Howdy!!

Good evening, everyone!! How are you all. So sorry that I have been AWOL - but I have been loving every minute of our summer! The bummer is that school started for me yesterday - YUCK!! I have so loved being able to take the kids to the pool, sit out on the porch with hubby and just being with my family. I have not lived out of my planner (calendar) for the past 4-6 weeks and it's awesome. Let's see, big things that I have done this summer include buying a new fishing boat and fishing with hubby, (not enough, though). (OH, and I also learned how to hang my pattoottie off the side of the boat to tinkle ) I ran the Bix at 6 race three times, (7 miles each) to prepare for the Bix - which I couldn't do because my sister got married that day. I think that I posted the beginning of July that I won 2nd place in the woman's division of the Farmer's Olympics at the Eldridge Days festival and was able to jog the entire four mile Moonlight Chase race that night. I have had time to cook and clean and then cook some more. Like I said, it has been an awesome summer!! Sorry to go on and on. Anyway, just wanted to say hi to you all and get an update on how you all are doing. I tried to read through some of the posts tonight, and have talked to Jesi alot. Dixie, I hear you have some surgery coming up! Tell me more!! Oh, I saw Jesi today and she looks good!! Her tummy is soooooooooooo flat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't believe that she was up and around already today. I think that I would/will be a baby and lay around and let hubby wait on me all of the time. I'm sure that Jesi is gonna be even more of a hot mamma when the swelling is down and she is all healed up. She'll be turning heads left and right! Oh, I was denied for plastics from both of my insurances because of lack of documentation of rashes. Soooooooo, I have had my ob/gyn document a rash and then saw my pcp last week to document another. How embarrassing!!!!!!!!!! I'm also having hubby take pics to document myself. EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!! Who knows, may have plastics someday! Well, how are all of you? I promise that I'll try to check back on here soon! God bless, Andrea

Hi Andrea, good to hear from you!! Glad you have enjoyed your summer and had some fun! But I am also glad you are back. I had my surgery July 18th. I developed pneumonia and landed me a 6 day stay at Sartorri and went home on 02. That sucked but I am feeling better now. I think I am down a little over 30 #'s now. good to hear from you! Shelli

Shelli, Congrats on your surgery! A bout of pneumonia after surgery does not sound like fun!~ Glad to hear that all is well now. You'll certainly enjoy watching the pounds "fly" off! Congrats again, God bless, Andrea

Sorry I was a little dopey yesterday....that darn valium.....LOL!!!! But I haven't have any today and went to big-lots and Pancheros with my mom I wasn't bad....only out like a half of an hour and felt great....still do......but I just might take a nap pretty soon....The girls are home now....they missed me!!!! Those calzones you brought didn't even make it last night.....I had 3/4 of one.....then before bed a few hours later I had the rest of it.....and Jason ate the other two. He also stayed awake late than me to watch a movie.....and low and behold there was MAYBE two biyes of the fruit tart left.....I was so pissed he ate it all!!! Wanted to him!!!!!! I took my first shower today and saw my belly button....creepy I tell ya!!! Oh well.....I cannot wait until I don't have to wear all the bandages and stuff!!! Well, I am so glad to see ya back....can't wait to see you here daily again....Take Care Jesi P.S They are having a big ole potluck thing for wls people in cedar falld on the 21st I think....I would love to go and I am planning on it....let me know if your interested....yo could drive here and I could drive the rest of the way....let me know and ttyl~jesi

Hey, Jes - DARN THAT JASON!!! Mark knows better than to eat the last bit of one of my s/f fruit tart/cheesecakes. As a matter of fact, I left him half a piece last night and then woke up this morning and it's still there waiting for me - what a sweetheart! I can't believe that you were out and about already. Yep - you need to be hiding under that chair because you knew I would chew your rear end! Be careful - I know you and you will push your recovery to the limits! DON't do too much!! Let the girls and Jason wait on you while you recover. Wow - too funny that you are excited to see your belly button when usually, it's just an everyday thing that we take for granted. This potluck thing - who lives around that area that we may be able to meet? I'll think about going - it sounds fun. Hugs and blessings, Andrea P.S. What is ttyl?

For that picnic....Dixie and Janie, and maybe Shelli and who knows how many others there will be.....buts tons of wls people will be there....and it is at a neat park....so I can bring Jason to watch our kids if we bring them It is just a pot;uck fun get together thing.....it is organized through Satori I think...or there non-formal support group....but extended the invite to all of us....I just think it sounds like fun.......By the way TTYL means talk to you later.....I am just LAZY.....kinda like lylas means love ya like a sis......I am getting good at this puter lingo Take Care Jesi

I can't remember exactly but I think Colleen & Jen may be coming & a whole bunch of other really nice people. It is planned by our unofficial group, actually the Yahoo group that we have. We call ourselves the "Othersiders." Dr Glas**** & his staff have nothing to dowith it except they have been invited & they let up put fliers up in the office. We are considering it a reunion of WLS patients but don't let that fool you. It's really a big send off party for my butt! The next day it will be only a bad memory. by the way Jesi, Denise, who doesn't post here had her TT on Tuesday & she is planning to attend. I told her that it is possible she will have someone to commiserate with. You'd like her. She's quite a character. Dixie

Welcome back! Sounds like you've had a good summer. I wish I didn't have to work during the summer. Life would be so much simpler. As for me, I am so stuck. I have 9-10 pounds to go to goal. Some days I think I'm okay where I am, and then the next day I'm determined to get it off! I just want a TT! Before surgery I had rashes all the time. Not one since. Dang it! I guess I'll probably have to pay for it myself. Need to go talk to a plastics guy and see how much it would be. I painted my bedroom yesterday. My hubby can't tell I did anything. And to be honest, the color is soooo pale, I can hardly tell either. That's depressing. But it's clean and all the dust bunnies are now gone under and behind the furniture. Now I'm off for a nice soak in the bubble tub. I'm feeling a little stiff. Getting too old to be doing this stuff. Glad you're back! Lyn 262/152/142

Hi Lyn, Yep - I love my job, but I love my family and summers off even better! I'm kind of like you in the struggle to get a few more pounds off. I guess the question is - when do we call it maintaining and not losing anymore? I think that I'm about there. I'm happily in the 180's - usually between 184 and 189. Do I wish that I could get in the 170's - well sure - but I had some family members tell me this summer that I looked gaunt when at my lowest. I find that hard to believe, but I think that it's because I don't have anymore fat in my face. Everyone always tells me that I don't look like I weigh that much, but I'm sure that it's because of the muscle and going to the gym so much. My ultimate goal has always been 175. I figure that if I get plastics and they remove 10-15 pounds of skin, I'll be there. Never wanted to be toooooo skinny - my hubby would leave me because he likes a woman with a little meat on her bones . Let's not talk rashes - I have a killer one going on now and had to show my "eye candy" doctor last week. What an embarrassing moment for me! Now all I have to do is call him and take pics. YUKKKK!! Painting - not a fun job at all. Sounds like you put in some hard work and deserve some relaxation in those bubbles. Job well done! Thanks for checking in and God bless, Andrea

Welcome back, Andrea. Janie & I were just talking about you recently & were wondering if there was something wrong. Now we hear you were just enjoying the last of your summer off. Glad you enjoyed it. Wow, they start you back early! One of my friends here has in service & preparation for classes late this week & she thought that was awful since classes don't start for another 2 weeks. I'd love to have the summer off like you teachers but not if it meant I had to deal with a room full of kids for the rest of the year. Can you tell I NEVER considered that profession? Give me a room full of computers anyday. They may be annoying, to say the least, but they are fairly quiet. I have one more week of going in to work early & doing things that I normally don't have to do. It's a little nerve racking, as sometimes I am doing procedures that I have no clue what I am doing or why. My next surgery is August 22. My surgeon does his belt lipectoomies in two stages. This is the second. He feels his patients heal better & with less stress on the incisions if he does it in 2 stages instead of all at once like most do. Also the srugery time is split into 2 smaller times instead of one very long one. The TT was the first. This time he concentrates on the backside, removing a big slab of skin & fat, pulling it up to make a tighter, smaller butt. He is also going to do lipo in the outer thighs & also the mons area. I ended up with a bit of the "Ken doll" syndrome. If you don't know what that is, think of what a Ken Doll looks like with his pants off. I will hopefully be able to return to work in 2 weeks but the time home will be frustrating. I am not allowed to sit for 1 week & can only lie on my belly in bed. So it's standing & walking (very limited amount) & back to bed. It will be worth it as I am tired of all that flab & skin flopping around back there. Gotta run. My exercise class at the pool is in 20 minutes & I'm in my jammies still. Dixie