DanaInNewOrleans

What is FFS?

I haven't seen that one yet..... GAWD! Lessofmeismore, I'm praying for you that you don't incur the wrath of the atheists....(not that there's anything wrong with being an antheist)

"I'm not fat!! I'm just big boned stupid!! ~~ Eric Cartman, Southpark

Thanks for the tip! I'm always looking for good books for Nook..

You know how you start thinking about some particular food and pretty soon you've convinced yourself that it is the most fabulous food in the world (even when you don't normally "love" it....just enjoy having it once in a while) and you cannot live without it? When I was kid a a got obsessed with having to have a radish. Yes, a radish. No idea why -- maybe I saw it on tv and thought it looked good. I kept asking my mother to buy a radish to put in my salads (yes, I was on a diet as a kid). But once I started thinking about it I became obsessed with having a radish. She told me that I had the wrong idea about what a radish will taste like... she was right...yuck. So anyway, I've been thinking about popcorn for a few days and I have now convinced myself that it is a terrible tragedy that I cannot have popcorn....I like popcorn but suddenly it is my favorite food....and I can't have it.... Just thought I'd share...

Wow. Ok, so you value people telling it to you straight right? Your post was mean spirited and totally inappropriate. And as long as you are diagnosing people, may I suggest you take a look at yourself. What did you accomplish by that post? Passive aggressive or not, DeeDee needed support. Maybe she was reaching out hoping someone would convince her to stay or maybe she really did want to delete her profile and get away from any more attacks. Everybody was stepping up to plate, realizing they hurt her and hoping/asking her to stay. NOT YOU....for some reason you found it helpful to further alienate her. Good job. I don't even know what transpired, but I can guess.... DeeDee please don't leave. The positives here on VST outweigh the negatives, I promise. xoxo

I'm going to be trying to this recipe too along with the roasted garbanzo Beans. I love steamed edamame so I bet I will love this.... Thanks so much! Dana

I have at least 1 protein shake a day, usually for breakfast. I haven't tried a huge range of foods yet--- I've stuck to chicken, fish, eggs/egg whites, soft veggies, Laughing Cow Baby Bell cheese, cottage cheese.... I just started trying things with ground beef (a few bites of a hamburger, Italian meatloaf, etc) and I've tolerated it very well. I haven't had any issues with foods other than when I tried to eat one of my husband's awesome grilled/bbq ribs. I took a few small bites and immediately realized it was just too heavy. I kind of just improvise with whatever we have on hand. Tomorrow I'm going to make a crab quiche from a recipe that was posted here on VST. I do need to start experimenting a little with recipes to get a little more variety. Oh, and I'm making roasted garbanzo beans (another recipe here on VST)...apparently they come out crunchy and delicious and make a great little snack. For lunch I do stuff like just slicing some chicken off a Sam's rotisserie chicken (I always make sure to have 1 in the fridge). Usually about 1.5 oz to 2 oz and I dip it in low calorie salad dressing. Sometimes I'll scramble egg whites with a little cheese and green onions. I still have trouble getting enough water/liquids in -- I average only about 30 oz, which I know needs to get better...

Olive oil is extremely healthy!!

I am making these tonight!! Thank you Karee!!

If it was me I would wait, mostly so that you can be more relaxed and at ease around the time of surgery. If you try to squeeze it in you'll probably be uptight worried about the new job and whether you'll be able to go on your (already paid for) vacation. If you wait you can then relax and put your energy into healing and starting a new way of life....

I was still having considerable heartburn/acid, even though I was taking Prilosec 2x day and Zantac in the evening. I had already tried Prevacid 2x day and Prilosec worked better but I still had the issue. Nurse Practitioner gave me Nexium -- she said it is considered the strongest PPI. I'm taking it once a day ( if I need to go to 2x a day I can). IT WORKED! I have not have any heartburn( other than in the morning before I take my Nexium!) What a difference not to have the nagging heartburn......

Matrix nectar Protein powder - chocolate Truffle Awesome with a few ice cubes and Hood low carb milk in my personal blender. Sometimes I add a tablespoon of frozen cottage cheese. Powder plus milk equal about 28 grams of protein. They have lots of flavors and every is good. http://www.amazon.com/Syntrax-Nectar-Sweets-Chocolate-Truffle/dp/B0016685YU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1361593552&sr=8-1&keywords=nectar+chocolate+truffle

Margaritas!

What do you think your daily calories are?

I'm jealous -- I was hoping I'd have all the aversions to good stuff but sadly no, so far I have tolerated anything I've tried ( except a pork rib -- way too heavy).

With a name like Deja Vu Du I had to check to see if you were from New Orleans.... Florida isn't too far away though!

That is the perfect way to look at it!!! There is another darling baby waiting for you!!!

I'm dramatic -- "obsession" is just me being a drama queen. Let me put it like this...I would love to have some popcorn. And I've been thinking about it like, I would really like some popcorn....can't wait till I can have popcorn.... I agree, the portion control is the key. I'd rather had a small amount of yummy popcorn than a large amount of dry Styrofoam balls! I really haven't had a craving for anything since surgery... my husband makes awesome grilled/bbq St Louis Pork Ribs...I was looking forward to it. I took 1 rib, had a couple of bites and was done. Way too heavy.

I forgot to mention -- I'm looking forward to making Crab Quiche next week. Someone posted the recipe here and it sounds good! I try to make something yummy each week to have throughout the week... this week it was meatloaf...

The one constant thing for me is that I fix one Protein shake ( nectar chocolate Truffle) every day which gives me about 30 grams of protein to start my day. lunch is usually simple - an egg or egg salad, sliced roasted chicken, sometimes an Atkins bar. Or whatever I have in the fridge. Yesterday I fixed a low carb pancake (Dixie Diners low carb pancake mix) with sugar free syrup ( Joseph's 0 Sugar Syrup). It was awesome! I've gotten creative a little with dinner.... I divide up a pound of 93/7 ground meat into 2 oz portions and freeze them. Sometimes I'll brown my little portion and throw some scrambled egg whites, mushrooms, green onions, a little cheese and make my own concoction. Last night I had meatloaf ( I make an a really good Italian Meatloaf) -- I had about 2 oz with about 2 tablespoons of smothered cabbage. Last week I ate on a Five Guys Little Cheeseburger for 3 days -- I ate 1/3 of it per meal. I'm not really actively restricting anything at this point. Just making choices based on what else I had during the day. For Snacks it is usually a Laughing Cow BabyBell Light.

Oh my God, that is horrible! I don't know what to say. You know, I think that given the circumstances you should have been allowed to keep Buddy. He was already in your loving home, had bonded with you (and you with him). I don't know.... I'm just so sorry....

Let me know how good/bad the Die Hard sequel. Not that it matters -- just knowing it's a Die Hard movie will be enough -- it's one of my favorite movies. Sort of like Raiders of the Lost Ark...when it came out with the old Harrison Ford in Crystal Skull ( or whatever it was) I was excited. I didn't really care whether it was good. It was just great to see Indiana Jones again! (And yes, it did pretty much suck) This is my philosophy about popcorn - I do not love popcorn enough to eat un-buttered, dry Styrofoam balls --if I'm going to eat popcorn I am GOING TO EAT POPCORN!! Know what I mean? One of the benefits (to me at least) of having this surgery is it has a lot of self correcting behavioral benefits. I'm hoping I will only be able to eat a certain amount then must stop because of sleeve restriction. BUT if it is a slider food for me, ok then I will adjust to that - Instead of eating a meal I'll have popcorn. Is that the healthiest? No, but that really is why I had this surgery. I want to be able to live normally and adapt accordingly! Make sense? At this point, I have obsessed enough about popcorn that I have now come believe that that POPCORN IS THE GREATEST FOOD IN THE WORLD and I am being deprived of it. LOL By the way, I sometimes think that all the nutritionists/docs/NPs doomsday predictions about certain foods are just a way to keeps us in line! Unfortunately sweets and breads have so far not had any negative effect on me. I've had a biscuit -- no problem. I had a piece of cake - no problem.

Vitamins can cause body odor, weird smelling urine, breath, etc.... For weeks my urine as been smelling metallic-ly.... I was driving me nuts. I suspected the vitamins...especially B vitamins. I stopped my vitamins for 3 days and yep, no more metallic smell....

I remember wishing every day was surgery day for months... the time did go by quick though and now I'm 2 months post-op and it feels like my surgery was a long time ago... Hang in there! ~Dana