RNMOM - you can do it. You need to eat. Just sit down and plan what you will eat and then it is easier to stick to. Get your healthy snacks all cut up and ready so you aren't tempted as easily by other stuff.

Lauren- I didn't toss the bad stuff because my husband and son would still eat them. But I put them up high or out of the way so I wouldn't be constantly looking at them. Since both you and your DH are planning on doing South Beach, you may want to toss some of them but make sure you have your husband's cooperation so he doesn't pick up more. The longer I have stayed on South Beach, the more healthy foods I have been able to get my husband and son to eat.

You are right, I CAN. I'm headed to the kitchen right now to get me a bunch of veggies cut up and a lunch ready for the day.

Barb -- Thanks! I know DH will be sad to see his cereal go! I think we'll get rid of some stuff like you suggested and just slowly let go of some of the other items we'll no longer be eating.

Does anyone have a good starter shopping list? I was thinking:
nuts
eggs
l.f. cheese
l.f. bacon
ricotta cheese
cocoa powder
cheesesticks
chicken breasts
salmon or other fish
I can't believe it's not butter spray
SF popscicles

Anything else?

Lauren

Good mornin'

It is cloudy, rainy and just plain nasty again today. But, I am up, and at the work again today. I can't believe how busy it has been this week with students back and the boss gone. Soooo many unusual problems have cropped up this week - we generally don't see them over the course of a year and many have happened this week so far. I can hardly wait for the rest of the week.

Mama - Having someone else serving or bringing food home is always a problem. But, you do have advance warning, so plan what you will do. If you know that you will be tempted too much and won't be able to resist a piece, then plan to have it and don't feel guilty. I like your idea of scraping off the toppings, though.

ellis - So good to hear from you. Hope things are settling down in your life and you get through this without too much more stress.

Ruth - Good to hear that you are able to keep Sarah for a while longer. I think that, next year, I may want to hire someone to come and help with the yard work. Hopefully, we can find a high school student or something that wants to build muscles in the summer. We have frogs in one of our flower beds - quite moist, so they like it there. Our puppy is so intrigued by them, that she is always back there trying to catch them. It is funny to watch a dog that should have those 'life' skills learning new things. She is now 2, but her first summer was spent with her mom, and last year she was kenneled the entire summer because she had just gotten knee surgery. This is her first summer playing outside and exploring all the outside things going on...but of course, she is full grown, so unusual to watch her find new things. The frogs are the newest thing that she has discovered.

HistoryChick - Good luck with the interview. Hope everything goes well and that there is something positive come out of it. I read about the storm you had in the paper. I can see why you don't want anymore rain for a while...you still have to recover from the last bought. Good luck.

kvixen - Good luck with the studying. Hubby did his LSATs many, many years ago, but didn't do any studying for them. He was teaching math in a college environment at the time and his english has always been good, so he breezed through in the top percentiles. He makes me so annoyed sometimes when others spend the hours studying and he walks in without having opened a book. Hope your studying goes well. When are the exams?

jenne - I know what you mean about feeling BLAH. Me too. I jumped up 2 pounds yesterday and didn't realize that it was that TOM again. I am hoping for good news with weight loss at the end of the week, though. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Weezle - Glad to hear that Terry made it through the accident stuff OK. I was telling DH about his show car last night - my DH is a car fanatic. He owned a repair shop and has a mechanic's license (in a previous life), and loves old cars. We have a '59 Ford and a '53 GMC 5 window truck. He goes to any car shows that he can possibly get to...even when he has to go alone. Hope everything workd out that Terry can get the car fixed. Does he do the work himself, or will he have the repairs done by someone else?

Heidi - I will have to remember the neighbour noise excuse when I have to go out to the garden this weekend. It really isn't that I dislike gardening, it is just that our yard is completely out of control. I wasn't feeling very well this spring, so it didn't get done properly, then it became a forest of weeds while we were on holidays and we have not been able to get them under control since. However, the summer is coming to an end, so we will need to do something before winter...this weekend is it.

Barb - Congrats on your queen for a month status. I looked at your stats and just can't imagine that I will ever want to exercise that much in one month. I just don't enjoy that much and, NO, I do not miss it when I am too busy to exercise. However, I also know that it is healthy for me and am trying to form a habit to include in my lifestyle. Have great day.

Hope everyone has a great day. I have OP menus planned for today and I am anticipating a weight loss this week. My weight popped up a bit yesterday, but that goes with the program, I guess. Take care.

Hello Chicks,

Today is a beautiful sunny day in KS, not too warm yet. DH cheated on SB yesterday. He told me he had 2 candy bars, 3 regular pops, and steak fries with his healthy stir-fry I packed him for lunch. LOL. Oh well, I'm going to continue making and sending SB foods for him. I did really good yesterday, drank a TON of water, but had some awful cravings! But I didnt want to undo all the good I have done and I just feel better when I'm doing this. Work was a total nightmare yesterday!! UGH!!!!

Jess--Good luck on the interview!!!

Lauren---yes, we tossed or ate all the bad foods. It's just too tempting for me in the beginning. We had a big fat blow-out the weekend before... ate EVERYTHING!!


RNMOM--- I totally understand how you feel! The hubby and I did SB in July for 2 weeks, did great, lost, and then I got bored or something. I felt miserable just gaining, yet I knew SB worked and made me feel better. The past month I have been an emotional nightmare for the poor DH...crying about my weight and why I keep getting bigger and bigger. Hang in there! I think for me this week, I just got fed up and mad at myself...none of my clothes look nice on me, etc. Good luck!

Hello Ladies...I'm back...the interview went fine...it was just like an introduction to the company...there were 4 other people there for the interview....3 guys and one other girl...it looks interesting but I dunno....I go back tomorrow for a second interview...Then I will find out whether or not it's all commission and all that stuff...hmm....Here's to crossing my fingers for tomorrow....Is it bad that I thought the 3 guys were hot and that one on of the guys that works there is hot as well? lol anyways it is a very beautiful day here....the sun is out and everything is attempting to dry...I hope everyone has a great afternoon!

Hi, Peggy. The test is October 2nd, so I am lean, mean LSAT machine until I get there. It is the math people who skew the curve for the rest of us. Grrrr. ;-) I do remarkably well in all of the other sections, I consistently only get 8-10 wrong on the whole rest of the test (3 sections), but the math/puzzles/logic section I just can't do. I get 20 wrong. It's crazy! Somehow, I can master the whole test, except the puzzles. So I photocopied every single puzzle section I could get my little paws on and I am going through them one at a time until I can get at least three of the four puzzles, and only 1 wrong for the ones I do get to. I only have 4 weeks! I have been studying since July, and I was in the top 30% on my first test, so I just need to go up 7-10 measly little points. Thanks for asking!

Lauren- I did a couple of weeks of clean up: cleaning out the fridge and cupboard of the stuff that we can't have. I tried to mostly do Phase 1, but still finish that last little bit of pasta, or butter, or cream or fruit. Then when I opened my fridge and saw nothing but eggs, mustard and olives, I went out and stocked up. Actually, I stocked up over two weeks to delay a huge grocery bill. My best advice to get sf jello and popsicles. They got me through Ph1. And for snacks, I am obsessed with celery and laughing cow cheese. It's not cheap, but is creamy and tastes like you're cheating. I really think that easing into Ph1 is the way to go. Then the real Ph1 isn't as hard on you as you expect. IMHO.

Everyone else, keep enjoying a great day!

Somewhere else, this time. It's too extensive for his experience. The place he gets it done is called Elite Auto Body. They've done everything to his car, so hopefully they'll do a good job fixing it up.