Hello Everyone! I'm awake and it wasn't much easier than waking poor Leenie's dd I can tell you since I didn't get to bed until 3:30am.

Spedmom- Goodluck with the plumbing. I am totally frustrated right now myself that just when you seem to build up any reserve of money something happens to suck it away but then I decided to see it as a blessing that at least you had it. I read once is that the definition of a crisis is when something bad happens and you don't have the money to deal with it. Congrats on the 180's!!
I was stuck in the 180's forever but I've finally broken free. I didn't say anything in case it was a fluke. But after two days it keeps getting lower. 178.6!!!

I'm so excited. It just proves even more to myself that this works!!!

Leenie- I really feel for you and your dd this morning. I'm having a rough time leaving El baby-o for work so much myself. Starting on the 25th I'm working those 14 hour days(night shift), including sleep I'll only be able to see him a whopping 1 hour a day or so. I'm starting to feel like a bad mom even though I know it's temporary and I'm doing what's best for our family right now. It just kills me, breaks my heart and I...aaaarrgggh. Just hang in there. Sometimes we just have to do these things and they aren't forever to give our children better lives. It means you love them. Never forget that.

Jane- I found these Russell Stover chocolates that are .2g carbs each. You can have 5 for 1g carbs and they taste pretty good. Obviously not as good as godiva but good. They haven't given me tummy aches or poops or anything. A dish of those might help you stay away from the real chocolates.

Froufy- Darling! I'm so sorry your tummy hurts. That sounds awful. Hopefully you've gone to the doctor. I hate tummy trouble. Like girl part trouble, it's at your core and it hurts so bad. I don't have much advice, don't know much except get it checked out! Love ya, keep us posted. Maybe pepto? It's pink?

Jina- Poor thing! When you live in a place that gives you trouble it's a nightmare because you can't escape from it! My advice is to wait and find the perfect one. Don't be in a hurry. You will be so much happier. You deserve it.

Star- Ugh with the tampon mental picture even though I think of weird walrus'. I always wished there was a way to harness the power of mucus since the world creates so much of it. I know that's weird but hey... I'm weird.

Well, I'm off to shower for work again. I'm really excited about the 170's, mostly because that means that if the 170's are reachable then the 160's must be and then the 150's and so on and so on. The dream is real. It smells way better than coffee cake!!! Have a great evening.

Super, Jamie, Spedmom - way to go on the weight loss!

Froufy - darling, I know veggies are important, but you may want to eat less of them. Lots of fiber in those things and that can be adding to your problem! I still have issues if I eat too much lettuce

Well, karma is making it up to me for the psycho woman. I've had 5 people stop me today to tell me how great I look and 3 of them wanted to know more about atkins or said that they've been learning about atkins and are going to start it themselves! Wooo hooo!

Note on the SF chocolates - Russell Stover still used sugar alcohols, so be very careful with them and they're likely to slow your weight loss down or stall you out all together.

Now time for my confession. I decided to try the Atkins butter pecan ice cream. It comes in a little pint and I figured that just a little bite here and there would be nice. Well I bought it on Sunday and finished it off last night! It was so good and I am so bad! Naughty Princess!!!! I am no longer allowing myself near the ice cream aisle in the store.

Star! It's good that you're passing the word about the WOE. Although I don't think that it's for everyone I definitely think it's good for a lot of people, or at least a modified version of it.

It's good to bring up the sugar alcohols thing once in a while, especially if we have new people to let them know that there's more to the chocolates than meets the eye but I know that for the first month or two I kept going off plan to binge when I wanted chocolate because those endulge or the crummy bars they sell just didn't taste right. Plus I just wasn't willing to spend $4 and 3g carbs on a mouthful of chalk that didn't satisfy crap of chocolate cravings. I think if you are craving chocolate and you are on the verge of going on a binge, these candies can help as long as you only have a few around. If you eat a boxful, that defeats the purpose. We have to be smart princesses. How to rule the world if we can't rule ourselves?

Ice cream... what a dilemma... I've past by it a thousand times. I have no control. It sounds heavenly but I know I couldn't stop either. You'll rise above. For heaven's sake, you're a size 5, girl!!! YOu can splurge but only ONCE!!! We love you anyway. Whatever happened with that homemade icecream you tried to make?
Later gators.

This is the first time that I have been here, but I am really excited about this message board!!! I also joined the St Patti's day challenge! I am 23 and have been overweight for about 4-5 years now. I am ready to do something about this!!! I weigh 166 right now, that is after losing 4 pounds on Atkins. I am so excited about this! My dh is doing this with me. He has already lost 13 pounds! I am so happy to join in with this thread!!!

Welcome meb1118. This is a great place for support. Good luck on the St. Patti's Day challenge.

Welcome, meb1118!! I'm glad you're here. Join on in! You'll find lots of support, information and fun here!

Thanks for the welcome! I have a quick question though, what is the equator track???????

Jamie - I never tried the ice cream recipe because I have yet to find an ice cream maker! Ah well!

Ok, and I'm not quite a 5 - I just found a pair that runs a little big so they fit just a little more snugly than a 7 - but I'll get there!

Welcome Meb! I think you'll like it here. This is a good group and the support is lifesaving at times!

Woah? Did you guys see that? I almost slipped into abject mushiness again!

Ok, off to lunch! Mmmmmmmm chesse enchiladas!!! (I feel like Homer Simpson)

Burger King offers bunless Whoppers, low-carb meat saladsBy Richard Gibson, Dow Jones Newswires, 1/13/2004

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Burger King Corp. is joining the low-carbohydrate parade by offering bunless Whopper hamburgers and, soon, salads featuring steak, chicken and shrimp.

The bunless sandwiches, which will be available nationwide beginning Tuesday, will come in plastic salad bowls, with knife and fork.

Dieters also will be able to order Whopper meals that substitute salads for French fries and bottled water for soft drinks.

Burger King, the nation's No. 2 hamburger chain, suggests that its restaurants charge the same for burgers with or without the bun. Because most of its stores are franchised, the company cannot mandate prices in them.

While bunless burgers will be available in all 8,000 U.S. restaurants immediately, the new salad line will debut in phases. Those featuring chicken and shrimp will roll out in February and March, but steak versions won't appear systemwide until May.

"It took us a little longer to get the quality we wanted," Russ Klein, Burger King's chief global marketing officer, said of the sirloin steak strips option.

Burger King's introduction of low-carb fare follows that of some competitors. CKE Restaurants Inc.'s Hardee's and Carl's Jr. chains feature burgers wrapped in lettuce.

McDonald's Corp. restaurants in New York City have posters and brochures advising customers how they can lower their carbohydrate intake by modifying what they order. Wendy's International Inc. has similar nutritional information posted on the Web.

Burger King also is debuting a Web site, www.haveityourway.com, that shows how many carbohydrates, calories and fat each meal component contains.

One Midwestern Burger King franchisee who asked not to be identified said that customers had been coming into his restaurants for years ordering Whoppers without the buns, "so all we're doing is formalizing a process."

Burger King is owned by a group of investor firms, including Texas Pacific Group, Bain Capital and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners.

© Copyright 2004 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Isn't it interesting (and a bit unnerving) how everyone is suddenly jumping on the low-carb bandwagon? It bothers me a little bit because some of it is just totally misinformed. Remember KFC? Yeah, 11 grams of carbs for a chicken breast isn't that bad, BUT it's coated in white flour and fried in hydrogenated oil! That's very bad!

I heard a commercial yesterday for a vegan "sausage". They were pointing out how it's low in carbs - only 4 grams AND low in fat. Then they said something along the lines of "now you can eat low carb and avoid all that fat." Um, hello? Part of this woe (for me at least) is the realization the fat is not the enemy. Fat is my friend as long as it's not hydrogenated or a trans-fat.

I guess I'm just a little annoyed that because companies are willing to do anything to make a buck that uninformed individuals will actually hurt themselves while thinking they're doing a good thing.

BUT - BK's plan is fine with me! It would be fun to get a value meal without having to alter a thing!

Oh, sorry Meb - missed your post. The equator trek is our exercise challenge for 2004. The equator is about 29,402 miles around so we're collectively trying to get in enough exercise to equal that amount this year.

Activities that can be measured in miles like walking, jogging, rollerskating, etc., are pretty easy to count. For other activity, 20 minutes equals one mile.

If you'd like to join in, just add your name to the list and then add miles as you go. Remember to add them into the totals at the bottom of the list, too!

Karen - did I cover it all?

StarPrincess: It makes me a little nervous and annoyed also. I am worried that with all the hipe something is going to blow. I just hope it isn't bad because I would hate to have to hide in shame for being on Atkins....the only plan that has worked for me in years!

I kind of wish the restaurants would be a little more quiet about it...just do it...don't get into the marketing thing.

Honestly.. I dont think anything is going to Blow necessarily.. I just keep thinking about all the UNINFORMED Low Carbers out there. The fact that TGI Friday's Is backed by Atkins is a good thing.. but all these others out there that are calling themselves, LOW CARB worry me!

I have taken the tack that just because it is low-carb, doesnt mean it is Atkins Friendly.

Hey girls. Ohh my gosh....seems a few are under the weather. I hope the mucous stops flowing Star and that the uhh (you know) also stop flowing Froufy.

This morning I went to a middle school open house for ds. I was very impressed with the tour. After that I had a nice leisurely shop at Target....OMG all the new spring stuff was coming in.....and I just couldn't reisit......every one sit down.....I bought a zip up nylon wind suit in XL AND IT FIT!!!!!!! I am so pumped, I hate trying clothes on so I just held it up while shopping and then put it on when I got home,.....AND IT FIT!!!! I ALMOST **** MY PANTS!!!!! It is so nice....navy with royal blue and bright orange accents. I was soooo pumped that I actually got changed and went for a nice 2.5 mile walk!!!!! Sorry to tell you Froufy but the weather here was a bright sunny 60F. I CAN'T BELIEVE IT FIT!!!!!! YEAH!!!!!
For some unexplicable reason, I have always been a size smaller on top so I knew the xl top would fit but the pants?....WAAHOOO!!!

LOL - Congrats Angel-eyes!

I should clarify - Mr. Mucus is a real person - not just a name for a problem I'm having. Really - I'm pretty mucus-free. This guy sits on the other side of my cube and spends all morning and half the afternoon snorting, hawking, and hacking. It's one of the most disgusting things I've ever been subjected to!