Foofy

Ooh la la! I certainly would be happy with that shape. Funny thing, when he got me the surprise license plate, he said that if "Foofy" was taken, he would have gotten me "S.Bunny" - for Snuggle Bunny. You may recall that Bugs Bunny's mailbox says "B. Bunny". It's hard enough having "Foofy" on my plate. I got a speeding ticket, and the judge laughed so hard that I thought he was going to pee. He did cut my ticket in half though....

Well thanks Linda. That's nice to hear. There are certainly lots of ways to help the environment, especially if you want to volunteer. There are also lots of great environmental careers in many interesting specialties. My road involved a lot of school and now 26 years of experience. I hope I am helping; but, like so many issues in life, nothing is as simple as it first appears. My work involves a whole lot of weighing what works for the greater good and how to comply with environmental laws. Trust me - I'm not doing anything exciting or glamorous. ;o)

Just wanted to say that I find the body fat scale to be very useful. Often if I have a temporary gain, I can see that my body fat percentage goes down at the same time, which means I am retaining Water. I know it's temporary and it is reassuring. also, I am a BIG fan of weight lifting. I know I am the turtle here, so obviously what I say will NOT help you lose weight quickly, but I think that lifting HARD really builds muscle and makes the weight loss so much more likely to be permenant. Plus, it is GREAT for your posture, self esteem, and bones and it's not nearly as boring as aerobics.

LOL. Oh Scarecrow, that is a picture that my husband drew of me. He is the same one who gave me the nickname "foofy" (which he also put on my license plate). For my birthdays, anniversaries, and Valentine's Days, he writes me ridiculously goofy poems and illustrates them with the crazy bunny. Sometimes the bunny (me) is doing something productive - like painting, hiking, or working out. Other times the bunny is having a "bad day". The bunny has even been known to carry a lit stick of dynomite in its paw. It's fun reading the poems years later, because I am reminded of whatever was going on in our lives at the time. I have had this shape for so long, it will be hard for dear hubby to learn to draw a skinny bunny. Thanks for asking.

Name.....Lbs Lost...% of orig. wgt lost.....BMI Abbisgood.........53.............23%.............?? Aubrie............65.............%..............31 BandChick64.......104............34.67%..........31.6 Bandpal...........115.4..........40.3%...........28.0 BarbBee...........109.............36%.............33.1 Cherlita..........60.............20%.............55 Cindyg............62.............24.5%...........34.5 Close.............50.............20%.............33.1 Firebolt..........45.............19%.............33.5 Foofy.............50.5...........18.5%...........35.5 gabeekeeper.......101............30% ............40.2 Hajohnson1........49.8...........18.2%...........39.8 Hollyberries......113............31%.............36.2 HoppingTo It.....69.............19.7%...........49.1 Huskerette........54.............22%.............30.5 kandiceb..........63.............26%.............27.6 linda.............52.............23%.............29.9 lindseyann2u......82.............N/A.............N/A Maincat...........141............46.5%...........22 Mariegabrieleee...73.............24%.............39.1 MollyBrown........36.............12.5%...........36.5 Momto1plus1.......84.2...........31.2%...........29 NYGirl1...........102............33%.............32.6 plump_princess....57.............22%.............36 QatarPhil.........55.............19%.............32.2 Rachel............63.............%..............28.3 Robin_Bird........116............38%.............28.7 Sades.............44.8...........19.5%...........33.7 scarecrow.........125............40%.............27.3 Shalee04..........70.............28%.............29.2 Shortgal..........44.5...........20.5%...........32.9 Skinny_Jill.......71.............32.4%...........28.5 Staysee...........70.............20%.............48.4 Stephanie.........64.............27%.............26.5 strangeratx.......58.............25.2%...........30.5 Teresajo..........93.............36%.............27.3 Tmusicmaker123....73.............19%.............48.7 TxArcher..........103............25.75%..........39.2 tyman311..........61.............31%.............28 want2lose.........91.8...........32%.............31 TOTAL..............2,992.42 (Lets Keep this TOTAL on the list) Yay! I got another fill last week and seem to have leapt off my 3-month plateau. I hit the 50 pound mark!!! I'm almost halfway done. The turtle inches forward!!!:thumbup:

Yay! You are doing great Scarecrow. The fact that you can lift more even though your weight loss has stalled is a sign that you are building mescle and sculpting your body. You should be very proud. Keep up the good work.

Focus on the future! You'll overcome these obstacles and probably won't even remember them a few years from now. Make sure you give your body all the good nutrition and rest it needs. It's been through a LOT. Tell that body how PROUD you are for all it has done and how you are going to give it the BEST of treatment in the years to come. Hang in there.

Linda, I understand your concern with having a foreign body placed inside you, but I don't think there is much to worry about. As others have pointed out, the lapband is silicone and is unlikely to be causing any ill effects. Also, remember that is it in a pretty neutral place OUTSIDE your stomach in you abdominal cavity. Like BandPal said, I'd worry more about the effects from the fat than the silicone. (Bandpal - BTW - your new picture is fabulous). I'm an environmental consultant, and I spend my days assessing risk and figuring out how to clean up waste sites. The older I get, the more I understand that no matter how much you think you are doing to successfully avoid one risk, you are likely being exposed to dozens that you know nothing about. BPA is ubiqitous in our environment these days; and, like thousands of other chemicals, we have yet to understand its risks to humans or the ecosystem. In my humble opinion, worry will cause you more long-term harm than most chemical exposure risks. It makes sense to avoid exposures to bad things when you can, but the best things you can probably do for yourself are: don't smoke, lose weight, wear your seatbelts, relax, be kind to others, and try to live a happy life. None of us gets out of this alive, and we might as well have fun and make other people happy in the time we have.

Whew. Thanks for the update. It's good to hear that everything is moving forward. I guess its a reminder to us all that it IS major surgery. You seem to be in good hands. Hand in there girl. We are rooting for you.

Shalee girl, You are making me nervous. Please check in. We can't do much to help, but we'll do our best to keep your sprits up.

I am shedding like crazy and am a year out now. I don't have much left to lose. I just started using Rogaine to try and keep some cover on my scalp. If it doesn't stop, I'm going to need a wig soon.

Cindy - lucky girl. That's some yummy stuff. You would not believe how good that chopped liver was. When I lived in Philly, they had YooHoo chocolate soda, which I never tried because it sounded kind of nuts. Now that I have had the egg cream, I can see where that came from. I may have to get a seltzer bottle. They sell them in the specialty cooking catalogs (like Williams and Sonoma). Fresh seltzer was great. You'll love Sammy's. However, bring friends or family because I get the feeling that it is best with a group. You can all get silly together - especially after the musician comes on at 7. Bandpal, Katz's is definately alive and well. It was packed when I was there around noon. It's even on the NYC map that they give to tourists (with a notation that it is the deli in the When Harry Met Sally movie). I understand that the neighborhood is getting more gentrified. Apparently there used to be a lot of cool shops that are no longer there. But Katz's, Russ and Daughters, and the kosher bakery are going strong. Thanks for your dinner suggestions!

Oh! Well that clears that up. It sure didn't look like you needed a 360. I bet I'll have to get that same type of incision when I finally get there. My flaps extend clear out to my sides. Again - you look marvelous.

Whoohoo. I'm back from NYC and had a great time. It was a total immersion into eastern Europeon jewish food. Lots of fun!!! Now, I have to drink Slim Fast for at least two weeks to make up for it, but it was worth it. The band saved me from total gluttony. Sammy's Roumanian Steakhouse was a hoot. We had eight people so we ordered a whirlwind of tradiational jewish appetizers - chopped liver with sauteed onions is FABULOUS!!! I was served a "small" Roumanian (yes, that's how they spell it) tenderloin (flanksteak) that flopped off both sides of the plate. It was tender, juicy, and full of garlic. Needless to say, my boss got to take about 90% of mine home with him. I tasted latke, kasha varniskes, chopped liver, kreplack, pickled tomatoes, schmaltz (chicken fat), rye bread, some sort of garlic sausage, ruggelach, and an egg cream. Then, I got all the senior staff to dance the hora in the aisle. The description on the internet of it being like a party in your grandparents basement in the 1970s was pretty acurate. It was a great time. I also went on a pilgrimage to Katz's Deli (brought back pastrami and corned beef for DH), Russ and Daughters (brought back lox, smoked whitefish, herring, and havlah (sp)) and a Kosher bakery (tasted a knish). I was quite an experience for a girl from Montana. I behaved myself pretty well (although I did have to hork up a piece of pastrami in Katz's). That's my review of NYC.

Renewed - you look great! Did you really need the butt lift? The before pics make your butt look pretty small. Was it just because of dimpling from loose skin that you wanted the backside lifted?

Wow Shalee. I am sorry you are having such problems. At least it seems like you have a great support system and a positive attitude. Sending you warm wishes.

So, with Thanksgiving fast approaching, I am thinking about what I am grateful for. One thing about the band really sticks out for me. Although I am not losing at all right now - I am not gaining. A comparison between me and one of my coworker really points out how important this is. Amanda started dieting and exercising about 3 months before I got the band. At my 6 month bandiversary, she had lost 80 pounds and I had lost 40. I found this to be discouraging. Why could SHE lose weight while I needed surgery to do so. What was wrong with me? I got over it and cheered her on. Now, after another 7 months, I have lost 8 more pounds and Amanda has gained back about 45 of what she lost. She is feeling depressed and out of control and is worried about putting all the weight back on. I feel so badly for her, as I remember what that was like - losing and gaining. With my band, I am calm and confident that I am not going to gain my weight back, and I am sure I will lose more. I am very thankful for the sense of well-being this little device has given me.:thumbup:

I am DEFINATELY getting a tummy tuck and boob lift. I stand naked in the bathroom every morning and pull my belly flap up with one hand and my boobs with the other to see how I will look. Right now, I feel like a Shar Pei. Also, boobs look like socks glued to my chest. I would like to have them lifted and made into perky C cups, rather than droopy Ds. The thought of walking around without a bra is remarkable to me. I am apple-shaped, so I am hoping that butt and thighs will not be needing work. Arms are another issue, but I have to keep telling myself that I am almost 50 and that it is unreasonable to want to look like a 25 year old. Also, who want to put up with the risk and pain from all those surgeries.

Hey congrats McGreen! It sounds like you are doing great. I can totally relate to the part about hating to be helpless because you are a control freak. Also - the part about not letting your Dad see you naked made me laugh. You don't need to burden him with THAT mental image for the rest of his life. ;o) I am sure each day will get better and we will all be amazed by the pictures after 30 days!

Congrats Becky!!! You HAD to be approved. If a woman who has lost 300 pounds can't get approved, the system is crazy. How exciting for you!

Just checking in to see how surgery went. I am sure you are doing great. It's probably hard to get computer access staying at the folks house. Best wishes for a speedy recovery!!!!

What an exciting day for you. Sounds like you are doing GREAT! Take it easy.

Thanks for the update. I hope you have some good movies or something to watch while you are recuperating. Obviously, hubby has found a new pasttime. ;o)

NYC skinny, Congratulations on your success. You should post your pics.

Cindy - I will give you a full review. It's a whirlwind trip for me. About all I get to do is sit in meetings. I was going to stay a few days extra, but the standard Manhattan hotel rate (even at the Federal government discount) was way too high for my budget ($368!!! a night). I didn't pay that much to stay in Venice, Italy! The Federal rate for a hotel room in Montana is $70. Quite a difference.