MaryLynn- The review went well- Out of 7 points I have 3 exceeds and 4 fully meets- no one every gets an overall exceeds... but the boss is pleased so that's good.
Jeanette- how was dancing over the weekend?
I'm not sure if I have missed anyone or not- if I did I will catch up soon.
Need to run to Chico's tonight- a sweater Rick gave me for Christmas was a tear in it on the seam- I'm not sure if I can get another one- I love it but I will not just fix it- he paid full price. GRRR.
See you all later and have a wonderful day.
Oh- if anyone wants to FB me too- I'm friends with Karla-
Cindy

Janet- i have plenty of duct tape to share. I hope it works better for you than me i also must confess i haven’t tracked for a few days, hence my OMG going back to TRACK IT(dammit). All i remember of Paula was seeing her name once or twice…. I hope she does come back to our group on another note, Cam wasn’t smiling so much last night. Happy for Peyton, and looking forward to watching Cam’s career going forward. your new ring sounds gorgeous and a MUCH better treat than food, any day!

Bert- congrats on the great Dr visit….. good luck with the substitute teaching this week!

Beth- here is a much belated WELCOME! fyi: I typically update the OMGs early on Monday morning (ET), so it would be best if you could post any updates you’d like on saturday or sunday, please. Like others, i’m very impressed that you make time for exercise given your hectic work/home life! kudos!

Jeanette- I will keep that rolling pin idea in my back pocket! thanks for the tip. I hope you recover from your cold ASAP. I enjoyed the embedded video of the dance. i wish i could move like that and make it look so natural!

Suzi- I’m glad something i shared is helping you with Jessi. I appreciate your support here. depression sucks, but I remind myself frequently there are worse illnesses (IMHO) HAHA to people envisioning me running inside my closet I wish running wasn’t the only “key” to ameliorating my depression, but such is life. at any rate, i’m sorry you are having rodent issues. i saw some living in my backyard last summer (EEK) and i’m seriously considering Diane’s ultrasonic advice! Your dream of a farm house resonates with my sentimentality

Diane- your baby shower theme sounds SO cute and creative! I have read dr. seuss books countless times! thanks for the mouse repellent tip… our old style traps just didn’t cut it last summer. btw, i enjoyed your story about “colors”…. i’ve only seen it on TV.

Cindy- hope your performance review went smoothly, and congrats on surviving the dentist! I’m staying off the scale for a while too.

Karla- I’m so glad to hear you had a wonderful visit with family your Joe Cain Day sounds like a LOT of fun! I read about it when i googled “mardi gras in mobile” your upcoming vacation plans also sound great! (disney with Izzy and panama city) congrats on your weight and inches loss!


TT: to be blunt, my journey is stinking. i know the general consensus is that diets don’t work, and they don’t, but…. the more depressed i get, the more i revert to old thinking patterns: black/white, all or nothing, etc. so it might be time for me to go on a temporary very strict “eating regime” just to get over this hump. this week, i will get sugars and grains down to <10% of my overall calories.

TT#2: i am a HUGE queen fan, so my favorite might just have to be those singing sheep. my kids seem to like the puppymonkeybaby, LOL. as much as i have a love/hate relationship with doritos…… that birthing commercial made me cringe!


whew. i THINK i’m all caught up now! I’m at the orthodontist’s office with my 11 year old. she’s had braces on the top teeth for about 6 months, and now she’s getting the bottom ones on too. WOOHOO to free wifi.

thanks for hanging in there with me, ladies. I’ll get my act together…. it’s just a matter of time.

oops.... i missed cindy's report on her review, so....

Cindy: congrats on your great review! a pleased boss is a wonderful thing

Hello all. Great defensive game with Panthers offense stinking up the joint. But who can begrudge Peyton this win Certainly not I -- have always liked him and the Broncos. Really liked the halftime show too.

Favorite ads were the sheep, puppymonkeybaby (though they could've done a MUCH better job on the creature with a non-pug head and more contrast) and Christopher Walken, who always cracks me up. Gotta choose the sudden-diarrhea ad for least favorite. And of course the Clydesdale ad got to me.

Starting anew here today. One of my friends sent me a link to HareInTheMoon, which had this today (in part):


“It’s amazing how a little tomorrow can make up for a whole lot of yesterday" John Guare.



Cindy, I knew your review would be stellar. (oh, how I hated Performance Review Theatre, during which the boss generally showed a total lack of understanding of what I actually did)

Myra -- I'll join you in rededication as of today. Going to avoid a lot of things for a bit while I get my sealegs. Will eat very healthily and leave out some things that are OK for me and that I like, but which tend to call me toward excess.

More later, perhaps. If I stay away until tomorrow it's only because I need some quiet time for myself today. Hugs to all.

Home again, safe and sound!!!!! We had a wonderful weekend with the best people in the world. We ate way too much, drank way too much but it was just what I needed in the middle of winter. We shopped, cooked and laughed until our sides hurt. Spent time with all 3 of their grandkids 16 months-7 years old. The game was the crown on my jewel of a weekend. Out of 30 people, only 3 of us were rooting for the Broncos, so the win was that much sweeter. Everyone at the party was good-natured about our win. Such fun was had by all. It rained the entire weekend but it just didn't matter. The drive home was fine until we hit Virginia. We were in and out of snow from then on and that was about 7 hours of our 11 hour trip. My little car does poorly in snow/ice because it weighs next to nothing and has huge tires. Add to that we were down a cyclinder, so the car was running poorly and the hills were really challenging her poor little motor. The last 2 and 1/2 hours was in heavy snow, very poor visibility and in some places only 1 lane clear on the road. Let's just say I am going to be in serious pain tomorrow from every muscle in my body being clenched so tightly. Edd is a perfect driver and did his best to try and calm me but I was a wreck and could have kissed the ground when we pulled in the driveway.
Enough about me. I have read all your posts and can in no way respond or do personals at this point. I will be back to that tomorrow. Starting fresh.
Janet, thank you so much for the quotes. I especial like the first one. I think I need to print that one out and frame it. I also really like the 3rd one. They all spoke to me and I am going to reread them a few more times.

Haven't eaten or had anything to drink since about noon so better go do something about that.
Patti

Good Morning, Ladies......very cold here today. This morning my cleaning lady comes and then I'm heading to the gym for the first time since my surgery. I'm allowed to ride the stationary bike, do the elliptical, and also can lift 10 lb. dumbbells. Of course I'm not going to do it all today, but it's nice to have a variety of options rather than just mall walking! )

KARLA: I would love to sync my Garmin to the website. RIght now I sync it to my phone, I'm not sure how to do that, so if you could help, that would be fabulous! The Garmin is giving me lots of information. Congrats on inches lost! That's amazing!

I just paid our cable bill and it has risen $20 in one month, What do you ladies have? I was at UPS yesterday to mail Valentine's gifts to the grand-kids and there were two people returning Direct TV and also Comcast devices. I know that cable is becoming archaic, so I'm wondering what to do at this point.

TT: (Feb. 8 - I'm so far behind) I know that 2016 is going to be a great year! I have lost almost 5 pounds since my surgery! This week, I want to concentrate more on vegetables. This has always been a challenge for me.

TT#2: My favorite commercials are always the animals; however, the worst was the Pug/Monkey/Baby commercial. I have a pug, and love her to the moon and back, but definitely wasn't impressed. My favorite were the singing sheep!

MARYLYNN; Great advice on exercising. Very educational on what part of the body becomes engaged when completing an exercise.

Have a great day!

Bert

MaryLynn- thanks for the movement tips… and the encouragement. i do struggle with the gentle part

Beth- no big deal. in fact…. whenever you have determined what “next week’s” goal will be…. post it, i’ll make a note of it, and it will appear on monday morning (i know how weekends with kids can be!)

Patti- SO glad to hear you had a fabulous time and made it home safely. happy for your team, but sorry you had to come home all tense after that drive!

Bert- you are doing SO very well…. with recovery plus a five pound loss to boot! keep it up!

Cindy- thanks for the encouragement. yep, i’ll get there. btw, what is your “day job”? just for fun, i’ll join you in that upper body strength training (i use small weights too)

Janet- It’s good to know i’ve got company in the rededication thing. OH, how i hate the winter months (mood wise) but things are looking up! I tracked everything yesterday, even though i was over my calorie goal. i had more sugar than intended but it was from prunes, so i’ll call that a win.

Jeanette- i hope you are feeling better ….. or at least see the light at the end of the tunnel!

I’m glad you all appreciate the updated goal list every week, but there’s no need to thank me I keep it in a note doc and cut and paste. easy peasy!

have a good day “y’all”
myra

Good morning ladies. I am feeling a little better; enough to join the cyber world anyway. The victory in getting this cold is that for many years I was too ill for my body to pay attention to any kind of infection so I have only recently begun to get sick again. I'm not quite up for personals yet but I am thinking of you

Karla- I would love to find you on Facebook. I am Jeanette Richards and my profile pic is a cross with a gray background

Prayers today for my daughters' custody/divorce hearing would be greatly appreciated
Grace and Peace to you
Jeanette

BERT: So pleased for your progress and the new options opening up for you at the gym! It's encouraging how quickly you are recovering, even though it may feel like a late start for 2016. I'm with you on continuing to add more vegetables; we've been focusing on that here too with plenty of fresh produce like carrots, leeks and cauliflower in the fridge at the moment, all cut up and ready to grab or use in soups and sauces. Sometimes it can actually be tough to get in enough calories when so much of the menu is produce (1/2 the plate) with meats, poultry or seafood much smaller secondary portions. Creating new combinations becomes colorful fun! Wow on your 5 lb. weight loss accomplishment since surgery! Enjoy your gym time today!

CINDY: I'm with you on increasing upper body strength. Focusing on form first is so wise and allows us to train towards our goals without injury. Sometimes I think a mirror would help to see that I'm not sacrificing form in order to get more "reps" in. If I'm in our weight room at night with lights on, I can look at the reflection in the window to check on that, so that helps. Today is "lifting" day for me and I try to get in 4 x per week too, but often get just 3 times. Juggling is certainly a forte for you, my friend as you finish off cover details for one and outline for the next, fit in your fitness and nutrition, nurture your family and yourself, review other books and still find time to encourage the rest of us. Thanks for being such a positive influence in my life! Have fun with the day ahead!

MYRA: Glad you enjoyed the movement tips, some of which would make us look like a sketch from "Monty Python's silly walks" or a scene from "Rocky"! Still, a girl needs to have fun, right? Well done on tracking everything yesterday! It helps to remember that these are guidelines and calorie approximates to lead us towards enjoying a wide variety of foods, as we become more aware of what and when we eat. Fruits (especially dried) can really send the sugar numbers way up there so quickly, but I would count that as a win, too! This has happened to me with apples or bananas especially (my go-to fast food with unsweetened peanut butter). Thankfully we can focus on fitness and healthy choices and don't need to sweat small stuff.

PATTI: Wow, 3" of snow for you this morning after driving through that nor'easter would almost convince me to crawl back into bed until it melted! I wouldn't blame you for just staying in as long as possible today. That comfy sleep for you in your waterbed was probably SO refreshing and welcome! You sound well rested and ready to tackle the day ahead, including searching that freezer for dinner ideas. I'm guessing that the Yayas are a group of ladies who "lunch" regularly? (a la Yaya Sisterhood?) Wonderful that Edd is able to get to the bottom of the issue for your little car without too much problem! You are truly blessed!

KARLA: Goodness girl! That was one nasty tumble you had! So thankful you were able to get the injuries attended to quickly. Are you back at home and hopefully getting some R&R to help with the healing process for your poor face and finger?!! Hope too that Glenn can give you a hand with whatever needs attention for awhile. Yikes, that is scary stuff, my friend! Take it easy and let others care for you, even if that is hard to do, okay? Speedy recovery!

JEANETTE: I'll be praying for your daughters divorce/custody hearing today and for you as you continue to feel the concern on her behalf. May you find an island of peace within the chaos and feel wrapped in loving arms. This is so hard to watch those we love go through a battle and we hurt when they do. Praying for wisdom on the part of the judge, for calmness for her and for justice to prevail as the lives of so many are impacted by decisions made today. Your body is an amazing creation indeed and the fact that it is now responding differently than in the past during the darker days of illness is strangely encouraging, no doubt. Grace to you.

Well, friends, that is enough for now, time to go get lifting something other than my cup of coffee here. May you find your way through the day with a positive and hopeful heart.

Hugs,
MaryLynn