You poor thing Jeni, I hope you feel better soon.

I have to work this weekend, but Monday and Tuesday are holidays and we are closed. I plan on taking half of Wednesday off, and I get Thursday and Friday off for working this weekend and will be taking the 31 off, so after Sunday, I don't have to work of over a week and only have to use 1 1/2 days of vacation. Damn, I love my job. Granted, yesterday kind of sucked. It had to do with a fish throwing up and trust me, it was messy.

It will just be my dh, dd, ds and myself for Christmas. We don’t do much for Christmas Eve, just sit around and watch movies. Christmas Day this year I am thinking about making everyone wait to open anything until after breakfast. I still haven’t made up my mind. But either way, breakfast is a hash brown casserole. It has hash browns, of course, with green peppers and onions, topped with sausage, scrambled eggs and cheese and baked until the cheese is melted. My family loves it. Lunch will be soup and sandwiches, but supper is the bomb. Standing Rib roast with baked potatoes and asparagus all paired with my favorite wine.

Looking back over this, it still seems that I center holidays around food. But in-between meals, there is always something going on. Whether it is putting something together or playing a new board game, we spend it together. And that it what I love most, just being with my family on that day. With my son turning 19 in February and going away for college this spring, it seem like these days are numbered. So for now I just want to enjoy it while it last.

So, what are everyone’s plans for the holidays?

My Christmas is spent with my kid in bits here and there. My ex works in a hospital so we flex the schedule to accomodate that and different family obligations.

I have my daughter for most of Monday but in the evening she goes with the ex for her giant Italian family thing. She'll open up Christmas there on the 25th. At noon she'll come to me and see what Santa left at my house. At 2pm my sibs, their significant others, their children and thier childrens' SOs, plus my mom, her husband, and his mother will be there. Add to that I have two single good friends who will also join us for dinner...so I have a full house.

I'm making fancy food, which should keep me busy enough to keep me from boo hooing too much about being with out either of my babies. The other one being my sweetheart who is having her entire family at her house 284 miles away. The long distance relationship really blows a few times a year and right now is one of those times.

But she's so excited to have everyone to her house I can't help but be excited for her...and me and DD are going up for New Year's.

Anyway that's what I am doing.

Hi! I'm so excited to find this board! I have been in a rut- but I went back to get my band "recalibrated" - when he removed the fluid he said, "there there is hardly anything in here! "nd refilled me- I have been doing much better- he said that it had "sweated off".

This year I am going to make a couple of things for holiday celebrations-- some mini sweet potatoe pies and sugar cookies. Mostly because I really like making cookies. Maybe a pie. I enjoy baking more than the eating these days. I throw things out eventually, usually half of the recipe yeild, but I don't mind so much.

And these size 16 misses jeans are fitting well! This year I am not at all focused on food. Though I have been drinking more-- After new years I need to stop that :)

But my best friend is with me this year for the holiday, she flew in from Boston where she is at grad school. She has had a hellish past few months-- she has colon cancer now. And a year younger than I am too! But she is doing great, doing some oral chemo which isn't so much fun, and on a mostly liquid diet, pretty restricted. So I'm making sure she is getting soup and tea and fluids down and taking her meds. And then in the evenings I go out with my friend and my other old roomate (my friend was one of my roomates before I got married) and maybe one or two other people. I find myself watching what she eats because I know what she is allowed and what makes her feel nauseated later and those things can be hard for her to resist-- I get that! Reminds me of when I had my gallbladder out, but she is doing pretty well as long as she has a nice comfy spot. She starts a second and last round of her chemo on christmas eve (so she is doing better in time for her flight back) and of course thats when we will be traveling and have family gatherings. I'm just going to make her food she can eat (she has lots of allergies too) and make sure everyone knows she isn't feeling that well.

DH pulled up some pictures and I really am much thinner this year than I was last year. I look pretty good, comparing the two. How will I look next year? Hopefully hot, and great and be at goal then...

Merry X-Mas To Everyone.

I'm am so glad I found this spot. It seems like I don't have much to say. Everything I've read I've feel,felt or experienced. The only thing I haven't experienced is any restriction such as you've had. I may of felt it once and that was maybe for a week.

I'm losing slowly, and I'm seeing results is inches and clothing. My next fill is 1/02/08. I'm going to ask for a 1cc fill. That'll put me at 2.8cc and I hope I'll see more results. Like the 2lbs a week I'm promised. The most I'll lose is 5 lbs a month. I'm hooked on the scale which I try still can't shake.

X-Mas guest list is scaled down a lot, my best friend/sister is in the hospital, so her daughter is going to her brother's house in Penn., my sister's husband has to work and my 2nd friend is going over to her daughte's house. So, it just my 2 daughters and grandson and me. So cooking will be quicker and not so much leftovers.

So, everyone have a safe and healthy X-Mas along with enjoying friends and family.

Also, how did you get the ticker onto your page? I tried and don't know what I'm doing wrong.

Hey guys, I am so lazy I actually am pasting my question on the bottom from what i have posted on the general board. HE HE!
Have a wonderful Christmas!

I had my surgery on March 20 2007. I am down around 55lbs. I have a 4cc band.
Here is my dilemma, at 2cc's I am so tight I am on liquids mostly and very thinned out soft food, anything more and I have major sliming episodes.
1.7 cc where I am now results in practically no restriction (can eat a hamburger).
I honestly do not know where to go from here. I have a fill appointment on December 26. Do you think that having like 1.8 or 1.9 would really make that much difference? I can't believe between 1.7 and 2.0 I am seeing such a huge difference.
Has anyone decided just to lose the entire weight drinking the protein shakes and just being done with it.?
I have a very large stomach overhang and want to have a tummy tuck over the summer. I am 40lbs away from the number that the doc has chosen to consider the tummy tuck.

Personally, I do think it can make a difference. Sort of like goldilocks-- not enough, too much, there has to be something that is just right.

My last fill was only .3 cc and that was back in mid October and I've still got good restriction.

Talk to your doc.

Thank you Mrs. H

I feel better.. :)



Merry Christmas to everyone :whoo:

Huh? I have never heard of losing a fill because of this. Is he sure you don't have a leak?

Hi Janine, I believe I have a 1.8cc fill and I can eat anything I want. All the issues I'm supposed to have with a proper fill, I've only experienced once. My appetite is such that it seems I don't have a band. I can tolerate all the foods I used to eat.

I had my band placed 3/27/07 and I have lost only 30lbs since then. So, maybe, a 1.8 or 1.9 might be your spot. I was considering having a full 1cc fill. Thinking that will give me the restriction I'm looking for. But since you and I began about the same weight, maybe I should just stick to my regular .4 or .5 fill. My next fill is 1/2/08.

Well, Good Luck on Wednesday.

I am at a point that I don't know if I want another fill, but think I need one. I was going to call after the first of the year and see about getting .1 or .2cc. Nothing more than that. I keep going back and forth on this and wish it was easier to tell.

I never decide on the amount of fill i get... my surgeon is a pretty aggressive filler.. the first fill i got was 3.2cc's (in a VG 11cm band) i currently have around 7cc's in there and i only had 4 fills so as you can tell small fills don't exist in my docs book.. but whenever he does it it always seems right..

I hope everyones Christmas Eve is going well and hopefully not to nuts... Usually at my house my mom goes a little crazy getting everything prepared for the 20 people she needs to feed... I usually am waiting for her head to start spinning ... Surprisingly, this year she is fairly calm what a shocker!!!!



P.S. hopefully i wont fall into the temptation of all the yummy treats my mom baked

Hi! I just recently found this website and I love it! I am so encouraged by what I have read. But I'm also a little sad- everyone seems to have lost so much more weight than me! I didn't feel restriction for the last 3 months and gained 5 pounds, then I got a fill right before christmas and I've lost that and then some! So Im very excited about the progress- I had just started eating things I couldn't before due to not feeling restriction and too much junk around for the holidays... and now I'm happy to say Im doing better! I just need to exercise though- when I get home from work (as a physical therapist) I'm just so TIERD and have a three year old! Any ideas on easy ways to get exercise in? I was thinking maybe the morning....

Hi, Diana, if you have cable channel you many find an exercise/fitness channel. Since cable is 24/7 you may turn onto it at any time. I started with a "Walk a Mile", 17 min. program. You may also try other programs on there. Then there are the simple ones you can do standing or sitting at your work station, in the car, at the table or whereever. ex. stretching is always the best. Standing lunges, while at the sink, washing dishes/brushing your teeth, exercise while watching (a commerical is about 3 minutes), leg extensions, deep knee bends,taking a can of vegetables and doing arm exercises, deep breathing.
There is no reason to get some kind of exercise in. Even YouTube have exercise video to watch. I don't know if there is a area site here, but any exercise site will show you which exercise to do.

From there I graduated to going to the gym. I had built up my confidence to "Jump of the Porch and Run with the Big Dogs".