piercedqt78

I only have a quick second, Kat I'll be to help plan anytime. ~Mandy

It is a nice light batter. Not too thick. About half as thick as the batter at long john silvers. (they use pancake batter) It reminds me a real fish and chips. Think british pub fish. I think if I have turned it a few more times in the batter it would be more of a tempura type batter. My mom also said if I used seltzer or club soda it would have been a lighter, fluffier batter. I used plain ol' water. ~Mandy

I went in and told the psych that being thin wasn't going to make me happy, I had to be happy on my own. I also had to explain what the band was, how it worked and why I would be able to make it work for me. ~Mandy

I worked on the community newsletter for my subdivision all week. I have to present it to the board on monday evening for approval. I also have to decide if I want to take over the social commitee by monday. I was offically offered the position this morning. It's a mess right now, the old officer let too many personal issues get dragged in and the board wants a fresh outsiders face running things. That's where I come in, I'm new and neutral with everyone. I want to do it, but it's a ton of work. $8,000 worth of parties each year, plus potlucks and pool parties (we have a pool in the community so those don't cost anything) I'll most likely take it, but have asked that I be able to ask a few people to step out until they have calmed down. It's seems like it's been the same 8 or 10 ladies for 6 years, and the parties are all the same. New faces, new ideas. I want to get more kids involved. We have a great mix of kids around here. That's my weekend, tomorrow is laundry. ~Mandy Oh, I made tilipia for dinner and it was really good. I used McCormik's fish batter on it, I will be buying that again. It was 1 cup of the batter mix and 2/3 cup water. Made a great English style breading. It would be good on shrimp too. ~M

Jessica, I didn't know you were in Poland. My husbands family is polish/german and french Canadian. My sisters in-laws are lithuanian. (sp?) I live in Chicago, there are more Polish people here than in Warsaw Poland. I love it, we can always get good Polish food. ~Mandy

Patty, you have to go back to the ticker site and create a new ticker. Then you login to your lbt profile and delete the old ticker, then paste the new one in it's place. When you click save signature it will magically put the new ticker in each and every post.About the spywear download this program and run it daily until the problem is gone, then at least once a week to prevent it from happening again. It's a free program and works really well. Ad-Aware 2007 Free - Lavasoft ~Mandy

Kat, (((hugs))). You know we are here for you. Don't stress over the unknown, take this journey one step at a time. Remember when lifes gets toughg God and your band sisters are here to carry you. Much love sweetie, Mandy

You had been gone too long for the monkies. They have bad memories, and had forgotten what you looked like. Also you could bribe them with bananas, the apes were needed in your case. ~Mandy

Diane, welcome. You will love the NJ group....(better kagoscuba??) We laugh, cry and generally have fun together. We have also been known to send flying monkeys out to find missing regulars. So keep in touch. ~Mandy

The Chicago Bears won last night too!!! Looks like the LBT girls won all around yesterday! Too bad the Cubbies aren't doing so well. ~Mandy

Kat, the test results are GREAT news!!!! I'm so happy for you. My mom had to have her thyroid removed 14 years ago, and she is fine. A small scar, but all else is well with her. Chris, you are too sweet. I am getting back to being a good band patient. Tonight for dinner I had a small portion of roast beef and some baked apples for dessert. I still need to work on the Water...why can't I ever get all my water in???? ~Mandy

Betty, I wish you could e-mail me some of those beans. I'm the only one in the house that likes them so making a pot of fresh ones is a waste. What I do is buy the frozen french cuts one, fry some turkey bacon in my small pot, then add the green beans and a bit of water. I let them cook until they are tender and I have that for dinner. My mom still uses regular bacon or salt pork.... I don't eat pork so it's turkey bacon for me. You just have to be careful when you add the green beans to that screamin' hot pot with the bacon grease in it. I am going to make a bit pot of beans this week. It's fall but still in the upper 80's here, which is very weird for Chicago. Last year we had an ice storm the week of Halloween, the kids had to wear long johns under their costumes. This year we have only needed long pants two days. I don't know if it's global warming, or just unseasonally warm right now. I'm not complaining at all, I hate the cold. My DH jokes that 15 mins after it snows, I say look how pretty it is, now when will it be gone. LOL. I too have house work to do today, and I have to paint the basement next week. The flooring is all done, and the trim has all been primed, I just have to paint so it can be installed. Will the home improvements ever end??? I'll check in later. ~Mandy

Lauren, is there a Cost Plus world market near you? They sell bulk tea, and usually have a good selection. As for how much tea to use, it depends on what the mix consists of. If it's dried fruits and flowers, use a bit more and allow it to steep slightly longer. For actual leaves, you can get away with less and a shorter steep time. I do the honey thing and it works really well. Have you tried stevia? It's a natural sweetner and is really good. I'll ask if she is going to get the christmas tea in again this season, if so I'll get you some. ~Mandy

Thanks Sherry, you are too kind. Jessica, I'm glad things are looking up for you. Keep your head up, it will get easier. I had a slight unfill on tuesday, and am feeling much better. I had restriction, just a bit too much. I could eat but it was uncomfortable and I was having some refulx again. While there the band doc sent me for some basic labs (I missed my last appointment while recovering from the hysto). Well my sugar was *40* fun huh? Today it was a bit better but still only in the 60's. Also my blood pressure was really really low 70/45. My primary care doc ordered a ton of tests, 9 tubes worth!!! I will have results early next week, as monday is a holiday I'm guessing tuesday or wed. I have been really sleepy, now we know why. I am basically a walking zombie! I'm going for a nap. I'll check in later. ~Mandy

I think the pictures make me look much thinner than I really am. Sherry and Chris saw me, they can tell you that I am not as small as I look in the pics. Abi looks more and more like me everyday, and she has my attitude too, poor kid. ~Mandy

Can you tell I am at home in that park? ~Mandy

Here are 2 devent pics of me, both in EPCOT. I will post a link to my photobucket album when it's up and running.

Jessica, have you considered selling on ebay? I pay for my family to go to Disney every year with Ebay. I sell things that are just cluttering my house anyway. Old cell phones, cd's dvds that never get watched etc. There are always ways to make a few bucks. Ask at work and see if you can pick up a few extra hours for a week or so. I hope it all works out for you, and yes the DR is beautiful. ~Mandy

I see Dr. Lahman (same practice) and both are just great. I am in Romeoville. There is a small group of us that get together for lunch at Panrea once a month. I hope you guys will join us this month. ~Mandy

Darcy, I am so glad to hear you retained custody of Em. I was starting to worry that you were in the slammer for beating up the ex-jerk. How old is Em? Is she old enough to choose where she lives? I know in IL it's 12 and the kid gets to decide unless abuse is proven. ~Mandy

Darcy, you there girl? I'm concerned about you. How did everything go today? I am off to bed. Abi's homework really wore me out. Actually the battle to get her to do her homework is what did it. It kills me, she spent more time fighting over a stupid worksheet then she did finishing it. She is a smart, stubborn girl. Say a prayer for her, we are battleing the school for some extra help for her this year. I fought and lost the same battle last year. This year I got smart, and got an advocate. I just don't want to have to shell out the $4000 for a lawyer, but will if I have too. Well I'm off to bed, planning to say an extra prayer for Darcy and Patty tonight. ~Mandy

Kat, that is so scary. I'm glad you are alright. You are such a sweetie, try to take it easy for a change. Even if just for one day. Darcy, where are you dear??? I'm starting to worry. Please check in soon. ~Mandy

Darcy, we are all pulling for you. Remember that love is blind.....but then women get smart and open those eyes back up. You had the good sense to leave and that's all that matters. I'm saying a prayer for you today sweetie. ~Mandy

Serena, we are all here for you. Remember here on lapbandtalk you are never alone. ~Mandy

I actually prefer to buy tea in bulk and either bag it myself or use a tea ball. At christmas time a local tea merchant sells a blend called Chistmas in your mouth, it's really spicy and has whole cloves in it, it's the best. I'm lucky I live near "China Town" in Chicago so I can get some pretty rare tea reasonably priced. There is a tea shop there that makes custom blends in the pyramids yum! I also recently found that a french press (for coffee) makes great strong tea. My mom calls me a tea snob, I tell her that since I USED to pay $70 a bottle for good scotch, I can afford good tea for myself now. And if you figure what a can of coke or pepsi cost, I am getting off pretty cheap with my gourmet tea. I do splenda most of the time, but I also LOVE fresh honey in my tea. I get my honey from a local bee keeper, he has plain and also creamed honey. That's just about a perfect afternoon, fresh honey in a warm cup of good tea, give me a good book and life is good. ~Mandy