I have restriction!

*does a little booty dance*

Seriously? I have restriction at 1cc? I have friends who have 7 times as much in their bands that are still not feeling it as much... Maybe it's all in my head, but... Ya know what? I'll take it. I've lost 3 pounds since my fill Friday!

Now, the bad part is... I've had more than my fair share of stuck and PB episodes. Eating too fast, making wrong choices... It's come back to bite me in the butt. Which is fine. It's why I GOT the band! Did you know that steamed broccoli was a no-no? It is for me at least. I got to scuttle through a restaurant so I could yak it up in the bathroom. And obviously, macaroni and cheese is a no-no. And this morning, I forgot and took a bite of my daughter's french toast stick and that's a no-no, too. So, I now christen my band "No-No". I know some of you have named your band far cuter things, but I have a toddler and an 11 month old and "No-No" just seems appropo.

I'm really having to think a lot more about what I eat these days. We just got a new stove yesterday (our old one decided it didn't need to work anymore). Well, our new stove was delivered last night, which means I had no way to cook yesterday. So, the kids and I had lunch out. And I really had to THINK about what I could eat comfortably. We ended up at Chick-Fil-A as it's well over 100 degrees here and they have an indoor playplace where my little diva can play. I had a grilled chicken salad. Being the lovely Bandit I am, I ate the chicken first and then a bit of my salad. And I was content. Now, did I eyeball Ainsley's french fries? Yup. Did I eat 'em? Nope. I also have to confess I missed my usual chicken sandwich but I am NOT foolish enough to think bread is gonna go down.

I need to pick up some more protein shakes. I have virtually NOTHING in the house for breakfast. I mean, I do have stuff... But nothing No-No will let me have. So, might as well be nothing, huh?

My hubby has an MRI this morning of his thyroid-- the doctor felt a lump when he went in for his appointment on Monday. If you're the praying type, please lift him up. I'm certain it's nothing, but... Just in case... Prayers are ALWAYS welcomed!

Ciao, my lovelies!

Fill 'er up!

Ok, so... I didn't get to get my fill on Monday-- my family managed to come down with a killer stomach bug over the weekend and I was advised that from being ill, being filled would not be the wisest thing for me to do. So, instead, I was filled on Friday! Yay! The downside? 1 cc. LOL Whatever, it's something, right?

I had 2 days of liquids, now 2 days of mushies... But, I have to admit, I think I might already feel a slight restriction. I still have head hunger issues, of course, but... I really think I FEEL something now instead of trying to rely on just my willpower-- face it... If I had much'a that I wouldn't have weighed 250 at the start of this, now would I?

Long time no post...

So, I haven't posted in over a month. I know, I know. Bad Bandit! But... I just haven't been feeling much like a Bandit. Or much like I even HAVE a stupid band. But, my good friend Kerri over at Just Me and My Band encouraged me to blog it out. So... Here it goes.

I am a failure. A big ol' whopping FAT failure. And I'm pissed about it. I was banded May 5. I IMMEDIATELY lost 15 pounds the week afterwards which was TREMENDOUS and I was so pleased. As I mentioned, I was banded in Mexico and there were hoops I had to jump through here to get fills. I called... I scheduled... I was told I had to attend a seminar first. Greeaaaaat. The entire seminar was people who had NOT been banded but were, instead, trying to decide if they wanted a band, a sleeve, or RnY. Grrr. And, of course, there was some bad mouthing of the fools who go south of the border to be banded. Whatev. Fine. Can I have my fill? Sure! We can schedule you for....

July 26. Eek. What? SERIOUSLY? FINE! I'll take it.

So, I get my first fill on Monday. And I'm ready. So ready. I keep singing, "Why do you FILL ME UP? Buttercup..." like a maniac. I've had such a hard time posting because I feel like such a loser. And not a "weight loss loser". We're talking a "I've gained back 10 of my 15 pound loss kinda loser.

Have I followed my band instructions SUPER carefully? No. I must admit I have not. I've been so disheartened. And I figured if I posted that I was slacking out of sheer depression I would get a bunch of comments like, "Well... You have to work too!" "The band doesn't do EVERYTHING" and so forth and so on. And that would make me crazy because I KNOW it's just a tool. But, it's a tool that is sitting there USELESS at the moment and dang it... if I had will power I wouldn't have been fat in the first place, now would I?

Monday can't get here quick enough is all I'm sayin'.

Stuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!

Wow. So, OK... I admit, my band hasn't really done much in the way of restriction for me and I've been sloppy with my eating since I knew it wasn't stopping me. I've had 3 actually stuck/PBing episodes. One was on broccoli rice and it was seriously mild. Like, I just kinda went "bleh!" and spat it out. The next was on a TINY bite of a grilled hamburger patty (something about it just got lodged). It was about 3 weeks after the rice incident and was a bit more severe, but I've also had hamburger since then and it went down fine. Tonight, I had the MOTHER of all STUCKs.

My daughter is spending the night with her grandmama so she could get more playtime in with her cousin, so my hubby, the baby, and I decided to eat out. Aaron wanted chinese, so I said it was fine. We went and I got a tiny bit of fried rice and singapore noodles as well as chicken with broccoli and an egg roll. I knew the chicken dish would go down OK and I was planning on gutting the egg roll for the cabbage. But, silly me.. I just HAD to try a bite of rice. It went down OK. Not great as I felt it going down, but it didn't stick either. So, I had a bitty bite of noodles. Again, I felt them going down, but they didn't stick, so I didn't think much of it.

Took a bite of broccoli and relaxed and... OMG! I all of a sudden thought I was gonna DIE it hurt so much! My hubby looked at me kinda strange and I said, "I am SO stuck." He simply replied, "Go to the bathroom." Well, thanks, Captain Obvious. I didn't really want to yak as I was walking to the restroom, so he handed me the empty bowl he'd picked up to put his shrimp heads and crab claw leftovers in (another topic altogether, but EWWWWWWWW). I snatched it and hoofed it to the potty, PBing as discreetly as I could into the little bowl.

When I got to the bathroom, I really let loose and it was nasty, lemme tell you. I don't know how 2 SMALL bites of food turned into such a yarp-fest, but it did and it was uncool. I came back to the table and watched hubby eat. I ate a couple of pieces of chicken and a bite or 2 of broccoli, but I must say, I wasn't exactly craving Chinese by that point.

Aren't our bands weird? I have eaten sandwiches, part of a bagel, a doughnut... All sorts of things that should have stopped my stoma up GREAT and they didn't. Then, I eat a VERY careful 2 bites of questionable food and have to PB? Really? What made tonight different? Has anyone experienced a very temperamental band that works when it wants to and then doesn't at other times? I'm curious if this is normal or if I should assume something's not right.

Until next time, mi amigos, Voya con Dios!

Fathers' Day Weekend

OK, so... I'm biased and all, but my kids SO have the best Daddy in the world. LOL In fact, as I type this, he's cleaning the kitchen. Which I probably should be doing as it's Fathers' Day, but... He's just doing SUCH a good job! Both kids are even relatively quiet in there with him. Well, my 3 year old is whining, but... That's kinda just what they do at that age, isn't it?

Sorry I haven't given out enough thanks to all of my new followers and commenters-- nor have I had much time to cruise y'all's blogs and leave comments myself. My in-laws were in town for Fathers' Day weekend and we've been pretty darn busy! My hubby has decided he loves my band because he gets at least half of my entree. At Wintzel's Oyster House, he got over half of my sirloin (this is after I split my entree with both kids, too!) and then at Bonefish Grill he got more than half of my Fontina Pork Chop. And I wasn't even giving him the evil eye when he snared a bite without my permission!

I feel so much more confident, really, now. Hearing from all of you that this is normal, that I can fight through BH (bandster hell) and that IT WILL WORK has changed my attitude SO very much. I just can't say thank you enough! I really feel hopeful and better prepared to endure the next month until my seminar and then however long I end up waiting after that for a fill appointment (it's like herding chickens, I tell you!). But... I CAN DO IT!

And y'all have all shown me that! Thanks again!

ARRRRRRRRRRRRRGH!

My fill just got pushed back to the bloody middle of July. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! A month-long extension of bandster hell? Seriously? What are these people, DeathEaters? Are they Voldemort's minions??

Somehow, I was not told that I have to attend a "foreign banding seminar" before my first fill. When I just called to confirm my TUESDAY APPOINTMENT I was told, "Oh... You haven't been to our seminar... Our next one is July 16th and we can't schedule until then."

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?

Sheer torture, I tell you. I'm being punished. I'm having karmic retribution for my fairly common cases of road rage. I'm in purgatory to make up for insensitive comments to my crazy mother (she IS as nutty as a fruit bat, I assure you). I can't say "it's not fair" as I deserve worse, but... I NEED THAT FILL, DANG IT!

Well, since I have 18 days to sit here and twiddle my thumbs, apparently... I'm thinking I might try this. Anyone heard of it? The 5 Day Pouch Test

Gotta go feed my rugrats. I'll chatter with everyone later!

Sorry for the huge gap in posting :(

...I must confess, I didn't update because I so rarely got comments... I figured no one was reading and it only got me down! So, if you're reading, please leave me a line of encouragement or something. Lord knows I need it!

I am just over 6 weeks into being banded. I'm feeling quite well-- still a touch of stingy pain at my port site when I bend over too much, but other than that, life is back to normal. Oh, and a touch of shoulder pain still that didn't really start until WEEKS into being banded. C'est la vie, no?

I lost my first 15 pounds the week immediately following my banding. And I was overjoyed. Now... 5 weeks later, my grand total loss is.... wait for it.... wait for it... 11 pounds! (yeah, it's a letdown, huh?) I'm frustrated. I also have to confess I've been eating like crap and not exercising, so who's to blame, right? ...Yup. My own big butt.

As I've healed, though, I've noticed I get a stuck feeling more often when I eat my no-no foods (rice in particular for me, but also some breads, pastas, and eggplant(?)). I've only gotten officially, slimily, PB-y STUCK once, though. And it was on some broccoli rice that I decided surely I could handle at 4 weeks. Yeah. No. Ewww.

I'm vowing to work this band, though... And work it hard. I get my first fill this coming week and I'm excited. And ready-- OH so ready. I don't care that our heat index is around 106. I'll work out. If I have to do the same 2 Yoga Booty Ballet DVDs over and over again, I'm down with that. My 3 year old loves to dance and will boogie along with Mama. The 9 month old? Well... He might have to yowl at me from the floor and pray I don't step on him as I shake what my mama gave me.

I know that many people don't lose in their first 6 weeks after banding. I know that it's about healing, not about losing at this point. But, I also know that I paid near $9k out of pocket for my surgery, our flights, our passports, our food, etc. And I have this horrible fear of mucking this up like I have every other weight loss attempt ever. And I admit it... I'm scared to bits. I want this to work and I wanna have willpower but... Obviously, if I had much of that I wouldn't be shopping in the plus sizes, now would I? I'm not whining. I'm not. I'm just disgruntled.

And I need support. Seriously. I need people who're there saying, "Go Liss Go!" or "Move it, Fat@$$!" Heck, I don't care. Just say SOMETHING to let me know I'm not alone.

Now I introduce....

The Bama Bandit! That's me! I'm banded! Dr. Zapata is awesome! Mexico was lovely-- the hospital was terrific. I'll tell you all about my experience tomorrow, right now, I just wanna chatter about what I'm coping with right now.

Today, I'm 3 days post op. I was banded on Tuesday the 11th in Monterrey Mexico and flew back home to Alabama on the 13th. So, today was my first full day at home. It was... Trying. I have a lot of bad habits that I'm gonna have to unlearn and also... I have some SERIOUS head hunger! But, I'll make it it through. I'm confident of that. This surgery came directly out of my family's bank account and I am NOT letting all that money go to waste!!!

I'm surprised--and pleased!-- that I haven't had the gas pain many bandsters mention after their banding. I've been a walking fiend, though, so maybe I've cut it all off at the pass. I have, however, had a good bit of port incision pain. I would take pics to show y'all my 5 incisions, but... I can't find our digital camera. That's right folks, no pics from Mexico because I am disorganized and would lose my head if it weren't attached.

Ok. My son (who was 8 months old on Thursday) is having a most impressive hissy fit to nurse. I shall return soon to continue this post.

Until then....

Headed South of the Border!

I canNOT believe that I'll be boarding a plane in less than 4 hours! And in less than 24 hours... I'll be banded! Although the wait has been long, it feels like it flew by (now-- when I was waiting, it DRAGGED).

My kids are weird this morning-- the 7 month old senses something's off so he's yowling and my 3 year old has a horrible croupy sounding cough. I've got to call the pediatrician and schedule her in for an appointment and get her grandmama to carry her in. She just doesn't sound very well at all-- which is bugging me since I'll be leaving her for 3 days. :( I hope this doesn't wreak too much havoc with her diabetes. If she ends up in the PICU while I'm gone, I'll be heartbroken.

Anyways, I have a few more things I need to get done this morning, so I have to log off. The next time I post-- the Bama Bandit I shall be!

Less than a week to go!

HOLY CARP! (yes carp. Don't ask.)

I can't believe it! This all feels really insane to me. Seems like these past couple of months have FLOWN by and now... 6 days until I'm banded! Last night, my husband and I were watching TV and I said, "Omigosh... This time next week, I'll be banded!" He was like, "Ummm... Yeah?" Goofy. He just doesn't get it. I'm gonna get my LIFE back!

(promise to do a real post later-- gotta handle the nursling right now!)

Boy do I feel sheepish!

I haven't posted in AGES!!! :) Life has been pretty nuts around here lately. As I've mentioned, I have a (now) 7 month old son and my daughter turns 3 this Saturday (that's their picture above-- the look on both of their faces cracks me up so I had to share). They are the loves of my life (oh yeah, and my husband!) but man... Having kids is ROUGH sometimes! We're been battling the "Terrible 2s" (3s?) and my son had 4 teeth come in all at once-- seriously, he went from 2 teeth to 6 in less than 36 hours. It's NUTS. Not to mention the kick butt case of post-partum depression I've been working to beat (not there, but getting there).

So, all-in-all... My blog has not been a priority. BUT............. I have my surgery date.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's right. As of May 11, I shall officially be "The Bama Bandit"! I'm nervous and excited and dubious and hopeful and really, a swell of so many other emotions that I can't even pick one. It was weird-- when I was getting the plane tickets, the passports, making arrangements with Alma, Dr. Zapata's coordinator... It was exciting and thrilling and... Unreal.

Now, that I am less than 3 weeks from "B-Day" (band day, duh) I'm just a jittery bundle of nervous energy. Am I doing the right thing? Will it really work for me? Will I be able to cope? Could I REALLY just lose it on my own? Am I choosing the easy way out? How will I look in a size 10? .... You see how crazy my thoughts are?

Those of you who've both been there and done that... HELP! Am I going crazy like everyone else did pre-op? Or am I alone in my dubiously sane state?

Come on! If you're out there, I wanna hear from YOU. Yes YOU!! Quit looking for food or fashion porn and talk to me. Let me know I'm a part of the band community! Pretty please? Help calm my jitters!

Tentatively scheduling for May 4

Not officially, of course, but if everything with the money coming and me finding a decent priced flight in the allotted time goes smoothly, we'll be in Mexico May 4 - May 7. Fingers crossed! I'm also hoping that my hubby has a great month commission-wise and our 3 year old can come along (Another plane ticket at $550 is a little daunting!). Otherwise, she'll spend the week with grandmama, which would be a treat for the both of 'em. Since my sweet hubby has to use his only week's vacation time to accompany me I really want to make it into a fun vacation, at least for him and Ainsley. I know I won't be able to swim after surgery and everything, but he loves lounging around and Ainsley loves the water, so I really think they could have a fun time if we can swing it financially.

He and I talked for a while last night after that disastrous seminar. I asked him if he was OK with me having the surgery. He said he was... I pointed out that if I lose this weight, he'll benefit, too. Not only will I have more energy and confidence... Ummm... I won't be too chunky for Victoria's Secret. ;) He said that the surgery wasn't really a concern-- going to Mexico was. And I understand that... I do. Really. It's not exactly what you wanna hear, I'm sure. "Hey sweetie... I'm gonna go to Mexico for a life altering surgery, K?" But, in light of the insurance issues and the local surgeons level of discomfort with the surgery... I feel blessed that this is the road we HAVE to take (again, I don't believe I would have surgery here at any rate).

Am I nervous? Yes, 100%. Am I scared? Of course... I don't like pain. Do I think I'm making a wise decision? ... Again. YES! I believe this is the ONLY smart decision I can make about this. I can't go it alone-- even though I wish I were one of the people with tremendous will-power (and genetics that make skinny easy!)... I'm not. I NEED this tool to HELP ME.

I'm so ready.

Seriously?!?!?

Have you ever really thought about how exasperating some people are? I mean, REALLY thought about it? I bet you're making the same face as the kid in this pic, then. LOL

Tonight was the lap-band seminar at the local hospital that offers bariatric surgery. It was AWFUL! I'd brought along my mom and my husband, so they could see exactly what was going to happen and they could have their fears alleviated. Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

Apparently, these doctors don't know enough about the lap-band to be comfortable doing it, because all they did was trash it in favor of full on gastric bypass. Sure, gastric bypass has a higher mortality rate, but NO ONE with a lap-band loses their weight-- 50% of the overage at most. Ummm... Really? I've met an awful lot of anomalies on lapbandtalk then.

So, instead of the seminar making them feel all warm and cozy about the procedure... Now my mom is flipping out and my husband is, again, questioning my sanity. It's so frustrating, because I'm not one who leaps into things without thinking them through. Do they really think that I didn't take the time to research a SURGERY that I'm considering? Really? They think I'm going to have something IMPLANTED in my body and not take the research seriously?? Ugh. I am VERY displeased with the doctor who lead the seminar tonight. Ya know what? I think even if my insurance DID cover the surgery here, I think I would still be looking into other options because I just don't feel they know what they're doing at this hospital. And that's the truth!

Anyways... I'm still waiting on the check... When it gets here, I'll call to schedule with Dr. Zapata and then book my flight and... There's no turning back. I'm guessing it will likely be the beginning of May before I can get in (I would say the last week of April, but my daughter's birthday party is the 24th and I have SO MUCH to get done!!!). I'm planning to cut all caloric drinks from my diet over the next month and hopefully get a little weight off so I'll have a chance at fewer incisions. If not, no big deal, right? But, getting out of the habit of drinking bad-for-me-drinks (juices, sodas, caffeine) will be good, regardless.

Anyhoo... That's my report for the day. The nursling is tantruming. He firmly believes it's time for the boobie and some cuddling. Peace out, Bandits!

Rollin'... Rollin'... Rollin'....

Yeah. I feel like I'm on a roller coaster. It's not cool. I'm still 100% committed to being banded, but there's gonna be a wait, now. And as I mentioned... Once I make up my mind, it's MADE. Therefore, waiting is TORTURE! Maybe it's good, though... As it'll give me more time to talk the hubby around. He's still not a fan of the whole "Surgery in Mexico" scenario. He'll support me, of course, but... I want him truly on board-- not just agreeing because I'm a force of nature. LOL

The wait now is for money. I'm a little frustrated with it because we just bought a new minivan (woo hoo! 2 adults-- one fat-- and 2 big ol' car seats just do NOT fit into a Corolla!), but... I SO could have handled my toddler kicking me in the head for a while longer to pay for surgery. But... I hadn't decided (nor was I even THINKING about deciding) at that point two weeks ago. Now, of course, I'm kicking myself. We have some money coming from a relative's estate. It should be here sometime in the next 2 to 3 months. It will cover the banding (w00t!) but I'll have to come up with travel expenses which will run about $1500 for myself and my husband (and the nursling-- he's gotta come so he can eat!). I can do that... Maybe it's even a good thing that I have a couple of months without the majority of the money to save up the travel fees... If I had the full amount of the surgery sitting here, I might be going wild, huh?

I'm looking into 2 surgeons-- both in Monterrey Mexico. Both are highly recommended, nary a bad word about either of them. Dr. Rumbaut is slightly more expensive than Dr. Zapata, but both hospitals/hotels/bandings seem comparable. I don't particularly care. Also... In the mean time, on lapbandtalk.com I'm entering to receive a free lap band-- which I believe would be through Jerusalem Weight Loss, also in Mexico. Free is good. Heck, free is GREAT. Pick me! Pick me! I've never been particularly lucky, though, so I see saving in my future.

I hate sitting here, knowing that I'm SO CLOSE to an answer to my prayers... And then having to wait. Isn't it odd how God chooses to handle us sometimes? I never really know what the Big Guy's thinking, but... I guess that's for Him to know and me to find out, huh?

Namaste!

Pros, Cons, Everything in Between...

Hi. I'm back. Didja miss me? I did some cleaning after getting the kids up and about and made a few phone calls... Figured maybe I could get a jump start on the process by calling BCBS-- just to make sure I took everything required to the meeting with the surgeon so that I wouldn't have to come back repeatedly with this, that, and the other. Guess what? Bariatric surgery of ANY TYPE is not covered by our insurance.

Zip. Zero. Nada.

Guess what else? I cried my eyes out. I'm the type of person that when I make a decision... It's MADE. And I'm not one who changes her mind very much either. So, after I was done sniveling and snorting... I started a new type of research. Self Pay Lap Band Procedures. Whew. This surgery is pricey... Except in Mexico. It's relatively inexpensive in Mexico. I've always wanted to see more of Mexico... :) My husband is gonna flip. He already let me know, unequivocally, that going out of the country for surgery was NOT gonna happen. *looks innocent* I might not have been listening, though... (It happens, right, married ladies?)

Pros (I have a jillion, for your sanity I'll only list my Top 20) :
1) I live in the Deep South... I would be less well-insulated. I might not even be grossly sweaty all summer!
2) I could dress in flattering, pretty clothes (I'm sorry-- plus size clothes are just not "those adjectives!)
3) I could play with the kids more (instead of, "OK, sweetie... Mama'll watch you from here... OK?")
4) My legs wouldn't get all slimy and stuck together with sweat while I sleep.
5) My husband would say I look great and I might believe him!
6) My daughter won't grow up thinking fat is "normal" and therefore "OK".
7) I could enjoy food without feeling guilty because I ate WAY too much of it!
8) I could quit avoiding old friends so I don't have to see them trying to not say "OMG You're HUGE!"
9) I could feel comfortable meeting new people.
10) I could wear really cute heels (right now ANY heels hurt!)
11) I could send money on clothes for ME rather than just my kids-- sorry.. It's ALWAYS cute in a 2t and rarely cute in a 20w!
12) I could FEEL SEXY!
13) I could buy lingerie in Victoria's Secret again!
14) I could run in a 5K in the Race for a Cure for Type 1 Diabetes (which my daughter has:( )
15) My back wouldn't hurt all the time!
16) I would feel more rested-- I just know I don't sleep well because I'm so big.
17) I could let people tag my pictures on Facebook and not un-tag them immediately!
18) I could get a family photo taken-- right now I just get the kids' pictures done because I don't want to ruin the picture by being in it!
19) I could quit hating myself so much (a doozy, I know, but... It's hard to love yourself when you're gross).
20) I could finally get a haircut that would look nice (nothing looks great on a fat face!)

Cons :
1) It's gonna be expensive-- especially if I can't talk my hubby into Mexico!
2) I'm afraid of the huge changes that I'll have to make to my eating...
3) I'm afraid it'll hurt (yes, I'm such a wimp).
4) Obviously, it ain't gonna get rid of the stretch marks from pregnancy LOL
5) It's an unknown and I'm a chicken.

I'd say my Pros SO outweigh the pitiful little Cons, huh? Now, I need to get some pictures (*gag*) so I can show where I'm starting and where I end up after I get banded. Because I fully intend to work the CRAP outta the band and to lose, lose, lose! Ya know... Maybe having to go self pay would be a plus? I bet there's less wait time... ;)

Well, I've made my decision!

After waffling back and forth for a good bit of time on the issue of necessity (Denial, it ain't just a river in Egypt!) I'm ready to accept facts and meet with a surgeon about WLS (weight loss surgery for the uninitiated). Although I've been overweight for ALL of my adult life and obese for a good part of it... For some reason I just couldn't seem to admit it was so bad to myself. I guess in some ways that's lucky? I mean... I don't look in the mirror and think "OMG what a MOOSE!" (usually). But, when I see photographic evidence of it... Well... I can't deny that I'm sickened. After I've had some success and feel I can look at it as "the old me" I'll scan in and post the picture that gave me the strength to do this. Right now, I'll be candid and say it's just too embarrassing and painful to admit. (My own husband hasn't even seen this pic-- I hid it from him).

Hmm. You're probably wondering who the heck I am, aren't you? I'm Melissa. Hi. *waves* You can call me "Liss" for short as many of my IRL (in real life) friends do. I turned 32 in January, have a fantastic husband, and the 2 cutest children in the whole wide world-- no I'm not biased. I'll post pics. You'll agree. :) My little girl is almost 3 (in April) and my son will be 6 months old this week. We live in Alabama, which I wouldn't trade for anything. I love being a Bama girl! We've got Crimson Tide football, a fantastic NCAA gymnastics team, the mountains, the beach, good ol' Southern values, amazing food (might've been some of my problem, eh?), and decent shopping (well, not in my city, but I'm fat... Clothes are a bit of a non-issue for me-- my kids, however, are fashionistas!). I'd rather live in the northern part of the state than here in the south, but here is where I am, so... I'll make the best of it.

Anyhoo. I have a WLS seminar to attend before I can meet with the doctor. I will attend the seminar on Wednesday night. Just 2½ days away. I'm nervous, but I can't wait. After my research, I'm set on the Lap Band. Hence my blog title. I know some people refer to themselves as "Banders" or "Bandsters" but... "Bandit" makes me feel all rogue and sexy-ful (think Catherine Zeta-Jones in "Entrapment") so I'll stick with it. I got the recommendation for the surgeon from my friend Chelsea. She had full on gastric bypass back in '02 and can't say enough great things about her surgeon Dr. Weinstein. Well, he does banding, so I'm gonna get with him to get my life back. I'm a little nervous that my insurance will make me jump through multiple hoops, so I don't really know how long the process will take from initial consult to actual banding. I've heard weeks... I've heard months... I've even heard upwards of a year. *twitches* I'm hoping for weeks. :) Months would be OK, I guess... It's just that once I've set my mind to something, I don't dilly dally. Why waste the effort? If you know you're going to do something, DO IT! So, I'm sitting here twiddling my thumbs, at least until the seminar Wednesday night.

This will likely be my longest day of blog posts, just because I'm going to go through my pros and cons, what I hate about being fat, what I look forward to about being thin, and so forth and so on. I'm documenting for me, of course, but also for you. Reading some of the blogs on banding have just given me the warm fuzzies and I want to do that for people as well. The first one I read (and my favorite because her before and after pics are AMAZING) was Catherine's blog at http://chroniclesfrombandland.blogspot.com/. And then at the lapbandtalk.com chat room I met Mel who has also had an AMAZING transformation (her blog is at http://notasfat.blogspot.com/). Seeing people who have had such tremendous success almost brings me to tears (OK, OK... I admit, it DOES bring me to tears sometimes to think I could be one of them one day!). So... I offer up my journey to you! Right now, though, I have to go nurse the littler one. He's in a bit of a mood and his sister is too enthralled by Oomie Zoomi to play with him and let Mama type. :) I'll be back later with my pros and cons.