40-Somethings - 40-Somethings July Week 2 Chat

Good morning all!! Thought I would start the chat for this week for the first time. I am assuming everyone had a busy weekend since the board was kind of dead. I hope it all went well and everyone was able to enjoy themselves. We were in a couple parades with our car and went to a couple fireworks displays. My one dog is glad things are getting back to normal, LOL! I am off to an amusement park today with my kids and some friends so I won't be around until later tonight. Hope everyone has a great day exercising and on plan!!

I'm just glad the weekend is over - we had a long drive (7 hour round-trip) into northern MI to pick up the kid who spent a week with his buddy on Lake Huron, then dealt with 4th of July BBQ/fireworks, and then Sunday, DS9 became DS10. 3 days of hot dogs and hamburgers. It was fun, and I made lots better choices than I have in the past ... but ... whew, it's good to be back into the routine!

I may be a bit scarce this week - I have to go to LA Tuesday morning (just in time for the Jackson freak show), and come back on a red-eye Wednesday night. Then it will be packing activities as we get ready to leave for our backpacking trip bright and early on Saturday morning. It will be a challenge ... I expect to build a lot of character in the next couple weeks.

Hi, everyone. We had a great weekend camping. The rain finally cleared as we were driving away from our home on Friday night, and then we had beautiful weather all weekend.

I learned something about myself: I'm just not going to forbid myself the roasted marshmallows, potato chips, bacon and eggs, and other assorted bad-for-yous when we go camping. It happens twice a year, and it's just no fun "sitting out". I decided that I was willing to eat the junk, regardless of the weight outcome, and that I would just redouble my efforts once we got back. It truly is a lifetime journey, and an evening of roasted marshmallows (25 cal each!) isn't going to harm me in the long run...

I'm not happy with what the scale read today, but I expected it. It's okay, I'll get back to where I was.

Beemer - it sounds like you had a fun weekend!

ICUWishing - it sounds like a fun but exhausting weekend. Is it a business or pleasure trip to LA? Although red-eyes don't usually connote pleasure.

Hello all...haven't been here for awhile in the 40 somethings threads, but have been on 3FC. The weekend was pretty good....since I knew I would probably go Off Plan, I was really good leading up to the weekend. Even though I was off most of Sat and Sun, last night I made a healthy dinner and have been OP today. Didn't workout since Friday and I can't wait to workout this afternoon.

Jacquee!!! I see you made your goal -- congratulations!!!

Penguin - I went and looked at your profile pic; thanks for posting it!! You look great, and so young!

Penguin - I went and looked at your profile pic; thanks for posting it!! You look great, and so young!

:thanks: but it might be short lived....I was there last Friday but as we know, it was a holiday weekend. And I had a great time but now it is back to work. Will see what the scale says on Friday because I have now gotten in the habit of ONLY weighing once a week. And that has been working good for me!!!

I had a nice holiday weekend. My dh and dd and I went to Brown County, IN on Friday morning. It is an artist colony with all kinds of shops. We had breakfast and then walked and walked and walked. Great exercise!! My food choices were on target with my plan. I was happy to see the number on the scale move down this morning. I am trying not to be a freak about weighing myself. I am trusting my choices and only jumping on the scale a few times a week.

ICU ~ LA on Tuesday what horrible timing!!! I am so done with all the media coverage. MJ was talented but was also extremely strange. I don't think we will see the end anytime soon.

Newleaf ~ great attitude about food...remember we are in control of every choice we make! You did what was right for you...good job!

Jacque ~ congrats on reaching goal!!

I hope you all will be big losers this week!!

God bless!

Good Morning everyone!

We had a great weekend, But I will admit I have overindulged a bit! BBQ with friends and fireworks for the 4th. DD turns 11 today and since we have a swim meet tonight, we celebrated last night. Uno's pizza for dinner (her choice!), I did check their nutrition info before I went and feel I made a decent choice under the circumstances. Flatbread pizza with veggies instead of deep dish!

ICU, Have a great trip. Who knows you may pick up a few souvenirs you can sell on ebay! I would not want to be in LA for anything this week! What are your bosses thinking?

Jacquee, congrats on making your goal!

Newleaf, I think you are so right about needing to let go every now and then. It's knowing that it's only for the weekend and getting right back on track. Glad you had a good time!

Beemer, Love your new avatar! Sounds like you had a fun weekend!

Hi to everyone else! Let's make this a great week!

Diva, You snuck in with a post while I was typing! Brown County is one of my favorite places to go. I love all of the shops and the park there is beautiful. We have stayed at the Seasons many times.

Jacque - You have done awesome, congratulations of reaching goal.

Heidi - I could not agree with you more, this is a life long journey and there are certain indulgences that I will enjoy.

Patch - You really don't look like you belong on the 40-something board. I too love the quilt in the background. Quilting is one of those things that is on my bucket list that I probably will never achieve. I haven't sewn since I was in Home Economics and I'm short on patients.

ICU - Any other time you are in LA let me know and we can do lunch. I'm about 1.5 hours away; sorry not going to get near that place Tuesday.

Beemer - I love amusement parks, I'm just a big kid at heart and love the thrill rides. I haven't been since we moved to California. I was spoiled when we lived in Williamsburg having Busch passes and going several times a week after many of the tourist left for dinner. I'm not big on crowds so I have avoided the parks here. I will be doing Disney World in November when the family gets together for Thanksgiving.

Well I'm off to get my running done. Hope you all have a GREAT day.

I guess I too should confess to my over indulgence..... Pizza and Beer for me!

newleaf - it's all business. Hopefully getting in and out without the jet lag setting in too badly! I am in total agreement with your statement about the choices - this is LIFE! I bounced up a bit myself - but I had a GREAT time and the weight will be back off quickly. My big indulgence was a (medium) piece of Coldstone Creamery's Midnight Madness ice cream cake. I ate it slowly and savored every bite. Now I'm done with it!

Jacque - congrats on the goal! woohoo!!!!

diva - that sounded like a great weekend! I'm with you - there's a big difference between mindfulness and obsession - looks like you've got the attitude in place for the long haul. I'm trying to avoid the MJ media mess - but now I'm kinda forced to listen to it to make sure my trip plans work around it. Grrr!

OMW - Nice work with UNO's - it can be very tough to make a good choice in there ... you succeeded! Regarding the timing of my trip, some of it's my fault because I said I wanted to go early in the week so that I could readjust before we leave Saturday (and help pack). I dunno if that was a good decision or not. :)

CAT - if I'm allowed to go back on a more reasonable timeframe, I will definitely let you know! I can completely empathize with your desire to be as far away from this mess tomorrow as possible. The customer I'm going to visit is only about 3 miles away from the Staples Center. It should be ... um ... interesting. I AM bringing a camera.

I guess I too should confess to my over indulgence..... Pizza and Beer for me!
For me it was bloody marys and chips!!!! Some beer too and deserts that I really don't eat anymore at all!!!


To EVERYONE...thanks for the :congrat: and sounds like everyone had a great weekend...NOW BACK TO WORK!!! :)

ICUwishing - Good luck in LA! I tend to stay out of touch, but I'm sure the chaos will be amazing. And turning right around into another trip when you get back . . . definitely character-building. One at a time is all I can handle.

newleaf123 - I decided to go with everyone else's program on the food this weekend, and just limit it. Kept track of what I ate and logged it, and I wasn't too sorry! Turns out that as long as I'm aware and try to restrain myself a little bit, I stay at about a maintenance level calorie wise. At least on average I do. That double serving of strawberry shortcake on the 4th kind of blew it. But it was good! But I think you need to not be different occasionally.

Jacque9999 - Congratulations on the goal weight!

Penguin - You definitely look great for 40's! And that's a beautiful quilt. I do lots of crafts - needlepoint, cross stitch, crochet, sewing - but have never been brave enough to try quilting. Someday, maybe.

dietingdiva - Great job staying on plan and moving forward over the holiday!

Onmyway - Good job on looking up the nutrition info in advance. That is something I really need to start doing.

Beemer - Like the new avatar - love the car! I so want a fun car. My husband keeps picking out grown up cars for me. Insists that they're "safer" and "more practical". I hate it when he's right!

I made it back from the weekend. Had a time with my husband. My son was so glad to see him. I think the separation is hardest for him. He kept asking when Daddy would be able to come home to work. :(

We visited a friend from high school and her family. It is so awesome - our husbands and our children get along great! It's better than family. I didn't even stay on plan, but did manage to work out two out of the three days, and didn't gain anything. I'll take that as a win!

I left my 5 year old with his grandmother in Denver this week. It should be a great week for getting things done, staying on plan, working out, etc. But I may lose my mind! I've never been away from him for more than a day before.

[ I didn't even stay on plan, but did manage to work out two out of the three days, and didn't gain anything. I'll take that as a win!

YUP THAT'S A WIN!!!!

Congrats Jacque ! I'm just happy that I'm still down two pounds, and it wasn't a fluke ! Only two down can be so motivating. I just got in from an hour hike up the ridge and I think I feel the difference of the two pounds. It makes sense to me that the lighter one gets, the easier and more fun the exercise gets, and motivation goes up, up, up.... and then it spirals. Just the same as the opposite gets harder as you gain weight, and motivation then goes down. Like 'DUH". ;)

Congrats Jacque ! I'm just happy that I'm still down two pounds, and it wasn't a fluke ! Only two down can be so motivating. I just got in from an hour hike up the ridge and I think I feel the difference of the two pounds. It makes sense to me that the lighter one gets, the easier and more fun the exercise gets, and motivation goes up, up, up.... and then it spirals. Just the same as the opposite gets harder as you gain weight, and motivation then goes down. Like 'DUH". ;)


:thanks:
Isn't if funny how all of a sudden we get those epiphanies on weight gain/loss? Like how come it took me SO long to realize that I would feel GREAT if I just lost the weight!!! Getting older and smarter does have it's advantages :)

jelder - not gaining over the infamous 4th holiday is definitely a win! Try to fill the week without your son with things to do - I know that when I'm wandering aimlessly in the house, the most likely place to wander becomes the kitchen ... mine is getting to that point that he wants to spend more time with friends than with his mom and dad (he's 10). He just got back from a week away, and the first thing he did was to ask if he could spend the night at a different friends' house. Oh well. He'll be trapped on an island (and in a tent) with us all next week. :)

Only two down can be so motivating. I just got in from an hour hike up the ridge and I think I feel the difference of the two pounds. It makes sense to me that the lighter one gets, the easier and more fun the exercise gets, and motivation goes up, up, up.... and then it spirals. Just the same as the opposite gets harder as you gain weight, and motivation then goes down. Like 'DUH". ;)
Totally. When we were camping, I did some bike riding, and I ended going up a very steep hill. Someone on his way down the same hill even commented on how hard it must be to go up. But the great thing was, I got to the top without too much difficulty. I *know* it was because I wasn't hauling an extra 25 lbs up the hill that made it seem not so bad... I felt great when I got to the top!

jelder - I am a big crafter too! crochet, cross stitch, sewing and decoupage. I have a little online shop that helps to support my habit :D

Hermit - I agree...the smallest loss can be so motivating...and it can be contagious!

Onmyway - we try to get down to Brown County at least once a year. I just love it there.

Cat - yummy...pizza and beer what a way to go off plan ;)

Jacque - congrats on reaching goal! You must be feeling wonderful!

ICU - loved your comment about building character on this trip! Isn't character like muscle, you know - heavier than fat? : )

Newleaf - Totally know what you mean about exercise being easier with less to carry around. Sounds like you did great on the bike ride! We went hiking this weekend and I was so happy to not be carrying around the 14 extra pounds I started with. Can't wait until there's even less of me...

Hi all, wow, so much to catch up on since being away for a few days. Eating and exercise went well during the Reno trip. We went to the waterpark and I climbed so many stairs, even my quads were tired and it takes a lot to get to that point. I just love the fast waterslides. DD’s b-day was easy as her b-day cake is a really lo-cal cake recipe my mom gave me years ago. It has about 155 cals/slice. Can’t beat that and it’s so good – chocolate mint and very moist.

Dancer, my wrist hasn’t healed. If I was a smart patient, I’d go back to the ortho who had suggested a CT scan on it. But since I flunked wearing the wrist brace, he’d put it back in a cast. I can live with that – in September. So I’ll go back closer to fall. I’m a bad patient but I’m really frustrated with an injury that wasn’t my fault. I know that sounds whiny, but if the $%^$% lady had believed in the leash law she was BREAKING, I wouldn’t have fallen. I know, whiny… I hope you enjoyed your diet root beer. I will not give up Caffeine Diet Pepsi for anything or anyone. I don’t have nearly as much anymore, but I still love it. I figure I don’t drink, don’t use drugs, I exercise, I eat healthy, etc. I will NOT give up sodas so I like that someone else hasn’t either. Also, if you haven’t looked at your own avatar, you look fabulous. :carrot::carrot::carrot:Congrats on the 3 pound loss and post the pics. You look great!

GSMom, welcome to the group!!! I had all kinds of feet problems. I used orthotics for years and last November even had new ones made. They didn’t work. In December I bought my first pair of Birkenstocks and the pain (plantar fasciitis and heel spurs) went away. Totally, completely away. I’m now the proud owner of a closet full of Birks. And on Saturday, I walked around a waterpark for 7 hours without shoes. Absolutely no pain.

Penguin, I live in potato country. Your DH would love it here as they are plentiful year round. I know the idea is Idaho potatoes, but the area I live in Oregon is the country’s top producer of whites. A lot are sold to McDonalds because they are humungous so they can make the long fries. I like Yukon Golds so I don’t buy local and the ones I do buy usually go bad because I don’t make them. Anyway, I pray the surgery goes smoothly and I’m glad your DH will be there on Tuesday and Wednesday. Just don’t let him feed you too many potatoes. :D


Newleaf, have a great time. You can do the maintaining. Marshmallows are great because they’re only 25 cals and full of air. In no way should our life journey be all denial. Sounds like you had a great weekend.

Beemer, I love the new avatar. Topless is great. LOL. I’m totally opposite of you. I rarely worry until I know the bad is for sure and I found I don’t like exercising with others. Even my walk the doggies time – DH has returned for July and he came with my last week several times. This morning I snuck out by myself. I like the alone time. Even the pool, he swims laps with me and I like the pool alone. It’s pretty cool that we know what works for each of us. I don’t think I could do the group running like you do.

Welcome Jasmine!!! I bet your mom would be so proud of what you’ve done since her passing. I’m really sorry about your loss. I would LOVE the scent of jasmines all around my house. That would be so calming.

Losermom, I realized that one of the two long posts I’d lost had replied to where you live. I love Mankato. It’s a great little city. I went to Gustavus in St. Peter for 2.5 years. A sweet BF in college went to Mankato State. At that point, my parents lived in a Minneapolis suburb so when I met my DH, I transferred to the U of M. But when I think of college, I think of Gustavus not the U of M because I lived at home with my parents. My favorite part of the drive to Gustavus was the Jolly Green Giant looming over the highway as I’d drive to southern Minnesota.

Diva, Way To Go with that scale. Sounds like fun at all the shops. I’d have probably stayed with the food plan too but totally blown out my wallet.

ICU, eeks – the red-eye. That is just so painful. Then the circus on top of it. I can see where the character comment stems. I do not envy you. But the backpacking trip will be fun and a good reward for the LA trip.

Cruise, yes, yes, yes on amusement parks. I love thrill rides but I have sworn off amusement parks since DH and I went to Universal Studios in February. An hour and a half wait for a 60 second ride is ridiculous. And to pay $75 just to get in… No let me pay 2/3 that for a ski ticket and let me fly down the hills with my own reckless abandon. I do have to say the waterpark in Reno (on the 4th no less) was not crowded. I did about 25 “rides”. My favorite was the straight tunnel shoot in the dark. Weeeeee, that was so fun. Over and over I played there. And the 4 story stair hike was good exercise.

Jelder, fun cars are not synonymous with unsafe cars. You must tell your DH that. My wonderful, beloved, Darth Jeep (named Darth because he’s black and his front looks like Darth Vader) saved my life. Literally. I begged the insurance company not to total it after my accident and they acquiesced – they did regret it with the final bill but I got Darth back after 3 months of rebuilding. BTW, my DD said the day after my accident in Nov. 2007, “Mom, your Jeep’s name wasn’t Darth. Now it is. It was Anakin.” It was so funny and it was the first time I’d laughed after the accident. She was right, Darth was completely rebuilt like the Star Wars character. Ok, so the point is that fun vehicles can be safe. I’m guessing Beemer’s has all the standard BMW industry setting safety features. Tell your DH you want fun next time and it won’t cost safety.

Jacque, WOW – you made it to goal. :carrot::carrot::carrot::carrot:Congrats big time!!!! “Getting older and smarter does have it's advantages” That is just so true.

Hermit Girl, where in N. Calif are you? Great job on the ridge hike. How fun!!!

Jelder, diva, and penguin. I too am a crafter. I’ve been a stained glass artisan for nearly 25 years. Like diva, I sold pieces to support my habit but then it turned into work and I HATED that and didn’t want to create anymore. So I stopped. It is cool to think I have pieces throughout the world. OK, mostly in the US but I know of a couple in Europe and Australia. Places I’ve never been but my art resides. That’s sort of cool. I also am making a quilt and will post a pic when it’s done. The top is completely done but summer is for playing outside so I can see me finishing it in the fall. The old quilt on my bed isn’t too destroyed from the doggies. That one was way cool because I did 5 counted cross-stitch panels for purple pansies. My favorite flower. I’ll be cutting the 5 panels out and redoing the quilt someday.

Marie

Hi All!

Thanks for the prayers and well-wixhes. . My surgery is over and wasn't as bad as I expected it to be! They told me pre-op that the actual surgery would take about 10 min!!!!! They gave me some lovely drugs, I don't remember the surgery at all, just waking up {stoned} afterwards. I have a clear plastic patch on my left eye and can see marvelous colors but even better I can read a clock from 12 feet away just with my eye. No contact, no glasses, I've never been able to see this well! Things are blurry from the eye drops, and gunk they put in my eye and I have double vision, too. But really this is amazing! I can't wait to get the other eye done.

No bending over or straining today, maybe for longer. I get to go see the Dr tomorrow, so he can check his work!

Hubby went to buy a new sink faucet, of course, ours broke last night. Hubby fixed it so we can at least get water out of it but grrr!

Off for another nap!

Penguin - So glad the surgery went well - you are a brave girl!

Patchwork, Glad to hear the surgery went well! Hard to believe you are home and online already! What a trooper!

Dancer, Congrats on losing 3! That's terrific!

Penguin - so glad to hear your surgery went so well!!

DietingDiva I've never heard of Brown County, IN but will have to look it up. I'm new to the MidWest (although people will argue whether Pittsburgh is midwest, but as a New Englander myself, it is *definitely* midwest to me!) and we're always looking for new places for a driving getaway... I admire your ability to not jump on the scale every day. I'll be in Florida for a week and will have to go all week -- eek!

OnMyWay - sounds like we're sharing the same life outlook. I'm glad you had a nice weekend.

CruiseCAT - great job getting your running in, no matter what. You're doing a great job with that!

ICUWishing - that's the key -- slow and savoring...

Jelder - it sounds like you had a great weekend! I'm sure it's hard being away from your husband... and from your 5-year-old all week! My kids have never gone away for more than overnight, and that's only happened once or twice... I'd be lonely without them around, too!

DancerInDenver - I so envy you the hiking in Colorado!! Did I ever mention that's where we went for our honeymoon? Loved it... And I hear you about easier with less weight... WTG!!

Marie - I'm glad you had a great time! You are such a daredevil!! Unlike me... I did ONE ride at a water park and as soon as it the raft started moving, I let out with an "I DON'T LIKE THIS!!!" I just hold on and wait for it to be over; no enjoyment here! And re: Birkies -- I used to SWEAR by them!! I wore them all the time once I stopped working... But I gave them up a few years ago. I found that my back never hurt during my Peru trek, despite all the hiking and sleeping in tents. I came home, slept in my bed, and wore my beloved Birkies again -- and my back hurt!! It was very hard to toss them, though... (easier than tossing the mattress, though!) I think the soles must have been worn down unevenly or something...

Hi all! I'm more awake now, and have been mostly laying on the couch watching TV, between naps.

I've been watching TV out of my left eye, the surgery eye with no glasses or contacts. My surgery replaced the lens in my eye and apparently I'm now wearing the contact on the inside! I can't wait to get the second eye done. I've never seen this well in my life. I'll be one of those fortunate people who can wake up being able to see!!! I will still need reading glasses. I went outside for a few minutes to talk to Hubby and I can see the individual blades of grass while standing and leaves on the trees in the yards across the street, which is amazing to me. I'm going to try to get an appointment scheduled for the second eye while I'm at the dr tomorrow! I figured out that my distance vision hasn't improved but the clarity of that distance has improved. And the colors are amazing!

I got two Netflix in the mail today. Both workouts I've been wanting to try for a few weeks! Now that I can't workout for a week or so! I guess I'll preview them at least! Such great timing!

I found a cookbook entitled Not Your Mother's Crockpot Cookbook for Two. The secret is it uses a 3 quart crock pot, which I don't have but I borrowed one from a friend. Since its just Hubby and I, I thought that would be better than making so much. I"ve tried a steel-cut oatmeal recipe so far, which I've heard of on my exercise forum, but never tried in a crockpot. It was good; and I'm looking forward to trying some other things. I priced a 3 quart CP at Wal-mart and it was $11. LOL, probably worth it. I have a large cp but hardly use it.

Good night, all!

Penguin - congrats on the improved vision! Although I was only nearsighted, I loved the feeling of being able to see without glasses after having laser eye surgery. It's been 9 years now and I'm still seeing ok; it's also delayed the need for reading glasses - I may make it to 50, I hope.

newleaf - your trip to Peru sounds truly memorable. Would you ever consider going back?

Dancer - sounds like you had a great week, in the weight loss department. Way to go!

Marie - do you have any pictures of your stained glass? I love the look of that kind of art.

Jacque - congrats on reaching your goal!!!:carrot::carrot::carrot:

Hermit Girl - motivation sure is one of those things that improves with success!

jelder - I have a 5 year old, too. It's hard to get things done with him and his 6 year old brother around. They start summer day camp tomorrow and I should be able to get lots done.:dancer:

I've been out of town for the last week, at a family reunion to celebrate my parents' 50th anniversary. It has not been a very good week, food-wise. I'll be redoing some weight loss and I'm not too happy about that. However, I now know that my family is a huge trigger for me and I'll have to figure out some better coping strategies next time. I'm going to leave my ticker the same, but it might be awhile before it moves again.:rolleyes:

PatchworkPenguin - what an exciting experience, re: your eye!! Hopefully you can get the other one done soon, too. It sounds incredible.

PresMaggie - I would love to do the Peru trek again, with either my husband and / or my boys. That was the hard part about doing it with my sister -- I wished my husband were there, too! But the boys are too young and we don't like to leave them for a long time, so he stayed home. Your weight will come back down; you know what to do; don't worry about it. My ticker won't be moving for awhile, either -- between the camping damage and my trip to Florida tomorrow. Although my parents *aren't* a trigger so I think I should be okay there. No scale, though -- ack!

Penguin - That must be so rewarding to see such a difference in your vision! Hey - on the crockpot front, I use mine all the time to make shredded chicken that I use in other recipes like chicken chili, curries, soup, enchiladas etc. I cook the defrosted chicken breasts in a mix of water and skim milk (ratio doesn't seem to matter much) overnight on low then in the morning scrape off the kind of gross looking milk residue and the chicken breasts are just falling apart and are super easy to fork shred. If you get bored with your recipe book, give it a try.

presmaggie - From what you mentioned a while back, it sounds like spending time with your family can be hard on your self-esteem. Did you notice a difference this time since you've been making such positive changes in your life? Did they react to you any differently? I'm sure you'll be back on track in no time now that you're in your own environment.

Marie - so nice to have a fellow diet soda lover around! I'm with you on the having few other vices (apart from the occasional glass of red wine, which they say is pretty healthy) : ) By the way, I'm so impressed with your long and detailed posts that include everyone - I'm would like to be more that way but I lose track of everything on previous pages. I'll have to experiment with the quoting thing a bit to see if that helps. Waiting until September to see the doctor about your wrist sounds a little scary still. Are you wearing the brace in the meantime when you do things that are likely to affect your wrist? Does that help at all?

So, I took my up close before Botox pictures yesterday - let me just tell you that it's a pretty funny process to TRY to take unflattering pictures of your wrinkles - kind of the opposite of the usual process!

My cat got in touch with her inner wild animal yesterday and totally grossed me out. She's an inside cat but I occasionally let her out with me in the backyard as I did last night and my slightly chubby, lazy ball of fur promptly jumped onto the table then jumped in the air and caught a bird (probably a baby) and proceeded to eat it despite my efforts to convince her not to. Yuck! Now that's an appetite suppressant!

DancerInDenver - too funny about your cat. She sounds pretty skilled! One time my (indoor) cat caught a mouse in the house, and instead of killing it, he just kept letting it go, catching it, and playing with it. So I finally put him outside so he could dispose of the mouse out there; it was dark and there was a thin layer of snow. Boy, was he surprised!

Penguin, Glad to hear you are doing so well! Sounds like your surgery was a huge success!

Dancer, LOL about the cat! Can't wait to see your Botox pics!

Newleaf, Hope you have a great time in Florida. Don't worry about not having a scale. Make good choices most of the time, enjoy yourself and you'll do fine. I know what you mean about leaving the kids for any length of time. I took a cruise with a friend and DD was at my sister's for a week. She had fun and we emailed everyday but I still missed her alot!

Presmaggie, I hope you had a good visit despite the gain. Time to get back to work! You can do it!

Marie, That cake sounds great. You'll have to share the recipe with us!

Good news here, biopsy results were good! DD had a great birthday, got our nails done, did a little shopping and then swim meet last night. She was born at 6:00 p.m. and came over to give me a hug at 6 when she officially turned 11. Please tell me she will not be a rotten teenager in a couple years!

Off to the pool today. Hot and humid here today!

Wow!! I go away for one day and there are 3 pages to catch up on! This group rocks!!

ICU-Good for you for doing so well during your BBQ's! Sounds like you are going to be majorly busy this week. Hope it all goes well!!

newleaf-I do the same thing regarding "special" times. I just had S'mores myself with friends over the weekend. They really aren't too bad for you if you don't go overboard with them. I think we need to enjoy ourselves some too. Awesome job on tackling the hill on your bike ride! Bet it made you feel great!!

Jacque-Good to see you around!! Great job on making your goal!!!!!

diva-Good job on all the walking!! Sounds like a fun place!

Onmyway-I think it is ok to overindulge some on special holiday weekends and other celebrations as long as we get back to plan during the normal times. Good for you for checking nutrition info before going to Uno's!!

CAT-I am a major amusement park junkie!! The scarier the rollercoaster, the better! The one I went to yesterday is pretty tame compared to most but did have a nice hanging rollercoaster that was new. They also have a great waterpark that we all enjoyed. I love Disneyland and we also went to Knott's Berry Farm a lot when I was young. You should check them out!

jelder-As far as my car goes, that was a total mid-life crisis car for us. It even says it on our license plate frame. The kids had gone away for the weekend and we went out to eat. We saw the car on our way and planned on just checking it out on the way home. The kids said they weren't going to leave us alone again, LOL!! I am sure it isn't as safe as a hardtop car but it sure is fun! We have always had at least one fun car since we married but had taken a break for a bit. I was ready to have one again when we got it.

Hermit Girl-It definitely is very motivating the smaller you get. Makes you want to keep it up. The exercise gets much easier too but it makes you want to add more to challenge yourself. My daughter and I plan on doing another 5K soon and then plan on training for a 5 mile bridge run that is up north every year in Michigan on Labor Day. Can't wait!!

Marie-I love stained glass!! That is neat the you sold it all over like that. It must have been hard to give up but if it wasn't fun anymore then there is no point to doing it.

Penguin-Glad to hear the surgery was such a success and you are doing so well!! I bet you are thrilled!

Dancer-Congrats on the 3 pounds!! You rock! How I have found to reply to everyone is to open two windows with one the reply window and the other the thread to go through and answer. Works well for me!

presmaggie-Glad to hear laser surgery went so well for you years ago! I am thinking I may let my daughter have that done as a graduation gift or something depending on if they do it at that age or not. Don't worry about the slip ups food wise. You know what to do and will get back on track. Good luck!

Hope everyone is having a great day!!

Onmyway-We must thave posted at the same time! Congrats on the wonderful biopsy news!!

Yesterday I fell off the wagon. Today will be spent in full focus of being on plan. (detailed account in my blog). Anyway, I've also decided a more reasonable goal weight is a little more forgiving, and realistic for my age. So, my total number of pounds to lose now seems a little less impossible.

Just stopping to say hello. Checking this 40 something support group out. Looks like it might be right for me :-)

Have a great day!

Just read your blog Hermit girl. Boy do I have days like that. What is tobaluh (may have misspelled it since I am not looking back at your blog). I love water melon but am lazy and don't take the effort or time to cut it up and store it. Shame on me!

YUM! Looked back again and got more of a description of tabouleh. I love cilantro and am craving fresh veggies with summer here. Can you share the recipe? Thanks!

Thank you all for your warm welcomes and kind words about my mom. It's great to be here!

YUM! Looked back again and got more of a description of tabouleh. I love cilantro and am craving fresh veggies with summer here. Can you share the recipe? Thanks!Thanks ! I'll be happy to explain my tabouleh.

Basic MidEastern tabouleh is almost all parsley and mint, with tomatoes, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil , bulgar, and tomatoes. I've had another tabouleh , maybe more Jewish, not sure, but it was almost all bulgar, with less of the parsley and tomatoes. I am loosely following Mark Bittman's "FoodMatters" philosophy, and I am going off of his recipe, but have made mine a complete food by adding lots of beans.... so, it's not even really tabouleh anymore, it's become more of a 'mediterranian salad'. Also, I tried the mint, but not sure I like it as much, so now I leave it out. Here is what I do generally (Note, I make it in huge batches to last days. You might try just reducing my quantities of ingredients and come up with your own combos) :

1. Start by soaking 1-2 cups bulgar cracked wheat (two kinds, cracked wheat is different from bulgar wheat, not sure exactly, but get the bulgar) , pour in enough boiling water to just barely cover. Should soak up in about 1/2 hour. If there is any residual moisture, push out through a sieve. I have been making it dryer these days because of the veggie content makes so much moisture it gets soggy, so the bulgar soaks up much of the liquid. It will have expanded to about 4 cups.

2. When bulgar is all done soaking , toss in juice of at least 2 lemons, about 1/3 cup olive oil (to start), salt and pepper to taste. I crush a couple of fresh cloves of garlic into it. Then I dump in almost the same amount of beans, maybe a little less, so it's a complete protein with the bean and grain mixture. I like garbanzos the best, but made a great batch with black beans (those need to be rinsed really well) , and today I tried lentils barely cooked.

3. Chop up veggies like crazy, finely, and toss in. I do about 2 cups each of finely minced celery and red onion. I love to chop up tomatoes too, when I have them, but they add a lot of moisture, beware. about a cup each of parsely and cilantro, finely chopped. a small can of olives is nice once in a while, finely chopped. Today I experimented with a red bell pepper. Nice flavor. Basically, all those 'salsa' type veggies.

4. Put in a large container and eat as much as you like , it should last several days if you eat a lot of it. I find it's a complete food, and all the flavors I like, perfect for summer. I use to add avocado, but now I'm convinced I wasn't seeing results on the scale due to that, and I eat so much of it, why bother.

Note: I find this tabouleh to be an excellent medium for my three daily tablespoons of ground flax, so my first bowl of the day, I just toss in the flax and mix it in. Really good.

Jacque9999 - Smarter, maybe. I'm totally in denial on the older thing, thank you very much! But I must be getting older, because I keep forgetting this things - like how when I lose weight I can just bounce up 3 flights of stairs, leaving my in shape, welder husband in the dust.

ICUwishing - I think my son's precocious. At 5 I know they first words out of his mouth on the way home from the airport will be "Can I go to KK's?"

Marie - I'm the only person in my group who likes the crazy rides. It's kind of a bummer always riding them on my own. But I lived in the heart of ski country, 4 resorts within 20 minutes of my house, for 7 years and never did learn to ski well. It is just not natural to lean forward when you are going downhill. Too much in the way of self-preservation instincts.

And I really need your recipe for mint chocolate cake - that sounds totally yum!

Oh- and I'm taking the safety tactic the next time. I'm already looking up the safety ratings on the models I like. Unfortunately, he gets a newer truck next. Then we'll get a 3rd vehicle - an SUV or some such for hurricane evacuations and trips. And THEN, it's my turn!

And stained glass has always sounded like fun. I'd like to take a class, but I'm waiting until we move into a larger house where I have a craft room. On the someday list.

patchworkpenguin - I am so thrilled for you that the surgery went well. I still remember my joy when I was 5 and got my first glasses - I honestly didn't realize that you were supposed to be able to see the individual leaves on the trees. I had always seen them the way a 5 year old draws them. Then of course, getting Lasik 9 years ago was just incredible. Unfortunately, I think I need reading glasses now. Too much time doing close work and my eyes are blurry, even some double vision.

Hermit Girl - Congratulations on the scale moving!

presmaggie - I don't know how you do it with 2 of them! After one of his friends has been over for a day or so, I'm ready to tear my hair out! Or at least have a drink .. . But it's definitely easier to stay on my food plan without constant requests for tacos and hot dogs and mac and cheese. Mine's actually pretty good and helpful. I just don't get much "mama time" - if he sees I'm not working on something he thinks I should be playing with him.

dancerindenver - LOL - I can just see my cat doing that. She runs window to window stalking the birds. And heaven help any June bugs or moths that make in the house.

Onmyway - Glad to hear the biopsy went well. And I'm with you worrying that my little sweetheart will turn rotten. I just try to enjoy him every day, and hope for the best!

So far I'm surviving. But nearly cried when he didn't want to talk to me last night. He said no - he'd talked to me earlier in the afternoon thank you.

I'm a little bit reassured though - at least my MIL is taking a few things seriously. I think she thought I was psycho when I told her to be careful with the swimming - he's allergic to the cold so don't let him get chilled. Well, she bought him a neoprene shirt to wear after he broke out in hives all over!

Penguin, what great news!!! I’m so glad the surgery went better than you expected!!! Enjoy the time with your DH.

Cruise, I’m thinking of you and I hope your surgery goes as great as Penguin’s!

Presmaggie, it’s so funny how similar things are on this thread because of the common age. I had my Lasik done 9 years ago too. Seeing in the morning is fabulous. But now I have a slight reading glasses need. The 30 years of glasses makes me wear them only when I have no choice. Here’s a link to my doggies page that I never work on as I’m our district’s webmaster and I get sick of it. But there are three pieces here. http://www.mariesdogs.com/stainedGlass.htm

Dancer, after losing 2 posts last week, I figured a cool way to post. I’m typing in Word on one monitor and I have 3FC open on the other. So I read and comment at the same time. In other words, because I work in a technology dept, I have techie toys. Very easy though to split windows on one monitor as well. I tried the posting quotes and when I got to the point of responding, I couldn’t remember what I’d wanted to say. I guess the blond PLUS age is getting to me. BTW, my wrist is doing pretty good today. I’ve had many wrist injuries from my love for speed so some pain is now normal for me. I tolerate pain quite well so it’s rarely noticeable. And icky on the birdie episode. But picture yourself with the chicken crockpot recipe you gave penguin… :o


New leaf, what a way to introduce kitty to snow. Too funny!

OMW, I really can’t imagine a thoughtful 11 yo turning into a nasty teenager. Of course they start to pull away but the basic caring girl will still be there. The biopsy results are great news. You must be so relieved.

Beemer, they usually won’t do lasik until mid-twenties as the eyes keep changing through that point for nearsightedness. My DD is now 24 and thinks about having it done and her insurance would pay a chunk of it. I think it’s a great choice to do.

Welcome swtgila!!!

OK, since I whined about my wrist not being my fault I figure I should take blame when it’s due for injuries. I was washing one of my hummingbird feeders last night and was determined to get the last inch my bottle brush wouldn’t reach. So I pushed, figuring the diameter of the plastic holding the brush and the diameter of the bottle neck were the same. I figured the plastic would bend or break. No, the glass shattered and cut my thumb to shreds. It was late and I’d have had to go to the ER for stitches so it’s all bandaged up and very nasty. All night it felt like it was on fire. Now it’s just sore. Yeah for that. Boo for no swimming today. At least the hummers got a new feeder that was 100% clean… :D


Have a great day everyone. I’ll be back tomorrow!
Marie

Ouch, Marie - that sounds awful - so sorry to hear about your thumb! And thanks for the posting tip - the one from Beemer sounds good too. As far as eating birds go, luckily there are no cute fluffy feathers etc on frozen chicken breasts or I would quickly go vegetarian!

Welcome swtgila!

Hermitgirl - thanks for the great sounding recipe!

Onmyway - so glad to hear about the good biopsy results and it sounds like you had a great time with your daughter.

Jacque9999 - Smarter, maybe. I'm totally in denial on the older thing, thank you very much! But I must be getting older, because I keep forgetting this things - like how when I lose weight I can just bounce up 3 flights of stairs, leaving my in shape, welder husband in the dust.

That is SOOOOOO funny!!! :lol:

Just stopping to say hello. Checking this 40 something support group out. Looks like it might be right for me :-)

Have a great day!

:welcome: This is a great group!!!

Then of course, getting Lasik 9 years ago was just incredible. Unfortunately, I think I need reading glasses now. Too much time doing close work and my eyes are blurry, even some double vision.

I got my lasik about 11 years ago and have LOVED IT!!! But I too have now gone to Kmart and gotten those darn reading glasses.

OK, since I whined about my wrist not being my fault I figure I should take blame when it’s due for injuries. I was washing one of my hummingbird feeders last night and was determined to get the last inch my bottle brush wouldn’t reach. So I pushed, figuring the diameter of the plastic holding the brush and the diameter of the bottle neck were the same. I figured the plastic would bend or break. No, the glass shattered and cut my thumb to shreds. It was late and I’d have had to go to the ER for stitches so it’s all bandaged up and very nasty. All night it felt like it was on fire. Now it’s just sore. Yeah for that. Boo for no swimming today. At least the hummers got a new feeder that was 100% clean… :D


I hate when stuff like that happens!!! Hope you feel better soon!!!

Jacque - you look amazing! Way to go!

Marie - you are very talented with stained glass. How much time would one of those ones of your dogs take?

jelder - what I find surprising is that the children's menus at almost all of the restaurants have only pretty unhealthy food. On rainy days, we don't have any of those indoor play areas around here, only McD's. I feel bad about giving my kids food with little nutrition, but they do pick the apple slices quite often instead of fries. I wish that there was an organic food place with an indoor play area, but I don't think that will ever happen.:shrug:

Hermit Girl - I read your blog and I've had days like that, too. Because I have a zillion food intolerances, if I don't bring food with me, I will probably have some kind of reaction if I eat whatever's available and that often makes me even more hungry.

Beemer - your idea of having a fun car sounds great! I'll have to wait until my kids are older to do the same, though. They can seldom eat without spilling something.

Onmyway - that's good news about the biopsy results.:bravo:

dancerindenver - yes, my family is very hard on my self esteem. I didn't really notice any difference in the way they treated me - I think I'm just more aware of it these days. By the last day of my vacation, I had hit a very low spot. Now, I'm getting back to some semblance of normal.

It's always a bit tough to try to drag myself out of these low spots. My extended family members mean well, but they have a lot of issues that cause me a lot of stress to be around them. I find it really hard to bounce back from extended contact with them. Also, the fact that my mother is on yet another "diet" that is doomed to failure is hard to take. She has been "on" and "off" diets for my entire life and her weight has yo-yo'd up and down over the years. In the back of my mind, I'm afraid that I'm destined to follow in her footsteps.

In the back of my mind, I'm afraid that I'm destined to follow in her footsteps.

Presmaggie, Don't think like that. You will only follow in her footsteps if you choose to. You are doing great and know what you need to do to make healthy changes in your life. You CAN be successful even if your mother is not!

Okay, ladies -- see you in mid-July! I'm off to Sanibel, FL for a week to visit my parents.

CruiseCAT - I've lost track of when your surgery is. Soon??! I hope it goes well and brings you a lot of relief...

OnMyWay - I'm so glad your biopsy came back clear. Phew!

Wish I could reply to you all, but it's 11:30 and I need to get to bed so I can get up, finish packing, round up the boys, and go.

I wanted to stop in and tell you guys that my cateract surgery went very well. I went to the eye doc today for my post-op check-up. The Doc was very pleased with my progress but because of my history of eye problems he warned to take it very easy for the next week or so. No lifting anything heavier that 10-15lbs, no stress, no strain. He even told me not to clean the house! Yay, doctor's orders! So I'm going to sit on the couch and supervise Hubby; I get to be the guy for a while. I have eye drops to take for a while, but nothing really bad. I had one eye surgery that I had to lay on my stomach for almost 2 weeks afterwards. I could get up to eat and go to the bathroom, etc.

I have to go back to the dr in two weeks and I have made the appointment for my second surgery for Aug 17th. My vision has improved greatly in my left eye. I had the lens replaced so basically I'm wearing the contact on the inside now. I've wore glasses since I was 3 and contacts since I was 12 and this morning was the first time I have ever gotten up and not had to funble for my glasses to see what time it was. After the second surgery I probably won't need glasses or contacts again. Well, I'lll still need reading glasses, but I can live with that.:D

Thanks, for the prayers and well-wishes!

Jacque, I get mine at Dollar Tree, that way if I step/sit on them {been there, done that!} I don't feel badly.

Jeider, My dad was an Army helicopter pilot and has great vision so I was always comparing mine to his. Mistake! I went from legally blind in the left eye to 20/40 vision. Major improvment!

Swtgila, Welcome to our group.

Hermit Girl, I"m sitting on the ground beside you behind that wagon. I've been treating myself a little too much to 'celebrate' my surgery being over. Tomorrow I climb back on!

Jelder, I will put the cake recipe on my site tonight in PDF. I’ll then post a link to the file. That way it’s easy to print and I have to do nearly nothing. I’m guessing 4 ski resorts in Colorado that you lived by Copper Mountain, Breckenridge (my fav), A-Basin and Keystone. DH and I stayed in a condo in Dillon many years ago for a ski vacation. And my 4 door Jeep Wrangler (Darth) has loads of safety, is an SUV, and the top is removable. So Darth’s identical twin could be your 3rd vehicle.

Jacque, I had to have bifocal (progressives are cool – no line) made this past spring. I rarely ever where them except night driving and looking at tiny print. I’ll always be a big cheerleader for Lasik.

Presmaggie, I don’t know how long they take as I do it when I’m in the mood, for 10 minutes or up to a couple hours. If pushed to guess, I’m guessing about 10 hours but that’s a really rough estimate. My hands/wrists are no longer strong enough to do a lot of glass cutting for long periods of time. That strength is also needed for grinding and wrapping the glass. Also, I’m guessing that your mom’s lifelong yo-yo dieting is what precipitated your problems with foods. I watch my family and everything is centered around food. It’s difficult to undo a life’s learning lesson. But it is possible and you can change your destiny.

Newleaf, have a great trip. I bet you’ll have fun. I love ocean (or gulf) water.


Penguin, I am so glad the post surgery check up went well. 20/40, huh??? That's fabulous. That's where I'm at after Lasik. I'd been 20/400. It's pretty awesome, isn't it??? I'm glad you have #2 scheduled.


My scale is stuck even though I was kind and cleaned it yesterday. Such consideration by not giving me a loss this morning. ;) The first 10-12 days of my TOM cycle never have losses but month after month I hope for a different result. I just hate the borderline 159-160. I want the #5 to stay in the middle until I see a #4. Mr Scale isn't cooperating.


Hope everyone has a great day!
Marie

Onmyway - that's a good way to look at it. Everything in life is a choice, isn't it? Thanks.:)

Newleaf - hope you have a nice vacation!

Penguin - glad your surgery went well. I remember the first time I could see the clock after my laser eye surgery. It felt like a miracle!

Marie - that's interesting; I had no idea that stained glass was so strenuous on the hands and wrists. I've always loved looking at it, especially the old churches in Europe. It's hard to imagine how much time it took to do those huge, intricate windows. Thanks for the comment on my family. Other people are often able to see things that I can't. I guess there's always been such a feeling of inevitability that I would struggle with my weight. It's a family trait. LOL. This time, the difference is that I have support and that I keep going, even after a setback. Maybe it's because I've finally accepted that I need to be a turtle, not a hare, to be successful.

I'm feeling better today. I really needed a rest after the busy month that we've had. My job search is a bit of a downer lately, since the vast majority of businesses and governments have hiring freezes on. It has, though, given me an opportunity to rethink my career goals and where I want to go from here.

Heidi - wish I was headed to Florida, I know you and the boys will have a great time. Surgery is tomorrow morning and I hope to be back in my bed by 2pm. I'll post sometime Friday.

Patch - Glad you surgery went well.

Pres. - Although the concept is simple it is NOT easy to change habits. Please do not let the history of your family sabotage your success. YOU CAN DO THIS!!!

I too ended up in bifocals this year. Although I am a good candidate for lasik I would never risk it. I know the risks are minimal but I just can't bring myself to do it.

Well I'm off to get my cleaning and grocery shopping done. I'll be back on Friday.

Hey, I'm down half a pound, saw a new number on the scale... fun !

Way to go Hermit girl! How did your day of staying away from the computer go?

I went to progressive lens glasses 2 years ago. I love them. I wear contacts every now and then. I use the daily disposable mono vision lenses. That way I don't need reading glasses. I got them so I could wear them to the pool and be able to see.

I am having a great summer. I'm walking every day, swimming several times a week. Biking with my daughter. I've tackled several small projects around my house. It's great to get things crossed off my list.

Have a thin Thursday friends!

I'm thinking I might need to add a little weight training to firm up my arms. Any suggestions on getting started?

Hermit, excellent fun!!! Congrats on the new number.

OMW, it’s awesome that your summer is going so great. Lots of activities in your list. It’s amazing what losing so much weight will do. The WT – I think you just have to start. I re-started for the millionth time on Tuesday. I started with a set of bench presses then some free weight curls and such. Not a lot but more than nothing.

I have to agree with OMW that I’m having a great summer as well. Other than the injuries that try unsuccessfully to sidetrack me from exercise, it’s been wonderful. Thinking about it, the weather has been pretty nasty with occasional niceness, and the injuries have been non-stop. But even with that, it’s a great summer. I’m active, happy and making progress on my weight loss. In years past, injuries and cold summer would have depressed me and I’d have eaten my way to happiness. I truly think this life change has made the biggest difference in my mental health. All the experts tout that losing weight won’t make you happy. If they’re right, it sure does go a long way to locating happiness. Now, I do want to try to disprove the other saying, money doesn’t buy happiness. Winning the lotto would be a good way to test that one. :D
Marie

Morning, ladies! Nice to see such happy posts!
Hermit - congrats on the new number!
OMW - Sounds like you're having a great time!
Marie - I'm definitely a heck of a lot happier, feel better about myself and have more energy than I did before I started this. I wonder why the experts don't see causality there when we do so clearly.
I'm down 2lbs since Sunday and am thrilled to be on a roll. I'm going shopping on Saturday morning and am actually looking forward to it for a change.

Hope the upbeat posts keep on coming : )

OMW~ my abstinance plans from internet went Totally Bunk. I couldn't delete my thread, but I decided that it was a stupid idea, as I am a backwoods hermit, because so much of my social connection is through internet penpals, and more importantly, the constant encouragement from various forums (this one, and a knitting forum). sooo, I decided I just neeed to stop emailing that particular penpal every 20 minutes, then I'm good. ;) How about doing some easy push-ups (from your knees) for your arms?

Marie ~ I was in Klamath Wilderness a couple summers ago, backpacking, and I think you're so lucky to live there ! Do you do a lot of hiking there? Oh, and I think that losing weight is the only thing that's going to make me happy about now.

Thanks for all the congrats and well wishes! I'm excited! I'm walking around looking at things. I went to my friend Renee's house last night and noticed things like there are flexs of a darker color in her upstairs carpet, just little funny things like that, which is interesting to see what I've been missing.I just realized I'm slouched back in my computer chair and still reading the screen. Unprecidented!

I haven't been paying a lot of attention to what I've been eating the past few days, so I'm up a pound but I'm sure once I get back in the groove, so to speak, I can start losing again.

Dancer, congrats on those two lbs!

OMW, I have an astigmatism sp? so I can't wear soft lenses, I was mad that they came out with the progressive lens contacts and I coudln't wear them! But the reading glasses don't seem so bad these days.

Hermit Girl, congrats on that half lb! I'm on KnittingHelp.com but I don't go there a lot. Knitting is more of a sporadic hobby for me. Sometimes I cut back on the time I spend on the computer also, if I think I'm getting obsessed, again.

:congrat: Hermitgirl....watch that ticker movin'!!!!!

:congrat: Hermitgirl....watch that ticker movin'!!!!! Thanks so much Jacque ! I will !!!:carrot:

I can’t put it off, today I must venture down off the mountain and do some shopping, make that bank deposit, return some dvds, get some doggie food, and stuff. I will be armed with a container of cut-up watermelon, and apple slices, bag of plain popcorn, and plenty of cold water ! There will be ZERO food or coffee stops.

I’ve done my Hour Of Power hike up the ridge, and watered the garden, now I just have to go get brushed , wash my face, and dressed and hop in my Rav and go to town.

I'm happy to report that surgery went well and I was home by 11:30. I'm up from my drug induced nap and ready to eat something. Will take some more pain meds and I'm sure go back to sleep.

Thank you you all for thinking about me.

Hugs,
C

I'm happy to report that surgery went well and I was home by 11:30. I'm up from my drug induced nap and ready to eat something. Will take some more pain meds and I'm sure go back to sleep.

Thank you you all for thinking about me.

Hugs,
C

Glad you are up and about!!! Enjoy the drugs :lol:

Cat - so glad all went well - hope you have a speedy recovery!

CAT, great news that all went well. Enjoy your sleep.

Hermit, I don't "hike" all that much anymore as my elder doggie can't run free anymore because of her hips. She has to be controlled, leash walked. But as I live in rolling hills/mtns on pot-holed, washboard roads, I "hike" the roads (aka trails) daily. About 1.5 miles daily. Enjoy your trip to town. I have to work 5x week in Klamath so I hate to leave on weekends. So I really understand your reluctance.

Dancer, you're just rollin' down that ticker. WTG!!!! :carrot::carrot::carrot:

Penguin, it's so cool reading your posts about what you're seeing. I remember getting my first pair of glasses and staring at awe at a church. I'd pointed excitedly to it and said to my mom, "Look, they put up a steeple." Man, my mom laughed.

Marie

Cat, I'm glad you are up and doing so well!

Marie, I don't remember this but when I was three I got my first pair of glasses. I apparetnly turned to my dad and yelled "Daddy, I can see!" When I was about 30 I got some new contacts and got to see the individual blades of grass for a while but then more eye problems came, and I never thought I would see this well again.

Hermit - hope you had a good shopping expedition and were able to resist temptation!

Marie - Thanks for the encouragement! This board helps so much with making me stick to my plan. Love the church steeple story - too cute!

So, I survived my first experiment with Botox. For those that are interested, it feels kind of like you would imagine - kind of burny little pricks, less painful than the injection of say an anaesthetic or something but you definitely feel it since your face is so sensitive. Not bad though overall. And I closed my eyes through the whole thing as somehow that makes it better : ) The results take a few days to show up so I'll wait a bit to take the after pictures.

Off to dust off my rollerblades (and associated pads/helmets, etc) and see if I can still skate at all as it's been a few years.

CruiseCat ~ Ditto , enjoy the drug-induced slumber... and zone out. You'll wake up in a coule days refreshed !

Marie ~ I also hike the washed-out 'roads' here, though my pup needs a lot of exercize (a very athletic 4 yr old GermanShepherd), I can't quite get her exercized enough. my goal. Just as she relaxes a little I'll get in better shape, and we'll be equal for hopefully about 5 or so years, and that I look forward to !

Dancer ~ I'd love to see comparison photos ! May I ask how old you are ahead of time? Or, should I guess, after the botox treatments? ;)

Penguin ~ my eyesight is going rapidly, since turning 45, and I am really sad about not being able to see detail as much. I ought to go get real glasses, not just from the drugstore, and wear them all the time, not just when reading.

----------------

My thoughts for the day :

Down a half pound from yesterday ! That’s progress. The wonderful thing about having a finer gauged scale, is that you can see progress a lot faster. I’m excited. By next Monday’s weigh-in , I hope with all my heart to see 179’s, but I wont’ be too upset if I don’t , but it’s a nice thought to know it’s possible ! Makes me want to really be good. That’s how this works.

Yesterday afternoon (my hunger often strikes around 3to4 pm) I literally pigged out on tabouleh, so much that I felt sick afterward, really seriously bloated, and didn’t eat dinner. DH didn’t seem to mind that I wasnt’ sharing dinner with him. Tonight is the Friday night gig, so I just have a salad afterward, and well, I could get use to this eating fewer dinners, or, just have a salad or a simple vegetable , while I fix DH a real meal. Got to think about that ; two or Three nights a week might really help the weight go down, and everyone knows the evening meal is the least important when one is on a diet. this is an idea I had before, but somehow it just seemed too weird to make a lifestyle.

Just thoughts. No declarations (I am learning not to make those!).

Good Morning!

Cruise, Glad to hear all went well yesterday. Hope you feel back to yourself in no time!

Dancer, can't wait to see your pics! Last time I got out my rollerblades we found a mouse nesting in one of them! They were stored in a cabinet in my garage! Guess that's what happens when you don't use them in a while!

Marie, Hope the wrist is feeling better these days.

Hermit, another 1/2 pound! That's terrific. Many evenings I just eat a small salad for dinner. If I'm not really hungry, I've learned not to eat for the sake of eating. I'm not a big meat lover anyway so that's fine with me. We grill alot, so DH and kids have that with their salads. DH is also trying to lose so no more potatoes or pasta at dinnertime around here!

patchwork, Glad to hear your surgery was so successful, it must be such a great feeling.

Rainy here today so DD and I will run a couple of errands. Conference swim meet tomorrow, we'll be there all day. I'm hoping for a cloudy day so we don't roast!

Dancer, how did the rollerblading go? I bet you didn’t forget how to do it.

Penguin, it is so cool you can see again. I bet you’re having a blast!

Hermit, we took our 1 yo huskies out this spring (with the other 2) and she ran about 11-12 miles. It still didn’t exhaust her. So I think you have a pipe dream of being equal. Only my 8.5 yo husky with severe arthritis and hip dysplasia can I outlast. Doggies have a non-stop energy.

OMW, if a mouse nested in mine, I’d toss them and buy another pair. Rollerblades actually travel nicely (although the suitcase gets darn heavy). I like exploring cities on rollerblades. I get to see more. The wrist is actually doing pretty good, knock on wood.

I have no motivation to work. If I don’t get to it, I’ll have to work this weekend so I am going to be good and get to it.

Marie

Hermitgirl - I'll definitely post the before and after pics as soon as the stuff takes effect - I asked for a very conservative treatment (we can always do more later) so the results may not be all that impressive. And I'm 40 with fair skin and a history of moderate sun exposure, just for reference. Congrats on the half pound! Sounds like you're figuring out what works for you.

OMW - too funny about the mouse! I used to rollerblade a lot and had bought new skates a few years back that I had never used to replace my wornout ones so I was breaking in a brand new pair this time (still in the box) so minimal mouse danger : )

Marie - you're right - I didn't forget how to skate! There were about 50 yds of sheer terror and 'why the heck am I doing this voluntarily' feelings but they quickly subsided and the whole thing started to feel normal again. This was my first time skating with a helmet which I so didn't love as I have thick hair and it's not super comfortable but I keep hearing about traumatic brain injuries and I definitely don't want one of those. Totally agree on it being fun to explore cities on skates. We're spending Saturday night in Boulder (a cute college town up against the foothills, around 45min from Denver) to use up some of my hotel points and to give us an early start on a hike Sunday but Sat afternoon we're planning a long skate along the creek path before dinner. Hence my need to see if I can still do it : )

Happy almost weekend!

Thanks everyone.....

I took meds before I went to bed last night but none this morning and I'm feeling pretty darn good. I have some point (four incisions) tenderness but no real pain to speak of. I'm thinking/hoping that I will be able to get back to at least walking on Monday.

I'm not happy with the scales this morning; I'm up over 7 lbs. but that is no surprise considering I was pumped full of fluids, meds, and no BM in over 48 hours.

I'm looking forward to getting back to my routine.... for more than a week or two. When I look back on the last 2.5 months I've lost a few pounds but it's really been more like maintenance. Time to get back on it with serious dedication.

Thanks again for all the well wishes.

Good afternoon everyone!! The board has been a little slower these last few days. Makes it easier to catch up!

CAT-Wonderful to see you are doing so well!! You are a trooper! I had hernia surgery 9 years ago for an umbilical hernia caused by being pregnant. It knocked me out for several days. Glad to see you are bouncing back better than I did!! You will be able to get back to your routine soon it sounds like.

HermitGirl-There will be ups and downs in our journey. As long as we recognize it soon enough we are fine. Congrats on the new scale number!! Good job on bringing along healthy snacks when you ran errands!

swtgila-Welcome to the board!! We love new friends!

Marie-Sorry to hear about your hand!! I hope it is doing better now! I was thinking their eyes probably have to be done developing completely before Lasix. Thanks for the info! I probably will still give it to her for some kind of gift, maybe grad school, hopefully that isn't wishful thinking!!

presmaggie-Don't let your family get you down!! I have an "interesting" family myself and try my best to rise up and be different. As far as the fun car thing goes, all of our fun cars have had leather seats. At first I was not sure about kids and leather seats but it has been great as they clean up very nicely. The bad thing about lots of convertibles and kids though is the back or lack of back seats. They mostly have no room. We first looked at Porsches but the may as well not have a back seat. I like that our BMW has plenty of leg room even for an adult in the back. Someday I will have an early 80's Mercedes convertible. They do not have a back seat at all so not good when you have kids. I like that they have a hard and soft top because I don't like my soft top now in rain.

Onmyway-Your ticker keeps moving!! Good job! As far as the arms go, mine have firmed up nicely just from running. I swing them pretty good. Even walking can firm them up with the swinging. Plus swimming should be really good too. I keep thinking about adding some weight training but don't take the time. I have one of those fake bowflexes so maybe I should add that though it seems to hard to fit anything else in. If you find some nice workouts that work for you, let me know.

dancer-It is nice to see the positive stuff happening here, isn't it? Congrats on losing 2 more pounds!! You are doing a great job! Glad you survived the Botox!! I am not sure I could handle it! Have fun blading!! I never mastered the art of stopping on them, LOL!

Penguin-Glad to see that things are going so well after your surgery!! I bet you can't wait to get the other eye done too! Don't worry about messing up your routine a little now, as long as you get back to it, you should be fine. You deserve to celebrate a little!! A whole new world has opened up to you!

ICU-I hope you made it back from your LA experience in one piece!! Sounds like it was better then they originally predicted as far as people staying away. Hope you are doing well!

Have a great rest of the weekend everyone!! We are off to a rabbit show later today. Should be fun as I am bringing some extra kids with us. Wish us luck!

Pretty boring around here today. Hubby went into work. {time and half + $100!} Can't say that I'm thrilled but we could use the money and he did take a few days off to spend with me this week, so better to go in on a short week then HAVE to go in on a regular week. Work was shorthandded anyway then a guy got fired for sleeping on the job during his 90 days probation. Doh!

I checked a bunch of cookbooks out of the library and have been going through those. Mostlly I'm looking for lighter versions of things I already make but am finding new things to try also. I haven't been cooking much over the past year {got bored and it seemed like too much trouble!} so Hubby got home from work yesterday and I had made Seasoned Chicken, Twice Baked Potatos with Broc, and Strawberry Choc Brownies for dessert. Hubby didn't know what to think! I don't know either, maybe being able to see what I'm doing is the difference?? I got out of the habit of measuring and using recipes. I like recipes that I can make with chicken and carrots one day and pork chops and broccoli the next time. I call them process meals. Like a Fritatta or veg soup; throw whatever in and its good. Makes that whole cooking thing seem easier.

Suggestions for cookbooks or favorite meals would be welcome!

That pound I gained found a friend, sigh, but I lost it this morning Yay. I started using my food scale, which is kind of fun.

Hope you guys have a great day.

Cruisecat,Glad you are doing so well!

Hermit, I knew I couldn't see, but I thought it was my other eye problems not the cateract!

Dancer, I don’t “like” wearing a helmet either. But I hated being asked by drs. In the ER whether I was wearing one. So I wear one rollerblading, biking and skiing. It is uncomfortable with long hair but on the positive, helmet hair is reduced unlike short hair with the helmet. Have a great time creek rollerblade time and the hike. It sounds like fun!

CAT, isn’t it irritating when in your head you know the scale reading isn’t based on real weight? I don’t know about you, but the number will float through my brain for hours afterwards even though I know it wasn’t real. I figure it’s because of a lifetime of being fat. I’m sure glad that you’re recovering so quickly!

OK Beemer, what the heck is a rabbit show??? My DH has a co-worker that breeds rabbits. I’d never have guessed there was such a market. Now if Bugs Bunny was going to be at your show, count me in!

Penguin, my key to cooking “light” is to cook my favorite recipes and trying little changes. My favorite is to cut half the butter or oil one time, then all of it the next. It’s amazing how many regular dishes don’t need it. If I can’t reduce the cals by much, I reduce it on my plate. I need a new food scale. Mine is old and give a variety of readings.

DH has guard weekend and I'm enjoying a weekend alone. I know he just got back from a month assignment, but I haven't done any of my stuff since he's been back. I think I got too used to the spinster with her doggies life. :D

My scale is being perpetually stubborn floating between 159 and 160 (I detest that 6 now). I asked DH to take it out back and shoot it this morning. He declined saying I'd just go buy a new one. I couldn't argue with him on that point.

Marie

Howdy, ladies! Back from Boulder where we had a good time and it felt like we were much further away than we really were : ) I wore my helmet skating like a good girl although I wasn't thrilled about it.

Beemer - Rollerblade brand skates have a much easier brake than the ones where you have to tip your toe up to get the brakes to engage, if you're ever interested in trying again. It makes a nice complement to running as it's not so ballistic and works slightly different muscles (supposed to be great for shapely rear view too). Glad to hear that running helped with toning arms - I'm not a big weights girls so I'm psyched that I may have the arm thing covered in advance - now I just need to lose the fat layer : )

CAT - so glad to hear you're on the mend. And no more attacks, ever!! I'm sure the scale will go to a normal place soon once all the disruptions are over and you've had time to heal.

Marie - you're right about helmet hair - not too bad with long hair. Silly question but I'm thinking about getting long side bangs which it looks like you may have based on your avatar. Are bangs hard to deal with with the helmet and when you exercise? I haven't had them in ages and wanted to get some feedback before I take the plunge.

I thought the botox might not be working at all as I couldn't really see a difference yesterday but this afternoon when I frowned as hard as I could, there wasn't a horizontal groove/furrow above the top of my nose, just below my eyebrows so that was cool. My bf said my frown still looks like a frown, but less mad which I thought was funny. Don't see a difference yet with the crowsfeet but that may change. Will keep you posted...

Off to continue ice my knee...