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Great NSV, thats a big deal for you I can see. Congratulations!

Thats a great list! Thanks so much I'm going to print it off actually and put it up on the fridge. I actually gained back 1 kilo that i lost and that is not the direction i want to be going! Thanks for the help.

I haven't gained the weight back yet, but i too am making poor food choices and i don't know where to go from here....

Ok guys i need some help here. I'm on mushies/liquids now and for the life of me i can't seem to find yummy things to eat. I can get everything down that i try to eat (even a donut :nervous ) and i can't seem to get a good mushies diet. I'm having refried beans with a bit of cheese, and a potato tuna mash that i made, and baked or mashed potatoe....other then that i'm short of ideas. a little help please....

I haven't tried exercising yet, but i am on the 3rd floor of a building with no elevator on saturdays...for work...does that count for exercise??

Hey Vines, it sounds like you have had a really rough time lately, but don't let it get you down, there is always a sliver lining! Hopefully you can get some answers from your tests. We're thinking about you.

hey Audra, I know how teaching can be and I know how all the interoffice politics can be as well.. its frustrating and difficult some times, but schools always need teachers, if you have to u can switch schools. As for that nurse, every one else thinks they know best for every one else...my grandmother's favorite quote....consider the source and ignore it! As for the rest, my period started the day before my operation and continued the entire 1st week of recuperation.....THAT was difficult!

aww I lofe the floppy ears.... all the doggies and kitties are sooooo cute!

Hey there, If you aren't happy with the doc there in TJ why not find another doctor in your own area here in the US that will do it? Why go back to TJ if your not going to see the same doctor? I think there is a group that you can call and they will give the numbers and names of american doctors in your area who might take you on. I don't remember the name or the number but maybe some one will post it here.

I wasn't sure about the ground beef either, but it was on my list of mushies from the doc, so he gave it the ok...i guess its on an individual bases.

I felt and still feel some of that guilt as well. I was self pay and my husband wasn't to thrilled to be spending the money either. But then I was mad. I was mad at science. Science invented all of these yummy foods that most of us like to eat, all the prepackaged stuff with preservatives and all the doritos and fritos etc. And society says its ok to eat that stuff (any one watch Gilmore Girls, its a series, great series, but they 2 women are always eating junk and they look perfectly slim and beautiful) And now science has to help us lose the weight as well by implanting a device in our bodies. It made me feel like crap. Why me. But the truth is, no matter how mad or how guilty I feel, nothing is going to change unless I do something about it. I did the diets, we all did, and they didn't work. This is one of our last hopes, so here we are. I'm not going to feel guilty for trying to be a healthier me. Also this may go back to some stuff that I have read on here about how most of us are usually enablers and we put every one else first before ourselves and we feel guilty when we put ourselves first.

1 medium potato 1 pinch sea salt Pre heat over to 400º. Peal potato, and pierce with a fork a few times around the potato. Tear a small sheet of aluminum foil and place potato in the middle, sprinkle with salt and wrap with the foil. Place in the over and bake about 45 min. *this makes a very soft baked potato and can be mashed up with a little butter and sour cream or any thing else you would like to eat with it.

4 medium beef steaks (or 1 per person eating) thin cuts 2 to 3 pinces of sea salt (or meat tenderizer) 1 teaspoon pepper 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce. Put steaks in a Pyrex dish and pierce several times with a fork. Add salt and pepper and douse with sauce. Bake in the oven at 400º for 30 min. It usually leaves a nice aujuice sauce so the meat is tender and not dry. Don't over bake! Sauce can be spooned over rice or Pasta or potatoes. (you could also vary this by using ginger and soy sauce instead of worcestershire sauce for an Asian flair)

I just got a new car here in Portugal in June its a 2005 Opel Corsa (opel is a division of GM) It's not a big car because here in Portugal as u know the streets are small and space is limited, but it gets me where I need to go and its a pretty color. I hated the idea of a hatchback, but here in portugal thats what most people drive because gas is so expensive and space is so limited. I got use to the idea after I started driving and had to find parking spaces! I got to pick it out bran new with all the options and they had it made especially for me. I got an MP3 player and all the goodies inside. Only draw back is its stick. Here in portugal no one drives any thing but a stick. Automatics are for people with disabilities. However on the plus side that makes me a chick that can drive stick! We are hoping to get hubby a new car next year.

awwwww....but he's so cute...how can you hate any animal!! The rest are adorable as well. I love the Saint idea. My hubby and I argued for days over what to name the cats. It would have been easier to have a simple system like that.

and for the rest..... Mittens and Amy were my cat in college and lived with me but when I moved to Portugal my mom inherited them. Mittens was the runt of the litter and now he's the fattest cat I have ever seen. Amy is VERY lovable she runs up to complete strangers that come in the house to get petted and loved..very unusual, most cats shy away. Tiger is the grey cat, a little scardy cat, he hides all the time and sleeps only in my mothers room. And this is her new dog, I'm not sure what they named it....Natasha I think.... nigella 3.bmp

Wow, I love to see all these furry friends. I wouldn't mind a dog either, but we live in an apartment so it's difficult. Maybe one day when we move to a house. P'nut-I'm sorry about ur doggie and your kitty. I know it's hard when a pet dies, I fortunately haven't had to witness that to many times. The first cat I ever dragged home...a Siamese named Ms.Sue - She still lives with my grandparents. She is around 19 years old and she is still healthy and active. Here are my grandparents cats. Bigboy unfortunately isn't with them any more, but he was a wild cat and just made his home at their house for a few years. One day he disappeared so we don't know if something happened or he just found another home. Ms. Sue and Big Boy little boy and Missy nigella2.bmpnigella.bmp Hehehe, I guess there are lots of alternatives for Kat. That kind of changed when I moved to Portugal though, I have to find a name that can be used in Portuguese and English. And I actually found a name like that from one of the members here on the board....not to embarrassed any one but Jenna is a great name and sounds almost exactly the same in English and Portuguese.....

post 'em all!! Whatever you consider a pet....(I guess that means I ought to post a pic of my hubby as well then huh.) :eekB:

hehehe, nah I'm a Heather, however I wanted to name my daughter (if i ever have one) Kathrine just so I could shorten it and call her Kat! Sucks though, some one else in the family used that name...twice...so I have to find something else!

Ok guys, if you don't know it yet, you will know it now...I'm absolutely CRAZY about cats! I have 2, an orange and white fireball named Mia who is almost 2 years old, and a tiger striped stinker (not as in she stinks but as in shes spoiled rotten!) named Annie. Annie is about 6 months old. I just thought I would post a few photos. Any other members who have pets, please post them here! I love to see animals.

I'm 250lb and 5'5 and I flew lots of places on lots of airlines and I never needed an extender.

Thanks every one! We have 22 signed up so far, and we have 5 substitute sams as well, thats great!! Just a note: Carlene, I still haven't got a PM from you with your address and information.

Hey Susan, Glad to know everything went ok, and glad that your feeling ok. I was really sleepy when I got home too, I slept almost the entire next day. I still feel like I want to nap in the afternoon but I'm trying not to because is I do I don't sleep at night. Keep us posted! Heather

lol thanks Karen, I actually mixed some in with my milk today right in front of him. He didn't notice until I had drank it all...he sai...sooo u mixed in some hot chocolate ehh....and that was it. He's leaving to go to work later and I think I might have some chicken broth. The same puree vegetable soup is just getting old. Good new is I'm not hungry. But when I am hungry I would like to drink something with a bit more taste. Any way, I'm only on day 3, here's hoping to hubby keeping me straight until day 7.

Hi Dani, I to am on day 3 of the post op liquid diet. I am struggling, not because I'm hungry, but because I want to have different foods. My nutritionist gave a me a strict diet and I am only allowed to drink 3 things. Milk, natural fruit juice with no pulp, and a vegetable Soup...the same soup.... I understand ur having a hard time, and a slip here and there on the liquid phase isn't going to kill any one, however we should do our best to try and stick to what our doctors tell us. As much trouble as I'm having right now I am just hoping and praying I can make it 1 full week with out cheating. Good luck to you and I hope you don't feel to shaken.