Weigh In Wednesday - duh, duh, duh...

Last Week's Weight:  249
Today's Weight:  246.4
Loss:  2.6

I'll take it. I could have done better but I know I'm moving in the right direction.

What I did right:

• Tracked my food daily (with the exception of Saturday/Sunday) on MyFitnessPal
• Walked 3 times after work with Mac
• 1 Pilates Class (more on that in a minute) 
• 1 Zumba Class 
• Cut out the Diet Rockstar Energy Drink I was drinking 1x a day
• Ate lunches from My Fit Foods - everything is all portioned out calorie wise so it takes guess work out of thing 

What I could have done better: 

• drank more water
• Not drank a shit ton on Friday night which led to the worst Pilates class in the history of time on Saturday morning. We took Brandon out for his birthday on Friday evening and the wine was aflowing..  I knew Pilates was going to suck and there were more 4 letter words coming out of my mouth than normal. BUT, on the plus side, I did go.. 
• Watched my intake on Saturday and Sunday 

Goals this week: 

• Don't overdo it on Easter. I'm hosting a brunch for like 10 of us. 
• Keep up the workouts. Went to Zumba last night and really pushed myself and was sweating like a beast
• I have 3 PIlates sessions on the schedule between now and next week's weigh in 
• Walk 3 times before next Wednesday
• GET MY FILL ON WEDNESDAY!!! 

have a good day! 

xo,js

Jiggly Wiggly Pudding....

Anyone know what that's from??  If you are an avid watcher of the Disney Jr. channel, you'd know that that is what the King on "Sofia the 1st" loves and always says! "Jiggly Wiggly Pudding!"

anyways, I digress..

a funny thing happened on my walk last night with Mac... I walked about 1 1/2 miles UP the road and then while we were walking the way back, I decided to run a little (sidenote, I had read Kelle Hampton's blog yesterday and as usual, she inspired me.. she talked about running and "girl on fire"). As I was running, I could feel all my chub just jiggling up and down and all I could think about was "Jiggly Wiggly Pudding!"  Not, "Girl on Fire"..

BTW, Mac loved the running!! he loves running and while I was running, he kept looking back at me and waving his arms and saying "Run, Run, Run"...  that's serious motivation!!!

Lest you think I'm now  a runner, get your minds out of the gutter..  I maybe ran for 5 minutes total, on and off, down-hill, pushing a stroller.
It's a start.
I also did some push-ups and some planks. Eat that Jillian Michaels.

I'm ready for Weigh-In Wednesday. I'm hoping I won't be disappointed. I would say with the exception of Friday and Saturday, I've been about 75% on track with my eating, which is better than about the 40% I was at last week.  Fingers crossed and please say all your prayers tonight that I at least 1 lb!!

see you tomorrow!
xo, js

Pics from my walk last night:

Chicago FUN visit recap!

Hey all, first, thanks so much for the support I received on yesterday's post. It was soo hard to write that weight down and put those pictures in but I appreciate all the comments and love!

I also realized that I hadn't posted since I went to Chicago a week ago for my bestie Shannon's shower.
As usual, it was FUN!!  It was literally a quick 48 hour trip but we packed alot in in that time. Tim and Mac also came with and we met my parents at our hotel (which BTW, if you are going to Chicago, stay at the Omni on Michigan - great location, all suites, good price and excellent customer service!). We met up with Shannon, her moms, and fiance Kevin for dinner that night which was yum!

Let's just get this out there that Mr. Mac does not travel well. He has like zero patience (I mean, he is only 20 months old) so by the time we were getting on the plane, he was going ape shit bananas and every person on that flight was looking at me with those "please don't let that screaming kid be sitting next to me for 3 1/2 hours" eyes..   once we finally took off, he fell asleep for most of the flight.  but damn, mama gets a little stressed out and then it all goes downhill!! We got to the restaurant and he wanted to run around like a maniac, but finally sat down and ate like a polite little gentleman!! This was his real first time experiencing the cold and he didn't seem to mind!!

Saturday morning, I got a much needed little break away and headed up to my friend TMac's house to put together the favors and get some flowers and cupcakes for the shower. Since the shower was at a wine bar, we put together these cute little favors - mini-wine bottles with a chalkboard wine charm attached and a piece of chalk (everyone thought it was a cigarettte, b/c you know, that's how classy we roll, putting a ciggy in a favor!) they turned out super cute!

The shower was a super success and Shannon had a good time and got lots of fun gifts. It was nice to see a mix of people there to celebrate her - some of Kevin's family, his and her friends and then her family and friends.   She was grinning ear to ear for most of the day! It seriously makes me soo happy to see her so happy!

After the shower, my girls, moms and I went to an old neighborhood bar and just caught up some more. I know I say this all the time, but I love these girls. When I'm around them, I just have this feeling of being "home".. hard to explain.

Sunday morning, we headed over to my friend Laura's house so that Mac could meet her son, Logan, and we could meet my friend Margo's new baby.. so fun! Mac and Logan will be BFFs some day, they just don't realize it yet.. instead, they wrestled for toys and knocked each other around like boys do.

Then we boarded the plane for another fun filled ride home.. actually it wasn't so bad since Mac dozed off as soon as the wheels lifted off the ground and then woke up as soon as we landed.  I wanted to scream "your welcome" to all the other passengers around us!!!

Now, we are back in the swing of things and I'm prepping for easter when we'll have our traditional 3 family get together with the H's and the G's!  then, my brother and family come into town on Easter Sunday for a week and then the following weekend, all the girls come in for the bachelorette party (woot woot) Then, it's the wedding!! So, I'll be slowing down some time around mid-May!!

Coming Clean..

I've been blogging for almost 4 years now and while the original intent of my blogging was to document and journal my weightloss journey with the lap band, it became so much more than that. I've had a baby and the blog has become more about my life and family and friends than what it's original intent was. While I still want to use this blog to chronicle my "life", I need to refocus on what I started out to do, which is to use this tool that I've been given the opportunity to have and use it to it's full advantage to change my life.  One thing I never did for fear of judgement and honestly, just shame, was ever put a before picture nor did I ever disclose my weight on my blog. ( I started out with a lot of real life friends and family reading my blog and I still have those readers)  I figured that since so many of my blog friends were hiding the fact that they even have the band, what was the big whoop with me not telling my weight. I have come to realize though that the most successful lap banders/sleeve folks are those that are full disclosure, doing weekly weigh ins, talking about their plans, eating habits, etc..
I need to be one of the success stories.  So my shame and fear of being judged ends today.  I plan on doing weekly weigh-ins on Wednesday and I plan to share my successes as well as my short-comings. I need to support, I need to do this and get it done. I'm tired of watching everyone around me succeed and me just being OK with it.

So here we go:

Today's Weigh In:  249

249? Pathetic!  I'm up 10 lbs since my unfill before my EGD a month ago.  When I did my EGD, he filled me back up to 6 ccs which is totally not enough for me. I am usually good at around 9.5ccs. He wanted me to go about 3 weeks with this fill level. In that 3 weeks I've found out that my new insurance doesn't cover the band at all.  So, I'm going to be self-pay and I'll be damned if I waste all this money and not get moving in the right direction. My lowest I've ever been since having surgery was 235.  My goal is around 175/180 so I have a ways to go. I'm going in this week to meet with my new doctor and come up with a plan.

Here are my "before" pics.. from yesterday. I'm considering it an NSV of sorts that I was even in a tank top walking outside, but it was hot!! (Also, lordy be is my garage a mess!!!)

 

I met up with Elizabeth yesterday at a baseball game! Super fun to meet her daughter who was a trooper and so sweet to run after Mac every time he tried to escape our area!  She is a great support and I can't tell you how nice it is to just talk to someone who get's it. Today she's having her port moved so she's going to be back at it as well!! :) Love her!


so, that's it. I'm finally out. Feels good!!  I'll be doing weigh-ins on Wednesdays since it seems a lot of peeps do that, plus "Weigh In Wednesday" just sounds right!!

Thought I'd make myself feel a little better about myself today by wearing a dress that has been sitting in my closet for quite some time and I finally have a little color on my legs to wear it! Sorry for the blur but just couldn't get it to focus.. also for the messy playroom!!

Expect to be seeing more of me in blogging (less of me in weight!!)!
xo
js

Busy Bee, Bullets, and Band Get-togethers

Hi all, I've been horrible about keeping up with blogs lately.  I wish I could get into a regular blogging habit but it's not happening.
I've been crazy busy lately so I'm going to photobomb all of you and do it bullet-style.

• Have had a couple of fun band buddy get togethers!! Met up with my AZ girls Elizabeth and Jenn for lunch a few weeks ago. Always nice to get together with them and just chit chat!
• THEN, some of us AZ girls got to meet LapBandGal and AmyW when they were here for an Allergan panel. It was so fun to finally meet these superstars of the band and nice to see that they were exactly like they were in their blogs! (sometimes you meet people who aren't anywhere near the way they come across on their blogs!) We met up with them at their fancy resort and just hung out in the cigar room and chatted! Lots of laughs and really good support! 

                                         

                 

 We look a little demonish, but still cute! 

• It snowed in AZ.. WTH?? Hell has indeed frozen over.                                                   
• Spring Training has begun and we've been to 5 games already. Shoot me now. Let me tell you, taking a 19 month old to a Spring Training Baseball game is my new version of what hell might be like.. good thing he's cute though:          
• I have a new doctor for my band!! I finally just sucked it up and paid the $500 to go see the surgeon that Jenn and Elizabeth go to. I actually saw a different one but I loved him.  I had an EGD done last Thursday to check everything out and it all looks good. He re-filled me to 6ccs once done (I was at 9cc) and I'll go back again in about 3 weeks. I'm super excited to finish what I started with this band! 
• Work still blows.  There really aren't enough minutes in the day to do everything I need to do which is why I'm writing this on a Sunday night! This weekend I decided to NOT do anything work related and not even look at my emails. What a concept, Weekends are for spending time with family.. hmmm.
• The only good thing about work lately is that the President gave me his tickets to the Suns game last week.. 3rd row, right behind the Suns bench. AND, we got access to the Blue Moon club - unlimited free drinks and food..  I took my girlfriends Jen and Erin. We were a bit like the Beverly Hillbillies acting all excited about the perks, but it was fun! 

                                    

• I'm heading to Chicago this weekend for Shannon's shower. Not gonna lie, I wouldn't mind if I could just stay there! But I will come back, for now!! :) 
• One of my girlfriends Jen (in Chicago) had a sweet little baby boy yesterday! Can't wait to meet him this weekend. There has been an influx of boys in my circle of friends lately.. where are all the girls?? 
• Timmy and I had a little impromptu date night the other night. I'd be lying if I didn't say that one of the reasons I suggested the date is so that I could get a little shopping done before our trip to Chicago so I chose a shopping mall with a good bar that I knew he'd be ok with hanging out in while I shopped!  I found some really cute fun colored pants for spring and NOTHING to wear for the shower this weekend. 

                                    



Ok, gotta go to bed now!  hope you are all well! and still want to be my friend after the lack of blogging!

xo,js

10 Things Thursday - the LOVE edition

1.  I never was a big fan of Valentines Day, but for some reason, I LOVE it this year. I was telling Timmy last night that I feel like I've waited all my life to be that mom who makes things the night before for her kid to bring to class and now that I finally am that mom, I'm not going to complain about it at all! And, he's only 19 months (yikes! how did he get to be 19 months?)??  so, we made cupcakes last night and he brought Meg (or Met as he calls her) some beautiful tulips to let her know how much she is appreciated. I wish I had taken a picture so ya'll could see how cute he looked this morning carrying the flowers into her house and then giving them to her with a big grin on his face.. like he was so proud.  My heart swelled just a tiny little bit...

2.  As you mostly know, I'm a picture FREAK!!!  Well, when my absolute favorite photographer had a mini-session deal that I couldn't pass up, I jumped at the opportunity to have her take his picture.  She did a valentine's session and while he was a little bit fidgety and not wanting to cooperate at all, she got some decent shots, including the ones in the card above.  I ended up doing 2 different cards b/c I didn't think I'd get hers in time for V-day but sure enough, both arrived on the same day so I now look like a crazy person for putting so much effort into Valentines Day Cards!! :) Oh well, I LOVE doing things like that!  a little love spread around never hurt anyone right?? Here are some other ones she got:

3.  I joined the Lifetime 90 day challenge at the gym and I have to say, I'm doing pretty well on it!! I've cut back all sugar (perfect time to do it since it's EVERYWHERE, right?) and have been tracking my food intake on MFP this week. I've also started making green smoothies and I LOVE them!! who knew adding some spinach and kale to my smoothies would a.  make a difference in how much energy I have each day and b. taste soo delish! If you haven't tried a green smoothie, I highly recommend it. It's delish.  I weighed myself this morning and I'm down 2.6 since Sunday which is a nice little change considering I'm a big time staller in the WL area!

4.  Also found a new Kale chip I LOVE at whole foods..  Alive and Radiant Cheezy Chipotle.  Delish!

5. I'm in full planning mode for my BFF's wedding events. I can't believe we start celebrating her next month! We are headed to Chicago in early March and then back in May!  Super excited to be planning the parties!! I LOVE me a party!  We are doing the bachelorette here in April and we just booked a cabana for a day at one of the local hotels.. need to get my bathing suit body together stat!!!

6.  Spring Training starts in a couple of weeks and you all know how much I LOVE spring training (at least I LOVE it at the beginning, by the end of March, I'm DONE!) We got a little taste of outdoor fun a couple of weeks ago at the Phoenix Open, which touts itself as the biggest show on Grass..  it was super fun and the first time we've ever been which is ridiculous since we live like a mile from the course. We got to see Phil Mickelson win and all the scantily clad hussies walking around trying to snag themselves a rich dude.. very fun!!

7.  Ya'll know how much I LOVE my blog buddies!! We are getting together for lunch this weekend and then in a couple of weeks, we are meeting up with some band/blog superstars who are in town.  Will definitely post pics of that fun time! 

8.  I went to Pilates last night and my instructor, whom I LOVE, told me she's put in her notice at the gym. I almost cried. I truly believe she is the reason that I've renewed my motivation to get healthier again and have stuck to it.  She sends me daily emails and it's going to suck that she won't be my instructor. She's almost become a friend.  We talked about me possibly going to her privately (she has her own practice not affiliated with the gym) but we'll see. it blows. 

9. Going back to TR next week, whom I DO NOT LOVE!  But, I'm going to see about getting another small fill. This one has done pretty good but I'm still hungry much sooner than I should be.  Hoping I get the good PA and not the one that doesn't know how to count or find my port. 

10.  I think I'm done with the love-fest for the day. I wish I could find time to blog more, but my job (which if you notice I did not talk about LOVING) is still crazy and it's about to get even crazier..  ho hum.. 

Have a very happy Heart day!!

xo

js

10 Things Thursday.. (the "why is it so hard?" edition)

Hi all,
once again, it's been a while since I blogged and lately, I'm finding myself asking "why is it so hard" to almost everything in my daily life, so I'm going to rant. Don't read it if you don't want to hear a rant.. warning.. (I'll also try to not make every one of these points about my husband)

1.  Why is it so hard for my husband to not put a dish in the dishwasher?  The dishwasher is empty, the sink is empty every night before I go to bed and pretty much every morning I wake up and there is a dish IN.THE.SINK. The dishwasher is like a foot away??  I'll never get it.

2.  Why is it so hard that while there is a Milwaukee Brewers or Bucks game, I cannot get my husband's attention to save my life. And never mind the child that lives in our house, he'll be yelling DADA, DADA and Tim won't even hear him?  I mean, I don't glaze over during Housewives or any of my reality shows.. (Homeland may be an exception though!) and things can get done while the TV is also on. He will ask me a question about something we discussed the previous night while he was watching the game and act like it's the first time he's heard me talk about something..

For the Record, I want to say to those that say "These bitches be crazy", it's b/c you men MAKE.US.CRAZY!!!
I could go on and on.. but there's so much more to bitch about.

3.  I mentioned that work blows right?? it's b/c when you cut 80% of your workforce, you lose most of the support you used to receive for little things like, um, copy machine repair, ordering supplies, business cards, etc.. it help desk, could I go on? So, when I ask why is it so hard to get anything done and why do I have to go through an email chain of like 50 emails to get one thing done, I know the answer, I just don't have to like it!

4. Why is it so hard for the snowbirds who come to AZ to drive the speed limit? I need a big foam bumper on my car so I can occasionally bump them to light a fire under their slow bums.

5.  Why is it so hard for people to commit to things? I have a few friends who tell me every week they are going to join a class I take with me (no this isn't about you Michelle! :) ) and do you think any of them ever show up? No! A couple of them don't even have jobs at the moment so I know they have plenty of time on their hands! Good thing I don't rely on anyone to get my workouts in b/c I'd probably never work out. Last night I had a Pilates class alone (technically a private ) b/c the other girls just didn't show up, which is silly b/c you then pay double for the class if you late cancel!

6.  Why is it so hard for my work to understand that a 40 hour work week exists?  and 55 isn't the same as 40? I'd like them to figure that out soon.

7. Why is it so hard to get a decent flight to the Midwest in March?? I mean, isn't it still snowing and crappy? shouldn't it be almost free to go there? I'm going to Chicago in March and it's costing us almost $400 to fly there.. WTH indeed?  I need to get closer to the people that I spend a fortune on going to see, imagine how rich I'd be if I lived closer to family and friends?

8.  Why is it so hard for me to lose weight?  I'm at the same weight as I was last May.. pathetic!!  I definitely feel better about myself and I know that my size has gone down, but my body cannot be happy and settled at this weight.  I am doing all the right things so it makes no sense.

9. Why is it so hard for the clinic I go to to find a decent NP to do my fills??  True Story.. I walked in yesterday to get a fill. The woman that nearly murdered my belly last time was there, I got nervous..
she looked at my weight and said, "Oh good, you've lost 12 lbs since you were here last in November", and I said, "that's not right, according to my calculations, I've lost 6", "no, 12".. me:  "hmmm, do you need a calculator?" her:  "oh, you are right, 5.8".. WTF?? how do you get confused between 12 and 6 lbs??  Then, she proceeds to again try to find my port and I'm pretty sure after the digging, she just gave up and pretended that she filled me!  I need to switch drs. The one that Jenn and Elizabeth are going to accepts my insurance but I'd have to pay $500 to switch. I know that it would be worth it but I just need to convince my miser husband to let me spend the money.

10. Why is it so hard for me to blog and not post a picture of my little munchkin? B/C he makes everything better and why not end on a good note! he's been sick with a cold and bronchitis but I think he's finally turning the corner!!

Ok, rant over.

Do you have things that beg the question "why is it so hard" in your life? or is it just me?? (please let it not just be me!)

xo,
js