Can we do an intro for everyone?

Hey everyone! My name is Janie and I just turned 37. I've been married for 19 years (YIKES!!!) and have 3 girls ( 10 yr old and twins that are 4 and WILD, lol) I had surgery on 1/22 and feel so much better about myself. I went from wearing a size 20 to a size 12 and hopefully a size 10. The 12's are actually getting loose in the butt and thighs! If only this dang stomach would go down!!

Hi Tricie! I forgot to mention it in my intro, but I also work in Transportation, International Transportation. I run an office for an International Freight Forwarder and am a Licensed Customs Broker. I typically don't mention my career because most people don't understand what I do, you may not either, but I thought it might be worth saying anyway..

Here goes~~ My name is Suzanne. I am about to turn 36 on July 30. My husband of 15 years, Damon, and I have 3 children...Forrest, will be 15 on July 29, MacKenzie, 11, and Piper, 5. We live in California just to the south of Sacramento proper in a small city called Elk Grove. It used to be a farming/ranching communtiy until all the people from the Bay Area decided that it would be a great place to live. Now...it's not . We hope to move to Western New York within the next 5 years. There's no particular reason that we chose this place to want to move...it just looks right for us. It was kind of like throwing a dart at a map. I am currently a nursing student at night, and a mom and wife during the day. My husband is a business agent for the Carpenters Local Union in Sacramento. These are the two things that are holding up that desired move that I mentioned earlier. As for the issues of weight...I was never over-weight until I had my son. After that, it was an increaseing struggle to maintain a decent weight. After 3 kids and two c-sections, I had crept up to my highest ever weight..251#. When I started feeling horrible every day I asked my PCP what to do...he suggested WLS, if I was game to try. The rest is history...after surgery on January 30, 2007 I have no more high BP, no more pre-diabetes, no more stress incontinence, no more acid reflux, no more snoring....I could go on and on. I am active. I feel good. It gets better every day. What more could I ask for...except to get to goal by September .

Hey Guys! My name is Stephanie and I am a 35 (soon to be 36) year old single mother of a 16 year old daughter (lucky me) lol We are in TN and I work in Human Resources even though my degree is in Biology..don't ask I how I got turned around. lol My daugther is going to the 11 grade this year and just got her lerners permit and her first job. We are a Christian family as well and have always lived in TN. I love to read and hang out with friends when I can. I also enjoy relaxing at home in peace and quiet....My mom had 5 kids...3 girls and 2 boys...and my dad remarried and added 3 more girls..and my step mom already had 4 kids...so she always tells ppl she has 10 children and she weighs every bit of 120 pounds and stands about 5'11! I have a dog that I inherited (lucky again) and I have been trying to give away for several years...but now my daugher and I are attached to her so I guess I am stuck with her. She is a pit bull but doesnt know it...does not even bark when ppl come up...she just wags her tail and waits for someone to pick her up and rub her or let her sit in their lap...yes she is spoiled..but I did not do it!! lol That's my story and I am sticking to it...oh and my car is extra dirty so I am hoping for some rain to wa**** this weekend!

Hey guys, My name is Michele, and I've been a lurker on this board for a few months and posting on and off for about one lol. Let's see, I'm 40, married for 12 years, with no kids. I have cats instead :P. I was a relatively thin/normal kid, gaining my weight at 18+. Up and down forever. I've lived all over the country. I toyed with the idea of WLS for about 3 years before seriously considering it... and started the process last June, surgery was 1/2/07. Hmm.... I have lost about 98 lbs since last June, 74 since surgery (thanks to my spurt last week lol, for which I firmly thank whomever posted the plateau buster diet a while back!), and am working to get my exercising in. No real excuses, just lazy haha. You guys keep me grounded and inspired, so even if I'm not posting, I'm lurking and reading Thanks for coming back here again and again everyone! Michele

My name is Holly. I live in Colorado. I have 18 and 16 year old step-daughters that I love as if they were my own and I have 3 year old triplets- 2 boys and a girl. I will be turning 40 this year and am thrilled that I feel so much better about myself. I really didn't have a weight problem until after I married, had the triplets and lived in Houston (my brother still lives there and loves it). My insurance would not cover any bariatric surgery- so I went to Columbia and had my surgery there. My husband watched the kids and I went alone- it was the first vacation I've had in years. This board has REALLY helped me because having surgery in another country- the follow-up is a little difficult. So- this board has been 99% of my follow-up and I am VERY greatful to all of you!!! Pre-triplets I was a school administrator and prior to that a counselor. I have lost 83 pounds post-surgery and 92 total. I can wear a 10 in some pants. I am 4 pounds away from having a normal BMI. I am thrilled!!! Holly

Howdy All! I turned 28 a couple weeks ago. My husband and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary last weekend (at his youngest sister's wedding - she had booked her hall before realizing that was our anniversary so it just got left that way). I live in mid-Michigan (near Flint). I work as a secretary/IT person for a company that runs several group homes. On the side, I fix computers and play around with web design. I don't have any kids yet. Hubby and I had tried for several years unsuccessfully. We tried fertility treatments. The docs said that all of my health problems are spawned from my weight. That was what really got me thinking about having the surgery. I had Lap RNY January 29th. My highest weight was 283. Day of surgery was 275. Today, I'm at 218. I had Lasik eye surgery 1 week before my WLS. My eyes were so bad that I couldn't see a few inches in front of me. One of my biggest fears was waking up after surgery not being able to see a thing (where I was or who was around me) - that happened to me 7 years ago when I had my gallbladder removed. My eyes were almost too bad to have Lasik - I was turned down by the first doctor I went to. Luckily, a co-worker told me about another doctor who had done his eyes which had been around as bad as mine. I'm so happy to have had both of my surgeries this year.

My name is Jen.. I am 37, with 3 children. I have a 7 year old son, and 2 1/2 year old twin sons. I have been married to my hubby Russ for almost 10 years. We are a Christian family. We live in Harleysville, PA which is a suburb of Philadelphia. I am 5 months post op. I enjoy scrapbooking and reading.

My user name is Katy, but I am really Catie--can you believe there was already a user named Catie when I signed onto OH? Lori has been known to call me Caters or CatiePotatie. LOL I just celebrated my 20th anniversary. My husband Daniel and I have two amazing sons and two really weird cats. The boys are Sam and Andrew. The cats are Boogie and Cucuy. Sam is attending the Air Force Academy. He's majoring in astronautical engineering. Andrew starts Del Mar College this fall and will eventually go to chiropractic college and the mission field. I am 43, live near Corpus Christi, and manage a ranch. I am loving this journey we are on. God has blessed me with what feels like an all new life full of possibilities and potential. I am so thankful for the 105 pounds I have lost. I still have almost a 100 pounds more to lose according to the doctor, but I really would like to lose a tad bit more than that. Katy

Hi Y'all (ok, I will always be a Texan), My name is Monica, I am a 26 year old Environmental Scientist (I work for the EPA in Washington, DC), and have been married to my lemon (hubby) for a year and a half. We do not have any human children (in no rush either), but we do have 2 puppies (even though they are both over 2), Mustache-a pekingnese, and Teddy-a shih tzu. We live in Springfield, VA, but moved from Texas Dec 2004. I chose to have LapBand WLS late Jan of 2007. I have lost 54 pounds. I am very happy and feeling good. I last weighed in the 230's back in 2001. I am about 15 pounds away from my lowest weight in adult years. I look forward to this journey and to meeting more wonderful people. ~Moni