Karen: 16 inches of snow eeeks 16 inches I am whining because it is raining here today! So glad you are going to visit your dads. See how good can come out of stinky situations. Enjoy the visits.

Mickey the chili looks great I am going to try it. Noticed you post at 1:42am can't sleep girl?

grammpaula What are you making with your wedgewood clothe

Jay Jay I am at 1600 caloreies a day also glad you stated that makes me feel better about the number. I took it from a Womans Day magazine sounds reasonable and not to drastic.

Thanks to all for the support. So right when you say one day at a time. With me it is one meal at a time. Getting my mind straight and realizing this is forever. Not about numbers anymore I want to live Healthy and feel great to keep up with grandbabies!

Ella... About the Flat Outs, be sure you get the "Light" originals, they have both regular and light. They also have light Italian, those are good for sandwich wraps and making pizza. I don't like them when making sweet stuff.

For the Cabbage soup, I leave the meat out when making for myself, then freeze in individual servings for lunches. I've made it with meat too, very good but higher in calories.

Sweet and Sour Cabbage Soup
Serves 8
2 quarts defatted low-sodium chicken broth, preferably homemade.
( I usually use only 1 quart, but use your judgement)
1 lb. skinless, boneless turkey breast, cut into 1/2 " cubes (3 cups)
1.5 lb. Cabbage, coarsely chopped (6-7 cups)
28 oz. can of diced tomatoes
1 small green pepper, finely diced
1 medium onion, chopped (2/3 cup) (I also add one clove garlic)
1 large celery, (I add at least 2)Strings removed, thinly sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
1/3 cup tomato paste (I leave this out )
1/4 cup light brown sugar (I use 1/4 SF Maple Syrup instead or you could use Splenda Brown sugar blend)
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt (I only use 1/2 teaspoon)
1/2 teaspoon coarse ground pepper
1. Heat the broth in a large soup pot, add the turkey/chicken if using and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and gently simmer for about 30 minutes, skimming any froth from time to time.
2. Add the cabbage, tomatoes, onion, garlic, green pepper, celery, carrot and remaining ingredients, cover and simmer gently for 1.5 hours, stirring occasionally. I don't cook it that long, we don't like mushy vegetables. I don't follow this recipe completely, today I added more cabbage and only 3 cups of broth. I used some of our garden tomatoes and ended up with 11 servings at 43 calores for 8 ounces. (no meat) One 8 oz. bowl with a sandwich is very filling for lunches.

Bobbi

Hello Ladies from South Dakota
moxie here (m=Margaret ox=second 2 letters of last name sd=So. Dak.)

Karen31...so sorry about the job loss. I know what a temporary blow that is.

bobbolink...congrats on the red car...it's a beaut. I haven't tried Fitday yet...know that I will as I get more adept at the computer. Thx for the recipe.

littlered....WOW 11 pounds in 7 weeks is great...and good reading the label information on the Curves stuff...hard to believe that they don't at least TRY to make it healthy.

Cheryl14...I cleaned out part of the closet today and was amazed at how much more room I have....also discovered stuff I didn't know I had (it was good stuff too) lol

Mickey...I did Curves for a while...enjoyed it for a while...but the comute to exercise lost its gloss. My Dr. sent me to a physical therapist for the back problem and they did a marvelous job of modeling an exercise program for me.

ellebella....car problems...what a nightmare!! I can relate...anymore my kids tell people that mom fixes the car the first time and the second time she gets a new car!! (May I ever be able to do so!!)

Welcome NANCYMAC...glad you came out of the closet and joined us! Getting started is the worst part of dieting. Sorry to say the first 3 days of my current diet were purely from h3ll, used all my sanity and then some to stay with it.....being older was a problem because I felt I shouldn't have to put myself through that....but I am glad I stuck with it. I think part of it is "drying" out my body's cravings for all the junk that I so dearly love...pizza, bread, McD's...etc. etc. But now, I don't crave the stuff, and best of all I no longer have to swallor bottles of Tums....haven't had heart burn in about 4 months. To get started I would suggest that you make up a sketeton of what you want your diet to look like, include at least 60 ounces water/tea/etc, and make a box for the exercise too. Plan a weeks menu and have everything you need to fix it...make it as simple as possible, even do the same day for a whole week while you are refining your diet. Put your exercise time on the calendar...every day you do it keep it on the calendar...after a while the calendar will encourage you to keep moving everytime you look at it. Good luck...let us know how you decide to get to day 1.....

Hello to everyone I missed.... catch you next time!!

Where did spring go! It has been cooler and dreary all day today. I am so ready for warmer (notice I said warmer!) weather. I will regret that statement when we are 100+ in July. But it is depressing to be able to work in the yard in short one day and back to wearing a jacket the next!

Lyn, welcome! I too am from the TOPS support group. I had not been active in a while and I was surprised to see it had been closed. Don't know what happened, we were a real active group for so long! But this seems to be a great group here. Maybe we can get some of the old group to join us.
We all need the support, regardless, of what name we go by!

Today has not been a happy day for me. My son's birthday! We lost him in 1982, and some days I do good, others not so good. Birthdays and holidays are worse. Sorry to dump on you all...

Bobbi, thanks for the soup recipe. I think I will make some for next week. I have almost the same recipe. I guess when we are trying to lose, we all come up with the same things to eat. But always like to try new things. I have really watched to sodium the past few days. Got carried away and ate potato chips one day over the week end, and it takes a while to get it out of my system! ha!

Karen, are you thawing out? I hate to complain about our weather when I think about people in your part of the USA.

Luflic, how are you today? Remember, just one day at a time. Let us hear how you are doing, okay?

Moxie, Has you're day gone okay? How is your weather, cold? Your advise to NancyMac was spot on. Something that would benefit us all. Do you journal? I have been lax about it the past few days...I need to get back to doing it. I KNOW it helps me! Want to come clean out my closets. I have been retired for 5 yrs. and I just got rid of some things I'd saved from then. I am like Bobbi, it jeans or shorts for me. I said when I retired, I shed the clothes and hose! ha!

NANCYMAC, pick a day, and just start on a program! And we do want to know how you are doing. So...let us hear!

Paula, what are you making now? I love to sew and haven't for awhile. I need to get out the old (actually, new) machine and get back in the groove!

Need to shut this off...Hello, to all I have missed. (It is midnight, and yes I am a night owl)

Everyone have a good day tomorrow, see you tomorrow night!
Remember to exercise, which ever one you do
to you all.
Wanda

Hi Ladies- It looks ugly outside this morning. No . We had yesterday and looks like more today.
Yesterday was a kinda good eating day. I did OK until dinner. I took my skinny daughter to Pizza Hut. It was buffet night. I had a nice big salad and 2 slices of . I do go for the thin crust and picked the 2 smallest slices. I chose water to drink instead of pop. I guess it wasn't too bad. The : said I'm still losing so that's a good thing.
Several of you had asked what I'm sewing on how. I got a special order for a pioneer dress and apron set. She asked for the wedge wood blue colored fabric. I was lucky and found some that would work in the basement. I got the outfit all cut out and started sewing on it. I don't do buttonholes so I have it ready for my daughter to take and do the buttonholes for me. I'm suppose to ship the outfit tomorrow since she paid a rush fee.
Today is the Red Hat meeting at my house. It will be a ice cream social and party. I'm going to make cupcakes in cones. My grandson is coming over this morning to "help". He just can't figure out how that is going to work. He doesn't know how we will use the cupcake papers with the cones and what it will look like without the papers. He's 6 and goes to kindergarten. I also have to clean my house. I was suppose to do it earlier this week, but ended up sewing the special orders instead.

Bobbi- I really need to exchange my winter clothes for my summer ones. I think I'll wait a week or too though since it feels like winter is returning.

Lyn- to the group. You will get a lot of support here plus get a lot of love and friendship.

Joanne- on joining the Bootcamp. Be sure and let us know how it's going.

Karen- I'm in the same boat. I haven't walked in days. I will never make goal on my walking now. Oh well, better luck next month I guess.

Ella- I think we all have a case of spring fever. It's cool out again today so I think I'm going to have to wait a little while longer for spring to come here again.

OK, I have to get my shower before my grandson gets here. Have a good day ladies.

Good Morning Everyone,

Hi Phyllis - I just need to sit down and plan out some menus for a couple of days. Trying to do this on the fly just does NOT work for me.

Hi Luflic - My nephew owns a Jeep & LOVES it. I am the HAPPY owner of a Toyota Prius - I get 45 mpg (NOT the 60 they advertise) and I get happy evertime I fill up the tank.

Hi Karen - you have a WONDERFUL attitude. Where in PA will you be? I'm in Bucks County - Middle-Eastern part - not too far from Philly. I'd love to meet you guys if you get this far east.

Hi Wanda - you give me an idea. "Plan for Today" OK - I'm going out to lunch and dinner - here's my plan for today - No bread/potatoes/rice/pasta/dessert & LOTS of water.

Hi Paula - How do people order from you? Do you get their measurements and then go from there?

Hi Lyn - Glad to meet you.

Hi Joanne - CONGRATULATIONS! What a great idea. Maybe I'll look for a "fitness camp" around here.

Hi Ella - My class is actually pretty good. I finished grading their first assignments yesterday & I was quite happy with them. It's funny - they are all seeking an Educational degree, but most of them are not teachers. There are 11 in the class & 6 are in the armed services.

Hi Bobbi - That soup sounds great - I just printed out the recipe. I think I'll make some for me and my SIL - he found out that he has diabetes the same day I did.

Hi Moxie - "Being older" is a problem with dieting - for sure. I just can't get myself excited about losing wt anymore. I'll stick to something for a few days & then say "what the H_LL" I used to be able to stick to a diet for months!

Hi Mickey - Please accept a hug from me <<<hug>>> I cannot even imagine the pain of your loss. I'm struggling through my husband's death (1 year at the end of June) and I know that cannot compare to losing a child.

Today I'm meeting my DF and we're going walking in a Sculpture Garden nearby. It's really beautiful - they recreated various impressionist paintings with sculptures and flowers. http://www.groundsforsculpture.org/index.html

This evening, I'm going to dinner with a neighbor whose wife is dying. He wants to talk with me about how to cope with the caretaking. I want to help, but I DON'T want to do too much remembering. I'm a little nervous about this.

Hope we all have a happy and healthy day,

Lynn

Good Morning everyone,

I am sorry to have been so lax at getting back here. I have just been busy.
Don't ask me doing what, I am not sure.
Other than putting together a new treadmill for dd. and and elliptical for me. Boy that wore me out! It was a workout of its own

I have never done the ellitical till I bought this one. WOW! what a workout for real. I did not know how bad of shape I was in. I can only do it a few minutes. and have to stop. So... I am doing that till I drop (less than 5 min)
And switching to the new treadmill.

Bobby, That cabbage soup looks good. I love cooked cabbage. My mother inlaw always made a soup like that, but with beef. I always picked out the beef and pigged out. Yummy.

Karen,
hope all is going better today. my thoughts and prayers are with you. As someone else said. a door opens, when one closes.


Moxie
sounds like you are doing well on your start. No more antacids!!!
Mostly I don't miss the junk either. Well maybe my sweets. Not the fast food.

Paula,
that coustom sounds cute , send pics if you can.
you sound so busy. how do you do it.

Well its just yukky weather here too. but I won't yell to loud. at least its not snow.

Hi everyone else I missed. I have just go so much to do today.
Got to move now.
talk later.

Hi ladies,

Well I am up .5 lb and it won't go away!!!! I have walked 3 miles with my WTPO dvd, maybe that is why .... actually doing some exercise? Food has been really good calorie wise.

I had let my hair get long (for me) down to my shoulders and keep the color dark blonde. Well I got it all cut and layered yesterday and colored it light brown.....hummm guess a new start for me!

Ella, I love the Carolina's we have talked about moving up there...it is so beautiful. We have friends in S. Carolina that we are going to stop and see the end of May.

Lynn, my DH had a long talk to his Dr. about his sugar, which has been high, and Dr. told him the more exercise the better and he could possibly get off insulin. So now he is a walking madman, lol. He did the walking DVD with me the last 2 days. So a good diet, losing some weight and exercise might change your situation around. Hope so.

Theresa you will be skinny with all those workout machines to lose, I would love to be your weight right now.....would have loved watching you put those two machines together, probably been a good show. lol

Well, Bobbi that soup sounds wonderful, I may try it....however just make half a pot. Cabbage sometimes does not agree with me in my golden years!
You must be a great cook with all these ideas.

Lyn, welcome to our group....you will love it here.

Karen, hope all is well and you are coping with all that new snow.

Hi to everyone I didn't get this time, I'm reading all the posts.

Week-end coming up, make your food plans now....week-ends are the hardest!

Phyllis

My cone cupcakes are in the oven baking. I have the dishes all in the dishwasher. I've cleaned the bathroon all but the floor. I still have to dust and run the sweeper. I have until 7:00 to get everything done so no problem.

Lynn- I have the measurments of the outfits on my website so they can see which size would fit them best. They can pick what color they would like the outfits to be made out of.
Have fun at the sculpture garden today. Best of luck conforting your friend this evening.


Theresa- I will post the adult dress and the child dress at the end of this post.

Phyllis- That .5 pounds will go away. Just keep working at it.

OK off to check on the cones and strighten up the rest of the kitchen.

This is a copy/paste article I read this morning, I edited it and took out the ads.

Weight Loss Plateau - Demon?

The dieter begins to experience weight loss over a period of time. The rate of weight loss, and the amount of time, both vary according to the dieter's metabolism rate, current weight, and genes - just to name a few fear factors.
At this point, everything is fine in Dodge City. Then something terrible happens! Gasp! The monstrous Weight Loss Plateau Demon suddenly appears into the individual's diet. Weight loss virtually stops. There may not be a green light visible for many days, possibly weeks.

The dieter gets weary and may even give up hopes of losing weight and quit their diet.
But, for those determined dieters who wait things out, and keep on track - suddenly, the Diet Race is on again!
Weight begins to quickly melt off and all is well in Dodge City again.
Always remember:
a) good things come to those that wait; and
b) Good Diet Guys wear white hats.
Many times, a dieter will walk to the end of the Weight Loss Plateau and slide down - meaning that they experience a dramatic, sudden drop in weight.
This feeling is better than 2 slices of black forest cheesecake. Okay....1 slice. It's hard to beat that '2-feeling', isn't it?
Quick Recap:
The point is that the benefits of riding out the Weight Loss Plateau are Diet Gold - and the reward is generally a dramatic weight drop in most dieting individuals!
Why plateaus are good!
How in the Blue Diet Devil can a weight loss plateau be good?
Yes indeedy! When the body temporarily shuts down, it's a very good thing. Although, if the dieter had anything to say about it, they would tell the body, "Let's get to losing weight again, okay!"
But sometimes (actually more times than not), the body is smarter than our brain. The plateau is a built-in safety net that prevents self-destruction.
What to do when you're on a plateau.
For gosh sakes, don't stop and enjoy the view or you might get run over by a stray donut with chocolate sprinkles.
Don't stop and smell the roses either, because there aren't any on top of the old Weight Loss Plateau.
It's a desolate area filled with heathen snakes, biting flies, poison ivy and sometimes barbaric acts such as sweaty exercise. Yes, exercise will help you walk safely over the Plateau.
Some other things you can do to survive this treacherous journey include:
Strengthen your Willpower. You must be stronger now, than ever before to succeed.
Take a hard look at your diet. Ask yourself: "How many calories am I eating per day?"
"Do I need to reduce those in order to go forward, or am I where I need to be?"
"Is this truly a Weight Loss Plateau that I am on and not a box of donuts that I've hidden underneath my bed that I sometimes feast upon when no one is watching?"
"Or, am I eating basically the same foods day-in and day-out?"
"If so, might I change those up a bit in order to boost the old metabolism?"
"Am I exercising enough?"
"Am I walking at least 10 minutes straight every other day?"
"If I don't like or enjoy walking, what other activity would be fun - something that I can stick with to strengthen by body and that will work hand-in-hand to accomplish weight loss?"

Mickey, I'm SO sorry about today's memories. I can't imagine that it's something that ever gets much easier to bear. I wish there were something I/we could do to make you feel better, but I know there isn't. Just know that we care.

Paula, I love to sew, and sure wish I had more time for it. Maybe once I retire (If I ever do...sure doesn't feel like it'll ever happen) I can get back to it. For the past ten years or so, I've only done things like making throw pillows - cushions for my window seats (we have window seats everywhere - living room, dining room, den, bedrooms....I've been working on them gradually), and basic stuff like that. When I was younger, I can remember making myself the absolute greatest edwardian-style jacket that everybody in the world was trying to get one like, except they couldn't, of course, because there was only one in the entire world!!! Just call me Mzzzz Unique!!! I made the fabric myself - a patchwork of different velvet patterns; some printed, some plain, but I lined & trimmed the whole thing in black, and made black velvet collar, lapel & cuffs. I wore it with bell-bottomed jeans, of course, or a long india-cloth skirt, and a big straw hat. Was I *kewl* or what? After I got married, turned into a "normal person" and had my kids I did a lot of sewing for them and myself. Don't ask me where I found the time then; I dropped out of college to get married when I was a sophomore, and then went back after my second baby was born, got my undergrad degree and then was working full time as a social worker AND taking classes towards my master's degree and being a pretty decent "mommy" all at the same time. I can only say that I sure was YOUNG, then...just thinking about it exhausts me, now!

Bobbi, I LOVE cabbage soup, and have a very similar recipe - or maybe it's altogether different one! ANYWAY, it's got cabbage in it, so it's cabbage soup, right? I actually have made it differently, depending on what I have for leftovers. Sometimes I've put chicken in it, sometimes ground beef, and I think it was especially good when I made it on a Monday night after having had roast pork for dinner on Sunday. I really liked it with pork. I use chicken stock sometimes, and sometimes I use V-8 juice as a base. I always put black beans in it, and usually chopped red peppers to give it some color if I've used the chicken stock. And green peppers. And whatever. If I make it, I have to plan on freezing individual containers, tho, because cabbage affects DH kind of like it affects Phyllis???? (Actually, Phyllis, I'm SURE it doesn't affect YOU quite the same way it affects my DH. It couldn't affect anybody the way it affects him. He can eat it once (I make him take Gas-X) but usually when I make it, I'll bring it for my lunch at work for a week or so, and if he did that, they'd give him an office in the basement.

Good grief, between Jay joining boot camp, Karen walking ninety or a hundred miles a day, Bobbie hauling debris out of her gardens, and Theresa working out both putting together AND using an elliptical (?) machine, I'm beginning to feel downright sedentery!!!! (Maybe I am, you say???? ) I was PLANNING to ride my bike for a full thirty minutes after I got home from work last night, but the day started out sunny and was pouring down rain by 3:30 in the afternoon. I did my trimrider thingie after supper, but I can't do that much more than 80 repetitions - about two and a half minutes. The only thing really good about it, I think, is it works my upper arms (which really need working) and I think my abs, some. Whatever it does, it's pretty strenuous. But I don't think you burn many calories in two and a half minutes. Bike riding burns a little over 300 in 30 minutes, so if I could ride at least four times a week, I think it would be pretty good???

Hey Wanda, Moxie, Lyn...Jeeze, I KNOW there are more of us!!! It's getting hard to keep up...and that's a good thing, right??? Yay, GOLDEN GIRLS !!!!!!

Ohhh...Lynn. I hear you about dinner with your neighbor. I suppose he thinks you're some kind of expert? Just relax. Give him any insights you can about the mechanics, but emphasize that everybody's situation/relationship is different, and the challenges may be different. Don't be nervous. You're obviously an intelligent and competent person. Just be yourself, help where you can help, and be clear about those things you don't know or can't help with.

Thinking of you, Karen - hope all is well.

TTFN,

Ella

I'm new to all this and just wanted to say hi to all of you. I'm looking forward to our journey (I was traveling alone up until now). Later.

Wow - we are growing and love all the posts -- its such a joy to sign on and read how everyone is doing. I was lucky enough to keep my calories within range again. I have started a blog here at 3FC but I need to figure out how to do links LOL. I know keeping a daily journal of my food intake and how I am feeling is good for me.

First of all a great big HI to everyone!!!!

I am working from home today and its miserable out -- but I am still off for my assessment tonight before bootcamp - yikes if they get me on the scale I do NOT want to know the weight but I will want to know the difference at the end of this. I am still reeling over my gain last week -- and I want to thank Bobbi for the WW Plateau post "What to do when you're on a plateau. For gosh sakes, don't stop and enjoy the view or you might get run over by a stray donut with chocolate sprinkles." good thing I wasn't drinking my morning tea -- it would be all over my computer screen LOL.

Karen - even 3000 minutes is huge!!!

Ella - I just love reading your posts -- and I see your occupation is "writer" maybe you can help me with my blog -- I may need help when I am all cramped up after a week at bootcamp - LOL just kidding.

Luflic - Yes for me anything under 1500 calories would make me miserable (and everyone around me). I realized last year this is about the rest of my life and I needed to learn how to eat for a lifetime not just the short term weightloss journey.

MoxieSD -- what a cool name thanks for sharing and your advice is "spot on" -- to quote Gordon Ramsey (the nasty celebrity chef -- but ooohhh so cute)

Mikey - I am so sorry that the days are rough but these anniversary dates seem to just run over us from no where. A loss of a child stays with us forever but remembering makes them live forever in our hearts. My mother-in-law will not even acknowledge the child she loss -- I can't think that it is healthy -- my sweetie is 45 and he only just learned about his "older brother" this year.

Paula - You are one talented lady -- fabulous costumes (love the pics) and cupcakes in cones. I feel as confused as your grandson LOL. Boy if I could join your Red Hat group I would sign up in a minute. My mom's group are just too boisterous for my liking LOL.

Lynn - for owning a Prius!!! I have been told when we replace the SUV it will be with a hybrid (please note the SUV is rarely used and only had 800 miles put on in the last 6 months). Enjoy the walk with your friend I will check out the web site soon. Yes us "experienced widows" are needed by so many people. Its been a strange designation for me since I lost my DH, at first I was just numb but when I realized how much I needed to talk to someone who knew it was easier for me to pass on my experiences. Two years ago I lost one of my best friend's to breast cancer -- her husband and young son needed to hear from me that they will survive -- that yes it is tough nothing can prepare you but we can stumble on. Let me know how you make out.

Fluterby - Welcome to the Golden Girls -- I look forward to getting to know you better

Joanne

Hello everyone and Welcome to all the new Golden Girls!!!

I thought that I would let you know that things are going pretty good. I did 300 crunches on my ab lounge this morning and I'm getting ready to walk now. I'm hoping that tomorrow when I weigh in that I haven't gained any but if so-- well this week has been a little strange so will just have to take what it is and do better next week.

One good thing that has been happening is that some of Tim's customers have called him here at home and stated that they were going to complain to the boss about Tim being fired and if he isn't going to be there than they will take there business elsewhere!!! Made Tim (and me) feel pretty good!! Tim was selling building materials and if his customers stop going there then who knows just what will happen to that company!!

Lynn--- I'm not sure exactly where you are but Tim's Dad lives in Selinsgrove. So that is where we will be going. Don't know how far that is away from you but it would be so nice to meet you.

Still not for sure when we will be going but probably within the next month. Right now we are just trying to get everythng taken care of that needs to be done so we can leave for a bit. I do have a laptop that I take with me and when I can get service I always get on the internet. So you can bet I'll be checking to see how everyone is doing. AND trying to keep myself somewhat on track too!

Well, I wanted to pop in and say Hello. I need to get my walk in so I can get some things done around here and start getting things ready to go.

I'm so glad to see so many new people and I promise when things settle down here a bit I will get better at saying Hello to everyone. Take care. Karen

Yeah, it must have looked funny.
Its a good thing I did assembly in factories for so long.

Skinny, one can only hope!! that is my goal.

I am planning the cabbage soup for this week end. But it will only be me eating it. So I will only make the 1/2 recipe too. MY dd is complaining right now about the smell of kraut I am cooking on some pork chops. LOL. she HATES the smell of cooking cabbage. I love it.

Paula,
those dresses are cute!
enjoy your party.


Bobby
thanks for the article. Impaitient that is my biggest problem. I just don't want to wait for it to ALL come off.

Ella,
its a shame you did not get a pic of that outfit you made. I would have loved that too.

don't feel bad about not doing a lot of reps on your machine. I can only do about 2-3 min on my new elliptical. IT IS HARD.


Welcome Fluterby


Karen, I am so glad to hear about your hubbys customers calling! that has to be a wonderful feeling for him. Yeah! Tim!!! Keep up the great attitude.