[Dan2112]

Good morning all!!

I realize we have a lot of Canadians here who don't celebrate Thanksgiving when Americans do, but since a lot of us here will be spend this week traveling, cooking and in general having to deal with turkey day, I thought it would be approrpriate to have the issue front and center in the thread title.

I hope y'all don't mind..

This is a time not only for giving thanks, but for minding what we're ingesting.. Let's give thanks for all the folks around us who are supporting our efforts towards creating a healthier lifestyle for ourselves.. On that same thought, let's not blow it by overdoing it this hoilday..

We're free to live, but that's not a license to go hog wild... Everything with moderation, eh?

Have a great week!!

[Mama Nicole]

good morning Dan and ladies

I am trying to stay positive this a.m., but motherhood and home management are quite trying today. I have two teen age daughters who do not think they have to get out of bed this a.m., and, I just checked my bank balance, and DH's yearly manager's bonus has not been deposited yet. I am starting to get nervous that maybe it is not coming............ I miss DH like crazy too.

Anyway, I have to run some errands, but I will be back later on with a better attitude, I am sure

Have a great day everyone
XOXO

[aguerin]

Good Morning All.

Don't lose hope Nichole.

I am slowly losing the fight with the diet. I just don't have the self control that I use to have. It is just so much easier to eat what you have instead of always going to the grocery store to stock up on things you need. Not to mention that it is so expensive. Anybody else having this trouble?

[petitelapin]

Good morning everyone.

My mini goal is 3 weeks away. Not going to make it but I am still in a much better place than I was 8 months ago. I missed the boat so far by a mere 11.5 lbs. So that's not bad, not bad at all.

I agree with you on the hog wild thing I laid in bed yesterday thinking I should get up and have kitkats and pb cups (here for a pinata). But I beat the demon and didn't have any and today the desire has moved on

I remember last month how hard Thanksgiving is but I think ours is a little different? We have only a Monday off? What I did was have one cheat meal , I never went crazy either since being op I am used to smaller portions anyway (though I am thinking even a small portion of mashed and gravy not a great thing). Luckily for me, I don't like pumpkin pie anyway.

Dan, you probably mentioned in the other thread..have you found out what ails you?

Nicole, you just have to get through today. You can do it!

Amy, the expense is getting to me but I am SOOO close and you are even closer. Keep at it, you won't regret it!

Everyone have a great op day.

Tan

[Dan2112]

Oh sure Amy, I think we all do.. The fact that many of us don't have the accountability anymore is a killer sometimes... Two years ago around the holidays, I KNEW I had to be good because I was hitting the COD three times a week..

Now it's all on us, and if Liz is not caring, neither am I ..

That said, I'm maintaining pretty well.. I'm losing and gaining the same 5 lbs, so it's not affecting me too much. I find the trick is to continue not buying the offending foods.. Should have seen my shopping cart this past weekend.. All kinds of veggies and fruits.. It still feels really good to hit the checkout line knowing I'm buying the right kinds of foods.. I did buy a small bag of chips.. "Lite Ruffles".. The kind that are made with Olestra.. I love 'em with some salsa and while the salt content may be higher than we should have, the 0 fat and low calories certainly helps the bottom (pun intended) line.

Yes, it's expensive to eat healthy, but it's also easy to forget to count the cost of eating crappy food.. How much do people spend on quick trips to the drive through line or just eating out in general..? I'm a firm believer that it all balances out and there is NO excuse not to eat as good as we can.

I made a big pot of low fat potato leek soup yesterda, using the LAWL clam chowder recipe (listed in our recipe forum). I simply replaced the clams with leeks and pureed the soup once it was done.. TASTY!!

On edit.. Thanks for asking Tan, but no. Nothing concrete yet.. I have yet to get my blood results back and haven't scheduled my lactose test.. In fact, I really should do that now..

[JLem311]

morning everyone. not feeling so well today. i woke up early and had to immediately run to the bathroom to vomit. not sure what the deal is. it's a bit late in the game for morning sickness to come back, but i suppose it could. i think i was just so hungry that i threw up. idk. i've been waking up at 2am and been super hungry, but still haven't given in and eaten anything because i know it'd be hard for me to fall back asleep..since i have such a problem with that anyways.
so yeah..not feeling too great today and Jag is being his usual 3yr old self..that and i have a ton of stuff to do at former DH's house today (i clean for him and he pays me) lots of laundry, dishes, trash to take out, kids rooms to clean, etc. just don't have much energy to do it today.
anyways...i should get a few things done before i don't do anything today.

hope everyone is having a better day than i am!

[JLem311]

ps..for those of you that missed it last week, i put an updated pic of my growing tummy in my profile.

[jewljz]

Hi everyone! Dan - thanks for the Thanksgiving motivation!

My plan is to only eat the things I REALLY love! I can do without the mashed potatoes and gravy, even the corn, but I absolutely LOVE the dressing, a slice of white meat as soon as the bird is done, and the green bean casserole! Oh, and a yeast roll - I checked the nutritional facts between the white and wheat rolls and they were about equal - so I went with the white. I really don't have a craving for any of the pies or anything sweet - so I think I will do ok- actually I've done pretty well the past few Thanksgivings because I don't really LOVE a lot of the stuff - I usually have to have more than 1 serving of the dressing - that's my only downfall...

[jewljz]

Jillian - feed that baby! just kidding - maybe your blood sugar is getting outta whack - ask your doctor about that... I used to get the same feeling when I would diet, I would get so hungry that I felt I was going to vomit and it turns out that my blood sugar was dipping way low...

[jewljz]

sorry to post AGAIN - just forgot I had more to say...

Amy - don't give up - remember this is a life change! And as Dan put it, it starts at the grocery store... my whole family is a little irritated at the lack of "regular" snacks in our house, but they are getting used to it - I even catch them munching on health foods from time to time! I made PBJ sandwhiches on lite bread yesterday and the kids were hungry enough to devour them without question as to the type of bread it was on! You can do it

[JerseyMadchen]

Hey guys!

Just wanted to stop in quick to say hello!

Amylou- CONGRATS!!! That's so exciting! How are the wedding plans? I am sure they were put on hold for the bar... completely understandable.

Dixie Amy- I know the feeling. I get overwhelmed sometimes with dieting. It really depresses me that I don't want it as bad as I should. I give in too easilytoo. The only thing that keeps me going and away from the wrong foods is just that... stay away from them. I don't have any snack foods or anthing worth eatting inmy house other than healthy foods. That way when I am hungry at lunch and feeling lazy enough to just grab anything fast, I haveto put an effort in and MAKE something healthy.

I am in VA at my in-laws fr the week. Diet-disaster zone. They do not eat healthy AT ALL. They actually try to "save money" and shop at this store called te Smart Shopper. Hey, saving money is great and all, but the store sells EXPIRED food. And I am talking a couple months/years back.

There are no veggies or fruit int he fridge, only awful, expired food! Luckily, there is a fridge downstairs where we sleep, so I am thinking of making DH take me out to get some pre-cut veggies and fruit. For breakfast I had a pumpkin muffin ( I made them and brought them down) and for lunch an englishmuffin with hamand cheese on it. Believe me, it's the healthiest options! Either that or Cheetos and Tasty-kakes!!! AHH!H!!

Anyway, anyone doing anything cool for Thanksgiving?

[BarbaraB]

Dan, My plan is to try to get in a fair amount of extra exercise this week. Somehow it really helps me stay in control around food. I know I can't keep up doing at least an hour a day for forever, but I can do it for a week. Especially a week where I get a few extra days off. I still plan on trying to make lower fat versions of some of my favorite foods for Thanksgiving. Really we are lucky that it is turkey that we celebrate with, as it is not so fattening. I'd be really in trouble if thanksgiving was all about the lasagna.

Amy, I think everyone has waxing and waning motivation to lose weight and keep it off. You've done great! Really, it has been quite awhile since you hit goal, and you've kept the bulk of the weight gone. Maintenance is not easy. It is not easy to keep all your good habits when there are stressors out there (and I imagine having teenagers and building a log house are big, big stresors for you). So just stop and breathe and appreciate what you've accomplished, think about ways to take better care of yourself. I imagine if you finds way to release the stress for yourself, that you will find it easier to maintain your weight. For me exercise has helped a great deal... I must be on an exercise high right now... LOL.

Amylou, Whooo Hoo! Congrats! I was always pretty sure you were destined to pass the bar! Hope you had a great, great time in Las Vegas (or as my dad calls it Lost Wages).

[Repo girl]

Hi everyone! I am busy on my end. We went to Twilight on Friday night. It was really good. Not as amazing as the book, of course, but it was a good book-to-movie interpretation. I am taking Thanksgiving and the after off of work. My mom and sisters and I always shop together on the day after Thanksgiving. It is a tradition that I really look forward to.

[Mama Nicole]

Originally Posted by Repo girl

I am busy on my end.

..........I am sorry, I just can't help myself sometimes.........

My mom, sis, and I always go shopping on Friday too.........while it is still dark, in the wee hours of the morning. It is so fun. Then we go out to breakfast.....shop some more, and then lunch. We have never endured until dinner.......but one day we will

My girls LOVE LOVE LOVE Twilight. Bethany has read the entire series....in just a few weeks. She is going to go see the movie with my sis later this week.

[Dan2112]

Liz too Alex to see Twilight this weekend.. Danny and I have no interest in it, so we saw Bolt instead.. Cute movie.. Better than I thought it would be....

And yes, I had popcorn..

I have a tradition at Thanksgiving that has been in place for years.. I make a point of not overdoing it on anything... I have a plate with a little turkey, a bit of potatoes and a roll.. I don't like stuffing so no worries there.. HATE sweet potatoes and cranberry sauce, so that's not an issue either.. I usually overdo the raw veggie tray though, constantly snacking on carrots and celery..

Update on Liz.. Her first week at the new job went great.. She's really enjoying her new position and so things are looking up..

Jillian - I linked her to your profile page so she could see your preggers pic.. She said to say how great you look and wanted me to pass along her best to everyone.. She's sorry she can't be here, but with her new job, she's got to focus on that rather than screw around on the net (like I apperantly like to do! )