[Katpo]

Holy smokers -- you mean he's gone for the next three months!!!

[akiss2you]

wow, I wish mine would go for 3 months. Oh then again, I would be left with our pets we call kids!!!! Poor Zuki and poor kathy too, what a mess. I am starving right now. Vivian, I am in the same boat as you. I work nights and that's when I drink most if not all of my water and when i'm off I do bad on my water consumption.

[akiss2you]

oh my! I just looked up the info on the wrap I had.. It has 13 points. I should have went to Mcdonalds and had the fruit and walnut salad, it only has 7 points.....

[septembersgoal]

Kathy, I hate to hear that Zuki is having trouble again. Its amazing how much pets become like children, isn't it? I love mine like crazy and treat him like my baby.

Anna, don't worry too much about the wrap. I love Sonic, its so hard to make "good" choices there. Especially with those milkshakes!

Sandra, : for weigh-in!

[Vickie]

Well, happy Monday morning! How I hated Mondays when I was working. Hope you all have a better attitude than I did. Boy those last 3 years at work were torture!

It's going to be sunny and hot here for the next couple of days. I'll be going out to check the pool later. Why I bet it's up to 70 by now.....at least the top 3 inches of water anyway! If we're lucky we'll be able to swim by the 3rd week in June.

Kathy, have the overnight and get him the air compressor. Call one a gift and the other a mini-vacation! Hope Zuki gets fixed. Poor little fella. He obviously knows something is wrong and is trying to fix it. Blood is not my favorite thing to deal with. Cassie's tonenails bleed occasionally and it freaks me out. She has black toenails so I guess it's hard to see the quick. I hope your Vet comes up with a solution. Poor Zuki cannot live with that cone forever. Thank God for AHS. At least your toilet will be fixed today!

Melissa, I used to love ballroom dancing. I even took lessons and competed back in the very early 80's with my then boyfriend. I was a waltz and rhumba girl. I LOVED every minute of it and sometimes watch it on TV. Jim won't even consider lessons but I don't bug him about it. I've moved on but I think it's a beautiful thing to watch.

Vivian, I don't know how you do it. I would absolutely hate if if Jim were even gone for a couple of days.

Anna, now that you know the points you'll do better. In the meantime, I'm sure you had the points to cover the wrap right? If not, exercise and water water water!

I got elbow PT today and I'm going to Kohls for the buy one get one sandal offer. I could use a pair or two! I've been looking for a non-food reward for losing my 40 pounds. I bought QVC's todays special value to reward myself. It's a diamonique ankle bracelet that comes in 9, 10, 0r 11 inch sizes. It has a cool cut of "diamond" that is bezel set and facted on both sides so if it flips over it's still the good side no matter what. Here it is. http://tinyurl.com/dwqpo I felt guilty spending the money but it will also be a WW anchor for me because I'll never take it off. Maybe having it around my ankle will help remind me that I'm "on program". How's that for rationale!

Well, Jim's almost done on the treadmill. My turn! Gotta walk today since I missed two days and the scale is up this morning. Besides, I can't start drinking until I'm off the treadmill. I made a promise to drink a whole boatload of water which is hard to do with PT and shopping! This is my easiest day of this week. I'm looking forward to Saturday when I have NO plans!

Talk with you all later.

[septembersgoal]

Vickie, I want to take ballroom dancing lessons SO badly but Aaron thinks that he is a terrible dancer. But I don't want to dance with anyone else! I don't care about even dancing in public, I just want to know how. I think it is just beautiful. I did ballet for about 7 years when I was young and would love to do that again too. I'm sorry that I ever gave it up. Your anklet sounds like a beautiful reward. I think its a great idea, and pounds is worth a great reward!! Be sure to drink your water today!

[Vickie]

Tell Aaron that NO ONE is good when they first start! If only men would just keep their knees bent when they dance they would improve their dance looks by a million percent. Sometimes Jim and I dance in our kitchen. He can't dance a lick but has learned the bent knee thing. We just do it for fun!

[Froufy]

First of all - CONGRATULATIONS KATHY - I bet you are so glad you went to your meeting and now have more inspiration to continue the battle!

Lisa - we had a replacement leader at this week's meeting - who said the term bathroom scale was a misnomer - for the exact reason you mentioned - like never leave the bathroom scale in the bathroom cuz you will have problems due to the humidity! Hope you lost those "extra" lbs!

Anna - So sorry to hear of your loss - how tragic and upsetting for everyone involved. I hope this does not cause further family problems - and yes everyone does grieve in their own way - I think the reality has not hit your SIL yet! My dh had a near drowing when he was four and remembers it to this day (his aunt saw what was happening and dove in to save him!). To this day he is a bit fearful of the water and not a very strong swimmer. Our 6 yr I think originally sensed this and had some fears himself but now really enjoys the water and we are enrolling him in swimming lessons to ensure he stays safe!

Melissa - sounds like the church job is shaping up nicely for dh? Hope it happens!

I had a very busy weekend as you all know and sounds like you were all very busy here too! Went to the market/downtown area - yes finally got dd the EXPENSIVE grad dress she wanted - had lunch there (grilled chicken breast, some greek side salad and mashed potatoes). I resisted the buying fest at the Rocky Mountain candy shop (where they make handmade choclate and fudge and candy apples and truffles), did bring some home for dh tho!

Sat afternoon we did a bit more shopping - came home and made this "appetizer" plate which I nibbled at so that I was not hungry (this was around 4:30-5:30 pm right before leaving for the recital) - had some mini pitas, and FLATBREAD and hummus and veggies and dip. Needless to say I was starving during the recital - and had some of my "picnic" snacks (1 banana, 1 apple) and some popcorn when I got home.

The recital was again amazing - but still too long at 4 hours. But I am SO GLAD IT'S ALL OVER !

Not enuf sleep of course - had to drive dd to sunday's festival where she was volunteering at 9 am!!! Then picked up fresh bagels on the way home - yes I had one!

Did not eat that great yesterday evening - party sandwiches and lf chips and popcorn at the movies - but at TOM arrived today (and my tummy really hurts too! ) this explains it!

I am off to lunch now at the Thai restaurant - will check in when I get back - wish me luck!

Oh ya - I did manage to lose that 1 remaining lb of the 3 I gained!!!!

Frouf

[mumto2]

Hey Froug - glad you're back! I know what a relief it can be when the big recital is finally over. Next year, by DD wants to pick up tap, and theatre tap, along with the ballet, jaz and hip hop. Don't know if I'm ready for 5 dances and 5 costumes.

Anna - sorry for your loss! Hang in there! I too think it's just the shock that hasn't hit yet.

Well, you'll all be glad to know that I have lost 36 lbs. since Saturday!! :
Woo Hoo! I guess I should move the scale out of the bathroom. Still reads 160 though, only saw 159 for a couple of weeks. Seem to still be stuck. Changing up the exercise and trying to stay OP for the next 2 weeks. Going to the beach on the 18th and would like to be down another 3+ pounds. We'll see.

Took the kids to the pool yesterday. For some reason I thought last years suit might be too big.............not the case. I guess maybe it's was just tighter last year. I think if we had to prance around in bathing suits all day,we may be more inclined to eat right and exercise. DS not swimming yet, so I must sit on the side of the pool all day; no wonder my butt bones hurt today.

Well, can't stay on, DD has "end of elementary school" celebration today, so must feed DS lunch so we can get going. Also left a beach towel at the pool yesterday, so stopping by to see if we can retrieve it.

BBl
Lisa

[cher123]

Good morning everyone:

I see you all had typically busy weekends. I enjoyed catching up though.

I was down just .5 at WI, which is okay. I'm going to have to keep my nose clean for the rest of the week, though, because I was not a very good girl the last couple of days. There was a graduation party for our friends' daughter and they had a big Mexican buffet. I indulged a bit--two full-fat chicken enchiladas with gucamole and sour cream. I did resist the chips and cake, though, so maybe I'll get away with it. Dd's birthday lunch was okay, although I probably should have eaten less. Grandma made platters of itty bitty hamburgers and I had 4. Only a few bites of cake, though.

So this morning it was oatmeal and berries, and I hope to continue in that mode for the rest of the week. At least I kept up my exercise, although it was really hard to drag my buns out of bed. We had the trip to the grandparents' yesterday and the day before we went to tour some historic ships for ds's weekly reward. It was pretty cool--in addition to the one's that are usually there, they had a Russian Cold War-era submarine and the ship used in the movie "Master and Commander" that came out a while ago. Thanks to WW, I could actually fit into the submarine.

Kathy congratualations on your WI, and even more congratulations for actually going.

Anna and Vickie, I was sorry to hear about your losses. I can't imagine anything sadder.

[aghiowa]

Hey everyone, just popping in to say that dh is currently "fixing" my computer and so I've not been online at all in the last day or more. I'm going crazy! I really wish he'd finish, because all my recipes and my menu are online. I feel lost without my computer.

Today is dd's last day of kindergarten. Yesterday she drew a picture and wrote a short note to each of her teachers (1 teacher, 2 associates). I think they really appreciated them - I noticed them getting misty-eyed.

I'm doing pretty well eating-wise, although being without my weekly dinner menu really has me scrambling. Usually I write it down somewhere too, but this week I didn't.

It's getting hot here - I think the high today is 91. Yuck! Thank goodness for a/c, that's all I've got to say. Ours is turned up pretty high during the day (76 I think) but it's still cooler than 91!

Well, I've got to check my e-mail now, so I'll sign off for now. I'm hoping to be back up and running by tonight, but I'm not holding my breath.

Later!
Angela

[Monkeypoodle]

Hi all --

It's the start of a wonderful summer week. And it is hot and muggy in beautiful Chicagoland.

Yesterday I managed to do 10 miles, although the heat was ridiculous, even at 7am. The humidity was like a sauna; thankfully it started dissipating by about 8:30. We took a new path, mostly paved, which was hard on my arthritic knee, so I tried to use the grass off the side of the trail. It was long and wet, so I ended up with wet socks and feet (and blisters). My marathon partner didn't bring enough water because our usual trail has a water pump, so she ran out and I split what I had with her. Much of this trail was exposed to the sun. We both ended up a little dizzy, nauseous and chilled -- the start of heat stroke. Add to it the fact that those little dandelion fuzzies were flying everywhere, sticking to our sweaty faces and getting in our mouths while we were trying to breathe. Let it suffice to say that it was a challenge and a learning experience. There are many things that we will do differently for our 12-miler next weekend.

Anna, I'm so sorry for your family's tragic loss. I'm one that doesn't react to things right away. I was close to my mom and didn't feel anything or shed a tear until they were closing the casket. Everyone has their way to mourn.

Vickie, I clicked the link to the story. So sad that your nephew lost his life - yet it's uplifting to hear that a child would lay down his life to help another child.

Lisa, 36 pounds over the weekend - very impressive. That humidity really puts weight on, doesn't it?

Cher, .5 is a loss -- the scale is moving in the right direction -- and that is always a good thing.

Froufy - congrats on getting that last pound off! Sounds like a wonderful weekend.

Kathy, so you didn't want to go to WI. Hmmm. Your bathroom scale wasn't encouraging. Hmmm. . .

I think your bathroom scale needs to go. Congratulations on your humongous loss!

Everybody else - have a mah-velous Monday!

[Froufy]

Congrats Cher on your loss - and yours too Lisa! And so nice to know I can fit into all those slinky submarines I've been dreaming of! ha ha ha

Terry - wow - what a challenge - but maybe not a great idea to run in such warm and humid weather? I have succumbed to heat stroke once and it is so NOT FUN! You really need to be careful!

Angela - it is SUPER HOT here today - going up to 32 or something like that (around 95 degrees!). Luckily we also have a/c at home so not a problem to sleep or just "exist". I am obviously not walking outdoors these days - will try tonight if not too muggy.

Vickie - sorry to hear about your loss - I dare not even ready the article cuz I find these things so upsetting. And I am feeling esp emotional today (I just burst out crying on the way to work today - I had to pull over and calm down before I could continue - and you'd think I could find at least one @#$#@@@ tissue somewhere in the van??). Poor dh not sure what to do w/me - definitely PMS/TOM depression has hit hard now and this is making me extra emotional and very cranky! My crampy feeling is gone now, but I do feel that TOM bloat - thank goodness for elastic waist pants!

I even had dh call to cancel/reschedule our therapist appt today - I just couldn't face it - I feel like I would just start crying and being miserable and I just can't face that right now.

Back from lunch - I was very hungry as I only had some fruit salad for breakfast - the food was amazing! Not many great choices but I don't feel too badly. I had today's combo plate: 1 spring roll, beef w/red curry (moderately spicy w/some interestingly strange flavors), chicken & veggies w/garlic, some steamed mixed veggies and some sticky rice (yes it was white - but it sure helped cool off the mouth ) Drank lots of water too. I feel nice and full - not bloated - which I think is strange as I do feel as I ate a lot. I am working on my 2nd 18 oz of water now - so far probably have had about 30 oz. I have an apple for later and yogurt in the fridge if I should get hungry. No dinner plans so may call dh to defrost something? I know there is lots of leftover brown rice - maybe concoct something by adding beans/veggies, etc???

Found some stale sugarless chewing gum which I am chewing now!

Frouf

[aghiowa]

Once I had leftover brown rice and I made a really delicous lunch by adding a can of black beans (drained), a can of diced tomatoes (undrained), and some onions and garlic (browned). I think I also had some Canadian bacon I added too. Anyway, it was surprisingly yummy.

My computer is temporarily up again so I can start posting again. Yay!

Angela

[Froufy]

That sounds yummy Angela - I do have a can of black beans (was going to do the black bean avocado thing but forgot to get an avocado ), not sure about tomatoes? But might add some frozen peas, maybe some corn too, and some sauteed mushrooms & onions.....will let you know how it turns out.

Glad to see you are back on-line!

Frouf

P.S. So it's like stifling in here - something wrong with the air - no air circulation or air conditioning on - it's not so much hot, but stuffy as all the fans are off - deadly quiet.

Also feeling so hungry? How can that be? Just want to chow down on chocolate brownies or something like that (preferably w/ice cream and whipped cream on top!).

P.P.S. Okay went to the freezer as I remembered my sf frozen fruit bars - had an orange one......which cooled me off a bit. Then went back for another one (fruit/berry) which was also yummy.

P.P.P.S. Still wanting chocolate - luckily found an "emergency" ziplock of the simple pleasure lf chocolate cookies in my desk drawer - had four of them w/18 oz of water - now feeling pretty full and hope I can last til dinner!!!