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Show me my goal.

There is something to be said about SEEING what it is you are reaching towards.  Goal setting.  For anything you’re trying to achieve or become, having a visual reminder of what that is in front of you all the time will greatly help you get there.  And I need a visual NOW!  Case in point, weight loss.  It seems I feel like I yo-yo the past several winters, and this one being no different.   Am I packing on a built in winter coat??? I have no idea, but one thing I know, I need to SHED it and shed it FAST!

So you guys know then that I’m really trying hard to look my best I can for our upcoming swimsuit season.  There was a point several years ago when I was SO dialed in, worked out all the time, even had a personal trainer (not a requirement to do this, mind you!) , and had laser beam focus on my food choices.  So much so that I remember my daughter saying, “yeah… mom doesn’t eat pizza.”  Now, I’m thinking that probably wasn’t the BEST example, but trust me, she has seen me eat my share of pizza now!

So what to do?  I decided to print out a pic of myself when I looked “good” and put up in my kitchen as a reminder of what I’m striving for.

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Here’s a pic I’m sharing with you….  not the same one of me I put up on my fridge, but you get the drift.  I will say, side note, some pros to being this weight, some cons.  The biggest con, I lose all my “female endowedness”.  I don’t necessarily want to be as thin as that, but the goal is there let’s just say.  That was also 8 years ago mind you.  I’ve aged since then {{my justy!}}

I used to be a Weight Watchers leader long ago, and boy it does feel like a lifetime ago.  But this was something I always taught my members.  Have some kind of reminder out where you can see what it is you are trying to achieve.  It doesn’t have to be a picture of yourself, especially if it doesn’t exist.  But having SOMETHING as a reminder will always keep you focused.  If it’s a picture of what you want to physically achieve, all the better.  In my case, that is what I’m going for.

I had this scheduled as my post for today, and it tickled me pink when one of my dear friends posted an older pic of herself on FB as a reminder for her.  {{great minds think alike I always say!}}  It’s about keeping our vision in FRONT of us.  We are moving toward what we consistently see.  So if I can see myself fit and in physical shape that I’m happy with, hopefully it will be a reminder of what I’m trying to achieve.  And it will have an effect on the choices I make in food, drink and exercise.

Add to that, I turned on the tv this morning and coincidentally, I hear Joel Osteen preaching a great thing.  He said, if you see it, you’re moving towards it. If you can’t see your vision, you’re not moving towards it.  Keep your vision in front of you.  And that’s what I’m doing.

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Ribs, Greek Style

What’s for dinner?  A highly requested main course in my house, ribs, GREEK style! It’s finger lickin good and OH so easy.  Ready?

Here’s what you need…

ingredients for pork ribs

Pork baby back ribs

Olive Oil

Fresh Lemon

Jane’s Crazy Mixed Up Salt

Cavenders

Garlic Powder

I first season the underside, then flip it over and do the top, and stick it in the oven like this.  I do not use oregano as most Greeks do for this particular recipe just because the Cavenders has some oregano plus a blend of other great seasonings that gives it a wonderful flavor that isn’t so strong as the plain oregano is.

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Throw it in the oven at 425 for about an hour… eyeball it.  I hate to say, that’s how I do most of my cooking… very little measuring, all eyeballing.

 

The finished product…

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Seriously finger lickin good.  I had 2 slabs that I cut up to fit into my pan.

Let me know if you try it!  Your family will be lovin you!

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Lose it.

Oh yeah.  I need to lose it.  I have gotten some junk in the trunk that I am needing to lose.  And I’m bearing all and totally telling you this very personal thing for several reasons.    In less than 30 days (actually tomorrow the high is 89, so tomorrow qualifies..) it    will be time to reveal myself to the world (or my backyard and whoever is the unlucky one to be in my company) in a bathing suit.  Now, let me preface this by saying I know I am not terribly overweight, but being 5’1″, even 5 lbs makes a difference.  I have lots of thoughts on this subject.  But for now, let me keep my focus on what I’m wanting to specifically share with you today….

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There is an amazing app called Lose It!  I know there are many weight loss/calorie counting apps out there, but I’ve been familiar with this one for at least 2 years.  I can basically select my goal weight, a date in which I want to have achieved my goal by, and it will calculate how many calories I’m allowed per day.  There I can journal my food and activity level, and it tells me how many more calories I can eat, how much I’m over, how many calories I’ve burned to count towards my daily intake.  I can add my own foods, select from a huge data base of restaurant items, store brand items, or even scan a bar code and it will add it into its data base.  LOVE that!  Seriously the easiest thing to use ever!  And it syncs with your computer so you can use it on your phone, tablet and computer.  I swear it is the most user friendly thing I’ve seen, and I tend to be a little OCD when it comes to this stuff, so I do my homework, and for me, this is SUPER easy to use.

I love it and I’ve used it in the past, and then stopped.  I’ve been yo-yoing up and down I’d say 5 – 8 lbs since last fall, and it has gotten me SO down.  As much as I try to stay focused, the environment in which I live isn’t so conducive to being on purpose on losing weight (or in my case, not GAINING weight).  So my life is extra challenging.  This I think has helped me lots!  I started mid last week and I feel great having this little tool and having it as my accountability partner.

I don’t know what it is about winter that we all seem to have this yo-yo thing going on and that’s when we tend to put on a few pounds.  Is it because we can hid in our FURS? or extra layers of clothing, sweaters, big loose blousy tops?  Yes, yes, yes, and YES!

Here is what I know for sure…. if I have to write it down, I’ll think twice before putting it in my mouth.  So it makes me think before I eat.  Smart huh?  Seriously, the biggest impact on dieting is a form of journaling.  And this is a great app to help with that.

Another thought to ponder…  if we allow ourselves to gain 3 lbs per year (and that is on the low side… considering holidays, vacations, celebrations), then in 10 years we will have gained 30 lbs.  Not a lovely site!

Yeah… I need to lose it!  I’ll keep you guys posted on my progress.  If there is anyone that wants to chime in on this and do this with me, let’s DO it!  Seriously!  We don’t have to lose the same amount of weight, have the same goals at all, but the fact that we are keeping some accountability with someone that we are keeping on focus, whether it’s being more OP on our food intake, and/or excersizing more, anyone want to do this with me?  Just to say HEY!  I DID MY APP TODAY!

Let me know… if anyone else wants to LOSE IT before summer is officially here!

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Strawberry Shortcake

It was time for my monthly networking luncheon today that I host at the hacienda.  And being that I’m trying (keyword TRYING) so hard to stay on purpose with the healthy, low cal, low fat diet, I came up with a few healthy choices on the menu.   One is my super easy “Sandra-Lee” style  Strawberry Shortcake.

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I take a store bought angel food cake, some fresh strawberries, fat free cool whip and lemon yogurt.  I wash the strawberries, slice them, and toss them with sugar in a bowl and let them set for at least a few hours in the refrigerator to create their own syrup.   Then I mix a container of lemon yogurt with the cool whip.

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To assemble the cake, slice it in half horizontally.  Spread the cream mixture on the bottom layer.

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Top with half of the strawberries.  Replace the second half on top of the cake and repeat!

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and VOILA!  A pretty yummy SUPER simple strawberry shortcake ala Irene style!

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My Simple Sweet Potato Fries

I LOVE LOVE sweet potato fries, and it makes me happy to know that they are also a healthier alternative than regular french fries made from regular potatoes (so that means I can eat more, right?? HA!  I wish!).   So I make these as a great side dish for our family dinners and they are super duper easy.

All you need, is your sweet potatoes.  Peel them and slice them pretty thin (not TOO thin, but not too thick either).

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Then I toss them in a bowl with like seriously a drop of olive oil.  You don’t have to, you can spray Pam if you want, but I do it just for a tiny hint of flavor.  Lay them single layer on a baking sheet sprayed with Pam, too. (I always cover my baking sheets w foil for easy cleanup!) Sprinkle a bit of salt on them, and bake them at 425 for about 30 min???  In all honestly, I didn’t look at the clock but kept looking at them, to watch them get golden and crispy looking.  You can tell when they get color, they are ready.

And the finished product?

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I sprinkle a bit more salt when they come out.  I swear I can eat the WHOLE bowl full….. and so can my son!  Do you make sweet potato fries?  Is this how you make yours?

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Armed and Ready

This is one of my all time favorite sayings because it can apply to every aspect of our lives, but I love it when it comes to health and weight goals….

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I shared this statement all the time with my Weight Watchers members when I was a leader and it’s SO true.

If you’re not “armed and prepared” when hunger or meal time strikes, you can very easily eat something thats not as good of a choice because you’re STARVING, you don’t feel like preparing anything, or it’s convenient.  Seriously, how many times did you find yourself going thru a drive thru ONLY because you were STARVING?

The solution?  Have something in advance prepared ready to go so you can just eat it when you’re hungry.  Have a PLAN!

Now… I donno if this is in line with your taste buds, but this is SUPER yummy and fulfilling AND healthy.   It’s my broiled salmon and I LOVE it.

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I purchased a nice filet of salmon, covered it with just a drop of olive oil and sprinkled it with a bit of this….

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After broiling it in the oven on that broil pan you see up above, it turns into some yummy goodness, that I squeeze fresh lemon on when it’s hot and sizzling fresh out of the oven.  To take it a step further, I love to make a quickie salad that is SUPER flavorful…  just add your salmon to these 2 things….

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And there you go!  But being armed with that salmon is perfect.  Get yourself a large filet so you can have it on hand to use and eat it any way you wish…. I chose to make a quickie spinach salad with mine!

Make sure you come back and see me tomorrow…  I have a little new sponsor love headed your way!

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Launching Honestly Margo

Today is a special day.  I’m officially coming out with it.  And I’m SO proud and excited….

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Meet Margo! 12 year old dreamer, fun girl, driven, passionate, and entrepreneur.  Margo is the creator and founder of Honestly Margo, a new beauty brand offering all natural lip balm.

(cute video you might like by the way!)

From a young girl, she has always been pursuing SOMETHING.  What that SOMETHING was was yet to be discovered, at least until now.  From trying to start an online art business at  8 years old to a pet couture line just a few years ago she concocted, something has been brewing in Miss Margo’s brain and soul. But knowing this young lady, you’d say this product she created, from scratch, with her own proprietary formula, fits her to a tee.

Created with essential oils along with wholesome ingredients like beeswax and coconut oil, I swear my lips have NEVER felt softer!  And the proof is in the numbers.  You see, after she started this as a hobby and it was a hit amongst her friends and teachers, she saw when they were coming back for more that here was something that COULD be something EVERYONE would love.  And there, her business manager (i.e. MOM) encouraged her to dream BIG.  Nothing BIG can happen if you don’t DREAM it.  So, a few calls were made and the rest is history.   A partnership was formed and a beauty brand was born.

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In flavors like Pumpkin Cheesecake, Caramel Apple and Fruity Colada, there is NO need for dessert!  You’ll just want more lip balm for your lips!   Seriously, not only do these feel AMAZING, but they are SUPER darling to carry in your purse, in your car, in your backpack, at your desk drawer, in your office, on your kitchen counter (where I always have STUFF if you know what I mean), on your nightstand.  EVERYWHERE.  They are slim, sleek, cute, stylish, chic, AND they WORK.  Test them for yourself and you’ll see.  Just like her friends did!  And yes, if you ask her, Shark Tank is one of her FAVORITE tv shows. (It’s actually a household favorite!)

I love how she’s named these after cute and unique names.  Margo feels that these names represent young women of today…  embracing and celebrating the beauty in uniqueness and following all of the dreams we have.

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Now…. you’re thinkin WHERE oh WHERE do I get me some of that goodness for MY lips?  Well for starters, Honestly Margo can be found in Cayman’s in Norman, OK, Plenty Mercantile in Oklahoma City, OK, soon in Luxe Objects in Oklahoma City, OK, and there are more to come that I must keep tight lipped about.  Shopping website up soon, later this spring.  But for now, to keep up with this young lady, you gotta be in the know….  How?  For starters, HERE.

I hear another DRUMROLL…..

That means GIVEAWAY time!  OH yeah!  YOU my lovies, can have some super soft lips, and that means YOUR lovies will love YOU for it! HA!  Ok… in all seriousness….  We want to help Miss Margo grow her brand, don’t we?

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The lucky WINNER will get ONE of EACH flavor!  HERE’S HOW TO WIN IT! 

1.  Comment below that you’d like to win the giveaway!  Simple, right?

FOR ADDITIONAL ENTRIES (oh yeah!): …. (you need to leave an ADDITIONAL COMMENT ON THE BLOG BELOW FOR EACH OF THESE TO COUNT AS AN ADDITIONAL ENTRY)

2. SUBSCRIBE to The OP Life on the sidebar where it says SUBSCRIBE BY EMAIL and fill in your email. (and comment below that you did that!)

3.  PIN IT TO WIN IT (any of those images, but the products are a good one to pin!) and include “#THEOPLIFE #GIVEAWAY @irenegianos @honestlymargo”  in your PIN COMMENT (and comment below that you did that!)

4.  SHARE  the giveaway on your Facebook page with “Watch this video, http://bit.ly/12nuct0 @honestlymargo giveaway on www.theoplife.com” (and comment below that you did that!)

5.  TWEET the giveaway with “@irenegianos @honestlymargo #giveaway, new beauty brand, enter to win,http://wp.me/p2nw10-ZJ ” (and comment below that you did that!)

6.  SUBSCRIBE to Honestly Margo for updates. (and comment below that you did that!)

7.  LIKE Honestly Margo on Facebook(and comment below that you did that!)

8.  FOLLOW Honestly Margo on Pinterest  (and comment below that you did that!)

So EACH COMMENT BELOW  gets you an entry, for a total of 8 entries possible!   You don’t have to do them all, but EACH one you do get’s you an entry when you leave a SEPARATE COMMENT for each.  Simple!  Winners will be announced on Friday morning.

Not too hard, right?   Who wants to help this young entrepreneur become successful?   Very cool and VERY On Purpose if you’d ask me!  And don’t forget to check back…winner announced Friday morning… a perfect way to start the weekend, right?

Happy Monday!

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Healthy Living Manifesto

I came across this and thought it was the PERFECT way to start your week.

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via

Now I know ALL of these things can’t be done, but it’s a great thing to shoot for as many as you can, right?

Happy Monday, lovies!

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Healthy Fancy Snack

When I’m trying to be “health-concious” (that’s a nice way of saying “on a diet” but I hate that phrase), it always makes me feel better mentally when I’m not “depriving” myself of goodness.  I want to eat fancy foods, I want foods that don’t taste like cardboard, I want foods with flavor and “curb appeal” if you will.  Well, being the salt person that I am, and hors d’oeuvers person that I love, I whipped up this little number just for myself last week after unloading the groceries.  Nothing special about it other than it LOOKS pretty when it’s all done.

Two Ingredient Stuffed Peppers

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You’re looking at it…  That cute little bag of sweet peppers in the produce section, sliced down the middle and I cut up that Babybel LIGHT cheese.

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I roasted these guys in the oven at 350 till they got golden and the cheese was melted inside…. maybe 15 min?  I just kept an eye on them…

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This was yummy.  I think the only think I might have done differently is added a splash of balsamic vinegar, or even a different kind of cheese.  I know I always try to skim calories as much as I can, so by using this cheese I thought it would be better for that reason.  But really, there isn’t THAT much cheese in it.   So really, whatever cheese you might have in the house, throw it in.  Try it and see!  The point of this really is that it’s SIMPLE, it looks appealing on your plate, and it’s healthy.

Let me know if you try this treat and if you do it the way I did it or tweak it your way.  I’d love to hear!

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A Super Balance

Superbowl Sunday.  Seriously, I think there are MORE people at the grocery store and preparing for this FEAST day then maybe Thanksgiving?  Christmas?  What do you think?  I mean for REAL, it is like an official holiday when it comes to food and entertaining and parties.  The SUPERBOWL  is like a SUPER “BOWL” of you name it….. what ever comfort food, snack food, junk, all goooooood stuff you can think on.  And libations, of course!  Here is what Super BOWL looked like at our big fat Greek get together we gathered at.

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This was before about 10 other dishes made it to the island… no kidding!  And it was a SWARM to get in there, so needless to say, it’s an INCOMPLETE picture of all the GOODNESS that everyone brought.  Christie and Scot, your annual Super BOWL is a FEAST like no other!  So now that we feel like we have to ROLL ourselves out, what do we do?

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It’s a balancing act… this food/diet thing.  A love hate relationship we have, right?  Remember my 90/10 rule I talked about?  In case you missed it, check it out HERE.  But here is a perfect example.  We splurged and overindulged.  Like REALLY splurged.  …..  well maybe not everyone, but if you did, I’m talking to you {{{wink}}}.  So what do we do now?  Get back up on our horse and get back with the program.  Whatever program you’re doing to keep healthy, lose weight, whatever.  Because seriously, if we at like we do on Super BOWL Sunday EVERYDAY?  Lord, that wouldn’t be a pretty sight!

Time to regain our focus.  Who is in?

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