My bags are packed. I'm ready to go.

So I feel like I'm living in a dream. The time ticked away slowly at work today. I'm very excited, but still a bit nervous. I always get scared that I'll miss my flight when I fly anywhere. This trip is really important, so it makes me even more nervous. I chose to spend the night with my daughter Amie so that I could get more sleep, but here I am. Up at 11:30 p.m. I left my purse in the car when my brother Kim dropped me off at my daughter's. I had to borrow a car to go get it. I hope it's just nerves and not early onset Alzheimer's. The flight leaves right before 10:00 a.m. EST and my appointment is at 1:00 p.m. in Las Vegas. Just 8 minutes from the airport. Nerves! Whew!

Pre-Surgery Measurements

Here are some pictures that will serve as official "Before" shots. We had a little trouble with the camera. A couple of notes are warranted. I measured on the morning of November 2 before my feet and ankles swelled up. This was 2 weeks before my surgery date. And now... Onward!

Surgery

I am going to have a gastric bypass surgery and I will be documenting my big adventure here. My children have offered to pay for this procedure for me to help me get healthy. A once-in-a-lifetime gift that blows you away. Some of this is going to be embarrassing because I'm going to be exposing my life through pictures and stories that will bring you into my private world. I'm happy to do this to share with my family and friends, past, present, and future my journey. I don't know that it will wind up being amazing. I expect that many of the days will seem boring and plain, just like everyone else's lives, but I plan to share the joyous, fun, and exciting moments as well as the mundane, hard, and "I can't believe she did that" times. I'm going to have a gastric sleeve done at Blossom Bariatrics by Dr. Tom Umbach. I found out about his practice through my doctor, May Bullecer. I thought she made a mistake because it's in Nevada, but his pricing is REALLY affordable, and his staff is AMAZING! They are the NICEST people you will ever visit with. Their desire to help people just comes across in every conversation. I cannot wait to meet them in person!! My surgery is going to be on November 16 and I will be flying with my daughter Amie and my daughter-in-law Amy to Las Vegas the day before. We'll meet my other daughter-in-law Caetie there for a pre-surgery meeting. I hope to do something fun that night to enjoy the city with them before I have to take it easy to recoup.