Whole 30 - Anniversary, Birthday, Easter

I think as I type, Mark and I are on day 23 of the Whole 30. I am LOVING this style of healthy eating. I plan to continue many of the practices long beyond 30 days, and hopefully forever.

I haven't had time to upload any photos of the Twinner's in pastel Easter attire or the egg hunt, etc. but I will take a moment to update you on the Whole 30 and how is played out over our wedding anniversay, Mark's Birthday, and Easter with the family.

First off, Mark and I "celebrated" our 9th anniversary. I use the word "celebrated" loosely. We went to work, we came home, we quickly ate some steak and grilled vegetables. I handed Mark some tulips. I took the kids to a birthday party at an indoor play center.

Friday was Mark's 39th Birthday. My girlfriend Jesse came at 7 pm to babysit. Mark and I wanted to get a bite to eat and catch American Reunion. We only had time for Chipolte. We stayed mostly Whole 30 compliant by having the carnitas as a salad. The only slight infraction was eating the fajita vegetables. I later learned they are sauted in soybean oil. We had tomato salsa and guacamole on our salad. No dressing we needed. We headed to the movies, and then we debated, and then we did it. WE BROKE THE WHOLE 30. We indulged in a small popcorn with lots of fake butter. We enjoyed it, but I actually didn't love it as much as I expected.

Sunday was Easter. I brought mashed sweet potatoes, a few finger foods for appetizers, and a tropical fruit salad that was an epic failure. It was totally mushy. Mark and I ate the ham. I am SURE there was sugar added to the ham, but life isn't perfect and niether is any diet. I saw Mark nibble on the blueberry cheddar cheese I brought, and sneak a sugar cookie. I ate the head off a bunny sugar cookie too! It was two tasty frostted little bunny ears. Yes... I did! Other then that, we remained compliant. Neither of us ate ANY Easter Candy. And---It was OKAY. I put one jelly bean in my mouth when I was cleaning up at the end of the night. The sweetness was overwhelming, was not nearly the satisfaction I expected, and I spit it out.

I did make these Sweet and Salty Fudge Bombs. These area a TOTAL treat, but they are Paleo (Whole 30) compliant. They were fantastic and solved my quest for CANDY!

Boring... but its all I have time for right now.

Jazzing it Up - Easter

By now you get the idea. I decorate for EVERY holiday.
So here comes Easter and Spring!

The Buffet - An black metal/wire tree we got from who knows where. It is decorated with non-breakable eggs the kids made last year. A very pretty lily on the floor to the right. Branches I DIDN'T have to force (because they were already budding) on the floor to the left. A "spring" banner from Target (this season).

My mom use to "force" an Easter egg tree EVERY year in a coffee can of sand, wrapped in spring paper. Brett and I would decorate it with my mom's hand blown/decorated eggs. A bevy of thrifted milk glass. A thrifted bunny. Blue Ikea vases. Thrifted silver tray. Our palm leaves from church are in the vase on the right.

The Ikea photo shelves - A lot of thirfted bunnies. Ikea platters from our wedding. A little blown glass egg Chris gave me several years back. The Tiffany vase Cindy gave me before I got married, with fake flowers.

More Ikea shelves - A Waterford bowl that usually stays on the top, no matter the season. A Department 56 bunny my Aunt Jan gave me many moons ago. A porcelain Easter basket that was a wedding gift (I think...) Another thrifted bunny. A white plastic bunny and one blue bird from the Target dollar spot.More thrifted milk glass - Fenton this time.The front door - Two neat-o signs from this Etsy seller!

Bunny statues from HomeGoods. Metal flowers from JoAnne Fabrics in the plant stand with live branches too.

Happy Easter to you All!

**Jesus can rise on Sunday morning... The Easter Bunny is all ready at the Thomberg Residence!!!**

Whole 30 - In the house

Mark and I are more than 1/2 way through the Whole 30. I thought I would share some of the foods and products you will find in our house.

In the Refrigerator
black and green olives, ghee, left overs of all sorts, medjool dates and figs, fruits and vegetables (blackberries, strawberries, blueberries, tomatoes, peppers, green beans, asparagus, kale, spinach, etc), salsa (no sugar added), coconut milk, Kumbucha, organic eggs from Costco, milk for the kids, lemon juice, sunbutter, coconut aminos, and more.

In the Pantry

Coconut oil, vinegars, olive oil, avocado oil, olives, raw sunflower seeds, raw almonds, walnuts, tomatoes, dried coconut flakes (no sugar added), spices, and more.

On the Counter

Avocados,apples, mangoes, ginger, shallots, garlic, lemons, sweet potatoes, onions, and more.

In the Crockpot

Chinese 5-spice rubbed pork ribs, pot roast, and more.

In the Oven

Brussel sprouts baked and browned until crispy with olive oil and sea salt, green beans, asparagus, kale chips, and more.

On the Table

Mashed sweet potatoes, mashed cauliflower (instead of potatoes) and more.

Turkey sliders with apples and walnuts, home made guacamole, chicken fajitas wrapped in lettuce, fried eggs or scrambled eggs most mornings, moracan chicken, coconut shrimp, and more.

On the internet

Googling for recipes and info on products, often linking through the Whole 30 site.

Just a little glimpse.

Not pictured - My blender/food processor I use to mash vegetables, make soup, or whip up "green" smoothies for breakfast. You never quite know what is going to end up in my morning smoothies. It is always a mystery, but usually involves a fruit or vegetable on the verge of wilt! I have really taken to the smoothies as an outstanding source of vitamins in the AM. I actually like them. Mark acts like he is gagging every morning at breakfast, and prefers the fat and protien portion of the meal.

Not pictured - Me reading labels at the grocery store, looking for added sugar and etc. Mark and I making a Whole Foods run for cocunut aminos, sunflower seed butter, and more.

Not pictured - Me eating my tasty carrot soup at lunch, that I made from the left over carrots from Sunday's pot roast.

Not pictured - My kids asking for MORE strawberry and celery smoothie as a bedtime snack. Yup, mommy hid those veggies real good. They ate it in place of the yogurt they requested. They also munched on kale chips with me.

Just Dean

These might be embarrassing when he is old enough to graduate or get married...

Love, Mom

No April Fool'n

Sunday was Palm Sunday.
Coincidentally, it was also April 1.

The kids sang and waved their palm leaves in church.

We returned later in the afternoon for an Easter Egg'stravaganza.

I snapped these two photos before the camera battery died.

Once again it was nearly 70 degrees.

We returned home and Mark mowed the lawn!

No April Fool's Day joke.

His bagger needed to be dumped twice (in APRIL).

Meanwhile, the kids picked up a wagon load of sticks from the yard.

Marly and Dean each earned $1.

These 5 year old Twinner's can be hard workers when motivated by four quarters.

That's value for the dollar.

Our Weekend - Whole 30 style

As I reflect on the last few days on Whole 30, I think Mark and I truly "embraced" our first weekend on our healthy eating plan. We took it in stride, planned, and found successes both in suspending one of our time honored Thomberg traditions, and in spending time with company.

FRIDAY
-We knew we could not have our usual pizza delivery (plus wine) for Thomberg Family Pizza Night on Friday. In accordance, I headed to the grocery store after work with a Whole 30 spaghetti recipe in hand. I decided I needed something with tomato, since we wouldn't be having pizza sauce. We made marinara with crushed tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, spinach, spices, ground turkey, etc. We made "pasta" from spaghetti squash. The whole family gave the Whole 30 recipe a thumbs up.

-I was jones-ing for a drink when I got home. It is our habit to wrap up the work week with a glass of wine. Most weeks when walk in the door, Mark is on line at the kitchen table wrapping up his business with his glass in hand. It is our "unwind" tradition. Because we can't have alcohol, I mixed up up my own cocktail concoction of Kombucha blended/pureed with a few chunks of frozen mango. I poured it into wine glasses for effect. I don't really have a grasp of what this Kombucha beverage in a bottle is, but it is approved and supposedly good for you. Its from a mushroom, or not and fermented or something. The taste is generally non-discript.

SATURDAY
-The H-we's came for an overnight. I asked Gretchen to bring kid friendly snacks and appetizers, along with some wine and beer (since Mark and I were abstaining and I didn't want to buy more).

-Mark and I snacked on delicisou buttery olives from Costco and fresh veggies Gretch- provided before dinner. We made hot dogs and mac n' cheese for the kids. After the adults ate grilled steak. For sides, we provided asparagus baked in the oven with olive oil, sea salt & lemon juice; and yellow and orange peppers & onions in tin foil on the grill with olive oil, vinegar & basil. We served mushrooms sauteed with ghee. (No one even notices potatoes are missing when you have two very different vegetables.)

-Mark and I drank another Kombucha cocktail concoction, and had Pierre with our meal instead of wine.

SUNDAY
-Gretch- brought us farm fresh eggs from her aunt. We scrambled the eggs, browned ground turkey meat, sauteed bell peppers, and topped it with guacamole and/or salsa. We served sliced mangoes on the side and Ezekiel Bread with Sun butter or jelly for those who wanted it. Kids were happy. Parents were happy. Mark and I remained Whole 30 compliant.

It was fun to share our eating experiences with our friends. Everyone was satisfied, enjoyed the meals, and were comfortable.

IN ADDITION
-I made the kids air popped buttered popcorn (my favorite, my TV watching addiction) on Friday night. Instead of popcorn with our movie, I ate baby Kale (purchased in a giant bag at Costco) coated with olive oil and sea salt and baked until crisp. The kids ate popcorn again Sunday night. Mark and I were desperate for a just a little treat... a nibble.. of SOMETHING! We each had a strawberry dipped unsweetened coconut flakes along with a cup of licorice tea.

The Whole 30!

Now that Mark and I are 5 days into it, I want to talk about the new diet we are doing! After reading a former co-workers blog about the method, googling, and so forth, I decided to go on the Whole 30 diet.

You see... I like to eat. I eat when I am happy. I eat when I am sad. I eat when I am angry. I eat to procrastinate. I eat to celebrate. I eat in the evening when I watch TV. I eat to avoid putting away the laundry. I think you get the picture.

For a year I breast feed twins. I ate for three, and still fell down to a really cool weight to put on a driver's license. I bought size 0 pants at Banana.

My kids are now 5. I eat some what healthy - not bad, not great. I don't excercise. You see exactly where I am going with this. As the season changed to spring overnight, I had to get the tub of MUCH LARGER SIZED Banana Republic pants (which I had never sold on the garage sale I never had after we moved to our home) out of storage.

I talked up the Whole 30 diet to Mark for a week or so. He decided to join me in my diet endeavor. I don't believe in "diets" per say. I believe in eating healthy. This diet takes the notion of "healthy" to the extreme. For 30 days you give up ALL SUGARS. That includes maple syrup and honey. For 30 days you give up ALL wheat and grain products. This includes brown rice, couscous, etc. For 30 days you give up ALL dairy. For 30 days you give up ALL alcohol. You can't eat beans, peanuts, soy, or corn. What you are left with is ALL natural and vitamin rich food.

**DISCLOSURE - I am not going to go into all the theories behind what you can and cannot eat. I personally read them, and decided it was the right approach for me. This healthy eating diet should incorporate exercise. I am NOT excercising. I realize this will effect the outcome of my results. I do wish I was exercising. Finally, I am not recommending anyone to the diet, unless you read the material and decide it is right for you.**

SO, last Sunday I shopped for our grocery needs for the diet and the week ahead. I started out at a store specializing in organic, fresh, and natural foods, then made a stop at Aldi's and Cub.

We started the Whole 30 on Monday.

Here are some of the things Mark and I ARE eating

-Vegetables, Vegetables, and MORE Vegetables (in a wide array)

-Fruit (but NOT to take the place of vegetables) in moderation

-Meat (the Whole 30 directs you toward organic meat)(you are not allowed processed meats with additional additives)

-Eggs

-Healthy fats like olive oil, coconut oil, coconut milk, avocado oil and ghee (which is like butter, with the dairy removed)

-Raw nuts, sunflower seeds, sunbutter (like peanut butter made out of sunflowers) in small moderation.

-Olives, dates, figs (with no sugar added) in small moderation.

-Vinegar, herbs, spices, etc.

After 30 days, the idea is that you will have cleansed your body and KICKED your bad eating habits (or addictions), in favor of more healthy habits. The idea is to gradually add back in dairy, sugar, grains and carbs on a more limited basis, and to fit your body as appropriate. The idea is that you will have become an all around more healthy eater, with a balance of vitamins, protien and healthy fats.

After 5 days, Mark and I appear to be on the right track. I think/hope we have eaten extremely well balanced/healthy meals for 5 days. Mark has endured a few "green" breakfast smoothies he would have rather have done without. (BUT he got a serving of a healthy vegetable/kale at breakfast that he would not otherwise have digested!) Everything else tastes fine. I have not been hungry.

Thurday (Day 4) I used my lunch break to go to Costco to buy MORE fresh vegetables.

I refuse to disclose what I weigh right now. The Whole 30 also directs you to stay OFF the scale for a whole 30 days. The "diet" was not designed specifically for weight loss, but loss is a healthy by-product of the healthy diet.

I will let you how I feel after 30 days!

Tonight is Thomberg Family Pizza Night. I am going to have to prepare a meal that does not include crust, pepporoni, cheese, wine and dialing Godfather's.
If you are curious, my kids are not on the Whole 30. They still eat dairy, some cereal, whole grain bread at lunch, and so forth. By default though, they are eating healthier too. The Whole 30 diet was not designed for bodies that are growing.

What do you think???