TIME FOR SERIOUS FUN

We are a thread dedicated to making losing weight a pleasant experience. We laugh, cry and talk together. We have challenges, points for staying on program, drinking our water, and exercising. We have a daily topic to join in. Our only focus is to help us realize that dieting and all that goes with it need not be unpleasant, but can be fun. Come join the fun here at Time for Serious Fun! Everyone is Welcome!


TOPICS:

Monday: Mission Monday New mission each week
Tuesday: Target Tuesday We target something to work on
Wednesday: Wednesday's Woes Our day to complain about anything and everything
Thursday: Time for Us Thursday The day set aside to pamper us!
Friday: Fabulous Lbs Down Friday. Report our losses!
Saturday: Sunny Thoughts Saturday We share stories and jokes to help us smile
Sunday: Silly Poll Sunday A new poll to give your thoughts to every week


POINTS VALUES:

STAYING ON PROGRAM IS 2 POINTS
DRINKING YOUR WATER IS 1 POINT
EXERCISING IS 1 POINT

POSTING A WTG: A WTG IS WHEN SOMETHING NON WEIGHT LOSS HAPPENS TO YOU LIKE A NEW DRESS IN A SMALLER SIZE. TO POST A WTG, USE ALL CAPS AND POST IT IN PINK. FOR EXAMPLE: WTG: I rode my bike 2 miles instead of one today

THURSDAY: Today is Time for Us Thursday so let's make time for ourselves today and do something special!

Good morning gals! I am really still struggling with getting back on track like I was 2 years ago and can't figure out why. I start out well then get hungry and eat eat eat! I am going to do this and get this weight off so I have to focus more I guess. I need to knit more so my hands are too busy to pick up food I guess!

POINTS:

Susan
Amanda

Carri: I agree with you that the holidays should be a time we should enjoy ourselves. We just need to stop and think about 1 piece of pie instead of 3 and maybe a little less gravy on those tatos, breast meat turkey instead of dark meat, etc and we can still enjoy and not have 3000 calories at days end. I have to be careful at Thanksgiving because of all the eating out we do. I know you live south, but have you ever been to Middlebury to Das Essenhaus? This is the one place we always go to when we go up there and unfortunately it is all you can eat family style stuff. Yummy Amish food and the pies are to die for. We go there with our friends when we go to Indiana and that is a sure 1-2 lb gainer!

Amanda: Glad you are finally on the mend. Make Nigel keep his head out the window for a week so he doesn't reinfect you!

I have a funny to tell you. My dd put together a wish list of stuff for Thomas for Christmas at Amazon.com and she e-mails the link to anybody who buys for him so they have ideas if they don't know what to get him. I made a list of stuff from that list we were going to buy him and I e-mailed it to her. Two of the items were bongo drums and a video game that went with it for the Nintendo gamecube, which he is getting for Christmas. Since we do Christmas Eve with them and he wouldn't understand getting games when he had no machine to play it on, I told her I would give her the packages and she could just put them under the tree from Nonny and Granddad and tell Thomas Santa brought them from Nonny and Granddad on Christmas day. Well, she forwarded my e-mail to her dh to ask him about what he thought we should do with regards to the gamecube stuff and told him that she had told me NOT to get the BOGGLE game I had on the list because she thought he already had it. My sil is a man of few words, but great wit. He e-mailed her back (which she forwarded to me) and this is what it said: "I don't think he has Boggle. Isn't it a little hard to play if you can't read?" Oh my gosh, I am still chuckling over that one. I actually didn't know the game had to do with spelling words, but it is still funny thinking about poor little Thomas trying to play a spelling game when he can't read yet!

Have a good day gals and stay OP today!

Faye

Afternoon everyone!

4 points for me yesterday...

Just got back from the gym and a nice long sweat in the sauna. And found a nice check in the mailbox for an article I wrote back in the summer. I've been published in a lot of magazines, but this one is the first you can actually buy at the grocery store! If you all want to read it, it's in Low Carb Energy Magazine, the Nov/Dec issue that just came out. My article is on whole grain labeling...but the whole magazine has lots of great "smart carb" recipes.

Well, I have tons to do today--so everyone stay OP and enjoy the weather. It's our first relatively sunny day in weeks! Though we had a major freeze last night.

TTFN,
Julie

Hello all,

I got 3 points again yesterday! At the moment, it's a real act of discipline to stay OP as I am so used to just having whatever I fancy (within reason!). I had fallen into this trap of thinking I could get away with eating anything because I am exercising so much, and that was true to some extent but couldn't go on forever. It's the end of October soon and I've basically put on 2lb!! I'm really happy that I am back on track now and as soon as I get back down the gym I am sure the weight will start shifting.

FAYE - Yes, it's hard to get back into the swing of a diet to begin with. I don't think you should let yourself get hungry - as you've said, it leads to you overeating. I would never stick to a diet if I had to feel hungry - there is no need to! Make sure you are eating at regular times and include wholegrains. For snacks I have fruit, wholegrain toast or cereal with skimmed milk. I used to play Boggle as a child - that shows how old that game is! No I don't think Thomas would quite appreciate it yet! Faye, you mentioned you was having trouble with your ticker - what is the problem?

JULIE - Glad you have settled back into your gym workouts. You'll be at 199 in no time!

Love Amanda x

Congratulations, Julie - I'll look for the magazine and read your article. I'm always looking for good carb recipes.

Faye, I know you'll manage to conqueor this demon. I think, and I speak for myself only, we get complacent and bored with the same old food program. Maybe shaking it up and trying something different for awhile would help get you excited and motivated again.

FRIDAY: Today is Fabulous Friday Food Day. On the off weigh in weeks, let's help each other out by providing recipes or food that helps us to lose weight but eat well.

POINTS:

Amanda
Julie

I have started online Christmas shopping and it is so much fun. I want to get leather gloves for everyone for Christmas and am having a tough time getting colored gloves for my dil and dd, but I found a new handbag...Bad Faye bad bad Faye! I found an adorable suede coat for my grandson at Wilson's leather I might buy him. It is on sale! In fact, they are having a buy one get one half off on their assessories so I may be able to get the kids all their gloves and get two of them half off. I bought my dil two sweaters a beautiful watch, a handbag and her gloves. I also made her the scarf and bought her these lovely gold colored candlesticks, votice cups and candles so she is all set. My son got his scarf, gloves and a big new external hard drive for his computer. I have my grandson's list of stuff but haven't started shopping for sil (though I have a list of stuff to get him) and haven't decided what to get my dd yet. She peeks in and reads so I can't say! My dh wants some goofy thing for his computer so he is just going to buy that besides we are spending a bunch of money on the house after Christmas so we aren't really buying for each other. I always get my sil's parents a gift as they always do us. I don't buy for my sisters and brothers etc except my older sister, whose birthday is the day after Christmas. It just gets to be too much money for people and we never get together at Christmas anyway. We get together at Thanksgiving. I think maybe I will have a kids and an adults raffle this year as that would be fun, though.

Well, I need to get the vacuum upstairs as that is the cleaning chore for today. Besides, my feet are cold so I need warmer jammies and some socks on!

Lowfat potato soup:

4 large potatoes, cut up
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon margarine
1 large carton ff chicken broth
4 cans ff evaporated milk
salt and pepper to taste

peel and cut up onions and potatoes. Melt margarine in pot and cook onions just slightly translucent, not browned, add potatoes and pour in just enough chicken stock to cover the vegetables with 1 cup of water. Cook for 20 minutes, add all cans of evap milk and cook for another 10 minutes or so
Serves 4 (add a nice salad and some crusty bread for a great easy dinner)
**You can tweak this by adding a little parsley, grated cheese, bacon bits etc if you want to **

Faye

4 points again yesterday! Woo hooo...

Went ice skating for over an hour today with a friend. We had so much fun, I think I'll do it every Friday... my legs are sooooo tired!!

My recipe is a cold lentil salad that I love:

bunch o' lentils
bunch o' barley
some celery
some onion
some cucumber
some olives, artichoke hearts, sundried tomatoes, if you like them.

Mix em all up and pour some vinegar/oil/garlic/thyme/salt/pepper dressing on it and refrigerate. Yummmy! Oh, and sometimes I sprinkle some feta cheese on top.

Have a great weekend everyone!
Julie

Hello,

I got just the 1 point for water yesterday - but I only went slightly over my calories so I'm not worried. I am pleased to report that I went to the gym today - hurrah! I'd had a whole week off, but I was ready to get back in there today. I just took it gently and did 45 mins cardio, but at a relatively easy pace. It feels great to be back - I really missed it and now that I am back I feel I am back OP 100% and can get on with my Christmas goal!

Thanks for the soup recipe Faye - I am on the lookout for quick and easy vegetarian soup recipes (I can use yours and use veg stock instead of chicken) as I often have soup for lunch in the winter months. I am using tinned soups at the moment, but they contain alot of sugar and salt so am thinking of trying to make my own. Soups are great - so low calorie and really warm and comforting - can you tell I've just had some? Cream of mushroom - yummy!

Another of my favourite winter recipes is good old sausage and mash - I use low fat veggie sausages and low fat margarine in the mash, so it's not that calorific. I always add garlic and black pepper to the mash too, but then I add them to most things! Serve with lots of veg and it makes me feel all warm and good inside! Whoever came up with the bright idea that potatoes are fattening needs their head testing - they are only fattening if you roast them in fat, not if you boil, bake or mash them! I just can't be doing with this low carb stuff - even more so now winter is here and I want filling, comforting and healthy food.

I'll pop in over the weekend Faye!

Love Amanda x

POINTS:

Julie
Amanda

Good morning gals! Hope you are having a great Saturday. I am up ordering Christmas presents online this morning while Jack snoozes. I don't think he came to bed until around 3 AM! He sat downstairs and watched movies and then came upstairs to his office and played games I think. I fell asleep with the tv on and woke up enough to shut it off. I think Star Trek was on.

I finished up knitting my sil's scarf last night so I am making progress on that front. I may get all these gifts finished yet!

I am still not doing well foodwise and still can't walk with this stupid knee but you know me, I am not one to give up on it all.

Amanda, if you peek in HELLO! Ok, I have a burning ? for you. Do you know where the expression quid came from for your pound? I watch a lot of Brit tv and it always makes me wonder when I hear it.

Have a good weekend girls!

Faye

Hi Faye & Amanda....I'm here on a Saturday!

4 points for yesterday! Feeling like CRAP today, though. Achy, headache, stuffy, upset stomach....didn't sleep at all last night. Oh well, at least I don't feel like eating

Have a great day everyone,
Julie

Hi all,

I got 4 points yesterday - yay me! I felt pretty wiped out after my gym visit yesterday, so I am having an rest day today and then will go again tomorrow. I popped into town today to buy some new headphones for the gym and it was soooooooo busy - I didn't realise people started their Christmas shopping this early! I'm definately taking Faye's lead and getting what I can off the internet - although I don't have a credit card which limits where I can go. I am certainly going to look for ideas anyway.

JULIE - Lovely to see you here on the weekend - but sorry you are ill . Hope you didn't catch it from me! I have never roller or ice skated in my entire life! It looks fun but I am the sort of person who always falls over and has a terrible sense of balance. However, since I have been working out at the gym and doing alot of 'core stability' exercises, I do feel my core strength and balance has improved - I am going to test it out this winter when it snows! Hope you are feeling better soon and it's just a 24 hour bug.

FAYE - I don't know where the word quid originates from, but I will look into it. Alot of our slang words come from cockney rhyming slang.

Have a lovely weekend

Love Amanda x

POINTS:

Amanda
Julie

Julie: You feel better soon! We are thinking of you!

Amanda: I looked up quid on the internet and mistakenly looked at British slang and boyo what a bunch of dirty stuff is associated with that word! I love buying online and rarely do I have to return it!

We had a good time at the party though we sat by ourselves and just visited off and on with dd as we were so much older and didn't know the other people who all kind of huddled together. Gone are the days of feeling awkward over sitting by yourselves. We visited and had fun with Thomas and ate some food (I didn't eat very much though) I dressed up as Maxine (the old lady on the Hallmark cards) and that was fun. Jack dressed up and went as an Indiana University fan (he has practically everything by IU undies! ) It was a good time all around. There were LOTS of kids and several babies and one of the couples dressed up their little 4 month old as a scarecrow and he was sooooo adorable.

Today is NASCAR race day so I will probably be doing a lot of knitting so I can't eat! lol

Have a good day gals!

Faye

MONDAY: Today is Mission Monday and our mission this week is cleaning out those cabinets of foods we cannot control. Let's all try and get our food cabinets and fridges under control!

Good morning gals! It has warmed up a bit today and should be nice for the kids to trick or treat. We always go to dd's and hand out candy while Thomas trick or treats and have dinner with them. Unfortunately, his dad has a college class and can't go with him tonight. I will try and get a pic or two of him if I remember the darn camera.

I am a little under the weather again, {{{{sigh}}}} as I am having a lot of allergy or cold problems and then TOM, which I haven't had for like 3 months. Feel kind of crappy today, but I have chores to do, cleaning to do and I am washing curtains that get a build up of smoke on them from candles so I guess I better hop to it.

You ladies have a great day and I wil peek in later.

Faye

hello there folks,



I got 3 points for both Sat and Sun - I am pleased to report that I managed to stay OP with my food for 6 days out of 7 last week. This is great as I haven't managed that for MONTHS! I do feel that my Christmas goal is really motivating me, which is just what I need after months of being slack. I was at the gym by 11am today as I was meeting my friend there - I am still not 100% back to full health and fitness, but I am getting there.

FAYE - Sorry you are struggling with your health so much at the moment - hope you turn a corner soon. I looked up the meaning of the word 'quid' too, other than the Latin 'quid pro quo', they are not really sure are they? I dread to think what you saw on those slang sites - they must have included alot of swear words, but alot of our slang isn't swearing - honest!

Hello to Julie, Susan and Carri

Love Amanda x

Congratulations, Amanda - keep it up!

Hope all the sick ones are feeling bettr.

Had a bad weekend with eating but back on track today. It has turned cold so it's getting harder for me to walk because the cold air makes my asthma flare up. Time to get the videos out and figure out some winter exercise.