Organizing vs Losing

It is turning out to be easier to get the house organized than it is to get my butt moving and back to the gym.  Which is weird because I hate to clean!  I work a full time job so that I can afford to have someone come and clean my house.  And I actually do like working out and going to the gym.  It's the getting up at 4 am that I don't like so much.

So last weekend I decided to tackle the pantry.  Our pantry was in much need of attention.  When we bought our house we marveled at how big the pantry was.  Little did we know that all that meant was that that was where all the junk would end up.  I wish I would have taken a before and after picture because I don't think our pantry has ever looked as good as it does now, or as big (except for when it was empty).  Now that the pantry was clean and organized, this past weekend I was able to tackle another organizing project I have been putting off, my cookbooks!  I have a slight addiction to cookbooks and before this weekend, the only place I had to put all of them was on the kitchen counter.  I actually had them double stacked on the counter so they wouldn't take up the whole length of the counter.  This in itself makes it hard to find a cookbook when I need one.  So, I decided to move them all off the counter and into the pantry because I had so much shelf room in there now!  Slowly, but surely the house is getting organized.

Eating healthy, working out and losing weight has been a different story all together.  I haven't weighed myself in weeks because I am scared of the what the scale is going to tell me.  I haven't even logged onto Weight Watchers to record what I have been eating in awhile because most of it has not been good.  The gym is becoming a distant memory.  This week, I am making a plan though.  I intend to go to the gym Tuesday and Wednesday morning and go for a walk/run when I am at my in-laws on Thursday.  Friday's exercise will be fighting the crowds for some Black Friday shopping.  If I can make it to the gym once, then it will be that much easier to get back into the swing of things.

Taco Soup

I found this recipe on one of the Weight Watcher Message Boards and it is absolutely delicious!  I love to make this soup ahead of time and freeze it.  I separate the soup into individual servings in Ziploc freezer bags.  This makes it so easy to just grab a bag of soup in the morning and go!

Taco Soup

1 large onion, chopped 
1 package of taco seasoning 
2 cups whole kernel corn 
1 can fat free chicken broth 
1 can black beans, undrained 
1 can great northern beans, undrained 
1 can fat free refried beans 
1 can diced tomatoes 
1 can spicy seasoned tomatoes, like tomatoes with jalapenos 

Saute the onion until soft in a large pot. sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, Add the other ingredients to pot and simmer for 30-40 min 

makes 15 cups 
1 cup=1 point 

Best laid plans...

It seems like anytime I make a plan to better myself, something happens that throws a wrench into the whole thing and it takes me forever to get back on track.  

In an attempt to get some organization into my meal planning and grocery shopping, I purchased this wonderful software called Living Cookbook.  I can keep track of my recipes, adjust recipes to make them healthier, and best of all, I can create a meal plan for the week and a grocery list!  So for the past month and a half, I have been updating my cookbook with recipes, creating meal plans and grocery lists, and printing off my grocery lists to take to the store with me.  This way I buy what's on my list to make sure I have everything I need to cook delicious and healthy dinners and lunches for the week.  The only downfall of this plan, is that nothing can predict what is really going to happen in life when there is a 4 year old involved.  

It's a Sunday and the three of us are at the grocery store, trying to run through the store and get the shopping done as quickly as possible.  I have a very detailed list so this should be easy right?  All of a sudden, AJ needs to go to the restroom, and of course, she never has to go when we are at the front of the store, where the restrooms are.  So Busy Dad takes her up to the front of the store and I continue shopping off of my wonderful grocery list.  I look up from my list to see him rushing back down the aisle with AJ in tow.  He says that I am going to have to take her because there is a problem with the men's bathroom.  So I leave him to the shopping, (the list should make it easy, right?) and I rush to the bathroom, dragging AJ behind me.  We get to the bathroom and before she can get up on the potty, AJ has an accident.  So, we clean up as much as we can, she finishes going potty and we run back down the aisles of the store to try to find Busy Dad, who of course is not where we left him and is wandering around looking for something that is not on the list!  I hand AJ off to Dad so he can take her out to the car to change her clothes and I finish shopping as fast as I can.  Feeling pretty confident that I got everything we needed, we checkout and head home.  Where I find that I have forgotten one of the main ingredients for the Taco Soup I was going to pre-make so I would have something healthy to eat for lunch for the week.  

Will try again next week...

What does getting healthy mean?

I have been contemplating starting a blog for quite some time now.  Whenever I think about it, obviously the first thing that comes to mind is "What would the name of it be?"  I have continually gone back to a name that has something to do with me (Busy Mom) getting healthy.  So simple enough, Mama Gets Healthy.  Now, what does that mean?

To me, getting healthy encompasses more than just losing weight.  To me, being healthy does mean eating right and being fit, but it also means being organized for myself and my family, following through with ideas, saving money and being financially healthy, helping those in need and much more that I hope to find along the way.

I have found for me that the best way to accomplish all of this is to make myself accountable.  What better way to do that than to write down and record everything I have done and want to do!  I hope you enjoy everything I have to say!