Chocolate Cake Honeybush Tea

Ok- I give up on the past few weeks (months?) that I "forgot" I wanted to be a blogger so i'm just gonna pick up with today. Anything important that comes up from my hiatus, i'll fill you in as we go!

Anywhoo! As you can see, my choice of tea this morning, Chocolate Cake Honeybush tea. I just brewed my first cup and mmmmm perfect touch of chocolate! It's so smooth! On Monday my best friend Bekkie and I went to this newer restaurant/tea store called the Whistling Kettle http://www.thewhistlingkettle.com/. It's in a town north of here, about a 20 minute drive. We didn't have lunch Monday since we wanted to check out a few of the other stores in town (especially the Whole Foods/Tea store I talked about in my last blog). They appear to have an awesome menu and great food. The place is always packed and line out the door. We were on a tea mission Monday. They have a small shopping section but lots to choose from. The set up is all their tea's line up for you to sniff in small tins, descriptions with each. Then there is a rack with bags of samples (see below) to purchase. Then tea accessories on the other side. You can purchase larger bulk tea in back and also get cups to go (that day I got an iced strawberry green tea!

Above are the sample size bags. Love it, $2.50 each so you can try many!

This day I picked up just 2 to try. The Chocolate Cake Honeybush I'm currently drinking...

and then this green tea. Gojiberry/Blueberry/Pomegranate. Helloooo antioxidants!

This is my newer purchase from after Christmas (form Teavanna, a chain tea store) I haven't used much yet. A small person tea pot that steeps the tea inside with a trivet below so I can keep it with me (say coffee table) for quick refills.

My tea this morning steeping. If you noticed, this chocolate tea needs to steep for 8-10 minutes where the green tea only 1-2 minutes. Wonder why? might have to Google that next!

Now it's time to go make some breakfast before I hit the gym for Zumba this morning. My last Thursday morning class before I return to work Monday. Yes if you remember from one of my first posts I was out on leave (feeling much better but still no definite answers to what was wrong). I personally think I just was in a funk, depressed and not taking care of myself (which I'm happy to say all have been much better!) Let's see If I can keep this blogging thing up! I think I get so wrapped up in reading others I forget I want to start .... continue my own!

The Repeat Offender...again

As the name of my blog implies, I am a repeat offender in many things in life. Blogging apparently is now one of them! I seem to forget that I started a blog. How? I don't know. I follow many of your blogs so ya'd think I'd keep up with my own!

I have pictures and stories to share. Maybe I'll catch up tonight all with many posts to current date.... or just one large post later!

Thank goodness I don't really have any followers yet :-)

Our local health food stores

Ok are you sitting down? 2 blog post from me in one day!!! yahooo! ok well really I wanted to talk about my recent shopping adventures. The previous post was about our love of Trader Joe's and how we have no popular chain health food stores in our area. We live in Albany, NY. We have major colleges (Union, RPI, Skidmore) all around us where students come from these cities with Trader Joes and Wholefoods, so why don't we have any yet? Anywhoo.....

This post is about my recent adventures to our local "natural food" stores as they are referred to. We do have natural food sections in our major local grocery stores, but not much of a picking.

The main store I check in time to time is called The Green Grocer. Sorry, no picture on the net, but a banner from their site below.

This store is on a main road I travel often so I think of stopping here since I pass it so much. Still though, not a big store but not small. I wouldn't go to do my normal grocery shopping here. I stop if I'm looking for something unique or feel like just browsing to see what they have. I'd give them a C+. Some unique items but alot I can find in grocery store.

Next week have a brand new store (to me anyways) called Wilde Thyme Whole Foods and Tea Co. We randomly drove by this store in a town north of us a few weeks ago, so we checked it out yesterday. I was in heaven. VERY small, but had many things I have not been able to fine. Plus had a loose spice section which I loved. I'm planning on making some granola and didn't need huge bottles of some of these spices. Perfect. I'd give them a B-. Many items I'd travel to buy were available here but only if they were a bigger store. ....

And finally, our local food co-op. Honest Weight Food Coo-p. WHY or why have I never been here? My best friend is a Vegan and shops there often. It is towards downtown Albany which I don't venture to often cause I always get lost and afraid to drive in the city. Also, you'd never know it was there. The front of the store and the parking lot is in a random kind of alley way. I had the GPS to tell me where to turn today.

As you can see from the picture below, not the most appealing store from the outside. The store in general not the cleanest but it is a co-op. I know they are going to be building a brand new store in the near future which is exciting. This place rocked. I walked in and was immediately excited but all the items I saw. So many random things I'd been looking for and couldn't find anyplace else. Plus lots of local dairy and meat and produce which I like. Then I found the bulk area! yay! so many choices. I luckily today just grabbed a hand basket and picked up one of this and that to try. I picked up a small bag of cloves, some organic chia seeds, dates, a new Greek yogurt, another type of yogurt, local drinkable orange creme dairy drink and I don't even know what else! Plus a new sling reusable bag. I was so excited leaving there today. This will be a staple and worth the drive to shop now. I just need to remember to hit it up early morning not late afternoon on a beautiful Friday!

Don't worry Trader Joe's. You are my first love and I will still drive to visit you as often as I can :-)

What we do for our favorite stores

As some of you may know, we do not have a Trader Joe's (gasp) or Whole Foods anywhere near where I live. Oh and I live just north of Albany, NY, go figure. Not like we live in the middle of no where! There is a group locally who has a Facebook page, WWTJ (We Want Trade Joes) and the head of the group is very VERY active in touching base with Trader Joes, knows people know by their first names, and let's say they are very aware of how much one is needed here! Apparently they've been here looking at spots and its in the very near future..... I won't hold my breath just yet.

My husband and I make day trips just to go to a Trader Joes and also IKEA (loooovvee IKEA). I guess Albany isn't such a bad location because we have a few TJ's we can get to. We were first driving down to New Jersey. We could hit up IKEA and TJ's right down the crazy main drag from each other. But they are not open Sunday's (old school laws) so that puts a damper on the easiest day for us. Recently we found another in New Haven, CT that actually was a little bit of a closer drive. It's actually a beautiful drive, mostly back roads through MA and we end up in CT driving through the Yale campus, beautiful. IKEA is there also, that's where we hit up first, basically on the ocean. Then a 10 minute drive to TJ's. Last week when we went, we were taking another adventure to find Crate and Barrel and what do you know.... a WHOLEFOODS! ah we'll hit that next time. My in laws also came along for the trip this last time, and I'm not sure who wanted to scream first, my husband or father in law. A day of way too much shopping for them!

The one chain store that is making it's way here is The Fresh Market. We drove by one of those in CT also but didn't have a chance to scope it out. Anyone have one near them? They are building one locally and it looks huge! I'm really eager to check it out. And it will only be a 15 minute drive for me..... not 2 hours!

I'm a bad new blogger!

I was so excited to start blogging about my health, weight loss, every day things... and what do I not do, BLOG!

Well where did we leave off. On the weight loss end, i'm doing fairly well. Down 11.6lbs. I've been up and down and up and down, I need to get my chit together and keep it going. Last week was pretty stressful and I couldn't concentrate on anything.....

Health wise, I am doing OK. Still not a huge difference in ME. I can't explain it. I feel OK, a bajillion times better than I did when I was pulled out of work, but still not me. I am still having the shakes, randomly. Last Friday we took a trip to IKEA and Trader Joes (yes we need to travel unfortunately to go to these wonderful stores) and in the midst of my glory at IKEA, I start shaking and couldn't talk to well. Then it went away. Anxiety my ass! Since then, I saw yet another doctor last week. I am being tested for Lyme disease again. The first time was just a basic blood test. This time I am having 2 other tests done, a little more in depth. I should find out these week. And the thing is, even if it comes back negative, I am still going to take the antibiotics. He said it won't hurt to try since it could still be there but not showing.... so we shall see. I went to the Psychiatrist today and out of work for the rest of the short term leave, 4 more weeks. And I'm going to make the best of it!

So there is the cliff notes version of my life in the past few weeks..... I promise! I'll keep up!

Healthy Fattie!

That's right, I am a healthy fattie! Now to work on being a healthy skinnie!

I received my blood work results back from my Doctor in the mail yesterday. The doctor noted, "All results all were normal, but please move more for general health." aka get your fat ass exercising more.

She was very curious to see my results, especially my cholesterol levels. Also my TSH (thyroid) since I originally was having issues with my thyroid. As I always said, I may be fat but I've always been healthy and now have the blood work to prove it! I do find it odd that last year, my thyroid levels were off the chart and I was the only fat person (ok over exaggerating a bit) that was Hyperthyroid. Then I was put on meds and gained a ton of weight and voila now I'm Hypothyroid. Then I look for new doctors, stop all meds and all is good now? Strange.

Now I am a bit anxious to see what my pap smear will come back to say. That's my other issue. I have no had a period since all my thyroid issues started and this has been since December/January. It is now almost May. That's not cool. I've never ever had trouble with my period, always very regular (sorry for the TMI). Only thing I could think of was the initial fast weight gain and stress I as under didn't help. Now my doctor mentioned possible ovarian cysts. Again, odd how that would show out of no where but what do I know. Hopefully my whhoohaaa is a happy whoohaaa!

So from here, I'm continuing to focus on ME. I joined my favorite ($$$) gym for just a month while I'm still out of work. My friend works there pt and has been sneaking me in to Zumba but its getting to be too much to ask. I figured while I'm still out I might as well work out as much as I can. And I love their classes, so many to choose from and I can Zumba even more :-) My goal right now is to get back under 300lbs as soon as reasonably possible. No reason why I am as fat as I am but stress and eating over the past year. I must say though, 2 weeks of working out I'm already feeling better and it will only get better from here. I still have those fattie issues of not being able to imagine myself at a healthy weight. I think, will my tree stump of legs ever shrink? My stomach ever go back down? But I'm trying to tell myself not to think of it and just let it happen....

Weigh In Week 2

Today was my second weigh in while back on Weight Watchers and the number is.....................
-1.6lbs! I'll take it! So 2 week loss= -8.6lbs! word!

I have to admit, I've been sloppy this week logging my food. Plus have had a weird eating pattern most of the week. I've mostly NOT been hungry then eating alot at night. Then of all nights to get cravings and have a "binge" it had to be last night.

Journaling has been another tough thing for me, not sure why. I think I need to go back to planning my day a head of time. When I lost weight last time, I had a busy schedule and always planned my entire day the night before and stuck to it. Now I have time on my hands, I've been getting bored, I've been munching and not being true to what I have ate. I must say I LOVE WW Mobile App for my iPhone, it does make adding things easy, so easy I just need to keep doing it.
I also am going to start planning, so I purchased a 3 month planner at my meeting today. Also, I've heard people talk about a cover for the planners and we finally had them back in stock! So cute, makes things a little more fun. They had the design I got below, or plain blue.

My goals for the week are:

1) Plan and journal! Everything, every last BLT (bite,lick and taste)

2) Exercise. I've been taking Zumba 2 days a week, now I just need to get back into my walking habit. I LOVE to walk...plus doctors orders :-(

3) WATER WATER WATER! I have never had trouble getting all my water in and I have not been drinking nearly as much as I need. Water always makes me feel better and lose better.