Pics from Dr Day

Below are pictures from Thursday 5/28/09 before leaving to go to my Post-Op appt.

The picture below is a pic of me taking my first bite of pureed food which was mashed up pinto beans! Yum Yum!

Blessings to all!

Chris has a surgery date & Amy has her follow-up

Well it has been a very exciting day for both of us. Let me start out with Chris's news and story.

While at my post-op visit the scheduling nurse came out and talked to Chris and wanted to know if he could do surgery on Monday (yes Monday like in 2 days) well unfortunately he can't because he has to travel for business and can't get out of it. So she came back and said no problem, we will do your pre-op appt today and send you over to the hospital for your pre-op labs, x-rays, etc and your surgery will be on Wednesday June 17th at 9:30 am at the same hospital I was at. As you can imagine we were both extremely excited it. So after both our appts we headed down the hall to the hospital for the next 2 hours to get him all squared away. He will be having the revision and to do this they go back in the same way they do the original surgery with 5 tiny incisions and the goal is to shrink the size of his tummy (aka the pouch). The Dr said 7-10 years ago since the surgery wasn't so advanced that they didn't make the pouch as small as they do now and they were able to see from all his prior tests that his pouch was too big to be the tool that it should be. So his hospital time and recovery time will be the same as mine.

Now on to my post-op appt. The first and most important news.....drum roll please....I have lost 15lbs since having surgery that's in 9 days! How crazy is that! The Dr was pleased as punch at my progress and said I am an over achiever because I am doing and feeling better much quicker than most people. He couldn't believe that I hadn't gotten sick a single time or even felt nauseated and he said that means you are doing what you are suppose to and not cheating. I said no way, I have come this far and I am not screwing it up now. He said everything was perfect including my incisions and that I should continue walking but that today I could move up to pureed foods! Whoo Hoo! I am so excited so my first meal was some blended up pinto beans that my mommy made just for me with a few shreds of low fat cheese. I must say they were the most delicious beans I had ever had. I only had a little over a table spoon which is less than I was eating on liquids but per the Dr that is expected until your body gets use to something other than liquids. Also he reminded me you will never eat the amounts you use to again. Over the next year it will become the size of about 6-8 oz and right now its only the size of about 2 oz. Honestly I didn't care how much I ate, I was just glad to have something other than soup. However, I still do not feel any hunger at all. I eat strictly by the clock. As a matter of fact today we did not get home from the Dr until 3:30 and I had breakfast at 9:00am and I wasn't hungry when I got home but knew I had to eat. I have to tell you this is the weirdest part of this whole process.

By way if you didn't notice I added weight loss trackers for both of us under our pre-surgery pictures so you can see how much we have lost since we started this journey in Sept 2008.

Well let me quit babbling for now and ask that you continue to pray for us both and tomorrow I will get the pics we took before the Dr posted. Until then, blessings to All!

Hospital to Home in Pictures

About 6:30am the morning after surgery. I look rough and was happy to have the morphine button!




I am just back in bed from radiology where I had the upper GI and the results were perfect...everything did what it was suppose to and I have clearance to have lunch! Can't wait!




My first meal is delivered....notice the stack of medicine cups....you will understand why in the next pic :)






This is actually the amount that I ate off the tray in my fine china!






The first bite I took was ice....crazy I know but I had the worst sore throat from the tubes





Happy and satisified after my first meal post-surgery





Thursday 10am the Dr just left and I got the good news that I am going home!






Me and my best friend Tara....can you believe we have known each other since we were 3 years old?!?!








There is no better way to heal at home than with your babies!

One last thought.....for those of you who know me really well can you believe I posted pics of myself without my hair fixed and with no make-up...well let me tell you it was hard :)

Love and Blessings to All! Amy

Chris is APPROVED!!!

My hubby is so excited he just got his final approval from the insurance company for his revision surgery! We are both over the moon again. Hopefully by the end of the day today we will have a surgery date for him. It was a very long road getting there and more hurdles and hoops to jump thru than you can imagine. But in the end it is all so worth it. :)

As for me.....I will update more this evening and put up some new pictures! I go to the Dr tomorrow so I will have lots to update then and Chris will probably have his pre-op appt tomorrow so we will have lots to share.

Blessings to everyone!

I'm HOME!!!!

I got home around noon yesterday (Thursday). I was so glad to be home in my own bed not getting woken up every hour with them wanting to draw blood, take my temp, take my BP and so on and so on. Everything went very well and according to the Dr I was a very textbook case. WHOO! I was normal probably for the first time ever. The only thing that did go wrong was I was suppose to have surgery at noon on Tues but he had a emergency on Tues morning and I didn't go into surgery until 3 on Tues. They took me back to get prepped at 1:20 and they had a heck of a time getting the IV in. You know its bad when the Anesthesiologist and the PA say you get one last try and if you don't get it we will not let you torture her anymore we will give her gas and put it in right before we start surgery. They finally got it on the third try after I cried a few buckets of tears and got my blood pressure up. The next thing I knew they said we are ready to take you back and I saw my hubby and my mommy for about 2 min and I was in the surgery room. I remember them moving me on to the table which was freezing cold and the next thing I remember is being in my room and hearing every one's voices and seeing my step dad sitting at the foot of the bed. Not sure what time everyone left because I was pretty out of it but at some point Tues night (hubby stayed at the hospital with me) nurse Jared came in and said we need to get you up and walk a little tonight. I remember looking at Chris and back at Jared and saying are you kidding and he said no. The Dr. wants you to walk a short distance tonight. I groaned and said ok lets get it over with. Let me just say this is when I realized the pain and started pushing my morphine button. It took a while but they finally got me sitting on the side of the bed and now it was time to stand up. I stood up and got really dizzy so I held on to my hubby and it got better. Then I apparently got really flush in the face and Jared asked if I was ok, I said no I think I am going to be sick. So he grabbed the bucket and sat me back on the side of the bed. I didn't get sick and felt better after several minutes and Jared said, well lets get you back in bed and try again in an hour. I looked at Chris and back at him and said no way. I got this far, I am finishing this walking thing for tonight. I told Jared push my button again and we got up and I walked a 1/4 of the hall. When I got back and got in bed I was very sore to say the least. That night I didn't get much sleep because every time I went to sleep someone else came in to check something or give me a shot or take blood or something. On Wed I started walking (I had to walk every 2 hours) and by the 2nd walk on Wed I had made a full lap around the hall which was my goal by the end of the day. I continued walking and when the Dr came in that afternoon he said I was doing great and that if everything went well that night that I could go home on Thurs. I was so excited. He came in at 9 am on Thurs and said everything looks perfect you can go home. We were out of there by 11 and home by 12! The girls were so happy to see me of course keeping Blondie from jumping on my belly has been a bit difficult so we just pile the pillows on my belly and then she can walk on me and be happy. Little Peanut has stayed in my lap since I got home. She is so happy to have mommy home. Last night was good, I only woke up one time last night for pain meds and today has gone well too. I only took pain meds once today and I have walked part of the way down the street 2 times today. Now I am sitting on the patio with the puppies, the hubby and watching all the birds. We have tons of birds out here and there is a nice breeze blowing. So its really wonderful. Chris took pics at the hospital but I haven't downloaded them yet. I will get that done over the weekend and post some pics. I am feeling really good, sore but good and for that I am thankful. I go back to the Dr on Thurs for my followup. So if you have a moment pray for me to continue to feel good and that the soreness continues to diminish. Until next time blessings to all! :)

Surgery Day!

Here I am the morning of surgery nevous, anxious and even still excited. Didn't sleep much last night with my nerves but thats ok. I am pretty short on words this morning but wanted to ask everyone to say a few prayers for me this morning. Surgery is at 12 noon. Below are pics from this morning and I had to include a cute pic of my and my baby Peanut from yesterday relaxing on the patio.

Blessings to all!

Nerves and NO MORE Shakes!

Here I am the day before surgery and the nerves are really starting to get to me. I am so excited but getting really nervous. After all I hate needles and IVs and hospitals and well you get the idea. The hubby is home with me to day so hopefully he will keep me busy so I can keep my mind off of things. The good news about today is that I don't have to drink anymore of the dreaded shakes but the bad thing is the only things I can have today are broth, sugar free Popsicles and sugar free jello (the Popsicles and jello cannot be red or orange). So my day will consist of chicken broth, beef broth, green Popsicles and green jello. Now I know most people are saying that's the worst flavor of jello, but green/lime jello is my favorite. My husband says I am strange because you only eat green jello when you are in the hospital and they make you. So I guess I am a little strange cause I love green jello. Then at 4pm today I have to start drinking the magnesium citrate to clean everything out. I am definitely not looking forward to this. But it will be all worth it in the end. I need to run so we can go to the store and get some last minute things that I will need from the store so stay tuned tomorrow morning. Before we leave the house I will be posting some pics from the morning before surgery. Everyone please say a prayer for me tonight and definitely tomorrow. Blessings to all. -----Amy :)

Last Day of Work...

Well here I am at work and today is my last day at work for 3 weeks. I thought I would be crazy busy today but its odd cause I'm not. I guess that's a good thing of course if its just cause I am forgetting things that's not good. Oh well...

Well I am so excited and surgery is only 4 days away! I can't believe it is really here. Now I am starting to get nervous. I will spend the weekend getting everything ready like doing laundry and all that good stuff so when I come home I won't have anything to do. If I don't post over the weekend, I promise to post on Tuesday morning before we leave for the hospital and post some pics that the hubby will be taking that morning so I can document my weight loss in pics.

Please say an extra prayer for me this weekend and definitely on Tuesday that everything goes well and that I don't get to anxious.

Love and Blessings to all!

My New Hairdo

Me and my girls - Blondie in my right arm and Peanut in my left arm

So how do you like my new sassy do? The lady that does my hair said I needed a new do to go with the new body I will soon have. She did a reverse cut where its shorter in the back than it is in the front and sides. I absolutely love love love it!

Update on Dr and my ROUGH Time.....

On Thursday I had my pre-op appt at the Dr's office as well as all my pre-op lab work at the hospital. The Dr visit went well and they actually moved my surgery to a different hospital so now I don't have to go to the medical center and this hospital is only 30 min from my house so we were very excited. The PA almost gave me a heart attack when he was doing a small physical. He was listening to my heart and after a few minutes he stepped back and said do you or have you ever had a heart murmer? UM NO! I look at Chris and he looks at me and of course I start panicing. He says let me listen again. He says its very slight and on the systolic side so it probably nothing but he wants Dr. Davis to take a listen. So he leaves the room. I immediately look at Chris and say this better not postpone surgery. In about 5 minutes Dr. Davis is back and he is laughing. He takes a listen asks my age and says, it is so very slight and its probably just your nerves then he proceeds to call me a "Chicken"! We all laughed and then I said are you sure my heart is ok. He now realizes I am a bit freaked out. He says yes and I promise you it will be gone within a few weeks after surgery. So now I am calming down and he says when you come in for your follow-ups we will listen to your heart closely and if it doesn't then I will send you to cardioloigst. So for now until surgery is done, I am putting that out of my mind. We left his office and went to the hopital where I peed in a cup, got 7 vials of blood drawn, 4 chest x-rays, and EKG, and signed tons of paperwork. When we left we went to 59 Diner and ate. For dinner our friends treated us to some Chili Cheese dogs and Chili Cheese tots. Thanks Ang & B it was wonderful. That meant Friday was the first day of the dreaded Shakes. I must have 4-5 shakes a day until Sunday and then I have one day of broth and water before surgery on Tuesday.

Well the shakes have just about brought me to my knees. You see I hate milk and despise shakes. I have major texture issues and well just can't stand the flavor of milk. On Friday morning I somewhat managed to drink most of the shake while gagging. At work I tried mixing the shake with more ice than water and put in frozen fruit. That was horrible....it was like trying to swallow a giant snot ball. I gagged down about half and threw the rest down the sink. I got home and tried one with just water and a little bit of ice (Each of these 3 were strawberry flavored) and could only manage about half. It was horrible. So we mixed some up with frozen yogurt and put in the freezer and off we went baby shower shopping and Mother's Day shopping. Now I had started getting a headache around 10am that day and well it just kept getting worse until I had a migraine and got sick as a dog on the way home. The hubby got me home and took good care of me and that night made me eat about 1/2 of a grilled cheese because I had nothing in my stomach and as soon as he came near me with the shakes I started gagging before I even drank them. So on Sat morning I tried the frozen creamscicle one and got about half down before I thought I would throw up. Let me just tell you once you puke this crap the flavor becomes even worse and the smell oh thats even worse. At this point, I am freaking out and don’t know what I am going to do. Chris makes me eat a banana because like he said if we can mix it with fruit then why can’t you eat the fruit you didn’t mix in it. So we watched TV for a little while before it was time to get ready to go to Dawn’s baby shower. Of course that just meant it was time for another shake. Well, this one was not good. I tried the strawberry again, this time with just water and nothing else in it and well I only got about ½ down before I literally started gagging so bad I threw up again! So now I am crying, Chris is frustrated and doesn’t know what to do. So while I am in the shower he goes on the website for the makers of the shakes I have and has a live chat with a rep. The rep says to try it with 12-14 oz of water instead of 8oz and to only use one scoop of mix. He said this way it will be more like water. Then he said if I still can’t stomach the taste to keep adding water to dilute it even more. He also suggested adding Crystal Light mix since it has a strong flavor and might hide the taste of the shakes. So at this point on Sat after the baby shower I am like I have to eat something because if not how am I going to function. So on Sat night we went to Jason’s and I got a big salad with FF Ranch. I figure there isn’t much in that and it can’t hurt that much. So then we started over yesterday. I tried the one scoop with 12 oz of water and a crystal light and it still sucked the big one but I got the whole thing down before we went to church and didn’t start gagging until half way thru it. So I thought this was a success. We went to Jason’s for a big salad after church with Chris’s parents and mine so that was good cause it got my mind off these horrible shakes. I had 2 more last night and managed to keep them down although I still gag them down. This morning I had another one and didn’t gag until about the last 4oz and I made it with 14oz of water instead of 12oz. So my next one I will try 15-16oz of water and see if that gets rid of the gagging. It is still disgusting but if I can do it without gagging I might be able to make it. I brought a banana and some pineapple to eat after the shake today to hold me over. So today I will end up having 4 shakes and having a salad at dinner tonight. Hopefully this will work for me because let me tell you this weekend has been horrible. Of course Chris says they don’t taste so bad but he likes milk and love shakes. To me whether you put the milk in or not, they taste like milk and chalk and well I can go on and on cause to me its disgusting.

So to the end of that extremely long post I ask that you say a prayer for me to make it thru these shakes until my surgery day.

Farewell to Food Tour 09.......

This is the clever yet crazy name my husband has given to the last week. Because you see I have been having my favorite foods for the last several days as my final farewell to the "bad foods". So on this journey I have had, pizza, cheese burger, fries, fettuccine alfredo, chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes with cream gravy, lots of Mexican food including enchiladas and fajitas and others that seemed to have escaped my mind. Tomorrow will be the last supper at La Finca Mexican! YUM - I can't wait. I will however say that the old tummy will be glad when I get off this binge because everyday it has hurt since it has been so long 7 months since I ate food like this. But oh well I figured one last time. I am starting to get nervous but not about the surgery (yet) more about drinking my meals for 12 days before surgery. I don't even like shakes and this is all I can have for 12 days.....this shall be interesting to say the least. So please pray that I can make it thru the next 2 weeks until surgery day on 5/19 which by the way is exactly 2 weeks from today! I am hoping this weekend to get some photos loaded on the blog as my "before" pics and the hubby will be taking pics the morning before surgery and then at every Dr appt so everyone can see the progress but mainly for me so I can really see what is happening. Until next time.....Blessings to all!