Biggest Loser 10 Fall Challenge -- for losers and maintainers :)

[cclovesdis]

I can't believe it's afternoon already! I got home just before midnight and around 4 AM finally decided that I was sick of the nightmares and being cold and got out of bed. Unfortunately, I woke my parents up. They weren't too happy. I fell back to sleep and slept for about 4 hours. It was the only decent sleep I got last night. I'm debating whether or not to go to church tonight because of that.

Anyway, the tests went well enough. I felt underprepared for math. I only studied pre-algebra, algebra, and geometry for at least 20 hours. Oh well. I didn't feel very confident taking the test, but spent some time thinking about it driving home and once I got home and am about 50/50 on whether or not I passed. The same is true for the other portion of this test. (Each subtest is scored separately.) But, I was expecting that because the questions are not nearly as predictable as the math questions. The teaching reading test was easy enough and I am 90% sure I passed.

Thanks Lisa for reminding me that I need to pass, not get a perfect score!

Now, enough about me. I'm about to eat, so I'll reply to a few of you now and then likely return replying to everyone by the morning.

Pamela: DH is definitely in my prayers. I hope that the ENT and plastic surgeon are able to help and that his C-spine is cleared. I am glad that you have people coming to help.

Taryn: I don't have too much advice about your hair, etc. I know for me a little make-up helps. Granted, I never have time to put it on, so I could see how that could be a factor. I have been using Proactiv, but I'm sure you know that costs. The one thing I will say is that I only need it every other day, so that's "saving" money. As for your hair, when I had alopecia areta (at least 4 times now), a ponytail or a braid helped significantly.

Hope everyone has the best day possible!

Sunday 11-21 qotd- What is the strangest food you have ever eaten, and did you like it?

Deer meat, and I didn't know I ate it until after I finished eating. Was not happy about that.

 

[Rose&Mike]

Oh Pamela. I am so sorry. This is the first time I've been on since yesterday afternoon, and I just saw your posts. You will be in out thoughts. I wish I was closer so that I could come sit with you. Hang in there, and know that I will be thinking about your family.

 

[Rose&Mike]

Single digit dance in the morning!!!!

TTFN

Very exciting!!!

Lindsay--just to add to what Taryn said, when I took an anti-depressant, I was pretty flat, too. Got stuff done and was able to focus. But I didn't laugh, didn't cry, etc. At the time it was good because my ptsd stuff was so bad that I needed to be calm for a while to relearn how to be calm, if that makes sense. But I only stayed on it for about 4 months, because I missed my emotions.

Rose - FWIW, the thrill of being in college and away carried me through my freshman year. My sophomore year, the stress of keeping my scholarship really hit home (it was dependent on me keeping a 3.5 GPA), and the classes were harder. I ended up with mono in the spring b/c I was pushing so hard to be "the best", never sleeping, studying all the time. Every break we had, I would come home and just SLEEP for about 24 hours straight, then avg. 14-15 a night the other nights. I came home a lot of weekends and slept for most of them. Don't be surprised if he crashes a lot there. I remember Mom saying something about me sleeping so much, with that tone in her voice that let me know she was concerned. I told her "Mom, I stay up til 2 or 3 studying, and get up at 6 to finish and go to class. I just need to catch up." This was around the time that teen drug use was just starting to be in the news (mid-90's) here, and she thought I had the warning signs of sleeping a lot, withdrawing etc.

I remember working so hard when I first started h.s. to "establish myself" popularity wise. That was what was important to me, being in the
"right" group of people. When I had to stop cheering in college, I lost some of that identity. To compensate, I threw myself into school work. I missed out on a lot of the social aspect of college because of it. I, too, was one of those kids that graduated with a 4.0 and never studied, maybe for a final exam. Realizing I couldn't breeze through college that way was hard!

Going to write another book, hang on.

Thanks. He seems to have the grades under control and I think a lot of this is a gifted kid thing. He wants to hang out with the "fun" kids, but I think is starting to realize they have very little motivation and goals to speak of. He fully realizes how smart he is, and feels a little guilty for not always using his "gifts" very well. I think he just still hasn't quite figured out where he fits in. He told me Friday that he's so unhappy and just didn't want to be there, but earlier that day he told he is loving judicial council. I pointed that out to him and he acknowledged that he does have a lot of things that he's enjoying. We'll see. Could be interesting this week. Hoping the drama is kept to a minimum

But, here's a kicker for me. The stress of life is showing on my body. My hair looks AWFUL! Thin, straggly, a MESS! The last time I went to the hairdresser (Aug) she said it was healthy, just falling out due to weight loss. My face has gotten really thin looking, wrinkles and unfortunately some acne don't help matters. I almost, honestly, look like someone on drugs. People are commenting CONSTANTLY that I have lost too much weight. (Like at least 3 or 4 a day) Mom guessed me at 125. When I told her 150, she didn't believe me until I got on the scale to show her. A dear friend wants me to go to the dr. I told her that unless the dr. could pay my bills for me, it wouldn't help.

I want to be healthy looking, not sick looking. Any advice on how to reverse this? I don't want to gain any weight, that's for sure. I am trying to get more sleep on the weekends, to take away the dark circles and sunken eyes, I do have some face creams, etc. in the cabinet that I am trying to use to brighten that up. I drink tons of water. I do eat, this week, too much! Despite not doing formal workouts, I've been active enough that I am maintaining my muscle def. in arms and legs. Stomach will never happen.


Have a great Sunday everyone! ENJOY!
You will all never know what you mean to me!
Taryn

Glad to hear there are so many positive things going on right now. I've seen this a lot with Mike, but when he's really stressed and it's showing on his face, it just doesn't go away overnight. Which stinks. I get where you are coming from, because I have found my face is looking very thin, and I had a really good friend tell me that pocket flaps are my friend--in reference to the fact that I have no bottom left.

I think part of the your too thin comments come from something Connie talked about before--we have gotten so much bigger as a society, that no one really recognizes healthy anymore. So then people tell you that you are too thin even when you are at a healthy weight. Having said all that, here's my ideas:

Sleep. Sleep. Sleep. I know it's hard, but sleep is your friend. If you can afford it go get a haircut. Best thing I did this fall. My hair person convinced me to try a different cut because mine was dragging my face down and she was so right! Maybe look at color too, even if it comes out of a box from Target. I always wear makeup now. I bought mineral foundation from Target and put that on with mineral blush. Helps my cheeks look rosy instead of gaunt. I always wear eyeliner on the top eyelid and mascara and I always fix my hair. Everyday. Period. If I don't have to dry it, I can flat iron my hair and put makeup on in about 15 minutes.

Could the dark circles be seasonal allergies? Mike gets what our dr. calls allergy shiners in the spring. It's a good sign he needs to be taking claritin.

I gave up on the multi-vitamin because it was making me sick, but I do take Vit D a couple of times a week. I am also very picky about the food I eat. I don't eat much, so I really need to make sure I am getting enough protein and fiber. The carbs are pretty easy. Make sure you are getting enough calories. Have you kept track at all recently? You may not be eating enough. And I know the exercise is hard right now with the crazy schedule, but consider doing handweights for arms, shoulders and back. I have 5 exercises that I do 2 sets of 12 if I can't go to strength and it takes less than 10 minutes. I only do strength twice a week, but it makes such a difference. I think for me, just making the effort to do my hair and makeup has made such a difference in my attitude.

And if after all this, things do not improve, you might want to see a doctor. Like Kathy said, you might be short on something important that could make all the difference.

Good morning to all my other "loser" friends. I had another "day of no [food] regrets yesterday and again, I credit my friends here who have been supportive and encouraging, and a HUGE thank you and hug to Pamela who happened to say something that struck me as a lightbulb moment right when I needed it.

Glad you had another day of no food regrets.

I shopped while Michael was at ccd, and when we came home he had a meltdown because I wouldn't let him call a friend to come over right then, but had said he could later if he helped me pick up a bit and i got the house cleaned, but he wasn't happy with that, so then I had a little meltdown of my own, and made him cry, so we hugged and snuggled and apologized, and while I was cleaning in the kitchen he picked up the play room, and started to vacuum on his own. Amazing how quickly they can change.

I'll post the qotd in the next post. Thanks to taryn's venison for the idea.

Unfortunately the meltdowns don't stop when they get bigger, they just get louder.

CC--glad the test is over!

We enjoyed the play last night. But I fell asleep for a few minutes during the second act, which is very unlike me. I am still not used to the time change, and have been waking up everyday way too early.

I'm fighting some emotional demons today. It's funny that the more I think about some of this stuff, the more I realize that it's all related--food, emotions, self-esteem. Won't go into it, probably tmi.

Anyhow, hope everyone is having a good day. We finished shopping for the family we are sponsoring, so I am going to wrap their presents this afternoon.

 

[pjlla]

F
This all seems so PETTY after reading P's post. Sending prayers her way.

Have a great Sunday everyone! ENJOY!
You will all never know what you mean to me!
Taryn

Not petty at all...just different. Glad you were able to see through the troubles to the blessings that have headed your way lately. Thanks for the prayers.... keep them coming.

Pamela, I am so sorry to hear that this happened. Bless your heart! I'm glad that DH's condition is improving and that you have someone coming to help you. You help people all the time so don't be shy about accepting help in your time of need. I will keep you, your DH and your family in my thoughts and prayers. You know we will do anything that we can for you.

Prayers are most welcome! Thanks for the hug. I've actually taken a few people up on their offers of help.... we had a friend up the road come last night and call the cat (and yes, she came in for the night) and then I called another person up the road and asked her to have her husband come put the ladder away in the garage. It is too heavy for me to move along plus it was wedged between the house and the deck railing. I didn't want my Dad to feel like he had to move it when he gets there later today. So for a person who does like to accept that four letter word H E L P... I've been doing well!

Good morning,

Pam-Glad to hear some positives for your DH! We'll be praying for him all week!

TTFN

Thanks for the prayers.... keep them coming!!

thanks for keeping us posted. That's good new about the brain bleed. I hope you're with him right now. I remember with trauma patients, it often took several x-rays before they could clear the C-spine because of all the swelling, and the position during the xray. Hope they're able to have a plan with ent and plastics soon. Thinking of you today, Pamela. Hang in there.

I've been in and out of the room all day. DD and DS and my Mom and my SIL have been in and out with me. It is hard to just stand there next to the bed because I think he feels like he should be talking with us and such and talking is too difficult and probably painful. I went in after we had lunch and he was SOUND asleep, snoring and all, so I tiptoed out again. I told his nurse to please call me if he seems like he is looking for me. I will check again in a few minutes. I've been just holding his hand and rubbing his good arm and touching his leg and trying to be entertaining. I told him that if they cleared his neck and let him sit up, that I would put on Nascar or the football game.... he did say he was bored. I had an episode of Car Talk (his favorite NPR show) on my phone, so I did play that for him earlier. I just really hate this feeling of not having anything I can do.... I am very much a woman of action... type A personality... I need to be DOING, not just standing. It is making me crazy! I know just being there is enough for him, but I feel so useless. He cannot eat or drink yet because of the facial trauma (also involves his palate area), so I cannot even hold his cup or feed him! I suppose this will be a built-in diet for him!

Sunday 11-21 qotd- What is the strangest food you have ever eaten, and did you like it?

For me it was moose meat. It was a marinated steak grilled and it was actually pretty tasty.

Have a great sunday.

Pamela- thinking of you and dh.

I have tried ostrich and maybe quail. Also eaten venison.... they were all okay. My kids probably think my strangest foods are some of the recipes create in my own kitchen! Beans, grains, veggies... you name it, I've created a recipe with it!

I
Pamela: DH is definitely in my prayers. I hope that the ENT and plastic surgeon are able to help and that his C-spine is cleared. I am glad that you have people coming to help.

Sure is a nice feeling to have my Mom and Dad and SIL here.

Oh Pamela. I am so sorry. This is the first time I've been on since yesterday afternoon, and I just saw your posts. You will be in out thoughts. I wish I was closer so that I could come sit with you. Hang in there, and know that I will be thinking about your family.

Thanks for sending thoughts my way. Your DS is still on my prayer list for his safe travels on Tuesday.

Well.... I don't have much of anything new to report. It looks like ENT won't be seeing him or talking to me today. And here it is almost 3pm and he is still wearing that darn collar. I understand the need for precautions, but I think this is just increasing his facial pain/discomfort. Plus he wants to sit up.

If I don't get a chance to get on here again today/tonight I'll just say good night for now. I'm going to go visit with my Mom before she leaves to bring my kids home.

Lots of love to you all and HUGE thanks for the prayers and pixie dust and good thoughts.... They are certainly helping!.........................P

 

[lisah0711]

Pamela, glad to hear that you have someone there to keep you company and help you out with things. I know it is hard but be sure and get plenty of rest because soon you will be hopping. Thanks for coming on and letting us know how you are doing. I've been thinking of you all day. Don't forget to take care of Pamela, too.

 

[mommyof2Pirates]

Quick update on DH's condition.....

Pam I am so sorry to hear about dh. I just got a chance to catch up. He is in my prayers. Hang in there. I too am type A and would have a hard time just standing there. I am sure he appreciates you just being there by his side.

Sunday 11-21 qotd- What is the strangest food you have ever eaten, and did you like it?

I am not an adventurous eater at all. The wierdest thing I ever ate was squid (calamari)

Taryn and Rose- Thank you all for sharing your experiences. Dh still seems a bit quiet today and withdrawn but he is smiling and hugging the kids. He started medicine on thursday. I will see how his week goes at work and I am hoping that when he knows he is not getting fired his mood will improve. I will keep an eye on him.

I am at my nana's house right now waiting for dinner. I am having chicken breast with peppers and onions. I did great with eating today and got my first run of my official princess training in today.

Have a great night. I will talk to you all tomorrow.

 

[donac]

Pam, I am so glad that you are able to be with him and talk to him. He has been in my thoughts today.

cc any math test is hard to anticipate what will be on it since math has such a broad spectrum. Just relax because you know you have done your best.

The party last night was not too bad. There wasn't 10 people there but there wasn't more than 20. Dh had told him to expect the unexpected but our friend said that when he saw 7 bottles of soda on the dinning room table kind of tipped him off(they never have soda in the house). There was one friend who came up from Atlanta who had a lot more to drink than most of us. She got annoying after a while but I have only met her once before 3 years ago so it will be a long time before I see her again.

Dh had some problem in the middle of the night so I got woken up by that. I think he has acid reflux but he has never had it before (he had the same problem about a week and a half ago). At least he has his regular physical with his doctor next week and soon after that he has to go to the gastro to have a colonoscopy so he may end up getting scopped both ways. ( I had that done last time and once you are asleep who cares). I did sleep for a while but woke up at 3. I read for an hour and then got up. BUT when I came down the dog was moaning so I spent the next hour watching her go out four times. I did get a nap around noon.

Well I have some things to get done so I have to get off. Have a nice evening everyone.

Don't forget any making a turkey I hope it is defrosting in your frig.

 

[tigger813]

www.weightlosschallenge.com username:wlc password: sweet

I did 3 miles on the elliptical this afternoon and then just had chips, dip, TJ's pork potstickers for supper! Oh yeah, and a margarita! Enjoying the Patriots game and drinking more water! Nothing but water the rest of the night to make up for that! I'll have a shake in the morning, give a massage, come home and make coffee cake that will last for the rest of the week once DD2 gets home at 12:10, I'll have a regular lunch and have a shake again for supper. DD1 has basketball tomorrow from 6-7:15 after being at dancing from 5-6! I'll do some grocery shopping during dancing.

Back to watching the Patriots game!

TTFN

 

[donac]

Kathy Thanks for not blocking the aisles. I loved how the old lady thought it was her that knocked over the pans.

 

[Rose&Mike]

Pamela--so glad everything is going ok so far. Sending good thoughts for continued improvement. I think this horrible accident has convinced me that we need to cut down a tree that is right beside our house. When Mike was up on the ladder a couple of weeks ago I was a nervous wreck. I love trees, but goodness, I don't think I will ever be able to watch Mike go up the ladder again. I'm glad you are getting some help with some of stuff. I am terrible at asking for help, too, but I know if someone else was going through all this you would be right there helping out. I hope DH is able to get out of the collar soon. And thank you so much for thinking about our DS even with everything that you have going on.

Lindsay--hope you had a wonderful dinner at your Nana's.

I'm tired, but determined to stay up until at least 10:00pm, so that hopefully I will sleep past 4:30. Going to the Y tomorrow after work.

Hope everyone has a nice evening.

 

[my3princes]

Dear friends....

I am typing this from the Emergency waiting room at the Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. DH fell from a ladder this afternoon when cleaning the gutters and has sustained some significant injuries, including a significant head injury. If you are a person of prayer, I am asking that you pray for my DH tonight. He has broken every bone in his face, has a compound fracture of the right forearm, and has a bleed in his brain. It is going to be a long night. I am just looking for all of the prayer you could spare.

Thanks in advance.... love to you all. I'll try and update you when I can.......P

OMG I'm so sorry to read this. I wish I had gotten on before now as I would have come and sat with you. If you're still there on Wednesday I will love to look you up. Colby has a late afternoon doctors appt at DHMC and I'm totally free after that. Let me know whatever you need and I'll be happy to bring it to you or help out otherwise.

Deb

 

[cclovesdis]

Good morning to all my other "loser" friends. I had another "day of no [food] regrets yesterday and again, I credit my friends here who have been supportive and encouraging, and a HUGE thank you and hug to Pamela who happened to say something that struck me as a lightbulb moment right when I needed it.

Howard got home about 9:30 last night with my MIL and they both sat down to eat and I was so tempted to have something else even though I wasn't really hungry. Instead I had a cup of herbal tea. I was hungry by the time I went to bed at 12:30, but decided it wouldn't hurt me to go to bed with my stomach growling. This morning I am making bar pan pancakes (half apple and half chocolate chip) for everyone and I have some low fat high fiber waffles in the freezer that I've been craving. I definitely won't feel deprived. I'll cut up some apples for me, too, and put some cinnamon on them.

I meant to reply to this yesterday. I am so sorry. That's awesome! Congrats! I am going to take your idea and have some tea this morning. I had a small amount of wine last night (I give out Communion and the one of the other Eucharistic Ministers is pregnant) and well, I definitely need lots of water today. Thanks! And again, congrats!

Also thanks for the and PD on Saturday! Just know that you and everyone else was thinking of me was so helpful!

I do need to get that multi in more. For some reason, within 10 minutes of taking it, I feel extremely nauseous for about 20 minutes. I have been taking it in the am. Maybe if I take it at night, with a fuller belly? Thanks for the reminder!

Maybe if you take it mid-meal? I seem to remember reading this, but I'm not a doctor. Knowing me, it says to do that right on my bottle.

Rose: Thanks for the good wishes! Hope DS is doing better.

Hope you are doing well today too!

Also, I wanted to add to what you and Taryn said to Lindsay. I'm sure working in a doctor's office you know this, but with first-hand experience with some of these meds, I feel like I need to share. I had a doctor (who as you all know, has been successfully replaced with someone who is amazingly good at what she does) that believed that an anti-psychotic was the best medication for anxiety. I am not going to argue that it didn't work, but I gained a significant amount of weight and felt disconnected, especially with how much sleep I suddenly needed and continued to need. Hope he is doing better.

Pamela: You and your family were on my mind throughout church last night and were the first thing I thought of this morning. [/QUOTE]

I am at my nana's house right now waiting for dinner. I am having chicken breast with peppers and onions. I did great with eating today and got my first run of my official princess training in today.

I think I am going to use this for today's mini-challenge.

cc any math test is hard to anticipate what will be on it since math has such a broad spectrum. Just relax because you know you have done your best.

Thank you so much for saying this!

Hope DH and you slept well last night.

Back to watching the Patriots game!

How was that? I heard a lot of comments from my father last night.

Kathy Thanks for not blocking the aisles. I loved how the old lady thought it was her that knocked over the pans.

I don't think I've said this yet, but this conversation had me . I definitely appreciated this with the stress of the last week or so. Thanks!

Now, today's trip to the grocery store should be interesting. My local grocery store (a supermarket) only had 20+ lb fresh turkeys left (and only a few of them ), so I ordered a smaller one scheduled for pick-up today. It was so bad last week that there were sales clerks manning the turkey freezer/cooler.

I'm tired, but determined to stay up until at least 10:00pm, so that hopefully I will sleep past 4:30. Going to the Y tomorrow after work.

Hope you slept well.

OMG I'm so sorry to read this. I wish I had gotten on before now as I would have come and sat with you. If you're still there on Wednesday I will love to look you up. Colby has a late afternoon doctors appt at DHMC and I'm totally free after that. Let me know whatever you need and I'll be happy to bring it to you or help out otherwise.

Deb

Hope that Ds's appt goes well and thank you for offerring. Pamela, you and your family continue to be in my prayers.

 

[cclovesdis]

Morning!

Well, yesterday night was long and as a Eucharistic Minister, involved some alcohol. Without getting too religious, there were only 2 of of us to consume the extras last night because the third one is pregnant. I wasn't going to ask the other person to consume 2 "cups" of extras. So, needless to say, I'm feeling it this morning. I rarely drink, so while I'm not hungover and had no problem driving, etc. last night, I will definitely be drinking lots of water today. Hoping for a perfect day of eating too.

After that huge jump, I ended up down .4 for the week. I'll take it. I had read that needing to "go," could result in weight fluctuations, but 5 pounds!

Thanks Lindsay for the idea for today's mini-challenge!

Mini-Challenge Mon. 11/22: Eat 3 or more servings of vegetables today.

Have a great day and enjoy your veggies!

CC

 

[mikamah]

I Anyway, the tests went well enough. I felt underprepared for math. I only studied pre-algebra, algebra, and geometry for at least 20 hours. Oh well. I didn't feel very confident taking the test, but spent some time thinking about it driving home and once I got home and am about 50/50 on whether or not I passed. The same is true for the other portion of this test. (Each subtest is scored separately.) But, I was expecting that because the questions are not nearly as predictable as the math questions. The teaching reading test was easy enough and I am 90% sure I passed.

I bet you did absolutely fine in all. It's so funny how we always second guess ourselves after any tests, and doesn't it seem we always do better than we thought? I hope you don't have to wait too long for the results. Years ago when we took our nursing boards it took 4-6 weeks for results, and now they have them in 2 days. Love computer technology. Except for yesterday when I got so frustrated trying to figure out michael's Ipod and Itunes. I got it all set, but it took my computer illiterate brain a while, and it seems so easy now. It's for his b-day so I wanted it to be set up before he got it.

We enjoyed the play last night. But I fell asleep for a few minutes during the second act, which is very unlike me. I am still not used to the time change, and have been waking up everyday way too early.

I'm fighting some emotional demons today. It's funny that the more I think about some of this stuff, the more I realize that it's all related--food, emotions, self-esteem. Won't go into it, probably tmi.

Hope you were able to work through things a bit or get them out of your mind and had a better nights sleep.

I've been in and out of the room all day. DD and DS and my Mom and my SIL have been in and out with me. It is hard to just stand there next to the bed because I think he feels like he should be talking with us and such and talking is too difficult and probably painful. I went in after we had lunch and he was SOUND asleep, snoring and all, so I tiptoed out again. I told his nurse to please call me if he seems like he is looking for me. I will check again in a few minutes. I've been just holding his hand and rubbing his good arm and touching his leg and trying to be entertaining. I told him that if they cleared his neck and let him sit up, that I would put on Nascar or the football game.... he did say he was bored. I had an episode of Car Talk (his favorite NPR show) on my phone, so I did play that for him earlier. I just really hate this feeling of not having anything I can do.... I am very much a woman of action... type A personality... I need to be DOING, not just standing. It is making me crazy! I know just being there is enough for him, but I feel so useless. He cannot eat or drink yet because of the facial trauma (also involves his palate area), so I cannot even hold his cup or feed him! I suppose this will be a built-in diet for him!

Well.... I don't have much of anything new to report. It looks like ENT won't be seeing him or talking to me today. And here it is almost 3pm and he is still wearing that darn collar. I understand the need for precautions, but I think this is just increasing his facial pain/discomfort. Plus he wants to sit up.

Lots of love to you all and HUGE thanks for the prayers and pixie dust and good thoughts.... They are certainly helping!.........................P

It's so tough to just be there for him, and not be able to do anything, but just being there for him is what is going to make the days ahead easier for him, and I'm sure it is a huge comfort for him to see you. So glad you have your family with you and help at home too. It's hard to ask for help, but I'm sure your friends and famly are more than willing to do anything they can. Hope he's out of the collar soon, and that ENT is an early riser and gets in there soon. Love and hugs to you.

Dh still seems a bit quiet today and withdrawn but he is smiling and hugging the kids. He started medicine on thursday. I will see how his week goes at work and I am hoping that when he knows he is not getting fired his mood will improve. I will keep an eye on him.

I am at my nana's house right now waiting for dinner. I am having chicken breast with peppers and onions. I did great with eating today and got my first run of my official princess training in today..

Glad dh seems a little better, and hopefully the med will help him. Yay for the princess training!!!! So exciting to get started. Remember that training is "you" time, and you deserve to get it in. It's hard sometimes, but we can make the time and do this!!

I will share my antidepressant story too, but first my sister's and a friend. My sister went on on post partum after her 3rd kid, and it made a huge difference for her. She really was more positive and active, and it totally helped her deal with the daily stresses. She had been off it for a while when my mom died, but went back on a few months after she died, and she seemed to be dealing so much better than the rest of us, and her daily stress level was more tolerable. Before, she was constantly yelling at her kids, and it was a little uncomfortabe at times, but since she's been on the med, she is much more even keeled, and well rested, and her personality and attitude are very positive, and active.

My friend has a son with aspergers, and when we'd get together she was very stressed out with him, and that seemed to make him escalate. Since she's been on an antidepressant, she feels great, and is able to let the little thing slide that she couldn't before.

Now I was not so successful. Last winter after the holidays, I hit a real low. I really did well, keeping it together over the first holidays without my mom, but in january I started feelng so low, crying at the drop of a hat, and so sad. I got the courage to finally call the doctor and ask for help, which I laugh at now, because I couldn't even get through the conversation on the phone to make the appt with the secretary without crying, and they said come right in. He offered counselling or meds, and I tried an antidepressant. 2 nights after taking it, I woke up in a full blown panic attack, thought I was dying, my heart was racing, I felt awful. I called my friend who works night and thankfully she was on, so she helped talk me through it. I prayed and talked to my mom, and made it through the night and didn't take the pills again. I don't think it was the med that made my panic, but more the fact that I knew that med affected my brain, and I that made me freak out. I know what I was going through was part of my grieving process, but I wanted an easy out, and wanted to feel better like my sister seemed to feel. I started the C25K shortly after, and the regular exercise definitely did more for me, as for time and healing.
I guess I share this because there are lots of meds out there that can really help people, and I hope your dh is able to feel better soon, and the med is able to help him get back to himself.

There was one friend who came up from Atlanta who had a lot more to drink than most of us. She got annoying after a while but I have only met her once before 3 years ago so it will be a long time before I see her again.

This made me laugh because I've been that friend on occassion. Haven't most of us.
Hope dh is feeling better, and I agree it's nice if you have to have both procedures done, have them done together and get them over with. He'll sleep through them anyway.

I did 3 miles on the elliptical this afternoon and then just had chips, dip, TJ's pork potstickers for supper! Oh yeah, and a margarita! Enjoying the Patriots game and drinking more water! Nothing but water the rest of the night to make up for that! I'll have a shake in the morning, give a massage, come home and make coffee cake that will last for the rest of the week once DD2 gets home at 12:10, I'll have a regular lunch and have a shake again for supper. DD1 has basketball tomorrow from 6-7:15 after being at dancing from 5-6! I'll do some grocery shopping during dancing.

Back to watching the Patriots game!

Hope you enjoyed the game. We saw some, but switched when it was 28-14 to AFV. We aren't die hard pats fans like some of you.

Kathy Thanks for not blocking the aisles. I loved how the old lady thought it was her that knocked over the pans.

I'm tired, but determined to stay up until at least 10:00pm, so that hopefully I will sleep past 4:30. Going to the Y tomorrow after work.

Did you sleep in, Rose?

I Also, I wanted to add to what you and Taryn said to Lindsay. I'm sure working in a doctor's office you know this, but with first-hand experience with some of these meds, I feel like I need to share. I had a doctor (who as you all know, has been successfully replaced with someone who is amazingly good at what she does) that believed that an anti-psychotic was the best medication for anxiety. I am not going to argue that it didn't work, but I gained a significant amount of weight and felt disconnected, especially with how much sleep I suddenly needed and continued to need.

Just a hug for all you've been through. I love to see you back and posting your replies again. I missed that.

Thanks Lindsay for the idea for today's mini-challenge!

Mini-Challenge Mon. 11/22: Eat 3 or more servings of vegetables today.

Have a great day and enjoy your veggies!

CC

Thanks CC for the mini challenge. I'm loving these mini challenges, especially since I haven't thought up my qotds for the week this time, you've been helping me along. I hope I'm not repeating.

I journalled my bkfst yesterday, but nothing else, but had done the 4 days prior. I will journal today, it's easier when I'm at work. Tonight michael is in a little thanksgiving play at school, so I'm hoping to sneak out of work a bit early so I can feed him before the play.

Three days till Thanksgiving, lets make those days count. Get your vegies and water in, and stay on track so we can enjoy those holiday treats guilt free.

 

[mikamah]

Monday 11/22 qotd- What is your favorite vegetable and do you have any tips on how to increase the amount of vegies you get each day?

 

[my3princes]

Monday 11/22 qotd- What is your favorite vegetable and do you have any tips on how to increase the amount of vegies you get each day?

Corn is my favorite veggie, but since that is actually a starch I guess I'll have to go with carrots. Today is my first double of the week. At least I'm looking forward to a 4 day weekend this week

 

[tigger813]

UGH! Why did I eat those chips and dip and potstickers last night!!!!!

Oh well! I got up and did 3 miles this morning. I'll try to get more in later between baking, cleaning and packing. I got DD2s suitcase mostly packed last night and started my stuff. I need to make our shirts this afternoon so then I can really pack.

Today I will have a shake this morning followed by something regular for lunch and then another shake tonight. I'm doing my weigh in at the wellness center on Wednesday morning so I need to get rid of this extra weight in the next two days. I can do it if I just stick to it.

Going to bake some coffee cake this afternoon and maybe some cookies so the kids have snacks the next two days. DD1 is very grumpy this morning and had a really hard time getting up. DH is sleeping in this morning since he worked over night Saturday night and had trouble sleeping. I hope I don't wake him when I go in to get my clothes to take DD1 to the bus stop.

I need to make a list of what I need to do so I actually get it done today. DD1 has dancing and also starts basketball tonight so Mondays are going to be crazy here for us the next few months.

TTFN

 

[Rose&Mike]

Good morning! I slept until 6:30. Woke up twice and started to have a little anxiety, but tried to focus on my breathing and fell back asleep. Feeling much more human today!

Just wanted to clarify about the anti-depressant--it was exactly what I needed at the time. And I would do it again if I ever get to that point. I just didn't want to do it long-term. It was soooo good for me, because I had forgotten what it felt like to be calm. So I am not anti-medicine at all.

I need to get on the ball and make the grocery list today. Kroger is making us a baked chicken--well making it for Tom. I just need to get the other Thanksgiving fixings. Didn't talk to DS yesterday, so guessing he is doing ok.

Time to get ready for work. Have a good day everyone.

Pamela--hope things are still going ok for your DH. Thinking about you.

 

[pjlla]

Pamela, glad to hear that you have someone there to keep you company and help you out with things. I know it is hard but be sure and get plenty of rest because soon you will be hopping. Thanks for coming on and letting us know how you are doing. I've been thinking of you all day. Don't forget to take care of Pamela, too.

I am trying to take care of me.... I know that when he gets home he will be requiring tons of my time and care, so me being exhausted and sick won't help. That said, I slept like CRAP last night and would KILL for a vat of coffee to swim in right now!!

Pam I am so sorry to hear about dh. I just got a chance to catch up. He is in my prayers. Hang in there. I too am type A and would have a hard time just standing there. I am sure he appreciates you just being there by his side.

Continued prayers are always appreciated! I did get to "help" a bit last night (dribbling some water into his mouth... can't suck a straw yet) and at least it was something!

Pamela--so glad everything is going ok so far. Sending good thoughts for continued improvement. I think this horrible accident has convinced me that we need to cut down a tree that is right beside our house. When Mike was up on the ladder a couple of weeks ago I was a nervous wreck. I love trees, but goodness, I don't think I will ever be able to watch Mike go up the ladder again. I'm glad you are getting some help with some of stuff. I am terrible at asking for help, too, but I know if someone else was going through all this you would be right there helping out. I hope DH is able to get out of the collar soon. And thank you so much for thinking about our DS even with everything that you have going on.

I told DH last night that our neighborhood was going to be pretty dark this Christmas because after I told all of the neighbors what happened, I'm SURE that none of the wives will be allowing their husbands to climb ladders to hang lights!! I think he appreciated the humor, even in his situation.

I left my actual prayer list at home (along with my Bible... dope slap for that), but I was trying to think of the names on it and I remembered your DS was traveling home this week. He is getting more than the usual amount of prayer time cause I add him every time I pray for DH.

OMG I'm so sorry to read this. I wish I had gotten on before now as I would have come and sat with you. If you're still there on Wednesday I will love to look you up. Colby has a late afternoon doctors appt at DHMC and I'm totally free after that. Let me know whatever you need and I'll be happy to bring it to you or help out otherwise.

Deb

If you are around I would love to meet you and have a hug, but honestly, the day before T.giving I'm sure you have plenty of things that need to be done at home. I think after today I will try to "commute" every day... like I said, I slept like HECK last night here. I sprung for a hotel room on Saturday night cause I had the kids with me, but I refuse to pay $120/night plus tax just so I can occupy a bed for a few hours and use the shower. The waiting room chairs worked just fine last night.

Pamela: You and your family were on my mind throughout church last night and were the first thing I thought of this morning.

Pamela, you and your family continue to be in my prayers.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the prayers.... there can never be enough!

Morning!

Well, yesterday night was long and as a Eucharistic Minister, involved some alcohol. Without getting too religious, there were only 2 of of us to consume the extras last night because the third one is pregnant. I wasn't going to ask the other person to consume 2 "cups" of extras. So, needless to say, I'm feeling it this morning. I rarely drink, so while I'm not hungover and had no problem driving, etc. last night, I will definitely be drinking lots of water today. Hoping for a perfect day of eating too.

Mini-Challenge Mon. 11/22: Eat 3 or more servings of vegetables today.

Have a great day and enjoy your veggies!

CC

Not sure that I fully understand about the wine.... do you have to consume it rather than toss it because it has been blessed or something? God couldn't possibly make you gain weight while doing a job for him, right??

Okay.... under normal circumstances that mini challenge would be a BREEZE for me.... I frequently have a serving of veg with breakfast and often another at morning snack (when I have a morning snack at school) and then definitely a serving with lunch. But not sure what I will be consuming today other than coffee... lots, hot, and SOON!

Monday 11/22 qotd- What is your favorite vegetable and do you have any tips on how to increase the amount of vegies you get each day?

Well, this ties into what I said above. I frequently have a veggie serving with breakfast and then another at morning snack... that way by lunch I've already had two servings.

I find it easier to have veggies with breakfast if I have them with eggs... sauteed onions, peppers, spinach, tomato are all great mixed with scrambled egg whites. But I also have steamed broccoli and/or cauliflower with other things in the morning.

Mid morning snack of baby carrots, high fiber V-8 juice, or grape tomatoes is easy too.

To increase your veggies, just try adding another "piece" or half portion to what you are already eating. If you were going to add a handful of spinach to your egg whites, add two handfuls.

Also, try adding veggies where you might not expect to find them, like chopped cooked carrots and/or chopped spinach added to spaghetti sauce... or toss your portion of pasta with a portion of steamed cauliflower before adding pasta sauce.

Make adding veggies EASY by buying prewashed/chopped stuff. The reason I can fit a serving of veggies into breakfast is because I will splurge and buy those small bags of ready to steam veggies just for ME! I don't mind prepping a big serving of veggies for the whole family, but in the morning I need it quick and easy.



Well.... happy Monday friends! Let me start by saying a HUGE thank you for all of your continued prayers and well wishes. We are DEFINITELY feeling the prayers. Every doctor/specialist we have talked to so far has given us better than expected answers! We FINALLY got a brief visit from Otolaryngology last night and he briefed me a bit on the plan so far for DH's facial surgery. Nothing set in stone yet, but they will have a "plan" today after morning rounds, etc. If it goes as expected, they will be taking him into surgery tomorrow to wire the jaw and repair the sinus. They are HOPING that the sinus repair will be minimal and won't involve opening the skin. The orbital fractures around his eyes are not displaced and they are hoping to leave them alone to heal on their own. Not sure if they will need to do anything about the nose yet. Not sure if I mentioned it yesterday, but it appears that all of his teeth are intact... that is a HUGE positive! How do you break your ENTIRE face and NOT break your teeth??

He still looks like HELL and can barely talk or swallow. He won't be eating solid food until at least mid-January I would guess. Looks like a new blender is in my future! Any suggestions? I think that we will ALL be losing weight this holiday season. I'll have to develop a special "cinnamon roll" smoothie for Christmas morning.

Anyhow.... that's where we are at right now. Kids are off to their normal days, thanks to my parents and friends who are driving them to and fro. It is definitely bringing me comfort to know that they are in their normal routines.

Well.... it is T.giving week and I believe that Taryn was counting her blessings this weekend, so I'm going to list a few of mine.

1. NO brain permanent injury!!!

2. NO broken teeth!!

3. Good health insurance, good disability insurance!!

4. Parents and other family who can/will drop everything and be there for us!

5. Groceries.... I actually had some in the house so my folks don't have to wonder what to feed the kids!

6. Holiday bonus $$. DH's holiday bonus was deposited last week... that will help pay for hotel rooms and extra gas and such this month (it was a TIGHT month for the budget with about $1000 in unexpected expenses).

7. Prayers.... can't get enough of them!!

8. Mature, understanding, loving children. They are both being helpful by taking good care of THEMSELVES.

9. Coffee... and lots of it today!

10. Help and support from many many many people and places. We are TRULY blessed.

Well... this has been about 2 1/2 hours in the making... phone calls kept coming in, txts, etc. Next stop... quick visit to see DH again and then BREAKFAST!! I'm starving.......P

 

[SettinSail]

Hi friends! Going to try and post quickly here. I have alloted myself one hour on the computer right now and I've only got 17 mins left after reading and catching up here as well as looking at all my emails, bank account, etc!

First hugs and prayers to Pamela. Hope the recovery goes well. Maybe you can bring in some knitting or needlework or maybe you can read aloud to DH?
Please keep us updated. We are all thinking of you, you dh and the family

We had lots of snow this morning but nothing sticking thank God. I think our high today is 37 degrees. Calling for snow the next 9 days. It rains or snows here ALOT !! So snow, cold and 3 hours of German class this morning. We got most of our Cmas stuff out yesterday and I'm going to try to get it all decorated this afternoon. Landlord has not been in touch yet about finishing the job on the radiators but they seem to be working now

DH & I found a freezer full of frozen turkeys at a huge market we like to go to because they occas. have American products. So I went back to the Pres of my club with hat in hand and offered to get one for the club dinner. We will pick it up Tuesday night, dethaw it and cook it on Sunday for the luncheon.

We have decided on the Kinect for DS Cmas but now can't find it in stock online anywhere!!! Found a bundle on Game Stop with 3 games but it is $249
I am thinking it will not be on BF sale anywhere since such a new product. I have asked a few scouts back home to check around in stores for me but if we can't locate soon may go ahead with the GS deal.

I am up 2 pounds after the weekend again (SIGH).
Had lots of salt with my steak & salad Sat night, had 2 Diet Pepsis and 1 Coke and got into some chips and gummy bears and had a FF hamburger. They have the BEST gummy bears here- Haribo!!! Need to get better with eating, esp the weekends.
Wanted to also quickly share about my DH's BAD eating habits. Sunday morning for breakfast he scrambled some eggs for both of us and cooked an ENTIRE package of bacon, about 14 slices. I took 2 slices and he ate the rest on a toasted "bacon sandwich" I fussed at him and then asked for a bite cause it looked so good Just through of years of being around him eating like this I know I have some bad habits too. It's not necessarily his fault but I have to be very conscious. DS is now eating like a horse too!

:Is ds in a german bs group, or do you have the BSA there on base? Survival campout doesn't sound very fun to me, but I'm sure he'll have a blast. Enjoy your quiet weekend with hubby.

Saturday 11/20 qotd - What is your favorite Thanksgiving food or foods? Or if you don't celebrate t-day, your favorite holiday food from any holiday?

Have a happy, healthy saturday.

We do BSA on base. It's been hard for us to "fit in" there. They are on a different school schedule than us and we sometimes feel we are just overlooked! They seem to be really into what rank they are and I guess we are nobodies with NO rank They are a tight knit community!
It has slowly gotten a tiny bit better though.

Fav T'ing food: Stuffing (or filling!)

Shawn, enjoy your romantic week-end with DH! And pardon my ignorance but what is a slingbox?

We had never heard of it either until we moved here. The slingbox is some hardware you buy (we got ours at Best Buy last Cmas), you hook it up to a cable system in the US (for us my sis and BIL) and then you can watch their cable on your computer. You even have a remote on your computer and a DVR. You see all your local news & commercials too.
At first, we just paid $35 per month for them to have an extra cable box but 2months ago they decided they wanted to cut out cable so now we have to foot the whole bill and it's about $100 per month. You can watch this on your computer anywhere in the world with an Internet connection. Now, we are looking into buying a US ISP which is $50 per year so we can watch TV online on HULU, network sites, etc. Much cheaper but not as many shows.
Sometimes they will announce at ball games that "the troops in Afghanistan or wherever are watching the game live on Slingbox"

I honestly dont know the difference between the to. Our filling is bread dipped in milk and squeezed out. Pile it all together in a pot, mix in sauteed onion and celery, add parsley, salt, and pepper. Most people I know ask me why I call it filling. It may be a pennsylvania dutch thing????

I already said it but the filling (stuffing) is my favorite.

Yep, sounds like the same thing. My favorite thing too, even if it's just stovetop from a box

SHAWN - you're missing a good game. Won't give you any spoilers, but we're even watching, when I should be cleaning!

We watched it LIVE !!!! What a game! We made some mistakes and they were darn lucky too. Still proud of the team this year after all they have been through. Was so sad that the QB's last play of his career in Keenan was a sack for a safety Poor guy! He has same last name as us but not related...

I enjoyed a nice afternoon with my kids. We played baseball outside and ran around. I raked leaves and they jumped in them. Then we built ryans trio building block batcave he got for his bday. All the while dh laid on the coach and moped. I hope he can snap out of this soon. He is worried because he forgot to do something last wk and is afraid that with everything else going on there that this will be the straw that broke the camels back and they are going to fire him. Im not sure if I should be worried or if its just his anxiety. Im trying to be positive. Im just worried about him.
I am off to make dinner. Enjoy your evening.

Enjoy your time with young kids It goes by soooooo fast

This was around the time that teen drug use was just starting to be in the news (mid-90's) here, and she thought I had the warning signs of sleeping a lot, withdrawing etc.

AFTER HOKIES BEAT THE CANES, AND CLINCHED A SPOT IN THE ACC CHAMPIONSHIP he made some. I had gotten this Pampered Chef buffalo rub with my order (YAY FOR FREE STUFF!) and put it on mine. It made it nice and spicy! I've found a new low-fat snack!!!

I am a little paranoid and when my son is moody and sullen I am always asking him if he's been sexually abused and if he wants to talk about it.
I won't put a smiley face here because it's not a funny subject but can you just hear him say "NO MOMMMMM!!!!!"

Congrats on the Coastal Championship. you only get a period after that sentence and no exclamation mark and no smilie.....

The buffalo rub sounds yummy, may have to add to my order...

But, here's a kicker for me. The stress of life is showing on my body. My hair looks AWFUL! Thin, straggly, a MESS! The last time I went to the hairdresser (Aug) she said it was healthy, just falling out due to weight loss. My face has gotten really thin looking, wrinkles and unfortunately some acne don't help matters. I almost, honestly, look like someone on drugs. People are commenting CONSTANTLY that I have lost too much weight. (Like at least 3 or 4 a day) Mom guessed me at 125. When I told her 150, she didn't believe me until I got on the scale to show her. A dear friend wants me to go to the dr. I told her that unless the dr. could pay my bills for me, it wouldn't help.

I want to be healthy looking, not sick looking. Any advice on how to reverse this? I don't want to gain any weight, that's for sure. I am trying to get more sleep on the weekends, to take away the dark circles and sunken eyes, I do have some face creams, etc. in the cabinet that I am trying to use to brighten that up. I drink tons of water. I do eat, this week, too much! Despite not doing formal workouts, I've been active enough that I am maintaining my muscle def. in arms and legs. Stomach will never happen.


So sorry for the book. If anyone actually read any of it - .

This all seems so PETTY after reading P's post. Sending prayers her way.

Have a great Sunday everyone! ENJOY!
You will all never know what you mean to me!
Taryn

That's so wonderful to count your recent blessings. Another "hidden" blessing of all this is that in the future if things ever get tight again or you need some extra $ for a trip, you will know how to cut corners because you've been through this. Trust me from someone who knows how to survive when times are tight

I agree with Rose that you may need a lot more sleep. I am the queen of thin straggley hair. I use good shampoos and conditioners and a very good styling product. w/o that styling product, I am nothing
Maybe you could ask for these as Cmas gifts in not in the budget now.
A good bananna clip is your friends too. Very neat looking in the front.

Good morning to all my other "loser" friends. I had another "day of no [food] regrets yesterday and again, I credit my friends here who have been supportive and encouraging, and a HUGE thank you and hug to Pamela who happened to say something that struck me as a lightbulb moment right when I needed it.

Howard got home about 9:30 last night with my MIL and they both sat down to eat and I was so tempted to have something else even though I wasn't really hungry. Instead I had a cup of herbal tea. I was hungry by the time I went to bed at 12:30, but decided it wouldn't hurt me to go to bed with my stomach growling. This morning I am making bar pan pancakes (half apple and half chocolate chip) for everyone and I have some low fat high fiber waffles in the freezer that I've been craving. I definitely won't feel deprived. I'll cut up some apples for me, too, and put some cinnamon on them.

Taryn- That sweet cinnamon was absolutely delicious on carrots last night. Thank you!

Great day

Sunday 11-21 qotd- What is the strangest food you have ever eaten, and did you like it?

For me it was moose meat. It was a marinated steak grilled and it was actually pretty tasty.

Have a great sunday.

Pamela- thinking of you and dh.

I would have to say last weekend at the French restaurant, it was duck jerkey or dried duck meat. It was shaped like a tounge, had a rubbery consistency and they offered it to us in between wine tastings. I kinda gummed my piece until someone else said they would eat it if I didn't want it! I guess I didn't really even taste it but BLECK!

Monday 11/22 qotd- What is your favorite vegetable and do you have any tips on how to increase the amount of vegies you get each day?

I love a good fresh salad with iceberg or romaine lettuce, shredded carrots, onion, peppers. Make it a point to have a vegetable with each meal!

UGH! Why did I eat those chips and dip and potstickers last night!!!!!

TTFN

And why did I eat all those gummy bears ????

Well, i went over my limit I've been on the computer 1 hour and 32 minutes!!
Time to get off here and get those ornaments on the tree.

Have a great Monday!
Shawn