lafsalot

It was in the cards for you to be skinny! It is ironic how it came about though.

UGH - what a week!! and it's only Wednesday. Diva - no worries-- barium swallow and an x-ray; it's a cake walk. K - thanks for the cat story. Too cute. I have two rat terrier puppies that keep me in stitches. Christine - looks like your stomach issues are at least treatable and they know what is going on now. Better to know I think. Sux that you can't have a fill. Hope it all goes away as quickly as it showed up. As for me - another great NSV - My 5 year-old said to me "mommy you look really pretty." I replied "Why thank you honey". To which she said, "No I mean it - your tummy isn't all big and poofy like it used to be, and your wrists have bones in them." At which point I gave her a huge hug and thanked her profusely. OK - now I'm going to vent for a minute! Stupid, idiotic, troublesome, damn automated voice answering services!!!! Just this week alone I have had to deal with two insurance companies, a car rental place, the cable company, and immigration!!! I won't go into the details becuase that would be the longest post ever -- but suffice to say... I have spent countless hours on the phone pressing 1 or any number of other countless options only to be directed by some stupid machine to "LEAVE A MESSAGE" :thumbup:- I can't think of anything in the world that is more frustrating. (btw most of this came about because DH wrecked his car (he's fine) and the cable box went bad). OK, I feel better. The rest of my week will be "automated phone" free.

Christine - don't you dare start lurking. We are all worried about you and want to make sure you are ok. That's the thing about this site... we are here for you just for the positive. What you are going through could happen to any one of us. I'd hate to think that I didn't have anyone to share it with if things went south. We are not "fair weather" bandsters... we are here for you. Harley - glad to see you again. We've missed you. Diva - I have 10 cc's in my band. I had zero restriction until then, Boy was that frustrating. SpecialK - HOw wonderful for you!! I'm hoping to reach that 100 mark by my reunion this October.r Happy dances and toasts all around. Amanda - I know this is going to sound crazy, but I swear it broke my plateau. I went almost 4 weeks without losing a pound. Then my daughter got sick and I had to spend 3 days in the hospital with her (not reccommended) but... because of the situation, I was forced to eat horribly. For 3 days I ate nothing but fast food. I gained 5 pounds. HOwever, the following week, after I got back on track - BAM 8 pounds lost and I've lost steady since. I heard this somewhere else too, it has something to do with calories and metabolism and starvation modes??? I'm not sure. I read so much, it gets all jumbled up sometimes. I think even on here someone recommended to "just be bad" sometimes and it helps give a jolt to the system and knock it out of it's plateau. Just a thought. My birthday was yesterday and I spent the most wonderful weekend with some old friends. They were all very excited about all the weight I've lost and couldn't believe how "skinny" I looked. I'm tempted to find some other old friends so that I might bask in the glory of it all..:crying:

I can't get anything down in the morning if I don't drink something first. Not even a banana. I drink about 1/2 a glass of water before I leave the house and then I eat something lite - banana, yogurt or the like (with protein shake) when I get to work about 30 minutes later.

I think I have plastic surgery in my future. I'm sure the tummy will have to be done. I'm young enough (and vain enough) to want to have the girls done too. The girls have never been very attractive, at least to me anyway, so I think I'll treat myself. I have a long way to go though. Excellent NSV this weekend. Went shopping for my birthday and bought some new summer clothes. I'm down 5 sizes. I haven't been this size since college. It was very inspiring. Sounds like everyone had a good Easter. Mine was nice and quiet. I didn't cook, so there was very little temptation. Lisa - I hope you get those pics working; we'd love to see them. Scrappy - you have to cut yourself a break. You're top of the class when it comes to this lapband stuff. You deserved a reward. I do however tip my hat to you for being so hard on yourself... it's probably why you are so successful. Kudos to you!!!

Christine - it's not funny... but it's funny that you are actually glad that you are still in pain. I feel for you and hope that you and your doc figure out what is going on so that you can fix it soon. I think it is a common fear, I know I suffer from it, that we are going to gain all of our weight back. After what feels like a hundred years of yo-yo dieting, that is what we've come to expect. Remember though - the band is different. This is not like the last time... and once you've lost it, it's gone forever. This band is meant to work for life, and even if you "stretch" your pouch and try to go back to your former ways, from what I understand, you go to the doc get an unfill and leave it unfilled for about a week. Then the pouch shrinks becuase it can, and then you get filled again and BAM!! you are right back at restriction. This is a wonderful tool and I'm so happy to have it. I also wonder if there is a time period where people tend to experience a slump. I would like to say more... but gotta run. Chin up ladies (and absent gentlemen:blush:) - we've come a very long way

WElcome back Fenton. We've missed you. Potatie... congrats on your success. Good for you Sugarbean - standing up for yourself isn't always easy, but it's always right, and you feel better too. Hope- you are slowly but surely talking me in to a Wii fit. Everytime you mention it I'm jealous. I'm just afraid I'll buy it and never use it. HOWEVER... it sure would take away all of my excuses not to exercise. Maybe that's why I haven't gotten one. I can still make excuses... hmm... a small moment of clarity. Funny how talking to all of you like this seems to bring those things out in me.

Fenton (sing songy)--- where are you???? Come out come out wherever you are.

Good to know about the really small fills. I have an appointment on the 28th and I am still pretty satisfied with my restriction, but also feel like I could use a tiny tweak. I think a 1/2 cc would be perfect. I haven't even seen the doc since I reached restriction in October. I bet he's going to be surprised.

Nothing new band wise to report here. Just thought I'd check in. We bought a time share yesterday with Silverleaf Resorts and we are very excited. We love to travel and vacation and with a family of five it's not alway easy. I was reading all of the posts, and realizing how much we've all lost. It's amazing... just on page 292 we've lost over 800 pounds!!! That's insane. We are all doing so well. Especially Scrappy, Andrew and Harley girl. I set a new goal for myslef this morning. I received my 20 year reunion invitation in the mail about a week ago and the reunion is in October. I'm going to be in onederland by then. I don't think I'll be in any two pieces anytime soon though. You go Harley!!

Andrew - we went out I-10 and took a right on 71 headed towards Austin. Bluebonnets start almost immediately and continue on for about an hour to an hour and a half's drive. We took pictures in several places, but the ones on the hill were best. It's near an overpass, and it's the only overpass I can remember between Schulemberg (sp) and Austin on Hwy 71. The flowers are on both sides of the freeway, once you see it, you won't mistake it. We had such a great time. We go every year. We've made this trip a tradition and I hope that it will continue so that we can watch our kids get bigger - and me get smaller - tee hee

I had the surgery in March of '08 and didn't reach restriction until Oct. '08. It took 10 cc's for me to feel restriction. I was so frustrated and felt like such a failure. If you are eating anything you want and as much as you want, then you don't have restriction. I suggest you continue to go to the doctor and let him/her know what your situation is and make him/her give you fills until you reach restriction. Believe me, once you reach restriction you will know it. Don't let anyone convince you that this is your fault. Once I reached restriction, it was a whole different ball game. I've lost 60lbs. since October, and I love my band. Good luck to you, and I hope this helped.

Wow Teri--- you look great!! Way to go!! I promised some before and current pics as well; let me see if I can make this work. There... I think I did it. Ignore the date on the picture where I'm standing with black pants. That was taken last year at this time. The one in blue was taken two years ago. the two photos where I'm wearing a black shirt is yesterday. I'm very proud of how far I've come, and am on the fast track to collar bones. :crying: Congrats to all of us!!

Hey Andrew, welcome. Nice to see a fellow Houstonian in the mix. Well today is my bandiversary and to be honest I didn't even remember until I logged on to check the posts. DUH!! I'm down to 238lbs. That's 59 pounds lost forever. Pretty good considering that the band has only worked for me since October. Congrats to everyone and their success. I agree, we need more pictures. My family and I are planning to take our annual trip to take pictures in the bluebonnets and I promise to post some before and nows as soon as I get them. Funny thing... even though I didn't remember, I seemed to feel the need for a small makeover. I went to the salon today and got a new haircut and a pedicure... maybe my subconcious remembered even though I didn't. Even my toes are skinnier ~ tee hee.

Hope - I think you can find Wii fit on amazon.com. I haven't looked in a while, but last time I did, they had them. Thank you for your honesty about your weight loss, and I'm sorry if I intruded. As stated before, I'm kind of in the same boat, only I wasn't eating around the band. I didn't have any restriction. I thought I was crazy at first, and the p.a. tried to blame it on me. Thank God my surgeon listened and he gave me that last cc. It made all the difference in the world. However, I'm still sort of in the same boat as you... I don't exercise, and I haven't really changed what I eat so much as how I eat. So I eat a lot less. I still have a kolache for Breakfast - but it's 1/2 a kolache and not a kolache and two chocolate filled donuts and a dr. pepper. I try to eat a sensible lunch which means that it's whatever was cooked at home the night before. We feed seven people so sometimes - spaghetti it is. Again though it's a 1/2 cup to 3/4 of a cup of spaghetti and nothing more. I still eat mc Donald's, but it's part of a kids meal with apple juice instead of a super size meal with a soda. I'm still losing because I've managed to cut out a lot, but I certainly haven't made the sacrifices most of the people who post on here have. I realize that someday I will have to, and I pray that I will have the strength. For now... I am just thankful that what I'm doing works for me and I'm still losing. For those of you who are following the rules and have hit a slump (because there are quite a few of you)... Please take a look in the mirror and be proud. Be proud of yourselves and all you've accomplished. You are winning the war you've fought your whole life. So what if you lose a couple of battles.

This has nothing to do with weight loss or NSV's, but I thought I'd share anyway. We got two puppies on Sunday. They are soooo cute. We got a 7wk old female Rat terrier and an 11 wk. old male rat terrier. My 13 yr. old asked me yesterday why we got two... I told her "we got Sunny to drive Sparky nuts, and we got Sparky to drive Sunny nuts. All so that they won't drive US nuts." :confused: ajoneen - congrats on all of your victories. You may not be where you thought you would be, but at least you aren't where you were.

That was me. I'm only down 56 pounds. I'm doing better now though. I'm sure you've said, but I was gone for a while... Why weren't/aren't you losing? Love the poem "K" - the only thing is... I love my wrinkles... it means that I'm not so fat :thumbup:

ooohhh... that reminds me... a couple of weeks ago, one of my students referred to me as "the incredible shrinking teacher." Thanks for reminding me Lisa. NSV's ROCK

Was getting discouraged again and then WHAM!!! Three, I said three, NSV's right in a row. :thumbup: #1 a former student didn't recognize me while pumping gas on Monday. #2 My 4 year old was playing in my hair and said: "Mommy, your back hump is missing" :tongue: #3 I had to take off all of my rings, or secure them with smaller, ones because I lost my wedding set in the laundry on Sunday. I was also able to put on my highschool graduation ring. So funny - I was more excited that it slipped off than I was worried that I'd lost it. (I was pretty sure where it was... If I hadn't found it as soon as I noticed it missing this might have been a whole different story) I also went to the October lapband thread and checked out their weight loss since I didn't have any restriction until October 6th. It looks like I'm a little ahead of most of them. So here I am feeling good about myself, and wondering where I will let this take me... hhhmmmm.... I know - I'm on my way to collar bones!!:tt2:

Wow Harley. That post was wonderful. I plan on printing that out and using it frequently. How many times do we forget so many simple ideas. I've heard of all of those little tidbits, but have forgotten most of them. Looking at food with those mindsets will allow any and all of us to modify our eating habits for the better; banded or not. Thank you for that. I'm feeling a little motivated!

I really a little jealous... I can't eat lettuce... not one bite since being banded... even when I didn't have restriction, lettuce made me sick.

happy birthday cathy!!!

How awful that they put your weight on your driver's license!! Mine says I'm 2 inches taller than I actually am... wonder if I'll ever grow into it?

I was hoping for this too... My boobs were the first thing to go!!! I'm not small enough for Victoria yet... but when I am WATCH OUT!!

Congrats Harley on the new tattoo... it is beautiful. I agree with you on the stress factor. It really seems to make a difference with the band. My 2 year old was hospitalized last week with pneumonia, and I couldn't eat anything!!! I lost 4 pounds though! yay me. She's fine now, but the whole time I was worried there wasn't anything I could eat. Even now that things are back to normal, it seems as if my band is tighter than it was a week ago. Maybe now I'm stressed out over catching up at work.:rose: Seriously... everything is pretty much back to normal, and I'm liking the restriction. I've seen many of the postings regarding exercise and how much all of you are getting. I however don't have time to go to the gym. Any good results with exercise at home??? I was thinking about getting the Wii fit... any thoughts? I have to get that part of my journey started. I know I'll lose faster and steadier if I get off my butt.