How do you celebrate your milestones?

Oh Kathryn, that is gorgeous. So beautiful (just like you!)!

That's so sweet Karen.  Thank you.  You made me   

You're beautiful inside and out. And you're welcome, though no thanks needed. xo

You've inspired me to create my own Pandora. I have a couple of very precious "nomination" bracelets, but the Pandora charms are pieces of art. :)

Thank you, Karen.  I think you're beautiful, too.  

I wouldn't have ever gotten myself a Pandora bracelet -- I thought the beads were overpriced -- but it was my husband's thoughtful idea.  I have to say, he was spot on -- I love the fact that each bead/charm signifies something and is a very good representation of that all important first year of NSVs and goals.  

It also set up the idea that there really are non-food rewards --

That's what appealed to me about the Nomination bracelet - each charm was meaningful to me. But the Pandora charms/beads are so unique and lovely (and yes, expensive - but we're worth it!). It's something that you can keep forever as a very significant symbol of this period in your life.

Question - which bracelet do you have? There seems to be options.

I had to look up Nomination Bracelets -- we have those here, but we call them Italian Charm Bracelets.  My sister-in-law has one.

I have the Pandora sterling silver with the "pandora" clasp (it's basically a barrel clasp) -- I prefer the silver because I wanted to be able to control the beads with clips, spacers and beads -- and you really can't with the leather. Also, the leather stretches over time.  

When you size your bracelet, be sure to add an inch to leave room for the beads.  I originally had a bracelet that was about 20 or 21 cm -- but I recently had to size down to 17 cm.  The bad part is that I had to remove some beads as they no longer fit with the smaller bracelet.

Thanks for the info, much appreciated! I'll have to size them and see what works in-store, my wrists are pretty scrawny. ;)

Beautiful! Great idea! Thanks for sharing.  I'm going to have to drop some hints to my husband too, like Felicity!  

You could put the beads that won't fit on a second empty Pandora bracelet....no law against wearing two...wink, wink... 

I bought myself a $$$ purse and did some spa stuff but... the best was on my 5 year I threw a big Meet & Greet for fellow WLS-ers in SoCal. http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/2011/08/5037- pounds-lost-with-weight-loss.html Next year is 10 crazy!?! so I think I may do it again. It wasn't that much $$$ either... my town rents that building for $50 and hour and I made all the WLS food.

I love the party photos! What a fun idea! I wish I had a network of fellow wls patients in my area. I had to have my surgery 2 hours away in Phoenix because of my insurance, so all the support groups for the practice are held up there. I'm definitely the type ofn person who likes to be involved in clubs and groups, so it makes me sad not to have that kind of connection with other people who know what I'm going through. That's why I have been spending so much time on here!