Meredith2424

Lori~ We love you so very much. I'm saying extra prayers for you, your DD, SIL, and that sweet baby. Hopefully the Doctors can figure out how to stop the contractions. I'm so so so very sorry you have to go through this. Love you. HUGS Everyone, I just wanted to post to Lori before I go to bed. I will try to get on here tomorrow. If not I just wanted to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas! ~Meredith

Hi All, No luck yet finding the pup. My sis has looked for two days after work and has not seen any sign of him. Last night she left his cage (with a tarp over it) with his blankets and some toys, and a bowl of food near the woods for him. When she went tonight she said that the blankets had been "fluffed" but no sign of him. The food hadn't been touched either. We are all so very sad. I know that the animal people don't understand, but I feel like we lost a part of our family. So sad. Stayed home from work today. Wasn't feeling 100% yet from the flu. Still am not feeling great. But, will stick it out tomorrow and Thursday for two VERY busy days at work. Ok, Sorry to keep it short. Will try to post on everyone tomorrow. I feel like I'm in my own little pity party right now. I apologize for that. Love all of you.

Debbie Downer here right now. I have been reading, but haven't been posting. SOrry. Everything was going great until yesterday. I've been losing weight and really happy about it all. 5 lbs away from my ticker! SO....yesterday I went to the Russian Nutcracker Ballet with Andrews sister and her two kids. THey are adorable and I love them so much. THey are here from Vegas until the 17th of January so it will be so fun to be with the kiddies for Christmas. It was a great day. On the way home from the Ballet my mom called and my sister called within minutes of one another. I knew something was wrong. Well, remember my sisters dog that had to have surgery that i love so very much? Well he went missing. My sister said that he has been acting really strange and hasn't been acting like himself. My sis and her new bf went to his familys hunting cabin and spent the weekend there. Things were ok. She was cleaning up yesterday morning and getting ready to go and let the doggies out. THe weiner dog came back, but Wallace, the black lab mix never did. She searched for him for 6 hours with her boyfriends family. Everyone was following all of the pup prints in the snow, but they couldn't find him. He would NEVER run away. Such a mommys boy. Sis thinks that he went into the woods to die. She went back to look for him but still, no sign of him. We are all distraught. I cried myself to sleep last night and woke up with tears in my eyes. Poor puppy. Ugh. It only got worse. Andrew didn't feel very well when he went to bed last night so I sent him up with a "barf" bucket. He used it. LOTS. Throwing up all night. I slept on the couch and woke up today sicker than a dog. Achy, fever, the whole 9 yards. My stomach was upset, but never threw up. I think my band was holding it back. Ok, sorry, TMI. Slept all day and now have to work tomorrow. I am sooo busy at work. Hopefully I will be feeling beter tomorrow. I'm going to take a shower and hit the hay. Lori~ So glad your parties went well! Awesome! I call my grandmas "Grandma Winnie" and "Grandma Angell" first and last names. I think that kids figure it out for themselves because we called my Grandpas "Grandpa Sunshine" because thats what he called me, and "Grandpee", because we liked it. Arlene~ Happy belated anniversary! Apples~ Sounds like you had a blast!!!!! So happy for you. Cheri~ I saw something on the news tonight about this gospel group out of Compton. I will try to look it up on line so I can share it with you. I think you would enjoy it. IT was amazing. I thought of you. I've been getting your cards. Thank you! I have all of mine addressed and sealed, but I keep forgetting to get stamps!!!! I will tomorrow. Hopefully you will get them before Christmas, but if not, you will know why. Today I was supposed to do all of my running around. NOTHING got done. I could hardly talk on the phone and this is the first on the computer. Time for bed. Long week ahead of me. Love, Meredith

Hey all. Just wanted to stop in and say "hi". Studied all night long for my math final exam which is tomorrow night at 6. I have to work until 4 tomorrow, so hopefully will be fresh still for my test. So nervous. This one is a biggie. Melissa~ I used to hate standing on my feet all day working my tail off when I was super heavy, but now, its no prob. Your body gets used to it. Believe it or not. Its good exercise tho! Proud of you. Janet~ I can't do atkins either. Fruits, veggies, hard Protein it is for me too. I just lay off the rice and stuff and I'm fine. Oh, has anyone tried Barilla Plus? It is whole wheat Pasta with added protein. I get the rotini and eat about 10 noodles (thats it! I have trouble w pasta) and eat mostly just the meat sauce (not bad). The sauce has always been my fave part anyways. Just thought i would throw an option out there. Apples~ Love you girl. Night. And good night to all of you!!!! Wish me luck for tomorrows exam!

P.S. Less than 10 lbs away from my weight on my ticker!!!! I refused to move it when I gained, now I am on the "train" and losing away! Thank you all!

Protein train!!! Woot woot! I'm on sisters!!! Janet & Arlene~ I posted about the dr a few pages back. Here's a quick recap. He put some Fluid back into my band and I am now at 5 cc's which is one cc under what was in there before. He told me that we would try it this way and see what happened. He also said that he didn't want to operate if it wasn't absolutely neccessary. I am thankful for this! Looks like Laura was right!!! Perhaps it was a bit swollen too? If I started having problems then we would revisit the issue and see if we should operate. But as of now, he thinks I can do it the way it is. I'm hoping so, but nervous. I'm eating about 800 cal a day right now, and it is mostly liquid, but as of yesterday, 3 pounds had come off since saturday. There is more restriction there, which is good, and I am way more mindful. I have a question for everyone...... How much lettuce or salad can you eat. I can eat a TON of it in one sitting. My dietitian says its ok since I just put 1 Tbsp of olive oil, 2 Tbsp of apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper, and salad supreme seasoning. 3 cups is only about 150 cal. So that is good. Now that I think about it tho, I've always been able to eat a lot of salad, even a few months after banding. I just wanted others thoughts on this one. Great~ I am painting my guest bedroom (Andrew calls it the library because he likes to study in there...cute) with a Benjamin Moore paint called "Apple Crisp" It is a warm honey color. The mouldings in there are going to match the ones in the hallway, they are like a butterscotch color. The office is going to be a bright white with a purple/blue undertone to it. I can't remember the name. It's pretty tho. Both of the ceilings are going to be white. I will have to post pics of the house when I am done. I have done soooo much to it all by myself! Andrew is NOT handy at all, big time brainiac though!!! He does help when I need him to. I have all of my cards written out, but not enough stamps! The store only had three books and I needed 4, minimum. Will go get more tomorrow. Night, Meredith

Great~ Cool dishes!!! I love those. Perhaps I will go to costco and find some for myself now? I am currently using some fine china from an estate sale as my every day dishes. I'm sick of them and my sister says they are ugly! Haha! When I have people over I usually get 2 bottles of red (whatever they drink, I don't drink red anymore) and 2 bottles of white. My new fave is called Fish Eye. I like Pinot Grigio. Yellow tail is good too!!! Phyl~ Glad you had fun with Janet. I love that you guys are so close in proximity when you are at your winter home. Melissa~ So happy to hear you are liking your new job! That is awesome! Keep it up girl. I was in the same frame of mind like u have been lately. After I went to the dr I said "thats it!" I've lost 3 pounds since saturday!!! I think when we are obsessed it stresses us out and makes it harder on us. Apples~ We are feeling your pain here weather wise!!!! We had about 7 inches of snow here yesterday and today the wind and the snow drifts made conditions really bad for driving. I just went a few miles to several stores and came right home. I HATE driving, especially in this weather. I have a blazer and the back end is too light and it fishtails in the snow, i need to go get some sandbags to put in the back now! Laura~ Um, girl, I'm nervous about this rash business! Go to a dermatologist! Julie~ Glad you have probably found the right track! It's got to be so discouraging. Just be positive and you will get it figured out, I'm sure. Ok all, time for bed. I have a dentist appt tomorrow at noon to have my teeth sealed in some spots where they have the potential to form cavities. I've only had one cavity, and that was last year. I don't want any more! Then I'm going to stop at my gf's who lives 8 doors down and see my "niece" real quick. My gf decided to work from home tomorrow, so that will be a nice break in her day too. Then I'm going to finally pain the back bedroom and get that in order. I've been planning on doing it for about 2 months, but have been putting off doing that and the office. Office will get done on Wednesday. I need to have most everything done before our nieces and nephew get here from Vegas. So excited to have Christmas morning with them! We are going to sleep at Andrews moms house Christmas Eve since they are staying there. So fun! Night, Meredith

Hello everyone! Hope all of you had a wonderful weekend. I read everything (2 pages) but will post a quickie. I'm sleepy. Yesterday I went to the Dr to find out what the plan is with my band. Here it is.... We are going to see if it will correct itself and start working for me again the way it was. Last time I went he let most of the Fluid out and I no restriction. Well, yesterday he filled me to 5 cc's and indeed I am feeling more restriction now! Maybe it did fix itself? We did discuss surgery in the future just in case it doesn't fix. I'm not really hungry and ate about 800 cal yesterday and today. Will get on the scale tomorrow and see whats going on since Sat. My ankle is still bothering me and I need to exercise very badly. I'm going tomorrow night. No excuses. I was wondering what you guys thought about Overeaters Anonymous? I think I'm going to try it tomorrow. Just to see. My problem is that I'm a compulsive eater. Apparently this group helps with dealing with that. I was going to sign up for WW, but I don't think that is for me right now. I know what to eat and what not to eat and all of that, it's just I get compulusive and justify it in my brain and then not even care and eat whatever it is anyways. Then, after I eat it I feel terrible guilt and, I'm sure you know the drill. Great~ I feel the same about having people over. I completely understand. I'm a good cook and I still don't like the thought of having people here. I feel like I'm being judged too. Last time I had people for dinner I made a lasagna (i have a VERY easy recipe if you want it) garlic bread and salad. Everything could be made ahead and I just popped it in the oven when everyone got here. Sandy~ We are in the same boat with my 90 y.o. grandma. I asked a friend who needed extra money if she was interested in going over and helping my grandma a few times a week. She was a great choice because she works at an assisted living place anyhow. Good luck to you. Laura~ You would freeze you tail off here too! Our first "big" snow today and tonight its supposed to get bitterly cold with whipping winds. Anyhow, I am going to be in Naples sometime in April. I will let you know exact dates as it gets closer. I'm sure I could borrow my aunts car to meet you or whatever. Apples~ Girl, I give you credit going out in that bitter cold! EEK! Bundle up sister! Jewel~ You go girl!!!! So happy for you and your 5k! Nice job! Can't wait to see the difference between now and the one in 6 weeks. I think you will amaze yourself yet again! Cheri~ I started to read your post and got emotional and couldn't read anymore. I love old people and the part where you were talking about singing and the piano and the kids..... Janet~ I graduated with my bachelors in Interdisciplinary Studies with a minor in Nonprofit Sector Studies. Now I am taking prereq's to get into the Physician Assistant program. However, now, I cannot apply until next Feb, so I am thinking about maybe starting another masters program in health and human services and administration. We will see where the wind blows me! Ok, thats all for now. Good nite! Meredith

Hey everyone! Busy busy day! On my way to shower and bed. Just thought I would ck in real quick and read. I will have time to post tomorrow night. Linda~ Girl! Do not worry! I already have my bachelors degree (graduated this past May) and now am just working towards my masters. In order to apply for any program I need to #1 Save money because I spent ALL of my savings on school this past year, and #2 I need to take two very tough tests to get into any masters program and score well on them. I am on a mission! Quitting is not an option, I have my mind made up and I have been going year round for 4 1/2 years. A break is greatly needed to get ready for my next chapter in education. Plus, I'm so worn out. Janet~ Ok, I go tomorrow morning at 9 am for my appt with the surgeon to determine what we are going to do. Cross your fingers. Eating has been so much better. 4 of the pounds that I put on are gone, and the scale is continuing in the downward pattern. But, with finals, I'm stressed. When I'm stressed, the pounds stay on. So, it's been a slow go. Ok, I will ck in tomorrow night and let you know how the appt went. We are going to an outdoor hockey game at the University of Michigan (andrews alma mater) in the "Big House" football stadium. It's called "The Big Chill". http://www.thebigchillatthebighouse.com/ It is sold out with about 110,000 people expected to attend. It will be fun, but coooold! Night! Night! ~Meredith

I'm here! I'm here! I'm here! Just a really quick one. Wanted to say "hi". I read all of your posts. Took awhile. Before this I took a 2 hour Math Final Practice exam online, before that, went to Toys r Us for our nieces and nephew that are coming from Vegas for Christmas. Was at school ALL day long. 1-9. I had two exams today. I'm exhausted. Gotta wake up in the morning and go to work now! Since graduating in May, I've been taking classes to get into the Physician Assistant program. So, I've now decided to take the Winter semester off so I can study for the GRE and the GMAT, exercise, and take VACATIONS if I want! Cheri~ I cannot stop thinking about your Joi. Hugs to you and to all of those children. I grew up and still live one mile from Detroit.The difference between my city and "THE CITY" is like night and day. But, I know how terrible things can get. I used to live in the city when I was 21. Every time I left the house, I feared for my life. Literally. The neighborhood was so dangerous, but eventually the neighbors respected the people I lived with because they were Detroit Firefighters, so they kinda looked out for us. My mom is a Special Education teacher (4-6) and her students sound just like yours. It's amazing how different peoples lives can be just living one mile apart. It makes my heart ache for those who have to live in such terrible situations. I'm just so very sorry you and your students have had to endure this pain. I have a lot to write to all of you, but I need to go to bed. I just don't have the energy anymore and it's REALLY late. Almost 3 am. Unreal. I have to be to work at 9. Good night, Meredith p.s. I agree with Laura, is there another site out there that could accomodate us? I know, the change thing, but this site is a pain in the butt now.

Hello!!! Wowwee you have all been busy on here today! Janet~ Glad you are back and glad you had a great time! I'm going to check out the pics on fb when I am done on here. Apples~ I was just getting my christmas cookie grocery shopping list together. I think that when I make them I don't eat as many as I do when other ppl make them. I get sick of the smell or somthing. Lori~ Glad you had a good time! Was the mall super busy? I've never been there before, but would like to one day if they ever have an "off season". Cheri~ Glad your concerts are going well! I'm glad that you have something to look forward to and glad that you have somthing that you enjoy to take your mind off of all of the terrible things that have been going on lately. Quiet day here. Just got all of my decorating done here inside. I thought I had way more stuff than I do. Last year being in the apartment it was Christmas stuff every where you looked. Now that this is our first Christmas in our home, we will have more room to spread stuff out. Mom says that she has a TON of stuff that she doesn't use anymore and that I can have. I'm looking forward to that. She has really good (and expensive) taste in decor and clothes. Anything she has I will gladly take off of her hands. Eating was ok today. 2 eggs (with hotsauce) and 1 1/2 pcs of whole wheat toast for Breakfast with I Can't Believe its Not Butter Spread. Grilled chicken kebob and wild rice for dinner. Don't feel so bad about it. I just cannot get full. This is getting more and more difficult. I really cannot wait until Saturdays doc appointment now. My last aerobics class is tomorrow (at school), so i am going to be heading back to the gym, which is a good thing. Also, yesterday I decided that I would like to start running. I HATE running, but will learn how to love it. My ankle is not 100% yet, so I'm going to have to give it another week or so at least before I start anything strenuous like that. Weather here is getting bad. Expressways are closed. Lots of accidents. I don't like driving, so I get nervous about this kind of weather, but love it when I don't have to go anywhere. I've decided to take the winter semester off of school. I graduated in May, so grandma is providing the funding anymore, and financial aid isn't going to pony up enough money for me, and I simply cannot afford it. I need the break badly, so it is a great thing!!!! I will pick up another day at work too. So excited to not have to worry about my studies for the first time in almost 5 years. What am I going to do with myself? Run? Hope everyone has a great Monday!!! Night! ~Meredith

Hello all. Hope you are all enjoying your evening. Got home from work a little while ago and relaxing. Apples~ Sorry if I came across wrong on my post this morning. Thats why I don't like having convos online. It is sometime hard to tell what someone really means beacause we are missing lots of aspects of conversation. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate you and your support and reinforcement. Thank you! I was kinda rushing this morning but, I wanted to say that after my doc took the Fluid out of my band, I looked at it like a free for all, but after I talked to my dietitian, I felt more in check than I have in a long time. It is really hard to be hungry right now, but I know I will get through. Thank you again! Sorry if there was miscommunication. Cheri~ WOW! That is a perfect thing for you to tell those poor children at a time like this. That is, if there is a perfect thing to say, which I am almost certain there is not. I'm sure those kids appreciate you more than you will ever know. All~ Thank you for your support on here. I appreciate it so very much. Well, doggy nephew Wallace was doing better this morning, but then developed a fever and a high white blood count this evening, so he will be staying at the anial hospital one more night (hopefully). I feel so bad for him and am still nervous. One of my annoying clients/former neighbors came in today to get her hair cut and scolded me for asking people to pray for my sisters dog! Amazing! She said that her friends mother was having surgery too and that was much more serious and I shouldn't be complaining about dogs. I understand that her friends mother was going through a tough time, but I was still mad at her for saying that to me. I wanted to tell her, well if you don't like it, you don't have to read it. It is her personality to act like this though and she has always been the "annoying" lady in the community. I was sad and thought that the other animal lovers out there could identify. Ugh. Well, time to take a shower, then hit the hay. SO tired. Again. Night~ Meredith

Good Morning!!! I was so tired last night, I could hardly function! I feel better now after a good nights rest. I needed it. Bad. Just thought I would ck in real quick before heading off to work. Apples~ I am not going to overeat. In fact, since I've had discussions with all of you on here and since I went to my support group meeting, I've been doing so much better with my eating and really watching it. I think I was just really stressed out after my last Dr visit that I started stress eating. Now, I am actually back on track and have lost a pound since Tuesday. So, I suppose with the right mind set, I should be ok. I will get to talk to my dietitian more tomorrow since she is coming in with me to get her hair cut, colored and styled for a holiday ball she is going to. Arlene~ Thanks for the positive encouragement! It really helps! I've been going to daily plate (now livestrong.com) and tracking my meals and calories for the last 3 days. It helps. Also, tonight I'm going to go to my 24 hour gym and ride the bike and do some dumb bell exercises that I learned in my sculpt stretch and tone class at school. My dad and I have discussions about men leaving their wives after 30+ years or whatever and he blames it on Viagra. Maybe thats why they think they are 30? SO glad my parents are still together. That would be hard as an adult to go through a separation of parents (if your friend has children). Kelly~ You go girl on the two walks per day!!! Thats awesome! My sister has a weiner dog too. His name is Brady and he is long haired. Adorable. Speaking of dogs, some of you may have seen on my fb that my sisters other dog Wallace had to have surgery yesterday. Please keep him in your prayers as I love this pup sooo much! They thought that he had a blockage in his colon (they thought it was fabric) and it wasn't passing for days, so finally they decided to open him up and get it out. Turns out it wasn't a blockage at all and his spleen had flipped around in his belly (spleen torosion). They removed it. Thank God they opened him up because otherwise he would have died. We were very nervous because he is also epilleptic and has to take a pretty large amount of phenol barbetol to survive and not have seizures. Ok, off to work! Have a great day. It is freeeezing here! Not as cold as you apples, but this cold snap hit us fast! ~Meredith

Hello all. I just wanted to stop in really quick and say "hello". Long day today at work, and even longer one tomorrow. I can barely keep my eyes open. I've been doing better the last 2 days with what I've been eating. Thank goodness! I was getting worried. Spoke to my dietitian last night and she suggested that I just maintain until we can figure out what the plan is on the 11th instead of worrying about losing and stressing about that. I feel so much better. It is hard for me with no restriction to lose. Cannot wait until the the appointment so I can find out when I'm getting this fixed! Ok, I needed to go to bed about an hour ago. Night, Meredith

Apples~ (chanting) Teeth! Teeth! Teeth! Teeth! We wanna see those pearly whites!!!!! I'm so glad I'm back posting again. It feels like home. Thank you! Lori~ So excited for you to go with just your DD. It will be a fun time for the two of you before the baby gets here. I'm excited for you to make a mess in the kitchen when she gets here! Some of my best memories are spending time with my grandma in the kitchen making biscuits and sugar Cookies. I am lucky that I still have my 91 year old grammy (have the 90 yo too!), but also lucky that my mom made my sister and I a recipe book of all of both of our grandmas best dishes, meals, and Desserts. I have taken over the duty of making the christmas cookies now. This will be my 3rd year doing it. It's amazing how you don't eat as many of them when you are making them yourself! Laura~ Girl, you better not let that bad boy get too tight!!!! Glad I shared my story when I did! Did you see my post back to you a few pages back? I described how they diagnosed and blah blah blah. I was just curious what you thought of it and what you would do? Also, we have the pickle on our tree tooo!!!!! Have done it for years, and my dad did it when he was young too. Phyll~ I LOVE your cart!!!! What a great surprise from DH! He certainly has redeemed himself from last week when you weren't very happy with him! Cheri~ Still thinking about you guys and praying. Kelly and Jewel~ WTG on the weight loss!!!!!! Keep up the good work!!! Off to my LB support group meeting! CBL ~Meredith

Off to Aerobics!!!! I am telling myself that today is a new day and I'm starting over on a positive note!!!! TTYL~ Meredith

One Day~ Girl, I hear ya on more levels than you think!!!!! I am up about 10 pounds. I would be too tight and lose a ton of Water weight, muscle and fat. Then they open it back up and here we go again. With the brain thing, its like we were "deprived" of certain foods and drinks for so long that as soon as we can have them again, we go right back to them and it turns into a vicious cycle all over again! I don't like this word, but the only phrase for it is that it "sucks". Big time. I liked the way the band worked before it was tight. You could take a bite or two of somthing and be satisfied. That is the was it is supposed to work. Also, I understand about work. I am a hairstylist and didn't have any education beyond high school. Well, it took me a bit, but I figured out that I needed to make a career change eventually. So, I decided to go back to school 4 1/2 yrs ago. It was the best decision I've ever made. I still am doing hair, but I have a bachelors degree in my back pocket for when I decide to take the leap and make the change. Just an idea? There are lots of grants and loans available too. If you are interested, go to www.fafsa.gov to find out more about them. Chris~ So glad your fill went well! Sorry about the discomfort. Sometimes at first they have a harder time finding your port, but as you lose it becomes easier and easier for them to find. So happy for you! Apples~ I missed you guys so much and I am so happy that you are all here for advice, guidance, and love. It's amazing. I am going to make a point to go on the next trip for sure. Is there one planned yet? Cheri~ I do not know what to say. I am so so sorry for what happened to your student and her family. That is absolutely horrible and my heart and prayers go out to you and all of those who knew and loved them. I was going to decorate today, but only ended up going to the craft store for stuff to make a wreath. I made it when I got home. Its cool. I made a low fat, lower calorie version of chicken pot pie that I saw on the Dr. Oz show about 2 weeks ago. It was pretty delicious. Andrew loved it. He really does appreciate me so much. He is an amazing man. Here is the link to the recipe: http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/divalicious-chicken-pot-pie Ok, well, time to hit the hay. I have aerobics in the morning and probably will decorate some in the afternoon before going to my support group, then will finish decorating when I get home. If I don't get it done tomorrow, I won't be able to get to it again until Sunday and I want to spend my Sunday with Andrew enjoying one another and our decorated home. Plus, he is on 24 hour call next week and we don't get to spend hardly any time together then. Looking forward to this weekend. Have a nice night everyone. Love you all. ~Meredith

Good afternoon all! TX~ You are prob on the way to the Dr soon, but Apples is right! Once it is done you won't even think it's a big deal. At first I could never watch them do it, but now I watch the whole time. It's interesting to me. At one of our support group meetings the girl from Allergan brought a band and port with syringes and let us fill and unfill them. It was kinda interesting to see exactly what was being done each time and how much was going in/coming out. Do the Jimmy Deans breakfast meals need to be microwaved? They sound delish! Apples~ Be careful girlfriend!!!!! Snowy and icey weather make me so nervous. We don't have weather as bad as yours this early usually, but I know its coming. But in Michigan, you never know! Great~ Thanks for understanding. I LOVE my band when it works and hate to sound like a debbie downer on here! Wah wah wah! LOL! It slipped because of the combo of being too tight, acid reflux, and throwing up. I think I'm gonna wait until the 11th and really work on the mental part of it all. No one ever tells you that when you lose weight, your brain stays the same!!!! Duh! My thinking was "thinner" for over a year, I don't know how or why it switched back? Arlene~ Girl, you are right! I need to get back to the journaling! Taking "mental notes" is not cutting it! Obviously! And, sorry about the FM I know I'm missing a response to a post, but this thing won't let me go back that far to look! Ugh. Also, when I first saw our thread today, I was so excited because there is a little orange book looking character next to our thread I hovered my mouse over it and it said "take me to first unread post" or somthing like that. I was so excited and I clicked. To my disappointment, it didn't work. Of course. We will just have to keep tryin! Ok, ck back later. Hope everyone has a safe and happy afternoon! I'm going to clean and put up Christmas decorations. Maybe a nap first though! It's my day off! Yipee! Thanks again to all of you for being so understanding. Love ya! Meredith

Laura~ Ok, well here is the deal. In June I was having an acid reflux problem when my band was too tight. I had an upper GI/swallow. The Dr. unfilled me a lot and it corrected itself. We have gradually filled it back up because I was doing so much better. SO, last time we filled it to 6 cc's which is a lot for me and the most I've ever had in my band because I gained back all that I had lost from when it was so tight. Well, I was having the same problem with the reflux and throw up. It was not PB, it was like real throw up. I went in to the Dr and he prescribed another Upper GI/swallow. Well, he looked at those pics and saw that the band is not in the right place at all. He took out 3 cc's and now I have NO restriction what-so-ever. The stomach has crept up above the band and he says that I have a few options. A.) Leave the band as is and see how I can do by just monitoring the amount of calories I ingest (clearly this is not working). B.) Do surgery to remove the band (this is NOT an option in my world) because leaving the band where it is could damage the stomach and cause problems. OR C.) Have surgery to correct the placement of the band and start over. This right now seems like it is the best option since this problem has technically been going on since June and is not really that new. Right? I don't know? I'm just frustrated and I LOVE my band (when it works properly) and do not want it to go anywhere except for where it belongs. I know I will end up right where I was before. FAT (er, fatter). It seems like this is my only realistic choice. Now, having that info, what do you think about all of this? All I know is that somthing has to be done, and if I'm going to have a band in there, it may as well work properly! Ugh. Sorry to complain guys. This is just really frustrating and I've been pretty upset about all of this for awhile. What do I do? What would all of you do if you were in my shoes? I thank all of you in advance for your input. I know some of you may have read this before via e-mail while LBT was offline, so sorry for the repost if you saw it. It's late here. Almost 2am. I need to make Andrews lunch, stop worrying for the night and go to bed. Night, Meredith

Girls! I totally feel ya on the hunger thing!!!! Oh man! With my band having a "partial slip" the pouch above it is made larger, so I can eat. It slipped because it was SOOO tight that I was throwing up all of the time. I could hardly drink my Protein shakes. I now feel like I have no self control and I am super depressed about it. I find out on the 11th what the plan is. Hoping for surgery to fix it. A few weeks ago I would have never wanted to go through surgery again, but let me tell you, now, i want it! Why have the band if it isn't working? Right? I'm just super upset. I know I keep complaining, but I cannot help it. Really, I know I need to bite the bullet and help myself. At least I was able to go back to aerobics today. Not the usual step aerobics plus another hour of reg floor aerobics, but just the latter. I think that I'm going to find an overeaters annonymous meeting to go to. It is really an obsessive problem for me. Perhaps I will call again to the Dr's office to see if they can get me in any earlier than the 11th. I am not very patient and fear that I will gain. I need help in a big way. How can I have lost 100+ lbs and then eat and start to put it back on like its not a big deal? So very frustrated with myself. I'm sure I had about 1,500 calories today, which is a TON. What can I do to get my brain back on track? Also, I am so thankful that I have my support group meeting on Wednesday. The theme this week is dealing with holiday eating and stress eating. What about plain 'ol eating? Because lately that seems to be my problem. I'm upset. Can you tell? Ok, sorry to bother all of you with my pity party. I really needed to vent and ask for your help and support. Thanks, and love you all! Meredith

Hello All! Hope everyone had an amazing Thanksgiving! Ours was wonderful. I love spending time with my family. We went to Andrews moms after. It was ok, but I was so sleepy. Came home and did my nails. Yesterday I had my high school 10 year class reunion at Greektown Casino Hotel (in the ballroom) in downtown Detroit. It's only about 15 minutes from us, but we also got a hotel room there because we knew that we would be in no shape to drive home after. Let me tell you, good thing we got that room! Everyone was pretty trashed. I think that it takes the nerves away for some ppl. We also did mock elections and I got "most changed". I was thin in high school, but I think lots of people haven't seen me since the 5 year, so I will say they were judging by that. There was also a slide show playing the entire time that was pretty cool. Anyhow, my eating has been out of control, so come Monday, it's back to exercise (i think the ankle can handle it now) and mega diet! Cheri, I think that I'm going to take your lead with the no carb, high Protein diet. It sounds like just what I need to get my weight loss back on track. I have about 25 more pounds to go. Ugh. These bad boys just don't want to come off! Apples~ Your little visitor sounds like quite the character! haha! I don't blame you for being happy that your pal cancelled the shopping adventure. I'm not really a fan of the black friday thing. I would rather pay the extra 10 bucks or whatever. I do appreciate deals, but can't really deal with the crowds. They kinda give me anxiety. Laura~ Sorry about your dads results. He sounds like such a fighter though! He can do it! Not a good birthday present for him Well, I hope everything is going well for everyone else too! Looks like it. I'm not liking this site either. It is not taking me back to the last message I read, and it most certainly is difficult to find my way back to our thread. How do I make it easier to find? Ok, more later. Tired and trying to get rid of this hangover. I don't drink much anymore, so it was tough today. But is worth it I suppose becuase I had soooo much fun! TTYL~ Meredith

Hello Everyone! Well, it is 1:43 am here and I am sitting on the couch watching the 2nd showing of todays Oprah with color on my hair. I had zero time at work this week to have anyone else do it, so, here we are, last minute! Tonight was awesome. I went with my mom to Downtown Detroit where they line up all of the Thanksgiving Day Parade floats the night before. They closed down the entire main street downtown and had all of the floats on display. It was so fun! We don't go to the parade because we eat dinner at 1:30 on TG, but we watch it on TV every year. It was neat to see them up close and personal. Plus, I got to spend so fun time with just my mom and I. I don't have to make a single thing for tomorrow. It's a miracle! My great-aunt who is 87 years old, and my 91 year old Grandma make the dinner and Desserts for us every year. I have no idea how they do it, but it is absolutely delicious. After we eat and have dessert, we will go to Andrews moms house. Apparently she is having dinner at her house at some point. She is so unorganized. But sweet. She has no idea what she is having, when she is having it, or who is going to be there. So, I guess I will just have to go with the flow on this one. I love her, but somtimes she is a bit much to handle because I grew up in a household where everything was extremely organized and planned. I am glad that I inherited that trait from my family! Ok, well, its been at least 45 minutes with my color on, so I'm going to get in the shower, wash it out and hit the hay. I've decided that tomorrow I will eat what I want and not fret about it, Friday is going to have to be done in similar fashion because I will be having cocktails (probably many of them) at my highschool reunion, so it's back on in a serious way on Saturday! I hope all of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving with friends, family and loved ones! ~Meredith

Hello everyone! Ok, so I'm trying to get it together on this thread! It looks like all of you are doing well on it so far! Hopefully I will catch on too! Today was a great day! Did a quick haircut (it's a day off usually), went shopping and bought myself an outfit for the reunion. It's cute. Black fitted pants, gray and silver sequined top and a black cardigan with some black and silver jewels near the collar. It will go perfect with some patent leather pumps. Tomorrow I'm going to buy Andrew somthing to wear. Then I went and had a 2 HOUR massage!!! A girl I work with and I trade services. I cut her hair and her kids hair, and she gives me massages. What could be better? It was amazing! I came home ate a salad and took a nap. Phew! Now, I'm done with school until Monday, and with work until next Thursday, and let me tell you, I am ready to enjoy it! The only thing is I'm still having major trouble with my ankle after spraining it severely a week ago today. Hopefully by next Monday it will be well enough for me to go to aerobics. I don't think that step aerobics is in the near future again. Probably not until after Christmas. They said 6-8 weeks for it to be completely healed. Ok, well, thats all for now. Just finished a math practice exam and DWTS. Have a good night! Meredith

This is frustrating!!!! I will have to check it out more when I get home from my massage, but, UGH!!!!