Hi everyone,

Meg, I never can seem to stop at only a few bites of chocolate cake. Great though that you can.

Mel, I'm also in 1 size larger than last winter. I went and bought me just one new pair of jeans and plan to quickly get this extra 10 lbs. off. I can still fit into last years jeans, but very snug in the thighs. I hated that poured into look!

Kery, good to hear from you again.

Lisa, I also hated taking my kids and grandkids for their shots. Big congrats on your 1 yr anniversary and hope you can get back to running soon. (I'm a walker, not a runner).

Wardhog, your pic looks great, sure wish I had that flat tummy.

Jessica, congrat's on your 1st wedding anniversary.

Allison, I lost my wallet twice while in college. Hope she gets it all straightened out soon.

Megan, Lol at you calling me a remodeling goddess. You should have seen me this past weekend. I spent 3 solid days remodeling my hall bathroom. I had to first remove the wallpaper. I learned how to paint ceramic tiles. My new bathroom is pretty with new floor included. I'll try to get some before and after pic's up soon. I still suck at picking out paint though. My tiles that were supposed to come out light salmon color look bright pink to me, LOL.



I feel all banged up right now. I misstepped and fell getting off the chair I was using to paint from yesterday. My knees are all skinned cause I hit the bare concrete floor. Then when laying the new tiles, I cut one finger with the tin snippers. To top it off this morning I burned one finger on the stove while cooking my eggs.

Good news is my eating has been POP. I didn't make it to the gym, but fell in bed each night exhausted after all the painting and remodeling. (surely that burned some calories). My battery is dead in my scale, but my tummy is beginning to feel flatter again.

Today's plan is to pay my bills that should have been paid last week and to get some rest and admire all my handiwork.

My son will be home in 13 days, can't wait to see him.

Good thing that bad things usually happen in threes! Take care of yourself--you don't want to be sidelined when your son comes home!!!

lilybelle OUCH! I have fallen on concrete a couple of times and had huge bruises for weeks. Glad it wasn't that serious for you.

everyone else Wow! What a busy thread already. Sounds like most of us are going into fall about the same size as last fall. I am one smaller, depending on whether it's jeans or cords.

Beside going back OP I also decided what to do about my dad stressing me out so much. I can't totally abandon him because he's 85 and there just isn't anyone else to serve him (although I really, really want to just let him hoist himself by his own petard).

So I wrote him a letter about how I feel about all of this business with the house in Estonia. It sounds kinda dumb but, back when I went to a therapist, she suggested this and it worked.

He went into the hospital again today for another round of bladder stuff and my cousin the doctor is riding herd on him tonite and tomorrow.

I will deliver the letter on Friday, after he has recovered.

I will also do his grocery shopping for him, rather than taking him to do it. We ended up fighting in the car last Saturday. I can't be in the same space with him right now. I'm still too mad at him.

Am now waiting for DH to come home so I can make dinner. Avoided buying bread to go with dinner 'cause we've become carb maniacs in the past week. Something about the cool weather seems to trigger this in a lot of folks. I am making a salad to go with our veggie omelette and he'll just have to eat it instead of a loaf of bread.

Have a good evening everyone!

Dagmar

Hello to all you wonderful maintainers!
This is a crazy week for me so I don't have time to individually say Hi to everyone. I returned from my cruise on Saturday and I am up 2 pounds. Could be a lot worse. I ate somewhat poorly but tried to make good choices and managed to work out on the boat a few times so overall I call it a success!

This week is book fair at my school (I am the librarian) so it is beyond crazy. I end up working about double my regular paid hours. Plus I am taking a class for my masters and am behind since I was out of town, so I will be scarce this week. I hope everyone has a fantastic week though!

I also am going to apply on Saturday to be a WW receptionist. At least I am going for the informational meeting. I was told that if I am still interested in applying after the meeting, I will be interviewed. So.... I'll see..... I think it would be motivating for both myself and for others so I am interested. I could also use the extra $$ even though it won't be much.....

Allison, I hope my run of bad luck/clumsiness is over for a while. I didn't realize how bad my right ankle would hurt and swell until I tried driving with it today. Now it's dark purple in color. Guess I need to stay off chairs for now.

Just had a look at "too skinny" actors in a feature at the Hotmail site.

I remember Keira Knightley in that soccer movie that started her career. She was slim but very athletic and toned and I thought "great, here's a role model for young women who doesn't look like she belongs in the hospital".

Well, now she looks like she belongs in the "eating disorders" wing at a hospital. What a change!

Interesting that, since we all are striving for "normal" (medically defined measures such as BMI) weights, none of us in our "after" pictures look like anorexic stick women.

I guess if the collective mirror (3FC) we look into contains people who are based in normal life then they tend to be normal weight. Good for us!

Dagmar (never too skinny)

Good morning! I got my strength workout in for the day already. Last night I had one slice of our wedding cake and it was SOOOOO GOOD. OMG. I had forgotten how delicious that cake was. (Unlike a lot of people, having a tasty cake was one of our top priorities.) We put the rest of the cake back in the freezer. I think we might defrost it at xmas for my parents.

Lily - ouch! I hope your ankle feels better soon!!

Dagmar - I hope the letter to your dad helps straighten things out. My sister wrote a letter to our dad several years ago explaining how she needed him to stop bothering her about her weight, and it apparently worked (too bad I didn't think of that when I was 14 and he started telling me I was fat ).

Speaking of "too skinny" actors . . . A while back I rented "Some Like it Hot," with Marilyn Monroe. Everyone kind of thinks of her as the ultimate pinup, right? Well, back then, actresses weren't so skinny! I was surprised to watch that movie and think, "wow, if Marilyn Monroe tried out for that movie today, she wouldn't get the part because they'd say she was too fat."

I like how people here at 3FC aim for normal weights, not for being the same weight as models or actresses. Being underweight can be unhealthy just like being overweight.

I have a question for you runners. I have NEVER and I mean NEVER been a runner. Since getting healthy, I sometimes run (ok-- jog) on the treadmill. I ran a little over 5K on the treadmill Sunday which is the longest I've run. I will be in a 5K run in a couple of weeks. It is a fun run and I won't be timed. My question is-- how much different is it running on pavement than on a treadmill? Should I practice running on streets before the event or should I be ok just running on the treadmill? The course should be fairly flat and most likely dry.

Yup, it's very different. Even though it's flat, the surfaces can be uneven and even a slight rise is noticeable after you've run a mile or two. Plus the air quality is different than in a gym or home and pavement is a lot harder surface than a treadmill. I suggest running the actual course before your race, if that's possible, or at least running on the same kind of surface.

I'm off to the animal shelter where we'll be temperament testing shelter dogs. It's one of my favorite things to do, although some of the dogs can be unruly and my leash arm ends up at least an inch longer by the afternoon.

Have a good Tuesday, everyone!

Michele~personally I find it easier to run outdoors. Yeah, the terrain is ever-changing, but at least there's scenery! My problem with the treadmill is that I get bored and tend to stop before I really should. My problem with fun runs is that I try to get too competitive and keep up with people I have no business keeping up with (I can't find my own pace when I'm around other people). It's weird. I usually do my own 2 mile jog/walk in about 20-25 minutes and in a 5k fun run, I can do it in 35-40 minutes.

I agree that Kiera is too skinny these days.

Lily - That's way too many injuries! Be careful! And yes, I'm sure you're burning calories with all that remodeling. It makes me tired to read about it -- I wish I had your energy!

Dagmar - Writing a letter was probably a good idea -- sometimes writing it all down is the best way to deal with things.

michele - Only being up 2 pounds after a cruise is a major accomplishment! It's great that you were able to work out while you were on the boat! Also, Sheila's definitely right about the surfaces being different for running. Many people go from a treadmill to a regular surface and find that they're out of breath much more quickly.

Jessica - I agree about 3FC -- that's one of the things I love about this place. We're all primarily interested in being healthy -- looking good and fitting in smaller sizes are just the gravy. I really miss that gravy these days, though!

Sheila - What are you testing the dogs for? Are you getting one? I miss having a dog, but I can't deal with one right now with a 2-month old baby! When Henry's a little older, we'll get him a puppy to grow up with.

Henry had his 2-month appointment yesterday and had to have 2 shots. He did really well. He just had one little screaming fit later on, but shortly after the shots he was smiling and laughing! He weighs 12 lbs 4 oz and is 25 inches long! His height is in the 97th percentile. He's going to be long and lean like his daddy, I think, but he looks like he might have my coloring. His hair is turning almost blond, it seems! It's bizarre that he's so pale and his birth certificate says that he's black. I'm still kind of annoyed that they wouldn't allow us to put all the different ethnicities that make him up (white, black, Native American) but instead had to randomly pick one.

My 3rd attempt at jogging wasn't so great. After 7 minutes, I got a sharp pain in my chest. Eek! So I switched to walking. I probably won't have another chance to try until the weekend.

Hi, I just got back from trying out Curves. I found that I got a pretty good work out. I'm used to just walking and lifting weights, so it was a nice change for me. And it's over for the day!

Lilly, Be careful girl!!! I'm sure the end results look great, but don't hurt yourself doing it! You said pictures?

Megan, congratulations on the "finds" for your house. I love garage sales and so does my 5 year old GD. We always find some "good stuff".

Dagmar, Good idea about writting a letter to you dad. I hope he is receptive. And it will be beneficial for you to get it off your chest too.

Mitchelle, 2 lb. isn't much and you will get if off in no time. I think that's actually pretty good for a cruise. They seem to push food and drinks at you every time you turn around. And if you got in some exercise too, all the better. Crossing my fingers for you on the WW job. You do WW? My sister has lost almost 100 lb on WW. It has been wonderful for her.

Jessica, Congratulations on your 1 year anniversary! What kind of cake did you have for you wedding? I agree with you, if that is going to be dessert, make it something really great! I think a lot of the actresses are way too skinney. And the camera adds 10 pounds they say. Can you imagine what they really look like? And our standards have really changed. You're right, now MM would not be considered anything but over weight! But look at all the stars at that time. I think I read somewhere that she was a size 12-14? the start now wear size 0.


Shelia, Bless you for working at the animal shelter. We're big animal lovers. Not sure I could work there, I would end up with 20 dogs! Those big sad eyes just make me melt.

Make it a good day, Freda

Lisa, we must have been posting at the same time. Glad to hear that Henry (and mom) got through the shots ok.

Sheila Do they let you temperament test with haltis? Much easier on the arms, back, neck etc. I can walk 4 labs at a time with haltis but barely hold on to one young'un without.

Freda How long is the workout at Curves? And is it just weights, weights/cardio, or something else?

I went to a Curves once to check it out but that particular one wasn't for me. Everyone there was wearing makeup, had hairdos, and sported little matching color-coordinated outfits and squeaky clean white shoes.

I lumbered in with dog hair all over my black stretchy shorts, dirty training shoes (I use my shoes outside) and a colorful t-shirt ( something to do with dogs I seem to remember). They looked at me with horror in their eyes .

Jessica Yeah, what kind of cake did you have for your wedding? I know the traditional fruit cake is quite passe now.

Lisamarie Glad Henry got through his shots ok. Funny you mention that he's listed as black and is blond. My cousin has 3 girls. He is light brunette and pale and his wife is Italian with dark eyes, hair and lovely olive skin. Their youngest daughter has pale blond really, really kinky hair and big blue eyes. They, as a family joke, refer to her as the "milkman's child". Genetics can be a funny thing.

Have a great evening everyone. I have a hot date with Chris Noth on my VCR (DH is at the library studying so I can watch it without him heckling me)

Dagmar

Dagmar are you imbibing in a little Sex and the City or Law and Order or whatever crime show he was on - whatever it is..enjoy.

I just got back from a most excellent run. It turned out to be a fantastic fall day, sunny, a little wind and mild.
Run was OK - wish I could pick up the pace a little- I always feel like such a slug out there.
Now it's time to clean up this disaster of a house I'm just not sure how it gets so dirty everyday. Nobody is home except the cats....hmmm maybe they're having a cat party while we're at work.

-S