Teachlady

Good evening, Violets... Looks like we're stuck together for the long haul, right Sista's?? I for one will be here long after I get to goal, whenever that might be. We're here for each other to celebrate all those NSVs plus the SVs and to be there for each other when things just aren't going the way we'd planned. Just don't drop out of sight and stop posting, puleeeeze!!! I'm losing slowly since the cruise, but I'm losing and that's what counts. My fill is working. I have restriction and it's really making me slow down on my eating. DH does not have restriction and we might have to go back and get a fill for him in the next couple of weeks. He's able to eat anything and everything. We've been so busy we haven't been able to exercise everyday like we should. I've done more than he has so it's time to kick his butt and get him in gear. Next week starts our October exercise challenge. I didn't make my Sept. one, but that's in the past and a new month lies ahead. Lunasa, so good to hear from you again!! We're always here for you. TracyK.. great picture.. look at those collarbones!! woooo hoooooo!!! Laura.. love your signature pic too!! Ohhhh I had a bad thing happen today... sigh... I lost my brand new amber ring I bought on the Alaska cruise. It got too loose on my finger and fell off somewhere. It's nice that my fingers are getting thinner, but not nice that things are falling off!!! At least my wwjd bracelet will never fall off!! Everyone have a good night. Patience, trust and WWJD??!!

I am a retired school teacher. I taught 2nd grade for 12 years and Kindergarten (all day, every day) for my last 20 years. Loved every minute of it. But am also loving retirement, cruising, traveling and of course being banded!

Good morning, Violets.. Well, I do feel better today. Cold is not gone, but I can breathe better. I've been dosing with Drixoral and ZiCam. As long as it doesn't go to my throat, I'm ok to sing this Sunday and next Friday. I'm wearing a sweater today that I have saved in my closet for probably 10 years or more. I never gave it up when I got fatter and fatter because I really liked it. Now it is bordering on being too big, but I'm going to wear the heck out of it while I can. We are going to an overnight church meeting today. DH is excited cause he got some new long sleeved shirts in a size L. He had been wearing 3XL and they were tight. This has been such an awesome journey for both of us and we're not done yet!! Jennifur...the one thing that you said that jumped out at me was... "He said if I was his girlfriend it would be different. " That, my dear, is a big red flag. Don't believe a word of that line!!! TracyK..hope your day is painfree!! Well, I'm going to finish my cottage cheese and blueberries and head to the hospital for my volunteer shift before we leave for the meeting. Everyone have a great day!! Patience, Trust and WWJD??!!

Whew Tracy!!! Glad you are finally pain free. Sure sounds like you got the run around at the first place. And glad your doc finally saw the light and pulled that sucker out!!

DH says... "that soup's a keeper!!"

I did add a few things to the soup that others might like to try. I added some parsley flakes, basil, dill and lots of Italian seasoning for a little kick in the flavor. I just had a spoonful and it was mighty tasty!!!

Terry.... I fixed the crock pot soup today and even with my stuffed up node, I can smell it and DH says i'm driving him nuts with the smell. He can't wait to dig in, but we have one more hour. Thanks for sharing the recipe!! With the chills I'm having today, the soup is gonna be just perfect. TracyinKS..well, at least you know people have been asking about your change. If they hadn't noticed, they wouldn't have asked!! Now you can be a good will ambassador for the band.

Good Morning, Violets.. I woke up late today with a bummer cold. Just what I need before two concerts this week and next!! Tracyk.. I sure hope you get that tooth yanked out of there today!! You need some relief from that pain!!! I just got all the ingredients into the crock pot for Terry's soup. I know it will smell so good when I get back home after running some errands, but I won't be able to smell it.. arghhhhhhh I've had problems with deli turkey getting stuck, but never pb'd on it.. thank goodness!! TracyinKS.. you look great in your pics.. It's a new and improved you!!! Congrats!! Laura.. so sorry to hear about your sister. Sounds like she has a whole lot of issues to contend with. My prayers are with her during this difficult time. Terry.. I'm up for a road trip just about anytime!!! We all REALLY need to try and meet up somehow, somewhere, sometime. Especially in April for our year anniversary!!! I'm off to do my errands and then settle back in here for the afternoon. Nothing on my schedule today except relaxing and getting over this cold. TTFN...

Bring it on.. I taught Kindergarten and 2nd grade for 32 years.. I can whip some sense into ya!!!:whip:

Terry.. you are exactly right.. HOW BAD DO YOU WANT IT??? I too was falling back into bad habits on the cruise. I was eating things I shouldn't and in between meals. I was exercising and doing some of the right things, but the eating was not what it should have been. The great thing about the band is it pulls you back in just when you think you've lost control. I have a new resolve now that I have my fill. I only got .5cc and don't feel much difference in restriction, but it's so much a head game. I am back to following the bandster rules to a T and feeling so good about it. You will too... and the scale is only about numbers. Like I told Tracy.. it's all about how you feel, how your clothes feel and how others see you. The compliments always work wonders, don't they? YOU take care of YOU and know that we are all here for YOU and each other!!! Remember.. PATIENCE and TRUST!!!!! And on a good day when she's following the rules.. WWJD??!!

Good morning, Violets.. I'm sitting here eating my cottage cheese and blueberries waiting for Ethan to arrive. I have a flute rehearsal at 11 and choir at 6 so it's another one of those days for me. Jennifur..I wish I could give you some of the stuff I got in Alaska. It's called Doctor's club and the natives swear by it. I got a little burn from a roasting pan and put the stuff on and it took the pain away very quickly. I'd never heard of it before, but our tour guide showed us where he'd had surgery on his arm and said it helped so much. I'm all for anything that works!! At least you have your mom to keep watch over you and the boo boo. I don't know what to tell you about the stall in your weight loss. Just keep on keepin' on. It WILL show up one of these days!!! You have got to be losing inches for sure with all the exercise you're doing. TracyK..good morning to you and you have a good day too!!

On my way out the door to get the ingredients for the soup too!! Terry... you coulda made a bundle if you had charged for the recipe!!! We are at 78 degrees right now. It got up to 84 and the a/c wasn't working at Curves today.. arghhhhhh Just had a couple of macadamia nuts and they are sitting right in my throat. I guess the fill is working!!

WOOO HOOOO LAURA!!!! CONGRATS ON THE -50#!!!!:clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2:

Good Morning, Violets.. We'll DH and I are back from the great adventure. 8 hours of driving for a 10 minute appointment would be the pits if we didn't go together. We had a great day talking in the car and then hitting the outlet mall on the way home. I got a new Columbia jacket for winter, DH did too, a new pair of Reeboks, a new sweater from Coldwater Creek (XL!!) and two pair of workout shorts. Also got a cute, cute Halloween outfit for Ethan. He'll be a little kangaroo. All in all, a very good day. I had .5cc put in so now have 2.5 in a 4cc band. DH has 3.5 in his 10CC. He had a little trouble with his pills last night, but I'm having no issues with things getting stuck. But I am having a hard time finishing my 1/2 cup of cottage cheese and blueberries this morning. We both gained last month, but the doc said that was to be expected on the cruise and he said we'll be fine this month. My blood pressure was good for the first time since surgery and the fill was the easiest ever. One poke and no pain at all. Our next fill is Nov. 19 after the next cruise. We've vowed to make this cruise a much more healthy one. My revised mini-goal now is -11# by Nov. 4. I'm on a mission!!! DD is coming over at noon and we're heading to Curves and then I'll hit the gym this afternoon for some biking. TracyK.. glad you had the attitude adjustment with the scale. We have put ours away and I told DH we are NOT weighing in til Sunday. We'll only weigh once a week. Sorry to hear about your infection!! Jennifur..I think I need to come there and slap some guys upside the head for you. I think I could get really good at this!! Pamela.. I'll be buying tickets for the Clay Aiken Christmas concert here in Michigan for DD for her Christmas present. We both LOVE him!! We're Claymates. This will be the 6th concert of his that I've gone to and each one has been amazing. What a voice, and what a personality! I'm off to do laundry and some cleaning. Everyone have a great day!! Patience, trust and WWJD!!

Good Morning, Violets.. Just a note before we get on the road for the 4 hour drive to our doc for our fills. I didn't feel well yesterday, slept most of the afternoon and was up a pound today. BUT, I'm ok with it.. I know the fill will make the numbers go down again and I have a mini-goal in mind for Nov. 4, our next cruise date. I want to be at 169. I think that's darn doable. Everyone have a great day and remember.... PATIENCE, trust and WWJD??!!!

Tracy, Tracy, TRACY!!! Step AWAY from the scale!!! Give it a rest. Don't weigh in again for a week. You are being controlled by that darn scale. Judge your progress by how you feel, how your clothes feel, not every little ounce the scale says!! Have you been getting your water in every day?? Have you taken a water pill lately?? I have been at a plateau since our cruise and I'm not fretting about it. It WILL happen.. just not as fast as we would like. I'm going for a fill tomorrow and have great expectations that the numbers will start going down. In the meantime I'm doing my exercise and eating the best I can. That's all I can do and all you can too!! If I was there I'd slap you upside the head and say.. "my god, girl!!! Look how well you've done so far!!" Sheeeeeeeeeeesh!!! ((hugs))

Good Morning, Violets. Sara.. it's so good to see you posting again. We've missed you!!! Now, where the heck is Lunasa??? I'm all dressed and ready for church. Just having a little breakfast before I hit the road. Today was weigh in day, but no change. Better than gaining, but I am definitely ready for a fill so those numbers can start going down again. Jennifur... YIKES on the burn.. you take good care of it so there's no infection. Sounds awful!! Laura.. I've had tons of episodes of things getting stuck.. but this was the very first time that things decided to come back up instead of working their way down. Not a pleasant feeling at all!! Hope you're feeling better today. I'm off to get things ready for the choir before church. Everyone have a great day!! Patience, Trust and WWJD??!!

Good evening, Violets.. Well, it finally happened. I am no longer a PB virgin. We had a nice supper this evening. Crock pot cooked pork roast from Schwans, mashed potatoes and gravy and mixed veggies of zuchini, peppers, onions and garlic. Everything went down fine until the last few mouthfuls and I should have quit while I was ahead. I knew after my last bite that I was in trouble. I've slimed before, but this was different.. it hurt like HELL... 'scuse the language. I thought I'd take a sip of Crystal Light to help it down... wrong!!! I leaned over the waste basket and up it came. I don't ever want that sensation again!! I can't wait until an hour is up so I can have some Crystal Light. We're off to our local Brewing Company tonight.. they are having a Native American Flute group as entertainment. Everyone have a good evening and DON'T do as Judy did tonight!!! Yikes!!!

Good morning, Laura!!! Welcome back and so glad to hear that you didn't have a defective port. My port is up high under my left breast bone. So is DH's. You'll be up and losing and no time now. Your ticker will be smokin'!!! Gosh, wouldn't it be nice to be able to meet everyone in person?? I've been to Oklahoma and Texas and Florida to meet people I have chatted with online. I'd be more than willing to go anywhere to meet up with everyone!!! Wouldn't that be a hoot to have us all together in one place for at least one day??? I'll be the designated driver.. :eek:

Good morning, Violets.. Another beautiful fall day here in Northern Michigan. We had a storm last night.. lots of wind and rain and that pushed out all the warm air. DH and DS are going golfing today and I'll have Ethan for a little while. Before that, I'm going to try and weed through the guest room and get all the clothes out that don't fit me anymore. I can't even begin to tell you how many clothes I had accumulated. It's been a real eye opener! I found some yesterday that fit me now and they still had price tags on them and were from years ago. wooo hooooo NSV!! Laura...hope you're feeling better today. At least it's over and done with and you've made it across that bump in the journey and are ready to go full speed ahead again. (no, I was NOT a driver's ed teacher). Terry.... CONGRATS on the 30#!!:clap2::clap2: Isn't it great to hear about all the weight we're losing?? We're ALL doing a fantastic job and will continue to do so til we all congratulate each other on getting to goal!! (from my lips to God's ear)!! I just finished my cottage cheese and blueberries.. man those things are expensive this time of year!!! I'm off to do laundry and get the guest room shoveled out. Everyone have a great day and remember.. Patience, Trust and WWJD??!!!

TRUST!!!:waytogo:

Here's an interesting article.. If you see it, you'll eat it, expert says - CNN.com

Good morning, Violets.. Been a very busy week with babysitting and getting ready for three concerts in the next two weeks. I've hit the gym with DH every day and do 30 min. on the stationary bike. I did the aerobics class last Tuesday, but probably won't go back. They do step stuff and my knee can't take that plus they do a LOT of mat stuff and I can do all that and more at Curves and the gym. Soooooooo I'll stick with what I've been doing and hope it continues to work. I've only lost 3# since the cruise, but that doesn't bring be back to pre-cruise weight, but I know I need a fill and will be happy when that happens on Monday. I get hungry inbetween meals and it's tough to just ignore it. I've been doing ok, but I know I'll be much better with a fill. KAT.. glad your dad is doing better. TracyK... hope your headache gets better very soon. GROUP HUG:hug:for Laura today, knowing she'll be just fine after this glitch. Ethan is here and needs to be read to so I'm off to do the grandma stuff. Everyone have a great day!! WWJD!!

I'm guessing by now your DH is banded! Hope all went well and good luck to you when it is your turn. You're not going to regret the decision to get it done and doing it together is even better. My DH had his done a month after I did. We're both doing great and so very, very glad we had this done. It saved our lives!!

There ya go, Laura. If you make the noise, they will do their best to make you happy. They certainly don't want a disgruntled consumer on their hands. Especially one with LOTS of friends on line who could spread the word if they don't follow through for you! RIGHT, VIOLET SISTAHS???