Hi all,

No personals today for me but will try to get back later today to do so. Everything is on plan here and going good. Totally on track. Had a bad day yesterday with being overly tired, but feeling better today after sleeping a lot more last night. Hope everyone is having a good week.

Good news: I just took the kittens to the vet for a check-up. They had each gained about a pound, and the vet says Nénu's breathing is nearly clear, so she's been scheduled to be spayed on Thursday. We would've had her spayed several weeks ago, but the vet didn't think her breathing was good enough to undergo that major surgery. These orientals sometimes have their first heat when they're pretty young, so it really is time for Nénu to be spayed.

Oscar's still rather snuffly and a bit wheezy, but the vet said he, too, was the best she's seen him. Maybe with time this respiratory condition will resolve completely for both of them. I sure do have my fingers crossed.

Meanwhile, Operation Ringworm is proceeding slowly. We're bathing the cats with antifungal soap twice a week, and they're getting their antifungal oral medication, but Bob and I still have a lot to do in the way of steam-cleaning rugs, bleaching clothes and linens and futon covers repeatedly, and so on. He's in the midst of trying to choose a memory-care facility to move his demented mother to, and I have a lot going on in my life, too, so we're having to work on the house and stuff when we have time to do it. I have confidence we'll eventually get the house clear of ringworm spores: it's just going to take some time.

All of this sure has cost us a lot of money. I wonder if my breeder will stick to what she said and reimburse us for the medications. I haven't heard from her in a while. Time will tell...

Good Morning Ladies

Well I woke up at 5am and jumped out of bed with the intent to do some exercising and my body was like WHAT ARE YOU DOING OUT THERE .... cracks, pops, and pain ....MAYBE TOMORROW I WILL DO A LITTLE WARM UP OR SOMETHING BEFORE GETTING RIGHT INTO A WORKOUT DVD ... :-)

Things have been going pretty good on the homefront but this week seems like its really busy .... i leave my house by 630 am and everynight i have something to do this week not allowing my daughter and i to get in before 7 or 8pm .... I HATE WEEKS like this ... Im use to being at work 715 to 345 and that literally includes dropping my daughter off at daycare and driving to work (everything is within 2 miles of my home).

Hoping everyone has a great day and I'll chat with everyone later.

Good Morning!
Tami nice to see you stopping in even when life is so hectic. Are you taking time to plan your meals and eat healthy? Congrats on the 11 pounds down!
Fi doing a happy dance for the kitties improving health. Operation Ringworm, BERP, and all our overwhelming projects are just like our weight loss journey. Doing a little everyday and staying at it gets the job done.
shan way to go staying on track when you are so exhausted! Just curious do you have a weight loss chart? It is great seeing your ticker move down.
Terra I think that poster on your other thread made a wise comment about frozen dinners, they do give you portion control. Do you know which frozen dinners are the healthiest?
Sam get your butt back here!
Betsy did you have another on plan day? I love how big your whooshes are and looking for a report.
Donna, Bllondy, Jane, Silent,... how are you doing?
Confession time, I ate my daughters Saint Nick candy not all of it but dang. I am a sugar addict. There I said it. UGH!
Not feeling too down I knew it all along but never could bring myself to type it. Well onward I go.
Have a peaceful day!

Ubee, I was going to pretend things didn't happen the way they did so far this week.. but seeing you admit to eating the candy gave me the push to be honest with my plunge into compulsive eating this week.. My husband is out of town working and I hate being apart from him. So.. I bought all the wrong foods and ate myself silly the last 2 days. No smoothies for almost a week (or more?) and instead I've eaten crap like frozen pizzas, Little Debbie's Christmas tree cakes, and fast food... :( :( :( Guys, I've gained 5 lbs.. Nobody's fault but my own. I self-sabotage like a pro.. I am an emotional eater.. and I don't limit it to one particular emotion.. any emotion I feel makes me want to eat! :cry: So... here's me being honest when I don't want to. I want to pretend I'm all good but what's the point of doing that when I'm here for help and support (both to give and receive)? Even though there is still some kind of anonymity because nobody knows me in person, this was still difficult for me. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to read this you all.. Hope you have a wonderful day today!
I don't want to end this on a negative note so I'll end saying that last night I finally came to my senses and had a cobb salad with some chicken for supper.. this morning I made my first smoothie in forever.. ;) You all will laugh (and some might gag) when I say what I put in it.. hahaha.. Here are the ingredients: raspberries, cilantro, cranberries, carrots, a tomato, yogurt and strawberries.. ;) Now, before you all think I'm crazy (well, I guess I am), it tastes really good.. Mostly like raspberries and cilantro and pretty tart because of the cranberries. But still delicious. So, I'm getting back in the game. Next Monday I am going to go to the rec center to get a month's membership and begin my workout journey. I figure, if I don't make exercising a priority during a busy time, I will always have an excuse not to work out. So, again, have a wonderful day all you wonderful people!

P.S. I haven't changed my ticker yet.. I have to remember where to go to do that. But I now weigh 321.

Ubee ... Luckily since I am on the structured program of IP my breakfast, lunch or dinner, and snack are planned ... I am only eating 1 meal on my own (sometimes I do lunch and sometimes I do dinner). Either way I am saying on plan as much as I can .... I did break down today and had 2 slices of pizza during a goodbye party at work today but I will chop that up as my dinner and the shake and vegetables I was suppose to eat for lunch will now be dinner which will be easier since I'll bein transition with my daughter between school and art class.

Hi All...

I'm here but in one of those weird moods...My TOM has made me crave everything! I have done pretty good up to yesterday but yesterday we got some praline pecans and chocolate covered pecans in from a company for a Christmas gift and I ate some...They told me to take them home to DH and I ate some more...So needless to say I have been craving a lot of sugar this week and I feel bad about it. I weighed myself this morning and I was at 252...I'm sure some of it is because of how bloated I am but I'm sure the sugar hasn't helped any :(...I haven't been trying to avoid this place I've just forgotten to post.

Went to the gym Monday & Tuesday despite feeling like crap...I took the day off yesterday to run some errands and pay bills. I think the rest of this week I'm going to go and just do the treadmill to hopefully get enough cardio in to lose this week. On Tuesday that was my plan but I started getting a bad blister on the bottom of my food and had to stop 34 minutes in. Still got a good bit but ended up working my legs too since I didn't get to do a full hour. I think it's my new socks and maybe I didn't tie my shoes tight enough so my feet were sliding around? Idk, but I'm going to watch it tonight when I go...Hoping DH will go with me but his stomach has been in a lot of pain. He went to the doctor yesterday and he may have gallstones. I'm really hoping not because he is deathly afraid to go under the knife and is afraid to wake up during surgery. Since he is a recovering opiate addict he has a higher tolerance for pain meds than most people so that's why he's so afraid. I'm hoping that if it is gallstones, which by the way he's been acting that's probably what it is, they can disolve them without surgery. He is waiting to get a call from the doctor about having an ultrasound done.

No personals today but Ubee I'm here! I just need to get my butt in gear with the eating this week....I'd love to lose 10 pounds this month! I hate being a woman sometimes lol....Have a great day everyone!

Ubee ~ Yeah I believe the healthy frozen dinners are Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine's and Smart Ones a.k.a. Weight Watchers, Those are the one I get the most anyway. Yeah thats true they do give you portion control.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I've been awake since 1 a.m. this morning, Its almost 9 a.m. now. I'll probably take a nap later on though. I already gave Clyde fresh food and water and He's been outside twice this morning. My plans for today are to go shopping at 3 p.m. today and to do my chair exercises before 3 today and again before bed tonight. I hope everyone has a wonderful day today.

Good morning everyone. Hope that it's a good day for all my chick friends. There seems to be a lot of us recovering from sugar addiction breakdowns -- probably started for most of us from having Thanksgiving dinner. We will get back on plan, but it's a great reminder that our addiction to sugar/bad carbs is every bit as real as if we were addicted to alcohol or drugs.

Terra -- Whenever I'm trying to get back on a plan, I will eat the frozen dinners for a few days. It does help me to remember that a serving of pasta does not cover an entire dinner plate with sauce covering all the pasta! ;) Plus some of them are actually pretty good. The brands you named are the ones I have eaten in the past. The only thing I've had to watch out for was the salt content -- usually very, very high.

Sam -- You're in good company with going off plan as it seems that a lot of us had problems. In addition to all of the "treat" food floating around, the stress of the holidays hurts, too. Hope you don't end up with blister problems like Terra. If it's a really bad one, try using the moleskin to cushion that area. Goood for you for getting back on track and glad to see you back to posting. In addition to just missing your cheerfulness, I always worry when one of our "regulars" misses a day or three.

Tami -- 11 pounds. Whoopee!!!! One of us has her signature moving in the right direction! Sounds like IP is definitely working for you. Hope things calm down for you next week -- sounds like you're meeting yourself coming and going.

Bllondy -- First, thanks for coming clean about gaining the 5 pounds and why. As hard as it was to do -- and I know from experience it's no fun -- it's a huge step in learning to cope with our emotional eating. It's the sneaking snacks and eating entire bags/boxes of junk to hide the evidence (only to have it show up on our hips) that is the truly destructive behavior. So, know that you're not alone. Most or all of us have struggled with this or else we wouldn't be on this site. On the positive side, you stopped the slide before it became out of control. You're back to your smoothies. We're rooting for you.

Ubee -- I'm picking up the pictures today and the 30+ frames I ordered for standard size pictures have all arrived. Now I'm wondering where I'll put everything! Finally had a 4 pound whoosh yesterday for no apparent reason. I had been gaining between .2 to .8 of a pound for the previous 3-4 days as I started back on Atkins. All of it came off yesterday in spite of having Pad Thai with a friend. I am determined to make the 10 pounds. And, yes, we are sugar/carb addicts. Aaaarrrrggggghhhhhh!

Fi -- Great news on the kitties. You have been a very patient cat mommy to go through all of this, and I certainly hope the breeder lives up to her promise. Sounds like Project Ringworm is coming along. Finding a good place for Bob's mom is both stressful and emotionally hard to do. Will this impact dealing with the farm for you two?

Shan -- Our glowing light as a beacon that it is possible to stay on plan. Would you please come to my house and slap my hands when I reach for something I shouldn't. :?: Seriously -- good for you for doing so especially since it sounds like you're busy.

Got almost all of my Christmas shopping done yesterday morning online. And I was able to stay pretty much within budget. I have to go to the Sears store today and order a tool chest that my nephew wants. Love the Craftsman tool carts, but man they're expensive! I'm happily in the midst of a tummy upset. Happily???? Yes, it means I'm not hungry so it helps with getting me 100% back on eating on plan.

Off to the gym and pick up the prints and order the tool chest and get Becky for Toby to play with. Laundry and Christmas cards await me. The excitement builds! Have a great day.

Good Afternoon!
Another day of playing elf. Today was helping a friend wrap a sleigh of gifts. Food wise I have been mostly on plan and as of this morning I have lost my Thanksgiving weight!!! I hope my scale is not broken.
Betsy you do know you didn't post yesterday? That is not like you. I did pray for you and was trying to figure out a way to hunt you down and make sure you were OK.
Terra I do not eat frozen dinners but those sound like good choices. I am so happy to hear you are doing chair exercises. Good for you!
Sam I was worried about you as well. STOP the sugar cold turkey. I am not kidding don't do this you have come too far. Just one bite leads to a thousand more. STOP!
Tami would you please mind taking the time to explain the IP foods? Is it all shakes? Freeze dried? A combination of the two? How does it taste? Thanks. I have seen people have such great success with it and it has left me curious.
Bllondy if we in the 300+ club don't understand no one will. We are like marriage vows. We are here for good times and bad. Admitting our problems helps ourselves and others. Glad you are back to the smoothies.

All right everyone let's keep posting. :drill: This is a dangerous time of the year so let's support each other. It is not a good idea to throw in the towel and start over in the New Year. (Getting off my soapbox.)
Have a peaceful day! Glad to have you here.:grouphug:

Betsy- I surprise myself at how easy it is to stay on plan especially because my bf keeps other food in the house and he's only home on the weekends right now. Oddly enough, I never feel drawn to his bad food. I am coming up on the weekend of week 3 and once again not showing anything on the scale, but this happened last week and then on day 5-7 of the week I showed a nice loss and have maintained it this week so far with day 1-4 of week 3. I'll keep you posted. How do I stay on plan? I just know exactly what I should be eating so I just eat that and if I get bored, I switch to something else from the approved list. I eat a lot of baked chicken, pork, some beef, lots of eggs, and of course my veggies. The veggies are the hardest for me but dear bf went and bought some salad dressing from an online website to help me. Should make next week better for my veggie consumption. Also I try to do 3 meals a day plus a morning snack and after snack but sometimes at work I'm so busy I forget the afternoon snack. Usually I just make up a tuna salad for the day of snacks and bring cut up cucumber or peppers to eat with it.

Ubee- I miss being an elf to friends when I was back in the states. Doesn't happen so much here in China...I feel the Christmas spirit myself because I love Christmas, it's my favorite holiday. We watch Christmas movies, listen to Christmas music, and do a bible study this month as well. But, I definitely miss the family around this time of year. This is the third Christmas without my mom and its so hard for all of us, but especially because since my mom passed, the family has scattered. While the three of us girls remain close and talk everyday, my dad is not interested in doing anything with us...even though he's retired and there is no financial reason he can't do things....it's just frustrating because my sister has a 7 month old baby and she really wanted my dad to go to Texas for his first Christmas as they start their Christmas traditions and so he doesn't have to be alone...and he said no. It makes me so sad because I know if my mom was still here, they would have both been there and it wouldn't have even been a question about are they coming or not...it would have been about how long can they stay.

Anyways, hope everyone has a great Friday. I'm in desperate need of a holiday. I keep reminding myself I have two four day weekends coming up with Christmas and New Years...and of course the big February holiday but I'm ready NOOOOWWW!!! :)

Betsy ~ Yeah I definitely need to keep in mind of the salt content in frozen t.v dinners so I guess its a good idea that I've gone from 2 t.v dinners at a time to 1 t.v dinner at a time.

Ubee ~ Yeah I'm enjoying my chair exercises.

Hi Guys,
Bllondy.....I will join you as a self saboteur.
Had a session with my therapist and the long and short is that I use food as a sort of self harm. When I feel sick and my knees ache because I have put weight on again, I think that it's what I deserve. Sorry of that sounds a bit deep and I know it isn't everybody's reason for overeating but it sure as heck is mine most of the time. Added to that it is a way of stuffing down the anger and loneliness and sadness I have felt since I experienced an abusive childhood.
Will post a bit more later, have a good day ladies,
Donna

GOOD MORNING EVERYONE .... Its been crazy and I just realized I didnt even get on 3FC at all .... I know I'm new but I have been logging on everyday. Took my daughter to the White House Christmas Tree lighting event lastnight which was WONDERFUL but I'm pretty exhausted right now and after work today my daughter has an event at school and tomorrow we have 2 birthday parties so Sunday I'll be doing housework and laundry .. YAY for weekends.

Ubee sorry had a little side rant there ..... So IP and the foods ... WELLLLLLLL its a little bit of everything but it all comes in these like freeze dried packages and you pretty much only add water to it ... even the cereal :dizzy:

So I REALLY REALLY enjoy the shakes which can be cold, room temp or even hot. I REALLY ENJOY some of the bars, some of the soups, and the chocolate chip pancakes. I don't care for the oatmeals or the cereals and there are still quite a few things I havent tried yet. Overall I'll say there are about 40+ different items to try.

Although the diet is strick I personally was never a breakfast or snack person so at 6am and 8pm (those are my times) a shake or bar is great for me. For lunch I tend to have my 8oz of meat and 2 cups of veggies of home cooked food and then for dinner I have my IP food and 2 cups of veggies where as most people do the opposite. I personally found it less tempting at work to order out and want whats around me when I am eating my own cooked food and at dinner Im home alone with no temptations to worry about.

Now with all of that said IP can be very expensive and there are TONS of people I have read with in the IP forum who are having success doing it on there own and using alternative products and there are individuals who are kind of doing both they purchase some IP products (probably to keep the use of he IP coach and consults/etc) while stretching their money by using alternative products as well.

Hope that helps ... If I didnt answer anything please let me know.

Woke up at 6:00 a.m. this morning, I'm currently eating breakfast, I already let Clyde out and I already gave him fresh food and water. My plans for today are Clean the bathroom and do my noon and night chair exercises.