Hi All!

I got home about 11:15AM. Easy trip home. I did a little laundry and went for my chiropractic appt and other than that, I've been sitting here holding the cat! I think she missed her Mama. She's on my lap now, but will soon need to vacate as it's nearly my bed time!

I didn't get any walking in today, but will do a few miles tomorrow along with boot camp. Saturday is supposed to be unseasonably warm, so I hope to get a good long walk in. I'm trying not to drive myself crazy with this challenge as I know this Spring and Summer I will catch up on any miles that I have fallen behind on...no worries.

Well, Sis and I bought a new skin care system from Clinique the other day, so I must go do the 3 step process. I'm sure by the end of next week I'll look like I'm 30 again. I have some brown spots that I want GONE! If I can fade them I swear I'll be more diligent about sunscreen. Playing golf has really done a number on the back of my hands and my cheeks. I wear a hat, so my forehead and nose are fine, but OY...the side of my face and the backs of my hands! I'm one giant liver spot!

Have a good night!

Hi all,

Just home from an art showing of a pal's, so proud of her. Was a cool "happening" with a great pianist and all kinds of fun neighborhood/city folk there. Pierced and dyed and tattooed and dreads, and bright clothing. Fun to see everyone enter in winter coats and scarves, and then shed them and let their peacock out.

But I haven't done a darn thing to pack for our weekend away. The clothes are no big deal, just jeans and sweaters. But the food is really going to take more organization and packing, so I'm in and out tonight w/out personals as it is late and I have a very early morning call.

Another good day on plan. And, I AM eating less, nipping it here, nipping it there. Nothing dramatic, but less, and not feeling deprived at all. Hoping to expand this mindset as I go---finding that sweet spot where I am satisfied and leaving behind over eating, even LC.

Friday Morning! LOVE MY FRIDAYS
Good morning gal pals-
Trig- Thanks So much for that post to me regarding Keto. You taught me something. I really have not taken the time to look up much about being in Keto. I just know enough to know it a great state for the body to be in. People confuse it with diabetic keto ACIDOSIS- which is not good.
I have tried the strips and just get the faint pink- I tossed them cause I know I am not eating junk- carbs- sugar. Just clean easy meat/ few veggies.
So I really did love your post. I hope you are feeling better. Do you still have chest junk? You said that Mussinex did nothing for you? You have to be on it for a few days. Turmeric!!

Blue- how fun to go to a art show. I love those. When I was in Ohio I went to them often. I lived on the edge of the city. There was a place called the District- it was a artsy part of the city. Once a month artist would get to display their works- the bars and galleys would stay open- there was always music- loved it. I haven't found anything like that here. Very urban or suburban- not much in between.
So you are heading out tonight? Enjoy your weekend! Will miss your posts. You are doing well with your WOE- every little thing adds up! It all does. Have a great time!

Leeann- how's the London trip coming ? I love hearing about trips and places. How is your little Bella doing? No fun pup stories?

Lori- I didn't know you were so close to Philly- 3 hours. You must be near Leeann. East coast gal. Are you back home now? Glad you had a great time with your sister.

Alene- Glad to hear things are moving right along for you. Keep us posted. So what are you and M doing tomorrow? Sighhhhhh so sweet!

Kmom- CapD- you keep right on girl!!!!!!
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I am holding my own- no swings in weight- not losing either. But like you all know- waiting for my whoosh. It has to come. One can't just eat like I do and not lose unless there was an issue. That "issue" is soon resolved. I have finally wrapped my head around that it has to happen.

So the count down begins for me. I will eat normal until Sun. Mon and Tue I will do just light broth, maybe scramble eggs, Tue I will be totally clear liq. Wen- nothing, Thur Fri- clears still until my gut returns to function.
My preop appt. is Monday. I was told the issue is that the gas they use to move my colon over has a paralyzing effect for several days after surgery. So eating needs to be adjusted to not toss in food and it goes nowhere!

I am going to be busy today- I am the only RN in today- my team is off, or in the field seeing patients. So it is just me and my boss.

Thunderstorms are rolling in for today and the rest of the weekend. Some are expected to be strong. I am hoping I can dodge the raindrops tomorrow morning. My DD ask my to sit with the baby for a few hours while she and SIL move a swing set into the yard.
My little grandbaby is the cutest in the entire world. Yes Grammy talking now!

Ok- all- this hot grammy needs to rock and roll into my day!

100% today- the chicken goes to the crock- then I will make broth from the bones for next week! Have a wonderful day

HI ALL
everyone seems to be doing great so far!!

so tired now, got that super exhausted, where am I? feeling LOL
chest feels alot better but now I can barely talk, yup, I am whispering around, kinda lost my voice mostly and you know the family loves that one HAHA

but on the mend cause I feel better in general but got took down by who knows what.

big storms here also. big rain. Like Lori I will make up some miles. Today will do the treadmill to start making up a few. One thing about Lori's challenge is to JUST MOVE IT and be conscious of knowing I need to move it on a daily basis.

Need another day and should come back chatting away. one more down time day to relax away the sick.

have a fab day everyone, signing off, waiting for kiddo to get on that bus and then hitting my bed again

Hi everyone-

Lori, glad you made it back safely. You want to know something weird? I had brown spots on my hands and when I went LC they went away and stayed away. I swear for me it was like a reverse aging process or something!

KMOM- I throw my wings in on convection bake 375 for about 30 minutes- that is two half baking sheets full so probably two sheets of 16 wings each, and these are the big ones. Before I bake them I toss them in bacon fat, then sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic powder. After baking I toss them in the other mixture, lay them back out on the sheet pans, drizzle remainder over the tops of them and broil them until crispy. To reheat, microwave on 30% power about 3 minutes, then stick under the broiler. Yay for being CapD! Go girl!!

Blue- I wish you the very best trip. Enjoy. Let the worry go for now!

Jaz- You are getting close which means you are getting close to getting to feel better. I bet you will be surprised, once you feel better, about what you had gotten used to thinking was normal.

Trig- Feel better! Glad you are feeling less pressure in your chest. Keep on resting so you can recover fully!

•••••••••••••

Busy day today- the whole day has been kind of janky with half days all week disrupting my life. Dropped DS15 off at 8 for his exam and have to be back to get him at 10, then at a CASA appt at 11. That kind of day. DS18 goes in at noon for something or another, I think. I don't even know what is going on anymore.

Walked 3.8 miles round trip to the library Yesterday! We are expected LOTS of rain so I decided to get out and move around.

Hosting "Cousins Christmas" on Sunday for 16. Making LC pulled pork, DDBF is bringing bacon mac and cheese, DSIL is bringing a salad and then there will also be dessert. I'll try to focus on the pulled pork and salad but not ruling out a small dessert. We'll see.

Did I tell you guys I lost a MoW client? Another house fire. Hadn't met the person yet- she was on my route for the first time last Tu and didn't come to the door. Still, sad none the less. Loss of life always is.

Hugs to all!

Happy Friday!!

Blue, the art show sounds very interesting. I love that kind of stuff. I'm glad your eating is going just as you planned. All those little changes add up over time!

Jaz, I am SO excited that the surgery is drawing near. You're almost there! Have fun with your grandbaby. Aww. Love babies!! Mr. M and I are going to an art museum in a neighboring town. I haven't been there before so it will be nice. He has a membership that allows him to go to different attractions, so we will have to check out all the options for down the road. When we were talking about it he said, "I'll probably be looking at you more than the art, but it will be a fun outing. " Awww. I love when he says sweet stuff like that. We're going to take a walk after probably if weather is decent, and then I'm sure get something to eat. We're going to see each other Sunday too.

Trig, rest up and feel better! You're almost there.

Nic, I'm so sorry about the client you lost. House fires are such tragedies. Sounds like you have a busy one!

KMom - glad you are CapD and feeling good! You'll have to tell us more about what you're doing.

Lori, my kitty plants herself too and I always feel bad when I have to get up. Have fun with your new skincare system!

I had a great, on plan day yesterday. 100%. I checked in with my coach and we had a great conversation. I did a 30 minute cardio/weights workout. A bit low on the water since I was running around. My weight moved down .2. That seems to be the standard loss when my scale moves. I am going to be thankful for any downward movement!!

I'm happy that it's Friday! I think I'll go shopping tonight and get a few things. Maybe a pretty top and a new pair of jeans. I only have one that fits well, and I don't want to be wearing the same jeans every time I see Mr. M. We always seem to be doing something active, so I don't want to get all dressed up.

Have a great one ladies!

Leeann- UMMMMMMM- you went through a yummy way to do wings- I was with ya until you said then I toss them with the "other mixture"????? Bacon fat again? I have wings to make- maybe sunday- my "last supper"

Trig- my ex used to LOVE when I got laryngitis. But my middle finger always worked. Maybe that is why he is my ex! Glad you are better!

Lori- good for you- back to butt kickin work out. Not surprised! GO GIRL

Alene- so sweet. Got Love envy- I really hope this works out for you.
Also I take ANY thing the scales give me in a down way.

CapD- hound is back! I liked your plan to try and see what works best for you LC- ya gotta find what fits. Not everyone can do ZERO like me and Trig. But then again the reason me and Trig are Zero is because we are so carb sensitive we can't be anything else. It is the only way we lose. I think we have both come to grips with that. We aren't special- just know my body well. You will find your way.

Blue- Hope you are enjoying your unplugged time. You were thought of and missed!
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So raise your hand if you have ever put something in the crock pot. Thought about it all day. Then came home to find you forgot to turn it on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HYST Hand here! Dam a big roaster Chicken. Sighhhhhh Really JAZ.....

Left over Chili was a blessing in the fridge. My Chili- LC- no beans- no junk.

My boss is so nice to me. I need to do blood work and preop appt. Monday. So I ask if I could do that and work from home as my doctors are close to here.

Beautiful day here- the sun came out- temp 75- serious. Rain on way.
I am off any motrin, aspirin, I chew those like candy. Urghhhhhh - they said I can drink wine- 1 glass white- yuck.

I don't have much to add- I am looking forward to my new beginning. Just gotta get through the hard stuff first.

Nite all -

Good Morning!

Jaz...I'm so anxious for the post-op posts when you tell us how much better you're feeling etc. Those posts will make me smile. Just a few days.......take it easy until then.

Thinking of you Blue and your fabulous weekend getaway. The house sounds absolutely wonderful.

Alene...glad you're having a good time with Mr. M. Hope the weekend is special.

Nic...you are cooking up a storm! You will have a house full of activity and good times.

Trig...hope the "crud" you have caught is soon out of there! It is so miserable and then just seems to hang on so long. I hope you are able to sleep. Getting sleep is the best medicine.

Today I have to get a good walk in OUTSIDE!!! It is going to be near 50 degrees. DH's brother is coming this afternoon for a quick visit. The boys are going to a college basketball game this afternoon and then I'll join them for dinner around 5:30. I'm hoping BIL just goes home after that, but I suppose he'll stay overnight. He's the one who prowls around the house half the night and no one can sleep. Oh well......I can nap tomorrow if we have a bad night.

We had a nice time at the little house tour yesterday. We spent an hour and a half at the house and the owner told us all about the remodeling etc. They left the outside pretty much as they found it(it still looks like a one room schoolhouse), but the inside is quite modern. They have lived there since 1972. Her husband is an artist working a lot in metal sculpture, so they have some interesting pieces. After that we went out for a quick bite to eat and then on to our 12 year old grandson's basketball game. It was so crowded there was hardly a seat to be had. There were 3 games back to back and lots of parents and grandparents. That was rather tortuous as it was hot and the seats were just hard bleachers. I was so glad to get out of there!

Ok...enough of my blathering on. Hope you all enjoy your Saturday.

Good Morning gals

This week-end is going to be rather low key. The storms are moving in later this morning. I am going to squeeze a walk in with the pooch before it rains. It's warm though- which is why I think they are severe.
It's amazing how warm it has been all of Jan here. There are some flowering trees starting to bloom.

Lori- it would mess me up having somebody "prowling" in the night. Doesn't matter who it is. It bugs me when my dog moves around at night. Everyone needs to be SLEEPING.
You have motivated me to move!

Trig- report! How are ya feeling?! Are you making any plan for the RV when it finally gets back?

Leeann- Wow- a house full again! You are the hostess! Right in your element. LC pulled pork is always a great choice!
Sad about your MOW member. You seem to have been hit lately with people around you in a crisis. Sometimes it seems to go in waves like that.
Hope you have a grand week end. Still waiting for your wing recipe- what is the other stuff you coat them with?

I don't have much to add from last night. I didn't sleep real well. I expect I won't for a while.
I wish I wasn't such a worry wart. I used to eye roll my poor grandmother. She was a worrier, she passed that to me. Now my kids eye roll Some people just let stuff come and they roll with it. I tend to "chew" on stuff for awhile before I let things go. Not good I know. Most of the stuff I think about never happens anyway......... Oh well...I'm a thinker.

I am not sure what I am eating today. It will be light- tomorrow will be lighter still. I have a entire fridge full of veggies I need to give to someone. I guess I thought I would be eating tons of veggies. But I am not. I hate wasting food. Veggies don't freeze well. I am not sticking my belly full of cabbage before abdominal surgery-

I too am looking forward to a week from right now. That would be 3 days out. I look forward to a new start. I want my parts weighed. Yes the eating disordered person wants to know!

Ok everyone- on plan today.

HA HA JAZ, I was the same. I bought tons of veggies and had to throw them out also...what kiddo didn't eat. AND then down the line I bought alot more again.....well I just threw out the last of the radish and more now and AM NOT ever buying veg for me ever again for kiddo sure, but what she likes only LOL

HI GUYS

I am reading along and loving the posts, you guys are so entertaining.

I am just in that mood to not chat and type. super exhausted feeling but AM ON the improve alot now. Tomorrow I should be chatting away personals like crazy probably

nothing much, same storms as Jaz. Might walk dog with kiddo if it stops raining. Do nothing day mostly...rest and relax on the menu today.

wonderful day to all....off to chill out

Hi ladies. Just a quick pop-in this morning. I need to get my hair colored and go get a few things at the store, and also tidy up my house. Mr. M is picking me up. I thought we were meeting halfway, so I thought I was off the hook for cleaning. lol

Eating was good overall yesterday, but I definitely had a mental battle going on in the afternoon at work. When I feel at loose ends, unfocused, unorganized at work, my knee-jerk is to look for food to escape from the feelings. Not exactly a productive way to deal with it, as the problem is still there after I eat! I am brainstorming ways to deal with this. When I am at one of our gift shops, which is at least 3 days a week, I am surrounded by snacks and chocolate and caramel. Makes it way too easy to get into them when I am not able to find that pause button and figure out what I really need to do. Working on strengthening my resistance muscle! I was able to get through it, but it wasn't easy. I'm going to keep working on this. I did weigh in with another .4 loss, so I was really happy about that.

Off to get going on my day. I hope everyone has a great one.

Good Morning!

My cat decided that 5AM was time to get up on a Sunday morning. This is my life. I didn't sleep well anyway, so might as well get up. I see a nap in my future.

I got outside(!) for a 3.5 mile walk yesterday. It felt great to be out in the fresh air. We had fog that never really lifted all day yesterday...weird. It looks like it's still foggy out there this morning. I want to get outside for my walk again today. I was actually 3 miles ahead for last week! All that walking with my sister helped. I've walked 63 miles so far this year! Only 937 to go!

Brother in law is here and we went out for dinner last night. I got all "fixed" up with full make up to be out for an hour and then come home. Sometimes I wonder why I bother. Being blonde, if I don't wear eye make up, you can't even see that I have eyes. Oh the things we do.

The guys are going out for breakfast, but I'm staying home. I don't need the temptation of french toast and pancakes. They're going to pick up a buddy of theirs and take him along, so it's a guy thing. I'd rather stay here with a cup of coffee in my hand.

Hope you all have a great Sunday!

Alene, what color do you do? I color blonde and I have to do it very soon, my gray is showing thru way too much
So true we all need to control those knee jerk fast reactions to 'grab food' cause we can. Just a habit we all have to tackle!

Lori, I am the same. I am blonde also and I need color to not be washed out...I hear ya on the makeup. Eye shadow is needed! I told Alene I am going into way too much gray, I gotta get a color done soon....older I get it seems the gray comes in quicker!! Ugh the things we do!!! I hear ya!!
Luckily for me french toast and pancakes would never tempt me, never eat that stuff. I made kiddo blueberry pancakes the other day and she lapped them up and I thought how in the world can people eat that junk? But I never liked them....bacon always took key in breakfast for me, never loved a sugar breakfast ever. Now after breakfast....it was a sugar fest for me thru the rest of the day HAHAHA...yes something of course I had to change

Blue, I bet you are off having fun and ya know I can't wait to read all about it!!

Nicco hope you are fine.

What's doing Jaz? So much will change for you sooner than later now....after recovery you will get great results from your hard work


HI ALL
much improved. finally feel like chatting a bit now. I noticed when I go down from a sicky thing I just don't want to participate in life at all....just kinda fog thru it all very quiet.

We got the rainy icky foggy still. Til Tues then we have SUN for a day and more rainy following it...what the? UGH winter is not bad so far in that temps are higher which is nice but omg no sun. like I am living on another planet or something

Tues hubby has off work and kiddo has mon and tues. off school for teach workdays so we are planning on finding a new town near us to walk. Kiddo is into this 'downtown' walking tour now for some reason, but it is good, we all get out, chill out and relax and check out downtown areas. Eh, something different....got to find me a town I want to walk LOL.....around here we are kinda booney area so some towns really are a 1-2 block small street and nothing ya know. Might just commit to drive to Boone or Blowing Rock tourist area in the mountains, the artsy area just to browse.

rambling again

anyway today is off to Moms. she is on her own now again. We are gonna hit kmart and out to eat at showmars. just goofing to get out of the house.

everyone have a great day and hope your weather is better than mine!!

Lori- I always have a full face of make up on. Even if I am just hanging around the apt. Ya never know when you might need to be prettied up! A couple years ago I was relaxing after dinner and skyping a friend when my left arm went completely numb. I took 2 aspirin and waited and hour. I couldn't drive myself to the ER- so I did call 911. So to make a long story short- the paramedic was HOT, and SINGLE. Ya I got a date out of it! - after a complete cardiac work-up and 24 hours in the hospital it turned out to be nerve. That back injury from several years ago played with that nerve.
I did find out however I have a great heart! They asked me if I worked out! SO the bottom line of this long story- always makeup!
Great job on the walking! You have inspired me to MOVE. I am not where I want to be- but it is a goal for this year.
I want to be in the best shape of me life this year.

Leeann- interested to hear how your weekend is going. Is the entire group staying the night? How did the pulled pork go?

Trig- Girl you have been hit with the crud in the last few months! I hope you get to feeling better really soon. We got storms all day yesterday. Today they are more south of Atl. But they look really bad. Foggy here and damp, and humid and warm. Really freaky for Jan.

Alene- how goes your weekend.
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All-
Hovering at low- no movement. I am going to change my name from JAZ to "Hovering" But at least it isn't going up.

I am simmering some chicken carcass for broth. It has been simmering now for 24 hours. I will strain it and use half of it for soup, and keep the other half as just pure broth. It will be my meals. YUM! All I can say Is I better lose SOMTHTHING through all this! I want my Whoosh dang it.

They are saying we are going to get more severe storms this afternoon. Tornados are not really normal for GA. I was used to them in Ohio- not so much here.

I am going to get a walk in before the rain rolls in again. I also want to get Bella's nails trimmed. They are scratching the crap out of me. She snuggles as close as she can at night. But when she get super relaxed she will totally stretch out and her paws hit my side- She owns the KING size bed. Her!

So the pre-op nurse from the hospital called yesterday. I went through my history ect... so she gets to the part about diet. So I said- I can't have the following: Wheat, Gluten, Starch, MSG, Dairy, Processed foods, White Foods, Salt, Pasta, Sugar, Soda, Anything from a BOX,..... I really did say that. I could tell she just stopped writing.
"what will you eat? She said. Steak, Hamburger, Chicken, Eggs, Bacon, Coffee...... I eat! She sighed...... Funny.

Ok all - I am going to putter- read- write- and do some light cleaning. Today is MINE!

Enjoy your Sunday Ladies!

Lori, good for you for opting out of the sugar fest. I do crave pancakes occasionally, but I'm very happy with an omelet full of meat, veggies, and cheese! Home with coffee sounds pretty great too! Your walk sounds nice. Being outside is so good for our soul.

Jaz, love the story about the hot EMT! Way to make lemonade! I'd love to see you in action. Your conversation with the nurse cracked me up. You are one day closer! A Sunday at home to yourself sounds wonderful. I love puttering around.

Blue, thinking about you on your trip! I can't wait to hear about it, and I'm sure it is wonderful.

Trig, good to see you feeling better and more chatty! I like exploring new towns too. Sometimes you really have to get creative to make life interesting and stimulating. It's easy to fall into a boring routine if you don't work at it. My hair color is a maple brown. I have to do my roots every 3-4 weeks, and then the whole head about 2-3 weeks after that. Thankfully I can do it at home! So expensive. It's a pain but I'm way too vain to go grey! What is your natural hair color? I know going being blonde it can be easier to hide the grow out than a darker color.

Nic, I hope you're having a good weekend!!

Yesterday was a really great day. I got some groceries in the morning and tidied up the house, and then Mr. M came over about 1:00. We had a few nice kisses upon greeting. It's nice we're both getting more comfortable with each other. We went to the art museum in a nearby town, and it was really enjoyable. Then we went to the museum of glass. There were some beautiful pieces. They have a big glass blowing studio with seating, so we watched them make a pussy hat in honor of the women's marches going on yesterday. It was pretty cool. He reached over and took my hand for the first time while we were sitting there. It felt very nice. We held hands the rest of the afternoon. We didn't have the rest of our day planned out ahead of time, but I had bought ingredients for a cobb salad, and asked him if he wanted to have dinner over and watch a movie. He was really happy about the invitation. So we made salads with avocado, lots of bacon, blue cheese, chicken, and red onion. So yummy! It's really great to eat the same way! It's just a great way to feel in synch. I had bought us some chocolate to sample, as he eats 90% cacao as much as possible. So we had fun sampling a little of that plus some Lily's sweetened with stevia. We picked out a movie and watched holding hands and snuggling. My cat Sophie likes him a lot, which was really nice. She planted herself on his lap. We had some really good conversation about relationships, and it was a great day. I feel like we broke through that "touch" barrier, where you're not sure how the other person feels about being affectionate. Luckily we are both very affectionate people.

Today we're going to do something active. Some kind of walk or hike, maybe to the mountains. My son will hopefully be home tonight and I can make him dinner and spend some time with him. He went up to visit some friends for the weekend. I need to get my laundry done tonight and just have a little down time.

I ate very well yesterday, and didn't eat much during the day. I had some mixed nuts in the late afternoon. Mr. M usually only has 2 meals a day so hanging around with him I will be losing weight. lol I am down .6 this morning, so that was a great feeling. 1.4 to get back to my low.

Have a great one ladies!