Pics of food, pics of dresses, and in the 70s!

Not much has been happening, just general life... life with the sleeve is pretty much normal life now, and as weight loss has slowed, it's just pretty ordinary now.

My most recent weigh in had me in the 70s... just, but the 70s regardless! 79.7kg! I thought I was going to be stuck in the 80s forever. Less than 3kg until I reach the dietician's goal, which is pretty exciting. Less than 10kg until my own personal goal of 70kg.

So, here are some photos anyway...

Two new Bettie Page Clothing dresses

I've been looking at those pics a fair bit, focusing on my waist... and thinking back to how it used to be. I think it's probably the part of me that has changed the most... my waist has just gone from this fairly big thing without much definition... and now it's 10 inches smaller than my bust/hips... and I'm really quite in disbelief at times.

In other news, I've started my course and am finding that I'm remembering most things from my previous course. What I'm doing is more than I did previously, but covers some of the same things... so I think passing will be pretty easy this term. Still, we've got a lot more theory than I had previously, and am dealing with a lot more biology and chemistry than I ever have before... some of that is a bit full-on, but because it's beauty-related, it tends to be a bit more interesting and thus easier to remember than if it was just biology and chemistry in general.

I've met some great people there too, though some just make me feel old. I'm the oldest in my class... we have a lot of girls who are fresh out of high school. They draw penises on each other's notebooks and I just roll my eyes and think, "What children!" and then realise just how old I am. I'm not even 10 years older than these girls, but it's amazing how much you grow up in that short amount of time anyway. I am just waiting to scare some of them with my stretched out stomach when we get to body wraps and similar... lol.

I've revealed to a few of the girls I sit with (the ones who aren't just out of school), that I've had the sleeve surgery. They weren't sure what that is... everyone either knows bypass or band... not sleeve. I explained it, and they all seemed good with it, which was nice. I felt I wanted to explain my tiny amount of lunch... I've realised that if people see me eat, they're probably going to think I have an eating disorder, and while some people wouldn't even notice, some have, and so I'd rather they judge me for something I've done than thinking I'm anorexic and judging me about that. It really helps to tells them too - it makes me feel less self-conscious. Less to worry about.

One of the girls was asking about how big I'd been previously, etc... and she asked what clothing size I was. I really don't know, because I was in City Chic sizing, which is far more generous than even other plus-sized stores. She then said, "You'd be about what? A 12/14 now?" That made me feel good! In reality, it really depends... I've got a size 12 skirt that I can wear quite well, and some items in 14 too... but in other styles, I need a 16. I seem to need a 16 for my bum/legs more than my waist... my school pants are a 16 and gape at the waist but I need them that big to fit my large thighs.

Anyway, I thought I'd post another meal pic to show you what I can eat and how much I'm eating... here it is...

It's served on a bread and butter plate... not a normal dinner plate... and is salmon with a salad. Salad was leftovers from lunch yesterday, so has some chicken in it, avocado, feta, walnuts and lettuce... and also a pesto dressing.

It was quite yummy, and I'm finding I eat a lot more seafood post-op than I did previously, particularly fish. It all seems to go down a lot better than some other foods, perhaps because it's not terribly fatty.

Most days I'm having...

An Up and Go for breakfast (on the way to college), something small and snacky for morning tea (maybe a bit of a muesli slice, maybe some cheese, maybe some tinned fruit - something that will hold up well in my bag and is small and easy enough for me to eat in 15 mins - I can't eat a whole muesli thing or a whole small tin of fruit or anything),  and a basic garden salad with some sort of protein (usually chicken) and a balsamic dressing for lunch. Dinner will be something like above. I don't really do afternoon tea, but I must admit I've been a bit naughty with sugary drinks lately. I've been going to the 7 Eleven and grabbing a small Slurpee while I'm waiting for my train home... I guess because I can't drink coke or anything anymore, it's a bit of a replacement. I have a bottle of water on me while I'm at college too, so drinking that all day as well.

I'm thinking it'll be several weeks before I'm at 77kg, the dietician's goal... but I'm happy enough at the moment with it coming off slowly. I'm no longer so fat that people make comments, or that I feel uncomfortable in my skin... so any weight lost from here on out is a bonus... I'm not particularly concerned if I don't lose heaps more.

Exercise, Sewing and my Hovering Weight

So... what to add?

Well, I'm hovering... so it's time to get some exercise on! I've started doing some weights a little, but I need some cardio too I think, so I've got some Zumba videos (that I got today, so haven't done anything yet) to at least encourage me to do something (I don't seem to mind the aerobics type exercises as much as every other type... less boring I think). I can't see myself going to the gym anytime soon... and even if I got membership, I'd only be able to go twice weekly at the moment which is pretty pathetic so I'm just going to do it from home for a bit. I might go drag my exercise bike from the shed as well.

I've also decided to start learning to sew... and so scored a free sewing machine from a lovely woman who's a part of a rockabilly/pinup/vintage sewing group I am a part of. I joined with the sole purpose of learning to sew... but these ladies are a part of other rockabilly groups I'm a member off too. I haven't actually used the machine yet, I need to go get a new light bulb for it, and some good quality scissors and such. I got some lovely cherry-print fabric from her though, so I'm keen to use it once I've figured out the basics. I think I'll create a circle skirt!

Speaking of circle skirts, I've got one on order, along with 2 lovely Bettie Page Clothing dresses. Will share pics as soon as I receive them!

In other news... I went to my orientation day on Friday for my beauty therapy course. I had no idea what to wear, as our uniform is a black top they provide and black slacks, hair up, black ballet flats... etc. Quite dull. I didn't have anything that was even remotely like the uniform... and I didn't want to wear something slobby, but also not dressy either. I considered my turquoise Hell Bunny dress, but figured I might draw too much attention (it's the kind of dress people always comment on), so instead searched through my wardrobe and found a dress I've never worn out, but purchased about 3 years ago now. It's pretty skin-tight, so I was wearing control knickers underneath... but I watched myself wandering around the streets in shop windows, and I didn't look too bad tbh!

Here's how I looked...

I had no real plans to wear the red belt, but the dress was baggy around my waist and making me look fatter than I was... something I LOATHE, especially now... so popped it on just to pull it in. Popped on red lippy just because of the belt... in all honesty, I'd have preferred to have used a black belt and not had red lips, but I don't actually own one... lol.

I also went to hospital last week to get my blood pressure checked again (since it's been an ongoing issue) and.... 135/80! He's still doing some tests though, to make sure that my previously high BP didn't do any damage, and to make sure that weight alone was the cause of it (rather than something else)... so I've had bloods taken and whatnot and will be doing other tests too, including another 24 hour monitor and a heart ultra-sound scan.



As for foods... I've been really keen on vita-wheats with cheese and tomato on them lately. I cannot get enough. I also had some lovely fish with salad the other night for dinner... last night we had some chicken in a creamy mushroom sauce with side steamed veg on the side (brussels sprouts and corn). I had about 1/4 cup of the chicken, 1 brussels sprout, and about 2 teaspoons of corn (just kernals). Tonight I'm planning on having some kangaroo steak with salad...

I've also had some Sumo Salads recently (well, 2 in the past fortnight... lol)... I don't have too much, but pick all the chicken out. I've bene having the grilled chicken and mushroom one... it's lovely and light and seems to go down smoother than sushi does (for an "out and about," meal, I think this will be what I have from now on).

I'm not drinking enough though, I can tell. I drink all day long, but I had to 24-hour urine collection... and it was seriously dark... not nice and almost clear like it should be. I wonder if all sleevers have dark urine... because I think I get in as much liquid as I possibly can. I might have to start measuring my drinks now though and see if I can fit a little more in... though I'm not sure that's possible.