200+ Haulin' Off The Weight

I am incredibly picky about purses and bags and luggage and such. Not sure why. Well I've decided that a sling pack would be perfect as a carry on. I could put a change of clothes, ipad, etc. in it if I can find one big enough. Of course I'm not finding what I want. Have I told you how unbelievably picky I am about bags? I drive myself nuts I swear.

Hello everyone!

My name is Natalie and I am a nursing student from Milwaukee, Wisconsin! I went back to school a little later in life and my body has suffered from years of married life! I swear, I just let myself get too relaxed! I'd love to join this group, I think a little competition makes you work harder! I'd love to join the group and participate in the weekly weigh-in!

Starting Weight: 285lbs
Goal Weight: 135lbs
Current Weight: 280lbs

Rikki- yeah, it was just me and the photographer. And since it wasn't like I was the one who sought out his services, it took a glass a champagne and a good 10 minutes for me to finally be like "ok, let's do this." Thankfully he didn't post my pictures anywhere cause my mom still doesn't know I did it lol. plus it might be weird at the family gathering if people knew that he's seen me naked.

Amy- I agree that farts are funny about 99% of the time (unless it belongs to someone else and it smells so gross you can taste it :sick:). Your fart story made me LOL for real.

Amy - I bought this bag in black a few years ago...its perfectfor business travel and carry on with my ipad and a few extra things, plus looks nice for the meetings..but its not sturdy enough to put a change of clothes, etc. in it. http://tinyurl.com/3c324tw
I might bring it anyways in my suitcase.
I have two of the most perfect Hobo wallets that can be used as a clutch too..And by perfect wallet, I am NOT joking. This one is The Perfect Wallet. I have it in green and pearly pink. http://tinyurl.com/3unnhot

So I'd like something more not chic to use on the day stuff around town that would be comfy and I can shove stuff we buy in like you said..the courier bags are too big...the little sling packs aren't big enough. Ga! LOL.

Weigh-in... 235.6

Amy - Have you tried shadow boxing? I've heard it can be a great cardio workout.

I've read the first five pages of this thread and have to stop and go work out. Hopefully, I'll be able to get back on this evening and get caught up. Thinking of all of you and wishing I had the time to respond.

It's Monday after noon and I have 775 calories to go and thats with a piece of chocolate cake ok very small piece but hey CAKE.

Amy - I bought this bag in black a few years ago...its perfectfor business travel and carry on with my ipad and a few extra things, plus looks nice for the meetings..but its not sturdy enough to put a change of clothes, etc. in it. http://tinyurl.com/3c324tw
I might bring it anyways in my suitcase.
I have two of the most perfect Hobo wallets that can be used as a clutch too..And by perfect wallet, I am NOT joking. This one is The Perfect Wallet. I have it in green and pearly pink. http://tinyurl.com/3unnhot

So I'd like something more not chic to use on the day stuff around town that would be comfy and I can shove stuff we buy in like you said..the courier bags are too big...the little sling packs aren't big enough. Ga! LOL.

I LOVE my hobo! Best $100 i've ever spent. Once you go HOBO, you don't go back. I also have a couple of purses too. They are a fantastic brand. Well worth the money. (and i don't spend money on things like this....)

AGREED! Ideeli.com has Hobo on it once in a while. I got my wallet for $36!! I've spent much more on their wallets though. Love them. Love them. Love them.

RainSarah - REECES McFLURRY??? I am so envious right now... Reeces are not easy to come by here in Australia, and they are my all time FAVOURITE candy. There is a candy shop around the corner from my house that has them, in all diffrerent types!! Dangerous! But i manage to stay away from them most of the time!

Rikki and Kendall - I'm WAY envious of your confidence... I don't feel like i could EVER do a boudoir shoot. Doesn't help that my other half isn't really that into lingerie or anything, so it does make it hard to ever feel sexy as such... oh well... maybe one day!

Laura - SO CLOSE! Good luck this week, hoping to hear the ONE-derous news of ONE-derland next week!

Navajoon - Good luck with the trial live-in... i never got that with my other half... we went from long-distance to domesticated pretty quickly!

Kendall - I mainly couldn't be bothered getting my car out of the garage behind my house... takes so much effort - totally easier to walk home with groceries! Also... I agree that you would be mad to add the girls' mother on FB.

Kwick - WHAT HAVE I SAID ABOUT DONUTS??? Seriously - there is nothing you can do about the call of the donut. Personally, i don't think it should count as calories, as there is no way to possibly resist the call!

Amy - I feel your pain on the dog-fart situation... we have two, and they clear the room every time!! It's completely rank!! I also agree with everyone that farts are hilarious... my ward at the hospital is mainly a geriatric ward, and farts abound... all us nurses have to turn our heads and giggle quietly to ourselves... Night shift is funniest!

Natalie - Welcome This place is awesome!

Megan - Sounds exciting! Good on you for making the first move!

Well, Other Half has taken the day off sick today, so it's nice having him home He's trying to explain this drop in America's Credit rating... it's hurting my brain... better go and get ready for my walk.

Lacey: I can't even begin to look at all the shopping sites and pics you are posting because I will be broke before I even get my next check...boooooooo for getting paid only once a month. I'm also soooo jealous of the traveling. I hope I can plan something for next summer.

Katheryne: I knew there had to be something positive about living in Alaska...you know, besides the beautiful views and wildlife we can only see in a small room at the zoo.

Hosanna: I don't get cravings for chocolate very often, but when I do, I have a pack of Goldenberg's Peanut Chews in my dresser. I can eat just one or two of them and be satisfied, and they're relatively low in calories. They also don't tend to have as much of the sugar effect; I guess because of the high amount of peanuts.

SGC: Family exercise is great. Yesterday was my rest day, but my daughter and I went for a walk at the park. I didn't focus so much on the distance or calories burned, but it was nice to have company.

VIctoria: Mondays just suck, period. I had a friend stop by last night, so didn't go to bed early, and I surely felt it this morning.

Rain: Praying for your hubby's quick recovery. Like someone else said, men can be the biggest of babies when they're sick.

Pam: Congrats on the release. I like weighing in on Mondays because it makes me feel more accountable for what I do on the weekends.

Amy: I think it's great that you are finding ways to still get some calories burned while laid up...many would just give up and give in, using the foot as an excuse. You are definitely a motivation for me to keep going.

LadyG: I have thought about it before...like Glamour Shots on crack. Your pic is absolutely gorgeous, so I imagine the rest are equally as beautiful.

Missx: I think you'll be fine with not weighing in today, or maybe even this week...no one is going to disown you, and you might save yourself a lot of headache.

Laura: Wow...all that activity is paying off for you, and it is wonderful to get the kids involved in activity early. I wish I had done that. Now I can only hope that what I am doing has enough influence to get my girls in the athletic center at their college to avoid that Freshman 15.

Nava: Amen on procrastinating the week's work...I think following MFP is much more fun.

Hallie: I hope you feel better about the annual review than you seemed to about the scale :-)

Kendal: I can understand the ex being curious, but friend requesting you on fb without having met you yet is really weird. I would also caution you that if you just leave the request in limbo, she can get updates to your postings. Either accept or decline, unless you want a cyberstalker.

Kwick: No worries about the donut. There are always gonna be temptations; so long as it's not creeping it's way into your daily life, you're doing ok.

Natalie: Welcome to the busy group :-) Lots of support and lots of chit chat.

Megan: Good luck wtih the "boy". If nothing else, you may get a free meal and some good feelings about yourself. I know that even when I'm not interested in them, just having someone show interest is such a perk ;-)

Whew...I think I'm finally through. And thanks so much for explaining to me how in the world to respond to all of you. As for me, I was super thrilled with my weigh-in this morning, as I was down 5lbs (328.6) since last Monday. I'm .6lbs from a 20lb loss overall since the end of the last school year in June. I will hopefully get my office in my new school cleaned out tomorrow so that I can move in all of this stuff sitting at my house. Then maybe I can focus on the beginning of the school year with a little more sense of preparedness. On another note, I have a date tomorrow night, and we're doing Japanese, which means very little chance of staying under sodium. So, I will be drowning myself in water all day in preparation...lol

I posted pics of me, Mr Reunion and his girls on facebook from this weekend and you know what my dad said???

"Great pictures and his kids are cute. Now I just cant wait to see a little Kendal."

I keep reading that over and over. :bigsmile:



And an update on his ex friend requesting me.....by the time I got home from work today, she had rescinded her request and blocked me. Alls well that ends well. I'm really not worried about it.

Man i was looking at some of the weight lost of u ladies and all I can say omg. U ladies are doing great keep up the work....

I burned 2763 in cams yesterday but did not record what I ate. Having potluck for dinner was too complicated but I resisted the deserts. wowsa - you ladies were chatty yesterday!!!

Next month will be 25 years that I've been friends with my BFF... She's been reading Sisterchicks and it's made us want to take a weekend vacay with just us... We are leaning towards Detriot.

Wish I had more time to respond but work calls. Hugs to all! Thanks for the laughs. And Lacey - I read fired not tired the first time through your post and thought "why isn't she more pissed off?" men - rolls eyes. Welcome to all of the new faces.

Wow - great weight loss everyone!

Lacey - I feel your pain - sounds like the story of my life. When I leave the house for an hour without the kids my husband needs a whole afternoon to recuperate, but if he is gone a half a day, he comes home and sits on the computer the rest of the day - GRRRRR. It's so frustrating. I just for one day want to do nothing and see if everyone gets fed and bathed and NOT sit in front of the TV all day. Seems like I need a good breakdown every 2-3 months so he will get his butt back in gear and help.

I started couch to 5k last week and today I did my first day of week 2. I was so proud of myself that I could do all the running portions! My husband and I are both doing it with a goal of running a 5k on Thanksgiving day.

Off to do some work - I have pre-k meet and greet for my daughter this afternoon so I need to leave work a little early (and sneek in some "me" time after meet and greet!)

Megan: Enjoy your date!

Sgc: I'll tell you exactly what would happen if you took a "day off" - nothing. They'd eat whatever is easy to make or get (my Hubbs and Kid go for grilled cheese or mac 'n cheese when left to their own devices), they would do nothing productive (mine tend to play video games or watch TV for hours on end) and baths wouldn't happen unless someone fell into a mud puddle. I know this because this is how life occurs at my house on the rare occasions that I am out of commission (like when i was in the hospital). It was a week before anyone thought to pull out the vacuum (and we have TWO big dogs with long hair and I usually vacuum every day). Boys are gross.

Rikki: Enjoy your BFF's wedding. And if you figure out how to wake up thin, can you let the rest of us in on it??

Victoria: A weekend with your BFF sounds awesome! I had mine come visit me when I was recovering from surgery back in Jan 2010 while the Hubbs was TDY for a few months and it was a month long party for us (well, as much as you can party with a chick who's just had her chest hacked into and a 6 year old kid tagging along). We really had fun though. It was like a month-long sleep over (and The Kid - who had never met my BFF before- fell in LOVE with her).

I made some guacamole to go along with the black bean soup that I'm making for dinner and I added one ingredient that made it more filling, less fatty and added fiber....white beans. I mashed up a can of white beans that had been drained and rinsed and then added it to my normal guacamole recipe and it was awesome. I know this because The Hubbs couldn't stop eating it even though it hadn't been chilled yet.

OK, so I keep trying to get on here and read all that I managed to miss out on over the weekend, and then I get all kinds of overwhelmed and don't know where to start. So I'm taking the lazy girl way out and just stopping by to say hello to all! My weekend was INSANE. It wasn't supposed to be. We were supposed to just have a quiet dinner with friends on Saturday and that was supposed to be it. Yeah that didn't happen. We ended up at a brewery on Friday night, then did a bunch of errands and had our friends sleep over after dinner on Saturday, then spent all day Sunday out and about in Lansing, and then went for a bike ride on Sunday night. BUSY.

And now, thanks to all of that, we are so, so broke. I hate when that happens.

Um what else... my run on Saturday went super awesome - it was a little rainy, but I ended up going 5.2 miles in about 56 minutes, and felt awesome afterward. This morning I should have gotten up to run, but I was hella tired, so I slept in and then did X Stretch. I seriously seriously love that video. I always feel fantastic afterwards. Hopefully when I get out of work tonight I'll have the gumption to get my run in - supposed to be 4 miles today.

Kendall, I am so excited that you had such an awesome weekend with Mr. Reunion and his kids. That's super fun. I also think its great that you are handling the baby mama situation so well. Look at you bein' all mature and crap. I'm impressed by you.

Amy, you are a food genius. White beans in your guac? Seriously, that sounds amazing and is SO smart.

Victoria, you should totally do a weekend with your BFF in Detroit! I can tell you all the fun places we went to if you are interested. Did you know that New Holland Brewing also has a distillery, but that they use all kinds of beer ingredients to make the booze? While in Detroit a couple weekends ago I had Hopquila, which was tequila distilled with hops instead of agave. It was AMAZING.

(ps - do you guys sometimes think I drink too much? lol... I swear, there is more to my life than beer. Its just been a weird summer for us. We're discovering how awesome of a state we live in when it comes to craft brews. Victoria can vouch for me, I promise!)

Since my weekend was so out of control, I am forcing myself to only drink water or green tea this week. No random diet cokes or monsters, and no booze. I was going to wait and do the no booze thing after we go to Traverse City, but I figure I've got a free weekend ahead of me, so why not make it a cleansing one? So there - I'm making it official to you guys. Nothing but water or green tea will enter my body until at least Monday of next week. eek. If I can actually do this, it will be a freaking miracle.

Ok, that's all I got for now. Welcome to all the newbies, I promise I will get to know each or your beautiful selves in the not too distant future.

Where's Katie at by the way???