Stay warm in that snow Cottage

Ruth I hope you enjoy your visit with your sister

Thats great news Kara

a positive attitude will get you far Stephanie

Hi & good morning to everyone else.

As for me today I will work and then this evening we have to make a trip to home depot as the contractors finished the back two bedrooms so I can get to painting and redoing other than that same as usual.

Good morning, phxsunflower! It must still be pretty early for you. You can make the cola chicken in the crockpot, but the sauce won't be as thick. But you could take the chicken out when it's done, then boil the sauce until it's reduced.

Wow! Look at all these new posts while I was replying!

everybody!

Hey, Phx! Simulposting! I think you can put the Wendy's Chili in the crockpot as long as you brown the meat first. What do you think, Cottage and/or Barb?

Stephanie, I'm sorry about all the stuff last night! I know how frustrating that is! But live and learn, eh? It's good to keep some backup stuff in the freezer/cupboard. I love Morningstar's Tomato and Basil Pizza Burgers. They are delish!!! I usually have WW rolls in the freezer, too, so it's easy to put together a meal with the burger and some frozen veggies. Hope you can find something to have on hand so you don't have to deal with that again. For now, move on and, if you have to, do P1 for a couple days to get rid of cravings.

By the way, I hope this is more helpful than harmful, but for those of you with problems with the sugar alcohols in SF candy, you might want to try Chocolite candy. It tastes amazing, is only 30 cals a piece, and is made mostly of erythritol, which is a naturally occuring sugar substitute that doesn't give you gastric distress. It comes in packs of two (so it's only 60 cals for the whole pack). I've only had the Chocolate Crispy Caramel, but found that the caramel was so chewy that it took me a long time just to finish one. It was really satisfying and I found that I didn't feel the desire to overeat them like I would with the regular sugar free candy. Just a thought.

For your chocolate craving, don't forget your 1oz a week of dark chocolate. Having that every Saturday makes me feel so much better--I get my chocolate fix and I really enjoy it rather than gobbling down something. For a really special treat, try dipping fruit in the chocolate, melted. Berries are really good.

Yikes, it's hopping in here, today!

Gonna, good luck with the painting! What colors will you use?

Just a quick howdy, as i have to hit the road for an 11AM meeting in Quantico. Then home to pack up me and the kids and I leave at 4:30AM tomorrow to catch my flight to NM. We are expecting some snow, so I hope that doesn't complicate matters.

Just wanted to say Kara, I had a meeting at Eglin AFB last year - I googled Hurlburt Field and it's right near there. It's a resort area, I'm told it's called the Redneck Riviera lol. The beach was pretty! Anyway, I have a business trip down there again in April, so if we're in the neighborhood at the same time, we'll have to try and meet up. Glad it all worked out for you!

8 days 1 hour 34 minutes 27 seconds...and counting.

Loriann: How interesting that you had such conversations with the repair-man! We looked into buying a mobile home, but the interest, insurance, utilities and etc., etc. were absolutely ridiculous. I think that if the rent on a house is topping that, and you're not happy with it's condition, you should definitely stay where you are. Just my two cents.

Cottage: I have not yet tried the Cola Chicken. I desperately want to, but DH has shirked at the idea. (He hate any kind of soda, so that may be why.) I will have to make it for myself when he's out of town and see how it is first. Hope the roads stay clear -- unless you want the evening off!

Cyndi: We avoid the sugar-free chocolate in our house like the plague!! That stuff does awful things to the digestive system! If I want to indulge in chocolate, I get some super-dark organic chocolate and eat a serving and then freeze the rest. I hope you get a clear sky for your lunar eclipse viewing.

Ruth: I hope you and your sister are able to venture out, but be careful - slippery sidewalks and your knee could be a bad combination for a while. Give Hershey a pat for me!

Kara: YAY!!! I'm so happy for all of you! Sounds like all of those prayers worked. What a blessing. I don't know much about the Gulf Coast side of FL. I know how you feel about exercising in front of people - I can't do it either.

TK: Sorry to hear about the truck. Enjoy the shiny new tires, though!

Phx: Have a nice day!!

Pacer: I have been in the same situation so many times. Luckily, I've learned from all of that, finally, and started keeping canned salmon on hand at all times. It works wonders and keeps me from getting too far off track!

Laurie: Your phone conversation will be a hard one to have, but you're right, you need the break and once it's done, it's done. No more worrying. I hope you get a weigh-in soon!

, Gonna!

Schmoodle: I hope your packing and what-not goes well. Be careful in that snow tomorrow!

Me: Today is my "breathing" day at work. I had inspections in another town yesterday and Monday and myself and a coworker leave tomorrow for inspections in the rural parts of the county. We have to stay in a hotel because so many of the properties are two+ hours from our office on dirt roads. Sigh. The other bad thing is that eating will be totally off-plan tomorrow through Sunday. I'm hoping to use next Monday through Wednesday to get off the water-weight I'll gain this weekend. Don't want to leave for vacation all bloaty!

Well, don't know how long this has taken, but I need to get the maps and etc. in order. Hope all you chicks have a great weekend. I may be back to "see" you today, but if not, I'll "see" ya Monday!!

8 days 1 hour 11 minutes 5 seconds...and still counting!

Hi Laurie I am painting our bedroom a light gold color and the sapte room will be a sage green

Kim Where are you going on vacation? Good luck with your eating this weekend

Be careful Schmoodle in all your travels

Laurie, enjoy your small group tonight! And good luck with your tutoring "break-up".

Phoenix, why do the kids need so much encouragement? I'm waiting for mine to figure out that it doesn't matter if they want to do something or not, they sometimes just have to. I think it might be a constant battle.

Tawnya, way to pick yourself up and keep going! I have recommited to staying on a good track and today is the first day. I want a purple-jumping-up-and-down smiley!

Stephanie, hope you get to the grocery soon! I always find it a bit of a challenge when the cupboards go bare. I'm hitting Trader Joe's tonight while the kids are at AWANA and I CANNOT WAIT! It'll be my first trip out there since we got back to the States!

Linda, that's exactly how I made the brussel sprouts last night!

Gonna, have fun picking out paint! The kids and I were just talking last night about what color they want their rooms to be in Germany!

Schmoo, how much fun would that be?! Although, I still haven't met up with Linda yet and I do believe we are just about minutes from each other...

Kim, good luck with your visits and hotel stay! Eat as well as you can!

Kara

ok, I did it. I talked to my DH PTSD counselor about his problem. I told him that he's getting worse, that he's in a negative state of mind and nothing but negativity comes out of his mouth, I told him that he looks for any little thing to get upset about. So he said that he's gonna talk to my husband about the problem and that there is couples counseling that we both can go to that might help us. I really want to go to it. I think it'll help.

Gonna: We're going to this tiny, secluded cabin in Ruidoso, NM. We cannot wait!!

Kara: Thanks, I will do my best. I think there are a total of three restaurants there and no grocery stores. There is a Mexican restaurant, a pizza place and a deli. Not much SB food there!

Tk: I'm glad the counselor thinks that he/she can help. Hopefully the couples' counseling will put things into perspective for your DH.

i think it would help the both of us, not just him.

Well, of course you too, tk. Regardless, I just hope it helps both of you!

Tawnya, I'm so glad you talked to the counselor! I wonder if they have sessions for support people like you, if your husband won't go to the couples' thing with you.

Kim and Schmoodle, I've been meaning to ask you what Walk Away the Pounds you like best. I have a DVD that has three on it - one mile Get Up and Go, two mile something-or-other, and three mile Super Fat Burn. I'd like to get my hands on one that is about an hour long as my longest is 47 minutes long.

Kara

Kara: My favorite is the 4-mile Express Super Challenge. It's 55 minutes long. I'd love to find a 5-miler, but haven't yet.

Thanks, Kim!

Kara