Woohoo! What a great way to start my day. I hopped on the scale this morning and BAM! Something I've been doing has finally caught up with me--300 pounds flat! That's 4.5 pounds down from last week (even though last week I was up 1 pound, so really a 3.5 pound loss overall). I thought it was just the scale, so I got off and on it 3 times. Then, since it's a digital, I thought maybe it hadn't calibrated right when I turned it on, so I let it turn off and turned it on again, and still 300 pounds! Thanks for crossing your skinny fingers Aimee--I've got mine crossed for you, too!

So does anyone know where I can get a pedometer? Might they have them at like Walmart or Target with the other exercise stuff (I know they have like workout mats and little free weights and stuff)? Someone on another board suggested I wear it while working at the restaurant to see how much I really walk, and I was like DUH, why didn't I think of that?! :dizzy: That way I know how much exercise I get at work, which will be great to know, especially since I haven't been to the gym in 2 weeks cuz of my toe :o Now, does a pedometer measure how many steps I take, or how far I walk? Like, will it say 5,000 steps or will it tell me I walked 3 miles all day? Anyone have much pedometer expertise?

Aimee--I'm so glad your first day went well! It's always a relief to transition smoothly. I'm happy it'll help your schdule and focus, too. Think about YOU!

Heather--wow, if you haven't gained at all and TOM is arriving today, I'd call that just as good as a loss! Keep up the good work--we're glad to hear you're doing well (even if you are super busy)!

Kimberley--funny you should call them "potstickers." I had no idea they were called that. The first time someone ordered the "Asian Steamed Dumplings," silly me, that's what I wrote down. Then I get to the computer to put in the order, and I am searching like crazy for anything that resembles that name (asian, dumplings, maybe chicken dumplings, since that's what they're filled with). But oh no, that would be too easy. No, in the computer they are called Potstickers. How on earth was I supposed to know that?! Took me forever to put in that table's appetizer order! :p Oh, and wanna know a little secret? They're grilled, not steamed, eventhough the menu says steamed--but, sssh, don't tell ;) In any case, as least they're not fried!

Diana--ahh, the joys of being a female indeed! I just actually started a new schedule of the pill where I take 2 back consecutively with no placebos in between, so I only get my TOM every other month (so I guess it's my TOEOM :D ). I was supposed to have it this week, actually, but I switched right to the next pack, and haven't had any problems yet, so hopefully this every other month cycle will work out for me (some people spot when they start the new pack and were supposed to have full TOM, some people get sick from taking the pill for so long without the placebos in between).

Marge--I'm beginning to think that you were right a week or so ago when you mentioned that maybe I'm not eating enough calories. I had every intention of having 2 low-fat hotdogs for lunch yesterday, but come lunchtime, I opened my lunch bag, and I had only packed the rolls--no hotdogs! that's what I get for being so tired in the morning when I'm packing my lunch! Anyway, I ended up going down and getting a salad at the cafeteria instead, which I'm sure had more than the 340 calories my 2 hotdogs would have been (since I had cheese and egg and regular honey mustard dressing on the large salad). I also had those dumplings the other day, which put me up in calories to almost 1800 for that day, plus over the weekend, we went out twice, and I got a big burger and fries both times. I'm not saying I need to have burgers and fries every day, but maybe I need to up my calories to an average of 1650-1750 instead of the 1400-1500 I have been doing. After all, I am down 4.5 pounds from last week!

So, I don't know if I mentioned, but I joined a local chapter of TOPS over a month and a half ago. Because of the added second job, I have not been able to make it to a meeting since the first night I signed up (the meetings are Thursday evenings). Well, a girl at the restaurant yesterday wanted to work today since she had off and needed the money, so I gave her my shift. Now I get the night off, and I get to go to TOPS. Yay! I updated my ticker and added one for my sister's wedding. I put a goal weight of 200 pounds by then (it's April 22, 2006), but I know that's semi-aggressive, so I won't be crushed if I don't reach exactly 200. I'll take any loss I can get before wearing a sleeveless dress! So far, my day is off to a great start (despite the droopy eyelids)! Hope everyone else's days start off just as well--and stay that way!

GM e1...Kimberley, yes, I saw that it is 30 dollars, am seriously contemplating on joining. WW for me is just too expensive, at least here, and I pay 30 dollars a year to play POGO so what the H ya know? I think, in the long run, it will be worth it, now, to just get DH to agree...another story altogether, lol...let me see, 30 dollars for the entire year, versus almost 20 bucks a Month for WW...hmmmm...And, basically, getting the same sort of guidelines to follow, hmmmm...
well, still having major problems with the neighbor's cat. Now,. please understand, I love cats, but not when they decide to use our entire yard as their litter box. And, NY state law says cats have free reign, they are basically allowed to do whatever they want wherever they want and no one can do a thing about it. That has me slightly perturbed, I mean, Scottie is not allowed to go poop in their yard, or else we get fined, but their cat can basically ruin all of our flower beds we put time and money into and its okay. So we went and invested 20 bucks in this small bottle of stuff that smells like Coyote pee, LOL the thing walked right over it...then we threw Mothballs down, again, walked right over them, and some the thing even scratched into the dirt..So we went ind bought two big jugs of Cayenne Pepper.. I threw a bunch down last night...now, she will probably work her way to the other side of the house today, so I will have to go throw some down there too.. I have never seen anything like this before in my life, I never knew one small cat could do so much damage. And now the other cats are all sniffing around too...what a mess..Any poop I find I am flinging in their yard I know this much...Seriously...I am...
And, on that note, am off...HAGD!

Jill~ Just saw that...heck yes, you can lose that much by next year, and, no I don't think that is slightly aggrssive at all...8 pounds a month on average, that isn't too much, at least not to me...heck I lost 6 in a month, and plan to cut my portion control so I will lose at least 8 a month. Some people may think that's crazy, but I think, when you are as overweight as we are, it is not too much to strive for. just my opinion...well, HAGD!

Jill - I have a cheap pedometer from Walmart about $5, It's digital, and shows how mant steps I take as well as distance. It also shows calories burned and the time of day. I usually use it when taking the dog for a walk, but it's fun to wear when you go shopping just to see how far you go just walking around the mall. I'd like to wear it next time I mow the lawn just to see how far I walk behind a 22" blade!

Aimee - great to hear the job is going well for you!

Have a great day everyone!

Wow, lots going on. Hi, Sara :)

Congrats, Jill! Great loss! The more I read about the body and weight loss, the more confused I feel about it. And then the current opinion changes -- like now they're adjusting the food pyramid. I figure I'll just see what works for me and adjust it when it stops working! ha. I don't know anything about pedometers, you might want to check out America's Walking, we used to watch this show all the time. Talks about pedometers and all sorts of stuff. (BTW, In college we called dumplings pot stickers.)

Good luck on the finals, Heather. I agree that staying the same weight at TOM probably means a loss.

Glad to hear first day went well, Aimee. I had bad cramps in my 20s, and a really heavy period. I never really did anything about it, and over the years I stopped having the bad cramps. It probably is worth looking into to get help with, I'm sure there are ways to alleviate it.

Rob has a friend who lost 200 lbs in college by eating a can of tuna a day and exercising like a mad man. Took him a year. He had to have that skin operation, since he lost the weight so fast, and he'd be weak, and almost faint! He did keep the weight off after that, by watching his weight again if he gained a couple of lbs. I do believe that being in touch with your body is the way to go to keep weight off.

Diana, when our cat was a kitten she would go bananas climbing on everything she shouldn't -- including our indoor palm tree, yikes, that was a nightmare. You can get that Cat Away spray and put it in your yard (they sell it in pet stores). We used it for our computer wires too, since she was biting that. It works.

You know, in the city pigeons are always a problem. Here you'll see people putting out plastic owls, with the idea that the pigeons will be scared away. Pigeons may be pea brained creatures, but the fake owls don't fool them at all, :lol: . I see them chillin' out, cooing away right next to those things.

Well, I've really written a book here. Have a great day, everyone.

Hey, Sara - nice to see you in here!

Our neighbor lets her cats roam during the day - I just hate that. Yes, the fence neighbor. ;) The poo doesn't bother me nearly so much as when a cat sprays on stuff. That just makes other cats come around and spray....A regular pee fest. Fortunately, I've not noticed any spraying happening around our place this year.

I'd like to get a pedometer, too. We finally bought a couple of radios to use while working out. I went ahead and got a Walkman with a cassette player so I can listen to books on tape. I figure that way I can "read" as I garden or walk. Eventually, we'd like to get a good TV/FM radio tuner card for our desktop PC so we can record shows off cable and the radio, then burn them to CD or tape them. We hardly ever hear our favorite Saturday morning shows on NPR, just because of our weird night schedule.

I posted a recipe for potstickers a while back. You do grill them at first, to make the bottoms crispy and tasty, then you add liquid and they steam for the remainder of their cooktime. They are so delicious, and you can make them very healthy! Hmmmm, I need to get some wonton wrappers, methinks.

Jill - YAY!! I am so happy for you! Thats a huge loss! Thats like a hand or something.. so from now on I'm going to cross my skinny fingers for you! ;) I had one of those free pedometers from McD's, and then another one from Special K. My mother and I put them on here, drove to the seawall, where we discovered one of us had taken a mini-walk, heh. And then we went for our actual walk, her's kept working, and mine just all up stopped working! So don't get that cheap of one!

Diana - I had a cat like that, my mom used the Cayenne pepper, and it worked really well for her. So hopefully!

So the job! The manager was sick last night, so I met the assistant manager, and their other new part timer. Everyone was really nice, and I seemed to fit in alright. The weirdest thing is to be working in a smaller person store, they start at a size 5 (and go to a 24), vs my old store which started at a size 14. It's funny seeing all these tiny people, because I really haven't for 2 years! It's going to be an adjustment. I think it's time for me to shrink! heh.

Speaking of which, so my official one week weigh in is a total loss of 5 pounds.
I wish I could say I am happy about that.. I don't know why I wouldn't be. I need to be slapped!

Alrighty! I am off to make some food and clean up a bit! Have a good one :)

-Aimee

I've got a dessert plate full of celery, cucumbers and carrots...And 2 tbsp peanut butter to dip the celery in. Yummy!

Jill, I meant to congratulate you on your weight loss, too! I hit send instead of "go advanced" and never went back to edit it. And Aimee, yes, we'll have to slap you, LOL. That's a huge loss!

My weigh-in's tomorrow, and TOM is next week. We'll see how that all pans out, eh?

Hi all...yes, Jill, I forgot, too in all the mess I am dealing with, WTG! And yes, do get a pedometer. :tread: The amount of steps you should be doing in a day is 10,000. I have a pedometer I got for cheap at Walmart, and it just tells me my steps, and has a reset and start button, plain and simple, which is good for me. My MIL has bought all different kinds and hates them all, they are all so complicated. I figure, If I can get myself to do the 10,000 steps in the day, then the rest will all be a bonus. Now, to just remember to put the thing on, LOL...My entire yard looks like one big can of Cayenne pepper, LOL...I went crazy with it after I got home from the gym, and there sits kitty, waiting to pounce on my little tufted titmice and chickadees :yikes: ...Good thing we have not spent 500 bucks for mulch yet..lol..Okay, am off, I will be looking into those potstickers, Kimberley, they sound really yummy...those with a nice salad in the Summer :D ...YUM! Okay, am off....HAG1! and WB Sara~ We have missed you!

Thank you ladies for the warm welcome!

I never have anything fun or interesting to talk about! My life is soooo boring compaired to you all!!

My big excitement for today was an eye exam (my eyes didn't change, they still suck as much as they ever did before), and my dog ate yet another houseplant this week! Damn dog. That's two plants in two days!!! Chewed off and spit on the floor. I keep telling her she NOT a vegetarian but obviously she dosen't listen to her mom!!! I've spanked her and put her in her 'sassy corner' and today I sprayed her with water in the face and put her in her corner. She pretty much HATES me right now! I'm gonna be the mean mom again today, Sam will be the nice one and get all the love when she gets home from work... I hate that. The brat! Good thing I don't have 'real' kids huh?!

Great losses Aimee and Jill! Cross your skinny fingers for me on Monday!

Laughed about your dog -- they are such boogers sometimes. Try spraying your houseplants with bitter apple spray. Makes anything you spray with it tastes nasty. Putting a Q-tip dabbed in Vic's Vap-O-Rub down in the soil may help deter them, too. My cat is the plant nosher here; fortunately Sarah and Emma don't bother our plants, except the ones I'm chopping up for salad, and then they beg shamelessly.

Shame on you for thinking your life's not interesting! ;) Hey, I am a homemaker who spends way too much time on the Internet. My interesting moments come in spurts, like after a good day of photography. I need more of those days (and I need to sell some photos so I can stay a homemaker!).

Sara - my life is SO SO boring, I pretty much wake up, either work, or stay at home. The big excitment in my day today? I'm having issues with my phone. It's all fuzzy, so I've called my telephone people, and they are sending someone tomorrow to look at it. IT's either the phone (which I bought from them), or the line. Stupid arsed phone. I should be out in the sun, but I'll go for a walk later.

Kimberley - both Jill and I will cross our skinny fingers for you.... lol I love it! You are a pretty consistant loser though (teehee, loser;) ).

I'm going to attempt to do Tae-Bo today, yup, I dusted it off. Oh yah! I took my measurements because I was feeling pretty discouraged about my "little" 5 pound loss. Which by the way, is weight I had gained, so technically I'm still up 1 pound. So anywho! I lost 1/2 an inch on each arm! Yay! I just want smaller arms, oh and smaller legs, and a smaller tummy. Why do you think I expect so much out of myself? I mean, when I hear someone loses even 1 pound, I get all jealous and wish I could do that. I think perhaps if I was losing weight that I hadn't just gained, maybe I wouldn't beat myself up. Alrighty, enough feeling sorry for myself. I did lose almost all the weight I had gained, so I need to be happy about that! I'm off to do some Tae-Bo!

-Aimee

Thanks!

Hey, just because you gained a bit doesn't mean you haven't lost. Just stick with it and don't let that momentary blip on the radar discourage you!

Okay, slightly embarrassing question. How do you get rid of really nasty pit odor in shirts? These aren't shirts I can wash in warm water, let alone hot water. I have found myself having to put them in our front-loader's pre-wash cycle three times in a row, then wash them. And that doesn't always do it.

I've tried pre-soaking them in Arm & Hammer washing soda solution, Borax solution, enzyme-type solutions (like Nature's Miracle and Simple Solution). I've tried pre-treating just the pit areas by rubbing them with a dampened bar of Fels Naptha soap. I've tried pre-treating them with straight vinegar as a pre-soak. Some of these methods work, but not without multiple washings afterward. I wonder if pre-treating them in plain baking soda and water would help. It gets the stink out of plasticware that's had nasty leftovers cooped up in it too long...

Most frustrating is, I am a clean person. I just tend to have acidic pits. :?: It's a constant struggle getting my shirts really clean. Sometimes they seem clean, but as soon as my body heat warms up the fabric, there it is.

So there you have it. How real can a person be? ;)

LOL @ kimberley, I hear ya, and I have no idea, some of my tshirts are that way, I must be in the same boat as you..when you find a way, please let me know,lol! hagn all!

WOW, Aimee! That's a GREAT loss! :cb: I have that same reaction sometimes, you know, no matter how much it is I wish it were MORE! :lol: I guess in a way it's good, it keeps me going. The measurements give you a better idea anyway, so extra congrats on the inches lost.

Good news on the Marge front. I finally broke the 270s and entered the 260s! Lost 1.6 lbs this week. That brings me to 268.8. April was a good weight loss month, 4.6lbs gone, yeah baby! I'm going to get my new jeans today. :)

Sara, I have the **** cat, :lol: I love her though. If you've ever seen Shrek 2, she makes that Puss n' Boots face, with the big eyes, so even when she's the biggest brat in the world, my heart melts. Plus I'm a big softie anyway.

Maybe a different deodorant would help. I'm kinda lame when it comes to getting out stains. If tide doesn't do it, I'm lost.

Hey, here's an interesting story for you all that's been on my mind lately. Did you know Jack London (who lived and grew up in the Bay Area where I was born) was the first American author to make $1million in his lifetime. He bought a large chunk of property in Sonoma, the Valley of the Moon. He built a farm and home in the middle of a redwood grove (you can tour it, it's run by the state parks department).

Well, he decided to build a huge mansion about a mile further into the countryside in the middle of another redwood grove. It was going to be stupendous, three stories, with an indoor swimming pool, multiple fireplaces. The day before he was going to move in with his wife, a fire burned down the entire place to its stone shell. It's believed that a disgruntled worker started it with greasy rags.

London died not long after the house was destroyed. He was a heavy drinker and led a wild life. He rose from living in a wooden shack (which you can still see in Jack London Square), where he learned to read by candlelight, to sailing around the world on his own yacht, living in mansions, making oodles of money, and hobnobbing with the in people of the time, including US Presidents.

Here's a picture of the the remains of Wolf House.

Kimberley - how did the weigh in go? I don't know how to get the stain out, I used to get yellow stains from my deoderant, and my grandma would bleach them out. They never fully wanted to come out, but my grandma really forced them out. heh. I love my grandma! If you get botox injections in your armpits it'll make you not sweat, thats the extent of my knowledge. Oh wait! One of my friends in highschool had a simular problem, her doctor helped her work it out. I don't know what she did though.

Jill - Everytime I try and nap 80 billion people call me.. people who normally never call me. It baffles me really, why they need to call right then. Josh went to sleep last night at 7:30pm, and just woke up now, and it's 10:30am!! How's that for a sleep? Not only that, he slept on our guest bed all night. Crazy boy. Why on earth are movies so expensive? I don't even go to movies anymore.. however they did drop the price I believe. It used to be 13.75 per person, but I think they dropped it to 9.25. Or maybe it was just because I went to an afternoon movie.. possibly. Still, I wait until movies come out on video, heh.

Marge - woohoo, congrats on that loss! :) I can't wait until I see something BELOW the 250's, I don't remember being that weight for 3 years!! The measurements were a good thing for me to do, because technically I was still up 1 pound, so I looked thru my old weight loss journals, and I lost the most amount of inches when I was walking 40 minutes 5 days a week, plus doing a weight program every second day, I lost 11.5 inches in 22 days. Not bad.. I should try to do that more.

Alrighty! Enough babbling from me, I need to find food! I'll bbl!

-Aimee

hey e1! Wow, wtg on all the losses!!!! and I know how you feel Aimee~ I would be so glad to reach 250 again...then 225, woo-hoo! It will happen...Somday...Well, guess that is it for now, soooo busy this weekend...HAG1 all, :)

Good, uh, morning! We came home briefly after our weigh-in and McMuffin goodness, but went back out again to the YMCA. I didn't exercise today, just got another fitness assessment done. Howie worked out while I talked with Constance and got my measurements done.

I lost 3 pounds this week -- unbelievable, especially since it's TOM next week. I sure am not going to complain, though. LOL! My body fat has gone from 39.5% (2/14/2005) to 34% today!

Another good thing, Constance showed me an alternate way to grip the handles on the bench press and other upper-body machines, one that may help with my hands. She also told me it's okay and good to work through some pain in my knee :yes: ...I was glad to hear I can still do those machines as long as I'm careful, and that it's good for my knee to do the strength training.

One bit of bad news, though. My blood pressure is really high, at 150/105. :sorry: I never, ever had high BP, but this last year or so, it's been creeping up and this is bona fide not good. I need to make an appointment with my doctor about that and the spotting, which continues to a lesser extent.

Okay, back to good news. Constance wants Howie and me to write an article about our weight loss and what we're doing to get in shape. She wants to put it in the brochure! How cool is that? I've got to pull my scattered thoughts together and start coming up with an article.

We stopped by Subway for lunch on our way home from the Y, and managed to lock ourselves out of our van. Howie had the cash in hand for lunch, but his phone and keys were locked securely in the vehicle.

After trying to call his mom both at home and at church (no answer), my mom (busy signals), his brother (no answer), I tried my best friend Amy. I started leaving a message on her machine, something along the line of "Amy...Help! We're stranded at Subway with our keys locked in the van...", when one of her sons picked up. She was in the bathtub. Mercy.

I told him not to worry about it, got off the phone, and kept trying other relatives. As soon as I hung up, she called back. Thank God for caller ID, too. She bundled all three kids back in the mini-van and drove us home to get our keys.

That's what friends are for...Everybody sing! ;)

Kimberly what a great loss! Especially your BMI!!! WooHoo!!! Could your BP be effected by your McMuffin breakfast? I know when I go to give blood I have to be really careful that I don't have to much salt the night before or the morning of and not a drop of coffee before donation either or my BP is all crazy and I get deferred from donating that day.

Not an overly exciting day here, went to work for a few hours this morning for some overtime to help get us caught up on paperwork, YUCK! Then stopped at the grocery store to pick up flour (it's pizza night tonight and I'm all out of flour!?). Had to come up with something quick for lunch because I had about 10 mins after getting home to have lunch ready for Sam's lunch break... so I grabbed some fresh spinach and red leaf blend, strawberries, pre cooked packaged cubed chicken breast, shredded parmesean, and some Marzetti's just two blue cheese dressing and had a fabulous salad for lunch! Oh yum was it tasty! Had to save calories for my afore mentioned pizza for dinner.

The braty dog was looking so sad I took her for a 2 mile walk after Sammy went back to work! So I got in some bonus exercise today, good for me!

Yes, the coffee and salt may have been the culprit. I had some pretzels crushed up on low-fat ice cream last night, and then the Egg McMuffin and a large black coffee. Heh. But it's never been that high for me. I have an appointment for May 9, and I can always cancel it if things are back to normal by then. I'll get a BP check next week when I weigh in and see what it is.

There is so much hidden salt in what we eat...The pre-packaged sliced turkey breast, for instance, is really high in sodium, but I bought it for quick lunches this week. Normally I cook chicken breast and slice it thinly for salads and sandwiches. One more nutritional thing to watch, looks like. Ah well.

I was afraid I was going to have to walk 2 or 3 miles from the Subway restaurant to our house! Glad that exercise wasn't necessary, though in truth I could use it.

Boy, a hot stone massage sounds wonderful, though. Any massage sounds great!

Kimberley - thats an awesome loss! Woohoo! I don't know much about blood pressure, just that you need to get it undercontrol! That would be a very long walk from Subway to your house, glad to hear someone could come get you guys to get the car keys. Thankfully we can't lock our car without the keys, so we've never had that problem.

Sara - I'm dumb.. but who is Sam? Can you make some pizza for me too? I'm hungry! I had a salad for lunch but I'm still hungry! I think I'll make spaghetti squash and homemade sauce for dinner.. doesn't sound good compared to your dinner though.

So I'm having issues with my stupid phone, the phone company came over today, and the guy said it's my phone.. which I bought from them. And they won't let me return it, it has to be fixed, I've had this before.. with my cell phone, they don't fix it. It's aggrivating, Josh is buying a phone with a cord today. He had to buy jumper cables last night because the battery in the car died again (wiring issues I believe). Silly cars. I need a new one. I'm having a bad run on things I buy.. I should not buy anything! hehe. Can you imagine.. lol. I'll bbl!

-Aimee

Amiee - Sam (Samantha) is my roommate and best friend. I really hate refering to her as roommate because we are so much more than two people who share rent! We have seen each other through so much in the last 6 years we've known each other... She's just 21 and I'm a few months shy of 28 so there is a bit of difference in age but heck, I still get carded if I'm out with her so it's a win-win situation right!? When I was married I bought a house accross the street from Sam's family, she's the oldest of 3 kids and I had actually become friends with her mom. Then I kind of became a big sister or something like that to Sam when she had teen girl issues she didn't want to discuss with her mom. Well I was 21 back then and being an only child was like 'what the heck do I know about raising a teenager!?!?!' But I guess I did okay! We're really on the same level on alot of things. We share alot of things jointly (like Lexi the boxer dog for instance) and really don't like not spending time together. It's all rather odd I guess.

Also to both you and Jill, great losses this week!!! Good for you gals!!!

hey all...Wow, wtg Kimberley!!!! Yes, I agree with the others, was probably the salt...but good thing you are getting everything all checked...I have dceided to join Calorie King, I like what I have read so far...

LOL at Sara...I can totally relate to having a friend like that, even despite our distances, and the fact that her ex-Ahole kept us apart, Heather and I have a bond that is unlike any I have ever known...She is truly a soul-mate of the best kind...
Even if she were your significant other, nothing wrong with that as long as you are happy, but since she is just your best friend, that is fantastic to have a friend like that in this life!!!
HAGN All!!

Cat!!!
 

:D Speaking of cats, here is one I just finished for my craft show, LOL I hope these links work, if not, Marge I will be hunting you down to resize lol...


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4.../catnmouse.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...epee/mouse.jpg

and flower pots I just planted

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4.../flowerpot.jpg

I had quite a bit of celery yesterday and a serving of the packaged luncheon meat turkey; both are high in sodium. Let's keep our skinny fingers crossed that this is just a momentary blip on the BP radar. I am going to start getting frozen veggies instead of the canned, especially after comparing the sodium content of the same 1/2 cup serving (35mg vs. 380mg!).

Happiness is smaller sizes time...I just found a pair of black Venezia 20-tall black boot cut jeans on clearance at Lanebryant.com for $9.99 + 4.99 shipping! I'm psyched now, gotta get down just one pants size until I can wear them.

Heh, I went back to change my order to two pair, but when I put that in, it said to "please reduce the quantity entered". Hope their inventory's accurate and that the ONE pair arrives! I hope I hope I hope I hope.

I can imagine that sweet potato vine trailing down from the pelargoniums! That's going to look great. Is the cat sewn? My screen resolution is set high and it's kind of hard to tell. He looks fun. :)

Ty
 

Originally Posted by Gardenwife:
I can imagine that sweet potato vine trailing down from the pelargonums! That's going to look great. Is the cat sewn? My screen resolution is set high and it's kind of hard to tell. He looks fun. :)

TY yes, I thought so too about the vine, I love that vine, I could even let it grow up the post of the deck, or once I get a hanging plant above the deck, plant more in there so it trails too...I usually get million bells, but may get a Purple Wave this year, our back yard gets so hot...
LOL yes, I have hand-sewn him , then paintd him and stiffened him up with varnish before I attatched him to the rusty spring...TY :D

The planters look great, Diana. Your cats are cute too. :) Keep the pics. I love seeing garden pics. Up the block from us there's a row of brownstones where the families have a sort of block flower competition. They do it all in planters and flower boxes. Then they have the Greenest Block competition in Brooklyn. I'm not even sure who sponsors that.

Yesterday I ended up buying jeans, a couple of shirts and some much needed underwear. The store was packed; I had to wait 10 minutes just to try on the jeans. Next time I'll go in the morning.

Aimee, the last time I was below 250 was 20 years ago! Yikes, hate to admit that. I can see it in the distance, though.

They're playing KC and the Sunshine Band on the radio, Get Down Tonight. Haven't heard *that* in a while, heh heh.

Have a good one everybody.

Happy weekend, everyone. I'm up early for me - Howie's been up since 9:15am, enjoying some quiet "Howie Time" before heading out for a few hours with a friend. I could have stayed in bed, but I woke up and figured I'd just get up. Now that I've had my Kashi & blueberries, I kinda wish I'd stayed in bed. ;)

If I go back to bed, I'll sleep too long, though, and the office still needs to be cleaned. I tackled 95% of the bedroom last night, but the office awaits.

Ahh, Saturday at last! I got to Jeff's yesterday and took a nice 2-hour nap. Mmmm, loved it! Then we went out to TGIFriday's for dinner (I LOVE their Jack Daniel's sauce--the chicken strips appetizer and the JD burger--soooo delicious). Then we just came back and watched a movie, then crashed. I was asleep by midnight and up around 9:15 this morning, so an AMAZING night's sleep for me. Yay! We're supposed to go to an Orioles game in Baltimore today, but it's rainy and very blah outside, so we'll see how that goes.

Tomorrow we'll probably go to Annapolis to the PA Dutch Market--they make the BEST soft pretzels and fresh milkshakes. They also make really good beef jerky, and Jeff is out from the last time we went, so he wants to go restock. We didn't go see Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy last night cuz we were both too tired, so we will probably either go see it tonight or sometimes tomorrow. We'll see...

Kimberely, I once had high blood pressure at a dr visit (don't remember what it was exactly, just high), but I have had 3 appointments since then and had normal BP at all of them, even though I didn't really change anything I was doing, so hopefully it was just something in particular you had that day.

Alright, well, I am STARVING for some breakfast, so as soon as Jeff gets his butt out of the shower, we're off to grab some grub. Hope everyone's weekend is going great!

Happy Saturday! It's almost Sunday.. and I get to sleep until 10:30am! Yay!

Marge - It feels like it's been 20 years since I was under 250 pounds.. soon I will be there, and soon YOU will be there! We just gotta work at it! Yay! Shopping! I enjoy shopping for others, not so much for myself.. or if I do, Iknow what to buy and where to buy it at.. I don't stray from what I know now that I'm a plus size. I can't wait to shrink more. Speaking of which, I got on my scale (I'm addicted I know!), and it's gone down half a pound! I'm under 260! 259.5.. lol.

Kimberley - I wanna stay in bed!! I am very very sleepy tonight, I was thinking about it and I realize this is the first Saturday I've worked in almost a year, it's a very rare occurance for me. You are one cleaning machine, I recall you doing lots of cleaning, so my question is.. are you really that messy or are you just doing a deep spring clean? teeheee.. I should really be cleaning more often.. I'm just SO lazy!

Jill - you are pretty busy on the weekends! On my weekends off, I pretty much lay around the house, eat a little, and get a headache from lack of movement ;) So that doesn't always happen.. but it's happened before.. sad.. really sad. So I have an unhappy story about Jack Daniels, I was out for my best friends 19th birthday, it was the two of us, and whoever we could find out that night. It was a Wednesday night in a small town, we found a few guys, anywho.. to make a really long story short, one guy dared me to do a bunch of shots in a row, which I did. I ended up with the hangover to end all hangovers the next day. And now I just can't stand the smell of it. I do have some very very funny pictures of the evening though. For some reason my friend and I decided it would be funny to change clothes to see if anyone would notice.. no one did, but we sure thought it was funny. I think at one point we were flagging down cars and inviting cute boys to the bar.. oh my.. alcohol = bad!

Alrighty! So I don't know what I normally babble about, but I came to the conclusion I need to do weights. As I was saying yesterday that I lost 11.5 inches in 22 days, so I've been working on doing that. Yesterday I was a good girl and started a new weight program. I think it was on my 2nd day home (I had to move home almost 3 years ago), and I was watching an Oprah (did you see the one on Friday Marge? I cried and thought of you!!), and she said you only need these certain weights. They were, squats, lunge's, shoulder press, chest press, butterfly, dumbbell fly, arm curls, and tricep extentions. I don't really know what I'm talking about now, I'm kinda just talking, if I was on the phone I'd be talking just to hear myself talk.. Time for bedtime! Have a goodnight! And I'll chat to you hot ladies tomorrow!

-Aimee

Yes, I am that messy! Howie and I are both certifiable messies, I'm afraid. Between our clutter and the combination of two cats' and two dogs' hair...I'm really happy we have a wee two bedroom house. Once I start cleaning, it's not so bad, but I put it off forever because I hate the getting started part.

gm all...I see everyone has had a more exciting weekend than I have lol, Rod has had to work 12 hour days ( or midnights) all week since Tuesday when he went in for his first night...he has to do 12s until Monday night or Tuesday morning, whichever, so he has been sleeping...and I am trying to stay quiet, LOL...been rainin so not a hard thing to do, but have found myself eating very bad things from boredom ...and TOM...so, now this was shot to ****....hope to get back on track today..but boy am I super hingry um, er, I mean, HUNGRY :D right now, ugh!!!!well, anyhoo, hagd!

Happy May Day, everyone! I'll be starting a new thread today, just to make navigation easier.

We were planning on going to the botanic garden today then.... RAIN, rain, rain. So, we're staying home watching videos today. I saw Supersize me yesterday, yikes! Made me get up and exercise! (So, not that exciting in these parts, Diana :lol: ) And, hey, put that Snickers bar down! :drill: (actually, that was ME last weekend! :lol: ) One of these days you should take Amtrak down to the city here and run around with me. (Well, not literally run....)

We definitely will get there, Aimee. And now you're under 260!!!! I love leaving one set of ten for another! Don't you feel like you have to mentally redefine yourself? I love doing weights and resistance machines. I love getting more muscles. My scale has a BMI measure and I'm seeing that number go down, which is a great feeling.

oh my.. alcohol = bad! --Aimee

heh heh, once I went with a girlfriend (a small person, keep in mind) and for some reason we thought it would be fun to do tequilla shots! We'd never done it before, and it would be a new experience! Not good. We were walking down the street drunk as skunks (where did that phrase come from, how could a skunk ever be drunk?) acting like idiots. We ended up at her apartment eating rice in the hopes that we wouldn't get really sick (in vain). I did learn from that experience, I'm happy to say.

The Dutch market sounds cool, Jill. There's a Shaker Village north of the city that I've always wanted to see. It's a little out of the way of everything else.

A friend of mine's sister just moved to NY from France for 3 years, so we're going to get an authentic French meal cooked for us next weekend. Rob and I are thinking about visiting France next year to see my friend and her boyfriend. (She came with her mom and dad a couple of years ago and I gave them the 50 cent tour.) Her dad has a small plane that he flies around the alps. If I get invited to try that out, I'd better start really losing weight :lol:

See ya all in the May thread!

Happy Sunday, all! It's almost 11:30, and I'm still waiting for my turn in the shower. His cousin made us breakfast, though, so at least we don't have to go out for one meal this weekend (mmm...pancakes, sausage, and potatoes). I think the plan for today is to go to the park and walk around the pond and feed the ducks, then to lunch at Luigi's (one of his favorite restaurants that happens to be near the park), then to see Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy with his younger cousin. Then, of course, we have to watch Animation Domination on Fox tonight--brand new episode of Family Guy--woohoo!!! I do love me some baby Stewie. No PA Dutch Market today--apparently, it's only open Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, so we missed our chance.

Yesterday, we went to the Orioles game, but we left before it was over because it was very wet, and they weren't winning, anyway. So we took the train home, and then Jeff and I had a minor spat, so that took up most of the evening between tears and trying to talk and silent treatments, but it's all good now :)

Yes, Aimee, alcohol=bad. I have completely stopped drinking--haven't had alcohol since last July. I wouldn't say I was an alcoholic or anything like that, but I definitely couldn't stop when I'd had enough. I never had just a few drinks, I would always at least hit the double digits. My view was that if I'm going to drink, I was going to make it worthwhile and get totally trashed. So, yeah, some interesting things happened as results of my drinking in college (and a little after college), so I have decided to just stop before it does become a major problem. Jeff also does not drink a drop of alcohol, so it's easy for me not to as well.

I guess being semi-active on the weekends is what keeps all the restaurant food I eat on the weekends not catch up to me so badly. Limiting my calories during the week helps to balance it out, too, so my body is definitely not stuck in a monotonous diet rut. When I go to the doc's on Monday, I'm also going to request some blood work. I'll have them check my iron and cholesterol and do a FULL thyroid test. I have been sluggish even after 12 hours of sleeping on the weekends, and, like I said before, I have been cold much more frequently (I'm usualy almost NEVER cold). Also, I have been dieting since January, and just finally lost a total of 10.5 pounds?! I usually hear people talk about how quickly it comes off at first, but 3 months for 10 pounds? ARGH! I know it's good that I am heading in the right direction whether it be slow or fast, but if there is a reason it's so slow, I would like to know so we can maybe fix it. If not, then I guess I'm just not doing what's right for me and my body (which will be equally as frustrating, since I don't really know what else to do). Alright, off to wait for my turn in the shower. Have a great end to the weekend, ladies! OH, and are we starting a new thread for May?--Okay, so I am mildly ******ed. I copied and pasted this message in the new May thread :p