Happy Birthday to Me!

Today is my birthday, I turn 49.  Wow, I can't believe I'm actually 49.  Time sure does fly.

As I look back on my life, I can say I have done a few things that I regret but nothing I think I would change.  There are some things that I would like to be able to do over again, maybe with a little more knowledge or some foresight.

So today I am going to list 49 things that I have learned over my 49 years on this planet.

1. Be Patient or at least TRY to be patient
2. Don't drive like a jerk, be courteous of other drivers, you are not getting anywhere any faster driving like you are a nascar driver!
3. Treat people and all living things the way YOU want to be treated.
4. It's not necessary for one to believe in God to be a good person.
5. If you're going to be passive aggressive, I will be also!
6. Give to charity as much as you can, it doesn't have to be money it can be items too.
7. Have a pet, or 4, they do bring joy to your life.
8. Always Adopt from a shelter or take in an unwanted animal, they will be grateful for life and will show it.
9. Don't Live in a bubble, remember there are others around you.
10. Travel if you can
11. Say Please, Thank you and EXCUSE ME, when needed, it shows you have manners and were not raised in a cave.
12. Tell the people you love that you love them, you may not get a chance to say it tomorrow.
13. Ask for Advice when you don't have the answers yourself.
14. Don't harbor hate or anger, it makes you old and sick.
15. Cherish your friends.
16. Love what you do, do what you love.
17. Don't drink soda it rots your teeth.
18. Kindness is a virtue not a weakness.
19. Know that there are people in this world that are not as lucky as you are, have empathy for them.
20. Learn something new every day!
21. Read as much as you can, knowledge is awesome!  
22. Make time to Relax or you will burn out.
23. Enjoy the seasons no matter how HOT or WET or Cold they are.
24. Ask your parents and grandparents questions about their youth, you will find some very interesting stories.
25. Love yourself no matter what.
26. Its usually easier to keep something than to try to get it back.
27. Be content with your accomplishments but always try to do better
28. Life is a ride, enjoy the highs and the lows
29. Sometimes you have to do things you just do not want to do, but you have no other choice.
30. Let someone else make decisions once in a while but always be the master of your own ship.
31. Take Responsibility for YOURSELF and your actions.
32. Doing nothing does not work.
33. Smile, be happy.
34. To be compassionate does not mean you are a sucker.
35. Its ok to cry if you are sad.
36. Tube down a river at least once in your life.
37. Enjoy Nature thats where the magic really happens.
38. Have a vegetable garden, it's hard work, but well worth it!
39. Dance in the rain at least once in your life
40. Learn how to cook something better than anyone you know.
41. Start a journal or a blog for your own amusement
42. Turn your cell phone, computer and tv off once in a while...remember before they were invented?
43. Stay off of Facebook and Twitter sometimes, because they can make you nuts.
44. The world is full of stupid people, don't be one of them.
45. Know how to be diplomatic, it will help in many situations.
46. Learn how to negotiate, first question, "is that the best you can do?"
47. Animals are usually better than people.
48. Dont sweat the small stuff, believe me there will be bigger things.
49. Live, Love and always Laugh!

More Than Half Way There

Last week I weighed myself, to date, I have lost 102 lbs!  That is NOT a typo, I have actually lost more than 100 lbs in 8 months.  I feel Great!  Even better than losing all of that weight, I am officially of of INSULIN!  No More SHOTS!  I am still taking some meds but coming off of insulin was a big deal.

I have learned a lot about myself during this time.  Mostly about the importance that I have always put on food and eating.  I still like to eat but I find that there are still many things that I just can't tolerate any longer.  Then there are things that I loved but just can't have because they make me sick.

I don't eat a lot of bread anymore, actually, I rarely eat any bread like product and outside of a slice of pizza (which used to be my favorite food) that I really miss, I don't really miss any of that high carb, sugar, fat baddy for my body Bread!  I have come to enjoy simpler (and way smaller) things, like fruit cups, protein shakes or greek yogurt (simply 100 is my favorite).

Last week I went out to dinner with Tom, Shannon and Scott and I Had to have a canolli.  Of course after eating a half cup of soup and 3 bites of my dinner there was no way i was going to fit a cannoli in there.  But that's ok.  The next day, I ate half the cream, the following day I ate the other half of cream, Lucky Reilly (my puppy) got the cannoli shell!

These days I no longer feel like I'm depriving myself of anything.  Its true that if I eat too much or something that is not really good for me, it still makes me sick and uncomfortable.  That feeling alone is enough to make sure it doesn't happen often!  However, I pretty much eat whatever I want in reason.  I also find that I'm not really starving all the time like I used to be.  There are times when I get home from work and eat a piece of cheese and that's it for the night.

So in ending, I'm a pretty happy camper!   I'm still going to wait a while before I go and buy lots of new clothes as I would really like to lose another 58 lbs.  But I really cant complain about where I am at at this point.  Through all the trials and agony I had to go through to get this truly life altering surgery, I would do it all again in a second!

Until next time.....