*Getting Healthy for Baby* April

[Nik]

Katy: I, too love the new pic! I stayed home with DS as an infant, and it is HARD WORK!! Unsolicited advice here, so turn a blind eye if you'd like: Always remember the cautionary advice on an airplane safety brochure, "Put your own oxygen mask on before assisting others." That's really my motto of motherhood. Good luck with your beautiful boy!

Mel: Thanks for the encouragement and the offer to keep tabs on our loss. I'll help by NOT posting my daily losses, though the curious can still check my siggy for details. Last week, I lost 2.8 pounds. NOT BAD! Can't wait to read our total. (Next month, we can adjust our goal. You're right-we're doing so well!)

Kat: Great to see you back and hear about your productive retreat. Important news in my life is that my computer crashed and my good friends betrayed me in real estate issues, but I'm coming through both situations with a little help from my friends. I missed you!

Stinky: I'm confused about the chicken salad. Do you eat it cold? Does it taste like hot wings, just without the bone and the crud under the fingernails? Can you give me a few more details on your recipe? I've never done anything like this before... Have you received your Magic Bullet yet? Tried the egg creams? I will NOT be having one tomorrow...we're outta eggs! We went through THREE DOZEN eggs in six days. Hmmm... is this an issue? On the other hand, after almost two weeks of egg creams, I've had no GI issues, and I'm clearly losing! YEAH!!!

Christina: You're really losing! That fluctuation is pretty normal, I think. I usually go up and down and all around. Today, I was up a little. Tomorrow, I expect a bigger whoosh. Keep it up, girlie! You're doing so well!

As far as my cycle goes, I'm approaching O, but not seeing any EWCM yet. I can't really tell my day because I'm not using FF right now; the password is on my other computer and I'm too lazy to request it be sent to my email. Oh well; I'll keep you updated.

Did I miss Amber's post, or is she absent? We love you! Today's menu:
B: egg cream
S: Amber's muffin (he, he, he!)
L: Salad w/bacon, gorgonzola, and feta cheese dressing
D: chicken w/tomatoes, celery, and artichoke hearts
S: TOO MUCH MB chocolate mousse hmmmm....

[amlundie]

Hiya girls-

Belle- I love survivor and I thought it was awesome! I love to see things get shaken up, Next week should be good!

Nik-I'll update my siggy in the morning, if I forget please remind me

Oh yeah cycle wise I am on day 2 of AF visiting town. But since I'm changing jobs and insurance I'm really ok with it. And it was a fairly "normal" lenth cycle so thing are going good!

Have a good night girls!

[Stinkerbelle]

Happy Friday!

Hey Egg Girl..I mean, Nik- the buffalo chicken salad is served cold. If you are a fan of chicken salad, this is a great twist. It comes out nice and creamy this way. Next time I make it, I can take measurements of the ingredients if you want. I have not got the Bullet yet- dont you worry...you will know when I do! Just look at your siggy...you are sooo stinkin close to underland- wowweee!!!!!!!

I have to get ready for work- I will check in lata...Have a great day!

[amlundie]

Hiya girls,

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Menu today
B: bacon, eggs scrambled w/ onions
L: drumstick w/ broccoli
S: yogurt
D: chicken breast and grilled veggies ( going to a bbq)

Yesterday I decided to expand my food list so I got some Dannon carb control yogurt in Vanilla cream flavor.... MMMMM it's good! And I got some frozen peas.. I love peas but haven't been eating them much since they are higher in carbs but I think it's time to take another step on the ladder and add some more good carbs in... It's not like peas made me fat!

Have a great blessed day ladies!

[ArmyWife88]

My Menu for today:

Breakfast: 2 eggs, 3 pieces Canadian Bacon
Lunch: Salad
Snack: SF Jello
Dinner: Chicken w/ Yellow Squash and Green Beans

Going to go read my book and do some laundry before DH comes home.

[Stinkerbelle]

oooh Mel- nothing like fresh peas in the summer!! I agree that it should be fine. You know your body and it will tell you if the peas are a no-no. Have fun at your BBQ

Christina- what book are you reading? Have fun with DH tonight

My menu:
B- 2 eggs, 2 turkey breakfast sausage
L- BBQ beef from last night
S- iced coffee w/cream
D- creamy cucumbers, portabella mushroom burger (chopped mushrooms mixed in with the hamburger)
S- hmm. not sure..

Hope everyone is having a good day..

[ArmyWife88]

UPDATED menu:
Breakfast: 2 eggs, 3 pieces Canadian Bacon
Lunch: turkey and cheese pita sandwich
Snack: SF Jello
Dinner: Chicken w/ Yellow Squash and Green Beans

Belle- I am reading The Choice by Nicholas Sparks. He is an amazing author. I've read four or five of his books in the last year or so. Dear John was my favorite!

Has anyone tried the flax, oat bran, and whole wheat flour pita bread? They are wicked good! Only 8g of carbs (4 net carbs) for a whole pita. They're kind of thin but YUM!! I made a breakfast burrito type thing out of them a few days ago and I might stick a burger in one tomorrow.

Hubby failed his 'tape test' for the Army so he will be changing his eating habits now as well. He's not going to cut out all carbs because he does alot of physical activity but I'm just happy we'll all be healthier!

[AsmallerME]

Hey chicas! Sorry for being MIA yesterday. My week has been extremely hectic to say the least. I got dragged out last night (against my will) and walked into a big glass, or rather fish bowl of types, of margarita. Let's just say I was not at all on plan last night. I'm back to basics today and going to just move forward. I'm very set on staying LC so it should be fine. But still...I'm disappointed that I didn't resist temptation. Guess ketosis hadn't taken over my brain yet!

Christina - what's the tape test? And nope, I've never tried that....sounds good though.

Mel - I lost 2 pounds last week. I think originally the goal was to lose 25 by May 1st so we could always move the date up and then always have it be to lose the 25 by the 1st of the month. Or we could keep it this way so we compute it to be always by a Wednesday weigh-in. Either way is fine. Thanks so much for being in charge of the tallying.

Belle - I'd be interested in more specific measurements next time you make the buffalo chicken salad (if you don't mind). It sounds really yummy. You could probably even throw it in the magic bullet to make it more chopped up and mixed together. Mmmm.... I'm going to get the ingredients and try this soon.

Nik - wow, you've gone through a lot of eggs pretty quickly. At least they seem to assist your weight loss.

Okay, so I am looking forward to this weekend. I need some rest and also need to get some house work done. I want to redo our guest bathroom - just update the shower curtain, towels, and floor mats. I've had the bathroom stuff in there since undergrad and I'm sick of the look now. I also want to get a new welcome mat and some flowers for the flower beds and maybe even a potted plant to put on our patio table. I guess I just want to freshen up the house for the spring.

Have you guys seen those tomato grower things? The one that hangs upside down? I can't remember but I think it may be called topsey turby or something. I was thinking about buying one and trying to grow tomatoes since I love them and they're pretty expensive (I try to buy organic produce). Just curious if it's a pain in the butt or if anyone knows.

Okay, I'm going to check a few things online and I'll be back.

Oh, Christina - thanks for the book recommendation. I'm going to write it down to remember for later. I'm reading "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert right now. I'm at the beginning so can't give it a thorough review but so far so good. I'll BBL.

[ArmyWife88]

Amber - He is 'overweight' by Army standards. So he failed the weigh in. He's about 180. So then he has to get 'taped'. They measure your neck and waist and if it's not under a certain ratio, you fail.

[Stinkerbelle]

The Army standards and their tape test are stupid...they should concentrate more on the soliders that really have a weight problem instead of nit pick at the guys that look great! Sorry- my DH has issues all the time but he knows that he will never be at Army standards. Craziness!

Christina- Are you talking about Joseph's pitas? If so, I like them alot but I tend to get carried away. You can break them in half, spread butter on it and sprinkle it with cinnamon and splenda, pop under the broiler and YUM! Also can make savory chips by adding garlic salt and butter.

I also love Nicholas Sparks...very easy to read. I am not reading anything at the moment but I did read A Thousand Splendid Suns finally and loved it.

Amber- I will measure everything out next time. Of course, it would be nice to whip it up in the Magic Bullet if I had mine already!!! I have never seen the tomato thingie.. Sounds like you are going to be a busy bee this weekend- havefun sprucing the house! When you are done, come on over to my place

Well, lots to do and no time to do it...have a great weekend everyone!!

[Nik]

Hey girls! Happy weekend!

Amber: I've seen the tomato thing. It looks good, but I'm not willing to do all that work. We don't eat many tomatoes.

Stinky: Yes, please get us a more detailed recipe to follow the next time. It sounds great; I can't wait! How's DD?

My weekend plans are to work, work, and work. Too bad, but I hope it's worth it. The school yearbook is ALMOST done, and I want to be completely finished by Monday morning. Today, I wanted to eat cleaner so I could get over a two day slump. Instead, I messed things up a bit. It wasn't too bad, but certainly not super clean as I had hoped. I started out well, then went downhill:

B: 2 pcs. bacon and bacon and mushroom quiche (we're out of eggs; no egg cream today!)
S: 3 pcs. bacon
L: chicken w/artichokes
D: prime rib, asparagus, coffee w/half and half, a bit of salad
S: (here's the kicker) LOTS of peanuts and those 60% cocoa chips I bought to make Amber's muffins. LOTS---too much!

Still on the laptop. I hope DH will make a Frankenputer tomorrow out of our two dysfunctional computers. Send us good vibes!

[ArmyWife88]

Belle - yes I am talking about Josephs. I am moving on to Phase two of SB and your supposed to add back fruits and whole grain bread but the carb count in whole grain bread makes me uncomfortable so I'm just going to go with the pitas which are way lower in carbs. I figure one a day won't hurt but we'll see.

On other news, We're going to be starting going to the gym every night for some cardio to help my hubby shred the lbs and inches fast so he can get unflagged and get his promotion.

[Nik]

Yeah, Promotions! Christina: Do you love the show Army Wives? I LOVE IT! When will it be coming back? Season one was PHENOMENAL!

I need to work today! I've already had my shower, so I was hoping that would get me in gear. BUT, I stayed up so late last night that I'm really tired and want a nap. What to do?

SO far today I've had fatty chocolate milk with whipping cream and almond milk.

Last night we went to Sam's club and bought giant 3 pound blocks of cream cheese. We're going to be eating cream cheese muffins until the cows come home! Now, I just need to get in touch with my egg lady and buy four dozen eggs. I know it's a lot of eggs, but it's cheap food and really good for you, right? Right? RIGHT?

FIL is buying us plane tickets to go to Orlando at the end of July. It's super nice knowing that we're not going to have to make that 15 hour drive.

Who felt the earth move under your feet yesterday????!!!!! What a weird experience. I know many of us are in the midwest, so this was quite unusual.

[ArmyWife88]

Nik - I believe season 2 is starting sometime in June. Unfortunately I will be in Germany and won't be able to watch it until it makes it to the internet.

UPDATE on moving.... Picked up our passports yesterday. DH starts outprocessing in 2 weeks!! We'll be clearing housing and heading to MA for 2 weeks May 27th and then We'll be flying out June 10th. This means the packers and movers will be here sometime around May 20th I'm sooo nervous!!!

[AsmallerME]

Christina - oh, thanks for the explaination. Did you figure out what you are going to do about your dog not being able to fly to Germany in the summer?

Nik - what are you going to Orlando for? Vacation? Hopefully something fun. I had no idea about the earthquake until late last night. I felt so out of the loop w/ the news when I found out. I'm glad you're okay. Put the chocolate chips in the freezer underneath something and forget about them!

Belle - I saw the bullet at Bed, Bath, and Beyond for more money than you spent so I really think you did good price-wise. Can't wait to hear the reviews from you - maybe I'll jump on the bandwagon and get one too!

Not much going on. We ran some errands but it's been real rainy here so we didn't do any gardening or yard work. I'm going to go and start laundrey though and do some dishes.

Menu:
B: last of the salami
L: chicken breasts, tons of veggies and ranch
S: flax muffin
D: fajita salad - yum

Not much left in the house now food-wise. We'll be grocery shopping tomorrow and also eating at Outback for dinner. I love that place! I'll BBL!

[Stinkerbelle]

Hey Ladies! Just had a super long day of soccer- it was DD's first long day away from home but she did okay. She had to be there to support her team- what a good team mate!

Christina- I totally forgot about you going to Germany- wow...I imagine things are going to get crazy for you!

Nik- I need a vacation can I go to Orlando with you? Are you going to Disney (my happy place)?

Amber- I love Outback- havent been there for a while though. What do you usually get? I havent got the Bullet yet...grr....

I am going to make the chicken salad tomorrow so i will keep you posted!

Menu:
B- 2 eggs, keilbasa
L- macadamia nuts, just the cheese snacks- a couple bites of antipasto meats
S- iced coffee w/cream
D- salad
S- 2 sf chocolates, cream cheese muffin since I did not eat well today (need more food)

So, Hershey came out with a new sf chocolate...chocolate filled with caramel- it is yummy!! I know I should stay away from those but I like to have a after dinner treat.

Looking forward to relaxing at home tomorrow..very tired...

[Nik]

Yes, girls. I'm headed to Orlando from July 19 to 26 for a family vacation with SIL, her two kids, and M and DIL. It's a big family vacation, and the three kids will be visiting Disney. I love Animal Kingdom, but really don't like the other places. I'm hoping I'll be pregnant by then so that I can have an excuse to stay poolside at the resort instead of sweat at the Amusement Park. We started planning this back in November, and there was a question about whether it would work out. Now that everyone's going and DIL showed his commitment by buying plane tickets, I'm getting kinda excited. I never went to Disney as a kid; this will be Ben's third time. I am so blessed to be able to do things like this with him.

Christina: But did you LIKE Army Wives? I always felt like I'd been punched in the gut at the end of an episode. AMAZING drama! If it will get to you more quickly, I would be happy to burn you a DVD and send it your way in Germany. We're still going to be able to talk, yes? You can fill us in on all the local lower carb fare. Maybe we can get new recipes?

My menu yesterday was messed up. I didn't eat much, but still munched on those darn chocolate chips. (It was hubby's fault! I was running late for my party last night [I have a direct sales business.] so hubby made me a "lunch and dinner" of quick things to eat on the road: bacon, cheese cubes, and nuts. As a special "I love you" treat, he put some chocolate chips in with the nuts. /tangent) So, I had "chocolate milk" for breakfast and snack, and the above listed items for lunch and dinner/evening snack. I also bought a diet coke and a pack of honey roasted peanuts from the gas station on my way home.

TODAY, I will do better. Here's what I have planned:
B: chocolate milk (almond milk, cream, DaVinci's, cocoa powder)
L: chef salad
D: steaks on the grill; asparagus
My appetite has been pretty low, so I don't think I'll need snacks today. If I do, I'll have something really LC, like cheese squares.

Stinky: Can't believe the bullet is not there yet! I can't wait to hear your awesome recipes. I love making deviled eggs in the bullet. All the ingredients go in, you whip them up, then fill your eggs. SIMPLE!

[ArmyWife88]

Nik: I didn't like it lol I LOVED it. I watched it EVERY Sunday! I'll let you know when we get to Germany. I'm hoping that I could watch it the next day on Lifetime.com but I've heard rumors those only work in the states. I also have a few sites that I can watch movies and some shows online so maybe one of them will have it. I'll definitly stay in touch! When we're not traveling of course!

AF is due in 2 days. On a better note, we went for a family walk yesterday. It was beautiful out. We're going to the dog park and gym today. Eating was a little off yesterday and might be a little off today and tomorrow since I'm going to be baking a 3 layer engineer castle cake. If it turns out well I'll post pics.

[AsmallerME]

Hey girls. Just checking in. Today is house work day around here. We got in the garden and pulled tons of weeds, took out the trash, cleaned the inside of the fridge, changed the air filters, cleaned the vents, did a load of dishes and laundrey, and now I'm pooped! I still have lots more I want to get done today but I'm going to go and relax for a bit first. I'm going to boil some eggs for breakfast and make some coffee.

Belle - I love the steaks at outback and also this dish called alice springs chicken w/ a side of brocolli and a ceasar salad. It's heavenly.

Nik - if you haven't already planned every second of your trip, I highly recommend a day at Discovery Cove. Even if you can't afford to take everyone, maybe you and your husband should get away for the day w/o the kids and go. It's amazing! You literally feel like you've been transported onto a island in Hawaii and you get to lay out at the beach, swim with the dolphins, eat yummy food, snorkel, feed exotic birds, etc. DH and I promised that we'd go back again before we move from FL since it was so much fun.

So I think I'm O'ing based on my CM. It's definitely fertile and we're avoiding right now which completely stinks. I have my doctor appointment this week and I really want to wait and get a follow-up and ask some questions before we think about another BFP. It's not fun to avoid after trying so hard last cycle. I just keep chanting to myself that it's for the best.

Okay, I'm starved. I'm off to do the eggs and coffee now. I'll BBL.

[Stinkerbelle]

BBL to answer posts but I wanted to share the recipe-

Buffalo Chicken Salad

1 6oz package of Perdue Shorts Cuts (original)
2 tablespoons mayo
1 tablespoon of blue cheese dressing
4 shakes of Franks hot sauce
2 tablespoons of crumbled blue cheese

Break up the chicken into bite size pieces. In small bowl, mix mayo, dressing and hot sauce. Add blue cheese and mix. Add to chicken pieces. You can also add chopped up celery if desired. Add more or less of hot sauce depending on your taste. Also add more or less of blue cheese crumbles- I love blue cheese so 2 tablespoons may be too much for some..

That's it- so quick, easy and yummy! Enjoy

[Stinkerbelle]

Hi Ladies- I can't believe the weekend is over already!

Amber-Sounds like you got lots of work done- good for you- great exercise! What day is your appointment? best of luck to you

Nik-I am so totally jealous that you are going to Disney- it is my all time favorite place. You will have to give us a thourough in depth report so I can live vicariously through you!

Christina- keep us posted with everything going on with moving, etc. I cant even imagine! Hope to see pics of the cake!

to everyone else!! we miss you gals!!

Menu:
B- 2 eggs, keilbasa
S- iced coffee w/cream
L- hamburger, creamy cucumber salad
S- coffee w/cream
D- big antipasto salad. 2 sf chocolates
S- maybe a cream cheese muffin

Hope everyone enjoys the rest of their weekend..looking forward to Weds weigh in!!

[ArmyWife88]

Nik - Season 2 of Army Wives premieres June 8th. I'll be able to catch the first episode before flying out.

Amber - We still haven't figured out what we're going to do. Dh starts outproccessing soon and once he gets that paper he needs to go to Transportation and see if we can get Bear shipped as cargo on a military flight. If not it could cost us upwards of 2,000 to get him shipped. which I'm not willing to pay regardless of how much I love our dog. I will not put our family in debt to get him there. We have friends and family willing to take him if it comes down to it.

Gotta go get moving on decluttering and cleaning. I'll pop in a few times today.

[amlundie]

Hiya girls just a quick post!

Amber- I'll update my siggy right after this.

I skimmed over the other posts but didn't see any other weigh updates... so I'll be updating again on Wed. (If I can get to a computer)

Hope everyone had a great weekend and hope you all have a blessed week!

[AsmallerME]

Hey girls. It's been relatively quiet in here today. I hope that means everyone is off having a wonderful Monday. I can't really say the same for me though. Work was hectic, eating was off plan, and I'm exhausted. I did manage to run/walk/jog 2 miles when I got home this evening and I'm gross and sweaty now. I'm going to shower and get ready for bed and t.v.

I'm going to preplan my menu for tomorrow so I stick to it:
B: 2 HB eggs
L: chicken salad on a bed of salad greens
D: chicken stuffed with cheese and spinach w/ a side of spinach sauted in garlic

It sounds delish and I have everything ready so no excuses. I want to at least be down 1/2 a pound by Wednesday at this point. Boo me....