So begins July (7/30)

Yesterday: Food okay, water I'm not sure, barely any steps.  While this sounds like a disaster, I'm going to fall back on the '7th day of rest' excuse and move forward.  It was another cool cloudy morning, untypical of Summer for us, and I started my morning with hot tea instead of cold water. I did remember and began drinking water after the first cup of tea but have no clear recollection of quantities consumed. Then no usual two  cups of water in my smoothie, instead breakfast was a treat; steel cup oats loaded up with fresh cherries, chopped pecans and diced dates. A tablespoon or so of brown sugar thrown in and YUM. This was a treasure chest in a bowl, each bite a new combination of textures and flavours each as delicious as the last; what a lovely Sunday treat.  But instead of having five cups of water off the bat, maybe it was two or three? By 11 I was starving and the bag of brown sugar was still on the counter. So when I went to grab an apple to much on, instead of the usual au naturel I chopped it up and threw it in the microwave with some ground ginger and some of the brown sugar. In my defense it was still a very cool morning and my warm snack was comforting as well as filling; the warmth left in my mouth afterwards from the ginger was delightful..

Lunch was a hummus sandwich that H picked up from Subway - another treat. Then black bean soup (not homemade, store bought last week and in the fridge) with a couple of crisped corn tortillas for dipping and an avocado for dinner. The avocado wasn't really part of dinner, but rather dessert a bit later. And then the last of the apricots and slivered almonds for a snack.

High in processed grain, fat, salt...not a good eating day for my 30 day plan. Not horrific either, but my hands are swollen this morning and I feel like I wasn't true to my intentions, which is disheartening. The only fresh veggies were in my sandwich, and I imagine there were some cooked ones in the soup. Barely a dent in what we should consume each day. That's the real problem with the grains, they suck up calories and space that should be used for greens. And to top matters off, I weighed in this morning - not down even a tenth of a pound. Which I will blame on the salt!

I will mention here that I did fill up my water bottle a few more times yesterday, so I know for sure I had at least nine cups of water and a cup of tea so I think I got in all the water. But I was frozen to the couch most of the day - what a waste of a beautiful afternoon! I had stressed my arm in the morning, and just wanted to rest it and make sure I was good to go to work this morning. I did make it out to the back yard to lay in the sun for about 15 minutes to get my vitamin D in for the day; there is nothing so comforting as the warmth of the sun soothing my body. Some of my early memories are of laying in the sun at Arrowhead, leaning back against the boat tarp that was heaped up on the corner of the dock. Feeling the cool breeze play across my skin and waiting for the moment when the sun would win over and saturate me in a blanket of warmth. Then for a few moments I would relax and all would be right with the world as I listened to the sighing of the wind gone way up high to the tops of the pines and to the clinking of the dock chains  as the waves of the lake rocked us to and fro. Now the sighing is coming from me, bu it is at times like this that I think of the Dumbledore quote:

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” 

                                                                                                   ― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

So if only for a moment, I live in the memory, and remember a strong young girl who had the world at her fingertips.

As soon as I put tea on to heat this morning I remembered about the water and filled up my bottle and came to sit down and write. I have already downed the first two cups and will definitely have a smoothie for breakfast. I'm going to replace half a cup of my usual two cups of water in the smoothie with half a cup of chocolate soy milk and mix in some cherries that are ripening way too fast; sounds decadent, no?  I had to seed them and throw them in the fridge last night when I found how quickly they were getting soft. There is left over lentil soup to take for lunch, and on the way home this afternoon I will stop and grab a bag of chopped lettuce and veggies from TJ's since I have run out of salad greens here. They sell a tub of eight chopped veggies that works great for salads and I have chick peas already drained and in the fridge ready to throw on top.

Fitbit charged, plan for the day determined, morning water almost gone and heading for the shower. And Yikes! I almost forgot, yesterday was July 1st, and I can make a Doctor's appointment!