ICU I got a chuckle over your line that the US isn't getting their butts kicked in religion... We were in a mediocre school system in Massachusetts, so when we moved to the Pittsburgh area, we used it as a way to really assess what we wanted for a school district and moved into one of the topic districts in the state, so we're actually pretty happy with. My DS8 is in the gifted program and gets lots of challenges from it, and my DS10 is a more typical student, and his day is full of challenges and high expectations, too. When in MA, we were considering private school and saw those tuition levels -- ack!

Exciting news, my sister and I are considering doing another hiking / trekking vacation together. A couple of years ago we did this in Peru; now we think that we'll do this in Copper Canyon in Mexico, hopefully next October. That would be a lot of fun, and also gives me something to plan for re: being physically fit.

Nothing much else going on here. Tonight is the first night of Chanukah so I have a bit of a scramble ahead of me, but will still exercise. AND, I've budgeted in having a nice drink with my DH at the end of the day... Something to look forward to.

ETA: Oh, I remember something else. I'm officially 5'7" again. I went to the gyn. the other day, they measured me since I was a new patient, and that's what they came up with. I'll take it!

New Leaf - hope you got a lot of shopping accomplished. I just realized that Christmas (what i celebrate) is 2 weeks away. Not sure what planning i've been living on, but it generally took me by surprise when I noticed!!!! Wow on the trekking thing, that's cool. I know having a plan (1/2 marathon) has really motivated me to keep moving and push myself, hope this fires you up too!

Marie - wow, college at 16 - impressive she was motivated to push herself like that, congrats to her!
pssst- it is too evil. i met one in person...hahahahaha (Cheesy grin) maybe yours has a better personality, mine was pure evil.

OnMyWay- it's FRIDAY! You made it...the weekend is upon us :)

WLW - good luck to your son, i hope this works great for him

ICU - here's hoping warmer temps find their way to you...though seems like everyone is in a freeze right now

---
I have a 35 min run on dock today - i'll be doing that shortly - then i have some cleaning up to do...going out for awhile. Looking forward to hanging out with my son this weekend. Not sure what we're going to do, but hopefully we'll find something interesting.

silly little thing...i'm a major chocoholic, etc...and sweets, etc..but i've been so on point...anyway, not sure if you're familiar with MrsBeasleys, but they have great gift baskets, etc...really good quality - i got my husband who has a major sweet tooth a big package of goodies from them on his birthday...and i picked out one small brownie - was like a butterscotch/chocolate chip gourmet brownie - and we wrapped it and froze it - and i'll have it at Christmas as a special treat...anyway, how it's still in the freezer, and i haven't touched it - not sure, but just knowing it's waiting for me is nice....silly. we got the stuff in november, but i said...no, not yet...save it. so...for some reason, New Leaf talking about her budgeted drink made me think about my budgeted - planned ahead weeks in advance brownie!

TGIF!!! I Love Weekends!
 

OMW, I hope you have a relaxing weekend!!! I am so thankful it is nearly weekend as well.

WLW, I’m sorry it’s your Monday. They are always so fun!:hug:

ICU, how fun to do a duet with your mom. My sister and I used to do Angels from the Realms of Glory for a Christmas duet. Those were fun memories. BTW, I can definitely see your point in making the education change.

Newleaf, your trek idea sounds wonderfully fun and a great motivator! Have a great evening tonight and congrats on your height being what it used to be. Too funny!

Lamb, yes mine is not evil. Actually I bow to it every morning because it changed my life. Not only did it give me a little metabolism (walking hadn’t even remotely done that), but when I skied for the first time this season, my quads never burned at any point. No pain on Monday either. That is a novel experience and it’s all due to my elliptical. And way to go on the brownie budget. :carrot:


I’m a major chocoholic as well. Right now the office has Moose Munch and the Moose is calling me. I can actually hear the chocolate covered popcorn chanting my name. Last time I walked by I chanted to myself, “walk away from the moose”. It helped on that occasion as I didn’t stop.

Marie

Yay, me! I just got back from a holiday coffee, laden with treats. I had a small cup of fruit and a diet soda -- I'm estimating 50 cal for the affair. Hooray!

And, I did the elliptical (no evil relationship here, I love mine). Life is good today.

Marie - oh, Moose Munch! I didn't need to remember that stuff existed - I can already map in my head how fast I could get to our local Harry n David. Powerful stuff. The Boy Scouts have a similarly evil conconction that involves dark chocolate, peanuts, caramel and popcorn. I am certain that there are drugs in it because once the lid comes off, I was unstoppable til I hit the bottom of the can. I did a little better with the last round, and just got a nice tin of plain yellow popcorn.

newleaf - I'm not all that good with the one-liners, so I surprised myself by coming up with that one un-rehearsed. :D Congrats on growing an inch! And fantastic work with dodging the 400-calorie coffees and other goodies - isn't it a wonderful feeling to be in control? :cheer: Go you!

lambchop - That brownie is EVIDENCE of a lifestyle change! When you're ready, it should go on the fine china along with some candlelight and good music. :D I know when I'm hardcore on plan, I love to add some extra pizzazz to a planned splurge, probably because it helps remove it even further from the uncontrolled, standing-up-at-the-fridge, panicky type of snarfing that thankfully, I've not done in a LONNNNGGGGG time.

Rehearsed the duet one last time over my lunch hour w/Mom, and made a run down to the Friends of Foster Kids to drop off our presents. I don't know Anton, the 4 year old, but I think he'll have a little happiness on Christmas morning. I'm just stunned at the NEED out there - one county with 880 kids that have uncommitted foster families and may still be in shelters. Next year, with more planning, I will do more.

Marie- glad you made friends with yours Marie...for you it was a blessing :) I've heard of Moose Munch, and yummy

NL- good for getting the exercise in, and YEAH for good choices tonight

ICU - LOL, i know the eating at the sink/fridge thing well, so yes, this is a huge step for me..yeah, totally understand on the need out there...i was blown away to find out that two friends i'd chatted with for 2 years in a group didn't have winter coats..what? i couldn't wrap my head around it...no winter coat. that very next day, i shipped out two winter coats to my friends...the one friend said she cried when she got it...i just never think of people not being able to have a coat -- truly amazing how much need exists. wonderful you reached out to help

Lamb-I have a winter coat but I only have to wear it about 2 days a year:lol:

Hello everyone, my name is Mary and I'm a refined sugar addict. I just don't go there with the brownies, moose munch, etc. Once I get started I may not get back on the wagon until I've regained all my weight and then some. Simply not worth it.

As for me being in a rut, I'm still eating on plan. I lost 2 more lbs this week and I'm still keeping my journal faithfully. It's just not an obsession. I actually see this as a positive thing. I'm thinking that I may have just crossed the line from thinking of this as a "diet" to thinking of this as my lifestyle.

My birthday is Monday and I have a little planned off-plan eating as well. I have a thing for fried chicken. I have had no fried chicken for at least 3 months. I used to eat it at least once a week. I have a recipe for a lower calorie/healthier version that involves removing the skin and whole wheat flour. I think its about 250 calories per serving. Not very Mediterranean but that's my special treat for my birthday.

Newleaf-Happy Chanukah.

newleaf - Happy Chanukah!

Marie - I've never heard of Moose Munch, but it sounds like it would be really good!

Petra - Congrats on 2 more pounds!

lambchop - great to pass on coats to those who need them. It's always surprising how many people do without.

Yes, I'm still alive, here. LOL

I've spent the past month going through the range of how fed up I am with my body (too many food intolerances to mention, unable to ever have had a happy ending to a pregnancy and a bad case of messed up hormones, too). I've rebelled and eaten lots of chocolate and decided that wasn't such a good idea. I've tried eating only when I'm hungry, but my messed up metabolism made that happen too often for health. I've had my pity party over all the great healthy snack foods (yogurt, low fat cheese, oatmeal, etc, etc) that I can't eat and how mad I am about my body.

I guess I need to vent this stuff every once in a while. Today I was in the lunch room chatting with some of our younger office staffers. I realized that I have a lot in common with them in that I work on my health a lot. The women in the office who are my age are always on diets and complaining about their health, but they don't exercise. I guess I'm lucky that I have to exercise to stay healthy. I have to work at what I eat and make sure I get lots of rest to stay healthy. These healthy habits are what will give me my best shot at a long, healthy life. Lots of food for thought, anyways.

I'm up a few pounds, but it's nothing that I can't get rid of in a few weeks.

Back in the game. :)

newleaf: Happy Chanukah!

icu: I remember the 1st time I did an angel off the angel tree at church: a 16 year old girl who wanted a warm blanket and a nightgown for christmas - the thought of a teenager asking for something so basic blew me away! several years we did 1-2 teenagers each christmas. even though we were lower income we agreed as a family that we could do something more for a couple of kids and my children get into helping us do the shopping. I miss doing an angel each year and think I'll start back up.

marie and lc: I love the elliptical, would love to have one at home. looks like I may be getting a treadmill from a friend - better than nothing.

presmaggie: glad to see you back!

I did pretty good at staying op today - ds is away for a few days and so is my upstairs neighbor. nobody around to derail me : )

newleaf: Well done on staying clear of the Christmas goodies! I'm having a work party tonight, but the friend who is hosting it is trying to get healthier as well, so there'll be lots of lean meats and salads there. Haven't decided what I'll take yet, and I have to leave in an hour!

I just realised this morning that I've now lost 30 pounds! :carrot::carrot::carrot: Go me! I lose track of where I am because I measure in kilos, but if I convert I get two lots of mini-goals to achieve.

Gym workout this morning, and I ran on the treadmill. I've got a dodgy achilles at the moment, and I saw my podiatrist tomorrow. She said if I was still feeling good next Wednesday or Thursday I could give it a go, but I had new shoes so I had to try them out. Only 10 minutes, but there wasn't any pain, either during the run or afterwards! I'm icing it as we speak, and if it's ok on Monday I might start back then...

Petra, PresMaggie, WeightlossWanted, and Primm - thanks for the Chanukah wishes!

On the topic of Moose Munch, I picked up 2 small bags yesterday, they were selling them at Borders, of all places. So the boys will be happy to open those! And, OnMyWay, don't even talk to me about the Boy Scout popcorn -- I run the popcorn sale for our Pack! So, we had a house FULL of the stuff, all yummy... I try to mainly buy the unpopped kernels, though -- much safer that way.

Well, we never did sit down and have that drink last night, but I decided not to make up the calories elsewhere. AND, our tradition is to light the menora each night of Chanukah and enjoy a piece of fudge (rather than giving a gift each night -- we give those all at once over the weekend of Chanukah), and I even budgeted that piece of fudge in, and was able to just have my small piece and not devour the remainder. So, that was good.

Keep up the good work, everyone!

I'm having a big cooking weekend. Made some of homemade granola today which freezes well. I'm taking some to our social worker at work because she has been looking for ways to use flax seed and I put flax seed meal in my granola. I'm making my fried chicken tonight and will have it for several days. It takes a couple hours, have to take the skin off the chicken and all that. I also bought a special bottle of wine for my birthday celebration this year. I don't usually do all this for my birthday and it isn't a particularly big year-44- but I feel like celebrating this year for some reason.

Petra - I'm a big believer that all birthdays should be celebrated! Happy cooking!

Newleaf, Happy Chanukah! I like your tradition of savoring a piece of fudge each nigh and then doing all your gifts on one day.

Primm - 30 pounds! That's fabulous!

WLW - Glad to hear DS is headed on the right direction.

Presmaggie - Sending a hug your way! It can be very frustrating when our bodies don't do what we want them to! I admire your dedication against all odds! How is the new job going?

Lambchop - loved the brownie story! That's what I call willpower!

ICU, hope the recital went well. I think that is so cool that you get to play with your mom. We also adopted a family from our church that is struggling this year. We are so fortunate.

Marie, Office treats should be banned! Great willpower!

Gotta get going. DH and I are going to see Transiberian Orchestra tonight. I'm very excited! Tomorrow we will put up our tree and get out the rest of our decorations.

Newleaf, you rock! :carrot:Great choices at the holiday coffee. You are my goddess and I will try to be like you in the next couple weeks. And that you have Moose Munch in the house – I could visit tomorrow…. Happy Chanukah and I like the fudge tradition. How great that you are working into your lifestyle.

ICU, I’m still hearing the moose calling me and I’m 25 miles from work. I contemplated driving in to answer. Thank goodness a co-worker hid the dish from me when I asked for help. So for the moment, I don’t know where the Moose is. But if I’d driven in, I’d have torn the building apart. Eeks, the moose has me in its hoof.

Lamb, a wonderful NSV is donating the too big clothes to charity so you know that others that can’t afford the clothing have some. That was so wonderful of you to ship the coats.

Petra, happy birthday two days early. Those 2 more pounds :carrot:gone sounds like a great present. Your dinner sounds like a great compromise between the old eating and your new lifestyle. If your journaling is ever considered obsessive, then so am I. So we’ll be obsessive and healthy.

Pres, welcome back to the biggest mind game of our lives. Next time you’re upset with your body, take a look at your ticker. You know the changes you’ve made have made a big difference in your health.

WLW, I love my treadmill too. I just can’t jog without killing my knees so to get my HR up and rev my metabolism, the elliptical was a wonderful find.

Primm Congrats on the 30 LBS lost. You go chickie!:carrot:

OMW, enjoy the concert it will be awesome! I love their Christmas music.

DH and I had a eeks type of day. We needed to add more insulation to our house as after 9 years, it settled a bunch and we’re having trouble regulating the temp. So we bought 45 packs of blow-in insulation and Home Depot lends the machine to blow it in if you buy 20+. So I filled the hopper all day, 21.5 pounds per pack and it was loads of work. I am not a manual laborer. DH was in the attic blowing. His lower back it sore from being bent over and my upper back is sore from being over the hopper all day. At least I ellipticalled before we began or I’d have skipped it. I skipped the doggie walk and my pack isn’t thrilled with me.

Well time to crawl out of my chair and make dinner.
Marie

weightlosswanted - good for you, helping others at Christmas. It's so important.

Primm - 30 pounds!! Good work!

newleaf - good job on the fudge. I don't know if I'd be able to stop at one piece.

petra - :bday2you: when it arrives.

onmyway - the new job is going really well. We are intensely busy and it sounds like it's a pretty sure thing that my contract will be extended. So, that's good.

Marie - we posted at the same time. Thanks for the encouragement. It does help to know that I have accomplished a fair bit.

It was a tough day today. We had our younger son's birth mother over and I have to admit that it's always hard to have those visits. She's really nice, but it's hard to see her features on my son's face, instead of mine. Oh well, this is my life.

on my way: there's no better way to kick off the season then seeing TSO live! They were awesome when I saw them here Thanksgiving weekend. Your ears will be ringing when you leave : )

Hey Hey Hey, Happy Holidays Everyone!!!:snowglo:

I have not been around lately and I thank those of you that sent me private messages to check on me. My family and I have been dealing with some of life's curveballs lately but please know that we are all doing fine. I really missed you ladies and think of you often.

I have been staying on plan pretty much and I am still losing slowly. I am over the half way mark in my weight loss and less than ten pounds away from being out of the obese BMI category! :belly: I have not been very good about keeping my food journal and I vow to improve upon that. I have been eating healthy and drinking lots of water and I am still walking at work on my breaks.

It is good to be back at 3FC and I hope you all have a great Sunday and a wonderful week! Keep up the good work Ladies and Gents! :grouphug:

I have to tell you all that your tastes definately change. That chicken was a major project and it really wan't all that great. In fact, the side dish I made to go with it which came out of one of my diet cookbooks was better in my opinion. I certainly won't be tempted to be making fried chicken on any regular basis after this experience. I think I would have liked my beef stew recipe or curried lamb better. Fried chicken may be a part of my past. I did have 2 glasses of champagne last night which was unusal for me.

Marie-you remind me of my former self. I used to make homemade bread and sew and knit and do all that stuff. I like sourdough too but having to keep up that starter can be a nuisance.

I would be afraid to alter hand knitted sweaters but if your Mom says that will work, go for it.

I actually made quite a bit of the fried chicken. I figure I can always just take the coating off and use the meat for other purposes, on salads, etc.

As for football, I'm still an Eagles fan from my life growing up in the Philadelphia area. Rarely, do I get to see the Eagles down here so I don't watch very often. However, the locals are insane over the Saints right now. And of course, there are no shortage of Alabama fans here either.

Petra, at least you can use the meat in other ways. It would be bad to toss it out. I use my sourdough weekly so it's easy to maintain the start. I hate to sew but my mom made sure I was good at it. :)

The sweater alterations worked perfectly. They no fit as opposed to bags. I told my mom I did her suggestion and she said "Can't lose anything by trying since you couldn't wear them anyhow." She's great. Absolutely great and now I have my two favorite sweaters back.

Petra, I'm a Packer fan and DH is a Viking fan (we're from the midwest). I have Sunday ticket so we can watch. I'm cheering for the Saints as well - to lose. :) Couldn't resist...
Marie

Petra, I agree, our tastes definitely change. Many of the things I used to like either leave a yucky taste in my mouth or give me horrible heartburn, just not worth it anymore. Now there are some things like homemade mac and cheese that will always be a favorite, in moderation of course!

Marie, you are way too industrious! Insulation and now sewing! We should call you Martha!

Hydra, Glad to see you back on the boards! Look at that ticker! You are doing great!

Presmaggie, Spending time with DS's birth mother must be hard, just remember She gave birth to him but he calls you Mom. He may look like her but he will grow to have your heart!

The concert last night was fabulous! We had great seats, but as WLW said, my ears were ringing when I left. It was a fun night. Busy day today but have gotten alot done. DD and I got the tree up and decorated. Did a little shopping before church. I'll work on cards tonight for a bit. It's been a good weekend!

omw: glad you enjoyed the concert : )

petra: could you post your granola recipe for us?

hydra: glad to see you again!

I got to watch the Eagles last night because they played on Sunday Night Football. Fell asleep in the 4th quarter but I think they won. It was crazy game if anyone else watched. I've actually gotten to watch them a fair amount this year because they have played on Sunday Night or Monday Night or games that are nationally televised. I've probably seen 5 or 6 games. My favorite Eagle, Brian Westbrook, is injured so that is a disappointment.

Presmaggie-I'm sure having an open adoption is very difficult. Can't imagine but I'm going to give you a different perspective. I was raised in foster care which is perhaps somewhat similar. I lived with one family most of my life and my real mother had "supervised visitation" until I decided didn't want to see her anymore when I was around 13 or 14. I think a lot of kids who are adopted and don't know anything about their birth parents make up fantasies about who these people are that have no basis in reality. Usually the reasons that children are given up for adoption are rather tragic and if they knew the truth they wouldn't be able to handle that. I always had the advantage of knowing who my biological family was and why I didn't live with them anymore. No fantasies here. I think every kid also wants to know "where they came from" on some level as well. She will be able to provide those answers but you will be your childs mother. My foster family is still my family to this day. I call my foster parents Mom and Dad, my foster brother and sister's children call me Aunt Mary. Was it perfect-no. But it was adequate.

Granola-actually a cooking light recipe. I"m not good at inventing things. I sometimes modify them but rarely come up with new things out of the blue

2 cups regular oats
1/3 cups ground flaxseed
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup slivered almonds
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 cup orange juice
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup dried cranberries

Combine first 5 ingredients in a bowl. Combine orange juice, oney and brown sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat just until sugar dissolves, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, stir in oil and vanilla. Pour honey mixture over oat mixture , stirring to make sure everything is thoroughly coateed. Spread mixture in a thin layer onto a jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray or covered with parchment paper. Bake at 300 for 10 minutes; stir well to make sure everything gets evenly roasted. Bake an additional 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a bowl, stir in dried cranberries. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks at room temperature or freeze. Serving size is 1/2 cup and I believe it has just under 200 calories. I can give you the whole nutritional breakdown if you want it. I think there are like 9 servings in this recipe so if you are thinking about the honey and the sugar, it turns out to be not much per serving.

It's not terribly sweet but it is great on yogurt with berries. Not sure I would want to eat it in a bowl with milk by itself.