Tropical Smoothie anyone??? Not this bandster!!!

I went in with some of my co-workers today to see about picking up a smoothie for lunch.... I am totally digging their cranberry crush 200 calorie smoothie, but there is no way on God's green Earth I could eat the entire thing in a reasonable amount of time. So, instead of wasting $3-$4 on something I couldn't eat I requested it be made and put into a child's serving. I was refused. I'm not going to lie when I told you I was shocked. How hard could it be to make LESS of something to put into a smaller cup? Its not rocket science!

I requested to talk to the manager and when she came out I repeated my request. I told her that I had recently undergone bariatric weight loss surgery which left me unable to consume more than 4-6 oz of food at a time. She told me that they were only allowed to make 3 different smoothies in kid's sizes---orange creamsicle, chocoloate peanut butter, and strawberry banana. Ummm hmmm not a good thing to give kids in general IMO but a complete NO NO for me for OBVIOUS reasons! I was completely dumbfounded! Not only did the manager hold her front about "corporate policy" she told me that they wouldnt substitute nutrisweet in the strawberry banana. She also told me she couldnt make it without the banana (just strawberry) either!

I am honestly upset that one of my favorite places to get a healthy quick lunch has been scratched off my list of places to go. It actually infuriates me to know that a business is not willing to be flexible to accomodate a customer's request---espeically one as SIMPLE as making a smaller portion to accomodate a dietary restriction.

So to all the bandsters out there----dont waste your time going to Tropical Smoothie, they wont do anything to help aid your weightloss! If anything, they will take your money and increase your fat!

Ever get that feeling like you have a softball in your sternum?

No?? Well, I do! I have been trying to keep up with information about how much I can eat at one time. The average is about a cup or so of food at once. I made myself some stroganoff tonight since its nice and slippery, therefore easy to get down, and some mushy carrots. I measured out a cup total of the two things and went to town.
CHEW CHEW CHEW CHEW CHEW CHEW CHEW....I made sure to chew! I SWEAR!!!! However, now it seems like there is a huge softball sized lump lingering around where my sternum is. I try and stretch my body, curl it over, and have even begged Greg to put pressure on my back to counteract it. To no avail, its been about 2 hours and the pressure is still there. My stomach doesnt necessarily feel full, but I definatly feel like I dont need to eat anything else.
About a half an hour ago I decided I would drink some water to try and dislodge whatever it was that was hanging out causing this pain. It was EVERYTHING I had to keep that water down. Whoa! This is a first!! I havent had ANY problems eating since the surgery or getting liquids down. Im planning on heading to bed soon so hopefully my softball will be gone by morning. Stay tuned, because Im going to be doing another official weigh in in a few days time! Unofficially I have gained back about 3lbs since starting mushies but I think my body is just in shock over the fact that its been able to eat somewhat real food. We'll see though!