I am ONE-derful! :)

I am delighted to report that I AM ONE-DERFUL!  I now weigh 197 pounds… forever out of the 200s! Yay!  I've lost 51 pounds since May 23. This is just unbelievable! If anyone reading this has even had just a fleeting thought of having bariatric surgery, all I can say is… DO IT! DO IT!  I wish I'd done it a long time ago! Read up on it! Go to an informational meeting. Salem Hospital has informational meetings all the time. Go to them! I was so afraid of having this surgery… terrified, really, but after attending the informational meeting and the monthly support group meetings… and after completing all the prerequisite evaluations and tests, I was more than ready to have the surgery. So far, it's working. I have every reason to believe it will continue to work, as long as I can follow instructions and manage to … oh… here's that dreaded word… EXERCISE!

But… here's more good news! I have exercised four days this past week! FOUR days! That's like a record for me! I tried the belly dancing (oh… quit yer laughin!) on Exercise TV. It's actually fun! I actually ENJOY it! Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh… don't tell Joanne that… I'll deny it! She's the personal trainer at group therapy on Tuesdays.  So, two mornings this week I did the belly dancing routines. There are three of them. One day I did all three. This morning, I just did one… so far. One day I went walking and then there was the group therapy exercise class. Four days of exercise. I can hardly stand it! So, I'm hoping this is the start of getting it all together! I just need to keep that up. It's much easier to get through if I can get it done first thing in the morning… well, after Kerry's gone. LOL  And I think my neighbor and I are going to start water aerobics Monday. If it works out, we'll go Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. So, there's three days right there! And I'd still like to take a look at the line dancing. I found a class right in town, at the Senior Center. They told me I could go as a "senior in training."  LOL  :)  Some of those seniors will probably outpace me in the dance class! Their classes are Mondays and Thursdays. I think I'd enjoy that, too!

I'm still working on getting enough protein and water in. I don't think I'll ever get enough water in. I used to drink MUCH more water before I had the surgery, but, since the surgery, I can only sip a little at a time and I just am not sipping enough in the course of a day. If I sip too much or too fast, it's not comfortable and feels like it's going to come back up… it did once. 64 ounces is the recommended minimum, and, when it's hot and humid out, they want us to drink even more. I don't know how people fit it in, but I continue to try.

Protein is another story. I've sort of given up on getting enough protein, which means, I may be losing some of my hair. Well, I know I am losing hair, but it isn't noticeable yet, unless you look at the bath tub or my hair brush. Yikes! Well, I've always liked hats. Even when I fill in the day's menu with Greek yogurt (it has more protein than regular yogurt), I still don't get the recommended 60-70 grams a day. I just can't eat that much. I can't eat beef. Beef makes me uncomfortable. I can't eat pork… same result. I don’t really like eggs. I can eat chicken and seafood, and that's what I've been existing on. I did discover that I really like turkey burgers and they really like me! I had one last night at a cookout we went to. I brought them and I had one and Kerry had two. We both thought they tasted just like beef burgers! I had mine on grilled Texas toast (to cut down on the carbs, I sliced one slice into two, before grilling -- thinner bread) with provolone cheese. So, okay… I probably added too much fat with the provolone cheese, but, I must say, it was DELICIOUS!  And, once again, I can feel normal at a function!  Yay!  :)  I have some veggie burgers in the freezer that I haven't tried yet, but, that may be another option at a future cookout.

I was with "my girls" last night… my best buds… the girls I go to Florida with each fall. They are a crazy bunch and I love them to death! We got to talking about Sanibel this year and, it saddens me, because I may not be able to go with them this year. ::sniffle::  :(   I may have to go on a cruise, instead. So sad. Here's the deal. In March I got an e-mail from Norwegian Cruise Line inviting me on a free cruise to enter their qualifying slot tournament. I looked at the e-mail and said, "yah, right… what's the catch?" So, I got out my NCL casino card and called the casino marketing number on the card, rather than the one on the e-mail. Yah.. that's right. I do have a casino preferred player card for NCL cruises. LOL  Kerry and I like the slots and, apparently, NCL knows that. And, yes, the e-mail was for real. They are inviting me and a guest to a free Caribbean cruise, to qualify in their slot tournament. I could choose from four dates, one the end of March, one the beginning of April, another at the end of July and the last one in October. Well, by the time I got the e-mail, the March cruise would be coming up in a week or so. That one was out. Kerry and I were going on a cruise the second week in April, so the April one was out. We were going to Maine the last week of July, so that one was out. The only one I could go on was October 22. So, I booked it. Now, if I qualify for the final tournament, I'll have to go on another cruise that leaves November 13. The girls are going to Sanibel on November 12.  :(  While no one, including me, wants me to lose the qualifying round, we all want me to go to Florida! So, we'll see what happens.  :)  In any case, I get the free cruise and, by using frequent flyer miles, I have free first class flights to get there as well!  ;)  And I DO so love cruising! But, I'll miss my girls!

Well, that's about it for this week! I am now officially ONE-derful! How are you?  ;)  Talk atcha next week!