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Just barely but I’m there. This is a term I learned from hanging out on various online forums. Onderland. That magic place when your weight starts with the number 1. I have to say, it’s less exciting for me than for some others because I didn’t start that much above it, and only had to lose 30 lbs to get there, but it’s a nice, mini-milestone. But here’s another way to look at it, and this does indeed excite me. Today, I have lost a third of the excess weight I need to lose. A third of the way there! Now that’s something to celebrate. It’s also a good way to know that the surgery is working, or rather than I am working it. Once I came off the stall, I seem to have lost .4 lbs, .2 lbs, .6 lbs, but it’s still a wonderful downward trend, and I think I’ll take it!

So 2 weeks go I hit my 226 pound mark. As of today I am 221. I think once I get down to the teens i'm going to just be in shock. I am surprised to say the least that my weight is coming off as quickly as it is. (Those who know me know I'm a "bad girl" when it comes to food and I expected to lose quite slowly) I spoke about a stall a few weeks ago as well.. safe to say thats stall is over and I've have learned my lesson. Keep my calorie count in the 1400-1500 range = losing weight 1000-1300 calories range = stall. Experienced some different things this past few weeks. I am starting my own business. I have a business partner and we are coming up with all the details currently. We hope to pilot our business in June of 2014. If all goes well it will be full-time. Wish me luck! I also went to the county fair. this past weekend and tasted so many guilty treats. Deep fried oreos, deep fried Reese, cheesecake, vodka, and popcorn. And before anyone loses their damn mind. Did I eat all 7 oreos?? No, I had 1. Did I eat a whole cheesecake no- a bite. So simmer down now. Sex - so had sex quite recently and I was able to wrap my legs around my boyfriends waist. HECK YES!! I can tell a huge difference in that department from where I was 45 pounds ago. And then theres the hate- I have noticed all the random post about people quite frankly - losing their damn mind. People are getting so upset over some things that really I just like- Wow I wish I had time in my day to let things like this get to me, because I would have to have ALOT of spare time. In conclusion i think I have seen the following things... 1. People looking for people to tell them its OK to break the rules - You are just asking people to be nasty and tell you how undedicated you are and to listen to your Doctors Orders 2. If people are constantly telling you that you sound rude - maybe you should work on that. If you dont care then stop replying back. Cause thats what people do when they dont give a damn. In the end this is just a website. Now I have made some awesome online buddies and gotten some invaluable advice, but what is really important is what is happening in my life, not on some computer screen. And if your life revolves around this site then maybe take a step and look for something tangible off the cyber world. In the end, these are people we don't know, will more than likely never interact with, so in my mind their opinions and complaints only go so far.

I'm 2 weeks and 4 days out. I didn't lose very much weight on the pre-op diet. I think perhaps only a pound or 2. I don't know why, it was pretty frustrating and I found myself freaking out that this wouldn't work, etc. However, at the one week postop visit I had lost 12lbs total since the preop 2 weeks prior, and I think it's even more now. I'm not really weighing myself because of the difference of scales, etc, and I really don't want to be obsessed. So, my clothes still fit, but they do fit better. And I am comfortably in the smaller of the 2 sized scrubs I went between at work, which was awesome to realize. A few people have noticed but I don't look dramatically different. My only complaint is a pretty decent pain near the incision they "did the most work through." It is kind of like a burning knife pain, and it's not all the time, but certainly with some bending, rolling over, etc. I'm having trouble sleeping on my side or stomach, which is awful and killing my sleep. Food & Exercise: I have been walking mostly every day between 2-3 miles, sometimes a little more. I was off work for the first 2 weeks which made it way easier. Currently I am anxiously awaiting Tuesday, when I get to move to the soft foods portion of the diet. I, who gagged thinking of pureed foods, have thrown 2 oz chicken breast in the magic bullet and added to soup. Having trouble getting in all the fluids/protein I'm supposed to. I was doing better when I was drinking the Isopure Green/Black teas, then I read them carefully and realized that I was not allowed! They have caffiene! The other flavors are okay, but so sweet. I add water to them and then it takes forever to drink. Overall, no regrets. I had worked on losing weight since January 2012 and never did it, despite a good effort. Once this pain is gone, I will be a happy camper, protein shakes and all.

Today is the day the purge begins............ I'm am sending my 22/20/18 to the Salvation Army. They have served me well and I pray that they can continue to do the same for someone else. It has been amazing to be able to purchase clothes in sizes 16 or 14, depends on the cut, style and fabric of course. I find that I love trying on the clothes at the stores not necessarily buying them lol $$$$. Another cool thing I love is that it's not just clothes its the under garments as well. I have purged my size 10 undies to buy new size 8, my 40D bra to a 36-38D (styles vary). The maintenance part of this journey is now finding the track to keep proteins first and staying hydrated. Just as before I feel I'm getting comfortable and I should not. I need to keep this process fresh and enjoyable so I have the success of health and happiness. So I'm back in the gym and loving it. I even purchased a kettle bell for home; as winter approaches I plan to be ready lol I'm happy with my decision of the sleeve and hope those reading are happy as well with their WLS decision. I continue to do research so I understand the changes the body will undergo, again continued maintenance. I encourage you to do the same. I now find every few weeks I stand in front of my mirror nude and take it all in. It's amazing! This transformation rocks! Best of all I love saying to myself, "who is that?" Continued and joyous success on your journey. Karen

So, my wife today again used the "S" word to describe me - Sickly. She says I'm getting too thin, and need to put on more weight. I don't know how to stop. I think I may be leveling off - I was 178 a few days ago, 180 yesterday, and 181 this morning. I don't want to start going in the wrong direction, but she doesn't understand that. I've told her several times that it hurts me when she says that, and that it isn't helpful, but she won't stop. Come to think of it, she's never really been very supportive of me, post-op. She had the surgery also, so you would think she would understand. But when I would be excited about the weight loss, or breaking a stall, I would get little or no reaction from her. I'm not quite sure what her issue is, but it is maddening to me. Maybe it's because I'm thinner than I've ever been in the 17 years we've known each other. Maybe it's because some of my clothes don't exactly fit me too well, and my neck looks tiny in the too-big neck holes of my tshirts. Who knows? Oh well, everyone else tells me I look great, and I feel great, so I'm going to try to not let it get to me.

Well I am just shy of 2 months! I have made it to my first mini goal! Yay! So excited! I am and proud that I actually made it! I still am struggling to get in exercise! I know I need to but time is not my friend right now. I literally am so busy right now with everything else. My husband is going through some sort of something right now and I am picking up his slack. ALL the house chores and cooking is falling on me. Not to mention soccer pratice, homework, and giving the kids baths ect. You parents know the deal. It's like I am a single parent right now! He is not happy about his weight and I think seeing me losing and becoming more postive and happy has him in the dumps. He isn't being ugly to me or making me feel guilty but he seems a little checked out. I have mentioned to him about the slacking off but I am trying to let him work through this funk. I am however feeling a little stretched and I am going to snap soon! He is complaining about his weight all the time. It's like he is becoming me before surgery! Hopefully I can inspire him to change his lifestyle and this is just a phase before he snaps out of it and starts to. Well enough of that! It is just something I never thought would happen when I started this. I didn't think it would affect him this way. Well back to me! lol So my next mini goal is 199! That's right ONEDERLAND! Oh to see those numbers on my scale! What a happy day! So hopefully in the next couple of months I am going to make that happen! I want to make it there or under by Christmas! It is my Christmas present to myself! So my stats so far are... Pre-Op -7lbs Size 20 pant 1-2x tops 1 Month -26lbs Size 18/16 XL 2 Month -12lbs Size 16/14 regular L no PLUS SIZE! And 45 lbs lighter! Can't wait to see what next month loss will be! Happy Friday Y'all!

So here i am 4 day's post op and feeling pretty good considering.. hunger is controlled with little to no food.. first time EVER i'm sure this is more a result of the swelling more than the band but if its a good indication of what's ahead and how i'll manage life will be good..any way i digress .... my daughter and her friend had decided to go into town for some much deserved frozen yogurt.. not sure what they did to deserve it but when her friends barely one week old new to her car would not start after she came by to pick her up the look of disappointment was more than this mom could manage so while the dad's tried to figure out the car issue... she agreed and is blaming it on the med's she's not actually taking any more.... to allow her daughters friend to drive her car into town and get some yogurt.. and went with them again "insert meds".... the drive into town was mostly mom change the IPOD no not that song.. geeze mom it's still on repeat to crap there goes my shake all over the floor of my car.. i was surprised by my TOTAL lack of interest in anything at the frozen yogurt place.. the journey home was much more quite but a lot more bouncy having taken a different route home.. Lesson learned those important decisions they as you NOT to make immediately post op.. perhaps they should extend it to the weekend i survived it was a trip.. but i'm glad it's over... heart back in chest.

At the moment, I'm pretty happy that I followed my doctor guided diet really well. I miss food, but I'm kind of use to the food restrictions already, which is amazing! I'm not struggling near as much as I thought I would, and now, by day three, I really enjoy the protein shakes. The only hard thing is smelling the food all my family is eating, that kinda gets me down a bit, you know? Today I found out that I can have sugar free jello and sugar free popsicles though, so that will be amazing! I'm so excited!! I've finally transitioned into making his a positive experience as much as possible, and finding this website has proved very helpful, I just hope I can find some talkative friends, you know? Well, not everything is about the LAP-Band for me, I can't just focus on that, I need to focus on more social aspects of this journey, like the opportunity to network and meet people who are more than just mentors, but also friends. That's what I'm looking for most in this experience, especially with this website! I'm going to use this as a chance to enjoy my LAP-Band by finding people who I never would've found without it. That way the darker parts don't see so dark, you know? Currently, I'm listening to some uplifiting Beatles' music, because everyone loves and relates to the Beatles! I'm also counting down the days until the first "Gleetlemania" episode! My dad made me a Beatles' fan at a very young age, and I've carried that throughout my life and I just love watching the Beatles be reinvented by other artists and being interpreted in new ways! I might watch "Across the Universe" in preparation too! <3 I'm reflecting on the Beatles piece I did for my dad a couple of years ago. He's been my biggest support throughout the LAP-Band process and I'm really glad that we share things like music and entertainment together. This took me 18 months, but it was totally worth it. It's a mixed media piece.