G'morning meowee - Yep, a bit quiet. Maybe everybody's resting their muscles from shoveling snow last week.

I took a nice long walk yesterday with DW and came upon a Red Tailed Hawk feed on the ground not far from us. What a magnificent bird!!!! It wasn't bothered by us, just kept picking at its dinner - likely a squirrel.

Have a nice day.

Jen - ooh - thanks for the reminder about the art festival - I haven't been down in years. That would be a great time to plan another TJ run!

Jay - glad SO is better And congrats on all those sore muscles! You must be enjoying that new gym membership!

Linda - hope you are staying warm!

Bill - glad to see you back again!

And, I'm glad to be back here! We had a good trip, Between Sam's and TJ, we have 8 bags of staples in the pantry, so it was a worthwhile trip! We had fun in Ann Arbor and DH enjoyed his microbrewery visits! We ate an a wonderful Ethiopian restaurant last night! We didn't get in as much walking as we would have liked - it was just too cold!

I did find a new grill in Birch Run - the old George Foreman that someone gave me used finally bit the dust last week. This one has the "inserts" for omelets and waffles so I can also get rid of my ancient and very sad looking waffle iron. I actually like to make waffles fairly often. I like to control the ingredients (I can make them high protein, use lots of healthy ingredients like flax and WW and soy) and topped with fresh fruit and homemade yogurt - they are almost like DESSERT!

Hope you all had a GREAT weekend!

Hi! I'm glad everyone seems to be avoiding the flu bug. You're right Freda hand washing really helps keep me stay healthy with all the kid germs I'm around.

Laurie I probably passed you somewhere on I-75. I was travelling north, while you were going south. We headed up north this weekend. We went cross-country skiing. I was able to get in an hour and half of a super intense workout. We were with another couple and they set a pretty fast pace. It was beautiful skiing through the snow covered pines.

I need to do some lesson plans for this week- Have a great week.

Lori

Good Morning everyone,

Hope you had a fun weekend. It has finally warmed up a bit here. maybe that isn't quite right. It's not as cold as it was. yes, that sounds bette, because it's still far from warm. But at lest you don't think you're going to freeze to death when you stop outside.

Lori, I'm still enving you the cross country skiing. I keep saying i'm going to learn but never start. Where do you usually go to cross country? Ever go to Stoney?

Lori, I love TJ's. I can't come out of that store without some major spending and i don't live that far away! Love their yogurt, greek and regular. And I'm always amazed at their prices. So, did you make any major new finds? There is always something new and interesting there.

Jay, Sounds like the decision for the new gym is paying off. It's good to find muscles in places where you didn't know you had muscles!

Freda

Another very cold but very sunny day for me. Great day to sit inside and just look out.

Hey!

Good spotting that red-tailed hawk, Bill! They are so cool... The last big birds I saw were a pair of bald eagles soaring overhead when I was at the pool.

Freda, I kinda thought I did have muscles there... but evidently they weren't as strong as I thought! But, I think it's all worked out now.

Just in time for... Step class! This morning I went. I watched on Saturday morning. I was glad I watched first. For one thing, I learned I didn't have to do the whole class. And, I learned to take earplugs with me. I'm not sure why fitness instructors think the class has to be pumped up like a rock concert... I really would like to still be able to hear when I'm 70... Anyway, earplugs and all, I went, I stepped, and I completely enjoyed it. I almost considered staying the whole hour, but had a moment of sanity.

Did Jen take off for Hawaii? I hope she gives us a full report!



Jay

Nope! I'm still here. I go in about a week and and half. It's getting closer!
I'll let you all know. I'll try to bring back some warmth.

It is sooooo cold here. I went out in the back to fill my bird feeders and throw some cracked corn out for the ducks. I couldn't have been out more than 15 minutes, and my hands were freezing, almost hurting when I came back in. Yes I had gloves, scarf, and coat on. Brrrrrrrrrrr. The snow is so hard, I could walk on top of most of it; and part of it is compacted into ice.

We see red tailed hawks fairly often here. Such beautiful birds! Occasionally they use my bird feeding station in the back for their hunting. I was told that statistically, they are only successful 1 in 4 times. I know they have to eat too, and I do have some trees back there to hide in for the hunted. Usually when they are around, there is nothing else out there. The hawks even sit on the top post of the bird feeders. I've already been out in the yard, and they come swooping, speeding by, chasing something. We keep a pair of binoculars by the back window to watch any of the birds even closer. We saw an owl out back too!

So we had a little party at my MIL's yesterday; she is turning 76 years old! She is not in the best of health. Everyone brought something. I took a very nice salad with lots of extra vegies to share. I had a small piece of lasagna too, but mostly salad.

Today though, I was starving, had more salad for lunch. Unfortunately for me, 4th grade won a pizza party and had extra. I had only 1 piece of plain cheese pizza. I shrugged off the cookies!

My sub for my vacation came in today to ask questions and take notes. It is tough explaining everything. Like anything, there is the rule of thumb, and then there are so many deviations depending on the circumstance. I was told it takes a good three years to know this job. I do think I know it pretty good, and then they'll change something. Always learning!

Trying to make the right choices in food today, but for some reason that munchie monster keeps raising his/her ugly head! I did lose 4 pounds so far, I'll see if I've kept it off tomorrow. Let's hope so.

Well, I've got my suntan lotion ready!!! Have a good night!

Lori - I bet you WERE in one of the many, many cars going the other direction. We commented on how many cars and how few snowmobiles we saw. Most years every other car has a trailer on it. We didn't see that many cars with skis either. Must be folk are renting equipment once they get up north. Glad you got in so much skiing - it is EXCELLENT exercise! Hope it wasn't too cold!

Freda - I picked up some new sauces (a red curry sauce I hadn't tried before), and a different Basmati brown rice. Well, and if I'm REALLY honest a couple new red wines too I love their Greek yogurt to use as a starter for mine - it makes such a difference!

Jay - I'm with you on the ear plugs - I think they want you to FEEL the music as much as you hear it! Step class sounds fun!

Jen - good job on the pizza and cookies. It is those little choices that add up to big results! Hope the weigh-in went well!

Good day here for me - we did a road trip to look at different Student Management Systems. Everyone wanted fast food, and we ended up at BK. Thankfully, they have Morningstar Farms veggie burgers It was way too cold for a salad (about 5 F at noon - better than the -17 it was earlier though).

Hope you all had a great day! I'm pleased to report that my weight was only up .5 lbs this morning and some of that may be from all the sodium in the restaurant food. In any case - I'm pleased. I don't need to change my ticker

Hi there . . .

Still sunny and cold, but the temperature is a little higher than yesterday and the long term forecast is calling for mlore snow, naturally.

Thought you might enjoy this little blurb that landed in my e:mail this morning -- helps to reinforce the fact that this journey we are on will have to be for a lifetime . . .

Someone once said that the best way to deal with a temptation is to yield to it! Staying on a diet forever is extremely hard, so the first step is to recognize that at some point you will give into temptation. It's natural, normal, and even inevitable. You can manage your splurges if you accept that reality and don't feel guilty about it.

To maintain a healthy eating plan with occasional indulgences, try practicing the 3-to-1 rule: Each time you have a food splurge, follow it with 3 equal units of time in which you eat a more sensible, predictable diet. The time period in question can vary. It could be a single meal, a day, even a weekend. For example, if you eat voraciously for a day, eat conservatively for the following three days. Remember, good control is a game of averages, not a game of perfection!

Hope everybody is having a great day . . .

Meowee-I like that blurb. I agree whole heartedly. Since I want to eat healthy for life, doesn't mean that I won't ever eat the foods I really love that aren't the best for me. (Hey, a lot of foods I love, are good for me!) I have a ban on a few foods I will not bring into the house; chips and ice cream. If I am at another person's house or a restaurant, I will have a portion, and none to take home. So far, it is working for me, and I have resisted them at the grocery store! I sort of made this a new year's resolution, so I don't even have to think about it. No "should I or shouldn't I." I used to buy chips for picnics, parties, and holidays. Too many! Not this year!

Today the weigh in was up a little; not much, but up nontheless. I know it was the weekend. I am going to weigh in on Friday's for my official day. It'll give me the week to balance it out. I do very well during the week because I plan my meals. The weekends are more spontaneous meals, and sometimes later in the day. During the week we are usually having dinner by 5:00p,
6:00p at the latest, and usually I don't eat afterward. I try not to eat after 7:30p. I'm not as upset with myself like the last time. I realize this is going to take a while; and I am going to do it! We are going to do it!!

More snow forecast for us here! Gosh 4 to 6 inches! Arghhhhhhh! My boss tried to jinx it. All day he kept saying how much work he will get done if we are closed tomorrow. I hope we have school!

I am so anxious for the weather to get nicer, warmer, here. I need to get outside!

Everyone have a nice night!

Hi Everyone,

Linda and Jen, i so totally agree. None of us are perfect and we're going to make bad decisions occasionally. We just have to stop right there and start making good ones. Don't let one bad decision/day destroy all your good work.

Laurie, the red curry sauce sounds good. I'll have to look it up next time i go there. You are another one that makes your own yogurt, aren't you? I'm thinking about buying a yogurt maker. I eat a LOT of yogurt and just makes sense. Any brand you, or any of you, recomend?

Got to work tomorrow, so everyone have a good day,

Freda

I agree wholeheartedly with the splurge advice. One of the reasons I counted calories - no guilt - no "off plan" foods - just accountability. If I splurge here, gotta cut back there - very simple really!

So why did it take me 50 years to learn this lesson

I had a Salton yogurt maker with the individual cups - a royal pain. It is now gone. After doing quite a bit of research (yes, some of you know my weakness in that area), I bought a YoGourmet 2 qt. yogurt maker. It was a bit more expensive than some, but had great reviews and makes really, really good yogurt.

I use either half percent milk or non-fat powder (and add additional powder to boost the protein and thickness). I use Greek yogurt starter and it makes a delicious, THICK, tangy yogurt - I can actually eat it plain - but usually sweeten it with a bit of stevia or agave (TJs has both).

Gotta fly - church visioning event tonight (had to lead the process) put me behind schedule. Good stuff, but I still have work to do before bedtime.

Catch up tomorrow.

Hope you all have a GREAT - POP day!

A balmy plus 1 this morning as I was hauling the "waste" to the road and there is a little hazy sunshine BUT by this evening we are supposed to have another 8 to 10 inches of snow and overnight the temps are going up and that snow is going to change to freezing rain. Oh joy, guess it must be Winter or something.

Stay OP gang and stay warm and cozy, too.

Home again here! At least 6 inches of snow and it is still falling. I am not going to know where to start with the snowblower! The dogs are having a hard time maneuvering in it too.

Ate a big breakfast. I would say breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. Going to go small for lunch, which I usually do. Got to keep reminding myself to drink the water.

I am still pretty much caught up with things around the house! At one time I was thinking of getting a cleaning service in here every couple weeks; it seemed I was using my weekends to do it all and had not much time for other things. Now I have it balanced out a little better now. Today I will need to eventually get out there and figure out where to put all the snow, and then there is a little ironing. I will get my exercise too!

Hope everyone is staying warm! Have a great day.

Hey! The trainer session went well yesterday. He showed me some "dynamic stretches," which are different from the static stretches almost everyone knows. One is supposed to do the dynamic stretches before a workout.

Tomorrow is another step class, this time with a different instructor. I think I'll do it again! It's an hour earlier, but hey. Why not.

I am SO SORRY that you poor folks are getting whacked with snow YET AGAIN! We're going to get rain for the next two days... and it will get cooler... But then I'm hoping it will blow on out for the Super Bowl! Raymond James Stadium is not covered...

(Of course, I am going to be cozy in my house with my nice TV and the snacks of my choosing. )

Splurges. Well, it has to be doggone good food for me to splurge. That's one of my rules these days. Why on earth would I eat anything at McDonalds, just as an example??? I want the best--like at Bonefish Grill, for example. Does anyone else know that chain? It started in St. Petersburg.

Jay