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I use organic canned black beans because I don’t always plan ahead to cook beans from dried. Then it’s a matter of quickly sautéing the veggies, adding the beans, seasonings and cooking until done. Make sure not to skip the pureeing of the beans step because it makes a difference in the thickness of the soup. Also, if you want a vegetarian version of this (which I make if my vegetarian daughter is coming over), just use water instead of chicken broth.

Surprisingly, instead of crumpling the picture up and throwing it in the trash, I put it in a drawer, sighing in resignation over the fact that I’d never look like that again. But the truth is that I put the picture away because I no longer looked like that, and whenever I saw that picture it reminded me of how much I had changed. When I finally got serious about losing weight I searched through all my bedroom drawers until I found that picture buried under some t-shirts that no longer fit me. I knew I couldn’t look exactly like that picture again, but it served as a reminder of the old Diane who had gotten lost under the layers of fat and whose self esteem was in the toilet.

but I really wanted to share my passion for healthy living, homeschooling, life as a mom to seven, Nana, and wife. Yes, I lost 158 pounds and have kept it off since 1998 Join me as I share my life. Sprinkled in you will find out how to stay healthy at any age, and if you need to, lose weight and keep it off at any age.

I got involved with school, robotics for the two younger boys, 4-H for all the school aged boys, and started talking about college graduation with my oldest. My next oldest son (who is 6’6″) in the burgundy shirt is a history buff who loves Call of Duty and karate. My next oldest son in the ugly Christmas sweater is a math whiz and is always cooking up things for the others to do. My 2nd youngest son (sitting in the gray shirt) is a sweet child who likes to read, keep the peace, and play Legos.