The Hospital Diet ~ my way!
ZHD - complimentary photos
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Het Ziekenhuis Dieet
aka
The Hospital Diet
It basically consists of the essentials you need to live – but it is a crash diet – resulting often in the yo-yo effect – in other words, return of previously lost weight.
Why I decided to try it – lots of weight loss promised.
Does it work? Yes. I did it for 3 ½ days and in that time I lost 5 pounds.
Why I stopped or basically adjusted what I was eating: I heard that I was doing my body more harm that good. I was essentially starving my body, slowing down my metabolism, and my body was using muscle not fat to create energy. I also had no energy or at least very little – and when you are a Mom of two and need to run a household you absolutely need energy.
I decided that I like the idea of following a strict diet though. In the past I have done WW and although I do believe it works and it had worked for me in the past, it wasn't working for me now. I didn't like the idea of counting points anymore – where as before I had time to do that... now I don't.
I shall next continue to follow the food ideas in the Ziekenhuisdieet (ZHD) but increase the amounts or add a soup, slice of cheese, etc to the meal so that I get enough but so I'm not overeating and pigging out on cookies and chips.
Then I will try out the Sonja Bakker diet. My mother-in-law has the book and she will loan it to me. Then hopefully I get enough food throughout the day where I feel like I can do about 40-60 minutes of aerobic activity and not pass out.
The ZHD looks really boring, but I took the requirements and tried to prepare them in such a way that made it a bit more exciting. Follow my progress below to see what I've done. Link to original ZHD here.
WEEK ONE
Day 1
Breakfast: 1 beschuit, 1 orange, 1 glass tea (no sugar or milk added)
Not really anything interesting you can do with this. My oranges where sweet but the segments dry and hard. Not to exciting to eat so I always juiced them. Plain beschuit is actually not bad and I've learned to enjoy them... better than a rice cake, too.
Lunch: 1 orange, 1 egg, 2 bekers yogurt, 2 beschuit or toast
I thought about all the ways I could prepare an egg. And something that I came up with is scramble the egg and dip the toast in the egg – fry it like French toast. Now if you strain the yogurt with cheese cloth the night before you get yogurt cheese. Add grated orange peel to this and some liquid Stevia. You can serve this yogurt cheese with your French toast and juice the orange for drink.
Dinner: 2 tomatoes, 2 eggs, 1 beker yogurt, 2 beschuit or toast, half head of lettuce and eventually a little bit of oil, vinegar and salt to top it off.
So basically, these are the ingredients to a really BIG salad. I had to cut this into two servings, so I had an earlier dinner around 4 and a later dinner when my husband came home. Actually I couldn't even finish the second salad – it was just too much. I hard boiled the eggs and made my beschuit into croûtons. I also combine a bit of the yogurt with the oil, vinegar and salt for a nice yogurt dressing. It was very filling.
Day 2
Breakfast: same as Day 1. I made it different each day by drinking a different flavor tea. I always sweetened my tea with liquid Stevia. One little drop is enough.
Lunch: same as Day 1. Only this time I scrambled the egg and fried it in a non-stick pan and just served the fried egg between two beschuit. Kind of like a Mcmuffin sandwich. It was very good actually. I also found that I really enjoy plain yogurt mixed with fresh squeezed orange juice and a bit of the grated orange peel. It makes for a very delicious yogurt drink. Simple but good – also sweetened with about 2 drops liquid Stevia.
Dinner: 1 orange, 1 tomato, 1 beker yogurt, 1 beschuit or toast, 1 “grilled” vlees vervanger aka meat substitute like tofu or something.
I really thought about this and I figure it doesn't say you can't add spices. I figure they just don't want you to add sugar to the meal. So I wanted to try a little Indian food that night. I figure with yogurt and tomato – I could add a little masala or other curry spices to my meal, and maybe even replace the beschuit with a small pita. This was a delicious and exciting meal. I didn't take a picture because I was so hungry and I ate it up fast.
Day 3
Breakfast: same as above.
Lunch: same as above. Only this time I tried to get creative again. What I did was make yogurt cheese the night before. Then I combined the yogurt cheese together with grated orange peel and an egg. But I separated the egg first and whipped the egg white till stiff, fluffy and white. Then I added this back into the cheese mixture. Then I put a few drops liquid Stevia in. Then I cut the beschuit down to fit into my baking pan (like a ramekin) and then I put this cheese mixture on top and baked it for 20 minutes at 150-C degrees. Then I let it cool a little – then I let it cool quickly by putting it in the refrigerator. Then I could easily remove it from the sides and I ate it like that. It made two of these little soufflé-cheesecakes. I don't know how else to describe it. But it was interesting although not as tasty as the previous day because I prefer my egg scramble and served up like a crunchy Mcmuffin. Then I just juiced my orange and drank that along side it.
Dinner: 1 orange, 125g grilled protein vervanger/meat substitute, 1 beker yogurt, 1 beschuit or toast. What I did was eat one vegetarian smoked sausage. I baked it in the oven and I ate one plain beschuit. I combined my orange with the yogurt for that delicious yogurt drink. I was also making dinner for everyone else and indulged in steamed green beans. I don't really feel bad about that – because it's a vegetable – not a lot of calories and good for you! I also indulged in one big spoonful of mashed potatoes – and those were really, really good.
Day 4
Breakfast: same as above.
Lunch: 200g protein vervanger/meat substitute, 1 tomato, half head lettuce + little oil, vinegar + salt. What I did was eat some leftover chickpea curry. It was made using mainly a tomato based sauce. So I took my kitchen scale and measured out 250g of these delicious beans in sauce. Then because I found the previous salad so boring from Day 1, I decided to use only ¼ head of lettuce instead of a half. Then I added some other vegetables to it like carrot, bell pepper, green onions and I went ahead and drizzled it with a low calorie dressing. It was a very filling lunch... I didn't even really feel hungry till 5.
Dinner: here is where I did my own thing and ate what I wanted to within reason...
1 bowl of cream of zucchini and green bean soup. This was a homemade soup and not really fattening. Plus I use low-fat milk not cream to make the soup “creamy.” Then I had 1 large and 1 small leftover pancake. Ate that with a little bit of strawberry topping and powdered sugar. Followed that with a small bowl of cornflakes with milk and vanilla yogurt. It was so good. First time I really enjoyed cornflakes in a long time. Then later that night when I got real hungry I ate an apple.
Now I don't want to follow the ZHD completely, so see what I do to keep with it but eat more. I divide the lunch and dinner into 3 or 4 smaller meals – original ZHD menu in red.
Day 5
Breakfast: 1 fresh squeezed orange, 1 glass tea (no sugar/milk added), 2 slices toast with jam and a little reduced-calorie margarine.
Mid-morning snack: 125g kwark sweetened with liquid Stevia and added blackberries for more yumminess
Lunch: 1 sour pickle, 1 tomato, 1 beschuit or toast, slice of cheese, carrot sticks, banana
I think I will try and make a Piccadilly type dip out of the tomato and pickle and eat that with carrot sticks. Then I will eat the cheese together with the toast – like a half grilled cheese and eat the banana for a lunch-dessert.
Dinner: I'm actually combining dinner day 4 & 5 into one meal. Day 4 lists 1 apple, 2 tomatoes, 1 grilled protein vervanger, 1 beschuit or toast. Day 5 lists 1 egg, 1 tomato, half head lettuce with little oil, vinegar and salt. I shall serve it up like this: 2 tomatoes = tomato soup! For my meat substitute I am using a vegetarian burger atop the beschuit. I'll eat the apple together with the salad on the side. Only I'll do a ¼ head of lettuce instead of a half and throw in some other vegetables to make it more interesting. And instead of the egg in my salad – I'm going to eat walnuts because that goes together better with apple – I think I'll top it off with a raspberry vinaigrette.
So, you do the ZHD for 5 days Monday through Friday and then you eat regular on the weekends. But for my weekends I'm going to try and follow a similar menu – but more of a weekend menu. For example, instead of beschuit I'll eat weekend bread aka rolls because those are so yummy. And instead of just yogurt and fresh sqeeze orange, I'll throw in a banana and make it a smoothie.
Follow along for the upcoming weightloss results and photos.
aka
The Hospital Diet
It basically consists of the essentials you need to live – but it is a crash diet – resulting often in the yo-yo effect – in other words, return of previously lost weight.
Why I decided to try it – lots of weight loss promised.
Does it work? Yes. I did it for 3 ½ days and in that time I lost 5 pounds.
Why I stopped or basically adjusted what I was eating: I heard that I was doing my body more harm that good. I was essentially starving my body, slowing down my metabolism, and my body was using muscle not fat to create energy. I also had no energy or at least very little – and when you are a Mom of two and need to run a household you absolutely need energy.
I decided that I like the idea of following a strict diet though. In the past I have done WW and although I do believe it works and it had worked for me in the past, it wasn't working for me now. I didn't like the idea of counting points anymore – where as before I had time to do that... now I don't.
I shall next continue to follow the food ideas in the Ziekenhuisdieet (ZHD) but increase the amounts or add a soup, slice of cheese, etc to the meal so that I get enough but so I'm not overeating and pigging out on cookies and chips.
Then I will try out the Sonja Bakker diet. My mother-in-law has the book and she will loan it to me. Then hopefully I get enough food throughout the day where I feel like I can do about 40-60 minutes of aerobic activity and not pass out.
The ZHD looks really boring, but I took the requirements and tried to prepare them in such a way that made it a bit more exciting. Follow my progress below to see what I've done. Link to original ZHD here.
WEEK ONE
Day 1
Breakfast: 1 beschuit, 1 orange, 1 glass tea (no sugar or milk added)
Not really anything interesting you can do with this. My oranges where sweet but the segments dry and hard. Not to exciting to eat so I always juiced them. Plain beschuit is actually not bad and I've learned to enjoy them... better than a rice cake, too.
Lunch: 1 orange, 1 egg, 2 bekers yogurt, 2 beschuit or toast
I thought about all the ways I could prepare an egg. And something that I came up with is scramble the egg and dip the toast in the egg – fry it like French toast. Now if you strain the yogurt with cheese cloth the night before you get yogurt cheese. Add grated orange peel to this and some liquid Stevia. You can serve this yogurt cheese with your French toast and juice the orange for drink.
Dinner: 2 tomatoes, 2 eggs, 1 beker yogurt, 2 beschuit or toast, half head of lettuce and eventually a little bit of oil, vinegar and salt to top it off.
So basically, these are the ingredients to a really BIG salad. I had to cut this into two servings, so I had an earlier dinner around 4 and a later dinner when my husband came home. Actually I couldn't even finish the second salad – it was just too much. I hard boiled the eggs and made my beschuit into croûtons. I also combine a bit of the yogurt with the oil, vinegar and salt for a nice yogurt dressing. It was very filling.
Day 2
Breakfast: same as Day 1. I made it different each day by drinking a different flavor tea. I always sweetened my tea with liquid Stevia. One little drop is enough.
Lunch: same as Day 1. Only this time I scrambled the egg and fried it in a non-stick pan and just served the fried egg between two beschuit. Kind of like a Mcmuffin sandwich. It was very good actually. I also found that I really enjoy plain yogurt mixed with fresh squeezed orange juice and a bit of the grated orange peel. It makes for a very delicious yogurt drink. Simple but good – also sweetened with about 2 drops liquid Stevia.
Dinner: 1 orange, 1 tomato, 1 beker yogurt, 1 beschuit or toast, 1 “grilled” vlees vervanger aka meat substitute like tofu or something.
I really thought about this and I figure it doesn't say you can't add spices. I figure they just don't want you to add sugar to the meal. So I wanted to try a little Indian food that night. I figure with yogurt and tomato – I could add a little masala or other curry spices to my meal, and maybe even replace the beschuit with a small pita. This was a delicious and exciting meal. I didn't take a picture because I was so hungry and I ate it up fast.
Day 3
Breakfast: same as above.
Lunch: same as above. Only this time I tried to get creative again. What I did was make yogurt cheese the night before. Then I combined the yogurt cheese together with grated orange peel and an egg. But I separated the egg first and whipped the egg white till stiff, fluffy and white. Then I added this back into the cheese mixture. Then I put a few drops liquid Stevia in. Then I cut the beschuit down to fit into my baking pan (like a ramekin) and then I put this cheese mixture on top and baked it for 20 minutes at 150-C degrees. Then I let it cool a little – then I let it cool quickly by putting it in the refrigerator. Then I could easily remove it from the sides and I ate it like that. It made two of these little soufflé-cheesecakes. I don't know how else to describe it. But it was interesting although not as tasty as the previous day because I prefer my egg scramble and served up like a crunchy Mcmuffin. Then I just juiced my orange and drank that along side it.
Dinner: 1 orange, 125g grilled protein vervanger/meat substitute, 1 beker yogurt, 1 beschuit or toast. What I did was eat one vegetarian smoked sausage. I baked it in the oven and I ate one plain beschuit. I combined my orange with the yogurt for that delicious yogurt drink. I was also making dinner for everyone else and indulged in steamed green beans. I don't really feel bad about that – because it's a vegetable – not a lot of calories and good for you! I also indulged in one big spoonful of mashed potatoes – and those were really, really good.
Day 4
Breakfast: same as above.
Lunch: 200g protein vervanger/meat substitute, 1 tomato, half head lettuce + little oil, vinegar + salt. What I did was eat some leftover chickpea curry. It was made using mainly a tomato based sauce. So I took my kitchen scale and measured out 250g of these delicious beans in sauce. Then because I found the previous salad so boring from Day 1, I decided to use only ¼ head of lettuce instead of a half. Then I added some other vegetables to it like carrot, bell pepper, green onions and I went ahead and drizzled it with a low calorie dressing. It was a very filling lunch... I didn't even really feel hungry till 5.
Dinner: here is where I did my own thing and ate what I wanted to within reason...
1 bowl of cream of zucchini and green bean soup. This was a homemade soup and not really fattening. Plus I use low-fat milk not cream to make the soup “creamy.” Then I had 1 large and 1 small leftover pancake. Ate that with a little bit of strawberry topping and powdered sugar. Followed that with a small bowl of cornflakes with milk and vanilla yogurt. It was so good. First time I really enjoyed cornflakes in a long time. Then later that night when I got real hungry I ate an apple.
Now I don't want to follow the ZHD completely, so see what I do to keep with it but eat more. I divide the lunch and dinner into 3 or 4 smaller meals – original ZHD menu in red.
Day 5
Breakfast: 1 fresh squeezed orange, 1 glass tea (no sugar/milk added), 2 slices toast with jam and a little reduced-calorie margarine.
Mid-morning snack: 125g kwark sweetened with liquid Stevia and added blackberries for more yumminess
Lunch: 1 sour pickle, 1 tomato, 1 beschuit or toast, slice of cheese, carrot sticks, banana
I think I will try and make a Piccadilly type dip out of the tomato and pickle and eat that with carrot sticks. Then I will eat the cheese together with the toast – like a half grilled cheese and eat the banana for a lunch-dessert.
Dinner: I'm actually combining dinner day 4 & 5 into one meal. Day 4 lists 1 apple, 2 tomatoes, 1 grilled protein vervanger, 1 beschuit or toast. Day 5 lists 1 egg, 1 tomato, half head lettuce with little oil, vinegar and salt. I shall serve it up like this: 2 tomatoes = tomato soup! For my meat substitute I am using a vegetarian burger atop the beschuit. I'll eat the apple together with the salad on the side. Only I'll do a ¼ head of lettuce instead of a half and throw in some other vegetables to make it more interesting. And instead of the egg in my salad – I'm going to eat walnuts because that goes together better with apple – I think I'll top it off with a raspberry vinaigrette.
So, you do the ZHD for 5 days Monday through Friday and then you eat regular on the weekends. But for my weekends I'm going to try and follow a similar menu – but more of a weekend menu. For example, instead of beschuit I'll eat weekend bread aka rolls because those are so yummy. And instead of just yogurt and fresh sqeeze orange, I'll throw in a banana and make it a smoothie.
Follow along for the upcoming weightloss results and photos.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Photo by Mark DaamsLast time I talked about the pumpkin cinnamon rolls briefly - here is a photo of them... these ones had chocolate chips in them. I probably wouldn't add the chocolate again because it really overpowered the pumpkin flavor. But they were good.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
We had our annual Talent Night at the church in Eindhoven. I don't ever perform musical talents which are generally what people do at talent nights. The first two years here I brought my art to share with people and it was on display in another part of the building but I felt kind of odd being the only one that brought something when I know there are quite a few good artists in the ward - photographers and quilters. Last year I made 4 kinds of cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World. This year I made 3 kinds. I kept it a bit simple because I also helped the Young Women make cinnamon rolls and those where quite popular - to my surprise - more popular than the cupcakes... which reminds me of something else - but more on that later.
So, I made the "Mexican Hot Chocolate" cupcakes - which where more adult cupcakes - with a pinch of cayenne and the almonds - they were tasty and good... but actually I like the cinnamon rolls better too... and I prefer my Mexican Hot Chocolate hot and liquid. So when it comes to cupcakes I think I like some of the other - simpler recipes in the book as well. The other two cupcake batches where more for the kids. One was using the basic chocolate cupcakes and I added a bit of coconut extract and then I frosted them with the basic frosting - tinted green and then I dusted them with flaked coconut - also tinted green - to give them kind of a grassy look. And topped them with little flower shaped sugar cookies. Surprisingly, those didn't turn out as cute as I planned and they were also the least popular treat. So, the third cupcake I made was using the basic vanilla cupcake recipe and then I frosted them with the basic frosting tinted red and flavored cherry. Then I decided to add white spots to each cupcake - make them look like "paddestoels rood met witte stipppen" aka forest mushrooms and I went looking for some "kabouters" aka little gnomes to top them off. I couldn't find any... but I did come across some gummy Smurfs and that did the trick. Those were kind of more popular - especially for the people that didn't want to eat chocolate.
Thanks to Mark for the photos :)
So, I made the "Mexican Hot Chocolate" cupcakes - which where more adult cupcakes - with a pinch of cayenne and the almonds - they were tasty and good... but actually I like the cinnamon rolls better too... and I prefer my Mexican Hot Chocolate hot and liquid. So when it comes to cupcakes I think I like some of the other - simpler recipes in the book as well. The other two cupcake batches where more for the kids. One was using the basic chocolate cupcakes and I added a bit of coconut extract and then I frosted them with the basic frosting - tinted green and then I dusted them with flaked coconut - also tinted green - to give them kind of a grassy look. And topped them with little flower shaped sugar cookies. Surprisingly, those didn't turn out as cute as I planned and they were also the least popular treat. So, the third cupcake I made was using the basic vanilla cupcake recipe and then I frosted them with the basic frosting tinted red and flavored cherry. Then I decided to add white spots to each cupcake - make them look like "paddestoels rood met witte stipppen" aka forest mushrooms and I went looking for some "kabouters" aka little gnomes to top them off. I couldn't find any... but I did come across some gummy Smurfs and that did the trick. Those were kind of more popular - especially for the people that didn't want to eat chocolate.
Thanks to Mark for the photos :)
Next year... I don't think I'll make cupcakes again for the Talent Night because I ordered a really cool molten cake pan - so I may be making mini molten chocolate cakes or mini cheesecakes :) mmmm yummmy!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now, back to that cinnamon roll thingy... I mentioned before that those are much more popular than cupcakes - in my circle of friends at least... so I was off to make something new in the cinnamon roll realm.
I have made the classic cinnamon roll a number of times - both with just a glaze and also with a thick 'Cinnabon' type frosting. Good either way in my opinion. But that is just not enough for me, because sometimes I want to be creative and I want to try something new and just you know push the envelope as they say or you know try some fusion baking :)
So, I've made Pumpkin cinnamon rolls and they are awesome. I've tried them with zucchini - again - awesome. I've tried them with Banana - awesome! And so the other night I tried Coconut... and they were good. Not awesome as I had hoped... but - I will try them again. This time I'm calling them Sweet Rolls because they are just that. They look like cinnamon rolls but I might want to use nutmeg in place of cinnamon next time. I may also try adding some macadamia nuts or making them a bit more Indonesian and giving them a sort of rose syrup glaze. Could be interesting either way.
Here is the recipe I used:
3/4 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup margarine, soft
3 1/4 cups flour
2 1/4 teaspoons yeast
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup water
1 egg
then the cinnamon/coconut mixture:
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup sweetened coconut flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 tablespoons margarine, melted
And for the glaze/frosting:
about 1 cup powdered sugar
about 2 tablespoons coconut milk
about 1/4 teaspoon each coconut extract and vanilla extract
So, if you already know how to make cinnamon rolls in general - you will know what to do with the ingredients above... using a bread maker or mixing it by hand you basically add the first group of ingredients together to make a dough - let it rise. Then you take the next group of ingredients to make the cinnamon mixture which will be spread inside the rolled out dough for the rolls. You roll up the dough, slice it into 12 or more rolls and place on lined cookie sheets. Let rise in oven on low heat - then bring up the temperature - depending on your oven (Mine is done baking in 10 minutes -- on 150 C degrees - hot air ovens bake fast) And then you take the last set of ingredients, mix together thin as desired with more or less coconut milk and spread the glaze on top of the rolls.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I've also been brainstorming about other future "Cinnamon Roll" combos - or Sweet Roll combos - and I'm thinking...
Carrot Cake - sweet rolls; Oatmeal chocolate chip - sweet rolls; Apple cinnamon -sweet rolls; trying the pumpkin rolls with a bit of orange; Mango cinnamon rolls; White chocolate raspberry -sweet rolls; Cherry chocolate - sweet rolls; Peaches n cream - sweet rolls; Flax n sunflower seed - cinnamon rolls; Nut n honey cinnamon rolls; blueberry banana -cinnamon rolls; and lastly - ginger rolls :)
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Last week we went to Spain. This trip was paid for - house and plane tickets by my husband's parents as a gift to themselves celebrating 40 years of marriage. They also invited their daughter and her boyfriend along. So they rented a villa in Moraira off the white coast (Costa Blanca) with 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. It over looked the Mediterranean and the place had a private pool, too. The first couple of days: rain. But it cleared up and got sunny enough to get a tan and go for a swim. We played Boeren Bridge (aka Mormon Bridge) in the evenings while the kids slept and we had a BBQ just about every night.
Moraira is about 1 hour south of Valencia and 1 hour north of Alicante. We flew from Eindhoven to Alicante as this is cheaper than flying into Valencia. From Rachel's blog I've seen that Valencia is quite pretty and has really cool architecture. I didn't see much of Alicante but mostly I just saw a lot of houses that all looked the same - you know Spanish style with those orange-y roof tiles and arched everything and you know kind of boring in a way because they are all the same. I really liked the house we stayed in but every house looks like that so that's what I mean by boring. Moriara is a real beach town - very touristy, too. Lots of old, fat naked ladies on the beach - okay - they were just topless but that's more boobies than I wanted to see. I really have a new appreciation for modesty after spending two days at the beach. The water was warm and the waves were so fun to play in but then turning around and seeing a 3 year old naked boy pee in the water in front of everyone is just YUCK. I mean, at least sit down and pee in the water so no one sees you do it.
My favorite things about this trip though - having Mark, Oma and Opa, Auntie and Uncle help with the kids so I could relax a little - take a nap, etc. Also, I got to try some really good pastry thingies when we went into the old town part of Benissa. Mark and I took some really neat pictures on the trip. I found a little store called Jakarta - lots of jewelry - everything made in Indonesia - and all prices - really great! My only complaint is that I didn't get to spend as much time or money in that little shop. I got some cute post cards - which I shall try and post later and best part of all - going to church in Benidorm.
We got a little lost in Benidorm. We found the street the church was on but didn't have the right number. And we also found that Benidorm was a bit like Belgium - having no street signs anywhere. So we didn't realize that the main street and side roads all had the same name. We sat there for a little while waiting for Mark's phone to get Internet to look up the address on LDS.org but it has this new map thing that makes that difficult to search on such a little phone. So I said, we should say a prayer. Mark said - just a second, my phone is almost up... I said my own prayer... I walked up the street and back. Nothing. Then we started walking and we saw a cop. I said to Mark, go ask that cop for help... Mark said - you ask him. So I waved to him and walked over and said: English? And he said No. So in my very poor Spanish I said: L'Iglesia Jesus Christus - and basically pointed out on our google map print out the street. He didn't know anything but he asked a local walking by and that man did know. He told the officer and then the officer got out of his car and walked us to the right location. Thank goodness for prayers right?!!! I thanked Heavenly Father in my own little prayer as soon as we got inside. (Note to self: next time look up the name of the church in that language before you get there)
We just missed the Sacrament - too late. So that was a bummer. I didn't understand a thing - but that's really nothing different from every week here in Eindhoven :)
The branch in Benidorm was small. Maybe about 50 in total. A lot of the members where originally from some place else. Most of the gringo's where from places like England, Sweden and Australia. There was one guy from Nepal. Most of the dark spanish people where from South America - Lamanites - coming from Argentina, Ecuador, and Colombia. The few original Spanish people from Spain actually were blond and fair skinned although with dark eyes. I guess it's true that most Europeans - even Spaniards are fair skinned.
One sister in Relief Society that week was celebrating her 90th birthday. I said "felicita" to her :)
I enjoyed being there though. I felt the spirit that we were in the right place on Sunday. I knew that was good. Later I met the sister missionaries. Hermana Eberly from Orderville, Utah and Hermana F----i (something Italian) anyways, they were both so sweet and pretty - and I wondered why they weren't married yet because they were also so awesome! I think there is really something wrong with guys! Hermana Eberly was so excited to meet someone who knew where Orderville was. I said i love US 89 - it's the scenic route of Utah. One of my most favorite places on earth. And Orderville - who wouldn't love those rock shops?! She was totally laughing about that - that of all things I remembered those rock shops. Hey I got some cool glass souvenirs in there. Those are cool stores. If you like rocks! I do. Anyways, I was happy to be in the church.
I also realize - again and again - that the LDS church is so small. I mean, in numbers in the world 13 million members - but how many people are there in the world right now? A lot more - you can google it. Anyways, this is not to be pessimistic. It's just that I'm really proud to walk among the few of us that have chosen this path. I don't find it difficult either. It was eye opening for me to be around very worldly people - people on vacation in vacation towns tend to be very worldly - you can see it all around you in those moments - and I didn't want to live like that. It was okay when we were at the house just hanging out with family - but I wouldn't want to live there. It must be so difficult for the young members in those parts. I see how difficult it is for the YW in my ward. They want to dress trendy and fit in and be cute and sexy. Darn those girls... if they could only know what I know. I really like being modest after spending a few days down there. I really appreciated my temple garments and I could really feel the safety and peace from wearing them. And I think the beach - it's just not for me. I liked it most in the evenings when we were just the two of us walking together holding hands - watching the waves - and there wasn't any naked fat boobies then - the beach was empty and it was peaceful - then it was okay.
I guess I've just come to really appreciate the Netherlands. It's green and it's flat and I like it. And although they have topless sunbathers in the Netherlands - it's green and it's flat here and I like that. Spain was hilly, dry - and like a desert - like Nevada - like what I grew up with and I just don't want that anymore. And I lived in Phoenix and it was warm and very hot all the time and although that is nice in winter... I really appreciate four seasons - I really like all the traditions and holidays that come in the cold - in Eindhoven - the light route, then Halloween, then Thanksgiving, then Sinterklaas, then Christmas, then Ice skating... then New Year's Eve and Olie bollen... and all the birthdays I can handle :D
Yes, it's true in Phoenix and in warm climates you can celebrate these things - with the exception of the Light Route - but I just don't think you can enjoy a hot mug of cocoa the same. And come on -- Pea soup in winter - in cold winter - that's another goody.
So, you Spaniards can have Spain - I'll take Holland, baby!
Moraira is about 1 hour south of Valencia and 1 hour north of Alicante. We flew from Eindhoven to Alicante as this is cheaper than flying into Valencia. From Rachel's blog I've seen that Valencia is quite pretty and has really cool architecture. I didn't see much of Alicante but mostly I just saw a lot of houses that all looked the same - you know Spanish style with those orange-y roof tiles and arched everything and you know kind of boring in a way because they are all the same. I really liked the house we stayed in but every house looks like that so that's what I mean by boring. Moriara is a real beach town - very touristy, too. Lots of old, fat naked ladies on the beach - okay - they were just topless but that's more boobies than I wanted to see. I really have a new appreciation for modesty after spending two days at the beach. The water was warm and the waves were so fun to play in but then turning around and seeing a 3 year old naked boy pee in the water in front of everyone is just YUCK. I mean, at least sit down and pee in the water so no one sees you do it.
My favorite things about this trip though - having Mark, Oma and Opa, Auntie and Uncle help with the kids so I could relax a little - take a nap, etc. Also, I got to try some really good pastry thingies when we went into the old town part of Benissa. Mark and I took some really neat pictures on the trip. I found a little store called Jakarta - lots of jewelry - everything made in Indonesia - and all prices - really great! My only complaint is that I didn't get to spend as much time or money in that little shop. I got some cute post cards - which I shall try and post later and best part of all - going to church in Benidorm.
We got a little lost in Benidorm. We found the street the church was on but didn't have the right number. And we also found that Benidorm was a bit like Belgium - having no street signs anywhere. So we didn't realize that the main street and side roads all had the same name. We sat there for a little while waiting for Mark's phone to get Internet to look up the address on LDS.org but it has this new map thing that makes that difficult to search on such a little phone. So I said, we should say a prayer. Mark said - just a second, my phone is almost up... I said my own prayer... I walked up the street and back. Nothing. Then we started walking and we saw a cop. I said to Mark, go ask that cop for help... Mark said - you ask him. So I waved to him and walked over and said: English? And he said No. So in my very poor Spanish I said: L'Iglesia Jesus Christus - and basically pointed out on our google map print out the street. He didn't know anything but he asked a local walking by and that man did know. He told the officer and then the officer got out of his car and walked us to the right location. Thank goodness for prayers right?!!! I thanked Heavenly Father in my own little prayer as soon as we got inside. (Note to self: next time look up the name of the church in that language before you get there)
We just missed the Sacrament - too late. So that was a bummer. I didn't understand a thing - but that's really nothing different from every week here in Eindhoven :)
The branch in Benidorm was small. Maybe about 50 in total. A lot of the members where originally from some place else. Most of the gringo's where from places like England, Sweden and Australia. There was one guy from Nepal. Most of the dark spanish people where from South America - Lamanites - coming from Argentina, Ecuador, and Colombia. The few original Spanish people from Spain actually were blond and fair skinned although with dark eyes. I guess it's true that most Europeans - even Spaniards are fair skinned.
One sister in Relief Society that week was celebrating her 90th birthday. I said "felicita" to her :)
I enjoyed being there though. I felt the spirit that we were in the right place on Sunday. I knew that was good. Later I met the sister missionaries. Hermana Eberly from Orderville, Utah and Hermana F----i (something Italian) anyways, they were both so sweet and pretty - and I wondered why they weren't married yet because they were also so awesome! I think there is really something wrong with guys! Hermana Eberly was so excited to meet someone who knew where Orderville was. I said i love US 89 - it's the scenic route of Utah. One of my most favorite places on earth. And Orderville - who wouldn't love those rock shops?! She was totally laughing about that - that of all things I remembered those rock shops. Hey I got some cool glass souvenirs in there. Those are cool stores. If you like rocks! I do. Anyways, I was happy to be in the church.
I also realize - again and again - that the LDS church is so small. I mean, in numbers in the world 13 million members - but how many people are there in the world right now? A lot more - you can google it. Anyways, this is not to be pessimistic. It's just that I'm really proud to walk among the few of us that have chosen this path. I don't find it difficult either. It was eye opening for me to be around very worldly people - people on vacation in vacation towns tend to be very worldly - you can see it all around you in those moments - and I didn't want to live like that. It was okay when we were at the house just hanging out with family - but I wouldn't want to live there. It must be so difficult for the young members in those parts. I see how difficult it is for the YW in my ward. They want to dress trendy and fit in and be cute and sexy. Darn those girls... if they could only know what I know. I really like being modest after spending a few days down there. I really appreciated my temple garments and I could really feel the safety and peace from wearing them. And I think the beach - it's just not for me. I liked it most in the evenings when we were just the two of us walking together holding hands - watching the waves - and there wasn't any naked fat boobies then - the beach was empty and it was peaceful - then it was okay.
I guess I've just come to really appreciate the Netherlands. It's green and it's flat and I like it. And although they have topless sunbathers in the Netherlands - it's green and it's flat here and I like that. Spain was hilly, dry - and like a desert - like Nevada - like what I grew up with and I just don't want that anymore. And I lived in Phoenix and it was warm and very hot all the time and although that is nice in winter... I really appreciate four seasons - I really like all the traditions and holidays that come in the cold - in Eindhoven - the light route, then Halloween, then Thanksgiving, then Sinterklaas, then Christmas, then Ice skating... then New Year's Eve and Olie bollen... and all the birthdays I can handle :D
Yes, it's true in Phoenix and in warm climates you can celebrate these things - with the exception of the Light Route - but I just don't think you can enjoy a hot mug of cocoa the same. And come on -- Pea soup in winter - in cold winter - that's another goody.
So, you Spaniards can have Spain - I'll take Holland, baby!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
* Weight Watchers UPDATE *
I've hit a plateau in my weight watchers - I've actually officially quit WW online and I'm doing it solo. I figure I know what it takes to lose weight - I just have to do it - on my own. Sitting down everyday and recording what I ate just didn't do it for me anymore. So, I started it solo some time ago and things were going pretty good but I've sort of stayed the same bouncing back and forth between 213.5 and 216 every other week... so I decided to finally start exercising regularly... not just my regular walks back and forth to the grocery store or to drop Kailea off at pre-school - but actually aerobics - working out in front of my tv screen and sweating hard.
It's been going pretty good. My goal is to workout 5 times a week. So far so good. It's difficult though because sometimes I have to work out when Kailea and Ella are awake and around and they are constantly bugging me... but the last two nights I got to do it at night and that was better - although this last night - tonight - Ella was still crying for attention so that cut it short - but I still broke a sweat.
The first video that I got was a Women's Health video - I like it. It's good for beginners but it started to bore me after a while - but I'll admit it's a great workout from beginning to end and I like that it uses weights because I can really feel that in my arms.
But recently I bought a Ministry of Sound video because I wanted some fun dance music... and this workout is not for the light hearted - it's so hardcore - it's not for beginners like me really - it's so advanced. It's quite the workout. But I'm gonna stay with it. I've been doing it everyday this week and I'm starting to get the coordination down a little bit. Tonight I just did the warm up section like 4 times in a row to try and get the moves down. I feel really clumsy sometimes - but I'm getting it little by little. I also like that this production is 100% with a British cast - because I love the accent... and the girls are hot -- it makes me want to look like them. I wish and hope that someday my legs will look as good.
This video - Aeroburn has 6 parts - Warm Up, Tone It Up, Aeroburn 1, Aeroburn 2, Cool Down, Stretching. I've been able to do the Warm Up, Tone It Up, part of Aeroburn 1 but then I get really tired and I just can't keep up so I move to Cool Down and part way through that I get too tired to keep up with all the crunches and I fast forward to Stretching.
So, I feel like with this video/DVD - if I stick with it - and I plan to - then I can in maybe a year or two - master it - maybe - hopefully :)
I really do think it's a great workout especially for those people who workout all the time - it's probably something special for intermediate to advance - but for beginners - it's tough - if it wasn't for the music and those British accents I'd probably of quit already.
Now, I just have to remember rule number one of weight loss - OBEY!
I'm really trying to make exercise my new hobby and to stay away from baking sweets and goodies. It will be hard especially with the holidays coming - with Fall comes the desire to bake pumpkin anything: cupcakes, muffins, cheesecakes, etc... but I'm really gonna try and treat my body to some kind of exercise everyday - not just goodies which really aren't that good for you.
I've hit a plateau in my weight watchers - I've actually officially quit WW online and I'm doing it solo. I figure I know what it takes to lose weight - I just have to do it - on my own. Sitting down everyday and recording what I ate just didn't do it for me anymore. So, I started it solo some time ago and things were going pretty good but I've sort of stayed the same bouncing back and forth between 213.5 and 216 every other week... so I decided to finally start exercising regularly... not just my regular walks back and forth to the grocery store or to drop Kailea off at pre-school - but actually aerobics - working out in front of my tv screen and sweating hard.
It's been going pretty good. My goal is to workout 5 times a week. So far so good. It's difficult though because sometimes I have to work out when Kailea and Ella are awake and around and they are constantly bugging me... but the last two nights I got to do it at night and that was better - although this last night - tonight - Ella was still crying for attention so that cut it short - but I still broke a sweat.
The first video that I got was a Women's Health video - I like it. It's good for beginners but it started to bore me after a while - but I'll admit it's a great workout from beginning to end and I like that it uses weights because I can really feel that in my arms.
But recently I bought a Ministry of Sound video because I wanted some fun dance music... and this workout is not for the light hearted - it's so hardcore - it's not for beginners like me really - it's so advanced. It's quite the workout. But I'm gonna stay with it. I've been doing it everyday this week and I'm starting to get the coordination down a little bit. Tonight I just did the warm up section like 4 times in a row to try and get the moves down. I feel really clumsy sometimes - but I'm getting it little by little. I also like that this production is 100% with a British cast - because I love the accent... and the girls are hot -- it makes me want to look like them. I wish and hope that someday my legs will look as good.
This video - Aeroburn has 6 parts - Warm Up, Tone It Up, Aeroburn 1, Aeroburn 2, Cool Down, Stretching. I've been able to do the Warm Up, Tone It Up, part of Aeroburn 1 but then I get really tired and I just can't keep up so I move to Cool Down and part way through that I get too tired to keep up with all the crunches and I fast forward to Stretching.
So, I feel like with this video/DVD - if I stick with it - and I plan to - then I can in maybe a year or two - master it - maybe - hopefully :)
I really do think it's a great workout especially for those people who workout all the time - it's probably something special for intermediate to advance - but for beginners - it's tough - if it wasn't for the music and those British accents I'd probably of quit already.
Now, I just have to remember rule number one of weight loss - OBEY!
I'm really trying to make exercise my new hobby and to stay away from baking sweets and goodies. It will be hard especially with the holidays coming - with Fall comes the desire to bake pumpkin anything: cupcakes, muffins, cheesecakes, etc... but I'm really gonna try and treat my body to some kind of exercise everyday - not just goodies which really aren't that good for you.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Flowers for Rachel
So I got a special request for flowers. I went to the store and picked out square canvases with the flower drawn on - and I got to do the fun part - fill the color in - that's my favorite part of painting - you know - painting... coming up with what to paint can be kind of hard so I was grateful to come across these canvases.
Rachel said she liked darker colors - and I think I've accomplished that except for the daisy - it's a bit colorful with those shades of yellow.
I've really enjoyed working on these and now I must say - I want to paint more :)
Which one is your favorite? Post comments for feedback - thanks!
So I got a special request for flowers. I went to the store and picked out square canvases with the flower drawn on - and I got to do the fun part - fill the color in - that's my favorite part of painting - you know - painting... coming up with what to paint can be kind of hard so I was grateful to come across these canvases.
Rachel said she liked darker colors - and I think I've accomplished that except for the daisy - it's a bit colorful with those shades of yellow.
I've really enjoyed working on these and now I must say - I want to paint more :)
Which one is your favorite? Post comments for feedback - thanks!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Mediterranean-style Cashew-cucumber Dip
page 66 Veganomicon (V-con)
Recipe Review - and a new way to enjoy it my way!
This is a dairy-free variation of the classic Greek cucumber yogurt dip tzatziki and it is oh so good. First I made it and paired it with Greek-style Tomato-zucchini Fritters with Fresh herbs page 52 V-con. That was good. But then I found a new and even better way to enjoy this most delicious dip. I paired it with fried eggplant - which is something I've been eating together with hummus and tortillas a lot. But now I've found a really good bread - which isn't too hard to find here in the Netherlands - from of all places, the Lidl. They call it Sunflower Panini bread - although it's quite big and very filling. So I make a batch of the Cashew-cucumber dip, then I slice and fry my eggplant and then I eat this all week long for lunch with my bag of Sunflower Panini bread - it's enjoyable every time - and to mix it up I just eat different fresh fruit with it - and I think I really have that Vegan Lunch Box thing down - this awesome lunch even fits in my lunch box with room to spare.
Fried eggplant - the only way to eat it - in my humble opinion :)
This is what I like to call my CCE Panini - (Cashew-Cucumber-Eggplant)
page 66 Veganomicon (V-con)
Recipe Review - and a new way to enjoy it my way!
This is a dairy-free variation of the classic Greek cucumber yogurt dip tzatziki and it is oh so good. First I made it and paired it with Greek-style Tomato-zucchini Fritters with Fresh herbs page 52 V-con. That was good. But then I found a new and even better way to enjoy this most delicious dip. I paired it with fried eggplant - which is something I've been eating together with hummus and tortillas a lot. But now I've found a really good bread - which isn't too hard to find here in the Netherlands - from of all places, the Lidl. They call it Sunflower Panini bread - although it's quite big and very filling. So I make a batch of the Cashew-cucumber dip, then I slice and fry my eggplant and then I eat this all week long for lunch with my bag of Sunflower Panini bread - it's enjoyable every time - and to mix it up I just eat different fresh fruit with it - and I think I really have that Vegan Lunch Box thing down - this awesome lunch even fits in my lunch box with room to spare.
Cashew-cucumber dip with Zucchini fritters -- V-con recipes :) yummy
Fried eggplant - the only way to eat it - in my humble opinion :)
This is what I like to call my CCE Panini - (Cashew-Cucumber-Eggplant)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
