Hi, I'm a 54 year old married mom of "lotsakids" living in rural (and at the moment very cold) W. Michigan. I've been off and on the chicks website (more off than on) since 2010. In June I was dx'd with diabetes, gout, high blood pressure and decided I'd better take my health more seriously. So I started eating a low carb/ wheat free/ and higher fat diet. This the first January I didn't start out behind! I started in June at 272 and this morning weighed in at 199.
I do Leslie Sansone workouts some days and walk on the treadmill on others. My goal is to walk 6 days a week. I take Sunday off to rest.
My kids (11 of them) range in age from 34 years old to 13 and 4 of them are still being homeschooled by me.
Nice to meet you!
Hi Lots,
Welcome! CONGRATULATIONS on getting into the 100's.
Lynn- I cannot use Melatonin. It gives me severe head aches. I have to be very careful because there are other products that contain it and they also do it.
Hi Mary,
I will be on the watch for any headaches. Thank you for the information.
mom of lotsofkids, wow...you're a busy gal! Do you have a shorter name we can call you?
Lynn...I've never heard of melatonin causing headaches, I googled it and you can if you overdose on it. Dr. Oz recommends 1mg? Shucks, now I can't remember if it was mg or what. I already clicked off the site, you'll have to check it out.
It was 21* here this morning ~ cold for Texas. I got a call at about 6:30 am ~ DGS Corbin ~ the school bus had driven right past him. He ran as fast as he could to another spot, but it missed him again. Times like this is when I am glad to not be working, so I can help out and get him to school. He said his lungs hurt from breathing in that very cold air. He is a such a sweet heart, so I don’t mind. Now that he is older, I don’t get to see him as much, so I treasure any time I can get a chance to spend time with him.
Had a follow up appointment with the sleep people today. The readings from my C-pap machine were good, so I don’t have to go back again until next year.
While I was out, I got some embroidery floss for Maddie so I can be ready if she decides she wants to create another project.
Daily routine is returning to normal now that Maddie has gone back to school. I had hoped to get back to my exercise, but it hasn’t worked out so far today. But the day is not over yet, so it still could happen. (Didn’t ~ does an indoor Texas snowball fight count? LOL)
Lynn ~ I take the melatonin too ~ it seems to have helped. I do have a prescription for a sleeping pill (a mild one), but I try not to use it very often, and I rarely do. I don’t want to get to a point of having to rely on them to sleep and then to have taken them so much that they no longer help. Hoping for you that your sleep gets straightened around. Looks like your eating is getting back on track ~ way to go. Glad that you are here with us more often again. Miss you when you are away.
Welcome LK Donna (lotsakids) ~ you have done a great job so far ~ reaching onderland ~ congratulations. Glad you’ve joined us ~ it is such a nice group of ladies.
Welcome to you too Sparkle ~ jump in and join us. Tell us a little about you.
Mary ~ I’m with you about not setting the alarm clock. I figure my body will wake up when it has had enough rest. Most of the time that works out, but sometimes I have nights when the sleep doesn’t go the way I would like it too. I’m here Mary. Just struggling with family “stuff” and am sometimes not in a very pleasant mood and don’t want to expose you all to my very negative attitude, so I stay away until I am able to find other things to write about. Glad for you that your weight is dropping again. How is Joe doing?
Rosey ~ I saved your pizza recipes also. Looking forward to trying them. I read your updated bio and I loved how you said ~ “even tho im alittle bit broken I'm enough“. That was lovely. You have been through a lot, but you always seem to keep smiling and have such a wonderful attitude. You are an inspiration.
Bobbi ~ are you surviving those frigid temperatures? Thank you for the list of snacks. Do you have any projects you are working on. Love hearing about them.
Robin ~ congratulations on winning the “battle” last night. One of my friends was reading a book called Wheat Belly ~ that explained about the wheat. It is hard to know what is right sometimes. They (who ever they are) keep changing their minds about what is ok to eat and what is bad for you. I’ve heard different things about coffee, eggs, what is the right amount of water to drink etc. And probably it is not a “one size fits all” kind of thing, what works for one, might not necessarily work or be good for someone else.
Cajun ~ you’ll get back on track. Hang in there. I know it is discouraging undoing your hard work, but you can do it. Been there ~ done that ~ you’re not alone.
Saraphin/Shell ~ how are you doing?
Donna ~ I can identify with that wish (a pound a day). It feels like after all of my “suffering” (LOL) that it ought to come off a little more quickly than it does. How is Samson? Keeping you warm? How is GM doing? Have you been back for anymore acupuncture treatments or are you still having some relief from the treatment you have already had?
K3 ~ are you feeling better? Enjoying your shows? Still having cold weather by you ~ when will warmer weather come your way?
Deelou ~ How are you doing ~ surviving that cold weather? How did your fruit fare?
K31 ~ Is it warming up any by you? Did you get much snow? How are your three Amigos (Tim, Sissy and Ginger)?
Guess I will get this finished, before I lose it or something. (Oops ~ that didn't sound right ~ I meant, before I lose my post ~ LOL). Hope you all are having a nice evening. Going to do some gorking and think about what I want to tackle tomorrow. Maybe trying to locate some of my fabric remnants so as to be ready for Maddie’s next project she dreams up.
Take care
Pictures are of: Maddie working on her embroidery project ~ she was so sweet, humming and singing softly while she worked. Next picture is Maddie with her finished project.
Hi everyone..cute pictures of maddie,she looks so proud of her project. I taught my grkids stuff like that too. my dd called and she is having the same surg that my dh just had by the same dr. weird that we all have had or have back and neck issues.must be genetic hope your evenings peaceful. rosey
breakfast
coffee
apple muffin
lunch
1/2 pot pie
mandarin orange
snack
coffee mocha
dinner
3 bean salad ( canned from wallmart and it as good as homemade)
added tomatoes,cukes,avacados,black olives 1 T raspberry dressing
baked chiz breast
I'm going to drive today. The roads looked pretty good last night when my SIL drove me home so Nellie Belle (my car) and I are a team again this morning.
Lots - that's fantastic! Welcome back on. I'm new just starting this journey.
Glynne - aren't grandkids great! They give so much to our lives. And it's nice for him to know your there when the bus bypasses him.
Akrosey - it is amazing how much genetics play into our lives.
Glynne...I was tempted to copy/paste your post as my own, you've very nicely covered everyone. Very thoughtful! The pictures of maddie are cute, hope you print out hard copies of all the pictures you take. This generation keep pictures on phones or computers and years from now nobody will have picture albums.
You asked what my project is now? A couple years ago I found two nylon mesh kitchen dish cloths for scrubbing when hand washing dishes. My two are worn out and I couldn't find them anywhere in town. After going on the internet looking for them with no success I gave up. I was thinking of looking at JoAnn's fabric for some mesh to make my own. Then I remembered a large blue mesh bag my DH had for storing his duck decoys. Bingo! Out went the decoys and in comes my scissors. I've made 12 nice size mesh dish cloths. I need to hold the edges over a candle to seal them yet today. They work better than the old ones because of heavier material plus they don't ruin teflon pans. I normally use my old cast iron pan for most things but delicate foods stick in it so I need the teflon.
No YMCA today, I've been busy posting items on ebay. I put my Dr-Ho's massage therapy kit on yesterday. ( I can see a joke coming from Donna and K3, no you don't use it down there) It gives electrical currents thru the gelled pads. Any of you use it? Wonderful! But I haven't used it for a couple of years. It retails for $150.00 and I'm hoping to get $60 out of it. I also put a Jobar body magnet kit up for sale. I never did use that, impulsive buying disorder in me. Today I'm putting up my cholesteral testing kit, never use it anymore since insurance pays for my yearly appointment. No sense keeping stuff around you don't use anymore.
Ta Ta everyone.
Quote:
, Tuesday's Menu
Calories 914
Fiber 30 grams
Breakfast: Fiber One with SF applesauce, Almond Milk, Chia & Flax seeds
Lynn...I've never heard of melatonin causing headaches, I googled it and you can if you overdose on it. Dr. Oz recommends 1mg? Shucks, now I can't remember if it was mg or what. I already clicked off the site, you'll have to check it out.
Hi Bobbi,
No headache, but I got VERY jumpy. Like restless leg jumpy. My capsule = 3 g.
Quote:
Originally Posted by akrosey49
Hi everyone. Just a quiet "gorking" kinda day rosey
Hi Rosey,
Must be VERY cold by you. Down to 7 here in PA.
Quote:
Originally Posted by glynne
Lynn ~ I take the melatonin too ~ it seems to have helped. I do have a prescription for a sleeping pill (a mild one), but I try not to use it very often, and I rarely do. I don’t want to get to a point of having to rely on them to sleep and then to have taken them so much that they no longer help. Hoping for you that your sleep gets straightened around. Looks like your eating is getting back on track ~ way to go. Glad that you are here with us more often again. Miss you when you are away.
Hi Gayle,
The Melatonin did NOT work for me last night. I also tried a glass of red wine – gave me acid reflux.
I LOVE the photos of Maddie. Too cute!!
I am also happy to be back. Of course, when I am away, it is because I am NOT doing well – just the time I most need to be here.
Quote:
Originally Posted by RobinVM
I'm going to drive today. The roads looked pretty good last night when my SIL drove me home so Nellie Belle (my car) and I are a team again this morning.
Hi Robin,
We always named our cars. My last one – Petey – was a purple PT cruiser. I left a little purple teddy bear with him when I sold him. Although I LOVE my Prius (50 mpg), I never named it.
Do others name your cars?
Progress on the sleeping pills – tried the Melatonin, did not work – made my body jumpy – tried a glass of red wine – did not work – gave me acid reflux. At 3:30 am, I gave in a took sleeping pills.
Will try again tonight – just accept that I will not get any sleep. Planning some night time projects.
Eating – plans for today – the butternut squash/leek soup - turned out REALLY well. A clementine & some grapes. Some broccoli with my WW pasta for dinner.
Ingredients
2 garlic cloves 2 small or 1 medium leek, about 5 ounces, rinsed well and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 pounds butternut squash
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
½ cup dry white wine
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon fresh lemon juice
½ cup heavy cream (optional – I used half & half)
Instructions: Insert the metal blade in food processor. With the machine running, drop the garlic through the feed tube and process to finely chop. Scrape the sides of the work bowl. Add the leeks and pulse to chop, about 10 pulses.
Place 6-quart stockpot over medium heat and add the olive oil. When the olive oil is hot, stir in the chopped leeks and garlic. Sweat the vegetables over medium low heat so that they become soft. Stir occasionally so that they do not pick up any color.
While the leeks are cooking, replace the chopping blade with the slicing disc assembly. Peel and seed the squash; cut to fit the feed tube. Slice the squash.
Add the sliced squash into the stockpot with the leeks and garlic; stir well.
Add the salt and pepper. Cook for an additional 5 minutes.
Add the wine to the pot. Bring to a simmer and let the wine reduce by half.
Add the chicken broth and nutmeg. Bring soup to a low boil. Reduce heat and let simmer until squash is very soft and is easily pierced with a knife, about 20 minutes.
Strain the solids from the cooking liquid, reserving the cooking liquid.
Transfer half of the cooking liquid to a clean pot and reserve.
Insert the metal blade. In two batches, add the solids to the food processor and process to purée, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape the work bowl to insure the mixture is homogenous.
Return the puréed solids to the cooking liquid and stir to incorporate. Stir in reserved cooking liquid to obtain desired consistency. Taste and adjust seasoning. If using the cream, stir in last and bring to a simmer.
Hi all you gals: I turn 50 in March so I'm looking toward these posts a bit more seriously lol. I have no children by choice and a wonderful husband of 31 years (also by choice hahah) We live in Western Canada amid vineyards and orchards. I am on Ideal Protein right now to get back to my commercial modelling weight. I let it creep up while I was working on some major health issues.
Just FYI we also name our vehicles - our Dodge Ram 2500 extended cab is called Thor and our Toyota Camry LE is called Ellie (what else?). Before the truck we used to have a Suburban we called Big Red and a Dodge Neon we called Bitsie.
Maybe it's our lack of children & pets that cause us to relate more to our vehicles
We like to travel a lot so if there are others out there or a thread that I can follow for inspirational ideas on keeping to our food programs while 'on the road' that would be great!
Liana
Just a question: What is 'gorking?'
Last edited by canadjineh; 01-08-2014 at 10:21 AM.
I'll try this again. Yesterday's post disappeared before I could send. Grrrr. Last night I played pokeno. My 82 year old mom played too. It's getting harder for her to play because they play fast and she's not so fast these days. I'm watching my card and hers too. It's still cold out today but it's opposed to warm up with rain Friday. Diet is going ok so far. I didn't jog last night after work because I needed to leave for pokeno. Today I plan to after work.
I can't do personals. So I to all and welcome newcomers!!!
Hi all you gals: I turn 50 in March so I'm looking toward these posts a bit more seriously lol. I have no children by choice and a wonderful husband of 31 years (also by choice hahah) We live in Western Canada amid vineyards and orchards. I am on Ideal Protein right now to get back to my commercial modelling weight. I let it creep up while I was working on some major health issues.
Just FYI we also name our vehicles - our Dodge Ram 2500 extended cab is called Thor and our Toyota Camry LE is called Ellie (what else?). Before the truck we used to have a Suburban we called Big Red and a Dodge Neon we called Bitsie.
Maybe it's our lack of children & pets that cause us to relate more to our vehicles
We like to travel a lot so if there are others out there or a thread that I can follow for inspirational ideas on keeping to our food programs while 'on the road' that would be great!
Liana
Just a question: What is 'gorking?'
Hi Canada,
I think that "gorking" is relaxing. First auto I remember being named was my parents' Buick - Betsy.
Have you ever read any mysteries by Louise Penny? All are set in a mythical Canadian town - Three Pines. I LOVE these books. Just re-read them. NOTE: best to read them in order - the characters and their relationships evolve.
Hi everyone! I went to the gym this morning! It's been quite a while but I felt much stronger than last time. I walked 20 min but slower than usual...stayed with dh most of the time. I could have walked faster but didn't want to get so tired as last time. Did the hand bike 6 mn. Then I rode a bike for about 20 min. Dh wanted to leave then. He is weaker since the bleeding problem. Also he passed some more blood this morning, not nearly so much and we suspect it is just the residual but I reported it to the gastro doc. I have called them twice and still have not heard back. He told me to call after the first of the year for the biopsy report and to schedule an appt, but I have also reported these bleeding episodes and still no word. If I don't hear from him soon, I'm calling our regular doctor. My gut feeling is that this bleeding is r/t the colonoscopy and the snipping or at least stirring up of things and that it will just heal up but I still think he should be seen.
Also haven't heard anything on my C-T scan but will give them a few days (different doc). I'm not too concerned as I think the pain is a little less since I've added back more fiber. Scared to add too much though until I know for sure he's right in his dx.
Ok, enough of health concerns. I'm sorry for all you who are having to endure such cold weather. It's not bad here...I just wore a light jacket to the gym and didn't even wear it on the way home.
Liana - Welcome! Dh & I love to travel too. We used to be RVers but we decided to travel otherways now. Recently though with health concerns we have done less. This year it has only been to the OR coast. We live in So WA. I would enjoy hearing about your travels. Also modeling sounds very interesting! My sil used to model when he was younger. He's a hairy guy and had to get his chest and back waxed for it...ouch! I bet he's glad not to have to do that anymore!
Bobbi/Lynn/glynne - I don't know what dosage of Melatonin I took but it was whatever it said on the bottle/package. I didn't overdose from that. But the headaches were severe and I called to ask the company and they said yes some people have it happen. I don't remember the restlessness you describe though. Everyone is different. I wish I could take it as I'd try it again if I could however I don't remember it helping me sleep either. I just took it a few times.
Lotsakids - Welcome! I had four kids and felt like that a lot of times but 11! I can't even imagine! Home schooling too...wow, you must be very busy! In my area four was/is? a big family but it happened that at the time in our neighborhood there were 4 families with 4 kids. I am now 70 and think about how much I did and although I don't regret any of them, I am glad it is over as I couldn't do it now. Congrats on entering Onederland! I have been thinking about getting those Leslie Sansone walking DVDS for so long. I think I'd like them but not sure I'd stick to doing them here at home. I walk a little bit over a mile at the gym and ride a stationery bike afterwards and used to use the other weight machines but am taking it easier right now and skipping those. Hope to get back to them though.
Evening all.....please take back this chill. It was 27 last night. Supposed to be 60+ today and never saw that or the sun. I am still battling the orchard for my DD Christmas mimi honey bells which never arrived. Getting contradicting emails and when I call I can't understand the Spanish accent. So 6 emails later. Last one I accused them of attempting to scam me. Thank goodness it was the basket that was to go to DD not the other orders. Oh and the guy yesterday told me they haven't shipped because it's been raining in Florida.....hello I live in Fl!
Lynn...try this...get yourself comfortable in your regular sleeping position. Now in the dark look at sometime and focus. Without blinking take 5 cleansing breathes...in thru your nose and out your mouth. Blowing off all of your tension and all your anxieties. Then closes your eyes...Now picture a long winding stair case and start with the first step as 100 picture yourself stepping down the stairs....one at a time counting
If you are still awake, Close you eyes and pick a year when you were say in grammar school and name all the kids in your class, or teachers, or neighbors, or count all the songs you know. ....that one goes on forever.
I often used this as a form of relaxation therapy with my guys when I worked in the VA. It is kinda a start to self hypnosis. I used the counting kids a few months ago when I had to have a closed MRI and in over an hour I never moved. Think the tech thought I had died in there.
Bobbi....I'm truly sorry but I thought those pictures were DH's boxers. Made me laugh!
Gorking is an old term used in ERs for patients that come in who are not quite there but really relaxed about. Now it means lazing about knowing there are things to do but OWH.
Played bridge.....need to check the scores...hugs all k3
rosey 
hope your evenings peaceful. rosey 
I went to the gym this morning! It's been quite a while but I felt much stronger than last time. I walked 20 min but slower than usual...stayed with dh most of the time. I could have walked faster but didn't want to get so tired as last time. Did the hand bike 6 mn. Then I rode a bike for about 20 min. Dh wanted to leave then. He is weaker since the bleeding problem. Also he passed some more blood this morning, not nearly so much and we suspect it is just the residual but I reported it to the gastro doc. I have called them twice and still have not heard back. He told me to call after the first of the year for the biopsy report and to schedule an appt, but I have also reported these bleeding episodes and still no word. If I don't hear from him soon, I'm calling our regular doctor. My gut feeling is that this bleeding is r/t the colonoscopy and the snipping or at least stirring up of things and that it will just heal up but I still think he should be seen.
