Beach Challenge Food Pics Day 24

Hello friends!!  I hope everyone has had an excellent weekend!

As I stated at my weigh-in, I wasn't able to take pics of my food or post because Dwayne was with me.  He doted over me, cooked for me, took me shopping, and made sure I wore my sling.  He didn't let me lift a single thing.  I'm so used to doing for myself that it was quite strange having someone to take care of me....strange, but nice.  :)

My calories were good, I got my water in, and those were my 2 normal rest days from exercise.  Today (Sunday) I decided to take a "free day" to have a break from counting every calorie.  However, to stay true to my challenge, I still took pics of my food today.

My sister Amy and her son Cyress went to breakfast with me this morning.  We ate around 10am.  I had ham, eggs, grits & a bite of a roll.

After breakfast we did a little shopping, then I came home to clean the house.  I invited my family over for dinner tonight...I made pot roast with potatoes and carrots, rice and gravy, and mom brought her famous buttermilk biscuits....it was fantastic!!

Oh!  I had a peach Chobani yogurt around 3pm.

Before I show you my dinner pics.....I have to tell you a story.  My 5 year old niece, the one I call Ladybug, came in the door for dinner and exclaimed, "I brought some food!!"  She is so precious.  Her mom helped her cook up some stuff to bring to the family dinner, and Ladybug instructed me that the food SHE brought was only for me and her, lol.  She brought it over in her little pots and pans from her play kitchen set.  She made macaroni and cheese, Chef Boyardee spaghetti and meatballs, corn & canned pineapple....just the sweetest thing.  Of course....I had to put some on my plate along with the pot roast...after all, she cooked just for ME!!!  :)  I took pics of the whole dinner table so you could see the little pots of food she brought.

Here's my plate...check out the spaghetti & meatballs, corn & boxed mac'n'chz,  lol...too cute.

I baked a box of walnut brownies for dessert and made a special trip to the store to buy ice cream....something I very rarely buy.  Brownies...I love....ice cream..eh, I can take it or leave it.  But it was nice on top of a warm brownie.

Although it was a free day from counting calories, it was NOT a free day from my water or exercise.  I drank my normal (4) 32 oz. glasses of water and I went with Amy to the park and walked my 4 miles!!

I have to admit.  Even though the free day was a nice break from obsessing over calorie counts, I don't feel too hot physically.  I normally eat 5 smaller meals a day....today I had 2 bigger meals, a yogurt for snack, and a dessert, which I NEVER eat.  And even after a 4 mile walk....things still haven't settled in my stomach.  When we got done at the park, I told my sister that my stomach felt like it was full of rocks.  It's funny what you get used to.  I think I prefer smaller, lighter, lower calorie meals now....I KNOW!!  WEIRD, huh?  lol

I'll also go ahead and tell you that I am terrified of my vacation coming up where eating is concerned.  Sodium and bloating is such an issue for me.  I do so much better when I stay out of the restaurants.  We're going to be gone from next Saturday morning through the following Sunday afternoon.  That's 9 days...and although we'll have a small kitchenette in our condo, I know how things always go once we get there.  We've never been to Panama City Beach together, but Dwayne and I have stayed in a condo at Hilton Head a couple of times.

  We go to Publix the first day we get there to get some groceries for the condo.  Dwayne and I have always eaten differently, but now that I'm so far into this healthier eating lifestyle, we eat WAY different.  He still doesn't eat any veggies....it's meat, carbs and junk food.  I will admit that he's better than he USED to be, after watching my eating habits change....for instance, he'll actually eat a chicken burger now as opposed to beef, and he drinks lots of water....way more than Coke.  But he also still loves his snacks.  Chips, cookies, cupcakes, BROWNIES!!!  So our shopping trip is going to be interesting.  I've already enlisted Pam's help for some alternative ideas on what I can eat while he's throwing back the crap food. 

But....while we always start out with good intentions of eating mostly at the condo....it ususally doesn't take long for that plan to go down the drain, lol.  We'll be out souvenir shopping and happen upon the BEST-LOOKING seafood restaurants, and just HAVE to try it, because how often do you come to the beach???  And seafood IS our favorite food.  It happens every damn time. 

So yeah....I'm nervous.  I'm scared.  I'm downright frightened that I'm doing all this work this month to go from 241 lbs down to 225 lbs...to say goodbye to 230 forever...only to end up with 7-9 days of restaurant eating.  I'm scared I'll be well over 230 lbs by the time I get back and get home to my scale.  I'm trying to stay calm about this...stay rational....not ruin the vacation with my calorie obsession....but still try to keep us eating in the condo as often as possible....and there's no reason why I can't still drink my normal gallon of water a day.  So hopefully that will keep some of the sodium flushed.

And did I mention there would be alcohol?  It's my understanding that our condo has it's very own beachside, outdoor Tiki Bar (eyeroll).  I used to love going to the Tiki Hut at the Holiday Inn at Hilton Head.  It was one of our favorite hang-outs.  Sitting at the bar, right on the ocean, watching the waves roll in with the ocean breeze blowing through your hair and the island music playing in the background.  So very relaxing.  But...long gone are the days when we'd spend a few days on the beach together and I didn't give a flip about what I was eating or drinking.  Everything has changed for me.  Dwayne told me he didn't want to hear the word "calorie" come out of my mouth that entire week.  I pointed out that the condo has a fabulous fitness center....he said "too bad...you're not using it...you'll get your exercise when go for walks on the beach together every day".  It's a sweet thought, but the words "calorie burn" aren't in his vocabulary, lol. 

Ahhhhh....I don't know.  I'm just going to do my best the rest of this week to get that last 1.6 lbs off and reach my goal of 225.  Then I'll deal with the beach trip as best as I can.  I really need to get out of this worry mode and get into a fun mode....I'm looking forward to this trip and I don't want to ruin it for me OR Dwayne.  I need to CHILL OUT.  :)