Sale on Fills and Missing My Boys

Fills:
I thought I would post about my second “first” fill. A little summary first. I was banded on February 10th and had 3 cc in my band. I had my first fill on March 9th, when Dr. Doug put it up to 4 cc. On March 22nd, after many days of PBing and vomiting I went sobbing back to his office and he took out fluid (Click here to read about that). Two weeks of letting my stomach heal and I was back for a refill last Wednesday (at 8 weeks post-op). I am now back to 3 cc, the same amount I had at surgery. It sucks. I have a bit of restriction again but am getting hungry every 2-3 hours. So I don’t know if I’ve even had a first fill—I failed my first and gained a couple of pounds—that d*mn gravity pull thing everyone was talking about last week—hex on it.

I am taking it slow. Next time I see him I will ask for just 0.5 cc. I think it best to take it gradual given my problems the last time. Dr. Doug also told me that there are a few who will hit their “sweet spot” with only a few little fills. I will gauge what I need by looking at my weight loss. I have basically been stuck at the same weight for the last two weeks but am down a smidgen of weight (0.4 lbs) today. I’ll see if this refill will help. The good news is Dr. Doug has dropped his fill charge from $75 to $50. A 33% off sale. I love sales. Just so you know, I use a local doctor for my fills as it is a 5 hours drive to the surgical clinic where they are free. I think my doc here is giving me a break because I also see his nurses for nutrition counselling and pay for those visits ($15 every few weeks).

Missing My Boy #1
My son is one of the wonders I created (along with his older sister). I’ll give some credit to DH because I did need his “input” for those few seconds. If you take the “S” off my name, you can guess his name. He’s always been called by this short name unlike my male follower in UAE (did you guess the name yet?—please don’t put it in any comments). Anyway, Little A is now 24 and left for South Africa two weeks ago. He and a friend (who is originally from South Africa) are having a bit of a vacation and doing some mission work in Durban this week so I haven’t heard from him—I’m sure there aren’t many wireless networks around the area. LOL. My son is very involved with the Pentecostal church. In his teens, he began with the youth group and just embraced the church as his second family. Neither my husband nor I attend church so it is a with a bit of amazement that we raised this pretty cool kid.

He was in South Africa three years ago with his youth group for some mission work in Swaziland. They helped a village build a well for clean water and other odd jobs needed by the communities. It wasn’t a “go in and take over” but a “we can help with what you need done with this little bit of money”. They had raised a few thousand dollars from garage sales—I donated a ton of stuff and it helped me clear out my clutter. I felt good that it was going to a good cause but it also de-cluttered my life in the process. Only a few hundred dollars brought clean water to a small village. Suitcases of clothes and some medical supplies were also taken on the trip. My son told me what a great experience Africa was to him. We sometimes forget the size of this world and feel helpless. But it only takes one act of kindness to change a life. The little boy in the first picture smiling from ear to ear. For a few hours he had some visitors who cared and they left him with some warm clothes, food and a few dollars. And a village has clean water to drink. That is what mission work is--there is no bible thumping or sermonizing. It is the simple acts of kindness that people do for each other.

Beautiful smile! This child (about 10 yrs old) was raising his two younger brothers and caring for his sick grandmother. His mother had died of AIDS.

Here are some of the villagers.

Water source for the Village. Villagers would fetch this water, boil it, and then drink it. The animals also drank directly from this pond.

The end result. With a few dollars and help from all the villagers a nice stone path was built to get to the plastic barrel serving as a well to hold filtered spring water and keep it separated.

 To the left is my son with the grandson of the lady where they stayed.

The trip wasn't just work and no play for the group. They also had some fun sightseeing in Kruger National Park and along the southern coast around Capetown. I’ve included these pictures as I think they are beautiful and I am so proud of my little baby. He is making a difference in this world, one tiny bit at a time. He’ll be back home at the end of April but mom’s have the right to miss their babies no matter how old they get.

The coast of South Africa where the Atlantic meets the Indian Ocean.

Missing My Boy #2

My DH is leaving on Tuesday for a business trip to China and the Philippines. So Boy #2 will be gone for two weeks and I will have no one around to tempt me with lovely dinners. Right, LOL. My DH is much better at pouring wine than he is at cooking. When we first met he made me Coquille St. Jacques (scallops in cream sauce with mashed potatoes). Amazing. It wasn’t until we married that I found out it was his only recipe. Oh well, he’s good in bed!  I’ll miss him too but will sleep like a baby!

So for the next while I’ll have to depend on my blogger friends to keep me company. I mentioned in a comment that reading the blogs is like following a soap opera. I can’t wait to find out what the next episode will be. This past week had many revealing posts and it helped me see further into everyone’s lives and my own. I feel like a voyeur at times. I guess we should all get ready for our summer hiatus and a cliff hanger post (Noooooo!). I also love that I have gotten to know a bit of your lives. But for those who find it hard to post revealing parts of themselves, it doesn’t matter. We are a community that accepts everyone—tell as much or as little as you want. Someone mentioned a worry about being judged—never! You have become my kids, my sisters/brothers but mostly my friends. I hope you let the old lady hang around and enjoy this ride a bit more.

And one more request. If you are following me, please leave me a comment with a link to your blog if you have one. I can't find the link in your profile and would love to follow you.

BYOC for Friday

BYOC–Bring your own Craziness
1. If you could have lunch with a famous person who would it be and what would you order?
Shirley Temple because she was so cute and I watched all her movies. Any of you remember the Good Ship Lollipop (Bright Eye's) where her mother is killed? My favourite was Poor Little Rich Girl where she was treated like dirt but came out on top in the end, still smiling and singing. I even created the Lollipop inspiration award with her picture for my blog. And I'd order candy!
2. Where’s the furthest place you’ve traveled to?
Plenty of places—China, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Australia, New Zealand. Mile wise, not sure which one is the furthest. The longest flight hour wise was to Oz. I think my best trip was to Munich during Oktoberfest.
3. If you could describe yourself in 4 words – what would they be?
Loyal, caring, stubborn and a pain in the a** (sometimes).
4. What’s one interesting thing about you we don’t know?
I create Digital scrapbooks with pictures from my travels and family. I love photography but stick to a little digital camera I can carry in my pocket because I like to point and shoot and not have to adjust too many dials.
5. Finally – whose blog spoke to you, stuck with you, stayed in your mind, resonated with you – this week – and why?
There were a lot of soul-searching blogs this week—as Joey put it a real Barbra Wawa Week! A few weeks ago, I started adding interesting posts to a page in my blog so I could go back and read them again. I pick one each day and on Thursday post the best one of the week. This week, the recipient of the Lollipop Award for most inspiring post went to Barbara and her New Life Rules. Because I want to be just like her.
And did everyone read how Gilly saved Joey's life!

My Dad

A few posts yesterday got me reminiscing and thinking back to my childhood. Then as I looked at the date I realized my Dad died 10 years ago today, on April 7th, 2000. He was 72. This is just a walk down memory lane for me so feel free to skip this post.

1958: My dad (30 yrs old) and me (4 yrs old) playing checkers.

(He quit smoking cold turkey shortly after this picture was taken)

My Dad came from a large family—he was the whoops kid, born 10 years after his closest sibling. He had a Grade 10 education, sailed on the tankers on the Great Lakes and quit for a land job at an oil company when I was born. He worked shift work all his life and made sure we all got through University—all five of us! When we were young my parents packed us up every summer to go camping. Later we got a trailer, then a cottage. I don’t remember much of my childhood other than being the fat one in the family but I do know I didn’t block out any terrible incidents. My dad was just there. He taught me to use tools, to change a tire and how to drive—with all the yelling and screaming. I build things like him. I fix things like him. As I get older, I also look like him. He was there to reassure us in 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis when we all thought we were going to die in a nuclear war. He worked two jobs to support 5 kids and my mom. He loved Oh Henry bars and so do I. Sometimes when he worked afternoons, he would call my mom and have her keep us awake until midnight because he was bringing home Kentucky Fried Chicken (now KFC). A bucket with all the trimmings cost $4.99 (ok, it was the 60’s). He didn’t drink much but had a beer or three and loved hockey—the Detroit Red Wings were his team until Bobby Orr became the star of the Boston Bruin’s. He watched old war movies on Sunday’s and hunted deer and moose in the fall.

Life seemed to be going well for all of us until 1974 when my mother was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. She was 45. I was 20. When I married in 1981, she was in a wheelchair and in 1986 we put her in a nursing home because of my dad’s ill health. She was only 58 and so was my dad. By the time they had enough money to travel, my mom was hit by MS and that never happened. They were able to go to Hawaii once with her in the wheelchair. I think that is one reason I have tried to travel so much and have not waited until I am old. You might never reach “old” and even if you do you might not be healthy—my biggest fear.

My dad became ornery as he aged, angry at my mom’s illness, ticked off that all their retirement plans were now gone. He had angina, diabetes and a small stroke by his late 50’s and didn’t take good care of himself. He had a pot belly but wasn’t more than 30 pounds overweight. None of us kids were around much as most of us lived hours away and rarely visited. So the work of taking care of my mom fell to him. We all dealt differently with her illness but mostly avoidance of being with them. He continued to work but found it lonely which led to him having a girlfriend who cooked for him and travelled with him. When my mom found out, we kids were drawn down the deadly slope of choosing sides. Mom never forgave me for wanting to continue to have a relationship with my dad. She has since died but that will be another post.

Diabetes did him in. That year (2000) he returned from a vacation with an infected toe which put him in the hospital. He was there about 2 weeks before anyone knew. He hadn’t even called my mom. In fact no one could get in touch with him to tell him his brother had died. He was devastated when he found out he had missed the funeral. After multiple tests, he had his toe amputated but they also discovered his circulation was so bad from the poorly controlled diabetes, he would have to go home to build his strength and then return for major bypass surgery. The day he was leaving the hospital, he got up, collapsed and died of a blood clot to his lung. Quick. It’s how we all want to go. It was a blessing because I knew in my heart that he would probably not survive the second surgery. I called him in the hospital before his toe was amputated and just before I hung up I said "I love you". I don't think I had ever said that to him before. I didn't get to speak with him again, but in thinking back, I guess I had said everything I needed to say.

As I sit here writing this, I think of what he went through. I used to think, why doesn’t my dad just do something to get healthy. Diabetes is preventable, so is high cholesterol, high BP and heart disease. Why doesn’t he lose weight, exercise and eat right. Well now I’m in the same situation with all the same problems. So I have to say to me: “Why don’t you just lose weight, exercise and eat right”.

I hope that seeing my dad die young from preventable diseases kicks my butt and helps me do this once and for all. I have exercised for years but gave up and just stopped last year. But I’ve started again—4 km walks. I am also going to start weights soon as well. I can’t say if my dad is watching over me right now but I think so. I am a big believer in signs and I’ve had a few since making this decision to have the lapband. The first was that my pre-op diet began on his birthday (January 26th). I am getting a fill today at 4:00 (the anniversary of the day he died). I see pennies on the ground and always say, “Hi Dad”. There have been two sitting on the floor at work for weeks now.

I also believe that we carry a part of those that have died in our hearts. No matter how hard we try not to be like them, it is inevitable that we will, in some small way. They are in the memories and pictures we have, the mementos that they left us and the lessons they taught us. So I leave with a “Hi Dad, I’m working hard to be healthy”. I know you would have understood. And if any of you got this far, spend a moment to think of someone you have lost and just say Hi.

Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution

Has anyone been watching this show by Jamie Oliver? He is filming in Huntington, West Virginia, currently called the unhealthiest community in the USA. Jamie did a similar “Revolution” in England and revamped the crappy food served at the schools there. It airs here on Friday night but it also runs on ABC the same night. If you live in the US you can watch full episodes at ABC.

I watched the show on Friday and it showed some of the negative feedback he is getting from the community. One bright moment was when he recruited some students from the local High School to help him figure out how to go about introducing healthier food in the school cafeteria. The nutritionist overseeing the food program at the high school, classed French Fries as a vegetable. It was funny watching her confirm repeatedly that those were the nutrition guidelines they had to follow (1¼ cup of vegetables must be served). He had prepared a stir fry of 8 different vegetables with pasta and chicken and it didn’t meet guidelines—there wasn’t enough vegetable in the meal. The hotdog and French fries served in the other food line did meet the guidelines because French fries were classed as a vegetable and there was an optional salad being served (none of the students added the salad).

At an elementary school, one food worker was sooo negative (see Episode 101). She b!tched and complained about how much more work it was to cook the food Jamie suggested. She wanted to just pop the chicken nuggets and French fries in the oven and not have to prepare any food from scratch. When he spoke with the high school students they were really inspirational. One obese young lady had us all in tears by the end of the show as she was determined to help make some changes and spoke passionately to a huge audience. We’ll see how it develops.

Jamie Oliver may be abrasive and not well liked when he speaks out. But his mantra is to help make people healthy and sometimes it takes a loud-mouth to tell it like it is and wake us up. He isn’t about getting everyone to lose weight, but to get people thinking about what goes in their mouth. He is also trying to take into consideration the cost of food. For some it is cheaper to buy food at a drive thru, than to buy fruits and vegetables. Tough audience. We’ll see if he has any success or will he be driven out of town. What did I get out of this show?
    *Cooking from scratch is a healthier way to go, those nuggets and frozen dinners are not the best way to eat.
    *French Fries are not a vegetable.
    *Kids are pretty smart and are like sponges when we teach them right.
    *We have so much and yet many of us are unhealthy.

Here are links to the show: Jamie's Food Revolution

And since I am off work today, I am surfing through the talk shows. Oprah showed a lady who had lost and gained and lost 175 pounds. Dr. Phil is talking about how we are making our kids fat. And Dr. Oz is speaking out on how DNA is responsible for how we eat and how our genes affect our weight and which foods we should eat. Maybe I'll just go for a walk. And to let everyone know, I am working on my post about raising my kids. I hope to have it posted sometime this week.

We are HOT HOT HOT!

To all you non-believers. Yes in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada today (and yesterday), we are breaking temperature records thanks to a stream of hot air pushing up from the Gulf of Mexico. We have never been this warm at this time of year, ever. This was not an April Fool's joke, although our radio station tried to make us think we would be having a blizzard.

We are HOT, HOT, HOT and loving it. I'm in my capris and T-shirt, windows open, sun shining down and we had a high of 29C (85F) on Good Friday and a repeat today of 27C (80) with a humidex making it feel like 30C (86F). We have the patio furniture out and plan to fire up the Barbie tonight and enjoy this early treat. Oh and the wine and beer are cooling in the fridge. Yeah for global warming and El Nino! 

Let us northerners be happy for a few days until it turns cool again. But summer is on its way. We can feel it.

Sunday, April 4th: Yes, I caught what I thought was the Easter bunny (see picture). I want to keep him! So cute.

Friday Question(s)

I’m going to be a rebel here and not answer all of Drazil’s questions. I think I used up my post time last night. So… I chose #6. Whose blog hit home for you this week or whose blog made you think the most this week?

And the winner on both points is (drumroll!!!): Amanda for posting Fat is a Family Affair last Monday. It has intrigued me to write a future post (hopefully soon).

I answered #5 (What do you do for a living?) a few days ago, so here is a link to that post: How I earn my Crust.

Ramblings...

Not sure why I am writing in my blog tonight, but I just finished catching up on everyone's April Fool Day truths and it got me thinking. I was amazed by the food that was eaten (Band Babe), the kiddies who are in sugar hazes (Camille), the tricks that were played (Joey), the pounds that were lost/gained (Band Groupie, Dinnerland) and the pregnancies that were announced. Yes, I counted a bunch of preggies amongst my blogger friends (I won't tell since you want to surprise your hubbies). Congrats to all. I am not blond, but I am a sucker and believe almost anything I am told. I also just finished off the last of a lovely bottle of Riesling which gets my brain pumping. My DH had a glass so let's calculate... Oh lets see, I've have 4 glasses and DH had 1 and the bottle is empty. DH is the accountant so can probably figure it out for me but he's doing my taxes right now and I get money back! Sorry, I'm easily distracted.

Today started out miserable when the radio station announced that the weather forecast had changed and we would be getting freezing rain tonight and 45 centimetres of blowing snow (I think that is about 18") over the next couple of days. Last night we were supposed to have temps of 25 C (Jess that's 77 F). No matter what, it was supposed to be hot! You have to remember that here in Ottawa, at this time of the year we usually still have 4 feet of snow and it is freezing. I could feel the tears forming.

So they got me. I switched stations and started to replan my weekend of pulling out the patio furniture and sipping some cool ones. It finally dawned on me that it was April 1st. It was all a lie! I told you I was gullible Which led me to finishing work early (actually giving the finger to my computer), going for my nutrition counselling appointment, booking my fill for next Wednesday and promptly finding this lovely bottle of wine in the fridge.

I hope ya'll don't think me an alcoholic. I get "southern" when I drink. A lot of my posts mention the merits of wine. My drink of choice is actually beer but I haven't attempted a cold one yet. Thus I am stuck on wine. I am now off work for four days and it is actually and truly going to be hot (yes Jess 77F is hot to me). Yeah! We have no snow and yes the patio furniture will be coming outside. I want to get a sun burn. I need the Vitamin D.

Before I go, I wanted to give another award to Gilly (since she looooves awards). It is the Fluevog award. She doesn't realize that since I saw one of her early posts about her dream shoes that I see Fluevogs everywhere. It is like they are multiplying everywhere. I check out the shoes of all the people I see looking for the Fluevog label. A magazine last weekend had a few pages of Fluevog's. I think they are so cool, but alas cannot wear heels, so I will live through all of you. My feet are a wreck and high heel pointy things seem so foreign to me. I love my Nike's. So I hope you all get your dream shoes. And let me live through your shoes.

I hope ya'll (or is it y'all) have a lovely weekend. Watch those d@mn chocolate bunnies (Drazil). And thanks to all of you for bringing some sunshine into my life today with your funny posts. I still can't believe how gullible I am at my age. You would think I'd learn. Maybe I'll tell my DH I'm preggers. Whoops, he had the Big V so maybe not!