I am still hanging in there, food has been 100% on program, exercise is regular, just waiting for the scale to wake up and show me results!
I do feel smaller and clothes are loose, so maybe I am building a bit of muscle

Thank you Kathleen for starting our February thread! How are things with you, with your kids?

Ann you are doing so well with your food 100% on track and with exercise too, and if your clothes are looser, that is such progress! congrats!

I am still such a nervous wreck at work. And I have never been treated poorly there at all, it is all 'on me', just on Friday afternoon when I had a difficult day and video-chatted with my manager, she said so sincerely 'Holly I never want you to feel stressed', no one knows what is going on in my stomach. I just have to get over this. The 'difficult day' was more phone troubles, I had to be on with tech support for so long, multiple days last week, I lost productive time with the mail orders and feel overwhelmed.

sorry for the self-pity!!

hi, all.
Kathleen, so sorry of the upset within the family. Unfortunately, really nothing you can do except let it play out. I would guess all you can do is to tell them not to bring it up to you, not to badmouth each other to you. I would think hubby and you should be able to talk about it as he may need to talk to you about it.
7 yrs after beating breast cancer is a big deal. Any cancer diagnosis has to be scary and I can't imagine going through the treatment and aftermath. You are a really strong person to be able to look back on that time, I hope you give yourself the credit you deserve.
Glad the scale is finally showing your hard work,

Holly, think back on your first week, don't you feel so much further along? I think you are a lot like me and all the pressure to be perfect at the job is coming from you and not co-workers or bosses. When I was hiring people to work for me, while their skills were important, what i felt was MORE important was how they fit into the department: is this person's personality going to upset the balance or are they going to be a team player; are their work ethics, and desire to do a good job a high priority for them; will this person be willing to do other jobs, help out where needed, etc. . Tech issues don't sound like your fault, so take a breath and let it go. If they didn't think you were right for the job, they would be telling you to get up to speed, but instead they are telling you to relax,.

My scale is finally moving downward, so glad i didn't give up. I do have to say that this time feels different. I am not changing my food plan, I am very content with it, and I am pushing to get more exercise. I have finally lost 16 lbs, and i am pushing for 4 more by Feb 28th, I really need to get in some cardio, so that is my plan, I am so much more active in good weather - today is only going to have a high of 25 and we have 8 inches of crusty snow, tomorrow will only be 15f. although my goal of steps is 5k a day, I generally am only hitting 4k. Once snow is gone I am busy with the garden, woodworking, I easily get in 7-10k steps a day.

Hello friends

Kathleen - I am so very very sorry to hear of the strife in your family right now I know that as a mother, we are only as happy as the mood of our happiest child...and if they are not happy, we are not either. Sending you strength to deal with this tough time my friend. and speaking of tough times, All congrats and props to you on the (yesterday) 7 year anniversary of the breast cancer diagnosis AND the horrible situation of being placed in the hospital against your will. What a horrible time for you! How you must feel now, with it in the past...you got through it, you survived Best wishes for getting through this tough time now sweetie! It is good to hear that you and your hub are doing better? That is a comfort.

Ann, congrats on your way of life that is working so well for you! Having a food plan that does not feel restrictive or like a diet is fantastic and you are rockin it! Our NE weather is not very great for simple exercise like walking, if you are in a rural spot.
but as you said once warmer weather is here, you will be outside and no problem being more active. Big big congrats on the 16 gone!!

and thank you both for the good feelings that i need to focus on, for the job. Ann, oh my gosh yes I could not have imagined that I'd be at the point I am now...but it's the unexpected daily stuff that i get so worked up about. Like any instant the phone rings, it could be ANY situation that I haven't dealt with yet. I don't know why that fills me with such horrible anxiety but it does. Also I am always, always expecting to be notified that I did something incorrectly. I did make a simple (foolish) error last week that I guess the Accountant had to correct; and for the 1st time I was kind of chided by my Manager. i felt really dumb and bad about it. But other than that, yes she is very sympathetic and kind and supportive, and my co-workers really 'have my back'. One of my sweet remote co-workers tried to ask me if my childhood was like that, there must be a reason why a reasonable 'okay' person would get so worried about going to work every day. and I could not find an answer. And this is just a temp job!! it seems a big responsibility for just a temp, in my opinion

a thought of gratitude, this thread has been going for so many years..and that awful year for you, Kathleen, I remember our dear Lisa kept it going through your absence (due to medical) and my absence, I was working alot and I think that was the summer/fall that my husband was 'let go' by the awful boss he was working for...tough summer..but this thread kept going

Scale is finally moving again and I am down 18 lbs. Still getting on the bike almost daily, I am pushing the resistance to get some cardio. Food is still spot on, I am in this comfortable 'rut', Happy to have 2 eggs and 2 chicken sausages for breakfast and a large tossed salad for lunch. Snacks might be low carb yogurt, some veggies-I really love celery-a piece of cheese or Atkins bar or shake. Dinner is lean protein and veggies, I made a large pan of Keto chicken pot pie last night so I am set for dinner right through Sun. I love this dish and don't mind having it several nights in a row. I only make it every couple of months.

Holly, I didn't realize this is a temp job. I have had temps and we were lucky if they showed up every day. You are really working hard for this and I think they know it. So you made a mistake, we all do, I learned to own up to it, tell whoever I needed to and then figure out how it happened and try to put something in place to avoid a repeat. Don't beat yourself up.

Got my second shingles shot today so I think I am all caught up the vaccines. Unless they come up with another covid booster I should be all set until next fall's flu shot.

Ann, congrats on being down 18!!! that is so great! and that your chosen way of living / food is working so well and is so live-able for you .

How is your daughter doing, with her health?



this made me laugh, yes I am showing up every day at least

Saying Hi to Kathleen!

Good morning,
Holly, Kelly just had her bloodwork done and they said it was perfect, she gets it done monthly. MRI is every 3 months and she has one scheduled for March. She is a tough girl, often works a 10 or 12 hour overnight shift at nursing home. Always praying that she stays healthy.

I am guessing you had the awful ice yesterday that DBF in Vt had, he was supposed to take one of his dogs to Burlington vet for ultrasound but he had to cancel. My day started out at 51.

Kathleen, I hope things have settled down for you. Scale is cooperating for you, life should do the same,

I got my second shingles shot Thursday, I had awful side effects from both shots but worth not getting shingles. I am back to normal today. I have stuff to take care of in the house, groceries to get. I am going to sort through my extra blankets and spreads, I just have too many and they take up space. I have a small house and I need to limit accumulation of things.
I have to start planning in garden here shortly, I usually have it all figured out by now. i will be starting seeds in early April.

good morning
I am down 19.4, can't wait to hit 20. then on to the next 20.
Kathleen, NH doesn't care what the calendar says, spring comes when it gets here, might be March, might be May. We are going to hit 50-60 today thru Thursday, then I have 15 inches of snow coming on Friday with temps in 20's.
I am just keeping busy, getting ready to get my workshop ready to use. I am ordering supplies and booking craft fairs for the coming season.
Holly, how long is this temp job supposed to last ? it is a like a 6 month contract or until the season rush is over?

Good afternoon Ann and Kathleen!
Ann, congrats on 19.4 down!! You are doing so great and it is a live-able plan for you which is long term success! Your daily menu sounds so good and satisfying. And so great about your daughter continuing to be well, as Kathleen said, nothing worse than fearing for the safety of your children. Continued best wishes to her
I had the Shingrex vaccination in 2019; the first one in September was no biggie but the second one in December, whoa, I have never felt so ill in my life. That was when I had to take off from work and drive home and almost went off the road. Parked haphazardly in driveway and went straight to bed with all my clothes on, except shoes. Took a full 24 hours to get over it. However I have also heard that having shingles is awful. And I laughed and agreed about Spring comes to New England when She darn well feels like it. We are having rain right now which has really made the snow recede but as you said we are going to get significant snow this Friday. Real outside weather won't happen until late April. About your workshop and craft shows - was it woodworking that you do? what kind of products? so interesting!!

Kathleen are relationships any better in your household? Last time you mentioned things were not good with the daughter and son getting along, I hope so much that is better now and that you are not suffering because of it How are you beloved doggies?? Winter does cut down on outside walks when it's yucky or icy. I believe you were looking for a new therapist for yourself, was that successful?

The seed company job is just through their busy season, end date is the end of April. I believe, if they are satisfied with me, they will inquire if I would like to come back for their next busy season (Jan. thru April, with the training in late December). I really don't know if they will ask or not and that's okay I guess.

I have not weighed myself since Christmas. I know i've put on some pounds, my jeans are tighter. I know I've been doing mindless eating/snacking. I now have a goal - my son's wedding in August. I am not aiming to be skinny, lol, just not sloppy-feeling. I've started looking for what I'm going to wear, it is not formal at all yet I don't want to be like his first wedding, when the bride's mom and sister told me 'oh it's casual' and I wore capris and a nice top but they had beaded suits and heels on (I need to let that go, lol)

Here's something funny from the world of customer service, a woman called and was *just* about irate, like one step below irate, said she received an email saying her cc was charged $5.80 and what was that for!! I pulled up her acct and couldn't see right off what the heck was going on, so said I would get my Manager to look at it and would get back to her. "This Manager person, would she be calling me back soon?" I said it *might* be tomorrow, she did not like that, but we said goodbye and I immediately contacted my manager. Within a few minutes she sent me a screen shot that showed the woman had been sent a CREDIT for that amount, due to (unfortunately) a seed packet being Out of Stocked. Instead of being glad of the explanation, she seemed even more irate. "Oh great, I'm the head of the BlahBlahBlah Community Garden and so many people are going to be disappointed that we won't have Seychelles Beans this year". And she was serious. All I did was say 'I'm very sorry for your disappointment' and her parting shot was "well, alot of people are going to be disappointed, not just me". Sheesh I have to say though that she is definitely in the vast minority, most people take it in stride. Even the grower who are ordering like $75 worth of a single variety, they say 'these things happen, I'll grow something else.". Bless them!!

Holly, WOW. I have never worked in customer service, I just could not take abuse. I have worked in factories and offices and usually the meanist, nastiest B**ch is the one who has a home life less than ideal. Either a domineering husband or demanding kids, MIL, parents, etc, They can't take it out on them so they bring it to work. Likely her real issue is she waited to late to order( and has been reminded by the group) so now she is the one who will take their complaints. I doubt the lack of one variety of bean is the real issue but it was an easy way out to berate ( another form of RATE) someone without being face to face. Just an unhappy/unpleasant person spreading their misery.
Youngest DGD is still sleeping so I am having my coffee in peace and quiet. Love her, but also love my quiet morning coffee time.