Lobster Shorts card making, crafting, Food, The Great Outdoors, vegetarian, weight loss

Cards, Kayaking, and Indulgences

It was a long weekend here in Ontario. I spent the first day making cards and catching up on some chores. I’ll post a video of the cards I made and the supplies I used to make them with, below. Some of them were really cute and I loved the new dies.

I saw the snake again this weekend. It’s much slimmer now, it’s either digested a giant meal, or has laid some eggs. It’s much more mellow away from it’s beloved garden hose (I mentioned in a previous post it was lunging at my spouse when he was trying to turn the garden hose on. We think it might have had a crush on the garden hose!). I was pretty close to it when I was doing some weeding, and it didn’t seem to mind too much. It was also between me and the door this morning and I had to step over it to get into the house. It didn’t seem to mind that too much either. I’m happy to see it’s in much better spirits these days. We had always got along in previous years.

We had wanted to go on a kayaking adventure out of town, but with potential thunderstorms looming, we decided to play it safe and stay on the local river. I brought my camera with the underwater case and took a looong video of the underwater view. It’s pretty murky as the day was gloomy for most of it, but I think it looks pretty cool. I’ll post that video below. I was looking for the really pretty rainbow darter fish, but they were mostly gone (I didn’t get them on the video). The Canada geese were also a lot more relaxed, including the ones with babies. They are terrifying and will come for you if you come too close. The local creatures seem much more friendly lately.

I indulged a lot this weekend. A LOT!

I had my regular big Sunday breakfast of a croissant and eggs with coffee and fruit. Monday, I had an omelet (pictured above). I had CRAVINGS this weekend. I wanted strawberry ice cream and cookies. And I had them, a lot of them. I have completely come off track lately. I haven’t worked out, or gotten that much exercise and my diet has been horrible the past week. I keep falling off the wagon and feeling discouraged with myself.

Time to pick myself up by the boot straps (what does that even mean??) and start again.

Lobster Shorts Food, lifestyle, vegetarian, weight loss

Work Out Progress and Soapy Nuts

I’m relaxing on the couch listening to thunder and light rain. I love these sounds, they’re relaxing. I am having cravings for chocolate. It hit me hard near the end of the day. I went to Healthy Planet for vegetarian beef chunks and sprouting seeds, and I left with those things, but I also left with a cookie. I’ve noticed that if I stay up too late I end up snacking, so I’m going to go back to going to bed early.

Except for the cookie, I ate pretty good today. Breakfast on weekdays is always an egg and cheese sandwich on a whole wheat English muffin, with black coffee. My spouse is the one that wakes up and makes breakfast during the week, so he gets to decide what we’re eating. I enjoy those extra minutes for more snoozing. For lunch I had my usual Healthy Choice bowl. Dinner was the above photo, with brown rice, sprouts, broccoli, beefless chunks, and avocado, with squeezed lemon and some toasted sesame oil. I also put sauerkraut on it too. These bowls are fast and easy. I steam enough rice for the whole week and if anything needs to be cooked I usually toss it into the air fryer. Easy peasy.

Shark week is coming and I can feel a raging froth of PMS broiling inside me. My spouse is watching television and it’s killing my peaceful vibe of nature sounds. He’s already turned the sound down and it’s still irritating me. I AM GROUCHY!!!! Murderous rage!!!!!! I must look into sound proofing.

I’m still working my way up the treadmill. Yesterday I was on it for 20 minutes at 3.6mph, it’s come up from 15 minutes. I’m working on lengthening the time, then I’ll tackle speed. I’ve been enjoying it!

As for soapy nuts… I fell down the YouTube rabbit hole and stumbled on soap nuts. I’ve known about them for awhile and have even had them before (I think I had them for laundry), but I don’t think I’ve ever washed my hair with them before. This girl in the video washes her hair with them and her hair looks good to me. I tried them this morning. I boiled 7 soap nuts in two cups of water and applied it on my dry hair. I left in on for a couple minutes and then rinsed it off. I didn’t use conditioner either. It seemed to work pretty well.

My hair was still pretty easy to comb out afterwards and it did clean my hair. As a bonus my scalp wasn’t itchy like it usually is after washing it (I think it’s because I let my hair air dry). Once isn’t enough to tell how they work, I’ll post an update after using them for a month. I still plan on using shampoo and conditioner to wash out my bimonthly hair dye. I seriously doubt soap nuts could handle that nightmare, but who knows. Not this person.

Lobster Shorts card making, crafting, Food, Plants, vegetarian, weight loss

Breakfast, Cards, and Saving Nubbin

I paid for one of these plants, the other I traded years ago for an espresso maker, I didn’t use anymore. Guess which is which? The large dieffenbachia is the one I traded for. It was half the size and not very happy. Where the trunk(?) stalk(?) curves is how tall it was when I got it and it only had a couple really droopy leaves. I had to move it around a lot before I found a place for this guy to be happy. Turns out it likes a really dark corner. It’s beside a window, but it still doesn’t get very much light at all. It’s taken over a year, but this plant is finally starting to grow. It’s doubled in size and growing a lot more leaves. The leaves are getting big too.

The second plant, the leafless stem, I got on clearance at a big box store a long time ago too. It had a couple leaves on it when I bought it, but it was doing poorly. I decided to see if I could revive it. I also moved this plant to a lot of different places (including a dark bathroom), but I couldn’t make it happy. Eventually it dropped all it’s leaves and I was going to give up on it. Then I saw a video of Harli G on YouTube (she’s a plant Youtuber) and she picked up a stem that looked just like this one and was going to replant it. I thought once a plant lost all its leaves, it was done for. I decided to repot the plant in different soil (I don’t know why I didn’t try this a long time ago) and put it beside it’s sister plant (I call it sister plant because they are both dieffenbachias, but the leafless stalk has much lighter leaves), and try again.

It seems to be working. Something is starting to happen, and this is also why this plant will forever be known as Nubbin. I’m going to keep it where it is and hope it can be revived.

Sunday breakfast satisfied a craving I’ve had for days. My spouse was craving bagels, which got me craving berry cream cheese. So for breakfast today, I made scrambled eggs and bagels and cream cheese, and I loaded that bagel with cream cheese. The coffee was an instant cappuccino that I got as a sample, and I hated it. We both did. It tasted artificial and chemically. We dumped it out and made a regular coffee that was much better.

My healthy eating took a nose dive this weekend. We ordered a pizza last night and I had it for lunch today too. I went on a short hike with my spouse, but it was really cold and the trail was mucky so we turned around. I had another bagel with cream cheese when I got home, followed by a piece of dark chocolate. and I’m currently craving another bagel (I think shark week is coming). I’m going to wait and have a proper dinner, made with much healthier options. I don’t want to get on the scale Monday.

I made some cards this weekend. I like these vanilla bean cards. I don’t know what sentiment I want on them yet, so they remain unfinished. I was thinking something to do with beans, but nah, I’ll probably just stamp a “Hello” on them, or something similar.

I was meh about these two. I would like the autumn one more with a different colour. The green didn’t go very well, and this castle card needs something more.

I liked these two. My favourite of all of them was the girl reading on the chair. I liked the Hello card a lot too, but my glue seeped out at the edges. I can get rid of that with an eraser and a little patience. I’ll post a video of the supplies I used to make the cards, below.

Lobster Shorts Food, Plants, vegetarian, weight loss

Sprouting Jars and Healthy Bowls

I retried my new sprouting lid and I love it! Alfalfa sprouts worked perfectly in there. The pictured jar is 1L and I used 1 tablespoon of alfalfa sprout seeds. I will only use 1/2 a tablespoon of seeds next, this made a lot. So far the jar has worked great, these seeds are around 5 days old (I can’t remember really). The seeds grow so fast! You can see the difference in size from morning to night. The seeds drained exactly how they were supposed to, they didn’t get gelatinous like the arugula seeds. So far the contents of the jar are fresh with no sign of rot. The arugula seeds sprouted on the paper towel degraded fast and quickly rotted. I had to toss most of the sprouts out. I won’t buy arugula seeds anymore because of that. I’m sure it was more to do with my sprouting methods, but it was a hassle and I like growing sprouts in the jar over the tray. Sprouts are so healthy and this jar makes it easy to have them on hand all the time. All I do is rinse and drain the jar twice a day. Another great kitchen gadget! Or would this be a house plant gadget? It checks both boxes.

I made a healthy dinner last night. On the bottom is a layer of steamed brown rice, then a layer of sprouts. I did the broccoli, , onion, mushrooms, and Gardein Beefless Tips in the air fryer. I flavoured it with a squeezed lemon, toasted sesame oil, and avocado oil. It was good, not delicious, just good. Like healthy food good. I made a lot so I am going to have the leftovers for dinner.

As per my usual, I had gained all the weight I had previously lost back, but this morning I was down three pounds. I’m 5’10 and now weighing 164lbs. It’s my goal to cross that barrier into the 150lbs range, in the past I gained the weight back before I could hit it. This time it’s going to happen for me. I did a 15 minute jog Monday night and hoping to do the same tonight, or hit the weights. I’ve been eating really healthy for the last two weeks (except Monday when I forgot my lunch and ended up having a snack bag of potato chips, and granola bites). Today I had the bean and feta Healthy Choice Power Bowl. I love them and eat them almost every lunch.

My spouse has been the one to motivate me to work out. If he says “Wanna work out with me?”, I go. It’s funny, but sometimes I just don’t think to go and do it. I expect that to change. Tonight, I’ll be the one to ask if he wants to work out with me.

Lobster Shorts card making, crafting, Food, vegetarian, weight loss

Sunday Breakfast and Weekend Cards

This weekend’s big breakfast was scrambled eggs, papaya, and a croissant. I ditched the home fries. My spouse and I were at the dentist last weekend and they checked his blood pressure, it was high (and I had a cavity). It was not good news. We’re making changes. I’m cutting way back on sugar and he’s cutting down on salt. This past week we’ve been eating a lot healthier. Way more vegetables, whole grains, and less junk. My sweet tooth is still raging, so when I want chocolate, I have dark chocolate. If it’s over 70% I can have it in the home without obsessing about it all day.

I’ve also worked out a few times this week, and not just walking (although I did that too, a 9km-10km walk through the woods). I went for a jog and lifted some weights as well. It’s been a long time since I’ve worked out. I’m really proud of myself.

I made cards this weekend. You might notice I ended up gluing the happy paper upside down on the card above. OOPS! I messed up that one, but the dog is cute.

The butterfly is a 3D one, that is propped off the card, but presses down to fit in the envelope. I wasn’t sure about that one at first, but now I really like it. I made the left one with an embossing folder. It’s pretty. I will make that one in pink too, with black ink.

The left card in this one is a gift card holder. I really like the paper on that one. The top slides off and reveals the gift card. The second one is an easel style card. There were no instructions or score lines to help. I had to guess and I have no idea if I made it right. I like the card but it was a pain to put together. You can use the dies to make a house in the Winter, or a Halloween house too. I really like how they all turned out, not so much the upside down gumball machine, but the rest were great. I’ll post a link to a video of the supplies I used below.

Lobster Shorts Food, vegetarian, weight loss

Fake It Till You Make It And More Cart Smugness

This was the spoils of my grocery cart and I’m feeling proud of it (if that container of potato salad wasn’t in there, I’d be downright smug about it). I’m trying the “Fake it till you make it” approach to healthy habits. I’m pretending I’m a health nut, someone like Chris Traeger on Parks and Recreation (which I’m currently binging), so this came home with me. I bought more healthy Power Bowls for those times I don’t make lunch, and fruits and veggies.

I made a meal that I’m calling Weirdy Bowl. I cooked cauliflower, eggplants, kale, and mushrooms and them added them to tofu in a coconut milk broth that I seasoned with curry powder, garam masala, turmeric, and salt, and put it over steamed quinoa. I topped it with a dollop of hummus and potato salad (yes the potato salad is very weird, hence why I called it Weirdy Bowl). The hummus though… pretty good. I’m currently fermenting sauerkraut and growing sprouts, the potato salad will be replaced by these things in the future. It was easy to make and didn’t take too long. I’ll be making more things like this in the future. May my inner Chris Traeger cook all my future meals.

Lobster Shorts card making, crafting, decluttering, Food, weight loss

Breakfast, Cards, and Organization

This weekend the weather was beautiful. It’s finally starting to feel like Spring out there. The mornings were frigid and the afternoons were warm, which I hear is great maple syrup weather. For the big weekend breakfast I made scrambled eggs, with air fryer home fries, blueberries, and humming bird cake.

The humming bird cake came from Kitchen Smidgen and it was delicious. We’ve had it before, it’s one of the best things they make. Eggs and home fries are my favourite weekend splurge. I’ve been sticking with the weekday intermittent fasting. I’m still down three pounds, which is not bad since my birthday week benders of surprise dinners and a couple bags of chocolate eggs (that are gone now). I had gained back the weight and lost it again.

My bathroom drawer finally irked me into decluttering it.

It was a non-functional disaster. My bathroom drawers usually end up this way. Nothing organized, just dumped in a pile in the drawers. Before the pandemic, I was scouring the antique shops looking for decorative boxes or tins to tidy them up. I haven’t been back to one since the virus, I’m not sure they are even open. On Friday, I went on a 12km walk, during that walk I ended up at the MCC Thrift Shop in Kitchener.

This chocolate tin was there for $2.00 and ended up being $0.50 at the check out. It was perfect because the drawers aren’t very deep and this tin is thin. I put all my make up into it. It holds a lot

The drawer looks a million times better. It’s organized and functional.

I’m thrifting a couple things. A facial massager and a makeup bag. I’d like to refinish the bathroom vanity, it has a lot of superficial damage, but that’s a project for a different day.

I made some cards this weekend. I’ll post a video below of what I made and the products I used to make them.

Lobster Shorts Food, weight loss

Lunch Dilemmas and Sleepy Sundays

I’ve solved my lunch problems. I have a horrible habit of not pre-making a lunch, getting hungry, and then buying chips. I’m likely to continue with that pattern, so I bought some frozen dinners.

It turns out these bowls are really good AND healthy! Way better then most of the other frozen meals. Vegetarians usually end up with only the option of some crappy frozen pasta dish that leaves you starving a short time later.

These bowls actually have some sustenance to them and good ingredients. From now on I’ll take one of these with me for lunch. I really like them.

This weekend I went for a couple short walks and my spouse did all the cooking (and cleaning! I’m a lucky lady). Usually on Sundays I make us a large breakfast, but this time he made it. He made his usual egg and cheese sandwich (using the new cheese of the month!) and it was really good. He uses the Hamilton Beach egg sandwich maker and they are so great. It’s our favourite appliance and we got it from the classifieds. Score!

We went for a couple short walks, but most of the weekend I was sewing. I’m still working on the cloak and I have most of the outside put together, but now I’m second guessing whether I want to make the alternative version with the shoulder flaps. I’m sure I have enough fabric left to do it. I’m no longer in love with the fabric I bought. It sheds horribly and frays like crazy (even after washing the fabric), but I’m going to see it through. I’m hoping I can make a matching skirt with any leftover fabric. I may still fall in love with it.

Lobster Shorts Food, weight loss

What’s Happening With OMAD

Disclaimer. I am not a medical professional, nutritionist, or anyone with any business giving diet advice. This is my own personal journey. When it comes to yourself, seek the advice of a medical professional.

Not a thing. I was doing one meal a day before the Christmas holidays, but things fell apart. I had a rough holiday (I had to put my dog down) and I ate my feelings. I gained back the seven pounds I had lost and I haven’t been attempting to eat healthy at all. After the holidays were over I didn’t restart OMAD. I was back to eating breakfast, but usually skipped lunch (mostly because I was too lazy to make anything) and then would eat dinner (and a lot of junk food. Cadbury Creme Egg season is here and that sweet sweet sugary goo egg is irresistible to me. It’s one of my favourite candies).

My spouse is back into intermittent fasting (skipping breakfast) and as I like to sleep in for the mornings, that means I am too. I’ve been getting really hungry during the afternoons and have been getting chips for a snack. It’s not the healthiest of lunches. Lately, I am way too hungry to stick with OMAD. Switching to intermittent fasting (skipping breakfast) and having lunch and dinner, seems like the right decision for me, right now.

I’m going to have to find the time to cook a healthy lunch, or I’m going to keep buying unhealthy snacks instead. I’m going to focus on eating healthier, unprocessed food. I get a lot of takeout, but there are still some fairly healthy options out there.

This was my dinner tonight. I love love love the Pita Pit Halloumi pita. I don’t feel guilty when I get this, It’s full of veggies. When I got home I split a Founder’s Tequila cocktail with my spouse. We went to the liquor store and I bought a bottle of Bailey’s Espresso (it’s a flavourgasm, my favourite). I’m probably going to have some tonight, it is almost guaranteed.

Lobster Shorts weight loss

OMAD Week 5

Disclaimer. I am not a medical professional, nutritionist, or anyone with any business giving diet advice. This is my own personal journey. When it comes to yourself, seek the advice of a medical professional.

It was a great week for me. I’m now down seven pounds in total and even crossed into the next 10lb section. I hadn’t lost any weight for the last two weeks, so I’m really happy about it. I ate OMAD (one meal a day) Monday to Friday, and then whatever I wanted on the weekend (I did use a little more restraint this weekend). That being said, I still ate pie, cookies, and went to Montana’s for dinner.

I’ve been loving Hello Fresh. The meals were SO good and also really healthy. Unfortunately, it’s just too expensive to continue on, but I’m going to try and keep in the spirit of it and eat less takeout and cook more at home. I do love the idea of someone choosing your meal (especially if it’s full of veggies and healthy) so I can try new things.

So far, I’m loving this way of eating. I still get hungry a lot during the day, but it passes. I haven’t had problems with dizziness in awhile. It’s something I think I will be able to stick with.

I saw a genius post on Facebook with someone using string to measure their waist one a month and comparing the string size. I’m going to do that. I wish I had done that from the start. Here’s to week six!