Dutchgrl59

Dear Christina, I want to wish you well on your journey. I feel you made a positive decision and I bet your darling husband is pleased also. I myself will be meeting my surgeon this week as I continue on my weight loss journey. Whatever road we are on, it is a comfort that we can all support one another. God Bless you. Hugs,

Morning Girls, Sherry:I got ya on my prayer list. You really gave me a scare. Cars and kids are such a dangerous mix. Please keep us posted on recovery. Hugs. Dianne:I have been Sooooo totally missing you. I hate that you have been in so much pain with your plastic surgery. Your photos are beautiful. Please, Please take it down a couple of notches and give your body a chance to heal. Bubble baths, foot rubs, a neck massage, pretty earrings, chick flicks..... whatever floats your boat, do it! You can even shop via electric wheelchair in some grocery stores, targets and walmarts -- wouldn't that be fun?! Gentle cyber hugs for you my dear and if you want to really talk I will PM you my cel phone number if you want it. Be a good girl. Hugs.

Morning all, I just got a minute. Rene: Could you tell me all about the teachers job and why you are leaving morgage lending? I am proud of you for taking that leap of faith and fractions aren't that hard. Just think about cooking and sewing they all require fractions -- I know that won't help much. Hang in there! Eileen: I wanted to address your question about my job. No, I didn't get the health aid position at the closer school because the district won't let me. I current am on discipline for "trying to kill a child" -- No just kidding! Lets just say there were events in January that led to probations and a slap on the wrist. I promise to explain further but it makes me irritable and I need to get ready for work. I played hooky yesterday and I gotta get my head in gear. OH, and I am very very proud of you and your new spot. Does this promotion mean that you finally got rid of the yuckky boss-man? WE are just some awesome chickies. I will try to catch you guys a little later. Hugs,

Caution: This post is being written by a sleep deprived woman. Garrett woke me up a 1am with a bellyache. He gets that way due to his medication and after "daddy" visits. He was in and out of the bathroom 5 times. By the time I got him to sleep it was 3am and I was wide awake. I prayed that I could get some rest and dozed off. I woke up a 6:46, just a smidge tardy. I got the twins up and drove them, then the little guys and then called in a sub. I decided that this was gonna be a red-letter day. Surgery do or die..... and since I already half-dead, what matters! My attorney doesn't have any good news so I decided to call the surgeons office. "just tell me, how much is surgery if I paid cash?" $16, 000 but you get discount if you have psych, and dietician visits.... then it's $15,800. OK, I say I will go to the credit union and request a loan. 40minutes later I have an OK for a $10,000. loan and a doctors visit for april 26th then I get my date! Wooo Hooo! The $5,800 that I don't have will be coming from my savings and I'm gonna pawn my ex's wedding ring (been saving it for just the right occasion). I'm so excited I am beside myself with joy! I want to write posts but I gotta go get the twins. I love ya all so very much..... I'm hoping to be a band-girl in less that 2 weeks -- bye!

Dear Christina, I was born in the city of Den Hague in 1959. I was 6 months old when my parents immigrated to the US via ship. We ported in New York and then took a train to California. We have moved around from los angeles county to Santa barbara county and I now reside in Orange County near Disneyland. Yes, Dutch is my native language but being raised here I speak better English than I do Dutch. But, there isn't anything that is spoken in Dutch that I won't understand -- so beware I understand EVERYTHING! When I am shopping or dining and someone speaks dutch, my ears perk up. Many many times I am at Disneyland and I hear tourists from Holland talk and sometimes I will offer advice like "Oh, you need a restroom" to "the parade begins at 1pm". They will look at me and ask "you understand dutch" and I will tell them "yes"! It will always surprise people because I have dark hair and eyes -- what they do not know is that is because I am part Indonesian. So, I am part dutch and also asian. A rather fun combination. Hope you are having a fine weekend.

Happy Saturday :kiss2: I wanna give a shout-out to Jenny. You are going to love this thread! The folks on here are the best support group ever. Me.... uhhhh, well, I don't have my band yet but soon. So, with that, Welcome! I am single this weekend and my breaking news is that my ex GOT A JOB! He starts on monday and his new office is literally one block from his old one. I praised him on getting the job and kissed the boys as they piled in the car. With spring break ending I have been looking forward to these few days of silence before work starts again. For those who don't know, I'm a Health aide for an elementary school of 800 kids. I work 3.5 hours a day doing bandaids 101 and taking temperatures. I love my job because my vacation coincides with my kids -- well, most of the time. This spring break had my high schoolers off last week and my little ones off this week! We mananged but boy, am I tired. No news on the lapband front but I pray that the good Lord knows my heart. Currently I am in the process of filling out my tax forms and waiting this long has to do with my level of busyness. Last year my $110. dollar refund was held back because of the taxes I owe from 2003. Ohhhh, that does sound bad, let me explain: In 2002 my husband cleaned out our 401K. Used the monies to attend gentlemens clubs in palm springs and a club 1mile from our home. I filed for divorce. Since the retirement money was linked to my husbands work, I had no access to it. But to the IRS I am responsible for half the taxes. I filed innocent spouse documents and was denied. This week I was notified that my wages are being garnished on May 10th. Cool huh? I am fine with all this. It no longer affects my self esteem. If all this junk had happened 4 years ago I would have been crushed. I won't go hungry, nor will the children. Once the Feds have been satisfied they will go away. I can only assume that they are after my ex in the same fashion and it will only be a reminder of his past deeds and hurt his pocketbook too. It will only bring questions to the mind of his new bride and baby. Oh, the things I could tell this woman. So, friends.... I love that you are here for me, but no tears. I have a marvelous day planned for myself. Last night I watched a video, had chinese food and went to bed early - yeah. Oh, and I have a dental visit this afternoon -- that could be depressing. Hugs,

Hello people..... all this Disney talk, and I live by the Magic Kingdom. Come visit me..... please! I know, you all hate Californians but it doesn't snow here in fact....mostly sunny! I can't give ya free food but I have ways of avoiding crowds know all the resort secrets and am willing to share. PS; Mandy, I will be praying for you and all your girlie stuff -- it's not fair that we girls have all this crap(excuse language). Love ya.

Dear Christina, I'm so glad to meet you! My darling Lewis has Tetrology of Fallot a congentital heart condition that is actually 4 abnormalities in one. If I recall correctly they are: arterial stenosis, malformed valve, thickness in the heart walls and 1-2 holes in the interior heart walls where blood flows back and forth which makes the baby "blue" in color. My sons feet were PURPLE when I changed his diapers! Lewis is doing fine -- I still watch him carefully but he has no restrictions and plays just like all the other 7 year old kids(praise God). This coming May I will be attending a seminar presented by Camp del Corazon a camp designed for heart kids. The parents attend the seminar while the couselors take the children to a local theme park -- all free of charge! I am looking forward to this event. OK lets talk WLS. "You said that you don't feel happy about yourself, think about weight 24/7 and you would not like to worry about weight anymore". Having surgery will not bring you happiness. The surgery is a tool and I have been told that the work of choosing the right food portions, chewing slowly and exercise is a 24/7 JOB. I don't think it is a quick fix and if you do not follow the band rules, just like the gastric bypass patients.... you can gain your weight back! I am really really concerned about the meds you take and honestly feel that surgery is not going to be good for you. Your poor sweet husband. I think you should try hiring a trainer and nutritionist. You can have diet food delivered to your home if you don't want to cook at the beginning. Or Jenny Craig/Weight watcher foods for portions. I know the movie stars have "zone" diet food brought to the home or movie set. You need to lose about 60lbs -- sounds like alot but.... if it were divided by 2yrs = 30lbs per year divided by 12months = 2.5 lbs per month! I BELIEVE that you could do that rather nicely. I am positive that Christina could lose all her weight in 2 years. Here's the deal, whether it is gastric bypass or lapband you could lose your 60lbs in 7-10months and by most standards thats pretty fast -- I just don't think it would be good for your heart. I have 100lbs to lose and I know I will need at least 2+years to lose that much. Slow and steady. So, keep your chin up and update us on your decision. Heart Hugs,

Hello Arizona, My name is Patty. Welcome to Lapband talk. This is a wonderful resource for friendships and information. Please do not be angry with the people that post here. I only just this moment found your post and I responded because you have a similar screen name. It takes time to find friends. Since I live in California, I do not know any doctors in your state. I myself have not had my surgery yet. I am in the approval process and it has been a challenge. My suggestion is to do a search on bariatric surgeons in your area hospitals and then come back here and ask if anyone has any information on that doctor. Yahoo also has a support group that deals with surgical weightloss and many people post there also. This is how I found my doctor. Another reason I found your post interesting is your heart condition. My 7 year old son has ToF and had surgery the same year you did. In fact we celebrate an anniversary tomorrow. Since you are a heart patient you should be speaking with your cardiologist about not only your weight but the coumadin that you take. Any elective surgery that you are considering needs to be coordinated with all your doctors together so that you won't be hurting your heart. I hope that you feel welcomed to the board and to know that I cared enough to write. Please let me know how your journey progresses. Heart Hugs, Patty

Morning all, It's Spring Break!!!! And did I get to sleep in?? Noooooo! I have already dropped off the High School kids and come home to feed the other 2, but still glad not to have to work -- yeah! Easter was fun, Garrett was told to stand up during service and everyone sang to him. Later we did a huge egg hunt, and he got cool gifts and we cut into the Giant pizza size cookie that I made him, instead of the cake. He was a very happy camper! Today I promised to take Garrett out so that he could spend his Birthday money. He wants a wrist watch and a pocket radio. Then we have dishes and laundry to contend with. While reading posts my eyes flipped open to see our own Cindy on yet another milestone. Retirement and onderland so close together -- that makes ones heart aflutter! Very proud of your accomplishment. And Darcy...... the cabin-girl. Simply adorable. That table that holds the quilts -- what a marvelous idea. Where did you get that??! The kids and I are the blanket crew. We sit around the TV all wrapped in quilts and such on movie nights -- crazy! We live in Southern California where it's warm.... uh, we're babies and fear the cold of 68 degrees! OK, you can stop laughing already. Hugs,

Good Morning and Happy Saturday. The twins survived their spring break.... I even let them go to Disneyland on thursday with their unemployed father. Thats a long story in itself but what I want to say is that I got all my back child support and my stress level is much better, as is my stupid cough. Yeah! Still waiting for my approval letter and I believe in miracles. Easter Sunday is Garretts Birthday -- he will be 12. We have an egg hunt planned and I ordered a pre-made dinner at the market (now that I have cash) everything will be wonderful. I need to wrap gifts today, boil eggs and pick up the food. If I get a moment, maybe color my hair also(mama needs to be sorta pretty too). Next week when the twins are back at school I will try to take Garrett & Lewis to Disneyland and we will spend the day together. The twins told me that my favorite yellow tree is in bloom and it flowers for 1 week only. I gotta take pictures. I have so much more to share and not the time. Love to all and the new faces here also. Happy Easter - He lives!

Morning Ladies, Just wanted to let you know that I'm alive.... sorta. Dry cough due to those darn allergies/stress. My ex has been out of work since March 1st and has given us $500 to live on. Rent is due NOW and my dear Mom called last night to let me know she is transferring monies this afternoon so we can pay Aprils rent. We're gonna be OK. I have been praying, envisioning using all the positive engergies I can muster for my approval. I don't need anything more than a "Yes" and I will fly out the door. The twins are off for spring break.... which means I leave 2 14year olds alone while I trot off to work. Should I be worried. I have a list of chores -- lets see if they get it done! I gotta run, just wanted to wave "hello" Hugs,

Hey friends, Thanks for warmly greeting me back. I have missed you all SOOOOO much. Man, in just the last few days quite a bit has happened. I have been phoning my insurance company EVERY DAY and I snapped on Tuesday. Thats when I called my attorney. What I need was to get a denial on paper, so that Kelley could do her part of the job. Again I called twice a day with inbetween calls to the drs office. And just like magic..... I got a paper in the mail today! I phoned the lawyers office and Kelley wants the paper in her hand immediately. With some trepidation I sat infront of my BRAND NEW SCANNER and decided this was the prime moment to use it(thats why I bought it, right?) -- but how?? I pushed alot of buttons and heard a whurling sound and saw the letter on the screen. Then I had to figure out how to fax or email the thing to san diego. After a couple of minutes I sent the email with 2 attachments -- WHOO HOO! How cool was that!! No stamp or nothing! I'm jumping, dancing..... just a total geek but I did it. Hey if I don't pat myself on the back -- who will?? So, now that my letter is in the hands of a professional I feel relieved :nervous . Oh, I forgot to mention that I applied to transfer to another school. I'm feeling hopeful for that as well. I want to fill you guys in on they yuckky that happened at work and the stupid almost eviction. But it won't be today. Gotta find something for dinner, cause we got HUNGRY kids here -- bye!

Hello New Jersey girls, Can I come back to the chat? A whole bunch of stuff came at me all at once: from nearly losing my job(Jan), an evicition notice(Feb) and my insurance troubles(current).... I still don't have a date for surgery and the clock is ticking. My cobra runs out on May 11th. I am determined to have my approval before the week ends and notified my attorney today to kick some serious butt so that I can get my approval and can set a real surgery date. My bags are packed. I have read just a few pages of March's chat and see that you all have been real busy and some of you have made some body changes. Very exciting. Soooo, I apologize for just dropping off the face of the earth. It was necessary. The only reason I am posting today was yet another one of my mini meltdowns and decided to take a mental health day and stay home. Thanks for listening. Hugs,

Dear Mary, I didnt get to go to D-land yesterday .... these days I'm just too weary to move my 'ol bones to the mailbox, let alone a theme park. Add to that weekend crowds and it's more than a bit daunting. :faint: With my broken dishwasher and my sore back I couldn't leave those yuckky dishes in the sink any longer and my rule is to do chores first and playtime after. I'm gonna attempt the park again tomorrow after work :nervous . Eileen: How's my sister! I got your cyber hug and it was much appreciated. Proud of you for the exercise -- way to go! Kat: What an absolute horror story at the resturant! Thanks for giving me more gray hairs. The mere fact that you guys still went shopping, simply amazed me. I myself would just go home and hibernate. Congrats on the eliptical. Darcy: I want to give you my walking miles too! Could I do that after my surgery? Walking is about the only exercise that I like and I want to do my power walk at Disneyland - it's more entertaining than my neighborhood! Well, gotta attack those dishes..... I make the little boys dry and the big boys put away, heck maybe I won't fix the dishwasher ever -- not! Luv,

:) Mandy, I'm so glad that surgery is over and you won't be in pain any longer -- whew! And your dinner fix'ins sound fabulous, yummm. :update: I have made 2 phone calls to insurance. #1 was to UHC and the bitter woman there spat out that I am covered but to use an "out of network" doctor will not be covered. That means whatever my surgeons office just told me won't work. Call #2 was to my employer/cobra and I again asked the same question..... "could I use an out of network dr".... they said no. So my next question was, which hospitals and which drs could I use for bariatric. I get to use my same hospital -- down the road 9 miles (yeah) of the 3 doctors at my hospital: Dr Oliak, Dr Owens or Dr H. I chose Dr. H, which means now everything will be covered. I called back Dr. Oliaks office and told Sara that out of network was not possible for me and she said she didn't know that(can't trust anyone") but she would hand carry my file to Rosa the insurance coordinator for Dr H.... that office was 2 doors down the hall. Sara copied my letter of necessity for Rosa who could just change the name of the surgeon and mail it on Friday. Where once again we wait for approval. I have until May 31 to have surgery because thats when my cobra ends. It's in Gods hands now. Sooooo, on a brighter subject: The weekend. I have the kids and we are gonna tidy up the house and later this afternoon, if the Mama isn't too tired we will go to Disneyland. I love watching people and the kids get tired from general mess'in around. We can leave when it gets too cold out and maybe hang out at the Grand Californian Hotel. The lobby is a huge livingroom complete with a grand piano. If you tilt your head back and stare at the open beam ceiling it is just magnificent. I just pretend that I'm sitting in my mansion and I don't have to clean it the boys can sit and watch cartoons or listen to campfire stories by the rock fireplace and I carry a refillable mug, which means that I can get the twins to fetch me something warm to drink. We will have a nice day together and that means the world to me. Hugs

Hey Guys, I've been keeping a low profile and have been fighting depression while working and parenting. I am still just putting one foot in front of the other. I ask no more from myself. I have talked on the phone to Sherry twice and she is such a lovely gal. Together we have discovered what my insurance plan is called, what my deductibles are and as of yesterday she thought she found an "in network" surgical center. I called my company yesterday and they told me that my center and doctor are "out of network" and the chick on the phone was as (&%$&^%*^*) but I didn't cry.....mostly just numb. My doctors office has already faxed a letter to UHC and I don't know what the outcome will be. Thank you for your prayers, my struggle to get a lapband aren't over.

It's COLD here, but I'm at least up! Did I read that correctly.... my girls Darcy & Cindy were smokers? I just can't picture that! And you quit. Thats just waaaayyyy cool. Hugs. Could you maybe help me with my smoking dilemma? I live in a mobile home which sits next to another mobile home. My back door/car port faces my neighbors porch where she smokes morning, noon & night at this cute little cafe' table. If I open my dining room window for some fresh air I will get cigarette smoke. That bothers me because come summertime that window is open all the time. Also, when my car is parked and we open doors and then shut them, the smoke gets trapped in my car. With 4 boys, one of them having had open heart surgery I REALLY don't like the second hand smoke. WHAT DO I DO? This is a brand new tenant and she set up this special smoking station because why???? I bet she doesn't want smoke in her house. And I want to protect my kids, but in situations like this I alway seem to lose. Do I talk to the management or to the neighbor lady. If I'm gonna guess she is over 60. Because these last 3 days have been extremely cold I haven't seen her. My guess is that she's smoking in the house. The landlord doesn't mind homeowners smoking, and I'm not trying to get anyone evicted but to tell someone they can't be outside, thats where I'm gonna step on some toes. Well, thats my hot topic of the day. I also want to tell ya that our dear friend Sherry has lovingly hugged me via the cyber wires and I get to talk to her in the morning and like Darcy said "regroup" and try again. Today I have errands to run and I feel strong enough emotionally to go do those things today. Yesterday I just vegged and spent 1/2 the day in my jammies. I needed to do that and now I'm good. I get the day off tomorrow and so do the boys so we have a 4 day week and then another weekend -- it's all good. Bye!

Good Morning, Thanks ever So much for the kind words. I just read thru my emails and my attorney suggested what Beanie said and that was to find an "in network" insurance company. How do I do that? I am not insurance savvy, I was a married girl and we took the insurance that our company offered. As a single this is new to me and hustling isn't what I do. What do I do now? Quit my cobra payments.... sign up with another company and send out new letters of medical neccessity? Which company do I get... is there a list.... where do I get the list from. How many months will that take? I asked my drs office about financing options and she said to go to the website and sign up with the finance company, I think capital one or some such. Dr Oliak is one of 2 lapband surgeons in Orange County. He is a very popular local Dr and all his saturday seminars a packed standing room only affairs. This office whos only business is WLS and people have or will find the cash, so I'm not special.They aren't gonna cut me a deal. Wouldn't it be more cost effective to go to my credit union or beg my poor mother? And what do I so when cobra expires in May, my 36 months of coverage will then be over and lapband requires fills and at least somekind of monitoring. I truely hate this position that I have be thrust into. All these decisions... it's too much. I can not sit by the phone or cel phone to research this. My weight continues to climb and my fuse is short. In about 10-12 weeks the temperature here is going to rise and it will be uncomfortable here in the house again. I know that I'm whining, I feel hopeless. I need direction. This week I was again faced with my kids schooling needs and special education plans that are not being adhered to. What is more important.... my 3 RSP kids or my WLS? Don't answer that. No one walks in my shoes and the journey has been perilous. Well, My weekend is here and I want to shop and think. :think

Dear Friends of Mine, Here is what happened as things went from bad to WORSE. Yesterday I called Siemens where my Cobra is being handled and the corporation decided not to carry PacifiCare and gave me United Healthcare as an exchange. I did not have any say in the matter. I then called UHC for my new membership number. At that point I just fell to pieces, called my MOM and poured out my heart. Has everything been a waste? Those three dietician appts that I paid cash for? The $800 for an attorney who got an appeal from Pacificare and now it does not matter? Will United Healthcare even do a lapband? By late yesterday I had my answer: United Healthcare is a PPO and they would honor all those appts. Since my surgeon is out-of-network I will have to pay $3,000 for surgery. Did I want to proceed? I reluctantly said yes and I was promised that another letter of medical neccessity would be faxed out today. The process for THIS approval will take 30 days. I haven't even told my Mom yet and I don't have cash for this surgery. I only work 3 hrs a day which means I need to get yet another loan to pay for a surgery that should have been completely covered by insurance. Rene: thank you for your PM. I am ever SO greatful to people that care. These last 2 days I have felt very alone in my struggles. I am much better today but only because I gave in when a cinnamon roll & coffee called out to me. The children have been warm and loving and I haven't been grouchy this morning as we headed out to school this FROZEN Friday. I can not make my surgery happen without an approval or a surgeon so I will wait for 30 days and invest myself in other areas of my life. This weekend is child-free so I will baby myself with a possible pedicure and visit a couple of thrift stores. I have my movies to watch and I will nosh on anything that suits my fancy. I do believe that God has a plan for my life.... I just don't "get it" sometimes. I ask why and God answers with "why not". Gotta get to work..... bye.

Hey guys, I just got an email from my attorney and PacifiCare says that I have no coverage! I paid my premium Dec 17 and mailed it so that it would arrive before the 1st. Why does this happen to me time and time again. I am exhausted. My whole life where there is paperwork involved the redtape is an enormous mess. When I tried to become an american citizen as a teenager it was a horrible 2 year screw up by the government and I had to do the whole messy business a second time. Citizens have no idea what a blessing it is to have been born here. I am SO mad that I could spit and have a feeling that I'm gonna miss work tomorrow because I need answers IMMEDIATELY and before the sun sets tomorrow. I hate myself.

Morning, Just reading thru a few posts, looks like they ladies here are getting quite thin -- very impressive stats Whoot! Mandy: Good luck with the surgery. Next time you go to WDW it will be without a cast or the pain. I said a little prayer for Abi. My Garrett is having some issues also and I've had a few sleepless nights. This too will pass. I am more than greatful that I work for the school district. Just the other day I sat down with our school psych and she gave me a direction and offered a shoulder to lean on. I will address Garrett's problem next week. In the meantime I'm having a margarita! Darcy:Exercise is freakish. and I love ya! Eileenie:When are you going on vacation? Me no like your boss-man. As for being calm and quiet about waiting -- ummm no, I'm not. The cool thing about a computer is that you don't have to listen to me. And the hagen-daz that I just ate..... stress eating, but yummy too! Rene: Did you read about that lady who eats backwards? Dinner for breakfast and B-fast for dinner. She lost gobs of weight. So the theory could work! Sherry: My tree is still up too.... and I am in no hurry to take it down! Betty:Hugs girlie, I don't like it when you feel sick. Take it easy, huh. OK, gotta scoot.... those kids at Hayden School will be anxious to get out of class, and I'm the one that gets to mess with them -- oh what fun!

Happy New Year I'm back from my trip to Santa Barbara and I have just a few moments to touch base with you all. I still do not have a date for my pre-op/surgery. My medical neccessity fax was sent 12/13/06 and I was told approval would be 5 days. I have made repeated calls and just now contacted my attorney again. Nothing in my life is simple. Today is my first day back at work and I want to focus on that right now. The holidays went well, my trip was good, with no car troubles. The boys have been boys and we had fun at D-land a couple of days ago. We have some housecleaning to do and can't find a missing key but other than that everything here is going OK. I have some major post reading to do so I plan to do that later. I'm sorry that I don't have better news to share, my hope is that this all ends soon. Hugs, Patty

Wow, Cindy-lou you've graduated to a whole new life! I'm Soooo happy for you. And, I can not ever imagine having to say good bye to kids, I did some of that last year but not like what you wrote about. Very proud of you for all that you gave to the world. :biggrin1: :biggrin1: Yesterday was just a nightmare for me..... the last day of school before Christmas break. I thought with all the kids in parties all morning I could wrap up paperwork..... uh no. I just had to have a 4th grader fall from the monkey bars and break his arm. Super duper. When that happens I have to take the wheelchair from my office and hike the campus to the injured one (let me remind ya all, I hate to leave the office) Thank the heavens that 2 male teachers were called to lift the boy into the chair. From there all I had to do was wheel him back to the office, put him on ice and call his mom. Once all this happened I was pretty much done and nothing more practical was accomplished. When work was over at 1pm I rushed over to our nurses xmas party. Still pretty new to the group these gatherings get me anxious, and I want to fit in and I just don't feel like I do. We had a gift exchange and in the middle of it someone glanced at her watch and said it was 3:34. I just freaked. The party went longer than I expected and my twins had been waiting for me to pick them up for over an hour. I ran from the party, without my gift. One of the girls said, "here take this one" I said NO, its the one I brought! and dashed out the door. It's why I hate gift exchanges, and being a single mom with no time to squeeze in engagements that I have really no time to attend. I only went because it's politcally correct to do so with the people you work with. To top this whole story off, I called the drs office at 10am to find out what happened with my faxed "medical necessity" letter. It was to go out on Dec 8th. When I didn't get my call by 12pm today I called again and my answer was yes the letter was sent.... Dec 13(5 days later than promised). I feel duped again. nothing happens as it should and I am weary of trying. Sorry to sound so sad and I can totally relate to Mandy and her washer. Customer service sucks! This weekend I need to prepare for a long car trip to my Moms and just the thought of packing clothes for 5, gifts, gas for car, air for tires, money and smiles.... I just don't wanna. I'm going for the kids but me, I'm not chipper anymore. I'm just plain tired. This is just too physical for me. My day was just wasted and in an hour the twins get out of school and I've done nothing for the trip. Just shoot me.

Mary: I didn't know that you needed another scope. I'll send up a prayer for you and I'm hoping it is over quickly and don't rush over here with results. Just want you to be OK. HUGS Hey wanted to thank everyone on all those positive thoughts about my surgery. STILL waiting for final approval. Rene had me laughing like a fool. Her words were.... "marked propensity for evil" I uhhhh, peed my pants! Let me explain, last Christmas my ex-husband was buying stuff on Ebay and using my address, yeah, like whats up with that?? Sooo, I would take the stuff and hide it in my closet. He would ask for it and tell him that we had no deliveries. Since I wasn't very curious about this box and its contents I challenged my lapband friends to guess what was in the Mystery Box. We did this for weeks until I cracked and opened the box to find a...... toy model train. So, if I get an envelope from my medical group I WON'T be waiting to open it like the Mystery box I will be ripping it open and sharing the good news. I am getting very anxious about the whole thing but not as moody as I was this summer. Counting my blessings and trying to keep calm. I know I have a ton of personals to do, but duty calls and I gotta hit the salt mines. Yesterday I had 20 kids in my office in 3 hours time! Whew!