good morning and welcome to APRIL CHICKS...#5.

If you're new here please when you have time go back and read some of our previous threads...lots of great people and their stories here.

Wanted to talk about...SUMMER!!!

I will be posting some easy,cool summer recipes..(I LOOOOOVE MY GRILL)
I've also noticed some of you talking about trying some new fruits and veggies...we're such good chicks.

Summer is such a great time to eat healthy, you just naturally want to eat less and when it's so hot the last thing you want to do is turn on that oven and bake something fattening....yeah!!!
So fruit is a great option, not just for snacking but for incorporating into your main meal.
Veggies are great sliced big and sprayed with olive oil and laid on the grill.
I use those bamboo skewers,soak them for 30 min. first so they don't burn then thread chunks of chicken or some shrimp on them along with pieces of squash,onion,cherry tomatos,bell peppers,mushrooms and pineapple,brush them with some fat free italian salad dressing.
Wrap some sliced potatoes in foil with onion and the dressing, throw it all on the grill and your family or company will be impressed. And you'll hardly break a bead of sweat.

Now for all you "Hot Tamales"...you know who you are...

Fiery Citrus Salsa
serves 4

1 orange
1 green apple
2 fresh red chilies
1 garlic clove
8 fresh mint leaves
juice of 1 lemon
salt and ground pepper

cut peel off orangs, cut orange meat out of pith into bowl along with
any juice that oozes out
peel the apple and cut off core into wedges
halvr the chilies and remove seeds

place all of the above along with the mint and garlic
into a food proccesor
process till almost smooth (you still want little bits and pieces)
with motor running add lemon juice

stop motor, pour into a cute bowl or jar,season with salt and pepper

seve with kebobs or grilled chicken or fish.

Cal:26
Fat 0.1gram
Fiber 1.1gram

Later I will post my home made veggie burger recipe.

happy grilling,
Diane

Yummmm, the salsa sounds great, Salsa is such a good snack and good for you. I have been grilling here too, it's about 99 degrees here today...yucky... so I would rather cook outside rather than inside, if I must cook in this heat...he he he, hope all is well with everyone, Jamie

Hey gals, well, I have been MIA for the past few days, and for good reason---I have been completely off my plan for the past few days and I feel like crap about it. I hope I haven't undone the 6lbs I lost with my eating over the past few days. I haven't gone completely nuts, but I know I have been over my calories by a few hundred for a few days. I am feeling discouraged right now, but I know I just need to pick myself up, dust myself off and get back on plan again. I am starting back tomorrow with a vengance, but I'm not weighing myself until the 11th when I go to the doctor... that gives me about 9 days to be REALLY good, so hopefully I will be lighter when I get weighed at the doctor.
Hope everyone is doing well and staying on plan, like I said, I am feeling pretty crappy right now about going off plan for the past few days...but I guess I can't change the past, I have to go on with the future and be extra good for the next 9 days.
Take care everyone and have a great day!
Tara

Hi everyone!!

Man, it looks like everyone is doing so great!!! I'm proud of everyone!!! I wish I could be two places at once!! I like being in SC because I have my own little schedule everyday of what I need to do. But out here, nothing is organized, I'm being stressed and falling apart.....but this is where my family and friends are! It's crazy, I missed Woes for yesterday, and I doubt I'll have anytime for myself today, since I havent had any since I've gotten here. I havent exercised not one lick, and even though I've not exceeded my calories, I either dont eat but once, or I eat a happy meal from Mcdonalds or something crazy. But if I dont stop and eat something, I wouldnt eat all day. NOT GOOD!! I know, everyone wants to beat some sense into me,....so do I!!! But I dont even have time to do that!! GRRR!!!! My dad seems to need more help than I thought, and I'm the only one who helps him. This is just too ridiculous, I havent spent anytime with my friends and there are still some of them I havent even seen yet. I am ready to go now, but want to stay for my dad.?!?!? Well anyway enough of that, as far as my NCC challenge, I failed on the exercise and not getting stressed out part, but at least I've been eating smaller portions of non-healthy foods. I'll try to eat breakfast today. My husband got a truck, and although I should be happy, I'm not. I could care less about some stupid truck, that is not a family car or what we agreed on. I hate trucks, but who cares, I'll get my own job and get my own car.

Well, sorry so depressing but had to get it off my chest, no one else to talk to or understand!!! My friends just look at it like I'm exaggerating and I just "pretend" to be too busy. I get up at 6 everymorning just trying to make the days longer and dont get to bed until 1 or 2 the next morning, nothing I've done ,except getting my hair fixed, has been for me. But didnt I say that already?!?! Ok, I"m just going to suck it up and move on, life could be worse I guess, and I'm only here for 2 more days. I guess I will just try to spend these 2 doing something for me....well maybe tomorrow, today I have 50 million things to do. I wish I could congratulate you all more on how good you are and maybe put my 2 cents in, but I guess I'm too busy griping and complaining about myself instead of trying to be there for you all!!! I'll try to do better tomorrow, I gotta go start cooking breakfast for my dad!!

My Love to you all!!
Jay

hi all....wow...bet y'all have forgotten me...i have been MIA for about 2 weeks now....i have absolutely no time for me anymore.....i have been putting in overtime at work..then i get home and the kids want to play outside til bedtime....by the time they are in bed i am just pooped out!!!.....just to let u know...i still avoid the vending machines like the plague!!.....the only thing i will buy from them is chocolate milk or regular milk...cuz i love milk.....i have not been totally following the plan i made but i am down 5 pounds from when i started.....and it is going to be hard with the news that i just got a week ago to keep losing weight......my boyfriend and i (dating about 1 year now)...are expecting in February...it was not planned...but we are happy about it.....we were always safe.....but one night.....something broke...now im gonna look like a beached whale in a few months!!!!.....well...anyways..u all take care...im so tired...and i gotta get up at 4am...so.....good night to all.......ive missed u!!!!!

APRIL!!!!!
I was going to e-mail you tonight, wow.
I got your mail the other day and was so happy to hear from you.
Congrats on the bundle of joy coming....you can certainly stick to eating healthy through this...
We are here to help you!!!!
Don't be a strager,
Diane

Congrats April, how exciting!!!!! I wish you a safe and healthy pregnancy..... hope all is well with everyone. i am still on track and going strong with a few set backs of eating things I shouldn't. but it hasnt been enough to stop me from losing .... talk to you all soon, Jamie

Congrats! April...

I just wanted to let everyone know I'm still alive. This is my last day of regular class... next week are my finals so I'm gonna disappear for a while... well at least a week... but I will be back... I've been stressed out with finals and all, and so I've been having a hard time staying on track with my diet... but I am goig to win the battle... just I got another battle right now LOL called pass my classes!

I'm doing okie... just every so often I get stressed out and I munch... bad bad bad habit I know... but it's been kept to a minimum, so it's not been as bad...

Take care ladies... be back in a few...!

Hang in there Sue Marie, and good luck on those pesky tests.
We'll be waiting to hear how you did.


Jamie...be good!!

Hi all chickies

Been missing but trying to catch up, ya'll been doing good. I've been checking out the stats and ya'll are busting those numbers.

Ralphmarie is looking like a count down, which I love, cause i know when she hits goal it will be a blast off.

Hippichic, 100lbs lost, great, how are you doing it?

eatnothingalive, glad you are back on it, stick with it, I just came through a tough time and I let my exercise slip, but back on it.

Jami dol 78, I know what you mean, your friends see all the good things you have, the grass is greener theory, but only you see the real issues, I go through that too with dh pulls one of his little stunts, as he did a few weeks ago, and my friends and some family just say, well look at the good, blah blah blah, but they don't get it.

Aprillpepper, I guess congrats to you, eat healthy and keep your weight down. it will make it all the more easier during the last months.

Suemarie301, hang in there girl on the books.

Well I'm back on my treadmill, and have my exercise video's in and I've lost 25 and have about 26 to go. I am trying to look at far I've come, not the distance I have to go yet. I have a mini-goal coming up, my weigh in date for it is Saturday, and I was close last time I weighted earlier in the week so I'm nervous and excited, after that weigh in I should have just a small bit to go to get a new middle number, and I'm very excited about that!
Ya'll take care and keep up the good work, see ya'll in the next day or day after, depending on how many more drop in visitors I get this weekend, if it is anything like last weekend, I'll go nuts!

Thank you Maggie for the kind words....damn straight...when I hit my goal I'm throwing a party and inviting THE WHOLE WORLD!!!


I walked ouside a little while ago to put Jackeddy on his run and the air is sweet with honeysuckle, its everywhere in the yard and I'm so happy we never cut it down.
Now if I only had a magnolia tree.....

I miss quite a few things from my southern roots in VA and NC..
And I won't even start on the cooking.

I didn't lose a pond this past week...Tom is a jerk,and always sabatoges me,one day,soon I hope,... that booger will be out of my life for good.
Right now he's all over the place,Dr. said I'd probably go thru the change early as I started seeing Tom when I was 11.

I miss my husband...I always get extra emotional when that rat Tom is here, But Larry is great and takes extra care of me when I'm like this...so there IS an upside....hhmmm..maybe I won't tell him when it's over for good.....lol

This dog gone poison Ivy is drying up in some places and popping out in others, Its **** when I have to pee 'cause I have to do the pp dance while I'm washing my hands BEFORE I go...don't want to risk it spreading to unmentionable places...OOOWWW.
Everyone says "don't scratch"...yeah, right.

My Bunny problem now comes out and they just stare at Jackeddy,all 3 of them, they know he's on a run and can only go so far....they sit in the yard and just munch on stuff right in front of him, while he goes NUTS.He would gladly choke himself just to get a taste.

I'll be back soon with another recipe,
Man, I'm just in a mood today...
Diane

While i didn't lose a POND this week I also didn't lose a POUND.
Don't feel like editing...

Morning Ladies…

Diane – goodness all your recipes sound so great! I’m looking for some good chicken recipes Or even better, suggestions for a new Healthy Cook Book. I need more variety in my cooking hehehe. Don’t scratch! Heheheh *ducks* Bunny Problems huh? I think I would take that over Gophers. I have gophers and they are driving me nuts. Are the rabbits as destructive as gophers?

Tara – Don’t feel bad, I too have gone over what I should have, especially this Memorial Weekend. Holidays are so bad for me! But just think, you did it once you can do it again. That’s how I have been thinking… it helps. Keeps me from being discouraged. I have finals coming up so I tend to eat when stressed out. I pray this next week I don’t gain all 20lbs back… ick!

Jaymi – Ya know sometimes we just need to vent. Its better than holding it in and then blowing up later. Actually I even think there’s a thread somewhere to do that. I’ve not used It but I have seen some of the ladies mention it. Hmmm let me see if I can find it. Ahh it’s in the Alternachicks forums the thread is called Bite Me! Heheheh how appropriate. Grin.

Maggi – Good to hear from you again… Congrats on the 25lbs lost. I’m still waiting for my first blast off LOL. I’m hoping to get to my goal weight before vacation, but I don’t think it’s going to be too realistic… but anything is better than where I am now. Keep in touch!

Well Ladies, I’m holding the fort at 360. I guess I didn’t gain that much over Memorial Weekend. Maybe 4 lbs. I was down to 356. But I’m okie… I pray that over this stressful week of finals I won’t pig out and blow my diet out of the water. And then hopefully this summer I will be able to control myself since I’ll be out of work and school for the summer break. I find that keeping myself busy keeps my mind off eating. I guess I’m gonna have to finish up my art projects and do some more scrapbooking. Oh yes and I have to make some hammocks for the rats. They chewed the others to pieces. Not to mention a few other people want some. So I guess I’ll be busy this summer after all!

I can wait for my birthday though. We’re going out to Pismo Beach for a tri-celebration. Staying 4 nights out there. We are celebrating Brit graduation to Jr. High (sigh they grow up to fast!) Her graduation will be on the 25th and then we’ll be celebrating my 28th birthday on the 30th (EEEK MORE GREY HAIR) and then James and I held off celebrating our anniversary in March and will be celebrating 7 years together during the vacation. Since there is so much celebrating going on we splurged a little on the room. I managed to get a suite for like 60% of the standard price. Gotta love deals!

Okie I talk to much. I gotta run off to work. So I’ll catch you guys later.

Well you guys are still doing good! Just hang in there. I look at it like this, if I don't stick with the diet, I will just be miserable and be telling myself a month or two from now, I would be here if I stuck on it. I figured I wasn't doing anything better so might as well diet. But.... I also try and do a lot of work on my trigger foods to keep them from jumping up and biting me square in the butt! So far so good! I have learned a lot of neat tricks along the way and had some surprises at things I had only read about and tried and found that they really worked. So don't be shy, try new tricks! I also will grab every magazine that has any diet article in it and read it and it helps me to stay motivated. Also, I found this book, "Flip the Switch" and have found it a wonderful source of getting to the root of my eating problems. Doesn't guilt you to death either, just takes it nice and slow and lets you do a lot of thinking and I've been amazed at it all.