HAPPY JUNE!!!!
I thought it was time for a fresh start, a new thread and a new month.

Well, it's the beginning of June and we are far far far from summer here in the midwest.
Temps going down to 49 degrees at night.....what gives?
I'm aching for hot sunny weather!
We have the herb garden, the veggie garden and most of the flower beds planted. I've been working outside more this year; the last couple of years Joe has been doing a lot of the work himself, for which I've felt terribly guilty. I've had much less knee pain since I lost 20 pounds, so I'm doing more outside this year.
It's so rewarding to see the beautiful results of our labors.
I'm hoping everyone is well. We've become a sporadically (is that a word?) posting group. I miss you all and hope we get it back together soon.

Last week we had a huge scare...Brandon came down with a very high fever...end result was he spent almost 3 days in the hospital, diagnosed with H1N1 virus...yep...swine flu. Thank God no one else in his family caught it. He was on very potent antibiotic i.v.'s for 2 days. Now he's recovered and doing well, but it was unsettling....primarily because of all the hype we've seen in the media. I've learned more about flu than I care to know as a result of this!

Oh, and by the way, I don't know if I posted my weigh-in last week on the old thread...gained 1.8 It was my birthday week and I went waaay overboard. No excuses, just moving on. Quitting is NOT an option!

hugs,
Jen

Hey Jen:

OMG, what a scare with Brandon. I can imagine how worried you all must have been -Thank God he is okay! Did they say how he got it - was it from school?

Happy belated birthday to you! Hope it was fun. Congrats on the weight loss so far, you're doing great. I especially like your attitude about no excuses and moving on and never quitting! I'm sure your garden will be beautiful - I on the other hand have a black thumb My step-daughter Lisa loves her garden too - they bought a house last year and she's having tons of fun putting in all sorts of flowers. They have a huge front and backyard, so before long it will be a regular botanical garden

Well, we're all okay. We had a scare after the Aids Walk - Willie had chest pains after the walk and we had to go to the emergency room in the City (Manhattan). They kept him overnight for observation, did stress tests etc. and he seems to be okay now, thank God. I think it was part anxiety, but I can't say for sure. Just happy he's okay.

Well, I hope everyone comes out to say hi soon and we do get this group going again. I miss everyone too!

Have a great weekend, everyone.

Hugs,
Dianne

Hey guys....well I was born in Staten Island, and My Mom is from Illinois....so I am going to jump in! I have been doing WW for 3 months and have lost 33 pounds....I weigh in on Saturday morning....so hopefully it will be more! I need to lose about 75 more pounds, but I am pretty psyched to lose it forever! weight Watchers has been good for me. Joanie

Dianne,
What a scare that must have been, I hope Willie is back to feeling better and no problems. I can only imagine how scared you must have been.
Email me when you get a chance, ok?

Joanie,
Welcome! 33 pounds in 3 months is very very good! It sounds as though you're really focused. Keep it up! Where in Illinois is your Mom from? I'm in a nw burb of Chicago. This is a great group of women, it's been a bit quiet in here but don't let that scare you off.

Last Wednesday's weigh-in I had a loss of .4 which I was okay with. Every time it goes down I'll take it

Iliana finished the Avon Breast Cancer Walk this morning. She walked 26.2 miles yesterday, starting at 7:30 a.m. and finishing at 4:00 p.m. Today she walked the 2nd day route of 13 miles and was done just before noon. What an awesome accomplishment! I'm so proud of her. We travelled to 3 of the rest stop/cheering stands to be there for her and it was an incredible experience. (Thank you to those who made donations, I've emailed you.)

I only work on Monday and Tuesday, then I've taken the rest of the week off. I'll spend Wednesday with my sister Kathie and Friday is Joe and my 38th anniversary, so I'm hoping he'll get that day off.

HI to everyone!
~Jen

HI ALL!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEN!!!!! So sorry I haven't been around. My e-mails have been messing up.
That is so scary about Brandon. I am so glad he is ok. I hope the swine flu doesn't come back this fall.
How is your sister? What an accomplishment by Illiana. WOW!!!!!!
The reduced knee pain has got to be the best incentive. Congrats on the 20 pounds girl!!!!!!

Dianne,
I am so sorry about Willy. I'll bet that was scary. I am so glad he is ok. I know of at least 6 people who thought they were having a heart attack and it was a hiatal hernia. It is scary whenever chest pains are involved.

Sandy,
Hey girl! Congrats to your son. Feels good huh? My son graduated high school. When I started with this group he was about 8 I think?
Add me as a friend on facebook. [email protected]

Hi Joanie,
Welcome. Great losses so far. You are doing great.

Guess what I have? plantar fasciitis. That means pain in the butt. Actually pain in the heel. Has anyone had this? It only hurts when I first get up.
My mom had it once for 3 months then it went away. One girl I know had it for 5 yrs. and then it disappeared.
Everything has been ok. I am getting a new air conditioner today. Our old was the same age as Brittany, 23. It was eating up our electricity and leaking freon.
Well I'll let you all go. I lost 7 pounds in the last 2 weeks. I was alittle heavier than my ticker so I will leave that alone.
Hi Ruth and Es.
Luv ya,
Terri

Terri,
I had plantar fascitis years ago, from a combination of working on my feet and not wearing the right shoes. I underwent a series of cortisone shots in my heels and switched to good shoes. The combination of that and doing stretching exercises my dr. gave me did the trick. I hope yours gets better, it's definitely painful!

Yesterday was our 38th anniversary. Joey and Iliana took us out to dinner downtown (Chicago) to an awesome Spanish tapas restaurant, then we went to a blues bar. We had a great time.

later,
Jen

Jen, Congrats ont the wedding anniversary...

Terri, sorry about the heal...i hope it goes away soon....and congrats on the weight loss. I'm still holding my own. I hate to think about what I would way if I weren't going to the gym at all!

Happy Anniversary Jen and Joe. Sounds like you had a great time.

My heel is already better. I think I just strained the tissue in the foot, most people tear them. I've had it for about 1.5 months but it is significantly better. It only hurts when I get out of bed now. Used to hurt everytime I stood up.

Ruth,
That is a great way to look at it. Think where we would be w/o the exercise. Not as healthy I'll tell you that.

Love you guys,
Terri

Hi Jen,
Happy anniversary to you and Joe! 38 years! My goodness you must have gotten married when you were mere children. Glad to hear that Brandon is well again, but sorry that he was so sick too.
Dave and his girlfriend Brittany are heading to Chicago on June 20th for a little vacation. They are planning to check out the comedy scene.

Hi Terri, Congrats on your high school graduate, what is next for him?
Thanks for the link, I did invite you to be my friend on facebook too.

Welcome Joanie, you are doing great!

Hi Ruth and Diane and Es. I hope to be dropping in a lot more now that I have more free time.


Sandy

Hi Sandy,
I accepted your friend request. I love facebook. I just reconnected with a bunch of cousins of my husbands that we don't get to see often. His mom had 10 bros and sis.
Brandon is going to go to Calhoun here in Huntsville for the first yr. He isn't ready to go away.
Hi everyone!!!!
Terri

Hi All,
I hope everyone has some fun planned for the weekend. We are having such rainy weather! I haven't been able to finish getting our garden planted yet. My brother wants to have us all over for Father's Day, but he is hesitating to have a cookout and may serve us lasagna instead. The main thing is we will all be getting together. My aunt and uncle come up from Florida only twice a year and they will be here too. It is his 70th birthday. So we are very happy to celebrate together.

I still haven't gotten back on the WW bandwagon. I have cut back on taking seconds, and eating ice cream, and I am back using my treadmill. We have too many social events in June (11 birthdays and 3 anniversaries) so it has been hard to get started. I figure the more I visit with all of you my motivation will kick in again. Perhaps right after July 4th?


Sandy

Hey Sandy, hope everything is okay. I haven't been able to get back on the wagon when it comes to food. Im hoping that going to the gym will make up for the lack of control on eating! Glad I found you on facebook. I love it...staying in contact with family and friends!

Finally had a decent loss!
Posted -2.00 at today's weighin
So in 16 weeks I've lost 22.8.
I'm good with that.

I was feeling so out of control when I joined in Feb.2009. My sister was, and still is, terminally ill.....I realized I could not change that, nor solve it, nor control it.
What I CAN control, however, is my weight, and what I eat.
Naturally, when I joined WW in Feb. of this year...for what I think was truthfully the 13th time(!)....it gave me a sense of peace, of control over at least one major portion of my life...I couldn't control my sister's health, but I could control mine, right?
So I had a big beginning (10 lbs. lost in the first week!), then some steady losses in the following middle weeks...then erratic ups and downs over the third month....and a loss of interest/fizzling out....
Tonight was my 16th week weigh-in (I've missed a couple of weeks) and I was thrilled with the 2 pound loss!

Here I go again...focusing on losing the next 20 and I've already lost 2 of them. Wish me luck.
have a great day,
Jen

Absolutely wonderful Jen. You are doing great. What is your day like? What do you eat for breakfast etc...? We have to get this thread going on weightloss again. You are doing a bang up job doing that.
How is your sister? My BILs sister just got a terminal cancer prognosis. She is 61. So sad.
ttyl,
Terri