I think those roombas are so cute! I think I would just sit around watching it go! ha ha ha I still have a cleaning lady and I LOVE IT - in fact she is coming tomorrow (and yes I am harrassing everyone to "tidy up" and pick up stuff off floor and counters so she can clean!). Used to have her every week - but cut back since dh is not working - still a bit of a splurge but with 4 bathrooms, 5 bedrooms you can only imagine the time it takes to clean this baby!

Linda - nice to see you checking in - hang in there and try to plan ahead for those non-lunch stresses. Hope you enjoy the roast beef recipe - it is pretty good - let me know what you think!

Angela - are you okay? Did you survive the kids and the treasure hunt?

Was out tonight while dd was dancing and bought a BLENDER - okay a cheap blender and I had a gift card w/some $$ on it - but nevertheless a blender and guess what I made when I got home!! A VICKIE SPECIAL - yes a chocolate banana smoothie (with the sf/ff swiss miss I got on my shopping trip!). It was EXCELLENT - really hit the spot for my evening snack and a great way to get my milk in as I am not a big dairy eater! Wait til dh gets home and gets a load of my new "toy". I thnk I have some frozen fruit in basement freezer - will have to hunt it out and "experiment".

Feeling very tired today - busy day at work and while out tonight I did notice more feeling than usual in legs/hips which I think is due to my lunchtime walking. Tomorrow I will be in (training day at work which we are holding) and supposed to rain so I can take a break.

Also had my pdp (performance discussion) w/my supervisor - and while I was a bit nervous (okay I'm not always up to speed w/things and can fall behind esp when I don't like the task or it's too routine and boring), but the appraisal was quite excellent!!! Made me feel SO GOOD!! - good team leader, very open, great communication style, excellent writing skills, fantastic verbal skills, important part of the team, always helpful w/others! Shall I go on? Do have to work on "project mgmt skills" and I am still finding my way around being a manager, delegating and coaching appropriately - a bit trickier than I thought - altho my 2 staff members are fabulous. Planning to take a "leadership training course for first time managers" - 4 day course - of course current one is already booked so not sure when I can get in!

Eating not too bad (okay I did eat ds's pizza crust after my dinner) but basically acceptable......but definitely bad in the water dept today - maybe only 40 oz? Need to be more diligent w/this.

Passover coming up this weekend - have not invited anyone - altho I do have friends that would love to come??? Not sure if I am up to company and all that cooking and preparing (a bit more elaborate and fancy if we are having guests). I don't really want to stress myself too much. Kids going to their dad's sat night for dinner so we'll have our big "do" sunday night! Should be able to keep the menu fairly "core" altho I do have to eat some matzah (will try and find whole wheat), and drink some wine! I think I will splurge and enjoy a matzo ball in my chicken soup - at least it's after weigh in so will have all my points to enjoy!

Have to be at work supremely early tomorrow am to ensure course setup is a happening thing. Need to make sure trainer has what she needs, room is set up and we have also hired a company to tape the course (told them I need special lighting to ensure I don't look too old - ha ha ha ). Kinda of a waste of a day tho - I have tons of stuff to do, but will spend most of the day at the course or visiting periodically to make sure things are going well.

...and the day ends with a "fun"?? visit to the therapist w/dh - don't think I'll have the strength to deal with all our issues but will do my best!

Time to get ready for bed!

nitey nite!

Frouf

Yeah, I'm fine. Just exhausted from all the kiddos! Their treasure hunt went really well. They had a blast. I buried those colored glass fish rocks (1"-ish sized), and they had such fun digging them up.

I'm still feeling kind of PMS-y ... watch out family! I practically snapped their heads off yesterday. I had made a beautiful pasta salad for dinner, nothing icky about it, and they were ALL whining about it, even dh. I grabbed all their plates, threw them in the sink, grabbed my keys, and left. I really wanted to break something!! But I went to Hardees and got a bunch of crap and threw it at them when I got home. I just didn't have the strength to deal with all of them ganging up on me.

Thankfully, I'm feeling a little more even-kiltered today - otherwise a few little preschoolers probably would have gone home scared of me!!

Well, off to bed. New day tomorrow! I'm finally going grocery shopping, which we sorely need.

Angela

Good Morning, Ladies! I can't believe it is Wednesday already. This is a busy week for me and is flying by. I got my cut and color. Can't tell for sure how it looks. I must have the only stylist in the world who cannot style hair! She's great at color and pretty good at cuts but her styling stinks. I've been with her for almost 15 years and probably need a new one because she's working out of home now and isn't really keeping up. The price is right and she's become a friend now.....so I look ok!

Lisa, hang in there. Those plateaus eventually break if you just stay on program. Believe me, I know how hard it is to stick with it when you are not losing or gaining just a bit. Your idea of drinking more water is a good one. Flush that fat away!

Keep up the fabulous work, Kath. I'm sure you body will reward you with a whosh of loss. It's probably still in shock that it's not getting that sugar! Poor Zuki. Hope they figure out his problem soon. Hope you don't get sick too. I always hated it when people came into work sick. Especially strep. It is VERY contagious!

Terry, I feel bloated and fat too. My TOM arrived this morning. I'm hoping some of the bloat will be gone by my weigh in tomorrow night. How did yours go? I've had my fingers crossed for you.

Cher, congratulations on staying away from the pizza. I keep telling myself that Core is how I eat now. My new trick is to try to tell myself that there is nothing to cheat with or about. I just don't eat that stuff. It's not going too good yet....I guess my memory remembers all the junk! But, I'm trying!

Hey, Linda. Glad to hear you are hanging in there. Sounds like you need to come up with some portable things you can eat at your desk that are a little healthier than PNB pretzels! Although, those do sound yummy.

Frouf, I'm glad that you are making your walks a priority because I'm sure they'll help you. I can't believe you tried the smoothie! It is one of my favorite treats. I actually had one last night too because I was all off schedule. The possibilities are endless with the frozen fruit. Just skip the ice cubes when you use the frozen fruit because you won't need them. I usually also add some Splenda because I like things really sweet. I've made berry blend, blueberry, peach, black cherry, and strawberry. You'll kill your cheap blender blades after a while. I had to buy a new one that specifically said it could "deal" with ice. I have one every day. It is so much better than drinking a plain glass of skim. I hide all of my milk servings in cereal, pudding, or smoothies. I love milk, just not skim. Also, huge congratulations on your performance review! I'm sure you are great to work with and for. It isn't easy being a Manager and learning to delegate is one of the hardest transitions. You know you trust yourself to do good work but you have to learn to trust your team. I'm sure your class will help. Just remember that you cannot do it all yourself AND you are no longer being rated on your technical expertise as much as your ability to lead others to do the technical work. Ok.....can you tell I was really into being a Manager!

As for Passover, I saw Core recipes suggestions for Passover on another website where I go to look for recipes. I'll come back and paste it here in a few minutes. I'm afraid I'll lose this post.

Angela, you are normally so sweet that I cannot picture you throwing away the food and driving off. Welcome to the club. There are at least three of us now pre-TOM and TOM! I was a horrible witch the last couple of days. Didn't want anyone to look at me or talk to me. You guys were the ONLY ones I was nice to! Hope you're feeling better today. I gotta ask. Did they eat the Hardees? Boy, I wish I had a picture of their faces when you stormed your little self back into the house! I'm still laughing!

Frouf, here's the link. I reread it this morning and there is only one recipe but alot of conversation. I decided to share it anyway. There is also a list of WPA values for other Passover food. Hope it helps.

http://wwkippy.proboards40.com/index...isplay&start=0

Oh yes, they ate the Hardees. Although, I got those little Slammers for the kids, and as oldest dd saw them, she started saying, "Eww, hamburgers!!" Dh shut her up very quickly! Yes, the Hardees was eaten without further comment, and not much else has been said about the subject.

I do have to say, the salmon (fish sticks for the kiddos) last night was eaten quietly and quickly with nary a negative comment. Dh was probably afraid I'd throw it at HIM!

Angela

Okay, so I'm on my way to WI. Don't know why, I know i haven't lost anything. I really don't see the point in paying this money for them to tell me that I've stayed the same. Going to go anyway, though. I did points the last week and that didn't seem to make a difference. I'll see if the leader can help me. I'm really thinking about going back to the old way that worked before in 1997. You know counting all your breads and proteins etc. I still have all that info.

I'll check in after WI

Lisa

Good luck Lisa - I think the meeting might help provide support and further motivation even if you have stayed the same - you never know what brilliant nugget of information might make sense to you! Let us know how it goes!

Vickie - I loved the smoothie and can't wait to experiment w/my frozen fruit - says this blender does ice, and is 450 watts but I agree if I really abuse it I will need to replace it sooner than later.

Thanks also for the passover board link - great stuff - have sent it home to read at my leisure!

And the manager in you shows - but I really, truly appreciate your insights as this is all so new to me and I want to do a great job!

As for your hair - I find it's the cut that's important and not the styling so much. My hair always looks fabulous when I leave the hairdresser - and of course never looks like that when I leave my house! but if the cut is good at least everything seems to "fall into place" and I don't have to fight with it as much! (still have not made my appt!!!)

Just taking a break from the course - so far going well. Just had breakfast (like 11 am!!!) - lf cottage cheese w/pineapple - was going to skip breakfast but decided that was not a good plan. Have salmon for lunch and I seem to not be looking forward to eating fish today??? (w/brown rice and green beans). May have to force myself to eat it (it's good for me right?)

Angela - we also hated that icky pasta salad you made - you are to immediately hop in your car and drive to Hardee's and /or Pizza Hut and bring us back some food - it's almost lunchtime!! We promise we won't complain about WHATEVER your bring back!!! ha ha ha ha

Frouf

Angela wins the prize for making me laugh out loud first thing this morning! OMG, the looks on their faces must have been PRICELESS!

Frouf, it sounds like you DO have such a busy day, but try to remember everything you want to tell the therapist tonight. I think there's plenty! And good luck with that blender. The last (and only) time I tried to make a smoothie, I put in too much ice and I swear the thing sounded like a jet engine! And congrats on the great review!

Vickie, I'm sure your hair is just fine! I'm the opposite way with mine; it looks too cute when I leave, but when I get hold of it ... well let's just say maybe I should have gone to beauty school to learn how to do my own hair.

Lisa, good luck with the weigh-in. I can tell you're frustrated and wish I had some magic words.

Cher, Terry, Linda ... how's everybody doing? Linda, let me know if you get a Roomba. I'd like to hear what other people thing.

I have a new theory to share. Okay, it's something we all know but it just proved itself to me last night/this morning so I had to tell you about it. For the last four days I have eaten all Core, not used hardly any WPAs, exercised, and drank all my water and then some! The scale has been basically the same. Yesterday I had a big eating day but it still only totaled less than 1300. That includes an encounter with jelly beans, where I had to eat them to shut them up! Whose stupid idea was it to buy 10 bags because they were only 10 cents a bag? Oh yes, that was MY stupid idea! Okay anyway, here's my point. I weighed last night and it was 5 pounds up! I was in tears!! FIVE POUNDS more than yesterday morning -- how is that possible?? I worried about it all night, just knowing there was no way I could get back to yesterday morning's weight or maybe even one less! NO WAY! This morning I dragged myself back on it and it WAS back to yesterday morning's weight! Now why is that? I had had a light dinner (teeny chicken breast and teeny corn on the cob) plus about 30 oz. of water, but cut it off at 7:00 and had nothing after that.

So I figured two things:
1. THAT'S why they say don't weigh every day; you'll drive yourself crazy.

2. If I do my part, my body will do its part.

Sermon over.

Hi all,

Just wanted to say hi to everyone.

Vickie- Congratulations on you new clothes size that is great. You go Girl!!!
Frouf- Congratulations on your excellent appraisal.
Angela- We all have days when enough is enough. I'll bet they will think twice about complaining again.

Well as I reported a while ago I joined Curves about a month ago. I got my measurements done and I have lost 12 inches and 3 lbs. The crazy thing is my weight has not changed except by 3 lbs. but now I am in my 18W's again whatever. I'll take it. I am sorta thinking of trying Curves' low carb eating plan which is similar to Core. I am also watching my portions this week and rethinking some things. I go to Curves 3 days a week. I walked 2 miles yesterday with DH and on Saturday I plan to do his 3.5 mile walk with him. Maybe this will get things moving again. I have lost a total of 39 lbs. I hope to reach 45 by the end of May.
Have a great day everyone!!! I am determined to get my goal one way or another.

Hi all,

Vickie, you look mah-velous dahling. It's always fun to get a little cut and color.

Lisa, you sound really frustrated. Please don't give up. I hope your WI went okay and the leader had some ideas. Maybe we can help you somehow too. Just let us know how. Whatever you do, don't quit.

Angela, perhaps the family is starting to get it. It made me grin to hear about them enjoying their fish without a single complaint. I'll bet you could have sauteed some Fear Factor food and they would have eaten that without a word.

Froufy, congrats on the fabulous review. You must be very proud of yourself and the good work you're doing.

Linda, you're new in your neighborhood too? We moved in in December, and it was so cold that we didn't meet too many people. Well now that the weather is nice, everybody's outside, so we're getting to meet the neighbors.

Kathy, I hope Zuki is doing better today.

Cher, I agree with you about how good core foods can be. I've been hunting for recipes like a woman with a mission. I've compiled about over a hundred of them that sound really yummy to me and I'm determined to try them all. I truly believe that the core food I'm eating tastes better than the stuff I used to eat. And as a side bar, my dh (who is sticking with his own version of Atkins) is losing better than he has in the past because he sometimes shares my core meal.

And, now for my WI story. I felt really fat, so I took off everything possible, jewelry, hair scunchy, everything I could think of (I was wearing a skirt and actually went to WI without underwear!). She weighed me, told me the result, and I got off the scale and insisted she weigh me again because the result had to be wrong. She did and it was the same.

I lost 5.2 lbs!

I don't really get it, but boy am I thrilled with it.

5.2 pounds!!! Holy smoke, you GO!! That's awesome!!!!

Well I'm back from WI and I lost a whopping .6. That's still from the lb. i gained over Easter. Leader said, I should use my 35 flex points, that I haven't been using. Says maybe with all the exercise I need to eat more. I don't know. I'll try it for a week and if it doesn't work, I'm going back to counting breads and proteins, etc.

Can't stay on here. DH called. Seems he was in an accident this morning. Everyone okay, but he's still shook up from 7:30 and now starting to feel the aches and pains all over. Of course, not his fault. Some lady ran through an intersection and plowed into the side of his van. Thank goodness he was in a van. She spun him completely around. How fast did she have to go to have such an impact??

BBL
Lisa

Oh NO! I'm glad he's okay but how horrible! Take care of him!

Congrats on your loss -- and maybe the leader is right!

Okay - that does it!!!! I'm not wearing any underwear to my next weigh-in! That is obviously the problem (along w/my watch, earrings, necklace, etc).

WAY TO GO TERRY - bet you don't feel so fat now? Congrats on your amazing loss and keep up the good work!

Kathy - I have tried to stop weighing myself at night and still do every morning. It is not unusual to add 3-5 lbs during the day and this does not reflect bad eating! I really need to get a grip on the numbers thing as my mood sometimes is too dependent on what the scale says!

Maybe we need a "weigh yourself once a week" challenge for those of us addicted to the scale? Kathy are you up for it???

Mercee - sounds like you are doing great in the exercise dept (and I could sure learn from your example as I am a very lazy froufie!). Seems the inches are making a big difference in how your clothes fit! Congrats on losing all those inches and lbs!

Thanks to everyone for the kind words on my job appraisal - at least I now have one little thing to smile about!

oh ya and dh is quite apprehensive about therapist appt today (he always finds them so depressing)......wants to know what we're going to talk about. I told him I always have something to talk about - and he of course feels bad cuz he is always the bad guy. Asked him if this was by pure chance or did he have something to do with this? He was not sure? Asked him if he was a "victim" or "participant"? Of course he feels like a victim and can't seem to make the connection between his behaviour and attitude to what is going on between us and in our home! This is very sad!

Frouf

P.S. Okay lunchtime now and since Angela has NOT YET RETURNED w/the pizza guess I have to go eat my fish? sigh.....

Okay, okay, I'm on my way to Pizza Hut. I'll send it via UPS ground, and you should get it by next Tuesday!

Or maybe you should eat your fish and shut up about it!!! *insert angry Mom face here* Just kidding of course.

I planned the menu for next week, and it includes some family favorites as well as Core meals. I'm giving them a little break this week, I guess.

Off to feed the chilluns' lunch...
Angela