Follow up to last years posting (above). Last fall I discovered a burrow going through my raised bed (yes you read that right) with no entrance seen. VERY early professional (pest control) guess' say it's a Mole. We'll see how many survive from the list above. Empress Wu performed spectacularly last year, but my Gorgon and Sum and Substance where held back by this unexpected visitor. Peter Kelley - St. Paul, MN USA Follow my adventures in hosta growing at HostasByKelley

rosiequilts, I lost 50 pounds last year by calorie counting, which is just another way of saying "eating-loads-of-fruits-&-veggies-so-you-can-eat-the-most-food-with-the-fewest-calories". I learned to love vegetables! A pile of eggplant, onions, mushrooms & peppers with a little spaghetti sauce on just 2 oz. of pasta & 1/4 cup grated mozzarella is delicious & filling. Spaghetti squash can be substituted for the pasta (just put the spaghetti squash whole in a crock pot & it's done in 4-6 hours). For salads, I love to mix spinach, lettuce, diced raw green beans, carrots, celery, cherry tomatoes and use 1/3 cup dried cranberries for dressing, or sometimes green olives and a little of the olive juice in the jar. If fresh produce isn't on hand, then combining frozen veggies & cooking in the microwave is tasty: kale, lima beans & cauliflower, for example. Veggies in combination taste much better than just plain. In winter I enjoy turnip greens & squashes. Cabbage is a versatile veggie, good for filler in soups & stews, sauteed, microwaved, or sliced for low-fat cole slaw made with Splenda. For munchies, I love to microwave a tub of Brussels sprouts or cauliflower & keep it in the fridge for mindless snacking (you know, when you get those urges to eat but you're not really hungry). A little butter or oil won't hurt you and, in fact, makes the vegetables more nutritious. Your body absorbs the nutrients better when a little fat is present with the veggies. Sometimes I like to make a green sauce of chopped fresh spinach & French parsley in a little cream & parmesan cheese, heated in a sauce pot. I serve this over a big plate of broccoli & cauliflower, and it's delicious. There are so few calories in the veggies that you can afford to indulge in the cream sauce. But then, that's dinner -- no bread, no side dishes, no heavy meats. Anyway, didn't mean to hijack this thread. Just wanted to pass on some good veggie food ideas. When you walk through the cookie/cracker aisle with indifference, but your mouth starts watering when you get to the produce section, you know you've made a good change!

Love hearing stories like this. My 28 year old nephew was born 3 months early and weighed in at a whopping 1 lb. 12 oz. My brother's wedding ring fit all the way up the baby's leg. My nephew was/is very fortunate that he had/has no health or learning issues related to his prematurity. He recently became a father but the little knit cap of his that his mom saved all these years didn't begin to fit on his own full term baby's head. Best wishes to your daughter for the next 21 years and more.

I've been lurking this thread since it was started and following along. I love reading all of the posts and even revisit a few now and then. Like some others, I have a lot of work to do to get where I want to be. I'm confident I will get there eventually though because I really want it. I started my "new habits" back towards the end of January. I didn't tell a soul because my family has a way of taking over the process and making it even harder than it already is. I selfishly just wanted to do it with and for myself and it's really made a difference. No guilt trips, no cravings and it's been easy to just say, no thank you when something is offered. I didn't make a plan or find a diet, I just stopped eating anything that could be remotely described as "junk". No fast food, no sugar, no snacking. I stopped cooking in the evenings; I only eat if I'm hungry and I only eat enough to feel comfortable regardless of the portion on my plate. I started buying ready made salad from our farmer's market because I buy veggies but never get around to slicing and dicing. It's a chore I just hate to do and I procrastinate till they rot. Freshly made on site is expensive, but it's so worth it! I eat some carbs even white, but instead of counting every calorie, I use the points assigned to foods in WW as a guide to balance out my intake. So far, I'm down 19.5 lbs and one pant size. Three weeks or so into my new size and now they're starting to feel a tad baggy. Next challenge, more exercise! Great thread JTL, it's nice to see the support between every one and some of the tips here are really awesome! Thanks for starting it!