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I went to Monterrey mexico for my surgery. It was done on Oct 10, 2008 by Dr Zapata. Ready4achange.com I didnt have any preop diet, ate what i wanted. i went out to eat the night before surgery for the "last supper" lol I had a big meal, and a couple drinks. he did want to limit alcohol intake prior to surgery but my surgery was scheduled late evening the next day. Surgery and recovery was a breeze. He did say walk alot after surgery to get rid of the excess gas that is incurred during surgery. i walked all night at the hospital and never had any gas pains. i never took any pain medicine either . I had surgery on wed night, went to the hotel thurs. flew home friday morning , i was back in new orleans for 9 am on friday and drove myself home from the hospital , the only pains i had was soreness when i was getting up out of a chair or out of bed . i am down 80# since surgery. just slow and steady. Ive had 4 fills. It is a little slow right now because i havent been walking like i should . Adrias Mier New Orleans 10/10/07 340/260/190

ahhh, feels so good to have a minute to come in here and chat... i'm so sorry about carson laura. poor baby! I know lots of kids with tubes, they are quite common nowadays. i dont know how invasive the surgery is though... judy - im the same as you. i do do do and see very little results now. sometimes i wonder if this is just where my body wants to be?? i lost a little bit while doing bootcamp this past month. but the time was killing me. i was dying with those 430 am mornings. heather - your son is so handsome! i remember doing those school projects where we would film ourselves! they were so fun. hows ayla doing? did she turn one yet or?? i dont remember... pam - i'm sure you have a million things to wear in your closet! and they're all nice! i remember sleeping with them! LOL michelle - i'm so happy to hear mo is a happy cat now... oh and you're good if you walked out of a mall with a teenage girl and spent less than a hundred bucks! jane - sorry that your shoulder is giving you trouble... i banged my shoulder up getting into my car and i had a huge bruise on it for days... how are things going with charlie? has your business started picking up? suzy! so glad things are chugging along with you and gia... is she adjusting to having rules? well i went to go do a fitting for my dress today. when i put it on it just slid right up no problem. i was so surprised because last time i struggled to get into it even when it was completely uncorseted. so anywho, i'm all thinking that the freaking 5 lbs i lost made a huge difference. i was so happy and the lady is corseting me in and it just falls beautifully and fits me perfectly and i'm grinning from ear to ear... then the main seamstress comes into my room and asks me how i like the fit and did i notice she had let it out a little bit. :/ here i am thinking it was my hips had shrunk, LOL. so anyways, i was extremely happy with the results. you can't even tell where she let it out. it falls on my body exactly where it's supposed to. and i feel good in it. it feels so good on. after my fitting my mom and i went to the spa and had a facial and a microdermabrasion done. my face feels so soft! i met with my DJ yesterday and he did a rough sketch of how the layout is going to be for the reception. he made me feel like everything is going to turn out fantastic. oh and monday we went and bought my mother in laws dress. its beautiful and she looks gorgeous in it. we bought all the liquor already. crown royal, rum, tequila, vodka, whiskey, convousier (sp?) Then lots of beer. Miller Lite and XX. Bought cranberry juice, pineapple juice, mango juice, lemon juice. Coke, sprite, squirt, diet coke, orange soda. Hmm, what else? I think that's it. I'm thinking about putting list of available drinks at each bar inside a nice frame. Maybe list the alcohol available and then maybe 5 mixed drinks? like vodka/cranberry. That's the only one i have so far, ha ha ha... Jane, what other combos can I put together and what are they called? I want to put the name and then what it has underneath. ok, it's 10pm... i better get to bed now... talk to ya'll tomorrow!

No, it's NOT a goofy concept. It's the way things SHOULD be, but aren't (unfortunately). My mother was a single mom who worked two jobs most of my life. My dad was an alcoholic who would show up every once in a while with some grand gesture - bicycles or a TV or something - but did not make regular child support payments. It was a tough life - for her and for us. But it wasn't my fault (or my brother's) that our dad didn't do the right thing. Fast forward to today. There are lots of deadbeat parents, no argument about that. But should we, as a society, punish their kids for that? If we don't provide for those children, who will? Whatsoever you do for the least of mine, you do for me.

Kat225, No offense taken. I guess I felt the need to explain my position becasue I was described as "cold" and the person alluded that I felt superior to others because I choose to use some willpower during the time between banding and a good restriction level, so I was a bit defensive. I apologize to you that I felt I had to defend myself against your post. I have said many times, that I understand "bandsters hell" and there have been days when i struggled, too. I tried to suggest that it is possible to control our choices, even if we can't always control the quantity and similar phrases. I mean we have all dieted before, so isn't it possible to try dieting one more time until we get that long awaited restriction, that we all crave and know we need. That was the message I was trying to get out there. That sitting around waiting for restriction was not helpful to our cause. Your opinion might differ from mine, although I don't think it does very much and I agree that people have a right to their opinion. I took offense to the words "cold" and "negative" ( not used by you) going around the thread simply becasue some of us choose to try hard to stay on track. I do not feel that makes me superior, perhaps just further in the journey. If the other person got that from my response then I guess she wasn't ready to accept the message. Actually you have echoed words I have said for many years. We don't tell an alcoholic to have three small drinks a day, we don't tell a drug addict to have three small hits a day or a smoker to have three small cigs a day, but we are told to just have three small meals a day. Well, you can live without cigs, drinks and drugs but you cannot survive without food, so where does that leave us? Thanks for the response, Kat! I appreciate it.

I have my mom's baby set-silver. My son has a set of our flatware someone gave him in a baby set (but it's packed away so I can't borrow it). If you want to spend a little more I would check some of the major flatware stainless/silver companies. Here's a link to the Oneida set he received (I don't have an idea for a travel case...hard eyeglasses case?). Click HERE Good luck DB with the doc appt. More than you probably want to know but I do count these, and I'm no expert. Sugar alcohols are not sugars or alcohols but are carbohydrates called polyols. They don't impact blood sugar significantly "in most people", so most diebetics can tolerate these. As far as how they should be counted...When products started arriving with these in them low carb dieters were told by many diet plans that they could deduct these off the carb total (when Atkins started making their own products they changed from not allowing these to allowing them). The urban ledgend when I was on Atkins (several successful times) was that these just passed through your body. Not true, they are metabolized just like other carbs, well not exactly as once absorbed they are converted to energy by processes that require little or no insulin. Some of the sugar alcohol is not absorbed into the blood but passes through the small intestine and are fermented by bacteria in the large intestine (so they are metabolized). Overconsumption may produce abdominal gas and a laxative effect. Just because they don't effect blood sugar doesn't mean they shouldn't count like other carbs that have little effect on blood sugar like green vegetables. There's been a lot of controversy lately on whether or not these should be counted as carbs or not, but most agree they should have a limited use and are mainly a benefit for diabetics needing to control blood sugars. The commonly used sugar alcohols include sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, maltitol, maltitol syrup, lactitol, erythritol, isomalt and hydrogenated starch hydrolysates. Their calorie content ranges from zero to three calories per gram compared to four calories per gram for sucrose or other sugars (most have a little over half the calories per gram as sugar). Most sugar alcohols are less sweet than sucrose; maltitol and xylitol are about as sweet as sucrose. So the pros are they contain less calories than sugar, but beware that these are not 'free' foods and they usually contain a lot of carbs. There is a big misconception that these carbs shouldn't count. They are not the same as zero calorie sugar substitues like saccharine.

Good job Georgia! Brown OMG I could not be that strong! Chocolate anything would drive me over the edge. Ok she's gone!!!! OMG I took her to a two hour doctors appt today. It was very stressful and the doctor and I confronted her on her alcohol use (not what any of us expected especially her) She's an alcoholic but became clean and sober after my brothers death. But she's back to drinking every night and is pissed and says lots of normal people drink wine every night. Yeah... I tried to talk to her about my food addiction and that even though I'm smaller now I'm still an addict. I told her for instance I'm so stressed out I could eat a package of Oreos today and that after she left I will be fighting a secret binge. Even though "normal" weighted people can eat Oreos, I can't. She wanted to know why I was stressed Ok no binges today and I'm at 426 so far.. I might MIGHT make it...

I'm fasting today. Head is not in the game. I just have too much going on. I don't do well with uncertainty and we won't know about when my husband will go for another week. It could be anywhere from three weeks to six months from now, and until that's settled I will stress. We also have a never-ending stream of guests, because everyone is thrilled we're in the states again. It's nice but also stressful. My stepson's girlfriend came in to meet us and all they've done is bicker since she's been here. Needless to say, I'm hoping that she doesn't join the family permanently. My father-in-law and hubby's stepmother will be here tomorrow night...and then I have more guests at the end of next week. I was up three damned pounds on the scale for no really good reason this morning. Not so thrilled. This puts me up over my where I ended the last week. I hope it falls off quickly. My non-fast days are full of imperfect foods but I'm hanging in my calorie range pretty easily. So long as I stay away from the alcohol, that is! Glad to hear everyone had a pretty decent day yesterday. It's good to see you around, coops! Daisy, I can think of so many wonderful things to make with all those cherries! In Bishkek we had cherry trees in our yard and it was wonderful. FYE, I've had some days like that. In fact, I had leftover tiramisu for Breakfast yesterday, with a huge latte. Massive calories first thing in the morning. Oh, in case anyone was wondering, tiramisu IS a slider and YES the dairy will bother a person with lactose intolerance. Hope everyone has a great day. I'm doing a fast but admit I broke it early today. I normally don't do my Protein Shake until at least after ten but I woke up and just needed to jam food in my face. So I compromised with myself - no, I won't eat that last square of tiramisu but I will have my Protein coffee at 8:30 today. It could be worse. ~Cheri

Ended yesterday at 592...not so great for a fast day, and yeah...that hard cider I had at the end of the night, unplanned, is what did it. I'm struggling with emotions and stress right now and definitely need to take a closer look at my coping mechanisms. My inability to relax or let things go for the moment without a glass of wine or alcohol is very troubling and is something I'll need to work on, especially if my husband does go play soldier sooner rather than later. Up on the scale after my fast day but I'm not terribly surprised. I kind of don't expect much out of the scale anymore! Hubs says that the scale is bonkers, anyway. His unscientific test on it the last two days indicates that it shows weights within a four pound range one after the other. I just bought the darn thing, too. I'll replace the batteries but it would be nice to believe that I'm not having as much fluctuation on the scale as I thought. So, down from weigh-in on Sunday by eight tenths of a pound. Up from yesterday. Bleh. Dumb scale. Normal day. Lots of cooking and baking today. A yummy, healthy dinner of shakshouka, salat yerakot (Israeli salad), freshly made pitas and hummus. Yum. This is a meal I need to keep in mind because it's ideally suited (sans pita) for fast days, too. Not too many calories. I won't go into detail about the baking as a courtesy to those fasting. Good luck, fasters! I'm glad to read that everyone is experiencing some measure of success here (extra special shout out to coops and M2G!) even if it sometimes seems frustrating to me. ~Cheri

Good morning everyone..... Kelly so happy your back, sorry your having hair issues....I hate it when I have issues with my hair, I hate going to my hair stylist and having to sit in the chair for a few hours..... I love her dearly, she has been fantastic with my hair though. Don't know what I'd do without her. I have some weird things happen to me. I had a Mai Tai 2 nights ago and got a little buzzed. The next day my stomach was like an empty leg. So hungry, ate a lot, drank a lot, and my bladder has had a spasm here and there. Geesh I'm falling apart.... I was so confused through out the day and frustrated I gave in an ate 3/4ths a bag of Flamin hot Cheetos.....My stomach was already feeling dry and the spices on the Cheetos was burnin my stomach.....I still felt hungry. So confused by all this.. Driving home from my friends house, it dawned on me. I was having acid in my stomach. Nothing like wanting to smack myself in my frontal lobe to wake myself up. LOL I got home and took an omeprazole and then was still hungry and ate a tamale with salsa..... The kicker here is that I'm down a couple of lbs. I will take this. Now I just need to figure out my bladder situation and I will be good.....today I will take it easy on my stomach. I do have a question for all of you.....Do you have any difficulties with your stomachs after drinking alcoholic beverages? I sure hate to give it up, I don't really drink that often anyways. Today needs to be a clean eating day to get rid the last few lbs.

Sounds like everyone is doing well Started my new job and I love it so far - even if it is a bit daunting with all of the new systems to learn - everyone is super friendly and it is wonderful to get to talk about books all day. I am glad that I get to be on my feet for many hours at a stretch again - I think not working during the summer - even though I have been getting more movement in than ever still makes it rough to keep that scale from creeping up if your diet isn't perfect. I saw a thing on T.V. with Oprah's trainer guy - Bob Greene and he mentioned that it sucks but if you are a woman your diet needs to be almost prefect if you are not going to exercise, and if you do exercise you need to do it most days of the week - whereas men can get by with less working out and eating can be worse because of the muscle mass - bah! Looking at my calendar I am down a little over 3.5 lbs from the same day last month - I will definitely take that! I would love to drop back down into the 170's by the end of the month - that's about 3.3 lbs - it isn't much by man my body is stubborn at giving up the weight these days. Hope you guys have fun with all of the dancing - sounds wonderful! And Sheryl I would not want a Mormom BF either - I think I have a bit too much heathen in my past lol. It's interesting many of our family situations - thinking about Cathy's post - my mom was pretty much a single parent in the 60's - other than the decade she stayed married to the raging alcoholic who tortured us. My own mom is pretty cold and distant - we have never had that warm and fuzzy mom daughter relationship and I know we most likely never will. I think most of the time I have felt like I was a burden and an annoyance to her - there were those times when I was younger, and a huge pain in the ass that she let me know that she wished I had never been born - I know this has to be incredible frustration venting from one who doesn't know how to handle it any other way. But its not something that ever is erased.The longer I live the easier it is for me to see the connection between the innate sense of unease and panic I have always had (when nowhere and nothing is safe) and using food for comfort - bury me under a blanket of bread and gravy haha.

Hey every one!! I made it back from my 3 day trip and it was AWESOME!! I did make good food choices, and ate my proteins first. I go back to the Dr. tomorrow, so I was to scared to mess up!! Do you know how embarrasing it would be to be on an 900 calorie diet and gain wt.!!! That would just be the most awful thing that could thing that could happen!! So anyway, I will know tomorrow how much wt. I've lost and I can (maybe post a loss!), haven't done that yet. Does anyone out there tell me what is alcohol sugar and should we be having it in our foods. I am finding low sugar or sugar free food that have sugar alcohol in them and often they are more than the sugar grams. I am so confused, HELP !!! Talk to ya later !

When your husband tells you "Why can't you just not eat too much and exercise?" you should ask him if he'd say the same thing to an alcoholic! It's an addiction, just like alcohol, but it's even more insidious because we NEED to eat food to survive! You can't just NOT eat! Re being selfish, maybe we are being a little selfish. But we NEED to be! If you're anything like me, you always put your husband/boyfriend and kids first! This time, for this little while, we need to put OURSELVES first!

I've had some alcohol, a little beer and a little cider. I'm not much of a cocktail drinker (except for gin and tonic, I could kill a pitcher of those by myself!) and I've been hesitant to have wine, since it always gave me heartburn pre-surgery. My doctor is very much a 'think about it and watch how it makes you feel' kind of guy about foods and/or alcohol. I don't have any 'can't ever eat' restrictions, like some docs seem to give to their patients. It's working for me, I'm finding myself making good decisions without having someone give me tight right and left limits on what I can do.

A lot of people cannot tolerate sugar alcohol after surgery. Causes diarrhea, abdominal pain. Stats: 5'1", age 67, female. Highest weight: 245. BMI 41. Surgery Date: May 28, 2020. Weight at surgery: 211. VSG.

I haven't had surgery yet, just getting used to all this. Thanks for the information! I was on Keto prior to starting this journey so the sugar alcohol was ok for me.

Whether you drink alcohol or not or how much or how often you drink is really a personal one. You know yourself best & you are best placed to see how & if it affects you. I was a big glass of wine every night person before surgery. Never a big drinker as such but would enjoy a glass or three if socialising over a couple of hours. After surgery I had a gin & tonic at about the 2 month mark at my cousin’s 40th. Literally sipped it for hours. Had another 1or 2 gin & tonics over the next 4 months while losing, always nursing the glass for hours. Honestly, I lost my taste for it. Think I was only able to tolerate the rare g&ts because of the bitterness of the tonic. Now I usually have a glass of something about once a month when out or celebrating something. Still usually only one & I drink it over about an hour now. I have a fridge & a cupboard full of alcohol I just don’t drink. LOL! When I do drink I go for quality over quantity these days. A glass of real champagne, a glass of good quality scotch or a good gin (they’re my go tos). Certainly addiction transfer is a consideration. As is the increased effects of the alcohol on your body & how fast it can affect you is another. Then there is the calorie & nutritional impact. But again, your choice, though if your plan says no alcohol while losing, I’d probably stick to that as closely as possible to take best advantage of your losing phase.

Many times people post on this forum asking if they can have one thing or another: popcorn, wine, bread, gum, coffee, Rocky Mountain Oysters, or whatever. I think that the general answer to lap band questions of this type is, you can eat it or drink it if you can eat it or drink it. In other words, each person is different. If a beer goes down OK for you and you are still losing weight, then you can have a beer. People generally say that anything with carbonation is not a good idea, because it can stretch your pouch, or it can cause things to get stuck, or whatever. But yet there are still plenty of people who drink the occassional diet coke and don't seem to have any problems. And plenty of people on this site acknowledge that they drink wine sometimes. In fact, many people say it helps loosen up their restriction so they can eat solid food without getting stuck. For some people this is a big benefit. So I don't think the alcohol itself is necessarily a problem per se. It's the carbonation and calories/carbs in beer that would be the problem (if any). But again, there is no general answer here that is going to solve the problem. The bottom line is, if you find that you personally can drink beer, then you can drink beer.

Ok, it's been a while since I've been on here. But I'm feeling the need to confess so here goes... I confess that I'm way more arrogant than I ever thought possible I confess that I see myself as one hot momma (it took pics to convince me I wasn't before weight loss, lol) I confess I'm addicted to beef jerky and I justify the unhealthiness of it by the great protein amount I confess that sex is way better now! I confess that I'm 11 months out and drink alcohol several times a week even though I signed a contract that I would wait a year I confess that I love my cheese puffs and dont even feel guilty about it I confess that I don't say it out loud but I am beyond thrilled that I now share clothes with my 14 year old daughter I confess that while folding clothes I hold up my new panties and just grin at how tiny they look Last but not least I confess that this is by far the best decision I've ever made, better than when I said 'I do' to my husband!!! Whew, that felt great, thx

I waited a month per me drs instructions. Be up front with your doctor so he can be honest about how long you should wait. But I have never have a problem with alcohol. Other than I have noticed my band get tighter.

Hi all, Darcy I'm so ssorry to hear what going on with your FIL. I do agree with what Betty said though. If it's what he enjoys why not ;et him have it. I had a very very close frend who was really like a family member to me. I adopted him and we became very close he even lived with us at one point for a while when Floyd came to NJ and flooded him out. Anyway he was a major alcoholic and in the end his daughter and I brought him a bottle of vodka and we had a drink with him. It was very sad for all of us, but it was what he enjoyed and needed. FIL and MIL aren't to great. Things are still nuts around here. We are moving him out of the Columbia house on Saturday. I gave in to Garry and said what the heck I can only do so much. He gave into me and said ok hire a moving company. So at least we will be rid of Columbia in a few days. FIL has no appetite and slept ALL day yesterday. Today he was a bit better. The PT came to work with him and I tink that helped. MIL was ok she had lip stick on today. She looked good. She is walking more with the walker, but still cant do anything for herself. We brought Cindy her cocker to visit her today Cindy didn't seem to care about seeing her which was to bad. You guys know I LOVE animals, but I have got to tell you Cindy is the dumbest dog I have ever known I think she could win an award for being the dumbest dog on earth. She doesn't walk on a lease she does the breast stroke! I am not kidding! She is really something. OH I have no idea how he will be able t keep her. She is great company for him she sleeps on his lap but when she is awake..wew... I take FIL to urologist on Thursday. His PSA is 22. I am afraid of what is next with him.

Thank you for the encouragement Not being able to afford the surgery here, has its disadvantages. One being part of a support group. We met another patient while we were in Mexico, who referred this site to me. She and I have been keeping in touch through e-mail. Her surgery was rescheduled, and she'll be going in at the end of this month. Anyway, I was on liquids the first week, then graduated to creamy things like yogurt, cream of wheat and oatmeal. This doctor has a different recommendation than what I have heard from others. Doesn't seem as strict. My primary doctor here recommended sticking to it. I think the longer you can go with the softer stuff, the better. The "strict" may be better overall. I snuck a few things here and there, and must say, I did regret it. I would try a bite here and there, and if it works, then I try it again another day. The broth and liquids were giving me a huge stomach ache several times a day. Yes, the port side has been quite painful. Nobody ever talked about that, so I didn't expect it. My husband felt it too. Our bandages were off after about a week. Our incisions were closed with some kind of "glue." I had two stitches, and my husband had 3, which are also out now. We're almost healed except for one long incision that is about 3". I think the port is under there because we can feel a bump. I am usually allergic to adhesive, so I understand what you went through. I started using rubbing alcohol as soon as I could get near the areas to get the sticky stuff off. Yes I have heard that men lose quickly. My husband is just in heaven, telling me his watch keeps flipping around now, and that he is on the last notch of his belt. I'm proud of him. He used to eat about 5 full dinner plate sized meals a day. Now he can only eat a cup at a time, and hasn't needed any insulin because his body is making just enough. His doctor is monitoring him, so please, don't anyone out there just go and do this on your own. Blood sugar levels are not something to mess with. He has been a diabetic for 14 years, and his top weight was 330. I did this for myself, but also to support him. We have a 14 year old son, and a 12 year old daughter, and look forward to having more energy and spending more time with them before they are grown.

Good Lord, Ryan!!! That sounds like a torture chamber instead of a stress test! Sanded your chest and poured alcohol on it?!?! It's a wonder your fist didn't start flying!!! Ummm....Maybe Patty just doesn't get that being banded is having major surgery? After all she has gone through, the thought of Lapband surgery may seem more like a pin prick to her. Maybe she just needs more time and information to put it in the right perspective. Or, she may be making it out to be a minor thing so you won't know that she is really scared and concerned for you. When the time comes, I bet she'll be 100% behind you, too. Good luck with the rest of your tests!

You guys sure have lost a lot of weight. That is awesome to see sucess so close to home (Tacoma). I am on the LONG waiting list for insurance to cover me (not done till MArch 09) Tick tock tick tock. I was almost at the point of just getting a loan and paying for it when my father in law became homeless and is now living with us (ugh...not a good deal, he is a total alcoholic) and not to be totally trailer trashy (i totally am not) he is now living on a trailer on our back property (we have 1 1/2 acres) but still is an expense none the less. I felt upset when my hubby told me because it was stealing my dream from my fingers but now i am trying to be a mature adult and know its just a delay. Its funny it takes you years to get to this place where enough is enough, you have tried it ALL, it has failed and you give up and then the surgery just clicks and a light bulb goes off. For me, its like the drug addict who had to try everything else on his own before going and getting "treatment". So once you make that decision and find the courage to say yes this is what i am gonna do, scary but worth it...then someone tell you to wait a year...yeah, that sucks. But, heck years ago they didnt cover it at all. Blah, blah. I just wanted to say Hi to the peeps in my neighborhood and connect with you all. And to tell you how inspiring your sucess it to folks like me, looking through the fence waiting to come on in =)

Is it time or near your time of the month? That can bring it on, as can stress, and sluggish digestion. The liver can also be the culprit. Here are some internet suggestions for under eye bags: Try to avoid stress and get extra rest, especially during menstrual discomfort. Drink plenty of warm Water. Avoid ice cold and carbonated drinks. Avoid stimulants such as caffeine and alcohol. Add coconuts, raisins, papaya and sweet juicy fruits to your diet. Only take a moderate amount of sugar. (or use agave nectar) Avoid red meat and heavy fried foods. Avoid drinking fluids before bed. Favor only natural beauty products Do not smoke, and avoid second hand smoke. Get plenty of sleep. Place a washcloth dipped in warm water over your eyes for 5 minutes once or twice daily. Make sure you are laughing every day it gives excersize to facial muscles. For puffy and swollen eyes, make facial steam or facial wash with warm, salty water. For tired eyes use silk eye pillow. For inflamed baggy eyes soak cotton pads in cold milk with rose water, or cucumber slices or cool tea bags placed over closed eyes for five to ten minutes.

Happy Thanksgiving!!! Kat - on your 30 year old "kid" - next year - just ask her what she is bringing - pointedly. She will get the message. It's past time for her to step up.... :] Oh - and we don't cater too much to picky eaters at my house. If you don't like it - don't eat it. Amazingly enough - folks always seem to find something they can tolerate. :] Oh - and the poundage in the signature is the "Official" weight as of my last doctor's visit. I will change that when I go to see him again next month. Jules - glad to hear I am not the only one who doesn't know about Chess Pie. Hope you are having a great day! Mandy - non-alcoholic wine is about the same thing as decaffinated coffee. I guess they can suck the alcohol out of anything.... I will have to try the pork thing. We are big into pork at my house. Chrispy - Calzones? I want some! What a great non-traditional feast food. Do you put meat in them? Do tell. It's all about food porn today, anyway, isn't it? I mean Geez. We have already read about Caremel Pecan pie... how much more hungry can I get? :] Eileenie - cute card! Have fun cooking. Just in case I somehow don't get back here before Friday - HUGE hugs and much love to all of you - I will be thinking of you as I take my two bites of stuffing every 15 minutes. Hugs & Love Irene