Katt - WTG on the new clothes!! That's such a great victory and I'll bet you look amazing in the new pants
Your lambs are so incredibly adorable. It makes me want a pair myself so very much!!! God I think I'd want to hug them to pieces all the time, but I doubt the lambs would appreciate that very much!
Ammi - I'm so glad you're feeling better today
Back pain has to be one of the frustrating things to have because it affects *everything* you do, even just sitting still!
And the hubby is lucky he turned out to be a nice guy!! When he called me from down the street I gave him directions then immediately called my close friend who lived down the block and told her what was going on (she'd heard all about him at that point hehe). She came barreling down the block with a baseball bat "just in case" he turned out to be a nutjob. He actually saw her running down the street ahead of him and thought I must live in a crazy neighborhood with odd ladies running about with bats....
When he got to my apartment and saw the bat lady THERE you can just imagine his reaction!!!
Our anniversarries *are* close together - ours is on the 21st
I think you should definitely go dancing with your hubby, whether or not you are at your goal yet! I thought I'd be more self conscious than I was... really it wasn't bad. Now, we didn't go to a super exclusive place or anything (not that there is anything like that in this town) but a place where people in their 30s tend to hang out and I was a lot more comfortable than I would have been at the clubs I went to in my early 20s! Just forget that anyone is watching and focus on Daren and have a good time
I work a computer based customer service job so the worst part is having to sit relatively still for 12 hours. I get so antsy! I have to get up and wander around when it's slow or I'd go mad.
I'm not sure *how* we manage with the snow. It's usually not this bad this early in the season, not til January or so and by then I'm "broken in" to winter so to speak. The cold temperatures are what really get to me, though it hasn't been too bad yet, -20 is as low as it's gotten. It's not uncommon for us to have a -70 wind chill in January and February here, which is much harder to deal with than the snow itself. It's too cold here to use rock salt to melt the ice so they sand everthing, which helps a little with traction but also makes a godawful mess. I'll be glad when we move in a year or so!!
Kymberly - I have a similar checklist. For a long time I figured that if I'm going to subject people to looking at me with the state of my weight, I'd damn well better make sure everything else is *perfect*. So from earrings to fingernails I'm a bit of a perfectionist before going out. It drives my husband a little crazy sometimes. I've been a little less hard on myself, more forgiving of my own "faults" as I see them lately thanks to some reading I've done in my Buddhist studies and work I've done on accepting the reality of my life. But yep, it's still always a struggle.
Nancy - It won't be long now before you'll be proudly posting pictures of yourself in a bikini so don't be discouraged! You've come so far! And sometimes bathing suit pictures are better when they're taken ON the vacation and you're thinking less about "this is to show the swimsuit" and just smiling because you're having fun; so maybe you'll end up later with a picture you want to post from there, and maybe not! Either way it's okay *hugs*
Xena - If you google flylady or go to her dot com site there is more detailed info out there, but her system is very simple and basic. It's focused on concentrating on one task at a time for fifteen minutes (setting a timer) and concentrating on one zone in your house per week, and having routines in place to make life easier. The idea is to do a little bit every day so you never have to spend a whole day cleaning. Like my morning routine is get up, make the bed, grab the laundry basket and take it into the bathroom with me (where my machines are). Put the clothes in the washer and get it started, then do a quick "swish and swipe". I keep an offbrand of lysol wipe type things in there, grab one, and just clean *something*, the sink, the counter, whatever screams at me that it needs it. I toss the wipe and swish the toilet quickly, when I'm done the washer is done filling so then I shower, hit the automatic shower cleaner to spray, then go to the bedroom and get dressed. By the time I'm dressed the laundry is ready to go into the dryer and I already feel like I've accomplished something for the day. The little bits add up so fast. Before bed I always am sure to run the dishwasher and clean up the sink and stove, etc. Every day you do 15 minutes concentrated cleaning in your zone for the week, and if you subscribe to her email list she also mails you a "zone mission" which can take anywhere from five to fifteen minutes, like in the kitchen it might be to clean the outside of your fridge, etc. It sounds complicated and crazy but the system really does work, at least for me!!
Rayne - Have you seen the movie "Supersize me" ? If you ever need encouragement to keep away from the fast food, that is a great movie to rent. It really brings home what fast food does to your body, and it's so scary. Not that we don't all know that it's bad for us, but having those concrete images in your head can make a difference when the drive through seems oh-so-convenient.
Ingrid - WELCOME!!! (Though it seems odd to say that to someone who has been around longer and has more posts than me!) This is such a wonderful group of ladies, I'm sure you'll love it here
Lori - I hope by the time you read this that you're feeling better. We all have those days where it seems like doing anything would just take too much effort. *hugs* Tomorrow is another day, as Scarlett would say. And as I move along through the threads, it seems like you did some moving around at least
Now I'm craving muffins
Elmay - I considered gastric bypass too, but my husband was horrified when we looked at a website written by a husband whose wife had died from complications after surgery. His site listed all kinds of facts that other places don't, about how the mortality rate if you include from complications is much higher, and how many people gain almost all the weight back later, and he decided no way was he willing to risk my life like that. Hah, so that made the decision for me. I don't think I'm ready for a gym yet, I just don't have the stamina and I really just started regular exercise a while ago. For so long I was so depressed that I just didn't care if I lived or died, and so much has changed now, I just wish it had changed sooner. It's a shame you lost the trainer you really liked, hopefully you'll find another good one at some point.
I'm sorry to everyone I missed, this sure turned into a long post today!!
My mom is doing much better today, thank you to everyone who asked
They'll be moving her to the rehab floor soon and she's anxious to get home so she says she's planning on working hard at her rehab.
We're still buried under the snow here. I just want to hide indoors under an afghan with a pile of pets and a cup of hot tea all day long!! (It's really awful outside...) Every day it snows a little more, a centimeter or three, and nothing seems to melt. The back door is still snowed in and we're not bothering to dig it out, just using the front door for now. The back door is completely frozen shut so I'm not sure how we'd get it fully open anyway. Course being snowed in does have *some* advantages... there's absolutely no way I'm interested in running out to the store for something bad to eat LOL. I'm always good and stick to my list with the weekly shopping, it's the stopping for this or that which is my downfall.
Love and losses to everyone - I hope you all are having a beautiful day!!!
I used to do hands free on the cross trainer all the time at the gym so am sure I will get used to it on this one too. I read a review from someone who said it cured their plantar fasciitis... wow that would just be super if it could help with that... I have a terrible problem with it. I could not have done it much longer than the 30 minutes though. At first I almost thought there was something wrong with the Gazelle as it was getting so much harder to push... then 
I realized it was not the machine! 
And hope you can get a Gazelle someday but I know what you mean... sometimes we just can't; but just hang in there and keep doing the best you can with what you have!!!! Maybe you can save up your $$$. And yes, the Gazelle Freestyle folds too, although I plan to just leave mine out so I can use it a lot. I think all of the Gazelles fold. And yes to what Xena said.. the Elite or Pro gives you pistons to hook on. I was trying to stay on a tight budget and also I was told that the one with pistons is a LOT heavier and I really wanted something I could manage myself. Except for that I think that would be great as I think the pistons maybe let you adjust the resistance...???? 
