Oh Wendy, you're poor DD! I hope she's feeling better! And I agree with Kristen, free pass when the kidos are sick.

Cassie - Salt on the road...that's a good one.:D

Joni - I did survive the s'mores so that's a huge NSV for me because even outside of the s'mores, I could eat a whole bag on marshmallows by myself...could, but won't...used to though.:o Let's just hope that DH eats them all before I get home (not very likely, though:( )

So my little one (2 1/2 yo) is still sleeping, and it is just weird around here. He has a pretty bad cold, and needs the extra zzzz's, but still.........it's so quiet. I'm not quite sure what to do with myself. Hey.......JM.....when do you leave to get Josie?

Sick parents of a sick child get a pass and a half.. you have to show restraint but there is no self recrimination allowed on straying off plan when you have dealt with a fever, upset stomach, loose bum or tantrums :) If you have a combination of any of the above you can do like I do and use your fruit for wine ( Please note the above passes on straying off plan are only to be exercised by trained LAWL professionals..those on the plan that understand temporary insanity or gains can be forgiven.. do not attempt to try this at home unless you are under the supervision of one such person)

OK people, I'm not sure what's going on. WI on Saturday had me down 06 lbs. Not great but better than nothing I suppose. The problem is Monday and Tuesday I think I had a bug of some kind because I wasn't hungry at all, had to force food down. TOM started Monday and stayed so I couldn't do my water aerobics on Monday and Wednesday. Then Wednesday my appetite came back with a vengence. I've been off plan every day by a starch here and a dairy there (Monday and tuesday by A LOT in the negative column - the remainder of the week over). Last night I wasn't even hungry but devoured starches like nobodies business. I don't know what was wrong. I'm trying to start over today and get back on track. I'll be able to do my water aerobics this week since Aunt flo is gone so that will help. This hunger concerns me though, well again, not even hunger just want to eat. I don't think anything is any more stressful than normal in my life. I've been living on high stress for the last seven years so I don't think it's that. I can't help but think I was just bored but I haven't given in to boredom at all since starting this diet until this weekend. I just don't know what's happening and I'm not sure how to stop what I don't know? any thoughts?

hey everyone. not much going on today.
gonna get my workout done and over with for today. i need to do 4 this week since i slacked and missed one last week. i don't have time to WI until friday, and TOM will be gone by then..so hopefully i'll show a loss.

wendy--sorry to hear about your DD. hope she gets to feeling better soon.


hope everyone has a great day..and stays POP.

Good morning, all....
Am on Day 2 of TO right now, though Day One wasn't POP, so I don't know if it counts, heh. Day 2 WILL be, though, I promise! :p I've been hovering around this stupid 177 mark for weeks...time to get serious and start that sclae moving downward again!

Shannon.....this happens to many of us when we stray off plan.......the bottom line is....you just have to get back on plan, right now, and perfect on plan. If you are eligible to do a FF or TO, now might be a good time........just to get you back into the groove. I completely understand, as I just went through the same thing the last few weeks. Now, I can proudly say that after today, I will have been OP for 1 week, and you know, it has totally paid off on the sclae. You can do this..........you can do this.......you can do this...........just get right to it. Pretend you never fell off, and get working :) Did I mention that you can do this?

Kristen.........you always crack me up girl :) XOXO

C'mon Megan........you can do it!!!

I actually bought 2 canteloupes at the grocery store this weekend. My mother is coming down tomorrow but I think Wednesday would be a good day to do a FF. It didn't bother me last time but of course I was doing the unlimited protein one. Maybe I should try the other one this time with the canteloupe instead of the juice. I don't do lites though so I'm not sure if I can. Guess I could get some zone bars and do that.

I'd feel much better if I knew what was causing my off plan eating frenzy. I just don't see a trigger so how do I see it coming and avoid it next time. Curse of a computer programmer, over analyze everything.

Hey I did have one nice thing happen this weekend. I was looking thru my drawers and came across a pair of shorts that I wore maybe once then packed away because they were too small. I tried them on and they fit nicely. I will have to go thru my closet because I thought I'd thrown away everything that was too small. I've been wearing the same shabby old clothes for so long I really felt like a "fancy girl" as my son used to call them when he was little. Nice newish pair of white shorts and a brightly colored shirt I haven't worn in about a year. I almost thought about swishing my hips but then remembered I'm still over 200 lbs. A tad soon for Victoria's Secret modeling.

Hey Nicole-

I leave Friday morning . . .hard to believe. Last nite was the first time in awhile where I couldn't sleep and had weird dreams when I did. I dreamed of bottles-seriously. Cuz I had been opening packs of bottles, nipples, etc trying to decide how many to take before I went to bed. And-how do you tell the flow speed on the nipples once you take them out of the package? Can't figure it out . . . .

Good Morning and Happy Monday everyone!

It was a busy, busy weekend for me.. and not completely POP either -- but not bad. My daughter's 1st communion was yesterday and I behaved at the Brunch Buffet - but I couldn't resist the chocolate cake with buttercream frosting! (Nicole - Did I mention I Love cake too??)
Unfortunately I ate it in the evening after I'd already eaten my starches etc for the day, so I can't even be good and count it like Wendy did. Oh well.. I promise to double my time on the treadmill tonight as penance. :D

I'm pretty sure JM leaves this Friday to get Josie!! How excited she must be!! Can you imagine?? I'd be jumping out of my skin in anticipation right now if it were me.

Shannon - Jump back on the horse, hun!! You can do this! You haven't failed, you've just taken a detour. We've all gone through a phase just like you're going through. Refocus your energy and jump back in with both feet. Oh yeah, did Nicole mention.. You can do this??!!

Joni - Way to go on the exercise! I met my goal of 3 days last week.. so this week I'm increasing it to 4 days. I feel so much better on the mornings that I get up and work out. You go girl!!

Megan - Move that sclae!! You can get through today POP.. NO PROBLEM!! "You can doo eeeet!!" (I've got The Waterboy on my mind today for some reason)

Wendy - I hope your dd gets some relief! And you're definetly allowed a non-pop hour or two at LEAST when dealing with sickness! Good Luck with your Lasik this morning!! How exciting!

Kristen - When are you publishing that manual again?? :D Love your theory on drinking fruits in times of stress... ;) You're so witty!! Can you tell anything more about maintainance to inspire us?

Cassi - So fill us in on jelly bean tasting?? Sounds like fun to me!

Jillian - enjoying the new kitty?? :)

Tina - Great NSV with the s'mores!! You're a strong woman!!

Gotta run.. boss is in for a while & I need to meet with him before he takes off again. I'll post some 1st communion photos later too.. you gotta see my daugter's dress!

Think POP, Peeps!!!

I figured it out when my son had a freakin hissy fit. I actually had to cut them where they were free flowing. God forbid he should make an effort.

Congrats and I'm terribly excited for you - hurry back with pictures!

Nicole--you make me smile! Hard to do today--already 5 brats out here. Plus, this must be the week for sick kids--my little one is home with daddy today--horrible hacking cough that NOTHING will stop--needless to say we had a very long night. Hopefully the doc. will have a magic bean for her today.

Thanks for all the well/safe wishes. We were lucky and I really feel for those that lost everything this weekend--I can't even imagine.

Hope you all have a great day--it's only 9:45 and I am ready to call it a day--lol.

I saved my fruits for some wine on the porch Saturday evening...very nice!

JM - My DD never followed the flow on the nipples. I had to use a paring knife to make hers bigger because she always wanted to drink faster than the nipple would allow:)

Hi everyone - you were very chatty this weekend... lots to read!

SO, the CAIL's arrived on Saturday.. all in all it was a good time, my MIL disappeared over to my neighbor's house for about an hour. Does she know them?.... no... but that didn't matter to her. In the meantime her untrained Bichon managed to pee on my couch, my chair and in the middle of the rug, plus leave a present in the spare bedroom. My "Denial ain't just a river in Egypt" FIL says - "No, he just peed before we came in, he didn't pee." Uh, yeah he did. Then MIL comes back from the neighbors (or was sent home... not sure) and she says to me... he's not peeing, he's just marking. Finally I lost it and said to her "you know, when dogs "mark", the are actually PEEING!" The fact that the CAIL's totally fluff it off is a much greater insult to me than the actual pee and poop itself. I have a dog, and he had accidents when he was a puppy, but this Bichon is no puppy, he just hasn't been trained one iota. ARGHHHH!!!!

Oh, and our grill caught fire while DH was cooking.. so that added some nice drama to the evening.

Nicole - I hope the infection clears up for your Dad - but I'm happy that you talked, and I hope he keeps it up. I have an irrational fear of my car going into water too, it's actually a recurring nightmare for me. I keep telling DH that I want one of those window things too, I'll just have to go buy one.

Katie - Great to hear good news about your dad too.

JM - One week!!!!! Try not to jump out of your skin this week - it's sooo exciting.

Angie - what a great thing that your office did! We had the 8th graders out doing some cleanup around the playground area, but you would not believe the parents that called to complain that we were making the kids to menial labor.... it makes me crazy.

Lea Ann - the girls are getting big! Is your hair longer? You all look great! Good to hear that you are all safe from the tornados.

Deb - Thank God you are OK. Ice is such a nasty thing - I'll take snow anyday over ice.

Dan - Great Birthday Jumbotron! Very cool idea Liz!

Joni - Good luck on your re-committing to the gym. I read today that one of the common denominators in people who have been successful at weight loss and maintenance is that they do 60-90 minutes of exercise daily. OK - so I have some work to do.... I'm thinking of adding in a walk at lunch, now that it is finally nice out.

Wendy - Poor ODD, I hope the laxatives work soon... at least it wasn't appendicitis.

Shannon - I get into that mode too. I try to occupy my mind and stomach with things like tea or more water. It helps me fulfill the habit of feeding myself. I hope this week goes better for you. Great NSV on the shorts! It is always good to get good positive feedback when we are struggling.

Cassi - the SH reference was a typo! LOL. He really is DH. Good luck with the bean tasting today! (are you making jelly beans too, or just tasting?)

my workout is done for the day! yay! only 3 more to go this week!

Yay Jillian - now you can nap!

Quick check in with you guys...DS is getting better, fever is gone, but want him to eat a little more. Now DD is sick...I remember when she was a baby, I was very protective of her. She was born at 28 wks, so if you did not have DH or my DNA you did not come within 10 ft of her. I have been very lax with my DS because he was only 4 wks early...but I think I will tighten the reigns a little. I just don't want him to be a Momma's Boy...oh well. I have WI today...I think I am only down 1 lb...I will check in later today if I have time. Take care! Oh Megan and Shannon...you know the deal. Let's all have a POP day! Oh yeah, JM, once you wash them, just put them in baggies and label the baggies. I'm a Virgo, so I sweat the details. TC!

Kim - as for the dog - he is marking(aka peeing like a russian race horse). My mothers dog comes over and she swears he doesn't pee in her house but when he hits mine let the pee fest begin. He raises his leg to everything and she just sits there shocked. Now when he comes he spends most of his time outside in the yard or in a cage in the kitchen. He and my one non-fixed dog don't get along so there's my excuse. Unfortunately my un-fixed dog spends the greater amount of cage time. They don't visit often so break out the resolve and get to scrubbin!

Letisha - hope the kids feel better soon! I'm sure Mommy will make it all better.

Shannon - Oh, I know that he is marking, it's just that my MIL is under some false reality that that is not pee coming out of him! Like he has a bag of water in there somewhere and is just spritzing all of my furniture with it.

He's not a bad dog, she's a bad owner.

Oh, and I'm probably being overly harsh about her, LOL. She's a nice enough lady.... she's just nuts.

Morning ladies (and our other missing gentlemen)...

Had to skip WI this morning.. Just too busy...

The weekend ended well with a Huey Lewis concert.. We ate before hand so we wouldn't be tempted by the goodies at the show.. I drank to bottles of water instead.. Of course, during the last half-hour of the show, I was REALLY needing to go, but the restrooms were a long way away and I didn't want to miss anything..

Hopefully, our baseball/birthday daliences (sp?) won't come back to haunt me, but I guess time will tell..

Have a POP day, all...

Ooh - Huey Lewis... now that brings back memories....

Sounds like it was a great weekend all around!

Good Monday morning all y'all!

I am back from the tundra of AK. Let me tell you...although I made the best choices possible (until Friday...cheeseburger came flying at me out of nowhere!) I still feel like there was too much sodium involved (Dan...can you hear me?). My hotel room didn't have a microwave or mini-fridge so I was limited on what I could keep in my room (fruit, celery and PB was about it). You can order all the healthy stuff you want in a restaurant but the bottom line is you still can't control how much oil or salt they use. Anyway...then I get home Friday night late and DF had pizza waiting! Damn! Granted, it was Papa Murphy's delite with cheese only but still. I had a salad first but still had two pieces. So there you have it...the two worst days since joining LAWL. The good news is that Sautrday came and I got right back on the horse. The home scale was up a couple when I got back but is on the decline now so hopefully I got the damage under control. These things happen from time to time, right? Anyone???

Shannon...I feel your starch pain (see above!). Although I got back POP ASAP, the cravings remained. I am hoping they are gone today. And TOM makes everything worse.

Kim...OMG, your MIL story had me in stiches. That is terrible! My in-laws (or out-laws as I like to call them) are something else...especially the MIL-to-be. The woman has no filter between her brain and her mouth. Luckily, DF has no illusions about her and beat it out of there the second he graduated from HS and got as far away as possible. Good luck with the carpet cleaner. Ugh!

Juliemarie...you must be counting the days. That is so amazing. Good luck!!!

Alright, off to work with me. Good luck today everyone...I will be drinking extra water to flush out the sodiumfest!!!

Wendy – The poor girl. I hope she’s feeling better soon. Who could blame you for grabbing a meal on the run after a day like that.

Kristen – Shoot! Cameron had a fever two weeks ago, and I could have eaten easter candy. Oh wait, I did…scratch that. I did drink my fruits on Saturday too.

For those with little ones. How do you get them to take a nap? My DS goes to bed with relatively few hassles, but a nap? No way! However, he does take a 2 hour nap at daycare each day. I asked him teacher how she does it… Get this: she puts his little cot down, with his blanket on it, and he climbs in and goes to sleep. Hmph! Little rat is taking advantage of me.

Shannon – See my post about ‘how do you change your mindset’…I had the same feelings and struggle last week and I got some great advice. I agree with Nicole, maybe a FF or TO would help to curb those cravings. I find when I do one, I’m so much more focussed, and I did my last one on the weekend when I usually have the biggest problems, so that helped too.

Megan – Good luck on finishing off your TO today. Stay strong! Doritos have nothing on you!

JM – Usually the flow is written on the nipple itself. Just hold it up to the light and turn it, and you’ll probably see it raised on the rubber.

Kim – I’m assuming you also drank your fruit after the whole ‘not peeing’ exchange? :rofl: Thanks about the office thing…we are really trying to be involved in making a difference in our community…so 30 minutes for about 50 people (only 50 of 400 volunteered) was pretty good!

Letisha – Hey see Kristen’s note…you have a POP pass today if you have another sick little one! Hope she’s feeling better soon.

Hi gang
I hope that we have one full week with NO sick kids!!
My youngest has been going to the same daycare as Jillian since last June.. three weeks ago she started getting upset when I dropped her off in the mornings one day a week as DH had a schedule change. They always have a great time there and she normally runs into the classroom. She also started dreaming about 3 weeks ago so for the first time in her life is waking up through the night.. Saturday 4 times and most other nights once or twice.. we think she is dreaming? Today both girls are getting ready and she starts to cry, I don't want to go to school, DH asks her why and she said she is scared. This is an incredible school and as I mentioned she's been there almost a year. We took her and my hubby said once the teacher took her she settled, they called us at 10:00 to ask if she'd had a bad sleep or anything as she was on off all morning, playing for 15 minutes then crying the next. The only thing that has changed in her routine is me doing a morning drop off as opposed to daddy, she was home sick one day last week with me and one of the teachers in her classroom left for a new site and a new teacher came in. So for all my teacher/parent pros.. any ideas? I'm pacing the house as they said they would call back but if we were to go get her it sends a message that we would come and pick her up anytime she is upset.. they are in three days a week together and have always loved it.. she's just over 2 so is it a new clingy to mommy phase?? I'm busying myself by making some Minestrone for supper !
Didn't go for my WI today so I can't update you the stabilization until Wed. MIL decided to do some drunk dialin and gave me a nasty phone call on Saturday that had me so upset. DH was out for the night so I didn't want to call him but I was a wreck yesterday.. the little one had also been up all through the night so I was on no sleep.. I wanted to cancel the babysitter that we had booked but DH said no we need to get out so we went to an old fav. restaurant and they had sangria on the menu. I was good with my choices in addition to my liquid fruit :) and had grilled calamari, shared a salad and ordered some Mahi Mahi with vegs. But I know scale was up a bit so thought I'd save myself a mental break and go on Wed in case I was up.
I hope all the sick kids are feeling better, Deb feels good driving, Cassi is loving her jelly beans, Joni, Sara, Angie, Letisha, Shannon, Lea Ann,Dan, Liz, Libby, Lorraine, Wendys and Kims galore and soon to be mommy JM all have a super day!!!

:mad: :devil: Somebody please tell me this week will be better than the last one!!! I went totally off plan last Monday, easter candy, then sweet and sour shrimp, not too much rice, added my own sauce but it was fried, ugh! Hubby brought it home, I thought it would be grilled, but NOOOO and it was already 8:30 so I ate it anyway. Sooo I've been paying for my cheat all freakin week! Why does the damage we do in one freaking day take a week to get off!

Sorry, just needed to vent! I havent had a week like this since I started and I'm not used to the weight just hanging around to torment me!

Heres to a better week! If not, I'm sticking my head in the oven! LOL

Thanks Angie-I'll check them again tonite-I was pretty tired around midnite-so maybe I just missed it. . . .and Letisha-the baggie idea is great, but I would've had to think about that BEFORE I tossed all the nipples into one pot to boil for 5 min .. . . .:D

Oh-and I'll keep the knife idea in mind-doubtful that she'd use a slow nipple at 10 mos old, right? Shame to waste them . . .

Kristen - Since I'm not a mommy, I don't have any wise words for you about YDD. Is there another child there that is causing her problems?

Angie - yeah, I partook of liquid fruit right around the time that the grill burst into flames.

Kim2.. I have learned since joining LAWL that one of the greatest injustices of the world is the "Cheat Gain".. or as someone else said the "Choose Gain".. I can remember specifically days that I had a glass of wine, or dinner out which I had planned for and went up 4lbs overnight.. when I have strayed from the plan (read MIL setting me up to attack a bag of chips and dip :( ) that I sometimes need about 7 days to get it off.. I know for a fact that not once on any of those times have I consumed an extra 70,000 calories either..
INJUSTICE!!!!!!!! I've said before that if I'm going to see 4lbs up on a scale I want to knwo that I spent the week before indulging in every single one of my former favorite foods and also sampled every flavor of Blizzard the DQueen makes..

Hang in there girlfriend.. PS Next year for Easter I'm hiding grapes and apples for the kids to find.. they won't talk to me at night like the jelly beans and smarties do!

LOL Thanks for making me smile Kristen! Its just so frustrating. I did To and lost 3 pounds in a week. Was determined that I was going to make my goal by the time I had my surgery, then one nasty day sets all that back, UGH! I'm going to WI today and face the music. I know what you mean about the extra calories. I know one day of being naughty didnt result in enough calories for a 3 pound gain! Knowing that makes it even harder to deal with the extra pounds. Although, that sweet and sour shrimp was heavenly LOL

Now my tushie is in gear. I'm getting as much more off as it's humanly possible to do before May22nd!

Kristen -- My DS has been going to the same daycare since he was 6 months old, and all I can tell you is that he goes through a phase every now and then where he also does not want to stay. I think your YDD and he must be very close in age, he was born January 2005. It's weird, one day I drop him off and before I can even kiss him he says "bye mamma, goodbye", and then the next time I turn around he's wrapped around me begging me not to go. I think the problem comes up about every 4 months or so. I can't figure it out either, and he doesn't understand 'why?' yet, so I can't get him to tell me the reason that this particular day is different than any other. Maybe you could go in, and ask if you could stay with her for the rest of the day, or arrange to stay with her on the next day? Sorry, that's all I can think of.

JM -- You can always gift the slow flow nipples to the Salvation Army or an women's shelter or something. I think you're right, she'll be way beyond those now.

Hide money. My son loved it when I switched to hiding quarters, dimes, nickels and dollars.

How many calories in a quarter? Are they salt free as well?

I believe they are a free food. I couldn't find them in my book though. Stupid out of date books.

JM.......if they aren't marked........you can tell by doing a drip test. There is a noticable difference. You never know what kind of nipple Josie will like. It is all about personality. Some of my kids were chow hounds, and couldn't wait to finish eating.....while others "milked it," (pun intended) for what seemed like forever when I was in a hurry. I breastfed all the kids, so I have no idea how quickly the milk came out......but it is funny to me that one kid would nurse for 10 minutes, while another would nurse for 30 or 40. Also, the daycare kids I had over the years, who were all bottle fed during the days, each had their unique feeding preferences.

I hope this is the fastest week ever for you........but when you are awaiting the arrival of your baby........hours seem like days. Many of us know the agony of waiting for our babies..........and it can seem like torture some days.......but the payoff......yeah, it's priceless. I can't wait to see video and pictures. I wish we could all be there to see your little miracle!!!

Kristen...........now you are just in a sucky situation. I have no advice. I have a terrible time dealing with crying kids. I ALWAYS want to give in and make them feel better. I do not always do that......but I have to fight it sooo hard. DH says I am the world's biggest whimp, but I don't care. All I can tell you is this.........listen to your gut. At two, it is sooo difficult for our kids to communicate with us, and most of the time, all they can really do is cry. So, if you can keep that in perspective, it can make the crying a little less heart wrenching. Also.........Wendy II gave me great mothering advice a whle back, and I cannot remember it word for word......but it went something to the tune of God takes care :) If your older DD is there, is she in the same room as the little one? Maybe she can give you some input. I really have no good advice Kristen, except that you are a fine mommy, and if you are truly concerned that something is wrong.....investigate it. If you think she is trying to let you know that she would rather be at home, and we all know she is a spit fire girl......then wait it out and hug her lots. I know where you are comming from though.........being a mom is such a huge responsibility....the keeping them safe part raises sooo many doubts.......and our DH's kind of leave that up to us.......which SUCKS........but the bottom line is........trust your instincts. And I said I had no advice.......what I really meant is......I have no answers :)
XOXO

Salt free, plus they pack plenty of iron! :D

Roughage too!

EXACTLY what I was thinking but was having trouble finding a polite way to say it. Good job.

Hi all. Got some stuff to do at work right away, but I wanted to check in. Jelly bean tasting was easier than I thought. We only had three jelly beans and a whole bunch of other stuff so I still have all my starches!

We tasted salt water, lemon water (that one was like comfort food!), fish sauce, apples, pears, potatoes, jelly beans and other stuff too. We would take a spoonful and swoosh it around in our mouth and try to see where the flavor hit. Different kinds of salt and a cayenne pepper solution too. It was like a wine tasting without the wine. I'm just happy that it was basically all condiments.

On another subject, I made something yummy for dinner last night. Took the really thin flank steak (about 2-3oz for the whole piece and sprinkled with grill seasoning (the salt-o-phobes can use Mortons, pepper and some garlic powder) and put a mixture of 1/2oz mozzarella and 1/2oz parmesan on it and then a handful of raw spinach leaves. Rolled it up to make a pinwheel and put it in a baking dish. 2 pinwheels were one serving and it was 1P,1D,1V. Baked it at 350 for about 20-30 mins. Yum! I think the next time I may make a sauce w/ rf sour cream and dijon mustard to put on top.

OK.. gotta get some work done. I'll check in later.