A meaty issue

Okay, so this isn't the most interesting topic in the world, but I think it does bear a moment of reflection and sharing if it will help someone else out.

In January, I started my lifestyle change, and read a book called, This Is Why You're Fat and How to Get Thin Forever, by Jackie Warner. I've said it before, and I'll say it again- it gave me a whole new perspective on food, sugar, meats, etc. While my diet for the summer is out the window, I will be hitting it again hard core as soon as my kids are back in school and I can make a decent effort without being derailed hourly.

ANYWAY, there are some really eye opening moments in the book, it's very easy to read and understand, and her plan is fairly practical in that she tells you what you CAN eat instead of only telling you what you can't. That being said- I should mention that I do NOT abide by this book strictly, or even wholly, as it is pretty hardcore, and I simply do not possess that type of will power.

To some of you who are thin, fit, and nutrition experts, the insights in the book would be a no brainer, but being that I am none of the above- I really did learn some new stuff. One of the things I learned about and have been trying gradually revamp (among other things) in our household is the quality of meat and poultry that we consume. I won't go into why- you've heard most of it, anyway, and if you want details, google and read the book. Bottom line, is the extra hormones in the meats are particularly damaging to the delicate balance of hormones that can cause fat stores in the human body- especially the female body.

Well, that fact right there was enough to convince me to at least TRY to change the protein parts of our diets- and the other facts boosted my motivation. I digress, and I said I wouldn't....

So, the challenge was- how do I incorporate grass-fed, hormone free beef and free range, hormone free poultry into our diets without breaking the bank? It took a little creativity, and yes my kids my slightly consider me stingy in the protein department, but I've found a couple ways.

Ground Beef:
First of all, if you eat ground beef in your household, you're probably using the bulk of it in dishes like spaghetti, lasagna, tacos, sloppy joes, meat loaf, etc. In my household, hamburgers on a bun are probably a once a month meal because they're so heavy, and yes, usually those are consumed at Burger Girl or In-n-Out Burger. So, I learned from another pinner on Pinterest- how to stretch the beef, so to speak.

Purchase 1-2 pounds of the ground beef of your choice (although this really makes you feel good when you go for the grass fed, free range good stuff). Slice up one onion, a red bell pepper, a green bell pepper, and grate about 3-4 carrots (I used my food processor and this is done in seconds). Brown the ground beef in a pan, and when it's close, toss in the vegetables. Now you've just doubled your "meat"- not to mention added some veggies that have extra nutrients. If you dice them small enough, your kids might not even notice, and my kids actually like my tacos, BETTER now. Once you've brown the beef mixture, allow it to cool and portion into freezer bags sized to portion for one of your families' meals. I can usually get at least 3 meals for our family of 4 from a 1 pound pkg of meat. Make sure you label the freezer bag with your date, and freeze. Waiting until the meat has cooled helps prevent ice crystals. When you're ready to cook, just pull out the meat mixture, add your favorite seasonings, reheat in a saute pan and serve. I LOVE this. It saves me so much time, money and gets my family eating proper sized meat portions and veggies to boot (veggies are also usually inexpensive- or free if you have a garden). I have a container of home-made taco seasoning in my pantry, or you can add Italian seasoning, sloppy joe sauce, tomato sauce- whatever floats your boat. Depending on the meal- this makes for a 15 min or less meal.

Poultry
On a side note, has anyone noticed how BIG the chicken breasts are? Especially if you're buying conventional- I guess all those added hormones grow them bigger. LOL. I can hear you all going there... anyway, for the chicken breasts, I take the large ones, slice them horizontally across the center (think butterflied) and then cut each of the butterflied filets in half- giving me four pieces of chicken to everyone one. The recommended serving portion is actually the size of a deck of cards, or 4 oz, and this actually brings it more in line. Who in the world needs to be eating 10-16 oz. of chicken anyway? I pop four to five of these pieces in a freezer bag- adding a marinade to each- teriyaki, bbq, italian, Bobby Flay spice rub, etc, and freeze them. The other day I didn't buy the fancy chicken, but regular- in the value pack- and managed to get 9 chicken meals out of the two value sized packs (for most families that would have been 4 meals). Now, I will say- Mason has complained that I'm being stingy with the chicken, but in my defense, I have added more veggies to the meals to make up for it, and we always have fruit after, so he should be good. I've also tried to implement eggs more into breakfast (and even dinner- see previous post), plus we have a pantry full of nuts, so lack of protein is not a problem.

Both of these ideas are also perfect for those who are single who want real food, but don't need to cook huge portions. Just freeze for your individuals' or families' needs, and you're good to go. Here's hoping this helps you stretch a buck, add some meals, and squeak in some veggies, too!

Perfect Ratio

Even though I have ADD right now, and about 15 different topics and tirades are fighting for my attention (don't get me started on Chickfila)- I'm going to go ahead and write about the biggest news in our life right now.

Lately, I've been writing about money saving ideas, BUT I will say, this one is not it. Most of you know the joy, agony and love that our dog Foxy has brought us the last two years. And most of you have witnessed her level of- shall we say- PSCYHONESS and separation anxiety that has caused a lot of drama in our home. For the last two years, we've been hearing the same advice over and over- get another dog. Oh my. This is something I could not even wrap my brain around. NO. WAY. However, lately, the idea seemed to have taken on some merit, and I found myself searching around on the internet "out of curiosity". We all know where curiosity leads... but I digress.

Martin and I found ourselves discussing it more and more often, until all of the sudden- finding ourselves bored on a Saturday afternoon, we decided to head over to the Collin County Animal Shelter- "just to look". (To be fair, I told Martin before hand that 'we both know how this will end'). I had heard that the Collin County Animal Shelters (as well as other local shelters) had been running a summer special on certain adopted animals because of the limited air conditioned space- God help us all, it's summer in Texas. We deluded ourselves into believing that $25 for a vaccinated, fixed, micro-chipped animal would save us SO much money.

So, it took us approximately 30 minutes to head over and be reeled in by a slick talking volunteer.... she listened to our stories about Foxy and immediately had perfect recommendations for a boy dog- that could maybe not be too hyper, and balance things out a bit. She let us check them all out but two or three really stood out as sweet, sweet dogs that would work. Then we saw "Hartford" and he seemed so docile, and shy- I wondered if we had another great little actor on our hands. Turns out we spent some time secluded with him, and he warmed right up to Martin (which kind of surprised me- since he's usually the cat person), and played with the kids, and was so good. Honestly, and truly- a really calm, docile, but still playful, obedient (for the most part) dog. Again- I wondered if it was too good to be true. Since the shelter was closing in ten minutes, we decided to play the system a little, and keep him with us until closing time so no one would snap him up and that way we could mull it over overnight and get the supplies we needed.

We headed to Walmart- got the crate, necessary collar, leash, toys, etc and went home to "discuss" (but please note the order in which those actions were performed). Sunday morning, we jockeyed over to the animal shelter- ready to barrel down anyone who stood in the way of our new dog. We had narrowed the name down to either "Frisco" or "Ranger" (as in Texas Rangers). Once we got there, we decided Ranger, it is.

After some quick paperwork, "Hartford" became "Ranger" and was ours. He walked calmly out the front door with us, hopped into the back of my car, and laid down sweetly in the back hatch area. Martin and I were high fiving and our mouths were about to hit the floor. I kept saying over and over- "Maybe this is how it was SUPPOSED to be the first time"... not that we don't love Foxy, but FOR REAL. This is crazy.

At Petco, I basked in the glow of everyone stopping to tell me what a sweet dog he is... like a proud mama, and I had to agree with them.

Cut to 3 days later, and the transition has gone fairly well. Biggest issues are that the waiting list for fixing is 2 weeks, and being that we have a boy dog, and a (fixed) girl dog- well, you can imagine. Or maybe you can't- but I won't go into that... A few minor "tiffs" over a chew bone, and some basic potty and crate training issues- but all in all not bad. Foxy seems to "tolerate" him, and he LOVES Foxy. She seems a little annoyed that Ranger has rocked her Alpha Dog boat- but it needed to be done. He did scratch my toes the other day with his nails- when he wanted to play; and I'm not entirely sure, but I would say that Foxy- in true form- looked almost smug about it when I let out a yelp (almost as if I'd gotten what I'd deserved). What I HAVE learned is that Foxy is smart, and funny, and really sassy; Ranger is playful, docile and loyal. I appreciate all those qualities, so this works.

So, we enter life as a family of six, and I'm thinking the ratio is perfect.