Support Groups - New CANADIAN WINTER Thread ...

HELLO FELLOW CANUCKS ~ I received another request to start up a new CANADIAN WINTER Thread as the thread was missed and more people have time to come by in the winter time. It is also a time that many people want to renew their weightloss efforts. Let's see how it goes, and I will do my best to keep it up and going, and I hope that many of our fellow Canadians will drop by to visit us ...

Remember -- this thread is here to offer support to other Canadians; AND it is to encourage and support each other in our weightloss efforts too. Feel free to talk about anything you like here (and that includes the weather); and/or come by just to chat for a bit ... :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

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I'm here. Since we were last together I have gained weight and found out it wasn't all my fault. I was diagnosed with a low functioning thyroid also known as Hypothyroidism and carb sensitivity aka Insulin resistance. Now that I am on meds for my thyroid and staying away from carbs except in veggies, for now, I am hoping to see the scale move to the left. In 7 days I have lost 6. I have had only 1 bad sugar in a reeses peanut butter cup. I am very impressed with myself considering we have gone through Halloween and Peanut butter cups are my sons favourite and we have lots of them. I am trying to drink more herbal tea. I have bought all kinds of flavours and so far none of them need sugar to get them down.

I am still following the Blood type O plan. When I go off I suffer terribly. I am still not getting any support at home from either DS or DH. I did however get an elliptical trainer from my MIL so far I can do 5 min. at a time. I am hoping that by warmer weather I will have that built up to an hour.

:wave: HI 2b -- great, you found it right away ... I had to take a break to get dinner on the table and came back to check once we had the dishes done. I'm sorry to hear you don't have much support at home; I hope we can be your support here. I also have to watch my carb intake as well, although I can have some, but I try to have switched to whole grain carbs and I watch how many grain or starchy carbs I have each day.

My doctor(s) (last & present) have me on Metformin which makes me very hungry at times, so I have to have some carbs, but I am trying for those that have a lower GI number (meaning less natural sugars in them). Whole grains help to slow the blood sugar spikes and I am trying to have 2 servings of fruit like berries, or a small GREEN banana, peaches, nectarine, rhubarb, etc all of which have less fructose in them.

:congrat: You are doing great to have lost 6 lbs already -- it's great to see some downward movement on the scale after a stall or a gain and trust me; I know how it feels. That was so nice of your MIL to get you that elliptical; and that's OK if you start at 5 minutes; work your way up a bit at a time.

I started my walking at 5-10 minutes at a time; going up and down our laneway; then up the street to the end of the block and back. It is all uphill and takes me between 20-30 minutes there and back. If I use my trekking poles (really ski poles), I can do it in 20 minutes, so I am extending it. Sometimes DH & I go to a special place and go for a longer walk to make sure we get the 30 minutes in a few times a week; and I go department store walking in between too. At my weight, I have to focus on walking for now; and this is important to help keep my sugars in line and improve my circulation which I need badly at this time.

I would like to eat less carbs, but my blood sugar level dips down too much, so I have to eat some and I have a severe Vitamin & Mineral deficiency so I have to take lots of supplements for that too. So I have to work around these things. I am doing some toning work in the AM upon rising and hand weights every other day for strengthening too.

I am always tweaking my plan and have been doing some daily calorie tracking lately to see how I can improve things a bit. Mainly, I am on a Whole Foods Portion Plan and I do use tips from Volumetrics, the GI Diet, and other plans (like the Beck Plan) to help me out. Actually, I'll use everything and anything that works best for me ... :hug:

Rosebud, Have you ever checked out this site: http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/ for keep track of calories? I use it. I like it better than fit day only b/c if there is a food not in the huge data base you can add it to the database. Not only it will keep a list of the food you use on a regular basis handy to keep track of. I have been using it since Jan of last year.

I like walking over any other exercise but until I can get a treadmill I will use the elliptical.

have you ever tried using gluten free breads and stuff, That is the only kind carb other than veggies I can have

2b

Well, had to get up at the crack of dawn to go to the dentists to get a tooth pulled out early this AM; and as I am getting ready a bunch of things decide to go wrong, but I did manage to have a shower, get my hair party dry and out the door (although, I had to come back once to go to the washroom again).

Then we finally get on our way and hit a detour, but we made it almost on the dot anyways; thank goodness they were still working with some other people at the time. I had to take some meds to calm my nervous tummy down and that finally kicked in just after he started his work. Next time, I take them a bit earlier.

Had nice mini-subs (my own homemade one on a whole wheat hot dog bun with lean roast beef & thinly sliced onion, & mozzarella cheese with mustard) for brunch as I didn't have time to have any breakfast or a snack this AM; so to make up for it, I had two mini-subs instead. They were quite nice and soft and easy for me to chew on my right side of my mouth.

Will probably have a homemade chicken soup/stew for dinner tonight; that would be nice I think; maybe with some brown rice and the leftover veggies from yesterday too. After going to the dentists, we went to pick up a few things and I got most of my Christmas shopping done. Our local department store workers were busy as bees putting up lots of stuff today. Just have to get something more for DH and some small stuff next month.

Well, it's time for tea -- take good care ... :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

HI 2b ~ I didn't see your post at first; got distracted by DH as he needed my help to find a movie he wanted to see and then he needed a needle to get a sliver out of his thumb. Oh good, he found the tape and now I can finish my typing ... :lol:

No, I haven't tried that site; I will copy the link and go take a look at it. I noticed that when I keep track of what I'm eating that I eat much less. I have heard others say that, but until you actually do it, you don't realize just how much of a difference it makes.

I made my own file up called " My Tracking Journal" and wrote a list of the things I eat the most. The first month was just an experiment to see where I could make some improvements; but now that I see such positive results with it, I have decided to continue with it for the winter and see what results I get for the effort. It only takes a few minutes a day: maybe 5-10.

I haven't tried the gluten free breads yet; I'll take a look at our grocer and see what they have there. We have a somewhat limited selection as we only have one grocery store in our small town; we do have one department store that recently expanded their food section but not sure they'd have specialty stuff like that though, but I'll have a looksee ...

Have a great day! :hug:

Nice to see this thread back. Meowee would be pleased and is probably smiling down at us.

It's definitely heading towards winter around here. The big wind on Saturday finally stripped the leaves off the trees and dried them up a bit. I did some outside tidying today but won't get at the raking until Wednesday or Thursday. If we get snow soon, it really won't matter until spring. :shrug:

The "lads" have been out deer hunting lately and I'm expecting my friend Art to show up at my door with some venison. I usually pay him back with an apple pie so must get one or two ready to bake.

By the way, I'm a carb tracker too (diabetic) and find that I do best when I keep them low. I have also started doing 90 minutes at the gym three days a week and have found it's made a huge difference, not in weightloss but in strength and energy. It's also done wonders fro my BP and blood sugar levels. Whodathunk I'd become a gym bunny at 70!

:wave: HI LADIES ~ having a great day so far; on track and on plan. We have an odd mix of sunshine and ***** falling at the same time: how interesting; and they are big flakes too, kinda pretty really.

RUTH -- thanks for dropping by; nice to see you. Good for you going to the gym; what all do you do while you are there? 90 minutes is a long time. I use to go to one when I was younger. First we started with a couple of walks around the outside track (one in the beginning); then some weight work on machines mixed with situps (on a slanted bench); a bike ride; some stretches; and finally another walk around the track. I lost a lot of inches but gained 10 lbs in 1 year; the master trainer said I tone up great and lost sizes but gained in muscle too ...

We have a new gym here but I don't think I'm quite ready for that yet; I'm doing walking, stretches, toning, chair aerobics, hand weights, and stretchie band work, varying it each day.

Have a great day ... :hug:

:wave: HELLO FRIENDS ~ we were blessed with gorgeous :sunny: all morning; then clouds rolled in for the afternoon and the temps plummeted. We had some new visitors at our big feeder today -- about 13 big & beautiful Rock Doves, plus 2 Woodpeckers, a bunch of mixed Sparrows, and a huge flock of Starlings all vying for the same spots ... it was so fun to watch.

My bird book says that Rock Doves won't go on or in a feeder, but they sure went into ours; DH made it so big that even they can fit in it, but they were having a time trying to figure out how to get in there and then they played this game where they chased others out ... very funny!

Have been taking it easy today; did laundry yesterday, and today doing hand mending while resting my body as it has been thru the wringer this week. Had a good, on track and on plan day so far. Having leftover spagetti with meat sauce that I had frozen in individual containers for dinner tonight; and may have a baby cucumber salad along with that too.

Hope you all have a great day ... :hug:

I spent yesterday in class all day for a Security course. I passed the final exam and recieved my certificate and had my picture taken recieving the certificate. I also finally recieved my certificate from a course I took in Gravenhurst last year. I spent a week up there at the end of sept '08 taking this course. Apparently my boss in Security doesn't like just handing over certificates he like to present them cerimonially.

I have had a good day today. food wise. I am trying to figure out supper right now. I feel like I am off my planning game lately.

Good morning - **** in the forecast tonight but it looks like that will give the go ahead to Indian summer. It's always after the last fall full moon and the first snow.

Rosebud, I have no trouble doing 90 minutes in the gym when half of it is treadmill - in two sessions. I do ball work, resistance on the machines and free weights. It's a workout but I feel soooo good afterwards. Thanks for the reminder re the bird feeder. I spotted some cardinals yesterday and that reminded me a bit too.

2b125, congratulations on finally getting your certificate. Silly boss! I don't seem able to manage the elliptical at the gym. The so-called "fixed" knee has problems. I will persevere though as I know it gives a much better and faster workout than the treadmill which I find very boring.

Time to give the house a bit of a tidying so Donna can clean. That sounds silly but she does a better job if she doesn't have to clean around papers and things like that on my desk.

Canadian Things To Do Today:
- put the summer tires into the barn until April
- fill and hang the bird feeder
- check out the plough guy in case he's not doing my lane this winter :yikes:
- drain and stash the hoses
- find the outside lights and decorations - Did I throw them out last year?
- cover the AC
- have a cup of cranberry tea when it starts to get dark out there :lol:

If I get that all done, I'll feel ready for winter.

Hi everyone! Another Canadian checking in! No s**w here today, the high is supposed to be 17! Wierd!

I have been back on track since the end of April and have lost 28 pounds. I am just counting calories. I was walking during the summer before work in the morning, but once the mornings got too dark, I just fell off the exercise wagon. We are on vacation next week, but once we get back I am going to get back to exercising one way or another.

We are going to Cancun next week, and there is a tropical storm (Ida) headed that way. Hope it doesn't materialize!

Well, I'll check back in when we get back.

I am sooo envious! My cleaning woman just told me that she is going to Cuba for three weeks in January. I have such an urge to book something but really can't afford it as we're doing Disney in March.

:comp: I can sure tell this is a CANADIAN thread -- all this talk of trips south!!! :lol: Just like Canadians wanting to escape the snow and winter, but not me ... :dance: I'm stayin' home and hybernating! Honestly though, I don't have the health to travel anyways.

:welcome: JUDY LYNN ~ glad you joined us here on our Canadian thread; have a wonderful trip, and see you when you get back ... :beach:

2b ~ I have 7-day weekly menu on the side of my fridge that I can see at a glance to give me some ideas for dinner on any given day. I find this really helpful for me ...

SUNDAY ~ Roasted or Deli CHICKEN OR other Roast (beef or pork)
MONDAY ~ pork chops or steak; or shepherd's pie
TUESDAY ~ leftovers; fish or chicken
WEDNESDAY ~ spagetti & meatballs; or pasta of some type
THURSDAY ~ Fish & chips; fish & rice bake; or Chicken
FRIDAY ~ pita pizzas, or hamburgers, or take-in
SATURDAY ~ sausages, beans, or superdogs, or optional

Subs ~ cabbage rolls, hamburger steak & onions, creole patties, chicken & ribs, casseroles, beef or chicken stew, meatloaf, omelettes, meatless, homemade soup or cassoulet, or chinese, etc.


RUTH ~ I can tell you live down south becuz most of the things on your list we had to do the last half of October becuz we know the snow flies in November, but it's still pretty light yet.

Hope you all have a FABULOUS FRIDAY tomorrow ... Rosebud :hug:

Another Canadian checking in :) I've survived the parent teacher interviews yesterday and today, whoo! The parents were all supportive thank goodness.
Rain and wind here, I'm wondering if the dogs really need to go out tonight? I know they want to...lol....and I need the walk.....hmmmm.......
Nice to meet you.

:welcome3: AR4life ~ oh, your bougie is sooooo cute; I want one, I want one! :lol: But first, I would have to convince DH that we could handle a second furry baby -- he's a pooper and says that the one we have is enuff work for us. I think he's becoming an old fuddledud ... don't worry, he says as much himself! ;)

Well, we have been blessed with gorgeous :sunny: this afternoon and it has warmed the temps up as well. We spent the morning rearranging furniture in our livingroom for Christmas; yah, I am an earlybird, but I really just wanted our front window free so I could sit there in my rocking chair and watch my birdies go to and fro ... :D

Hope all you ladies have a wonderful Weekend; take care ... Rosebud:hug:

They were talking about this new website called www.weightmirror.com where you can up load a picture of yourself and your weight now and then you move this slider to how much weight you want to lose,(max of -75 lbs) and then it will do a picture rendering of you with the loss. I tried it, very cool.

:wave: HEY FELLOW CANUCKS ~ a bit dull and gray out there today; but the sun is promised for tomorrow -- hope they are right! Just having a quiet day at home resting while my mouth and body heals a bit.

2b -- ya, that sounds fun; they are showing all kinds of cartoon sites that will transform any picture ouf yourself too -- they must be becoming popular as you see them everywhere now.

Hope you all have a super Saturday Night; and take good care ... Rosebud:hug:

It's been too darned cold to do the things on my list in October. It looks like tomorrow will be a bit more reasonable so I'll tackle that stuff after Church.

There was an all-family yard sale at the Legion Hall here this morning. What a lot of packing, hailing and unpacking for a measly $50 or so! The good thing is that some of the other families donated their leftovers to my Church for our May long weekend sale.

I'm tired, have a cold and feel chilly so am going to have a fire in the woodstove, a pasta comfort supper and head to bed early. Winter is a'comin' in!

... so am going to have a fire in the woodstove, a pasta comfort supper and head to bed early.

RUTH ~ oh, that sounds nice -- I so want my own fireplace but we rent here, so I'd have to get one of those electric ones with the heater and pretty realistic looking flame ... hmmm ... :chin:

Thanks for the welcome Rosebud :)

Actually I have 3 dogs, couldn't fit them all on my avatar.....hehe


Rain and wind this morning then voila......sunshine, what a beautiful fall day it turned out to be.

I had the oil changed in my little car and it's going away for the winter, put in a gas stabilizer and put the battery on trickle. She doesn't like the cold and rain much...lol.

Have a wonderful Sunday :D

Canadian here - Kelowna, BC! Prob moving to Burnaby by the beginning of next summer :)

Hi West Coasters and :welcome: to this group.

Well, I went to the Remembrance Day service in our village today and it was a beautiful day to sit under the trees for the ceremony. We always hold it the Sunday before Nov. 11 and it's usually cold and wet. Half the seniors come down with colds and blame it on that! I went back to the Legion for a tea and some sandwiches and then came home to blow leaves from the lane. It was just gorgeous out there. I just came in now after having a cup of tea on the front porch and watching the sunset. I hope your days were as good.

Hello Canucks!! I joined this week and I am so happy to find other Canadians here, wuith their own thread no less:) I decided on Oct.28th that I am done with being overweight, and thinking about it all the time, so here I am. I am loving this site! and I am looking forward to getting my own ticker, they look so neat:) have to go, my son is in a play at church and the practise is in 15 mins... chat soon

:wel3fc: SWEETSCRUMPTIOUS and ELAINE ~ glad you both found us; yes, it's nice that we can come here to chat a wee bit with other Canadians ...


We had the nicest day today ... full :sunny: for the entire day; I got up early to watch the sun rise and we went for a drive to our lot to check on things (our camper etc) and to bring a few things home; just to close things up for the year and it was glorious weather today. We went for a walk while we were out there too and chatted with one of the neighbours awhile too.

Hope you all have a MARVELLOUS MONDAY tomorrow ... :hug:

It's so wonderful to have the family together for Sunday dinner. I don't mind doing the cooking and hosting.
Have a great week!

:wave: HI FOLKS ~ Woke up to :rain: this AM, but it stopped by this afternoon, so we went up town to pick up a few things. They had some bargains on veggies, fruit, and meat today -- fall is a great time to pick up good deals! It was fairly busy up town for a Monday: must have been all the sales. ;)

So I got a bit of walking in today as well! Kudos for that and made a nice pot of veggie soup for lunch from leftovers again ... yum! Time to put dinner on -- something with lean ground beef ... hmmm ... :chin:

Have a great evening; and hope you all have a terrific Tuesday tomorrow too ... Rosebud :hug:

It is beautiful here today!! I can't believe that I am writing Christmas cards and the weather is so lovely:) anyway, just wanted to touch base and see how everyone is doing, are you staying on track? I am doing well food wise, now I have to try harder at the working out. Anyway, glad to be able to chat with other canucks, eh?

:wave: HI THERE ~ We had another day of gorgeous :sunny: today. Had to go pick up DH's new glasses, then we decided to go for a drive in the country to a favorite lake as it is so pretty with the sun shining on it; and it was very nice. Gotta take advantage of these lovely days when we gottem' ...

ELAINE ~ wow, you are early getting your cards out; I haven't started just yet but I hope to have them out before December. We are so grateful for the lovely weather we are getting this week, becuz it had seemed like fall had passed us by this year, but this makes up for it! Lovely stars out there the last two nights; so close it almost seems like you could touch them! :D

Had a good OP day yesterday and today; had that homemade veggie-bean soup for lunch again today. Last night, we had hamburger steak & onions with new potatoes (with skins on), veggies, and coleslaw. Tonight, we just had Chicken franks and beans as we weren't that hungry. Got some walking in this week, and am very glad of that.

Hope you all have a Wonderful Wednesday tomorrow ... Rosebud

:wave: HELLO FELLOW CANUCKS ~ We had another lovely :sunny: day today, so we took advantage of that and spent a good part of the day on our deck hanging our Christmas decos. This way they are now up and we don't have do put them up during a blizzard or anything like that ... Got lots of walking in today too (back and forth; back and forth)! :lol:

Today is our pasta day also, so I made a lovely Bolognese sauce with Penne and it was yummy. Have 4 dishes leftover over for another dinner and maybe a couple of lunches: into the freezer they go for a day when I don't feel like cookin' ... :D

Hope you all have a great day tomorrow ... Rosebud :hug:

This is my favorite Remembrance Day Poem/song. As you all should know, the author was a Canadian soldier who came from the city I went to high school in -- Guelph, Ontario; and I even like to sing it sometimes ...


IN FLANDERS FIELDS by John McCrae (1872-1918)

In Flanders fields, the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place, and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago.
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
... In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch be yours to hold it high,
If ye break faith with us who die --
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
... In Flanders fields.

__________________________________

It's my favourite also Rosebud.
My Grandpa was in WW1 and dad was in WW2. Neither of them spoke about the war. Dad was in the RCAF.
Brave men and women all, lest we forget.....................

I found out today from my grandmother that my great grandfather fought at Vimy Ridge, and another great- great grandfather fought on the Plains of Abraham.... I am 37 years old and I had no idea that I had men in my family that fought and were wounded for my freedom. I have always been grateful to those in the military, but now I feel a bit more connected. And truly proud to be Canadian!!

I can't remember a Remembrance Day when it wasn't cold and wet but yesterday was great! I guess we are now in Indian Summer and, IMHO, we deserve it after a cold and soggy October. October is usually my second favourite month (after May) but this year it was a wash - in more ways than one!

Later this month I am visiting a 3FC friend in the States to celebrate American Thanksgiving and am starting to realize I need to get my Christmas stuff organized. My DD is in Nanaimo and it sure would be a relief to get her family gifts mailed out before I go. Somehow I think it would be cheaper to mail them from the States but getting through security would be a hassle. I had to open a wrapped gift once.

I know it's early but I'm going to take advantage of the sunshine today to get the lights and garlands onto the front porch. No turning on until December though. When do you decorate and light up? Around here some folks are already on it!

Gee, I tried to get in here all day and couldn't for some unknown reason; others had the same problem. Finally got creative and got in by coming in on an old thread directly ... :shrug:

RUTH ~ we put up our outdoor Christmas decos yesterday for the same reason you want to; the great weather. We had :sunny: all day yesterday (three days in a row; four if you count part of today too), so it was the perfect time to do it. We won't be turning them on until December 1st thought to save on hydro, of course (as I'm doing great keepin' our bills down and want to keep it that way) ... ;)

Had another busy day today; did some more sorting of our spare room and tossed out 3 boxes today. The room is half empty now and that is with all our Christmas boxes in there too, so we are almost done ... yeah! :carrot:

We really had to downsize when we moved here last year, but it was so rushed that we just packed and moved, so we have been spending the last year unpacking and sorting and donating the good stuff and tossing the junk as well. Couldn't believe how much we had accumulated over 16.5 years; way too much, that's how much ... :lol:

We had nice wild pacific salmon with mixed rice and french style green beans for dinner and it was very nice; poached the fish in lite Ceasar dressing and it was yummy. So I got lots of walking and exercise for today as well. Hope you all have a fabulous Friday tomorrow ... Rosebud :hug:

:wave: Well, I wasn't the only one who couldn't get in here since Thursday, but the site it back up and so far, it seems to be running smoothly ... yeah for that! :carrot:

Actually, I had a quiet day at home, as we awoke to :rain: this AM, but the sun did try to peak out a few times. I chatted with a lot of family and a friend today; and had a very restful day.

We had homemade ww Pita Pizzas for dinner tonight; this one of my all-time favorites as I just love, love, love pizza, and this is a much lighter version but just as yummy!

Hope you all are having a great weekend too; take good care ... :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Rosebud, have you been married for 16 years? I have too:) anyway, I am still raking my lawn, and have not yet gotten out one holiday decoration... but I am almost finished my shopping only 2 people left to buy for:)!!! yeh!!
hope you have a great , peaceful weekend!

Hi everyone! We are back from vacation, and while it was lovely, it is so nice to be home. The weather was hot most of the time, and it was nice to have a bit of summer in November.

Well, back to work tomorrow, and I just have to get back to exercising. I think DH and I may get a treadmill and I will give up my gym membership. Might as well, as I don't use it anyway.

We get delivery of our new couch and chair this week, just have to arrange a time when one of us can be home during the day. We special ordered it about 3 months ago, so I hope it is nice. We've waited so long I can't even remember the fabric we picked it out.

Well, have a good Sunday evening.

JUDY LYNN ~ welcome back; we have been fortunate here as we still don't have any ***** on the ground; what we did get all melted. :carrot:

ELAINE ~ actually, we have been married since June 1989, so that's 20+ years. We had lived in our previous place for 16.5 years of that, and had accumulated way too much stuff, so we have been downsizing bigtime. :lol:

We had a funny mixed bag of weather today; some :sunny: and some :rain: and some ***** and some ~~~~~ (that's big winds) ... it couldn't make up it's mind ...

We just had a relaxed day today, as I decided to take it easy after such a busy week as my legs were a bit tired. Hope you all have a superbly peaceful and restful Sunday evening too .... Rosebud :hug:

:wave: We had the most beautiful day today. We had :sunny: all day long. We just did stuff around the house this AM, then we decided to do a bit of Christmas shopping and then we went for a ride to a few of our favorite lakes. It was a glorious day ... just way too nice to stay indoors. We got home just as the sun was getting ready to set ...

We found another small ornament to put on our front deck becuz we had one space that was a bit empty. We found an adorable shovel with penquins on it that will look great beside our moose-reigndeer. I also got some lovely snowflake stickies for our front window and a few sparkly snowflakes for our little Christmas tree too.

Made a nice cassoulet bean pot for lunch with some leftover roast pork and veggies from Sunday; and had sole fish for dinner. Got lots of walking in at the store (did this on purpose), then we went for our lovely drive.

Hope you all have a WONDERFUL WEDNESDAY tomorrow; and take good care of yourselves too ... :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Rosebud, sounds like you had a really nice day. You must be retired. I wish I could retire, or even work part time, but we really can't afford it. My job is so boring, some days (like yesterday) just seem endless.

We are supposed to have a high of 7 degrees here today. I may go for a walk on my lunch hour if it isn't too windy. Yesterday the wind was howling something fierce!

Well, off to get ready for the day. Have a great day everyone!

:wave: HELLO FRIENDS ~ we also have gorgeous weather here right now; it seems our fall has finally arrived, and what a blessing it is. We put up some snowflakes in our front window yesterday afternoon, and they look so pretty -- they are a very inexpensive decoration, yet they look so lovely (only $2.99 or less for a sheet of 12) from our local hardware store.


JUDY LYNN ~ Yes, we both used to work, but retired (at different times) due to health problems (DH is a fair bit older than I am too). I often advise young people now to put some of their income away (in savings), becuz we just never know what health problems may sneak up on us as we get older.

Do you have any ***** (aka snow) out there yet? I see that they do have some in the mountains in BC already, or did they make that with machines? :chin: I read today that they opened up the ski runs early in preparation for the Winter Olympics which will be held there soon. Will have to keep our eyes peeled for that, eh ...

Hope all our fellow Canadians are having as wonderful weather as we are ... Rosebud :hug:

We had a nice morning and then back to rain and some wind. Typical November weather. :)

No snow here but the mountains are covered and doing well already. Hopefully it holds till Feb for the Olympics.

Not sure if I'm ready to start decorating yet, I may put mini lights up on my door at school. That would be a beginning ;)

Have a great Friday :carrot:

AR4LIFE ~ we had planned to start early this year to take advantage of the nice weather; we and many, many others put our lights up the last weekend of October becuz we know how cold and icy it can get here normally. This year, we are being blessed with nice mild weather after having 2 snowstorms in October; that all melted and it's all green (well, yellow & green) out there. :lol:

Ya, I hope you do put some lights up; I just love Christmas, can you tell? I like to have everything up by December 1st; and many others in our town do the same. We are celebrating the 100th anniversary of our town next year so they want people to go all out with lights and stuff to get ready for that. We have lots of extra lights, so I'll see if DH wants to donate some for the town too.

We spent the morning trying to decide where to put our Christmas tree; we decided to put it beside the piano this year, as it looks great there. That way I can keep my rocking chair by the front window to look out and see all the pretty lights, and my birdies, and any other activities out there ... ;)

I am still trying to decide what to have for dinner tonight; will be a romaine salad and something ... it is supposed to be cook's night off, so we'll see. :lol: Hope you all have a fantabulous Friday night ... Rosebud :hug:

I was going through some internet history when I saw the website for this page and realized I hadn't been here in a while. I have read all the posts since I was here last to get caught up with all the goings on.

I have been ok with plan but not so much with exercise. I have been having some issues with my DH. So I am trying not to emotionally eat. If I had the money I think I would change my address but then again I have DS to think about too.

I applied for a new job within the company that is full time work so I am keeping my fingers crossed.

I saw a big conversation about Xmas lights and decor. I am not a big fan of this time of year and would be quite happy going through the days without any fuss. I keep hoping that no one puts up any decor until 7 days before Dec. 25. Although on Wednesday past putting up the tree was mentioned and then forgotten, I hope.

The boys are having pizza tonight I will probably cook a steak.

Hope all of you are well on this fine Friday evening.

2B ~ sorry to hear that you are having some marital issues, but congrats to you for not soothing your emotions with food; that is something we all have to practice and the more we do it, the easier it will be (or so they say; lol). I wish I could send you some Christmas Spirit (especially for your children's sake); maybe I can pray some your way ... :hug:

I spent Friday night and this AM decorating my little 4' tree; and it looks lovely. I have to say that we really go all out at Christmas becuz we really believe in the LOVE and JOY of the season; and the true meaning behind it. We take that seriously, but also in a very fun and upbeat way.

I bought some fun comedy Christmas movies, plus one realistic adaptation of the Nativity story from the bible to put under our tree. We do limit how much we spend though; limited to 3 gifts each and one stocking; which is a family tradition that my parents started when we were children. We get one bigger gift, and 2 smaller ones; but we are very blessed, and there really isn't much we need, so it's really just to bless others.

We had a nice day today; we didn't quite get the weather that was predicted, but the :sunny: did peak out a bit this afternoon. I put on the last of my ornaments on our Christmas tree last night and this AM; now all we have to do is the wall decos and that won't take long. We had company for the afternoon; and we had a very nice visit with friends.

After a busy day, put my legs up until suppertime. Had fish & baked homefries for dinner (I had sweet potato ones and DH had the regular); plus I had a romaine salad with mine. Got some exercise in this AM, and ate well today (kudos for that).

Hope all our fellow Canadians out there have a restful weekend; and do take good care too ... ROSEBUD :hug:

Hello from Ontario!!

Nice to see this thread here. I'm a single mom who works full-time, my weight loss has been through calorie counting and cardio 5x per week for 40 min. After I lose a bit more I plan to add in weight training.

I look forward to posting in the thread. Hi everybody! :)

Hi Carrie :)

Rosebud you are so ahead of me on the Christmas front. It's nice to hear about other's Christmas traditions. :)

I went to get my tree from mom's but dad had a fall :( and his chemo was extra strong so I just sat with him. It's hard to see him so weak, I hope tomorrow he is stronger and mom can get some rest. Getting old is no fun when stuff like this happens.

I will go back tomorrow, hopefully get my tree and tell my dad again how much I love him.

Have a great Sunday everyone!