Teachlady

missmonaaz.. I have to say I don't feel sorry for you. And before you start throwing things at the monitor... let me explain!! I feel joy for you because from now on, after your surgery, when you are feeling weak and tempted by food, you are going to be able to look back on that day and think..... NO WAY am I going back there. You have the perfect motivator. Saying that, I know where you are coming from.. we all do. We've all been there and had our worst moments. But you are in a great group here. We are people who were able to take control finally and get our act together and DO something to make our lives better, both physically and mentally. CONGRATS to you for your worst day and CONGRATS to you for your best days yet to come!!

Good Morning, Violets.. I'm back from my second go around with shopping. Things I have learned today. #1. Don't ever do this again!!! #2. Don't eat breakfast at 5 a.m. cause you're hungry by 10 and it throws the whole eating schedule off. #3. Don't use your husband's credit card.. they won't accept it with his signature and not yours. grrrrrrrrrr #4. There is nothing in this world that I need badly enough to fight little old ladies with walkers for. #5. Don't ever do this again!!!

Good Morning, Violets... Well, I was up at 3:58 a.m. in time to turn the alarm off so it wouldn't wake the Bobster up. I've had my shower, washed my hair, started my blueberries thawing for breakfast and then to wait for the girls to get here at 5:35 a.m. I think I'm going to be one pooped puppy by noon! Good thing the Bobster is here today to watch Ethan when he gets here til I get home. I'll be back to give details on the shopping spree later today. Everyone have a good one!!!

Good evening, Violets.. It was a great Thanksgiving. I ate less than I ever have on this holiday. I had a hardboiled egg for breakfast when I got to Kris's house and promptly pb'd it. I snacked on crackers and cream cheese with mint jelly and then had dinner. Just a little scoop of most of the things and then a sliver of pecan pie for dessert. I did not feel deprived at all and I made good choices. When I got home I warmed up some of the corn pudding and was eating that and some of a turkey drumstick and pb'd that too. Soooooooo I had some pudding and called that dinner. Tomorrow daughter Kris, daughter in law Jami and I are going to hit K-Mart at 6 a.m. to get some things for the grandkids. Then Ethan comes over at 8 til noon. After that we have the Santa parade at 5:30 p.m. The Bobster will be driving a truck to haul a float for Kris's nursing class. I'm sure we'll go out to eat after the parade. I tried on a pair of Gloria Vanderbilt cords the other day and a size 14 fit! I'm going to see if a size 12 will fit when I go to Peebles tomorrow. That will be a great NSV for me!!! Hope everyone had a relaxing, enjoyable day with family and friends. I too am thankful to have found this site and all the wonderful Violets!! Patience, Trust, Purple Power and WWJD???!!!

Good Morning, Violets!! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!! Here's what I woke up to this morning! I'm getting ready to head to Kris's house. Hopefully the roads won't be too bad. Driving in the snow will take a little getting used to again, but it's a way of life up here in the north. I'll be at Kris's all day and will check in tonight when we get back.

Evening, Violets.. I just got in from the hot tub. I decided to go in early tonight cause my Weather Bug on the computer is chirping. We are under a snow advisory for tonight. We're supposed to get 3-6 inches of snow by morning. Thank goodness my kids that are traveling have arrived and tomorrow I only need to go 30 miles to get to where they are. I'm leaving early to help Kris with the cooking. I have my squash made and will make corn pudding in the crock pot when I get there. Suzie..glad you finally hopped in here. Otherwise I wouldn't have my Birthday twin!! Everyone have a wonderful Thanksgiving. TracyK.. I'm betting you won't be able to graze all day, but if you do, then do it with gusto!! I'm going to try everything, but just a spoonful of it. Wouldn't be fun to PB on Thanksgiving in front of everyone. Michelle.. glad you arrived safe and sound. Sounds like you were about to OD on baking!!! HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL............ GOBBLE, GOBBLE.. (That's a turkey sound, not my advise to you all!!!) PATIENCE, TRUST, PURPLE POWER AND WWJD??!!!

Laura.... make that a size 4.25! yes, I have always had very long, slender fingers. They get a lot of exercise playing the flute, I guess! Unfortunatley, my fingers don't go with the rest of my body!!! And my other fingers are not as slender as my left hand ring finger. My right hand ring finger is a size 6. My pointer finger is a size 7.. go figger!! I did go to the moola site and tried it. Lost one and won one in hi-lo. We'll have to see if I go back. It's frustrating losing to someone when you can watch them beat you... arghhhhhhh!! As for CD's I'd take with me... I'd rather take my flute please.. That way I can play anything I want and my tastes are rather strange. I'm not into all the new stuff. Give me a good country song by Tim McGraw or Trace Atkins, anything by Celine Deon, and ANYTHING by Clay Aiken. I prefer soundtracks too. Hairspray, Dream Girls... I LOVE Doo Wop. Ok, ok... I know. Strange. Pamela.. I have 1/2 cup cottage cheese and 1/4 cup blueberries with a couple of T of splenda brown sugar blend. Takes me a half hour to eat and lasts me til lunch time. Course I'm sipping on my slushy Raspberry lemonade Crystal Light at the moment. That will get me through til lunch at noon or 1. My traditional stuffing.. onions and celery sauteed in butter. Add lots of poultry seasoning, plus salt and pepper. Add raisins near the end and cook til plump. Add to packaged seasoned stuffing croutons. Add the stock from the turkey innards that have been boiled. I also add a little bit of chicken soup base for flavoring. I make it very, very moist so it doesn't dry out in the turkey. This was my mom's favorite. She'd eat this and nothing else if she had a choice!!

Denise!! Nice, strong heartbeat. Woooooo Hooooooooo Thanks for sharing!!!

Good Morning, Violets.. I'm sitting here reading posts and eating my cottage cheese and frozen (yuck) blueberries. It just isn't the same without fresh ones. things don't go down real smoothly in the mornings anymore so I have to chew, chew, chew and eat slowly. And I agree with everyone else. The good stuff gets stuck, the bad stuff slides right down. What the heck is up with that, anyway?? I've been stalled around the same weight now for a couple of months. But when I figure it out, my weight loss comes to 8# a month, so I'm just going to say that my body is catching up with the loss and hopefully once it does that, it will start coming off again. Terry.. the necklace is beautiful!!! What a talented lady you are!! TracyinKS...glad to hear the good news about Cody and Dad.. They are both so fortunate to have this opportunity to be dad and son. Those good feelings will surely transfer over to success in school relationships too. TracyK...what a neat thing for that gentleman to say to you. Doesn't it feel great to hear compliments and know they are deserved cause you really worked for it????!!! Well, breakfast is finished and I need to go shower and get dressed for the day. Got to go listen to a baby's heartbeat too!! Everyone have a great day! TTFN...

The shadow makes it look like there is black on the ring. There isn't.. The band is gold with two chips on either side of the diamond. It's the diamond from my mom's wedding ring. The diamond is 63 years old.

Good evening, Violets.. Well, it's raining out so no hot tub tonight. I have to let Jetta, the garage dog, out for awhile to run off some energy. Guess I'll grab the umbrella and gloves and go do that little chore. Singing rehearsal went well tonight. Then it was home to watch Dancing with the Stars. I have a gut feeling Marie is going to win it all even though she's not the best dancer. She just has an amazing fan base. It's been a great season to watch, though. Attached is a pic of my new ring. I had to crop the picture so all the liver spots didn't show, but now there is a close up of my gnarly knuckles!! Oh well, I'm still pleased that it is a 4.25!!! Tomorrow is pay day for us Michigan retired teachers. I'm getting my hair cut and eyebrows waxed. La, de da, eh?? Then I'm going to continue working on this room. I got my computer table all cleaned out and now on to the secretary's desk behind me. Everyone have a great night. Catch you all tomorrow!! Patience, Trust, Purple Power and WWJD??!!!

Evening, Violets!! TracyinKS..so sorry to hear of Cody's loss. Hopefully he will realize his grandma was sick when she said those words to him. Kat....glad to hear you're smellin' clean and sweet again!! And glad you're doing so well, so quickly. Michelle.. have a safe trip. Good luck to the soccer star! I got my new ring today. It was too loose at 4.5 so they resized it to 4.25 for me. It still spins around a bit, but I'm not going to have it sized down to a 4 cause I don't think it would go over my knuckle at that size. I really, REALLY like it. Will post a pic of it later. The necklace is really nice too. The little marquis diamond looks so dainty and feminine in the vale. I just got back from bell choir and the Bobster had dinner ready for me. Now it's off to New Day Singers' rehearsal and then home in time to see Dancing with the Stars. Everyone have a great evening!!! TTFN....

Wooooo Hooooooooooo Suzie!!!! Congrats on dropping all that weight!!! :clap2::clap2::clap2: Did you know that you are my Birthday twin???? We share the same birthday! And we'll be sharing some band victories, too! Way Kewl! I'm PROUD of you!!!!

Good evening, Violets.. We're home and the Bobster has already left for his Bible Study. I have been at the computer downloading the pictures from the Baptism Sunday. I'll post the link at the end of this message. TracyinKS.. congrats on the adoption!!! Kat.. so good to have you back!! Jane...your pics are terrific!! Suzie..great to have you posting with us!!! Has anyone heard from Amanda or Sara lately????? Well, I'm off to start the laundry and then watch Dancing with the Stars. Everyone have a great night. Amelia's baptism Nov. 18, 2007 I had several bad pb's this weekend.. yuck. But I did get two sessions of exercise in!! Patience, Trust, Purple Power, WWJD??!!

Good Evening, Violets.. The kids and grandkids just left and the Bobster and I are in a huge, brand new Ramada Inn and there are only two rooms occupied!! It's like I'm living in a mansion. Soooooooooo quiet. I used the exercise room last night and will do so again tonight. At least I'll get close to half my exercise goal for November. We leave for home in the morning. It's a 5 hour drive and the Bobster has to be back in time to leave for a Bible Study at 6 p.m.and I have a Chorus rehearsal at 7. Amelia Riann was baptized today and she was wearing the christening dress I had made for daughter Kris 25 years ago. She looked so precious, but didn't like it when the minister wanted to hold her. Afterwards she changed into an outfit that her Aunt Kris gave her and it was sooooooo cute. She had a dress, little coat and beret. I'll get pics posted when I get home. The greatest NSV was when grandson Everett gave me a hug before he left and said.. "Grandma, I can get my arms all the way around you!!!" I LOVED it! I also wore a velour dress that was a size L and it fit. AND I wore pantyhose that I didn't have to grunt and groan and ask for help to get into!! All NSV's. Hope everyone had a good weekend. I know many of us, me included, are struggling, but we will prevail!!! We are Violets and we have PURPLE POWER... not to mention each other! Everyone hang in.. tomorrow starts a new week and we still have the band in place to help us. We wouldn't be where we are without it and each other. Patience, Trust, Purple Power and WWJD??!!!

Good evening, Violets.. Just got home from dinner and a great evening with our cruising buddies. I'm so relieved to hear about Kat. I firmly believe in the power of prayer... and especially Purple prayer!!! Janie.. you look awesome!! What a great article! We're all so proud of you and what you have accomplished so far. I'm heading to the hot tub and then to bed. Got to be up early to head downstate to see the grandkids. Everyone have a great weekend. I'll check in when I get back on Monday night or at the hotel if I can swing it!!! Patience, Trust, Purple Prayers and WWJD??!!!

I LOVE my Spanx. Since I'm not anxious about a tummy tuck at my age, the Spanx are the answer to my belly problem. I swear by them!!

Good afternoon, Violets... I've got Kat on my mind. Sure hope we hear soon that everything is good. Ethan has kept me on the run today. He's into EVERYTHING!! But I don't mind. I just love having him here. The Bobster got home a few minutes ago so he's pulling some Ethan duty right now while I take a break. Almost time for Ethan to lie down for his second nap of the day. I've been doing laundry in between playing Peek A Boo and Patty Cake. AND I've read the Foot Book at least 50 times today! It turned out to be a beautiful day here. It's 37 but the sun is shining and there is still just a dusting of snow in the back yard. We go out to dinner tonight. Last night we went to a friend's house and she made wonderful fried fish, but of course I had to excuse myself and pb. I stuck to the squash and homemade applesauce after that. Tonight our other friends are making a pork roast. Don't know how that will work, but hopefully it will go down easily if I follow the Bandster rules. Tomorrow we leave in the morning for our granddaughter's baptism. I'm looking forward to taking lots of pics to bring back. Time to see if Ethan will lay down for a bit. I'll keep peeking in to see if there is word about Kat. TTFN...

Good Morning, Violets... I'm waiting for Ethan to arrive for the day. ooops... he just walked in the door. Tracy/Macy.. the pic is awesome!! Sure can tell a difference. Isn't it great??? Well, we have snow on the ground this morning. Not sure I'm ready for it yet, but at least it covers all the leaves I didn't get to in the front yard. I better go get some breakfast ready for Ethan and me. Everyone have a great day.. TGIF! Thinking of Kat and sending prayers...

KAT!!! LOADS OF PRAYERS SENT YOUR WAY FOR A SUCCESSFUL SURGERY TOMORROW!!:pray::pray::pray::pray:

Good afternoon, Violets.. Ethan is napping, the dogs are at the groomers and I have a few minutes to catch up in here. Went to the new store opening today. I picked out a couple of sweaters, but put them back cause Ethan was getting fussy and I didn't want to wait in the longggggggggg line to check out. I'll wait until I have some time without Ethan so I can take my time and enjoy shopping. I had a NSV today. Took my glitzy ring in to have them remove the diamonds to put in the new ring and a pendant. They wanted to know if the size was right on my old ring and I said it spun around a lot. They sized my finger and it's a 4.5!!! Same size as when I got married 38 years ago!!!!! We've had snow showers on and off all day so I guess winter won't be too far off. I still have tons of leaves to rake in the front yard, but it's too windy and wet today. Got to have a day where we can rake AND burn. Terry... ditto on what Michelle said. Take care of you and the weight will come off when you can focus on it more. There are more important things for you to consider right now. Just make sure you get your protein in during the day. Going to go relax on the couch a bit before we have to go pick up the dogs. We're going out to dinner at some friend's house tonight. Hope it's something I can eat!! Patience, Trust and WWJD??!!

Good Morning, Violets.. I'm up and waiting for Ethan. Just finished my white chocolate strawberry yogurt. Love that stuff. Now I'm good to go until lunch time. It's 36 degrees out and it's also St. Antler's Day... first day of deer hunting. I heard guns going off when I was taking Jetta (the garage dog) outside. Yesterday I got the downstairs bathroom all cleaned out.. drawers and all. Today my goal is to do the same for the kitchen. Just like one pound at a time, it's one room at a time around here!! TracyinKS... you're going to be in Onederland before you know it. Hope Cody has a great day at school today and a fun time on the campout. Everyone remember it's CTCDay today!!! Where the heck are Terry and Amanda???? Come on girls.. we miss you when you don't post!! Patience, Trust and WWJD??!!

Good evening, Violets.... Just in from the hot tub. It's raining outside so I'm wet from head to toe, but it sure feels good. My knee and achy body are feeling back to normal. Ethan comes in the morning for the day. Kat... loads of prayers headed your way for surgery on Friday. Wish we could all be there to hold your hand. Just know we all will be waiting to hear how everything went and will be anxiously waiting for you to get back to us!! Pamela.. your Turkey joes sound delicious!! Suzie... congrats on the NSV!! Those are always just what we need to keep motivated! Michelle.. Hope you get a good night's sleep tonight. Everyone else have a restful evening and tomorrow is a new day!! Patience, Trust and WWJD??!!!

I was a Diet Coke addict until April 9, 2007. I have not had any carbonation since April 10th. On every single page of the nutrition sheets we received it says.. ABSOLUTELY NO CARBONATED BEVERAGES I obey my doctor's rules and my nutritionist's rules. I know everyone has different rules, but I just go by what my people say. Works for me and I don't want to tempt fate!!!

Jennifur..On an adult night, I would fix a nice slushy Red Raspberry Lemonade Crystal Light, with a twist.. shaken,not stirred. Ok, Ok, so I'm boring!!