Happy Thanksgiving

As I have a housefull of visitors, I haven't had time to post or even read your posts. I will try and catch up when everyone is gone this weekend. I wanted to wish you all, and your families a happy and healthy holiday. I hope you get to spend time with those who mean the most to you and that all your favorite foods are there for the tasting. I'll be back to see how everyone's holiday went. God Bless

Counting down to turkey day

I decided to get most of my Thanksgiving shopping done yesterday to avoid the crowds that are always milling around the stores on the weekends and Thanksgiving week. Well, it seems that I was not the only person with that brilliant idea!! The store was crazy busy and it was difficult getting up and down the aisles. When I could get down an aisle there was always someone stopped in front of the items I needed. Sigh! Well, I managed to buy a Paula Deen ham at Safeway and then off to another store, that has lower prices for the remainder of the stuff I needed. They had a sign up over the turkeys that said $50 purchase gives you a free turkey. I kept stashing food items in my cart hoping I had $50 worth in there. I don't know why I didn't look at what I had in there. I had enough for two free turkeys if I had thought about it. Oh well, now to find a place for everything. I bought my potatoes and yams and also fresh green beans and broccoli. I am hoping the beans and broccoli will not be spoiled by Thursday. I guess I could cook them on Wednesday but any sooner and they'd be like leftovers. LOL My hubby's sister and her husband are coming up from California to spend the week with us. Also some longtime friends of my husband's are also coming up from SoCal to eat with us and will also be scouting out a house to move into and a job for the husband. They've been wanting to move to Oregon for several years and have decided that now is the time. So we will be 8 for dinner. I'm going to try a couple of new recipes I've gathered from the blogs I read and the rest will be tried and true ones.

I've been doing very well since my fill. I have had to start back on the Prilosec since I started getting heartburn within the hour of getting the fill. But I take one in the morning and then a Zantac before bed and no problems so far. I am feeling restriction and it's funny because before at this fill level I didn't really feel any restriction. I wonder why?

All the talk is about the new movie out "New Moon" I hate to admit it but I didn't see the first one yet. Maybe I should just get the books and read them first. Anyone recommend I read the books first or just see the movies?

Well, I need to get busy with getting organized around here. Refreshing the linens for the spare bedroom and such. Have a good weekend all.

These are my two great nephews. This was taken last year but I love the picture. So I thought I'd share it again.

I went to the doctor on Thursday for my adjustment. I was scheduled for tomorrow but they called and asked me to come in last week instead since the doctor had to be out of town this week. I really like the new doctor. I told him it was comforting to have a doctor that totally understands when I tell him what I am feeling. He added .5cc so now I have 1.5cc in my 4cc band. He thinks that is pretty close to where I should be. Maybe just a tad more. I have to agree that I am feeling full eating smaller amounts and the hunger sensation is gone. I was filled to 2.2 originally so I could hardly eat anything. I got stuck at almost every meal and I got used to it since I was filled for 6 months before my problem occurred. I am so glad that he is my doctor now. I've already lost 4 pounds of the 8 pounds that I had gained. I am starting to plan my Thanksgiving dinner. We are having guests for Thanksgiving. My sister-in-law and her husband and a couple who are trying to move here from SoCal and their two children will be here too. I've been gathering some new recipes off some of the blogs I read as well as other sites I use regularly. I am fixing dinner now so I am going to cut this short. I need to get back into the daily posting habit again.

So close but yet so far.............

I was reading the posts on LapBandTalk.com this morning and saw how some of the people in my group have had the same issue I've had over the last 5 or 6 months. I hadn't been keeping up on it so much because when I did read it, it seemed they were all doing well and I couldn't relate so I stopped reading it. I did keep up on one thread about the problem I was having but not my band mates from the month of our surgery. During that time many of them got close to their goal weights and have had plastic surgery. It's encouraging and yet frustrating to see the success stories when I still have so far to go. But it's also a little comforting to know I am not the only person who has experienced the reflux issues and who is now struggling to get back into the mode of losing rather than maintaining weight. I wrote on a post there this morning how my husband blurted out to me while we were at a friend's house, how he was disappointed in me because I was eating the darned candy we bought at Costco a few weeks back. He said, "all the money that was spent on your surgery (my insurance picked up the tab)and you are just throwing it away and eating candy" I never claimed to be perfect. In fact, if I wasn't as imperfect as I am, I wouldn't have needed the surgery to begin with. It really hurt my feelings, to have him say he was disappointed in me. He used to say he was so proud of me, and that he couldn't believe what willpower I had, and then to pull the rug out from under me that way it was just like a slap in the face. It hurt, and I'm sure he didn't realize how badly it hurt. He has no willpower at all and is in terrible shape. I think maybe he had put me on a pedestal as something special and when he saw I was just as weak at times as he is regarding eating, he felt let down or something. Does that make sense? Anyway, that happened a few weeks ago, but after he said that I quit eating candy and maybe I needed to hear it. Now I just need to refocus on my eating and start back the way I am supposed to eat with the band. Proteins first and then vegetables, and if I have room after that carbs.

Band Adjustment

Well, I finally got a band adjustment yesterday. I got to meet the two new doctors at the clinic. They were very nice. The male doctor has a LapBand himself and and female is a new doctor from UCLA Medical Center. He thought we should proceed slowly with my fills. So he started out putting in one cc. He commented that my band is only 4ccs and that is an old band. I asked him why he thought they would put an old band in me? He just shrugged his shoulders and I said maybe they were trying to get rid of the old stuff. He nodded like he agreed with that. Anyway, I am doing well and it really isn't much restriction yet but I go back in two weeks for another fill.

I bought a pair of Ugg boots from Whooga and they came last week. They are so comfy and warm. I love them. But they are huge, I feel like I am wearing a shoebox on each foot. LOL And they had a terrible smell when I first got them but it has faded now and they aren't making my closet smell. I think it may have been the dye they used that smelled. They sent me a questionnaire for customer satisfaction and one of the items was the smell, so they must get lots of complaints about that. I am happy with them though.

The weather has cooled off here. We had some rain over the weekend and now it's been sunny but in the low 50s. I think it's supposed to start raining again later this week. I am eager to start losing weight again. I am just thankful that I didn't gain a bunch of weight and have my clothes stop fitting me. That would have been very depressing. Have a good day everyone.

I'm sorry I haven't been on here in a while. I haven't been doing anything too exciting. I need to keep up my blog I know, I want to be able to look back and see my progression toward my goal weight.

I have only 2 weeks left until I go for my adjustment of my band. I am so looking forward to it. I am fighting the urge to eat candy. We went to Costco last week and bought 3 huge bags of candy. We needed them like a hole in the head. I have managed to resist them for the last 3 days. Before that I did eat some. I have stepped up my workouts at the gym so I don't have a weight gain when I go for my adjustment. I have gained about 5 pounds and don't want to have to lose any more than that. It's been 5 months since my band was unfilled and I don't want to beat myself up for the weight gain so I am trying not to think about it. Once I am adjusted again things will turn around.

The weather has started to turn cooler and we've gotten some rain. I love the fall weather and the changing of the leaves. I get the urge to cook comfort foods and soups and such. I love to make and eat soups. I can't seem to read the blogs on here without copying at least one or two recipes to keep and try later on. I bought some fresh veggies today at the farmers market. Tonight we are having grilled chicken breasts on salad. We love these and I can load up on the fresh veggies for my own salad since hubby is picky and only likes the basics in his salad. I got some red bell peppers and avocado and zucchini, mushrooms and of course the usual cucumbers, green onions and tomatoes and lettuce. Yummy huh?

A Light at the End of the Tunnel.....

Friday I got a letter from the Bariatric Center advising me that a new surgeon had been hired and would be starting to accept patients the first week in November. I got on the phone right away and called to make an appointment. I will be seeing the gastro doctor on the 27th of October so I wanted to get an appointment as soon after that as possible. They gave me Monday, November 2nd. I am ready to get back on my program. I have had the last 5 months of non restriction and have strayed off my eating program. I have gained a few pounds but I think my exercising daily has helped me from back sliding too much. I am eager to meet the new doctor. He is from North Dakota and has been a bariatric surgeon for 10 years. He will be handling all the LapBand patients according to the receptionist. I just hope that when I have my adjustment I don't start having the reflux again. I guess I will have to wait and see what the Gastro doctor says. Well, I have to get off here so I can get to bed early tonight.