I am so blessed today and I'm glad that I realize that fact!  I shall never forget from where I came.  As I exercised this morning, I remembered a time when I couldn't move like that.  I remembered how I felt when I even tried for the first time and how out of breath I was and how badly my chest hurt trying to keep up with the moves.  I remembered stopping just after the warm-up because I couldn't go any further.  But today...I can do at least 3 miles of high intensity arobics and come away feeling exhilerated!!!  What a wonderful change in my life!!!    I realize also that this wonderful change did not come without some sacrificing...and I still must continue to make sacrifices.  However, at this point it doesn't really "feel" like a sacrifice...it "feels" normal to eat right and to exercise.  Speaking of eating right, while attending a birthday banquet on Saturday afternoon, I felt so wonderful looking over the huge table of delicious goodies...but "choosing" only those items that I wanted to eat.  In the past I would have loaded my plate to over-flowing (like some of the others that I watched do that), and I would have eaten it all, feeling most misable after I had eaten all of that food.  But not this time!!  I was able to choose salad, fruit, vegetables, meat (no bread or butter), and eat those foods in the amounts that I knew would satisfy me to the fullest without being over loaded.  I was wonderfully satisfied and felt so good.  It's so funny because others at my table were looking at my plate feeling guilty about how much food they had on their plates.  I didn't knock them or try to make them feel badly because their plates looked like my plate USE to look.  I just smiled and told them that I had what I knew I would eat, and that I had enough food on my plate.  When it was time for dessert, I even ate a little bit of birthday cake.  I must admit that the little piece of cake almost pushed me over the edge!   Over all, I was very pleased with being able to attend, enjoy what everyone else enjoyed, and walk away feeling a sense of accomplishment without feeling deprived!  Wow...what an awesome way to live!

I'm still on track with my weight loss (170.5 this morning) and my exercise routines.  In fact, I was so excited this morning when I looked down and saw those 2 big muscles on top of of thighs.  OMG...what  beautiful sight!  They're even showing through the flabbiness of my thighs.  I'm so glad because I'm not going to do anything about those thighs.  After I have my arms done, and the revision of my panniculectomy, (hopefully within the next 2 months) THAT'S IT FOR ME!!!!!  I'm so thankful to be able to have had done what I've had done.  I figure after the arms are repaired (which show how big they are even through my sleeves), I will look very well.  Everything else will be taken care of through wearing good supporting undergarments, and clothing that hold and compliment what is left!    I'm just so happy to have had this 2nd chance at living a better life without the complications of the extra weight that I was carrying around!  God is so awesome and I praise Him always for blessing me in this wonderful way ~ with this 2nd chance!!! 

I pray that everyone that is doing all the preliminaries and anticipating having WLS,  will know that if you trust and positively believe that it can happen for you, then it will happen!  Keep the faith, and do everything that you can to insure positive results as you began to prepare for a "new" life...starting with your "new" body!  Your faith and prayers will carry you through the most difficult times.  Trust me, some difficult times may come, but with your faith in tack, they won't last!!!  And the positive results that you will experience will be worth everything that you went through.  I know...I'm living the dream right now, and guess what is better than having the dream?  When the dream is no longer the "dream", but is the 'REALITY'!!!!  Wow...it just doesn't get much better than that!!!  Be Blessed!!! 

Today is truly my Best day!!