Here you go, my Sweet Violets! Another new home for our daily musings....

"Thus nature has no love for solitude, and always leans, as it were, on some support; and the sweetest support is found in the most intimate friendship."

- Cicero

Good morning!

Judy - I hope everything is good with Grady! Has Ethan ever spent the night before? I'm sure that will be an adventure! I've never attempted to put a child to bed but I'm sure it's not easy!

Laura - your friends husband tweeted all the while his wife is giving birth?? Is this his first child?? OMG, I want Juan to concentrate on just me while this is going on.

Michelle - vat of nachos? Yum. But yeah, I do the same. Every morning I wake up with the best intentions and then for whatever reason I screw up along the day and instead of just getting right back on track I always call it a "bad" day and proceed to be VERY VERY VERY bad.

Pammy - hope your back feels better after your doctors appt today... I'm sure that hurts! You can't even move an inch without pain, right?? Ouchy!

Yeah, I'm definetly in the same boat as ya'll. What the heck is wrong? I have a wedding coming up for goodness sakes. You would think that that would be the biggest motivation ever. But nope. I always find an excuse to eat whatever it is that I want to eat... GAH! I seriously can't believe I spent this much money and I'm not doing anything with it. I need to plug up my mouth and be done with it. Use an IV drip for nutrients... he he he...

Anyways, back to the gym tonight for me. I've been slacking off for a few days since I've been so busy... Oh and I'm seriously considering taking diet pills. Oh I know that they make you loose and then eventually gain it all back. I'm ok with that. I need to lose to look good in my dress and then after whatever. I'm seriously ok being at the size I am in. Ok, maybe 20 lbs lighter would be really really ideal. I felt hot and sexy and I didn't have too many bulges everywhere and my collar bones stuck out. Anyways, good diet pills? Anyone?? I'm going to make an appt with the doctor this week...

I do the same. Every morning I wake up with the best intentions and then for whatever reason I screw up along the day and instead of just getting right back on track I always call it a "bad" day and proceed to be VERY VERY VERY bad.

Yes, this is my mental game as well. Once I've eaten something I think I shouldn't, then all bets are off for the rest of the day and I eat EVERYthing in sight. Wacky! I know that 99.99% of my food "issues" and problems are in my HEAD, not my gut. I need a brain band! LOL! Sounds like we're in the same place... which is good to know I'm not alone... but I also want each of us to succeed... sigh...

So here we are... a new day... new vows to myself... & I mean them!... ugh. My weight/dieting/failing color every freakin day of my life and I wish it didn't. I wish I could just finish what I've started this time and be done with it!! ACK!

Ok... back to work... sipping on a vanilla chai protein shake... mmmmm (really -- I love them!).

I'm glad there wasn't twitter, etc., when I gave birth... that takes TMI to a whole new level! :cursing:

Well I have no comment, you wouldn't know I was a bandster :cursing: Hopefully that changes Friday!!!!!

Haydee, it was my cousin, and yup, all the way to 'she's pushing!!' he was tweeting. Unreal. It was like we were there with them, me and my mom kept saying the same thing.. if it was us, we'd have smacked the crap out of DH's lol. Put the phone down!!!

PM me if you want to join the Secret Santa list. Unless you moved since Last Christmas, or did NOT participate last year, you don't need to send me your addy. Just send me some likes and dislikes that are relevant to someone who would buy you something.

Get this to me by Oct. 21, that is when I will send out SS picks! TODAY IS THE LAST DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hello everyone,

Banding is not easy . . . even when you are at goal. I still battle the same demons all day every day just like before. It is insanity. I am sitting at my desk right now after eating a cherry laffy taffy . . . why did I eat this? Because it was there, lol. I can always tell when I fall off the wagon because I start making excuses (sometimes very weak ones). Thank heavens I get my first fill next Tuesday.

There is one crazy thing though . . . I feel like I want to jump on the wagon really fast and really hard so that I can show the best possible weight at the band doctors office. Why is going to the band doctor more motivating than life in general, lol??? I must be nuts.

By the way, I finished the Glass House last night. It was interesting and funny. I can't remember who suggested it here . . . but thank you. I really enjoyed it. :0)

Haydee, at our cookout Sunday you came up (I was talking about going to your wedding) and my dad goes "Was she the Mexican girl with the really gorgeous face?" lol.

Now, as a fat girl I know that sounds like a fat girl compliment... "what a pretty face", but if you heard him say it, you'd know he apparently thought you had the prettiest face he'd ever seen LOL.

Just made a payment to the doc today for my surgery. Gotta get the other 5k from my dad tomorrow to get cashier's checks. He said I could pay it off over 2.5 years!!! I don't need that much time, but we're struggling right now, so it's nice to know if I have to miss some payments I have wiggle room. Hopefully economy is going to turn around sometime soon.

I think several of us recommended it Heather---I give most books I read to my granny to read, she loved that one too. Oh wait, The Glass Castle or House? Castle is what I recommended. If that's what you meant, granny told me Sunday that the author came out with a new biography about the grandma from the book. She said it was really good.

I read the Glass Castle too...but I heard about it from that nerd on Big Brother...haha.

What was I goinna say??? Hells bells...who knows now.

i'll be back!

Carson sleeping and people keep paging people. SHH!!! Damn.

I think several of us recommended it Heather---I give most books I read to my granny to read, she loved that one too. Oh wait, The Glass Castle or House? Castle is what I recommended. If that's what you meant, granny told me Sunday that the author came out with a new biography about the grandma from the book. She said it was really good.

It was the Glass Castle . . . I think I said House because I have to pick up a book from Barnes & Noble called A Painted House for my son's school reading today, lol. Since when is a Grisham novel on the high school reading list??? It makes me very curious. I may just have to read it myself, lol.

OK, I have to admit something. I read every book my son has ever had to read for school or purchased in general.

It is not as if I feel the need to read it to protect him from bad literature or help him by discussing concepts, etc., etc. It is almost entirely because I love to read and there is new material calling my name in the house while I am rooting amongst the book shelves.

Re-reading some books such as Lord of the Flies are awesome as an adult. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire Harry Potter & Charlie Bone series, and that is no joke. The Twilight series is a little on the boring side for me because it reminds me of the middle school angst experienced over puppy love. It is the kind of melodrama that would have kept me thoroughly enthralled at the ripe old age of 12-13, lol.

All dressed and ready for the day. I had an egg and toast for breakfast. Now it's almost time for lunch and I'll have some tuna while the Bobster has spaghetti.

I didn't have any ice cream or sweets yesterday. The bakery announced on Facebook that they have pumpkin muffins with cream cheese filling and streusel topping. arghhhhhhhhh Not going near there!

Ethan has stayed the night here once before when he was a baby. This will be the first toddler sleep over. Should be interesting!

We all need to make those little goals again. My goal for the week is to not eat any ice cream or sweets except for my life savers when I read at night. 1 day meeting that goal and working on day 2. As much as we need the support and encouragement from each other, it's really up to each one of us individually. We have to do it for ourselves. I want to be at goal for the wedding. That's my motivation right now and it has nothing to do with anything but me. I have to do it for ME!

PamELa.. hope you get some relief for your back today.

Heather.. I read Glass Castle too. I recommended it be read by every teacher. You just never know what baggage a child brings to school with them each and every day.

I'm over half way through The Help and have Narrow Boat in Indian River waiting on Bob's Kindle.

Michelle.. how were DS's tests??

Where's Jane today??

Laura.. you're so lucky to have a way to pay for your surgery. Like I said on Facebook, soon you'll be a "loser" again.. :cursing:

Hope Suzy isn't too tired from her Target job. I'm so glad I don't have to get up at 4:30 a.m. anymore. Have I mentioned how much I enjoy retirement?? :biggrin:NO ice cream or sweets today for me. NOPE..NONE!!

Yes I am lucky. Dad just wrote the check and said "I can't afford this again". ME NEITHER!!!!!

Heather, that's what I would do... or rather, WILL do with Carson. I love to read, but don't know how to pick out a book when I'm at the store (never liked any I did this with). I currently use Amazon recommendations or just browsing Amazon books that have a LOT of high ratings. I trust strangers.. or I go off of what you guys recommend. If he had a reading list, I'd be reading them too just because it's recommended by someone lol.

Aww Laura - your dad is so sweet. I take any and all compliments! he he he... I wish my wedding was next month! I'm so ready to do this!

Laura.. did your dad say anything about the sexy old lady swimming in his pool????

I know...what about the hot lesbian??? HUH??

You know, he would have Judy, but we were talking about Haydee's wedding.. ; )

Last year 401k does some ADP test, which means because I am family I can't have special benefits.. meaning, I can't have a large amount of 401k contributions if everyone else isn't.

So last year I was putting in 9%, and I apparently failed the test so they sent back $500 and I lost all earning I made on it.

HR said she ran the test for this year---this year, I dropped to 5%--and as of 9/30 I am over by $1,600.. doesn't include the weekly contributions of Oct even. UGH. So pissed, the 401k is doing well right now, which means they are going to send me $1,600 (plus oct) in December, and I lose all earnings on it. I'm getting really mad. The only reason I 'fail' is because not a lot of people do 401k here at work in these tough times, so apparently I can't do 401k at all since I am family.

So next year (Russ apparently isn't evaulated as fam), we're just gonna have Russ do all the 401k and I'm dropping it.