Good Morning Ladies!

No time for personals this morning, but I'll check back in after my workout. I'm still stalled out for no reason what so ever. I'm assuming it's stress, which shouldn't be a problem for me. I didn't realize I even had cortisol left in my body. Who knew? So this is a new week. A new day and I have to move forward. A long time ago I had to come to terms with many things, but mainly the "what if's". I guess I need to do that now and try to deal with the daily challenges as they come. So thanks Sandye, LTTG, Susie, TUmmy, Jacque and everyone else that gave me some great advice. Time to pick myself up and get back to taking care of me...Oh and Tummy looking good kiddo! Your amazing my friend. I'm so proud of you.

crazymamaof4/tummygirl - thanks - I woke up feeling a bit better this morning.

I found out that I didn't get the job today, I'm feeling more frustrated than anything, PLUS I just had my last cigarette! Oh dear... I'm just going to try to convince myself that I am a non-smoker, as in 'cigarettes? eww.'

BTW Tummygirl - those pictures are fantastic! I thought they were different shirts in the first two, the clipped up one looked so perfectly fitted, pity you can't just walk around wearing a shirt with clips up the back.

I took some full body pictures at the beginning, then deleted them off my camera, because I didn't want to look at them... oops. I wish I'd kept them now, because I'm 27lbs down and can't really see it in the mirror, but I'm sure that pictures would have done the trick.

Late to the game - I feel that way more often than not at the moment, but my thinking is that I just haven't met the right kind of man yet. Anybody know where he lives?

Crazymamaof4 - good luck with the wedding dress! and the haircut, I've been dreaming about going to the hairdressers for weeks and weeks. But I told my sister I would grow my hair for her wedding... why?? There's nothing like a new sleek hairdo to make yourself feel good.

Delphi - sometimes it's so hard to be sensible, but it sounds like you're doing a good job! sometimes it's just impossible to separate urges from feelings.

signing off now - I'm waiting until I really REALLY want a cigarette to go for my walk...

I hope it's alright if I join in late
I'm hoping to lose atleast another 4lbs before I go on holidays, they'll be lots of beach and swimming opportunities...
Good luck everyone!

Morning All
It's another week & I'm off to a good start- heading out the door for my walk.
Hope everyone has a good day!

So, the vacation was great..no major fights broke out, everyone had a good time, got loads of activity in, and our van didn't break down. That's the Reader's Digest version. Seriously it was SO good to see my brothers and their families (and all my other family I see more often) and my kids LOVED seeing their cousins. The van ride wasn't terrible, but if anything, I did get slightly sleep deprived on the trip since we were staying up playing cards or watching movies and stuff late most nights. That's a vacation for ya!

I weighed this a.m. and stayed exactly even with weight. I am happy with that since I knew my food wasn't OP. My activity was excellent and super fun, so that was a big help. I'd like to keep that up at home but I don't know how since I don't have all the people to play sports with. Oh well, I will see what I CAN do to keep myself in that happy place with exercise. I'm hoping this week will give me a good post-vaca drop. Today I am resting my body since I feel a bit worn down and it's my planned day off anyway. Hope you all enjoy your day!

Gooooood MOrning girls!!!!!
Ok, I am back from my fun weekend at the lake, so I have to get back on plan today!!! What is it about the water that makes potato chips and hot dogs taste soooooo yummy? At least I got a ton of exercise in, hopefully it will even out.....
Ms. P- Welcome back! sounds like you had a lot of fun! Cute new pic on your avatar. I love bumper cars!

Tummy- WoW on your pics! what a huge Difference! I think I will take some more pics to compare. Maybe tonight when DH gets home..... on second thought maybe later this week when TOM has finally "left the building"!!!
SusiemartinHope you have fun on your walk today, That's the way to make it happen! Yay for you!
Synesthetes- Good Luck!
Delphi I agree with the all the other chicks on here, you have been through a lot lately, be good to yourself today!!! Re-charge your batteries! I could tell in your posts, you felt drained! I think a good dose of a Starwars-athon might do you some good.
Princess lea, or Queen Amidala ought to get your Girls Kick A$$ juices flowing!!! Just remember You are worth it!!!!
Merose- so sorry to hear you didn't get the job.....another one will come along, and I know it will be a much better fit! Have you tried "role playing" or practicing like you are at the interview. That is how I got past my nerves. I had My Mom, and/or sister pretend they are the boss, and ask me questions. I try to act like it is a real interview (once we stop giggling). Then they critique me, and it really helped me. Either way, don't be too hard on yourself, the job market is tight right now. There are a lot of people out there looking!!! Hang in there, the right job will pop up!

Crazymamaof4-ooooohhhhh I love new haircuts!!!!! What are you thinking about having done? You must share some pics! Jaqui9999 is so right, it is an instant "pick me up". P.s. maybe after yesterday, you should change your name to Mamaof4crazies (I just crack myself up!!!)
Latetothegame- Girl, we celebrate loss on this thread! ANY LOSS! So YAY for your loss! As far as your man issues, none are perfect. I prefer to think of my DH as a masterpiece in progress, and I am the sculptor. Basically, I will continue to until his imperfections have been hammered out, and he is just right! Just kiddin', sorta!

I better get started girls, I have a list a mile long today, so I will check back later! Let's have a great day!

Oh man, I'm so late but i only joined today lol

Weight Loss Goals:
Lose 2lbs (going easy since we're already 2 wks in)

Health Goals:
Maintain and monitor calorie and fat intake.
Drink 2 more glasses of water to my daily intake.
Add more fresh fruits to diet.

MsP ~ That's great that you didn't have a gain. Good to have you back home. Love the new avatar, looks like you guys had fun.

Susie ~ Good luck on that walk. Have fun.


Synesthetes ~

merose ~ on that last cigarette. I just can not seem to do it, no matter how much I want it. Good luck to you though. You CAN do it.

Tummy ~ Well I guess since I only have to deal with stress during these types of events, it's just hard to deal with. I have to much spunk to let it go to waste on feeling all worried and stuff, but I guess there are certain situations, where you simply can't help but worry. Thanks again girly and you look great.

Sandye ~ Thanks again. As always you're my inspiration. I think the wedding dress is a great idea, though try it on when you feel comfortable again. Good luck finding some fresh spinach Popeye.

LTTG ~ Thanks for the support and encouragement. and you know what, I HATE men to.

LE ~ Thanks sweetie. and @ the starwarsathon. Perhaps you're right darling. glad to hear you had another awesome weekend. I need to come down there for a weekend.

splitsun ~

As for me, I feel great. My ST was AWESOME this morning. Though the plie's with every set is getting on my nerves, but those inner thighs are just shrinking away. So I've decided to amp the difficulty up on the ST and get in some cardio daily, just cause. I think it will help just keep my mind off of things. Plus Canaan seems to be breathing better some of the time, so that's a start.

Not sure what my body can take, but I'm gonna beat it into the ground until it cooperates. I'll be damned if I'm gonna let all my hard work go to the way side simply because I have no energy. If I have to, I'll fake it. Stress be damned. Oh and yeah, this weekend, I'm gonna get my groove on...I don't care what the repercussions are, that will be the ultimate stress reducer for me. Think I'll tell him that ahead of time, just so there isn't any confusion on why, I rip the clothes off of him this weekend.

So yeah, two more days until the big 30. *shudders* Oh well, I am gonna go to the tanning bed, which I never do, but just cause and maybe go use that gift certificate for the spa. But I don't know. I need a change like Sandye, something dramatic...and not sure what to do. My hair is extremely long, so I've thought on more than one occasion to cut it, but I love the simplicity of it. So perhaps some blue, purple or red hair? Yeah, ok maybe not. Urg, I need something.

Goooooooooooooooood Morning my lovelies!!! Happy Monday to you all! Are you ready for a fantastic week?

Tummy~ Oh man, you made me do it! I tried on the dress this morning...still not there yet. Ah well, it's just the last bit of zipper at the top--guess the girls need to shrink a bit yet before I can squeeze into it. I hope your dd (as well as all my kiddos) isn't a speed freak today! I don't know about you, but days like that just wear me out--physically and mentally!

Jacque~ Hey hun! Nice to see you! Yeah, I searched for a new do and had a hard time finding anything. Sigh...I have such wonky hair I'm not sure what to do with it!

Delphi~ Glad to hear you're going to focus on taking care of you! You deserve it hun! Don't fret about the stall--plateaus happen to the best of us. Besides, you are in Onederland remember? Now THAT's something to be super proud of!!!

Merose~ glad to hear you're feeling better today! And bravo to you for smoking that last cig! The first few days will be the hardest, but you CAN quit!! I know you can! If I can, anyone can--I had zero will power and tried over and over again to quit, until finally, I just decided enough was enough. Be strong--come here if you need a pep talk k? I know a few of us were smokers and know exactly what you're going through!

Synesthetes~ It's never too late to join in the fun! Make yourself at home and jump right in!

Susie~ Morning girlie! Have a great walk!!

MsP~ Woo hoo!! Way to go girlie!!! I'm so proud of you for maintaining during your vacation!! Sounds like you had a great time! As for keeping your activity level up, have you looked into maybe doing a rec sport?

Lewis~ Bwahaha! Oh you're so right! Momof4Loonies, Momof4Wild1's, Momto4tasmaniandevils...or, MomWho'sAbout2GoInsane...any of those would work. As for the haircut, I have no idea! I get all gutsy about once a year, walk into a salon and say, 'Do whatever you want' and I'm never happy. My fault really, I go to the cheap places because I'm cheap. I need to go to a GOOD salon and have a consultation or something because I'm at a loss. All I know is, I never wear my hair down and I'm beginning to wonder why I have this hair if I only ever wear it down for special occasions and holidays!


Well girls, it's an abso-freakin'-lutely gorgeous day out today! Mom, you should have come out to visit this week! Blue skies, 69 degrees, a light breeze...ahhh, heavenly! Better yet, no one has barfed in over 24 hours! Now that's something to be happy about right? --Scratch that, Ab just barfed...sigh...so much for keeping it isolated to one kid huh? Poor thing.

Even better still, I'm down .6 lb today! 156.6, almost ready to put another onto my ticker!! Almost to the 40 lbs mark too!

I wanted to share a little something with you ladies, hope you don't mind more of my ramblings! Back in January I did the whole New Years Resolution thing and vowed to get in shape and lose weight and one of my main motivators was a family reunion that was supposed to take place this past weekend. Also, our 10 yr anniversary is in Sept. and I wanted to look nice for that as well. Anyway, obviously I fell off the wagon and you all know it wasn't until I got my depression under control that I was able to really focus on getting myself healthy. On April 15th I started with a goal of losing 2 lbs a week and making it to 166 by July 11th for the reunion. I started plugging along and found you all in May (thank God!) and I've been doing better that I ever imagined I would. The reunion ended up being cancelled and yet I still pressed on, why stop just because the reunion was cancelled right? Right! Anyway, I just looked back on my original goals (cuz I write everything down, I'm OCD like that ) and it occurred to me that I more than made my goal--beat it by 8.2 lbs to be exact.

The reason I mention all this? Well, because when I started out and made that goal, I was full of optimism and energy to start this new lifestyle--ya know, how most of us feel when we start a new diet or exercise routine--but in the back of my mind the realist (pessimist) in me kept saying, 'Now don't expect to actually make that goal k? I mean, come on, 166--by July 11th?! Just do what you can and be happy with any loss.'. Well, girls, I kicked that part of me entirely to the curb! I don't listen to her anymore--I tune into the optimist part of me, the one who says, '**** ya, you can TOTALLY make that goal!', the one who says, 'Get up and get your butt moving girlie! You're not going to get in shape just sitting around are you?' (she's a tough love kinda gal ). The thing is, I thought she was gone. Honestly, I thought she had left me long ago. But the day I decided to join this group, she stopped walking away and turned back to see what all the hubbub was about. She liked what she heard and she decided to give me another chance. I couldn't be more thankful to you girls. I know I say it all the time, but you really, really gotta believe me when I say that you have changed my life! Not only am I still going strong with my weight loss, but I have more confidence than I've had in years! I KNOW I can do this, I KNOW I WILL do this! I feel inspired every day by you girls, I feel accepted by you and encouraged by you--you just amaze me, all of you! I am finally becoming happy with who I am. I have compared myself to others and saw every little flaw and downfall in me, never the positives. Not just with the weight stuff, but everything. I've never been all that happy with who I am and have always looked at everyone as being better than me. A better person, a better friend, mother, photographer, homemaker, wife...you name it. Well, I've finally started accepting myself for who I am. I'm not perfect, I'm not the best at anything--but I do my best. I try and when I succeed I am proud of myself. When I fail, I dust myself off and keep trying and still I am proud. I am proud of myself because not very long ago, I wouldn't have bothered trying at all.

Geez, I'm just a babbling fool aren't I? Sorry about that, but when you have a moment of clarity, you just have to get it out and thank those responsible.

Anyway, the point to all of this is, I did it. I made my goal. And I'm still doing it, and I will make my next goal. I KNOW it! And for anyone out there who's ever had that negative, pessimistic part of them dragging them down--well, tell them to kiss it! Let that optimistic part of you have her say! Listen to the positives, ignore the negative crap (unless it's constructive of course) and focus on being good to yourself. Even if you think you aren't worth it, because once you let that positive girl get up on her soapbox, you'll see that you ARE worth it and you CAN do ANYTHING you set your mind to!

Okay, whew! Again, sorry for the novel, but boy do I feel better getting all that out! You are the BEST bunch of chickies around! I'll be forever grateful that I found you all.

Now, get out there, have a fanfreakin'tastic day and of course, don't forget to...

Drink Your Water!

Morning Ladies,

Jacque - thanks so much, bring on the bikini (in maybe a few more pounds)

Delphi - You doll, are inspiring and brilliant and if I knew how to get cortisol out of our bodies I would, like honestly there should be nothing in the universe whose job is to store belly fat, that's wrong, just wrong! I hope you're taking very good care of yourself, we'll be watching

Merose - I thought so too, if only I was really that good of a tailor for real. Bravo on quitting that's a fantastic thing to do, wow! Take lots of showers, it really helps when you get a craving, can't smoke when you're wet.

Synesthetes - Ok, that was a challenging spelling, LOL, but regardless of my lack of english skills,

Susie - Great start chickie, one good choice leads to another, you can do it!

MsP - Great job on the weight, everyone's done great with vacations this year, it's always better when you have someone waiting here to wag a finger at you if you stray. Sounds like it was a blast and you found your inner athlete, fantastic.

LE - Sounds like great fun at the lake, it's true about that nasty food just tasting better out there, maybe it's from being sooo hungry from all the activities but I've always felt the same way too. Glad you kept busy. And thanks so much, do take pics,l its fantastic to see and then maybe we can too ("just kiddin', sorta" - that made me LOL, so true!)

Splitsun - it's great fun here, post often!

It's another wonderful day, woke up feeling my bright sunny self again so I think funky town is fully behind me. Lost another 0.5lbs today and broke through the 192's so that is pre-baby weight now. Now the next biggy for me is 167-170, lowest adult weight and when dh and I started dating (coincidence? I think not, LOL) It's virgin fat from that point on, ooohhh can't wait to corrupt a virigin.

Three more sleeps till I'm flying home for four days. I'm already stumpted as to my waredrobe, gosh sometimes I'm such a girl. I have one pair of pants that is "respectable" but still needs a lot of belting to not show my business and I don't have any size 16 jeans at all. Everything is ginormous, but I guess there's worse problems to have, I just abhor looking sloppy and I'd rather look fantastically stylish upon my return.

Well better get motivated and call my friend to see what food provisions I'll have to bring, she's pregnant and eating ice cream 24/7 so that might not be the best strategy to stay OP. Then off to town for some errands and then some circuit training this afternoon. Busy day, have a great one ladies, BBL.

Splitsun~ to you as well! Fruits are always a challenge for me too! Jump right in and join the fun!

Delphi~ Girl, oooh, you sound like you're gunna have fun this weekend! I bet you're right, how could you possibly be stressed after that kind of a workout? I know what you mean about long hair being easy, I used to have long hair (forever ago) and I liked how easy it was. Sometimes I wish I never started coloring and cutting my hair, ah, but I couldn't keep it long forever and my gray was really getting outta control! Okay, don't go too nuts on the workout! You don't want to pull something and be outta commission this weekend do you!

Tummy~ OMGosh you are cracking me up!!! 'Corrupt a virgin' *snort* Get yourself to the mall girlie! You deserve a shopping trip! Go pick out some hot new clothes for your trip!

Okay, now everyone needs to stop posting for at least the next minute so I can tear myself away from my computer and get something DONE around here!

Dang it CMo4 - you're not allowed to make me cry at 8 in the morning! The most amazing thing about your post is you can actually hear the pride you have in yourself, and that's something wonderful to see, we far too often try to do this not b/c we want to honour ourselves but b/c we hate what we have let ourselves become. That made my day and you, my dear, are an inspiration to me every single day. Thank you.

Delphi - I'm proud of you, embrace the inner sex monkey, you go! And 30 ain't so bad, I hit it in May and I'm a whole lot hotter at 30 than I was at 29 and so are you! I can't think of a better way to start off a new birthyear either. Have fun, report back, spare no details

I agree with Tummy, Sandye. You can't just go making me cry this early in the morning. I've said it many times, and I will say it many more, but I am so proud of you. You never cease to amaze me and just hearing you say all those things about yourself, that we all see, is simply surreal. I'm so glad you found that inner peace you've been seeking. You are an outstanding person and the coolest chick in Indiana. It is such an honor to be able to follow your progress and simply be a part of your amazing transformation...inside and out. Sandye

Tummy ~ Thanks! 's! Oh and believe me when I say, the devils in the details. You ladies will most definitely be hearing about it. I'll probably have to put a disclaimer on my post first.