300+ Club - 300+ Weekly Thread #1149

:welcome:

We are a group of individuals who weigh or have weighed 300+, or near there. This group was formed to provide a place for others like us to find support and hope. We are aware of the distinct problems that come with weighing over 300 lbs.

We want to invite everyone (roosters as well as chicks!) to join us in our journey. We share laughter and tears, heartaches and fears ... joys and celebrations. We also share what works for us and what doesn't.

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We have found this thread to be more than just a support group... we have found it to become a home. We invite you to join us.

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Good morning Peeps - Monday is here again already - an hour early. What a day to decide to get up earlier since I've been running late in the morning lately.

Hope you are all doing well - I think we may see a little spring this week - I hope the same for all of you buried in snow.

Everyone have a great day - move your bodies, drink you water and SMILE.

Hugs,
Carol

Good Monday morning ,
Well its raining here in KY. I will take rain anytime over snow!! Well at least when I have had my fill of snow.lol I actually love snow...but just had to much ice and mess this winter. I collect snowmen.
Oldest daughter called her college basketball team is going to NCAA tournaments,so look like she will be traveling to MI this weekend. She said she is exhausted from the 10 days in NYC. She is excited to get to cheer at the tournaments though.She is working as an intern for an accounting firm and they are not to happy about her missing more work.
Youngest is home with fever and a sore throat. She says she just feels awful. HOpefully its just a sore throat and not the flu. She is going to the dr as soon as they can get her in.
I actualy woke up with a little bit of a sore throat also. I think mine is sinus.
Well I hope everyone who weighs in has great losses.
Have a great day

Good Monday Morning everyone. Still snowed in here in Ohio and it is icing rain outside with a mix of snow. Got to love it!

Well I weighed this morning and the scale is going from 279.5-280 so down around 1lb. My doctors appt is Thursday I am interested to see how much I weight on their scales (it is always different) I have done another new thing in my eating. I have been buying a smaller size cereal bowl. I like it, as it makes me feel like I get a "big Bowl" but really dont over eat, because cereal is something I can overeat.

I have been really thinking about my daughter and how I am handling her compared to how my family handled me. My grandma put me on diet after diet and my mom snuck me food? It was a weird thing. I am really striving to not put my daughter on a diet. I dont want her scared of food like me. I read this book called the Pari plan and it really stressed that about not puting children on a diet. It also stressed the importance of having special nites where you do eat out etc. So, that is what I am trying. I am also trying that in my own life.

Well everyone have a good monday and work hard.

Tina

I agree about it not being good to put kids on a diet. I have babysit for many years and a few years ago I kept a girl whos mom was a big ZONER. Her daughter was overweight and jsut a big girl for her age. She was also very tall for her age. Well her mom would send zone food and bars for her to eat. She felt mistreated and I actually would catch her eating food in the bathroom. She would go into the kitchen and get chip and snack cakes out of the cabinet and then take them with her to the bathroom and eat them. I caught on because one sunday I went to slide my feet into my dress shoes and there was a half eaten snack cake in one of them,,,lol.
I started cooking for lunch and making my kids eat a healthy lunch and with her. We tried to follow the zone balance and she was much happier. Its better to eat healthy as a whole family.
I see this girl from time to time and she is beautiful and actually very tall and not really heavy. She is just a bigger framed girl.
I still cant look at a little debbie snack cake and not think of her.

hey ya'll .... as paula deen says... OMG....i was a piggy pig yesterday! we drove to savannah to eat at the lady and sons restaruant...the one owned by paula deen...from The food network...and OMG the food was soooo good! her place is not what you might think for a tv personality, and nothing like emerils in orlando. its quite the homey country place....clapboard siding, ceiling fans whirring...and a HUGE buffet...fried chicken, roast pork, collard greens, cream corn, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes....OMG....i totally went off my nutritional take in! the building is an old southern three story building... in the heart of downtown savannah...very non-descript. but i knew it was her place as soon as I turned the corner and saw the line of people! haha i waited about 10 mins just to get my name on the LIST! then we had to come back about 2 and a half hours later for our reservations!!! they don't take call in reservations...only you have to show up anytime after 9:30 am to get your name on the list for the day! then come back at your assigned time! well, in one sense it was worth it...i can add her place to my list of establishments i have visited...however, uggg...i was sooooooooo stuffed on the ride home...and have paid for over indulging dearly, through the night and this morning! can you say plop plop??? fizz fizz??

its was a gorgeous sunny day....about 75 and a slight breeze...we started the day by watching the sun rise over the ocean! it was amazing...i love the sea! i declare, i think i am a land locked mermaid! haha

while we waited for our time to eat, we copped a squat in the park where already, savannah has the fountains dyed green for st pattys day! we played cards, and took pics and people watched! i love wathing little kids laugh and play and throw pennies into the fountain. i threw my penny in and made my wish! :)

hugsssssssssss
cheeriooo
rainbowsmiles

Sandy: I hear ya and will take it all to Goodwill or St. Vincents when the yard sale is over.

Bernice: You did such a great job on the photos. My bracelet is an Italian Charm Bracelet too.

Debbie: I have a few 22 size shirts that someone gave me. I also have saved a jacket, 2 pairs of pants and a shirt that I used to wear at my very largest.
Oooh. Wii fit sounds soooo fun.

Carol: Hope your weigh in goes wonderfully well.

debimitch: I love, love pampered chef products and having the parties. I used to sell it and made lots of money plus it was fun.

Catherine: I wish you to be able to get off all of your meds soon too. Hugs.

Wyoming: I think rewarding myself with non food items has been such a blessing to me. I wear my bracelet daily and often my DH chimes in and offers massages for my big goals. It makes everything more special to me.

Tina: Huge congrats on -1. Keep going and the best thing for your dear daughter is seeing her mom be healthy. Hugs.

Rainbow: Welcome back. Glad you enjoyed your meal out.

Well, I'm at work so gotta go. Just wanted to check in. Everyone drink your water, move your bodies and have a great day.

Blessings,
Annie

HI Everyone,
I'm still off sick today, but am feeling better, just no energy.
I did manage to take out all my old clothes out of the closet and
drawers. I've actually gone from a 5x last summer to a 2X-3x right now.
I'm gonna see if my son can take the two HUGE bags of clothes to good will
today so they're gone forever. I did save 2 pair of "fat pants" for future
motivation. It's cool and scary at the same time to think I have no more clothes that are too big for me around. Now, I can just focus on getting smaller sizes.
It was weird going through those clothes. I found the outfit I wore to my oldest daughter's wedding, my youngest daughter's wedding, my son's wedding and my step daughter's wedding. It was sad to give them up in a way.
I've found I'm back to being scared about being successful on my program.
And at the same time I'm afraid of failure cuz I HATE the way I look.
I think once I get below 250 I'll feel better. Cuz that will mean I'm half way there. I'm scared about the saggy skin. When I met dh I was at about 180-185. Way too much for my little frame. But, I had previously been up to 250. And, I had the nastiest, saggiest looking thighs you ever saw. Yeah, my legs looked good in jeans, but naked, PUKE! How are we suppose to feel good about our selves when we have all that stuff saggin around. I think I'll just at my self in the mirror when I'm dressed and have that hot butt! :lol:
I think I'm afraid of what my husband will think and feel. Stupid, huh?
Anyway, I was motivated by Annie to clean out the closet. And, I am excited to go to Walmart or the mall, see something on clearance that's adorable, just a little tight and be confident in buying it anyway cuz I know I'll be able to wear it in x number of months/weeks.

My next big day is April 18th.
My sisters and I (and Abby cuz she can't stand to be away from her mama)
Are meeting in Alabama to bury my mom's ashes. (we lost her last august for those of you that don't know ....any of you that know the whole story of my mom and I, feel free to fill them in, I'd rather not think about it)
Anyway, I've lost about 25 pounds since then. It's only a month away. I'd be happy to be about 280 in April. I think it's doable. It's roughly 15 pounds and it's what 5-6 weeks away.
Then my next goal is to be 250 or under by my son's wedding June 21st.
Anyway, I just wanted you all to know I finally am ditching those old too big clothes. BTW, most of the stuff I found I can wear. They're 2x's. I still need the 3x for the bottom half of me, but that's ok. It's getting smaller too. It's those blasted german genetics.
TTFN, hope all are well.
Sandy

Heather---- what's up with tickers?
I know I can't post one til 30 days are up, but I don't see others either.

Well this weekend absolutely wore me out. I was staffing a youth group weekend out of town. I think the time change was a big factor, right there with long days, a lumpy hotel bed and all of the little things that happened. Food...I did all I could to stay on track...but when the meals that other people planned are not even remotely geared towards you...you deal. Friday night was an Asian-ish buffet. They had mini take-out boxes of salad (pre-dressed of course), steamed veggies, chicken in a sauce that semed light enough (I let it drain) and I skipped the rice. I did very well that night.

Saturday lunch was dismal. Usually we get deli on Saturday afternoon and I can make myself a turkey salad...but no...they went Italian and had 2 pastas and caesar salad. It just sucked. But not eating was also not an option. Argh. My cousin took me to dinner and I had a fantastic grilled salmon salad...but the pita chips and humus they brought to the table were tooo tasty. Then at the dance that night they had lots of stuff. I broke down and had dessert..which was a merengue type thing and a small piece of a cake. I was starving from the rest of the day. I did also have a cup full of carrot though..so all was not lost.

Sunday..lunch was a BBQ but I don't eat red meat and I refuse to eat veggie hot dogs...they didn't have veggie burgers. So I had a big plate of lettuce with some tabouleh salad, some israeli couscous salad and some fries (baked!). It could have been worse but it as just agitating. It was comforting to get back to my own home and my own kitchen and my own food where I was in charge. I did drink a ton of water though which was good and brought my oatmeal for the mornings and also brought some of my own snacks. Someone brought bagels for the staff on Sunday morning so I grabbed half a bagel, dug out the insides and put some light cream cheese on it. I didn't even try to track yesterday. I'll list it all but the points are just a lost cause for then.

I slept in today and am going in to work late since I worked all weekend...but have to work till 8 tonight.

We did have a scare over the weekend. One of the teens there (17 y.o.) who has Juv. Diabetes and wears an insulin pump (and was diagnosed at 7) had a dibetic crisis on Saturday night. She fainted and then when she kept retesting her blood sugar it would spike and crash and they couldnt get her stable. When the EMTs came she was near 600. My question is...if she has been dealing with this for 10 years how on earth did is happen? This was not her first time away on a weekend or at a dance or near sugary foods...it made the staff wonder if she had ben doing something else that could have provoked it. What gave us the most concern though was the cavalier attitude her parents took. Aside from assuring our director that it had never happened before, they had little to say. In fact, they did not go to the ER where she was taken..and they only live 30 minute away from where we were. Wow. I'd be there in a flash...especially if it hadnever happened before. Ah well...

My kids (the kids in my group) were terriffic and drama-free for a change which made the weekend go better for everyone.

The next few weeks for me are jam packed. Lots of long days and late nights. I am trying to get my strength together...and finally kick this silly cold too! It will not go away...argh.

Still no MIL update...she informed DH that if he kept insisting on talking about it that he was going to ruin their relationship. O-K.

Hello my Peeps,

Last week was a very strange week. Since my new supervisor started last fall, the team has been in crisis mode from one day to the next. I've got nothing done on a project I started this past December because each day something new has to be dealt with that she's erroneously implemented. I've gone up the admin chain telling her bosses, but didn't get a response until this last Friday. I have documented all the "crisises" she creates and this boss (2 tiers up) said he promised to push this topic to the forefront of his priorities to deal with. This 2nd tier boss was great and I talked to him for over an hour in a professional, non-emotional and non-attacking way about my supervisor. What was strange is that even with his promise (and I believe he'll follow through) is that I didn't feel better and still wanted to stress eat over this. I've decided that I need to go to employee assistance and make an appt to see "what's eating me" tomorrow.

The sunshine and upcoming spring is helping my motivation, but I think my journey is ready for more input. Even if employee assistance can't help me directly, they can recommend someone on my insurance plan that can. This is a big step for me because asking for help is soooooooo difficult for this stubborn peep!!

Hugs and Luv to all,
Ratkity

OMGosh Julee, a diabetic crisis like that is scary. I'm glad you were there and other people where there to impress upon that 17 yo that a blood sugar of 600 is beyond bad. If she's on a pump and it's doing that, there are major problems she needs to work out with her physician (of course, you know that.. preaching to the choir here). I hope her youth councilors can convince her that her blood sugar and her life are vitally connected .. she's not long for this world if she doesn't get control over it. *end sermon* Sorry, I get very scared when people are cavalier (sp) about diabetes.. I guess it's cuz I've seen the end results too much in my life.

Hugs and Luv to all
Ratkity

Wow such a hectic weekend, but back to work today. I am home on lunch. Update, the daughters state speech contest went well. She received 2 number ones and one number 2. She was kind of bummed about the 2 and wanted a one, but for her first year to go as far as state was awesome!!! She agreed and then at weigh in she gained a half pound! Probably the donut she had, she said! HA! HA! I don't even know what donuts taste like anymore. Probably because I would not be able to stop at one. Younger daughter lost half pound. She is doing fine for her age. We are not pushing her to lose weight. We have just changed the way the whole family is eating and that makes a difference. I just wanted to check in before going back up to work. I am so glad mail count is over for another year or two!!!! Hubby had an early flight today so I have been up since 3:30. I will miss him for the week again. Young daughter dance tonight and older one piano practice so maybe I can start some exercising one of these days!!! I want to know when "ME" time is???

Ladies, I've been very naughty and have hardly even been lurking for the last few weeks. Kind of on a pity party I guess, because it's been so long since I was really in control, and yet another winter has almost passed, and here I am. This time of year is often hard, seasonal light disorder and all that, so perhaps that's helped inflat my feelings of discouragement. I guess I'm not the only one to go through a period of feeling hypocritical or like a failure when the weight loss isn't what we want it to be. But there's nothing for it but to move on and keep trying. How many times did Edison try to make a light bulb before he found success??

Anyway, Yesterday I did something that a few of you might want to hear about, and I'm so excited I had to share:

Gabriel & I ventured out of the indoor arena on our first ever real live actually trail ride, and ended up going where he hadn't even been before. HE WAS FANTASTIC!!!! I couldn't believe how calmly he took everything. He was kinda put out that whichever horse(s) was in front of him it was moving so slow, but with 14-16 inches of snow to wade thru... It didn't stop Mr. Legs, tho! And he didn't spook at ANYTHING. At the top of the hill there's a semi-truck parked, and the way he looked at it as we came up the hill towards it made me think I was going to end up walking back to the barn. But he actually PASSED the other horses and went towards it first! Same thing with barrels and cones half buried in snow. He looked at everything with his head high in the air and his ears forward, just fascinated. But he never spooked. I have to admit that it really thrilled me to hear one of the other riders exclaiming how incredible he looked, just striding through the deep snow, bold and fancy.

Just as we got back to the barn, a flock of geese leapt off the pond squacking at the same instant that the dog came trotting into view, and Gabe startled briefly, but he didn't shy or snort or spin or anything bad. It was an unbelievable ride, even tho we never went above a trot. I knew that the thrill of that big trot of his bouncing over snowdrifts would send me into peals of high-pitched laughter for the joy of it, and I figured THAT noise would scare him if nothing else did! I'm using the great experience to motivate myself today. Focus and refocus, right? I just really thought it would be late summer before i had the courage to ride him out, but there we were - living the dream.

I can only make it better and better to lose this weight and be secure in the saddle. To be more balanced, lighter, easier for the big guy to bound over snowdrifts. I worked out again this morning, and I just have to keep trying, every single day, to give myself the gift of a healthier life.

Thanks for letting me share.

Hi everyone!

My lovely, lovely husband finally found the knitting patterns that he'd put in, ahem, a safe place...two years ago. So now I can finally get moving on some projects I've been itching to start on. Of course, I have three or four other projects in various stages of completion, but you can never have too many, right? :)

Hope all your weeks are great -- I find out Friday whether I can start putting weight on the broken leg -- woo hoo! Can't wait to not be stuck on crutches! (I'm guessing I will have to be reminded not to push too hard once I can get moving again! And I'm sure there will be many days when I'll be wishing I had a good reason to be stuck on the couch, reading and knitting!).

Rattkity I'm sorry you're having such a terrible time at work. I know first hand how that feels. It's good you went to the 2nd tier supervisor. I'm proud of the way you handled it. I also understand stress eating. Big time! I think going to employee assistance is a wonderful idea. It never hurts anyone to talk to a professional about emotions. I personally think it helps you grow as an individual. Hang in there! xxoo

Julee, Those parents are morons! I would seriously consider bring in child services. 600 is way to high. Sugars over 150, we were told, start doing damage to your
veins and arteries. Imagine what 600 does. My mom had diabetes, and she passed last August from complications to diabetes ....kidney failure. She died even though she was on dialysis and kept her sugars normal. But, she didn't always take her diet seriously. And she smoked. I certainly hope someone can get through to this family that 600 is not acceptable. I'm very upset about the parents not even going to the er. It's dumbfounding.

..Penny How cool about your daughter at state. That is so cool. Please pass my congratulations to her.

Val What an amazing experience. I can just see you and Gabe in the snow. I also know it's a huge, huge accomplishment from when I first "met" you. Keep up the good work. ....and I always do care to hear about Gabe.

Walrus, You're a riot! :lol: I was so glad to hear I'm not the only one with several
projects started at the same time in different stages. It's almost sad when they're done. But, I hope to have one of them finished by the end of April. The pathetic thing, is it would only take me one day if I could just do that. But, I have to get it done before my daughter's softball season starts. That's a must..... hey, it starts in April. And don't you dare do too much on that leg. I had knee surgery once. Believe me, you don't want to rush it.

I think I'm well enough to go to work tomorrow. I'm certainly gonna try. I actually miss my work and my friends there.
I think I'm gonna make chili for dinner tonight. It's a little chilly outside and it's damp. So chili will be a wonderful comfort food. .......and I don't have to feel guilty about eating it.

Hugs to all, I'll catch up with all y'all later.
Sandy :hug:

Carol, YAY!! You finally got to get your hands dirty. Didn't it feel great? I can't wait to get back out there but it's rain for the next few days with a cold front following. O well, I can at least get ready to start my garden veggies inside.

Debi, yes, rearranging is one of my fave things to do too but in this house it's hard. Not enough walls and too much open space. But I can move couches around and little things to make it look different. Painting the walls made a BIG difference too.
Hope you and your daughter get to feeling better soon.

Catherine, Yep, I think we will be on the thyroid meds forever but, getting off all the others will be great, which I'm doing now. I just dropped my last bp one. And I feel fine and my pressure has been great. I'm not taking my diabetes anymore as it seems to be staying in the normal range. It feels good to be off of all that and the big plus is saving the money I used to have to spend every month.

wyoming, where abouts in NY are you? My niece just moved there last year to Queens. She's trying to break into acting but right now she is doing medical billing. She used to be in alot of plays and from what I hear, was really good. I keep telling her to try out for "I Wanna Be A Soap Star". Here I thought you guys were getting all kinds of snow. At least that's what it looked like when they show the weather map here. I hope you get some soon.

Tina, congrats on the 1 lb loss!! It's great that you are showing your daughter how to eat like "normal" people. At least what we think they eat. LOL. I think your doing the right approach on not saying it's a diet so she doesn't end up having a bad relationship with food. Keep up the good work because you are seeing results!

Rainbowsmiles, I just love Paula Deen. She's a messy cook but has so much fun. Her shows are great. I bet it was fun going there and eating some of her great foods.

Annie, I'm so afraid by the time next winter gets here that my beautiful new jacket I just bought will be way too big! I'm going to wear it anyhow. :rofl: even if the sleeves are dragging on the ground! I think the charm bracelet idea is great. I don't wear much jewelry though so I have to reward myself in different ways but that is awesome to buy a charm for each goal. A great way to look back at your journey.

Sandy, Wow! That's a great NSV to be down to 2-3x from a 5x. You're doing great!!

Julee, what a traumatic weekend, huh? I would of been there to ER in a flash too. I don't understand some parents. You're a great person to be working with those kids. They definitely need you and more people like you. So hard to deal with food issues when you're away like that but it sounds like you did ok. Sorry the mil is being like that. She'll regret it later.

Ratkity, :hug: it sounds like you need one. Take care of yourself.

worthapenny, whew! sounds like you are one busy lady. It's great that your whole family is eating healthier and better. It makes it easier for everyone when you're all on the same page.

Val, so glad to see you back and posting. What an awesome ride that must of been!!!! It sounds like he's come such a long way! That must of been a beautiful ride with all the snow. I'm so thrilled for you. What a motivator huh?

thewalrus, O I sure hope you get to start using your leg again. It's so hard to be trapped on the couch. Good luck at the docs on Friday.

Hope everyone is having a great day no matter what the weather. Keep OP, exercising and thinking happy thoughts to keep us all motivated. Hurray for the losers and hugs to the ones struggling.
Not much going on here so I think I'll find something to get into.
Debbie

Good afternoon all,

You miss a few days and wow, look at all the posts. I was busy this morning and see that this week's thread is off and running. I think I'll give up on trying to respond to last week's posts, and try and keep up this week.

I went out this morning and got my weights. I did manage to get the 72-lb box into the cart, and into the truck, but decided to open it in the driveway and bring the weights in separately. No point in killing myself on day one. It's a beautiful sunny day here today, although still pretty cold. The long term forecast shows some warming later in the week, but all that's likely going to bring in water in the crawl space. You just can't win. :)

Carol - I seem to have been running behind all day myself. I suspect that the time change will eventually work itself out, but I really had a tough time getting to sleep last night.

Debimitch - I think the problem is that we just have piles and piles of snow. If it rains I'm not sure where it will go. Hope that sore throat is just a morning thing. Everyone I know seems to be sick lately. It's made staying at home (being a hermit) not such a bad thing. That's so sad, about the girl you were babysitting. There has to be a better way to deal with changes. I've been skimming through this season of the Biggest Loser. There was one episode where they go home for a week, and one of the guys was trying to stop his kids from eating all the junk they were used to. I was thinking that his sudden stopping of foods they were used to was likely only going to want them more. I think the better the lifestyle of the parents - hopefully - the better adjusted the kids will be. I mean look at me - father sneaking food off his diabetic diet, and a mother who still sneaks candy into the house even though she's only a few pounds over where she should be.

Babybear - I was almost the same, although it was mother and father. My mother would try and control what I was eating, then my father would give me what I wanted. It was the same with other things as well (ie. my mother would ground me, and my father would let me do what I wasn't supposed to). I don't ever remember specifically being told to diet, but it felt like it. It probably didn't help that my father was diagnosed with diabetes while I was young. Because of that we changed our eating habits, but my father cheated from his new diet as well. So we did this together. Kind of a bonding thing.

rainbowsmiles - hello there. I've seen Paula's show, but not sure I'd trust myself in the restaurant, well not yet. It sounds like you had a good time, so that's great. I'm very jealous about the weather... really, really jealous!

Sandybar - I worry about the sagging skin from time to time, but I decided I'll live with it when the time comes. I've decided I'll wait until I'm under 300 to go through the closet. I know I have some things from when I got down to 280, so I won't need any new stuff for a while. I'll be cheap though and have some of my favourites altered. In fact, I think there are a few that I'd already had done, so it will be nice to wear them again.

Julee - it's always bad when someone else is providing the food. I spent last winter with someone cooking all the meals for us. It sounds good (and the food was reasonably good), but by the time I got home I missed just cooking something I wanted. I thought I'd done a pretty good job of maintaining the weight I was when I left, and even being a few down. If I'd been more careful I could have probably lost weight, but the past is past. I'm wondering if the pump itself failed, although it could be like my aunt. When she was younger there were periods where her pancreas would start creating insulin and she would spike her sugar. I'm pretty sure she spent almost a decade in and out of the hospital. She was too far away, and I was too young, to remember the details. I do know that once that phase passed she could control her sugar levels very well, although now that she's older her body is a bit of a wreck from those earlier problems.

Ratkitten - I've had insurance plans in the past that will pay for counselling, but never taken advantage of it when needed. Issues with supervisors are so hard to deal with, or even overall company issues. I was working in a company many years ago and our fill-in HR guy took myself and another employee aside. He said that as much as he was friends with the current Plant Manager, he was telling us to get out, for our own sakes. He was right, the company didn't promote women, and there were big changes in the wind. The very good plant manager was leaving (which I suspect the HR guy knew), and he was replaced by someone horrible. There was no future for either of us there. I left, going to a better job. My friend stayed and had an idiot promoted to be her boss. Things did not go well, since he was a serious problem. It's so hard when you're doing your best, but others are impeding your progress. I hope you get the help you need (from either the people higher up, or some outside help).

Penny - I keep thinking about how well your whole family is doing with having a better lifestyle. I think it's wonderful. Helping your kids gain good habits while they're young is the best gift you can give them.

Val - I commented on your ride in the other thread, but just adding another 'way to go' here.

TheWalrus - I'm betting that just about the time you get back into your knitting it will be time to get up and moving around. That seems to be the way it always goes.


Well, I started this before my afternoon exercising, and had to take a break to finish it up. All I can say is that I'm not sure my strength training before this prepared me. To some extent I did okay until the last exercise set. It's to be done on an exercise ball, which I've never used. Without going into too much detail, you're supposed to start with your shins on the ball (supporting your body with your hands). Then you are supposed to tuck in, ending up with your feet on the ball. This is the point where I usually fall off the freakin' ball! Oh well, this just leaves me looking forward to Wednesday's crunches using the ball. I better clear the room of anything I could crack my head on...

Rat: I actually was not involved at all. I didn't find out what was going on until after the fact. My job at that moment was to keep the kids in the room where I was from going into the lobby so they could treat her without too many onlookers. The parents argued with the 2 physicians who were there about her needing to go to the ER (2 volunteer parents who are both licensed MDs). If that's the first time it happened..hello...time to see what's what. I know that when DH's sugars go abover 120 I panic (even though he tells me not to). I have seen my share of hyper-reactive parents as well...but these parents lived not too far from where we were and not out of state...I can't see the logic.

DH has been having a rough time at work with his supervisor as well. he finally got fed up and wrote up his grievances and asked the next higher up for a transfer. She asked if he had addressed the problem directly and bumped it back down...argh. Things haven't really gotten better or worse...the supervisor seems to have back off a little bit but in a weird way.

I wish I were still in bed. Really I do.

Oh dear, I seem to be getting behind in the reading. And of course, I'm MILES behind with the posting.

I noticed that some people have been mentioning charm bracelets and I just wanted to say that I picked up my second charm on the weekend. I am getting myself a charm for every year of maintaining my weight loss. I reached my 'goal' (adjusted, because my original goal was a little low) around the middle of March 2006, so the purchase was a week early, but I figured that I would pick up the charm I wanted when I found it, and I also figured that I wouldn't gain my weight back in the next week. Actually I'm down 2lbs to 170lbs, which is VERY nice.

My first charm was a heart locket, which I had to change over the weekend for a normal heart charm, still very pretty, but the locket kept getting wet when I washed my hands, and just wasn't working, so I will put it onto a necklace at some time. I got the heart because I had lost the weight to improve my health/heart and because I was learning to love myself again. I also lost the weight for love in a way, because I wanted to live longer to be with my husband longer.

My second charm is a butterfly, because I have certainly come out of my coccoon and am ready to FLY! Actually I've been flying for a while now, so the butterfly was SO appropriate.

Catch you all soon.

Zelma

I spent 90 minutes in the pool today. I stayed after class for 500 extra crunches, and when that didn't get my heart rate up high enough, I just started doing laps. The lifeguards are looking at me very strangely. Women my size are not supposed to be able to keep up with the instructors, and then doing laps and crunches was just beyond their ability to understand. It's a small enough pool that they know all the regulars. He didn't come with me today because of meetings, and I warned him that there might be some cute guys at the pool, and this one lifeguard is young and cute. So I told himself when I got home that I had a long conversation with him. Any incentive it takes to get santa into the pool with me, I'm capable of pulling. The lifeguard may be cute, but I've got honest to God underwear that is older than he is. I think he was talking to me just to make sure I was actually still breathing.

Catherine, you are so funny. That lifeguard was probably thinking he was clever by talking to you to see if you were still among the living. You knew better!! hehe. When I was bicycle riding at my highest weight, I would shock other cyclists by zooming by at a decent pace. Who'd have thunk that a fat woman could be strong or stronger then they were?? When someone would say something about my strength, it just proved to me one more time that discrimination (the fat/lazy stereotype) was alive and well. I try not to see the insult in the comments or curiosity, but am very sensitive at the same time.

Julee, I have gone through the chain of command with my concerns and I have not started any grievance processes or threatened to start them. Those are formal procedures in the gov't (I work for the feds). I made it clear to the 2nd tier boss that I wanted the least confrontational solutions available so there is room for change. My boss is a nice lady, just clueless and a micromanager.

I wanted to update ya'll that I made a call to employee assistance (EAP) and have started the process to get an appointment. I even took a one hour online course about tips for stress management. It was a little hokey (sp), but not too bad. Even little things are side-tracking me and my productivity has declined. I'm lucky the gov't provides EAP services.

Hugs and Luv and thank you for the support! You ladies and gents ROCK!
Ratkitten

Hi everyone,

I am still struggling. Today is going ok so far, but I have a banquet dinner coming up tonight and not too many calories left to use. I think I'll do ok, as I'm not terribly hungry and not feeling in a danger zone.

I keep falling down but I keep picking myself back up. I can tell that I gained weight, but am not ready to face the scale. Today I am feeling a renewed sense of commitment, and hopefully will continue with more focus through the rest of the week.

I think I need to get rid of the popcorn in my office. I'm finding this to be a binge food no matter how I work it out. I went for many months being able to eat it, but I think it needs to stay out of my life for a while.

Sandy: I hope you feel healthy and ready for the day tomorrow. I hear what you're saying about the saggy skin. Imagine on top of your own feelings about it, being single and worrying about how the next Mr. Possibly Right might react. I was recently talking to a male friend who shared with me that his girlfriend, who lost 88 lbs before they met, has a terrible, deflated, saggy body that he does not find enticing (although he cares deeply for her and still is attracted to her). I don't know why he shared this with me (or anyone, but especially me) given my circumstances.

There really is no choice but to live with the saggy skin--that or continue the death march that we were all on. For most of us, there is no modeling contract in our future, but at least we'll be healthy and able to join in on all life offers.

Anne: I have thought about an exercise ball, but am afraid I will kill myself on the thing. Grace is not my middle name. How'd it go?

Rainbow: Oh, my, gosh, I would have stuffed myself silly at Paula Deen's restaurant. In a way I'm glad that her restaurant is thousands of miles away from me. I love her soooo much but man is she the Queen of Heart Attacks on a Plate! Friends of mine went on a Paula Deen tour last year.

Rat: I have availed myself of the EAP counselors from time to time, with mixed results. It can't hurt to try to get some support, and to set aside some time where you are working on figuring out how to find your peace again.

Sorry to hear the job is stressful. I hope something is done about your supervisor.

Zelma: charms are a great way to celebrate continued success. To be reminded every time you look down what you did for yourself

Catherine - some of my best male friends when I was in highschool were lifeguards at the pool we swam at. I hung out most of the day and eventually just hung out with some of them. I think to some extent it's something people do who are people person. Enjoy. :)

BattleAx - it was not pretty. I understand that if I take a little air out of it I could have less stability problems. My little (117) mother doesn't understand why I'm having such problems. Sometimes she doesn't get that simple exercises can be difficult for me. She sees me on the treadmill or lifting things, but doesn't understand that I'm not the most flexible person in the world. I'll be trying the crunches on Wed. And for the next 8 weeks, I'll be using it three days a week. Thankfully, only for one set of exercises.

Anne, I'm sorta leary of those balls. I loose my balance to easily. I even have to hold on to the treadmill at times because I loose balance. I don't know if that is due to my weight or what.
When you get a chance, could you tell me the workouts you do with your weights. I've got 8 pounders to start with and don't have a large amount of moves to do with them. Brain dead, I guess. :lol:

Ratkity, so glad to hear you're in the process of getting help. There's nothing wrong with asking for help when you need it!

Battle, YaY! for getting back on track. Anything we can do to help? I know it can be so hard to stay motivated. Sometimes something clicks and you can get back OP so I'm glad to hear you heard a loud click!!

Last night I was in the shower and I feel......squishy. Before all my fat held my skin firm, but now it's like jello. Ick. I have to keep thinking that I'm getting healthier, which I am, but icky squishy skin....ew. Just one more thing we all have to deal with. I wish I had of done this years ago to where it might have gone back better, but, live and learn.
Ok, gonna get back on the treadmill. Did 24 min. @ 2.7mph, earlier. Wanna at least get to 30 or 40 with some jogging.
toodles,
Debbie

Sandy: congrats on getting all those clothes out of your closet. You won't need them again! Ya, the skin thing is a bummer. I am already planning to have surgery on my tummy. My tummy skin is sooo huge right now. I can't even imagine what it will look like in another 122 pound loss. I have a plan for tummy tuck hopefully next year at this time. Hugs to you. I hope that when you do your family thing on April 18th it goes well and you feel proud of yourself. June 21st is a ways away but it will come upon us quickly. I am rooting for you sweetie to get to the goal weights you want by those dates. You can do it Sandy. Hugs.

Julee: wow. What a weekend you had. I hope you can rest today at some point and feel better.

Ratkitten: so glad that you got an appointment. I hope you get some answers and help. Hugs.

Worthapenny: You need to schedule it in. That is the only way I can fit exercise in daily. I schedule it in like it is an appointment and it actually is, an appointment with me.

VAl: I am soooooo happy for you to ride Gabe and have such a wonderful experience. I sure miss you around here girl. Sorry you are struggling. How is work going? How is Bill and the evil SD? I hope you are doing wonderful my friend.

Walrus: good luck on your leg results.

Debbie: I hear ya on the jacket thing. I wore my two new big heavy jackets this year but they absolutely don't fit me at all anymore and they look rediculous. I have two more that look just as bad but I am keeping one until the weather gets a bit better and the other one too just for a bit. Hopefully by the time I have my yard sale I will be able to put them in it too.

Anne: How do you feel after the weights? I use my ball pretty much daily. I do situps/crunches with it and I also do push ups with my shins on it. I still get the work out but not as much work as if I were doing it with no ball.

Zelma: Your charms sound lovely and well desearved. Hugs.

Catherine: I'm so proud of you for the pool today. You are doing so wonderful.

Battle: Hugs and hi. I hope you manage well tonight at the banquet.

My day was so peacful today as my supervisor from H#ll was gone. She will be back tomorrow though UGH! I am really picking up on the clients lately. It is kind of sad. I did all the intakes today and well, there were only 2 but the other two voc consultants didn't even try to help so that made me feel okay at least I am doing my share and then some. Tomorrow I have 3 new clients scheduled plus another intake day. We have 32 intakes scheduled for tomorrow. Usually not all of them show up probably like 50 percent so if 16 show up we can divide that by 3 vocs and it won't be too bad. No new news about our company but supposedly we have some for tomorrow. Usually they don't say too much. I wish it was just over or not already. lol. I have applied for about 8 jobs since last Friday so I hope someone calls. I'm sure someone will eventually. It seems that lots of companies take apps and resumes for quite a while then start deciding. I have a job for now and I am thankful for the income that is much needed.

I hope you are all doing well and staying op.

blessings,
Annie

Hi all,

Well, I got my test results back. Good news and semi-not good news (but not unexpected). All blood work looked REALLY good...trigs, cholesterol, etc. All but one. It appears I may be pre-diabetic. My fasting blood sugar was 119. My Dr isn't too freaked at this point, because I have been on prednisone and antibiotics quite a bit within the last few months, and apparently that may cause an increase. But I need to be honest with myself. My grandmother had diabetes and died from it in her 40s and my dad has it pretty bad as well (although well into his 60s). I love sweets. I am morbidly obese. Why would I think it's a fluke? So I am taking this as a gracious warning, time to lose weight. And each less refined sugar.

I want to cut the issue off at the pass, and not be prescribed drugs for it. Ever. So, it's time to get busy.

Debbie, you are doing fabulously, and are off the meds. What kind of things do you eat? Any guidance (from anyone) would be greatly appreciated.

Take care and be well,
Angie

Rat-People are surprised by my strength. Have been my whole life. I was a shot putter, clean up hitter, and a weight lifter. I pushed 600 pounds around in a wheelchair for 8 years. Now that is weight training.

OK BOY you gals don't stop yaking do you??? LOL just like a bunch of women even though we use keyboards!!! hehehehe

I got up EXTREMELY late this am!!! we normally get up at 5am....woke up at 6:22!!! I had to shampoo my hair(didn't get it blown dry LOL) So needless to say I didn't get to post anything this am! I tried to login at work....I managed to read a few posts but that was about it!!! LOL

We had a wrestling banquet to go to tonight so I just got home posted all my food & Dh's food on TDP and just now finished reading posts but now its 11:23 & I have to get up early LOL so I will just post a short (ok short for me) LOL

with the banquet tonight (potluck except for the boosters bought Fried Chicken!) I made Ceviche (its a low fat Mexican seafood salad of sorts) I picked up whole wheat chips as well as regular (for others) I ate that as well as some broccolli & bacon salad, 1 deviled egg, and 1/2 slice of baked ham. for dessert I chose Ambrosia (except it had snickers cut up in it! I ate two bites of the candy & had to ask what it was! I couldn't believe I didn't recognize my favorite candy bar taste! Its been well over a month since I've had one!) I also had a small bit of Dirt pudding. I logged EVERYTHING I ate (over estimating some of it since I didn't know the exact recipe) I stayed within my calories as well as fat grams!!! woooohoo!

Oh now for my WI for today! I lost 1lb.........small loss but I did make my Easter Goal! 13 days early Too!!! So I took an additional 7lbs off my bday goal to give myself more of a challenge!

I think the time change hit me this morning! So I'd better get to bed!

Know that my thoughts are with you all!
Bernice

Angie, pretty much what I eat is chicken, turkey, fish and veggies. Once in a while a good cut of beef with all the fat cut off. I don't hardly EVER fry ANYTHING. I try not to eat bread, pasta unless it is whole wheat. I eat alot of salad with light or fat free dressing and TONS of water. I do love my 100 calorie packs though as I'm not too good at portion control. I might buy Skinny Cow goodies once in a while too. But while I was trying to get off of the meds for diabetes, I didn't even have those. It's hard but soooooo worth it not to have to take those darn pills, so yes, do all you can to make sure you don't have to be on meds or even worse, insulin. When I was diagnosed, I asked the doctor if I could try and control it thru diet and exercise. I was fooling myself because I wasn't ready to do that.
I didn't even start exercising til this year but it all helps. Use what the doctor told you as a wake up call and try and control it without the meds. Losing weight helped tremendously in controling it too.

Annie, at least you had one day with that mean supervisor gone! You sound so busy that I bet your days just fly by. Take care of yourself and I hope you hear back from one of the jobs you've applied for soon.

I'm thinking of starting up a little business of healthy goodies. I'm going to see if I can use the kitchen at our club as it has to be a commercial kitchen. I want to try and start selling at the farmer's markets and then move on to bigger shows. Food sells big time at these kind of events. Someday I would love to own a little shop and sell my healthy goodies. I've got to call the Health Dept. to see if what our club has would be ok. Anyhow, that is what I've been thinking lately since no one seems to want to hire me, might as well start my own business.
have a good night!
Debbie

Debbie - I'm following a book I bought - the New Rules of Lifting for Women. It's probably way out of my skill level, but I figured I had to start somewhere. It has different stages, and I'm obviously in Stage 1. During that stage, you alternate two different workouts 8 times each. They do suggest if you want, that you can add another 4 workouts, which is what I'm doing. So, at three times a week they will take me 8 weeks to go through. You are told to raise the weight with each workout, within reason. I'm logging my workouts in the blog, but the book has more information than I'm adding.

I have found a site that looks fairly good as well, so I'll give you a link to that one.

http://www.exrx.net/Beginning.html

"ExRx.net (Exercise Prescription on the Net) is a free resource for the exercise professional, coach, or fitness enthusiast." ExRx.net consists of over 2000 pages, most of which are found in the Exercise and Muscle Directory. The content of this web site is available on CD-ROM."

It's got a lot of information, and (from what I've seen) the exercises all have a small demo at the top, so you can see it done. The website has a lot of information, which is probably better than I could do. Remember, this is the woman who kept falling off the ball today!

Annie - I'm not sure it's a good sign that I'm feeling a few twinges here and there already. I wasn't expecting that until the morning. We'll see how I am in the morning. There's probably a very good reason that I'm only doing this three days a week!

Catherine - your comment about strength reminds me of when I first started to use the leg press at the office gym. I wasn't quite sure what I should be doing and asked one of the guys for help. He sat me down, helped me adjust the seat and such. I did the press, and as I was doing it, one of the other guys told him that he should adjust the weight. It seems I was pressing about 140 pounds, something they thought I shouldn't be trying for a first time. I didn't really want to tell him that I was pressing just about what I had lost. Why shouldn't I be able to press it, since I'd been carrying it around for years.

Bernice - congrats on meeting your Easter Goal! (I was yakking/typing so much that I missed your post.)

Well, I think I'll take my tired, slightly aching body to bed now. I'm trying to break the late night habits, but it's not easy.

Hello everyone. I'm new here ..well, new posting anyway, have lurked for a while, and finally feel good enough to post. Seeing and reading all of your stories is truly inspiring. Hope to be a part of your wonderful board from here on out.
Have a Good Day.

Anne- ROFL :rofl:you sound just like me!!! I couldn’t stay on that ball to save my life!!! Something about a round body and a round object just don’t mix well!!! LOL Good for you on the weights!

Zelma- I like your heart:val1: charm idea that’s neat! Congrats on your maintenance!!

Catherine too funny....:santa:..Santa??? LOL he lives at your house too? Dh shaves his head bald and has been known to have our dog Precious’s (white Lab) hair lodged in his goatee! LOL or he says it’s my gray hair that has stuck to his head! Too funny!

Ratkitten- :cheer:Good for you on getting an appt with employee assistance! Hope everything works out for you with some help from them!

Debbie-:chef:will you be shipping any of those healthy goodies??? Cuz I think I know a few people around here that might be willing to pay shipping! LOL


For all of you who have cellulite......I watched a Dr on fitTV the other day & she was pretty much “selling” her diet......which wasn’t bad (don’t ask me what it was called) but to strict and limiting for me....anyhow I gleened one tidbit of info from her.....on her case studies establishing her diet formula she had ladies drink 1 to 7 ratio of Unsweetened Cranberry juice & Water 3X a day.........and of those that drank this concoction they lost cellulite ............I figure why not try it? Couldn’t hurt huh? I think the only place I can pick up unsweetened Cranberry juice is a healthfood store but I think I will pick some up this week and mark down any notable changes....who knows.......it will at least benefit my body if nothing else!

Well I better get ready for school.......dd is staying home today......her big brother (not the one in the Army) and his fiance are down till Weds and she wants to spend time with them. Since she has only missed one day of school this year I told her she could skip today! Hehehe She was thrilled! But I have to go in darn! Need to save my days off for other son’s graduation from Basic!

Well all hope you are OP today drink GALLONS of water and hmmmmm just had a thought! We have weight loss goals as a group and exercise goals as a group why not have a Water drinking Goal as a group??? Would challenge all those who struggle with getting enough water in daily as well as give us incentive to see how long it would take us to fill a swimming pool (hmmm does anyone know how many Gallons of water it takes to fill an Olympic size pool?) Ok ok.....not sure if this challenge would be something you all would want to do? But those of you Mod’s maybe you could come up with some sort of challenge in regards to drinking water daily.....whatcha think?

Toodles Peeps!
BErNICE :goodscale

Good morning Peeps - quick fly by here. The scale was good to me today - I lost .25 lb. After the last 3 weeks I just knew the ole bod wasn't gonna give anything up. This was by far the best OP week I have had so it will come. I truly am ecstatic about the loss. Hasn't been many weeks since I was complaining about this kind of a loss - no pleasing me - I know.

Personals later. Don't forget - move your bodies, drink your water and SMILE.

Hugs,
Carol

Good morning everyone,
I think a water challenge might do me some good. I have not been getting enough in. I dont drink anything else usually. I did have a couple of glasses of unsweet tea over the weekend. I am suppost to drink a gallon per day because i have a tendcy to get kidney stones.( they are so painful) Latelly I have only been getting 3 or 4 bottles(16.9) in. That is about half of what i need.
I know I am holding fluid this morning because I was up 2 lbs and I didnt eat to much yesterday and I didnt get up during hte night to potty. I know can soup is high in sodium and I used canned soup in my potatoe soup last night.
Well hope everyone has a wonderful day. Im going to go and finish my coffee.
debi

:welcome: Mimi!! Post often.. just jump right in :)

Luv,
Ratkity

Bernice-When there was a discussion about himself wearing a kilt to the wedding, I kiboshed it. He would have looked like a young Santa in drag. His father wore the kilt, and himself wore his tartan with his suit. He's got salt and pepper hair and beard, and carries all his weight in his tummy.

I'm headed to home depot today. I've got this crazy idea to make something, and I am going to roam the aisles to see if I can find the parts I need.

Well our pc crashed yesterday so I'm WAY behind. I saw the Dr & got some Prozac to help me through, I go back in two weeks to see how I'm doing on it. I'm really tired, yet sleep at night in bed just isn't happening, if I sit still long enough I can fall asleep really easily, GRRRRR.
Anyway just to let you know I'm ok, I'll try & do personals later or tomorrow, I only just ate and it's 4pm! I had stuff to do, then write a story for my creative writing, I missed two buses & ran for the third , I got to class late and after that I fetched the boys from school.
Hugs to everyonexxxxxx
xxxxxsharon

Good afternoon all,

Well, there are only a few pains today, until I move. :)

It's not that bad, just a few tender points. It would have been a great excuse to not use the treadmill this morning, but my legs really weren't sore, so I pushed on. The only thing is I'm going to go more a little snow on the patio shortly. I'm not looking forward to that as I'm pretty sure I'll need to use the muscles that are sore.

Bernice - I'm sure it can't hurt (the fruit juice), just watch the calories. Assuming you take an ounce of juice and 7 of water it will be around 30 calories. Three of these won't break you, but if you're taking more just remember to count it. I've never really had a problem drinking water, although it used to be lots of diet soft drinks instead. The challenge might be a good idea for those who struggle with their intake.

Carol - every .25 pound helps. String enough of them together and you win in the end. I know the weeks I'm up that it's silly to get upset about it, but I still do. In the end a nice consistent downward trend is best. Maybe one day I'll get to the point where I only weigh once a month... I'm just not there yet. Keeping on plan, as you said, will eventually bring the results. Keep at it!

Debi - I was thinking a gallon was a lot of water, and then I realised I do drink more than that most days. Of course, I don't drink coffee, tea, milk, etc.

Catherine - the only men who really look good in kilts are young tall fit ones, with great legs. I had a cousin get married in one (family in Scotland). It just didn't work for him. :) I will admit I'm quite curious about what you're making.

Voodoo - I hope you get back on track with the sleep. I've always had troubled sleep patterns. It just throws your whole system out of whack. Hope you got your story written.

Well, I think I shouldn't avoid shoveling a little snow. Then I'll have my afternoon snack and collapse on the couch for a while. I decided to try changing my eating habits a little as well, with the exercise changes. I'm trying to push for 3 meals / 3 snacks, which I'm finding a little odd. I kind of feel like I'm always eating. I just didn't like the way the evening snacks were going. It seemed like I was keeping the calories lower during the day so I could eat lots at night. I know all I really need is a piece of fruit and a protein shake to keep the hunger at bay, so diving the food up during the day more seemed like a good idea.

Take care all, and have a good afternoon/evening.

Anne, thank you so much for the website. I'm sure I will find all kinds of stuff there. It sounds like you're really into the weight lifting. Is it something you've always wanted to do? I like how it defines the muscle but I don't think I would like to be like those women you see in the competitions on tv.
I find I'm doing the same thing. Not eating enough during the day and then eating too many snacks at night. I've got to change that.

Hiya cuckoomimi, glad you joined us. Just post any 'ol time so we can get to know you.

Bernice, I think the water drinking challenge would be great. I know I can get 3 liters in a day but try to get 4, but the last one is so hard to get down. It would be interesting to see how much others drink.
If I ever find a kitchen (Eagles didn't qualify) I probably would be willing to ship. Spread the word, I say! I've got some banana muffins in the oven right now. I'm going to try them out on Jim's guys at work to see if they can tell they are "healthy" versus the sweet stuff. Ought to be interesting.

Carol, YAY on the .25 lb gone forever!!

Catherine, whatcha gonna make????

Sharon, hope things settle down for you to where you can get some sleep.

O my gosh!! We had such a wind storm last night. It got pretty scary. I kept getting up to see if any trees had fallen but none did. Our outside swing got knocked over and I guess there was a tree down on the main road. It's died down now, but wow, that was spooky.
I got my 40 mins on the treadmill last night. Only did jogging one though. Just couldn't get the uumph to do it. Maybe today. I did do one set of weights and I actually feel it in my arms, so I guess it's a good sign. I have really big upper arms which are saggy big time, so I want to see if I can do something about them.
Off to go check on my muffins.
Have a great moving, drinkin day
Debbie

Just got in from work and Im wiped out! This past week or two we have had one student that has really acted out more than usual......if that could be LOL

He was out of control today and the other assistant & I worked alot with him then he went to the doctor and was gone for the afternoon...........we are hoping its something in his meds.....and they can get it straightened out cuz I guess its happening at home too! It's sad though cuz then we loose one on one time with the other students while we are working on his behavior issues. ok off my soap box

Today was a good food day for me however right now I could crawl into bed and fall asleep for the night.......I think I need something to eat maybe some protein.....

will post more tomorrow

Bernice

Debbie - from what I'm reading I really don't think I'd ever be one of those overly-muscled woman you see in competitions. I think that's what I'm enjoying about the book, reading the thought process behind it. I used to work with a guy who was very into the whole body-building stuff. Funny, but he was the first to notice that I had lost weight, and probably the most encouraging about it. He nagged me about getting more protein (and he was right, I wasn't eating enough). It's his fault I started drinking protein shakes really. He was always telling me that I should do less cardio and more strength training. So, years later, I'm finally going to listen to him. I might even tell him he's right eventually. :) Maybe not. On the kitchen - depending on where you live you might find a facility that rents space for use. I know there are some in our area. Making a deal with an already approved kitchen might work as well. ie. any 24-hour diners that have slow periods?

I'm sure you've already visited it, but there's a website for Seattle/King County - http://www.metrokc.gov/health/foodsfty/foodbusiness.htm

If you're not in that area, you might find the same for where you are. If you have an unfinished room in the basement, it could become your 2nd (ie. approved) kitchen if you want (probably). Again, along the same idea as a deal - once you have your 'product' down pat, approach someone that might find it a good addition to their menu. (ie. a non-chain coffee shop, local diner, restaurant) See if you can work in their space in exchange for providing product.

Not sure if any of these will work, but just a few thoughts. When I look at the jams and such sold at our local farmer's market I always think I could do better. Of course, this would have been more feasible when I lived on a property where we grew most of the fruit. :)

I meant to add a link - http://www.personalchef.com/

I've seen ads for these types of services locally. Depending on who it is, they come to your home, cook you a week's worth of meals, in your kitchen. If it weren't for my obvious food issues, I wouldn't mind doing this myself.

Battle,
Hang in there Honey. I know life is hard ..... most of the time. But you seem to be a good person. I'm sure my dh will still love me just the same with flappy skin. If a man is worth anything, he'll accept you and love you for who you are. No matter if there's excess skin or not.
Big Hugs.
San

Annie, You're just so sweet. I'm glad your super was gone today. I'm always glad when mine is gone too. Except she leaves another girl "in charge" who has basically no seniority over the rest of us. It's quite pathetic. But whatchya gonna do???

Angie, I'm really glad you got the blood work done now. It could have been lots worse in a year or so. But I'm sure it'll be better from now on cuz you're on the right path.

DMPLS Way to go on meeting your goal early!!! That's terrific!
I'd join the fill up a pool with water challenge. You can count my 60 oz + today.
I've been using the South Beach water thingys. They have a few calories and 5 grams of fiber too. Sorry today was so hard on you. Sleep tight my friend.

Debbie I think that small business idea is great!! It makes me wonder if I could do it here
at our Farmers Market. Our area has lots and lots of festicals.... within a 50 mile radius.
It might be a fun way to get some extra cash AND get to go to the festivals. I'm gonna think on it. You're brilliant!!

Cuckoomimi :welcome3: You'll love it here!

Carol, .25 is still a whole stick of butter. You don't have to lose it again. The scale will move soon for you. Just hang in there.

Debbie, Oddly enough when we don't drink enough water we retain more. Silly, huh?
I try to use that as a motivator to drink plenty. But it is indeed hard.

Sharon, So glad you got some meds. You'll perk up in a little bit. Remember to try to cut down of caffeine if you drink it much. I'm finally down to about a half cup of coffee a day
except on Sunday and then it's 2 cups. Keep me posted. Hugs

Well, I made it through the day at work and I was ready for a nap at 10 am,
But my customers were glad I was back and that made it worth while.
However, I am exhausted. We had left over Chili tonight and dh had it all ready for me when I got home. Got home late cuz I stopped to wash my car. It was a mess.
It's really funny y'all are talking about the exercises balls. My girlfriend and I were just talking about it today. She might get one and invited me to come over and try it out with her. I can just see the two of us rollin around off the ball. It's too funny. But, we'd be moving and having a good time and be together. She's a very dear friend and is going through a divorce. No children, and she desperately wants a child. She spoils Abby silly when I take her with me. That's ok. My friend and Abby are good for each other, ya know. So, as soon as she gets one Abby and I will go and maybe stay the night. (she lives about 30-40 miles away, but we work at the same place) We've laughed, fought and cried many times together. Anyway, it was just funny since everyone is talking about the ball.
I think I'm gonna go to our room and watch Big Brother and probably fall asleep watching it.
I was ok food wise today, but not wonderful. I cave into chocolate today. I was pretty upset with a coworker. Super stupid. huh?
But tomorrow will be better! It has to be. I have a trip next month and a wedding in
June!!! Til tomorrow everyone. Here's to us with our water :grouphug:

I ended up finding something that suited my needs without having to create it, darn it. Our church is all wooden beams. It actually creaks like an old wooden boat when it is windy. We're a very poor inner-city parish. They haven't had the money to properly have the building cleaned in a long time. I've had so many blessings in the last two years since moving here, I just wanted to give something back without anyone knowing about it. You guys are safe because you don't go to church there. I wanted to find some way to clean the beams. I had thought about using those screw together poles that painters use, or maybe pvc pipe with screw ends, and a dust mop on the end to reach up the 30 feet. I happened to wander in while a professional window washer was replacing some of his equipment, and he showed me this extending, locking pole, and these microfibre scrubbing things that screw on the end. I picked up that and a bucket and a huge bottle of wooden floor and paneling cleaner. I'm going to spend a couple of hours a day for the next three days cleaning all the paneling and beams and pews to get the church ready for Easter. My boss the nun is the only one who is going to know I'm the one doing it because I had to have someone unlock the doors for me. I'm just hoping that no one finds out, and that I can count the time towards my exercise minutes.

WOOHOO!! thanks for the welcomes. can't wait to get to know you all.
In regards to the water challenge.....I need a challenge, I can't seem to get my water in.

Hi there, just poking my head in. I finally figured out that this is where the chit chat happens.

I'm looking forward to getting to know people. (I never thought I'd say that, and yet I've said that in almost every post here today).

Cuckoomimi, I'm having problems with my water too.

*crawling in with my tail between my legs*

hi all. i know i havent been here in forever. my life has been crazy. i have been working a lot and going to school, so i havent had much time to be here. i havent been good with my eating and i weigh in on the 20th, so i will have a weight update then.

i will try to keep up *grin*
Luan

Good morning Peeps

Catherine - that is wonderful. I think we all need to give back as we think on our blessings. I know you will get as much enjoyment out of "doing" for all of your fellow parishoners as they will from the bright sparkling wood. Thanks for sharing with us.

Luan - Hi girl - great to see you!

Welcome Mimi and EarthShaker - this is a great group - you will find so much support here. Keep posting. I have learned so much from this group and 3FC is what has made the difference in my weight loss journey this time - I am doing it but with much support from my friends here - it also keeps me accountable because the one promise I made to myself was that I would post, even when struggling, and I have. I've plateaued previously and with this groups help worked through it and started losing again - they had to tell me to eat more - go figure. OK - WELCOME.

Hi to everyone else - time to get to the office. Anyone have trouble accessing the site last night?

Move your bodies, drink your water and SMILE.

Hugs,
Carol

ok I posted the water challenge with some really good info about where our water goes through our day! Lets try to fill that olympic sized pool!

I posted my water for yesterday so if you all want to add yours for yesterday as well with the format I have there

then we will be subtracting from the grand total of ounces needed to fill the pool and we can all jump in when we reach 0!!!!!

thanks guys for joining in!
Gotta run off to work!
Have a good day!

Luan! It's wonderful to see you again!!

Catherine, that's so cool what you are doing for your church. You rock!!

Luv,
Ratkity

good morning ladies,

Welcome to everyone new or returning.
I did really good yesterday considering everything. I run an inhome daycare and one of my littles ones had fever and I held him for hours . His granny ended up coming to get him. I didnt have time to eat breakfast so i grabbed a slimfast. Then at lunch he was crying and my other 2 were wired so i grabbed another slimfast. Last night for dinner I met my daughter who is in college at the halfway point and we had dinner and i chose to eat at applebees because they have a weight watchers menu. I chose the steak and veggies it was 360 calories. SO i came in really low yesterday. I weigh daily and the scales didnt like that i went to low on calories. I was up a little bit. This morning i started the day out with eggbeaters omlette and whole wheat toast.
I cant loose by drinking slimfast...and cutting my calories to low.
I only have 2 kidos today because the one that got sick yesterday has the flu.
OH NO hope we all dont get it!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My daughter is back at school today. She still feels bad but with it being her senior year she jsut cant miss.
Still waiting on the mono test results.
Looks like we are finally going to warm up. I cant wait to get outside.
Maybe by tommorow I can take my little ones out to play.

dmpls_ I joined the water challlenge..thanks for starting it!!

Catherine- thats an awesome thing to do for your church.

lost track of who was having sleep problems hope they work out quickly.
everyone have a wonderful day
debi

Angie: Sorry that the news is pre-diabetic but that is also good because you still have time to stop it! Hugs.

DMPLS: Congrats on the -1. You are doing so well. Thanks for posting the water challenge. I actually try to track my water now because I have to get in a certain amount each day. Thanks for the info on the no sugar cranberry juice too.

Debbie: I hope with all my heart you get to start a business selling your goodies. What a great idea.

Anne: Keep after it and soon you won't be feeling so much pain.

Cuckoo and Eathshaker: Welcome to you both. Glad you are here.

Carol: Congrats on loosing another .25 You are doing so great sweetie. All that working out is paying off.

Catherine: You are so sweet and a true picture of a servant! Thanks for sharing with us.

Sharon: Sorry about your computer. Mine has a virus. It is so annoying. Hugs.

Sandi: Have a super day.

Luan: Welcome back, we missed you.

Well, My supervisor is gone today!!!!! I gave my 2 week notice yesterday. I got a call from another company yesterday that is 98% going to hire me and I am so miserable at my current work that I am taking the chance on it. Pray that I made a good decision giving notice before I actually have a job. I jumped on the scale and I am down 2 pounds. My official weigh in is on Friday and I have to say I am soooo hoping to get out of the 280's. I only need to loose 1 more to accomplish that.

Well, I hope you all have a wonderful day and keep moving your bodies.

Blessings,
Annie

carol....i'm so excited for u....you are 2 amazing...just 2 sweet 2 put in2 words...i just wanted u 2 know i am up2 sending u a subliminal message here! just 2 u! i want 2 support u! cheerioooo 2u.
hugs
rainbowsmiles

Just another quickie, we went to a craft day at the local adult education centre on Saturday, we made pots & tiles in air-drying clay, an Easter box and printed tshirts, which were all provided free of charge! I did Steve a RED DWARF one, Gareth a THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE one with his name underneath and Aiden chose an OOD one (from Dr Who) with 'Aiden rules ok?' at the bottom. I laughed as he wanted Dr Who an even though he's scared of The Ood that was what he chose, I did a lovely barn owl one for my mum as I sent my Mother's Day card & it got there late, so it will be a nice suprise for her to open when I post it off.
I've been a bit off/on with dieting, but nothing too bad. I'm still not up to really doing personals but...
Valerie WOWEE, sounds like you're having a great time with Gabe, I'm so jealous.xxxxxx
Carol thanks for the kind words, I'm just not up to doing much at the moment but I will look into publishing once I'm feeling more 'able to cope'.xxxxxx
Hugs to you all, I think about you all & hope you are happy, healthy & staying OP.
xxxxxsharon

Luan!! Welcome back :) I took a break for a while as well and have only recently come back. You're still here in LA?

I spent a lot of the day yesterday sitting on the floor helping with a big project and then last night during my meetings I was having back spasms. I am still in pain. I keep thinking that I can ignore my back pain. I was in a car accident in October and was supposed to to go PT for the back pain. I never went because getting an appointment was insanity, the PT department at Kaiser has a small staff and bad hours and my schedule stinks. They unfortunately do not outsource and they also don't have appointments at 7pm when I would likely need to go. DH wants me to get my act together and go. I am tired of being sore all the time.

I know I tracked this week but I feel like I have no idea what I ate and what WI tonight holds for me.

Catherine...that is truly a yeoman's task but what a wonderful gesture. So few people would even consider taking on such a task in the name of altruism.

Is is April yet?

Annie- I'll keep my fingers crossed that the new job will come through for you!

Dmpls-Good to hear about the water challenge. I am going to try. Thanks for starting it.

Well I thought I would check in over lunch break. Young daughter and I went swimming last night so I got a little exercise in. I have been taking a lot of steps today at work back and forth, so I guess every little bit helps. Supposed to be in the 50's today so maybe I can get a walk in this evening after work. I am trying to figure out when I can schedule exercise in. I am doing better. Hubby got me some walking DVD's to try in g the morning or evenings at home. So will start them. I am ready for camping weather now. We got our older daughter a new bicycle this month so we all have bikes to take with us. We just have to get a hitch for the truck! Always something. Well, I gotta go back to work, check in later.

Hey Julee Claire:

I never had back spasms until I met my husband -- so I blame him :) They totally SUCK, don't they? I get mine in my lumbar area (I dislocated my pelvis in 1995 and left it in the wrong location for 2.5 years...ooops), which leaves me totally incapacitated -- even breathing hurts! It will differ for everyone, of course, but I've found two things that help. The first, which I've used when I've gotten that tightening and twinging and I-can't-move-because-then-I'll-go-into-full-spasm-ing, is icing my back -- I just tuck a freezer pack in a towel behind me as I sit on the sofa, and it seems to work! The other thing that helped me was acupuncture. It's not in my budget right now, but it was honestly the only thing that let me walk normally again after my giant spasm a couple years ago. Even with Vicodin and muscle relaxants, I was really unable to move until I started the acupuncture...now I wish I were going again!

Anne, thank you so much for all the info. It really has helped. I'm pretty sure it's the same for most counties here and I'll look up for Skagit, where I live. Thanks so much.

Sandy, I always had such a good time selling at the festivals and farmers markets. We were even asked to be an extra on "Judging Amy" when we used to sell and even got paid for it. We met so many fun and wonderful people. I really miss it and I think that's why I want to get back into it again. Really consider it, cuz it's tons of fun. Hard work, but it's rewarding.

Catherine, what a sweet idea. You're such a giving person. I'm glad you found the equipment you needed to do it.

EarthShaker, love the name!! Welcome!

Luan!! Hey girl, how's it going? So glad you're back again. I was wondering what happened to you. Let us know how the weigh in goes.

Debi, have you seen the slimfast with protein? I'm going to get some and try it this week. I've been wanting to have more protien so that will be like killing two birds with one stone.

Annie, I don't blame ya for giving notice. It's way to stressful to try and work in an environment like that. I'm hoping the new job pans out for ya!

I joined in the water challenge too. What a great idea! I actually got my 4 liters in yesterday. For some reason I'm up a couple pounds. Do you think it could be from the little bit of weight lifting I'm doing and the treadmill? I'm at a loss to why I'm up. I just hope it's gone by WI time.
have a great day!
Debbie

Hi Everybody!

I keep promising myself that I will post more religiously, but this time I have a good excuse. I have been home with the flu since Saturday, which really impacted every activity I engage in. However, I managed to read through everyones' posts, and MY do WE chat a lot.

Annie, GOOD LUCK on the job possibility!

Debi, I have the same problem if I don't get in enough calories. Sometimes I have to just eat a much bigger dinner if I don't get them in during the day. I try not to do this, but sometimes it is inevitable and I DO tend to be hungrier in the evening. :^:

Catherine, that is such a wonderful gesture. The act of giving back can be so much more rewarding than receiving...don't you think?

BattleAx, I totally understand where you are coming from. I have had a really difficult week. I don't know how much being sick played into it, but today I am feeling a renewed sense of commitment!

Welcome to all of the newbies and those returning. I am a sporadic poster but do enjoy all of the stories.

I saw that several of you brought up the issue of stability balls and excess skin. I have been using a stability ball for over a year and I love it. One of the most important things it helps a person with is their balance. One good easy exercise to start with is to sit on the ball and to pick up one leg at a time and keep it up for as long as you can. One way to get used to the ball is to sit on it while watching tv at home. I currently sit on a ball while at work. It works your core the whole day. I can do an entire workout with just a ball. Let me know if any of you want some good basic ball exercises.

With regards to excess skin I have found that I have a lot less than I thought I would. My trainer and doctor credit my weight training with minimal sagging skin. I am not saying I won't have any, but right now everything is still in it's orginal place but just smaller.

I also saw someone mention being afraid of getting too bulky if they started lifting weights. (Like women/men in bodybuilding competitions) Just to let you know it is VERY DIFFICULT to get big like that. Bodybuilders take lots of extra supplements and have to shock their muscles quite often to get results like that. They also have very minimal body fat (women >15%). Women just don't have the right hormones to get big muscles naturally. So lift away ladies, and don't be afraid to start with higher weights and lower reps. Just be aware of what your body can do, and maybe push it just a little bit farther and you will be amazed by the results. I can actually begin to see my ab muscles under all of this bulk! Crazy, huh?

Anyway, this week has been difficult for me to get any kind of workout in. I managed to swim on Saturday and go for 2.5 mile walk on Sunday and yesterday, even with the flu, but I haven't really pushed myself in a while and I am feeling a bit guilty about that. Well, I don't really need to worry about gaining weight as I hardly ate, but I think my electrolytes are all out of wack so I will have to get them back in order. I am not looking forward to WI this week, but que sera sera. I hope everybody has a good day!

~Wendy

Well good afternoon all (almost evening really),

I got on better today, although I suspect my lunges could be closer to the ground. I did take a little air out of the ball, and managed to not roll off. I'll try adding air later on, once I feel my balance is better. Although the exercise from Monday will be repeated on Friday, so that is likely the true test. Even though it took me a few minutes more for today's routine I don't feel as wiped out. On thinking about it, maybe I did an hour ago. :)

Again, not much going on here at the moment. The weather has warmed up a bit, but not enough to make any real inroads at melting the snow. If nothing else, at least it's sunny out. It seems to make things a little better.

Sandy - I think working out with someone the first time might help. If nothing else, they could help steady the ball. I do think it could lead to lots of laughter. As long as you don't mind making an a** out of yourself in front of someone else.

Catherine - that's quite a task you've picked for yourself. I suspect you could very well count it as your exercise minutes. Good luck with it.

Earthshaker - :welcome: Looking foward to lots more posts from you.

Mimi - you'll see that Dmpls has started a water challenge, so let's fill up that pool!

Luan - sending best wishes for your weigh in on the 20th. Keeping up here sometimes can be hard, but even if you're busy just drop in and say hello every now and then.

Carol - I have random issues with the site every now and then. I've learned to type up longer posts in Notepad, then copy it in and format it. The problems (when they happen) only seem to last for a few minutes. If I find the site slow, or non-responsive I usually go do something else and check back in a few minutes. I suspect at certain times there are just lots of people on the site, straining the server.

Debi - making myself eat enough is a struggle from time to time. Don't get me wrong, I can eat lots of stuff when I put my mind to it. I just have to remind myself that the body needs enough fuel to keep itself running well. It's the same with water. When I first started tracking calories in December it went well, but I still had some odd times when I felt I should have lost more. I realised that (a) I was keeping calories lower than I'd planned, and (b) some days I was drinking almost no water. That's why I first started tracking how much I was drinking. It seemed to get rid of those wild 3lb jumps overnight.

Annie - good luck on the new job. It's easy to say, but you should never do a job you hate. My father worked for a company he hated for almost 30 years. My mother says that it really changed him. I know sometimes financial situations make it impossible to walk away easily, but in the end doing a job you like is such a better choice.

rainbowsmiles - :wave:

Sharon - I always think that personals are a bonus. Having people check in and tell us what's up/down/happening is more important. Especially when time is short, or motivation is lacking. Hope you're feeling better, even if it's just a little every day.

Julee - DH is right, you need to go. Even if it's just to see what type of exercises you can maybe do at home to help your back. Decades ago (I do mean it, 17-yrs) I did some damage to my knee and one shoulder while rollerskating. The shoulder was dislocated and the knee took the brunt of a crash into a wall. Of course, I was 15 and you know at that age nothing stops you. For years (like 10) after the shoulder used to pop out when I turned a certain way lifting anything. And I'm not sure it's a coincidence that it's that same knee that always acts up.

Penny - you're right, every little bit of exercise helps. My mother doesn't exercise regularly (she surprised me today wanting to use the treadmill), but she's always puttering around. I'm pretty sure her back and forth / up and down stairs all day is what lets her eat the bags of candy she buys without putting on any weight.

TheWalrus - I've heard that some people use acupunture for stop smoking help, maybe they do it for snacking as well. I'm mostly kidding about that. I'm a true wuss when it comes to the idea of someone sticking needles into me.

Debbie - I know in Ontario the only way you can get a kitchen certified is to have a separate one. My mother used to sell real estate and it was a common thing for people to specifically look for what used to be called canning kitchens that they wanted to convert to commercial use. When it comes to the fall, I just wish we had a canning kitchen. In this house there's just no room in the basement (too bad). On the 'up a couple of pounds', I've heard that sore muscles will retain water. I saw that a little on Tuesday morning, but who knows. I think I'm in a flat period, so it's hard to tell. I'm beginning to see some trends with the daily weigh-ins so I'm not really paying attention to what it all means. :)

Wendy - I always feel when you have the flu that it's more important to keep hydrated, and get well. The rest you can take care of once you're feeling better. Hopefully it's a short-time version you have.

Well, time to go start dinner preparations. Hope everyone is having a good day.

Greetings my Loverly Peeps!

I am feeling a little bit of the fog lifting, but am still exhausted due to work (mentally). I saw the employee assistance counselor and she really helped. When I walked in, I had my doubts. I will see her again next week and I have a list of things to do focus on defusing my stress when I go home from work.

Hugs and Luv,
Ratkity

OMG!!! I found my old password for my original 3fc account. I'm so happy!!
ok,
I'm gonna check up on all the posts now.
bbs

Wenny, having the flu sucks. Hope you start feeling better. Thanks for all the info too. We keep learning as we go and it helps so much when someone has been on the journey longer and has experienced the steps we are going thru now, to let us know what they've learned.

Anne, that's what I sorta figured too.

Ratkity, so glad the counselor was a help to you. Now just make sure you do what your told.:D

Sandy, YAY :carrot: for finding your old password.

Well I called the health department today to see if there was a kitchen nearby. I mentioned to her (it was a different person this time) that we wanted to work out of the Eagles and she asked why I couldn't. I told her the other guy in the office told me that it wouldn't qualify. She asked the address and looked it up, and it IS!!!! So now I have to write up a proposal to the Eagles and send it in. I have no idea on what to write for a proposal. So any ideas would help. I sort of have an outline, but it doesn't sound too professional. I hope this works out because I really love to bake.
Other than that, I'm gonna get back on the treadmill tonight. I still have tons of water to drink too ( shame on me). :o
toodles
Debbie

Hi all,

I posted a few days ago about being pre-diabetic. And now I am horrified of eating. I have cut my calories to about 1600. I am hungry quite a bit. But seriously, I feel like I need to lose 10% of my weight today to have a chance of this. I am definitely feeling OCD about it.

Can anyone give me some good fish recipes? In general, I really don't like fishy fish. I don't like salmon, tilapia is ok. But it's bland. Any ideas to kick it up?

Sorry for the pathetic-ness. I don't feel bad for myself about the pre-diabetes, I "earned" it. I just want to get rid of it.

That's it from me now.
Angie

thanks everyone for the warm welcome back!

Julee, yeah im still here in LA. :)

annie! you look amazing!

Luann!! Hi there. I'm glad to see you back!


Sharon, Sounds like you had a good time making stuff. I do love to do that stuff too.


Debbie, That is so cool. I loved that show. It always made me crazy, but I did love that show. Sean, the mom's boss is now on Jericho. He's a mean evil man on that show. I've seen Bruce in several movies since then too. I'm still thinking about it. DH wanted to sell wild and crazy ties at festivals and maybe it's something we could do together. Him the times and me healthy goodies. I do love to bake too!!
It's cool the Eagles qualifies. I love to do proposals. Send me your outline if you'd like.
Never feel obligated to use whatever I say, ok??. It won't hurt my feelings.


Wendy, I think I'm gonna get a ball. You finally sold me. It'll be awhile before I can pay
for it anyway.


Anne, Na, my friend and I would crack up while doing it. (the ball)


Kity I'm glad your trip to eac went well. It's always scary at first, but I'll bet you enjoy it as time moves forward.


Angie, We eat a lot of fish. We also love the Mrs Dash seasonings. Table blend is my favorite. I love salmon just plain. It's so sweet to me. Once my dd made capitals. She mixed in a bowl, a little olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, pepper, and basil. Then she spooned it on top of each fillet. And baked it. It was so delicious. You can put it on
any fish you'd like. It made her feel really good cuz it was the first time she made "herself." (she's 10)


Well, today was another not so good food day for me. I did drink all my water though.
We're selling candy bars for dd's softball team. I'm going to take them to the receptionist desk tomorrow for her to sell for me. It's just too hard having them sit at my desk, staring at me, calling me, whispering to me. :lol: Especially since we've already paid for them up front.
Ok, it's getting late and I haven't eaten yet. I think I'm gonna steam up some asparagus. YUMMY!!
Til tomorrow my friends! Keep on drinkin' ......your water I mean.
Hugs,
Sandy

........ Does anyone know what's up with the tickers?? I can't see anyone's.
DH may have a silly filter of some kind. Are the rest of you seeing them???

........ Does anyone know what's up with the tickers?? I can't see anyone's.
DH may have a silly filter of some kind. Are the rest of you seeing them???

Sandy, I'm seeing yours... twice. :)

Hi Peeps - things are moving really quickly here - not sure I can catch up on personals.

Angie - how about a baja taco - Catherine told me about this a few weeks ago. Take a frozen fish filet (I used tilapia), spray the pan with a little non-stick spray, pour some salsa over the fish, by the time its ready to flip it will have started defrosting, take your spatula and kinda chop it up - mixes the salsa in nicely. Serve with lots of lettuce and tomatoe in a FF tortilla. YUMMY. I also really like the parmesan tilapia from Sams - 230 calories. Trust me - I am NOT a fish eater.

On the same note - don't take your calories too low - you will not lose weight. Your body needs fuel - just like the car. Not enough fuel you sputter - then your body thinks you are starving it. Please be sure to eat enough.

Susan - hi - thanks for the cheers! How are you doing?

Sandy - so glad you found the password - nothing like having our Sandy back. Get some rest.

RK - hiya - glad you utilized EAP - talking is a good thing. Shame those goofy goldens don't talk back - or is it? I often wonder what the gggirls would say - or do I???

Debbie - how exciting. I also would be glad to help fine tune your proposal. We'll write you a proposal that the Eagles will be paying you to use their kitchen. I think the use of the weight may cause you to hold some water. I did when I first started my circuit training. I urge you - be sure you get your calories in - I know you remember me moaning and groaning until I started eating enough. You are building muscle - take care of the body.

Wendy - glad you're starting to feel better. I can't believe you still walked and swam with the flu. Take care of yourself. Spring is in the air (at least for today) and makes us all want to do "everything" all at once.

I need to go eat something - I've had a grand total of 968 calories today - and I'm not hungry - better practice what I preach as I'm wondering if my body is wanting to stop for a bit again already.

Oh yeah - gotta go fill the pool -

Hugs to everyone,
Carol

Hi everyone,

It's another few days of struggle for me. This week it's been about cookie dough and other fat-laden sweets. Some days the cookie dough won, some days it didn't. But I am smack in the middle of an idontwanna cycle. I am tired of watching every little thing. I want to stuff my face silly, wah wah wah.

I know this is a very bad place to be. Tonight I had to talk myself down off the ledge again. I was able to talk to myself about not ruining my life. That is exactly what stuffing my face with cookies and candies does. It takes away my health, my careeropportunities, my love life, and my desire to be part of the productive world. When I am able to *feel* the consequences in my bones, when I can remember how I felt for the year leading up to my weight loss program, I can stay stronger. When I push them away, I can slip into denial and self destruction. Tonight I won, but I am not in a great place.

Maybe I need to back off and just try to maintain for a while. I don't know. Or maybe there is some way to get back to my game.

So far things are good! Although my water quota is not being met! (something I have to work on). Today after the gym (pushed myself to do 20 minutes on the elliptical), I bought a fabric shelf organizer for my closet (it has 6 cubbies to put stuff). I'm gonna put my workout clothes in there + my x-large towels for the gym. This way I have no excuse that I can't find my clothes for the gym!!!

Hiya, BattleAx...one thing that does it for me in terms of fatty things is to have 4% cottage cheese. It's not woo-hoo-good-for-you, but it's really pretty creamy. My husband prepares it the most fabulous way during the summer, too -- take a fresh tomato, take off the top and scoop it like a pumpkin (you're mostly getting rid of indigestible seeds), put some rice wine vinegar in and swirl it around. Dump the excess vinegar and sprinkle in some flaky sea salt. Add the cottage cheese and put some lemon pepper on top. Absolute heaven!!!

I do feel you in terms of the ledge. Since I broke my leg, I feel like I've been living there! I'm not even tracking calories/exercise right now. But Friday, I'm back on the wagon -- need a buddy? :)

Anne, Debbie, et al – You will NOT become like one of those weight lifting women in competitions naturally. Those women have to work extraordinarily hard to get like that and in many cases it is not *ahem* entirely natural. Have NO FEARS that weight lifting will bulk you up like that. (I wrote this and then saw Wendy’s response) I absolutely love this site: http://www.stumptuous.com/cms/index.php

Battle – :hug: Oh boy do I know the place you are right now. I have been teetering on that edge for some time and while I mostly hold it together I occasionally topple over it.

I am so bad at posting lately that I can’t remember what I last mentioned. I went and visited my parents for the weekend and that was a lot of fun. Food wasn’t so good though. I ended up eating way too much. Bah. One thing I love about coming home and Mondays is getting back into my routine. However I am going into NYC tomorrow night because my step-mother is in town on business and I know we will eat out somewhere.

I have now seen the one guy I am interested twice more – once on my way up to Boston and again on my way down, since he lives a bit north of me up in CT en route to Boston. I am not exactly sure where this is headed because one minute it seems very much just friendly and then it will get flirty and then switch back again. I feel ok with just relaxing and seeing where things go for now and trying to not force anything one way or another. However, we will have some issues regarding eating because he has weight issues as well and I don’t really know how to broach them without getting weird or naggy. It is just something that I am going to have to be patient about and learn as I go I suppose. Why I think I will automatically know how to handle a situation and not need to learn a new skill to deal with it I do not know. I would think this fact would have gotten through my thick skull by now.

Otherwise I am doing ok and I am looking forward to the weekend at home to relax and get the house clean again. Being away for a weekend can really wreak havoc on my schedule.

My mother would say that I'm all done in but my socks. I worked for 2 hours doing the rafters, and another hour cleaning and polishing the pews. I didn't get it all done. I'll go over for a couple of hours tomorrow. This is a good kind of tired.

Catherine, you have a special place in heaven.

YAY!!! Down another 1.8 tonight at WI!! My office manager even commented that I looked like I was losing :) Apparently..with my fair skin and my hair and acceptable shade of red now...when I wear green I look Irish. Go figure.

I am ridiculously stubborn. I have dealt with back issues for years...some weight related and others maybe so. I have dealth with sciatica, pulled a bunch of muscles at work when I was a teacher and was diagnosed with a herniated L4/L5 disc in 2002.....which amazingly has been quiet. This was called a mild lower back sprain. I love the thermacare heat wraps to loosen me up. I do ice it. I have muscle relaxants for when it's too much at night, and generally I am ok with a few Advil and moving throughout the day. But lordy I am a stubborn one.

Tonight at WW our leader shared a great little mini-story...as she discussed road blocks and detours on our road to weight loss.

Ypu go down the same road every day. There is a large hole in the middle of the road. On the first day you fall into it, are confused and lost and take forever to get out. The second day is the same. On the third day, you take the same road, fall into the hole again, but this time you saw where you were going and got right out of the hole. On the 4th day you walk around the hole...and on the 5th day you take a different road. As we go down our roads, we need to keep our eyes open for road blocks, potholes, and make sure that we don't run out of gas (motivation). Don't be afraid to take a detour if the road ahead looks hazardous. Consult a map if you need to. Ask for directions..and by all means...keep your engines tuned up :)\


LUAN...if you'd ever like to grab a coffee or anything...give a yell. I live in the Valley and work not far from Burbank.

Nighty Night...

Julie - im a little farther south in Long Beach actually, but i would love to meet up sometime!! i dont mind a drive to the valley

ok stopping in quickly while trying to add yesterday's food to TDP!!! Dag blasted thing wont load!!! grrrrrrr

just wanted to say I was OP on food & water......however need to boost up the exercise!

Overall good day yesterday & hoping for a good day today!

ttyl
Bernice

Good morning,
Well I woke up all stopped up again. I get so tired of sinus issues. Today I even feel tight in my chest. Hopefully I wont get it as bad as daughter had it. I started feeling bad yesterday afternoon with a sore throat and had potatoe soup for dinner.
I put on a pair of sweatpants that I never wore because they were like a second skin and short. Well today they are kinda long and baggy. Yah!!
I cant tell much scale wise right now but i sure can in my clothing.
We hit 70 yesterday..what a nice change from all the cold and snow!!
If it gets that warm today Im going to take the little ones I keep out to play. I heard that i might be getting the one that was sick back today. Guess I will see how my days goes.
Everyone have a wonderful day.Eat healthy and exercise and drink that water

Morning all....

Just catching up on reading the posts..Welcome to those whom are new.

Hubby and my oldest son are in Alabama visiting his sister. While I know they are having a blast..I am not. I really really think i am suffering from something..lol..depression I am sure. Not just cause he will be gone a week but just everything going on in my life. So I have decided that I need to go to counceling. I went a few years back..well when I was 27 so that was 8 years ago and was able to free myself from the grasp of my mother. But with my grandparents who raised me both being gone, raising my cousin for 2 years while his mother is in prison, my brother moving in with us, and life in general, I think I just need a tune up. LOL

Sometimes i wish I could take all my emotions roll put them in a bag..and set them at the curb to be picked up by the trash man...but then life would be a bit boring. :)

Toodles ladies...hope everyone has a great day.

Hello everyone. .. Trying to catch up on everyone's post...
Well my doctors appt went well. On his scale I weigh 276!!! I am 1 pound shy of the 16 pound goal. I am not going to cry over it. He was happy with my progress and so am I. I just wish my scale weighed the same as his. I am going to keep track of both numbers though and he said I could come in every 4 months instead of 3.

BTW we have started the paperwork on the house we want. It is scarey buying a house right now in this market. It is the 3 level house I was describing the other day. We have gotten it for a pretty nice price.

I will catch up more later.

Tina

Luan:

I am also down for a drive south...I was in Torrance/Palos Verdes all weekend :) For some reason I thought I remembered you working or going to school near Hollywood...maybe I am wrong...it's early in the morning.

Sharon: I love the sound of your craft day. Glad you enjoyed it so much.

Julee: Hope your back is better very soon. Congrats on the weigh in!

Worthapenny: Thanks :)

Debbie: I hope that you are able to do all the things that you want with the cooking thing.

Wendy: feel better soon. I would love some more info on the stability ball.

Anne: Thanks

Rat: Hugs

Sandy: I got your email address and will try to email you soon. My home computer has a virus and I'm afraid to email you from home because I don't want to send a virus so, it may be a while until my computer is fixed. I called someone to come fix it but they don't have an appointment yet for me.

Angie: Hugs

Luan: Thanks sweetie :)

Carol: have a great day.

Battle: Hugs to you.

Betty: Welcome

Nancy: So glad that you are enjoying your dates out with your new friend.

Bernice: Have a great day.

debimitch: feel better soon

Tina: Congras on being only 1 pound away from your goal!

Cyn: Hi there.

I'm using my work computer and Hopefully I can check back in later today cause my calendar is empty except for intakes from 10-12 today. I just asked my supervisor if I will get paid out for my accrued vacation and she said no. I will loose all of it! I think that is a stupid rule and I may leave early today and tomorrow and use some of it. They will be cheating me of about 40hours of earned PTO. Oh, well.

I hope you all have a great day and drink your water, move your bodies.

Blessings,
Annie

Valorie- you said… (move on and keep trying. How many times did Edison try to make a light bulb before he found success??) I LOVE YOUR ATTITUDE!! :D I have NO doubt that in the end, you WILL be successful. Just let YOUR “light” shine often. I believe in you and know that you CAN DO THIS! Hang in there. Hugssss :hug:

Zed.. I love your charm idea! The heart :val1:…the butterfly… splendid idea! Maybe your next one could be a little “chick” :chicken: for 3fatchicks!

Carol - how are you doing?? Did you like my little subliminal message!! Oh I so want to get into the 2sies! I didn’t lose anything this week…ugg..no doubt because I wasn’t truly OP after that trip the Paula Deens! Yikes…I ate myself silly :yikes:and paid for it with an awful tummy ache! I am back OP now and working hard to meet my goal before the end of the month. No word yet from you know who! Still praying for a miracle!

Angie how have you been? It must be a scary thing to find out you are pre-diabetic especially after having a family member die from those complications. The good news is that you can do something about it. I am sending you strength :hug: through this post..and prayers that you will find the answers asap and get your plan in progress. When I started on my Nutritional Take In…back in Jan. the first thin I did was look at and track my sugars. I read so much about how eating low fat or fat free was not working for most people with a weight issue, but that eating less than 50 grams of sugar a day I believe has been essential to me losing 39 pounds. ( I try to average about 30-35 grams a day)

Tina- OMG….how exciting to be buying your new house!! :congrat:KUDOS to you!!

Ratkitten…HUGS :hug: to you…I am praying for you that you can find peace within…I wish that you could look into the mirror and see the beautiful soul that you are. :flow1:

Cyn- sending hugs :hug: your way and hoping that if you do go to counseling, that it is effective for you. Know that you are doing the Lord’s work….Matthew 25:40 “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” And remember also… 2 Thessalonians 3:13 … But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing. I know that it must be difficult for you…but I also know that somewhere inside, of YOU…there is that amazing special lady :angel: that God obviously trusts because He has assigned you so much of His work to do. Focus on Him…and He will see you through. God Bless You.

Sandra- I wish that you lived closer to me…we’d just tackle this together! You have always been such an inspiration to me with your vast knowledge :book2:…I declare I think you could write a book about what do to do be successful…and it would be a huge best seller! I wish that you could impart some of that information and apply it to yourself! I had a thought…maybe, you could go “start” anew…I remember when I first decided to start this Nutritional Take In…It was in Dec…and I was so excited. I started gathering information and then on Jan. 8th, 2008, I began this journey. I had zeal and commitment and excitement. Maybe if you can go back and find that energy that it seems we all have when we begin, when we just get back to the basics…maybe that would help you get back on track…and get your desire and yearning to becoming a better YOU… back in your bloodstream. I believe in you. I KNOW you can do this. :encore:

Sandy – you said… If a man is worth anything, he'll accept you and love you for who you are. …WOW….that is so true! I hope that all is well with you. (.25 is a whole stick of butter you don’t have to lose again)…I will REMEMBER that…I will never look at stick of butter the same!! hahahahaha ;)

Catherine – :angel: I imagine all the people will be surprised to see the beams glow with “pride” What a wonderful thing you are doing! Your spirit just “shines” through your posts all the time! Your posts always either make me smile, laugh or be thankful. Thank YOU.

Cuckoo and Earthshaker - :welcome2: I’m Looking foward to getting to know you…post as often as you can. This is a great site with tons of knowledge and FABULOUS ladies!

DMPLS – I know I said it before, but I just love your new pic on your avatar! LOVE THOSE DIMPLES!! Thanks for the cranberry tip! And the BErNICE! Made me smile! I love drinking water. I never have any problem getting my water in daily. I guzzle tons while working out and after working out. Have you tried the Splenda packets you an add to water…I love to mix one Raspberry and one Lemonade in one bottle of water. I don’t care for any other non-sugar sweetener except Splenda. Maybe you can try those little packets. KUDOS…for reaching your goal early!! :bravo: That is such a wonderful accomplishment…I AM SOOOOO PROUD OF YOU!!!

Luan – I know what you mean about being busy! Glad to see you back. We missed you! :hug:

Nancy – oooooooh I am so excited for you dating. :cp: I remember when after my divorce, and for about 2-3 years, I thought I would always feel that way….I gained about 80 pounds after my divorce over the course of the 3 years…and that of course added to my frustration. I never had any trouble getting a date. I had trouble allowing myself to accept the attention in the way of opening myself to the possibility of being loved again. I would date a few times, then retreat, being scared to trust. I was refusing to make myself vulnerable. I would say things like I don’t need a man to take care of me, I can take care of myself! Then one day I met Nigel. He was persistent. He never gave up on getting me to tear down that jaded wall. So I put my trust in the Lord, and said, OK Lord, I will do it your way. I will learn to let someone love me again. I will allow someone to love ME. (even though I thought how could someone love me when I am 150 pounds overweight??) Now…2 years later, we are happily married. I discovered how wonderful it is to be loved again. I never had a problem loving…giving love…I had the problem of believing that someone else really loved ME. I guess I said all that to say this…Allow yourself to be loved. :val2:

Debi – I hope you get to feeling better soon….I sometimes deal with allergies and sinus issues and IT’S NO FUN!! :getwell:

Annie - good luck on the new job!! I am sure it is the right move for you! Everyone deserves to do the job they love. I declare, you seem to be shrinking before our eyes! Another 2 pounds…KUDOSSSSSS to you! That is awesome! I so love that smile of yours! :D Keep doing what you are doing…you are amazing!

Anne - back to you! I declare that you are the workout queen! :woops:I don’t know how you have such energy!! I am still managing to ride my 10 miles on my bicycle…getting a little used to the route I mapped out…I did go riding on the beach this past weekend, and it is much more difficult on the sand that on the pavement. Good luck with your weight training. I recently purchased weight loss for dummies!

Sharon - I wish I lived closer to you, I’d just come over and give you a great big HUG in person! :hug:You have NO idea what a blessing you are to me and many others. Go back and read some of your previous posts…and you will see sunshine and moonbeams and then you can see the YOU that you are! Go back and look at yourself in that white top! Ooolala sexy! YOU CAN DO THIS. Now is not the time to get weary. We are all in this TOGETHER! Lean on us anytime time you need….we will carry you the distance!!!!!!:dust:

Julee – I know what you mean about being stubborn….I am pretty stubborn myself. I loved your story you shared…made me think…how the heck do I know that there is a hole, see the hole and then let myself fall in the stupid hole anyway??? Heck, sometimes I think I even acknowledge the hole beforehand, and then jump right in! :trampo:(Perhaps… I think that if I acknowledge the hole, it makes it acceptable for me to jump in! Haha)

Penny – kudos to you for going swimming with your daughter. :swim:Nigel and I are just itching to get back into the pool. Its looks so inviting and while the temp here is getting into the high 70’s now, the water temp in the pool is still about 59…and CC-HH-i—L-L---Y!! Hopefully by the end of this month or mid month April I can be back swimming laps!! I am like a dolphin in the water! Like Shelly Winters once said in the movie the Poseidon Adventure… when it comes to swimming I’m a real skinny lady!

TheWalrus – so sorry to hear about your back problems…hang in there! :hug:

Debbie – YOU are one amazing lady…and SO BRAVE. I think it is an awesome idea to stat your own business selling healthy treats. :chef: wooohoooo keep us posted!

Betty grrl- way to go about the cubbies…great idea! :)

Wendy – ewww the flu….hope you feel better soon. :getwell:I have been so fortunate to have avoided the flu all season! Drink tons and tons of water!

cheeriooooo
rainbowsmiles :rain:

RAINBOW- Thanks for the vote of confidence. I seem to be getting something of a grip again - finally.
SHARON - Gabes says the invitation stands! Come on over and visit!
ANNIE- Good luck, best wishes and prayers on getting that new job. This job may have been what you needed at the time to get out there and back to work, but I'll be so glad to know your outa there, as miserable as they've made you! Hey, I weighed in at 282 this morning - same as your ticker, so I'll try hard to catch some of your momentum for the rest of the trip down. You're doing So incredibly well!!
LUAN - Good to see you back!

EVERYONE - I missed the first part of the water challenge. Bravo to those working on that, and CHEERS!

Rode Gabe last night - along one wall of the indoor arena there's a wooden door/window above our heads. Just as we were standing under it, the horse in that stall banged it hard, popping it open. Gabe jumped and did a half spin sideways - just the sort of move that I've always been terrified he'd make and dump me. But I just reacted with an "Eeeeasy" and he stopped immediately after the first jump. And YES! I stayed on - far more easily than I would have expected to. We've come a long way, baby! Every ride we're more in sync, and every day I can just hardly wait until the next ride. I used to have to gather my courage and even MAKE myself ride. It's so different now, and getting better. That cake in the next office over? I need only ask myself if I'd rather eat cake, or ride well? Now, I feel like I have this purpose waiting for me, and the cake isn't sounded so good anymore. One day at a time....

Rainbow: That's such a good point about acknowledging the hole and giving ourselves permission to jump in. That's what happens a lot...we go OP once...and then look down the road and see more obstacles...a party, a birthday, a potluck at the office...and instead of seeing our goal at the end, we just see the road blocks and use tham as reasons to stay in the hole!! We are always our own worst saboteurs, aren't we?

I have a very long weekend of work ahead. I may leave early today and hit Bed Bath & Beyond. I think I'm redoing my closet this Saturday while DH is geeking out at the comic book convention in LA.

Smiles....

Angie, hey girl, don't panic. I was diagnosed with diabetes a couple of years ago. You just have to watch your carb intake. As you lose weight and get into exercise (which helps tremendously), your numbers will go down. Just take it easy, plan out your meals, and you'll be ok.

Sandy, I miss that show too. It was really good. I'm just glad the lady that played Amy is on another program now. I miss Tyne Daly though. You never hear of her anymore. And thanks so much for the offer to help me with my proposal.
Yep, get rid of the candy bars.....deadly stuff

Carol, thank you too for the offer to help me. I don't have a clue to what a proposal even is. Did you get all your calories in yesterday?

Battle, I get lost too. And it takes a while to get that feeling for why we're doing this in the first place. You're in my thoughts and prayers.

betty grrl, that's a great idea! Now go drink your water!! :rofl:

Nancy, it's so hard to have patience in romance. Just take it slow and easy and enjoy the ride.

Catherine, Have a good rest. You certainly deserve it.

Julee :bravo: on the 1.8 lbs gone.

Bernice, Way to go!!

Debi, hope you get to go out and enjoy the sunshine. Take care of yourself too.

Cyn, I hope you find the help you need. It's so hard to deal with life as it is, and then with all the extra, it can be daunting.

Tina, that's great news on the house. Good luck.

Annie, I don't understand, if you earned it, how can they not pay you for it?

Valerie, so you finally had to face your fear of Gabe throwing you....AND YOU MADE IT!!! That is just awesome! I'm so happy for you and Gabe.

I sent some of my banana muffins into Jim's work for the guys to try. They liked them for the most part, but one guy said they need more sugar. LOL. I had to laugh because Jim didn't tell them what was in them. I might have to tweak it a little more to give them a bit more of a sweet taste. Now I just have to start coming up with some more recipes. At the Farmer's Market that we will sell out, one lady sells coffee. So I'm trying to think of things that will compliment coffee. The muffins would be a start.
Ok, gotta go drink water and figure out some stuff.
Have a good day
Debbie

Hi everyone,

So far so good today. I had a nice walk that got my heart rate up in the morning. I made sure to plan on lots of protein for the day because I do best when eating a lot of protein and fiber. As of now, I'm feeling like I can get through this day and stay on plan. Yesterday I managed to stay at my previous high calorie limit, which is something. Today I'm trying for my newer limit of 1800 calories.

Looking in the mirror and feeling the fit of my clothes, I can tell that I've put back on some weight. The last 10 lbs. lost made a big difference in my face, and it's back being puffier again. I don't know when I will weigh again, but probably soon.

Thanks for all your words of support. I don't know what I'd do without all of you. Being here during the ups is great, but sticking around during the struggles has proven to be just as valuable.

Luan: Nice to see you again.

Julee: Congrats on your loss! I like the story about the roadblocks and potholes. There is a lot to think about in the way we approach our eating choices.

Bernice: Great job staying on plan. Yay!

Debimitch: Great NSV with the sweatpants. It's nice to see the progress in the way the clothes fit.

Sharon: I know you can do this! It wasn't long ago you were reporting a good week. Let's try for another one.

Cyn: Counseling sounds like a good idea. It will give you a chance to step back and figure out how to take good care of yourself. I'm a big fan of using every resource available to help with my problem areas.

Tina: Congrats on reaching your 16 lb goal! Good luck with the house purchase. This is an excellent time to buy.

Annie: I can't believe your employer is cheating you out of vacation. Leaving seems like the best thing to do for your sanity.

Rainbow: Thank you for your kind words. Also you give me hope, having found a good guy like Nigel. Nigel is one of my favorite names.

Angie: I'm sorry to hear you're in the danger zone with diabetes. I know you can turn it around. For me, vanity was never enough of a reason to lose weight long term, but things changed when I could feel my health slipping away.

Catherine: It's great that you are contributing the way you are at the church. It's good for you, it's good for them.

Debbie: Good for you! I know you've got the entrepreneurial spirit and I love it. I look forward to hearing how it goes.

Valerie: I love reading about you and Gabe, and your adventures. When I can frame my choices in terms of the things I can do by being smaller, it helps. Being able to ride Gabe is much more important than a cupcake.



Hi and hugs to everyone else.

Hi everyone.
It's been a very rough day. Problems at work again with the same witch as before. Then issues with Abby at school. Not so much academics, but socially.
She's been very moody at home and at school. Her teacher thinks it's mostly hormones, but who knows. I hope that's all cuz she is INDEED moody.
And she's getting a cute little figure and losing the baby-ness in her face.
And, she's getting boy crazy....and writing notes crazy.
It'll be really good for her and I to go to Alabama next month just the two of us.
I must be pmsing cuz I'm right there with ya Battle. I want naughty food SO bad. I caved in today again, but am counting my success with drinking water.
I'm really upset this evening cuz of all the stuff at work, Abby's school and dealing with my sister's about my mom's business. My oldest sis won't be coming to Alabama after all, so it's just me and my younger sister. That won't be fun.
I'm gonna get off here so I don't take the chance in bringin' y'all down.
Sorry no personals.
Hugs to all
San

Hello all,

I'm feeling a bit tired and unfocused today. I really had to push the treadmill this morning, but managed to finish it off. Tommorow I'm back to the lifts, and considering maybe a two-day rest this weekend. Although it's warmer here today it was gray and miserable outside. I'm thinking that my moods seem to vary depending on how close I think spring is. :)

Ratkitten - glad to hear that the counselor is helping. It's always nice when you make progress towards relieving stress (especially at work).

Sandy - yay! I tend to use the same few, but every now and then I'll use a password and not have a clue.

Debbie - how nice that the kitchen qualifies. I haven't a clue about what kind of proposal to make. Do they have a going rate for rental, or is this something new for them? I saw your post further on about ideas to go with coffee. How about biscotti? I make them smaller, but even at full size they can be lower cal, and usually low fat. I use a basic Emeril recipe and modify it to my tastes. I posted the recipe I used last time in the recipes section in this forum.

Angie - what levels were you eating before you cut your calories? Don't panic and react. One thing you could do is try and change the percentage of nutrients instead. I'm thinking possibly lower carbs, higher protein. Eating more fibre (whole grains) may help as well. You could do more damage overall by trying to drop weight too fast. The reality is that it's going to take months (likely 4 or more) to drop ten percent.

BattleAx - my first reaction was to tell you to keep going, but in the end, maybe just working on maintenance might be a good idea. I'm not sure if it will help, but the last time I slipped into that idontwanna cycle I ended up gaining 70 pounds back from the 130 I'd lost (with 45 pounds to go still to get back). If I'd just worked at maintaining perhaps I could have stopped that. Maintaining is much better than regaining.

betty grrl - that's a great idea for workout clothes. I used to do that kind of thing when I worked out at the office gym.

Nancy - I did know that (about the muscles), and I agree that Krista's site is a good one. It sounds like you're making a little progress with the guy, best of luck.

Cyn - if you think it might help, counseling could be a good idea. On the whole we all need a tune up now and then. I usually think physical, but emotional might be a good thing as well.

Tina - congrats on the loss, and hey, one pound is nothing to worry about. Buying the new home is indeed scary, but worth it in the end. My mother and I combined money (her from selling a house, me from cashing every investment I had) and bought this house 10 years ago. I'd have to look up the exact price, but knowing roughly what it's worth now it's up about 75% over what we paid for it. Even with the costs of upkeep (new roof, new furnace, new pool liner) it was well worth it.

Annie - I'm assuming this was some form of 'time in lieu' that companies con salaried workers into doing instead of paying for actual overtime. I got caught with this many years ago when I was laid off. They did pay some of it out, but not enough to make it worthwhile. I've done my best since to either use it up quickly, or try and avoid doing it. I know, easier said that done. Use as much up as you can before going!

Rainbowsmiles - I'd give it all up if I could be riding a bike on a beach right now! I'm not sure where I find the energy, but it has a lot to do with being stuck in the house because of the poor weather outside.

To the rest, just a big hello, and hopes that your day is going well... and since I'm so late in the evening, that tomorrow is just as good.

Hi Peeps - I'm pooped but wanted to say hi and post my water. See you tomorrow.

Hugs to all,
Carol

Battleax, so glad you're having a good day. It might just be that you do need to take a break and try to maintain. All you can do is take it one step at a time and one minute at a time. I know you can do it.

Sandy, o my goodness. That Abby is going thru a lot which puts you thru alot. It's so hard with kids these days. I hope the mini vacation will do you both some good. A good bonding time to get things straightened out. Sorry your other sister won't be there though. Take it easy.

Anne, I admire you for your determination to keep going. I'm sorta slipping right now. I hate having these d*mn chips in the house. I think he's going to have to put them back out in the truck. I'm craving salt and they are calling my name. It sucks cuz tomorrow is my WI and I caved to those awful rotten nasty things.
The biscotti would be a great idea too. I'm even thinking of making a lighter fudge and brownies as Jim thinks these would sell really well too. I know whenever we go to a touristy place, and they are selling fudge, people are always crowded around and buying it up.

toodles
Debbie

Well did well all day till dinner....but actually did alright considering. Dh got off work & didn't go to classes tonight. We went to a chinese buffet we enjoy. We have NOT been to a buffet at all since starting the change in our eating. Our choices were good for the most part and if we had something that was high in fat(ie: fried) we ate a very small portion. I mostly had chilled shrimp & green beans...with a couple of bites of peanut chicken and skewered shrimp (which I think is grilled) I did have a second plate with more green beans & broccoli and a couple of bites more of peanut chicken. DH did a bit worse than me. He had two plates as well, but he had rice and some chicken....and then skewered shrimp. I guess all in all we did FAR better than before. I stoped when I was feeling full.

Afterward it is so nice out today that Dh & DD wanted to take the dogs for a walk so we walked them around the neighborhood (we drove it in the car first to see the distance) we walked 1.5 miles! So I think we burned off quite a bit of dinner....specially with my poodle who has never been on a lease....he was hopping like a rabbit LOL
We had a nice size hill at the very end of the walk. Also, Dh ran our lab for about 100 yards! He was feeling kinda guilty about eating there.........but quite honestly we normally would of eaten around 5 heaping plates (Im not joking). Needless to say we wont be going there any time soon Im sure!

I calculated out our calories as best I could for the foods that we ate and we both went over a tad....not more than 100 calories but more fat than I want......so we wont be able to eat any extras this week. But that's ok we enjoyed tonight and still worked out too!

Hope everyone had a great evening! Talk to you all tomorrow!
Bernice

Hi everyone,

I want to report in that I'm finishing out the day on plan. That is two days with reasonable eating in a row. I hope that I can string together more. I think there is a lot at play here for why I have been having difficulties, but I am not ready to throw in the towel.

It is astonishing how quickly the weight comes piling back. It is confirmation just how quickly I'd go back go my starting weight and then some. I can't do it. For one practical reason, I don't have anybody or any government program that is going to support me if I can't support myself as a result of becoming unemployable. There are many other reasons, of course, but that is today's.

The heavy emphasis on protein helped a great deal in controlling my appetite and cravings today. In that vein, I went to the store and loaded up on meat for my freezer. Can't wait to cook the corned beef, which I bought for a treat. I'm going to cook it and freeze individual servings. More chicken, too.

I'm officially done with popcorn for a while. I seem to have really overdone it to the point where it's not appetizing anymore.

I want to mention that about a week ago, in the 100 lbs section, a member posted a link to Jillian Michael's test for the type of diet that would be most effective for each person, along with a full chapter from her book explaining it. I found it very helpful in that it confirmed the conclusions I came to through trial and error about the types of foods that are best for me.

It's here http://www.cbn.com/communitypublic/JillianMichaelsPersonalDiet.aspx Don't get freaked by the Christian Broadcasting Network web site if that is not your thing.

Chinese buffets have always been my downfall!! No matter how hard I try to resist chicken balls and egg rolls. LOL 90% of my plate is usually meat. Bernice, I have to say I think you did wonderful-loading up on veggies and shrimp!!! Isn't it a great to feeling to know when you are indeed full? WTG!

I've had a hard lesson today on no good deed going unpunished. I think I pulled a butt muscle yesterday. With the size I am there, I just assumed there were no muscles there. It was important for me though. When I was at my largest, using a wheelchair, there were long periods of time when I couldn't go to church. Being able to now is so important to me. It's a cog in reclaiming my life. I remember being basically trapped in my home, or trapped in my bed, and how grateful I was when I walked my first mile.

betty-thanks for the encouragement. DH & I both talked about dinner last night and we both agreed we wont be going there again! Not enough vegies and too much fried. Given the food available I did make good choices (except for that blasted peanut chicken I swear they put something in the sauce that makes you crave more of it! LOL) and those bad choices I limited myself. So I take it you like betty boop? my car is decked out in betty and we named her betty LOL (I know strange but I name all my cars) my mother collected her and when she passed on each of us girls got her part of her collection.

Well its 6:30 and Im sitting here in my PJ's and need to be getting dressed!!! LOL today is jean day so it wont take me long.......LOL just pull my hair into a ponytail and throw on a College team Tshirt(spirit day too) I need to take a more recent photo because my hair is MUCH longer than that picture!

Well don't forget your Water!!! I'm again shooting for 50oz today! Lets see one of these days I will actually hit it!

Good Morning Peeps - how's everybody?

Battle - two days - I'm so glad to hear it. Probably not as happy as you are though. I'm going to check out the link - thanks - sometimes I feel my body craving protein too. Do you feel the strength coming back? You have had so many challenges and come so far in a fairly short amount of time - maybe you just needed to catch up with yourself.

Bernice - your post makes me happy and sad. Remember, you are not dieting, you are changing the choices you make for the rest of your life. It is not practical to say you won't go to a Chinese buffet for the rest of your life (since that is something you enjoy). Look at the choices you made - they were fantastic - you have changed. We can't be hermits until this weight is off - what would happen then when you first go back to the buffet? You wouldn't have any idea how to handle it. We must continue to live our life and enjoy this journey. OK - I'll step down from the soapbox. Look at the other great choice/change you have made - taking the dogs for a 1.5 mile walk - awesome job! That's a change I know. Have a great day!

Catherine - isn't that funny how you can pull a butt muscle - all that stretching - is the job complete? Has anyone seen it yet? Were you able to swim yesterday?

Debbie - hiya! I need to send you some ideas I had during the night when I wasn't sleeping so well. Maybe you should just turn down the volume on the chips - there are days when I don't have a problem fixing a dish of ice cream for Ed - but other days when I have to tell him I can't and he'll need to do it himself - I always feel bad because then he won't even do that because he thinks it will tempt me too much. It's that part that's leftover on the spoon that causes me to taste - the next thing I know the leftover is a heaping scoop. I do understand the salt thing though - my best solution to that is 100 calorie popcorn - salty and a good quantity. Have you tried that?

Sandy - so sorry your other sis won't be joining you. That has to feel like the circle isn't quite complete. Hugs to you! Oh my, dear Miss Abby and boys - you have your hands full with that little beauty. She seems to have your personality too so I know they will be flocking round. Just remember - she's a great kid - you have taught her well. She knows who her best friend is - MOM.

Anne - you continue to amaze me with the amount of exercise you do. I was actually going to add another class and my trainers wouldn't let me. They told me 4 a week was max as our bodies need a day off between lifting sessions - I actually hadn't done any weight training since last Thursday - last night I could definetely feel it. I am not sore today - I'm kinda surprised. The last time I worked out with the weights I had backed my weights down (feeling kinda lazy) - last night I increased all the weight and did two sets on the complete circuit. Felt good - even managed 30 minutes on the treadmill. Your comments about changing the incline are so right on the money. The big boy professional treadmills they have at the hospital prove that so much. I've been doing an alpine trail course that takes you to a 9% incline - the second part of my walk last night I just did a forest walk only going up to 5% - I didn't burn even half the calories I normally do. But it was a nice change.

JuleeC - great job on the WI this week. Soooo - did you make an appointment about your back? You know we can nag you from here too - just remember you would urge us to get proper attention too!

Cyn - how are you feeling hun? It's really nice to see you posting. You have done so much for others these last several months - how about some time for Cyn? Really my friend - do something nice for you. You will be surprised how a manicure will make you feel special - you'll only be gone an hour. Or maybe a new haircut at a different salon. Browse the bookstore? I'm not one for massages but maybe you are - whatever it is - do something for Cyn - please. Big ole hugs to you!

Annie - wow - you gave notice! That's a big step - I'm so proud of you. I would just make sure I take all the PTO - or at least a big part of it. My company does not pay you anything if you are within the first year. After that they only pay you 70% of it with 2 weeks notice - I have 45 days - you can bet your bottom dollar I will take it all if I'm ever in that position. So have you heard from any other prospective employers? Will they do an exit interview with you? Hugs hun - you are a blooming flower - the transition from the person I met last fall to now is incredible - it's so fun to watch.

Susan - yes I too so want to get to TwoTown. This morning when I weighed I was 300.75 - have been hovering around that for 2 weeks now. I am not complaining as I have lost 10.5 lbs the previous 3 weeks and my body has had this fat for a long time and doesn't like to give up much at a time. Once I am under 300 there is no going back so I want to get under by a good margin to deal with the daily fluctuations - I'm not moving that big weight on the scale back to 300 - EVER.

RK - what's new with you? Been riding the bike since it's light later? I've really noticed I'm not interested in fixing dinner until it starts to get dark - that's pretty dangerous for me because I'm hungry before I realize it and choices can be bad. I'm trying to adjust to fixing dinner at 6:30 or so like always - not 8. Hugs to my favorite Rat.

Nancy - are you getting caught up from last week's trip? Sounds like you have another busy weekend with your stepmom in the city. Don't forget to take time for Nancy. Is there another date scheduled? You mentioned he has weight issues of his own. Does he know about your journey yet?

Oops - just saw what time it is - the vet is coming this morning - would be a good idea if I've showered and am dressed. Remember............

Move your bodies, drink your water and SMILE.

Hugs to all,
Carol

Rainbow: Hope you have a great day.

Val: I am so happy for you and wishing I could get on Gabe too and let my spirit soar again with the happiness that comes when you are conected to an animal so powerful. I can only recall that feeling. It has been about 21 years since I have ridden a horse. I long for the day I can do it again. Hugs to you.

Debbie: the answer when I asked my supervisor why they can just take my earned vacation time is that: that is how they do it. Idaho is a right to work state which makes it very difficult to have compliants that stick. So, I'm happily going to work in Washington. :)

Battle: Good job taking one day at a time. Hugs.

Sandy: Sorry you are so stressed. I hope things get better very soon.

Anne: I am so proud of you for perservering and doing the treadmill even though you really didn't feel like it. Huge thumbs up!

DMPLS: It's good to eat out once in a while and after you do if you feel icky from the change in your diet it is nice to remember you aren't that person who eats 5 plates of food anymore. Great job.

Catherine: Ouch. Sorry your butt muscles are sore. I remember not very long ago when I too was a prisoner in my own home and my own body. Hugs to you on getting the "key". I know I am thrilled with that too.

Carol: I don't know if there will be an exit interview or not. I was told before 3/7/08 that by that date I will have a letter of recommendation and there hasn't been one. Who knows what will happen there.

Well, my home computer is still with a virus and someone is supposed to come fix it tonight. Hopefully by Monday night if he has to take it home with him for the weekend, I'll have it back. Hope you all have a great weekend.
I'll try to check back in later.

Blessings,
Annie

Good morning everyone,

I am going to try to get my post in early before my work day really begins, but that doesn't leave me much time for personals :(

Battle, I just wanted to let you know that you need to be very proud of everyday that you stick to your program or that you manintain where you are. I understand your frustration. I think we are about the same size and I have been doing this so long that there are times I just need to reboot the old body. I may gain some weight but it tends to come off much faster afterwards when I go back to working out regularly and staying OP. I just try to remember that all of this weight didn't come on in a few months it took me years and most likely it will take years to come off, at least if I want it to stay that way. You are doing a fantastic job! You should be proud of yourself!!!

Bernice, I understand about chinese buffetts. I went to one on Saturday. It was my cheat meal and while I managed to make BETTER choices and only had one and 1/2 plates I still managed to feel awful an hour later. I don't know if it is the amount of oils/sauce on everything or what. I have just been eating so clean lately that my stomach rebelled. But I think Carol is right. You can't tell yourself not to ever eat chinese buffetts again. You know that you are able to handle it. Thanks for posting the water thread. I am planning on checking it out. :)

Catherine, sorry to hear about the pulled muscle. That stinks! I am going to the doctor Monday to have him look at my shoulder. I think I may have a mild separation. Right now all pushing and lateral exercises are quite bothersome. Well, that is putting it mildly:p!

Debbie, I understand the salt cravings. I am sending you some extra willpower. You can do it!

Anne, I am the same way with my moods lately. The last few days have been pretty warm and relatively sunny, and although I feel yucky I still can't help but want to take a walk. I hope the weather is a bit sunnier for you there and your mood picks up. But great job on powering through your workout despite the BLAHS! :carrot:

JuleeC, congrats on the WI! Way to go!!

Cyn, :hug: I am sorry you are having such a rough time right now. Maybe you do need to take some time out to talk to someone and then do something nice for yourself. I do want to commend you on keeping in touch with you support system. I find that very important at these times.

Annie, I am glad you are moving forward with leaving your job. They evidently don't know how to treat their employees if they are not going to honor your PTO. :mad: I am more than willing to give you any info you want on the ball and good exercises. If you are worried about the balance thing you can also use it against the wall to do squats and lunges, as well as between you legs on the floor to do leg raises that work your core and inner/outer thighs. Let me know what you're thinking? :)

Nancy, I am enjoying your stories on the dating front. I am just beginning to come out of my cocoon when it comes to dating. It is good to know that there are possibilities out there. Good luck with this new guy!

Carol & Susan, I saw your posts about wanting to get to 2-town. I can remember clearly how I felt to cross over into the 200's. You guys are so close you can taste it. It won't be long and you will be looking forward to that 250 mark like me! :D I am really anxious to move that marker back to the 200 spot on the doctor's scale. I can't remember when that last occurred.

I know I didn't get to everyone, but my time is very limited as I am getting interrupted every minute or so. Take care everyone and have a great weekend. I hope to be feeling lots better by Monday. Cross your fingers!!

Wendy

Im on break right now for a few mins....just checking in....will post more later after work.....thanks guys about the buffet.....I appriciate your posts!

I love this place!!! LOL
gotta run

Catherine - I hope your tush is better! I'm sure your efforts will be appreciated!
Annie - I hope your PC is better. No word on the new job for sure yet? Come ride! You'll love the big guy! I've got a 3-step block - couldn't get up there without it!

Dh has been home off the road this week. Love having him around, but it's murder on my sleep schedule, as well as every other schedule. He wants to start talking about the household budget (which I truly want to look at) at BED time. Of course I often don't get home until 8-9 pm, and by them I'm exhausted and just wanna go to bed. At least he's up in Cleveland working for a... "friend" until Sunday night, so I have play@theBarn time over the weekend.

At least I worked out this morning, although the loss of sleep is costing me dearly today. Snooze time tomorrow morning!!

With many of you talking about water intake, I'm trying to up mine as well, and lay off the coffee.

Best wishes for a healthful day, chicks!

Carol-I got the beams and arches done, and about ¼ of the pews. I’m going to go back on Tuesday to do the rest of the pews. My mom always said save the pews for last because at least you can sit down to do them. The pews I did finish were on the side we use for morning mass, but I haven’t heard if any of the little old ladies slid off. I didn’t really want anyone to notice. I wasn’t doing it for that. Secrets are more fun.

Annie-I knew you’d understand what I was talking about. For you, that job has been the brass ring, even if it stunk. Baby steps and stepping stones. The next job will be better, but you needed this one in the same way I need to walk the steps into the church instead of using the elevator.

Wenny-I’ve had a separated shoulder. It involved a lot of alcohol, and a game of jungle rules volleyball in college. Jungle rules mean that full contact and tackling are allowed. I’m not sure I remember who one the game, but I wasn’t the only one who ended up in the school infirmary that night.

Valerie-My husband also waits until I’m half asleep to discuss important stuff. My tush is covered in icy/hot right now. I just about slipped off the toilet. I was temped to leave it to see if himself noticed when he sat down later, but there are some pranks I’m just not willing to do, I think.

I’m going to go eat breakfast while it is still technically morning. Then I have to bury my head in stuff written by guys who have been dead for a really long time. Good thing I can get it in English, because I don’t do Greek and Latin.

Hey peeps,

I'm looking forward to the weekend. Once I get a big project off my desk, which may take into the night, I'm spending the rest of the weekend on mostly recreational activities. I need it.

About the buffets, I generally stay away. For me it's not difficult on a day to day basis, because my favorite restaurants are not buffets. I'm often disappointed with the food quality at many buffets, and I get caught up in a lot of irrational thinking patterns when I go, such as wanting to get my money's worth. But when going is unavoidable, like when it is for work, I go in with a plan.

Have a great day, everyone.

Hi Battle...what kind of recreational activities are you thinking of engaging in?? Do you ever go bicycle riding? I hadn't been on a bicycle in years, until I got my new one at Christmas and I forgot how wonderful it is to ride with the wond in your hair! It doesn't even bother me what others might say when they see me as an overweight person on a bike! I love to ride! I'm so with you on buffets. Nigel and I both always "want to get our money's worth!" if we go. Our favorite restaurants also are not buffets so its easier for me too. I'd rather only go out to dinner once a week and eat at a favorite more expensive restaurant than to go to a few buffets or lesser expensive places more often. It keeps dining out much more enjoyable for me that way. Hope you are having a fabulous day.

Catherine...I cracked up when you mentioned the icy hot meets the toilet seat! hahaha Somehow I just at that moment had an incredible vision of someone slipping off and wedging between the WC and the wall! OMG...that would be so terrible...I'd be black and blue all over! Your posts always seem to indicate this vibrant lady who is leading and has lead a most exciting life!



Valerie...does your DH drive a truck?


Wenny....KUDOS to you....you'll get that clinker moved on that scale! As far as the possibilities out there...as you mentioned...Yes, there are still GREAT men out there who can appreciate a lovely lady and love them unconditionally for who they are.

For nancy, battle, wenny….anyone else who might be jaded….
I remember after meeting Nigel...I was so jaded. I mean I didn't trust anyone, especially a man! I wasn't a "man basher" I just didn't trust that if a man showed interest it could be sincere and genuine. I thought when I looked into the mirror and say me as this fat person, that how could anyone else see beyond that as well. Then despite what I would tell myself, I would fret and think, why can't a man love me for who I am and not for what he sees....I'm an intelligent lady, funny and giving...I think I would defeat myself. The first year after my divorce I didn't date at all. I was still reeling from the divorce after being married 21 years. When a spouse has been unfaithful, its hard to find the strength to trust again. I tested the dating water a bit in the 2nd year after my divorce but when the man I was seeing tried to get closer and starting wanting a deeper more committed relationship, I bolted like a wild pony in Montana! He was a fabulous man...it was me. Then I had three short lived relationships (all 6-8 months long) over the next 3 years…all of whom would have entered into a serious relationship but I was not willing. As soon as the relationship started to get more serious…I ran! I was very jaded. My ex had remarried within the first 3 months of our divorce and not to the lady whom he was unfaithful with! I couldn’t understand at all. When I met Nigel I was NOT looking for a relationship…I just wanted to find a decent man whom I could have a Saturday night date with to go to the movies or a concert. When I met Nigel, He was working from out of state on a project within his company that was in the town I lived in. He is an engineer and from England. I love his accent! I was hesitant from the beginning about any sort of long term relationship because he lived in Ohio and I loved in Florida. He was there on assignment for 2 weeks. We had a blast and saw each other every night except one, when I said I needed some space. He became serious very fast. I was jaded. He said the most amazing things to me. Endearing things. And I would find myself thinking, yeah…unhuh…he is just after one thing! I kept him at arms length. He never gave up. He left and went back to Ohio and we continued to talk via the telephone. A few weeks later he came back to Florida on business again and we saw each other and went to dinner. He said many things that time…about needing me in his life and that some how God could and would make a way. He was seeking God’s will and I was seeking my own. I remember distinctly one night after a long conversation about love and marriage and about me spouting… I am NOT moving to Ohio, I don’t want to marry again, EVER….I don’t need a man to take care of me I can take care of myself…and he looked at me and was so serious…and he tilted his head slightly and looked over the rim of his glasses…and looked me square in the eyes and said, Susan, If not me then who? I remember hearing his voice and seeing his lips move but it wasn’t really him. It was God speaking through him and it hit me like a ton of bricks…I was the one who wouldn’t allow MYSELF to be loved. I could easily love and give love…only I couldn’t accept it in return. From that moment on I decided to let love in. Things moved rather fast after that moment. I did quit my job and move to Ohio to support him. I had my own apartment and he had his house. We grew closer. We took his boys on a 3 week vacation out West to Denver and had an amazing time. Had I not been willing to let God direct me I would probably still be running from Love. 9 months later he proposed. I accepted. 4 months after that we married on 7-7-7. Love is an amazing thing. I had to learn how to let myself BE LOVED for all that I was and all that I am….AND all that I am not or may never become. We are coming up to our first anniversary in a few months…and we are as much in love now as we ever were. Was it an easy road….the years I spent crying myself to sleep and feeling so alone and blaming my weight for not having a meaningful relationship…no it was a long hard road! I built that “wall” higher and higher each year. Nigel continues to support me in everything I attempt to do….and our love for each other continues to deepen. If the fairy tale can come true for me…then I know it can come true for many others. Open yourself to be loved. Take a chance on YOURSELF. Love is amazing.

Annie…I hope your day is fabulous as well hugs to you
rainbowsmiles

I do agree on the buffet, as far as needing to know how to eat our new way even if we are at a buffet....I feel I did well last night. I guess I still do have the "diet" mentality and felt I over indulged. I am glad I felt that way though.....since if I could justify it by saying "I need to treat myself since I've done so good this long" or something else that would then send me to the freezer where 4 more boxes of thin mints & two logs of Nestle tollhouse cookie dough sit & wait for me to mail out to my son......where I wouldn't stop......so I guess at least if nothing else it taught us to appreciate the changes we have made this last month. I went with somewhat of a plan.........no more than one portion of fried food items & more than 1/2 my plate was veggies.

I guess since we have been out to sit down restaurants where I can order something healthy and feel good about my choice, going to the Chinese place was harder since there was so much bad stuff to decide what was good....
as far as buffets go....we will probably not have issues with the regular ones....because of the variety of good choices.

tonight I made a HUGE salad with shredded chicken.........I figured it would do us both good to avoid rice or pasta tonight and get some extra fiber in! LOL

I listened to a really good Podcast today while I was walking/waiting for my daughter's show choir to finish practice! I am going to type up some key points that really hit home for me......I think some of you might get something from it too!

well good night ladies, and hopefully you will sleep ok (since we are all drinking more water, there is that pesky potty issue!)

hello everyone.
well I have the flu. THe test came back postive. I moved from the bed to the couch today and thats about it. Still trying to eat 3 times a day. I really like what I saw on the scale this morning. We will see what it say tommorow or the next day.
Have a good weekend everyone
debi

Good evening all,

I'm sore, tired, but I'll live. I went back to the workout A today (all total I do variations of it 12 times). I did manage to not fall off the ball... as much, during the last exercise. I have a feeling that I'm going to be quite sore tomorrow. Oh well, right now I'm actually quite up, but that probably won't last.

Debbie - I really don't know how I do it myself. I think being stuck in the house all day and not wanting to go outside is probably making it easier. It will likely become more difficult when it gets nice enough to work outside. Chips used to be my big thing, but thinking back I never ate the single bag of chips that my mother takes a few of on Fridays (with our hamburger). I always bought my own, so this is probably why I can avoid them. Soy nuts aren't a bad substitute if you're really craving salty. I've been good with them since I bought them, filling an ounce (134 cals, 10g protein) into a container. The trick is to never refill them just after eating them. I tend to refill the container after dinner, when I'm the least likely to eat more. I'm also thinking less about the ice cream bars in the freezer, although I'll probably try and work one in on Sunday. Lower fat/cal fudge and brownies are probably a great idea.

Bernice - congrats on the buffet. I'm most definitely not there yet. :)

BattleAx - glad to hear that you're back on plan. And yes, it is amazing how quickly you can gain weight back when you're not careful. Increasing your protein should help with hunger. Late night snacking has always been a problem for me. When I can't sleep I would just think of what I could eat. I find that a 90-cal protein shake before bed seems to stop that completely.

Catherine - sorry to tell you, but there are muscles everywhere, even though we don't think it. Hopefully it's a passing thing, that won't interfere with the rest of your cleaning.

Carol - It's really not that much. I really think the treadmill time is just a little more than if I was out working. The last couple of jobs I've had involved a fair amount of walking around during the day. I'm wavering between doing a little walking tomorrow and doing none, we'll see how I am in the morning. I likely won't bother increasing the speed on the treadmill until the incline doesn't get my heart rate up. I'm really doing it more for endurance, and to strengthen my leg muscles. The highest I do is 10% incline, and it's quite tough. I usually either start low/end high, start high/end low, or go back and forth. We'll see if I keep it up in the spring when I go out and start working in the garden.

Annie - hope the computer isn't too badly corrupted. Although I have some decent backups I do not do them as often as I should. Perhaps you've given me a task for the coming days.

Debi - sorry you've got the flu, get lots of rest, and maybe you'll be lucky with a short bout only.

I think that's it for me tonight. I'm back to one good night of sleep, followed by a poor one. So even though I tried to sleep early last night it was the poor one. Maybe tonight will be the good one. We're off to buy (what's probably too much) lamb tomorrow morning. It's on special at one of the local grocery stores, but cut up. The other one has whole and halves only. I checked first, and as long as I make sure to trim it well it should be a fine addition. If nothing else I'll have to start looking for lamb recipes to work on. It's been a long time since I've made any so we'll see how it goes.

Rainbow-I am actually a very boring housewife.

Battle-I’m with you, I stay away from buffets because I always want to get my money’s worth, and that just screws up my head.

Debi-Get better soon, yikes.

Anne-When it comes to lamb, I like to keep it simple. I use crushed garlic, lemon juice, and Greek oregano. You can add some olive oil or balsamic vinegar, and just marinate overnight in a roasting dish in the fridge, and then plunk it in the oven the next day.

I finally got around to using my Christmas gift cards. I bought new plates. Now I can have a nice sit down dinner with just a few people rather than paper plates with the 7th Calvary.

Hey Everyone. I know I haven't been around for a few weeks. I went through a major bout of my depression/bi polar, and then my Grandma was admitted to the hospital. I spent about two weeks up at the hospital with nearly every free moment I had, but she passed. So, I haven't been online a whole lot, because it's been rough for me.

But, on the bright side, I've lost 10 pounds since Sunday. At least something's going right. I probably won't be around this weekend, but I hope to start posting again next week. *hugs to everyone*

Bernice, It sounds like you had a lovely dinner and really didn't do bad at all. And then a nice walk to boot! All in all, it sounds like it was a really nice time.

Catherine, is this a great opportunity for Himself to rub your hiney or what? :rofl: Really though, hope you didn't pull anything but it's just a bit stretched from doing all that reaching while polishing up the church.

Carol, nope, haven't tried that. I've been staying away from salt so much, I think that is why I was craving it. I had my fit, so I'm over it and the craving is gone. I'll be waiting for the ideas and thanks so much.

Annie, so you live that close to the Idaho/Washington border huh? That's pretty cool! It still sucks though that they won't pay you that money. Hope all goes well with the puter.

Wendy, feel better soon!

Anne, I've been having trouble sleeping lately too. Last night I was up til about 11:30 and then awake at 4 til about 7 and then slept til 10. The only thing I can think of is starting this new venture. I'm just constantly thinking of what I need to get done and then.....I think I think too much!
I hope you get the much needed rest so you can feel better.

Kayley, sorry to hear about your grandma. Good news on the 10 lbs gone!

Last night my dear dogs decided to get in a fight over stupid cat food. I got in the middle of it trying to pull them apart, and guess who ended up with a dog bite? Yep, right on my wrist. It finally quit bleeding this morning. It's a bit swollen, but I'll live. Next time they can just fight amongst themselves...I'm not doing that again.
They finally found out what was wrong with my Mom. It's something weird, Collagenous Colitis or something like that. Her body makes too much collagen which results in upsetting her bowels, and boom....you know what happens. So hopefully the new meds will take care of it. Even the doc told her he's never had a patient with this but he's heard of it. She gets some weird stuff happening to her.
Went off OP a bit last night but back at it again today. Didn't get enough water though, so I'll be drinking that at karaoke tonight.
Enjoy your evening!
Debbie

{{{{{{{{Kayley}}}}}}} sorry to hear about your grandma. Glad to hear you lost 10lbs!!! You go girl!

Debi-sorry you feel poorly, I hope you get well real soon! Glad that scale gave you some good news!

Anne- Sounds like you are doing so good with your workout!!! I don’t think I can balance on that silly Ball! My DD has one but I haven’t even attempted it LOL. I don’t think I’ve ever tried lamb before.....is it similar to any other kind of meat? Ohhh wait! Is Mutten lamb? I’ve had that!

Rainbow-I was touched by how you opened yourself up & your feelings to share with the other girls who maybe having the same thing happen to them. It takes alot to share an area we too have struggled with. Great Job!!!

Catherine- Great choice on the new plates! I would like to do that soon! I have two sets of black dishes(not the same style but close enough) for larger dinners (12) and then I have the mix of the years LOL I think I have 3 different styles in that each having no more than 3 pieces LOL If we do more than 12 which quite often we do! Its paper plates here!

Debbie- Wow over catfood? Hope your wrist heals up fine. Our Dogs fight over a squeaky toy! LOL but usually the Lab snatches it away from the poodle & runs for him to chase her. So you karaoke? Kewl! My Dh & 3 of the 4 kids can sing.....unfortunately for one son he has inherited my singing ability.......I’ve handed him my bucket........since I can’t carry a tune in it maybe he can!!! hehehe

So ok HOW do you girls that drink more than 50oz of water live???? I seriously have some bathroom issues with water level increase! Matter of fact I woke up twice last night and then woke up at 6am (ON SATURDAY!) LOL I did manage to get a little bit more than 50oz last night but wow! I’m gonna have to work on drink/potty LOL

I find myself sitting at work too much! I need to make that a goal I think. Working in a special needs classroom we do all our classes in groups and thus I sit! LOL so maybe I need to walk around more? I am going to work on it this next week!

Well today is laundry day & I must vacuum & shampoo the carpets! I could make that a workout huh? LOL

Toodles peeples
Bernice

Good Morning all,

Kayleystar-- so sorry to hear about your grandma I am going through similiar things right now. Mine is in the hospital with her heart.

DMPLS and everyone else about the chinese buffet-- IT is my biggest downfall (up until I got sick on it last time) before I started watching my weight my family never had to ask where I wanted to eat. It was always chinese buffet. Coconut Shrimp, sesame chicken, and orange chicken with a pile of fried rice, Crab Ragoons, egg rolls you name it. After I got sick on it a few weeks ago (the sushi) I decided I would rather not go back again for a long time it is just not worth it. The other buffet I cannot control myself at is a pizza buffet.

Well, we go Wednesday to sign the papers on the house and then begins the wonderful task of painting, cleaning, moving, cleaning the condo etc etc. I figure it will be summer before I can sit down again. I am excited about the house,but already wore out at the thought of moving. We have 2 storage units plus the condo to get into this house. Our old house was way bigger than anything we had been in since we left it thus the 2 storage units. The kids are excited about the back yard if it would stop raining and snowing in Ohio they might get to play in it.

Food has been ok...everyone wanted Bacon Cheeseburgers last nite and had been whinning over turkey burger and chicken burgers... so I made the real deal and they made me sick of course. So back on my normal eating.

I am going to go down the points that are equal to my doctors weight he has me at..

Catch everyone later.

Tina

Morning Ladies...

Thanks for all the HUGS!!! Sometiems ya just need them. Hubby will be home from his sisters in Alabama on monday so that will help a bit. Today me and my youngest son, he is 13, are going to the movies and where ever else. Free day today no cleaning or anything closely related to work. Yea I think counceling will be good for me. :)

Kayley..hun I am so sorry for the passing of your Grandma. I have lost both my grandparents, and since they raised me it has been rough. I will keep your healing in my prayers.

Good morning Peeps - we woke up to - you'll never guess - SNOW again. Today is the big Snake Saturday parade in our community - we weren't planning on attending but I'm sure this will keep lots of the little ones in too.

I'm really kicking myself - I mentioned to my sister the cardio/circuit training I do at the hospital - the low cost of it - the benefits of being in a smaller setting rather than a big gym, etc - and she plans to go now. Dangit - this is my thing. She needs to lose weight - as much as I do - but she is a know it all and will be fiercely competitive - why did I forget who I was talking to. I'm trying to go into this with the same attitude I've had - I am only competing against me and striving to do better.

OK - so I'm also fighting this now nearly 2 week, not by choice, maintenance. I'm mixing up the calories a bit. Honestly, I think my body is playing catch up but it can play catch up later - I want the scale to move and I want it NOW.

Need to get busy around here - didn't get much done yesterday - after the vet came I felt a little guilty and just spoiled the pups.

Move your bodies, drink your water and SMILE. See you after my swim - Catherine - I'll get to experience your earlier post - swimming with big snow.

Hugs to everyone,
Carol

Carol-I do the same thing. I get excited, mention it to someone else, and then regret it. I was trying to get a friend who's diabetic and really needs it to come to the pool with me, and then was horrified at the idea that she would be in there with me. She decided to go to Curves instead much to my relief.

Catherine - yes, I always kick myself later. I'm not going to bring it up and since I won't see her until Easter maybe she will forget about it. I really value this as "my" thing and don't want to share it with anyone I know.

We're going to try your crunches in the water today - when I mentioned it to my trainer he thinks he will sink - I had to laugh as I have enough buoyancy for both of us.

Hi everyone:

Sorry to be off for a few days. Yesterday was the check-in with the doc about my leg. I do have a walking cast, though I'm still on crutches, but I'm going to have the cast on for 2 more weeks than they had originally predicted -- another month like this! Agh! :(

The good news is that I can start riding the exercise bike again and I can rest my foot on the ground, so I can sit better at the desk and can start moving again :)

Walrus-I had a non-walking cast when I was 16 that I was just telling someone about yesterday. I'd had ankle surgery, and they cut a porthole in it so that they could change the dressing and take out the stitches. It was soaked through with goo, and I had it on for 3 months in summer in Oklahoma. Man, did that thing smell, and we lived down wind from the slaughterhouses, so I knew from bad smell. He wanted to know if I wanted to bronze it when it finally came off. I wanted to put it in a biohazard incinerator.

Good afternoon all,

I think I hit the proverbial wall this morning. Went out to do a small amount of shopping and figured I would come home and knock off my 60 mins on the treadmill. I was going to decide later if I was going to do 90. Well, I managed the first 30 and then I really didn't want to do any more. In fact, while getting to the point of doing my time I convinced my mother to do some herself. She's decided to do it 3 days a week until she starts working in the garden. She does 30 mins at somewhere near 2.0 mph. Just to walk a little really (she doesn't need to lose weight). I did force myself back on, but the lack of energy is a big issue. I'm going to heed the advice of the lifting book I've been reading and up my calories to 2200 daily, 2500 on lifting days. On the whole this is about 150 cals more a day than I've been taking, which won't make a difference overall. I just know that if I don't get the energy level up that's more of a problem.

It's not a bad day here - above freezing with a little sun even. From what I see in the case of long range forecasts this is a fluke. It may warm up a little next week... with rain. After that, more cold weather until the end of the month. The forecasters seem to feel that we'll have a more average April (which means warmer). I'm pretty sure most forecasts are only good for about 6-12 hours in the future though. :)

Catherine - that sounds good. It turned out to be pretty much a half lamb cut into pieces. We played a little 'identify' the cut this morning, but more than half of it is divided up in the freezer. We'll have some fresh tomorrow for dinner, so I will try marinating it as you mentioned. Thanks.

Kayleystar - very sorry to hear about the loss of your grandmother. :hug:

Debbie - erratic sleep patterns are not unusual for me. Eventually you get used to the fact that you just don't always sleep as well. When I was younger (and heavier) my mother used to tell me it was because I didn't get enough exercise. She doesn't say that now. I've come to the conclusion it's a family trait, as she sleeps about the same way. At least your bite is only a little swollen. One of our cats freaked out last summer when we were trying to take him to the vet. I ended up with a partial bite on one finger (near the knuckle). The finger swelled and it was weeks before it didn't look odd, and even longer before it didn't feel odd. He goes in the cage now. Well, they have to both go in the cage, at the same time. Separate trips to the vets created hissing/growling/fighting matches that had never been seen before. The big one (Gus) attacked the little one (Shadow) after Shadow's visit. It took two days before he wouldn't attack him on site, and then he found out that his little brother held a big grudge. Oh, and I do hope the meds help you mother. Knowing what's wrong should help them find a good treatment option for her.

Bernice - mutton comes from sheep and has a much stronger taste. My mother dislikes mutton completely (had a lot when growing up), but she likes lamb. It is a bit of an acquired taste, and you really have to trim it as some cuts can be quite fatty. Silly us, but it was on sale, and we felt it would be nice for a change. I think someone else has corned beef brisket on this week in honor of St. Patrick's Day, so we'll probably get some of it as well. I'm not sure how I manage the water, although I've always drank a lot. However, I don't drink milk or coffee, or any other fluid. I suspect on the days I exercise I sweat out a fair bit, so it's replacing some of that as well.

Tina - congrats on the house! I'm kind of with you (on the moving). I believe I swore that I'm not moving out of this house ever, or if I do, I'll just sell it furnished. We even got rid of some things, although we came from two households into one, so of course we should have. I built shelves (pre-drilled ones from Ikea) in the crawl space and now we have lots of shelves with well-organized stuff. Just too much of it. I re-organized the garage in the summer, getting rid of the old shelves that came with the house... and found things that I think were on them when we moved in ten years ago! Good luck with the move.

Cyn - sounds like a fun day. Hope you found a movie that you both enjoyed.

Carol - it's late enough in the season that I can tell you what I usually say at this time of year - ignore it, it will go away. It's melting/compacting around here and some of the items on the patio are peeking through. The only thing I remind myself is that we're at the end of the winter, not the beginning. I know what you mean about wanting to keep things to yourself. Years ago I used to go to the office (well plant really) gym in the morning before work. Most weeks I was out before anyone came in, until two of the women I worked with decided they would join me. I really missed my alone time! However, just think - you may have inspired your sister. That's a good thing.

TheWalrus - the good news is that you can walk on it, just remind yourself of that.

Well gals, I think maybe I'll have a nap. Or at least do something like just veg until it's time to finish off dinner. I'm making a cauliflower/bean/cheese chili in the crockpot, which I'll serve with a smoked chicken and turkey sausage. I remember that it didn't reheat well, so I've cut the recipe in half... so I'm not sure how it will turn out. However, I don't need to worry about it until 6pm so I do have time for that little nap.

hello ladies,
my fever is down some today. It was pretty much gone but seems to be creeping back up this evening. Hubby asked me tonight if i could possbilby cook a meal. SO i did a quicky meal.
daughter came home with fever again today. she has been sick for a week today. They changed her antibotic on thursday to cipro. Im hoping it will clear her up.
My eating hasnt been great but i am eating 3 times a day. I know from experience that my antibotic will tear my stomach up without food.
Hope everyone is having a good weekend
debi

debi-make sure you eat some yogurt with active cultures. The anti-biotic kills the good bacteria in your digestive tract at the same time it kills the bad ones. That will make your digestive system a mess. They found out recently that the appendix is where the good stuff is saved to re-populate the digestive tract, but the yogurt does it quicker.

Hi Peeps,

Another bad day yesterday. I dunno. I did well until the evening, and then all heck broke loose. I had some fruit slice jell candies in the cupboard that I bought in advance of my Passover seder. I can never find the darned things when it's close to Passover, so I bought two tubs of them at Trader Joes at a great price. At the time I knew it was a risk keeping them on hand because they're a problem for me. Sure enough, I dug in last night, and didn't stop with the candies. I'm going to throw out the other container of fruit slices, and take my chances closer to the holiday. No one cares about them but me, anyway, and if they are sold out later, so be it.

Today is better, and I think I should be able to close it out as an OP day.

Rainbow: Thank you for sharing your story about Nigel. It gives me hope that love, and a great relationship with a quality man, are possible. You are such a warm and giving person, I'm not surprised that he fell for you.

I haven't dated in several years since my divorce, but I am ready now for another relationship, and hope to meet someone great. With all the fat hating going on, it's hard to believe that a desirable man would be interested in me, especially here in CA where there is more emphasis on being fit and trim than in other parts of the country. I'm trying to hold on to my fabulosity when I put myself out there instead of thinking negatively and thinking I am not worthy because my body is fat and saggy.

As far as recreation goes, I'm not getting as much as I'd planned. The project I'm working on hit some snags, and I'm working today. Tomorrow, a friend is taking me out for an early birthday present. First pedicures, then lunch and shopping, then dinner. I can't wait.

Anne: Do you think you may be overexercising? Just a thought.

Debbie: Ugh, sleep. I have problems on and off, but my eating makes a difference. When eating well, I have a better chance of a full night's quality sleep.

Carol: Oh, I hear you on keeping things to yourself. I like a lot of alone time, too, so am careful about keeping some activities strictly for myself.

Debi: Glad you are feeling better.

Catherine: How's the tush?

Cyn: Planned fun days are wonderful. You need it. Have a great time.


Everyone, have a great OP day.

BattleAx - I have, but I don't really think so. With the exception of the treadmill each day I'm really very sedentary. I thought about cutting it back but I want to be more fit in the spring (if it ever comes). Working out my minimum calories with the lifting book gives me 2200 cals for a no exercise day, which is how I count the days with just the treadmill. I'm under that, and for a couple of weeks I'm willing to go up to it. It's not that much and I suppose the worst that could happen is that I stall for a while.

I feel better this evening, just lazing around the afternoon away. Tomorrow is a complete rest day, and other than some potting up of plants, I have nothing much planned. I'm surprised how much I'm enjoying the strength building routine... and I'm falling off the ball a little less! :)

And boy did I used to love those fruit slices. I know that my mother brings candy into the house each week, but she's been asked to be not so open about it. I've had a few days when I've been tempted to go look for them, but so far I've resisted. I think it's likely better to get rid of them.

I've sorta had a free for all this weekend so far. I've just eaten what ever I wanted. I'm definitely getting back on the wagon tomorrow. I bought some Slimfast because I have such a hard time making myself eat breakfast. It's now got 7g of protein in it. Then I will eat my regular lunch and dinner and snacks. I haven't been getting in my water either. I hope I haven't done too much damage in the weight area. I was up 1 lb this week, and I think I just felt, what the hey, might as well eat. I ate well all week, and still gained a pound. But it's over with now, so I'm ready to get back to healthy foods.
Also had another roadblock in the starting my business. The Eagles won't let me use their kitchen, so I'm back to square one.

Bernice, I don't sing but Jim does. I just like to go and listen. I'm way to shy to get up there and sing in front of people.
Shampooing carpets is definitely a workout in my book!

Tina, that's wonderful news about the house. That's so exciting! You'll have to post pics of the new place.

Carol, oops, that's too bad your sister is going to invade your domain. No chance of talking her out of it huh? Well, just remember to go at your own pace.

TheWalrus, great news about the leg....well...sort of. At least you can get around more and exercise some.

Anne, I think the weather has alot to do with alot of us feeling no uumph to get things done or to exercise. I know I'm having a terrible time, but then again, I didn't do too much of it last year either. I'm hoping to get out the DDR again since this is what I really enjoy. It just doesn't seem like a real workout to me though even though I do work up a sweat.
Anyhow, hope you get past the wall and I hope upping your calories will do the trick.

Battleax, sometimes I wonder if the sleep issues are a woman thing. Men never mention anything about not sleeping well. I find that when I eat well, I tend to sleep better too, and also if I don't eat close to bed time.
Sorry to hear your still struggling.Those gel thingies wouldn't of lasted long here either.

Have a great night!
Debbie

Walrus-I had a non-walking cast when I was 16 that I was just telling someone about yesterday. I'd had ankle surgery, and they cut a porthole in it so that they could change the dressing and take out the stitches. It was soaked through with goo, and I had it on for 3 months in summer in Oklahoma. Man, did that thing smell, and we lived down wind from the slaughterhouses, so I knew from bad smell. He wanted to know if I wanted to bronze it when it finally came off. I wanted to put it in a biohazard incinerator.
Hee hee -- this cracked me up. Thanks for the laugh! My husband has been in a pissy mood for a few days, and now so am I...grrr...the extra two weeks of castage was the last straw. BUT, tomorrow a whole new week starts, AND I'm going to finally go to the knitting store and beg someone to help me figure out some pattern inconsistencies. Then I'll be halfway done with three sweaters. Um, that means that technically I've gotten one finished right? If just in time for summer? ;)

Hi Debbie....so sorry to hear you can't use the Eagles Kitchen. I know your business will be successful because you ahve such determination. Another kitchen will turn up, just keep the faith. I can so relate to just sneaking in a weekend of splurges with eating. Sometimes, as long as one is studious and gets right back on track, it doesn't effect the weight loss. Kudos for planning to get right back on track and for making sure you get in breakfast.

Anne...keep resisting the slices!! And KUDOS to you for doing so well with your exercises. I too went out and bought supplies today to repot some plants tomorrow. I will be thinking of you then my potting friend!!

Sandra, thank you for your kind words. I will keep you in my prayers and trust that God can and will lead the man into your life that will sweep you off your feet....Cinderella! :)
oooooo pedicures....lunch...shopping and dinner too....oooh lalala oh wait, i hate shopping! no I loooooooooooooooooathe shopping!! haha
when is your birthday?? Mine is March 29th! I love birthdays!


Debimitch....so gald you fever is down and that you are feeling better...hugs to you...:hug:


Kayley....I am so sorry to hear that you lost your grandmother. I know that is not an easy circumstance to handle but I know that your grace will see you through. My Nana passed on last year and I am so thankful of all the wonderful memories I have. Special prayers for you.


Catherine....biohazard incinerator....you crack me up!!


Bernice...thank you for your kind words. I am so blessed and if I can just give a tiny spark of hope to someone else, that would mean the world to me.

Hope everyone has a wonderful evening.
rainbowsmiles
carol sorry i missed you :) try again!!!

Battle-My tush is better which is a good thing since I spend most of my time on it.

Rainbow-I joke that my husband is a walking toxic waste dump, so I've looked into adding an incinerator to the boiler. Himself didn't find that as funny as I did.

Hey gals. I'm still hanging in here. Still on Plan!
I have a HUGE NSV to share! I've been doing this Richard Simmons "Party off the Pounds" DVD. It's essentially just Sweating to the Oldies with 80's Music. Well, the workout itself is about 51 minutes long (including cool down). Usually I get to the 28-30 minute mark before stopping. The other day I made it to that point, sat down and rested for about 5 minutes and finished the thing. Today I wasn't going to exercise at all. I was feeling lazy. Then about an hour ago, I decided to get up and at least get as close to 30 mins as I could. I thought I was going to stop early, It seemed to be harder than usual. I forced myself through that "midway song" and it was downhill from there. I finished it ALL! I did it WITHOUT stopping. :o

I'm sweaty as heck and tired and I may never ever manage to do this again, but YAY!
:carrot:

Also, I think I've lost about 4 pounds since I posted in here last. It's been a crazy few weeks :D

Well I got the closet done. I had to run out today and get a 3rd box of hangers..but in the end it looks s much better and it feels less cluttered. I did grab a few things to put in the donation pile and feel like I have a better sense of what actually own. Even today, once I got dressed I put on a shirt I have not worn since the week I bought it...whenever that was.

DH's dad called this morning to try to play peacemaker...which means ordering DH to talk to his mother. Check, please.

Battle...I didn't realize you were also Jewish :) It's nice to know that I'll have someone to commiserate with during Pesach. I am so anti-matzah. One year I had my wisdom teeth out during spring break/passover just to avoid having to eat any matzah at all. We're not making a seder. We have an invite for 1st night and will get one for 2nd. DH's folks don't do anything....no, that's not true. They will all get together at an aunt's house and eat lamb on a Sunday and call it Passover. I myself do not eat lamb, so it becomes another night of let's look at Julee who doesn't eat what we eat. We don't have any problems finding Passover candy here...of course...I don't eat it so I don't care as much...but it's one of the nice things about being in LA...and working in a very Jewish neighborhood...no shortage of kosher food anywhere.

I did really well last night at my dinner. I brought a SmartOnes mac&cheese so I could eat my version of what the kids were eating. I'm over the whole self-conscious thing. I'm eating food and thats what is good. If I were doing shakes only or that ridiculous cookie diet...then I'd be more aware that I was sticking out...

I am having a hard time coping with some of my work-related stress. I run youth programs for teens..normal middle/upper-middle class Jewish teens...who have had more than their fair share of problems as of late and it's starting to eat at me because so many of them come and talk to me and because I hate seeing them in pain. I need to figure out a way to deal with it and get some down time scheduled in.

Great discovery of the week...Starbucks Mocha Frappucino ice cream pops. 97% fat free. 2 WW points. DELICIOUS! Plus I know that DH won't eat them :) He hates coffee.

I ate too much at dinner...likely because I didn't eat enough during the day.

Kayley...I am so sorry about your grandmother. I hope you find comfort in your years together and in your fond memories and that you and your family can be strong for each other.

Off to watch a movie with DH...12 hour work day tomorrow...wheee.

Just another quickie, the pc is very 'poorly' :mad:and keeps shutting down.
Kayley, so sorry about your grandmother.:hug:xxxxxxx
Battle, I LOVE the 'fabulosity' quote,;) if you ever feel you're losing it, pop on here there's lots of us who can remind you how great AND PRETTY you are.xxxxxx
Rainbow thanks for the kind words.:hug:xxx Where in the UK does your hubby come from? He's so lucky to be over there, green cards are like gold dust! I'm so glad that you found each other & are so happy.xxxxx
Gg/carol, I'm sure if she goes she'll soon give up, seeing how hard you work will put her to shame.;)xxxxxx
Valerie, one day, when we can afford it I may come over & suprise you & some of my other 3FC buddies!xxxxxx
Well I'm UP again, I was 'being kind to myself' :(whilst the meds kicked in, YEAH, RIGHT!! Gaining about 6lbs or more in a week, what sort of kindness is that? Anyway here I am REALLY being kind to myself by exercising and eating right. How stupid am I?
xxxxxxsharon:hug:

Sharon - ahhhhhhhhhhh - how sweet - unfortunately if she starts she won't give up - just out of spite. I'm hoping she just forgets about it. I told my trainer yesterday - he was so funny - without even saying anything other than my sister is thinking of coming - he blurts out "Did you tell her it's your time B**ch" - gotta love him.

Off to swim - see your all later.

Hugs,
Carol

Carol...I just love your trainer!! Ring me back sometime today....;)

Sharon....Nigel is from Brighton and his mum and dad sitll reside there. I love Brighton. We spent a month touring Europe on our honeymoon...and I absolutely fell in love with Mevagissey. We would love to move there after he retires (hopefully). He has been a resident of the states for 20 years and loves it here but his heart is and will forever remain in England. He was able to show me all the major downtown London sights, and I had such a blast riding in the double decker buses and those fab black taxis! I have never walked so much in my life as when we were in London! I went to Harrod's but OMG....its pricey! Didn't buy much, mainly some jewelry and some shoes! I love shoes! haha I adore the pubs and ooooo cornish pasties from the west coast! I so enjoyed the changing of the guards and just seeing all the royal places...and the old buildings and churches. We we able to do the downs, and see the white cliffs of Dover and visited several castles and traveled all the way to land's end and st michaels mount...and then one week we took the eurostar to paris and I have to say, a few of the parisians were rude as can be to me! They certainly don't take too kindly to over weight american ladies I can tell you that! The eiffle tower was a cool place to visit....not as romantic as the movies portrait it to be! I much prefer London over Paris. I have never seen such a bustling city as London...and I have been to all except 4 american states...and to most major cities in th USA...including LA, Chicago, New York, Dallas, Atlanta, Memphis, Miami...and nothing compares to London at all! I love the round-abouts...and while there are a very few in the states, they are not that common....although they make much more sense to me than all the traffic lights. I found the people so endearing and lovely in England. Everywhere we went, I was treated so kindly. I learned to drive!!! on "your" side of the road! I was not difficult on the motorway but on the b roads...ooooooh my, there were some tiny narrow lanes! When we went down to Mevagissey and St. Ives...(reminds me of a nursery rhyme....as I was going to St. Ives!!) I thought Nigel was driving in the wrong area...it was so narrow, and right smack dab through the middle of the shops...I could literally have leaned out the window and touches the sides of the buildings...and we had to watch for people popping out of the shops! AND....it was a two-way lane!!!!!! As you know, when you see or meet an oncoming car, someone has to back up to a passign spot in order to pass each other! It was hilarious! I laughed so hard..and Nigel drove so fast....zipping up and down lanes...stopping for sheep to cross!!!! Hahaha. I loved the coast...it is absolutely amazing to be bounding over hills and around curves...with the side of the road growth of vines etc...talle thena the car itself...and not truly being able to see much...then all of a sudden bursting out into an opening with the most amazing panoramic vista view of the coastline and a tiny coastal village at the bottom of the hill....and you'd pray that the brakes worked well as you meandered through the tiny tiny narrow streets to park along the coastal floor!!! (when the tide was out) parking is such a premium. We literally parked in damp harbor inlet bottom! Mindful of the tide....of course. That reminds me...Mind The Gap...catching the various trains...always seeing the words...Mind The Gap...posted on the concrete floors of the train station....so people would make sure to see the gap between the train and the edge where you board. Oh and ... in London...painted on the streets...at the roundabouts...were the words...LOOK RIGHT... !!! I love England! Thanks for asking...about Nigel...and allowing me to travel down memory lane of yesteryear...hugssssssss to you.

Heather...KUDOS to you love for finishing that exercise video...! It gives me hope that one day I can make it all the way through too! I can ride 10 miles on my bicycle, 20 on the stationary one without stopping, but still have yet to complete richard simmons without stopping! Way to GO!

hugs everyone
rainbowsmiles

OMGosh! I am awol a couple of days and it takes me forever to catch up!!

I am mentally feeling better and made myself go bicycling yesterday before the rain came through. It took 2 hours for me to get up the motivation, but it was nice while riding. I also didn't push myself and reminded myself to enjoy the scenery. I rode 5.6 miles at a fairly slow pace. Baby steps, right?

I am trying to get my water intake back up so I don't get dehyrdated as well.

I have added some omega-3 fish oil because a guy at work in an NIH diet study is taking them and dropped his triglycerides 103 points!! One more pill to the morning mix won't hurt me. I'll see how my blood work is at the end of March when it's time to get it done.

I've also tried a new recipe to get my dreaded veggies in. It's a recipe by a WW woman (I haven't calcuated the points) and it turned out pretty good!

It's a pureed cashew base (just water and raw cashews), steam an onion and small potato, then add broccoli and cauliflower and fresh basil. Add some veggie boullion. Salt and pepper to taste. Puree the veggie mixture. Add the cashew base. It's filling and tasty. She also suggested replacing the broc/caul/basil with spinach/kale/thyme.

Hugs and Luv to all!
Ratkitten

PS.. anyone watching ACC bball?? I can't believe Clemson did well on Sat! :)

Hi everyone,
Just a note to say hello. Our pc had a freakin' virus and I've lost just about everything. All my photos of my family, addresses, recipes etc. I'm very, very upset. But the good news is we do have internet again. It's been down since Thursday or Friday.
Debbie, I'm going to see if I can find that letter in the email I sent you, but whatever we had, wiped out most of my stuff saved in gmail too.
Hugs,
Sandy

Debbie ...I just checked. It's all gone. I'm sorry.

I've banned myself from Denny's restaurant!!!!!!!!! My friend and I went there after the gym...I opted for the grilled chicken burger and salad. Well they brought me fries - zoinks - I did eat some! When I came home I went on their website! I couldn't believe how many calories I had consumed!!! Sheesh!! Lesson learnt-Prepare before you go out to eat!!!

I recently went on a day trip to Grand Forks, ND and I picked up these 100 calorie granola bars!! They were Oreo and delicious!!! I think they are made by Nabisco (I could be wrong). That little bar pleases my cravings of chocolate! They also had chips ahoy and nutter butter. But for only 2 WW points...shucks that's not bad.

Today I'm taking my dog (he's a pug) to his monthly Pug party! The rescue I belong to has monthly meet-ups for the Pugs (and pug crosses)! He loves it!

Take care ladies!! Keep up the great work!!!!

Hey peeps!

I'm about ready to head out to my day of fun. Can't wait. It has been a long time since I spent a full day with this friend.

I did throw out my fruit slices after eating a bunch, but the amount I ate fit into my calorie limit for the day, so all was well. I just can't do that too much, because the sugar sets me off and it's hard to stay OP once I'm eating cr@p.

Debbie: I'm sorry to hear the Eagles won't let you use their kitchen. I hope you find another kitchen to use.

I hope you do well getting back on plan. If the Slimfast helps, all the better.

Walrus: Have fun at the knitting store. I admire those with talent for crafts. I don't have the patience or talent.

Sharon: You can lose the 6 lbs. and more. Sometimes life is very challenging.

Thank you for the compliments : )

Carol: Enjoy your swim. It sounds great. I would love to do that on a Sunday.

Rainbow: I love the UK. I have been to England many times, and feel very much at home there. When I was in college I did a bicycle tour through the British Isles. It was the trip of a lifetime. The last time I was in England, I was visiting an American friend who was living in London for a couple of years. We took the train to Paris, and it was great. Very civilized way of traveling.

I love the Cornish pasties and sausage rolls and cream cakes and all that good (bad) stuff. What really kills me is the fish and chips. Fortunately it's hard to find good fish and chips in London, so the last time I wasn't stuffing myself with them.

Ratkitty: That recipe sounds good. If you have time, post it in the recipe section.

Heatherdw: Great job finishing that exercise video! I'm glad to hear you are doing well OP.

Julee: I hear you on the matzo. I have to stay away, because I love to eat it slathered with butter. I plan to make one serving of matzo brei and that is it. The rest of the matzo not eaten at the seder or in my matzo brei goes in the trash. I don't really keep the holiday anyway, so it's not hard to avoid.

Have a great day everyone

Debbie- check out some of the churches locally, maybe you can use a kitchen there. Or an elementary school. Ours does!

I all just checking in real quick today then on the run again. You would think that as much running as I do that I would be a toothpick! Weigh In today. YEAH I lost 4 lbs. YEAH young daughter gained 1 lb. and older daughter lost 2 lbs. Hubby weigh in yesterday lost 8 lbs! We have been doing really good. I think I actually got all of my water in this week. That is about 175 oz. per day x 7!!! If someone wants to add to the olympic pool that would be fine. I am going to try this week to keep up with it. Gotta go turn in GS cookie $$ and then the Y or bike with daughter. I have to first get bike out of shed and dust it off!!! It has been sitting for 2 years. I am excited about getting it out this year. Later

Heather, glad to see you posting again! And great news on the NSV and the 4lbs gone forever. You're doing really well!

Julee, you inspired me to get my closet cleaned out too. It took some doing, but you wouldn't even recognize it as the same closet. I even found a sweater in there that I forgot about cuz it didn't fit. It's almost too big now but still wearable. Jim got rid of alot of his cruddy looking clothes too. We have two huge trash bags ready to go to the Salvation Army. Now just two more closets to go. But we need to make shelves in one of them for all of my craft stuff.
Did I see....cookie diet?????

Sharon, sorry to hear your still struggling. I hope you can get OP again, for yourself. It really is so hard once you've been off to get back on again. Just hang in there.

Carol, too funny about what your trainer said.....but sooooooo right!

Ratkity, Hey! thats great news that you got out on your bike. I remember last year how you really enjoyed it. I hope you get many more days of riding in after all the bad weather.

Sandy, don't sweat it. I still have it if you want me to send it back to you. But really, don't worry. It seems you have enough on your plate right now. Just take care of yourself and I hope you can get the puter working better soon so you can post here.

betty grrl, how cute that must be to see all those cute little pugs. I love their scrounged up little faces.

Battleax, YAY on getting rid of those slices!!! I'm sure I'll find another kitchen. I think I'm going to send out some letters to different places and see how that goes.
Hope you're having a lovely day with your friend. Buy yourself something beautiful!

worthapenny, thank you for the great ideas on the schools and churches. I'm definitely going to give it a try.
Have fun on the bike ride. Congrats on the weight loss and your daughters too.

Just sorta shlumping around today. Too cold to go outside and do anything. Started a new puzzle. Did some laundry and had a very good breakfast today. I bought my slimfast and some bananas to go in it, but I will start that tomorrow.
Getting my indoor planting stuff ready to start my seeds probably next week. I'll get my hands in dirt somehow!
Hope all are drinking, eating well, and moving.
Debbie

Good afternoon all,

Well, I've got my transplanting done and put a few more seeds in. I think next year I'll just plant the geraniums in every other spot on the tray I used, and not transplant them. The tray has quite deep divisions and they weren't root bound. I was just concerned that another couple of months in the tray might be too long. Transplanting them today I realised I was concerned about nothing. Planting something, if only transplants, makes spring feel a little closer.

Debbie - I'm sorry to hear that you can't use that kitchen. I'm convinced that you will find a way to work it out. I switched to adding a protein shake for breakfast a while ago. It just seemed like an easy 90-cal, 17g protein addition. I'm a little odd, but I mix the chocolate one I get at Costco with a fruity one I get at another store. They aren't the tastiest thing, but they are fast. I usually take one just before bed, as this is usually a high hunger time for me, and it seems to help. And hey, get out the DDR. I'm sure I've seen a quote somewhere along the lines of the best exercise is one you'll keep up. If you break a sweat then it's doing lots of good.

Debi - hope you're feeling a little better.

TheWalrus - good luck on those three half sweaters. And no, they don't count as having one done, but nice try. :)

Rainbowsmiles - I bet your plants might be getting ready to go outside though. Oh well, I hear that April might be seasonal for us. Right now, I'd take that!

Heather_dw - that's a great NSV. I know how it goes, with great enthusiasm you start, and are so susprised you can't finish. It's wonderful that you did. One of the best DVDs I've seen is one where the fellow leading it (Tony Horton) reminds people starting out that it's okay to use the pause key - that's what it's for.

Julee - I so need to go through my closet... :)

Sharon - likely some of that is water since 6 pounds in a week would mean you were more than kind. The last time (Jan 4th) I went completely overboard I ended up 5 pounds, almost overnight. It took another 7 days before it was back to where it was on that day. Eating well will make it work out in the end.

Carol - love your trainer!

Ratkitten - it doesn't matter how long it took you to get up the motivation, what's important that you did. :carrot:

Sandy - that's it - I need to back up the machine tomorrow... or tonight.

Betty Grrl - it's sometimes hard to do, but I'm pretty good at sending things back when they aren't as I asked for. I know I couldn't avoid eating the french fries if they ended up on my plate. I was out with some friends before Christmas in a very expensive restaurant and we made the guy take the bread basket back (it was a group decision). And it was such a nice one...

BattleAx - enjoy your day out, and glad to hear those slices didn't put you over for the day. Eventually we'll all have to find a way to work in just a little of what we like. Do you have any bulk stores in your area? I know here I could go and buy just a few of what I wanted. I almost did that the day I went in for the soy nuts, but decided another day would be better.

Penny - congrats on the 4lbs. I'm going to add yesterday's water, so if it's not already in, I'll add yours.

Catherine - so I put together some chops last night (leg I think) and sealed them up with the marinade. There was a great discussion about how to cook them today. Although the barbecue might be best I really wanted to wash my hair this afternoon and do laundry. It's still too cold to go out without it completely dry. Then there was a discussion about putting them in the oven, but had no idea of how long. Then I spied the crockpot, which I used last night, and will use again tomorrow. So I put them in it, with a little veggie stock, so we'll see how that works out. It probably wasn't the best cut to braise, but so be it. It smells wonderful!

Well, I should go off and put some laundry in and have a shower. We keep the plants in the crawl space and not yet, but soon, I'll start to be itchy from the insulation. Take care all and hope you're having a good day.

Well I got up and dressed today. I had a bridal shower planned for today, I had been working on it for weeks. I felt like i had to show up.Mom was great and made my sandwiches so all I had to do was show up. I went and stayed for over half of the shower. She had a really good turn out and I cant wait to see all the neat pampered chef stuff she got.

My sister in law noticed that I have lost weight!! She was so supportive.
I ate 1/4 of a sandwich and a few veggies with no dip and I took a tiny peice of cake and took 2 bites and threw it away...it was soooooooooo sweet. I did have a cup of punch.
I think we will just have sandwiches here tonight for dinner.

OH Great news!!!!!! I lost 4lbs this week.

Walrus: Have fun at the knitting store. I admire those with talent for crafts. I don't have the patience or talent.
Heya BattleAx:

Thanks for the kind words -- I'm not sure "talent" is the right word for it -- just an inability to sit still! Plus, I buy nice yarns and so am very careful around them -- I'm not one of those brave folks who will take their projects around with them, exposing them to who knows what! :D This means that I knit only at home, in front of the TV, and I don't eat when I'm knitting. Double bonus :)

Hope you all have a great week! You can do it!

I snowed again. It was a dirty trick after a week of seemingly warm weather. The sidewalks had even melted and were dry. I'll be glad when this week is over and I can get some rest. I still can't seem to concentrate on my paper. I'm glad it isn't due until the 11th of April.

Congrats Debi on the 4lb loss!!!! Glad you were feeling well enough to go to the shower I know that you have been working on it for so long! would of been a shame for you to have missed it! Isn't it nice to have people notice when you lose lbs??!!?? makes it more concrete!

Catherine love the little doggy with the green on! Is that for St. Patty's day? cute!

Well I have been on target for my calories still working on the fat, carb & protein ratios but I figure that will all fall into place as I get more accustomed to eating healthy! I have cut out extra fat......mostly all our fat comes from food's natural fats.

I made smothered burritos last night although I put my recipe into TDP and it came up with a figure.....I think it is off a bit since it counts us eating 1 serving of not only the burrito but also the sauce....and in actuality we don't eat very much of the sauce with the burrito so I just put in one serving and knew we were under our calories (even with it counted that way we were still under but not by much). Does anyone know how to get a more accurate calorie count for a recipe? should I just add up all calories for each ingredient then divide by servings? or is that what TDP does? I know that the majority of the fat is in the sauce thus the reason why we dont use alot of it when I serve. oh well I guess its better than not counting huh?
I was surprised to find out that my spanish rice was only 120 calories per cup! I use olive oil so I know that is a key to not being hi in bad fats too! DH was thrilled he could have spanish rice LOL I havent really cooked anything mexican since we started LOL

I made up some breakfast burritos with one egg in each tortilla (scrambled but like an oamlet) 1 TBS salsa, 1/4 cup of spanish rice (I still cook rice like my kids are all home LOL had tons of extra) I froze them today and we can have those for a quick breakfast!

I also made individual SF Jello with those ziploc bowls for snacks. DH likes something sweet every now and then and these or SF pudding does the trick! Also very cost effective!!!

I did 3 loads of laundry already today and have probably 3 more to do tonight.....DH said he would put it away if I fold!!! YEAH!!! I hate putting clothes away!!! I also cleaned 2 of the 3 bathrooms we have....DD does her own. I have NOT wanted to clean in months!!! I go through spurts where I could care less if something is cleaned. When the kids were real little it was really bad! If anyone was coming over it was a mad DASH to get the house presentable! I have since then done TONS better but still fall into spells where I don't want to do anything around the house. With having teenagers for so long and 4 of them! I didn't have to do much around the house because I would just assign them different chores and they did it. Now that it is just DH & DD I can't rely on DD to do it all! So I've vowed to get my butt in gear and start taking control of the cleanliness of our home! Plus it is extra exercise that I haven't been doing regularly! Added bonus! LOL

Now mind you my house is not filthy.....just alot of dust bunnies get over looked and things that I would clean better get left behind.....you know kids they never clean to our standards.

Well now that I poured my dirty household tale. I better finish up the laundry & I still have that carpet in the dining room to shampoo!

talk to you all tomorrow!
Bernice

Posted the veggie puree recipe to the recipe thread. Even ran it thru Nutritiondata.com for analysis of 1 cup serving.

I didn't realize there were so many tasteful recipes out there in puree form. Apparently, there's a lot of people that need foods in that consistency. There's hope for my tender tummy yet!

Luv,
RK

Helloooooooo everyone :)
OMG....i so dislike shopping....i loathe shopping...no i detest shopping! haha As you can guess Nigel and I went shopping...yesterday and today....now I ponder....

why do dept stores put the large womens sizes in their upstairs floor way in the back in the corner and right past the lingerie dept??? has anyone ever noticed that? in 4 major dept. stores it was like that. uggg

snow?? catheine...oh my...nigel and i wer able to get into the swimming pool this afternoon and we swam for about an hour before the sun went down too low to shine on the pool anymore. the pool core temp was about 75 so it was still a wee bit chilly but the outside temp was nice and warm. i do love canada but i declare i love to soak up some rays. i know i know....in mid august when all of you are enacting splendor in the grass i will be sweating like a bullfrog in a frying pan...and probably complaining of the humitity! i guess we can't have it both ways!

bernice...love your st pattys avatar...so cute and sweet! just like YOU! I USE CALORIE KING DOT COM...to look up any calories i need and then i just add up all the ingredients...even the small 5 calorie ones...and divide by the servings. i especially love making my homemade veggie soup. i am sooo with you on putting away the clothes! im thankful nigel does that for me! i think british men just help more....omg he does dishes often and vacuums and just helps me with so much any time i need it! his dad is like that too and he is 81 and still helps tremendously around the house! i love it!

walrus...i wish i could knit...i can crochet but love the look of knit sweaters! kudos to you for having that talent!

:hug::hug::hug: debimitch! WAY TO GO! what wonderful successes you are having...4 pounds lost! thats AWESOME! and dressing up and being gorgeouuuusssss...and then ahving such splendid control over the eating...what a terrific inspiration you are!! thanks for sharing and congrats!!!!!!!

anne...uggg....i was bad and didnt get those plants repotted! nigel and i were shopping...i so dislike shopping....oh i said that already! ugggg....nigel took me shopping for a long formal black dress for something he is planning tomorrow and tomorrow night...but he won't tell me. its one year ago today he proposed...so i know he has something up his sleeve. i look forever to find something in my size that was elegant...and he finally picked out one....and it is absolutely GORGEOUS! i will try to get pics made tomorrow night and send you one. i am not very feminine...more like a freight train...so its difficult for me to dress up and feel pretty. i always feel like a beached whale stuffed in a dress. oh well...i will keep my spirits high anyway...i am sending you summer sunshine in a big basket....hope you get it!

debbie...what type of puzzle did you start? i love doing puzzles too. nigel and i like charles wysocki puzzles, have you ever seen those?

battle...ong i would so love to be fit enough to do a bicycle tour in england anywhere...they have so many foot paths...and i was so amazed that the locals will just let practically anyone pass on their land and even camp out! I adore England.
ooooooooo sultana scones with strawberries and clotted cream!! i forgot about those! yummmm lets do move there! you want to?? do tell...how was your fab day of fun and pampering today???

sandy..im so sad to hear about your computer. that happened to me and i didnt really care about anything except some of the pics...i can never get back. it hurts i know. im sorry about that. hugsssssssss:hug: to you

carol.....ohhhhhh it was awesome to chat with you...i was so busting to share in the excitement!!! please say a prayer for me! hugsssss

ratkitten....OMG i soooooooooo wish you lived near me...we could go riding everyday!!! 5.6 miles....GF THAT IS AWESOME......WAY TO GO!!!!!!!!!!! keep riding....it gets easier....and dont u just love the wind in your hair and the sun on your face when you ride!!! hugss


penny...OMG....congrats on losing 4 more pounds AND having GS cookies in the house! WOW, now YOU are a lady with willpower!! THAT IS FABULOUS! WAY TO GO!

everyone have a great evening :)
rainbowsmiles

Hey I hope everyone had a great day. After turning in the GS $ the daughter wanted to go to the Y. So I walked the treadmill for 30 minutes while she walked the track and watched the race. Then we went swimming for an hour. It ffelt good to go and exercise. The weather is getting nice enough to walk again outside too! I didn't get the bike out today. I just wanted to check in. I need to get hubby's suitcase ready now to travel in the morning. Later

Hey Rainbow, now that I think about it you're right about the "full figured or plus sized sections". They are either right out of the way in the back and/or in a section way behind the lingere. I hate shopping for clothes! I usually start crying either in the change room or when I in the van. If my fiance knows I've gone clothes shopping he usually stays away from me. The nice thing here in Canada we have a store (suppose it would be close to being like a Lane Bryant store in the USA) called Penningtons. They actually have nice clothes in there, and current as far as fashion goes. I love their sales!!! I loaded up on different sizes of pants (ranging from sz 28 to sz 22) this way when I get the weight off I'll have something to wear!

Battle: I keep it to a certain extent. I work at a synagogue full time so if I want to bring food for lunch it has to be kosher for passover. I already am limited to only bringing in dairy/vegetarian food as it is. DH doesn't keep it. I don't have the time or patience to clean the house and change out all the dishes...maybe down the road when we have a bigger place. It just makes things really challenging...but it will also give me a really good excuse to not go to work during Passover and take some down time (that I need soooooooooooo badly). I loved my Grandma's matza brei and have never had any better. The thing is...ALL of the deli's and diners here in LA sell it year round...sheesh.

Debbie: Way to go on the closet! It felt great to get it done and I am happier looking at it. The "cookie diet" is a diet plan where you have these "specially formulated cookies" and you get to eat a certain number of them a day and a sensible dinner. I know a couple who did it to lose some weight pre-weding and by the time the wedding rolled around I think they were ready to eat anything that wasn't walking away from them. I am seeing more commercials for it lately...but it just makes no sense to me.

Anne...good luck on the closet mission!!! You can do it :)

I had a long day that was less rotten than I had expected but less than wonderful. Pray for me in these next 2 weeks...I need all the help I can get. At least today with the carnival I did not go crazy. DH and I went for a wonderful breakfast...which held me over for a while. I had a turkey sausage with mustard and grilled onions and a small ear of corn at the carnival...a ton of water and a small bag of popcorn. Dinner was sushi and then carrots for a snack. Did I mention that I had over 120 oz. of water today?

Nighty night amigas!

Well normally on monday mornings I post my WI but for some reason my scale was wacky today! I jumped on that thing 10 times and it never gave me the same answer twice....I usually will WI 3 times and take the common number LOL (its digital) so I will have my coffee and then WI once more and see if it gives me one of the many numbers it already has....LOL its either 1lb or 3lbs loss LOL not quite sure! At least I know I lost something LOL

has anyone else run into this issue with a digital scale before?

Bernice

P.S. Happy St. Patty's day!!!! no pinching I'm wearing green!!!

STOP!!! It's a new week and time for a new thread! Please join us for the next installment!!