Well, it's trippy for me because I'm roadtripping (only 2 hours!) to visit a friend for a few days. So, I've planned some basic meals, plenty of vegetables and fruits to bring, and I'm going to pick up a flat of bottled water before I go because I can't stand the water in the city she lives in- tastes like lake water! EEEW!

I've always wanted to use that barf emoticon. Silly, silly me.

But anyway, I'll still check in on you ladies while I'm gone. Take good care of my Lisa for me while I'm gone! And wish me luck- I still have several pages of my thesis chapter to finish this week, and I'll be working on it while my friend is at work the next couple of days... I swear, I need some ADD meds or something- I just cannot focus and concentrate on this long enough to get it DONE! But I will, I always meet my deadlines, just hate myself during crunch time and call myself all sorts of mean names that stand in for the word "procrastinator."

Wow, I said hate and admitted to abusive self talk... What a lovely post for you all to wake up to! On the positive side, I have a doctor appointment in the morning to get on some antidepressants, so with any luck, you'll start seeing more bubly posts soon!!!

Have a good day, y'all!!

Good Morning!! I decided to stay up after the kids got here this morning. Mostly b/c I washed my comforter and carried it upstairs and put it away yesterday so I have nothing to curl up with LOL. Today is shampoo the carpet day. Let's see how that goes with four kids!! I hate that I have so much to do and I can't get anything done. By the time DH gets home and we have dinner I am too drained to tackle the big jobs. Saturday is going to be a flurry of cleaning and cooking! You would think that with my inlaws living ACROSS the street I would have a few babysitting offers. You know to make up for the inappropriate comments by my father in law and the fact that he and my brother in laws walk in at all hours without knocking.

Anyway, it's also weigh in day for me. I am wearing a pair of 18 jeans that are about cutting me in half. Someone gave them to me and I have never been able to button them before, so it's a good thing I can get them on and buttoned. But once DH wakes up I will go get some different ones. The first TWO pair I grabbed in the dark this morning were either way too small or had a hole. Why are they even in my closet? NOTE TO SELF: add clean closet to to do list

I need to step up the water today. I slacked off yesterday.

Lori-Have a safe trip and enjoy your visit. Good Luck on your Thesis!

I hope your Dr. appointment goes well. It is something I need to do, but I am scared.

Ok well I should get going. If I wait for DH to do the peaches they will rot. So I am off to see if I can drag them out of his truck in the dark LOL. Have a fabulous day everyone!!!

Resurfacing is fun!! Lol!

Hellooooo ladies!!!!

First and foremost, I'm still alive! Lol. That's most important, right? I did take the GRE general test on Saturday, which meant I didn't get to weigh-in. I had quite an adventure on Saturday morning. The short version is that I went out on my patio to have a nice relaxing wake-up call before I headed out for the exam (which was 45 minutes away). My cat was frantic to get me back inside (the outside scares her), and she ended up stepping on the lock (there was a chair next to the door--not any more) and locked me out on my own patio. Of course I didn't have a key or a cell phone. I was only gonna be out there for a few minutes.

51 minutes later (and 9 minutes to go before I had to leave my apartment to go pick up my friend and fellow test-taker), I got off my balcony and inside by instigating the following people: 1. a neighbor who had a cell phone, 2. my sister who had a spare key (which didn't seem to work on the back door, incidentally), 3. the police who called maintenance (they were such *******s, too, by the way--my age, so they were mocking me), and 4. the maintenance man who had the master copy of my key. The lock was mostly unlocked except for about 1/4" which proved to be enough to keep me out. I have bruises all over my body from where I was body slamming the door.

Once my friend and I finally made it to the city where the test site was, we got lost. Called the ETS (the testing people) to get directions, turned out I was on the complete other side of town with 5 minutes before my exam. The very nice lady stayed on the phone with me for 20 minutes, assuring me the entire time that she'd let me test. She directed us at every turn, which is way beyond the call of duty.

I took the GRE.

And I increased my score by 60 points!

I'm going to go talk to my mentor professor sometime this week to see what her thoughts are on my score. I'm praying she says it's good enough to apply to PhD programs--I really don't want to have to take that sucker again.

Since Saturday, I've just been busy relaxing. Lol. And it does seem like a sport because there's so much to do, so it's difficult to find relaxation. I had a Middle English Lit. class yesterday afternoon which fills my heart with glee (you know--Shakespeare's forerunners--YAY!), so I think this semester is really shaping up.

Thanks SO MUCH to all of you who were thinking of me and praying for me and sending me happy vibes! I was so much calmer when I took the exam this time than I was when I took it the first. I really think it was because of all the good energy I was getting from people.

Wow...this is so long and I feel like I have so much more to say! So much to catch up on!

How 'bout this: good luck to those who have challenges (minor or major) in the coming days, congrats to those who have had victories (minor or major) in the past, and I hope everyone is doing very well!

~Amanda

P.S. Maggie!! I just wanted to tell you too that I read your posts over the past couple of days and I'm so proud of you for your resolve! You're right--WW works, but only if you work with it. You're getting the positive attitude down pat, which is only going to help you meet your goals! Don't worry about the setbacks; just hop right back up and keep going. Good luck sista!!

Amanda Yippee Skippee for you! Funny how stuff works out perhaps all the mishaps were good because you couldn't stress over test! And next week when you WI I bet you will be in the highly coveted place of onederland Yeah girl Go girl

Uh...in case you're wondering, I introduced myself in the Dream thread - hope you don't mind me just dropping the heck on in on your conversations like this!

Lori, if you find a cure for the procrastination thing, let me in on it will ya? Good luck!

Misty, I hope you got those peaches set up and your water in. I've got two more glasses to down before midnight and I can't figure out why its so hard to get enough water in the summer!

Lisa, your To Do list made me tired just reading it. Did you get to all of it? If you did, it'll be the example I follow tomorrow on MY own nasty list.

Amanda, congrats on raising your GRE score! I hope you don't have to do it again but if you do, imagine how many more points you'll go up! LOL!

Me, I got up too late to go to the gym...again. And...again, find myself behind on the ol' water. I did get in two servings of dairy so that's a step in the right direction but I did absolutely nothing on my nasty, nasty list of old stuff I somehow find myself too 'busy' to tend to. Its gonna bite me in the butt bad so I've got to buckle down...but I can't (whine, whine). Yes, I can...I hope!

You ladies are amazing! Thank you so much, again, for your kind words and encouragement. I'm doing better.

Slumpy.. and welcome and don't be silly... drop in any time!

Amanda, so excellent about your scores, though what a weird day that was. I swear... I was sending good vibes, not crazy-*** ones! I know we were all sending good stuff your way. And I think luf is right ... all that nuttiness happened so you couldn't stress over the test! Dancing nanners for you!


Lisa ... I've been in and out of touch with the board. Please fill me in one what's going on with you. I'm so sorry I haven't been able to keep up!

Lori... good luck with the doc's appointment, and have a great trip. And yes, we will indeed take care of Miss Lisa for you.

Amy ... I read about your challenging eating day today. Way to go on posting! It's the first step in getting back on track. Believe me when I tell ya I know! You'll be fine. You really will. Just stick it out with us here.

Everyone else, again I apologize for not being in touch as much as I would like. Sometimes it feels like I just come on here to whine and then retreat once I've vented. But please know that I keep each and everyone of you in my prayers for your continue success in weight loss and in life, even if I'm not on top of what your specific needs are on any given day.

Happily, I'm feeling back in control again. Two full days on point (although 2 over today, but that's OK.)

Have a great night, all.