Ghosts of St. Patrick's Days past.......

Yesterday, in the early morning hours, I found myself unable to sleep.  After a full day of St. Patrick's Day shenanigans, you would think that I would just pass out happily dreaming of cute leprecauhns and pots of gold.  Instead, I was dealing with the dreaded hormonal issues of a girl in the prime of "the change" as well as that last drink of the night..... (the one you should NEVER have!)
 Enough said.
So, as I stumbled down the steps, I was trying to decide if I should clean the kitchen, start making our Farewell to Spring Break Dinner or  download my St.Patrick's Day pictures and send them off to my St. Patrick's Day party gal pals.
Downloading the pictures won....by a very wide margin.
Wouldn't my party friends be super impressed when they get an email from me at 5 am on the day after St. Patrick's Day?
They will think I'm still partying away......or getting ready for 7 am mass.  
(2 things the Irish are known for.....)
So, I put together a chai latte type concoction and sat down to go through the steps of downloading the pictures from my camera, putting them on Facebook and emailing them off to some friends.
(Won't everyone be thrilled when they wake up at some reasonable hour of the morning and find pictures?)
Between hitting "SEND" and going into the kitchen to make another chai latte concoction, I came back to my computer and found an email from one of party friends......

HOLY SHIT!  I didn't realize how much I have aged through the years!  
I just saved the pics you sent No more St. Paddy's Day pics!!!  

These are the last ones we will ever take!    If only I could sleep I might look better.   

 I don't need any more reminders that I'm getting older. 

Why in the hell are you still up?  Did you even go to bed?  Don't even tell me you got up to cook!

I was sorry to hear that someone else couldn't sleep....

I was just about to shoot her off an email telling her that we weren't going to stop taking pictures on St. Patrick's Day and make some silly joke about how someday we will need some reminders of what fun we had.  But, I decided that her tone of the moment didn't seem like she would appreciate it. 
At least not that early on the morning the day after St. Patrick's Day. 

However, her mania somehow transferred to me and  I found myself obsessed with our St. Patrick's Day pictures.

Why did she want to stop taking pictures?
I wanted to see for myself!  
What secrets do my St. Pat's Day pictures reveal throughout the years?

So, in the spirit of my recent pictureography.....I will share with you a Historical Romp through St. Patrick's Days in Judiland.......

2005

2006

2008

2009

2011

 2012

 Maybe it's all the GREEN but I think we are all aging pretty well.....!

WE ARE TAKING PICTURES NEXT ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

The morning after St. Pat's Day Gospel for Good Irish Girls....

 I am pretty sure that Irish Catholics have been given dispensation this morning from Mass....due to headaches and other assorted Irish ailments....... 
Even so, there will be many red-eyed,  ruddy-cheeked, blue-eyed lads who will show up because they too afraid not to.
But, I can guarantee you that there are lots of  blue-eyed lasses who are skipping Mass today.
Why? 
Irish woman are all saints.... just ask those red-eyed, ruddy-cheeked,blue-eyed lads who show up at Mass.............. they will confirm it. 

Top of the MORNING!

My St. Patrick's Day wish for you.....




May God give you...
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer.





My Irish eyes adore you.....

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

"Twas the day before St. Patrick's Day......

Can't think of a better reason to have a mom and daughter SPA day!
What better way to get ready for a day of getting my Irish on!

What better way to restore the happy smile to my beautiful little girl's face.....

It's Spring Break in collegeland so my little girl is home.
While lots of sorority girls spent their Spring Breaks on beaches, my sweet girl has spent her SB dealing with a myriad of dental procedures.
Not exactly what either of us had in mind when we had our first of many "what to do on Spring Break" talks over the holidays.  Best laid plans!   You know---the old Murphy's Law.
(usually I like Irish boys....this Murphy guy must be a mixed breed) 
Thankfully, tomorrow, I'll be partying with the fun Irish boys that I like!

Happy TGIF St. Patrick's Day Eve !!!

 

Going on F*I*V*E..........

a fact that's pretty damn hard to believe!

My father always tells me that time passes much quicker the older you get.
Once again, the good old Irish fella is right.

I had Lapband surgery in August 2007.

Yeah that's me folks....the morning I left for my surgery....posing with the Superwoman outfit I was planning on wearing the following July 4th.  (FYI--I never wore the outfit...)  I will never know what possessed me to wear all white!  What 250 pound woman wears all white?  One that wants her BEFORE picture to look really, really bad?

It's 2012 folks.
That's 5---1,2,3,4 FIVE---years ago.
Mama mia!
In keeping with my picturography of my journey.....here we go!

I kicked off September 2011 feeling as though I needed to be a bit more careful of what I was eating and how much I was eating.  With my Lapband filled to the brim and my new found expertise on what I could eat with no problem, I knew that I might soon grow out of my pants if I didn't stay focused on eating the right foods and the proper quantities.  I won't lie--I was worried.  

October 2011 brought with it a new Trader Joe's within minutes of my house.  Couple that with the impending holiday season and I had myself a full blown anxiety-riddled month.  That anxiety caused quite a few chocolate and candy eating episodes.  I was starting to "feel" my stomach again.  I didn't like the feeling at all.  So, I went out and bought some Spanx. 

I cooked my way through November, and shopped and entertained and partied my way through December.  I became addicted to Peppermint Bark and other assorted goodies by the year's end.  I had fleeting moments of real panic followed by more Peppermint Bark.  By the new year,  I could just feel those extra pounds.  I knew they were there.  But, I refused to accept it.  I pretended my room was too messy to make my way to scale.  Well, I really didn't have to pretend too hard....

These last two months have been a bit of a battle with 8-12 pounds. Blame it on the Peppermint Bark or the pretzels or whatever hell you please. The fact of the matter is that I deserve them.  I am not going to sugar coat it, folks....the reality is that I have been misbehaving.  Sure, I'm not misbehaving enough to put on 100 pounds.  But, a dieting girl like me knows all too well that 100 pounds always starts with just 5 or 10 pounds. 

The one thing I will tell you friends is this--the journey never ends.  And, for that, I am happy.   

I am a journeyer!  

I'm not happy about the extra pounds I am battling but I figure....at least it gives me another topic to whine  about discuss!

Thanks for joining me and supporting me and motivating me and encouraging me. 

I need to share my journey as much....maybe even more....than you need to hear about it!

Year 3 was a hard act to follow!

I found myself gliding into Year Four of my Lapbanded life in a pants size that I only had fantasies about.  I was ready to greet Fab Four head-on!
But, to be honest---I was more than terrified at what was ahead. 
There I was....at an unprecedented new low--weight-wise--wearing pants in the single digits and determined to keep it that way. 

I was thrilled beyond belief that somehow, someway, I found myself at the corner of am I too thin? and nothing tastes as good as thin feels.  I could not believe that I was the woman I saw in the mirror each day!  And, even more importantly, I felt better than a 50+ year old woman has a right to feel. 
Yes, I was strutting my stuff and damn happy to be doing it. 
 And, did I mention that I was 5 pounds BELOW my goal weight?
It was a dream come true, an unbelievable time in my life and damn, I had lost 115 pounds! 
Yet, there I was....shaking in my darling shoes!
So, what was the problem? 
I'll tell you what the problem was......
Did I ever tell you that I have a long history of losing weight only to gain it all back?
Yeah, I was the queen of being thin for a millasecond. 
Was my millasecond up?
Would I be able to maintain this weight loss?
Or, would I do as I had done so many times before and gain it all back now that the weight loss fun was over and  I had to do the mysterious work of keeping it off?
My Lapband was filled to capacity.....which meant that I could not go back and get it filled anymore.
I didn't want to lose any more weight.
I didn't want to gain any weight.
Somewhere deep inside of me, I was starting to panic.
And, oh yeah, did I mention that I was pretty Lapband savvy by this point?
I was very aware that I could not eat a pound of pasta but a vat of mashed potatoes and a pound of good chocolate would work out just fine.
It was the kind of knowledge that pretty dangerous. 
So, yeah....Lapband Year Four was daunting.....

September  2010-These  2 picture even stopped me in my tracks....was this really ME? Would I always look this thin?  Will I always be able to wear these pants?

By December 2010, I was beginning to realize that I could do this....I could keep the weight off....even the holidays weren't going to stop me from keeping my dream alive!

By January 2011, I was still fitting in my jeans.....I considered that a good thing. 

By March 2011....my green hair returned, my clavicle was visible and my jeans were still zipping.  I figured my Irish luck was still going strong.

By May, I was starting to feel like "yeah, maybe I'm learning to live like a thin girl...."

By July 2011, I was head over heels to fit into a Size 6 dresses.....

By August 2011.....when I celebrated by 4th Bandiversary....I looked back at how the year began and wondered why I was so worried.....

Come on back and I'll share with you how things are going in YEAR 5......
HINT:  I'm terrified....is my millasecond FINALLY over THIS YEAR?

A Lapbanded girl's Flu Survival Guide.......

Don't eat Chinese food just because you think you feel better.


Having a stomach flu is not a Lapbanded girl's friend.
Last week, I was the victim of it's wrath.
And, believe me, it was not pretty.
What started out on Wednesday as just not feeling very well--headachey, chills, aches and pains--turned into a Thursday of trying desperately to get through at the office and a Friday of lots of flu activity ended up on Saturday with me feeling somewhat better but not energized enough to cook.
My son made a pit stop in Pittsburgh on his way home from his conference and my daughter arrived home for Spring Break.  So, of course, Mommy has to pull out all the stops for meals.  
We ordered from a very good Chinese restaurant and settled in for a family night of chopsticks and "The Hangover 2".
Yeah, let's just say that my Lapband got an amazing workout from all the stomach girations.
I can now report--with utmost certainty-that my surgeon put my Lapband in there to stay.
With all the stomach convulsions my Lapband had to live through between Thursday night and Saturday night, the fact that it survived in tact was miraculous.
I'm still feeling a little woozy just thinking about it.

Come back tomorrow when I will resume my motivational picture posts (before we were rudely interrupted by the FLU!)--Lapbanded Year 4!  

Flu + Chinese Food=Asian Flu

 I underestimated my fluziness.

FLU-Z......

Getting a nasty case of the flu on a Friday is a cruel joke.
An awful, awful, cruel, cruel joke.  
Chills. Monster headache.  Everything hurts. Stomach issues.  Feel like shit.
Did I mention chills, monster headache, everything hurts, stomach issues, feel like shit?

Not the way to kick off a weekend.
Excuse me while I go and be sick......again. 
Thankfully I like the way I decorated my bathrooms....

Three is a charm......

For me...it was!

August 2009-August 2010 defined weight history in my life!
My body finally caught up to the weight loss!
Plus, I lost a few more pounds that I wasn't planning on!
I dipped BELOW a 100 pound weight loss!  

My body was in weight loss mode and I started worrying about being too thin!
HISTORICAL INDEED!

Yes, it was a very historical year!

And the beat goes on.......

My Lapband journey in pictures.....my second year! 
August 2008- August 2009

October 2008--still wearing clothes that are a little too big for me....probably still teetering between a 65-70 pound loss

December 2008.....probably down a solid 70 pounds by now

March 2009......had a major loss of 15 pounds to get down to 85 pounds lost!

July 2009.....on the cusp of loosing 100 pounds!

August 2009--I DID IT!  I lost 100 pounds!

It might be old news but it's the only news I got.....

It's Monday...enough said.

I've been thinking about doing a really inspirational and motivational blog piece for new Lapbanders but haven't found the energy, the time or the inspiration to be honest.  And, if I was being totally, completely honest with you, at this stage of my Lapband journey, I might not be the most inspirational or motivational person on the planet. Because, sweeties, I know how to work the band! So, in reality, I could do a sensational blog post on how to trick your band and eat lots of shit and I could share with you a phenomenal list of band friendly foods.   It seems like I'm always looking for them....!
It's never more evident to me that I'm a conniving and manipulating Lapbander than when I'm actually using mental energy trying to figure out something--anything--that I can eat that will get past my band.   And, I find myself doing that more often these days.  I mean, I consciously beat my brain to figure out just how I am going to outsmart my band.  Really?  How insane is that behavior?  I don't even put that much thought into balancing my checkbook correctly yet I'll exhaust myself coming up with menus that might work?   I need an intervention.  And, I am going to get one!  Hold on....I'll explain in a second.
Given my errant behavior, I am not the girl to be telling YOU what to do.  In fact, I think the new Lapbanders could tell me a thing or two or twenty-seven.
But, what I can dazzle everyone (including myself) with what a Lapband journey looks like.
Here's a few pictures from my PreLand Life and the first year of my Lapband Honeymoon when I was a law abiding Lapbander.......
(Hopefully, I've chosen a few pictures you haven't already seen! )
This is my intervention and your motivation.....
We'll travel year two of my Lapband journey tomorrow!

We begin with a picture where Lapband wasn't even in my vocabulary....let alone my life. 

May 2006...at the office.  I'm the girl in the bright blue suit...it was one of my "skinny outfits"....hmmmm

March 2007.....celebrating St. Pat's Day with a friend....at this point, I was just beginning to go through the pre Lapband hoops.   I can honestly say I didn't even think I would be really getting one!

Now, here I am sweating my way through my 25th Anniversary trip in Florida.  I was about 3 months shy of getting my Lapband.  This trip was probably the final straw for me.  I was getting my Lapband whether I wanted to or NOT.....

2008....a year after Lapband.....about 65 pounds down

Choking up!

What a beautiful sight!   

This morning, after dropping Vince off at the airport for a very, very early  flight, I made a stop at the fancy market to do a little grocery shopping.
My body was still recovering from lots of wine our fabulous Chef's Table Wine Pairing Dinner last with the amazing Chef Len  of Papa Gallo.  So, I was looking to lighten our menu up for the next few days.  Thankfully, I didn't have to think too long about what I would be putting on the table today!  As soon as I walked in the door, I was greeted by an amazing display of the most gorgeous artichokes I had ever seen.  Immediately, I knew that dinner was done.......

Bobby Flay's Steamed Whole Artichokes

(the only thing I add to this is a sprinkling of Romano cheese)

• 4 sprigs parsley
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 lemons, cut in half
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 quart chicken broth or water
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 whole artichokes

Directions

Put the parsley, garlic, bay leaves, lemons, wine, oil and broth in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Season the liquid with salt and pepper. In the meantime prepare the artichokes.

Wash artichokes under cold water. Using a heavy stainless steel knife, cut off the stems close to the base. Pull off the lower petals that are small and tough. Cut off the top inch of the artichoke and rub with half a lemon to preserve the green color. Alternatively, you may put the artichokes in acidulated water. If you wish, trim the thorny tips of the petals with kitchen shears.
Place the artichokes in the steaming liquid, bottom up. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes. The artichokes are done when a knife is inserted into the base and there is no resistance.
To eat, pull off a leaf and scrape the meat off the tender end with your front teeth. Dip the ends of the leaves in lemon juice and melted butter if desired. When you reach the center cone of purple prickly leaves, remove it. This is the choke that protects the heart. Now, scrape away the thistle fuzz covering the artichoke heart. The heart is the meatiest part of the artichoke. Steamed artichokes may be served hot or cold.

Welcome to my March Madness......

Before I begin that madness......
I want to all of us to give a big teddy-bear of a cyber hug to Chris of Banded in the Burgh.....
At this very moment, Chris is sitting within yards from me, within hours of getting her very own LapBand.
She is most likely filled with all those day-before emotions and feelings and thoughts that us banders remember so well!

WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING?

OMG WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING?

HOLY SHIT WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING?

WTF AM I DOING?

......or maybe that was just what I did the day before my surgery.......

I had the awesome pleasure of having lunch with Chris (can you believe she not only lives 5 miles from me but she works on the same campus as I do...just across the way!) yesterday and I can attest to the fact that this girl is Ready with a capital R!   In fact, she is more than READY!  She is one smart gal....as we all are here on this mecca of top tier education...haha!  No really, really....she's got more education and smarts in her pinky finger than I've got all over my body.  And, she has put that all to good use in getting herself prepared for what will be one of the greatest decisions she has made for her overall health and her quality of life and her shopping pleasure.  She's done all the hoop-jumping, she's rallied the troops, she's stocked the freezer and she's got her support team and her plan in place.  So, all she's gotta do is lay on that table and say.....

BAND ME BABY!  

Now, on to my March madness....