These are the good days

Our sweet baby boy turned one on Friday. It was a fantastic day filled with memory making events and love. First we had breakfast at Stacks where we all munched on pancakes and yummy breakfast treats!

Then it was home to nap and get ready for the day. Max got to try out his new big boy table.

Then it was time to complete a project we procrastinated on until it finally just made more sense to do it at the one year mark.





Yay! Handprints and footprints of our big one year old!

Next we went to Build-A-Bear so Maxton could make his very own puppy to love. Unfortunately it was quite traumatizing for him because the puppy fluffing machine was so loud. It's okay though because he got to put TWO hearts into his puppy. That made it all better.
One more nap down and we loaded up to go to Max's Restaurant in Palo Alto. It was a gorgeous evening of great food and our very own Max's first taste of cake.

The following day brought his birthday party. Ritchie and I had worked hard on the details and it was a bit stressful making sure everything fell into place (and accommodating the ridiculous heat) but in the end it was worth it!

Max was in a fantastic mood for the whole party! He crawled around, ate, played, and loved every bite of his cake!





My family outside of Papa and Grammy's house. They each had a special role in making this day possible. I'm so grateful to have them to love Maxton.


Our big one year old boy. We couldn't love you more.

One year ago today.

One year ago today we took this last picture of me pregnant with Maxton:

I can't believe it was only a year ago that I was 2 short days away from meeting my son. My whole life has changed and it just keeps getting better. What a difference a year makes.

LLCC Day 21 & 22

Yesterday was the last day of the 3rd week. It was a perfect day and I stayed under 1150 calories. I didn't get the chance to exercise because it was such a busy day with errands and such, but I ate really well and it felt really good! I could write exactly what I ate, but I'm getting really tired of doing that and I'm feeling lazy, so I won't. It was all good though :)

Today I had a weigh in and I am down 1 more pound. Incredible considering how crappy the weekend was for me. Today was good all day but dinner killed my calories. We had Ritchie's cousin and her husband over for dinner. She's due with her first baby in a month and we wanted to celebrate with her. Now, you don't invite a pregnant woman over and feed her a 300 calorie dinner. No, no. We went all out with a yummy pesto shrimp pasta and a chocolate brownie mouse dessert. So, good day, bad night. Tomorrow it's back on track for 2 days until another 2 day break. Then I'll go strong until the end of the month! It's feeling less and less torturous, but I think that's because I've had some breaks. That might be the key to overall success. We'll see where October leads me with this, but I can't believe I've basically stuck this out and am continuing to lose weight this month!! I'm down 8.5 pounds! It feels really good :)

LLCC Day 19 & 20

I'm not even going to blog about those two days. I'm just going to say they were bad and I resolve to do better.

There were cupcakes. And birthday food to celebrate a friend of Max's first birthday. There may have been some pizza and Taco Bell thrown in there. I will say that I managed (somehow) to remain around 1,650 calories per day (the target for 1 pound per week weight loss). I'd like to try to get back down 1150ish which is what I had been doing until last Friday.

We've already agreed to take next Friday and Saturday off for Max's birthday and party so I'd like to hunker down this week and focus on keeping the count low. Wish me luck!!

LLCC Day 18

Allotment: 1644 (I changed my calories to 1 pound a week weight loss as opposed to 2 pounds - see the difference this makes?? I'll go back tomorrow - I just REALLY wanted a cupcake tonight :)

Breakfast: About 165

Cheerios

milk

Lunch: About 300

Bagel thin sandwich with PB&J

Dinner: About 330

Chipotle again! haha! At least I'm consistent.

Snacks: About 750

7 mini peanut butter cups (oh man - I need to get these OUT of my house)

1 nectarine

1 ounce corn chips

1/4 cup cheese (with the chips)

1 homemade spice cupcake with cream cheese frosting

Did take one short walk tonight, but tomorrow the focus is on healthy food and more exercise. But the cupcakes are still here... as are the peanut butter cups. *Sigh*

LLCC Day 17 and a Confession

Confession: We had Chipotle last night. We split a bowl to skip out on the tortilla and to share the calories - so it was only 330 calories each. It still felt really good to enjoy some carby, meaty goodness. Haha! Okay, another confession. I'm losing my mind. I honestly have no problem eating healthy meals and not going out as frequently, but this total calorie cut is killing me. I'm very tempted to just drop this whole thing. Or, I could go to trying to lose 1 pound a week as opposed to 2 and it would add about 500 calories a day to what I could eat. Add exercise in there and I would be able to enjoy foods I miss (like Starbucks).

Anyway, here is how today went:

Allotment: 1144

Breakfast: About 165

Cheerios

1 % milk

Lunch: About 165

4 oz chicken

steamed brocoli

Dinner: About 395

Linguine

Chicken

mushrooms

marinara sauce

Snacks (and here is where I royally screw everything else): About 795

Yoplait yogurt

4 graham crackers

popcorn

2 ice cream sandwiches (different times of day)

Just cause I don't want ya'll thinking I sit and scarf two ice cream sandwiches in a row. I may feel deprived, but I do still have some self control :) Today I took a long walk with Ritchie and Max and I also ran 3/4 of a mile and then walked the rest of that mile. If I can somehow keep up the exercise I know I'll be much better off. Goodnight!

LLCC Day 15 & 16

Yesterday was the beginning of week 3 of the LLCC. I'm really excited to be at the halfway point and know that next week we have scheduled 2 days off to celebrate Max's birthday by eating cake and basically whatever else we want for 2 whole days!! It's what's getting me through right now. I weighed in this morning with a 1 pound weight loss and, while it's not as motivating as last week's 6.5 pound loss, it's still a loss and I'm moving in the right direction. I feel like I still have some weapons to pull out to lose weight more aggressively if need be. I'll decide after this week.

Here was yesterday's log:

Allotment: 1144

Breakfast: About 290

Oroweat thins with peanut butter

Lunch: About 365

2 meatballs

rice

Dinner: About 350

Mushroom pizza slice from pizza my heart

Snacks: About 265

100 calorie popcorn

1/2 hershey's chocolate bar

pudding snack cup

Wonderful snacks, I know! haha! I've totally been using snacks to satiate cravings which doesn't exactly work to my advantage because I'm hungrier since those snack choices don't fill me up. It's a toss up. I feel like I'm getting what I need out of meals no problem, but I guess I have to work on snacking properly. Today is no better, just to warn you!

Today's log:

Breakfast: About 170

Oatmeal with 1 tsp brown sugar

Lunch: About 270

1 bagel thin

4 slices oscar meyer turkey

1 slice cheddar cheese

1 nectarine

tomato and pickle

Dinner: About 210

6 oz of chicken

green beans

Snacks: So far about 360

2 Graham crackers

4 of these little brownie things (not all at once - haha!) they're 60 calories each and SO freakin' delicious I could eat them all in one sitting. But, I'm not going to :)

Both days I took one walk. Today I'm hoping to get in at least one more walk. I've been having some knee issues when I work out so I haven't been. It does need to be improved on if I'm going to have the body I want, not just the weight on the scale that I want. Thanks for hanging in there with me!! Hopefully you don't dread seeing the letters L-L-C-C pop up in your reader ;)

LLCC Day 14

Blah. What a rough day it was. We're running out of groceries and I was feeling so bored and wanting to snack up a storm. I went out of my calorie range by probably close to 200 and to be honest it was the first day I just didn't really much keep track. My phone (where I log the calories) is charging so I'm going to just tell you what I ate and hang my head in shame...

Breakfast:

Cheerios

milk

Lunch:

Sandwich with orowheat thins bread, turkey, and cheese

Dinner:

2 Meatballs with rice

Snacks:

Well - I finished off the low fat chocolate cake. let's just leave it at that.

Yoplait light yogurt

Topped off the day with a skinny cow ice cream sandwich (hangs head in shame) see? Bad, bad Jamie - I know.

So, I didn't eat much of substance. Not even a fruit or veggie. I'm not happy about it and resolve to do better. Today has already been much better. I'll fill you in on it later along with my last week's weight loss.

LLCC Day 12 & 13

Yesterday was another tough day because we went out to breakfast with family and it just puts into motion all of these cravings. I'm not an egg lover so for breakfasts I love pancakes and waffles and all of that yummy carby goodness. So, that was a challenge. I was feeling pretty bitter about the whole thing. But I made it through without pancakes and came home only to find what I really wanted was chocolate cake. I was just dying for some chocolate cake. So, I looked for a lowfat cake recipe and I found one! Just 126 calories per slice! So, I made cake and found some comfort in baking and eating chocolate cake, all while managing to fit it in to mu calories.

Allotment: 1150

Breakfast: About 240 Calories

1 fried egg

1 slice wheat bread dry

2 pieces of bacon

tomato

Lunch: About 275

5.5 ounces of hamburger

Dinner: About 230

Lemon Thyme chicken with cous cous and squash

Snacks: about 555

yoplait light yogurt

1 graham cracker

2 pieces of chocolate cake with a dollop of cream cheese frosting

I tried to go running yesterday and realized just how out of shape I am when it comes to cardio. I ended up doing approximately a mile but not consecutively and pacing roughly 5 miles per hour. We also walked an additional mile. I'll be out trying to improve the distance of my run first tonight. I'll try to complete a mile without stopping (I've been able to do this is the past easily, so I'm not sure what's up with me but, whatever. I don't mind working my way up.)

Today's plan:

Allotment: 1150

Breakfast: About 200 calories

1/2 banana

1 cup cheerios

1/2 cup milk

Lunch: About 230

Lemon Thyme chicken with cous cous and squash

Dinner: About 235

BLT wraps

-bacon

-avocado

-tomato

-corn tortillas

Snacks: I have 755 allotted calories for snacks so far because of our hike this morning and we plan to run later so I may have even more than that.

Tall Nonfat Chai

piece of lowfat chocolate cake ;)

I don't know what else I'll snack on but I'm sure to stay within that range since it's so high. Adding in the exercise really makes a difference. This is a roller coaster to say the least. Yesterday was a low, today I feel good that I don't have to deprive myself completely and I can still lose weight. We'll see what day 14 brings I suppose as we end out week 2.

LLCC Day 11

Yesterday was tough because I went out to lunch with my mom. My first time out to a restaurant while counting calories. Man, do they make it challenging. Most of my lunches and dinners are anywhere from 250 - 350 calories. The LOWEST thing on the menu at California Pizza Kitchen was a cup of soup for 361 calories. So, needless to say, lunch was a high calorie meal. I decided to just eat the rest of the day the way I normally would (including my nighttime treat) and just make peace with being over my allotted calories due to going out.

Allotment: 1150

Breakfast: About 200

1 cup cheerios

1/2 cup milk

1/2 banana

Lunch: About 850

1 cup tortilla soup

1 side ceasar salad with shrimp

Dinner: About 240

Tomato

Mozzarella

spinach

olive oil

Snacks: About 530

100 calorie popcorn

3 graham crackers

strawberries

1 pudding cup

skinny cow ice cream sandwich

yikes. So I was over today by about 330 calories despite having 350 extra calories worth of walking allotted in there. Going out to restaurants is HARD. We'll be staying away as much as possible until the end of the month at least. Today I'm feeling very inclined to embrace my body and eat whatever I want again because I'm feeling tortured and sad that I couldn't eat pancakes for breakfast. More on that later when I do today's log.

A Post With Many Titles

There's so much I want to put out into blog land tonight so forgive the rambling and I'll name each subject as I go.

First off, LLCC Day 10

Breakfast: About 210 calories

Cheerios

milk

banana

Lunch: About 300 Calories

Peanut butter sandwich

Chicken noodle soup (sick food - it was so wonderfully comforting)

Dinner: About 175 Calories

6 Shrimp

Brocoli

Rice

Snacks: About 230 Calories

100 calorie popcorn

Pudding cup

strawberries

I still have 230 calories to use up tonight so I'm still pondering how to use them. No exercise (not even a walk) today because I'm trying to heal. Instead, I took a 2 hour nap with Max. I wonder if resting burns calories? Hmm....

On a different note I almost decided not to blog about this anymore. It must be terribly boring for my 18 followers - haha. Anyway, I was going to stop writing about it daily but then I had a HORRIBLE day and was really triggered to eat horrible food. I thought, well, I'll just work in a candy bar or a brownie, etc... but then I knew I'd be writing about it and honestly didn't want to have to confess to eating like crap. So, I guess there are perks with having a check-in system. I know all 18 of you (it may not even be that many - but at least 3 of you I think!!) will read about it and I don't want to admit to messing up. I WANT to succeed at least for 30 days and then take it from there. So, sorry. You'll continue to be bored with my daily logging because it's working for me!

On Life:

Let me preface this portion of my rambling by saying just how much I love my life. I feel so incredibly lucky to have the things I do. A healthy, wonderful family, Ritchie's job that (sort of) allows me to stay home with Max, my irreplaceable friends and extended family who support and love me despite my many, many flaws. I have it made, really. And I know that.

Okay, that said, I have been feeling just so... down. I don't know why. Ritchie's been working late and Max hasn't been 100% so he's clingy and I haven't been feeling well so I just want to rest. I'm lonely. When Ritchie works late loneliness hits me pretty hard. The irreplaceable friends I mentioned earlier live far far away and while I love them and talk with them practically daily I don't have anyone here to spend time with. To make matters worse I recently sort of fell out of a group of ladies that I was spending some time with for play dates. Nothing happened, but it just wasn't a right fit for me and I withdrew which I think has offended them and now it's very awkward and furthers my feelings of loneliness. I'm not a social butterfly. I'm also not an acquaintance kind of gal. I never have been. I tend to have a few, close friends who know EVERYTHING about me. When I give my friendship, I give it all - maybe more than they want ;) I'm a total clinger. Some people like that, and others don't. I know true friendships don't just appear out of know where; they have to be established from simpler relationships. I get all of that. I know I'm going to have to work at finding some friends locally. But I need that.

So, while I love being a stay at home mom and wouldn't trade it for the entire world, I guess I'm realizing the struggles that come with it and learning how to overcome them.

* as I finished typing this and am waiting for some photos to import, I'm watching the news and hearing of the San Bruno fire where many families have lost homes and are awaiting to hear about injuries or fatalities of families, neighbors, and friends. My heart is breaking and I am feeling so selfish to even think negatively about my life. We are so blessed to be together, safe and happy as a family. My heart goes out to the San Bruno families and victims of the fire. You're in my prayers.

Fall Creeps In...

While Max and I hunker down at home in this cooler weather and try to get some much needed rest from being sick, I'm so happy that fall has managed to sneak it's way into our house. Filling my heart and making the home warmer, cozier, and happier.

So, there you have it. The post with many titles. Happy (almost) Friday and Fall to all of you! Please send out some prayers for the San Bruno families.

LLCC Day 9

Just a quick check in! I can't believe I've managed to blog this every day. haha. You would think I have tons of time on my hands.

Allotment: 1150

Breakfast: About 200 calories

1 cup Go Lean cereal

1/2 cup milk

Lunch & dinner: About 280 calories each

Nachos with baked corn tortilla chips, black beans, chicken, cheese, and tomatoes

Snacks: About 460 Calories

Fiber one cereal bar

1 cup strawberries

pudding snack cup

more strawberries

skinny cow ice cream sandwich

Took one walk today but I wasn't feeling all that great. My gland is still swollen and I've been taking it easy until that feels better, but I am tempted to go get it checked out because I'd like to start some running or the shred videos. That's the plan. Just chugging along. Almost 1/2 way through the month already!!

LLCC Day 8

Well I survived an entire week + one whole day! Hurray! This morning when I weighed myself I had lost (drumroll please) 6.5 pounds!! I can hardly believe it! In one week!! 10 pounds difference from where I was 2 weeks ago. So, needless to say, I have newfound motivation to stick this out!

Because of the weight drop my daily allotment of calories also changed. I can now have 1150 a day, down from 1193. I walked twice and faster and longer today so I could have some extra calories to keep from feeling incredibly hungry.

Allotment: 1150

Breakfast: About 175 calories

1 cup cheerios

1/2 cup milk

3 strawberries

Lunch: About 300 calories

Chicken salsa cheese tortilla things

Dinner: About 380 calories

Chicken salsa cheese tortilla things, but 3 of them instead of 2 like lunch

Snacks: About 740 calories

yoplait light yogurt

1/2 Kiwi

almonds

graham crackers

string cheese

1 mini cookie from Mrs. Fields

2 s'mores but with 1/2 the chocolate (my new favorite nighttime treat IF I have the excess calories)

So, it's actually working. I'm feeling very good and thinking about starting a running regimen to perhaps prep for a 10K on Thanskgiving. But, I'm not making any promises on that one because it makes me very, very, VERY nervous.

LLCC Day 7

One week DOWN! Woo-hoo! A first for me, I think - to make it an entire week without cheating ONCE! Now, official weigh-in is tomorrow morning, but I did take a sneak peak this morning to see if I was at least getting somewhere. I was VERY, VERY excited to see what popped up on the scale. There is so no way I'm telling you how much I lost this first week until tomorrow's official, stark naked, first thing in the morning weigh-in, so don't even ask ;)

Here's today's log:

Allotment: 1193 (which will change tomorrow to match my new weight - which means, less calories for me - BOO)

Breakfast: About 210 Calories

1 cup cheerios

1/2 cup 1% milk

1/2 banana

Lunch: About 310 Calories

2 corn torillas

4 ounces of chicken

2 tablespoons Chevy's salsa

1/4 cup mixed cheese

Dinner: About 270 Calories

Linguine with asparagus and tomatoes

Snacks: About 515 Calories

1 apple with swiss cheese

100 calorie popcorn

2 s'mores but with only 1/2 of a chocolate bar

We took 2 good walks today and I vigorously cleaned for at least 1 hour, but only counted 20 minutes. Because of that I still technically have 45 calories left today, but I'm stopping there. I'm really looking forward to weighing in tomorrow morning and seeing what week 2 brings.

San Francisco Zoo Photography Workshop

This post has been a long time coming. I took a San Francisco Zoo photography workshop on August 21. I was so excited to learn more about our camera and lighting and composition. The day was wonderful and I felt like I walked away having gained so much! Here are just a few shots from the day.

Aperture Academy in Campbell has some awesome classes including a Night Owls that takes pictures of bridges lit up at night. Ritchie is really wanting to go do that one, so I hope he gets that opportunity soon. I'm looking forward to taking a photoshop class there in the near future. I'm thrilled to have found a "school" to learn more about this hobby I'm so enjoying from.

LLCC Day 6

Today's log:

Allotment: 1193

Breakfast: About 230 Calories

1/2 cup cheerios

1/2 cup Go Lean

1/2 cup 1% milk

1/2 small banana

Lunch: About 330 Calories

5 ounces of hamburger

1/8 avocado

cucumber slices

tomato slices

1/8 bell pepper

Dinner: About 270 Calories

Linguine with asparagus and tomatoes

Snacks: About 370 Calories

1 fiber one bar

100 calorie popcorn bag

ice cream sandwich (skinny cow)

Today was a great day food wise, but the whole family is sick. Maybe it helps deplete our appetite? Who knows. We feel yucky so we're more focused on that rather than what we aren't allowed to eat.

I want to touch on money tonight a bit. We've been very excited about what we're seeing in our bodies so far, only six days in, but also with our money! I went back to last weekend - just Friday though Sunday and added up all that we spent on eating out. The total was close to $85!! Just in three days. This weekend we've gone out for coffee/tea twice and spent roughly $3.50 each time. So, $7 total for the entire weekend on eating out! That might be a record for us. We're very excited about the savings this will bring us and it's a huge bonus that we're not putting CRAP in our bodies anymore!

Wishing everyone a happy Labor Day of doing the exact opposite of what we're celebrating. Relax and be well :)

LLCC Day 4&5

I skipped last night because I was feeling like cozying up with my main squeeze for a movie and some popcorn (yes, I worked it in!!) so here was yesterday's log:

Daily allotment: 1193

Breakfast: About 225 Calories

1 cup of Go Lean Crunch

1/2 cup 2% milk

1/3 of Kiwi

Lunch: About 350 Calories

Left over stew

Dinner: About 300 Calories

Tomato, spinach, mozzarella, and avocado salad with 1/4 tbls of olive oil

Snacks: About 330 Calories

1/8 cup almonds with Yoplait light yogurt

Shared a McDonald's Vanilla Ice cream with Max and Ritchie - so 50 calories for me!

Popcorn WITH butter air popped - 90 calories (shared with Ritchie)

Yesterday I walked for 30 minutes. I also went grocery shopping yesterday so you'll notice different menu items - finally! I can only repeat things for about a week before I start to lose my mind. For whatever reason a few things dawned on me today that I'm hoping will make this less torturous for me (because, yes. It's feeling like torture)

Let me start by telling you that today (at Target) I was picking out lovely 100 - 150 calorie treats because I'm finding that I always have roughly 150 - 200 calories left at the end of the day and it's the perfect way to fit in a treat. I won't survive this without incorporating things like popcorn, ice cream, and chocolate. That's when I saw them. M&Ms. Not just any M&Ms. Autumn M&Ms. Delicious and seasonal? I had to have them. Every fiber of my being wanted those M&Ms. Not the little bag, no. The BIG bag. I had all of these rationalizations. I want to be one of those households with a cute little pumpkin candy dish that holds seasonal M&Ms. Why can't I have that? I'm not that fat. I need treats, or I'll never survive. Okay, so I'm reading the calories and there are 200 in 1/4 cup. Awesome! I can totally limit myself to 1/4 cup a day and just work it in.... I'm saying all of these very things to Ritchie and he's just holding strong and shaking his head at me. So I put the bag down. And proceed to have a total meltdown. I'm in Target, in the checkout line, near probably 100 big bags of seasonal M&Ms and I'm near tears. I think I actually said to Ritchie, "I'm DONE. I don't want to do this diet thing anymore." This is whiny and teary-eyed. Ritchie just looks at me - stone cold and serious and says, "It's not a diet."

So, that was it. I did not get the M&Ms. I did not fall on the floor and kick my feet and pound my fists on the ground. In the car we talked about ways to beat intense urges like that. For Ritchie, he can't even have it around. I want to know that I can still work those things in and one way to do that is exercise more. I get calories back for exercising so that's my plan. I can have more delicious things if I exercise more daily. Okay, I can live with that.

And, of course (TMI warning here) I get my period today. So, that's it. I actually survived my first LLCC pre-menstrual breakdown. I was craving chocolate and didn't give in. Didn't buy the 200-calories-for-such-a-minuscule-portion-seasonaly-delicious M&Ms. I did, however, sneak 2 hershey chocolate bars into the cart and they managed to make their way home. Those are a much better buy because one WHOLE bar is 210 calories and I will work it in occasionally with extra exercise. One big step forward, one tiny step back. Can't win em' all.

So here's the log for today: LLCC Day 5

Allotment: 1193

Breakfast: About 185 Calories

1/2 cup cheerios

1/2 cup go lean

1/2 cup 1 % milk

(part of what I learned is that if I can omit the fruit at breakfast and use 1% milk instead of 2% I will save almost 20 calories, which is like 1/10 of that Hershey Bar. Or approximately 2 M&Ms)

Lunch: About 240 Calories

Oroweat thins sandwich

- Turkey

- Swiss

- Tomato

- Cucumber

- Bell Pepper

- 1/8 Avocado

Dinner: About 320 Calories

1/2 huge hamburger patty (5.5 ounces)

Cucumber

Tomato

Avocado

Snacks: So far about 190 Calories

2 Graham Crackers

1/2 mango

I still need to have my afternoon snack and my after dinner treat factored in. I took a short walk this morning with gave me an extra 45 calories today. The whole family is feeling a bit under the weather so we're having a lazy day. I'll probably up the exercise next week. Probably :)

LLCC Day 3

A much easier day!! I didn't feel hungry despite the yummo smelling stew that cooked in the slow cooker for 8 hours today. That's right - I used my slow cooker today. In the 100 degree weather. The house felt like an oven, but I stuck to the plan and ate what I had defrosted and prepared! That's dedication, people!

Here goes today's log. I do already feel like this will get old to read, but I've decided that I'm doing it!!! Because I said I would and I think I should practice some damn follow through.

Allotted Calories today - 1193

Breakfast: About 200

1 slice Oatnut Bread

1 Egg

1/4 of a kiwi

Lunch: About 330

1/4 of an avocado

Mozzarella, Tomato, Spinach salad with 1/2 tbs of olive oil

Dinner: About 350

Stew with chuck roast beef, potatoes, carrots, onions, and celery. It was freaking delish. Surprisingly filling also since the portion was just over a cup for that many calories.

Snacks: About 400

1/8 cup of blueberries

1 string cheese

Yoplait light yogurt

1 graham cracker

Celery and Peanut butter

I also took one 30 minute walk so I earned back 90 calories (for those of you doing the math and knowing that I consumed more than 1193 calories today - that's why. See? I'm not cheating!)

Today was good. I feel great. I wasn't starving. I'm starting to feel confident that I can DO this!

LLCC Day 2

Today was much harder than yesterday for me. I felt REALLY hungry all day long and therefore kept snacking and then walking to try to keep my calories in check. I didn't eat anything horrible. I tried to keep my snacks healthy and around 100 calories. I still have 200 calories to use tonight and (lucky for me) a Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar is 210 calories. I'll take the 10 calorie penalty and call it close enough! I SWEAR this doesn't mean the end of the LLCC on measly day 2 - it just fits into my calories and I don't believe in total depravation.

So here was the breakdown for today:

I weighed myself this morning for the first time in a few weeks and was actually 3 pounds lighter than I thought. So my goal is now to lose 15 pounds by the end of October. Before the holidays. haha. From here on out I'm only weighing myself once a week. It changed my calorie intake down a few so my daily allotment is now 1,193.

Breakfast: 200 calories

Same as yesterday - cereal, milk, and strawberries

Lunch: 400 calories

Same as yesterday just more because I was starving - tomato, spinach, and mozz salad with chicken

Dinner: 220 calories

Turkey Loaf

Brocoli

Snacks - roughly 320 calories

1/2 cup cottage cheese

10 raspberries

Cantaloupe - 1/2 cup

1 Graham cracker

yoplait light yogurt

So I ate a lot of little snacks today and it was tough. I felt starving before meals. I'm not sure if it's my body getting used to all of this or what. I took 2- 25 minute walks today as well so that helped because I added on some calories for the walks.

Oh and yesterday I totally forgot to credit my wonderful friend, Rebecca for motivating me because she's recently lost quite a bit of weight and keeps on going and looks AMAZING. It's seriously inspirational and I am in awe of her dedication and perseverance through some tough hurdles. She taught me how to make Turkey Loaf last week and told me what she eats which has REALLY guided my menu for this first week. So, thank you Rebecca!! I need more recipes ;)