I haven’t posted in a while here and honestly, I am a wee bit concerned about that. I mean, I pay for this space to empty my thoughts and the mundane about the things going on in my life, but yet, I don’t make use of it as I should. I think that would be why I don’t have too many readers anymore. Hopefully I can change that by actually posting and all that.

Anyway, to say that things have been quiet here… well, that would be a bold-faced lie. I mentioned in my previous post that I have made it out of the 300s and have no intentions on looking back. That is true, but I am also closing in on my six month post-surgery time when my weight loss will slow down and as of late, I haven’t been able to exercise all that much with the problem with my ankle and the bulging disk in my back. Needless to say, I am damned concerned about all that. I need to make a call on Monday to my doctor and check on a referral that I was supposed to have gotten to see someone about both problems.

I have been rather good about taking my potassium (if I don’t, I get light headed and all that). The stuff hasn’t really gotten any better. It’s all about figuring out the proper ratio of water to juice in order to kill the taste of the powder. I am getting closer, but I can still taste the shit as an after taste and I can tell you, my body doesn’t like it in the slightest, but it is holding it down. My only problem is, they only gave me a month of the stuff, so I am wondering if I am going to have to go through the same shit I had to to get the stuff in the first place. I suppose we’ll see in a couple weeks or so.

On the home front, Madden Man and I almost split up earlier this month. It came really close too, but we worked things out. I suppose communication hasn’t really been a big priority the last few months, but we have fixed that… I think, and are doing alright. Yes, he was supposed to have been gone to Houston on the 5th, but he decided not to go and with the unemployment bill having just been signed into law, he’s got some kind of money coming in while he’s still pounding the pavement looking for work. I can’t fault him for wanting to stay with his family, but fuck me, if he doesn’t find a job in the next six months – he’s gonna have to end up leaving anyway, on his own.

T.T. is doing a hell of a lot better. He’s still excited about the home-schooling thing (glad to see one of us is) and still adamant about not going back to public school this fall. I can’t say I really blame him, not to mention, the school he’s supposed to be going to? Well, let’s just say that the kids there are less than nice to some of the special kids. I can’t really see putting him through that, especially considering the hell I went through in Jr. High and High school. He loves school right now and I really don’t want to squash that by sending him somewhere where he could be facing some serious injury at the hands of another kid. So, home-schooling it is. The sad part of all this? We have yet to even begin to get things together, such as a name for our school. Man, we suck hardcore.

As far as me? Well, my two faithful readers, I am doing alright. I have been re-introduced to the wonders of Julia Child and all that and have been more or less nose deep in piles of recipes. I want to open a restaurant one day and have been trying to nail down some of the things I wanna serve once I have it. No, not French food. Julia Child is just something that I do really wanna try and think I might go ahead and do so once, Madden Man gets me the copies of Mastering the Art of French cooking that I want for my birthday.

Anyway, so, along that vein up there, I am thinking of opening up a recipe blog. Pretty much as a way to document my successes and failures as I try recipes, tweek them and so forth. I even have a damn good camera, so I can take pictures too. Yeah, I think I’m gonna do that.

I managed to finish reading Eclipse and while I think Stephenie Meyer’s writing leaves a lot to be desired, I have to say that the movie is my fave by far. I started reading Breaking Dawn, but fuck me, I had to put that shit down with the vampire baby trying to kill Bella from the inside. I have to ask, What the fuck was Stephenie thinking/smoking when she wrote that shit? Seriously? That passes for writing that gets teen-aged girls and adult women all in a titter? If so, we really have declined as a civilization. Why am I reading it, you ask? Because I am of the mind-set that if I read the first one, I might as well finish the rest, no matter what type of torture it might be. Besides, I am one of those who likes to compare the movie to the book and in this case… the movies are definitely better.

In any event, I certainly hope that everyone is doing well and uh… Jenn, I really miss you. I know why you aren’t blogging, but dammit woman, I wanna hear from you.

TTFN

Oh folks… I have finally done it. I have broken out of the 300s and I do not intend to ever look back at them. Never!

I had to see my surgeon on Thursday for a check-up on my potassium and all that. At every appointment, they have to weigh you and when they did, I weighted in at 298lbs. That means since March, I have lost 86lbs. Yes, I am fucking tickled. My surgeon says my weight loss is still good, so I am more and more psyched for Disneyland in December.

I have gotten a prescription for powdered potassium. Not gonna lie, that stuff tastes like Tang and sweat. The sweat part is because the stuff is a salt. I’m not gonna keep complaining though. If it helps to get things back to normal, I’m all for it.

Cutting this short on this lovely holiday.

Be safe today…

Appointment today with WLSurgeon. I have lost another 12lbs., bringing my total to 77 lost so far. I am still having problems with dizziness, light-headedness and all that, so my surgeon is putting me on more vitamins and potassium. I have also been given the okay to begin trying small amounts of beef and pork as well as trying little amounts of pasta. Naturally, I started with Top Ramen. Oh my, it was so good. Just a touch of sesame oil in it and I was good to go. This evening, we decided to have spaghetti. Oh GOD! I swear it was the best I have eaten… maybe because I haven’t eaten it in like four months. Very small amounts, however, it’s fine with me. I had such a tiny amount and by the time I had cut the noodles up and all that, I was good to go. Nothing has come back to haunt me, yet and I really enjoyed the meal itself, not just eating just for eating’s sake.

That’s something that I have noticed since my surgery. Before I would eat, just to be eating and at meal times, I was so often eating quickly, I never really tasted my food. Now, I am forced to eat slowly so I don’t get sick and I am able to actually taste my food. Such a nice thing.

I have also found a protein powder that won’t make me yak. The protein powder from Curves, it’s made with whey and doesn’t have that aftertaste that other powders have. Not to mention, you can throw all kinds of stuff in it to change the vanilla flavor. Oh my, I am on the upswing, I think.

TTFN

I was in such a good mood when I last posted, however, just a day after, that all went fucking south. :/

Because there is some sensitive info I want to post, I’m just gonna put in a more break, yeah?

Click here to read more.. »

So… Madden Man was supposed to be gone by now, however, with all the things coming up next month, the most important being T.T.’s graduation from grade school, at the last minute, he decided to put his trip off until the beginning of July. I swear, at the rate this man is going, he’s never gonna leave. :/

Anyway, I was supposed to have gone to see my doctor on Friday, but due to a swiftly appearing UTI, I had to go today. Good news, my blood pressure is up, meaning that the decrease in the dosage of my heart meds worked. My doctor thinks in a few months I might even be able to be weaned from them completely. *does Snoopy dance* I also had to weigh in, obviously, and I weighed in at 319lbs. meaning I am down another ten pounds since I saw her a week and a half ago. That brings my total loss to 65lbs. in about two and a half months. I have to go and see my surgeon next month and dear God am I hoping to be out of the 300s and not looking back. *smiles*

I actually wore one of my new dresses on Monday and damn, I felt so pretty and feminine. Usually, I spend my summer in shorts and capris, but this year I wanted to change it up and yes, with the weight loss, I kinda want to show that off as well as gain back some of my femininity. I am working on getting shoes to go with the dresses, but until I can get the ones I want, I’ll make due with what I have. *smiles*

I think I’m gonna try and go to sleep now. The ass-hat downstairs left her fucking bathroom vent on and it is fucking loud in my room and vibrating the floor of my bathroom and bedroom. God, what do I have to do to get this woman and her gaggle to move out?

TTFN

I am feeling a hell of a lot better today than I was last night. This morning, we all went to T.T.s baseball award ceremony. I wish I had taken my better camera because I now have no pictures to share due to the fact that the camera on my BlackBerry sucks ass. Anyway, he got a trophy and had his picture taken with his team mates and had cake and pizza afterwards. Madden Man and I had to go to FedEx, so we decided that rather than torture me (I can’t eat pizza properly), we would go ahead and let my mum and T.T. have the feast.

After all was said and done, my mum and I went shopping and I found these two absolutely adorable eyelet sundresses. I kept looking at them and finally looked at the sizes, figuring I could get the dresses and by the time summer rolls around, I’ll be able to wear them. Mind you all, this is the mind that has been stuck in the 26/28 and 30/32 size modes for far too long. So, I brought them home and thought just for shits and giggles I would try the black one on and I was completely amazed to find out the dress fit perfectly. I have lost so much from my stomach and ass that they don’t bulge therefore the dress doesn’t ride up of anything like that. It falls exactly where it should. So, after that, I thought, again for S&Gs, I would try on the white one and fuck me, it fit as well. Oh, I forgot to mention that the black dress is a 24 and the white is a 22. I about cried when I put on the white and it fits just like the black, with the exception of being something like a few centimeters shorter.

People, I feel so pretty in both of those dresses, despite them being sleeveless and my arms will be exposed. I am feeling so proud of myself that at the moment, I am seriously thinking I will be showing my flabby/flappy arms off this summer as a badge of pride that I have come as far as I have. But, who knows, I may change my mind as the summer draws closer. *laughs*

Oh and the title up there, for those who may not know, is a line from Trading Places. It just seems to fit how good I am feeling right now. Really.

TTFN

So, my week has been pretty good. My doctor’s appointment last Friday went well. My heart meds have been cut from 100mgs down to 25mgs and it is possible that in the next couple of months or so I will be off them altogether. Both my surgeon and doctor are in agreement that the heart meds might possibly have been lowering my blood pressure too far as evidenced by the reading I got last Friday of 96/80. I’m still having bouts of dizziness and all that if I get up too fast or bend over and stand up straight quickly. :/ Not sure why that is, however, I am beginning to think it might be anemia. I have been having some tingling/numbness in my hands and fingers and when I checked on WebMD, anemia is one of the things that it advised it could be. I have to go back and see my doctor next Friday, so I will see if they can check my iron levels. I have already been told by my surgeon to start taking iron, however, with money being a bit tight until the end of the month, I can’t get a bottle of it to take.

Anyway, I, hopefully, will be having an MRI done on my right thigh. About six years ago, I got out of the car wrong and not only wrenched my back, but I pinched a nerve and it doesn’t seem to have let go. I have had numbness from the top of my thigh all the way to my knee and when I got to the movies, it hurts like a mother fucker if I sit in one position for too long. So, as I said, hopefully, I will be having an MRI done on it and get some care for it.

On the same note of things being pinched, I still have a pinched tendon in my left ankle, so while I now have an ankle on the right, because of the swelling, I have a cankle on the left and sadly, there’s nothing that can be done about it because of cuts to my health insurance over the last year. I am thinking that my doctor might have to come up with an alternative way for me to get treatment for this. :/

On a sad note, Madden Man is leaving for Houston on Monday. He’s taking it worse than I am at the moment. I was a fucking mess two weeks ago, but now, I’m not feeling much of anything, or if I am, I’m not showing it just yet. He’s packed all of his things and we will be taking boxes to FedEx in a couple days, so… I think it might hit me then. Most of his stuff is gone already, but I think seeing everything else go will really throw it in my face that he’s not gonna be here. :/ Forgive me if I get all weepy here on the blog for a few days.

I think that’s everything so far… oh, for those trying to read my blog on your cellphone, I don’t care what make or model you have, don’t fucking send me comments about shit not displaying properly. I don’t fucking blog from my phone therefore, I don’t read from it either, so without being too mean, I could fucking care less if my blog doesn’t display properly on your fucking phone. It’s meant to be read from a PC. Yes, I realize that not everyone has time to read it from one, but again, I don’t care. Sorry. Save your comments for a blogger who seriously gives a shit about their blog displaying properly on all formats be it computer, iPad, cellphone, whatever.

TTFN

I went to see my surgeon for a two week follow-up on how I’m doing and he’s now thinking that my heart meds may be playing a larger role in the funkiness of how I have been feeling than before. I have to see my PCP tomorrow, so I will probably be having my dosage lowered. I also have to ask about a couple other things, but that’s neither here nor there.

Anyway, the official weight is now 329lbs. That means I have lost 55lbs in eight weeks. 26 of those in the last month alone. I am well on my way to making my goal of being able to go to Disneyland and ride the rides with T.T. in December!

I am also able to start trying chicken again, so that’s a good thing and I have to go to see my surgeon for my regular post-op appointment next month. All in all a pretty damn good day. *smiles*

TTFN

So, I’m still here. I have been a bit busy trying not to beat the tar out of my child as of late. He’s turned into such a little… anyway, suffice it to say, my child managed to get suspended from school last week for stealing an item from me and taking it to school, then using said item on another child. Granted, it was only a one day suspension, but still. *sighs*

Madden Man has decided to put off leaving for another two weeks. Not complaining. We needed to clean the apartment completely and didn’t manage to get to it… yet. He was supposed to be leaving today, but instead, he’s leaving on the 24th, which is cool because we got a notice today about inspections on our unit, so we have to finish cleaning.

Also, as some of you folks know, I am a member of Paperback Swap. Man, I have had such shitty luck with the last few books I requested. One book, I never received, another I received, however, the book is in such poor condiotion, I have to wonder why it is the person felt it was acceptable to put it up in the first place. And the last book I requested… the thing isn’t even in the format I wanted, but the book is in good shape, so I can’t really complain too much about that. But the book that is in poor condition… man, I have asked to get my fucking credit back for it. 98% of the pages are not attached to the spine of the book, therefore when I opened the damned thing, it fell apart. Not only that, but there are also pages missing, which makes it hard to follow the story. Hopefully I can get my credit back for this thing and now I feel as though I waited almost three years for nothing for this book. Such a fucking disappointment.

And as far as my whole health thing is going… it’s going. I have started taking potassium pills because I cannot gag down a banana to get the needed potassium. That has made me feel a little better, but I am still a little dizzy when I bend over too long or stand up too fast. I have to go see my surgeon on Thursday, hopefully he’ll have some more things I can do or give me a reason I am still feeling so off.

Wish me luck folks, I feel as though I am going to need it. :/

TTFN

Okay, so more information on the speed bump thing. For the last week or so I have been feeling light-headed, dizzy and faint. On both Saturday and Sunday as well as yesterday, I wasn’t able to keep certain solid foods down. Naturally, I was worried so I called my surgeon’s office and spoke with one of his nurses. She felt that it was a good possibility that I was dehydrated and that could have been causing some of the problems. So, she advised that I drink as much liquid as I could and she wanted me to go and see the doctor about my heart meds and to go see my surgeon to make sure there wasn’t something more serious going on.

This brings us to today. I went and visited my surgeon this morning and he thinks that what’s going on is a combination of dehydration, low potassium and maybe my heart meds dosage is now too high leading to my blood pressure dropping too low. So, solutions? Dehydration, lots and lots of liquids. Low potassium? Start eating bananas. Dear Lord, I hate bananas, but I think if I can mash part of it up and mix it into my Cream of Wheat in the morning and again for my last meal of the day, I should be good. I have to make sure that I eat four times a day to keep my metabolism up. I also need to start taking a B-complex vitamin along with everything else I have to take at the moment.

My surgeon assured me that what’s happening is not that uncommon, so that made me feel a little better. I have an appointment to go see my doctor next month about having my heart meds adjusted, in the meantime, I have to cut my pills in half instead of taking the whole thing. Anyway, I have to go back in two weeks for a follow-up with my surgeon and from there we’ll see when I have to go back and see him for my regular check-ins.

So there y’all have it. The whole story about the speed bump.

TTFN

So, six weeks after surgery and I have developed a problem. Apparently I am a little dehydrated, my potassium is possibly low and I have to cut my heart meds in half because there is a possibility that they are lowering my blood pressure too far. Nothing that can’t be taken care of, but still one of those *sigh* moments. To fix it? I have to increase my liquids, start eating bananas and as I said, cut my heart meds down to half until I can get in to see my doctor next month. No worries.

On the bright side, I have lost ten pounds over the last three weeks, bringing my total to 42lbs. now lost. *smiles* Forty-two in six weeks, not bad, yes? I am thrilled, not that I needed to tell any of you that. *smiles*

To mooseyfbaby: I would love to see your ink when you get it done. *smiles* I love Luke Chueh. I have another planned, but not for a while yet. I kinda went on a tatt spree last year and am taking a break this year, not to mention, I have no clue where I want to put it. *smiles*

Yep, this is short… I have more to say about the whole speed bump thing, but I am damn tired….

TTFN

So, okay, the food experimentation has been going pretty well. So far I have had turkey, crab and chicken. All of those have not caused me any problem on their own. Turkey and Swiss in any form? Well, it has me sick at my stomach. :/ Oh well. I have also had lettuce, cabbage, peas, carrots and olives, all with no problems. I have been sticking with grilled chicken when eating out and still staying with most of my soft foods, like Cream of Wheat. I have managed to eat a Subway six inch (not in one sitting and not the bread). Madden Man gets my sandwiches made on flatbread, so I don’t feel as though I’m wasting too much.

I have found that the chicken patties on the chicken sandwich at BK are really dry, so I will be staying away from those in the future. I still have bad memories of dry chicken getting stuck with my band and me being sick for hours over it. :/ The grilled chicken strips from Jack in the Box are damned good though. I have been wanting to try a chicken soft taco from Del Taco, however, I don’t think my stomach can handle the spices they do on the chicken meat. And to end this foodie train of thought, I need to get to Taco Bell and try their Baja Shrimp taco. That thing looks so fucking good.

So, we have had a change to the familial line-up here at Casa de Fluffy Girl. We had to take Ruckus back to the shelter. Not only did he manage to terrorize my cat, but he bit both Madden Man and T.T. without provocation, shit all over the house (even with multiple walkings during the day) and he chased T.T. down the hall at four in the morning, barking at him like he was going to attack. We were really sad to see him go, but honestly, it was a stress that we really don’t need at the moment, not with Madden Man about to leave for Houston in less than four weeks.

Anyway, let me introduce you all to Gussy.

We’re not sure how old he is, just that he is an adult. He also weighs 22lbs. Yes, folks, I said 22lbs. He is a big boy, but he is the sweetest thing in the world. Really, he is. He has been getting along with the ladies and he pretty much lays around all day, not doing more than he has to. *laughs* The thing about this cat… well, he was found earlier last month and taken to the animal shelter. Apparently, someone, or some people, used him for target practice and shot him in his hind end with BBs. He’s healed up nicely from that and the great thing is… he still loves people even after that.

The ladies at the shelter gave him the name Gussy, but I like to call him Fat Louie. He reminds me of the cat in The Princess Diaries with that name. It suits him, if you ask me. *smiles* Anyway, I hope that Ruckus finds a good home. One with no cats and a lot of yard for him to run around in. I miss him, but he just wasn’t a perfect fit for me. I hold out hope that I’ll find another small doggie, but I am so not actively looking at the moment. *smiles*

TTFN

So, I had my one month post-op appointment today and had my diet advanced. I am now able to try chicken, turkey, shrimp, crab and continue with fish. I am also able to try fruits and veggies now too. I think I am way too excited about the whole thing, however, being able to try all this stuff now opens up a whole world of foods and such instead of the same one trick pony stuff.

This being the case, I tried some turkey lunch meat and it went well. I will try some other variations of turkey in the next few days and see how they go before I move on to something else.

The weigh-in was good. When I went to see my PCP yesterday I weighed in about five pounds heavier than I did at the surgeon’s office, so I’m gonna go with him as the official weight. Anyway, that being said, I lost a total of 15 pounds over the last three weeks, brings my total weight loss for the month to 32 pounds. *does Snoopy dance* I go back in two months, so let’s hope I am still on the right track. *smiles*

I only hope the rest of my food explorations go well. Wish me luck folks. *smiles again*

TTFN

Well, I’m doing a little better with the liquids as of late. I’ve been diluting the cranberry juice that I have become fond of and I’ve been scarfing down sugar-free popsicles. I’ve found my stomach has gotten a little sensitive in the last few days, so I’ve had to go back to Jello and Cream of Wheat for a couple of days. One thing I have learned is that little stomach does not like it when I am constipated. :/ I literally feel like I’m gonna spew when I can’t use the bathroom.

I’ve been going through a bit of depression and all that recently too. All the things that have changed for me and the fact that at the moment, my diet is rather limited has made me frustrated. I have a week until I have to go see my surgeon and hopefully then I will be able to start adding some other foods to my diet. I’m really wanting a turkey and Swiss sandwich. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I’ll be able to add lunch meat to my diet… soon!

In other news, T.T.’s birthday was this past Saturday. We took him out to a pizza buffet place and man, it was fucking weird for my family to be eating around me and there I was, just sipping a glass of ice water. I ended up getting a baked potato and sharing it with my mother since I could only eat something like two tablespoons of it. Being that money was a little short around here, we ended up going in with my mum to get T.T. Guitar Hero: World Tour. The whole band set. He was damned surprised and so excited to get in and play.

And for one final thing. We have a new member of the family:

This is Ruckus and boy has he caused one. He’s almost a year old and he’s a black and silver Malti-poo. He has decided I am his person and his alone, so he has scared the shit out of my cat because she got a little too close to me when we first brought him home. Having him has had me out walking everyday though, which is a good thing. He’s been housebroken so we have to make sure we take him out every few hours to use the bathroom. Yes, folks, I am in love with this little dog and I hope he works out in the family. Srsly.

So, I think that’s it for now. *winks*

TTFN

Oh, PS ~ Happy Birthday Mom!

Oh Dear God…

I am having some problems now. Don’t worry, I have been assured by my surgeon that they are completely normal and that they will pass. My first problem is that I cannot drink plain water. My poor stomach cramps up with plain water. I never thought I would be saying this, but uh, I miss plain water… so, so much. I was told to dilute the juices that I drink with water, continue using Crystal-Lite and to continue eating sugar-free Popsicles. Even though all of these things are sweetened with sugar substitute, folks, I am nauseous at all of the sweetness. I can’t do it anymore and to show that fact, I am now constipated. :/ I am not a happy camper. I don’t know what to do. I am a member of 3 Fat Chicks forums, so I posted there and hopefully folks have some other ideas for me.

I have also began to have a sickly aversion to the protein drinks that I got over the weekend. My stomach begins turning at the thought of having to drink one of those. So, with that, I am at a loss as well because I need the protein and cannot afford, at the moment, to get the unflavored powder to add to the foods I am able to eat and I don’t wanna tell Madden Man because he spent $35 on all the drinks. *sighs*

As far as foods go I have tried all but two on my allowed list. I just don’t do applesauce, just sayin’. The Cream of Wheat was so damned good. Just a little bit of butter and a teaspoon of Splenda and I was cool. The aftertaste from the Splenda I can do without, but eh, I won’t stop using it. I’m a bit afraid of the Truvia. I have read that so many people have had some funky reactions to it, I’m not sure I wanna try it just yet. I have yet to find vegetarian refried beans, but fuck me, I will be looking for them next week, as well as investing in some ricotta cheese. I love that shit and it has something like 28g of protein per serving.

And now being that I have had to become so damned label conscious, I am worried about Madden Man. THe man went to the market the other day and came home with two Hungry Man dinners and ate them both in one sitting. Fuck me, the amount of bad shit in those things… Here is where you can find the nutrional info on the particular one he ate. *sighs* I am really afraid that if he keeps eating like shit and not taking care of himself that I’m gonna lose him before he’s even 35. Yes, I did discuss it with him, but I can’t say that he understands why I am afraid. He doesn’t find anything wrong with eating like that. :/

Anyway, I am succeeding in depressing myself here, so I’m gonna go and do something else constructive.

TTFN