Hi ladies,

Sorry I've been AWOl for a couple of days. DH has forgotten to set his alarm the last few days and I've slept right through my exercise time. And I've been working on paperwork in the mornings too. I just have not been productive in the evenings.

We're about to exhause the first round of house searching. I think DH will do a drive-by on two more places and then we're done until new stuff comes on the market. Thank goodness because it is a time-sucker. I told DH that I can't spend all the time looking and not working on getting this house ready for sale. We're planning on 3/1 so lots of stuff to be done. I may be scarce the next few weeks. I'll try to be here as best I can.

Food has been okay. DH has spent so much time during the day driving around that he isn't in the cooking mode when he comes home nor have groceries in the house. I told him that that has got to stop - we're not eating out all the time just because he's disorganized about the food.

Oh yuck, I sprayed spray butter on my toast this morning and it was the garlic & herb flavor. Blech!

Lilion - You are doing great!!!! See, a little exercise and a little focus can make a difference! Keep working hard!

Wendy - I believe you asked about the Dr. P book. Sorry for not answering sooner. I loved his Weight Loss challenge book.

Laelle - What happened to you? Come out, come out whereever you are!

Valerie - Where are you at now? Still hitting the curves? Drive safe!

Thin - You've been too busy lately!

Ruth - That sucks about posting problems. Very frustrating. Keep OP!

Okay, I've run out of time so I better get my butt to work. I'm getting a haircut and highlight tonight so I'll have to rush out to feed horses then back to town to the stylist. I'll have to walk the dog later.

Have a good OP day!

Hi all! Wendyinnmn posted this at the end of the #34 thread, so I thought I'd move it!

And now to start my own post!

Good Afternoon Ladies!

Boy is it SLOW here! Everyone must be busy, busy, busy! I actually don't have anything to report myself, but didn't want to let the thread die a quiet death.

I'm still OP. Well, except that I keep forgetting I just LOST 2 pts and I'm only supposed to eat 28 now instead of 30! I'm going to a Pampered Chef party tonight and have no idea what they'll be serving, but I'm sure it'll be nice and fattening, so I'm being extra good today. With my snacks I'm only at 13 pts so far. My morning walk wasn't the brisk 1/2 mile it usually is...I walked with a friend and she wanted to shop instead!

I tried on more old clothes last night and came to the sad conclusion that my black wool slacks, which have hung in the back of my closet for at least 7 years, will not be worn by me this winter. They are 18's and there is just no way my butt is going to shrink that much before it's springtime. So I brought them in to work and told my friend to wear them if they fit or find someone else they will. I'm tired of looking at them, although it has occured to me that they might fit next year, I'm sooo close to wearing them now that I'd actually like to be too small for them next winter!

On the up side, a black suede skirt that's been in my closet since the late 1980's or early 90's fits me like it was tailored to me! What goes with suede??? I need to find a top, just so I can wear it one more time. (I previously planned to cut it up and make purses out of it! - Back when I thought I'd never lose weight! )

Wendy: Re that TOM, I usually don't worry about gains, as long as they aren't from eating. If you put on a pound solely due to Aunt Flo, it comes right back off. If cravings are the problem, like for chocolate, I try to keep sugar free fudge bars in the freezer or WW chocolates around.

And my back is feeling OK these days, although one side is still a bit swollen. I need to put ice on it, but I never remember 'cause it doesn't actually hurt unless someone decides to touch it!

Well, that's it! Gotta go.

Yeah, okay, I'm talking to myself.... Hellooooo! (hellooo, hellooo, hellooo)

So, I missed most of my exercise today since the woman I walked with wanted to shop instead and we ended up in a gift shop 1/4 or less down the street. I was OP until I went to the Pampered Chef party...They made this wonderful chicken alfredo soup and turtle cake. I had a small bowl of soup and a small piece of cake. The consultant showed me the nutrition info for the cake and 1/12 was 220 cal's. I had less than 1/2 that much. Since I had 21 points before I went, I had 7 to spend, so I figure I was close.

Well, goodnight everyone. Where-ever you are!

I have so many clothes that are 3x, I hope they wont fit me anymore in a few months. Every thing still fits now except better, less stretched out. Some of my pants slid off my hips. Good thing is when I get down to 2x I can wear my mom's clothes, then I think I have some 1x or something lower in my closet in the back. But the great thing about fat clothes is the elastic, you can just do a slit and stitch it up and there you go.

I have decided when I lose too much weight to wear the clothes we have here that I am going to get clothes from second hand stores until I get down to my target weight. Might as well be sensible about it. I want a new wardrobe when I level off, of course but I want to make sure I am leveled off before I buy it. I dont have money to throw around on my disability income.
I am saving now for later on when I get down to my permanent weight. I will wait a while to see what weight I maintain too. Not a number on a scale then but more how I feel and what happens when I add back some calories and level off.

That's my game plan anyway...far away as it is, might as well have a plan, cause the time is gonna come soon where it will all be necessary to deal with.

we are here to succeed! and succeed we shall!!

Why do you think it is more difficult to lose weight after 40 anyway? Is there medical evidence and case studies and all that??

Hello... Everybody? Been gone truckin.... looks like I'm not the only one!

Lilion, THAT'S FANTASTIC!!! You deserve every carrot in a 5 pound bag! I see you made your Feb 18th goal ALREADY!!! It's so inspiring to come back from... whereever I've been, and see that kind of success!

Garnetfairy, I'm pretty sure that there's actually proof that our metabolisms slow down after 40, and especially after menapause. I thought I was hitting the Big M a couple months ago, but since I could set my watch by TOM now, I think it was just the huge increase in exercise and other changes in my life at the time. I also lost 11 1/2 pounds that month.... wish I could do that THIS month.

Tried to hit a Curves in Washington, IN, this a.m., but they didn't open till 8, and I had to be on the road to my next pick up by then. Many of them open as early as 6:30, at least some days of the week. Behaving pretty well on the food the last few days - pretty much on plan. Running low on essentials like my chicken now, though, but we'll be going home in about 48 hours. THAT will be a relief! HOOOOOOOOme for a week or two. I just have to discipline myself to get my schoolwork done, or I'll never get that degree so I can quit driving altogether.

Terri, We're house/farm shopping, too. We're still looking at the place I might have mentioned before - old brick house with barn and up to 86 acres total, BUT we finally got the e-mail of the property map, and it's really not clear what's where. What IS clear is the easement - we thought it just ran along one side of the property reserving it for a future ramp if needed, but instead we found that the existing highway is not the Eastern boundry, but instead actually runs through the middle of the place, with two bits of land actually on the OTHER SIDE of the 4 lane divided highway. Probably 20 of the 86 acres "for sale" is totally unusable, and another 10 is difficult if not impossible to reach. Furthermore, if we don't buy the whole thing, the back acres could be developed ... with the current driveway becoming the ROAD, within feet of the house! Now, if we can get the whole thing cheap enough, that's still over 50 acres, and the driveway would still be just our driveway. There's no way this place is worth anywhere near what the asking price is!! I hope you're having better luck!!! And better luck with realtors, too... right now, they're in the same class as some of the "doctors" we've talked about.

Rambling again. It's time to get out in the "cold" and go work up a little heat. Blessing, all! have a great on plan day!!!

Good morning friends. Nothing worth writing about but I feel bad for not doing my part to keep this thread going and growing. I know the disappointment of coming in to read and no one has posted.

It is nearly 4am here. I really should not be online... I either need to get back to cleaning house for the weekend... or go to bed. I have company coming over in the morning so no time to do the cleaning in the afternoon.

Good morning ladies,

It was 7 pm when I got home last night and then was too tired to get online. DH pounces with house stuff the minute I walk through the door and is relentless. Him being off all day and available to go look at places is getting to be too much. Plus he's spending way too much money in gas just driving around. I know it gets him out of the house and keeps him from being stir-crazy and depressed but geez, ENOUGH already! He seems to not see all the work that needs to be done around here. He's seen something he likes and is becoming possessed about it. I, however, don't think its right for us and haven't even seen it. He's thinking new house set up perfectly for him and not considering it is not fenced, no barns/loafing sheds already there, no dog fence, and it is restricted on number of horses so that we'd have to purchase more acres if they would allow it. **Sigh**

My mom is coming up tomorrow for a short visit. I need to do house cleaning tonight.

Too bad today isn't Saturday before Saturday. I'd love to have a day at home but without DH. Have I complained recently that he never leaves the house when I'm here? I think I feel a shrieking attack coming on if I don't get the house to myself soon. And longer than for him to go wash the truck.

Valerie - Good to here from you. It is hard to find something already ready for horses and within our price range. I get annoyed when a realtor tries to say "bring your horses" and the land is barely set up for any room to have horses at all or boasts a big pond but the pond doesn't hold water. Then don't try to sell it as horse friendly. Good luck on your journey too!

Garnet - For me, it has gotten much harder after 40. What worked before just isn't working plus the endurance I had pre-40 doesn't seem to be there as much now. Since hitting 45, I've gained 12 pounds and not really sure why and it won't go away. I've been stuck on a major plateau since and can't seem to shake it. Guess that would be my evidence.

2Cute - Cleaning house at 4 am?? I hope you get some sleep. You know that isn't good for you.

Lilion - Sounds to me that you kept it pretty OP even at the PC party. Its hard not to lose control at those parties because the food is always so darn good. Get to walking today! The weather is supposed to be nice again in MO.

I must drag myself off to work as much as I hate to go. I do mean, hate to go too.

Have a good OP day!

Good Morning Ladies!

Well, it's morning for a few more minutes at least!

I haven't got much to report.

Garnet: Good plan on the cheap clothes! I still had a lot of my size 20's from last time I weighed this. I tend to keep my expensive stuff at least so I have things that go from an 18 to a 22. I only had one pair of size 20 jeans and simply refused to buy more. So I wore my 24's until I could get into the 20's .... talk about a saggy butt! A friend here a work loaned me two pair of size 20 jeans so I have something to wear until I'm into my 18's! I hate buying clothes and then not being able to wear them long!

Valerie: Good for you healthy eating on the truck! Boy, I bet you are going to be glad to get home. Enjoy!

Terri: Isn't this the darnest weather! I noticed when I was walking in from the parking lots today that the trees are all budded out and the flowers are starting to come up in the planting beds around my building! I can't even imagine what's going to happen if we get 14 inches of snow in February like we have other years! I'm all for springtime weather, but no cold thru the winter is just nothing but trouble... Hey, have fun with your mom!

2Cute: Goodness - Go to BED! That dirt'll be there in the morning too! I actually have cleaned all night, but only when something was really bothering me!

DH went shopping today. A grocery store was having a huge meat sale. He got four bags of boneless/skinless chicken breasts and 25 pounds of sirloin and chuck. He had a good portion of both ground into burger, some of the sirloin made into steaks, and the rest made into stir-fry and stew meats. I don't know why he didn't think about a roast from the chuck...but oh well. We have a tendancy to run out of meat at home so we thought we should stock up while it was cheap. We are considering buying one of those vacuum sealer things, where you can put stuff in a bag and the machine vacuums out the air and seals the bag, preventing freezer burn. Does anyone have one of those? They sound like a really good idea for folks like us who buy in bulk for the lower prices but won't eat it right away!

Well Ladies, I should wrap it up! I have to take my mile walk at lunch and also eat lunch, so I should get started. I feel really, really good about my weight today. I am actually thinking about getting down to 170 instead of 190...I can't imagine actually weighing what "the charts" say I should weigh. And I'm about 1/2 way there! Today is one of those days where I just know that I can do this!

Hi Girleys! I was catching up on my reading everyones posts. It's like having a little window in all of your lives. I love it!
When I was reading about clothes I thought wouldn't it be nice to send each other sizes that we don't wear anymore. Kind of like the sisterhood of the traveling pants! I have a bunch of jeans and can so relate to the saggy butt & the dunlop disease (where my belly don lop over my jeans because they are a bit toooo tight).
Thanks Lilion for moving me (I am so slow).
Todays goal is get my water in and stay away from chocolate!
What does everyone think of the cereal Kashi go lean???
Have a great weekend girleys!
Ciao4now
wendyinnm

I like the Kashi cereals pretty well, I just forget to buy it. Been super busy here at home this week, I even took the afternoon off yesterday to do some errands that needed doing and still di get finished. One of the biggest things is getting out the W-2's for all of our formet employees. Always before the accountant did them, but since we no longer have an accountant, it's me.

I bought an hypnosis tape on ebay the other night, can't wait for it to get here and see if it works. I'll let you all know. Here's the info on it;
Low Carb Diet Stop Sugar Cravings Hypnosis CD, is designed so you will harness the power of your subconscious mind, allowing your mind and body to make fast improvements choosing Low Carb foods over sugars, and finding it much easier to do away with sugars and flour products. You will find you are able to stop sugar cravings. You will also stop carb cravings.
You will increase your desire for Low Carb foods by automatically becoming more selective in the foods you eat, helping you deal with foods such as sodas with sugar, food with sugar added, flour and foods with white flour added.
This hypnosis CD gives you the motivation, confidence and willpower you need to make permanent changes in your lifestyle. You will see results!
You will find that this CD will blend beautifully and enhance any of these diets... Zone Diet, South Beach Diet, Atkins Diet, or any weight loss diet, and any weight loss diet plan. It works so well with any diet because it subconsciously makes it much easier to follow your weight loss plan.
This CD creates a state in which the body is deeply relaxed, the mind is in a higher state of consciousness which allows you to relax and reduce muscle tension. You will harness the power of your subconscious mind allowing the mind and body to make fast improvements.
You will feel daily stress and tensions being reduced to where the body is relaxed and slowly taken from the Beta (awake state) into the relaxing Alpha state and into the Theta state (near sleep) where subconscious changes occur almost instantly

I know I know, get real a nd stop looking for t he magic potion, but at least this should be safer than pills!!!

Hi ladies,

Friday night! I was so tired during work today that I was totally unmotivated and uncaring. Not good! But the boss was not there today so what the heck.

Okay, so I complained about DH driving me nuts with finding houses and driving all over. He found a place today that has potential. We definitely need to pray about it. Its an 18 yo brick home that is 1500 sq on the main floor and 1500 sq finished downstairs. The downstairs has a storm shelter (eases my tornado fears), large living room area, understairs storage, wet bar that needs work, bathroom with shower, two bedrooms and an open area. I'm thinking mom would be okay down there eventually. If she can handle the stairs. Hmm, that's a thought. There are five bedrooms and three bathrooms due to the finished basement. Its on a country road. It has 10 flat acres with a large outbuilding for garage and future tack room/storage. There is also a decent size loafing shed for the horses. It would need some fencing. Nice size yard. Front porch. It would need to be painted inside and some of the carpet would need to be replaced. I'd want to replace the dishwasher and stove. But they have left the stove, fridge, microwave and washer and dryer. Most of which we don't need. So we're going to go see it with again with mom tomorrow and have my brother come up as well. I want someone to tell us why this house doesn't have potential. There are lots of things that can be done to make it more modern but not much that would HAVE to be done before moving in (paint and some carpet). One of the negatives is that it will be 40 miles to work each way. And it is out in the country so you don't run up and down the roads on a whim. Seller will also pay closing costs. The guy is supposed to see if they will do a contingency which since its been on the market for four months, they might if we let him sell our house. It felt very peaceful and right while we were there. I could see us living there. I could feel us living there too. But is it too soon to find something? I also have to consider the drive. But we're not liking to find this very much closer to work for this price. What to do? What to do? Pray to start!

Terri my heart & prayers goes out to you. We bought a 34 year old home here in NM 3 years ago. We are still upgrading. We ripped out all the nasty carpet & put down laminate wood flooring. We had to go with that because we have BIG dogs & wood would have gotten messed up.
My husband hates the fact that so many things need work on. I enjoy the house because I don't have to directly deal with neighbors. Nearly had a meltdown in Rio Rancho because of an insane neighbor.
I will say that you should write down the stuff you luv about it and what you don't luv. This is a big move & investment. Moving is one of the major stress along with death & divorce. So lets all pray that you find the perfect property so it is worth the stress!!! You will know if it is right. I am jazzed for you! It sounds like an adventure!
Regarding the Kashi Go Lean. Great cereal but gives me GAS (toot toot). Definitely not a cereal I will eat if I am going out in the evening! Can you see me??? No dog to blame LOL!
Gotta run (not run really LOL) going to bike tomorrow. Yeah!!!!
Have a super duper weekend!
Ciao4Now
Wendyinnm

Lilion - My dad has one of those vacuum sealers and he loved it and used it a lot and now they hardly use it at all for some reason. Mom doesnt buy in bulk like she used to so much because it was just sitting in the freezer getting freezer burnt and pushed to the back the next time she went to the store. But the stuff in the vacuum bags did not freezer burn.

I hope I do lose this weight, I would like to rub it in my smug doctor's face..."So, what are we going to do about your weight?" and then he offers zero assistance, suggestions, anything...just a skinny man smile. Bleah

Okay, in a bit of a funk right now. better stop typing before I bring the house down.