Domestically Challenged – Parenting Tips from Author Alana Morales

I have always had a littany of weird health issues. Growing up, I had strep throat all winter long. I still, to this day, cannot fathom why the military doctors didn’t just take out my damn tonsils.

In high school, I got mono and I didn’t even get it the fun way (which we all know is by making out with someone). I always thought you could only get mono once. Then I got it twice more, as a married adult. The first time would have been issue enough, if the doctor who tested me for mono hadn’t insisted on also testing me for HIV.

As an adult, I feel like I have let my health problems direct me too much. I used to be an athlete. In fact, I used to be a personal trainer. But, as I get older, I get weirder stuff happening to me. I like to attribute it to the fact that I was a preemie and spent a little over a month in NICU when I was born. Who knows? And it doesn’t matter anyway.

My mom, who passed away almost 4 years ago at the age of 52, was on disability and had been since I was in high school. She was on so many meds that she carried them all in a carry on travel bag that you would use to fly with. I do NOT want to be like that. I do NOT want to be stuck in bed, doped up on painkillers and such.

No way in hell.

Here’s the list, in no particular order:

• Scoliosis, severe 58 degree curve, impairing lung function
• TMJ, severe, causes dizziness, headaches, impaired jaw function
• Migraines
• Arthritis/Fibromyalgia – the doctors don’t really agree here. Doesn’t really matter what they call it.
• Hypoglycemia
• Asthma – may be made worse by the scoliosis
• Ovarian cysts – i almost had to have surgery last month. If I had, it would have meant a hysterectomy. This has plagued me since 6th grade. I am desperately hanging on till the last minute to avoid hormone therapy here.
• Adhesions – From my first c-section. I have already had 2 surgeries to clean this up. need another already. Basically, my guts are stuck to the abdominal wall.
• Diastasis Recti (pregnancy hernia) – I need to have this surgically reconstructed, since I have about 4-5 inches of separation between my ab muscles. This means that I cannot do situps and I have a huge bulge in my gut. Basically, think about the movie Alien, when the alien rips out of the guys stomach. yeah, I have that.

So what does this all mean?

It means that I take at least 800mg of ibuprofin a day to control my pain. It means that after I workout, I have to put heat on my back for at least an hour so I can move. It means that I can’t lay on my back or eat a lot of crunchy food or I won’t be able to open my mouth to eat. it means I have to check my blood sugar often and eat every 2-3 hours so I don’t go into a hypoglycemic coma (I’ve had my sugar be in the low 30′s).

But this time, I refuse to let all that ^^^ stop me. It will NOT become an excuse. I will play through the pain, so to speak. I will do my best to get in good shape (something other than round).

I refuse to take pain meds. Ever. Unless after a surgery.

This leads me into the Mamavation question of the week – what am I doing to get my heart healthy?

I am working out. I am eating better and I am trying to be good to myself. That’s all there is to it.

So, there happens to be this big game this weekend, maybe you’ve heard of it?

Either way, my husband is out of town. For the game. And not only is he out of town, but he’s VEGAS. With his best friend. Yeah, that’s how I feel about it too.

I’m a BIG TIME football fan and am pretty tweaked that he will be gone. I counted and this is the first Super Bowl we haven’t watched together since around 1991. And yes, that does mean we are getting old.

This also means that I am looking at ways to keep the kids entertained and make it fun for them too. This is the first time in 10 years that we haven’t hosted a party.

So, we are going to focus on getting the kids full of terrible snacks, watching the commercials (cannot WAIT for the Angry Birds spot) and generally having a good time without dad. Even though he will be having way more fun.

Here’s what you might have missed this week:

Monday – Two posts for your reading pleasure. 1. Healthy Casseroles – go check this out if you are looking for warm, yummy comfort food that won’t go straight to your hips. 2. Mamavation Monday – I discussed what wellness means to me.

Tuesday - Top 5 Tip Tuesdays - Look here for a pleathura of tips to help you out, including surviving the grocery store and dealing with stress.

Wednesday – How The Biggest Loser Hurts Weight Loss – This was a very personal post, leave a thought if you can.

Thursday – Vlog – Quick Kitchen Cleaning Tips - Got kitchen gunk? Here’s a few ways to deal with that.

Friday – Blogstalking Friday – The Casual Perfectionist – Check her out, yo. Seriously.

So, how was your week? My fave? Not one, but two snow days. SO. AWESOME. Tall me what the best part of your week was, then go enjoy the weekend!

Happy Friday peeps!

Today’s lucky victim is JoAnn from The Casual Perfectionist. I love her blog. First of all, there’s the name. Casual Perfectionist. It makes it so much nicer than a regular perfectionist. In fact, at one point in my life (a long, LONG time ago) I was somewhat of a perfectionist. Stop laughing.

Her site is a mixture of parenting and recipes and insights and very cool pics. Here’s a few posts to get you started:

Key Lime Pie Recipe – complete with a super beautiful model

It’s Like a Whole New Kitchen – I want those cabinates. I’m sure if I had them (especially the spice drawer – how cool is that?) my kitchen would magically be clean all the time.

The Birthday Chain – So. Darn. Clever. I don’t care if my kids are too old for it. They are both getting these this year.

So there you have it. Another worthy stalking victim. Add her to your blogroll peeps – good stuff there.

And since we didn’t get the hunkage last time, here’s a little eye candy to take you into the weekend:

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I’m pretty sure I’ve posted this one before, but I didn’t think you would mind.

Have a blog you want stalked? Leave it in the comments.

Here’s a quick vlog about cleaning gunk in the kitchen.

Sorry if it shows up blurry – Will fix that for next week!

Do you like vlogs? If so, what are some of your faves? As always, leave it in the comments.

This may seem like a strange title for a post, especially since all of the weight I have lost has been from motivation I get from the show and from putting myself through the ringer with The Biggest Loser Kinect game.

That being said, I think the show gives a lot of people false expectations.

To date, I have lost 14 pounds. If you had told me one year ago that I would have lost 14 pounds in 5 weeks, I would have laughed and thought you were crazy.

But, here I am, off of soda, working out 4-7 days a week and eating smaller portions of healthier food. And weighing 14 pounds less.

And I’m not happy with that.

I know I should be. I should be totally stoked about it.

But I’m not.

And I think it’s because I watch The Biggest Loser.

Here’s my disclaimer. I LOVE THIS SHOW. LOVE. I watch it every week, staying up past my bedtime and everything.

I resisted watching it. When I first heard about it, I thought it objectified fat people.  The only reason I watch it now is because  my husband convinced me to give it one chance. I’ve been hooked ever since. I watch the show. I talk to the TV. I yell at Jillian. I laugh at Bob’s wit. I cry. I root.

But I also think it affects my weight loss.

The first two weeks, I lost like 8 pounds. I was ecstatic. I wouldn’t have left the ranch that week.

Now, here I sit, 14 pounds lighter and unhappy. I should have lost more, I tell myself. 2 pounds a week isn’t enough. What did I do wrong? How did I mess up?

In reality, I did it right. Perfect in fact.

Still unhappy. I want to have 5-6 pound weeks every week. I know it’s not reasonable.

I had a cheat meal over the weekend and almost gave myself a panic attack over it. This is not right. It was my first cheat meal (I even had a COKE!) and I didn’t even go crazy, but I still felt bad.

The other night, I almost gave up.

It would be easier to just stay heavy, I told myself. It would nice to just eat whatever I wanted, healthy or not. I’m not even doing that well anymore. It was probably a fluke. Why bother? It’s going so sloooooow. You’re such a slacker. Look at what *they* did. What the hell is wrong with you?

This is what I have been telling myself, despite the success. Hey, when I see all the weight The Biggest Loser contestants lose, how can I still be considered successful?

So, this is my new challenge. To not have unrealistic expectations. To be happy with my progress. To workout at a higher intensity and see the numbers continue to move down.

Luckily, I made the right choice the other night. I made the choice to continue my fitness journey. I made the choice to not give up on myself.

I will still watch the show religiously. I watched last night and cried. I cried when Jillian cried. I cried when I realized that I still had so far to go. I didn’t look at it as being over 1/4 of the way to my goal. I looked at it as still having almost 75% left. I am trying to change my mindset. But it’s still there and I have to deal with it.

I know I will be a little bit disappointed when I don’t put up big numbers on the scale. And this is something I have to live with. Will I still watch the show? Hell yes. I did 40 wall push ups and did stairs during the full commercials three separate times while I watched. I cheered for the teams who finally put up better numbers. And then I looked up their equipment so I could do just what they do and wondered why I don’t work out until I puke.

Shouldn’t it matter to me that I am a full time working mom (a teacher, no less), raising two ADHD kiddos, while managing my writing career and losing weight?

It should.

But it isn’t.

So, I will continue to watch the show. And I will continue to beat myself up while I do. I am working to set things right mentally, but that will be a long road to travel.

Your thoughts on the topic?

Happy Tuesday all!

In Colorado right now, it is like 1 degree. Yup, it’s cold! For today, I am bringing you a roundup of the top 5 Tip Tuesdays here on Domestically Challenged.

They are, in no particular order:

1. Dealing With Being Overwhelmed – As moms, we are often overwhelmed with all of our day to day tasks – here’s a few ways to deal with that.

2. Develop Your Mom Stress Relief Plan – This is linked with #1. Making a plan to deal with stress can help you beat it before it beats you.

3. Dealing with the Black Hole…Backpack – Now is a great time to go through your kid’s backpack and clean it out. Here’s a few tips to make the organization and cleaning easier.

4. Dealing with Temper Tantrums – They happen. They embarrass us. Here’s a few ways to deal with them.

5. Surviving Trips To The Store – You have to go. They have to go with you. These hints can help prevent tears from both of you.

Now a question for you, dear reader. What areas do you need hints and tips in? Cleaning? Organization? Discipline?

Please leave a comment and let me know. I’m here to help you out.

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a GREAT weekend!

This week for Menu Plan Monday, I’m talking about casseroles. I loooove a good casserole and since we are projected to get snow twice this week, I love the idea of tossing stuff in the oven and warming up the house. There’s just one problem.

I’m trying to lose weight.

And I don’t know about you, but the casseroles I remember growing up with were dripping in fat. That’s part of what made them taste yummy, but that’s not the point here. The point is, you too can still eat casseroles without eating your weight in casseroles.

Here’s some recipes I found:

Casseroles Under 300 Calories, courtesy of MyRecipes.com

There are 10 to choose from, the two that I would love to try is the Marmalade French Toast and the Eggplant Parmesan, which I pasted below.

Eggplant Parmesan

Preparation

Combine first 7 ingredients in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes.

Place eggplant in a large bowl; add water to cover, and let stand 30 minutes. Drain well; blot dry with paper towels. Combine 1/4 cup water and egg whites in a shallow bowl. Combine breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese; stir well. Dip eggplant in egg white mixture, and dredge in breadcrumb mixture.

Place half of eggplant on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray, and broil 5 minutes on each side or until browned. Repeat procedure with remaining eggplant. Set eggplant aside.

Spread half of tomato mixture in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange half of eggplant over sauce; top with half of mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers with remaining sauce, eggplant, and cheese.

Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh oregano sprigs, if desired.

10 Healthy Casseroles, courtesy of Taste of Home.

Make sure you take a look at the Turkey Enchilada Casserole!

Healthy Casserole Recipes, courtesy of SparkPeople.

You can’t go wrong with SparkPeople, so check out this list.

Hearty and Healthy Casseroles, courtesy of Parents.com

This site does require registration, but it is probably worth it since they have a recipe for Scallop and Shrimp Fetticcini.

Now, the big challenge in my house will be adapting these recipes to fit with my food allergies. Getting rid of the cheese will also get rid of calories and fat from the recipes, so that is a good thing.

My question for you is this – does your family like casseroles? If so, how do you make them healthy? And of course, when you try one of these, please leave me a note and let me know how it tasted.

Have a great week!

Happy Monday (or not, considering I’m not on caffeine anymore – lol).

This past week has been one with challenges galore. I skipped what I feel was too many workouts (only got 4 in), I had my first cheat meal (complete with a Coke!) and got some unexpected support.

Last week found me with a sick kid. I don’t know about you, but for me, after being up and down all night with a sicko, I had NO energy for a workout. I ended up only working out 4 times last week and it wasn’t enough. To make up for it, I worked out extra hard on Saturday. Of course, I had an alterior motive for this too.

On Saturday, I had my first cheat meal. It wasn’t really that bad, but I still felt horribly guilty. In fact, I have decided that if I am going to feel that guilty, I might as well cheat and have hot wings. We went out to On the Border and I had chips and salsa, then for my meal I had pork with pico de gallo and green chile sauce. I also had rice only. No tortilla. No cheese. It was heavenly! There was a little bit of a jump in the scale the day after, but overall I lost 2 pounds for the week.

Check back Wednesday, when I address how shows like the Biggest Loser make weight loss tougher for some.

So, the Mamavation question of the week is what does wellness mean to you? Wellness means many things to me, including:

• Being able to play with the kids without wheezing.
• Being at a healthier weight.
• Eating healthier.
• Having good mental health.
• Not suffering as much from my chronic health issues.

So, what does wellness mean to you? As always, leave it in the comments.

Hey peeps, just a super quick post today.

What have you done for yourself lately?

I seriously want to know. For me, this is a tough time of year. My daughter got sick (missed time off work), I’m doing this weight loss stuff (which is making me cranky) and then there is just regualr life.

I was driving to work and I was stressed before I even got there, because I had been out three days and knew it would be a nightmare trying to get caught back up. Then I told myself to pause for a moment.

I was pre-stressing myself out.

I need to stop.

So, this reminded me that other than my workouts, I haven’t been doing enough for myself. I need a massage. Or a trip to a bookstore. Or something sans kids.

I need to woosaw (and if you know what’s that from, you get double points for the day) and just let it go. This is not something I am good at. But I am going to work on it. I need to let things go more. I need to relax more. I need to stop worrying so much.

Don’t we all?

From here, I can take baby steps to finding my zen and all that crap.

What about you? What are you doing to be less stressed? If you aren’t doing this, what *can* you do? As always, leave it in the comments!

BTW – triple bonus points if you had the song “What Have You Done For Me Lately” by Janet Jackson in your head while reading. Unless, of course, it’s just me.

This past week of working out and weight loss has really stressed me out. Clearly, I have other issues, but this week, I did something monumental – I gave up soda.

No Pepsi.

No icy, cold Cokes.

Nothing.

I know I should just grow up and deal with it. I really should. But. I. Can’t. I can’t have anything else that is sinful and bad for me. Why not that?

It did have immediate gratification (thank goodness!) and I lost 1.5 lbs the first day and another 1 on the next day. I still drool at the thought and it’s been almost a full 7 days. So sad.

So, here’s an update:

Started Dec 27th

Lbs lost – 12

Working out – 4-7 days a week, The Biggest Loser Kinect game

Here’s my workout:

I am still sticking with my Biggest Loser game. I upped the difficulty last night and wanted to roundhouse skull kick the TV by the end, but I did finish on the higher level. I also added a resistance band, which is pretty cool. There are still a bunch of times that it doesn’t read my movements as well as I would like, but whatevs.

Food:

I don’t know exactly how many calories, but here’s a typical day:

B: Oatmeal and banana

Snack: Life Cereal Bar

L: lo cal leftovers, usually around 300 cal; apple or grapes

D: Smaller portions of healthy stuff. Last night it was grilled turkey thigh, garlic mashed potatoes (put chicken broth in the boiling water to increase the flavor) and steamed broccoli

So, my plan for the week is to continue to workout at a higher level and see what happens. I am frustrated with the slow weight loss (which is completely dumb, because if you had told me a year ago that I would lose 12 pounds in a month, I would have been ecstatic), but want to see what happens with the amped up workouts.

If I don’t see what I want, I will then add in trips to the gym. This concerns me, since it takes so much work to get there right now. We’ll see. In other fun news, I was also accepted into the Mamavation Sistahood, which is a weight loss group run by the infamous Bookieboo, a mom weight loss guru.

Technically speaking I am over 1/5of the way to my overall goal. This, again, should make me happy. Damn instant gratification…

So, how is your fitness journey going? What are you struggling with this week? As always, leave it in the comments.