Well, today's visit with the urologist did not bring the news we were hoping for (or expecting). First of all, the appointment took way longer than the last couple and I missed a conference call at work, plus was having a severe allergy attack the whole time we were waiting. So, all of that just made this news more unbearable.
The large stone that was lodged in his tube last week was still there this week. The doctor feels that it is not going to pass on it's own, so he recommended doing lithotripsy again soon to blast it into smaller pieces. Then, if all goes well, we'll go back a week from that and surgically have the stint removed. By the time this is all said and done, Steve will have four surgeries in about 4 weeks. That is extremely hard on his body, plus, it's more work missed for him and me and it complicates things at home.
Obviously we want to do this sooner rather than later, but our insurance dictates where (one of the "perks" for working for a hospital company!) and so our days to choose from are limited. Plus, the next two weekends, we have plans that we really do not want to break (one is Jenna's performance in the choir at church). As you can imagine, this news was pretty hard to swallow. From my selfish perspective, it is difficult to watch someone you love be in pain and be frustrated at the slowness of his body to respond (which happens to diabetics...slower to heal). Plus, I take on the role as both mother and father and that's hard especially when you are married to a man who really does 50% (sometimes more) of the work with Jenna and around the house.
We have a final x-ray and follow-up next Monday and assuming nothing changes, we'll move forward with the lithotripsy surgery...we aren't sure yet when that will be scheduled. Most likely sometime next week...but we'll know more later. There is a slim chance that Steve will pass this final stone in the next week, but since it really hasn't moved in the last week, the likelihood is slim.
To boot, I had just a really stressful day at work...so it's been a tough Monday all around. Tomorrow is weigh in and if I don't get really good news, that might just do me in!
Continued prayers are appreciated!
4.14.2008
4.13.2008
Success!
Remember this blog?? Well, yesterday, we had success. I had run to Target to get a few things and picked up a $2.99 Barbie kite for Jenna. Those locals know the wind has been crazy the past few days. After Jenna got home from riding lessons, we put it together (which took all of 3 minutes). And wouldn't you know it, it only took about 2 minutes to get it up in the air and we even ran out all of the string. It was a good day. And looking back over the post of my first attempt to fly a kite, I have learned so much. God is good.
While I was uploading these pictures from my camera, I found the cutest one of Gage and Jenna at his first birthday party...
Something else that's on my mind for some reason...Last night I was reading my Chronological Bible during my devotional time. I am reading I Samuel about the part where Saul has been annointed king and he's really struggling with doing what God is commanding him. In I Samuel 15, God commands that Saul and the Israelite army attack and completely destroy the Amalekites. Saul proceeds to attack and destroy...well...almost all the Amalekites. He spares the king, Agog, and the very best cattle and sheep. When the prophet Samuel visits, before he can ask Saul if he obeyed the Lord's command, Saul pridefully boasts, "The LORD bless you! I have carried out the LORD's instructions". And then Samuel asks (you have to know God has a sense of humor...), "What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?" So, basically he says, "Oh yeah? If you did exactly what God said, then why do I hear cattle mooing and sheep bleating?!"
And Saul says, oh, yeah...I forgot...I killed everyone except the king and the very best of the animals but ONLY because I thought we could use those for a sacrifice to the Lord. I guess Saul thought that his disobedience would be excused if he disobeyed for the Lord. And Samuel's response, which is what has stuck with me today, was, "To obey is better than sacrifice". How true is that for us even today? So many times, I catch myself "sacrificing"...my time, my money, my life all in the name of the Lord. I sign up to help at church, volunteer for Great Day of Service, teach the preschoolers, paint the choir props, do my devotional etc. But really, God just wants me to obey Him. Just simple obedience.
And you know, something else that I've heard said before that just sruck me as something to be eternally thankful for? The fact that I don't have to clean myself up to go to God. That's HIS job. He wants me just as I am. And I'm so glad for that. What a wonderful God!
I'll update you more tomorrow...Steve has his follow-up appointment with the urologist tomorrow, so we'll know more about what our next steps will be. Thanks for your continued prayers. We have truly felt each and every one.
4.11.2008
TGIF!
Can I get an amen to that?!
Today seemed like a long day, but it ended up being a pretty good one! I had the pleasure of setting up two play dates for Jenna with friends from church and school. She rarely gets together with kids because she goes to school out of the county and our church is 25 minutes away, so the next couple weekends are going to be a real treat for her! She's already asking "how many more days until..." This is just something that makes me smile.
There have been more developments on the job front, but we are not at a place where we feel comfortable divulging. To put it more clearly, no offer has been extended as of yet so, nothing is official, but we are optimistic. I know those that know us are dying to know what all this is about, but hopefully it won't be too much longer until I can tell you the details.
For those of you that have asked about Steve...thanks for your concern...he had stopped passing stones for a couple days but was still experiencing some back pain which we attributed to the stint. However, today, he passed several more large ones today. Now he is extremely sore from where they passed and is still having the more milder back pain, so we are unsure whether there is a stone causing it or if it's really stint. We will find out Monday as he goes to his follow-up appointment. As soon as I know more, I'll pass it along. Keep praying that the big stones are gone.
Let's see...nothing much else going on...Jenna starts swim lessons next week and it's going to be pretty exciting to get to see the new rec center. For a while, we'll have some busy weeks. We have gymnastics on Monday, swim lessons on Tuesday (Bible study for me), church on Wednesday, swim lessons on Thursday, bowling on Friday for Steve, sock wars and scrapbooking for me periodically, horseback riding lessons on Saturday afternoon and then church again on Sunday evenings. It's going to be a busy April. After that, lots of this will settle down.
OK, well, that's about it for me. Happy weekend!
S-
Today seemed like a long day, but it ended up being a pretty good one! I had the pleasure of setting up two play dates for Jenna with friends from church and school. She rarely gets together with kids because she goes to school out of the county and our church is 25 minutes away, so the next couple weekends are going to be a real treat for her! She's already asking "how many more days until..." This is just something that makes me smile.
There have been more developments on the job front, but we are not at a place where we feel comfortable divulging. To put it more clearly, no offer has been extended as of yet so, nothing is official, but we are optimistic. I know those that know us are dying to know what all this is about, but hopefully it won't be too much longer until I can tell you the details.
For those of you that have asked about Steve...thanks for your concern...he had stopped passing stones for a couple days but was still experiencing some back pain which we attributed to the stint. However, today, he passed several more large ones today. Now he is extremely sore from where they passed and is still having the more milder back pain, so we are unsure whether there is a stone causing it or if it's really stint. We will find out Monday as he goes to his follow-up appointment. As soon as I know more, I'll pass it along. Keep praying that the big stones are gone.
Let's see...nothing much else going on...Jenna starts swim lessons next week and it's going to be pretty exciting to get to see the new rec center. For a while, we'll have some busy weeks. We have gymnastics on Monday, swim lessons on Tuesday (Bible study for me), church on Wednesday, swim lessons on Thursday, bowling on Friday for Steve, sock wars and scrapbooking for me periodically, horseback riding lessons on Saturday afternoon and then church again on Sunday evenings. It's going to be a busy April. After that, lots of this will settle down.
OK, well, that's about it for me. Happy weekend!
S-
4.09.2008
Do you have a house-cleaner?
OK, apparently, my wonderful house cleaner has quit. We haven't seen her in a month and two phone calls have gone unreturned. My question to you is, do YOU have a house cleaner that you can recommend? I know several of my readers do employ someone to clean their house periodically and now I am in search of one. This girl was really very reasonable...$50 for the whole house...I know we will have to pay more than that now, but if they are really good, then I'm willing to pay. Also, they have to be trustworthy because we can't be home when they clean. So, come one, come all with your house-cleaner information!
And if you can, tomorrow at 11am, remember my friend Angela in your prayers. She was about 9 weeks pregnant and found out there was no heartbeat. The past 2 weeks, she's been waiting for the baby to "pass" on it's own and it's just not happening so tomorrow at 11am, she's scheduled for her D&C. This is a first for her (though she does have a beautiful baby boy) and she is really struggling. So, if you think about it in the next few days, just whisper a prayer for her. This is such a tough time for her.
Thanks!
And if you can, tomorrow at 11am, remember my friend Angela in your prayers. She was about 9 weeks pregnant and found out there was no heartbeat. The past 2 weeks, she's been waiting for the baby to "pass" on it's own and it's just not happening so tomorrow at 11am, she's scheduled for her D&C. This is a first for her (though she does have a beautiful baby boy) and she is really struggling. So, if you think about it in the next few days, just whisper a prayer for her. This is such a tough time for her.
Thanks!
4.07.2008
To my Spring Hill, Columbia and South Williamson County Friends...
SATURDAY, JUNE 7 - Mark it down.
To all my friends who live in Spring Hill, Thompson's Station, Columbia, or South Williamson county...
Mark Saturday, June 7 on your calendars. It's going to be a very exciting day for the Taylors!
As you know from my February 27 blog, Steve was recently approved to train with and receive a diabetic alert dog. Our neighbor, who is a nurse, was summoned by Jenna one day when Steve was having an insulin reaction and therefore, experienced first-hand what Steve, Jenna and I live with every day. A couple weekends ago (before kidney stones), Steve was telling her about our acceptance to get the dog and she jumped right on the fundraising band wagon for us!
She has booked a fundraiser breakfast at our neighborhood bar and grill, APPLEBEES! The date is June 7 and you are ALL invited! This will be at the Spring Hill Applebees on Highway 31/Main Street, times are forthcoming. Tickets will be $5 per person and that will get you pancakes, sausage and tea, coffee or water to drink. We are pleased to tell you that every dime raised will go directly to Heaven Scent Paws.
Our neighbor is going to do a walk through our neighborhood and give out fliers. We will also try to get something in the local newspaper as well. If you live in the area and would like, I can get you a supply of fliers to hand out to your neighbors as well. We want as many folks to attend as possible. If you are unable to come to the breakfast, you can still buy tickets or make a donation. If you do want fliers, let me know how many and I can get those to you within a week. We'll also need a few volunteers on that day, so we might be calling on some of you to help us out!
I'm so excited! I hope you will make plans to attend!
To all my friends who live in Spring Hill, Thompson's Station, Columbia, or South Williamson county...
Mark Saturday, June 7 on your calendars. It's going to be a very exciting day for the Taylors!
As you know from my February 27 blog, Steve was recently approved to train with and receive a diabetic alert dog. Our neighbor, who is a nurse, was summoned by Jenna one day when Steve was having an insulin reaction and therefore, experienced first-hand what Steve, Jenna and I live with every day. A couple weekends ago (before kidney stones), Steve was telling her about our acceptance to get the dog and she jumped right on the fundraising band wagon for us!
She has booked a fundraiser breakfast at our neighborhood bar and grill, APPLEBEES! The date is June 7 and you are ALL invited! This will be at the Spring Hill Applebees on Highway 31/Main Street, times are forthcoming. Tickets will be $5 per person and that will get you pancakes, sausage and tea, coffee or water to drink. We are pleased to tell you that every dime raised will go directly to Heaven Scent Paws.
Our neighbor is going to do a walk through our neighborhood and give out fliers. We will also try to get something in the local newspaper as well. If you live in the area and would like, I can get you a supply of fliers to hand out to your neighbors as well. We want as many folks to attend as possible. If you are unable to come to the breakfast, you can still buy tickets or make a donation. If you do want fliers, let me know how many and I can get those to you within a week. We'll also need a few volunteers on that day, so we might be calling on some of you to help us out!
I'm so excited! I hope you will make plans to attend!
Today's doctor visit...
Steve had his follow-up at the urologist today. The good news is that really big jelly-bean sized stone is no longer stuck in his tube. YAY! We could see several small stones in his kidney still and we are guessing they are pieces of the ones they blasted on Wednesday. The bad news is that the doctor saw a large stone that concerned him. He doesn't know if it is a piece of the larger stones or a stone that did not break up when they did the lithotripsy. He's concerned that it might not pass. So...we go back in a week for another x-ray. If the stone is still in the same place, then most likely we'll have to go back and do another lithotripsy. If the stone is gone (and another one hasn't replaced it!), then we are good to go and can probably schedule a time to get the stint removed.
Steve commented on the way out that he really hoped that stone would pass because he didn't think he could go through all this again. And I feel the same way. For him. And for me. It's tough being a single parent when you have a good 50/50 partner!
He did call this afternoon to say he might have passed it because he did pass quite a large stone, however we won't really know until next week when they do the x-ray. When you think of it, pray for us with this. If we have to do the lithotripsy again, we'll definitely need it!
That's about it for today...they are on their way home from gymnastics and I've got dinner just about ready...mmmmmmm....spaghetti!!!!! :)
Steve commented on the way out that he really hoped that stone would pass because he didn't think he could go through all this again. And I feel the same way. For him. And for me. It's tough being a single parent when you have a good 50/50 partner!
He did call this afternoon to say he might have passed it because he did pass quite a large stone, however we won't really know until next week when they do the x-ray. When you think of it, pray for us with this. If we have to do the lithotripsy again, we'll definitely need it!
That's about it for today...they are on their way home from gymnastics and I've got dinner just about ready...mmmmmmm....spaghetti!!!!! :)
4.06.2008
If you've ever had...
...a kidney stone, then you can appreciate this picture. This is a picture of all the stones that Steve has passed since his surgery on Wednesday. If you've never had a kidney stone, then these probably look very small and insignificant to you. If you've had one (or more), then you can appreciate all the pain that went in to this. It's amazing how something so small can cause so much trouble and pain!
And as promised, here is an Easter picture from a few weeks ago.
True to form, when I was photographing the kidney stones, Jenna didn't want to be left out. So here she is showing off for the camera!
4.05.2008
9:13am
Just wanted to say it's 9:13 am and I'm the only one up. And I've only been up for an hour. How sweet is that?!
Parent-Teacher Conference
OK, OK. I know I said I would blog about the parent-teacher conference we had with Jenna's teacher, but I just have had other stuff going on and forgot.
Steve managed to get there (it was on Tuesday, the day before the surgery) which made me so proud. He is so involved with what goes on with her and that makes me happy.
Anyway, the teacher's first words were, "Jenna Grace is doing great! She's doing wonderful!" That made me much more comfortable. I've very concerned about her reading. I believe reading is the basis to doing well in school. I am sure some would disagree with me, but I truly believe that. I love to read and I loved school. Steve...well, not so much. He never learned to read really well and as a result, he hated school and didn't do well. I believe Micah and Chase were the same. I want for Jenna to read well so that she'll love to read and do well in school. Anyway, that was the first order of business was that Jenna is already at the level in which they like to see children when they LEAVE pre-1st. We still have another 9 weeks of school and I would like to see her reading at another level or two above where she is. And I wanted to work on a summer reading program with her so that she might go in to 1st grade ahead of many of the other students and already reading well into the 1st grade level.
Her teacher agreed wholeheartedly and said that we should choose books for her to read that are about one level under where she's currently reading at. That way, she doesn't struggle too much and get discouraged. I thought that was a fabulous idea (don't know why I didn't think of it myself!). She's going to work on and send home a list of books as summer reading ideas. Perfect!
She continued on about teachers for next year. There are 4 teachers and there's one that isn't my favorite because of some lack-of-response issues I had previously. I am too interested and involved in Jenna's education (ok, and IMPATIENT!) to have to ask multiple times for something. I know me and I know that would not set well...anyway, her teacher said that Jenna loves learning (thank you Jesus!) and that she does better in a structured environment. If you let her know the rules and boundaries and what's expected of her, then she does well and makes good choices. If you throw her out there in an environment where the rules aren't clear, she tends to make less-good choices (not bad, but less good). She told me that Jenna would do well with 3 of the 4, but she stopped short of naming all three. She named one of them and wouldn't you know, it was the teacher I did not want. I brought up another teacher who I had heard wasn't the most personable teacher, but was pretty strict and she said she'd do well with her too. I can already tell 1st grade is going to be a little bit more tough than pre-1st...especially for MOM!!!! At some point, the principal will send out a form for the parents to fill out and while you can't actually request a certain teacher, you do list what learning style your child does best with. And if you have a problem with a teacher, you can list that as well. I'm praying about it. Because if I know my God, I'll end up with the very teacher that I don't want just so God can work on me. :) I'll keep you posted.
Finally, we discussed the kids that Jenna should be separated from going into 1st. This apparently has also been on her teacher's mind. I know it had been on mind. There is one child in particular that Jenna seems to be close to that I just thought was not the best influence on her. But then, I only see it from one perspective and I wanted to know what really goes on in the classroom. I must have pretty good mother's intuition because the teacher agreed wholeheartedly about the child I had in mind and even added another child to the mix. She says that they are all 3 strong-willed to some level and when they are together they either get along great or...well...NOT! :) So, she wants them separated and I'm cool with that. And I mentioned one of the girls who Jenna has been with since pre-K. Her mom and I are friends and we have been room moms together and just for every selfish reason in the book, I'd like to see them continue on together. She did say that they try to pair the pre-1st kids with 1 or 2 other classmates because there's only one class of 18 pre-1st-ers going into 1st with 2 full classes of kindergarteners...
Anyway, all that is probably more than any of you really care about reading, but it's important to me and since this blog is about me and my family... :) We are really going to miss Mrs. Seay, her pre-1st teacher. This has been a great year for Jenna. Probably her best so far. I had some reservations about doing it as most 1st time pre-1st moms do, but it has been the best educational decision I've made (and I'm just getting started!) For any of you who might be considering the pre-1st option. DO IT. I think about Jenna's reading...she's exactly where she needs to be for leaving pre-1st. But what would that have meant if she had gone on into 1st? She would have been struggling and behind. And there's not much that she's struggled with this year. They've worked ALOT on reading and math and so they have already gotten a foundation when they go into 1st grade. I believe these pre-1st kids will be the cream of the crop when in 1st grade...it's a wonderful thing and if I ever had another child, there would be no discussion...they'd go through pre-1st too.
OK, that's all about that. Update on Steve...he has begun to really pass those little pieces of stone. It's wild to see, but they are coming out which is good. Except for the fact that he experiences pain still especially when they are passing, but usually because they are moving out, the pain is not as intense and doesn't last as long. He asked me if we could please go out ot eat on Thursday because he has just been stir crazy. Since a week ago, the only places he's been is home, the doctor and the hospital. We went to Logan's and then he wanted to stop by the super-Target to get some of those Crystal Light packets to go in your water. He's been drinking so much water lately and I'm so proud because I really think it helps tremendously. Yesterday, Jenna had teacher in-service, so he stayed home with her. He'd planned to anyway and he was not really feeling like going back to work yet. He plans to take her to riding lessons today and I have a hair appt. at 1pm.
I also was able to get online and choose my shore excursions for the cruise. Thank you SO much for your input! It was fabulous. The one thing I heard most was the Stingray City at Grand Cayman. I think I have had that brought up as a must-do from about 5 different folks. We are definitely going to do that. I know it must be good because they have 3 different times to choose from to depart! I didn't realize how dang expensive the excursions were! It's going to probably cost us about $600 for just excursions cuz, you know me...I gotta do something EVERYWHERE we stop! Two of the islands will be just beach days which are next to nothing, but I was figuring up the cost last night and this vacation is going to end up costing us WAY more than I think even Hawaii did! But, with that said, this is the first "exotic" vacation that we've had with Jenna. Since she's been born, we'd just ridden to the beach, stayed with family etc. With her, everything is times THREE and that changes alot. But the good thing is...believe this...except for the deposit (which I put on a credit card) every dime will be paid in cash. How cool is that? The only way we were able to afford Hawaii is because Steve got a worker's comp settlement the year before. This is just hard-earned savings through the year, tax refund and President Bush's check (which I don't think we'll have to use). I'm just totally stoked! God is so good to us.
One last thing and then I'm done with this incredibly long post...pray for us...we have another job situation (good thing, not bad) and while I can't give details here, I *think* it would be a good opportunity if it works out. But you know what happened last time...so just keep us in your prayers.
Oh, and if you are a blog reader, I've gotten hooked on 2 new blogs recently (thanks to Carrie and Allison!). Check them out. Some of you might already read them, but both families need your prayers.
Steve managed to get there (it was on Tuesday, the day before the surgery) which made me so proud. He is so involved with what goes on with her and that makes me happy.
Anyway, the teacher's first words were, "Jenna Grace is doing great! She's doing wonderful!" That made me much more comfortable. I've very concerned about her reading. I believe reading is the basis to doing well in school. I am sure some would disagree with me, but I truly believe that. I love to read and I loved school. Steve...well, not so much. He never learned to read really well and as a result, he hated school and didn't do well. I believe Micah and Chase were the same. I want for Jenna to read well so that she'll love to read and do well in school. Anyway, that was the first order of business was that Jenna is already at the level in which they like to see children when they LEAVE pre-1st. We still have another 9 weeks of school and I would like to see her reading at another level or two above where she is. And I wanted to work on a summer reading program with her so that she might go in to 1st grade ahead of many of the other students and already reading well into the 1st grade level.
Her teacher agreed wholeheartedly and said that we should choose books for her to read that are about one level under where she's currently reading at. That way, she doesn't struggle too much and get discouraged. I thought that was a fabulous idea (don't know why I didn't think of it myself!). She's going to work on and send home a list of books as summer reading ideas. Perfect!
She continued on about teachers for next year. There are 4 teachers and there's one that isn't my favorite because of some lack-of-response issues I had previously. I am too interested and involved in Jenna's education (ok, and IMPATIENT!) to have to ask multiple times for something. I know me and I know that would not set well...anyway, her teacher said that Jenna loves learning (thank you Jesus!) and that she does better in a structured environment. If you let her know the rules and boundaries and what's expected of her, then she does well and makes good choices. If you throw her out there in an environment where the rules aren't clear, she tends to make less-good choices (not bad, but less good). She told me that Jenna would do well with 3 of the 4, but she stopped short of naming all three. She named one of them and wouldn't you know, it was the teacher I did not want. I brought up another teacher who I had heard wasn't the most personable teacher, but was pretty strict and she said she'd do well with her too. I can already tell 1st grade is going to be a little bit more tough than pre-1st...especially for MOM!!!! At some point, the principal will send out a form for the parents to fill out and while you can't actually request a certain teacher, you do list what learning style your child does best with. And if you have a problem with a teacher, you can list that as well. I'm praying about it. Because if I know my God, I'll end up with the very teacher that I don't want just so God can work on me. :) I'll keep you posted.
Finally, we discussed the kids that Jenna should be separated from going into 1st. This apparently has also been on her teacher's mind. I know it had been on mind. There is one child in particular that Jenna seems to be close to that I just thought was not the best influence on her. But then, I only see it from one perspective and I wanted to know what really goes on in the classroom. I must have pretty good mother's intuition because the teacher agreed wholeheartedly about the child I had in mind and even added another child to the mix. She says that they are all 3 strong-willed to some level and when they are together they either get along great or...well...NOT! :) So, she wants them separated and I'm cool with that. And I mentioned one of the girls who Jenna has been with since pre-K. Her mom and I are friends and we have been room moms together and just for every selfish reason in the book, I'd like to see them continue on together. She did say that they try to pair the pre-1st kids with 1 or 2 other classmates because there's only one class of 18 pre-1st-ers going into 1st with 2 full classes of kindergarteners...
Anyway, all that is probably more than any of you really care about reading, but it's important to me and since this blog is about me and my family... :) We are really going to miss Mrs. Seay, her pre-1st teacher. This has been a great year for Jenna. Probably her best so far. I had some reservations about doing it as most 1st time pre-1st moms do, but it has been the best educational decision I've made (and I'm just getting started!) For any of you who might be considering the pre-1st option. DO IT. I think about Jenna's reading...she's exactly where she needs to be for leaving pre-1st. But what would that have meant if she had gone on into 1st? She would have been struggling and behind. And there's not much that she's struggled with this year. They've worked ALOT on reading and math and so they have already gotten a foundation when they go into 1st grade. I believe these pre-1st kids will be the cream of the crop when in 1st grade...it's a wonderful thing and if I ever had another child, there would be no discussion...they'd go through pre-1st too.
OK, that's all about that. Update on Steve...he has begun to really pass those little pieces of stone. It's wild to see, but they are coming out which is good. Except for the fact that he experiences pain still especially when they are passing, but usually because they are moving out, the pain is not as intense and doesn't last as long. He asked me if we could please go out ot eat on Thursday because he has just been stir crazy. Since a week ago, the only places he's been is home, the doctor and the hospital. We went to Logan's and then he wanted to stop by the super-Target to get some of those Crystal Light packets to go in your water. He's been drinking so much water lately and I'm so proud because I really think it helps tremendously. Yesterday, Jenna had teacher in-service, so he stayed home with her. He'd planned to anyway and he was not really feeling like going back to work yet. He plans to take her to riding lessons today and I have a hair appt. at 1pm.
I also was able to get online and choose my shore excursions for the cruise. Thank you SO much for your input! It was fabulous. The one thing I heard most was the Stingray City at Grand Cayman. I think I have had that brought up as a must-do from about 5 different folks. We are definitely going to do that. I know it must be good because they have 3 different times to choose from to depart! I didn't realize how dang expensive the excursions were! It's going to probably cost us about $600 for just excursions cuz, you know me...I gotta do something EVERYWHERE we stop! Two of the islands will be just beach days which are next to nothing, but I was figuring up the cost last night and this vacation is going to end up costing us WAY more than I think even Hawaii did! But, with that said, this is the first "exotic" vacation that we've had with Jenna. Since she's been born, we'd just ridden to the beach, stayed with family etc. With her, everything is times THREE and that changes alot. But the good thing is...believe this...except for the deposit (which I put on a credit card) every dime will be paid in cash. How cool is that? The only way we were able to afford Hawaii is because Steve got a worker's comp settlement the year before. This is just hard-earned savings through the year, tax refund and President Bush's check (which I don't think we'll have to use). I'm just totally stoked! God is so good to us.
One last thing and then I'm done with this incredibly long post...pray for us...we have another job situation (good thing, not bad) and while I can't give details here, I *think* it would be a good opportunity if it works out. But you know what happened last time...so just keep us in your prayers.
Oh, and if you are a blog reader, I've gotten hooked on 2 new blogs recently (thanks to Carrie and Allison!). Check them out. Some of you might already read them, but both families need your prayers.
4.02.2008
I know you're waiting...
...for an update on Steve. Well, here it is.
Bottom line: Your prayers worked. They were able to do the least invasive lithotripsy and zap not just the one stone lodged in the tube, but several of the others they could see in the right kidney.
Now, for the details. We never really knew what time the surgery was. Just that we were supposed to arrive at 7:30am. They called him back about 8:15 to get him prepped. I went back about 8:45 to sit with him until the doctor arrived. While we waited, we found out the surgery was actually supposed to be at 9:30. They went ahead and did another x-ray to see if the stone had moved and I left when the doctor arrived which was about 9:40. And then I went back to the waiting room to await the final verdict of whether he would be able to see the stone well enough to do the regular lithotripsy.
I did alot of work, read several magazines and even playing on my laptop a bit before the doctor came out about 11:30ish. He told me he was able to get them all and that Steve tolerated the surgery well and he just needed to make a follow up appt. next week. He told me that the some of the smaller bits of stones might pass with the stent still in and some might not until the stent was removed but he should be feeling better.
I waited another hour or so and they finally called me back to the "step down" unit which is where they go after "recovery". Typically you stay there for 30 minutes and then you are released. Well...apparently, with the pain meds they gave him before the surgery, the anesthesia and the anti-nausea meds they gave him after the surgery, he had a little bit of trouble coming around. Well, "little" is probably to put it mildly.
When I got there, he was obviously still WAY out of it. He was shivering despite the 3-4 blankets draped over him, he was moaning like he was in immense pain but said it was across his shoulders and his chest and he was nauseous. And he was rolling over and over in the recliner chair they set you in. The anesthesiologist reviewed his chart and confirmed he had no history of heart issues and said he wouldn't give him any pain medicine because he thought it was more of a reaction to the anesthesia than actual pain. This went on for quite some time...I'd cover him up good, he'd settle down for about 10 minutes and then he was moaning, rolling, complaining and saying he was going to be sick again. It got very frustrating. Of course, he didn't have any idea what he was doing.
Finally, the shift changed and we got a new nurse...Susie. She came in and when I told her he was cold, she said, "Well I can take care of that". She went and got what looked like an oversized floor vacuum and attached it to this plastic looking sheet. The machine blew warm air into the sheet for Steve. She also adjusted the recliner so it was lying down almost flat instead of sitting upright. In about 3 minutes, Steve was quiet, still and out like a light. His IV fluids were still hooked up and they'd come in every 1/2 hour to check his B/P and blood sugar. About 2:30, they came and said his blood pressure was bottoming out and they thought it was because he was in TOO deep of a sleep (guess so after 3+ hours in recovery!). They took his warm blanket contraption and made him get up and walk around. At that point, even though he was very tired, you could tell he was more himself.
They got him up one more time, made him drink some coke and got his BP up enough that we were discharged about 4:00. So, as you can imagine, it has been ONE LONG DAY for all of us.
Steve had dinner already (we ordered pizza) and now he's back in bed. I've got to go check on him and make sure he's OK. I'll admit, the issues he had in coming out of anesthesia really got to me because he's never had that reaction before. I doubt he'll make it to work tomorrow, but I probably will...
I'll have to catch you all up later on the parent/teacher conference...
Bottom line: Your prayers worked. They were able to do the least invasive lithotripsy and zap not just the one stone lodged in the tube, but several of the others they could see in the right kidney.
Now, for the details. We never really knew what time the surgery was. Just that we were supposed to arrive at 7:30am. They called him back about 8:15 to get him prepped. I went back about 8:45 to sit with him until the doctor arrived. While we waited, we found out the surgery was actually supposed to be at 9:30. They went ahead and did another x-ray to see if the stone had moved and I left when the doctor arrived which was about 9:40. And then I went back to the waiting room to await the final verdict of whether he would be able to see the stone well enough to do the regular lithotripsy.
I did alot of work, read several magazines and even playing on my laptop a bit before the doctor came out about 11:30ish. He told me he was able to get them all and that Steve tolerated the surgery well and he just needed to make a follow up appt. next week. He told me that the some of the smaller bits of stones might pass with the stent still in and some might not until the stent was removed but he should be feeling better.
I waited another hour or so and they finally called me back to the "step down" unit which is where they go after "recovery". Typically you stay there for 30 minutes and then you are released. Well...apparently, with the pain meds they gave him before the surgery, the anesthesia and the anti-nausea meds they gave him after the surgery, he had a little bit of trouble coming around. Well, "little" is probably to put it mildly.
When I got there, he was obviously still WAY out of it. He was shivering despite the 3-4 blankets draped over him, he was moaning like he was in immense pain but said it was across his shoulders and his chest and he was nauseous. And he was rolling over and over in the recliner chair they set you in. The anesthesiologist reviewed his chart and confirmed he had no history of heart issues and said he wouldn't give him any pain medicine because he thought it was more of a reaction to the anesthesia than actual pain. This went on for quite some time...I'd cover him up good, he'd settle down for about 10 minutes and then he was moaning, rolling, complaining and saying he was going to be sick again. It got very frustrating. Of course, he didn't have any idea what he was doing.
Finally, the shift changed and we got a new nurse...Susie. She came in and when I told her he was cold, she said, "Well I can take care of that". She went and got what looked like an oversized floor vacuum and attached it to this plastic looking sheet. The machine blew warm air into the sheet for Steve. She also adjusted the recliner so it was lying down almost flat instead of sitting upright. In about 3 minutes, Steve was quiet, still and out like a light. His IV fluids were still hooked up and they'd come in every 1/2 hour to check his B/P and blood sugar. About 2:30, they came and said his blood pressure was bottoming out and they thought it was because he was in TOO deep of a sleep (guess so after 3+ hours in recovery!). They took his warm blanket contraption and made him get up and walk around. At that point, even though he was very tired, you could tell he was more himself.
They got him up one more time, made him drink some coke and got his BP up enough that we were discharged about 4:00. So, as you can imagine, it has been ONE LONG DAY for all of us.
Steve had dinner already (we ordered pizza) and now he's back in bed. I've got to go check on him and make sure he's OK. I'll admit, the issues he had in coming out of anesthesia really got to me because he's never had that reaction before. I doubt he'll make it to work tomorrow, but I probably will...
I'll have to catch you all up later on the parent/teacher conference...
4.01.2008
Today's Weigh-In
Well, today was my weigh-in at Weight Watchers...I lost exactly 1 pound and that puts me at a grand total of 14.4. I am .6 pounds away from hitting a big 15! Thanks for all the encouragement. You have no idea how it's helping.
We are about to head to bed as we still have to get up at the same time in the morning to get to the surgery center by 7:30.
Can I ask you all to pray that the stone is visible when they get ready to do the lithotripsy? If they can't see it well, they'll have to do a more invasive procedure and will only be able to get the ONE stone (there are 4-5 other large ones still in the kidney that will not pass without being blasted). If they can do the lithotripsy on the one that's lodged, they can get the others and that will be great to not have to worry about that in the near future.
Thanks to you all and I will update tomorrow afternoon just as soon as I'm' able. And I'll include a little about our parent-teacher conference then too!
We are about to head to bed as we still have to get up at the same time in the morning to get to the surgery center by 7:30.
Can I ask you all to pray that the stone is visible when they get ready to do the lithotripsy? If they can't see it well, they'll have to do a more invasive procedure and will only be able to get the ONE stone (there are 4-5 other large ones still in the kidney that will not pass without being blasted). If they can do the lithotripsy on the one that's lodged, they can get the others and that will be great to not have to worry about that in the near future.
Thanks to you all and I will update tomorrow afternoon just as soon as I'm' able. And I'll include a little about our parent-teacher conference then too!
3.31.2008
Kidney Stones!
Well, here's the latest...
We had a nice relaxing day yesterday. It was like Saturday for us. Laundry, cleaning house, showers and baths etc. Steve was able to get up and around a little. Moving slow and still in quite a bit of pain, but it was nice to see him moving around. We slept good last night...better than the nights past. He only got up once around 1am to take his pain pills. Actually, he was sound asleep, but I woke up and asked him if he needed it.
Our discharge instructions were to call today and schedule a "KUB" and office visit. Apparently, a KUB was in essence an x-ray of the kidneys, ureter and bladder. Rach was kind enough to stop by and pick up Jenna this morning and drop her off at school for me. We didn't know what time Steve would have to go in and I didn't want to drive all the way in to Nashville, come back and then have to turn back around to go to the urologist's office. So, I got up early and got Jenna up, dressed, breakfast-ed and out the door. Then I laid back down until 8am when the urologist's office opened.
I called right at 8am and they answered. After being transferred to about 3 people (how hard is it to schedule an appt?!), they tell me that they have an opening TOMORROW at 1:45. 'Scuse me?! Tomorrow? So, I ask, "do you have anything sooner than that?" I, of course, am thinking TODAY would be nice! She starts looking and then says, "Oh, no, that Tuesday appt. isn't actually available. But we have one on Wednesday at 3pm". OK. This is getting worse. I said, "He has a kidney stone the size of a jelly bean lodged in his ureter. Are you SURE there's nothing sooner?" She puts me on hold to get her supervisor (I was nice, I swear!!) and comes back quite a while later to say she tracked down the doctor that Steve had while in the ER and he said come on in today. So, they worked us in at 9:30.
We went in and went through all that for them to tell us that the stone hadn't moved. Um. Yeah, we know. Being that he's in excruciating pain and all and there's been no jelly bean in the toilet, we kinda figured that out. Anyway, they began scheduling for a lithotripsy procedure. After alot of back and forth, we were able to get it scheduled for Wednesday. It was the first time they had available...we have to be there at 7:30am, so that will work out well. I can drop Jenna off at school at 7:00 and then head on over. It's going to be a long day Wednesday and there is a very real possibility that due to where the stone is lodged, they won't be able to use the lithotripsy which means a more painful, invasive procedure, however, we have to get the stone out. If the lithotripsy can be used, they can also break up the other very large stones in the kidney so that we don't find ourselves going through this again in a few months. One time every 13 years is plenty for us both!
So, I'm headed back to work tomorrow and Steve's going to try to make a few hours. He's going longer and longer without pain meds and we have our parent/teacher conference tomorrow at 7am, so he wants to do that and see how it goes...if he doesn't feel great or the pain is too intense, he'll head home. I can't wait for our conference. We love her teacher so much and it's going to be so sad to see the end of the year come. Tomorrow night is my last night of Bible study with the girls (well, this study at least!) and I have to prepare for Wednesday night, so I don't know if I'll have time to update, but I will let you know how the conference and surgery went on Wednesday afternoon once we return home.
Until then, we appreciate your prayers. It's been a rough go since Friday, but I think the end is in sight!
We had a nice relaxing day yesterday. It was like Saturday for us. Laundry, cleaning house, showers and baths etc. Steve was able to get up and around a little. Moving slow and still in quite a bit of pain, but it was nice to see him moving around. We slept good last night...better than the nights past. He only got up once around 1am to take his pain pills. Actually, he was sound asleep, but I woke up and asked him if he needed it.
Our discharge instructions were to call today and schedule a "KUB" and office visit. Apparently, a KUB was in essence an x-ray of the kidneys, ureter and bladder. Rach was kind enough to stop by and pick up Jenna this morning and drop her off at school for me. We didn't know what time Steve would have to go in and I didn't want to drive all the way in to Nashville, come back and then have to turn back around to go to the urologist's office. So, I got up early and got Jenna up, dressed, breakfast-ed and out the door. Then I laid back down until 8am when the urologist's office opened.
I called right at 8am and they answered. After being transferred to about 3 people (how hard is it to schedule an appt?!), they tell me that they have an opening TOMORROW at 1:45. 'Scuse me?! Tomorrow? So, I ask, "do you have anything sooner than that?" I, of course, am thinking TODAY would be nice! She starts looking and then says, "Oh, no, that Tuesday appt. isn't actually available. But we have one on Wednesday at 3pm". OK. This is getting worse. I said, "He has a kidney stone the size of a jelly bean lodged in his ureter. Are you SURE there's nothing sooner?" She puts me on hold to get her supervisor (I was nice, I swear!!) and comes back quite a while later to say she tracked down the doctor that Steve had while in the ER and he said come on in today. So, they worked us in at 9:30.
We went in and went through all that for them to tell us that the stone hadn't moved. Um. Yeah, we know. Being that he's in excruciating pain and all and there's been no jelly bean in the toilet, we kinda figured that out. Anyway, they began scheduling for a lithotripsy procedure. After alot of back and forth, we were able to get it scheduled for Wednesday. It was the first time they had available...we have to be there at 7:30am, so that will work out well. I can drop Jenna off at school at 7:00 and then head on over. It's going to be a long day Wednesday and there is a very real possibility that due to where the stone is lodged, they won't be able to use the lithotripsy which means a more painful, invasive procedure, however, we have to get the stone out. If the lithotripsy can be used, they can also break up the other very large stones in the kidney so that we don't find ourselves going through this again in a few months. One time every 13 years is plenty for us both!
So, I'm headed back to work tomorrow and Steve's going to try to make a few hours. He's going longer and longer without pain meds and we have our parent/teacher conference tomorrow at 7am, so he wants to do that and see how it goes...if he doesn't feel great or the pain is too intense, he'll head home. I can't wait for our conference. We love her teacher so much and it's going to be so sad to see the end of the year come. Tomorrow night is my last night of Bible study with the girls (well, this study at least!) and I have to prepare for Wednesday night, so I don't know if I'll have time to update, but I will let you know how the conference and surgery went on Wednesday afternoon once we return home.
Until then, we appreciate your prayers. It's been a rough go since Friday, but I think the end is in sight!
3.30.2008
Well, I got more sleep last night than I did the night I was in the hospital with Steve. But the nature of his surgery requires frequent trips to the bathroom so we were up every couple hours and it felt like having a newborn. Steve's feeling a tad better now that he can rest at home, but he's still in a considerable amount of pain. It's just going to take time. I'm praying that the urologist will see him first thing tomorrow, but in reality, I know it probably will be late tomorrow or even later in the week. I'll keep you posted.
I did want to tell you how cool the Lord was to us this weekend...it just seemed that He provided over and over. The first thing was that we have a family wedding to attend next weekend. The problem was that it was out of town about 5 hours away and with gas prices going through the roof, we really didn't have the money to spend. But because it was family, I really felt like we should attend. I just prayed that God would provide. Well...due to this kidney stone and surgery, there is no way Steve can go on a 5 hour (one way) trip. Not exactly the answer I expected, but an answer nonetheless.
I had gone straight from work to scrapbooking on Friday night and when Steve called, I went straight home to get him and he was waiting in the garage for me, so I didn't even get to go in. I was dressed in jeans, a sweater and dress shoes from work. Not exactly comfortable to spend the night in the hospital in. Well, lucky for me, I had brought home my work out clothes which included a much more comfortable sports bra, lounge pants and t-shirt, not to mention socks and tennis shoes. I had only worked out once this past week, so they were even clean! So after Steve got settled in a room, I went down and got them and relaxed as much as I could.
I was worried about what I would do while waiting for them to see him, take him up to his room and while in surgery. Again, I'd just bought a new book on Wednesday after church that I had taken to work to read and it was still in my work bag, so again, God provided something to keep me busy.
Most of you know that the end of the month is the tightest financially being that I only get paid once a month and so neither Steve or I usually have any cash on us. However, believe it or not, Steve had stopped at the ATM before going to the bowling alley and so he had just enough cash in his wallet. Combined with the few dollars I had, there was just enough for me to have breakfast, lunch and dinner at the hospital.
When I picked Jenna up from Rach yesterday, I had nothing for her to do at the hospital, so we stopped at Walgreens to get her a coloring book and crayons. When I got back in the car, I noticed she'd left her Nintendo DS in the van at some point and so she had that (it was still charged!) so she had something to keep her busy.
Speaking of picking up Jenna...Rach had to be in town at 11:45 yesterday, so it would have been ideal if I could leave the hospital at 11:20 and pick her up while Steve was in surgery so I could be back by the time it was over and get the call from the doctor. Because there is no set schedule on the weekends, they just take patients into surgery as they are able depending on who is there first and who is the most pressing. The likelihood that all things would come together at just the right time was going to be nil. However, they came up to get him at 10:40 and allowed me to go down to the surgical holding area with him. I had to wait for the anesthesiologist to show up so I could answer his questions and when he was done I could stay or go. I looked at the clock and it was 11:20. So, God again provided so that I could leave and pick up Jenna. I wasn't even gone and hour and we had lunch and everything and still had 30 minutes to spare before the doctor called after surgery!
Lucky (if there's such a thing) for us, Rachel was scrapbooking with me on Friday night, so she was right there when I got the call and headed for home so I could drop Jenna off to stay the night. I am so thankful for friends like her and David making themselves available during times of need. We have no other friends that we would have been able to drop her off with that are in the area. Just another one of the Lord's provisions for us.
Let's see...on our way there, it was raining so much in the hill I could barely see. I prayed that God would just give the rain a short break until we could make it to the hospital. About 3 minutes later, the rain completely stopped and was still stopped when we arrived.
Last night, I went out before Steve was discharged to get his prescriptions filled and get Jenna and I some dinner. Well, 6 pharmacies later, I finally found one that was opened past 6pm. Even though it was 6:45 and they closed at 7pm, the Belle Meade Kroger had pity on me and filled all three RXs by 7pm. I made it back to the hospital 30 minutes before the Dairy Queen (in the hospital) closed. Jenna was really wanting some ice cream to go with her dinner, but I had only $9 in cash in my pocket and they didn't take check cards. So, all I got her was a cheeseburger, myself a combo and figured she could eat my fries and share my drink. The total came to $8. But before we left, the lady at DQ said she was going to give Jenna a kids drink at no charge just because she was so cute. While we were waiting on our meals to come out, the guy in front of us ordered a big chocolate ice cream thing with chocolate and brownies all over it. It looked SO good, but I just didn't have the cash for it and I wasn't going to go to the ATM for $3 since we were running so behind. By the time the meal came out, the lady handed Jenna the ice cream again, at no charge. Apparently, the guy had only had a card himself and he just returned the ice cream to the counter. Never opened it or anything. The lady had overheard Jenna begging for ice cream and rather than throw the ice cream away, just gave it to us. There was more than enough so she gave us two spoons and we enjoyed our dessert.
I'm sure no one else really cares as much about all this as I do, but it just seemed that time and time again, God provided in sometimes, the smallest of ways. During such a stressful time, it was wonderful to see God's provision...
I did want to tell you how cool the Lord was to us this weekend...it just seemed that He provided over and over. The first thing was that we have a family wedding to attend next weekend. The problem was that it was out of town about 5 hours away and with gas prices going through the roof, we really didn't have the money to spend. But because it was family, I really felt like we should attend. I just prayed that God would provide. Well...due to this kidney stone and surgery, there is no way Steve can go on a 5 hour (one way) trip. Not exactly the answer I expected, but an answer nonetheless.
I had gone straight from work to scrapbooking on Friday night and when Steve called, I went straight home to get him and he was waiting in the garage for me, so I didn't even get to go in. I was dressed in jeans, a sweater and dress shoes from work. Not exactly comfortable to spend the night in the hospital in. Well, lucky for me, I had brought home my work out clothes which included a much more comfortable sports bra, lounge pants and t-shirt, not to mention socks and tennis shoes. I had only worked out once this past week, so they were even clean! So after Steve got settled in a room, I went down and got them and relaxed as much as I could.
I was worried about what I would do while waiting for them to see him, take him up to his room and while in surgery. Again, I'd just bought a new book on Wednesday after church that I had taken to work to read and it was still in my work bag, so again, God provided something to keep me busy.
Most of you know that the end of the month is the tightest financially being that I only get paid once a month and so neither Steve or I usually have any cash on us. However, believe it or not, Steve had stopped at the ATM before going to the bowling alley and so he had just enough cash in his wallet. Combined with the few dollars I had, there was just enough for me to have breakfast, lunch and dinner at the hospital.
When I picked Jenna up from Rach yesterday, I had nothing for her to do at the hospital, so we stopped at Walgreens to get her a coloring book and crayons. When I got back in the car, I noticed she'd left her Nintendo DS in the van at some point and so she had that (it was still charged!) so she had something to keep her busy.
Speaking of picking up Jenna...Rach had to be in town at 11:45 yesterday, so it would have been ideal if I could leave the hospital at 11:20 and pick her up while Steve was in surgery so I could be back by the time it was over and get the call from the doctor. Because there is no set schedule on the weekends, they just take patients into surgery as they are able depending on who is there first and who is the most pressing. The likelihood that all things would come together at just the right time was going to be nil. However, they came up to get him at 10:40 and allowed me to go down to the surgical holding area with him. I had to wait for the anesthesiologist to show up so I could answer his questions and when he was done I could stay or go. I looked at the clock and it was 11:20. So, God again provided so that I could leave and pick up Jenna. I wasn't even gone and hour and we had lunch and everything and still had 30 minutes to spare before the doctor called after surgery!
Lucky (if there's such a thing) for us, Rachel was scrapbooking with me on Friday night, so she was right there when I got the call and headed for home so I could drop Jenna off to stay the night. I am so thankful for friends like her and David making themselves available during times of need. We have no other friends that we would have been able to drop her off with that are in the area. Just another one of the Lord's provisions for us.
Let's see...on our way there, it was raining so much in the hill I could barely see. I prayed that God would just give the rain a short break until we could make it to the hospital. About 3 minutes later, the rain completely stopped and was still stopped when we arrived.
Last night, I went out before Steve was discharged to get his prescriptions filled and get Jenna and I some dinner. Well, 6 pharmacies later, I finally found one that was opened past 6pm. Even though it was 6:45 and they closed at 7pm, the Belle Meade Kroger had pity on me and filled all three RXs by 7pm. I made it back to the hospital 30 minutes before the Dairy Queen (in the hospital) closed. Jenna was really wanting some ice cream to go with her dinner, but I had only $9 in cash in my pocket and they didn't take check cards. So, all I got her was a cheeseburger, myself a combo and figured she could eat my fries and share my drink. The total came to $8. But before we left, the lady at DQ said she was going to give Jenna a kids drink at no charge just because she was so cute. While we were waiting on our meals to come out, the guy in front of us ordered a big chocolate ice cream thing with chocolate and brownies all over it. It looked SO good, but I just didn't have the cash for it and I wasn't going to go to the ATM for $3 since we were running so behind. By the time the meal came out, the lady handed Jenna the ice cream again, at no charge. Apparently, the guy had only had a card himself and he just returned the ice cream to the counter. Never opened it or anything. The lady had overheard Jenna begging for ice cream and rather than throw the ice cream away, just gave it to us. There was more than enough so she gave us two spoons and we enjoyed our dessert.
I'm sure no one else really cares as much about all this as I do, but it just seemed that time and time again, God provided in sometimes, the smallest of ways. During such a stressful time, it was wonderful to see God's provision...
3.29.2008
4122, 24 hours & a jelly bean
What does my title mean?
Well, 4122 is where I've spent the last 24 hours. Well...not exactly the whole 24 hours, but much of it. The jelly bean will come later.
Let's see, last night, Rachel and I went scrapbooking...you know, first time since our retreat and we were going to get back in the swing of things. I was really looking forward to it. Steve went bowling and took Jenna to the alley with him. He called about 8:30 and said he was done and they were headed home. About 9:30, I'm thinking that it won't be long before I wrap things up because I'd gotten increasingly tired, my cell rings again and Steve says, "You better come home now. I need to go to the hospital". Could there be any worse words to hear? I asked him what was wrong, though I inherently knew. There's only one thing that would cause him enough pain in 60 minutes that he needed a trip to the ER. KIDNEY STONE.
For those of you that don't know, Steve's battled kidney stones most of his life. We were only engaged the last time he was hopsitalized for one. His kidneys are lined with bunches of little stones that hang out until they are big enough to drop off and hopefully pass. In the nearly 12 years we've been married, I have lost count of the number of stones he's passed...some more difficult than others and 2 just THIS WEEK.
Anyway, because of where I work, we chose to drive all the way in to Centennial Medical Center where I had just been only a month ago for the stomach bug. As with me, they took him right back and did a CT scan which showed a 6mm by 10mm jelly-bean sized kidney stone lodged in the middle of the ureter (I think). That size of a stone is clearly not going to pass on it's own. They drugged him up good and admitted him in the hospital. Luckily, Rachel was kind enough to keep Jenna at her house overnight so that I did not have to worry about taking her to the ER. Good thing seeing that we were admitted! I slept on one of those pull-out chair/couch things which wasn't very comfortable. I think we got in the room about 1:30 and by the time I laid down it was 2:08 because I checked the clock on my cell. Even though the nurses didn't bother Steve much in the night, I barely slept because every time I heard him move, I'd wake up to make sure he was OK. It was like having a newborn all over again!
The doctor on call came in about 6am and said they'd scheduled him for surgery this morning but since there was no "schedule" per se on the weekends, it was first come first serve and there were 4 others in front of him. They came to get him about 10:40 and by 1:00 he was done with surgery and by 1:30 he was back in the room. The lithotripsy suite (or team) is not there on the weekends, so they inserted a stent to expand the ureter and relieve the excruciating pain. They thought if the stone had moved down to the bottom of the ureter already, they might be able to grab it and remove it. No such luck. It's still firmly in place exactly where it was during the CT scan. While the stent relieves the pain, inserting the stent is not fun especially for a man. If you don't know what that involves and are curious, go to webmd and search for kidney stones.
They came in and released us to go home about 8:45pm tonight. I had picked Jenna up as soon as they took Steve into holding for surgery. She was SO good considering she was cooped up in a hospital room for about 8 or 9 hours. Steve is in bed and Jenna has crashed (she had a late night last night with Hannah!) and I'm going fast. I just had to post so that everyone would send up a quick prayer for us in the next few days. We have to call the urologist on Monday to schedule another x-ray and then the actual lithotripsy. I'm praying that it can be done early in the week as possible. Steve worries about missing lots of work and let's be honest, we all just want this done and over with so that we can move on.
I have more to say...I have to tell you about all the ways God showed Himself to me the last 24 hours. You wouldn't believe some of the things and I can't wait to share. God has had His hand on us every step of the way...
OK, I'm tired...going to bed now. :) More tomorrow when I'm more lucid.
Well, 4122 is where I've spent the last 24 hours. Well...not exactly the whole 24 hours, but much of it. The jelly bean will come later.
Let's see, last night, Rachel and I went scrapbooking...you know, first time since our retreat and we were going to get back in the swing of things. I was really looking forward to it. Steve went bowling and took Jenna to the alley with him. He called about 8:30 and said he was done and they were headed home. About 9:30, I'm thinking that it won't be long before I wrap things up because I'd gotten increasingly tired, my cell rings again and Steve says, "You better come home now. I need to go to the hospital". Could there be any worse words to hear? I asked him what was wrong, though I inherently knew. There's only one thing that would cause him enough pain in 60 minutes that he needed a trip to the ER. KIDNEY STONE.
For those of you that don't know, Steve's battled kidney stones most of his life. We were only engaged the last time he was hopsitalized for one. His kidneys are lined with bunches of little stones that hang out until they are big enough to drop off and hopefully pass. In the nearly 12 years we've been married, I have lost count of the number of stones he's passed...some more difficult than others and 2 just THIS WEEK.
Anyway, because of where I work, we chose to drive all the way in to Centennial Medical Center where I had just been only a month ago for the stomach bug. As with me, they took him right back and did a CT scan which showed a 6mm by 10mm jelly-bean sized kidney stone lodged in the middle of the ureter (I think). That size of a stone is clearly not going to pass on it's own. They drugged him up good and admitted him in the hospital. Luckily, Rachel was kind enough to keep Jenna at her house overnight so that I did not have to worry about taking her to the ER. Good thing seeing that we were admitted! I slept on one of those pull-out chair/couch things which wasn't very comfortable. I think we got in the room about 1:30 and by the time I laid down it was 2:08 because I checked the clock on my cell. Even though the nurses didn't bother Steve much in the night, I barely slept because every time I heard him move, I'd wake up to make sure he was OK. It was like having a newborn all over again!
The doctor on call came in about 6am and said they'd scheduled him for surgery this morning but since there was no "schedule" per se on the weekends, it was first come first serve and there were 4 others in front of him. They came to get him about 10:40 and by 1:00 he was done with surgery and by 1:30 he was back in the room. The lithotripsy suite (or team) is not there on the weekends, so they inserted a stent to expand the ureter and relieve the excruciating pain. They thought if the stone had moved down to the bottom of the ureter already, they might be able to grab it and remove it. No such luck. It's still firmly in place exactly where it was during the CT scan. While the stent relieves the pain, inserting the stent is not fun especially for a man. If you don't know what that involves and are curious, go to webmd and search for kidney stones.
They came in and released us to go home about 8:45pm tonight. I had picked Jenna up as soon as they took Steve into holding for surgery. She was SO good considering she was cooped up in a hospital room for about 8 or 9 hours. Steve is in bed and Jenna has crashed (she had a late night last night with Hannah!) and I'm going fast. I just had to post so that everyone would send up a quick prayer for us in the next few days. We have to call the urologist on Monday to schedule another x-ray and then the actual lithotripsy. I'm praying that it can be done early in the week as possible. Steve worries about missing lots of work and let's be honest, we all just want this done and over with so that we can move on.
I have more to say...I have to tell you about all the ways God showed Himself to me the last 24 hours. You wouldn't believe some of the things and I can't wait to share. God has had His hand on us every step of the way...
OK, I'm tired...going to bed now. :) More tomorrow when I'm more lucid.
3.26.2008
A Taylor Update
Just thought I'd check in with everyone and update on what's going on with me.
First of all, I had a weigh in yesterday. I had a vendor meeting from 9:00-1:00 and my WW meeting is at 11:00 and our break for lunch wasn't until 11:30, so all I had time to do is run in and weigh and leave. Of course, the meeting was going on, but the helper weighed me in. Since I was sick a few weeks ago, I haven't done that well with eating. I just started exercising again and I'm only walking. I gained .8lbs last week and I was expecting it. I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't more of a gain. But I digress...
So, I go weigh in and I'm in a hurry and whispering about having to weigh in at a WW center last week yada, yada. She tells me to hop up on the scales which I reluctantly do and she nods, I get down and she starts scribbling on the tracker and calculating my gain. But. It wasn't a gain. I was amazed, but I lost another 1.2 lbs! I promise, this is such a God thing. He must just know that I need that weekly encouragement! But with the gain from last week, I'm down 13.4 total pounds! YAY!
Work life is crazy busy. My manager's wife had her 3rd baby (girl) yesterday afternoon so it's even crazier. I'm at a crossroads in my career and it's a self-imposed crossroads. I go through this periodically, trying to figure out where I want to be in the next 2-3 years etc.
Steve and Jenna are both doing well. Jenna just got her 3rd 9-weeks report card and is doing FABULOUS! She is right on target on most everything. She has reached the reading level that you are supposed to be at when you LEAVE pre-1st, so we are working hard to get her past that so she can be a little ahead when she goes into first grade. We are going to work hard the last few weeks of school and then of course during the summer, so I think we can do it. Although, it saddens me that we'll leave her pre-1st teacher. This woman is just amazing. I don't know how else to describe her. She is definitely one-of-a-kind and exactly what these kids needed.
I'm going scrapbooking on Friday night and try to get caught up a little more. I'm looking forward to it.
That's about it...will keep you posted...
First of all, I had a weigh in yesterday. I had a vendor meeting from 9:00-1:00 and my WW meeting is at 11:00 and our break for lunch wasn't until 11:30, so all I had time to do is run in and weigh and leave. Of course, the meeting was going on, but the helper weighed me in. Since I was sick a few weeks ago, I haven't done that well with eating. I just started exercising again and I'm only walking. I gained .8lbs last week and I was expecting it. I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't more of a gain. But I digress...
So, I go weigh in and I'm in a hurry and whispering about having to weigh in at a WW center last week yada, yada. She tells me to hop up on the scales which I reluctantly do and she nods, I get down and she starts scribbling on the tracker and calculating my gain. But. It wasn't a gain. I was amazed, but I lost another 1.2 lbs! I promise, this is such a God thing. He must just know that I need that weekly encouragement! But with the gain from last week, I'm down 13.4 total pounds! YAY!
Work life is crazy busy. My manager's wife had her 3rd baby (girl) yesterday afternoon so it's even crazier. I'm at a crossroads in my career and it's a self-imposed crossroads. I go through this periodically, trying to figure out where I want to be in the next 2-3 years etc.
Steve and Jenna are both doing well. Jenna just got her 3rd 9-weeks report card and is doing FABULOUS! She is right on target on most everything. She has reached the reading level that you are supposed to be at when you LEAVE pre-1st, so we are working hard to get her past that so she can be a little ahead when she goes into first grade. We are going to work hard the last few weeks of school and then of course during the summer, so I think we can do it. Although, it saddens me that we'll leave her pre-1st teacher. This woman is just amazing. I don't know how else to describe her. She is definitely one-of-a-kind and exactly what these kids needed.
I'm going scrapbooking on Friday night and try to get caught up a little more. I'm looking forward to it.
That's about it...will keep you posted...
A call to help
My friend Leigh Ann went on a mission trip to India recently. I can truly say that it has changed her forever. Please read and if you feel led to help, I encourage you to do so. If you are interested in what Leigh Ann did while in India, the link to her blog is here on my site and she is a fabulous writer.
Please pray about this. If you feel the Lord leading you to give, please write out a check to Brentwood Baptist Church or BBC, and put the words “India Fund: Ramu” on the memo line. You can drop this off at the church or mail it to Jamie Bennett, c/o Brentwood Baptist Church, 7777 Concord Road, Brentwood, TN 37027. Please do this as soon as you are able to so that we can get the ball rolling. The pastor of the church knows that we are attempting to raise money for him, and he is very eager to see how the Lord provides. What an incredible opportunity to be a part of something so much bigger than ourselves.
If, by God’s grace, we raise more money than we actually need for Ramu, please be assured that what is leftover will go to help take care of his mother’s ongoing medical treatment with tuberculosis, and any other needs that could be met in that sweet church. Their building is supposed to be complete by the end of this month, and a church dedication service is planned for March 31st. I so wish I could be there to see it.
Thank you in advance for giving this careful consideration. I know the Lord will bless you for it!
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." Luke 4:18-19
In His Love,
Leigh Ann
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Friends and Family,
As many of you know, I recently had the privilege of traveling to Hyderabad, India, on a mission journey with eight other members of my church. My experience there was more than I could have ever hoped for or imagined, and I saw God moving in powerful ways. The people of this amazing country are burned into my heart, and I pray that God never allows the passion I have for them to fade.
One day while we were there, we visited a village church where I met a little boy named Ramu. He seemed about my oldest son's age, probably around 9. The pastor that we were with told us that his name was Ramu, and that he had been blind since birth. His father died a few years back, and his mother is suffering from tuberculosis. We had an opportunity to pray for this family and this precious child, but I had to pull away from the prayer time because I was so overcome with grief. The look of fear on this child's face was unlike anything I have ever seen, and the look of sheer desperation on his mother's was more than I could bear. They so earnestly wanted us to bring healing that day, and we couldn't.
Since that time, Ramu's face has never been far from my thoughts. Through talking with some of the local ministers, I found out that he is a candidate for corneal transplants, and there is a great possibility that his sight could be restored. I wrote about this experience on my blog from India, and my dear friend Dana immediately jumped on it and asked why we couldn't raise money for his treatment. I was overwhelmed by her readiness to do this for a child she had never met, and it filled my heart with a determination to pursue helping Ramu.
All I know at this point is that the initial testing and hospital stay is going to cost $1250. I still don’t know the exact cost of the actual surgery. But even if it's double that number to get it done, I feel like it's easily doable. We all have so much, and if we each give even a little, great things can be done.
I know that you all get hit up for money constantly for one thing or another, so I hope this doesn't just get lost in the shuffle. I completely understand if you can't give right now, but please join me in prayer that a miracle will be done in Ramu's precious life. You can read more about my experience with him at http://leighannswords.blogspot.com/2008/02/namaste-last-day-was-such-long-one-that.html, and I'm attaching a picture of Ramu so you can see him for yourself. He's such a beautiful boy.
As many of you know, I recently had the privilege of traveling to Hyderabad, India, on a mission journey with eight other members of my church. My experience there was more than I could have ever hoped for or imagined, and I saw God moving in powerful ways. The people of this amazing country are burned into my heart, and I pray that God never allows the passion I have for them to fade.
One day while we were there, we visited a village church where I met a little boy named Ramu. He seemed about my oldest son's age, probably around 9. The pastor that we were with told us that his name was Ramu, and that he had been blind since birth. His father died a few years back, and his mother is suffering from tuberculosis. We had an opportunity to pray for this family and this precious child, but I had to pull away from the prayer time because I was so overcome with grief. The look of fear on this child's face was unlike anything I have ever seen, and the look of sheer desperation on his mother's was more than I could bear. They so earnestly wanted us to bring healing that day, and we couldn't.
Since that time, Ramu's face has never been far from my thoughts. Through talking with some of the local ministers, I found out that he is a candidate for corneal transplants, and there is a great possibility that his sight could be restored. I wrote about this experience on my blog from India, and my dear friend Dana immediately jumped on it and asked why we couldn't raise money for his treatment. I was overwhelmed by her readiness to do this for a child she had never met, and it filled my heart with a determination to pursue helping Ramu.
All I know at this point is that the initial testing and hospital stay is going to cost $1250. I still don’t know the exact cost of the actual surgery. But even if it's double that number to get it done, I feel like it's easily doable. We all have so much, and if we each give even a little, great things can be done.
I know that you all get hit up for money constantly for one thing or another, so I hope this doesn't just get lost in the shuffle. I completely understand if you can't give right now, but please join me in prayer that a miracle will be done in Ramu's precious life. You can read more about my experience with him at http://leighannswords.blogspot.com/2008/02/namaste-last-day-was-such-long-one-that.html, and I'm attaching a picture of Ramu so you can see him for yourself. He's such a beautiful boy.
Please pray about this. If you feel the Lord leading you to give, please write out a check to Brentwood Baptist Church or BBC, and put the words “India Fund: Ramu” on the memo line. You can drop this off at the church or mail it to Jamie Bennett, c/o Brentwood Baptist Church, 7777 Concord Road, Brentwood, TN 37027. Please do this as soon as you are able to so that we can get the ball rolling. The pastor of the church knows that we are attempting to raise money for him, and he is very eager to see how the Lord provides. What an incredible opportunity to be a part of something so much bigger than ourselves.If, by God’s grace, we raise more money than we actually need for Ramu, please be assured that what is leftover will go to help take care of his mother’s ongoing medical treatment with tuberculosis, and any other needs that could be met in that sweet church. Their building is supposed to be complete by the end of this month, and a church dedication service is planned for March 31st. I so wish I could be there to see it.
Thank you in advance for giving this careful consideration. I know the Lord will bless you for it!
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." Luke 4:18-19
In His Love,
Leigh Ann
3.23.2008
He is Risen!
Happy Easter everyone! We are up and have already been to the sunrise service at church. How awesome! The music was fabulous as usual. We sang "He Lives" which is a song my mother absolutely loved. I remember hearing her whistle the tune all the time. I hadn't thought about that song probably since she passed away. It really got to me in a way that other reminders of her haven't in a long time. All I could think about is that she is sitting up there with Jesus celebrating what today means and the sacrifice He made for each of us.
Jenna looked so beautiful in her Easter dress and as always, the Easter bunny was good to her! We are home now and I'm ready for a nap. Steve is playing in the orchestra in all the services this morning, so it will be close to noon before he gets home. I have laundry to fold, put away and iron but other than that, I am just going to relax. I went ahead and bought groceries last night after getting back from Gage's party, so there's not much left to do today. I'll try to upload pictures a little later.
My hope for each of you is that today you know that there is a risen Lord and that He is a God that pursues you. As my pastor, Mike, said today, we do not have to 'come' to God. The Good News is that God has come to us!
HE IS RISEN INDEED!!!!
Jenna looked so beautiful in her Easter dress and as always, the Easter bunny was good to her! We are home now and I'm ready for a nap. Steve is playing in the orchestra in all the services this morning, so it will be close to noon before he gets home. I have laundry to fold, put away and iron but other than that, I am just going to relax. I went ahead and bought groceries last night after getting back from Gage's party, so there's not much left to do today. I'll try to upload pictures a little later.
My hope for each of you is that today you know that there is a risen Lord and that He is a God that pursues you. As my pastor, Mike, said today, we do not have to 'come' to God. The Good News is that God has come to us!
HE IS RISEN INDEED!!!!
3.21.2008
HAPPY BIRTHDAY GAGE!
One year ago today, my precious baby grandson, Gage, entered this world and life has not been the same since!
Today is his actual birthday but tomorrow is his party and I can't wait to see him!
Ah, what a difference a year makes!
Happy birthday sweet baby boy! Mimi loves you!
Ahhhh...Spring Break!
Gotta love spring break!
I didn't get to enjoy Monday-Wednesday of this week, but I was able to take off yesterday and today to spend with Jenna.
Yesterday, my friend Kylene came to visit. If you will recall, she moved to Alabama about this time last year and we have not seen each other much. She brought her daughters Mady and Shelby to play with Jenna and we just had a fabulous time! Shelby's not quite one yet, so she didn't do much playing with them, but the older girls had a good time. And of course, in the selfish way, it was wonderful for Kylene and I because we had time to catch up after 7 months of just sporadic conversation via short emails. It was rather sad because after they left, Jenna and I were sitting on the couch watching TV and Jenna asked if when I was a little girl and my friends left, did I ever feel lonely? And of course, I told her I did and knew exactly how she felt.
Anyway, we went and had lunch at McDonald's playland and the girls played some. I always enjoy when we go there with friends because Jenna enjoys it so much more. We came back and the girls played a little more and then finally they had to leave. Jenna and I watched the Nativity Story, which I know we are one holiday off, but we'd had it from Netflix for quite some time and I just could not find the time to watch it.
I'm glad we got to do it though because I'd never seen it and it was wonderful to watch the birth of the Savior right here during Holy Week. Once that was over, Steve was home, so I got up and cooked dinner. It was nice to have dinner all fixed and eaten by 6pm.
Once we finished dinner, we went and did some shopping for Gage's party on Saturday and stopped at Lowe's. And of course, at Target, we picked up Wii Play for the Wii which Jenna and I played until bedtime!
On the schedule today is getting the laundry started, making the menu and grocery list for the weekend, wrapping birthday gifts, coloring eggs and getting ready to go see Horton Hears a Who tonight. And, who knows what else we might find to get into!!! :)
One last exciting thing was that we booked our flight to Tampa the other night. I had received an email from my friend Carrie talking about how flight costs were going to skyrocket soon with the increase in gas prices. I'm still looking for someone to buy my Delta voucher, but for now, at least the cruise is taken care of!
I didn't get to enjoy Monday-Wednesday of this week, but I was able to take off yesterday and today to spend with Jenna.
Yesterday, my friend Kylene came to visit. If you will recall, she moved to Alabama about this time last year and we have not seen each other much. She brought her daughters Mady and Shelby to play with Jenna and we just had a fabulous time! Shelby's not quite one yet, so she didn't do much playing with them, but the older girls had a good time. And of course, in the selfish way, it was wonderful for Kylene and I because we had time to catch up after 7 months of just sporadic conversation via short emails. It was rather sad because after they left, Jenna and I were sitting on the couch watching TV and Jenna asked if when I was a little girl and my friends left, did I ever feel lonely? And of course, I told her I did and knew exactly how she felt.
Anyway, we went and had lunch at McDonald's playland and the girls played some. I always enjoy when we go there with friends because Jenna enjoys it so much more. We came back and the girls played a little more and then finally they had to leave. Jenna and I watched the Nativity Story, which I know we are one holiday off, but we'd had it from Netflix for quite some time and I just could not find the time to watch it.
I'm glad we got to do it though because I'd never seen it and it was wonderful to watch the birth of the Savior right here during Holy Week. Once that was over, Steve was home, so I got up and cooked dinner. It was nice to have dinner all fixed and eaten by 6pm.
Once we finished dinner, we went and did some shopping for Gage's party on Saturday and stopped at Lowe's. And of course, at Target, we picked up Wii Play for the Wii which Jenna and I played until bedtime!
On the schedule today is getting the laundry started, making the menu and grocery list for the weekend, wrapping birthday gifts, coloring eggs and getting ready to go see Horton Hears a Who tonight. And, who knows what else we might find to get into!!! :)
One last exciting thing was that we booked our flight to Tampa the other night. I had received an email from my friend Carrie talking about how flight costs were going to skyrocket soon with the increase in gas prices. I'm still looking for someone to buy my Delta voucher, but for now, at least the cruise is taken care of!
3.17.2008
Need your help...
I'm feeling a bit needy lately...
Here's the deal...when Steve was trying to get home from Moldova, due to all the issues they had with flight delays etc., he was given a voucher worth $400 from Delta airlines. As most of you know, we are planning a cruise in August which departs from Tampa, FL. Unfortunately, Delta does not fligh direct to Tampa. You have to make at least one stop with at least an hour layover. Even with our $400 voucher, the round-trip flights are going to cost an arm and a leg for all 3 of us.
Last night, I spent most of the evening on the PC trying 100 different combinations of driving and flying to get to and from Tampa and so far, everything I've tried has come out way more expensive.
I can get 3 round-trip air tickets straight in to Tampa on Southwest for $658. SOOOOOO......I'm wondering if anyone out there might be willing to buy these vouchers from me. I know that giving me $400 in exchange for $400 worth of paper for airline tickets holds no value for you, the potential buyer. I'm hoping you'll do it out of the kindness of your heart! I was going to put it up on ebay or craigslist, but first of all, I'm not entirely sure how the exchange would work AND I am not sure I could trust a buyer and they probably wouldn't know whether they could trust me. But with family and friends or even someone that you know personally, I think we'd all feel more comfortable than with a complete stranger!
I'd love for someone to tell me they'll give me $400 for the vouchers, but I'll take $350 and that's like getting a $50 off coupon! I really want to book those Southwest tickets soon because they are such a good prices. Ultimately, if I can't find anyone to buy them, well...I'm not sure what we'll do. I haven't gotten that far yet. :)
HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!
Here's the deal...when Steve was trying to get home from Moldova, due to all the issues they had with flight delays etc., he was given a voucher worth $400 from Delta airlines. As most of you know, we are planning a cruise in August which departs from Tampa, FL. Unfortunately, Delta does not fligh direct to Tampa. You have to make at least one stop with at least an hour layover. Even with our $400 voucher, the round-trip flights are going to cost an arm and a leg for all 3 of us.
Last night, I spent most of the evening on the PC trying 100 different combinations of driving and flying to get to and from Tampa and so far, everything I've tried has come out way more expensive.
I can get 3 round-trip air tickets straight in to Tampa on Southwest for $658. SOOOOOO......I'm wondering if anyone out there might be willing to buy these vouchers from me. I know that giving me $400 in exchange for $400 worth of paper for airline tickets holds no value for you, the potential buyer. I'm hoping you'll do it out of the kindness of your heart! I was going to put it up on ebay or craigslist, but first of all, I'm not entirely sure how the exchange would work AND I am not sure I could trust a buyer and they probably wouldn't know whether they could trust me. But with family and friends or even someone that you know personally, I think we'd all feel more comfortable than with a complete stranger!
I'd love for someone to tell me they'll give me $400 for the vouchers, but I'll take $350 and that's like getting a $50 off coupon! I really want to book those Southwest tickets soon because they are such a good prices. Ultimately, if I can't find anyone to buy them, well...I'm not sure what we'll do. I haven't gotten that far yet. :)
HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!
3.16.2008
It's official!
Effective at 7:20am today, I became an official "Wii Waiter"!!! We knew that the Super Target in Spring Hill would have a shipment of Wiis this morning, but we didn't know how many.
When I asked the guys in Target what time they opened, they said 8am, followed by "good luck". Uh. OK. Steve set the alarm at 7am and promptly rolled back over when it went off. I laid there a few minutes wondering how I would explain to Jenna that we were too lazy to get out of bed and even try to get one. So, I went ahead, got dressed and headed to Target.
I had already decided if there was a line around the building that I would NOT be waiting. I got there and there were at least 50 cars in the parking lot. However, when I got closer, I figured out, it must be cars of all the workers because there were just a few people standing in line at the door. It was about 7:20 and 37 degrees out according to the truck's thermometer. I went up right behind an older man and his young teen son. There were three guys already there sitting on the Target bench, another man sitting on the ground, the father and son in front of me and me. I was the only woman in line, thank you very much.
I'm not sure who I expected to be in line with, but I was pleasantly surprised. I imagined there would be young men scalpers waiting to snatch the last Wii right before I could get one. But these guys, while young, were married and EXTREMELY funny, which made waiting all the more easy. If I had thought, I would have gotten out my camera and taken a picture of my fellow Wii Waiters. I have no idea what their names were or anything about them. All I know is that they wanted a Wii bad enough to come out at 7am (some earlier) on a Sunday morning to get one.
Anyway, as we were waiting, a Target worker came and as she was waiting on the manager to open the door for her, she asked if we were all waiting for a Wii. She said at Christmas, she did the same thing for her son and would be like number 4 in line and they'd only have 3...that's when I started to panic. I was number 6 in line and had no idea how many they would get in. I had heard the stories of "shipments" coming in just to find there are only 3 or 4 in the shipment.
About 15 till 8am, the manager came to the door, made sure we were truly Wii Waiters and started to hand out the golden tickets! OK, they weren't really golden, they were on red Target paper, but to those of us in line, they were GOLDEN! As the manager said, once you had a ticket, you were guaranteed a Wii, so there was no use in running or being crazy once they let us in. Now, mind you, I had been waiting in the cold since 7:20am and was number 6. It wasn't until about the time they started handing out the number that anyone else got in line behind me. So, I could have waited until 7:45 and still been good. At the point that I got into the store and was waiting on my Wii, they'd only handed out 10 tickets and they had 25 Wiis (I was told, I never actually saw all the Wiis...guess they have them under lock and key!)
They took two at a time, checked them out and then that was it. I was around the corner checking out other Wii accessories when I heard the "WOOOOOOHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!" from #1 Wii Waiter who was the funny guy in line. The rest of us Wii Waiters laughed and cheered as he left Target with his Wii. Before I knew it, they called number 6 and I went forward to claim my prize. It took all of 30 seconds to check out (using my $5 off Target card) and that was it.
I walked out of Super Target in Spring Hill at 8:14am a proud Wii Owner, graduating from my short stay as a Wii Waiter.
I know probably nobody else really cares about this type thing, but for someone who minored in Sociology, this whole Wii experience was right up my alley. Looking at these other Waiters and wondering about them, their lives and how different we all were, yet life had brought us together for the same reason. It was truly a Breakfast Club moment. The #1 Waiter was somewhat of a Harley guy...Harley boots, chain, long hair in a pony tail, but otherwise clean cut. Then #3 Waiter was young, but already married, no kids. #5 was the man and his son. Behind me was an older lady (than me), and then behind her was a lady in her mid 60s I would guess getting a Wii for the senior center. How different we were...but all laughing and talking as if we were friends.
I walked out with the father and son who wished me a good day with my Wii. I'll probably never seen any of these folks again, although even if I did, I probably wouldn't recognize them or realize where I knew them from...
It was an interesting experience to say the least. And I'd sit and tell you more about it but Steve just finished hooked up the Wii, and so, well....you know...I gotta go. :)
When I asked the guys in Target what time they opened, they said 8am, followed by "good luck". Uh. OK. Steve set the alarm at 7am and promptly rolled back over when it went off. I laid there a few minutes wondering how I would explain to Jenna that we were too lazy to get out of bed and even try to get one. So, I went ahead, got dressed and headed to Target.
I had already decided if there was a line around the building that I would NOT be waiting. I got there and there were at least 50 cars in the parking lot. However, when I got closer, I figured out, it must be cars of all the workers because there were just a few people standing in line at the door. It was about 7:20 and 37 degrees out according to the truck's thermometer. I went up right behind an older man and his young teen son. There were three guys already there sitting on the Target bench, another man sitting on the ground, the father and son in front of me and me. I was the only woman in line, thank you very much.
I'm not sure who I expected to be in line with, but I was pleasantly surprised. I imagined there would be young men scalpers waiting to snatch the last Wii right before I could get one. But these guys, while young, were married and EXTREMELY funny, which made waiting all the more easy. If I had thought, I would have gotten out my camera and taken a picture of my fellow Wii Waiters. I have no idea what their names were or anything about them. All I know is that they wanted a Wii bad enough to come out at 7am (some earlier) on a Sunday morning to get one.
Anyway, as we were waiting, a Target worker came and as she was waiting on the manager to open the door for her, she asked if we were all waiting for a Wii. She said at Christmas, she did the same thing for her son and would be like number 4 in line and they'd only have 3...that's when I started to panic. I was number 6 in line and had no idea how many they would get in. I had heard the stories of "shipments" coming in just to find there are only 3 or 4 in the shipment.
About 15 till 8am, the manager came to the door, made sure we were truly Wii Waiters and started to hand out the golden tickets! OK, they weren't really golden, they were on red Target paper, but to those of us in line, they were GOLDEN! As the manager said, once you had a ticket, you were guaranteed a Wii, so there was no use in running or being crazy once they let us in. Now, mind you, I had been waiting in the cold since 7:20am and was number 6. It wasn't until about the time they started handing out the number that anyone else got in line behind me. So, I could have waited until 7:45 and still been good. At the point that I got into the store and was waiting on my Wii, they'd only handed out 10 tickets and they had 25 Wiis (I was told, I never actually saw all the Wiis...guess they have them under lock and key!)
They took two at a time, checked them out and then that was it. I was around the corner checking out other Wii accessories when I heard the "WOOOOOOHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!" from #1 Wii Waiter who was the funny guy in line. The rest of us Wii Waiters laughed and cheered as he left Target with his Wii. Before I knew it, they called number 6 and I went forward to claim my prize. It took all of 30 seconds to check out (using my $5 off Target card) and that was it.
I walked out of Super Target in Spring Hill at 8:14am a proud Wii Owner, graduating from my short stay as a Wii Waiter.
I know probably nobody else really cares about this type thing, but for someone who minored in Sociology, this whole Wii experience was right up my alley. Looking at these other Waiters and wondering about them, their lives and how different we all were, yet life had brought us together for the same reason. It was truly a Breakfast Club moment. The #1 Waiter was somewhat of a Harley guy...Harley boots, chain, long hair in a pony tail, but otherwise clean cut. Then #3 Waiter was young, but already married, no kids. #5 was the man and his son. Behind me was an older lady (than me), and then behind her was a lady in her mid 60s I would guess getting a Wii for the senior center. How different we were...but all laughing and talking as if we were friends.
I walked out with the father and son who wished me a good day with my Wii. I'll probably never seen any of these folks again, although even if I did, I probably wouldn't recognize them or realize where I knew them from...
It was an interesting experience to say the least. And I'd sit and tell you more about it but Steve just finished hooked up the Wii, and so, well....you know...I gotta go. :)
3.15.2008
Cruise-Shore Excursions...any advice?
OK, for all my readers out there, I need your tips and advice. We are going on a cruise this summer to the Caribbean. We will visit Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Belize and Island Roatan. I was told that I am able to book our shore excursions in about a month, so today I got online (been online about 2 hours!) to get an idea of what there is to choose from.
And I think I made myself more confused. First of all, there's so much to choose from, especially on Grand Cayman. Secondly, we have to choose something that Jenna (who will be 7 by that time) can/will enjoy.
Soooooooo....here are my questions to any of you who have ever been on a cruise either to these islands or somewhere else...
*What is a must see? Has anyone been to Stingray City on Grand Cayman?
*Would you book your excursions through the cruise line or through a local vendor? Last time we cruised (it's been 10 years!), we just booked everything through the cruise line because we didn't know better. This time, I was on Trip Advisor reading some reviews and saw where lots of people book their excursions and tours outside the cruiseline and it is a lot cheaper. I just wondered if anyone had any experience with this?
I know a bunch of you have cruised, some of you are pros...I'm just curious because any way I can save a buck, I'm going to!
Just email me if you don't want to post a comment. Any advice is appreciated. Even if you can point me to a good website talking about making the most of your cruise, that is great. After all, at this rate, it might be another 10 years before we cruise again!
Sandra
And I think I made myself more confused. First of all, there's so much to choose from, especially on Grand Cayman. Secondly, we have to choose something that Jenna (who will be 7 by that time) can/will enjoy.
Soooooooo....here are my questions to any of you who have ever been on a cruise either to these islands or somewhere else...
*What is a must see? Has anyone been to Stingray City on Grand Cayman?
*Would you book your excursions through the cruise line or through a local vendor? Last time we cruised (it's been 10 years!), we just booked everything through the cruise line because we didn't know better. This time, I was on Trip Advisor reading some reviews and saw where lots of people book their excursions and tours outside the cruiseline and it is a lot cheaper. I just wondered if anyone had any experience with this?
I know a bunch of you have cruised, some of you are pros...I'm just curious because any way I can save a buck, I'm going to!
Just email me if you don't want to post a comment. Any advice is appreciated. Even if you can point me to a good website talking about making the most of your cruise, that is great. After all, at this rate, it might be another 10 years before we cruise again!
Sandra
3.11.2008
Lucky number 13!
So, I had my first weigh in at Weight Watchers today. I had no idea what to expect because while I was sick, I also haven't tracked what I was eating in 2 weeks. I was hoping to at least maintain.
Well, I am happy to report that I lost 2.6 pounds!!! I am down a lucky 13 pounds! I was so excited! I have someone every day that I am looking thinner and they don't read this blog, so I know they aren't cheating! I have just a few more pounds to reach my 10% goal and when I do, I have to select my REAL goal...so that will be interesting.
Anyway, thanks to all of you who are such wonderful supporters and cheerleaders! You are keeping me going and that's worth more than what I can put into words!
Oh, and a very quick thanks to everyone who ordered magazines. If you ordered and didn't tell me, please let me know because I didn't get any reports of who ordered. Carrie-I know about you...thank YOU and enjoy your guilty pleasure!
S-
Well, I am happy to report that I lost 2.6 pounds!!! I am down a lucky 13 pounds! I was so excited! I have someone every day that I am looking thinner and they don't read this blog, so I know they aren't cheating! I have just a few more pounds to reach my 10% goal and when I do, I have to select my REAL goal...so that will be interesting.
Anyway, thanks to all of you who are such wonderful supporters and cheerleaders! You are keeping me going and that's worth more than what I can put into words!
Oh, and a very quick thanks to everyone who ordered magazines. If you ordered and didn't tell me, please let me know because I didn't get any reports of who ordered. Carrie-I know about you...thank YOU and enjoy your guilty pleasure!
S-
3.10.2008
Fun while it lasted...
I guess I had one good day and that was Saturday. Well, Friday was OK too, but by Sunday, I was sick again. Luckily, it wasn't the stomach virus sick from last week, but it was what I affectionately term, "the crud". It's what us Tennesseans get when the weather is 60 one day, 40 the next and then snowing 4 inches a day later. It started as a sore throat (probably caused by drainage) and now my voice is almost gone. I did go to the clinic at work today and was diagnosed with a sinus infection and severe allergies. DUH. I got an antibiotic to get rid of the infection and they told me to take Mucinex D for the drainage. I started feeling better a couple hours after taking it, but I have to drink about a gallon of water because it's such a strong decongestant. Tonight, I'm feeling a little better (about 75%), but the voice is nearly gone.
I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired. And I'm definitely looking forward to better days ahead.
:)
I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired. And I'm definitely looking forward to better days ahead.
:)
3.08.2008
Back Among the Living-Just in Time for a Snow Day!
I finally feel like I am truly back among the living just in time for a wonderful snow day! The snow started earlier than we expected last night and we were out in it. It was touch and go driving for a while. We passed a car slid off on it's top on I-65 on the way home. Because of the way the front was moving, the southwest got the snow first and so "the hill" was pretty dense. But we got home fine and at 7am, Jenna came running in all aflutter about the snow. We managed to stay inside until about 9 and then we all bundled up and went out. Even though it was freezing, the wind wasn't blowing and so it didn't feel as cold and so we shed quite a few layers after a while.
I guess this was probably the most snow Jenna had seen in her short life. It's probably one of just a few good snows I actually remember. The best was the snow about 5 years ago that dumped 10 inches on us! This time, we got a good 4 inches!
Our first order of business was to build a snowman. The snow was great packing snow, but it's clear we don't live in a snowy portion of the country because our snowman looks more like a cone head than a Frosty. But Jenna did a lot to make this snow man and Steve and I really worked ourselves to get him looking good. Unfortunately, Frosty fell forward on his face as the sun rose and is slowly melting away already. Gotta love Tennessee weather!
Finally, tomorrow the new Super Target in "the hill" opens. I cannot wait! Just to think that I will have no more than a 5 minute drive to a Super Target (the only one in Middle Tennessee) is about more than I can stand! Next weekend, the Kohl's opens. Then, soon to follow, Books A Million, a multiplex theatre, an already opened Logans and Cracker Barrell...there's so many stores coming that I can't even name them all, but I will not have to leave the hill for anything other than work and church (and that might not even be for long!).
OK, I think I'm only about 95% back to capacity, so I'm beat after my romp in the snow today. Jenna is asleep on the couch with me and Steve is watching TV in our bedroom (which probably means he's asleep too. We lose an hour tonight with the change to daylight savings time, but it will be so nice to have an extra hour of daylight too.
Stay warm!
I guess this was probably the most snow Jenna had seen in her short life. It's probably one of just a few good snows I actually remember. The best was the snow about 5 years ago that dumped 10 inches on us! This time, we got a good 4 inches!Our first order of business was to build a snowman. The snow was great packing snow, but it's clear we don't live in a snowy portion of the country because our snowman looks more like a cone head than a Frosty. But Jenna did a lot to make this snow man and Steve and I really worked ourselves to get him looking good. Unfortunately, Frosty fell forward on his face as the sun rose and is slowly melting away already. Gotta love Tennessee weather!
After the roads had melted, we went out on a few errands. After my scrapbooking retreat, I wanted a desk light with a full spectrum bulb and I had gotten this idea for my scrapbooking room. I wanted something like a 2x2 with hooks on it in which I could hang my sticker protectors. So, off to Lowe's we went. I picked out the 2x2, then the pink spray paint and golden hooks. Brought it all home, put a couple coats of paint on the 2x2 and showed Steve what I had in mind and voila! Here it is. I have only hung up one of the protectors yet because I'm sorting through my stickers. There are some that I've had since I started scrapbooking and I'm giving those to Jenna to play with. I still have a fair amount of baby stickers I was holding onto in case I were to get pregnant again and so I'm pulling those out and putting them aside for Gage's book (if I ever get around to starting it). I didn't get very far in the organization, but you can at least see what I've done to the room. I think the pink compliments the green walls and I can't wait to get some pictures and other accessories to go in there.
Finally, tomorrow the new Super Target in "the hill" opens. I cannot wait! Just to think that I will have no more than a 5 minute drive to a Super Target (the only one in Middle Tennessee) is about more than I can stand! Next weekend, the Kohl's opens. Then, soon to follow, Books A Million, a multiplex theatre, an already opened Logans and Cracker Barrell...there's so many stores coming that I can't even name them all, but I will not have to leave the hill for anything other than work and church (and that might not even be for long!).
OK, I think I'm only about 95% back to capacity, so I'm beat after my romp in the snow today. Jenna is asleep on the couch with me and Steve is watching TV in our bedroom (which probably means he's asleep too. We lose an hour tonight with the change to daylight savings time, but it will be so nice to have an extra hour of daylight too.
Stay warm!
3.06.2008
Magazine Sale...Over tomorrow March 7
For those of you that are infamous procrastinators, I forgot to add that Jenna's magazine sale ends tomorrow, March 7. After that, you can still order, but she will not get credit for it. Should have mentioned that in the first post, but just forgot.
As for me, I am feeling better. The stomach upset is definitely gone. I'm still battling a dizziness of sorts and I'm unsure if that is leftover dehydration symptoms or something different. And then I also have a pretty bad headache hanging around at the base of my head in the back. I did make it in to work this morning, but by noon, I was pooped out. I picked Jenna up from school and came on home with the intention to not sleep, but just rest and relax. Well, about 30 minutes on the couch and I was snoozing away. I'm up now trying to stay awake...it's harder than I thought it would be. I'm about to see if Jenna will come read to me and see if that will keep me awake.
As for me, I am feeling better. The stomach upset is definitely gone. I'm still battling a dizziness of sorts and I'm unsure if that is leftover dehydration symptoms or something different. And then I also have a pretty bad headache hanging around at the base of my head in the back. I did make it in to work this morning, but by noon, I was pooped out. I picked Jenna up from school and came on home with the intention to not sleep, but just rest and relax. Well, about 30 minutes on the couch and I was snoozing away. I'm up now trying to stay awake...it's harder than I thought it would be. I'm about to see if Jenna will come read to me and see if that will keep me awake.
3.05.2008
A trip to the ER
Well, last night, I made a trip to the emergency room. I was feeling "OK" all day, but slept most of the day. No huge trips to the bathroom which was good and I kept down a few bites of food all day. About 8:30pm I took an Immodium to try and calm my stomach which was rolling still and then a Tylenol PM to help me rest since I'd slept almost all day. About 10pm, I rolled over in bed and even with my eyes closed, I felt like I was being spun all around. I opened my eyes and the room was spinning like crazy. It was the craziest feeling. Then I started to get really hot. And I knew I was about to pass out. I tried to sit up and Steve got the trashcan. Luckily, I never passed out all the way and I never got sick. I did have to run to the bathroom though. I just felt really bad at that point, so we just went on.
We dropped Jenna off at Steve's mom's house on the way. Bless her heart, she took it all in stride. The folks in the ER were nice and my nurse was super nice. They got me on a IV bag full of fluids and some Phenergan for the nausea. About 30 minutes afte that, I got sick again (go figure), so they gave me Zofran. That worked well, but it made me double tired but then I felt like I had to move every 20 seconds. My mouth was just so dry. Anyway, once the lab work came back it showed that everything was fine except for my potassium which was low. They sent me home with a prescription and the movement of the ride home, put me right to sleep. I guess we got home about 2am and I crashed and didn't wake up until about 11am. I've slept nearly all day but am feeling much better, just extremely fatigued.
I am thinking I might get up and try to shower here in a bit. I anticipate going back to work tomorrow if I can, so you guys keep me in your prayers...
We dropped Jenna off at Steve's mom's house on the way. Bless her heart, she took it all in stride. The folks in the ER were nice and my nurse was super nice. They got me on a IV bag full of fluids and some Phenergan for the nausea. About 30 minutes afte that, I got sick again (go figure), so they gave me Zofran. That worked well, but it made me double tired but then I felt like I had to move every 20 seconds. My mouth was just so dry. Anyway, once the lab work came back it showed that everything was fine except for my potassium which was low. They sent me home with a prescription and the movement of the ride home, put me right to sleep. I guess we got home about 2am and I crashed and didn't wake up until about 11am. I've slept nearly all day but am feeling much better, just extremely fatigued.
I am thinking I might get up and try to shower here in a bit. I anticipate going back to work tomorrow if I can, so you guys keep me in your prayers...
3.04.2008
I'm sick
There's not much to say except that. This time, it's the worst kind, if you know what I mean. I guess it started last night after dinner, my stomach was just feeling "blah". You know the feeling...not really hurting, but just "blah". So, I turned in a little early and at midnight, I got up to go to the bathroom and it hit. I was in there a while and then had to get the trashcan. Oh, what fun. This went on for 4 hours or so. Back and forth bathroom to bed. Clearly I didn't make it in to work. And until now, I didn't have the energy to even log on so my out of office at work wasn't on and my voice mail didn't reflect I was out. I have literally been in bed all day long. Most of the bad stuff stopped about 4am and in between sleeping, I've had a little diet Coke, a couple of Jenna's popscicles, some grapes and crackers. My stomach is growling so I know I'm hungry, but nothing sounds good. Steve and Jenna are on their way home with some gatorade and such, so that will make me better. :) I missed my Weight Watchers meeting today which is a pity because after last night, I'm sure I dropped a few pounds! Isn't it awesome how God works?! :) Seriously, I would NOT recommend this as a weight loss plan.
My last comment is that it is a true loving husband that will clean a vomit-filled trashcan just so his wife can mess it up again! God love him!
My last comment is that it is a true loving husband that will clean a vomit-filled trashcan just so his wife can mess it up again! God love him!
3.02.2008
Fundraiser for Jenna
Hello everyone! It's that time again for school fundraisers. This time it is a magazine sale. I always order and renew my magazines through this fundraiser, because it's nearly always cheaper than doing it the regular way.
This year, the school is going GREEN and so everything is online. Rather than emailing all my friends and family and begging them to buy, I'm posting it here and hoping that some of you will support here. At least doing it this way, it feels less like an obligation than a personal email.
OK, so if you are interested, go to www.dlcs.lipscomb.edu and there is a link that will take you directly to a form that gives our school credit for your purchase. You'll have to register, but then you can select what you want online and pay right there. Or if you prefer, go to www.qsp.com and click the link that says something like "Just shopping". Make sure that "David Lipscomb Campus School" is selected and that you enter Jenna Grace Taylor as the student you are supporting so that she can get credit.
If you aren't into magazine, but still want to support the school, you might be interested in the music that QSP has for sale. And if that doesn't interest you, you can contribute to the DLCS Annual Fund. A donation of $20 will equal one subscription purchase. If you are interested in this, let me know or go to the school website to get more information about donating.
Thank you all so much for your support!
This year, the school is going GREEN and so everything is online. Rather than emailing all my friends and family and begging them to buy, I'm posting it here and hoping that some of you will support here. At least doing it this way, it feels less like an obligation than a personal email.
OK, so if you are interested, go to www.dlcs.lipscomb.edu and there is a link that will take you directly to a form that gives our school credit for your purchase. You'll have to register, but then you can select what you want online and pay right there. Or if you prefer, go to www.qsp.com and click the link that says something like "Just shopping". Make sure that "David Lipscomb Campus School" is selected and that you enter Jenna Grace Taylor as the student you are supporting so that she can get credit.
If you aren't into magazine, but still want to support the school, you might be interested in the music that QSP has for sale. And if that doesn't interest you, you can contribute to the DLCS Annual Fund. A donation of $20 will equal one subscription purchase. If you are interested in this, let me know or go to the school website to get more information about donating.
Thank you all so much for your support!
Fun weekend!
I had such a great weekend! I took off at noon (ish) on Thursday and about 3pm, we headed to a state park just a little south of us. "Us", being Rachel and I. Thursday night, we scrapbooked until after midnight. Friday, we made it to 2am and then last night, we turned in at 1am. No morning were we later than 9am getting started. It was marvelous! We do this every Spring and Fall and it is by far one of the things we look forward to for months. I'm sad that it's over now. And I have to wait until October to go again! But we both got so much done. Rachel is actually quite nearly caught up, so I may be scrapbooking alone for a while!
I am sure Tuesday will be a sad weigh in day because when we are there, they bring in dinner and lunch and there's not much to choose from. I'm sure I gained at least a pound back. I might go run/walk tomorrow and try to get it off before weigh in!
Micah and Gage came and stayed with Steve this weekend. I got to spend about 2 hours with them when I got home this afternoon. After scrapbooking some old pictures this weekend which included the kids, I was feeling a little homesick to see Micah. And of course, you know how much I love seeing my baby boy! I got some good pictures, but I have not had any time to post them.
OK, that's about it for a while. I am about to post a little about Jenna's upcoming magazine fundraiser, so stay tuned...
I am sure Tuesday will be a sad weigh in day because when we are there, they bring in dinner and lunch and there's not much to choose from. I'm sure I gained at least a pound back. I might go run/walk tomorrow and try to get it off before weigh in!
Micah and Gage came and stayed with Steve this weekend. I got to spend about 2 hours with them when I got home this afternoon. After scrapbooking some old pictures this weekend which included the kids, I was feeling a little homesick to see Micah. And of course, you know how much I love seeing my baby boy! I got some good pictures, but I have not had any time to post them.
OK, that's about it for a while. I am about to post a little about Jenna's upcoming magazine fundraiser, so stay tuned...
2.27.2008
Exciting news!!!!
I've been awaiting approval to post this for a while...I finall got it today, so here's what you've been waiting for!
We have some exciting news to share from the Taylor household (no, I’m NOT pregnant!)
Most of you know that Steve has juvenile diabetes in which he was diagnosed when he was only 8 years old. Luckily, Steve’s been able to control this disease fairly well through the insulin pump he wears and we are fortunate that he has not experienced many of the side effects that come with uncontrollable highs.
Unfortunately though, Steve’s biggest struggle is keeping his blood sugar from going too low. A couple years ago, he was fitted with an insulin pump which supplies his body with preprogrammed amounts of insulin, but it still cannot imitate his pancreas. When he has a “low”, he goes into insulin shock or what is more appropriately termed a diabetic seizure. Some of you reading this (family especially) have had the experience of seeing this when it happens and it is very unnerving.
These episodes have happened everywhere…the beach, church (while pushing 8 toddlers in the bye-bye buggy), at home while alone with Jenna and while sleeping. However, I think the most frightening place this can happen is while driving. My first experience with that was Halloween many years ago. Jenna was just an infant, still in her carseat. We had taken her out to her grandparents house since she was too young to trick-or-treat. We were just a few miles from home, when Steve commented, “Oh, NOW I know where we are!”. Uh, excuse me…I didn’t realize we were LOST?!?!?!?! Of course, I knew immediately what was going on. But he was already glassy eyed and would not listen to my pleas to pull over. Finally, he did stop at a red light and I threw the car into park and jumped out in an attempt to get him out of the driver’s seat. To make a long story short (too late!), we got home safely that night, but it involved police officers and a LOT of explaining!
More recently, he had a diabetic seizure while driving home from work on the interstate in rush hour traffic (which also means Jenna was in the car with him). When he “came to”, Jenna was out of her car seat and had crawled up in the front seat of the truck, crying and trying to get him to drink a Coke to bring up his blood sugar. Needless to say, this shook us all up quite a bit thinking of what could have transpired. Had he wrecked or gotten stopped, he could have hurt someone or had his driver’s license suspended. I think this might have been the only time he (and I) was thankful for SLOW TRAFFIC!
Anyway, all that to say, a few weeks ago, we were flipping TV channels and came across a talk show featuring a young boy with juvenile diabetes and his mother. Normally, we wouldn’t have stopped to watch, but for some reason we did. Turns out, this woman was the founder of an organization called Heaven Scent Paws. They train dogs to alert when a diabetic’s sugar begins to drop. We were just amazed to watch this young boy’s dog in action.
So of course, when they gave the website, I got right on to investigate. At that time, they didn’t have any openings for the 3 week training classes, but I bookmarked the site and continued to check back. Much to my surprise, a few weeks ago, there were new classes posted with openings. I went ahead and filled out the application not knowing whether we’d qualify. The very next day, we received a phone call that our application had been processed and we could receive a dog!
Steve is set to go for 3 weeks to train with his dog in April 2009. I know that sounds like a lifetime away, but we know how quickly time passes. And there is much to be done…we will begin fundraising soon and all of you will be hearing from us with more information.
We are very excited and can’t wait to keep you updated as things progress. I encourage you to check out the website of Heaven Scent Paws in the meantime!
I’ll keep you posted!!
We have some exciting news to share from the Taylor household (no, I’m NOT pregnant!)
Most of you know that Steve has juvenile diabetes in which he was diagnosed when he was only 8 years old. Luckily, Steve’s been able to control this disease fairly well through the insulin pump he wears and we are fortunate that he has not experienced many of the side effects that come with uncontrollable highs.
Unfortunately though, Steve’s biggest struggle is keeping his blood sugar from going too low. A couple years ago, he was fitted with an insulin pump which supplies his body with preprogrammed amounts of insulin, but it still cannot imitate his pancreas. When he has a “low”, he goes into insulin shock or what is more appropriately termed a diabetic seizure. Some of you reading this (family especially) have had the experience of seeing this when it happens and it is very unnerving.
These episodes have happened everywhere…the beach, church (while pushing 8 toddlers in the bye-bye buggy), at home while alone with Jenna and while sleeping. However, I think the most frightening place this can happen is while driving. My first experience with that was Halloween many years ago. Jenna was just an infant, still in her carseat. We had taken her out to her grandparents house since she was too young to trick-or-treat. We were just a few miles from home, when Steve commented, “Oh, NOW I know where we are!”. Uh, excuse me…I didn’t realize we were LOST?!?!?!?! Of course, I knew immediately what was going on. But he was already glassy eyed and would not listen to my pleas to pull over. Finally, he did stop at a red light and I threw the car into park and jumped out in an attempt to get him out of the driver’s seat. To make a long story short (too late!), we got home safely that night, but it involved police officers and a LOT of explaining!
More recently, he had a diabetic seizure while driving home from work on the interstate in rush hour traffic (which also means Jenna was in the car with him). When he “came to”, Jenna was out of her car seat and had crawled up in the front seat of the truck, crying and trying to get him to drink a Coke to bring up his blood sugar. Needless to say, this shook us all up quite a bit thinking of what could have transpired. Had he wrecked or gotten stopped, he could have hurt someone or had his driver’s license suspended. I think this might have been the only time he (and I) was thankful for SLOW TRAFFIC!
Anyway, all that to say, a few weeks ago, we were flipping TV channels and came across a talk show featuring a young boy with juvenile diabetes and his mother. Normally, we wouldn’t have stopped to watch, but for some reason we did. Turns out, this woman was the founder of an organization called Heaven Scent Paws. They train dogs to alert when a diabetic’s sugar begins to drop. We were just amazed to watch this young boy’s dog in action.
So of course, when they gave the website, I got right on to investigate. At that time, they didn’t have any openings for the 3 week training classes, but I bookmarked the site and continued to check back. Much to my surprise, a few weeks ago, there were new classes posted with openings. I went ahead and filled out the application not knowing whether we’d qualify. The very next day, we received a phone call that our application had been processed and we could receive a dog!
Steve is set to go for 3 weeks to train with his dog in April 2009. I know that sounds like a lifetime away, but we know how quickly time passes. And there is much to be done…we will begin fundraising soon and all of you will be hearing from us with more information.
We are very excited and can’t wait to keep you updated as things progress. I encourage you to check out the website of Heaven Scent Paws in the meantime!
I’ll keep you posted!!
EXCITEMENT!
WE HAVE A SNOW DAY!!!!
First one since I think Jenna has been in "real" school! It was so cool and Jenna is swinging from the rafters ready to go play in it. Unfortunately, as an adult, we don't typically get snow days, so I will be taking her in to work with me shortly and trying to get a few hours in. She usually does pretty good... But it is very exciting to us, even though there's really not much snow. I'll have pictures and maybe video in a bit.
Second exciting thing that happened is that at my weigh in at WW yesterday, I lost .8lbs which took me over the 10lb mark!!! Hip Hip Hooray! I was so excited! Thanks for all your support!
OK, Jenna is yelling at me for breakfast so we can go out. I haven't even showered this morning yet, so I better get to it....more to come.
First one since I think Jenna has been in "real" school! It was so cool and Jenna is swinging from the rafters ready to go play in it. Unfortunately, as an adult, we don't typically get snow days, so I will be taking her in to work with me shortly and trying to get a few hours in. She usually does pretty good... But it is very exciting to us, even though there's really not much snow. I'll have pictures and maybe video in a bit.
Second exciting thing that happened is that at my weigh in at WW yesterday, I lost .8lbs which took me over the 10lb mark!!! Hip Hip Hooray! I was so excited! Thanks for all your support!
OK, Jenna is yelling at me for breakfast so we can go out. I haven't even showered this morning yet, so I better get to it....more to come.
2.20.2008
Let's see...what is going on with the Taylors?
Well, this past weekend Steve and I celebrated Valentine's Day. We went to the Melting Pot on Saturday night which is a once a year (if that much) event for us. The V-day special is quite pricey but it's about the only time we'd ever splurge. I tried to be good all week with my Weight Watcher points and then Saturday, because I got up kind of late, I didn't really have lunch, but I ate so I wouldn't be ravenous when we got there. Rachel and Hannah kept Jenna while we went to eat and to see Spamalot (thanks Rach!). Anyway, I ate some of everything at the Melting Pot. Which included very yummy bread with cheese fondue as well as dessert. I know dessert was probably dangerous, but most of what I ate was fruit, albeit, fruit dipped in WAY DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE!!
Anyway, all that to say, I knew I was going to gain at my Tuesday weigh in as I didn't have any days that I could squeeze in exercise. I thought about turning in my "no weigh" pass and skip the weigh in all together. But my friend at work, Nancy, warned against this. She said if I had a bad week I should weigh in just to see the results. So, I determined I would go, but just thinking about gaining made me feel anti-social so I decided I would weigh, but NOT stay for the meeting.
I got on the scales and the lady recorded my "progress". She didn't say anything and I didn't feel like looking at the stupid book to see the damage. On my way over to tell my friend I wasn't staying for the meeting, my curiosity got the best of me and I opened my weight tracking book anyway. I honestly have to tell you, I had to look 3 times because I absolutely could NOT believe what I was seeing. I LOST 2 pounds!!! WHA?????????????? I have no idea how that happened other than God was merciful because He knew I at least tried to be good!! That puts me at a total weight loss of 9.6lbs and this is starting week 8. I get a 10lb sticker when I reach that milestone, so I'm busting my butt this week to get that sticker! I've exercised yesterday and today. I'm probably not eating as well as I could, but I'm still watching my intake closely. My first weight loss goal is 10% which is 17 pounds (yes, I basically just told you what I weighed when I started)...I am over 1/2 way to that goal and I am feeling fabulous! I can feel the difference already in my pants which were getting so uncomfortably tight. I'm thrilled and I am thinking I can now see it in the mirror too. YAY!
OK, that was an awfully long post about my weight loss...but now you know. On another happy note, we have filed our taxes and will get a nice sized refund soon. We have most all of it going into our savings for our summer vacation which is a CRUISE! I'm so proud because as soon as it hits, we will have enough to pay for the entire vacation including the excursions we decide to do. Unfortunately, my family in Florida is not going to be able to go and we are totally bummed. So, if any of my friends or family reading this is interested in tagging along (at your expense of course!), we are going in August and to the Carribean...shoot me an email and I'll tell you all about it. We just think it will be more fun with another family, but believe you me, we will go alone and have fun regardless!
I'm trying to think whether there is anything else going on...I guess not really. I can tell you that I am thoroughly enjoying this Sunday night service thing at our church. The past 2 weeks, I have not even gotten out of my pajamas until around 2-3pm when it was time to leave for our activities. It's not like I haven't worked because I'm doing stuff around the house, but I just do it in my PJs. In fact, while preparing for my scrapbooking retreat in a couple weeks (I'm literally giddy about this), I went up in the attic to search for some older pictures. I found a bunch of boxes full of stuff that just came with us when we moved and it's stuff I can donate, so I am planning to do that this weekend. In fact, I'm looking forward to it.
Well, that's about it. Everything else is status quo...busy as usual. I'll be back shortly to update you more.
Well, this past weekend Steve and I celebrated Valentine's Day. We went to the Melting Pot on Saturday night which is a once a year (if that much) event for us. The V-day special is quite pricey but it's about the only time we'd ever splurge. I tried to be good all week with my Weight Watcher points and then Saturday, because I got up kind of late, I didn't really have lunch, but I ate so I wouldn't be ravenous when we got there. Rachel and Hannah kept Jenna while we went to eat and to see Spamalot (thanks Rach!). Anyway, I ate some of everything at the Melting Pot. Which included very yummy bread with cheese fondue as well as dessert. I know dessert was probably dangerous, but most of what I ate was fruit, albeit, fruit dipped in WAY DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE!!
Anyway, all that to say, I knew I was going to gain at my Tuesday weigh in as I didn't have any days that I could squeeze in exercise. I thought about turning in my "no weigh" pass and skip the weigh in all together. But my friend at work, Nancy, warned against this. She said if I had a bad week I should weigh in just to see the results. So, I determined I would go, but just thinking about gaining made me feel anti-social so I decided I would weigh, but NOT stay for the meeting.
I got on the scales and the lady recorded my "progress". She didn't say anything and I didn't feel like looking at the stupid book to see the damage. On my way over to tell my friend I wasn't staying for the meeting, my curiosity got the best of me and I opened my weight tracking book anyway. I honestly have to tell you, I had to look 3 times because I absolutely could NOT believe what I was seeing. I LOST 2 pounds!!! WHA?????????????? I have no idea how that happened other than God was merciful because He knew I at least tried to be good!! That puts me at a total weight loss of 9.6lbs and this is starting week 8. I get a 10lb sticker when I reach that milestone, so I'm busting my butt this week to get that sticker! I've exercised yesterday and today. I'm probably not eating as well as I could, but I'm still watching my intake closely. My first weight loss goal is 10% which is 17 pounds (yes, I basically just told you what I weighed when I started)...I am over 1/2 way to that goal and I am feeling fabulous! I can feel the difference already in my pants which were getting so uncomfortably tight. I'm thrilled and I am thinking I can now see it in the mirror too. YAY!
OK, that was an awfully long post about my weight loss...but now you know. On another happy note, we have filed our taxes and will get a nice sized refund soon. We have most all of it going into our savings for our summer vacation which is a CRUISE! I'm so proud because as soon as it hits, we will have enough to pay for the entire vacation including the excursions we decide to do. Unfortunately, my family in Florida is not going to be able to go and we are totally bummed. So, if any of my friends or family reading this is interested in tagging along (at your expense of course!), we are going in August and to the Carribean...shoot me an email and I'll tell you all about it. We just think it will be more fun with another family, but believe you me, we will go alone and have fun regardless!
I'm trying to think whether there is anything else going on...I guess not really. I can tell you that I am thoroughly enjoying this Sunday night service thing at our church. The past 2 weeks, I have not even gotten out of my pajamas until around 2-3pm when it was time to leave for our activities. It's not like I haven't worked because I'm doing stuff around the house, but I just do it in my PJs. In fact, while preparing for my scrapbooking retreat in a couple weeks (I'm literally giddy about this), I went up in the attic to search for some older pictures. I found a bunch of boxes full of stuff that just came with us when we moved and it's stuff I can donate, so I am planning to do that this weekend. In fact, I'm looking forward to it.
Well, that's about it. Everything else is status quo...busy as usual. I'll be back shortly to update you more.
2.15.2008
If you notice the time of this post, you'll wonder what the heck I'm doing posting at 1:30 in the afternoon on Friday. Jenna's school had an in-service day today, so Steve kept her the first 1/2 of the day and I took the second half off. YAY! It's a beautiful day (for February), and Jenna would rather watch TV than play outside, so I am going to take the opportunity to catch up on my blogging.
I had a weigh in this past Tuesday. I didn't know what to expect, but I had only exercised 1 time, so I knew it wasn't going to be spectacular. I still managed to pull off -.8lb. I'm down nearly 8 pounds and believe it or not, I can tell it in my clothes. This next week is going to be really bad because I've not eaten as well and tomorrow night, we have reservations at the Melting Pot which means lots of chocolate fondue for dessert. Luckily, lots of what they give you to dip is fruit! I'm still going to post my progress (or lack thereof) because you all have to keep me accountable!
I found this cool website that teaches you how to go from "couch potatoe" to running 3 miles a day in about 2 months. I think I might start doing this next week. I never had the desire to run a marathon, or even 1/2 marathon for that matter, but I would really like to enjoy running. I mean, how many fat runners do you know? Right. Me either. And running a few miles at a time takes less of a toll on your body and joints than marathon running.
What else? Not much going on in the way of work. As usual, I'm staying busy. I had more of a slow week this week and I was so glad for the breather. Next week will be a full week, but then the last week of February I'm taking 1/2 day on Thursday and all day Friday to go on a scrapbooking retreat and I am SO stoked about this...I look forward to it every spring and fall. Rachel goes with me so it's a very productive girls weekend.
We really don't have plans except for the Melting Pot and to see Spamalot tomorrow night. Some of you know that Steve became really close to a young teenage girl while he was in Moldova. A few months ago, she came to the US to go to school and she is coming to visit us this weekend. She'll just hang out with us and do whatever we normally do. It will be interesting for her to see how this crazy family lives!
I guess that's about it. I had my Subway sandwhich (Rach says I'm going to turn into one!) and now I'm starting to get sleepy. I don't foresee a nap in my future, but I will at least get to lay on the couch. It will be just Jenna and I tonight while Steve bowls. We'll have to find something to get into or we'll drive each other crazy!
I had a weigh in this past Tuesday. I didn't know what to expect, but I had only exercised 1 time, so I knew it wasn't going to be spectacular. I still managed to pull off -.8lb. I'm down nearly 8 pounds and believe it or not, I can tell it in my clothes. This next week is going to be really bad because I've not eaten as well and tomorrow night, we have reservations at the Melting Pot which means lots of chocolate fondue for dessert. Luckily, lots of what they give you to dip is fruit! I'm still going to post my progress (or lack thereof) because you all have to keep me accountable!
I found this cool website that teaches you how to go from "couch potatoe" to running 3 miles a day in about 2 months. I think I might start doing this next week. I never had the desire to run a marathon, or even 1/2 marathon for that matter, but I would really like to enjoy running. I mean, how many fat runners do you know? Right. Me either. And running a few miles at a time takes less of a toll on your body and joints than marathon running.
What else? Not much going on in the way of work. As usual, I'm staying busy. I had more of a slow week this week and I was so glad for the breather. Next week will be a full week, but then the last week of February I'm taking 1/2 day on Thursday and all day Friday to go on a scrapbooking retreat and I am SO stoked about this...I look forward to it every spring and fall. Rachel goes with me so it's a very productive girls weekend.
We really don't have plans except for the Melting Pot and to see Spamalot tomorrow night. Some of you know that Steve became really close to a young teenage girl while he was in Moldova. A few months ago, she came to the US to go to school and she is coming to visit us this weekend. She'll just hang out with us and do whatever we normally do. It will be interesting for her to see how this crazy family lives!
I guess that's about it. I had my Subway sandwhich (Rach says I'm going to turn into one!) and now I'm starting to get sleepy. I don't foresee a nap in my future, but I will at least get to lay on the couch. It will be just Jenna and I tonight while Steve bowls. We'll have to find something to get into or we'll drive each other crazy!
2.09.2008
What Did I Do Today?
Well, pretty much nothing. I haven't gotten out of my PJs all day long. I had to re-read my last post to see what I had typed. I had some serious medicine head at that time. I think I mentioned taking some Tylenol Severe Allergy. Apparently, for what ailed me, that was the wrong thing to do. My head was completely clogged. You know, like when you've cried really hard and you are 100% stopped up and there's no air passing through? That's what happened to me after taking that. I could not even swallow without choking. It was a little scary. I went to bed in hopes that laying down would help. It did just enough. I would wake up every hour with my mouth feeling like it was full of cotton. Finally about 12:30, Steve told me that I had waited long enough and maybe take an Actifed. At that point, I was willing to try anything, so I took 2 and it was like a miracle! Minutes after I laid back down, my head cleared and it was heavenly. But, all night, I felt like I was wide awake, so I didn't sleep well. Friday I went on in to work, but was pretty tired all day. After work, Rachel and I went shopping to prepare for our scrapbook retreat in a couple weeks. Last night I slept well and slept until almost 9am. My nose is still a little stuffy, but sitting around all day has been oh-so-nice!
Actually, it's not like I haven't done anything. I just haven't GONE anyway. I cleaned the kitchen and did the laundry. Tomorrow, our family will begin attending the evening Sunday service at church, so we'll get to sleep in again and then do our church activities tomorrow night instead. I can't tell you how stoked I am about having a free morning.
But something else I have done today in preparation for my scrapbooking retreat. I went through a ton of old pictures in order to maybe get them into albums during the retreat. I had in the back of my mind that I wanted to put our wedding snapshots into an album and maybe one of these days put all my growing up pictures into a real album. The problem was finding where I had put all of them. I finally found them and lo and behold, I had already put them together and organized them. Apparently, I had that idea a few years back and I forgot about it. I have my pictures from the year I was born up until high school. I also have all our wedding activities together and then several years of vacation photos before Jenna was born. It's a tall order to get ALL of those into albums even with a long weekend, because I have to still get caught up on the current album as well.
Anyway, that's what I've done all day. So while I stayed in my PJs and never left the front door of my home, I have accomplished alot. Tomorrow I will iron and get groceries. It will be a bit strange grocery shopping on Sunday morning when most folks are in church. It has got to have been 30+ years since I slept in on a Sunday other than when we were out of town or sick!
For now, I'm off to bed!
Actually, it's not like I haven't done anything. I just haven't GONE anyway. I cleaned the kitchen and did the laundry. Tomorrow, our family will begin attending the evening Sunday service at church, so we'll get to sleep in again and then do our church activities tomorrow night instead. I can't tell you how stoked I am about having a free morning.
But something else I have done today in preparation for my scrapbooking retreat. I went through a ton of old pictures in order to maybe get them into albums during the retreat. I had in the back of my mind that I wanted to put our wedding snapshots into an album and maybe one of these days put all my growing up pictures into a real album. The problem was finding where I had put all of them. I finally found them and lo and behold, I had already put them together and organized them. Apparently, I had that idea a few years back and I forgot about it. I have my pictures from the year I was born up until high school. I also have all our wedding activities together and then several years of vacation photos before Jenna was born. It's a tall order to get ALL of those into albums even with a long weekend, because I have to still get caught up on the current album as well.
Anyway, that's what I've done all day. So while I stayed in my PJs and never left the front door of my home, I have accomplished alot. Tomorrow I will iron and get groceries. It will be a bit strange grocery shopping on Sunday morning when most folks are in church. It has got to have been 30+ years since I slept in on a Sunday other than when we were out of town or sick!
For now, I'm off to bed!
2.07.2008
Thanks to everyone who emailed me earlier this week to be sure we had survived all the bad weather and tornadoes that blew threw on Tuesday night.
It was very bad and while the city I live in was spared, several counties south of us were hit and mostly devastated. Check out this website to find out how you can help. Union University has a blog and to the right, you can view a slideshow of the devastation. 
I am sick YET AGAIN. I started sneezing today at work and now I literally cannot breathe at all! I think this is the 4th time this season that I've been sick and I am quite getting tired of it. Don't know what to do about it though. I took 2 Tylenol Severe Allergy and now I'm about to fall out. My ears are stopped up and I am miserable. It's not that I feel so bad per se, but trying to breathe wears me out and really ticks me off that I'm even sick at all.
Oh, one more update...I can't believe I'm just now posting this...I had a weigh-in at Weight Watchers on Tuesday. I was in such a mood that day that I thought if I didn't lose, no one would want to be around me at all. Guess the good Lord was looking out for me because I lost 3.2lbs! I'm down almost 7 pounds!
OK, I am off to bed in hopes that my head will explode and relieve the pressure or it will get better during the night.
2.02.2008
Catching up...
Sorry for the delay in updating everyone. I've gotten several emails regarding Steve's job situation and I had a weight in for my WW last week. So, let's get right to it because I have a laundry to do!
I'll start with the least important which was my weigh in last Tuesday. Well...it just didn't go so well. I knew that the week hadn't been as good and that I'd probably gain but you know, I was just hoping against hope that I'd be wrong. I wasn't. Of the 5lbs I'd lost, I gained back 1.4. :( But I had determined before not to let a gain bum me out. It's the first of many I'm sure. Just like my struggle with reading the Bible/devotional every day, I'm not giving up after just one setback. I realized in 2 weeks, I probably ate Subway like 6 times and lost 5lbs. Last week, I didn't eat there at all and I gained. Hmmmm...maybe that Jared guy was on to something! This week I had Subway twice!!!! :)
As for Steve's job situation. It really got bad last week. He just really has a hard time with the owners of the company. They are what we in the south would call, "Good ole boys". The owner, co-owner and operator of the company all went to school together and regardless of whether they can run a company, they all have jobs there. Given how they did him when they first purchased the company (remember, Steve was the ONLY one they didn't have a place for?), they already had black marks in Steve's mind. And then things have just built one upon the other until Steve has such a deep seated hatred and bitterness for these guys. Then his manager quits and rather than letting him work out his 2 weeks, they tell him to pack his stuff and get out...well, that just topped it off. It was really bad. The night I posted and asked for prayers, Steve had called me sobbing. Do you know how hard it is to listen to the one you love the most cry and not be able to do anything about it? It's awful.
Anyway, we have talked about this off and on since then and Steve just felt like God was not answering his prayers. Let me preface by saying, there are two prayers that I've been praying for years...one was for another child and the other to provide another job for Steve (that's been going since before wanting a second child) and God's answers have consistently been "no". I don't know why and I've gotten to the point that I don't question it. Just know it's for the best and go on. Steve was just asking for a peace when he is in the office and to be able to function without this bitterness and hatred, but he just can't. He says he prays every day and it just doesn't help. I told him maybe it wasn't enough...maybe he needs to pray every hour. Every minute if that is what it takes. Everytime he has to open an email from one of these men, pray before he does it. It's the only other thing I could think of.
Well, yesterday, he told me that the day had been better because he had prayed more frequently throughout the day. PRAISE GOD! I had prayed so hard that morning that God would reveal himself to Steve and give him peace for the day. I love it when we see such a direct answer to our prayers!!
We still don't know what will become of the company (they say nothing...they won't close) or of Steve's job when they hire a new manager. But we are taking it one day at a time.
Thank you all for your prayers and emails and words of advice. I have passed that on to Steve and he does appreciate them all.
I guess that's about it today. We have some pretty exciting news to share, but it's not time yet (and NO I'm not pregnant!)...Hopefully I'll be posting soon!
I'll start with the least important which was my weigh in last Tuesday. Well...it just didn't go so well. I knew that the week hadn't been as good and that I'd probably gain but you know, I was just hoping against hope that I'd be wrong. I wasn't. Of the 5lbs I'd lost, I gained back 1.4. :( But I had determined before not to let a gain bum me out. It's the first of many I'm sure. Just like my struggle with reading the Bible/devotional every day, I'm not giving up after just one setback. I realized in 2 weeks, I probably ate Subway like 6 times and lost 5lbs. Last week, I didn't eat there at all and I gained. Hmmmm...maybe that Jared guy was on to something! This week I had Subway twice!!!! :)
As for Steve's job situation. It really got bad last week. He just really has a hard time with the owners of the company. They are what we in the south would call, "Good ole boys". The owner, co-owner and operator of the company all went to school together and regardless of whether they can run a company, they all have jobs there. Given how they did him when they first purchased the company (remember, Steve was the ONLY one they didn't have a place for?), they already had black marks in Steve's mind. And then things have just built one upon the other until Steve has such a deep seated hatred and bitterness for these guys. Then his manager quits and rather than letting him work out his 2 weeks, they tell him to pack his stuff and get out...well, that just topped it off. It was really bad. The night I posted and asked for prayers, Steve had called me sobbing. Do you know how hard it is to listen to the one you love the most cry and not be able to do anything about it? It's awful.
Anyway, we have talked about this off and on since then and Steve just felt like God was not answering his prayers. Let me preface by saying, there are two prayers that I've been praying for years...one was for another child and the other to provide another job for Steve (that's been going since before wanting a second child) and God's answers have consistently been "no". I don't know why and I've gotten to the point that I don't question it. Just know it's for the best and go on. Steve was just asking for a peace when he is in the office and to be able to function without this bitterness and hatred, but he just can't. He says he prays every day and it just doesn't help. I told him maybe it wasn't enough...maybe he needs to pray every hour. Every minute if that is what it takes. Everytime he has to open an email from one of these men, pray before he does it. It's the only other thing I could think of.
Well, yesterday, he told me that the day had been better because he had prayed more frequently throughout the day. PRAISE GOD! I had prayed so hard that morning that God would reveal himself to Steve and give him peace for the day. I love it when we see such a direct answer to our prayers!!
We still don't know what will become of the company (they say nothing...they won't close) or of Steve's job when they hire a new manager. But we are taking it one day at a time.
Thank you all for your prayers and emails and words of advice. I have passed that on to Steve and he does appreciate them all.
I guess that's about it today. We have some pretty exciting news to share, but it's not time yet (and NO I'm not pregnant!)...Hopefully I'll be posting soon!
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