Tomorrow morning I have my last medical test in the quest to solve my stomach pain attacks. I say it's my last test because I am choosing for it to be my last test. I am choosing to be DONE. I really have exhausted my options and done more tests than I ever thought could be done on a person's stomach and I'm ready to just be through with going to see doctors, and getting constantly poked and examined like a lab rat.
Tomorrow's test is a pretty simple one and for that I am thankful. It's a Barium Swallow (aka small bowel test) and basically consists of drinking a milkshake-like substance and taking a long series of xrays. They are focusing on my small bowel because so far it has been the only thing in all of my tests that is possibly slightly abnormal in size/shape, which could mean absolutely nothing and it's a total long shot that it has anything to do with my pain, but like I said we have exhausted all our options.
Honestly, I am 100% prepared for them to not find anything and am seeing tomorrow as more of the close to this crazy medical chapter of my life. I had another stomach pain attack early Sunday morning and while it was just as bad as usual (sharp stabbing pain off the charts), I have totally learned how to handle the pain. I barely even cried during it and that is a HUGE improvement to the exorcist-style dramas that used to happen.
For some reason the pain just doesn't seem to affect me mentally anymore and I am able to push through it, pick myself up, and move on as if nothing happened. I realized how much it has stopped affecting me because I didn't even tell anyone that it happened; I literally just went about my day completely normal and totally happy.
So yes, tomorrow when the test is over and they tell me that everything looks healthy (because it always does) I am choosing to be done and *fingers crossed* stay away from the doctors office for awhile. I have too much awesome stuff to be excited about in life and am sick of wasting my time at pointless doctors appointments.
{Exhale} Okay, vent over. Time to go watch American Idol :)
Girls Weekend!
- - - - Tuesday, May 8, 2012 - - - -
This past weekend my best friends from back home came to visit me for a fun girls weekend. We had an awesome time and I wish they never had to leave! It was so incredibly nice to have the house full of people for a few days. I'm so thankful to have my best girlfriends living so close to me again and I love how often we have been able to see eachother.
The weekend started on Friday morning when Allison drove up for a shopping day. The other girls were coming up later that night to stay for the whole weekend but because Al had to work the next morning she could only come up for the day. We had a great time catching up over lunch at The Olive Garden (yum!) and then shopped the outlets for a few hours. Afterwards, we picked up some coffee and headed back to my house where we relaxed, enjoyed our coffee and the amazing weather, and read some magazines.
Not long after Al had to leave, the others girls arrived and the fun continued! We stayed in that night to just chill and catch up with eachother and ended up playing some board games which were hilarious. One of the highlights was playing an intense game of "Finger Twister". What's that you might ask? Well it's the game "Twister" except it's only using your hands. And yes, it is just as ridiculous as it sounds, if not more. My dad got it for me as a funny stocking stuffer and, what can I say, we are easily entertained...
The next day we drove up to the wine country to Frog's Leap Vineyards. It's one of my favorite spots in Napa because it's very relaxed and charming. The view is incredible, the people are very friendly, plus there are animals, yard games, a pond, rocking chairs... it's a pretty awesome way to spend a warm Saturday afternoon!
I was bummed that I didn't have my new camera yet because the scenery was awesome... And I loved having little Audrey there to take pictures of! She's just too cute not to photograph :) I think I probably have 50 pictures of her just from that day. I even managed to get her to strike a "Lindsay pose"...
She totally takes after her Auntie Lindsay :)
Saturday night Cassie and I decided to go out dancing. We were really not wanting to ditch Becca at home with Audrey but she insisted that we go. Becca put Audrey to bed right as we left and then had a relaxing evening with some wine and my overloaded DVR so it didn't end up being too shabby for her either haha.
Cass and I ended up going to a line dancing place in Davis that I'd been to once before and we had a blast! I must say, line dancing has kind of become my new hobby. It's such a fun time - good country music, great workout, nice people... I love it! I think I might end up back there every weekend :) Anyways, we had a great time on Saturday night and in honor of Cinco de Mayo we even sported some festive mustaches... Oh yeah...
So there's my quick recap of the weekend! It was really great having my friends here - Lots of laughs were had and tons of good memories made :) I love you girls and miss you already!!
The weekend started on Friday morning when Allison drove up for a shopping day. The other girls were coming up later that night to stay for the whole weekend but because Al had to work the next morning she could only come up for the day. We had a great time catching up over lunch at The Olive Garden (yum!) and then shopped the outlets for a few hours. Afterwards, we picked up some coffee and headed back to my house where we relaxed, enjoyed our coffee and the amazing weather, and read some magazines.
Not long after Al had to leave, the others girls arrived and the fun continued! We stayed in that night to just chill and catch up with eachother and ended up playing some board games which were hilarious. One of the highlights was playing an intense game of "Finger Twister". What's that you might ask? Well it's the game "Twister" except it's only using your hands. And yes, it is just as ridiculous as it sounds, if not more. My dad got it for me as a funny stocking stuffer and, what can I say, we are easily entertained...
The next day we drove up to the wine country to Frog's Leap Vineyards. It's one of my favorite spots in Napa because it's very relaxed and charming. The view is incredible, the people are very friendly, plus there are animals, yard games, a pond, rocking chairs... it's a pretty awesome way to spend a warm Saturday afternoon!
She totally takes after her Auntie Lindsay :)
Saturday night Cassie and I decided to go out dancing. We were really not wanting to ditch Becca at home with Audrey but she insisted that we go. Becca put Audrey to bed right as we left and then had a relaxing evening with some wine and my overloaded DVR so it didn't end up being too shabby for her either haha.
Cass and I ended up going to a line dancing place in Davis that I'd been to once before and we had a blast! I must say, line dancing has kind of become my new hobby. It's such a fun time - good country music, great workout, nice people... I love it! I think I might end up back there every weekend :) Anyways, we had a great time on Saturday night and in honor of Cinco de Mayo we even sported some festive mustaches... Oh yeah...
So there's my quick recap of the weekend! It was really great having my friends here - Lots of laughs were had and tons of good memories made :) I love you girls and miss you already!!
New Name, New Look!
- - - - Monday, May 7, 2012 - - - -
About once a year I try to update the design of my blog and give it a fresh new name so.... Here's the refreshed look! I didn't change the layout of the blog at all because I've really enjoyed the simple design over the last year, but I totally revived the color scheme to make the look much more vibrant and fun.
It was definitely time for a new name as well. A year ago, I chose the name "Come What May (and love it)" when, as you know, I was working through a particularly rough time health-wise. The title helped me remember to be thankful and positive no matter what life threw my way. It was completely perfect and fitting at the time, but I've recently recognized that I'm in a totally different place now and I need something different to represent my daily writings. Even though there are still some health issues to be worked out, I feel that I've fully returned to my busy, happy, optimistic self (Yay!)
The other day, I came across an article titled "My Extraordinary Ordinary Life" and I thought that was such an awesome little phrase. Life is exactly what you make it and I plan to make this year EXTRAORDINARY!
It was definitely time for a new name as well. A year ago, I chose the name "Come What May (and love it)" when, as you know, I was working through a particularly rough time health-wise. The title helped me remember to be thankful and positive no matter what life threw my way. It was completely perfect and fitting at the time, but I've recently recognized that I'm in a totally different place now and I need something different to represent my daily writings. Even though there are still some health issues to be worked out, I feel that I've fully returned to my busy, happy, optimistic self (Yay!)
The other day, I came across an article titled "My Extraordinary Ordinary Life" and I thought that was such an awesome little phrase. Life is exactly what you make it and I plan to make this year EXTRAORDINARY!
Our First DSLR Camera!
- - - - Thursday, May 3, 2012 - - - -
I am so so sooooooo excited right now! As you know, I love taking pictures of everything; it's not that I want to be a photographer or anything, I just love documenting all of life's events and little special moments. Funny sidenote, I take SO many random pictures every day that Jake decided to put a monthly limit on how many pictures I can take of him (except when we're on vacation) because he is sick of always being photographed haha! I already feel bad for our future children... I can hear it now "Please mom NO more pictures!!!"
Anyways, the camera that I've had for the past few years has been anything but reliable and I'm not a huge fan of the photos it takes so I usually end up using the camera on my iPhone, which are really of no quality to print and hang on the wall. Long story short, for a few years I've had my eye on getting a beginner DSLR camera that will take all of my photos to the "next level". They are so expensive though that it's not really something that people just go out and buy on a whim (at least not us!).
With Jake's deployment being a bit longer this time, we found out we were getting quite a bit of extra money for "separation pay".... and it's kind of an unofficial rule around base that the wife gets to decide how to spend that extra money :) Going on a shopping spree at the Coach outlet definitely crossed my mind but after really thinking about it I decided it would be so much better to get something for both of us that we otherwise would not have spent money on. A nice camera was the perfect option!
After emailing some friends and doing lots of research, I decided that the Canon EOS T3 was going to the best fit. It has a lot of great automatic features for a newbie like me but also has so many amazing options and capabilities as I learn how to use the camera more. It also takes full HD videos (and the memory card I got can hold easily 4+ hrs of video) so its definitely a 2-in-1 and will save us from needing to buy a video camera in the future. The package that I got through Costco also included an extra lens and two instructional DVDs on how to use the camera. Here's a look at the little beauty...
It's supposed to arrive to our house early next week and I can't wait!! I plan to start learning how to use it right away so I will be ready to document all of our summer travels. I have a feeling that my photo obsession has only just begun :)
Anyways, the camera that I've had for the past few years has been anything but reliable and I'm not a huge fan of the photos it takes so I usually end up using the camera on my iPhone, which are really of no quality to print and hang on the wall. Long story short, for a few years I've had my eye on getting a beginner DSLR camera that will take all of my photos to the "next level". They are so expensive though that it's not really something that people just go out and buy on a whim (at least not us!).
With Jake's deployment being a bit longer this time, we found out we were getting quite a bit of extra money for "separation pay".... and it's kind of an unofficial rule around base that the wife gets to decide how to spend that extra money :) Going on a shopping spree at the Coach outlet definitely crossed my mind but after really thinking about it I decided it would be so much better to get something for both of us that we otherwise would not have spent money on. A nice camera was the perfect option!
After emailing some friends and doing lots of research, I decided that the Canon EOS T3 was going to the best fit. It has a lot of great automatic features for a newbie like me but also has so many amazing options and capabilities as I learn how to use the camera more. It also takes full HD videos (and the memory card I got can hold easily 4+ hrs of video) so its definitely a 2-in-1 and will save us from needing to buy a video camera in the future. The package that I got through Costco also included an extra lens and two instructional DVDs on how to use the camera. Here's a look at the little beauty...
It's supposed to arrive to our house early next week and I can't wait!! I plan to start learning how to use it right away so I will be ready to document all of our summer travels. I have a feeling that my photo obsession has only just begun :)
Feels Like Summer!
- - - - Monday, April 30, 2012 - - - -
I am absolutely LOVING the hot weather we've been having! It's only April and it's already starting to feel like Summer outside. Last year at this time it was sooo rainy and cold so I'm really happy to see all this sunshine.
Yesterday my good friend Heather had a BBQ/Pool Party with a bunch of people from Jake's squadron and we had an awesome time just swimming, eating, playing games, and soaking up the sunshine :) The dogs came along with me and were completely worn out and happy by the end of the day too.
I am so SO thankful for my friends here; they make it so much easier when Jake has to be away. Here are some photos from the fun day...
Yesterday my good friend Heather had a BBQ/Pool Party with a bunch of people from Jake's squadron and we had an awesome time just swimming, eating, playing games, and soaking up the sunshine :) The dogs came along with me and were completely worn out and happy by the end of the day too.
I am so SO thankful for my friends here; they make it so much easier when Jake has to be away. Here are some photos from the fun day...
