Good morning everyone!

It seems like just yesterday I was planning my trip and here I am back already!

We had a wonderful time and the weather was quite warm! Clearwater was breaking records while I was there (95!). We didn't spend too much time out in the sun. I did manage to get in a water aerobics class and enjoyed it. The yoga definitely helped because I wasn't sore afterwards. We traveled down to Naples and spent 3 days there and walked the beach and did some swimming. I have to say that this was my most active vacation in terms of walking, swimming. The weather here at home is cold, we dipped down to 35 last evening and I don't think it's supposed to warm up too much. It was a welcome relief from the heat though.

One thing I did do this vacation was to take my journal and write everything down that I ate...I didn't calculate points but things are written down, at least that way I was a accountable and it gave me an idea of what I was doing. My clothes feel loose so I don't think I had that much of a gain. It's also hard to tell because I'm due for my TOM at the end of the week. I'm planning on going to my meeting on Wednesday and getting back into the swing of things. I felt more in control this time around since I was careful to not over-indulge too much.

The boards seem like they've been pretty quiet...I've missed the daily check-ins. Hope everyone is doing well and those of you who live in Canada "Happy Victoria Day"!

Catch everyone later!

Urgh, went to the doctor on Friday for a 6 month checkup on the BP --- have gained NINE pounds since last visit! So humiliated! And yet good kick in pants.

Now on a mini-challenge w/WW buddy (anyone who feels inclined can join): Lose 1# by May 31 and 3 # by June 30. Then take it from there!

On a positive note, had a wonderful day of digging in the dirt yesterday and planting tomatoes. We love the mud...

Hi everyone. Hope you all had nice weekends too.

Hi Melissa, glad to hear that you had such a lovely time in Florida! (Did you find any fossilized sharks' teeth on the beach? I hear Naples is famous for those.) Way to go on the journaling and all the exercise.

Laurel, I hope your tomatoes do well! Ours have a few large green tomatoes, but none have ripened yet. (They'll be burned to a crisp about the time yours start bearing.) Good luck on your challenge!

Had a good weekend; enjoyed the herb demonstration, and learned why I can never grow cilantro. (It has to be planted in the fall, never in the spring, down here.) Will save a nice spot for it this fall. We also "won" a large bottle of blackberry vinegar that the chef made (from quarts & quarts of real blackberries, no less.) What goes well with that, other than salads? Do you think it would be a good marinade for fresh tuna? (Which we're grilling tonight.)

Hope everyone is having a great Monday! This is our last week of the school year, so everyone's pretty cheerful around our campus...
ttfn,
Jan

Hello!!! Longtime no post!!

I got my computer up & running here at work the past week, but haven't had much time to do any posting.

The new job is going well; haven't been doing too much yet but doing some training on the types of associate, bachelor's, and master's programs we offer, plus tuition costs, procedures, etc. I do go to "official" training the last week of June in Phoenix. It should be hotter that he** when I'm there.

I am going to start up a new WW community meeting in a town about 10 miles from my home. The one I was doing in my town did not have enough members to renew last month. So, I am glad to be starting this new one. I hope we get a good response. I figure one meeting to lead per week is enough for me to handle with learning the new job, etc.

Melissa - glad to hear you had a great time on vacation. Sounds like you kept tabs on what you ate & got plenty of exercise.

Laurel - best to nip that gain in the bud. I always think that scale at the doctor's office gives no breaks with regard to weight!!

Hey to JanetMae & anyone else!!

I plan to check in more often now that I have computer access at work. Been keeping pretty good tabs on my weight & being faithful with the exercise. Had a garage sale on Saturday (or rummage, yard or tag sale, whatever term you use) with a neighbor. Sold quite a lot of DD's clothes, but still have so many left. Am tempted to hold another sale in August for the back to school rush. Has been so cold here - many records lows being set - it was about 31 degrees when we opened the doors of the sale Saturday morning.

Talk to you later, ladies!

Laurel, I feel your pain. I have been gaining too. The stress level has just been off the wall. Lets both vow to get back to making those numbers go down again. I started posting on the journal thread again and although I've been a little bit on the high side it is still better than what I've been doing the past month or two. I have under 20 lbs. to get back to goal (it was about 12, oh well) and I am determined to get there. Ignore the stats on the bottom of this post. I just refuse to change them until I get down below where I was.

Off to the gym for a 20/20/20 class (20 min. each of step/kickboxing/toning. Gotta burn that fat off.

Hi everyone,

I am a lifetime member at goal and I was considering working for ww as a receptionist. Do any of you do that? I would like to know what is involved in weighing and recording and taking money? Is it really confusing or not? I would love work for ww but not if it would be another stress in my already stressful life LOL! Thanks for any info you may have.

Daytona

Hi everybody. Back after a three-day weekend and gearing up for a hectic schedule. I think I'm in the office a grand total of three days between now and May 31st. I'll try to check in though.

Melissa: Sounds like you had a great visit. I could use a little bit of that warmth you enjoyed. Still unseasonably cool here - there was frost on the roof this morning. And congratulations on staying in control - I am sure you will be rewarded at thie scales this week.

Laurel: Don't be too hard on yourself. The first step is just facing up to reality, and you've already taken it! I had the same wake-up call at my April weigh-in when I realized I was up for the fourth consecutive month. I'm slowly regaining control and have already shed some of the excess. Your mini-goals are an excellent strategy.

Jan: Did you try the blackberry vinegar with the tuna? How did it turn out? I hope you're getting some relief from the hot weather (can't believe I'm saying that as I sit here trying to warm my frozen toes...)

kt: So good to hear from you and congrats for keeping up the exercise. Good on you for starting up another WW group, particularly with the stress of a new job.

Myra: Just jump right back in where you left off. You've done so well in the past and there's no reason why you wouldn't again, now that the hectic period is behind you (I'm assuming that it is).

daytona: There are one or two in the group who have the experience you're looking for. I'm sure you'll here from them.

In addtion to the schedule from h***, I'm also suffering from some weird back ailment that hit me on Friday nite. Haven't run in 4 days, and it doesn't look as though I'll get out tonite either. W-a-a-a-h -- I was doing so well!

Hi everyone,

I'm back from three weeks of non-stop travel. Yikes. I'm glad to sleep in my own bed that is for sure.

Really super busy at work and not very motivated to do much of anything. I am exercising and being pretty good, but I gained 2 lbs in the last three weeks and need to get those off toute de suite.

Had a great time in Charleston and Savannah. Ate too many fried foods but enjoyed that southern culture. I'm totally off travel for the next week or two. I'm soo happy.

I'm glad to see some returning faces and some new names.

Off to hit the gym and the kitchen to make dinner.

lala

Hi all! I'm so happy! I went to my meeting today and I'm down .4 from the last time AND my TOM started! Woohoo! I'm figuring the extra exercise really helped while I was away.

Lala: Welcome back! I agree, it's nice to be back in my own bed!

Susan: We've had unseasonably cold weather here too...we've had frost which is terrible for the grapes and strawberries. We're supposed to warm up over the weekend so that'll be nice.

Daytona1: I work as a receptionist and I enjoy it. At first it was a little overwhelming because of the paperwork but the others that I work with are really helpful and as I get further along I find that it's not that bad. I enjoy helping the members and it's really helped me in keeping my weight in check. I started out just filling in and now I have a permanent meeting that I work at. I still fill in when someone needs me.

Myra: You can do it! Once I get on track I crave it more. Keep up the good work!

Katie: Good to hear that you'll be able to post again!

Janet: No, I didn't see any fossilized shark teeth. We did have a really long walk along the beach and enjoyed the weather. It was a little too hot for me but all in all I had a wonderful time.

As another update...I went to the dr for my yearly and got my blood pressure checked and it was only 102/64! Wow! What a difference from what it has been. I'm glad it's come down on its own and that I don't have to take any pills!

Hope everyone is getting some sunshine! It's gorgeous here today, although a little on the cool side (58 F).

Hi everyone,

Thanks for the info Melissa, here they have "at work" meetings where you just weigh people and then there is the "center" meetings that are the traditional meetings where you do all the paper work. I am going to try an at work first if they have any openings, I probably won't start till after my vacation in July. They tell me we are responsible to find replacements if we can't do a meeting. That is fine but I doubt if I could find one for the first 2 weeks in July. Do they have a good training program? I think it would help keep me focused and on track. You girls are all doing great keeping the wt off. I go up and down a few pounds but I think that is normal. How do you all keep the wt in check as much as you travel? I can use all the hints I can get.

Daytona

But I did find fossilized shark teeth on a quick trip to Venice, FL a few weeks ago! Funny!

Does anyone else get home from work and have exactly enough energy to prepare and eat dinner and that's it?!? Lately, all I can do is crash on the couch or in the bathtub. Absolutely, exhausted, fatigued, etc. No oomph to go outside to the garden or to bead or anything. This is the pits. And with TV rerun season coming up, this will be really pathetic. Fortunately, Eddie the cat, likes having someone horizontal so he can roost...

welllllllllll,

i wanna to find a fossil!!!!!!!!!! That sounds like lots of fun.

okay, re: tiredness

I have been pooped the last three nights, its a chore enough to decide what two intelligent humans, a cat and dog want for dinner in our house too. This activity alone is energy zapping.

I have been trying to zoom through home drudge so that I can get my fun activities in. This involves being super organized while making dinner (dropping in laundry, getting recycling squared away, picking up hot spots of clutter) and giving myself 30 mins to get ready for work tomorrow.

We don't have a real tv, so when I get home its dinner, dog putter and maybe either the gym or gardening. I am trying to get as many errands run on my way to and from work so that I don't have to waste any more time that way.

Laurel, are you taking your vitamins? drinking enough water? Have you tried convincing eddie to shop, prepare meals and do the dishes? Are you sleeping well? getting up in the middle of the night? bringing your work stress home with you?

I admit, sometimes I plop on the couch (much to jacques dismay) and read the paper for a bit, but I find that once I go out and hit the weeds, I'm pretty energized.

Remember I live in the dreary north, I try and take advantage of good weather and daylight as much as possible.

lala

Melissa, congrats on the loss! (And the phenomenol BP, too!) And after a trip, no less; that's so encouraging to hear, as we're planning several trips this summer too. I'll have to remember your secret: lots of exercise.

Seasaw, Re: the tuna, Dh fixed it in a lime-tequila marinade, and served it over black beans and corn, a red chalupa shell (1 pt) and a mango-tomato-cilantro salsa. Yum. Thank God he's taken such an interest in Sat. afternoon cooking shows! ;-) We'll try the blackberry vinegar on chicken, I think. And the weather has been pretty cool recently, though it won't last, I'm afraid.

Lala, you too have the travel thing down; gaining only a coupla pounds after 3 weeks in Italy and the Deep South! Wow!

KT, good luck with the new community meeting! How long have you been a WW leader? Whew, Phoenix in late June; too bad it couldn't have been January. My ds lives there, though, and she says it's a dry heat, not as bad as here. We've visited her in summer, and she's right; but thank God for air conditioning, anyway!

Hi Daytona! I second your request to the others: travel tips, ladies? Dh and I are heading to France in a few weeks, and could sure use some help!

Laurel, I know what you mean about afternoons. Any way to take very short naps (about 15 mins.)? Are you drinking plenty of water? Dehydration causes fatigue, I've heard. Hope you start feeling better soon!

Myra, I know you'll lose those extra pounds and get back to goal. I'll try to join you in the journal thread when I can; I really need to reach my personal goal, and I keep saying that, but I must not be working hard enough.

Dh, Dad and I are heading to the coast Saturday for a Wine Festival; I'll have to remember that the whole point is just to *taste* the different wines, right? ;-) We're also taking our new 2-person kayak, so dh and I should get in lots of exercise, at least.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!
Jan

Hi everyone,

I'm late for work this morning- yikes. I had to pick some posies to take to a friend's wedding at lunch. They are finally going to tie the knot- I am so happy for them.

Its actually nice here. It may not rain at all today.

Daytona and janet- travel is my passion. I travel lots, mostly by air, but sometimes by car. I spend all my free time in Europe or the east coast. I can tell you that I have maintained pretty well on travel, but now, I never really lose.

* Get a hotel, inn or apartment with a refrigerator
* If you are on business, look for a hotel with a gym - most large chains have pretty nice health facilities now- the hotel I try and stay in Vancouver, BC has a real health club associated with it. Very nice equipment.
* Try and eat normally, eat breakfast like you would at home- we usually splurge and eat a nice lunch (cheaper too at the better restaurants) and then look for something small at dinner
This works well in London and Paris and other large metro cities
*walk when you can, but don't buy new shoes and think you can do the same amount of walking in them. Cobblestones can be a bear, though my mom loved them.
* Try and get rest, if you are rested, then you are less cranky, less irritable and can make better food choices
* drink water, unless you are travelling in the third world, there are bathrooms almost everywhere
*plan snacks, especially for the airport. Some airports have surprisingly good food - DFW, National, Logan, Albuquerque
*If you are really afraid of the food on the plane, make sure you have brought something that will tide you over, if you are going from one regional airport to another through a hub, you may have 5 hours of flight, a 30 min connect and three bags of peanuts if you are lucky. I think peanut butter, orange juice, apple slices and some string cheese would make the trip just fine.
Luna bars are my partner's travel food of choice and so is chocolate .
*I have to admit, 80% of my travel is in First or Business, I am learning to decline food, its not the food that is so great, its the legroom and entertainment. I don't pay for these upgrades, but either use miles or get them . So, self control is a good thing.

This list is not exhaustive, but I'm going to post a link to a thread on the flyertalk site that talks about this same subject.

lala

Lala, can't thank you enough for those *great* ideas! I shared those with dh, and he said you ought to write an article for Conde Nast on the topic; he loved the ideas too. And tia for the link! Have a great time at your friends' wedding ... how sweet of you to bring posies ...
Regards,
Jan