Lucky # Sevens- July 07 Bandsters

[salsa1877 10]

So I am up early this morning to prep for my FAVORITE lab of the year. My stoichiometry pizza lab. I will explain stoichiometry at a later date. But I did something this time to REWARD myself instead of punishing myself with either total deprivation or binging. When you get done cooking over 100 english muffin pizzas you are going to inevitably give in and eat one. So I prepared for it this time. I got some low cal flat bread, LF cheese and turkey pepperoni so that I could make my own pizza and not succumb to the unhealthier stuff.

Well I just wanted to post my good thing of the day...Steph I sent you a copy of the lab if you haven't checked your email yet.

Talk to you all later. Today is my rest day and my legs need it. They are a bit sore. Then tomorrow official half marathon training begins. Steph you may beat me because I think I only run 18 miles the entire week. But please don't do anything to hurt your back!

[Twilight 2]

Grrr... I spent 1/2 hour posting and then walked away for a minute and the kids hit the back arrow on my mouse. Let's see if I can remember everything that I said.

I'm up early. I was up at 6:30 making Jeff Breakfast, I guess now it doesn't seem very early :laugh: I was wondering at what point I became a whiny, complainy, achy, everything hurts, old lady. My toes hurt, it's that bad! What a woose!

Today's plans.....

1. call to make myself a fill appointment for June. I may not need it after my 5 day but I want to have the appointment made so that if I do it is there. I'm bummed that there is only one day a month I can do it in Minot. Otherwise I have to drive another couple of hours to Bismarck.

2. Make an appointment with my pcp to talk to him about physical therapy. He wasn't for it last time but my back doc wants me to get some. He wants me to work on getting my lower back a little more flexible. He also says I need help stretching out my hamstrings because it pulls so hard on my back. Finally he wants me to get some help with my core. He wants to make sure that I get help with proper technique so I don't hurt things. He said that he would prescribe it but would rather I do through my pcp so that he can monitor me better.

3. I need to finish my gardening. I have plants to get in and edging to do. I also am going to plant a couple of cups worth of pumpkin seeds with the kids. They already have sunflowers growing in the window. I'll get those in the ground today or Wednesday but thought it would be fun for them to grow pumpkins too.

4. My wii so that Candice doesn't kick my butt. BTW Candice, we need to figure out the terms of this challenge. Something little, but something that we can reward the winner with. What do you think?

Okay...off to talk to the little ones. Nick is being a goof ball. Have a great day ladies. Hugs.

[salsa1877 10]

Steph my toes are killing me. I have a meeting after school so I had to wear dress clothes and I am standing on my feet all day making pizzas for my kiddos. My TOES ARE KILLING ME!

[Frustrated 1]

Have you REALLY moved today? Where's the sweat?

Is it your head, your heart, or your stomach that is hungry?

Can you look in the mirror today and say you are proud of you?

Doesn't healthy taste better than crap?

Are you REALLY hungry or are you JUST unhappy?

Can you meet your goals with your mouth full?

Since when did you become good with mediocre?

Do you look good in your fat pants?

What weighs more? Guilt or happiness? What are you full of?

If nothing sounds good, why are you chewing?

What does $13k taste like?

How many chins does it take to make you smile?

I can't put it any better than Karri has done, but I'll add my 2 cents for whatever it's worth.

I read all of your questions yesterday and thought and thought how to respond to you. The more I thought, the more it occurred to me that I couldn't come down on you any harder than you came down on yourself. None of us can. The person who hates and reprimands us the most and harshest is the person we see every morning in the mirror. It's not Janet, or Karri, or Phyl or anybody else. And I thought to myself, how can I motivate her to stop thinking like that when I can't even do it for myself sometimes. But it's not like this every day. Sometimes it's only 1 or 2 days out of a month. But we don't or won't see all the good work we put into bettering ourselves. We only focus on the negative.

It's SO easy being fat, staying fat and getting fatter. This war we fight with our weight is just that. A war. And nobody goes into a war winning each and every battle. We have to learn to take the losses with the wins. We won't win every battle, but we need to focus on the entire war, not just the losses. It's a bitter pill to swallow and leaves a horrible taste in our mouths for ages when we succumb to the evil foods we just can't seem to get out of our lives. But rather than beating ourselves up over moments of weakness, we have to recognise that weakness, stop and start over again before it gets out of control.

I eat a cookie and feel like crap. So to punish myself I eat another cookie. And another. And another. Where does that get me? A whole lot of punishment and further behind in the war. Okay. So I lost that battle. Instead of going into the next one depressed and ready to lose, I need to tell myself "Cookie battle is done with and behind me. I'm fighting with the Protein Shakes this time around." That's an easier win because the Protein shakes are on my side and fighting with me, rather than against me. I'll do battles with the Cookies again. I know I will. I also know that sometimes I'll lose those battles. But it's okay. I will win the war if I just hang in there and continue to fight. And so will you Steph. So will we all. *big hugs*

[Frustrated 1]

On a positive note, I lost 2lbs this week. :laugh: I'm very happy with that and quite surprised as I had a setback early on. I get to change my ticker and see it go down again. That huge spike up was an unpleasant sight.

[peaches9 3]

Thanks everyone for your answers, they helped a lot. Today is the first day that I am home all day since my fill, so I am hoping that I will be more relaxed when I eat. I am sure that I am tensing while eating, waiting for the pain. Anyway, you know that I will let you know.

Steph, good luck on your speech. I assume that it is for the school's graduation, I missed what it was for. You must feel honored!! and you will kick some major booooooootae.. They will be honored to have YOU!!

So lets see, Phyll is off the the high seas, Karri is tramping in the wilds as bear breakfast and the rest of us??? I am going to work on the yard, one of my favorite things. Get the roses pruned and epsoned salted, dig up the DOA's that I never got around to mulching, plant some bulbs, work on my pots...should be relaxing and fun.

I did email the lady who owned my favorite local quilt shop about selling. AND the shop is for sale..what is left of the stock and the 'name', and I am waiting to hear if the building is for sale as well. The shop was in a restored church building, complete with tower, thus the name the 'Bell Tower'. I talked to my nursery boss about buying a business in a lousy economy. She said that she bought the nursery during our worst economic slump in recent history, AND that the nursery had been hit by hail that stripped the branches and bark off of a good portion of the trees (we field grow most of our trees). But with hard work she has made it a success. Her advice is to go for it, and offered to work for me during the winter.

So folks, I am asking for a huge favor...Please pray about this. Doris does tend to be noisy about things like this..."are you crazy? Are you ready to work 24/7? What are you going to do when it fails? You have NO start up money." I know I need a change, I am becoming a disappointment to myself as a teacher. I just don't have the passion anymore. One thing that I would like to offer at the shop is kid's sewing/crafting classes. These are soon becoming the lost 'arts'. So I am asking for prayer to show me what is the right path. If I believe and 'call it to me' (The Secret) the right path will be shown to me. Please help me find the path.

Janet have fun with the trainer, is he a hottie??? I'd train hard for him if he was...

Ruby, go shopping, buy the good foods.

My kids are nagging me to get busy, I don't know what I will do with them gone next year. Elyse (soon to be 23) is transfering to a college in either Chicago or Spokane, & Alexa (the baby soon to be 19) will be in Missoula at the University.

You all have a good day

K

Karla, I love the idea of the quilt shop. And in Montana with the long winters, a lot of ladies LOVE to go to their quilt shops and SHOP. THer e are so many ideas on how to make it profitable.

I belong to a $10 quilt club, we meet once per month and make ONE block from a 12 block quilt. The shop charges $10 for teh club. For that you get the fabric and instructions to build ONE block. If you show up for classs each month 1) on time, 2) with your block completed from last month, 3) stick around for 1/2 hour after class and listen to the sales pitch... You end up with 12 completed blocks at the end of the year and all you have to do is complete the borders and backing and quilt it...

Its a great way to get a quilt cheaply especially if you are a beginner.

Also my quilt shop send around a EMAIL newsletter with sales and upcoming classes on in each month...keeps the ladies coming back over and over again...

Stephanie, I'll do the wii with you starting today, what are the perameters? just do it? or do we do it for a certain length of time??? what???

My Cousin Laurie and her DH were down for the long weekend and I had them doing Wii yesterday. He's from Newfoundland and is really a funny guy thick ACCENT and it was sofunny watching him try to hoola hoop. But they loved it.

Janet; not too bad with food this weekend, as I said earlier I made NO dessert. BUt last night my cousin said it was HER turn to cook, she made a SHRIMP stirfry (delicious) and then we had a key lime pie for dessert...!!! BUt its GONE now, and for breaky today I had Cereal, skim milk and lunch was protien bar 240 cals.

I have NO idea how much wine I drank over the weekend... so I'll just leave my confession there.. hic ...have you purchased your plane ticket yet for July????

Lucky 7 Cruise? in JULY we'd have to do Alaska or the Atlantic seaboard cruise or we could Cruise the Rhine River in Europe!!! The carribean would b e deadly in JULY!!!

Kari: I should be like you and get out and dig in the garden... I have just been so sleepy today!!!! I had a bath earlier and fell asleep in the TUB!!

I have today off work, as it is Queen Victoria's Birthday celebration here and is a statutory holiday!!! YEAH!!

DD and DSil2B were also up on the weekend, they were checking out florists, photographers and Cake lady for the wedding... oh my she is getting stressed about the wedding plans. DH and I found an old VHS tape of a tv show that my DD was on singing in 1993 ... she was about 13 yrs old. Anyways we had not seen in played in years... so we told DD and Dsil2b that we were agoing to SHOW this clip at their wedding!!!! OMG was she ever p1ssed!!! DSIL2B liked it though, he almost had tears in his eyes as he watched a 13 yr old fiance singing a love song... too cute.

Oh yeah, and now MOVIE CAMERA's are forbiden at the wedding!!!!:eek:

[lindaa 1]

Hi! Remember me? Now that it's "summer" I'm hoping to jump back in and reconnect with everyone. Classes are done and I am getting my life back. It's been a wicked year. Had some LB complicatons and needed surgery just before Christams. It felt so good to feel good again that I promptly gained about 10 pounds, so now I'm working on losing that along with the last 10 that I should have lost last year.

I've missed you all (even Phyl and Janet who I did get to spend a little time with in March, and Candice and Stephanie who sometimes show up on Facebook) and I look forward to catching up with everyone.

[peaches9 3]

Oh girls, I forgot to tell you THere is a ZIPline at Blue Mountain near the scenic caves that I told you about... so we can all go ZIP LINING in July!!!!

[kirajh 0]

Good Afternoon, ladies

Well, I really don't have much to say, but I have to do my part here for Phyl. Thanks, everyone for all the encouragement you['ve posted here. It is great for a jump start.:eek: It's like getting a swift kick in the butt. I think I did pretty good yesterday with food and so far today, I've done pretty good. But then the day is only half over.

well, I'll check back later

Have a good day and let's all make the choice to choose good food.

[Twilight 2]

Hi again ladies. House is picked up, as well as I can with the two little ones under foot. Appointment made with my pcp for a week and a half from now. I should have told her I was sick and I'm sure she could have gotten me in earlier than that, but what's the hurry? I called for a fill and June is already full but left a message for the PA and hopefully she will squeeze me in like she has every other time I've needed her to. She's a doll. I'm sure I'll hear back sometime today. Gardening is waiting until after lunch. Then about 1:30 I'll bring the little ones in to nap and get on the wii fit.

Day two of the 5day is so much easier than the previous day. Much less head hunger. I had a "smoothie" for breakfast that I just finished. Too much other stuff happening so i didn't have a chance to drink it. I'll have another for lunch but I'm thinking I will add some fruit to it this time. I have blueberries in the freezer, some blueberry yogurt, and a banana. A little v8 fusion light and it should be DEVINE!

What is up with the spell checker thing. Every word I type gets a red line under it until I change the paragraph. How am I supposed to know what is typed wrong when it does that?

I'm now going to speak to you all about yesterday. Or rather the 2 weeks leading up to yesterday's meltdown. It started when I was having such trouble with the school. Then a week out west with horrible choices. Not that there weren't good choices available, I just didn't make them. By the time I got back here, I was so entrenched in my old habits that I didn't even notice. It all hit home Saturday night when I went to the movie and made super pig of myself. I didn't sleep well. I was having a hard time dealing with the fact that I had slipped so far so fast. I was up at 4:30 and I just was too tired to deal.

Karri, your incredible words of wisdom really meant a lot to me. I can not say that I had a horrible upbringing but my father (although I love him so very deeply) did make me believe that I was not worthy of a lot of things. His love being the most hurtful. The pain was intense and I thank God everyday that we were able to have the last 12 years to mend those bridges.

Punishment was my way of life. In so many ways. I punished myself over and over for all of my shortcomings. it's amazing that when my father stopped yelling, and calling the names, I took over. I don't know that I will ever get over my self esteem issues. And Karri, you are right, every time I put that crap in my mouth it was just another way for me to tell myself how stupid, selfish, uncaring, unworthy....whatever adjective fits the moment. It is like I when that recording in my head starts, the little kid in me still says "NO!" and I have to physically prove to myself how I am not worthy. I AM WORTHY! I AM BEAUTIFUL! I AM AMAZING!

Ruby, we will struggle together and we will win together. I'm thinking about everything in terms of reward today...as I did yesterday. It's a much better way to see the world. I went

Okay. I started this before lunch and now, the family had lunch, I took the kids out to plant plants. Then we planted 3 cups of pumpkin seeds. I'm a little worried about those. I put 3 seeds in each cup. If they all grow that will be 9 pumpkin plants. And of course we bought the biggest pumpkins we could. We could be overrun by some monsters by the time this is done! Now they are down for a nap. Nick is still messing around and that's why I'm here an not wii'ing yet. Waiting for him to sleep first.

Candice, let's do the most minutes total for the week. I like the idea of saying we have to hit all 4 types of exercises. So, each time we need to do at something from aerobics, balance, yoga, and strength. Otherwise I spend all my time on step aerobics and I really do need to take care of the rest of my body. If you are agreeable to those terms, let me know what the winner gets....you come up with the "reward". We could do a small weekly challenge and a bigger monthly challenge. Tell me what you want.

Okay. I really do need to get going. I'll talk to you all again tonight. Hugs ladies. Have a great day!

[Twilight 2]

If I get to go to Canada for the 7's party I really really want to do that. I'm super afraid of heights and want to challenge myself to that. I watched the biggest loser contestants challenge themselves each season to overcome those fears...so I say...I can do that too!!!

I so hope I get to go!!!

[Twilight 2]

Linda!!!! You're back! Man we missed you! Are you going to Candice's?

So very sorry you had band issues. Do you want to share them with us? What is your plan for losing the weight? Coming here is definitely going to help, if you are anything like me. You might go back a few pages and see how I've been struggling. Karri had some awesome words of wisdom though. And my dear friend Karla was amazing too.

I got my wii fit done! I worked all 4 types. The yoga wasn't half bad. I have to admit that the yoga and the balance make me feel like I'm not working out. That must mean that I'm trying to talk myself out of them because I need them so badly. The yoga does stretch my back, the balance I'm just awful at, and the strength training stresses me out. I LOVE the step aerobics and the rhythm boxing. I even hula hooped for awhile. I started with that to try to loosen my back up a bit and then I finished with it. I could really tell the difference. I was much more flexible by the end.

So far today my "food" has been....

breakfast -- v8 fusion, yogurt, protien powder smoothie

lunch -- coffee, Creamer, 1 schwans 70 cal fudge bar (for the ice cubes), and protien smoothie

after workout snack -- best smoothie yet! 1/2 c. frozen blueberries (they are the ice cubes) blueberry yoplait light, 1/2 banana, a 1/4 cup of 1% milk, protien. I didn't realize blueberries had SO many seeds though. My glass is covered in little spots.

There were a few times when I was thinking I needed something to chew but worked through that. Making everyone lunch was the worst. For dinner I'm going to try a choc. shake with my SF choc pudding as the base. Maybe with banana and strawberries. I'll have to think about it.

Funny Janet, everyone was much better at posting a lot while you were gone :eek: I think it must be the time of year.

Later ladies!

[salsa1877 10]

Steph - My favorite smoothie is frozen mixed berry and Atkins vanilla shake. I have one for dessert if I have calories left.

[cramerk 1]

Hello ladies, frustrating day.

I emailed the fill guy in kalispell with some questions. He said he can not give me ANY medical advise since I am not his patient...I thought we already covered that. But evidently not. He refered me back to the fill dr. in Great Falls, life sucks and then you die.

So I guess I ask you all:

I still am not able to eat any solids and very few mushies. I can guzzle liquids like crazy, but nothing else. When I try to eat something more firm it hurts like heck. It feels like the food is moving through the band. If I was tight enough wouldn't the food sit there until it is digested? What am I doing wrong? I take small bites and chew like crazy, but I can only eat about 2 tsp. before it hurts. I can drink Protein smoothies just fine, but when I try to eat a mushie before 8pm it hurts. So, I had my 1st fill a week ago,, shouldn't I be moving on?

Just go my next years teaching schedule...well, after developing a good math program I am having it taken away. So all that time with the math curriculum didn't count for anything. Instead I get the 'privledge' of teaching 6th grade earth science. One, I am a lousy 6th grade teacher, second, I have NEVER taught earth science. The 'new' 6th grade science teach didn't want any of the lab equipment so he threw it all away. Needless to say, my budget won't change and it doesn't cover the cost of materials for life science now, how am i going to develop a program for a new class. Oh well, I'll end up developing an earth science program and then they will give it to someone else. I have the most seniority in the middle school, I would have at least been asked if I would teach 6th grade. Maybe working at starbucks is an option, don't they give benefits??

So again, I would appreciate your suggestions for food, I'm hungry, but I am afraid to eat anything.

Thanks everyone, k

[salsa1877 10]

Hello ladies, frustrating day.

I emailed the fill guy in kalispell with some questions. He said he can not give me ANY medical advise since I am not his patient...I thought we already covered that. But evidently not. He refered me back to the fill dr. in Great Falls, life sucks and then you die.

So I guess I ask you all:

I still am not able to eat any solids and very few mushies. I can guzzle liquids like crazy, but nothing else. When I try to eat something more firm it hurts like heck. It feels like the food is moving through the band. If I was tight enough wouldn't the food sit there until it is digested? What am I doing wrong? I take small bites and chew like crazy, but I can only eat about 2 tsp. before it hurts. I can drink Protein smoothies just fine, but when I try to eat a mushie before 8pm it hurts. So, I had my 1st fill a week ago,, shouldn't I be moving on?

Just go my next years teaching schedule...well, after developing a good math program I am having it taken away. So all that time with the math curriculum didn't count for anything. Instead I get the 'privledge' of teaching 6th grade earth science. One, I am a lousy 6th grade teacher, second, I have NEVER taught earth science. The 'new' 6th grade science teach didn't want any of the lab equipment so he threw it all away. Needless to say, my budget won't change and it doesn't cover the cost of materials for life science now, how am i going to develop a program for a new class. Oh well, I'll end up developing an earth science program and then they will give it to someone else. I have the most seniority in the middle school, I would have at least been asked if I would teach 6th grade. Maybe working at starbucks is an option, don't they give benefits??

So again, I would appreciate your suggestions for food, I'm hungry, but I am afraid to eat anything.

Thanks everyone, k

You are too tight. I know because I have been there WAY too many times. Some of us lap-banding patients are VERY sensitive to fills. I have NEVER had problems getting down liquids even when I couldn't eat. When I got filled after Christmas in 07 I couldn't eat anything except popcorn and crystal light. I lived on that for 2 weeks because I couldn't get across the mountain passes. I live 6 hours from my doc and across a mountain pass. You are going to find that if you don't get unfilled a bit that you are going to start searching out foods that go down easy (and those are NEVER good foods). No...I am NOT telling you what those foods are. You are talking to the queen of procrastinating when it comes to getting an unfill so don't put this off if you can help it. You can usually get in immediately for an unfill. They don't have to completely unfill you...just a bit. I have mine done under fluoroscopy and I still get overfilled.

Now don't freak out about an unfill. Frankly I lost most of my weight completely unfilled. So it can be done. The band itself usually gives most people SOME sense of restriction even if they don't think it does. When you try to eat REAL food with the band (even unfilled) you will get that fullness feeling.

I am confused about your docs. I thought you were switching? which one did you WANT to go to? Call him and see if he will at least give you an unfill or see if you can switch to him. Then demand an unfill when you are there. My doc will fit ANYONE in for an unfill...even if you are just visiting from Switzerland. I say that because the last time I was there, a lady was getting an emergency unfill because her band tightened from the flight in and he was unfilling her.

Good luck! DON'T push the foods. Stay with mushies or thick liquids.