WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR FEBRUARY

msh0530

Okay, time to update you all: I logged my food over the weekend, but didn't have time or energy to get on the message boards. And now for the answer to the question you are all asking, does Mary have water? And the answer is - - - - drum roll please - - - No! And the answer to Is Mary happy with this? Once again, I must say No!
After the plumber with a bad leg showed up and wouldn't fix it, my husband (who had called in sick to work so that he could be there when they came) continued to wait. After I got home, at 5:00, I finally asked him to call the company again so that we knew if they were actually coming, as we needed to leave and couldn't. He called, and got a very grouchy man who said "Well, I'm sure that you were told to call around and find someone else to fix it!" Mind you, this was 5:00 on a Friday, and no, we hadn't been told this. We live in small town America, and no one will come on a weekend unless it is an extreme emergency, so we were stuck. This morning he called them again, and was told that the only local man that they had for the job was the one with a bad leg, and we will have to wait until tomorrow, when someone can drive over from a town 25 miles away. I could live with this if I were sure that they would come then, but we have another storm coming in tonight, and it is supposed to snow all day tomorrow, and once again be ungodly cold. I am afraid that they will cancel on us, but really don't have any good choices at this point. I am sick to death of trying to eat without being able to do dishes, and I am almost out of clean laundry. My house looks like a bad episode of a reality tv show about people who never clean. But enough of that, I just keep reminding myself of those underprivileged people who have no water on a daily basis and struggle to find food and shelter. I am grateful that this is only temporary, and I have friends and family who will help me out.
I have also been ill. I have a sinus infection that has stayed with me for six weeks. I went back to the dr. who put me back on an antibiotic. The trouble is that the antibiotic interacts with my diabetes medication, and I have to keep eating or my blood sugar bottoms out, so I have struggled to find a balance with a healthy diet.

That being said, here is the GOOD (and I do mean good) news: I have lost a pound! I am calling this the "victory pound!" It is the first loss that I have had in a year! (I hope it's a beginning, and not just a fluke.)

I hope that the rest of you are doing well. Sorry about my rambling post. I suppose that I had better get to work and do something that I am getting paid for. Have a great Monday - I know that one is in my plans!

jam0525

Hello,

I am at work, so this must be short.

To those of you who reported losses - Congratulations! It shows real commitment to be able to loose during the winter and around the holidays.

To those new - Welcome. This is a great thread for ideas and support. I'm sure we can learn a lot from each other.

To all the Packer fans - What a game! We are all happy it was a good game and the best team won.

Michelle - We have the WiiFitPlus and do not have that problem with the hula hoop, but I do understand how you feel when you can't meet your old scores. Has anything changed about where the Wii box is and where the board is? Did you try new batteries? shoes vs bare feet? Just throwing out things here that might make a difference.

I did OK yesterday. I munched and did not eat lunch or dinner. The healthy stuff came out first and went pretty quickly. By the time I put the subs and junk food out everyone (including me) was stuffed and it is only the junk stuff that was left over.

My weigh in day will vary from week to week, but will always be mid week. I was told a very, very long time ago not to weigh in on a Monday or Friday. According to the weight loss doctor I went to 30 years ago, they can give you false incentives. It would take to long to explain it, but I think he was right. So, I weigh in Tuesday through Thursday depending on how my morning is going.

Happy Monday,

Jeannie

Darlis

Hi all,

Hope everyone is having a terrific Monday. I have been putting in my food diary and that's about it for the moment. Hubby sees the surgeon on Wed. for his lung cancer and the stress of just dealing with everything is reeking havoc on my MS. But I am still around and will post more as soon as I am able.

Boomerof51

I weigh on Monday because it seems to keep me honest on the weekend! Working so far!

SallyCC

Hi all...
I hope Monday is off to a good start. I got my workout in at the gym and I consider that a victory...no ice to chop this morning! The downside of the gym visit was that I wore my new HRM and found that my "really tough" workout only burned 216 calories.....I do a warm up on the eliptical (10 min) then about 30 minutes of weights and 30 minutes on the bike. The MFP stats are over double that so I really need to readjust. I am really glad I have this heart rate monitor because I can really actually see what I am putting in (the food log here) and then the calories I am burning. I have been doing a weight loss challenge during the past year and have been keeping these records...figuring out my calories deficit every week and seeing such a big discrepancy..so now I think my numbers should be better....One more piece of information that tells me to keep moving. I teach two yoga classes a week that I love so I can't wait to see what those numbers will be! As an aside...I really liked having a toy at the gym today.

Exermom: Thanks for the info about the HRM online manual. I did download that and print it out because I still need "the book".

Assandra--Glad you had a loss on your first week. When the scale doesn't budge, it is really disappointing. I know that people in the different weight loss groups I've done remind me to keep going...eventually it will drop. I really like this website because when I have gotten stuck inthe past year, I look at my food log and exercise and see if I am getting off track and usually that's what's going on. These boards have been great with resources and suggestions for people...I do read alot of people's ideas.

Icubsn98---It can be easy to lose it. My mid-Janaury was rough. Glad to see you that have a great mindset for February...thanks for reminding me.

Mary.....OMG.....the no water thing would drive me crazy. Give yourself so much credit for being able to get through the weekend and being sick too. I hope things resolve today!!

LM_105

Hello all,

Happy Monday from England.

I hope you have all had a good day' for some I see there are worries about family and home. I send you warm thoughts.

Assaandra - congrats on your first weigh in loss!

Re weigh in day: I tend to do this on a Monday morning ...... I have met so many people over the years who weigh on a Friday and then eat lots on the weekend before going sensible for the rest of the week. I wanted to stop this happening with me, to try and be consistent all through the week so I purposely chose Monday. I do also weigh in later in the week on Thursday but use Mondays as my official weigh in. I guess it is whatever day works for you as long as it is once a week.

Sugar: my downfall ...and since 2nd Jan I have knocked it out of my intake altogether (refined) and recently did a blog about how I had to go cold turkey and go from eating chocs, sweets, cake, biscuits etc to nothing or I just would not have been able to stop eating it. Did anyone else have to do this (rather than ration it)?

I have a long way to go, lots to loose so I am hoping for lots of support in the months to come, as Assaandra says it will be good to have those of you who have been through it giving advice etc.

Sending you all good wishes.

barbiecat

Sugar: my downfall ...and since 2nd Jan I have knocked it out of my intake altogether (refined) and recently did a blog about how I had to go cold turkey and go from eating chocs, sweets, cake, biscuits etc to nothing or I just would not have been able to stop eating it. Did anyone else have to do this (rather than ration it)?

I don't eat things made with sugar at all (no cookies, cake, candy, ice cream, pastries, soft drinks,desserts of any kind) and i rarely eat bread.....I found out that i am able to get along without it and if I have just a bite, then I crave more. In my almost two years on MFP I've eaten dessert twice, enjoyed it, and thought too much about it afterward......I don't keep any sweets in the house at all so there is no temptation.
:bigsmile: :bigsmile:

vickim26

Good evening ladies,
Yes I too have had to cut out sweets all together. Since the holidays I have been out of control with sweets. I could not get enough and was always hungry,. Some health expert on the Today show talked about this and said that sweets are empty calories so they do not fill us up and keep us wanting more and more and more. I started today "The Seventeen Day Diet". Dont worry it is not a fad or crazy diet. It is based on lean meats, veggies and fruits. The idea behind the 17 days is that our body gets used to one thing and we need to change it up every 17 days to keep it burning. For the first 17 it is lean meat, veggies, fruits and some yogurt. The second 17 you add some other things. I just need a jump start to get me going again and get that nasty stuff out of my body. I weighed and measured this morning. I weighed in at 229.8 the most in a long long time. I was very upset for a few minutes and then stopped and told myself that I got me here and only me can get me back where I need to be. I apologize for not posting and not being a vital part of this group the last few months. You have always been here for me and I was not for you. I am back and here to stay. I will take the time to post and record my food and exercise again. I congratulate those of you who have stuck with it and met your goals. I emphatize with those of you who have fallen short. together we can do this. Thank you ladies.
vicki M

marlouise

Hello Ladies, I'm back from some time away. Had some up and downs, and a couple of very sad events, passing of my mother and my sister's dog sam. Tough on us for a few weeks. But now we are on the path of healing and moving on from there.

I've started back at my gym, and thus far it is steady as I go. Hard to get there but I remind myself it is a choice, to become healthy again.

I also learned a bit of information on my health issues of late. Thought I was in trouble, but it seems to be a common of the baby boomers. A>C>E> Childhood was not a good one, many tears, fears and trauma. These all compliled in a memory box and did not let me know of it as I grew. But of late many stresses have pushed those memories out and they have formed emotions. It is a scarry time, they sneak out with out notice or warrant. I have to have the power to question and put logic to the emotion and get it out or tame it.

I have no idea if this will continue on in my life or disappear in a short time. I can go a month without any effects then suddenly find myself depressed and it is hard to recover from it. However I am on to some of the signs it is about to bother me, and I can get a grasp on it early, thus it goes away.

I'm hoping to continue on where I left off here and contribute to help and support. I am certainly one who knows the rough roads to getting back in shape, too the ways to help get back to it.

Catch all of you again:flowerforyou:

Marilyn

sveltewisher

For me, sugar detox is initially 2-3 days of tiredness. I start out the year without sugar but it slowly crawled into my palate again. I thought that i was doing well by staying within my net calories but gained 2 pounds this week. Sugar? Lack of vigorous exercise? Celebrating Chinese New Year by eating Chinese food for 2 nights in a row? 2 glasses of red wine? Not enough water? Monday weigh-in?...Anyway, back on track today without sugar and tired... Food is a powerful drug

jam0525

Hello everyone,

Prayers to those of you who need them as you face the loss of loved ones and health issues for either yourselves or your family.

Welcome to all the new comers and welcome back to those who have been away from the forum for a while. This is such a great group of ladies it is really amazing to even think about it.

Things were so hectic this morning that I forgot my gym bag; DS forgot his lunch and we missed the carpool. Still as odd as it looked, I went to the gym in my work clothes and did the best workout I could. lol 30 minutes on a bike and 15 minutes of circuit machines. Luckily, it was after work, so I didn't have to worry about smelling up the office.

Jeannie

PS: To all of you who remember my saga of how we got up to 3 cats over the holiday - I am happy to say that all 3 cats can be in the same room now without too much trouble. As long as they are all on different pieces of furniture they are happy to be in the same room as the wood stove when the weather is cold and the house is chilly. Hubby, the cat hater, is adjusting very well to having 3 of them. :laugh:

exermom

Mary - I can hear how frustrated you are about your water situation. You are in my thoughts. I know how horrible it can be to be without water, so you have my full condolences. Just think how wonderful it'll be when you do get water!

Jeannie - thanks for all your suggestions about the Wii. I've changed the batteries, not just in the remote (the thing you keep in your hand) but also the ones in the board. Haven't moved the box, usually do it with shoes on but that's nothing new. The most frustrating thing is that my scores are dramatically lower, from 3,000 spins to 300. That's why I'm thinking that when you get to a certain number of spins, perhaps the game automatically goes to a more difficult level. Yet, I'd kind of like to go back to the old settings since I could hula hoop for the full 10 minutes and work up a sweat.

I usually weigh in on Saturday morning.

Did about 15 min of yoga today and then an hour of the deep water. Tomorrow I'll do a weight DVD at home since I have a meeting at 10:00 but before that I need to go get my car looked at. The motor mount needs to be replaced and they just need to get the number off the old motor mount. After the meeting, I'm thinking that I'll do a bit of food shopping.

Marilyn - so sorry for all the sadness you've been experiencing lately.

Vince and I went to the Humane Society the other day to volunteer. We were really happy that this one cat was adopted. She's the absolute sweetest thing, but get her near another cat and the claws come out. Unfortunately, almost every cat that they have there has a note on its cage "take out alone" meaning it doesn't get along well with other cats. There is one cat there that is absolutely gorgeous, but there's a note that it could get mean. Two of the cats came in with eye infections, one of them lost his eye and his brother has a spot on his eyeball. The brother has an adoption pending. I would take the cat without the eyeball, but he's all black and I'm so afraid that I'm not over the loss of Sadie that I'd inadvertently expect him to act like Sadie. Really, we probably will get another cat (or two) when we get back from Florida and know that we'll be home for a while. We'd like to take in an older cat. Most people want the cute kittens, the older cats are harder to get to adopt. Well...we shall see

Hope everyone has a great evening.

Michele

caminogirl

Sugar and carbs like bread and cookies are my downfall too. Really I overindulged this past holiday - right up to the middle of January when enough was enough. When even the 'fat' jeans don't fit it is time to do something drastic. Drastic this time was Phase 1 of South Beach and was it ever successful! Now I'm introducing back the whole grains - very slowly - and the fruits as well. It seems to be working but I know, sadly, that my favorite things can really only be a rare treat and not an everyday treat! It's just that I love cookies so much!!!

As for weigh-in day, I go for Monday's as it keeps Sunday's honest!

weaklink109

Michelle,

I have nothing better to do tonight, so I decided to do a little searching to see what I could find out about your Wii Hula Hoop problem. I found a website, called fixya. Can't tell if they charge for advice or not, but if you are interested in checking it out, here is a link that should take you to the right area:

http://www.fixya.com/tags/wii_fit_hula_hoop

BTW, sounds like you are closer to getting another cat. Meanwhile, I am sure all those adoptable kitties appreciate your efforts.

Marilyn, Sorry to hear of your recent losses.

Mary, I am thinking positive thoughts about your water situation. At least you can get bottled water for drinking and cooking, but cleaning and bathing is another story. At least you have your electricity!! But nevertheless, I am hoping your water will be fixed soon.

BTW, don't you think a plumber who can't climb under the house because of a bad knee is a little like a car that shouldn't be driven because it has no brakes??:noway:

To those discussing the problems with sugar, I can only say that my experiences over December and January have shown me that I need to avoid sugar and processed carbs altogether, or face the prospect of feeling cravings for them late in the day. I am sticking to whole grain bread--minus any high fructose corn syrup; old-fashioned oatmeal; brown and wild rice; lentils & split peas; fresh or frozen veggies; lean protein;fresh or frozen peaches and strawberries; blueberries--fresh whenever possible. I also make sure I get mono-unsaturated fatty acids with each meal or snack. That would be nuts, flaxseed oil;,avocados, natural almond or peanut butter. It is nice to sit in the evening and not feel the need to "graze" late at night. I confess to an occasional glass of pinot noir.

Hope you are all having a good evening. I am getting sleepy, so time to call it a night.

Barb

auntiebk

Michelle, is it only the hula hoop game where scores are drastically lower than before? IF its all games, then take a look at the sensor... mine was on a stand under the tv and it got jiggled out of place when SOMEONE dusted... someone else of course.:laugh: ..
Might just need jiggling back, or might need setting up again.

icubsn98

Good morning to everyone. I wish I could break away from the scale. I seen where many of you weigh in once a week or less. I find myself getting on the stupid thing everytime I go by it almost. However, I only mentally record the weight and then write it down weekly. Sure is frustrating though to work so hard at trying to make a change and see no difference.

Mary--congrats on the weight loss. I all too well know how it is to not see that. Also hope you have gotten the water issue fixed by now.

Marilyn- my condolences on your recent loss.

Michelle, I have the WII fit and I must say if I hula hooped for over ten minutes straight, I think I would die. That game kills my abdomen (probably why I need to do it more). Completely impressed that you were getting in the 1000's my best score EVER was 386.

My we all seem to have a sweet tooth. I ate an entire coconut custard pie by myself once...just by having "a little sliver"..of course, I kept having little slivers all day everytime I passed it until the plate was empty. I don't keep anything like that in the house. I used to go buy things for when the grandkids came over, but even now, their only option at my home for a snack will be fresh fruit, nuts, or perhaps a cheese stick.

Cute story, I have a nine year old cocker who weighs 20# and a nine month old Doberman who weighs 70#. They love each other dearly and wherever one is the other is soon to be. I was trying to do abdominal bridges this morning using the fitness ball. So I had rolled off the ball so only my shoulders rested there and I was supporting my core by keeping it in a taught line. The cocker thought under me would be a great place to lay down and the Dobe pup figured my belly looked like a comfy place to sit. It was a bit of added weight to support her 70# along with mine until I could coax the cocker out from under me,

Spent the morning working on me, now off to earn a living. Happy Tuesday everyone

Connie48

I haven't been on here much lately and was wondering what happened to the 50+ thread I joined before the holidays. Was so happy to see it this AM. I spent January undoing so much of the "good" that I did October through late November. I lost 9 lbs, finally ingrained some good eating habits but around mid December I started slowly getting off track, kept telling myself I"d get back on track "soon" next thing I know January is over and I"ve gained back every stinkin' pound! Febuary has found me carrying my diet journal and entering my food again. Its such a pain but keeping a food journal is the only thing that keeps me on track. I don't have time to be on MFP logging food everyday, so the journal I carry around helps.

Hope everyone is staying warm!

vickim26

Good morning ladies,
As promised I am posting and recording food. Day 2 and I am doing well. It is amazing how one day without sugar and bad carbs can make me feel so much better. I went from not wanting to do anything at all to not being able to sit still for very long. That is after just one day. Hopefully this time I can be a Barbie and take it off for good and keep it off. This time I caught it before I went completly crazy but still gained back more than I wanted to. But I WILL do it. I KNOW I can. Hope all of you have a great day. I need to work on self-motivation. I do fine with a partner or with others but alone I have trouble getting started. I will try to pop in later.
Vicki M

tiarapants

Hello ladies

Just popped in to say that I'm doing well with both food and exercise - less well with the internet! Still can't get connected at home. Managing to read all the posts via my iphone and sending love to each of you. I'll be glad when we get our new provider sorted.

Picked DH up from Heathrow airport and the first thing he said to me was 'You look thin!' ... I love him!! It's good to have him back home.

Catch up with you all later.

Happy healthy Tuesday.

Amanda x

MacMadame

I weigh on Monday because it seems to keep me honest on the weekend! Working so far!

I think it's one of those things that everyone has to figure out what works for them. Mondays work for me too but now that I'm in maintenance, it probably really doesn't matter.

MacMadame

I seen where many of you weigh in once a week or less. I find myself getting on the stupid thing everytime I go by it almost.

I weigh every day but only in the morning after peeing and before dressing. :laugh: I figure, if I get on the scale at random times, I'm going to get random weights. But doing it at a consistent time and consistent circumstances helps filter out some of the noise. I only record on Monday in most places (MFP, another ticker I have) but on the BodyMedia FIT site, I record every weight I get if it's different from the day before. (So I won't record 120 two days in row, but I'll do 120 and 119 and then back up to 120 again.)

Shirley61

Afternoon Ladies:
Just got over superbowl and eating things I normally don't eat.
Struggling with a plateau and joined the Valentine Challenge which
is going slow but is going and that will be done soon and then the St. Patrick's Day
challenge starts. I hope that goes better for me.
My mother-in law went to Florida with a friend for about three weeks until her friends'
brother passed away so she will be heading back home for that.
Things here are going well but can't wait for my vacation in April to Florida too.
This weather is really getting too much for all of us, the shoveling and driving in this stuff.
Spring can't come too soon.

jam0525

Michelle, there are also reset instructions that you can use for the Wii. I forget if it was in the manual or if I found them on the web. I know I did have to reset once since we got it. BTW- adult cats are getting harder and harder to find homes for. I hope you find a cat or two when you get back.

Tomorrow is my check in day and it won't be good. I have been slightly over on calories for a while now. Not being able to exercise everyday is making an impact on how I was doing. My parents are just keeping me hopping too much. I did exercise yesterday and today, so maybe things will get back to normal again for a while.

NM is getting hit with another big storm. We may get another foot of snow. It looks like I took the blanket off the horses a few days too soon.

Take care all,

Jeannie

exermom

Barb - thanks ever so much for looking up the Wii problem of mine. I'll certainly check it out.
Update: Just called Nintendo. They're going to be sending me new foot extensions. If that doesn't solve the problem, it may have to go in for repair.
Thank you again.

Yes, I do think we're going to get another cat or two. But I would like an older cat (maybe a year or so). People want the adorable little kittens and sometimes the older cats stay at the Humane Society for a long time. I wouldn't at all mind one that was physically deformed. It's just that the one they have right now with just one eye is all black, and I'm so afraid that I'd expect the same of him as I did of Sadie, and that's not fair to the cat. Now if he was gray or tan.......

Barb (auntibk) - I had to laugh when you mentioned about the sensor on the Wii. Mainly because I can't remember the last time I dusted in my exercise room It seems to be only the hula hoop game where my scores are so drastically different.

You know, I used to have a really sweet tooth, and carbs were my absolute downfall. Ever since we went to Paris, tho, where the desserts aren't ultra-sweet and the bread is SOOOOOOOOOOOO good, I don't have any desire for breads here or sweets. Now chocolates...THAT'S a different story! That's funny how your dogs were "helping" you exercise. I get lots of "help" from my cats.

Dumb question and I know that I'm only asking because I'm too lazy to search for the answer myself, does anyone know if MFP has an app for a Droid?

Today (Tues) I did an hour of weight DVD and about 15 min of yoga. Tomorrow we have a Newcomers meeting (the first meeting where Vince is the treasurer and I'm in charge of hospitality), I'm thinking that I'll do walking on the treadmill. Temporarily they've taken away the spin bike that I used because they got new bikes for one branch and the branch by me got the old ones. They need to be "spruced up" before they can be used (not sure exactly why), but I did find out that at another branch they have a few of the old bikes and after they are maintenanced, they can be used by the members (not that a lot of members use them). I also found out that the branch by me is getting one of those stairsteppers that's like a set of moving stairs. They're getting a refurbished one. At least they're getting one.

Better go take a shower. Hope everyone has a great night.

Michele

weaklink109

Hello All,

Icubs--Got a kick out of your description of your exercise "helpers." Before you joined our group, Barbiecat coined a new term "Pooga"--which is "yoga with poodles" LOL

Lynn, I am glad your headache is gone.

Have a good evening everyone. I don't have time to respond to everyone right now.

Barb

mrsanderson404

tried spaghetti squash for the first time.....LOVE IT!!! I can have my pasta sauce and veggies too! I will have to plan a bit further in advance as I can usually get a spaghetti dinner with jarred sauce on the table in 30 minutes.....the squash takes almost an hour in the oven so just need to jump on it sooner!

hooah_mj

Good Evening 50+
After a scary Sunday of eats, I was very surprised to see a nice drop in weight today. Friday is my prefered weigh-in day, but that's slowly changing. It's just getting too difficult to get past the next 3 days without undoing everything. For the month of February I'm going to focus on Tuesdays....

Boy, I spoke too soon...after a couple of days in the mid-70s, I thought we were over and done with winter! The temp dropped 40 degrees in just over an hour, and the freeze is making it's way to Austin. We actually had enough snow last week for the kids to have a snow day off from school....they spent hours sledding/slidding down the steep hill outback. Naturally, it had all melted by early evening. What's expected tonight/tomorrow won't be as pretty, but it could mean a late start...that's always good by them :happy:

For the longest time, I have desperately tried to lower my salt intake...4 meds for blood pressure! Now, finally after a lifetime of over salting, I'm having much success lowering/cutting the salt out of many foods. And wouldn't you know it! I'm starting to revive my sweet tooth! :noway: I never really struggled w/a sweet tooth, except for the rare and occasional extra moist double chocolate cake Now I'm feeling those craving swing back this way! Ugh :frown:

Mixed some organic almonds in with the Creme Bruelle Almonds tonight...gotta get rid of craziness!

Hope everyone's keeping warm and getting some exercise in :flowerforyou:
I love all the furry friend stories :happy: Our 3 have a collective weight of 200lbs :happy: The stooges, they are!

Gonna give BodyPump a go 2mrw! Hope I survive :sad:
mj

barbiecat

:flowerforyou: Michele, you asked about how I know how many calories I've burned. It's a system that has developed over the two years I've been posting on MFP and it probably isn't scientific but it has worked for me....I used pedometer that told me how many calories I burned based on my weight and the pace of the walk, I looked up calories burned for certain activities using several different websites and probably averaging them....for some odd activities I estimated the effort I expended based on the effort for other activities with known calories burns and set up my own custom exercises on MFP putting in the calories per minute that I'd estimated. Since I've lost weight consistently with these estimations, I've continued to use them.......it's all based on "if it works, don't fix it"

:flowerforyou: When I ride my exercise bike I usually watch TV and recently I wondered if I was really getting a cardio workout.....this morning I tried to carry on a conversation with my hubby while riding and discovered that I was getting a great workout because I could barely talk to him

weaklink109

Michelle,

You asked if there is an app for Android--YES!!! To find it, go to the Tools tab and then click the link under mobile apps that directs you to more information, and you can download it from there. I think you need to access the page with the phone in order to download it.

BTW, I pulled an interesting waffle recipe off the Rachael Ray tv show website. Today, 2/8, she did a ham and cheese waffle. The recipe called for buckwheat pancake mix, but I used my low fat baking mix and cut the measurements in half to make a smaller batch. I love my little waffle iron that makes two squares at a time, and haven't used it in a long time, so I make ham and cheese waffles for dinner, and ate them with an over easy egg--very tasty, and it enabled me to use up the last of the ham I had before it had to be tossed. The recipe calls for Gruyère cheese, but you can use other cheese. I used cheddar and Asiago,and it was just fine. I also didn't use melted butter, but a splash of oil instead. I used Mrs. Dash Herb and Garlic seasoning.

This makes a good brunch item, and was a nice "breakfast for dinner" option as well. Just use the recipe as a guide and create your own. I am going to try veggie and cheese next time, when I have some leftover cooked veggies. As long as they are already cooked, and cut in small pieces, I see no reason why it shouldn't work.

Good night all.

Barb

tiarapants

Hello ladies

I'm suffering today. My arthritis in my knee is having a major flare up at present so I'm having to cut back on the exercise somewhat.

I went shopping this morning and ended up buying myself three coats! A leather jacket, a raincoat and a 'smart coat'. They were all reduced in price and I couldn't resist them. A year ago I wouldn't have been able to get anything in my size and now I'm able to buy anything I want. I also bought some thermal underwear from a sportshop - in the children's section! It was about a quarter of the price that I would have paid for the adult version. I really need that extra layer these days - feeling the cold is one of the downsides of losing so much weight.

My date for my heart valve replacement surgery is March 25th. It's a scary prospect, but I am so much healthier and more fit for the surgery now. My surgeon is the same guy who did my dad's quadruple heart bypass op. He's brilliant, so I will be in good hands. That doesn't stop me from being nervous of course, but positivity is important.

I'm going to start getting some books together to take in to hospital with me as I'll be there for about a week. My DH is going to have control of my mobile phone for the first few days and I'm going to try to get him to log in to MFP for me, but I have to accept that he is likely to forget and will have to go back to a zero log-in days. Not the worst thing that could happen, but annoying.

Time to get some moving done.

Have a good day everyone. Savour every mouthful and drink your water.

Love

Amanda x