids' lunches and getting dressed, there was no time :( so I had a sunny-side up egg and left to work.
I had planned for avocado for lunch, until my co-worker informed me that "good fat or not," too much isn't good for you. So, sadly, I did not have my delicious avocado at lunch time. Instead, I ate watermelon.
I am beginning to rethink this 30 day plan. I don't know if I can actually do this...

Day 4 of my paleo-vegetarian diet

This morning, after drinking way too much alcohol (hey, I bet paleos had moonshine!), I ate an obscene amount of watermelon.
Wegman's opened up, so we checked out their produce and I bought a ton of delicious fruits and vegetables, plus coconut flour so I can make paleo pancakes..

I think I am going to make a sunny-side up egg with shredded coconut on top. I saw that recipe on primalpalate.com and it sounded pretty interesting!!

3-day, continued

So by the time I was ready to figure out breakfast, it was time to go to my son's hockey game.
All the hollering made me light headed, so when I got home, I made myself a peach and edame salad...and after eating it, I remembered that edames weren't around during the paleo time. Damnit!

Dinner time was an avocado and egg salad. And I am really at a loss over potatoes. Some paleo sites have recipes with sweet potatoes in them, others say paleo diets do not allow for potatoes....

What's a girl to do?!

To potato, or not potato?

Day 3- morning

This isn't as hard as I thought it would be. I have already learned that I need to eat more than what I am used to. For example, in the past, I was fine eating three meals and occasionally have a snack or two during the day.

Last night, I started feeling light headed and uber-cranky about an hour after dinner. I realized I really wasn't having that many calories and needed to up the ante.

I went online and found some fantastic recipes on primalpalate.com ...I just skipped over all the meat, nuts and fish dishes because those are things I don't eat.

I did notice that some dishes had dairy in it (cheese). That confused me because I didn't think dairy was allowed in a paleo diet. So I guess once in awhile, it won't hurt. A friend of mine gave me a paleo recipe for a carrot cake which has "primal cream cheese," which contains dairy. So I think I will introduce little bits of dairy later in my 30 day plan.

This morning, as I sipped my apple cider, I also noticed how different my husband and I grocery shop. Yesterday he went to the store and came home with one banana, two peaches and a ton of carbs and dairy products.

When I shop, I bring back a lot more fruits and vegetables, but I also have been heavy with carbs. Carbs and dairy have been such a staple in my family!

So I think I need to plan more ahead on things to buy for my meals. I already found a bunch of recipes...but I don't have anything in the house to make them except eggs.

It wouldn't be unusual for me to skip breakfast, but given how much more I need to start eating, I think breakfast is going to be as important as everyone says it is.

Breakfast: apple cider and....????

Paleo vegetarian

I've been a vegetarian since I was 17 years old. Once Julius was born, and we discovered he was allergic to legumes, my protein shifted...and then I became allergic to nuts...and my protein intake shifted again...and I started eating a lot more carbs and dairy... and at first, everything was going great...until I turned 33. Then suddenly I started gaining weight!

So I decided to do some research and discovered the paleo diet! I wasn't sure I could do it, being a vegetarian and all, but turns out there are paleo-vegans out there!

Day 1
Breakfast: fruit salad
Lunch: avocado
Dinner: garden salad

I drank a ton of lime water, and didn't feel tired.

Day 2
Breakfast: fruit salad
Lunch: avocado chop salad
Dinner: vegetable omelet

I feel fine, though my husband and co-worker have commented that I have been a bit short with them.

I am really proud of myself and I am learning about so many fantastic recipes! :)