Hi guys, just a quick post from me, sorry I missed yesterday - Super Bowl and it was a super food fest for me.... oh well.
I have an all day meeting today, making quilts for children with cancer!
So, will be back later on to tell you all about what a dismal job I did.
My own scale is showing me three pounds UP, what the heck? That can't be right and that can't be just from yesterday, no what have I done?
Linda

Derry, Heh, there, don't stress about the scale. You probably didn't DO anything wrong. If you can't think of it then it's just got to be water or something. It'll go away again. Making quilts for kids with cancer, how sweet of you. I'm sure your work was beautiful!

Hey all. just got to my work computer. I have a couple of "saves" to report. 1- I threw out a lot of leftovers from my mardi gras party. Get rid of temptation. 2 - I actually had breakfast food for breakfast today. 3- I made it to the gym. 4 - I had my last can of soda. And nobody has died yet. Today has been a day of good choices overall. Hurray.

Have a great day all.

Hi there jolly, Good for you!! What a day! Is it your birthday perhaps?! Maybe there is a hint of spring in the air and you are feeling empowered! Send some my way, please!

Hey everybody. I just have to do one more flyby post, to report another NSV. I got home tonight from my day job, to hear a message from the place that is doing my eye surgery, wondering if I had cancelled my appointment. It turns out that the doctor decided to only do my kind of surgery in the morning. Nice to tell me less than 24 hours before an appointment I have had scheduled for 3 months, and make me have to rearrange transportation etc. Needless to say, I was a wreck!!!! But, I didn't eat. I was thinking about self medicating with some ice cream at my part time job, but didn't. Didn't have anything at all.

Major.

Have agood one everyone.

Wow, jolly, this makes two congratulatory posts for you in a row! That was major. Don't know how you did it. Good for you!

I wish you all the best with your surgery. Let's just say the 24 hour notice will work out in your favor. At least you were able to keep the appointment, right? Maybe the doctor is steadier in the morning! less tired!! so this probably is a very good thing for you.

Hey
Super Sunday didn't go well for me either, but today did so there!
I watched the game at my SIL and recently I haven't enjoyed my visits there. She has a wonderful family and all but I always leave there feeling really bad about myself. She and her husband are frequently critical of other relatives and friends and I always wonder if they talk like that about me when I'm not there. I always manage to say one stupid thing that I regret and then the rest of the visit is ruined. Plus they have alot more money than we do and thier house is gorgeous and their kids are well behaved and smart yadda yadda yadda. As you may have guessed, I have a bit of a self esteem problem. So I'm thinking the least I can do is lose a little weight, it's not THAT difficult and I'll have one less thing for people to criticize me about. Oh this sounds so terrible. I'm not THAT insecure. I'll be fine.
I'm having some problems with my oldest son too. He's 7. Two days in a row he has hurt the baby (8 mos old) The first time he was "punishing him" for dumping some toys out of a basket. The second time he claimed it was an accident. I saw it happen and although he may not have intended to actually touch the baby, he shouldn't have been doing what he was doing anyway. He of course reacted to my punishments with a tremendous amount of anger and he hates me and all of that. My main concern, well there are 2 concerns. His anger and his lack of compassion. How can I teach him that?
Sorry to vent. I usually try just to stick to weight loss issues here but this is weighing heavy on my mind (no pun intended) and I needed to unload.
In other news, the battery in my scale died and I'm king of glad and won't be rushing out to get a new one.
Linda- I've taken yoga classes and I absolutely love them! I highly recommend a class, because it makes a huge difference if there is someone there to tell you what you may be doing wrong. You can't really get that from a video. It's not that you'll hurt yourself or anything, it just feels better to do it right. And don't worry about your wandering mind. I'm the same way. Yoga doesn't have to be about meditaion, but you will be amazed at how calm and peaceful you will feel when you are done.
My husband is away all week, so I'm giving myself a happy face for each day I do well while he's gone. Hopefully there will be 5 smiley guys by the week-end.
Later, chicks!

Hi there Apple Blossom, glad to hear from you again. Sorry to hear you didn't have a good time for the game at your sister in law's. I don't know what to say except that if you're not enjoying yourself then I would just not go. I mean, it doesn't sound like a self-esteem problem necessarily. Maybe they have a way of making anyone feel bad. Why think it's your fault? Some people just love to ***** and criticize about people, kind of like a hobby. It can be a real downer. On the other hand, if it's constructive criticism then so what? In any case I hope you don't feel too down. Nobody chooses relatives and I think it's unusual when people do hit it off. Don't worry about it. Maybe you could meet them outside next time at a restaurant of YOUR choice or see a movie together and go for a drink afterward. That way you won't see the ritzy house and you can ignore the kids. Don't compare!

As for your boy I think the best thing is always not to punish but to do a lot of "showing" and some explaining. Usually the kids just want attention and a hug. The older boy could be feeling very left out or frustrated. He could be very jealous. I wouldn't think of these as issues or anything. Did you try sitting down and really talking to your son, open and non-judgmental? Maybe it was an accident. Maybe he's testing you to see if you love him, if he FEELS you love him, there's a big difference there.

Oh, Apple, don't feel down. Kids always "hate" parents and get very emotional. I would just talk to him and give him attention, not try to punish him but do let him know he mustn't punish the baby himself. I mean after all the kids are just copying what the parents are doing (well, I don't know if you hit him but even so or not, the boy is trying to find his own way of "punishing" no doubt). You can guide him here, not with reprimands but with teaching. Seven is very young. Kids should be emotional and there's nothing wrong with anger. Teach him an outlet that won't hurt himself or others, like pounding a pillow, screaming into a pillow, running fast or playing baseball (great swinging that bat). It's never about getting rid of anger it's about channeling it. I mean, kids and teens are full of anger. I know I was but I certainly turned out OK. In fact, I think my anger when I was younger was really my saving grace. It taught me to protect myself. I'd say, if anything, people who have problems with anger escalating when they're older are usually the people who were forced to suppress their emotions when they were children, either they were directly told to or they did so out of fear. If any emotion is not given expression it will come out in unacceptable, unwanted or even dangerous ways later.

Well, I'll get off my soapbox here.

Good luck for this week. I hope to see lots of happy faces by the end it!

Hey guys, I bit down in the dumps this morning as I totally blew it. I weigh in today and we'll see what the results are, but I am sad. Why can't I just stick with this? Why can't I eat what everyone else seems to be able to eat and when I have one or two indescretions, the scale JUMPS. I hate food, I love food, I need food, food sucks, food is wonderful and fun.... mixed up, right?
Thanks for the thoughts.
Apple Blossom, I seem to recall my oldest "punished" the youngest as well, they are 2 1/2 years appart, but I had to step in often. It's probably quite typical, but certainly adds stress.
And, I feel for you about the family members who seem to put others down all the time. I used to live near a woman that was like that all the time. I found myself going along with it, but felt awful about it. I think it taught me to be a better person. I have TRIED (boy is it hard) to have a philosophy that if you can't say something nice about a person, say nothing at all. The one I used to know who did the most criticizing, I think, was the most insecure. I kind of figured her out after awhile and realized that she made herself feel better by putting other people down.
One interesting thing, also, is that this one woman also had a very ritzy house. Her kids were NOT perfect, but she sure tried to give everyone around here the impression that they were. Here I am "talking" about her, though.... hmmm.... At any rate, you don't know her, don't know her name, etc. anyway, but she was awfully caught up in making impressions on everyone. Just remember, (good for all of us) the only person you have to worry about it yourself and of course your own family, I mean immediate family.
Like Red said, you can pick your friends but not your relatives! I'm sure you are not in a positition to choose not to go there, but you can try to remain positive and change the subject when things get uncomfortable. You can be especially sweet and helpful, and kind of "kill the with kindness".
Jolly, hope you got your schedule straightened out.
Linda

Hi everyone --

Sorry I haven't posted in awhile. Last week, I was so busy with work and then also going to the gym every day. Then on Thursday, I came down with bronchitis. It started on Wednesday afternoon as a sore throat and raspy voice. By Thursday afternoon, I was running a fever so I left work at noon. I was home sick on Friday too. I went to the doc on Friday and he put me on antibiotics and Prednisone to help clear out my lungs. I basically slept all weekend. I went to work yesterday, and then to the gym last night to do the training session (I'd missed Saturday's session due to being sick, so I didn't want to miss another one). Luckily, we did mostly weights, and I did okay.

We also weighed in and measured last night. This past week, even with being sick and not being able to work out for 4 days, I lost 4 lbs and 6 inches (throughout my whole body -- though I seem to be losing more on my waist and thighs). This brings my total lost since starting this challenge at the gym to 8 lbs. and 14 inches. Woooo Hoooo!!

As I said, we did a training session last night, and I have another one tomorrow night. I may go to the gym tonight to do cardio...I'm going to wait and see how my lungs feel. On Saturday, we're doing a boot camp! Yikes! Our trainer said there will be weights, abs, cardio, including jumping jacks and mountain climbers - which I don't like. There will be 4 trainers, each doing a different station, and we'll run from station to station. It'll go for about 2 hours straight. She told us that we will work very, very hard -- we will swear, scream, maybe even cry. She is a great trainer, but she is a drill sergeant.

She gave us all goals for this week. My goal is to lose 6 pounds and 8 inches. The other people's goals are equally challenging (and possibly unrealistic) too. She said anyone that meets their goal for this week doesn't have to do the second boot camp which will happen in a few weeks -- definitely good incentive. So I'm going to work out as much as my recuperating body will allow and eat right. I don't know if I'll be able to achieve my goal, but it is something to strive for, and all losses are good ones.

I hope you all are doing okay. Now that I've checked in, I hope to get some time to catch up on all your posts.

Michelle, great job on the loss, sorry you are not feeling well, though.
As for me, I went to my ww meeting and I did have a teeny loss of .2
Not much, but better than a gain or even staying the same.
Linda

Thanks for all the support everyone!
I am feeling better about myself today. My son really is a normal kid. He's definately jealous of the baby (and his sister) and he has a hard time when his dad has to travel so much. Yesterday was the first day of a long trip and he seems to have a hard time on that first day. I need to calm down a bit and set a good example.
And my sister in law is really an awesome person, I love them (the whole family) all very much. I just feel really overwhelmed when I visit and it's worse if I'm having a low self esteem day. I wouldn't turn down an invitation to visit especially since my kids love going there too.
Do you ever think that "if only I lost some weight everything would be better?" One less thing to worry about. One less thing to bring you down. I have a feeling it doesn't make all that much difference......It's who's inside that counts. Unforunately out society emphasizes physical appearance and i's become a huge part of self-esteem.
So far I'm having a decent day. I took a walk with the baby in addition to the walks to and from school. I made cupcakes for my meeting tonight and so far I haven't eaten one. If I do there won't be enough. I did lick the spoon. And bowl. And spatula. And wisk. If I eat a Lean Cusine and refrain from cupcakes and beer tonight, I should earn a smiley face. See you all later...

Hi Ladies,

Sorry I've been MIA. I've been stressed, eating horribly, and trying to find a balance. Let's see, where to start...

My FIL had surgery this morning. Has a very bad hernia and they had to do a lot of repair and fixing for him. He's off work for two weeks,and that will put a strain on them financially. We help out with $500 each month, so I am hoping it doesn't need to go above and beyond that. I say that because...

My parents have been struggling since shutting down their business two years ago. They both have full time jobs, but with so much debt left over from the business it's hard for them to make ends meet. My hubby and myself have been very clear that they just need to let us know if they need help and we'll help them out however they need. We made it clear that they needed to let us know in a timely manner, so it's not an overwhelming amount to pay at once. Well, in speaking with them on Friday I found out they are 1 1/2 months behind on bills. I know they are pridefull, but dang, tell me sooner rather than later. So, this in addition to having hardly any groceries in the house is quite a problem. They have spoken with a lawyer and are planning on filing bankruptcy for the business, protecting their home and vehicles. If the judge decides to take the truck,then we have to purchase it and sell it back to them so they don't lose it. That is $4000 approximately. It wouldn't be such a problem, but....

The substantial raise my hubby was due to get mid-January has not posted and got "lost". It's all figured out now, but we will not be seeing that money until March 1. We had hoped to see it next week. (By substantial I mean close to $1000.) And then...

My son got sick last night. He was throwing up and was so sick. I had an appointment here at work at 2:00 pm, so I had to be here for the afternoon. Hubby went to work this morning and then came home so I could come into work. We did not get to bed until midnight because the battery in the smoke detector in our bedroom died and the chirping kept us up until we disconnected it from the home. And now...

It's snowing outside, and I need to go to the store and get medicine for my son. There is about a foot on the ground that has fallen since around 9 this morning.

Sorry to vent also, but dang, will it ever end? I turned to my friend food for comfort and it didn't help, just made me feel sick.

Jolly: I'm keeping you in my prayers for a wonderful surgery and quick recovery. Keep us posted when you can.

Linda: Great job on the loss. I am at the same point with food right now that you are. Just peeves me.

Red: Thanks for holding us together these last two weeks. Seems like you are the one who has been faithful with support and everything else.

Apple: Relatives...what can I say? I don't have a lot of them because there have been so many that have screwed me and/or my family over. I write them off. I can't pick them, but I can also choose not to associate with them. It doesn't seem as yours are as horrible as mine are, but remember that you can choose to not spend time and get involved in their cattiness.

Michelle: Great job on the gym. You are doing so well!

Alright, back to work for me. I will try to get in here and post more frequently. Ugh, just a lot going on.

Happy (?) Tuesday

Chach

Hey all. Just a quick fly by post, so I can go rest my new eyes. The surgery went well. I can see. It was a pretty scary procedure, but I am happy so far with the results. I will try to post more tomorrow, after I have had time to rest.

Take care all, my thoughts are with you. And thanks for your thoughts and prayers

Hi jolly! So glad to hear things went well. Get some rest now!