Sunday, December 1

That's right, DECEMBER!!!

Ok, so let's see....turkey tetrazzini, turkey soup, turkey salad, turkey sandwiches, turkey door stops...

I need OP ideas for turkey! MIL brought over another cooked t-breast yesterday. They are leaving to be snowbirds in FL & and are cleaning out the fridge. DD said my face was priceless when MIL pulled a turkey breast out of the bag! She said I reovered nicely, and MIL would never know I was shocked to see it, but dd was able to read me like a book & was cracking up!
I still have turkey leftovers of my own....

All is well here, I was a bum yesterday & read all day. It was just what I needed and today will be more active. Maybe it's time to get that pumpkin off the front stoop, huh? Maybe replace it with a Christmas wreath on the door?

Wishing you all a wonderful Sunday with lots of water, appropriate activity, and healthy food choices!

Happy Hanukkah, ladies!

Xena

Oh and, hey, all you flyladies and others who have a handle on your holiday shopping: I bow down to you! I am not worthy!!!!
Very impressive and inspirational! I really think that's just wonderful. Way to go!

Good morning sleepyhead sisters...its almost 11:30 here on the east coast!

Xena - My thoughts on your extra turkey would be freeze it!!! Later during the winter a nice hot turkey soup would taste delicious! Just be sure & label ... when I forget to label freezer items I always regret it!

A bit of a spluge this am, I made a sausage apple pastry for breakfast for DD & DS and had a little with a small serving of scrambled eggs. A bit high fat, but 4oz of sausage fed 3 plus leftovers.

Traci fitting into the sexy holiday dress!!! Send FRED after that fudge on the double!

I have turned the calendar to December & now have a fresh, blank month to fill with stickers...holiday ones for exercise & smilies for water.

A friend of mine has a treadmill that she doesn't use...I'm building up courage to see if she might be interested in selling it...it was her DH's who passed away a year ago, so it is sentimental, even though unused. I had a nordic track treadmill years ago, but I just didn't like it enough to use it faithfully.

Late this afternoon DH & I will do holiday cards...I am creating a low fat working feast to go with the "project." I have Irish Brown bread in the oven, thin smoked salmon in the frig, shrimp in the freezer...a little horseradish spread, cocktail sauce...yum!!! Carrots & celery for good measure. May start with Irish tea, but I imagine we may move on to a bit of New York wine. Holiday cards are usually sopmething we whine over for weeks...some years I have sent them out the end of January. This will not happen this year!!!

Have a great day sisters, no matter what you are up!

Wow, Bliss! What a cozy, gourmet feast for your card writing party!
sounds wonderful!

Hi everyone,

Happy Sunday and December 1! It has been such a wonderful 4-day break!

Still working on my weekend list ! I wrote all of my Christmas cards last night while DS and I watched a movie. Will mail them tomorrow. Getting DH and DS to get all my Christmas boxes out from under the steps today. Already put up my Christmas wreath by the door and flag at the end of the driveway. Usually we don't do this stuff until we put up the tree and it's just overwhelming to do it all at once. So this is a nice change.

Desk--So nice that you have all the new options right by your new workplace. Hope that your walk went well.

Bliss--Sounds like you have a wonderful feast planned. Hope you get all your Christmas cards done and your lights straight.

Dany--Thanks for your concern, but I'm thriving on getting so much done. (I do have the tendancy to overdo though.) Sounds like you are on a roll again!

Traci--Since you're sending off the majority of the fudge and your family loves it, they'll probably quickly eat the rest for me. I don't make fudge, but my mom makes the best in the world. She said the other day that she wouldn't make any for me this year since she knows I'm on WW. I was happy for her support, but sad at the same time . . . Oh, awesome on that holiday dress. Take a picture of yourself in it and post it as your new pic!

SueWags--The walking tapes are great. My knees have always given me problems, but not to the degree yours do. So you might want to inquire of your doctor first. Also, check with the doctor who did your surgery, since you're fairly early in recovery. That said, the walking tapes are the only exercise that has not bothered my knees. They are Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds (with the weighted balls or you can use 2-lb handweights) tapes. You can get them from Amazon, Best Buy, informercials. I like these the best. She has many tapes (e.g., Walk away the pounds for the abs), but I like these the best. Some of the others have knee crunches, which do bother me.

Xena--I tossed my pumpkin yesterday. It looked perfectly fine still, but I figured I'd let it biodegrade in the woods and let the animals feast on it. I second Bliss' idea on the turkey--freeze it. I always freeze chicken and turkey carcasses and get them out later for wonderful soup or the basis for pot pie or casseroles.

No exercise yet today. My ankles are bothering me, so I may take a break today or just do yoga later. OP yesterday and OP so far today.

s

Shirley

Hi Ladies!

Sounds like everybody is doing great - being productive and having fun.

I started today with a, um..., "hearty" breakfast, but plan to work it off cleaning the garage and playing with my critters. DH says if I don't have my junk out of his side of the garage by Jan. 1 he's just going to drive in over it. It's a beautiful, cool day here - perfect for working hard. All I have to do is drink lots of water and eat right the rest of the day, the exercise part will be taken care of.

Y'all who commented on horses having built in exercise (from chores) are right! It's really cool - every morning, however lazy I may be feeling, I have to get up, go outside, sweep the run-in shed, feed... It's not a real workout, but it does get you going first thing.

Bliss - Your friend might be happy for *you* to have the treadmill. Maybe "borrow" it? That way it'll be out of her house, but not quite as *gone* as if she sold it to just anybody from the paper. I know when I have something I like, but no longer need (a particular beautiful old wooden desk comes to mind...) I'm happier giving it to a friend, who I know will enjoy it and care for it. And what time is that holiday card party? We'll all be right over.

Xena - You could do worse than getting extra turkey... My mom tried to send me home from Thanksgiving dinner with two pies! Turkey is pretty easy to use "responsibly" - salad, soup, low-fat sandwiches, stir fry...

Shirley - What a great mom you have! That's harsh, not having any fudge-from-mom, but how cool that she's being supportive.

Dany - You're an inspiration. I was feeling kinda blah yesterday (like, oh well, it won't hurt if I eat whatever I want...), but your post put a little wind back in my sails. Congrats on having a great week!

Y'all have a great day. Off to face that garage...

Hi All,

Today is going to be a lazy day. We've been having wind alerts for today and they were right...it's howling out there. The temp on my computer says 29. I plan to stay OP with food but not with exercise.

SueWags... I have the Walk Away the Pounds tapes by Leslie Sansone. I think they're great but........I broke an ankle a while ago and wasn't able to use them for a long time after. It's a walk-in-place marching type movement and it was too much for my ankle even 6 months later. Maybe you could look in the video store for a rental to give it a try.

Xena.....by the Sunday after Thanksgiving I don't want to see any more turkey! I would freeze it also.

Bliss...your working feast sounds wonderful. I wrote the envelopes for my cards last night and will spend a bit of time here and there writing the obligatory personal greetings on a few cards at a time.

Shirley....good for you for being OP. I'll be putting up outside decorations this week but will leave the tree until about 10 days before.

Everyone have a great Sunday!

Back home from in-laws safe and sound and had a wonderful trip - our best ever! FIL goes in for surgery tomorrow to remove cancerous lymph nodes, so everything and everyone just seemed that much more precious to us. My MIL is very scared - she has never really had much of a life outside of my FIL, but we have to pray and believe that it will all come out OKAY!!!!

As for me, my portions got a little bigger as the visit went on and I'm up 4 pounds as of this morning! So, it's time to break out the walking tape (I'm not using the working and don't have time excuse anymore!). I work on Friday (my usual weigh day),so I will go Saturday morning and that will give me an extra day to get back down. Don't even hope for a loss, just would like to maintain.

My DH is gone for the next 2 weeks off and on, so that is always stressful for me. He's in Orlando right now, enjoying his "Elvis" room, he said! I am working 3 days 9-4 and pray that it is a little busier or I will run through the mall screaming like a banshee - I just can't take that standing there!!!! GRRRRRR!!!!

Xena- I'm not an inventive cook, so I always just froze my turkey in Tupperware of something and then we'd take it out in a couple weeks for another meal.

Bliss - My DH and I have discussed buying a new treadmill. It's either that or a new computer and I vote for the puter!

Shirley- you are moving right along with your Christmas preparations!I'm starting,but will probably do most of it next weekend.

HWLinda - sounds like you've got your plan all figured out. You'll be accomplishing something for the horse and getting your exercise at the same time.

Em - hope your ankle continues to heal. Sounds like you are doing well with your preparations!

I work again the next 2 days,but will try and check in withyou all anyway!

Good evening ladies! I hope you day has gone well. Mine was OP, though a bit high in fat today. Not too owrried about that, since normally it is a struggle for me to get enough fat in my daily diet.

I absolutely wore myself out yesterday. I didn't even make an entire lap at the mall. My sweetie had to drop me off at home with a chicken wrap, and continue on without me. We'll get that birthday dinner in yet.

even though I was pretty exhausted I thought to myself, "what is up with this!?" And tried out the Walk Away the Pounds Tape. I did the 1 mile and really liked it. It was not at all what I expected, and found it enjoyable. So thanks to all of you who wrote so positively about it. I never would have tried anything called "walk whatever" simply because as a form of exercise I HATE walking.

Since this is getting long, BSQ's random thoughts:

Freeze the turkey In the dead of winter when you are sick of the christmas ham, a nice hot turkey meal will seem nice. Or a turkey pita pocket or .....

christmas cards ummm, wow, all these diligent people. I send my christmas cards out in May. I've done this for a while now. Figuring it's an unexpected surprise.

Elvis has left the building OI'm almost afraid to ask, what's an "elvis" room?

Eat right, Drink lots of water, exercise and have a BEST tomorrow.

BSQ

Hi everyone,

Today was so OFF program I can't even believe it. I lied about not baking, DH wanted me to make some cookies to give as holiday gifts, so I made a huge batch of those "Nieman-Marcus" cookies and since it always clogs my KitchenAid, I kept dividing and adding to the recipe and got lots of cookies out ot it. There are about 16 dozen in the freezer, and I don't know how many dozen DH and I ate during the baking process. I did bag them up 12 at a time and I told DH he could give them away but he was not allowed to eat any except one bag. Breakfast was good, lunch was a bust, way too much fat and just too much food but it was gooood, and then those cookies all afternoon, then dinner was way high in fat, too. So, all in all, today was not good. But tomorrow is a yogurt and fruit day at work, cereal for breakfast, and if I don't go to the Y, I plan to hustle and bustle all over the building as much as I can for exercise.

BSQ I am sorry you are so pooped, but you'll be back soon. I am glad to see you like that WAP that everyone seems so happy with. I must get it, I am sure DH will enjoy it with me, and we really would like to exercise together.

Tamara, welcome back and I am sending prayers for your FIL and MIL. And lets hope those 4 lbs will disappear in a day or so as your system processes them out! You will remove them for sure, one way or another!!

Em, I love your new photo! So sorry that your ankle kept you from the WAP tape for so long, and too bad the weather has not cooperated for outdoor activity today, but it's wonderful to have a lazy day now and then - those are my very favorite days!!

HW how did the garage work go? I am lucky that I don't have to do that since all the junk in the garage belongs to DH. He moves it and cleans it and sells it and brings more in - I don't have a clue where any of my stuff is.

Shirley, sorry to hear about your ankles, I hope they clear up soon and get you back in the groove. Maybe you are wearing them out by working too hard in the house?
Bliss, that does sound like a yummy feast to have with the cards! If I were that organized I would get my cards done on time every year. In recent years I have sent them before Christmas and New Year's and on Valentine's Day. This year some will go out on time, others will not. Haven't gotten it under control at all! Keep filling that calendar up with stickers - you go!!

Xena, I agree with everyone else - freeze that turkey. But I like to slice it first, freeze pieces into "chips" on a cookie sheet, then bag it all up in order to have ready-to-go sandwich fixings. Haven't done that in a while since I haven't made a turkey in some time, but it's always been a great success.

Traci, I thought of you all day long while I was having BLTs of my cookies and the various ingredients. And I love fudge, yes, love love love it (slaps self, gets back in control) good for you for giving it away. But I do love to test it - continuously - as it approaches the soft ball stage, and on and on...

Dany, welcome back and good for you for getting back on track! You can do it, you WILL do it!!

SueWags, gosh I hope you can find some workable exercises that won't hurt your knees. I seem to recall that the step aerobics was developed by someone with bad knees, or maybe as rehab for knee surgery. Don't remember, but one friend with a bad knee did Steps for a long long time, was just very careful of the twisting moves. Maybe the water workouts will be gentle and soothing for your knees. Have you talked to a physical therapist about the best kind of exercises? I am sending healing thoughts to you and hope you will soon be able to exercise as you wish.

Ann, you are just too organized. A new and clean kitchen, all your shopping done (as many of you have done!) and time to exercise and eat right too. You are an inspiration. I am glad to read how much you like your new gym, too, and I am trying to tell myself that I will be able to go to the new office and maybe I'll work it out to get MORE exercise more conveniently. Ah, we'll see.

So farewell to the long and relaxing weekend, have a great tomorrow - my last week at work before my big trip (yeah, I said that before, but nothing better come up this time!)

Desk
(I am psyched and ready to go!)

Thanks for the thoughts and ideas you are suggesting, I went outside about 8:30 p.m. and got in the hot tub in 35 degree weather'r (burr) until I got in the 102 degree water and sat in the water and did my lower half like riding bike not to bad. I did that 15 min. and then just sat in the dark and relaxed another 15 min. then went in and took a shower.

xena--have any elderly friends that may not of got some turkey for thanksgiving that you could take a plate to. Or like blissful said freeze it.

Well I have to get up and go to doctor in the morning, I have to fast tonight and have a bunch of blood test in the morning.. It's time for my thyroid 6 month check up and they want my cholestrol checked, and they want to check my sugar. Gee they sure are a pain in the arm...... Take all I'm bet I watched a 5yr, 4yr, and 7 month old for about 7 hrs and I feel like they bet me up. Is this what it feels like when you first go back to work????
SueWags