Iris. Good to have you back. It's hard to get back on track but it sounds like you know what you have to do. One day at a time, just take it one day at a time.

My DH has stopped drinking coffee - cold turkey. It's been 4 days now and he's doing really well. Except for the and . I know he's going through withdrawal so I'm being very quiet.

His appetite is huge - his body is trying to replace the "false" caffeine energy with food energy. He's not making the best food choices but I'm not nagging. I hope, once he's through the caffeine withdrawal, we can start improving his diet and do some biking together.

I bought some biking gear but am sending it all back due to excessive tight fit. I know it's supposed to be steamlined but I'm looking like a little sausage. I wear a Large in biking stuff I guess.

I am going to go to a local biking geat store and try all the stuff on to get the right items and fit. I think I can persuade DH to go out for a bit on Easter Sunday if the wether's not too awful.

Dagmar

Morning all,

After lots of reflecting I've come to accept that I might not make all of my boot camp fitness goals, like being able to get 3 HIIT sessions in per week. They didn't allow for me to miss a single day at the gym besides Sunday when the gym is closed, and some days if I have to work late I can't make it to the gym. Sigh. I am definitely too much of a perfectionist (this has gotten me in trouble and stressful situations in the past!), and it's hard for me to not do really well at something. So, I will just do the best I can, and try to be ok with that.

Jessica, you're very diplomatic when you tell me I'm nuts to be doing so much at once! You're right, I am, and it's totally my own fault. I once did this all the time through high school and college, b/c I was under a lot of pressure to get straight A's and be involved in tons of activities "b/c it will look good on your college applications". I swore I would never do that to myself again, and don't want to go down that path again! How exciting you will have a nice gym at your new building!

Dagmar, I hope you find some biking gear you like.

Iris, glad you're back! How is your masters going? Way to catch a small regain before it turns into something more.

Allison, I also like to plan out a menu for the week and buy things all at once. This is especially helpful at times like right now, when I've got rehearsals every week night. I literally cook for the Mon-Thurs on Sunday. I am the queen of tupperware!

Shannon, DSS sounds cute. You & DH are starting him on a healthy path early!

Michele, ooh, ooh, I vote for scuba diving! Where is your cruise to/where would you be diving? I love diving! It's such a different world! I remember on my very first dive I was rather nervous, got to the bottom of the anchor line and a fish swam by my mask, and I was hooked.

Hi Iris! Glad to see you're back.
And so smart when it is just a small amount of weight. I'm also going to start charting my weight starting today as it has gone up and I want to see if there is something that just happens monthly or if I'm trending up. I don't think I've been this high in months but I could be wrong since I haven't been tracking it. It just makes me very nervous when I'm about to go on a cruise.

Megan-- we are just doing a short cruise out of LA. We have one stop at Ensenada, Mexico, and one stop somewhere in CA (I can't remember right now). It is just four nights but I am so looking forward to it.

I'm not happy at work today!!! My library gets used for EVERYTHING and today they are setting up to do school pictures in here. There are 10 people setting up making a huge amount of noise. They are hot because they are setting up equipment so they've got all the doors wide open and I am FREEZING!! I hate that I can't even get around the library to get to the books, etc. UGGGHH!! I thought I would get a lot done without the kiddos today but now I'm thinking it will just be a huge hassle. And the "main" person is named Michele so I keep hearing my name being yelled across the room!

Dagmar-- good luck to your dh! Is he substituting anything for the coffee? Tea or decaf?

Megan-- I think the diving spot is in CA but I can't think straight with all the noise going on. We want to get more info on it once we get there because it didn't really say where you would be diving and it just said it was for beginners-- so I want to make sure it isn't in a pool or something. We've snorkeled many times and I love that so I'm thinking I would love scuba too.

Oh great.... now the flashes have started. Where is my tylenol? At least I get to leave at noon to get my crown fixed. Didn't think I'd be looking forward to that!!!

Good morning! I've now registered for the Peachtree Road Race (10k) in July & the Georgia Marathon in March 2011, going to register for the Locomotive Half Marathon in September once registration opens on 4/1, likely to do a 5k in May, looking for a 10k in December or January, maybe another half in there, too, if I think I'll make marathon in March and haven't stepped down to half by then. Hoping the Atlanta Track Club does the Resolution Run (10k) on 1/1/2011 again, it was convenient. I still find it somewhat surreal that I have an entire year of races scheduled.

Michele - glad you are getting out of there early today! I remember that they used our media center for everything, too. Always annoyed me because I went in to read during my free time and often found it closed. Hope your crown repair goes well.

Megan - all you can do is all you can do. Don't put too much pressure on yourself - I find that I am much more likely to quit when I have an unusually high standard for myself. The whole 'I've missed one day already, the rest don't matter' concept. You are doing a great job.

Dagmar - caffeine withdrawal... ouch. Been there. Also ouch on the tight fitting bike outfits... I understand that they are designed to minimize wind resistance, but why do they have to be so tight?

Iris - welcome back! Glad things are going well with the new BF! Well, not so new now I guess. How goes the Master's? Close to finished?

Allison - I'm working hard to make sure that we sit down and eat dinner together with DH when he is at our house. I feel that is important. He and his mom don't always eat together, and I think she will regret that later.

Marie - furlough days... DH got a 5% pay cut and one PT day per month last year, this year they got half of the cut back and get a half day every month. nice to have the extra time, but the lessened income stings us a little, too.

Good day everyone!

Allison, I love eating together as a family. I agree with the “experts” that say it make kids more stable. I always knew what went on in their lives as they grew up. Now family dinner is just DH and me (as of today that’s severely reduced since DH starts swing shift for several months).

Iris, isn’t it horrid how a couple pounds now feels like muffin top ??? It’s so deflating but you are back and you’ll be back where you were in no time.

Dagmar, cold turkey caffeine withdrawal is hard on the person but painful to those living with them. I hope the biking on Sunday works out!

Megan, I’m going to be taking SCUBA this summer so DH and I can dive together. I’m a bit nervous but I love the idea of the fishies swimming by my mask.

Michele, doesn’t your school have a cafeteria they could take the pics in? Choosing the library makes no sense. What if someone is studying? I hope the day goes by quickly for you. LOL on looking forward to the crown being fixed.

Shannon, my mind’s boggled by your year’s worth of races. You’re an inspiration an dit’s a cool way to make sure you stay on track.

It snowed overnight, the high is 36 today and the winds are blowing like a banshee. My weather stinks and I had to return to work. I really hate Tuesdays (way more than Mondays). I did push myself out of bed this morning to elliptical but my heart wasn’t really in it. I barely made my time/distance goal. Food is on track but my morning munchies are starting to nip my heels. I am determined to persevere them so I can have a protein mocha after work.
Marie

Happy Passover to those who celebrate! I ate too much at the seder last night. Hoping for an improvement tonight. Why waste calories on matzoh meal cake? It doesn't taste as good as real cake so I may as well not eat it. Sigh. Oh well. Only half a day into Passover and I'm already missing my grains. Matzoh brei is just not as good as oatmeal. DH and I made a rule that we will allow condiments that include high fructose corn syrup even though technically they're not allowed. Then again, we also have all our other grains in our house in their normal places, we just aren't using them.

Anyone else have spring holiday challenges? Any Easter brunches coming up?

Too busy at work for personals right now, but hi everyone!

Marie-- they couldn't use our cafeteria (MPR) for pictures because it takes the entire day for the pictures and the cafeteria has to be used for all 900 students to eat!

I think the crown went okay....feels weird but we'll see...

Jessica-- I am Jewish but we aren't really making anything special. We bought some Matzah today but that's about it. My dd at college tried to buy Matzah and they don't even have it at the grocery store where she lives. There are very few Jews there!!

Dh worked on our taxes tonight and it is very depressing. It looks like we owe another $6K on top of all we've already paid. That doesn't include our state taxes. We're trying to find some more deductions. Dh thinks it may not be worth it for me to work my 2nd job as it may be pushing us over the top. He's going to see what our taxes would be without my 2nd income.

I started journaling today-- my weight, thoughts, etc.

My long weekend plans didn't include a head cold - bleaagh! Although it does seem to have reduced my appetite to nothing - there's a silver lining . . .

I guess I'll do my taxes and take a couple of short bike rides.

I'm kinda glad DH's sister moved back up north. We used to spend one day of every holiday long weekend travelling and visiting with her and family and it was kinda exhausting - probably for her too with preparing a huge meal! Now she's 6 hours away one way so we don't go up as much.

It's nice to have our own holiday celebrations. Although this year there's no caffeine, alcohol, or chocolate . I think DH is going to feel very deprived somehow.

Part on me wants to buy him some small token chocolate thing and part of me argues that he's not 9 years old and doesn't need "Easter treats". I think the part of me arguing pro chocolate secretly wants some for myself.

Is total abstinence or a small controlled amount better? I'd better make up my mind on that soon.

What is everyone else doing this weekend (aside from staying away from the chocolate ) ?

Dagmar

I don't know yet what we are doing this weekend... My grandparents are having an Easter gathering at their house, but we have been so busy the last few months that part of wants to just stay home and not have to drive 3:30 hours round trip... The other part of me says that I should always go to things at my grandparent's house when I can while I still have them. Conflicted...

Did 5.26 miles at the park last night, still getting synced into the new shoes. Only my second time out with them. DH did somewhere around 3.25 miles himself - he is doing a great job with his running. As I did, he isn't really paying attention to the C25K schedule and has pushed his running intervals pretty high, even with asthma. If a competitive nature and sometimes overwhelmingly high personal standards can be passed on through 'nature' then my stepson doesn't have a chance not to get it. DH & I both have it in spades.

Dagmar - you don't need the chocolate. Be strong. That being said, I tend to go more for small, controlled amounts than for abstinence. Right now though, I'm struggling with the controlled amounts so I'm leaning more towards abstinence.

Michele - DH & I owe about $6k over what we have already paid, too. We are getting $2000ish back from state so are sending that in and hoping for a payment plan for the rest. Glad the crown went well - the weird feeling will probably settle out. I always feel weird right after dental work, for at least a couple of days.

Jessica - even when the food that you are eating isn't as good as others it is hard to turn it down at a holiday event, I'm sure.

Marie - how went the munchies the rest of the day? Did you make it to your protein mocha?

Good day everyone!

We're celebrating Easter by playing a round of golf! We're not all that religious in our family. DH was raised Mormon but his parents and he quit the church when he was in junior high school. His parents have successfully had themselves removed from the "roster" if you will, but DH hasn't written the letter yet. Interestingly, they do allow you to leave the church, but the letter that they send stating that you are no longer part of the fold has some very strong wording about where you'll end up! I was raised Lutheran and DH now considers himself Lutheran, even if the Mormon's don't. But to to church? Not so much.

I had a great 30 minute elliptical workout this morning, but as I was getting off it dawned on me I had gotten up 30 minutes earlier than I needed to. DS has "late start" on Wednesdays, so he sleeps in an hour. So my morning at home kind of dragged on. Now I'm here at work wondering if the day will be as slow as yesterday. I'm starting to think I need to take Tuesdays off--I did absolutely nothing yesterday! We didn't even get decent mail--all advertisements that went straight to the garbage.

Aloha! Back from Kauai where we enjoyed balmy breezes, plenty of snorkeling and too much food and drink. Put on my jeans for the first time in 10 days and, oh, my. So it's back to eating well and exercising. Our bathroom was torn apart while we were gone, and now I definitely have to go to the gym to shower so I might as well work out, too. Kauai was beautiful, and we plan to go back as soon as finances allow.

Allison, that's interesting about the letter your in-laws received. My daughter, who became Mormon when she turned 18, is considering writing a letter to take herself off the roster. I don't know that the actual formality of getting off the roster matter much except that it closes a chapter in one's life, I guess.

Hello to everyone! Hoping that today doesn't have a repeat of yesterday's rain turning to hail turning to snow then sun. Well, the sun part was good, but it feels so darned cold after being in Hawaii.

Allison - DH & I aren't religious either, atheist actually, so Easter is more a time to get together and visit than a time of any spiritual significance. I was raised Southern Baptist and active in the church, my MIL is also Baptist but didn't raise DH with much churchgoing. Interesting to look at the differences in the upbringing leading us both to the same place. Annoying about getting up too early, but good job on the exercising!

Sheila - welcome back! Glad you had a good trip! How long will your bathroom be out of commission?

Michele, yucky news on the taxes. I hope there is a silver lining in being able to stop the second job.

Dagmar, I’d be fine with your no caffeine (as I’m always decaf) and alcohol (don’t drink either) but holy moly, no chocolate. I live for my dark chocolate. 100 cals per day allotment. Now the news has another new study that it could prevent heart attacks and strokes. YEAH!!!

Shannon, the munchies monster crushed me yesterday. Literally demolished me. I had 4 servings of almonds yesterday afternoon (I did great in the morning and afternoons have NEVER been a problem). I’d discovered cocoa roasted almonds (same cals as reg almonds for the same amount). I’d dish out a serving and the last almond had some mental trigger that left me weak and begging for more. After the 600 cals of almonds, I took the container, opened it and dumped them in the restroom trash. In all my years, I have never had to resort to doing that. They’re gone and I need to repeat the procedure at home (I forgot about them last night). I did have a 105 cal mocha last night and an eggbeater scrambled with onion and red bell peppers so I’d finish my day at my 1400 cal goal. But it was ugly. Gross and ugly. Today is clearly going better. I’m thinking because that almond container isn’t whispering my name in my office.

5.26 mile run Shannon? That is impressive. Really mind boggling to me who is so pleased when I walk 5 miles.

Allison, LOL at not even being entertained at the mail. My day dragged yesterday and that was a trigger in my almond OD.

Sheila, welcome back! As your only 400 mile from here, good luck with the no rain/snow/hail. It just hailed and the winds are blowing your way.

alinnell, I resigned my membership in the LDS Church. There is even a website dedicated to getting your name off the rolls.

Anyone can resign from any church--a number of court cases have upheld this idea. Seems some churches try to excommunicate you first (in which case other church members can't have anything to do with you), so they tell you you can't resign. Because if you resign, they can't excommunicate you!

It wasn't hard to resign, although I had to write two letters. The worst part was having the missionaries show up at my door--twice--but I simply told them to go away in a nice way. Yes, the final letter contains a warning about the implications of leaving.

Sheila, I love love love Kauai!!! I've been there twice, and to Maui once.

to everyone else.

Jay