Ward Christmas Party! 3 Weeks post surgery

I went to our Ward Christmas Party on Friday, December 7. Pearl Harbor Day and 3 weeks post surgery.

Amy Harris and her daughter Lindsay took pictures to capture the magic of the night. Amy helped me to pose, but I tell ya,

I think I should have put my right foot forward. It's my better side. I'm wearing a blouse I haven't worn in well over a year. I ate a lot of beef this week. As a result, I lost only 4.2 pounds. Total lost is 28, so it's an average of a pound a day still, since I'm counting losing 7 pounds before the surgery. I now need only 1 tape measure to get around my hips and stomach. Next week I'll be taking my measurements and sharing them. I am starting to notice that I get sick every time I try to eat meat. I'm sick again tonight after just a little bit of chicken. Yikes! I'm not ready for that, but it may just be the case. I just know that it's not worth getting nauseated every time I eat meat. Yuck! Everybody says that they can tell in my face that I'm losing. Typical for me. I lose it from the top and at my ankles, until the skinny meets in the middle. Stomach and hips are the last to show signs of shrinkage. I will say that I noticed a little more room between myself and the steering wheel on my way to work this morning. On Saturday I crossed my knee to put on my shoe and was on my way out of the door before I realized that I had just passed a marker. I haven't been able to cross my leg in FOR E VER!

It has been 3 weeks since my surgery! The first day after the surgery I was able to get about 2 teaspoons of liquid down and I walked to the door of the hotel room and back, and to the bathroom. By the second day, I had made it to the end of the hall where I walked right into someone else's suite, because I thought it was a recreation room.

I was able to go to Cirque Du Soleil's Love, which had the music of the Beatles. Amazing and fun, till I had to climb the stairs to get back to my wheelchair. I almost passed out. I was able to spend the next week and Lance's and Caetie's with the rest of the family, except for Drew, Faith, and Baby Rowan. They were sorely missed. I realized that my sense of smell was a huge trigger to wanting to eat. The ugly part of the visit happened when I took a microscopic piece of crumb topping from an apple pie to let it "melt in my mouth." But I was caught! Embarrassing and shameful!! It was awful! The doctor told us about a man who almost died when he ate a hamburger the day after his surgery. Split his stomach in half! In my mind, the size of the crumb made it not so bad, but I know how everyone was shocked because it showed a lack of commitment. It was actually a very good learning moment for me. Since then, I have had to make choices every day. I realize it's going to be a DAILY battle for the rest of my life. It's good that I could learn that lesson during the first week. It was kind of a shocker for me and a "Come to Jesus" moment. I thought, "Oh no! What have I done?" But I almost immediately realized that I am very thankful for the sacrifices my family made to make the surgery happen. So... a few numbers here. I started out at 330. By the time I got to the office on Thursday, November 15, I weighed 323. I had already lost 7 lbs!

Here is a picture of me a day after the surgery. I'm feeling a little better. I weighed on Saturday, December 1, which was 2 weeks and 1 day after the surgery. I weighed 306! Tomorrow, December 7, marks 3 weeks since the surgery.

Here is a picture of me tonight, December 6, wearing some red pajamas I got 2 Christmases ago. This is the first time I've been able to get the pants on and button the shirt all the way up. I'm not so thrilled about my stomach, but I can definitely see a difference in my face! Wow!