Mother May I? Challenge, EFGT, 5/2-6/1

[Shonmarie]

Just wanted to stop by to say hi to everyone. Been helping my brother and sil - his chemo has been very difficult. I have stayed op though and am down 2lb since last week. Anyway, I'll post more on Thursday and get caught up with everyone. See ya then

[CarolynF]

Shon..Bless you my dear..Prayers for your brother..And congrats on the 2 pounds!!!

Gary just called..Gotta get dressed..I thought he would surprise with the restaurant choice..Not so..He said we would drive to Bartlesville..He is not good with surprises, I'm afraid. It's the farm boy in him..They don't like surprises.. like hailstorms and tornadoes.

[TuscanGirl]

Happy Anniversary Carolyn!

Shon -

Jacquie - I'm small - 5 feet tall - and I never have 60 carbs, but white carbs are my trigger food ~ so I stay away!

Carolyn - DS19's room is clean, his bed is made . . . since I figure I might not vacuum again until he leaves!

Zilla - you want another kitten!!

lene - it sounds like you're doing the right thing! Give zilla a kitten!

[sjl330]

Happy Anniversary Carolyn and Gary! Have a nice evening. Hopefully tornado and hail free!

[pooticus]

Happy Anniversary Carolyn and Gary!

[TuscanGirl]

Morning!

DS19 is home. and hungry ~ didn't he eat?
We're going to wait until his grades are posted next week and then discuss what will happen next year.
Until then - he gets a pass.
Calmer for everyone!

Pedicure today and some house cleaning . . . oh and more laundry than you can imagine!

[sjl330]

Good plan MK. Calm is good. I think I'm going for a mani today. My allergies are kind of kicking my butt so I don't know. I really need to drag myself to the gym for at least an attempt at a workout. I hate allergies!!

My weight is slowly creeping off. Not my usual fast drop after indiscretions. I'm pretty sure it's all the ibuprofen and tylenol I've been taking for my back. But I had another great day yesterday. That makes 2 in a row and today I'm trying for a 3rd.

[TuscanGirl]

Sandy - I'm sure the mani would make you feel better!
Mine is creeping off too - a whole .4 today!

[lene]

HI all!

Carolyn, congrats on the anniversary! Hope the meal was wonderful.

Guys, I'm hoping to see *no* kittens -- I'm too easily suckered into taking them home myself. <g> All three of my current cats were strays I found wandering, teeny and on the verge of death, and brought home. Paid heaven knows how much on vet bills to get them all healthy, and now they're fat furry beasts who rule the roost. I don't need another one now! So Zilla, sorry, you'll have to go looking for your own fuzzballs. <g>

Sandy, I'm right there with ya on the back thing. I have been having pain and back spasms for yonks now, from what is apparently a pulled or torn muscle. This morning it's so bad I have trouble getting a deep breath if I move. So far all I've been able to do is take ibuprofen, but it hasn't allowed me to heal, just takes the edge off. Wish I knew what I could do to actually heal this mess. Good luck to you!

[Free Indeed]

Hi everyone. Figured out how to open a coconut. Wrapped it in a towel, and then placed it on a great big fluffy throw pillow and hit it with a hammer.....after making two holes hitting the back of a screwdriver with a hammer (on two of the eyes) and draining all the liquid out.

I think now that I'm adding coconut oil, I might have to cut back on some other fats so the calories don't go too high. Maybe lowfat meat with a coconut milk curry or sauce. I think I will try entering everyting in fitday starting tomorrow.

[CarolynF]

Hi ladies..

We had a lovely dinner at an Italian restaurant in Bartlesville..Okay..I had some lobster ravioli..and a delicious roll..I haven't weighed today, but I do have a tummy ache..so I'm drinking Diet Sprite. My body doesn't know what to do with wheat, I don't think...Back on plan..I might have got what Zilla had..So, it's going to be a SF jello day..

I lub me some kitties, too..I could become a crazy cat lady, I'm afraid. I treat our cat like a baby..and I pretend I'm his mother and Gary is his dad and my
kids are his brother and sister. Enough said.

MKay..yes, you never know what will happen with those grades until they are posted on the net. (Note to self: vaccuum Brett's room).Thanks for the reminder to get more Tide, too..

Poor little Betty (minlaw) is not doing so well..She is in danger of aspiration because her swallow test showed that food/water goes into her lungsas well as her tummy. Not good..But she doesn't want a feeding tube and I truly feel that she is ready to die. They put "goop" in her water, but she doesn't like it and even the "goop" goes into her lungs, so Gary is signing a paper to give permission to let her have "ungooped" stuff..She had her first cup of coffee this morning...

Back pain..I hear ya..I go for monthly tune-ups at the chiro..

Hi to all my Barry gals..Free, Confession, Shon, Pootster, Jacquie, and anyone my little brain might miss..

[lene]

Oh Carolyn, I'm so sorry. This sounds so very much like what we went through a few years back with my grandma, and it's just terribly hard. I do believe people often just get to the point where they're ready to go, and it seems more of a mercy to allow them to slip away. You and Gary are going to be in my thoughts, believe me.

Crazy cat ladies, we all sound like we should start a group on that basis. Heh, one of my favorite Terry Pratchett-isms is the one where he says you can tell someone is slipping into loonieness when they break out in chronic cats.

Last night I tried a recipe I believe I found here in the recipe forum, for a snack cake using whey protein powder and flax. I made it using choc. whey, and cookie dough DV syrup, and added a Tb of the extra dark (Hershey) cocoa powder. I was so pleased with it! Jeff is ever skeptical of the lowcarb recipes (although I do give him credit for pretty much eating this way without complaint) and even he was very happy with it. Danny's only negative comment was a wistful one along the lines of wishing we had some frosting on it, but since this was a spur of the moment treat to have after supper, I didn't feel like bothering with frosting. I sprayed five tons of whipped cream (heavy kind in a can) on his piece instead, and he was happy. I think next time I make this cake I'll use a vanilla whey p.p., and orange DV syrup, and add a little orange extract and orange oil.

I'd planned on trying another recipe today, the one for cheesy bread rounds. But darned if I could find a muffin top pan! I was sure it would be easy to find, too. So I ended up making the dough and just putting it into an 8x8 pan lined with nonstick foil. I had thought we'd use the rounds tonight when I make burgers for supper, but I suppose the bread will be good as squares on the side, too. It just came out of the oven, and smells great! I added some garlic and Italian spices to it, as well as a little cayenne and a dash of salt. Have any of you made this bread?

[sjl330]

I'm a dog person myself, lol. But I do treat her as my child or maybe more like a grandchild. She knows us as Nanny and Papa, lol. Of course all the kids think we're crazy as loons, lol. Speaking of birds, we're officially "old" now. We have started "bird watching". We put up feeders and warmed bird bath and now we're all into watching the cool birds who come to visit. I really NEVER thought I'd see the day that I'd be bird watching, lol. Actually, DH is more involved than I am. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it. We had an Oriole today. Black and orange. It was beautiful!

Poor Betty. I'm glad Gary is letting her eat what she wants. At this point..... ?

I hope you feel better soon Carolyn. It sounds like you had a lovely evening though. Have you watched Sweet Misery? I haven't yet but I'm planning to.

I'm catching up listening to Jimmy Moore's podcasts and wow, can I just say they're just what I needed to get remotivated! I'm glad I saved them all on my iPod. I listen while I work out. I love the new gym!! I joined for 1 year today and got 3 months free.

I went for my mani and got new polish on my toes too. I feel so pretty now, lol.

[CarolynF]

Hi ladies..

Made some chicken soup..Gary will be "late" so that will work out tonight..

Lene: Hmmm..Have you made the flourless chocolate cake? There are so many versions of the 3 minute chocolate cake..My dh just loves it..and it is great with whipped cream. Muffin top pans are hard to find..I got mine on-line..If you have a special "kitchen" shop, you might be able to find one..

Sandy: I watch birds too..I need to get more seed..I love to watch them..An oriole..how beautiful..One time I actually saw a Downy Woodpecker. That guy was HUGE..About 24 inches long. We get the regular little ones, but it is fun seeing different birdies. I haven't watched Sweet Misery..Good for you listening to Jimmy's podcasts..He would be pleased.

Drinking diet gingerale now..warm...

[sjl330]

I just finished Sweet Misery and it's very troubling. I'm not a huge diet drink fan but my DD is and she was diagnosed with a brain cyst last year after passing out at a restaurant for no reason. I know she'll just think I'm crazy but I'm going to try to warn her. That movie was very interesting.

[TuscanGirl]

Carolyn - that's so sad!

Sandy - what's Sweet Misery about?
And do you have a bird book?
Did you say you "warmed" the bird bath??

Lene - sounds yummy!

Fee - I would probably hit my hand!

[TuscanGirl]

DS15 plugged his new MP3 into the computer and it crashed!
Luckily we're back - but

[sjl330]

Originally Posted by TuscanGirl

Carolyn - that's so sad!

Sandy - what's Sweet Misery about?
And do you have a bird book?
Did you say you "warmed" the bird bath??

Lene - sounds yummy!

Fee - I would probably hit my hand!

Sweet Misery is a documentary about aspartame.

No, we don't have a bird book but I checked out several from the library.

Yes, warmed! We have a heated birdbath for our feathered friends. The robins love it the most!!

I'm glad you got your computer back up and running. I bet that was scary!

[TuscanGirl]

You are so nice! Heated bird bath and all!

It was scary - and annoying all at the same time!

[Shonmarie]

Good morning friends.

Carolyn, congratulations to you and Gary on your anniversary. The Italian dinner sounded good - too bad you got sick. Hope you are feeling better soon. I'll pray for Betty - sounds like she's having a really difficult time. I think they do lose the will to live. I know my dad did - he was on life support for several days but that was not our doing. He made gestures to the nurses that he wanted everything removed - we did that, he recovered enough to tell us how much he loved us, then he passed peacefully. This is always such a difficult time for family members but I really think in our hearts we know when to let nature takes its course.

It's been a difficult week around here. My brother was less nauseated yesterday. This round of chemo is over until August, I think. He seemed to respond to the first round several months ago, but we'll see. Pancreatic cancer is just one of those really difficult cancers to treat. He did have surgery to remove some of the pancreas - which I did not know could be done. Hopefully with all the treatment we'll have him around for awhile.

F&Minlaw are coming for dinner tomorrow night, so getting ready for that today. We're having roasted chicken thighs & italian sausage with red peppers, onions and garlic. It's really easy and I can eat it too! I'm also doing eggplant parm, sundried tomatoes with garlic, italian olives and mustard greens, tossed salad and a lc coconut cake for my minlaw and me. Dh and finlaw want cherry pie, so I'll make that today. I'm looking forward to this - just cooking today and having them over will be fun. I love to be in the kitchen when it's something I'm looking forward to!

And hi Sandy, Mk, Zilla, Free, Confession, Poot, Lil, Lene and welcome JacquieUK and I hope I didn't miss anyone! Everyone have a blessed day! See ya later.

[Prozak]

Hi everyone, just catching up!

Sweet Misery: The Movie is posted in the Main Lobby..

http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/ma...et-misery.html

a few posts down will find the link, the entire thread is worth reading

[wifezilla]

Hi Shonmarie,

Your brother is lucky to have such good helpers. I didn't know you could take out a chunk of the pancreas either.


*****


I do understand the concern over artificial sweeteners, but compared to the damage I was doing to myself with carbs, I really don't see it as NEARLY as much of a risk. I may get to the point where I am ready to quit them someday. It just isn't today :P Honestly, I don't know if I could have made the switch to low carb and stuck with it without them.

[CarolynF]

Hi gang..

Yikes! I do ingest asparatame..probably too much...mainly in the form of diet jello. Might have diet soda a couple times a week..I probably should stop that, too. I used to make my own splenda sweetened jello with Kool aid, unflavored gelatin and Splenda. But, probably splenda is bad for you, too..Thanks, Prozak for leading us to the link..Will check it out.

I'm better today, but yesterday I was soooooooooooooooo sick..temp of 101.4.But, I am staying home all day..I had 20 saltines for my dinner last night.

MaryKay: Yes, these boys and their electronic toys..I know what you mean.
Luckily, Brett brings his own 2 puters home for the summer, so he doesn't use ours.

Shon: I didn't know they could remove some of the pancreas either. Prayers for your brotherinlaw. I know that cancer is quite difficult to treat..
Betty is very clear what she wants..no extreme means of life support. Honestly, she is ready to go, I am sure. No quality of life when you can't see much or walk..

Beth (dd26) and her dh are "fostering" 3 kitties for 4 weeks. Probably the mother is missing and they must feed them. Their cat Sylvia is not pleased Sylvia is my "grandcat" who doesn't even like me..who brings her presents and wants to pat her.

[sjl330]

I'm happy to report 3 full days of being OP and this a.m. I was rewarded by moderate ketosis! I'm on a roll!! A low carb one of course, lol.

Zilla, I felt the same way as you, but the more I learn the more scared I get. I use stevia and am totally satisfied with it. I also use a bit of splenda but I'm giving up aspartame FOR SURE!! Then I'll try to quit or reduce the splenda and saccharine as I go along. The main thing I'll miss is diet Coke. Even though I don't drink it all that much I do enjoy one a couple times a week. Of course, to each his own. Everybody has to make their own decisions for themselves. Watching the movie helped me with my final decision.

[wifezilla]

I use stevia and am totally satisfied with it.

I WISH I liked it. I think I need to try different brands to get one I really like and doesn't taste bitter to me. The only problem is I am cheap and stevia ISN'T! LOL