I have R&S4 here in front of me - in lesson 5 it gives a list of "some of the most common helping verbs". In lesson 39 it completes the list with the forms of "do" and all the rest.

Karen, is there a serious question in your post, or was it merely a rant against pro-life Christians and our God?

No apology necessary! I think we're both trying to say the same thing. I had to break a years-engrained habit of eating because it was "time to eat", not because my body was suggesting it needed food. I think that's probably very common, and we lose all sense of our body's natural cues that are there well before protein-store consumption begins. Totally agree on the protein and healthy fat combo. Carbs are doom (to me) for weight loss. The amount of food that brought you weight loss, seriously, would bring me gain. It's entirely possible I'm freakish :D ! A day's consumption for me might be (b) one egg scrambled, one whole peach; (l) 1/2 cup lowfat cottage cheese, couple turkey slices, pile of baby carrots and a dab of Ranch for dippin'; (snack) a few cashews and wasabi peas; (d) small salad with chopped veggies and a bit of cheese, tossed in rice vinegar and a little squirt of Ranch. Couldn't tell ya calorie counts on all that, but it's less than what many "formulas" tell me should bring weight loss. I just wonder if that is a frequent problem that leads to unsuccessful weight loss - there is no successful diet where you (generic "you") can eat as much as you want, and at some point you have to deny yourself, control your hands and mouth, and not eat. It's about quality AND quantity. To the OP: Forgot to mention what was a HUGE help to me - a food journal. Daily, write down what you eat and drink. Track your exercise and weight alongside. You'll see trends. You'll recognize how much you can eat and still lose. You'll recognize your body's hunger/satiety patterns. It's an invaluable way to tailor your eating to your body's needs.

Mrsdash, yes - I didn't mean to imply she should wait till she's famished. Our bodies give us subtle hints of hunger which gradually build up, and we should wait at least until we have some subtle hints. Honestly, 3 meals and 2 snacks are far too much food for me unless we are talking meal = about 250 cal and snack = 3 pretzel sticks. It is a highly individual thing and I personally think that is why there are 3500 diet plans out there - what works for one might work for a few more, but not all. To lose weight I eat 2 meals (bkfst and lunch) and 1-2 snacks (afternoon and evening). One iota more --> gain. It's maddening, but it's reality. The only across-the-board advice is to eat less and move more, and do so in a way that is regular and consistent. What that specifically looks like will vary. :)

Bovine Palpation = feeling up cattle? ;) I went to Kansas State University which has a vet school. I sometimes wish I'd gone to vet school instead of PT school.

Sunny, I lost a bunch of weight a few years ago and did not use any sort of diet book or plan. I ate less and walked daily. Leila's advice is spot-on; follow it closely. Shop mostly in the produce section and around the outer perimeter of your grocery store. Most stuff in the aisles is processed/preserved/salted to death/laden with sugar. Hunger is a good thing. Repeat after me. Hunger is a good thing. We Americans tend to eat before we're even hungry. Fast from solid food for a day (drink water or milk or tea) to remind yourself what hungry feels like. We also tend to eat until we are stuffed. Train yourself to eat slowly, put your fork down between every bite, chew and savor the food, and leave some food on your plate. To lose weight, you should eat only if your body is giving you hunger signals, and eat slowly so that your brain recognizes "tummy full" before you've overstuffed. You might be shocked at how little you need to consume and still be content. Content - not full - content. Don't try to change everything about how you eat. Changes that make you miserable will not stick. For me, a big dinner is the kiss of death. I saw this once: eat like a king at breakfast, like a prince at lunch, and like a pauper at dinner. GREAT advice. :)

I can't believe in 6 pages nobody has referenced 'your' and 'you're'. I think that's the most common goof I see! Your so nice! Your a real sweetheart. That's the most :willy_nilly: inducing for me. My grandmother thought an apostrophe meant "more than one of these." Her recipes read: 2 cup's flour 3 cup's milk 2 Tablespoon's butter And last but not least, how about (conversational) double-izzing? What it is, is, I wanted to do XYZ and...

RC, I don't know if anything we say might overcome what sounds like an already negative mindset, but Facebook is just for fun. It's not a "need". I , too, thought I was in touch with everybody I wanted to remember, but I was wrong. I've found people I'd forgotten about, who now bring a smile to my face when I get a message from them. I use it to keep in light-n-easy contact with family who live far away - it hasn't replaced phone calls or notes, but it sure has added a new dimension. Now I've got a growing network of friends who are some of the younger women at my church. WOW! I guess I'm trying to say that there might be more to it than you think. Put down the "crotchety" and go give it a try. You can always un-sign up. :)

Rolls eyes at shameless use of medical terminology obviously intended to obfuscate the issue.

I wish I could say I calmly ask questions and help them re-locate their cerebrums, but alas, I tend to get more like this: :willy_nilly::cursing::banghead: DH has a theory that, here in NV, we're close to Area 51 and the aliens occasionally come and take our children, replacing them with doppelgangers which are, of course, brainless. His theory does not help me to react any better. :glare:

I knew it all along. Only a TV vet would think tin foil would slow down a bunch of thumbless rabbits intent on taking over your mind.

Oh Michelle - three weeks - so fast. Mourning with those who mourn - yet joyous that she is with our Savior. With Him. Amazing.

Provides link to eight blogs providing information on buying or leasing news shells, various shell add-ons, and comparative analysis of shell service providers. Is not joking.

Bump. My Levi's and my Old Navy jeans/pants all grow as I wear them, to the point I can take them off without undoing the fly (and it is NOT because I'm skinny!). I want jeans that aren't bagging off my butt by the end of the day!

My children are 10 and 7 and I still feel like the goat would be easier in the grocery store. :)

Sheesh, I've been all over the map weight-wise and sat here nodding my head at nearly every post (except the ones where anyone said "I could stay a size 6 without trying.") I was a skinny kid with a mom who pushed more food. I finally started gaining in college but had no discipline and no knowledge of healthy eating. Gained 95 lbs over 3 pregnancies and kept it on. Went from skinny kid to 230-lb size 22 mother of two. Finally got a grip, made healthy changes, lost 90 lbs and got down to size 6 (that was in 2004). Kept it off. Thyroid went whacko in 2006, 40 lbs jumped back on in a matter of about 4 months, and they will NOT leave me. (Nodded so hard at Stephanie's post I nearly gave myself whiplash.) I care very much about my appearance, and I don't mean in the vain way I was at a size 6. My experiences have been from the extreme of not caring to the extreme of caring way too much. I just want to not have to stress over every.pickin'.bite.I.eat. I want to eat out once a week and not see the scale jump FOUR POUNDS the next morning after eating half a chicken wrap and 3 french fries. My metabolism is jacked, our society's perception of "hot" and "healthy" is jacked, our nation's eating habits are jacked, and I'm fed up! I don't want to be "hot". I just want to be healthy and not have to count carrot sticks to stay that way.

*Disclaimer: I haven't read Eat To Live Snick, I promise, you can change what you enjoy eating. I have purposely developed a taste for vegetables because I was fat, unhealthy, and setting a ghastly example for my kids. Now I'm hoping to change their tastes as well. But YES, YES, a 100 X YES it can be done! laylamcb gave you great suggestions on salads and I second it all. I love chunks of avocado, some craisins, crunchies like chopped celery/carrot, even lastnight's leftover chicken chopped into a salad. And like Zelda said, you might never dislike pizza but you'll like it less. I just wanted to encourage you - you don't have to do exactly what some book says you have to do - make changes that you LOVE. Changes that make you miserable are changes that will not last. NO offense to the book or its advocates!!

Suggestion in BOLD CAPITAL LETTERS that Soph the Vet is really not a vet at all or she would surely know that tinfoil hats are useless in fending off a really serious rabbit attack.

Oh for crying out loud. :willy_nilly: Rabbits don't even have thumbs. Especially those German ones. Provides link to article detailing differences between European and American rabbits with highlighted material detailing circuitous route of connections between European thumbless conspiratorial rabbits and the candidate I do not support.

Hyper-irritable snort of derision wondering what on earth is wrong with fluffy rabbits. We are amazingly likeable, you know.

If you are going to try traps: rodents move along walls, feeling the wall with their whiskers. Place baited traps right against walls where they are cruising around.

I've tried blunt, I've tried pointed, I've tried Ranch dip and butter and cheese, I've tried everything short of cramming it down their throats and rubbing their neck to make them swallow. And still they flicketh aside that which resembles "plant". Gaaaahhhh.

I just learned that it is coming to our city! The closest showing I could find was in a city over 3 hours away, but now we will get to see it on the big screen!