I have never been a big New Year's Resolution-er. I mean, I think about them. I love to hear what others have resolved to accomplish or give up or improve in their New Years, but it just isn't a part of my past. It wasn't something my family ever did or even really discussed.
I toy with ideas and even make it a few months - but since it was never an "official" New Year's resolution - it usually just fades away....... I don't even notice it's happening.
But this year...Not sure why!...This year feels like a year that might benefit from an official New Year's resolution. And I think it's got to be about experiencing more things.
Last year I did such a good job of trying a restaurant that I'd heard about and visiting a place I had seen on Facebook or Instagram and watching a movie outside my comfort zone (think old 1940's musicals and romantic comedies) and then there was the Mother Daughter Meandering Vacation this summer where we saw the World's Largest Golf Tee and went into the World's largest Mailbox and braved the St. Louis Arch in a thunderstorm and went in search (successfully) for an eagle's nest and found murals and ate new foods and lived by a less-strict schedule.
So this year, I think I am going to try new things...no, make that TRY NEW THINGS! Without too much thought - just TRY NEW THINGS! Stop at new shops, meet new people, go new places, try new restaurants, take a new way to wherever I'm going, start a project I've always wanted to tackle. TRY NEW THINGS.
My mind has gone there, because I am eating a kumquat. Several kumquats. The kids and I hit HEB yesterday while we were in Granbury and bought fruits and veggies and organic grainy mustards and sugar-free pickles and LaCroix (and not the Peach Pear that I always buy - but a couple of NEW flavors) and some grass-fed beef for a NEW recipe in preparation for Peanuts joining the rest of us in a Squeaky Clean 30 days of eating (a Whole30, if you will).
I haven't had a kumquat since I was a little girl. I remember them as being sweeter, but I also remember my fascination with eating them - skin and all. You'll be glad to know - it's still pretty cool!
Anyway, there you have it - my official announcement of my 2018 New Year's Resolution! TRY NEW THINGS!
My other resolution is to do this 30 days of squeaky clean eating just like the very first Whole30 my family ever lived through. We were perfection. At least, I was! I think everyone else was...except for Murph - I know he slipped on a couple of occasions because the guilt was just too much for him! But it was life changing for me. I began to feel 10 years younger. I looked better. I was finally able to play physically again - running and climbing and walking and swimming and hiking and yoga-ing. I have stayed pretty true to a Paleo lifestyle. My cancer was a big inspiration and motivation for that! When you are eating to extend your life - it's easier! But lately I have gotten lazy. Gotten entitled - to what? Good grief - I have been a big ole baby - I "deserve" this donut/cupcake/cookie/pizza slice/chip...ugh. I deserve to feel great! I deserve to honor my health! I deserve to be in control of what goes in my body! You are what you eat, right?
So, for the past 3 days I have been meal prepping. I made chicken salad (a necessity for my husband and me during these 30 days), white chicken chili (perfect comfort food when it's cold outside), grilled, spicy chopped chicken (for salads or lettuce wraps or to top baked sweet potatoes), burgers, mayo, dump ranch dressing, lemon dill sauce (also works as a salad dressing, but is my favorite to drizzle over roasted sweet potato bites), chopped salad mix, roasting up veggies, baking sweet and russet potatoes and making a big frittata. Later today - I am sauteeing up onions and mushrooms and making some homemade breakfast sausage.
And then it hit me - Peanut goes back to school tomorrow and I have to pack Whole30 compliant lunches and have snacks at the ready for everyone (because the first week of any super clean eating is plagued by hunger attacks as all the stuff that 'fake-fills' you up works its way out of your system....leaving your tummy rumbling!). So, today I am snack prepping. Strawberries (be sure and place a paper towel in the bottom of the container so your strawberries stay fresh longer), carrots, celery, organic, nitrate-free hot dogs, portioned baked plantain chips, grapes, salsa (because it goes on EVERYTHING!), zucchini hummus and sliced peppers (not pictured, because I haven't gotten that far yet!).
I hate to start something and not finish and when I am tired and kind of thumb-sucking because I "can't have" something that everyone else in the world is having...temptation can be powerful and tempt me right into failure. So I meal and snack prep. I can put together some pretty fabulous meals in no time as long as I keep healthy, clean, tasty food in my pantry and my fridge.
I was telling the kids this morning...the thing about squeaky clean eating (and even Paleo) that I adore - not having to portion control or count calories. I eat when I am hungry and I eat until I am full. And I still lose fat, gain energy and feel fabulous. BUT - it only works that way when you don't cheat. When you stay on plan and cut out sugar (refined AND low-glycemic), artificial sweeteners, dairy, gluten, grains, lugumes (including peanuts), soy and processed, chemical-laden foods - you get to eat when you are hungry. You get to have healthy fats, lean proteins, all the veggies and a good amount of fresh fruits. It's not a diet - it's a lifestyle change. A lifestyle choice. There is incredible science behind it - which I did read about when I was starting down this path and still refer to when I need a refresher.
So, tomorrow - the entire family will be Whole30-ing through the month of January. I feel better already after just a day and a half! I hope to be over-the-moon healthy by the end of the month!
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