Still processing...

I'm still processing Chicago.  If I had to pick one word..."overwhelming."

A few quick First Impressions:

• I definitely lucked out in the room-mate department.  Rani (A Brand New Roo) was AWSOME!!!
• I could listen to Maria (Last Train Out of Fat Land) talk all day--she has the greatest voice (kind of husky, but smooth as butter).  I want her to tell me bedtime stories. 
• Catherine (Chronicles from Bandland) is nicer than she has any right to be.
• Grace (Grace's Fat Chance) is colorful and vibrant--inside and out!
• The Jens (Embracing a New Path & Jen's Lapband Journey) made a special effort to reach out to me when I went through a brief rough patch.
• Deborah (Provoking Practicality)--I just can't put Deborah into words.  I love her.  PS Her mom is a hoot!

Cheers!

Nice meeting y'all...

PS  I wasn't that drunk and I do remember.

Cheers
from Atlanta

B.O.O.B.s questionnaire...

1) You’re trapped on a desert island and you can bring only 3 of your favourite foods along. What do you bring?

• ·      Cottage cheese & pineapple (I’m counting this as one item since they are eaten together in my world)
• ·      Chocolate ice cream
• ·      Coffee

2) If you could meet any 3 people, living or dead, who would they be and why?

• ·      President Obama—I just think he’d be an incredible dinner companion
• ·      Queen Elizabeth I—she was way ahead of her time and such a strong woman
• ·      Mike Rowe (from "Dirty Jobs")--wicked sense of humor and not bad to look at, either

3) What is your stripper name? (take the name of your first pet and the name of the street you grew up on)

• ·      Bear Chavers (pronounced "bare shavers")  Appropriate? yes  Sexy? no

4) How old were you when you lost your virginity? Alternative question if you don’t want to answer this: What is your LEAST favourite part of your bod since losing weight? Your MOST favourite since losing weight?

• ·      19—with my best friend (a boy) on my birthday—no regrets

5) Do you believe in ghosts or evil spirits? Would you be willing to spend a night alone in a house that is supposedly haunted?

• ·      Nope
• ·      I wouldn’t relish spending the night alone in a strange house, “haunted” or not.

6) What is your natural hair colour? If you dye it something completely different from what your momma gave ya, how come?

• ·      Dark brown
• ·      I have colored all shades of brown (from light auburn-brown to brown-black).  Currently, I am my natural brown shade with copper/caramel highlights.

7) Boxers or briefs? Alternatively…bikinis or granny panties?

• ·      Briefs
• ·      Hanes “low-rise” hipsters—technically granny panties, I suppose.

8) If you could only watch one movie for the rest of your life, what would it be and why? (Trilogies do not count as one movie, cheaterpantses!)

• ·      300—it’s got it all:  beefcake; action; romance; visually stunning; historical content (appeals to the intellectual snob in me); sci-fi/fantasy like characters

9) What is your guilty pleasure (feel free to go straight to the gutter with this one if the spirit moves you!)

• ·      celebrity gossip websites

10) How many pounds gone forever are you celebrating??  :)

• ·      25!!!

Cheers!

slow and steady wins the race...

It seems that I am one of those band-sters who loses in spurts--2 or 3 pounds all at once and then nothing for a while.  I think this may be a good thing.  It's definitely better than my previous pattern which was steady gaining (30 lbs in the just the 2 years prior to banding/80 lbs in the 5 years since my husband and I started dating).  The tricky part is that the weight loss seems so slow that it really sneaks up on me sometimes.  I'll think that I'm not doing very well and then I'll suddenly realize that my new jeans--which I just bought a few weeks ago and were fairly tight at the time--are starting to get a little loose.

I'm definitely feeling some restriction after my 2nd fill a couple of weeks ago.  I am eating less and staying full longer.  I think another smidgen of a fill (maybe 1cc or so) might do the trick.  As usual, I am playing the waiting game to get in for an appointment--my doctor's office is not the most efficient place when it comes to submitting and dealing with insurance.  The frustrating part, is that my insurance doesn't actually require pre-authorization.  But, the doctor's office insists on it anyway.

I'm doing better about getting my water in by following Tina's (Losing It) alteration of the "rules" and drinking right up until I eat.  It works for her and seems to be working for me as well.  In fact, I often stay full longer on less when I do this as opposed the the "official" practice of not drinking 30 min before food.

Now, if I could just get my arse to the gym!  Dunno what the problem is there--just lazy, I guess.

Cheers!

question on spanx & itching...

• I know there are a few out there who had surgery about the same time as I did (June 2010).  Are your incision sites suddenly itching like crazy?!?!?  Mine are.  Soooooo annoying!
• I was all ready to buy myself some Spanx (for Chicago, of course) and went to the website with credit card at the ready.  I had no idea there were so many different styles!  Does anyone out there wear Spanx?  Which style to you like?  I mostly need them for the butt/thigh area.  But, I have such large thighs that most "supportive undergarments" wind up with a tell-tale indentation mid-thigh.

Cheers!

i feel the love...

...and it feels good. 

Imagine my surprise when I checked the blogs today to find out that I am the B.O.O.B.s featured blogger!  Thanks for all the nice comments--it really has given me a much needed boost in the mood department.

I am feeling much better today.  Not 100%, but I can tell that I'm finally on the mend.

I'm knocking on the door of 30# down (since pre-op).  It's so close I can taste it!  In order to help this thing along, I'm going to get off my butt and take the dog for a walk.  I am ashamed to admit that I haven't done diddly in the Go-Chica-Go challenge.  A trainer once told me "you'll never be finished if you never start."  So, I'm starting...right now!

Cheers!

so sick and tired...

...literally!  I've been fighting one of the worst summer colds EVAR--and, I've been losing the battle so far.  :(  

Nonetheless, we still dragged our butts down to Tybee Island this weekend.  One of my dearest long-time friends got married!!!  We enjoyed our time sharing a beach-house with many of our other long-time friends (we've all known each other for 20+ years)--11 adults &  6 children all together. 

But, the lack of rest during our sickness (Darrell has it, too) and the 6 hour drive home yesterday has left me exhausted!  

Luckily, I think I managed to hold steady on the weight.  A major accomplishment considering that there was key lime pie involved! :)

I'm going to take the next few days to rest.  I'll catch up again next week.

Cheers!