So Frustrated

I can't stop eating junk food and I'm seriously so frustrated. I just keep gaining weight. Working out really hard this week just kept me from not gaining even more weight. I'm really mad at myself.

Mom, keep going with the step aerobics. It takes a few times to get used to it and since it's a video you should start to be able to predict the steps too. Also, the boys got their t shirts today, thanks for sending them :)

Mom changes exercise

My eliptical machine broke down and for now I'm trying a step aerobic video. It's so hard! I can't get coordinated enough to follow all the steps at the required pace so I know I look ridiculous flailing my arms and legs all over trying to keep up and always a second or two behind all those synchronized gym ladies. Sometimes I just give in and march around to the beat. I still sweat for 30 minutes. At least for now I still have the pool to do my laps. Dave's trying to fix the machine and hopefully I can get it back in working order by the time the pool closes.

Happy 7th Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Anders!
It was fun seeing you a couple weeks ago. I hope you had a great time, too.
I was watching some old family video's the other day and I saw you when you were only about six months old.
Have a great day!

Love,
Aunt Amy

All Healed

Well, I'm all healed and Dave did his job this morning and got me out of bed at 6:30 and I finally went running again. I ran for about 45 minutes and it felt nice to be out that early and get an early start to my day. The big challenge will be Pearrygin. I plan on preparing my fruits and veggies in baggies for the whole week so I have no excuses. I know my eating won't be perfect all week. Going to town for ice cream is tradition! But I will try to do it only once. I always run three times while we are there. So I know I will do that again. Owen gets up at the crack of dawn so it will give us something to do. We leave on Saturday. So I don't think I will be checking in again until we get back. So happy eating healthy and "workin' it" to all.
See you later.

Amy

Pray for NO BEE STINGS!!!!

Workin' It, Part Deux

I too have been doing classes at the gym this week. I am in a metabolic conditioning class, whatever that means, but I'm going a few times a week and it is pretty tough. I met a woman in my class who has lost 97 pounds since January! She says it is all due to diet and exercise but i have to say she is c-r-a-z-y about exercise...she does that tough met-con class two times a day! She is a super star at the gym though. Every trainer knows her and they all give her high fives and fist bumps all the time. She is a teacher and is excited to go back to school so everyone can ooh and ahh at her transformation. :) BTW I went at 6:30 a.m. today...I think that should earn me a few pounds lost right there! I'm going to a "boot camp" class tomorrow so I hope it all pays off too.

I got a new app on my phone to track my calories so I'm going to try just calories instead of points for a bit. Oh, and I went to that meeting which lasted for about 4 hours tonight (we are prepping for a primary activity day so we had a lot to do). I didn't have any ice cream and I brought a veggie plate and I am the only one who ate from it! I did have a piece of pizza but it was within caloric limits; in fact I stayed under by 100 calories.

I know you don't think I need to lose anything but I'm trying to do my best and some of my pants are tight so I'm going to work at it.

Workin' it

I've been taking gym classes so far this week. Cycle class Mon and Rowing class Tuesday. Both worked me to the point of total exhaustion and wanting to faint. So that's good. I'll be interested to see if next week's weigh in will show the effects.

House is coming along OK I guess but getting in by the time school starts looks almost impossible now.

Mom's suggestion about an end date might be good (or was that Anna's??) Anyway, it might be good to set a date. I only worry that afterward we'd all go nuts and eat whatever. Maybe we should make it some date in the fall?

No Loss, No Gain

I decided to weigh in today even though I was really nervous because I haven't been doing well lately. So I weighed in at the same time I normally do...first thing in the morning and it was the same. So I guess I've still lost about 3 or 4 pounds. My goal today is for the perfect day. No junk, eating veggies, and doing whatever exercise I can.

Mom checks in-Don't give up

Anna, I'm assuming your presidency are pretty decent people who don't have their collective head in the sand and are aware of how many people are trying to eat more healthily these days. That being said ( Don't I sound like Simon Cowell?) I think I'd let them know you're preparing for a session with your trainer and want to have a good showing. If you want you can tell them anything you want about the family blog to place the onus on us ( that's a weird word play, huh?)-



I'm not sure about the $5 penalty for gaining. Where would the money go; who do you give it to? I think you look terrific and once you're back in the school day routine I bet it'll be easier.



Amy - until your foot is good to go, I guess you could sit and do upper body work. If you can picture it, my mother used to lay on the floor with her legs in the air and doing the "bicycle" every day.

I'm with you Ben about the limited results with seemingly significant changes in eating habits, but right now it's enough for me to know that what I'm putting into my body is so much better than before. Thanks to all of you for getting this thing going.

Help

I have a primary presidency mtg tomorrow and the rest if them are bringing pizza and ice cream...how do I not eat it without making it Look like they are pigs eating what I won't?

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Motivation Needed

I need something new for motivation to lose, obviously, but also to not gain. I hear that Emily's family's blog includes paying $5 for every pound GAINED. Thoughts? I'm frustrated too cuz I'm only 2 pounds down from where I started. Do we have a cut off date? That might help.

Frustrating

I weighed in today and I'm only down 4 lbs from when we started this. I've really taken a lot of calories out of my diet and I'm just really surprised that after all this time being good most of the time it hasn't accounted for more. Oh, well. I guess I need to take my own advice to keep trying and hanging in there for the long term.

Another Bee

Well, no running or aerobics for me this week again. (at least for three days or so) I guess I shouldn't have taken last week off. Darn. My bad luck is that I stepped on another bee. This time in my toe. The bee was still hanging off my toe when I lifted my foot. It was painful and as soon as I stepped on it I knew my week was ruined. I was only in the backyard for a second closing a gate and I got punished for not wearing shoes again.

Here is a picture of my foot. Notice the difference in color and size of toes with the other foot. I know that a picture of feet is gross, but oh well. I can't walk or anything. I limp around.

So I will have to eat perfectly and maybe throw in some crunches this week I guess. I really was looking forward to exercising this week.

Post Road Trip Weigh In

It could have been worse but I was hoping to work out a lot more on my trip than I did. It was just hard to find the time and the energy to do it while doing everything else that we did. So I'm back home now (yay!) and I've weighed in :( and I gained 2 pounds. Let's see how fast I can lose it. I was supposed to have a session with my trainer today but I am postponing it by a week so I can feel ready.

Ben in a watermelon eating contest...good thing he lost.

This is at Ben and Emily's stake pioneer day hoopla. Ben was roped into a watermelon eating contest (good thing it wasn't a hot dog eating contest :) ) it was still fun to watch. sorry the pic isn't great (he is 4th from the right) :( And good for Ben cuz watermelon is mostly water...low cal dinner!

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Anna tempted by the desert table

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GOOD JOB

Good job to Amy on the nice new home (almost, I know). Good job to Mom on the positive reviews from the Doctor's office. And Good job to Anna for a no-junk-food road trip marathon.

Mom, I'm disappointed that you can't do a smiley face in email. it's a colon, then a right parentheses - :). See. It's that simple. You can even get creative and put a "0" after the colon and make a surprised face - :0

Anna, I really like the Chocolate Cake theory. If I have a problem eating too much ice cream, I should just binge on Tin Roof Sundae all night. Sounds like the kind of therapy I can get into! :)

Mom, sounds like you're the Doctor's pet. All crackin' jokes and getting good 'grades'. Really, though, your trip to the doctor highlights the whole purpose of our sacrifices. You lost 8 lbs and your blood pressure is down. Imagine keeping it up for another couple of months and losing 25 lbs and what other benefits that would bring. It's encouraging. I'm getting old, too, and these blood pressure, etc issues are becoming quite real. I just want to maintain pretty good weight etc so I don't have to do a major emergency diet after a heart attack at age 50.

Way to go all.

See ya tonite Anna

Mom's ups and downs

Looks like everyone is having ups and downs this week. Anna, I'd be willing to bet that when you're feeling light and your stomach is empty, that chocolate cake can again look appealing. it's just the nature of things for us chocolate lovers. Considering that you're in vacation mode, you're probably doing pretty well overall. And when you get to Ben's you'll be in 'friendly territory', health-wise and he'll not likely ply you with temptations.

Mornings are great for me, evenings not as easy. I start out full of resolve and I don't feel hungry until 10:30 or 11. But I like snacks in the evenings. Today I went to the Olive Garden for a birthday lunch for Deborah Royal. I had the soup and salad deal, but had 3(yikes!) breadsticks.

I had a dr. appt. Tuesday and he was very excited about my overall 8 lb. loss ( according to his scale - mine's always a little different) and a significant lowering in blood pressure. My sugar level is still a little elevated. He loved the blog idea and thought everyone should know about it and adopt it in their families. Is there any way we can capitalize on this and make some money? (I'f put a smiley-wink face here if I knew how).

P.S. At my appt. I happened to be wearing my Speedo-brand flip flops and he thought it would be so funny to post on the blog that I went to my Dr. appt. wearing my Speedo thongs. He was LOL'ing and told his nurse too. He's pretty cute.

Amy's having a hard time

I don't know what it is for sure. I've been really busy getting ready for a garage sale this weekend and busy keeping up the house and taking the boys to games and the pool and stuff. I either haven't been eating lunch or dinner at all or just finding something quick. With Dave being gone all week I don't want to cook a nice meal for just me. So not much healthy eating has been going on here this week. I have been eating a lot of fruit, no veggies though. Oops. I did buy them at the store, but haven't washed them yet. I'll make that my goal for today to do that and get them in bags to eat. I also haven't exercised since last Friday! Almost a week! No excuses there. Just haven't. I've been really tired and lazy since Dave has left. I guess I need him to stay motivated. I have two goals for the day....One--eat veggies and two--no sweets!

I'll report tomorrow with my results. (Maybe. I'm having a garage sale in the morning. I might not report til the evening.)

BTW....here is a picture of the house we are in the process of buying

Amy'

On The Road Again-Anna

Yesterday was ugly. I had a piece of chocolate cake, but it was not your ordinary cake eating experience for me. It was something like a last supper cuz I knew I was going back to healthier ways the next day. I only ate about 3 bites of the cake before it really was enough but I forced myself to finish it so that I would end up hating chocolate cake. I don't know if I have ever felt that way about chocolate cake or chocolate anything at all, but yesterday I did. It really became too much to handle but I ate it all and I hated it. I felt like Bruce Bogtrotter from "Matilda." Except he enjoyed it and I actually did not. That's pretty unhealthy isn't it?

Today went really well though. Back on the road, back to my own food and dad didn't make a huge breakfast today so that was good. AND this morning I had a good workout at Dad's club house. I'm planning on the same work out tomorrow a.m. here at the hotel fitness center and the eating the same foods too. We still haven't eaten any fast food on the trip, maybe we'll hit a Subway tomorrow before we go to Sarah's house in Fairfield.

We drove from Dad's to Crescent City, CA. Tomorrow morning I'll take the boys out to the beach after the work out and then drive through the "Trees of Mystery" before we hit the road for the day. Only 3 more driving days left!

Anna's Apprehensive

well the first bit of my trip was great (still no fast food!) but I have to say I made a lot of errors in Bham (ice cream, casa que pasa burrito, too many snacks, etc.). It was all my doing with only a little bit of peer pressure from Dave. But now I'm having a hard time bouncing back. Dad is making big breakfasts with pancakes and bacon and they ordered pizza last night so I am at the mercy of my host right now. I am thinking tomorrow will get me back on track as I will be on my own for a couple of days. I'm going to the grocery store today to get some carrots and Hummus for the trip through Cali. And I am assuming I can keep good habits while at Bens...???

I started working out at Dad's club house today but I had to tend to the boys earlier than I wanted so I only ended up doing about 15 minutes on a treadmill. I'm going to try to go up there alone tomorrow a.m. before I start driving and get a real work out in, though the thought of actually working out is making me sick to my stomach. It's just been a while and I'm apprehensive.

Ben's Back

I'm steady, weight wise. No real gain or loss. I did take a day off over the weekend, so I guess that's good news.

Mom, the fact that you lost 3 lbs while you had a few 'bad' days, is good news. It seems that maybe after a sustained amount of time eating less and better foods, the body starts to learn to shed weight. It may just take a while to kick in. Now is the time to keep going strong.

Our house is half way through the electrical and plumbing stage. We're ordering windows and kitchen cabinets this week. Still hoping for a September move-in date but I can never be too confident. I'll try and take some pics soon.

Brady had infected lymph nodes last week. His neck was swollen and he had a high fever. He was laid out flat on the couch for like 2 straight days - totally bizarre for Brady. It was oddly cute to see him all frowny faced and still for so long. He's back to his old self now, throwing things and screaming. I'm looking forward to seeing him spend time with the cousins both this week with Anna and in a couple weeks with Amy etc.

Amy's back, too

Yes, I have not been on in a while. I, too, took a little break from the "diet" and pretty much ate what I wanted. But I didn't lose anything or gain. So I was pleased with that. I do need to get back to exercising. I last exercised on Friday morning. I used Mary as a babysitter while she was here and went running.
I am writing from my new laptop! Our computer died after 6 or so years. So we had to break down and buy something new. I think I found a good deal. It's just hard right now when we are trying to buy a house and save everything we can and I haven't babysat all summer. It seems everything always happens at the same time. But anyway, enough whining about it. I will just enjoy the new computer!
Ben, where are you? You went awol, too.

Mom's BTB (back to blogging)

Looks like we all took a little break for a few days. Anna and the boys just left on their return trip. Anders and Luke are amazing travelers. It was so good to see them all and I think the cousins had a great time, even considering the occasional spats and high energy/noise level sometimes.

I actually lost 3 libs last week, in spite of a few lapses in dietary wisdom. I took two days off of exercising this weekend and I need to get back to it today.

Wednesday--Amy

Is that really Mom not saying who she is in the title? I was so confused......Don't worry I'm just kidding!
I'm having a bit of a struggle in the evenings this week. The main problem is our baseball games are during dinner time so we always come home and hurry and try and make something. So last night we had waffles. Not so healthy. I had a great breakfast and lunch and snack and stuff. It's just the night time right now is a struggle. But there is only one week left of the season and then things should slow down a bit at night.
Anyway, that's what I have for today.

Can't wait to see the McCoy road show come to town tonight! I went to dinner at Mambo Italiano in Fairhaven last night with Bob and Renea and passed up my favorite fettucini Alfredo and had an awesome salad. I don't know the calorie count but it was full of flavor and had some thin slices of steak on top and a non-creamy dressing. We did go down the street for a small gelato afterward, but all in all not bad for eating out.

I found some Weight Watcher frozen yogurt treats that are soooooo good. Strawberry Smoothie bars. They're smaller, but it takes two to make 1 point! ( 60 cal. per bar, 120 per serving)

Road Trip Ups and Downs

Well the trip has some definite successes...numero uno being that in 4 days of driving (I am in Washougal now) we have not stopped at ANY restaurants AT ALL, including gas station food. We have only eaten food that I have packed from home! I have eaten tons of veggies (cucumbers, snap peas, carrots, and grape-tomatoes) while driving and only had a couple of treats.

The downside is mostly today because I stopped to see my BIL in Northern Oregon and they made BBQ food for us an hour before I went to Dad's were they made Tacos and root beer floats. The really bad part about it all is that I didn't really WANT any of that food and it's not what I chose.

Anna. Sounds like your trip is eventful. Sounds like a real adventure for the boys - they're remember it for a long time. When is your LA stop? Aren't you coming here some time?

-Ben

BTW, That was Ben Below

also "BTW" I don't write "sent from my iPhone....etc" that just appears whenever I use my phone app to post. I'm not trying to show off, trust me.

I'm getting my regular 6" Veggie Delight from subway right now. 275 calories!

Last night I had 2 pieces of lasagna on my plate for dinner. Then took charge of my will and put one back and only ate 1. Hoping little acts like this will help. I'd like to be less than 180 so I have about 7 lbs to lose and keep off.


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Tuesday Report--Amy

Hi, I don't remember Monday being a really bad day but I do know I lost track of counting for that day. But I did exercise. So that was good. Tuesday I didn't do so well. I had a chocolate bar and another little treat and I went over by 230 calories. oops! Sorry. And I didn't exercise. So it was a bad day for me. I will try and make today a perfect day.
I can't seem to be on the computer without little grabby baby hands at the keyboard. So that's it for me today.

I'll check in tomorrow.
I tried posting this already but it said someone else was posting at the same time! I'm about to see who it was.

Checking in From the Road...Anna (duh)

Hello from Tahoe.

I weighed in yesterday at one pound less than the previous week. Fine and dandy. I'm sure I've gained it back already because as I am typing I am at a picnic table eating marshmellows and a hershey bar. I can't believe that I couldn't build a fire! All I made was smoke...I don't understand. So I'm eating s'mores raw...ewww.

The road trip part of the last couple days have been just fine. I've eaten a lot of veggies and fruits on the road and some beef jerkey. No candy or anything, just the s'mores now. I counted points yesterday and stayed in range but today I'm out of range.
So I've realized I'm not a camper anymore. Hope that doesn't disappoint some of you. But come on...why am I "vacationing" in all this DIRT! What a pain! And I have to walk to heck'n'gone just to use a PUBLIC toilet in the dark?! Don't EVEN get me started! I've said it once and I'll say it again...camping is a government conspiracy designed to make us feel like it is a vacation to prep us for when disaster really strikes and we're FORCED to actually live like this. Some people will actually think the apocolypse will be a vacation.

This picture doesn't do the place justice, but it is the lobby of our Vegas Hotel...the coolest hotel I've ever stayed in and it cost the same as the camping spot I got tonight! What?!Fun in the hotel

Continental Breakfast...woo hoo!

Anders enjoying the ride in his helmet and sheild.

Our luxury tent-cabin

Hang In There

This is Ben. I am at 186, which is OK, I think it's like a pound less than last time. I do feel, like Mom, that there's a lot of sacrificing for not much results. I need to tell myself, and Mom, that I need to keep it going because I'm SURE that if were really consuming less, and better foods, than before, there WILL be benefits that we can see. I think Anna's point about it taking a while for some people's bodies to "believe" that we really are adjusting our normal intake. Let's keep trying for now and see what happens.

There also may be other benefits to health. Maybe better energy levels? Better blood flow? I dunno, I just know that you are what you eat and if we're eating better, and less, we have to be benefiting in some way

A couple suggestions

Hi Mom!
I was thinking about your snacking problem and I thought of a couple things that might help take your mind off of it until meal times. (Probably allow yourself one snack. I try to keep it around 150 calories.....popcorn + a piece of fruit?) When you are not doing anything else but sitting around and watching tv maybe do some of these things to help pass the time:
Build a jigsaw puzzle (time really flies doing that..I have some you can do)
Do a crossword puzzle
Unpack/sort through boxes
Scrapbook
take a nap
Go for a walk and really earn your next meal (don't forget your mp3)
And I know you think you look like a horse chewing gum, but it really helps to get through the cravings.

Also, back to the Biggest Loser again, but there was this one lady that everyone thought was throwing each weigh in for strategy play in the "game" but she SWORE she wasn't. Each weigh in she either gained a pound or more or only lost 1 pound or stayed the same. She was really frustrated because everyone else was losing big numbers each week and she wasn't. When she got eliminated and went home from the show she just realized that for her it was just going to take some time for her body to get in a groove. She did finally start losing weight but it took her a while. She also got really into kick boxing and found something she really enjoys. So what I'm saying is, don't get discouraged. Don't give up. You will see results if you keep with it.

As Promised.....Amy

As I promised I did count my calories yesterday and I came in right around 1500. I don't know for sure how many because I had 3 twizzler twists and in my website it only measures it by the gram or package. So I was at 1470 before those. I'm interested to see if I lose a pound this week after counting again. I can't wait til Sunday to see.

Mom's mediocre report

No loss, no gain. I realize that in order to really lose I'm going to have to just be hungry inbetween meals, and that's the hard part for me. I thought if I fought hunger with 'harmless' snack foods, I could be successful. Calories are calories, points are points, I guess. Every morning I wake up thinking it's going to be easy today, and every day it's not. But it seems with exercise, and eating less than I did before starting this, I should still lose a modest amount every week.

Anna, what an eventful birthday. You didn't mention the blood and gore part of the day when I talked to you this morning. Have a safe trip - don't speed! I know you'll be creating a good photo record. Can't wait to see you all on Thursday.

Weigh In Sunday--Amy

Pretty boring for me, too. I still haven't gone back to actually counting my calories. But today is a new day and I will. I will start by writing it all down again. I didn't lose any weight this week. Interesting how that correlates with not counting my calories to the tee. It proves that writing it down and counting up really helps! But I am hovering around a lower weight than I was a couple weeks ago and my clothes also fit better than they did a couple weeks ago. So that's good. I hope to be at least two pounds lighter by Pearrygin in three weeks. So I have to be close to perfect with eating and exercising. I know there will be a few slips due to special occasions. But that's ok.
My bee sting seems to be getting better. So I should be able to go running tomorrow, too. Anyone else in the family get really bad bee stings? Or is it just me?
My birthday was fine. Mom came over and babysat for me and Dave. We went out shopping and spent my Old Navy gift card I got from mom two years ago! (I was pregnant when she got it for me and didn't want to buy new clothes, then after Owen I needed to lose that weight. So now was a good time to use it). Then I mowed the lawn and pulled some weeds! Fun!

Anna-I can't believe that blood spot on your friend! It's huge! Poor little guy. At least it sounds like they still had fun.

My Weekend is Much More Boring

Anna, you've really done a lot this weekend. Party, building a shed, fire engines. Sounds pretty eventful. Amy, sorry about the Bees sting. That sucks.

I do OK almost every day but I end up calculating exactly how many calories I have last at night and consume right up, and usually over, the limit at the last minute. I love me snacks! Nibbling on stuff is my weakness, sounds like Mom and I share that trait :)

I'm curious about my weight on Monday...I really don't know where I'm at any more, but I do feel better and my clothes fit just a bit better than they did a few weeks ago.

C'est La Vie-Anna

Happy Birthday Amy, you're catching up quickly. Hope you had a good day. This is the second year in a row that we've had a birthday party on your birthday weekend for the boys. It is the midpoint between their birthdays so we just combine for one big party. We had a lot of kids over to swim and have pizza and it was actually pretty fun...even Michael had fun! ;) Oh except for when a kid slipped and cut his head and there was blood everywhere so the parents called 911 and a firetruck came but they said he didn't even need stitches so he came back to the party and then fell in the pool (he can't swim) and his sister wouldn't come swim cuz she was so scared of a couple of bees so it was pretty eventful for THAT family but seriously it was a little scary when the kid hit his head on the concrete patio. Anyhoo....foodwise I'm sure I didn't do well but I didn't stress about it. I didn't have lunch not that that really helped cuz I ate plenty of pizza, soda, and cupcakes tonight. Oh well! Now for the challenge of eating on a two-week road trip! Yikes.

The men of the party...the red spot on the far left guy is the blood from when his son fell on the patio. :S

Mom signs in

Anna- What a woman! I'm sure you used up a lot of points just in sweat alone. I'm surprised you didn't have heatstroke. Cute structure.

I've elipticized (is that a word?) every day this week for 30 minutes and did about 25 laps in the pool most days. We'll see tomorrow if it's paid off.

Happy Birthday to Amy today! 31 big ones. All my kids in their 30's. Time marches on. I'd like to slow down the cadence a bit. We'll celebrate it with Luke and Anders later this week.

A bee brings Amy down

Hello All!

Well, I know I will be going over my calories for today because Dave agreed to Jaxon's plea for pizza tonight. And I really don't feel like cooking anything at all. It's been a long busy week and we are all pooped. Four baseball games, a dentist appt. swimming in the hot sun, running errands, etc. We're beat. And Dave had a 40 hour work week, a temple trip and a dentist and doctor appt. in there as well. But anyway, I didn't work out yesterday because I was lazy and yesterday I stepped on a bee and today my foot is all swollen and itchy and hot and I can't really walk without limping. I hate bee stings! When I get stung I really get stung! So I didn't go running or do aerobics because of that. I'll see how it is for tomorrow. But the last time I got stung it swelled up my whole leg for three days! So I'm guessing no exercise until Monday.

That is my report for the day!

And P.S. Anna---what a great day for a birthday party! Wink, wink!

Anna is beat by the heat on Friday

I went over by a couple points today cuz I had a hearty dinner after working all day outside in 110 degree heat. The boys' birthday party is tomorrow and I had to ready the yard so I filled about 5 garbage bags with yard waste, threw out a bunch of old pool stuff, and most my time was spent building this cool structure to hide the pool equipment. It was pretty unsightly before; now I think it looks pretty cute. It was so much work though...over two days I dug 6 holes, filled 'em with cement, built the frame (lots of cutting 2x4s), built the fake window and door, then put the bamboo stuff on and the roof was kinda hard to get the angle right as you can see, and then I put some christmas lights under the eves. Cute!With that project and getting ready for the boys' party tomorrow and my road trip (I leave in 36 hours and I haven't started packing or anything) I have not been able to get to the gym but I honestly think I burned just as many calories working outside and inside.

Bad Blogger Mom

I can't seem to keep up with the blog news, and I'm home all the time. I've been mentally counting cals. but not writing it down. I can come in under, but it doesn't feel like it's enough under for good results. We'll see at weigh-in. Going back to work will be good for me I think. It's hard being at home so much during the day where the temptations are calling to me from the frig. I find myself nibbling off and on all day - but on good things - raw veg., low-sugar fruits, no butter popcorn.

Ben, to answer your heat question; not a problem for me. My house is very cool being on the bottom floor and not a lot of windows for the sun to come in, and it feels so good to have the sun since it's been scarce up to now this year. But even when outside I've learned to not complain about heat; having the perspective of having been in Phoenix in August and knowing It'll cool down when the sun sets.

Ben Steady

I've been within my calorie limit for the past couple of days. Not much exciting in that department. I'm looking forward to Monday to see if I've actually lost any weight.

Mom, how are you doing with the "heat"? It is pretty funny to hear Amy talk about 'cool centers' for people to learn how to stay cool in Bham.

Wednesday and Thursday--Amy

I guess I've had pretty boring days of eating myself. I haven't been exactly counting my calories because I pretty much know I'm within my limit. But I will return to counting tomorrow. I need to. The good news is I've been drinking more water because it's been so hot. And yesterday I did aerobics and today I did nothing. The day got away from me.

Well, Summer has finally arrived! At least for a few days anyway. It's been so nice to have the heat! Anna, you would laugh at us up here in the northwest because they are opening "cool" shelters for people to go to and offering suggestions on how to beat the heat! Same ol' news stories every year. But you'd think we are all wusses. I'm not complaining in the least. Even though I sweat just sitting there and my clothes are sticking to my skin. It's so great! I'll take that over cold and windy any day!

Anna's Groundhog Day: Thursday

Today was pretty much a repeat of yesterday's menu sans the Starbucks outing. I was going to go to the gym but ended up working on a project at the house that took me longer than expected and I was too worn out when I was done for the day. It was a workout on it's own though too. K, so that's it for today. Looking forward to yet another repeat tomorrow and I will finish my project as well.

Wednesday's a Breeze for Anna

No food court or birthday cake obstacles today. I had to get up at 5 a.m. to take Michael to work today so that threw my breakfast routine off a bit cuz I actually was hungry that early but I still made it just fine. I did have a meeting today at Starbucks which has some tempting shakes but I got a fruit cup and some H2O instead. :) I made "sloppy Jose's" for dinner tonight...a new family fave here. (Mexican version of Sloppy Joe's...duh) It is just ground beef with salsa on a bun with cheese and they're great but I used turkey instead and saved myself 2 points each. I would have gone over my points if I had used beef. I also don't use regular hamburger buns, I use those flat roundy things, they're super good and only one point. And like I said yesterday, salsa is like 10 calories...so I'm good!

Ben Tuesday

Thanks for your congratulatory wishes. I saw all your comments.

I began counting calories again Tuesday and was pretty much right on target, maybe over by 50 calories. I had no deserts or junk, just real food. A good day.

Mom, bummer about going up a pound, but if you keep doing as well as it sounds like your doing, I am sure it will go back down again - it has to. Just keep thinking of this as a long term, yeah even a lifetime, thing. Even a pound a week, which is not that hard, would be 52 lbs over a year's time! (or 56, or 62, I can never remember how many weeks in a year!)

Tuesday--Amy

Now that the weather has turned nicer it's going to be hard for me to find a good lunch. I don't want to buy lunch every day due to the budget and I don't eat sandwiches because of the carbs so I don't know what to pack to eat. (we aren't home a lot now because we are basking in the sun that has FINALLY shown it's face around here.) So yesterday I ended having four bowls of cereal for my meals. Two of granola and two of Grape Nuts. Other than some fruit and a few veggies that's what I ate yesterday. I need to come up with something else for today. We also went to Costco and I got the boys their usual frozen yogurt twist and I was very tempted to get one since I hadn't really eaten lunch, but I didn't! So I overcame the temptation!

It must be the season for the dentist. Anna yesterday, Dave and I both have appts. today and the little girl I babysit is going today, too. Why when she's only almost 2? I don't know. But to each his own.

Ben, I posted a comment on your baby news blog, too. Just FYI.

Here is a cute picture of Owen....Future Rockstar!

Anna's Hurdle for Tuesday: Birthday cake...

I swore I wouldn't eat it but I had to. Everyone else was doing it. I worked out pretty hard right before and ate really well up until then. I hadn't eaten in 7 hours actually. I ate lunch at 12:30, went to the dentist and had two fillings done then came home, went swimming, then the gym, no time to eat, and off to a friend's daughter's birthday party. So by the time i got there I hadn't eaten since before the dentist. After the little party i ate a bowl of cereal and seriously just a few chips and salsa and salsa has like 10 calories so i'm good.

I made a comment to the BIG NEWS but it says 0 comments still but may I reiterate...WoW and Congrats! Amazing and wonderful, you might even say "wonderful, wonderful" news and a great reason to be gaining weight, ha ha! Anders and Luke are split between wanting a boy or a girl for you btw :)

Emily AWOL

Mom may have spread the word already, but Emily has not been on the blog lately because 1) she is not losing any weight, probably gaining a bit, and 2) she says she feels nautious a lot and even seeing people talk about a lot of foods makes her want to gag. Long story short. . . .baby due in February 2011.

There ya have it.

I was ashamed, so I hid myself.... (Ben)

I don't want to continue a bad theme with headline there, but I couldn't resist...
I haven't posted in a few days cuz Emily and I went to Sarah's on Friday and left the kids there all day Sunday and Monday while we celebrated our 10th Anniversary by staying in a Hotel in San Fran. I ate somewhat responsibly (got a very tiny 150 calorie ice cream thing for my late night movie-watching party snack instead of the whole Ben & Jerry's deal I normally would have gone for). We at out for every meal, so I didn't even count. I knew it would be ugly.

On Monday I really let loose and even spooned up ice cream directly from the tub (at someone else's house even! It's like I have a serious problem). I had steak, pizza, you name it, I ate it. I was on a "see food" diet...HA!!

I am back to my good habits now. Had a banana for breakfast and a 320 calorie sub for lunch. That's it so far.

I'm back in the saddle big time but have not weighed in yet cuz I haven't been able to get to the gym

Back in the Saddle again.....again

Hi
Now that the fourth is over and our three day weekend is over I am back to counting my calories. I didn't do HORRIBLY yesterday but I didn't eat much. But today is a new day and I'm back to counting the calories and exercising. I did run for 45 minutes yesterday so at least I have that. I'm going to go do my strength training video now also.
Anna and Michael, great job in the food court. Always a challenge. I hear that pretty soon it won't even be tempting. We'll see, right?
Ben, where are you?

Anna Conquers the Food Court: Monday

We took the boys to play at the playground at the mall today and let them eat at the food court...danger, danger, danger! It is so easy to eat a few of their fries and what not but neither of us (me and Michael) had a bite to eat! Yay! We ate a sensible lunch when we got home and then went swimming and to the gym and had a good dinner (Michael said it was "delectable") after that so I ended up 1 point under today. Not bad!!!

Anna's 2 Cents

It's not "another diet" on Monday...it's the same, it's ongoing, and I don't like the word diet...you are just regaining healthy eating standards. And as you have seen at BBQs and such, it's not just about avoiding desserts...those fruits are dangerous.

Mom slides back down the hill

Week 3 - gained back 2. Bad last three days. Too much BBQ, etc. I avoided desserts but not enough avoidance elsewhere. It's a new week, another diet-starting Monday. It sucks big time that I can't eat a lot of fruit because of blood sugar because that's been a mainstay during this diet - I've been considering it basically free food.

One of the worst fourth of Julys in history as far as weather goes. Windy, cold,( in the 50's) a little rain. We huddled in blankets to watch the fireworks. This week we're really going to start summer- in the high 70's and mid 80's.

anna week 3 results

Amy, it's just a donut HOLE, no worries. Despite my avoidance of those donuts I made pleeeenty of mistakes this week and gained another pound. I thought this was a weight loss challenge...I'm taking it in the wrong direction I guess.

Mom, there are a lot of foods that can increase your sugar reaading other than deserts...fruits and pasta???

Where y'all been? I feel like the lone blogger 'round here. what's up?

Sunday's Weigh-in--Amy

Hello,
Friday and Saturday were ok days for me. But I'm not as strong as Ben and Anna I guess. Dave and I went to the temple yesterday and it's tradition to buy Tim Horton Doughnut Holes whenever you're in Canada and I didn't take a picture of them and I did eat some. I gave in to the other side of the peer pressure. But, the good news is I think I lost another pound this week. So it looks like I'm on track to losing a pound a week if I keep this up which I do plan to after today's barbeque and stuff. I am fasting right now so that helps for today I guess.
And remember you're weight fluctuates by about 4 or 5 pounds in a day so be sure to weigh yourself at the same time every time you do...if you can.

Happy Fourth of July!

How do you like them apples?

OK, they're not apples, but these donuts also were not eaten! Thanks for the peer pressure cuz if you hadn't posted that pic yesterday some of these very well may have been eaten.

a horse and buggy...really?

think of the maintenance and worry over a horse and buggy...gotta feed it, house it, clean up it's poop, replace it when it dies, sit behind it's butt when you ride in your buggy, not to mention your ride is bumpy and there's no music or heat/AC...a tune up on your fancy explorer ain't nothin' lady!

Anna: Blech!

friday: ate like crap. no exercise. irritable. end of story.

Mom here -

I just caught up on the last few days' entries from y'all. Sounds like a bad time for cars. Anna, is Michael's BMW needing repairs already? And a cracked radiator in your car sounds expensive. hope this doesn't put a crimp in your travel plans. Sometimes I really long for the old horse and buggy days. Mine (not my buggy, my car) needs a tune up and it's been having some electrical spasms.

Food wise I'm doing well, but I'm really bummed about my recent readings on my blood sugar monitor. Since we started this I haven't had any desserts or refined sugar except at FHE last week, have exercised nearly every day but my sugar level is up. It should be around 100-125 or so and has been spiking up to 160-260. This is higher than when I was eating whatever I wanted. If it continues, I guess I'll have to go to the Dr.

I'm going to a BBQ tonight for the Stiles and GLovers who are visiting , so I'm planning to have a hamburger without the bun or cheese. Just meat, tomato, lettuce and onion. There'll be a variety of salads too.

A want to try your salad , Anna, maybe tomorrow. Does anyone have a main dish recipe that's within legal limits that's good?

Pic of the house progress

Here's the latest house pic. (can u tell I'm bored waiting for a car repair?). I also just discovered the joys of blogging from my phone!



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Aetna St,San Fernando Valley,United States

This was NOT eaten

In my normal life, sitting in dealership waiting room for an hour with free donuts would mean downing at least 2 if these day-old delights. It's almost like you're forced to eat them when it's free. Its my obligation as a customer. My duty. But I'm not even phased by it now.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Van Nuys Buick dealership

Thursday--Amy

I was going to "echo" that about the salads. They sound good. I think I'll try the spinach one next week after I grocery shop again.
Ben, good luck! You will make it. Just bring some good music and call us if you get bored to pass the time. (If you have a hands free thing for your phone).
Yesterday was pretty good. Like I said, I did have some cookie batter and maybe one cookie. But everything else was perfect and I did go running for 45 minutes. I'm still doubting I'm losing any weight. The scale just doesn't seem to want to move for me. (Down that is) I'll let you know on Sunday.

Wish me Luck

Anna, good salads! Also, I have to say I'd have a few cookies if I were you, too. As for summer vs. non-summer, I really don't know the difference. The weather is the same all year round and work is the same all year round.

Well, I say "wish me luck" because I'm embarking on a 6 hour drive up to Northern Cal with only JUICE! Hello Chevron stations! Road trips are my big excuse for crappy snacks, but this will be a good exercise for me. Like Mom, I think food is something I do cuz it's fun and I just want something to be chewing on. Nothing like driving on the 5 with a Dr. Pepper in the cup holder and the other hand in a can of chocolate covered cashews! Ohhh man, this trip is going to be hard! This is my last day of Juicing so I have to make it count.

Have a good holiday weekend y'all!

Anna Wants a Cookie!

I did a "boot camp" class at the gym on Wed. It was crazy hard...two girls even dropped out half way through! My legs felt like jello afterward and I am still soar but I love that. Afterward I ate my signature spinach salad and a salmon filet. The salad is spinach leaves, cucumbers, strawberries, apples, and raisins and fat free italian dressing. you can do tomatoes, oranges, grapes, a little bit of almonds, or whatever. It's really good, even Michael likes it. I also eat waldorf salad from time to time (broccoli, grapes, apples, raisins) sans walnuts and only 1 tablespoon of mayo.

Eating during the summer vs. school year has its goods/bads...good: no chocolate offerings at the secretary's desk, birthday cake in the lounge, etc. On the last day of school a student gave me a bunch of chocolates. When she left my room I gave them away to the kids in my next class. yay me. of course the bad: not being scheduled and always being around the fridge. But summer time foods/meals are generally lighter and I have more time to cook so that is helpful AND the heat tends to take a bit of hunger away and I drink more water cuz it's so frickin HOT. All in all I prefer summer time eatin'.

I didn't get to go to the gym because the radiator in my car cracked (not to mention michael's car needs replacing too AND...yes, I am throwing myself a pity party here...we also have $1000 in pool repair so I got kinda down about all that). Then I went and ate a bunch of cookies. I also just don't think I can live in extremes, even healthy eating extremes...I gotta have a cookie or SOMETHING sometimes.

Wednesday--Amy

Hello all!
Yesterday I think I met my calorie limit. I had the taco salad and it was yummy. I made it before baseball so it worked out better.
I took the day off of exercise because Dave is now going into work later so that we can work out in the mornings. But he can't go in late on Wednesday's. So we are going to do it on Saturday.
But I went running at 7 this morning and it feels so good to have it out of the way for the whole day.
I did make the boys some cookies today and I had just a little of the batter. And I also had some ice cream last night, but still made it at my calorie limit. There, all confessions are out. My goal is to be perfect from here to Sunday. Wish me luck!