If it's Monday ...

So I find that I'm really only blogging on Mondays. That's better than no days, but I'd like to get a little more into the swing of things.

So, I'm still sick two weeks later. It's traveled from my tonsils to a head cold and is now residing in my chest. I also am very congested in the ear and have a hissing sound in there when I blow my nose or, you know, breathe. I've exercised once in that time, using weights at home. If I wake up without sinus congestion tomorrow, I will probably go to the gym.

I've kept 4.5 of my 6 pounds off, so that's good. However, I'm going to try to be extra good about food since the exercise portion doesn't seem to be going so well.

As for the audition, it seems like everyone's in, so that's good news. Our audition is supposed to be on the 8th of February. I'm excited!

School is busy and we're back in the swing of things. I've still got a handful of kids doing well this semester, but most are falling into the patterns they had last semester. So much for their new year's resolutions too! It's kind of like all the newbies at the gym in January. By February, most of them are gone.

What a crazy phone call!

I've probably mentioned before that I sing in a Jewish Women's A Cappella Group. It's really a niche genre, and we get paid to perform at random places: synagogues, peoples' weddings, etc. We're very popular on the Atlanta Jewish Nursing Home 'circuit.'

Tonight, the girl in the group who is in charge of bookings got a totally random phone call from someone at NBC. They want my group to have a private audition for the producers of America's Got Talent prior to the Atlanta open casting call in February! How hilarious and cool is that?! Turns out this woman at NBC has the job of scouring the internet to find unique talent around the United States. She came upon our website, and voila! So, we've got to make sure all 7 of us want to do this. I'll let you know what happens!

Spoke too soon

So the tonsilitis is gone, but now my face is so filled with pressure, I think I'm going to burst. I think I've used an entire box of tissues today.

I hate that I was doing so well with exercise and then had to take a little unscheduled break to be sick, start getting well, and then a different sick all over again! Frustrating!

It's been a weird work week. Monday, we were off for the MLK holiday. Yesterday, I went to an all-day teacher meeting. Today, I actually taught children. Crazy! Thank goodness Thursday is already on the horizon.

Out to dinner tonight. My singing group has a gift exchange each year, but we always wait until after "the holidays" when it's not as busy. My $10 - $15 gift that I'm bringing to exchange is something I've never used, but I think would be cool. Have y'all heard of these bath bombs? The ones I found were at a store in the mall called Lush. Basically, the bath bomb is a 3"-4" orb of bath salt. When you put it in the bath, the whole thing fizzes and fills the tub. I should have bought myself an extra, but $5.50 seemed too 'lush' for a bath that's not a gift.

Take THAT tonsils!

So almost exactly a week ago, I noticed that it felt like my throat had been karate-chopped and had developed a hard, tender growth on the inside. Didn't know what that was, so I slept on it for a day, and it remained about the same. By Wednesday evening, however, I had developed an even sorer growth, a sore throat, and a throbbing ear. I went to the urgent care facility and learned that I had tonsilitis. The ear was because by tonsil had grown so large that it was pressing on my ear. Several days of antibiotics later (and a no swimming requirement from the doctor), I almost feel like myself again.
In the middle, I also took Max in for his first colonoscopy. With his brother having just died from colon cancer in November, we've been trying to get him in for this for a while. And fighting with the insurance company that this is not an 'elective' procedure. No cancer cells, thank goodness. Max is showing signs of some Crohn's disease, which his brother had had since he was a teenager. We can live with that.
We've been trying to eat so much better since 1/5/09, and with the exercise I have gotten done, the scales are noticing. I've lost 6 pounds in 2 weeks! I'm at 256.5 pounds. Yay for me! Only a gazillion to go, but I'm definitely heading in the right direction. I'm not supposed to swim for another couple of days, but I might go tomorrow just to get back in the groove. With the illness, I really hadn't felt like getting out and moving, but now I'm itching to do so.
Hopw you've all had successful weeks!

Diving Right In

I've tried to just dive right back in like I never slipped and fell. I got up on Monday and Wednesday of last week and this morning and was at the gym to swim by 6 a.m. Getting showered and dressed for work at the gym is new, but it's not as annoying as I thought it would be. I just have a few minutes of extra prep to do the night before. I'm trying to figure out a third day to go, and I think I might settle on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday. Wednesdays are late nights for me when I don't get home until 10, so last week when I swam on Wednesday morning, I was nearly dead by the time I got home. And Thursday mornings are tough since Wednesday is so late. So, just that and working on my eating, I lost two pounds by yesterday. Down to 260.5. That's a good start!

I might do the Couch to 5K thing, but I may wait until it's a little warmer and I've built up some stamina. Thanks for your input.

In thinking what I need to catch everyone up on, there are a few topics.
Max's brother who had been so sick died the first week of November. It's amazing that he went so fast, seeing that he was only diagnosed with colon cancer in July. However, he must have had it a long time prior to that since it was already stage four. I spent a week in LA for the funeral and meeting Max's mom for the first time. I really wish I hadn't have met her under such circumstances.
Since there was no will, Max and I are now inundated with the probate process. Lots of bills coming in, and we have no legal handle on his money (yet) to pay them with. Eventually, we'll sell his house and his business (he was a wedding photographer). You can imagine some of the worried brides trying to figure out if they'll ever get their pictures. Max and I are learning a lot about how not to die.

In happier news, my sister got engaged. She and her fiance will get married in October on Hilton Head Island. I've got ten months to get into better shape, and it's good to have an event to use as a long-term goal. My sister-in-law and I will be her attendants. My sister is not very girly at all, and she has told my SIL and I to choose what color we want to wear. That's a first!

Other than that, I'm just glad that 2008 is over. With the illness and death of Max's brother, it just seems like a fresh start for both of us.

I was thrilled to hear from some of you. Sorry I've been a bad blogger, but I'm looking forward to catching up.

Kim :)

I feel like Oprah

Like Oprah, I'm embarrassed. I'm embarrassed that I haven't updated and that I've had significant weight gain in 2008.

2009 will be different. I'm actually up early and headed to the gym. I've taken before pictures, and I think I'll take similar pictures at least once a month (same outfit, etc.). The plan is to swim three mornings a week. I might also look into this Couch to 5K program some of you have done before. Thoughts about it?

I'm starting at 262.5 pounds.

Here are my new pictures.

I'm going to try to be good with my updates including catching you up on what you've missed out on.

Too Much On My Plate

What a few weeks it has been. I'm totally exhausted.

First, Max's brother, Mike, is doing a lot better than when I last wrote. However, that's not saying a whole lot. Mike has still not left the hospital. He's been there, I believe, since July 11. After having the three surgeries (1- removal of most of the colon, 2- fix hole in intestine that had been causing fecal matter to leak into body for several days, 3- clean up the fecal matter that was causing infection and temperature), Mike is actually alive and mostly coherent. He was moved to the cancer area of the hospital, and they found that he was actually healthy enough to start chemo. He had his first treatment last week. He has lost a lot of weight and is still on course to die in the next year or two. However, he is not in a significant amount of pain, he is not acting psychotically, and he has made nice with his mother and even his ex-wife.

Max's mother, the one with breast cancer, has not been doing so hot. She's been out visiting since the first surgery. She doesn't drive, so she's kind of mobility-impaired. Also, she's still in constant pain. She's been coughing a lot and having trouble breathing, so she has been in and out of the ER at the same hospital. I don't know her to know if it's all in her head or not. Max seems to think that she should be using a portable oxygen tank, but is too stubborn to do so.

Max came home for about a week and a half and then went back out on Wednesday. He had a one-way ticket, which makes me so sad. He's basically going out there to be helpful for as long as he feels like he's useful. We hope Mike will get released to go home later this week, so it will be good to have Max there to help with that transition. Max is using the Family Medical Leave Act, which basically says that he can have up to 12 weeks off of work and have a job promised to him upon his return. They also can't take away his benefits. His mother basically said that she will give him his lost wages so that he can still pay his bills. Thank goodness. I couldn't have shouldered that financially.

In addition to all of this, we had chosen the last week of July and the first week of August to have Max move into my house. We did most of the move over a two-day span. His lease at his apartment isn't up until the 16th, but I have to go back to teaching on the 4th, so I wanted almost everything done beforehand. Needless to say, my condo is a disaster zone. We moved almost everything here already, but it's mostly in boxes all around the house. We had done a lot of moving last Saturday, then his mom took a turn for the worse. Midday, Max made the decision that he was going to have to fly out on Wednesday, so I told Max we HAD to finish everything before he left. I'm still going to need to clean his entire apartment for checkout and have some of the furnishings taken care of. His bed is being picked up by the Salvation Army next weekend. I've arranged to borrow a truck and two guy friends to bring Max's couch to my house. I've also got a ton of great friends who, if needed, will come over for a cleaning party next Sunday. I hope to get most of it completed tomorrow though. So, I now have all of Max's belongings, even his cat, at my house. But alas, no boyfriend here. :( Butterbean the cat had a rough time the first few days, but she's finally settling in. We both miss her daddy.

Before Max left, with the intensity of moving everything so quickly, I totally broke down into tears. I finally was able to understand and explain that I was totally selfish. What should have been the happiest time of my life, the biggest thing I'd ever done ... terrible. I kind of feel like Max's brother stole my thunder, but I also feel totally self-centered for even having that thought.

To top it all off, as I was moving things from apartment to house today, I stopped for a soda at a chick-fil-a drive-thru. While I was in the drive-thru line, someone who was parked in a space just backed right into my idling car. Actually, I was driving Max's car. There is a huge dent in the left driver's side rear door. I felt horrible having to explain to Max over the phone that I had gotten into an accident in his beloved car. He was such a trooper though, and called all the right people for me. I think it gave him something to do today (he's been really bored), but what a horrible thing to have to deal with. I'm okay and the car will be okay, so I guess every thing's fine. Just stressful.

I go back to work on Monday (kids come the next Monday). I have never been so excited to go back to school. I totally need the structure. I also need to have something else to think about. Sitting around the house all day is the surest way to a mental breakdown I think.

I'm putting WW on hold for another week or two ... just way too much to get done right now to even begin thinking about it.