Well, I had a good weekend with my folks. I stayed on MF for the most part, although I KNOW prosciutto ain't one of the L&G options. Oh well, ended up maintaining and hopefully will see a good loss in the next couple days.
The trip began after I touched down in Phoenix and went out to the curbside with my bag to await my father. I had just called him and he was about 3 minutes away, and I was waiting for him. I saw him drive up, and I could tell he was looking for me. I waived at him. He was still looking around. He was 20 feet away from me, 15 feet away from me, still craning his neck looking for me. You have to understand that there were only two people (including me!) waiting on the curb at that moment, and one was a 20-ish man in an army uniform. I waived. I waived again. I stepped out into the street and waived both arms wildly in the air. He was 10 feet away from me. Finally he stopped, rather abruptly. I got in and he said "I didn't even recognize you. Honest to goodness, I did NOT EVEN RECOGNIZE YOU."
He saw me about 5-6 weeks ago, and he doesn't recognize me now? I've only lost 10 more pounds since he saw me, but the change is rather dramatic, as I am down from a size 8 to a size 4 in that time. It's all the running.
My father does not give praise easily or lightly. He then said I looked like a movie star. OK, what alien came down and inhabited my father's body? Where is my REAL father? Game's up, I'm onto them! In all seriousness, though, I have to agree with him. I'm very pleased with my appearance these days and am thankful for what MF had to offer.
I've got about 30 lbs left, and then I'll be to my goal (or very close...about 5 lbs away...and I may revise my goal depending on how I feel when I get to 123).
So the trip started out well in that regard, but then he immediately told me that Mom had fallen that morning, and nobody was around. My sister found her 45 minutes later, crumpled in a heap sitting in her own urine. Her cancer doctor wanted her to go to the emergency room because of her history (she hit her head and neck, and has cancer of the bone in her head and neck...) but my dad and sister had been waiting to see if she had any increased pain. She had rested comfortably since then, and only looked like she got hit by a mack truck! But she said she wanted to go to the emergency room to get an x-ray and CT scan of her neck and head, so I took her. We were there for 7 hours, and they diagnosed her with a mild concussion and nothing worse. (Thankfully!) So ultimately my dad and sis were right, but why mess with those things?
For the two days I was there, I just spent time with her. I got her water, helped her eat, helped her get to the bathroom, and we did some practical things as well like go through all her shoes and get rid of the ones that she probably won't be wearing anymore. Her gait is rather unsteady because of the Parkinson's Symptoms she has from the radiated brain, so she has fallen 5 times in the last 6 months. No more heels, or slippy soles for her! They just moved houses to be closer to my sis and her 3 kids, so they had 3-4 boxes of bathroom junk. By bathroom junk, I mean half empty or mostly empty bottles of this and that, expired medicines, 4 deoderants a piece, 3-4 toothbrushes each, in various stages of disrepair. My mom is a "condiment buyer" and she is also a "lotions and remedies" buyer. Problem is she never USES the condiments (like flavored exotic oils, spreads, etc) or the lotions and remedies. Seriously, she had 5 large bottles of lotion that had hardly been used.
So, I went through that box with her too, and it was a bit painful for her to see her 8 sample size lipsticks from Revlon that were 10 years old be tossed out. I also threw out all of her other lipsticks, and promised her we would go out and buy her several brand new lipsticks in flattering colors. But some of these lipsticks I remember from 15 years ago, people! I think it actually felt good to her to lighten the load some, and start fresh.
So, I'm going back every third weekend to spend time with her and my dad. My DH is going to be Mr. Mom while I'm gone. He survived one weekend, he'll survive the rest.
I had coffee with a friend who is so sweet, and had lots of things to ask me about MF. She is amazed, and said if I don't ever lose another pound I am "perfect". I love her!
So, to reflect on where I've come is pretty staggering right now. I am a different person, yet I am the same person. I started at 266 at my highest, and now I'm 153. I started not being able to climb a flight of stairs without becoming winded, and now I run 10K's, and I run 2-3 miles a day. I started in a size 26 (tight) pants, and XXL tops. I now wear (depending on the cut/style/brand) anywhere between a size 4 to a size 8 jeans, and medium tops. I wear "youth large" or else "adult small" t-shirts. I'm stoked.
I noticed on this trip that I am garnering much more male attention than I've had in a lifetime. I used to be uncomfortable (when I was in my early 20's) with that kind of attention. Now I just smile to myself and consider it a milestone.
OK, time to go now. Have a great week....I'll report in on my weight loss for the week next week if not earlier.
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