Good morning Chickies~~

I'm up early. It's Election Day here in the USA and if I'm going to get in and out of the polls, I'm going to have to get moving.

Ok, Offical Weigh In Day results for me. This is after one full week on the Topamax. Drum roll please....

Weight loss: 4 pounds!! I've also lost approximately 7 inches, mostly from my midsection.

Gotta get my shower now, so you chicks have a great day on the Beach!

Mamacita

Wow, 4 #'s in one week. I need to get some topamax. Probably just your hard work though. Congrats.
I also need to get out voting early this am. I hope we have the biggest turn out in history. It was nice the night of trick or treating-- I had 2 different sets of teenagers go by and comment on my candidate sign I have in front yard. One group for, one group against. They actually made intelligent comments. It was nice to see the younger generation, even those too young to vote, take such an interest.

I started yesterday. So far so good. I know I shouldn't weigh every day, but I just couldn't help myself. I am sure it is water weight, but I already lost 2 pounds! It may be water weight, but it is definitely motivating. I am looking forward to another great day on the beach!

I will be voting this afternoon. May be an interesting night of television!

Hope you all have a wonderful day.

Candace-- I was just noticing your starting weight. You go girl!!! Did you lose it all on SBD? How long have you been on? I bet the pitter patter of little feet is just around the corner
OPPS-- I read further and see you had WLS. You are doing great!

Good morning, chickies, and Happy Election Day to our American girlfriends!

Well, today is the day Painter Bill and his sidekick tackle the kitchen. I gave up on stripping all the wallpaper yesterday as my knee just refused to climb a ladder one more time! It's a three Advil start this morning.

Now I need to get Harry cranked up and breakfasted before the workers arrive. He does not respond well to changes in routine but we will do our best to keep things "normal" today. I have a rehearsal tonight and think we may do dinner out as the kitchen will still be out of order. It should be an interesting two or three days. I am going to study lines a lot and maybe work in a nap or two as I'm still in sleep deficit.

Have a happy Tuesday, chickies.

Morning all. Happy election day. I will be voting this afternoon. Good Job girls on the losses! I'm doing okay. I managed to make it through Halloween without eating candy but I did stray slightly from phase 1. I had no sugar added ice cream and extra nuts. The cashews made me really sick. So I'm axing the nuts period. Except for occasional peanut butter. I'm really getting angry with myself. I seems like I'll end up on Phase 1 forever but I'm not giving up. I'm doing this now. Well I hope you all have a great day on the beach!

Good morning! I will be goin to vote as well but figured I would go about 10. I wanted to go first thing but I figure since I do not work I would let those peeps try to get in first. In Tn we had early voting which I loved but here it is election day only!
You go Mamacita! Congrats!
SBJane... Nice to have good comments from our young ones. hopefully they will grow up to be voters!
Davoswoman... I know it is hard not to be a scale stepper! haha Your on your way!
Ruth... I have been stripping the wallpaper in my bathroom for about a week now! haha They put it up on plain drywall! Oh if people only knew! The top comes off fine but it is leaving the paper behind which may tear off the sheetrock paper. If it starts to do that as bad as I hate it I will probably just repaper! I do not like to wallpaper after all I have had to strip! I hope all goes well with your kitchen. I hope your lead shows up at the next rehearsal!
Underapalmtree... Good Morning! I live in Phase1! Well 1.5! teehee

Good morning all. Today is my second day on the beach. I too couldn't resist the temptation of the scales. It seems I lost about 2 lbs - probably water weight as someone else said. Nevertheless, two pounds of water is two pounds of motivation for me. I am going to stay off of them until the end of my first week.

I did exercise last night. I did a 20 min pilates workout with Denise Austin. Hopefully dropping weight will keep me motivated in that department as well PLUS it makes me feel so much better...

Husband and son are very supportive of me. I have planned my menus and we all eat the same type of meat but different sides. This makes things much easier on me in the cooking department.

Last night was almost a bust. I took out my chicken to make stuffed chicken breasts and they were tenders..so I had to step back and punt. I made a big salad and we had chicken salads. I pan fired mine and deep fried theirs and made them a couple of bread sticks. I roasted some cauliflower for me which was extremely good. Hopefully tonight will go better!

Keep up the good work everybody!

Tori

Day 2 on the beach for me too. Ya ya I checked too and I am down 3 lbs of water weight and TOM started today too - usually up a few lbs

Did pretty good yesterday - till late evening when I started craving my usual late night popcorn, but I didn't cave - even with all the halloween treats still in the house - I didn't have any NADA! I had me a glass of tomato juice then went upstairs to my office to get away from the kitchen and then to bed early to ignore the cravings.

I have a feeling I am going to be getting a lot of sleep (which isn't a bad thing) this week

Today's menu is:

2 quiche muffins (eggs, turkey bacon, zucchini, lf cheese, sauted mushrooms)
2 slices turkey bacon
1 cup tomato juice

Snack: boiled egg
1 cup cauliflower

Lunch will be: tossed salad, a few olives, light dressing, 1/2 cup cottage cheese, 3 oz turkey breast

Snack: 1 cup celery sticks
boiled egg

Dinner:3 oz turkey breast
cucumer & tomato slices
roast curried cauliflower

Dessert: FF fudgesickle



Sending Good Eating Vibes to all

Kim

Jane, I had WLS in 2001 and lost down to 207 in Oct 2003. I quite working and became a housewife and started eating a bit too much and gained a few pounds. Then in January I became pregnant and started having to munch a lot so I wouldn't lose too much weight. I miscarried in May but kept eating like that and you see the result. WLS was a life saver, but I still have to watch what I eat or I could gain much of it back. SBD is the way the doctors told me to eat after surgery but I never did, I am so much of a refined carb addict!!!!!!
Anyway, even if I get pregnant soon (I am in the 2 week wait to see for this month) I am giong to just step up to Phase II and eat healthy this time instead of all the refined carbs like last time!!
Kim and Tori- Nice to have us all together here! Keep up the good work ladies! I tried the roasted chick peas yesterday. I forgot they were in the oven and they got too hard and hurt my teeth. They were tasty though. I am going to try again today and make them a bit softer. I think they will be a tasty snack for the evening!
Well, I am off to Bible Study and some shopping. Have a wonderful day!

Happy Election Day, American Chickies! Get out there and vote...537 votes decided the last election! If you aren't registered, you can ask for a provisional ballot at any polling place. Just think of all those women who went on hunger strikes, were put in jail, and worked ceaselessly to give us the right to vote!

Peggy, I'm so sorry about your ferociously bad weekend! What a terrible mess! I can't believe your neighbors! That's horrible! I hope all your tests are going well. You are in my prayers. And I can't believe your loss.. WOW!!! When do we get to see before and after pics??? (hint, hint...)

Mamacita, good for you! I hope you are enjoying it!

SBJane, I think it's great that you had comments on your sign! We are so lucky to live in a democracy...I'm glad to hear that our youngest citizens are aware of that!

davoswoman, join the "slave hos"...many of us weigh daily! If it doesn't get you worried or make you feel like eating if things don't go well, I think it can be an excellent tool to help you. If it stays the same or goes up, I pay attention to what I ate the day before, what I did, what I didn't do, and make changes. It helps me catch problems before they become major. Just MHO. Congrats on the 2 pounds!

Ruth, let's hope Harry isn't cranky and that you have a very pleasant couple of days, followed by a bright and lovely new kitchen! How is Hershey doing? How are her puplets? Any leads on your lead? I hope he shows!

Ah, Palm, getting through Phase 1 can be hard for anyone. I know you can do this, though! You just keep plugging through!

Bamie, good for you for waiting to vote. I heard there would be ferocious lines, but there was only one person ahead of me at 7:30. Maybe everyone had already cleared out?

Tori, good for you on punting! That's tough to do, especially in Phase 1, but as you become more comfy with SBD, you'll be able to do it more often if things don't work out as you planned (which, in my life, is often! ) And congrats on the two pounds! I do the Denise Austin tape too, and love it! I am now taking a real live pilates class at work, and found that the couple months of the Denise Austin tape had prepared me really well! Enjoy it!

Kim, GOOD FOR YOU!!! YGG! It's so hard to resist things, especially during the first 3-5 days of Phase 1, but you did it! Good for you, girl!!!

Me:
The scale went way down today, but I want to see if it shows up the same for two more days before reporting it. Seems if I put it in my sig right away, I bound up above that weight the next day. Still, it was encouraging.

Happy to have voted today...sad that there weren't better choices. Trepidatious about the outcome, either way. But hoping that all works out in the end.

Had the Broccoli Saute posted in the recipe forum for a veggie last night. It was REALLY good! I was afraid I wouldn't like broccoli without a major sauce to hide the taste, but I must be getting used to it! Also tried Ruth's chopped salad with tomatillo-lime dressing. It was fantastic! We added cooked, cubed chicken for more protein, and I loved the crunchy tortilla strips...I've never been able to make them crunchy like that before. Double Yum! Thanks, Ruth!

Did strength training yesterday morning and Jazzercise last night. Jazzercise was amazing...I actually didn't even have to use my inhaler for once! I feel like a slug today without any exercise! Wish I had time for a walk during lunch! Maybe I'll take the dog for a short one.

Have class tonight. My professor wants me to be on a panel to discuss different dialects and cultural literacy. She'd like me to "be" a Black person whose cultural literacy is either respected in school or not. Interesting! The article we are referencing is very controversial and very thought-provoking. I think it will be a good discussion. She really wants to finish class early so everyone can go home and find out what's happening with the elections. I really value how attuned she is to her students' needs!

Hope everyone has a great day on the Beach, especially our Phase 1 chickies! Keep on keepin on!

Mornin' ladies--

DH and I got ready superfast this morning to get to the polls before the rest of the folks in the working crowd got there. DH was #100 in line! Woo hoo...no bells or whistles or anything...just the satisfaction of knowing we did our part.

Our plans for this evening...pop a turkey roast in the oven, let it cook, while we watch election returns and play trivia. DH and I both watch politics very closely, though he tends to get a little more worked up than I do. He's a little excitable, my Jeff.... He's already asking if we can stay up all night to see who wins... I'm hoping we actually know who it is by morning!

I know I've been mostly absent from the forum lately. Sorry all. Work has me running in circles. My office mate has been gone most of the semester with her ailing father, so I've been trying hard to pick up her share of things. It wasn't too bad until mid-term came... Sigh. I am SO ready for some time off. Back to work for me for now, anyway...

Have a great beachy day, girls!
Monica

The polls were sure busy this morning! I got there at 7:15 and was done in 25 minutes since the lines were moving quickly. I was 113th to vote at my precinct. Not too bad so I was only a little later than normal to work.

Tonight is pita bread pizzas since we have a Cub Scout den meeting at 6:30.

Morning out there! I've been floating around the forums for a few months now, posting on occasion and such but ... my mini support group has all but vanished, so I figured I'd hop on here. I've been having some really nice success since after my Vacation to Florida (and semi-vacation on the diet: ie. ice cream every day!!! Whoa!) I managed to maintain my weight loss the 8days I was down there, then upon returning home and to healthier eating, I have dropped another four lbs.

I was telling my friends, that I am having a real hard time accepting my success. I am down 20lbs since starting my diet, and 25 from my highest. I've been losing slow, and I know that is the better way - but it's like my mind doesn't really grab onto the idea that 'hey, you have done a lot, way to go girly'. I am still 36 lbs from my goal, but at one point that was 60+ away. How did you guys get your mind and heart to really accept that you are doing it?

Outside of weightloss news: I'm not registered - I get too easily ruffled by confrontations and it's just better mentally for me if I stay out of the whole thing. I had a coworker go off on me for being ignornat, uneducated and dumb just because I don't get into politics as much as he does. And his pushy, demeaning attitude has done two things: 1)sealed me off the idea of ever getting involved and 2) should I be forced to some day, voting against his party! (Not really, I would vote for a person, not for a party if I did) But geez - it's just too much confrontation. Everyone debating with the 'my dog is better than your dog' business, and if you think that you are dumb and they've fooled you and hah that was their plan and you fell for it, ignorant girl! Can't we just say my dog is /different/ than your dog? I mean really. Sheez. Anyway. Let me stepdown from my soapbox.

Hope everyone has a nice, easy day without getting swooped up into too much stress, and eats well and... exercises? And... gets a hug from someone. And, yah, I am really bored at work *lol* Sorry gals.

Morning all!

I voted via absentee ballot a few weeks ago. I moved and didn't want to drive 100 miles to vote. (but I would have if I had to). I don't know about anyone else - the only thing I'm looking forward to is the fact that there will be NO MORE COMMERCIALS!!!!! Yeah! I don't watch very much tv but it has been insane. Michigan isn't even considered a swing state so I can just imagine Ohio and Wisconsin's commercials.

Did anyone see the Swan on TV last night? That girl with all the skin hanging? Yeeesh! I hope that doesn't happen to me. She was younger than me. It has me very concerned. What do you do to avoid that? I'd rather be chubby than have that nightmare. Any ideas?