It was very good to be in church this morning after missing the last three Sundays! And found out our church is planning another Israel trip...they haven't gone the last couple years or so. I always wanted to go with our previous pastor but this new young pastor will be great to go with to. He is very knowledgeable. Not sure we can save the money but we have about a year so I'm going to try. I'm sure we could go cheaper on our own but this is one trip I have always wanted to make with our pastor and others from our church. After church we went to Panda Express...dh's choice...I wasn't much interested in it and didn't eat much.

Carole Sue - This morning I looked good into the hole in dh's incision. All I can see is pink healthy appearing tissue. If there is another opening, it is beyond my vision. There continues to be some dainage though..small amt.. and I'm not where it is coming from so that makes me wonder. And today it was green but I see no other signs of infection. He has an appt this Wed to see the surgeon's nurse to check on the healing so we can address that if still there. He seems to feel fine. Always feels better when he gets out and about...even just in the neighborhood. He built a fire in the fireplace and is enjoying that too. Hopefully he didn't lift too much, but I can't watch him all the time, he's a big boy and knows the rules. Yes, the best part of surgery is when it's all over and you're all healed.

Lucinda - When is your last meal/eating of the day? Your post says 3:43 but perhaps that is my time? Forget where you are. That sounds very early for the last meal/snack. However I wish I could do that sometimes.

Glynne - I find myself saying things like that when I'm with my kids too. Wouldn't hurt if they took my advice but I too feel like to keep things happy I should just go along with them and have fun. It's not easy being a parent even after they are grown! Still we love them and want to be part of their lives! He obviously wants to have you share things with him so I'm sure he will invite you again. I love the quilt. I'm like Carole I always said I'd make one after I retired...and it's been 19 years and still no quilt!

Good evening GG's,

I worked on that quilt last evening until I got frustrated with a part that I kept trying to correct and each time, it didn't come out like I wanted it to, so I decided to wait until I was fresh after a sleep. Worked on it some more today ~ didn't get as much done as I had hoped ~ kind of the same situation as yesterday ~ kept having to do little parts of it over and over. Maybe I am too picky. Thought I was all done with the little parts, then when pinning the last two blocks on to the row ~ noticed that the picture and name on one of them looked crooked. Part of me wants to just leave it as is, part of me wants to fix it. Maybe I am just too picky.

It was a damp and dreary day today. Ended up with a headache (not a bad one, but anoying) in the afternoon. Hopefully it will be gone when I wake up tomorrow. Got stuff I need/want to get done.

After I get that quilt done, I have some things for my mom (clothing) that I need to hem up the legs and sleeves and take up a bit in the shoulders because the neck hangs down too low. Then I need to put her name labels on all the pieces.

Got to visit with my mom and my sister by phone.

Mary ~ your trip you want to take with your pastor sounds nice. Glad Joe is doing well. Thank you for the encouraging thing you shared. Glad you had a nice time at your grandson's birthday party. The pain is better than it was that one day. I have been taking the celebrex ~ instead of automatically first thing in the morning ~ kind of waiting and playing it by ear. So far, it seems like I end up using it about every other day. Probably not as seldome as the dr hopes, but better than every day I guess. Riding in the car makes it hurt horrible ~ so after riding along with my son on Friday, I ended up using it. I am hoping that when the weather warms up again ~ that maybe that will help me to be less achy.

Carol Sue ~ thank you for your kind words about my quilt. Has the pumpkin eater visited again?

Lucinda ~ I am glad you are back on track and feeling better about things. Sorry you missed your sisterhood dinner. But it sounds like you felt more at peace by having control over your food choices.

Love2garden ~ I will have to check out the supertracker thing you were telling about. Those things are neat, now if I could only develop some self discipline to use one of them.

Cajun ~ hope you have had a nice weekend. You always seem to have such neat adventures to tell about afterwards.

Hello to the rest of our group if you happen to be somewhere out there.

I did not get on the scale over the weekend but I don't expect it to be good. Yesterday, I took a day off from my healthy eating. I just felt that I needed a break and ate a few things that I haven't had in a while. At breakfast I had pancakes with my egg. I had a sandwich for lunch with bread, which I don't usually eat, and at dinner I had mashed potatoes and gravy...a big helping. Then after dinner I had a piece of cake with marshmallow icing. It was really sweet and made me a little nauseated. I don't eat many sweets for that reason. Sugar nauseates me. But now my break is over and today I will work on getting my blood sugar back down where it belongs. I think every once in a while you need to just relax the rules a bit, but it's important to get back on track right away and not stretch it out.

Mary, most days DH skips either breakfast or lunch so he's hungry early. We eat dinner around 3-4 PM, but sometimes I have something else to eat in the evening. I think Lucinda is in NY and on my computer her post is at 6:43PM which would be eastern time, same as mine. Maybe on the west coast it shows your time.

If Joe's incision is only taking an inch or so of packing, I'm sure it will be healed soon. My deep one left an indentation that looks like an extra belly button. LOL Of course, no one is going to be seeing my belly any time soon so I don't worry about how it looks. Just so I'm healthy.

The trip to Israel sounds nice. Hope you get to go.

Gayle, the pumpkin has been spared the past 2 days. I guess whatever was eating it found something else. If it was deer, they might be lying low because this is archery deer season right now and there are hunters in the woods. Of course, my SIL hit one with his car last week so that one wasn't in hiding. LOL

Good morning, GG! It is cold but sunny today. The little bit of snow we got is long gone but there is frost here and there on the ground and shrubs. I saved $8000 for dh's teeth...he hasn't got them yet but plans to get them when he is all healed from this surgery. So if I could save that, I should be able to save for the trip, but we will see. Depends on what else we have to or want to do. I feel like it's a good time to go before we get older.

If I ate dinner that early Carole Sue, I'd be wanting to snack all evening. Neither of us usually misses meals but dh can do it easily when he gets busy working or doesn't feel well. I remind him as I never miss a meal, usually not even when sick.

Yes I guess that's it about the time shown on the posts.

Glynne - I admire your ability to craft. Glad the pain med is helping you...perhaps every other day will be ok. I'm trying to apply the "encouragement" post to myself.

Had to stop to change dh's dressing. And now I need to get other things done. Hope you all have a good day. Hi to Cajun, Love2garden and Lucinda!
I always look forward to everyone's posts.

Mary, sometimes I will start dinner early if I'm not sure how long it will take. As soon as DH sees me in there cooking he asks what we're having and when it will be ready. He's lifting lids and stirring things, sometimes turning the heat down or moving the pot. LOL If I cook a roast or a meatloaf he wants to cut it as soon as it comes out of the oven, and sometimes he does. I tell him the meat has to rest and he asks if it's tired. Also, if part of the meal is done before the rest, he will eat that part, such as potatoes. He drives me crazy sometimes. I always ask him why he doesn't go back in the kitchen in restaurants and start lifting lids, etc. I wish I had a man who stays out of the kitchen until I say the meal is ready, and will eat whatever I put in front of him.

Good evening GG's,

Almost time for bed now. I did pretty good getting stuff done today. Got the last picture on the quilt square adjusted so it doesn't look crooked anymore. Got the last row of squares sewn together then that row sewn onto the rest of of it. I didn't want to start on the next part until I was fresh tomorrow ~ don't want to risk messing it up ~ I don't have a pattern or instructions ~ have just made up my own thing, so have to be able to think clearly.

I did get the clothes I have for Mom measured for how much I need to shorten sleeves and pant legs and then pinned up ~ so they are ready to start sewing tomorrow.

Not making very good food choices some of the time lately. I am having trouble in this cold weather ~ the things I usually eat that get me through (salads, celery and hummus, apples dipped in yogurt) are just not appealing to me in this cold weather.

I think at this point in the year I am just going to try to maintain. I think I will be lucky if I can get through the holidays and visits with relatives without gaining too much ~ hopefully just kind of maintain. Maybe portion control will have to be my tool.

Hope you all had a good day.

Maryea.. I eat my last meal of the day between 6 and 7 pm.. depending on the day. That is a relief for me. knowing that I am done for the day and I do not eat after my last meal of the day.
Now that the weather is cold , I too like hot foods from the oven. I eat roasted eggplant, peppers, zuccinni, garlic, kale mushrooms, tomatoes carrots celery. I also raost beans that had been soaked and cooked earier.
I can also add left over roasted vegetables to "imagine" brand vegetable soup. It is organic, low sodium and low in calories. So I can enjoy a hot bowl of soup with delicious vegetables...

Mary, how great that would be if you are able to make the trip to Israel with your young pastor and church members!!! Save up and we'll pray the "unrest" in Jerusalem will tame down now so the place is safe for all.

Gayle: Wow! You are a quilter? I love quilts and have even traveled to other states to see quilt shows. What patience and artistic talent it takes to produce one, especially when you design your own. I bwet being determined to do a really good job is normal for you.

Carol Sue: This must be National Pancake Week. I had my favorite, pecan pancakes about noon, after fasting for blood testing. So good, and I even logged every bite including the syrup without getting upset. Mmmmm good!

Lucinda: I never thought about roasting beans as you do. Bet that flavor is great. Agree that hot foods taste especially good during this cold weather.

DH and I had snow and very cold weather as we left about 8:00 am this morning. Safe there and back but so many errands! I dislike getting in and out of the seatbelts with bulky winter clothes on and scarf that must cover my nose as I breathe very cold air - Asthma did fine today.

Oh last night was difficult! I woke up about 3 am with terrible back pain! Felt like synapses were firing off erratically all over my back in all directions from a little above the waist upwards. I suspect my body alignment got out of wack and from what PT told me the nerves in my neck cause my back pain.
I took a couple tylenol but it takes so long to take affect and often never helps. PT doesn't want me to rely on muscle relaxants. They often don't help anyway and besides I didn't have any. Dh finally work up with my groaning and jerking with the spasms and trying to stretch and he prayed for me. After that I began to relax and gradually got back to sleep. I've had a lot of really bad back pain but in some ways I think this was the worst.

Today we went to my dh's retirees brunch. I wanted pancakes but decided to do something different. I got a biscuit with sausage gravy and dh ordered a large ranch breakfast and then slipped me one of his eggs and 1 1/2 sl bacon. I don't usually eat that fat a breakfast but hopefully it was a little less carbs than the pancakes and it was more protein. After breakfast I still longed for something sweeet though. I get free glass cleaner from Champion the people who installed our windows so we picked that up, then went to Costco for a few things...one was another GPS. We loaned ours to our son and it is helpful to him so decided to get another. Funny thing when we got back in our car we sat in the parking lot and tried it...we somehow missed selecting the proper country and ended up with another language (I think it was Spanish), and could not get it back to English! Plus all the instructions were in Spanish! These things are usually not that complicated but no matter what we tried we couldn't get it so we took it back into the store...and finally the second person we found was able to help us. Not sure what he did though. However it now does not show miles but only kilometers. Checked the settings and don't see any way to change it. Weird as we've had several of these things and never had any problems before. I'm gong to work on it again when I have some time, but if i can't solve the problem, it's going back. Or fridge has been acting up (probably 30 years old), so we stopped at Home Depot and took a look. We maybe be able to fix it but wanted to get an idea of the cost. They are having a sale and they will deliver and remove the old one so that would make it easy. Have to measure and make sure what will fit in my old kitchen first if we do it.

I also bought a pair of stretch jeans, hoping they would fit. Well I did get them on and with some effort zipped and snapped but they look too tight around my belly so am taking them back too. Someone else suggested maternity jeans so though I hate to resort to that, I may try them as I'd love to be able to wear jeans again. Otherwise it's all stretch slacks for me at this time.

Lucinda - So admire your discipline. Your veggies sound good and esp the soup. Thinking about having soup tonight.

Glynne - Portion control is important. My problem is I'm very good with portion with meals, but with snacks I seem to forget all about it, OR I have correct portions of each snack item but eat too many items! That's my goal to ..to maintain during the holidays. The last few years haven't been too hard at holiday time since I haven't been cooking holiday foods, but this year we are having our youngest son and his family with us...that's three children plus this is the son that loves cookies so I am sure I will be doing some baking and I'll also be fixing Christmas Eve dinner and breakfast so will want to make it special,then there's the stockings for the little ones. Oh dear! Perhaps some of Lucindas way of eating would be good to you Glynne now with the cooler weather. I love soup with big chunks of good veggies.

Carole Sue - I wouldn't like that either ...dh is the opposite..he likes everything to be all ready before I call him. He has always been pretty easy to cook for in the past but the last few years has been pickier and complains more about my cooking. It's strange because I think I'm a better cook now. It is not often that he praises it but occasionally he does. I try to fix a variety of foods and foods I know he likes. It doesn't always work but I try. I wish I could please him more often. I also let him cook more now because I was kinda possessive of this role in the past and he likes to cook too. But then sometimes when he has the opportunity he acts like he doesn't want to do it, so I'm a bit confused. Oh well, he's such a good man and I have little to complain about..so I just keep trying to please him. Tomorrow the surgeons nurse will check Joe's incision.

Love2 - I have never had any fear of going to Israel but I'm sure it would be scary if there were a terrorist attack or a rocket warning while we were there.
Not something I worry about though. I have always wanted to go there...sorta my dream trip...and doubt there will ever be a better time. If things get too dangerous, I'm sure they will cancel the trip. Always appreciate prayers though.

Ok, gotta run...haven't been home all day and have a few things I still need to do here at home before bed.

Good morning GG's,

It is a nice sunny day ~ it has gotten up to 52*. 70's would be nice. Be glad when the weather gets to where it isn't so cold as we have been having.

Didn't accomplish much yesterday. Hopefully today I will get some stuff done.

Mary ~ hope you rested better last night ~ sorry you had such bad pain the other night. About the snacks ~ I wish there was some snack that you didn't have to worry about portion control and could just eat mindlessly. It is sort of a stress relief ~ to be able to just eat mindlessly ~ not having to pay any attention. Probably some sort of vegetable. Come on warmer weather ~ then some vegetables might be appealing to me.

Love2garden ~ sorry you had to endure errands in such cold weather. Glad that your asthma didn't act up because of it. I'm not a quilter really ~ I am a sewer. I just wanted to make this photo quilt for my mom. When I first started/had the idea, I wanted it to be sort of a lap sized thing my mom could use and look at the pictures on it. My sister felt that it might be better for such a special thing to be used as a wall hanging instead so that frequent washing it might get at the nursing home would not ruin it. So that is how I am making it.

Lucinda ~ sounds like you are back on track again. Your soup idea with vegies added in sounds good.

Carol Sue ~ these husbands. Sorry yours gets on your nerves at meal time. I am lucky, mine will eat what I fix and doesn't mind left overs. My only thing with him is he makes me cut up his chicken or turkey ~ says it is slimy. Until I discovered the frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts, we didn't eat chicken much. It was enough to have to fix my own plate without having to do his too (removing the bones and skin so he wouldn't have to touch it).

Hope you all are doing well.

We have been having trouble with our cable modem and I haven't been able to get online. DH was on the phone with the cable company yesterday and twice today and they have it working, but I don't know for how long. They said we need a new modem and they are sending one to us.

Mary, have you ever tried wearing elastic waist jeans? That's what I have been wearing since my surgery, when my waistline grew because of damage to my muscles. I found a nice pair in WalMart. They are called Just My Size and they have both front and back pockets. If you wear a top hanging out, they look like regular jeans. Bad thing is they only come in size 16 and up. I have size 16 and could probably wear a 14 but they don't come in smaller sizes. I am small through the hips, butt and thighs and bigger in the waist so I have trouble finding regular jeans anyway. When I had my colostomy bag I could not wear anything tight around the bag, so I bought 2 pairs of maternity jeans. I could wear them, but it was hard to keep them from falling down because although my belly was big, it was not "pregnant" big.

Another thing you could try is buying men's jeans if you find a style you like that fit. They tend to have a bigger waistline than women's jeans.

I think your GPS should be able to convert to miles, the same as converting it to English. I have a lot of trouble figuring out these technical issues.

I hope you get some relief for your back issues. I have trouble with my back and hip if I lie on my right side in bed. The left side is ok.

Lucinda, I have always preferred to eat hot food, even in the summer. I like a good salad, but I have to be in the mood for it.

Gayle, my husband will only eat the boneless skinless chicken breasts, too. He is a very picky eater unless it comes to junk food and baked goods. He'll eat all of them he can get. LOL

It's been another run around day so nothing done at home and it's beginning to show. The fridge is still not well so we went shopping. The problem we are having is that the space in our older home is not big enough for the new fridges. We found only a couple that would work and they are not nearly as nice as what we are used to...quality and space, plus in most cases no choice of color. I just want white you wouldn't think that would be so hard but some are cream or black. Guess this is why people move or remodel.. We did neither and here we are.. So I'm going to do my shopping online now where I can easily read the dimensions and go from there. We may also try to see whether our fridge can be fixed. Dh is usually good at fixing everything but he hasn't figured it out yet. Perhaps it will hang in there just being a nuisance until he is more up to trying again.

We returned the GPS we bought and got another one. I think I know now what I did wrong with the other one ...I never thought to look under units for changing from kilometers to miles. Duh! We paid $20 more for this one but we like it better anyway. The only instructions in the package were only in Spanish same as the other one! What is America coming to? But at least I was able to easily customize it. I also took back the jeans I bought. We shared a slice of pizza for lunch and I ate NO samples for a change!

Carole Sue - I used to wear the jeans with a fly front but also elastic on the sides. Some of them were ok but I haven't been able to find in a long time. I lost weight in the meantime and didn't need them but now I do again. The regular stretchy jeans don't usually fit me right. I could never wear a 16. My legs are only really a 12, sometimes even a 10...my middle is at least a 16. So that means they would have to be tailored or forget it. I really hate getting stuff tailored. Seems like they never get it quite right besides I don't like paying twice for things. There was a time when I did buy men's jeans but again they didn't fit quite right. Don't remember now what the problem was. Sorry I'm not trying to be negative but that's just the way it is trying to fit me. Very rarely I find something that fits perfect off the rack, but not often esp with pants. Even shoes are hard to fit. Tops and skirts are easier.

Glynne - Last night I slept much better although my back did hurt, I didn't have spasms. I did my stretches before bed and I took 1100 mg Tylenol, woke up at 3 am again hurting (but no spasms) and took 1000 mg Tylenol and got back to sleep. Thankful!

Well need to get somethings done. I'm trying to defrost some chicken breasts for dinner as I forgot this am. Planning on trying a new recipe called Mexican chicken. Probably serve it with rice and some veggie.

I have been gaining strength from posting on a facebook page with people who are committed to abstinence. No patting each other on the back or sharing recipes. No talk about what we eat..just support and camaraderie to bolster our mutual commitment and the realization that being true to ourselves and yielding to G-d's will. It is a 12 step program based.
I am a recovering sugar addict and alcoholic.

Oh the reason I posted was to share with you all that I am going to the doctor today for an annual check up. I am hoping to get a refferal to have my painful disgusting varicose veins removed. Iam also looking forward to seeing the doctor's reaction to the 70 pounds I have lost since January 2014!

Dh thinks he may have gotten the fridge working right again. Would be nice even though I'd love a new fridge if I could have a larger one. Ours is very crowded these days but ones available in our size would not be any better.
Yesterday we went to have dh's incision checked. She said it is healing fine. Carole Sue, I asked her about a possible deeper pocket of fluid and she said no at first...then she poked around (oh it hurt me to see it hurting him!) and found a small opening on one side. So I am now packing more in that direction.
She said it should be healed in a couple weeks. I'm thinking a bit longer myself.

Starting to think about Christmas...anyone shopping yet? I have bought an ornament for one of my gc and a gift for my youngest dd. I have many more people to actually shop for this year since they will be here for the holiday. I'm not used to entertaining at the holidays so feel a bit overwhelmed already just thinking about having children here again. I have a tendency to overdo as I want everything to be very special for them. It's been about 18 years since this son has been here with his family. It was his first marriage and he only had one child at the time.

For Thanksgiving I am making a sweet potato casserole to take to my dd's per her request, basically the same as many call a sweet potato pie. I cut back on the sugar a little bit as the recipe is way too sweet, but I do use sugar in it, so have to buy some for making it. It is a favorite in this family so want it to please them. I love it so I will eat some too as it is only at the holidays I have it. My dd is baking only two very small pies because none of us want to eat very much due to our diets. She is very health conscious.

Back is still hurting but only a few spasms and got through the night on only one dose of 1000 mg Tyl. Dr doesn't like me taking it so often but he doesn't have my pain. I think the ice and stretching more are helping.

Lucinda - Glad you found a group to support you. We love having you here but you have probably realized that the GG are more social, not just about weight support. But there are many threads I think here on 3FC that just focus on the diet issue for those who like that plus of course there are many other similar sites. In the past I have done both but since i only have time for one, I mostly just come here now. We don't have many posters though these days.