Recovering!

WOWSERS. What a 72 hours I have had!

Thursday was Boss Day. I got up nice and early to make a delightful breakfast casserole for the brunch we were having. While it was cooking, I decided to take the dogs out. I came back into the house to hear my phone ringing. It was my co-worker...which was odd because she was supposed to be off the next two days. When I called her back, she told me there was a really good heart offer for one of our kiddos. She was off and wanted to know if I would take care of the transplant. I'm sure she'd say now that she "offered" to come in, but it was one of those half hearted pathetic offers. She was technically on call, and if I had known what was to happen, I would have let her. This transplant was going to be extremely high risk and I was NOT excited about doing it.

I spent the day on the phone with pretty much what seemed like the entire world. I got the transplant set up and we headed to the operating room at 8PM. God was truly watching out for this precious little one because all the bad and horrid things that could have happened didn't! About 3/4 of the way through the transplant, we got an offer for one of our kids that's been waiting about 5 months at the top of the list. It was a GREAT heart, so we accepted that one too! Our first kiddo came out of the OR about 4:30AM and the next one went in at 9AM. I didn't have time to get a nap or anything because there was a bunch of drama with the donor hospital for the 2nd heart. Thankfully, I had some buddies in the OR for the 2nd one, so I at least had someone to speak to! We got out of the OR at 8:30PM and I FINALLY headed home. My puppies were so happy to see me!

It was 38 hours without sleep, but TWO sweet kids got new hearts in less than 24 hours! Last time I checked, they were both doing amazingly well!

Needless to say, I am exhausted. I slept 11 hours last night and 3 more this afternoon. My entire body hurts, but hopefully it will feel better with more sleep.

Off to bed....hooray!

And it beats on...

What beats on? Well, hopefully my heart does! :)

This week has been busy, but I guess that's a good thing. We haven't done any transplants at work, but then again, I'm not currently on call. I go back on call Friday morning. Until then, I'll happily sleep without the host of phones and pagers on my nightstand. I'm alone the rest of the week, so I'm sure there will be about fifteen kids who need stuff ALL at the same time! Most of the time, I prefer to be alone instead of dealing with the daily drama! Today, I went to lunch with my favorite surgeon, which was a nice break in the middle of the clinic day madness!

The weather is AMAZING! I don't particularly care for the rain, but the fact that it is bringing cooler temperatures is phenomenal! It's so wonderful to go to sleep hearing the fountain outside and bundling up in my duvet for warmth! It's surprising I'm still cold, with all the dogs in my bed!

I got offered a new job this week! The director of the transplant program offered me the nurse manager position. When I got my bachelor's in nursing, I didn't ever intend to use it for management...it's just not my style. I absolutely love the interaction with the patients and their families and I'm not ready to give that up. Once I mentioned the offer to one of my cardiologists and my surgeon, I was told that I will NOT be abandoning them for management. It's nice to feel needed and loved! I am extremely flattered, and told my director "thanks, but no thanks". He completely understood and said I was the only person in the department he offered it to. Guess that means I have the management skills, even if I don't want to use them right now.

I'm currently cooking (yes, GASP!) something for the Boss day brunch tomorrow. I'm attempting to get as much of it ready tonight in order to just throw it together tomorrow morning and climb right back into my little bed whilst it cooks. So far, I've cooked bacon and sauteed green peppers and onions. I have SKILLS! :) Since the brunch starts at 9AM, I'm just gonna go in a little late so it can stay nice and warm, right out of the happy oven. It's nice to live so close to work!

I also have to leave early tomorrow for a stupid nerve test on my legs. Remember the jelly legs? Yep, they are STILL around...although not as bad as they were. What really worries me now is that I have strips of numbness and I don't understand why I'm still weak. Today, while taking the puppies outside, I completely missed a step and fell flat on my face....so attractive! I almost drove myself to ER on account of the swollen wrist, but hopefully the swelling will go down and I'll have just sprained it nicely. I am such a klutz.

Last night, my aunt and I went out to dinner at the Four Seasons! WOW was that an experience! I never get to go to those kinds of places, but we decided to just do an appetizer meal. We had divine seared ahi and some lobster yumminess. I also had a glass of phenomenal red wine. I have to be SO careful with wine...one sip too many and I'm pretty much ready to make inappropriate choices! Guess that's my reason not to drink at all! :)

Okay, enough rambling. Better go finish prepping my breakfast casserole! :)

Seriously?

Not to steal a line from one of my all time favorite shows, Grey's Anatomy....but SERIOUSLY? Is it even possible? Are people really REALLY that afraid to say what they are feeling that they have to rely on excuses? What the heck? I nearly ALWAYS say exactly what I am thinking...or at least I try to. This is ridiculous.

Cryptic, huh? :)

A blessing

Today, I went to a family reunion. It was for my great grandma's (on my mother's side) family. This reunion takes place every year, but we usually don't go. This year, I kept getting the pressure from EVERYONE to go! I couldn't figure out why this year was something special!

If you have spent any time with my family, you know that my mother has three sisters that are just as crazy as she is....and as I am, I guess! One of my aunts has been separated from us for quite some time. In fact, the last time all four girls were together was my grandpa's funeral in 1996. Thankfully, this aunt decided to come back to the family reunion and see everyone! It was amazing to see her...and I completely think it was one of the hardest things to do after being gone for so many years! Hooray for her! I hope she continues to stay involved.

I had a great time with my crazy family, as always. I continue to be blown away by people who don't have the great relationship with their families as I do with mine. Even though we were just together for a few hours, I think it was absolutely worth it!

Yesterday, I went to the FAIR! Oh, it's Fair time again! Michael, Jennifer, and I tried a host of fair foods....from Chicken Fried Bacon...to corn dogs (always yum!)...and my favorite....deep fried grilled cheese! Delightful! I only did one or two bites of the food, and my stomach grumbled a bit, but no disasterous results! I don't like to tempt fate with the stomach, but I figured it was the fair, and NOT something I plan on duplicating on a daily basis.

Tomorrow...back to work...ALONE! :) I'm alone at work for the first three days, so it should be quite interesting...as always. It's either feast or famine...part of me hopes for famine! :)

Ok. Must do laundry. ICK!

The big one!

Guess you've figured out how much weight I've lost in the last five months! INSANITY!

Back from vacation!

Sadly, I've returned from my fabulous vacation! Even though I had one less day in the Pacific Northwest, I still had an amazing adventure! I walked SO much in those six days! Here's a run-down of my experiences!

Sunday-Up bright and early. My wonderful brother took me to the airport before the sun came up. My flight was uneventful, thankfully! A short layover in New Mexico...then on to Seattle! Tammy and her mom (who was visiting too!) picked me up at the airport and we headed off on a waterfall discovery adventure. We went to three different waterfalls and hiked A LOT! Remember, I still have jelly legs! :) I actually was pretty impressed with myself! We wandered home, through the gorgeous mountain ranges!

Monday-my birthday! Happy 31 to me! We took Tam's mom to the airport and went off to a Seattle landmark...the Pike's street market! The fish throwers were there in full force, throwing giant salmon and halibuts! Hilarious! I absolutely salivated over all the fresh produce and flowers for sale, sadly wishing it could come home with me! We ate lunch at a great crab house right on the water...clams and mussels! YUM! We got pedicures, relaxed for awhile, and then headed out for dinner. Dinner was a great seafood restaurant on the lake. It gets about 20 kinds of fresh, never frozen seafood daily! I had some delighful ahi and my first experience with wine. Let's just say, I'm pretty fun after MUCH less than I used to be! Thankfully, the cowboy game was on and I was able to cheer happily and without reservation! No eagles fans in the whole place!

Tuesday-Space Needle! We walked over to the Seattle Center (the site of the Seattle world's fair!) and I did my most touristy adventure 600 feet up to the top of the needle. It was an absolutely beautiful day and my pictures turned out GREAT! We walked around the Seattle Center for a while after that and had a great picnic lunch sitting by this enormous fountain. All the water was choreographed to music and it was a great thing to watch! We were in the hot (hot for Seattle!) sunshine, and I actually got a sunburn! Go me! Afterwards, we walked back to Tam's apartment and went to see The Women...cute, but at times depressing!

Wednesday-off to Canada! We headed out in the morning, the first gray day outside since I'd come to Seattle! Crossing the border was only about a 5 minute adventure! Hooray for us! Guess I didn't look threatening. We made it to our hotel about oneish. The nice people let us check in early! We walked to Yaletown, a big restaurant district, to find some lunch. Afterwards, we walked around to get our bearings and find some tourist information. We ended up finding out about a bus that had 23 stops throughout the city. There was an additional pass that included five of the biggest Vancouver attractions. We decided that was the best plan and went to bed kinda early to prepare for the busy day!

Thursday-the walking begins! We caught the bus around 9:30 and headed off to the Vancouver lookout...basically the equivalent of the Space Needle. Afterwards, we headed to Stanley Park, a 1000acre park at the tip of downtown. It's absolutely beautiful! It houses the Vancouver Aquarium, home to a three month old baby beluga whale! They also have some dolphins, sharks, turtles, sea otters, sea lions, and lots of fish...but the highlight was the precious beluga! They have an outside viewing area and an underwater viewing area as well. After we were done at the aquarium, we decided to walk to the IMAX instead of riding the bus because brilliant Stephanie thought it was at 5pm. We HAULED across the city only to find out that the next show was at 6, and it wasn't even the one we wanted to see! We ended up going to a pub for some dinner and waiting until 7 for the 3D IMAX. Afterwards, we took a cab home because we were exhausted and tired of walking!

Friday-the adventure ends. We got up early again, but the buses were running WAY late! I think it was almost 45 minutes off schedule! We went first to Chinatown to the Classical Chinese Gardens. It was very pretty, but not something I would have paid extra for. Afterwards, we rode the bus back to our hotel, stopping along the way to grab some food at a great French restaurant. We headed off to the Capilano Suspension Bridge in North Vancouver. It was CRAZY! The bridge never stops moving! The gorge is wide enough to let two 747's side by side through the ravine without touching wing tips! Nuts! On the other side of the canyon, there was lots of hiking and roaming around. After spending about three hours there, we were pretty exhausted and decided to head back to Seattle. We got in the car at 5pm. By 6, we were on the other side of Vancouver. At 6:46PM, we got to the US/Canadian border. At 9:20, we were finally into the USA! Two and a half hours to get across the border is RIDICULOUS! We got back to Seattle about 11PM. I think I completely collapsed into the bed at that point!

Saturday-flying home. Not much to do...except get on the plane. My flight home was uneventful. Michael picked me up at the airport, with Liberty in tow. I slept in my own bed!

There's my trip in a nutshell! Well, I'm pretty verbose, so I guess not QUITE a nutshell! I posted a whole bunch of pictures on Facebook, but if you don't have access to that, here's the link to the album.

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=31226&l=98395&id=777629419

I go back to work tomorrow, not happily at ALL. I'd much rather stay off work for another week. Thanks for reading!

Impact of Ike

My parents live outside Houston, off I-45, about 45 minutes from Galveston. Even though both of them had off work since Thursday, they decided to stay and weather the storm and protect their turf. I talked to them several times yesterday, the last time being about 9pm, when the wind had gotten too strong for Jack to go outside anymore.

I also talked to them this morning, after the storm had passed through. They currently have no power (lost it about 2AM), have no fence, and have tons of tree branches EVERYWHERE! They have some water damage in one of the bathrooms and their street is flooded...but they are safe and alive! They have food and water, and thankfully, their cellphones both still work! My dad has wired one of the TV's to a car battery so they can keep up with what's going on around town. Jack's mad because he can't roam the backyard freely.

I should have been in Seattle already, but Southwest Airlines got freaked out and cancelled a lot of flights this morning. The weather here in Dallas is just now starting to get interesting, but they claim "dangerous crosswinds" as their cancellation reason. Originally, they closed the airport until Monday morning. I had to reschedule my trip until then, and was quite angry about it. Once we heard the majority of the storm was going to miss Dallas, I started calling Southwest hourly to see if I could get out earlier than Monday. The first few times, I was still told the airport was closed until Monday. FINALLY, I was told that they had openings on a flight tomorrow, so I begged and pleaded! Normally, you're only supposed to have one switch for free, but I threw out the "Monday's my birthday" card, and was able to convince them! SO, tomorrow morning, I'll fly out, only losing 24 hours of my vacation!

Liberty is lounging around, getting freaked out by the wind noises in the hallway. I guess having a day to relax on this side of the trip probably isn't such a bad idea...it gives me a chance to pack smartly, instead of throwing crap in a bag...which was the plan!

So, if you think about it today, please say a prayer for my parents and their lack of power...and all the other families in Houston/Galveston who are experiencing loss today.

SO SO ready!

I am going on vacation in TWO days. I am so excited I almost can't see straight! I haven't been on a true vacation in over two years. Being off for surgery doesn't count. Going to Honduras for paid slave labor doesn't count. This is a true, I'm not gonna think about the hospital vacation!

My friend Tammy is a travel nurse. She roams around the country in fabulous exotic places, doing fabulous nursing things. Right now, she's in Seattle...which is a place I've never been! I decided that I needed to go visit her while she's in one of these fabulous places that I haven't been! I leave on Saturday and return the following Saturday. I'm actually going to be there for my birthday, so that should be fun! During the time I'm there, we're also going to go up to Vancouver, which I hear is beautiful! Exciting!

Work has been crazy, life here at the house has been crazy. Too much craziness! I'm ready to be on vacation and not think about it! I've been on a lot of call recently with very little sleep...which is not my favorite thing. If I am gonna not have sleep, I'd rather be having fun instead of being tortured at work! As long as I can go through tomorrow morning at 7AM, I'm FREE! Whoo hoo! :)

The klutz returns...

I am RETARDED. I think if I went back and looked at how many of my blog entries involve me falling down and/or injuring myself, I'd be amazed. Today was no exception. I went to my "old" apartment to finish getting some boxes out of the garage. While carrying one box to my car, I completely tripped over a concrete bar on the floor of the garage and decided to say hello to the concrete! Aside from a skinned knee, elbow, and bruised hip, I've survived unscathed! :)

I laugh at myself when this kind of stuff happens because I am ALWAYS on my mother to be careful. I don't let her get on ladders or ride scooters...because she's accident prone. I'm beginning to think that the older I get, the more I become like her, in more ways than one! Thankfully, I still have some meds from my surgery left over, so I was able to help the pain go away. It stinks not being able to take ibuprofen! ARG!

This week, I have found a new food to love. I've become addicted to Morningstar farms Asian Veggie Patties. They are divine. I've only really liked meatless patties and things for the last few years. Sometimes, they are too full of rice and other fillers. These patties are almost all veggies...carrots, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots....YUM! It's still so wonderful to be able to actually EAT and not get sick! I think the hardest part of this journey is still waiting a 1/2 hour to be able to drink after I eat! Ah well, I'm starting to get used to it.

Okay, it's Saturday afternoon, and I am going to NAP. I'm very VERY excited about this. Perhaps it's the meds making me slightly sleepy...but I care not. This week has been BUSY with lots of late nights...and now I get to sleep! :)

My new apartment!

Here are some pictures of the new place!!

All moved!

I'm here! I made it! And the boxes are GONE!

I am safe and sound in my new apartment, literally three minutes from work. If I go walk Liberty, I can see the looming Children's Medical Center sign. If I go to the parking garage, I have the most beautiful view of downtown. From inside my apartment, I see the pool and the palm trees surrounding it. It's a very tranquil existance.

The movers (yep, I sprung for movers. I have very little I'll put out money for, but that is one of them!) came yesterday morning about 8:20AM and were done just after 11AM. My parents helped by cleaning the old apartment so I can get my pet deposit back! Michael and Jennifer came over around 1 to help get rid of boxes. I am actually very humbled to say that the boxes are gone! We got everything unpacked and the house actually appears mostly livable! That's not to say there isn't clutter, but it's MUCH better than I anticipated! I'm just one of those people that needs to get as much unpacked in the beginning or I'll put it off and it might stay that way for months! The cable guy came yesterday afternoon, ending my seven hours living in fear that I might get a donor call that needed a response. I'm having issues with the wireless, but as long as it works with a cord in place, I will do without wireless for the moment!

Okay, I should probably get moving. Liberty is adjusting to the new place, mostly by barking. She'll get over it.

Have a wonderful week and a relaxing Labor Day! I sure hope mine is!

The end of the packing nears....

Oh, I am so tired of packing. Tired Tired Tired. I'm getting so close to that end point, but I'm at a tough stage. There's stuff all over that needs to be packed, but by this time, there's not going to be a good place to put it. It's gonna all end up in one box in a big jumbled mess. If you look at my apartment, there's lots of boxes strewn about, but also clutter...which makes it seem like I haven't packed at all! ARG! All I know is that I want to stop packing, but I can't. I'm moving in 36 hours!

My parents are coming tomorrow to assist in the moving fun. They should get here in the evening, just in time to assist in the fun of taking down pictures and puttying nail holes. Yippee! It will be wonderful to have someone help with putting up curtains, hooking up the electronic, and giving me opinions on where things should go.

Oliver had to go to Becca's two days early because the poor little man got sick. Liberty was sick over the weekend and I believe Ollie got the sickness two days later. He's doing much better now, but I couldn't stand another day of cleaning the carpet after "accidents", even though the poor boy couldn't help it. Liberty is coping pretty well with the stress of the move, which she doesn't normally do. I took her to the new apartment today to sniff around and explore. She sniffed around and then sat in the corner and wagged her tail. Silly thing.

Okay, I should probably go throw all the clutter into one box and get it off my counter. One sweeping motion is all it should take!

What a week!

Last Saturday, I started having problems with my computer. It started running extremely slowly and was generally misbehaving. Sunday afternoon, it stopped running all together! Retarded piece of crap! I ended up taking it to "Geek Squad" (insert laughter here!) for them to run diagnostics and back up all my data so I would hopefully not lose the over 2000 pictures I have! I guess it was a good time for it to crash because I am thankfully not on call this week! Well, five days and a lot of money later, I have a new computer. Let's just say my hard drive was fried, and in crunching the numbers, it was a better deal to get a new one than to fix the over five year old one. Thank you SO much to my parents for the early birthday present! I am so grateful that they stepped up in my time of crisis.

I am moving NEXT WEEKEND! AAHHHH!!! I still have stuff to pack, but a whole weekend to get it done. I'm absolutely tired of living out of boxes and hopefully I'll be motivated to unpack once I'm moved. The dogs are starting to go slightly crazy as well.

Work has been nuts this week, but really, when is it not? My co-worker has almost driven me clear over the edge this week, and I think I might have strangled her today if she had not needed to "get out of here early" (of course, while there was a new kid who needed evaluating and another one who needed to be admitted). My goal each day starts out by saying to myself "I will not strangle her today" and so far, I've been successful! :)

As you can see by my ticker, I'm up to a ridiculous 86lb weight loss! That's NUTS! I feel good, except for the lingering jelly legs. I'm eating lots of veggies and trying to cram down as much protein as I possibly can. It's SO much better than the days where water made me vomit. I am very thankful.

Okay, I'm certain there's a box that needs packing. And I don't think I've eaten dinner yet. Hmmm, guess I should go do that!

How close was THAT?

Is Michael Phelps even HUMAN? Every time I see him, I am more amazed. He is such a beautiful swimmer. This last race was INSANE! I'm certainly glad that I'm not an official. Wowsers. He's phenomenal.

Oh, the Olympics!

Is it just me, or is EVERYONE sleep deprived during the Olympics? And why does all the good stuff come on after 10? Arg. Despite the sleep deprivation, I am still absolutely glued to my television. I know that Michael Phelps already has fifty bazillion medals, but I can't help but watch him win AGAIN! I guess it's just waiting for that medal ceremony....the best part! I think the dogs are getting tired of the very close races because I end up squeezing and squishing them whilst screaming in my apartment late at night. Hopefully, this gets my neighbors back for the late night (usually around 11:30pm) vacuuming.

Remember my jelly legs from 2 weeks ago? Well, even with upping my thiamin intake, they haven't gone away. I went back to the doctor today. I had more labs drawn to check my vitamin levels, a sono to rule out blood clots, and a lot of mashing about on the numb legs. Hopefully, the answer lies in the vitamin levels. We'll see next week.

On the packing front...not much is different. I've packed most of the kitchen, except for the food, plates, and utensils. I've left one pot and a roasting pan out for meals. For those who like to pack all at the last minute, this tedious packing chore must seem long and drawn out. Believe me, if I don't start early, I'll end up with 40 boxes of crap thrown in. Not pleasant.

Work is work. I'm alone this week (yes, AGAIN!) and so far, it hasn't been too bad. I don't think my clinic is too busy tomorrow, which is always nice. It's back to two doctors which allows clinic to move faster. I've got some great kids coming in tomorrow, which makes me happy! :)

It's so lovely outside! It's not hot and there's a lovely breeze! I'm sure that tomorrow it will be back to 230 degrees, but for now, the puppies and I are enjoying the lovely open patio door. Hope your weather is fabulous like ours is!

Klutz!

I'm such a retard! As if I didn't have enough issues going on right now, I added a new one! :) Today, I went to Petco to buy the puppies some treats. I was looking around for a air tight container to put the treats in (more on this later!). A random employee was helping me find them. We walked around the corner, and I proceeded to trip right over the edge of the display! I landed on my knees, then on my face! If you've ever been around me during one of my clumsy moments, I normally laugh right afterwards because I feel so stupid! I got up (not easily because of the continued numb legs!) and examined myself for injuries. I have a horridly scraped up wrist (still have no idea how that happened!), bruised knees, a pulled calf muscle, and I ripped holes in the knees of my scrubs! I'm such an idiot! I'm sure I'll feel more sore tomorrow, but today the only thing that's sore is my pride! Thankfully, I don't have much of that! :)

The whole reason for the trip to Petco started with bugs. I have these horrid black flying bugs in my apartment. For weeks, I've been trying many things to get rid of them. I killed off all my plants, cleaned withing an inch of my life, and had the apartment complex spray for bugs. The bugs persist. Yesterday, when I was putting the puppies in their crate for the day, I noticed that the treat jar was crawling. There were these stupid black fly things all in the treats, eating them and no doubt reproducing inside the jar! EW! I threw the whole thing out, and have high hopes that the bugs will slowly die off. They are driving me crazy! Oliver likes them...he chases them and eats them. So, between the constant bug spraying and Oliver eating them, perhaps they'll be gone soon.

The packing continues. I've got a lot of boxes done so far, but haven't even started the kitchen yet. I normally spend my weekend packing and watching Food Network. This will most likely happen again...except for the next three weeks, I'll be addicted to the OLYMPICS! Yes, I admit it. I'm an Olympic addict...or junkie...whichever terminology you prefer. I cry at every touching moment and you can bet I'll be weeping anytime the national anthem is played. I'm exceptionally patriotic...if you hadn'd figured that out by my dog's name!!!

Okay. Enough for tonight. I'm on call this weekend and am alone in the office all next week, so pray for quiet times. I'm never one to wish kids didn't get hearts, but I'd love it if they came in an organized fashion and not all at once!

Good night!

How many have you read?

The story is that apparently the National Endowment for the Arts estimates that the average adult has only read six of these books. Here are the markup guidelines:

1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.
2) Italicize those you intend to read.
3) Mark in red the books you LOVE. - I’m skipping this step.
4) Reprint this list in your blog

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14. The Complete Works of Shakespeare (I've read a LOT, but not all!)
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma - Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis - This sure seems like a duplicate to me!
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne

41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan

51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert -
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie -
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville

71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt

81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection

91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

WOW! I've read a lot of things! Guess I shouldn't be too surprised....seeing as I have an ENGLISH degree! :) I think I counted 40...but there are so many wonderful books still on them! I still can't believe there's a Jane Austen Book I haven't read. Guess I'll be reading that one after I finish the giant PILE I have sitting in boxes. I do love to read, but I go through phases. If I am stressed at work, for some reason reading does NOT relax me! :)

Other than this really cool list of books, I have hit another milestone in my weight loss! I weighed in today and I've lost a total of EIGHTY pounds! WOWSERS! Still pretty amazing.

Oh, vegetable delight!

Starting about Tuesday night, all I have wanted to eat is vegetables! I started out with a Boston Market side trio...mostly because I didn't have time to get good produce. I don't consider Walmart good produce...most Walmarts anyways! I ate that for two dinners and two lunches! Wednesday night, I bought some green beans to steam. I made those yesterday and had them for dinner last night and lunch today. Today, I went to the produce wonderland! It's basically an indoor farmers market with a bunch of organic herbs, vitamins, and groceries thrown in. Their produce is always reasonably priced, so I got a lot! :) I got celery, new potatoes, fresh dill, jicama, spinach, black eyed peas, cremini mushrooms, eggplant, squash, and onions! YUMMY! I probably left something out, but you get the idea. I just had 1/4 a jicama with a little bit of salt and lemon pepper. Again, YUMMY! I have no idea what has inspired this phase of mine, but I hope it lasts. It's delicious! :)

Still crabby, but I have answers!

Okay, so the crabbiness still is present. Nothing I did today was going to take away that. BUT, I did get some answers from the doctor. So, I have "dry beriberi", which is a disorder people get from nutritional deficiencies of Vitamin B-1 or thiamine. According to Wikipedia (my favorite website!)....

"Its symptoms include weight loss, emotional disturbances, impaired sensory perception (Wernicke's encephalopathy), weakness and pain in the limbs, and periods of irregular heart rate."

Well, I certainly have emotional disturbances! :) The treatment is simple...take lots of B-1 and eat legumes, green veggies, and fruit!

Here's the frustrating thing about all of this. Since I got my GB, I have had all of the RARE complications. The chance of getting a stricture is 4%. But of course, I had one. The chance of needing your gallbladder out after GB is about 5%...which we all know how that one ended. Beriberi is also a rare complication. I am such a freak! Let's just see what other fabulously exciting complications are around the corner. I hope NONE!!!!

Little Miss Crabbypatty

WOW. Am I crabby today or WHAT?

I've had this weird leg pain ever since I left the hospital. It's almost like they are numb. Very odd. Anyways, I've been taking just a snippet of pain meds to help them relax before I go to sleep. Yesterday, I ran out. Therefore, I had a wee inkling that this would lead to no sleep. I was SO SO right. I tossed and turned for a good five hours before getting absolutely frustrated and taking a benadryl (which I despise!).

The moral of this story is that I'm in the worst possible mood today. I'm trying to be a bright and happy spirit, but it's not doing a bit of good. I have a doctor's appointment today so maybe there will be some insight shed on my dilemma. Perhaps it's vitamins? There's no telling. Anyways, I'm certain I will get to run all over Baylor getting labs and other asundry things before I go back to work and have to bite my tongue to not hurt my co-worker who has me on call until the end of time. Wasn't that the longest sentence? :) See, I still have somewhat of a sense of humor...

Completely random

Most of my posts actually have some meaning...but not this one. It's just that kinda day. Just thought I'd share some random tidbits with you.

1. I hate folding laundry. I guess most people hate folding it, so that's not the weird part. The weird part is that I love to DO laundry! I love getting every single solitary piece of dirty clothes/towels in my house and throwing it into the washer...I just can't transfer that love to folding. Ick.

2. I'm a terrible box packer. Today, I've packed four boxes that were a completely random mix of stuff. I don't label either. That should be fun for me when I'm attempting to unpack.

3. I'm addicted to water! This is the weirdest thing I've ever had to admit! I used to despise it...never EVER drank it. All I drank was Diet Dr Pepper or Diet Coke. I haven't had either of those things for over three months and I don't miss them at all! I'm also addicted to saltines, but that's a whole different conversation.

4. I despise cooking, but can't get enough of the Food Network. If I could have my five top channels, it would be ABC, NBC, CW, Bravo, and Food Network. Right now, I'm watching a marathon of Next Food Networt Star. Sometimes I wish I could cook. I have so much beautiful kitchen stuff, but most of it just sits there for "someday".

Well, my dryer buzzer is going off. I guess it's time to move the clothes to a chair and put the stuff from the washer in. Hooray for clean clothes! Boo to folding! Anyone like to fold?

In awe

WOWSERS. I now have crossed the halfway mark in my weight loss...and it's only been three months! I'll admit, I haven't had the smoothest journey, but I wasn't expecting it to be easy. After being puny and sick for so long, it's nice to be able to eat like I'm supposed to.

I crossed over one of my first goals this week. I've been waiting to see my weight go below 100kg, which it did today! My second goal is to see my weight go below 200lbs, something I haven't seen since I put on that "freshman 15" or in my case, the freshmen 30. I am SO SO close! WOW! Still can't believe that one.

Thanks for continuing to watch my journey and encourage me. It means more to me than you will ever know.

I despise packing.

It's been a busy week! Wait, aren't they all? I don't know why I'm surprised when each week seems busier than the last. Ah well, I guess it's good that I only have Liberty and Oliver to worry about at home. I can't imaging having to go home to a family and function after one of my very frequent crazy days!

I signed my lease for my new apartment this week! I will get my keys on August 25th, but won't actually move until the 30th. Hopefully that week I will be able to take over some small things that I'm capable of carrying...since I'm strictly forbidden from lifting anything over 20lbs for awhile. Stupid surgery. Now I've started the packing drama. Jennifer and Michael gave me an entire mess of boxes, which saved me from having to buy them. I am dragging them up the stairs, a few at a time. It's quite a sight...me, two dogs, and boxes. I'm trying to pack the non-essential things so I get those things out of the way. My living/dining rooms are now completely de-decorated. I've got a bookcase in the bedroom to hopefully do tonight, but that might not happen.

This week, I'm alone at work. My counterpart is "on vacation", which is mostly delightful. At least I won't have to deal with her drama! I end up being busier, but at least things are usually a bit calmer because I don't freak out at the little stuff like she does. She already gave me an earful of drama before she left on Friday, so I've had my fill for awhile!

Well, I guess I should go pack that bookcase. Or eat dinner. Hmm....which to pick?

Work and other exciting news

I went back to work today. It was thankfully uneventful, but still a wee bit busy. I didn't get a chance to sit as much as I wanted, but hopefully I will tomorrow. We don't have any clinic kids so once I make my rounds, I should be good to sit.

Today, I left work a little bit early and fell asleep almost the instant I sat on the couch. I slept for about an hour and a half, missed 5 phone calls, but woke up rested and feeling better. I really do feel good, I just tire out extremely easily!

SO, for the big news...I'm moving! For those of you who know me well, your next words would probably be "again?" I've actually been at the same place for 2 years now, but am realizing a few things. First of all, gas is ridiculous and I can't afford to live this far away from my job, especially since I'm going to work 5 days a week (when I moved here, I was only working 3 days a week). Second, the road I have to take to work is a toll road. I spend over $80.00 in tolls a month, which is ridiculous! Third, when I moved to this apartment, I was able to miss the traffic going to and from work. Now I am embroiled in it on a daily basis. It takes me 30 minutes to get to work (when it used to take 20!) and normally between 45 min to an hour to get home (again, used to be 20!). I get completely stressed out and frustrated on a daily basis. Considering I already have a stressful job, I don't need to add to it.

SO, I am moving within 5 minutes of my job! This will save me so much time and headache! The rent's higher, but considering the gas/tolls I will save, it won't really make a difference. I will probably actually save money. I'll be able to come home while waiting for a transplant instead of just having to sit at the hospital knowing that Liberty and Oliver are no doubt crossing their little legs and needing to potty. I'm really excited bout this! My move date is the end of August...so keep my stress level in your prayers. I don't really like moving, but am anxiously awaiting a change.

Okay, I'm sleepy. I'm going to bed now. Have a wonderful day tomorrow!

Surviving at home

I've been home since about 9:30 on Monday night. Thank goodness for my own bed! I will say it hasn't been a very fun recovery, but when is surgery recovery fun? :) My biggest complaint is NOT my surgical wounds or my sore abdomen, but has been my jelly like legs! I was in the hospital, not moving around or getting any nutrition for a week before my surgery. All my happy leg muscles atrophied because there was a bigger need for my body to kind of "feed" off itself to get the nutrition it was lacking. Now I am paying the price for that! My pitiful legs are all tingly and don't wish to behave as they should. At least it's taking my mind off the fact that I had abdominal surgery, which is one of the more painful surgeries! :)

I've been spending the week walking around the apartment, carefully attempting to go up and down the stairs to take Liberty outside, and doing my own physical therapy to get my legs back into tip top shape before I have to go back to work. Thankfully, I had already asked for this week off to go to camp, so I am not taking off any unexpected time. It has been so amazing to see how much better I can eat now that the stinky gall bladder is gone! I was so concerned before the surgery that I would have the GB out and it would not be the reason for the constant nausea and vomiting! Thank GOODNESS that was not the case! I have been able to eat exactly what I should be eating after a gastric bypass WITHOUT NAUSEA! Hooray! I've already decided I'm never going to make it during the nauseating 1st trimester of pregnancy...or maybe I'll do really great now that I've endured a month of it!

Liberty has been quite clingy since I got home, which is understandable after not seeing me for 10 days. She always seems to be touching me in some fashion, either curled up next to me or sitting by me. I don't really mind, seeing as one of my mental breakdowns in the hospital involved not having her as a comforting factor next to me.

Anyways, that's pretty much all that's going on here. Eating. Sleeping. Exercising. :)

Updates!

Well, I did have my gall bladder out on Saturday morning. I went in about 8AM, was done around 9:30AM, and finally got out of recovery to my new room around 6PM. Isn't that ridiculous? I had many lovely visitors in the recovery room, in higher volumes than normal because there really were only 2 other people in there! It was so empty! The BEST part of the recovery room (well, except for the morphine pain pump!) was that I had the very same sweet nurse as when I had my bypass surgery in April! I had loved her so much I named my new little stomach i.e. my "pouch" after her. Her name is Betty, and she's Baylor's BEST PACU nurse! I really didn't hurt or feel anything because she was right there, meds in hand, to make me comfortable. She remembered me too!

I spent Saturday night trying to stay pain controlled. Sunday, I was all set to go home when the resident came in and said that my liver function labs were wacky and I needed to stay another day for monitoring. BLECH! SO, I stayed and was bored for another day...very thankful that Tammy was in town to entertain me. I did NOT sleep well last night, for unknown reasons. Today, my labs are still elevated, but they are improved. The resident is ready to send me home, but just has to get clearance from the attending.

I'm on a different floor than I started the week on, but it's been okay. I've had great nurses, great techs and everyone has been really nice,

All in all, with the exception of one mean nurse last week and a bunch of blown IV's, this experience at Baylor has been okay. After the dry heaving stopped, it still wasn't enjoyable, but the nurses made the time go faster. I will certainly recommend this hospital to anyone who asks@

More surgery!

Tomorrow morning, I will be having my gall bladder out. After many tests and procedures, my surgeon thinks this is the best option to rid me of the nausea.

I got a PICC line today, much to my happiness! Now they can draw labs from it, have an absolutely perfect place for IV fluids, and NO MORE STICKS! Hooray! :)

Hopefully, I'll be able to get my gall bladder out, control the nausea, and be home in a few days. I'm sure Liberty misses me, even though she's having a wonderous time with Sam and Max.

Have a wonderful 4th of July!

Minor improvement

Well, the good news is that I am no longer dry heaving! My stomach has decided it would rather no contort every hour or so. I am still extremely nauseated with anything I put in my mouth, but at least it stays down. I've seen a whole army of doctors, each with a theory as to the reason...

1. Surgery-my surgeon said there is "sludge" in my gallbladder. This can sometimes cause people a big enough problem with nausea and it would have to be removed. The thing I LOVE about my surgeon is that he's not anxious to take out right now. He'd rather try other things. I'm also having a lot of dizziness, which could indicate a inner ear infection. I'm on 2 meds for that. I'm also blowing IV sites left and right...not something good for someone who is completely dependent on IV fluids for hydration. I'm supposed to be getting a PICC line tonight or early tomorrow. This will allow me to have an IV that won't go bad and can have blood drawn from it. He also wants to start some "fats" or lipids, to help my energy level.

2. GI-The gastroenterologist thinks I might have some "delayed motility" which basically means my stomach doesn't empty as fast as it should. It wouldn't seem to make sense that I could still be throwing up with absolutely nothing in my stomach, but then again, I swallow spit all day long and that's what is coming up. He started me on a medication that would help my stomach empty faster. Can't tell if it's working or not.

3. Neurology-so starting about Saturday, I started having double vision. THis unnerved my surgeon, so he wanted me to have an MRI and a neurology consult. The neurologist came in today and said that I probably have a kinking of my 4th cranial nerve from all the dry heaving. He said he's seen that a lot and it's the explanation that makes the most sense.

So, all of these explanations are jumbled together and I don't even know what to make of it all anymore. I'm REALLY tired of being in this bed, but I know I wouldn't make at home without being able to drink. So, I'll just slowly work on advancing my food...and one day, I might be able to go home.

I've had lots of wonderful visitors this week and I am SO thankful. It's very VERY disheartening to be in this position, so THANK YOU to all who have come by, those who have called, and those who have prayed for me. I hope I am on the road to healing..

Please pray....

I am miserable. I've been here for three long days with no answers. I keep throwing up and no one seems to have one teensie weensie clue as to what is wrong. I'm getting very VERY disheartened and don't have the energy to fight anymore. I haven't had real food since Thursday.

Please keep me in your prayers.

Back into Baylor again....

Thank goodness for free wireless! It's nice that between the puking and the multitudes of nasty tests my doctor has put me through, I can check my email! :) If you haven't figured it out already, I got re-admitted to the hospital late last night for not being able to stop throwing up. I had to go in through the ER this time, and waited about 10 hours for a bed in the hospital. So far, with the exception of one floor nurse, all my nurses and staff have been wonderful. I'm getting lots of fluid and anti-nausea meds. I've had a abdominal sono and a cat scan, both of which were normal. My doctor has me scheduled for an upper GI tomorrow which will allow them to see how the contrast goes through my GI tract. Hopefully, it will give them some answers as to why I can't eat normally.

I did get the chance (between the puking) to go see Spamalot with Michael and Jennifer yesterday. It was HILARIOUS! I wish I would have felt better so I could have enjoyed it more, but it was still a great show.

So now, I'm tied to a bed here at Baylor, looking fabulous with my hospital gown, capri pant pajama bottoms, anti-blood clot hose, footy socks, and wild hair. I'm quite the sight. I'm hoping my IV stays good so I don't have to get stuck half a billion times like last time.

Thanks for checking in. I have my cell if you want to contact me while I'm here.

Hooray for deals!

I just found 3 pairs of capri pants at Walmart for $9 each! Fabulous! That will absolutely help my need to have camp clothes. Now, I just need to find some shirts...

Wow! Was last week CRAZY or what? Work seemed to explode with more and more kids needing to be evaluated for transplant, kids having complications, but ironically (and kinda thankfully), no one was transplanted! It was BUSY! I was so happy to have Friday come around and have the weekend start! Shockingly, it's been a relatively quiet weekend, although that can change at the drop of a hat.

I've felt pretty good this weekend. I've gotten all my liquids in, and have even eaten more than one meal a day! I win! I'm still working SO hard on eating the things that I know my body wants...like protein. I'm having to get over some humps that I had right before my stricture. I got REALLY burned out on lunch meat and cheese, even though those are great protein sources. I need to get back to where I want to eat those things because right now, the thought of them makes me dry heave. It's completely psychological, so any suggestions on how to overcome that would be helpful!

In two weeks, I'll be going to camp! Oh yes, you DID read that right! I'm going to be a camp nurse at my church's brand new camp in Hawkins. I'm so excited! I'm a tad nervous at the thought of being outside and having to maintain REALLY good hydration, but I'm hoping by that point, I'll be fine! :) It should be so much fun...and now I just need to get prepared! I don't really have any clothes that fit, and that might just be a good thing to have. I'll have to go to Goodwill because I do NOT want to go buying new clothes for a week and then I'll be shrinking on out of them. Thankfully, the nurse's station does have a washer/dryer, so perhaps I'll be able to recycle some of my clothes and not have to find so many!

Life just does not get any more exciting than that...or at least I hope not! I need some calm! :)

Advancing slowly

My diet of choice this week has been the good, old, reliable clear liquid. I learned about 24 hours after my stricture dilation that clears were about the only thing my sensitive stomach was going to handle right then. I've mostly kept to that and have only really ventured out in my choices the last few days.

I have discovered that my nausea/vomiting really only likes to come in the morning. It's like I'm pregnant. I've learned to take nausea medication when I get up, and about 75% of the time, I can ward off the episodes. Some days, I'm not so lucky. If you see me in the morning and I look a little off, it's probably one of those bad mornings!

Other than the puking, I'm doing pretty well. I'm trying to get back to the part of my diet where I can eat the majority of my protein in food. I go back to the doctor in 2 weeks...hopefully by then I will have accomplished something! My energy levels are good, but usually not until the afternoons! I've lost a total of 53lbs in my 8 weeks, which I think is pretty good. I'm hoping that this isn't too fast. I don't want to waste away faster than I should. That doesn't seem healthy at all!

I am STILL off call, which thrills me to no end. I don't go back on call until this weekend, when I go on with my favorite surgeon who won't wake me up with every single offer. I actually don't have any plans this weekend, which usually means I'll be stuck transplanting in the OR. That's usually how it goes. And with SEVEN kids waiting, it's only a matter of time.

Liberty and Oliver have been so funny the last few days! Yesterday, I spilled some dog food in the laundry basket while I was refilling the food containers. The dogs found it necessary to drag the laundry basket across the room, almost removing a shirt through the holes. They were determined to get those four pieces out! Crazies.

Well, it's getting late and I do have to be up in the morning...blast it all. I have NEVER been a snooze girl and I'm getting SO bad about it. My snooze is only three minutes...so is it really worth it? Most likely no.

My breaking point

This past week has been absolutely draining to me. I have had no energy, looked white as a sheet, and haven't been able to eat or drink very much at all. It's been miserable. I pushed through because I knew I had to be at work, being the only coordinator in town. I had a brand new transplant, a funeral to attend, and all the run of the mill work things to accomplish....which would normally not be a big deal! I was never so happy to see Friday come when I went off call!

Friday, I went to the doctor for my 6 week check up. The PA (NOT my surgeon) checked me out, figured I was low in some vitamin level, and sent me to get labs drawn. I was convinced I was anemic, so I asked when the levels would be back...oh don't worry..."We'll call you around Tuesday with your levels and tell you what to do!" I was infuriated. I was going to get to spend the entire weekend feeling like GARBAGE. I even think I said that to her. She gave me a shot of B12 and sent me on my way. At the lab, they drew almost TWO ounces of blood (hey, if I wasn't anemic before, I sure would be after!). Around this time, my friend Kris called me and asked me how the doctor's visit went. I pretty much unloaded on her every angry feeling about the experience. She was equally shocked that pretty much nothing had been done. I went home, slept, and hoped I would feel better the next day. Well, not so much as it turned out. Then the puking began....and I had nothing in my stomach to puke. I went shopping with Whitney and Eli...and then things just started getting worse pretty fast. I finally broke down and called my surgeon. He was concerned and told me he wanted me to go be admitted at the hospital for severe dehydration and what he thought was a stricture. In the world of gastric bypass, a stricture is swelling where the stomach pouch meets the small intestine.

I ended up getting admitted, getting almost no sleep that night, and had IV's started for hydration. I got about 3 liters before I actually used the bathroom...which is VERY scary! :) Sunday, my poor sad dehydrated veins were blowing fast so I kept getting poked....for a total of 12 times. ICK. When my surgeon visited me on Sunday, he told me I needed a endoscopy and a balloon dilation of that stoma. Thankfully, this does not "ruin" my surgery. It happens in about 4% of gastric bypass patients. Of course, I would have to be in that small percentage. Today, I was taken for endoscopy where it was discovered that I did have a stricture. It was dilated and my world became a new and wonderful place again! I'm still weak fom the week of not eating, but I'm feeling better every hour that goes by. I was discharged this evening and am now happily at home. Of course, I look like I've been doing drugs with all my multiple IV bruises...but oh well.

Thank you to ALL those who came to visit me, brought me flowers, sent me sweet and encouraging text messages, and kept me in your prayers. I'm hoping that in the next few days, I'll be back to happy and correct eating. I'll probably go back work on Wednesday...energized and not looking like death!

The way it always goes!

It would just figure that the day I would go back on call, I'd be transplanting all night long. Ah well, as long as the babies get hearts, I'm okay with that. I think the last transplant we did, I had just come on that same day as well! How weird! :) It was my first transplant since my surgery, and it was SO hard to stay hydrated! Thankfully, the OR nurse is pregnant and she needed to keep drinking too...so she helped me remember! Every 15 minutes or so, I'd sneak off to side room to take a drink.

The rest of the weekend was spent catching up on sleep and general lounging around. At one point in my sleepy haze on Saturday, I started some laundry...which turned out to be an entire weekend project (even though it was only one load!). Oliver took advantage of my sleeping time by shredding toys and popsicle sticks all over the floor. I believe Liberty just slept next to me during his run of destruction, but I can't be sure.

Today, I got some horrible news...one of my very closest friends' mom passed away last night. Please keep Amanda and her family in your prayers. Amanda's mom was a believer, so I absolutely know she's in a better place right now. My friends are I are way too young to be losing parents.

On a more joyful note, today is my parents 35th wedding anniversary. WOW! I am so blessed to be born to parents who picked right the first time and stuck it out for all of these years. They have produced three normal (well, I guess you could say semi-normal) children, all of whom have college educations, good jobs, and morals. Six puppies call them grandma and grandpa. They've set a wonderful example of what marriage should be.

Well, sleep should be calling soon....and hopefully not any heart offers! :)

WOWSERS.

Eleven pounds. Nine days. I would no longer qualify for weight loss surgery. Enough said.

Sniff, blow, hack.

Arg. I can't tell if I have allergies and sinus pressure or a cold. Either one is uncomfortable. This was NOT how today was supposed to go. I have today off of work to spend with my friends. Instead, I am alternating tylenol cold and tylenol allergy sinus, hopefully to catch whichever disease process I am fighting. I'm drinking lots of water to flush out the nasties, but can't really tell if that's helping or not.

I hate it...whichever one it is.

It's WAY too hot!

I wish that it wasn't a blazing inferno in May. I realize we've been spared from the horrid temperatures for a year or so. Last summer was not bad at all...but this spring/summer is already torture. Why, oh WHY does it have to be hitting almost 100 with 100% humidity? It's just RUDE!

I learned yesterday that my 4 week post op self can NOT handle the heat. Let's just say fainting episodes were involved. NOT fun.

Yesterday, we had the 20th anniversary Children's heart transplant picnic. It was SO much fun! We had a bounce house, a DJ, TONS of food, and probably about 250 people! It was at a really beautiful park with a huge wooden play area for the kids, and a pavilion for all us weenies who need shade. I was there about 5 hours and stayed in the shade probably 4.75 of those hours...and still got sick. I even drank water all day long! So frustrating. Other than my episode, which thankfully occurred near the end when most of the people had gone, I had a wonderful time! I got to play with my kiddos in an atmosphere that isn't the hospital. I got led around by a 3 year old who was screetching "Miss Stephanie! Let's go BOUNCE!!!" and "Miss Stephanie! We need to color on the ground!". So fun! I have so many great families who were able to come! It was a great party! We were even on the news!

After the party, Michael, Jen, and I (plus all our pups) went to my grandma's in Fort Worth to eat dinner with her and my parents. It was nice to be in an air conditioned house! I was supposed to go to Scarborough Faire with Michael and Jennifer today, but the heat was not going to permit that. Liberty and I will busy ourselves with cleaning the house instead. Tonight, I'm going to dinner with friends...so that will be tons of fun!

I don't go back to work until Wednesday, so I'll have to postpone my weigh in until then. Hooray for time off!

Hooray!

Three more pounds! I am in shock! I need to take some 1 month pictures...

Keep your eyes on the ticker in the top right hand corner to keep eyes on my progress!

The love of friends

In the grand scheme of things, I am a very blessed woman. God has given me a multitude of people whom I can tell my troubles and share my happiness. These people have seen me through thick and thin, bad and good, happy and sad. Some of these people haven't been directly involved in my life for some time, but I know they are there and if I needed them, they'd absolutely support me.

Back in 2003, I started going to a new church with an amazing singles group, Ironically, most of the people in that group are no longer single, but we still get together a couple of times a year. We play games, eat, celebrate milestones, and do a lot of talking! If I need these people, they would absolutely jump in to help me at a moments notice. Five years have passed, but I still consider them some of my closest friends. It always makes me happy when there's an event involving them! Tonight we got together for a BBQ and sat outside talking in the absolutely beautiful weather! Of course, my idea of BBQ was 1/4 of a hamburger patty and four pickles! I made potato salad to take with me, one of my favorite recipes from my mother, and I didn't even miss eating it! The group even had margaritas and I sat there and just happily drank my water. It's odd how my tastes have changed in just a month.

I have decided to weigh myself every Monday on the scale at work. Last week, I'd lost 3 more pounds for a total of 27. I'm interested to see what the scale tells me!

Health wise, I'm doing okay. My endurance is getting better every day! I'm still tired at the end of the day, but I seem to be able to push through. A couple of days last week, I did feel the need to nap once I got home from work, but power naps seem to help! I'm really going to work this week at getting in some exercise, which I know will eventually help my energy level. One big piece of news is my pain is finally gone! I occasionally have "pouch issues"...like if I drink water too fast, or take that one extra bite when I feel full, but the abdominal pain from the actual surgery is gone! I wanted to wait until it was gone so I could exercise without the added issue of muscle pain!

Hope your weekend is wonderful!

Still recovering...

I'm not gonna lie...it's been a really HARD week. I went back to work last Monday to the happiness of my co-workers. I've really never felt so much love from a group of people I worked with! Everyone was SO sweet to me and wanted to know how I was feeling. I got a lot of compliments...and it was easy to see why when I got dressed that morning in my normal work clothes and realized they were falling off! When I got on the scale, I learned that I was down a total of 24lbs in 3 weeks! How nuts is that?

Starting on Tuesday, I was by myself doing both the inpatient and the outpatient. I really wasn't that busy, but my body was absolutely not prepared for the stress of doing all that work on my own. By Thursday, two of my closest doctor friends were asking me if I felt alright because I did not look right. I had stopped being able to sleep all the way through the night. I was completely overtired and had no energy. Thankfully, I work with great people who were absolutely willing to work with me, and in some cases, yell at me to go home!

I spent the weekend sleeping. Thankfully, I was able to sleep uninterrupted....for the first time in three or four days. Of course, I was still on call, but my sleep was only interrupted once and it wasn't for a heart we were going to take.

I went to work today, excited and nervous to weigh in. I started eating solid foods this week and the big girl inside me was just convinced I wasn't going to lose anything. I was wrong. I lost another 3 pounds! WOW!

Not much exciting going on this week. I'm still trying to recover after pushing myself too hard this week. I just have a feeling we're going to transplant soon...we've got two sweet kiddos who need hearts badly.

Well, I've just become very angry at the TV...so I guess I should turn it off and go to bed. Bed is the best thing right now. Have a great week.

Back to the land of the living...

Tomorrow I go back to work. I am excited to see my friends and sweet patients...but not excited to be back working. I worry that I'm going to overdo it and end up having to take more days off...which I can't afford to do. My lovely and ever-so-thoughtful co-worker decided she would take off Tuesday through the following Sunday. This worries me because what if I have to leave at the half day mark because I'm just TOO tired and hurting to finish? I'm also going to be on donor call...which is just too thrilling for words. Oh well...if she's going to be petty, then I'll just ignore the pettyness and do my job to the absolute best of my ability...like I always do.

As far as my recovery goes, I am feeling better every day. I still tire out pretty easily, but it's getting better as long as I don't push myself. I can sleep in any position I want to, which is SO much better than on my back! I'm not taking my pain meds during the day, and only occasionally at night. I'm actually getting all my protein in after many MANY different protein combinations! I go back to the doctor on Tuesday for my 2 week check up, and I think he'll be pleased! I'm hoping he says I can start a "mild" exercise program. I tried last week and ended up hurting and my abdomen HATED it! I was told to hold off until I talked to the doctor!

Tomorrow, I will weigh myself for the first time in 2 weeks...and we'll see. I think some of my clothes feel more loose...but I won't believe until I see the number on that scale! :)

I am so glad I took the 2nd week off...I think I needed it to feel alive again! Keep me in your prayers as I try to make it through what will most likely be a busy work week as I'm trying to get back into the groove and I'm doing it alone. Hope your week is wondeful too!

Protein fun!

Today has been a productive day! I was told to begin my MEGA protein intake 1 week after my surgery...well, that would be today! I can not even believe that I am already one week post op! Craziness! Anyways, I started the protein adventure today. Before surgery, I had bought protein powder to make shakes because I knew I would not be eating enough food to even come close to my 60-75mg of daily requirement. I didn't open it or smell it because I was told that there was a great possibility that something I liked beforehand, I would be disgusted by afterwards. I opened the container today to make my first shake. My first mistake would be that I used the blender. This produced a disgusting whipped sensation. My pouch hates things that are full of air...so whipped protein goo did NOT agree with it. I decided to persevere because after all, this protein powder came from Walmart! I tried it again without the blender, just mixing it with water. This fared slighly better, but still tasted not so grand. I finished it (cause I didn't want to waste!) so I could get that 23g of protein in, but decided that until I can drink 6-8oz of milk, this powder is not going to work for me. Mixing it with water is disgusting. So, the only other solution was to reach out to the GB message board, which has become so helpful the last week, for a solution. One person recommended these 3oz protein bullets. They have 42g of protein! YIKES! They come in multiple flavors and are sold at GNC. I bought a few at GNC today and am loving them already! These are really going to be helpful until I can get to the milk drinking point.

Other than that, I've walked to the mailbox (yes, I can hear the sarcastic ooh's and aah's), read a book, and written this blog! Pretty good for someone who had abdominal surgery a week ago! I am very surprised how good I feel. I did not expect that! My purpose this week is to get my endurance up to work a full day. Next week should be interesting. Not only am I getting thrown back into work, but I'll also be on donor call too...what a welcome! It will be SO much fun getting my fluids in if I'm in a transplant! :)

Okay. I think I've probably bored you enough with my protein fiasco. Enjoy your day! It's BEAUTIFUL here! :)

Recovery

Things here in the recovery ward are going quite well. I am still very exhausted most of the time, but I am able to drink more and more each day and I feel less sore as the days go by! I am still only able to drink about 40oz a day, which doesn't seem like much compared to what I used to be able to put away! I am doing my very best to stay hydrated, which is pretty much the only goal of the 1st week! Next week, I'll start my protein extravaganza. I have to have 60-75 grams of protein every day! YIKES! It's too bad they don't make a shot for that. I'd invest in that one, if I could!

Mom left this morning, much to the sadness of Liberty, who proceeded to cry at the door for 1/2 an hour. She's already safe at home and that makes me sad, although I didn't choose to weep at the door like my dog! I am SO very thankful she was here, I would NEVER have been able to go through the week without her!

I'm off to watching a Jane Austen fest this afternoon. I have Sense and Sensibility, Becoming Jane, and The Jane Austen Book Club. I'm excited! :)

I'm home!

I left my house at 4:30am yesterday! ICK! I had to stop at the hospital lab first to ensure I wasn't pregnant! :) Next came day surgery, where I signed in and waiting until they took me to pre-op. I got an IV and met the anesthesia doctor. My surgeon also came to say hello. I think I was in surgery for about an hour and a half. I woke up in the recovery room, and it was a MUCH nicer wake up than my last surgery. I stayed in recovery for about 5 hours and then went up to my room.

I had a pain pump filled with Morphine so I didn't worry too much the first couple hours. I got up and walked twice yesterday evening. I took some meds to help me sleep and went off to la la land. And that's when all the noise began! There was something waking me up about every two hours or so. Vitals, IV bag changes, Checking the morphine pump, MORE vital signs (I guess they didn't like that my BP was 74/39 and my oxygen levels were 90). These techs did not learn how to be quiet. They pretty much wanted to have a conversation while I was sleeping! I was already crabby from lack of sleep...they should have known better!

Ah well, my night of torture is over. I was discharged this morning and am happily at home to finish recovering! I am still very VERY sore and feel like I was hit by a train, but hopefully this will not last for too long.

Thanks to everyone who lifted me up in prayer, they were much appreciated! I still have a long way to go...

Sixth Sense

Liberty Grace has a sixth sense. She has the innate ability to sense change. She despises change, and loves to act out in response to it. She's been quite the character the last 12 hours. Thank goodness for camera phones that have allowed me to document this ridiculous behavior!
uer Last night, I was folding an insane amount of clothes. I was putting away towels when she pulled this maneuver...



This morning, I went and bought food for both her and Oliver. Since I'm not supposed to lift more than 20lbs for the first month or so, I knew I needed to get the food situation under control before surgery. To keep the food fresh, I transfer it to a big rubbermaid bin. After the transfer, Liberty decided she needed to help finish off the crumbs INSIDE the bag. Retard!

Desperate times...

...call for very desperate measures. I just mixed pickle juice with chicken broth so I could actually have something that was flavored and NOT bland. It sounds gross, but it was SO SO good! I've been especially crabby this week...mostly just hungry! Perhaps that's why I simply cracked and needed to put pickle juice in my broth. I'm so random.

It seems unreal that I'm having surgery in two days. I have so many people wishing me well, it makes it much easier to go!

Oliver and Liberty seem unphased, with the exception of being pitiful because there's no dropped food.

This weekend brings a LOT of cleaning. I'd rather not recover in a pigsty. Here's my list...since everyone blogging around me seems to list their chores:

~Finish the kitchen (have to run a load of dishes and put them away)
~LAUNDRY (#1 priority...I have lots of piles of clean clothes that need to be folded!)
~Wash all my sheets
~vacuum (this must be done after Oliver leaves...or else the shredding will continue)
~Declutter the kitchen table
~PACK! (I have never been overnight in a hospital before...so I have no idea what to bring!)

Let's see how much I can get done tonight! :)

YAWN.

I'm sleepy. I got home around 4:45AM from a transplant. It went very well, but I am so exhausted. I woke up from a "nap" about 30 minutes ago with a splitting caffeine withdrawl headache. I'm hoping the tylenol and the chocolate slimfast shake will help soon.

I've been told the second day is the worst. I would have to agree, although I think I have extenuating circumstances with the transplant last night. My body has completely rebelled and all I wanted on the way home yesterday was a cheeseburger! I know this will be worth it in the long run, but I'm not happy about it. Perhaps it's a good thing that I'm not going to work today...I'm pretty crabby!

So I will sit here. With my sweet puppies who are feeling abandoned from yesterday. And we will snuggle and NOT think about cheeseburgers. :)

I'm a disgrace!

I was in Boston for five days and took TWO pictures. TWO! I am the QUEEN of pictures, and I took TWO. There's just no excuse for that. Now I'll have to go back!


Boston Public Library

Trinity Church, Copley Place

Again, sorry for the LACK of pictures...but I'm sure you didn't want pictures of the conference rooms. Even I didn't want to see those~

I'm currently enjoying my last Diet Dr Pepper. It's bittersweet, but exciting for all the things to come! :)

Boston 2008

Word to the wise: if you ever have the opportunity to go to a beautiful and historic city like Boston for a conference, make sure you either come early or stay late. I am very frustrated that I have not been able to experience Boston the way I would have liked too, but I have still been exposed to some wonderful things! I got here on Tuesday, on a MD80, two flights before American shut them all down! I guess it pays to take the earlier than early flight. I took the “T” from the airport down to the area where my hotel was. It was very reminiscent of Washington DC where you come off a giant escalator into the most beautiful surroundings! I was instantly blown away by the Boston Public Library, the oldest library in America and Trinity Church. I’ll have to download pictures off my camera when I’m not sitting in the airport without the cords! I hiked the block and a half to my hotel, lugging my enormous suitcase behind me. I stayed in the Copley Place Marriot, which was gigantic and fabulous!  I had a really long and boring meeting that afternoon which was only made better by the chocolate and sandwiches! After the meeting, I checked into the hotel, only to wait for all my co-workers whose planes had been affected by the massive American cancellations. Once my roommate Lisa got there, we went with the other transplant cardiologist to a delicious seafood restaurant for dinner! YUM! Legal Seafood is apparently a Boston staple and it was divine! Wednesday, the official conference began and our days were suddenly filled with meeting after meeting after meeting! For dinner, we went over to Harvard for a meeting of one of the research projects we are involved in. We also went to scope out Children’s of Boston. Thursday bought more meetings….I’m telling you, the highlights of my trip involve the fabulous food! Thursday, I went with Lisa, Kris (my favorite surgeon!), and another physician who had previously done transplant at my hospital to another delicious seafood restaurant that Kris knew about. She’s from Boston, so we figured she’d pretty much know where to go…and she did. That night, we went back to Legal Seafood for dinner and drinks with all the Dallas gang. Friday…can you guess? More meetings! Friday was a great day for several reasons…first of all, I went absolutely crazy for free stuff in the exhibit hall. Let’s just say I have my fair share (and probably some other people’s too) of drug pens. Kris, Lisa, and I did sushi for lunch…which I fall more in love with every time I eat it! Lisa presented a research poster we had all worked on in the afternoon, which was really exciting because we were able to get into some lively debates with other hospital groups! Afterwards, the conference was throwing a “gala” at the Boston Public Library which involved an open bar (which was WAY fun to watch people enjoy!), lots of finger foods, and beautiful, yet crowded surroundings. Lisa and I were starting to feel very claustrophobic, so we left and went up into the Prudential building, which has the most beautiful lounge on the 52nd floor! We drank wine and just fell in love with the buildings at night! Today, I’m headed back home. I haven’t been able to do much of the touristy things I wanted to do, but now that I know how beautiful this city is, I will absolutely be back. I also didn’t get very many pictures, but that can be remedied at another visit! Right now, I’m sitting in some airport restaurant, trying to pass the time. I’m sitting next to a guy who is eating the cloves right out of a bulb of roasted garlic. EW! I think that’s perfectly fine to do when you are at home…but right before you get on a plane? I think I should start praying now that he is not sitting next to me. On a different random restaurant note, the waiter just passed me and said “How’s my lady friend doing?” Weird. I now have big plans to go find my gate and listen to my iPod until the plane boards.

I have less than 48 hours until my eating habits will drastically change. Starting Monday, I’ll be doing only clear liquids and protein drinks until my surgery a week later. I also have to stop taking ibuprofen and get ready to start doing my blood thinner shots (EW!) Please keep me in your prayers as I go off caffeine completely and make do with only liquids. It’s gonna be worth it in the end, but I don’t want to make people crazy!

Beware of the white nastiness.

If anyone ever wants you to hhave an upper GI, please make sure it is for a VERY good reason. You might even want to ask for some anti-nausea medication first. I might have been okay...if I did not have to lay on a table and roll around so I can "coat my stomach". I'm still trying to work the barium out of my system...not a pleasing thought.

I also had a chest xray, labs, an EKG, an abdominal sonogram, and a leg ultrasound. According to the sonographer, I have no gallstones, a nice looking liver, clot free leg veins, and leg arteries that show that I've never smoked! (thank goodness for that!) It was a very busy morning. I had plans to go to work afterwards, but the overwhelming nausea was enough for me to say NOT in a million years.

Tomorrow, I am going to Boston! :) Hooray for trips!

The busyness of it all!

I do not protest to have the most busy life ever, but for the next few weeks, it's pretty crazy! Tomorrow, I have a nutrition class to attend. I can not wait to hear what I can and can not eat! My sister in law bought me a fabulous book for cooking after weight loss surgery, which is something I am absolutely committed to doing. Here's where I am going to need MAJOR prayer...I hate to cook. I despise it. I'm terrible at it. I am going to HAVE to start liking it. That's just all there is to it. I will no longer be focused on fast food because that is not a wise food choice for me.

I also have a morning long doctor's appointment on Monday. I have labs, chest xray, and an EKG starting at 7:30AM (EW!). Afterwards, I move on to a sonogram of my abdomen to look at all the structures they will be operating on. THEN, I have to go for an Upper GI test, where I drink barium and they watch on a screen to see if I reflux. Disgusting. It's gonna be an icky day. I don't think I'm going to work after that fiasco. :(

Tuesday, I leave for Boston at 6AM. EW! I would not normally go that early, but I have a meeting for a research project I am in charge of.....so I have to be there by 1pm. Just lovely. The absolute BEST part of the trip is that my roommate will be my fabulous friend Lisa! She's the new transplant attending MD and she and I are absolute kindred spirits! She's so much fun, and we're already planning fun times! Not to mention that Boston is my surgeon friend Kris' home town and she will no doubt need to show us the sights! Love it! :)

I get home from the conference on Saturday, the 12th. I will spend the next day and a half eating all the foods I will not be eating for awhile. Starting Monday, the 14th, I will have to start an all liquid diet...EW! I'll be allowed Slimfast....and anything clear and sugar free. Jello. Broth. Juice. EW! I'm not excited about it...but oh well.

For those of you who were wondering, I will be having the RNY gastric bypass on the 21st. I did major research on the RNY vs the lap band and found the RNY to be the better choice for me. I'll let you know more if you want, just ASK.

Okay. Bedtime calling.

Judge if you will....

For those of you who have known me for a long time, I've always struggled with this problem. I've tried everything under the sun, but nothing seems to stick for long. I've done a lot of thinking, researching, and pondering in order to come to this decision. I HATE being overweight...and it's time to actually give myself a true chance to be successful and keep it that way.

SO, on April 21st, I will be having weight loss surgery. Some people may view this move as taking the easy way out...but I don't think so. The myth of this surgery is that you don't have to do anything...the weight just falls off and you never have to worry a day in your life. This is not the case. Weight loss surgery is just a tool. If you are interested, I'll be glad to tell you more. If you aren't, I'd just ask you to pray for me on April 21st around 8am.

I've got a long road ahead of me...even just to get to my surgery date. Days of no Advil, a week of only liquids, and the fear of pain await me. I'm going to need a lot of support, even if you don't agree with my decision.

On a completely different note, I am SO excited to go to Boston in 9 days! I have never been there but have ALWAYS wanted to go! I'm staying in this very beautiful and lovely hotel right in the heart of the history! Excitement!

Okay, better be off. There are many puppies in this house who are circling my feet for attention!

April 21

A new start. A big change. A drastic move. A well thought out plan.

Want more?

Exciting times!

Well, some very exciting things are brewing....but you have to wait until after Friday morning to discover them. Let me just warn you, they are FABULOUS! :)

This week has been perfectly hilarious. I have spent the week watching a 40ish woman act like a child....and who wouldn't find that funny? Really! :) I also fell completely out of my chair today, right in front of all the cardiac clinic nurses and one of the ICU attendings (a cute one at that!). Thankfully, said ICU attending helped me OFF the floor and didn't comment on my lack of grace. For those of you who DON'T know, I actually broke my arm after falling out of a chair today whilst teaching a room of 7th graders in 2001! Never let it be said that my teaching days were boring!

Work is busy. We're listing kids left and right, which makes it so much harder for the person on call! The more kids that are on the list, the busier it gets! :) I think we may actually list three kids in the next few days...which is madness!

SO, stay tuned for future announcements. I am excited about it! :)

Dana's challenge!

Dana asked what our song would be. I absolutely agree with Kendi when she said she would be a mix tape. I have so MANY songs that define certain points in my life. There are songs that remind me of good times, and songs that make me want to absolutely shut OFF the radio.

One song that means the WORLD to me is sung by one of my favorite groups of all time. Why do I love them so? Well, they are down to earth, hilarious, and produce the most beautiful 4 part harmonies I've ever heard. I've seen them in concert since the mid 90's and never tire of their voices and stories. This song has seen me through some hard times. I listened to it five times in a row before I could muster up the courage to go into take my nursing boards. I've listened to it when I was happy, just because I wanted to hear the beautiful harmony section (skip to 3:20!). I've listened to it in order to encourage myself that I need to remain true to who I am.

So enjoy Avalon singing "Testify to Love". I know I have and will for years to come. Thanks Jody, Janna, Michael, and Melissa...you're amazing! :)

The never-ending drama!

My job is drama. Sheer drama. Let's just say that I am a serious threat to my co-worker...in her eyes, NOT mine! Today, I spent a lot of time working on research projects because there was absolutely nothing else to do in the outpatient world! Ah well, it's really feast or famine. At least when I have projects to do, I feel productive and get my name on research papers! Fabulous! :)

Liberty is sick again. I thought she was better and had even moved her food back to normal food. Her little doxie stomach did okay for a few days, but she got sick in her crate today which is completely unlike her. SO, we're back to the antibiotics and bland food. She'll survive. She hasn't lost her appetite, so I think we're gonna be ok.

I'm starting to count down the days until I go to Boston. Did I mention I am going to Boston? I can't remember. Anyways, I'm going to the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation conference in Boston! I'm staying with one of the docs and I am excited to go and learn! I'm also excited to meet all the people I've been networking with over the last few weeks! I've been doing a small survey project for my surgeon and it involves me calling a lot of transplant centers. I'm excited to meet people who do exactly what I do! I find at these transplant conferences, there are a lot of liver and kidney coordinators, but heart coordinators are few and far between.

One of my favorite reality shows started last night! I love Top Chef! What a great show for someone who is SO addicted to cooking shows, but can barely boil water! :) I really miss having The Food Network....so this is a good alternative. I'm a sucker for reality TV! Next week, the Bachelor and Dancing with the Stars starts again! How exciting is my week!?! I really am not that attached to my television. I survived in Honduras for 2 weeks without it...I just think reality TV is hilarious! :)

Tomorrow I am going to one of my very sweetest patient's schools. She was transplanted the day after Christmas and is going back to school after spring break. She's so excited for us to do this! I absolutely love her! It will be nice to see her in her natural environment and meet all her friends!

Okay. I guess I've rambled enough. Liberty is sitting on the couch across the room from me, just staring creepily at me. Creepy ween!

I'm alive!

I know, I know...this seems like a strange, yet obvious title. However, if you'll indulge me, I'll explain why it's so amazing! :)

First of all, I get hit by GI bugs very VERY easily. If your friend's friend is throwing up, chances are, I will be soon. I am just very fragile when it comes to that, and I really REALLY hate it! Thursday night, I went to bed feeling full. I hadn't really had all that much to eat, but it still felt odd. I woke up about 10:30 to my pager going off. It was a call with a donor heart...and a request to call my surgeon. After our short conversation and his deciding the heart wasn't good, I ran to the bathroom and the saga began. Thus would be the same for the next 5 hours. Up every 15 minutes. ICK!

About 3AM, I had a brilliant moment. I'd call my doctor and see if she could prescribe me something to stop the vomiting and everything else. Of course, I was thinking CRAZY then...with all the dehydration and all. She called back and said I needed to go to the ER. Lovely. I threw on clothes that were not disgusting or vomited on...got in my car with three plastic bags, and prayed I would not throw up in my car. I had a split second decision to make. I have 2 ER's about the same distance away. I needed to find the one where I thought I would wait less time. I remembered my friend Whitney had told me once about her trip to one of these ER's and how quick and efficient it was. I took a chance and went to that one. Mind you, it was SNOWING and frigid...and 3:30AM. Thankfully, the roads were clear and the snow had yet to cause any drama. I pulled into the ER and walked inside. I was the only person there. I was whisked away to triage and within 10 minutes of my arrival, I already had an IV giving me the fluids I'd lost and nausea medicine to stop the tirade of disgustingness. Hooray! I spent 3 hours there...and to my knowledge, was still the only there when I left at 6:30AM. I still felt exhausted, but no longer wanted to throw up everything that I even looked at. I went home, took the nausea meds the ER doc had given me, and blissfully slept until about 4pm. I got up, attempted to be alive, then went back to sleep for another 11 hours, in attempts to make up for lost sleep time.

Today, I feel refreshed and alive! I'm still not eating much, but that will come back eventually. I've even felt good enough to clean the bathroom...no small feat after all the action it saw Thursday night!

Even better, I'm off this weekend! I'm so glad to have an opportunity to get completely better! Hooray!