Guten morgen everyone!

Beachgal - you are doing a FANTABULOUS job with your diet! Yay you! :cheer:

Artemis - yes, there is something about ballerinas (not to mention their dance outfits!) that make most of us feel like plump, waddling little duckies, isn't there? I have a cousin-in-law who is a ballet dancer (can't remember which company she's with right now), and she is tall and thin as a beanpole, but I imagine she is drop-dead gorgeous up on the stage, in a floaty, tulle-y costume, with her looooong legs and looooong blond hair! Maybe sometime she'll dance near where we are, so I can see her.

RNMOM - well, any major change is just that - a major change, whether for better or worse. And change is scary - it's the known which is comfortable to us and makes us feel secure. Good luck on your exam! :grouphug: hope you feel better - now, :coach: don't do it again! No! put down the cookies and back away slowly! ;)

Ruth - Feel better soon! I hope it's just passing and not staying to visit!

Schatzi - I think of you whenever a read a new report on Ophelia. I hope she doesn't do any damage there.

Mamacita - How much longer til you are done with that place forever? I hope you only gave them the absolute minimum notice? Got any sick leave?

kyemom - I cut up a whole week's worth of raw vegs at a time on Sunday night, then store them in gallon bags in the fridge. Then, for DH's lunches, I pull a selection out each night and put them into a sandwich ziplock baggy, and he takes them for snacks the next day (for me, I just grab them as I want them). Could something like that work for you? Just take a baggy or container full to work, and snack on them, and stick them in the fridge (if you have one there) or in an insulated lunchbag with an icepack when you aren't snacking? We eat them with hummus, or with a tiny bit of Uncle Dan's dip (made with Best Foods/Hellman's mayo and ff sour cream), or just plain.

Barb - good luck with jury duty!

beach bum - hope your tummy is better. I had some severe pains a few years back that I thought were an ulcer, but they weren't - it was just really severe excessive acid. They prescribed a super-strong antacid, and a month or two later I was much better. I hope it's something simple for you, too!

djett - sorry you aren't feeling well either, but I'm glad about your son! You must be glad. I think it's great that he has such an interest in puzzles. Perhaps he will be a math or science genius!

weezle - congrats on your friend's upcoming wedding - I'm sure you will be a loverly bridesmaid (bridesmatron?)! Do you have a picture or link for the dress so we can see what it is like, too? I don't get the biggest loser thing - why is that a motivation? I don't watch tv, so maybe I've got it wrong. I thought it was some reality show with people trying to lose weight, and the one who loses the most wins?

KO - no veggies? Why no real food - too sick? Hope you feel better soon.

Me - Alex did okay at daycare, although the daycare lady called at 1:30 and asked me to get him early - he wouldn't take a nap! So I picked him up around 2:30 and it still took until nearly 5 before he would go to sleep! Ornery little guy! Gee, I wonder where on earth he could have gotten that from? ;)

DH's birthday dinner went well. The stew wasn't as thick as usual (I put in a little ww flour, but didn't dredge the meat in it as originally called for), but it was yummy anyway. And I put in a few tiny baby red potatoes, so DH was very happy indeed! We had artichokes with instant aioli (BF/Hellman's mayo with granulated garlic and lemon juice added) and an herby salad with cherry tomatoes along with the stew (and I had ww sourdough instead of potatoes). Then I made some parfaits based on the Chocolate Trifle recipe from the forum - they were yummy! DH liked it so well, he wanted seconds (he is NOT a dessert person!) and DS scrummed his down as fast as we would let him. They were small, so he got a whole one - you should have SEEN his little face light up when I brought them out! I could hear him saying "Mmmmm!" while I was in the kitchen, getting the 3rd parfait from the fridge, before he'd even had a taste. It was so cute! They did look really nice, in the small sundae glasses. I wish I'd thought to take a pic of them, so you could see them. I'll be making it again in a week or so for a family get-together, so maybe I'll take pictures then.

Not much on today - taking it easy. College classes start next Tuesday, so I'm enjoying the relaxation time while I can!

Well, it sounds like everyone will be glad when this hump day is over. Wishing everyone a better tomorrow. I am hanging on and hoping to make it through a second day without sand in my panties. My exercising has improved, so that is my positive note for the day! :)

Thanks H-KOHope its excessive acid,like you had.Can't afford to get ulcers,at this stage of the game.Oh!! When it get cooler I going to get my stew pot out,and get mine going. My MIL told my DH to coat the meat with flour,and than brown the meat before going into the pot.

KO Hope you feel better, eatting lite might do the trick. I'm eatting nothing but veggie soup.

RNMOM NO BINGING,you :listen: hear. I know its hard not to,I do it myself,we're not all angels :angel: here.Do you eat enough,during the day??I sometimes have 6 smaller meals than the reg 3 main meals,and I find that helps the binging.

djette-Hope your feeling better, I hated :devil: Having TOM TG, I don't have to deal with him anymore.

Weezle On what channel is the Best Loser on.Is it a weight oriented show????????? I don't watch the network channels,I'm also on the cable.

BarbWas called to jury:judge: duty twice both times,they never got to me. Good Luck :goodluck: Hope they don't call me again,but thing work out in 3's :yes: Ughhhhhhhhh!!

Kyemom Cheers:cheer: on your 1 lb. I'm having veggie soup 2 times a day.Once before lunch & before dinner. Its very filling and I helps me watch my :hun: portions.You don't have to serve it hot :hot:just at room temp.,if it borther you to have soup in the summer. Give it a try.

Ottoette :cheers:Big Congrats:cheers: on your 100 day of stopping your smoking. and one your 1 lb also. Your going to feel stronger & happerier:) that you did.

Mamacita Can't believe he told you that.Heres hoping for a brighter day.

SchatziHow Ophelia :devil: doesn't do any damage to your new home. Yikes :yikes: you just had your house finished.

[/b]Ruth[/b] Hope you're feeling better but this late hour.Sending you :goodvibes: your way.

And to all the rest on the first page, have you all have a nice evening

Hugs :) BB

beach bum - i used to do that, but since I'm cutting back on refined carbs, I skipped that and just tossed a spoon of ww flour in while browning the meat. Much lower in starch that way, but also not as thick. It's a trade-off. I was out of arrowroot, or I'd've used that to thicken it. It was still good, if less thick.

To make it more SBD friendly, I changed from butter to olive oil, cut down on the fat content, used a leaner meat, and cut way back on the flour. It was different, but yummy. I'm not a stew person (I like food to taste like itself, not like a whole bunch of stuff cooked together), but I do like this one.

ottoette - somehow I missed your post! Congrats on the non-smoking! My IL's are mostly smokers (DH and 1 sister aren't) so I see how hard a time they have whenever they try to quit. And of course since they aren't all trying to quit at once, the others smoking will often make them give up trying and start up again. It's a vicious circle! So that's really great that you've managed to quit - so much healthier for both you and your kids, too.

the biggest loser is a motivation for me because they show the people working out hard and eating right and doing everything the right way, and actually losing weight and transforming their bodies. I can't help but get down on the floor and exercise with them when I'm watching them on TV. I figure, if someone who's 402 lbs can ride that exercise bike at 4.5 mph for 2 hours straight, then surely I can do it too.

It's on NBC.

I'll have a link for the dress later. My DH is calling.

Here's the link to that dress: http://www.mackenziemichaels.com/shtml/coll-88153.shtml The color is "joyberry" which is 2nd from the bottom on the right. Yeah, because I'm built like her.

Six months to grow 5 inches and lose 40 lbs! I CAN DO IT! ;)

YIKES, Weezle, that is a tough dress for ANYBODY to look good in, except maybe models and strippers!! Quite the inspiration at least!
Kim

Weezle - very pretty dress. I'm sure you'll look fantastic! Now I get it about the biggest loser. We don't even have tv - our only tv set has no reception. We just simply do not like to watch tv. We only use the set for dvd's. So even if I wanted, I couldn't watch it.