Hello from far away!

Maddie and I made it to the in-laws in one piece. We actually had an awesome trip… she didn’t whine or fuss once. Can you believe that shit? We stopped halfway for lunch and then drove another half an hour to a cool playground. I let her run and play for 30 minutes (it was 50 degrees and her nose was runny) and then we finished the trip. For the second half of the drive she got to watch Elmo and Abby, so she was in seventh heaven. God bless you, portable DVD player!

We’ve been having a blast with Gerald’s family. We’ve gone shopping with Nana and Granny (grandma and great-grandma respectively) and gone to the park to play on the slides and eaten so many teetees (cookies) that we’ve almost burst. Ok, I’ve only had half a teetee, but still. Maddie’s fallen head-over-heels in love with her Nana. This morning, she laid in bed calling for Nana instead of Mama, so I laid in bed for another 15 minutes. Hey, I figured she didn’t want me, so I was going to lounge around. Then I realized that Nana was on the other side of the house and still asleep, so I got up and tended to my kid…. who, of course, asked me 129458039485 times where Nana was. She’s going to be heartbroken when we go home and there’s no Nana.

Gerald flies in tomorrow and we’re going to pick him up at the airport in San Antonio and then take his father out for a birthday dinner. (It must suck to have your birthday right at Thanksgiving.) We’ll be here until Saturday and then we’ll head home. Maddie will most likely cry for her Nana all the way home, but we’ll be back in a month for Christmas.

If I don’t talk to you before then, have a great Thanksgiving, ok? And don’t even give a moment’s thought to poor me and my tiny pouch. Don’t even think about my suffering as you’re downing your third piece of pumpkin pie loaded with cool whip. No, don’t think of me at all.

Failed photo shoot

All right, all right! Here are your pictures of the new bangs.

First of all, this is post-nap hair, so it’s a little bed-heady. Secondly, um, Maddie wasn’t feeling particularly photogenic this afternoon. She looks kind of drunk, doesn’t she? Honestly, it’s the flash on my camera that blinds her right before each picture. I guess I need to read the Nikon book and see what to do about that.

Finally – a decent shot:

Two things:

1. I totally spaced on the new hair do pictures. Tomorrow morning, I swear. Don’t roll your eyes at me! I said I SWEAR.

2. New look here at ADU. My sidebar was getting a little full, so I decided to switch to a three column format. Also, since I’m looking all kinds of hot these days, I figured this old place needed a makeover, too.

Bits and Pieces

I took Maddie to get a haircut yesterday. She still has that fine, thin baby hair and it was driving us both nuts. Her “bangs” were down past her nose and I had to put them in a “hair fountain” ponytail every day just so she could see. I decided to just bite the bullet and get her some real bangs. She looks adorable! I’ll take a picture and post it later today.

Tomorrow’s Maddie’s Thanksgiving Feast at preschool. I get to go up and have lunch with her and her class.

She and I are leaving either Friday or Saturday to go down to my in-laws. We’ll stay through Thanksgiving, with Gerald flying down Wednesday afternoon. I’m really looking forward to it. The family hasn’t spent much time with Maddie since August and she’s already changed so much. Her language has exploded and her “pretend” play has skyrocketed. She’s just so much fun these days.

Remember how I bought clothes as a normal store? Well, I got a sweater, tank and jeans at Old Navy. I wore the outfit for the first time on Sunday and managed to put a big ole hole in the thigh of my jeans. Since I’m only going to be able to wear them for a month or two, there was no sense in replacing them. Instead, I got some patches at the fabric store and patched the hole. I used butterfly patches and put a few more on the jeans to try and make them look like it was intentional. It looks like ass, but whatev. I wore them yesterday and no one pointed and laughed, so I’m calling it “good enough.”

I realize that this is possibly the most pathetic post ever written, but it’s all I’ve got. Take it or leave it, you judgmental bastards.

Imaginary Children’s Names

Since you guys are interested, here are my imaginary future children’s names:

Beatrix Ophelia
Cooper Gerald

Ophelia is Gerald’s grandmother’s name and since Maddie is named after our mothers, the next girl gets a grandmother’s name. Beatrix isn’t a family name, but I’ve always loved it. And it’s french like Madeleine, so they go together. AND it has the benefit of fun nicknames like Bea and Trixie.

Gerald’s family has a tradition that the male babies get their father’s name as a middle name. Gerald’s middle name is his father’s first name and so on and so forth. Therefore, we’ve always known that our son’s middle name will be Gerald…. unfortunately, it’s kind of a hard name to match up. However, I’m totally into Cooper Gerald.

Fun Fact Friday Returns!

Well, it seems I’m once again sane and ready to post with some regularity. So, let’s get back to some Friday Facts, shall we?

* I’ve decided to go to BlogHer ’09 in Chicago. As I was saying to Shelly yesterday, it’s not that I’m all about the blogging or whatever. I just thought it would be fun. And I’m hoping that you’ll go, too. Yes, you. Then we can stay up late giggling like school girls. Doesn’t that sound like fun? Yes, it does!

* I’m one of those “laugh at a socially unacceptable time” people. I laugh when someone falls, during funerals, somber speeches, etc.

* We’re exploring potty training with Maddie. She’s VERY interested in her potty these days. I’m not all gung ho about it, though. I let her sit naked on the potty whenever she wants to and we watched Elmo’s Potty Time DVD yesterday. That’s pretty much the extent of it. I’m all about letting her do it in her own time and not pushing at all.

* The other night I couldn’t sleep and as I laid awake in bed, I named our next (and as of now, completely fictional) child. I came up with both a girl’s and a boy’s name. Cross one imaginary to-do off my list.

* I tried Honeycrisp apples for the first time this week. I ate three large apples over the course of the week. They’re unbelievably good. Look for them when you grocery shop this weekend, and if your store has them, buy yourself one. You won’t be sorry.

Attention Internets:

I just purchased clothing for myself at a store WITHOUT a plus size department.

I just bought “normal sized” clothing. From a store. For myself.

Can you believe it???? *squeeeee!!!!*

You may now return to your regular internet activities.

Thank you.

Questions Answered

Jodi asked in the comments of my last post: Just out of curiosity can you share a little about what you can and can’t eat and why? You always say food causes you problems, but I wonder exactly what you mean.

I’m happy to answer that, Jodi. One caveat I’ll issue is that these are the foods and reactions that I have. Not all bariatric post-ops.

First of all is sugar. One of the “side effects” of gastric bypass is dumping syndrome. For me, 10g of sugar is my limit in one sitting. Any more than that and I dump. I get light-headed, sweaty, shaky, nauseous and dizzy. It’s awful. When it happens, I just curl up in a ball on the bed and cry until it’s over. Thankfully, it hasn’t happened in months. I’m very careful about my sugar intake now. And I NEVER try a new food for the first time when I’m out. I can’t imagine having to deal with a reaction in public. *shudder* (I also dump on fat, so I’m very careful about my fat intake, as well. Nothing fried or greasy. It makes me sick just to think about it.)

Dumping is pretty universal amongst bypass patients, but then we each have our quirks with other foods. I can’t eat bread. It physically hurts me. It sits like a rock in my pouch for hours. A couple of weeks ago, I had a mini-bagel and a piece got stuck in my stoma (the opening from my pouch to my intestine). For two hours, I threw up and prayed. It was one of the single most painful and upsetting experiences in my life. I was *this* close to going to the emergency room which most likely would’ve ended in surgery to remove the blockage. Luckily, one final vomit dislodged it and I was perfectly fine.

I also can’t eat eggs, dairy, dry ground beef or chicken. These things make me sick. However, I can eat steak without any problems and most post-ops can’t eat steak until a year after their surgery. As long as it’s moist and tender, I’m completely fine with it.

I try to stay away from “bad” carbs. No rice, potatoes, processed crackers or things like that. I allow myself some whole grain crackers, but I limit myself to small portions.

I’m sure this is all much, much more than you really wanted to know when you asked!

Devan asked: What is your treat to yourself for reaching your halfway point in 10lbs? New book? Girls night? Spill!

I don’t really know what my gift to myself will be. For my first 50 pounds lost, I got a pair of Converse sneakers that I wanted. Maybe I’ll get a massage or a facial for 75 pounds. The other big one coming is a combo goal. 100 pounds lost & ONEderland (meaning my weight starts with a 1). That’s a HUGE deal to me. I think I want Gerald to take me out on a fancy date with dress-up clothes and snooty food. My final goal treat will be a vacation/anniversary/birthday/goal weight trip with Gerald. We’re still kicking around ideas, but we’ve talked about a cruise, an all-inclusive resort in Mexico, Disney and Vegas. But next summer is a long way off and we’ve got time to decide. : )

If anyone else has any questions about this stuff, please feel free to leave them in the comments or email me. As you can see, I’m happy to talk about any part of this process that you’re interested in.

More about weight loss.

I’ve lost another five pounds. That puts me at 235 and a total of 65 pounds lost in three and a half months, and only 10 pounds away from being halfway to my goal weight.

I feel like pinching myself to see if this is all a dream. I know that 235 pounds and a size 18/20 still sounds ghastly to the thin people reading this, but it feels like heaven to me. I can’t remember the last time I was this small. High school, maybe? I know I’m still fat, but I don’t feel like I’m “point and stare” fat anymore. I’m more “socially acceptable” fat now. I don’t feel self-conscious in public anymore. I can cross my legs, kneel and rest on my heels, run and play in the backyard with Maddie without wanting to die and so much more.

Right before my surgery I had my cholesterol checked and it was 216. (I can’t remember what my triglycerides were.) My doctor checked it again a week ago and it’s 163 and my triglycerides are 75. This is the healthiest I’ve been in a very long time.

Don’t get me wrong, there are still bad days with this surgery. In fact, two weeks ago, there was an incident with a mini-bagel that almost sent me to the emergency room. Seriously. It was B-A-D. But, on the whole, I’m doing well. I’m learning what I can handle and what I can’t get near. I’m learning that even though I feel surrounded by unhealthy choices that look so delicious – I’m looking at you, Starbucks Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate – I don’t have to choose them. I’m not missing out on anything by not having it… except maybe some junk in my trunk, if you know what I mean.

Meh

I’m still alive. Just a little apathetic.

I’m not sure how to explain it other than I don’t really give a damn about anything these days. I’m just sort of “meh.”

It’s only been a week since my dr upped my z@loft dosage, so it’s too soon for it to be working. Another week or so and I should be right as rain. Don’t give up on me, k?