Good Morning - Happy Hump Day!

Um, my name is Cafe, and... I'm a chocaholic. I've been clean for 13 hours and 6 minutes. Yeah, I had a handful of semi-sweet chocolate chips last night. A little dark chocolate is OK on phase 2??? I was so good earlier, too.

Lizabeth - wow you are a busy lady! It already sounds like you HAVE a job. WTG humming along on plan.

Jello - you are making ME want a treadmill. That's saying something.

Faye - Making menus must take the guesswork out of weekly planning, shopping and cooking. Are you doing dinner menus, or whole days? Any tips?

SEMO - Know what you mean about the glinting sunlight at this time of year and wanting to play - in the leaves, too. Only, there aren't any leaves here yet, LOL.

Don't know if I have said this before - I have a window panel in my cubicle that faces a hallway - and the doors to 2 of my boys' offices... When they are open, and I try to make sure they are, I can glance up from the computer and see through their offices and out their 15th floor windows. Through a couple of buildings I can spy the grounds near our state capital. An expanse of grass, trees and sidewalks. Now that the weather is cooler, it will be more fun to make the short trek over there.

Hi all!

Faye, I so wish you had been chosen!!! Someone needs to straighten that jerk out!!! Those people are going to veiw the tapes of how they were portayed and manipulated and be too ashamed to leave their homes...

Cafe, I too am a Chocoholic. I buy Milky Way lights (4 pts each), cut them into fourths, eat one and freeze the other three for my 1 pts snacks for the rest of the week. Unfortunately, they are just as good frozen... Should just be honest with myself and either eat the whole thing or not buy anymore!!!

SEMO: Thanks for the bd wishes. No, for some reason I haven't gotten any AARP stuff, but dh sure did and it started right after his 49th birthday. I must be just too too beautiful for them to believe I am going to be 50 on Sunday so they didn't send it!

I think it has become evident that we have some serious chocolate issues here and I think I need to work on a 12 step plan for those of you suffering with this "disease."

Cafe: What I did was found dinner recipes that were lowfat, then I took my 1800/410 cal and fat, started with dinner and slotted in the main dish, added whatever bread, another veggie, fruit, dessert whatever, then did lunch, then breakfast, then 3 snacks. I would add my cal and fat as I did each food and if I found I was going to run out, I would go back and remove something higher in cal or fat and put in something lower so that I get 3 meals and 3 snacks a day. I made a full day's menu for 20 different days and I am going to try and make 8 more so I have a full month's worth to work with. I keep a folder in my computer of "all things weight loss related" and in it are some recipes, and also a great list of snacks from 25 cal to 200 I think. I draw from there to fill in snacks and even breakfast or a meal where I need a fruit or ice cream or pudding or something. Here is an example of a day's meal:


MENU 2

BREAKFAST: 1 carton egg beaters with 1 slice toast with all fruit jam 150/10

SNACK: 16 oz spicy bloody mary mix with snack mix (1 cup lowfat popcorn and 1tsp peanuts) 190/ 80

LUNCH: WW frozen meal 400 cal less 80 fat cal or less
Carton sugar free jello and 1 tbl ff cool whip 50

SNACK: slimfast snack bar 125 /30

DINNER: Peppered Pork Chops (see recipe) 2 servings 334/72
Baked Potato with 2 tbl low fat margarine 320/100
1 cup cooked broccoli 50
health start ice cream bar 80

SNACK: chocolate grahams (14) 130/25


It takes a long time to do, but it is going to put me back on track to losing weight again as when I started this, I would take a sheet of paper early every morning and basically make a menu for the day and followed it strictly. Let me know if you are interested and I can pm you all the menus and almost all the recipes are here on 3fc.

I am going to go downstairs and read for awhile. Jack will be home in a couple hours and we get to pack and when we get to travel I never hate packing!

Faye

Step 1: Buy chocolate.
Step 2: Unwrap chocolate.
Step 3: Eat chocolate.
Step 4: Buy more chocolate........

...... etc.


Giggling fiercely...........
I crack me up.

Faye:

Put those menus into a file and send it to all your friends (us!!!) for Christmas. You are really building a strong foundation to succeed!

I read about Fitday.com in another thread and started recording my food into their program. Even though I'm eating less, my fat consumption is between 40 and 45%. I'm going to follow your lead and pay more attention to fat and less to points. I want to be healthy and sexy, not just sexy.

Jello: ... Step 12 - Step on scale and scream

Until tommorrow.

You Girls are too funny. Jello, step away from the chocolate, step away now!

Quilter, Where are you? Pop in a let us know how things are going.

Faye, I’ll be back in Memphis, October 7 & 8th for some training, wish I could break away from the pack long enough to visit with you. Ahhhh one day.

DH and took a walk yesterday afternoon, felt so good to get out in the fresh air. We walked to the back of the farm to check his soybeans. Must say they look very pretty, what didn’t drown out in the flash floods look really good. $$

Nothing much else going on, I’m still doing the T-Tapp exercises, and so far so good. I’m seeing changes in my body already, think it’s a keeper. In fact, I’ve signed up for a class in St Louis on November 8th, early birthday present to myself. DH thinks I’ve lost my mind, drive three hours to exercise then drive three hours home. Oh well, I’ve done crazier things!

Chat later.

Alright you guys. It's official. I need to lose weight.

... As if I didn't know this before....

Today .... oh I can hardly say it ... too embarrassing.....

I broke my chair!!! Sat down and crushed the sucker. Darn near landed on the floor, I did.

(Had to use the headache smiley because I don't believe they make a smiley for what I almost landed on.... )

Annnnyway, now I need to lose weight AND a new place to park my big ol' .... Oooh, embarrassing....

Trying to convince myself: chair was old and squeeky and ready to die anyways......

Hello, ladies - I have survived Hurrican Isabel - got power and phones back on at work - so working today. Power at home is another story - still have 40% of people here without. I must live right ... the flood waters came within one inch of coming in my house...on all sides. It was pretty scary. We were blessed - lost the food in the fridge and chest freezer and our air conditioner demanded a new part and wire to the house fust box - did not take well at all to being covered by water. The damage here is unbelievable. My neighbor had a crane in yesterday to get a tree out of his living room - it came there by way of his second floor bedroom and roof. Tree was huge - 30 inches in diameter. We had many such cases as that. My next door neighbor lost 2 cars in the flood. They were parked on the street and we never thought the water would come that way - we found out we live on a peninsula, not a cul-de-sac as we had thought. The whole town of Pocquoson flooded - $100 million damage and running. Fema has set up shop and we are getting water and ice at the fire station. Grocery stores and gas stations are opening again so we can get food - but only enough for the day.

If we have another, I'm getting out of town.

Sad to report, I've gained 5 pounds. Just have to eat what I can get and be glad to have it and I've also overate due to the stress. I'm going to start South Beach Phase I Week 1 again as soon as we get power and I can get some decent food on hand.

I've missed all of you.

SUSAN (((((hugs))))) We're so happy that you are okay! Don't worry about the gain, heck, I'd been tearing off and eating the wall paper if I had been in your situation. I'm sure the after effects will hang around for awhile, just give yourself time to breath. We missed you.

DNW, kisses, thinking about you.

Where is everyone, sure has been quiet today.

Hi my ladies..tonight was a weeper and it's really starting to sink in that Bob is gone...I am eating crappy because I just don't care...and seem to be craving carbs like pasta and cookies. Alas it doesn't bring my sweetheart back so I guess I better get back to basics very soon. Besides the extra carbs are making me a little more depressed...damn sugar.

Quilter: I am so glad you are OK!!

Semo: Thanks for the hugs and kisses...I was picturing you and DH going to go look at the soybeans in the back...that would have been so Bob and me...cherish those moments.

Cafe, Jello, Brighter, Huntress, Tiger, Lizabeth and Faye...thanks for your love and kindness too...it means so much right now to know you all do care....I must pull myself together...it's just so hard right now!!

I really love you all!!

Carol, you cry all you want and eat what you want and the carbs be damned! It's like what you said to Semo. You have to live your life and cherish every moment. Take the time you need and when you're ready to get back to this weight loss stuff and pay the bills stuff and take out the garbage stuff, you'll know it. And then all your friends here will be happy to crack the whip and get you back onto the weight loss wagon. Love you!

Susan, I'm so glad to hear from you. Sounds like you got clobbered pretty good. Hope things get back to normal soon. Bet you never thought you'd be glad to get back to work. But I'll say the same thing I said to DNW. Worry about getting back on program after you've worried about the other stuff.

Yes, weight loss is important to all of us but there are other things that are so much more important.

Man, am I waxing philosophical today or what? I'm going to shut up now. It's Friday! And boss is due back in today. Yeah, yeah. Take the bad with the good. For example, it's rainy and overcast here .... but it's Friday!!!!

Or have I already mentioned that?

It is so good to get back to my normal routine. I was just so disorganized the whole time I was off. My friend and I were comparing notes and we both felt we just couldn't think clearly.

DNW, cherish yourself and don't worry about carbs or weight or any thing else that, in the end, is really inconsequential. My priorities have been drastically rearranged by the Hurricane.

You know, normally when you go to the grocery store, everyone is in a hurry and some people practically run over you to get a head of you in a line that has 1 other person. Well, the stores that had generators and were able to open after the storm -- sans and perishables, frozen foods, meats or dairy -- were jammed. The generators could only operate a little light so it was like candlelight. People were very calm and subdued. The lines stretched from the front of the store to the back but no one got angry or anything. People actually shared items that they had in their carts! We have people from Montreal here now helping restore electric power. They are hoping for 75% restored by tomorrow. There are still areas considered unsafe to work in and they won't go there until the downed trees have been removed and the debris somewhat cleared. One unpleasant aftermath of the storm is the smell of rotting vegetation, garbage, meat and the stink of fish from the flood waters. My asthma is getting worse and worse. The Air Force is going to spray for mosquitos over the weekend. They anticipate they'll start hatching Monday from the standing water left by the storm. I already have bites on my bites. The other thing is snakes...had pictures in the paper today and what to do if you get snake bite because they have come into houses and garages to escape the storm. I'm more afraid of snakes than anything.

The first 8 spaces in the parking lot here at work are roped off and debris from downed trees is stacked about 10 feet high in that area. Don't know where or when we'll be able to get rid of it.

Well, another weekend of cleaning up the mess. I must say, I've gotten a lot more exercise lately!

Long time no hear from me I know . But don't think I haven't been thinking about ya'll. I can't even remember when the last time I posted was. I believe I told ya'll that I was pregnant, and I still am! I'm due Dec 19th, and can't wait. I'm looking forward to having this last little bundle and getting back to some kind of routine. Ever since that rat ba$tard of a con artist, I've been unemployed and way down in the dumps..... but I am truly trying to pull myself out. I will be trying to check in as much as possible to see how ya'll are doing. I am so far behind that I will have to start over with the posts from here. On a good note, at almost 7 months I'm weighing in at 299. Still under, from where I started last June!

Talk to you all soon (I hope)!!

Dyan, welcome back. You're doing a great job. Please stay in touch with us!

Hey, Dyan's back!! Good to see you here! Both of you!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!