I had forgot to tell you this cute story. Every week at school Josh earns 'bucks' during the week for being a good boy and then on Friday they get to go to the school store to spend their loot. Well this week, Josh bought me a candle and a wand to blow bubbles. Now how sweet is that??? So I lit the candle and Odessa starts singing happy birthday to herself and then when she was done, had to blow the candle out. Everytime I light it, she starts singing and has to blow out the candle.

Planning ahead is practically all of the battle Laura. I doubt I will have any functions to go to this holiday season. I already am looking at the menu for Thanksgiving and I am having everything I normally do. I will figure out the points for everything and then see what I have left and have a brunch type deal so I am not starving by the time dinner is done. Of course since I will be doing all the cooking, I will be busy so that makes the time go by.

Melissa

oh that is so sweet Melissa- little kids are so cute especially when they do sweet things for mom.

Theresa- YOU DO NOT WANT THE CANDY- PUT THE CANDY DOWN-
Evil gunky cavity causing red dye #3 artifical flavored and colored icky plastic wrapped goo. (ok it's not as good as Candace but i tried)
i have to confess i stood in the candy aisle tonight and inhaled deeply- and bought NONE of it. I oh so wanted chocolate ..but i was good and picked up those small bags of halloween doritos and teddy grahams to pass out- i don't care for them and won't eat them so no temptation there. now if it was potato chips and oreos i'd be in trouble. HMM bubble bath-I am liking that idea..

I am on the same page about planning- it does work. we were going to have thanksgiving at my hubby's grandparents and that would have been bad as i couldn't bring anything for me but since they have a tree in their living room we will be going to my MIL's. she is good about letting me pick and bring food. She doesn't care if i bring a bowl of veggies for me or a salad. they always drown the veggies in butter so i bring a bowl for me and say oh it has no salt etc.. and they let me bring lofat/local dessert-
I know of 5 parties/dinners so far that we have to go to. I have volunteered to bring a veggie/dip platter to 3 and will eat before i go to the other 2 so i can grab a few appetizers and be happy. I have and will continue to use the "excuse" of My sugar "might" up and i need to eat carefully. everyone will leave me alone about seconds or eat more.

Well i have the go ahead to start slowly exercising again on Sunday -I can't wait. if you told me 3 months ago i would say that I would have died laughing. I did splurge and buy the biggest loser book tonight. it has some good tips and exercises from Bob. I am just a book junkie and will prolly sell it on ebay next month
I AM SO GLAD TO BE BACK! you all are so awesome. Thank you -thank you -thank you!!!!!!

I decided that since there were too many blahs in October --i'd get a jump start on November. October is over for me. I need a fresh start & a new month ! LOL

get moving Sandi, time to pick up those feet and get to marching. You'll feel wonderful once you get going, and just watch how you're doing in taht area by the end of the year! Thanks for the rip on the candy, you did very well and I needed it.

Melissa, you are smart to plan ahead for thanksgiving. We are hoping to go to Ohio and see my family, I haven't seen them in over a year the way I've been eating is easy to follow wherever I am, so it should not be a problem. I have decided at the actual big meal to load half my plate up with protein and split the other half with carb and veggies equal. Then, I will allow one small slice of pie if my mom makes lemon meringue (which she will if i am coming). If not, then I don't like pumpkin or cherry and can go without. Other than that I hope to stay OP the entire time I'm there. I'll have to volunteer to make supper the other days, that way I'm in control

I have decided to make tomorrow the official start of my November. I'll do my final WI and measurements on the 1st, but tomorrow is the start of another week as far as my WI weeks, so I might as well consider it a new week and a new month. I need the inspiration of a fresh start, so I am wiping the slate clean and starting over with new goals.

As for October goals:
1. No sugar or red meat: 100% sucess on the red meat, not so great on the sugar. had a couple slip ups but it has been SO different from August, when I just couldn't get my nose out of the sweets. I had a few slip ups, but they were small and not full out binges for days. I feel I made huge progress here and am satisfied.

2. Finish milestones 5 & 6: 5 completed, just 13 more to finish 6 and I am determined to make it by the real November 1st. I have gone 100 miles already, which is the most I've ever done in a month, so by the end I'll be over that.

3. No fast food: a couple slip ups here, not perfect, but no all out binges either. I kept it minimal when I did go, and I passed up taco bell which was unbelievable!

4. Only lost 2 lbs unless there's a major jump down when I do that final WI, this is depressing but it's my pattern lately.

Okay, below will be my new November goals and as of tomorrow they are what my eyes are trained upon. I am hoping that if I keep OP with the eating every single day except the pie on Thanksgiving, that will naturally translate into the pounds coming off. Exercise is not the problem, it's that I'm not consistent with the eating plan. I do great a few days then have a treat or two. Not this month,I am focused on the eating.

Theresa

congrats on the jeans sandy! it's all about zippers.
i am really excited about us all starting our november goals. i am hoping to stay op for most days in november, but my best friend's birthday on the seventh, a trip to see friends in san diego the weekend after that, and thanksgiving will all be a challenge. melissa, i love your idea of planning ahead for thanksgiving. i need to come up with recipes for thanksgiving favorites decaloriefied. i am going to skip the broccoli and corn casseroles and remove the heavy cream from the jello casserole recipe. but aside from that, i need to do some planning. pleasing family will not be an issue at least since my sils are very calorie aware and wouldn't eat fatty stuff anyway. dh will be happy to just eat his weight in turkey but what do i do about pumpkin pie
i am considering a november goal right now, but i think a good one for me is to get down to 150. that will give me 19 days to make my dec mini-goal -- only 5 more pounds. aside from that, i will make a goal to keep those three diet-killer events at a maximum of 2000 calories a day. my best friend hates light beer, but as for our camping trip, she will just have to deal with beck's light (64 calories.. woohoo!). i love winter, but boy is it ever diet-death. i must remember.. celebration does not equal food.

Remember it's the crust that makes up most of the calories in pie.
I have a recipe for pumpkin parfaits thats almost as good as pumpkin pie- it's local, lofat and actually tastes GOOD. i'll dig it up and post it later.

I have worked out how to cut calories in the green bean cassarole except for the french fried onions..i will just use FF soup and skim milk and no one will ever know the difference. That way if i grab a spoonful i will not feel guilty.
I am also making mashed Sweet potatoes and will use skim milk or FF/lo sodium chicken broth for a creamy texture. Gravy is a down fall for me.... and i don't like MIL's stuffing ( i am a basic stove top/pepperidge farm stuffing fan and she makes her stuffing with gilblets and walnuts and raisins etc.. )

Melissa- I was roaming around the boards last night and saw a lady posted all kinds of WW recipes. like 2 point goodies and really yummy stuff-

Well I have been up since 6:30 this a.m. and make a massive breakfast for everyone (except me) and I have scrubbed the porch floor and siding, finished going thru totes, have 12 bags of trash and 5 bags for goodwill- i am now starting on the kitchen and plan to get the rest of the house clean. Not that it's that big to clean- it's just a mess. I am feeling better YAY!

NO CANDY NO CANDY NO CANDY NO CANDY NO CANDY NO CANDY NO CANDY

I would love that parfait recipe to use instead of the pie. Like I said it is me and the kids and I think they would think that is fancy too. For gravy I am going to just break down and buy some that is FF. I got some in the organic section at Fred Meyer one time that wasn't too bad really cause I love gravy too. For years I refused to learn how to make it because I was afraid I would resort to putting it on pancakes if I knew how.

Don't forget to set your clocks back tonight. Tonight is a national holiday for me. They used to tease me at work about daylight savings cause I would get that extra hour. I am about to tackle the pile of laundry I have and it was wonderful the girls didn't wake up until 830a this morning! I don't think I have slept this late in over a year. Josh is still at my parents so I didn't have him waking me at 6 either. Lovely!
Melissa

Melissa, my kids got up at 8:40 and it was heaven. It's amazing, because not too long ago I was on here crying that I had to start waking us all up early to start Allie in school. At that time, being up before the usual 9 was torture, but now I can't even sleep until 9. About 8:30 on weekends and I'm up and about naturally, and I get up at 6 on weekdays without a problem as well, it's amazing how we all adjusted so quickly.

Cadwell, nice to see ya around again...was wondering last night where ya been. Maybe it hasn't been as long as I think though. All the things you have planned sound so fun, enjoy them and have fun. I don't envy you the camping, I absolutely hate being out in the cold and especially in a tent, but maybe it's not cold where you are? (I forget where everyone lives)

Sandi, I want to try the pumpkin parfaits as well, although I might the only one who will eat them You have been so busy today, great work. I've gotten ALL the laundry done there is not one piece of dirty clothing or bedding, tablecloth or kitchen rag, in this entire house, and that almost never happens. It'll last until lunchtime when my son dumps food all over himself and the floor, then the piles start all over again. I am just pleased for the moment though.

Theresa

Sorry to be mia for so long...we had company for two weeks and then I ended up getting really sick, so things are just now starting to get back to normal around here! I have done pretty well sticking to my eating plan (exercise is a different story), but I have managed to lose 3 pounds this month! The best part is that I tried on a pair of size 10 jeans at the store the other day and they FIT and they aren't tight either!

There's no way I'll ever be able to reply to all the posts that I have missed, so I'll just say hello and step away from the halloween candy to everyone! It's good to be back!

Glad to see you back Suzy! Sorry to hear you were under the weather and congrats on the pounds gone!

You must be contagious Theresa cause today I am having a not hungry day. If the kids hadn't asked about lunch, I would have passed right by it. Guess writing checks for bills made me lose my appetite-lol. Laundry is close to being done finally. My Amanda is like your little guy. She throws the food she doesn't want all over the floor and I have to change her clothes after every meal too. That coupled with Odessa's accidents the laundry never stops. Well I am off to clean out another cupboard. I swear this job will get finished!
Melissa

congrats on the punds suzy! glad you're back
lol theresa. my best friend is going on the trip and she has been whining about the cold. i was rolling my eyes because this is the same person who wanted to leave san diego (where she has always lived) and move to vermont with her boyfriend, complaining about how it will be too cold to camp in san diego! weather.com said the november low for where we're going is 46. i guess that is cold, but whatever. i love camping. besides, i don't think it will get that cold anyway.

Wow we all worked hard today!

YAY! Suzy on the lost pounds and welcome back ! Being sick is no fun- I am still not able to eat normally- no appetite- which is good i guess..

My day was too busy- I got done so much but wore myslef out. I am looking forward to resting up tomorrow.

Here are a couple pumpkin desserts that get rid of the crust. I have another one that uses cream cheese and pumpkin but I have to dig out that disk for the recipe tomorrow.

If you don't like sugar free pudding just use regular with skim milk

Pumpkin Pudding:
1 cup pumpkin
1 pkg (4serving size) FF/SF vanilla pudding
1 cup skim milk
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
Mix together all ingredients and chill well unitl firm ( and hour or so) makes 4 servings

Pumpkin parfait: 4 servings

Pumpkin pudding( recipe above)
2 cups cool whip free
layer pumpkin pudding and cool whip in fancy glasses-
Pudding/coolwhip/ pudding /coolwhip
I have really done up this by layering raspberries (frozen) or frozen strawberries between the pudding and the cool whip.

Pumpkin trifle- this is a fancy looking dessert too
12 servings

3 cups Skim milk
2 boxes (4 servings) sf vanilla pudding mix
1- 15 oz can pumpkin
1 to 1 & 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (depends on your taste)
Coolwhip free (8 oz. container)
2-3 cups crumbled ( not crumbs but not big pieces either) either: lofat vanilla wafers, ginger snaps or graham crackers

Mix milk, pudding and pumpkin & spice together.
layer in a glass serving bowl 1 cup crumbles, spread some pudding mix on top of crumbles and layer coolwhip on that, repeat 2 more times . you should be able to see all the layers thru the sides of the bowl-
The amount on the crumbles takes some tweaking cause it depends on the size bowl you use. some times you have to add more crumbles to see them or less if it's a smaller bowl. and if you use ginger snaps they crumble larger than graham crackers

Have a good night and enjoy that extra hour sleep !

Got this in email this AM and thought it was cute:

On the 12th week ‘fore Christmas my true love said to me

"HOLY CRAP! Don’t sit THAT on my knee!"



On the 11th week ‘fore Christmas KnowSweat Workouts said to me

"Play It Forward – here’s your opportunity!"



On the 10th week ‘fore Christmas my weight loss partner said to me

"Losing weight is more fun with company."



On the 9th week ‘fore Christmas the scale said to me

"Not one pound, not two, count ‘em three!"



On the 8th week ‘fore Christmas my seamstress said to me

"A smaller size is no longer fantasy."



On the 7th week ‘fore Christmas my trainer said to me

"Fitter people do it strong and hard and sweaty"



On the 6th week ‘fore Christmas my children said to me

"You’re wearing dresses now and not that canopy!"



On the 5th week ‘fore Christmas my will power said to me

"Keep on driving, right on past the MickeyD"



On the 4th week ‘fore Christmas my friends said to me

"You seem different now – more life and energy."



On the 3rd week ‘fore Christmas my best jeans said to me

"I’m all zipped up and you can still breathe!"



On the 2nd week ‘fore Christmas my true love said to me

"Lookin’ good! Lets go make some whoo-pee!"



On the last week ‘fore Christmas my mirror said to me

"A fitter self is my Christmas gift to me

I like that Christmas carol, hopefully we can all follow it. Well my fav holiday is Halloween , I wwent out last night got drunk dances my *** off, my laegs and butt are a bit sore today but, good thing, it means I gave them a workout.
I need ot find out how to load a pic. So you can check out my costume, it was good. Well can't wiat till Tuesday to start a whole new month and get with the program. I havnt met any of this months goals, might have to double Novembers, . I know what I have to do, I just have to do it.

I for one am going to be happy to have October gone and start all over again. This has been the most frustrating month I have had since I started losing weight. I had a not hungry day yesterday, hardly ate really and even got some excersize in and the scale said I was heavier this morning! It must be water or even some muscle which the logic in me understands but the emotional part of me just wants to kick something and throw a fit (like it would do any good). I am not giving up though because the alternative is even more ugly than staying where I am at right now and I figure eventually my body has to get the picture and conform to what I am doing. It just really makes me mad is all. I know part of my problem is too that I dread Sundays because of the ex. I have been fortunate the last two weeks and they have been uneventful but I never know when he is going to get yet another burr up his butt and be stinky again and I hate for the kids to be subjected to that. Ok I think I have whined enough for the moment but don't be surprised if I am back later venting again.

The plan for today is to get some more of my cupboards done, mop, and try and get the rest of the pictures in an album. My glasses won't be ready until Friday at the earliest and I hate not having them. I can't cross stitch without them and my angel is getting very close to being done.

Ok whiney girl is off
melissa