Thursday Roll Call

Thanks for the info Paul. I think I will wait and see how things are at my 6 month. If I am still getting this vibe from them, I will look into Dr. Heydari. He is actually the surgeon we took my oldest son to when he was a baby because of his umbilical hernia.
Oh, I was charged like $250 for the initial consult too, which I thought was a little crazy!

I hear you on the six month stuff.  But I would still encourage you to come to the Centegra support group meetings.  They are on a Monday night and then a Saturday morning (not sure which ones) each month.  They're free and open to everybody.  I've been going since way before meeting Dr. Heydari.  It's a nice group of folks.  I guess that surgeons feel that their time is worth all that money even if they aren't doing medical stuff.  I wish I could charge my hourly rate even when I'm not actually performing any real services.  I felt like I was paying for the sales pitch!  What was worse was that I didn't learn one single new thing.  At one point, he weighed me and I told him my BMI.  He left the room for 10 minutes and came back to then confirm the exact BMI I had already told him.  But the office manager argued that he spent 10 minutes with me!  And did I mention that I left work early for the appointment, got there on time, and then waited 30 minutes until they called me!  In my profession, that would equate to $150 of my time!!!

Hello Illinoisans!

The rain sounds so nice this morning, I wanted to sleep and sleep so I'm off to a late start. It feels good. I've been knitting a lot lately and enjoying it more than ever. I'm doing both complicated knitting and easy projects which gives some variety. For those of you who don't know me, at Paul's I'll be the one with the yarn!

Yesterday I spent time catching up at work on things I don't tend to get done. It feels good. Now I have a few more similar projects and things should be smooth sailing.

Have a great day folks and enjoy the rain. See most of you Saturday!

Connie 

Hello everyone.  I fell pretty good at 2 weeks out.  Yesterday I had all my wisdom teeth pulled, I feel like everything hurts.

I have noticed that many people talk about Sage (or Fage) yogurt.  Where can this be purchased?

Have a great day.

Barry, you can find that yogurt at Trader Joes, Whole Foods.  Also there's a small market called Fresh Farms in Wheeling on the corner of Dundee and Milwaukee and they have it too.  Along with another brand  - OIKOS - made by Stoneyfield Farm- that is cheaper but just the same.  It comes in 0% fat too.

Trader Joe's has their own version of "greek yogurt" like that.  Also available in 0% fat,  I just love it, it's so thick and very high in protein, you can add honey if you eat it plain, or sometimes I mix it with some flavored nonfat yogurt.  At work I pop the litle container into the freezer about 2 hours before lunch so it makes it very filling and satisfying.

Also if you go to their website
Fage Total Greek Yogurt (pronounced Fa' Yeh).
you can probably find a list of stores where you can purchase it.

Hope this helps -

Mary

Barry -
Not sure what all the talk is about Fage.  I bought it at the local Super Target and well let's just say  yuck!  I'm sure I did something wrong but it tasted terrible and it was expensive.  What did  you decide to do about your move?
Glad you're feeling good.  Just don't over do it!

Christina 

Hi Barry!

I LOVE Fage yogurt too, but find that it can be pretty expensive, so I make my own!

I don't know how domestic you are, but it is very easy, here is the recipe:
(as a matter of fact, I have some draining at home as I type.....) If I get 8 cups out of it, my total cost will be about $4.00.  Just one of the large containers is over $ 4.00 in the store.

Ingredients: 

1 gallon (16 cups) 2% milk  (or skim if you prefer fat free)

1 cup plain yogurt with LIVE CULTURES  (check label)
 

Instructions:
1. In a pan, bring the milk almost to boiling.
2. Pour into a non-metallic bowl.
3. Cover and allow to cool to between 110 and 120 degrees.  (Takes about ½ hour to 45 minutes)
4. Gently mix in the yogurt.
5. Cover bowl top and bottom with towels to retain warmth as the yogurt sets--8-12 hours, or overnight.  (I set mine in the oven.)
6. Do not disturb until the yogurt thickens.
7. Line a colander with cheesecloth, 2-3 layers.
8. Pour yogurt into lined colander and drain 4-5 hours in refrigerator for thick Greek-like consistency.

 

For yogurt cheese (substitute for cream cheese in any recipe, drain even longer, 6-8 hours in the refrigerator.

 

Nutrition Facts 

(I got these from “The Daily Plate” and I am not really sure if they are accurate, they seemed a little off to me.)
Recipe makes approx. 8 cups, per cup  

Calories 196; Calories from Fat 94

Total Fat 8.5g; Saturated Fat  4.38g; Monounsaturated Fat  0.13g; Polyunsaturated Fat  0.01g; Trans Fat  0.1g; Cholesterol 30mg; Sodium 188.13mg; Potassium 71.63mg; Total Carbohydrate 19g; Dietary Fiber  0g; Sugars  19.5g; Protein 14.13g

The live cultures somehow keep the whole thing from spoiling, as I would not ordinarily leave milk out warm, overnight, but this works perfectly, and I have never had a problem.

My coworker from India makes her own yogurt also.

Some of your bigger Jewel's have them as well.  Trader Joe's is a little cheaper then Jewel.

Good morning all! Yay, you, Paul on the journey down the scale!

I have hit my very first stall on my journey. I have been at the same weight or a couple pounds up, for two weeks. Man, now I know what people have been talking about all this time--this stinks!

To break the stall I am supposed to keep hydrated, eat tons more fat and just all around eat lots MORE food. Sounds easy, right? Yeah, right.

Stay the course...stay the course...stay the course.

Nicolle