New and would like a buddy

[Teresa3]

Hi, Gals--

Y'all are really crackin' up today! Gettin' a big kick out of the work related sagas, Y. The witch peeping around the corner and making noises! What a gas! I got an idea--leave her a WW brochure on her desk, from "a concerned friend." LOVE the outfit and the hair--you're giving me some wonderful ideas for when I lose enough weight, although I don't know if I could ever look decent in skinny pants--only if the top was long, and then I'd probably still be asked when the baby was due; these days women in their 60's are having them! I'll probably be a great-grandma by the time I can wear skinny pants!

Let me add my congratulations to you for getting your cholesterol down so much! That is just awesome! I'm sorry to hear you're so exhausted from little sleep--which med did you choose, or won't know til it arrives? Hope they come soon. Although I don't like the neurontin in some respects, it works better than Ambien for me for sleep. I actually slept ALL night the other night, and rarely wake up more than once.

Looks like you are catching a break w/s3 discovering the "old lady"--how old is s3? At least you won't have skinny gal around now to steal your slimfasts and be annoying for being so thin!

The lipolysis is just ATkins' term for when you eat so low carb that you get into ketosis and you are burning fat for fuel instead of carbs. It reduces hunger and burns more fat off you without burning muscle. I did finally break 160 today, so it's working!

D, what a riot your dh keeps candy in the headboard! Men are so funny! I think they like to eat candy more than we do, but would never admit that. Congrats on getting your snacking under control and not grabbing some of his bedtime candy for yourself! I have noticed that splenda stalls my weight loss, but I lose sooo slowly. You might try leaving it out for a couple of days, and drinking more water and see if the scale moves again. BTW, as I've been re-reading DANDR, Atkins does advise us not to use aspartame. I'm not sure if it's because of weight loss stalls, or because he thought it's potentially cancer-causing. I believe he says limit splenda to no more than 3 packs per day.

A burger in a lettuce wrap sounds so good, D! I haven't been eating them because I don't like them without a bun, but that's an inspiration! I got a cooked turkey breast from the store this afternoon because I didn't know what else to eat. It's not that great though, pretty dry. A burger sounds much better--will put that on my wish list! Something I could have at a restaurant. I told dh I do not want to eat dinner out for awhile so I can lose some weight. Eating dinner at home definitely makes a difference!

Yesterday's menu:

B - egg yolk, little sausage, lox, cr ch, spinach
L - salad, 1 shrimp and 1 carne asada enchilada, lc choc
D - halibut, tomato, asparagus, wax beans
S - smoked cheddar, almonds

Have a good evening, ladies! T.

[MI CHICK]

Wow that was quite the mental pic of you going to work this morning YH! Quite the chuckle to get me out the door with a smile on my face!! Am surprised that you didn't get a bigger response from the peanut gallery!

And the mural of the COW....well that brought quite the laugh from me too---even though I do know that it is ranch country it just cracked me up!

Glaze covered choc bundt cake....like that would have made it out of my house w/o a big o chunk missing....

And candy hidden in the headboard....dh would open it to sneak a piece & all that would be there are empty wrappers....
you guys just cracked me up all the way around today

Glad to hear that you all seem to be eating & exercising with the #'s dropping -- even if slowly for you T, at least they are going down!

Ocean front condo w/money to spare...humm...maybe dbf will move in too YH & you will finally have space to sort out all your clothes that are in the lvroom! Been to Fl once & enjoyed my visit as it was in Feb. Otherwise it would never work for me as I don't do heat/humidity. I tolorate the cold much better. Where do you think you'd like to move to when the time comes? Bf would be coming along I'm presuming. Choose a place your kids hate LOL!!! I have heard a number of people comment about down sizing to a 1 bedroom condo when they retired to keep any of their kids from coming back, or grandkids moving in

Todays menu:
B=bad
L=badder
S=even more bad
D=bad too
S=baddest of all
Am going upnorth to one of the outlet malls tomorrow. So I will be doing lots of walking & am going w/friend who always eats healthy & won't be wanting to stop for a huge dessert on the way home. So am hoping to be able to stop the carb carvings tomorrow. Looking forward to the day! Even though when we planned it a couple months back I was thinking I would be looking for some capri's for summer in a smaller size....now I will be saving my money cause I don't want to buy anymore tight 18's or 20's that fit...

Thanks for all the good laughs today gal's!!

[Denise78]

Well I had YH start me out with a laugh this morning, T suggest force-feeding WW propaganda onto co-workers and now C ended the night with another laugh. LOVED your menu. What a hoot!!

I tell ya, I think it is one of those weeks, isn't it? I'll sure be glad when it's over. This darn scale is not cooperating at all. I don't know if it's coming up on my time of the month or what, but I think it must be because I am retaining fluids and wanting to eat, eat, eat!

Today's menu:

B-coffee
L-1 burger on lettuce wrap, 1 cup cabbage soup, 3 mini dill pickles
D-2 cups cabbage soup, 2 low-carb pitas, lettuce, 2 bran crackers w/soy p'nut butter
S-2 string cheese, pork rinds, 3 mini dill pickles

T, I miss hamburger buns too but I find that if I slip a burger between some lettuce leaves, I get the "feeling" of eating that bun, just by being able to pick the burger up and take bites, rather than use a fork, so it does satisfy me in that sense. You could try the turkey in a lettuce wrap too, maybe throw a little mustard or salad dressing on it to moisten it up some. Was dh agreeable with cutting out the restaurants for a little bit? That should help you stay on plan. I actually do better in restaurants these days, as long as I ask them to omit the bad things (bread, potatoes, etc). I pretty much limit myself to chicken, veggies and salad when we eat out.

I haven't been adding Splenda to anything (I drink my coffee black) but I do eat/drink items that contain aspartame so maybe I will try to go without those things for a few days and see what happens. Heck, I've given up everything else, what's a few more things!!??

C, I'm sure you'll get a good amount of exercise with all that walking tomorrow. I love shopping, even if it is just window-shopping. I just can't do all that walking anymore, but if I could, I'd be at those outlet stores with you. What fun!

Hope you had another good day eating on plan, K.

Hey YH, watcha doin'?? Did you end up making supper? Hope you get a better night's sleep tonight. Did you ever try taking a warm bath with lavendar scents or bubblebath right before bedtime? I read somewhere that the lavendar makes you relaxed and sleepy.

On that note...I better get to bed myself. Have a good night ladies!! D

[yellowhair11]

My meltbelt is acting up - the thing is really hot-if she starts smokin and my belly starts on fire I wont be here for awhile. I ended up picking the highest dose of Lunesta for the sleeping as I got an extra hr. on that one. Since the cymbalta was a loser for me she called in good old Prozac and I picked that up yesterday and will try before the mailorder, I was on that many yrs. ago and can't recall how I did but I know it was good for weight loss.

Now I remember the lipo thing T, I had to check my urine with the stick/strips on Adkins on the original diet. I am glad you are sleeping better ! I hope dh is ok with not going out to eat as often-I avoid rest. now and could not control myself like D. You are doing great with the food too, the slacks were not the old type like leggings with the long t shirts (remember those outfits) these were maybe 3%spandex and then all cotton. I take too much of a risk buying everything on ebay with bottoms unless there is some stretch to it but usually stick to all cotton in stinkin hot Florida. WW would be the new 4 letter word at work

C - thanks for the laugh before I go to my hole for the day. Your menu was to die for The outlet malls will be so much fun C - I miss that - they have a fake one here that is way overpriced - I would have to head towards Orlando to go to a real one but that is something I could actually do. Thats an idea for long weekend - now I would just have to convince BF to drive but maybe gambler gf would do it. Thats exactly what I did C - moved to a small condo and it did not work as you know - sometimes I feel like tossing all the furniture and putting mattresses on the floor-I have 3 blow up ones. I am thinking east rural TN for retirement if not too expensive, some land and a mountain view would be nice, so would a lake. BF does not like the idea. Many Floridians buying up now so place may be ruined by that time. Full page ads everyday in the paper here from developers.

I never realized that Nebraska had such variations in weather D. The lettuce idea is a good one - I now went back to bagged lettuce as the last 2 weeks my bunch lettuce was not lasting, did you ever try those special bags that are suppose to keep fruit/veg. fresh ? Pricey for a pc. of plastic. I hope the scale starts behaving for you before Sat ! I had to laugh - they moved the curves scale to the ladies room and now I weighed the same as the one at home-here I took all my clothes off in the john -even pantyhose-to weigh myself I tried the kraft string and did not care for it.

Thurs.
am-grapefruit and cantelope
lunch-salad w 1 babybel and 1 egg
dinner- 2 day leftover ground patty (ughh) with frozen veggies
snacks- fruiti and 2 rice cakes

You had me in stiches on the slimfast theft - now I have to drink the generic target brand !

[Denise78]

Good morning ladies!

Yes, Nebraska's temps/weather fluctuates daily, minute by minute sometimes! Two days ago the temp was 81. Today I woke up to a winter wonderland. Big storm, gusting winds blowing snow all around, about 1" on the ground so far but still coming down. School was delayed 2 hours but I'm thinking if this keeps up, it will be cancelled altogether. Glad I have nowhere to go today!

Scale is still up this morning. I am retaining fluid. My feet and legs are swollen. I must be due anyday now, that's all I can think of. I've been eating cabbage soup, which usually flushes me out, so I can't imagine that is making me retain water. It must be my cycle approaching.

I think my meltbelt broke last night. I wrote to the ebay seller and she said she'd replace it free of charge, but I'd have to pay shipping again. I think I'll just have her refund my money. No sense investing more $$ in it. Too bad because I was really liking it but it started getting really really hot and then poof! it turned off and won't come back on again.

I also get Crystal Farms string cheese but I think that is a local product, so I doubt you'd find that anywhere. You might be best to stick with the babybel lites if you don't like the taste of Kraft. Unless your store has a brand that you can try out just one stick to see if you like it.

I strip to get on my scale too. It's like one of those lightning speed rounds because my scale has these big light-up numbers, which I thought would be great for my old eyes. But they're so big, I'm afraid dh will see the numbers so I look to see if he is around, jump on quick and then jump off. If he happens to pass by while I'm on that scale, I put my feet over the number to hide it. I don't know who I'm trying to fool --- the guy has seen me naked --- he KNOWS I don't weigh 120.

I took some country-style ribs out to defrost. The shish kebob will have to wait yet another day. I haven't tried those green bags for the veggies yet although I've seen them on tv and wondered how they worked. I still go with the dk green leafy lettuce from Alliance and when I run out, I switch to a head of iceberg from the little local store till I can get back to Alliance again (an hour away). I was doing the bag lettuce but then I got a bag that tasted like it had gotten hot, was really mushy and had a funny taste, and I haven't bought it since. I like getting the bag cole slaw and just asked dh to pick up some to have with supper tonight -- so there goes staying off the Splenda -- oh well, can't have cole slaw with regular sugar so I guess it will have to be Splenda and it's a nice change from having salads everyday.

Ds2 just ran out of his room, wondering if I forgot to wake him for school, and then he looked out the window. He was so happy. I remember those days -- such small things as school being cancelled could bring a big smile to your face.

Well I am rambling once again so I better stop. You gals have a great day and enjoy your warm weather! D

[rican3]

TGIF!!
I am so glad we are coming into the weekend. Seems there isn’t enough time in the day lately. I have been cracking up as I was catching up on what’s been going on around here!!We are going to start calling YH Miss Diva! New hair, slim clothes, pretty soon new BF if he doesn’t watch out! I about fell on the floor about the WW pamphlet. YH’s son is about to become the hottest topic since slice bread and we can’t wait for another update-too bad, so sad skinny girl!

I am doing ok, not great. Could not keep my hands off the tatter tots last night as the kids were yelling don’t do it! I only had about 6 of them, but the night before we went out for Chinese ands I had an egg roll. I did eat veggies and meat and egg drop soup, so we will see. I never got around to getting that scale, (I am getting one today) so I really won’t know if I did good or not. I guess I will use the Dr’s weight unless I am up since then! It sounds like everyone else is on a positive roll with #’s dropping everywhere! Congrats to all on that!

Yesterday’s menu

B-2boiled eggs –coffee w/ cream
S-Ham and cream cheese rollup
L- Steak and salad w/taco meat
S-chunk of cheddar
D-London broil and salad / dressing-6 tater tots

Today is the same except no taco meat and we will have pork chops for dinner. I am definitely going to get those Rev rolls done this weekend. I forgot the cream of tarter last week so I never got them made!

PS- C- We were very lucky with pictures. I had a computer/office at the back of the house and although everything in there was ruined from fire or smoke and water damage, we had lots of our pictures in totes, the plastic kind. They were stored under a metal table and the tops were melted but some of the contents were ok, so we were able to save most of those.

D- I can't believe you are getting snow on the 2nd of May

[yellowhair11]

Today was a long day at work-finally over. Did you get the scale K ? You really won't know how you did in one week. I have not had a tater tot in years-I would make them when the boys were young, and those frozen french fries, ughhh-maybe they have improved over the years. Glad you are doing ok with the food tho.

Our meltbelts - at least you can get a refund - mine has not poofed yet but real hot and I must have bought it 2 yrs. ago. Sorry about the fluid retention but at least you know whats happening. My scale is in the bathroom and I always lock the door - once in awhile BF will make a snide comment but I just yell at him that ive been locking for nine yrs. now so get over it. He would follow me into the bathroom and talk no matter what I was doing so I just started locking it and never stopped. A snow day in May ! Those ribs sure sound good D - I could go for some babyback barbecued spareribs - I always order those at a restaurant

S3 called but he is with skinny gal now. BF is going out tonite with the work crowd. I did not want to eat scrambled eggs or a frozen meal tonite so I have a sirloin on the grill. I got a gadget on ebay called the garlic twist and it worked, a garlic press looked too much for me - yup- your turning me into a cook so ill put the garlic with the FF marg. on the steak and see if thats ok. The ff " I can't believe its butter " has the weirdest consistency. I did not do any exercise today - I feel completely drained and like a truck rolled over me. I wore comfy somewhat baggy clothes to work today - everything hurt me from wearing the tight slim pants yesterday, holding gut in,and I was uncomfortable all day !

[Denise78]

Oh the pains we women go thru to be gorgeous -- sucking in our guts, hiding scales, starving ourselves -- it so better be worth it in the end!!

We are in the middle of a huge blizzard. It's been terrible all day long. Hard to believe I had the a/c on the other day -- now it's the heat. School was cancelled so ds2 was happy. Ds1 wanted to go to his friend's house in the next town. He's gonna be 21 in 3 weeks, I could hardly force him to stay home but I did argue that the weather was not good to be driving in. Of course he knew better. Called me 2 min later to say he ran off the road and was on his way home. He and his car are fine. I am always right. The wind is blowing something fierce, hard to see thru the snow blowing all over the place. My friend that I go to Curves with called to say they lost electricity already. Oh pls, I hope that doesn't happen to us -- I'd hate to be without computer and tv both -- a fate worse than death!!

Glad you are turning into a cook, YH. Knew we could get you to do it. You and T both. Steak on the grill sounds yummy. I never tried butter on a steak. If it's a good cut, we just grill it. If it's a cheaper cut, we will marinate it first. Will have to try the garlic & butter sometime. I love garlic.

I went back to my old standby of scrambled eggs & spinach for breakfast and that cleaned me out a bit and started moving the scale in the right direction today. I don't think I ate enough dk greens this week and looks like that might have something to do with my stall. We'll see tomorrow. At this point, I'll be happy to stay the same!!

I LOVE Chinese food. Sounds delicious, K. I've been good the last few times we stopped for Chinese and kept my meal to chicken, beef, broccoli and salad. Although I do remember eating the inside of an egg roll once and YH scolded me. Last time I did that! Now I behave but it sure is hard since there are so many good things to pass up. Sons want to go to Mongolian Grille tomorrow night -- we shall see how the weather is, but I am in the mood for some chicken & broccoli so I think I will do good if we go.

Ds1 found out he has to work over an hour away this summer, starting on Monday. The company will put him up in a hotel and pay for his 3 meals a day, so that part is good. But he was hoping to work locally so he could live at home. Me too. I love having him around -- he is such a chatterbox, whereas ds2 is usually too busy to spend too much time talking to Mom. So that means both boys will live away from home this summer and come home on wkds only. Hmmm, will be like a 2nd honeymoon for me and the old man.

Well, I think I will make some cornbread for the guys. Haven't made that in a long time. I'll have my crummy lc flatbread and suffer silently.

Happy Saturday! D

[Teresa3]

Hey, Gals--

Looks like everyone's in pretty good spirits today, gearing up for the weekend, I guess, or maybe you are drinking more than just your iced tea for Friday lunch! Oh, the trials and tribulations of those melt belts, and what we do to try to look good! Who knew, Y, that wearing stretch pants could be a form of exercise--no wonder you were exhausted! An entire work day of having to sit around with your gut sucked in! And D dancing on her scale to cover the numbers! That's a balancing act! Luckily for me, my scale is in the garage, and dh can't get close enough to see the numbers, cause by the time I hear him open the door, he's gonna have to sprint like an Olympic runner to get to see em!

And my o my, K, snatching tater tots from lil chilluns! No,
Grammy, No! Seriously, you did great all day--and who can resist a tater tot! Looks like you are easing back into it, K. The revolution rolls will probably help at lot. Glad you didn't lose your photos and hope we get to see one of you soon!

C, we all loved your menu ideas, but hope you can upgrade them to acceptible soon! It definitely helps to eat with a friend who is not a foodie, although definitely not as much fun, either! This helps us all be good and not bad... Hope you had a lot of fun at the mall, and got a lot of walking in. Did you make any purchases?

D, you do have the most incredible weather! Thank goodness your computer didn't go down, we'd all have been thrown into a tizzy wondering what happened! I hope the blizzard has tamed down and you can get back to having fun going to Curves, etc. At least you had ds1 back at home for awhile. You and dh will be lonely this summer with them both gone! Will this be the first time that's happened? I guess it will help give you a taste of what it will be like when ds2 goes off to college, or job away from home.

I sure had a big hee-haw about your idea of me turning into a cook, D. Y, maybe, but...I am slicing my steak into strips and throwing it in a pan because I don't know how to cook it whole! Funny though, Y, I did also pick up a sirloin this afternoon--must have picked up on your vibe! What happened that ds3 is back with skinny gal? We were all counting on rich lady gambler condo gal to provide us with many hours of intrigue and you with many hours of serenity!

I did well yesterday and today so far staying on plan, going to gym and riding bike at home. Yesterday's menu:

B - egg yolk, sausage, lox, cr ch, spinach
L - salad w/r.chicken and cheese
D - turkey breast, asparagus, wax beans
S - string cheese, almonds

Have a fun Saturday! T.

[MI CHICK]

Well a great time was had today! Spent some but not a lot. Tried on a couple tops but they looked as bad as the ones I have at home so why waste the money. Did buy a few things for the kitchen. We ate a nice dinner at Applebee's. Did get in quite a bit of walking. But the prices have changed over the past few years--you use to get these steal deals at the outlets but now they are just the same sales you get in the stores for the most part. Plus you're not spending money on gas. Cost $26 in gas, which we split. So that alone ate up any good deal you got. So we probably will not go again.

Since I have always wgt'ed naked first thing in the a.m. I always lock the door for that few minutes. Though as D said it's not like my dh looks at me & thinks oh my skinny wife....but the #'s embarrass me. As D said I have always wgt'ed heavy so even when I was a good size people would be shocked at the #'s the scale said. And YH bf sounds like when our kids were little & you could never be alone in the bathroom!

Snow squalls on May 2nd---it's not that it's never happened in MI before--but it's never welcome LOL!! Glad ds was ok & just had to call mom an say you were right

TN is a nice state & I like the mountains. Have lots of relatives there as my mom was born there. But it has the humidity that I so dislike! They maybe advertising it so strongly as the slower economy is hindering the number of folks retiring there? I like many places & mainly just don't want to live in the crowds of cities or suburbs. Course I may end up just staying right here....you need to move to a senior apt complex next YH--that would scare the kids off

Well it's midnight so I need to shuffle off to bed

[yellowhair11]

How's the blizzard going D - I hope its nicer today. I went to some Mongolian place once but it seemed just like the Chinese buffet, can't do buffets and be good-I would get 3 plates of whatever I wanted. I have a scoop of greens in my potion everyday-you may want to try that-plus its on many diets to flush fat. I placed an order for liquid vitamins this week as I felt better taking that stuff- I cheaped out the last few months trying a diff. brand but could honestly tell the difference . So I put a capful of the liquid vit., scoop of greens, capful of juice blend (either gogi,acai, noni, or mangostein), and a scoop of the psyllium husk powder in the potion. Gulp it down and go for a smoke Cant deal with vitamins in a pill form. Too bad about ds1 - I know you like him around. With the economy s3 has not worked like in a month now and that was off and on anyway.

I highly doubt that we will ever become cooks T but I like your idea of cutting the steak up because you don't know what to do ! When I retire I may learn how to cook-those cooking shows make it look like a breeze, HA ! You are doing great this week T.

Your outlet mall sounds like the fake one they have here C - I bet the Orlando one would not be worth it - the gas and hotel would be stupid. You had a nice day tho so that was great ! I was under the impression east TN had low humidity-so ive been told. North Carolina has gotten pricy. The senior complex would not work out-they changed laws about those-many are designated with a certain percentage for under 55. They also just require 1 person to be 55-so they would follow me and I would get thrown out for violation of some "rule" that was broken Can't say I would want to live with all the rules and some are like Cults-I got a dvd from a place called the Villages and it was really freakin wierd. I want a porch, rocker, flannel shirt, shotgun, 2 dogs, couple goats, and an allowed clothes line would be good too Hate MC Mansion or cracker box gated communities that all look the same ! I would go to the wrong house. Ashby may be the solution-D could haul me around in my old age because I would still be trying new meds and could not drive and we could share diet tips ! How exciting is that

Fri.
am-pineapple and cantelope
lunch-oatmeal with few blackberries
dinner-steak and apple
snacks- fruiti ice cream lc sand, 2 rice cakes

[yellowhair11]

P.S.

Weight loss is 1 pound for the week.

[Denise78]

As I'm reading your post YH, I'm thinking....hey, that is MY house. Minus the goats. I used to have ducks, but something got in their pen and killed all 6 of them. There are a couple of horses, sheep, llamas and burros in the pasture in front of my house, would those do??

Lots of snow on the ground but I hear it's supposed to warm up today and tomorrow so hopefully some of it will melt. I'm disappointed because my plum tree was in full bloom and my tulips all had buds on them when the storm hit. Those will be killed off, I'm sure. I don't know how this will affect my apple trees as they hadn't bloomed yet. Last year we had such a late frost in June that it killed all the blossoms and so we didn't get any apples in the fall, first time that's happened in the 6 yrs that I've lived in this house.

I have my order ready to go for Netrition.com and I did tack on some of that psyllium husk powder but my problem is that I cannot drink juice because of the high sugars, so I'm hoping I can get the stuff down. Maybe I will have to make up a glass of Crystal Lite and down it with that although that's not too strong of a flavor so I'm thinking it's bound to taste awful. Tell me what the greens are called and I will look up ordering some of those. What have I got to lose at this point?? I thought about the whey powder but I already eat lots of protein when I'm low-carb dieting, so I'm not sure I need that. I'm not even going to weigh in this morning. I'm so bloated, it would just be water weight at this point and too discouraging so we'll wait and see what it looks like later on.

T, you made me laugh about cutting the steak up. Too funny!!! I like my steaks grilled but sometimes I will get a cheap round steak and make swiss steak. Brown the meat in a large pan, add seasonings (salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder or even beef bouillion), canned tomatoes and a sliced onion. You want the liquid to just barely cover the meat so you can add a little water if you need to. Cover the pan and let simmer on med-low for several hours. It comes out soooo tender that way. Or you can simmer it in a teriyaki marinade if you don't like onions and tomatoes. The only way I'll cook a good ribeye is on the grill but you could try broiling it too.

Sorry the outlet stores were a disappointment, C. New Hampshire has some of those and I went once many, many yrs ago and experienced the same thing -- high prices -- so I never went again. I think sometimes it's just a scam to get you out there to spend. I'd rather hit a flea market. But at least you had a fun day with your friend and got some good walking in.

I've got a lot of things to do for my sorority meeting on Wed. We're having the luau in a couple of weeks so I want to pass out the invitations at this meeting. I bought a bunch of flowered leis and I am attaching a little invitation to each of them that I made up on my computer. I used colored ink in orange, pink and green (figure those are tropical colors) and I put little tropical stickers of fish and starfish on them. They came out really cute. Just a little variation of your run-of-the-mill invitation. I'm not a very crafty person but I wish I was because I love doing stuff like this.

Okay, time for another cup of coffee. Have a good day ladies! D

[Denise78]

Congrats on the 1 lb weight loss YH! (We must have been posting at the same time.)

[Denise78]

Ugh, this board is loading very slowly for me today.

Forgot to post...

Yesterday's menu:

B-2 scrambled eggs & spinach, salsa, coffee
S-1 string cheese, 10 olives
L-1 cup cabbage soup, 1 pc roast beef, salsa
S-5 mini meringues (0 carbs, under 3 calories each)
D-pork ribs, cole slaw, bran cracker w/soy p'nut butter
S-1 babybel

[Denise78]

Okay YH, click on this and see if this is what you are talking about. Udo's Green Blend. You have to go down the order form and click on Udo's Chc Green Blend because I cannot get it to link any other way. I'd like to order from Netrition and this is what showed up when I searched their website for greens. It's pretty pricey though so I want to make sure it's the right thing. Or maybe you have a place that is a lot cheaper (I'll have to place 2 orders and combined shipping might make it too expensive then). If so, email me the name of the website. Thanks!!

[yellowhair11]

Just got back-more later-yes D -the Udo's 9oz. green blend will be good and thats a decent price, you can mix that with the husk, add water or whatever to get in down, plug your nose if you have to. I've cut out the juice at this point ( was using an oz. of grapefruit ) Its nasty but very do-able, shake the heck out of it. I rarely use the protein whey now, just when I feel I need it.

[yellowhair11]

Had a great day so far - went to Curves and it was measure time again - another 8 inches - so thats a total of 20 since I started there My GF stood me up ( she did not feel well ) but I then ventured to a hotel in Miami that has a use of beach,pool,and spa for 28.00, included parking. I did not go in the pool but took a walk on the beach for 15 minutes, too darn hot and I did not have shade available to sit on the beach. The spa was like under the hotel, like a dungeon-dark-old. They gave you towels and a locker. I enjoyed a hot big ozonated jacuzzi, russian steam room, aromatherapy steam room, Finnish dry sauna, and a Turkish hamam. I kept doing it over and over but had to stop because you can only be in these rooms so long physically but it would be a good place to kick the bucket. I was the only one in there for the most part, no one spoke English - anyway it was a treat for myself and pretty different, wish there was something like this closer and its wonderful for stress. BF is still home now and is having a fit now because he has 2 flat tires-I hope he settles down or goes to work. I picked up some fresh cod from the deli for dinner and I could not resist the beautiful corn on the cob but I will hopefully just have one. I hope everyone is having a nice day.

The invitations sound adorable D and dont worry about not weighing yourself today as thats all water. Sorry about the plum tree, I love plums and tulips too. Thanks for the round steak recipe, I never bought it because I don't know how to make it. I will try this but it would have to be on a weekend. Canned tomatoes-like stewed tomatoes ? I am so dumb when it comes to cooking.

[Denise78]

Ok I am going to place that order on Monday. Thanks for the info. I buy the whole canned tomatoes and mush them just a little so they break open -- they're probably in the same place as the stewed tomatoes in your store -- but stewed tomatoes or diced tomatoes would work too. To me, it's a dish that takes only a few minutes to prepare and then you can leave it simmering. I'm sure you could do it in a crockpot too.

The weather is so beautiful today that the snow is all but melted. My neighbor's 2 puppies decided to spend the day at our house, driving us crazy. My dog roams free too but if you yell at her to get out of your yard, she will run away and not come back. Not so for puppies. They are so cute but they were trampling all over my flowerbed, up on my deck, very rambunctious and underfoot and annoying my dog, who is several yrs older and didn't want them leaping on her. I told dh, if I wanted 3 dogs, I would have had 3 dogs!! He chased after them with a broomstick but they just ran around him and came right back. He was so frustrated but it was quite comical to me. Puppies are very similar to kids. They don't listen and they keep coming back.

That hotel and spa sounds really nice. Wish I could have joined you!!

Hope everyone is having a good day so far! I'm off to enjoy the sunshine. D

[Denise78]

P.S. Your supper sounds so good!! I am dying for good corn on the cob. What happened that bf got two flat tires???

I'm really losing it here -- keep re-reading your post and finding more to add LOL.

Congrats on losing another 8 inches. Wow, that is awesome! I think you need a new pic up, don't you???

[Teresa3]

Hi, Gals--

Yah, Y, we want to see a pic of the new svelt you! Many congrats on the 8" and 1 more lb. lost! Curves again, and sauna, spa, etc. rounds--does the heat help you lose weight? What is a Russian sauna, and a Turkish hamam? Seems like these things would certainly make you drowsy! Y, maybe if you sat out front of your condo in your flannel shirt w/a shotgun on your knee and a couple o pit bulls, skinny gal and others might not feel so inclined to stay awhile... Have fun grilling tonight--fish and corn on the cob does sound tempting!

Glad the sun came out and melted the snow, D. Sorry about your flowers. Maybe your tulips will get some more buds on them. Dh and I went to the gym today, and then to a rose show at a big nursery. It was lovely, and they smell so good! Brightened my day, but I was having a pretty good one anyway. It's very pretty here now, lots of flowers blooming everywhere. Hang in there on the bloat, D. You know as soon as Tom gets over with the scale will start to move again. Have you tried eating cucumbers and asparagus? They're supposed to be diuretic, as well as spinach. The luau is going to be great! It's fun to hear about your preparations.

Well, I am taking a leap of faith and enrolling in a dog training class that starts in 3 weeks. I don't get out and do much because I can't be on my feet much, but D, and Y, you are such an inspiration, doing things in spite of physical pain and exhaustion, I am going to give it a try. The dog really has to have this; she is getting too unruly. I enjoyed hearing about the puppies' visit--I can just see your dh out there trying to chase them off!

C, glad you had a good time at the outlet mall, even if you weren't able to find much. The ones out here are the same way--you go shopping expecting
to find bargains, and everything costs just the same as it does in the stores at home! But still a fun excursion. Were you able to get back on track after eating with your health-conscious friend?

How is your weekend going, K, and SC? K, did you manage to stay on track all week?

I've done well again today so far, and dh is roasting a chicken for tonight so that will keep me on track. Yesterday's menu:

B - lox, cr ch, little sausage, egg yolk, spinach
L - salad w/halibut
D - sirloin steak, green beans, crookneck squash
S - almonds, cheddar cheese

Have a lovely Sunday! T.

[yellowhair11]

Not sure of the description for a Turkish Haman is T-it was just another room to me but really old and I guess thats what they look like in Turkey, a Russian sauna is cedar with fresh air ventilation and aromatherapy system, I would assume this stuff is good for weight-I dont like hot weather but I love this kind of stuff, I was wiped out after my visit but felt very good for once. I so wished you guys were with me. What is your baby doing that dog school is needed-that should be fun, how old is he/she ?on your food this week T - hang in there. I am by no means svelte-my belly is only 1.5 inches smaller than my hips now according to Curves measurements-belly going to be hard. I would say im somewhat chunky. I do force myself often when not feeling well. Now what about some water exercise - you could do that !

Pic-if I buy an instant cheapo camera can that go on a disc to load ??? I will ask BF again about the battery for his digital ( requested 4 xs now) Or when I go up north next month maybe I could ask brother to take a pic with his camera but would probably be a big deal. Or would I have to buy a digital camera ? I am clueless in this dept.

Flat tires-Parking is an issue here D so BF parks his car on the street and even tho its the street some unknown neighbor thinks its their spot so think its deliberate, now this turned into MY fault as I use condo spot of snowbird and s3 uses my spot so because I allow s3 to use condo spot the flats were my fault. However when there was a free spot here ( not now ) BF would not park in condo spot because of bird doo. Plus he started yelling about s3 who has not been here for a week except for 5 min. to get clothes. I had such a nice day and come home to yelling from BF-ughhhh. Also made a comment as "did I get lost for 7 hrs"-I guess im suppose to watch him sleep all day for thrills after his nite out in bars/clubs with half naked women. They have dancing poles in many reg. clubs now and when the young gals get loaded they pole dance and strip. Then says " I thought you would have stayed home today so we could go in the pool together " cmonnn. He finally went to work. I would of had a field day with he puppies D, just love em, but I dont have a flowerbed or garden and can understand your dog being too old to deal with it. The burros would be just great !

Sat.
am-target generic slimfast

lunch-pear and apple-good thing I take a ditty bag with me in my unknown escapades-looked at hotel menu but in Spanish and Russian so just as well.

dinner-baked cod and 2 cobs of corn-I used the Smart balance light spread that C mentioned once i think and the consistency was better.

snacks-few pretzels, fruiti, l.c. ice cream sand.

What are you up to C, K, and SC ?

[yellowhair11]

Not sure of the description for a Turkish Haman is T-it was just another room to me but really old and I guess thats what they look like in Turkey, a Russian sauna is cedar with fresh air ventilation and aromatherapy system, I would assume this stuff is good for weight-I dont like hot weather but I love this kind of stuff, I was wiped out after my visit but felt very good for once. I so wished you guys were with me. What is your baby doing that dog school is needed-that should be fun, how old is he/she ?on your food this week T - hang in there. I am by no means svelte-my belly is only 1.5 inches smaller than my hips now according to Curves measurements-belly going to be hard. I would say im somewhat chunky. I do force myself often when not feeling well. Now what about some water exercise - you could do that !

Pic-if I buy an instant cheapo camera can that go on a disc to load ??? I will ask BF again about the battery for his digital ( requested 4 xs now) Or when I go up north next month maybe I could ask brother to take a pic with his camera but would probably be a big deal. Or would I have to buy a digital camera ? I am clueless in this dept.

Flat tires-Parking is an issue here D so BF parks his car on the street and even tho its the street some unknown neighbor thinks its their spot so think its deliberate, now this turned into MY fault as I use condo spot of snowbird and s3 uses my spot so because I allow s3 to use condo spot the flats were my fault. However when there was a free spot here ( not now ) BF would not park in condo spot because of bird doo. Plus he started yelling about s3 who has not been here for a week except for 5 min. to get clothes. I had such a nice day and come home to yelling from BF-ughhhh. Also made a comment as "did I get lost for 7 hrs"-I guess im suppose to watch him sleep all day for thrills after his nite out in bars/clubs with half naked women. They have dancing poles in many reg. clubs now and when the young gals get loaded they pole dance and strip. Then says " I thought you would have stayed home today so we could go in the pool together " cmonnn. He finally went to work. I would of had a field day with he puppies D, just love em, but I dont have a flowerbed or garden and can understand your dog being too old to deal with it. The burros would be just great !

Sat.
am-target generic slimfast

lunch-pear and apple-good thing I take a ditty bag with me in my unknown escapades-looked at hotel menu but in Spanish and Russian so just as well.

dinner-baked cod and 2 cobs of corn-I used the Smart balance light spread that C mentioned once i think and the consistency was better.

snacks-few pretzels, fruiti, l.c. ice cream sand.

What are you up to C, K, and SC ?

[Denise78]

Good Sunday morning everyone!

I am still up on the scale. So I will deal with it and work harder this week. I really need to lower my sodium intake today and maybe that will help the water retention. Got into some olives last night plus sauerkraut at supper, and that didn't help matters any.

Yesterday's menu:

B-2 sl provolone cheese, lc flatbread, coffee
L-taco salad
D-2 burgers, lc flatbread, sauerkraut
S-8 olives

YH, I think they sell instant digital cameras now. Or you can take a regular camera to Walgreens or Wal-Mart and have them put the pics on a disc. Do you have a camera phone? You could take a pic with that and email it to yourself. Or you can take a pic with a regular camera and mail it to me and I will scan it and email it to you so it's on your computer. Or you could hire a sketch artist, at this rate.

So if s3 hasn't been there all week, why can't bf park in that spot? Or did s3 leave his car there? Lots of clashes between those 2, even when s3 is not there, that would drive me crazy. How long have you and bf lived together? Pole dancing -- ugh. You're a better person than me. Course I put up with lots of crap when stepson lived here and didn't get a day's peace till he moved out. I hope today is less stressful for you.

The puppies were adorable. For an hour or so. But they were here all day, no matter how many times dh and ds1 chased them away, they kept coming back and were into everything, can't put out food and water for our dog now. Ds1 lit off a few firecrackers and that kept them away, for about 5 min. We have other dogs that come visit, I don't mind them. But they don't stay all day long and get into things. We'll see how today goes.

The rose show sounds so nice, T. I love flowers but I cannot get down on my hands & knees anymore to garden. Dh has to do my planting and once he starts his vegetable garden, he doesn't have much time for anything else. I think you will have fun with the dog training classes. Fresh air, little walking, meeting other doggie owners. How old is your dog? Can you teach an old dog new tricks?

I use the Smart Balance too. You can get it in either margarine or butter, a soft or harder consistency. Tastes the same to me. I am craving corn on the cob now. But I'm safe because it's not in season here yet, thank goodness.

Sons are working a branding this afternoon. Have to wrestle calves and hold them down while they get branded and castrated. Poor little things. I could never be a rancher's wife.

How are your wkds going C & K? Hope you are staying on plan and getting lots of exercise.

Sun is shining here. Maybe we will cookout again later. Have a great day ladies! D

[yellowhair11]

Fair Sunday so far, went to breakfast with BF - had a veggie omelet with 1.5 pcs. of rye toast that was buttered when it came. I gave BF my homefires, was not sure if grits were bad or not. I wanted to get some exercise in but that did not happen. He had to exchange something at Macy's and he ended up buying me some nice gold earrings for my BD which is not till the end of the month. I then ended up buying one pc. of lightweight luggage as the set I have is so heavy that I always have to have someone help me get it off the ramp thingy at airports. Lost my keys but tracked them back to the rest. and the cleaning crew had them ( 2hr. affair). Fried chicken for the guys for dinner, there is a leftover cod pc. and a cob of corn for me . I feel guilty when I don't get some exercise in.

The weight will be off next Sat. D, I just know it. I will try and get BF to take a pic soon-now he says the camera is working.

Hope everyone is having a good day !

[slendercate]

HI, ya'll,

Well, wanted to report that even though the scale is staying put, yesterday, I put on and wore a pair of capri's in a size smaller that I purchased at the end of last summer. Hope to be at my final goal size by Oct this year near my birthday.

I have tried them on each week and finally they fit, I was so excited.


Today, have had family here for dinner, but made sure it was a protein power controled carb one.

D, here's hoping the weight will come off by next week for you. Salty olives and pickles can make me bloat also.


Well, bye for now, off to exercise.

Have a great Sunday, all.

[Teresa3]

Happy Sunday, All--

Congrats, SC, on fitting into the smaller capris! Nothing feels better than getting into that next size lower, does it! Sounds like you have been doing consistently good work, staying on plan and exercising--it's really paying off now! What did you fix for your family dinner?

Y, good thing bf took you out to a nice breakfast today--he really owed you after that silly ranting over the flat tires and the parking spaces! And to think the scoundrel took off to watch half-naked boozing girls! I don't know how you put up with it, Y! You deserve better treatment! He must have felt pretty chagrined this morning--sounds like you got a beautiful pair of earrings out of it! :rolleyes When exactly is your birthday; we don't want to miss it!

So sorry to hear you lost your keys--that is so incredibly anxiety-provoking! Thank goodness you tracked them down! You'd have probably never heard the end of that one! But you got a nice new piece of luggage, eh? Preparing to move to TN? Or maybe make an excursion to Ashby to take up D on her advice to retire there? Of course, Santa Cruz is a nice place to visit, too, Y! Too bad it's so far from Florida! A terrible place to retire, though--everything's way overpriced! Maybe D will have us both trying to retire on her doorstep!

Sure wish my stomach was smaller than my hips. 2" bigger--I've always had a pot sticking out. That's why I always wear jackets; they help hide a world of ills!

The poodle will be two next week. She doesn't know her basic commands like sit (will do it sometimes), down, stay, pulls on leash, etc. Not a real obedient dog, but our fault of course. It's just harder when you get older to get these things done. I had my lab trained really well, went to obedience classes with her and taught her tricks; she was a wonderful dog. Those were the good ole days!

D, it's so distressing to have to put up with the scale not moving for several days, isn't it! It does sounds like sodium might be the cause, if it isn't Tom. (Boy am I glad I don't have to deal with that any more! ) Your menus look great other than the salty stuff, so you've got to drop here sooner or later. This is when we have to say oh well, it's a way of eating, not just a weight loss plan...just hang in there and think about how much fun you're going to have at that luau!

Wow, your sons are both branding! That sounds so romantic, but I know it really isn't. It must give them a great sense of self-confidence to be able to do that kind of "real man" work, though. Sounds like a great way to grow up. I'm sure you must be very proud of them!

K, and C, how did your weekend go? Hope you gals are doing well!

I stayed on plan yesterday and today so far. Went to the gym. Yesterday's menu:

B - chili-apple sausage, egg, spinach
L - salad w/ salami, beef brisket
D - roast chicken, cauliflower, asparagus
S - smoked gruyere cheese, almonds

Take care, everyone! T.

[MI CHICK]

Good weekend here-rained yesterday but we got lots of yard work done between showers. Today was sunny & perfect! After church we came home to dinner & then out to do errands while wandering. Kind of like a YH Saturday I'd say.

We stayed in a hotel way way upnorth in Canada about 14yrs ago that had the pool & suna & hot tub under the hotel. Seemed kind of creepy when ds & I went down but there was no one else there so we just went from one spot to another over & over too. Was great! We figured that with the winters they have in the Yukon there was no sense having everything upstairs by big windows. And the $28---well that was cheaper than your club & everything actually worked!! Too bad you didn't just take a room & go sleep while you were all relaxed!! Nothing like coming home in such a good mood & having it blown all to pieces....I've had that happen more than once over 32yrs of marriage....too bad about the tires, that would tick a person off, but no sense taking it out on you. It's good you got beyond it & had dinner & bth gifts!!

Congrats on getting into the smaller capri's SC!!! And that's one good thing about hosting the family dinners yourself as you have some control

Your menu sounded good T! Love that Gruyere cheese! Have a to die for egg dish that's very easy to make that uses it if you're interested. It's one of those recipes that you can only enjoy on Atkins as it is rich. Reheats well in the micro too so it works for bkf/lunch/dinner. Lab's are pretty bouncy in their personalities so it's quite the accomplishment that yours was well trained. My brother has had 2 choc labs over the years & they were very sweet & the first one trained very well. The 2nd one never got it together all the years they had her....she almost drove them nuts more than once LOL!!

Don't blame you about the puppies D! Cute or not it's not great to have them take over your yard! I get tired of cleaning up dog piles when I don't even have a dog anymore!! And remember that you had a huge drop last week--maybe it's leveling out this week? But then the salt can really hold you back, especially at tom. Hide that scale in the basement for a couple weeks!! LOL!! Your luau sounds like fun & your invites sound cute!! I have watched the branding twice on ranches in NB and it was quite exciting. Smelled pretty bad though...LOL!! Also saw a couple calfs be born which was interesting too. The first one I saw I passed out cold....was so embarrassed!
But I was 16 & had never seen anything like it before. So much better for ds's than marking their place in a gang somewhere!! Young males need to mark their malehood (is that a word??) & city guys have less ways I think. How's dh's tooth?

I tried drinking that green stuff when I did Atkins before. Knew I needed lots more veggie variety than I was getting. Db has been using it for years. So I coughed up the money & it was so NASTY I just could not choke it down!!!! OMG it was beyond terrible! Can't believe you manage to choke it down YH!!! I just can't do healthy to that degree. Really like that I can have a can of V8 each day on SB!!

That steak cooks up soooo tender in the crockpot too if you can unearth yours YH, that way it can simmer while you are at work. You can also use 1 can of Campbells Healthy request Cream of Mushroom soup, drained 4oz can of mushrooms, 1 sliced onion, 1 carrot chopped pretty small, & 1 stalk of chopped celery. Lay steak pieces in crock & top w/the rest of the ingredients. This is the creamy swiss steak & we prefer it over the tomato base. The tomato base one works well with pork steaks or thick pork chops. DH likes that one a lot too, been making it since we first got married. Tomorrow I am putting sauerkraut in the bottom of my crock with a sprinkle of Splenda brown sugar over it & then laying thick pork chops that I cut from my pork loin roasts when I buy them on sale.

Tomorrow is to finish up the last of the lawn work & do laundry. Have my water class at 8:30pm. So that will be a good physical day. Have good foods to eat & I think all the bad stuff has been eaten or went into the garbage. Mother's day will be here of course & I can control the food served. Course everyone expects dessert. Made the cinnamon cake last time cause I knew it wouldn't tempt me. This time my mom wants my choc eclair cake....& it is so delish.....can I make myself exercise twice a day if I have a piece?? LOL!!

Ok enough chatter. It's almost 11 so I need to pack dh's lunch & set up the coffee pot for in the morning.

[yellowhair11]

Sun.
am- veggie omelet-1.5 slices of rye toast buttered.
dinner-leftover cod with 1 cob of corn
snacks-lc ice cream bar, 2-large sourdough pretzels, 2 fruiti, goldfish-ughh (after blowout)

BF goes out by S3 for no reason and turns the ac down on him in front of his face, s3 comes in bedroom and gets in BFs face, cursing and yelling-both, thought s3 would smack him one but did not. I dont know why BF provokes him like that, says he's tired of the high electric bills ( he pays that-big whoop) We have the casement window units here, no central. Stuff like this festers in s3's mind ands surfaces bad when he drinks-he was not drinking-just minding his own business quietly watching tv and was gone for a week. Here we are watchin a movie in the bedroom and he gets up out of the blue and starts this crap. He then makes a comment about how much money he spent at Macy's, I told him I never want to see those earrings and to take them back and pay the electric bill and shut up. All this starts at 900 pm after a nice weekend. Now BF does not pull this ac stuff on me when out out there at the computer as I like it cold too.

Good to hear from you C and sounds like your weekend was decent-the yard work was good exercise for you. The Canada hotel was interesting to me as I thought that was really strange under the hotel, I think the rooms there are fairly cheap and then its 15 to get into the dungeon, that would be a nice weekend deal as its a long horrible traffic drive but if they had a room with a mini fridge and micro do-able. Thats too funny on the greens C - I actually am liking the stuff but what makes mine bad is the husk powder I add. I can tell when I don't have it-they make me feel better. Your round steak recipe sounds good !

on the capris SC-the Callanetics are kickin in ! Do you do any form of cardio ?

T-I got the pc of luggage as I have up north coming up in June, bought a 26" instead of a 29" and will have to learn how to pack less, I always stand like a helpless old woman and strangers have to lift my big pc. for me when needed or im asking for major back pain. Ill slowly replace the other pieces and at this point don't care if color does not match-this is one item I was leary of buying online as I had to lift every one, my old luggage was pricey but ill give to s2 or s1. My belly was always bigger than my hips too-I can shower and look down and see feet now ! Glad you got the gym in on Sunday and stayed on plan.

How did your Sun. go D ? How did you do K ?

[Denise78]

Oh YH, sorry your wkd ended on a bad note. I gave back a pr of diamond earrings in a similar situation many yrs ago. Maybe I should have kept them and made dh take something back of his.

Ds2's teacher called yesterday while the boys were at the branding. She was sick and cancelling ds2's Leadership Academy for today. The boys didn't get home till 9 pm and ds2 was so disappointed for the last-minute cancellation. It's their last one of the year and "graduation" for them so one that they didn't want to miss. So of course I volunteered to take him and his classmates to it. The teacher wasn't answering her phone and neither was the principal so he ended up calling the superintendant, who was very happy that I could fill in at the last minute. It's a 2 hour drive each way and he told me to charge my gas to the school since I didn't want to take a school vehicle. I'm more comfortable driving my van, esp. if it's that long of a drive. So I was up at 5 am getting ready this morning. We are meeting the other 2 kids at the school at 6:30 am. It's an all-day event. One mother already emailed me, thanking me soooooo much because her son was hugely disappointed when it was cancelled and she couldn't chaperone.

Now my biggest fear -- lunch. Ds2 said last time they fed the group grilled cheese sandwiches and wild rice soup. I hope it's nothing like that again. I can't believe how nervous I am about eating. Ds2 told me, "oh just cheat for once," but I'm scared to. Of course, this is the day dh and I planned to grocery shop after his dental appt, so I am out of most everything. I packed a protein bar and a baggie of almonds. I figure if lunch is really bad, at least those will get me thru the day.

Wish I could do yardwork. That's fun exercise to me. Sounds like you and dh had a very nice wkd, C. You're making me second-guess those greens. Haven't placed the order yet. YH, you better talk me into it. $22 is not cheap for something that is going to make me puke.

T, I didn't realize your poodle was so young. Our lab is about 10 yrs old now. She used to be extremely hyper but slowed down a lot in her old age. She behaves very well except when I yell -- then she runs away -- smart dog. I am 47, so I expect I'll have my TOM for a little longer, although I won't miss it when it's gone, that's for sure! I still haven't gotten it though. All the pms symptoms including crabbiness and bloating but nothing so far.

Kathleen, where are you hiding?? Congrats SC, for getting into those capris. Sometimes the inches lost mean more than the lbs.

Just sent ds1 off to his new job. He's worked locally for the past couple of years but this time will be over an hour away and digging cable lines, so more manual labor than last year working on the computer and telephones. He'll be back either Thurs or Fri night depending on if the crew is doing a 4-day or 5-day work week. Hard work never killed anyone so I'm sure he'll do fine and will make him appreciate the office work next year.

Well ladies I do have to run but I will write more tonight and let you know how today went. We are going to a huge 4H camp set in the forest reserves. I've been there before -- nice camping area with lots of cabins and lodges. Should be a fun time!

Have a great day! D