2009 Facebook Status Collage

I think Facebook took over my blogging time this year. Maybe next year I can find more balance.

One Flaw In Women

Women have strengths that amaze men.

They bear hardships and they carry burdens, but they hold happiness, love and joy.

They smile when they want to scream.

They sing when they want to cry.

They cry when they are happy and laugh when they are nervous.

They fight for what they believe in.

They stand up to injustice.

They don't take "no" for an answer when they believe there is a better solution.

They go without so their family can have.

They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.

They love unconditionally.

They cry when their children excel and cheer when their friends get awards.

They are happy when they hear about a birth or a wedding.

Their hearts break when a friend dies.

They grieve at the loss of a family member, yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left.

They know that a hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart.

Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.

They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you to show how much they care about you.

The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning.

They bring joy, hope and love.

They have compassion and ideas.

They give moral support to their family and friends.

Women have vital things to say and everything to give.

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN, IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.

Positive Music And Downloads - Emily Pond Ricks | Emily Pond Ricks

Positive Music And Downloads - Emily Pond Ricks | Emily Pond Ricks

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What a scam!

Well, maybe not totally a scam, but you really need to read your labels if you're worried about food-related health issues! And I've felt it my new personal duty to share the real truth out there for people struggling to make good choices in this confusing world of food and health issues! So, listen up to what I've discovered recently...

As you know, I've been working really hard to make good food choices so that I can feel better and take charge of my health again. Yea, I'd love to lose about 100 pounds, but right now I'm more interested in getting through a day without a headache, getting my insulin levels under control and having more energy. I've been saying no to cookies and other desserts (Although the cookie withdraw may do me in faster than the health conditions! Man, I had no idea how much I liked cookies until now). I never have been a huge snacker, but I've even been avoiding the occasional indulgences and searching for other just-as-satisfying options. I'll share some of those in a minute... but first, I want to warn you of the "scam".

I was so proud of myself for this little find during my most recent grocery trip:

Boy, was I wrong to be so proud!
You see, I'm not much of a meat-eater, yet I've found that I need significant amounts of protein with each meal and snack in order to help my body digest & use food properly, to avoid headaches, to feel full, and to feel better overall. So, in my search for alternative protein sources, I was thrilled to find a whole-grain waffle with flaxseed! Yea, protein! It says it right there on the front of the box, 4g of protein! Add a glass of milk and I'll have enough protein to get me through the next 4 hours!

Here's the scam: where most of the time we're disappointed to see the serving size ("only 10 grams of carbs in these chips... oh, did we forget to tell you our serving size is one potato chip?"), in this case a serving size is THREE waffles! Well, crap, that means there's only about 1.3 grams of protein in a waffle! That's less than a regular Eggo waffle! So much for my big protein find! Liars! (they're not really liars, just hid the truth well enough I didn't see it until later)

Oh, there's more, only this one I caught on to the scam before I made the purchase... of course syrup would ruin my healthy waffle snack, so I bought raspberries, blackberries and strawberries to top off my whole-wheat flaxseed waffle... and of course what is a fruit-topped waffle without whipped cream?

Yes, Cool Whip comes in all kinds of styles... there's Cool Whip Free. And Cool Whip Lite. And Cool Whip Sugar Free. Let's compare... Sugar Free & Lite only have 20 calories and 1 gram of fat each. Cool Whip Free only has 15 calories and no fat. That's good, I guess. But, fat isn't really the issue for me, it's carbs and calories. Regular Cool Whip does have 25 calories... BUT, it is the lowest in carbs! Yea, even the "sugar free" variety has 3 grams of carbs while regular has 2! What is the point of being sugar free if the carbs are still doing to do the same damage? I guess just speed up the cancer, I don't know. (I'm afraid of artificial sweeteners). So, I'll gladly take the extra 5 calories in exchange for one less carb and 100% more taste! I'm beginning to think it's all psychological! I mean, aren't people going to have a tendency to eat more "Free" Cool Whip if they think it's healthier than the regular stuff? I'm telling ya, it's a scam!

So, back to my waffles. While it's true that De Wafelbakkers may be organic (boy, that's become another buzz word and another scam itself, hasn't it!) and may have other health benefits, I'm really focused right now on getting the most protein and fiber to balance as few carbs as I can get on a small calorie budget. So, I can have Eggo Wheat waffles and save about 40 calories and still get the 4 g of protein, for reals (I don't have to eat the whole box and the carton to get the proclaimed amount of protein!).


Now I want to share with you some of my new friends.

Cheese is good. Protein with a satiating quality, no carbs, so perfect snack. But, unless it's string cheese, I don't really want it without a cracker. What to do? Meet my friend Keebler:

These multi grain crackers are absolutely delicious!! For only 70 calories of my budget and 3 grams of fat and only 9 grams of carbs (8 net carbs because there's even a gram of fiber), I can have 4 crackers with my cheese and get a bonus gram of protein! It's too good to be true! I'm full and it was delicious! Yea me! I love these little victories. I can only eat so many nuts, you know. Gotta have some variety.

Arnold is another new friend I'm very fond of. Sissel introduced us.

These whole wheat sandwich thins are SO yummy! They make the BEST sandwiches! Cold cuts; grilled cheese, bacon & sauteed onion; grilled chicken; ham, egg & cheese... anything tastes good on these babies! They'll only cost ya 100 calories, just a single gram of fat, only 17 net grams of carbs (unbelievable for bread! 22 carb-5 fiber=17 net carbs), and a bonus of 4 grams of protein!! Yea!!! It makes me happy! Food can be fun again!

I'm also a new fan of protein shakes (maybe I'll post some recipes later) and Stevia.

Stevia comes from an herb in the Chrysanthemum family (I'm pretty sure this is the same family as our fall Mums) that grows wild in Paraguay and Brazil. It's an extremely concentrated sweetener, so you only need a few drops to taste the effect, which is why it has NO calories, NO carbs, nothin'! AMAZING! Why haven't you heard more about it? Because NutraSweet and Splenda have paid big bucks to lobby the FDA and make sure you don't know about this much healthier option. The compromise the FDA came up with is that Stevia can be called a dietary supplement as opposed to a sugar substitute.
It's not new. It's been used in countries overseas for many, many years. How good is it? Well, let's face it, nothing can taste exactly like sugar any more than salt substitutes can taste like salt. However, my first protein shake with natural yogurt (GAG!!) needed 3 tablespoons of sugar before I could choke it down, whereas my second shake with about 5 drops of Stevia was quite good with only one teaspoon of sugar. And no cancer or man-made chemicals. Pretty dang cool.

I have a friend who is a food scientist and we talked at length about food. Let me just give you the short version and tell you that the FDA is not primarily interested in keeping you healthy. It's easily swayed by money and is just as political as any American government operation. So, be careful for buzz words and food fads. Read your labels. Educate yourself. Do your own research and go with your gut feeling... and what makes the hunger, insatiable cravings, and headaches go away while bringing those insulin levels back down.

Don't get sucked into the scams. They're not interested in helping you with your health issues. They just want to sell their product and make money. The only person who is interested in your health is you, so take charge--measure and weigh your serving sizes and read those food labels!

They grow up too fast

The cliche is right.
Today they're a baby, tomorrow they're all grown up.
It's going way too fast for my taste.

But, here she is, Miss Bridget, at her Kindergarten Graduation:


And here is Victoria with her 4th grade teacher:

Bridget is Awesome

So, we had to make yet another trip to the pediatrician yesterday. And Bridget has strep throat for the third time in two months. So, we go to the pharmacy that is across the hall from the pediatrician (in the same building) because it's cheaper than CVS and we're $826 short of meeting our $6,000 medical deductible...

We're sitting in the waiting area, waiting for the prescription to be filled. My girls are sitting quietly. Next to us is a father and two kids. Dad is on the phone discussing sports and travel for the summer. Baby sister is on his lap playing with a sticker (she looks to me to be about a year old). Older brother (who looks to be about 4 or 5) is a total punk and keeps taking the sticker from his sister. She cries, he gives it back, then he takes it away again.

I'm trying to ignore the situation, pretending to read a magazine, trying to hide the fact that I'd love to spank this little boy and teach him a thing or two, and then bop the dad upside the head and tell him to pay attention to his kids.

After a few minutes of this, out of the corner of my eye, I see Bridget take the backing off the Iron Man sticker she just got from her pediatrician moments ago.

Then, quietly, without saying a word, Bridget gets up, walks over to the baby, and gives that baby her own sticker to play with.

The dad said thank you. The baby stopped crying. Bridget quietly returned to her seat, again without saying a single word.

I just wanted to scoop her up and hug her and kiss her. I fought back the tears. She is amazing.

I love my Bridget!

FaceBook Tag: ABCs About Me

ABCs About Me Tag

You've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with the ABC's of YOU.

A - Age: 33 (I'll be 34 in 6 days!)

B - Bed Size: Queen

C - Chore you hate: cleaning bathrooms & mopping

D - Dearest friend: Aaron

E - Essential start your day item: Shower

F - Favorite color(s): when it comes to clothes, Black & White. Everything else: blue, purple or pink.

G - Gold or Silver: silver

H - Highest level of education: Bachelor in Music

I - Instruments you play: flute mainly. I also took saxophone and piano lessons in college.

J - Job title: Mommy

K - Kids: 2

L - Living arrangements: two-story home in south Indianapolis with hubby and two daughters.

M - Mom's name: Patricia

N - Nicknames: I don't really have any.

O - One regret from your 20's: I wish I'd worried less and enjoyed motherhood more. It goes too fast.

P - Pet Peeve: lies

Q - Quote from a movie: Sam Witwicky: "Fifty years from now, when you're looking back at your life, don't you want to be able to say you had the guts to get in the car?"

R - Religion: LDS

S - Siblings: Angela & Matthew

T - Time you wake up: depends on the day and how I'm feeling

U - Underwear: clean

V - Vegetable you dislike: I like veggies

W - Workout style: housework, DDR, Rock Band, gardening, shopping, anything that doesn't feel like a sweaty workout and keeps my mind busy enough I don't realize it's a workout.

X - X's you'd like to avoid: all of them

Y - Yesterday's best moment: being with my family.

Z - Zoo favorite: penguins

Finally on the Right Track

So, I've been meaning to get on here and post an update about my new medical developments, but I'm just now getting to it partly because I've been so busy and partly because I wanted to do more research before I started speaking up.

I still have much more research to do, but I'm learning new things and I'm now anxious to post what I've learned so far.

Here's the short of it for those of you who do not have the time or interest in reading my whole "dear diary" journal entry here and just want a quick update: My Endocrinologist (a specialist in hormonal medicine) determined from my most recent blood tests that I have Polycycstic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). That was the big diagnosis. He also confirmed I have a severe case of Insulin Resistance, as well as a metabolic disorder (he did not elaborate on the latter except to say that my carb metabolism is defective). He also figured that my current version of Metformin that I was taking, which was no longer effective, was causing some of the horrible GI problems I was having and he prescribed a new drug called Glumetza (another brand of Metformin). The Glumetza seems to be working so far, but it's only been a couple weeks.

There is no cure for PCOS, but it can be treated.

The cause is unknown.

One in ten women have it.

I have a long road ahead of me. Dr. Lee only wants to change one thing at a time so as to be able to accurately determine what is working and what isn't. Taking Glumetza twice a day and keeping a food journal are the first steps. I have an appointment with a diabetic dietician in Dr. Lee's office in a couple weeks. I'm not especially looking forward to that next appointment because I know it will involve the words "reducing carbs" and me being hungry for a long time. I already eat whole wheat, don't often eat potatoes or baked goods... if I have to cut out fruit I might die. I'm not a big fan of meat or fish, so it will not be fun figuring out what I can eat. The joy of eating has been lost for me for some time now.

So, last night I bought this book called "A Patient's Guide to PCOS". I only had time to read the introduction and the foreword and already it has described my life for the last 5 years or so!!!

I've learned that many of my health problems are likely to be symptoms of PCOS, so I've just been treating symptoms all these years! Depression and anxiety, for example, are believed to be a part of PCOS.

Of course, weight gain, and even dizziness, are related to PCOS as well. IR & PCOS are closely related, although I'm not sure which comes first (the egg or the chicken)??? Some say IR causes PCOS, some say PCOS causes IR. Bottom line is, my body does not react to food and hormones the way normal bodies do.

Dr. Futterweit (the author of this PCOS book), mentions how so many women go from doctor to doctor without ever receiving an accurate diagnosis or proper treatment. Looking at the list of symptoms, it seems so obvious to me now, but my past doctors have been convinced it was a thyroid condition and/or bad eating habits. Thank you, Kelli Gary, for pointing me in the right direction in seeing an Endocrinologist! You may have saved my life!

Another thing I learned quickly in this book is that Metformin is given to infertility patients. I was irregular, probably not even ovulating, but that was the least of my worries when I got diagnosed with IR. That Metformin wasn't just helping me lose weight, I'd become regular again, and that is how I became pregnant. BUT, PCOS makes it nearly impossibly to stay pregnant. That is why I had a miscarriage. This IR, PCOS, surprise pregnancy, and horrible & scary miscarriage have turned my life upside down. I didn't know what hit me.

So, here are some of the symptoms of POCS that I have struggled with (there are more; these are just the ones I have had):
• irregular or no menstrual periods (nothing since June 2008; prior to Metformin last spring, nothing for a year then either)
• acne (not caused by eating chocolate! caused by having too much testosterone)
• obesity/weight gain/inability to lose weight, particularly around the middle
• breathing problems while sleeping (I never used to snore, but now the last few years, I even wake myself up)
• depression & anxiety
• oily skin
• hair loss
• pain in the lower abdomen and pelvis (I kept complaining of this with no concern from my doctors)
• skin tags (I got these after having Bridget--I have two in my right armpit, one on my hip and one on my back, and I HATE them... when I pointed them out to my doctors, they dismissed them)

What do I do now?

Well, finally being told what is wrong is nice. I'm glad I'm not crazy. I'm glad someone finally believes me and is interested in helping me get better.

I will continue the Glumetza for now. It's most likely I will be taking more drugs in the very near future, but just one addition at a time so we don't continue on this path of treating symptoms instead of causes.

I have hope. I can lose this weight and get my old body back. I can regain control of my life, my emotions, my health. I can become regular, maybe get rid of the random abdominal pains and everything else I've been suffering from for so many years now that I've forgotten what it is like to feel good. But, I will need to be patient. The changes are rough on me... for example, with the Glumetza, I'm no longer having the GI issues, but I've had two migraines. Messing with a girl's hormones is no pretty sight.

I have to keep this annoying food journal for the next few weeks and see the dietician. I have to see my ob/gyn for tests to see if I have cysts on my ovaries and scarring from my surgery last fall. I'm sure there are many more blood tests in my future as well.

But, at least I know what is wrong and am finally going in the right direction. Where before, my old doctors hadn't even caught the train, now I've got a doctor who is on the right track, and that gives me hope for a happier, healthier me.

Why Are You Still At Home?

This is the greatest article! It completely explains why I do what I do. And this week I have had to keep both my girls home all week long because they've been sick. I think that proves the point. My kids need me. School is just for a few hours 5 out of 7 days. Just enough time for me to help at school and keep the house in order so I can focus on them in the afternoons and evenings when they are home. I have the best job in the world. I am so blessed!

Subject: Why Are You Still At Home? Responses for Stay-at-Home Parents of School-Age Kids
Date: 2001-08-27

Why Are You Still At Home?
Responses for Stay-at-Home Parents of School-Age Kids
By Lucynda Koesters


So you're a stay-at-home parent of kids in school. It's back to school time and you just know you're going to get those questions and comments from people, some well-meaning and some not. You know: "What are you going to do all day now that the kids are in school?" "Are you going back to work?" "Can't you get a part-time job?" "Aren't you going to get bored?" "Don't you feel guilty not working?"

No matter how much you brace yourself for this onslaught, you still cringe when the questions arrive. Part of it probably is a little guilt you feel because you have no intention of returning to any work outside the home. That's ok, because it is societal pressure that makes you feel this way. Everyone is supposed to work at a job in this country. While we pay lip service to the at-home parent of small children, it is somehow wrong for a parent of school-age children to remain at home.

Responding to these inquiries in a pleasant and non-defensive frame of mind is very hard to do, but it is not impossible. What's required is a firm belief in your chosen way of life.

Why ARE you at home with children who are now back in school for most of the day? Why AREN'T you going back to work? What are the benefits of being at home at this stage of family life?

Sorry, but to successfully handle the inquiries, you must be able to answer these questions in your own mind. The first step is getting rid of the guilt and gaining a firm belief in yourself and your chosen lifestyle. To help you get started, reflect on these benefits of a stay-home parent:
A stay-home parent is usually the last person children see and talk to before they leave and the first person to greet them when they arrive home. Children derive a great sense of security from knowing a parent is available to them immediately before and after school. Children have a chance to get valuable words of encouragement in the morning and an opportunity to share their day in the afternoon. Children are also greatly supported in the knowledge that mom or dad is at home and available during the day in case of a problem at school.

A stay-home parent can get household chores, cooking and errands done during the school day, thereby freeing up the valuable afternoon hours to help with homework and creating true family time in the evenings.

A stay-home parent often has the freedom and flexibility to volunteer at the children's school during the school day. Seeing the parent's involvement, children learn to value their education. The parent gets an invaluable understanding of the inner workings of the school and how the children spend time there. Parents develop better relationships with teachers, school staff and other parents, increasing the children's sense of security.

A stay-home parent is often a less-stressed parent, fully available to support the needs of the family in the after-school hours. Having a calm and content parent to anchor the family is a great benefit to all members.
Now that you have reviewed a few reasons you are not going to work, what do you say to all these people who question your choices? Here are a few diplomatic and non-threatening responses:
I plan to remain at home to be available before and after school for the kids, and to volunteer at school during the day. Between housework, homework and school duties, I will keep very busy.

Our family really needs me to remain at home - it's worked out well so far, and I plan to continue as long as possible.

The children like the fact that I'm home. They like coming home after school instead of going to the after-care program. It gives us time to complete homework before going to soccer practices.

During the day, there are a million things to get done at home; I'm really very busy. But, I like to have afternoons and evenings free for the family, so I plan to stick to this schedule.
So, the next time you encounter some well-meaning, or maybe not so well-meaning friend or relative firing off questions about your lifestyle, remain calm and pleasant and answer them with quiet conviction that your lifestyle is best for you and your family.

Lucynda Koesters is a stay-home mom of two school-age kids and a free-lance writer, concentrating on family issues. Write her at: lkoestrs@venus.net

What's up Doc?

I feel bad that I've not posted on my blog since February. I've been wanting to upload photos and write... It's not that I've lost interest... I think lots of things in my life have gone to the wayside since my health problems began again last fall.

I'm a medical mess right now and I'm trying to find answers, but so far no doctor has been able to help me.

This all goes back to a year after Bridget was born (she's 6 now). When I was done nursing, I decided to try a new birth control pill called Seasonale. With this pill, you only have to worry about the yucky girl stuff once every three months, hence the name "season-ale". Over about 3-4 years of taking this pill, I gradually gained weight, until I'd become about 80+ pounds heavier. Keeping in mind that I was skinnier than I'd ever been as a mom a few months after having Bridget, this was very alarming and depressing. I continuously asked my family doctor for help. You see, not only had I gained an alarming amount of weight, I was also suffering from insomnia, bad headaches/sometimes migraines, anxiety... my bra size had gone from a C to an F. Yikes! My doctor was convinced I had a thyroid condition and had me do bloodwork every six months, and in the meantime, prescribed a sleeping medicine and an anti-anxiety med. And I should get stock in Tylenol and over-the-counter migraine meds.

Finally I made a connection to the birth control. I did a lot of research online to prove I had a case that it was that pill that wreaked havoc on my body. My fam doc looked in one of his books for extended lists of side-effects and laughed that the pill should be marketed for breast enlargement as opposed to birth control. Real funny. Then, after years of trying to figure out the weight gain, he gave up on me and said that it was simple: I needed to eat fewer calories than I burned. Nice, I'm just a fat, lazy pig.

Those of you who know me, know I love food (used to anyway--that died with the constant label-reading and such). And you also know that I love good quality food, not junk. And many of you know my story of playing DDR one summer for 5-8 hour stretches with Ursula for a few weeks, several days a week, chuggin down the water... and I still gained weight. That was my clue that something bigger was wrong with me. I was not just a fat, lazy, pig.

I found a new family doctor. She checked my pituitary gland with a very expensive MRI contrast test (I'm still paying on this one) to see if something was wrong with my head, checked my thyroid with an ultrasound (another pricey test), and then did extensive bloodwork (I sat in the office, fasting, for 4 hours) to determine if I have insulin resistance. The cheapest test was the winner--I am insulin resistant.

I was put on a strict diet and took Metformin, 2000 mg a day. It worked. I slowly lost about 20 pounds over a few months time, which was a huge triumph after years of only gaining. The Metformin made everything right again... no more insomnia, no more headaches, no more hunger problems, and finally regular periods (I hadn't had a period for over a year prior to this diagnosis--that pill really messed me up). I was feeling great and had hope of getting my old body back.

But then all my progress suddenly stopped.

Along with the periods came an unexpected pregnancy that ended in a violently scary manner for me. I was about 8 or 9 weeks along when I started spotting, so I begged to be seen. These days, they won't even look at you unless you're 12 weeks along or further. It wasn't like that with my two girls. So, I begged and begged, and finally saw an ultrasound tech. There was no heartbeat. Bloodwork was scheduled right then and again a couple days later to check if my hcg levels were going up. They went up, but didn't double, so the nurse told me over the phone that I had an inviable pregnancy. End of story. They refused to see me. The best they could do was schedule a D & C. I never saw my ob/gyn.

This wasn't good enough for me, so I left the practice and starting seeing Dr. Salazar who came highly recommended by a couple good friends. He was very compassionate. He did ultrasounds every few days, as well as more bloodwork. My numbers continued to go up, but we knew something was still wrong. After a few weeks of this, we were finally able to determine without any doubt that the baby really was dead and making no progress at all. But, I just didn't feel right taking matters into my own hands.

I carried the dead baby for a couple months. Every day I woke up wondering if that was the day my body would finally start the miscarriage and all this would be over. Eventually the doctor convinced me I could take a medication to help my body start the natural release process. It didn't work. We tried it again and it started the process this time, but slowly. Another ultrasound indicated things were going in the right direction. Something about that last exam upset my body and I began bleeding profusely. It was horrid. I was taken to the ER and they slowed things down, but I had to have an emergency D & C the next day.

For some reason, although I felt really great immediately following the surgery, it took a long time for me to recover. I was exhausted. I probably should have had a blood transfusion.

A few months later, I had a follow-up visit with Dr. Salazar. He was surprised to learn I still had not had a period and prescribed a new birth control pill.
But, I've never been the same since the miscarriage.

No period since last June. And about two months ago, the weight started creeping back on.

The kind doctor who finally diagnosed me as insulin resistant retired. I was stuck seeing a nurse practitioner. She obviously knew very little about IR. She did, however, say she thought the birth control pills were the culprit and said I should stop them immediately. She also ordered some extensive bloodwork, which was good.

My results showed insulin in my blood, which means the Metformin isn't working like it did in the beginning.
The results also showed a couple vitamin deficiencies. She prescribed some vitamins, told me to watch what I eat, and sent me on my way. Here's the kicker: she told me it was a simple formula--take in fewer calories than I burn.

Wow. Same crap I got a few years ago from the doctor who'd given up because he was convinced it was my thyroid.
Well, that simple formula only works on people whose bodies use their insulin properly and aren't all chemically jacked up like mine.

Oh, I forgot to mention that the headaches came back, I had horrible night sweats, all the stuff that happened before...
Add to that some psychotic withdrawal to the new birth control pills--I had horrible mood swings and migraines, and my fingernails split into layers and cracked in weird places. I'm tired all the time. I often feel sick. Just sick. I can't describe it. I just feel like my knees are going to give out on me and I feel kinda dizzy or something, like all I can do is lay down. I have some good days here and there. But, on those good days I try to catch up on everything I've neglected and I become exhausted again. Sometimes the headaches are incapacitating.

So, Dr. Salazar took on my case. Still no periods, so he's worried and says I need a birth control pill to get me back on track. NO! I've gained another 20 pounds in the last month. SO scary, I tell him. I tell him that if I get much heavier, it will be impossible to think good thoughts. The headaches are awful--he considers sending me to a neurologist. I tell him there is one big question in my mind: what has stopped the Metformin from working, because that was making everything right again. He can't answer it. He suggests doubling my amount, but looks it up and finds I'm already maxed out on dosage.

SO, the next step, as suggested by my good social worker friend, is to see an endocrinologist. It took pleading and crying to get that referral, but I finally got it.

I have hope that this specialist will be able to find out what is wrong with all my body chemistry mix-ups. My appointment is April 29th.

I've cancelled all follow-ups with that nurse practitioner. I need to find a new family doctor. I go back to see Dr. Salazar in three months.

I'm still tired a lot, almost all the time. I'm often not feeling well, but have to press onward. I feel like a sickling, but I don't look sick, so I'm just perceived as being lazy. It totally sucks.

But, I'll get through it.
I won't give up.

I must find a doc who can tell me what's up!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I don't get into Valentine's Day too much, never have. But, every year Vicki talks about how the kids at school get gifts from their parents and I think she was beginning to feel left out, so I gathered some things for the girls in the dollar section at Target and surprised them this morning with little gifts to remind them I love them.

Another first this year, the girls and I made their Valentines on our own instead of buying them from the store. They turned out so cute. I had all the supplies I needed on hand--plenty of stamps and printed papers and heart punches and glitter and enhancements to make around 60 Valentines! It was fun and I was glad to use some of the items I've collected over the years with my obsession with crafting supplies!

Tomorrow we're just hanging out with some friends, a great way to spend Valentine's Day!

I don't care much for the so-called holiday, but I do love my husband and my girls and I feel very blessed to have them. How I got so lucky, I'll never know.

Snow Day

Here is the reason we do not get a day off school on Monday for President's Day (It's a snow day make-up). We had about 10 inches of snow this day in January. Very impressive!

The Animal Odd Couple

This is the sweetest thing I've seen in a long time.
I love elephants!


Watch CBS Videos Online

An Interview with FaceBook

There are lots of fun and silly apps on FaceBook to help you get to know your friends. I like the interview app. I thought I'd post questions/answers that both Aaron and I have done...

Aaron's Interview:

What sort of character would you play in a comic book (hero, humorous sidekick, villian, that abrasive newspaper guy, etc.)?
Hero

Coke or Pepsi?
Mt. Dew

What is the name of your truest friend???
Elaine

If you could time travel, what would be your first stop?
Depends. Can I take a vid camera? If 'yes' then it would be JFK assasination.

What language would you like to speak fluently?
Russian

Desktop or Laptop?
Both.

Are you in love?
YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What is your dream job?
Doing it now. IT

What religion did you choose to follow?
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It's the only complete one.

Performing Arts, Fine Arts, or Sports?
none

Are you fed up of all these questions?
YES

Left handed or right handed?
right

Do you feel comfortable showing PDA in pubic?
a little

Do you say "I love you" in the relationship?
YES

If you have friends coming for supper what would you cook?
Grilled: bergers, fish, chicken, veggies, hot dogs, mushrooms

What makes you laugh?
Funny things

If you won the lottery, how would you spend your millions?
Pay off the house. Bank 75%. Stay home with my hot wife.

If you could travel back in time, what mistake(s) would you want to correct?
I would get my Eagle Scout!

Who was your hero as a child?
My dad

What do you do for fun?
Movies, tv, games, read

Are you an outdoor or an indoor person
Both. Laptop at the park.

What are you most proud of in your life?
My temple marriage and my family

Who do you admire most?
My wife

Do you have any tattoos, and if so what and where?
NONE!

What size shoes do you wear?
8.5 men's

Water or 100% Juice?
water

Would you rather lose an arm or a leg?
leg

If you had to pick one car, which would it be?
1985 Lamborghini. White. Front and rear spoilers.

Juice and crackers or milk and cookies?
Milk and cookies

Do you eat cold cereal at night?
occasionally

What is your favorite TV show?
Firefly

Kill the spider or let it out?
Depends on what it is. Wolf spider = Let it out. Brown Recluse = Kill the little bastard!!!!!!

Do you shower every single day?
Almost

What would you do if Michael Jackson asked you out?
Use a flamethrower on him and watch all the plastic parts melt!!!!!!

Do you read harry potter books?
YES

If you could have one super human power what would you choose?
Invisibility so I could fight crime in the nude.

Have you had a beer in the last week?
NO!!!!!!!!

Vitamin Water or Gatorade?
Gatorade

Flip flops or sandals?
sandals

What do you do on fridays?
Movies and Gaming

What is your favorite song of all time?
Elise by The Cure

Do you like bananas?
NO!!!!

Elaine's Interview:

What size shoes do you wear?
Ugh, I wear women's 11. Close to impossible to find cute shoes in my size!

Water or 100% Juice?
Water. With lots of ice.

Would you rather be hot or cold?
Cold. I can cuddle up with hubby or put more clothes on or snuggle under some blankets... but when I'm hot, I'm limited on what I can do and I'm miserable.

Would you rather lose an arm or a leg?
Neither... but I guess if I have to pick, a leg. I need my arms to hug and play the flute and stuff like that...

Favorite Place to Eat?
Depends on the day... today I want breadsticks from Barlo's.

Opera, Musical, Concert, Play, Performance, or Other?
All of the above.

What is your favorite clothing brand?
Tall Girl.

If you had to pick one car, which would it be?
A Jeep.

Your favorite Disney Films?
Toy Story 1 & 2, Incredibles, Enchanted... there are too many to list.

Why did the chicken cross the road?
What does this have to do with me?

What was your last thought?
Um... I don't remember...

Juice and crackers or milk and cookies?
Milk & Cookies

Favorite fruit?
Watermelon, strawberries, crisp apples, peaches, oranges, honeydew...

Are you a cat or a dog person?
I'm a cat person. They're just cleaner to me.

Would you rather be blind or deaf?
Blind would totally suck, but I'd prefer that to deaf. I cannot possibly imagine a life without hearing my girls laugh, my husband say my name, or listening to music.

Define yourself in 3 words...
Tall, loud, and misunderstood.

Do you eat cold cereal at night?
Yes, often.

What is your favorite TV show?
Life, Chuck and Scrubs.

Kill the spider or let it out?
Depends on how big it is.

Do you shower every single day?
Yes, every single day. I have extremely oily skin and can't stand to skip one day without showering.

Where do you want to travel next?
We're planning to take the girls to Florida to see their grandma.

What would you do if Michael Jackson asked you out?
I'd laugh hysterically. Then, when I've composed myself, I'd try to find a nice way to tell him that I find him repulsive and besides, I'm very much in love with my husband.

Do you read harry potter books?
Oh, yes.

What is your favorite place?
Home.

If you could have one super human power what would you choose?
To be able to control my body chemistry--I'm so messed up right now!

Have you had a beer in the last week?
Nope.

Flip flops or sandals?
Hmmm... depends on what I'm wearing or where I'm going. I love both!

Do you like bananas?
No, gross.

My First Tag

I was tagged on FaceBook by Bonnie and Amy...

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you.

1. I'm always about 5 years behind jumping on the bandwagon--I was this way with digital cameras, blogging, Harry Potter, Twilight, and now Facebook... all of these things are now among my favorite things even though I just did not get it before.

2. It is a struggle for me to sit here and think of 25 random things about myself that I think are remotely interesting to anyone else in the world.

3. I love Dr. Pepper even though I know I shouldn't drink it. It has to be fully loaded--diet drinks make me gag.

4. I am Insulin Resistant. I was just diagnosed last year. I lost 20 of the 80 pounds I had gained once I got on meds, but then I became pregnant (surprise!), had a horrid miscarriage, and now my body is all messed up again. It totally sucks.

5. I love to be at home. I'm happier here than just about anywhere else in the world.

6. I used to sell Creative Memories and lia sophia jewelry and was signed up with Arbonne... I quit all of these things once I became a youth leader for church a little over a year ago, and I've never been happier. I get to do my own taxes this year for the first time in 9 years since I don't have the home business stuff to confuse and stress me out!

7. My favorite TV shows are Life, Chuck and Scrubs. I don't watch anything else--I don't watch TV very often.

8. But, I do love to watch movies! I can't list a favorite movie or even a favorite genre--I love it all...

9. I once won an email contest for Penn Station and got an entire year of subs for free! After that year, I didn't eat there again for about two years. I guess you CAN get too much of a good thing, LOL.

10. I hate to talk on the phone.

11. Two jobs I wish I were qualified and creative enough to do: be professional and published writer, be a professional photographer.

12. I love to organize things. And then reorganize them.

13. I have obsessive compulsive personality disorder (NOT OCD, it's different. Google it).

14. Like Bonnie, I have more craft supplies than I will ever be able to use in one lifetime.

15. Also like Bonnie, marching bands get my heart racing. Those were the days...

16. Like Amy, I wish I could play guitar and piano. I took piano lessons all through college as part of my degree, but I was horrible. After so many years of reading only one line of music, it was tragically difficult for me to put two lines together in both hands. And all stringed instruments boggle my mind--how anyone can consistently put their fingers in the right places to get the right notes blows me away.

17. Cello is my favorite stringed instrument to listen to.

18. Although I played flute all through my music life (and still play a few times a year at church), and I took saxophone lessons in college... if I had it to do all over again, I'd have chosen to be a percussionist. I think drums match my loud personality much better than the flute does.

19. I am "Mormon". The correct way to say it is I'm a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I'd been raised Catholic, and while attending college felt closer to the Methodist church, but still didn't feel like I had the whole picture... I had two LDS friends at U of I who introduced me to the church and, very long story short, I found what I'd been looking for and have never regretted my decision. I feel totally blessed, more than I deserve.

20. I love chocolate, but only milk chocolate. I think dark chocolate is of the devil. White chocolate is okay, but I never crave it.

21. I love fresh fruit, maybe more than any other food, but I do not like preparing it.

22. My dream job would be to be some rich person's personal secretary. To be able to organize at no restriction of cost... to help someone smarter and more powerful than myself keep her/his life together... to have a desk in a nice office and organize someone else's life and they appreciate it and need it... you know, like Pepper is to Tony Stark. That would be too cool.

23. What I meant to say is that I already HAVE my dream job... I am a stay-at-home mom with two beautiful girls and the best husband in the world. I really would not be happy doing anything else, even being Pepper. I'd miss this so much it would hurt. I love being here for my family. It's perfect.

24. I'm terrified of scorpions, small spaces, and losing my family prematurely. I want to grow old with Aaron and be grandparents together. =)

25. I thought 25 would never get here. it's taken me almost an hour to come up with 24 things to say about myself. I'll be shocked if anyone reads this whole thing!

Midnight Sun

For you fans of Twilight who didn't already know, be sure to go to Stephenie's website to read Edward's viewpoint called Midnight Sun! It is a thousand times more interesting and enlightening than Bella's version of her first few weeks in Forks. Ingenious!

She also has a few chapters that didn't make it into the final copy of the book that I found very entertaining to read--you get a little more detail about a few characters. I really love Alice. It's called "outtakes".

Enjoy!

Christmas Emails

I got a couple nice emails from friends for Christmas that I thought I would post...

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IF A FAT GUY GRABS YOU AND PUTS YOU IN A BAG, DON'T WORRY... I TOLD SANTA I WANTED A GOOD FRIEND FOR CHRISTMAS!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am making a conscious effort to wish everyone that I know and love a Merry Christmas this year... My way of saying that I am celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. I thought if I pass this on to my email buddies, maybe I can prevent one more American tradition from being lost in the sea of "Political Correctness".

Merry Christmas To One And All...
Wishing all a happy and healthy New Year!

Merry Christmas

I just want to wish all my friends and loved ones a very Merry Christmas.

2008 has been good to the Vails...

Bridget
• Started full-day kindergarden and is doing very well in school
• Turned 6 this month
• Is quite the artist
• Is in the CTR6 class at church
• Favorite colors are red, yellow and blue

Vicki
• Is in 4th Grade
• Started playing the recorder in music
• Joined the school choir
• Is in the FADE club at school (anti-drug club)
• Participates in Activity Days at church
• Favorite color is pink

Elaine
• Serves as Young Women President at church
• Joined the PTA Board
• Is the 4th Grade Choir Mom
• Spends many hours helping the teachers as school
• Loves blogging and playing on my MacBook

Aaron
• Serves as Second Counselor in the Elder's Quorum at church
• Continues to work for Mundell & Associates as Staff IT Specialist
• Completed Hazwoper Training this year
• Continues to be a wonderful husband and father, the best I could ever ask for!

I am grateful for my life. I love my family so much and feel very blessed to be with them. I love our home. I am grateful for all we have--we are surely a very spoiled group of people.
And just like all Christians everywhere, I'm especially grateful this time of year to reflect on the birth of our Savior. Gordon B. Hinckley once said that if there had not been an Easter, we would not have a Christmas--Jesus would have been just another baby. But, He was more than just another man... he performed miracles and taught the gospel and sacred ordinances... He died to satisfy justice on behalf of all of us sinners, and He lives now to comfort and bless us. Because He overcame death, we will all have the opportunity to live forever with our families, and this week we celebrate His birth. I cannot put into words how grateful I am for our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas to all of you.
Love,
The Vails

Fun Free Backgrounds

My friend Jenifer just referred me to this blog:
http://www.knottymoosedesigns.blogspot.com/
This lady is super talented and has some beautiful blog background with matching headers. Here are a few examples of what she has...