Sigh -- I knew it had to happen at some point, and it did. After a nice 3 month hiatus of no periods, Auntie Flo made a return visit this weekend. And she is back with a VENGEANCE. I don't think I've had a cycle this bad in quite a long while. But, OTOH, and I a bit reassured that my body is really recovered from the surgery, and all systems are back on track.

So this week I've lost a bit more than 1 lb. (1.2 lb to be precise). Considering Auntie F's visit, I take that as a good sign.

Today it was a splendid spring day, and I spent hours at my community garden plot, doing a lot of physical labor (hauling many wheelbarrows full of compost, steer manure, and leaf mold, and filling several raised beds; planting potatoes and strawberries, and shoveling compost from one pile to another. I never realize how much work I've done until I get home, get showered, and get dressed, and then the aches and pains really make themselves known. I am really glad it's spring because most of the exercise I get is relating to gardening, and during the winter I don't do much in the way of physical activity. So I hope the scale is kind to me next week when I weigh in.

Next week is Easter and I definitely will not make my Easter challenge goal of 180 lbs. I am hoping to get below 186. 185 would be awesome. I am pretty much in the slow loser camp, but as long as the lbs. keep coming off I am OK with that.

Let's see, what else? The size 18 jeans and size 1X tops I've been wearing the past couple of months are slowly but surely getting looser. I think once I get into the 170s I should be comfortably wearing size 16. That should happen sometime in May ... mid to late May. I really can't wait to see a a number in the 170s on the scale!

I have a dr. appointment for May 6th and will be getting a checkup and a blood test as part of my follow up from surgery. I never told my primary care physician that I was having surgery (I had asked her about weight loss surgery a couple of years ago and she basically blew me off, so I figured she wouldn't care or might even be actively against me having surgery). I am hoping when she sees the difference in my weight, blood pressure, etc., she will be fine with it, and really if she isn't fine with it I'm going to find another physician (I belong to an *** so it's actually kind of rare to keep a long term relationship with the same doctor).

Oh, and I had to have a mammogram on Friday. Very, very embarrassing. My girls are like giant sloshy half filled water balloons. The only good thing was the discomfort in having the actual mammogram was far less than last year. I did tell the dr. I had weight loss surgery and had lost over 40 lbs. since my previous mammogram, and she seemed very pleased about that and noted it in the file, since I am sure there will be changes in how my breasts look from last year. I know it's a long deflation process with my ta-tas, and I am 99.9% sure I will need to be getting a breast reduction/lift once I am done losing weight, because I don't want to look like a cow with huge udders when this is all over!

Let's see, what else. I have *horrible* turkey neck, it's getting worse instead of better. I know it's because I am losing weight, but still, it's awful. I slather expensive lotions on my neck but so far no joy. I also am getting nasty loose skin in my upper arms, near my armpits. I am beginning to look like a human shar-pei, as a matter of fact.

But -- my energy level is good, and I am still so happy with my sleeve and the fairly effortless weight loss I am experiencing. I am going to have a great year this year!