Welcome baby New Year

I am not sorry to see 2011 retire itself. What an incredibly difficult year we had with the death of our beloved Gunther dog, my surgery, a case of Shingles for me, the death of my beloved father in law, and dis-satisfaction with our current jobs. In 2012, I will graduate with my MBA, Little will turn 8, both our boys will be in their 20's, G turns 50, and I turn 40, while we celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary and the 14th year as partners. There is so much to look forward to, including my continued physical transformation. I am sure I have gone into each new year with a certain level of optimism, but I hope that I represent a new level than ever before. I feel so alive and engaged in this year to come and hope that there are additional reasons to celebrate in 2012.

Welcome to my vacation from school

Today was the first Sunday in months that I have not had to work on a school assignment and wasn't real sure what to do with myself. So I baked 24 dozen cookies, watched football, and did laundry. I have a break from school until January and then I only have two classes before I graduate. I cannot believe I am going to walk across a stage on May 5th to accept my graduate diploma. I AM SO EXCITED. I am hoping that it opens new doors for me as it is time for me to take the next step in my career and I do not think socialized medicine is the right path for me. There has been some office politics drama and that has curbed my enthusiasm for the environment I am in right now.

My weight is coming down and I have been able to clean out a major portion of my closet. Because Little is out of school, I can get up a bit later in the morning and still work out and because I am out of school, I can exercise in the afternoons as well. The dance school is out until after the New Year, which will help me have more time to make meals at night. I hope the combination will assist in losing a few more pounds

They Say It's Your Birthday

Yes, today I am 39. Holy Crap- my last 30-something birthday. I guess getting older is a good thing given that the alternative is death. The best part of the weekend was that I ran a tiny bit and that got me inspired to do a little more of that. My beautiful friend reminded me how powerful running is as a competition with yourself through her blog and I yearn to feel that again. I have a lot to do in this next year and it's time to board the train.

Back in the saddle again

So I have been super busy, we have a new addition to our family: Kerstone's Baron Maximillian Von Atticus, the cutesy German Shepherd pup. My 2nd fill has taken hold and I am back to losing weight again. With the new puppy, I am getting more walking in. Little has started dancing, which gives me time to swim too. This is a marathon and not a sprint.

Lather, Rinse, Repeat

So I went in for my two week follow up from my first fill. Based on the fact that I have lost less than a pound since my fill, I needed another one. In all fairness, she told me it might not be enough for a proper restriction, so she was not at all surprised. I am back on liquids until tomorrow, when I go back to soft foods. So I go back in two weeks and hope to have more traction. I know, 1-2 pounds a week is the target loss, but less than 1 in 2 weeks is totally deflating!

Apparently Today is Day One

So I went in yesterday for my first fill. I have a 14 cc band and was given 6 cc's for restriction. I was scared to death about a needle being inserted into my stomach, but I only felt the sensation of old saline moving through my port. So today is technically the beginning of my weight loss journey, despite me losing weight after surgery. That almost 20 pounds is considered a bonus, so whoo hoo for a bonus! I ave been only liquids and soft foods since and must be strict on only 4 ounces at a time. Ok, let's roll.

One Step Forward and One Step Back

Today was my last day at home recovering before I go back to work. I decided last night to keep Little at home from day camp so that we could do some baking and go swimming. So I got up to Little announcing that the neighbor's chickens had flown into our yard. With an over-protective 120 pound German Shepherd, any living thing in the backyard is in danger. We made healthy blueberry bars, had lunch with G, and then went off to the pool. I got several laps and swam for 30-45 minutes before I was interrupted by Little and her friends wanting me to play. That was my success of the day.

My failure, I ate too much at dinner and would really appreciate a case of bulimia right now, but no.

You win some and you lose some!