Small Update

I just thought I'd give you a quick update on my gallbladder. I met with the surgeon last week and he said he was surprised the ER didn't try to take out my gallbladder right then and there. I'm glad they didn't! I've been living with the feeling of having a golf ball lodged under my rib for a couple of weeks now but it's not so bad I can't funtion. In fact, I'm still running! (Put in 6.1 miles yesterday! It was slow but I still got it done!) He does think it needs to come out though. And, quite frankly, I'm ready for the golf ball to be removed. It's pretty annoying! I haven't had any more attacks, thank God, but another one can come at any time and I don't really enjoy waiting for it to happen. So I'm schedule for out-patient surgery on Monday March 21st (one week from today.) KC will be off work for most of, if not all of, that week to care for us and allow me the best possible recovery time. The doctor also says that after two weeks I will be free to start running again when I feel I'm up to it. So hopefully I will be up to it right at two weeks because I don't really want to lose too much training time.

And for something nice to look at ... todays Scrap Girls Newsletter had this layout in it. I love my family to pieces and I love these pictures of them so I thought I would share the layout. I will do my best to get caught up on the project joy layouts this week. I know I'm two behind. Sorry!

My health update ...

Really quick, since I have to go pick up Kalyssa in about one minute ...

I saw my Primary Care Dr. this morning. My blood sugar levels are perfectly normal. The ER took my blood through my IV and since I was also on a saline solution (that has some sugar in it) my levels were high. But I'm fine there. Praise God! I didn't enjoy the finger stick so I'm glad I don't have to get used to that!

The ultrasound results showed inflamation in the gall bladder wall. Gall stones alone don't indicate an issue. Many poeple have them and don't know it. It's the inflamation that is causing the pain. So I will be referred to a surgeon and will most likely have to have it removed. That will require 4-6 weeks off from running. It's a good thing I'm not training for a marathon or anything. Oh wait! I am! LOL! Actually, as long as I can get up to 8-9 miles before the race in June then I'll be just fine. I have no problems walking a whole bunch of the race if necessary. I just want to finish within the time limit. Then I'll have a time to beat in Vegas in December.

Once I've seen the surgeon (who really knows when that will be at this point) I'll update again. For now, my energy is returning, my appetite is better but not great, and I have permission to continue running for now. I'm feeling pretty good for the most part. I just feel like I have a golf ball stuck under my right rib cage but most of the time it doesn't irritate me that much.

Thank you for your prayers and your concerns! You've all been so great!
 Hugs!!!

Project Joy - Week 8!

Project Joy - Week 8!

I posted Week 7 plus a breaking news type of update earlier today ... so if you haven't seen it yet make sure you go check that one out too!

Here's week 8 ...

Left side journaling: Recently Kalyssa has been asking if it’s okay to eat snow. I told her that she could but it’s better not to eat it off the ground. “But you don’t let us go outside when it’s snowing,” she said. I guess I never realized that we never “let” them go out while it’s snowing so the next time it snowed I let her go outside and catch snowflakes on her tongue. It wasn’t for long though ... she and Kaden both already have colds. ~  Oma was having some yard work done and she has the greatest landscaper. He’s really nice and does a great job. This time he even took some extra time to help Kaden drive his tractor and move some rock. He was so patient and let Kaden drive and push the pedals and work the bucket. He was one happy boy!  ~  Then there was the night we watched a movie (I think it was Dispicable Me) and at the end there was a “Rock Out Song” (as Kaden says) so we had a little dance party before it was time to hit the sack. Not pooped out but completely pumped up!

Right side journaling: Aww, morning snuggles with Daddy! ~  We all love Wednesdays! Mema comes to play and Mommy and Daddy either get a break or a date night! ~ On the bottom we have a silly double-fisted eater. I must have made something right that night because most evenings it’s difficult to get these kids to eat at all. ~ This weeks game learned (for ages 7+ - she’s a smarty pants!) for Kalyssa was Sequence. I think I’m going to run out of games very quick like! ~ The story behind the stop sign .. umm ... that would be because I fell on the ice going up to Oma’s house, landed on my hip and made hamburger out of my pinkie, ring finger and wrist. Doh! ~ And finally, the big news of the week ... Oma got a new dog! Meet “Nitro.” He’s almost 11 months old, a chocolate lab/great pyranees mix and he’s the most loving, sweet dog ever. He doesn’t have any formal training but he already minds fairly well and he loves affection. He’s amazing with the kids and we just adore him. Once we get some training done he’s going to be the best dog ever. He’s so smart so I expect he’ll learn really quickly, once the trainers get some training that is.

Project Joy - Week 7!

Project Joy - Week 7! (Plus a little extra update so please read on ...)

Journaling:
1. Kalyssa and I put together her class valentines. 2. Kaden is Mama’s little helper. He loves to do laundry! 3. The aged 8+ game that Kalyssa learned this week was “Bazaar.” She beat me fair and square the first 2 games! 4 & 5. Mema stopped by on Valentine’s Day morning to drop off gifts! 6. I was honored to be able to photograph this 8 day old little bundle of JOY for a good friend of mine. He is SO precious! 7. I was blessed to be able to help in Kalyssa’s Kindergarten class during their class party.

Here's the little extra update:
Saturday night I started experiencing mild chest pains shortly after dinner. By the time the kids were in bed it was getting progressively worse. Not one to want to make a big deal I figured I'd just try to wait it out and hope it would go away. Well, by 1am I finally gave up and let KC take me to the ER (in the middle of a pretty good sized snow storm. I was praising God that we only live 2 minutes from a hospital and that my mom was awake in the house next door so she was able to come watch the kids for us.) One thing about going to an ER with chest pains ... you get to bypass the whole triage process and go straight in. So ... long story short ... they gave me oxygen, hooked me up to a heart monitor, took X-Rays, lots and lots of blood, took an EKG, gave me IV fluids and pain meds (again, praising God here!), all with no results to indicate what was wrong. Then they took me for a CT Scan (cha-ching!) which resulted in a healthy heart and lungs but also something in my gallbladder. A bedside ultrasound (more cha-ching - my ears were ringing loud and clear by this point!) determined that I have a gallstone. It was also discovered that my blood sugar (which should be below 100) was at 140. This could be a fluke thing to go along with my pain issues or it could be indicative of diabetes.

So where do we stand at this point? I've gone in for another ultrasound of my entire abdomen (that was this morning) and I will meet with my primary care physician on Thursday morning. I imagine we'll discuss my gallbladder issues and be referred to a specialist for probably removal of the pesky organ. We'll also most likely test my blood and discuss the whole diabetes issue. I promise to keep you updated as I know more. For now, your prayers are greatly appreciated.

You may be wondering how I am actually feeling at this point. The pain is pretty much gone, although occassionally I feel some tenderness under my right rib-cage. I've been given some pain killers in case of another attack and I now know what to look for in case of infection (which would require emergency surgery.) Otherwise I have a major lack of energy and eating/drinking anything (doesn't matter what, I mean anything!) makes me nauseous, although I have been able to keep it all down since coming home from the hospital. This all kind of puts a kink in my half marathon training. I'm sure I'll be okay and that I will still be able to run and finish within the time limit. I probably just won't be getting in as much training and be quite as ready as I would have liked. But I'm okay with that. I will work with what I have and not let this little bump in the road stop me from achieving my goals.

Thank you for your prayers! I'll keep you updated. And be sure to keep an eye out for week 8 in our little project joy ... we've brought in a nice, big, brown, bundle of joy into our lives. But you'll have to wait to see that until I get week 8 posted. ;-)

Take care! And don't forget to look for the JOY in your lives. It's everywhere you look - even in the tough times!

Project Joy - Week 6!

Project Joy Week 6!

Journaling:
1. Symba, our cat that has always hated kids, will now wait for Kalyssa to come to bed, settle in, and then he patty-paws her and sleeps on her for at least half an hour or more! I honestly never thought I’d see the day! 2. Kaden, completely out of the blue, declared it “American Flag Day.” He found all the flags we had and posted them all over the house!  3 & 4. Kalyssa decided she wanted to try chopsticks so we went to Chinese after church. Now she uses them to eat most anything, including french fries. 5. Kalyssa also decided she needed to learn how to play chess. Thankfuly Daddy had some memory from playing it as a kid. 6 & 7. I was blessed to be able to observe Kalyssa in her Sunday School room. They have way more fun than us adults do! And they learn a lot too!

I pray you are finding the JOY in your every day lives!

Project Joy - Week 5!

Project Joy - Week 5!

Left side journaling:

This week started out with Kalyssa going to Urgent Care with an ear infection. Thank God it wasn't strep again. The little trooper still wanted to go on our planned trip to Phoenix to see the Monster Jam! So glad we did. She did great and we had so much fun! But it did result in two days off of school, tons of make-up homework and lots of hot chocolate with marshmallows. And then there's the breakfast of champions - OJ, ham bites, yogurt with granola and Amoxicillin. Yum-O!

Right side journaling:

The kids love to play on my old laptop. They know just how to get to the Playhouse Disney website and they usually do a pretty good job about taking turns. I spent a little money this week. I bought a new pair of running shoes and a Garmin GPS watch (I've named him Max, as is tradition with my running friends), and I registered to run in the San Diego Rock 'n' Roll half marathon in June. Training starts next week, and yes, I'm crazy but only half crazy since I'm not running in the full marathon! Then there the Friday night Fish Fry where the kids eat okay and dance all night. We always have a great time there! So there was lots of JOY in our week, even amongst the illness. It's everywhere ... just look in your cup of Coco!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

I know I have a couple of weeks of Project Joy to work on (they are coming, hopefully sometime this week) but I just wanted to wish you all a Happy Valentine's Day! And share a little layout of "Me and My Valentines" that was in todays Scrap Girls Newsletter.

I pray you have a "LOVE"-ly day!!



P.S. To my sweet hubby .... thank you for all that you do for us! You protect us, love us, make sure we are safe and secure and that we will be able to survive in most any emergency (with many comforts), you grocery shop and make sure my car is clean and fueled. These are only a few of the MANY things you do for us and we love, adore and appreciate you more than you could ever know! We love you!!!

Project Joy - Week 4!

Project Joy - Week 4!

Journaling:
1. Playing in Del Taco play area. 2. Morning snuggles with Mama! (This brings me JOY every day!) 3. The nightly horseback ride to bed. 4. Special movie night sleepover in the livingroom. 5. Kalyssa had an eye appt. (All is going well!) 6. Cornbread is messy stuff! Dad got out the vacuum! 7. Playing Puzzle Buzz. 8. My current stack of reading. 9. Kalyssa learning how to wash dishes. (It will be a truly JOYful day when this is no longer my chore!) 10. Our adorable kids all dressed up for church. 11. Daddy made roads, complete with stop signs in the backyard! Daddy is COOL! 12. God knew I would need some JOY after my 2 mile run so he left me a shadow on Mom's garage door! How cool is that?! 13. I had a Pampered Chef party. Lots of fun and I got some free stuff too! 14. One morning the kids woke up at the same time, met in my hallway and instantly grabbed onto each other for a great big hug! It brings me so much JOY that they love each other as much as they do!
I'm praying that JOY finds you each and every day!

Project Joy - Week 3!

Project Joy - Week 3!

Journaling:

Joy was everywhere this week! It began on Saturday with me heading down to Phoenix for a girls weekend away. My friends Jessica, Beckie & Lauren all ran in the Rock'n'Roll 1/2 marathon on Sunday so we made a weekend of it and had a blast! Lots of eating, hot tubbing and talking going on! They did amazing in their race and I had fun being their driver/photographer. During the week the kids discovered that boxes are lots of fun! Kalyssa had a great week with a fantastic report card and she learned how to play Battleship! That girl picked it up in no time even though it's for ages 8+! She continues to amaze me!

Project Joy - Week 2!

Project Joy 365 - Week 2:
I think I've decided to make double page spreads for my weekly layouts. I just take too many pictures! :o) There may be some single page layouts for a few weeks in the year but this week was packed full of fun so it really needed a two pager!

Here what the pages look like together ...

Here's the left side ...

And here's the right side ...

Journaling reads:

1-4: KC and I had a "Date Night" out to see the Globetrotters! Check one off of the old bucket list! 5: Kaden got a cute new haircut. 6: Kaden got his picture taken so Kalyssa had to too! 7: Daddy gave Kalyssa a manicure. 8: How tall? Kalyssa is 3' 8" and Kaden is 3' 4". 9 & 10: Travel and snow delayed the arrival of these special "toys" but that didn't diminish the excitement the slightest bit! 11: Mmmm, steak dinner with Aunt Wendy & Uncle Tom! 12: A bubble bath (in the big tub) was in order after a long day driving jeeps in the mud. 13 & 14: The kids wanted to try out Mama's new camera. They both did a pretty good job, especially considering Kaden can barely hold it!

(By the way, the numbers correspond to the photos, not the date in which they were taken.)

2011 - Week 1!

Hello All! I'm going to try something new this year. As you might have noticed, I've been a bit eratic with my blogging. I'm going to try really hard to remedy that this year! (Don't laugh ... I really am!) Here's how I plan on doing it ...

My good friend Christy has started a project. It's sort of a 365 (take a picture a day) type of thing mixed with the effort in finding the JOY in her every day life. She's calling it "Project Joy 365" and I've joined her. Basically I will be documenting our everyday life. I may not take a picture a day but there will be pictures from each week. I plan to do a very simple (definitely not creative team worthy) layout so by the end of the year I will have a full album with 52 pages. The pictures might not be the best pictures in the world but they will be true to our lives and what we do. The journaling will give a little explanation of the pictures and I will attempt to always include something that brought me JOY that week. I'm also hoping that I can keep up with these simple layouts and share them weekly with all of you. Feel free to nag me if I seem to be getting too far behind. :-)

Without further ado ... here is the first installment of my Project Joy 365.

Journaling:

We welcomed the new year in with a fabulous display of fireworks that we watched from our dining room window. On January 1st we remembered our sweet Kelsey (it's been two years now), I added Power 90 to my running in hopes that it will help heal my I.T. band, we painted pictures and Mema helped us paint the tea set Auntie Debbie gave Kalyssa for Christmas, and we played games (Sorry and Shrek Operation were this week's favorites.) Kalyssa went to school for the first time with snow on the ground and she came down with strep throat and missed two days. There was lots of JOY this week too with lots of snuggles and two dry days for Kaden!