Well - This is me in the summer of 2007. My Fiance' (then b/f) and I were on vacation up in West Virginia meeting his family. This is one of the rare photos of me that show an almost full-body photos. And the only reason I liked this one was that I remembered some of the posing techniques I tell other people when I take their photos.. lol 
This is me in January of 2008. This is more the kinds of shots you'll find of me. Hiding the lower parts of my body.My Story
Growing up - I don't ever really remember being "heavy".... but I was never what would be considered skinny either. The only time I remember being "skinny" was after the birth of my daughter (my first child). Being very young when I had her (I was 16) probably helped that a lot... well that and going back to a 3 story school when she was 6wks old - that had no elevators, and my first semester back I had to take a basic PE class as well. Best I can recall, at 17 I weighed about 115lbs. Looking back I realize that that was a lil too thin for me since I can remember laying on the floor with my daughter and being uncomfortable because my hip bones were digging into the floor.
I stayed somewhat that weight for a couple of years until I got pregnant with my 2nd child - my son. My (now-ex) husband was in the Air Force and we got stationed up in beautiful Spokane, Wa. I loved the 4-seasons and the snow and the cool summers. But when we first got up there, the 3 of us lived in a tiny 1 bed-room apartment off base and not near anything. We only had one car which he used to go to and from work. Now I said I liked the snow - but not that first year. We got up there about August and by October there was snow on the ground. Needless to say this native south Texan spent that whole winter inside. Not saying this as an excuse - but it definitely didn't help.
It also didn't help that at my OB appointments, they didn't seem to be bothered by the weight I was gaining. By the time he was born I had put on close to 80lbs. I lost a little bit after he was born, but I think after that the least I weighed was about 160.
From then on it just kept creeping up little by little until I hit my highest ever in Feb 2008. I'm just over 5'4" and weighed in at a doctors appointment at 267! I was crushed. And for the first time ever I actually started feeling the weight effecting my activities.
I had been looking at the different types of Gastric Bypass surgery for the prior two years, but just didn't think I was bad enough off to go through that radical of a procedure just to "look normal". But after that February weight shock - I started looking into it more and more. I kept my research efforts to myself, not even talking to my Mom or b/f about it.
Then on June 1st 2008 my b/f proposed to me at the beach. While I knew he loved and accepted me as I was - it made me start to think about my future more than I had before. At the rate I was going, was I going to be here for him in the future... and if I was, what kind of future would it be? If something happened to me, would I become a burden on him due to my size?
So in late June I went to a seminar put on by the clinic recommend by my primary care physician. They make you watch a presentation about the surgery even what your stomach 'pouch' will look like afterwards (which is about the size of a guys thumb - will hold about an ounce at a time). They looked at my insurance and found out that I was covered 100% for the surgery - all I had to pay out of pocket was my regular visit co-pays.
So I talked it over in length with my fiance' and Mom and some friends and got their input. They were all worried about the possible risks, but all agreed that it was time to do something drastic and time to change and improve my life.
So that is the 'short' version of my background. the rest of the posts will be updates on my progress and the trial, difficulties and accomplishments that happen along the way.
Thanks to all my friends and family for their amazing support in helping me make this decision and in my recovery these past couple of weeks.
And I would like to especially thank my fiance'. Without his unconditional love, support and help during all of this time - from staying at my bedside at the hospital, to being here for me every minute for the first week I was at home.. helping me in the shower, making sure I drank and ate something on a regular basis, helping me take my walks, take my medications, help me stand up and sit down when it was too painful... My love to you always babe and I owe you BIG time!
