Got an official date!!

I can't remember if I warned you in advance, but I've been on vacation in beautiful Colorado for the last two weeks.  Just got back!  I'll tell you all about my trip later.  For now, someone get me a microphone.

Tap, tap, tap.  Check 1-2-3.

I HAVE AN OFFICIAL SURGERY DATE.

July 18.

I'm so freakin' excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'll fly down to Texas three weeks from today.

Oh man, and do you want to know the BEST PART?

My parents won't be able to make it up to San Antonio to be with me.  At first my mom wanted to me to reschedule for September because she didn't want me in the hospital all alone (I didn't care if I was alone, seriously!!).  But of course, I didn't want to wait another two months, so I called one of my best friends down in the Corpus Christi area.  She has two kids and is recently divorced.  She and her husband share custody.  In the summer, they trade the kids back and forth each week.  I asked her if she was free for the week of July 18.  She said YES and that she would LOVE to hang out with me in a hotel room for a week.

So that's what we're gonna do.  She's picking me up from the airport the day before surgery and we'll head straight to the hotel so I can get busy with that lovely magnesium citrate bowel cleanse.

OH, think of the memories we will be making together!  There's HUGE potential for some hilarious memories.  We have been friends since the age of 11 but I think a bowel cleanse will take us to the next level of friendship.  Don't you?

Okay, really---I'm dreading that part.  But other than that----I'm super excited about having some girl time ALONE without our children.  We'll get to hang out, TALK, and have all kinds of girlie fun just being with each other.  No one will be there to interrupt our conversation to demand request a popsicle.  There will be no standing by the potty for all of eternity 15 minutes while waiting for my 3 year old to take care of business.  

I don't know if I'm more excited about surgery, or that I get 5 days of hanging out with my friend.

Some of you hate words such as "bandiversary," "surgiversary," "jeggings," etc. but I personally love combination words.

SO, since my surgery is also a vacation, a new word needs to be invented.  SURG-A-CATION.  Or VACURGERY.

Let's just go with surgacation.  And, just so you know, Microsoft did not underline either of my words, so that means they must be real words.  Right?

Here's a picture at Mesa Verde.  Right before my 3 year old dropped his Lightning McQueen sippy cup over a cliff and had a total meltdown.  Which was right before we had to turn around and leave.

greek yogurt and bananas

I'm SURE I'm not the only fan of greek yogurt out there.  Many of you have written about how much you like the taste (and the amount of protein!).

Chobani isn't my thing because I detest mixing the creamy texture of yogurt with chunks of fruit.  I'm not a picky eater though.  I swear!

My favorite brand of greek yogurt is Total Fage.  It's so thick and creamy.  At Costco I get a big container, so it's a little cheaper there...

But it's plain.  So it gets boring after awhile.

After finally burning myself out on my not-so-original Cinnamon and Splenda combination, I started experimenting.  Someone (sorry I can't remember who) suggested the Torani syrups to give the yogurt some different flavors.  I tried that and it tasted oooookay.  Actually the flavor was good, but it thinned out the yogurt enough to ruin the heavenly texture for me.

So here's what I found that's yummy & doesn't spoil the texture:  Crystal Light!


It comes in lots of flavors, as you know.  I buy the little packets that are made to be mixed with 16.9 oz water bottles.


All you need is a little pinch though!  About 1/3 of a packet will flavor a full measuring cup of yogurt.  So be careful.  Then I stir in some Splenda.  Yummy!

My favorite is the Margarita flavor sold at Target under their Market Pantry brand.  The citrus flavor by Crystal Light is a close second.

*************************************************

Now for a word on bananas.  My husband came home from work with this story.  Some guys found a banana in the breakroom with someone's name written across it.  One of them grabbed a Sharpie and they took turns writing messages on it.

Such as, "Hey Cindy*, just what you planning on doing with this?"

And, "Just use the tip."

O.M.G.  I said, "Please tell me there weren't any women in the room--that could be considered sexual harrassment you know."  He said, "Oh puh-leeze, we know who can take a joke and who can't."

And these are the people responsible for keeping you sedated, paralyzed, pain-free, and BREATHING during surgery.

****BYOC****

It’s Friday so that means it’s BYOC day – Bring Your Own Crazy….to five questions we all answer in an effort to get to know each other better and to give our blog brains a break! Copy and paste to your own blog and ENJOY!


1. How and why did you first start blogging? And how long have you been blogging?

My first blog was born in 2008 after trying (and failing!) to get family members on Facebook as a way to look at recent pictures of my son.  I know, I know, Facebook is so hard isn't it?  Apparently, it is for people over the age of 60.  We live in Pennsylvania while most of our family resides in Texas and Colorado.  Not wanting to mass email people photos, I figured a blog was the easiest way to keep everyone in the loop because they could just bookmark it without logging in.  And go figure.  Now that it's 2011, most of my family is finally on FB, so I find myself posting on that blog less often.  It's just a bunch of blah blah SNORE about my kids but here it is if you're interested:  Boys in the 'Burgh.

2. Tell me about your perfect mate – if you could invent him/her?

Well, not to sound sappy but I really think I already have the perfect mate.  He cooks.  He cleans.  He loves playing with our boys.  And did I mention---he doesn't just cook---he LOVES cooking?  Oh you wouldn't believe the recipes that come out of his head---amazing talent and ability in the kitchen.  His name is David.  <3.  He is a male nurse.  Before you go thinking he has a vagina, let me just say, no.  No, he does not.  He's a guy's guy too.  He spent 8 years in the Army Reserves, in a military intelligence unit based out of Austin.  Three weeks after Sept. 11, his unit was activated for 24 months.  We had only been married for 10 months at the time.  I LOVED seeing him decked out in his desert camouflage BDU's, black beret, carrying an M-16.  He loves grilling, drinking beer and playing cards, especially Texas Hold 'Em.  He's funny.  He's a goofball.  He makes me laugh.  He's strong and I mean that literally and figuratively.  He's smart.  Super smart.  I mean, duh---just look, he married me.  

3. Do you wear fake eyelashes? Do you want to? Do you use glue or self-stick ones? Do you like how they look?

I love makeup.  So, yes!  I've tried falsies.  I used glue.  After a little practice, it's really easy.  I used to wear them when I got all dressed up but----hmm, I'm going through the files of my brain and I cannot recall wearing them even once since having children.  

What I like even better than fake eyelashes is having my eyelashes dyed.  My hair is naturally a dark blonde color and my eyelashes are mostly blonde on the tips.  Soooo, I occasionally will have them mix up brown & black dye at the salon and they will dye them for me.  It makes them look so much longer!  This is illegal in some states.  Before I left Denver, Colorado made it ILLEGAL.  WTH???  "You could go blind," the lady told me.  What?  It's vegetable dye---I mean, it was the Aveda salon, HELLO.  One good thing about Pennsylvania is that I can get this done for less than $20 and it lasts 6-8 weeks.  Perfect for summer!

4. Let’s say money was no object and neither was time off to recover – are you an advocate of plastic surgery after weight loss?

Ummm, well I don't advocate anything for anyone but for MYSELF, yes, I'm a huge fan.  My plastic surgeon neighbor told me that the best boob job for me would not be a breast reduction.  He said that I have enough breast tissue to technically qualify for a reduction so insurance will pay for it, but, after losing so much weight, he recommends a fancier surgery where they use breast tissue to build an inner bra.  Not your skin to make a bra (that's now outdated).  But breast tissue.  He explained that skin sags eventually and this new technique makes the results last much longer.  He said that after massive weight loss, the breast is flat at the top and that a breast reduction doesn't address that.  In other words, I need something MORE DRASTIC.  After explaining this to my mom recently, she raised her eyebrows, and whispered with horror, "He saw your boobs?"  

NO, for the record, he has not.  But c'mon, he's a professional and can plainly see I have big boobs and he's lived next door long enough to see me go from 250 pounds pregnant to my current of 178.  He can guess that I have that flattening issue, and you know what?  He's right.

Oh and of course, we all know I want a tummy tuck.

5. Repeat question. Summarize your week in blog land and in real life.

Real life---I've spent the last week planning for our trip to Colorado next week.  We are driving people.  Driving!  With a 1 year old and a 3 year old.  We should have our heads examined.  But for the record---I hate flying.  Let me be more specific.  It's easy when I'm alone but my husband's skin color gets us singled out 100% of the time at airports.  And for some bizarre reason, TSA seems to single ME out, not him.  But only if I'm with HIM.  When I fly alone, it doesn't happen.  They feel me up, open my carry-on luggage, etc.  It's "random" though.  Really?  Plus, flying is a nightmare with children.  Maybe it was easier before 9/11, I don't know.  Driving that far is a nightmare, yes, I'll concede that, but flying is a more expensive nightmare.  

Speaking of flying, when I flew down to Texas last weekend, it was just me and my 1 year old.  The plane hit terrible turbulence.  As I sat there reciting The Lord's Prayer, my son laughed hysterically as if he were on an amusement park ride.  The kid two rows over threw up, poor pumpkin.  

award :)

Rules of the Award
*Thank the person who gave you this award, and link back to them in your post.
*Tell us 10 things about yourself.
*Nominate your bloggers.
*Contact these bloggers, and let them know they received this award.


Thanks to Manda Panda and Rachel for nominating me.

1. I grew up on the Gulf Coast of Texas, near Corpus Christi.

2.  Austin, TX is my favorite place.

3.  I started working (a real W-2 job!) when I was in 6th grade.

4.  Here's a partial list of jobs since age 12:

* babysitting in the church nursery
* renting out surfboards & selling beach parking permits
*selling books in a small mom & pop shop near the beach
* making pizza at Domino's
* writing, designing, and selling advertising for The Daily Texan (my undergrad newspaper)
* teaching science to hormonal teenagers in TX and CO
* right now I'm an occupational therapist, I love what I do and, while it's not the most lucrative career I could have chosen, it's one of the most rewarding
* actually right now I'm a SAHM, but I'll go back to working next year.  I miss it.

5.  Working at Domino's was my least favorite job but it came super handy for bribing the security guard at my off-campus dorm in college.  He accepted free pizzas to let me into my dorm after curfew.  That was the least of my infractions, however, and he turned a blind eye to things of a much more serious nature, but, since I used to be a teacher, and there's a slight risk a former student could stumble across my blog, so I will not divulge what kind of infractions those were.  You'd think that a retired NYC police officer would have higher standards for pizza, but, I guess some men aren't picky.  Thanks Steve. :)  Wherever you are.

6.  I've never traveled abroad.  Sure, I've crossed the border into Mexico and Cananda...and I've visited at least 75% of states in the U.S.A.  But I still haven't crossed an ocean.  My younger brother was stationed in Germany when I was in college.  My family left me behind to go visit him because I didn't have the money to pay for my own flight.  Hey, I was 20, I could barely afford to put myself through school.  But that's okay.  I'm over it.  Or am I?  

7.  I'm addicted to MAC cosmetics and love makeup.

8.  I love crafts.  Drawing, painting, scrapbooking, knitting, etc.

9.  I wish I were a better cook.

10.  My husband and I met at a restaurant in the summer of 1997 in Port Aransas, TX.  He was a cook; I worked behind the bar and cleaned tables.

And next, I nominate Erica.

i have some news

Let's start with the bad news:  My 3 year old was kicked out of Kinder Nature Camp this morning.  The age range of his class was 3-5.  He was the youngest, but still.  They said he wasn't ready for group participation.  The director said he was "really sweet", but was more interested in exploring ants, bees, and dirt off by himself.  She told me he could finish the week if I were able to be there with him one-on-one.  But I didn't want to do that with a 1 year old in tow.  Maybe next year.  :(

Now for the good news.

I'm getting the sleeve!!!!  I went to the seminar Saturday morning.  Can't say I learned anything I didn't already know....but afterwards everyone got a chance to do their psych consult, nutrition consult, and meet with the surgeon.  It took about 4 hours.  When I met with Dr. Patel, he said he was able to accept all of my test results from Pittsburgh, I just needed to redo the nutrition consult because I had been planning on getting the band.  Everything else was fine:  the psych consult, my upper GI series, my EKG, etc.

We discussed a tentative date of July 18.  I didn't set it in stone because I wanted to make sure that worked for my family.  Now I have to wait for my "patient advocate" to contact me and set it up for sure.

I'm so excited!!

If I get the date of July 18, we still have some logistics to work out.  Such as---will I take my little boys down there with me?  If so, how long will I stay before feeling well enough to fly back with them in tow?

OR---should I fly down by myself and go back rather quickly?  What do you think?  Is it crazy to fly in on a Sunday, have surgery on a Monday, stay in the hospital Monday night (it's just a one night stay), THEN fly home by myself on Wednesday?

Please tell me your thoughts.  I've had 2 c-sections and I felt pretty good after 4 days.  Sore---but good.

So, WDYT?