Hi Shari! Welcome!

I found out that tennis is on USA from 5am-12noon. So most of that time I am at work but I am watching James Blake right now. Gotta go because I really want to get to work by 8am today.

7 hot dogs???? are you kidding me the last time i had a hot dog my son finished it for me.. lol... yuck

tatts.. hmm no im far too chicken to do something like that .. but i think your choics are great.. pain is not my friends and i wouldnt want to get a tatt and regret it later on ..

HIYa modcat and sour.. great to have you onh board..

JO size 6.. omg wow girl.. you wokred your butt of to get there too .. enjoy your tiny clothes.. my 7 year old would fit into.. lol .. ( actuallly he might he is soo skinny.. there is no meat or fat on him lol)


anyway off to bed for an early night for me i gotta plurking last night and went to bed to late.. lol .. nighty night

Well, I am WAY behind on reading this thread. Trying to catch up here... Nothing much going on at my end here. I can't wait for the new challenge to begin. I'm trying to stay OP and work out as much as I can. Although right now exercise part is lagging.

I understand the pull of the cake only too well But you've come too far only to succumb to the mean ol' cake. He is not the master of you! YOU ARE!!!
As for Size 6...awesome! you go girl!! I am SO happy for you

Jeez, it seems so many of you are getting tats as a goal reward. I talked with my friend last night and she's thinking of getting a tat for her Birthday in couple weeks. Maybe I need to decide what I want to do. Roni, I hope you're going to share the tramp stamp tat picture with us

Free food at work is very difficult to ignore especially when you're hungry. Here's what I did to ignore it last week (cookies, cakes etc laid out for everyone) and I was happy that I ignored it...I kept repeatedly thinking about how hard and extra I'll have to work out for any cookie or cake piece I put in my mouth which is not OP. It is amazing how calories just add up even from the smallest piece. It's not the best excuse but it worked for me and I did not touch the food. I guess you'll have to find something that will help you so you don't end up eating the free office unhealthy food.

I just want to drop in and say HI as well. I really have some catching up to do. Just reading the last few it sounds like everyone is liking Tats.... I do have one got it about 5 years ago and have been looking or I should say deciding on what the next one will be. I do plan on getting one and the very very near future so crunch time will be here soon.
I will try to do some personal a little later but for now I have to get off to work.

Have a GREAT DAY everyone

Oh and welcome SOUR and MODCAT

well even after low cals and a hard workout yesterday, scale was up this morning...maybe it's because i gained some muscle during that 100 minutes of working out here's hoping?! lol
going to the mall, they're opening early since it's the start of tax free weekend...hoping to get to steve & barry's for some running shoes (someone said they found shoes tehre for under $10) and some capris for me starting school...since i only have 1 pair of shorts i fit into now...everything else is workout clothes. and then old navy for the baby sale, but only for some socks and shorts for the little guy, as long as they are all really on sale or clearance and then need to get to walmart for our fresh fruit/veggies and the 2pk hannah montana shirts for $10 i promised Abigail...and to get a bday gift for our friend's daughter (who's turning 4 i think)...we're going to her party tomorrow. so she might get a hannah shirt too (she's starting to get into the hannah thing too), they came ot my yard sale a few weeks ago and got some of abigail's outgrown clothes, so i have a good idea on clothes sizes
gotta go change a diaper and head out to the mall. it opens at 9am, but want to get an early start. i am always tempted by the chick fil a in the mall (since it's our ONLY one within 20 miles of here)....i love their chicken biscuits...
but i was good this morning, the kids had waffles to fill them up and i had 2 servings of eggbeaters with a half serving of shredded cheddar cheese on two corn tortillas (for burritos), at only 195 calories. a nice change. i have tried eggbeaters before. but the soft corn tortillas were a new change, tasted different and little rubbery, but am used to the soft flour tortillas....but enjoy the fact that i can have two corn for 80 cal instead of one flour for 110 cal. i kept thinking of that fact while i was eating and maybe the new taste will grow on me lol

Marianne - As promised, here are two recipes for you!

Spring Green Quinoa

1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1 clove garlic, minced
4 (about 1 ounce) sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil), chopped
10 ounces frozen edamame (2 cups)
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1" pieces
1 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch slices
3 -4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon oregano (more to taste)
1/2 teaspoon basil (more to taste)
1 generous pinch red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon lemon juice (more to taste)
salt and pepper, to taste

Rinse the quinoa well in a fine-mesh strainer. Put it in a pot with the water, 1 clove of minced garlic, and the sun-dried tomato and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and cook until water is absorbed and grain is tender, about 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and keep covered.

While the quinoa is cooking, bring a large pot of water to boil (Dutch oven sized, about 1/2 full). When it reaches a boil, add the frozen edamame. Return to boil and cook for 4 minutes. Add the asparagus and zucchini and cook until they are tender but still crisp, about 3 minutes. Drain well, and place in a large serving bowl. Add the quinoa and toss well.

In a small non-stick pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable broth. (If you're not following a strict fat-free diet, you may use 1 tsp. of olive oil.) Add the minced garlic and cook for one minute. Add the remaining broth, oregano, basil, and red pepper. Simmer, stirring, for about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and add lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Pour over quinoa and mix well. Taste and add additional seasonings, including lemon juice, as needed. Serve warm.

Makes 4 large servings. Per serving: 270 Calories (kcal); 6g Total Fat; (19% calories from fat); 15g Protein; 44g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 168mg Sodium; 8g Fiber.

Chana Masala (this is a recipe Anna (onthetee) pointed me towards, so thanks go to her!)

Ingredients:

2 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large clove of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon tomato paste
15 oz can of chick peas drained, reserving 3 tablespoon liquid
3/4c light coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
fresh black pepper
crushed red pepper, optional to taste
1 tablespoon margarine

Directions:

Heat oil on medium high heat. Fry onions until slightly browned. Reduce heat to medium. Add garlic, curry, and tomato paste. Stir and simmer about 2 minutes. Add chick peas, liquid, coconut milk, salt, and black pepper. Simmer 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add red pepper to taste. Add margarine, stirring through to melt it. Stir and simmer for 5 minutes more or until peas are softened and dish is hot. Serve over rice.

4 Servings

Good morning, Losers!

Today was my last weekday to sleep in. The girls are back to school on Monday. I've volunteered for the PTA for each daughter's school. Hopefully, I'll finally start getting out of the house and meeting people again. Also, "Frank" and I will be joining the fitness center next week. I'm so excited! I need the extra push to exercise. At my age, no exercise = no weight loss. Today, I plan on re-starting my modified C25K. This will be the...hmmmm..5th restart?

Mandey - Congratulations on quitting smoking! I'm a former 1 1/2 pack a day gal and I know how difficult quitting can be. Sounds like you are doing great!
MJ - Congratulations on those smaller jeans!

I keep allowing myself to eat off-plan things each day. Gotta stop this! Now!
If I buckle down, I can be in Onederland soon.

Hope everyone has a great on-plan day.

Morning Everyone ! ! !

Happy Friday to Ya'

It's a no-go for me on the tat...I'm going to get a MOTORCYCLE (or at least a scooter ) when I hit goal.

This has been a cruddy week, and I am not sure why I am so upbeat today, but hey let's go with it.

I miss the challenge and I am ready to hit it....

I have one question...."What have you done today to make you feel proud?"

Hello everyone. I have great news ... my elliptical is FINALLY fixed. My DH fixed it about 30 minutes ago. I plan to get on it today an tomorrow morning and then go on vacation for a week (Ugh! - got it fixed just in time to leave)

Jennifer - first off "Gesundheit" - secondly, shame on you for sneezing on the cake

Welcome to all the newbies - glad to have you on board. Post and post often is all I can think to say

I will probably be absent starting tomorrow as we are camping overnight with my DS's Pack and then leaving for the ILs in NY (Long Island). Should be back late on the 24th, but DS starts school on the 25th and I already have a Principle/teacher meeting scheduled for that day. Going to try and make sure he has a better year than last year, by putting my foot down early and hard.

Best to all and everyone stay POP, I'm going to get back to my C25K (which I was in the last week when my elliptical broke) and see what I can do.

It is a combination of fairies that represent a different word of my struggle through this weight loss: Growth, Respect, Humility, Love, Inspiration, Play, Trust, Persistance. I have pics of them, but not put together yet. My EXTREMELY talented (and hott! ) friend Brent is designing it for me. - but they will be in a line across my back. Since I work in an EXTREMELY conservative office, I can't have any tattoo showing - so it's eaasier to hide it under clothing then wear turtlenecks and floor length pants/skirts year round.

Shari - MY LOVE! I'm SO glad you joined! I can't wait for the challenge to start!!!

Alright girls - I'll try to catch up more later - but for now... It's back to work for me! :

Thanks for all the disgusting snot and cockroach talk, ladies.I can always count on you guys to be totally disgusting. The cake definitely looks less appealing now.

Kelly -- Yay, I'm glad your elliptical is fixed! Have a blast on vacation!

Vanetta -- A motorcycle! Now THAT's a goal reward, whoo!

I cooked my husband his requested birthday-blowout breakfast and didn't eat ANY of it myself.

Rhonda -- Have a great first day back on C25k! You can do it, girl, you need to release that runner within! Rock it, sister!

Jaime -- You're making me hungry, stop that.

Manick -- Way to go on racking up the exercise hours, that's AWESOME!

Welcome to the challenge Shari, Modcat, Soure, and anyone I've missed!

I went for a 7.5 mile bike ride this morning. Took me forever but it was only the second time I've been on the bike this year. I fear for my buttocks.

I have one small butterfly tattoo on my right ankle. I got it right before I turned 23 and decided that I didn't need a man to make me happy. One week later I met my husband to be. Go figure? I am getting a second one on the 3rd of September. Its going to be in honor of my kids. I'm still working on the design for that one. There will be a onderland tattoo as well when the time comes. I have no idea what I will do for goal.

Zinke--Onederland tattoo. I didn't even think of that one. I may go that route too but I might need to set some parameters like I need to stay in onederland for a month or be at 190 or 195. Something like that. I don't remember who mentioned a wrist one. I think I would get the onderland tattoo on my wrist and still get the goal tat above my belly button. Belly one will definitely be a butterfly. Wrist one I need to think about that.

How about the tat & motorcycle! That sounds good to me!