mousecrazy

Way to go! Congratulations! Cindy

Thank you, all of you. You understand so well. Today i'm just getting all the stuff packed for everyone, and making sure all the clothes are ready for the rest of the week. DD wears a uniform at her school, so that is pretty simple. I've gotta go to the pharmacy and get a prescription filled...don't they always run out right when you're going out of town? This is something for migraines...which I rarely get anymore, but wouldn't want to take the chance of having one (stress) in Kansas, and not having anything to take for it! My little DD finally broke down last night and cried for almost 2 hours. :think I'm not exaggerating. Losing her g. grandma only months after her precious Nana is really a lot to handle for an 8 year old. I just hug her and listen, and try to reassure her that this is part of life. I tell her about heaven, but she would rather they all stay here! Big concepts for a young girl. Any advice is welcome. Well, pals, you all are top-notch, and I am so glad we have our little chats every day! I have attached a picture of Grandma, on her 92nd birthday this summer! Doesn't she look great? I will send some pictures of our Christmas decorations, but we're geting a late start.

Welcome, Sherry! You have found the best place for hanging out, sharing concerns and gathering information...somebody will have great info for you, whatever the question! Be sure to read all the stickies on the different boards, especially the one on abbreviations that are commonly used. The search feature will help you find threads on topics of interest to you. Post anytime, and ask any question! This is a great place! Cindy

Good evening to all, I got the news this morning that my sweet grandma passed away at 4 AM. I'll never be able to prove it, but I think she somehow waited until my birthday was over. We have made all our plans, and my father and I will go up Sunday morning; my husband and daughter on Monday. Visitation is Mon. night, and the service is Tuesday morning. Then, we will come back home Tuesday night. Grandma grew up in Kiowa, and everyone in the town will be there, or nearly so. It is hard, coming just months after losing Mom, but I know how lucky I am to have had her in my life as long as I did. Thanks to all for your prayers. Pat, those pictures are worth a thousand words! Like Eileen said, wish we lived closer and could all bake together! That would be so much fun! Betty, you are STILL cooking?! I am with you on the shopping...that can wait until later. It sometimes sounds like it might be fun, and who knows? Maybe I will do it someday. Thenk I hear about these people fighting over some electronic thing, and I think, "You know, I think I will just pay the $10 bucks extra...." LOL! We had dinner tonight at Master Grill, which is a Brazilian meat place...I asked (for the first time) if I could pay the childs price, and they agreed, right off the bat. No problemo. So, I enjoyed what I ate, knowing I wasn't paying $30 for it, only $10. It was great! Well, I'll be checking in tomorrow sometime, then I will be out of touch until Wednesday. Good night, Cindy

WAY TO GO!!!!!!! YOU ROCK! I am sooooo looking forward to the -50 mark, and it's fun celebrating with you, too! Cindy

I had a little turkey, a little mashed potatoes and gravy, a little dressing, a little sweet potato, a little salad, and 1/4 of a roll. Then, a sliver of pumpkin pie. No PB's. I eat slow and chew well. I enjoyed it immensely, and my niece (also banded) ate about the same thing...we commented on how it looked like we ate so much, but imagine what we would eat before?!!!! Tonight, I went to a restaurant that specializes in unlimited Brazilian-style meat. I talked to the manager, who agreed to charge me child's plate price, and I had some salad, a slice of salmon, and a lamb chop. No PB. I could probably use a tiny additional fill, but I am losing okay and really don't want to blend my food....I"m taking it slow. Hope everyone had a great day with family and friends. Cindy

Thank you all! I had a great day, a little sliver of pumpkin pie, and I counted it as birthday cake! I appreciate all of your good wishes! Cindy

Another thread to check out is something like "I love my band and it has changed my life because.........." There were lots of good responses there. I am very happy with my decision. I am 4 months out, and have lost approx. 40 pounds...sometimes 41, sometimes 37. So, I say 40 because it's a nice round number. I would have eaten myself into a stupor today, and did I miss it? A little. But overall, I was proud of my "brake" for working so hard for me, even when I don't want to. Something to think about: would you be happy if you did not get the band, and kept up the disappointing cycle of depression, diet, success, failure, repeat? Good luck with your decision, Cindy

First, HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Of course, I did gobble less than last year! Next, to Betty: HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! How many years? Eileen, that is one heck of a beautiful cake you made for us! Thank you so much! You made the day extra special! It's been a good day, all things considered. There has been no change in g'ma...maybe she didn't want to leave on my birthday? Still waiting.... Apparently, lots and lots of people eat out on Thanksgiving...I would never have known that if I hadn't done that this year. I still missed getting up early and putting the turkey in the oven, etc., like Beanie describes. We'll do it next year! The darn Cowboys lost in overtime to Denver....still, a good game, though. I'm jealous of you snowbirds up there in NJ...it just sounds great! I am thankful for all of you, by band buddies and friends...I agree we should hang out together through the years! Cindy

AWWWWWW, thanks! How very sweet of you to remember my birthday! And, Eileen, the cake is beautiful...look how well you taught Pat to cook! LOL! Thanks again! IT's been a great day!

Betty, thanks for the encouragement...I'm kinda looking forward to dinner out...something different. I am liking "different" these days! Pat, oh Pat!? Are you okay? How are those cookies, girl? Eileen, you are a busy woman...enjoy the day tomorrow, and I know everyone will love your care and cooking! Beanie, how's that Southwestern Thanksgiving treating you? Everyone, rest up tonight. The BIRD awaits! G'night, Cindy

Hi...well, I've scoured ebay and found that yesterday they were selling for about 3,000 dollars...yes that THREE THOUSAND DOLLARS! Today, looks like the going price is around $700. Keep checking there, it should continue to drop. Make sure to check out the seller's feedback before you bid! Very important! I'll keep watching. Cindy

This is one of the constant questions around the board, and after reading the answers, it appears that it all depends on your personality, and the type of people you are around. If you don't want to tell, that is perfectly fine. I respect that decision, and I bet anyone would. For me, I told everyone, and haven't felt pressured by people watching what I eat or anything. If they are interested in what I eat, they probably were before my surgery, too! Like, what does she eat so that she weighs sooo much?? LOL! Maybe it's my advancing age (50 tomorrow), and I just don't give a hoot what other people understand or don't understand. I understand. My family and friends support me, and that's all I need to know about that. I have also been able to help a couple of other people, which is something I am happy about. Decide what's best for you, and go with it. Cindy

A very happy birthday to you, Alexandra...my fellow November sister! Cindy

We have a little zoo! The 1st in line is Dharma, my Bichon Frise. She and DH were babies together. Then, my aunt died and we inherited her Airedale Terrier, Annie. Perky, your basic tiger-stripe cat fell from the sky and showed up beside the garage about 4 years ago, right after the death of my long-time cat friend, Athena. I wanted another cat, so DH and DD adopted one; her name is Snuggles, and she is a long hair tortoiseshell. Then, a beautiful long hair gray male kitten decided he would rather live here than two doors down with the toddler triplets, so we took him. His name is Slatey. He was the only guy around here besides DH. Finally, Dharma had a fling with a Min. Schnauzer down the block, and resulted in 4 puppies. We kept one, Mickey. He's a 9 month old black and white min schnauzer...nothing about him looks like a Bichon. Total: 3 dogs, 3 cats, 2 geckos, and 1 old red beta fish. Crazy!

Good morning! It looks like everyone here has their plans in order, and are hard at work! Pat, I can't wait to hear how your cookies come out...with the expert guidance here from Eileen, I am sure you will do great! Beanie, thanks for checking in from the sunny climes of Tucson. Swimming sounds so great! It's warm here, too...but I like hearing about the snow! I guess it comes from so many years in Texas (all my life!). Zan, have a great trip. And a safe one! The news from Kansas is g'ma's respiration is very slow (10-12 per minute), low blood pressure, low oxygen level. The body is still ticking, but they say she's been gone since Sunday. We are still waiting, still "on hold." We are definitely having T-giving meal at a restaurant tomorrow, which will be different. Steve's brother is in town from D.C., so we've gotta do something. I'll miss cooking, though. Like it says on your signature, Eileen, "walk in faith." I believe there is a plan for it all, and maybe making the holidays different is just a way to help us handle the loss of Mom...? We'll all know the answer someday, but I think I"ll just think of it like that for now. I love coming here to chat with you all....enjoy your day! Cindy

Hi, Jini! My port is slightly underneath the largest incision, on my left side, roughly waist level. Some people's ports are in different locations, but I bet you would be right to guess it is near the largest incision. Cindy

How do you whistle in writing?! I am leaping with joy for you, and if it cost a million, it was worth it! You look fantastic, and I am so happy you posted these pictures! Way to go! Cindy

Hi, Pat....I'll keep an eye out...I'd check Ebay, too, if I were in your position...is it possible to order on Best Buy.com, and have it shipped to you? I have no idea how hard-to-get they will be; we are in the Gameboy phase here, and I had to look and look to find a Nintendo DS bundle, but scored one yesterday! Good luck, and I'll let you know if I find something. Cindy

Hi, I just wanted you to know I am checking in on you. Start walking, and keep moving (like Jack said). Discover your tools and use them. ((((hug)))) Cindy

HI everyone! Lisa, first of all, I'm so happy for you that you have a date! That is a perfect time...I was fully operational (driving, shopping, cooking) 5 days after surgery, if I remember correctly...you will be able to do all the week-before-Christmas things with no problem, I would think. So, don't wear yourself totally out getting everything ready. About your DD--I have an 8 year old daughter, too. I chose to tell her everything. Of course, you know your DD better than anyone and know what she can and can't handle. With mine, the more she knows, the better she is at dealing with it. And, I also told everyone about my surgery, so there were no secrets that had to be kept. I've heard others say that you can "cover" your surgery by saying you had a minor abdominal procedure or something like that. I'm just an open book. I showed her the pamphlets, explained how it worked and why I was having it done. She was just excited that I would be able to dance with her! Betty, have fun cooking! I was looking forward to it, but with everything up in the air, we are looking at eating out instead...I may have to make pumpkin pies anyway! LOL! Eileen? Are you out of bed? Maybe your DD didn't have school today and ya'll are sleeping in....I'll check back later! Patty! Yes! It's real! Ask everything, and keep a little folder with all the info in it. I carried that folder around for weeks, but when I needed the info, I knew right where to find it. Keep us posted! It is sunny and cool here in Texas...looking at a high tomorrow of near 80. In Texas, we need Thanksgiving short-sleeved t-shirts AND sweaters....you never know what the temp. will be! See ya later, Cindy

Hello to all! Keep those prayers coming...everything is still the same, with no change to report to you. Just continued comfort care and waiting. We will make the trip to Kansas, but probably for her service. Thanksgiving is on "hold"...if we are here, we will probably eat at a restaurant. That'll be different...and no leftovers. Which is a good thing, but a bad thing, too. I PM'd you, Patty...you are too sweet! As for the random post...well, hmmmm. I am so glad everyone seems to be doing so well...I miss Beanie, don't you? Of course, she is on her vacation so I am sure she is having a great time! Zan, so happy you have made it through fill #1. It really is not painful at all. Fill #2 is doing very well...I might be up for fill #3 in a while. I am pretty sensitive to them, so am going slow on purpose! Pat, did you find any of my Ebay listings? I have just listed some small sweaters (we list stuff for other people; these are way too small to have ever been mine!). Betty, I hope you got to the store when it was less crowded...what's with this new trend of stacking boxes in the aisle, so two carts can't go down it? I hate that! I'll keep you posted on the continuing story...thank you for being there! Cindy

Good for you! I am glad to see you are making that step, and I'm sure you feel great about it, too! Skip the lydocaine, it doesn't hurt enough to get stuck twice! Good luck, Cindy

I wish I was in Maine! Does that count! Love your state! Cindy

Hello, Beanie, now you KNOW I am kidding (prodding, actually!) about the lying...just giving you an out, in case! This 2nd fill is wokring out great...I eat about a third of what everyone else eats, and it takes me just as long. That works for me! No PBing at all. Right now, I am 'wanting" to eat for stress relief, but can't. I love my band! Heard from Kansas today that G'ma is on "comfort care" which is a way of saying she is dying. My aunt said it could be hours, or a day or two. Please, if you pray, pray for her peace. She is strong in faith, and will be happy in the arms of her Lord. I know my mom and uncle and grandpa are waiting to bring her home. I will let you know when I know something. Beanie, your explanation made total sense to me, anyway. I know it is hard to adjust to never pigging out again, but we'll get used to it. Isn't that the great thing about our LBT friends? Everyone understands. What a comfort! I'm just killing time, keeping my mind and thoughts occupied. Did ya'll see Vera's before and after pictures? Amazing! Hugs, Cindy