Suziecat

Morning, Got up and it's snowing outside so I decided not to go to Curves. Actually it is only flurrying but people get wacky in this type of weather and that is when accidents happen. I'll try later in the day to go to the park and do some laps. We stayed up late last night playing cards with some friends of ours. It's a game called "Sh*t on your neighbor". We always have a great time playing and sometimes our conversations get so hilarious we almost wet our pants. It's a lot of fun. Glad to hear that everyone had a great Thanksgiving but I was wondering if TracyKS got gobbled up in all the shopping frenzy. We haven't heard form her. Hope she is having a good time. Everyone stay warm and have a great day.

Good Morning and Happy Shopping day to you. Got up this morning and went back to the Y with the guys. I didn't go swimming and decided to try out the machines. OMG, have you ever been on the eliptical? I was only able to do about 4 minutes and my thighs were screaming. There was a girl there that was on it for an hour(crazy nut). So than I was off tothe weight lifting and did good at that and than tried the other torcher machines. Finally got on the tread mill and worked out on it for awhile. Even inclined it. By the time I was done I could barely make it up the stairs. Came home and deboned the turkey. Yuck. Gonna make some turkey salad for sandwiches with the dark meat. Did a few other things and now it's rest time for a few minutes. Fixed me a protein shake and than watch what I eat for the rest of the weekend. I'm on a good losing streak right now and don't want to sabotage it. TracyK- The pictures were wonderful. You are so cute. And you have a very good looking family. Kat- I love when it snows and you made me jealous talking about taking a walk. There's a special feeling you get when you go out and it's cold enough to see your breathe and it's so quiet you can her snapping noises from things beinging so cold. The air is so crisp and it feels kinda good to breathe it in. Than the best part is coming home and getting warmed up. A hot cup of cocoa to warm your insides. Right now it's 19 degrees here, need to get the fireplace going. Judy- Your pictures are just to pretty. I'm so glad I have a twin. By the way, my husband is a twin. It was so funny the day we got married. Only my immediate family knew about it. All my Aunts and Uncles and cousins got a big surprise. They both crack me up. Everyone have a great day.:clap2:

Got up this morning at 5am and put the turkey in the oven. Then it was clean and clean and clean, actually not that much cleaning- just seemed like it. Around 12:30 the neighbors showed up and we were eating by 1pm. I had just alittle spoon of most of the food that was made. I didn't have a problem with any of it and stopped when I got full. I was noticing everyone's plates and I was kinda jealous. They were overflowing and everyone was complaining about how full they were. I did have 2 glasses of wine but I did all the cooking and I did all the clean up. We all had a great time and enjoyed each other. Weird thing though. Did your food taste good? Mine tasted wonderful but it just seemed like since I've gotten the band that my food just doesn't do it for me anymore. I even had a slice of pecan pie and I was thinking that it just didn't seem as good as I remembered. I've noticed it other times with food that I liked alot. They just don't do it for me anymore. Strange. Anyone getting up early to go shopping? I think I'll stay home in bed where it's nice and warm. They are calling for temps in the 20's. Brrr. Hope everyone had a great day.

To The Violets that are traveling for the Holidays. Please have a very safe trip and enjoy the family and friends you will be spending time with. Happy Thanksgiving to You and can't wait till you get home. :hungry::hungry::hungry::hungry::hungry: To the violets that are staying here, I wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving and a very enjoyful day. :hungry::hungry::hungry::hungry: To everyone. I am so Thankful that you have entered my life. I wake everyday knowing that I am not alone and that there are people thinking of me and encourageing me in my journey. You are truly a blessing to me and I am a better person for it. So, a Very Very Happy Thanksgiving to You. P.S. Go stuff yourselves (not).

Terry- Stove Top. That's my killer stuffing. My Mom's stuffing was the best and that is one thing I never learned how to do ffrom her. P.S. Love the jewelry. You are so talented. Kat- Got your message and I will be sending you something in the mail next week. I hope it is what you were looking for and helps you out. Swam for an hour this morning and than went to Curves. Now off to the shower and than have an appointment to get the oil changed in the car. Probably stop by my friends for a little while. They are calling for a light dusting of snow here today. Everyone have a great day. :usa:

Kat- Years ago when I had my hysterectomy I was in the cancer ward at St. Luke's hospital for several weeks. All I wanted to do was take a shower. Nope, no can do. So one day when the Doctor came in I asked hi if I had some help could I please have a shower. So off we went to the shower room down the hall. My husband and me and my IV pole. We had the nurses station cracking up. As we turned the corner my husband tells them if we aren't back in ten minutes- don't come looking for us. They were still laughing by the time we got back. It must have been the contented look on my face. I was just so relieved to have finally showered and even got to wash my hair. So enjoy the little things that make us happy. Laura, Thanks for the song choice. I downloaded it all ready. Pamela, Can't seem to find "The Gossip" but the "new Shoes" is downloaded also. Have a great evening everyone.:clap2:

Judy- I'm a twin. That's so cool. :hug:

Great news-- Went to weigh-in this morning and lost 5.8lbs. Yippee!!!!! And that is after spending a week on the road. I was so excited. I was at the grocery store checking out and thought I would just grab a little something while standing in line. Than I remembered it was CTCD. Just in the knick of time. Almost ruined my good day. OK, so I have this MP3 player that I use while I am walking. I have about a hundred songs on it so far and my favorite one is "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" by Greenday. I had picked that song because it hit hard. Almost all the time I feel like "I'm the only one". No one else knows what I go thru. It's me and only me. Well, I'm changing and it's partly due to you guys. Listening to all of you, I realize I'm not alone. You guys are walking that Boulevard with me. I'm gonna include the words here just incase you haven't heard the song. So here is my challenge to all of you. I need a new song for my MP3 that I can listen to while I walk. It has to have a beat to it. Not real fast but something that keeps in time with walking. Something upbeat and cheery. Are you up for the challenge? Thanks. Boulevard of Broken Dreams I walk a lonely road The only one that I have ever known Don't know where it goes But it's home to me and I walk alone I walk this empty street On the boulevard of broken dreams Where the city sleeps and I'm the only one and I walk alone I walk alone I walk alone I walk alone I walk a - Chorus : My shadow's the only one that walks beside me My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me Till then I walk alone Ah (repeats ... a lot)! I'm walking down the line That divides me somewhere in my mind On the border line Of the edge and where I walk alone Read between the lines Of what's fucked up and everything's all right Check my vital signs to know I'm still alive and I walk alone I walk alone I walk alone I walk alone I walk a - I walk this empty street On the boulevard of broken dreams Where the city sleeps and I'm the Only one and I walk a - Chorus

Morning everyone, Up early today, gots lots to do. Today is weigh-in so I'm kinda anxious about that. Than I have to go give blood for my monthy check and than have to go get my sister and take her to a doctor's appointment. Hopefully I will get the car washed today. Yesterday they said it would be in the 70's today and now this morning they are calling for high 60's. Wish I had that job. You know that shoe thing? I have noticed the same thing. Seems like my shoes are looser. I have also noticed how skinny my toes have gotten. Now if I can just get my thighs to look skinny. The guy across the street from me had his band installed about 4 months before me. He looks great. One day he was outside and I went over and talked to him. His daughter came out and just kept saying over and over how great I looked. That's a wonderful feeling. And one other thing I have noticed is that people don't stare as much anymore. I still get a few looks but not nearly as much as I used to. That is a big boost to myself esteem. That way I don't beat myself up after I get one of those nasty looks. No exercise today. Tuesday is always my day off from that. I do miss it though. Everyone have a great day. :clap2:

Kat- :girl_hug::girl_hug::girl_hug:'s for you. Glad your home and hope you feel better real soon. Janie- You look amazing. You must be feeling ten feet tall. Keep up the good work. Swam this morning and than went to curves. Took an hour nap and thanwent and cut the grass and mulched the leaves. I didn' get around to getting the car washed but they are calling for good weather tomorrow, so hopefully I can do it than. Trying to keep myself busy. That helps to keep my hand out of the cookie jar. Keep my hands and mind busy equals losing weight. Everyone have a great evening. :clap2:

Gina, I'm with you but I think I'm gonna start a little earlier than Monday. My next fill is scheduled for Dec. 3rd and I'm hoping to post a good weight loss when I go in. They wanted to know if I wanted to change my appointment to the 5th. and I told them no, that I need to lose weight. See, my 25th. wedding anniversary is Dec 4th. I'm sure we will be going out that night but I need to stay focused and not eat so much just because we are celebrating. Gotta go get my suit on now. I'm going swimming for an hour than off to Curves for 40 minutes. Today it's supposed to be a little warm so we are going to cut the grass and mulch the leaves, than wash the car from our trip. I'm pooped already. Everyone have a great day. I'm # because you are all #1 to me.

THANKS, TracyK I needed that. I wish I could blame it on TOM. But I don't have those anymore. So I only have myself to blame. It's me not wanting to face the fact that I am a very weak person. :cheer2: However, I am getting stronger everyday and I do have to Thank all of you for that. I love all of your stories and butt chewings. They are a boost to me. :whip: So, now I'm gonna whip myself and than get my butt moving.

Laura, I know exactly what you and Mdrai are feeling right now. After losing over a hundred pounds and being able to get into sizes I haven't worn in over ten years I'm getting that skinny feeling. And I'm still huge. I have along ways to go but I'm loving what I have done so far. And here lies my problem, I feel like I'm done. I can't seem to get myself jump started again. I've dieted for over a year and a half and I'm done. I need to find my way back to losing again. And the 3 loaves of pumpkin bread I just baked isn't helping any. I just have to keep reminding myself that "I Want It Bad". I'm so worth it and I will keep going. I've come too far to back slide. Let's hold hands and do this together. I'm with you guys all the way. Gonna try my hardest this week so that on Thursday I can enjoy myself and my company. I will keep an eye on my portions but I also want to enjoy the day. Too bad Curves isn't open that day. Guess I'll just have to get out and do alot of walking. So glad that we got an update on Kat. Hugs to her and her family. Everyone have a great day. :clap2:

Home from our trip and am so glad we went. We got to see Uncle George which will be our last time to see him. His health is bad and is going fast. Glad we went while he is still alive and we had the chance to talk. Husband really enjoyed it. Back to the grindstone. Up early and went to the grocery store. Got a 20lb turkey. Went to Curves and kicked my butt. I did some walking this week but nothing like I usually do. Now just need to watch my eating for the next week. All that good stuff is so hard to pass up. Hey, are we having CTC Day next Thursday? Everyone have a great weekend. :clap2:

Kat, :clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2: :whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo: :clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2: :bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce: That was AWESOME news.

Kat---- I read your posted and started to cry and get the chills. Last year when I had my lap-band surgery, they woke me up before they pulled the tube out. I paniced because I thought I was choking. It was the worst experience I have ever encontoured. All I can say to you is try try try very hard not to panic. Just find someway to keep breathing with out think you are choking form no air. Maybe you can keep thinking about all the prayers that are being sent to you and that will keep your mind busy. Believe that all of us are there holding your hand and whispering good thoughts into your ear. Because you know if we all could we would be there. Keep good thoughts and keep us posted on your progress. Hugs to you and everyone have a great day. :clap2:

TracyK-- That is so awesome. You must be so proud of yourself. Thanks for being an inspiration to me. I have a goal to reach for and that is to be as deligent as you. I have an NSV, Today we left Helena and stopped in Billings at the Harley Davidson store. Told hubby we could get him a t-shirt form there. I found a grey hooded sweat jacket and tried it on. Very snug but fit. It's a 3X. I haven't worn a 3X in about 20 years. My husband was more excited than I was. I had the lady cut the tags off and I wore it out of the store and all the way to our next hotel. Stopping in at Sturgis tomorrow, wonder what I will find there. This is so cool to be able to go into stores and wear stuff off the rack. I'll miss ordering from the catalog. Hubby's waiting for spring so he can get the Harley back out to ride. Driving to Sioux Falls tomorrow and will spend the night there and than the next day it should take us about 7 hours to get home. I'll be glad. I miss the comforts of home. But I have to admit that we are having an excellent time. Didn't know what to expect with traveling with my sister-in-law and her husband. We have just clicked and we've laughed and told stories an have really enjoy each other. Oh, forgot to mention that we had our first up closs snow for the year. Although I couldn't get hubby to stop so I could throw a snowball at him. It was really beautiful seeing everything cover. The trees were so pretty. Everyone have a great day, :clap2:

27 degrees here right now and it stormed like the dickens here last night. We're surrounded by snow on the mountains but just rain here in the valley. It's beautiful. Yesterday I ate off of the vegetable tray for dinner. I must have had about a good cup size of carrots and dip. Got back to the motel and was regretting my decision, so I ate 2 small cups of WW lemon yogurt and went to bed. TMI, cleared my system out this morning and am feeling better. Not so bloated. Thanks for the reminder about "Cut the Crap Day". I need to do exactly that. SIL is fixing vegetable Soup today so we are going over there and visiting. Everyone have a great day. :clap2:

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr and Greetings from Montana. It is so cold here. But what a beautiful State. Not sure I would want to live here in the winter though. I have a picture of me with the snow in the back ground but someone is going to have to tell me how to get it on here. Haydee, welcome home and glad to hear about your grandmother. Judy, I do that all the time when I see someone. I think "Lap-Band". But how do I know that they don't allready have it. Looking at me you would think the same thing and I do have a band. It's a bad habit I need to break. I have to stop judgeing people but it's just so darn easy to do. Got to spend sometime with Uncle George last night and I just watched my husband as he talked about his father that passed several years ago. Uncle George was telling him stories about when they were little boys. That is what has made this trip so worth it. It's a strain on us especially with taxes having to be paid here soon. But seeing Husband with his Uncle, well taxes with have to wait. We will be here for a few more days and then head home. Everyone have a great week and as soon as I now how to post a picture I will.

All my bags are packed and I'm ready to go. (do you like my singing?) Just have a few more things to put in my bag, so now I'm just sitting here watching Oprah. She had the Osmonds on today. I'll get up about 3am so I can finish up and pack the car. Need to stop at Wal-Mart for a few things and then on the road. If we do 600 miles a day we should be there late Sunday night. whew, I'm tired already. Terri, I live in the "Shoe-Me Sate". Home of the KC Chiefs, MU Tigers and Brad Pitt. Missouri, I'm right out of the Kansas City area. I think I'm about 30 miles from Tracy. Everybody have a great weekend :clap2:

Tracy, Good Luck with your dinner tomorrow night but I have a feeling all will go well. You are a very stong and reasonable person. But I'm gonna send a hug for you anyway. I missed the meeting last month also. I think it rained that day right? I was planning on going tomorrow but we found out a couple of hours ago that we are headed for Montana first thing in the morning. We got a call that my husband's Uncle has lung cancer and it's not good. So his sister and her husband are going with us and we figured we better do it before the weather turns bad up there. Hopefully we can meet at the next meeting. Everyone have a good weekend and I will check in when I get the chance to. Good Luck everyone.:clap2:

Pam, That is wonderful and the responses you get are exactly why this is such a great place to come to. So much support from everyone. Thanks for being an inspiration. Ok, a question for you Pam. A long time ago when I was in girl scouts we took a trip to Plam Springs and stopped along the way. I'm thinking it was a little place called 1000 Palms. Is that a name of a town around there? We stopped at a place and I got a Date Shack. I still remember to this day that I really liked it alot. I don't like dates by themselves but the shake was really good. If you know what I'm talking about can you tell me if youv'e ever had one and do they still taste as good as I remember? Have a great day. :clap2:

Just got back from Curves and they have a new stretching contraption there. I love it. It actually looks like some kind of torcher(?)chamber. It felt so good though. I need to get me one of those bracelets you guys talk about. Need all the help I can get. Does anyone one know how we can get some violet colored ones with CTCD printed on them? That would be a cool way to remind ourselves during the day. Beautiful day here today. High is supposed to get to 66. Maybe put something on the grill this evening. Have a great day. :clap2:

Ok, I've been outed, or at least caught. I do confess that I am the one you see all the time. I have one thing to say about it. I love all of you and owe you all a debt of gratitude. You have gotten me thru alot. I come here and read all your stories and can't help but be moved and inspired by your daily struggles. Thinking I was the only one going thru it. You guys have become a part of my life and I hate when I have to wait so long to get back online to see what is going on. Here's my story. In April of 2006 I started looking into having the band installed. I had to go thru alot because my insurance company required it. I had to go thru the six month diet and pshyc evals and a few other things. Finally I got my date. October 19th of 2006 I entered Menorah Hospital and was greeted by the most wonderful Doctor that was put on this earth. Dr. Stephen Malley has changed my life for the better and I will always hold him in high esteem. Even though I walked into this with my eyes wide open I soon found that it wasn't as easy as I thought it was going to be. My faith has gotten me thru alot but I just needed that little extra ummph. So the road led me to reading the post on the Doctor's website. And this my new friends (if I may call you that) is where I met an extrodinary girl. Her name is TracyinKS. She encouraged people to come to Lap-bandtalk and so here I am. I have often thought that I needed to join in on the conversations since a lot of them echo my own feelings and thoughts. One that was so funny was a couple of weeks ago I went to Dairy Queen and had a blizzard. The next day I started reading how everyone started to confess that they had done the same thing. Home. I found home. I even joined in on Don't do the crap days. So far it's worked today but I'm coming off of three days of not eating anyway. I've had that stomach flu crap that's going around here in the midwest. October 19th was my one year bandiversary and I am 119lbs lighter because of it. I lost some of that prior to being banded but Doctor Malley still considers it in his charts. I look forward to being able to chat with you guys and hope that some day I will be alble to meet Tracy in person at one of the support meetings. So, that is my short and sweet story. I didn't want to bore you guys too bad. Thanks for being an inspiration to me and keep up the good work. Your new friend Suziecat. :clap2:

Congrats on getting your surgery. I noticed that they are several of you getting your surgery the same day. I didn't know any of the people who where having the surgery the same day as me but I did take my camera to the hospital and after I met the other girls we took our picture together. We e-mail each other and sometime see each other at Dr. Malley's office on our fill days. I'm so glad that I have that incommon with them. We have been able to support each other through some tuff times. Good Luck to all of you and enjoy the experience. :clap2: