Being the audacious and forward kind of gal that I am, I (a Californian, Oregonian, Texan [Calgoniexan?]) am starting this month's chat thread in the Jersey forum. Ballsy? Maybe so. Get over it. :]

Good Morning Happy Bandsters!! How the heck is everybody? I hope there weren't any tragic chocolate overdoses last night.

Betty - Gracious!! Candy for 300 wasn't enough? That's one heck of a party!

Eileenie - how is the MIL? It's really hard for me right now - because it seems like only yesterday my Parents were - well, my Parents.... authority figures, larger than life. Now, in the last few years I have started to notice that they are old people. It's a hard mental transition, I tell you. Suddenly, the people who could always be counted on in times of need have needs of their own. I guess it's only fair - but it sucks, all the same.

Anyway, I hope that your doc can help you out with the coughing. What, did it never go away?? Or is this a new cold? Oh, and if you WERE feeling restriction with Water, I would be scared for you! You aren't supposed to have any restriction with water... :]

Lisa - you are a better woman than I if you can RELAX in the middle of a 500 acre girl scout camp surrounded by 13 little girls... Yikes!! That just doesn't sound like as much fun as it probably was - at least, not to me.

Ira - Was Zach all pumped up about the Fire Dept demo? Did he have a good time at the parade? What's up with you? How were the Halloween festivities?

JaLynn - Howdy!! Hope you are feeling better. There is not much worse than being sick in a house full of sick people that need you. ((hugs))

Pat - Fun with furniture... Is it comfy? I loved buying new furniture when we moved into our new house in Texas. It was the coolest thing ever. We avoided the Leather, though. It get's so hot here for so much of the year that we decided nice cloth upholstery was the way for us. I hope you enjoy it! Hope your mouth is all healed up and you are feeling energetic.

Cindy - Those little girls grow up sooooo fast. My Granddaughter just turned 11 and it seems like only a minute ago she was a todler.

Well - I have to get back to that thing we lovingly call "work". A little slow today, now that the month-end blitz is over, so I will have time to call and harass the insurance company. Yes, they have 30 days from October 12th to respond to my appeal. I have scheduled my first appt. with the doc for the 8th - ahead of the curve. I just need to get it all together so that I can have my surgery before T-Day. That is my goal... Of course, if the *&^(& don't approve me, I will be back to square one - but I am thinking good thoughts.

Everybody have a great day!!

You guys sure are early risers! I can not drag myself out of bed before 10am on the weekends... The weather has been great and I've been getting my walking in as much as possible. Even did some early holiday shopping. The NY marathon was today and the runners pass by 1 block from me so I went and cheered them on for awhile. Who knows... maybe one day that will be us !

Beanie - bucking the system is a good thing - way to challenge authority!

Eileen - Congratulations on the 13 lbs! That is great! When do you get to go on mushies / soft foods?

Now I have to motivate myself to get out and go grocery shopping.. not as much fun as it used to be!

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Hey Y'all!

How goes the battle??

I had a great time meeting Betty & Mary & Dianna yesterday. I would love to get together with them again in the future.

I know that Betty & Mary took some pictures. I hope they will post some of them for everyone to see.

Not much going on this weekend other than that. DH and I had a hot date to go to Half Price books - and I got a few.

Today I am going to finish putting together the bookshelves I got from Ikea. That's all the excitement for me, today.

I hope you guys are doing great!

:]

Rene, funny thing about Ikea. Every time I put something together that I bring home from there, I consistantly say "never again". But then I wind up back there for some reason.

Celestial Seasonings was nice enough to put a sample of their new Chai Tea in today's newspaper. I am enjoying a cup as a type. I must say, it is very good. The calm is coming over me.

The calm is coming over me.

Want me come over and take care of that for you HAAAAAA !!! BOOGLAH!!!

Pat a new corvette...nice. My favorite car is a 1959 corvette, red and white please Do you know the one thing that has NOT changed on a vet in all the years they have been making them ? ........... The rear lights, they are still round. And do you know the one year they did not make vets ??? ...... 1983. Yep ! LOVE EM!

Beanie, I'm glad you all had a wonderful time and YES, more pictures please Have fun with the shelves... gag.

Zan, I hope you've done your shopping already LOL. I watched about 5 minutes of the runners on tv while I was visiting my MIL. That would be awesome if you ran one day. Mushies are not for another full week. The 14th...IF I can last that long. I snuck a 1/2 a meat ball today

Betty, I hope your family's okay. Let us know. BTW my hunger is still there HUNGRY !!!!! LOL.

Well let me go dress dd. She was jumping in the leaves with her father and she's filthy LOL.

TTYL

It's been a beautiful day here, we went riding for a while then came back to watch the race.

It must be the day for tea drinking, I had a couple of cups too!

Beanie - I posted the pictures under the bash thread. I loved meeting with you, we'll definately have to do it again when we can spend a little more time together. We sure live close enough to get together that's for sure.

Pat - I love Corvette's too! Pictures please! Be glad your DH lets you do all that, my DH just keeps pushing buttons till you don't know what the heck he did!

Eileen - Try some refried Beans, they are a good filler upper!

I did contact my family, and all is well with them. In fact they let my Aunt come come! I was thrilled with that! Hopefully she will continue to improve.

Well, I am going to go BBQ some chicken for supper. Catch you all later!

Hi Friends, I am feeling better, but still have a nagging cough, etc. I guess that will hang on for a while. Today I went to church, as it's All Saints Sunday, and since my Mom passed away last July, her name was being called. Dad and sis couldn't handle it, so my little family showed up for the service. I am proud of myself for doing that. I thought to myself, "Mom, I'm here." I thought it would be sad if they called her name, and no one was there (from the family). It was a very nice service; the ministers called each name, and took a long stemmed white rose and placed it in a big vase, which was beautiful when all the roses were placed in it.

Other than that, an uneventful day. Still moping about missing the big Texas soiree yesterday, and love seeing the pictures!

Pat, I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences with deciding how much fill to have, if you are PBing every day...I cross my fingers that won't happen. I know I need to go for fill #2, since I am feeling too hungry too soon, and stuck on weight loss.

Eileen, the refried bean/cheese suggestion is a good one...I loved that when I could first eat mushy food. I like oatmeal, too. I know you are just happy to have anything thicker than clear liquid!

Beanie, I've been meaning to ask about your next chapter? Is that in the works?

Betty, remember if you come to Sanger to eat at Babe's , give me a call!

Gotta make something for dinner, see ya later, Cindy

Good Morning and Happy Moanday Everyone

Hope you all are enjoying the day thus far. I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd get up and make some coffee. Can you believe we had a thunder storm last night. In NOVEMBER!!! Thats how warm its been here. I never get to sleep thru a storm because my 60 lb dog turnes into a chicken and likes to crawl between my head and the head board and pant on my face...in between whimpers LOL. Furry coward. LOL.

Cindy, glad your feeling better. I still have my cough and its what 6 weeks now? Uhh.

Hope you all have a wonderful day.... TTYL

Good Morning Y'all!

What a beautiful day it is today. I just got back from my walk, and it was so nice. The birds was singing, the sun was shinning, and there was a little breeze to make it comfortable.

Now I have to get some work done! UGH!

Just as I was getting the chicken ready for the grill, my neighbor brought over some salmon and rice for us. Needless to say the chicken went right back in the fridge. DH got the rice, I had some fresh green Beans cooked so I had a little beans with my fish. One easy supper and very good too!

Eileen - I haven't been sleeping good lately either! Something must be going on, something in the air!

Cindy - Glad to hear you are feeling better! I will definately call you next time we are near there.

Beanie - I am waiting to hear some good words from you! Like "I am approved" I am keeping my fingers crossed for you!

Ivan - I actually picked up the Chai tea in the store last week, didn't know if it was any good so I put it back. Thanks for the tip, I will try it now!

Zan - Holiday shopping! I use to do mine early, then I ended up buying more and more as the season got closer and the music got me in a holiday mood.

Pat - Has DH left yet? I am jelous of your week of me time!

Lisa - Good morning, how's it going?

Well, I am going to go get something to eat, then do some cleaning.

Catch y'all later!

Ah, Monday. The most delightful day of the week...

No word yet from the insurance company - shocking, no? I will call to harass them shortly. I am going to ask them if the rumor is true - that they will no longer cover bariatric surgery after January 1. That ought to stir them up a little.

I must confess that I only got three of the six Ikea bookshelves put together - and my DH promptly took one of them for his office!! What's up with THAT? Oh well, he had to go to Ikea, get the bookcases (boxed), and lug them into the house - so I guess he can have one that's all put together pretty.

Today, I am feeling pretty pumped up about the whole "gym" experience. The first time I got onto the eliptical machine, it only took 2.5 minutes to send my heartrate to ten points over the optimal "cardio" rate. Yesterday, it took almost a full 7 minutes... That's some progress, right there. Plus, we have bumped up to 40 minutes of cardio as of yesterday. (Woo Hoo!)

Of course, my knees are still screaming - but I am ignoring them. Plus, we went to the gym in the early afternoon and I didn't stop "glowing" until I went to bed! I think that is actually a good thing - but it's kind of a pain in the petute.

It's so warm here, that we have been using the fan's in our house to keep it cool. This is why I moved from Oregon, people... Sunshine in November. Yee Haw!! I am loving it!!

I hope everyone else if having a great day, too! I will check in later.

:]

Hi, everyone!

I'm at school (work), and I'm plum tuckered out! Having a cold at home is one thing, but dealing with (at-risk) teens while struggling to breathe, is another!

Beanie, congrats on the great job in the gym! You are doing great! Hope you hear some approval news shortly

Eileen, I have a little cowardly dog, too, but she is only a small Bichon...still, the shivering shakes the bed.

Hope you are all having a beautiful day!

Cindy

Good Morning

I don't have much time b/c I have to get my fat ass ready to take my DD to school Boy I'm gonna miss this.

How is everyone today?

Yesterday I took DD to chuckie cheese in the afternoon. I swore I wouldn't go there again if I could help it b/c the place is a ZOO!! Well we got there around 2 and there were maybe 5 kids in the entire place......HEAVEN !!!! We had a great time.

Today I'll probably take her to a petting zoo after school or we'll go see Disney's chicken Little.

Whats shakin with you today?

Good Morning!

It already pretty outside 73 degrees, supposed to get to the high 80's today. I love it!

DH said "let's go vote today before I go to work", so I said ok, went and got dressed and we were at the polls at 6:00. Well, I didn't realize they didn't open until 7:00. Up north, the polls went from 6:00-6:00. So, I am back home and didn't vote yet. I don't know why he waits till the last day anyway, we usually go for the early voting, it is so much easier to do it then.

Beanie - You are doing an awsome job witht he exercise! So, any word yet on the insurance? Isn't today the last day for them to answer you????

Cindy - Hope the cold is doing better for you. I always found that those Zinc coft drops helps me a lot!

Eileen - Sounds like you have a great day planned for your DD.

Well, going to go get busy, catch you all later!

Good Morning to all!

Sorry I have been absent ..again. My household has been down and out with this cold thingy that has been going around. The good news is that we are all over it for now (XX) that's me crossing my fingers. Nothing new here, still waiting to get a surgery date- the hospital "misplaced" my EKG results so now I have to get it done again today. It won't take long but it just holds up my date even longer. At this rate I may be having a "regular" Thanksgiving dinner after all. Minus the 2nd helpings of course

Glad to hear everyone is doing well, Eileen- congrats on the weight loss-that's awesome!

to everyone else.....have a great day!

Good morning, friends!

As Betty already told you, down here in Texas, fall is only about a week long, spring is about a week, and the rest of the time it is either summer or winter! I'm not such a fan of warm weather in November, but whatcha gonna do? Can't move, yet!

The zinc (cold-eeze) has really helped... no headache today, just the congestion thing. So, every day is getting better.

I am ready for Thursday (fill). Wish it would just get here, so I can get it done. Oops, being from Texas, that is "Git 'r' done!

Eileen, taking my DD to school was one of the things I loved about being home after surgery. I am so pumped to be able to do that again, here in about a year, when I retire. Just last night, I was so frustrated with all the things that need to be done, and not enough time to do them...DH was great and reminded me that everything would get done. I just have those moments where it seems too much. I'm okay today.

Beanie...I laughed out loud when I read your tease on Bigman about typing "broad" instead of "board"! You are so clever!

Everyone else, hope you are healthy and meeting your goals...

Cindy

Howdy All!

Another day in the salt mines, down.

Let's see... This morning I had my first consultation with Dr. Fox. He was very nice. He told me about all the things that a person considering the band needs to know - and I told him that I have been researching here for several months and I just want to get my Blankety Blank insurance company to approve me. He indicated that it is often SEVERAL appeals with insurance and gave me the name of a gal at Lap Band Solutions to call... Best of all, he put me on the scale and I have lost 8 pounds since starting my Breakfast & no snacking after dinner thing. Woo Hoo!!

I left feeling pretty mixed emotions. I am hoping for a miracle on the insurance appeal - stupid thing to do - but I can't quite stop myself. Actually the insurance company has until the 13th to respond - which is SUNDAY - so chances are good that no answer will be available until Monday. That won't keep me from calling on Friday, though.

The friendly folks at Doc Fox's office did tell me that they had not heard anything about Blue Cross no longer covering bariatric procedures next year - so maybe that information was inaccurate - or maybe it just applies to the state where that particular bandster lives. Of couse, my Blue Cross coverages change after January 1 - so who knows if I will still be eligible. GRRRR.

[Whine mode on] I want my band!! I don't care if I have to have the surgery on New Year's Eve. I want my Band. [Whine mode off]

So, tonight it's back to the gym - although I am a little whipped. I had to get up early to make the doc's appointment. I had a minor set-back there. Last night, the eliptical bumped my heart rate over the top after only two minutes... I had to stick to the treadmill. I think it was so great on Sunday because I had slept for like 12 hours on Saturday night and I had not eaten for several hours when I got on the machine. Yesterday, I was working on about 6 hrs of sleep and I ate a little dinner right before we left. I will see how it goes tonight, although I don't expect much, since I am already tired.

I just wish that it were Friday so I could call to harass the insurance company, again.

:]