Gettin' together -- November 2005
 

Well, we're at the start of a new month. :carrot: Thanksgiving month. The holiday season tends to get me worried about my eating. Maybe I need to concentrate more on the spirit of the season, than the goodies of the season. I'd like to have a plan set up ahead of time to make sure I do what's best for me, instead of indulging myself to no end, which is what part of me wants to do! :devil:

Robert and I cook Thanksgiving meal, so while that can give us more control, it also can lead to pitfalls. Yep, gonna have to have a talk with him about the best way to deal.

On the positive side, he didn't buy any Halloween candy. The bump this weekend was homemade chocolate birthday cake.

I have my TOM now too, Jill. Nothing like all that PMS to make life more :dizzy: Take it easy.

Amy, how cool you get to talk to a life coach. I'd love to do that.

This Friday it's going to be 70 DEGREES here! I want to be outside enjoying myself that day, let me tell you!!

Kimberley, where art thou? How are you doing? Thinking about you.

Have a good one, everybody.

I'm not sure what we're doing for Thanksgiving yet (heck, I don't know what I'm doing later today, let alone later this month!). I assume we'll spend it with Jeff's cousins (the ones he lived with) since we are flying up to CT to be with my family for Christmas. I've never had to share holidays before! I used to always either go home to CT or go to my sister's in Va Beach. We did spend Easter with Jeff's cousins last spring, but I couldn't give up my family OR my Jeff for Christmas, so I stayed with Jeff on Christmas Eve, opened presents with him (and his 2 older cousins and their 3 boys) on Christmas morning, then drove to Va Beach on Christmas day to meet up with my sister and my parents (who had driven down from CT). No more of that craziness this year--I am dragging Jef with me for Christmas!

For some reason, I seem to magically be losing weight again. I hovered in the same 3-pound range for nearly 3 months, and now that I am eating MORE calories, I seem to be doing better. I was certainly not staving myself before (ALWAYS had over 1200 calories a day), but I guess my body is just happier at this new level (averaging about 1800-1950 calories a day over the course of the week). No complaints here!

Jeez, I certainly could use a life coach right about now! I talked to my mother and sister yesterday about my *incident* with Jeff last week, and they both told me to just move on, but to keep my eyes open in the future (which was what I planned on doing, but it was nice to have some reassurance). They gave me this same advice from complete opposite points of view. My father apparently thought my mother cheated on him (with his own brother!) while he was in Germany in the Army back before they got married. They celebrate their 31st anniversary this month, yet apparently my father still sometimes brings it up, which is very hurtful to my mother since she never cheated! I don't want that to be us--I don't want it to still be in my head in 31 years, and I don't want Jeff to be frustrated and have to defend himself constantly for something he didn't do! My sister was married to a Navy guy, and he cheated on her a few times (never admitted it, but even his parents think he did!), so she has experienced my side, while my mother has more experienced Jeff's side. I wasn't going to talk to either my sister OR my mother about it all because I didn't really know how they would react, but now I'm really glad I did :^: Of course, I still cried while discussing it with both of them (and then cried a little more with Jeff last night), but having such a great suport system will definitely help me to move on. As my sister said, "forgive, but don't forget"--let it go, but learn from it :)

Goodmorning!! It's POURING rain here, yuck. I was watching the weather and looks like we are going to be hit with storm after storm for the next COUPLE weeks! I hate the rain, I hate the gloomy-ness. I have even resorted to getting my brother to bring me 5HTP, I know there are bad things said about it.. but they take away my winter depressions!

Marge - I am so happy to have you back, I missed you SO much during the summer!! In the spirit of thanksgiving, I'm greatful for my american counterpart! So how are you going to deal with the upcoming season of eating? Well, you have to start with breakfast, if you are on top of eating healthy meals consistantly, those little "treats" won't budget your weight. Of course, I had garlic bread, cracks and some candy for breakfast. Like "berries", heh.

Jill - I have gone thru the cheating thing countless times, and it turned me into a cold heartless b*tch. But I learned that it' just not worth it if he really did cheat. It actually hurts your own selfesteem.. which is why I felt the need to speak up. I care for you and don't want you, or anyone to have to go thru that feeling. Alrighty, enough on that! What did you scale say when you peaked?

So last night my brother informed me that him and his gf broke up! Now, they LIVE together, and will continue to do so. Thats just ODD to me! My brother moved into the other bedroom, they are going to still come here together to go shopping on the Nov 11th long weekend... tell me, isn't that ODD??? Phew.. I don't get it! I just needed to let that out.. I am off to price winter tires for my mom! Talk to you all later!

-Aimee

Aimee--If, in my heart of hearts, I really felt he cheated, then we wouldn't still be together. There's no three-strike rule with that issue--one cheat and you're OUT! But why would the boy who put 40,000 miles on his car in a year and a half to see me (since I lived in Va Beach when we met and was still about 75 miles away when I moved to Manassas) waste all that effort if he were just going to see someone else? I think the reason I had (have?) such a hard time letting the whole thing go completely is just that I am afraid of becoming one of those naive girls who gets cheated on and just always believes the guy no matter what other evidence she finds, ya know? But since I have no hard evidence (that one conversation was all I ever found, and even that could have other explanations because it never specifically mentioned them being together), then I have no reason to continue to pester him about it. I love that so many people care about me and don't want me to get hurt--know that if Josh ever hurt you, I'd fly across that border in no time, too ;)

I think it's great that your brother and his (now) ex-gf can still live together. I would hope that if Jeff and I ever broke up, it would be on good enough terms so we could still behave like rational adults and at least live out the rest of our lease together if we had to.
The scale this morning said I'm down another 2 pounds so far this week, so let's hope that still carries over to the TOPS scale on Thursday night :carrot:

Hi, everyone. Sorry I've been scarce. It was a busy weekend, as usual lately, and I was out all yesterday afternoon and evening. My doctor's office got me in to one of their emergency appointments yesterday since I'm still on the puny side of life. I was glad to see my own doc this time and talk with her about several things other than this walking pneumonia stuff.

There's something going on with my right hip with numbness and burning, plus my left knee and lower back are giving me trouble; she had x-rays done of all of those areas, plus some of my lungs. She said that to her eye she didn't see any arthritis or spurs in my knee, so it may be ligaments. She sent the lumbar and hip films out to be read elsewhere.

My lungs look good, so hopefully this new antibiotic will clear up what infection still has me worn down. She agreed that I would benefit from upping my dosage of Lexapro for the winter months. However it all works together, I'm ready to feel better!

Beggar's night was last night, and I spent it over at our friends' home. Not one piece of candy passed these lips, I'm happy to say. I had sensible portions of the spaghetti and meatballs she'd made, and did have a piece of cake.

Howie was having a bad night, though, and got a triple & fries at Wendy's for his lunch. Then when he got home we had ice cream, and too much of it. I wasn't as over until the ice cream. And it wasn't as bad as I could have been, but still was knee-jerk emotional eating, which I don't want to do. So, no candy, but too much ice cream. I would have eaten far more chocolate calories had I started with one mini-bar, though! LOL ;)

In my discussion with my manager who is the life coach, I asked her what the key to weight loss was...

Are we ready for it??

I'm not...

Okay..

It's...

Dealing with the emotional issues that cause the eating.

Seems simple enough, but wow, I don't know if I'm ready for THAT!

Kimberley - I sure hope you get back to your normal swimming self soon! Sickness is such a PAIN! What is Lexapro?

I am off to get some exercise in.. ttyl!

-Aimee

I hear you on the emotional eating. Lexapro is an anti-depressant, one of the SSRI types.

A few years ago I went on Antidepressants, I tried two, and neither worked for my body, I began to sleep all the time, and became an emotionless void. I hated it, I would have rather been crying all the time! My doctor didn't listen to me.. so I sought out other ways of dealing with depression. Thats why I'm doing the 5HTP. We all have our ways of dealing.. I'm glad you and your doctor see eye-to-eye on it. I mean, we know our bodies best, and the doctor is there to aid you in being your best. Perhaps we need to move to a REALL sunny place? I find the sun makes me happy.

On the line of emotional eating? I'm not sure I'm ready to deal with my issues. I'm not ready to accept that my life hasn't been perfect.. ah denial.. It's not even that is has to be THAT screwed up.. just one comment at one time could do it. I'm learning a few things from this Life Coach of a manager... maybe she's come into my life to aid me along this journey of life?

Alrighty, on that note! I am excited to say I exercised again! Two days in a row! Woohoo! I try to do some healthy eating and/or exercise on Biggest Loser night... is that weird? Have a great night!

-Aimee

A lot of the antidepressants make people really sleepy for the first few weeks, but the body should adjust if it's working for the person. When I first took this, I could *not* stay awake. Then, I was just sleepy and yawned uncontrollably (great timing - I worked at a call center!). It got better, though, and just helps me stay at an even keel. It's been a real life-changer for me and I wish I'd talked to my doctor years earlier.

Marge - I am so happy to have you back, I missed you SO much during the summer!! In the spirit of thanksgiving, I'm greatful for my american counterpart! So how are you going to deal with the upcoming season of eating? Well, you have to start with breakfast, if you are on top of eating healthy meals consistantly, those little "treats" won't budget your weight. Of course, I had garlic bread, cracks and some candy for breakfast. Like "berries", heh.

Ahhh, I'm greatful for you too! And all you gals! I almost always eat cereal for breakfast and I never skip breakfast (what? me skip a meal??). Rob thinks and I guess I'd have to agree that the extra treats are the killer for me. What is cracks?

You know, I do believe people and things happen all the time to help us along, sometimes we recognize it, and sometimes we don't right away. Congrats on the exercise! It's one day, sometimes one hour at a time for all the improvements. Re: Biggest Loser, didn't you think Mark looked handsome at 228 lbs? Wow. He's from Campbell CA which is where my brother lived for a while (a suburb of San Jose).

I don't think I could ever live with an ex, I mean, wouldn't you need to have a certain emotional distance to do that? what if they start going out with somebody else and you're living there having to see that?

You know, I can feel that resistance in me that says I don't want to give up those good foods we cook for thanksgiving, like stuffing and pie and cranberry sauce. I get that it's for a great cause, but mentally I need to get myself in the place where it doesn't feel like a deprivation. I'll be coming back here to get :drill: and :cheer: and :coach:

Re: all the emotional issues, I've sludged through some of it in therapy. Took Prozac for about a year (am so glad I did that, totally helped with a period of depression for me). It is tough. I know I haven't dealt with everything. Thurs on Dr. Phil is about extreme food obsessions.

Kimberley, lots to deal with physically and health wise for you. Don't let it get you down. I know that's easier said than done :grouphug: Man, the emotional eating is hard! And when you don't feel well, it can creep up. Baby yourself.

Jill, you have lots of good people to talk to and get perspective, which is GREAT. I'm jealous of your weight loss momentum, I need to get mine going again!! You should really pat yourself on the back about going through a hard time and still taking care of yourself eating and exercise wise.

Anyway, I've written a book here. I'll just say to end that I think we don't always give ourselves credit for how much we are able to deal with or do. I know personally that I can have the habit of saying that I'm not ready or strong enough, when in truth, I have fears about it and in reality need to push myself. That's me, not saying it's true for everyone.

Take it easy, gals.

Hehe... cracks = crackers.. I'm losing it!

I slept in this morning, skipped exercise, and feel like killing people.. could this be PMS? It sucks working retail on days like this.. I should lock myself away from everyone and anyone.. including myself! On that note.. I'm going to go to work.. Have a good day!

-Aimee

Originally Posted by :
I know personally that I can have the habit of saying that I'm not ready or strong enough, when in truth, I have fears about it and in reality need to push myself.

That, my dear, is the story of my life! I'm the classic underachiever, paralyzed at the thought of getting out there and really taking a risk, really pushing myself.

On a sunnier note, our dogs are stretched out on the big footstool, soaking in the rays. They are so content and have such basic needs for happiness. We've often said we wish we could be our dogs. ;)

Me too, Kimberley. I struggle with it all the time. It didn't really help that I came to NYC and threw myself into the lion's den, so to speak. Lots of people here without an ego shortage, to say the least.

Amy, you Canadian :queen:, pamper yourself, I think you need to do that right now. I get the feeling you have lots of stuff percolating in your coffee pot (don't I have a way with words??).

This thread has been helping me lately. I've been thinking about the whole food/Thanksgiving issue. I'm clinging to wanting to eat all those goodies as a treats for myself when what I really want is the Norman Rockwell gathering of family and friends. My family has been extremely sucky to me lately, after my sister managed to be nominally supportive during this past tragedy. They're just incabable. So, it's up to me to fill in that place.

Hang in there ladies. The sun is shining today, and the leaves on the trees look gorgeous with all those colors. I love the fall. Chloe is asleep in her basket on the filing cabinet -- I agree, these fur creatures really have the life of Riley!

Marge - my fall consists of rain, rain and more rain. I can hear the wind howling... ah the fall in Vancouver sucks!! I can feel my TOM is going to start soon, and then all of this aggression will go away ... :) My friend is just as bad as me... I have a feeling we should have avoided eachother this week... we are nearly at eachother's throat. I think we sometimes have to fill in those areas that lack the support with people that do. My mom doesn't get a whole lot of support from her family, so she really relies on her friends... we can be your support system!

Kimberley - I'm suck at the age of 17 wherre life is easier.. hense all the crappy jobs. It's amazing how we are all a little alike...

Alrighty, I'm going to go exercise. I did a weigh in today... 263, just asI thought. Thats up a few pounds for me... but I'm going to try and do a christmas challenge, and lose 15 pounds. I think if I apply myself, I can.. I don't go to christmas parties really, no family stuff until the 27th. I might be able to do it! Have a great day gals!

-Aimee

Great idea, Aimee! I'll join you on the 15 pounds by Christmas challenge. I'll start with whatever my weight is at TOPS tonight. I was doing so well over the weekend and early this week, but then the past 2 days, I have BOMBED food-wise, so what I thought would be at least a 2-pound loss or the week is now possibly just maintenance (if not a little gain :o ). The cnady demons in the office got to me hard core, and then I made pierogies for dinner the other night, which would have been fine, except I ate too many and then ate too many more for lunch yesterday :mad: I have been good today, so we'll see if I'm retaining much water by what the scale says tonight!

My sister is all excited because her finace booked their honeymoon, so it's feeling more real to her now. They are taking a week-long Alaskan cruise--and they board in Vancouver! Maybe she can sneak me in her carry-on luggage so I can come see you, Aimee ;)

Well, looks like I have to start very closely watching my vacation time here at work. I am taking off a week in December between Christmas and New Year's, a few days in April for my sister's wedding, and a few days in May for my sister's post-wedding party in CT (since our huge CT family can't all go to the wedding in Va Beach). PLUS, I just found out a couple days ago that one of my close friends from high school is getting married in February, so I may have to make a trip to Nashville (where she lives now). Jeff and I also want to go back to Atlanta next year because they just built a new big aquarium down there that is supposed to be really amazing, so we want to check it out. I really wish he got more than one week of vacation time each year!

Dang, Jill, you're unstoppable! Good for you, girl!

A challenge sounds good to me. Holidays can be the undoing of many good intentions, so let's band together. I intend to make Thanksgiving my treat day for the week, but I am going to "eat like a skinny person" (but not one of those skinny SOB's that can pack away the food and not gain an ounce). I maintained last holiday season, so I know it can be done. This year, I want to keep losing through the holidays, though.

The contact for People called today. They're sending a photographer, his assistant, a hair/makeup stylist and a wardrobe stylist out here on November 14! Good grief, this is unreal. I have the wardrobe stylist's e-mail address and will send her our sizes and preferences. Sounds like there's a small chance we might get to keep some of the clothes if they have to be altered for us. And get this, they just got done doing a shoot with Pete from The Biggest Loser. The lady said he was so nice to talk to on the phone. His wife was tickled he got to keep some of the clothes, because he's still losing weight. :) Go, Pete!

So I was a little off on my weigh in this morning.. I realize I wrote down my starting number on Monday, and then this morning I wrote down 262... but not realizing I had lost a pound. I am a little out of it sometimes! SO! I am down 1 pound, 14 to go! I start those 5HTP pills next Saturday, and I have a feeling my body will agree with them again and I'll drop weight without trying.. so I might have to up my challenge.

I actually DID exercise today... lots of the time I just say I will and then lay down.. lol. I can feel my body getting stronger, but i'm finding I need MORE food, is that odd?

Jill - the more the merrier! You are dropping weight like crazy gal, so it might be a challenge to keep up with you!! Those vacations sounds nice. I hope they enjoy Vancouver even tho the rain refuses to stop! Maybe they can see the two Starbucks that are literally RIGHT across the street from eachother.. yet both are busy.

Kimberley - that is just TOO cool! Do you feel the need to step it up a little to see if you can drop a few pounds before they come? I know I would..

Marge - now I love yah... possibly like a sister.. but this "Amy" garbage has to stop! hehe...

Alrighty, I gotta sleep.. I got home LATE, 11:15pm, and I gotta be up at 7:15am.. So i'm looking at 7-ish hours.. but I could go for 10!

-Aimee

Holy cow ladies, I get to do back to back posts? Its feeling wrong to be awake right now... I am going to look forward to sleeping tonight! hehe...

-Aimee

we can be your support system!

Awww, I'll take it! very happy to be offered it! (Amy stuff?)

Aimee, when I started doing the gym more regularly my appetite increased. I can see all the extra exercise making you hungry.

An Alaska cruise sounds great! Hope they have a great time. Man, you're going to be an expert in weddings soon, Jill.

I changed my ticker to read my actual weight, I'm down almost a pound today. Aimee, my Canadian friend, we're the same weight. But you're a smaller size than me. I can't fit into 18s yet. I honestly don't think I'll make 15 lbs by Christmas, maybe 10, though I think even that's ambitious. I'll take 10 :lol: Jill, I hope that mojo you have going rubs off on me!

Kimberley, can I say I knew you when? ;) Really fun. Can't wait to see the spread in the magazine.

Congrats on those lbs shed, gals.

Rob and I are about to go out to lunch and I have to dry my hair. Have a good one!

Good for you, Aimee! Jill! Marge! We're all losing, because I am down 2 pounds this week to 204. It was teetering between 203-204, but I went with the solid number. Oh, what a relief.

Yes, I want to lose as much as I can before they come. I wonder if the wardrobe person will do alterations on-site. Guess they'd have to, eh? I am so not the fashionista. LOL

Hi! So I went to take my friend to the doctor, but she had to go home.. and since it was a walk in, I thought I'd pop in and see the doctor. So I got a prescription for the pill, and got some advice on the whole 5HTP thing. He says that it's safe, and when they prescribe things it's just a version of that.. so I feel better about taking them. I did however get my blood pressure checked, not good. In my defence? I had coffee for breakfast, coke at lunch, a brownie, and had TWO incredibly aggrivating, annoying, frustrating things happen JUST before he did it. It was 138/90. Eek! Oh, and I had a REALLY high salt lunch. Probably the worst day to get that checked.. heh.

Jill - I'm glad you are on board! Whats the deadline on this goal? Christmas Eve morning?

Marge - I think you should make a tracker too (you too Kimberley if you are game!), I think you should aim for 15 as well... set your sights high.. because the worst that can happen is you will achieve higher weight loss! I know you can do it. I suspect I don't actually weigh 262, my scale at home.. not so accurate. We might get a good scale, and then I could really tell yah. Also, I really do carry my weight well, I have a large frame AND I'm muscular.. I thank goodness for that everyday! Oh, this doctor mentioned something about my weight, and I told him it was coming off slowly.. and he said.. it's one of the hardest things to do! A smart doctor, I'm IMPRESSED!!

Kimberley - I second Marge... can I say I knew you when?? I shall be bragging, "omg I totally know her!" and showing it to everyone... so yah, make sure you have a fresh haircut and a good bra on! Oh.. and seamless undies! It's a necessity for every gal!

Well, time for this gal to sleep.. I believe the first thing I said this morning was "no"! Okay, time for sleepy... nite gals!!

-Aimee

Sheesh, that sounds like my BP was back a few months ago. I'm happy to report that it was really good on Monday when I saw the doctor, though.

Okay, okay, I added a challenge ticker. ;) My sig's going to take dial-up users 5 minutes to load at this rate! LOL

I'm going to save myself some embarrassment and not say how long it took me to figure out how to make that second ticker at ticker factory... :?:

I bet your scale may be off by as much as 10 lbs, Aimee. You know I can't possibly accept the idea that that expensive Tanita scale I got could be off by that much. :faint: Besides, when I changed scales the first time my weight went up by, I think it was 9 lbs, which was traumatic enough.

I'd have to say, considering the situation, I don't know how much stock I'd put into that bp number.

Kimberley, they probably use tape, safety pins, and whatever they can to make the clothes fit right for pics. GREAT weight loss. When I reach 204 I think I'll...I don't know what! I'll be so overwhelmed with joy I'll probably hurt somebody (by accident!).

Yesterday we walked through the park after lunch, all the trees are in the middle of chaning colors, with the bright, sunny 70 degree weather, it was so relaxing. Then a guitar player sat on the bench next to ours. We got a free serenade. I made curry-apple butternut squash soup last night too, so we'll have some of that with dinner tonight. You know, I pooped out last week and never carved the pumpkin we bought. Wonder what I should do with it....

Have a good one, gals.

My brother has a Tanita scale, I got on it and it was within a pound of my scale at home.. but every other scale I've gotten on has said I weigh less. Usually 5-10 pounds less. So I keep going by my scale, mostly because I've heard Tanita scales aren't wrong that often. I figure as long as I'm consistant with the scale I use.

Today I am off on an adventure with my friend, we are going downtown Vancouver shopping. It's going to be good.. I love downtown :) Alrighty, I better go shower.. my friend is ready to go and I have LOTS to do! Have a good one gals!

-Aimee

I still have dial up, heh heh. I have been eyeballing DSL. I think I'm about to give in. It's getting hard to view videos and I get bored waiting for pages to load and files to download.

Your day sounded really good, Jill (and shopping in Vancouver, I'd go for that!). Must be fun exploring a new neighborhood. You'll find your ducks. In the past few years we've been getting lots of black squirrels back here. And we were talking to our brother in law yesterday (saw him in the park) and he says he noticed lots of new birds this season, we all think the migratory patterns have changed due to the climate changes. I saw a hummingbird moth this summer which I've never seen in the neighborhood before.

Today we're going to take it easy. I went to the gym this morning and it was practically empty. I'm still not up to my level BI (before injury). Slowly but surely. Even though it's after 12, gotta jump in the shower :o ;)

Have a great Sunday!

Shopping and hiking...Sounds like a nice weekend all around. :) I've been working on The H-Man site this weekend. Next thing I'll add is a section for healthy recipes we've come up with or have enjoyed from others. We really want the site to be an encouragement to people, especially after the article prints and we get traffic from that.

Other than that, we went to Caribou twice this weekend. Our favorite gal from the coffee shop is moving to Utah at the end of the month - we're so bummed! Her last day there is "black Friday", the day after Thanksgiving. She's so friendly, just terrific. I've been stopping by more often since I know she's leaving.

I finally got a great wireless keyboard and mouse this weekend. Good tools make all the difference...I'd been limping along with a cheap wireless set that had to have the receiver right by the darned things and STILL didn't work right most of the time. Now I have a Microsoft Wireless Comfort Keyboard and mouse. It has a slightly curved, ergonomic keyboard; it's not split like their other ergonomic keyboards, but it has a nice padded wrist rest built in. Best of all, it has a light touch and it works well. LOL Howie was on call this weekend, so he got his beloved DVD sets of The Waltons seasons 1 & 2, and I got the keyboard. :cool:

Looks like we're hosting Thanksgiving again this year. I have such mixed feelings about it. I like entertaining, but it is so much work. Well, if nothing else, it's motivation enough to get the house clean. The photographer being here on the 14th guarantees the living room and kitchen will at least be clean...

Howie wants to put the tree up for Thanksgiving, so looks like we'll be decorating early. Can't believe it's already the holiday season...His surgery date will be here before we know it.

Hey Girls!! I can't believe the weekend is over... I do get tomorrow off.. so technically.. It's nice to have a short week coming up!

So the shopping wasn't sucessful! My friend got bored WAY too easily,and I had to wait 45 minutes for her to pick me up. So we didn't even get downtown until 2pm, I had 4 hours! Eek! Thats just not enough time to cover so much ground yah know? I got a few things for Josh and something for my brother.. so it wasn't a complete waste. It's hard to find your shopping match! I think my brother and I do well together, we both know what we want, can keep going until we pretty much die, and he supplies the money ;) hehe..

Jill - Can you make me a smoothie too? heh. I am jealous of your weekend... I can't wait until Josh and I work normal jobs!

Marge - dial up? No way jose! You gotta get with it girl! ;)

Kimberley - the decorations are up in the malls, christmas music is blaring in a few stores... christmas is nearly here! I do love christmas.. I love the spirit of giving.. it makes me happy!

Alrighty, just a short one from me.. I am tired all over! Nite!

-Aimee

Originally Posted by SwimGirl:
and he supplies the money ;) hehe..

Now, I need a shopping partner like that! :lol:

I have NO idea what to get anyone for Christmas. My sister emailed me to ask if I thought a good color printer for my parents was a good idea. I said sounds good since I had no ideas at all! Right now, they have an old one they got for free from a friend a few years ago, and it gives my mother nothing but trouble. She has a newer computer and a digital camera, so she should be able to print out good quality pictures. Not a bad idea. Now if only I knew what to get for my sister, her fiance, his daughter, my Jeff...:dizzy:

I'm tired today--stayed up kinda late to watch the Redskins game last night. I fell asleep off and on during the last quarter, woke up long enough for Jeff to tell me they won (not that I really care) and that I had been snoring, then went back to sleep :p But now I wish I could go back to bed. I did get up and go to the gym for my 30 minutes on the elliptical, though, but it didn't wake me up much.

Goodmorning! I got an email from my old friend who is teaching in Scotland, she's always wanted to go there.. she seems to be enjoying herself! It always reminds me how I'm not doing too much on my end of the world, I really want to travel... and I don't go anywhere! Rough start to the day... I also found out that Josh and I forgot to wrap the chicken up.. so it sat out ALL night... it's garbage! 20 dollars!! And, yes there is an and... I put on Josh's sweat pants.. and while they are REALLLLLY baggy on him, not so much on me. Like I needed a reminder that i'm bigger than him.. I was definitely asking for it though.

Jill - I love that I work Sunday's in some ways.. I don't have to watch football with Josh! heh. I love shopping for others, I always can figure it out.. sometimes a little last minute though!!

I have LOTS Of cleaning to do today... so I am off to accomplish this! I'll talk to you all later!!

-Aimee

Now I have a Microsoft Wireless Comfort Keyboard and mouse. It has a slightly curved, ergonomic keyboard

cool. now my list has DSL and ergonomic keyboard ;)

Looks like we're hosting Thanksgiving again this year. I have such mixed feelings about it. I like entertaining, but it is so much work.

me too! one good thing is that I plan on trying at least to give away as much of the food as possible. I already told Rob that any leftovers will be eaten s-l-o-w-l-y.

It's hard to find your shopping match! I think my brother and I do well together, we both know what we want, can keep going until we pretty much die, and he supplies the money hehe..

My brother, I should say our family, has lots of issues around money. He said to me once that he might make the choice to give me some, but I should never ask for it (!!!)(this coming from a guy who makes in the high 6 figures). The only time I ever made the mistake of asking, was once when I had just started out in NY, $300 to take a class. I did pay him back for it, after more years that I should have let pass. That was held against me for quite a while.

Monday, Monday, Monday, sorry to be so gripey.

Originally Posted by SwimGirl:
Goodmorning! I got an email from my old friend who is teaching in Scotland, she's always wanted to go there.. she seems to be enjoying herself! It always reminds me how I'm not doing too much on my end of the world, I really want to travel... and I don't go anywhere!

Don't worry, most people are too unsettled in their 20s to travel much (unless their families have money). I'd love to go to Scotland, which the whole driving on the left/right side of the road deal wasn't going on :lol:

Well, I'm in a much better mood today. I did peek at the scale (weigh in day is Friday) and I'm already below last Friday's weigh in, yeah. I think I was retaining water from TOM. The challenge has motivated me. I haven't been grabbing chocolate or anything the past few days, another victory. I'm even feeling calm about Thanksgiving eating.

Anyone else see Kirstie Allie on Oprah yesterday. Methinks she might not have been telling the truth about 219 being her highest. Even Oprah looked sceptical. But then in Hollywood it can be dangerous to your career to tell your real weight, so I don't blame her.

Gotta vote today. We usually go around 1 when it's not too crowded.

GMA (Good Morning America) had some tasty sounding low call dishes
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Recipes/story?id=1288858
heart healthy pork chops parmesan and artichoke and spinach dip.

I LOVE artichokes and spinach, so when I get up the energy I'm going for that baby. Would be good for the holidays too.

Take it easy, lovely chicas!

Goodmorning! Well TOM is going to arrive within a week, I peaked at my scale.. and I'm up 3 pounds since yesterday morning. Yikes, eh! I might have to skip this weigh in, unless I Wanna go UP... stupid TOM!! I am due to start the pill this time, I'm slightly worried that I'll gain weight, I know my chest tends to get a tiny bit bigger... we'll see I suppose. I definitely need it to keep my hormones under control!

Marge - have you been lonely here? 3 posts back to back! Perhaps I can beat your brother up? I have issues with people who are not generous with their money, not that I expect people to be handing out cash. But when it comes to FAMILY? Give me a break! We all help eachother in different ways.. I may not give my brother cash, but I give him advice which is priceless! I dislike people who are in relationships who buy something for theother and expect them to pay them back! Like seriously, this is the person you love!! Josh and I are free with OUR money, it's not his money and my money, we pool our money and pay for things together. Phew, I better stop, I could rant forever! I saw Oprah yesterday, I do believe 219 actually, she's got a smaller frame, is a tiny bit shorter than me... I could see it. When I heard she was going to tell her weight I guessed about 230 ish. What size do you figure she was?

I better run, Gotta do that work thing today! Have a good one!

-Aimee

Originally Posted by SwimGirl:
Josh and I are free with OUR money, it's not his money and my money, we pool our money and pay for things together.

That's awesome that you guys are so aware of each other's financial situations. Jeff and I keep our money separate. I'm not sure what the laws are in Virginia specifically, but some states will actually declare a commonlaw marriage if you live together for a certain amount of time and have joint accounts. We still split the rent, cable, internet, water, phone, and whatever else we both use, but we just give each other money instead of pooling our funds. Actually, we split the rent, and then to simplify things, I pay for the phone, water, and groceries, and he pays for the cable, internet, and DVR. Since groceries tend to cost more, he also pays if we go to the movies or out to dinner. It all just about balances out in the end :) I honestly have no idea how much money he has saved up. I know he brings home more than me (since he doesn't have 401k, pension, or insurance deducted from his paychecks), and he has only ben paying $100 a month to stay with his cousins till now, so I would think he's saved up a pretty penny. He actually mentioned the other day that he had a little less than $10,000 left to pay of his car, so he asked my opinion if I thought he should just pay it all off. I tried not to show any emotion at the idea that he has more than $10,000 in his bank account and said he wouldn't want to not have any money left in his account in case something happened, to which he replied that even if he paid off his car, he would still have some in his account :o I know I shouldn't care about money, but it's nice to know he's not frivolous with his funds (and could maybe afford a nice little diamond someday *ahem*) ;) In the end, we decided it would make sense for him to just keep paying more than the monthly payments (he's already a few months ahead) so that he would both have it paid off sooner and still have the safety money in his account.

Wow, Jill, way to write a novel based on a single sentence in someone else's post :dizzy:

Hi! So TOM started, which explains that added weight this morning... I might have to skip this weigh in ladies... I feel so excluded now! :( I might do it anyways,and if it says more than last week.. .we'll just forget I got on the scale.. is that bad?

I ended up getting a ride home from work, so I didn't exercise. But... BUT! My TOM started... don't I get to use that as a free pass for today ;) I am full of excuses!

Jill - I dunno how you do it! Josh and I don't make the same amount of money, and if I had to put out just as much as him? I'd be crushed, he'd have spending money, savings, while I'd be broke! I suppose that brings us to the fact about people being different, I couldn't handle someone who didn't share their money with me. I know how much Josh has in RRSP's (like a 401K), he has me on his medical because his employer offers a better program, and it saves us some money. I know that I'm the one who gets his life insurance, all his investments should anything happen to him. We might as well be married at this point, the common law thing applies here as well.. however we still file our taxes seperately for the purpose of not paying my student loans off... teehee.. We are all with our partners for a reason. I think on the topic of love that we are with the person whose habits least annoy us... does that make sense?

Alright! I am done... and I'm very tired.. I'll talk to you ladies tomorrow :)

-Aimee

Kiiiiiimberley, where are yooooooooou? Hope everything's okay! :smug:

I'm in a slump. Not diet-wise, but life-wise. I need to cheer up. I need to focus less on this Jeff issue and how much I hate my job and how far I am from my family and how I have no friends who live close by...Whew, how's that for my own little pity party? :p

Perhaps I can beat your brother up?

heh heh, I'd say yes but he's a little too pitiful for that. I feel a little sorry for him. Lots of money but lots of problems, healthwise and emotionally.

Don't sweat the TOM, I know I can let it drive me crazy. Honestly, part of that 6 lb gain of mine was TOM or else I wouldn't be losing it so fast this week.

Rob and I have one account. Both our names are on all our other stuff. NY, my boss told me, doesn't have the common law marriage laws, he said lots of people make the mistake of thinking that applies here. I agree it's not worth paying off the rest the money on the car. Save those bucks for a house, it's amazing how much money you have to have to get a house these days (especially in New York). You can't start saving too soon for that.

Hmmm, well I was thinking Kirstie was in high 200s, but you could be right. I do think she lowered the number that she gave on Oprah for career purposes.

I think on the topic of love that we are with the person whose habits least annoy us... does that make sense?

I think it's love when we can learn to ignore all those habits that really annoy us, :lol:

I went to vote yesterday. Our place is at a local elementary school and those dang PTA gals decided to have a bake sale. We had to pass through the cupcake gauntlet to get to our voting booth! I'm happy to say, despite Rob's obvious draw to that goodies table, I abstained. What I won't do for democracy!

:coach: there will be no pity parties here! :lol: and that goes for me too! (that's the Ty Pennington icon)

Hey, Kimberley! what's been happenin' in your neck of the woods??