Has it really been THAT long?

So, since I posted last I had a BEAUTIFUL baby girl.  She is amazing and adorable and I love her dearly. Isn't she gorgeous?!?!

Miss Embry Aaryn

I am now 4.5 months post partum and I'm doing well on my weight loss.  I'm still not quite back to where I was before I got pregnant, but I'm getting there.  At my first weigh-in 2 weeks after the baby, I had gained 32 pounds.  So, now 4 months after that I'm back within 9 pounds of where I was before the pregnancy.  I still haven't started exercising regularly.  I AM nursing and chasing three children, 3 & under.  That counts right?  No, but seriously, I do want to start working out.  I just have to find the time when I'm not cleaning something, diapering someone, feeding someone, or napping.  It's hard work being a mom of three.  I miss riding my bike both indoors and out.  I guess I need to just get down in the basement, jump on my stationary recumbent bike and peddle those pounds away!

I didn't have many problems with the lap band and my pregnancy.  My bariatric docs took out all of my saline and I was able to eat a normal diet full of all the things a pregnant woman wants.  ALL OF IT.  Good or bad, I still maintain that I only had gained 30 pounds after I gave birth.  Granted with my other two I weighed less after giving birth than I did before getting pregnant, but this was #3. I get a little slack.  I had a bit of site soreness right where the port is as I got bigger, further along into the pregnancy.  At one point you could almost see the port under the skin.  It gave me and my husband the heebie geebies to touch it.  LOL!  Other than that I had no problem.  We did have a little issue filling after the baby.  My doc told me to come in 2 weeks after having her and get refilled.  I still had quite a bit of fat around the port, and the nurse practitioner had a hard time finding it.  We had to have a second NP come in and do the fill... but it eventually got done. 

Currently I am back to 6.1 ccs of fill.  It's working well.  I'm easily satiated and I'm comfortable.  I consume around 1 cup of food per meal.  Give or take.  Once in a while I do get "stuck" or I have what they call "first bite syndrome" (where the pouch seems to close up and not allow food to pass - usually followed by vomiting), but I'm learning to deal with it and I'm not feeling starved or too hungry.  I eat three meals a day and maybe one snack when I need it.  I talked to the dietitian at my last fill appointment and she reminded me that high protein snacks like Baby Bell Light cheese, string cheese, wheat thins, and other high bulk, low fat, low cal foods are good snacks.  They keep you from grazing and yet satisfy a craving. I also budget each day for a sweet at night.  My favorite is sugar free chocolate pudding with whipped cream and pecans.  Just enough to kill the craving. 

I've also discovered the wonders of instant espresso!!!  God be praised for instant espresso!  It's wonderful.  I put a heaping teaspoon in my protein shakes in the morning and I'm set.  Not only am I satisfied, and I stay that way until lunch time, but I get some caffeen that really does give me a little boost.  There for a while I was quite addicted to McDonald's Caramel Frappes.  Lord have mercy!  A medium has 550 calories and 24 grams of fat!  Hard to believe isn't it?  (http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/food_quality/nutrition_choices.html) My protein shakes have about 300 calories, 5 grams of fat, 26 grams of sugar, and 30 grams of protein.  Most of the calories, fat and sugar come from the 1% milk I put in it.  I could put in skim milk, but I buy 1% so the whole family can drink it.  PLUS my shakes are HUGE!  I blend them with ice and it's supper yummy.  Here is the one I like - http://mydietshopz.com/newyochpumix.html

I'm glad to be back in the world of Bandsters. 

Cheers, and I hope you will see Less of Me soon!