Anne, so sorry to hear about your pre-term scare. But, so glad that you and the baby are both OK.

I had a busy day yesterday and today. I painted my computer room , the ceiling and closet too. Did all the trim work. Removed the carpet and tack board while DH was putting the new floor in the hallway. We're now ready to move on to putting the new floor in computer room. BTW, I thought I was the worst paint picker in the world. Nope. I sent DH and Shelbey to get me a very pale lavender. What we have now is bright purple. I had to primer it all first , then 2 coats of paint. I'm going with cheerful curtains that will match and leaving it as is for now. Of course, the girls Love it!

Lily, it sounds like you must be feeling better since you're back to rebuilding your house, room by room. Honestly, you could go into business! (I'd hire you in an instant ) LOL about the purple walls! But so long as the girls are happy, it's fine. I hope you're going to get a little well-deserved rest this weekend!

I'm going to do Gary's 5K on the elliptical as soon as the gym opens at 8 am. It annoys me no end to sit around and wait for the gym to open on weekends -- I'm a morning person and want to get exercise DONE so I can take a shower and get on with the day.

Food has been totally on track since I got home from FL on Sunday. I think I scared myself with 1) how much I can eat if I let myself go (bottomless pit), and 2) how fast I can gain weight if I eat whatever I please. I've decided that there's always going to be a Fat Chick inside of me, just waiting for her chance to come out! But I'm back to basics with WeightLoss 101 and have lost 4.4 pounds, so am right about where I was before we left.

Funny how it feels so much better to be in control of my eating! I don't know what's worse: the bloated, sick feeling from overeating or the scary feeling of being out-of-control. Both bring up terrible memories of the fat days and remind me just how much I never, ever want to go back to being that sad and desperate person. My stomach just twists into a knot when those feelings get dredged up again. I guess it's a good thing to have a few off-plan days to put the alternative of going back to obesity into perspective.

What's everyone have planned for the weekend? Is it spring where you are?

Lily, will you come over and paint my baby's room? My husband and I have never actually painted anything in our lives, so we're clueless! I got a Winnie-the-Pooh border, but I need to paint the walls either blue or yellow (haven't decided yet).

Meg, I know what you mean about the "fat chick" inside. I definitely have her! Well, she's on the outside right now, but she's the "pregnant fat chick" which is a little different. It's been a very interesting experience losing 110 pounds and having a completely different body (and life) for a little while, then starting to gain weight back and having a completely different body in another way. I look forward to getting back to running after the birth, as long as time permits (I know time probably will NOT permit for a little while).

We had a health fair at school the other day and I had my BP, cholesterol, and glucose level checked. My BP was excellent, as it always is, and I'm always surprised by that. It used to be borderline high, and I've gained so much so quickly with pregnancy that I expect it to shoot back up. My overall cholesterol was 204, and it should be under 200, but the HDL was supposedly excellent. My glucose was also excellent, which surprised me and made me feel a bit better about the upcoming glucose screening for gestational diabetes.

I'm always completely shocked when I find out that I'm in good health. I guess I feel like I was obese for so long that I should've done more damage to my body. It's amazing how your body can bounce back from weighing 275, you know?

I planned to do Gary's 5k today by going to a park with a friend and wearing my Garmin to measure when we reach the 5k mark, but we may have storms today. Ugh.

Wow, long post. Hope everyone's day is good!!

Lisa, I love Winnie The Pooh - what a great choice! How are you doing on the name selection?

My plans for the weekend may have taken a nose dive. The weather here is gorgeous and I was looking forward to walking the dogs for the 5K. I stayed up last night to scrapbook and did something to my back-- now I can barely move. On top of that, I'm still miserable without my allergy medicine-- I feel 10X worse-- like I've got a horrible cold now (which I may for all I know). I'm still bruised from head to toe as well.

My older dd is going to a friends tonight and my younger dd has her first official paid babysitting job tonight. I was trying to talk dh into going out and doing something but I'll have to see if I'm in any shape to do it.

Lisa--I love Winnie the Pooh!! For a while I was obsessed and had Winnie the Pooh everywhere. Are you doing the "Classic Pooh"? That is my favorite.

Lily, that was funny about the purple paint. On a positive note, in Feng Shui purple brings money!

Meg, I know what you mean about feeling so much better when eating in control. Congrats to you for getting back on track. I've been back on track the last few days also and I feel great! (That'll teach me to stray!) In fact, I even completed EZ Money's 5K marathon yesterday, too. As for what will I be doing this weekend, my hubby and I have plans to take a 45-minute cruise on Lake Mead. Can't wait!

Lisa, congrats on taking all those medical tests and getting excellent results!
Have fun with the 5K!

Michele, sorry to hear you hurt your back and that your allergies are acting up. Hope you feel better soon.

As for me, like I said, I feel so much better now that I'm back to my old self. I'm on track and exercising a lot and that's how my body likes it. It's really pretty here today. It's supposed to get up to 80 degrees! My hubby and I got up early, bought a sugarless non-fat carmel flavored latte and after we get our car smogged for the DMV, we're going to enjoy some of that sunshine. We're going to take the cruise on Lake Mead on Sunday. Hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend.
Hugs, Dena

Good morning everyone!

The GF and I are going to go to the flea market today, which I'm excited about. Yes, when you live in a hick metropolis, the flea market is what you go do for fun on weekend afternoons... My job is still going quite well (got my first paycheck today, WAHOO! ) and I'm doing a lot of web design work on the side. This consequently makes me feel like I am working TWO jobs. I've been exhausted these past couple weeks and have done some VERY off plan eating. The worst part about it is that some of the off plan eating isn't even my fault Lately, I've been having some pretty amazing low blood sugar episodes (by amazing, I mean that I need around 100 grams of carbs to actually get my blood sugar back to normal ). So, I'll be stuffing my face with pure sugary crap trying to make the feeling go away, and then a few hours later, my blood sugar will be high, so then I'll take some insulin, and then somehow it will mysteriously get low again when I'm trying to sleep. Perhaps I'll get all this straightened out once I can get more than 3 or 4 hours of sleep in a night.

Oh, I gained 5 pounds. I was maintaining a nice 125 for awhile, but the 130's have come back to say hello.

On a happier note, I actually got a nice 8 hours of sleep last night and speaking of taxes, I just mailed mine out. Because I make less than $75,000 per year, I am eligible for that $300-$600 rebate thing AND count me in on the 3FC 5K!

Anne - I'm sorry your pregnancy has been so difficult, but I'm relieved to hear that despite the scares, you and your future DS have still hung on. I'm sure you will be ecstatic once the whole process is over and you're holding your little boy in your arms.

Jessica- I, too, was wondering where you got the name paperclippy from. I also had a livejournal once. I updated it compulsively a few years ago (my vain, narcissitic, fat-free self would post pictures nearly every day and I had a mini fan following to feed my ego ) but haven't written anything in it recently for around 6 or 7 months. My life just isn't exciting enough to document.

Lisa - FYI - I think it is amazingly brave of you to have a child after you lost such a humongus amount of weight. Of course, I have no doubt in my mind that you will able to do it again once you are no longer pregnant. And it really IS amazing how the human body can snap back so well. Also, count me in with those who love(d) Winnie the Pooh.

Michele - That sucks that you don't feel good and have to cancel your weekend plans

Lily and Michele - ahhh, skinny genes... My cousins inherited those, but I didn't, and neither did my sister. Thin people who eat all the time really perplex me. Thin people who DON'T eat all the time and aren't anorexic but just get full really easily and don't feel like eating anymore ALSO really perplex me. ****, thin people in GENERAL perplex me! I just wonder how they DO it and think it must be really nice to be able to just be thin without having to worry about their caloric consumption.
Lily, 1800 calories of MEXICAN food is AWESOME. Anyone who has seen the nutritional guides for places like On the Border will have a heart attack just looking at it You did wonderfully!
Michele - my "red line" is 129 and I just passed it I like to maintain around 125, but if I get over 135, then I will REALLY freak out

Hi everyone, I had my official Saturday morning WI today. After my huge water weight loss last week, I wasn't expecting much. I am totally shocked to see that I'm now down another 5 lbs. since Last Saturday. So, I'm not only back in my red zone, but only 1 lb. above goal. I haven't seen the 140's in months, so this is awesome. OMG, I couldn't be happier. It doesn't matter to me if it was water weight or not, I'm just glad to see the lbs. gone again.

Meg, WTG on the awesome 4.4 lbs. lost. That is great. I know exactly how you are feeling. It was amazing to me too when I was eating off-plan, how much food I could devour. Now with being on-plan I feel satisfied and I'm actually leaving some food on my plate almost every meal. With my weight shooting all the way up to 164 lbs., I had a mental picture of me being totally obese again. It was horribly scary and very real.

I have to admit that today (now that the purple paint has totally dried) that it doesn't look too bad. A little darker that what I was wanting, but I can live with this. As for rest this weekend, no such luck. We're flooring the computer room today and hauling off all the old furniture and carpet.

A little sad news today. My son's official send-off to Iraq is this Wednesday. They upped their departure date. DH will be at work and unable to go with me, so my MIL is going to see Shane off with me. I'm really debating over whether to take Lacy or not. It's not fair to not take her, but she has missed too much school this semester already. I guess I will talk to the school and see if they will excuse her for such an important occasion.

LisaMarie, I didn't know there was anyone that had never painted. I remember painting my bedroom when I was in Jr. High. But, sure I'll paint for you, I'm getting to be a pro at it. I can use an edger and keep it off the trim better than anyone I know. LOL.

michele, sorry to hear that you are feeling bad and wish you a speedy recovery.

Den, that sounds like a relaxing way to spend the day. Wish I was joining you instead of working on our house. Oh I hope purple brings money, I did buy my lotto ticket for tonite, LOL.

Shane, good to see you posting. Is that incentive bonus income level of $75,000 for single or couples? I could use some more money too. Also you'll take that 5 lbs. off quickly. I have faith in you.

I got a funny text message yesterday from my Kooky friend. It said " the state of OK called today and due to the recent flooding they have decided to ship all the pretty people out of the state. I just wanted to say Bye and I hope you can swim". LOL.

Lily,
Will your son's tour be shorter than previously thought? I had heard on the news that the tours will be shortened. I will pray for him and your family.

Lily and Meg-- great jobs on the weight loss! I just got back from my WW meeting and I was down 1.8 pounds so I was pretty thrilled. I exercised every day except yesterday. I'm not sure if I'll be able to exercise this weekend though due to my back which bums me out.

Shane--I've never understood skinny people either. My mom always complained and said it was just as hard for her to find clothes as a fat person. I also gave her the death glare. She would shovel in desserts just trying to keep some meat on her bones. When she got cancer and lost even more weight she looked like a walking skeleton. I'm glad your new job is going well.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend!

Shane -- Thanks for calling me brave, but I've wanted to have a baby for soooo long, and this just kind of ....happened. My body wasn't ready until I lost all the weight. I'm excited, though!

michele -- We're actually not doing classic Pooh even though we originally planned to. We found a really cute set called Soft and Fuzzy Pooh at Babies-r-us and fell in love with it. I hope you feel better soon, by the way!!

Hi Dena!

Lily, I think I helped someone paint a few times when I was a kid, but that was ages ago. I've just never been one for home improvement projects, outside or inside, and my husband is the same way. You should see our yard. We soooo don't care about the state of our yard. Thank goodness we have woods around.

Meg, the name situation is still up in the air. My husband still wants to do the Henry Clay thing and I'm getting used to it but I'd still rather come up with a nickname. Someone suggested Rhys, and I really like that name, but I don't really see how it's a nickname for Henry! We'll figure it out, I suppose!

Didn't get to do my 5k today because a big storm came, so my friend and I rescheduled for tomorrow morning.

I'm not being very productive at work today... this is really not a good day for me to be unproductive!!! Yet here I am, surfing 3FC... so I will be here tomorrow again. Since it's warming up I've been leaving my windows open at night, and with the outside noise I've been waking up a lot in the night. So I've been getting enough sleep time-wise, but it's been a bit interrupted.

Did my 5k (plus!) in a 6 mile powerwalk this morning. Tonight is BF's birthday dinner. Once a year (and once a year only) I make him his favorite meal, meaty lasagna with garlic bread. I plan to have one piece of lasagna, a large helping of salad with light dressing, and a piece of garlic bread, then pack the leftovers off for BF's freezer and the friends who are coming. I'm glad he doesn't like cake.

Lily, I'm sorry to hear your son is leaving so soon. I'm glad you'll get to go see him off. My thoughts are with you and him.

Shane, woohoo for your first paycheck! I hope you're able to find more time for sleep and get your blood sugar under control. Did you get anything good at the flea market?

Dena, enjoy your cruise tomorrow.

Michelle, ouch, I hope your back heals quickly.

Okay. Back to work.

It's *almost* an anagram, sort of! If it was spelled Rhyes, you'd be using every letter of Henry except swapping an "s" for the "n". If you wanted a true anagram, you could go with Rhyen = "Ryan". Or Rhyne. But that might be too weird.

The cat alarm clock went off early again, so I'm up. Hurray for coffee! I had so much fun with Gary's 5K yesterday that I'm going to do it again today: 5K on the elliptical and 5K on the bike. Then to the Post Office to mail the taxes -- what a relief to be done with those! Then ironing.

Good to have you posting again, Shane! It's sounds like overall things are a lot better for you. DS has the same problem with rollercoaster blood sugar and changing insulin needs for no reason. He can't figure it out, but it's awful to have to cram in huge amounts of sugar to keep from passing out. And it makes it very hard to lose weight, of course! I think you're right that sleep can play a big role in blood sugar levels (as well as fat loss) and hopefully things will stabilize for you soon and you can get more sleep.

Megan, do you always have to work on weekends? That stinks! It sounds like a good plan for BF's dinner and lucky break on not having to bake a cake! I always make DH a German chocolate cake for his birthday, which is his favorite and I don't like. So it works out for both of us. Buttercream icing would be a whole different story.

I've got food planned out for the day, so all I have to do is stick to it. Sounds easy when I say it, right?

Have a wonderful day!

Don't forget to post your 5K results in the results thread ladies! Even your second one Miss DOUBLE-UP MEG!

I think it's important to post the results so we all can see how many really get up and do it...which creates more enthusiasim for those that may be "thinking their way out of it!"

Thanks to all of you ~ Gary