Sugar Shakers - Sugar Busters Weekly Support Board 11/18-11/24

http://members.aol.com/eldemila/sb_sign4.jpg

This is the
SUGAR BUSTERS WEEKLY SUPPORT BOARD where all of you who are following this WOE, or are thinking about doing so, are welcome to come join in and be a part of our wonderful group.

Other than finding support and friendship on this board, we also try to do something during the the week to add a little difference to our board.

MONDAY-MOTIVIATIONAL MONDAY
TUESDAY-TUESDAYS TIPS & FACTS & CHAT AT 9:15PM EST
WEDNESDAY-WEIGH-IN WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY-THURSDAY RECIPE DAY
FRIDAY-FRIDAY FUNNIES


Please take some time to check out our extensive recipe boards. Our RECIPE BOARDS can be located at the link below:

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=89


We have SEVEN INFORMATIVE BOARDS!!!! Please take a few minutes to visit them! New information is continually being posted, so please make sure you visit them often!!! The boards are listed below as well as the link that will take you to the boards:

THE RECOMMENDED READING BOARD
THE TOOLS & TIPS BOARD
THE FOOD INFORMATION BOARD
MOTIVATIONAL & INSPIRING THOUGHTS BOARD
MY FAVORITE SB LEGAL FOODS
SB 2002 BIO BOARD
SB 2001/2002 PHOTO ALBUM BOARD

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=87

We also have a SB WEEKLY EXERCISE BOARD that you can log your daily/weekly exercises on which is located on our weekly support board:

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=22071

Then there's our latest addition to the SB BOARDS which is called OFF THE EATEN PATH This board is for everything NOT related to SB. You can use this board to post questions or comments on just about anything (okay, within reason). A book you recommend, a cleaning tip, a great website deal, etc. etc. Here's the link:

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=90


NEWBIES! (aka new members) If you would like to REPLY to any of our threads, please hit POST REPLY not NEW THREAD, then type your message in and hit SUBMIT REPLY. If you need to edit your reply, just click on edit located in the body of your post and make changes as you need to, then hit SUBMIT NOW.


WELCOME! :D

http://members.aol.com/debelli/welcome_bear.gif

GOOD MONDAY MORNING EVERYONE!

Will post my usual morning post sometime later, but wanted to make sure I got our
MOTIVATIONAL MONDAY done early in the morning, so here's my contribution for MM, there's two good ones to read:D


http://members.aol.com/debelli/monday_morning_thought.jpg

THE SMALL MOMENTS

Some of the biggest, most positive and enduring accomplishments are the result of small efforts repeated again and again. There is enormous, nearly unstoppable power in those small efforts when they're focused consistently in the same direction.

Tiny, soft water droplets will eventually wear smooth the hardest of stones. So too will small, positive efforts eventually yield big and valuable results.

Your thoughts and actions in the smallest, most seemingly insignificant moments truly matter. They matter very much more than they would seem. For it is in those small, ordinary moments that extraordinary accomplishments are built. It is in the actual living that a life of distinction, success and fulfillment is achieved.

Though you may only move a few inches at a time, those small steps, taken one after another, will eventually put you miles and miles ahead. See the value and real opportunity in each small moment, because those small moments are indeed what combine to make a big and magnificent life.

-- Ralph Marston


**************
CLARITY OF POSSIBILITIES


Most of the limitations you experience are largely defined, supported and given energy by your own perceptions. Change those perceptions, genuinely raise your expectations, and the limitations will begin to melt away.

The experience of limitation is only one way, out of many possible ways you have, for relating to a particular situation. You are always free to make another choice, to relate to your circumstances in a more positive, empowering way.

Though one approach may be blocked, it is only one of many possible approaches. Limitations are always finite, yet the number of positive possibilities is unlimited.

Whatever is holding you back is doing so because you have accepted it as something that's holding you back. Imagine what would happen if you accepted, with just as much certainty, the very real possibility of moving forward.

Are you looking at the world through the fog of limitation or are you seeing the bright, shining clarity of your best possibilities? The way you choose to perceive where you are can make a world of difference in where you end up going.

-- Ralph Marston

***************
Have a wonderful day, and a fabulous week!!!!!

Debbie
194/1??/129
SB since 3/22/00
Reached goal 6/10/01

I slept like a rock last night...after 3 anyway. I had the electric mattress pad on high, and hubby had put clean sheets on the bed and added a velux blanket in the process. I was all warm and snug. It was hard to get up this morning. Of course, I didn't really need to. I will probably go back after breakfast.

Going to church last night was wonderful. I was right...he wouldn't let me stand during the hymns, and I got a few odd looks. After church, I stayed seated a chatted with a couple people who stopped to say hello. It felt great to be back after four weeks! I came home, ate a snack and got in bed. Today I will sleep and read all day. :angel:

BOB: I am letting you know in advance that I am going to a doctor's appointment tomorrow. Other than that, I will be staying in bed, resting. I hope you slept well last night.

HEART: That was nice that you knew someone up there..I hope Deb can get the picture posted for you. The one of Boogie in the cow costume was awfully cute! :moo:

SEF: I love Scrabble! I have a computer edition of it and play the computer all the time. Of course, it does have a word finder hint thing that makes it pretty easy at times. :s:

I'll be back later! Its time for breakfast! :chef:

Hi to everyone. I've been lurking here and decided to introduce myself. I have been doing SB for 10 days. I decided on this WOE for health reasons, it makes so much sense to me. It's been challenging, since I also cook for 2 guys that aren't doing SB. I have very recently relocated to Charleston SC after living my life in Ohio--I have not started working so have some free time to devote to learning SB WOE. I have 3 (almost) grown sons, 2 are away at college.
I guess the most challenging part to me is cutting out the potatoes, pasta, etc. I am so used to eating these starchy foods with meals. I have been hungry a lot too. But it gets easier everyday so I will keep at it. I look forward to chatting with everyone.

Good Monday Morning Everyone:wave:

What a gorgeous day here in Miami! It's cool, crisp and just a bit breezy. Would be a wonderful day to get out and run, if it weren't for having this f:censored:ing cold! Not that I feel too too bad at this time, but my lack of sleep last night, well, it sure doesn't give me a lot of energy, that's for sure. If anyone looks, they'll see I posted the EXERCISE BOARD around 2:30amish. I went to work on the weekly board and got logged off and couldn't get back on, then ELI came in and said "what the heck are you doing?" and off to bed I went-off to bed, but not to sleep though. Couldn't fall back to bed til 5-something then up again by 6am.

Sooo, today, I'm just lounging at home til I have to go get the kids. Have done a few loads of laundry already and just about ready to go make the bed with nice clean sheets. Started the day out with some chicken soup (canned, of course) that I tried my best to spruce up. I'm going to work on getting in some water, I know I have to be somewhat dehydrated with not only being sick but not drinking much of any liquids this entire past week-not something I'm proud of.

I got LAUREN the cutest bracelet on EBAY for Hanukah. Anyone want to see it, just click on the link. I think it's well worth the money.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=980498925

If you missed my quick post of the T-shirt I'm thinking about getting ELI that I posted yesterday, check it out at the link below, I think it's hysterical!!!!!

http://tshirtgiant.site.yahoo.net/bz1052.html

FOR THOSE OF YOU MEETING IN ORLANDO IN JANUARY I will be e-mailing you soon with some details. Until then, if you have any ideas for our Friday night get together, please, let me know via e-mail at Debelli@AOL.COM If there is ANYONE who is thinking about coming, please let me know as well!!! I CAN'T WAIT!!!!:spin:

MONET, glad to see you got out over the weekend and continue to get better. Scrabble lover here too!

LINWORTH, http://members.aol.com/eldemila/sb_sign2.jpg Glad you've decided to jump on our weekly support board and join us. Really, we don't bite, maybe ***** and moan sometimes, but hey, we're women, we're entitled!!!;) I think SB is challenging for most of us when it comes to cooking. Heck, cooking is challenging for me period! In my house I eat SB, my daughter won't eat anything remotely healthy, my son is lacto-ovo vegetarian and ELI will eat whatever whenever he comes home. Even though I'm epicurian challenged I do have an obsession with cookbooks, well, ones that I could use for SB legal meals, but once again, just cracking those babies open after the initial look at them, well, it just seems Greek to me sometimes. What can I say??? LOL!!!! Remember, you can still eat the potatoes and pasta and rice, you just have to choose the healthier alternatives of it being a sweet potato, ww pasta and brown rice and then have to limit the amounts you eat and not to eat too many starchy carbs. This is just one of the great things about SB, you can still eat those foods but just the healthier counterparts! Don't be afraid to ask questions, we love throwing in our 2 cents when asked!!!

Well, I'm off for now. Going to make the bed and then probably climb back in later, in hopes I will fall asleep for a little bit.

Have a great day, and a wonderful week everyone!

Debbie

DEB: That is a really cute bracelet! Laura would love one too! I looked all through that sellers stuff..and not one more to be had! I emailed them to see...thanks for posting the link! The rest of that sellers stuff is really nice...they have some really beautiful necklaces!

And boy did I miss you guys. Our trip was great fun. Very different from what I expected and what I am used to doing for vacation. I'm still rocking though. Hope this doesn't last too long.
Boy is there a lot of food. I did so good with my eating the first 3 days. Basically all the time, but there was just waaay too much of it. Portion control is not something you do on a cruise. The first 3 nights I have fish and veggies and always had SF ice cream for dessert. Stayed away from the breads until the end. They were just too good. I ate some things I have never had, escargot (sp) and it was great! Never thought I would eat and like snails. Lobster (didn't like it). Eggplant. Sorry Deb, didn't like it either. Never made it to the midnight buffets. Always too full. Dinners were 5-6 course meals. I did have about 3 pieces of pizza and a lot of pina coladas. The seas were pretty rough, could feel the boat swaying but neer got sick. Maybe I should have. LOL. Couldn't get into the shopping too much. I have trouble parting with my money. Went to the nude beach one day. DH loved that,:o All in all it was a great time. Glad to be home and back in the routine. I wasn't going to weigh until WIW. But I thought I needed that shock to get me back on track today and a shock it was! 10 lbs up. I really thought I was watching it pretty good. We worked out everyday we were at sea and got our 3 miles walk in every day. It just goes to show you that it can come back very quickly.

I'm hoping that this gain won't last long and I think it will be great incentive for me to stay 100% OP during the holidays. I was worried about it, but I think I will be better now that I can see how fast I can put it back on.

Can't go back and read last weeks posts so if I have missed anything that I should know, someone fill me in.

Deb, Sorry you have been sick. Man was it cold when we got to Ft Lauderdale yesterday. We were at the airport for 4 hours, wished I had your number to call you and at least chat.

Monet, glad you finally got out of the house for awhile and are feeling better. Don't push yourself too hard.

My desk is covered today:( I'll try to get back on later.

It sure is good to be back on here again and back on track with my eating today. I am starving already and didn't have any food in the house so I am drinking water, water, water today.

Jackie

We had a good ole Nor'Easter over the weekend. We were very lucky, as we didn't get the ice a lot of people got. Some people will be without power until Wed., so they say. Our's didn't even hiccup.:lucky:

Jack-K, it sounds like you had a lot of fun on your cruise. Where did you cruise to? I'm rather new to the boards and I have missed a lot of posts.

Deb, sorry you aren't feeling well. Hope your cold is better soon.
I liked the T/shirt. What a cute bracelet. She will love it.

I hope you all have a great day.

Aleka

Good Morning Ladies, :)

It's so good to be back on I feel like I've been in hibernation, and boy was it a big black hole. Don't fall in it's slippery trying to get out;)

Linworthlady: Welcome it's nice to have you on the board, I've just come back myself and these ladies are wonderful. There a great help and a joy to get to know. We all need the suport from time to time. Some of us more that eithers (thats me:o )

Deb: Wow I love the bracelet, I'm sure that Lauren will be in love with it. I also liked the Shirt for Eli, that's cool. I'm sorry your not feeling good. Hope the chicken soup helps. I'm so glad to be back. I hated gaining that weight back, but I still have the 70lbs off. It's just that I made so much progress and now I have to do it all over again. :( I can't believe I allowed that to happen to myself.

Well I guess I best run and fix some eggs for breakfast. Have a nice day everyone,

OOPS: I almost forgot thanks for the Welcome Back BOB and for remembering me, it's so nice of you.

Love to all Glory

SOMEONE keeps sending me SPAM about some stupid song called "ROCKY TOP" - who could that be?!?!? I think this person musta gone in a neutered all my bulldawgs in August just so they could BRAG this week-end. :devil:

ALEKA - There's a picture on Yahoo's most e-mailed content of the snow and ice up there. I'm glad you still have your power. We were without power once for a whole week and had to rotate shifts putting logs on the fire. Camping in the living room with your whole family gets old after one day.

JACKIE - Dontcha love those cruises? We took a nap one day just so we could get up to go to the midnight buffet. It was absolutely gorgeous those ice sculptures and the chocolate fancies....oooohhhhh.....I could gain 10 lbs just thinking about those!

MONET - I sure hope you feel better soon! I'd love to stay in bed for 4 weeks, but because I WANT to and not because I HAVE to! :D

DEBBIE - The bracelet is awesome!! Lauren is going to love that! I like Eli's t-shirt too. FRIDAY - Can we do something at my house?!? Everyone has to see the new house and meet Vixen! Remember we talked about doing something when we agreed to all sign up for the marathon and meet again in O-town! YOU PROMISED!!!

LINWORTHLADY - WELCOME!! I've actually been mia for a while but it's not my fault - it's those stupid Germans who invented SAP! (Not all Germans are stupid, just the ones who programmed SAP) Anyway, you're in a great place for support and ideas!!

That was my baby gurl posted on my last post and my avatar if it's working. I figure she's cuter than those castrated bulldawgs o'mine. I have lots more pictures if anyone wants to see them. ;) We had our first "conformation" beauty pagent this week-end. She came in 2nd!! (out of 2 dogs) :lol: We had lots of fun, though, and didn't expect to win. Just lots of learning for when we start turning up the heat on the rest of the border terriers in the ring. It was good for wearing her out and a tired puppy is always a good puppy. :)

Gotta run the Network **** will be along shortly.

It is a gorgeous Monday here, but sad. I just got a call that a member of my church died unexpectedly this morning. He was in church yesterday and looked well--so I guess you never really know.

It's cold here today and this weekend--was miserable at the game on Saturday--and not just because Auburn lost in an increadibly STUPID fashion. It was cold and wet and we only made it until halftime--and came home and watched the second half in my warm living room.

BOB--do me a favor--don't root for Auburn anymore. I have noticed that whenever you root for my team--we lose! I have two words I want to you repeat all week--like a mantra--Go Bama--Go Bama. Put the jinx on them for a change.

Beth--I've sent you an email, I will be arriving in Huntsville late tomorrow afternoon or early in the evening. If you will send me your phone #, I 'll call you and see if we can get together!

Monet--Sounds like you are slowly getting your strength back! I hope you weren't out in that awful weather we had this weekend. Ick!

Aleka--Thanks for telling me the history of your name--it is beautiful! Miss Belle is a cat. She came to me as a baby a little over a year ago and has enriched my life greatly! She will be making her first road trip when we go to NC for Thanksgiving next week. She is black with yellow eyes--hence my avatar.

OK--I have to get back to work. I hope everyone has a great week. My eating seems to be getting back on track and I am starting to feel "clean" again! It's a good feeling.

Susan

Hi!

Thank all of you for the kind works and thoughts...you really made me feel special. I am slowly coming out of my blues and also getting my strength back a little. At least I am spending less time in bed and taking fewer pain pills.

Zanne: Thank you for your nice words/

Music Teach: You are right that we are very fortunate in the scheme of things. I will be happy when we are even luckier and things get boring around here.

Monet: I do appreciate the prayers, we have needed them. I have been seeing posts about you needing to be in bed. I am sorry that I was not able to go back and find out why. Do you mind repeating the information?

BOB: My goodness! Congrats on the major weight loss! We have been back in Texas since Nov. 4th and will be here until next spring. It is fun to be able to see two fall color changes in one year.

Gracious: Yes, we are all glad that the injuries were not even worse which they could have easily have been. Please keep us up to date about the tests. You know we are pulling for you.

Beth: After being in the hospital just three days, I can see how one can quickly lose their modesty but I agree....sheese!

Fillise: Thank you also for your concern for me. On the subject of traveling with cats....We take our cats back and forth to North Carolina and they do just fine. The vet said not to feed them or give them water the night before the trip and not to let them out of the crate until you are safely in the hotel room. I take a litter box and litter with me and have it made up before I let them out and they do great. If, on occasion they get unsettled, we put a light cloth over the crate and that seems to make them happy. We did not start traveling with them until they were in their teens(14 and 15 years old now) and we have not had any problems
with accidents, etc. Good luck with your trip.

Cherylco: Thank you for the good thoughts and wishes.

Debbie: The accident was near Asheville. We were just going along happily enjoying the fall color. Things will be okay again...soon, I hope. All this shopping talk is making me think I need to get busy and think about Christmas shopping. I hope my family will take pity on me and not expect too much this year. Maybe catalogues will be my best friend this time.

CountryMom: The accident was very scarry. Now, we will need to drive through Houston toGalveston next Monday to visit my daughter and her husband for Thanksgiving. I hope my poor husband is a very tolerant mood since I am an absolute basket case in the car these days.

Tranquil: The doctor says is may be 3 to 4 mounts before the collar bone is healed. I went to the health store and bought some products that are suppose to be helpful in speeding up the process.

Serene: A new job with someone you know.....sounds great!

Jack-K: I stayed on program while in the hospital from the car accident and gained 7 pounds. I was most miffed but it has already disappeared and I hope the same thing happens to the pounds that showed up on the scale for you. I am glad the cruise was fun.

Linworthlady: Welcome! We live part of the year in North Carolina and have had a few occasions to visit Charleston. If it is as wonderful to live there as it is to visit, you are a very blessed lady.

Bye for now,

Thanks for the welcome everyone.
Debbie-I don't know how you can exist on so little sleep. I hope you got a nap today. Thanks for all the time you spend with this board.
Solshine-Your dog is a cutie. I have a 9 y.o. beagle named Grace--she is loved and spoiled by the whole family.
Jackie-The cruise sounds so wonderful. I've never been on one but now some of them leave out of Charleston. Wish I had the $$ to hop on one of the big boats.
Yellowrose/Lyn-Your weight loss is phenomenal! I hope you feel much better after the accident. It all sounds very scary and I'm glad you were not hurt worse. Where do you stay in NC?
Filise-Sorry to hear about your friend. We are huge Buckeye fans and I am excited/worried about our last game on Saturday. We'll be watching it at a sports bar with the Lowcountry Alumni Club.
Thanks to everyone I missed for the welcome and I look forward to learning from you.
Linworthlady's poll: Is it OK to eat an egg everyday?

Boy I go away and all sorts of "oldies" return to the board. How nice to hear from all of you again.

Looks like I have missed out. Guess I'm going to have to try to skim the board from last week to find out what's going on.


Linworthlady- Welcome to our board. This is a great place for support and friendship. I know I sure couldn't do this w/o these people. I look forward to getting to know you.

Aleka, Welcome. I guess you came on board while I was away. We were crusing the EAstern Caribbean, St. Thomas, St. Maaran, San Juan & the Bahamas.

GloryIBe, Welcome back. It is good to hear from you again. We all know where to come don't we?

Solshine. Glad you are posting again. Your puppy is adorable.

Fillise, I think all our SEC teams are doing stupid things. I sure wouldn't want to sit in the cold and rain to watch that either. Maybe next week. Sorry about your friend from church. You're right, we just never know.

YellowRose, First, it is so nice to hear from you again. I take it you have been in some sort of car accident and hospitalized. Hope nothing too serious. Anyone else hurt?

Gracious, What tests? Hope nothing serious. Fill me in please.

Later,

Jackie
257/164??/145 I'm not changing it until I get back there.

Just popping on to say that I have reverted back from all my crazy eating schemes to SugarBusters! I had planned on switching back once I got to goal but I keep falling off the wagon by eating so freaky. Even I can't eat *just* protein for 2 weeks and not have a response of some kind...a carb response that is! So here we go, I know this is best but I just needed to be reminded that slow and steady wins the race.

DEBELLI- I finally tried those Chinese Pears and they are simply delicious! They taste like a cross between an apple and a pear and are so sweet, almost candy-like.

MONET- Glad to hear you are doing better and even got out to church. I am sure that enouraged your heart to be with God's people!

YELLOWROSE- I read your message there and now I can't remember what tests you are referring to! I understand about your being scared in the car still. Nearly 2 years ago I had a man run a red light and turn my mini-van over with me and my 2 boys inside. We were all hanging upside down and they were crying and so terrified. I was nervous being in the car after that for quite awhile...not afraid of my own driving but everyone elses!

LINWORTHLADY- Welcome to the board! This is an awesome place and helps keep you on plan with the support.

FILLISE- You are so right, we never know when our time is up here. I think people should really take that fact to heart and consider if they are truly ready to die or not, spiritually speaking. Very sobering indeed.

JACK-K- Welcome back! Glad you had such a great time. Tose 10 lbs will be gone soon enough, at least you enjoyed yourself and made an attempt to eat well. So you went nude on the nude beach too or what?! :eek:

Gotta run. Making pajamas for my littlest son and I have to cut that pattern out before dinner.

LINWORTHLADY: I hope it is ok to eat an egg everyday! I usually eat two or three! I have read it is not the cholesterol you eat, but what you make that makes your cholesterol high. I use only organic, or cage free hen eggs. Like Egglands Best. The Omega 6 fatty acids are lower in them, and the Omega 3's are higher...so they are much healthier.

YELLOW: I was diagnosed with Mono and in the hospital for two days 3 weeks ago. They told me then I had to totally veg for six weeks. I have three more weeks to go, and it was fun at first, but I am beginning to feel bored! A ruptured spleen is a complication they worry about with mono, which is why they said six weeks. I am cheating just a bit on that, but :sssh: ! Don't tell BOB!

JACK: Good to have you back! You were missed! Those ten pounds are probably mostly water and will drop off fast I bet! Especially with all that walking! :dancer:

FILLISE: Out in the weather? I was out, but my husband is such a jailer! He wouldn't let me walk from the car to the door anywhere we went! He had to drop me off then park. I did manage to walk to the car in the parking lot but we had to argue a bit about it. I don't want to end up weak after all this rest! I am sure the walking did not hurt me. Don't you think? Give Miss Belle a pet from me.

SOL: Your puppy is awfully cute!

GLORY: Good to have you back!

ALEKA: Glad you still have power! We had a tornado here a few years back and were without power for five days! No fun! And that was in spring! It was cool tho, and we had to use the gas log fireplaces to keep warm! Stay snug!

I feel like crap. My allergies are going crazy and my sinuses are all stopped up and I seem to have lost my voice... UGH. I hate this time of year. I get to go to work tonight and hope the officers can hear my sign language over the radio :devil:

Fillise - I really really really wanna see you tomorrow evening, but if I'm not doing any better, I won't be able to wake up...LOL. I'm not contagious... it's all allergies, but I'm on antihistamines that make me soooooo sleepy. Maybe I'll sleep it all off today and tomorrow :)

OK... confession... I ate pizza last night for dinner cause I was too icky and tired to get out of bed and fix anything, and that's what everyone else was having... so they brought me some. Just 2 slices though... then I went back to sleep.
I can't taste anything cause my nose is stuffy... so I told them they could eat the pizza and I'd just eat the box... everything that goes in my mouth tastes like cardboard anyway :(

Well... I'm going back to bed... Gotta get all this antihistamine outta my system before going to work the Midnight-8am shift!! Can't be falling asleep on the job, tho I'm not quite sure they'll know the difference tonite since I can barely speak anyway..LOL!!

See Y'all Later!!! :wave:

Well, our football teams had a crummy week-end. Our High School football team lost on Friday night and the Horns lost on Saturday! In both cases, I think the defenses just forgot to show up. It was awful! At least the Longhorn basketball team played on Friday also and from what I hear, looked great.

My son's birthday is a week from today and have I planned anything? No, of course not. It has completely snuck up on me and I'm not the least bit excited about spending 2 hours with a bunch of 11 year old boys. Finally called the local ice skating rink and begged for a spot. Ya hoo, all we have to do is send out the invites and show up. They do everything else. It's a little pricey, but this year will be worth it.

We went to dinner Saturday night and I ate pretty good, but drank wayyyy too much wine. Don't have any excuses, but I did enjoy myself.

We had to buy 2 new tires for Jordan's truck this week-end. He had a flat and the tire looked like someone had stuck a knife in the side of it. Worst part is it was sitting in our driveway all afternoon. I kidded his girlfriend and asked her if her old boyfriend was in town. She said he wouldn't have the nerve to try something like that.

Linworthlady - Welcome!! We're going to have to shorten that name, though. Can I just call you LW for short?

Jackie - Welcome back, girl! Don't look now, but those pina coladas might have been the problem, hmmm. Funny how we forget to count those as food!!! Sounds like you had a great time. I saw on a cruise board that a group from the Majesty of the Seas got stuck on the private island overnight due to weather. The tenders couldn't get back to the ship due to the swells. They ended up getting all their money back on their cruise plus a free 4 day cruise later on.

Glory - Welcome back!!

Lyn - Hope you're starting to feel better.

Music Teach - How did your football team do Friday night in the playoffs. We're done for the year. It's always sad that the last game has to be a loss when you're in the playoffs unless you go all the way.

BOB - What no movie reviews this week-end? Did you watch Survivor last week? I can't believe they got rid of the cutie cop from NYC.

Serene - Good luck with the new job!

Beth - Hope you're feeling better soon. Gosh those allergies are awful aren't they.

Monet - Get back to bed or I'm telling BOB.

I know I missed some of you. Everybody have a great rest of the day.

Trish

Hi y'all. Had a bad weekend eating wise and haven't done too well today.:eek: Had a hectic weekend, but didn't get anything accomplished. Can't figure that out.

TRISH: We lost too.:cry: It was close tho. 18-13. We didn't go to the game It was too windy and cold for the kids and the game didn't start till 8 p.m. :yikes:Bummer about Jordan's tires. Does sound kind of strange.

Well I just couldn't stand it. I had to go back and scan all last weeks posts. I'm just so nosey.

So far so good today. Totally 100% OP. Threw some chicken breasts in the crockpot before I left this morning with a can of chicken soup. The old cupboard is totally bare. So at least I am prepared. Going to change clothes and head out for my walk. Back to the old routine. It feels so good.

Boy I am starving today. See what happens. Why can't I learn. Just hope I'm so busy tonite that I can keep from snacking. Not going to buy any sf ice cream or anything until I get this extra wt. off. See if I do that again.

See you gals tomorrow. Have a great night.

Jackie
257/164/145

Trying again..

Okay, that was Ashley the Great Pumpkin- a little blurry, but better. Now I will attempt to redo the one of Monique, Jason, Boogie, and myself(red hair)...geez is won't work- okay let me try another..

That one was okay- that was Boogie(hat) and Jason at the Children's Zoo inside of the Philly Zoo. This one will be of Boogie recovering in the hospital and giving his opinion of the food..

Last time and then I give up!

EVENING EVERY BUDDY!!!!


Brrrrrrrrrrrr....it's just a bit nipple over here...I've had my heat on since last night..It was in the 40's this morning! :eek:

ROLLLLLLLLLLLLL TIDE!!!!!!!
Is that better SUSAN????? You don't know what it does to a TENNESSEE FAN to day those words!!!!
Belle will do just fine with you on your trip...better bundle up, it will be FREEZING IN THOSE MOUNTAINS!!!!

JACKIE....NO SHOPPING IN ST THOMAS?????? WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH YOU GIRL!!! You were in the shopper capital of the world!
GLad you're back and so glad you had a good time! I'm betting that most of that weight gain is water weight! I swell up like a big TOAD every time I go...once I get back to my regular water and my OWN seasoning, it all goes away!

MONET....Grrrrrrrrrrrrr I'm watching!!!

TRISH...I don't know who I want to win now!! I guess I'll go for Jan...she's local, but I don't know how long she can last!

BETH...feel better...I know what you're going thru...

GRACIOUS...Is there no end to your talents????

LIN...WELCOME...I love Charleston...I can get lost shopping at the MARKET easier than anyone I know...

LYN...glad you're feeling better..just take it easy and don't jump any hurdles for a while!

SOL..... ROCKY TOP TENNESSEE.....ROCKY TOP TENNESSEE!!!!!
Love the FUR BABY...can't wait to love a cuddle in person...

DEB...great bracelet...Lauren will love that..Did you see my message from yesterday to tell ELI???

I'm off to eat some dinner...my VEGGIE SOUP turned out GREAT!!!
That's probably what I'll have tonight!

BOB

BOB- What kind of vegetable soup did you make? Is it a SB recipe? Are you originally from TN?--my dh is from Bristol.
You all can call me Lin if that won't get mixed up with Lyn. Linworthlady is just way too long.
I was starved and dragging at 3:00 today--not enough protein for lunch and breakfast. I made some tuna salad and had it with 7 triscuits. So I had Uncle Sam's, 1-2 oz WW spaghetti, and the triscuits all today. I think it is too many starchy carbs, but I was so hungry this afternoon.
Jackie-the chicken sounds good--I hate that starving feeling too. But it sounds like you are fightin it good.
Monet-thanks for your advice about the eggs. I'll have to look for Egglands.

Monet feels like a beached whale tonight...I ate too much at dinner, and then it started talking back really bad... So I feel bloated, and gassy and all that miserable stuff. The dinner was good...Mexican meat in ww tortillas with lettuce, tomato, lite cheese, sour cream...and beans. Next time, will half my portions. Don't see how I can sleep feeling like this.

BOB: I was an angel today! Stayed in bed all day! Please don't growl at me! I did help my daughter bake a cake tonight, but when I found out she had not greased and floured the pan properly and the cake stuck, and I started grumbling under my breath, she sent me back to bed and said she could finish it herself. I think she is eating the one that stuck the worst and using the other one alone! Silly girl!

HEART: Great pix!

Ok...hubby is telling me it is time for bed! Nightie night everyone!

:wave:

After 13 days finally the concession speech! The election is--at long last--OVER!:cb: :bravo: :dance:

I went out and had margauritas to celebrate. We really need to come up with the SF version that that little drinky poo. Tequila is made from agave after all!:o

And to show you just really never EVER know. I told you about the death of one of our church members this morning. This afternoon, one of my good friends from church gave birth to a sweet baby girl. So the great circle of life continues--and there is a lot of comfort in that.

BOB--I appreciate the sacrifice! Keep repeating the mantra! Belle and I will not be in the mountains--we are headed for the beach! She will be fine once she gets used to the car.

Heartmom--cute pictures! I'm glad you posted them!

Beth--I hope you are feeling better. I'll call you tomorrow afternoon to see how you are doing!

Yellowrose--thanks for the travel tips. I thought I'd read somewhere about taking up the food and water before the trip. I'll certainly do that. Belle has a brand new crate--her favorite pad to go into the crate and some toys. I also have a travel litter box, so I think we are ready to go!

Linworthlady--welcome to the board! I love Charleston! And she-crab soup is SB legal! YUM! That's my favorite!

OK got to go to bed--long drive tomorrow.

nighty nite.

Susan

linworthlady
Welcome to the board!
It is absolutely amazing how potatoes are a major part of every meal.
It does take some getting used to. I just replace the potato with a salad or veggie.
Once you get used to it it's great.

Deb
Something is trying real hard to get me the past few days. I have a sore throat and am tired. I dislike illness intensely *sigh*
Because I take pills to keep my immune system lowered, the second I sneeze funny I have to start antibiotics, which my stomach hates and usually causes a yeast infection :P


Jack-K
Welcome back!

It's dark and early in O-town and I'm here early to get some work done, but what am I doing? Catching up with you all! I'll be quick…

FILLISE - I'm sorry to hear about your friend at church and glad to hear about your other friend's baby. How sweet! I think BOB has been rooting for the MSU Bulldawgs all season! Have fun on your trip! I hope you get to meet Beth!

ROSE - Ouch! A broken collar bone? My goodness. I am glad that you and your family are alright. I'm sure your husband will totally understand your being a little jumpy in the car. I hope that trip is uneventful for you.

LINWORTH - Beagles are the coolest! One of my friend's beagles is Baily Beagle and I think that's the cutest name. My wonderful hubby fixes my b'fast every morning and I have 4 egg whites (omelette, scrambled or fried), sometimes cheese, 1/3 cup oatmeal (long cook variety) and coffee. On the week-ends we throw some yolks in there or make legal French toast.

JACKIE - My parents went on a cruise very similar to yours and they, too, visited the nude beach. My mom's impression was that some people just didn't need to be going to nude beaches and those were the people at the beach the day they went. :lol:

GRACIOUS - I can't imagine not eating carbs. I mean, I love my protein, but I gotta have my carbs! Your car crash sounds horrible. I hate to see aggressive drivers on the road and stay as far away from them as possible.

BETH - My allergies are really bad right now too. I'm trying Clarinex this go round. At night I usually take an Actifed and that helps - at least, Vince says it does since he can't sleep when I'm snoring. I hope you stayed awake!

TRISHALOO - Stuck on a private island? That doesn't sound too bad to me - unless they didn't have shelter or accommodations. Amazing how those drinks add up, isn't it? They get me every time. I always hate the end of the season. You work so hard all year and it just seems anticlimactic. Now, this year, I can't wait for MSU's season to be over…

HEARTMOM - Good pictures! Thanks for sharing.

BOB - Bought some Wiley's seasoning this week-end. Will it work even if I don't have a pressure cooker? I KNOW - what's a southern woman doing without a pressure cooker?!? I've got the iron skillet - seasoned and all - bundt pan for sticky buns and wooden spoon for ice tea, but NO pressure cooker.

LIN - When I first started out I found it easier to concentrate on the things I could eat and not worry about portions. Once I got the hang of what's legal and what's not and what to substitute to not feel like I'm giving anything up THEN I started working on the portion control. If you're hungry all the time you might not be eating enough - really! I'd hate to see you get discouraged so early. This really is a great way of eating.

CHERYL - I hate them yeast infections. Last time I got antibiotics the Dr. went ahead and wrote a script for a one pill treatment for the infection we both knew I would get. Why do you take medicine to lower your immune system? I hope you're feeling better soon.

New day and so much to do! I had a good SB day yesterday and really enjoyed eating my fruit and I think I did pretty well considering there is slim pickings in the house right now. I am going to post my menu because it has been a long time since I have truly followed SB properly. Comments are welcome. On a good note, I am down 2 lbs from yesterday mornings weigh in so that is encouraging! Immediate results...we all gotta love that!

Breakfast: coffee with cream, chinese pear

Lunch: 1/2 WW pita with tuna made with a bit of mayo

Dinner: 2 baked chicken legs, peas & carrots, 2/3 cup brown basmati rice ( more than I should have but it is so yummy) and a piece of left over roast beef from Sunday's dinner.

Evening Snack: 1 apple, diet pepsi

Water: I was low on water cause I was so busy sewing and I don't like having drinks near my patterns and material but I managed to get in 2.5 litres ( 10 cups)

SOLSHINE-Eating no carbs is crazy but I tend to do crazy things when trying to lose weight. I should know better but I still do it. SB is the best though and I always revert back to it. That car accident was an older man not watching and he went straight through the red light..meanwhile I was turning left on an advance green...just silliness but we were thankful that the kids weren't hurt!

CHERYLCO- Here is to hoping you don't succumb to that illness. Being sick is just terrible and that is usually when we appreciate our health the most! I am with you on those antibiotics and yeast infections. Whenever I take them I get a yeast infection too and I do everything possible to try and avoid them because of it. Nasty things, those yeast infections.

FILLISE- Glad things are settled down for you now politically. Now you and Miss Belle can enjoy each other more!

MONET- Your mexican food sounds yummy. I love making and eating tacos at home, the problem is portion control when I eat it!

BOB- A bit *nipple* or a bit *nippy*? :lol: I don't know about my talents but I sure do love to learn new things all the time.

HEARTMOM- Great pics, thanks for posting them.

JACK-K- You are 164 now with that 10 lbs gain? That is still awesome! I didn't realize you had gotten down to 154 before you left. That is my goal weight so I am surprised I missed seeing that. I am sure it will be a quick loss for you. A few days on plan and you will see a few pounds loss immediately!

MUSICTEACH- Hop back on the wagon girl!

TRISHALOO- Sounds like a great birthday party for 11 year old boys! Better at the arena than in your house!

Okay, I am off to finish those pajamas up. I had cut it all out yesterday and managed to make the pj's bottoms. Today I will make the top and it will be done! The thing about me getting into this sewing is that the other things around the house seem to suffer. I have to learn to manage my time so everything gets done and I can still sew. Ciao.

Good Tuesday Morning Everyone:wave:

A very quick quickie just to say good morning and to tell you all that I will be working on a post later as I lounge my tired and sick butt out on the couch. Still sick, which sucks!

A reminder:

TONIGHT IS CHAT AT 9:15PM EST

Here's the link to the chat room that Suzanne made for us last week. Just tested it out and easy to get in there, just remember, it takes a minute or so to load, so be patient.


http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/chat.php?setwidth=720&setheight=320

Later guys!

Deb

If anyone is looking for a unique t-shirt idea for Xmas, I found a site that will customize a T-shirt really inexpensively. I've been looking for a DRAMA QUEEN T-SHIRT for Lauren and only found 1 site with having one that I liked, but may think about making one up from this other site:

http://www.funnytshirtstore.com/index.html

Thought it seemed pretty reasonable-any thoughts?

Deb

I slept ok once I went to bed. My system has decided it does not like Mexican I guess...or maybe just in that quantity! :lol:

I tried to sleep in, but I just can't do that! I wake up at 7, (would be 6, but I have been sick since the time changed! ) and I just can't go back to sleep.

I have a doctor's appointment today..and I am anxious to see what he says. I am hoping he will shorten the remaining three weeks of his original orders, but knowing him, he won't!

GRACIOUS: Want to make me some jammies too? I have been spending so much time in mine, I am sick of them! I need a new pair...something fun. Just make sure they are flannel! :)

FILLISE: Have a good trip! Glad the election if finally settled, and you have a governor!

SOL: Why work when you can read the board? :lol:

LIN: When I first started SB, I ate whatever I needed to keep from being hungry, but that was on program. Don't worry...three starches a day is not bad. After you get used to SB, if you are not losing, then you can tweek it! Don't you love triscuits? I love the rye ones!

JACK: Good for you staying on program!

CHERYL: I saw where you said you had a sore throat and are tired....I sure hope I didn't give you mono! Feel better!

MUSIC: I have weekends like that all the time! I feel exhausted, but it seems nothing got done! :shrug: Hop on the wagon! See all the hands reaching out to help pull you up? :balloons:

Here is my little friend, to wave his magic wand and make everyone lose a pound by tomorrow morning! :wizard:

Happy Tuesday Gang :wave:

I am happy to report that I am back on track 100% and lost 3 of those nasty 10 lbs today. Hopefully the rest will drop off as quickly.

On a more sad note, we received a phone call late last night from my DH's SIL (which we haven't heard from in 15 years), that his brother had committed suicide. He had led a sad life, an alcoholic, hasn't worked in 20 years, terrible marriage, etc. Even though my DH and he had not spoken in 15 years it is still his brother and last living relative. So this will be a very awkward situation. We have to go over there tonight. My stomach is already upset from thinking about it. But I will go with him as support.

On to catch up:

Heartmom. The pics are precious. I love your beautiful red hair. You are so pretty.

Bob, give us the recipe for that soup. DH said last nite he wants to make some. The last time, my base didn't taste right. What do you use?

Linworth, It's better to eat more carbs than something illegal if you are hungry.

Monet, I hate that feeling. I had it for a whole week :lol:. I'm glad I'm back to eating normal.

Fillise, I made SB maragritas. They were great. I used lime juice, crystal light (not diluted very much) and tequilla. Pretty tasty. The next time I added frozen strawberries. Even better. Have a great trip.

Cherylco, Hope you are feeling better. Stock up on some oj and vitamin c. Maybe that will keep it at bay.

Solshine, I didn't "see" anyone on the nude beach that needed to be nude. :lol:

Gracious, Your menu looks good except you probably should be eating more. Add some salad or veggies. Your breakfast wouldn't hold me long. No, I was at 174 after my 10 lb gain, but I'm not posting that. I wish I had gotten down to 154. One day though. Today is better I have lost 3 of the 10.

Monet, Good luck at the Dr's today. I hope he gives you a little leeway (sp).

Have a great day, be back later.

Jackie
257/164/145
10-10-01

Deb or any other Florida Gals

My friend is coming to Tampa on Friday and said she would bring me some things from Publix. What do they have that I can get?
Do they carry Nature's Own ww buns? How about a ww english muffin? any ideas.

Thanks

Jackie

Jack-K thanks for the compliment!

Are pretzels legal? And I bought some whole wheat blend elbow macaroni that is made of semolina, whole wheat, and wheat germ. I tried it last week with my spaghetti, and it's really good- so is it legal? It has a lot of carbs-42 grams- but under 3 grams sugar. A serving is 1/2 cup dry.

When everyone posts their menus, I feel like such a piggy! I eat a good bit compared to some of you! For breakfast I had 2 oranges and sf yogurt. For lunch I plan on having a good sized salad with Ranch dressing and a bowl of leftover beans/peas mixed. Supper will be spaghetti and salad. One thing that I think has held me up is that I'm a cheese addict! I quit buying chocolate and started buying cheese,lol.

I missed MM. Here's my food for thought:

ONE.
Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.


TWO.
Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.


THREE.
Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.


FOUR.
When you say, "I love you", mean it.


FIVE.
When you say, "I'm sorry", look the person in the eye.


SIX.
Be engaged at least six months before you get married.


SEVEN.
Believe in love at first sight.


EIGHT.
Never laugh at anyone's dreams. People who
don't have dreams don't have much.


NINE.
Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt
but it's the only way to live life completely.

TEN.
In disagreements, fight fairly. Please No name calling.

ELEVEN.
Don't judge people by their relatives.


TWELVE.
Talk slowly but think quickly.

THIRTEEN.
When someone asks you a question you don't want
to answer, smile and ask, "Why do you want to know?"


FOURTEEN.
Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.


FIFTEEN.
Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze.


SIXTEEN.
When you lose, don't lose the lesson.


SEVENTEEN.
Remember the three R's:
Respect for self;
Respect for others;
Responsibility for all your actions.


EIGHTEEN.
Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.


NINETEEN.
When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.


TWENTY.
Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.


TWENTY ONE.
Spend some time alone.

Shirley

MONET- I have only to put the buttons on my son's pj's and they look really good. They are infact flannel...with little space bears on them and stars and moons that glow in the dark! Somehow I think you would want a different print on the flannel. ;)

JACK-K- Normally I would have more veggies and salad but I don't have much in the house now so I was going with what I have. Can't wait til I can go shopping for some good food! Way to go on that 3 lbs...you will be back to 164 before know it. Sorry to hear about your brother in law. It will certainly be awkward but it is so good of you to go and support your hubby.

SEF- Good MM!

HEARTMOM- Don't feel like a piggy..see my comment to Jack-K about my food supply. I would eat more if I had it on hand!!

HiedieHo All!!

MONET: I adore Scrabble. Where did you get the computer version? Is it a special game disc? I love words, that's why I likle Crossword puzzles too. I don't like the books of them that have "EASY" in the title! Keep resting!

LIN: Welcome! Don't look at it as giving up starches! We still have those! Brown rice, sweet potatoes, WW or durum semolina pasta, stoneground sugar free WW bread and rolls, certain cereals. When you read the list you realize how much starches (within reason) we can have.

DEB: Hope you are feeling better. Bracelet is pretty. Join the club! I am not a big sleeper. Never seem to need more than 6 hours, but do better when I get them and I often don't. My intentions are good when my head hits the pillow as I think I am tired. An hour later I am up and prowling!

JACKK: Welcome back to the REAL WORLD! Condolences on your BIL's demise.

YELLOWROSE: Hope you progress rapidly with your healing.

BETH: Sorry you have been feeling so miserable! Good thoughts going your way!

Well, I have procratinated enough! I have the HFH minutes to do, really don't feel like it but if I let them go too long I forget my shorthand scribbles taken during the meeting. Sooooooooo

Take care all.

Shirley

Here was my post for Monday. (I accidentally put it on last weeks board therefore probably noone saw it!) I'M STILL NEW!!! SO BEAR WITH ME!

Hi Everyone!
Hi all, hope everyone had a nice weekend.

This morning I rec'd a ticket for running a stop sign.
For the record, I am not guilty. Now, it was a rolling stop and I did not run it. (This stop sign is situated where there is no intersection or traffic either) It's hard to explain, but I did not truly run a real stop sign...You really have to believe me!

Therefore, I spent $75 first thing this am and I didn't even go shopping! (I have to pay $75 to my attorney in Broward and he gets my tickets dismissed with no points or anything on my license. There is also no record of it, therefore, my car insurance does not increase either. He just goes to court and takes care of it for me. So this am, I've been faxing the ticket and my credit card info/forms to him) Oh well, that's life...

Amber continued with her attitude over the weekend. Hope she sees the light soon. Gary's relatives were still down from Buffalo this weekend, therefore lots of food around again. I didn't do so well this past weekend. (Amber didn't go since she refused to dress appropriately) Who knows what will happen during the holidays with her!! I had lasagna (illegal pasta) on Saturday, but I did not eat any of the cheesecake and bluberry cake they had out. On Sunday, I had (2) guwumpkies(stuffed cabbage), there was illegal rice in it, but I again did NOT have the chocolate fudge cake, etc. for dessert. This is like the first time that I have had any illegal food since starting this...OH, and I went to Ole Ole and forgot my SGWW tortillas, so I ate the corn tortillas anyway. I had a bad weekend. Then Sunday night I ate SF icecream!!! GEESH!!! Oh well, I'm back on track today, eating very little carbs today and tomorrow to off set it...

Gary got my bike and my glider put together so I have lots of exercising options now...I love the glider, it's fun and something to do when I just want to watch TV and get some exercise in!!

Bob: e-mailed those recipe books to you. Hope you got them finally! I LOVE THE BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAINS! You are sooo lucky! I try to get up there every couple of years to the Asheville, NC and Boone, NC areas... Congrats on losing another pound! Loved the muslim joke. Sorry to hear you are also having trouble sleeping! You, Shirley and Debbie could start your own club!

Aleka: You're lucky to have the snow. Send some down here! Sounds like you got some nice things x-mas shopping and nice bargains.

Gracious: Thanks for your support re: my daughter. It is a very trying time for me and I will try to keep on loving her through it all...

Beth: What is this hamster fiasco about? Sorry you're up 3 lbs. Hope it comes right off for you!

Shirley: Your wildlife tour sounded exciting. Loved the estrogen jokes. Computer games are fun, but can be addicting at least for me! Try and get some sleep...

Wendy: Sending you warm wishes on your new job. You will do well!! Just stay confident and everything will fall into place. Thanks for all your encouragement re: Amber. If you can go through all that you did and come out with good grades, Amber surely can! Sorry you had to go through such a rough childhood.

Monet: You have a teenage daughter that cleans! That's amazing. You should write a book! Pls let me know what your secret is. Glad to hear that you got out of the house just for a little while. It's good to get some fresh air when you are sick. Don't worry, your dream will come true one of these days!

Debbie: Sorry to hear that Lauren's sick and that you may be coming down with it. Don't exercise, just take it easy. I love the T-shirt for Eli. Very funny! Thank you too for all your kind words re: Amber. It's a tough time and like you said, she' s got to want it and there is only so much that I can do...It's amazing that I finally broke that plateau, I just hope that I didn't gain it all back. I will find out on Friday.

Laurie: Your picture of your son looks adorable!

Glory: Welcome back. I'm fairly new. I can relate to the trying times of teens. I'm sorry that she has those allergies too. That's got to be hard to incorporate into a teens daily life. Hang in there!

Okay, going to go back to work. Take care and talk to you all soon.

Hi again!

This is my post for Tuesday:

(I apologize again for posting my Monday post on last week's board! :(

Yesterday and today has been good sugarbuster days. I'm eating low carb and no starchy carbs right now to make up for my indiscretions on Sat and Sunday and I'm feeling better already.

Well, it's supposed to be back up in the 70's today. These cold fronts don't last very long. I had a lot of posts to read since I was looking at last weeks board and wondering where everyone was.
:o

Glad to find you all here!:lol:

Anyway, not much else going on.

Shirley: In response to your post, I have only had 1 ticket in the past 5 years. This attorney handles tickets for a flat fee of $75 no matter what the ticket costs. He goes to court for you and has it dismissed without points on the license. This is why I use him, so that I don't have to go to driving school and/or get points on my license. Most tickets cost more then $75 so it is well worth it to me. All I had to do was fax over a form to him and pay by credit card and it's all over with for me within about 15 minutes. Convenience is great, ain't it? By the way, I loved your MM quotes!!


Lin: Welcome to our board! You will love it here. Don't worry about eating too many starchy carbs for the first week or two. Your focus right now is to just stay legal. Once you've got that down, then you can cut your portions down. It's also okay to eat eggs.

Debbie: The bracelet is VERY cute. I'm sure she will love it. If you want to meet on Sat or Sunday, just call me at work 305-891-0050 ext. 2262 if you want to set up a time at Ole Ole. I am anxious to meet you too! Hope you are feeling better soon.
:flow2:

Susan: Sorry to hear about your friend in the church and then happy to hear of the new birth! The circle of life is truly amazing and a miracle in itself. Glad to hear that your election is finally over and you have a new Governor!:cp: It's fun to celebrate isn't it?

Laurie: Boogie is SOOOOOO cute! Ashley is too! You are very lucky to have such cute kids as I'm sure you know. Thank you for sharing all those adorable pictures with us. I love cheese too and eat quite a bit of it now that I don't eat chocolate. I don't think there is a legal pretzel out there. As far as the pasta, if it's high in fiber and it doesn't say "enriched" in the ingredients it's probably okay to eat. Fort he record: My portions are bigger then what people post too!!

Beth: Hope you are feeling better soon! Are you a dispatcher? I used to dispatch for Division of Forestry and for the Florida Highway Patrol a few years ago...It's hard when you lose your voice and you have to take all those drugs to clear your sinuses and allergies. That stuff must be the sleepiest medication out there!

Jackie: WELCOME BACK!!!
:wave:

It sounds like you had a nice cruise and lots of good food. Most of that will be water weight, so don't fret! It sounds as if you stayed on plan pretty good. I'm very proud of you. We want you to post pictures!!! Publix does not have any legal pastas or breads. (I do buy Pepperidge Farm 100% SGWW bread at Publix) I shop at Whole Foods for tortillas and pasta.

I was deeply saddened to hear of your husband's brother's death. :( It's good that you are there to comfort your husband. If you need ANYTHING, please let me know. I am here for you....

Solshine: Cute picture of your dearest and most loyal friend!!

Hi to Bob, Trish, Tina, Monet, Glory, Aleka and anyone else I might of forgotten!
:flow1:

Have a wonderful day and:

AS WE REMEMBER THANKSGIVING:

REMEMBER TO SMILE AT A STRANGER

TO KISS A CHILD

TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE

TO HUG A FRIEND

TO CHERISH YOUR FAMILY

TO GIVE SPECIAL THANKS

TO HELP THOSE LESS FORTUNATE

TO SAY "I LOVE YOU"

Hi,

Today, I am going for my second outing in a month. This last weekend I went to Sherman (about an hour’s drive
away from Dallas) to visit my mother. I was very happy to see her and she was glad to see that I would be okay.
Phone calls do not always convince people. I am being picked up by a friend and we are going to a review. This
will be the first time I have been this long without my brace, so, we will see how that goes. I hate to take the Pain
killer because it makes me a little ditzy. Also, I don't want to fall asleep in the middle of the woman's talk.

Linworthlady: Thank you for the encouragement on the weight loss. I have been holding steady for some time
now but I guess in the scheme of things, especially right now, I am happy with where I am. When we are in North
Carolina, we live in the mountains near Brevard which is about 30+ minutes from Asheville. Do you know where
that is?

Jack-K: Hi! Yes, I was in a head on collision Oct. 19th. The other driver, for some unknown reason was driving
on our side of the highway. My husband was driving and while he was bruise badly, he did not have any broken
bones. A dear friend of mine in the back seat had to have surgery for a split diaphragm. I have a broken collar
bone and some broken ribs and a strange leg problem that keeps me from walking correctly. We will all be okay
and we feel lucky that things were not worse. The insurance people are dragging this out and this is making us
crazy, however. Oh, the margaritas made with Crystal Light lime juice sounds like a very good idea. I think I will
try that.

Gracious: I went back to find out what tests I was referring to and couldn’t find anything. I had taken notes while
I read and must have gotten confused. How embarrassing! This is how rumors get started. Sorry, I guess we can
chalk this up to the pain medicine. I an okay about my husband’s driving but I don’t trust the rest of the people on
the road. You can tell that they have not been in an accident recently or they wouldn’t drive the way they do. I
think they forget that their life depends on it.

Monet: Too bad we are not closer....we could veg together. (Read, watch TV and play cards.) Sorry to hear about
this complication in your life and I hope you will feel much better soon. Yes, I am beginning to feel like I need to
get around more myself. They say it will be 3 to 4 months before this collar bone is completely healed.

BOB: I think hurdles, as well as basketball, football and even soccer will be out for awhile. Everyday is a little
better though.

Fillise: I always feel so mean when I have to take up the food and water the night before a trip but we have had
such good luck with the “Girls” not getting sick that I continue to do it. They have always been fine. I will be
watching to see how the trip went for you.

SolShine: Thank you for your kind words. I, also, wish for an uneventful trip. I will let you know how it went
when we return after Thanksgiving.

HeartMom: Cheese has also been my down fall but I found a Cabots 50% Light that I get at Sam’s that is very
good. I feel like I am keeping the fat down that way. Cabot’s also makes a 75% Light but it is almost $9 a pound
whereas the 50% I can get for $3.50 a pound.

Hi All: It's a crisp day here in the pacific NW and no rain in site. thank God. Well I was going to post but DH just called and said he was ready to be picked up at work so I must run. Will be sure to post tomorrow.

Thanks for the Welcome backs, And yes BOB I'm really sticking around this time.

Love ya all Glory

I know it's not recipe day but I got this in the email today and it sounds great for the holidays...

Sugar-free CRANBERRY SAUCE


Makes about a loaf pan full. Tastes like ocean spray! 1 bag cranberries (1lb -approx. 2 1/2 cups) 1 1/2 cups water 1/2 cup Splenda
1 pkg. s/f lemon Jell-O
1 pkg. s/f orange Jell-O
1/2 cup cold water


Bring cranberries and water to a slow boil and cook for 10 minutes or until the cranberries burst and the liquid starts getting kind of thick. Use a potato masher and mash the cranberries in the pan. Add the Splenda and 2 boxes Jell-O and mix well. Add in the 1/2 cup cold water, stir well, and pour into a loaf pan (or whatever you have). Cover and chill until set firmly about 4 hours. Slice to serve. (I prefer to use 2 boxes of orange sugar-free Jell-O, but any combination will work fine.) Jenita from Missouri


All is going well in my world. Just busy.

Love,
Crystle

Getting ready to head out.

Not sure what the evening will bring.

Heartmom, the only legal pretzels I know of are the Oat Bran pretzels.

Sef, Loved the MM, A good message. I have to transcribe my "shorthand" quickly too or it's lost.

Denise, Sounds like you are back on track. Hang in there. Thanks for the sweet words and kind offer. This board is more than just SBing, it's friends too.

Yellowrose, Glad you are getting out some. Hoping you don't have too much pain from not wearing your brace. Glad no one was hurt seriously.

Counrty, Have a great night.

Glory I Be, glad you are sticking around.


Jackie

Back from the doctors.....

He decided my daughter has something kin to asthma, and gave her an inhaler to use. Then he ran in and out, and while he was waiting on her lab tests, went to see another patient, and never came back to see me! Man, was I ticked! The PA checked me...decided there was too much tenderness in the vicinity of my liver and sent me for liver function tests. All in all, a frustrating afternoon!

So, back to bed, and resting. No let up from that corner!

GRACIOUS: Space bears and glow in the dark sound just my speed... The weirder the better! I definitely walk to a different drummer!

DENISE: My daughter cleans once in a while to be nice...not often...but usually she cleans when she wants money! I work out deals with her, doing things for her in return for cleaning. When she wants to have a party here, I am pretty open about it, but she has to do the cleaning to MY satisfaction ahead of time. She is a bit more structured than my other two, who had NO concept of what cleaning meant. The older daughter is married, and I really feel for her husband! :lol: Hang in there, once your daughter hits about 21, she will settle down. My 21 year old did at about 20. She is married now, which also helps, but we REALLY butted heads until she was at least 19!

Ok, I am going to crawl in bed before BOB comes after me. I keep listening for Rocky Top, and feeling just a little bit uneasy! :s:

Thanks for your support Monet. I just hung up on her because she refuses to go see the Guidance Counselor with me tomorrow!! I'm soooo angry. Now, she is grounded on the weekends and I'm taking her computer, phone, Tv and Radio out of her room AND her walkman!! I'm trying.....

Speaking of recipes, I would like the veg soup one and the Crystal Light margaritas.
Lyn-I know where Brevard is-my brother now lives in Lake Toxaway. It is so pretty up there. I hope you continue to get better and better.
Is that how you all answer all these emails--take notes while you read everyone? That is a great idea. I was wondering how it was done :)

Can't Believe We Made It" !
> > > Perhaps you lived as a child in the 50's, 60's or
> > >70's or even earlier. Looking back, it's hard to believe that we have
> > >lived as long as we
> > >have...As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air
> bags.
> > >Riding in the back of a pickup truck on a warm day was always a
> special
> > >treat. Our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based
> paint.
> > >We
> > >had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors, or cabinets, and
> when
> > >we
> > >rode our bikes, we had no helmets. (Not to mention hitchhiking to town
> as
> > >a
> > >young kid!) We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >Horrors. We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and
> > >then
> > >rode down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After
> running
> > >into the bushes a few times we learned to solve the problem. We would
> > >leave
> > >home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the
> > >streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day. No cell
> > >phones.
> > >Unthinkable. We played dodgeball and sometimes the ball would really
> > >hurt.
> > >We got cut and broke bones and broke teeth, and there were no law
> suits
> > >from
> > >these accidents. They were accidents. No one was to blame, but us.
> > >Remember
> > >accidents? We had fights and punched each other and got black and blue
> > >and
> > >learned to get over it. We ate cupcakes, bread and butter, and drank
> > >sugar
> > >soda but we were never overweight......... we were always outside
> > >playing.
> > >We shared one grape soda with four friends, from one bottle and no one
> > >died
> > >from this. We did not have Playstations, Nintendo 64, X Boxes, video
> > >games
> > >at all, 99 channels on cable, video tape movies, surround sound,
> personal
> > >cell phones, Personal Computers, Internet chat rooms ... we had
> friends.
> > >We
> > >went outside and found them. We rode bikes or walked to a friend's
> home
> > >and
> > >knocked on the door, or rung the bell or just walked in and talked to
> > >them.
> > >Imagine such a thing. Without asking a parent! By ourselves! Out there
> in
> > >the cold cruel world! Without a guardian. How did we do it? We made up
> > >games
> > >with sticks and tennis balls and ate worms and although we were told
> it
> > >would happen, we did not put out very many eyes, nor did the worms
> live
> > >inside us forever. Little League had tryouts and not everyone made
> the
> > >team. Those who didn't, had to learn to deal with
> disappointment....Some
> > >students weren't as smart as others so they failed a grade and were
> held
> > >back to repeat the same grade.....Horrors. Tests were not adjusted for
> > >any
> > >reason. Our actions were our own. Consequences were expected. No one
> to
> > >hide
> > >behind. The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke a law was
> unheard
> > >of. They actually sided with the law, imagine that! This generation
> has
> > >produced some of the best risk-takers and problem solvers and
> inventors,
> > >ever. The past 50 years has been an explosion of innovation and new
> > >ideas.
> > >We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned
> how
> > >to
> > >deal with it all. And you're one of them. Congratulations! Please
> pass
> > >this on to others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before
> > >lawyers
> > >and government regulated our lives, for our own good.
> >
BOB

Hi everyone!

It's been a while since I've posted last, but I have been lurking the last week or so. :) Well, I had my first major set back about a month or so ago. I totally blew it! Since Deb called me, I have finally been able to get back on track, and I have lost some of the weight I had regained. I think I gained 5-7 pounds during a 3 week bad period. I am looking forward to seeing the pounds start to come off again. I was not about to give up almost a year of hard work by going back to my old eating habits... not to mention that I felt lousy again with all the crappy food I had been eating. Anyway, just wanted to drop in and let you all know I'm still alive and doing well! Take care! :)

EVENING EVERY BUDDY!!!


Still chilly over here, but I'm loving being able to throw open the windows and let the wind blow everything out!

My soup recipe is my Mom's and I've been eating it all my life!!!!


2 beef shanks
2 cans SWANSON'S 99% fat free beef broth
1 large and I mean large spanish onion
1 small head of cabbage
1 LARGE can crushed tomatoes
1 regular size can DEL MONTE stewed tomatoes(no added salt)
1 pkg LIPTON'S veggie soup mix
2 regular cans VEGALL (no added salt)

IF you want to add any other veggies, please add them the more the better!!!

Cook the beef shanks in the beef broth with only a little salt. ( I use a pressure cooker)
In a large soup pot, cut the onion to your preference but not minced...chop the cabbage and add together with everything else.
When the meat is done, let it cool, pour the broth into the soup pot and tear the meat apart. I sometimes use about a pound of beef stew meat also.

Stir all together mixing really well...you will be able to tell if you need to add any water and usually you do.

There are little chuncks of potatoes in the VEGALL and I strain the juice into the soup pot and then pick out the potatoes...

Bring to a boil and then simmer for about an hour....YOU WON'T BE SORRY!!!!

BOB

GOOD EVERY BUDDY!!!


My Brother surprised my Mom this afternoon...so much that it made her cry!

LIN...Not originally from TENNESSEE, but 65 NE on the border of KENTUCKY ..
BRISTOL, is a fond memory of my growing up years. I was in the band and we used to go there for competition every year..My Nephew played football for ETSU in Johnson City. And then there's KNOXVILLE...IF there was ANY money to be made there, I would live there in a NEW YORK MINUTE!!!
Do you like living in Charleston? What took you there? Is your Husband a TENNESSEE fan?

MONET....YES...tell where you got the online version of SCRABBLE?
Sounds like a ruff day....better listen to OLE BOB ....GET IN THE BED AND STAY THERE!!!!!

SUSAN...SO, your going HOME for Turkey DAY???? or are you talking about Christmas...ROLL TIDE!!!! PLEASE DON"T TELL ANYONE I SAID THAT!!! ROLL TIDE~!!!!!!

SORRY I can't address everyone.. I'm ONCE AGAIN doing laundry
and finishing up things I didn't get done this weekend!

Have a good evening..

BOB

Daramus- welcome back! Did you loose 50 pounds on SB? I also have lost around 55 pounds, but only 20 of those are from SB. I joined this board at the end of April but it was about 2 months later before I really committed myself to this way of eating. I enjoy the freedom of this woe- I don't really consider it a diet. A diet is something that I have tried too many of and have failed everytime. With this, if I fall off the wagon, I can get back on and dust myself off.

Hi everyone! It's been a great week! I love sugar busters so far. This is my second week and haven't felt deprived at all, I did goof once allready and had a few onion rings, but I had not eaten any other starchy carbs that day. Oh well, I will take it one day at a time. I play an online version of scrabble called Literati at yahoo. I got addicted to it for awhile! LOL! I am glad there is a great site like this one for support and I love reading all the journals. I will be on here early for WIW, good luck to everyone tomorrow. Well, I guess it isn't really luck. I am off to leave my offerings of potatoes and white bread to the scale gods, good night to all.

SEF and BOB: I got the Scrabble game from my daughter for Christmas last year. I know she bought it at Wal Mart in the cheap software area. It has a feature that allows you to play with others online. If you two get it, we will have to play sometime! It is the official Scrabble, and a lot of fun...I think she paid about $10 for it. Hope you can find it!

Had a nice dinner. I cooked a whole sirloin tip in the crockpot on Saturday, and then made some Mexican meat mix with part of it. Tonight, Tom just heated up some of the meat and broth and made some broccoli and we shared a baked sweet potato. I topped it off with two squares of Lindt 85% chocolate. I needed that chocolate fix...

DARAMUS: Good to see you! Don't be a stranger! You know we all love you, you are our token male! ;)

DENISE: I am with you...there are times when teens seem more effort than they are worth! :eek: Just so you don't feel like the Lone Ranger...today, mine was very angry that it took so long at the doctors. Now mind you, it was her fault! She wanted to be tested for asthma, and messed up the test a few times. But when they sent me up for lab work, she was pretty mad, since she wanted to get back to school in time to run with the cross country coach. I tried to reason with her, and she turned on me, in front of the PA, and told me to shut up! :fr: Once the PA left the room, I gave her a piece of my mind, and she got rather sullen. :censored: She has her moments... We did not make it back in time, and it was not the end of the world! Surprise surprise! She did recover by the time the lab lady started cutting up with me, but man...I wanted to knock her teeth down her throat there for a minute! :devil: And it was embarrassing! It shall pass tho...praise God they don't stay in their teens forever!

JACK: I am so sorry about your BIL. Hope everything goes ok tonight. In ways, not seeing him for all those years makes it even harder! Hope there are no regrets...

LIN: Sometimes if there are a lot of posts I want to reply to, I use Windows Notepad. Then I can make my posts in it, as I read, and copy and paste my replies in my post. After a while, I think you get to know everyone well enough to keep up a bit easier.

GRACIOUS: Do you need my size, and shall I send you some $$ for the flannel? Anything but red rose buds and stars. That is what is on the ones I am tired of.... ;)

I hope to make it back for chat!

QUICKIE..

Sorry I didn't get to get in a post and tomorrow isn't looking good for me to sit down at the computer, so please, bear with me til Thursday.

Did make it to chat though-was fun. Thanks for joining me DARAMUS, LINWORTH, ROBIN, MONET & SERENE:D

NITE!

Deb

Hello all.

Beth--I'm in Hunstville (well, really Madison). I tried calling but got no answer so I left a message. I'll be here until about 2:00 tomorrow. I'm speaking at a lunch meeing from 11:00-1:00. I hope you are feeling better--I'm a little worried about you!

Trip here was uneventful, but after I got here my Mom called to tell me that my Dad's cousin in NJ died this morning. I've spent the evening trying to find them plane tickets--but I think they are going to have to drive--this being the weekend before THanksgiving tickets are hard to come by and EXPENSIVE--I haven't even gotten a bite on priceline.com. Oh well.

Speaking of which I have to go and call my parents to let them know I haven't found anything.

Hope to talk to y'all in the morning.

Susan

Morning All

We had our first snow storm of the year over the weekend. It snowed for 28 hours straight! We ended up with between 6-8 inches of snow. I shovelled it and I say it was closer to the 8 inches! At least half of it is already melted, but it gets below freezing at night, which has helped it to stay.

Well, this morning the scale is still around 166/167. I'm happy about the scale number, but I feel all puffed up! My pants feel tight. Don't like that.

I'm fighting off a cold/sore throat. Blah! I had been doing pretty well for nearly a whole week, but yesterday slipped up and had 4 cookies. Put it behind me and ate OP the rest of the day.

I hope everyone has a GREAT WIW! I've gotta go get DS ready for school


Bye for now!

WIW

Gotta post here on the bottom. I have tried twice to *post reply* so I can read the posts and respond but it freezes. I don't have the time to try again so I am going from memory here!

I am down another 1.5 lbs today so things are looking good. I am glad to be eating SB and seeing results without doing the freaky stuff. Here is my menu for yesterday. I was hungry in the evening but suffered through it.

Tues..

Breakfast: coffee with cream, apple, 1 slice of luncheon roastbeef

Lunch:2 chicken legs, 1 WW pita toasted with butter, diet pepsi

Dinner: Chili, diet pepsi, coffee with cream

Evening Snack: strawberries with 1/2 tsp splenda and a handful of pork rinds..I know, but it was all I had and I needed some crunch!

Water: 3 litres

MONET- Hmmm..maybe I should start a business since I am sewing queen now!

YELLOWROSE- I went back and looked too! I thought I was going crazy..but I'm not. ;)
I hope you had a nice outing with your friend..and a safe one!

ZANNE- We got all that snow too, it was crazy. Then it rained and froze so everything is a sheet of ice.

BOB- Loved that *Can't Believe We Made It* thing. It is sooo true. I am using it in a little newsletter that I put together. Thanks.

TONI- Where are you girl?

LKF- Where are you too? Still doing renovations?

Gotta fly!

Good Morning Everyone.

WIW has me still firmly planted at 176... so... I'll take that over a gain since TOM was due yesterday... oh the joys of irregular cycles :)

FILLISE - SO Sorry I missed your call. DH lost an extended family member and we went to the funeral home, then I got a call that my stepdad was back in the ICU, so I had to spend a rotten Tuesday doing family phone tag. Today my head cold has traveled to my chest and I am having a little trouble with my asthma, so I'm making a Dr.'s appointment to see if I need some antibiotics along with all this other crap I'm now taking. I wish I felt better!!! Maybe you'll come back soon and we'll get to meet up!!

DARAMUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Welcome back!! Hey... I fell off the wagon BIGTIME and gained back about 3-5 myself man. See what happens when we quit writing? LOL!!! I'm at 176 now... my pre-screw up weight was 174 so I still have 2 to go before I can start on losing NEW pounds. Doesn't that SUCK? It's great to have you back, I missed you! EMail me :)

Yesterday I managed to slip again...LOL... My throat was hurting SO bad and DH was eating a vanilla ice cream cone... so I ate a few bites of his DQ Vanilla. My throat felt much better!! We were in the car on the way to the funeral home, so I didn't have many choices. Not much harm done. Today will be a good OP day! Started it out with Shredded Wheat 'n Bran and agave. I'm about to get some water, and take a sinus pill and GO TO BED. This sinus pressure has given me a MEGA Migraine. :(

Keep my SD in your prayers, he's still in ICU (again) and my mom is really getting emotionally worn down from spending all this time in waiting rooms with him in the hospital. It's been really rough on her worrying if he will make it and they have 5 kids at home all under age 11. She probably needs more prayers than he does!! :)

See Y'all later!! :wave:

Gracious, how sweet of you to ask about me! I've been around but my schedule at work (which is the only place I get to post) has changed and I am not likely to be able to post as often as I wish I could. Still, I pop in to see how everyone is...and I miss all of you terribly! Just know that I'm around as often as I can be, keeping up with all of you, but am sometimes not able to post. I will when I can, though. If y'all will accept my occasional popping in, I'll try to do that for a minute on the fly as often as I can...just remember I love you all!

Welcome to all the new members -- we are really growing, huh?!

Jack-K, I've been reading about your return from your cruise and it sounds like you had such a great time. I'm so glad. And don't worry for a minute about what you gained -- it was worth it! And you jumped right back to the SB right way of eating. I'm so proud of you!

Again, please forgive my shortie but remember my love to each of you...

Well..my weigh in was Tues. I'm down 2.6 lb. which makes a total of 10 ugly lbs. gone!

SolShine, I love your puppy. She is soooo cute. That's my baby pictured in my avatar. She's spoiled rotten;)

Zanne, we got some snow in our area too, but only about 1" before it turned to sleet, then all rain. Thankfully we didn't get any icing. Hopefully today it's supposed to warm up so that it will melt.:crossed: Hope you fought off that cold!

Beth, I hope that your Step-Dad will be home from the hospital soon. I will be thinking of you.

I am sorry if I missed anyone, but there are quite a lot of posts that I can't keep up! :D

Have a great day everyone.

Hello everyone,

Well, things are going better between Amber and I. My parents came over last night and we did a type of intervention and it really worked out well. (Both of my parents are retired teachers)
Saw the Guidance Counselor this am with Amber in tow and everything came together. She explained to Amber that in the State of Florida, ANY kids that graduate with a 3.5 GPA and obtain a SAT score of at least 1250 get a fully paid scholarship at any of the State colleges. (This is where the lotto money is going! I had no idea...It's really a wonderful thing and Amber said that she is going to try her best to bring her grades up and go for it!!:flow2: Therefore, things are back on track and she apologized to me about her behavior and attitude towards me and she also said that she will treat me with respect from now on. Anyhow, I wanted to thank all of you for all your support and well wishes! :)

Bob: Thanks for the Veggie soup recipe. Looks delicious!

Daramus: Glad to hear you're back on track and Welcome back to the board!!:goodvibes

Monet: Thanks for relating to me and giving me all your support. It is trying at times and I'm glad that I have this board to share my problems cause it's all related to how we deal with life's obstacles and food. I didn't go off plan, but I sure was thinking about it!!! Girls in their teens have to be the worst because of the hormones flying away....

Deb: Sorry I missed chat!:( I was busy with the intervention with my daughter and my parents for a couple of hours. I couldn't exercise either, but this was more important if you know what I mean.;)

Susanne: Wow, it snowed for 28 hours straight? That's some snowstorm!

Gracious: Congrats on your weightloss of 1.5 pounds!:cp:

Well, back to work for me...Talk to you soon!

Hi, this is my second WIW...I gained a pound back. I lost 9 pounds the first week and got on the scale today to see a pound back. I assured myself the first loss was water and now my body is adjusting to new WOE. I am not going to give up because I am still vamped about the intial week. I will start walking, I haven't exercised at all. I do drink PLENTY of water, maybe too much.

Zanne--hope you feel better soon and glad you are happy with what the scale says even though puffy.

gracious-way to go on that loss!!!

Beth--stick with it and get well. I will pray for your family and SD.

Aleka--GREAT JOB!! Woohoo!

WIW was not very happy for me...I was up 3, but as I am smack in the throes of PMS, I will reserve my right to be depressed for a few days, and wait and see.

I feel kind of yucky today. I hope it is not the power of suggestion, but they kept asking me if I was feeling nauseous, or throwing up. That indicates liver problems. I have had a bit of problem, but nothing unusual, I thought. Well, today, I began to feel rotten the minute I ate breakfast. I don't like this lingering health stuff one bit!

I know I should address everyone individually, but I hope you will all forgive me. I am off to crawl back in bed.

:wave: Have a great day everyone!

Just wanted to congratulate both Aleka and Robin on their weight loss this week!!:dance:

You're both doing great! Keep up the good work! :wave:

WIW---No change today. Again. But, that's really good news since I've been terrible with my eating.:o Planning on being better today. Keep your fingers crossed.

Good news from my mom. She had a dr's visit on Mon. Seems he can't feel the tumor anymore. Hmmmm....She's going to ask for an ultrasound of something to check it out. Sounds good to me. You can bet we're thanking the Lord for this.


Sorry I can't get to everyone right now. Kiddos coming in.

Happy WIW :wave:

Hope the scale was good to everyone today. I have lost 3 more of the 10 vacation pounds. Hope those last 4 go quickly.

We didn't end up going to see my SIL last nite. She gave us the arrangements over the phone so there really was no need. They will have some type of short service tonite. I am so nervous about it, my stomach is upset and I have a headache. With such a strained relationship over the years you just don't know how things will go. I am more concerned for my DH. Don't know what is going on in his head and they surely won't share it with you. I'll just be glad when all this is over.

On to more pleasant things.

Monet, You should have went after that Dr and made him sit down with you. When will you get the results of your liver test back? You had better stay in that bed. Bob is a meaney. Thanks for the kind words. I really don't know what to expect tonight at the service. Of course men don't share their feelings very well, at least mine doesn't. I have offered to "listen" if he wanted to talk about it, but he says there isn't anything to talk about. MEN! Hate that you are feeling poorly today. Get some rest and think positive thoughts.

Daramus, How wonderful to have you back. We have missed you. Don't worry about those 7 pounds in 3 weeks, I gained 10 in just 1 week on vacation. Just proves we need to stay on track. It's sur eno fun taking off those same pounds twice. Hope you keep posting.

Bob, I bet your mom loved seeing your brother. What a nice surprise.

Robin girl, Welcome, I think I was on vacation when you joined us. This is a gret board and a great WOE. I have been doing SB for 13 months now and I love it. You don't even miss those potatoes after awhile. I loook forward to getting to know you. Don't worry about that pound, your body is still adjusting and your weight can fluctuate on a daily basis. You will find that you will be dropping inches like crazy and the scale won't be moving that much.

Fillise, Glad you had a safe journey. Sorry to hear about your Dad's cousin.

Zanne, Hope you are feeling better. Throw those cookies away. No one needs them. Glad you could jump right back on track though. That's a good sign.

Gracious, WTG onthe 1.5 lbs. You are doing great switching back to SB. Toni is on vacation this week.

Beth, hope you are feeling better. Sounds like you need a mega dose of antibotics. Sending prayers for your SD and especially your mom. She has been through alot lately. Yeah for you staying the same. Better than gaining. I know what you mean about irregular cycles, I haven't had one in 2 months. Ughh.

LKF, I hate that you won't be around as much. I love reading your posts. They are so upbeat and encouraging. Pop in when you can. We will miss you.

Aleka, WTG on the 2.6 lbs. 10 lbs is great. Keep working on it and it will be gone before you know it. We met a couple from NH on our cruise. He was so friendly and she was a obgyn.

Denise, I am so glad things are working out with you and Amber. I think you are doing your best and being tough is the best solution. I truly hope she turns her grades around, kids just don't realize how important that is until it's too late. Keeping you both in my prayers. WTg on not stress eating. I know how kid problems can drive you off track.

Music, Wonderful news about your DM. Prayers do work.

Have a great day.

Jackie
257/164/145
10-10-01

YIKES! I'm up another .5 lbs. Trying to stay off computer lately, it's really hard, but a must, as it hurts to much and defintely doesn't help my condition. Seem to be binging on starchy sb carbs. Trying to bring it down to 4 servings this week and then drop down more next. Going up a 1/2 lb a week is not ok. I hope you all are well. Have a wonderful weekend!

Lara

Just a quick WIW post. I wasn't going to 'cause I feel so bloated but I bit the bullet anyway. No loss but no gain either.

OK, I need to vent. I have a very strained relationship with my sister and we haven't spoken in about a year primarily because of the way she and her husband have treated their oldest daughter (but other factors involved). She called my mother yesterday in a tizzy and then her husband called my mother and called her all sorts of names; names you wouldn't call someone you didn't like much less an 80 year old woman!! Fortunately, she just hung up on him. We're moving my mother to a new retirement apartment next week and I'm so stressed out that they are going to come over on moving day and cause all kinds of problems. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. The holidays are looking to be a little stressful at the Granberry household.

Sorry about that but you guys are always so helpful and supportive. Gotta run now. Hope everyone has a loser of a day!!

Trish

Good morning all! WIW is the same ole same ole..but I will take that over a gain any day. :) 154

Trish...I am praying for you and your family. ((hugzz))

Welcome back Damarus...you will have those extra pounds off in no time.

Denise...I'm so glad your daughter is feeling better about school and being sweeter toward her moma.

Idblond....you'll get that half a found off in no time..I can relate to the starchy carbs...they are mean ...just mean. :) But man they taste so good.

Go Jack-K! Those pounds are just rolling off...you'll have them all off in no time.

Music...awesome on your mom..praying it's gone completely!!!

Robin-girl....you are doing great! One pound is probably just water and will off plus some next week.

Aleka....yeah! look at that weigh just coming off....

LKF...tell work there is a new rule...you HAVE to have time to post..LOL Oh well, it was worth a try. :)

Gracious....wtg on losing some more weight..go you..shake your bootie..

Beth....hang in there...you are gonna be on a downward run soon.

Zanne...man..I would love to see some real snow..but aint happening where I live. Praying you feel better soon.

Howdy to everyone else. Sorry if I missed somebody this morning. The kids are rattling my ole brain. Jess is fighting hard against the program this morning. That's my boy...:)

Love,
Crystle

235/154/140---maybe...LOL

WIW- well I'm at 215 this morning. I guess that is good, but yesterday I was at 214. I stayed 100% OP yesterday and even skipped the ww pasta last night and ate the meat and sauce with a nice salad. Hopefully, it's just a little fluid retention- but still dissappointed since I was looking forward to it being 214 today. Well, at least I'm down a pound, okay I'm through complaining!

Hello everyone!

I hope all of you are doing fine. I really enjoyed the chat last night.... had a great time! Thanks for the big welcome back. I just wanted to post an updated pic I took about 10 minutes ago. I'm hoping it will work! The last time I tried it never showed. Anyway, talk to you soon!

http://members.cox.net/tremogg1/george3.jpg

Today, I am going for a pedicure which will be a special treat. The day is beautiful here and I am feeling a little
better....yeah!

Jack-K: Hope everything will go okay for you at the service. About my accident....it was anasty accident but
everyone will eventually be all right and that means a lot. The outing without the brace yesterday turned out to be
a little painful but I just took my evening pain killer (actually I am only taking one a day) and I am okay today. I
think I will wear the brace all day today, however.

Monet: and Denise: My daughter and I had a rough go from the time she was 13 until she went off to collage.
Now, we are the best of friends. It is hard working through it and waiting. What did the test on the liver function
show? That was not nice for the doc to run off when you needed answers.

Linworth: Yes, we love it up in North Carolina. We have never spent the winter there since even in Nov. it starts
to get gray and looks depressing. Winter is a good time to come to Dallas and see my friends and get to eat in my
favorite restaurants. I have found the best way to really keep up with answering is to open a Microsoft page and
flip back and forth from the board to that page. Then, when I am ready to send, I just do copy and paste in into the
send page on the board. Does any of this make any sense?

Daramus: Nice to hear from you and glad to hear you are back on track. Hey, very nice picture. It is great to meet you.

Gracious: The review was very nice and it was great to see all the ladies again. The person who drove us to the
meeting turned out not to be too great of a driver but we did get there and back in one piece and I was glad that I
went. I made everyone put on their seat belts.

Beth: Wow! Sounds like a really difficult time and then to feel lousy on top of it is not fair. I hope the meds you
get from the doc will make you feel good very soon.

Heartmom: Don’t you just hate when you are ”good” and the scale is mean! If it is any consolation, I seem to
always be up just a little when I eat things with tomato sauce. (Even my homemade tomato sauce.) This is just to
say that the extra weight is usually gone by the next day. Good luck!

Heartmom...hey, down is good. Maybe next week you'll get that pound added on to next weeks loss as a bonus.

Nice picture Damarus.

Enjoy the pedicute Yellow. You deserve it. I use to love to get my nails done before we moved out here to the country.

Well the kids are fighting over boiled eggs. At least they are done. :) Hope you are all having a good day and enjoying fall. It's just beautiful outside today.

Love,
Crystle

Just checking in,

Getting ready to head home.


Trish, It is good to know that we all have those sorts of "skeletons". I was thinking I was the odd one. Hope things work out for you and you don't have any problems. I don't know what causes people to act that way. I truly believe it is selfishness. Glad you didn't gain this week. Next week will be a good one.

IdBlond, Sorry you are in so much pain. I sure wish there was something they could do for you. You are in my thoughts daily.

Country, I'll take that 154 if you don't want it. Keep those kids in line today. Or would they be keeping you in line. :lol: Glad those eggs are hard boiled if they are fighting over them. ha ha

Heartmom, I bet you willbe at 214 tomorrow. Hang in there you are doing great.

Daramus, You handsome devil you! It is nice to see you we are "talking" to.

Yellowrose, Glad you are feeling better today and had a nice outing. Pedicures are a wonderful treat. Had one myself last week. Good for you making everyone wear their seat belts.

Have a great night everyone.

Jackie

Chatterboxes here today!

YELLOWROSE- I am glad you had a good time even though the driver left something to be desired. We had a bunch of Pastor's wives that would get together and give each other pedicures. We called it *The Footwashing Ceremony* as a joke! I have never had a *real* one though but I used to love getting my nails done when I could afford it.

JACK-K- You are grooving girl! :cb: See, those pounds are just melting right off of you...keep it up.

ROBIN- I agree with the others, a 1 lb difference is nothing, although I understand it is bothersome to you. Our weight can fluctuate so much during our cycles that I wouldn't get all bothered about it. The 9 lb initial loss is wonderful but it slows down quite a bit when you are on plan for awhile. I had to learn the hard way, but slow and steady wins the race. I am always in such a hurry and it is detrimental in the end.

ALEKA- Congrats on the loss. Your puppy girl is so cute!!

MONET- How are you feeling now? Any word on the tests?

LKF- Well what nerve they have at work there to keep you from posting on the SB board!! ;) Of course you are more than welcome to just pop in...I think a quickie post is better than none because it let's us know you are out there.

WIW-My scale was down 2 pounds from last week. I'll take it but don't believe it will last. I am the Queen of maintenance. (I've been SB for 10 days).
Aleka-you are doing so great!! 10 pounds is awesome
Denise--glad that little girl is changing. It sounds like you have done a great job of sticking by her.
Robin-You have such a great attitude--one measly lb will be gone soon.
Monet-sorry you feel so bad. Are you any better this evening?
Tina-Congrats on staying the same. It sounds like you have been worried about your mom and I'm glad things are looking up.
Jackie-Wow!!! 6 pounds gone already,. Did you make it to the store? I hope the service tonight goes fine and there are no surprises. Most men are made from some weird material and see no need to talk--can't understand it though. I liked your comment about losing inches not pounds. I Hope this happens to me too.
Lara-Good luck on avoiding the carbs. You can do it!
Trish-I hope your sister comes around and realizes how she is treating her mom and you.
Crys-Not gaining is great, isn't it?
Laurie- Congrats on losing that pound.
Daramus-I enjoyed chatting with you last night. Great self-portrait!!
Lyn-Thanks for the tip about using notepad. I wrote things down tonight (the old fashioned way).

To those who cook out there....

I bought myself 2 sweet potatoes today and I wonder how to cook them to be SB friendly and tasty. What are the recommendations? My mother would make them once a year by baking them then scooping it out and mushing it up with some butter. I have heard of marshmellows or some weird thing being put into them and that sounds awful as well as illegal! I found a recipe that I am going to try tomorrow with them but I would like a basic way to use it as a side veggie.

Here is the recipe for those interested. I am into using the crockpot these days. Of course change the white flour for SGWW.

Beef Stew With Sweet Potatoes
1 1/2 pounds lean stew beef
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
1 large onion - (or 2 medium) -- halved, and cut into 1/4" slices
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large sweet potato -- cut in 1 1/2" cubes
1/2 cup beef stock -- (canned or from bouillon or base)
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon - (to 1/2 tspn)
1/2 cup frozen peas or green beans - (to 1 cup) -- thawed
Salt -- to taste
Freshly-ground black pepper -- to taste


Toss stew beef with the flour and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet; brown beef and onion.

Place sweet potato cubes in the crock pot; add beef and onions. Mix beef broth with cinnamon and pour over beef mixture. Cover and cook on LOW 8 to 10 hours.

Add peas or green beans during the last 15 to 20 minutes. Good with biscuits. This recipe yields 4 servings.

Gracious- I like to cook the sweet potatoes until a little firm in the microwave and then slice them and saute/fry them with onion in olive oil. The first time I made it, everyone was turning their nose up at it until they tasted it- everyone ate seconds. I imagine you could also make them into a sweet treat doing like you said- scoop out the insides, add butter, splenda, and some pumpkin spices like cinnamon,allspice and such. Gee- I'm getting hungry now..

Hi to all;)

It's so good to get on here and read the post, You all don't know how much it means to me to hear all you reports, It's nice not to be along at this. I'm not going to weigh today as I just got back at it on Sunday so I will wait one more wk and pray for angels to lift me off that scale alittle so I'll have a loss. :o

I don't know why my Smiles don't show up and how do ya all get those really cute one that wave and turn colors and stuff like that.

I never got an answer to my question is there anyone out there that has a recipe for homemade Mayonaise I need to find one. Help!:^:

Denise & Monet: Boy do I know what you mean about teen agers my daughter is 17 and we've been through it all. It was easier to raise my boys they were a breeze. Girls are more tempermental. and sassy. And then theres the teenage hormons yuck!! I do have grown children and I can say it does get easier just takes awhile to get there.

Daramus: Wow what a great pic. Welcome back I just came back myself. It's a good thing we have this support board, there really great here.

BOB: Boy oh Boy aint that the Truth. The just sounds like it was right out of my life. Things were alot easier and less stressful then. I miss the old days. I wish I was raising my Daughter in my growing up day. I guess I just have to pray harder.

Well looks like it's time to run have a good one Love to all Glory

GLORY: Here is my recipe for homemade mayo:

Put into the bowl of the food processor: 1 egg, 1 T lemon juice, a dash of salt and 1/4 t dry mustard. Add 1/4 cup oil. Turn on food processor and very slowly drizzle in 3/4 cup of oil. Process 30 seconds more after all the oil has been well blended. Store in a jar in the fridge- keeps for about a week. If your food processor has one of those tubes with the hole in the bottom, that works great to drizzle in the oil. If you don't have a food processor, you can use a blender..set it on low,and the recipe is basically the same. If you got any questions, let me know! I use olive oil, since my hubby likes it so much. It is a bit strong for me, tho. If I made it for me I would use a milder oil like peanut.

Time for bed! Its been a long day! Will check in tomorrow morning.

Wow, not much happening since last night. I did not see another drop on the scale this morning so I know I have come to my levelling off stage and now it is going to take some work. I did manage to get some grocery shopping in when I picked the kids up from school so I finally have some veggies in the house.

I made a huge stew up this morning to slowly cook all day in a 300* oven. My crock pot was way too small for this much meat and veggies. However, I didn't use that recipe that I posted last night. I used my old fashioned Amish recipe that always works and tastes great. I just won't eat the potatoes and I added a bit of squash as well.

Weds...

Breakfast: coffee/cream, 1 WW pita toasted with butter

Lunch:Coffee/cream, small bowl chili

Dinner:2 weiners with some mustard, coffee/cream

Dessert a bit later: 1 clementine orange

Evening snack: salad & dressing, diet pepsi

Water: 3 litres

I know I went nuts on the coffee for some reason. Hubby came home for lunch and wanted some and then I drink it if it is there.

I guess I will check in later once others have posted. Have a great day!!

Good morning everyone.

Thanks for letting me vent yesterday. Sorry if I dumped on too much information. My mother hasn't had any more screaming phone calls so I guess that's a good sign. Thanksgiving is going to be a little weird this year, so I'm kind of glad we've all decided to go out to eat. I had already decided that if there was something that I really wanted to have, I was going to have it. At least this way, I can hopefully maintain some semblance of portion control and not have to deal with leftovers. Cornbread dressing is my weakness (you Southern girls know what I'm talking about) and I'm going to have some and enjoy it. I just won't be eating it all day.

Did I tell you guys Jordan got a new job? The local YMCA does afterschool care in the elementary schools and he's going to be a counselor at one of the schools. The hours are great and the pay is not too bad either. He's home by 6:30 or 7 every night (or at least he's off work by then, usually hooks up with the girlfriend) and no week-ends. So far he really enjoys it.

Gracious - was it you looking for sweet potato info? Whoever it was, I just peel them and slice them up and then put a little olive oil and season salt on them and roast them at about 400-450 for 30-45 minutes. They are awesome. Have you posted your Amish stew recipe? I bet it's awesome.

Lyn - Glad your collarbone is feeling better. I dislocated my shoulder about a year ago and tore my rotator cuff so I know what you're going through. Are you doing physical therapy yet? If so, make sure you do what they tell you. It really does make a difference. Enjoy the pedicure. I love them. Don't get to do them that often but aren't they relaxing.

Crystle - Thanks for the hugs. We all need them now and again don't we. Fighting over boiled eggs??? What are you country folk doing out there?

Daramus - Glad to see you back again. Love the picture. Aren't you just the little hottie these days.

Heartmom - Probably just water. I think you should be able to use the 214 anyway.

Glory - Sending the angels your way.

Have a great day everyone.

Trish

Thanksgiving/travel foods ideas????

We are going to my inlaws for Thanksgiving. I wonder what you all take along with you when you travel. I know we will stop for fast food and I want to have something with me I can eat. Also, I need ideas for stuff to eat when I'm at the inlaws. I'm sure there will so much high carb stuff. I'm thinking hard boiled eggs and salad. Thanks for any ideas.

Trish-I'm glad things have calmed down for you. Now you can enjoy Thanksgiving and that cornbread dressing. Do you like it with sausage?

Gracious--the stew sounds delicious as does your menu for yesterday. I had to smile when I read your snack was salad--sure beats chips and dip.

Lin, pack you a little cooler with grab and eat foods for the road: apples, cheese ( you can buy it already cubed and in little individual serving packages so you don't overdo), sliced deli ham or turkey and maybe a "few" triscuits or WW pita or tortilla chips. Put them in individual snacksize baggies, too.

For Thanksgiving: The turkey should be alright and pile on the veggies (except the sweet potatoes with marshmellows) and salad. I'm a purist when it comes to my cornbread dressing. I like it pretty plain, no sausage, and definitely not gummy. Can't stand regular bread dressing for that reason (sorry all you guys in Yankeeland).

Good luck.

Trish

Happy Thursday Gang :wave:

Well the service went of last nite. They always turn into a social event when there are people you haven't seen for years and some family you only see at weddings and funerals. My SIL was very friendly to us and that was good. I was worried about that. Just glad it is all over and hopefully we can move on.

1 more pound was gone today. 3 to go. I don't normally weigh myself everyday. But want to see if this vacation gain goes away.

Linworth, Take those 2 lbs and enjoy them. They will stay off especially if you stay OP. I bet next week you see another loss. Take a ww bun or bread with you. You could always get a grilled chicken breast at the fast food place and put it on your bun. They usually have salads too.

Gracious, I just bak my sweet potatoes, use some butter and cinnamon. Sometimes I slice them up like french fries, brush with a little olive oil and salt & pepper, bake, they are just like fries with your burger. DH still puts catsup on them, but I just eat them plain.

GloryIBe, You are not alone in this. That is what is so great about this board. We share everything. I bet you have a good loss next week.

Trish, Jordon's job sounds like fun. At least he doesn't have to work weekends. Enjoy your dressing. Count it as your carbs for the day and you will be fine.

Got to get some work done. Later

Jackie
257/164/145
10-10-01

TRISHALOO- Yes it was me looking for sweet potato info. Thanks for letting me know how to cook them, that sounds nice and easy! I will try it. I haven't posted my Amish Stew Recipe because it is not technically SB legal because of the potatoes, even though I don't eat them...but it says on the board somewhere to only post SB legal recipes.

LINWORTHLADY- I was actually really craving a salad badly since I hadn't shopped in awhile and was out of lettuce. It was just a green salad but it was very tasty to me. I frequently leave my salad out at dinner with the intention of having it as my evening snack..like you said, it is better than eating illegal stuff!

Suggestions for your Thanksgiving travelling and meal....I like taking along a nice piece of fruit, cheese, pepperoni sticks and sandwiches made with SGWW torillas (wraps) or pita pockets. The traditional turkey dinner has lots of legal food. Stick to the turkey and legal veggies. Why don't you plan on making a fancy but legal salad like a Broccoli salad. Everyone I know loves it even though it is low carb and can be low fat with the light Hellman's mayo. Bring along or plan to make while there a very tasty legal dessert so that while they are all eating pie you can have dessert too!

I went out last night...to a small group meeting from church. It was fun to have some time of fellowship... it is a strange group. Mostly singles, and one of the guys is a real sci fi buff. We watched 2001 A Space Oddysey, then discussed it. It was fun. It was interesting to know Kubrick, the director, wanted to imply the source was God, but Clark, author of the screen play, was an atheist, and wanted to imply it was aliens... which only moves the question of creation a step further back...if it were aliens, then who created THEM? Both men were strong personalities, so in the movie, you find an aura of mystery, whereas in the books, Clark made his point clear. Fun discussion! Very strange movie.

I got in very late, and my husband put me right to bed. I slept until nine and feel rejuvenated!


TRISH: Oh, I love cornbread dressing! My husbands father had a cousin who's wife made the most mouthwatering dressing! I once grilled her on how she made it, and follow her steps...mine isn't quite as good, but my family loves it. I only make it once a year, and by George, I am going to eat a bit of it!

GRACIOUS: Post that Amish stew recipe! I love stew..unfortunately, I like the beef, carrots and potato kind. I need to branch out and experiment! I ususally just cook sweet potatoes in the microwave like baked potatoes, and eat them witha bit of butter...well, ok, I struggle not to over do the butter..but they are great that way!

COUNTRY: The weather is getting prettier here..wish I could get out in it! Thanks for the idea of boiled eggs! I love them deviled. I even like egg salad! I was sick of eggs fried, too. I rarely get tired of eggs, so I was at a loss until you mentioned boiled! Just for fun, have your kids decorate them for Thanksgiving! Like little turkeys, and pilgrims. That might slow them down enough for you to grab a few...

LIN: If you can find the oat bran pretzels, they are good to carry too. I also would suggest some nuts. You can buy packages of peanuts, for portion control. They are filling too. Don't forget some veggies. Like baby carrots, and celery sticks.

JACK: Thinking of you ... hope things are going well.

HEART: Don't worry about that pound! Drink lots of water, and I bet it will be gone with a few more of its friends in no time! ;)

Thanks for all the food ideas. You guys are a great source of info. I will have quite a bit to eat now that I have these ideas. What is a legal SB dessert?

Hello everyone!

Thanks for all the kinds words about my picture. I slept in this morning for the first time in a long time. mmmm sure felt good to get some much-needed rest. I feel good to be back OP, and I hope to see results again soon. The majority of my weight loss was in the first 4 months of this program. The last 5 or so has been mostly maintaining while losing the occasional pound here or there. Maybe I need to really sit down and look at what im eating. I'm not sure what to do to be honest! lol I know it will all come of eventually, but I would still LOVE to be under 170 (I have never been under 170 in my adult life). Maybe I should start working out again. I don't know... I do treadmill and weights not so much because I truly enjoy them, but more because I see them as a means to an end. I'm hoping they will "speed up" the entire process of losing weight. Well, maybe one day I will learn to love excersize. *shrugs* I think if I ever truly get into a pattern/routine and really make it a part of my life, one day I may not mind it so much.

I think it was good in a way that I really messed up for a little while there. It reminded my of why im doing what im doing and it scared me into going back OP. I realize now more than even that I will always, always have to think about what im eating for the rest of my life. Not so much to be paranoid or obsess of it, but rather I will always have to keep myself in line so I dont lose control and go off the deep end. It almost feels bad in a way to admit that I have such a "problem" with food and eating. Know what I'm saying here? I dunno... I feel like a recovering alcoholic that will always be tempted to go back for the rest of my days. Maybe over a period years being OP the temptations will lessen. Well, I don't mean to ramble here! I had better get going. Hope everyone is well. :)

Hi everyone!

Here is today's article from www.holdthetoast.com

I, by no means advocate the Atkins diet. I do believe in the low carb principle and that eating fat is not the worst thing in the world! Pls take what you want and leave what you are not interested in. There are also a couple of recipes on the bottom.

I know that we do not eat like Atkins, however the only way I lose on SB is to eat a lower starchy carb diet and exercise. I just wanted to share this article on low carb and high fat eating. Pls this is not to offend anyone or offend Sugar Busters. During the weight loss phase of SB, we can all agree for MOST people that we have to lower our starchy carb intake until we reach our ideal weight. Most people on SB also eat lowfat. Personally, I don't worry so much about the fat as I do about the lowfat high carbs if you know what I mean. Here is the article:

Lowcarbezine! 20 November 2002

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Hey, Gang -

Did you hear the news? Didja? Didja? The Atkins Diet kicked low fat butt in the Duke University study, presented at the American Heart Association conference this week. Read all about it below! Plus, as promised, Espresso Chocolate Chip Brownies! (And I'm working on more cookies - Christmas is coming, you know.)

I do plan to get out an issue next week, too, before I leave for the holiday, but it may consist solely of recipes for leftover turkey - we'll see what I can get done before hitting the road.

In the meanwhile, read on!

Dana


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All contents © Copyright 2002 Hold the Toast Press. All commercial reproduction is expressly prohibited. If you think your friends will enjoy Lowcarbezine!, please forward them the WHOLE ISSUE. Please, do not post articles or recipes elsewhere on the internet without permission. My attorney tells me that I'll have to come scold you and tell you to cut it out if you do.

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More Thanksgiving Survival Strategies

Last issue we talked about decarbing your Thanksgiving Dinner. However, not all of you are going to do this. Maybe you're eating at someone else's house. Maybe you're entertaining a big crowd of family and friends who would be put out by anything but the traditional high carb menu. Or maybe you've simply decided, "The heck with it! I'm having an Indulgence*, and hang the consequences!"

Whichever it is, you still need strategies to help you get through with minimum damage. Here are some ideas for making it through with the least possible added poundage:

Decide now just exactly how long your Indulgence lasts - and I highly recommend that it last only for as long as Thanksgiving Dinner, and no longer! But even if you decide to make the whole day an Indulgence Day, and eat a hot turkey sandwich or a piece of pie as a late night snack, it's best to decide ahead of time just exactly what your limits are, and stick with them.
I very strongly recommend that your Indulgence not last any longer than Thanksgiving Day. If you decide that you've got license to pick at the leftover stuffing and pie all weekend, you'll be a sorry soul come Monday.
Get up on Thanksgiving and eat your usual high protein, low carb breakfast. This will moderate your hunger for the rest of the day, and help you make rational decisions about just how much you want to Indulge when dinner rolls around. Do not decide to starve yourself all day until the big feast, to work up a good ol' appetite. Bad Idea!
When dinner rolls around, go ahead and have a modest portion of all the high carb foods you really love (and not a single bite of the high carb foods you don't really love!) At the same time, have a good, big portion of turkey, and any other low carb foods you like that may be on the menu. When you're done, spend a few minutes conversing before deciding whether or not you want seconds of anything.
If the feast is at your house, pack off as many of the really dangerous leftovers as you can with departing guests. If you're eating at someone else's house, and they offer to pack up a slice of leftover pie, ask if you could take a little turkey instead!
When Friday rolls around, if Family Togetherness is starting to get to you, and the leftovers are calling your name, get out of the house. Start your Christmas shopping. Head downtown to see the decorations that will have magically appeared over night. Take a walk. Go to a movie. But get out!
If you're planning on spending the weekend around the house - maybe watching football - make sure you have plenty of your favorite low carb treats on hand. This would be a great time for a cheese-and-meat platter, a shrimp platter, or a wing platter from the deli at your grocery store. Lay in some mixed nuts, or some bite-sized smoked sausages. Just make sure that you have something low carb to eat that you'll really enjoy!
If you're used to disposing of the leftover turkey by making sandwiches, you'll need a new plan. Personally, I love Turkey Club UnSandwiches - a slice of turkey, a slice of tomato, a slice of crisp bacon, and a little mayonnaise, all wrapped in a lettuce leaf. But I'll have more low carb recipes for leftover turkey in next week's issue!
Last, but certainly not least, spend some time being genuinely thankful. In a world where many are starving, you have enough food that you have to think carefully about your choices - and that means that you are truly blessed.
* I have long preferred the terms "Indulgence" and "Indulge" to "cheating". "Cheating" implies that you can get away with something, which of course you never do. "Indulgence" implies that you know exactly what you're doing and why - and are doing it rationally, and are still in control.
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Gloating Time!

Okay, everybody join in: Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!

Yep, here at Hold the Toast Press, we're doing the happy dance in a truly insufferable way. And why not? Just yesterday, the news hit the major media that Duke University's ongoing study of the Atkins diet shows that not only does the diet cause weight loss, but it causes more weight loss than a low fat diet, people are more likely to stay on it, and causes a greater improvement in blood work, to boot. Surely you and I are allowed at least one tiny, "Told you so!"

The study, conducted by Dr. Eric Westman, an internist at Duke's diet and fitness center, was presented to the American Heart Association, long a major proponent of low fat diets, at their annual scientific meeting on Monday. Boy, wouldn't you like to have been a fly on the wall?!

The Duke study involved 120 overweight volunteers, who were randomly assigned to either the low fat "Step 1" diet recommended by the American Heart Association, or to the Induction level of the Atkins Diet - no more than 20 grams of carbohydrate a day, and a level of fat consumption that Westman called "off the scale." What happened?

After 6 months, the Atkins group had lost an average of 31 pounds apiece, compared to an average 20 pound loss on the AHA diet. More people had actually stuck with their Atkins program, too - fully 80% stayed with the diet, a remarkable figure. So much for claims that the diet won't work because "It's just so hard to stick to."

But the biggest surprise came with the blood work. Total cholesterol fell slightly in both groups. But only those on the Atkins diet had an increase in the HDL "good" cholesterol - an average 11% increase. Not only is this good in itself, but coupled with the lower total cholesterol, must mean that there was a greater decrease in LDL "bad" cholesterol in the Atkins dieters as well. The folks on the AHA diet had no increase in HDL - and therefore, theoretically, their risk of heart disease did not decline as much as the Atkins dieters'.

Carbohydrates have been known to be the primary cause of high triglycerides for quite a while now - which could explain why the Atkins dieters had an average 49% drop in triglycerides, while the low fat dieters had only a 22% drop.

Seems that everything that Bob Atkins and the rest of us low carb proponents have been saying is true. Finally, the National Institutes of Health are launching a study that will last a year, and involve 360 volunteers. We await the results with interest - and wonder just how many studies it will take for the Low Fat Faithful to get it, and admit they were wrong about low carbohydrate diets.

Apparently, that hasn't happened yet. I switched on the TV while fixing dinner last night, and flipped around the channels, hoping for some commentary. I found it on MSNBC's "Nachman"- a spokesman for the Atkins Center and a traditional dietician were on, along with the host, Jerry Nachman, editor-in-chief of MSNBC. (Just to make things more interesting, Jerry Nachman himself has been on the Atkins diet for a week or two, and has lost 8 pounds.) The dietician remained unconvinced, saying that a low carb diet was still bad and evil and dangerous, etc, etc, etc. Why?

First of all, she said, any diet that causes weight loss will lower cholesterol. Well, yes, but as the Duke study demonstrated, not just any diet will cause an increase in heart healthy HDL, and only a low carb diet causes the greatest decrease in triglycerides.

Oh, and a low carb diet is bad because after all, it cuts out vegetables! Vegetables have carbohydrates, and that means that low carbers aren't going to eat any vegetables, and they won't get the vitamins and minerals they need. Don't you wish these people would actually read the stuff that they're railing against? The gentleman from the Atkins center explained that yes, low carbers eat vegetables, blah-blah-blah - basic stuff that every low carber knows.

I wish he'd added two more points - one, that even on Induction, the very strictest phase of the diet, the Atkins diet calls for two cups of vegetables a day, or four servings. This is more than the average American is eating. Furthermore, the Induction phase is not the whole diet, and certainly not the life-long maintenance program. Low carbers generally end up eating far more vegetables than they used to. After all, who else is replacing mashed potatoes with pureed cauliflower? Who else is using spaghetti squash in place of spaghetti? Who else is ordering the insides of sandwiches on a bed of lettuce? Who else is saying, "Can I get an extra salad in place of the potato, please?"

The dietician's final, withering attack on low carb diets was that, since low carbers don't drink milk - true, for the most part - we can't possibly get enough calcium without supplements. The response to this is two fold.

First of all, the vast majority of Americans, low fat, low carb, carnivore, vegetarian, or just not paying attention - aren't getting enough calcium. And drinking milk is no big protection. Why? Because it takes a quart of milk a day to get enough calcium, that's why. You need 1200 - 1500 mgs of calcium every single day, and an 8 ounce glass of milk has just 301 mgs.

Very few people are drinking a quart of milk a day. Yet drinking some milk tends to make people feel that they must be getting enough calcium - I've had folks tell me that they're getting enough, because they drink a big glass of milk every other day or so. This sort of false sense of security is downright dangerous.

(Parenthetically, I'd like to note that milk has not, historically, been the best source of calcium in the human diet. The two best sources have been bones, and hard water. Indeed, living in an area where the water is high in calcium and magnesium can significantly reduce your risk of heart disease and high blood pressure. And if you cook meat with bones in an acidic medium - tomatoes, vinegar, wine, or whatever - you'll end up with a calcium-rich dish.)

Also, milk is about the only calcium-rich food that low carbers aren't eating. Many low carbers have rediscovered the joys of cheese, after shunning it for its fat content for years. One ounce of Cheddar cheese supplies 204 mgs of calcium, and 1 ounce of Monterey Jack supplies 217 mgs. Indeed, all cheese is a good source of calcium - after all, it's made from milk. Since The GO-Diet taught us that the carb count in plain yogurt is lower than we thought, many of us eat yogurt, as well - and 1 cup of low fat yogurt supplies 448 mgs of calcium. The heavy cream that we use without fear gives us 10 mgs of calcium per tablespoon.

Nuts and seeds, another food re-embraced by low carb dieters after banishment from their previous low fat diets, are a not-insignificant source of calcium. Almonds are especially good, with 75 mgs. per ounce. Too, many of the green, leafy vegetables we eat have meaningful amounts of calcium - collards, by the way, are the calcium champs of the vegetable kingdom, with 179 mgs in just 1/2 cup of cooked, frozen chopped collard greens, so if you're fond of them, chow down! For comparison, the potatoes we shun contribute only 8 mgs of calcium apiece.

Even some of those "evil" animal protein foods we so shamelessly feast upon are pretty good sources of calcium, especially the fish and seafoods - 3 ounces of shrimp contribute 44 mgs of calcium, and 3 ounces of lobster will give you 52 mgs. Among the best sources are canned salmon and sardines, for the simple reason that you consume the bones. 3 ounces of canned salmon, eaten with the bones, will give you 181 mgs. of calcium of the most bioavailable kind, and just two canned sardines will supply 92 mgs. If you like these fish, use them often!

Clearly, we can get plenty of calcium on our low carb diets - and yet, most of us don't want to do the work of planning our diets to give us enough calcium every day - and that goes for people eating low fat diets, too. Since calcium is the most important mineral in the human diet - you have more calcium in your body than all the other minerals combined, and it participates in a vast array of chemical processes, along with making up the bulk of your bones and teeth - supplements just make sense.

So much for the "a low carb diet is bad because it doesn't have enough calcium" argument.

What we're left with, it appears, is "A low carb diet is bad because it's not a low fat diet with lots of grains and beans, and we know that's the real healthy diet - don't confuse us with facts." Hardly a compelling argument.

I will wait with interest for the results of the NIH study - and confidently predict that A) it will again show that low carb diets work as advertised, and B) that the Low Fat Faithful will remain unconvinced.

Their loss.

(Related note: During this discussion, the dietician asserted first that there were "thousands", and then corrected it to "hundreds" of studies showing that diets high in carbohydrate are healthy. I'd really love to know where she was finding them. A good 6 years ago, when I took Argumentation and Debate at Indiana University - just around the corner - I used low carbohydrate diets for my scientific argument project. I was required to argue both sides of the question, and accordingly spent 3 or 4 hours in the Medline database, running every search I could think of - "carbohydrate AND hypertension", "carbohydrate AND cholesterol", "carbohydrate AND atherosclerosis", etc, etc, etc. I found nothing to back up the claim that 6 - 11 servings of grains a day - as recommended by the USDA Food Pyramid - improved any health condition. I did find a few studies that showed that if you're going to eat a ton of carbs, it may be best to restrict fats, but that's about as close as I came to finding support for the low fat/high carb diet.)


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More Christmas Presents for Low Carbers

Have you ever wondered who all those infomercials are aimed at? Apparently you haven't noticed the target tattooed on my forehead. I own at least 8 or 9 infomercial products, and I'm pleased to say that the majority of them perform exactly as advertised. In particular, I have a few fitness infomercial products that I really like. So if you have a low carber on your Christmas list who is always looking for a new way to shape up - or if you're a low carber who wants to shape up - you might consider these:

The Firm with Fanny Lifter - I've written about The Firm videos before. These are, in a word, superb. They're easy to follow - which is not the same as being easy to do, of course! - and they are fantastically effective. There is absolutely no question that if you regularly do the Firm workouts, you will burn fat at the fastest possible rate, build muscle, strengthen your bones, stand and move better, and just plain look better.

I don't have the specific videos on the infomercial, but I've tried five or six videos from The Firm - a company which has been around since the 1980s, by the way - and they've all been excellent. One particularly great thing about these videos is that, because of the way they incorporate weights, you not only get the maximum results in the minimum time, but you also will never outgrow the workout. If you're terribly out of shape, you can start doing the workout with no weights at all, and work your way up through 1 and 2 pounders to larger weights. If you're in good shape already, you can start with 3, 5, and 10 pound weights, and add more weight as you get stronger - you'll never stop progressing.

The videos from The Firm are the best of the best, and are highly recommended. However, I have read at http://www.fitnessinfomercialreview.com that the company that actually does the infomercial has less-than-stellar customer service. Consider doing a websearch for another company to order from.

If you'd like to give just one or two videos from The Firm, instead of spending $90 for the whole package, you can order them from http://www.firmbeliever.com - and a few of them from Amazon.com, which used to carry all of them. Here's a link to an article by Lowcarbezine! reader and Firm Believer Carol Vandiver, with rundown of the various Firm videos. Sadly, some of the Amazon links in the article no longer work - http://www.holdthetoast.com/archive/010404.html#firm
Zumba - this is my latest infomercial product. For those of you who have yet to catch the Zumba infomercial, this is a workout based on Latin dance - salsa, merengue, samba, and more. For $60-odd you get four videos - a "steps" video, that breaks down many of the various dance steps into the individual components, and helps you learn them, a Beginning Zumba workout, an Advanced workout, and a "Rapido" fifteen minute quicky workout. The Zumba program has a few problems. I feel that the infomercial overstates how easy it is to learn the steps, and the "Steps" video leaves out some of the moves that are on the workout tapes. Also, the "calling" of the steps on the videos could be better - as it is, they mostly just expect you to follow along, and it can take three or four times through before you start to get it.

That being said, I have really been enjoying the Beginning Zumba video. It's a ton of fun, the music is terrific, and the people are very appealing. This is not your average boring workout! Even my workout-hating husband likes Zumba. If you like to dance, this may be your workout. I've even added wrist weights to my Zumba-ing, to bring it up to the cardiovascular intensity of the Heavyhands workout I was doing all summer, and increase upper strength, and I think this is great.

I will say, however, that we finally watched part of the Advanced Zumba tape the other night, and "advanced" is right! This is very high intensity dance, with steps that are quite complex. I'm determined to learn it, but many may find it daunting. Still, I have a feeling that if I did the Advanced Zumba tape 4 - 5 times a week, I'd never get old...

Here's the Zumba website: http://www.zumba.com
Total Gym - this is the product advertised by Chuck Norris and Christie Brinkley. First developed at a physical therapy device, the Total Gym consists of a padded board that rolls along sloped rails, and a system of cables with pulleys and handles. The idea is that you sit or lie on the board, and by pulling on the cables you roll the board up and down the slope. By changing the degree of the slope, you can increase or decrease the percentage of your own body weight that you're lifting.

I wanted the Total Gym the moment I saw it. I could see immediately that it allowed for a very wide range of motion, and a limitless assortment of exercises. It was also apparent that it used what we call the "mid-course corrector muscles" - the little muscles that help you stabilize - these are the muscles that are not recruited by machines like Nautilus, and the reason that serious bodybuilders traditionally prefer free weights. I also liked the fact that the Total Gym stretched as well as strengthened - something which nearly saved my life after my car wreck a couple of years ago.

I bought my Total Gym used, off of Ebay - saved a good $700 that way - and I have never been disappointed. It's sturdy, and performs exactly as advertised. If you want a machine that will let you build muscle and flexibility with a fairly short workout, this is a fine piece of equipment. The only criticism I have is that - like most exercise equipment - the Total Gym is more of a pain to set up and take down than it appears on the infomercial, and it takes up a lot of room when set up. Other than that, it's great.
Walk Away the Pounds - I haven't actually tried these videos, but this is what I plan to get my mom for Christmas (don't tell her!) Her doctor has told her to walk every day, both for her general health and for her bones, but she's in her 70s, and lives in the Chicago suburbs, where the weather is pretty rough for walking in the winter.

Designed by Leslie Sansone, Walk Away the Pounds is a series of videos of workout that are basically glorified walking in place - that is, walking with some arm movements and such. They have absolutely glowing reviews at the fitness infomercial review site, and I've never seen a single negative word about them. From seeing the infomercial, I know that this is a low impact workout, without any difficult "dance-y" moves - yet enough to get the circulation going and the heart rate up. This strikes me as a superb idea - and a lot cheaper and easier to store than a treadmill! The workouts do incorporate some light weight work as you go along, which is also a big plus, both for increasing fitness and strengthening bones.

Here's a link to the original Walk Away the Pounds VHS: http://makeashorterlink.com/?B26D26382

Here's Walk Away the Pounds 2 Mile Walk: http://makeashorterlink.com/?T29D31382

And here's a gift set of the original Walk Away the Pounds plus weights: http://makeashorterlink.com/?V1BD23382
More gift ideas next issue!


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Get Your Low Carb Thanksgiving Gift Basket Here!

Ward off the leftover pumpkin pie with the low carb treats in our Thanksgiving gift basket - or get a jump on your Christmas shopping with our wide selection of other low carb gift baskets!

While you're at the site, check out our huge selection of low carb candy, bake mix, chips, pasta, books, supplements and more - ALL AT A DISCOUNT!

Plus our own newsletter, success stories, recipes - and Dana's How I Gave Up My Low Fat Diet and Lost Forty Pounds!

If you're low carb and smart, you'll shop Carb Smart!

http://www.webbalah.net/carbsmart.html


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Cooking Low Carb!

Here, as promised, is the recipe for Espresso Chocolate Chip Brownies! A friend posted the original, definitely not low carb recipe to a newsgroup I frequent (Thanks, Robin!), and I couldn't resist the challenge. They're wonderful!

Espresso Chocolate Chip Brownies

1 cup Splenda

1/2 cup vanilla whey protein powder

1/4 cup almond meal

OR

a scant 1/4 cup shelled almonds

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon instant coffee crystals - regular or decaf, as you prefer

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

2 large eggs

1/4 cup water

6 ounces sugar free chocolate chips

OR

3 - 4 sugar free dark chocolate bars, chopped to chocolate chip size in the food processor

Preheat oven to 350

Put Splenda, vanilla whey protein, almond meal or almonds, cocoa, instant coffee crystals, and salt in a food processor with the S-blade in place. Pulse to combine, and if using whole almonds, continue until they're ground fine. Add the butter, and pulse until the butter is "cut in" - well combined with the dry ingredients. Turn out into a bowl. Mix in the eggs, one at a time, beating well with a whisk after each. Then beat in the water. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips or chopped up chocolate bars. Spray an 8x8" square pan with non-stick cooking spray, and spread batter evenly in the pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes - do not overbake! Cool, and cut into squares.

I made 25 small brownies from this - I like to have the option of having a little something, and if I want more, I can always have two. If you do, indeed, make 25, each brownie will have 3 grams of carbohydrate, and 1 gram of fiber, for a usable carb count of 2 grams. Also 3 grams of protein.

If you prefer, you can make 16 bigger brownies, at 4 grams of carb each, and 1 gram of fiber, for a usable carb count of 3 grams, with 4 grams of protein.

These carb counts do not include the polyols in the sugar free chocolate.

Last week I suggested Green Beans Almondine instead of the green bean casserole that appears at so many Thanksgiving Dinners - and is so full of carbs. Personally, I like Green Beans Almondine better, anyway. But for you Green Bean Casserole diehards - and I know that there are more than a few of you out there! - here's the new, decarbed version!

DeCarbed Green Bean Casserole

1 medium onion

1/4 cup low carb bake mix or rice protein powder

1/4 teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal

1/4 teaspoon paprika

oil for frying

4 cups frozen green beans, cut style

4 ounce can mushrooms

2 tablespoons minced onion

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon chicken or beef bouillon concentrate

1 teaspoon soy sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon guar or xanthan gum

Slice the onion thin, and separate into rings. Mix together the bake mix or protein powder, salt or Vege-Sal, and paprika. "Flour" the onion rings - the easiest way is to put the "flouring" mixture in a small paper sack, and shake a few onion rings at a time. Heat about 1/4" of oil in a heavy skillet, over medium heat, and fry the "floured" onion rings, turning once, until golden brown and crisp. Drain on absorbent paper. You can do this part well in advance, if you like.

When you're ready to make your casserole, start your green beans cooking - I like to microwave mine on high for about 7 - 8 minutes, but you can steam them if you prefer. While that's happening, drain the liquid off the mushrooms, and reserve it. Saute the mushrooms and the minced onion in the butter until the onion is limp and translucent. Now add the cream, the reserved mushroom liquid, the Worcestershire sauce, the bouillon concentrate, and the soy sauce, and stir, then salt and pepper to taste.

Now you have a choice - you can either pour this mixture into a blender, or use a hand blender. Either way, sprinkle the guar or xanthan over the top, and run the blender just long enough to blend in the thickener, and to chop the mushrooms a bit - but not to totally puree them, you want some bits of mushroom.

Okay, we're on the home stretch. Drain your cooked green beans, and put them in a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish that you've sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Stir in the mushroom mixture and half of those fried onions. Bake it in a 350 oven for 25-30 minutes, then top it with the rest of the fried onions, and bake for another 5 minutes. 6 servings, each with 11 grams carbohydrate and 4 grams of fiber, for a usable carb count of 7 grams. 6 grams protein. For the record, this comes to just over half of the carb content of the original recipe - and just about the same calorie count.


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That's it for this issue! See you next issue!

Dana

Return to Archive Contents

To request a full-text version of this issue by e-mail, just send a message to: htt021120@holdthetoast.com (Message and subject can be blank.)


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All contents Copyright © 1999-2002 by Hold the Toast Press. All commercial reproduction and/or use is expressly prohibited. As always, feel free to forward Lowcarbezine! to any family or friends you feel might enjoy it, provided that you forward it in its entirety.

Lowcarbezine! welcomes reader input! If you have a question, a recipe, a product review, a low carb success story, send it on in!! dana@holdthetoast.com All submissions become the property of Hold the Toast Press. If you don't want us to print your letter, just let us know, and we won't! However, please note -- although I really do read all my email my very own self, I get a lot of mail -- generally over 200 posts a day (not all of them about Lowcarbezine!), so I can't promise to answer every post personally. Or I'll never get the next book written!

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Hey, Guys you were right! The scale said 214 this morning.

Gracious- i would be starving if that were my menu! I think I simply eat too much!

Jack-K- You're doing good! I'm sure in another week, you'll have all of those vacation pounds gone!

Daramus- I know I'm addicted to food- I know that I will ALWAYS have a problem with it. But at least with SB I feel somewhat in control. It stinks that i can't eat what I want like some other's and stay slim!

Good Morning to All:)


It's a crisp day here in Ridgefield, about 50 out side and the Sun is shining, This is unusual for our part of the country as we usually are known for our rain. And I do mean rain. Where is it!
Well I'm not having a good day, I've all ready had two not on but two Bologna sandwhichs on WW but getting on line and talking to you all has comed me down to where I don't feel compalsive again I think I can get through this day now. Do any of you ever wake up just nervous and over eat cause of it. I sure do. I didn't even think of SB untill I had eaten the second Sand. Now whats up with that. I guess it's going to be harder than I though to get back on program :devil:

Monet: Thanks for the Mayo recipe I'll make it up tonight. DD is looking forward to having her own Mayo that she can use. I'll then be able to make salad dressing for her from it. She only uses Ranch and 1000 island. So thanks again.

Thishaloo: Boy do I know about the left overs, I'm going to Mom's this yr so I don't have to do the cooking and the left overs, I love left overs. Your corn bread stuffing sounds so good, I love dressing only. How old is Jordon, the Y sounds great. My daughter is looking for work for on the wk ends, She was asking me about putting in application at the Y. I thought it sounded like a fun place to work. But only wk ends as she has School during the wk. I'll take all the Angels I can get. We all need alittle help from time to time. so keep um comming'


Linn: I don't think I count on a weight loss from this person as I've already screwed up. But we'll see where we go from here.

Well love to all gotta run Glory :)

Hi all, doing well today as I rec'd exciting news yesterday. I was invited by my boss(Dr. Segal) to his wedding on January 5th in Anguilla, British West Indies!!! He is renting a private jet for 50 of us to land in St. Martin and then take a ferry over to the island...We have to wear white attire as the wedding will be on the beach. He is paying for the flight, hotel, etc..I'M SO EXCITED!! You see, there are perks for working for doctors!!:spin: My head is just spinning...

Daramus: Nice picture. You are very handsome. Nice to meet you! I liked what you said about feeling like a recovering alcoholic. For me, sugar is a drug and I am a recovering sugar addict! It's like all or nothing. I know that if I have one piece of real sugar(poison) I will binge. I have not binged once since I quit sugar completely on 9/1/02! I do believe that weight lifting is the fastest way to take the fat off and to keep it off!:strong:

Congratulations to Laurie, Jackie, and Linworthlady for their weight losses!!:cp:

Trish: Sorry that you are having family problems with your sister. Glad your Mom is doing okay now. I'm sure your Mom didn't deserve that! It's definitely okay to vent on here especially writing it down on here. It has less power over you when you write your troubles down. It helps to get it out so you feel better. I hope that your family can resolve these issues soon.:goodvibes Here are some good vibes for you! Also, Jordan's job sounds very exciting working as a counselor at a school. Lord knows, there are many kids that can use peer counseling!

Jackie: Glad to hear that you go through the service okay and that your SIL was good to you. Thank you for your prayers and support for Amber and I. Things are much better!

Tina: Glad your Mom's medical problem magically disappeared! Now, that's what I call a miracle...:flow1:

Lyn: Hope you have a tolerable recovery. I couldn't imagine breaking my collar bone. Enjoy your pedicure!!

Lara: Don't worry about you being up 1/2 lb. Probably just water weight or muscle wgt if you are working out.

Gracious: Thank you for the beef stew recipe. Looks awesome. I have some sweet potato recipes. I will look for them and post them later.

Glory: While you are writing a response, just click to the left of the screen "Get More" and more smilies will come up. Just click on which one you want and then click the x to x out of it and return to your message. I love those things as you can tell!!
Glad to see that Monet got you that homemade mayo recipe. Thanks for relating to my daughter. I agree with you, I think the girls are tougher to deal with during those angst teen years.

Linworthlady: I would bring some SGWW bread on the trip so when you stop at a Fast Food restaurant, you can order a burger etc and just put it on your own bread. Also, go to Wendy's when you can to get their Chili. I believe that is legal too!

Monet: Sounds like you had a very interesting discussion on the 2001 Space Odyssy movie. That's the best way to enjoy a movie is have a discussion with everyone after it's over.

Okay, I'm posting a lot today. Take care everyone and I will talk to you soon!! :wave:

Recipes:

sweetpotato "hashbrowns

Here's the receipe.
This is only 2 small portions. Double, triple, or whatever as necessary.

Peel and Cube sweet potato (small cubes)
Boil until slightly tender (not too much or they'll mash on you)
Drain sweet potatos
Dice 1/2 onion
Sautee in oil and/or butter in a large skillet
Add in sweet potato cubes
Add in desired amount of salt and pepper
Cook until slightly browned, turning frequently

Tip: When turning the potatos in the pan, use a spatula and turn big portions. Be very gentle. Otherwise you will mash them up and they won't be cubed anymore.

Pecan Chicken (I think this would be good with fish, too)

Yield: 4 servings

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 C nonfat or low-fat buttermilk or yogurt (I used whole milk yogurt)
2 C Special K cereal
1/4 to 1/3 C finely chopped pecans
1 tsp lemon pepper
3/4 tsp poultry seasoning
1/4 tsp salt (We don't use salt)
Butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray (I used Pam regular)

1. Rinse the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Cut the chicken crosswise into 8 equal parts, then, with the cut side up, use the palm of your hand to flatten each piece to 1/2-inch thickness.

2. Place the chicken in a shallow nonmetal container and cover with the buttermilk or yogurt. Turn the chicken to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours, turning occasionally. (I did this with the yogurt, put the chicken in the fridge and got all the other stuff ready during that time, so probably my chicken was in the "marinade" for an hour; I didn't want to wait 6-24 hours. Guess I need to plan better next time, but it tasted great anyway.)

3. Put the cereal in a food processor and process into coarse crumbs. (Alternatively, put the cereal in a plastic zip-type bag and crush with a rolling pin or the bottom of a glass.) There should be 1 C of crumbs. Put the crumbs in a shallow dish and add the pecans, lemon pepper, poultry seasoning, and salt. Stir to mix well.

4. Remove the chicken from the buttermilk or yogurt and shake off excess. Dip the chicken pieces in the crumb mixture, turning to coat both sides well.

5. Coat a large baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray, and arrange the chicken pieces in a single layer on the sheet. Spray the tops lightly with the cooking spray and bake at 400 degrees F for about 25 minutes or until the chicken is crisp and golden on the outside and is cooked through. Serve hot.

Nutritional facts per serving
Calories: 221
Carbs: 10 g
Cholesterol: 65 mg
Fat: 6.8 g
Fiber: 0.9 g
Protein: 29 g
Sodium: 415 mg
Calcium: 17 mg
GI rating: Low (40 to 54)

From The Good Carb Cookbook, by Sandra Woodruff, MS,RD


The following were sent to me from Beth, a friend of mine from SugarShakers:

Sugar-Free Holiday Nog

7 cups skim milk, divided
1 pkg. (1 ounce) instant sugar-free vanilla pudding mix
1-2 tsp. vanilla or rum extract
Sugar substitute equivalent to 4-8 tsp. sugar
1 cup evaporated skim milk

Combine 2 cups milk, pudding mix vanilla & sugar substitute in a bowl; mix according to pudding directions. Pour into a 1/2 gallon container with tight fitting lid. Add 3 cups milk; shake well. Add evaporated milk; shake well. Add remaining milk; shake well. Chill. Yield 8 servings.

Exchanges: 1 Skim Milk, 1/4 starch
Serving Size: 1 cup: Calories 114, Sodium 296 mg., Cholesterol 6 mg.,
Carbohydrate 18gm., Fat 1gm., fiber 0gm


Eggless Eggnog (sugar free)

3 cups cream
3 cups water
1/3 cup sugar substitute
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoon rum flavoring
1 package sugar-free instant vanilla pudding
dash of nutmeg

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until well combined. Chill.


Mashed Sweet Potatoes

5 sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons butter
2 packets of Splenda
Cream

Peel and boil sliced sweet potatoes until tender. Drain water and place in
mixing bowl.

Add butter & Splenda and mix on high.
Add cream bit by bit until creamy.


Apple Cobbler

2 c. Oat Flour
2/3 c.butter flavor Crisco for crust
8-10 Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored & pared
1/2 c. Sugar Twin mixed with 1 t. Cinnamon
2-4 T. Butter, sliced thinly

Mix flour and Crisco as you would for a pie crust, mixing thoroughly. Press 1/2 into 8x8 baking dish for crust. Keep other half for top. Peel and cut up apples and place into crust, sprinkling with Sugar Twin/cinnamon mixture and dotting with thin slices of butter at each layer. Keep layering until baking dish is full. Pat out remaining crust mixture and place over apples.
Bake at 350 degrees about 1-1/2 hours, or until browned.
Delicious by itself, or topped with sugarfree ice cream.


Good for a head cold!
Kleenex Soup

3 cups chicken broth
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed in a garlic press
Dash of cayenne pepper
Big pinch of oregano
Dash of nutmeg
Generous amount of freshly ground black pepper
Half a celery stalk, sliced thin
salt
1 egg, beaten
Garnish: Chopped fresh parsley

Heat the chicken broth to a boil, add the seasonings and vegetables, then reduce heat. Simmer for about 10 minutes, until vegetables are tender, then strain the soup. Season to taste with salt. Turn heat to medium and slowly pour the beaten egg
into the strained broth, stirring lightly as it goes in, so it looks like
shreds of Kleenex tissue as it cooks. Remove from heat immediately after the egg cooks.

Gingersnaps

2 cups almond flour (***or 1 C. Almond, 1 C.Hazelnut)
1/4 lb (1 stick) softened butter
1/2 cup granular Splenda
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar Twin
2 teaspoons water
1 teaspoon sugarfree vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 300°F.
Cream butter with Splenda and Brown Sugar Twin in a large bowl. Add water and spices and mix well. Gradually add almond flour and mix to a stiff dough. Form into small balls and place on greased cookie sheet at least 1" apart.(***try 2-3" apart!)
Bake at 300°F for 20 minutes.(*** 30 for crisp) After five minutes in oven, press cookies down with a fork in a criss-cross manner.
Continue baking, being careful not to burn and adjusting time for your oven. Makes 20 - 24 cookies. Approximately 1 carb per cookie.

Baked Eggnog Cheesecake Custard

8 oz. light cream cheese (room temp)
1/2 c sour cream
3 Tbsp. splenda
1 tsp. rum extract
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. grated nutmeg
With a mixer,beat the cream cheeese with splenda.
Add the sour cream, extracts, nutmeg and the eggs.
Beat until smooth and creamy. Pam spray 4 oven proof 6 oz. custard cups.Divide custard mixture evenly into the cups.
Place the custard cups into a 9"x13" cake pan;pour hot water in the pan to about 1/2 full. Bake at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove cups from pan & let cool on a wire rack.
When cool, store in the fridge.

Citrus Pumpkin Pie in Nutty Crust
Crust:
1 C whole wheat flour
1 C ground walnuts
3 T vegetable oil
1/4 C orange juice or water
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Filling:
2 C cooked or canned pumpkin, pureéed
1-1/2 C plain, low fat yogurt
1/2 C orange juice
1/4 C brown sugar
1/2 C granulated sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/8 tsp. cloves
1 T freshly grated orange zest

Makes 8 Servings
Preheat oven to 425°F.
To Make Crust:
Combine crust ingredients and press into a 9-inch pie pan. Set Aside.
To Make Filling:
Beat together pumpkin, yogurt, orange juice, sugars and eggs. Add salt, spices and orange zest and stir until thoroughly blended. Pour into pastry lined pie pan.

Bake for 15 minutes; lower temperature to 350°F and continue baking for 45 minutes or until knife inserted in middle comes out clean.

Per Serving:
293 Cal
13g Fat
8g Pro
40g Carb
33mg Chol
192mg Sodium

Warm Blueberry Sauce

Serve this dessert sauce on waffles, pancakes or ice cream.
Makes about 1 cup
1 1/2 cups Blueberries (frozen or fresh)
1/4 cup Splenda or to taste or other sugar sub.
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg

Place all ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.

Sweet Potato Patties

2 cups sweet potatoes, cooked
2 tablespoons butter
2 eggs beaten
3 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup splenda
1 teaspoon vanilla
Combine all of the above ingredients in a large bowl, making sure they are mixed well. Heat cooking oil in a large skillet to about 400 degrees. Form mixture into small patties.Dredge patties in flour; press out flat, and fry until each side is brown and
crisp.

Creamed Cauliflower

1 head cauliflower broken into florets
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup Whole Wheat Bread Crumbs
1 cup half n' half
1 Tbsp Butter
minced fresh parsley

Place cauliflower in sauce pan with a little salted water and cook until tender crisp. Drain. Spray a casserole dish with PAM. Sprinkle with 2 Tbsp of the Bread Crumbs. Add cauliflower. Top with half n' half. Dot with butter and sprinkle with salt. Top with remaining bread crumbs. Bake at 350º for 25 minutes. Garnish with Parsley.
6 servings.

Cinnamon Cookies

2 eggs
3 Tb. butter, softened
1/2 c. SF apple sauce
1 tsp. vanilla
6 tsp Splenda
1 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
Beat eggs and butter until light and fluffy. Beat in splenda, applesauce and vanilla. Combine flour, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt. Fold into wet ingredients.
Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets, 2 to 3 inches apart. Bake at 375 degrees F for 8 – 10 minutes

TURKEY CUTLETS WITH SAGE
Serves 4

4 teaspoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons dried sage leaves
1 pound turkey breast cutlets
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup all-purpose flour{SGWW for Sugar Busters!}
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup reduced-sodium fat-free chicken broth
1 tablespoon lemon juice


Lay a large sheet of plastic wrap on counter; sprinkle with half
the combined vinegar, garlic, and sage. Place cutlets on plastic
wrap; sprinkle with remaining vinegar mixture. Sprinkle with salt
and pepper. Cover cutlets with second sheet of plastic wrap. Using kitchen mallet or bottom of heavy pan, pound cutlets to flatten. Let stand 5 minutes.

Sprinkle both sides of cutlets with flour. Heat oil in large
skillet over medium-high heat; add half the cutlets and cook
until browned on bottom, about 1-1/2 minutes. Turn and cook
on second side until cooked through, about 3 minutes. Remove
cutlets to oven-proof serving platter; keep warm. Repeat with
remaining cutlets.

Heat broth and lemon juice to boiling in skillet; cook until
reduced by half. Pour mixture over cutlets; serve immediately.

Nutritional Information Per Serving:
Calories: 158, Fat: 4.5 g, Cholesterol: 44.7 g, Sodium: 63 g,
Protein: 21.1 g, Carbohydrate: 7 g
Diabetic Exchanges: 1/2 Bread, 3 Meat
WW Pts: 4


This is the last recipe.

I'm back from my vacation to Colorado with a big 4.5 lb. weight gain. But I knew I was blowing my eating and didn't stop it...... So back from a wonderful time with some extra lbs. I'm drinking my water and eating right.....



213/165.5/130

Welcome back Toni!! Did you do some skiing? Don't worry about the gain. It will come right off in no time. Also, probably half is water weight!

Denise, thank you for all those recipes. I've copied the whole thing, as there were so many I wanted to try.

Jack-E where in NH were that couple from that you met on the cruise. Way to go on the weight loss!:high:

Gracious, congragulations on the 1.5 weight loss. :bravo: Thank you for the compliment on my puppy. She's also spoiled rotten.

linworthlady, that's a terriffic weight loss:dancer: Last year when DH & I went to FL we brought along some raw veggies, cooked fresh chicken strips, and some cheese to eat on the road. That really stayed with us. We plan on doing that again when we go next year.

Aleka

Hay gang,

Getting ready to go pickup DH, his truck is acting up so we are dropping it off at the shop. Have a meatloaf in the oven so dinner is taken care of. All this talk about sweet pots are making we want one.

Monet, Glad you had a nice outing last nite. Any test results yet?

Linworth, Deb's cheesecake it awesome for starters. There are several more on the recipe boards.

Daramus, I think being a food addict is much like being an alcohlic. We can never go back to eating the old ways. We have to change our eating habits or this weight will be right back plus some. The best part is knowing we can get right back on track after a slip up. That is important. I have been working out with wts and walking everyday. It is part of my daily routine now. Don't even think about it except as to when I will do it. I enjoy it. Of course I would rather veg out on the couch with a bag of chips, but I know I can't. Get back into it. It really does help. You have done great and you will get to 170 before you know it.

Heartmom, :dance: I knew the scale would be nice to you today.

Denise, Thanks for the article, It was very intersting. SOme good tips too. How exciting to get to go to Anguilla and best of all it's all paid for> I'm jealous. Especially since I will be freezing here on 1-5. Thanks for the recipes. I miss hashbrowns, I will try that one.

GloryIbe, I plan my meals the night before. I start with dinner. After that I figure out what I want for lunch (usually a salad or sandwich) Then I plan my carbs for either lunch or breakfast. That way I know what I am going to eat when I get up that day and there is no chance for messing up. If I have carbs for dinner, then I don't have any for brkfst or lunch.

Toni, Glad you are back we have missed you. Don't worry about the gain, I gained 10 on mine and 7 are gone already. It will drop off fast. Hope you had a great time.

Aleka, I don't know exactly where they are from. My friend will know I will ask her.

Have a great nite.

Jackie

Hello girls (and boys -is Daramus still around?)

I haven't been around so long, that...well, most of you probably don't even know me. Deb told me I need to at least jump on the board and sweep those cobwebs under my name.

Sorry guys, this year's been terribly busy for me. First I had some boyfriend trouble, then I lost my job, and now I am working 12 hour days on commission only. I am going crazy!

SB still rocks, though, and I am down to 146-147 from 167 where I started back in the February. Since I don't want to be a bad influence, I won't tell how much cheating is going on these days :dizzy: but lemme say, I need a bit of a slap on my b%^$!

Well, I can't promise I'll be able to reply to anyone, or even talk much more, but I miss you all very much, and I am looking to seeing some of you in January. Deb is making big plans already! Yes!

DEB - can you believe I haven't made the cheescake since this summer? I can't believe it myself! I made some oatmeal cookies a month ago, but that is sooooooooo long and far away! These days I am munching nuts and triscuits. I know. Vesna bad.

Allrightie, take care all of you, and remember, the weight loss may be slow, but man, when you get there, you'll KEEP IT OFF! (I know!)

Vesna

Evening All:wave:

Conturatry to possible beliefs, no, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth, though I sure as heck feel like I have! Not only is this so-called cold hanging on with all fours I feel like I've been drained of every bit of energy from my body. I have no desire to do anything!

Anyhow, I am copying all 3 pages that's been posted this week in hopes that maybe tonight I can find myself some time and energy to catch up with everyone. I've missed you all this week and surely need to see what's going on with you all!:D

IF I fall asleep do know that my intentions at this time were good and I'll try to find some time tomorrow to post if I don't tonight. Just hoping this will pass soon, it's driving me nuts!!!!

On my way to copy....

{{{HUGS}}}

Deb

The pedicure was indeed a fun experience. She put an interesting color on called ”Kinky in Helsinki”. I needed a
little lighthearted moment in my life. Today a friend took me to a movie and lunch. The movie was Far From
Heaven. It was a good movie but a little too sad for me. It had a lot to think about, however.

Gracious: When I have sweet potatoes, I just cook them in the microwave and eat them with nothing on them.
Heartmom: Your idea of cooking them also in olive oil with some onions sounds good too.

Trishaloo: That rotator cuff business is mean. I messed mine up also about 1 1/2 years ago and had to go to
physical therapy. At first the doctor wanted to do surgery but I resisted. I am glad I didn’t have it because that got
to be okay. I am not doing any physical therapy yet for the shoulder. I guess they want the bone to try to knit first.
They say it will be 3 to 4 months.

Linworthlady: Because we travel with two cats, we no longer eat in restaurants when we drive. I fix us a nice
lunch before we leave. I usually make something with smoked turkey from the deli, cheese, cauliflower,
Triscuits...things like that to eat at some the lovely road side parks. For breakfast, I mix up equal parts of regular
oatmeal (uncooked) and unsweetened applesauce and mix in some diced apricots. I let this sit at least overnight
and serve it with milk. I also boil up some eggs and all this makes a very nice stay with you breakfast. Of course,
you have to travel with a little cooler in the car.

Jack-K: I am glad the service is behind you and everything went okay.

Deb: Hi, I am so sorry that you are ill. Those colds can make you feel worse that anything.

linworthlady, I had another thought. If you can bring some Romaine lettuce leaves, they make fantastic roll ups with any legal luncheon meat and some cheese.

Aleka

Oh I justw wrote a long message here and lost it. I was trying to thank everyone for all the food ideas.
Denise-I liked the low carb newsletter-thanks for sending it. And those recipes looked great.
Deb-take care of yourself.
Daramus-Glad you are back without much damage done. Sugar is addictive, isn't it?

I forget everything else I just wrote so will make this short. Talk to you all tomorrow.

HiedieHo All!!

Where does the time go? Wednesday spent day at church doing some music chores, then choir practice. In between did some errands. Today was the NH and Thanksgiving shopping. Time just flies when you're busy.

DENISE: Hope you didn't think I was making a criminal out of you, I just never heard of anyone using a lawyer for a simple traffic violation. I only got a speeding ticket years ago with no points involved (you know, the good old days!) Glad things are getting back on track with yoour DD. Kids are a trial at times but they do grow up! WOW! That's going to be some wedding. You will have a wonderful time I'm sure.

YELLOW: Glad you have been out and about w/o your brace. Don't rush thinghs, healing takes time. Of course, I'm very good at giving advice!

DARAMUS: Nice to see your note. You'll lose those #s again! Handsome guy!

BOB: I used a version of your "Can't Believe We Made It" with my NH group. I copied yours for future use as it had a couple of things that were different.

BETH: Hope you feel better, sending good thoughts for you and your family. You're right, people sometimes forget the strain that a caregiver goes through. The patient is getting good care but who cares for the caregiver?

ROBIN: Another Scrabbler! I'll have to see if I can find Literati.

MONET: I copied your note about the Scrabble game, have to use it as a gentle hint for Christmas! Thanx. Maybe the liver questions were the power of suggestion or else they have made you more aware of what's happening with your body. You know prayers are going your way.

TRISH: The old saying about not being able to choose your family is true. My sister caused a lot of problems in the family years ago, and it took a long time to come to the conclusion that you have to let go and let God. Thirty years later things are better but we are not chums by any means. I wanted to smack her alongside the ehad many times. She really hurt our father.

GRACIOUS: I lived near Amish country, we would go to the farmer's market. I do a lot of their recipes. You can make stew w/o potatoes. If you want strach substitute your favorite pasta.

DEB: Hope you feel better soon. It's terrible to be too sick to be out of bed and not sick enough to be in it, so you sort of float in limbo trying to decide and feeling miserable. You know what you tell me "REST"..

Think I will read a bit before heading to bed.

Take care.


Shirley

Did anyone happen to catch ABC News last night around 6:30 pm? They did a story on revamping the Food Pyramid that de-emphasizes carbs. I didn't catch the whole story, but at the end Dr. Timothy Johnson was on to give his opinion. In parting he suggested that everyone get a good nutritional book, and forget about the current food pyramid. If you go to www.abcnews.com and click onto health you can read the story.

Gracious, whenever I have a sweet potato, I just bake it in the oven and put a very small pat of butter on it.

vesnoid, that 20 lb. loss is fantastic!! You've done really great!

Deb, sorry you're feeling so lousy. I hope you're better soon.

Hi to everyone! I apologize for not responding to all of you, but I find this so overwhelming! Is there an easy way to keep track of all the posts?

Have a good day.:balloons:

I can't believe it is the weekend already, I had so much to do this week and got a lot accomplished. Tonight is my first free Friday night for over 2 months when I started taking that Sewing Class on Friday evenings. I am looking forward to staying home and having some quality veg time!

Today I am going to sew in a new zipper into a housecoat my mother brought me 12 years ago when I got this sewing machine on my first anniversary. She figured since I got a machine I could just sew it in for her. Well, I have been married 13 years now and finally taken a sewing class so now I will put the zipper in! I learned how! :smug: I am going to wrap it up and give it back to her as a fun Christmas present; it will certainly be a surprise!

I didn't have any change in the scale this morning again, but at least it is the same. I think this is what made me try those crazy things before...not seeing the scale move, up or down. This time I am going to try and be patient. Eat SB and follow my own advice that slow and steady wins the race. However, I really hope I will see a loss of 1 lb a week and that will keep me happy.

Wow, I just realized I am babbling away about everything and nothing here...I better stop now!

Menu for Thursday

Breakfast: coffee/cream, Chinese Pear,WW toasted pita/butter, 1 slice of cheddar cheese

Lunch:small bowl of stew (testing it for dinner!), dried fruit bar

Dinner: Stew, clementine for dessert

Evening snack: some pork rinds, salad/dressing, diet pepsi

Water: 3 litres

I ate too much fruit today I think. Isn't it 2 pieces of fruit a day? I forget now but remember that DEBELLI eats quite a bit of fruit. Please remind me someone.

DENISE- I get that low carb newsletter too! I also get Atkins stuff sent to me. I do find lots of what they say interesting and I think it is true for the most part. However, I do like eating SB way better because of the fruit and WW carbs. Thanks for all those recipes too. I copied them and will try some out.

ALEKA- You also did Atkins before didn't you? I forget who was the WW and who was the Atkins folks. In any case, low carbers certainly believe that the Food Pyramid is upside down and have made up their own that basically does that.

SEF-I made the stew with carrots and potatoes but basically scooped around them when I served myself and ate everything but the carrots and potatoes. With a family of 5 it was easier for me to do it this way since my Pastor hubby gets bags of potatoes and carrots from people in the congregation, we have to use them up!
I would love to see your version of Can't Believe We Made It if you have it handy. I thought it was so true and I would like to see another version too.

YELLOWROSE- What a nail polish name! Now is that a kind of pink or red?

TONI- Welcome back!! I missed reading that you were on vacation and was asking about you. JACK-K let me know you were on vacation. A 4.5 lb gain is not much at all for vacation, I am glad you enjoyed yourself. That will come off easily, just like JACK-K's. Infact, that is one reason it is so easy for me to fall off the wagon..those pounds gained always come off fast on me. It is the others that hang on like there is no tomorrow!!

That is it for me. Have a great Friday! Is the American Thanksgiving this week or next?!

Happy Friday :wave:

It seems like it was a quick week. But I'm glad it is Friday.
We are going to the horse races tomorrow with DH's work. ANd then we are going to a friend's grandbaby's first birthday party. No cake for me though!

The scale was down 1 more today. Boy that was quick. Only 2 more to go to get to my low. Then on to goal. I think this gain has really helped me see that I need to stay OP for the holidays. I ordered a dress for the wedding in a size 10. I have to get in it.

Bob where are you? Are you traveling or is your baby there keeping you from us?

Vesnoid, I was so excited to see your post. Sorry your have been having so much trouble with your job, etc. Looks like your eating hasn't been too bad. Funny how we know where to come back to isn't it. Hope you can keep posting.

Deb, Hope that cold goes away soon and you start feeling better. This is not the time of year to be under the weather. To much to do.

Yellowrose, Don't you just love those crazy names OPI uses on their polish. One is weirder than the other. Glad you enjoyed the pedicure.

Sef, Sounds like you had a busy week. Enjoy yur weekend.

Aleka, I saw that story about the food pyramid too. They said breads (the bad kind-white flour) and pasta & other carbs are ont he top now where fats used to be. Your nuts and olive oil are on the bottom. Red meat was up there with the breads. Da, we SB knew that from the beginning.

Gracious don't worry about that scale. Let your clothes and how you feel guide you forawhile. OUr Thanksgiving is next Thursday. I'm in favor of switching ours to when you alls is. I would like more time in between Thanksgiving and Christmas. We are so rushed, we can't enjoy it.

Off to get some work done. :(

See ya later.

Jackie
257/164/145
10-10-01

Jackie-What wedding are you going to? Denise is the one that got the fabulous invitation involving a private jet isn't she? I would love to be in a size 10. Maybe with SB I'll get there.
DO you all think the Atkins dieters are a little too much "I told you so" in your face? I agree with a lot of what they say, just don't like how they say it. Thanks for sending the newsletter Denise. I read it all. And thanks for all the recipes.
I had 2 sausage patties for breakfast. I'm trying to limit my starchy carbs.
Gracious-those sewing lessons sound like so much fun. I have a machine and don't know how to sew. Where were your lessons? Your mom will laugh when she opens her Christmas present haha.

Yucky, grey day! Temps are supposed to drop during the day with a chance of snow. Yesterday was wonderful, around 50F. I went out and pruned my roses and stored the potted ones and the garden furniture for the winter. Got in a general yard clean up so we have lots of room to try to make an ice rink this year. Last year was not conducive to making/keeping ice as it alternated between "warm" and cold.

Had kind of a scary experience yesterday. I was driving past a schoolbus (it was going the opposite direction and also waiting at a light to make a turn) and I saw this teenager leaning out the window! He was totally out of the bus from the waist up. As I went by, he threw something at my car with all his might! I was afraid it would break the windshield. Fortunately it was only a piece of ice. I was kind of in shock. Didn't think till a couple of minutes later that I should have slammed on the brakes and had the bus driver call the police. I had seen Dr. Phil last week and how his SIL had been burned with acid from some idiot throwing it onto her car and I've heard of idiots throwing rocks from overpasses. All this went quickly thru my head as I saw this object coming toward the windshield. I was really thankful that I was ok and that I could keep my wits about me and not causing an accident myself. I can't imagine what the heck was going thru that kid's head. Obviously he had planned his actions cause he had to get that ice before getting on the bus.

I'm at a solid 166! The scale decided to go there for sure on Thursday (why does it always go down AFTER WIW:lol: ). I'm the same today. So now I'll be going down into "new low" territory!!!:D I'm really going to have to get serious about exercising tho. Even tho the scale says I'm smaller, my clothes don't feel any bigger! :^: I have been walking more and even got on the elliptical, so at least that's a start.

Made a batch of DEB's HUMMUS and cut up some veggies and toasted some pita bread. Yummy snack. I had forgotten about the toasted pitas! I may have found an alternate to satisfy my "chip" craving.

I found this recipe on the back of the pita package. I think I read that some of you can get "President's Choice" stuff. They have SGWW oval pitas in a recloseable bag.

PC PITA CHIPS
1 package WW oval pita
1/4 cup virgin olive oil
1 tsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp dried oregano

Preheat oven to 375F. Cut each pita into 8 wedges. Mix together the olive oil, garlic and oregano. With a pastry brush, lightly brush te pita wedges with the oil mixture. Place pita wedges on a baking sheet and bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I split the pita to give me 2 ovals and then cut it into little 2-bite pieces, brushed it with the oil mixture and lightly salted them, then baked. I only did one pita, so I stored the rest of the oil mixture in a tupperware container for future use.

Now, I have only quickly glanced thru the posts for the week, so sorry if I don't respond to everyone. I'm going by memory which isn't good at best of times.

DEBELLI--sorry you haven't been feeling well. Hope you get better real soon!

DARAMUS--Nice to see you back! Literally. Nice picture.

MONET--Take it easy. Rest as much as possible so you'll be up and about at Christmas.

JACKK--WTG on losing those holiday pounds so quickly.

GRACIOUS--Too funny with the 12 year old zipper project! I can totally relate. I opted to make my own wedding dress and the family had bets that I wouldn't finish it on time! :lol: My FIL owned a drycleaners for many years and did all the sewing alterations and repairs. He showed me a few "shortcuts". Thank goodness for that. Last month I was replacing a zipper in DS's winter jacket a 1/2 hour before we had to leave for school! Replacing the zip was much cheaper than buying a new jacket.

DENISE--Thanks for posting all those recipes! I've printed them all out and will have to try some!

WELCOME too all the new people on Board. This is a wonderful place full of friendship and support.

Ok, I have to get going. DH is home early today and I don't want him to think I've done nothing but sit at the computer all day :s:

Good Friday Morning Everyone:wave:

I'M BACCCCCK!!!!! I started a post last night and never got around to finishing it-sorry. BUT, this morning, this glorious morning I'm ready to tackle anything thrown at me and I'm ready to devot the entire morning to getting caught up with the board, so batten down the hatches, there's lots of reading from here on:)

YIPEEE!! I actually got in my exercise this morning! Boy, did it feel good. Okay, it was a bit tiring, but damn did it feel great to get back out there AND not only that, do my 4.5 miles in a decent tome of 51:55, better than I thought I would do when I went.

I'm still a bit sick, but lots better than I have been. Not walking and feeling as I did was not making me feel good in so many ways, almost like a domino effect, making me feel like I was being pulled down a deep hole.

My eating sucked too, I won't lie to you, well, most days it sucked, there were a few good ones in there, but it's like one step forward and 4 steps backs with me and that too was not giving me a good mental outlook. I am so sick and tired of this playing around, making excuses, finding excuses, and feeling along the way the pounds piling on me. I KNOW it's not only not good for me but it's not what I want either, so why do I do this to myself? I think this past week I've looked at things in a way I haven't done in a long time and I'm more than ready to get back on the right track and batten down the hatches and be totally commited to this WOE as I have been in the past. I know for me the first 3 days are the hardest for me to get through and lately, I've only been able to get 2 days, if that, under my belt. Not this time-this time it's going to be smooth sailing, it has to be, I'm the only one who can make this happen. I have to make this commitment to myself, no one else, to get back on track and get these pounds that I've gained (how much I don't know) til I get back down to my cushion, where is where I'll be happy, not only with the scale saying this, but with myself and what I know I can accomplish once again.

I have to think of this more as a learning experience than a setback. This is a temporary setback, not a permanent one. Each time I go through an experience like this I do learn something, maybe about myself, maybe about this WOE, as long as I learn something it's not all that tragic and maybe I'll come out a better person, or have a better understanding of ME. For instance, remember I mentioned how ELI says I'm no fun because I won't eat off plan? Well, when I do, I do it for him, but in the interm, I'm not liking what it does to me. THEN what happens is, he's had whatever and can leave it at that, whereas with me, I keep eating junk, and more junk and keep going like the Energizer Bunny and he sees that and tells me to stop. I go so overboard! I can't allow this to happen anymore.

I thought I was able to say I had been an emotional eater but wasn't any more, but what I think has happened is, when something new is thrown at me that I haven't had to deal with before or in a personal way I'm finding that I'm drawn to wanting my "fix" to calm me down, as I had so many years before SB (like my entire life!). There's so many things going on now that I've never had to deal with before, like the kids Dad not having a job and wondering what's going to happen with not only the money he has to give me, but the health insurance that won't exsist after the first of the year. Like ELI saying yes to a Xmas party in 3 weeks at a place that's ridiculously expensive that all the SB's people are going to go to and that I don't want to go to. It's not that I'm anti-social, I just can't see spending THAT kind of money for a meal that I probably won't even eat! THAT pisses me off to no end and I can't enjoy myself. Being sick didn't help my mindset either, sick and tired, tired and sick-not to mention not sleeping well at all. Not having the energy to exercise put a damper on my thinking as well. And then, the eating off plan was just the icing on the cake. I took what appeared to be the easy way out and just consoled myself in junk food, which didn't make me feel better at all and only compounded another problem to the ones I have.

Anyhow, geez, I really don't mean to be so down, but heck, if I don't tell you guys, there's no one else who would truly understand what I'm saying. So yesterday, I once again had a talk with myself, but this time, I truly believe I listened to myself. Reading some of our old MM thoughts really has helped me, more than anyone can imagine. Feeling better than I have in the past week has helped too, and I think eating all that crap the way I have and feeling the effects of all of it may have helped me get back on the right track. I have the feeling as I did when I started SB over 2 1/2 years ago, that has to say something!

I've also decided that come Thanksgiving, I won't be eating the cookies Lauren is going to make, or anything else that is NOT SB Legal. It's not like she can't or won't make them again and there is going to be other SB LEGAL stuff there that is a healthier alternative. This is going to be my 3rd Thanksgiving on SB and the last 2 I was perfect and I'll do the same again this year!

So with this, I shall not bore you any more-just know that I mean this wholeheartedly that with every ounce of my being that I have all intentions to be back on track 100% not only with my eating, but with exercising and the right positive support I should be giving you all on the board:)

I have to jump in and give some replies, otherwise I know I won't get any in before I have to go!!!

MONET, what happened with the lady and the bracelet? Did she contact you back and tell you if you could order, or bid on one? I haven't gotten it yet, but I'm eager to see the quality of it.

JACKK, glad to hear you had a good time on your cruise. I thought I had sent you my phone number, please forgive me for that oversight! Thank goodness you weren't on that Holland cruise, or the Big Red Boat! Over 500 people have gotten really sick from a virus! Sorry to hear about the tragic death in the family. It's sad to think ones life is so bad that they think there is no other option. Sorry, I didn't see your message about Publix earlier, nothing there worth buying that you can't get elsewhere. BUT, there is a HFS they have their that I go to the one down here called NUTRITIONSMART that has lots of good stuff and if she's near there maybe she could stop there-if you see this and can reach her-e-mail me if you need any info!

HEART, pretzels can be legal, depending on what they're made with. The SNYDERS OAT BRAN pretzels are, so are the Vitaspelt pretzels as well as the Fresh Market Sourdough pretzels. Never heard of a pasta made with wheat germ. Is the semolina WW? That is a lot of carbs for pasta, does it have any fiber listed? It's good to post a menu from time-to-time. Remember, what one person eats doesn't mean you're pigging out, you could actually still not be eating enough for you! Can't make comparisons. Do be careful with the cheese-too much is not good, esp. if it's full fat cheese.

GLORY, I'm sure you'll get those pounds back off, just as certain as I am that I'll get mine off.

SOL, you're putting me to shame this week-and I love it! Gosh, how I miss those upbeat posts of yours! I totally forgot about my promise and I will keep that promise and we'll definitely have a luncheon at your house that Friday morning, for sure. I can't wait to see the new pad and the new fur baby!!!!! Her pic is adorable!!!!

ROSE, glad to hear you're continuing to do better. I'm sure your family will be more than understanding about the holiday. I'm sure they are more thankful about having you with them this holiday season with knowing the alternative of what could of been a very tragic outcome to the accident. I too am shopping more on the net-easier and quicker and it sure beats going out in the crowds! I buy the Cabots 75% at BJ'S (like Sams) and I think it's only $4.59 a pound, or something like that. You may want to contact them to see who sells it, if anyone, in your area in the big bars.

LIN, I too wonder how I can function on the little sleep I've had too, it wasn't helpful at all. I think my body is now adapting to my waking up in the middle of the night which isn't good and I have to find my way out of this and get back in to my regular sleeping habits. Ideas for traveling, as long as your have a cooler, you can pack just about anything, so it should be easy, everyone has ice!!! It really shouldn't be hard to find stuff to eat once you are there. When I travel I take Fiber One or yogurt for breakfast, I take slices of SB legal bread, pouches of tuna, small containers of mayo (you could even use a cleaned out film container to hold it), really, not hard to do at all;) If you want to make a SB LEGAL DESSERT, just look at the recipe boards, otherwise, you can't go wrong with the right fruits!

GRACIOUS, glad you liked the Asian pears, they are wonderful as you've found out. Great fiber too! Do you think it's good for your body to go from one WOE to another all the time? I know when I eat off plan and go back on plan my body must be wondering what the heck I'm doing to it! I know this WOE works and I just have to be patient for the results-you also know this and as much as you want to get to that actual goal weight number on the scale, know it will come, it just may take a little time, but at least you'll do it the right way;) Your menu looked pretty good, though it seems you could use more calcium, unless you take a supplement. Any ideas on how many calories you take in?

CHERYL, are you feeling better? Hope you didn't come down with anything like I had!

SEF, liked that MM! I think as we get older we tend to find people needing less sleep. BUT then again, I see those who don't sleep much having to take naps, or nodding off in the day. When I'd stay at my Grandparents cottage in the summer, my GM would be clanking pans at 5am in the morning-it's like she didn't ever sleep and sure didn't want anyone else to either!!!!

DENISE, sorry to hear about your ticket, not something you want and surely don't need to start your day out like that. ELI'S gotten his ticket dismissed too, though it took a whole year! Speeding through the Mickosukee Village! Glad to hear that Amber has seen the light and wants to get back on track. I had no idea that all the kids are eligible for the scholarship if they have that GPA-WOW, maybe Lauren will get one too!!!:D Cool beans about your bosses wedding and being invited! Will you be home tonight? Will give you a buzz-let me know via e-mail if you are. Don't want to bother you at work, nothing that can't wait.

BOB, remind me to send you one of these free things to download, it cleans up all the >>> you get in your posts. I'll remind ELI about the stainless coffee things for you. Let me know if there's anything else!

DARAMUS, was glad to see you back on the board, and at chat on Tuesday. You're back on track I'm glad to see. Guess I can take my foot our of your arse now, can't I?? Great pic! Thanks for posting it!

ALEKA, WTG, you did great this week, 10lbs gone. Hope to be saying that again one day soon!

ROBIN, don't worry about that pound you gained, it's not fat. There's many times you will gain without doing anything wrong. Just be patient and continue to stay on track and whatever you've gained will mysteriously disappear as it appeared. There's so many things that can cause fluctuations in our weight-lucky women we are! :shrug:

VES, glad to see your post! I'm thrilled to have you back and can't wait to see you in Orlando in January!!!!

Well, it's already 10:30pm and I've been typing for 2 hours now and yet, I haven't said all I wanted to say or replied to everyone, but I have to get something to eat, jump in the shower and go searching for some books for the kids for school, stop at the HFS, go to Publix (grocery) to buy the supplies for the foods I'm making for Thanksgiving (don't want to go near the store if I don't have to next week when it's a flippin zoo!) and a few other odds and ends.

If I missed anyone, know it's not intentional-I love you all:love: I'll be on the ball from this post on, as best as I can.

I'll check in later. Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

{{{HUGS}}}:grouphug:

Debbie

Is it Friday yet?

I'm working on some clean-up business from the elections, but other than that today is going to be for me. At 12:30 I'm getting an hour massage from a local spa. I was given a gift certificate for my birthday and I'm cashing it in today! Tonight I'm getting together with my scrapbooking groups for a crop session. We spread out on big tables at the church and work from 7 until about midnight. We try to get together every other Friday--it's fun!

Eating is so-so. I do ok and then I don't. My jeans are getting tight again, so it is time to get serious.

Next Friday is my SIL and mine's marathon shopping day. I will walk many many mall miles that day!

The board has been busy this week--I can't talk to everyone but will try to get back in the swing tomorrow.

Vesnoid--it's good to see you back on the board!

Susan

I know, it's not MM, but I found these 3 motivational messages in my e-mail from SLEFHELPFORHER and thought I'd pass them along. I particularly like the second one the best:


Insightful quotes:

Act on your life by seizing control of your life. And this
applies even when it seems like you are always running into the
same difficult people or situations. Because once you understand
how things are, or how someone is going to act or why they behave
a certain way, you can then figure out the best way to respond.
You can decide what you are going to do about a situation and you
can decide how you are going to respond to a person's negative
behavior. To put it another way, going with the flow doesn't
have to mean giving up control of your life. Rather, let it mean
that you are open to discovering the flow so that you can better
direct your life.
****************

Goals can take a long time because on the journey from dream to
reality, there is a lot of hard work and heart required. Sure,
you may want to give up when things are tough but dig deeper and
keep on believing in yourself and your dream. That is, build
your success stamina. The key is to remind yourself constantly
that you are worthy of your goal and that you are worthy of
happiness. Too often we give up too soon because we think we
lack the ability to overcome our goal obstacles. If you are
feeling this way, you must make a sincere effort to redouble your
efforts. In short, it is when you are feeling the lowest, that
you should believe in yourself and in your dreams the most. This
is what will make the difference between your success and
failure.
********

How often do you give up on an idea because you don't think that
it will work? Because you don't think that you'll be able to pull
it off? This first thought is the first step towards your goal.
And if you habitually think that you cannot then you are taking a
step backwards from your success. You are giving up before you
have even attempted to begin. Therefore, your first step towards
any goal should be a positive attitude and a firm belief in your
success. Just because you will be the first don't let yourself be
frightened out of starting on your dream. Just because it hasn't
been done quite this way before doesn't mean that you shouldn't
go for it either. Rather, think, "why not?" Think, "why not me?"
Let your imagination and spirit soar. Free yourself to be
creative and to be fearless in your endeavors. Be brave and
follow your instincts and you will be amazed at the heights you
will reach.

:cry: I just got an e-mail from FROG and she just told me she won't be coming for the WDW Marathon in January! This means that I'm the only one running!!! I sorta feel all alone. I was the last to sign up and now I'm the only one doing it. I guess I'll just have to be brave and do it. At least I know that I'll have the best cheering squad to keep me going.

Hey, I thought about having a custom shirt made up to run in-any ideas of what to put????

Deb

Good morning all; Finally got unpacked and am doing some laundry from my trip... Seems like all I've done since getting back is running. Did get some groceries yesterday. I think DH ate everything in the house. I'm back OP and going strong...

Denise- Didn't do any sking. Just enjoyed my brother being 50!!! Did go to the Bronco statium and around Coors Field. And a wonderful antique shop.

Jack-K- Hope your cruise was wonderful. Boy you are going to town on losing those vacation lbs. Its great to get back on the wagon after getting off. I feel so much better. Will wait till Sunday or Monday and get back on the treadmill...Still resting up.

Vesnoid- Oh my gosh its great to see you posting again. Sounds like your life has been going full speed ahead. Now gal stick around. Looks like you've done great with SB.....

Aleka- Howdy lady. Thanks for the article. I'll have to go read it. Its about time they started thinking right on the eating thing isn't it....

Sef- Sounds like you're going full speed ahead. This week is really flying by....

Gracious- I know this sounds dumb but how do you toast pita bread? I'd like to try it.... Thanks for the welcome back. Its great to be home and back OP. Isn't it hard when that scale isn't going down... Wow a sewing class. I think I took one years ago and was so awful I had to drop out.

linworthlady-Howdy there I must of been on vacation when you came on board. Anyway a big welcome from me..:lol:

Zanne- A great big congrads on the weight!!! Good going!! How scarey about the bus incident... My gosh I would have peed my pants...

Daramus- Hey guy glad to see you back and posting...

Debilli- Howdy, sounds like you've been under the weather while I've been gone... Hope you're feeling allot better now. Can't wait to get on the exercise board again.

Well guess I'd better finish getting ready to go to a friends house. Have a great day!

213/165.5/130

Good Friday to all :angel:

This is going to be a good SB day if it kills me. :bravo: Boy do I Love these Smilies they are so cute. :twirly:

Ok enough of that, I just have a few min. I must go to Mom's today as it's her Bday, So I'll go and let her tell me what a rotten Daughter I am and how I never do anything right and It'll be my gift to her. :crossed: Hope she likes it.

Well enough of that. I'm on program today and am staying on it.

Deb: Gee I'm thrilled your feeling so much better, But don't be so down on yourself, You've done great and you'll continue cause we all have this great support system. Your all great and I appreciate each and everyone of you. I understand about Eli wanting you to eat with him, Kyle does that to me sometimes although he appreciated it, that I've taken some weight off, like how did that happen. Wake up by not Eating with him. You go girl

Jackie: In case you haven guessed by now I have a rebelous side and I rebel against planning anything, If I have to plan then I won't do it cause then it's a must, and I don't like doing what I have to. You'd thing by 53 I'd just get over it, But it's the one thing I hang onto. So no Menu planning for this girl, Even tho in secret I know it's a good thing to do. Thanks for the try.

Denise: Thanks for the Smilie info I love them. I also liked your recipes so I wanted to share one with you.

Candied Sweet Potatoes:

take 5 boiled Sweet Potatoes Slice in half the long way then place in oblong pan with a little melted butter, add SF brown sugar, and drizzle a little SF mapel syrup over them. Bake for 20mins on 350 there great.

Well gotta run to mom's so I'm off have a good one Love to all Glory :flow2:

Hello Everyone!

"Too often we give up too soon because we think we
lack the ability to overcome our goal obstacles. If you are
feeling this way, you must make a sincere effort to redouble your
efforts. In short, it is when you are feeling the lowest, that
you should believe in yourself and in your dreams the most. This
is what will make the difference between your success and
failure."

Well Debbie, I was reading the above paragraph that you sent and I do feel like giving up! I'm back up to 165!!!
:o

I do feel that I lack the ability to lose ANY weight and I am very frustrated at this point. It could be just prior to TOM right now, I'm not sure. That's what I'm hoping. Eventhough last weekend, I ate 1 piece of lasagna, very little white rice, and those 2 corn tortillas at Ole Ole, I thought I made up for it by eating no starchy carbs on Mon and Tues...I guess that's not good enough. It guess it could be worse. I did the Firm workout again last night and when I looked in the mirror all I could see was someone fat who will never reach their ideal weight. I was so depressed.:(

I'm am trying to believe in myself and in my dreams because I AM at my lowest right now. Blah, blah, blah, I could go on forever....

Debbie, lets get together this weekend so that we can commisserate together, however I will only be a bad influence on you...No, I will try and be good, darn it!! I will e-mail you soon.
and don't forget, you are not running alone, my Mom is running it too!! My Mom's nickname is: "Super Runner" and you gave me a great idea to make her a custom shirt with that on it! According to your avatar, your shirt could say: "Super Running Chick". She went to some thrift stores over in Naples the other day and got some cheap clothes to throw off during her run. She said that if it's cold, then you have to wear layers and throw them off as you run. Glad you are feeling better physically, now we can try and work on your mental state as well as mine!


Glory: Thanks for your recipe for the sweet potato! Looks really yummy. Glad to see you are working the smilies now with no problem. They are fun to use!
:lol:

Toni: You must have a lot of catching up to do. Sometimes we need a vacation from our vacation!:D

Susan: Hear you getting a massage. You will love it. I got my license in massage a few years ago. I just do it for family and friends now. Not enough money in it, but a professional massage can definitely be good for the soul.:cloud9:

Zanne: I bet that was a hair raising experience for you. Kids can be sooooo stupid!!
:mad:

Thanks for the Pita chip recipe. Looks really yummy! and hope you see some sunshine soon!

Linworthlady: I'm going to be cutting my starchy carbs too. I just can't seem to lose unless I do that EVERYDAY..

Jackie: Congrats again on being down another pound!! :cb:
So how do you do it? Limit portion size immensely or do you cut your starchy carbs completely? Inquiring minds want to know..
Have fun at the horse races tomorrow and win lots of money!

Yellowrose: Kinky in Helsinki. I like that! :lol:
Sounds like you saw one of those "good for the soul" movies...It's always nice to get out once in a while especially in your condition. Hope you are doing well.

Vesnoid: Hi and welcome back! I look forward to getting to know you.

Shirley: No, I didn't think you were trying to make a criminal out of me.:lol: I didn't want you to think I was a criminal.:^:
There are no simple traffic tickets nowadays at least in Florida...

Gracious: Have a nice time vegging out tonight. Sometimes we need that time, just for ourselves...

Take care and I hope everyone has a safe and joyous weekend!

DEBELLI- In our grocery store here they carry ASIAN (yellow/brownish) pears and CHINESE (pale yellow ) pears. They look kind of the same but the ASIANS are twice the size. They both are a rounder version of a BARLETT pear, ie: not pear shaped. I am now wondering what the difference is besides size. I pay $1.29 lb for CHINESE and noticed that the ASIAN are $2.49 lb. Remember this is CANADA where everything is more expensive so those prices will be different from yours. However, do you have both types? I am just wanting to know which I should be eating , if one is better SB wise than the other. I don't think I can break down and pay $2.49 lb for some blooming pears no matter what nationality they are! ;)

I know what you mean about switching around so much. I am wanting to stick to SB from here on in. Having said that though, when I switch around I think it is better to at least do that than to fall off the wagon. However, I tend to fall off the wagon after doing extreme things for too long so I guess I am no further ahead in the end. Bizarre the way we are, isn't it?!

Regarding calcium, I take supplements galore so I am covered there. I do eat a bit of cheese and sometimes have yogurt but they were out of the legal kind at the store this week.

JACK-K- It is true what you say about feeling and size. I am fitting into some previously really tight jeans and am looking pretty darn good if I don't say so myself! I will hang in.

TONI- Had to quit sewing class?! :lol: Ahh well, we each have our merits and I know you are great at other things! Regarding the toasting of pita bread. I simply cut mine in half because it is about 8" diameter then place it in my toaster. I toast it like I would regular bread. You can't leave it too long or it gets really crunchy. I let it get nice and warm and only slightly toasted and then take it out. You can leave it long if you want a fast version of pita chips that someone else mentioned earlier, then cut it with clean kitchen scissors or break into small bite size pieces.

Just checking in before I head home. Probably won't be back until sometime Sunday. So hope everyone has a great and relaxing and Op weekend. We can do it! :twirly:

Linworth, My DD is getting married in May. I wish I was going to the wedding with Denise.

Zanne, what a brat. You should have got the bus number and called the school. That was scarry. I'm glad the pitas satisfy your chip craving. I always say where there is a will, there is a SB way. You just have to be willing to try to find it. Good for you. I haven't tried hummus. But would like to. I always think I will buy it at the grocery. THere are so many kinds. Ice rink in your yard??? Are all of you ice skaters? Neat!

Deb, First of all I'm glad you are feeling better. I'm sure exercising again will make you feel even better. Sounds like you have beat yourself up pretty badly. Maybe you needed it, but I'm sure you are back on track. You will be fine. You have a strong will and great motivation. Who's to say you can't ever have anything illegal. What kind of life would that be. We just have to learn to have it and go on. Not eating everything else in sight. I'm sure you will have a 100% Thanksgiving. It is pretty easy to do so with all the "legal foods available" We just have to make good choices. I believe in you. What a bummer about running in the WDW marathon alone. But you are woman, see you run!

Fillise, Oooh a massage. I have always said when I get a new body I'm getting a massage. Enjoy. I too willb e marathon shopping next Friday. Normally my DS, 3 nieces, my 2 daughters all go from about 6 a.m to 6p, or longer. We don't get a lot of shopping done, just a family thing of being together. This year I am just going with my DD. Not enough time this year to goof off. Hope you get some bargains.

Toni, doesn't sound like you are doing much resting. Where does all that laundry come from? I'm still doing mine. Welcome back.

GloryIBe, Good for you having a OP day. :dance: Keep it up! Make it 2! You Go Girl, live on the edge. :eek:

Denise, One piece of advise. Hide the scale. It can fluctuate daily. Remember Deb's great articles, especially the colon one? If it upsets you that much stay off. You are doing great and are so upbeat. Don't let the metal monster rule you. This is such a great WOE and so easy to do. You can do this I have confidence in you. Keep in mind what you want the most. I'm keeping my :crossed: for you. To answer your ?, I have eaten more this week than normally. I try to only eat 2 starchy carbs a day, ususally bread. I'm sure this weeks loss is all water from vacation eating. But sometimes if you eat too little, you body thinks it is in starvation mode. I have had a ton of cheese this week too.

Gracious, I bet youi are looking pretty darn good in those jeans, :flame:and Honey you go right ahead and say it yourself. You deserve it.


later, :grouphug:

Jackie
257/164/145
10-10-01

It's one of those days where I feel like the pillsbury dough boy...he is a cutie but not what I want for myself. The kids and I are making cookies...now I just need to not partake. I had my one nibble..because we made up the recipe ourselves. And it's good. :) I find myself more and more wanting to skip eating. I won't go into details but that is so much easier for me than doing right. But I aint going there.

Deb Thanks for sharing your story. I'm sorry that you are going through so much. But it's nice to know that some of the things we all struggle with are universal. You will do wonderful in your race. I wish that I could be there to cheer you on. I will keep you in my prayers that day though. You have one determined spirit so I know you will get back on track and stay there till you decide different. YOU are in control. YOU are a success. We appreciate you sharing and leading us in this.

Denise Hang in there sweetie. I feel the same way quite often. I go up and down the same two pounds. Back up again today..ugh ugh ugh. :)

Gracious ...I don't blame you..I wouldn't pay that much for pears either. One time I got a wild hair and paid 2.99 a pound for a freaky white peach. It cost me .99 to find out it tasted like a dry peach.

Toni ..Welcome back girlie!!! We missed ya while you were gone. WTG getting back on plan. And getting things done. I think sometimes we need a vacation from vacation. This year we went camping and hunting. I was sooooo tired when it was over. Looking forward to doing it again next year. :)

Fillise awwww a message...that sounds FABULOUS! Enjoy.

There are so many of you I would to write to individually but...the kids are fighting over a whistle this time. I don't think a day goes by they don't find something to fight over...LOL Have a great afternoon.

Love,
Crystle

235/155/140

Evening All:wave:

I'm backk, just like I said I'd be:)

Didn't get all I needed to get done today, but most of it. Developed an excrutiating headache right before I was going to get the kids from school and couldn't wait to drop them off at their respective places before coming home and passing out. Still have a touch of it but no where near as how it was earlier, thank gawd!

So far, so good with eating. Actually, haven't felt like eating all that much today which I guess is good and bad, but better than the alternative of eating too much.

Oh, forgot to mention during my piss and moan time, I also got TOM yesterday AND I have hardly had anything to drink, thus, I'm so dehydrated I don't know how much I'll have to drink to get myself back on track!

Lauren's bracelet came today and it's gorgeous! My DM is a bit worried that it may not fit her wrist since it appears a bit small. If not, will just have to add a O ring to it, not going to worry about it. Was well worth the money! I know she will love it.

FILLISE, I hope you enjoyed your spa experience today. I'd love to go one day, a day of pampering (not the diapering kind) sounds wonderful. I think the closet I'll get to an experience like that is going to be one of those Aqua Massages they have in the mall-which actually, is pretty wonderful, but not like a full day at the spa would be.

TONI, glad to see you back! Sounds like you had a good time with your DB and family. Toasting pita is easy, split the two rounds in half, you can cut them in wedges before you do and then just break the two parts in half and put them on a baking sheet in the oven and lightly toast them. We NEVER through away pita. ELI makes a salad called FATTOUSH that's ME and it calls for toasted pita which we make with stale ww pita bread by toasting it in the toaster oven.

GLORY, it's a good SB day here and I'm hoping it's for you as well:D I'm so glad you're not only back on track, but back with us and as others have said, this time PLEASE stick around!!! Good luck with DM tonight!

DENISE, we'll gab this weekend! I'm so looking forward to meeting you. The more we actually talk the more I find we have in common. I'm sure as we get to talking more we may come to think we're long lost sisters!!! Talk to you later!

GRACIOUS, not sure what the difference between the two "pears" would be. There are different varities of Asian pears, sometimes I will see them with a more brownish skin, other times they'll have a more yellow skin like a golden apple. If the taste isn't much different between the two I'd go for the cheaper one. I've bought some that were about a pound in size and have easily eaten the whole thing-scary, but delicious!;) I'm sure you will do what's best for you when it comes to this WOE. I know that when you do the Atkins you see a big loss, but it seems to be a fleeting loss that you tend to gain back and as you said doesn't put you firmly any closer to your goal. When I was 10lbs from goal I had no idea it would take me almost 4 months to lose those last 10lbs but looking back at it now, it wasn't a big deal. The weight didn't come on over night and it wasn't coming off that way either. I've always said patience was one of the keys of being successful on this WOE and I still think it's true. It will come (off) so don't you worry:)

JACKK, yes, it does appear I've done a number on myself. Definitely not something I'm proud of. I do hope that I can find a way for me to be able to find a happy medium and be able to allow myself a non-SB legal treat once in a while and not going overboard. Heck, I'd like to be able to do that with an SB legal treat! I just don't know what the heck gets in to me. But this is just been since April-what was it about before vs. now? Maybe I need to think about this a little more-maybe this answer could hold "the key."

COUNTRY, thanks for all the kind words! I wish I didn't have to put all my trials and tribulations on the board, I wish there weren't any to put but I know I'm not perfect and no one else is. If it's not the eating, it would be something else. I just have to find a way to deal with things without giving in to eating off plan. It only compounds any problems I already have to deal with. I'm learning, daily!

So, ELI said he'd be home around 6pm, it's 6:45pm already, so who knows. I'm going to ditch the clothes, throw on the nightie and hit the couch.

Will check in tomorrow after garage sales. Not many out there but you never know what you may find even at those few that are. It's going to be a gorgeous day here, another cold front, so at least I won't be sweating as I look through peoples crap! :lol:

Have a great weekend!!!

{{{HUGS}}}:grouphug:

Debbie

Just a note. I have not felt well today at all. I slept most of the afternoon.

The doctor's office called today to let me know my liver tests were all normal. Well, at least that is one normal thing about me... I was beginning to wonder if anything was.

Today has been ok, SB wise...not stellar. I had too many legal starchy carbs. I think I need to cut them out entirely for a while and get out of the habit.....

Take care everyone.

EVENING EVERY BUDDY!!!!


Just got home from my Nephew's house....My Niece and her DH and BABY JAY arrived about 5 p.m.
and he has grown so much since I saw him in May...I just couldn't get enough of him...right down to the drool and went straight into my mouth!!! I won't be on much this weekend as I want to spend every bit of time with them as I can.

MONET......I TOLD YOU SO....You'll start LISTENING TO OLD BOB!!!! Feel better dear friend...

I forgot to report my WW weigh in...the 5 and 6 pound losses are a thing of the past I'm afraid... this week was .6!!! It's a loss, and I'll take it! That's 18.1 so far!!!

GRACIOUS...I'm bringing all my tailoring projects and hitting the wagon trail...you would be the answer to my prayers if we lived closer!

DEB...Get some sleep...I'm right there with you on the dragging from the lack of it! This no sleep thing can't be good on the weight loss...when we're dragging, the metabolism slows even more...Have a good time tomorrow...the cooler weather will make it nice to poke around in everyone's yard!

TONI...glad you're back home and that you had a good time. Did you see SURVIVOR last night? I really thought the OLD MAN was going...he might be next...or Jan...we'll see!

DENISE...will this trip keep you away from our ORLANDO trip? You are so lucky to get to go...I know you'll have a good time!

JACKIE...have a good time at the races...I miss going so much!
The party will be fun..I always enjoy seeing the baby dive into the cake on the 1st birthday!

DARAMUS...GREAT PICTURE...you're doing great...working out will only help you...DO IT!!!

COUNTRY...I've got that same feeling...BLOAT!!!!!! dangit...it's rough being the females!!!

ZANE... throw another log on the fire...winter is here to stay..It's cool over here on the WEST COAST OF FLA too! I've had to use my heat because it has gotten cold in the house...I just knock the chill off...I'd rather throw another quilt on than be hot while I sleep...

GLORY...this board has come a long way since you were posting before...all the little extras are fun...

VES...glad you're back and can't wait to see you in January...If you have time, don't forget to make my butter bell...THIS IS THE COLOR THAT I WANT....TENNESSEE ORANGE with WHITE LETTERING...if you can put GO BIG ORANGE or TENNESSEE VOLS on it I would appreciate it...I'll treasure it always...it will go into my curio cabinet!!!

LIN...sorry about your post..it has happened to all of us..it's so frustrating, but just a hello is good if you can't remember what you said before...Glad you're here!

I'm off to recline..LAW & ORDER in 15 minutes!!

BOB

HiedieHo All!!

Seems like today is chili weather as it is a little brisk today. So made a crock of chili, it really tasted good and was very satisfying! Also did the mundane stuff like washing, bed changing, dusting, errands.

ALEKA: People just don't get it! This is not a "fad diet", we eat all the food groups, it's just how we do it. So many doctors recommend this woe, makes you think it has merit doesn't it?

GRACIOUS: I don't save the things I use for my groups. The Director has been collecting them but I don't know if she keeps them or passes them on. I know how it is getting food from others. In the early days of my father starting his business, some people would ask him to do jobs using the barter system. Sometimes it was a good thing. I also have a 12 or 15 year (maybe more) unfinished project. I made a handpieced queen size quilt, it's on the frame ready to be quilted. It has moved from PA, to NJ, to TX and to LA and still doesn't get done! Loved your nationality pun!

JACKK: Ireally like reading your posts, always so interesting,, always on the go too. Used to love the races. I grew up near Monmouth Park which is thoroughbred racing and Freehold Raceway which is trotters and pacers. When I moved to Milford we were near Monticello and Goshen both sulky racing. Love the horses. Lucky you.

ZANNE: Certainly a scary experience! You never know where you are safe anymore. Stupid kid also risked his life for a prank. I make up the whole bag of pitas into chips. Then store in a ziplok bag. They keep forever and are handy when you have that special craving. I'm a great one for making double batches of things. I feel as long as you're making a mess might as well make it worthwhile. Couldn't live without the freezer!

DEB: Glad you are feeling better, but give yourself some time to recuperate before you start barreling all over the place! You'll get back on track, don't worry about it. You have the will. You are too hard on yourself, you need to give yourself a little leeway! When I first came to this Board I thought you must be a Goddess, not of this earth! How could anyone be so perfect and not falter on the woe? I am relieved that you have all the foibles the rest of us mortals do! You lead by example, and you show us that a stumble doesn't end the trip!

TONI: Good to see your posts again. We always have to come back to reality after a trip, no matter what kind it is! My DD sent me home with clean clothes so only had the ones on my back to wash. Wasn't that nice!

GLORY: No offense but candied sweet potaotes set my teeth on edge! They are so sweet to begin with. Yet I make them for others. They are so popular. My mother used to make something with sweets, pineapple and marshmallows, a sugar coma for sure! She would make me eat them because she made them and I must eat them too. Hated it!

DENISE: Glad we got the criminal thing cleared up! Nothing is simple nowadyas. You know my favorite expression...."In my day....."

MONET: Glad you have found something normal! Do you have your gall bladder? You can feel nauseous after eating weith that too. Have you been checked for that problem?

I think I've hit everybody's posts. If I missed you I'm sorry!

Must be chilly I heard and felt the heater come on. Actually I have the vents up here closed. Heat travels up and it is warm enough. In my bedroom the window is wide open and the fan is on, love cool sleeping!

Take care all.

Shirley

HiedieHo All!!

Almost forgot today is FF!

A client brought a litter of golden retriever puppies to a veterinary clinic
for inoculations and worming. As the look-alike pups squirmed over and under
one another in their box, I realized it would be difficult to tell the
treated ones from the rest.

I turned on the water faucet, wet my fingers, and moistened each dog's head
when I had finished.

After the fourth puppy, I noticed my hitherto talkative client had
grown silent. As I sprinkled the last pup's head, the woman leaned
forward and whispered, "I didn't know they had to be baptized.

Shirley

HiedieHo All!!

I recently picked a new primary care physician. _After two visits and exhaustive lab tests, he said I was doing "fairly well for my age"

A little concerned about that comment,_ I couldn't resist asking him, "Do you think I'll live to be 80?"

He asked, _"Well, do you smoke tobacco or drink beer?"

"Oh, no!", I replied, "I've never done either."

Then he asked,_ "Do you eat rib-eye steaks and bar-b-qued ribs?

I said,_ "No, I've heard that all 'red meat' is very unhealthy!"

"Do you spend a lot of time in the sun, like playing golf?", he asked.

"No, _I don't,"__I said.

He said,_ "Do you gamble, drive fast cars, or fool around with sexy women?"

"No,"_ I said,_ "I've never done any of those things."

He looked at me and said,_ "Then why in **** do you want to live to be 80?!!??"

Shirley

HiedieHo All!!

LOUD SEX: A wife went in to see a therapist and said, I've got a big problem, doctor. Every time we're in bed and my husband climaxes, he lets out this ear splitting yell."

"My dear," the shrink said, "that's completely natural. I don't see what the problem is."

The problem is," she complained, "It wakes me up!"

QUIET SEX: Tired of a listless sex life, the man came right out and asked his wife during a recent lovemaking session, "How come you never tell me when you have an orgasm?"

She glanced at him casually and replied, "You're never home!"

DECEPTIVE SEX: A married man and his secretary were having a torrid affair. One afternoon they couldn't contain their passion, so they rushed over to her place where they spent the afternoon making passionate love. When they were finished, they fell asleep, not waking until 8 o'clock. They got dressed quickly. Then the man told his secretary to take his shoes outside and rub them on the lawn. Bewildered, she did as he asked thinking him pretty weird. The man finally got home and his wife met him at the door. Upset, she asked where he'd been. The manreplied, "I cannot tell a lie. My secretary and I
are having an affair. Today we left work early, went to her place, spent the afternoon making love, and then fell asleep. That's why I'm late." The wife looked at him, took notice of his shoes and yelled, "I can see those are grass stains on your shoes. YOU DAMN LIAR! You've been playing golf again, haven't you?"

WEDDING ANNIVERSARY SEX: A husband and his wife had a
bitter quarrel on the day of their 40th wedding anniversary. The husband yells, "When you die, I'm getting you a headstone that reads: 'Here Lies My Wife - Cold As Ever'."

"Yeah," she replied,"When you die, I'm getting you a headstone that reads,'Here Lies My Husband-Stiff At Last.'"

WOMEN'S HUMOR: My husband came home with a tube of KY jelly and said,"This will make you happy tonight." He was right. When he went out of the bedroom, I squirted it all over the doorknobs so he couldn't get back in.

A couple was lying in bed. The man said, "I am going to make you the happiest woman in the world" The woman said, "I'll miss you."

"It's just too hot to wear clothes today," Jack said as he stepped out of the shower, "honey, what do you think the neighbors would think if I mowed the lawn like this?" The wife replied, "Probably that I must have married you for your money."

Shirley

HiedieHo All!!

Can't Figure It Out.

Joe Smith started the day early having set his alarm clock (MADE IN JAPAN) for 6 a.m. While his coffeepot (MADE IN CHINA) was perking, he shaved with his electric razor (MADE IN HONG KONG). He put on a dress shirt (MADE IN SRI LANKA), designer jeans (MADE IN SINGAPORE) and tennis shoes (MADE IN KOREA). After cooking his breakfast in his new electric skillet (MADE IN INDIA) he sat down with his calculator (MADE IN MEXICO) to see how much he could spend today. After setting his watch (MADE IN TAIWAN) to the radio (MADE IN INDIA) he got in his car (MADE IN GERMANY) and continued his search for a good paying AMERICAN JOB. At the end of yet another discouraging and fruitless day, Joe decided to relax for a while. He put on his sandals (MADE IN BRAZIL) poured himself a glass of wine (MADE IN FRANCE) and turned on his TV ! (MADE IN INDONESIA), and then wondered why he can't find a good paying job in......AMERICA.....

Shirley

TEST

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Yes, I am a huge weight loss wacko..but ya gotta love me..:) 152.5-153 this morning...and yes those two pounds change my whole mental outlook on things. Isn't that terrible. I can tell ya'll all day long that you are not your weight...hang in there..and MEAN it..but when it comes to me 155 puts me in the pits. I'm hoping after the holidays to get my bootie in gear and really start losing again. It's like the last year has been about maintaining...I've lost but so very little since the initial 80 pounds. But God is good...we got this far and we will finish the race.

How is everyone this weekend? Getting ready for the holidays? I finished up my shopping. Almost all no-no's but that's okay. I'm only gonna splurge on the banana pudding. I was gonna skip it..but nope...it's a memory thing. Sweet beautiful memories of many many Thanksgivings with my family. Good thing turkey's not a no-no...my hubby hates it but I LOVE it! I'm making enough food for a small army. Leftovers for days!

It's so warm outside it's hard to believe in the next few days it's gonna get very very cold...burr just thinking about it. Cold is good for going to get the Christmas tree. There is this really cool tree farm near where we live. They have a place for the kids to play...wassel and coffee...a gift shop and low prices. We got a monster tree last year for around 30 dollars. We looked at about 100 before we went back and found like the second or third tree we had found. The kids get to run and laugh. It's awesome. This year I don't have the room I did last year so we have to look for a smaller tree. I have a feeling me and the tree are going to be sharing my computer space. :)

My husband found me this awesome diet soda...Diet Rite..no caffeine..no sodium and is made with splenda. It's a nice treat from just water. Earlier I was drowning my anger in Diet Rite and sugar free Chocolate Velatmints...LOL

I missed breakfast and lunch running around so I have no idea what to eat for dinner. I'm at that place where I just aint hungry. Tired though. Shopping and putting away the stuff around here takes hours. But I did save over 50 dollars with my coupons. Yipee...

Oh my I just realized I wrote a book. :) I'll get before ya'll all fall alseep and drool on your keyboards causing damage.

Love and hugs,
Crystle

EVENING EVERY BUDDY!!!


What a wonderful weekend with the BABY JAY and his parents.
We spent the full day over at my Nephews and I got Kate back to "the home" about 7:30 p.m.
I can't wait to get to Naples on Thursday to be with everyone again!

I went to BED BATH AND BEYOND today armed with my 20% coupon and bought a TANITIA memory scale..it has 5 buttons that remembers 5 people's weight the last time you stepped on it.
Was on sale down to $44.95 and then I saved $9 on it..also found sheet set marked down to $39.99. I haven't been shopping for a while, and believe me I could have stayed and spent more, but knew I better get back to the house.

Awfully quiet around here today....COUNTRY...guess it's me and you...have a great evening..

BOB

Quiet at the Roth house...not. :)

Glad you had the chance to get out shopping and enjoy baby Jay.
I was playing book worm at www.popcap.com and a fatal error occured on level 16 half way through...aghgghghgh :D

Love,
Crystle

CRYSTLE
That's two great minds working together...I was just playing BOOKWORM too!
I'm climbing into bed to watch TV...Have a great night!

BOB

Hi everyone,

Hope everyone is ok. I haven't posted in so long. I fell completly off the wagon 1 month after I had Ashley. I need help badly or incouragement. My hubby is not helping matters at all. I am going to try to get back on track tomorrow morning. I feel so bad again. I am now at 240 again and I hate it. I need my sugarbuster pals....please help!!!!! Ashley now weighs 15 lbs and is growing like a weed...She was 3 months old Monday. Help Help Help!!!!!!:(