"Apicoectomy A-P-I-C-O-E-C-T-O-M-Y Apicoectomy"

If only that word was familiar to me because it was given to me in my 5th grade spelling bee. Alas, I learned it the hard way. If I was asked to spell it, I would stand in front of the class and say:

Apicoectomy...8 9 5 D O L L A R S...Apicoectomy

Or I might simply say it as I've heard it all week. From the emergency dentist visit on Monday morning "looks like you might need an apico(ectomy*)," or again later at the Oral Surgeon's off "yes, you'll need an apico...or we can pull the tooth." And again when the office manager called to say my dental plan will cover the apico for $825 or extract the tooth for $70.

Knowing that I had an already overcrowded mouth which resulted in nine (9!) teeth pulled when I was 12 or 13 pre-braces. Four of the nine were adult teeth. Take away my four wisdom teeth eight years later, and I was left with 24 teeth. Since an implant would cost about $3500 when all was said and done, I thought it best to save the tooth for the total cost of $895 (included $70 consult with surgeon.)

So there I was this morning, sitting back in a very comfortable dental chair and counted my way through 85 Hail Mary's before he snapped off his glove and said "Done." I did not feel a thing. Even the initial needle was nothing, thanks to the to the numbing gel they use nowadays. As of now, 7.5 hours later, the only pain felt was in my wallet.

And so my message to all you folks afraid of the dentist...
#1 - there is no pain anymore. Novocaine works wonders.
#2 - take care of the teeth now and save on financial loss for later.
#3 - the $70 extraction would have cost me more than the implant if I couldn't afford that . Dentist let me know that bottom molar, side teeth, and teeth in upper jaw (apico was done on bottom root canaled tooth) all would shift over time.

Go now. Don't walk. Run--------> DENTIST

I know that I immediately made Logan's next appointment for his dentist. So, make that call today if yo haven't seen your dentist in the last 6 months. And if it's been more than six years...make that call yesterday!

*Apicoectomy: also known as root end surgery, is an endodontic surgery procedure involving the surgical removal (ectomy) of the tip of a tooth root (apex), and the sealing of the root canal. The purpose of an apicoectomy procedure is to fight an infection in the tissues surrounding the tip of the root and save the tooth from extraction.

The Man of the House...Introducing Logan!

For the first time since my marriage ended, there is a man in the house. If you've been a faithful reader, you know then that Logan has been growing, expanding, and maturing. Well, the other day when I was a slave to the computer (work!), he decided to put together my new exercise machine,the Gazelle. I thought he could do it alone but was expecting a few cuss words or grunts or even a "Mommmm! Come help me." None of that happened. After a short hour away from me with one trip to the bathroom, it was done.

I went down to the basement and there in the middle of the room was the Gazelle in its full glory. I was beaming and he looked proud. Gently, I stood on it and was happy to feel secure enough to start gliding. With a few minor tightening of bolts, I was ready to go. Of course, being the "fluffy" person I am (Logan's term), it was a short glide and back to the computer.

Once again, Logan impresses me with how capable he is. I often say that my role as a parent is to develop a capable young person. Now, I can't take credit for terming that phrase. That goes to Dr. Stephen Glenn who has developed an entire series of parental help in his series of DCYP books. Seeing Logan grow into this reliable young man, reminds me that a product of divorce does not have to be a negative result. Let me delve further into this...

A couple of summers ago, Michele had come by to pick up Logan to spend the afternoon at her house while I was at work. She was so impressed when she came to the door and he told her to wait a minute while he locks up the dog. He proceeded to yell up to Papa that Michele was here and he was going. Made sure dog was in from the backyard. Shut all room doors so our furry-garbage eater wouldn't go into all the rooms and eat from the tin snack buckets that we lay around (trash cans.) Grabbed his swim bag and locked the door behind him. Back then, he showed responsibility. Over the years, it's progressed to becoming the man of the house.

How lucky I am!

Three Trains, Two Cars, & a Wedding

Today was Lindsey and Ed's wedding in Upper Saddle River. Gisele and Phil's was a bit closer in Newark. Valerie's got even closer to home - Port Washington. Robyn's so long ago and Bill drove - no idea what town that was. And my favorite wedding of work friends was Jen and Elie's in Huntington. How convenient (and fun!)

As you may know, I'm no longer comfortable driving by myself across the bridges or through the city streets; so I prefer to use public transportation. And there was a lot of that today.

I took the LIRR to Penn where I caught a NJ Transit train to Jen by her parent's in Little Silver, NJ and off we went for a 1.5 hr car ride. I left my house at 11:30am and it was non-stop movement, be it train or car and the last 300 feet fast little flip flop feet.

I really thought 4.5 hours was enough time to get us to the Church on time, {shout out to David Bowie} but when they closed the Church doors on me to prepare for the bride's walk, I was left looking for Jen & lil' Nate to come join me outside and listen to the wedding march. As always, Lucky Karen was rewarded with seeing the beautiful bride on her dad's arm as she stepped out of the bridal suite and walk right past me into the Church. Nobody got the photo that I did...and I love that view!

Jen and I were then ushered up to the balcony. Pretty neat looking down this small, old Church and seeing everything unobstructed. I kept my little cell video on and got different clips. As I looked around, I saw one of the bridesmaids across the balcony from me next to the organist. I realized she must be singing a song for them. It was only when Jen walked to the small room to my right when we realized all eyes were upon us...I mean...the singer. Jen went in her room and I ducked down so that it wouldn't be all about me. C'mon - late entrance, balcony seating...screams me, me, me!

After the final kiss, or is the first kiss?, Jen & I went downstairs to remove the stroller from the bridal suite. If you think about it, Lindsey probably never expected us to come to the Church, we were the last ones to arrive, I'm sure she didn't want to see my face as she tucked her arm in her father's, and now...a baby stroller is in her former sanctuary. Oh, well, as Dionne Warwick sings, "...that's what friends are for...keep smiling...for good times and bad times I'll be on your side forever more. That's what friends are for.."

The adventure continued as we used my GPS to find a local McDonald's to simply go to the bathroom. We were on winding roads and going in circles. We then had Jen's GPS ready to bring us back to the city. Soon, we didn't know what voice to listen to as we were told "make the next legal u-turn" a couple of times. think about it - two commands to make 'next legal u-turn' and your simply chasing your tail.

We finally stopped at an ice-cream store, did our business, and off to the Big Apple. We went on our separate ways and are both now resting comfortably thinking of our dear friend as she dances in her husband's arm and daydreams about their honeymoon in Greece. Now if I only could have added a plane ride to this entry's title...I might be that much more tempted to go to another colleague wedding. Hmmm! Kate or Emily...destination wedding calls! What am I saying...maybe my next wedding calls? You never know! And that one my friends, will be very close to my home.

Happy Long Loving Lives Together...Lindsey & Ed!

You've "weighted" A While Now

Yes. It's true. You've been waiting a while to hear about how the weight loss is going. Happy to say that "it's" finally going. Back in April, you may remember that I had the band adjusted after a year of no adjustments.

Remember, I wasn't hungry and I thought I had hit my "sweet spot," meaning found the perfect fit for my band and the amount of saline. Well, it's now four months and three days later. I am happy to say that I'm between 20-25lbs lighter since then. Can't give you an exact number because 2009 was the year of limbo, minimum tracking, and many mini successes.

Mini successes can also translate as many successes. My mom had recently asked me if I could do it over, would I? At that time, it had only been a month since I was adjusted. I shared at that moment the many mini successes that I had over the previous two years since surgery.

How many successes? Let's count...

1. Stop binging.
2. Wake up knowing that you didn't gain any weight since the morning before.
3. Thinner than I was the year before.
4. Even thinner that two years before.
5. Smaller clothes sizes.
6. Didn't gain any weight in a year.
7. Didn't gain weight in two years.
8. Maintained and still enjoyed a lil' bit of everything.
9. No pain or reactions to the band.

I could probably think of more, but would people really understand these victories? I think only somebody who struggles(ed) with this could appreciate the many mini "whew" moments that I experienced.

Ironically, shortly after this conversation, the weight started coming off. Ironic because I had ended that conversation with mom by saying that one day that one extra loss of a pound will be the push that would get me going. And adding to the irony, it occurred during that visit of mom and Rudi.

I had lost about 7 pounds that previous month, but who notice? I really didn't and that was with stepping on a scale. But all of a sudden, the loss amounted to 60 lbs during that visit. Wow. I was now closer to losing 100 lbs than I was 11 lbs ago.

Now fast forward to today. I'm down 75 lbs and actually thinking more about walking, stretching, and little exercises. Thinking is step one for me. Logan, who stops swimming for two months, is continuing to keep in shape with pull ups, sit ups, push ups, jump roping, and some light weights. I asked him to train me BUT to start slow. So far it's been only a couple lady push up here and a 4-step run at the jump rope. Unbeknownst to him, when he returns from his next cruise, I'll be all ready for that little drill sergeant. Yes - he's even referred to me as a Maggot. I am now the proud owner of a Gazelle (Still in its box as we wait for the missing handlebars...okay I just lied. They were missing and the replacement bars were delivered yesterday. We'll put it together on Monday when he's back with me.) I would like to include daily walks plus a little routine of push ups, sit ups, and jump roping while he's away.

Yes - you thin or active people would say, "don't wait - do it now." But I will weight...a little more psyching up is needed. But trust me when I say...all in good time...all in good time.

The Championships 2010

Summer swim season has ended. Logan's team the Piranhas did very well. They tied for third out of six. Logan's individual victories were more exciting. The summer season is a short one - six weeks. Out of the five meets, Logan missed two while on vacation but had a great record with the three he attended; he came in first for all his individual races - breast stroke and butterfly. Anybody who knows Logan, knows that when it comes to his breast stroke, he's got it. It's especially fun to watch him do his team medley races.

It's always the same order: back, breast, fly, and freestyle. No matter how good the backstroker may be, we could be in 5th (out of 6) place, everybody sits back and knows that Logan will pull the team to first in most cases. At the championship, he did just that. He swam by swimmer #5, #4, #3, and a fingernail behind #1. The team came in third but watching Logan and then young Justin (a-m-a-z-i-n-g butterflyer) was so exciting.

Now when it was time for his individual race of butterfly, it was almost like watching Michael Phelps..less than 6/10 of a second behind first place. He was awesome! Proud mama here!

Now the challenge is to encourage Logan to join the national team when school starts. Either way, he's already committed to the school team and Church team. This boy has gills and for that reason alone...he won't be out of the water for long.

"We're off to see the Wizards..."

"...the most wonderful wizards of all!"

That's right - we went to Hogwart's School of Wizardry for our summer vacation. To the Harry Potter fans, you'll enjoy this blog more than the muggles as you will understand what I'm actually saying at all points of this blog entry.

Since apparating and disapparating, are not allowed, I flew with Jet Blue to meet up with Logan for a day before leaving. Not have floo powder available, we thought of taking Ron's dad's car...but couldn't find it. I guess its still in the Forbidden Forest. Kris was kind enough to drive us across Florida to a small inn in Orlando.

As soon as we got to the inn, we traded our galleons for tickets to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Island of Adventure/Universal Studios. That evening much to Tina's dismay, we enjoyed dinner at Logan's favorite restaurant that was less than a half-mile from the inn. Buffalo Wild Wings for all! We went on to City Walk and enjoyed some ice cream in the sweltering heat of August...in Florida. (Need I say more!)

Early the next morning, Kris dropped us off at the shuttle bus and off we went. You should have seen my eyes light up when we walked into Hogsmeade Village. It was like walking into the favorite part of my literary mind. No longer did I have to steal visions from the movies or create them in my mind...I was walking, touching, breathing, seeing, smelling, and yes, tasting Harry Potter (literately not literally.)

Unfortunately, the "big ride" was not big enough for me. Yet. We were fortunate to walk to the front of the line and walk through the Hogwart's castle. It was too short for my excitement, but it was so darn neat. We went on to enjoy some Pumpkin Juice as we waited to buy a wand at Olivander's Wand Shop. Two young siblings were chosen out of the group of 30 or so to find their ideal wands. The first was too strong, the other too unpredictable, but the third -- ahhh ahhhhh -- perfect. ("William - stand straight!") We went on to purchase Logan's birth wand made of holly, but alas, there were no more.

We moved on quickly through the Owlry which was under a wooden canopy...barn would have been so more inviting. And then it was off for lunch (10:30am) at the Three Broomsticks. Here is where we had our first official Hogsmeade Butterbeer. Personally, my own recipe at home is better but only on a cold day. The chilled and frozen versions that we imbibed were quite yummy.

After walking through Honeyduke's Sweet Shop and Zonko's Magic Shop, we left Hogsmeade to enjoy the rest of the park. Quickly deciding that Island of Adventure was not our thing, we went to the other park, Universal, and spent the day on line, drinking cold beverages, eating snacks, and going on rides. Logan's favorite was Disaster where the crowd was part of the four-part movie process. To enjoy and see his excitement at the development of picking actors, assigning parts, doing stunts, and putting it all together...makes me think that perhaps acting could be part of his future.

It was time for me to put on my ruby slippers and click my heels together. "There's no place like home, there's no place like home, there's....hooray, Kris waiting for us down by buses." And home to mom it was!

Summer Daze

Summer days have come and gone...and only a few weeks left!

The highlights of the past seven weeks included special memories, summer fun, and a reminder of how quick time flies.

Official vacation for Logan began on June 24 with nearly a week of 1.5 hrs classes prior to the start.

Within in a few days,the summer swim team met every morning for a good hour and a half of serious swimming, occasional water polo matches, and I'm sure lots of dunking as Logan enjoys his teammates Kevin (from school), PJ & Tim (last year's teammates & friends.)

We went on to enjoy Tobay Beach in the evening with our friends and another great evening when Mom came in for a week. There were also a handful of Robert Moses beach days for Logan and pals.

As movie buffs, we enjoyed Eclipse, Grown Ups, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, The Other Guys, plus Logan did some random movies with his dad.

Mom came to enjoy a great, HOT, week with us. This has been an insanely hot summer with absolutely no lush lawns and many wilting flowers. While I worked my 3 days in and 2 half-days home for the summer, Mom kept Logan busy and hydrated (beach 2x, pool 1x.) It was so, so lovely to just be able to sit and relax. After working such long days, I've become one of those "happy-to-just-be-sitting-at-home" people.

Girls, girls, girls - so happy was I to share my Mom and my 'girlz' for a night at Michele's home. The word home...is truly defined by this cozy, warm haven that Michele has created for her family.) We had a night of food, fun, wine, and women...what can be nicer. The guests were Kelly, Tina, Kerry, Lenora, Anna, Michele + mom and me.

And then...the biggest highlight...Logan's 13th birthday! Now where did the time go?!? He spent the night before with his dad and then joined me, mom, and my dad back at the house for presents, pizza, and ice cream cake. His fun gift (always need a fun one!) was the iPod Karaoke stand that he got. At first, he was a bit shy, but by dinner time - it was dinner and a show for all.

The next day, Logan was off to Florida for 15 days with mom and Rudi with Kris sprinkled in. Stay tuned for the next installment of SUMMER DAZE.