Where you been, Willis?

Holy cow. How bad am I? Almost a month between postings - first time I've done that. So sorry.

But I'm here now. Guess the reason I haven't posted lately is my life is quite boring, especially band wise. I'm just living life - not worrying about it too much (the band that is).... we have settled into quite a nice routine.

I did go and see my band doc today and it made me realise something: even if you don't go see him/her for the sole reason of getting a fill top-up, checking in and seeing them every now and again - at least once or twice a year - is a good idea. It keeps you on the straight and narrow and today I came away with a whole new wealth of knowledge.

I have been trying to figure out in the past few months how to get my vitamin tablets down a little easier. It's a real chore. Scrap that - it doesn't matter what tablet I'm trying to get down, they are ALL a chore. I break my big vitamin tab in half and even then it's a pain to try to get the two halves down. Today the good doc gave me a website to access to buy some chewables and gave me one to try. They are like a huge platelet shape, purplish and taste like a saccharine version of a vitamin C tablet. Not too bad actually. I have looked at numerous chemists around where I live and not one of them seems to sell them so it looks like I have to go online and order them from America. I will do that this afternoon.

Another thing I came away with was my blood test results. I had this done a few months ago. A complete work over. I was told that I would only hear from the office if there was a problem. There was no call - so I thought, great! And there really wasn't a problem in the whole scheme of things - not enough to have them flag it as an immediate danger. It does seem though that I have a small vitamin D deficiency which can be remedied by taking a supplement and drinking a good milk. The milk should be high in calcium and vitamin D. I went right down and got some and next I have to purchase the tablets. All my other blood-work - lipids, all the vitamins, blood sugars, heart disease risk, cholesterol etc etc -  were all smack in the middle or under the limit. UNDER the limit... whooo. I was stoked. I was told, given one of my sons having Type One diabetes, had I stayed the weight I was all this time later - I probably would have developed type 2 diabetes. As it stands now I have little chance of this happening because of the weight loss. Such great news. My cholesterol should be between 5 and 6 (but Doc Hill told me most Australians sit between 6 and 7 and thats still fairly healthy). Mine was 3.3. Thats just one example. Nice to know I'm healthy. Really healthy. He also told me I'm doing great at maintaining my weight. I have actually lost 2 and half kilos (around 5 pounds) since I saw him last. I was happy with that lol.

The original reason for seeing Dr Hill was I thought I might get a small band tweak. I have noticed in the past few months my hunger is on the increase. In the end I left with no extra fill. He said he was happy to give me some but because I have had the band so long (almost 2 years) he felt I could do with a reminder of my eating habits. I still don't tend to PB a lot, but I am guilty of getting hungry and eating too fast. He showed me a video on what happens when we do this. There is supposed to be a 20/20 rule with lapbanders. Chew 20 times before swallowing the teaspoon sized mouthful (haha, mine are more like a tablespoon right now - thats on the fixit list) and then 20 seconds to swallow - picking up the knife and fork, cutting or scooping food and another 20 chews - all in all taking around a minute between mouthfuls. This is the perfect rate at which we should eat. Then the food won't become backed up/or come back up and it gives time for the food to traverse up and down the esophagus before finally settling in the small pouch where the bottom part of the spoonful you've just swallowed passes through to your big stomach. This is what I need to work on. I eat too fast sometimes and I'm looking forward to trying to eat slower and see if it makes a real difference to the hunger levels.

On my way out from seeing Dr Hill, I bumped into Doctor Couch for the first time in about 18 months. He seemed very happy with my progress, asking if I managed to get below the 90 kilo target weight he had set me. I asked if I looked like I had - a loaded question if there ever was one. He said he thought I was way below that. I said I was and told him what I weighed now and he was thrilled. He was very complimentary. I wanted to hug him for the great deed he did. Placing in the very excellent lap-band which was my savior and my life changer. It doesn't get much better than that.

See you again soon
Cara xxx

How thin is too thin?

You know, for the longest time now I have been happy with my weight. Who knew I would ever feel like that?  For years I felt sick when I saw myself in a mirror. I would cringe when I went up yet another dress size, and even when I was dolled up to the max, I still didn't feel good about myself.  Then I took a leap of faith and had a lap-band put in and well, now, almost two years later I am happy, or at least thought I was satisfied at the weight I am.

But lately some insidious thoughts have been creeping in. I want to lose a bit more weight. Right now I weigh 70.5 kilos. Thats around the 155 pound mark (I have managed to lose one of the two pounds I put on recently.) I am wearing size 12 clothing and for an Australian, where the average women's size sits around the 14/16 mark that is some achievement. I feel immensely proud of what I have achieved so far. But being so close to tipping over into the 60 kilo range (albiet a 69 - haha Amy W that was just for you!!) I am suddenly harboring thoughts about what it might be like to sit in that bracket. I want to push myself a bit and lose a few more kilos and look even thinner than I do now.

See, right now, while I think I look fine I don't 'feel' thin. I see pictures of myself and while I know I look more streamlined than I have in over 20 years, I still don't think I look small. I realised just recently some of my clothes are a little baggy - and that actually gives me a kick. Stupid I know. The reason they are getting baggy is because slowly but surely I have lost another five kilos since I started maintaining. I wasn't trying, it just happened. But I really don't want to have to go out and buy another wardrobe as I've spent time and money investing in the new one I have. And I should be satisfied sitting on a size 12 (a US 8.) It's a good size to be. I can't ever imagine being a size 10 (thats a US 6.) Yet how many kilos would it take to lose to get to that size? I don't know and I'm not really interested in a size 10 dress size right now but more the way I look  and feel in myself.

I have been maintaining my weight for almost a year and it hasn't been hard in the least. I haven't deprived myself of anything (I have a lot of different foods but obviously in much, much smaller portions) and I still have the occasional drink(s). I don't really exercise per se i.e. going to the gym or regular walks but I think I keep the weight steady from constantly moving. I move more than I ever have in my life. I rarely sit still.

 I think my brain is doing a number on me. It has to be. These thoughts have only just started as of a few weeks ago but are getting stronger. So how do I lose these thoughts? How do we truly know we have finished with losing weight and are happy to maintain for the rest of our lives? What number is a good number?

A pic I took today in summer wear before dashing off for a swim in our pool. Is there room for improvement?  

Love to all,

Cara xx

More troubles but I'm back ... again....

Jeez, I'm getting jacked off with the net lately lol. No sooner did we get our end sorted when a dodgy modem went on the blink than our internet server went on the blitz. That meant not being able to post or read other blogs for over another week and hence me not checking in 'till now.  I mean, really? Its the first time in ages that I've been able to bring up these pages - and try to get a post done.

So what's happening my end? Well, as usual, not too much to be honest. Just stuff - everyday living stuff and trying to fit some fun in sideways. Had a really nice weekend. We went down to the Mussel Festival on Saturday on yet another scorching hot day here in Perth. We have had a run of super hot days - in fact this makes day 58 in a row over 30 degrees Celsius. It's crap... I want the cool weather back! Then Sunday we went to friends where we proceeded to drink our bodyweight in red wine. Well, ok, MOTH (Man of the House) and his good friend stuck to stout while us women had red wine - lots and lots of red wine. I was totally amazed I didn't wake up with a hangover Monday morning which would have been fun with work that day.

Doing ok with my band - though I have managed to gain two pounds - oops! I think I might be at the stage where I need a tiny top-up fill wise but then I have to admit I like where my band is right now. No PB's because I'm not super tight and I can eat pretty much anything. It's a cool place to be. So I will just get back on the wagon and start watching what I eat again and hopefully blow off the 2 I put on.

I got one of the kids to take a photo of MOTH (Man of the House) and I for your perusal. It was our wedding anniversary this weekend. We went to dinner and a movie and it was a lovely day. Really nice.I have taken a few pics of us just doing our thing.. but the one I want to show you is how different I look now. I was looking back at pictures of myself from a year ago and I can scarcely believe the difference. Amazing what shedding 20 plus kilos can do.

Me then - 20 + kilos heavier

Me now - trying to stay cool - and weighing a lot less than the top picture

Out to dinner for our anniversary 

Mugging for the camera

Riley kicking butt doing 'gladiator' style fighting - and promptly getting his photo taken for the local paper which we should see next week. 

Now the net is up and running (and nice and fast again.... yay) I will be able to check in more often and see what you've been up to also.
Chow for now
Cara xx

The big reveal and I lost two.....

Two followers that is... sigh... I think having my net down for so long and being unable to blog put a couple of people off. They stopped checking in on me. Bummer. Come back... I promise I will be blogging again  :)

On to other things: my new kitchen and my band. Where to start, where to start. Okay. Band news first. Nothing to tell lol. Seriously. My band and I are just living day to day life. I am completely at home with it now. I eat normal little band sized portions and I can pretty much eat anything I wish. I have had zero troubles with eating at all actually. I am well and truly in the Green Zone. I don't get very hungry. I eat when and what I want (mostly good stuff though.. yay to that!) and I am neither going up nor down in weight. I am super happy.

As of the end of May I will have had my band for two years. Whod'a thunk it! Its been such a learning curve but I truly believe and will always believe that I did the right thing. 42 kilos loss later I am truly happy with where I am. I love love love my band and am so glad I got one in. It was a life changer. I am sitting on 70 kilos or 154 pounds. Do I look like a 154 pound weight woman? No idea since I don't usually deal in pounds. But at 70 kilos - for those who do deal in kilos - I think I look just that weight. When I get a decent pic will post for you :) At the moment all I have is kitchen pictures lol.. and speaking of which. We are done! Finally! Couldn't be happier. Here are the before and afters:

 This is where my old stove sat - the splashback is old fashioned and exposed brick is everywhere! Ignore the pile up of appliances. We had just started to clear out the cupboards and the red square is glass we painted trying to sort ideas for what kind of splashback we wanted.

 View to the pantry and stove 

 More brick (I hated it!) and a horrible one course shelf above which just gathered junk. 

 The corner just as you enter the kitchen - sparse and boring

 Behold the red counter-tops and beige cabinets. Those windows went right across where the door is now. The bench-top extended all the way across with a dishwasher where the door now is. This door leads straight out to the alfesco area. No more having to go through the French doors of the living room, through the pool gate and around the side. Now we walk straight through. Very handy when entertaining. Knocking out the bench space and putting in the door was the very first thing we did when we started the renovation. 

 Awful slate flooring.. never to be seen again

An overview of the kitchen. 

In with the new.

Taaa daaaaa..... New everything. This is our kitchen now. 

 The small shelf above the stove and oven is gone. We filled it in. Yay to that!

Note the wine rack at the end lol. That was full a few days ago. We have partaken in a few bottles due to a bit of hard work! My new kitchen is light and airy and just beautiful. I love it! We now need to buy some stools for behind the breakfast bar. 

 The bin has now gone. We have a bin in one of the cabinets - you pull it out. It is right under where I prepare the food. Just wonderful. The space where the bin was (that boring area) looks much nicer now replaced with a trendy table. Neatens it right up. Now we just have to replace the skirting board lol. (MOTH was like: Don't include that.. it looks untidy lol.. I said: well, you better get on and fix it then, huh?)

 Remember the old splashback with brick and boring beige tiles? They are now gone forever, replaced with dark chocolate tiles and a beautiful border tile to match.

The new splashback tiles. So shiny they reflect the back garden lol

 Even the spices now have their own drawer. Everything's at my fingertips.

 The kitchen is truly huge. We got rid of the L shape at the end here where the winerack is and it opened it right up. The benches are 2 inch thick bamboo (what a chore that was, cutting, joining and multiple oilings to get it waterproofed) and the cabinets and draws are gloss white. We have used a lot of wood and I went with chocolate roman blinds (which need adjusting as you can see lol) and Swiss made porcelain tiles. 

New appliances (kettle and toaster) and a brand new dishwasher. I LOVE the drawers - I will never go back to cabinets again. 

Anyway, I hope you like. I had such a great reaction with you guys wanting to see all the hard work that we put in gaining a new kitchen, how could I not share? 

Speak soon,

Cara xx

So sorry......

Apologies for not being around ... my moderm has chucked a hissy fit and I haven't been able to use the net for near on a week - even trying to do this post has been a nightmare. Minutes sitting waiting for connection then when it connects its sooooooooo slow.. argh! As soon as I'm on board again will do a catchup post. I haven't even been able to read anyone else's blog entries - it takes forever to load then I only get half a page. I must be missing everything and I hate that lol!!

 Got to whip off to work in a tic but I will be heckling MOTH (Man of the House) so we can get this sorted. It's driving me nuts.

Have a good Wednesday.

xx

A new low!

I tell you girls and boys, if you want to drop those last pesky few pounds, renovate your kitchen. Actually, renovate anything! I have hit an all time low - I'm sitting just shy of 70 kilos (154 pounds) - whoooo to me. Even MOTH (Man of the House) has managed to drop 4 kilos (almost 9 pounds) in just over three weeks. This kitchen makeover has left us little time for sit down meals and relaxation and I guess it's showing on the scale. We are burning a lot of energy with little food. The best thing is, I'm only a stone (6 kilos or 13 pounds) off what I was in my early twenties when I first met him. It's pretty exciting news. That said: I'm not aiming for that same weight. I'm not even going to try. I think I suit better with that touch of weight on and I foresee the whole body issue, well, being an issue if I was to try and get to that weight now as my shape has really changed through the years. 


All good with my band still. For some reason, though I'm eating on the fly, I am paying more attention to what and how much I'm eating. I had butter chicken for dinner last night (cooked outside on the bbq's wok burner lol and a rice cooker inside... I'm becoming quite inventive with my meal planning.) Buying the bbq when we did (about a week or two before we started the big reno) was actually a Godsend. Coincidental though. We still hadn't put a start date on the kitchen, it just kind of happened. 


We almost have the splash-back tiles in - all tiled except for the border tiles (which we actually put in the middle to break the large tiles up so it wasn't one constant colour) and the cabinets and drawers are in and we have started to oil and burnish the bamboo counter tops. Now there's a job for you. Everything has to be left a while - it's driving me a bit mad. Leave the bamboo after unpacking for 24 hours to air. Then oil. Then leave another 24 hours, then burnish then leave before you sand again .... blah blah. You get the drift. At the start it made me wish we had gone the granite counter top as first planned, but now I see them taking shape they really are quite beautiful. I think I'm going to have a light and airy kitchen and it's going to look great. I just can't WAIT to finish. It's been a long, hard road. 


Ooh I hear a truck pulling up. Yep, it's the floor tiles being delivered. Must away. Just wanted to check in and let know of the progress. Should have pics for you in a week or so, depending on if we are completely done by then. Still some fiddly bits to finish (like the stainless kick-boards etc.. ack.. not looking forward to that) and door handles to be put in. Speak soon.
Cara xxx

I need a break!

I think I have hit the perfect spot - at the moment anyway - with my band. I seem to be able to eat a wide variety of foods - little crackers with chunks of salami and Camembert being my favourite food right now (and yes, I know its loaded with fat  .. oops) but well, it doesn't really matter what I eat - I seem to be able to get most of it down (except for chicken without sauce - that doesn't want to play ball.) 


I hopped on the scale this morning and showed another loss - I am slowly but surely and without much effort - creeping towards the 70 kilo mark (154 pounds.) I'm not saying I AM 70 kilos but I'm only a few pounds off that so I feel pretty good right now. Funnily enough, I feel like I'm eating too much and doing this kitchen renovation (yes still going..sigh) I am working fairly hard, so I seem to be burning off the calories. Can't complain about that. I said to my husband that after the kitchen renovation I"M going to need renovating. I've lost all my beautiful nails and I feel sloppy. He calls it being in  renovation mode (truthfully he doesn't look much better - he wears dust and paint stained jeans every day all day lol)  I call it feeling like crap. I throw myself in the shower not bothering to dry my hair - just letting it curl its own way. I haven't worn a scrap of makeup or dressed nicely in weeks and I'm hating it!. 


This kitchen reno is taking a lot of hours. We are still working 11 - 12 hour days - waking each morning and tackling new projects. We have almost finished one side of the kitchen - the side where most of the work was involved. Hold ups with electrics etc are driving me nuts. But we are starting to make headway now.. it's all starting to come together. 


When MOTH (Man of the House) said covering the open brickwork (so dated - yuck) with plasterboard would be 'easy' I didn't realise it would also take forever! We have been going for over two weeks now without a break - no socialising or anything - just heads down, bums up - going all day with a few mini breaks in between. Trying to cook without a stove and a working microwave oven (needs to be hooked up) is proving to be a challenge. I am using the bbq a lot - and throwing salads together with the odd take away meal thrown in. I can't WAIT for this monkey on our backs to be finished. I'm sure it will be amazing in the end but what a horrible job getting there. I am sick of the sight of it to be honest.


 MOTH says I need a break - go out and have a coffee with a girlfriend but I am obsessing over getting this job finished as he might be called into start work again any day and I don't want the darn thing sitting there two thirds finished. We ordered all the floor and splash-back tiles yesterday so they should be here within the week. Getting the colour co-ordination for it all was trickier than I thought. I imagined picking the floor tiles would be hard. It wasn't. We decided on them fairly quickly. It was me dithering (something I'm not usually like) about what tile to put on the splashback that took several trips to the various tile centres. MOTH and I finally found a gorgeous chocolate colour that we both liked. The tiles weren't a massive expense but the border ones I found were lol. We saved money on the flooring and took it up with the border ones. I can't wait until the cabinets go in and the lovely bamboo counter tops are on too. They are going to take a week to cure (argh!!) so it will be fun trying to co-ordinate getting them cut and on and not using the space to put all the crap on. Oh, well.


Right. Better get back to work. Just wanted to check in and let you guys know what was going on here in my part of the world. I haven't managed to make time yet to read any blogs (ack!!) but as soon as I'm able, I will catch up. 


Love you all
Cara xxx