You're right Heather.. That IS the biggest challenge.. It all gets back to this diet plan being a lifestyle change.. If you don't make a concerted effort to change your habits, it's not going to work.

We, as humans, are conditioned to get by doing the things that are most convenient to us.. On the run? Grab a quick burger. Bored? Go out and get something to eat.. We're all like this and it's a constant struggle to break out of the mold. Even when we do it successfully, it's easy to revert back to our old habits.. There's almost something comforting about them.

But it CAN be done.. And once you make that switch, after a while you realize how easy it is, even if it's not as convenient... On the run? Instead of grabbing a burger in the car, take 20 minutes to have a quick salad at Micky D's.. Bored? Actually pick up that new cookbook and plan some meals.. Then go to the store and look for the healthy ingedients... I actually have fun going down the isles looking for new, healthier things to feed the family.. (I know, I'm TWISTED!!)...

The solution is will power and dedication. It can be done, you just have to push yourself...

I don't mean to sound preachy, so I hope it's not coming off that way.. I'm no saint when it comes to staying on plan, as this past weekend is evidence. But we have to do the best we can do, as often as possible...

Suzette - your mom is in my prayers! Hope she is better soon. We eat a lot of berries around here, too. I freeze blueberries for snacks. They are awesome that way!

Oh, well, back to my boxes! I have both kids' rooms packed up. The kitchen pretty much done, as is the living room. I'm working on the dining room today. I haven't packed my china yet. That's going to take FOVEREVER!!! But it's precious, so the extra time will be worth it. My grandmother gave me my china when I was twelve. It's not expensive - in fact, I think she got it at a grocery store, a piece at a time. The cool thing is that my mother AND my mother-in-law both have the same pattern! One day (hopefully a LONG time from now), I will have 24 place settings of my china!

Heavy sigh...back to my packing!!

Morning all--so glad to see everyone again. Not too newsy--same ol same ol around here. Today is MAJOR housecleaning day and DD is NOT happy about it but we all live here so--ya know.

Tomorrow is packed with errands (finally get to sign my contract!--then I am official--woohoo)--feel better already. I am going to try out a new kickboxing class--never have tried one but we have a new place in town and everyone says it's great--we'll see.

Have a great one--I have got to get BUSY--this house refuses to clean itself!

Princess Heather - Like Dan, I'm not throwing rocks at glass houses either! I know some of us have a "fall back" plan we keep on hand... For instance, whenever I leave the house, I pack a lunch box cooler (okay, it's one of those 30 can coolers!) I pack a large green salad, my salad spritzer, tuna salad, crackers or rice cakes (minis), fruit and of course, water. If I don't eat it while I'm out, I have my lunch/dinner ready when I get home or I pack it for lunch the next day. That way, I never have to do the "drive thru two step"! I keep plastic forks and spoons in my bag with napkins and 1 gallon size ziplocks to put all the trash in when I'm finished.
You can always keep a tuna kit in the car, pick up fruit at the grocery along with a salad off the salad bar (a LOT less salt than those "grilled chicken salads" at fast food places!) (Hey, did I just get a gold star from Dan?!?)

Hope all is well, gotta go for now.
Blessings,

Hi everyone!

I'm back from a 2 week absence, and only up 1lb, so I'm taking solace in the fact that it wasn't 5lbs, even though it deserved to be so.

Katie - I cashed in on the $10 per day thingy I had been doing up to my vacation and had $50 to spend, so a bought a cute new black dress. I loved doing that, so now I'm doing another one from now to Sept 1.

Eeep! Boss just called...more later.

Hi Everyone.

Well the kids came home this weekend after having a great time at camp. Danny got to get his Build a Bear yesterday ( a monkey name Cody). He brought him in the car with him this morning and strapped him in when we left to go into day camp. Same with Alex. They are too cute.

Well TOM is going away this week, thank goodness, so hopefully the cravings will go with it. I am still fluctuating between 173/170. But I know I can get back down there and further if I could just get control of myself. And if I am really serious about getting the rest of this weight off, I will do just that. What would I do with out Dan. He has gone down more than 10 sizes, while I have barely gone down 1. So though it makes me frustrated it also shows me that it can be done.

Well, time to get back to work, or start working that is. You all have a great POP day and I will chat with you all later.

XOXOXO
Liz

Liz, I'm with you! DH has lost SO much more than I have, and I've got SO much more to lose. I'm so proud of him though. He's looking great and I know it's my fault that I'm not further down the road than I am. At least I'm still traveling ON the road, so I'll just keep on with the journey. The Build A Bear story is precious! Don't you just love those moments of such sweetness?!?
Hang in there Liz, you're not alone!
Blessings,

Thanks Pearl.

I know it is my fault this time for not losing the weight. It just seems so much harder these days. Not sure why. But I have to be able to do this so that our daughter benefits from it too. She is a bit over weight and if she sees me eating junk, she will eat junk too. I heard that she was getting teased at day camp and it just broke my heart. I thought she was doing great. I was teased when I was growing up and I definitely don't want her to experience that. But I also don't want her to think she has to be super thin either. It is like being caught between a rock and a hard place, ya know. So I am going to try really hard to get my act together.

Liz

hey everyone I am doing take off today and tomorrow, I went and weighed in today was up a little, but thats because of going to a birthday BBQ my friends threw for me, I ate on plan all day and even there but I did have a few coolers(2) and we roasted marchmallows which I ate i couple of those.. not to bad if I say so myself,
but I have been wrestling with the loss and gain of the same 2 lbs for the last couple of weeks so I am hoping take off kicks then off... lol

Stacie

Liz my DS decided to "bulk up" when he went into middle school to get on the football team. Once he started high school I noticed that he went into a fitness freak mode and he drastically reduced his food intake. I worried for a while because he got quite thin but then he leveled out and he looks great now. I found out this last year (he just graduated high school) that all the reason this change came was that kids were brutal to him and his group of football boys calling them fat and making fun of them. It broke my heart to find out he'd gone thru that without saying a word but I also found solice in the fact that he dug in and fixed it himself. He did this even though I was getting bigger and bigger each year. They tend to work it out for themselves but it sounds like you and Dan are doing everything you can to encourage healthy eating habits and it also sounds like you're pretty active as well. Hang in there and try not to worry too much.

Dan: you don't sound preachy......I'm married to a minister so I would know...LOL

Pearl: what a great idea! We seem to always dash through somewhere...and i do worry what that is teaching my DFS.....everyone says the same thing "he's only 2 and he will be fine" but i'm not so sure i buy it. I think if he sees us eating junky food he will want that too. He's small for his age anyway....I don't want him to be overweight too!

Stacie: it seems the last few weeks i've done the same...gained and lost the same few pounds or ounces......I just keep working to break that and get on with this weight loss!

Okay, now where was I?

Katie -- Thanks for worrying about me. We're back home now, and I am back on plan as of yesterday.

Dan -- Wow you are really doing great! I think you were at 206 when I left, and you are sooo close to Onederland now. I'm sure you'll get there by this weekend, and that will be your motivation to stay POP Saturday and Sunday.

Shannon -- What did you think of the Simpson's movie? We want to see it, but I'm pretty sure we'll leave DS at home for that one.

Heather -- For me the motivation not to stop at the fast food place/drive thru window is to think of how sh!tty I'll feel when I go to WI and I'm still at the same old weight or higher. Sometimes that works, sometimes I think about what I have at home that I can make when I get there. If all else fails I'll stop for a pizza slice and call it a CC...at least you're still on plan then. You just have to figure out what will work for you.

Lea Ann -- Congratulations on your new job!!

Liz -- That's so sweet about the build-a-bear. Hang in there, you're doing great. I can't believe you've gone down 30lbs but only one size, but then that's pretty much my story too...lol. The rest will come off. By focusing on healthy choices for your body you're setting a great example for your daughter, rather than targetting a specific weight or size.

Welcome back, Angie! It's good to see you posting again. Big congrats on that black dress. I'll bet you felt good buying it since it represented all of your hard work and dedication.

On the children topic...I was teased growing up, too...and I really don't want my DD to go through that. I've been running 1 mile/day before work and this morning my DH to DD for coffee. On the way back, he drove along side me and DD was waving and smiling. It made me feel really, really good to have her see me exercising. As parents, we set the tone for how our children grow up. Granted, we can't control everything...even though I would like to think that I can At least we are all aware of what we need to do now and we're doing something about it.

Liz - you have lost a whole lot of weight for only going down one size. But then again, if you're like me, maybe you wore your clothes a little too snug when you were at your highest weight. I remind myself of that fact when I feel like my clothes should be looser Oh...and don't you just wish that you could freeze time when your kids are so incredibly cute? There are so many times that my heart skips a beat when my DD does something sweet.

Dan - you're doing awesome! What a great feeling to fit into such a small size...WTG!!!

On a personal note, I've been feeling a little down lately. My weight has stayed the same for over a week, which I'm trying not to let bother me. I know that one week does not a plateau make, but I guess I'm just out of that "honeymoon" stage with the program. I'm chugging along, though. On Thursday, I'm going for a seaweed body wrap. Two of my friends/coworkers went last week and had it done. They lost alot of inches. So all three of us were skeptical and thought, "yeah, ok, so will it last?". Well, one of the girls just came into my office and showed me that her pants were still big on her...after a whole week! She was told that her biggest losses would be in her hip and butt area, and her "pouchy" belly from having babies. That is exactly where I need the loss. So, I'm hoping that if nothing else, it kickstarts my body/mind back into gear.

This group gets chatty around lunch time

Just had to put in my two cents on the subject of children and the examples we set. One of my main reasons for starting LAWL was to set an example for my DD. Not only did I want her to be healthy and not get teased about her weight but about mine either. Growing up I didn't have a weight problem but my mother was overweight and believe me there were kids who would say things. I never want DD to have to defend me.

Now that I've been on the program she is constantly helping me stay on plan. She asks me all the time if something we are eating is on my diet. It is amazing how a 4 yr old pointing out you shouldn't be eating something makes you drop it And she says she has a "little diet" which she describes as eating all her veggies so she can be "healfy" and "strong".

So yes to all of you out there wanting to set an example for your kids YOU ARE! Keep up the good work

Thanks everyone, for the words of encouragement about our DD... I just don't understand why she's gaining weight.. We have practically no junk food at home.. We keep a few popsicles and cookies around for the kiddos for dessert, but no regular sodas, no chips or crackers.. When they snack, it's usually fruit.. At mealtimes, we don't let her go overboard on anything and she's taken to eating salads with little dressing.

She stays active at summer camp and takes Tae Kwon Do lessons. I'm going to start going on bike rides with her if she's willing...

I've always been critical of her weight, as it's been an issue with her for a while. But I've realized that I was turning into my mom and dad and the comments were more critical than constructive.. So I've dialed that back in favor of trying to help rather than hinder. Meanwhile, our DS is as thin as a rail... sigh.. it's never fair...