Trisha - Thank you for your support, and I did have a good time. They all wanted to go out last night too, but I didn't because I didn't want to blow my diet again!! I weighed myself again this morning and didn't notice any change.
Redswirl - I wanted to tell you that the post that you wrote on "Big Whine, don't bother to read" was extremely motivational. All the things you told her apply to me, too (probably everyone else!) and really inspired me to stop feeling sorry for myself and get going!! Any of you other ladies who have not read that thread, I encourage you to do so - it really is inspiring.
Laura - I am sorry to hear about your tough week. I know that you can get back onto your feet and keep going. Please continue to post here when you are feeling down, because I really think that that's when you need to post the most!! Maybe instead of not baking, you could bake something that isn't entirely bad for you, like instead of baking pumpkin pie, bake some pumkin seeds!!! Also, I found an interested article about the sweetners somewhere on this website. I do not remember where I found it, because I saved it for myself to show to my grandma, who enjoys the artificial sweetners. I do not know if it is true or not, but I will paste it here anyways:
Coke..Pepsi..Artificial Sweetener.... (Diet) Coke or Not?
> INTERESTING!
In October of 2001, my sister started getting very sick, she had stomach spasms, she was having a hard time getting around, to walk was a major chore. It took everything she had just to get out of bed; she was in so much pain. By March 2002, she had undergone biopsies, and was on 24 various prescription medications. The doctors could not figure out what was wrong with her. She was in so much pain, and so sick, she knew she was dying. She put her house, bank accounts, life insurance etc. in her oldest daughters name, and made sure her Younger children were to be with her oldest daughter. She wanted her last "hooray", so she planned a trip to FL (basically in a wheelchair) for March 22nd. On March 19th I called her to ask her how one of her tests went, and she said they didn't find anything on the test, but they believe she had MS. I thought, oh, my.... then I recalled an article a friend of mine e-mailed to me...and I asked her....Do you drink Diet pop? She told me yes, as a matter of fact she was getting ready to crack one open that moment....I told her not to open it, and stop drinking the diet pop....and e-mailed her the following article. She called me within 32 hours after our phone conversation and told me she stopped drinking the diet pop, and she can walk... she went up the stairs, and the muscle spasms went away. She said she didn't feel 100% but sure felt a lot better. She told me she was going to her doctors with this article and would call me back when she got home. She called me, and her doctor was amazed, he is going to call all of his MS patients to find out if they consumed artificial sweetener.... In a nutshell, she was being poisoned by the aspartame in The diet soda, dying a slow death. When she got to FL March 22nd, all she had to take was one pill, and that was a pill for poisoning....she is well on her way to recovery.....and she is walking!!!!! No wheelchair!!!!
This article saved her life!!!! The life saving article:
If it says "SUGAR FREE," on the label, DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!!! I have spent several days lecturing at the WORLD ENVIRONMENTAL CONFERENCE on "ASPARTAME" marketed as 'NutraSweet', 'Equal', and 'Spoonful'. In the keynote address by the EPA, it was Announced that in the United States in 2001 there is an epidemic of multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus, that it was hard to understand what toxin was causing this to be rampant. I stood up and said that I was there to lecture on exactly that subject. I will explain why Aspartame is so dangerous: When the temperature of this sweetener exceeds 86 degrees F, the wood alcohol in ASPARTAME converts to Eformaldehyde and then to formic acid, which in turn causes metabolic acidosis. (Formic acid is the poison found in the sting of fire ants.) The methanol toxicity mimics among other conditions multiple sclerosis. People were being diagnosed with having multiple sclerosis in error.
The multiple sclerosis is not a death sentence, where methanol toxicity is! Systemic lupus has become almost as rampant as multiple sclerosis, especially with Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi drinkers. The victim usually does not know that the aspartame is the culprit. He or she continues its use, aggravating the lupus to such a degree that it may become life threatening. We have seen patients with systemic lupus become asymptomatic once taken off diet sodas. In the case of those diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, (when in reality, the disease is methanol toxicity), most of the symptoms disappear. We've seen many cases where vision returned and hearing improved markedly. This also applies to cases of tinnitus. During a lecture I said "If you are using ASPARTAME (NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc.) And you suffer from fibromyalgia symptoms, spasms, shooting pains, numbness in your legs, cramps, vertigo, dizziness, headaches, tinnitus, joint pain, depression, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, blurred vision, or memory loss-you probably have ASPARTAME DISEASE!"
People were jumping up during the lecture saying, "I've got some of these symptoms: Is it reversible?"Yes! Not drinking diet sodas and keeping an eye out for aspartame on food labels, yes! We have a very serious problem.
A stranger came up to Dr. Espisto (one of my speakers) and me and said: "Could you tell me why so many people seem to be coming down with MS?" During a visit to a hospice, a nurse said that six of her friends, who were heavy Diet Coke addicts, had all been diagnosed with MS. This is beyond coincidence! Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi etc. IS NOT A DIET PRODUCT! The Congressional Record states that it makes you crave carbohydrates and will make you FAT. The formaldehyde stores in the fat cells, particularly in the hips and thighs. Once off these products with no significant increase in exercise, etc., Dr. Roberts in his lecture stated that he had patient who lost an average of 19 pounds over a trial period. Aspartame is especially dangerous for diabetics. We found that physicians would believe that they have a patient with retinopathy, when in fact the symptoms are caused by aspartame. The aspartame drives the blood sugar out of control. Thus diabetics may suffer acute memory loss due to the fact that aspartic acid and phenylalanine are neurotoxic without the other amino acids found in protein. Thus it passes the blood brain barrier and deteriorates the neurons of the brain, causing in diabetics(as well as in patients not suffering from diabetes) various kinds of brain damage, seizures, depression, manic depression, panic attacks, rage, violence. (The Aspartame in thousands of pallets of diet Coke and diet Pepsi consumed by men and women fighting in the Gulf War, may be partially to blame for the well-known Gulf War Syndrome.) Dr. Roberts warns that it can cause birth defects i.e. > mental ******ation if taken at the time of conception and early pregnancy.
Children are especially at risk for neurological disorders and should NOT be given NutraSweet. I can relate different case histories of children having mal seizures and other disturbances being on NutraSweet. Unfortunately it is not always easy to convince a mother that aspartame is to blame for her child's illness. Only by trial and success will she be able to warn other mothers to take their children's health in their own hands. Stevia, a sweet herb, NOT A MANUFACTURED ADDITIVE, which helps in the metabolism of sugar (which would be ideal for diabetics) has now been approved as a dietary supplement by the FDA. For years the FDA has outlawed this sweet food because of their loyalty to MONSANTO. Books on this subject are available: EXCITOTOXINS: THE TASTE THAT KILLS - written by Dr. Russell Blayblock (Health Press 1-800-643-2665) and DEFENSE AGAINST ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE written by DR H. J. Roberts, also a diabetic specialist. These two doctors will be posting a position paper with some case histories on the deadly effects of Aspartame on the Internet.
According to the Conference of the American College of Physicians "we are talking about a plague of neurological diseases caused by this deadly poison." Here is the problem: There were Congressional Hearings when aspartame was included in 100 different products. Since this initial hearing, there have been two subsequent hearings, but to no avail. Nothing has been done. The drug and chemical lobbies have very deep pockets Now there are over 5,000 products containing this chemical, and the PATENT HAS EXPIRED!!!!!
I assure you, MONSANTO, the creator of Aspartame knows how deadly it is. They fund among others, the American Diabetes Association, the American Dietetic Association, the Conference of the American College of Physicians. This has been exposed in the New York Times- to no avail. These Associations cannot criticize any additives or convey their link to MONSANTO because they take money from the food industry and have to endorse their products. Senator Howard Hetzenbaum wrote a bill that would have warned all infants, pregnant mothers and children of the dangers of aspartame. The bill would have also instituted independent studies on the problems existing in the population (seizures, changes in brain chemistry, changes neurological and behavioral; symptoms). It was killed by the powerful drug and chemical lobbies, letting loose the hounds of disease and death on an unsuspecting public.
> Here are some links to websites:<http://www.nancymarkle.com/>
<http://www.ethicalinvesting.com/monsanto/markle.shtml>
<http://www.aspartametruth.com/>
Everyone else - please have a beautiful and healthy day!
Sam
Oh well, I will be alright. 
:You need to remember to be good to yourself and be proud of what you have accomplished. Whether its one choice, one meal, one day it all counts. 
salsa), do homework, get my stuff ready for the gym in the morning, make lunches and finish folding laundry. Can't imagine how I handled all this stuff when DD was kid at home..... How do you young parents cope? I only have me, DH and BIL at home. But then I'm the only one who does much around the house. DH does do most of the cooking, for which I am thankful, 
but that's why it is imperitive that he is on side with my program. He gets hurt if I don't eat what he makes....
(so sorry) but know that I sneak a peak a couple of times a day. You guys are really helping me stay on track and have such a positive record these last eight days.. I hope I can return the favour...
Joy