the wonderful adventures of Julie and Sammy

I am not dead... just growing a human being :)

2011-01-12T06:44:00.000-08:00

Hello Band Land,

Well it's been a while ! I am not dead :)

I didn't post for a while because I don't really have much band related things to say at the moment as I am growing a human being.

I now only have 4CC in my band. The doctor asked me not to put on any weight during the first 12 weeks and then to watch my weight gain closely. Well now 16 weeks in I am down 3kg. So I am very pleased with that.

I have to say I am quite lucky with my cravings so far : steak, cherry tomatoes, clementines, fish...

I had a chocolate craving episode for a week but it didnt last. So I am very pleased with that too.

I will know if the baby is a boy or a girl on February 16th. and I can't wait !

Apart from that, not much to report really :) I will try to update this blog a bit more regularly !

Have a good day !

I have something very important to say!!!

2010-11-06T16:58:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I know I m such a bad blogger at the moment but there is something very important I need to tell you.

In June/July there will be an extra person living in our house. I am pregnant :D

I am so happy especially after being sent for fertility treatment, we did it without it so it's a big victory!

Here is a question to all of you mums. Any tricks to deal with morning (all day) sickness? I have to be off work because it is so bad and have spent the last days between my bed and the bathroom... any advice is welcome :D

I know it should stop at the end of the first trimester and if it is what you have to go through to have a baby then fair enough.

I had to get unfilled a bit but they will not unfill it completely but will monitor everything very closely.

I am losing weight since I found out : 3kgs so thats good. They asked me to try not to put on weight during the first trimester and then I will have to try and put on not more than the baby/water/placenta/etc... weight.

I hope you are having a great week end :)

Hello Band World! I need your help!

2010-09-17T00:31:00.000-07:00

Hello Band World,

I really deperately need your help. I haven't been on blog land for a little while because for some reason that I couldnt describe until right now I just couldn't do it. I am going to make a list of all the things that are in my head right now. Because I cannot write a structured text at all.

1. I need to get back on track with weight loss. I didnt lose any weight for a while, I couldn't physically eat the right food. My band was too tight and I had to get an unfill. I am fine with that but after being sick almost everytime I have eaten something for over a month I am scared of eating so many kind of food. which are the good ones for me.

2. I am starting to exercise more regularly which will help I am sure once I get the diet back on track properly. I am going swimming with my husband which I really enjoy.

3. The reason why I had a hard time coming back here is that I see you all getting skinny and I am not compared to you. And I am so happy for you but it is very difficult because I know why I am not losing weight as much as I should and it means having to face those issues.

4. I have been diagnosed with PCOS, which is something I had been dreading as I can't imagine my life without children and now being told the only way for me to get pregnant is with fertility treatment and it is going to be veru difficult. I have been referred to a fertility clinic so waiting to get a date for my first appointment.

5. I need your help because I feel down. I need your help to get back on track. I need your help because you've always motivated me. I need your help because you know what I am going through.

6. I was not asking for your help before because I didn't want to face my problems. because you would have told me things i didnt want to hear (the truth) .

I am going to add a few pictures of the wedding as my motivation to a new start of healthiness. It was the best day of my life and my husband is the most supportive and loving person in the world, he is trying so hard to help me with everything but there is times like now when he doesn't have all the answers to help me and that's why I turn to you my banded friends because I am sure you will find the words to get me back on track.

Me and my dad in the limo.

Me and my dad at the church.

The wedding Party.

The girls (my siters, my best friend my niece and I)

James and I.

Our Cake with the little figurines I made.

I will make a slideshow with all the other pictures as there is so many of them.

I am back! and married!!!

2010-08-08T03:27:00.000-07:00

Hello Everybody!

I am so sorry for not posting for so long! I was very busy with the wedding. I need to get back to blogging as soon s possible, tell you all about the wedding and showing you all the pictures, here is one as a preview :) I haven't been able to follow your blogs either in the last month or so. So it's gonna take me a while to catch up but i will eventually.

I will tell you more in details about how it is going foodwise but here are a few numbers for the moment.

Weight loss to date : 16.7 kg (36.8lbs)

Band : 7.5CC /10CC

Have a good Sunday!

another little update

2010-06-07T11:39:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone,

I am sorry I haven't posted for a while, everything has started to become hectic with the wedding, and I didnt think I had done enough bandwise to blog about.

I don't know what to think about the band at the moment. I was supposed to get a fill today but it didnt happen. My usual bariatric nurse was not there as she had an operation recently, and there was a man replacing her. H e was not mean but I am used to Wendy who is so nice and I must have been expecting this man to be as nice and he wasnt.

He said I did not need the fill. As I was still losing weight and that I had several stuck/sickness episodes in the last week. He thought a fill would make this worse.

I know I am losing weight but I am losing very slowly, too slowly copared to what I expected and slower than I did on most diets before. Usually around 5 lbs a month.

I just didnt feel supported by that man,and I was feeling really sad after the appointment. I feel a bit better now. I had a chat with James and he convinced me to write a blog.

I dont really know why I am sad, or wy I feel I am not doing good because I am doing better than the girls I chatted with today but I do feel this way, and I am used to Wendy motivating me when I feel like that.

I have been away from the blogs because I don't have time to follow them as much as before but I think today was an emergency. And I think it makes me realise how much I need the support I get in Blogland and I need to make more time to follow them again.

Ps: On a positive note, the Boob cream does work!

My Hen Night at OneTrueMedia.com

2010-06-01T02:16:00.001-07:00

Here is a preview of what happened during my Hen Night, I have to go to work so will post the full story later on :)

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

My First Vlog

2010-05-21T08:34:00.001-07:00

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Boob cream, hen night, birthday and BFF

2010-05-17T16:02:00.000-07:00

Hello my little banded (or not) friends,

I am a terrible blogger, I Haven't been in blogland in the last 2 weeks. I was so busy!

This post might be a bit long to tell you about several things... During the last few weeks I have lost a bit more weight, I am now down 14.3 kilos (31.5lbs) . Knowing the week ahead of me there is a big chance that i will put some weight on this week though.

I had my second fill, the nurse put 2 ccs in so I am now at 5.5 ccs and I an definetely feel some restriction it is not the best restriction i could have i think but I definetely feel a great difference. I have also discovered some of my problem food the worst one that is getting stuk everytime is quorn sausages, it just doesnt go down...

I eat a lot less but the head hunger is hard to fight... I started exercising again which I hope will help with the weight loss. My foot is better but the plantar fascitiis pain comes and goes.

I have found a new great product: Boob cream! From Lush it is called lovely jubblies! the results so far are very promising. I will keep you updated on how it works. I am getting quite concerned about my boobs as they never seem to stop shrinking, I wish my bum was trying to compete with them too in the shrinkage competition...

This week there is two big events for me,

On thursday it's my birthday, I will be 25 years old. I am working during the day but will be having a birthday dinner at my favourite restaurant with some friends in the evening and I am really looking forward to that.

On Saturday is my Hen Night, I cannot tell you much aboit ot yet as it is all a surprise to me. I am being picked up at 12 by my best friend and then I don't know anything.

Talking about my best friend it's about time I tell you about her. I have known her for only 2 years but I never got on so well with a girl. I usually have issues to trust girls, my closest friends apart from her are boys. I have always dreamt to have a best girl friend that I can share everything with but never found one until I met Yuna. I am so happy that I have found her. To organise my hen night she has to put up with a lot of cr*&%£&p from other people including people who we thought were our friends, but turned out to be very selfish self centered people. She's always very supportive with everything I do and always there for me. And you know what it feels great to have such a good friend !!

I will let you know how my week went and will catch up on your blogs as quickly as I can. Sorry for not comenting lately I really didn't have the time. I will try to take pictures of the 2 events to share them with you!

Good night xxx.

very quick weigh in update before going to work...

2010-05-02T23:07:00.000-07:00

Hi guys,

guess what? Ifinally got out of that month of not losing much! and the verdict for this week: A LOSS OF 2 KG (4.4lbs) finally it is starting to go down again woohoo! it is now 13.4kg that's 29.5lbs yaaaay!

I have to go I will post more about my week end tonight have a good monday everybody!

How Gilly saved my Wedding Gift list

2010-05-02T05:02:00.000-07:00

Gilly you truly are a superhero!

We did not have a wedding gift list yet and I was starting to worry a lot. But thank you you I now know exactly what I want. I will have three of the flatulence absorbing blankies! If their material is used by the army they have to be the best! My marriage could have been a failure even before it started but thank to you we will live happily ever after!

A little update.

2010-04-29T14:56:00.000-07:00

Hello my little friends,

I wanted to give you a little update on my weight. I usually don't weigh myself in the middle of the week but I needed to know if the weight was finally moving to stay motivated and here is how it's been going so far...

monday: 135.2 kg (+ 0.4 kg)
wednesday: 134.3 kg (-0.9 kg)
thursday: 133.9 kg (-0.4 kg)

so so far since monday a loss of 1.5 kg which is 3.3lbs yaaay! and i have a new low! I am not changing my ticker in case the weight goes up before official weigh in on monday. hopefully it will keep going down.

I would like to introduce you to a new future banded lady Kelly. She is living in Northern Ireland like me and I am her only follower so far. She is getting banded on 5th May in England and I am sure she could do with some support form the wonderful people in blogland.

I can't wait for the week end which will be very busy. I am not working this week end and there is a street theatre festival in Belfast that I love called the festival of Fools. My super fiance and I will be spending the day there and going to see a country music concert in the evening. Sunday will probably be a lazy day at home. Tomorrow night my (now officially) BFF (I will have to explain to you why it is now official in a post soon as it is very important to me) is coming over to make place cards for the wedding.

I will definetely try to get a vlog done soon. any suggestions on which sotware/website is the easiest to use for that?

I wish you all a great week end !

Weigh in day : Joey said it it was the earth tilting east not the chocolate...

2010-04-27T15:54:00.000-07:00

Hello,

I had my weigh in on monday and I am up again to 135.2... I hate these scales they won't let me go under 135! for the last month I have been going up and down between 134.7 and 136.6...

I have started the diet the bariatric nurse gave me and I hope it will help this week. I decided I would weigh myself tomorrow as a mid week weigh in to see how things are going and stay motivated.

I still can't exercise but good news I am not using my crutches anymore. I have started taking the anti inflamatory tablets and it makes a massive difference. If it all goes well I will be back on the wii fit on the day of my second fill :10th may.

I still have no restriction so I hope the next fill helps as I find it extremely hard. Once you have reached restriction does it get a lot easier? does the weight go down faster? I have been feeling discouraged lately I find it hard to stay motivated. So I have asked my fiance to be strict with me and make sure I eat right during my meals and tell me off if I don't.

I need to try and do a Vlog again. Hopefully it will work fine this time and show you all the things I am preparing for the wedding.

I am off to bed now. Will keep you updated of my weight loss soon.

BYOC

2010-04-23T12:45:00.000-07:00

1. Name a career you would NOT want to do and tell why.

Anything involving the sex industry, I don't mind people doing whatever they want but it is against the principles I have for myself. And anything that involves blood, like a surgeon or something. I admire these people but I am so scared of blood...

2. What’s the best present you ever received for your birthday?

The best one was for my 18th birthday. My parents offered me a week of full time singing lessons. I have always loved to sing but I didnt have the confidence to do it. I then joined a stage school and it gave me a lot of confidence in myself to do it.

3. This is from Amy W. (I had a request to copy her question and ask it today in BYOC) (Hope that’s okay Amy!)

What do you hide behind?

I hide behind a confident looking character. If you ask most of my friends they would think I am very confident, I have absolutely no problems with being obese, but this is just what I want them to think. I would feel extremely vulnerable if they could see how I really feel inside. I only show teh real me to my closest friends when I am sur I can trust them.

4. Where were you born?

In Toulon in Provence in the south of France.

5. A little twist on this one..usually we ask – what blog spoke to you the most, stuck with you, had the most effect on you this week? This week I’m adding to that which comment may have affected you greatly? Sometimes a blog can lead to amazing comments and they deserve their own claim to fame here in this question.

I haven't caught up with all your blogs yet so will have to answer this one before.

Fabracadabra

2010-04-22T13:53:00.001-07:00

Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls...

I present to you the amazing Fabracadabra! The first magicien who makes kilos disappear with the help of her assistant, Sammy the magic band!

This is what I do in work because they removed our internet access... The way most people pronounce my name is english is Fabra. A friend in word started saying i should have a magic show and be called fabracadabra. That was the starting point of the whole project. At the beginning of the weekI decided to draw a picture of fabracadabra. I thought you might like to know about her existence.

I also forgot to tell you a major thing. I have been on crutches for 10 days because of a stress fracture to my heel. My heel had been so sore I was advised to go to the hospital and that's where i found out I had a stress fracture and plantar fascitiis.

I have to wear inserts in my shoes and I am not allowed to exercise for a month...

Have a good night everybody!

Finally some news....

2010-04-21T15:50:00.000-07:00

Hi Guys,

Finally some news. I am very busy lately but very productive.

I realised I didnt update you on my weigh in. I lost 1.5 kg (3.3lbs) last week !!! I was 0.1kg from my lowest but I am happy to have had a good loss.

Today I had my hair trial for the wedding. It will be neater on the day but here are the pictures let me know what you think.

I am so happy to have that sorted. We also registrered our marriage so it is now official we are getting married. We are now sorting the smaller details and I love it.

I also had my birthday present early and it is a sewing machine. I am going to make a waistcoat for our page boy. I love sewing and never had a machine of my own so I am really excited.

I promise you all to come back on your blogs very soon. You are so productive it is hard to keep up when you are busy.

Oh and special message for Nikki. The package arrived today but I was away so will have to collect it at the post office on saturday. This stupid UK government asked me to pay taxes to collect it. I don't understand but apparently the do that... It doesnt matter anyway I cant wait to receive it.

I wish you a good night I am going to sleep.

xxx

Bad Blogger.

2010-04-18T16:25:00.000-07:00

Hello my little friends,

I am so sorry I am away from blogland at the minute. I have been very busy with wedding preparations.

I have my weigh in tomorrow and I hope to have lost some of the weight I had put back on last week. After my first fill I have to say I don't really feel any difference. I feel a bit tighter when I overeat but I can still eat too much. I hope restriction will be there soon.

Here are all the the thins I have done for the wedding this week:

got my jewellery
got my shoes
tried my dress on and sent it to the dessmaker
made the favours
picked the church music and met the musicians
found james's shoes
got the disposabl cameras
got the guest book
sent all the invites
got my handbag
got my made of honour measured for her dress to be made
ordered post boxes

to come this week:

hair trial
paperwork in the civic centre

I am very excited about the wedding it is all coming together. I need to keep my motivation up for the wieght loss. I hope tomorrow's weigh in will be more positive and i will put me back on tracks.

I am vry sorry about not commenting that much on your blogs at the moment I don't hve a lot of time but I will try and catch up with everything this week.

Have a good week!!

Weigh in, first fill and thank yous

2010-04-12T11:25:00.000-07:00

Hello Everybody,

This morning I had my weigh in like every monday morning. And the scales were evil like I feared. I was up 1.6 kilos... I was very disappointed with myself, My fiance gave me a big hug and said it would come down again and not to worry about it.

I decided today would be the day I would go back on tracks. Using the post fill liquid diet as a kick start.

I had my first fill. It was'nt sore. I was scared when I saw the size of the needle but it didn't hurt. She wanted to put 4 ccs in my 10 cc band but she felt some resistance and 0.5 ccs were coming out again so she preferred to put 3.5 ccs for this time. She is aiming for 2 ccs at the next fill on may 10th, but she said she would see how it goes by then.

I have had a slim fast shake, 1 litre of flavoured water so far. I will have some soup when I get home. I hope to lose what i put back on during the week.

I feel more positive today. It is a new start!

I would like to thank you for all your supportive comments on yesterday's blog. I feel liberated that I said it and had so much support. You are the best! I love you all! my non judgmental friends!

Have a good evening!

Time to be brave and face my secrets.

2010-04-11T15:33:00.001-07:00

This is a post I told Jen I would do after she shared her story on her blog, Drazil and Jen gave me the courage to talk about my secret and why I am overweight now.

It is very hard for me to type this blog as I will have to face facts I do not want to see in front of me. I should see them and I think to be able to lose this weight I need to face them.

I don't know where to start because it is a complicated story but I think I will write it in the chronological order it happened to me.

When I was 13 I started to have night terrors. For those of you who don't know what night terrors are, they are very violent nightmares everynight. Many of them beng the same over and over again. I was already a bit overweight at the time but nothing major. I was so scared of falling asleep. I couldn't do anything to stop it. There was that dream everynight, in a car with 2 babies in their car seats at the back, they both looked like me and they are both crying. suddenly very brights lights and a crash. a few seconds after just one of the babies voices.
I have had that dream every single night for over a year until I decided to say it to my parents. They brought me to a child psychiatrist. I explained to him all my night symptoms. He said to me usually you see that when there has been a strong emotional shock. and with people with amnesia.

I started to feel like I wasnt complete, that there was a part of me missing, I was feeling lonely and even my friend and family could not fill that gap. I had no idea what would fill it so I started eating, every day more and more. I became bulimic, I would eat enormous amounts of food and make myself sick afterwards. One of my friends found out and told my parents.

The psychiatrist started working with me to stop this as well, and focused on me stopping making myself sick. but he didnt do anything for the eating part of the problem. At some stage we were going nowhere. so he asked if he could see my parents for one session to see if they could help, if they had any elements I didnt know about that could help me get better.

And finally they said it one day. I will never forget that day when the psychiatrist asked my mum to tell me something she had hidden for so many years. something that made me understand why I was hving that dream. why I wasnt feeling complete.

We had a car accident and I was injured quite badly, my mum too, a drunken man crashed in the side of our car and killed my twin sister. It suddenly made sense the other baby me in the dream wasnt me, it was her, I didnt even remember her. My mum explained that i suffered head injuries and I had no memories from before the accident. She explained that the doctors in the hospital told her that and she had to choose if she wanted to tell me about my sister or not. She was so hurt at the time she decided not to. And for years they lived like if she never existed.

I needed to know everything, I wanted an explanation, I was angry, but nothing. They wouldnt say a thing. They couldnt talk about it because it was hurting them too much. I felt devasted, broken, helpless, empty, sad... And I was hating them. For hiding this from me, for not helping me to get better, for pretending she never existed, for not wanting to talk to me about it. And the only thing that would calm me down was food.

For years I have researched everything I could, harrassed them to tell me about her. And finally turned to my granny who saw how distressed I was and made me promise not to tell my mum she had talked about it. She gave me pictures, her teddy bear, and told me about her. She brought me to her grave.

I have worked with a hypnose therapist to work on the memory I had lost and managed to remember a few things. Not much but still a few things, when I turned 20 I was not bulimic anymore. I did a lot of emotional eating but it was not considered as bulimia anymore. I put on the rest of the weight by yoyo dieting.

I am not fine with all this story yet, I still have difficulties understanding why thing happened this way, I still have to control how angry I am with my parents about it. I still have too many questions that are not answered and I still don't feel complete. I probably never will. therapist told me to learn to live with it instead of trying to make myself complete with a substitude but it is easier said than done...

I feel naked now that I have written my biggest secret down . I am scared of being judge, but I needed to do it. I don't have the courage to read what I wrote again to check for typos and misspellings because if I do I will probably delete everything so I will take a deep breath and hit the publish post button now!

NSV's and first fill tomorrow , and dessert talk to answer Drazil

2010-04-11T15:08:00.000-07:00

Hello my friends,

I have spent a few hours on friday trying to do a vlog for you but without success the image and the words wont match...

So I will write all the things I was saying to you in different posts.

On friday I had my weddin dress trial. I ordered my dress before the operation in january. At the time I was a size 26 (28 US size) so i ordered it one size smaller. For some reason although I knew it was going to fit I was so nervous and worried I wouldnt get into it. And the verdict is it is 2 sizes too big!!!

Fortunately I have a good dressmaker who fill do a fitting just one month before the wedding and finish the alterations the week before so the dress fits me then.

I also received my jewellery and finished my invites. I am making favours now. I was showing you everything when I did the vlog but be patient I will make another one showing you many different things.

Another Nsv, I can fit in 3 pair of trousers that were too small for me. And I had to give up several clothes because they are too big. Which means there will be clothes for theones interested to grab soon ( Bonnie I know you are so keep watching I will post pictures soon)

I have my first fill tomorrow and I am scared because I have been so bad with food. I will have definetely put on weight this week. I can't get back on track since the wake and Easter it is very annoying. I will have to watch what I eat this week as I will be back to liquids for 3 days then mushies for 3 days before being back to normal.

I am scared the scales will play an evil trick on me and say I have put on weight to my bariatric nurse. I will have to be honnest with her and tell her I went to the restaurant, had raclette, had chocolate, had chips...

I haven't been exercising properly either because my right heel is very sore. I will show the nurse tomorrow and see what she says. I am scared I have a stress fracture or something like that. When I am sat it is ok but when I walk it hurts a lot.

I hope the nurse wll give me a good fillthat will give me some kind of restriction tomorrow because at the moment I eat too much. I feel like I am always hungry.

We will see tomorrow how the weigh in goes and the first fill too. I will tell you all about it. I am doing a late shift in work but dont get a lot to do in the last 2 hours so will probably update you.

Now talking about dessert, Drazil asked what happened to our libido with weight loss. Well to me I can notice a massive difference. I had reached the point where I was feeling so bad about myself doing anything sexual was scaring me, I felt I didnt deserve it for some reason. And my fiance is great about making me feel prettier but it didnt work anymore because I was hating myself so much.
I havent changed that much yet but the kilos I lost are giving me a bit more confidence in myself. And I think it my fiance notices it because I never changed a thing but he is looking to have dessert a lot more. And I am fine with it. I am enjoying it when before I was just thinking i was not worthy of it.

I hope I didnt "shock" you Drazil, I tried to use a poetic way to describe things.

Weigh in day: How is this even possible?

2010-04-05T03:23:00.000-07:00

This will probably be the last post for today,

So I weighed in this morning and I lost 0.6 kg. How is this even possible?

Last week I was very good and I exercised 5days/week and I lost 0.1 kg. This week I didnt exercise, I ate chocolate, cake, a lot of bad things, never had a proper meal, just ate things during the day, but I lost more weight...

As long as it goes down I will not try to understand... I am pleased with that. Just another week before my fill. I am looking forward to it as I really need restriction.

Have a good Easter Monday everybody.

BYOC edition 3. Even late I like to please Mama pimp

2010-04-05T02:13:00.000-07:00

1. If you could be a Superhero - what would you be called or what would your powers be?

I am not sure what I would be called, but my super powers would be to control time with my magic remote control. I would also be able to play the appropriate music in the background for any kind of situations and teletransport myself so i wouldnt have to pay for plane tickets anymore.

2. Name one physical thing you love about you and one mental thing you love about you.

I love my hair, I am proud to be ginger :) I love that I am a very good friend, it is very rare now I think.

3. If you stood in front of God (or whatever Supreme Being you may believe in) - what question would you ask him?

I would ask where he sent my loved ones who passed away.

4. Besides yourself - who was/is your biggest enabler in your weight loss journey?

no one else

5. What do you do for a living (another reader request question)?

I work in a customer care call centre fo Cleawire Belgium (internet company) I also am a beauty therapist and do treatments from my home.

6. Whose blog hit home for you this week or whose blog made you think the most this week?

I am sorry I will have to pass this one for this week havent had time to read any blogs yet.

More Awards

2010-04-05T01:39:00.000-07:00

Thank you girl Bandit for nominating me!

Here are the rules:

1. When you have received this award you must thank the person that awarded you the award in a new post.

2. Name 10 things that make you happy.

3. Pass this award on to 10 bloggers & inform them.

10 things that make me Happy

1.My fiance. I love him so much and he makes me feel so happy and beautiful
2.My family
3.My friends
4.All of you in Blogland supporting me in my journey
5.Seeing the scales go down
6.Making people happy
7.Traveling
8.Finishing a project
9.going to see a musical at the theatre
10.being nice and warm on the couch in a blanket with the fire on when it is freezing outside, a cup of hot chocolate is usually welcome in this situation.

I have decided to nominate all the people that supported me in the last few days and made this hard times a bit better. I know there is more than 10 but I don't like to follow rules...

Roo
Bianca J.
Kim
The Dash
Bonnie
Nikki
Sandy Lee
Alison
LDswims
Tessierose
Jacquie
Joey
Girl Bandit
Bandit Blossum
Debi
Janelle
Amy W.
Amandakista
Southern Belle

I love you all girls.

Stiletto Award

2010-04-05T01:15:00.000-07:00

WHAT IS A STILETTO AWARD???

There are thousands of blogs, and there are hundreds of awards. The Stiletto Award is a little different than most!

First, to understand, let us understand the Stiletto… some words that describe it…
Classy – Strong -Exotic – Demure – Extreme – Ultra – Sexy - Bold – Funky

“Walking in extremely high heels is not something that the average woman (or man) will need to do in their everyday life.
However, there are times when this skill may be required.”

AND… what is a “blogger”? According to Dictionary.com the official definition is:
Blogger: One who writes entries in, adds material to, or maintains a weblog However, I think there is a LOT more to it than that. My definition of a blogger…
Blogger: A strong, confident woman who has a full life. Because of the nature of her existence, she seeks connection and companionship with others who understand and wish to support her. She gains strength and courage from the experiences of these woman and shares her story in return. Through the “blog world” she develops relationships with women she would otherwise never meet and builds a community of cherished friends with whom she shares her life, experiences, challenges, failures, triumphs, goals, family and so much more! She IS Classy, Strong, Exotic, Demure, Extreme, Ultra, Sexy, Bold and Funky!

“To walk gracefully in high heels, take short steps, as opposed to long strides, and come down in a heel-toe, heel-toe motion.”

Hence, the Stiletto Award…For Excellence in Blogging!

I want to salute the women who balance life, family & relationships with style & class! Those women who share their experiences with us…who encourage us, inspire us, teach us, make us laugh and basically keep us going! You know who they are! While you read this blog, your family is looking at you wondering what the heck you are laughing about so hard…or why the tissue is necessary for internet browsing. It’s the one that the kids are excited about cuz a new post means a new craft project or family outing. The one that inspires you to be a better mom, friend, person in general. The one that reminds you that we are all “in this life together” and you’re not the only one going through the hard stuff. The one that you secretly wish your blog was like…

“It is good to get into the habit of doing the warm-up and cool-down exercises every time you wear them.”

If you’ve received this award, someone out there thinks you deserve it! Be proud! Display the badge with honor! You earned it…after all it means that you brought something special to at least one other person, and really, isn’t that what life’s all about????

“Under no circumstances drive a car with your heels on. Not only do you have less control over the car, but it will damage your shoes – and they aren’t cheap at this height. Keep spare shoes in the car for driving, or have someone drive you.”

THE RULES!

This blog is meant to be shared, to be given out, to be bestowed upon any and ALL women who exemplify what the stiletto represents. If you’ve received this award, here’s what you do:

1. Display your Stiletto Badge of Honor on your sidebar! Wear it with pride… (grab the badge here)

“Heels this high are not meant for clubbing or walking long distances in. They are mainly used for getting from the living room to the bedroom, from the car to the restaurant, or for a short stroll along the catwalk.”

2. BRAG ABOUT IT! -write a post about your award. Include the link to this page so everyone will understand what it’s all about! http://bit.ly/thestilettoaward

3. SAY THANKS! - include a link to the friend who nominated you for the award.

Thank you so much Roo, I am happy I can be an inspiration to you. When I started this blog I thought if I can inspire one person then It will be all worth it :)

4. SHARE THE LOVE! -nominate 5-10 blogs that you feel deserve the award. Include links to them in your post -and- leave them a comment to let them know they are nominated.

1. Drazil

2. Amy W.

3. Joey

4. Jen

5. LapbandGal

6. Alison

7. Justine

8. GirlBandit

9. Janelle

10. Stephanie

5. DO WHAT YOU DO! -keep at it. Keep inspiring and encouraging and sharing your life! We love it and we thank you!!!

Back to normal life

2010-04-03T02:50:00.000-07:00

Hello everybody,

First of all thank you for your support. You are amazing! The last 3 days were very tiring, emotionally, physically, and foodwise.

I have been eating badly because I didn't have the time to cook for myself so was eating what was there for the wake. I was not sure how I would react to having a coffin in my living room as I have never been confronted to that situation but I thought the whole process was a very good thing.

Having so many people in my house for 3 days was very tiring but I am glad I could be there for J and his family. And like his mummy told me I am part of the family now too.

It will take me a while to catch up on all your blogs but I am in work and it is very quiet so might be able to do some of that today.

Thank you Nikki for posting the clothes :) I cant wait to receive them !
Thank you GirlBandit for the Award I can't see yet what it is but will soon :)

Quick and sad update.

2010-03-30T23:32:00.000-07:00

Hello Everybody,

Thank you for all your previous messages I really appreciated. Sadly she passed away yesterday so I will be away from Bandland until the wake is over on friday.

Thank you so much again for your support.

Prayers, Weigh in, late shift and snow...

2010-03-29T15:11:00.000-07:00

This title is probably summarising my day quite well. My main subject of the day will be prayers, My fiance's granny is very ill and in hospital. I found myself praying today because I feel useless and I wish I could do more but I realise there is nothing more for me to do. Praying is a major thing for me, I am not very religious, I don't know what I believe in, the only thing I know is that I believe there is something up there. The first time I prayed was on the operation table just before going to sleep. I was praying the big guy upstairs to let me wake up after the operation. I was so scared of the anesthesia.

Today I prayed because someone I care about does not have a lot of time left on this land. Because she is very dear to the person I care the most about in the world and I hate seeing him sad. I want to make it all better but I can't, there is nothing I can do about it and I hate that. So I prayed, I prayed that things will go for the best whatever the best is in this situation. I just don't want her to suffer so I will let the bug guy decide what the best is. He will know I am sure... People say he is so powerful he would know what is best wouldn't he?

I was working the late shift today, it allowed me to do my exercise before going to work. I don't like the late shift and I knew James was going to the hospital to visit his granny, I wished I could have been there to support him but couldnt. When I came out of work I got absolutely soaked on the way to the train station, it was the closest place for me to run to to get a taxi home. And when I was in the taxi it started snowing... the snow has stopped now but the rain is still there.

I had my weigh in as well this morning. I lost 100g that's all. my dietician says it is normal and to focus on not putting on weight but I find this so frustrating. My first filled has been moved one day forward it is now on monday 12th april. And instead of giving me one then and the second one the week after they will just give me a bigger one at first ,and then the second one a month after. I am now allowed to eat every kind of food. But need to stick to my diet the dietician gave me.

I am sorry this is not a very positive post but I needed to write all this down to let it out. Have a nice week everybody.

Keeping Mama pimp happy.

2010-03-27T07:04:00.000-07:00

1. If you could change your first name - what would it be?

My favourite's girl name is Lilly and that is how I chose to call our daughter when we will have one. But I am not sure it would suit me. My name is not very original, it was the most popular girl's name in 1985 when I was born. But I still like it. I would have preferred to be called Juliette. close enough but still a bit different.

2. Why are man hole covers round?

Because is they were square, in movies during a dramatic scenes they would not roll on the ground. I like to see them rolling on the ground during a very chaotic scene, it adds some dram to the scene.

3. What's one of your biggest pet peeves?

Lack of hygiene, I am not OCD, my house is not tidy most of the time... But I cannot stand non hygienic situations, it freaks me out for some reason.

4. If you could be a car - what would it be? Post a pic if you can.

I would be a green New Beetle.

5. What's the biggest thing you learned from a blog this week or which blog spoke to you the most this week off the top of your head? (try to link them so others can check them out)

That a tummy tuck even a mini one is a lot more invasive than I expected.
Here it is.

Third Anniversary and scars evolution

2010-03-24T16:01:00.000-07:00

Hello Guys,

I had a great day today, It was our anniversary with James, it has been 3 years we are together. I love him so much. When I got out of work he was waiting for me with a bouquet of red roses. We got home and I did my 30 mins of wii fit (like I have done everyday since monday) and he prepared a nice romantic dinner. We gave eachother cards. He got us tickets for a concert in may and did a very funny thing. I had told him cheesy things were allowed on days like his so he bought me one of my favourite things in the world : french cheese! You can't do cheesier than that :P

I realised today I had tried to take a picture of us a few weeks ago and the camera was set on video and here is the result...

I have been sticking with my 30 mins of wii fit everyday so far so I hope to keep doing that everyday. foodwise I have had a "big dinner" last night and tonight too. We had people over for dinner last night and anniversary dinner tonight. But with the exercise I hope it will still be ok on the scales on monday. I actually didnt eat anything close to what i was eating before the operation.

I am in the middle of 2 sizes at the minute for trousers 26 is too big and 24 is too small but I will soon be sharing clothes with the sisterhood. ( Bonnie I havent forgotten you for clothes there will be some coming soon :))

my scars are looking smaller, nicer, better I am really happy. you can see in the picture below on the left is 2 weeks after the operation and on the right it is at almost 5 weeks after. The improvement has been amazing. I have been using a scar reducing oil called bio oil. It also got rid of my allergic reactions to the plasters. (you can sse the image bigger if you click on it)

I am watching American Idol while writing this blog (I havent seen the result show) and I would just like to say I am a big fan of Crystal Bowersox! She is amazing!

Have a good night and a special thought for Alison who is in her Hotel room waiting to go for surgery tomorrow. Good Luck Alison you will do great. Special thoughts for the ladies who had their operation today :)

Doing my job to keep the pimp happy :)

2010-03-22T05:39:00.000-07:00

There you go Drazil! Your questions kept me busy for a little while during a boring monday in work :) I hope you like the answers.

If you could be a weather forecast, what would you be and why?

A sunny spring day, when it is warm but not too hot. And it is sunny but the sun is not burning your skin.

If you could be a crayon, what color would you be and why?

It would really depand on my mood. At the minute I think I would be a dark purple one. But not a blueish purple, a more pinkish one.

What is/was your biggest physical goal you want to do when you hit your goal weight?

I want to be able to cycle with my fiance, he loves cycling but I can't do it for a long time at the moment. So maybe we can cycle to and back form work.

If you could be any animal, what would it be and why?

I would be a bear, bears are not mean they are just misunderstood. I am more like the cuddly carebear type. I am not scared to say I am addicted to hugs, I LOOOOVE them so much. I would be a happy carebear with nice people and a mean grumpy forest bear with not nice people.

What was your highest weight?

146.6 kg

What is your weight now?

135.4 kg

What is your goal weight if you have one?

70Kg

What is your goal size if you have one?

I don't really have one as I am a lot smaller on top and I guess I will see what size I am when I am 70kg

What diet/program/tool do you follow/have if any?

I have a Cousin Bioring gastric band and I follow advice from my bariatric nurse (most of the time)

How did you lose the weight current to today?

Sammy (my band), eating the right things. I will start to exercise again from today.

What’s your best advice for people in this weight loss journey?

Just take your time to lose the weight, follow your doctor's advice, think positively, surround yourself with the right people, don;t hesitate to say if you think something is wrong, always count on the sisterhood of the band.

Have you ever shaved your whootananny?

I did once, and it looked like a raw chicken. I didnt like the look, feel and itchiness of it so wont do that again, but I do wax some every week! And I do get someone to wax mine but never completely. I you lady need any beauty/waxing/make up advice just let me know I am not scared of anything haha.

the Verdict and my 1 month bandiversary...

2010-03-21T23:49:00.000-07:00

It is now one month I have been banded. I would like to wish a happy 1 month bandiversary to Janelle and Joey as well. Here are my achievements:

1. I have lost 11.2kg (24.7 lbs)
2. I feel healthier
3. I feel happier
4. I have more confidence that I can achieve my goal
5. I have more control over what I eat and think about everything I put in my mouth.
6. I can sit comfortably in an opera seat
7. I have met fantastic people in blogland that are helping me and advising me everyday.

There is a lot more I have gained by losing the weight so far but these are the main ones.

Now for today's weigh in : I have lost 0.5 kg (1.1 lbs) it is not a very big loss but it is a loss. my main goal until my first fill is going to be not to put on weight. And if I can, lose some. I know I won't achieve amazing weight losses during that time so I need to stay focused on that.

I know I could have lost more if I didn't have chocolate mini eggs but they were nice and I still lost weight so I am glad I did otherwise I would have been very frustrated and that could have been worse.

I will probably write another blog from work if it is very quiet, if not I will be back soon. Have a good monday.

Bandster Hell AAAAAAAAAAH!

2010-03-21T17:19:00.000-07:00

Good evening Bandworld,

I am here to confess tonight... I ate some chocolate mini eggs... they were here and I am starting the diet my doctor gave me tomorrow so I thought I wouldnt be able to have them then and I could have a few, the only problem being that they are very addictive and I had more than a few. I still had a lot less than I would have had before but I still did have too many of them.

Now I am scared to get on the scales in the morning... I am in bandster hell there is no doubt about it. I am still on soft/normal food but I am worried of starting to eat solid food as I have no restriction whatsoever and my appetite is coming back.

Tomorrow is my first month bandiversary and I would like to reach 11kg (I would need to lose 0.3kg tomorrow).

I spent a few days trying to catch up on all you blogs. I have added all the blogs of my new followers but some of you don't have a link to their blog on their profile so if you follow me but I don't follow you please send me the adress of your blog.

Drazil, I will answer your questions tomorrow. I think they are very funny.

I need to go to bed now but Keep watching this space tomorrow as I have some more posts coming.

Good Night everybody!

St Paddy's Day and new eating plan

2010-03-17T15:19:00.000-07:00

Hello again my little leprechauns,

The picture above is not from today, it was 3 years ago (and 20 kilos lighter) but I didn't dress up today as I had to go to work and these kind of things are not appreciated...

I just wanted to let you know I had the exact dates of my first 2 fills. The first one is on tuesday 13th April and the second one on wednesday 21st April. It feels very far away but at the same time I still don't feel ready to have one right now as I still haven't started eating solid food.

I have been given an eating plan to follow that I will share with you as it might be useful for some of you.

Green Zone: most meals if not all of them

Breakfast options:

1-2 eggs with mushrooms/tinned tomatoes
cereal bowl size of chopped fruit with low fat yoghurt
4 tablespoons of porridge made with semi skimmed milk
protein shake
homemade smoothie with fruit, milk, yoghurt
3-4 melba toast with low sugar jam, marmelade, soft cheese

Lunch options:

grilled/baked or raw (sushi style) fish including prawns, tuna in brine, trout, mackeral, sardines and salad
chicken breast fillet diced into a vegetable salad/stirfry
3-4 wholemeat crispbreads/oatcakes with wafer thin ham or turkey and/or low fat cheese
1-2 egges with ham/cheese or salad

Dinner options:

skinless baked/roasted or grilled chicken/turkey with a generous serving of steamed//stir fried vegetables/salad
grilled/baked/poached fish steak/fillet with steamed/roasted vegetables or salad and 2 baby potatoes if required
2 egg omelet filled with mixed vegetables or cheese/ham
ready meal (less than 350 cals) containing no rice/pasta

Snacks (maximum 2 times/day if you are peckish)

fruit
vegetable sticks and/or 3 tablespoons of cottage cheese/houmous
small low fat yoghurt/fromage frais/custard/low sugar jelly
6-8 nuts
low fat hot chocolate or bovril

Orange zone :not more than a meal a day from this section

breakfast options:

small cereal bowl size of low sugar cereal with semi skimmed milk
2-3 tablespoons of muesli/granola with a low fat dairy product (milk/yoghurt) from the green section
3 tablespoons of beans on one medium of wholemeal toast
one medium slice of wholemeal toast with one egg (not fried)

Lunch options:

3 tablespoons of beans on one medium slice of wholemeal toast
half a jacket potato with any protein filling from green zone
3 tablespoons of wholemeal couscous served with protein from green zone
a small pita filled with meat/fish or 1 egg from green section

dinner options: to be served with steamed vegs or salad

casserole, stewed or minced lamb, pork or beef (lean cuts) with 1-2 egg sized potatoes
dishes based on peas beans and lentils approx 6 tablespoons per serving
6 tablespoons of cottage/shepherds/fish pie
3 tablespoons of wholemeal couscous with diced chicken or pork

snacks (only have these 3-4 times a week)

2 rich tea biscuits or 2 jacobs crackers
walkers quavers or french fries , thai bites, snack a jacks
chocolate mousse/custard/ice cream ( 5 dessert spoons)
bananas & avocados
cereal bars less than 100 calories

I was told I should try and eat only in the green zone as much as I can and limit myself to 3 meals a week in the orange zone.

I need to follow that to loose as much weight as possible before the wedding and I am determined to do that well.

If you have any questions or want more details don't hesitate to ask. Right time for me to go to the shower and go to bed or I won't get up in the morning.

Good night

First Post op appointment with the Bariatric Nurse.

2010-03-17T03:32:00.000-07:00

Hi Everybody,

How are you all today. Happy St Paddy's day to the ones celebrating it. I can't celebrate today as I am in work when people are having fun outside...

I had my first post op appointment with the nurse yesterday. It went really well. She was very happy with my weight loss so far and said my scars looked good and advised me to use some bio oil to reduce their size. All the surgical glue is gone as well so I will put a picture soon to show you how they look.

It is now 4 months to the wedding so they want to help me lose as much as I can by then . I have a specific diet I need to follow I will explain it in another post when I am home to give you more details about it. I will have my first fill in a month, then my second one 1 week after, and three week after that I will have a third one to help me have restriction before then and get the full use of my band.

Some of my clothes are really getting loose I will be able to share the ones that are still in a good shape with the sisterhood. I need to check the sizes equivalence between the UK and the US. In Australia and Canada are the sizes the same than US ones?

I am bored in work so I am going to tell you about my job. I am working for Clearwire Belgium, for their Customer service. I take calls all day in French and English. It is not my dream job but it pays the bills. I am a Beauty therapist but could not find any jobs in beauty therapy at the moment so doing the treatments from home out of my working hours.

At least I have some colleagues I have a lot of fun with during the day it makes the job more enjoyable. To make the days go faster as well I draw pictures for people to decorate their desks. I will put pictures of them, I like childish drawings with very bold colours.

I hope you are having a nice day.

I am not a super obese anymore I am just morbidly obese. yay!

2010-03-15T14:53:00.000-07:00

Hello everybody,

It's Monday today which means it is weigh in day.I was worried to have put on weight after starting mushies but I still lost 600g this week (1.3lbs), To be honnest I wish I could lose more but I need to focus on healing first. I am now down 10.7kg (23.6lbs)

I also have lost some centimetres around my body:

Boobs: 127 cm --> 119.5 cm (-7.5 cm)
Chest: 113 cm --> 108 cm (-5 cm)
Waist: 114.5 cm --> 111 cm (-3.5 cm)
Hips : 157 cm --> 151 cm (-6 cm)
Thigh: 85 cm --> 85 cm (0)
Upper Arm : 49 cm --> 46 cm (-3 cm)

Another major victory is that my BMI is under 50 ! I am now not consider as Super obese but just Morbidly Obese!

By the way I find the term Super Obese a lot more positive than Morbidly obese...

Everything is moving in the right direction so it is good.I have an appointment with the nurse tomorrow and I have the day off so I will keep you updated on how it goes.

Have a good Evening.

Live from Work.

2010-03-12T03:37:00.000-08:00

Hello guys,

I thought I would give you some news now that I (unofficially) have access to the internet in work.

I have been on the soft diet since the beginning of the week. It makes a big change as I really feel hunger now. It is hard to be sat all day though it is stretching the skin around the wounds.

Last week I had a reaction to the plaster's glue, now my skin is extremely dry and inflamed where the plasters were I even had blisters there :(, it is getting better now that I use some antiseptic cream on it.

The surgical glue is still on. I removed it on the glue on the skin around the wounds as it was peeling off but i don't know what the actual wounds look like as there is dried blood inside the glue. I don't want to touch anything at the moment. I will see what the nurse says next tuesday.

I will definetely not be getting my first fill then as I won't have tried solid food yet, they will wait until the next appointment. I hope it won't take too long as I am worried of putting on weight at the minute as I can eat more.

I still eat a lot less than I used to even on a diet but I don't know what is normal or not for the band. On tuesday I will also be getting a very precise diet to follow to maximise the weightloss until the wedding. I think it will be easier to just follow this to the letter than having to make my own decisions for the minute.

I have bought 3 band cook books online. I should receive them today or tomorrow. If I find any good recipes, I will share them with you. I like cooking but I need to learn new recipes now.

I usually like to be more structured in my posts but I have been writing this post over 3 hours now. between customers'calls, lunch break and chats. I am very tired today. and coming down with a cold. I hope it will pass soon. I am working tomorrow and then going to the opera to see the sound of music. I am looking forward to that as I am a bid musical fan.

Last night I watched the new episode of america's next top model.(I love this show) and there was 2 plus size models who to me looked even better than the skinny size ones. only one was selected but i think she looks amazing not sure I like HER yest we will see.

just over 3 hours to go. I can't wait to go home. I am going to stop this post now because I could go on and on telling you about completely random things as I am so bored.

Have a good week end.

2 weeks Post op

2010-03-08T14:48:00.000-08:00

Hello Everybody!

Here is a little update wih my progress 2 weeks after the operation.

I am now down 10.1 kg (22.3lbs) since the start and I am very pleased with this result! Here are some comparison pics. the first ones are on the first day of the pre op diet and the second ones are today (1 month later). I feel a lot better already although I can't see a very big difference on the pictures there.

I have started Mushy food today so I guess there is a chance I will put on weight a bit this week but that's life. I will try not to be disappointed.

Sunshine Award

2010-03-08T14:17:00.000-08:00

I would like to thank Bonnie who gave me a Sunshine Award. Bonnie you are a great support to me and this is priceless. I hope for you you will get your band soon and you can be sure you will have my support every step of the way.

The sunshine award "is awarded to bloggers whose positivity and creativity inspire others in the blogging world."

Once you receive one, then you:

1. Post the logo on your blog.

2. Pass the award on to 12 fellow bloggers.

3. Link the nominees

4. Let nominees know they have won this award by commenting on their blog.

5. Share the love and link to the person you received this award from.

Here are my nominees:

1.Bonnie
2.Joey
3.Janelle
4.Amy.W
5.Jen
6.Lap Band Gal
7.Kim
8.Girl Bandit
9.Sandy Lee
10.Colleen
11.Aunt Janet
12.Southern Belle

There could be a lot more of you, thank you for your support!

9 days post op

2010-03-03T12:44:00.000-08:00

Hello everybody,

I really miss following all your blogs and updating mine at the moment... but I will be back soon.

I have quite a few pictures to show you tonight. But first an update on how things are going. It has been 3 days i haven't had any gas pains yaaaay so it lasted just a week in total. I have to admit it was extremely painful but I have almost forgotten about it. Tonight I have removed the waterproof plasters they had put on the day of the operation and changed them. I finally saw what my battle wounds look like. Here is a picture :

My belly is still quite swollen around the cuts. They are still covered in glue and there is dried blood aroud them which I am not liking... But it will be gone soon. I can noe drink a bit more during the day but I still don't feel hunger which I like a lot.

I still have very big bruises of the IV and blood tests.

Coming back from my operation I have been spoilt by my friends who sent or brought little gifts. Here are some pictures of what I had :

I love flowers so I was so happy. Yesterday I went to Ikea and bought a few things for the house. I will make pictures of my house or maybe a video soon to show you my DIY job.

In the meantime i wish you a good evening and I promise I will be back in Blogland soon.

New weigh in.

2010-03-01T00:26:00.000-08:00

Hi everybody,

I am not very present on blog land at the moment as my friend Sam in over from France. But I will put pictures up soon about what we did etc...

I just wanted to let you know that I had my official weigh in this morning and since the beginning I am down 9.3 kg (20.5 lbs) yaaaaaay!

I am not sure how much I am supposed to eat ( or should I say drink) at the minute. they did not give me a number of calorie to go by and I am not sure I am eating enough. until a few days ago I was having about 500 cals a day which I guess is too low so went up to 800 yesterday. Any advice there on a recommended amount?

I am also trying to drink more. It is hard though. I didnt have much gas pains yesterday I hope this was the end of it as it was awful. my incisions feel so itchy i have to remove my plasters buy the end of this week so I still don't know what my battle wounds look like. How long did it take for your port area not to be sore anymore? it is getting better everyday but it still feels very uncomfortable. i think I can feel my port as well is that normal? so many questions...

I hope you had a nice week end and I wish you a good week.

PS: Jacquie, for the wieght loss goals, I just added a text widget and wrote the goals myself. Maybe there is an easier way to do it but I am not sure. :)

Operation Story

2010-02-25T05:04:00.001-08:00

Hello blog Land,

I am back! I am going to try to give you as many details as I can about the last 3 days because it could give a fair ideas to thos undergoing surgery soon of what to expect.

Monday 22nd : operation day

6.30am: I left the hotel with Jenni and Karen the 2 other girls having surgery as well to go to the hospital. On the trip I was stressing more and more.

7.00 am : I arrived in the hospital got my bracelet on, and was brought to my room. I shared my room with a lovely belgian lady who was getting a gastric sleeve operation.

8 am: 3 nurses struggled to get as much blood as they needed for the blood tests so had to try in different places. I have massive bruises on my arms (will post a picture of that in the next post)

8.30am: the surgeon visited me in the room to explain all the procedure, he also said my operation should be just before 12.

9am: i decided to go in the girls' room next door to chat while I was waiting. we started chatting.

9.30 am: one of the nurses comes in the room and start moving Karen's bed. Karen thinks its her turn so goes in the bathroom. and another nurse comes in and says actually it's in the next room first: ME!! surprise! I wasn't even in my sexy gown yet so went to the bathroom and go changed and was wheeled down to the operating theatre.

9.40 am : I was brought to a first room where there was several people waiting on their bed there. they put contension bandages on my legs. put the IV in.

10.00 am : they brought me into the operating theatre, it was freezing. i remember walking to the table, it looked like a big gingerbread man shape to me. it was narrow and uncomfortable. one of the nurses put an oxygen mask on my face, she strapped me to the table and I hated the fact that I could see my reflection in the big lamp above me. the surgeon's assistant asked ho i was feeling i said I was scared so he asked me if I would like some music on. and explained the anesthesiologist would come now. It was a lovely lady with fashinable glasses and a nice necklace. she said that she would now inject the anesthetics and it would hurt a lot in my arm. IT DID HURT A LOT but lasted 2 seconds.

I woke up in the recovery room. I don't know what time it was. my throat was hurting a lot. and my nose was itchy, i scratched it and i had a lot of dried blood under it the nurses came several time to ask how i was. it took me a little while to wake up.

12 am : I was wheeled back to my room. The lady in the room was back too and asleep on her bed. James was not in the room yet. I was feeling very sleepy. James arrived in the room I was really happy to see him.

The afternoon I slept, then felt very sick, had some vomitting episodes, walked a bit, slept again, vomitted again... then James left, the surgeon visited me twice after the operation to see how i was getting on.

During the night I was sleeping 2 hours then waking up for an hour then slept again and waking up again.

tuesday 23rd : why did I do this to myself???

6.00 am : The nurse came to remove my IV. It left a very nasty and sore bruise.

7.00 am : X-ray with barium swallow. Barium is probably one of the most disgusting things I have ever drunk. but it was nice to see that Sammy was finally there hidden in the middle of a lot of white patches which I was told was Gas.

7.30 am: I was given some orange juice it went down fine in the beginning. Then I got dressed and I could not put trousers on my belly was so swollen (see picture below) and I could not put my bra on either so put my pj's bottoms on with a very loose shirt.

I went back to sleep for a while and when I woke up the nightmare started. I was feeling so sick and it's the type of moments when you know the only thing that is going to relieve you is to actually be sick. I could not control it except nothing was coming out and it was hurting like hell. Eventually up came some of the orange juice.

10.00 am : the taxi driver came to pick us up. we were all feeling so sick. the trip in the car felt so long. we stopped by the pharmacy to get our prescriptions. Up came more of the orange juice. And finally arrived at the hotel. up came the end of the orange juice.

I went to sleep for a few hours and was feeling better but then started suffering really bad gas pains. This feeling is so painful. just slept on and off.

wednesday 24th : a long trip back.

I managed to sleep a bit more so feel a bit better. Spent a lot of time resting in bed.

1pm: i had a shower and it felt so good! I have waterproof dressings on the incisions so im allowed showers.

2pm: went to say goodbye to Jenni who was going home. Karen has gone early in the morning.

I stayed in bed watching French TV all afternoon. I had a slim fast shake over a few hours.

6pm: the taxi driver came to collect us at the hotel.

6.30 pm : we arrived at the airport and waited around until boarding.

9.25pm : flight finally took off, a bit late. The flight went fine I had my pillow against my tummy during the turbulences and it was very helpful.

10.05 pm: (local time) the flight landed in Dublin but we had to wait until 11.20 to get the bus to Belfast. So we sat at a coffee shop and I had a latte.

11.20 pm: we took the bus to Belfast and I managed to get a bit of sleep.

1.45 am : we arrived in Belfast and took a taxi home.

2.00 am : HOME SWEET HOME!!! I've never been so happy to see my house ever.

Thursday 25th : now I know what shoulder tip pain is!

I overall felt better today until shoulder tip pain started, i thought I was done with gas pain but this was just horrible. the only thing that calms it down is to put some heat on my left shoulder and walking around a bit. How long is this going to last??

My friend Yuna visited me and stayed with me on the couch with a quilt on and chatted it was nice. She also brought me some flowers and nesquick powder :)

I received a few get well soon cards too its so nice to have people thinking of you and supporting you in a moment like that. It is probably one of the moment in my life I will remember forever as this will change my life forever ( I hope).

Tomorrow my friend Sam is arriving from France and I'm so happy I haven't seen him for such a long time!

I have so much reading to do on your blogs. I will do that over the next week. Thank you so much for your support it really helps me a lot.

Could you tell me how long it took for the gas pain to go? do you have any tips on how to ease it?

I hope you haven't fallen asleep in the middle of this post. I hope you have a nice friday.

Banded!!

2010-02-24T00:06:00.000-08:00

Hi guys!

I am officially banded! still in the hotel in Belgium. The operation went very well but I have been very sick from the anesthetics and suffering very badly from gas pains. Starting to feel better now so just updating this very quickly. I will do a long post with pictures very soon when I am better. Thank you for all your support it really helped!

Joey and Janelle I hope everything went fine for you and you are not in too much pain. I have been thinking of you two a lot.

I'll back back in blogland soon.

DAY-1 :Belgium the beginning of the journey!

2010-02-21T06:18:00.001-08:00

Hi guys,

Good news I have an internet connection so I will be able to keep you updated on my trip to Belgium. I will try to take as many pictures as I can.

We left the house at 1.30 am to go to the Bus Station to take the 2am bus to Dublin Airport

We had snow during the whole trip, but we arrived at the airport at 4.15 am. We checked in and got a bite to eat before going through security.

I slept during the whole flight. We landed 20 mins early because the wind was pushing the plane.

We arrived in Brussels at 9.15 (local time) and met with Ignace our taxi driver. Ignace works with my surgeon to pick up patients from the airport and is in charge of all the transfers between the hospital, the hotel and the airport. He told me there would be 2 other girls with me there that are flying from England but they would arrive later. The Hotel is brand new it is very modern. the room is not massive but it's enough for us.

I had told you I would show you a picture of the presents my friend Yuna brought me on friday night and here they are! she lent me her lucky bunny (the little blue one) she carries it to all her exams, etc... and she always succeeded so I can have him with me. And she brought me some supplies to knit a scarf. I have already started it. The brown rabbit is my new one, his name is Valentin. He will be there when my fiance has to go back to the hotel tomorrow night and I have to stay in the hospital.

I finally had some sleep, then had a shower and Chris the patient care manager came over to bring me an information pack and answer all the questions I had. He also gave me a questionnaire to fill in for the anesthesiologist. And then he told me I was allowed to have a last big dinner. The only place around is McDonalds and here is what my last dinner before the band was... not very healthy but I enjoyed every bite of it and it was allowed so I don't feel bad about it.

This time this is it! in 8 hours I will be in the hospital. I don't know yet the time of the actual operation as there is several of us but I hope to have it as early as possible. I will let you know on tuesday how it went.

JANELLE AND JOEY I WILL BE THINKING ABOUT YOU! GOOD LUCK WE WILL BE ON THE OTHER SIDE SOON!

Off to Belgium in 4 hours...

2010-02-20T14:10:00.000-08:00

Just a message before I go to the airport. I am leaving in 4 hours. I will probably be able to update my blog one more time before the operation if the hotel has an internet connection but in case I can't I just wanted to say see you in bandland!

Beautiful Blogger Award!

2010-02-19T13:56:00.000-08:00

Thank you

Joey

and Janelle

for voting for me :)

Here are the rules:

* Thank the person who nominated you for this award
* Copy the award and post it in your blog;
* Link to the blog of the person who nominated you;
* Tell seven interesting things about yourself;
* Nominate seven bloggers and;
* Post links to the blogs of your nominees

Interest things about me:

1. I am not originally from Northern Ireland. I am French, I moved to the UK 4 years ago. English is not my first language I learnt it at school and University.

2. I love Geeks, I am a bit of a geek myself.

3. I have a phobia of crickets and grasshoppers. I also am very scared of medical places and doctors especially the Dentist, clowns, height.

4. I love to learn random things from people. I love to learn new things and skills.

5. Everytime I had something difficult to overcome in my life I had a rabbit (a soft toy rabbit) to have with me. I even have a brand new one for my operation.

6. I love to play the sims, the wii, my nintendo DS. And I love to watch reality TV shows although I am aware that several of them are very stupid they make me feel more clever.

7.I don't have any pets but would love to have a Cavalier King charles.

My nominations:

1. Joey : I love the way she writes, and we are having surgery the same day so i can really relate to her a lot.

2. Janelle : She is having the surgery the same day as me as well and I can really identify myself in her Blog.

3. Amy : She is the first blog I found and was my first inspiration. Her pictures gave me so much motivation when I was doubting and wondering if I was doing the right thing. Thank you for putting your pictures up it really helped me.

4. Jen : I found and still find her blog very useful and her pictures look amazing.

5. Kim : she always leaves very nice comments on my blog and I really like to follow hers.

6.Lapbandgal : Her blog is very inspirational.

7.GirlBandit : One of the most supportive commenters on my blog. Thank you so much for the great support.

Thank you to all of yous writing comments on my blog your support is great! I would nominate all of you if I could I never knew I would find so much support here and it is amazing. THANK YOU.

D-4 Blog Makeover and shopping

2010-02-18T14:01:00.000-08:00

Good Evening everyone.

less than 5 days to go now aaaaaaah! I'm really getting nervous now! It is becoming real... I am also very excited but getting really scared now. I can't wait for the surgery to be done, any advise on how to relax before surgery??

My friends Yuna and Jennie are visiting me tomorrow night to wish me good luck and say good bye to the old Julie before she comes back from Belgium reborn. They also have a little surprise for me to bring with me. I will put pictures of what it is tomorrow night.

After work I had to go shopping to buy a few things. There is not a lot of shops where I can buy plus size clothes here so I often go to Evans (not sure if you have it over in America) I had to buy some non-wired bras for after the operation, some slippers, and I wanted to get some tracksuit bottoms to be comfortable on the trip back.
The woman in the shop recognises me everytime (they don't get that many french customers ) she is always very helpful. She asked me what I was after and I told her. She helped me to get the right size of bra, and was wondering why I wanted some non-wired ones. I explained I was undergoing surgery. Then I was looking some tracksuit bottoms with a confortable waistband and she asked again why i didnt want to get some fancier ones. This Lady is always lovely and I know she is trying all sorts of diets as I chatted about that with her before so I thought I could tell her the truth. She was so happy for me and explained her daughter had done it as well and she wished she was brave enough to do it.
She advised me to wear leggings as they were a lot more comfortable and I already have some. She advised me not to spend my money on more expensive clothes as I will not keep them for long. I don't have any shoes to wear with leggings so she found me a pair of boots (UGG style) really warm and comfy, they were half price! I had a dress on top of my jeans today she showed me how nice it looked with leggings and the boots.
I am pleased that this woman did not take advantage of me wanting to buy things and was very honnest with me.

I also got some Hello Kitty Socks in H&M, and pretty slippers.

xxx

Good night everybody.

First appointment at the aftercare clinic

2010-02-16T14:10:00.000-08:00

Good Evening,

Keping you updated on my first appointment with the bariatric nurse who will be in charge of my aftercare for 3 years.

I got to the clinic, it is situated on a very nice street. The receptionnist directed me to the waiting area. A nice room with big sofas, plants, relaxing music, a big flat screen describing all the services this clinic can offer. I felt really at ease I soon as I got in that room. I have a fear of medical places. But in this one there was no funny smell, It reminded me of the waiting room of a very fancy psychiatrist that you see in some movies.

The Nurse, Wendy opened the door and out came a lady with a big smile on her face, she gave Wendy a hug and said hello to me. I came in the room, there was the equipment to do an ultrasound, a nice comfortable armchair. I filled in some papers, did a few tests and the I met a Band. for some reason I thought it was not that flexible. I felt like I was holding a new friend in my hand. my surgeon uses 3 types of bands and will decide which one to give me during the operation.

Because I am getting married in July, Wendy explained they had a program you could follow for a quicker weight loss so I can be down quite a bit of weight before the wedding, I decided I would go for that it is basically low fat no carbs high protein. After this I will move on to eatig small quantities of all kind of healthy food.

Wendy asked if I was planning to have children, she said my chances to get pregnant will increase as I lose weight. I explained how much I wanted to have children. Not just yet but I wouldnt like to wat too long. Have any of you been pregnant with the band?
Wendy explained that if I was to get pregnant in the next 3 years my pregnancy would be followed by her as welland it was included in the price of my package.

I am extremely pleased with the whole team following me I wasnt expecting for everything to go that well to be honnest. I am so pleased. I hope the team in Belgium will be as good.

I left the clinic and decided not to get a taxi home but walk to the bus stop (20 mins) stopped by Boots to buy some more slim fast shakes.

I have done 30 mins on the wii fit tonight and I am going to go to bed soon.

just 6 days left to the operation, the nerves are starting to kick in but the excitement is still the biggest feeling there.

Good Night everybody.

Why I am going to Belgium for my surgery...

2010-02-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

After Girl Bandit's comment from last post, I realised I never explained before why I am going to Belgium and not staying in the UK for my surgery.

The Health system has some difference in Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK. Living here there was no way for me to get the operation paid for. I am lucky enough to have my parents paying for it as a present. So I am doing it with a private clinic.

They have several clinics in the UK and Belgium and gave me the choice. The operation is not done in Northern Ireland so I had the choice to travel either to England or Belgium.

The hospital costs in Belgium are a lot lower than in the UK and the operation has been done there for a lot longer. The surgeon I chose was the most experimented and he speaks french too. I don't know which language I will be speaking when I wake up from the anesthetics as English is not my first language. So having the same first language as him is quite handy.

The package I had with the operation includes a 3 years aftercare program which is done here in Belfast. I am actually meeting my bariatric nurse tomorrow face to face for my pre op check up. I am going to have a bunch of tests done and she sends of everything to the surgeon in Belgium to have for the operation.

Here is my program this week end:

Saturday:

8am - 4pm : work

Sunday:

2am : Taking the bus to Dublin Airport ( 2.5 hour trip)
6am: flight departure
9.30 am: arrival in Brussels
Taxi transfer to our hotel
6pm : meeting with my surgeon's patient care manager

Monday:

6.30 am: Taxi to the hospital
OPERATION
Night in the hospital

Tuesday :

10 am: taxi back to the hotel
SLEEEEEEEEEEP

Wednesday:

the nurse is visiting me to change my dressings
6pm: taxi transfer to the airport
9.15pm: flight back to Dublin

Bus back to belfast

BED TIME!

I think it is going to be quite tiring but it will be well worth it. I wish you all a good evening and will let you know how my appointment went.

D-7 first weigh in day...

2010-02-14T22:41:00.000-08:00

Hi Guys,

Just one week to go before the operation. Tomorrow is my pre op apppointment with my bariatric nurse. After one week on the pre op diet I am happy to tell you the results:

Weight: 142.2kg
weight loss this week: 4.400kg (9.7 lbs)

So I can now confirm that the wii is accurate only if you weight in in the morning before eating anything. But I shouldn't listen to it if it is at different times of the day.

I also lost a few inches on my body or should I say cms...

Boobs : 124cm (-3cm)
Chest : 112 cm (-1cm)
Waist : 113.5 cm (-1cm)
Hips : 153.5 cm (-3.5 cm)
Thigh : 85 cm (-)
Upper arm : 48.5 cm (-0.5cm)

I am very pleased with those results and I am hoping to go under 140kg before the operation. I will have to weigh in on saturday morning so not a full week as I have to fly to Belgium for the operation and won'y have my scales with me to weigh in just before the operation. So my official before surgey weight will be 2 days before the surgery but sure it doesn't really matter.

I am trying to motivate myself to get out of bed to go to work but it is very cold out of it. So I will stay for another 5 minutes before I need to get ready. Have a nice monday.

A great productive day ( long post ahead)

2010-02-12T13:26:00.000-08:00

Hi Everybody!

I feel great today. I had a very productive day! and I am feeling happy! So I am going to tell you about it!

I woke up around 9, I was off work today as I am working tomorrow. I stayed in bed and enjoyed that for an hour or so, watched a bit of TV ( I like to have a relaxing time on my day off) during that time I tried a Banana Slim Fast... I am trying to find the best words to describe how bad it was... basically the first sip wasn't too bad but as I was having a bit more it was getting more and more disgusting until the point i could not drink anymore!

My friend Yuna came to pick me up to drive to some flower shops to decide who to go for for the wedding. We met with my future mother in law. For the wedding I always wanted her to be the maid of honor but I have 2 sisters and James 2 brothers so we decided to have them doing it. My sisters are living in France so I have no girls to help and support me apart from my future mother in law. But eventhough she isnt a bridesmaid, Yuna did all these duties from the start without me even asking her to. I decided to make her my witness for the wedding, but today I realised I wanted her to have the role she should have. James's mum told me the exact same thing, that she should be a bridesmaid too. So I gave a secret phone call to ask James if that was ok with him and I think he knew how much I would have liked her to be my maid of Honor. We came back to my house and I announced her the big news, she was so happy and me too!

I now feel completely satisfied with the way things are going for the wedding like if it was THE thing that prevented me from being completely happy with everything ! And on the plus side James gets to have an extra usher who we really wanted to be part of the wedding party as well!

When Yuna left I spent a little time on the phone to James's mum to let her now Yuna now was officially my maid of Honor. And then time to exercise. I always start my exercise by doing a body test on the wii. everytime I use the same outfit but I exercise between 7 and 9 but never at the exact same time of the day so I am not sure how reliable the weight given by the wii is. I will not take the results into accout but I just wanted to let you know what it said so far...

I started on Monday
tuesday : -1lbs
wednesday : -1lbs (total : -2lbs)
thursday: break
Friday: -9lbs!!!!! (total : -11lbs)

9lbs in 2 days seems surreal to me which is why I don't want to be too happy... I will wait to see on Monday, I weigh myself in the morning when i get up after going to the bathroom and in my underwear.

I forgot to tell you what I had for the rest of the day. For lunch I had vegetables and fruit puree. And for dinner a chicken fillet and peas with some more fruit puree.

I switched my fruit by fruit puree as it is cooked fruit and my stomach has been a little upset in the last 2 days and it is easier to digest.

I have a nice week end ahead of me as well. Tomorrow I have to go to work from 8 to 4 but it is usually quiet on saturdays and we have a nice time. Then James meets me and we go to the restaurant for Valentines day (a little but in advance) I found a restaurant where I can eat even during my preop diet , they have a salad with dressing on the side and grilled chicken (no sauce either) so I will just have this. Then we go to the cinema to see up in the air. On sunday we are staying at home and doing some housework because it needs to be done.

Here are my achievements of the day:

1. I know that I don't like Banana Slim Fast Shake
2. I found the Florist for my wedding
3. The cost of it will be under budget
4. Yuna is my Made of Honor
5. I don't struggle with hunger
6. The wii thinks I lost 11lbs so far this week
7. just 10 days left to the operation
8. I am going to have a nice week end
9. I feel like I have a control of my life
10. I am happy!

D-11 : 4th day of pre-op diet.

2010-02-11T15:04:00.000-08:00

Hi Guys!

Just a quick post to let you know how my pre op diet is going.

Day 3 :
Surprisingly I wasn't that hungry thoughout the day.
breakfast: slim fast shake
lunch: chicken stock + an apple
dinner:chicken fillet and vegetables

30 mins on the wii fit (all cardio) I am now very in (good) pain, but after it I went for a shower and straight to bed. I slept so well.

Day 4:
I woke up in great form, a bit more hungry than yesterday but still manageable.
breakfast: slim fast shake
snack: banana
lunch:chicken fillet and vegetables
dinner: vegetables

No exercise today as advised by the nurse. I have no energy at the minute in the evenings and she advised me to have some breaks in the week for the moment.

I am going to go to bed and will write a little longer in my next post.

Good night everyone.

Getting to know me Better

2010-02-09T14:39:00.000-08:00

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? No

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? Probably not that long ago I cry very easily

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Yes

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Saucisson : french salami

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? No yet.

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I guess I will know that soon enough.

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM? I do sometimes

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? NO!

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Chocapic (french chocolate cereals)

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? No... but I do untie them to put them back on.

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Pistacchio

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? the way they carry themselves.

15. RED OR PINK? red

16. WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? my extra padding

17. WHOM DO YOU MISS THE MOST? my friends and family who live in France.

18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO COMPLETE THIS LIST? I would like that.

19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? black leggings I had on to do the wii fit and Hello Kitty socks.

21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? watching the biggest loser.

22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? green

23. FAVORITE SMELL? my fiance's

24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? My friend Yuna.

25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Nobody sent it to me, I found it online

26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Figure skating

27. HAIR COLOR? Ginger

28. EYE COLOR? Blue

29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? No

30. FAVORITE FOOD? where do I start? must stop thinking about food...

31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy endings,

32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? the rescuers. yes the old disney cartoon!

33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? black

34. SUMMER OR WINTER? Winter in France, Summer in Ireland

35. HUGS OR KISSES? BOTH

36. FAVORITE DESSERT? Strawberrie and cream cake

37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? I am not sending this so...

38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? not expecting anybody to respond

39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? les yeux jaunes des crocodiles

40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? i don't have one

41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT? nothing

42. FAVORITE SOUNDS? songs from musicals.

43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Beatles.

44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Shanghai

45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? I can make people happy

46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? La seyne sur mer, south of France

47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK? anyone who wants to answer.

48. HOW DID YOU MEET YOUR SPOUSE? in Dublin

49. IS THE CUP HALF FULL OR HALF EMPTY? Half full.

D-13

2010-02-09T13:43:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone and welcome to all the new followers!

It is mad how much more support I got since Amy talked about me on her blog. Thank you Amy!

Today is day 2 of my pre op diet.

Day 1 was very hard! Here is what I ate:
breakfast: a slim fast shake
lunch: green beans and a grilled chichen breast , an apple
snack: a banana
dinner: chicken stock, sweet corn
I really struggled with hunger. I did 20 mins on the wii fit. I was feeling very nauseous so didnt do the full 30 mins.

Day 2:
breakfast: a slim fast shake
lunch: green beans and a grilled chicken breast, an apple
snack: a banana
dinner: chicken stock, peas, lettuce
It was not as hard today and I did 32 mins on the wii fit so happy with that.

The main problem I have is acid reflux, I never had that problem before but since yesterday it started, did you have the same problem? could it be the protein shakes? or just my body not used to eat so little. Because of this I can't drink as much as I would like to because i feel like I am going to be sick if I do.

I am trying not to weigh myself everyday, I have resisted this morning but I am not sure I will be able to wait until monday...

Official starting numbers and before pictures and thank yous

2010-02-07T16:34:00.000-08:00

I would like to start by thanking all the new followers on my blog for their lovely comments. I woke up about 20 mins ago and found all of them. It really was a nice way to start this first day on my journey.

I now also have a lot of adventures to follow, which is great! I know I am only a newbie but if you have any questions or you need anu support you can either send a comment or a private message I will be happy to help.

As much as I hate those pictures, I will be happy to compare them to my future ones... my no make up face makes me look quite tired as well

Here are the starting numbers:

Weight: 146,6 kg ( 323.2 lbs)

Boobs:127 cm

Chest:113 cm

Waist:114.5 cm

Hips:157 cm

Thigh:65cm

Upper arm:49 cm

Have a nice week, I will keep you updated on how the pre op diet is going.

a series of pictures of me before the official before pictures

2010-02-07T09:57:00.000-08:00

here are some recent pictures of me.

me and my friend Noemie a week ago in France.

me drinking a coconut alcohol free cocktail.

Noemie and me again,

This is a tradition we have everytime we meet again everyone take a picture of themselves with a big cheesy smile.

This is me and James my fiance.

James and I last summer, with our summer tan...

D-15 last day before pre op diet

2010-02-07T05:15:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone,

This is it, my journey starts tomorrow!!! I am excited! I had my last dinner tonight. I decided to try a slin fast shake for my lunch to see what it tasted like. And it is actually nice! Which is good news as it will be my breakfast for the next 2 weeks.

I am going back to work tomorrow as well after 2 weeks holidays. I am not going to say I want to go back to work but I am happy I am while i do the pre op diet as if I am busy I will want to eat less than if I am at home. Another 2 weeks after I will be off for 2 weeks again and I am sure it is gonna go very fast.

This is a picture of my last meal . It is probably the last time in my life I will be able to have such a big dinner but I am fine with this I am looking forward to being able to be satisfied by a small meal.

I am going to take measurements and before pictures tonight and will post everything tomorrow with my official starting weight.

I am also going to do a little begging time for more followers, I get a few more every week but I really need your support so if you read this post and you would be happy to follow this blog, please do! I fing this whole community amazing you can really get a lot of support from people who understand what you are going through.

Have a nice end of week end!

D-18 shocked..

2010-02-04T10:03:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone,

I had to share something with you because you are probably the people who will understand the most why I am crying when I read most people's comments after reading the following article :

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/transport/7038141/Air-France-to-charge-obese-passengers-for-two-seats.html

I can understand where air France is coming from even if I think what they want to do is not far from discrimination but most comments make me hate people. How can they be so mean?

I had to share that because I am angry, angry to the point that I would like to have a magic wand to make those people instantly fat and tell them to lose the weight to teach them that it is not that easy, and to make them understand how it feels to be overweight.

I am now in the ten something days before the operation, I have bought a night shirt and a dressing gown to bring to hospital with me, and everything I need for the pre op diet.

Last night I went to the restaurant for a romantic dinner before starting all this, I had my favourite meal singapore pork fillet and garlic potatoes. I put some pictures just to say goodbye for a while.

I have a very busy end of week, tomorrow, in the morning there is a man coming to fix the heating in our house, then I have to go and get some documents translated from French to English by an official translator for the wedding. And finally I have an appointment with the priest for the wedding. Saturday, I have to bake a cake to bring to a dinner at some friends's in the evening, and sunday will be a relaxing day before going back to work after 2 weeks holidays.

I am just going back for 2 weeks and then will be off for 2 weeks again for the operation.

oooh and I got a new camera yesterday I love it :)

Have a nice evening.

D-21 Back from France

2010-02-01T13:11:00.000-08:00

Hello everybody,

Just back from France tonight. In exactly 3 weeks, sammy will be in my belly and i will be feeling comatose in the hospital. It is getting closer... I really can't wait, i want the operation to be over and done with and really start the whole adventure. In a week I am starting the pre op diet, to be honnest in France I had a lot of nice things, and will probably have some this week too. I am also going to go shopping to prepare my pre op diet, has anybody tried nice slim fast shakes? i have a bottle of a chocolate shake that i will try tomorrow but there is a lot of other flavours.
Have a nice week everybody.

D-30 off to France in a few hours...

2010-01-23T11:13:00.000-08:00

It's been almost a week I haven't written a thing. The operation is getting closer. I received my welcome pack with all the information about my pre operation diet and It is gonna be very hard:

breakfast: 1-2 eggs with no butter (omelette, scrambled, boiled or poached) OR 1 slim fast shake
Lunch : Clear consomme soup (made from 1-2 oxo or knorr cubes)
Dinner: One piece of grilled or steamed chicken or white fish or quorn
AND 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day.

This is going to be hard. I am starting on Monday 8th February... but I am very motivated.

I was very busy this week in work so I am happy to be on holidays for 2 weeks. I am really going to enjoy them. I am flying to France very early in the morning from Dublin so have to take the bus down to there in the middle of the night.

I've had a very lazy day and still haven't finished packing. from tomorrow it will be less than 30 days to the operation, I am very excited but starting to be a bit scared. on my list of things to bring to the hospital they gave me you need to bring a night dress, i only have very short ones or pyjamas. are pyjamas not allowed?

I wish you all a good week end.

D-36 Lazy Sunday

2010-01-17T13:37:00.000-08:00

First of all, I would like to thank my first followers :) It's nice to feel a bit of support.

Today I had a very lazy day, it is usually what happens on sundays. I slept until 11 then watched TV, been on the internet, did a bit more wedding planning. Then I eventually did some housework. I like to have a day in the week where i can take it easy and just do whatever i feel like doing.

I am desperately waiting for my operation pack to arrive through the post. It should be there by tuesday. There is the whole program of my trip to Belgium. I am really excited but starting to be a bit scared about the operation itself. I wonder if there is anything I need to bring like a travel pillow to have on my belly in the plane so the seatbelt is not directly presing against the stitches on the way back home, any kind of medecines i should bring, what type of clothing...

If you have any tips about that let me know.

Tomorrow is my last week in work before I go on holidays to France for a week, I have 2 weeks off, then back in work for 2 weeks and off again for 2 weeks for the operation.

For those who don't know what the band will look like I will put a picture with this post. Oh and I forgot to explain that I had named my band Sammy, because I think it is a cute name and for the days he will annoy me I preferred him to have a cute name so it would be harder for me to get mad at him.

I have decided not to tell many people about the operation, just the people the closest to me. I was quite disappointed with the reaction of a few of them... saying that they disagreed with this type of procedures and I shouldnt do it, that I was selfish because it was dangerous... I explained that it was more dangerous for me to stay at my weight than getting the operation, but they don't understand, they think that if I lose the weight I wont be ME anymore, this is the silliest thing ever but anyway... what can I do about it? Nothing will make me change my mind now.

pictures...

2010-01-16T16:44:00.000-08:00

Here are some recent pictures of me I don't like to look at them because i don't picture myself as big as I am in my head and it is a reality check everytime i see them. But I will be happy to compare them to the slimmer me when I loose some weight.

D - 37. Wedding Planning

2010-01-16T15:22:00.000-08:00

I am getting married in 6 months exactly today, and I have ordered my dress. the dress i tried on was a size 26 the bottom was fitting me perfect but the top was too big (I have 2 dress sizes difference between my bottom and my top) the woman in the shop advised me to get a dress that fitted my hips and we would take it in at the top. I decided to order it one size smaller as i expect to loose some weight by then but I am not sure how much...

How much did you lose in 4months and a half? I am asking this question but I don't know yet who is going to answer it... I am going to write to the blogs i have looked at to explain I have a blog and I would love to have advice from people in the same situation as me...

The Beginning of the journey

2010-01-16T13:14:00.000-08:00

A bit about myself to start with, I am Julie, 24 years old. I am originally from France but i moved to Northern Ireland 4 years ago. I have been overweight as long as i can remember. After years of yoyo dieting without long term success, i have decided to have a gastric band operation.

The operation is on Monday 22nd February. I am flying to Brussels to have it done. I am very excited but at the same time a bit scared of the operation, I know it is a very quick procedure but I have a terrible fear of medical environnements.

Before making my decision i have read the journey of a lot of people on their blogs to know the truth about living with a band. I found that very helpful so I promised myself the day I was embarking on the journey as well, I would write a blog too. And here it is!