Juls thinking about you hope things calm down soon in the medical area.
Penny sound like your really busy with your social events. Thanks for the fiber info. Bear must be feeling better he is in rare form this a.m. too much energy for this early in my day.
Did the white square this a.m. no big loss here just .5lb should I even count that? I think with my menopause junk this is hopefully some silly temporary side effect. Thank goodness my clothes still fit okay and I don't feel I have gained the few lbs. I actually bought a new shirt, and two pair of pants last night still a size 10. Now that I am pleased with but not the overall wt. thing. Still not perfect with my intakes but trying to make better choices and ensuring I am drinking my water. I have been a bit up in my coffee intake guess that could be a possible problem. Today I will start to have only 2 cups a day then switch over to herbal tea and water only. Just so tempting to have a nice cup of tasty coffee. But I have read the caffeine can be a prob. with wt. loss so lets see if this makes any difference? Take care girls I am off to work a few min. early going to stop at the store for a few items. I hate doing it after work.

Help, I've fallen off the wagon and I can't get up....and the wagon is rolling merrily down the road without me!:eek: Seriously, I'm very disappointed with myself this week. The conference was busy and a bit stressful. I didn't work out at all, and I ate too much. I feel fat and stiff. Yesterday I saw the PT about my knee. She was nice, but whole evaluation of my flexibility, strength and range of motion only added to my feeling especially lumpish. I did a good cardio workout this morning, and I'm trying to cut back to my usual level of calories (especially carbs), but my body is just tired and sluggish.

I will catch up on the thread as soon as I can. It's good to see everyone here!

judy

Judy, I've seen that same wagon leaving me in its dust. The cardio workout will help you catch it and jump back on. The lumpish feeling will disappear with one good day on plan.

Carol, I have a mocha every morning. 8 oz of unsweetened Almond Breeze (40 cals and wonderful - I learned about it from the Hungry girl newsletters I get everyday - BTW and excellent source of information), 1 T. unsweetened cocoa and decaf expresso. Then I added 4 packets of Equal (almost D-I-L uses splenda which I hate but she loves). It makes it about 85 cals and delish. You don't have to give up the coffee, just go decaf. I get the Costco Starbucks beans and DH gave me a grinder for Christmas last year. It's just as good (better as I don't feel guilty) as going to Starbucks. they're skinny mocha isn't nearly as skinny as mine. And mine's cheap. I love me expresso maker and coffee grinder. I can feed the addiction.

Juls, you made me realize how lucky I am. My hubby has never sabotaged me before. If I want to lose weight he'll do anything he can to help me. I don't know if I could succeed if I didn't have him. I never could succeed as a kid/teen because my mom is the queen of taking a lo-cal food and making it unhealthy. My thoughts are with you. Would reason work??? He knows you're in pain, right? Can you calmly explain you need his help so that you don't hurt anymore. The weight makes us all in pain. I hope it works for you.

Miss Penny, I love my soap. Have I mentioned that before???:D My mother is the seamstress among sewers. Her retired life is in sewing guilds, quilting guilds, etc. All her daughters learned to sew and they all are good seamstresses. But to her dismay, none of us LOVE it. I do it when I can't find an article of clothes that I want and to make my roman shades for my house. More out of necessity, not out of fun. It's funny that you said you couldn't do it - I've always wondered how someone couldn't sew. Cut out the pieces per the pattern, follow the pictures to slap it together. OK, occasionally read the directions if it's not making sense per the picture. :D But you, the non-sewer make the best soap!!!!

I'm so glad it's Friday. I have been riding the wagon and been on track this week. I'm starting to feel better about myself - lack of guilt. I've yoga'ed twice and walked everyday. So I'm doing good. But it's Friday, my favorite day of the week.

Couple interesting things. Earlier this week I was starving after work and looked at the usual temptations and so I wouldn't goof up I CHOSE (not even reluctantly) some tomato wedges. Another time, I had a string cheese for a snack upon near starvation. I'm making good choices again. My dear boss called and was getting me a coffee from Dutch Bros. (like starbucks but better) and asked what I wanted (I'd done her a personal favor and she wanted to thank me - by the way I have the best boss in the world but she's retiring next June :mad:). She remembered the decaf and I said skinny. I wasn't planning the treat, but I have a lo-cal lunch so it will be fine. And lunch today, I had nothing to bring and I thought of going out. Instead I pulled the foreman grill out and grilled a chicken breast as I got ready for work. More tomato wedges on it and I now had lunch. Pretty amazing that I'm making good choices!!!! I might be getting the right mindset back. And as I'm not traveling till February, maybe I'll be safe. :D
Marie

G,day all you lovely ladies :hug: Marie I had a talk to DH and he said that it was because of the pain I was in because of my health he came home with the comfort food he wanted me to feel better being of Italian decent his answer to everything is food ;) anyway I told him he knows I like grapes so if he wants to get me something then to get me some grapes instead of the choccy and chips so he did a 2kg or about 4lb bag he means well and he is a sweetheart :dizzy:.

Hey Judy sounds like you had stressful day all round sorry that the evaluation on your knee wasn,t better but how about you chuck out words like FAT, STIFF AND LUMPISH and replace them with PLESENTLY CURVED, JUST ON PAUSE FOR A SEC, AND I,M AND DOIN FINE. ;)

Hi Carol things have calmed down the injection I had as given me a bit more mobility so I was able to get out for a walk today Doc said just because I feel a bit better not to get carried away so I,ll take it easy he isn,t sure how long they will last between shots but just glad that I,m almost pain free to the point where I can handle it anyway and be more active. I,m like you I love my :coffee: and I was drinking up to 6 a day with 2 teaspoons of sugar so I cut back to 3 and saved myself 96 cals for those 3 and I switched to equal for the other 3 and saved myself about another 70 cals they sure add up. Hey .5lb yeah you count it a loss is a loss and all those .5 add up.

Hey Penny hope your well, all in all I,m doing:yes::yes: :carrot: I,m very :lucky: to have such a DH a wonderful family and all you lovely ladies I have met here it is so great that you can go away for awhile and pick up where you left of and still feel so welcomed. Well you all take care...JULS

Judy I know how you feel the few extra lbs. and I aren't to fond of each other either. We work so hard to make a difference and so fast we make a bit of a wrong move and doesn't take long to put it back on. Good for you catching yourself pretty quickly. At least we recognize whats going on and can adjust ourselves to make a change to save ourselves. Good luck!

Marie hope you rub off on us with the good choice making. I am trying but yesterday had chinese with the girls for lunch. I did make homemade pizza with the grandkids last night but not too unhealthy as I put veggies on it etc. Coffee idea sounds great. I just had my second cup and now am away from the pot. I made some poached eggs this a.m. and had some sunflower toast with them. For lunch I will be really careful as I am making dinner for friends tonight. We are grilling steak and mushrooms, onions, baked potatoes and a nice salad. Apple Pandowny for my friends hubby as I owe him one from last months birthday. So I will have to try a little slice and then some wine. I am going to fit in some walking today.
Oh girs I have to brag I got my eval unexpected yesterday afternoon with my supervisor. It was really good and she wrote and told me how much she appreciates me and what I do for the company. Stated that I work with one of the top families in the area and my work performace stands out there in the public eye etc.... The company is very pleased with the outcome of this case etc... I was a bit surprised at the good review a few little improvements needed otherwise exceptional across most everything else. But they always have to have a few things to have us work on. Also they are doing things to improve out work environment and thats so nice. We are all pretty happy with that except one that can't see beyond the goodness I guess. So vino tonight to celebrate is in order. Good thing I stayed I guess huh? Nice raise and now this etc.
Juls I drink it blk with nothing most of the time sometimes I like a little flavor added in with the creamers. But sometimes just add cinn. or a spice to the grounds before the brew.
Well I enjoyed the evening with the kids and we had a lot of fun. They made carmel apples, applesauce and hm pizza. The kids made some really cute halloween crafts to take home as well. It was a good time for everyone and these special times they will have in memories as I do of my grandparents. Take care and have a great weekend.

Juls - I admire how you keep upbeat even though you're going through a rough time. I'm glad the shot has helped you with your mobility. I had bursitis in my shoulder for quite a while but it eventually got better. I had some massage therapy and that really helped (felt good too!) Your hubby is sweet bringing you the grapes you asked for. I love my coffee too and I just read that women who drink 3 cups a day have a better memory as they get older. I can only have one cup of "real" coffee or I can't sleep the next night. I do enjoy one or two cups of tea as well.

Carol - Congratulations on the good review! :carrot: You deserve all the praise. I don't know how you stay so slim with all those 'eating opportunities' you are surrounded by such as chinese lunches, apple pandowny, pizza etc. etc.! :yikes: You must have great willpower. I hope some of it rubs off on me.

Judy - Sorry you're feeling a bit down and stressed :hug:. This too shall pass and you'll be feeling better again as soon as things start to even out with work, etc. I hope your doc has some answers for your knee pain. There's bound to be some bumps in the road on our weight loss journey, but we just have to kick the tires on that wagon and jump right back on!

Marie - I'll have to try some Almond Breeze in my coffee - I never thought of that. Thanks for the nice thing you said about me being talented in other areas than sewing. I tend to dwell on the things I 'can't' do sometimes, instead of concentrating on the positive things in my life. You're making some good food choices - it sounds like you're back on track.

I was a bit bummed this morning to see that I haven't lost any and in fact have gained another pound :(. Now that we're entering what I call the "carb season" I find it more and more difficult to eat healthy (or at least smaller portions). I need a good :kickbutt:. Sometimes it's like climbing a ladder and sliding back down again aaaarghhhh! Thanks for letting me whine - I feel better now and will shake myself up and join Judy jumping back on the wagon!

Exactly Penny, it is like climbing a latter and flailing back down. But if it's only a few rungs, then it's probably ok. A couple years ago, I gave up. I could not lose weight (thank you bipolar meds) and I decided to just accept that I was to be fat. Got rid of the meds and about 8 months later tried "one more time" with Nikki here. 1.5 years later, I'm down 42 pounds. Not bad. But I do feel it's a struggle and sometimes it's not. The latter analogy is great.

Juls, I'm very happy for you that the shot has helped you feel a bit better. And I really glad your DH understood the difference between comfort and comfort foods. You cam up with a great idea for him to comfort you. I too just love grapes. But my stomch isn't too thrilled with them - very stinky if you get my drift. :)

Carol, way to go on the eval. I'm glad that you employer is still valuing you. The co-worker situation still needs to be resolved but at least you they they very much like you.

I did it. I started a fire in our wood stove. DH isn't home from cutting wood in the forest and I returned from an excursion to and fro over the mountain, (BTW Judy, I thought of you while driving about the little gnomes and stuff as I roared in my little sports car at about 75 miles per hour over the mountain pass). Anyway, I've never started a fire before (except candles). DH taught me a couple weeks ago and I sort of remembered. The house was chilly so I decided to take the plunge. I think I probably used a bit more newspaper to get it going than DH but it's toasty right now. I grabbed my laptop so I could surf and keep an eye on it while it took. I'm not sure it should have taken so long to start, but I don't care. My house is heating and I DID IT not DH. :)

Food was so-s0 yesterday. I was doing great. Dear Boss brought me the correct skinny decaf mocha and 6 bags of Dark Choc M&MS and flowers. I gave 5 of the bags away and the 6th is in my drawer at work. Then DS2 came at the end of the day and we decided to go to Starbucks till he had to go to work. So I had a THIRD coffee. I have one mocha per day. That threw off the cals as I still had my reg dinner and small cone. Oh well. I'm doing so-so today but the eating was planned so I'm ok with it. I took the Dear Doggies for a 1.5 mile walk in the dark. It was 32 out. Brrr. Snow has stuck on the mountains and higher elevation. If it keeps going, I'll have a great ski season this year.

Well, the fire seems fine so I'm going to go sew now.
TTY tomorrow.
Marie

Penny I am so glad I that my body kind of hides what I weigh at least it appears to. Because I am so active with daily life itself not much time to really do nothing nor is that my way of life most of the time. Busy busy helps me. I have gained over the past few months and not comfortable with the scales reading. Today I lost thank goodness another half of a lb. Wish it were more but its a start and I am not giving it back. Keep up trying and when we slip we can't stay there so lets go! Together we can all make a difference!

Marie you are right about the coworker I only hope in time she either stops her business or leads her to join the other two. She took off friday as a sick day thats unusal for her as winter is coming and her sick time might be needed for bad weather days. Maybe she is trying to use it up incase she leaves. Oh wishful thinking huh? I think the company has figured out and now understands when things were bad why etc. They won't let it go back to that neither will I. I have my boundaries and will keep them. Snakes as I refer to them can never be trusted much.
My day is starting off with oatmeal, dried cranberries, walnuts a dash of br. sugar and some apple pie spices. Oh so good. My girl friend whom had the stroke went to the drs. yesterday her blood pressure dangerously high stoke level. She needs to lose wt. and get that pressure down. The doctor said no eating past 6 p.m. unless its veggies or fruit. She came to ask me about healthier eating and of course I do have info. but sometimes forget to inforce its use on myself. So together we are trying to make positive changes in our health. It surprises me how people really don't have a clue about foods and fibers or no how to read a label. Guess its been something that over the years I got interested in because I had to and now enjoy learning more. Well together maybe we can all make a positive change in our wt. and well being. Have a great day I am off to a Folk Art Show at the fair grounds. Maybe a few christmas things to get.

Hi all, I've had a nice weekend. Jeff Gordon won the nascar race, the Packers won and so did the Vikings. A clean sweep! So at least sport wise it was good. Food wise, I've been ok but not good. Within reason. I brought the doggies out this afternoon and did a 2 mile walk. It was in the 70's and beautiful. Too bad so many of my neighbors are jerks about their dogs. There's a leash law here and they don't obey it. Only 3 dogs to contend with. I nearly let Kody loose so he could kick butt. I'm tire of stopping him. Truly, walking in the dark is easier but the warm weather was too hard to resist.

I cleaned and cleaned today. My floors, bathroom, kitchen and the dusting are done as well as the clothes. Now I'm just being a bum. To yoga or not to yoga is my pondering now.

So do you all think that true desires can ever really change? You know how you read that people that have lost loads of weight have made "permanent lifestyle changes". I don't believe it's possible. I do believe it's possible to continue to fight the natural desire to eat but not that it becomes natural. Penny got me started with the ladder thing and I chatted with DH about it. I pointed out how good I am 90 percent of the time, but 5 percent I'm battling and 5 percent I'm just plain bad. Like yesterday, I bought paper coffee cups. I wanted 20 oz but they had 24 oz cups. I had them in my hand. I talked myself back to the 20 oz knowing that my mocha recipe barely fits into 16 oz and I wanted room. If I bought 24 oz I'd make more and have more calories. I wanted the bigger one but I did end up buying the right size. Anyway, just shows me that the 18 months of good eating habits is not cemented. Since experts say it takes 6 weeks to cement a habit, I decided it would never be cemented. I like food and I like lots of it. What is cemented is that I want to keep fighting. It was one of those epiphanies. But then I argued with myself that the exercising is cemented. That habit has become part of me and that I really like it. OK I really like the endorphins and the eradication of bipolar meds. But I don't fight myself to do it - I just enjoy it. So what do you all think?
Marie

G,day ladies it sounds like you all had fare weekends,:congrat: AND :woohoo: on your great eval Carol you are remarkable with all that you do you give me inspiration but then again all of you lovely ladies do :hug: I think it is great that your friend is concerned with her weight and health and has looked to you for support and and help with her food choices I know it can make a big difference when we can ask others for help and not feel judged because they have been where we are and know how we feel. I,m glad the scale was you friend today keep it up.

Hey Marie, wish I could get the cleaning bug ;) I agree about the desire issue I think we can make changes to our life but I think it takes a lot of will power to make them permanent I think we are creatures of habit nothing just becomes a natural we have to keep focus and make sure we are aware that at times we will have slips. You don,t have much luck with your neighbours and their dogs some people just don,t give a dam but I bet if you did let Kody loose they would have something to say :dizzy: it makes me :mad: at some peoples thoughtlessness but it is good you had nice 2 mile walk WOW I wish I could get that far :carrot: :hug: Congrads on the fire it is the little things we accomplish that make life goooood. LOL

Thanks Penny and Marie, the shot helped for all of 3 days the Doc says looks like Op inevitable Oh well it,s all good maybe he can slice some fat while he is at it ;) Well DH is home today and made me a nice bacon and egg brekki dry fried I,m not sure about the rest of the day but I,ll try to be good hope your feeling better Judy catch you all later take care bye for now..JULS

Girls its not easy for any of us thats for sure when it comes to perm. cementing in our brains what should life be like without the effort behind it. The deciding what we should eat, drink, portions and last of all the exercise. Too bad it wasn't just natural for us like it seems to be for others. For myself I don't think it ever will be. Between my back problem this year and the hormones going crazy with menopause its close to a losing battle sometimes. I currently am helping my friend cause I do feel I know what to do but need to put it to practice more myself. The scale doesn't show it too much right now. So I need to get serious and kick some butt. Yes kick my own butt too! I have done better with my water intake, better food choices but still have managed to slip to much. I shopped yesterday for some foods of good choice making at Target. They had flaxseed pumpkin granola bars so I purchased them but decided to have them as a snack but only eat one. Tape the other up for the next time. I bought some dried aprcoits , cranberries etc. So I am trying to make the right choices but as you said it takes effort. I personnally think its a life time effort and we just need to learn that if we take a day off from it the next day we need to get right back on track. Cause one day leads to two days then a week etc. thats where I know I get in big trouble. I have to add some yogurt or dairy to my diet also as I am not a milk drinker. I love cheese but have to limit myself there.
Does anyone have a gazelle exercise machine. There suppose to be wonderful and work your whole body. I am thinking of checking the played again sports store and seeing if there are any used ones. They run between 180 - 290 for a new one. LET ME KNOW?
Well off to work and then for a walk after work today.

Caorl, I have a gazelle machine in my shed. I spent about 450 on it and it irritated my lower back. Not as I was doing it, but after using it a while, I would move doing something else and it would strain it. It took about 4 months of work to undo the little movements straining my back. I highly wouldn't recommend one. Now that you mention it, I should put it in the local newspaper for the Christmas shopping season. Sic it on someone else. ;) I probably have a weak spot in my left lower back, but you couldn't pay me to try it again. On the bright side, it did not hurt my joints...

I had an ok food day yesterday. Certainly there was room for improvement as there will be today. I didn't yoga yesterday as the cleaning really irritated both wrists. But I walked the doggies this morning (in the dark even though I'm not going in to work until noon) without irritation of the neighborhood dummies. Then I practiced yoga. Now I'm sitting in front of another fire in the fireplace. I'm toasty warm. :) I did a better job starting the fire today - I cleaned out the soot stuff and voila, easy fire.

Juls, I'm sorry the shot didn't last longer. Go for the operation if it will have longterm relief. Life is too short to be in pain.

Well, that's about it for now. I'm going to sew then I suppose get ready for work. I have to teach a class this evening so that's why I'm home this morning. I refused to work a 13 hour day. Did it enough in my past - no longer when it can be avoided.
Marie

Hi, everyone! I was away this weekend (yes, again!) and so I'm missing a lot of the chatter on the thread. I'm taking my computer with me on this long trip coming up, so it should be easier to stay in touch. I can do some of this on a Blackberry, I guess, but it's not as much fun on the tiny screen!

Marie, your question about "true desires" is an interesting one. I think we can change some things--I know longer feel compelled to smoke cigarettes or indulge in other practices that were necessities back in my misspent youth. However, eating is different, 'cuz we gotta eat a few times a day, at least, to live. I could avoid most people and situations that I associated with the habit of getting plastered, for example, long enough to rewire my brain. But it's awful to hard to avoid the food traps and temptations that surround us all the time. So yeah, I'll probably always lust after baked desserts, although I've barely eaten any cake or bread since going gluten-free last November.

Carol, I'd ask folks on the exercise thread about the Gazelle. I've haven't hard much positive about it, except that it's cheap and lightweight...the negatives I've heard is that it's cheap and lightweight ;).

Jules, I hope you're feeling good today! It's not nice thinking about needing surgery, but it would be great to look forward to being more mobile and not in pain :hug:. Thanks for your words of encouragement.

Penny, I'm climbing back onto the wagon. This time of year always challenges me the most. It's so dark in the morning, before the time change, and dark in the evening, too (!), and cooler. I mostly want to sleep....I need to pull out my trusty slow cooker and make healthy soups and stews to appease the carb beast.

I'm still not on my game, but this morning I did a cardio salsa video, and that got me off to a fun start. Today I had a chicken b'fast sausage and oatmeal, later a little cottage cheese with strawberries and flaxseed, and for lunch a big salad with tuna.

Okay, back to work!

Marie - Your fire sounds so cozy and warm. I'm tempted to get our old wood stove checked out and use it this winter. It's in our family room and puts out so much heat with even one or two logs makes the room too hot (like 100 deg.!). I'll have to try some of the birch wood we have from a tree we had to take down last spring. Maybe that burns "cooler"?

Juls - I hope you're feeling better. That's funny about asking your doc to throw in a bit of lipo if you get your bursitis surgery. :lol: I think I'm a bit beyond lipo - I don't think they'd know where to start!

Judy - I'm going to follow suit and get my old crock pot out and make a few soups and stews. It's comfort food time (healthy kind).

Carol - That's good of you to help your friend make good food choices. Hey I'll kick your butt if you'll kick mine! :lol: :kickbutt:

I had a busy day with a doctor's appointment in the morning for a small surgery and teeth cleaning in the afternoon with office work and a workout sandwiched in between. My dentist said I had "the gums of a 20 year old" - now if only the rest of me would get in line! :lol:.

Today was one of those days when everything just fell into place. I found a gorgeous grey sweater at a store next to my dentist's. The traffic was low, they played 5 in a row of my very FAVORITE oldies on the radio so I cranked it up, my mini-surgery didn't hurt much, my gums look good, I didn't have any urgent messages when I got home (DH is out of town so I'm minding the fort) and I bought some unusual bulbs that I got planted just before the rain started pouring down. I also put grass seed on all the patches I killed with the wrong weed killer :D (the bag had exactly the right amount of seed in it). I just made myself a nice gin and tonic and all is right with the world. Hope you had a good day too!

Marie thanks for that info and I respect your input highly. With my recent back issues maybe this is a no no for me as well and I do not want to risk it. I did manage to go to the lake after work and walk for appox. 40 min. part of it was even a little jog in two different areas. I feel pretty good tonight and was proud of myself for going today. Didn't go with anyone just said this is it and did it. Lots of other folks there etc. I felt the time went by pretty quickly for me. Then came home and made dinner with some of the dreamland protein healthier for you pasta and made some quick sauce and meatballs. So a pretty good day except for a piece of dark choc..... I did the stairs at work and walked hurray I broke the ice maybe I am on a roll. Lets hope so. I am feeling pretty good tonight and thought I would be really sore etc... We have more walking weather coming our way. I still have to stop at the gym the gazelle sounded good but not worth hurting myself again. With the gym I can use the pool and do equipment and classes. So it is a yes I am going to do it.
I guess the scale got me this a.m. and I just decided okay this is it!!!!! Time to kick this menopause crap in the butt. Sorry ladies but I have had it with hot flashes and feeling yuk!
Judy thanks for your input too. Boy glad I ck'd with you girls as I was thinking of not joining the gym for awhile but checking it out. Well now I know what I have to do. The ins. is giving me 300 towards the price and 15 a month is what I was paying before I am going to sign up this week with my nice buddy and coworker. It will be fun having a buddy system maybe we will get each other motivated at least 3 times a week. Glad you are taking your computer you are such a wandering lady I am jealous I love to travel. Have a safe trip!!!

Morning everyone. It's a drizzly, cold day out. I took the doggies out anyway and only got a little damp. They sure liked it. Last night's inservice was long and I was tired after it. Teaching is not my favorite pastime. Then because I got home right before bedtime, I didn't sleep well and now I'm pooped today. So my little blue light is on extra today. I love light therapy. I pulled it off the shelf last week as it's been dark and dreary (mostly) the last few weeks.

today may be a day of catching up some at work. I need to finish writing a grant and then when that's done I won't feel as stressed. The grant is due next Monday so I'm going to run out of time. It's today's priority.

I fell off the wagon today and the wagon wheel rolled right on over me. I grabbed a cookie at work. Bad, bad, bad. I will be good the rest of today. I can't do anything about the cookie at this point, but I can be good the rest of the day. Much better attitude than I screwed up and I'll start again tomorrow as I'm famous for in the past. Now I just have to be good...

Penny, I'm glad the surgery and cleaning went well. Sounds like you had an all around nice day. And it had been Monday, too. That's very unique.

Carol, go to the gym. It'll help keep you motivated. And good for the walk yesterday. I actually like walking alone with the doggies better than with someone. Occasionally DH goes with but mostly I go myself. It's sort of me time.

Judy, I agree about not kicking the overeating habit since we still have to eat. Skinny people who have never been overweight think is just so easy to kick the overeating habit. But when you can't go cold turkey, that makes kicking an addiction near impossible. Doesn't mean we can't fight the desire for bad foods or more in my case large portions, but it's not the same as other addictions.

OK, I need to work. TTYL.
Marie

:hug: G,day ladies hope you are all well, Carol I know the feeling menopause sucks big time but the hot flushes mood swings and everything else keeps life interesting I guess. Yeah Marie I thought I would get a little bit longer with the shot so did Doc anyway I decided to have the surgery I have been put on a waiting list and just keep up with pain killers until I can get in, don,t worry you didn,t really fall of the wagon just one foot slipped so just hop back on. Penny I think I,m the same, there are just tooooo many areas that I would love trimmed down I think they would be there for days trying to lipo it all :p. Judy it sounds like you aren,t doing to bad, with your trips away it must be hard to stay focused but you seem to. My day hasn,t started to bad had some yoghurt for brekki with a banana and a :coffee2: planned a tuna salad for lunch with a yoghurt for midafternoon snack, dinner I ,ve got the slow cooker going with chicken in sweet chilli sauce and I,m going to do some dry roasted potato and pumpkin with lots of green veggies to go with it. I,m going to try and get some upper body exercise in today :lifter: then because it is such a beautiful day here downunder I think I,ll grab James Patterson and do some reading on the porch:flow1: Take care bye for now... JULS

Jules, I wish I was having dinner with you! That chili sounds yummy. I am working late tonight, and just ate two black bean veggie burgers. I'll have some green veggie when I get home. No workout yet today, maybe I'll do a little on the rowing machine while watching baseball tonight.

I just wanted to jump in and say hi. If I get started I'll start complaining about stress, then I just be in the office that much longer. But I have a 7AM flight, so better to not get started :D.

I may not be able to stop in on Wednesday, but I'll try, and I'll be sure not to let two days go by before absorbing your positive reinforcement! This trip will be a big challenge, but I can do it! I will weigh less at the end of October than I did at the beginning. Or else I'll be a Thanksgiving turkey :turkey:

judy

Girls I am on top of the world tonight oh yeah I DID have a couple of glasses of wine to celebrate. The coworker has given her two weeks notice hurray! Things are looking up at work I don't mean to be so cruel but those two girls haven't been so nice over the past 7 years. Now they will both be gone to join the last boss which favored them so much. Little do they no that they got me a raise and more respect then I ever had at work. In the end the company found out how those two were really.
Didn't work out today but on wed. I have a meeting to join the gym with my friend. The chriopractor said he will meet me over there on a sunday and show me what machines I should use etc. He doesn't recommend the gazelle as when you have back issues you should be on machines that are more stable hands firm with legs moving etc. So that was nice of him to offer I thought. I did pretty good with my intake today other than my little wine celebration but I thought it was well worth it. My girl friend is going to move into my office with me as she shares with 2 other girls etc. So work is looking up and maybe there is so relief in the air.
juls your dinner sounded yummy what were you doing with the pumpkin? I love it so I thought I would ask?
Marie walking by ourselves isn't so bad good thinking time or relaxing.
Judy have a safe flight.
My hubbies catherization is on friday so I am taking the day off. I will take some reading and knitting as I will be up to the hospital allday long. So the exercise this week is helping calm my thoughts. I hope the scale shows me some positive changes soon. Hopefully my little wine didn't mess it up.

Hey Ladies, Judy the chilli chicken is Yuuuuuuuuuuuum, your green veggies sound good but I,m not to sure on the black bean burgers. Don,t worry about getting started on stress it helps to vent have a good flight and take care. Carol I can feel all that great positive energy and good vibes jumping through my screen, I,m so glad those women have gone for you and that the company finally saw them for what they were, 7yrs is a long time to put up with crap but the karma police are always out there so I wouldn,t be to smug if I was them. I,m just dry roasting the pumpkin with the skin on and a sprinkle of cajun seasoning with a little bit of low fat canola spread with garlic. Fingers crossed for you and your DH on Friday and I,m sure the scales will be kind but talk to your clothes instead I find them to be more forgiving, Take care talk to you all later..JULS

Juls so you cook and eat the pumpkin as you would say butternut squash? If I have it right that sounds really good. I have heard of pumpkin soup and I love pumpkin muffins, breads and of course cookies. Non which are to light less I redo my recipe and that sounds like a plan. I am making a pumpkin cake for work next week a lunchoen. Gotta try your idea.
I am very pleased to announce that the white square was quite friendly this a.m. and I am down 2lbs. Still not where I was a bit ago but on my way and it gives me encouragement to continue trying harder to do the right things. Juls the clothes thing didn't work for me I felt okay but put on 4lbs. oh that was scary. I was back to my start lbs. and there is no way I want those lost lbs. back. My goal is to get off at least 7lbs before christmas. I hope I can do it generally speaking they come off slow for me. But with extra effort and support maybe this time I can get there!!! And less office stress too. Did anyone pick up the newest Womans World mag. with Oprah's newest diet in it? I did and its worth the tips etc.. some good ideas and recipes too. I am going to search the web for more of the recipes and menu. Today I sign up for the gym. My back is a bit sore today from the lake walk the other day. I will take a couple of advil and will do a workout today. Maybe its just adjusting I hope so cause this has got to go away for good.
Have a good day everyone. Oh yesterdays cals were around 1550 and that was with my little wine included. Off to make my breakfast can. bacon, egg, cheese and one slice of toast. I have conference this a.m. but only for a couple of hrs. I will take an apple to snack on. Then have my healthy lunch back at the office.

Carol - Congratulations on saying bye-bye to the nasty co-worker/s. :carrot: You deserved to celebrate with a glass of wine. Your stress level will go down fast! I love pumpkin too. I've just finished the last batch of pumpkin custards I made. They are a healthy treat and only 115 cals. I usually add a tsp. of maple syrup but that's not much and it tastes heavenly. You are doing great staying on track so your goal of losing 7 lbs. should be do-able. Good luck :goodluck:!

Juls - Another pumpkin eater eh? I don't know why, but I only get a craving for it in the fall. Maybe it's because you see the big pumpkins everywhere here for Halloween. Do they celebrate Halloween down under? I can't remember if they did when we lived in Sydney. They do celebrate it in a big way in the UK nowadays though they never did when I was a kid over there. We celebrate Guy Fawkes Day (Nov. 5th) here. Our neighbors must think we're nuts when we have a big bonfire and burn the "Guy". Our friends' kids love it though, especially the fireworks even though it's usually raining in November.

Judy - I hope your trip is going well and that your travel schedule slows down a bit for you soon. I've been watching the World Series with my DH and even have to report the score back to him on his cell when he's on the road - he's such a baseball nut! We're rooting for your team, the Indians. That was a great series against the Yankees. I hope Cleveland wins against the Sox tonight so they can go on to face the Rockies.

Marie - Don't worry about the cookie, you're doing lots of exercise so you'll work it off in no time. I like some 'alone time' too. Since we work at home together, I kind of look forward to when my DH has a road trip and I get some time to myself. I was talking to some of the gals at Curves about it the other day and I was surprised how many (especially those with retired hubbies) NEVER get any time alone and it drives them nuts! It's been very dark and rainy here too the last few days so I've been fighting off the "snack monster"!

Have a good Wednesday everyone.

Carol, just think of where you were 3 months ago - looking for a new job and hating the office environment that you currently worked in. Fast forward to yesterday - how cool is that???? I bet you're just flying. Now let's hope she sticks with her "notice" and really leaves. Isn't this the same one that quit last spring? Congrats on the 2 pounds. Life is looking quite glorious for you.

Penny, I too look forward to time alone. This weekend is guard weekend so both DH and DS2 will be gone both days. I get the house to myself. Not a bad thing at all. ;) I also have my big hair appointment I made 2 months ago. Highlight/weave and a cut/trim. The roots really need it and I've been so good about not toughing them myself.

And I totally agree about the dreary weather and the snack monster. I was bad yesterday and made cookies. DH found the cooke sheets out in the shed and I made dark choc M&Ms. I had some dough last night, but no baked ones. I skipped my nightly ice cream so I was fine there. This morning I had one for breakfast. But the reason I made them was because of my Food Saver purchase last weekend. I wanted to try out the vacuum canisters. I played with it last night quite a bit. Seal it, open it, seal it, open it. Quite a cool toy I bought. I then sealed 3 cookies in a food saver bag for DH at work. I was playing.

Juls, waiting list for a surgery??? Does that mean that they just call at the last minute and you go? Don't they at least give you a scheduled time and if there's an opening, call you at the last minute? BTW, what is the surgery exactly. I remember somethig about hip bone scraping, but I must be wrong there.

Judy, have a safe and healthy trip. Sorry the office ha been stressful. My job is finally starting to calm down some. Did I mention last week that the idiot manager we'd hired last Oct quit w/o notice. YEAH!!! I was against that hire and I've been told several times that I'd been right. Well duh!!! :)

Marie

Hello Everyone! My friend and yours (Juls) told me to stop in here! She said you were all very friendly. So here I am. My name is Faith, im 43 years old, have 2 children, boy---16, daughter----11. been married to a very supportive husband for 22 years. Been going to Weight Watchers for 2 years, first year I did wonderful, and now I have been going up and down with the weight. I think thats about it! Just a country girl with blow fish cheeks-----------thats why the name goldfish...LOL

G,day :angel:s :wave: Hey Faith you found us :hug: I know all these lovely ladies will help you heaps the more support we have the better, I,m a lady of leisure at the moment I,m not allowed to go back into the work force Docs and D hubbys orders HEY who am I to argue ;) but I,m getting bored out of my brain. Carol I make pumpkin soup my DH and daughters favourite, way to go girl on the 2lbs gone and I know you will make the 7lb goal by Chrissy, :dancer: Yeah I cought up with Oprahs new diet in the New Idea here downunder some good tips, good luck with the gym and you are doing well sticking to your cal intake even with the wine. Penny I love pumpkin but then I love all veggies, some people do celebrate Halloween here, my daughter sometimes takes the kids trick or treating, we used to have cracker night a number of years ago but fire works were banned. Marie a waiting list is for public patients if I had the money to go into a private hospital I could get done straight away but if you are a public patient then you go on a waiting list, if your lucky the wait isn,t long but you get in when the Doc is between private patients which could range anywhere from a month to 2yrs :p: dizzy: the surgery is removal of the bursa sack a sack of fluid near tendons and muscle. Hi Judy hope your well. I,m off to pay some bills :p everyone take care :grouphug: :high: :goodluck: I need :coffee2: before I go anywhere. JULS

:welcome2: Faith. I see you have already come a long way on your weight loss journey - congratulations on your progress so far. I have found lots of support and encouragement here on this thread - I hope you do too! Looking forward to hearing from you again soon.

G,day ladies hope your all well, just checking in. Bit of a downer today I was looking at some photos from Chrissy last year I was down to my goal weight and felt good now here it is nearly the same time this year and I,m the weight I was 17yrs ago when my 1st hubby and I separated. Well I had a bit of a wallow in self pity then I thought stuff it and thought about what you lovely ladies would tell me and I stopped feeling sorry for myself and went for a walk instead, it wasn,t a long walk but I felt better when I got home. Haven,t had a bad day eating wise anyway, not real hungry today so I,ve had a milk and fruit day so far had about 600 cals so I,ve got about 900 to play with for dinner so I,m going to do some healthy pizza,s with lot,s of veggies and WW grated cheese I,ll give DH some pepperoni I can live without that I don,t like it all that much so I will not miss it I,ll have mushrooms instead. Hey Faith have you heard about your MRI results yet. All of you take care have a great weekend.... HUGS TO EVERYONE..JULS

Hello everyone and welcome Faith always room for more friends glad you found your way. Together we all help support each other and information we have sometimes helps another person to try a new idea etc. I love this site and the folks on here are great so I hope you will think so too.
Girls she is really going this time. The relief is in the air and to some she works for they will be at a loss as she is a good advocate for them and knows her job well I respect her for that just not the evil things she does to make others unhappy. That isn't needed and life is to short for such nonsense. I look forward to a positive work environment and see some good changes coming my way at work. My good friend and I will share an office now. When we need to tell each other something we will without bad feelings but in a way with humor to get the pt. out there but not be hurtful in anyway. The other girls are also ready for this chg. and as a group we will become stronger and that can only make our work performance better too. Yesterday I had a great conference my supervisor, director and coworkers went most of us anyways. We did a stress release conference it was wonderful lots of ideas breathing lessons to destress and relax etc. and with oils. Oh Penny you would of loved it. Anyways I got the name of a reference book of what oils to use for different things. This gal said to add them to foods, water and use them on our bodies. I am going to look into them at the natural food stores to ensure I get the ones to consume etc... don't want to make a mistake etc. Then we went to the next conference room to learn more about spirtuality. I am a naturalist I decided with my love for the outdoors and the beauty of the world and life itself. It was very interesting wish you were all there with me. Then we had a wonderful lunchoen pretty healthy except the pie of apple cake with carmel only a small piece it wasn't super sweet. So oh a no no still. Last night I confess must be nervous about the hubbies testing today I ate a handful of potatoe chips. Now that wasn't too smart at all. But this a.m. I started off with a healthy breakfast. Has anyone tried the new oatmeal by Quaker? It is called simple harvest with multigrains oat wheat barley, vanilla almond and honey. Real tasty and only 160 cals. Check it out if your looking for tasty, fast and healthy I think its the one. Well have a good day I am taking some knitting and reading to the hospital. If they go in his arm he will be there less time if its the groin area he has to lay flat for 6 hrs. before he can come home. So either way its a nerve hitting day for both of us. Have a good day and I will catch up tonight to destress or on saturday. Oh I did join the gym and signed up for tues. water exercises and thurs. training with a group of 3-4 and one person is my friend. They really follow up on you at this gym and ensure you reach your goal I hit high for me saying 10lbs. in 12 weeks hope I make it. Even if its close I WILL be happy. I meet with the guy again on 11/13th meanwhile they email you etc. trying to keep us motivated. For my 15 a month I think its worth it.

Hello everyone! Just thought I would pop in and say hi! and thank you for the warm welcome everyone! I find out my MRI results today Juls! Has anyone tried spaghetti squash before? anybody got any good ideas to cook it?
cckayac those stress relief conf. sounds wonderful. would have loved to attend one of those. how did you feel afterwards? I bet wonderful. did you find those oils? wish every work place had those!
again thanks everyone for the warm welcome! take care!
Faith

Carol - I hope your DH's test went ok. It must be very stressful for both of you. That destress conference sounds like a great idea - I think most employees would benefit from something like that. I'm a big believer in aroma therapy! My girlfriend came over today to make soap and I gave her a few pointers. She had a great idea for a soap made in a silicone cupcake mold (6x) with wavy edges. We used white soap scented with lavender half way up and let it cool a bit. Then placed a small silk orchid flower in each and after letting it set up in the fridge we poured clear vanilla scented soap over the flower. They turned out lovely and look very special. Those silicone molds are great for glycerine soap as it just pops right out. I hope you will enjoy your new gym.

Juls - Don't be down about the gain - your on the right track now! :hug: The main thing is to never give up on yourself - you've proven you CAN do it! Slow but sure wins the race. We all have our ups and downs (right now I'm struggling too) but I know I WILL lose this weight if I stick to my plan.

Faith - I hope your MRI results came back ok. :hug: I saw some spaghetti squash at the store yesterday and almost bought some. Thanks for reminding me about it. I'm trying to cut down on carbs, so that would be a good substitute for pasta.

Marie & Judy - I hope everything is going well for you.

I had fun making soaps with my friend today and she had some really good ideas. Our DS is happy as he had his first review at work today and they said he "exceeded expectations" in every category. He got a nice raise too - I'm so proud of him. He had a good week as he was also accepted as a reserve police officer (he just needs to take the physical) and will start training next February. It's about 100 hours in school, which he'll do in the evenings. It's a volunteer job and he'll be on call for about 14 hours a month. He enjoyed being a police cadet in his teenage years so it's a fun thing for him to do and a way for him to give back to the community.

Hi everyone!!! Welcome Faith. You've definitely come a long weigh in your weight loss. Congrats big time. Perhaps at this stage you're just letting your body adjust to its new weight and then when you're ready, bam, you'll be loosing like crazy again.

Penny the soaps sound beautiful. I just finished me seond bar of orange blossom. As I showered I was wondering how I could get more beauty stuff with the oils you used. I love that soap. Congrats for DS on both the job and volunteer police acceptance. That's awesome. He's doing so well just a 1 1/2 after graduating.

Judy, I hope your trip is going good and the foods aren't too tempting.

Juls, I'm thinking I wouldn't like the waiting list way of medical treatment. In USA we all bash the medical system with its high costs, high deductibles and premiums on insurance, but that waiting it out for up to 2 years is silly. What if you had a life to lead???? You've made me appreciate what I have a lot more. I'd trade that for the dr. calling to tell you his golf game was rained out and could do the surgery. :)

Carol, so when is the mean worker's last day. We shall all toast in unison at the destressing you'll feel. Forget the destress conference, that woman leaving will do it best for you office. :)

The work week is over. Need I say more??? I'm very happy about that and am going to try not to do any work over the weekend. I'm on strike until Monday.

But I just read in our local paper (online) that one of our teachers was arrested for allegedly giving students prescription pain killers. A special ed teacher - she's not liked in our department by all past and present so I'm thinking sympathy for her will be null (although I've had no dealings with her). It just blew me away.

Tomorrow is beauty day. The hair weaving and trim/style. I'm very excited. It's one of the priciest salons/spas in my backwater town so I hope I budgeted enough.

I finished the grant I needed to write and I submitted it electronically this afternoon. Goodbye to that headache. I HATE doing grants. It takes so much time and the odds seem small to receive it. By the time I submit them, I could care less about whtether we receive them or not. My experience is that a grant means a special project which translates into more work for me. That, I rarely need. :)

Well, I'll chat with you all tomorrow.
Marie

Hello Ladies,
How is everyone doing today? Im okay! didnt do so good on eating healthy again yesterday. I dont know whats wrong with me, I guess stress has alot to do with it, and not being able to go to my weight watchers meetings. I really need to get on back track. I have just been craving the food that I know I am not suppose to be eating. any advice?
Faith

Hey, Everybody--

I'm back! It's been a great trip so far, but very tiring. I'm leaving SF tomorrow. The work things have gone well, and I was able to hang out with an old friend and his wife the other night. But maybe all the hobbling around on my bad (left) foot has wacked out a nerve or a muscle in my (right) thigh. I finally had to find a doctor today. I hope the muscle relaxer will do the trick. Needless to say, I haven't been exercising....Maybe by the time I get to Houston, I'll be a lot looser. I need to focus on getting more veggies and water.

Welcome, Faith! Nice to meet you. I love spaghetti squash. I nuke it in the microwave and it comes out perfectly. As long as I remember to poke fork holes into it first :o.

Marie, you would really not want to switch places with me! I spend an awful lot of time fundraising, mostly for our day-to-day work, or for special projects that I'm excited about.

Penny, you need to start cheering louder! I'm glad to be medicated while I watch the Indians be humiliated by the Red Sox tonight :(. I don't mind losing to a great team, but I do mind being beaten like government mule.

Carol, I am thinking of you and your hubby, and hope he's doing well.

Juls, I hope that you're in good spirits today! I'm so glad that you came back to this thread. Supporting each other through the ups and downs is what it's all about--it's what's keeping me on the path, even if I am in the slow lane.

Oh, this baseball game is mortifying, but it seems disloyal to change the channel. With any luck the meds will put me to sleep soon.

G,day ladies, hope your all well, Hi Judy yes I,m in great spirits thank you for asking, glad your trip went well sounds a bit hectic though, good you caught up with friends for a bit of RR time. I,ve done pretty good in the eating game today stayed under my 1500 cals and even managed a bit of walking only about 2 miles I,ll be glad when they fix this leg my wonderful son said to be thankful I,m not a horse or they might have to shoot me LOL he is soooo caring. I was very proud of myself today went to the movies and I resisted the popcorn for me that is an achievement the smell really gets to me it was tempting and I was so proud of my DH for the first time he actually said no when I nearly weakened so Yay to him. Take care bye for now..JULS

Juls, that's excellent that DH helped keep you on track. You sure made me laugh with your son's comment. I guess it's very good none of us are horses or we'd all been shot by now. :)

Judy, it's horrible to watch your fave team be demoralized. I get that a bit with my Packers even thought they're 5-1. The 1 was horrible as they were creaming the Bears until halftime. The Pack went home 60 minutes early that day. And last weeks "win" was ugly. I've Tivo'd a bit of the games so I don't have to watch commercials and I admit to occasionally fast forwarding through the game when it's really ugly. Here's hoping the meds put you to sleep so end your torture.

I walked the dear doggies this morning and it was 26 degrees out. Brrrrrr. I then came home and did yoga by the fireplace. Then a nice toasy mocha for breakfast. With my mocha I usually have a tiny bowl of cereal and I really wanted a biscotti so I did something unusual. I knew I'd crave the biscotti all day until I had one. So I skipped the cereal and had what I really wanted. I did add an apple to the mocha and biscotti for some semblence of nutrition. :) The cals were good at 340 so not too bad. I yoga and walked yesterday. I'm getting so much more balance with the yoga. I now floss and brush my teeth standing on one leg to practice my balance even more. I can really see so much improvement in just 3-4 weeks. That should make skiing way better. Not to mention more flexibility. So I guess I'm hooked. Who'd have guessed.

Well, time to do more chores. I am enjoying my weekend alone even though it's full of chores. I like being by myself. Beauty day was wonderful. The root line is gone in my hair. She wove my natural in through the length and then wove the lighter blonde to the roots on other parts. It looks excellent. And she also trimmed the ends putting just a touch of layers on the bottom inch or two. She styled it differently and showed me how to do it. I'd never thought of it and it's easy. And my eyebrows are very shapely. It was fun.
Marie

Penny your a sweetie giving me some wonderful soap tips. I feel so ready to get the stuff out and get started. So funny you mentioned cupcake molds I was pondering using the tin ones? Do they work? Ever tried them? Or maybe I should just go with the silcone ones. Anyways the idea was super. I picked a beautiful rose pink at my moms I want to add it to a soap now in the drying rack. I also heard of adding marigolds to an orange soap for a marmalade scent idea. Anymore send them my way I loved it and maybe it will jump start me cause I surely need that.

Hubby is to have a valve replaced and that will be our next step. Talking to the drs. seeing a surgoen and scheduling it. At least there was no surprises no blockage or anything else only what they pretty much already knew. He isn't fighting it not even heard him say boo about not doing it. In the OR he say and heard what they had to say and watched part of it on the monitor. GUess that was scary enough for him. They are hoping to do a smaller insert which then they use microscopic stuff if possible. That would be the best for him. He had some big trouble afterwards with his balance for a day so sad to see. On sunday his brothers came over and he was on a mends well by then. They watched a race together and hung out I went to release some built up stress on the river kayaking with some friends. We went where there is a dam and the gorge was so breath taking. Lovely pictures as I was naughty and squeezed under the jail gate to get a better view. Of course all 4 of us did and yes they took pictures. I think my friend is putting together a photo album for my christmas gift. Great idea last yr. I enlarged a couple of HI pictures and framed them for her.
Marie the 30th is the w------ last day. Looking forward to some postive office interaction. Congrats on the son isn't it wonderful to get such good news that the boys we raised are doing so nicely. I love it. Heard from mine too.
Faith hang in there you have come along way bodies adjust in time then we jump start them again its only a matter of time.
Judy hope your doing well on your trip again. I am jealous time for an adventure out of town. Oh but not about you not feeling so good never a dull momment huh? Hope your better real soon and fund raising can be tuff stuff.
Hope I didn't forget anyone have a great day. I am off to do areobic water exercise on tues and thurs cardio with a group to learn the machines.

Do you ladies make your own soap? that is so cool.
Did everyone have a good weekend? Did we all keep on track? I did for the first time since injury! *giving myself a pat on the back*
Hope you all have a good week!
Faith

Faith, excellent job on staying on track for the weekend. I'll admit I wasn't but I wasn't bad either. If I don't track my foods I consider myself off track. The PDA is on my desk ready to get my entries. In other words, no slacking off again. I'm going to enter every bite and get myself serious again.

Carol, it is untimely that the witch won't be there for Halloween. :) Just kidding, you'll have a great holiday. Even more reason to celebrate. I'm sorry about DH but at least he's taking it good and not making your life harder.

I walked the doggies this morning before work. It was hard to ge up at 5:00 - I enjoyed the weekend. I really need to win the lotto and retire.

Not much else going on today. I had a GREAT time with DGS. He's so sweet and cute. We played for hours. And I didn't work all weekend!
Marie

G,day ladies hope you are all in good spirits, Carol and Penny you both have me intrigued with your soap they sound beautiful. Carol that photo of you on the other side of the fence sounds like fun but I think that would be as close as I would want to get to being on the other side LOL. Marie lotto sounds good dreaming costs nothing, I envy you when you walk your doggies I have little dogs a foxy and a silky and they are sooks they don,t like to walk they prefer to be carried but they are spoilt and I don,t think they know they are dogs they think their people LOL. Hi Judy hope your feeling better, G,day Faith, all of you lovely ladies take care.
Julie

Faith staying on track isn't so easy sometimes.
I thought I did pretty good this weekend didn't overdo but the scale disagrees today with my ideas. So I am a bit under the weather with the scale. I know my menopause issues are knocking my system way out of wack. But I lifted my kayak in and out of the the river, rowed for how much time etc. You would think the end result would be positive but not this a.m.. OH! That darn scale can be our friend or not so nice todays the not so nice. My wt is up and that makes me angry but my tension lately hasn't been great with hubbies stuff and office stuff.
Oh well I am going to try and just move forward. On a good note my clothes still fit well and today is my gym evening with water areobics. On hr. should burn some type of calories off. I am going to write my intake as well I have slipped in that area the last week. Just have to do these things I guess. I am with you Marie somethings we just can't give up. What is your PDA?
The date is set for thurs for the DH to meet with the surgoen they aren't messing around quick to call me right back yesterday and get everything on a schedule less than a week from the test he had. So the surgoens office said he is booking about 3 weeks out right now. Well sounds like we will be doing this before Thanksgiving. I guess it got the best of me yesterday but today I am okay and ready to move forward and do what we have to do. The hubby isn't fighting it I think hearing what was being said about his heart in the hospital made him know its got to happen. My work is being great with all this I have quite a bit of sick time around 75hrs. but shaving it off a little here and there for dr. appts. So I requested to adjust my time and so far they are agreeing to it. Today I am starting at 7:30 and going to work til 5 that way when I take the hubby it won't be sick time etc. Nice of them to do this for me. But right now we will be short handed as well and no one wants my work either. Its a win win on my part for the time issue anyways they are trying to work it out and that means alot to me.
I won't be home til 7 tonight cause my water class is 5:30-6:30. But it will be so good for me. Hurray I am really going to get there. A shedule I am going to try my best to fit into. Again on thurs for circuit cardio training they will take a small group of us and show us machines etc. 1 hr.
Juls sounds like your doing well hurray feeling better I hope. Sometimes with me experiences and living on the edge is a good feeling just not any tickets from the law etc.... But a good picture of the gorge and a few laughs.
Gotta go pack a salad with some grilled chicken for lunch and oatmeal to heat up when I get to the office. I am packing a bit of fruit to munch on as dinner will be late tonight. That is a not so good thing.