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Week 11 of weekly weigh-in 7-20-09 239.5 7-28-09 238 gained 1 lb since my last ticker update. 8-3-09 238.5 was up to 241.5 now going down again. 8-10-09 236.5 8-17-09 238 again....just got back from another vacation. 8-24-09 237.5...had my first fill on Saturday, hope to see this number go down now. 8-31-09 233 9-8-09 233 9-14-09 232.5 oh so slowly 9-22-09 231.5 ditto 9-29-09 230...not even 10 pounds in 2 months, but, I'm losing, not gaining....yipee!!!

Michelle, give it some time. Your skin may be elastic enough to shrink to the point you will feel better about yourself. I think you are pretty young and many things will change with a little time. Give your self some time and work on the toning....I think you will be happier than you believe. As far as what people say....just figure most of them are ignorant....unless they've been overweight and lost a lot of it, they will never know. What I have noticed this time around is when I slowed down on the weight loss, (and I haven't even lost 50 lbs yet) that my body started to tighten up a little. Yes, it's still flabby but I'm huge and have been for decades and this flab is better than not fitting into the airline seat. I really notice it in my face, my face is already a lot thinner and there are many more wrinkles. Oh well, I will get that worked on some time down the line but for now....I will learn to deal with it and everyone else can not look at me if they don't like it.

Janet, I hope you can find a flight that works for you. The memorial services are for the living and I think shows respect for the dead....it will probably help for you to go. You are not alone however. I remember when my Mom died, I thought that was it...there would be no one that loved me that way and in a sense that is true, but my world is filled with love, from family (siblings & DH) and friends. You still have your children and grandchildren (I don't have that) and you have friends...we are all pulling for you. Laura, the pics are so cute. Nelson looks like a little adult, a cute little adult. You look great, what a smile!! Meredith, I did look up those troll beads, nope they aren't what I used to play with....they are nice. I like them. Good luck with the house. I love owning my own place and have since I was 20 or so. I did buy this house with Jeff before we were married but all the other ones were on my own. By the time DH and I bought this house together, we were into our 40's and knew we weren't going anywhere else with anyone else, otherwise, I wouldn't put his name on the house either. Julie, as of this morning we have a total of 14 tortoises. Two adults (separated) 1 yearling, and 11 babies. Too many and I don't want this many. I will be farming them out to good homes as soon as I can. I would be very happy with 2 non producing tortoises. I'm working on that. So I worked on the garden again today and am starting to clean it up. What a mess. It got too hot again, so I'll work some more on it next weekend and then maybe I'll be happy with it again. It already looks a lot better. I still haven't found where Delila laid those eggs. I did find a next of quail eggs that hatched. I'm happy about that. I'm starting to get a little itchy to make some greeting cards. I need to clean my office first and it's really a mess....but I'm thinking about it. I could actually start on Christmas cards...............hummmmmmmmmmmmmm. Hope everyone has a great Sunday. Eva

I am top heavy too, but have never been able to wear an underwire bra...I found a brand of non-wired bras that support very well except after surgery. Everything hurt for the first couple of weeks and even after that. Even after losing 20 pounds, the bras hurt. Now, everything is much better and I'm not having any trouble with them.

More pet photos--1 is Samson, the dad; 2 is Delila, the mom with chuckwalla on top; 3 is egg hatching last year; 4 are this years batch; and 5 is last years tortoise stack, mom, a yearling and a hatchling.

Okay, I have pictures I just need to figure out how to insert them....okay....that's one...now that I know how it works, I'll try adding a couple more. The knife & fork is for scaling. Turns out we have 10 babies....they didn't like being corralled too badly.

Lori, my DH would have Elk envy.....I have never seen that many. I love to listen to them bugle during rut. You notice how many times they use that sound on TV for other things...it's sort of weird. Sorry about your rib....hope you heal quick, but once you have your knees done, I bet that will take your mind off of it. Phyl, looking forward to seeing you and Janet in CA in a couple of months....that could be fun!! Laura, high maintenance guests, oh goody!! You'll do fine and your SIL will be amazed at your weight loss. You don't have to tell her about the band you know. Some people just don't need to know about it. Janet, hope your massage worked out some of that frustration you had. Two weeks off at Turkey time? That sounds like fun. I'm ruined after two weeks off at home....don't ever want to go back to work. Our swamp cooler caught on fire this morning. DH caught it in time and no major damage, but he did have to replace one of the pads. Good thing he was out there when it started, it could have been a big mess. I finally cleaned out the tortoise burrow (it's built in the corner of the house). I have a burnt adobe house and the blocks are soft and don't do well with moisture. When I painted my bedroom, one of the blocks sort of disintegrated so I had to take part of the burrow (which is on the outside of that wall) apart to let the block dry. Now that the babies have hatched and it's cooled off a bit, I took the roof off and cleaned it out, removed any dirt that was touching the blocks and graveled it with gravel that will let the Water drain away. I put this huge piece of granite on as the new roof and it doesn't touch the wall. DH had to help with the granite because it's very heavy. Now I'm tired, but at least it's done. I have to go shopping and get gas and stuff. I'll check in again later. Hope everyone has a great Saturday!! Eva

I have not been on a regular exercise program either and my weight loss has slowed way down. However, this isn't a band issue, but a me issue. I know that I am eating too many calories each day and I have not been exercising regularly. Although this is supposed to be a life style change, I haven't successfully accomplished that with all the other diet programs I have been on either. I just had my 2nd fill last Saturday and I do have some restriction all day long and now I really do have to work a program. I have had food get stuck...not to the PBing stage, but it hurts and takes a few minutes to go through. This is not a pleasant feeling and I'm finding that I am eating slower, chewing more, and taking smaller bites....this is the point of the band. I am also beginning to exercise regularly. It's been way too hot until recently to walk outside, but now it's cooling down and I'm out there walking. I plan on keeping this up, not only to help me lose the weight, but I want to feel better and exercising helps me feel better. Guess this is much more than asked, but I still feel the band can work, it's just that we have to put the effort into to make it work.

Meredith...okay what is a Troll bead for your bracelet? You mean like the trolls I used to play with as a kid?

I just had a fill last Saturday and have been "stuck" about 3 times......learning curve. Need to chew more and slower. Not been so stuck that I've PB'd but it's hurt and I've had to stop eating. No more.....I will be paying attention. I get stuck on lunch meat mostly. Bread really isn't a problem for me.

HI Meredith....if you don't just fall asleep for the rest of the night I'll be surprised. Julie, don't want to Jinx you either, but glad to hear you are getting a little relief. Charlene (or is it Arlene?) that is very interesting about the metabolism test. It's not a very big calorie spread is it? Janet, {{{{hugs}}}} I hope your day went better than your morning! Maybe a little tough love for the grandson. No new cell phone and he pays for the window? I guess that might not be possible, but don't you just want to tell them to grow up and handle stuff themselves? Wish I could help somehow, but everyone I know already has multiple cats, but if I hear of anyone wanting one, I'll let you know. I don't think you are that far away and worth the trip for kitty rescue. You want a tortoise? So Phyl, you winter around Janet's area? It might be worth a trip there to meet both of you one of these days. Very cool about you being "released". Yeah Lori I know Colorado weather too well. I moved to AZ in January after sliding to work every day for weeks. I actually slid over Raton pass the week I moved here too. I love to visit Colorado but not sure I want to deal with those winters or the hail again. It's almost the weekend again....yipee!!! I'm having a real problem with wanting to be at work. I'll take pictures of the babies this weekend and see if I can post them. I need to do it during the day instead of dusk when I get home from work. Hope everyone (this includes you Julie) has a good night. Eva

Julie, I'm so sorry you are in so much pain. I really hope you find relief soon. It's no way to live. Apples, so sorry to hear about your friends too. My 80 something neighbor died a couple of years ago and I really miss him. He was a hoot....kept gardening no matter what ate his plants. Hope you weekend goes okay and you don't get too depressed. There is a lot going on in your life and a lot of people to keep you occupied. Take care. Charlene, hope you start feeling better too. I have arthritis and the weather change affects that too. Good luck with the GI tests...hope everything comes out okay. Gitr....congrats on the good labs and weight loss. I still need to make appointments...keep forgetting. Take care!! Laura, I got a little stuck on salmon too....but I just had a fill and have to remember to chew and eat very slow....remember to chew and eat slowwwww....maybe if I write it enough it will sink in. I'm still eating salmon. Wow you had a very busy day. Cheri.....the restrictions don't always last a long time. I'm hoping this one will allow my stomach to lose the volume it can handle too this time. They I get fuller quicker and stay fuller longer. Phyl, great job on the Red Robin meal. Not eating those sauces is sure hard. Just read "The End of Overeating" and our food industry is geared to feeding us great tasting food by adding sugar, salt, and fat. Very few meals served in chain restaurants are low calorie, low fat, low salt, etc. Great job on the exercise too. Lori, don't panic about the weight....it doesn't help. You'll be okay. I grew up in Colorado and remember going to school in the morning and wearing a sweater (this was in September) and it was snowing on the way home. If you don't like the weather, wait...it's bound to change. Although I get tired of the heat here, I sure don't miss the snow.....haven't in 30 years. Hope your DD can help when you have surgery. That would be very nice for you. Hi Linda...hope you have a great day too! Meredith....hi....breath and have a good night and workout tomorrow. I'm keeping busy with work and walking. I've starting really applying myself to exercise this week...not hours of it, but at least 30 minutes a day. Janet, I do have to diet....I do understand about the life style change and to some extent, I am doing that too, but I still need to diet....restrict calories of both amount and type and exercise. As you say. its part band and part me and me needs diet and exercise. I think the band is doing it's part right now. I really have to eat slow right now. Okay, I need to go to work. Have to meet someone on a job site today. Hope everyone has a good day! Eva

Laura, no I haven't see Wally-E. I'll have to took into it one of these days. I rarely watch movies....but then one day I'll watch several. Phyl, congrats on the mobility. Glad to hear your recovery is going so well. You'll be running laps soon. Linda, great on the weight loss. I'm not losing very fast either but I'm not really dieting either. I think if I really apply myself to a diet, I would do so much better. Yuck, I hate dieting. You have done amazing with your weight loss. 90 pounds in 9 months is perfect!! I'm going to have to get ready for work. Hope everyone has a great day!! Eva

I see the number of people posting each week has seriously dropped off. I wonder if their weight loss has slowed down too or they just found another place to post?

Week 10 of weekly weigh-in 7-20-09 239.5 7-28-09 238 gained 1 lb since my last ticker update. 8-3-09 238.5 was up to 241.5 now going down again. 8-10-09 236.5 8-17-09 238 again....just got back from another vacation. 8-24-09 237.5...had my first fill on Saturday, hope to see this number go down now. 8-31-09 233 9-8-09 233 9-14-09 232.5 oh so slowly 9-22-09 231.5 ditto

Dee, take the drugs for pain....Milk of Magnesia really helps with the constipation and be patient. The gas pain will dissipate one way or the other. Corliss & Cheri...you are too funny. I find I don't pass gas from the back end as much as I used to but make up for it on the front end. Yee haw!!

Hey all, it's going to take a while to catch up on the posts. Dee, yes, I did have my surgery in Tijuana, Mexico. It was a good experience over all. In fact, I went down there by myself this time for my fill and had no problems. Congrats on the surgery....don't worry, the swelling will go away and your tummy will be smaller. I think I noticed a difference about a week later. Julie, I would have picked up a tortoise for you (a toy one) while I was in Mexico, if I had read your post before I went. We'll see about finding one for Mimi before we meet in February. There are lots of toy turtles down here. Sorry to hear all that pain is back. I hope you do pursue a solution with the right doctor, you just can't go on suffering all the time. Janet, I'm with you and the exercise in the morning....I just can't get up any earlier to exercise in the am...if I was retired....I'd love to do my walk or what ever in the am. I do that on the weekends but not during the week. How far is Indio from I-8 & El Centro? LauraK...my sister had the same problem and didn't know it either until she tried to get pregnant again. She ended up with a hysterectomy (sp?) too and adopted a copule of kids. Cheri....I hope you are feeling better about your situation and yourself. You have a lot of faith....have faith the job situation will work out and have faith, your body will be what it is and you will be healthy. You never know...you might not need PS at the end of your weight loss. Part of the process is acceptance and you will reach that point when the time is right. Linda, wow you have been busy. How are you liking the day shift? Laura, glad you found out what was going on with you. That has to be a relief. Sorry to hear about your Dad again. I hope they can figure something out with him. Hope Nelson really does like the classes, I think they do help with discipline and respect....and it doesn't hurt they learn how to kick butt too....LOL. Meredith...yes, sometimes traveling is a pain because of all the work to prep before hand and then the laundry afterwards, but I'm an addict and I really like to see new and different things. I also like to stay home....on the weekends, it's really hard to pry me out of the house and yard. You are probably building some great muscle (converting fat to muscle) and suddenly even if the scale isn't moving, you are going to be a size smaller. Then the scale will move again. Sharon, Congrats on the 51 lbs....that is fabulous!!! Glad to hear DD is doing well....hopefully things will settle down with Eli too. The counseling is maybe a good thing, if you find the right counselor. I think Cheri had some good advise. 1 day....that's so cool that you were doing martial arts. My neice's husband has a studio and is a sensei (spelling?) in the Boston area and my neice has a black belt. I think it is an amazing discipline. I'm sorry if I missed some of you. Hello to everyone!! San Diego was fun. The quilt show was very interesting and there were some very cool quilts. They also had vendors and I got some tools for card making there too. My sister took us down to the gas light district, old town, Hillcrest, and we went to Shelter Island (looking for a fish market we didn't find). We had a pretty good trip. Got home this evening. My fill went pretty well and I do feel some restriction, but my eating is haphazard since we were travelling again. Tomorrow I will be logging my food and watching what I eat again. I hope it will limit the amounts. It seems to doing that now, but I just can't tell really. I burp like crazy right now (like that last time) I think it's funny but I'm sure my sisters got tired of hearing me belch all the time. We now have 9 baby torotises. I'll take a picture this week and post it. There were 10, but one fell over upside down in the Water dish and didn't make it. I can't imagine 9 tortoises in the terrarium I have....I'll have to figure something else out. Okay, I need to sleep sometime (stayed up too late this weekend and it's going to be tough getting back to early rising). Take care everyone. Eva

Welcome Margie2U....I was banded on 7-2-09. You are doing great. Tell us about yourself. It seems the more you talk the more you get responses.

Janet, my sisters (two of them) and I are going to San Diego. The sisters are quilters and there is a quilt show going on this weekend. I don't quilt, but I do like looking at them. Since I'll be in San Diego already, I'm going to slip down to Tijuana for another fill. This is the first time the three of us have ever tried to do anything together. It should be an interesting weekend. Interesting calorie break down. Sharon, ah so much fun with laundry...gee, I'm doing a load now too. Keeping my fingers crossed for you, your daughter and Eli. Wow, it's sort of quite on the thread today. I bet you all catch up over the weekend when I'm gone and it will take days to catch up! LOL. I'm the proud momma of 3 baby tortoises. I separated the parents early this year, but it looks like not early enough. I saw them tonight when I got home from work. Mom torttise (Delila) lays the eggs in her burrow and I can't see in there, so it's a surprise. I have a separate screened in enclosure for them because the road runners will eat them. Oh boy, more critters to care for. Hope everyone has a great night!! Eva

Wow, I want your insurance plan and work schedule. My insurance won't pay for weight loss surgery and I had to go to Mexico and self pay. It's great that you don't have to go back to work until you are feeling better. SALLY, Jackie has good advise. You will be able to eat more and should when you are healed. You will have more energy especially as the weight comes off.

1 day....so sorry you are having trouble with the pills. I haven't had one of those stick yet. I hope that everything is okay today. I wonder if they just try to go through sideways or flat and get stuck. Then Water won't help much. I'm able to take a pretty sizable multi-vitamin right now and it surprises me that it goes down easily. I do take them at night when I have very little restriction however. I'll go back to chewables after I get my fill again. Hope everyone has a great Tuesday. ee

That's a great idea regarding the skinny straws. You don't take in too much air? I'm going for another fill this weekend, so I'll have better restriction after Saturday.

Week 9 of weekly weigh-in 7-20-09 239.5 7-28-09 238 gained 1 lb since my last ticker update. 8-3-09 238.5 was up to 241.5 now going down again. 8-10-09 236.5 8-17-09 238 again....just got back from another vacation. 8-24-09 237.5...had my first fill on Saturday, hope to see this number go down now. 8-31-09 233 9-8-09 233 9-14-09 232.5 oh so slowly

You've are still recovering from surgery. The 2nd week out all I wanted to do was sleep too. I was also told to walk and not do any other kind of exercise. I would say don't push it too soon. You can start out slowly and work up to more vigorous exercise as your body heals. Good luck!

I can still gulp water too. I don't drink 2 or 3 cups at a time, but I can drink more than sips. I'm going for my 2nd fill this weekend, so that may change too. I do drink before I eat, but I'm getting very good about not drinking for at least 30-40 minutes after I eat.