A new day....

Today we went to see Zach and the rest of the kindergarteners sing on the square. It was so HOT!! I was sweating before the end of it. It is December and almost 80 degrees!! I want a COLD Christmas!! Boo HOO!!

I have lost back down to where I was before Chris came back home. (While he was home I gained 5 lbs.) I love him, but he says oh it will be ok if you eat this or drink this...of course if he told me not to I would get mad and do it anyway because I don't want him telling me what to do. LOL I'm am bass ackwards.

This weekend is my birthday. We are supposed to be going out of town to watch a movie and look at Christmas lights @ Bellingrath Gardens. I don't know if we will or not. Well have a good weekend!! :0)

A great weekend!!

Saturday me and my son went on a little trip all by ourselves!! We went to see Bolt and went shopping. (Spent WAY too much money!!) Then we went to watch Four Christmases....bad idea to let a 5 year old that still believes in Santa to watch because they told a kid on the movie that his dad was Santa...I was horrified!! Of course, a kid in his class had told him that his parents were Santa and he asked me about it and all I said was "If you don't believe, you don't receive!" And I told him that I still believe in Santa because I want stuff. It's kinda weird but I do still want to believe in him!! :0) Ok, I got totally off the subject...LOL Anyway, after we got finished and were on our way home he wanted to go to sleep in the car and before he did he said....Moma, Can we do this again tomorrow? It was so sweet...I wish we could do that all the time but my checkbook can't handle it. He pretty much got everything that he asked for and he LOVED it!!

Well here is one more picture that I wanted to let everyone see.... :)

Compare

I decided to do a comparision of last year and this year to see if I look any different. I kind of think I do!! :0)

Loss!!

I finally decided to get back on the scales this morning. Bad decision, I know....but to my surprise after 5 weeks of not loosing anything I have finally lost 5 more lbs!! I am so happy because I was feeling like a complete failure in my efforts but I know now that my body was having to catch up to me loosing 50 lbs in a little less than 2 months because I couldn't eat right. Just wanted to give this little info!! :0) Trying to stay positive!!!

Thanksgiving....

So Thanksgiving went really good. I didn't over do anything. Thank goodness....of course my body won't let me overeat now or either I know what will happen if I do. LOL Things went great though...We had regular Thanksgiving on Thursday with my mom's family and then today we had Thanksgiving again for my hubby to be here. He didn't get home until Saturday morning. Next weekend we are having Christmas because he won't be here for that either. We have a very big month planned for December. Of course, my birthday is that month so it is just awesome!! We are going to a Christmas light show the day before my birthday...I just know it is going to be awesome.

Still haven't lost anymore weight but I can tell in my face that I have lost inches and in other places. It is just frustrating that I haven't lost pounds. Ya know?

Me and my husband got in kind of a fight last night because he told me that I have no neck. I think he was just playing but it just hurt...considering the way that I feel about myself anyway. I think he realizes that now. He was just repeating what my mom had said earlier about when I was a baby.....I weighed 10 lbs 11 oz and I didn't have a visible neck then either. haha It's all ok now. Hopefully soon you will be able to see more of my neck and I won't have that problem anymore!! haha It does look better than it did 3 months ago. :0)

Well I hope everyone has a great week!! :0)

Santa letters and more....

Hi!! I decided that I was gonna do this for the Holidays this year.



I just wanted to let you guys know that I can do letters from Santa for your kids!! The cost per letter is 2.42. I take paypal!! :0) If you are interested just email me. After I get all the info I will do the letter and email it to you for approval. Then I will mail it.


I can also do Christmas cards personalized and address labels. They are $1.00 per card and $2.00 per sheet of labels.



Happy Holidays!!

Samantha

my email:

thepotters1@frontiernet.net

Uh Oh!!

I haven't posted in a while...things are going ok. I have gained a pound or two...not sure if that's fluid or what it is. We shall see. Went back to the doctor today for check up on my blood pressure and it was better. My potassium is low though. Go figure.

Craziness....

Things have been pretty crazy lately. I have been taking my Mom and Dad to their doctors appointments because neither one of them like to drive. haha I have also been battling blood pressure problems (that I never had before surgery) and not being able to keep anything down. On Wednesday of last week I called my surgeons office and told them that I felt really jittery and that I ate one bite of fish and it came back up!! I am so tired of this. She told me to go check my blood pressure and then let her know what it was. Well it was 175/102, so she told me to call my PCP. Called him, he told me to come to his office right away and they gave me a pill that would make my blood pressure come down really fast. I have to go back to him in a month to have it rechecked because he gave me some meds to take until then. So then I called the surgeon's office back again and asked what I needed to do about the throwing up and she told me to go back to liquids a couple of days. On Friday I called back and asked her what to do next and she told me that I could try foods again and if I still had a problem this weekend to call her on Monday and she would get Dr. Avara to look at me....I may have a stricture. Last night I ate the insides of a taco or at least a 1/4 of it. Meat, cheese, sour cream....it was awesome. LOL

Hopefully my pouch was just inflamed from the throwing up and it won't happen anymore!! :0) Well later!!!

*One more thing!! I am almost down to below 300!! I am so excited!! hehe*

Stricture.....

I may have a stricture!! UGH!! I can't seem to keep things down. UGH!! I am going to call the doctor tomorrow. I am so scared!!

Happy Halloween!!

WOW....

Well it's been almost 3 weeks since I had surgery. I am doing ok. Yesterday I didn't have a very good day. I don't think I can tolerate tomatoe sauce or anything with tomatoe based anything. I threw up 3 times in a 1 hour period. I am fixing to go now and eat lunch. Probably a piece of deli turkey with swiss cheese and spicy mustard. I am just so scared to eat anything!! It's horrible. Hopefully it will get better. Well that's about all the update that I have for today :0)

Oh yeah, Han took a pic of me last night....here it is.....

Home....

Well I am home. I have been home since Friday afternoon. Had a bad day Saturday, thinking I had made a huge mistake having this surgery done. I have since decided that everything is going to be ok. :0) I have to think positive. I am starting the puree stage of my diet tomorrow.

B: 1 oz. scrambled egg substitute
1 oz. grits with 2% cheese added

S: 8 oz. CIB NSA
8 oz. diluted juice
8 oz. water

L: 1 oz. pureed chicken salad with fat free mayo
1 oz. grits with 2% cheese added (possibly)

S: 8 oz. CIB NSA
8 oz. diluted juice
8 oz. water

D: 1 oz. deli turkey
1 oz. beans, peas ?

S: 8 oz. CIB NSA
8 oz. diluted juice

Just a sample of what I may be eating tomorrow. I am scared but excited to begin eating. I haven't dumped yet. I hope that I don't!!

My blood pressure was up last week a little and I had a slight fever. Hannah and Richard have been staying with us. I feel 100% better than I have been feeling last week. :0)

Well more later!! SLP

Some pics......

Day Five.....

Ok....so yesterday didn't go so well....I cheated......I ate a small McDonald's Cheeseburger without the top bun and a chicken strip!! I felt horrible!!

So far today has been better. I just keep thinking I only have five more days!! I am so tired of being hungry!! I don't know if it is all in my head or if I truly am hungry. I try not to think about food but....what's one to do when previously I admit I ate a lot??

Trying to start getting everything in order for next week. I am making sure I have things that I am going to need packed. I have to make sure my baby is taken care of...which I know he will be because my sister is taking care of him. But I have to see what days he isn't eating lunch at school and put all that together for her to send with him on those days. Whew!! It's a lot of work!!

I'm going to be ok though!! I just know it!! Well 5 days down 5 to go!!! :0) Later!!

First day of liquid diet....

Ok so today is the first day of my liquid diet. I think I am doing pretty good. I have drank some water this morning and had a Sugar Free Jello Pudding cup. I feel a little hungry but I'm not sure if that is head hunger or real hunger. I CAN DO THIS!!! I know I can!! I don't need to doubt myself. :0(

GOT A DATE!!!!

I got a date!! September 9, 2008!!! That is my surgery date!! YAAY!! We also got the loan!! God is awesome!! Prayer works!! As if I had any doubt!! :0) Just wanted to update a little!!

testing...one...two...three...

Ok so I called this morning to my PCPs office to get in to see him so he can schedule all the testing I need to have done and to give me my medical clearance and the lady tells me that he is booked up until the 16th of next month!!! What??!! No!!! So I'm telling her that I have to see him sooner than that because I don't want to wait until Oct to have my surgery done. So I emailed Lisa and told her what was going on and she asked me how far I live from Pascagoula and I said about 2 to 2 1/2 hours but I don't care how far I have to travel!! I am ready now!! UGH!! So she emailed me back and said that I could go to Mobile and have my testing done and hopefully I can get in to see Dr. B before Sept. 16...which most of the time they are pretty good about getting me in when I call. Anyway, if all goes good and Dr. B doesn't take too long my surgery will be scheduled for Sept. 9, 16, or 23!!! I am so excited!! hehe!! I will update later when I know more!! Wish me luck!!

No date yet.....

Hopefully by this afternoon I can write and say that I have a definite date for my surgery but as of yet I don't. I am hoping for the first week in September. I am so ready. Good things come to those who wait, right? I am becoming a master of waiting. I don't know if I have lost anymore weight. The scales that I have suck!! One minute they say one thing and the next minute they say another. Weird. Well sorry so short....gotta run!! :0)

Approved

Called the insurance company again today. The guy that I talked to said I am APPROVED!!!! He gave me the approval # and everything!! I am so excited!! Although, now I have to wait for the surgeons office to get a letter from the insurance company before they will schedule anything. Hopefully they will get it by Monday!! I am so excited!! I just can't control myself!! hehe 21 days!! That's how long it took for me to get approved!! WOW!!

Confusion....

Called the insurance company again today. Well this lady tells me that they are still pending on approval because at the same time that the request for gastric bypass came in so did a request for gallbladder surgery for me!! WHAT!!!??? I have never even had my gallbladder checked much less wanted to have surgery on it. haha So I have called the surgeons office and emailed the insurance coordinator there. So far no answers!! This is weird. The lady that I talked to at the insurance company said that the nurse that is reviewing my case wants to know if it is medically necessary to have the gallbladder surgery done. I have hope though that they are going to get it straightened out and approve me soon. :0) LATER!

First day of school...

Today was my baby's first day of Kindergarten. I am just so....I don't know the word for it....because it seems like only yesterday he was born. :0( He said he had a good day. He rode the bus for the first time this morning. Here are a few pics!!

insurance

I hate waiting on insurance companies to tell you something!! I called again today to see how the "review" was going and she told me that it was to the last person that it needed to be "reviewed" by but it still didn't say whether I was approved or not. I told her that I would call again next week unless I heard something before then. I am just so ready to know!!! :0) How has your week been? hehe

Called....

I called the insurance company yesterday....yeah I know Valorie told me not to but I was just dying to know if they had an answer yet!! They didn't of course. The girl just told me that it was in preadmissions and they had received it but it was still being reviewed. Hopefully I will know something by the end of this week or the first of next week.

I am also anxious to see who Zach gets as a teacher this year!! We are supposed to get our letters by Friday!!

I am sooooo excited!!! I lost 6 more lbs!!! I just had to go weigh today because according to my surgeon I have to lose 15 pounds before my surgery. So of course I am scared that that isn't going to happen for me!! Well I am so happy to see my ticker now!! hehe

It says 12 lbs but I have actually lost 19 lbs because I gained 7 before I started losing!! :0)

Waiting....

Well yesterday Valorie emailed me and told me that she had faxed all my paperwork to the insurance company!! I hope they don't take long!! I am so excited and scared at the same time. I will be glad when I find out something. I'll let you know when I do!!

Last PCP visit!!

Well I had my very last PCP visit today!!!!! I lost 7 more pounds!!! How great is that? :0) I am soooo happy that I can say lost instead of gained. It almost was not a victory though....the nurse told me that I had gained ten pounds....but she read the scale wrong and I told her too!! I need all the help I can get!! :0)

So now I just have to wait for Dr. Burroughs office to send the paper work to my surgeon. Hopefully that won't take forever. I am going to start calling on Thursday to see if they have sent it yet. :0) I am ready to have the surgery done and get on with the rest of my life.

Anyway, I will post when I know more!! :0)



*note: I know my ticker says I only lost 6 pounds but that is because I went up a few months and then back down so in all that is all I have lost since I started....sounds better when you say 13 though. haha*

It's been a while....

It's been a while since I posted last. Almost a month because I go back to the doctor next Monday for my "last PCP appointment" before seeing if I am approved for surgery!!! I am so excited!! :0)

This past weekend we went to the beach for the 4th of July!! It was fun!! I now have blisters on my shoulders because of sweating after I got sunburned. It itches like crazy!!!!

Here are a few pics!!










I will post more later and definitely Monday to let everyone know how much weight I lost/gained!! :0)

6th supervised doctor visit....

I am very happy this month!! I lost 6 pounds!!!!! YAAY!! I am so excited!!

Haven't really been doing anything since I got laid off. Mainly just running errands and sitting around the house. It is pretty nice not having to get up and go to work everyday. :0) Sometimes I feel like I am supposed to be doing something though.

Well just wanted to post about my weightloss not gain!! hehe!! LATER!! SLP

No J.O.B.

Tomorrow is going to be a difficult day. I lost my job on Friday. The company laid off 4 of us. I was kind of expecting it but it was still quite a shock to have it done. I was maybe expecting a 2 or 4 week layoff but I had to clean out my office because I will probably not be going back. I had worked there for 7 years!! Well, it would have been in July. I am still not sure what I am going to do with myself. I know after Thursday Zach will be out of school for the summer but I have had a job my whole adult life. I am just at a loss. But it is what is best. God only puts you through what he knows that you can handle. And maybe things happened this way for a reason unknown to me. I will prevail!! ;0)

Pray for me!!

Until next time!! SLP

New ramblings.....

Isn't my little man just the cutest? He is getting to be such a handsome thing. You can't tell in the picture but he was horrified that ants were going to get on him because he didn't have any shoes on. haha!! It turned out really cute though.





We took pictures of him Saturday afternoon before we went to Pop's for supper.






I hate this picture....I hate myself....I just don't see this when I look in the mirror!! Why don't I see this? I thought I actually looked pretty good. ha!





I have been doing better on the diet than in weeks past. I am so frustrated!! I am ready to have this surgery done already!! I keep thinking in the back of my mind that the insurance company is going to deny me. Although I have done everything that they have required of me so far. Chris has told me that a few people that he works with has tried to have it done or their wives have tried to have it done and the insurance company denies them. I don't get that. Maybe it's because they messed something up? I don't know. I will just crawl in a hole and die if I can't have it done. I am so tired of being this way. All I want to do is cry because I don't like going places or even to see my family because I don't want anyone seeing me. I can't stand to go to the grocery store or anywhere by myself. I feel like everyone is staring at me and talking about me behind my back. In a way I feel like I am paranoid but then it may be true. I just know that if the insurance doesn't pay then I guess I am stuck in this body forever being FAT!! I can't afford to self pay. :0( I just want to cry thinking about it.





On the upside I only have a little under 2 months before everything can be filed and my fate is determined. :0) Should I smile and get excited or should I frown and cry? Who knows? I am trying to be optimistic about it. I have prayed about it and I know that God led me to going down this path and wanting to get this surgery done. I need to just leave it in His hands and His will will be done.

Well, I didn't get the car for Mother's Day that I wanted...or any car for that matter. Chris wants to wait until after I have the surgery and then see what I want then. I guess he thinks I am going to want some sporty car or something. HAHA!!

Instead I am getting a Wii and a Wii Fit to exercise with!! I am so excited considering I hate walking or exercising in front of anyone so I can do it in the comfort of my own home!! WOOHOO!! :0)

Well have a good day, week, month....until I post again!! SLP

I'm not crazy!!

I went to my psychologist and nutritionist appointments yesterday. The psychologist was really nice. We talked for about 45 minutes and then I had to do a questionnaire and a true/false sheet. It took me an hour to do that!!

The nutritionist told me how I would be eating after the surgery. Which I already knew because I have been researching so much on it!! But it is good to be informed. :0) She was really nice also. She looked like one of my friends. She acted like her too. It was weird.

I am so ready for July to be here!! I go today for my 5Th supervised appointment. Hopefully I have lost or maintained. I don't know if I can handle being told I gained yet again!! :0(

I will post later on that!! Have a good day!!

A new week...

It's another week already. The weekend just doesn't last long enough!!

Saturday we went to Jackson to get Zach some new glasses. He picked out some that looked horrible...so I suggested some that had Jimmy Neutron on them...he loves them. He said those are fine...whatever. He didn't care because he was tired of trying them on. Then we shopped for groceries.

Yesterday, was Mother's Day, I didn't get anything...well I take that back because I got a flower from Zach that they planted at school. I told Chris that I still want a car. :0) You think I will get it? Me neither!! :0)

Well tomorrow I have my psych appointment and my nutritionist appointment. So wish me luck. I will let you know how it works!!

Later!!

Worried

Ok, I know this is my second post for today and you know I don't even know if anyone actually reads this stuff that I write on here but anyways. I have now cancelled the other psychologist appointment that I made this morning and made a new one. This other guy seems to know whats supposed to be going on. The lady at the insurance company wouldn't really give me a straight answer about things and I think that they do that so that you will get confused and give up but thankfully I have Valorie to keep me straight!! She is awesome!! I have emailed her like 5 times today freaking out about the insurance not paying for my surgery and not paying for the psych visit. She finally asked me a few minutes ago what number she could reach me at and called me. She told me not to worry that she had talked to the insurance company, given them the codes to make sure that they would pay, and then got the information for me to do everything to get approved. She said not to worry. (haha!) Anyway, my appointments are now, May 13th at 9 for the psych and 11 am for the nutritionist. wheww!! Praying does help lots and lots. :0)

Well keep praying for me and reading my rants if anyone does!! SLP

Lots of appointments

I called today and got a new psychologist appointment. I figure $515 is a little expensive to be told I'm ok to have surgery. Although $250 is a little high also but it's half of the other. So now I have my 5th supervised diet doctor visit on the 15th of May then on the 16th I have my nutritionist appointment. Then on the 9th of June I have my psych eval appointment (she said it would take about an hour and a half. On the 16th I will probably have my 6th appointment with my PCP. (after that only one more!!! WOOHOO!!) And then on the 18th I have to take Zach back to the dentist for his yearly cleaning and what not. I have a busy two months ahead. And I know this is just the beginning.

I couldn't sleep last night because I started thinking that I only have approximately 2 to 2 1/2 more months before I find out if I am going to be approved for surgery!! The time has surely flown by. I am excited and scared at the same time and it is only going to get even more so. :0) But I am ready!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Zach spilt his slushy on my purse last night!! I am still going to carry it though because I have almost sold all my others!! I was so upset.

I don't know what is wrong with him lately. He seems to have an "I don't care" attitude about everything lately. Who knows whats going on.

Well later!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

update: One of the psychologists that I have called, called me back and he told me that my BCBS should have to pay for the psych eval because of them requiring me to have it done before approval!! Hopefully they will see it that way. But who knows?

:0)

So much to do, so little time.....

Yesterday I called to get my appointment for my psych eval that my insurance and also the surgeon requires me to have before I have surgery. The lady told me that it was going to cost $345 if my insurance didn't pay for it. I have to take a 3 hour computer test and then come back later for an appointment which will cost $170! Of course my insurance won't pay because they don't pay for any appointments related to obesity but they do pay for the surgery. How crazy is that. I was trying to find a doctor closer to where I live but now I think I am just going to see if anyone else's price is that high. Since I have to pay for it anyway, it doesn't really matter if I go to someone in network or not.

I also took Zach to the eye doctor yesterday. They dialated his eyes. It was a chore to get him to let them put it in his eyes. They decided that he needed a stronger prescription. So now we have to get new glasses for him.

I feel like there are so many roadblocks in my life. I know it is just trying to slow me down. But I am not going to let it!! I will survive!! :0)

Well have a good week!! SLP

Back to work...

Chris had to go back to work today. He was not happy at all about this decision. He has only been home since Tuesday night. He wasn't supposed to go back until next Saturday. Instead of going back to the same boat that he was on though he is going to one in Mississippi, actually he had to get on it in Hammond, LA. I felt bad for him.

He thinks that he is forgotten when he leaves but he isn't. If he would read what I type on here he would know that I do miss him. He also thinks that I am cheating on him. Can you believe that? He thinks that someone wants me? HA! I can't even believe sometimes that he even wants me much less someone else. I am not good looking at all and I am fat. (SHH!! Don't tell anyone.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Zach has a loose tooth. He keeps showing me how it will lean forward and back. It is kind of gross. HAHA He is going to look funny with a tooth missing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I told Chris that I want a new car for Mother's Day. This is what I want....

But they cost a lot....so I will probably end up with what I have or.....

of course I do like cars too....but I don't know how I would feel riding in a car lower to the ground than what I am in now......

More than likely I will stick with what I have....unfortunately!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well on the diet side of my life, things are going OK. I am trying not to snack in between meals. Still holding back on the soft drinks. Which is a huge step for me. I was drinking anywhere from 3 to 5 a day. Now I drink water or tea. :0) For that I am proud of myself. I hope that the next time I go back to the doctor which is the 15th of May I have not gained anymore weight. :0(

Well until next time!! SLP