Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Your request is granted...






Okay, I've always shied away at getting a "full body" shot in pictures, so I'll have to scrounge around the house for some "before" pics and post them later. I took one of these last night (the fuzzy one) and Stuey, the cat, wouldn't stay away from me, so I took another one today. Kind of feel silly doing it but hey, I'm pretty upbeat these days with all the compliments. And I'm feeling pretty good. So, here goes...

Monday, October 19, 2009

I'm officially "Overweight"...

YES!!! Can't call me obese anymore! My weight has finally dropped to the point where I'm just considered 'overweight'. It has been a mini-goal of mine to get to this point so I feel rather good about myself today. We even went out with friends Saturday night for dinner and I had fries with cheese & chorizo (not much into Mexican). So I'm still enjoying myself occasionally but I'm eating so much more healthier than I ever have in my life and don't feel like I'm missing out on anything. My SIL has struggled with her weight over the years and really feels that she needs to tackle the emotional/mental aspects of why she eats before looking at any WLS. And while that is the hardest part of the journey, I have to admit that BECAUSE I've had lap band surgery, I'm able to deal with those issues more easily than I did before. I like the fact that I can go on a vacation and gain only 3-5 lbs instead of 15. That the fact that I have to eat slow forces me to pay attention to what I am putting in my mouth and if I'm even hungry.

For the first time in my life, I've had 2 different kinds of cheesecakes (one of my fav's), in my freezer for about a month and haven't had any. Just not that interested. Before WLS, both of them would have been gone within a week. I've lost alot of interest in many of the foods I couldn't stay away from before. Which is the biggest benefit I've had from the surgery other than the actual weight loss. One of these days I'm going to put up some pics and hopefully allow myself to see the progess I've made. The problem is I have body dismorphic disorder. I can never seem to really guage what I actually look like unless I see myself in a picture. I have fun mirrors in my house, because I never thought I looked that bad until I saw a picture of myself. Then it was like, Holy Shit! Is that really what people see?

DH and I have been trying to take in the fall colors by hiking at the local prairie as much as possible. Right now the colors are in the prime and the temperature is in the high 50's to low 60's...just perfect for a nice hike.

The weekend ended up not being as relaxing as we would have liked. Hubby's dad ended up in the hospital on Wednesday, so Thursday we went to see him and then by Saturday he was back home so we checked up on him then also and afterwards went out for dinner with friends. Our big Friday night consisted of grabbing a bite to eat and getting groceries (along with everyone else in Shelby County). Which by the way reminded me of a gal in front of me a few weeks ago at our local Kroger's who was checking out with a cartful of groceries. I stayed behind her since I wasn't in a hurry and watched as she gave the clerk a stack of coupons and ended up owing 25 cents. That's right, 25 CENTS!!! I told her I wouldn't have believed unless I had seen it. I'm happy if I save $15 (not much of a coupon user), but a whole cart for a quarter? Boy I'd like to know her secret!

Anyway, back to the grindstone today. I'll try and post some pictures one of these days for posterity. I'm just afraid I'll realize I'm still a big fat toad when I'm thinking I don't look too bad. Oh well, by next summer, I should be looking pretty good regardless.

Monday, October 12, 2009

A little relief...finally!

Okay, okay. I guess I was a little too tight, because now, I feel great. It's amazing what just a couple of lbs will do to make things better. I got my last fill on Aug. 1st and I felt pretty good for about 6 weeks. Then the one and only pb episode...followed by several more instances of tight band days. The weekend before this past, we went to Nashville IN for the weekend and then onto the OSU-Indiana game in Bloomington. Wouldn't you know that whole time we're out with friends, my band puckers and has a temper tantrum. Out to eat a couple of times and each time I had to box it up when I could and bring it back to the room. Of course I ended up eating crap during the tailgating since all those goodies went down fine. Frustrating weekend food-wise, but had alot of fun with friends. Always enjoy "little" Nashville, the artsy shops and lovely landscape. Great little town to hang out.

We stopped in Columbus IN on the way down and spent a few hours shopping at the premium outlets. Needless to say, I did very well. The first store...GAP. It's been years since I've even stepped foot in the store, but I honestly didn't know what size I was in misses. The pants I usually buy don't come in a lower size in Women's so I'm off to the misses departments to figure out what brands fit well. Found a great pair of jeans at the GAP and also 3-4 pair at the Lee/Vanity Fair outlet. I could kick myself for not buying another pair of the trouser jeans I bought there. Just the kind Stacy and Clinton from What Not to Wear would say to buy. I was afraid that they wouldn't wash up well since they were only $21, but they washed great with just a light touch of an iron to get the major sharp crease back. Crap. I'll have to scavenge the malls around here to see who might carry that particular style I guess. Got lots of great things, new belts, lower rise jeans, sweaters, shoes (the credit card was smokin'). But hey, I don't get to shop much and my rationale was I just got rid of several bags full - I needed some clothes that fit!

This past weekend we went to Columbus Ohio to a party my OSU senior nephew was having. His annual OSU Buckeye party. Also, met up with our friends from the week before and celebrated Steve's 50th birthday at Ruth's Chris and stayed overnite. First we went to pick up Derek at Otterbein College, then went to some other friend's daughter's OSU house for lunch and check out her place. Typical overpriced college house. She ended up only being 1/2 block away from my nephew's place so it worked out great! Then my friend Patty and I snuck away during the game and "took a walk" to the nearest outdoor Mexican place and treated ourselves to a couple of margaritas. We called my sister-in-law to meet us and she snuck away from the party too. After the party, we checked into our hotel and changed and met up with our friends for the birthday celebration. The hotel, Homewood Suites, was one of the better ones I've stayed in recently. Very spacious...I wished we were staying more than 1 night. And what can I say about Ruth's Chris, it's just the best. I could have cut my filet mignon with a fork. I truly think they have the best steaks anywhere I've ever been. Plus the bonus, the plates are heated to 500 degrees so your steak isn't cold by the time you are done eating. Great for bandsters!

Hubby says we're going to have to stay home the next couple of weeks to get ready around the house for the winter. I agree. I need time to decompress and focus on "us" for awhile.

Gracie girl (the stray who found her way back) is about ready to have her kittens. And get this, I go out about 7:30 am this morning to feed her, and I look up before I walk out onto the deck, and there is a deer about 40 feet from me. Now mind you, we live in town. Imagine my surprise when I see a big, big doe staring right at me. We had our moment of sizing each other up. I knew by the time I went and got my camera it would be gone, so I just stared at it for about a minute before I opened the back door and it trotted of toward the edge of the cornfield next to us. Gracie just stared at the deer looking as stunned as I was. Wow, what a great way to start the morning. Had to leave a note for hubby about it this morning otherwise he wouldn't have believed me.

Now that my band has been more cooperative the past few days, I am realizing that this is the restriction where I need to be. I'm hoping it will stay this way for awhile longer, since the idea of another fill right now is the furthest from my mind. And recently, my cousin found out her port/tubing was leaking and needs to get it replaced. She is not happy and rightly so. So, that is always in the back of my mind that with every fill comes the possibility that there could be a puncture and more surgery (and more money). The lbs are coming off, ever so slowly. But I feel good and I look much better and the compliments are nice. So, I'll take each day as it comes. 5 more lbs and I'll officially just be considered "overweight" instead of "obese". That will be a nice change and a nice mini-goal.