It's Been a Long Time......

I want to thank Jen- http://jenslapbandjourney.blogspot.com/  for reaching out to me.  I can't believe it's been almost 6 months since my last post. I really miss all of you.  So much has happened in the last six months.  I started a new job as a controller at an auto dealer.  I worked there for a few months and decided to quit.  The stress of the job was too much for me and I was really getting burned out.  Hubby told me to quit - so I did.  Sounds foolish, right?  I gave up a great job.  I now work part time in the consumer relations department for a bakery located 5 minutes from my house.  I love the time I get to spend with Emily this summer.  We had to completely revamp our family budget and we are ..... wait for it.... COUPONING! Oh yes we are!  It's a fun hobby and we are really saving a bunch of money.   We also started camping.  We bought a 27ft travel trailer and we absolutely love it!  We are still geocaching too - that's a lot of fun.  We are growing a garden this summer too.  We planted tomatoes, a variety of peppers, eggplant, squash, strawberries, onions and watermelon.  It's doing great and I love taking care of it and watching it all grow!

On to band news:

Unfortunately not so much has happened on the weight loss front.  I am still the same weight as I was 6 months ago.  Hubby has gained a few pounds, he needs a fill and he will be back on track.  So for the bad news - I found out today that my band has slipped.  I have been having a lot of problems with my band.  I thought I was too tight, so I had some fluid remove a few weeks ago.  That didn't help much.  Last week we were on vacation in the Outer Banks and I could barely eat and had excruciating abdominal pain.  At first I thought it was gas.  It felt like someone was grabbing my insides and twisting them.  I got an appt with the Doc as soon as I was back from vacation.  He took more fluid out & sent me for an Upper GI.  I got results today.  My band is at a 108 degree angle. It should be at 45 degrees.  I must have surgery to remove & replace it. It gets better.... My insurance will not cover the procedure.  So, the patient advocate at my practice said if I am admitted through Emergency, insurance will pay.  Great, right?  Even better, my surgeon is on vacation until the 27th of July.  I can't get in to see him until the 28th!  In the mean time I was prescribed vicodin and an anti-nausea medication, and told to stick to a soft diet.  So, I am probably going to visit the emergency room in the next day or two and go from there.  I will not last another week like this!

I thought I would post a few recent pictures for you guys too  -



Camping - Father's day weekend



My Niece's wedding reception in March



Geocaching - May




At Cape Hatteras Lighthouse - July



New York - April

So Jen, you picked a the right day to reach out to me, and I thank you.  I am probably going to need a lot of support in the coming months and I would like to start hanging out with you guys again.  I hope that's  OK?