Larry: Not a lot of time here. I just wanted to say that I hope that Roberta ends up being okay. That sounds pretty serious, though. Is it a medicine issue? I've only heard of those kind of issues when a blood pressure med isn't dosed properly.

Other than the hitch at the escalator, yes, I really mean hitch, as in, in our plans. We weren't planning to be stopped by stranger mom. We're having fun here. Checked out an aquarium, Science Center, and a Ripley's Believe It Or Not Museum. My spouse got me a guest badge so that I might be able to attend a couple of night training events while he watches the kids. That was nice of him to think about me.

Check this out, if you will: a collaborative collage between Grace and me. I don't have it up yet on ipernity, but if you go tio the Kollage Kit and look for "S is for..." you'll find it. If you click on it, you'll get a larger version. Obviously, Grace is who made the collage: all I did was add color.

Hello!
Tootsie that was thoughtful of the hubby to get you a badge. It sure sounds like an interesting vacation for the whole family.
Larry I will be keeping both of you in my prayers.
Betsy I know we like to watch our pennies but sometimes buying a SINGLE SERVE salad helps with portion control and is worth the expense. I haven't checked how many days we have left until 2016 but I do know we need to kick it in gear.
rabid I can not have anything tempting in my house. If my family wants something off limits they can go out and eat it when I am not around otherwise they are eating healthy with me. (Of course this rule changes when I am weak...)
Sam 29 pounds to go. If anyone can do it, it is you!
Cindy it is comforting to know I am not the only one who gets exhausted by 4 pm.
Fi I am glad to hear that you now have had your diagnosis confirmed. Feel free to scream "I told you so!" from your futon.

Well, for the umpteenth time I am back in the saddle. My food has been good so far today. I went on the treadmill this morning. I didn't even dread it. My thought was that in order to do this I am going to need to increase my activity. This is an new and improved way of thinking for me. I did a little over a mile and I am good with that. It feels so good to be back!

Rabid I have yet to try one. Maybe the next time I have a cheat meal I will include it in there. Since I try to eat under 70 carbs a day it's a little too much for me. Ideally I want to eat less than 50 but I haven't been able to pull that off quite yet. That cat furniture looks awesome!!!!

Larry So sorry to hear about DW!! I hope everything turns out ok!!

Betsy I've come to the conclusion that there isn't really a true day of R&R for me. Maybe if I plan it ahead of time I'll commit a whole weekend to doing nothing. I haven't even gotten to start watching one of my favorite shows, Orange is the New Black yet because of how busy I am. I rarely watch TV anymore. Maybe while I eat dinner but that's about it, and DH usually is playing his video game after that so I end up playing around on my phone until I lay down for bed. Sucks about your sink. Been there and it is not fun at all!! Especially if you did what I did and continued to cook even without having a sink to wash the dishes in..I won't do that again LOL..

Tootsie The training sounds awesome! I hope you enjoy it! DH is very nice to do that for you

Fi Very cool collage!! Looks like Grace is learning a lot from you!!!

Ubee WELCOME BACK MY FRIEND!!!! It warms my heart to see you back and are trying...You've dusted yourself off and you're ready to try again...That's great!! Keep with it, you'll get there...I promise!! This has been the hardest thing I've ever done in my life, and while I may come off that I'm losing with ease it hasn't been easy for me at all. I have nights where I hate myself, I cry because I am fat and can't eat food that I like or want...It's a learning process. We learn to eat right and exercise. Once you learn it slowly becomes second nature. You will get there. If I can do it you can!!

Today we were short handed at work but it wasn't a bad day. I ate a chocolate chip cookie after lunch. I shouldn't have but I have accounted for it in MFP and will be watching my carbs for the rest of the day. I think I'll still be ok food wise even with that little cheat. Not going to make a habit of that though, I don't want to enter the danger zone when I am inching closer and closer to goal. I wanted to go outside today to get some cardio in but the temp here has topped over 100 and I don't want to take a risk of heat stroke. So I'm going to wake my BIL who seems to have made his bed on the couch again and tell him to get the heck out so I can work out lol...Just had a protein shake and then need to figure out dinner. I gotta write down a few things for my doctor's appointment tomorrow. I'm pretty nervous about it.

Hope everyone has a great day tomorrow!

I brought my DW Roberta home from the hospital this evening. The cardiologist said her heart is OK. Seems she was dehydrated which caused a very low blood pressure. Our family doctor has adjusted some meds, eliminated some meds and added some new meds. Roberta was told to drink more and to weigh herself everyday to prevent a recurrance. Thanks to everyone all for your prayers and kind words.

Can't sleep. My husband brought along some cash in case our cards ran out. We made the mistake of leaving it in our room. While the kids and I were out and about, someone rummaged through our things and stole some cash. I was afraid of pick pockets, not people stealing at their job. It just seems too risky to anyone with a rational mindset. I hope that whatever they stole it for was worth it, like feeding their kids, and not feeding a drug addiction. It sucks because I leave a tip, every single day. Now I don't hAve cash to tip, tomorrow. So, some awesome people get punished because of one greedy one.

My spouse doesn't seem that worried about it. I thought that maybe he spent it on activities that he didn't want to tell me about. Yes, I'm that distrustful. Of course, why would he let me know that he had that amount, though? When did he have time? He's taking classes. Makes no sense, so the only explanation is that it was stolen while we were gone. There were things that fell out of the suitcase, that weren't on the floor when we left, so there's that evidence as well. My spouse hadn't been back to the room until after we were back. Housekeeping had no reason to move the items, at all.

I feel violated and unsafe now. I just keep picturing strange hands touching my things, and I don't like it. What if they tried on my clothes or sniffed them? It's just creepy.

I guess whoever did it thinks that they can get away with it because many men don't want their wives to know about their activities, so they are unlikely to report it because then the wives will ask why he had cash to begin with. And some people won't notice at all, or until they are gone.

We are going to report it. We can't prove anything because it's cash, but it would be on record, so that if this person steals again, and it's reported several times, then that person may be caught.

Good morning from the land of the finally working kitchen sink. I would have been so bad at being a pioneer type person where you had to haul in your water from the creek! We won't even go to talking about outhouses in the dead of winter.

Tootsie Read your first post and it sounded like you guys were having such a great trip in spite of the escalator incident. Then I read today's and thought what a bummer that is to have money stolen out of your room. I'd definitely report it, too. Heck, I'd file a police report (I do tend to get wrapped up in these types of occurrences). Please don't let it ruin your trip totally and hopefully the management of the place that you're staying will take it seriously.
Fi Grace is definitely following in your footsteps and how wonderful to see you guys back making collages. I'm assuming that means you were able to get to your studio. Love Ubee's "told you so" take on the diagnosis.
Sam Oh, I definitely didn't do any cooking. And ate on paper plates. Mind you I have another complete kitchen downstairs and one in the RV, but managed to not use them. It's almost impossible to have an R&R day when you work full time and take care of the house and exercise and and and. I totally understand......and don't miss it one bit. The 100 degree temps sound awful because I know that the humidity levels are about the same.
Ubee I need your day counter so I will get it back in gear. I haven't gained any more back, but haven't been losing. A mile on the treadmill is wonderful. I need you to challenge me with some dire penalty if I don't stay on plan. How ridiculous is that statement? I will lose to win a competition but won't lose to make me healthier! Talk about screwed up priorities!
Larry So glad that Roberta is home and you know what to watch for. Did they give you guidelines for how much water to make sure she drinks during the day? Dehydration can definitely mess your body up.

I put a note on FB yesterday on one of the pages that is for people here where I live, and got a referral for a plumber immediately. He came out BEFORE HE WENT TO WORK (he works as a plumber for a large construction company) and said he'd be back last night on his way home. So after putting in a long day, he came back with a stronger power snake and got the clog out of the day. Really nice guy and I'll definitely be referring him to anyone who asks for plumbing help. It was so pleasant to have someone come who was polite, made sure that everything was working (including not just moving the plug further down so that it caused the basement kitchen to flood) and then undercharging me. I tacked on extra to what he said -- 2 trips and great service is something I'll gladly pay for.

And then there's the diet front. I need to be in a challenge where we report in every week. Doesn't have to be about most pounds lost -- I'd be thrilled with just staying on plan for 5 days in a row (very low expectations!). Anyone up for joining in.

Off to the gym and then the kid comes for more weeding. Have a great day.

Larry Glad things were easily solved for your DW and everything is going to be ok

Tootsie Sorry to hear about the thief taking things from you. I would most definitely report it. I hope they catch the person but more than likely they won't and that's what stinks about the whole thing. I hope you are still able to enjoy the rest of your vacation.

Betsy You made me chuckle about the no cooking even though there were still two working sinks lol...Glad you were able to get your main sink back and had a good experience with the plumber.

Today was not the best day for me. Work was hectic and I spent half of it talking with company reps. I was irritated because I didn't get anything done then had to leave early for my doctor's appointment with the psychiatric nurse. The appointment went well, I got prescribed a new medication and will be slowly tapering off my geodon to where I won't take it at all. I ended up getting teary in her office because one of the things we talked about was me having kids and she said there's no way I can be on any medication while pregnant. She also said I really need to think about if I want to have kids because DH and I both have hormone issues and mental health issues and more than likely my kids will have to deal with that too. It made me cry a little because you guys know how much I want to be a mother. I know I can still adopt but I want more than anything to have the experience of being pregnant.

Didn't work out today because I got home late from the appointment but will be back at it tomorrow. Eating a late dinner but hoping it will be good. We're having greek chicken kebabs.

Hope everyone has a good day tomorrow

SamIam - no one can predict the future. You sound like someone who will provide a loving home. While your Dr. warned you it doesn't mean it will happen and if anything if your warned it will help you look for any signs of mental health issues in your own children. Don't let what ifs and maybes stop you.

I stayed close to my DW Roberta today. She is feeling dizzy again tonight at 11 PM so I took her blood pressure 83/53 which is way low for her.

Another ZERO CARB day for me

Lunch
Great Value - Sweet Cream Butter Unsalted, 2 tbsp(s)
Tyson - Chicken Gizzards & Hearts - Boiled, 12 oz

Dinner
Jennie O - Sweet Italian Turkey Sausage (Lean), 4 link

Snacks
Walmart - Great Value - Mild Cheddar Cheese, 3.5 oz

Total: 1,435 Calories, 0g Carbs, 97g Fat, 141g Protein

Goal: 1,450 Calories, 18g Carbs, 113g Fat, 91g Protein

Betsy ~ Yeah when I get a new work out dvd I always watch it first and then I follow along. Seeing Jurassic World in 3D was very cool but I understand that it would scare some people.

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Woke up at 6:20 this morning, Its 9:22 a.m. and I'm still at home, I dont need to start watching for my bus until 10:20 this morning. I'm gonna start going in later on Wed's cause Shawn and I arent able to do Peer Support on Wed's. Its a busy day for Shawn. He said it would work better for us to do peer support on Thursdays then on Wed's. Anyway today I'll probably get to school at 11:00 a.m. I'm gonna be there until 3:30 today. When I get home later on tonight I'm gonna do an hour of my new work out dvd.

Good morning. The gorgeous but odd weather continues -- we need rain which is a funny thing to be saying in the Northwest!

Sam Hectic days like that are so draining -- physically and emotionally. I'm glad you feel like you had a good appointment. However, I really question a couple of things that the nurse said and would definitely check it out with an MD. First, no medication at all while pregnant. We would have a whole lot fewer kids in the world if that were true. And I really question her advising you on not having kids on your first visit. She doesn't know you well enough which means that it's "generally accepted advice." You are an exceptional person. You basically raised yourself. You work a full time job and are the primary support for your family. You have had the inner strength to address your weight challenges successfully. And, quite truthfully, if what she was saying was "you might want to think about this because here is the probability your child will have these same issues" then yes, I can see giving that information. But flat out telling you not to have children -- well, that seems overstepping to me.
Larry Hope that Roberta's pressure came back up. Did they tell you to track her pressure readings during the day for a week or so to see if there were any patterns? I know this has to be a worrisome time for both of you. Amazed that you're staying right on plan -- good for you!
Terra Glad you enjoyed the movie and from the opening weekend, it was a rousing success. Hope you enjoy the new DVD.

The kid comes back for more weeding today. There are a LOT of weeds! I'm slowly getting the yard whipped into shape. Yet again I wonder why I built a house on the side of a mountain!

Totally struggling with the eating. I do fine until about 3-4 in the afternoon and then lose it. No excuse -- it's not like there's a lot of stress in my life. I'm going to try to do better today. Have a great day.

ObsidianThank you honey ...I needed that. I don't want to give up on having children yet but it is something I need to think about for sure. I am more concerned with being pregnant and not being able to be on any type of medication because they aren't safe for the baby. I will be a mother one day even if it means adoption is my only way.

Larry You are a good husband to sit by your wife when she isn't feeling well. She is lucky to have such a great person in her life. I sure hope she gets to feeling herself soon.

Terra Busy day for you today. Hope you enjoy the new workout DVD...I am thinking about trying one of the Jillian Michaels DVDs in the near future.

Betsy It was a hectic day that's for sure. I enjoyed having the rest day. So much so that I actually took the time and rested when I got home. DH helped me make the dinner. I only had to make the marinade and the tzatziki sauce since that's what I knew to make and he did the rest. Started to watch a little tv last night but had a hard time paying attention to it with all of the thoughts of the day in my mind. I'm not sure if the nurse is telling me not to have the children or not, but I did tell her my main concern was when I try what is that going to mean for me. I know my kid is going to have it rough because of the hormonal issues DH and I have and our mental health issues and DH's family history of drug addiction. It will be hard and it is something I need to think about if I want to bring a child into this world with all of that fighting against them, but I think if I continue to be as strong as I have been in my life then I my kid might just have a chance at making it. I can guarantee my child, whether born from my womb or not, will not have the life that DH and I did. We may struggle financially at raising him or her, but they won't ever have to question if mommy and daddy love them. They will never have to feel like they are a burden to us or that they were a mistake. Even if we struggle financially that is not going to be something that I will have them worry about like our parents did us. They will live life being a kid and doing kid things and not having to worry about the ways of the world until the time is right. That was so hard on me having to help my mom make sure our bills were paid and things like that because her priorities were not straight. Heck, her priorities still aren't straight, but I guess she will never grow up. Thank you so much for your kind words Betsy. They mean more to me than you'll ever know, and it makes me feel so happy to know you, even if it is just through the interwebs

I hope everyone else is doing well...Things are pretty good here. I can't complain too much. I started my new medication today and slowly tapering off the old medicine. I did notice I feel a lot more calm today. My mind doesn't seem like it's constantly racing, and I kinda just went with the flow today. A first for me I might add. I felt good all the way around for the first time in awhile. I came home and didn't feel agitated that DH felt too bad to do any cleaning around the house...It was all ok. It's like I have a sense of serenity inside and out today. I have to slowly increase my dosage of medicine over the next 5 weeks because if I take it too fast I could get a really bad rash that can be deadly. This medication is called Lamictal if anyone wants to look it up. It is also used to treat epileptic patients as well.

I was thinking about taking the rest of the week off from exercising but in my mind I know I can't do that. I don't know how the new medicine is going to fluctuate my weight. I was told that I may lose more weight by taking this because it doesn't seem to cause weight gain like Geodon can. That would be so awesome if I noticed a decrease in weight but done the healthy way by switching medications.

Tonight I'm going to do some cardio and work on abs. Dinner tonight is BBQ chicken ...I hope everyone else is doing well with their weight loss journeys. We can do this guys, I know we can!!

Good morning. Cloudy out there but no rain. I'm afraid we're joining the rest of the West Coast with going into a drought.

Sam Whatever you and DH decide, you will be great parents. Love is what a child needs and you've got that with a lot to spare.

Where is everyone? More weeding today although we are making progress. I'm definitely never going to let the weeds get so out of control again! The next few weeks are going to be busy. We're going up to the kids' this weekend to pick up their dog and keep him until they move into the new house. The great yard project continues. The kids will be moving in on the 30th and will stay for a week or so. Their lender is giving them fits to the point of their considering just bagging it and starting over with a new lender. The seller of the house they're buying is ok with a delayed closing date, so they may be here longer than a week. I'll just put them to work on helping with getting the yard done!

Still really struggling with the dieting -- or lack of dieting. Just can't seem to make it through the day without giving in to the sugar cravings mainly because that's always what I do when I 'm doing something I don't want to -- like working on this yard endlessly! I'll try again today!

Hope that the lack of posts doesn't mean bad days -- just busy ones for everyone. Have a great day.

Hi everyone.
Betsy I have been completely on plan since Monday. If you want to start a challenge count me in. 196 days until 2016. Just let us know what we can do to motivate you. Try drinking some chicken broth at 2 pm everyday before the cravings and let me know how it works.
Sam hugs to you! As the parent of a wonderful child with severe autism your post made me want to both scream and cry. The nurse may have come off a little harsh but I hope she just wanted to be honest so you and hubby could go into parenting with your eyes wide open. Sam you will be a great mom.
Terra you went to see Jurassic World? I am jealous. How good was it?
Larry take good care of Roberta. Did you let the doctor know about her blood pressure?
Obsidianbbw how are you doing?
tootsie I am sorry you had such an creepy experience.
Fi you and Grace have similar talents. It must be fun to have someone you can relate to. How are you doing?
Hi to everyone else.
I have been doing well and hope to report a loss on Monday. Life is still hectic but hubby and I are working on letting the kids struggle a little and not rushing in to save the day. On a positive note I did stop at a rummage sale the other day and got some cute clothes for when I am smaller. They are kinda goofy grandma clothes but I love them!
Have a healthy day.