The 40 Day journey comes to an end!

So my 40 Day Vegan experiment came to an end on Sunday and I thought surely I had overcome any desire for meat and dairy products. Surely I would continue my quest for all things healthy. Surely my taste buds had turned toward more sophisticated fare. And then we went to The Spotted Cow in Peoria yesterday. Of course, Monday's special is my favorite, the chicken cheese quesadilla and tortilla chips. So, I ordered that without even thinking. In my defense, I did share it with Alyssa. But, then...well, I'd already had meat AND dairy, so why not have some ice cream too? And, while we're at it, put that toffee coffee and mocha me crazy in a waffle cone. YES!

Apparently I need to reign things in before they get way too out of hand. But, I have to say, that WAS a pretty good meal. I'm just not sure if I should be disappointed in myself.

Um, Honey, you could use a mint!

So, it's day 27 in my 40-day Vegan Journey and things are good. I've had a few occasions where I've eaten something I thought for certain was vegan only to find out( too late) that it has some milk derivative in it. Argh! And, I'll admit, a couple of times I've added creamer to my coffee when nothing else was available. Not cow's milk or half and half, but it definitely had some form of milk in it in some small part. GUILTY!

But, for the most part, it's been pretty easy. I'm actually enjoying the foods I'm eating. That's something that's kind of surprised me. I thought for sure it would be torture to watch someone eat a turkey sandwich or something sweet like ice cream. But, for most things I've been able to find a replacement like a vegan burrito or a dark chocolate bar, etc. Honestly, the journey has been a lot less stressful than I'd imagined it would be.

HOWEVER...there has been one interesting development in the past 27 days. Apparently my breath has taken on a foul odor. Most likely it's due to the fact that I'm eating a lot more foods (like hummus which is yummus) that contain lots of garlic. The key to the vegan diet is seasoning...making the veggies, beans, and whole grains as tasty as you can. So, garlic and other natural taste enhancers have made their way into my diet on almost a daily basis. I was unaware of the lasting ill effect though until Jeremy brought it up ever so gently. I believe his exact words were "what's the deal with your breath lately?" :)

So, let me apologize in advance if we have a chance to talk face to face before I've had a chance to grab a mint!

Can't believe it's been a week!

Day 8 and things are going well. I'm really not missing meat or dairy products. I think the hardest thing about following the Vegan Diet is just finding things that have no animal products in them whatsoever. Other than that...it's pretty yummy. I've been eating some of the Amy's Soups and Burritos - the ones that specifically say VEGAN in the ingredients listing. And, hummus is my new best friend. :) Coconut Milk is definitely better than the Almond Drink. But, I think I'll prefer the original organic version over the Vanilla flavored. The Vanilla tastes just a little too artificial for me. So next time I'm going for the original!

During my 40 Day Vegan journey I've been getting a lot of help from friends. Coleen brought me some delicious Vegan breads from the Peoria Bread Company. Tasha made a Vegan cake which was scrumptious. And, yesterday, I received two books in the mail from my sister-in-law, Aubry! They're all about following a Vegan diet and making it easy for yourself. There are also a TON of Vegan recipes, so I'm looking forward to diving into those. When I wrote to thank Aub for the books she said she was excited when she heard about my experiment because she and my brother, Eric, do a lot of Vegan eating AND she said, "You can't live off nuts, hummus and dried fruit all the time. Nor can you live off salads. Variety is a key...!" Thanks for looking out for me, Aubry! Thank you everyone for your help and encouragement! Please keep praying for me when you think about it. Quite a ways to go- but SO FAR it's easier than I thought it would be!

Day 4 in the experiment

The 40-Day Vegan is doing well so far. A few ups and downs.

One "up" is I found out that Jimmy Johns has an awesome veggie sandwich. If you order it without the cheese and mayo it's completely vegan. Yay! (However, if you order the Skinny Chips...they are tasty, but make sure you read the nutrition information including the serving size. There are TWO servings in the bag, not ONE. I found out that one a little too late.) Also, most of the Great Harvest and Peoria Bread Company breads do not have any egg or milk products in them. A "down" is that I found out, too late, that the Great Harvest Savannah Bars are made with eggs. Oops! So, I won't make that mistake again. And, I had THOUGHT that the organic toaster pastries I buy for Alyssa were safe. But, looking closer at the ingredients, I've noticed whey protein made from milk. Ugg! So, goodbye to those treats! Another "down", the Almond Drink is getting a little old. I'm going to try to find some coconut milk today.

I'm finding that as long as I have plenty of nuts, raisins, dried cranberries, and veggies and hummus to snack on...I'm fine. Preparation seems to be the key; making sure I don't go anywhere without snacks on hand...especially work! Yesterday I was even able to get Chinese with Jeremy. I just stuck with the sautéed broccoli and steamed rice. I also ordered spring rolls. I asked the lady at the counter if they are egg, meat, and milk free, and she said yes. Jeremy wondered about the wraps, though. I honestly don't know. So, if you do, please let me know!

The journey of the 40-Day Vegan begins

So far, so good. It's really not bad. Yesterday was day one and here's what I ate:

Breakfast
Handful of cashews
Handful of dried cranberries
Bowl of Shredded Wheat with Almond Drink
Coffee with cinnamon and Almond Drink

Snack
Couple bites of a big banana

Lunch
2 TBS All Natural Peanut Butter (I tried to find another kind of nut butter at Wal-Mart, but I'll have to look elsewhere for that)
1 TBS all-fruit spread
1 Tortilla (realized my whole wheat bread had milk products in it...again, will have to look for an alternative)
1 serving plain Sun Chips
2 TBS Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
Fresh Veggies
3/4 of a Peach
Water

Snack
The rest of that banana
1 serving raisins
1 serving almonds
Vanilla/Caramel Tea
Water

Supper
Veggie Lover's pre-packaged salad topped with sunflower seeds, blueberries, and a raspberry vinaigrette
1 smallish baked potato topped with Salsa
A few Kashi garlic crackers (kind of like Triscuits)
Water and a little bit of Alyssa's organic low-sugar berry lemonade she wanted me to try

Snack
A bag of simply salted all-natural microwave with no butter or milk products that I sprinkled with Old Bay Seasoning
Water

Struggles so far: Called to RSVP for my cousin's wedding and they had no vegetarian option for dinner.
Solution: I ordered the roast beef. I'll give my beef to Jeremy and hopefully there will be a baked potato or something else that I can eat. Also, I'm hoping Jeremy will let me eat his salad as well as my salad and maybe there will some whole grain bread or something.

Watch out Bob and Larry!

OK, I've started something new today and I need for you not to laugh at me hysterically. I'm going to try a vegan diet for 40 days (and 40 nights as Alyssa said when I was talking about it with her Daddy). Basically I'm cutting out all milk, egg, and meat products during this time. This also means most sugars and goodies since so many of them are made with at least one of these products. Jeremy thinks I'm a little on the loopy side for doing this but I'm curious. How much of a difference will it make in the way I feel? I'm not just talking about weight loss - although I am hoping that will come into play here. I'm wondering about my struggle with allergies and sinus headaches, energy levels, and dealing with pain due to Fibromylagia, etc. Will I be better able to keep up with my 3 1/2 year old? Will I just have a healthier me in the long run if I stick to mostly raw fruits and veggies and whole grain foods? So, today's the day! And, I'm making it really hard on myself by blogging about it. For the next 40 days I'm going to try to blog at least a small blurb about what I ate that day simply for accountability. And, other days I may also include the struggles I'm facing in keeping to this plan or, hopefully, the benefits I'm realizing as a result! So, please pray for me. Granted, today is day one but...so far so good. I can only do this with God's help and strength, though, so there's some direction for prayer if you feel so inclined! Thanks! Jill <><

Is that what I ordered?

Just got back from a quick run to Arby's. It's been a crazy day...dozens of errands and work projects to wrap up before leaving on vacation tomorrow morning. So, of course, in all the chaos I forgot my healthy, pre-portioned, whole grain lunch at home in the freezer. No problem...had to go back out for a couple of things anyway and decided to pick up a sandwich and drink. So, I ordered the small combo to save a little money because, let's face it, a dollar at Arby's doesn't go nearly as far as it does at, say, McDonald's. I thought at least I'll be smart and get the SMALL in order to conserve a little on the fat and calories. Well, I thought I was ordering the small. When I received my order I was given a drink that I believed would be a medium by today's standards and what would have been considered a large soda a few years ago. I asked just to make sure and the lady helping me said, "Oh, yeah, that's a small. They get a LOT bigger than that!"

I can't BELIEVE how large the drinks and food servings are getting these days. And then we wonder why we're all struggling with our weight? It's crazy!!! I do have to say I made at least ONE wise dietary choice by giving away half of the fries to Jay, our promotions intern. He's young...he'll burn it off, right?

Note to self...order salads and water on the road trip!

Hey, have a great week and a very happy Fourth of July celebration with your family. After today Jeremy and I will be off for several days. We're looking forward to being back on the air on Monday, July 13 for Doing Life with the Traceys on 91.5 WCIC!

The way we ate when we were kids...

I don't know about you...but I really wish I would have become more disciplined in my eating habits when I was younger. Instead, I distinctly remember going swimming with my friend, Stacey, every afternoon in the summer. This would make us ravenously hungry so we'd go back to my house and promptly pool our money and order not a small, not a medium, but a LARGE pizza for just the two of us which we would then devour. And, yes, we would usually eat the entire thing between just the two of us. If one of my brothers were home we might give them a (emphasis on A) piece depending on how generous we were feeling. And, sometimes we'd toss a few pieces of crust to the beloved family dog, Benji. Yup, we had no idea just how much we were harming not only ourselves but an innocent animal as well with our dietary choices on those hot and humid days. So, our nutrition for the day would usually consist of some chips and sodas consumed at the pool, 1/2 a large pizza, and whatever our Moms were serving for dinner that night when they got home from work. Healthy, huh? And I wonder why it's so hard to practice self control now in my thirties...almost forties!!

Looking back on all of this I know without a doubt that I want to give Alyssa a hand in learning to make healthy choices and developing a taste for yummy nutritious food instead of yummy not-so-much-in-the-nutrition-department foods. And, I know the older she gets the harder that's going to be since I will have less and and less control in this area. So, what do you do to help the older kids and teens eat healthy even when they have to fend for themselves? Share your ideas! And, thanks for the help! :)

The BIG DAY!

Well, the day I'd been anticipating, albeit with a trace of dread in my heart, finally arrived. Jeremy and I took part in the Lakeview Museum Interplanetary 5-K in Peoria this past Saturday. And, let me just say, WOW am I SLOW!!! :) It's OK, I expected to be slow and I really don't care that I came in dead last...beaten by EVERYONE by at least 5-6 minutes. All I wanted to do was FINISH THE RACE. And, I did. And, even though I was last my time of 42:15 was about five minutes faster than when I ran the distance in training. That's pretty cool! Now I can actually say I have run in a 5-K race. Amazing! Never in my life would I have dreamt of achieving such a feat. And, I'm even thinking about the next one...isn't that unbelievable? Of course thinking and TRAINING are two different things, aren't they? :)

OK, I have to back up just a little. When I say I came in last, that's not exactly true. My wonderful husband came in last and NOT because he had to. He ran right next to me for the entire race at MY pathetically slow pace so he could encourage me to keep going. Everytime I wanted to give up he was right there with a word of encouragement, reminding me that it was a great accomplishment to just be IN the race and that I COULD make it to the finish line. Then, at the very last leg of the trip...he dropped behind me so that I wouldn't be the last runner to come in. What a GUY, huh? He's my sweetie!To see more pictures, check out the Doing Life with the Traceys group on Facebook. It was a great day and I'm so glad I got out there and did it. And, I just want to encourage you...whatever it is that you've been THINKING about doing...whatever challenge you're facing...you CAN DO IT! Just find a friend or loved one to run the race with you and to help you keep going when everything inside of you SCREAMS that you can't! Latch on to that person who will remind you that with Jesus you can do ANYTHING. And, you know what? You can!!!

Tomorrow's the BIG DAY!

I never thought I'd EVER hear myself say, "I'm running a 5-K tomorrow". But, wow, I GUESS stranger things have happened, huh? It's amazing what you can do with Jesus and your husband at your side. If you're available tomorrow morning and want to join us, we'll be taking part in the Lakeview Museum Interplanetary Run at Detweiller Park in Peoria at 9 am. I'm pretty sure you can still register at the event. You can find out more at www.lakeview-museum.org. We'll be sure to post some pictures after the BIG DAY! :) Please pray for me!!!!!

Running Update ~ 3.11 MILES!!!

Just a quick note to let you know...I DID IT!!!! This past Saturday morning with Jeremy at my side I "ran" (slowly jogged) the entire length of my 5-K race in preparation for the Lakeview Planetary Run coming up on Saturday, April 4!! I absolutely could NOT have done it without Jeremy encouraging me and cheering me on every step of the way or, of course, without Jesus! :) I'm thrilled to know that I can actually cover the distance (on the treadmill at least) and hope now to simply better my time. It took me approximately 47 minutes to go 3.11 miles on Saturday. I know, I know, pathetic! :) But, wouldn't it be cool if I could shave off at least 5 minutes when I do the actual Run? Only time will tell - no pun intended! Thanks for your support in my training. And, don't forget to send us your Getting Healthy in '09 goal. Just go to the Doing Life with the Traceys page at www.wcicfm.org to find out all the details on how you can win an iPod Nano and a Running Central Family Footwear Fourpack!

Running for my health and to win the Ultimate Prize...Jill

Race Update

Wanted to let you know...we've chosen the date for my first ever 5-K run. Jeremy and I are going to take part in the Lakeview Museum Interplanetary Family Fun run on April 4. It's at Detweiller Park in Peoria and is supposed to be all in the lower part of the park...meaning NO HILLS! YEAH! So, who wants to run with us?

Free to be Me

Have you ever noticed how we can base our opinions of ourselves on how we’re performing at the moment? I'm training to run a 5-K in a couple of months and I've had lots of ups and downs. One day I'm able to run a mile and a half. Then, the next time I go to the gym, I can’t even push myself to run one mile!

I've realized that on the days I do well I feel great about myself. I feel fit and like what I see in the mirror. But, on the days I struggle and, in my mind, FAIL, I'm down on myself in almost every conceivable way. It’s all based on my performance in one small area of my life. Have you ever been there? It reminds of the song we're playing right now by Francesca Battistelli, "Free to be Me". The line that says, "perfection is my enemy". Oh, I can SO resonate with that lyric!

Aren’t you glad God loves us no matter what? No matter how well our workout goes…no matter what promotion we get or don’t get…no matter how our children behave or MISbehave...no matter how we feel about ourselves!The Bible says God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. And it says His love for us is forever! Maybe that will help us feel differently about ourselves!

Getting Healthy with the Traceys Update

Big News!! On Sunday I finally ran over 1.25 miles without stopping! I know, if you're a runner, this sounds utterly pathetic! But I'm that much closer too being able to run a 5-K in late March/early April! We just have to decide on WHICH 5-K!

Today I was a little bummed because I just couldn't push myself to go that far again. But, I'm taking it in stride and realizing there are going to be ups and downs as a I continue to train. So, I'll be back at it Friday morning! :)

Jeremy's doing a GREAT job with his Swimming Lessons. He starts week two tonight and so far only has one bump on the head as far as mishaps go. He's hoping to be able to swim those two lengths of the pool by the end of March.

Don't forget to tell us your Getting Healthy goal for 2009! You could win two free passes for a free week's membership at The Clubs at River City in Peoria. Plus you'll automatically be registered for the Grand Prize - an iPod Nano and a Running Central Family Footwear Four-Pack! Just go to the Doing Life with the Traceys page at www.wcicfm.org!