[Renee3]

Good morning ladies! The leaves are changing colors and they are beautiful! I am cutting tree branches today, so will get plenty of exercise. Have a great day!

Yesterday:
B - oatmeal with blueberries
S - banana
L - chicken salad sandwich
S - grapes
D - shrimp and broccoli

[miniDoodles]

Fall isss here this week in Michigan using a extra blanket @ night & jackets in the day. Dh picked the end of our veggies

At least the bugs r sleeping, but the animals from the woods will b chewing up my shrubs. Renee, what do U do to stop them on your farm

Have a great Hump day girls!

[Renee3]

Dee, we have lots of deer...we don't allow hunting. I use 3 motion activated water sprinklers called Water Scarecrows to keep the deer out. They work great. I turn them on at night and off in the morning. Most of the shrubs around the house are deer proof. I love seeing the deer and actually feed them. They wait for me to feed them after I turn the horses out in the morning. I walk up to a field with a bucket of corn and call them. Usually about 8 come running. Sometimes more. I have to careful now because the bucks are in rut, so I carry a stick. I love living in the country!

[miniDoodles]

Renee, Our problem is the rabbits more than the deer. My evergreen shrubs r against our vinyl house siding & even when we wrap them in burlap those critters go under & chew them

What shrubs r deer proof Thanks!

[Renee3]

Dee, I should have said deer resistant instead of deer proof. They will eat anything if they are starving. Anyway, I have butterfly bushes, peonies and juniper shrubs around the house. I also plant marigold, zinnias and petunias which they don't seem to bother.
Crispy here this morning. We are expecting a killing frost this weekend with some wet snowflakes Guess I'll need to move my potted plants to the cellar.

Yesterday:
B - oatmeal with blueberries
S - banana
L - roast beef sandwich
S - granola bar
D - pork and sauerkraut

[TERAPET]

Hi Ladies-I am feeling much better today which meant more appetite! How am I ever going to lose weight???! Well, I will just keep trying.

Renee-that makes sense on the pumpkin puree. No problem for me-I love all the winter squash. I found your deer stories interesting too. We have deer in the city here (ATL) though pretty rare where I am. They are closer to the river and the mountains but I have seen them-even one in our backyard a few months ago.

Hi Dee-Stay warm!

[Renee3]

Good morning from a windy and chilly Pennsylvania. Does anyone have any good Fall recipes using a slow cooker? I use mine all the time and need some new recipes.

Yesterday:
B - oatmeal with blueberries
S - banana
L - roast beef sandwich
S - graham crackers
D - spanish rice

[miniDoodles]

Geez, the weather person said that Michigan's weather was -10* below normal this week & possibly the rest of the month I'll b drinking more hot tomato juice w chili powder or sprinkled w toppings for my evening snack to keep me warm & full. Maybe I'll try heating up my apple-carrot smoothie instead of drinking it cold...

In my daily email from MyFitnessPal this week, on 2 days there r slow-cooker recipes under 380 calories per serving. I hope that gives U something different to try. I'm sure U can tweak those recipes calories lower

Happy weekend everyone

[Renee3]

No change for me this week.
Dee, I took a peak at the site and there are some good recipes. Thanks!
You probably are colder and get more snow than we do. Do you get lake effect snow from Lake Michigan? I'm not a fan of winter......
Have a great weekend everyone!

Yesterday:
B - oatmeal with blueberries
S - banana
L - ham sandwich
S - granola bar
D - sushi

[Darkblue]

Say it isn't so with the pumpkin = squash!

Fall break here, not getting much done outside but trying to catch up with the housework. Glad it's finally getting cooler. I have at least turned off the AC.

Weigh-in is tomorrow. Suspect I haven't lost anything, just maintained, but that is better than regaining anything!

[Renee3]

Brrrrr.....growing season is finished here! 27 degrees now and colder for tonight!

Yesterday:
B - oatmeal with blueberries
S - banana
L - ham sandwich
S - grapes
D - shrimp with veggies

[miniDoodles]

Next week we go back to our normal temps w 3 days in the 60's

All weekend it's been in the 40's Time to start the stews, soups & get out my slow-cooker again too I just got a new 6 qt. electric pressure cooker by Cuisinart for my 'Christmas gift', early from my Dh that I'll b using soon

My Dh put some plastic film on a few windows yesterday that we'll replace next summer when they go on sale. Our roof needs replaced next year also unless a storm hits it by summertime & the home insurance pays for part of the shingles? He said he's also putting more insulation in the attic next week, because our outdated outdoor, wood furnace died recently so we're trying to keep the propane bill from going high this winter. It's "always something" taking our $$ so we can't save any spare $$ like living payday to payday because of Dh's medical bills since his cancer happened. Dh needs a new boots for work $140, a new truck battery & 4 tires & our "money tree died" & we don't have a extra $1,200 right now so I see Visa will b getting a visit from us soon I truly hope that nobody else here is having $$ problems also. Blessings to your family if U are & pLease don't stress eat. Try adding more protein to each of your meals & snacks or eat more natural foods if U feel a craving or upset; because sugar & fried or salty foods r going to make U feel worse later w your health & body self-esteem.

I can see why ppl start stress eating w the cost of living rising & personal problems; its easy to get lost in a carton of ice cream to forget for a moment about problems. Years ago when I was a shift manager @ Burger King & also @ the Big Boy restaurant they gave employees free meals & it is sooo easy to eat Stupidly when U can enjoy free French fries, milk shakes, pie, etc.

Take care everyone

[TERAPET]

I wish I had something good to say about eating and exercising today but it is just not one of those days. I gave into my craving for homemade pumpkin bread and had quite a bit of it for breakfast. Then I guess the sugar monster was activated big time and I had more unnecessary carbs at lunch and just too much food at dinner. Phooey on my bad decisions today. Well, tomorrow is another day. I am so happy to be over my awful cold and I think I can get back to the Y tomorrow. I made homemade chicken soup today to take for lunches this week. I am usually good about my food choices for breakfast and lunch during the work week but evenings are almost always a problem. Part of it is the stress thing that Dee mentioned and part of it is just my love for yummy things to consume. I need to practice saying no to the stuff I know is not helpful to meeting my weight loss goals.

Renee- I wish I could help you with the slow cooker recipes but the only thing I make is beef stew. I use my dutch oven more than anything else in my kitchen and generally the same recipes over and over.

Dee-Sorry to hear about the financial woes. I understand how that could lead to stress eating. I like your protein and natural food suggestions. Much better choices than ice cream and french fries!

We are enjoying gorgeous fall weather down here. I hope some of it finds it way up north to those of you in the cold. I lived in Michigan years ago and we had lovely fall weather that year. I was upset about all the leaves I had to rake though! I moved there from Nebraska and our home there had very little in the way of deciduous trees. Michigan was good practice for living in Atlanta though. My home now has lots and lots and lots of trees.

[Renee3]

I think there is something about the Fall weather that make you want to eat more...I feel like a bear putting on more weight so they can make it thru the Winter hibernation. Or maybe because there is less daylight.....whatever it is I know I crave more carbs.

B - oatmeal with blueberries
S - banana
L - potluck at church
S - granola bar
D - scotch mince with mashed potatoes

[miniDoodles]

Winter carbs a wonderful reason to indulge in potatoes & pasta dishes weekly Yesterday we were traveling & we stopped @ Subway, I was pleasantly surprised to see that they have whole wheat flatbread now I had a delish breakfast sandwich loaded w veggies & skipped the dressing, it's not needed w all those yummy flavors.

B sure to get into a lifestyle habit to measure Up to 2 Serving sizes per each meal of potatoes or pasta, carb dishes & U should b fine. If my scale shows I've gained 2 pounds, then I look at my food log for the 3 days prior & then I adjust my menu until I'm back at my good weight.

I watched the news & saw our temps r back to normal daily this week in the middle 60's

Terra, Your soup menu is a wonderful plan to get back on track. I gotcha about your sugar yesterday....just remember that when we eat UP to 2 Serving sizes @ every meal, we won't b upset w our-self later I would Luv to live in the south. I was born in Michigan, my dad moved our family up here from Charleston the year I was born & we drove back 'down home to Charleston' every 3 months to visit relatives. I claim the South as my 'home sweet home' from my family heritage. Last night for my snack I had 1 slice of cheesecake

Renee, I read my pumpkin cans & each of them said 100% pumpkin puree, also on the back Ingredients label. Now I'm curious about your squash comment & I will b reading the other pumpkin can labels @ the stores. I know that Only certain pumpkins r grown to b used for cooking-baking & I once grew one variety & it was a small pumpkin size & it made yummy desserts