Even the most spectacular blaze is ignited by a single spark...

Originally Posted by Sparked


Whew! Busy week! I kept wanting so badly to write in my diary but every day was like wake up at 5:30, spend half the day at school, spend the rest of the day at work, drive home at 8:00 pm while I talk myself into working out, get home, eat dinner, study, knockout P90X and then pass the eff out!



My school has a massive health center (complete with an unbelievable gym, and 19 year olds who live in their sports bras, so I'm still a little gym-phobic about attempting that one :p) so I made an appointment to see a nutritionist. The meeting was really helpful and I learned a ton about nutrition and also cleared up a a few misconceptions. She weighed me and measured my body fat and said that I have a surprisingly high amount of lean muscle mass (that's right, I'm super ripped! Who knew?? ;) ), and that she could tell that I had been really active, so that was kind of exciting. She also had a long talk with me about carbs and starting to put them back in my diet. This is mainly because she said I still haven't developed a healthy relationship with food, before it was about binging and excess and now it's about obsessive restriction, both of these are extremes and a way to attempt to gain a sense of control in my life through food, she told me that I know that I can do this now and that I need to find a happy medium and stop letting food control my life. I don't disagree with this, it's something I've been thinking myself.



She also said that I am not getting enough fat in my diet and that is one of the reasons that my shin splints would not heal and that they worsened so quickly. I left the meeting with a plan that she made that would increase my fat intake by twice as much and my carbs by nearly 4 times as much! Kinda freaked me out a little, but she said I can do it slowly. The app I have on my phone that I track all my calories on makes these nice little pie charts that tell me where my calories are coming from, you can see I've changed the composition of my diet a lot over the last few days!







I'm a little worried about adding the carbs back in... just because I like them so much! Right now I'm sitting here eating some low fat frozen yogurt with fresh blueberries and a few almonds and it's soooo good... but there's a whole carton of froyo in my fridge now... I'm gonna have to put some head phones on so I don't have to hear it begging me to come eat more! Grrr carbs >.< evil.




Day 16 - When did you first decide to lose weight?

Um.. in utero? Seriously, I can't remember a time when I couldn't pass for at least chubby and wasn't completely aware of it. I was even a chubby toddler (obligatory childhood photo)



ugh the cheeks, and they just never went away! However, deciding that I need to lose weight and actually doing it have been two different things. I've stopped and started and succeeded and failed enough diets to make Oprah look like total noob hour. But, this is the most successful I have ever been and I seem to be on a roll, hopefully I can keep it up!


Cute as a button! hehe :p


Yeah, go slowly with that change, and don't get discouraged if you see a gain. Your body will no doubt be adjusting to the updated intake, but just give it time to balance out and continue on :)


You will undoubtedly make Oprah look like newbie hour, and you will be super successful! :D Just think of how awesome everything will be a few months from now if you keep this focus and just keep on doing what you're doing! :)


Not that you already haven't accomplished amazing things already, but great things are in store for you, Sparked! :)
 
Hehe looks like Frogged's got his cheerleader skirt on again! (in a purely metaphorical sense of course, unless I don't know, maybe you've been drinking ;) )


But seriously, thanks for believing in me, it pumps me up like no other! :D






So just chilling at home on a Friday night with the bf because I'm sick today -- my voice is almost gone :( I ended up ditching out on school halfway through the day and coming home - there will probably be hell to pay for that, but I needed to sleep. I hope it gets better soon because I'm flying to Alabama to see my mom and stepdad on Wednesday and don't want to get them sick!


Oh, and luckily this is my P90X rest day so I didn't miss out on that! ... btw, week two down as of yesterday, awwww yeaaaah! I'm starting to really love it, I don't know if anything has every made feel like such an incredible badass! Tony Horton's also growing on me, he's a serious cheeseball, but I love it. "Weight lifting tip of the day: don't smash your face in!" hehe


Last night my bf's friends came over and then they went out and had their boy time. I hadn't seen them in a while and when my boyfriend got back he said that the boys kept talking about how much weight I had lost! They apparently used words like "thin" and "pretty" and "hot" which was a little surprising to me as I'm sure it's been a while since I was the topic of this kind of conversation. It felt really good that people could see the work that I had put in, but really I felt good for my bf because I've always felt embarrassed for him that he had to be the one with the fat girlfriend when all of his friend's girlfriends are nothing short of gorgeous and nothing above a size 4. So, I think that was probably good for both our egos :)


I'm starting to pass out as I write this, so answer my question and then I'm out!


Day 17 - What is your favourite treat meal?

Carbs with a side of carbs with more carbs and some cheese melted on top. Really is my downfall, anything I can think of that I would want to splurge on falls within the carbohydrate category. Pasta, pizza, potatoes, cookies, candy... especially the gummy kind, oh jeez... and jamba juice omg. Ok, that's enough hypothetical gluttony -- why do they have this question here? Just makes me hungry!



grrrr why does that signature thing not work?? If anyone knows, please let me know... apparently I fail the internets. :(
 
Originally Posted by Sparked


Hehe looks like Frogged's got his cheerleader skirt on again! (in a purely metaphorical sense of course, unless I don't know, maybe you've been drinking ;) )



But seriously, thanks for believing in me, it pumps me up like no other! :D


I, uh... hehe :)


While I did get a little tipsy last night thanks to an impromptu CoD shingdig at a friend's house, it wasn't enough to make me throw on any sort of lady garments (this time) ;)


I'm curious though as to how many it would take for me to do something like that :p Probably not too many since I'm such an atrocious lightweight! Plus, I hadn't eaten anything for hours prior to our little tournament, so an empty stomach + a few shots of vodka = woooooo! Hang on, froggy! :D


It was a fun night, but not as much fun as what you're thinking about, Spark :)


And of course I believe in you! I believe in everyone here! I know you all can (and will) do it as long as you stay focused! :)


Trust me, I've been there. Just keep pushing yourself and you will reach your goals - I promise! :)


Oh, and that's awesome about your bf's friends :) I've had similar situations where friends of my roommates have commented on how 'cute/hot' I am - and yes! They are girls! ahem. ;) Even though I'm all shy about it and later ask my roommate if they forgot to wear their glasses or something that day, heh :p


Anyway, I hope you feel better soon, Spark :(


It sucks that everyone keeps on getting sick! :(
 
Originally Posted by Frogged



I, uh... hehe :)



While I did get a little tipsy last night thanks to an impromptu CoD shingdig at a friend's house, it wasn't enough to make me throw on any sort of lady garments (this time) ;)



I'm curious though as to how many it would take for me to do something like that :p Probably not too many since I'm such an atrocious lightweight! Plus, I hadn't eaten anything for hours prior to our little tournament, so an empty stomach + a few shots of vodka = woooooo! Hang on, froggy! :D



It was a fun night, but not as much fun as what you're thinking about, Spark :)



And of course I believe in you! I believe in everyone here! I know you all can (and will) do it as long as you stay focused! :)



Trust me, I've been there. Just keep pushing yourself and you will reach your goals - I promise! :)



Oh, and that's awesome about your bf's friends :) I've had similar situations where friends of my roommates have commented on how 'cute/hot' I am - and yes! They are girls! ahem. ;) Even though I'm all shy about it and later ask my roommate if they forgot to wear their glasses or something that day, heh :p



Anyway, I hope you feel better soon, Spark :(



It sucks that everyone keeps on getting sick! :(


What's this, Frogged? Typed smilies? Are you feeling ok??? ;) oh wait... or I mean ;)


Haha I bet your friends have a good time seeing just how little it takes to get you drunk. I've got a friend like that, you give him one shot and he's walking around like Jack Sparrow for the next four hours -- highly entertaining! :D


.... Trying to tell if the "this time" comment is retrospection or foreshadowing... hmm intriguing hehe


Also, my boyfriend and I may be the only two people remaining on the planet that have not played CoD -- we're a Battlefield household :p


hehe I shake my head at your shyness - you're good looking gosh darn it, and you worked crazy hard for it, own it! :D


Thanks for the well wishes, hope to beat this thing soon!
 
Voice is officially gone today.... but I can still type! I can't be silenced! BAHAHA (sorry, speaking in nothing but pantomime and whispers for the last few days has made me a little antsy!)



Today is weigh in day, but I'm not weighing in for a handful of reasons, although thankfully none of them are because I ate badly this week. I'm sure the sickness didn't help my weight loss, I know I'm really dehydrated from it, plus the addition of carbs and fat into my diet, not to mention that annoying bloat monster that comes around … periodically.. that just screws everything up. So, no weigh in today, I know I ate well, I'm sure everything will look great in a few days!



Oh I did do inches though and I'm down half an inch on waist and 3/4 an inch on my hips! WOOHOO! It's just melting away ;)



I still did my workout yesterday since it was just a strength training day, today I'm back on the plyo again, which is easily the hardest workout, so I'm not sure if I'll feel up to that today. I'm just going to see how I feel through out the day, I really don't want to pass up a chance to work out!



My mom called me today to tell me about all the things she's making for Thanksgiving... including a pumpkin crème brulee – I'm so screwed come Thursday.



Oh and yaaaay no school tomorrow! There's been a huge Occupy UC Davis (made national news ooo) uprising that has turned violent and so my classes were canceled – would have been nice if it hadn't taken campus-wide clouds of pepper spray for me to get a day off... but uh I definitely could use the break to rest (play Skyrim!)
 
Originally Posted by Sparked




Also, my boyfriend and I may be the only two people remaining on the planet that have not played CoD -- we're a Battlefield household :p



Nope, I've never played CoD either! Battlefield 3 earlier this year and now Skyrim! Its been a good year for games...not as productive however haha. By the way, genetics/biochemistry is so cool! I would love to have done a program like that. I did chemical and process engineering and the biochemistry papers were by far my favourite (and my best)! My cousin did genetics over in Australia and I have always been a little jealous of that. May I ask, what are you wanting to do with it after university?
 
Originally Posted by Sparked



What's this, Frogged? Typed smilies? Are you feeling ok??? ;) oh wait... or I mean ;)



Haha I bet your friends have a good time seeing just how little it takes to get you drunk. I've got a friend like that, you give him one shot and he's walking around like Jack Sparrow for the next four hours -- highly entertaining! :D



.... Trying to tell if the "this time" comment is retrospection or foreshadowing... hmm intriguing hehe



Also, my boyfriend and I may be the only two people remaining on the planet that have not played CoD -- we're a Battlefield household :p



hehe I shake my head at your shyness - you're good looking gosh darn it, and you worked crazy hard for it, own it! :D



Thanks for the well wishes, hope to beat this thing soon!


Yeah, I've been kind of lazy lately with my smilies, haven't I? :biggrin:


Ok, well it doesn't take much to get me tipsy. Last night was a good example! hah. I really hope some pictures that were taken don't show up here. It's nothing too controversial, but it is slightly embarrassing :p


CoD is pretty nice! My roommate and I picked up Battlefield 3 today. Well, I should say I bought it for him as an early christmas gift. But, we have to go exchange it sometime today since he discovered that we're unable to play co-op. We're gonna get CoD instead and play co-op with our friends :)


I find alcohol helps me break out of my shyness btw :) I was at a little party just last night, but unfortunately there were no single women around, so I wasn't able to test how much of a conversationalist I can be when I'm seeing double :]


Sorry to hear about your voice, but I'm glad your fingers are making up for it! :)


Hrmm, well I think you should still have weighed in :) Even if you think it might be bad, that doesn't always mean it will be! You're doing soooo amazingly and I don't think you should have anything to be worried about - even with the change in your diet :)


And hey! Progress is always something to celebrate and congrats on those inches you lost! :D Awesome!!


When will we be seeing another pic update? I love those kinds of updates! :) When I hit my 200lb weight loss milestone in the next few months, I have something special planned actually :p


Also, enjoy your day off tomorrow - even if it is due to violence-related issues ;[
 
Originally Posted by smileyfreckle5




Nope, I've never played CoD either! Battlefield 3 earlier this year and now Skyrim! Its been a good year for games...not as productive however haha. By the way, genetics/biochemistry is so cool! I would love to have done a program like that. I did chemical and process engineering and the biochemistry papers were by far my favourite (and my best)! My cousin did genetics over in Australia and I have always been a little jealous of that. May I ask, what are you wanting to do with it after university?

Haha yeah... Battlefield and Skyrim have definitely decreased the amount of productivity in this house!


I think biochem is fascinating, so much going on and yet executed so flawlessly (for the most part!)


I'm kinda throwing around a few ideas right now for what to do when I graduate. I have my major in genetics but there's a biochem focus because I'd really like to get into a research position in an epigenetics/gene therapy field - this seems like the biggest hope right now for curing many diseases so I would love to be a part of that. There's also a great research center associated with my school called the MIND Institute (Medical Investigation of Neurodevelopmental Disorders), they work with children and study things like Down Syndrome, Fragile X, and Autism, they are high on my list for a dream job, it would be awesome to work towards making advances in that kind of field. I've also considered going into genetic counseling, where couples come in wondering what the probability is of their child getting certain diseases, or adults who come in wondering if they have they propensity for any diseases. I'd be more than lucky to get a position doing any of these things, I just would really like to use my degree to help people.


Have you graduated yet? What are your plans with the engineering? (tough stuff by the way, nice!)



Originally Posted by Frogged



Yeah, I've been kind of lazy lately with my smilies, haven't I? :biggrin:



Ok, well it doesn't take much to get me tipsy. Last night was a good example! hah. I really hope some pictures that were taken don't show up here. It's nothing too controversial, but it is slightly embarrassing :p



CoD is pretty nice! My roommate and I picked up Battlefield 3 today. Well, I should say I bought it for him as an early christmas gift. But, we have to go exchange it sometime today since he discovered that we're unable to play co-op. We're gonna get CoD instead and play co-op with our friends :)



I find alcohol helps me break out of my shyness btw :) I was at a little party just last night, but unfortunately there were no single women around, so I wasn't able to test how much of a conversationalist I can be when I'm seeing double :]



Sorry to hear about your voice, but I'm glad your fingers are making up for it! :)



Hrmm, well I think you should still have weighed in :) Even if you think it might be bad, that doesn't always mean it will be! You're doing soooo amazingly and I don't think you should have anything to be worried about - even with the change in your diet :)



And hey! Progress is always something to celebrate and congrats on those inches you lost! :D Awesome!!



When will we be seeing another pic update? I love those kinds of updates! :) When I hit my 200lb weight loss milestone in the next few months, I have something special planned actually :p



Also, enjoy your day off tomorrow - even if it is due to violence-related issues ;[


Hey why does this post say "some" pictures, but yet we were only treated to one?? ;) oh well, beggars can't be choosers I guess, I'll consider myself lucky that you shared any!


So I did weigh myself, I was up a pound but I'm writing it off given everything that is going on, I'm certain it will all work itself out in a few days (it'd better! ;) )


Hmmm something special planned for your milestone huh? I'm terribly curious. Get there fast so I don't have to suffer too long! ;)


I'm afraid I've only lost like 6lbs since the last update, so there wouldn''t be much to show :( But, I do have a goal in mind that I want to hit before I post another update, a certain milestone that has a lot of significance for me, so expect a big celebration when it happens! That'll probably be another 10 or 15lbs or so, which I'm hoping will happen before the end of the year.


Oh, and thanks for the congrats!! :D
 
Originally Posted by Sparked



Hey why does this post say "some" pictures, but yet we were only treated to one?? ;) oh well, beggars can't be choosers I guess, I'll consider myself lucky that you shared any!



So I did weigh myself, I was up a pound but I'm writing it off given everything that is going on, I'm certain it will all work itself out in a few days (it'd better! ;) )



Hmmm something special planned for your milestone huh? I'm terribly curious. Get there fast so I don't have to suffer too long! ;)



I'm afraid I've only lost like 6lbs since the last update, so there wouldn''t be much to show :( But, I do have a goal in mind that I want to hit before I post another update, a certain milestone that has a lot of significance for me, so expect a big celebration when it happens! That'll probably be another 10 or 15lbs or so, which I'm hoping will happen before the end of the year.



Oh, and thanks for the congrats!! :D


Well there was only 2 pics taken, hence the plural use of the word 'pics'
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The other is just a closer shot of the nuts in my nose.. (k.. that sounded a bit weird, lol).


Yeah, 1 pound is nothing to get worked up over. It will work itself out in no time
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6 pounds is GREAT! Remember - coffee mugs! :biggrin: That's a lot of weight, Spark! Plus the muscle gain you're getting with the P90X, you're losing and toning at the same time. There's probably a good deal of change to see with just those couple pounds
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I hope you reach your goal soon as well!


As for the plan when hitting my milestone, let's just say I won't be just posting pictures, but also video. :eek:


Yes.. I took videos of myself at around 350lb. I've only shown them to a few select people. It's not pretty, and I may have lifted my shirt a time or two in some of them. I have about a dozen ranging from the 350 range to around the time I started posing on these forums at 215lb.
smile.gif



I may edit out the bits where I show my belly as I wouldn't want to make anyone lose their lunch. Although if you're a horror movie fan, you might enjoy it.. lol! :p


Will have to wait until I'm 177 before I share them! Only a little over 6lb left!
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AHeya sweetie.

Hope you are feeling better :)

How are you getting on with your different food intake? don't worry about the gain, it's probably just your body adjusting.

Sorry i haven't been around for a while, been away and proper busy but i am back checking up on your progress for here on in.
 
AI'ma fixin' to go to Alabama y'all!
I didn't grow up there, but give me two days and I'm dropping my g's and hanging my vowels with the best of 'em! I'm in the Denver airport right now and just spent the last hour wandering around looking for something healthy to eat, to which I found nothing! I ended up wandering upon a Jamba Juice and getting a fruit and greens smoothie that had 330 calories and almost my entire day's worth of carbs! :p oh well, still better than the McDonalds next to it. I'm really excited to see my family, last time I saw them was oh about 70lbs ago and I haven't mentioned that I've been losing weight.......... I hope they notice!

Oh, on an upside, either airplane seats/seatbelts have gotten a lot bigger, or I've gotten a lot smaller! :D (please say it's the latter!)

Today was the first day that I'm starting to feel well again, but I had to go to the airport first thing this morning and won't get into Huntsville until 11:30 tonight, so that'll be three days in a row without working out, plus Thanksgiving tomorrow so make it 4 :( I think with everything that is going on this week I'm shooting to just not see a gain!

Ahhh plane's boarding!

Frogged- Coffee mugs, coffer mugs, got it! I really need to remember that! Sometimes I just get so caught up on how much further I have left to go that I lose sight of the progress I'm making.... I think I'm gonna put a note on my scale that says "coffee mugs!"

Oooo a video! I can't believe you've almost lost 200lbs that's so mind bogglingly incredible! Can't wait to see your video and celebrate- I'm sure it'll be very inspirational :D

Kate- I can so understand the whole busy thing, I have been super busy myself, I'm just so flattered you stop by my little space here! :D Changing up my diet has kind of thrown me for a loop a bit, I just get used to a schedule and it's hard for me to readjust, plus I'm not seeing any loses which is frustrating, but I'm giving it time. Oh and eating carbs makes me want a cookie all of the damn time! But I'm strong! Can't believe how well you're doing!
 
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That is so awesome! I'm sure your family will be blown away by your changes! It's such a great feeling 'revealing' yourself in moments like that.
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You look sooooo fantastic, Sparked!! I can't imagine anything less than a plethora of compliments and stunned reactions once you walk through the door! :biggrin:


Definitely the latter when it comes to airplane travel btw, come now! lol :p


You'll be ok this week, just hold your resolve and don't be discouraged by anything the scale says. We'll all still be here for you when all is said and done!
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Have a safe and wonderful trip, ya' hear?
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I haven't told my family or anyone at home that I've been losing weight either, I just want to rock up in Feb and be like HEY! and hopefully watch a few jaws drop lol.


Have an awesome trip!!!!!
 
Hey Sparked!


I feel your pain! I was unable to walk for 4 months from tendon damage in my foot. I was going rock climbing and playing badminton almost everyday and then my world came crashing down =[


Love your quote too - it applies very much to something I am trying to conquer in my life! I just wanted to stop by and say Hi!


Wishing you a speedy recovery :) and also I agree with others comments - you are absolutely adorable ;)


-Ken
 
Sparked, you are doing amazing! Just read a lot of your diary and it seems that you have SO much dedication! Keep going girl! :biggrin:
 
AHeya hotstuff

Can't wait to hear all about meeting up with your family! They are gonna be blown away with how different you look.

Love 'n' hugs
 
Hiiiii guys! Awww thanks so much for the awesome comments, I missed you all! hehe


So the "big reveal" was a lot of fun! My mom kinda screamed and I actually managed to make my aunt speechless (something that is not often done!) There were also many very nice adjectives thrown around and on top of that, my mom kept saying, "oh my god, I just can't believe how skinny you've gotten" and although that's of course skinny in a relative sense, it made me feel pretty incredible :)


When we got to our house, something happened that made me a little upset with my mom. For about that last month or so I have really been stressing the fact that I wanted to eat healthy during my trip, so when I walked in to find that she had made me an entire batch of white chocolate chip cookies as well as an entire "welcome home basket" packed to the brim with candy, I felt a little frustrated... but what do you say? "Hey mom, I'm really kind of irritated here that you worked so hard to try and make this special for me?" right. So I kind of felt like I was stuck between a rock and a hard place on that one, and I kept feeling torn as to whether I was being justified or ungrateful :p


I ate one cookie for her benefit and figured that if I just let them sit there, people would pick them off after a couple of days, which they did! I did dig into the candy a little though, but I kept it within my calories, and packed the rest in my bag to take home to my bf. Then I had a talk with my mom about how when I come for Christmas that I'm sure Santa (yes, I'm 26 and Santa still comes, don't judge me!) could find some really great alternatives to all the candy "he" usually stuffs in our stockings, to which my mother said, "but that's not tradition!!!" and I said, "well, I think it's time we change some of our traditions." and she agreed. She also said that I had really inspired her to get healthy and I told her it was the least I could do for all the years that she inspired me... it was all very Hallmark-y ;)


Thanksgiving went.... ok. I did alright with food, I only took a very small spoonful of sweet potatoes and stuffing because I never get that stuff and I just wanted to taste it! Then I filled the rest of my plate up with salad and turkey. Where I really effed up was the alcohol :p My mom had invited all these people over that I had never met and I was supposed to entertain them while she cooked, and I did, and we had awesome conversation.... even if it did mean that I put down about 3/4 a bottle of riesling to get me in the mood to play hostess. It was also a hard Thanksgiving because over the last few years I have lost two people that meant the world to me, but I have always spent Thanksgiving at a friend's or with my bf's family, so it was the first time dealing with their very noticeable absence. Oh well, it was one day and I made sure to work it off the next day!


When I was living at home and working all the time with money to burn (and definitely a little misguided about the value of money), I bought myself a really nice treadmill (as my grandpa once said, it does everything but wipe your ass for you! haha) but I couldn't take it with me when I moved out so it had to stay with my mom. The treadmill is a much softer run and so I was able to bang out around 4 miles on that thing each day with no pain! I was averaging about 6 mph, so I still can't keep up with Frogged, but I'm working on it! ;)


This morning everyone had to go to work so I'm just hanging out by myself. My parents have this crazy deluxe juicer that I just spent the last half hour playing around with to make some juice for breakfast, I started out with a recipe, but then just kind of ended up adding everything I could find! It ended up looking like this:

2 cups spinach

1/2 cup broccoli

2 celery sticks

2 carrots

1 apple

1/2 cucumber

1 cup kale

HOLY HEALTHFOOD!! It actually turned out tasting really, really good! Although, anybody familiar with a color wheel can imagine that it wasn't the prettiest to look at :ack2:


Weighed in yesterday and the scale here put me at 223.8, which is 3.8lbs down from last week.... I haven't let myself be excited about that yet because I'm just a little incredulous, we'll see if that number holds when I get home to my scale!


Oh, I almost forgot, we have a cabin in Tennessee that we had Thanksgiving at and I took some pictures because I just love this place:




This is the creek when you first come on the property and it wraps around the left side of the house, the other is a view from the front porch (yes, there are rocking chairs there as no southern porch would be complete without them!) Very picturesque, very southern, love it! Oh, random fact, that creek is the same creek that they use at the Jack Daniel's Distillery down the road to make the whiskey!


Gonna go catch up on diaries, thanks again for the messages :D
 
AHeya sweetie

Oooooooh your mum actually screamed!!! That's awesome and your aunt being speachless. I know what it's like having family that just don't get that you want to carry on eating healthy at 'holiday' times. But good for you for sticking to your guns and keeping things under control. :hurray: :hurray: Really proud of you hun. :)
I am kinda dreading christmas, i really don't want to gain but dont want to be dull and not have any of the goodies that will be everywhere. Hopefully we can find a happy medium :) AND we will all be here for each other to deal with the fallout in the new year.
 
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