Hi Turtles,
Princess, when I saw your name I was soooooo happy. It's great to hear from you. It's so easy to gain weight back, especially when dealing with so many stressors as you have been. It's great that you found something new to knock off weight! Change is good when it comes to getting back on a losing track! Glad you've been working all this time and I've got my fingers crossed for you to find something else soon. back. Great hearing from you and seeing your cheery photo!

I'm doing okay. I've plateaued since early December and I'm not at all happy about that. The good thing is I haven't gained much, the not so good thing is that I've stymied my weight loss at around 192# or so and I've got a lot to lose. The new thing that I'm trying is tracking on my iPod. My dd set me up with the iPod I received for Christmas-----not that I procrastinate or anything---and I like it. I'm tracking WW points and activity points on it and it's a fun gimmick for now. The tough thing that happened to me is that I have hives. They allow my body to hold onto fluids and that's not fun. I'm trying to be level-headed about this and I keep on saying that they don't have to last for months this time. Everything else is good. My dh and I are spending more time together and we often walk on the boardwalk near our local beach for 1 1/2miles and that's a great time for us to talk and have a nice time together. So glad you're back! And good luck for :

What are everyone's plans for the weekend? We're celebrating my dd's here. She's strong into WW's right now, so I'm planning a good heart healthy dinner. The guys are having pizza. My other dd and I are having rotisserie chicken---It'll be easy to assemble and it'll still feel like a celebration.

Okay=---gotta run. : to all of us!!!!
Judy
234.6/?/189 and closer to goal

Morning all and Happy Friday to everyone!

Judy: It is great to be back here and seeing everyone again. Hives? Wow, that has to be painful! I am so sorry that you are going thru that! Do you know what causes them? Your weight loss has been awesome! You should be extremely proud of yourself! congrats...

Bandit: How you are you doing? It is nice to put a face to your name with the addition of your avitar picture! I am thinking about joinging TOPS since the cost is so much lower than WW and it would still give me the accountability of a weekly weigh in... does it matter which diet plan you follow to be a member of their group?

Lots of drama and stress for me over the last year but it is better left in the past so I will not bore you with the details. Still having back/neck issues but they are down to a dull roar so I move forward just at a slower pace. I have started walking again, boy it is hard to get back into that habit! Other exercises I have to take a step at a time and make sure it does not cause a flare up but I will be adding them in as of this weekend. Going to a local AAA baseball game tonight, the Indianapolis Indians - it is my consulting companies summer picnic. I will most likely pass on the food and just fill up on water since it is not plan friendly by any means... will eat when I get home but since it is down town I will get lots of walking in since you normally have to park far away and walk to the ball park.

Talk soon and have a great weekend!
Princess

Judy, hives! Bummer. Sounds like you've had them periodically? Any idea what brings them on? Seems like an allergist should be able to help you there. I am in AWE of your exercise regime. WOW. This is the area where I have the most difficulty staying consistent.

Princess, I'm sorry things have been so stressful and VERY glad to see you here again. We can all relate. I am also self-employed, and it can get a bit nail-bitey when you're not sure where your next gig will be. Hope you have one lined up soon. I'm currently working at 2 places (4 days a week at one, 1 day a week at the other), partly to keep my bases covered in case one goes belly up. What do you do?

Bandit, I like how you plan ahead. Very smart! I'm still jealous of you hanging out at your trailer in the country. We'll be in Canada this weekend, BTW, hanging out with MIL. I'm looking forward to sitting on her balcony and watching the ships go by, weather permitting. I also love to go to Shoppers Drug Mart! We don't have those.

Cherry, hormones are horrible! Mine are all over the place right now (peri-menopause) and have been for a couple of years now. I cannot WAIT to be past all this. Hope you're doing better.

Let's see ... eating has been up and down; weight is hanging in there at about the same place. One pair of jeans is baggier for some reason; I'm not complaining. The tooth is doing much better; I may get to avoid that roooo ... rooo ... procedure after all. I'll phase off the meds next week and see how it goes. Hey, maybe I'll drop a water pound or two!

Temps here are great; in the upper 70s. I'm taking advantage of the summer by taking long weekends as often as possible. I just LOVE them. I have a bunch of 4-day weeks coming up, which is very exciting.

Parents are doing OK. Pop found a lump on his neck, which is worrisome (he finished chemo for lymphoma last summer). We're hoping for the best. He should see his internist today. We planted a big garden for them for my mom's birthday last week; she was thrilled (and DH, who did all the work, was exhausted but happy with the results). Now their condo looks wonderful. There are still a few things that need doing, but nothing pressing.

That's all my news for now. Oh -- had a wildlife encounter yesterday on my way to work. I was driving on my usual country road, and I saw this HUGE turtle in the middle of the road. I didn't know they came that big in Michigan. Cars were driving right over it (between their tires); it was completely frozen. So I pulled over, picked it up, and moved it back to the reeds in the ditch by the side of the road. It was NOT happy with me, hissed and stretched out its neck, etc. It wasn't until I got home and looked it up that I realized it was a Common Snapping turtle, which they tell you to never pick up or touch! They can snap your finger right off, apparently. So I got lucky.

What a book this has been. That's what happens when I don't post here for a couple of weeks.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Good afternoon everyone and happy Saturday to you all!

It is a rainy day here. Got my errands run this morning so I am good for the weekend, now just working on laundry... I need to get a walk in today but it may just have to wait until tomorrow when the weather is nicer... although there is that treadmill down stairs gathering dust I could get my butt on that.

Lauren: I am a Project Coordinator, right now I am consulting at Sallie Mae, but they have had huge, huge cuts since the President put the nationalization of student loans into the health care bill, they can no long originate student loans so they have laid off 1/3 of their work force and are in the process of cutting down the ones that remain... sigh... I was hoping for a perm. position there but it will not happen now. The end of June is my last unless I get an extension but none are being given, although I was told that they loved my work and wanted to keep me so were trying to find money in another areas budget... we will see. I am actually getting used to this so it does not stress me out as much as it did two years ago... LOL.

I am making a biggest loser recipe tonight... Grilled Parm. Chicken... I made a chili recipe out of their recipe book Thursday night and my DS and DH loved it which surprised me greatly. I am sure that these recipes would work for WW so if they turn out I would be more than happy to share/post them for those that are interested.

Have a great weekend!
Princess

KimL
Of course you can join! This is a great group of Turtles----we all do well by sticking with our plan. We also admit that sometimes it's harder than others and that's when we count on our Turtle Buddies to help us get back on track with a kind word or two. So, tell us a bit about yourself and post a lot. It helps!

Lauren, great hearing from you! Do you think it's funny that you're a Turtle and the snapping turtle didn't hurt you? It's amazing that you were able to move it and save its life. I think it found a kinship with you!!!!!! What a wildlife adventure. Crazy! Weigh to go with keeping weight steady leading to baggy jeans! That's great news. I hope your Pop is okay. These things are so tough as we get older. My dh and I are older than you guys and although everything seems okay right now, we really try to make the best of each day.

Princess, every job you've taken over the last couple of years---they've wanted to keep you. You are an incredible worker. I hope Sallie Mae can find a way to put you on their permanent payroll. You deserve it. You know what? You've got an awesome attitude about working. I hear a lot of the stress gone about that. : Good for you! And yes!!!!! I'd love any new recipes from the Biggest Loser Cookbook. I'm always looking for new twists to keep boredom away.

As a matter of fact, here's a simple and low point snack or appetizer. You know how it's popular to have bruschetta on Italian bread? Well, I took the 100calorie (mine were 1 point) bagels, toasted them, spread them with bruschetta from Trader Joe's and put a leaf of basil on them. Delicious and they came in at one point or one and a half points if you ate both halves. Tasty and not damaging.

I'm not sure why I have hives this time around. I've had hives twice before in my life and they're not fun. I am hopeful that the thing that prompted a severe spell this time was mowing the front and back lawn after fertilizer and weed killer were put down. I know it was stupid on all levels. Sometimes I just get that way and want something to be done. It was supposed to rain and the grass was high, and oh well!!!!!! Although I've had hives since, they aren't as bad as they could be. ON the good side, my doc said losing 25# last year was good and he's taking me off a medication. I'm thrilled. MY aim is to get my BP to such a good place that I can come off meds altogether.

Okay----gotta run.
Cherry and Lin and Bandit-----hope you all had a great weekend.
I love this site!!!
Judy
234.6/?/189 and closer to goal.

Hi turtles - OMG so many posts in so little time - great job!

Princess - Soooooooo happy to see you back with us. At Tops they do have a food plan, but it basically the Canadian Food Guide (what they taught us in school) and most people just do there own thing - I still basically WW plans with a few tweaks here & there. BUt it really is alot cheaper than WW
Nice to see you back & glad you are back on some type of programme.

Lauren - yes the Shoppers area nice stores & I have one that I can walk to at work, so quite often pop in there on my lunch and always buy something.

Judy/Cherry - nice to see you gals chiming in as well. Sounds like everyone is pretty much doing well, so keep up the good work.

I made a different salad when my gf came for dinner Saturday. It was watermelon with feta cheese and was very simple and very tasty. Will post if anyone is interested.

SUnny but abit cooler than last week up here right now. But still nice.

That is soooooooooo awful about that oil leak in the Gulf - makes me actually feel sick reading about it. How are you all coping with something so tragic?

Take care!

Afternoon all and Happy Monday!

The weekend was good and productive. I got my bike out of the basement and DS is going to inflate the tires for me this evening so that will be fun. First week on TBL diet and I was down 4.0 lbs... not what I expected really but it is fine. Dusted off the treadmill Sunday morning because it was raining when i woke up so thought I may as well go ahead and get my walk in for the day.

Bandit: The salad sounds wonderful! Yes, it is heart breaking about the Gulf... and I for one am just frustrated and unhappy with how long it is taking to get it under control...

Kim: Welcome!

Judy: Ouch! They sound really painful! I am like you, if somethings needs to be done I will just do it myself... not always a great idea... LOL, but none the less I press forward

Have to run.
Princess

Hey Bandit, yes!!!! Please post the watermelon feta cheese salad. It sounds refreshing and yummy.

Princess : That's a wonderful weight loss. Good for you.

I'm just checking in to say hi. Glad to see our group being so active right now. Have a great day.
Judy
234.6/?/189 and closer to goal.

Morning, turtles:

Lauren - nice job saving the turtle!

Kim - welcome to our group, nice to have new members.

OK, here is the recipe

Watermelon & Feta Salad
Lemon Dressing:
3 tbsp (45 ml) olive oil, 2 tbsp (25 ml) fresh lemon juice, 1/4 tsp (1 ml) salt,
14 tsp (1 ml) freshly ground black pepper

Salad:
1 small watermelon (about 1# or 500g)
2 nectarines or peaches (I used 1 of each)
6 cups (1.5 L) mixed salad greens (whatever you like)
1 cup (250 ml) crumbled feta cheese
2 tbsp (25 ml) toasted pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds (I used pumpkin)

Make dressing first - place all in larger container and shake
Cut watermelon into small chunks & cut nectarines into 1/2 moon thin pieces -
tear greens and add to fruit. Toss to mix. Crumble cheese over salad, sprinkle seeds and drizzle with lemon dressing. Toss together and serve.

To serve salad later, prepare fruit & dressing, then add remaing ingredients later.

Serves 4 = per serving 198 cal

Enjoy!

Happy Tuesday everyone! Just a quick flyby to see how everyone is doing... can't stay but a minute though.

Bandit: The salad looks very good!

Kim: Snacking is hard! Night time is my worst time for snacking right now... I get hungry before I go to bed but I have been trying to work/walk through those times on my treadmill... last night I wanted a snack but was just too tired to be bothered so I went to bed

Judy: Thanks! I am not losing like they say you should though so I must be doing something wrong... to be honest the calorie counting is harder then the point counting... I can see myself going back to points real soon... LOL.

Lauren: What a wonderful gift to give someone... a garden! I just love my gardens and was out weeding my vegetable garden last night, that is the part that I don't love so much

Have to run!
Princess

Morning all and happy Wednesday to everyone!

Boy oh boy we had some wicked storms come thru here last night... my one dog got her panties all in a bunch because if the thunder and kept us all awake... LOL. Poor old girl!

Today I start to count points again, I think that the calorie count on TBL diet that I have is just too high for my activity level... which is still pretty low... I will see if the points system works better to get me going in the right direction.

I will post TBL Chili recipe when I get a chance, that was really good, I am not sure of the points value but between us all I am sure we can figure it out.

Kim: Good luck with your house cleaning! Planning is the key to staying on track with food I think, and one area that I used to excel in and now I have to really work at.... along with many others... LOL

Bandit: I think I will pop down to the TOPS meeting tomorrow night, if their website is right there is one just down the street from me now so that will be super! I will let you know how it goes.

Judy: Any plans for the upcoming weekend? I miss walking on the boardwalk! I used to love heading to the shore to do that very thing! It is such a wonderful experience and I would sleep so good at night after all of the fresh air that you get... nothing like it!

Lauren: So you are self employed? May I ask what you do/specialize in? I would love to be self employed somedays... and others, well, not so much. It is one of those things I can never make up my mind about. I only take contracts on a W-2 basis so that I don't have to worry about the taxes, etc.

Have to run but will check back later on!

Have a great day everyone!
Princess

Hi Turtles,
Watermelon Salad looks delicious. I've got a melon sitting in my fridge and I even have FF feta cheese, so I'm going to give this a go. Yummy! Thanks for the recipe, Bandit.

Princess, good luck at TOPS. I think that's a good move to make. It'll be the "change" that we often need to get in gear and lose weight. It'll be less expensive than WW's and that's always a good thing. Interesting about the diet plan you just tried. I tried a "detox" plan awhile ago and didn't lose anywhere near what the average losers lost. However, for me, it was the feeling good that allowed me to kickstart my weight loss this year.

My dh and I are on a good roll right now. Boardwalk yesterday, good foods, I am looking forward to a decent WW WI. I still love my WW's group. There is such a great group of gals there. I've been going for a loooooooong time and consider a few of the gals my friends. I'm thinking of having a lunch here again soon the way I did at Christmas. That would be fun and I think I'll make the watermelon salad.

KimL, good luck with your house cleaning. Yeah, I should do some of that soon myself. LOL. Good luck with planning your snacks. Do you like popcorn? I bought a microwave popcorn maker and use 2T. of unpopped kernals-----no salt, no butter and I've gotten used to it and it's filling. Sometimes I scatter 4 almonds (.5point) into the popcorn when it's done. The almonds are like a CrackerJack surprise. They get warm from the hot popcorn and the whole dish is yummy.

My little garden isn't doing too well at all. The flowers look pathetic. WEll, this is only June and they've got time to perk up.

This weekend we're having another Murder Mystery Party. This one takes place at the Deadwood Saloon in the late 1800's. It should be loads of fun. Having chili and Vitatop cornbread and lots of food I can eat around. I'll load up my plate with salad and remember to have fun!!!!!!

Hey Lauren, what a lovely gift to plant a garden for your folks. The whole idea is wonderful and cheerful. Good for you guys.

Okay, here's : to us all. Lin, I'm thinking about you and wishing you well.

Let's get this weight gone!!!!
Judy
234.6/?/189 and closer to goal