Weight Watchers - Supporting Each Other on Our Weight Loss Journey

This is a great thread for those who want support, helpful hints, friendship and a great bunch of people to communicate with. This thread has existed for a long time and we keep re-starting it whenever the old one gets too long. Feel free to stop in and chat, we are not a "closed" group and welcome newcomers. Some of us have been together for well over a year, some only a few days, but we care about each other. We offer tips, we share, we pick each other up of the floor when we've had rough times and we applaud when someone does well.
So, please do stop on by and share a bit, support is what it's all about! We can really do this together! :hug:

Sorry for those of you who already read this, but Linda restarted the thread at the same time I posted, so just thought I'd post again over here.....

Good Morning everyone,
Well, we had a babysitter last night.... and ended up with meeting my sister and her boyfriend at the Great NY State Fair. The strategy that I used worked really well, and this is what I did... I drank wine instead of beer....I ordered a Turkey Sausage sandwich, and it was really quite bad, so I ate half of it and gave the rest to DH, so I was pretty satisfied after that... then we were walking on the Midway and DH bought a slice of pizza, I had about two bites of his, and we kept walking....so as it came time to leave, there was the gyro place, my absolute favorite so he bought one of those, and again, I just had a few bites of it. I was down again on my home scales this AM. So I think what I did was to just sample DH's food, I felt satisfied because I wasn't missing out on anything, which is what typically causes me to binge.

So now I'm just debating on when to go WI. I'm really just trying to get back down to the weight that I was when I weighed in last time and showed a 4lb. gain. Here I am being good, and losing on my home scales, and because it's been so long since I've gone to a meeting, I don't want to go and show another gain! Well, I've got two days to think about it, and who knows, maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised and be back down to that weight anyway. Oh the games I play.

Linda- so is your daughter on a vacation? Is she coming back before school starts? You can tell that I wasn't reading posts for awhile, so now I'm trying to catch up and follow along. I really like what you said about the decisions you've made in the past with regard to "dropping friendships". I too have done that for self preservation, it's really hard at first, but so much healthier in the long run. I really struggle now with a friendship that I have. I truly consider her my best friend, but she has a very difficult time with being negative about everything... she really can be a downer. Somedays I question myself why I continue to put the effort into the friendship, when I am constantly trying to put a positive spin on things for her. I get mad at myself when I get sucked in to her negativity, and start thinking like she does because that just isn't who I am. I tell my DH that I keep the friendship going because, her and I have a lot of the same views on life and raising kids, and in the dead of winter, she is my lifeline. Who knows, all relationships aren't suppose to be easy they take work I guess.

Ann-way to go with removing yourself from the urge to eat sweets... do you have a pool?

Tech-you just reminded of how easy and nice it is to come home to a crockpot meal. I need to look up some crockpot low point meals.

Paige-I'm looking for a "knock your socks off" chocolate chip cookie recipe. This is for our bakery, so no needs for it to be WW friendly.... Do you have a good one? I've just always used the Tollhouse one.... but I want something different.

Kim2-staying in control is such a good feeling isn't it? I enjoy food so much more when it is calculated and controlled. Like, an apple is just so much more appealing to me when I'm on program, and it is a calculated snack. Not sure if that makes sense or not. Funny what you said about the webkins, because I have sadly found myself playing the games as well. My kids were like, "Wow, mom likes webkins!"

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, that yesterday, I had the most selfish 3 hours of the entire summer. What did I do? I got my haircut, my eyebrows waxed and a pedicure!! I was all by myself, it was amazing....
__________________

Erica, my daughter is on vacation with a girlfriend and her family. They are at Ocean City, Maryland for 8 days. I was against her travelling with this family, but I really couldn't find a valid reason for not letting her go, in the end. So, she's down there with them. I'm sure it will be OK and all will go well and she will get home safely, but I am really sad without her at the house. She's truly the most perky and cheerful person, speaking of people that drag you down - she's the opposite of that.
I'm glad you had your selfish hours to yourself, that is always a good thing. Now you feel special.
I'd wait a couple of days to weigh in and drink extra water in the meantime. My guess, even if you didn't consume that many calories at the fair, is that maybe you did consume a bit more sodium? Maybe weigh in on Wednesday morning?
School starts on September 4th here and my daughter will be back on time, a day before. She's going to be cutting it close by being away like that and I think she'll be particularly tired, but she chose this.

Here is the good crock pot recipe I tried:

CC Roast (Company's Coming)
(Personally, I would serve this to company but it makes a great family meal)
Makes 8 servings

3 lb. boneless pot roast (I have used a top sirloin roast as well as an eye round roast and both came out well, the sirloin was a bit tastier)
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. prepared mustard
1 Tbsp. chili sauce (I used ketchup and it was fine as I didn't want to buy chili sauce for just one recipe, occasionally)
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. sugar
4 potatoes, sliced
2 onions, sliced


1. Place pot roast in slow cooker
2. Make a paste with the flour, mustard, chili sauce, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, and sugar. Spread over the roast.
3. Top with potatoes and then the onions.
4. Cover. Cook on low 10 - 12 hours.*

*I cooked mine on high the last time as I ran out of time and it cooked about 7 hours, I turned it down to low for the last 2 - 3 hours of it. It still came out fine, but the meat wasn't quite as tender

Per Serving: 329 calories (79 calories from fat) 8 g total fat (3g saturated, 0g trans fat). 100 mg cholesterol, 160 mg sodium, 24 g total carbohydrate (3 g fiber, 3 g sugar), 36g protein, 0% DV vitamin A, 20% DV vitamin C, 2% DV calcium, 25% DV iron.

6 points = one serving

It's really good, we rated it an A+. We sliced the meat and put the potato and onion over top, it makes kind of a bit of gravy that could be thinned a bit with water to go a bit further. I might also put carrots in with it next time so meat, vegetable and potato are all in one pot, and no other cooking efforts need to be made.
I love using a crock pot for meals, it's not just a winter thing. It heats up the kitchen less than running an over or cooking on top of the stove. It takes away the stress of getting a meal prepared later in the day.
Happy Sunday!

Good Morning,

Didn't get in any exercise yesterday. I had this lingering sinus headache thing and was just dragging. Did get my menu for the next couple of weeks done and went grocery shopping. So now we should be good for a while. Still need to hit the butcher for meat but that only takes a minute. If I haven't mentioned it before, the way I handle dinners is that I make a list of meals usually 8-10 for 2 weeks, and each night we pick off the list for what we'll have the next night for dinner. When I go grocery shopping I buy everything I need for those recipes, so we know every thing's there. This helps prevent us from not knowing what to make when we get home and going out to eat a lot. But it still has a lot of flexibility, when I first started this plan I used to assign meals to days then we would cross off and rearrange everything this worked better for us. Sorry I'm rambling.

Today is going to be a busy day. We're going to try a different church, we're not to happy with the minister at the one we've gone to for a while :( Then we'll grab lunch and head up to my parent's to pick them up, I offered to take my dad to a baseball game for his birthday which was a couple of weeks ago. Then we'll stop off for dinner, and home. Hopefully we can take the dogs for a walk when we get home. Tomorrow is DH's birthday, so I'm going to cook a nice meal. Not sure about a desert, neither of us are big desert fans.

Linda - enjoy this me time, and have fun at the lake.

Erica - sounds like you handled the fair pretty well. We were supposed to go yesterday but it was rainy most of the day. Glad you enjoyed the "ME" time, I think we all need some of that to recharge our batteries every so often.

Ann - I can't believe how busy you are and how much exercise you do. I hate exercise. I can't run, I have bad knees and can't walk after I'm done, that's why I bike.

Well, I should head up and grab breakfast and get ready for my day. Have a great Sunday everyone.

-Tech

Good morning ladies.
I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday.

Linda, Great job going to the gym. I find when I run I worry less about things. I am not sure why but it helps. Did your daughter call you to let you know she got there okay? It is funny how their bedroom seems so quiet when they aren't in the house. My husband and DS went away overnight one time with his brother and his children. I found the house so quiet. I missed them so much. I hope you have a wonderful time away at your cabin.
I think we all need me time although as mothers we seldom take it.

Erica, that is awesome taking 3 hours for yourself. I find even when I am by myself it is just a nice break. How does your hair look? Do you like it? How do your feet feel. Good strategy at the state fair. I find my DH can eat way more than I can and he doesn't gain any weight.

Tech, What a great idea for meal planning. I think it would help with being prepared. It is funny that I do exercise, because I was one of those people who didn't even walk across the street, I use to drive. Now I try to take every opportunity to walk that I can. The neighbours are all teasing me that they want to see my out riding my bike. Now I am nervouse that I will fall off or something. I hope that you find a church you enjoy.
Were you in storms last night. It is just awful how many storms Ohio, and Michigan are getting. I do hope it stops really soon.

Janelle, how are you today. I hope you got to walk around during the game. How was your eating and did you get all your water in?

Barb, when will you know what is happening with the busing? I find sometimes the squeaky wheel gets the grease, so when you are vocal about it they do make changes. Good luck with that.

Laura, how was your nephews wedding? I saw an article about a wedding in Ohio that took place even though there was flooding. People helped to get the dresses out of the flooded places they were. I can not believe all the flooding there is in the midwest.

Erika, good morning to you. I hope you get a run in today. Is your DD excited about going to school? When people ask my DS if he is excited (he is in Sr K this year), he tells them he is not going to school. This started yesterday. I just tell people don't ask him because I am sure he will be fine once he gets there. He enjoyed jk last year. I think I had a harder time with him going than he did. He has the same teacher and most of his classmates are the same children he plays with at the park and library.

Good morning Paige, Paige 2, Kim and Kim 2. I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend. Hi Nikki, and Ginny wherever you are.
If I missed you I am so sorry, I am trying by memory. I should do what Linda does and type out my notes on a separate page where I can see everyone's name. You always have such wonderful ideas Linda.

Have a Super Sunday everyone.
Ann

Good morning everyone. I'm working at the funeral home today or I should say, I sitting here at the computer listening for phones to ring. No visitations, funerals or other busy work to do, so I get carte blanche to play. It is so nice and sunny outside and the sky is an awesome color of blue today. We've had clouds and rain for over a week and the week before that wasn't nice either. So this is a great gift of a day.

Erica - you said:

So now I'm just debating on when to go WI. I'm really just trying to get back down to the weight that I was when I weighed in last time and showed a 4lb. gain. Here I am being good, and losing on my home scales, and because it's been so long since I've gone to a meeting, I don't want to go and show another gain! Well, I've got two days to think about it, and who knows, maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised and be back down to that weight anyway. Oh the games I play.

Just last week our leader had a topic about this. She made valid points that those of us who are faltering or having a rough time, need the the meetings more than anyone. Someon who is on course and doing great needs to be there to give incentive to those of use who are having a bit of trouble. I say, do what you know works and go to your meeting. I know it gives me the extra push some weeks to make this all worthwhile.

The wedding was stressful as I helped out with food and catering. The ample available to pop something in my mouth continuously was there and unfortunately, I did do that. I was busy and worked all day but I'm fairly certain that I didn't earn nearly enough APs to make up for it.

Paige - The wedding cake that was there yesterday was somewhat lacking. I kept thinking how much nicer your cakes are. The appearance wasn't that great and the cake toppers were rather unappealing and to make the matters worse, everyone said the chocolate was pretty unappetizing. I didn't have the chocolate but had a small sliver of the white and it wasn't worth more than the little bit I had. Paige, your business will do well, I'm certain of it.

Linda - I was laughing at your post about the crockpot. That hasn't happened to me but now that you've done it, I'll take a lesson from it. Good idea about the meal plans. That's one of my goals today also. I want to dig out the Refried bean soup recipe I posted here last fall. It is very yummy, filling and 1-2 pts depending on which ingredients you put in it.

I did plan my meals today and have a bowl of WW veggie soup for lunch in a bit. Planning and framing are two areas I need some help with at this point. I know the guidelines but for whatever reason, they just aren't being put into the game.

Tech - I'm glad you didn't get any of those storms. They were pretty scary.

Kim2- I live very close to where one of those tornadoes touched down on Friday, it really does scare you and I understand the feeling of being out of control.

Hello to Ann - have you been running still? I'm in awe that you seem to do that so regularly.

One of my old high school friends (known her over 30 years) helped out in the kitchen yesterday too. She is an old WW veteran and lost over 78 lbs with WW about 8 years ago and has kept it off. We talked a bit about WW and a couple of the things that struck me about her weight loss and her maintenance was the fact that she says maintenance has been much harder than the actual losing of weight. She says it is a continous struggle for her and she still has to watch and think about everything she puts in her mouth and not revert back to her old ways. She also said that the only exercise she ever did and does is to power walk. She still looks great and it was great to have another friend who is a success story. I have another friend who is a leader and lost 137 lbs over 10 years ago. She says she still has to watch everything she eats too. So Erica, you are not alone in your struggles.

Anyway, I took up way to much space and thought here. Have a great Sunday everyone!

Hello all

I am a little deptreesed this morning. I had a terrifice on plan day... even got in a four mile walk/run (I try to run but I feel like I must look foolish so mostly I walk!!), and I was up 3lbs this morning :mad: Thanksgiving dinner was bad, but I didn't think that bad!! Yes, my MIL is a little crazy... although she puts the turkey in an electric roaster, so that helps with the heat business. And they have air in their house which is set at a very chilly temp, so it works out pretty well. Oh well, back at it today. Since the rain came, my grass is starting to grow again, so I need to cut. We have about 2 acres that we cut, so it takes me a bit of time. The big kids help a little, but they have to stretch to reach the tractor pedals, so I don't make them do a lot. And I plan to have another long walk tonight. With DH's schedule, it is my "me" time!!

Linda - my kids went to my in-laws cottage with them for a week this summer for the first time. It was the first time they were all gone at the same time for anything more than an over-night. I couldn't get over how lonely I was when they left. They missed me and DH, but they also had a great time and felt a little more "grown up" having some independence from mom and dad! Have fun at the cabin, and use this time to rejuvinate yourself to get ready for the busy school season!!

Laura - where do you live? The Fenton area really got hit hard, as did the area very close to me. Those houses were out in the country and were just leveled.

Tech - DH and his brother and Dad are at the game today too. The boys get their dad a game every summer for his birthday!!

So, I am off to start the lawn. I need to get out of the house because I am feeling like I don't care if I stay on program today and want to eat corn dogs with my kids. I think I will wait till they are done with lunch before I have mine!

Have a great Sunday everyone!
Kim2

Hi girls! Sounds like everyone has been busy. I have not had a chance to get on here and post. This b/day stuff just keeps going and going. My hubby and kids got me a day at the spa Friday!! I had a hydro soak, body massage, and facial. It wiped me out! I think I may have started snoring during the facial. I was in and out of consiousness. Man, I really needed that!!! Then my best friend and our friend from Atlanta went to a comedy club that night (just us, to celebrate our b/days!) and we laughed till it hurt. That burns lots of calories!!! YAY! Then last night we had our b/day celebration with friends and family. It was so nice. One of my dearest and oldest friends in the world and her hubby came. We have been friends since 1st or 2nd grade. We even got married on the same day (not planned, but it was at different times so our friends went from their wedding, to ours!) so we celebrated our anniversaries together for years! We don't see eachother much anymore. So when they showed up, I hugged her and cried. I realized how much I miss them and how special they always were to us. Point here, it was a very special night. Turning 40 really wasn't bad!!!!
Bad part........I have been so busy, I haven't been hungy, so the only meal I have eaten the last 3 or 4 days was dinner. I haven't done that on purpose. My TOM is over, so I went from starving to not being hungry at all.
My daughter is doing ok. I haven't been home much (hubby took Friday off so I could go to the spa.) and then took her to the doctor. Now he has caught what she had. I don't nag her, so I really hope she has done ok. She DID order all by herself last night the grilled chicken with veggies. Guess we will see how we did Tuesday.

Well, I have a phone call so I guess I better go......
Kim

Kim - sounds like you are busy like the rest of us. Make sure you are getting your water.

Kim2 - I'm in Olivet - the next town south of Charlotte on I-69

Hello everyone, I am back from houston the game was good. As far as my eating pretty good, water could have been better. As far as my friend she texted me today and it's funny how what comes around goes around, apparently she got upset and the girl she has been hanging out with b/c she was making a scene at the bar my friend said that she snapped at her friend b/c she was becoming frustrated I just thought that was interesting she got a taste of her own medicine. Anyways, what I have decided to do is to keep my distance in a sense that I am not going to be seeking her out, if she calls me great and if not oh well. I too agree with what paige said earlier.

o2bskinny: sounds like you had a great b/d celebration your day at the spa sounds wonderful and I bet the comedy club was a blast.

bellybuster: I think you should be proud of yourself for all the excercise you got in eventually you will see results and the benefits of that.

well tomorow is back to school offically for the kids so it should make for an interesting day.

Hi everyone, NO the bus situation has not been solved....They Just sent out a note to all kids on friday afternoon regarding a time change ..All they did was change the time to an earlier pickup.....Than to boot hardly anyone got the note due to it being so hot and humid that we all picked up our kids..One mom did not...So it will be off to the boards..In the mean time I will be picking them up..I do not see why young children have to sit in a bus and wait 15 min for another school to let out. Than take those children home too.Them first and ours last????Do not get it.. It is not like we are a small country town.. We live in the city and the school is 2 miles away.... I get soo angry.

Kim sounds lie a great bday.

Erica good job at the fair...You sound liike me..I do that to my kids...

Kim I heard about those storms. I have alot of friends and family in your area. Good thing it did not hit by you all.

We had a close call last night..Funnel clouds at least 3 were right over us. We were in the basement watching tv and they were showing them. Thank god it did not form but it was scary.

Laura I had no idea you worked at a funeral home....I hope you work in the office. I am sure I am like most people but I am a big scaredy pants when it comes to funeral parlor. I guess I watched to many movies growing up...

Lynda I use my crock all the time...I always say , I love my crock....whenever I use it. Thar refried bean soup is my fav. My kids eat it up. I have that all the time.

Tech I hope your sinus issue clears..Yuck I hate that.

I hope tom goes well for me Tuesday I am planning on going to ww. Agh I am sure I am heavy but that is life. Wanted to go to workout tom but I will noot be able to make it. Once I get going I will be back on track it is just getting there. I think we are going to Florida next year and we have 2 wedding in our families so I NEED to lose by may of next year..Hope you all have a great day tom.. Barb

Good Morning - it's Monday - not much happening. A new day. 5 weeks to a wedding so time to kick this into high gear again. Have a good Monday everyone!

Good Morning everyone,
Linda- thanks for that recipe, I just copied it down, and I think I'll try it today. One thing though, how much vinegar is used in the recipe? Probably not much I'm assuming. I think I'll wait to way in. I had a baby shower to go to yesterday, and the sweets got the best of me. Funny how I can be an angel at the state fair and then blow it at a baby shower.

Laura- thanks for what your leader said about meetings. It is so true. I really should be going to meetings every week, but I get so hung up on that scale. I wish I wasn't that type. I really really enjoy meetings too, I've made so many friends over the years, I love my leader, it's such a positive experience. But I'm obsessed with seeing that scale move in a certain direction. It's almost like I'm staying home and "doing my homework" before I go in and face the WW scales. Crazy, I know.

Janelle-yeah, I agree, don't seek her out, just let it fade into the sunset. Sometimes it's just the best thing to do.

Well, I've got a busy day today, as we get ready to open up this weekend. Everything on our property needs to be decorated with cornstalks and pumpkins today. I don't even think I'm going to walk this AM, because I'll be doing physical labor all day. And I have a babysitter coming, so that means I won't have to constantly come in and out of the house to tend to the girls, which also means grabbing food from the kitchen/pantry. Have a great day!

What an odd thing. I made a post last night and it isn't here today. Oh well
Guess it couldn't have been important, right?
I wish I kept a copy of it as it was rather long and I just don't have time to go through and recreate it all this morning.
Yesterday, DH and I hung out together, it was much like "the old days" before we had kids. Funny, how things revert back when the kids aren't around. Life just goes in cycles, I guess?
We visited my son at the mall where he works in Brookstone. I laid down on one of those Tempurpedic mattresses and I must say that I really need to save for one of them at some point. What a treat that is and I think I would sleep so much better. He tells me (what a salesman he is) that the ones that Brookstone sells are different and significantly better than the "knock-offs" that chain furniture stores sells. I guess I have to believe him as this one was soooo comfortable. Maybe that will our gift to ourselves with our 2007/08 tax refund this year? : ) I keep wondering if sleeping better would help me make more efforts in terms of exercise and weight loss. After all, if we get a good night's rest, we are probably more able to perform? I just don't know how these athletes who travel and stay in hotels do it, I have trouble sleeping in odd places and without my own bed/pillow.
DJM, I hope that bus situation straightens out soon. I wonder if the bet on the fact that some moms just won't put up with having their kids on a school bus for that long and will ultimately drive them, then the numbers of kids will lessen. Also, depending on the type of school and kids, some kids will naturally have after school activities either at school or otherwise and need to be picked up as the school year goes on. So, there will be less kids and less stops the bus has to make?
Erica, did I leave out the vinegar amount? It's one teaspoon. So sorry! I think the exact combination of ingredients that you rub onto the roast before cooking it make it most tender, having the right amount of vinegar would certainly be an issue.
I think that going to meetings can make a huge difference in motivation. I get "pumped up" at my regular meetings and I find that it truly helps me with my motivation. By the time a week goes by, I lose control and need that motivation all over again. I do think that being here with you all makes a huge difference as well. We do exactly what the title of this thread indicates, we are truly supporting each other on our weight loss journey and as we know there are ups and downs in that journey.
Well, it's off line I go to get rolling on my preparations to go up to the lake. I'm looking forward to it.
Oh yes, I created a face book page and worked on my dismal my space page. I know Janelle and Paige have my space pages, and Paige your cakes are fabulous. I posted to their pages and asked to be made a "friend".
I tried and tried to find out how to make my photos change on the myspace for my header photo or whatever it's called and I couldn't get it.
The photo there shows my old car, with it's vanity license plate that says "QUILT", as that is me! But, I wanted a photo of myself there...I'll get it one day!

Hi all! Hope your Monday is going well. I had class this morning and we are finally getting started with the books. The first week was just going over policy and procedures, syllabus, etc. Yep, it is going to be HARD!

Linda, Please add me as your buddy! I am on Paige and Janelles list under "KIM"...I wanna be your buddy too!!!;) The mattress you talked about made me sleepy just reading about it! ZZZZZZZZZ!

Erica, have fun with your decorations. How big is your farm? We have a place here in town that has a pumpkin patch and takes kids on hayrides, then in the spring, they do an easter egg hunt. And they have a petting area. They also have a haunted hayride in the fall. We have taken several field trips there when the kids were in Elementary school, and a few b/day parties. I love fall, and that comes with it. I am looking forward to that season so much. We are finally around 98 degrees here.....a real cool-off! :cool: HA!

djmom- How crazy the bus system is!!! That is horrible! I am lucky in that I could always take my kids and now this year my son is driving and he can take his sister across the street to the middle school and drop her off. I sure hope things get better.

Haylo- It sounds like you are much better to keep your distance from your friend! Ugh. I have enough drama in my life, as I am sure you do, without all that. And Yes, I did enjoy the spa TREMENDOUSLY!!! If you get a chance..GO!!!! It was just what I needed to relax. I was like a wet noodle when I left.

Laura, thanks for reminding me of my water....No, I haven't been drinking it. I am still trying to force myself to SLOWLY start drinking it. I truly HATE water. And I hate that I hate it. I hope you are having a great Monday too.

Kim2 - Learn from the 3 pounds gain, and start again. Sounds like you are getting walks, etc in, so that is good. It is still too hot here to walk. Another reason I am looking forward to fall........being able to get out without poofing into a pile of ashes!!!!!

Ann, Tech, Barb, Erika, Paige1 and Paige2......hope you are all well!!!

Kim

Hi, I just started WW flex plan on Sunday. So far so good! lol

Linda, how much water or liquid did you put in the crockpot with the roast? It sounds really good.

I'll be checking back in.

Phyllis

Happy Monday All,

I'm supposed to be doing laundry and mowing the grass and maybe quilting some. Instead I've been surfing the internet to find places to visit on our vacation :o I did go to the park this morning and walked with my mom. Then I stopped on the way home and bought DH a present and cake (today's his b-day). I was proud of myself yesterday, even w/eating out lunch and dinner and going to the ball park I only used 6 flex points and I had them to use :D. It was a very fun day. NSV - for dinner my parents chose this restaurant they used to go to all the time, it has the best bread sticks, when they came I sent them to the other end of the table and didn't have any :D :D

Kim2 - wrong ball game. We went to see the Lugnuts in Lansing. It was a lot of fun and less than half the price!!! Don't get discouraged about the scale it doesn't always tell the whole story, maybe there was more salt in what you ate this week, maybe you're body's hanging on to water from the exercise could be any number of things. Just keep doing the right things and wait a little while.

Ann - Ride the bike, you'll have fun, if I can do it anyone can.

Linda - I saw a study going the other way that lack of sleep can cause weight gain. So I guess saying good sleep will cause weight loss might work, definitely wouldn't hurt.

Laura - Yea on planning for yesterday. Who's wedding is in 5 weeks?

Kim - sounds like you've had a fun b-day week. I can't imagine missing too many meals, I get a headache and crabby and everyone I know is shoving food in my face so I'll stop.

Haylo - glad you had fun at the game. Sounds like a good game plan with your friend. Good luck getting back to work.

Barb - hope you make it to ww on Tuesday.

Erica - have fun decorating, and good luck staying out of the pantry.

Well I'm debating about ww this week. I usually go on Wed am, but I picked up an extra day at work so can't this week. I could go back to the Tues pm meeting but, we're having steak tonight for DH's b-day and I usually try not to eat something that heavy before wi. The center by us also has meetings Wed and Thurs nights, and the leader Wed morning does Thurs, so that might be an option. Then there's always Sat am where the old leader for Tues is....I just don't know, I'll work it out.

Have a great day everyone.

- Tech

Tech - my BIL surprised us with air tickets to LA!!!!! to his daughter's wedding on Manhattan Beach in early October! We're super excited

Hi everyone...Guess what we got our own bus...Whooo,Now I will not have to [pick up the kids..They pulled a quick one on us today. They changed the times for pick up and it was not supose to start until tom and today they came 10 min earlier .Basically half the nieghborhood did not make the bus. So we called in, complained and talked to the Principal. She made way for us and wanted us to be happy due to the redistricting..So no more long rides....They still have to go to the sister school for 15 min and pick up 3 kids that live in the nieghborhood , but they will be the first dropped off so about 20 min compared to 50.....I am so happy...Now I can relax and focus on me..Doesn't stress cause weight gain??? Whew

Tom I am going to wi. I was hoping to get a discount. Do They have one? I am nervous to see the # I may not look at the old # to see how much I gained until I lose some #s. I still have my old book. I did get a walk in today. A few miles. It was ok. I came home to ice my foot. I sure hope that helped.I will know tom on that.

Tech I have gone to a few lugnuts games. I have a sister in st.Johns. We had a good time. Now we go see the clippers. I think they may be in the same league, or conference..Have you gone to the mint festival there...I love it ....The ice cream is pretty good too.

Phyllis good luck with flex. I will be with you on that one....

Erica, sorry if I missed a post but do you live on a pumpkin farm.... If so how cool. I love Halloween. It is one of my fav holidays...Fall, leaves, pumpkins, apples and scarey things....

Hello to anyone I missed and good luck on wi.....Barb




s

Linda-wow, I'm eating that recipe right now, it is sooooo good! And it was so nice to come in after a long day, and be rewarded with such a great meal! Yum!! This is one is a definite keeper!! I used a chuck roast though because that is all that I had. Sounds like you and your husband enjoyed some quiet time. That seems worlds away from me right now. Although we did get to pick pumpkins together today, but it was so hot out, that there wasn't much conversation.

Kim-that sounds like a fun place! We have a dairy farm and pumpkin farm. We milk 400 cows and work 1800 acres of land. Then in the fall we have about 75 acres of pumpkins, but our pumpkin farm is more like a festival; we have horse drawn wagonrides, animal barn, hay maze, corn maze, lots of different fall bakery foods, etc. Lots of stuff for kids to do, and we don't charge admission, so we're pretty popular in our area.

Barb-I love fall too. I was thinking today, how I met my husband when I was 17, and I just turned 35, I've been picking pumpkins for 18 years now, and I wonder how long my body is going to take it. It is truly back-breaking work, but at least now I'll be getting a lot of exercise in.

Wow, after having Linda's CC pot roast, I feel so satisfied, I'm hoping I'm done for the day!

Boy, I really needed to sign in this morning.... I have had a really bad attitude today and I really didn't care what I ate. Didn't plan for the day, or write anything I ate down. It is probably a good thing that I was gone most of the day. I took the kids school shopping so I wasn't around food. We stopped at Taco Bell for a quick snack, and I didn't even think about what would have been a good choice. We all just got a burrito and soda and called it a day. Then tonight we had BLTs, which I guess weren't all that bad, but I didn't care if they were or not. I was thinking on the way home, I am amazed how I have let one bad eating day totally take the wind out of my sails. I have felt so positive for these last two weeks, now I feel like I am starting all over again. Ugh. Tomorrow is going to be a tough day too. Meeting a friend and her kids at a park near here for picnic and swimming, then going out to dinner to celebrate August birthdays with some other friends. I know that I have to get my head in the game otherwise it will be a big disaster!! Grrrrrr!!

Erica - Your place sound fantastic!! My DH always puts in a big garden and this year his pumpkins are enormous. We have never grown anything this big! This kids are sooo excited to carve them!

Tech - Yup DH went to Comerica.... but we are taking the kids to Lansing on Saturday! We love the lugnut games. They are very affordable and the kids love that we can get so close to the field.

Laura - What a great surprise.... My friend used to live in that area and it is really nice!

Phyllis - Welcome and good luck!

Well, we are suppose to be getting in bed early and getting up early as an attempt to get on the school schedule. We are already behind, so I better get everyone moving. I do feel better after reading everyones post and writing my own frustrations. I know that this is a long journey (why doesn't it seem like it took a long time to get here????), and I have to just move one day at a time. I need to visualize what I look and feel like ten pounds lighter. Maybe get out this old college picture I have, I was really fit that summer and looked terrific. That could be some positive motivation. Deep breathe in, long breathe out......

Good night all! Kim2

Kim, I honestly don't know HOW to add you, or anyone else, as my buddy on myspace. I'm so pathetic when it comes to things like this. I will try to figure it out.
Where is everyone? Hardly any posts today. I miss you all.
I'll check my myspace to see if I can figure it all out, Kim. If not, perhaps I can get you guys to walk me through it?
I'm up at the lake and it's very peaceful up here right now. My plan for dinner was changed due to a power failure, but all turned out ok and within plan anyway.
I got some quilting done this afternoon as well, which was quite pleasing to me. Tomorrow morning, I will NOT set the alarm and I paln on going out on the paddleboat to earn a point or two. I do love being her, but it's odd being alone here.
I got a text message from my daughter and I feel really badly. She's starving... sitting around at 8:00 at night and no sign of dinner yet... these people live on an entirely different schedule. She seems unhappy, I wish I could help her.

Hello everyone,

Thansk for all your suggestions with my friend situation :hug: Work was not bad today it was just hard getting back into it.

derry: Yup I got your message I added you as one of my friends, to add kim just click on me or paige under your friends then it will take you to my profile scroll down and it shows my friends click on view all friends and kim is on there, her profile will then pop up and then there is a little box on her page and click on add to friends (hmm I hope this makes sense it's funny trying to type out instructions) once you do that you can be added to kim friends and she will be added to yours. To change your picture when you log on you are taken to a page where you can edit information click on add/edit photos there will be a box for upload photos click on browse to find the photo you want make sure you know where it is saved find the photo you want and click open the link to your photo will appear in the box that says browse from earlier then click upload then it will appear under my photos open up your photos and click the one you want as default. Hope this helps. If you have any questions I am sure Paige, Kim, or I can try to help. I hope your daughter is okay.

paige and kim: maybe you can help with the explanation I gave Linda I may have skipped over something

djmommy: glad that the bus situation is working itself out!! As far as WI, I think right now it's free registration well at least here in San Antono it is.

tech: I probably would be doing the same thing, planning a vacation is so much more fun!!

o2bskinny: good luck with school, gosh I have that itch again to want to go back to school I just finished my masters and what... I want to go back. I just love school I know I am a weirdo. Best of luck.

ericaL: good luck with all the decorations

I keep forgetting I need to find a new WI day maybe Wed this week today and tomm. are already out of the questions just b/c of work stuff but I think Wed may be good.

Good Evening.....or to some it is morning already.

Linda, I requested you as a friend on myspace, so you don't have to figure it out. It just takes some playing around on it......you will figure it out.
Let me know if I can help though.

Tomorrow is weigh in.....DD won't be able to go. She just started cheering for the town football youth league. and they have practice tomorrow during the meeting time. Anyway, she was in a blah mood and didn't seem to care what she ate. I didn't nag her. I told her I would get her and I both a new food journal tomorrow night and then Wed, we would make a new start of it. The craziness of the last week and 1/2 has apparently gotten to her too. Tonight I got a wild hair and started eating like crazy. What is the deal??? I am certainly not giving up, and have a great attitude on restarting with her on Wed, but why the he?? is this so hard to stay on track like we should?
Anyway, I am down in the dumps I guess, so I am gonna go read a little more in my books and go to bed.

Here is to a better tomorrow for ALL of us!!!!:cheer2:

Talk to you all tomorrow!!
Kim

Good morning all!

It's my first day back to school! Yay! This week I'm having the neighbor girl come over to watch dds; it will be nice to be able to just drive off to school without having to stop first.

Eating has been going well this week. I have been eating "normally" again...not skipping meals, not overeating. I really feel lately like food is not ruling my every thought anymore (maybe because my head is already spinning with so much else!!!) My scale hasn't shown it's "favorite number" in at least a few days. I think that is pretty promising for wi on Thursday, especially since my 5 hour long lab classes are like workouts. I have one today, tomorrow, and Th...I am going to be sore getting back into this routine!

Barb-That must be such an enormous relief that the bus situation is taken care of. Good for you, for taking control of the situation.

Janelle-It really stinks to have to let go of people like that, but sometimes it just has to be done. I have friend...she was actually in my wedding...and all the sudden she joined this extreme holy-roller type church. I have gone to church all of my life, and all of the sudden here she was preaching the Bible to me, quoting scripture (and interpreting it how I do not believe it is meant to be interpreted.) I even visited her one time, and she begged me to go to her "assembly"...I have never been put in such an uncomfortable position in my entire life. I still talk to her every now and then, but I have to keep my distance from her. It sucks...she is one of those people who has an "electric" personality, she was always one of my most favorite people to be around, but I can't have a friend that is constantly is trying to get me to change something that I have a strong belief in.

Linda-I can't even image what it would be like to have four days by myself! It is too bad if your dd isn't having a good time, but she made her choice... she will learn from it.

Erica-I have GOT to bring my girls up to your place!!! They would love it...it sounds like so much fun!!! Can you pm me your info, and when the "festivities" usually are happening? I think I could get dh to take a drive up there one day on the weekend. I didn't realize, for some reason, that you have a dairy farm as well. We have a family farm at my uncle's house that my uncles and my dad still run. It is so much work...I hate seeing my dad so tired out from it, but it's the only way they can keep good health insurance for my grandmother. My dad is retiring from it this January, thank goodness.

For all of you that had the tornados this past weekend...I didn't realize it till yesterday, but apparently we did, too (well, where my parents are, 3 1/2 hrs from here, still in NY.) One town there was declared in a state of emergency. Luckily the only person hurt just had broken glass in his eye. It also touched down in the town my parents live in and ripped up a few buildings.

Sorry not to address all, I've got to dry my hair and get my uniform on!

Chat later!

Good morning all.

Sorry I didn't post yesterday, I thought we would take my DS to the Enchanted Water Safari one more time before it closes for the season. What a great day we had. We walked so much and I even found a salad for lunch. It looked pre-made this time, I just picked out the yucky stuff...which is strange for me. I was glad I did.
Linda, I do hope you are having a great week. You had mentioned about sodium, and I had a hotdog on Saturday at my friends house. I was still within my points for the day. On Sunday I was at another friends house and the scale was up two pounds. I was shocked. I got my DH to get my scale out for yesterday and today to see how it was and I was back to normal. The only thing I could think of I ate that I normally don't is that hotdog. Yikes.
Paige, good luck at school today. It must feel awesome to be back. Have a wonderful time.
Erica, your farm does sound wonderful. I think my DS would love to visit. You must get such a workout just with daily living on the farm? Your girls must love living there?
Tech, you seem so focused, good for you. I still haven't rode my bike. I am now starting to feel guilty as my DH got me a bike and it is sitting in the garage. It is just after I walk and then go for my run during the day, I don't feel like I have time to bike. (that's my story)
Barb, I am so glad the bus got taken care of. It must be such a relief. Now it is time to concentrate on you.
Kim, good luck getting back on plan. I found rereading my book one from ww when I felt like eating helped to inspire me. Or walking, I found when I felt like eating something I shouldn't or didn't know what I was going to eat if I walked first I didn't eat like a crazy woman.
Kim2, I hope your week is going well. I haven't been to taco bell in two years, I feel like a taco and it is only 6:30 in the morning.
Laura, Yes I still run, I took the day off yesterday though, because I was just too tired when I got home. Oh yes after the water park I had to go shopping. I got all kinds of sales for school stuff. I just love those Super Wal-marts. I can't believe how inexpensive things are there.
Erika, Paige 2, Emma, and Ginny where are you? I do hope all is well.
Haylo, I do hope that you have an awesome day and you drink a lot of water, and exercise and have fun. We need a new challenge. I really enjoyed our walking challenge. We could keep that one going if you want to.
I do hope everyone is doing well and that you have a great Tuesday all.
Enjoy your day!
Hello to anyone I missed.

I'll try to play with my myspace later on. I made a facebook page as well the other night too. I was in an adventuresome mood.
I want to save my play time for that kind of thing until later though, as the bright morning sunshine and my breakfast are calling my name.
I watched two "chick flicks" yesterday while I was cutting my fabric and made my own dinner on my own. It was fun to go to Blockbuster on my way out yesterday, I selected five movies that the rest of my family probably wouldn't enjoy and wouldn't want to watch with me, that felt great to do my own thing.
This morning's breakfast will be a 2 point mini bagel with lite cream cheese, a one point yogurt and a pear. I've been journalling and all will be good! I plan on earning 2 activity points today as well. Lunch will be a turkey pita bread sandwich with lettuce and tomato. Dinner will be a WW meal that my daughter and I cooked when were here her least week and froze the leftovers, it was good last week and I look forward to having it this week too. It's a spaghettia bolagnaise (sp?)
As usual, forgive any spelling errors as this laptop doesn't have spell check.

Hi everyone! I am down to 142 again this week ... now onward and downward! Linda ... THANK YOU ... of course your suggestions worked and I'm so grateful you took the time to spell them out.

I had a good run yesterday - 2.75 miles - and I'm planning some yoga for later today. Food plans:
PB&J toast (3)
blueberries & coolwhip (1)
salad (5)
hummus & crackers (3)
chicken saagwala and rice (7)
wine (2)
ice cream (4)
total = 26

Sorry ... I am WAY too far behind to do personals today ... but I will try to be better. Hugs to all and wishes for a terrific OP day.

If anyone is interested in seeing the dress I made for Claire, click on the "visit my blog" link in my sig!
cheers
Erika

HI everyone..I finally joined again..I am so glad. i did talk to the leader about why I quit and she is willing to work with me again..She is a great leader and helps you personally each week.(if yo like) I erased my tracker because I know I gained a lot but not sure how much . I may check later. I put on a Halloween thingy to remind me of my Halloween goal which I think is going to be 12 pds. I would shoot for 2 pds a week but I know that will not happen.

Does anyone have a good pork loin recipe for the crock.? I will use the left over for pulled apart pork sandwhiches for Dh but would like something different than what I normally do for the inital dinner.

Hope you all hgave a good day. Sorry about not responding to anyone but I am in a hurry to get caught up around here.....Take care Barb

Hello everyone well day two down at work and it hasn't been to bad the only thing is that when I get home I just want to munch on something I wonder if it's b/c I am moving around more during the day. So yesterday I went to the store and bought fruit and jello's and stuff so that I will be able to come home and have a healthy low point snack. As far as my eating well it's been pretty good except today I think I ate something with a little to much olive oil I was trying this recipe and I don't think I liked it to much I like olive oil but I think I am going to need to add some vegtables and maybe some chicken. The recipe was basically noodles, olive oil and some bacon bits I think that's what threw it off was the bacon bits so I think tomorrow I might try to fix it up a little.

Derry: I got your message from you myspace, it does take time and playing around with but once you get the hang of it, it's not to bad. Sounds like you had a nice "me" day sometimes I love those kinds of days.

paige: yeah, sometimes those types of friendship's as fun as they can be are just not healthy for us.

ann: my excercise these past two days has been zero, today I wanted to excercise but I have to go back to work for an orientation. I would love to do our walking challenge again, yesterday as a matter of fact I walked 10,000 steps just at work alone. Today I only got 5,000 probably b/c I spent most of the day infront of the computer tyring to come up with a schedule. My goal tomorrow is to walk 10,000 steps, excercise, and go to WI I can do this. I always forget about water I need to do better with this so tomorrow my goal is to drink at least 32 oz of water. My bday is coming up in late september and I really want to lose some weight, I also have a wedding to go to so I am going to use those two things as motivation.

djmommy: glad you went back to the meetings


eus: congrats on being down

02bskinny: I think getting a new journal will be good for you, think of it as staring over as a matter of fact I will do that with you tomorrow I am going to get a new journal and start over.

Welcome, Phyllis, and I put no other liquid in that roast recipe. It came, just so you know, from the cookbook "Fix It and Forget it Lightly". I highly recommend this cookbook to anyone. So many great choices.
Tech, I love that survey you read about a good night's sleep and weight loss. I wish I could afford a Tempurpedic mattress from Brookstone right now. I swear I almost felt relaxed enough to fall asleep while in the store! My son, who works for them, tells me that they have actually had people fall asleep in the store a few times. They laugh and I certainly won't let that happen to me!
Great NSV resisting the breadsticks!
DJM, great that you got a new bus! I hope weigh in goes well for you.
Janelle, I really appreaciate your help with myspace. I can't do anything with photos until I am home from the lake, actually, as all my photos are on the desktop computer at home. I did update my profile though and put in more stuff about me. I want to be able to customize my background and have some fun with it, but it's babysteps for me right nowl
Kim, actually it's good that your daughter is going to cheer as that is great exercise. Find a different meeting day/time and she'll do OK. We all have our times when we are less enthusiastic about our weight loss efforts, so don't worry if she is a bit blah.
Paige, I read what you said about your friend and her religion and I've been through this kind of thing as well, with a friend. She's taken her faith to an entirely different level and it's kind of creepy to me. I have my faith and beliefs and I don't need to be lectured and I think I lead a normal life and God is certainly an important part, but I'm not over the top with it. Maybe she is right and I am wrong, but I need to judge for myself.
Erika, Tell me about the PB +J that you (and Paige) have for breakfast occasionally. Are you using light bread? Low fat peanut better? Low sugar jelly? I tried a lightened version of a PB+J sandwich last week and it actually sucked, I thought. Maybe, for me, it's one of those foods that I must have the real thing, or not at all?
I'm glad my suggestions helped you, Erika! Which things worked the best?
Sometimes a certain thought or idea really clicks and that is so wonderful when it happens!
DJM, I do have a pork loin recipe for the crockpot, but it's at home. I think it had apple juice or apple juice concentrate in it. I can't remember, but I remember it was pretty good.
One thing I do with pork loin that is very nice is to wrap it in foil after putting salt, pepper and onion powder on it and put it on the grille for about 30 minutes or so, while something else is cooking. I then slice it in wide slices about an inch and a half and then pull it appart with my fingers. I then mix that in my favorite BBQ sauce and refrigerate. We heat it in the micro in portion sizes and put on hambuger buns (light ones work well too) and it's so very good! It's really low in points, the fat content is really low. Try it!
Today was a great day for eating. I was right on target and still have three points left for a dessert! I went out on the paddle boat today and earned two points. I "chased" a big bass who was swimming close to the surface. I was able to paddle and stay close to him/her for about 200 feet or so. I had my cell phone with me and tried taking a photo of it underwater, but there was too much reflection.
I spent the majority of the day getting almost all the fabric cut to make my daughter's high school graduation gift. I really accomplished a great deal. I ate well, and resisted the chocolate and cookie cravings that hit mid afternoon by having a 100 cal pack of popcorn and some iced tea.

Well, my DD went to cheer practice and I went ahead and went to my meeting. Another mom took her and it is right around the corner from my WW meeting. I LOST 1.5 POUNDS! I am not sure how, but I am happy. My DD agreed tomorrow is a new day and we will start over. So Haylo....Tomorrow is starting over....we can do this!!!

Well, I have tons of studying, so I can't stay on here, just wanted to share the good news!! YAY!!!!!

Kim

Good evening all!

Barb - so glad to hear your meeting was a good experience. you can do this!!

Janelle - great job planning your post-work snacks! I find myself with the munchies at the end of the workday too ... could be stress release.

Linda - I have regular organic PB (1 tbsp for 2 points); 2 slices ww bread (for 1 point) and some sugar-free jam. We have a great brand in Canada called E.D. Smith. I think Smucker's has a good one too. Filling and tasty!
I think the points you made that are sticking with me the most are: PLAN (your whole day at once); get activity points each day; and of course religiously journaling. Of course I knew that these things work, but I needed the reminder, and also I tend to just accumulate points all day and not PLAN everything beforehand ... this is key.

well done with your fabric work! I was cutting fabric today too. Alas, I made a stupid beginner mistake. I had a pattern piece flipped according to the layout ... couldn't see the cutting lines ... and snipped right into the center back of a top. Nice!! Fortunately my online source had some more of my fabric available. Grrrr ...


Kim! WTG!! :woohoo: Very exciting!

Have a great night everyone,
Erika

Linda-I use ww lite bread (1 pt) regular pb (2 pts) and a very small amount of no sugar jam (I think I use less than 1/2 a serving, so it's 0 pts.)

BTW, had to tell you guys of an OMG! moment last night...my dh had gotten these frozen burgers from Sam's Monday night. Once in awhile I'll have him throw me a burger on the grill when I'm tired of chicken...they usually are about 6 pts. So last night I got the bag of burgers out, and happened to glance at the nutrition facts...560 cal, 43 grams of fat!!!! WHAT?! They were larger than normal size...I put it into the points calculater on etools...15 pts per burger!!! HOLY MOLY! Dh had also picked up a package of 90% lean ground beef, so I opted to make a burger out of that. SHEW...that was a close one.

Gotta run...I leave for my artisan bread class shortly.

Chat later...have a great morning all!

Darn. The cat stepped on this laptop and deleted my entire post. I spent lots of time on it and grrrrrrr..... Oh well.
Let's try to recreate....
Kim, congrats on the loss! Great job. The program works for sure and sometimes, I swear, that we never know when a loss will come. I do think that oftentimes being good this very week won't reflect on the scale until a week or two, but then again I can have a few very good days and really see my weight dip, but it will "normalize" afterward.
Thanks for the PB+J tips, looks like the low fat peanut butter is the culprit. It's funny that that stuff seems greasy and I wonder how it seems greasy when it's supposed to be lower in fat. The texture and flavor are diministed. I purchased the stuff to make a recipe, that turned out good (remember the peanut butter pie I brough to RI with me?) but it just doesn't "cut it" in a sandwich. I'll tell DH to microwave it and put it on his ice cream. He does that with peanut butter over top of chocolate ice cream, talk about a high point treat, wow!
Paige, those hamburger patties just go to show that you need to check everything. They sure sound really high in points, wow! A good learning experience. I never buy the pre-made frozen burgers anymore (not that I made a habit out of it) after there were all the reports about e-coli a few years ago.
Well, time to go make my pre-planned breakfast.
Today's planned menu:

Breakfast:
Oatmeal - 2
Calorie Countdown milk - 1
1/2 banana - 1

Lunch:

Salad with ham, cheese, peppers, cucumber, tomato, kalamata olives
= 3 for the ham and cheese
Low point roll - 2
Margarine- 1
Oil and vinegar - 2

Points used 12, 8 remaining
paddle boat - earning 2 points
Total remaining now - 10

Dinner:
stovetop mac n cheese (love this recipe, the one I posted a week or so ago)
8 points (6 points a cup, but who is kidding who, I'll have more than a cup)
spinach - 0

Points remaining 2 for my WW frozen dessert

If I have popcorn or fruit for a snack, it will be flex points or I may swim today and earn another point.... we'll see how it goes.
Today is the last day on my tracker and I have only 2 flex points left, so I do have them to use if I want.
Happy Wednesday to all!

Oh yes, Erika, sorry about cutting that fabric in the wrong place. Is it a big cut? Could you applique something over top of the spot and make it look like it was meant to be?
Also, if you do end up ordering more of the fabric, you can use the fabric that you destroyed to make an accessory item, like a purse, to match!

hee hee, exactly Linda ...I did order more fabric so actually I was thinking I'd make a little tiny tunic for Claire so we would match :)

Good morning ladies,
Have a wonderful Wednesday.

Hello Phyllis, welcome

Linda, how is your me time? I do hope you are enjoying it? Have you heard from your daughter? That mattress you are talking about seems like it would be wonderful.

Erika, congratulations on getting to 142. It seems so far away for me. You seem like you are one busy lady.

Paige, How do you like being back at school? Are the girls enjoying the babysitter? Wow, good thing you read the label on the hamburgers. Yikes. I would never even think about it if we were at someone else's house and they served them. Now I will pay attention. Thanks for that.

Erica, How are you doing? I hope you are taking care of you.

Janelle, that is awesome you walked 10,000 steps the other day, way to go. How is your new journal. I find I journal everyday, it is just a part of life for me. Drink your water. What are your lunches like that you bring to school?

Barb, enjoy taking care of you. I sure like September as I get back into a routine. I do hope your meetings are a positive experience for you.

Tech, where will you be going on your vacation? Are you just visiting the area or do you have friends you will be visiting?

Laura, Wow that is awesome your BIL got you tickets for LA. I am sure it will be a nice time.

Kim, congratulations on losing. How is your daughter enjoying cheer. I think she would get a lot of exercise with that. You should be so proud of yourself, it takes a lot of work going back to school and being a mom. Yeah you.

Well today seems like it will be quieter. My son has a friend coming over while his mom does her school shopping and I am sure more friends will come later. I have basically been eating on plan and exercising. My life seems uneventful, which is good I think.
I do hope you all have a great Wednesday.
Hello to everyone else out there.

Erika and Linda, you ladies are both so creative.
Great minds think a like I have heard.
Have a great day
Ann

Erika, I just saw your dress, that is great.

Hello All,

Posting really quick before I leave for work.

I went to wi yesterday and was up. I'm not going to update my tracker because I'm sure it was a fluke. I usually wi in the morning but couldn't this week so I went to an evening class, and we had steak for dinner for DH's b-day monday night and I usually try not to eat like that the day before wi because they say it takes more than 24 hrs to pass thru. Anyway, according to my scale at home (which was also up yesterday) I am back down today :) So I'm ignoring last night as a fluke.

Sorry I don't have time to reply to everyone. I WILL stop back after work.

-Tech

Wow, you guys sound like you are really getting focused and mean business!! Me? Today was the official WI and I am up 2lbs. :( Better than the four I was, but still a disappointment. The next couple of days are going to be tough. We are having friends over today, tomorrow should be an easy day, then the zoo on Friday, baseball game on Saturday, BBQ Sunday and probably Monday too. So.... I will do what I can, but I think that I am just going to coast until Monday and then really make a come back. The kids go back to school on Wednesday, so I can start concentrating on what I need to do for me, instead of what I need to do for them.

I think the other thing that I am going to do is take the batteries out of the scale and not weigh myself everyday. I think that I am a tad obsessed and that has to stop. I usually justify it by saying that if I know what I weigh every day, I stay in more control. But, I have to believe that if I am making good choices both food wise and with exercise, there will be some positive outcome of it. And then I won't get soooo disappointed when I do have a "bad" day.

So, everyone have a super day. I have a house full of kids crabbing to go in the pool.... of course once they get in and feel how reeeeeeally cold it is, they will be out in a second!!

Kim2

Hi everyone, Well yes went well. But today we walked at the mall and stopped after for a great sale at a store. (which ended up to be not such a great sale) Anyway , after looking for a great sale we decided to have lunch....We went to panara bread...Yummy, well going in not looking up my best choice I choose a veggie soup and 1/2 of a panni sand. Chicken...sounded healthy..came home and looked it up..OMG 20 pts for a whole sandwhich and 2.5 for the soup alone. So I ate 12.5 for lunch, plus before going.. at breakfast I had a bananna and some tuna on triscuits.....Need to count that up...I will be dipping in my flex...Wanted to save those for the weekend...Oh welll live and learn...I should have known ordering a panini sand...

Linda you will have to let me know the recipe or how far back to look. The Mac one. Sounds like one the kids would enjoy....
.
Paige yikes at least you cought yourself...Wish I could of today.....

Congrads to those of you who lost....Yipppe

Have a great day...I need to go jot my pts...Barb

Erika, Claire must be the family dog? Cute idea to have a tunic that matches!
Ann, my "me time" hasn't gone as planned, but that is always the way things go in life. The first day I was here, I had to wait around ALL DAY for a repairman to come for an estimate. I found chunks of cement all over the floor by our chimney when I arrived and had to call in a person to look at it, it wouldn't be safe to have a fire obviously. We have to reinstall the wood stove and put in a new chimney. Life goes on... but I never got to visit the antique, furniture, craft shops, and other places I wanted to go to. Tomorrow morning, I plan to go to a few of them and then come back here to pack up and go home.
I wish, in a way, that I was going home tonight or something as I am sad and missing my family. For some reason, I am also really feeling the loss of both my parents this evening. I am wishing to be home, but no one in my family is there anyway - so if I am to be alone, why not here?
Perhaps I'll just pack up and leave tomorrow morning and not bother to shop? We'll see. My heart isn't in it, my heart is with my family.
I did have a friend visit here today and she brought lunch and cookies, so what is a girl to do? I couldn't insult her and not eat, though I should have said not to the cookie. But, it was good.
But, sometimes when I do not eat the right thing, it leads to a few other indulgences. I had two light beers with my dinner. I was almost drinking them with a vengeance or something. Ah well, as long as I live I'll never understand myself.
Tomorrow is another day.
Forgive me if I don't respond to everyone individually, will save some of that for morning.

Good Evening Everyone,

It has been hot and muggy here today and now storms are rolling through there is a funky color outside the window (I'm in the basement so they're glass blocks you can't see thru) and thunder has been booming. I worked today and man did I sweat!!! Then as if I hadn't sweated enough I went to Curves and exercised. I'm tired and sticky but proud of myself. :D Tomorrow is supposed to be cooler and I'll ride in then ride after work. No big plans for the holiday, we're thinking of going to the state fair on Sat, and then Sun we have my mom's family reunion, I usually don't eat too bad as long as I stay away from the wine. Somehow campfires and alcohol go together for me, but I shall behave! :)

Ann - we are going on vacation to the white mountains in NH and Boston, with stops on the way out in Cooperstown and on the way back in Hyde Park, NY and Scranton, PA. The trip is just to see stuff. Thats how we usually plan vacations, and because we don't have kids we can go in spring and fall when crowds are down (although this time it's during peak :crossed: colors so it'll still be crowded). I bought a new pedometer and am trying to figure out how you get in 10,000+ steps a day! I've been averaging about 7-8 thousand and I walk a lot at work. I'm more impressed than I was before.

Barb - the link to Linda's mac & cheese is http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=118909&page=7 I hate when I check something and it's way more than I thought. Panera's bread is high, that's where most of the points come from.

Linda - bummer about the chimney. Cheer up :hug: Didn't you say this was your parent's cabin? That's probably why you're thinking of them. Have a good night. I bought a low sugar Jiff (I don't like the lf pb either) and it was pretty good and lower cal than reg more peanutty tasting too.

Kim2 - bummer about the gain. Don't let the weekend slide too much. I find not stressing a good plan but if I throw caution to the wind I can undo a lot of hard work in 3 days.

Paige - close call on those burgers. Now I'll I know why they're not showing up at my sil's anymore since she rejoined ww. That used to be what they served all the time. I don't like hamburgers so I never ate them anyway.

Kim & Erika - Congrats on the losses.

Haylo - the first days back are always the hardest. You'll get back in the swing in no time.

Well I should go scrounge up dinner. It's leftovers in this house tonight. Have a great one everyone.

-Tech

Hello everyone,

Well I didn't get everything accomplished that I wanted to, I had everything all planned out as far as excercising and going to WI but as I was on my way home to change for the gym a friend of mine called me to remind me it was her son's b-day ugh.... no gym for me she is a single mom and her son is turning 7 so they invited me out with them for dinner. So out went my plans for the gym and for WI so tomorrow no doubt I am heading straight to the gym and to WI.

Ann: I did it again 10,000 steps at work, as far as my lunch for work I try to take sandwiches or salads, or lean cuisines, smart ones with fruit or yogurt or both depending. Actually what I have been trying to do is figure out my breakfast and lunch the night before and calculate points and everything so that way in the morning I already know what to take. Hopefully I can keep that up

paige: WOW!!!! good thing you checked out those hamburgers I hate when I just think in my head I know how many points something is and then I look at it and it is much more then I thought. Funny you were looking at the fat I was looking at this salad kit earlier today and although it was low in fat and calories man it had tons of sodium in it those preservatives kills us (literally)

derry: ha ha what you said about your cat made me laugh, only b/c my cat has been known to do things like that also.

tech: sounds like you had a nice active day, I have started to notice that I feel guilty when I don't do something active.

djmommy: funny how those points we don't know about add up it's crazy isn't it?

belly: sorry about your gain, but I know you can get things going back in the right direction, sounds like you have a busy weekend. I too am scale obsessed and for a while my scale wasn't working so I couldn't weight myself I think it actually helped b/c now sometimes I forget about it, even though it's working perfectly fine now. Sometimes I need it to get myself back on track.

everyone else I missed I hope you guys had good days, and have great days tommorrow.

I just wanted to check in. I am studying and decided to take a break. I have noticed I am snacking on the RIGHT things, just TOO MUCH of it! It happens at night. I have to get it under control. Same habits, different food.

After readying about the burgers Paige almost ate, It really does make sense as to why so many people are overweight. Unless you read labels (most don't unless they go on a diet), you have no idea what you are putting in your mouth. It is really irritating. Even my DD's school lunches are supposed to be healthy......HAHA!!! I was looking at the menu (she hasn't bought her lunch, but I just wanted to see if there was anything she MIGHT could eat if she wanted to buy it). They had Chicken nuggets, Pizza, French fries, Moon Pies. Cake, etc. Things are just FULL of fat and calories.

Well, I vented on that one.....sorry.

Ok, sounds like everyone is doing well. Linda, Go shopping and enjoy yourself. You will probably be glad you did. I hope tomorrow morning finds you feeling a little less lonely.

Good Night!
Kim

morning everyone. It's meeting day today. I am actually going to take a pass at WI but go to my meeting. I let my grocery shopping slide to the back burner and have not been making some good choices. So I'm going to meeting today, pretending I'm starting over and making meal plans and a GOOD grocery list today.

I'm planning on doing quite a bit of canning of tomatoes this weekend so I want to have my food plans in place.

I want to thank every one of you ladies for being here. You are my lifeline at this point. You give me hope and I know I can do this

Good morning ladies,

Linda I am so sorry you are missing your parents. I know my mom passed away 7 years ago in September and for some reason around the beginning of September I miss her so very much. I think it is because I have so many good memories and as the summer is coming to an end I am just reminded of her. I hope that today is a better day for you. I am just thankful that I have those memories of my mother. Linda you always give us such great advice and support here. I wanted to say thanks to you for that, I know I appreciate all you do here.

Haylo, yeah, 10,000 steps, you did awesome. Don't worry about going to dinner with your friend. We still have to live life while we are on this journey and I am sure it meant the world to your friend and her son. I see you are truly a great friend.

Tech, Cooperstown, are you going to the hall of fame? I think the fall colours are so beautiful. Last year we took my DS out of school 3 times for vacations. The teacher said, he learns stuff when we go places and he comes back and tells the other children where he went and what he did. So they learn a little about things they weren't planning to learn about. I get in my steps because I make myself walk when I want to drive. It isn't that hard once you start doing it. I am impressed by all the riding you do.

Kim 2 sorry about your gain. Remember the kids are back next week and then you can focus on you. Have a great weekend. It sounds like you are busy.

Laura, I hope your meeting goes well for you. I know I find when I don't have my groceries stocked it is more difficult to eat healthy. It takes more work when I haven't planned. Did you get storms last night? We got them this morning and it was a lot of lightning and thunder. I hope you have a great day.

Kim, Do you make you DD lunch or does she. I know I enjoy my own food rather than restaurant/cafeteria food. I think it tastes better. Have a great day and I hope you got all your studying done.

Hello to Paige, Paige 2, Erica, Barb, Erika, Phyllis, Ginny and Emma and anyone else I missed.

Have a great day everyone.

Laura, dear, my advice is to weigh in, face the music and deal with it. It's hard to get on that scale in front of someone else and weigh in, if you know there is a gain, but think about it. Then, you will know what you are at, and next week's weigh in will show a fabulous loss as you are already getting back on track!
I haven't been to a meeting as I have been away from home. But, I hope there would have been a loss this week. There is no scale here at our lake cottage, and that is a good thing. Up until yesterday afternoon and last night, I was VERY good up here. Today begins a new journal and I have all the best intentions for the next several days. I went down the wrong path last night, though. I had two beers with dinner, but stopped before I hit a third one! I was very sad and lonely and just feeling sorry for myself. Yesterday was exactly like the day my dad died, in terms of weather. He died on September 15th and it was right after Hurricane Katrina. All the stuff on the news about Katrina was really bringing back all the memories. It was a hard night. I kept wishing that somehow, from heaven, that mom and dad could contact me, but admonishing myself for being silly. It was always so nice to have them for comfort.
Those of you who still have your parents, do call them today and tell them you love them. Take the time to be with them and do something to show you care, if you can. Do it for me.
Kim, thanks for your suggestions. I probably will do some shopping "therapy" this morning, nothing feels better than spending a few dollars and getting out in the world. I shall try. Also, it does pay to read labels. If I have to buy anything, nowadays, and there are different brands to choose from, I read the serving size, fat and calories before choosing to buy something. It's really enlightening. I have shaved thousands of points off our foods over the last couple of years just by doing this one thing. It's amazing how things differ, that all appear to be the same.
Tech, I'm going to save the low fat peanut butter for baking and go back to rationing small amounts of the real thing on occasion. I look upon peanut butter as a luxury item, considering how high in points it is. It really bothers me that peanuts are so high, considering that they are somewhat healthy and have no cholesterol. Oh well. A little bit goes a long way and I always measure peanut butter, as my "eye" will allow me bigger serving sizes all the time, I'm afraid. Speaking of which, how many of you actually do measure portions?
Thanks for providing the link to the mac'n cheese recipe. It's awesome and tasty! I love it as much as I love those boxes of mac 'n cheese like Velveeta Shells and Cheddar. If you put on the pasta before you start the recipe and lay out all the ingredients ahead, it's a super easy thing to make. It's quite tasty and I have leftovers for lunch today! I told my daughter on the phone that I was making it and she begged me to freeze some for when she gets home, she is in love with it as well.
Well, today is my travel day. I'm feeling less sad and miserable in the light of day, so I shall not go home until this afternoon. I will savor the morning and shop for awhile instead. I will look up to the sky and appreciate the day. I may even stop at my son's favorite restaurant and get him a N.E. Clam chowder to go as a treat to bring home for him as we will be just two for dinner tonight. He'd love that, I'm sure!
So, today is a new day, the sun shines, the birds sing, I'm here and so are you guys..... what can we do to further our efforts towards succeeding our goals? Perhaps we all need something new, something fresh that gives us new perspectives? I'll be pondering that!
Now, I'm taking an "unofficial" poll, but I need your help.
We are going to a wedding on the weekend of 9/16 out of state. I've never met the couple. They are older (early 40s) and he is a business associate of my husband. What I know about them can only fill one paragraph. The love antique cars and own 4 or 5 of them, they were even going to have wedding rings designed with engines on them vs. a prescious stone of some sort. Interesting people. So, my husband says that we should shop e-bay or something like that for a car-related wedding gift. I've asked for what type of cars these people have so I can be on the lookout.
But, maybe a more traditional wedding gift is in order? But, this sounds like a very casual wedding, the invitation said to dress casual and bring your bathing suit. They said it's a BBQ.... so maybe a non-traditional gift is in order?
But, knowing this about the event and people, what would YOU personally get for a gift? How much would you spend? We've not been to a wedding or invited to a wedding for about 10 years, so I'm totally out of touch with things. I figured I'd ask you all!

Ann, our posts crossed. Thanks for your kind words. Labor Day weekend always has been a traditionally sad weekend for me, no matter what as it signifies the end of summer. I almost feel this time of year is our "new year" vs. January 1 as our calendar traditionally proclaims.
I'm sorry you lost your own mom this time of year. It's really hard, isn't it? No matter how much time goes by, I guess it's always going to be hard. For dad, it will be 2 years on 9/15 and I can't believe it's been that long. I do not want to change things here as he built this cabin, but our chimney is unsafe and we need to modify it, or risk burning the place down. I think that one thing kind of got me on the wrong path, in a way, and when you add missing my own immediate family and weather exactly like the day he died to the equation, I'm in trouble.
But, I will go home later, I will see my son for dinner and my husband will be home around 9 pm tonight and I shall get a bug hug! That will do me wonders!
Time to move on with life, put the past in the past, right?
HUGS to you all,

Ladies, I have a question!

I started WW on Sunday....I weigh every a.m., I know I know....after the first 2 days I was down 1 lb. now after the last 2 days I am back up that lb.

I had a hard time yesterday eating my 24 pts. I know I am eating more carbs than I had been. Maybe it is just water?? It is scaring me being up so quickly.

The scales don't usually bother me, maybe I just need to wait and weigh at the end of the week?

Quess the question is has this happened to anyone else?

Thanks, Phyllis

Phyllis, can't help you with this question because I stay off the scale until WI days. It's just to depressing for me to watch the daily fluctuations. I don't even have mine out at home.

Funny you should post about weighing in Linda - my mind had already gone there on my commute in this morning! Thanks for the reinforcement from both you and Ann!

Phyllis, I really enjoy your quote on your post. I find that the scale sends me for a loop, I have gone down in close sizes but all I focused on was that number on the scale. I suggest just weighing yourself once a week at the same time. Unless you are attending meetings and then don't weigh yourself, let the ww staff do it. You need to focus on what is going well for you and not focus just on the scale. I know that I have had a two pound gain in a day and found out it was just sodium. I find mentally it makes you crazy.
Weight gain could be from not drinking enough water, exercising and your muscles retaining water, or any sort of thing.

Linda, don't forget about the past though, the past has made you who you are today. I think it is okay to wish your parents would come to you. I am sure your dad would want you to make the cabin safe. He built it and struturely you are not changing anything. He would rather you were safe. I think it would honour your parents to see that you are living your life and enjoying the cabin, I am sure that is what any parent would want for their child. Always remember how much they do love you. I do hope your shopping went well. That is a great idea to bring your son home some NE clam chowder. I am sure your parents thought of you in the same way you are always thinking of your children. You are blessed to be their daughter.

Laura, I do hope today is going well. I have been thinking about you all morning and thinking I should be out buying groceries so that I have healthy things here. I hope today is a great day for you.

Have a great day everyone.

Phyllis, it may be hard to eat the 24 points, but make sure you are. You have to eat enough, or your body will do funky things. Also, put the scale up. Only weigh in once a week. I use to do that, and I would find myself upset and stressed because they didn't say what I thought they should. If you weigh 1 time a week, you will get a true picture without the stress. Hard, I know....I struggle about staying off the scale, but it really isn't worth what it does to you.

Linda, tell us what you got on your shopping trip!! I hope you got something for yourself! As far as the wedding gift....I would say get them something FUN...The car-related gift is a great idea. They are older, so they probably have what they NEED, and from what you said, it is a FUN, casual wedding, so I would get them something fun. Did I say "fun" enough??? Sorry..
I will for sure take what you said to heart about my parents. I live 35 minutes from them and haven't seen them in a couple months. Life gets hectic, and before I know it, it has been forever since I have seen them. They are both in poor health and I know if I don't MAKE time, I will regret it. My kids love them dearly and I think their grandkids are what keep them alive. I really am ashamed that the kids want to see them so badly and vise versa but I never honor that. Tomorrow we will go visit when the kids get home from school. Thanks for your words and reminder....sometimes I am more selfish than I ever thought.

Laura - I hope you decided to go to WI......That is the hard part of this journey, facing the difficulties and dealing with it and moving on. I agree with Linda, you can find out what damage you have done, then you will know what you have to do to make it right again. Good luck!

Ann, I usually make her lunches, but she tells me pretty much what she wants. I really hope the cheering will help move the scales. The last month has been so hot she hasn't been playing, swimming, or anything. Now the homework till 11 at night also puts a damper on her activities. She is normally so active, but not lately.

Well, I have decided that I have NO choice but to lose this weight. I have decided that I want people to look at me.....ask my age......and when they hear '40' say........NO WAY!!! YOU LOOK GREAT!!!! My theme is going to be "40 and fabulous!!!!"

Ok, my kiddos will be home shortly, so I am going to get my books and study till they get home.

You ladies are wonderful! Thank you for always, always being here. How awesome to know such great support is only a click away. Even when someone is down, it feels good to know everyone cares.

Have a incredible day!
Hugs :hug: to all!
Kim

Ooohhhh *that Was Painful!!!!!!!

Hello everyone, geez things have been crazy at work. I have been coming home with headaches everyday, but today regardless of headache I went to go workout and go WI and I was down .2 which isn't much but I usually go to WI in the morning and this time I went in the evening so not bad. Well I have been looking at computer screens all day which is probably why I have a head so I just wanted to stop in and say hello.

Ann: really quick 8000 steps today.

Linda I understand how you are feeling...My dad passed away in Sept ,9 years ago and it seems like yesterday...He was buried on my moms bday to top things off. Which was sept.15th..Just today I told my story to a friend on how he died which was not fair at all. It is very hard and I still miss him dearly. My mom will be 80 this month. She is my best friend. I do cherish every moment I am with her. I hate the fact that I am 3 hrs away from her and I use to be 1 mile away. We shared a lot of special moments together when I was back in MI. Now she can not drive to see me and I need my family to bring her here. That is one reason why I want to move back...Just to be with her and my family ...Anyway, I just wanted to say hang in there and you are right about huggy and visiting with family cuz life is way to short.

I did well today still need to write a few things down.... I am staying in my range or at least a few over...I did walk again today so I am happy about that... Tom came today so I am hoping for a weight loss next week. Maybe I was up due to that?? I need to stay focused this weekend....Someone is calling better go I will check in later Barb

Good morning everyone,
I can't keep up to these posts! It sounds like everyone is so motivated around here, that is awesome! Well we brought DD's to the fair last night, and I wasn't as good as I was when we went last weekend. Today is a new day, I shall not get hung up on my poor choices last night.

Paige-thanks so much for that chocolate chip recipe. We tested them on Tuesday, and what a huge hit! In fact, I ordered all the ingredients in bulk yesterday, so I think they're going to be our signature choc. chip cookie! It must be the vanilla pudding that keeps them so moist? How are they with semi-sweet chips? That's pretty cool that your dad is still "farming it". I grew up on a dairy farm as well, and my parents still make their living that way. I will send you our website address. It's a fun place, but I'm sure there are some great pumpkin farms around you aren't there? I just don't want you to drive all that way, and then be let down by our place. We are popular around here, but that's because our pumpkins are only $2.00/each no matter the size. For 20 years, they were only $1.00/each, and that is how we got so famous, but then last year, we had to raise the price.

Tech- sounds like you have a great vacation planned... I remember the days before we had kids, to be able to just pack up and go wherever, was a lot of fun. Cooperstown isn't that far from us, maybe like 2 hours east of us? Such a nice town.

Linda- it sounds so peaceful at your cabin in the woods, on the lake. Whenever you are there, I always envision it.... and you with your laptop :).

Ann- What grade is your son going into this year?

Laura- so I gather WI was painful?

Well, I should go for now, Hello to everyone else!

Hello All,

Didn't do to well yesterday. I had all the best intentions but then developed a huge headache and came home instead of riding farther, then didn't feel up to cooking so we ordered pizza :( Oh well, today is another day. I will update my tracker and move on.

Laura - Did you make it to the grocery store? Sorry about what I assume was a gain.

Linda - glad you're feeling better. Did you have fun shopping? I agree something fun for the wedding present. When DH and I got married we were already established each had our own home, we didn't need the traditional wedding gifts, in some cases we ended up with 3 of stuff (mine, his, wedding gift...)

Ann - yes the Hall of Fame is why we are going there. I've always wanted to see it and it was easy to make it on the way for this trip.

Kim - Too bad about the school lunches for your daughter. Did you happen to watch the Jaime Oliver series on making over school lunches in England? It was very enlightening and then Shaq had Tyler Florence do the ones here for his special series this summer. Although I have to say I ate milk shakes and fries for lunch in high school and I wasn't over weight. Of course it didn't teach me good habits for later.

Haylo - Yea on going to the gym even when you don't want to.

Erica - Your farm sounds like fun. Don't worry about last night we can only change what happens today.

To everyone else, Hope you're doing well.

I've gotta go. Have breakfast and get dinner in the crockpot. That worked well last week so trying it out again with a different recipe.

Have a great day everyone.

-Tech

Hi Rennie, I hope your headache goes away! Sounds like you may have migraines! Good luck with that!

Tech - I hope your head is feeling better too. My husband had one the other day and he really had a hard time shaking it.

Erica, you are making me want to go get fall decorations...but it isn't quite time around here. Oh.....how I long for fall!!!! And $2 pumpkins?? That is great! I bet you guys do stay busy!

Haylo - What is it with all these headaches around here? I hope yours is better too! But good for you working out and even for the small loss! Sure beats the heck out of a small gain!! Since we always weigh more in the evening, you probably lost more than that! You go girl! Excercising with a headache is motivation! Good for you!

Barb, I always either gain or stay the same when TOM comes. Good for you walking..I hope in the next few weeks the weather here is where you can at least breath, so DD and I can start to walk!

I hope in my last post about not seeing my parents doesn't make everyone think terrible of me. Linda just brought home alot of stuff I had been thinking about anyway. I think the main reason I am so bad about going to see them, is that it depresses me and I avoid it. My dad was very sick 2 years ago. He had colon cancer. We thought we were going to lose him a few times when he was in the hospital. I was the caregiver. I stayed at the hospital every day, every night. My mother could not do it. She has emphysema, terrible arthritis in her back, diabetes, and other health issues (my brother was helping take care of her). I was dealing with her guilt also because she could not be with my dad. They have been married 53 years. My dad is ok, actually he is the one taking care of my mom. She tells me all the time she wants to die because she is so miserable. She wants to be in a nursing home. My dad said as long as he can, he will take care of her. She sits in a chair all day. She NEVER gets out. She goes to the restroom, and to bed, and that is the extent of her getting out of her chair. Sometimes I feel like it is more than I can take, so I just stay away. That is selfish and I realize that. They are the most caring, loving people in the whole world. They were the parents that all my friends liked to be around, so everyone was ALWAYS at our house. I even had a few friends tell me they wish they were their parents. My brother lives 2 doors down from them, so he helps them alot. I guess I am looking for advise or words of wisdom. Linda........are you out there???

I am getting emotional, and I need to get ready for school. I am sorry I am laying this all out here on the board. The subject of parents came up and I guess I need help. We are going to see them today if we can....if not, we are going FOR SURE going tomorrow. My son is so excited.

Ok, sorry for taking up a whole page. Any advice from you ladies would be much appreciated.

Gotta go get ready for school.
Kim

Phyllis. Firstly, WW tells us all not to weigh in every day. But, that being said, I must tell you that I am a scale-a-holic and seldom go a day without stepping on the scale, and more than once a day. So, if you believe the old adage about "do as I say, not as I do" then don't be weighing yourself. However, I stepped on the scale this morning and who am I to say it's wrong? : ) I was disappointed as my scale has not moved and I was away for four days and was really pretty good with my eating and also got in some exercise. I hope hoping for a loss, but that may come later.
Phyllis, you mentioned being concerned about eating more carbs? Not knowing what you were eating before starting WW, it's hard to advise here. But, what carbs you are eating really ought to be whole grain, at least. Also review those healthy eating guidelines. You should have your 2 tsp. of healthy oils a day, for example, five servings of fruits and vegetables and 2 (3 depending on age) servings of dairy. Having more carbs than you used to have, by the time you have two servings of protein as well, is pretty hard to do if you only have 24 points. I would sit down each morning and create a plan for eating. For example, if you know you need five servings of fruit and vegetable, take a look at what a serving is. Lets say that 1/2 cup of string beans is a serving (don't take my word on that please, look it up as I am just using this as an example) if you have a 1 1/2 cup serving of string beans with supper, that is really 3 servings of vegetables according to what WW calls a serving. You can knock off three of your 5 required servings in one meal, and as string beans are 0 points, not have to hit your points allowance hard.
Then, you could have a salad with lunch, and make sure it's enough to count as two vegetable servings and then have fruit with breakfast. You then have that covered.
Then, plan your oils. If you have two teaspoons of olive oil with your salad at lunch or use 2 tsp. to sauté some summer squash and onion in at lunch, you'll have that covered, but have to count the two points for that, of course.
If I were working, I would keep a measuring spoon and some olive oil and vinegar at my desk and bring salads from home or order in salads with no dressing.
So, if you work your way through all the healthy guidelines when you are planning your day of eating and then fill in with other foods, you'll be having a pure and balanced day that we call "on program".
I try to have lean protein at lunch and dinner, but if I am planning on a pasta meal for supper, I try to have my protein with lunch and breakfast.
I only get 20 points a day, so would have a "field day" with 24, as you have! Wow, what a treat that would be!
Always, by the way, plan out a dessert treat of some kind for yourself at the end of each day. Never leave yourself without a treat, or you will end up feeling deprived. Always, if that is when you are climbing the walls in hunger, plan a mid afternoon snack as well. I usually have popcorn or a piece of fruit. If I am desiring chocolate, I do love those WW chocolate individual serving size cakes.
Keep us posted on what you are eating, maybe if you post we can help to suggest different things you can do? Don't give up, try to keep sodium on the low side as well. Remember that everyone's weight fluctuates, I know mine does.
I'm glad I reminded some of you to pay attention to your parents. A time will come, and in my case a surprise with my mom, when you just don't have them around anymore. There are so many times I could have gone for a visit and didn't. So many times, I could have picked up the phone and called. I remember really trying hard to figure out what to get them for gifts for things like birthdays, mother's day, etc. and all they really would have wanted was ME.
Kim, when you speak of homework until 11 pm, I get cringes. My daughter and son start school next Tuesday and our leisurely times will be coming to a grinding halt. I hope my daughter can still get to the gym, but it may only be on weekends. At least the high school is big and she walks to and from all her classes. At least the refrigerator is NOT at the school and she can only eat what I pack for her!
Janelle, sorry about the headaches (and yours too Tech) and I'm glad you were down a bit. Good news! Slow and steady wins the race. I think you've had some losses each week for the last several weeks, haven't you?
DJM, maybe with your mom's Sept. 15th b-day coming, you could drive out and pick her up and bring her to stay with your family that weekend? Or, maybe you can go to her that weekend and her present will be you taking her shopping, making her dinner, and just being with her? She would probably love that.
Erika, the cookies Paige gave you the recipe for sound too good to be true. Can one of you share the recipe with me, but only after telling me how many points they come out to.
Erika, my laptop and I don't get along all that well, it's not equipped with all the fun things like flash player and activex that this computer at home has. I can't see video clips, view photos and all that stuff. It's a "retired" computer from my husband's old office that would have been thrown out. I'm lucky to have one that I can leave at the lake or travel with though, so I can't complain. It frustrate me to type on that tiny keyboard and not have spell check, either. I'm like the world's worst speller. At home, I get a desk that is all mine for the computer and a nice soft "executive" chair with arms that is comfy, at the lake, I sit in a hard wooden kitchen table chair, but I look up and the window in front of my affords a lovely perspective on the lake, blueberry bushes, my hummingbird feeder and the like. It's pretty nice. But, home affords more "comforts". We always joke around that the cottage, as we call this tiny cabin, is a step above camping. You put up with a great deal in order to be at this location.
Tech, I did have fun shopping. I didn't find any wedding gifts, it's awfully hard not knowing the people. I bought two old shutters, though. Sounds like a strange thing to buy, but I love them. They have little cut out pine tree silhouettes in them. I want to use them as saloon type of swinging doors in the entranceway to my master bath. This very 80s looking bathrooms is off my bedroom and it has an archway with no door leading to it. In it's day, this was a very luxurious bath, and still kind of it, but it's very 1980s in appearance. It's very large with a Jacuzzi tub (hardly ever used as it takes about 40 minutes to clean and then about 40 minutes to fill each time you want to bother with it) and the view from my bedroom is more of that tub. But, when DH is up early on the days he takes the train and shaving and showering in there, the light shines in on me while I am trying to sleep and having a door there would be awfully nice. Given the archway we have, no normal door would ever fit in there. So, when I found these antique old shutters that look like they were from an old cabin on the lake, I thought they might work to make doors out of. I'm not sure how it will look and if they are the size I need, but I couldn't resist them. I shall paint them the same color as my bathroom walls, I think?
Sounds like an odd thing to buy, but I was pleased.
So, today is a catch up day. I have bills to pay, mail to be opened and sorted and do want to feed my son and husband a decent home-cooked dinner this evening. I have an appointment to get a hair cut this afternoon and if I am lucky, I'll squeeze in a trip to the gym on my way home.
Onward to a healthy day!

Hi everyone - I am zoned out this morning, not quite enough sleep, but I think it will be a good day anyway. Last night I ate some lovely Thai takeout, which I haven't done in a long time ... managed to stay away from the pad thai and breaded stuff, and stuck to spicy basil eggplant, stir-fried shrimp/chicken/veggies, and rice. Not too much damage I think, except the usual take-out sodium. No worries ... I'll be earning 5 points with my run this morning :)

I am also looking forward to a visit from a dear friend who is also a flutist and my chamber music partner. We always have great fun and make good music together. Our recital is coming up in November. I hope it gets recorded well so I can share with you.

Linda - LOL, no Claire is not a dog, she's my daughter :lol: Sounds like a busy day ahead for you, hope it goes well!

Kim - :hug: I totally understand about your parents. These are totally natural feelings. The main thing is, you are going to see them ... and that shows how you really feel deep down and your devotion to them despite the tough feelings, which it is completely OK to have.

Erica and Tech - Today will be a great day ... yesterday is in the past! Your attitude is great.


Rennie - oh my goodness, headaches can be awful. What helps me ... besides dark rooms, sleeping ... and a lot of drugs ... is yoga and especially neck stretching. Do you think it is a migraine or just a lot of tension?

Hugs to Ann, Janelle, Barb, Laura, Kim2, Paige, Erica and anyone else I missed. have a terrific Friday! Long weekend coming up! :)

cheers
Erika

Kim, we cross posted. I'm sorry sorry about the condition of your parents. Boy, does your story hit home. If you backed me up three years, my position would be about the same as yours. Dad had cancer, but was OK at the moment and taking care of my mom who also said she wanted to die. She was in a rehab hospital for a period of time after that and did do better, but had visiting nurses at home. I really WAS horribly depressing to go see them. But, I started a meal plan for them after awhile as dad was doing all the cooking and mom wasn't all that well. I would double up on things I made for my own family like mac 'n cheese (the good kind that put on some of this very weight I am working hard to take off), lasagna, beef stew, soups, meatballs, meatloaf, homemade chicken pot pie and the like. I would serve these things to my family, double the recipes and then come up with a cooler of food for them. When I did this, it always made me feel better and that I was contributing. They lived about an hour and 15 minutes from me and I had begun to talk to them about moving to an elderly housing apartment near to me so I could be there for them more often. They were thinking seriously about that and we were looking into it all when the ____t hit the fan and dad was diagnosed with bone cancer. He went downhill so quickly. The odd part about it was that my mom rallied as she HAD to care for him. They taught me something about life, right up until the end. When you are married and you say those serious vows about "in sickness and in health" it's an amazing thing that they, after being married 62 years, were so much each other's caretakers. Their relationship went from a typical 1950s loving marriage and matured to a caretaker scenario. She really stepped up to the plate. She hadn't driven the car for over two years and suddenly she was driving and using a walker or motorized shopping cart and doing all the shopping and giving him sponge baths, up until he went into the nursing home. She amazed me and I was proud of her. When she suddenly died, 4 months after him, I swear it was that she knew she'd taken care of him, gotten all their affairs in order, created a trust for my sister and I and the properties they held and she just collapsed. By the time he had spent 6 months in the nursing home and she had driven there every day to see him, she no longer needed a walker and she was walking as fast as I could walk. She never had to take charge, her entire life, as dad was always there but she did it all. I was very proud of her.
When I used to go to visit them, it did depress me. The vibrant people they used to be was not who they were. They were elderly, and mere shadows of who they used to me. I would go away and envision them in my head as being younger and not as stooped over and gray, but then I would go to see them and be almost shocked at their decline and have to deal with that every single visit. No wonder I put on all my weight again and ended up heavier than I ever was before, all that emotion. When I did visit, I often took them out to eat as well as brought them foods. We went to places where there was lots of high point food. But, truly, at the time I just didn't care.
Now, I am working hard and this weight will come off. I think I was four pounds from goal when dad was diagnosed and things fell apart. I gave up on my WW and my dreams of getting to be a leader, but now I am hoping that I can reach that goal and that somehow, from afar, mom and dad will cheer for me that I finally did it.
Watching your parent get old, and finally pass on is so hard, but I am proud that I was there for them, as hard as it was, during those last months. The heck with the weight gain, I am still glad I did it.
Looking at them, and remembering how they ate and what they ate as I was growing up has challenged me to do it better. In those days, they didn't know what we now know about fat, calories, carbs, even exercise and things like that. Perhaps if they started taking care of themselves, better, when they were my age they would still be alive now and enjoying life? I don't know. My parents were never obese, but certainly were overweight from their 50s until 80ish when they both died. Now is the time for me (and some of you) to reach out for the healthy choices we need to make in order to have those quality lives, later on. If I live into my 90s, I want to be one of those people that individuals point out and remark, "Wow, I can't believe she's 95, she looks great and, wow, she is still so active".
So, keep working people, we can do this... I know I can do this....

Erika, Oh no! Sorry to say that your daughter was the family dog!!!! LOL! From the way your post was worded, it could have been that way. Whoops!
Linda

Thank you all for the encouragement. Linda you gave me a couple really good ideas, I will try planning out my foods for the day and sticking to that.

I was counting calories before this week and losing but very very slowly. I do exercise by walking with the WATP dvds and last month walked 43.5 miles so I do realize that some body changes are going on.

I'm just not use to eating bread or many starches at all anymore but I am eating WW bread, Pepperidge farm lite.

Yes, everyone take time to visit your parents, mine are both deceased and I really miss them. They moved to Flordia after I did and lived about 15 mins. from us. I use to make extra food and take to them as my Father ended up being the cook....if you like burnt pancakes and clean the kitchen! He tried.....This was several years ago they passed and I still think on occassion that I need to call them.

Ok, off to plan my menu. Phyllis

Good morning everyone. Tech - no I didn't get that shopping done. It got to be 9 p.m. and I was way too tired to do a healthy shop. So I have my list and menus planned and I'm doing it after work today. I have been eating those Hillshire Farms Salad entrees for lunch the last couple days. They are "okay" for need something quick but I really like the ones I make myself much better. I'm hoping to do some cooking and stashing for weeks to come this weekend. I just need to push my husband out of the kitchen and take over for myself. I've been letting him do most of the cooking and he just can't get the WW concepts down. He seems to think everything needs a sauce, butter, or cheese. And I wonder why I'm up so many pounds. Time to kick in those assertive skills.

So many people posting, it's so hard to acknowledge everyone. I guess I'll just wave and tell you all that I've read your posts and enjoyed them and take much from them to get me through the day!

Money nor fame can give the same satisfaction as a warm husband and kids that smile because they are happy.


Never a truer word was said Rennie. Thank you for this important reminder!!!
Erika

Wow this is a busy spot today.....Not much happening here today...Just trying to figure out my food for the week. Dh and I are leaving in a few to grab a late lunch before the kids get home..I did buy some chicken,spinach asigo sausage...Only 3pts if I remember correctly...

Linda we are giving my mom a bday weekend celebration....On Friday of her weekend only the adults are getting together for a dinner and game night. This way she can enjoy just the kids...Than on Sat which will be her bday we are having all the gradchildren join which is 30 plus 16 adults...That day we are playing outdoor games for her to sit back and laugh at...So I am hoping it will be a fun filled weekend for her.....I know I am looking forward to it...

Those choc chip cookies sound yummy...I to would love a recipe. I have to make cookies for this party so something new would be great...

Well everyone the weekend is upon us I hope we all are successfull. I do know it will be hard on me but I am really going to try...

Good luck everyone, and hello to all. Barb

Linda, thank you so much for your words. Our stories DO sounds alot alike. My dad has had to take over everything and he had NO CLUE. He cooks, but my mom tells me in secret that it's not good. She appreciates him trying, but it is so greasy she can't eat it. She says she knows he is doing his best and appreciates his efforts, but he can't cook. I silently laugh, thinking of him in the kitchen. A place he NEVER was before her health went down. It really does break my heart. My best friend and her mom do lots together. They Christmas shop, go to eat, go to movies, etc. I have told her to be thankful that her mom can do those things with her. This past Christmas I was in tears, I was so wishing my mom and I could Christmas shop with me just one more time. Wow, typing that made me cry.

Thanks again Linda, for your comments, and words of advice. I have taken it to heart. You have no idea how much you have helped me.

Ok, the tears are getting in my way. Better go.
Kim

Wow - there was something with this site yesterday that wouldn't let me log in, wouldn't let me navigate or anything after my first post. I tried and tried all day to get back into here and it would just hang and not move from page to page. Seems to be resolved today. And it was a problem at work and here at home, so I'm not sure what it was.

Well here were are the holiday weekend. Guess what? I WENT GROCERY SHOPPING!!!!! I know it doesn't seem like much of a feat to most of you but time has been such an element lately that I haven't been able to get out and do a good shop. I could have run in and picked up stuff but I really needed to focus on a good shop and get the things I needed for recipes and to keep on program. I believe I've accomplished that now.

We're canning tomatoes today. I bought my supplies yesterday and DH got some things around. In a bit, I'm going out to pick tomatoes at my brother's house and then that will be my project for the weekend. We love our canned tomatoes all year round. My favorite thing to do with them is to can them in pints with garlic and basil already in them or garlic and onion. Then in the off months, I boil some whole grain fetticine, put a couple Tbs of healthy oil in a pan, cook some more garlic and onion, matchstick carrots, zucchini and summer squash, throw in a pint of the tomatoes, saute, pour over fetticine and voila, quick easy yummy WW friendly meal. Takes some work in the fall but it is so worth it.

What are you all up to on this fab holiday weekend?

Good morning!
Have to make this brief as DH and I have decided to drive up to the lake and back as a day-trip today. Must get moving.
However, I have an NSV (non-scale victory). Last night, my husband, son and I went out to dinner, they made the decision and I had little say at all that we were going to the Chinese Buffet place. Well, every time I have gone there in the past, other than once when I did a certain thing there, I have had a gain. I've tried picking through the foods and trying to select what appears to be lower point foods. I've tried utilizing the fruit and salad bar and egg drop soup first and then having minimal other foods, but each time I go, boom... there go the pounds and the gains are usually in pounds vs. point anything.
So, the last time I went, I took one of their take out menus and ordered the steamed shrimp and Chinese vegetables and that week there was no gain. So, last night, I did the same thing. I ordered the steamed chicken and Chinese vegetables. It was good. I left satisfied and didn't "cheat" and I was happy with myself. On the other hand, my husband and son had to RUN to the bathroom with upset stomachs the minute we got in the door. So, that tells me something, this food is just bad news and if it sends you running to the bathroom after you've eaten it, it's really no good for me! So, I feel good and feel happy that I made the better choice for a change!
Phyllis, you can do this. You need to balance it all. Also, you can try the WW CORE plan vs. Flex plan and you will perhaps find that one versus the other works better. I like the CORE plan, but found it sometimes impractical when I am cooking for a family of four and others won't eat things like brown rice or WW pasta.
Kim, sorry I brought on tears. I also had my share of them when I was writing about mom and dad. However, it is VERY good therapy to bring fourth what happened and what happened to ME during that time period. I truly was almost at goal and then everything fell apart. If you end up following the past I followed, perhaps I can help prevent you from doing what I did. Yet, if I could trade more time with either of my parents and have all that weight back on again, I would. I just didn't care during that time about what I was doing/eating. I would go to the Dunkin Doughnuts drive through on my way to visit them and self-medicate with chocolate doughnuts, after having a full breakfast earlier. Those doughnuts add up quickly, right on the thighs!
So, take care, show them the love but keep in mind your own health and longevity while you are doing this.
Love and hugs to all of you today, enjoy your Saturday!

Hello everyone. I hope you all have a super Saturday.

Erica, my son is going into Sr Kindergarden. He will have the same teacher as last year and his class will be most of the same children. What grade will your daughters be going into? You wrote that people come to your farm because the pumpkins are so cheap. I think it probably is because it is fun. I have been places stuff is cheap but I don't go back unless it is an enjoyable experience. That is great you have a fun place like that. It must be a lot of work though. Do you do other things during the year? There is place near Ottawa, Ontario that has all different activities. They have a maze, a scary halloween, sleigh rides in the winter, water fun in the summer. It is a good spot for field trips for the schools and daycares in the area.

Haylo, way to go getting in your steps, I have been getting in around 10,000 to 11, 000 steps all week. Yesterday, I got in 12571 steps. I do hope that your headaches go away. I find I get headaches when I don't take a break from the computer. It doesn't happen often though so I am glad about that.
Whare are your plans for the weekend?

Kim, I didn't realize Mississippi was know as the fatest state in the US. Someone told me that yesterday. I hear there is good food there. Do you have much homework on the weekend? I do hope you get to see your parents this weekend. I used to see my mom every week before she passed away and talked to her on the phone almost every day. I don't see my dad as his new wife doesn't want us to visit. My sister suggested meeting at a restaurant but his wife didn't want to go and since she wouldn't go, she felt he shouldn't go. My sister was really upset, but I realize we all make choices in life. He could choose to meet my sister even if his wife didn't want to go. I feel bad because he is missing out on his grandchildren.

Barb, how was your lunch yesterday? When my son is in school after he goes back after lunch, my DH and I go on a date. It is in the afternoon and poeple laugh at us. We just try to make time for us.
That weekend sounds great with your mom. It is difficult living away from family.

Laura did you get your shopping done last night? I do hope you have a great weekend.

Paige, how has school been? Are you enjoying being back? I have never heard of chocolate chip cookies made with pudding, they sound interesting.

Tech, I hope you got a good ride in yesterday. I think it will snow before I take out my bike. I just have to do it and not talk about it. How long have you done ww, I am not sure why, but from your posts I get it is a way of life for you. That is great.

Erika, Do you start back in September? Does Claire have staggered entry for school. I know last year my DS started in the middle of September but this year he starts on Tuesday.

Rennie, it is so true people are so busy in life they forget to enjoy it. Before we had my DS, both my DH and I were such workaholics, we worked all the time. Once we had DS, life slowed right down and most of our day is spent with other children, or going to the library, and seeing the sights. It is rather enjoyable and I know I am blessed with this life. I was thinking the other day I needed to be doing more, but DS is only young once. Thanks for the reminder.

Phyllis, I too used to make meals for my inlaws for the whole week, they would call me if they were having friends over so I could make something for them. It was cute, like I was the caterer they were phoning for meals. It made me smile to think about it. Thanks.
I do hope you have a great weekend.

Hello to Paige 2, Kim2, Ginny, and Emma, I am sorry if I missed anyone.
I hope everyone has a great weekend.
Take Care
Ann

Hi Linda and Laura, our posts crossed.
Linda you are an amazing woman. I hope you know that.

Laura, that fettucine sounds so yummy. I love canned tomatoes. My DS won't eat any kind of tomatoes although he will eat sauce.
Have a great weekend ladies.

Good morning all...

I'm sorry that I have been so absent lately. I just don't know what is wrong with me, why I am pulling away from the group that has held me in tact for so long now.

I have been doing really good eating wise lately. I missed wi the other day, but my scale here has now been 3-4 lbs down for at least a week. I think I am going to stop going to meetings. I now have to switch to the night meetings because my class doesn't end in time for me to go to the earlier meeting, and I just don't care for the night leader. Plus I've been paying for the meetings out my school money, and that is almost gone. I'm paid up for a few more weeks, but I think after that I will try it alone again...I can always join back up if I need to.

For a NSV, my bridesmaids dress is really starting to fit nicely!!! I put it on again yesterday, and had my dd zip it up for me. She was able to get the zipper up without much problem. It's still a little snug around the middle, but not too bad!

Erica-The cookie recipe is pretty flexible...I use milk choc chips because I don't like semisweet. I've left the choc chips out before and used the dough for sugar cookies. You can also change up the pudding flavor. Today I'm taking them to a neighbor's bbq, and am using white choc chips and honey roasted peanuts (was supposed to be macadamia nuts, but they were $8 a jar!!!) I think you could do a lot of add-ins with the dough and make it work. I put the recipe in etools using milk choc chips, and if the yield is 77-107 cookies (it is a large batch, so 77 isn't really such a stretch) they are 3 pts a cookie. Not exactly ww friendly...which is the reason I do not keep them in the house!!!

Linda-WOW, great job with the Chinese food. That is a true NSV. Is your dd home yet?

To everyone that is having headaches...add me to the club. As a lot of you know here, I get severe migraines and am on preventative meds. I think I need to up my dosage, though...but the side effects are so awful. I've been getting cluster headaches the entire summer...it makes me fearful everyday that I'm going to get a migraine. When I get a migraine, I might as well write the entire day off...I basically spend the entire day sleeping on the bathroom floor because I can't be far away from something to get sick in. And that is after the usual auras, then blindness for about a 1/2 hr, then the feeling that someone is beating me on the forehead with a hammer. It is awful. I have been really feeling helpless lately because I just can't believe that my neurologist can't find something that will REALLY make this go away. And then add a 5 yr old and a 2 yr old to the mix that don't understand why mommy can't leave the bathroom to get them milk...to say I live in fear of it every day is an understatement.

Anyway...on that note...! I must go to get some baking done for today's bbq. I'm supposed to head over to my neighbor's later to help her decorate.

Hope you all have a great day!!!

Erica, I was just wondering about the grand opening your were having. Have you had it yet, and if so how was it. I do hope it went or goes smoothly.

Paige, I hope those headaches go away or they find the cause, It must be just awful, and you are right the children don't understand why you can't do everything for them at that moment.
Enjoy your bbq.

Hi!!

Boy, it has taken me awhile to get through all the posts!! I have lots to offer, but no time today. Just felt like I needed to check in. I am realizing that this site helps to keep me grounded in what I need to do.... even was thinking of the diet drill sargent last night in ordering take out chinese!! Took the kiddies to the zoo yesterday. Could have potentially been a horrible eating day, but we packed a picinic lunch with lots of healthy stuff and the only food I bought was icees for the kids and I passed on one. (of course who can afford anything anyway. I spent $100 and that was just buying those small treats!! Rediculous!!). But we had a great time and I felt really good about what I had eaten. Very OP!! And got 5 hours of walking in!!Course, dinner.... no so much, but I did the best I could under the circumstances. Linda... I like your choice, may have to see if it is available at my place. I did order seafood and veggies, but I am sure the sauce it was in was not the best stuff.

Today, we are working in the yard... I really have a lot of grass to cut after not having to deal with it due to no rain all summer.... and then taking the kids to a ball game. I am not sure if we are eating at the park or home, but I may just eat at home anyway to prevent having to figure out what could even sort of pass off as healthy!!

Have a great day everyone. Know that I too have parental issues. Not quite the same, but they do cause me pause on a regular basis. Who knew that growing up could be so difficult! ;)
Kim2

Hello,

Just popping in really quick before we go out to the state fair for the afternoon. Went to Curves yesterday, and bought new tires for my bike today, now dh needs to put them on (he used to work in a bike store after all). Have had a high carb couple of days and need to curb that, but I have been tracking and am still on track, so :crossed: that I can continue until Wednesday and wi.

Sorry I don't have time to respond to everyone but I need to get moving. Have a great weekend all. :wave:

-Tech

ps Ann - I've been w/ww for 2.5 years this time, and have lost 35 lbs, I know it's slow but it took 20 yrs to put it on, and I'm not going the other way :D

Hi Ladies! Lots of posts here since yesterday....

We are leaving in a little while to go the lake for the weekend. My hubby's mom and step dad live there and have a boat and Jet ski. I am looking forward to the get-away. I have laundry to finish and packing to do, so this will be short.

Linda, Please do not apologize for my tears. I need that and I needed to be put back into reality. My DD went to the football game last night and my son and I went to see my parents. They were so surprised! My son and dad sat in My son's truck for 40 minutes. My dad had not seen it, so DS had to give him the full look over. They sat in the truck and just chatted. That was nice to see. I spent most of my time trying to get their printer to work. They have Vista, and for some reason when you change ink, it won't comunicate with the computer anymore. I am not impressed with Windows Vista...
I promised my DD and my parents we would come back in the next week or so and bring her with us.

Ann, Yes, I had heard that we were the fattest state too somewhere. That is just great, huh?? I am sure it is from all the wonderful southern cooking. We have Great food, but unfortunately, it is all bad for us. hmmm.

Paige, I am glad you popped back in. Please don't stay away so long. I really enjoy your posts and you would be missed greatly!!!! Hang in there!!!!

Okies, well, gotta go for now. I will try to get back on this weekend at MIL's house.

Have a great Labor day weekend!!!
HUGS :hug:
Kim

Oh, Ann, you asked about homework.....YES, I have tons of it. Mostly studying, but it takes a few hours a day to keep up or you get lost. I will take my books with me and probably study some on the lake. Sounds like a fun weekend, huh??? :^:

Kim

Hi everyone!
I went to bed a few hours ago and couldn't sleep, got back up again. My daughter is on her way home tonight and I'm not sure I can sleep until I know she is safely back in this house. I could tell you a few stories about a few things I've heard on this trip and read between the lines about, but I won't. No point in it. Let's just suffice to say that I think she may just have grown up a bit on this trip and has learned some very valuable lessons. I also thing she'll be starving when she gets home. One thing she has made very clear in her limited phone calls home is that this family does not eat on a regular schedule and it drives her crazy waiting for meals, which are often not served until 8:30 or nine at night, and then only sandwiches or something very odd. We're really a family that eats well and eats very balanced meals all the time. I now find myself wondering if we are quite different from other people this way? Do you all eat regular meals about the same time each day?
Paige, I'm worrying about you. If you stop going to meetings and you pull away from this group a bit, will you stay on track? You seem to be doing so well, that dress is zipping up! Have you been exercising? Are you planning your meals each day? Let us know!
Kim2, sounds like you did well eating? I have learned the hard way about Chinese food, it's something I love very much but I just can't allow it. It bloats me terribly, or just packs on pounds. The things I think are seemingly healthy are not, but the steamed choices always seem to be OK.
By the way, I was not an angel today. I didn't eat well at all and I feel kind of awful right now. I think I was so stressed about my daughter driving home all day with these people that it threw me off. I really can't wait to have my family all in one place again.
Tech, I liked thinking that you have rode your bike so much that you needed new tires! Great news!
Kim, I am so glad you went to see your parents. I'm sure it meant a great deal to them. Keep going! I know it's very hard to do, but you will never have regrets one day. That is one thing I do not have is regrets that I didn't help them when they really needed me, though over the years I wish I had visited and talked with them much more regularly than I did.
Well, it's after midnight and I wonder if I should try to get to sleep again. My stomach is bothering me a bit. We went out for Mexican food this evening. I didn't do well ordering and I had a margarita. Tomorrow is another day.....

Hi everyone,
Been really busy for me here. We had our first pumpkin pickers in the patch yesterday, and it's only going to get busy from here. I'm just trying to do the best I can each day. Hope to have time each day to stop by and say hello to you all.

Well, no additional posts since I went on line last night. That's a surprise, but it is a holiday weekend after all. I hope you are all out there having a wonderful time for yourselves.
We're all in the house this very moment, though my son is in the shower getting ready to go to work. It's inventory day for him, so it will be an all day thing of county and everyone is required to be there. Why couldn't they figure out another day, other than a holiday weekend, to do that, I wonder?
My daughter FINALLY got home in the middle of the night last night. She wasn't tired, was all wound up and I'll bet she sleeps half the day. She was glad to get home and we all were glad to see her. It was about 2:30 am when she finally got here.
Today is a day where I can help her to get back on track with eating, I'll be grocery shopping after going to church in a little bit and then I hope to get caught up on laundry (she brought home tons) and ironing today. Sounds boring, but it's essential to get ourselves in gear for the week ahead. Two days until school starts!
Today's eating goals:

Breakfast:
Oatmeal, Calorie Countdown Milk, fruit

Lunch:
Salad, turkey breast, 2 point roll, oil and vinegar

Dinner:
A WW recipe of some sort, will be going through my cookbooks and making a list of stuff I need to purchase.

I hope to be on track and help my daughter to be as well. She looks tan, but she actually looks like she's put on weight right now. I hope she can springboard into the week and be on track.

Hello ladies,

Erica, good luck with your busy days. I do hope you stay on track and take care of you. Enjoy.

Linda, It must be wonderful to have your daughter back home. My family also has regular meals and we don't eat sandwiches much as a meal. I know one of my sons friends that is all they eat because it is easy. The mom heats up campbells soup and they have soup and sandwiches. One time they invited us over for dinner and they had a chocolate fondue for dinner. My DH was laughing at the look on my face. They also eat late. My son is in bed by 7:30 and some of his friends are only eating after 8:00. I guess it depends on your upbringing and what you have learned in life.
I hope you have an enjoyable day.

Hello Paige, Barb, Kim, Kim2, Erika, Laura, Tech, Paige 2, Phyllis, Rennie, and everyone else. Have a great day, I will try to post more later.
Take care
Ann

Happy to report I am down 1 lb. after my first week on WW. I feel pretty good about that, of course I would have loved to seen more but considering I only lost 2 lbs. the whole month of July counting calories ....Sept. may be a very good month.

Being new I don't have your names down yet but I do enjoy reading all of your posts.

We are not doing anything special as I think I said before we were invited to go to Club Med for Monday to an all you can eat Italian night with all the wine and beer included.....I need to stay away from that place so we are going to a local fish place and I'll eat much much better and probably feel better! lol

Have a nice, safe Labor Day.

Phyllis

Happy Sunday all!!!

Kind of a lazy day here today. I was a church skipper this morning and chose to stay in bed and cuddle with dh. He gets up at 5am every day for work, and now that I'm back in school I join him for that early wake up call three days a week, so this morning was a nice a little change. My little dd also came and cuddled with us for awhile, too!

I just got finished whipping up a batch of rolls to make subs later today. I have been so hungry for them, and no one around here makes them with the "right" kind of bread, so I made a batch of soft roll dough, and after it's done proofing, I'm going to shape it into long hoagie rolls instead of the braided dinner rolls that I usually make. These rolls are pretty low in fat; I'll have to run it through etools and see how many pts a roll would be.

Yesterday was not a good eating day for me. We had that bbq at my neighbor's house...she and her dh are not on very good terms, so she had had quite a bit to drink when we got there and wanted me to be the same way!!! I am not a drinker anymore; alcohol does not mix very well with the daily meds I take for the migraines, but I did have a little. I know to avoid it altogether; it just makes me feel terrible, and makes me throw caution to the wind in regards to food. I didn't completely overeat (not like I would of in the past, anyway) but made some choices that I wouldn't of made otherwise. But back to the grind today.

Linda-I think I've figured out that the reason I haven't been posting here as much is because with the bakery and school and cakes that have been due, there just hasn't been as much time. By the time I read posts, reply and get interupted a million times by dds, it's probably over two hours. Things have started to slow back down now...I don't have any cakes coming up right now, the "newness" of the idea of the bakery is gone (at least I'm able to sleep now) and I have direction in where I'm heading with it, and my first week of school is over. I might continue with meetings, I don't know yet. I just really don't care much for this leader, that's the thing I am struggling with, and is it worth the $40 a month to just go and weigh in??? I think doing that is missing the point of WW. I'm so glad to hear that your dd got home safely. It sounds like she learned some life lessons while she was gone? Some families are definately different. We are big on sitting down together, having real meals...my family was like that growing up, too. I think it is important to have that family time.

Kim-That stinks that you are having so much homework. My classes are all baking lab classes, and my instructor pretty much only does hands on technique. We do have a silly research paper (350 words!) but it's only to make the culinary director happy. We have 5 "quizzes" but they demonstrating how to make certain products. We do have midterms and finals, but they are practicals, and we get to choose what we want to make. The harder the products we choose, the better the grade we could potentially get. I love my classes, and my pastry instructor is the best, too. He is so laid back and easy going...especially if you are a hard worker. Next semester will be a little tougher for me because I'll have two baking lab classes with this instructor, but I'll also have an applied nutrition lab class (you get to make all kind of healthy types of dishes) with the culinary director (he loves me, though!) and I'll have cost control, which is a sit down lecture class, which means HOMEWORK! But then I'm done!

I'll probably be back on later...hope you all have a fabulous day!!!!

Well, we didn't get to go to the lake. My son is so sick. I don't know if it is a cold or sinus junk. Then we found out my in laws are sick, so we just decided to stay home. I have so much studying to do anyway, it is probably for the best. I was really looking forward to being on the lake and riding in the boat. Oh well, we will go in a couple weeks.

Erica, well if we don't hear from you much, we will know where you are. In the pumpkin patch! Stay in touch when you can!!

Linda, glad your DD is home safely. I know you can get her back on track. Enjoy your time with her and have an awesome Weekend together! Sure stinks your son has to work though! Doesn't seem right!

Ann - Chocolate foundue for dinner? Seriously?? What did they serve with it? I have to say I haven't heard of that before. Dessert? Sure.....but For DINNER?? WOW! If I didn't gain weight, I could probably go for that myself!!! :lol:

Phyllis- Yay on your loss!! Even the little losses count. They all add up to BIG losses. Good for you!!! And good for you not doing the all you can eat italian, beer and wine. That sounds REALLY dangerous. Almost as good as the Chocolate fondue Ann was talking about!! ;)

Paige - your subs sound Yummy! I love homemade bread of any kind. I am sure you make the best! Your classes sure do sound more fun than mine do. I guess my excitement will be next semester when I get to clinicals. I will get to go into surgery, see trauma, etc. Believe it or not, I am really looking forward to that. (I know most of you are ready to puke)

DH and I went to Olive Garden....Son was not feeling like going and Daughter was at slumber party next door. Again, we weren't sure where we were going. I was bad......bad.....bad. I felt so full I was sick. I hate that feeling. I wish I had eaten till I was COMFORTABLY full. Why do I do that to myself?? Anyway, I expect a slight gain or no loss Tuesday after this week. I have not kept up with points. Bad, Bad, bad. I know I can't do it that way.

On a great note, my neighbor (that goes with us to our WW meetings)said she had a huge bowl of candy sitting out on the table for the kids. She announced it was there and My dd said....No way! I am staying away from it! I was so proud of her!!! She made me nervous yesterday. I kept hearing the fridge open and then silverware scraping a bowl. I looked later and she had had a sugar free jello and a salad!!! YAY!!!!

I am gonna go study. Everyone please have a safe, happy Labor day and enjoy your families!!!
Kim

OI have not read all the post. I am surprised at how many post on this weekend.
Linda I have a meal planned everyday.. Many of my friends here laugh at me because sometimes they will serve cereal for dinner. Nothing wrong with that for them but my dh works heavy constrution and needs a good meal everyday. He would be a sad man with a dinner like that. I try to cook a healthy meal everyday.

Erica is it to early to pick pumpkins???We went last year ;late and had a hard time finding the perfect pumpkin...When is the earlist time to get them??

Is everyone kinda having a hard time following the plan this weekend. I am trying. Dh is home and likes to do Fun things like ice cream stops , dinner out...Argh. So far so good just trying to make some good choices. I still have some of my 35 pts left so that is saving me but sometimes I wonder if I am counting the points correct..That is always my down fall. I am not sure if I am short changing my pts.

Today went to an airforce museum. It was great. Huge planes from way back... Went to Pondarosa. Have not been there is years. Not sure if I will go back either. Had the sirloin tips, bake pot and salad. Really only ate the tips and a cookie...Oh yah had a piece of my kids country fried chicken. Do not ask me why I just wnted to try it......Oh well live and learn.

Kids are outside playing football someone got hurt better go...Good luck everyone staying on plan....Barb

Well, as this day is coming to a fast end I just added up my points and am no where near my 24 allowed pts.

Made the veggie soup today and have also eaten a lot of 0 pt. veggies. Most days I seem to hit right at my target....just found today very interesting. I guess it doesn't hurt to be under the points once in a while.

Phyllis

Ann, while reading your post, I was trying to envision having chocolate fondue for a dinner, particularly when having guests. Wow, that's a new one.
One time, years ago, we were invited to dinner at a friend's house and I was amazed that there was no vegetable served. It was a nice meal and really a nicely prepared thing, but it would never occur to me to not serve a veggie of some kind, at least a salad even would always be part of any dinner in my house. People all do eat differently. I really feel for those people who have Campbell's soup and sandwich for every meal, though. I love Campbell's soups, for the most part, but hardly ever have them due to sodium and my interest in healthy cooking. I always think of sandwiches for lunch vs. supper, but I guess lots of people eat like that. We have Sloppy Joe Sandwiches for dinner sometimes, or hamburgers (which are truly a sandwich when you think of it) but they are hot sandwiches and not your typical cold cut with bread that most people have.
Phyllis, you are doing well and you will get to know all of us sooner or later, don't worry. I am intrigued by an invite to a club med, as I thought they were all inclusive vacation resorts vs. a place where a person would throw a party. Maybe you can just go for meals there? I began to wonder if this is so "off season" in Florida that Club Med likes to invite people locally to man the tables and make the place look occupied for their guests? Do enlighten me on that, I would love to know. I have always thought about maybe going to a club med one day, as the all inclusive part of it appeals to my pocketbook. I'd know what the expense of the trip would be, period, and not have concerns. However, I get bored easily and like to be on the open road a bit, so that keeps me from going.
Paige, I was a church skipper as well yesterday. I really felt badly about it, though, as I've been away so much this summer and have hardly been at all, but these past weeks I have been playing catch up, after being away so much. I went grocery shopping with that time, and my house is now fully a "WW kitchen" again. I cleaned out the refrigerator and tossed rotten food, stuff past it's dates, and made room for all the good fresh veggies and healthy choices like low fat cottage cheese, tiny one point yogurts and things like that. It feels "safe" here, whew!
Yesterday, I had planned on making a dinner, though, and we ended up eating out. I hope I did OK. I have to journal what I ate this morning. I resisted alcohol and had water with lemon, no dessert. Later, at home, I had a WW 2 point ice cream cone.
I hope to get back to the gym this morning. Today is "trial run" day, my alarm went off at the time that I will be getting up on school days. Gosh, it's dark out at this house and I truly wish for my warm covers and my eyes just want to shut..... maybe a nap later will help?
Kim2, what grade is your daughter in? I'm wondering if this amount of homework will let up? Maybe it's time for a chat with her teachers about this. Does she struggle with homework too? Don't ever overlook the opportunity to bring to the school's attention what is happening on the homefront. School starts tomorrow for my daughter and I imagine it to be a better year for her. She is a senior this year and is still taking a full schedule, but she thinks these classes will be easier on her. One of them is called "Into to Theater" and it's with the "best" English teacher in the entire school. She thinks it will be a "breeze", but I'll bet there is some work associated with it. As she has almost all her credits to graduate, she is thrilled that she doesn't have to take any math or science classes this year, she hates those subjects and can't wait to have school without them. Those subjects always seemed to offer the most homework and most struggles for her.
Paige, after reading about your classes, I am jealous! I'd love to take those too. I'd have a very hard time resisting the food, though. As Kim said, I am sure you make the best. I think it's so hard for a commercial bakery to still keep the "flavor" of homemade things. For example, I do love the bread in my local grocery store bakery and it's a step above the breads you buy off the shelf, but they are STILL not like homemade. I wonder why they just can't do that? Wouldn't we all love to buy a real bread that was readily available that really did taste and feel like homemade?
Kim, sorry there is sickness in your house, hope everyone is better soon. Soon as schools open up, it seems the viruses start going around. I always remember, as a kid, getting a cold by the time school was three weeks in session each year. It was amazing how quickly those germs can travel.
I suggested to my daughter that she weigh herself yesterday to get a feel for what she has to deal with after being away all week. They did allot of walking, though, and I was impressed that she said she was the same as before she went. So, if we keep up with being good and get right into some form of exercise, perhaps she'll be doing OK? She has the first day of school tomorrow and a rehearsal for a play she is in right after school, I don't know if she'll be able to make it to the 4:30 WW meeting we usually go to or not. I hope so, she really needs to focus and those meetings really keep me in line. Speaking of that, Paige, maybe you need to find another meeting time/day/leader? I wouldn't want to go and just pay and weigh in, I can do that at home (just adding 2 pounds or so in my head as the WW scales are usually that much higher than my scale at home) but that is not the entire reason why I need to go. I find the discussions on the introduced topics to be really good for me. Often, I will leave a meeting saying something like "Gosh, that seems like it was directed specifically to me".
Kim, what a great story about the sugar free Jell-O and salad your daughter was having. Sounds exactly like this house! My daughter gets me into panic sometimes when I hear cabinets being opened and shut and the refrigerator. She is really trying, as is your daughter.
We were going to go to Olive Garden too last night, Kim. I printed the entire page off of Dottie's Weight Loss Zone with the points values. We drove into their parking lot and the line was already out the door with people waiting to get tables. We went to a place called "The 99", and I had prime rib. It was plain, it was not portion controlled, but I could have had so many worse choices. I had a salad and had oil and vinegar on it, I scraped aside all the cheese and croutons that arrived on top of the salad, unexpectedly (probably 3 or 4 points in those!) and had steamed broccoli and garlic mashed (didn't finish them) with it all. It was a higher point meal than I would have had at home, but it still was quite well behaved. I wanted one of their huge, juicy burgers smothered in cheese with fries and onion rings and would have eaten all that stuff on a salad, would have had the blue cheese dressing, and also had soup or another appetizer in the past. I'd have also had a beer or wine with this meal as well. So, all in all, points saved last night might be around 25 or 30? I am not perfect, but my new lifestyle is certainly much better than the old me.
Barb, every pumpkin I see is the perfect pumpkin! I generally surround a tree in the front yard with hearty mums, pumpkins, corn stalks and make it look pretty. Then, I have three or four mums on the front steps as well to bring color into my yard. This year, we are so sorely lacking rain, that I certainly will need it, everyone's lawns are dismally brown around here, other than the three houses on the street with automatic watering systems. Lucky them, but I sure wouldn't want my well drying up in order to have a green lawn.
Phyllis, I wish I had a day where I was under my points for a change. I'd have dessert on such a day! WW says it is not good to eat less than your points allowance as your body with think it's starving and retain weight. You should strive to at least eat each of your points and not worry about the flex points, if you don't want them. But, do eat all of those points.
Well, I've rattled on long enough....
Today's goals:

eat a planned day with ALL those healthy food guidelines being addressed

go back to the gym

drink all my water, and then some so tomorrow's weigh in might be even a tiny loss

Good Morning everyone,
Well, yesterday was off program for me. My parents had an end of the summer bbq last night, and I really enjoyed myself. Today will be better, I know it will. I find that the days I drink a ton of water, I'm able to stay on track more.

Barb-it's not too early to get pumpkins. If you take a gallon of water and one cup of bleach (to make a simple sanitizing solution) and wash the entire pumpkin, stem and all, you'll increase your chances of keeping the pumpkin. Bacteria is what rots a pumpkin, and try to store it in a cool dry spot (not wet grass).

Paige- I'm jealous when I hear of you baking homemade rolls, especially sub rolls! I've always dabbled in making homemade bread, but it is dangerous for me to have that around. That etools sounds really cool, how much do you have to pay for that? How does it work?

Well, I need to go get some chores done before DD's wake up. My goals for today: Drink tons of water, stay within my points, be positive! :)

Happy Monday everyone!!!!

No plans for the day...how about everyone else?? Oh wait, the "laundry fairy" needs to come visit, so I guess I do have some plans!! LOL!

Linda-The problem with meetings is that the one here is only open one day! On that day they have three meeting times, two in the morning, and one at night. The two in the morning are with a different leader than the night meeting. I'll definately go this week, though, to the night one...maybe it will be different. The next closest place is in Middletown, but it's too far to go just for that (20-25 min...I'm dedicated, but gas prices are just too high right now.) Yes, my classes are fun this semester. I really don't have a hard time staying away from the products we make, and we aren't "allowed" to bring things home anymore. I had made lemon poppy seed muffins last Thursday, and dh likes them...I had to "smuggle" them home!!!

Erica-Etools is the Weight Watchers site...you get it for free when you sign up for the monthly pass. It's actually a pretty good deal; the monthly pass is the least expensive way to do meetings, and etools is a wealth of info. I will really miss it if I decide to stop going to meetings. My rolls yesterday were fantastic!!!!! I had made my dinner roll recipe, but shaped them like baguettes (long rolls) and put them side by side in a 9x13 pan. Dh had gotten some deli turkey, so I used that with some ff mayo and ff italian dressing, tomatoes and shredded lettuce. God, it was so good. No one around here uses rolls like that, they use the crusty french/italian breads, and I don't care for those.

Phylis-I agree, be very careful about not eating all of you points. If you are having trouble, make sure you are getting in your healthy oil (that adds a few) plan some snacks, add some more protein. I personally have the type of body that is very stubborn. If I don't eat all of my points, I will either not lose anything or I'll actually gain (the week before last that is what happened...my mind was so consumed with the bakery that I had lost my appetite and had a tough time getting myself to eat, and yep, I gained a lb at weigh in.) Congrats on the loss, though, too!!! In my eyes, WW is the only way to go!

Hi to Ann, Kim, Barb, Janelle, and anyone else I missed!!!! Have a fabulous day!

Oopps! So I just put the roll recipe into the recipe builder...yeah, they may be low in fat, but they were still 9 pts for 1/2 (6 1/2") sub roll!!! They were really good, but I guess I should of figured the points out before hand! Oh well, live and learn.

I swore I posted yesterday - I know I read the posts but I must have gotten distracted before I hit the reply button.

Erica - thanks for the tip on the pumpkins!!!! I had no idea about bacteria and the bleach water solution. I'll pass that tip along to friends who paint pumpkins every year and sell them. You're doing so well checking in with us as busy as you are.

Kim said: "DH and I went to Olive Garden....Son was not feeling like going and Daughter was at slumber party next door. Again, we weren't sure where we were going. I was bad......bad.....bad. I felt so full I was sick. I hate that feeling. I wish I had eaten till I was COMFORTABLY full. Why do I do that to myself??" Kim - actually Olive Garden has some fairly good choices and very tasty. I love their soups there. I get the never ending salad bowl (ask them to not put the dressing on if possible). Indulge in one bread stick and ask the people I'm with to set it across the table by their plates so I can't sneak another one and I have to purposefully ask for another and have a bowl of their Minestrone soup. Do go to DWLZ to check out the points. It's doable.

Linda - I bet you are so glad to have your DD home. We usually have real meals at our home too. I have been known to make a quick homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese for dinner on busy nights though. I've gotten so spoiled by home cooked food that I buy very little processed foods which include canned soups. I make a lot of soup in the fall, winter and spring months. Quite tasty, filling, easy, low in points and easy on the budget.

Wow on the roll points Paige. I do miss my breads and rolls. The Healthy fiber bread is okay but every so often, I miss a good fat filled piece of bread or roll. On Friday, when I did my shopping, we bought a marked down broasted chicken and a pkg of dinner rolls to eat quickly. The chicken was fab but the rolls left very much to be desired. I ate couple bites and threw it away. DH didn't even like the rolls. So we'll probably let them dry out for bread crumbs or feed them to the squirrels. I substituted grapes instead for filler. Amazing how your eating habits DO CHANGE over the course of a year huh?

Anyway, I'm off work today for both jobs and am home to do some cooking, laundry, airing out my bedroom from the summer of air conditioner up there and cooking for the upcoming week. I have a couple recipes I really want to try and put away for the week.

Have a great day everybody. I did read the posts but it's hard to address everyone!

Happy Monday/Labor Day Everyone,

Well the State Fair was a lot of fun. I didn't do to badly at the fair but we decided to leave and eat dinner at a restaurant thinking it would be better for us than fair food. Only problem is we were watching the horse hitch teams compete and it was interesting so we didn't leave on time and it was almost 9 when we got to the restaurant so I ordered an appetizer and wine, so ended up way over for the day :( Probably would have been better off grabbing a gyro at the fair and staying to watch the rest of the wagons. Oh well it's over. We then stopped by the in-laws to meet their new puppy (dogs are huge in his family). It was so cute, I remember when our 2 were little. Probably similar to how mom's feel when they see a baby :lol:.

Yesterday we had my mom's family's annual "corn roast". It was at my cousin's house this year. I was amazed looking at some of my mom's great aunts and uncles at how well they get around still at 80 or 90, most of them don't drive anymore so their daughters bring them, but still it was nice. Didn't do so well on the eating, but not too bad I don't think. I drank wine sprizter's to keep the alcohol points down (still haven't found a wine I like to mix. The one I liked was a lot sweeter than I normally drink to counter the dryness of the club soda), I did have several lemon squares though and I made them so I know they were not low pt.

Today we're going to take it easy. May go for a ride this afternoon. And I want to get the tomatoes in the freezer. I need to find a good sauce recipe to can to replace the usual can of sauce in recipes. Hmmm, I will have more tomatoes before I'm done, these heirloom plants keep going until first hard frost.

Linda - Apparently I'm on your weird list. We often don't eat until 8 or 9. And I love soup and sandwiches for dinner. Although I make the soup from scratch usually not a can. Usually we eat that late because if I go to the gym after work I don't get home 'til 7 and dh doesn't get home usually 'til 6:30 or so, by the time we unwind we don't get dinner started until 7 or 7:30 so dinner's not until 8. We were doing better this winter when I was off eating between 7 and 7:30 but as soon as I went back to work....But then it's only us and no kids, if we had little kids we'd eat earlier with the whole early bedtime thing, teenagers probably not. Oh and the tires need replacing because they're old and dry rotted not because of the riding. Although I do have over 250 miles logged for the year :D.

Paige - ditto Laura on the roll points!!! That's probably why they're so good. Your classes sound like fun. Guess I'm lucky on the ww meeting situation I have like 20 choices just at the center I go to and like 3-4 other centers w/in like 10 min. Don't have the monthly pass though.

Erica - Good info on the pumpkins, I'll keep that in mind. I always end up buying at the last minute, and ending up with one that's either huge or misshapen. Good luck with the water, you sound so busy.

Phyllis - :woohoo: on the pound. I loose really slow so I'm always excited with a pound. Getting your points in is important. One of my leaders actually said if she had points left at the end of the day she'd eat peanut butter off a spoon. I'm not sure I'd go that far, but....

Kim - Too bad about the lake. Hope your son's better. I never make good choices at Italian either so I try to avoid it. Not that good choices can't be made, I don't make them. Hope your having some fun mixed in with the studying for the holiday.

Barb - I'm definitely struggling this weekend too much time out.

Ann - Hope you're having a good day.

To everyone I missed hope you're enjoying the weekend. I've gotta go. I'm making a potato salad (out of Cooking Light, so lower calories) and bean burgers for diner tonight and their is some prep involved, but it sounded like a Labor Day kind of meal.

Have a great day everyone.

-Tech

Hi everyone - I just cannot keep up with all the posts here! Everyone is contributing so much and that is great.
I had a rough day yesterday ... just stressed out. i didn't binge, which is something I have been known to do in the past but I did eat too much. So I ended up not losing this week. At least I didn't gain 5 pounds which happened a while ago. Back on track today though. i have that stressed-out, mildly depressed feeling that I get at the beginning of the school year. Each year is completely different for me. After 13 years of teaching at the university level, I am only now teaching a class for the second time! I have three new kids in my little studio and tons of performances coming up. So I am feeling a bit uncertain and stressed. I know everything will be fine but I need to NOT EAT these feelings!!

Hugs to all esp. those who also had a hard time this weekend ... I know we can do this!!

Ann - Claire has staggered entry on Friday - her first day. I think she will have a great time. She is really looking forward to it.

cheers
Erika

Thanks Erica for the advice..I may get them in a few weeks. Hopefully I will not have smelly and funny liquid running out from the bottom of them this time around...I am sure this bleach thing will work..The last few years have not been good to us on the pumpkin scene.Yuck

Phyllis wish I could eat under my pts....

Linda I hate when that happens...That has happen to me before getting all ready for a resturant and than they are busy....Sounds like you handled it well.

I did pretty good today. NOt sure how many pts, but trying to make up for last night. We were invited to a social hr and they were making a pina colada mix with rum runners. OMG..I had 3 but I drank only half of the 3rd because it was to rich for me..I paid for it last night .I had the worst stomach ache all night. They were so yummy but one is all I can handle with fluffy drinks like that... Wi tom Yikes I just hope I lost at least 1 pd.....Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Boys have been playing football outside...Why do they insist on playing even when they come in and cry because someone tackled them to hard...They are driving me crazy..I told them to play tag football but no they have to tackle..I want to tell them do not come crying to me than...Does anyone have boys??? They are easy but it is hard to just let them be boys when it comes to rough housing.

Better go need to find a recipe for tom.. Making something with a beef tenderlion. Not sure...check in later Barb

Hello everyone,

I haven't had a chance to read everyone's post but I hope everyone is doing well. I was out of town in Austin for UT football, yup it's football season again I love it. Anyways, my mom didn't take her laptop with her so I had no access to the computer which was probably good b/c I was tired of looking at one but at the same time I didn't get to check in with you guys. Anyways just wanted to stop by and say hello. Talk to yall tomm.

Morning - where's our crew today?

Back to work. The holiday weekend is done. I had a pretty good OP weekend. I made a Garden Pasta Pie yesterday from an old WW Homestyle Cookbook. It's was pretty tasty with linguine, a couple types of cheeses, zucchini and tomatoes. A decent size portion for 4 points too! Best part is that it is a vegetarian dish so I packed some up for DD to take back to college with her and I have enough for lunch today.

Hope everyone survived the long weekend and is ready to commence and go forth!

Happy Tuesday after Labor Day to you all!
Firstly, yesterday, I was back on program and also went to the gym. I really drank water like crazy, hence was running to the bathroom about every nano-second, it seemed, all day. I guess I earned an extra activity point with all those extra visits? ;)
Erika, I was surprised that you, a WW leader, was asking Paige about e-tools. I could have sworn I heard that WW leaders had use of all that stuff for free, can't imagine that they charge you. Or, are you "out" of the leader business right now? I'm jealous of the homemade breads and treats that Paige makes, as well. Very good idea on the bleach and water wash for pumpkins! I keep a spray container (labelled carefully) of a mild solution of bleach and water under my kitchen sink. I spritz my sponges with it and cutting boards to keep bacteria from growing.
Just relating a story... one WW meeting a long time ago, my leader was asking us questions about what we missed the most while on WW. She was brainstorming and having members in meetings offer alternative suggestions. I think we should do that here, by the way. I raised my hand and said I truly missed using my bread machine and having homemade breads. She suggested that I figure out the points for all the ingredients and weigh out slices. She told me that I shouldn't give up such great things. But, I still shy away from making homemade bread and rolls as it's such a trigger food for me. One slice suddenly turns into two or three, I'm afraid. The lite margarine that I can get by with, ordinarily, somehow ends up turning into butter (have it always here for DH as he refused to use margarine). I can't control myself. I do make popovers now and then as I seem to be able to control myself a bit more with those and they are 2 points each from the recipe I use. If I have two popovers, with a homemade stew or soup, for dinner with lite margarine, I'm usually satisfied and can have a 10-12 point dinner, not too bad for that kind of thing.
I don't suppose anyone has any low point bread machine recipes? I really do need a good bread "fix" after all this talking about it. The WW lite bread that I eat is SO BORING......the lite english muffins and bagels are also SO BORING.... they just seem to lack the zip that non-lite foods have.
Paige, if you are not allowed to bring the things you made at school home anymore, what happens to them? Just curious.
Is e-tools really free along with the monthly pass? Now, I shall have to look into what that costs and see if I can afford the funds up front. I didn't know you could get e-tools free with it.
Paige, you were right about the healthy oils. I plan to have mine today, yesterday I skipped. So, when I said I was back on program, now that I think of it, I truly wasn't as I didn't have my oils. One thing I talked with my leader about is my supplements. I take garlic oil, flax seed oil and fish oil capsules each day. Each has a calorie indicator on the bottle and all totaled, they do equal about one point. She told me that if the calories added up to 50, then I could count them as one serving of healthy oil. I truly don't "recognize" my vitamins on my journal as any points. Do any of you?
Wow, Paige, 9 points for 1/2 a sub roll. I'll bet they were awesome and worth it, though. Now, how can you get them to be great and cut back on points, somehow? Is there a way to add fiber to them? By the way, Oscar Myer is making package ham and turkey that are not at the deli, but where they sell package cold cuts. You can have 6 slices of ham or turkey for 45 calories if you buy the right thin sliced package, a very good deal and they are usually decent quality.
Speaking of those lovely breads that some of us are missing, does anyone have a low point biscuit recipe that is REALLY good? Also, I do like the Ezekiel bread that I have found at our local supermarket. They talked about it at WW meetings and it is sold in the health food section or over by where frozen bagels and waffles are in stores. You must keep it frozen or it goes bad REALLY quickly. One slice is one point and it is very healthy. At a WW meeting, my leader mentioned that it's the closest bread to CORE anyone is selling, but it must be counted if you are on CORE - though I know a few CORE "veterans" who do not count it. One woman at my meeting is an inspiration to me, by the way. She is a bit older than I am and has been on maintenance for about 2 years now. She's on CORE and her goal weight and body structure are equal to mine. I really listen when she speaks up at meetings. She, also, ignores the newer snack guidelines put out on CORE last November, she says. She lost her weight and made it to goal on CORE and said that she often has FF cottage cheese for an afternoon snack, she says she feels that she needs the protein to keep satisfied. Interesting.
Tech, next time you make a wine spritzer, try seltzer instead of club soda, maybe that will help? Also, add lemon and/or lime to it. I might even try a sweet red wine like Chianti or sangria if you want it sweet? I wonder if adding a teeny bit of Splenda might make it nicer for you?
Also, Tech, it's OK to be on my weird list for eating if that is normal for your household! However, with a family/kids, having dinner at a reasonable hour and keeping to a schedule is so important. Plus, my daughter is hypoglycemic and if she doesn't eat regularly, she gets headaches, dizzy and "the shakes". I was so thankful to have sent along a tote bag full of two point snacks, she used up all of them!
Erika, when you are feeling mildly depressed as well as stressed out, it's time to plan, plan, plan your food, and stick with a schedule. Also, when times get depressing (I'm the queen of that, sadly) it's time to exercise and force yourself to spend a bit of time outdoors, or doing something creative. I hope you can work through it. Keep us posted.
So, as for me, here goes:

Yesterday, at the gym, I added another half minute to my time on the elliptical. I'm really feeling good about that, as when I first started at the gym, I could barely do 3 minutes and it was such hard work. Yesterday, I was up to 10 1/2 minutes. I did the exercise bike as well as the treadmill.
Now, I have an important question for you all about the exercise bike. This bike allows you to enter in your weight/age and it tracks heartrate as well, pretty sophisticated. If you are entering your weight and if it tells you that you've earned 50 calories, do you then think you can count it as earning a point? My former leader once told me that you needed to do things like this for 20 minutes in order to consider it a point and ignore what the machine tells you as far as calories are concerned. But, this machine seems more accurate if you are entering in your age and weight into it. So, if I am on it for something like 14 minutes and it tells me that I've worked off 50 calories, wouldn't you think that is earning a point? I did 20 minutes on the treadmill, 10 1/2 minutes on the elliptical and then did "50 calories" on the exercise bike. I called it 2 points, but I was wondering if it was more like 3 points? I don't mind calling it less anyway, truly, but would prefer to be accurate.
Today's goals:
1. drink lots of water this morning, weigh in is this afternoon!
2. eat on program. I'm going to vary breakfast to help my body to not retain the fiber I usually eat with oatmeal in the mornings. Oatmeal slows up the digestive system and it's my breakfast of choice, but I need to vary breakfasts a bit, as I am stuck in a rut (but I just LOVE oatmeal).
3. no gym today, as I don't want my muscles stretched and retaining fluid, however I plan to clean house a bit today. My house is what I refer to as a "pit" as I've been away so much and just breezing through here. Dusting and vacuuming must be part of my morning, as well as cleaning bathrooms, so will probably earn a point doing all of that.


Meals:
Breakfast:
egg white omelet: 3/4 cup egg whites (1), onion and pepper sautéed in 1 tsp olive oil (1), low fat feta cheese (1), tomato
one lite English Muffin, butter spray (1)
Total points = 4

Lunch:
Sandwich: lite bread (1), ham and turkey (1), lite Swiss cheese (1)
garden vegetable soup = 0
pickles= 0
Total points so far = 7

Snack after weigh in:
One WW chocolate caramel bar or a 100 calorie pack snack of some kind= 2
Total points = 9

Dinner:
Pork chops in tomato sauce (a WW recipe) = 5 (has olive oil and veggies!)
brown rice = 3
Salad = 0 (with 0 point salad dressing spray)
one cup calorie countdown milk = 1

total points so far= 18

Dessert: one WW ice cream cone, chocolate of course!

Laura, we cross posted. Good morning and that Garden Pasta recipes sounds good. I think I have that cook book, will have to check for it!

Happy Tuesday! I hope you all enjoyed your long weekend. I did, except for the studying and of course, not getting to go to the lake! Ok, so mine wasn't so great........

This is a quickie, just checking in. Had my first test today. I think I made a c. I am hoping for a b, but who knows......
I have more studying today, another test tomorrow.
So far today, I have been good. I had a salad with light dressing for lunch between classes (they added a new vendor that has coffee, tea, sandwiches on whole wheat bread, salads, muffins, etc. We are a small community college, so all we had before that was a Domino's Pizza booth. The salad was good and it satisfied me quite well. I also had 2 WW 1 pt chocolate candies.....All I had for breakfast was coffee....I was studying and in a hurry.

Well, I need to go back to the books....I will be back in a little bit.
I really hope you all have a great day!
Kim

Kim, sounds like the choices are better than the Domino's booth that existed before, great!
As for me, I'm all ready to leave in about 7 or 8 minutes for my meeting/weigh in. I'm a bit nervous about the weigh in. I had a 2 pound gain after my last weigh in, two weeks ago when I was just back from my trip to Rhode Island. I just noticed that I neglected to adjust my tracker and left it, so I guess I'll wait til after today to hopefully have some kind of loss.
I don't think, even if I was almost angelic, that I will have a loss today. I was just re-examining my choices over the last week, or so, and I think I was a very good girl. Yet, the scale is not kind to me. Maybe next week? Maybe the WW scale will be kinder than my own here at home is?
We'll see...

Finally.... I had a hard time getting through today. Every time I logged on, it would tell me there was a system failure... grrrr.... So now I have to make it quick as I am about to get dinner ready. Dinner at my house varies according to the families schedule. Right now we have a normal dinner time (between 5 & 6) with protein, veggies and usually a carb (try to get away from that every night, but my DH is a real meat and potatos kind of super slim kind of eats everything and anything and doesn't gain a pound (am I sounding bitter:^:) kind of guy). During basketball and baseball seasons, we have to adjust eating to go along with schedules. I try really hard to serve a balanced meal. Even if we have sandwiches, they are served with lots of veggies. The one exception is our totally chocolate dinner which we only have once a year, usually during our summer vacation. This is a 3 or 4 entre chocolate dinner (usually cookies, pudding, cake, and chocolate covered strawberries), with some "normal" food for dessert (speghetti is usually the requested item). I portion out everyones meal, and surprisingly, the kids always eat their dessert. It is a fun thing that the kids saw on a cartoon years ago and wanted to do. We have done it for about 5 years and the kids totally love it. I figure once in awhile I have to let the kids have their wishes come true!!

The weekend was fun, but in terms of WW.... baaaadddd. But I am ready to start over again and get on track. The kids go back to school tomorrow and I couldn't be more ready. Neither can they, although they will say differently. I don't have all boys, only one, but the same thing happens at my house with the rough housing.... my girls can get into it as bad as the boys. I warn them that sooner or later someone is going to get hurt, but they don't want to hear that. They just want to do their thing... and then cry about it later. Kids, gotta love em.

Ann, (forgive me if it wasn't you.... I am going off the memory banks and they don't always work so good) you mentioned homemade tomato soup. I would love to know your recipe. MIL makes one, but uses canned soup and doctors it up. I want to just make one from scratch. I too am trying to get away from the processed food, but every recipe that I find, has some type of canned soup to suppliment.

So, I am making some renewed committments to myself and in essence to you all. Starting tomorrow AM, I will plan my day, drink my water, stay OP, and if I can get through my enormous list of errands in a timely manner, I will exercise. (my husband put my car out of commission today so tomorrow I have two days worth of stuff to accomplish....husbands gotta love them too!!) Today I tried to get my "office" together as I am suppose to be now working for the DH. It was a crazy day and I ended up totally turning my house upside down, so I sort of got exercise moving lots of heavy furniture around. Of course I am feeling like I put my back out a bit, but I won't let that deter me from what has to be done.

Have a great evening everyone!!
Kim2

Kim - it was me who makes homemade tomato soup. I usually use a qt of whole tomatoes and a can of skim evaporated milk and a tablespoon of butter or margarine. Add a bit of parsley and basil. I count it at 2 pts per cup. Go ahead and put the tomatoes in your blender real quick for a couple of pulses to break up the tomatoes. Do not drain the tomatoes, use the juice to help make it soup consistency.

Anyone like the WW Santa Fe Rice Frozen dinners? Well I made it myself at home because I was craving it after watching someone eat one at work today

Here's what I did:

1 c White rice 4 pts
1/4 c black beans .5 pts
2 T medium salsa 0 pts
3/4 oz Kraft cheddar
shredded 1 pt
2 T Fat Free Sour Crm 1 pt

6.5 pts for a nice size portion. I added some baby tomatoes and I'm really satisfied

Hi everyone good day for me I lost 1 pd...Yippee not bad for really having a hard time tracking....Went to the gym for the first time in 3 months....Did the eliptical for 45 minutes...Whoo. So I hope I am back on the wagon for working out....My friend called me today to do lunch at a japenese (sp) steak house...I have No Idea the pts....It was out of this world and I did take some home. We had chicken,steak, fried rice which I know is like 8pts and those noodles...Oh this shrimp with this egg sauce on it ..I tried to JUST taste it but dang it it won me over and I ate it all. OMG it was heavenly....Oh well , My dinner is messed up . Now I can only eat salad and a little of my beef tenderlion. I will work out hard tom....

Linda not sure about the point thing...I have never really added the pts just Recorded that I worked out.

Laura your soup sounds great...I need to try that one.

Hello to everyone ,Take care ,Barb

Well, it's really back to work for me. I weighed in and gained .6
I was really disappointed in myself as when I weighed in two weeks ago, I had gained 2 pounds. I really need to get to work.
BUT, I really was pretty good last week so not sure where I went wrong. I end my tracker tomorrow (good riddance I guess) and I still have flex points. I worked out and so what have I done wrong? Hmmm.... back to the grindstone, I guess.
Will post more tomorrow. I sure wish today's meeting was more motivational. Usually, I am "pumped up" after a meeting and tonight I feel just "flat" and sad that all the work I did do seems to be to no avail. Sometimes that happens, so maybe next week will be really a good one?

Hello everyone,

Well after looking at my bank account and spending so much money and getting tires for my car and getting stuff for work etc, I had to cancel my monthly pass. I don't think it will matter thought b/c I still have my pass till sept 24 and then I will get paid again and probably get the monthly pass after I get paid. I just didn't want them to charge me for next month before I got paid again. I will still be able to go to meeting since my other pass doesn't expire Anyways, things are going to be tough financially but what can you do.

derry: yes etools does come with the monthly pass I actually find it very useful, sometimes I wish they wouldn't charge so much for WW.

ann: guess what I bought a mountain bike this weekend at Wal-mart not to pricey, another reason for my limited cash flow, but at least I will get in excercise.

everyone else have a wonderful day tomorrow, geez I really need to sit down and read this posts.

Well.........I had WI today and lost another 1 1/2 pounds!! I can't believe it!!! So I am down 10 pounds now! So I got my 10 pound star!!!

Ok, on a bad note, my DD gained another 1/2 pound. She had lost 4 and has gained 1 back. She seems to be ok but I know she is discouraged because I am discouraged for her, although I don't let her know that. The leader asked if she has been going through a growth spurt....and she really has. Jeans we got that fit the first week of school are now too short. Also she has not been as active on a daily basis because it has been so hot and she has done nothing but homework. She had cheer practice again tonight, and again Thursday, then games on Saturday. I am hoping we can go for little walks maybe starting next week depending on the weather. I may get me one of the pedometers I hear ya'll talking about and count my steps. Our leader had one on tonight.

Linda, yes, the lunch choices sure make it easier to 'do the right thing' at school. I am very glad they are doing that. It is on a trial basis right now to see how it goes, but everyone really loves it, so I bet they stay. I am sorry about your gain. I am still amazed at how quickly the body can Fluctuate so much. Our meeting wasn't great tonight either, but our leader didn't get her material in, so we 'winged it'. There were only 5 of us there tonight too. Guess everyone had a big Labor day!

Kim2, I am rootin' for ya. Tomorrow will be good. Glad you have such a great outlook on a new day!!

Hi to everyone else!!!

Well, I just wanted to stop in and give my WI report!
***Any suggestions or comments on my DD are more than welcome.***
Kim

Congrats Kim. I wish I was in your category with a loss this week. Oh well. It is just time for me to get back to work and get my act in gear.
Today is a dangerous day as well. I go to my quilt group and one of our dear members is moving out of state. We're having a cake for her and then all going out to lunch. The lunch, I can handle, but I know I'll probably have some cake.
I wonder if I bring some fruit and eat it BEFORE the cake? Maybe I'll then have a sliver and savor every bite.
I really have the most difficult times with social occasions. I get so affected when others have the foods that I want to have.
Kim, I feel badly that your daughter had a gain more than I do about my gains as she is at such a "tender" age. I'm wondering if the cheering practice is so much exercise that she is actually not eating enough to compensate? If she is also growing, her body is doing all it can to hold on. A kid has so much work to do in their day to day lives. I hope she doesn't get too discouraged.
Remind us of her height/weight and what her goals are again please.
My daughter had another big gain yesterday, but considering her trip to Ocean City Maryland that was to be expected. We both vowed to work really hard last night.
I don't know how I'll squeeze in some activity into my day today, but I will try really hard. Even if I do have cake, that is also not an excuse to allow the entire day to go down the tubes!

Happy Wednesday all!!!!

Before I go any further, I want to post my daily menu. I have NOT been menu planning, and although I've been doing ok, I am afraid that I *will* *am* becoming lazy in my food choices. So here goes...

Breakfast-breakfast bar-3
Lunch-deli ham on ww lite bread w/lc cheese and tomato-3
snack size pk of chips-3
Dinner-grilled chicken-4
veggies-1
grilled fries-3
Dessert-low fat ice cream, MEASURED (I have been VERY lazy about measuring the ice cream!)-3
Total-20/28...saving room for "incidentals"

I also get out of class late today, and then have to pick dds up from the sitter, so since my lunch will be late, I'm not planning an afternoon snack.

Also, before I forget to mention this...have any of you seen advertised the new Progresso Light soups that are 0 points??? They are endorsed by WW, and actually say 0 pts on the label! I looked them up online, and there are 5 different flavors, all veggie based, and they sound good! I love Progresso soups. When I did Core, I ate them often, as quite a few of them are on the list.

Bakery update! We're meeting with our business counselor on Tuesday! I'm in the process of getting all of ducks in a row before we go there...I have a really great start on our business plan; we're looking into different possibilites for locations, as we have realized that we need to "keep our options open" but we need to have some plans set in place as far as where we want to be located when we are writing our business plan. I spoke with the counselor yesterday, and was pretty disappointed, so hopefully it will go better when we meet face to face. I think he thinks I'm a 19 yr old kid trying to open this place. I know I sound young on the phone, and I had mentioned that I needed to schedule the meeting after my class that day...as soon as I said that, he went from being helpful to being "well do you have any money? it takes a lot of money to start this kind of business, you know." Sooo, we'll see.

Kim-Congrats on the loss!!!!! You are doing fantastic!!! I think all you can do with your dd is be there to support (but not nag!!!) her. Like you said, try to get in little walks with her...you are her support system!

Linda-You had asked what happens to the products that we make at school...they go to a few different places, actually. This semester we have the Bakery Management class that I took last fall (they are going to be HURTING this year, though...there are no students in the class that have been in the program for awhile, it's all new ones, and a new instructor.) That class opens a little cafe/bakery type business in the culinary dept, so products from our class, the intro class, the principles of baking class, and their own class go into it to sell. We also have a Restaurant Operations class, where we have "events" each night of class (I'm not in that class... fortunately it's not required for pastry!!!) and people from the public come in and eat. For example, last semester when I had the awards dinner, that dinner was put on by the restaurant ops class. So products that my baking class makes goes to that class so they have rolls and desserts to serve. My pastry instructor doesn't care if we take things home "as long as he doesn't see it." I don't usually take things, though, because I don't like to have them in the house.

Janelle-I know how you feel about WW and the cost...I've been struggling with "what do I do???" with my membership, too. I'm so-so about the leader, and I've been using my school money to pay for it. My money is almost gone, but I will be getting another refund check in a few weeks (it's to pay for day care, though...I don't want to be in the habit of spending it.) Dh cancelled our membership to the Y yesterday; I haven't been going, and with school I probably won't be going, so that will free up $50 a month. He is joining Planet Fitness, as their membership is only $15 (we were paying $67 at the Y.) I feel really bad about cancelling the membership, but it is just more than we can pay right now, and with the cost of gas, driving 25 min there and back just isn't an option. Finances are so difficult!!

Anyway guys, sorry not to get to all of you, but I'm pushing it with the time right now! I've got to GO or I'm going to be LATE for class!!!!

Have a great day all!!!

Good morning everyone

Congrats Barb and Kim on your losses. Linda - remember I was right there with you last week. This week has been better. Whenever we are out of our normal element, this becomes tougher. You'll be on the right path this week. I'm sure of it.

Hope everyone has a great Wednesday/Hump Day

Good Morning,

I don't have a lot to say as I posted so late in the day yesterday. I got my children off for their first day of school, they were very nervous. It was sort of funny. So now it is just me and the puppy. She is not really happy to be hanging out with me as I am not giving her all the attention she wants. She'll be even more angry here in a few minutes when I leave her to do some grocery shopping (I am going to look for that soup Paige!)

Thanks for the tomatoe soup recipe Laura! I might try and make some from the fresh tomatoes I have in my garden. I have some canning to do later this week and that would be the perfect time to make some. Not today though.... we are looking at the 90's with lots of humidity. Kids are going to be miserable in school!


Congrats to everyone loosing!! I will be one of you next week!!

Everyone have a terrific, OP day.
Kim2

Ewwww.... I changed my tracker. I think that hurt worse than seeing the numbers on the scale. I DON'T want to do that again!

I feel your pain Kim - I just changed mine too

Hello All,

I just got back from WW and am very happy :D :D I lost 5 lbs :eek: Now really the 1.6 gain last week was undeserved and I am pretending it never happened (I went at night after working all day and being hot and sweaty, and eating steak the night before), so really this was a 3.4 loss over 2 weeks but that is still really great.

I road my bike to ww today and so have just about cooled down, I'm ready for fall and cooler weather, although we're going camping up north in a week and I don't want it too cool for that. Anyway, my brain is not working very well. I was not that good over the 3 day weekend (hence the reason I'm really excited about the loss), and yesterday I felt hung over even though I didn't drink much on Monday. I think it was all the simple carbs I ate all weekend. I was probably still close to my points, but it wasn't healthy.

Linda - I don't think 50 cals burned equals 1 pt. Curves says you burn 250 - 500 cals during a workout but it only equals 2 points, so using that as a scale...Don't get to discouraged about the gain, just get back to basics that's what I've been trying to do these last 2 weeks and it seems to be working.

Kim - Congrats on the loss! :broc: If I eat as little as you do during the day I pig out when I get home. I need to spread my points out.

Laura - That tomato soup sounds similar to what I make, but I saute up carrots, onions and garlic, add the tomatoes and herbs, then stick blender and add the milk. We make a grilled mushroom and fontina cheese sandwich to go with it. It's a great fall dinner. Sorry about your gain.

Barb - Congrats on your loss! :carrot:

Haylo - sorry about the money issues, car repairs do that to a budget.

Well, I should go grab lunch and go run errands. Gotta fill the propane tank, so we can roast a chicken for dinner. l/o go in a pasta salad for Friday.

-Tech

Linda, DD is 4'11" and weighs 126. Her doctor recommended 85 as her goal, but we are NOT going there. That was also when she was 2 inches shorter (He was going by her last height at the office in April).
I feel so bad, almost guilty that I lost and she gained. What a horrible feeling! I feel sure she is getting enough to eat......I am writing EVERYTHING down. We will see how next week goes. Please keep your fingers crossed! Oh, and
If you get some cake.......just get a tiny piece, then eat it VERY slowly! That way you don't finish before everyone else and feel quite as deprived. Social Occasions are the WORST! You asked us to tell what we missed most since being on WW......I would have to say Not worrying every time I am somwhere about what I am sticking in my mouth! I also miss Sweets! They are also my no-no cause I can't have just a 'little'. I love Reese's peanut butter cups and M&M's...
I hope your daughter gets back on track as well. At least you both made a promise to buckle down this week.

Paige, yes, I have seen those soups...matter of fact a couple weeks ago, someone in my WW group brought some of the labels in. Our Stores here didn't have them, but I looked the other day and they did! They had 2 types. I haven't tried them yet, but I hear they are pretty good! yay! and 0 points?? Wooo Hooo! Good luck with your couselor visit! It really does sound like he thought you were a kid. I bet his attitude changes tremendously when he sees you are actually a grown adult! :D. I can't wait to hear how that goes! And thanks for reminding me I am DD's support system. I get on here and have you guys......she has me. I would never nag her, but I will be there for her, no doubt.

Tech, WOW! Yay on your loss!!!!!!!:carrot: That is awesome!

And Barb....I am so sorry! I forgot to congratulate you on your loss!!!! Way to go!:cp:

Kim2 and Laura...You will change your tracker again next week .....for the better. You will have a loss.....I am sending good vibes your way!!!!

Hello to everyone else......hope you all have a great Wednesday evening!
Eat Light!
Kim

hello everyone,

So far today I went to work out and eating has been good. I have been bad about traking though I just need to get back into it.

Paige: hmm, I am going to have to look for those soups I hadn't seen them but they sound like they would be a nice addition to my lunch. I hate cancelling stuff but I guess we have to do what we have to do. Good luck with you meeting on Tuesday how exciting.

02bskinny: congrats on your loss, sorry about your daughter. I think there are a lot of factors that probably come into play with her.

tech: congrats on your loss

Good morning everyone,
Hmmm, not even sure what to say to you all, because I'm really just trying to get through each day foodwise. I know one thing, I'm looking forward to November in terms of getting back on track, and keeping up with you all everyday.
Have a great day!!

Paige, your menu for yesterday sounded good to me and I hope you did measure the low fat ice cream. That is something I can't get control of either, so I've begun buying the WW 2 and 3 point desserts again. 1/2 cup becomes a "heaping" half cup, and who am I kidding - it's really ending up to be 3/4ths cup in the end!
Paige, I'll be keeping my eyes open for those new Progresso soups. Are you finding them at a regular grocery store or a super Walmart? Seems like the super Wallyworlds have some kind of "in" to get all the good stuff? They have the 2 point low fat ice cream cups that are really, really good. I can only get them there and it's more than a half hour drive.
Paige, I hope the business plan goes well. What kind of business counselors will you be meeting with? Paige, I have an idea for you about gym and child care costs. When my kids were young, I had a group of moms with kids all the same age form a babysitting co-op. We traded off. There were those inevitable dentists and doctor and hair style appointments we all needed, and sometimes special occasions. It was wondering to have babysitting with no money changing hands. Check around with some of your trusted friends, if you don't have enough people, put a notice in your church bulletin. Maybe you might save money by trading off sitting and be able to join a gym more local? Just a thought.
Laura, thanks for the encouragement. I'm trying hard. Today is a new tracker for me and I always feel like I have a new lease on life on day one. 35 fresh flex points and the sins of the past are forgiven.
Kim and Laura, I changed my tracker too. We all feel the pain. I want to change those numbers next week to lower ones!!!! I'm a bit more determined as I can see how my daughter has re-gained weight and her clothes that looked so good on her are looking tight. I need to do this, not only for me but for her as well.
Tech, I was told, once, by a WW leader that 50 calories burned equaled a point, but another leader once told me that it had to be time spent and for me, moderate exercise for 20 minutes equals a point. I'm confused to be sure. Erica????
Kim, considering that your daughter gained, but also grew 2 inches, I would check back in with the doctor, I think. When my daughter was first on WW, our doctor wanted to see her and weigh her every three months to make sure she was doing OK. They were fearful of anorexia and stuff like that, I think. Kids and dieting are to be watched carefully. They referred us to a nutritionist in the end on top of WW. We learned a great deal from all of this. Jamie can be on the right track, but all our vacationing, especially her recent trip to Ocean City really threw us. I am so relieved to be home and in control.
Kim, I also have a 2 point a serving Snickers Bar frozen treat recipe, it's posted on the WW general section of 3FC, take a look for it! It satisfies that urge for Reeses stuff, it's really great and satisfying. Missing sweets? Let's talk more about what we can do to find substitutes that make you feel happy.
Erica, I'm worrying about you. You seem like you are "way out there"... looking forward to November when your farm stand it less busy is good, but what can we do to help you get through this time successfully NOW? You are surrounded by goodies, all the baked stuff, I know, but you are also surrounded by fresh vegetables too, right? I know I've said this before, but plan ahead each day - give yourself the gift of time to write out a menu plan each morning. It only takes 5 minutes and you will be in control and calm if you do this. You deserve a few moments. If you have to set the alarm five minutes earlier to do this, do it! You can do this, you must!
Before I forget, has anyone seen the new WW ads on TV lately? There is one that is so cute with a woman getting on an elevator and her skirt falling off as she's lost so much weight - just love it!
Gotta go, the gym is calling my name and I promised myself I'd go before my quilt group meeting. I am giving myself the gift of one hour of exercise before a VERY busy day! I have planned a 2 point snack and have it in my sewing bag so that I won't be tempted by goodies people bring. I have my bottled water, I can be strong!
HAVE A STRONG WILL POWER DAY!!!!!!

Great post this morning Linda! Very uplifting and positive. That's what I like about this group. Instead of beating ourselves and each other down for not doing what we know is program, we get incentives and positive reinforcement to look within.

Well today is WI. We'll see if my week's changes made for a good WI. I faltered by accident last night. I was doing so well and had planned the whole day BUT the dressing for my salad last night. I pulled a one serving caesar dressing out of the fridge that came in the Hillshire Farms Salad Entrees previously. I used about 3/4 of it with my dinner. When I started to do the points for what I ate, I knew all the pts but the dressing. So I pulled out my slide rule - OMG SIX POINTS FOR ONE SERVING!!!!!!!!! Yikes, so I was 1.5 pts over - I was disgusted - after all this time and all the knowledge I have, to have something like that happen. Good grief. Oh well, I learned a valuable lesson in that one and I pulled my Wishbone Spritz dressings out of the pantry and brought one to work to stay and will have one to carry with me if necessary.

I'm having a WW lobster roll recipe today for lunch and I'm really looking forward to it. I haven't had it for months and had forgotten about it.

I'll be back to report WI. Have a good day everyone

Good Afternoon All!

I can't believe what time it is already! I started "working" as soon as I got the kids off on the bus and I just realized that it is lunch time and I didn't even get any breakfast. I think that I need to decided on breakfast the night before and munch on that while I am making lunches. My goal was to get my workout in after the kids get on the bus... but today there was some pressing papers that needed to be done and mailed and I just got busy and didn't stop till now. Whew. I may have to rethink my initial plan. Most of the problem is that I really don't know what I am doing, which causes me stress and anxiety and then I don't think about me and what I am doing, I just think about the task and trying to get through it. Crazy. Hopefully I'll start tomorrow on a better note.

Yesterday was a good planned day. I stayed in my points, and didn't cheat.... well, maybe I did have a little frosting off my DH's cake... but just a small taste!!! No exercise though. I thought the kiddies would want to go swimming after school and I would try and do some laps with them, but they were so exhausted after school, they just wanted to have dinner and veg out. I am counting on them swimming this afternoon now!!

Laura, don't get discouraged about the salad dressing! That why we have the flex points!!

Linda and Kim... what type of motivation is driving your girls to loose weight? Are they working toward some "prize". (have I asked this already... or is it just something I have been wondering in my mind?) I remember when I was a teen, I used to bite my nails something fierce. My mom promised me a watch that I had an eye on if I stopped for 3 months. It was very motivating and successful. Maybe help them come up with tangible goals ( ie, exercise 3x/wk) that will result in a more healthy person.

Well, my tummy is really rumbling. I am going to get some lunch and maybe get a walk in with the puppy. She is mad at me since I wouldn't play with her this morning!!

Have a great day!

Weigh in was successful - I was down 2.4 lbs - I'm trying to not beat myself up because all summer I've been down and then up the next 3 weeks and then down and up the next 3 weeks. It's happened for 3 months straight. I'm recognizing it and making the cycle stop NOW!!!!

Laura! YAY~~~:carrot: WAY TO LOSE GIRL! I AM VERY PROUD OF YOU!
As for the dressing, at least we are now aware of our mistakes, where before we would have never looked and kept making them over and over. So..It was a lesson learned! And you lost weight anyway!!!


Kim2 - I guess my daughters motivation is just knowing she needs to lose the weight. She loves cute clothes and loves to shop. Lately, we have had to go to JC Penney's and get the plus sizes for her. She loves the cute stores like Justice, Limited 2, Old Navy, etc, but they are usually (not always) to small for her. My Aunt and Best Friends both told her they would take her shoping for a great outfit when loses where she feels healthy and confident about her weight. Hmmmmm.....noone offered that to me!!! ;)
We do plan on exercising. It may not be much (15 minutes) depending on her homework and MINE! Hopefully next week we will start walking. Oh. you probably said, but what kind of puppy do you have? How old is it???
I love dogs! Had to ask.

Linda, I am gonna look for that Snickers 2 pt dessert! That sounds YUMMY! As far as substitutes, I too have found that the WW desserts are really very good! My Dd and I love them and try to set aside a few points at the end of the day to have one. They are expensive, but It is worth it to me...It is what I crave the most. If I can find a good substitute, it may not be exactly what I want, but I can still feel satisfied and happy with it. Have that 2 point snack and stay strong!!! It is so worth it!!!!

Erica, do you make time to eat? Are eating the right things? Like Linda said, Let us know what we can do to help get through November. Just remember to take care of YOU!!!!

Haylo, I think you are right on there being lots of factors going on with my daughter. I just hope we can find the point that is good for her in terms of food and weight loss. Jr. High is such a hard age anyway. There are so many overweight children there though. Guess it is true! Mississippi is the fatest state!!!!:(

Well, I made an 83 on my first test. One point from a B!!! UGH! The tests are only getting harder.....the next chapter in that class (Cardiopulmonary A&P) has me blown away.

Speaking of which, I need to go study and get ready for DD's cheer practice, and son's open house tonight!
BUSY BUSY BUSY!!!

Kim

o2bskinny: funny, well I live in the fattest city or at least that's what I heard. You are so right, middle school is terrible and hard on kids. I wish you and your daughter the best of luck.

rosegarden: congrats on your loss

bellybuster: funny how the days go by


ann: how are you, today I got in a little over 12,000 steps yeah


oh yeah and I got an free registration through my gym for a 6 week nutrition class it starts in late september so I am looking forward to that. I don't know what it will be like but maybe I will get some more ideas.

Good post from you too, Laura, and fantastic job on the weigh in!!!!!
Sorry about the dressing issue, these things can happen. What is that saying about all the best laid plans of mice and men? Well, that's us sometimes. How often do we all THINK we are ordering something that is a good choice in a restaurant and then come home, find out the true points and feel terrible about what we ate. These kind of things stink. But, that is life, we pick up the pieces and move on. We learn.
Kim, what motivates my daughter is her acting and singing and how she wants to get great parts, the leads and with a weight issue in the way, she is often cast for the background parts. Aside from that, dare I say it, boys! The day she made her 10% goal, she got asked out! Her ego was really rewarded!
Gotta go, my daughter is waiting to start a show we used our DVR to record that was on last night.... will post more tomorrow!

Good morning ladies.
There are so many great posts.
Janelle way to go on so many steps....Yeah you.
Congratulations to all on their losses and for those who didn't good luck staying focused.
I will try and post later.
Have an awesome day everyone.
Take Care
Ann

Ann, good to hear from you. Janelle, I also commend you on your steps! Stick with it!
OK, here goes.... The weekend is approaching. What can we do to make sure we stay on program. With the weekend will be the inevitable gatherings, parties, family fun, trips, dining out.
Let's try something here.
OK, so how many meals will you eat at home on the weekend? If you grocery shop today (thanks for that idea, Erica) and have those meals all planned out and low point choices on hand, you will be more likely to succeed. Make the choices more fun and interesting than your usual "boring" weekday choices. What about a fun breakfast treat that is different? Anyone have any recipes?
What about lunches? Will there be BBQs? Parties? Nothing like that for me this weekend, so I need to figure out something yummy that will please the family and make it ahead, I think. I've got it for me! Pulled Pork BBQ sandwiches. I bought the WW whole wheat sandwich rolls that were new in my store this week, they are in the freezer so I can micro them when I need them.
I bake pork loins (the long leans ones) with onion powder, s+p sprinkled on at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes.
After cooking a bit, I slice them into slices about an inch and a half long and pull the pork apart with my fingers, separating out any fatty pieces and discarding them. I mix my favorite BBQ sauce with the pork. It can be refrigerated and microwaved when ready. I figure the pork is about 3 points, depending on how much you heap onto a roll and you end up with about 2 T of BBQ sauce, so you need to count the points for that. It's usually 2 points for the Sweet Baby Rays honey BBQ sauce I usually prefer. So, with a 2 point roll and five points worth of pulled pork, it's a wonderful lunch treat.
I always have 0 point pickles on the side for extra flavor.

So, armed with my pulled pork sandwiches for lunch for one day and a dinner out tomorrow night, what is left for meals? I need a lunch for another weekend and a different and fun breakfast idea.
Ah-ha! What about sloppy Joes?
http://www.astray.com/recipes/?show=Sloppy%20joes%20(%20low%20fat%20)
I just searched for that recipe and maybe that might work out for some of us? What about making your own lightened Caesar Salads complete with croutons and your own grilled chicken breast?
Does anyone have a really nice low point french toast recipe or muffins that don't seem low fat, particularly a corn muffin? What about low point pancakes or a coffee bread for a change? Weekends mean fun and treats and we ALL (I'm the queen of this, of course) seem to go way off track over the weekends!
So, eating out tomorrow night? Let's talk about choices:

Italian:
1. order plain pasta with marinara sauce - no meatballs or sausages!
2. Have the salad or minestrone first, always filling and low in points. On the salad, ask for oil and vinegar and a teaspoon (or sneak one in your purse in a zip lock bag!) and get in those healthy oils!
3. Back away from the canollis! Have a planned low point, but FUN dessert (yes, use some flex points!) at home. Make a low point frozen yogurt pie with a low fat graham cracker crust and fresh fruit mixed in, have lite cool whip over top and be generous with a drizzle or two of hershey's syrup - it's only 16 calories a teaspoon after all!
4. Yes, have the wine spritzer before dinner, plan the flex points and treat yourself to TWO of them, plan for that and don't feel remorseful, celebrate the weekend! Go for an extra walk or swim to make up for it and enjoy.

American "classic" restaurants:
1. Enjoy the dessert at home and have the spritzers... as above
2. Order the broiled fish or a sirloin strip steak with baked potato, ASK for margarine, enjoy it and count the flex points.
3. Again, salad with oil and vinegar

Chinese:
1. Think twice about sodium.
2. Here it is again, think twice! : )
3. Steamed chicken, shrimp and Chinese vegetables are available at most places, you can enjoy them and maybe sneak a bite or two of someone else's fried rice and have a chicker finger if your partners won't slap your hand!
4. Dessert at home, wine spritzer, it's the weekend after all!

Mexican:
1. All the above desserts and stuff can apply...
2. Fajitas are always the best choices, they are grilled and not fried and you have control of the sour cream and other stuff. Plan to have only 2 tortillas and eat the rest of the grilled veggies and meat with your fork, you won't leave hungry.

OTHER IDEAS??????
Desserts that are awesome?
A Low point margarita recipe?
A Low point chip/dip kind of thing?
A Low point breakfast treat?

Let's get in control, have a "safe" but fun and enjoyable weekend! I made it through the day, yesterday, without using a single flex point. I plan to make that happen again today. So, I will have those points for the wine and desserts. Those are the special things that are important to me on the weekends. I need to work them into my plan and still come out a winner.
What will make you a winner this weekend?????

Good Morning!

Well, today started off much better than yesterday. I got up a little earlier with the puppy (Kim, she is a 4 month old Brittany Spaniel... my husband is a hunter and needed a friend!), so I had some breakfast with her. I think that I may make that my normal routine, even get my DH to sit and have breakfast with me instead of him running out the door eating something on the way. It might be some nice quality time for us.

Having not eated breakfast yesterday I ended the day with a migraine. I managed to stay OP, which is good because I usually eat horribly when I get them. Mine don't get as bad as you describe Paige, but they are bad enough that I don't know how you manage with yours. I hit the sack shortly after the kids, and still felt bad this morning. But I did do a 4 mile walk and I actually feel a bit better for it.

Linda - I love your idea about the pulled pork. I think that I am going to spend the afternoon making up some BBQ sauce (the MIL has a recipe that DH loves) and see if I have some worthy pork in the freezer. I have a friend whose kids are in 4H and they raise pigs. We usually get one for the freezer every year, which is wonderful because they are lean and oh so much more tasty then what I get at the supermarket. We are going to a hunting expo this Saturday, so I am sure that there will be the typical carnival food available. Maybe I'll pack another picnic like I did for the zoo and bypass anything to eat there. On Sunday we are just getting the garage and yard cleaned up and probably close the pool. We try and grill as much as possible, so I think some grilled fish might be in order... I'll have to see what the freezer holds.

Paige - I found the 0 point soups at my Walmart. I think there was 6 varieties. All veggie, with variations of pasta, rice, and beans. I only bought one... Homestyle veg and rice. 60 cal, 0 fat, 4g fiber... but 830mg sodium. Not really sure that is good. I don't have any other soup in the house at the moment to compare. I don't have a prob with my BP, but I try to watch my sodium as both my parents are very high. Hope your meeting went well. I'll be anxious to hear what they told you.

Haylo - you'll need to share what the nutricionist says. I have often wondered if I shouldn't talk with one myself to make sure that I am doing right by not only myself, but my family too.

Which brings me to something that I have been struggling with, and maybe you all will have some ideas.... The kids are allowed to bring snacks to school and they are always hungry the minute they get off the bus. The at home snack is not that hard, I'll make them a smoothie, or cut up fruit with peanut butter or cheese and crackers.... but do you have any good thoughts for them to take to school that aren't cumbersome, but healthy. I do buy the granola type bars, but there are a lot of those that they don't care for, and of course the ones they do like are not really all that healthy. They like their veggies, but that isn't what they want to eat at school. They want the cookies and cracker things that their friends bring. They do eat the yogurt that I pack, but they are getting tired of that. I could use some new ideas.

I am going to spend the afternoon doing laundry and looking through some recipes and see if I can come up with some things to share Linda! You've inspired me to be creative this weekend with my menu!!

I do have a dip idea that I have never figured out for points, but shouldn't be to awful...

*On a nice serving plate spread a small can of refried beans
*Place 4oz of both cottage cheese and cream cheese (I use the no fat/low fat and it works well, it'll be a little softer than the regular but it is still good) in a food proccessor and blend till smooth. Spread that over beans. (for added kick add about 1/2 packet of taco seasoning mix to the cheese mixture). Refridgerate for about 30 minutes till it sets up a bit.
*Pour taco sauce (or salsa works too) over top of cheese mix, as much as you like.
*Top with your favorite mexican toppings.... shredded lettuce, chopped tomato, onion, pepper, guacamole, olives etc. Enjoy with baked chips.

You can add or delete amounts of this in order to make it more to your needs. The cheese mix is just equal parts, so make more or less according to how you want it to be. You could also do away with the beans and just use the cheese mix to save a few points. This is a most requested recipe of mine.

On that note, I am off to have lunch and get to the overwhelming pile of laundry. Good luck to everyone and if I don't get here tomorrow have a super Saturday!!

Hi all!!! Just want to check in quickly as my dd will be getting off the bus soon. Yesterday was her first day of kindergarten...she loved it!!!

Little dd and I went to the mall today and gave my credit card a little workout (not too much, though!!!) I am having a really tough time realizing that I do not need to shop in Lane Bryant anymore! I have shopped there for so long, it is so automatic to go there. I'm in a 14 there in the pants, but they just fit odd. When I tried on the size 14 shirt, I was just shocked at how big it was on me. I feel weird, too, going into stores with regular sizes. I just feel like everyone is looking at me, laughing, and thinking that I don't belong in there. However, I tried on some miss sized clothes at JC Penney's; the xl's were even a little on the big side. I bought some things at Old Navy without trying them on (it was the last stop and dd was getting TIRED!)...I bought a pair of jeans, and was surprised to find that they were too big at the waist and thighs. I thought for sure they would be too small...I actually bought them a little smaller thinking that it would be an incentive. I have been buying xxl shirts from there, too...so today I bought xl, and although they look pretty good, I probably could of gotten away with a large. I am in desperate need of some new jeans...NY&Co is reopening their remodeled store soon, so I'll have to go try on some things there. What stores do you guys shop in??

Not much else new and exciting in my world for today! Tomorrow we're going to a bbq that is held at the Moose Lodge...you have to purchase tickets for it, and they do several raffles. The top prize is $10k!

Hope you all are having a fantastic Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Good Saturday Morning everyone,
Linda- you are absolutely right, I am "way out there". I can't even begin to explain how incredibly busy my life is on a day to day basis from now until Halloween. We have three different "kitchens" located at our farm, so right now I'm busy with getting them all cleaned, stocked and organized for our first weekend. On top of that, we're trying to cut labor costs, so I've been doing most of the squash harvest right now. It's all good stuff though. Suprisingly, I've even lost a few pounds just from my activity level. I'm trying to eat well, and keep the basic concepts of WW in forefront of my brain. It's just really hard to plan for me right now. You are putting a little "bug in my ear" though, so maybe I should.....

Paige- so good to hear that your DD loved kindergarten! My DD did too, and I was actually surprised, because when she first started pre-school, she had a rough go of it. So life is pretty good now with just having one DD home until noon everyday. That's pretty cool about your shopping experience! As far as jeans go, I think the Gap has the best selection and the best fitting/most flattering jeans. You should check it out, they are definitely pricier but once you find the cut that you like, it's easy to just stick with that one every time you need a new pair. My favorite kind is the lowrise bootcut. They make your leg look really long, and they sit low (but not too low) on your hips, thus eliminating the chance of having the "mom jean" look :). I'm sure they would look awesome on you!

Bellybuster- As far as the snack thing with kids goes, my DD gets an apple everyday this time of year, when there are so many different varieties of apples available. Sometimes I give her the lowfat string cheese, or what about the baked chips?

Laura-Way to go with the WI, that is awesome!! Sounds like you are totally back on track, I'm jealous:)

Kim- As for now, I do make time to eat. In a couple of weeks, the crowds of people that come through our place on a busy weekend, and the adrenaline rush that I have trying to keep everything running smoothly can cause me to lose like 3 pounds in a day. I usually lose up to 7 pounds this time of year, just by default.

Well, I must go for now, I do enjoy stopping by to chat with you all, I'm so inspired by everyone here.

Kim2, it's really hard packing lunches for kids, especially when all their peers have "the good stuff". I found some mini bagels at my local grocery store bakery that are only 2 points each and I use the whipped cream cheese (hate the lite stuff, no flavor as far as I am concerned). A mini bagel and cream cheese is only 3 points and my daughter enjoys them. It's much more filling than those granola bars. Quite honestly, I don't find a "bar" equal in any way to a meal. There are bars on the market that they tell us all are meal replacements and I have never found myself satisfied enough to consider that a breakfast or lunch, who are they kidding?
My daughter enjoys having those 100 calorie packs of Ritz/Check mix with her mini bagel or low point sandwich, she also likes the Oreo ones.
Firstly, Paige, congrats on the huge NSV! To be out there shopping and finding that the old sizes no longer fit is such a reward and motivation! Cool!
I shop at JC Penny, Lands End and LL Bean catalogs, Kohls and Walmart (mainly for the kids though) as those are convenient to me. I love stores like Macys and Filenes as well, but they are a bit pricy. JC Penny has carried (sure hope they never stop) Lee Jeans with elastic side waist inserts that fit me well for years. They are not stylish jeans, but they are good everyday jeans for me, and they come in petite sizes too as I am only 5'2" and really don't need the length. I'm tempted to shop at a new Old Navy near me that looks good as well. I've been lucky with mail ordering things from Bean and Land's end over the years and not having to send things back. It's funny that no matter how much weight I lose or gain, I still seem to stay the same size - yet there are degrees of how well this one size fits me. I don't dare to dream that I would actually go down from a size 10 to an 8 again. After having had 2 C-sections, I don't know if my waist size would ever get down to that level, but I would gladly go out and buy new clothing if it did!
Paige, I hope you win the top prize at the Moose Lodge, that would help start your business for sure!
Ah Erica, the old saying (I love old sayings) "Where there is a will, there is a way" comes to mind when I read about your upcoming "season" of busyness. Do you ever watch Project Runway with Tim Gunn? Tim's famous line is always "make it work" to the designers. So, I will be your personal Tim Gunn and say "Make it Work" to you. All our lives have busy times, there are ALWAYS going to be temptations. Being part of the program, and accepting our permanent life style changes means exactly that, make it work. You can do this! I'm not yelling at you, but gently smiling and telling you this stuff. PLAN!!!! It makes all the difference.
I'm not an angel and I have my own demons, but your demons do seem seasonally related to the farm and your "job" as the wife/manager. It's not easy to be a busy business manager, a mom, a perfect woman.... we all sure have these perfection demons that we hold up over our own heads. I think part of my long term acceptance that I am still working on with this is that I don't have to be perfect every moment, I can't be and no one can be, but I have to try and I can't give up. If I have a bad day/meal, I have to forgive myself and totally move on. A clean slate exists each day for all of us.
By the way, Erica, I guess I have the mom jean look, but have gotten past caring? You guys are younger than me! However, I have purchased and gotten rid of a few pairs of low rise jeans and I always feel uncomfortable in them, as if I have to pull them up all the time.
So, for today:
1. eat my great low point breakfast!
2. go to the gym
3. water
4. good low point lunch
5. plan dinner (will be out someplace) with cooperation from the rest of the family so that I can be in control

Cheers!

One other thing, if you all watch Utube at all. My daughter adores watching things put out by a guy named Ross the Intern, who used to be really heavy at one point.
He made his own private motivation video about going to the gym... it's really funny to watch and so very true for us all. Enjoy it!

http://www.youtube.com:80/watch?v=6pJOVJyOl9k

It's kind of long, but really fun and you can totally related this this guy.

Happy Saturday all!!!!

Not much happening here at the moment. We have the bbq around noon. I think I'll do well eating wise at it. Those types of "events" don't seem to bother me. I know what to stay away from (mayo salads!!!) and what things are ok. I try to focus on the events and people around me, and not on the food, making it a "social" event and not a "food" event.

I haven't been to meetings in two weeks...which is kind of a big waste because they are paid for, and I didn't cancel it, so now I'm paid till Oct 14. Anyway, I think I'm actually doing really well on my own. I weighed myself this morning, and I am down to 197!!! I have been on WW for one year now, and am down 38lbs!!! Slow going, but I really, honestly do feel like this has become a way of life. I have learned SO much about myself in the last year, and I really attribute it to this thread.

Erica-I had talked to dh about taking a drive up to your farm one Sat or Sun, and he thought it would be fun! We like to take drives like that, but usually don't know where to go! I actually found your website the other day, too (or at least I think it was!) Is your dd's kindergarten 1/2 day? My dd gets on the bus at 8 and is home by 4. It is WEIRD not having her home!!! I really looked forward yesterday to her getting off of the bus. I am really bothered, though, that we have not had contact with her teacher. I am used to being very involved with her class, and it is KILLING me that I don't know what is going on.

Gotta run...I hope you all have a fantastic day!!! I'll check back in later.

Happy saturday everyone,

Today I am off to my friends sons b-day party and then off the see the texas longhorns play football in austin. As far as eating I have been doing pretty well. Yesterday I was a little bad b/c I had one margarita but for job-related stress reasons I needed it. My gym is starting another walking challenge and my school has formed a team and yes of course I am on it I am so determined this time to place higher then last time, plus I have some one at work I just have to keep up with she is kind of self-absorbed and was rude to me and another teacher the other day so the competition is on!!!!

Paige: good luck at your bbq, shopping is difficult for me to except I am still having the problem of I haven't lost enough weight to drop sizes so I still get frustrated shopping. Jeans, as far as jeans go I like the one's from Ann Taylor loft they are pricey yes, but I am tall and there jeans fit me just perfect. I like the gap also haven't been there in a while, and of course old navy does the trick when I need jeans for not a whole lot of money.

bellybuster: I will definatly keep you guys posted as far as what I learn in my nutrition class, I thought it came at a perfect time considering I am tight on cash and this is going to be free. Hopefully enough people sign up for it.

ericaL: sounds like things have been crazy busy for you.

Have a great weekend everyone, if I get to a computer in austing I will check in.

Hello ladies,
Happy Saturday to you all.

Erica, I do hope that the next few weeks are manageable for you. You do seem very busy. It is awesome that you are still losing weight even being so busy. My DS goes to K all day two days one week and three the next week. He comes home for lunch so that is nice.
Linda, you are a great coach, you even convinced me to start on core starting today. It was something in your post that made me realize that I am in control of my journey. This works out well as the dietician I see is trying to steer me more that way but for some reason I was resistant. She will be so happy. Thank you for your words. I forgot to answer you about the chocolate fondue, the mom who had it thought that since she had bread, cheese and fruit with the chocolate that it was a balanced dinner. She couldn't understand why I didn't agree with our supper being centred around chocolate. Oh well, live and learn.
Janelle enjoy your walking. Your competition will give me incentive to walk soon. I hope your nutrition class goes well. Have fun at the football game.
Paige, way to go getting to 197. That is awesome. Congratulations on your NSV trying on clothes. It is great. I do hope school is going well for you.
My son's teacher send us info home so that we feel we are still part of his learning environment. She also encourages us to help out in the classroom.
That is great your DD liked school. Does your younger one miss her when she is not there?
Kim, How are you and your daughter doing? I hope the homework slows down and you are able to go out for walks. Is it still hot there?
Kim 2, Are you enjoying your days with the children at school? I find I end up doing much more when my DS is at school. When he is home we go to the park, go swimming, to the library and generally what he wants to do.
Erika, How was your daughters first day of school. I do hope she enjoyed it. She did start Friday didn't she? I hope you are having a great week.
Tech, how are you doing? How is biking? I would suggest Janelle and I have a competition with you but I am sure we would not win.
Barb, how are you? Is the bussing running smoothly?
Laura, congrats, you are so focused. Way to go. I thought of you and made some garden soup.
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.
Take Care
Ann

It is a great Saturday here in Michigan. Although the skies have gotten cloudy, it started out sunny and comfortable. We went to a hunting expo and had a great day walking around seeing all the fun gadgets that hunters are using these days. These are days DH and the kiddies love as they are as bitten by the huntin bug as their dad. I just love to go to the cottage and relax. I don't have the patience for hunting!

We did end up taking a picnic to the fairgrounds and I was glad for it. The food at those places is not only incredible not healthy, but really expensive in my opinion. We did get some samples of beef jerky and I had some tastes (was really tasty!) and I got some really good flavored mustard that I think is great on prezels. My snacks for the week.

Paige, :bravo: It is such a great feeling to get smaller clothes. I too like the low rise jeans as I am short waisted and they help me not to look like I am always wearing "mom jeans" (Erica did you ever see the Saturday night live skit about the mom jeans? It is hilarious!!) Lee's are usually the brand that I turn to most, I like that they have a variety of styles. I haven't been to a store yet but I have heard great things about Steve and Barry's. They have really good prices ($15 jeans) and carry Sarah Jessica Parkers line of jean that are suppose to fit really great.

Ann, having the kids back in school is a mixed blessing. It is nice because I can get a lot more stuff done... I too find myself playing with them more than doing yucky household chores, but I miss them not being around. I found the house really quiet this week and had to talk myself out of going out just for the sake of going out. Gas is just to high to run needless errands. I did have a bit of work to do for DH's business so that took up a good amout of time and thought.

Linda, I love Project Runway. It is one of the only "reality" shows that I watch. I can't believe some of the outfits that get created and Tim Gunn is a stitch (no pun intended:D)

Well, I am off to make dinner.... well actually breakfast. We got some blueberries from a friend and the kids want them in pancakes. I am going to have one and some eggs with some fresh tomatoes.

Have a great night!

Hi Ladies! I just read posts and am getting ready for bed, but thought I would drop a note since it has been a day or so.....

Ann, It is still hot here, not as bad, but still around 91-93. I so wish it would get and stay in the mid 80's!! DD had a football game today. It was their jamboree. They did a little dance routine and then cheered 2 of the games. Their coach doesn't give them much of a break between cheers (which I think is good), so they worked hard tonight. They were the best cheer team out there (I'm not just saying that, they really were. When they did their routine after 2 others that weren't so good, the whole crowd went nuts!) AND they were the happiest squad!! Their coach is wonderful! DD was laughing and really getting into it. It was so good to watch her having so much fun! One of her best friends cheers with her, so together, they were cracking us up.

After a full day/night at the football field, I am pooped and have a headache. I am gonna hit the sack but I will check in tomorrow.

Kim

Happy FOOTBALL Sunday all!!! It's the first game of the season today! YAY!!!!!!

So I think I did pretty well yesterday at the bbq (we didn't win any $, however!! LOL!) I ended up having a burger and corn on the cob. The rest of the food offered was mayo based salads, sausage & peppers, some kind of baked beans that didn't look very good...so I just stuck to the burger and corn and focused on the "atmosphere." It was a fun bbq. Afterwards we went to the Fireman's Parade, and then ran to the mall so I could return some things. It was going on 6pm, so we grabbed a slice of pizza in the food court. For some reason, I was completely aware of my surroundings and really noticed all of the severely obese people that were filling up on the mall foods (kind of like when Linda went to the fair.) I was 3/4 through my pizza and just lost my appetite. In the past, I would of had at least two slices, and then finished dds slices. Yesterday I was quite satisfied with not even a full slice.

I also ended up returning two of the shirts I had purchased at Old Navy. LOL...I had tried them on for dh, and he was like, "Paige? Those are huge on you!" I had to agree, and exchanged them for a smaller size, and returned the jeans I bought. They were having some awesome sales on shirts, so I picked up two more that I hadn't seen on Friday. As far as jeans, I have a horrible time finding ones that fit. I am LONG waisted, so the low rise just DON'T work!!! Even the mid rise are to low. They don't cover what the need to cover!!! LOL! I like to *think* that when I'm not in my chef uniform that I am quite fashionable, so no mom jeans for me!!! I'll have to try Gap and NY&Co. I've always thought that I wouldn't be able to fit into Gap, so I never even thought to go there.

Kim-Wow, it sounds like you and your dd had such a fun time yesterday!!! I hope my dds are into sports when they are older. I was very involved when I was in school; I loved every minute of it, and have such great memories of being on a team.

Kim2-That I know of, we don't have a Steve and Barry's near here, but I'll have to look them up and check. My sister lives in FL, and always talks about them.

Ann-My little dd is DEVESTATED when my older dd gets on the bus! But then she gets over it, and is fine. It only took 2 days for older dd to pick up a cold from school...that has got to be a record!

Off to church...I'll try to check in later!!!

Good Morning everyone,
Well here it is Sunday again, the weeks just fly by.
Paige- did you go to www.timspumpkinpatch.com? That is the name of our place. If you google pumpkins and syracuse ours is the first one that comes up. The website is kind of like our farm, simple and rustic. My sister built it. I need to get some new pictures of our bakery/giftshop though because my DD took those last year, and we put them up just to have something there. Our busiest/best weekend is Columbus weekend, especially if the weather is good. We live really close like 5 minutes from Skaneateles Lake, so if you came, it's really nice to stroll around that village, have lunch/dinner etc. There are some really nice shops. By the way, our bakery case has a full sheet pan of your chocolate chip cookies in it right now!! Thank you so much for that recipe. Yeah, it's hard for me to get the right fitting jeans and not create the dreaded "muffin top", I hate that term, but it's so true. I'm amazed at how some of these young girls wear their jeans and think they look good? There just doesn't seem to be any shame anymore in how girls dress. That's pretty awesome that you had to return those shirts....

Linda-you are so so right.... I need to just make it work. I think I tend to make excuses for myself way more than I'd like to admit. Thank you for your words about not being perfect all the time. Right now I'm feeling that a lot. I keep telling myself that everything I'm doing right now is "good enough". On my "beat myself up days" the thoughts, "my house is always a mess", "our property doesn't look good enough", "I'm not eating the right foods", I could go on and on, but then if I'm lucky, I stop myself and say wait a second, I am doing a heck of a lot of stuff, trying my hardest all of the time, and it's "good enough".

bellybuster-i have heard good things about that sarah jessica parker line, i'd like to check that out, i saw her when she was on oprah, her stuff sounds so affordable and fashionable!

Ann- so is that how they typically do kindergarten in Canada, instead of going half days all week long? That sounds really interesting, and he gets to come home and have lunch with you? That sounds awesome. How does he get home for lunch? I am very thankful that our district is one of the last ones to still have halfday kindergarten, I couldn't imagine sending her all day long.

Well, it's finally raining here this morning, we haven't had rain in weeks! Kind of a nice change of pace. Hope everyone has a great day!

Paige, it's hard to imagine having paid for the meetings and then not going. For some reason, that is kind of why I've never been big on the passes as I worry that something would happen and I would have wasted my money.
Haylo, good luck with the walking challenge! I hope you show all those people, that particular person especially!
Ann, I wonder what it was I said that made you decide to try the CORE plan as I don't recall saying anything about CORE specifically at all, but I guess it was what I said about lifestyle and commitment?
Hmmm.... a chocolate fondue meal being a "balanced" meal amazes me, is this friend of yours really heavy, perchance? Some people REALLY need to learn a great deal about nutrition.
Kim2, we're not into hunting in this household, but my DH loves fishing so we attended a similar show to what you went to in January or February of this year. I could never be a hunter and if I had to kill to eat (at least what I think at the moment) I'd be a vegetarian. I often put myself down for my adverse reactions to hunting for being a hypocrite as I eat meats and enjoy them. Yet, those packaged meats in stores with plastic over top, all ready to cook seem so far removed from the original living creature that I don't think about it all when I eat. Yet, if the animal is one I knew when it was alive, I can't eat it, period. When we went to the similar show, though, I enjoyed a chance to walk around indoors, during really nasty weather that was around here. I did see several booths with jerky and also seasonings, mustards and BBQ sauces as well. My husband looked longingly at fishing boats, of course.
I like Project Runway as well as Top Chef and did watch a few episodes of The Biggest Loser that were on a marathon on Bravo yesterday. I'm not sure I "get" how Biggest Loser actually works when the send people home, but I love watching the before and after photos and seeing these people work so hard, it inspires me.
Kim, so glad to read about your daughter's cheering. Certainly all this exercise will contribute to her good health. I even wonder that she is getting so much exercise that her body is doing on of those "holding on to the weight" things and thinking she is starving or something. How is her attitude about her weight loss? By the way, in Mississippi, do you have the EEE virus and are there worries about being outside for nighttime football games? We have had two human cases of it up here in NH and a horse died last week. It's very worrisome and people need to be very careful outdoors. A few towns have started spraying and all towns are spraying around athletic fields and playgrounds.
Paige, what a good experience you had limiting your food at the BBQ (wish me equal luck next week when I have two back to back BBQs and will be traveling out of state and even in a hotel for a night).Saturday is a wedding thing, and Sunday is a family thing. I'm hoping the hotel has a pool and that I can get in some swimming before we leave in the morning. We're going to stay at a Sheraton in Stamford CT, thank goodness for Priceline.com, we have a reservation for $89.00 for the night and the room is usually $169.00 a night!
Also, Paige, people watching in places where there are way too many tempting foods is such a great thing to do. There seem to be so many obese people waddling around. I don't just mean overweight, I mean obese as well. I saw a TV show with my family the other night on the BBC channel a British car show called Top Gear, which I highly recommend if any of you have a chance to see it. Sure, it is about cars, but it's just so fun to watch. They were talking about a 600 pound outboard motor and the guy talking about how heavy the motor was referred to is as weighing as much as the average American! Isn't it very sad that our nation is being viewed as a bunch of fatties! I'm ashamed and it makes me want to work even harder.
Paige, when I read about your daughter only having 2 days before catching a cold, it sounded so familiar. I remember those days! One thing I was thankful for when we moved from NY to NH is that the public grammar school my kids were in each had a private bathroom and the sink was located outside the door (also convenient for art projects) and the teacher MADE each kid wash their hands after using the bathroom. I though that was fabulous vs. no one watching the kids in larger hallroom bathrooms. I'm such a big hand washer and often take note of the many people who just don't bother in public restrooms, yikes!
Well, I'm heading to the kitchen to make breakfast and then to get ready for church. I am thankful for the rain that came overnight and will smile as I drive.

Erica, we cross posted. I don't want a muffin top either, and one you said that I could envision it. I think I used to have one and now I don't, I think that is one of the things that does look different about me with my weight loss.
Makes me want to go do some sit ups, just thinking about it!

Good Morning Everyone,

Well, its been a few days, and I've been doing pretty badly. I haven't wanted to exercise, and have been eating a lot of carbs and not tracking. I haven't been eating a lot of food just not stuff that is good for me :o Well then Friday TOM decided to come a week early and that explained a lot. I'm kind of glad cause next weekend is our big bike riding/camping trip and that is never a lot of fun. Today is a new day. I'm off and DH is going to a car thing so it's just me and the dog's. If the rain goes away I'm going to try to get in a ride, and I'm leaning towards fajittas for dinner. I make them with lots of veggies and some meat and lf tortillas, yummm.

Ann - I am so proud I finally rolled over 10,000 steps on my pedometer :D, of course I had to work all day and then walk around "Old Car Fest" for a couple of hours :dizzy: I worked it out since I walk 2500 steps to a mile that's actually 4 miles. No wonder I was tired when I got home. That's how the public school by my sister does kindergarten. She got him in an academy and they actually go full days for 5 days. Grandma says he loves it so far after throwing a crying fit when mom dropped him off on day 1.

Haylo - One marg. won't kill you as long as it's not a habit. Have fun at the game.

Paige - no help on the stores I'm still in Lane Bryant, although I find their stuff runs big. I have ordered my pants from LLBean, because they have a med-tall size I like. My problem is that I don't have the longer rise of a tall but I need extra leg length and their pants fit that bill.

Erica - I cruised your web-page it's nice. The farm looks cool. Can I make a suggestion that you put some kind of menu to get back from the links to home or other pages. Just a suggestion. Stay calm and focused and you'll do fine.

Kim - Sounds like your daughter is having a great time and I'm sure it's exercise. What are you studying? You may have told us but I don't remember.

Kim2 - Sound's like you had fun at the expo. Wonder if my sister knew about it? My BIL is a big hunter. I like when he does well because we get fresh venison, I make an awesome chili, which isn't quite as good with cubed beef.

Linda - I also like Project Runway and Top Chef although I'm disappointed in TC this year. Did you see Tim Gun's new show? It was kind of like a What Not to Where with a little more class. I've also been watching Fat March although like you I don't understand what they are learning, and how they will do on their own when they get home. Top Gear is one of DH's favorite shows. He downloads them off the internet since we don't get them here, and when I've watched them with him they are pretty funny.

Well I should also get moving. I'm out of soy sausage so not sure what I'll have for breakfast (I usually have an egg sandwich with soy sausage and a light english muffin 4 pts vs the 12 for a real egg mcmuffin).

Have a great day everyone.

-Tech

Happy Sunday!

Taking a break from shreading zuchinni. DH grows massive amounts of it... to much to just eat during the season, so I freeze some of it. I sneak it into things like soups and meatloaf (extra veggies the kids never know about!) and of course plenty of bread. I make it with applesauce instead of oil to cut the fat. The family loves it.

Today is just a catch up on chores day. We are going to have a good polish dinner (pork, saurkraut, perogies, green beans) and everyone is going to bed early. With 3 kids and a teacher in the house, I am ever so aware of the on coming cold and flu season. I know that things are already floating around DH's school, a teacher last week was out with strep. We do lots of vitamins, water and rest when we can.

Tech - Get back to it girl! Control control control! The event we went to was in Imlay City. It was the Woods-N-Water annual Outdoor Weekend. It is a great mag if BIL doesn't get it. Full of huntin and fishin articles and things to drool over. DH and the kiddies can't wait for the new one to come every month. They all spend hours pouring over the pages. Tell me about your chili!

Linda - I come from a hunting and fishing family, so I guess it stands to reason that I would marry someone who loves it. DH is a science teacher and big conservationist. He loves the outdoors and spends as much time as he can hunting and fishing. I feel the same about hunting as you. I can't look something in the eyes and then shoot it. I don't mind cooking it, so DH takes care of everything else. I do enjoy fishing and I do try and do that with DH and the kiddies. Of course, living on a tight budget, DH dreams about a lot of things.... boats, fishing gear, hunting gear, clothing..... it does make buying for birthday's and holidays a little easier!!

Paige - We don't have a Steve and Barrys either :mad: I think there is one in one of the bigger towns nearby, so I will have to wait till I go there to do the Christmas shopping. Sounds like your shopping trip was successful though! I remember my youngest DD was devistated too when her siblings got on the bus. We had a tough go of it until she realized that she got more mommy time and she got to decide what to watch on TV. Once she started understanding the perks of staying home, she was much better.

Well, I have a few more zuchs to take care of, and then it is off to do the last pool cleaning of the season. I think we are going to close it up this week!

Have a great day... for those of you football fans, hope your teams do well! We will be watching our mighty Lions probably get their butts kicked! It is so sad when you don't have a good team to root for!!!

Erica-Yep, that was the site I checked out! I was pretty sure it was yours. That is exciting that my choc chip cookie recipe is in your store!!! I hope they do well!!

Linda-Part of the reason that I like the monthly pass is that it makes it harder to quit! It renews automatically, and I don't like to waste the money, so it gives me more motivation to go. If I'm paying every week and don't have the $12, it's more likely that I'm going to skip. The past two weeks I've been SO exhausted, trying to get used to my school schedule, that when I am done with class and get home, I have crashed. This week I'm definately going to go; I think I'm going to have a fairly decent loss, too. I think I've gotten over my little "slump" too, so chances are that I probably will continue with meetings. My school refund check is coming, so I know I'll just continue using that to pay for it.

Tech-Yes, LB sizes do run larger. They are a women's size, so they are one size larger than what you would find in non-plus size store. So a 16 in LB would equal an 18 in Miss size. (I used to work at LB, to support my clothes buying habit!!!)

Oh, btw, I set a new goal for myself. I'm not much into "deadlines" but we are heading off on our annual trip to Tennessee the end of October. I am shooting to lose 15lbs by then (actually it's a little less because I'm shooting to weigh 185 by then.) Even if I don't make it, I have a goal to work towards!

Off to Wal-mart! Have a great rest of the day all!

Hello everyone. Great posts by everyone.
Linda it was when you said about the make it work. It was like cold water had been thrown on me. I have been complacent and living this lifestyle. Just going along, doing what the dietician wants me to, experimenting with what will work for me. Some how I have given control away with my journey. I realize that the dietician is great but that I need to decide what is best for me not her. I realized she wants me to eat on Core, the way she described it I felt that it was not attainable, when I read about it in my week 1 I finally clicked in she is talking about Core without without me realizing it. When you said, Make it work or words like that, I thought, yes I need to get control back with my journey. I don't know if this makes sense or not but I just felt like I was running on a hamster wheel getting no where fast. So thank you for helping me with that lightbulb moment.
Tech, Way to go with the walking. That is awesome. I know somedays I am tired out from walking, or maybe just from life. Have a great week.
Erica, I checked out your website, It would be a fun place to visit. Do you ever shop at the Waterloo outlet stores. We love outlet shopping. At my friends school they go to school all day every day for Kindergarten. At my neices' school in Alberta, they go half days. I would prefer that my son goes half days but I don't have a choice in my area. I have to pick my son up for lunch and take him back when we are done. As they have recess before lunch I pick him up at 11;30 and he doesn't have to be back until we are done. I usually can get him back to the school by about 12:30 or so. The kids in his class get to rest from 12:30 to 1:00 so she is okay with us being late. The teacher feels it is a great break in the day so she encourages it. Some of the other children can't because they have separation anxiety and it makes it tough when their parents are dropping them off. My son just gives me a hug and says, "member to pick me up"
Paige, Good luck with your goal. I know you will do it. I hope you have fun shopping at Wal-mart. We don't have a Super Wal-mart in our area so sometimes we drive to Fort Drum, (LeRay) New York to go to the super Walmart. I really wish we could get all the great stuff you can get there. I buy danone yogurt there, and many ww products. We go about once a month. My son's friends brother cry's like crazy when his mom drops him off at school because he wants to go so badly like his brother.
Kim2, I love zuchini, grilled on the barbeque with red and yellow peppers and onions. Yummy. It sounds like you had a great weekend. What grade are your children in?
Kim, it sounds like you had fun at the game. It is great your daughter enjoys cheer. Have a great week at school. How is your son doing?
Laura You probably have great recipe's for zuchini. I think you are very creative with your cooking. How are you doing?
Barb How is your weekend going? I do hope your week goes well.
ErikaHow are you? Is your life really busy now?
Janelle I hope your weekend was awesome and you got to walk a lot.
Take Care everyone and have a great week.
Thanks to all the support I get from this site. I do appreciate you all.
Ann

Hi,

Haven't checked in for several days.....been very busy getting our condo on the market. We live in Flordia and want to move back to Ohio or Louisville, KY to be closer to our children and grandbabies.

I tried the Wendie plan this past week, walked at least 1 mile/day and I think I am UP 1 lb., I'll know tomorrow. We have eaten out a lot and had fast food for dinners as we were both tired from deep cleaning this place, so that is probably the reason. I will probably just do reg. WW flex plan this week.

I have had to stop walking the past 2 days as my left foot (heel) is hurting badly so I am trying to give it a rest, if it isn't better by Tues. I will go to the foot Dr. I am doing the Oxysize tape (deep breathing positions) instead and it is a pretty good workout.

Erica, I looked at your web site. I'm in Florida too far away of course but it looks great. We went with our 2 grandsons, age 7 & 2, last year to one in Michigan.....they loved it. Yours looks very nice.

Hope everyone has a great on plan week. Phyllis

Good Morning everyone,
Thanks to all who checked out our website.
Tech-not sure if you scrolled all the way down of each page, but there is a menu on the bottom. Probably would be better if it was on the side though. Thanks for the suggestion! My sister pretty much taught herself how to build a website, so I'm pretty thankful for her.

Ann-that's pretty cute that your son says that. That's also nice that they get that resting period during the day.

Well, what are people eating for filling breakfasts these days? I need some good ideas. I'll check in later....

Just a quick post to let you know that I have an early meeting that is about an hour's ride from here and have to get moving rather than be on the computer. Additionally, DD has an appointment late this after with a photographer (an hour in the OTHER direction) to get her senior yearbook photo done.
So, I'm going to drive about 4 hours today... eating may be haphazard and certainly there will not be much exercise.
Wish me luck!

Wow, quiet here this morning eh? Yesterday was a pretty good day. My best friend stopped by so we took a 4 & 1/2 mile walk, giving us not only a good workout, but some quiet time to catch up. Stayed OP all day, although I did miss lunch because of the walk. But I didn't go crazy making dinner, I made myself a bloody mary (figured I had the points to spare since I didn't use the lunch ones) and sipped that while I got dinner together. Not a plan I would repeat daily, but it seemed to work yesterday!

Phyllis - good to hear from you. I hope you have some good luck selling your condo. The housing market here in Michigan is horrid. Our neighbors have had their house on the market for about 8 months and have only had 2 people look at it. Eating that fast food is dangerous. The salt alone will make you gain weight! Good luck with getting back on track this week.

Erica - my 2 favorite quick breakfasts are a fried egg on an english muffin with a slice of cheese or a couple of hard boiled eggs with a glass of tomato juice. I like Techs idea of the soy sausage too... haven't tried that but may have to. I often will just have half of the muffin (open faced sandwich style) to save a little points. I like to have some protein in the morning, it seems to take me through the morning better, especially if I know that getting in a snack will be difficult. I did buy some of those Quaker Oatmeal breakfast bars... they were a little to sweet and 4 points, but they made a quick breakfast that wasn't to bad with a cup of jo!

Linda - I think that if one of us would have written that we were going to driving a lot today and our eating plan was going to be challenged, you would say to plan ahead. Since I started doing this "picnic" thing for our family excursions, I really feel good about my trips. I invested in a small cooler that I can put cold things like yorgurt, deli meats, veggies and cheese sticks in with a couple of ice packs and then a nice wicker basket for non-refridegerator items. The kids roll their eyes at me when they see the baskets coming out, but I feel better feeding them a good sandwich as compaired to the chicken nuggets or burgers at the fast food restaurants.

Ann - we have been eating a lot of grilled zuch and yellow squash. Part of the problem is that DH grows so much and he and I are the only ones who eat it. The kids are crazy about it unless it is in bread or they don't know they are eating it (tricky mommy!!). The kiddies are 11, 9, & 6. (6th, 4th and 1st grade.) Oldest and youngest are girls and the middle is my boy.

Well, I have already taken the puppy to the vet, and now I am have some errands for DH to do this afternoon. Think I will have an early lunch and hit the road. Hope everyone has a terrific OP day!!

Hi everyone - fly by greeting!!!!

Weekend was out of control. Today is much better. I helped SIL with a craft show and thought I could make good choices but her booth was right next to the kitchen and those smells and food all day were the downfall of me. I told her I'm not helping her again if she's next to a food booth. Picking back up and getting some AP in tonight - not sure if I correct the sail for the week but I'm going to do my best to try to do it

Well, I just spent 40 minutes responding to everyone....but it didn't post. Said I had to relog in!!! Man, that really irks me!!!!

To make it short and sweet......
DD is doing great. A friend that hadn't seen her in 2 months came by and raved at how much weight she lost. She didn't know we were trying!!! She asked what DD was doing and DD just grinned. That was the boost she needed.

No reports of EEE virus here Linda..Funny, the mosquitos weren't out Sat night. I wonder if it was from the lack of rain all summer. We are so dry that even the rain we got this weekend (alot) didn't saturate the ground.

Erica, I love your website!!! Makes me want to go to the one here!! I think we will soon. It is still almost 90 here, so it will be a couple weeks.

Paige, way to go taking those clothes back!! I know that made you feel so good!!!!

Phyllis, I hope your foot gets better! Glad you are back!!

Ann, My son is great. His stomach is good, he is still having allergy problems. I think we have lots of ragweed here now. Anyway, everyone is playing with allergies and sinus junk.

Kim2 - keep up the walking!! I have got to get my bootay in gear!!! There just is so little time when DD gets home!!!

Tech - I am doing Respiratory Therapy. I had 2 semesters of pre-requisits, and just started the 2 year program this fall. I love it, but my life is STUDYING!!!

Laura, I stayed away from the fair this year cause I KNOW I couldnt resist the smell of the food. You will get back on track.

Ok, well, I didn't say as much as the first time I posted and lost it....but I hope you all have a great Monday and stay healthy!!!
Kim

wow,it has been almost a week sincew I last checked in.....My ds came home sick on Thursday...Poor thing threw up at lunch....Thankfully he made it to the trash can...He told me he was sick but I thought he just did not want to go to school. Live and learn.He was home on Friday too. Than on Saturday I got a phone call that my sister from Nevada and hubby were visiting my mom and wanted to drive down for a visit. They just left and it was soooo nice. I really think that a pplus to living out of state is the visits are more personal....We had a ball.

The sad part is I have not recordered in days...Tom is wi. I have walked and worked out...I feel like I made mostly good choices so I can only hope. Wed I meet with a trainer...I can not wait.

Phyllis , I may have a the same issue with my foot. It may be plantar facitis..Spelling is wrong I am sure..It is in the heel and it probaly really hurts first thing in the morning. You have to do streches and ice it..I also take a aleve daily..Make sure you wear good suport shoes and you need to get a orthadic made to go into the shoes. You need to stay off it for exercising until it heals or it will get worse. I can walk finally but find it still uncomfortable at times..I do the bike and elipical to keep the weight off the foot. I am almost there but it has been 3 months.....Oh and do not go barefoot. That is the worst thing and no flip flps.... Anyway that is if you have what I do...You can look it up on the web.

Better go ,I have to get my house picked up... I will be on this daily... I need to get back on track.... Hello to everyone and Good luck to all the WI. Drink the water.....See ya barb

Hello everyone,

djmommy: sorry you ds was sick

phyllis and djmommy: I too suffer from planter fascitis off and on, it is super painful. Phyillis what dj says about not walking barefoot is true also make sure you find shoes with good support. I know they are expensive but clarks are a good shoe brand, their flip flops even have a very good arch support.

o2b: I hate when that happens, when you write so much and then it's gone.

belly: wow on the walking, bloody mary that sounds good actually at leat you got some vegtables in.

Goodness! What a horrible day I had. I'm very proud (a true NSV) to say that I stayed on program all day amidst some absolutely miserable conditions. I even brought my own 2 point bar to the quilt meeting and ate it vs. the two huge tables full of goodies.
Things did not go well, though. Did you ever have one of those days where things started off wrong and never got better. A friend who was coming with me arrived 15 minutes late and I had to wait for her, which threw us into traffic and I was in panic almost being late for a meeting where I am on the board and VP. Then, the meeting ran much later than I anticipated (due to a VERY boring and long winded speaker)/ We had a board meeting afterwards that was supposed to be brief, but it wore on with a huge blow up about a deficit budget. People were angry and there were many "read in between the lines" remarks. Not fun. I tried to back up my president, who was truly doing the best job she could to handle a big problem politely without making accusations.
Then, I was late getting home due to the meeting running late, almost ran out of gas, had barely time to EAT. We all know this is super important, especially for people like us. If you are running late, miss meals, this can lead to eating the wrong things/stress/losing control. I didn't even have bottled water with me, my throat was partched and I was so stressed.
I was racing to get my daughter to her photographer appointment for the yearbook photo, and we got lost. The directions they gave us were absolutely the worst set of directions, ever. We were way out of our way, no cell phone reception to get proper advice, and it totally sucked.
Then, we got home at way past dinnertime, with no food ready and starving, again heading for disaster. It took every ounce of control I had to not go to MacDonald's (would have been the easy way out). Instead, starving, I let my daughter have the "good" leftovers (my homemade meatloaf and pasta) and waited for my turn with the microwave, feeding everyone else ahead of me, even the cats! So, finally, at 7:20, when dinner is usually at 6:00 pm, I sat down to my Lean Cuisine 6 point frozen dinner and burned my tongue.
So, thanks for "listening". I've got not time or energy left to read and respond, tomorrow will be a better day.
Hugs to all!

Hello all,
Linda, I had one of those days too. I feel better after reading your post. I was just going to go to bed and hope for a better day tomorrow. Good job with your eating.
Haylo, how was your weekend? Did you get much walking in? I walked 12,231 steps today.
Barb, Good luck with weigh in tommorrow. Good luck with your trainer. I do hope your DS is feeling better.
Laura, I am sorry your weekend wasn't great but way to get back on track today. Did you get your AP in?
Kim that is awesome for your daughter, what a boost. Her friend must have made her feel great with her comments.
Kim 2, great job walking. It is nice when you can catch up with friends on a nice walk.
Paige, how was school today. I hope you had a great day.
Erica, were you asking about breakfast things. I enjoy veggie omlets. I also like shredded wheat as it is on core. I hope your day was fun.
Phyllis, I do hope your place sells quickly and that your foot gets better soon.
Tech, I hope you had an awesome day.
I do hope everyone has a great evening.
Take Care all, I am going to bed now.
Cheers.
Ann

Ann, you are always so supportive! Thanks.
So, now, everyone: I re-started the thread. I had trouble posting and saw Kim's remark about spending 40 minutes on a post and losing it. It's time!

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=122567

Please just come on over and do read and respond to other posts here before going there so that we are back on track with each other!