DeLarla

Yeah, you know the All Bran cereal that comes like in spaghetti noodle form? I toss a handful of that stuff in my shake. I happen to love bran cereal, and it makes the shake really thick and very filling. Sometimes I add raisins, too.

I think I have some size 10 scarves, hair doodles and earrings. Hell, I still can't even fit in a size 10 shoe.

Not only a new baby, but a new baby girl. Life just can't get any better.

Just like what Kelly said, if you have 100 pounds to lose, will you be satisfied losing only 50, then having to diet? That should be the first and last question you ask yourself before going through a drastic surgery. It's lots of money, lots of potential complications, lots of downs... and lots of UPS! I would do it all over again. Yep, absolutely.

Donna, today I have a medium-size handbag, and the cup fits inside zipped up with no problem (and it's already clean for tomorrow's use.) The tiny base fits in the silverware drawer. I'm thinking back to when I was blending my cream Soups in the big blender, and this would have been much easier. Bye-bye, big blender! And, if you stick to the program long enough, the weight does come off! Congrads to you.

Boy oh boy oh boy, don't I know it's true. I still can't order band-size food. I was so jealous of my banded friend when I had dinner with her and her huband, because they shared a meal. My husband is thin, but he's a big hog and won't share. He wants his own plate. Dinner is especially hard, and I'm feeding my fur-children way too much people food.

Today is Day 2 with my new gizmo, and I love it even better today. I'm buying several next time I'm at Walmart. I don't even use the little blender top that it comes with. I toss in my ingredients and plug the top with the sippy-cup-lid, and hit the road. At work, I add some warm soapy water and swoosh around. Ready for tomorrow.

I don't regret getting my band. Yes, the band works. You get full fast, there are times you simply can't eat. However, falling back to old habits comes too easy for many of us. I just always end up being the brutally honest one of the group that's not afraid to say that I've fallen back into my old habits to the tune of a 10 pound weight gain. It's all about choices. The Band originally restricts you from eating, and when it's new, you are scared to death to do anything wrong, so you follow the rules. Soon, the Band becomes a comfortable part of your life and you face all the same social settings, parties, work, leftovers, fast food joints, candy isles, etc. The Band restricts how your stomach feels, but it does nothing to take away the DEMONS. My demons are just meaner than others, so it takes more of a fight from me. But I'm tired. I have many enemies, but no regrets. I say it like it is, which really bothers or hurts a lot of people because girls aren't supposed to be mean. But to me, I want the hard, cold facts. I don't want to see a bunch of happy, smiling faces if there are underlying problems that need to be addressed. I need to get down and dirty and fix the problems. Could you imagine if a man tried to fix a car engine while keeping his hands clean? It's the same thing when it comes to our weight, our lives, our jobs, our relationships. If it's broken, it needs to be fixed, and you might get dirty fixing it. So I come here, post the problem, gnash it out, HATE a bunch of responses, LOVE a bunch of others, LOVE everyone for caring enough to put up with me, then hope for a better tomorrow. Meanwhile, I think Kare is me with another screen name. Don't be afraid to get the Band. Just get it knowing all the facts, and the fact is that statistics show "most" people lose 1/2 of the weight they need to lose with the band, and the rest has to come off through diet and exercise. Therefore, I'm a success. I'm still down a solid 60 pounds. I could not have done it without the Band. Rock on.

My dogs won't even sleep in bed with me right now, and the house is air conditioned. They normally "permit" me to sleep in a portion of their bed.

Vinesqueen, let's see if anyone else compares to our circus-freak families. What was your weirdest punishment as a child? Mine was MIDNIGHT SHOWERS. My momster drank "Tyrolia" or "Spanada" wine that came in huge jugs. After a couple glasses, she'd wait till us 3 kids were dead asleep, then she'd tip toe in our room and dump the jug of Water all over us while chanting, "Midnight Showers." Then after we were all crying in the dark, she'd cackle all the way down the hall and go back in her room and shut the door, leaving us wet and crying. Please help me feel a little normal by trying to top that!

Why? Because you are better than her. You have every right to feel the way you do. My mother is a millionaire. She taunts me, as if I'm going to play her games. She wants control, so she dangles property under my nose like a carrot. She wants me to run a family business. She actually sent us (me, sister & 2 brothers) a letter saying we were each being watched, spied on, to see who deserves to be in her will. On a separate end of the planet is my father. He used to tell me how well he's taking care of me once he's gone, that I'd never have to worry. However, things have changed because both of these parents demand respect from me while treating me like I'm an idiot. I nearly killed myself in college to get straight As. I wasn't in competition with anybody but myself. I needed to prove that I wasn't the loser they think I am. I ended up on the front page of the paper with the highest GPA at CCSN. I walked across the stage feeling like the proudest person in the world, only to find out that my family accused me of "pretending I was going to school." Vine, I don't expect any of their money either, but we were all promised $500 for any A we earned and an additional $500 for any law class we took regardless of the grade. I was promised money for getting my real estate license. I did all of those things, but I'm not about to remind anyone that I have written contracts promising me the money. However, I was so tired of the rumors they spread about me, that I had all my awards, diplomas, certificates, letters from the Dean, etc., photocopied. I sent them to my Grandmother, who shared them with the rest of the bunch. It took five years after graduation to get a congratulation from anyone because they thought I was lying. I don't need or want a dime from them, but I understand your need for recognition. Oh yes, that I understand deep down through my soul. Meanwhile, my brother who grows pot in my elderly-anti-drug-grandmother's house, steals, lies, swindles, cheats (has been arrested, involved in YOU NAME IT) is almost a millionaire. He's a year older than me but only had one honest job 20 years ago (worked 2 years in a factory.) The rest of his life he's swindled a fortune from my family. He was named Executor of my uncle's will. My uncle left us each a good sum, but my brother kept it all. We still have a lawsuit pending. But, even though he made Gramma cry for stealing all that money, he still conned another piece of property out of her. Guess who will inherit the whole shebang? Let HIM have it.

Wait... is the inside of everyone's fridge as clean as Paula's? I don't have kids, but when Chris (often) drops a glob of jelly, he just relies on the dogs for clean up. My house sometimes "looks" clean, but most of the drawers and doors are stuck shut from things my husband claims he had nothing to do with.

And as sick as I am, I'm not even looking at Phil. I'm just trying to see what's in the fridge. Wow, Paula, you are a good little Bandster cause there's no goodies in there!

The Vegas Bandsters are having trouble kick-starting meetings. I've only gone to two meetings. The first was 5 people, the second only 3. I agree that a support group is really helpful. My new port will be around $2200.00, plus travel, plus lost work, plus fluoro, plus the fill, plus plus plus. If it would guarantee another 50 pounds, I'd go for it. But I'm looking at everyone's stats here at LBT, and so many people have plateaued that I wonder if it's worth my effort. I have the money right now, but I'm exhausted from all of it (see Zoe's post.) My life comes in waves. Right now I'm just floating but once a big wave hits I'll jump on it and I'll be ready to go again. However, I think many more people are over the Honeymoon phase than willing to admit. Just my opinion.

I'm cracking up over here. First I was jealous of the kids in the ocean, but look at lil Phil learning how to be a compulsive obsessive over eater at such a young age! He looks like me every single night. It's still hot, stormy and windy. I keep jumping out of my chair thinking somebody is breaking in. I have a patio door in my office, and pine cones keep getting blown off by the wind and hitting my sliding glass door. If I open the door, they'll whack me in the head.

Battery-operated underwear (cracking up.) Kel, I'll PM you.

Call me stuck up, call me conceited, but I've always wanted to be a cartoon character (okay, most of you think I already am.) What's it gonna take for you to draw me?

No way Mari, you really drew that? That's amazing, and she has my fantasy figure! You really drew that? She needs to go live in that beautiful fantasy flower garden in the other pictures. Wow. I make purses and tote bags out of anything. If I see something cute, I make a bag out of it. I've had some crazy requests, but so far I haven't let anyone down. Someone wanted a purple fuzzy bag, she got it! Lots of doggy totes, too.

I've been adding a couple tablespoons of high fiber cereal to my morning shakes. Maybe I'm weird, but I love bran cereal, and it makes the shakes thicker and fuller.

I'm currently reading, "Picture Perfect Weightloss." I find the part about Protein diets particularly interesting. When you deprive your body of carbs, you force yourself into a state of ketosis so you lose weight. I haven't gotten too far in this book yet, but there aren't too many long-term studies showing whether this state of ketosis can be detrimental... I'm not good at recounting medical terminology, so maybe somebody else can help me here. My point is I never believed in protein diets to begin with, and now I'm reading that they might be dangerous. Either way, most of us were concerned at first that we couldn't get enough protein in, but I haven't met one Bandster yet that's suffering malnutrition. Getting enough protein is very easy, even when you are well restricted considering you can drink protein in shake forms.

I bought 1/2 gallon of evil rich ice cream. After 2 servings, I threw the container away UPSIDE down in the trash without the lid. I don't trust myself.

I started gaining weight when I gave up my shakes. But the glass part of my blender broke, so yesterday I bought canned shakes. 4 cans were $8.50, which motivated me to replace the glass for my blender. That's when I came across the Hamilton Beach gadget for less than $14.00. My favorite part is there's only the small cup and top to rinse out - much, much easier than a blender or a Bullet.

Actually, the welding caps keep the hot slag from going in their ears (the melted steel or iron or whatever that molten lava is called.) When they weld, they tilt their heads to the side and flip the bill down over their ears to keep the hot, liquid metal and sparks out of the ear. Before welding caps, lots of welders lost their hearing and had horrible ear injuries. But now even all the guys we ride with are wearing my caps as helmet liners (I make them to match their bikes.) They say they keep their heads warm in the winter and absorb sweat in the summer. I just think they are a cute fashion statement when worn backwards with matching earrings (I can girly everything up, just ask my husband.)

Betty, you gotta get a picture of that nephew! The pics I took don't do those tiny bikes justice. About Big Bear, I spent half my life there before I met Chris, and I loved feeding the wild burrows. This time I brought a whole bag of veggies and potatos, but I was sad to learn that the burrows were all removed by the government years ago. Apparently, the seasonal residents complained that they were a nuisance. Bastards. I used to sit on my friend's front porch (she lived in a cabin there) and hand-feed the burrows dog food and potatos. I can't believe they are gone.

Shake it, Baby!