WOW! @KarlaLM58 all that finger and toe crossing! j/k you're efforts are paying off!
I had chicken pox as a kid, but i will certainly now look into shingles vaccine! thanks for sharing your experience with it (all of you) i was married for 12 years the first time and i'm working on 13 (and many more) this time. I suspect i married too young (and i didn't listen to my parents at the ripe old age of 21)

Cindy- Raleigh, NC survived very well. we actually had more ice last winter (just not all at once) I have one kid on a 3 hour delay, and the other no school, but i expect tomorrow to be normal. congrats on sending your latest book off to copy edit

Jeanette- I hope you had a peaceful, restful Sunday and that Alanna is doing much better.

Vikki- i hope you aren't out of power and you and your son are just having way too much fun playing in the snow

TT: 1) I ate TWO girl scout thin mint cookies and stopped. that's never happened before.
2) I did some very slow running on the treadmill on Saturday (physical therapist approved)
3) I started a pilates dvd, and did 11 exercises, 3X this week (thanks, Patti!!!)

I have been wondering how long the "core" group has known one another. I suspect you know each other from WW? not trying to pry, just curious.

happy monday all,
Myra

Good morning ladies! I trust you had a good weekend. Mine went pretty well, I finished all Good morning ladies! I trust you had a good weekend. Mine went pretty well, I finished all school work on Saturday and so had Sunday to take it easy. We ended up getting to see our little ray of sunshine, Alanna, for a while this weekend so that was great! And today I get to go teach some dancing, what could be better!?

Patti- I’m sorry to hear your knees are bothering you; sure makes everything harder when such an integral part of your body is hurting you. I am anxious to hear how it went at your son’s with all the food. If you ever do get over this way I’d love to meet up with you. It does rain here a lot, but it is often a warmer rain. We do get some pretty nice weather in the summer so maybe plan for July or August if you do come. Also, thanks for sharing the quote, I find it very meaningful!

Karla- I just can’t imagine having shingles, let alone in your eye!!! Sounds like a long painful battle, sure hope all gets well taken care of; I’m glad you insisted on getting the help you need and found someone you can trust. Your ring sounds beautiful, from a wonderful guy Glad you get to spend some time with the grand kids, it always brightens the day! AND congratulations on your weight loss!!! Sounds like you are having great success with how you are living. Well done!

Janet- Heehee, if we “only” got 5” of snow here everyone would be in a panic!! We lived in eastern Oregon for a short time and learned to drive in the snow (it snows a lot there) so it wouldn’t bother us too much, but we don’t get much snow here so even a light dusting throws everything off. I live about 30 minutes away from Corvallis near Salem in a little town called Monmouth. If you do ever get out this way I’d love to meet you if you have the time. I am currently counting “only over by about 100” a victory too….every day. My body for years has demanded more food because it didn’t work right, I’m pleased that it is happy with less now. I don’t think of 100 calories as all that much because, in my opinion, the inputs are not exact. Maybe you only went over by a few!

MaryLynn- We had a very wet weekend, I hardly notice, though….it is that time of year. Today looks like a nice sunny day for a change! I hope you had a good weekend, hopefully not too wet.

Diane – 22” of snow!!! I hope a fair amount has melted by the time you return! Sounds like you have having a good time and getting plenty of skiing in. Hope the rest of your trip is great too!

Myra- Alanna is doing better, we ended up having her later that night. I was a little frustrated with my daughter for insisting that she come stay with us as usual when all the poor little thing wanted was her Mommy. She seemed to do fine, though. We didn’t go to church Sunday as she still had a small fever and we didn’t want to share, but that meant we got to spend a little more time with her so we didn’t mind all that much.

Cindy- I agree rain is better than snow. I think snow is pretty, but I don’t like being cold. And I definitely don’t like driving in weather around a bunch of people who don’t know how to drive in it!

My non-scale victories for last week were: I logged everything, I went for a walk and my calves did not cramp at all….I’m sure there are more, but those are what I can think of right now.

I hope you all have a wonderful Monday
Grace and Peace to you
Jeanette

Finally able to get here and have caught up on all my reading.
Myra, thank you so much for updating the mini goals. You are a gem.
Diane, you sound like you are in ski heaven. I know how much you enjoy it. Praying you get home safely to a driveway that has been cleared for you. I think he owes you that much after all the hard work you guys put in on his house.
Suzi, you poor thing. Working so hard to get healthier only to end up with a pain in the behind. I think you are doing all the right things, but it still doesn't seem fair.
Karla, you lucky girl, getting such a nice addition to your bling collection. Congrats on your awesome loss this week. You are rocking the steps for sure. I make my pizzas on tortillas, the crust of the pizza is the part I like the least, so it is perfect. I cook all my veggies, heat my sauce and bake the tortilla until it is almost crisp before I put any on it.
Vikki, those cookies look divine. No wonder you couldn't stay away from them. If I eat cookies I go for shortbread types. I have had the ones you made and they are so decadent.
Jeanette, so happy to hear that you have sunshine in your life even when it is raining outside. Thanks for the invite, you just never know when we might show up. I have loved meeting Karla, Suzi, Paula, Janet and another lady from WW who lives near my brother in AL. That has been the unexpected bonus of these chat sites.
Cindy, love hearing you are making progress on the book. So excited to read the next chapter in the saga. You are sounding like your old self again, I think the time in Loudon might be doing you some good.
Janet, sorry about the Patriots' loss yesterday. Who am I kidding......I loved seeing Peyton win this one. But was so happy the Panthers won too. We have friends in NC and are going there to watch the Superbowl, weather permitting. We will be the only Bronco fans there but it will be an awesome trip.

I am counting yesterday as a huge success. I did not eat any pizza! He ordered from Pizza Hut and it was thick crust which I really do not care for and it just looked greasy and unappetizing. It came with breadsticks and wings. I grabbed a bread stick, took one bite and it wasn't wonderful so I didn't eat any more of it. My DIL took it off my hands. My DIL was nursing a hangover as were most of the people at the party. So I was put to work as the hostess so she could chill. I had to make her dish, heat up my stuffed peppers and cook her sister's dish too. So lots of trips up and down the steps from kitchen to family room. Which kept me away from the food. There were 2 taco dips, from 2 different people but exactly the same recipe. I ate 5 chips with some of the dip. I also ate 3 potato chips, no dip. There were chicken chunks wrapped in bacon which I decided to try, bit into it and the chicken was so dry and overcooked that I spit the whole thing into a napkin and pitched. I did indulge in a pasta dish that had spinach, artichokes, black olives, marinara and cheese (but not a lot) So I think that adds up to at least 4 NSVs for the week.

Today I met with my new Dr. Very nice and he agreed with my previous plan of seeing him twice a year with blood work once a year on my next visit. Nice office staff and clean office, so this will work for me. Happy to say that the fluid behind my ear finally cleared up today, seems like fluid was trapped in a sinus cavity because it is now draining down my throat causing me to cough. I am calling it progress, would much rather cough than deal with feeling like I just got off a plane. Forgot to weigh when I got up this morning. Didn't care for the weight I saw on the scale at the Dr but it was fully clothed and after eating breakfast. So hoping to see a loss tomorrow.
Guess that is it for now.
Patti

Jeanette, plants are confused all over!

Vikki, those cookies look irresistible.

Myra, thanks for updating mini-goals.

Patti, glad you liked the new doc -- changing providers is always stressful (I know because I have had to move several times). Glad you hit a good one on the first try.

Am tired and sore so checking in before I rest.

Good news: Endocrinologist says my bloodwork shows my thyroid levels moving in a direction that indicates the radioactive iodine is doing its job (for those of you who are new to me, I had my thyroid removed last June. They found some small cancerous spots so I had radioactive iodine in October).

Weird news: A very large egg-shaped fluid-filled spot plagued me all weekend. Surgeon needed to drain it so I got to watch the procedure -- bizarre and interesting. It's hurting now (numbing shot wearing off) so I'm going to lie with leg up and heating pad on it. This was an unsusually late-arriving complication but we're on top of it and I am back on antibiotics just to be safe. I see her next Monday.

Going to chill now. See you all tomorrow.

TT: 3 non scale victories for me are (1) going to church yesterday, (2) I drove myself to the mall today and walked for 40 minutes, (3) I'm not taking pain medication!!!!!

Yesterday at church was so emotional for me. Our choir anthem was entitled "He Never Failed Me". It was just the song I needed to sing. I know that God lead me to my surgeon, and "everyday, every hour, He gives me power". (That was one of the lines in the anthem). It was so good to see our church family.

Bert

Karla: No problem......I figured that's what you meant. She doesn't do the whole house as I can't afford that much. She mops, vacuums, and cleans kitchen and bathrooms. I can do dusting and things at waist level. I want to keep her, though. I'm not sure if she is bring her helper today, but she has one.

TT: Yes, I have kept my mini goal of drinking more water and eating less in my mind yesterday. It'challenging for me drink water when it's cold outside, but I am managing to drink more than I did.

I got a Garmin Vivofit. I'm trying to learn how it works. Yesterday I got 2,000 steps in which is good for me. Karla, how do you get in 10k?

Bert

hi everyone - I am back!!! sorry for being absent. I went a bit overboard on the food and drink on friday night and could not get myself to log this weekend! I got back on track yesterday and I did not do as much damage as I had feared!

yesterday's TT - NSVs include exercise: last week, I did yoga 4x, played soccer 3x and lifted once; willpower: I have resisted the croissants and muffins that were calling my name; focus - yesterday I had a salad instead of the wendy's I was really craving for lunch.

Karla - laps 3x a day around the house...that is dedication! Do you use music to keep you going? OMG taxes! I need to get that rolling!!

suzi - those are awesome NSVs! congrats!! sorry to hear about your tailbone!

cindy - so glad to hear your book is almost ready to send off! does that mean that the stress level is going to be subsiding soon?

patti - good job at the football party. So often we mindlessly eat and then realize that it was not worth it...it takes alot of willpower to stop mid-appetizer!

diane - I am so impressed by the MINUTES you are posting skiiing! the conditions must be amazing!!

jeanette and janet - I am sad for the plants that are confused by our really weird winter, but I am more sad for the animals that are supposed to hibernate...eat, no go back to sleep, no, go look for food, no, there is no food because its january...sigh.

janet - good news on your thyroid level. sorry to hear about your other complication. you are right to take it easy...

vikki - those cookies look AMAZING! sometimes, you just gotta indulge. kind of the opposite of Patti's bacon-wrapped chicken and mediocre pizza!

so, today, I am headed to the gym for lifting followed by yoga. tomorrow is hot yoga and soccer. Thursday I am going to a play, so I will miss soccer Thursday night and I can lift during the day instead. Friday, I might do spin since i will miss soccer, but we will see...

Have a great tuesday!!!


- lisa