Lonely Weekends are No Fun

I love my new job! Unfortunately Mr. Tyger’s weekends don’t line up with mine. This means the only time we get to see each other is in the morning when we’re both scrambling to eat breakfast, feed the dog, feed the cats and get out the door, and in the evening when we have to feed all seven of us again and get into bed at a decent time. So basically we have no life. This means no date night, unless one of us is willing to not get a full eight hours sleep. No movies for the same reason and no going out with friends.

So, yes, we have jobs and a source of income so we can go out with friends, but we don't have the time. It’s lame. But, I’ll say it again: in this awful economy, I’m very thankful that we are both employed. Going from seeing my hubby all the time when we were both unemployed to only seeing him for about 3.5 hours a day (not counting when we’re asleep, because that doesn’t really count) is really hard for both of us. Especially since we love spending time together and also seeing our friends, going out and having a social life.

I know I shouldn’t complain. It just takes some getting used to.

Anyway. I just can’t believe that it’s almost November! I’m not sure where this year went. It feels like it was just July. At least the cooler temps have moved into the valley which is a blessed relief from the searing Phoenix sun. When I take Rama on a walk in the mornings, I actually need a hoodie. I think we may need to get him a little doggie coat too as the temperate dips.

So the paleo diet hasn’t really been implemented yet; however the good news is that being back at work forces me to eat healthier. When I’m working I have to plan my lunches and snacks out in advance and when I’m there I can’t snack on garbage because the only food I bring with me is healthy! In fact, this past Friday I turned down fresh donuts. I was very happy with myself. Although, when I got home I proceeded to eat about 5 cardamom cookies with my tea, so it probably didn’t really help anything by not eating the donut. The only slight consolation is that the cookies didn’t have any high fructose corn syrup in them.

I’ve noticed that all these months of unemployment have led to me sitting around, which in turns leads me to eat when I’m bored. Unfortunately when I’m bored I eat chocolate. I know: the worst possible thing I could reach for is what I eat at the worst possible time.

Well, today is the first Saturday I’m home from work and I’ve been really good! I had a good breakfast: one egg cooked in coconut oil, one slice of bacon, a slice of toast and a cup of tea. I’ve gone from usually eating two slices of toast or two waffles, basically all carbs, for breakfast to adding a good amount of protein. It’s amazing how much it helps me function when I add protein to my morning meal. Although I have to admit it’s really hard for me to wake up and start shoveling food into my mouth. I’m used to having a cup of tea and having breakfast an hour or two later, but of course I can’t do that now that I have to be out the door in an hour and a half.

Then instead of reaching for chocolate when I got hungry around 11am (I’d been up since 5am) I actually ate a raw food bar. For some of you this may not sound like a huge achievement, but for me it was! Especially with a giant sized bar of Toblerone sitting on my desk that my Mom got for us! My lunch was pretty paleo friendly: a couple of slices of ham wrapped in a slice of cheese and a cup of tea. I forgot to eat a piece of fruit though, darn it.

Even though I’m getting up early and working 8 hour days, I’m actually feeling really good because my diet has been really good this week. It’s amazing what the right diet can do! I do have to give Mr. Tyger a lot of credit this week for finding and making some awesome recipes from Oxygen magazine.

This is the apple cider vinegar glazed chicken with fresh tomato, cucumber and cilantro salad paired with a side of quinoa and lentil mix.



Quinoa is my new favorite grain. It’s a huge improvement from white Basmati rice. I know, it’s still a grain, but I’ve got to take baby steps and at this point my goal is to move toward clean eating first and then trim the carbs down. I’m worried that if I cut out carbs too quickly I’ll have really bad cravings, which will lead to me totally abandoning my diet. I’m sick of yo-yoing between healthy habits and unhealthy habits! I just want to reset my habits so that healthy eating just becomes part of my routine. I know that I will have to continue to be vigilant about what I eat, because let’s face it, junk food isn’t exactly scarce!

But so far I’m feeling more optimistic about my health and eating clean. I think it’s time to subscribe to Oxygen magazine again!