Being There...such a great movie. I need to reach that. It has been a while.

I know most of you are already done for the night, but for those lurkers who will eventually read this while trying to make a decision about surgery or understand how it all works, I will just have to post late.

B-Premier Protein Shake

L-Grilled Shrimp Skewer, some salad, some cooked carrots

S-Laughing Cow Light Swiss Cheese wedge-saltines

D-6 Piece Chick Fil A Grilled Chicken Nuggets, Kid Size Fruit Cup

S-Greek yogurt tube from the freezer

QOTD: I can't limit my response to just one thing. I am a traveler and adventurer (even when I weighed 130 more pounds). I never let my size or weight stop me from too many things (unless there was a weight limit). Although it is definitely easier with less weight on my body. I had ziplined before, but wanted to do it in Hawaii, so found a company with a higher weight limit and scheduled it for the first day of the trip so I didn't have to worry about eating and drinking during the trip. I had to weigh in at check in and just made it!  

So, my list is extensive, but skydiving, glider flight, and bungee jumping are on the list (now that I can meet the weight requirement). Travel list is an African safari trip (booked and scheduled for October), Macchu Picchu and the Galapagos (planning for next September), and New Zealand (future plans). 

Pursue your dreams!

Yosemite was awesome. Breathtakingly beautiful. I will try to post pics on Friday. I drove through it briefly once before, but didn't really see anything. The weather was gorgeous this weekend and the waterfalls were flowing. My daughter and I did some really nice hikes and had a great time. Now this can be taken off my bucket list (although I will likely go back).

I never pureed anything. I had a period of soft foods like mashed refried beans with cheese, scrambled eggs, and Greek yogurt. I just ate extremely small portions throughout the day.

So excited to see everyone's pictures. They are awesome. I had plans to scan in some old pics and post today, but I am knee deep in budgets at work and was focused on packing for a quick whirlwind weekend to see my daughter and go to Yosemite overnight. So I am at the airport with a 30 minute flight delay and thankful that I had these lovely posts to scroll through. Looking forward to the weekend and exploring the park.tomorrow.

QOTD: Nicknames were Corabelle (sounds too much like a cow IMO, but only good friends called me that and it didn't actually have that meaning), Yroc which is my name spelled backwards, and my husband (of 32 years) and I call each other Muffin.

Now I wish I had a heated steering wheel too. Even though I live in California too.

I love words and of course can't think of anything brilliant to respond with. Nefarious comes to mind and it is a word that we use often at work for some reason. Someone mentioned the word a couple of years ago and we continue to use it (so not truly underutilized). The other word I use often that always gets a reaction is "divine."  My Mom would always say that something was "delicious and divine" so it stuck with me when I refer to things I enjoyed doing.

OK more words are coming to me:  brouhaha, cacophony, discombobulate.

No, it isn't just you. I think we read about the people who have problems and don't hear from those who have no issues. I moved through all of the phases slowly and according to my doctor's schedule, with no problems. I focused on fish, shrimp, and scallops first, sliced turkey, cheese, and didn't get to stea****il much later. Tried a little with no problem, so next time I tried more. Remember to chew, and then chew some more. It is important to stay mindful when you eat because I think not chewing thoroughly could lead to challenges for some people. 

You are doing fine. Follow the guidelines from your doctor, read the message boards, and trust yourself.

We also had Everyone Farts. The kids loved it.

QOTD:  I always schedule my appointment for the second week of February. This year we owed $2 on Fed, and received a State refund. I even paid the $2 early because I didn't want to have to remember to pay. But if we do owe, we like to know the amount early on so we can plan for it and then pay at the last minute in April. 

Weekends are always the toughest to stay on track due to the lack of routine. Despite all that and the fact that we ate out every meal, I feel pretty good about how things went. Had a nice dinner out with husband and daughter last night, and she wanted to share a meal with me, which works out great because I split the protein with her and she eats the sides. Today I went out with friends to lunch and a play and one of them asked if I wanted to split something with her. Tonight my husband and I went out and I ordered a shrimp and scallop skewer and salad. So, I managed to stay very protein focused, but looking forward to the routine of the week.

Have a good week and good luck to all the last minute people on getting taxes filed by the due date.

Unfortunately, I can't give you any advice on all that, but so far all of my labs are good and I simply take a good multi-vitamin twice a day, hair, skin and nails (from Costco), a B-6/B-12/folic acid tablet from Trader Joe's a few days a week, and some calcium chews with Vitamin D twice a day (a nice chocolate treat).  My labs have all been good. I have new labs next month for my year check up.  I have hypothryoidism (since I was 18 years old) and those levels have been fine as well.

I would say that the risk of staying as heavy as I was or, more likely, continuing to gain, was more dangerous to me than any of the other issues. I had asked my primary physician a few years back and again before I chose to have the surgery, "When do the risks of surgery outweigh the risks of not having the surgery?"  He told me that time had come a while back.

I think that my dietary habits before the surgery could have also lead to other complications, including vitamin deficiencies or osteoporosis. I feel better than I have in 25 years. I would do it again in a minute.

Good luck on your decision.

AV-So sorry to hear about the loss of your friend's husband.  I have been an organ donor since in my 20s (now 53) and have told my family repeatedly (most recently when I filled out paperwork prior to my RNY surgery) to give all of my parts away if anything ever happens to me because they will be of no use to me and could help so many other people. I hope she has peace during this time.