Day 16
 

WI: 176.6

Still feeling like crap this morning, but moving along. My stomach is still a little upset and my throat feels constricted, so maybe it is a touch of a cold or something like that. Oh well. It's my birthday weekend, and I'm not letting that stop me...mwah!!:p

Breakfast: 1/2 c cinnamon cheerios plus 1/2 c kashi go lean (fiber twig) cereal, skim milk, whole grain english muffin, all-natural pb, all-natural fruit spread (361)
Snack: FiberOne bar (140), Gum (5)
Lunch: Lean pockets meatball & mozzarella (480)
Snacks: FiberOne bar (140), cheese stick (80), Laughing cow wedge/crackers (190)
Dinner: Birthday dinner! Chicken alfredo, 2 butterscotch brownie bites, 1 brownie, 2 slices of italian bread, orange fluff dessert, 1 piece of cheese, 1 cracker, 2 coors lights

Day 17
 

WI: 177.2

Holy moly, what an eating weekend. Today is my birthday and I enjoyed eating all day!! I have no clue what it is going to do to my weight or my WI for this coming Friday, but I'm ok with it. I still have a goal to lose weight...I just really enjoyed my birthday weekend (like how I make it into a 2 day thing?! ;))

Breakfast: Pecan pancakes with sugar-free syrup, 1/2 turkey sausage patty
Lunch: None
Snack: Huge (I mean huge) piece of strawberry filled cake
Dinner: 6 pieces jumbo fried shrimp, small side of mashed potatoes, 7 corn fritters, cocktail sauce for shrimp

I am majorly, majorly stuffed. I brought back two smaller pieces of cake from my parents' house, and I don't even know if I am going to eat them. It's just one of those mind-things where if I would have walked away without any then I would have been thinking about it all night. :)

Day 18
 

WI: 179.2 Yowsa!! I believe it, though. I pigged out this weekend and I haven't (ahem) gone to the bathroom in a couple days (which is very unusual for me), so let's see how much of this I can get off by my WI on Friday, LOL!! :)

Breakfast:1/2 c cinnamon cheerios plus 1/2 c kashi go lean (fiber twig) cereal, skim milk, whole grain english muffin, all-natural pb, all-natural fruit spread (361)
Snack: Yogurt w/kashi cereal (97), Gum (5)
Lunch: Lean Cuisine Butternut Squash Ravioli & baked cheetos (400)
Snack: FiberOne bar (140), Cheese stick (60)
Dinner: Chicken w/2 laughing cow wedges, broccoli, sugar-free jello (448)

Exercise: 25 minute walk around campus
Calories: 1511

I was looking at BMI calculators and it appears that my "weight" in the normal category is actually 168, not 165 -- LOL! So, I guess I'm going to take that and run with it.

A bunch of people we know are having babies, and I'm telling you, my biological clock is starting to tick. We agreed that we would wait until August to start trying, but I am getting anxious...it's like senioritis in high school...you see the light at the end of the tunnel before graduation and you just want it to be here already! Part of me wants to start trying now, but another part of me wants to get to my goal of 165. But, others who I've told about this tell me to quit planning so much and just start trying. I get confused sometimes and don't know what I really want to do. Is it worth it to not start trying until I get down to 165 so I can say I reached my personal goal? Or should we start trying because we don't even know how long it will take for me to get pregnant? Anything could happen. I don't know...just having a contemplative day.

I think I am going to mess around with calories in the 1500-1599 range and see what happens. I noticed that I've been bouncing around between 179.6 and 176.6 since April 21st. Time to move on.

I LOL'd @ your post about the cake!:lol: I'm glad you got to enjoy your weekend!:D That's what this is all about to me. Enjoying life and maintaining a healthy balance!;) You seem to have to all together. You actually did pretty good to only gain 2 lbs of water weight...especially with sugar and salty fried foods...I've gained as much as 5 lbs overnight!:eek:

I just recently had one of those, "if you don't eat this...you'll be thinking about it all night" episodes, so I know what you mean about the cake. So much better to just have a piece!:dizzy:

Take care.:)

I don't think it's 2 pounds of water weight, but I thank you for thinking that positively, Joyful! :) If it is, then I will be very blessed.

I am throwing the leftover cake out today when I get home. I got it out of my system yesterday and there is no need for me to eat it today. It was sooo good, though. Stuffed with strawberries and frosting so sweet that it made my teeth go numb.:dizzy:

Day 19
 

WI: 177.6

Breakfast: 1/2 c cinnamon cheerios plus 1/2 c kashi go lean (fiber twig) cereal, skim milk, whole grain english muffin, all-natural pb, all-natural fruit spread, coffee (376)
Snack: Yogurt (80), Gum (10), FiberOne bar (140)
Lunch: Lean pockets whole-grain meatball and mozzarella (480)
Dinner: Salsa chicken with broccoli (334), Skinny cow french vanilla truffle (100)

Day off from work today. We flex during the summer, so we work our hours in 4 days and take the fifth off. I am flexing on Tuesdays b/c my husband is off on Tuesdays, too, so we're going to do some yard work, basement work, maybe see a movie, and hopefully do a lot of relaxing after all of the other stuff. I'm going to stick with my 1500-1599 calorie range and see what that does for me. July 31st is just under 11 weeks away, and I'd really like to do my best to get to my goal of 165.

Exercise: mowed front and back yard
Calories: 1520

Day 20
 

WI: 176.8

Breakfast: 1/2 c cinnamon cheerios plus 1/2 c kashi go lean (fiber twig) cereal, skim milk, whole grain english muffin, all-natural pb, all-natural fruit spread (361)
Snack: Yogurt w/kashi (97)
Lunch: Lean Cuisine meatloaf and mashed potatoes & baked cheetos (380)
Snacks: Gum (5), FiberOne bar (140), Jello sugar free pudding snack (60)
Dinner: Chicken quesadilla with cheese, salsa, guac (414), broccoli (60)

Exercise: Nothing. I think I am PMSing and I'm just crabby. :devil:
Calories: 1517

Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday...Happy Hump Day! :) It felt good to mow the lawn yesterday and count it as my exercise -- I do much better when I am doing something that is different than hopping on the treadmill or doing a workout DVD.

Keep it up Emme! You're doing great.

I know what you mean about the bio clock. All my friends are getting married and having babies, and i'm just getting drunk. hehe okay not really thats a quote that cracks me up tho. Can I ask how old you are? I'm 27 but 28 in a month.

LOL -- that's a funny quote. :) I just turned 32. My husband and I have been together for 10 years (met in college), and we have done everything but have kids (went to grad school, have a house, have jobs), so kids are the next logical step. He just went back for a second master's which will allow him to be certified to teach and he student teaches in March-May of next year. If he has to quit his job to student teach (which he's hoping he doesn't have to do -- he is going to try to swing night and weekend work) and I give birth between March-May, then I'd be off of work, too, and we'd have my little maternity leave pay which would only take care of about 1/2 of our bills and we'd be stressed the whole time. So, we're planners and that's the big reason we are waiting until August to start trying. I know there is never a perfect time to have kids, but we are firm believers that you can at least be as best prepared as possible.

That's great!

So far I've only done the grad school thing. I am saving up for a down payment though. The BF and I have been together 2 years and are planning on moving in together soon. Fitting in getting married and waiting a few years to have kids (which I think is important) seems hard to do when I want to have kids at 33 and 35 (which doesn't even seem that early to me!).

We probably wont get engaged for at least another year, then one year of being engaged, then 2 years of being married and then bam... time is up! haha

Thats of course if all goes according to plan... not sure if the BF would even think about proposing in the next year... sigh. I guess we need to have that talk!

It's hard to put a time line on having kids...I remember when I was younger that I swore I'd have kids by the time I was 24...and now it's 8 years later...LOL! I figure if Tori Spelling can be having baby #3 at 37, and my aunt can have baby #1 at 42, then I'm good. :) Don't fret about it...just let things happen...and you guys might not want to wait to have kids once you are married. You might want to start right away!

Day 21
 

WI: 175.8

Breakfast: 1/2 c cinnamon cheerios plus 1/2 c kashi go lean (fiber twig) cereal, skim milk, whole grain english muffin, all-natural pb, all-natural fruit spread (361)
Snack: Cheese stick (60), Gum (5), 2 slices of kiwi (15)
Lunch: Lean Cuisine Three-Cheese Rigatoni & baked cheetos (380)
Snacks: FiberOne bar (140)
Dinner: Lean pockets (480), sugar free jello puddin' snack (60), taste of sugar-free vanilla ice cream (10?)

Exercise: 45 minutes of yoga
Calories: 1511

I am so tired today, and my throat hurts, so that's awesome. :rolleyes: Oh well, it's almost Friday!! Tomorrow is my WI and I hope to keep this downward trend going. It's actually been a lot easier than I thought to eat 1500ish calories. I'm so thankful I found calorie counting because I don't know where I would be right now without it. Over Christmas I was binging like a madwoman...I remember grabbing ladyfingers and chowing down with those and a tub of mascarpone cheese, eating chocolate covered pretzels by the handful, and eating chocolate chips by the handful...all within about 10 minutes. And then I'd feel depressed 10 minutes later because of all the crap I had just ingested, so I'd go find other stuff to gorge on to get rid of those emotions. Calorie counting has allowed me to really sit and work through any feelings that I am having instead of turning to food. It's a blessing, really. I might easily have been 20 pounds heavier by now if I hadn't changed what I was doing.

It's official...your down to the famous LAST 10!!! WOOT!:carrot: My only advice....STAY...AWAY...FROM...THE....PUMPKIN!!!!: D

LOL!!! For me, it's pastries and cakes...I need to stay away from cake!! :dizzy: And, wouldn't you know it, someone just dropped off a ton of bagels and muffins in the office kitchen which is right across from my office...they are definitely not as good as cake or pastries, but it's still a temptation!

Day 22
 

WI: 175.6

Breakfast: 1/2 c cinnamon cheerios plus 1/2 c kashi go lean (fiber twig) cereal, skim milk, whole grain english muffin, all-natural pb, all-natural fruit spread (361)
Snack: Yogurt w/kashi (97)
Lunch: Lean Cuisine Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes & baked cheetos (380)
Snacks: Gum (5), FiberOne bar (140), 1/2 cup sugar-free vanilla ice cream (100)
Dinner: Two 4-oz. turkey burgers (240), 2 buns (160), ketchup (20), guac (20)

Exercise:Nothing...barely made it home today because I'm so sick...blech!
Calories: 1523

Down 1.6 from last Friday ~ I think dropping my calories this past week really helped since I'm not exercising nearly as much as I was last month. Throat is still swollen and I'm congested...blech! I'm mudding the drywall in the basement tonight and over the weekend. After getting quotes from professionals, I told my husband I would do it myself. Wish me luck! :)