Made it through Thanksgiving without a hitch....

Last week I wasn't so sure I was going to make it through.  Monday and Tuesday were terrible eating days.  NOTHING was setting right.  My pouch was definitely grouchy!  Even got nauseous and threw up after eating eggs, something I've been able to tolerate since starting soft foods.

I was really nervous about how Thanksgiving dinner was going to go.  I spent a little time crying in the bathroom thinking I wasn't going to be able to handle anything.  I was pretty snappy with my family before leaving.  This is the one thing that I do hate about the surgery.  It's not their fault I self medicated with food for 40 years.  They've been wonderful though and understand what I'm going through.  Hopefully in the end it will all be worth it.  All I can do now is apologize when I get in the hormonal dump slump and they'll continue to stand by me.

So anyway, we leave for mom and dad's.  Still very nervous but putting on a brave face.  I was pleasantly surprised when I was able to try everything and not have any pain or reactions.  I was so happy!  I had 1.5 oz turkey and a teaspoon of everything else (green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes, squash).  The only thing I didn't have was the corn and dinner roll.  For dessert I brought some fresh pineapple instead of the pies everyone else had... and you know what? They were EYEBALLING my delicious fresh fruit LOL!

Friday my mom, sister and I got up at 2a.m. to brave the Black Friday crowds.  We were on the road at 3:30! It was so much fun!  I talked them out of hitting McDonald's drive through for breakfast, saying I was still full from my cottage cheese and apple sauce at 2:30 and needed to wait.  We headed right for the city.

Dropped mom off at AC Moore, and my sister and I headed for Target.  Couldn't believe the line already!  I was very impressed once we got in the store, however, and saw how organized Target was.  I found everything I wanted within 15 minutes, and stood in line for only 2.  Headed over to the Starbucks to grab a table and wait for my sister.  She ended up paying for my nephew's "gotta have" and then hitting the regular toy aisle, so I headed back over to pick up mom across the street at AC Moore.  My sister was already through checking out by the time we fought the traffic.  Kudos to Target for their speed, efficiency, and excellent customer service!

After Target we went to IHOP for breakfast.  Their lighter side menu is awesome.  My mom and I split a meal, and both had plenty!  She's been doing weight watchers since August....

After breakfast we headed to Best Buy.  Gotta say, Target set the standard for the day and Best Buy fell WAY short of it.  VERY disorganized (they tried, points for that) but they had regular shopping aisles blocked off for checkout control.  I couldn't even GET to an item I wanted because of the line.  Then they overcharged me at check out so I had to go to customer service for a refund...  not too impressed with them at this point...

Next was Walmart.  I love going to WalMart after the initial rush/doorbusters.  The store was busy, but no more than a normal weekend.  We spent an hour there, and found some great buys.

Next was my favorite stop of the day... Old Navy!  I never really shopped there before because I never fit in their clothes... Well, NOW I CAN!!!  I bought 4 tees, 2 camis, and a tee-shirt hoodie!  OMG I never thought the day would come when I would be able to shop there!!

After ON, it was time for lunch.  Applebees was the choice because of their WW menu for my mom.  I ended up getting the Steak Quesadilla tower and just eating the inside.  Very good and more than enough food.  Even took some home!

Next it was on to Kohl's.  I have a few stamping friends who work there.  I ran into three of them, two of them didn't recognize me!  What a great feeling!

Ended the day at Toy's R Us.  By this time I was feeling the effects of the fatigue, so stayed in the car and watched Alvin and the Chipmunks LOL!  Just enough of a rest for the last stop of the day, Christmas Tree Shoppes.  LOVE THAT STORE!  I stocked up on the acrylic frames for next year's calendar camp.  My apologies to my stampers that I didn't get one organized for this year, but the combined camp with Cathy really took a lot of planning that I normally spend on the calendars.  Next year for sure!!

This weekend I even had the energy and ambition to rearrange furniture and deep clean.  Haven't set the tree up yet, but that's the next on the list.  For the past 3 years the tree has stayed in the box.  My excuse was it was too big for the house.  Reality is I was too big to care, too big to put out the effort.  Not this year.  My kids deserve a tree and not excuses....