Wordless Wednesday - Generations

 

My grandmother holding my granddaughter

Wordless Wednesday - Blast From The Past

My Kindergarten teacher now reads stories at the library every Wednesday to a group of preschoolers that includes my granddaughter (I'm 45--do the math lol).

Wordless Wednesday - Confirmation

I shamelessly stole borrowed this image from a blog that I read called Neurotic Physiology at Scientopia.org (In case you had any doubts about how much of a nerd I really am)

Wordless Wednesday - Got Carrots?

I think I need to buy stock in ranch dip

(WWBBD - What Would Bugs Bunny Do?)

Wordless Wednesday - Boomer Sooner!

OU stud - Boomer the Mascot (he's not really on that man's head--I think--AWKWARD!!!)

Random Tuesday Thoughts - Oh the Cobwebs

Uh...uh...uh...trying to reach...almost got it...there! The last of the cobwebs and atchoo!  Crap it's dusty, but nevertheless...

Keely has been redecorating and designed a new button, oh look something shiny!


Be sure and hit up her blog, she makes me point smile and laugh regularly.

Blogger is behaving a little oddly, so hopefully this will be published successfully, if not...well, there's always chocolate!

I've been seriously neglecting this blog, but much like the disobedient child, I'm attempting to return to the "mother's knee" of my readers and beg forgiveness yet again.  Folks, I love to write and hope to settle in for more consistency and less sporadic and random (no pun intended, ok maybe a little pun intended) efforts to be a contributing member of  blithering idiots the blogosphere.  However, I am still mired in my life and it still has priority; so no promises.  

Currently, my day job is instructing students in the fine art of colorguard.  I do it for the money and the glory and because I am a fascist dictator who loves pointing my finger at impressionable teens because I truly love it.  That, and it gets me out of the house.

Last month, my husband drove the third of our four children to college 1200 miles away.  There's only one kid left at home now, oh and the dog.  The empty nest is looming and we've got a little over two years remaining until that comes to fruition.  I should probably be planning for that?  It's funny, years ago when my kids were all underfoot, I imagined that life post child-rearing would be a wonderful relief--the reward for a job well done.  Now, it just seems weird.   I am certain though that I will adjust quite nicely as I am one who embraces change readily (stop laughing).

Even though I've been neglecting you here, I've kept up with reading (and occasionally commenting on) the blogs I follow.  I've also discovered some new blogs; among them are some startups by family and friends.  So to show that nepotism is alive and well (and the nut doesn't fall far from the nutty tree), here is a list of new blogs by various friends and family in random order of course.

Pink Epiphanies - by my daughter in law as she navigates her life and faith in marriage and motherhood

I'm A Sooner! - by my kid, the one that just left for college (college fodder)

paper lanterns and white feathers - by my other kid; her self-proclaimed "musings of a twenty-something"

life with the lebedas - by a friend of my daughter in law's of which I accidentally stumbled upon

My Left Breast - by the wife of a high school classmate as she navigates the diagnosis of breast cancer--compelling, insightful and inspirational

Buttermilk And Bacon - by the husband of a friend who loves, what else, buttermilk AND bacon!

Gratuitous naked man shot!

Just kidding!  It's my hubby and he has swim trunks on--I swear!

That's all the random I have for now.  "Tune in next time when grandpa says"...Not a damn thing because he's flying with the angels and doesn't get good cell service(Heaven must be in a cell phone "dead" zone) OH STOP GROANING!  It wasn't that bad (ok, maybe it was).

Wordless Wednesday - I Love My Dog

Wordless Wednesday - College Bound

Spread your wings and fly Baby Girl (I promise your parachute will open)

Wordless Wednesday - One Day's Tomato Harvest

one plant (Early Girl)

...a few more (some German Queens and Bush Goliath)

needless to stay, I will spend significant time making sauce and other goodies

...now off to harvest the miniature tomatoes (cherry, grape, golden pears etc.)

Wordless Wednesday - Summer Rapidly Coming to an End

...soon there will only be one kid here(oh and the dog is staying)

Random Tuesday Thoughts - Where the Hell Have I Been

If you are normal and like to hear about butts (or even if you are abnormal and don't like butts) be sure and stop by The Un Mom

Okokokokok...ok...so where I've been.  Not anywhere special, just incredibly busy and had family needs and unexpected events that required my full attention.  My father gave me three pearls of wisdom to use to guide my life:  1. Be positive 2. KNOW what your priorities are, and 3. Be spiritual.  Number two came up and required my focus to be elsewhere.  I realize that I left everyone hanging in the middle of my weight-loss series, but I will pick it back up this week.  Hopefully, you will grant me the benefit of the doubt and help me get back into the swing of blogging.

Luckily, I squeezed in time to read your blogs and found new sources to appreciate which helped me relax during the most intense parts of my absence.  Those of you who write faithfully (and some of you who don't) kept me sane and I want you to know I truly appreciate your writing.

So, on with the random, after all, it is Tuesday.

I just received my dog's license renewal in the mail.  It lists her as a pit bull.  OMFG!  She is NOT a pit bull!  She is a lab/jack russell mix (we are assuming lab mommy/jack russell daddy lol).  Whoever pushed the pit bull button at the county office made an error.  I feel compelled to correct it. 

There's snow in them there hills!  It snowed in the Sierras yesterday about an hour from me.  It's the middle of May, wtf Mother Nature?  I think this has been the weirdest winter since I moved here eight years ago (my how time flies).

The garden is mostly in.  Peas, carrots, lettuce, spinach, onions and herbs are already producing and being harvested.  Tomatoes, peppers, green beans, eggplant, cucumbers, okra and strawberries are going strong and are on schedule.  My fruit trees have fruit on them though the plums and nectarines are still small and green.  My orange tree is just now blossoming and it smells so heavenly.

My birthday is next week, 45 will be the new number.  I'm gonna put on my tiara, prom dress, stripper boots and glitter on my face then head out to my favorite dance bar with my hubby and good friends.  It's how I roll on my birthday; I let my freak flag fly high!

I learned a new little trick.  My daughters love the rotisserie chickens at the grocery store.  I usually use up any meat, that is left over from rotisserie chicken, in soups, salads and other dishes.  But on a whim one day, I decided to see if I could make chicken stock from the leftover carcass and guess what?  It makes a great stock that is perfectly seasoned.  As one who is frugal and always looking to cut costs in my home budget, I'm delighted to make something that I use so frequently and often pay $2.00-$3.00 per quart to purchase at the store.  Try it--just fill a stock pot with water, add the chicken carcass and bring to a boil then simmer on medium until you have a thick golden broth/stock.  Strain to remove the remaining chicken parts, skim the fat off the top, store the broth/stock and use as needed.  I freeze mine in quart containers.

Whew!  It feels good to shake off the dust and get back to blogging.  To my faithful followers, I owe you my heart for your patience.  Tomorrow will be Wordless Wednesday, then Thursday will be the next installment of "I've lost, but look what I've gained".  Stay tuned!

Wordless Wednesday - Ranunculus

Wordless Wednesday - Got Blue?

I've Lost, but Look What I've Gained! Part VI

...here I come slinking back with my tail between my legs after all this time.  Hold on for a minute while I strap on my celice and put on my hair shirt.

My apologies once again.  My absence was unavoidable.  Now, let's see where did I leave off...oh yes...

I attended the informational seminar held by my surgeon and her staff in October.  The very next day after the seminar, I called to schedule my first appointment.  The first available appointment they had was January 24, 2006--three months away!   I was surprised and disappointed at first, then I realized that my very busy surgeon was very busy because she was very very good at what she does.  So I settled in for my wait.  The holidays were approaching and I decided that I would not diet and fret over food, but instead, enjoy the last bit of freedom to eat foods I knew I would probably have to give up after surgery--possibly forever.  I did not gorge myself and overeat, but I did not deny myself anything.  I pushed guilty thoughts away and of course, my weight crept up even higher.

On the day of my appointment, I arrived at the surgeon's office feeling nervous and excited.  My surgeon went over my personal history and asked me which surgery I wanted.  She agreed that the Roux-En-Y procedure fit my personal needs better than the lap band.  She explained in great detail all aspects of the surgery and recovery.  One piece of information that she clarified was that my stomach would not be removed but instead would be sewn up and left attached to my intestinal tract after it was separated from the new pouch created to function in place of my stomach.  This was done because the stomach can still provide valuable enzymes that then move into the intestines and assist in the digestive processes.  My new small pouch would be attached to a lower portion of the small intestine, but my stomach would remain as a valuable organ.  This however, did not mean that my procedure was reversible.  Studies had shown that leaving the larger stomach portion in the patient was beneficial as long as it was healthy and still functioning.

She reiterated expectations, risks, prognosis and possible alternative outcomes.  She answered all of my questions and reviewed my course of treatment both pre and post surgery.  My weight that day was 259 and my BMI 41.  I had gained back the 25 lbs I had lost plus some and that was a consistent pattern that I had repeated once again in my long struggle with weight-loss.  I was given more paperwork, including hospital preregistration forms, advance directive forms, and diagnostic testing requests.  I was also told to start trying liquid protein supplements to find one or more that I would like well enough to use extensively after my surgery.  I was then scheduled for a pre-op visit on February 16 and given a surgery date of March 7. I left the office still feeling nervous and excited and that small bit of relief as I inched closer to the that date that would change my life--March 7, 2006.

to be continued...

For My Sister...Just Because

The things we do for love

More to come Monday...

I've Lost, but Look What I've Gained! Part V

Bless me Blogger for I have sinned, it's been 3 weeks since my last post...

[Dear readers, my apologies for not staying on schedule with this series. I do not receive any compensation for my writing other than your love, kindness and interest. As such, my family and personal life will occasionally become a higher priority than my writing. I beg your forgiveness, thank you for your patience and will now commence the 5th installment of this series.]

At the end of the last post, I had met the preliminary requirements for a referral to a bariatric surgeon and was awaiting approval from my HMO. I received my approval in September 2005, and was informed by my primary care physician that I needed to attend an informational seminar held once each month by the surgeon. It was too late to attend the September seminar, so I called and was scheduled to attend the October seminar.

The day of the seminar, I was filled with various emotions. I was excited and curious, nervous, had some low-level fear, and even a sense of marking a milestone. I attended the seminar held in a medical building near the hospital where my surgery would be performed. I took a seat in the back so that I could watch not only the presentation but the other attendees. I noticed that I was one of the smallest attendees in a group of very morbidly obese people. This gave me momentary pause to question whether or not I belonged there or was I giving up my conventional battle too soon? I then reminded myself that I had arrived at my decision soundly and logically and had the support of all who were involved.

The surgeon and her team gave a wonderful presentation. She shared her statistics both good and bad and spoke about the comprehensive end to end programs provided by her office. I learned that most of her patients participate in a study of bariatric patients that is managed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This appealed to me for two reasons. I believe in studies that support ongoing education and provide data to determine best practices; especially in medicine. I also have a fondness for the NIH because I took some courses there back before I abandoned my plan to get my masters degree. I made a decision right then to participate in the study if I was eligible.

Another important fact that I learned at the seminar was that my surgeon's medical practice was one of two Centers of Excellence in bariatric surgery in the Sacramento area. At the time, there were four healthcare systems offering bariatric surgery. Having a surgeon who was recognized by the American Society for Bariatric Surgery made me feel more confident about my surgeon and her practice.

The seminar consisted of the surgeon and her staff speaking and showing power point slides and a former patient who recounted his personal experience with bariatric surgery. An information packet was handed out to all the attendees. The staff also shared that they held monthly support groups for patients. The two types of surgery offered, Roux En Y and Lap Band, were discussed in detail. This helped to solidify the Roux En Y procedure as the one I believed was best for me.

At the end of the seminar, the staff answered questions. The presentation was so thorough that there were only a few questions. I left the seminar feeling satisfied with what I had learned and confident in my decision to proceed with the surgery. The next morning, I called and scheduled my first appointment with the surgeon.

To be continued...

I've Lost, but Look What I've Gained! Part IV

[This is the fourth part of a series on weight-loss; In this installment, I mention the South Beach Diet.  I am a biologist and not a nutritionist.  The information provided here is informational only and should not be considered advice.  I am not receiving compensation in any form for mentioning the South Beach Diet]

At the end of the last post, I was ready to pursue bariatric surgery for weight-loss.  I began to let family and friends know of my intentions and received a lot of support from them.  I made an appointment with my primary care physician for a full physical and consult for referral to a surgeon.

The physical and and laboratory tests were an obvious necessity.  I had to be in good enough health to survive the surgery and the stringent weight-loss regimen afterwards.  My appointment was in June and I learned that my weight was at an all time high- 253 lbs.  I was now more than 100 lbs overweight.  At the time of my research, the basic criteria for surgical candidates was at least 100 lbs overweight or 75 lbs overweight plus at least one weight-related health problem.  My weight-related health problems consisted of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, asthma, borderline level of glucose for diabetes, and chronic muscle and joint pain and fatigue.  I was physically a candidate.  Next, my doctor had to determine if I was mentally a candidate.

I was told that one measure of success following surgery was to lose 10% of my body weight while under physician supervision.  I would have to lose 25 lbs before I could move on to the next step in the approval process.   I was also required to meet with a dietitian, fill out a lifestyle questionnaire, and a mental health questionnaire.  The questionnaires were extensive, about 18 pages in all.  If the mental health questionnaire revealed any issues then I would have to meet with a psychologist.  Once those processes were completed then I would be re-evaluated by my primary care physican and a referral request for a bariatric surgery consult would be submitted to my HMO.

I began those processes fully committed.  I understood that surgery was not a cure, but a tool to help me manage my weight in a healthy way for me.  I began the weight-loss process and chose to use the South Beach Diet and exercise.  I chose the South Beach Diet because it is based on the glycemic index and everything I understood about nutrition indicated that it was a very healthy diet.  I also believed that it was a diet that I could use post-surgery to manage my eating.  It took me three months to lose the 25 lbs.

I met with a nutritionist who reviewed my nutrition questionnaire with me.  The meeting lasted approximately one hour and I was told that my understanding of nutrition was sufficient to be approved for the surgery.  My psychological questionnaire and lifestyle questionnaire did not indicate that I needed a face to face meeting with a psychologist. 

Once those preliminary items were completed, I returned to my primary care physician.  He reviewed the check list and submitted the request  for the surgical referral. 

to be continued...

Random Tuesday Thoughts - Let It Snow

 

The Un Mom is sippin on (no not gin and juice) hot chocolate and peppermint schnappes.  It makes for some "spirited" randomness.

I've beeen writing a series of daily (M-F) posts about my weight loss experience, but today I'm taking a little break for RTT.  I will resume the weight loss posts tomorrow.  In the mean time, if you want to get caught up, you can read I II and III.

It actually snowed at my house on Monday morning.  This was the first time it snowed since I moved here.  Granted, it was only a dusting but still, I found myself in awe.  We prefer to visit the snow and usually have to go a half hour or an hour up the hill to visit it.  But it finally visited us.

Saturday, my baby turned 14 (sniff, sniff).  She had a sleepover with a handful of friends.  All of the girls (including mine) had sweet and innocent personas that they projected until they decided to take a walk around the neighborhood. Then they came screaming and laughing into the house because they had placed two of the neighbor's Christmas reindeer in the humping position.  Ah youth--I gave them a gentle lecture about "other people's property" but couldn't help laughing because my sense of humor is so low brow.

My son started college this week (Yay Bubba!).  He and his wife HA and my granddaughter Miss Honey Bee, are now 1253 miles closer to me but they are still 1771.59 miles away (according to Mapquest).  Like his mother, Bubba got the baby, marriage, college process in reverse order, but hey look how great I turned out (insert your own personal snark here). He did choose wisely though, I adore my DIL and my granddaughter is adorable and sweet.

My oldest daughter HNH is getting her own preview of parenthood.  She adopted a Pomeranian puppy named Tobias and I understand he is keeping her up nights.

My grandmother had her toe amputated last week.  She is a diabetic and 85 years old.  There was concern at one point that she might need to have her leg removed below the knee.  Luckily, it was just the toe.

As I sit here at the desk, typing, away, I'm waiting on the FedEx man to deliver  a new lamp for our big screen TV.  I'm the only one in the house who hasn't missed the big TV.  Surprisingly though, the kids haven't commandeered the other TV, so maybe I'm not the only one not missing it.  My husband, however, is wringing his hands.  He also has a crazy look in his eye and talks about going bowling (who knew that TV withdrawal could lead to a bowling obsession).  If you were going to suggest that I try distracting him with sex, I've already tried that.  If he would pass out like most men do afterward, it would work.  I happen to have married a man who immediately following sex, is always energized and wants to go to Vegas.  You heard me correctly, LAS VEGAS NEVADA.  It's only an 8 hour drive.  Sex doesn't make him beat on his chest and proclaim that he is "the man".  For some reason, it makes him want to gamble.  I have yet to figure it all out.  He has yet to actually ever get up and drive to Vegas after sex, but we have hopped in the car and drove to Reno (only a two hour drive) occasionally.  I don't ask, I just enjoy the "ride" ( I can hear you groaning)

My Christmas tree is nine feet tall and artificial.  Two of my children are allergic to evergreen trees ( a real bummer) and so we've had artificial trees for many years.  I miss the scent of a fresh tree and pine scented candles just smell too much like Pine Sol to me.  

Random schmandom, I've got stuff to do.  See ya later.

I've Lost, but Look What I've Gained! Part III

[This is the third part of a series on weight-loss]

So at the end of the last post I wondered if I would have the courage to actually have bariatric surgery.  I spent a significant amount of time thoroughly researching the surgical procedure and the studies and statistics for the post-surgical outcome.  I actively learned as much as I could about bariatric surgery until I started the new job.  I was not quite ready, however, to actually have the surgery. 

The new job was a completely new type of position for me.  It was a newly created position at a small company.  My background from previous careers made it a great fit.  I had told my then sweetheart (now Hubby) that I wouldn't even consider marriage until I had a job and could stand on my own two feet.  I think I had the job about a week before he proposed.  This job was quick-paced and required long hours.  I often went to work at 7:00 am and left the office at 10:00pm.  It was very sedentary and so the battle of the bulge ensued and I was losing the battle significantly. 

We married in December, right before Christmas.  Our families had already planned a family gathering in Las Vegas, so we decided to add a surprise wedding to the mix.  Our families were thrilled and we had a wonderful wedding.

Back at work after the holidays, my long days resumed.  I tried to compensate for my lack of movement by eating as healthy as possible.  It was a huge struggle and without any real exercise, it became apparent that all I was managing to accomplish was to not gain at a rapid pace.  However, I did still gain.

In March, I attended a meeting at work and the CEO shared the financial reports with us.  The red ink was a big, blaring sign of things to come.  Being the newest employee in a newly created position, the writing was on the wall and by the end of March, I was once again unemployed (so much for standing on my own two feet).

One thing had become very clear during my research.  Surgical intervention was highly controversial and significantly frowned upon by many, including some high-profile personalities. It was a common topic on talk shows, and each one that I watched made it very clear that most people considered weight-loss surgery to be cheating.  It was a judgment that I found unjustified.   My research proved to me that with the right perspective, commitment and expectations, it was a good and life-saving option.  There was one final piece of information that solidified my decision to have the surgery.  It was a story of bariatric surgery performed for a different health problem other than weight-loss.

I read a story ( I wish I could remember now which publication) in a magazine about a family who had a genetic pre-disposition for stomach cancer.  Several family members had elected to have gastrectomies to lessen the potential for cancer.  They had chosen to do this because they believed it would save their lives.  Their decisions could not be reversed, much like  the Roux-En-Y procedure I was contemplating.  This story made me realize that the stigma associated with weight-loss surgery was something that could not stand in the way of my decision.  It made me see that if I felt I was at risk for death because of my weight, then I was fully justified in pursuing the best option (for me) to manage and reduce or eliminate that risk.

I told my husband that I believed I was ready to pursue the surgical option for weight-loss.  He knew that I had been researching bariatric surgery and he fully supported my pursuit; not because he didn't like the way I looked, but because he completely understood how much I struggled and how worried I was that I wouldn't live to see my grandchildren.  I told him that while I didn't plan to stop looking for a job, I would use the time off to see if I qualified for the surgery and if so, plan to have the surgery and recovery while I wasn't working.  Our insurance was an HMO plan, so I knew I had a long road of approval processes ahead of me.  It turned out that it was a much longer process than I anticipated.

I made an appointment with my primary care physician to start the ball rolling.

to be continued...

I've Lost, but Look What I've Gained! Part II

[This is the second part of a series on weight-loss]

When last I left you I had reconnected with my childhood sweetheart and after spending a fun-filled week in Vegas with him, we decided to try to make a relationship happen.  And happen it did!  I was still living in DC and he was living in sunny northern California.  He is a government wank with a pension to beat most and wasn't about to relocate under any circumstances.  I worked for a global company, who's headquarters just happened to sit in the Bay area with satellite offices in the same town as my sweetheart(by the way, he is now my husband and that is another sordid tale I will tell in its entirety in a future post or two).  So after our week in Vegas, we returned to our respective corners of the continent and tried to figure it all out.  Then I got a promotion, almost randomly, that required that I move to California.

In the mean time, I began to struggle up and down with the weight again.  The job change and the move across country brought new stressors to my life.  The changes were positive, but they were still changes.  My eating was good then bad then good again and continued in this vicious cycle.  Exercise was spotty at best.  Six months later I had regained the 30 lbs.  Luckily, my size did not change how my future hubby felt about me.  After the move, I continued to struggle with eating and exercising.  Sometimes, I would be completely diligent and committed.  Other times I ate and sat on my butt with wild abandon.  Stress was still high; the new job began to crush me with tasks about a year after I accepted it.  The company was struggling financially (most were at the time) and even though I wasn't at risk for a layoff, I was required to pick up additional duties as the company "downsized".

I began to struggle not only with my weight but my mental health as well.  I began taking Paxil and Ambien to deal with the stress--two drugs that have potential weight gain as side effects.   It seems that medical professionals might think twice about that when they hand them over to obese patients, but you and I know otherwise.  I also began to take blood pressure medication and it should be noted that I had been using an inhaler for exercise-induced asthma for several years.

My mother bought me a lifetime gym membership for Christmas, and I was thrilled to have it!  I began earnestly exercising and following the diet plan laid out by a professional trainer.  I began to lose weight very slowly.   The job stress escalated to the point that I knew my health was in jeopardy because of it.  So I quit the job.  I whole-heartedly believed in my ability to get another job right away, so I did not line up a second job beforehand.  It took nine months to find another job.

In the mean time, depression and stress from not having a job replaced the job stress.  But, while I was twiddling my thumbs in between job applications and interviews, I began to research weight-loss options in earnest.  Back in the nineties, I barely missed being part of the Phen-fen tragedies--thankfully.  Soon after that, I heard about new procedures for weight-loss surgery.  I remembered back in the seventies, stomach stapling was popular for a while but then it seemed to die out.  I started reading articles and watching news stories and documentaries on the new bariatric procedures.

I wondered if I would have the courage to actually have that type of surgery.  At the time, I wasn't ready to throw in the towel on conventional weight-loss, but I kept the idea in my head and learned as much as I could.  Being a biologist and having worked in the medical field, I knew where to find unbiased information and studies.  I actively learned as much as I could about bariatric surgery until I started the new job.  I was not quite ready, however, to actually have the surgery. 

to be continued...