Autumn Chowder

I haven't blogged in forever, I know. I bought a blog digi kit and really messed it up. I finally think that I have fixed it. My Mom is still okay in the nursing home. The last time I saw her was her birthday, October 18th. Since then, we have had William's (greatgrandson), Kaitlin (granddaughter) and James' (grandson) birthday. Next weekend we are headed to Rockport for Adeline's (ggd) birthday party. She is having a Princess Party. She is turning three.

Britianny emailed pictures of Halloween so I scrapped several layouts of Adeline. Stupid me posted them on FB and said she is my favorite ggd. At the time, I was thinking she was the only one. That's what happens when you become a greatgrandparent. I swear I get more like my DH everyday. I do apologize to Lexie.

We have been remodeling the house in hopes of selling. We need to move to a smaller place with a smaller yard. Hope to put the house on the market next year. That is it in a nutshell as far as what we have been up to.

I have been making a lot of different soups lately. Shrimp bisque was the worst! This is sorta, kinda Bin 555's recipe for Autumn Chowder only I used lactose free, skim milk instead of cream.
Butternut squash, onion, celery, carrots, salt, pepper and nutmeg. It was Yummy!

I hate cats!

Actually, the truth is, I am scared to death of cats. It is because of my childhood. We had an ice machine in our garage. One of my chores was to get the tea every night for supper. I would have to go to the garage to get ice. (My Dad sold ice machines and COKE machines.) My sister, Debbie was an animal lover. She had so many animals she picked up off the street. My younger sister, Judi, who was born on Halloween, (just sayin') was so mean to Debbie's cats. She would grab them by the tail and spin around and let them go flying. The cats lived in the raftors of the garage. When I would go out and get ice at night the cats would jump down on me. FREAKY! To this day, I am terrified of cats. But I have gotten better in my old age. I can actually visit people who have cats. When they start to rub on my legs, I get up and walk away. I don't freak. I also let my exchange student have a cat in my house. I didn't like it, but I did.

So yesterday, my friend Patricia calls me and says do you know you have cats? Yes! We have wild cats in our garage that my DH feeds. He says they keep the snakes and scorpions away. Well we have had several litters of kittens this summer. I carried one to work under my car. It mewed all day. Brought it home and it came out from under the car. We have 3 kittens that have NO MAMMA. We don't know what happened to the Momma. We bought baby bottles at the store today, but the nipple was too big. Trying a squirt bottle, but they aren't getting a whole lot. They are too small to even eat. Why do I care? I don't like cats!

Yes, it has been forever since I updated......

The summer has been so busy with grandkids that I have lots of photos and no scrapbook pages. I had better get busy.

Mother's Day

I have lost 40 lbs but it wasn't by eating like I did last weekend. Jim and I went to the Coast. We did nothing at all on Saturday but lay on the beach. Saturday evening, we took our grandaughter, Krystyna out for Mexican food and a Margarita to celebrate her 21st birthday. I forgot my camera. This is the only one I got with my phone. Adaline at 2. We hurried home Sunday morning to make our 1:30 reservations at Bin 555. My son, Chef Pj Edwards was cooking for 150 Mothers but especially me. We had a mixed greens salad with dried cherries and goat cheese. It was goooood! Then we had Halibut with peas and roasted scallions. The cheese after the meal was goat cheese rolled in herb with Spanish tortas, honeycomb and almonds.My dessert was whipped cream frozen by liquid nitrogen, berries and mint salad. I had the most wonderful Mother's Day you could possibly imagine. I not only got lunch but I got a very cool sewing machine and a Zable pandora style bracelet. I talked to Kaden on the phone and Brady actually got on the phone and talked to his Gamma for quite a while. You know he is 7 now and too cool for that

Surprise!

Today, we went to a Paella Cookoff at the Pearl Brewery in San Antonio. PJ was cooking with his boss Chef Jason Dady. They should have won. They definately had the best presentation. Ben Ford, who I understand is Harrison Ford's son, who owns a restuarant in CA, won. He even told them afterwards that they got robbed.

Yesterday, we had a surprise 40th birthday party for Jim Jr. at our house. He was completely surprised. It was a lot of fun and the whole family was here. Jim built a playset in one of our many trees. The kids had so much fun playing on it. We ended up with about 10 people spending the night, so there were blankets and pillows everywhere.

It happened to me:(

Well, it finally happened. I ate a piece of fish too fast. It got stuck. It hurt so bad. I had heard all about it, but thought, I will do what I am supposed to do and that won't ever happen to me. Ha! It was the most horrible experience. I went outside and walked while everyone else ate. It helped a little, very little, so I came back in and sat down. I tried to be pleasant until everyone finished but when I got in Jim's truck, all heck broke loose. I had no idea I was about to throw up and it went everywhere. Thank goodness, I have such a wonderful husband. He cleaned it all up. I couldn't. The more I looked at it, the more I wanted to do it again. So, if anyone of you are considering lapband surgery, just know that one day it will happen to you and it is NOT fun. Don't let that discourage you in any way, just know to expect it.

64 Degrees

Jim and I took our grandaughter Kaitlin to the Coast this weekend. She and Adeline wanted to go to the beach. They rode with Aunt Jodi, Adeline's grandmother. When they got out of the truck they had on swimsuits, ready to play in the water. Omg, I was cold and I had on clothes. Those girls had so much fun. Their laughter could be heard all around the beach.

I decided to get my excercise in and walk on the beach. I wore myself out, really quick. When I got back, the girls had decided to sit down and eat some chips. That is when the shivering started. Everyone was trying to wrap them up in the 6 towels we happened to bring. Finally, Britainey took them to the truck and turned the heater on. It was a fun, fun day.

Jim and I rode our bikes when we got back, while Jodi had the girls and Britainey cooked for us. What we thought would be a weekend of entertaining Kaitlin, turned out to be a very relaxing weekend for us. We rode our bikes again this morning. I just have a real problem riding with the traffic. I want to see what is coming towards me. We rode along the road that follows the Coastline in Fulton. I did great with my diet. I am on soft foods now and if I didn't think I could digest it, I just drank a protein drink instead. Never got hungry. Anxious to see how much weight I have lost this week.

1st Adjustment

The adjustment went well. The Dr. filled up the band where nothing would go through. He showed me one the Xray. Then he backed it off a little at a time until the white stuff I drank ran barely through, the way he wanted it. I can't really tell yet if I have more restriction, as I am still on liquids. Tonight, I get to have a protein shake. That will be for the next 3 days. Then 3 days of mush and 3 days of soft foods. So about 1 1/2 weeks and I will be able to eat again. It is killing me. Do you know they show nothing but food commercials on tv at night, while I am walking on my treadmill. The 1st time, the liquids did not bother me, as I had just had surgery. This time, I want to eat. I cheated and had a cup of Chick FilA ice cream yesterday. It was so good. I figured since I am not eating any calories, it wouldn't hurt me.

So that is the story of my first adjustment. The photo is a scrapbook page for a challenge at Tallyscrappers. We are doing an Idol challenge and this week the challenge was to pick the number one song the day your subject was born. Adeline's was about the only one in the family that I could make work.

Wow! A great Valentine's Day!

What a wonderful weekend! My daughter had her 35th birthday on Sunday. We celebrated all weekend. My grandson was baptized on Sunday. It was so great, we all cried, including the Pastor. My Mother attended, as well as, Brady's "Uncle Bryan". I took Kaden and he was so happy for his brother even though he really didn't know what it meant. There were lots of friends there, also. Afterward, we all went to Olive Garden and I had to catch a plane shortly after. Now you may be wondering where the photos are. I left my camera in MS! Can you believe it? It is a good thing I have a few more, but I wanted to scrap all those pictures.

I do have a few photos of what has been going on here since the scraproom was flooded. Crocheting an afghan for the orphans in China. When Tobie and Tony go over to get Baby China, they need to take gifts for the other children. Tobie and I are both working on blankets. And I got my treadmill! I have been working on the length of time and miles more than the speed. Tonight I bought a workout for the Ifit by Jillian Michaels. She kick my behind in the first 5 minutes so I just turned her off and did my own thing. I do want to work up to being able to keep up with her, but I need to get used to walking first.

I have lost 21 lbs. Thursday will be my first adjustment. It should make the band tighter. Even though I am still doing WW, I am anxious to see if I can eat everything I am eating now. I will let you know.

I am eating!

I am on soft foods now and let me tell you, everything tastes so good! I can't eat a lot, which is the plan, and I am being choosey about what I do eat. It is SuperBowl Sunday and I am making turkey meat Chili! (I know I live in TX but I can use turkey if I want to.) Of course, no cornbread but I can put low fat cheese on top because it has protein.

I worked out on the eliptical for 30 minutes today and tomorrow I get my Valentine, which is a new treadmill. I am pretty excited!

My scraproom is flooded again due to the hot water heater. This is the 3rd time we have replaced it in the 14 years we have owned this house. Why it is always my scraproom, I do not know. Jim has been sucking up water for 2 days. We have decided that we probably need a water softener and will have to tile the floor. The carpet has been replaced once and now its has been wet again twice in the last month. Time to put in tile. So anyway, I had the urge to scrap so I did 2 digis. It is a kit by Kim Gehring called Boy Oh Boy. I get my digis printed at Costco for 2.99 for a 12 x 12 but I may also do these in paper, I like them so much. Theyare my handsome grandsons, Kaden and Brady.

Soul Food

Today I made beans and cornbread with squash, collard greens and pork chops. My son the Chef was here and he and Jim ate until they were miserable. I on the other hand had some beans and some squash that I put in the blender. It was so good. I can't tell you how good. Really. I wanted a pork chop so bad so I took a bit, chewed it a little and threw it away. I know that sounds so gross but it tasted so good for the few seconds.

I am losing about a pound a day making 15 pounds so far. I really thought I would lose more eating nothing but I know it is going to be slow and that is really a good thing. I told Jim that I wanted a new treadmill for Valentine's Day. He made a frowny face. The rule is that I have to wear out a piece of exercise equipment before I can have a new one, but this treadmill is at least 12 years old. It has worn itself out just sitting in the other room all this time. LOL No, actually it has been used more than the rest of the stuff I have. It won't stay level, you are always walking uphill. It kills me to do very little. I think I need a new one. Especially since I am supposed to be walking an hour a day 6 days a week. I went to the New Balance store and got fitted for walking shoes, now I need a new treadmill.

So that's my progress. (I'll let you know when I get my new treadmill.)

The Coast

Jim and I went to the Coast this past weekend. We did nothing but relax. I scrapped a layout that was due for a challenge on Tallyscrappers. We read (I finally finished the dumb Twight series), watched movies (wore out the Redbox) and basically did nothing. It was very nice. Since I am on liquids, we went to breakfast both mornings at Jim's favorite Mexican restaurant in Rockport. He ate biscuits with sausage gravy and 2 eggs for 4 bucks. I watched. He, like most men, always sits where he can see the door putting me with my back to everything. He decided that he needed to change that as all I had to do was sit and watch him eat. lol So far, it hasn't bothered me at all to see other people eat. I am doing great on my diet. Everything I am supposed to do. I am losing about 1 pound a day. I go to the doctor on Thursday for my 2 week checkup. Hopefully he will tell me that I can take a bath! Showers everyday are killing me. I like to take a bath and relax.
We did go visit Adaline on Sunday before we left. Jim went to the bathroom and she picked up his keyes, walked over to her Mom and said, "Big Daddy's gonna beat your ass", just as plain as day. Do you have any idea how hard that was to keep from laughing? Oh my gosh! Then Jim comes back in the room and Jodi tells him what she said. He said "what did you say?" and she stuck her little behind out at him. OMG! It was so hilarious! He would have killed his kids for that (so would I) but when you are a great grandparent, its funny. By the way, she would only hear that from her grandmother, Jodi. Her parents do not talk to her that way. You would have to know Jodi.
I get to eat baby food in 3 days! Yay!

My 1st test.

Today is Alice's birthday, a girl I work with here in the office. She is doing WeightWatchers so we tried to make her a point friendly lunch. She asked to have corn beef and cabbage because her Mom always made that for her when she was young. I cooked the corn beef in my crock pot yesterday and chopped cabbage, onion, potato and carrots last night. They cooked all morning in the crock pot in my office. It smelled so good! When everyone sat down for lunch they had spinach and strawberry pecan salad, corned beef and cabbage and a sugar free pudding type dessert. I one the other hand had beef broth and a popsicle. It was so yummy. Everyone was jealous and wanted my lunch. hahahahahaha NOT!
It didn't bother me at all. I was perfectly happy. I took a slice of corned beef and a little bit of cabbage. I am going to vaccum seal them in my food saver and freeze until St. Patrick's Day. By then I will be able eat real food.
I just had to say I am very proud of myself and I am doing great! Besides Saturday I get to have a protien shake and milk. Life is good.

Surgery Done

I had my lap band surgery Friday, January 15, 2010. I am doing well. Most of the time is spent eating crushed ice. I had a Jello today and had to eat it in 2 different settings. K2O is protein water and I am trying to drink a couple of those each day because your body needs protein. I haven't been hungry at all. Tried to drink broth last night and got a little nauseated. It is going to be one step at a time. I am walking around inside the house like I am supposed to and doing my breathing exercises. Haven't been able to give myself a shot yet. Jim is doing that for me every eight hours. My friend Alice, will probably be giving me the 2 o'clock shot at work. She says she can so I am taking her up on it.
I never realized that I had so many friends. When I woke up yesterday, there was already a post on the message board at Tallyscrappers wondering how I was doing. Friends and relatives have called many times to check on me. I am not ignoring the phone calls, Jim is answering most of them. I just don't feel much like talking right now. I do appreciate everyone's concern. I did talk to my grandson Kaden this morning. He made me feel a lot better. He told his Mom, "Her feels better, a little bit." How could you not feel good with that little guy pulling for you?
I have been truly blessed and I am sure that I will be able to follow this through. I will keep you all posted. Thanks for caring.

Bad News/Good News

All of the grandchildren except Brady and Kaden. Photo taken 12/20/09.

My lapband surgery was orginally scheduled for 1/15/10. They called me on the 5th after my pre-op doctor's appointments and said they bumped it up to the 8th. At first, I was scared, then I got all excited. They called on the 6th and said the doctor had a family emergency and the surgery would have to be changed back to the 15th. So now I am disappointed and having "buyer's remorse." My insurance doesn't pay for any of this. It is costing me $11000. A girl at work made a good point. "Would you spend the money for Jim to be healthy?" I know we have already spent way more than that for Jim to be healthy with his 11 stints. So I am getting excited again.
The good news is that I am really sticking to my diet. ( They put you on a high protein diet 2 weeks before surgery.) At first I thought, okay an opportunity to eat and drink whatever I like this weekend. But I didn't! I haven't had any wine since last Sunday. I haven't even thought about wanting any, even when Jim drinks a glass. Yesterday while out shopping, I mentioned several restaurants to go to. When Jim asked if I really wanted to go, I said No. I came home and fixed barbeque pizza (which I know isn't diet food but it was my last hoo-ra) ate one piece and tracked my points. I am still putting my points into Weight Watchers Online because I personally think that people on high protein diets sometimes eat too many calories.
I am also trying to teach myself to eat things such as cottage cheese, cream cheese, etc. If you know me well, you know I can not stand the texture of mushy, creamy, gooey stuff. But post-op requires 1 week clear liquids, 2nd week solid liquids, 3rd week mush with no lumps, 4th week mush with lumps and the 5th week I can start trying other foods.
I am excited! I can't wait for next Friday to get here! Now I must go help Jim with the busted water pipe, since the back of the house is flooded. It is COLD in South Texas!