Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!! I hope this day finds you content & blessed with 'enough'.

I love this photo I posted. It's from the Chapel of Thanksgiving in Dallas Texas. No, I have never been but if I were traveling that way, this would definately be marked on my 'to visit' list. What a beautiful blessing & what an inspirational vibe I get from it!

I attended a support group meeting this last wkend. Glad I went, I was a little late getting there but it was nice to connect & get information. It lifted my spirits. I had my 3 month post op Dr appt at the weight management center. I have met 44% of my end goal weight already! Yay me! Today I weighed myself & discovered I have now lost a total of 77lbs. Wow. My labs are all doing great, except for my TSH which I've had existing problems with even before surgery. It's just a matter of adjusting the medicine. My body seems not to be absorbing it for some reason. But I feel great!

I've been in the process of moving from one place to another. Whew. Exhausting. Why do I keep stuff? I think I got that from my mother. I got rid of all my 'fat clothes' thus far & clothes that the kids have grown out of, took it all to the Salvation Army. I had a hard time with it at first, but it sure felt great when I dropped it off & didn't have to worry about hauling it all round anymore!! I have another 7-10 medium boxes full of stuff to go yet, but no time since I am back to work already today. Hopefully I can get a friend of mine to drop the stuff off for me, so that I can be done with it!!! I have run across things I haven't seen in almost 2yrs. 2yrs you say? And just why am I hanging on to it if its been packed away 'out of sight, out of mind'? Thats the question that eludes me.....SO I think I will be parting with said 'stuff', because I obviously do not need it. I am VERY excited to have ALL my Christmas stuff in boxes sitting in my new bedrm because this yr I feel like going all out with decorating. I've been Ms Scrooge the last few yrs, not because I don't love Christmas, it's actually my favorite holiday. (all the smells, the good friends, family, the sparkly lights, the abundance of Angels) but because I haven't had the 'space' to be able to display anything. So the kids are going to love it this yr for sure! And mom in heaven, I'm sorry I just couldn't keep some of the things I thought I would always hang on too because they were yours. I realized the memory of you is way better than any material thing could ever be, like the few sweaters I had that were yours, or the darn 5" black & white tv you & dad used to take camping with you when you went. You will be pleased to know however, that someone else will love your old sweaters & get use out of that ole tv set!!! So, in some small way I'm paying things forward, I know how much I love those second hand shops!!!

PEACE

Well....Get on with It!!!

I'm happy. For the moment. Wait, maybe I started this out wrong...let me start over. I had a great day til I came into work this afternoon. Don't get me started. Lets just say that my boss is the kind of boss that tries to find anything she can to make my day miserable. (and she has the nerve to tell me that I don't have a positive attitude! Go figure!) I came in late after scheduling someone else to work my shift for me, so that I could go to a Dr appt in East Lansing at the Weight Management Center.
My labs look pretty good, although my tsh levels are up & my med will need to be adjusted. I have lost 1 3/4 more inches from my hip area & nothing in the waist...ummpppfffhhh. But my BMI starting out was 53.2 (wow) and I am now at a 41 BMI. Yay!! I am going to try and post my before picture here within the next few wks & also a current picture of my success, so be on the look out!!! I'm in the process of packing up my house to move to a new place (very excited) so I may not get to it straight away, but it will be here soon!
So a curious thing I've noticed. That some people just don't have the 'drive' to achieve certain goals & I KNOW for sure I USED to fall under the same catagory. It saddens me when I see or hear this & sometimes I just wanna reach out & hug but I know deep down we have to want it bad enough to be able to make those changes happen, or else it just can't be done. I saw this quote recently & it hit home:

"If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading." Lao Tzu

Every new day is a chance to tranform yourself.

I've learned that I was an emotional eater. I did it to pacify my feelings, when in reality it was only hurting me. I have learned that I am the Captain of my ship...and I am the ONE in control. It also helps to have a positive attitude & a support group of friends, or co-workers, or even family. I haven't gotten tired of people walking past me or stopping me to say "wow you look great!!" I'm not sure that I could ever get enough of that, because for once it feels really good to be accepting of a compliment that I KNOW I have worked hard to achieve to get this far! I still think of myself like I did when I was at my heaviest and I probably will for a long time yet. I'm still a little self conscious about 'my space'. The dietician told me today "you'll think that way for a long time yet, then one day you'll be walking past some store shop windows & catch your reflection & you'll stop and say "wow, thats me!" " I can believe that.
I hope that you're all doing well & achieving your goals one small step at a time!!! ^j^

Thankful

Today I am thankful. Not for any one specific thing, but for many things in life. I'm thankful for my children & our good health. For the many blessing God continues to bestow upon us. For a job, that even though I still love but am not so 'happy' with.

I am doing well. Sitting here eating a 1/3 c of Smart Start Toasted Oat cereal with low fat skim milk, just enough milk to cover the bottom of the bowl & get the cereal wet. Lost 1lb over the weekend. Have been doing a lot of walking lately & I have noticed an energy increase!! Yay!!

Some people have asked me what I take for my multi-vitamin. I take Optisource Post Bariatric Chewable. I get mine thru the weight loss clinic I attend, although WalGreens does carry it as well!! http://www.walgreens.com/store/catalog/Post-Bariatric-Surgery/Post-Bariatric-Surgery-Formula/ID=prod403359&navCount=1&navAction=push-product . There's the product information on it if you'd like to check it out! It definately beats having to take several vitamins a day, & I eat a small little something with it to off set the citrus taste. I have to take one chewable tablet 4 times a day per Dr orders for post bari patients.

Friends & I went and seen Paranormal Activity the movie, in theaters. I wasn't sure what to expect, but the filming is a lot like how the movie 'Blair Witch' was filmed & I was not impressed with this movie much. The scare factor was there a few times, but I would'nt see or rent this movie again. Once is enough. And according to reviews I have heard about the movie 2012, I probably will not go see that.

The holidays are just around the corner. I am scheduled to work Thanksgiving & Christmas this year. Working Thanksgiving just gives me the excuse to not be around all that wonderful food, plus get time and a half & holiday pay on top! I'm a little sad about working Christmas, although my kids could celebrate any day I'm sure. I haven't even started shopping yet, so I think I need to kick it in gear this next week off and get some of it done.

I hope you are all well!!

PEACE

Chili, my Friend

I love mittens! Alas Mother Nature has turned her cold shoulder and I've had to pull out the mittens & hats for everyone. Did I tell you I love mittens? Of all sizes & shapes, all colors & styles. My hands get cold so easily & I hate to think of my kids hands ever being cold. So our basket overflows with the soft gentleness of hand warming fuzzies.

I am doing great. Weighed myself today. Lost another 5lbs from last thursday. What?! How'd that happen? I expected 2-3, happy with 5, but wow. Guess it's all the walking I do when I'm at work? So total weight loss is officially 70lbs. Whew! The weight management team said it could be a yr before I lost 100lbs..I'm thinkin..NOT. When I lose another 10lbs, I'll have lost the equivalent of my daughter & youngest sons weight combined. Woah.
Today I had chili (my bestest) for lunch. I drank plenty of water today throughout, and I had a fat free yogurt for breakfast. For dinner tonight (while I'm at work) I had a Lean Cuisine dish of Turkey & mashed sweet potatoes, 13g of protein. Which reminds me, I need to take my chewable vitamin!

I haven't hardly any scrubs that fit me nicely anymore. YAY! Well, not yay because if I want to wear them, then its either wear them & almost walk out of them, invest in new, or keep wearing the street clothes that I am finding I've kept in my closet that suddenly fit again & look good. Had a lady I work with today offer to bring in a few things for me since she lost her weight in the past yr or so & she has sizes I am fitting into right now. So, that'll help a bit. I am going to have to break down & buy new bras. NOT one of my favorite things to do, but it has to be done.
I have to admit though, I'm liking the 'new me' I see emerging from behind the layers that have disappeared. But most of all I love the feeling that I'm huggin my kids closer to my heart than ever before!!!
Hope you're all well and that this finds you with a smile on your face!
PEACE ^j^