We want to invite everyone to join us in our journey.
We share laughter and tears.
We share what works for us and what doesn't.
We recently started a Topic of the Day.

Monday........Motivation Monday
Tuesday.......Tuesday Tips
Wednesday.....Wednesday Weigh ins
Thursday......Thankful Thursday
Friday........Friday Facials, Fingernails and Fun
Saturday.......Sit-up Saturdays - any physical activity
Sunday.........Soup and Salad Sunday - recipes

These are not required topics ...just ideas to share. We have found them very helpful. We also share heartaches and fears...joys and celebrations.

Hey girls, I've been reading.. but not posting or commenting

I've been so blah lately. Eating too much or too little, not working out.. moping around. I'm pretty sure I've come down with something. Its freezing, I'm always sneezing and coughing and all sore.... and sleeping constantly.

So I'm just gonna keep it cool and lounge and update later etc. We had no power all last night and this morning and it was the windiest/coldest ever... so that might be my reason for feeling ill. Its supposed to be even colder tonight! bahhumbug. Florida, and its all rainy, wet, and cold.

Love and miss you all! Take care of yourselves.

Barbg .... you made me laugh !!!! Yes... you can always start a new thread. I was excited to come see your new pics for the new year.

Michelle... I will gladly adopt your son as my grandson. My husband will really like it. He wants my youngest daughter to have him a grandson so bad.

CD ... hope you get to feeling better soon. The blahs are awful to have.

I know there were a lot more replys needed ... but I don't remember what was said in the previous thread. My two daughters are behind me chatting away and I can barely keep my concentration here.
My youngest daughter's husband works nights... so she is spending the night here with us. It is a girls night for the three of us. We are really enjoying each other.

Thin .... I am adding up LOTS of brownie points for OKLAHOMA vs Mich.
Between the terrible traveling experiences... lost luggage ... nieces who worship her... and just having FAMILY around 24/7 .... I am gaining ground. LOL

I am going to go jump on the bed with my girls and giggle and have FUN.
We are planning a fun day tomorrow too. Out for breakfast.... movies... shopping for sales.... out for lunch ... more movies maybe. LOL We saw the Phanthom of the Opera today. I felt it rushed the first half too much... but made up in the last half.
Some critics complained the singging wasnt good.... but it was good enough for me. I just love the story. I am a sucker for love stories. My heart breaks for him. It was not the greatest... but I certainly enjoyed it. It makes me want to see the play again.

gotta go. Love ya'll and it will be Tuesday night or Wed before I am back full time.

SO~ Everyone has survived, I take it? All the hustle and bustle, cleaning, shopping, cooking, travelling, wrapping, etc, etc...done!

Breathe a big sigh of relief!

Christmas was good for all of us, but I'm so glad that life can now get back to normal. I LOVE Christmas, but one of these days I'll figure out a way to do it that does not involve overeating, over-shopping, over-stressing! One of these days, I tell ya!

One of my very favorite gifts from my honey was the dvd set of Gone With The Wind...My all time favorite movie! My daughter and I spent the night watching and weeping! SO GOOD!

Well...tomorrow is Monday...seems like a perfect day to get my little self back on track. Not gonna wait for New Years...why bother? I could easily pack on 10 more lbs, waiting for Jan 1 to roll around! No, I'm ready. And I'm going to get working on formulating those resolutions for 2005. Not just the usual "lose weight," "get organized" generalities, but a firm plan that includes how, what, when, where and why. Not just wishing and hoping that this year I finally do it...but devising the method with which I will achieve my goals.

I guess that's it for tonight! Better get some winkies...I'll be working the next three nights...

Achievement for the day (day 2): I went to the grocery store and only bought what was on my list. I ALWAYS end up giving in to a candy bar at the checkout...but I was a VERY good girl! WOOHOO for me!

Good Morning Chickees!

Monday again? I got to work this morning and found a ghost town. This place is empty - I am going to work/play for a few hours and get out of here early this afternoon. I'll have plenty of time over the next few days to do work.

Jeff is slowwwwllllyyy starting to feel a little better. He went back to work today and is trying to bear with the pain and swelling. He is such a good guy!
Did I tell you what he did at Christmas dinner??? You know he has not been feeling well from his surgery so Christmas was a quiet sort of sad day at our house. Well, I still cooked our traditional dinner of Prime Rib and roasted veggeis. I was downstairs getting dinner ready and he decided to go shower and shave for me (nice guy!) well, all he has been wearing around the house are bathrobes (pants haven't been an option the past week). Anyway, he came down to Christmas dinner in his bathrobe and a Christmas necktie. It was so adorable! He felt so bad and was so cute! Yes, it was only the two of us! No friends and family seeing him in his robe!

Kat - My mom gave me Gone with the Wind! I have never seen it and can't wait for a good day to curl up and watch it!

2cute - Have fun with the girls! Sounds like a blast!

The rest of you --- have a wonderful day! I am going to do a little work and get outta here!

xoxox

Barb

Marcie - We were posting at the same time! Good Job on the grocery shopping!!!

Hi all! Busy day yesterday. I was a "showgirl" all day for the movie The Fockers. Unfortuneately, we didn't get so watch it. The place was sold out and when I got the paperwork for Christmas numbers, it had sold out all Christmas night as well. Wouldn't think there were that many people that go to the show on Christmas, but I guess there are.

I have the paperwork to wrap up this morning, then two grocery stores and dinner out. Should be an ok day!

If I could just clear a path in this office, maybe someone would connect my new 19" flat screen monitor. Not sure what I needed THAT for, but they tell me I'll like it. We'll see.

I talked to mom this morning. She's feeling better. But she found when she read the directions on her Advair inhaler that even if it seems there's something still in it, throw it away in 30 days. She had been continuing to try and get the very last drop out of it and apparently that is just propellant and not medication after 30 days so she thinks that's why she was coughing so bad on Christmas.

My MIL did a wonderful job china painting again this year and I received a number of lovely pieces. I love the dishes and bowls that have cutouts in them. Hard to explain, kind of lacey, openwork around the rims. Anyway, she did me up 4 pieces like that. They're just beautiful. Maybe I'll see if I can do nice pics and post them for you since I didn't take pics of my trees this year.

I'm really bad with the digital camera. I took one picture of Christmas. It was the boys, kneeling in front of the tree in the family room. I have to have them kneeling in front of the tree or you won't get to see the tree!

Well, my dears, I think I'll go and finish up paperwork. Love ya bunches!

Hey everyone

I survived the 6 days in a row of work, even with being a sickie 3 of them. Wahoo! You know, there is a bonus to being sick over the holidays, though. I'm fairly sure it has nipped all weight gaining in the bud for the moment.

I didn't get to give you all a breakdown on our Christmas yet, so here is the short version. We had to celebrate later in the day so Adam could be here to watch the girls opening presents. The girls were really cute and excited. I was actually surprised they had shown enough restraint to not even get into their stockings before I got home from work that morning.

We got a few DVD's and Adam was given a George Foreman grill that I can hardly wait to begin breaking in. I received some fun stuff like two Nicholas Sparks books I haven't read yet and a gift certificate to Bath and Body. Tony scored my coolest present this year with a triple strand of pearls. For some silly reason, I don't think he thought I would be so totally wowed by them. I definitely got that he didn't think they would be my favorite present from him. He certainly earns points for having the right instincts. He also gave me a present I know Skittles would appreciate. It is a crystal with a faerie riding a dragonfly. The base it sits on lights up and changes colors. It is so pretty at night! Hrm... just read that description, and I didn't do the piece justice at all. Trust me, it is really pretty and absolutely whimsical.

From what I understand, the rest of my family all got together and exchanged gifts and did the rest of our traditional holiday thing, but I was crashed out hardcore in bed and missed it all. I've been so out of it that I haven't even given my parents their gifts yet, and I have had them finished since October! Oops? I'll try to remedy that today.

Kat, I'm with you on getting a plan all in order and working before the first of the year. And I've never seen Gone With the Wind. Is that safe to admit here?

BarbPA, I'm so glad your honey is feeling a bit better. Your story about the robe and necktie just made me smile. He is definitely a keeper! I'm really keeping my fingers crossed for the two of you.

2cute, the image of you giggling with the girls is just adorable! You sound like you are in heaven right now.

Marcie, nice going on the grocery shopping! After having Adam do ours for so long, I can hardly wait to do it again on my own and not have junk food brought into the house. Besides, that means our grocery bill will drop back down significantly!

Thin, sounds like you are busy as usual. I'm so glad the court case is all over. I hope this finally puts some closure on the issue for you as well as those children. I know it isn't quite that easy, but at least it is something. *I'm not sure anyone NEEDS a 19" monitor, but they are certainly pretty to look at. Tony would disagree with me on the needing part, but he is a computer geek. *The china sounds lovely! Please post pictures.

cd, hope you aren't coming down with anything. Sounds like you are feeling pretty miserable, though. Tuck yourself down in some nice warm blankets with a cup of SF hot chocolate and pamper yourself for a while. You have been pushing so hard for so long, maybe your bod just wants to enforce a break time?

I'd probably better be heading to bed here. I made some dumb mention of going to a matinee movie with the family since we are all off work today, and would you believe they all remembered and even took the suggestion seriously?! Why doesn't it work like that when I mention the dishes need washing or the laundry needs folding?

Take care!

Andria

All of you make me smile so much!

I'm still sneezing, weezing, all the other dwarfs I've limited myself to just doing crunches in bed - which I've gotten insanely good at.

Did I tell you all what I asked for for Christmas? I'm so proud of myself, and insanely giddy that I'm actually excited over it! I asked for Hand weights and wrist/ankle weights! I was so proud that I actually wanted something that would help me with my goal of weightloss. My sister bought them for me I've been playing around a bit and I can't wait to start incorporating them fully into my workout.

Well, my reason for popping in was to tell you guys about the National Body Challenge of 2005 through Discovery Health Channel. The sign up day begins Tomorrow! So I thought I'd let everyone know about it.

I don't know how you guys are about these national "challenges" and so on, but I'm an avid watcher of Discovery Channel's health shows and I saw this.. it looks like a great idea. It begins January 20th I believe and runs for 8 weeks until March. "All registered NATIONAL BODY CHALLENGE participants will receive access to a customizable online diet and fitness tool valid Jan. 15-March 12, 2005; expert advice from doctors and fitness experts; a free, eight-week trial membership to Bally Total Fitness valid between Jan. 15 and March 12, 2005; a personal nutrition and fitness journal; a FitTV sampler DVD; special savings from Discovery Channel Stores; and more."

I hope this is allowed, I just thought maybe if someone can't afford the gym or something similar they'd be interested. I'm going to sign up - though I probably won't use the gym. If this kinda of thing isn't allowed I'll remove it.

Well I'm gonna head down and get some hot cocoa and snuggle up.

Have a good day ladies!

I'm back! We had a great weekend away. It was a great Christmas with lots and lots of family. And lots and lots of food.

I'm thrilled to be home and back on program as of today. DH and I are going to follow SBD Phase 1 this week and get a jump start of getting rid of anything gained this past weekend. I'm not weighing in until 1/3/05 though. I'm really looking forward to getting back to our eating. One thing that I observed about the food I was eating - since it was mostly sugar - I was like a bottomless pit. The more I ate, the more I wanted to eat it. I'll make a plan for food this week as well as what exercise I'm going to be doing.

The doggie is home from being boarded. No wonder he comes home pooped for days. I got there and it sounded like pandemonium in the back where they keep the runs and cages. Barking, yipping, barking, yipping. But I didn't hear him though. Its not hard to figure out his bark..loud and deep. He's all shiny and fluffy from a bath and blow dry. And he's now snoring underneath the foot of my recliner. Maybe he will wake up enough for a walk later on.

Now that the holidays are just about over, its time to be gearing up for our goal of losing 300 pounds in 2005. I personally plan on contributing at least 30 pounds to that total.

2Cute - Thanks for the turkey and Naughty/Nice challenges. I fell on my face on both of them mostly because of work. I forgot to keep track of how I was doing - although I WAS doing the right things most of the time. Are you going to continue with challenges into the new year? Do you want to go back to Bootcamps to keep track of points instead of mailing stuff out? Just a suggestion. Have fun with your girls.

BarbPA - I'm sorry to read about poor Jeff. I keep you in my prayers!

I'll catch up more later. I need water and a small nap.

Hey everyone

I've been online chatting with Tony while he is being a sickie in his hotel room. He sent me a link that got a total girly squeal out of me! There is a bit of a back story to this, so bear with me one moment. While we were in Vegas, we had planned to see a couple of shows. We have always been too busy running errands and doing shopping I can't do here at home when we are there. So, we've been to Vegas a zillion times and never seen a show. The prices still gave us cold feet, have to admit. Tony made a comment about wouldn't I rather have a pink iPod mini that I could keep instead of a show for one evening. I said yes, but totally didn't take him seriously. Well, the link he sent was a confirmation page showing the laser engraving on my own iPod! I feel like such a spoiled brat!

cd, I remember a bunch of people posting about the National Body Challenge last year. It sounds like a very cool motivating tool, and I'm all for anything that heads any of us in the right direction! I'll have to check it out again, but last year the nearest point for weighing in was about 3 hours away from me.

Oh, that reminds me. I was reading a link on MSN about exercises to do while watching tv and thought I would pass it on here, but I quickly changed my mind. They had to be insane! Their little workout program looked really tough! There were some good ideas that we could probably all modify to fit our workout styles and levels, but I'm thinking only a Pilates goddess would be able to finish what they were suggesting.

Ok, I'm going to go again. This took my mind off my ruddy node (translated out to super stuffed up, runny nose) for a bit, but all good things must come to an end. Have great evenings!

Andria

Yay! I worked out tonight!!!

I ate very well today until a slice of cheesecake jumped out of the fridge at me. (I know - it was my choice)

Have a great night!
Barb

Good morning all! I had a great day 2 two yesterday. I stayed on my plan perfectly...minus one missing fruit.

Today is my first day at work after the holidays...and since I started my "lifestyle change". hehehe Oh the temptations at work this time of year!!! Everyone brings soo many goodies. Wish me luck! Good thing I only have to work 3.5 days this week. : ) Then another long weekend. YIPPEE

My first weigh in is Friday....I cant wait to see the progress!

Good morning!

Today is the first day of my focus for 2005. I did log food yesterday on WW Online but didn't get any exercise in nor was I totally within my point range for the day. But since I'm doing the flex plan, I'm still OP for the week. But it was a day without all the sugar. This morning, I'm up and have done 20 minutes of pilates already. I will earn a total of 5 activity points, if not more, and stay within my daily point range. And drink more water!

As Dr Phil said on the Today show about making new year's resolutions - so you have a bad day where you eat too much, GET BACK ON TRACK the very next day. Don't procrastinate. Let's get refocused and working towards that 300! No point waiting until the weekend!

Welcome Marcie! Good luck on your first day back at work!