November 29, 2011

Good morning to all,

Hope everyone is weighing in daily.  I am steady, but still one pound away from my two pounds I gained by Friday.  Keepin it real - that one pound is coming off!   I only wanted coffee to drink yesterday, as it was so cold, and my water was way off.  I gotta get that water IN - it will pull that extra pound.  Do remember, fat that is burned will reconstitute AS FAT every 24 hours if not washed out of your body.  So, resist the urge not to weigh (it is your best accountability partner) and fight for that water.  These two elements alone are gonna cause us to do the victory dance on Jan. 1st.   :)

Here is a new recipe from Paulette: for those not doing sugar - agave nectar and honey are both listed as sugar sources in our HCG booklet.  But Paulette says these are TO DIE FOR!!!   I cannot wait to make them.   Remember, Jennie has a lot of recipes on my blog especially for Phase 2 people.   And, I will be sending out my Christmas recipe - German Chocolate Cake for all to try.   OMG - pinch 3 people.   Love you all, PK

PS - one of our fam, who has contributed links and recipes for the past several months, Bree, lost her mom this weekend.  Please pray for her and her family in the season.  We love you, Bree! 

ALMOND FLOUR BANANA MUFFINS

Summary: Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free, Low-Carb, Vegan option
Ingredients

Dry:
3 c. blanched almond flour (OR)

(1 c. Almond flour, 1 c. Flax seed, and 1 c. Oatmeal)
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. sea salt
1 t. baking powder (aluminum-free)

Wet:
3 eggs (pastured, organic) for Vegan option see below (V)
2-3 very ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 c. Xylitol (or honey or agave, etc.*)
1/4 c. coconut oil (or melted butter)
1 T. pure vanilla extract
Instructions
1.  Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F
2.  Grease** a 12-muffin tin (or 1 loaf pan)
3.  Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl
4.  Mix wet ingredients in a medium bowl (in order listed)
5.  Add wet mixture to dry mixture
6.  Transfer to pan
7.  Bake muffins for about*** 20 – 25 minutes (or) bake a loaf for about 35 – 40 minutes
8.  Let cool in pan for about 5-10 minutes
9.  Remove from pan and cool on wire rack

November 30, 2011

Hey gang,

Got all my water in yesterday, down .5 pound.  YEA!   Did want to tell you that if you are going to need drops for another round at the beginning of the year, please let me know now.  You know the mail service tends to run slow during this time.  :)   I want to place an order next week to be here by the end of the month.   If I don't here from you, I may not have your drops when you need them  (if you need them).   My husband and I are doing a round together to begin the New Year.  With that thought in mind, can you say he is "eating to his heart's content?"  It's funny - he is eating everything - EVERYTHING - as he plans to diet.  What is the net/net effect of that?  wink-wink   (However, I understand.  I lived there for 50 years)

Have any of you checked out Pinterest?  There are a couple of HCG recipes on there.  They look great!  Remember though as you check out recipes, some people do phase 2 differently than our books detail.  But some of the recipes looked really good.   As I look at recipes, most of them are in the dessert range and I know that calories are calories and sometimes we will choose the sweets and skip our veggies or fruit.  Not good long term.  Don't I sound like mommie?  :)   We need to always go back to protocol - lean proteins, fruits, veggies, and healthy fats.  Lots of water.  As my doctor told me - that is God's best plan for our bodies and yields the best results long term.

As we are talking about veggies, do you have a yummy veggie recipe to share?  If so, please let me know and I will pass it along to the fam.  I did see on Pinterest where they used three colored bell peppers (tops off and cored out), filled with dressing (maybe 3 types of Ranch), and used this in the center of a veggie tray.  I was thinking that for a christmas party we could use the red and green peppers and all red and green veggies on the tray.   YUM, huh?

Gotta run - time to read God's word and let it bring life to my soul.

Choose life and eat to live - PK

November 28, 2011

What a great morning to NOT have to go outside.  I was reading a little devotional for women this morning and the woman writing said when she was young her father would do an exercise with her where he would start a phrase and she would complete it.  One of her favorites was "A wise woman......." and she would say "has a servant's heart."   Now, I know we are not all women in this family, but I do know we could all rehearse statements that encourage and shape us.  For example, what if we were to train ourselves and our children to say, "Eating healthy........"   reply: "Is NOT an option."    OR   "Choose life........."   reply: "and eat to live."

Sometimes silly, little statements are just that to us: silly.   But we overcome by the blood of the LAMB and the WORD of our testimony.  I remember on January 1st of this year, while at my heaviest weight, I started writing sticky notes and asking myself for days, "What does a size 10 feel like?"  I wrote that in 10 different places.  I had no clue what I was to do, how to start, what was the plan????   I was in prison.  However, GOD KNEW.  And the more I confessed, the more action my SOUL began to take.  Three weeks later, Chip and I made the determination to do HCG and the rest is not just history - but VICTORY.

All of us wage war in our minds - that's where the battle is.  However - I couldn't just ask myself about a size 10 - I HAD TO believe, confess, confess again, bring my thoughts under subjection, remind my flesh - "you're not the boss of me," determine that cheating was not an option (BIGGEST BATTLE RIGHT THERE - one little bite can't hurt), fight and claw my way to a place of touching truth and gaining my freedom.  My desire to be out of prison had to strike my undisciplined life with such force that something changed.  What changed - my mind.   My will to fight.  My perspective that my children and grandchildren were being affected by my obesity. My joy - etc. etc. etc............

Can ONE statement really bring freedom?  YES!   "I believe that you are the Christ, the son of the LIVING God" is ONE statement that brings salvation to mankind.  

"Choose life and eat to live........." is ONE statement, but if we understand that eating is a choice - our choice - and that eating correctly gives us life - there is power in that ONE statement.   When you are tempted to cheat, say out loud "I choose life!"

Eating on protocol today because I CHOSE TO.   :)      PK

November 26, 2011

Well, well.  I made it through my first Thanksgiving SUGAR AND STARCH free.  I did, however, eat more than I normally do AND drank more coffee with a coconut la'creme (HCG) I made AND consumed much less water = I am up two pounds.  BUT - all healthy.  Back on protocol and watching the scale head down now.  :)  

It was amazing to me that my family responded so well to the HCG foods I prepared, they asked that next year we only do a few "real" things.  wink-wink.   I was very full, more than normal, because I ate my regular food AND 2 types of desserts (pumpkin-pecan spice cake and German chocolate cake - both HCG) and then another piece Thursday night - so I was totally over the edge on the dessert realm.  :)   I was proud that I was able to refrain from my favorite pumpkin gooey cake (Paula Dean) that my sister-in-law makes.  That was not necessarily easy, but added to the victory chant that evening.  I did have to remind everyone that while my dishes were sugar free and starch free, they were definitely not calorie free.  All and all - I can honestly say it was amazing to KNOW I scored a victory and my family is now willing to do it again.   YEA!!   The Sconyers family passed the test.

How about everyone else?  I talked to one fam member on Thursday night who did great also.   YEA!  My disappointment was NO movie to see that evening.  But I enjoyed a quiet evening with my husband.  :)

Halloween - CK, Thanksgiving - CK, Christmas SEASON - CK by faith.  :)

Remember as you are venturing out and grabbing those drinks from Starbucks, even the skinny ones, they are loaded with sugar.  I checked on Thursday evening when grabbing a cup of coffee with the girls - loaded.   The sugar free syrups have a lot of aspartame.  Always have your truvia or Splenda packet ready and be willing to ask.   :)

I am off to a day with my family again - keep looking at everything - and enjoying your health walk.  Isn't this the funniest journey ever?  Glad to be doing it with YOU.

Choose life and eat to live - PK

November 23, 2011

Hey and good morning - BEST morning ever - coffee, fire, my niece Heather and daughter Teree sitting close.  What a blessed girl am I.  Weight still stable - yea!

Not blogging today, tomorrow, or Friday - visiting with family and cooking.   Shopping today - blog on Saturday again.  LOVE to you all!   

Happy Thanksgiving - praying BIG for all of us to have a victory story!

CHOOSE LIFE!   

EAT TO LIVE - PK

November 22, 2011

Good morning all,

Preparing to go have my blood drawn and evaluated, so I cannot have my morning coffee.  YUCK!   I am going first thing this morning to the doctor and I plan to make a pot as soon as I return.  :)    I am a little nervous as I got such a great report last time - feel a little pressure for that to happen again.  :)   But, I do know I am eating well and everything should be fine!

I was glad to hear from several of you who are cooking regular and HCG meal choices this Thanksgiving.  I can't wait to see how I feel in the late evening when I am usually stuffed, tired, cranky and really feeling badly due to eating for 12 hours straight.  I am a picker - I stir and taste, cut and pick, pick, pick, pick.  I never really determined how many calories are in "picking," but I would imagine it's a lot.  wink 

If I sent you the stuffing recipe, cut the chicken stock back by half.  It made a much better dressing with less chicken broth, and boy was it good.  You don't want the dressing soupy as it goes into the oven.  I started my cooking journey last night by making a cranberry relish - whole cranberries from the bag (1 large bag - I think 2 pound), 7-8 cuties (baby orange/tangerine things) skin peeled but not sectioned out, 3 honey crisp apples, the juice of 2 lemons, and 1 1/2 cups of xylitol.  I put the first three ingredients, in shifts, in the food processor, added the lemon juice, and then the xylitol.  I then added a cup of finely chopped pecans.  This makes a BIG bowl.  It was fabulous!  My husband loved it.   It was a wee bit tart, but I may add another apple or two today, or a small amount of additional xylitol.

I was reading in Daniel Chptr 1 yesterday and could see our lives lived out through that story.   The Hebrew boys were given the choice food and the King's portions.   For us that could be Thanksgiving dinner - eating whatever we want.  Daniel could have agreed to do that for a season, but from the beginning he knew it was not the BEST choice for them.  How many of you know that sometimes we have to make a stand among the royalty and expectations of the household?  Daniel asked permission to eat differently and the results amazed everyone.  

It's okay for us to say to our families - "I have made a decision to eat more healthy and is it okay for me to bring..............."  Some people will understand, some will be threatened because you are "challenging" their meal plan, some may be jealous because they wish they had your strength to make healthy choices, and some may be in prison - as I was - and desperately desire freedom but have given up on any hope of life beyond the hell of obesity.   There could a number of responses - it's OK.   NOBODY CAN FIGHT FOR YOUR HEALTH MORE VALIANTLY THAN YOU.   I say, "let's be trend setters."  Let's teach our children to create Thanksgiving meals that feature a vast array of healthy choices.  :)   The more I explore healthy foods, the more doors I find to be opened.  I LOVE IT!

Happy Thanksgiving family,

Choose life and eat to live, PK

November 21, 2011

Good morning - I am in the stable zone with my weight although I am really having to fight for my water now.  Maybe because it's colder and I want warm drinks?   Maybe I got out of the pattern.  But I am really having to make a conscience effort in this area now.  Anyone else?

Want to share a testimonial again today - you know I LOVE sharing how our health, as a team, is improving and giving God all the glory!  One of the fam yesterday stopped me to say she has lost 25 pounds going into maintenance, her blood pressure is down to 110/70 AND the doctor took her off her cholesterol meds as her cholesterol was TOO LOW!  Isn't that amazing - one was too low and the other normal.  Her doctor switched her to fish oil and off her meds.  YEA!  GO GOD!   And, her breathing is SOOOOOO much better!

Does everyone have a plan in place this week?  I have been working on my menu so that both groups (HCG and non-HCG) eat well and are happy.  Here's what I am planning: turkey (reg and smoked), dressing (reg and HCG), mashed potatoes, mac and cheese (REAL and HCG), sweet potato casserole (real), salad, green beans, deviled eggs (HCG), squash casserole, rolls, cornbread (HCG), apple pie, pumpkin-pecan spice cake (HCG), German Chocolate cake (HCG) and various drinks.  YUM!   I have been working on this for awhile - "if you fail to plan, you plan to fail."  AMEN!  What are the others of you making that perhaps we could share and help each other be creative?

If you plan to take a day off and eat what you want - listen, no feeling guilty.  My only request - it will be harder on Friday to get back on course, but you can.   JUST DO IT!   Don't let Thursday turn into, "well, I might as well eat through the weekend and start again Monday."  If you start making excuses BEFORE the meal - excuses AFTER the meal are twice as easy to make.  YES THEY ARE!   But, if you choose to take a day off - it's ok.  Stay in touch with me, don't drop our group, get right back in the game on Friday and follow protocol.  I have found that when some of the fam "fall of the wagon" they avoid me.  Listen - that is not what this about.

We are in this HCG group to support one another and if you choose to do something else - it's okay.  I promise.  if you no longer want to read the emails, let me know.  It's ok.  I am not the "end all, be all" of health care.  I am just a normal person, like you, fighting for my health.  And, i don't choose to be in the FIX HOLE alone.   I need you!

Plan well this week and let's "talk the smack" on the devil's head next week as we choose life and eat to live during the largest food week of the year.  :)

Much love, PK   

November 19, 2011

Well, here we go - our season of testing.  We WILL be victorious as we do this TOGETHER!   

Halloween was ONE test.  Passed.   Staff/intern Thanksgiving luncheon was test two.  Passed.   Thanksgiving coming up - test number 3.   I can only attack a test ONE AT A TIME.  How about you?   Actually with family coming in, this whole week is a test.  And I am grateful that God knows my heart and will be faithful to help me.   I will have plenty of fruit and HCG treats ready to go.  

I was so tired yesterday and the thought of cooking was more than I could process.  But close to home, I realized I never had time to eat my salad yesterday at work and sent it home with Terry.   YEA!!!!   I was rescued.   I sat and ate that salad and thought, "wow, am I really happy for a salad? I am SO turning the corner."   I celebrated the colors, the different textures and the fact that God provided when I was too tired to cook for myself.   Thank God for SMALL blessings.  Right?

Have any of you tried the Honey Crisp apples? SOOOOO good.  I loved the Ambrosia apples this summer, but these yummy treats "take the cake."  Also, my nail shop has started providing alcohol if you get your nails or toes done (a small glass of wine free with certain procedures).   But for those of us who do not drink, stevia tea.  WOW, what a treat!   Anthony grew the stevia plants over the summer and dried them, chopped them, and brews them for our tea.  It's cool that stevia, which is a natural sweetener, can be brewed as a tea and is pre-sweetened.  His wife, Judy (who does my nails) was spouting out all these medicinal properties of the stevia tea - we will see.  But, if you see some on the shelf, try it - it's good.

Jennie and I were talking Wednesday about an additional sugar substitute if the xylitol isn't your choice - coconut sugar.   She says that Peachtree Natural Health carries it. I would like to try that. I did get in my Whey Low Brown sugar and Powdered sugar ( for diabetics) and I will let you know what I find out after I try them.  

Here is a recipe for us to try with our pumpkin pie this holiday season:

You take 1 can of coconut milk and put it in the fridge overnight. 

Open the can and the “milk” will be thickened, so you scoop it out, reserve the water (to drink of use elsewhere)

Put in a mixing bowl, add real vanilla extract and a bit of cinnamon

Whip with beater until fluffy.   

(I would imagine you could add xylitol if not sweet enough, but it may need nothing.)

I am attaching a pic crust recipe.  I have not tried it, but it looks easy.  You can take your normal pumpkin pie recipe and substitute xylitol, use this crust and make coconut whipped cream and have an HCG safe dessert.   YUM

Choose life (especially this week) and eat to live.   (wink wink)   PK

November 18, 2011

Hey gang - been running around dealing with some issues with my husband's business this morning.  So, no blog today.  Sorry.  Gotta get ready for work.   Decorated the North Campus yesterday - huge undertaking, but looks amazing.  We went with a White Christmas theme - WOW!   South Campus getting done today and I will officially be decorated.   YEA!   Family coming in next week and I will be switching hats to the Chef one.

Have a fabulous day - PK

PS - for those who were here for our HCG Taste Testing Party - I made the dressing again with HALF the fluid from the chicken stock - FAB!   

November 17, 2011

Good morning all,

Today may blog will reflect a GREAT testimony, sent to me yesterday from someone in the fam,  to the power and energy we bring to our bodies by choosing life and eating to live.....

I am happy to report another 1/2 pound loss as of this morning, and even happier to report I completed my first 5K last night! This is a huge accomplishment for me, because I have a joint disorder which keep my knees dislocated at all times. I do my "running" on a low to no impact elliptical trainer, which is the only kind of running my body will allow. This summer my orthopedic doc determined that  I needed to have my left patella (knee cap) removed because of the damage that traumatic dislocations were doing to my ligaments. The right knee ligaments have already been reconstructed, and the surgeon was unsuccessful in getting it to track properly, so it remains dislocated. I knew that if I was going to have any kind of surgery to my left knee, I would at least need to weigh 20 pounds less. The rehab is grueling after several ligaments are reconstructed, cut, stretched,  etc. It took me many weeks to walk again with my first surgery, and that was when I was at a healthy weight! Well, God is good! My pain has decreased SO much since I started on the hCG protocol, and I know it is largely to due with the detox my system has experienced. Inflammation is down, and my weight is down 21 pounds! Here I am the day after a 5K with no pain, when a little more than a month ago, I was icing every evening after light exercise.  I am not even getting into the symptoms I was battling after a tick bite and a Lyme reaction I was battling since September! I feel awesome! Thanks, Kathy! Thanks SO much! 

Can someone give God a shout out?  He is opening the doors and reaching His hand in to rescue us.  Our part - reach toward him, choose to walk out of the door of our past and SLAM that door tight.  We cannot turn and look at our past and be okay with that.  Does it take discipline?  YES!  Choosing to eat lean proteins, veggies and fruits as opposed to processed, fat-filled, sugar-laden foods is work.  (read yesterday's blog if you haven't)

I heard someone comment yesterday, while I was at a HUGE luncheon, "overeating is what I live for.  I plan to gain 10 pounds between now and the end of the year.  I do it every year - I will deal with it in January."   I SOOOOO did that for many, many years but as I got older - I never made it out of that 10 pound bondage suit I added by stuffing the hole in my face.  Only to find myself older, less active, riddled with affliction, depressed and a complete failure.   NO ------ never again.  I ate turkey, HCG stuffing, celery, pumpkin pecan spice cake with cream cheese icing (HCG) and water.  I was SOOOOO happy.  Met a friend at Starbucks and skipped the grande, extra hot, pumpkin spice latte, extra whip - I had a bottle of water.  And guess what, I had a great time.   

We can do life - EVERY BIT of it - and not feel guilty.  I can have Thanksgiving dinner next week with my family and choose life, I can attend parties and choose life, I can meet at Starbucks and choose life.  How about you?  Can we do this together?

PK

November 16, 2011

Hey gang - weighing in the same this morning.  YEA.  I am committed to having you as my personal accountability partners through the holidays.

Got a new website for you to check out this morning - www.recipekitchen.net    

When you go to the website, along the left-hand side, there is an HCG section and 6 recipes there.  Most are for phase 2.   Be careful though - they are combining veggies and using tomatoes in the mixture along with other veggies.  That means you are substituting the tomato for your next fruit.   YIKES!   However, the recipes look great and sometimes for a special treat I can see giving up a fruit.  Remember to count backwards - "I can do anything for 20 more days."   The Word teaches us that we can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens us.  It is God's good pleasure to see us healthy and free from the chains that keep us in prison.  I am constantly looking at new places in my live to see freedom.  God is still opening my eyes to past chains that are yet to be shattered.  These lies must be broken.  Freedom in all areas of my life - I will accept nothing less.  How about you?

I was thinking last night while I was making all these healthy things for a luncheon today - turkey, almond flour dressing, pumpkin-pecan spice cake (with almond flour) and topped with a cream cheese icing - "Man, this is a lot of work.  Gone are the days of packaged foods and quick fixes."   And I felt my spirit retort, "time in the kitchen is a SMALL price to pay for your HEALTH and the JOY of having your clothes fit."   BUSTED.   Yes, cooking healthy takes more time - BUT, I could be sitting on the sofa feeling bad about myself, eating the next brownie, searching the web for the NEXT diet that I HAD NOT tried (remember I've done them all) and eat another brownie because, "I'll start over tomorrow.  I won't eat anything all day since I just ate brownie #4."   Ever said that LIE to yourself?  And by 10:00 I was sick to my stomach - which I thought was hunger but it was left over sugar trying to digest - and was eating again - only to repeat the cycle OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER.  

Not now - It is for freedom Christ has set me free (Gal. 5:1) I am standing firm - cooking as long as it takes, shopping in the right stores for healthy choices, eating plates of color at each meal - etc.   AMEN!

Choose live and eat to live, PK

November 15, 2011

Hey gang - good morning,

Got another GREAT report from my ob-gyn doctor yesterday and some eye-opening news.  As you know my weight is stable and if I gain a pound or so, I jump on the loosing wagon until that is gone.   BUT, I still have not been able to get that "last 10 off."  At the doctor yesterday, my blood pressure was excellent - 110/70, my iron count was excellent - 15, and my weight - according to their charts - was still FOUR pounds in the OVERWEIGHT category for my height.  At first I was very disappointed.  But when the PA came in to examine me, she was one happy lady.  She just keep on and on congratulating me and finally I said, "I really thought I wasn't overweight any longer."   She flipped back to my chart and said, "Listen, this time last year you were at the TOP end of obese and now you're at the bottom end of overweight.   That's unheard of for us."  So, I perked up a wee bit.  I am REALLY determined now to get myself to the normal range.  :)   This is funny though - the medical profession (according to what she told me yesterday) opts for the bottom end of the groupings (obese, overweight, normal) as they believe that weight has SO MUCH to do with chronic illness and disease (I also believe that) but for me to be at the bottom end of my normal range for my height I would have to loose 40 more pounds.   Yikes!

At first I was overwhelmed by that.   However, after thinking about it, then I started making excuses, "they never considered my age," "they never considered my bone structure," "blah, blah, blah."   Right?  The bottom line is - I want to be healthy and if I have a few pounds to go to get to  that range, I simply do.  I had to remind myself that the days of making excuses are over!  I hope you are all going to the doctor and having those check-ups regularly.  I am such a pro-active girl with that - check my blood, urine, counts, blood pressure - etc.  Especially as I age it's important to me to stay on top of everything.  :)   I am going to live to be 100, so I gotta do it right.  Amen?

One of the girls in the fam has 4 pounds of almond flour from Honeyville for sale.   The almond flour upsets her stomach and she was thinking someone could use it for baking over the holidays.  She used about one pound and doesn't want to waste the rest.  She is selling the other four pounds for $19.   If you are interested, let me know.

I have ordered the brown sugar and powdered sugar from Whey Low (I am still gathering info, but it appears to be good) and will let you know after I try some.   Some of the fam in phase 4 are eating Ezekiel products now and having no change in their weight.  This bread has no white flour - the flour is made from grains, nuts and seeds.  So, they are enjoying having bread again that is healthy.

I went to a new place to eat that is FAB for our phase 3-4 folks - Salad Express in PTC.   YUM!  It's like a HUGE salad bar - so fresh - so good.   They do offer white and sweet baked potatoes, but the salad was HUGE - enough for two meals - and so fresh.  Great choice for us.

Off to the races - have an amazing day and drink that water!

Choose life and eat to live, PK 

November 14, 2011

Good morning fam,

Praying everyone is enjoying this beautiful, fall weather in Georgia.  Of coarse if I had my way - it would get COLD and stay there.  Weighing in at the same point this morning is a good thing.  I have a hard time eating on schedule and getting my water in on Sundays.  It was 2:00 before I had lunch and only 8 cups of water.  Today will be better.  :)  I did find a watermelon at Publix - not amazing but good for this time of year, so I am rewarding myself each evening with that.  I would really like to loose a few more pounds over the holidays..........but we will see.   wink-wink

Talked with a fam member yesterday who is down 22 pounds and is just finishing her first bottle of drops.  Go girl!   But the best thing - her blood pressure was AMAZING at the doctor's office and her breathing has improved tremendously.   GIve it up for Jesus!   Also, heard from a fam member whose weight was stuck and when we brought her water intake level up, her weight started moving again.  These bodies need food (for energy) and hydration (for energy) and they have no one to depend on but us to help them.  It's kind of like a baby - they can't feed themselves - we have to.  So, let's feed and hydrate our bodies well so they will function at maximum capacity during this busy holiday season.

Remember to include the calories you are drinking, phase 3-4 folks.  If you are having half/half in your coffee, those calories count too.  The same is true with fruit juices.  Just because it's a liquid doesn't mean it's not packing the calories.   And calories add up - yes?   I heard someone ask their spouse once, "do you want to drink or eat your calories?"  I never understood that until now.  Let's all keep our eyeballs open to hidden things.

Finally, being honest here, the holidays have always been a source of pain even though I LOVE them.  There was the anguish of gaining weight each season and by Christmas Eve trying to find the correct number of layers of black clothes to hide my failure AGAIN.  I have stuffed myself each year and cried as I tried on 4-5 outfits for parties, etc. that I bought LAST year that no longer fit.   Just the thought of this routine made my heart sick EACH YEAR.   BUT......here's the other thing.   The holiday season always served as my "OH NO" it's going to get warm again and I will be the one trying to cover up, wear old, stretched-out t-shirts, etc....  I so looked forward to the hot days going away so I could COVER UP and not feel TOOOO bad about myself, but the holidays served as a reminder that spring would come around soon and I would have to unwrap and deal with all that flesh that the heat would expose.

Can I say for the FIRST time - I am not frustrated about either!  This just hit me SATURDAY.  I had an epiphany in my living room.   I just about cried............I am good to go in my clothes AND am fine with warmer temps coming again in a couple of months without the pressure to "loose the holiday pounds before spring."  OMGoodness, what a break-through.   Keep weighing daily and getting that number to someone - accountability,accountability, accountability.

Choose life and eat to live - PK

November 12, 2011

Good morning all - my weight is up half a pound today and I am absolutely certain it is due to stress.  I have had a couple of rough days pastorally.  Things leveled out yesterday, so we shall see.  I feel thinner as I really didn't eat much but the scale shows otherwise.  That's okay - this is a life long journey for us.  Yes?  Some of you have asked me if our weight should bounce sometimes.  YES!   It happens.  :)   I know that other programs teach that you should weigh weekly so you don't see the daily bounces and get discouraged.  But for me, the weighing weekly turned into every other week if I had cheated, and then once a month if I had cheated again, and NEVER weighing as I told myself, "this will only discourage me and I will eat more."  That is a LIE!  Yes, our weight may fluctuate due to a variety of issues - that is why recording it daily helps you to see patterns.  BUT.......it is safer to weigh and deal with occasional bounces on the scale (THINK LONG TERM SUCCESS AND NOT DAILY) than to weigh after a month and be up 10 pounds.  Dealing with our mental approach to being up .5 pound is MUCH easier than me dealing with weighing 10 pounds more and the depression of FAILING AGAIN.   Make that commitment to GET ON THE SCALE.  And if you're up - evaluate the previous couple of days and make those adjustments.  Go back to protocol!   We have someone in the fam who when they move far from Phase 3 Maintenance, they stop loosing and battle the "roller coaster".  Our bodies know what they need to sustain health and reproduce healthy cells - they know.   Our job is to feed them what they need.   If you are weighing and recording - you will see patterns.  Promise.   Then, report daily to your partner and ask for prayer.

I have several of you asking about apple days.  They do work, but only do them IF YOU REALLY can't move that 2 pounds and if you are not doing heavy things.   The one day I did it, I felt weak but I weighed 2 pounds less the next day. So, you choose.  My real heart is that we eat right daily, drink our water and exercise some along the way.  But, I will use the apple day along the journey if I need it.

I am ordering the Whey Low powdered sugar and brown sugar for some holiday recipes.  Let me take this time to remind us that while something may be healthy and legal, it HAS calories and calories add up.  NOW - remember you can eat and digest HEALTHY fats more easily than white sugar, but both have calories.   White sugar that doesn't metabolize STORES ON OUR BODIES as fat.   And as I have said over and over sugar can be listed on a label in 101 different ways that don't say sugar.   (refer back to your HCG Made Simple book)   So, if for some reason we depart from one another - deleting sugar (white, brown, powdered, honey, etc.......) and starch are your BIG targets.  That alone will help keep all of us in the pocket throughout life.

Gotta run - decorating my house for Christmas today.   PS - if someone knows of a part time job and has some pull (you know everyone wants someone "trained"), we have a young mother who needs work.  Let me know.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the Hill house today - Terry bringing boxes from the attack now - and me, well, trying to convince myself this is really happening.  Didn't I "just" do this?

Choose life and eat to live, PK

November 11, 2011

Hey gang - my weight is stable, stable.   Hope all of you are making that commitment to weigh daily.   I know that weight is not the only measure of success - but we cannot discount it's power.  I felt from the Lord this morning to encourage EVERYONE to get a partner through this season - someone that DAILY you will share you loss or maintenance with - NOT YOUR ACTUAL weight - your loss or gain category.  I really feel strongly that as we move toward the next six weeks of the journey, the temptation will increase.  But weighing daily will serve as a visual reminder of where we are.  Just sayin.......consider getting a partner.

Publix put their Butterball turkeys on sale yesterday through next Wednesday.   This is the cheapest they will be before the holidays.   Just a shopping tip.  :)

Cranberry sauce - yes - fresh cranberries, water, fresh squeezed orange juice and pulp, xylitol and let this cook down until really thick.   Cool for a couple of days and serve.  YUM!   Added fun, orange zest and chopped pecans the morning before serving.   DOUBLE yum!!!   Thought about another recipe to share this morning - deviled eggs - which change to angel eggs if you delete the sweet pickle relish.   Prepare the eggs as usual, but add Duke's mayo (no sugar in there) and spanish oilves chopped real fine.   Toss with a LITTLE sea salt and chill.   YUM!   No sugar but lots of flavor.

Jennie is better, eating again, and got outside yesterday.   Thanks for your prayers.  Her gall bladder is out and she is on the road to recovery.

Gotta run - off to work I go.  Consider getting a partner for the next six weeks and commit to that daily TEXT of what the scale reports.   This also puts someone in your prayer court on a daily basis.

Choose life and eat to live - PK

November 10, 2011

Hey gang - how is everyone doing?  I have several good testimonies and hoping everyone else is doing good.

A few reminders today:

1. DRINK your water - all of it!   Fat that is dissolving and being pulled at the cellular level due to the HCG and diet WILL RECONSTITUTE as fat EVERY 24 hours if not flushed out.   We MUST help ourselves - even when on maintenance.  I know getting all that water in can be a nuisance, but it is at the top of the list for your overall weight loss.

2. Don't get stuck in a rut - try new recipes - watch the number of times you eat out in a week - sugar is hidden everywhere.   :)   Vary your food colors on your plate and don't forget the fruit.  I know the selection gets skinny in the winter, but we are reconditioning ourselves to see food as refueling and NOT PLEASURE.   Food only "sedates and comforts" for an hour.   Then, you are forced to look at your issue again AND deal with the guilt of wrong food choices.   OH YES - did that for many years.

3. Commit to send someone how much you are loosing or maintaining on a daily basis - weighing daily is also essential.  I spoke with someone yesterday who said they, "fell off the wagon and had gained 5 pounds in one week."  I told her that our clothes don't really reflect weight gain until about TEN pounds - YIKES!  Stick with the program.  The scales don't lie.  I have called my scales every ugly name I could think of, but they only reported what I HAD STUCK IN MY MOUTH AND DIDN'T WANT TO ACCEPT.   Help me!   :)

Paulette sent a good recipe that was a family tradition she modified.   Sounds yummy:

I made some salmon patties with red onion, oats, almond flour, egg and seasoning (oats can be optional) ...fried on non stick pan...awesome  no carbs or sugar in can salmon...my father used to make them for us on the weekends growing up but he would use flour...so thankful I can enjoy this treat with healthier choices (smile)

I would like everyone to read Psalm 118: 1-17 sometime today.  And when it speaks of nations, I want you to see the temptation to quit, give up, cheat, make a wrong declaration "I knew this would never work for me."  Whatever you need to insert - do it.   And say out loud - "I CUT THEM OFF."   Your health is critical and no one BUT YOU can really make that stand.  Our families deserve for us to fight.   I bring you a word of encouragement today - stand up and keep fighting!  Get back to your feet as you read this psalm and fight for your future.

Choose life and eat to live - PK

November 9, 2011

Great morning - weather beautiful - but I would really like to see it cooler.  Tomorrow they say it's gonna be cold and windy - I am ready!

Thanks to all of you who commented that you also had a recent experience with temptation that you conquered.  It's great to know that so many of you are making your stand RIGHT here!  I would love to declare that for the rest of my life, I won't stumble in the area of food.  And that is my plan - But I am old enough, and have lived long enough, to declare that I am living ONE DAY AT A TIME.   It is better to make a stand daily and rejoice in small victories than boast.   I CAN declare that I am eating better daily and my future is bright.   :)   Amen!   Thanks to all who sent your story yesterday.   I love being a part of this family.

Thanks Bree for the recipes.  Did everyone get them?

One of the things that the fall reminds me of is the "color of death."   The leaves, as they DIE, display such brilliant colors don't they?  As I looked out my window this morning I realized that as my flesh has "died" (my desire to stuff food in my mouth all day long) my life has become colored with brilliant things.  Sometimes we see death as a negative - but the leaves remind me that death can have a beautiful affect.   I want to continue to live a surrendered life (there's a lot of death in that) to God, to my health, in my marriage, to my children and grandchildren, to my friends, etc.   Surrender means giving up my right to do what I want to do.  As I follow Jesus, I do what God's word directs........as I follow a healthy plan, I do what is right for my body regardless of my desires........as I follow the covenant of marriage, I do what is right regardless of whether it's easy or not.........etc.

Death - beautiful colors - brilliance for all to see.................

I know we are choosing life, but today, the brilliance of "death" is my focus.   Can you see it?   :)

Love you - PK

November 8, 2011

Good morning all,

I imagine being a pastor has everything to do with me LOVING testimonies.  The book of Revelation tells us that we OVERCOME by: FIRST - the blood of the Lamb - our personal relationship with Jesus that gives us victory over the power of sin and death.  That is a day to day dependance on HIM to be our Lord.  SECOND - the WORD of our testimony - saying out loud (so satan can hear) the truth of God's word over our circumstance, rehearsing the FACT that God has NEVER been late, been deficient, lied, failed, etc..........   We recite our victory testimonies - OR THE TESTIMONIES of others - because it gives us strength and renewed stability in our relationship with God.   (feel like preaching this morning - wink)   

On Sunday morning I told a young woman I am mentoring that she better OPEN her mouth and declare so that every demonic weapon coming against her can hear the truth about being an overcomer. Our words are powerful!   A woman preacher I love, Dr. Eva Evans, told us once that the WORD of God in our mouth is as powerful as it is in HIS mouth.   The WORD has life - the WORD has hope - the WORD has power.   Open your mouth and speak the truth - remind yourself that God has NEVER failed you and NEVER will!

Here is a testimony I received yesterday and it made me cry - I could SO identify with it:

One of those days where the afternoon brought me wanting 
to eat everything as my PMS time is here again.  I had to stop my thinking 
patterns as I caught myself trying to talk myself into eating some junk as I 
saw some chips.  I really had to fight to not just eat some thinking it will not 

make a difference and won't hurt anything, etc.  I haven't struggled with thoughts 

to binge and get rid of it since the diet, but the thought went thru my head that 

this was my mind thinking at one point in my life when I was in bondage.  

I quickly got that thought captive and asked God to give me wisdom.  I remembered 

I had leftover spaghetti squash in the frig. and I was like YES, God 
provided a way out for me to get full and not eat junk.

What an amazing testimony.   God is a way maker and if we will STOP and take the thought of cheating and put IT into prison - we often find the answer to our problem waiting right there.  The prob - we often act on the impulse and don't make the impulse bow it's knee to the truth, which is I AM FREE!

Choose life and eat to live -PK

November 7, 2011

Good morning to all,

My weight has finally stabilized and I am going to hang here until January.  I will go on another round of drops starting Dec. 31st.  But currently, maintenance is FABULOSO!

We had such an exciting time last night at our Holiday Extravaganza.   There was tons of food and great recipes shared.  I am way pumped to see what variations and new items we can create and modify to make healthy food taste like a million dollars.  We were blessed to share taco soup, mac and cheese, cornbread, stuffing for turkey, turkey sausage balls, fudge, pumpkin-pecan cheese cake, pumpkin muffins, almond flour pizza.   OMGoodness - we were in Heaven.  There was such energy coming from the excitement that NONE of us ate Halloween candy for the first time (GO team, go!) and that we are now eating healthy and choosing NOT TO CHEAT.  As children we were forced to eat what was given us - as adults, we CREATE what we eat. 

We had 2 girls on Phase 2 who were able to eat the taco soup, turkey sausage balls and all natural applesauce.   I was SOOOO proud of them - they never tasted a bite of anything else but left smiling with the knowledge that there is a group ahead of them that is living life successfully and happy.   They couldn't wait to get stabilized and try some new foods.  We are all committed to long term health and excited for that.   The greatest testimonies came in the area of blood sugar compliance, which we know is often obesity related.   Man, the testimonies about how blood sugar had dropped were amazing!   We also shared before and after pics - OMGoodness!!!!!!!!!!!!  

Thanks to all who came and keep working those recipes.  We CAN life in freedom.

Kroger has the honey crisp apples for 1.98 a pound I hear, and coconut water (great for leg cramps) at .99.    These are great buys.   Sam's, near me, had the ambrosia apples last week for 5.99 a huge bag and seedless watermelons - still YUMMY.  I figure as long as they are around - I am indulging.

My holiday wish is that each of us plan ahead for the family gatherings and parties and make a vow to NOT CHEAT.  Crissy said her family is coming to her house for desserts on Thanksgiving Day and she will offer healthy and regular desserts.  It has been my experience recently that a lot are choosing healthy.   That does my HEART good - both naturally and spiritually.   Keep asking for God's help daily as you close doors to past habits that entrapped you.  He is waiting to be asked.   :)

Choose life and eat to live, PK  

November 4, 2011

Good morning - sitting in Warm Springs with my mom this morning - enjoying a few days with just us.  :)   We are headed out to go shopping and then planning a big cooking party this afternoon.  I am making almond flour pizza for her for dinner.  YUM!   She is excited to see some options that will allow her to bake and not feel guilty.  Isn't that how it happens - we learn a new way of life and pass it on.  Mom will learn a new way to cook and pass it on.  We started talking about Thanksgiving dinner last night and planning a healthy one.  WOW!   What a change.  Instead of dreading the day - I am so looking forward to it now.  Instead of feeling isolated due to "what I can't eat" we're putting our heads together, as a family, and planning a BIG meal that will pack a lot of nutrition and healthy flavors that we can eat.   Go figure.   This year will set new trends for my grandchildren.  I want to imprint HEALTH on them so they do not have to struggle and suffer as I did.   How about you?  Are you planning ahead now?   :)

Mom has been astounded that I look at everything and pick-up on words in the labels that she does not.  In the past, however, she would have chimed in that a small amount of sugar or corn syrup wouldn't hurt anyone.   Last night, she commented that she never knew there was so much stuff in everything.   WINK!   We looked through cookbooks for hours and talked about ways to modify recipes to bring them to a healthy state.  What a FUN time for us.  Then we watched a movie and as she dozed off in the bed beside me I thought........how precious!   My life is FULL and I am grateful beyond words that God has brought me out of "obesity prison" and given me a second chance.   Thank you, Father.

Jennie is in the hospital and hopefully will FINALLY have surgery.  Please pray for her this day.

I have heard from 5 of you that are coming Sunday night - please let me know so that I can plan appropriately.

My address is:

10 Sedgewick Ct

Sharpsburg, Ga

30277

See you at 6.   Much love this day - PK

November 3, 2011

Good morning to all,

I am heading to my mom's in Warm Springs this evening after work and spend a day or so with her.   I haven't seen her in awhile and I am really excited.   We love to cook together and she found a beautiful pumpkin cheesecake on the cover of Southern Living that she wondered if we could make with almond flour and xylitol.  "Why certainly," I proclaimed.  I will use the almond flour in the crust and xylitol in the cake and voila.   If it turns out great, I will share the recipe. If not - I will keep trying.  :)

I took some left over turkey breast (about half a breast that I had baked in the crock pot) and added a couple of cans of chicken stock, a couple of cans of fire roasted tomatoes, one small can of green chilis, a couple bags of California blend frozen vegetables, and some tabasco and made a yummy soup!!  Fat free (almost) and WAY healthy.   I didn't add any oil or fat and I pulled the skin and the fat from the breast as I was cutting it into chunks for the soup. It made a BIG pot and my husband loved it.   He ate it with the almond flour "cornbread" and boy was it a treat!

I appreciate all of you who work diligently each day to read labels, read menus, check vitamins - I know it seems a big task sometimes, but when we all get through our FIRST year of health it will be worth it.  I know that Nehemiah must have thought building a wall in 52 days was impossible, but he trusted God and was not intimidated by the masses.  People will tell you that life cannot be lived eating healthy and "everyone cheats."   Does that have to be true?   If someone opens the door one crack and looks at a pornographic site - it MAY push them into a journey they never intended to walk.  Is that ONE CHEAT worth it?  That's why we guard our virtue, guard everyday from that ONE CHEAT.  It's not fear that motivates us to protect our health, but the TRUTH that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and he deserves the best we can give him.  He can't use us AS EFFECTIVELY when we are riddled with weight-induced diseases.   Right?   The other thing that I always read is that for every 10 pounds of extra weight above your normal body weight you carried, a certain number of years is deducted from the end of our lives.  I want to live to be 100 and I can't do that carrying that extra weight.   Amen.  

I am determined, like Nehemiah, to see my life rebuilt and restored to the fullest.   I will post guards and put up safety boundaries and fight for my life to be the best it can be.   Our bodies can repair themselves, but we have to do our parts!

Choose life and eat to live - PK

November 1, 2011

YEA!   My first Halloween with NO candy or treats!   YEA!  I heard from a couple of you that you made it as well.   Great job!   Paulette came to the festival at church with her cocoa roast almonds in her pocket.   Good girl!   It helps me so much knowing that our family is choosing health this holiday (PS - and cute clothes).  It's amazing that it used to take me several tries to find clothes while I was on one side of the scale and yesterday it took me four tries to get a sweater that fit.  I actually forgot when I was giving away my clothes that I had a closet of winter sweaters, etc.  Time to bless someone again.  :)

Jeni sent me a picture - I love visuals - of what fat looks like.   At 56 pounds down - I would be looking at the bottom picture x3.   YIKES!

I 

Isn't that amazing???   THAT is prison for me.   I REFUSE to carry that again.  I look at that and realize no wonder I was sick.  No wonder I was on the fast track to heart attacks and obesity-related disease.  NO WONDER!!!

Well, after looking at that, what else can I say today but, "NO PRISON FOR ME!"

Choose life and eat to live, PK