From Dale Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People"

Talking about the president of an important Wall Street Bank, and his weekly self-evaluations…he would ask himself these questions about his meetings the previous week:

"What mistakes did I make that time?

"What did I do that was right - and in what way could I have improved my performance?

"What lessons can I learn from that experience?"

Maybe a good idea for a New Years' Resolution?  

Enjoying the Journey: Being grateful for the little things

Life is hard.  We all know, we all accept it.  But that doesn't mean it can't be enjoyed!  A simple way to enjoy life is noticing the little successes we gain.  Each little success is like a little deposit into our personal bank accounts...CHA CHING! These little deposits grow to become big payoffs.  While this is true of everything in life, I have noticed it especially through my weight loss journey that began on December 29, 2012.  Only seven weeks and yet my life has changed so much for the better.  Of course, there are the big successes, like losing 17 lbs (actually, they're not lost, I threw them away), having 4 less inches on my hips, people noticing that I've lost weight, my smallest jeans just slipping off my waist, and having enough energy and stamina to be productive morning until night.

But the little things I notice are the ones I love the most.  Things like comfortably sitting on the floor with my kindergarten class ~ being able to cross my legs while sitting down and they're not so fat that I have to hold them together and it takes way too much work (does that even make sense?) ~ having enough confidence to smile at Ronnie Underwood from Ballet West (if you've seen Breaking Pointe, you'll understand, he's a beautiful man) ~ seeing myself in the mirror and smiling because I know smiling won't give me a double chin anymore (it seems especially vain when other people see me do it, but hey, it's good to love yourself) ~ walking up the hill to school and I walk faster without even trying and I'm not out of breath ~ because my boobs have shrunk (a little disappointing), I'm not as nervous to bend over, wear an undershirt for modesty, and a myriad of other things I've always had to concern myself with ~ finding myself contemplating the beauty of my life and being happier all around ~ smiling at strangers because I'm not worried that they're thinking I'm fat ~ fitting into my sister's clothes ~ the ring I bought over Christmas break doesn't stay on my ring finger ~ my social life improving because I'm so much happier and confident, plus I have enough energy to go do things past 8:00.

I'm positive I will think of more later, but you get the point.  If we're not enjoying the little hills we climb, how are we ever going to tackle the mountain?  Keep going, keep trying, keep believing in yourself.

Healthified Sweet and Sour Chicken

I'm kind of a Pinterest addict and I have fun making the recipes I find.  Many of the recipes claim to be healthy, but when I crunch the numbers, the calories are slightly higher than I'd like.  I discovered a recipe for sweet and sour chicken that promised to be great.  The recipe can be found here:

Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken with Fried Rice

The first time I make it, I substituted agave nectar for sugar and olive oil for canola oil.  Like the pin promised, it was one of the best recipes I've ever tried!  But even with the substitutions, I wasn't thrilled with the calories.  Tonight, I baked it again, but I decided not to coat the chicken or brown it in oil.

Here is my modified recipe:

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Sweet and sour sauce:

3/4 cup agave nectar or honey
4 tbs ketchup
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
1 tbs light soy sauce
1 tsp garlic salt

Preheat oven to 325º.  Boil a 1-2 cups of water in a skillet.  Dice the chicken breasts and and place in skillet.  Stir chicken frequently until chicken is almost cooked through.  Place chicken in a 9x13 in. pan.  Mix the sauce and pour over chicken.  Bake for 45-60 min., stirring every 15 min.

Guess what?  It still tasted amazing!  I served it with rice and mixed veggies...and ate it before I remembered to take a picture.  I'm new to this blogging thing, but I'll catch on!

Serves 4
Calories (per serving):  358
Carbs:  52 g
Fat:  10 g
Protein:  10 g