Fill Update

Well I'm hanging in there with this fill. I am so on the edge! At first it was great...but within a week I caught a cold and my band tightened. I had acid reflux at night and could only get a little food and water down. I was determined to see if when the cold left I could go back to that good green zone. Two weeks later the cold is gone and The tightness is better ..........but I still live on the edge. I sleep with blocks under the head of the bed ( for acid reflux) it helps but not completely. I do sleep well. I have to be very careful with what I eat ..so it's not too acidic.......and of course follow the chew /chew rule to the max. I have also resorted to Mylanta 2 or 3 times before bed, with little relief. I always have just a slight feeling of acid, around my band area. Strangely enough water is a bigger acid instigator than food. I have lost about 8 or 9 pounds over the past month ...which is awesome after not losing for sooo long. I feel like I'm on a tightrope...not bad not good!

I am a little worried about driving to Prescott, Arizona this weekend with my mother...altitude, desert, No blocks under my bed etc... But it will be sooo fun. My mom has a friend who just built a beautiful house on a golf course and I have a friend, from volunteering with the band boosters, who bought a horse ranch in Skull Valley. So I will have a little bonding time with my mother and our friends. It's a 6 hr drive ...not too bad!

Thanks for listening!

Surprise....Surprise

The night before the wedding my Mother, DH and myself were all surprised with an early wedding gift.....2 framed pictures(sonograms) of our future first grandchild. OMG..... I was caught off guard to say the least. We are all so happy!!!!

The wedding ceremony was beautiful. The civil servant (?) talked about LOVE and what it meant to care for each other. Then we all drove to Avila Beach and walked around and had lunch. Then went back to our hotel, watched a beautiful sunset, then went to hear a jazz /swing band at a local club. FUN!!!

Even if we had planned this wedding for a year, I don't think it could have been any more perfect!!

On the band front everything was good until I came down with a cold. Then I became so tight I could only have a bite or 2 and very little fluid. When I got my last fill I asked them about colds and such and he said to come in for an unfill then go back for a fill when you feel better. Well....at $300 a visit, I don't think that is going to happen. Sooo right now I am trying to hold out... eat very minimally and slowly, still can't get more than a couple of glasses of water in. My DH put 2 4x4 blocks under the head of the bed frame in the guest room and that has helped acid reflux tremendously. Every day seems to be getting better ......but not a good long term solution. I hope this changes!!

I'll keep you posted!!

There is going to be a wedding!!

Our son called a few nights ago to ask what DH and I were doing next Thursday and Friday. He said he was sitting in his car in the Safeway parking lot and he had decided to ask his live in girl friend of 5 yrs to marry him. He had called up the court house in San Luis Obispo(happiest place in the US)and made an appointment for Friday. That is a 4 hr drive north for us and a 5 hr drive south for them. WELL OK!!! We have been waiting for this day forever so how ever we can get it---bring it on!!!

I've told you in other blogs that my future daughter in law has lived with us on and off for the past year and a half, while going to nursing school. She just passed her state exam a couple of weeks ago and starts a new job the following Monday, so he wants to squeeze it in. I've gotten to know my daughter in law pretty well over this time and she has never said she wants a big wedding. She would like to go on a great-exotic honeymoon and my son might want to have "a party"???

To say the least we are so excited!! My mom is coming up and going with us and my daughter in laws mother and sisters are going to try to make it too. We have beachfront rooms at our favorite place in Pismo. Our other son will try to come also but he just started a new job and is close to finals at SFSU.

A little back ground on the groom. He is 33, a paramedic firefighter and very independent. All of his fire buddies have warned him of marriage. They told him women change--and most often,not for the better, and he just can't imagine being with one person for ever. He does want to have children as does she, but it will be a couple of years I hope ----mainly because she is coming into this with a massive amount of debt because of her schooling.

Soooooooo Excited did I already say that???

On another note , I went in Thursday for a small fill, .50cc's and so far so good. Tighter for sure but not too tight----yet. Down 1.5 pounds today, first time in 3 months!! HURRAY!!!

Our Kauai Vacation

What a great 2 week vacation we had. Our wonderful friends, who moved to Kauai 2 years ago, wouldn't hear of us staying anywhere, but with them. They both work, but were able to take time off, so we got to see the most amazing places, where tourist never go.

This first picture is of DH and myself at Waimea Canyon, the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. We all got up early and beat all the tourist there ;-)

This picture was taken from the light house, the northern most point of the island. A sanctuary for sea turtles and albatross.

One of the great things we all did was go on a helicopter ride. The pilot said it was a perfect day because the skies were clear and there was hardly any wind ( almost never happens). We were able to hover right next to water falls, so sacred, it brought everyone to tears!!

NSV: I was put in the middle front seat because I had less weight! GREAT VIEW!!!!

This is a picture of the Napali Coast. Only accessible by boat or foot---scary high wall trails that hang on the cliffs.

These are 2 pictures of Mahalopuu, a very sacred healing place for the Hawaiians. Look how beautiful the water is!

NSV: I was able to hike about a mile out to this amazing place which couldn't of happened, a year or so ago , because of my feet and knee's.

Beautiful waves at Hanalei Bay, inspired-- "Puff the Magic dragon lived by the sea and frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Hanalei", by Peter, Paul and Mary.

Our vacation was soooo much more, bon fires on the beach, snorkeling, wonderful home cooked dinners, FRESH FISH, fine wine, umbrella drinks, sunsets, sunrises, sacred places and their "story", waterfalls everywhere-- 24-- all at once and yes a tsunami.

The earth quake and ensuing tsunami were a little unnerving. It's extra weird to be out of your own element when things like this occur. We fortunately were staying at around, 1,000ft elevation. But everyone on the whole island had to be evacuated up to higher elevations for around 12 hrs. Then all the roads were closed. You can only imagine the tsunami sirens that went off every 1/2 hr in the middle of the night and the tasks of getting everyone out of their hotel rooms and into their rental cars, looking for a place to park and sleep. There was no real damage on Kauai---LUCKY!!!!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH beautiful Kauai---it already seems like just a dream!!

Thanks Rollercoaster Sandy!!!!