Tina... you looked M A R V E L O U S !!!!!!!!
Your weight loss really really shows in those pictures!!!!!
And you look so good in orange.
Plus... I REALLY like your hair that length.
You never said how DH felt about it. Does he like it better than long?
I still wanted to see the picture of you "with" Tony !!!
I want proof you were side/by/side with him.
I know it is only the top of his head but since I know him so personally from him helping my back I will be able to tell if it is really him. LOL
I was surprised to not see the photo of your other cyber-space bud.

Thin.... I am glad that was the correct recipe. I was hoping so.
I bet you NEVER thought I would be the one to post it for you.

Just checking in so you know I'm still alive! Just wanted to say...

Tina: Your pics were great! You can really tell that you're losing weight and your new hairstyle looks pretty snazzy! Btw, I'm jealous that you got a chance to met one of your online friends in person... I'd LOVE to see some of you guys! One day...

Thin: Pish Posh! Don't you ever say that you don't have the right to ask for something from us because you haven't posted in a few days! You are such an important part of this group... and you always will be!

Michelle: Glad to hear that Andrew is doing a bit better. Poor little guy. Hope things go well with the auditor!

2Cute: Hope your knee feels even better today!

Kat: It's SO true... there's nothing like the energy you get from realizing it's within your own power to achieve your dreams! Thanks for the inspirational message!

Deon: Welcome, welcome, welcome!!!

Hi to all my other chickies too! Gotta scoot off to bed as hubby is waiting for me! Btw, did I mention to you guys that I finally got my wedding rings resized a couple of weeks ago. They WERE a size 9... now they're a size 6! The woman jeweler said, in an impressed way, "Wow! Those rings are HUGE on you. You must have lost SO much weight!"

All my love,
Sara
HW: 270
CW: 139

Great pic's Tina. Looks like you had a wonderful time!!!

The Cabbage Casserole recipe that one is mine. Sorry thin, I did not realize what you were talking about, but no fear 2cute to the rescue.....

Sara, that is one of my small goals, to be able to where my wedding ring again. It is a size 9 and I can almost get it on my finger again. I can't wait till the weight is all gone and have to get is smaller, that must be wonderful!!! Another victory for you!!!

Michelle, hope Andrew is feeling better today.

Sorry if I offended anyone with my comments on the breastfeeding thing. I guess that motherly instict kicked into high gear and had to defend myself. I have to wonderful kids and would not trade them for the world. I myself broke the statistic thing long ago. My dad who raised me till I was 12 was and still is a major Alcoholic and was a horrible father, he can't remember half my childhood, wish I had that problem, and he would be a mean drunk to the point of physical abuse as well as the mental stuff that goes with it. Well I grew up determined I would not be the same, and I would not marry a man that drank and was mean to me. My mom lost custody of us when they divorced when I was 2, she had her bad times I guess, and well I don't know all the stories and don't care too, but I know that when I needed her the most she came and got me and my brother out of the situation we were living in with my dad. I guess she finally straightened her act up. And, yes I love her now, she is like almost my best friend, but thats just it, we are not mom and daughter like, we are more like best friends. So you see, I feel I overcame a lot in my life to build where I am now, and trying to raise my children with the right values in life and show them the right paths to follow. Okay enough said, where the heck did that all come from anyway? I occasionally have a breakdown like that. Thanks for listening. But I can still see all of your points too, because my brother is the exact opposite of me. I guess what I wanted to say is what I always tell my brother. "LIFE IS WHAT YOU MAKE OF IT" We are adults now and not kids, you lead your life the way you think it should be lead.

Okay wow, talk about a load to carry around.......

Hugs to all, gotta go get the kids ready for school.
Sandy

Okay.

I am soooooo bummed . I got up at 5:55am yesterday and started the dialing for a doctors appointment. After 20 minutes I FINALLY get through and am told that the doctor I'm seeing won't be back until Wednesday, and then she is taking patients on active duty as a first priority (which of course is understandable), and maybe if I called back the middle of next week, they would try to get me in. Ugh! In the meantime, I started back on the low carb thing hoping to stave off any more gains. I usually don't last very long at low carb, but it does reduce the appetite so even when I go off of it, I eat less of everything else. Dang it!! I have to wait a whole 'nother week.

You know, I wasn't going to say anything about the whole breast feeding thing since it is somewhat controversial and I'm sick to death of hearing the debates everywhere I turn, but I'm gonna say so anyway. STATISTICS ARE CRAP!! It all depends on who gets polled. I was constantly put down and told that I wasn't doing the best thing my children because I didn't breastfeed. My friends all told me that they were doing what was best, why wouldn't I?? I DID do what was best. I am a smoker and I didn't think that nicotine was beneficial to my kids health. Hence why I only smoke outdoors. There are so many ways that I could disprove the statistics, but I really don't want to take up that much time. They say breastfed babies are healthier and smarter than bottle fed babies. Well, my best friend and I are kind of an experiment I guess. We each have two children. Hers were both breastfed, mine bottlefed. Her 6th grader is failing everything at school, and is sick quite often. Her son is only 2 months younger than my 3year old daughter. He has asthma and is constantly sick. My kids are both quite healthy and VERY smart. My 7 year old reads at a 7th grade level, and my 3 year old daughter is beginning to read. My friends three year old can hardly put together a sentence. It has nothing to do with what they were fed. It has EVERYTHING to do with how they were parented. I have always read to/with my kids everyday. We explore things togther. My friends kids don't even HAVE books. They just watch TV all day and play video games.
I'm sorry to go off on you guys about this, but I got so much crap for bottle feeding my kids because of the "statistics" and my kids defy them all. I really got mad at being told I was a bad mom for bottle feeding, so this issue just makes me hot.
DONT TAKE THIS THE WRONG WAY PLEASE!! I'm in no way saying any of you said anything to me or offended me in any way. I hope I haven't offended anyone else. This is just the way I feel. The guys with the statistics can shove it.

Okay. From now on I will just stick with posting my weight loss issues i think.
I'm all worn out from my ranting and raving so I think I'll go for now. I've got the munchies so I think I'll go for a walk.
Talk at ya later,
Jen

Good morning all
I am still here. Don't have to go to work till 12:30 today and get off at 5. I'm still getting my desk arrainged(sp), boy I have a lot of stuff.

Sorry I haven't welcomed our new members, WELCOME to our little group. They have really helped me.

Tina the pictures are great. You look wunerful.

I found out a few weeks ago I'm going to be a grandmother again(sort of) one of my ex-husbands daughters is pregnant . She has a daughter 14. She is 40 and is high risk so I worry about her. The baby is due in Sept.

I'll get to see my oldest grandson today. He is at his father's parents this week for spring break. He will be 14 this month.

Hope all of my chickies have a great day. It is looking like spring here the trees and flowers are beginning to bud out. its in the 50's at night now.


Well I'll run need to surf some sites and do some more desk work.
Love to all

Good morning everyone! I have to make this really quick because they're shutting this computer down in a bit to do an upgrade, but I did want to say to 2cute:

Thank you so much for your kind words and to answer a few of your questions....dh is in major love with my hair. He looked at a picture of me the other day when my hair was long and said, "Gee, it really didn't look very good, did it?" He will look at me sometimes and say, "Man, I just love your hair." Also, the reason I didn't post a picture of me and Julie (my cyber Tony friend) is because I told her before I posted the pictures of me and her, I would let her see them first. I don't want to post them without her permission. Some people are not as comfortable as others with having their pictures on the internet. Also, it is near to impossible to have your picture made with Tony on a race weekend. When he is there, he is really focused and even if I had $125 for a pit pass, I would not bug him about a photo or anything like that, because he doesn't like to be disturbed at "work." He has made it very clear that he makes over 80 personal appearances during the year and that is when it is best to approach him for autographs and things of that nature. The only reason it is so hard to get a picture "with" him is usually when he is signing autographs, he signs around 700-800 within a two hour period and they keep you moving like an assembly line and if one gets a picture "with" him, then many will want one and you can't hold the line up for something like that. I was extremely lucky to get a picture "with" him before in Sevierville and it was only because I got up on stage with him before he started signing. I will be going to see him again on April 10th and hopefully, I'll be able to get one with him then. Keep your fingers for me. If not, oh well....what's a girl to do?

Geez, I said this was gonna be short and I've totally run off at the mouth. See? That's what happens when a certain person is mentioned.

Thin: Believe it or not, we're actually thinking about going to MIS! Would be SO awesome to see you.

Ok, I'm hopping off here for now. I didn't have a very good eating day yesterday.....well, I had a very good meal, but was a little bit more than I should have had. Time to get back up on the horse today. I'll check you sweeties out later and hope you have a wonderful day.

P.S. Here's another one of me. I like it too.

hey ladies, remember me. It's been about 2 months since I last posted, but I have been reading faithfully and just had to put my 2 cents in about the breastfeeding issue. Both of my kids were formula fed and I have had no problems with either of them. My son, who is now 5, had maybe 2 ear infections when he was little and my daughter, who is 2, has had none. All in all they are very healthy children. As for the healthy food, my son has become very picky and will only eat certain vegetables. My daughter seems to prefer vegetables to meat, but that may change. I can remember not liking vegetables when I was younger. Heck, there are still a lot of them that I don't like. I do agree with everyone on the school food though. Just had to defend those of us who didn't breastfeed. On that same topic, it has been said that breastfed babies are smarter. I don't agree with that. My son just turned 5 on Feb 18. He has been spelling his name aloud since he was 2 1/2 and can now write it. He can also count to over 100, spell a variety of other words and can even some basic addition and subtraction. My daughter can pretty much speak in full sentences and can count to 10. Needless to say, I am pretty proud. I am not saying all of this to bash what anyone else has said, just want to defend my choice of feeding and prove that not all statistics are true through and through. Hope I didn't offend anyone. Okay, off my soapbox now. Food has not been good and water and exercise have been virtually non existent. I can't wait until the weather gets warmer and I can start walking outside again. I lost more weight when I did that. I have gained back about 13 lbs and want to get rid of it as well as the rest of my excess weight. Congrats to everyone who has been losing. Way to go. Well I think I wrote enough for now. Talk to you later and I'll try to post more often.
Steph

Wow! I don't know what happened with that whole breastfeeding issue. I was just trying to say that breastfeeding can be beneficial, as far as smarter or not, my two that weren't breastfed do better academically than my breastfed baby. So I suppose it is all in the way they are raised also. Anyway, enough of that issue.

Tina I love all the pictures! I think it helps in identifying with you. Maybe eventually I will get one of me, oh wait I have no pics of me. I hate cameras. They show the true you. Ane I don't like the true me. But when I get thin I will take pics of me.

Well yesterday was another successful day, and today will be too. I am a little nervous about weigh in on Thurs. because I feel like I have lost so am afraid scale might not show much and will get discouraged. But I will keep going, because if I don't I just might explode!

Well I geuss I have rambled on about enough so I will be going. I love this site, I love all the support and friends! Thanks to all!

362/??/somewhere under 200

Good morning, everyone! I woke up with a nasty sore throat yesterday and just can't seem to get rid of it. I took Sudafed all day yesterday for the drainage and had to sleep with cough drop in order to not keep DH up all night. It beats a sinus infection, but not by much.

I don't remember if I gave you the 'showgirl' rundown from this weekend. We saw Bringing Down The House. It was really cute, but I agree with 2cute that it is not for kids. And then we saw Tears of the Sun. It was like a Rambo movie without the action. Definitely not for kids. And definitely very sad.

Michelle: Wow, a surprise from the boss is never something you look forward to. Hope all goes well.

2cute: Yes, I was indeed surprised that it was you that could put the quickest finger on that recipe. Imagine that....

Sara: Thanks for the kind words. I'm glad you showed up. I was beginning to wonder what had happened to you.

Sandy: You sure didn't offend me. I hope I didn't offend you. [[[hugs]]] I think it's remarkable when people can overcome their childhood and reverse the cycle. I think you're a wise woman saying "life is what you make of it". * That cabbage casserole really sounds good. I don't know what happened but I searched back through to thread 289 and I didn't find it. It is possible however, that I am blind.

Donna: Hey, you're the one that started all this breastfeeding/bottle feeding and school lunch discussion and then what??? Did you already leave on vacation? I haven't seen you back after that.

Jen: Wow, too bad about the doctor. Seems like you're having to wait forever to get in to see her(?). Sorry couldn't remember if it was a her. Hang in there. Another week won't be the end of the world. Come here more often and we'll try to keep you on track.

Mary: Ok, that's it! I'm hopping the next bus to Mississippi. 50 degrees at night!!! What the heck??? I'm still buried with about 4 inches of snow on the ground and the high yesterday (mid afternoon) was 20. I'm coming, are you ready?? * Isn't it funny how long it takes us to move into a new space? You want everything in the right place and all neat. Then you find, 'oh, it would be so much more convenient if it was over here' and then you're moving it once again. Have fun.

Tina: If you're going to MIS and expect to see me there, you better let me know fast. I'll have to lose 50 pounds to fit in a seat and start walking to build up stamina to truck the thousand miles from where you park to where you sit.

Steph: Good to see you, sweetie. Wondered what happened to you. I can't wait for warmer weather. This winter has just been tooooooo cold!!!

Well, girls, I've gotta get off here and go to work. I did 3 jobs yesterday and needed to get two of the reports in this morning and then came here to catch up real quick. Real Quick, yeah, right.

By the way, where are all the rest of my 'chickie' friends??? Kat, Baylee, Lucky, J-ann........not seeing much of you guys lately. Come on out and play. It's good for the soul.

See you all later. Have a great day.

Ok, listen up here! First off, I was not suggesting that all breastfed babies are perfect, just that statistics show that breastfed children DO tend to have less problems and the longer they are breastfed the antibodies they obtain from ole mom. T was breastfed for 18 months. I will not apologize about the food comments under any circumstancxes, because with proper nutrition and guidance as a child I WOULD NOT BE OBESE! I am sorry if I angered anyone, but the truth is kids do not need junk food at all! We have become lazy ladies (FINGER POINTED AT ME FIRST) We tend to pick up mcD's for the kids if we are running late or if we don't want to cook. The fact is, kids that don't eat junk food and eat well balanced foods from toddlers on learn that as a way of life and don't desire the other stuff. I have a friend who is a nutritionist and her kids would go to Bible School every year with their lunches of fresh veggies, cheese cubes, fresh fruit etc. Everyone else had twinkies and such. At the time, I thought she was pretty mean to her kids to not let them have twinkies etc. These kids were not bothered by that at all because what they were eating was natural to them. That was my big point that if we take babies and feed them right from the beginning, they know nothing else so they desire nothing else! Why do we as adults yoyo, crave foods and have trouble sticking to a good meal program? Because all the crap we have fed ourselves has become part of us. My two kids do not eat salt at all. Why, because I never gave it to them nor salted food that I cooked. I only wish I had been smart enough not to let them have other stuff, but at the time I did not know better. I WAS NOT CRITICIZING ANY PERSON ON THIS BOARD! I just want us to stop and think about what we feed our kids and are we setting them up to become us because of it?

I am out of here. I will probably not post until Monday so everyone have a wonderful week and I will talk to you when I get back from Indiana! Keep your fingers crossed that I can stay OP eating at restaurants the whole time!!

Love you guys
Donna

Deon: You snuck in on me. I'm so glad you're doing well and feeling thinner. That's a great feeling. Don't get discouraged if the numbers Thursday aren't all you want them to be. As long as they are going in the right direction, it all catches up in the end.

Donna: Have a great trip. I hope you have a wonderful, relaxing vacation and don't get into any nasty weather on the roads. Come back to us safe and sound.

Hey again!

I think we are ALL in agreement about the junk kids eat. School lunch programs are atrocious!! Pizza, Burgers, Corndogs, um...YUK!! I was thinking about this today as I went to pick up my son from school. I sat out waiting and watching as floods of children went by. I never really noticed before, but A LOT of those kids were overweight. Several were REALLY obese. I can't say that I've fed my kids all the best stuff. I'll be the first to plead guilty to too many trips to Burger King. I'm trying to change my eating habits not just for myself, but for my kids. I am so afraid for them. I can't stand the idea of my children being teased and picked on like I was. I don't want to see them shut themselves inside the house and miss out on life the way I have. So much good comes from eating healthy. Why does it seem to be so hard??

Anyhoo, talk at ya later,
Jen

Wow... there has been a lot posting going on since I went to bed last night.
And now here I am at the end of the thread again.
Oh well... I will post and let it slip off into "dead" threads.
Sara... so good to see you again. Well actually I am not "seeing" you.... WHERE ARE THOSE PICS !! LOL
You promised them when you hit 150...now you are headed for 135. A promise is a promise.

Sandy... That was an awesome looking recipe. I forgot to say that it was yours. I figured everyone knew it wasn't from me.
My sister is a little like your brother. There comes a time when you just have to put the past in the past and go from there.
I too like your slogan... "Life is what you make it"

Jen... good to see you. I am a "NEW" person due to low carb.
Not just weight loss issues. I am happier, healthier, almost removed all mood swings ...even PMS. I am seldom craving anything. I definitely not sleepy all the time anymore.
It is not for everyone... but it has been a "LIFE SAVER" for me.
Unfortunately a lot of people misunderstand it and thinks it is a meat fest. LOL I eat more veggies now than I ever have.

Mary ... I hope you enjoy your grandsons visit. Those early teenage years can be so difficult for kids. They are changing from childhood to preadult. My girls handled it much better than my son. He always wanted to "fit in". Much more into clothes too than my girls. LOL

Tina... I am soooo happy your DH loves your hair too.
My youngest daughters boyfriend always wants longgggg hair.
It is just shaggy looking on my daughter. She finally got a hair cut that was shorter around her face and left the back quite long and she looks soooo much better. I really like her hair now.
Also... I didn't think you got a pic with Tony on racing day. I always meant the pic that DH took with you laying over the table in Sevierville. I think it would be hilarious seeing you laying across the table ... with Tonys head down and you yelling at DH to "Take it NOW". I have this "mental" image. Maybe it is better to just keep that image. It sure puts a smile on my face.
I can even invision you two walking off and your little head bobbing while you give poor DH "The Wrath from ****"
Have I ever mentioned how much I love you? LOL LOL

Steph... WELCOME back !!! Long time no see.
If I had known all it took to get you back in here I would have started this darn breast feeding debate 2 months ago.
I resigned from the debating society years ago. I used to be the "President" of debate in my younger years. LOL
Today I just say "to each his own".
I always knew to never discuss religion or politics and now I am adding breast vs bottles. I think it is time to move on and just agree that some of us disagree. LOL

Deon...I highly recommend you take a photo now and keep it so you can have a before and after photo. No one else has to see it.
I was amazed how many I found of me even though I hide from the cameras. Plus.. don't forget your drivers license photo. Make a photo copy of it and tuck it safely away for when you are skinny to compare.

Thin.... I hope you get feeling better soon. I am sending you some cyber chicken soup and goodvibes. :
Our temps here are haywire. One day it was 75 degrees and dropped to 25 degrees that night. That was a 50 degree drop in a matter of hours. Brrrr
As for the recipe....I just went to "search" and found it. If you ever want to find something go to "search" and enter a key word such as "casserole". Then they will find it for you either by post or thread. They can also find people too. But they only go back like 1-2 years. Make sure you enter "Support" thread too or it will find it through ALL of the forum.

Donna.... I hope you enjoy your trip to Indiana. I will be looking forward to hearing all about it when you get back.

And for the rest of you..... How can I send you personal little messages if you don't post?? The big debate is over so come on in and play.

I too have made more than enough trips to the fast food joints, but have drastically cut back. For the most part my kids eat healthy well balanced meals. I haven't encountered school lunches as of yet as my son is only in preschool. I do remember them from when I was in school though and yes they were atrocious. So I will probably be packing my kids their lunches most of the time if not all of the time. I don't see a problem with fast food every once and a while. Speaking of fast food, what's everyones opinion on all the people who are suing the various fast food chains because it made them fat. I think it is a load of crap. yes, the food is fattening, but no one forced the food down their throats. I think too many people want to blame somebody else for their problems rather than own up to their responsibility. Gathering from the way everyone here is trying to get healthy, I'm assuming many, if not all, of you agree with me. Again I didn't mean to offend anyone with my previous post. Just voicing my opinion. I love each and everyone of you here and enjoy reading everyones posts whether I agree with some things or not. That's what makes us each who we are. Strong, beautiful women of all shapes and sizes.
Steph

Something that Deon said roused me from my stupor...

Some unsolicited advice...Learn to like the "true you," that is... the person, not the fat.

I read something the other day that I am applying here..."You are not your disease." I think that can be applied to obesity also..."You are not a number on a scale, or a dress size." Yes, the world may judge us and base their opinions about us based on our size...and we KNOW it's not fair...so why do we do it to ourselves?

So my Tuesday Tip is this...Give yourself a great big hug, smile at yourself in the mirror and say, "I am worth the effort it is going to take to lose this weight...and I will!"

.BTW...one kid breast fed til almost 3, one for only about 6 weeks...both extremely healthy and bright...so there