Hi everyone,

Only have a minute....

Lynn, I'm so sorry your feeling blue. I know you miss Donald....try to remember the good times, he will always be in your heart.

Phyllis

Me too...quick check in. Had to put my ticker up 2#.I think with the cooler weather my body is craving carbs. I'm still exercising daily, though so I won't give up!

Cat - Sorry about your doggie. Your photo is terrific - you look fabulous, kiddo!

Meowee - glad you survived the big wind and rain storm.

Lynn - it's ok to still grieve. Take care of yourself.

Phyllis - glad the acupuncture is helping.

Freda - Take care of your cold.

Joanne - Good news about the wedding venue. That must be a relief. You sound much better. I'm with you - I need to buckle down and stop nibbling between meals. Get back on track eating-wise.

LindaD - sorry about the car. But what fun getting a new one. Mine has 180,000, (9 years old) and still going strong. (Knock on wood). it's a Saturn wagon and I love it.

Well, back to work kiddos.

Lyn

Hi:

I went to the library yesterday afternoon and returned some books I read. The library has a used book store where most books are .50 each. I found some good books on nutrition, exercise, etc. I felt like I had found a treasure. One of the books I purchased is titled, 'When Food Is Love' - Exploring the relations between eating and intimacy by Geneen Roth (author of 'The Hungry Heart').

Even though I'm not a compulsive eater, I like reading books like this because there is always something in them I learn about myself. I'm always searching for ways to better myself and unlock anything hidden in me. I've been through a lot of abuse both mentally and physically in my adult life and I've come a long way to overcome a lot of the issues I had to deal with. There is a light at the end of the tunnel for everyone when they open themselves up to learn more about who they are.

I love the study of the mind and at one point in my life I wanted to be a psychologist but due to circumstances I couldn't continue my classes. I believe everyone carries a blueprint from childhood and I find it interesting delving into people's minds especially when it comes to emotional hunger.

I am feeling a lot better today and began walking again. I'm not using weights yet but will add them in a couple of days if I'm still feeling good.

Joanne: I'm glad you don't have to take pain pills anymore. I've only had a back problem one time about 15 years ago when I pulled my back out. When people say they have a bad back I never realized the intense pain they have to endure. This is a real eye opener for me.

Lynn: It's hard when a person has passed on and the loved one is left to deal with special occassions that bring back memories. I hope you will take the time to remember the good times. I understand it can be a hard day for you. Take care.

Lyn: I wanted to drive my car to 200,000 miles but it doesn't look like that will happen. I've decided to get a less expensive car and drive it for a year or so and when I get a job and know the mortgage industry is stable again I will trade it in on a better model.

Hi to everyone!

Have a good day.

Enjoy.....

www.ThanksGivingMovie.com

Turn on your speakers and embrace the miracles of the season.

WOW!! LindaD-- That movie was so BEAUTIFUL!! Thanks so much for sharing! Karen

Lyn, on Donald's birthday, I'm wishing YOU peace and wonderful memories. I know it must be so hard on important dates like that.

I'd also like to quickly share a recipe I tried last night...something for an occasional treat that makes lots to share/freeze since the holidays are rolling around. I got the recipe from Cooking Light Magazine, then changed it up again to reduce the calories even more...It's pumpkin bread..enjoy:

1 1/3 cups of whole wheat pastry flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
2 cups granulated splenda
5 eggs
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup lowfat buttermilk
2/3 cup water
1 15 ounce can of pumpkin
Pecans or almonds or walnuts

Cream the eggs and splenda. Add the rest of the "wet" ingredients (including pumpkin) and mix till well blended.

Sift the dry ingredients. Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl at a time, then add the next 1/3 until well incorporated and then the last 1/3. Add pecans, almonds or walnuts to the mixture to taste.
Divide into 2 loaf pans that have been sprayed with pam and bake at 350 degrees.

the original recipe called for sugar and regular flour and was 198 calories per slice, so if you use splenda or some other sweetener, it should be a lot less. I was thinking about trying agave necter next time.

Good Morning Everyone,

Woke up to a cool morning in the Northeast. I'm back up to 155. Been down to 153 (1 day), and 154 (5 days), but kind of stuck at 155 (12 days).

I'm thinking of switching my goal for the month of November to "Eat 1200 calories/day." After many months of aiming to eat under 1,000 calories, I'm starting to find it difficult. I'll have some really low days (under 800) and some really high days (over 1500). I think I need to level out for a while. Maybe this is a good time to do it. See what happens to my body at 1200.

In the meantime, I'm doing better with my exercise. Planning to go to the gym today and Friday - tomorrow is my scrapping day.

Hope everyone has a Happy and Healthy day,

Lynn

Lynn, if you've only been eating under 1,000 calories per day, your body could well be in "starvation mode" and trying desperately to hang on to what you have instead of losing. I'd definately ramp up the calories with more vegs/beans etc.

It's a cold morning here..in the 30's...guess I have to pull out the coat today.
Ya'll have a wonderful day.

Good morning everyone,

Got back from my walk a little while ago and it's very foggy out. I have plantar fasciitis (sp?) in my left foot. I had it once before many years ago. I am sitting here with my foot on some ice. I have good inserts and Dr. Scholl arch supports in my walking shoes, so it wasn't too bad walking.

Lynn, ditto what Cat said about your body possibly being in starvation mode. I have read other posts where people who have been on a plateau, upping their calories and they start losing again.

Cat, I am very sorry about your dog. I know how hard it is. Thank you for sharing the recipe for Pumpkin bread. That is one of my favorites. Have you ever used agave nectar in a recipe before? If so, do you have to use less "wet" ingredients than called for? I'm curious because I have 2 large containers of agave and I'm trying to think of other ways to use it besides putting it in my iced tea or iced coffee. I have made a broccoli salad with agave in place of Splenda. DH & I like it, but it's a bit more watery than if I had used Splenda.

Linda D., thank you for sharing the movie. It was BEAUTIFUL! Glad that you back is feeling better.

Hi to all the GOLDEN GIRLS I missed
Have a wonderful day.
BFN, Ali

Good Morning GGs . . .

Certainly glad I got to play in the sun for four or five hours yesterday because today all I can manage is a little "singing in the rain" and, believe me, that is NOT something anyone wants to hear. Just about drowned putting the garbage out -- but when you only get pick-up every other week, you don't want to miss one.

Nothing too exciting in my plans . . . hope I can manage something constructive around the house and spend some time with my buddy Gadzella. Happy to say I'm still 'clean and sober' on the Cool Whip front.

Hope everybody has a great day doing nothing but good stuff. See you all later . . .

Good Morning Everyone!

We had a phone call yesterday from the realtor and they wanted to schedule a showing for 8:45 this morning. So I got busy yesterday evening and did most of all the cleaning that needed to get done so I wouldn’t have a lot to do this morning… Got up this morning and made coffee and Tim went out and started the furnace in the 5th wheel so we could just take the dogs and go out there while the people looked at the house. At 8:25 the realtor called and said they were going to have to reschedule the showing! Darn it!! But at least all my housework is done for today!

Zoe, Hope you are having a terrific time!!! I know you are!

Rosey, I’m so sorry to hear about your Mother. I know how you feel too--- my family is all in MO. I’m trying my best to get our house sold out here and get moved back there. We are actually about 800 miles away, and most of that is Kansas!

Lynn, I hope to try that scallop recipe soon. I love scallops but Tim doesn’t like any kind of sea food except tuna fish and that is only on a sandwich!! And can you believe he was born in New England!!! He was born in Peabody which is just about 40 miles N of Boston (I think) So I can’t understand why he doesn’t like any seafood… Your grandson and his dog are so cute. Your grandson has the kind of eyes that little girls are going to melt for one of these days!!! Sorry you felt so blue but know that you have so many happy memories to think about. Remember we are all here for you too! I’m hoping that I can move my ticker back to where it was this Friday!

Phyllis, Loved the pictures-- Thanks so much for sharing them. You are looking great! Any good news on your home front? How is the foot coming?

Cat, So sorry to hear about Murphy. It is so hard when we lose these little guys. I hope you are feeling much better now. I printed out the recipe for the pumpkin bread that you posted. It looks really good and I love pumpkin bread!

Freda, it sounds like you are doing pretty well. Walking in the Malls does count! I have and Aunt and Uncle back in MO. And they make it a point to do their “mall walking” everyday. In fact they have quite a little group that meets there. Sorry to hear about the cold going through your family now. Hope you get to feeling better soon.

LindaD-- Glad to hear that you are feeling better now. Don’t you hate that cars always seem to need to be replaced or repaired at the worst time! I have a 2000 Blazer and it has 45,000 miles on it. Tim just had to replace a seal on the front axle that was leaking and that was a job! But at least he was able to do it and we didn’t have to pay to have it done.

Joanne, it sounds like you are getting your wedding plans all taken care of. Finding a place is always such a relief. We will be anxious to see pictures as you proceed through this journey.

Lyn, Sorry you had to move your ticker. I had to finally do that last week too. I thought that I would be able to get the extra couple pounds off in a week or two but when that didn’t happen it was time to face it and change the ticker! I also decided to put in a Christmas goal and hope to be down to 145 pounds by then. That is 12 pounds so I think it is doable, if I do more that will just make me Happier!!

Meowee-- Glad that you made it safe and sound through those winds. Those high winds have always scared me---- and now I want to move to MO. where they have tornados!!

Well, guess I’ll go and do something now. Hello to all the Golden Girls that I might have missed. Take care all.

Good Morning GG's:

It's chilly here this morning. In the upper 60's right now. I had to wear a jacket. Looks like fall is officially here in CA. I've been trying to stay on 1,000 calories a day but so far it's kind of hard for me. Since I've done okay so far staying between 1200-1400 calories, I'm going to continue with it. I feel like I may have gained a pound or two because I haven't been able to exercise and I feel that's mainly why I've lost the weight I have so far. I don't weigh until Nov 15 so if that's the case then maybe I'll have it off by then.

I've tried so many diets and it's always the same. I'll lose a few pounds and then just stay there. If I don't exercise I just don't lose. Actually, since I've been exercising (with the help of the monthly challenges) I really look forward to it. I always hated exercise and found every excuse in the book to avoid it but now I seem to look forward to it because it helps me relax, gives me more energy, and makes me aware of what I put in my mouth. After all, if I work out to burn calories I certainly don't want to eat something and defeat the whole purpose of the workout. I'm just so glad I found you ladies. You are such a blessing to me every day and I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for the support you give me.

Karen: I have all the confidence you can make it to your Christmas goal of 145. I wish I could be that weight by then but my goal is to be 185 by Christmas. Sorry the realtor cancelled on you. It's frustrating when you have planned something where you have to clean your house and then it doesn't happen. Like you say, at least your house is clean now. Good luck on a sale real soon.

Cat: Thanks for the receipe. I'm going to make this for Thanksgiving. Thank you for always sharing your receipes. I've started a file on them.

Lynn: I read somewhere when you reach a plateau that you should switch the way you eat. So maybe adding more calories is just the ticket. Good luck!

Ali: Sorry about your foot. Hope you feel better soon.

Linda: I'm so proud of you on your Cool Whip sobriety. You can do it!

Lyn: Sorry about the gain. I know you will take it off quickly and get back on program. We all go through ups and downs sometimes. We are all pulling for you.

I'm at work and need to get busy. I hope you all have a nice day and stay on program. The holidays are coming and we need to be aware of what we put in our mouths and make sure we exercise. I've decided exercise comes first before anything other plans. Today I'm going to use weights. I'll take it slow so I don't strain my back. Right now I'm just a little sore but nothing to complain about.

Talk to you soon.

Hi Everyone!
Playing catch up is tough, I haven't dropped out just insanely busy for the past two weeks.

After the Halloween party & Halloween night (three trick or treaters) I salvaged seven jack-o-lanterns & now we have a ton of canned pumpkin. All pumpkin recipes are encouraged. Had a soup made from the stuff last night. Last Friday DH gives me a quick call at lunch to tell me that poof, his contract has ended and poof he's out of work. That'll wake you right up! To his credit he was on the phone to headhunters before he pulled out of the parking lot, has since gone to three interviews & his down time is starting to look very limited. Thank God. For those of you that have your husband home with you ALL DAY LONG, I salute you. Monday, DH was a little edgy over his situation & what I call The Babe Alert was going off every 20 minutes. "Babe! Where's my socks?... Babe! What's the number to....? Babe! Lets go do...."

I'm so tired! He has until the end of the week to find something before I go get a job just to get some peace & quiet.

Gearing up to walk a marathon in three weeks in honor of my mother. She passed away in her 52nd year and now that I'm that age I want to be busy living, not the other way around. I'll let you know how that works.

Yup, still Zumbaing.... love it! But then again, we're big fans of dancing here without anywhere to actually go dance. This almost counts!

A reunion? I'd be there! It would be priceless to meet & greet everyone!

Karen, I'm still sending those vibes & holding out that the buyer for your home is very close. At this point when you get to go on to MO, I'll come help. Heck I'm only in Mississippi. On the map it's like only 3 inches from you. I've been trying to walk the boys every morning on leashes just like the Dog Whisperer suggests & it does seem to calm them down, for about 20 minutes. We'll see how long that lasts.

Cat I'm sorry about Murphy. I don't see these guys as pets but more like furry people. Thanks for the Pumpkin recipe, I'll be doing that soon. From where I sit you always have your act together. Do you teach seminars for people like me? I admire that you seem so organized!

Meowee thanks for the comment about the cool whip. Frankly I could skip the jello & take the whole container & be happy as a clam with it. Finally, sugar free or not I had to put that stuff on my trigger list & not let it in the house. It's up there with Krispy Kreme vanilla cream filled doughnuts for me.

Ali, plantar facitis is absolutely debilitating! My husband had it when we were commuters in Boston that required 1-2 miles a day of walking between trains & eventually he had to use crutches. Sounds like you know exactly what to do, take care, it hurts!

Lynn, first sending you a hug & best memories in honor of Donald's birthday. It's wonderful when love continues. I agree, ramp up the calories with healthy foods & get the heart rate up when you work out. It's miserable but not as bad as shopping for clothes when we're heavy & nothing fits. Have a great day & I'm thinking of you.

Freda, get to feeling better soon & don't wear yourself too thin being the family nurse!

Gotta go. Stuff to do.....!

Hugs to everyone!
Marylynn

Morning "GG"s.. we had snow last night..it deff is not daisy"s cup of tea lol she pranced like a high stepping pony when i let them out this am..she will have to adjust.. thankyou for all the kind words about my mother..its more involved then we thought and she is overwhelmed right now..but fighting strong at 85.. im scared for her..have been busy planning for the holidays.. since we have the biggest house everyone comes to us..but we do pot luck so i'm not cooking for 20+ people..its always fun tho to be with family.. and of course my grkids..then xmas is coming..my favorite time of year..so how do you all celebrate? hoping u all have agreat day (((()))) rosey

Good Morning all,

Cold or not, I had to work yesterday. I probably infected everyone in the hospital, but I washed my hands a lot. They give us these sick days but frown on it if you call in sick.

Linda, I Live at the library! I know all the librarian's and they know me. I even e-mail a few of them! Our library has books for sale too, and at great prices. I like to read the health books and also lowfat/calorie cookbooks. Thanks for the Thanksgiving tape. I don't lose weight unless I exercise either. Just can't seem to cut the calories back enough to do that, or maybe the exercise speeds up my metabolism a bit, or a combination of the 2.

Cat, thanks for the recipe. I have a cookbook started also, with my own recipes, and this will be added to the others. And pumpkin is so healthy.

Lym, I have to agree with the others. You are cutting your calories too drastically. 1200 should be the absolute lowest that you go.

Aleka, Hope your foot is feeling better. It's hard enough to exercise, especially so if you have a bad foot.

Meowee, Congrats on kicking the "dreaded" cool whip addiction! Are there meetings for that? Maybe we could start some. "Hello, my name is freda, and i'm a cool whip addict"


Karen, Too bad that you cleaned the house for nothing, but, like you said, now it's all clean and you have a free day. Enjoy it! Do something fun! But, isn't any day that you don't have to clean house fun?


Marylynn, What are we going to do with our husbands when they retire? I can't get anything done when my husband is home now. I hope he finds another job soon, and you stay sane untill he does. I think walking the marathon in honor of your mother is a great tribute to her.

Rosey, I had to laugh about the "high stepping". My dog always does that. Puts one foot in the snow, and then lifts it as high as he can out of it. It's great to be able to get together at Thanksgiving. I seldom get to go be with my mom, so it's usually just us and my son's family here.

It was fun reading all the posts and getting to know all of you. Like I said before, If I leave someone out it's not intentional.

Have a good day, Freda