knight in shining armor
Posted: July 14, 2010 at 6:06 pmDang hump day! Get out of the way please so we can be closer to Friday. I’m ready for the weekend and a semblance of a break around here. How about you?
You know what? You all bring lots of insight to calorie counting and why or why not it works for you. I agree with the many of you who decided to forego counting and focus on other things in your eating habits. But on the other hand I completely understand the need some of you have to count, such as needing to be more diligent for health purposes, to break past a plateau and using it as a temporary tool, or to be certain of eating enough food. I certainly agree with what a few of you mentioned about being aware of calories in the sense of watching portions or choosing how to ‘spend’ your food wisely, but without needing to count every single one. When I thought about it, I discovered that I eat similarly to that approach.
After years of counting and measuring things to the gram, my brain is a wellspring of useless calorie knowledge. So even though I don’t tally up what I’ve eaten through the day I am still aware of what a proper portion is and how to be sure I have a balanced meal that leaves me satisfied for an appropriate length of time and isn’t more than my body needs. For example, if I serve up a small breakfast and recognize it probably isn’t more than the 300 cal range, I will know I need to add more or be prepared for an extra snack. Or another example would be how during that rough 6-8 weeks of early pregnancy (when I only wanted to eat bland, carby, heavy, greasy foods) didn’t end with me gaining an exorbitant amount of weight because I was still aware of portions and keeping things reasonable. I don’t count, but it’s still there to help me gauge how I set up my meals if that makes sense. Obviously this can be a hot topic for me which I can discuss without end. So I will end with saying if you haven’t weighed in on the topic yet and have something to add, please do so.
Yesterday was a rough day for me. Sweet little M turned into a terrorizing M for the majority of the day. My buttons were in a tailspin from all the pushing she did to them. I like to consider myself a fairly calm and patient mother…not person because I can easily get wound up on other things…but being loving and doting to Ms. Sweetcheeks I can do. Not yesterday! By 1 pm I was calling my sister in tears begging her to come over asap for our weekly get together. Yes, I cried. No, M does not comprehend sympathy yet. So, yes, I cried some more. Hormones, fatigue, and no naps are a recipe for disaster. I’m telling you so you don’t have to learn the hard way.
My sisterly knight in shining armor arrived armed with laughter and great ideas to calm me down. One would be a couple rounds of Friends Scene It! play and the other would be an hour of hilarity watching people join a competition that can only end in needing your jaw reset. <— ABC’s Wipeout
Another knight in shining armor, by the name of Frontier Soups, saved the day. More precisely, dinner. I did NOT want to take the time to cook. Luckily I had on hand an easy to prep soup mix courtesy of the kind people at Frontier Soups. I pulled out the Tortilla Soup Mix for a healthy dinner in 30 minutes.
Very few ingredients, very little prep work, and fast cooking sound perfect to me. Here’s just how easy it was.
Ingredients
- 1 package Frontier Soups Tortilla soup mix
- 2 cups shredded COOKED chicken
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup salsa
How-To
1. Pour chicken broth and water into a 4-6 quart pot and boil.
2. Once boiling, add the shredded chicken and the soup mix to the pot. Stir well. Lower temperature and simmer for 20 minutes.
3. Add the salsa and stir until evenly combined. Simmer another 10 minutes. Then, you’re done!
Perfect for this Mexican food/taste craving preggo! Filling and healthy. The soup mix even contains all natural ingredients! Who can argue with that?
- What convenience food do you find yourself choosing when necessary? I love having options like these on hand or will do a quick cook all veggie meal if we have good options available, but frozen items will make their appearance as well. Check out my post for quickie meal ideas.
- I’ve been offered a $60 credit to review a CSN Stores product as a thank you for the giveaway I did awhile ago. I have no clue what I want to use it for. What are your favorite kitchen gadgets or other useful household item that you think would be great for me to have? What would you choose? I need ideas!
Tags: dinner, healthy eating, intuitive eating, recipes
That soup looks delicious!! That is my kinda cooking!! I need a little help! 😉
Sorry you had a rough day yesterday. I can’t imagine having to chase after a little one – no matter how sweet and adorable – when I’m feeling tired and feeling hormonal. I bet it must be frustrating when all you want to do is lay down and take a nap. I know I’ll find out ALL about it soon enough! But glad to hear that your sister saved the day and came over to help out and cheer you up!!
Take care!! 🙂
Friends Scene It? Oh man… I would DOMINATE that game! I love that show… and still haven’t accepted that it’s been gone for so long!
It was quite the battle between my sister and I. We are both Friends fanatics!
That soup looks great! doesn’t look like it came out of a bag AT ALL.
I’m sorry your day was so rough. At least you have wonderful people in your life that can lift you up! Scene is amazing–we used to play that in college all the time–although I’ve never played the Friends version.
So sorry to hear you had a rough day! Friends always makes my day better too – and I had NO idea there was a scene it friends – should have known! My main convenience foods are canned veggies (like tomatoes) and pre-grated cheese – woo!
a good blender, a good food processor, and a cast iron skillet are must-haves 🙂 i would say that my sister was the one who told me to put avocados in smoothies…heavenly!
I have the same offer and I think i’m going with a blender as mine just died.. and you can always use a good blender or food processor!
Sorry you had such a stinky day.. gotta love kids but some days, they make you want to pull your hair out. And I’m not even a mother!
Yes! As much as I love her, sometimes I just want to lock her in her room.
Wow, that soup looks awesome! I would get a spiralizer or ice cream maker – I have a similar offer and that’s what I will probably choose.
Oh, a sprializer!! I completely forgot about those!
Just found your blog–well, I had seen it before but then couldn’t find it again until I saw a comment by you on someone else’s blog. Anyway, I am adding you to my blogroll so I won’t lose you again 🙂
Glad your sister was able to come and cheer you up and the soup looks great! Although my kids are all in their teens, I remember well the days of toddler-hood and being pregnant!
Thanks so much for visiting! I love being able to connect with new people. And other parents are always a big help too. We need each others’ support. 🙂
That’s great your sister is nearby to help out. It must be so hard to run after a toddler and be pregnant and tired at the same time. The hormones don’t help either!
I love convenience foods. That soup looks wonderful. I always have frozen veggies and Trader Joe’s meals on hand.
As for appliances…I love my Soda Stream…I make at leat 2 bottles of seltzer a day.
Trader Joe’s meals are amazing! I wish we had a TJs closer because I would shop there every week for groceries.
I’m sorry Miss M had a rough day yesterday….I hope she does better for you today! That is so sweet of your sister to come over and cheer you up. Sisters are so good for that sort of thing. 🙂
I LOVE wraps when I’m in a pinch and need something quick. Usually I have an avocado on hand and will throw that in there with some cheese….or sometimes I’ll do eggs and cheese. Obviously cheese is key here!
Hmmm…do you have a food processor? That is my next kitchen gadget purchase! Or a panini press?
Do you have a George Foreman grill? I love mine because it is easy clean up is easy! (Well if you get the one with removeable grill plates!)
We have the Cuisine Art Panini Press + Griddler/Grill that we love. Those removable plates do make all the difference. We use it all the time so that was a great suggestion!
The soup looks delicious!
I’m sorry your day was so rough! I’m glad you were able to find even a little bit of relief through a friend, a game, and and yummy dinner.
Hope today goes MUCH better for you.
going out and finding the tortilla soup starter kit, mmmm!
Sorry about the crazy day, seems like everyone this week is off a bit. ABC’s Wipeout and America’s Funniest Home Videos, no quicker way to wet your pants.
The most useful gadget we have is a glass cup that has measures on it, but you can also just use as a glass. And you only dirty up one thing! Mix-n-Measure™ Multi-Purpose Glass Measuring Cup.
That sounds like a really cool thing for the kitchen. I’ll have to check that one out.
That soup looks great! Mexican/Tortilla soups like that are my favorite – easy, filling, and healthy.
In re: calorie counting, I recently stopped counting/tracking after two years. I had to do it in the beginning to learn but like you said I now know so much more about portions and have memorized the stats of just about everything I eat often. So for me, it definitely proved to be valuable.
I don’t own one yet, but I really want one of those spiralizers (sp?) to make veggie pasta!
I approach calorie counting the same way. I counted relentlessly for so long that I have this stored knowledge as to how much I’m eating. I kind of guesstimate my meals and keep a rough tally in my mind most days to make sure I keep it undercontrol, but I definitely don’t count everything anymore. I think it’s good to read the nutrition lables of everything though, I usually make better decisions when I actually have all the information. I’m sorry your daughter was having a rough day yesterday, and hence you. Since I was one of those difficult children myself (I cannot even begin to tell all the horror stories my mother has on me from about birth to 5 years old) I can say it does get better, and we love our mommy’s eventhough we can be button pushers.
We need to get together and commiserate. I’ve been an emotional, exhausted, nauseated wreck for a couple of months now, and taking care of my darling Addie has become very difficult. My patience is low – as is my energy – and I find myself doubting my mothering abilities right now.
I HEAR YOU. The good news is that I’m in Week 13 now (are you in 14?), and the end to the morning sickness and complete exhaustion is right around the corner. I’m praying that we both have more energy and patience for our girls in the coming weeks (months and years).
We do!!! This time around is so much harder. The nausea is gone , but it is exhausting. I question my mothering abilities these days too. I try to remind myself its temporary though. And oh boy have I been praying for the knowledge on how to handle the rough days lately. We’ll get through it though. We have to! LOL
Thanks for your comment, glad I could make you laugh. Sometimes I wonder if I’m the only one who laughs at my stupid jokes. 😉
To be honest, I hate counting calories. I’m starting to realize how lucky I was growing up. My mom taught us by example giving us lots and lots of fruits and veggies and whole grains from the moment we could eat solids. So I know the things that are best for me and the things that are eaten in moderation.
That is so great how you grew up that way. I really hope to instill that same approach to eating and food for my daughter.
Thanks for stopping by!!
That soup looks so delicious!! I wonder if I can get that here in Canada??
Hey – I’m talking to a ton of site owners to find out out if they’ve heard anything regarding the implausible blog web site web page engine modification that’s inside the works? With WP releasing three fairly shortly, the word on the road is that BE is going to make an amazing amount of modifications that search like WP alterations. Shoot me an e mail if you happen happen to ever listen to everything.
Does wine count as a convenience food? 😉
Sorry you had such a bad day yesterday…glad your sister was able to help pick up the pieces though!
Your soup is really nice. =)
JK From Canada
Bedroom Furniture Store