I am at work - I don't smoke, so this is my break:

Gracious – Your Sunday sounded wonderful and your daughter sounds like a real gem! Though I am sure you are lost without your normal Sunday routine – it sounds like you had a nice quality time with your family. I do not miss the Northern Winters!! Snow and ice is so pretty, but now that I have been away so long from it all, it sounds so scary! GOOD FOR YOU ON YOUR WEIGHT LOSS!!!!!!

Trish – I am pretty sure that you have probably already given yourself that kick!!! You have been so succesful, and I am sure you will jump right back on that wagon – so as to not ruin all the good work you have done!!!!!! If anyone does not know, I have to toot Trish’s horn –– she has lost a lot of weight and looks terrific!

DawnStorm – that is was a really cute saying!!! And how TRUE!!!!!!

Went and had a veggie plate for lunch which consisted of ½ a baked sweet potato, small side salad, stir fried vegetables and eggplant, with an unsweet iced tea – and I feel terrific!!!!

Tomorrow for lunch I will be at the gym, and will probably pack myself a very legal lunch for afterwards…

It is supposed to be in the mid 70s today!!! It is gorgeous here!!!!

Sabrina

Boy did I miss ya'll last week. We were on vacation. And let's just say you don't want to jump on board when you are eating everything in sight. Not sure why but I had the munchies like I haven't had in years. Once again chips were my biggest down fall. So between losing six and gaining five I am still down 1 pound since the first of the year...I'll take it..not that I deserve it. No exercise and tons of good eats. I know it sounds odd but I think I needed the time away to get back on track. Eating well today and plan to continue. I've also decided not to focus so much on my eating and weight. The first part of January brought up some bad habits from my past that are not healthy. Yes the weight dropped, but it's not all about being thin. It's just hard to remember that when in my heart I want so badly to be just a tad smaller.

I'm sorry that I didn't keep up with ya'll and hope all of you are doing okay. Extra hugs to those who are trying to get back OP.

Love,
Crystle

GREETINGS LADIES!!!

I'm so far behind that I will just post what's going on with me quickly and try to get caught up with everyone this week....

had the MRI done on my ankle and found 2 reasons why I'm in so much pain. Going to have arthroscopic surgery soon - at least, I hope that scheduling lady calls soon! I'll be off my feet for a week and already told that Meister will have to provide tough love because of the pain I'm going to be in for the first day or so and then having to make me walk on my ankle the 2nd week.

I will be working from home that first week. Vixen is NOT going to understand why Mom is home, but won't play with her and take her outside. YES, the child is spoiled rotten!

Vixen did win at the last dog show (beauty pageant) and got 2 points toward the 15 she needs for her Championship. I was encouraged to read that another "blue and tan" border is winning the Terrier group consistently up north.

ZANNE - Why is all that forbidden food the best comfort food when we don't feel good? I love CHicken Corn Chowder and absolutely must have it when I've got a cold or something like that.

QUILTER - Send soem of that motivation and good vibes this way, please!!

{{{{{HUGS}}}}}} Gotta run! I miss y'all!!

Hey All

Quickie-better than nothing!

If you saw the time of my starting the new weekly boards you'll see I sure as heck wasn't asleep when I should of been, up at 3am on, don't know what happened This of course left me too poop to walk which isn't so bad since I felt like I had pulled some muscle in my upper thigh yesterday, though it seems to have faded today Feeling barfy on top of it all! THEN I was on the phone all morning with my friend Debby who has a multitude of troubles. Finally hopped in the shower and had to go to the kids school to p/u a list of testing dates for the end of this month and all of March that I have to find parent's to volunteer for. Michael has to stay after for an hour, so had to bring Lauren home, only to now have to run back for Michael in a few minutes to bring him home, then get him to his guitar lesson by 4:30pm only to have to pick him up an hour later. Maybe afterwards I can wind down!

Will do my darndest to get back on the computer later and catch up with all the posts!!!

Have a great week everyone!

{{{HUGS}}}

Debbie

Good Afternoon

I've got some homemade turkey soup simmering on the stove.

Good news is: doc says I'll be ok.
More good news: I am still OP!

I'm going to try something a little different with my posts. Coming to the board to "report in" helps me stay OP better. I usually have a few minutes here and there thru-out the day that I can quickly pop in, but I usually find it very overwhelming to respond to every individual and it kind of makes me feel bad (cause you all are so nice) when I can't get to everyone and this has kind of been keeping me away.

So I'm going to pop in and "report in" when I can and respond when I can. Just remember that I'm thinking about ALL of you ALL the time.

A little earlier I got this urge to make cookies just so I could eat the dough! (don't know where that urge came from ) but instead I washed a sinkload of dishes and I didn't want the dough any more!

HEARTMOM--I'm doing ok today--still OP. Hope you're doing the same. We can do this. We just have to keep trying and not give up.

Till later gang!

Getting ready to head home. Got chicken breast thawing out. Don't know what I'll have with it. Got to get to the store tonite. The cupboard is really bare. Probably won't get to walk, looks like rain, but at least it was warm again today.

Zanne, Another cold? Seems like you just got over one. Hope that cough isn't anything else. We don't know why we do the things we do to ourselves. It just seems right at the time. Just shake it off and start again. We don't mind if you don't respond to everyone. Some have time, some don't. Not a big deal. It's more important that you pop in when youi nned us and say hi. If that's the way you can do it. soo be it. Just glad to have you around. WTG on being OP all day.

Fillise, that bread sounds delish. I just can't get mine to come out right.

Tranquil, My BD isn't until the 16th. I guess that's why I was so surprised since it was early. That lunch sounds great. Good for you. You can boast about your legal day. Keep up the good work.

Dawn, Good motto to live by.

Gracious, you are too sweet. I can prance around in those size 10's but watch out when I take me clothes off. I look the lady that does the Hallmark cards (can't think of her anme, begins with a M). Pretty scary. What a horrible storm. Hope it melts soon. Good for you staying 100% OP.

Trish, they put those same people on TV here too. I guess all the intelligent sounding people are working or something else. I do have a wonderful DH and friends. DH could be more sensitive or affectionate, but I guess you can't have everything.

Bob, I ussually don't leg age bother me. I guess now I realize that there are less years ahead with those I love and I don't want to be 80.

Heartmom, Most of that 6 lbs is water. Don't gret, just take it a day at a time.

Country, Glad you are back from vacation and had a good time. I think a big blow out like that can help you get back on the straight and narrow. It helped me get going again.

Solshine, Sorry to hear about your upcoming surgery. Take it easy and let Meister wait on you. Sometimes we deserve that attention.

Deb, sounds like you are the taxi today. Hope you get some time to wind down and crash tonite.

Have a good OP evening.

Jackie

They say it is always darkest before the dawn...and that sure was true about my mood the last few days. According to my scale, I had lost at most three pounds since my last doctor's visit. I went today,and was shocked to step on his scale and find I had lost 10! I am contemplating throwing my scale out.

I have a meeting tonight, and I am taking the entree for dinner for it. It is for establishing a drama team at church. It ought to be fun.

I have a wedding cake to make for Saturday, so I am hoping I can psyche myself into not cheating by tasting it, or the icing. It is going to be hard. The week will be stressful, with everything else going on, so I am trying to think ahead here.

I have to leave in a few, so I will try and get back to address individually later...

Good thing I had the turkey soup simmering. Poor DH has now got the cold, so he had some soup when he got home from work.

Dinner was legal mac and cheese. I had a cup of soup for a snack earlier. I'm going to go soak in the tub and read some of Montignac's book for a bit (that should help motivate me!). Then I think some strawberries for dessert. The berries are actually good. Usually at this time of year, the imports are all white inside and tasteless, but these ones are pink inside and taste like strawberries.

SOLSHINE--Sorry about your ankle. I hope you get/recovery from surgery quickly. We'll have to find ourselves a LEGAL comfort food!

JACKK--Same cold, it just won't leave! I feel like I'm getting better and it comes back! Doc says no pneumonia or anything like that. Thanks for being so understanding. As you can see, today I had a lot of time to pop in.

Ok, gonna run get me some "me time" and lock the bathroom door!

Goodnight all!

Well, DS had to go to the drs for a strep culture, has a sore throat and temp, but it came out negative, doing the 24 hr one, doc says just the same virus we have shared back again! I say OH NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Zanne - turkey soup sounds fantastic!!!!! Hope you are feeling better and your DH gets better quickly!

SolShine - I hope you have an easy time with that surgery and a quick recovery! Kudos to little Vixen for winning some more!!!!!

JackK - I am glad I did not miss your birthday!!! I am proud of myself for the good lunch and staying OP - of course, I sat there and bragged at the table to everyone about it - hahaha - they probably could not wait for me to go back to the office!!!!

Monet - WOW, THAT IS WONDERFUL ABOUT THE 10 LBS!!!!! You must be so thrilled!!!!!!!

Country - Hope you had a good time on vacation - and Quilter has us riding around on the wagon again - and so I am sure she will stop to pick you up

Deb - Hi!!!!!

I am making brown rice to go with the black beans I made...and I had a hard boiled egg for a snack because I was starving and did not want to over do it with munching before supper....

Got to go make sure the little one is tucked in nice and cuddly in a blanket and has something to drink.... have a good night all!!!

Sabrina

Debelli - Did I see some where that your story is going to be in a book? If so what book were you referring to.

Well, poop! I came home and fell asleep on the couch and now I don't have enough time to get in a decent post to everyone. So very sorry!

I had a pretty good day. Eating was good, actually, I didn't have much of an appetite. So no threat of overeating there. Went to the doctor this afternoon. My weigh in with her was two pounds lighter than when I saw her 12 days ago. That was a nice bonus, you can bet. She said she thinks I might have an ulcer and wants me to continue with the nexium in an effort to heal it. She said, she won't do a scope unless we have to. That's okay with me. Don't like the idea of any scoping on my bod.

Okay, I'm going to wimp out and hit the sack. I really want to address everyone, because there's a lot of great things going on. Hugs to you all!

Catch you tomorrow night.
Kim

Well, I had my first 100% OP day in a long time yesterday! Yeah Me!

The strawberries we had for dessert last night were really good. Usually I cut them up and add a wee bit of sugar and dish them out and top with whipped cream, but last night I just washed them off and put the whole berries in bowls. DS commented that there was no whipped cream, but after biting into a berry, he said "these are good" and "good dessert mommy". I think we'll be having fruit for dessert more often!



MONET--HOORAY for you for losing 10 lbs! You're doing something right.

QUILTER--WTG! on your 2 lbs gone! Keep up the good work!


Time for my coffee. Catch you all later!

Good Morning Everybody. Just a quick hello for you to take with you today. I hope we all have great days. I am super sleepy, but it's just too darned early for this chickadee. I have a long post started and will try to finish it tonight before chat.

ZANNE---WTG on your 100% day. That's so great. I find that I feel so much better when I eat some kind of berries a couple times a day. It helps my digestive process immensely. That's why my freezer is usually stocked with bags of blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and mixed as well. My favorite thing to do is eat them with some milk. If the berries are still frozen, the milk kind of freezes and you ends up with this very cold, very yummy ice creamy kind of treat.

Okay, hugs to the rest of you. Take care on this Tuesday. Mind what you eat. Let's hold each other accountable for having successful days. That way we can all do the happy dance tonight before we get into bed.

Later,
Kim

Good Tuesday Morning,

It was 60 here yesterday, today 25. Go figure. That's life in the Ohio Valley.

Got to the grocery and got some good food in the house. I peeked at the scale this morning and was not happy with what I saw. My battery may be gettinhg low as it is taking a while to come on. But nonetheless, I think I need to watch my portions and count my calories. Think I'll look back into fitday or one of the others for journaling. I got to get this last 15 lbs moving.

IT stormed all night so didn't get out to walk and by the time we went to the grocery I barley had time to get my workout in. It was a little modified as I was not in a good mood. I think it is contagious on here.

On to you all,

Monet, what anice surprise. You think 3 and you get 10. WOW. That should be motiviation enough to keep you out of that cake and icing.

Zanne, Hope you enjoyed your tub break. Sorry DH has the cold now. Good thing you had that soup going. We can't even get strawberries here. They are my favorite. Yeah for you having a 100% day. Let's make it 2.

Tranquil, I think you need to get some of those face masks to keep the germs away from each other. Hate that your son is sick again. Try not to catch it back. You brag all you want. You deserve it.

Quilter, 2lbs is something to cheer about. You go girl. Hope you got a good night's sleep.

Have a great day, be back later.

Jackie

Happy Tuesday morning! I'm hanging in there although I did have too much wine on Friday night. I'm ready to crack down and really work on my eating--watching portion size, sugar grams, limiting carbs, etc. I read the piece on the board about pasta but am still a little confused-do you all at pasta made from 100% durum even it is not whole wheat?

Kim-I'm with you on staying "legal" this week. No room for guilt.

BOB-I'm a northern gal and have never heard of a condiment called Trojan-is Debbie messin with us?

Jackie-The party sounds like so much fun. DH did a good job of surprising you. They had it all planned to the last detail, even telling you the teenage son was having friends over. It sounds like a blast. BTW, I just had my big 5-0 a couple of months ago--welcome to the club. Sorry about the storms and not getting to exercise. You are such a motivation to me with all of your exercise (and we are the same age and weigh close to the same),

Susanne-How are you feeling? Did you go the doctor? Never mind-I read ahead and see you have nothing serious. Everyone has days like yours, now you got it out of your system, let's get back to basics. I read in the paper this a.m. that a diet like SB will help us keep our memories. That is motivation for me. Legal mac and cheese--is there a recipe for this?

Susan-That bread sounds to die for!! Do you have trouble staying out of it--I would probably eat it all really fast, one bite at a time.

Sabrina-Thaqt is so great that you were legal all weekend. Any tips for us "Cheaters?" The veggie plates sounds so good-do you work at a hospital?

Gracious-what a bad storm! Are you out and about yet?

Trish-My boys all played in the school band. Trombone, trumpet, and percussion here. Only one stayed in all the way through high school (my first born, of course), but he had a lot of fun and good friends through band. I'm glad you are feeling better.

Laurie-Love your attitude about being human, and mistakes will happen. We need to be kind to ourselves.

Crystle-Sounds like you have done a lot of soul searching. I'm glad you figured out what you need to do,

Solshine-Sorry about the surgery, but maybe you will feel better. It is nice that you can work out of your house. Congrats to Vixen!!

Monet-10 pounds is wonderful. Do you make cakes for a living? Sounds like fun--I love to bake, but like you, I can't keep my
hands out of the batter.

Let's be strong today and fight all our cravings for carbs. I'll check in later,