theworldaccordingtoeggface: Eggface's 5 Year Anniversary Giveaway - Prize 4

theworldaccordingtoeggface: Eggface's 5 Year Anniversary Giveaway - Prize 4: "June is a BIG month in my world. 5 years ago (June 20th 2006) I made the best decision of my life , to have weight loss surgery. 5 years ag..."

240.4 - January 24, 2011

I guess when I finally got up and moved it made a little bit of a difference!!! My body was ready to get rid of some of that weight, I think!!!

I went on bariatricchoice.com today and bought a lot of high protein bars, snacks, and hot cocoa mix. I know I haven't been getting as much protein in as I want. I tend not to eat a whole lot in any given day. What I eat is usually good protein, but I need to eat more. Yes, I really did just say that!!! So, I need to have some good choices around. Some of those I can buy in the grocery store. Other things I really need to get online. I didn't buy anything that had less than 15 grams of protein per serving. But I got a variety. So, hopefully that will help. And the cocoa mix just sounded good. I will probably share that with the kids. They should be having more protein, too.

Haven't gotten back to exercise, yet. Just working on stretching my ankle. I need to get the PT scheduled.

Finally got the hematologist scheduled. Still following up on why my iron is so low.

And, got in to the urologist. Following up on the kidney stone. Have a CT scan for that on Thursday. And, need to call and arrange the 24-hr urine collection.

In the meantime I have my cold which has pretty much just settled in my throat and causes me to talk funny and never know if I'm actually going to be able to make noise when I open my mouth.

Today, Lizzie started the Orthodontic Trail. Sigh. As if we had a couple thousand sitting around. Insurance only pays $1K. Our part is $4685. I'm so glad I have work projects! Of course, I was kind of hoping to use that money to help pay off some bills that we already had. Not new ones.

Oh, well. Life is never boring!!!

250.3 - Monday, January 17, 2011

Got the cast off!!! Woohoo!!! I've lost two pounds this week just because I could get up and walk around. So, it has taken me 7 weeks to lose 3.4 pounds, but 6 of those weeks I couldn't walk. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!!!

It was wonderful to take a shower. I am in a boot now so I can take it off and I used the shower stool to keep my foot up. It was a wonderful shower! And I scraped tons of dead skin off my foot. Icky!! So, I'm sure I'll be dealing with some swelling and a little discomfort (I was warned that I would - and I know I will end up pushing myself harder than I should!), but it is worth it to be mobile again! I so appreciate being able to walk. Life is much easier when you can walk.

I need to get back to the gym. I am allowed to be in a pool immediately. May have to get up there tomorrow and start in. I start physical therapy in two weeks. Then back to the ortho doctor in 5 weeks. During PT I will transition into a brace. That will actually fit into a shoe. So, in 3-4 weeks, I'll be able to wear two shoes, again!! WOOHOO!!!

Long Time No See

Well, it's been a long time. My ankle has really had me down. I've been feeling very useless and worthless. Not being able to walk easily and having to wrap my ankle in knitting and a bag to go outside has been harder than I thought it would be. I don't have much stamina so anything I do start working on I can't stick with very long.

And, we've had to buy a new iMac. Which is fun to have a new system. But, we were NOT planning on a $1300 bill suddenly. So, things were already tight. Now they are even tighter. Oh, goody.

But, on the plus side I have work. I have a freelance project that will be due Feb. 11 and a project with my "boss" that will be several months' work. YAY!!!

I may still go back to subbing for a few days before the end of the school year. The money would be nice. And those days count towards retirement. We'll see. I need to get my ankle back in working order, first.

And, I'm thinking about getting a part-time job at the Apple Store. Learning how to work all that fun technology would be an absolute blast! And the discount would be awesome!

Monday I get my cast off. Look forward to getting to weigh myself without the cast!! I have been having issues with food. And, of course, my exercise has been non-existent. Time to get back on the band wagon!!!

Dec. 19, 2010

Still can't update my weight. I got the hard cast on Thursday. It is Christmas colored. If I have to have a cast on Christmas, I'm going to be Festive!

Honestly it has been hard to not snack while I've been laid up. I have not been drinking as much as I should and I roll through the kitchen far too often. I try to combat this by putting some liquid protein in whatever I'm drinking and try to have lots of shrimp on hand to snack on.

I guess the tale will be told when I get the cast off on 12/30.

It's also been very hard to accept as much help as I need. Between being able to ask all the help I need from Scott to having friends help me get in and out of the car, it's been trying.  Once the snow fell, it was much harder to get around. I go see Marcy tomorrow, finally. I need it! Then Florida for a week.

Dec. 6, 2010 (was 253.7 11/30/10)

I had the surgery on my ankle last Tuesday. They found another torn tendon when they went in. So, two torn tendons, one split tendon and a whole lot of swelling. But, surgery went well.

Being non-weight bearing has been okay. I'm starting to get very frustrated. I'm sleeping on the first floor in the sofa bed. Which is fine. But, I really need some help getting fresh clothes and getting a sponge bath and washing my hair. Scott has been so busy that I don't want to add one more thing to his list. However...

And, he's doing silly, passive/aggressive things that are driving me nuts. A friend bought me Eclipse as a gift so that I could enjoy it while bed-bound. She dropped it off Saturday evening. Scott was standing there and heard the exchange. So, Sunday, while he's at work, I settle in to watch it, possibly with the kids, and we can't find it. I call him. He put it upstairs by the tv because he knew I had already seen it and he wanted to watch it. I told him that it was given to me as a gift so that I could watch it again while I am stuck in bed.  Oh. Right.

He has done nothing to help me get fresh clothes. Well, I did ask him for one specific shirt to wear to Lizzie's Robotics competition on Saturday. He did bring that down. Along with a second one that is identical except that it is a medium. I then had to ask him to take that one back up.

He keeps moving things so that they are more adjusted for him or something. They're either in my way or out of my reach. Not helpful!! He was home for a few hours last night and I had to move four things out of my way this morning so that I could wheel to the bathroom. I know he just isn't thinking about it. And that is the problem. I'm not having an easy time with it. I could really use some of him thinking about it.

Saturday at Robotics was really hard on my ankle. The best I could do was have it up on a chair or bench straight in front of me. And we were there from 7:30am to 4:30pm. It was very swollen. So, I didn't get up yesterday except to go to the bathroom. Oh, and to make dinner. Grrr...

I will be in a better mood later. Just really feeling unloved. Which I know isn't true. Two friends have brought over meals which have been fantastic. Chicken Enchiladas (which Lizzie loved but Alex barely tried) and Raisin' Cane's Chicken (which both kids loved). Lizzie kept asking last night why no one else was bringing dinner. Which is why I found the instructions for the frozen lasagna. Yes, I'm whining about making dinner and it was just frozen lasagna. But, it was hard from a wheelchair!!! :)

Time to get my meds on board. I'm out of percocet. Luckily I have some Vicodin left. He better give me more pain meds. Not sleeping really well. Using Xanax to get to sleep.

This week should be better. Will be in a hard cast and we don't have much in the evenings. But, I am helping at the Book Fair this week. And we have Girl Scouts Wednesday. And Santa Breakfast Saturday. Sigh. More stuff in my life. Well, what did I expect? I can't put my stuff off and expect it to stay off. It catches up eventually!

256.7 - Nov. 27, 2010

I realized that because of my surgery, it's going to be awhile before I can weigh myself without the wrappings on my leg. Grrr... I've gotten used to weighing myself every morning. I know there are little changes from day to day, but it helps keep me focused.

I have so many things to be thankful for. I have a husband whom I love with all my heart and who loves me. He supports me in all my crazy habits and ideas. He is my best friend.

I have two healthy, beautiful children. They get on my nerves at times, but that's what parenting and childhood is all about. They really are great kids.

I also have loving and supportive extended family. My parents feel so bad they are in Florida when I am going through all this with my ankle. And my in-laws helped me have a very restful and relaxing Thanksgiving.

I am also incredibly thankful that I wore new jammies last night. They were very comfortable and fit great. They were a 1X!!! Woohoo!!!

257.7 - Nov. 24, 2010

Was woken up this morning (8:45) by the nurse from the pre-op appt telling me that since my iron was so low, the anesthesiologist doesn't want to do the surgery. And the surgeon agrees. So, I'm to follow up with my family doctor and get back to them. WHAT???? I have been so focused on getting to this surgery date and then dealing with the 4 weeks afterwards that this blows me out of the water.

I called my doctor. First available appt is Tuesday at 5:30. No. I don't think so. So, I call back and leave a message. I get a return call within 5 minutes. The doctor has put me in at 10, can I make it. Well, yeah!!

Get to my doctor's. She takes a serum level to get more information but won't have the results until Monday. She doesn't know what they want her to do. Putting me on supplements would take 2 months to yield good enough results. So, she says that she will call and see what she can find out.

I spaz out. I've been getting everything ready and warning the teachers. What am I supposed to do now??? And the timing was going to be just barely workable for Florida. Delaying it doesn't help. And what is happening to my ankle in the meantime???

Dr. calls back about 3 (we are already on our way to Troy). She talked to the anesthesia guy and they agreed that I would be okay for surgery and the surgeon is going along with it. No idea if I will get a transfusion during surgery. Don't care!! Just want this to get moving. But, she doesn't know if I'll be able to keep the Tuesday surgery day.

Orthopedic surgeon's office calls. I am still on Tuesday, 11/30. Don't know what time, yet, but that's fine!

Phew!! So, about 6 hours of extreme stress to be back where I started. Grrr...

Oh, well. Have had a very relaxing, family filled Thanksgiving. Weather is no fun so I'm glad we weren't planning to head back until Friday, anyway.

259 - Nov. 21, 2010

Fell off the face of the Earth there for a while, didn't I? Many apologies.

As you can see, the weight is coming off, still. Slowed down appreciably, but that is partly because of food choices, I believe. I have not been as diligent on getting my 100 grams of protein per day. I can always tell when I am low on protein because I don't lose. So, take that as a warning!!! Eat your protein. A friend of mine was showing me all sorts of high protein items she found on a website. It was on bariatricchoice.com. Check it out. I know that I can speak to the ProtiDiet options as being yummy. I purchased a wide variety of their bars to have available and they are all pretty good.

The biggest part of eating right is having it available to eat. If it's hard to prepare, you aren't going to eat it. If it's right there and easy to reach, it will be a first choice. I can now eat just about anything that I want. The key is wanting the right things.

Scott and I went to Mongolian BBQ for lunch the other day. My bowl was mostly shrimp, scallops, and crab. I also put some broccoli, sugar peas, and bean sprouts. While eating, I added a small amount of rice. That lasted me three meals. All of which were high in good protein.

In other news, I was a complete idiot and drank way too much on Trick-or-Treat night. A glass of wine gets me tipsy. Well, instead of listening to my body when it was tipsy, I drank more. I ended up drinking a bottle and a half of wine. By myself. I was having a great time! I was cleaning out my old van and had a fire pit going. Yes, drunk and playing with fire.

Then I visited with a friend up the street. Went in to use their restroom. Was fine on the inside steps. Missed one of the outside steps. Sat down hard on the concrete. I can tell I don't have as much padding!!! My butt hurt for days!! The worst part was that I twisted my ankle.

Didn't realize that it was hurting until it had started swelling. So, I hobbled home, put ice on it, and went to bed. Was worse the next morning. Went to Urgent Care and was told I had a sprained ankle. Put me in an air cast and sent me on my way.

Wednesday, 11/3, flew to Florida to visit my parents. Needless to say my ankle didn't fair too well. Thursday I decided it really wasn't healing the way it should be and went to Urgent Care on Friday. They said I had an avulsion (chip off the ankle) and I should be non-weight bearing. Flew home Saturday taking advantage of the wheelchair services of the airports.

Monday, 11/8, went to Orthopedic Foot & Ankle in Westerville. He wanted an MRI because he felt there was soft tissue damage. Scheduled it for Friday at 5. Well, that was a problem. I was going scrapbooking all weekend! In my defense, leaving early made sure I didn't have to drive. :)

Had the MRI done Thursday morning. Met with the Orthopedic Surgeon on Thursday, 11/18. I ripped the tendon that attaches the Fibula to the Talus. As in ripped it from the bone. I split the tendon that goes along the outside of the ankle. As in it caught on the bone as it twisted and actually split in half. And, there is so much swelling inside the joint and a blood clot in there that he wants to clean it out. He said any of the three, he would put me in a hard cast and let it heal. With all three occurring, I'm having surgery. Yes, surgery.

11/22, I will go for my pre-op testing. 11/30 is surgery at Dublin Hospital. Outpatient. Scott is taking the day off so that he can be there with me. Then on 12/6, they will put me in a hard cast. That should be about a week. Then I will transition through various support devices until I can walk without anything. The non-weight bearing part will be 4 weeks. Unless I walk on it, in which case, that will be extended.

So, I am borrowing a wheelchair from a friend and there is a shower chair in the Hartman family. I need to find out how to rent one of those knee scooters.

And, of course, there is another trip to Florida occurring during that time period. I am hoping to be in a removable cast by then. I will definitely still be non-weight bearing, but able to take a shower without sticking my foot out would be nice.

I have thought many times that this could have been so much worse. It could be my driving leg. It could have laid me up in the hospital for a long time. It could have been my head. And, if I still weighed 400 pounds I probably would have done even more damage.

So, am getting along as well as can be expected. Will enjoy my last week of being able to walk. Am fighting hard to stay positive. I tend to wallow whenever I think about it. But, it will all work out.

Hormones!!!

I am so done with my daughter's hormones. Grrr...!!! I try so hard to be the good mommy. There are times I just can't keep my mouth shut!! Now she is yelling at me that I'm picking fights with her. And "she knows how to win these fights, but that just gets her grounded." Is it really winning then?

Sept 27 - 278.2

I have less than 100 pounds to lose!!! Woohoo!!!

I decided I really needed to go buy a new pair of pants. I had three pairs that fit. All three are Capris. One is a jeans capri with no pockets. The other two are very light cotton. Way too cold for this weather!!! I don't think we hit 60 today.

So, I drove down to Kohl's. Wasn't sure what size I was going to get. I was thinking 24. I know the size 26 shorts my friend had given me were too big. And my one pair of capris is a 22/24, but they were crinkle, so would stretch out a little.

I took a couple pairs of 24s to the dressing room. Didn't like the way they fit. They seemed to be a little loose. So, I tried some 22s. There was one pair I really liked. I wasn't crazy about the color (it's kind of a steel grey/green) but I really liked the fit. So, I went back to look for a different color. I checked the style info and discovered that it was a size 20!!! Wow!!! Unfortunately, they didn't have another color. So, I have a new pair of pants (for $30) of a not too great color. But they fit great and they are MUCH smaller than anything I have worn in a LONG time!!! Very exciting!

I still need to be exercising. Scott mentioned yesterday that he is impressed at how little sagging I have on my butt and thighs. I seem to be absorbing that just fine. It's my upper arms and abdomen that really need work. I was doing a little reading on the internet about excess skin from quick weight loss. Even the most severe excess skin still has fat attached to it. So, as long as you increase lean muscle mass and decrease fat, you will lose the excess skin. Yes, there are exceptions (aren't there always?). But, in general. So, I seem to be losing it fairly evenly all over. But, when I was at my heaviest, I didn't have a single problem area. I was a well proportioned fat. So, it's appropriate that I lose proportionately.

At least it seems like I am getting down to a muffin top rather than a loaf top!!! :)

Welcome to any new readers I have! Dr. Myers posted my blog on his website. My whole goal for this blog is to be brutally honest with myself. And, therefore, with you. Feel free to ask questions. Reviewing helps me remember where I am and why I'm here. Talking about my journey with someone else helps me stay focused. My final decision to definitely have the surgery was the best thing I have ever done in my life.

September 26, 2010 - 279.0

Woohoo!!! I have less than 100 pounds to lose!!! 96 days left in 2010 and I have lost 116 pounds. Wow. If I could average a pound a day, I'd be 3 pounds away from my goal by New Year's!!! Isn't going to happen, but kind of neat to think about!!!

I need to focus on the fact that I need to be at my goal by March 30, 2011. Most of the excess weight you are going to lose, you lose in the first year. So, I want to be at 180 by then. Only 99 to go!!! "only"

I have definitely slowed way down. Yesterday I had two of my protein shakes, a piece of pizza, and a bowl of Cub Scout Cheddar Cheese Popcorn. Well balanced day!! At least I had two protein shakes in there! And I did have water and Fuze to drink during the course of the day.

Busy day yesterday. Was at a Girl Scout Camporee. Taught 100 girls Archery in 3 hours. Wow. I was overwhelmed and exhausted. But, it was fun. And my girls all had a good time. Which is even more important. And, my girls showed that they are really maturing. Four of them noticed that the canoeing person needed help stacking her canoes, so they stopped and helped. Didn't know the woman. Just saw she needed help. Awesome!!! And, the whole troop helped younger girls all day. And enjoyed it! Yay!!! So, we are counting this as time towards their Leadership Pin. They need 25 hours total, so this will be 8 hours for them. And, they earned an Interest Project patch for the day. yay!!! We're up to two earned!!! Since fall of 2009. :)

September 23, 2010 - 283.7

Had my 6 month appt with Dr. Myer. Wow. Can't believe it has been 6 months! And I've lost 112 pounds! Woohoo!!! Now to lose another 100.

Been going to the gym. My schedule does not always work well for that. But, am doing the best I can. This week, we went on Monday. Wednesday, late start messed me up. And Friday, I am manning the garage sale. I hate garage sales. But, we need money. And I'll be selling Cub Scout popcorn. :)

Scott told me the other day something that had me in tears. I knew he was worried about me, but we never talked about it. He said: "6-8 months ago, I was crying myself to sleep wondering what I would do when you were gone. How was I going to handle the kids? How was I going to pay the bills when I don't even know where the passwords are for the accounts? I had no idea that our lives could change so much in 6 months. Everything is so much better. You are a better person. We are better."

Wow. If that doesn't make me realize how much my life has changed with losing 100 pounds, nothing does.

Pumpkin Muffins

I'm going to have to try these. They sound yummy!

http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/

Shelly's Pumpkin Protein Mini Muffins 

1 Egg, beaten
3 Tablespoons Milk
2 Tablespoons Sugar Free Pumpkin Torani Syrup 
1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
2 Tablespoons Pumpkin Puree (not pie filling)
3 Tablespoons Multigrain Pancake Mix (I use this)
2 Tablespoons Unsweetened Coconut
1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 scoop Vanilla Protein Powder
Pinch salt

2 Tablespoons Shelly's Glazed Pepitas
1 batch of Shelly's Cheese Filling

Mix egg, milk, syrup, pumpkin and oil and combine thoroughly. In a separate bowl, mix pancake mix, coconut, spice, protein powder and salt. Tip dry into wet and stir till combined. Pour into a non stick 12 cup mini muffin panthat has been sprayed with Pam. 

Sprinkle with glazed pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds) 

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes or till toothpick inserted comes out clean. Makes 12 moist, delicious, mini muffins. 

Allow muffins to cool slightly. Using a drinking straw poke a little hole in the center of each mini muffin and pipe Shelly's Cheese Filling inside.

Shelly's Glazed Pepitas

1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Torani Syrup (any flavor - I used SF Vanilla)
1/4 cup Pepitas (raw shelled pumpkin seeds)

Saute seeds and syrup in a pan stirring constantly for a few minutes till you hear popping. Remove from heat and cool. Top Pumpkin Muffins batter before baking.

Shelly's Cheese Filling

1/4 cup Ricotta Cheese
1 teaspoon Sugar Free Jello Cheesecake Pudding Mix, dry
2 teaspoons Sugar Free Vanilla Torani Syrup 

Mix till well combined. Spoon into a piping bag or a Ziploc that has the corner snipped off. Seal baggie with tape. Pipe into mini muffins. If you don't want to pipe it you can always slice them in half and smear it in the middle. This filling is also great on sliced apples. 

Hospitality turns tragedy to opportunity for retired OSU staffer

Hospitality turns tragedy to opportunity for retired OSU staffer

This article was originally published in February, but it is an amazing story that I never heard about. In honor of the horrific events of nine years, remember that a lot of good has come out of that tragedy. Each of us has the potential to make a HUGE difference in other people's lives. How will you make a difference?

No change

Well, I should say, no change in weight. I haven't lost any more pounds since I've started at the gym. However, I have seen a huge improvement in my treadmill use. I started out with a speed of 2.6 being about the best I could manage for a decent pace. Now, I go at 3.0 with an incline of 1.0. The 3.0 is about the fastest I can manage without having to jog (not ready to try jogging, yet) so I up the incline to make the pace more difficult. An incline of 1% doesn't seem like much, but it goes up in increments of 0.5, so I'm at the second increment. I'm impressed with myself!!!

I've been walking to and from school in the morning. Today we were able to walk in the afternoon, too, because the weather was so much cooler.

My mom asked how much I've lost. I told her just under 110. She said: Aren't you embarrassed to tell people that? I said: No, I'm quite proud of it! She said: I would be embarrassed.

What do you think? Should I be embarrassed? I'll happily tell everyone how much I've lost and how much I still need to lose and what my goal is. Yes, that means they can add things up and come to the realization that I let myself get to almost 400 pounds!!! That's the part that is embarrassing! Not that I've lost so much.

Anyway. I guess I just need to write that off as another mom thing.

Have a great Labor Day Weekend!!!

287.5 - August 28, 2010

I've lost half the weight I want to lose!!! I'm down 107.5 pounds and I want to loose another 107.5 pounds. Well, I'm still not 100% sure where my goal is exactly. 180 is where I was when I graduated from high school. The trainer that I worked with Friday said he didn't feel comfortable with me having a goal that I've never actually weighed during my adult life. That's a scary thought!!! I would love to be 150. Although I'm not sure that would work for my frame. My first MAJOR goal is to break 200. Then I will worry about the last 20-30 pounds. I think I'll know what will be good once I get down to there.

So, I joined a gym. I've actually been going, too! Friday I had a MAP test and RMR test done. MAP = Metabolic Assessment Profile. RMR = Resting Metabolic Rate. The idea is that I need to know how many calories my body needs just to function day to day (RMR) and the MAP test tells what zone I need to be in as far as Heart Rate to burn fat most efficiently. It was an expensive test, but I really feel like I need to do everything possible to make sure I'm doing the right thing.

So, what did I find out? My RMR is 1694. Which means I need to take in 1694 calories a day just to have my body function properly. So, each time I eat, I should take in 283 calories. And I should be eating 6 times a day. Wow. This is quite different from my current bad habit of eating one or two times a day and probably getting 500 to 800 calories in per day. In other words, I really need to be tracking my food intake. sigh. I don't like doing that. Although, it is easier now. There is no need to lie to myself. I don't eat much of anything that I'm not "allowed." I just have to actually do it.

I started a Fitness Journal. With back to school shopping, I picked up some extra single-subject spiral-bound notebooks and some composition notebooks. I love covering them to use. Of course, I usually lose them after a week or so. If my house was clean...

So, I took one of the composition notebooks and started writing down what exercise I have done. Since I've been walking to school most days, I was able to write that in. And my times at the gym.

I need to start another one that is my food journal. It's sad when part of why I don't get all my calories in on a weekend day is because I slept in so late I just plain don't have that many hours!!! I so enjoy sleeping.

I also bought the heart monitor watch that they recommended. I need to set up my account on the website. Then I have to figure out how to download the info. The one trainer said that I can transmit it by holding the watch near the speaker on the computer. Hmm... Need to test that one. Otherwise, they can download it at the gym or I buy a $60 port. Not doing that last one!!! I've spent way more than I should by now already!

Want to get in for water aerobics, but I'm on my period right now and that is no fun. And, on the schedule there isn't a good time. They do 9 or 9:30 am or 7 pm. I really need it to be between 10am and 1pm. Since I am home for the kids, my non-school hours are pretty much filled with their stuff. The only time that isn't true is scrapbooking. And I rarely take time for that, anymore. But, part of the problem I'm having there is that my space is such a mess. I need to get back to working on it a little bit each day. I was making progress. Then it stopped when we went on vacation. I haven't gotten back into it. Add it to the list!!!

294.6 - August 15, 2010

Wow. How exciting was that? I stepped on the scale and saw a number less than 295. That is 100.4 pounds lost!!! Since Feb. 16!!!

It has been a fabulous trip! Even when my food doesn't settle well, it has been worth it to see the numbers come down so quickly.

And, today, I joined LifeTime Fitness. A friend of mine goes there and needs a ride to be able to go more often. So, I will run up and pick her up and we will both work out. It will make sure that I go. I will go if I have made a commitment to someone else. But, commitments to myself, I break. Yes, this is something I frequently discuss with Marcy!!!

We went to the zoo today. Which was a lot of fun. Met friends there. It was really hot!!! But, still fun. The animals were actually pretty lively. Which helped.

Then we went to Bob Evans for dinner since the zoo was handing out free Kids Meal coupons. And our friends showed up!! Perfect!!! Very fun day.

Our water heater has not been working since Friday. Apparently the leak has soaked the pilot so badly, it won't light at all. So, we turn the water off entirely at night and when we are gone. Cold showers are NOT fun!!! Although I kept reminding myself that, at the zoo, I would have paid money for that cold water!! I survived. The kids are taking baths with some added microwaved water. It's no worse than swimming in a cold lake or pool.

Appreciate all the conveniences of life. We've been having issues with water and dishwasher and a good friend hasn't had air conditioning all summer. We are truly spoiled. Take a warm shower and be thankful!

299.6 - August 11, 2010

Wow. I haven't seen a 2 as the first number on my scale in over 10 years. That is so exciting!!! Unfortunately, I haven't been exercising because I have a nasty head cold. I bet it is related to it being so hot and humid out and going in and out of air conditioning. Every day I've run errands. Post office, library, bank, etc. AC in the van. Hot outside. AC in the building. No wonder my head feels like it's going to explode.

Slept today from about 5-11. Now I'm up. Great. Sadly feel like I could go back to sleep pretty quickly.

Have a lot to do. Have training tomorrow night for Girl Scouts. Need to finish prepping the Registration packets before training. Then have a Girl Scout Service Unit Team meeting the next night. Meeting a friend for lunch tomorrow. Chinese. Yumm.

Need to start walking. Want to walk Lizzie over to Weaver to show her how easy it is. Don't want to be driving her much this year. Want to walk to Avery so that when school starts it'll be easy to walk Alex there. Humidity still knocks me on my butt.

Oh, well. This, too, shall pass. We have a working bathtub in the kids' bathroom (has been out of commission for close to a year) and our new dishwasher is only leaking a little bit. We need to shop for a new water heater, though. sigh.

Friday, August 6, 2010

Spent the day at the City Museum in St. Louis. Very cool. Lots of climbing and walking. I have definitely been doing more exercise than usual!! Of course, I also don't have a scale, so I will be surprised when I get home. I'm really hoping that I find that I am below 300.

I'm planning to start walking over to Avery once a day, too. When school starts I want to walk Alex in the mornings. And after school. It's a little over a mile round trip. Almost 1.5 miles. And I can easily extend the walk to 1.5 each way by taking the long way around. Need to start doing that every day. And, using my Wii Fit. I'm already really tired of my arm wings. They are only going to get worse!!! I need to work on getting rid of them by exercising!!!

Definitely the easiest way to eat on vacation is to share someone else's food. Tonight we went to an Italian place. Scott got linguini with seafood. I took about 1/2 cup worth with several bits of seafood and that was what I ate. I was full without feeling that too full issue. Usually I try to order my own thing and then have leftovers. Duh. Not easy on vacation!! Although this hotel room has a microwave and refrigerator. Very handy!!

Tomorrow we are going up in the Arch and going to the zoo. More walking!! I've been packing a book so that I can rest when I need to. Still working my way up on my stamina. I know I'm doing tons better than I have in the past. But, I still tire. Only 4 months out. Still healing. But, still want to lose at least 120 pounds, too.