Good morning everyone! I have been mia for a few days but I am back. I missed this board. Here are my answers for the latest round:

Any vacation plans chicks? We haven't firmed anything up yet but I think we may head to Minnesota.

Read any good books? I am reading an old book right now that my mom passed on called Acts of Faith. So far it is interesting.

Favorite low cal snack? When I need salty, I make a mix of salsa and ff sour cream and dip a few baked taco chips or veggies in it. When I need sweet, I take some ff chocolate pudding and add a little cool whip...creamy and chocolately!

Today is our 20th wedding anniversay. We are going out to dinner tonight which I don't think will be low cal:)! I better get some activity in today to counterbalance the meal.

Happy anniversary Lessofmaur; enjoy your night out!!!

Back country camping is something I would love to do again. The last time Mack and I went was back when we lived in Virginia. It was only for two nights and had I known how things would go that second night I might have hiked out that day. It started raining about 5pm and didn't let up all night. The rain, the noises, and cold were just a bit much.

I am also going to do a patio garden this year; my first here in the desert. I will try tomatoes, peppers, garlic and onions. Since moving to the desert I have not had a garden; flowers or veggies. I really miss digging in the dirt.

Not sure what I have done but since yesterday afternoon I've been laid up in bed with a sore neck/back. I'm feeling better but will take another day before getting back to my workout routine.

Hope you all are having a good week.

Morning Ladies!

Beemer... Congrats on the Bunny Championship! I think it's great that your kids are involved! A great way to get them outside in the fresh air! I miss the 'country life'. I did 4h as a kid with cattle and poultry. I still have horses but they are boarded out. I wish I could post a picture of my old bunny on here. I will figger out how to one of these days!lol

Lessofme... Happy Anniversary and enjoy your night out!!

Cruisecat ... I was raised in the High Desert! Never tried to grow anything though!lol... If you are growing to grow Garlic... find an old Italian to show you how to grow it... then harvest it... they do this neat thing just before harvest where they braid the leaves first... then when it's ready to take out of the ground, you just loosen the soil around the bulbs and tug on the rope of braided leaves and it all comes out. Then you hang the "wreath" on your wall in the kitchen!! KEeps the Vampires away!lol

CruiseCat - sorry to hear you're under the weather! I'm a veteran of neck-caused shoulder and back issues - done the physical therapy, the steroid shots, and the chiros. The less time I spend on my computer (head forward, shoulders rounded), the better off I am. Wishing you speedy healing!

Hotsplashes - we grew somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 heads of garlic last year - 5 different varieties! It's something that the deer will actually leave alone. And, since DH has perfected both the fresh and the cooked salsas (we love 'em too!), garlic is in HIGH demand. No vampires probably in our whole county!

Beemer, so does your husband's company give away trips as rewards to surprise locations?? How cool!

LessOfMaur, I've never considered going to Minnesota for vacation. What are the attractions? Do you have family there? Or is this a Mall of America trip (that's where that is, right?) Congratulations on your 20th anniversary -- have fun tonight!

CruiseCAT - I get a catalog in the mail from High Country Gardens - Plants for the waterwise garden and beyond. Check it out for all sorts of flowers and cacti for your region. The website is highcountrygardens dot com. I hope your neck and back are better tomorrow. Good idea to take it easy until then!

HotSplashes - I did 4H too, as a kid, for horses. How nice you have horses still. Do you get to ride them much?

ICUwishing - I never thought of growing my own garlic. Does it taste different from store bought?

As for me, life has gotten busy in the last couple days. I haven't exercised since Sunday. My plans got waylaid yesterday because I had to rearrange my day to fit in a visit from a tile guy to measure for the backsplash we're putting in. And then they got waylaid today because I had to rearrange my day to cover for another mother who was supposed to volunteer in my 2nd-grader's classroom but, at the last minute, could not. Ugh. MUST GET MOVING!!!

Hi all:wave:

Cruisecat: Feel Better! I have had neck and shoulder problems also. I use ice right away and for the neck I throw on a collar if it is really bad. (Only when I am home. LOL) I have arthritis in the neck. When the muscle in the shoulder gets inflamed, it hurts! I had a pinched nerve from it years ago and never want to get that again!

I m not a grower:( Can't seem to keep plants alive. LOL

My Plan:
Calorie counting : 1800 cals a day
Changed food from processed to natural and balancing carbs, fats, protein, fruit and veggies
Writing everything down in a notebook: exercise and food
Exercising at least 5 times a week
Planning and focus!
Reward: Bracelet and add a bead for every five lbs lost
Told a lot of people my plan for losing...This helps especially at work because I want to be accountable to myself there as well as at home.
Planning and Focus!
Posting on 3FC: Getting so much support and advice!
Oh..and did I mention..Planning and Focus?!!!

Oh... I forgot:

Happy Anniversary Lessofme!!

Happy Anniversary Lessofmaur! Enjoy your night out. Celebrate!

I'm looking forward to planting tomatoes and growing herbs. Last summer I grew basil, cilantro and parsley.

Done pretty well these last few days. My spring break starts Friday. Looking forward to being off for 10 days! No big plans, just catching up on lots of things around the house!

Keep going girls!

OnMyWay - what are you studying? Or are you a professor?

Newleaf, I work as an assistant in an early childhood special ed classroom. I worked in printing/graphics before I had kids. When my daughter started elementary school, I took a job with the school district. When she's off, I'm off - It works great for me!

Good Morning Everyone...

Cruisecat I hope you are feeling better today.

I went way off the good eating bandwagon. Ate Icecream, have a bag of Oreos, and half a bag of JuJubes.

I am finding that when my pain gets bad... I eat poorly.

This is very frustrating. I know I am an emotional eater...but a Pain Eater????

Going to try better today!

newleaf - our finding is that anything we grow ourselves tastes better! But ... to be truthful ... MOST garlic does taste pretty much the same. I would guess we've grown fifteen different varieties, and of those, I don't think I could tell twelve of them apart. There are a couple of outstanding ones, like the elephant garlic (so mild you can eat it raw), and another one that's so intense I swear you can smell it while it's still in the ground. We love our garlic - we eat it raw, pickled, roasted, smashed, sauteed ... it's all good!

Morning everyone...

Although I am out of the bed I'm still not 100% and really need to stay off the computer. Just wanted to check in and let you know I'm still alive and OP but have not worked out since Monday.

The weekend is here so I won't be around much if at all.

Have a GREAT weekend!!!

Thanks everyone for the anniversary wishes. We are heading out of town this weekend so I won't be around much.

CruiseCAT, I am sorry to hear you are still not 100%. Take it easy this weekend.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Sorry to hear you are having back and neck issues CAT!! That really stinks and puts a damper on working out! I hope you are feeling 100% soon.

Lessofmaur-Happy Belated Anniversary! We have our 20th in June.

newleaf-My husbands company gets incentive trips from a company that they buy product from. They give these trips away to guys at his work for different accomplishments. My husbands is because he has worked there for 20 years now. We don't know where we will be going as they don't have the next trip set up yet. It will be a fun surprise.

I love garlic too. We always have a garden. I should try some this year. We grew peanuts a couple years ago. That was fun! We like to try different things to see what happens. Have a great weekend everyone!!

PS-Someone should come up with 3 new questions!