DeLarla

What Alex said. I just don't think I'll have my band for life. I'd love to have it for a few years, but the more I read, the more I realize I'm going to have to use a lot more willpower to kick this food obsession than just relying on the band alone. I'm still having problems with portion control. I just can't seem to put small amounts on my plate. Tonight I dumped most in the trash after I eat, but I often eat past being full. Note to self: More willpower, less band. I know we can lose weight and keep it off without a band or bypass because my friend has lost over 100 pounds on her own and kept it off over 5 years. So I know it can be done, I know it can.

Neicy, I'd have an entirely different outlook if my doctor was in this country. I'd be mean as hell, which I've done before. But when we're Americans trying to contact Mexico, there's not much we can do but stay sweet and sappy. Darcy, Dr. Chua is in Mexico, right? Darcy, I feel your pain but I also think you need to get your ass back to the ER because the kind of pain you're describing shouldn't go on any longer. I'd drag you there myself if I were near by. I can understand that they turned you away once, but put on the drama babe. When the doctor touches your belly, scream in his ears. Put on the Scarlett O'Hara and drop to the floor. Get noticed. I don't like this game any more - you've been in pain too long. At least when I was sick and infected, I wasn't in pain. Sure, it was uncomfortable, but the pain was minimal. Now you've got me plain ol worried. No more lawn mowing! Take it easy until you have answers, k?

Put it on the calendar, Penni. I'm there... convenient too, since my friends & family live there. We could do a day at the beach! Game on!

I don't do anything to adjust my pics. I attach them, and that's how big they come out. You reminded me of a joke I told a thousand times in junior high. A poor mom is making Soup and accidentally knocks her husband's box of BBs off the shelf into the soup. She doesn't want to waste the soup, so she drains the BBs off and serves dinner. Later, her horrified daughter yelled, "Mommy, Mommy, I was going pee and a BB came out!" The mom calmed her and told her not to worry since the BB has passed. Later, her other daughter yelled the same thing, so again, mom said, "don't worry, the BB passed." Then her son came running, "Momma, Momma!!" And the mother interrupted, "I know, son, you were going pee and a BB came out." He said, "NO, I was jacking off and I shot the dog." SORRY!!!! Couldn't resist.

Everybody be intimidated by Gross Darcy who has a clean floor AND clean carpets, even with a petting zoo in her house. I'm afraid of you.

"You are a very patient patient, I would be in their face!" I gotta disagree, Wink. Cuz I feel like I'm at their mercy. If I piss of my doctor, then what? I feel like I have no option other than patience. Scary.

Uh, no rules, Penni.

And GREAT geriatric stick!

Yeah, and I like the way you accidently forgot to mention the ten-pack of beer on the floor!

I know, I'm ridiculous. You could give 10,000 patients bottled water and come up with the same results. Some will choke, some will perspire, some will wet their pants.

Blushing... thanks Darc. My kitty used to have a droopy belly like mine too. It's so darn cute. And you really do have a zoo just like me. Are there more?

Thank you, and thank you. I was a jolly ol feller, that's for sure. Anyone wanna get rich with me? I'm inventing a pee dipstick that detects early erosion.

If I had my way, you would all attach pictures with every single post. With that, here's todays picture (who knows what you'll get cause I gotta go search my hard drive... hold on...) Okay, I found a "Before" picture from this past Chrismas.... here it comes! P.S. Another reason I keep Chris is because he always wants us to match at my company Christmas party, which I think is really sweet.

Now I'm positive I'm dying... I just read that Inamed literature from their test studies. I have every single problem on every single page. Why not hand me some scissors to run with? Reading is bad. Bad, bad, bad.

What a whacky world. You mean Johnson & Johnson, makers of famous Q-Tips, bandages, and all those other American products actually makes the Swedish band? Never mind... not clever enough to figure that one out.

I'm almost 42 and not sure how I'd feel about getting pregnant this far in the game. I can barely fit on the back of that Harley as it is. Could you imagine losing all that weight and getting pregnant at 42 years old? I'm so tired of these Catch 22's. You can't get pregnant cause you're fat. So you lose weight and get pregnant which makes you fat, or you take birth control pills that make you gain weight. Darcy, baby is so cute in the sink! My friend was sitting in my bed on top of the comfortor and said, "it smells like cows in here." I nearly died laughing because my dogs burrow in the comfortors and apparently do smell like cows. So now Chris wants me to keep them outside during the day... but I don't have the heart. Poor, poor (SPOILED) poor babies.

Those aren't our pictures. We're all actually sitting inside our computers looking at you. Actually, I wasn't able to make my pic small so someone helped me.

Be right back... gotta pee out another half pound.

Look at his precious face! And I'm in awe of your clean floor! Mine is disgusting!

I needed peace of mind over my hot sauce, chili, jalapeño, pepper addiction, so I called Inamed. While they're not dismissing that foods/drinks that cause acid reflux should be avoided, they said the main reasons for erosion (in baby talk) are: 1. During surgery, something could happen that needs to be repaired or cauterized - a little poke/tear/cut perhaps - that could go unnoticed by the surgeon. If the surgeon closes you up and sends you home, this type of unrepaired problem can cause erosion. 2. An infection from the original surgery can cause erosion. As far as alcohol, Inamed warns banded patients to stay away because of the empty calories, not because of erosion. Erosion from alcohol or spicy foods isn't on their warning list.

Like I've said before, nobody has all the answers. Like Donali, we could all be as band-perfect as possible yet still have errosion. So I'll keep on keeping on and be happy for the days I have my little band. Inamed and other researchers are improving techniques and learning more information by the minute. Let's hope they come up with some non-errosive situation soon!

Darcy, you got yourself a big, fat deal! Today I made it simple by bringing Cream of chicken Soup for lunch. I'll request Mashed Potato Stew for dinner (since I have my own housebitch catering to my every need since he brought home the Harley.) Did you say FORTY GRAND? I hope that wasn't self-pay. Where on earth did you get your surgery, at the Royal Palace? Even in expensive Vegas the surgery is under $25 K. By the way, I've seen a downfall in my new favorite surgeon and haven't received return calls or return e-mails in weeks. Same as Dr. Chua, they have overloaded themselves with new patients and don't have time for old ones. Your face makes me smile.

This is the first time I've heard about avoiding spicy foods. Uh, HELLO, I got my band in Mexico, so why didn't my spicy Mexican doctors tell me about this? I put hot sauce in or on everything! Is this truly a no-no? It doesn't hurt or bother me. Donali, am I dying again? Same with booze. Dr. Kuri throws regular bashes where he pays for drinks and food all weekend. Answers please?

I still can't divorce him. Last night I actually felt like cuddling with him - YACK. What have I turned into? Darcy, my band has been extremely "present" since Sunday when I did the upside-downy. My feeling is in the center of my rib cage... I can almost feel my band in my throat. Then again, it's been hotter than fire and really humid for Vegas, plus this is the part of my monthly cycle where I'm supposed to be retaining Water. I hope this new constant sensation is just restriction, and that I didn't slip my band. But your pain... how can the doc take so long getting back to you? Is Chua related to Lopez? They just burn me for letting us suffer!

Since I was a kid, everyone said I'd be the best mom and have the most kids. I had a regular daily babysitting gig when I was 16 and watched 7 kids ranging from 4-7 (one sister had 3 kids the other had 4 so I was their afterschool sitter.) Even at 16, the parents would marvel at how their kids behaved better for me than them. The day I met Chris I told him to run like hell. I pointed to the door and said, "run because I want a home, my own washer & dryer, a dog, a boat, and babies." I told him that every day for six months but he refused to leave. I got everything but the babies & boat - but I got a new Harley that we can ride to Laughlin where one of my oldest friends has a boat. We started going for medical testing 5 years ago, and Chris has really strong swimmers. They did some extensive testing and found nothing wrong with me. I was put on hormones and we did the calendar thing and the fertility sticks, but we never got pregnant. However, I can't cry or be sad or freak out because my Guardian Angels know better than me. My mother and her sister, Linda, are severly mentally ill. Linda's 2nd child is mentally disabled and will need a guardian for life. Liana's uncle & my father's sister also mentally ill. What's so weird is I have 2 older siblings, and I always counted on nieces & nephews. The "Mother" really did a number on us, because I'm the only one that ever got married, and none of us ever had children. I gotta believe there's a reason, cause I should had 9 babies... so I have furbabies. And ONE of these days, someone I know and love will have babies and I'll be their Nana. I have Mekha & Adrien (13 & 14 neighbors) who are my best friends, and one day Mekha will give me some babies. I'll get my babies, don't you worry!