Mariposa Bella

Welcome and Congratulations on getting banded. Glad you found us.

I like to make Tilapia into ceviche.

You dice the fish into small cubes and soak it in lime juice and a little vinegar overnight. The lime juice and vinegar will cook the fish. The next day, chop tomatoes, a jalapeno pepper, a little onion, cilantro and add to the fish (leave in juice). Salt and pepper to taste.. delicious..

I like to eat over tostadas or with saltines..

I also had a great experience in Mexico. The private hospitals are top notch. I had a personal nurse and the best of care. My doctor would come see me 2-3 times per day and would stay and answer any questions or concerns I had. All in all, I made a great choice.

Prices may be lower now in the U.S. but back in 2004 they were still really high. And besides I only weighed 190 lbs, I would have not been able to get the surgery here.

I'm a christian, I believe God answers prayers. I will pray for you. I tend to overspend too. I have a child in college and one who may start next January. It's hard to spend less than you would like to spend. Anyway enough lecture. God bless.

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

Thank you Lucy. I believe God never gives us more than we can handle. I have faith that things will somehow work themselves out. And on some level am sort of grateful that this has happened. Like I said I have learned my lesson.

I am also very thankful to God that we have our health and each other. I count my blessings everyday.

An acquaintance of mine is extremely wealthy, her money comes from way down the line. Her 3 yr. old boy is dying with a cancerous tumor the size of a baseball in his brain. All that money and there is nothing she can do. I pray for her and give God thanks that my children are healthy. These sort of things put the important things into perspective.

It's hard not to spend money when you have it to spend. I work hard for my money, and part of the point of having it is to spend, aka enjoy (IMO). We are DINKs and we both bring home salaries that are well above average, so we have a large amount of discretionary income. Either of our salaries will cover our current monthly expenses.

Well, that used to be me. I'd say, why save it, I might die tomorrow and his new wife will spend it for me.. I mean every weekend I was blowing away about $1500-$2000. No limits for me. And it wasn't like I was living above my means, we were rolling in the dough.. Paid cash for everything, no debt. When we married we bought our home and paid it off in a year. Things were mighty good. Had plenty in savings, had plenty to spend. But now things are so different.

We are hardworking people and I know we will somehow manage to come out of this okay, but it is still very scary. IMO, stay put, spend, but make sure you also save a little. Things are tough now, who knows what tomorrow might bring.

All I understood was yada, yada, yada... paper...yada, yada, yada...school...he, he....

Have you considered renting your first home?

We are contemplating renting this house. We can probably get $1000 per month. Only draw back, most good renters would prefer not to rent something mo. to mo. with the posibility of having to move out if and when it sells.

I have a cousin that drills oil wells in Texas and his employees make good money. I'm trying to convince hubby to just leave the const. business for now and go work over there. But he's not convinced yet.

Well, I don't know about everyone else and what part of the country you are in, but here in Florida we are having hard times.

My husband owns a construction business, and we are struggling to stay alive. It has been almost a year now and things don't seem to be getting any better. He had about 55-60 employees and now has none. He has gone from boss to actual working man again. We are working but because we are in a family owned business whom he shares with 4 brothers the little profits we are making are barely enough for the business mtg. and other expenses. I work and I make good money but not enough to not live paycheck to paycheck. I have not been in this situation in a long time but maybe this will serve as a lesson to us. I worked to blow all my money on unneccessary things for myself and my children. Always wanting and buying the best of everything and not depriving myself or them of anything.

We had substantial savings (or so I thought) but not nearly enough to make it this long. (I can't even imagine what how it would be if we had car pmts. or credit debt. All we have is our mtg. and ins., taxes and utilities, that sort of stuff.) To top it off, we moved into our 5500 sq ft dream home this year, complete with pool and all the luxury and upgrades you can imagine. How foolish have we been?? Very, I'm sad to say. I now sit in my big house and wish I could turn back time. I lived in a 4/2 nice remodeled home that was fully paid and that wasn't enough. I wanted more. During construction we spared no expense, pool w/ hot tub, granite, marble floors and even a $10,000 soaking tub, the best of everything. Now I live in regrets.

My husband is a hard worker and has worked hard for everything we have. Never has anyone helped us, we have done it all on our own. I am so afraid as we are in risk of losing it all. My other home is on the market but like everything else is not selling. It appraised at $210,000 so that was the starting selling price. We are now down to $159,000 and it is not moving. Someone suggested we put our new home on the market, but my realtor said there is not a market for a home at that price right now. And our other real estate investments are also on the market but sit in the same boat. I'm lowering it this week again. I'm freaking out and don't know what to do.

I am however a new woman, never will I be in this position again. Spending left and right to no end. How foolish of me, lesson learned.

This along with everything else is consuming me today so I thought I would share with you. Please keep me and my family in your prayers. I pray that God gives us the strength to get through these hard times.

Your advice is great Green but I don't think her father's death affected her in that way. He had been on his death bed for a while asking to see her and she said she wasn't waisting her time going all the way up there then turn around and go back for his funeral. Can you believe that? I would have run to his side immediately no matter what. She used the too much work excuse with other people to justify herself. I'm going to give myself some time to cool off and then if things don't get better going to work on your angle. I'm mad about it right now and know that I'm bound to lose my cool. I spoke with the Chairman today and he said to let it go, so I'm following his advice for now. But it does stress me out that she is being this way.

Okay, I need to vent and to get your opinion.

As some of you know I took a two week vacation after Christmas. We were undecided on taking the time off until the last minute. So the week of Christmas, my boss' 92 yr old dad passed away. She had to travel to Ohio for the funeral. When she left, I told her I still didn't know if I was going on vacation but I would leave her a message if I went ahead. Well, we went. I called her cell and couldn't get a hold of her, so I left a message telling her we were going and that I would be gone for my two week vacation. I also left word with the two other girls that share office space with us. Well, I went off, had a great time, enjoyed myself, blah, blah. On my way back, several friends (that work in the same building) told me my boss was pissed that I had gone and that I had never let her know I was going, that she had no clue when I was thinking of coming back.. WTF?? She Knew ahead of time, I left 2 messages and two weeks, means two weeks.. Well, after I returned, several board members approached me and made comments to me. Like - - oh, there's the MIA, or so you decided to come back from the missing?? And others told me about my boss being pissed because she didn't know where I was or when I was coming back... I should tell you that the board really likes me and I think my boss gets jelouse, example I've gotten extra bonuses out of the blue, larger raises than her, and my work doesn't go unnoticed. I plan events, do fundriasers and always get praised for doing a fantastic job. And she always complains that no one appreciates her, blah.. blah... Some told me just to ignore my boss' comments and to remember what she just went through and other's just laughed when I explained myself.

Well, I approached my boss and told her I've been told you were upset about me going and not knowing when I would come back, she said Oh, It wasn't you it was my whole situation and I've been sick. So I said okay. Well, yesterday she left a message on the machine for me: The play you were going to attend on Friday is sold out, (she's acting in a play she wants me to come watch) would you rather go Thursday, if so, call and change the reservation. So I did. Well, she was at a meeting and my bf overheard her tell some people that I never returned her call and that who knows if I had even listened to messages or bothered showing up for work. WTF?? I knew she would be in a class/meeting all day so why call, right?

I'm very upset. She is still pissed at me?? Why?? What is she trying to do, make me look bad?? Should I confront her with this?? Or just blow it off. Yesterday I called the Chairman who I'm friends with and I complained to him, well, he said that other board members had approached him regarding my boss' comments regarding me being gone. Should I say something to her along the lines of, I have been approached by several board members that are concerned that I didn't give you notice regarding my vacation, should I apologize to the board at the next meeting?? I want to see what kind of response she gives me. Or should I just let it go and not make it a big deal.

She is such a drama queen and it is getting to me. She says she is swamped with work, not enough hours in the day for her to get it all done. She came in and worked on MLK day, when we had the day off. And I work here, I know it is slow. There is nothing going on. She sits on her computer and plays solitaire all day long and I sit on my computer and log on to this site. But at least I don't bullcrap and say I'm busy and swamped.

Well just needed to get this off my chest. Thanks. Sorry this is so long.

Confidence is the key my friend.

Great. Good luck.. Don't forget go in there thinking you will get the job and you will get it.

I don't get why this makes you all so upset. Who cares if other's don't give us validation for acheiving weightloss with the band or with bypass surgery. These people are in the same boat as us. They were or are also overweight but have been able to get to their goals without going these routes.. Good for them. They are an inspiration, we are an inspiration. What does it matter? Be thankful that we have the band available to help those who need it like myself. Is the band easy, hell no. You can get the band and bypass and still be a failure and not lose the weight. This is not a miracle cure. We have to do our job and work with this. Those of us that are able to lose the weight being whatever the route we take should be admired. It is a difficult road, no matter which road you take. JMO, hope I don't get anyone upset.

Michelle, your date is fast approaching, don't doubt yourself. You have probably been struggling like me for a long time and you wouldn't be doing this if you didn't want it. We are not all alike, some of us, like me, can't do it on our own. Be thankful that this band is here to help you along. It won't be easy, but it will be worth it. I have been banded since Nov. 2004 and don't regret doing it.. but believe me, there is nothing easy about losing weight with the band. This is not the easy way out..

I'm a fan, but for some reason, I'm not into it this time around.. go figure.

Can't do any type of tortillas, except like crispy.. and boy do I love and make some delicious flour tortillas.

How great it is that you have found your way in this difficult journey. You will always be welcome here, we are a family. Yes, sometimes we all act crazy and fight, but what family doesn't? Congratulations on your success and wishing you more success in the future.

This reminds me of when I was a stupid teen, I was scared to take a mid-term (had been out sick) and decided to cheat. I stayed up all night copying my study guide onto the tiniest cheat sheet.. over and over..The next day when the test was in front of me, I didn't need my cheat sheet. I had learned the subject.. Why am I telling you my little story, well cause you didn't need your cheat sheet! Good for you.

Why does it make you angry that these women are called "Superwoman". I say give them credit for achieving their weightloss goals. Good for them for taking control of their lives, just as we are doing. Do they deserve more credit than us, definitely not. The road taken to lose the weight, doesn't matter, but what lies at the end of this difficult journey does. Am I making sense? JMHO

Sorry I had not responded, I hadn't returned to read this thread.

********** SILHOUETTE CIRUGIA ESTETICA **********

Here is the link to his website.

What a great idea..

This is what I need:

Respectfully requesting size 8 and 6, high end, name brand, stylish clothing. Please send all your Dolce & Gabbana, Armani, Marc Jacobs, Vera Wang, Ralph Lauren Blue Label straight to me.. I will pay for shipping.. You can also send size 7, Jimmy Choos and Manolo Blahnik's.

Thank you, so very much.

Wouldn't that be a dream come true. If only.

All Joking aside - - you all have a great idea. I was a size 14 when I started and luckily my sister and friend were able to use it all. Then the smaller sizes went to my mom and sister (who lost weight too).

I hate to have yard sales or donate my nice clothes when I know people that I know can benefit from them. And I tried having a yard sale once and people think $3 is too much to pay for a pair of $90 jeans with the tags on, WTF..darn lady offered me $1. Come on, get real. So I would much rather give them away to someone that could use them than sell them for nothing. Even do this with my kids clothes. My girl's have always had someone to hand down to, and this is how we do it. I hand it down to my friend's daughter, she in turn, gives me her little girl's clothing for my sister's baby, after she is done with the clothing I gave her, she also returns that, and it also goes on to my niece. And now my sister is saving it for my other SIL that is getting ready to have a baby girl. I mean we are getting our monies worth out of RL clothing (not cheap) but very Well made, classic clothing. Always in style. Now, my son, he hands down to one of my husband's employees and it gives me great pleasure to see the little boy all dressed up in my son's cute little clothes.

So don't forget send me all your Jimmy Choo's..I'm waiting by the mailbox.

Who the hell called you that? let me at them... Let me put my boot on and kick their ass.

This thread brought a beautiful memory back. When I was seven months pregnant with my baby girl, I was feeling ugly and fat and decided to have a romantic night with hubby. I told him I was going out to dinner with a friend so I was already dressed nice and made up. When he got in the shower after getting home from work. I executed my plan. I had been to the flower shop and asked them to save their toss away rose petals (free to me), I put a white sheet over my bed (as to not stain my comforter from the flowers), sprinkled the rose petals all over the bed in a heart shape, lit candles, and had a non-alchololic wine in a iced wine decanter, champagne glasses set out, music going.... and then the topper, being seven months pregnant, I had a sexy bra and undies complete with garter belt and black sexy hose.. sat myself as sexy as you can being that pregnant and when he walked out of the shower, there I was a vision of sexiness... it was great, he loved the idea and it didn't cost me any money.

I can't watch either, not because I don't like to but because I can't. This damn job! When I do get to be home and watch the show, it is such a treat for me.

I love your post. Thanks, eh. To tell you the truth, I don't actually watch Oprah. I don't like daytime TV and I hate talk shows but I do read about her and everything that I have read about her - and bear in mind that we all know just how bitchy media journalism can be! - has portrayed her as being a very caring, generous, and moral individual. She also happens to be a wonderful actress, a savvy media person, and a fine business woman. She is a very, very impressive individual. I don't see any of the other women who have managed to obtain anything near her standing - Ellen deGeneris, Martha Stewart, Rosie O'Donell, etc - putting as much back into the community; and she has, as we well know, chosen to make it her special point to address those issues which concern all women and those issues which concern black people.

OMG who called you the C word - that's the worst word in the world..

Excuse my ignorance, but what is the C word??

For many years Oprah has dedicated herself to helping people here as well. Just recently she donated millions of her own money and joined efforts with Habitat for Humanity to construct many new homes for families affected by Wilma. Do some research and you will find cause after cause that she has contributed to and helped with. Not many people in her position do these things.

The school in Africa was always one of her dreams, women over there are denied the opportunities we are blessed here with. Oprah wants to empower them to become educated. If you educate a woman who is the head of the family, she will educate her children and the cycle will eventually start changing. I truly admire Oprah for all her efforts here and there.

As far as the giveaway shows, maybe we are just a little jelouse that we aren't a guest on the show on one of those days. I know I always wish it was me.

And you know IMO, there is lots and lots of poverty here in our own country. But there are opportunities here that don't exist in other countries. I am of the thought that if you want to succeed you will. How many people have come from nothing, and become successful?? Many, including Oprah herself. If you work hard enough, it can be accomplished. If you sit on your ass and feel sorry for yourself, then you won't accomplish much.

I'll never forget an article I read regarding Oprah, (way before she built the school) where she took doll babies to girls in Africa. She had these black baby dolls (double dipped in the paint) to be made darker to look like these little girls. Oprah said that when these girls received these dolls that looked just like them, she said the smiles on those little girls faces is something that she will never forget. How admirable, don't you think.

I think Oprah is genuine and I admire her for all the beautiful things she does.

Well, I guess you are recovering from your surgery, hope all went well.

I am also around your height and have full large D's, I'm hoping for a lift and reduction to a full C.. I think the larger boobs make me look heavier and I almost always have to go up a size in shirts to accomodate for the large boobs. And then when I fit the boobs, the waist area is always large, so it is always a problem.

Wishing you a speedy recovery, keep us informed.