Stupid Party

I tried to stay mum.

Why get people all worked up and worried?

But, when my Relief Society President started to “hear things” about my health and gave me a call, just to check on me, I ended up telling her everything that has been going on, starting with my first black-out period four weeks ago and up to the continuous dizziness and pressure in my head that I experience now.  I told her that I was waiting for the results from an MRI and a Holter Monitor. 

Waiting for test results can be a little scary.  My imagination worked over-time on what could possibly be wrong.  I told my Relief Society President that the reason I hadn’t told many people about what was going on was because what if it turned out to be something really trivial and stupid????  Why get people all worked up over something stupid?

She replied, “Well, lets hope it is something stupid.  If it is we will throw a party and celebrate that it was something stupid and not serious.”

Yeah.  I want to throw a stupid party.  I really do.  What a better way to celebrate after being worried for an entire month!  A stupid party could be a lot of fun!

My MRI and Holter Monitor tests both came back clean.  They show nothing seriously wrong.  Whew!

But, it is still a guessing game as to what is going on.  The neurologist suggests that maybe it is “migraine with aura.”  My MRI shows that I have experienced migraines in the past.  Whoa!  I never knew I’d had a migraine.  I’d heard of them.  Two of my daughters get them occasionally.  But I had never experienced a major headache.  According to my neurologist, it is possible to experience a migraine and not feel any pain.  Whoa, again!  Really?  Weird.

I’ve been put on two different migraine medications to see if they knock out my symptoms.  If they do, then we have discovered what the problem is and I am throwing a stupid party.  If the symptoms continue, then I guess it is back to square one on trying to discover what is going on.

I’ve  only been on the meds for one day and I am dizzy as I type this.  I know I need to give it time, but I am really tired of feeling lousy.  Here’s to hoping the symptoms disappear and I get to throw a stupid party in the near future!  I can’t wait to get back to posting boring family stuff, instead of updates on my health.

Any ideas on what would make a stupid party fun?

 

Picnic…Do It!

Go on a picnic with your spouse.

That’s my suggestion for this post.  Picnic with your spouse. 

Tuesday Hub and I celebrated our 4th anniversary.  Since I was still experiencing weird health issues we didn’t plan much to celebrate the day.  I didn’t want the day to go by without an acknowledgement of some sort though, so I suggested a picnic in a nearby park.  We got soup, salad, and bread-sticks from Olive Garden, found a secluded shady area, and spread my favorite picnic blanket out before kicking off our shoes and settling down to our meal.

Whenever I started to feel ill I simply laid back and closed my eyes for a bit.  You can’t do that in a restaurant!  The idea was perfect for the circumstances.  We reminisced.  We chatted and joked.  We chuckled about the fact that a lot of our friends on Facebook are celebrating their 14th, 19th, 20th anniversary, and we posted that we were celebrating number four.  Woo hoo! 

Hub surprised me with a piece of raspberry chocolate cheesecake, which we shared at the end of the meal.  We relaxed and gazed up at the leaves over our head and talked of the past and the future.  We even closed our eyes for awhile and dozed, until a group of preschool kids came around looking for bugs.

The entire outing lasted for an hour and a half.  It was nice.  I hope we do it again…soon.  If you get the chance, whether you have anything to celebrate or not, have a picnic with your spouse.  Reconnect.  Enjoy.

********

With the help of Valium I survived my MRI without tearing apart that expensive piece of medical equipment (where can I get a supply of that stuff?  It was great!  ).  I also wore the heart monitor for 24 hours like a good girl.  I turned the monitor in yesterday.  Now we wait for results.  I hope that the doctor can get a diagnosis soon so that we can fix whatever is wrong.  In the meantime, I am going to see if I can at least get a load of laundry done before feeling too dizzy.  Take care!

 

Dizzy, But Not Blonde

Blood work results all came back normal = no thyroid problem, no anemia, no vitamin deficiency, etc.

Blood pressure is good; protein and sugar levels are good; E.K.G. showed nothing.

Wednesday I go in for an MRI (they will be giving me a Valium because I am extremely claustrophobic) and I pick up a Holter (sp?) Monitor (heart monitor) that I have to wear for 24 hours.  Will these tests reveal what is going on???  We shall see…

The Neurologist doesn’t think that I’ve been experiencing T.I.A.’s because of my age and because I don’t have any of the risk factors.  I’m not a smoker, I don’t drink, I’m not overweight, etc.

So?  What is going on?  We are trying to find out.  There has been increasing dizziness, slight nausea, intense pressure in the back of my head.  I’ve found it harder and harder to remain vertical.  I feel better when I rest on my bed.  So, horizontal it is! 

I was going to post a letter to my dad on Father’s Day, but didn’t feel well enough to sit at my computer.  That post will have to come later.  Today I was going to post a little more about our trip to Oregon, but I don’t feel like being at the computer for very long.  Dizziness is no fun.  That post will also have to come later.

But?  And this is important…the Neurologist doesn’t seem too concerned at this point.  So I’m not going to be concerned either.   

I am just grateful that I have such a wonderful, caring, and understanding family.  Hub and all of the kids have been great.  What a blessing they are!

Time to go rest…

 

Vacation On the Cheap

Activities on a vacation don’t have to cost a lot.  Here are some ideas from our recent vacation to the Oregon coast:

*Shop online for affordable lodging.  Hub used the site VRBO.com (Vacation Rentals by Owner) to find us a house to rent near the beach.  VRBO is the same site we use to rent our Moab condo to vacationers.  Our needs were simple.  We didn’t require a hot tub or a game room.  Balconies and garden paths were luxuries not needed.  We were looking for a place near the beach that could sleep nine people and had a kitchen so that we could cook most of our meals ourselves.  The house we rented fit the bill.  It wasn’t fancy or big, but that didn’t matter.  It cost us under $800.00 to rent it for an entire week.  Run the numbers, you can’t find hotel lodging for nine people for that price.  

*We saved money by using the kitchen of our little beach house.  Had we stayed in a hotel we would have had to eat out for our meals.  By renting a house and visiting the local grocery store, we cut our vacation costs down.  Because the kids were allowed to make requests for meals, they didn’t mind not going out to restaurants.  Breakfasts were cereal, waffles, fruit, and bacon and eggs.  Lunches were usually sandwiches.  Some days we planned “day activities” that required us to pack a picnic lunch.  Dinners were spaghetti, stir-fry, lasagna, grilled cheese sandwiches and soups.  As long as the kids bellies are full, they don’t mind where the meal comes from.

*Take advantage of the location of your lodging.  We purposely chose a house near the beach because our kids love the beach.  We knew we would be spending lots of time there.  The beach was within easy walking distance.  In fact, we could see the beach from the house.  We used the beach for many of our activities.  And it was free!  Explore the area within walking distance of where you are staying.  You never know what you might find.  One afternoon Hoob and I took a walk around our temporary neighborhood and picked up fliers advertising the other vacation homes in the area.  We imagined what it would be like to stay in each house.  We talked about the features we liked most.  It was fun to walk it together.  (And it was gratifying to see that most of the houses were renting for $3,000 – $4,300 per week–Hub really did find us a good deal!)

Our little beach house.

*Look for free souvenirs.  We didn’t spend a dime on souvenirs this vacation.  The beach is a great place to find interesting things to bring home.  The kids loaded up on sea shells, pretty rocks, bits of sea weed and sea glass.  If  you are staying near the woods, allow the kids to find pine cones and pretty flowers to press.  Look for pamphlets of the places you visit.  My son gathered pamphlets with great pictures of one of the museums and some of the other sites we visited.  I once read a story in a magazine about a woman who collects the dirt from each of her vacation spots.  She had sand from different beaches, red soil from her jeeping experiences, dark soil from the woods, all stored in little decorative bottles on her fireplace mantel.  There are numerous ideas for free souvenirs.

*Pictures!  Pictures can be some of the greatest souvenirs, and with a digital camera, you can take as many pictures as you want and then delete those that don’t make the cut.  Make sure to get lots of candid shots along with the posed pictures.  Let the kids decide some of the shots and make sure your pictures tell a story.  Take shots of the scenery, the silly people you see, and local sites you aren’t likely to see again.  The kids loved bringing the laptop to Grandma’s house two days after we returned home from our vacation and showing their grandparents and cousins the pictures from our vacation.  Once the vacation is over, the kids can choose some of their favorites to print out  and maybe even frame.  One of the gifts I gave to Hoob for her birthday was a new frame with the picture of her jumping on the beach (see my last post).

Scenery: A lighthouse we visited.

*Before the vacation, do some online research to find out what there is to do in the area.  As I researched for our Oregon vacation I learned that the breezes on Oregon beaches make kite flying ideal.  I shopped around for a couple of months before the vacation and found kites for $1.99 for each of us.  We made sure to spend one afternoon flying our kites on the beach.

Putting the kites together.

Four of the kites in the air.

*A bonfire and s’mores.  Keeping with our desires to spend a lot of time on the beach, and wanting to do the typical “beachy” things, we built a fire on the beach and made s’mores on our last night in Oregon–an inexpensive activity that all enjoyed.

Yum...s'mores!

*Use your imagination.  While shopping for kites I found canisters of glow-in-the-dark bracelets (15 ct.) for $1.00.  I bought two canisters and we used the bracelets to play glow-in-the-dark-tag on the beach one night.  It was fun to see the different, creative ways the kids affixed the bracelets to their bodies before starting the game.  And then we all laughed at how funny it looked to see the “glowies” bouncing around and racing all over the beach.  This game isn’t limited to the beach.  It could be played in a field, an empty parking lot, or even a large backyard.

Getting ready for glow-in-the-dark-tag.

*Find the free places.  Nearby where we were staying there was an overlook with a display all about whales.  It had big windows with views of the ocean and binoculars we could use to look for whales.  It was free.  In the same town there was a science center that had displays about marine life and tide-pool tables at which the kids could touch various marine animals.  This was also free.  We visited both places and the kids not only had a good time, they learned a few things as well.

*Hang on to traditions.  It has become a tradition for me and the girls to paint our fingernails in the same shade before we all go on vacation together.  It creates bonding.  This year things were so crazy before we left (Huh’s graduation, filling a vinyl lettering order, packing) that we didn’t get around to painting our nails before we left.  I packed the fingernail polish–shades of green and blue this year to represent Oregon–and let the girls know that I had brought the polish.  On one rainy afternoon we stayed indoors and painted our fingernails and toenails and watched episodes of “House” (a cable station was showing multiple episodes of the show).  The boys joined us in the t.v. watching but not the nail painting.    It was a nice, quiet activity on a gloomy day that didn’t cost much.  I think the nail polish cost me $3.50 for three bottles.  And, we kept our tradition alive.

Lovely nail painting job.

**I included the above picture to show the shade of green I chose for my toenails.  But, the REAL reason the picture was taken was to show my wet pant leg after I’d gotten caught in a wave while tide-pooling.  The entire family was trying to reach an outcropping of rocks and we were timing the waves.  Both Hoob and I got caught in one.  I got one leg wet, she got both of hers wet.  We were the only two that got caught by the wave.

 

Many of the ideas presented in this post can be adapted for “Staycations” or even “Family Nights.”  The point to any activity with your family, whether it be a vacation or a night at home, is to relax and make the most of it.

Enjoy!

 

Happy Birthday Hoob!

Today is Hoob’s 14th birthday.  So, rather than craft the much longer post originally planned for today, I am writing a quickie and then spending the day with my girl.  She has requested German pancakes for her birthday breakfast and spaghetti for her birthday dinner.  She and I will go to lunch together at her choice of restaurant and then shop for a rug for her bedroom (her request for a birthday present).  I will have Huh, Mack, and Juju bake her a cake this afternoon and we’ll all sing Happy Birthday to her later tonight. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HOOB!

Hoob showing a dance move on the beach in Oregon.

 

It’s going to be a great day!

 

Road Trip Must-Haves

Last year I wrote a post offering ideas to beat the boredom on long road-trips.  This year I add to that by giving suggestions on items to have in the car.  Our trip to Oregon included a 14 hour drive.  Here are some items I found helpful to have along:

*Water bottles.

*Tissues.

*Music.  I allowed the kids to choose the music.  They brought along their own CDs.  Some of their music choices leave me shaking my head, but it is good for parents to occasionally listen to what their kids like.  Ask questions about it.  Who sings this?  What is this song about?  Is this a guy or a girl????  At one point I was able to point out to Huh that a song we were listening to had lyrics that I didn’t like.  She quickly changed the song.

*Baby wipes and hand sanitizer.

*Snacks.  Mack suggested one of our snacks for the road-trip.  She had it at girl’s camp last year and really liked it.  Give each person a lemon and have them roll it in their hands and knead it until it is quite squishy.  Then offer a choice of candy sticks with citrus flavor.  Our choices were orange, lemon, and tangerine.  Stick the candy stick into the lemon and suck on it like a straw.  The acid from the lemon eventually creates holes so that the lemon juice can be sucked up through the candy stick.  The mixture of sour and sweet makes it delicious.  I had our lemons chilled on ice in the cooler, which made for a nice cool treat during one of our stops.  Be aware that you will get sticky.  That is where the baby wipes and hand sanitizer come in handy. 

*DVD players and plenty of movies.  They did make the 14 hour drive a little more bearable.  As the driver, I found that I enjoyed Hoob’s DVDs of “The Andy Griffeth Show” most enjoyable because the dialogue was funny enough that I didn’t need to see the screen to see what was going on.  Why my soon-to-be 14-year-old loves old shows like “The Andy Griffeth Show” and “I Love Lucy” is a mystery to me.  Most of her friends find it strange.  But I don’t mind that she likes them.  Most of the stuff kids watch today is garbage.

*Games.  I had notepads of the “Dot Game” available as well as various peg games.  The kids could play with a partner or by themselves.

*Camera.  It is a GREAT boredom buster.  Teens especially will find uses for a camera.

During one of our day trips in Oregon some bikers pulled into the gas station where we were filling our cars.  One of them had a face covering that looked like a skull.  I told Huh to discreetly get a picture of him.  She tried, but couldn’t get the camera at the right angle.  The other kids tried with their cameras, but they weren’t quite as discreet as Huh.  When we pulled away from the gas station the bikers followed us.  The kids reacted with a mixture of fear and excitement.  Huh was sure we were going to die.  Though they were fearful, the kids kept snapping away with their cameras.  I laughed hysterically the entire time.

We never did get a picture of the guy with a skull.  The bikers waved as they eventually passed us. 

We also used the camera to take pictures of stuff that is important to know…

Yup. Good to know.

*If your teen drivers want to do some of the driving, make sure they have their license with them.  I had Huh drive for part of the drive to Oregon so that I could get some rest.  She was following Hub who was leading in his truck.  As we entered a construction zone a highway patrolman pulled us all over for speeding.  Poor Huh was beside herself because she’d just been trying to stay up with Hub so we didn’t get lost.  She was ready to chew Hub out if she got a ticket and it went on her driving record.  After checking licences and registrations for both vehicles the cop let both driver’s off with a warning.  Maybe he decided a family our size couldn’t afford two speeding tickets?  Whatever the reason, we were very grateful.  Thank you Mister Oregon Highway Patrolman.  We laugh about it now.

*Cell phone.  We made it all the way to Oregon and through the entire week without me having any TIAs (see my previous posts).  And then about two hours into the return trip one hit.  It wasn’t as big as the one two weeks before, but it was enough to scare me.  I told Huh to call Hub, who was again leading in his truck, and tell him that we needed to pull over as quickly as possible.  Huh and Mack each took turns driving my car for the rest of the drive home (Squid gave Hub a few breaks in his truck as well).

More on the trip later.  Today I make an appointment with a neurologist.

 

Graduation

We are still on vacation in Oregon and having a total blast.  The wifi at the place we are staying is hit and miss, so I’m not sure I will even succeed in getting this post up, but I wanted to post a few images from Huh’s graduation.  Pat me on the back, I only shed a few tears instead of bawling my eyes out like I had thought I would.  My daughter has reached an important milestone in her life and I am very proud of her.

Leaving Mom and walking toward her future.

 

763 graduates waiting to throw their caps into the air.

 

Clear down below, Huh receives her diploma.

 

It was a great day.  My baby girl has grown up. 

More on our trip later!

 

5 Things I Have Recently Learned

1.  I have learned of the existence of Transient Ischemic Attacks (TIAs).  TIAs are “warning” strokes or “mini” strokes that last less than 24 hours and leave no permanent damage.  They occur when a blood clot temporarily clogs an artery, and part of the brain doesn’t get the blood it needs.  The symptoms occur rapidly and last a relatively short time.  Most are less than 5 minutes.  The average is about 1 minute.

My doctor isn’t sure if I had a TIA or not.  He wants me to see a neurologist to rule out all possibilities.  It may be that the incident on Sunday (see my last post) was a one time thing and will never happen again, but he wants to be safe.  We are scheduled to leave on a road trip to Oregon on Friday morning.  The doc says it is okay for me to go, but to make sure I make an appointment with a neurologist as soon as we get back.  Oh joy. 

2.  I have learned that I can get a panicked reaction out of Mack when she texts me the question, “How was your doctor’s appointment?”  and I send a text back saying, “He says it was all your fault.” 

3.  I have learned that hard taco shells can not be stored indefinitely.  Ick.  Ick.  Ick.

4.  I have learned that the $1.99 kites that I bought for the kids to fly on the beach in Oregon don’t have very long strings, so I will probably need to go buy more string.

5.  I have learned that if my hubby makes dinner one night, he might spill it on the bottom of the oven and forget to clean it up and then when I turn the oven on the next day to make cornbread the house will fill with smoke, thus setting off the smoke alarms.

Huh graduates tomorrow and then we leave at 4:00 a.m. to Oregon the next morning for a week.  I’m not sure how much posting I will get done.  I hope to keep to my regular MWF schedule, but no promises!

 

What If…

It was so out of the blue…

Last night at around 8:15 I left the house to go pick my kids up from their father’s place.  He lives about ten minutes away, just off of the same busy street that we do.  It was a typical Sunday evening, not much traffic, a few clouds in the sky, quiet.  As I drove I listened to a radio station that always plays religious music on Sundays.  The station went to commercial and I reached to turn the volume up because I wanted to hear what the commercial was about, although now I cannot even remember what commercial it was.  As I reached for the dial it hit. 

I experienced a sudden tightness in my chest and a heaviness in my head.  My throat felt like it constricted and I suddenly couldn’t breathe.  I gasped for air as the road swam before my eyes and then my vision tunneled and I could not see much.  I knew I was losing consciousness.  I gripped the steering wheel and applied the brakes to slow the car, hoping there was no one behind me, and said aloud, “Heavenly Father help me, please help me.”

My vision cleared and the tightness left my chest.  I took deep, gulping breaths and looked around for a place to pull over.  A wave of dizziness hit and my breathing became labored again.  My vision swam, but not as bad as the first time.  There was a tingling in my fingertips.  Again I prayed, “Heavenly Father, please help me.  My kids need me.  Please help me to get to my kids.”  I was aware that the car was still moving forward, but I no longer knew where I was.  “Please help me,” I prayed over and over, “My kids need me.”  I fought to stay conscious. 

After what seemed like an eternity, but was in reality only about ten seconds, I saw the turn-off to my ex’s street and made the turn.  Still taking deep breaths and shaking I remember thinking, I might have to have Mike call 911.  I pulled into the driveway and called Huh’s phone.  Taking a deep breath I made my voice sound as normal as possible, “I’m here.”

“Okay, we’ll be right out.”

My breathing slowed, and the dizziness left me.  I got out of the car and walked to the passenger side, as I slid into the passenger seat I said a silent prayer, “Heavenly Father, thank you for helping me to get here.” 

Mack came out of the house carrying her bag of clothes.  When she saw me in the passenger seat she got a puzzled look on her face.  “Why are you sitting there?” she asked as she loaded her stuff into the car.  “Are you okay?”

“Do you have your license with you?”  I asked.

“Yup.”

“Good.  Do you want to drive?”

“Sure.”  Mack looked at me closely.  “What’s wrong?  Did something happen?”  I just shook my head.  I had been trying to appear normal, somehow my daughter was seeing right through me.  I pulled the sun visor down to look at myself in the mirror.  Sure enough, I was pale.

“You’re shaking,” said Mack.  I simply nodded.

After all of the kids were in the car and Mack was driving us home I told the kids what had happened.  They were quiet.  To lighten the mood I asked them about their weekend.  Huh had attended the Senior dinner dance for her high school and Yawlin had gone to a birthday party, so I asked them both about those events.  Mack finally said, “Mom, you are only 41.”

How many times have my kids told me that I’m old and teased me about my age?  And now the perspective is that I am only 41. 

When we got home there were neighbors standing on our front porch visiting with Hub and Squid.  They’d dropped by to congratulate Squid on his recent call to serve a mission for our church in Uruguay.  My kids carried their stuff into the house and I stopped on the porch to visit with the neighbors.  After the neighbors left I told Hub what had happened on the way to get my kids.  He got a concerned look on his face and asked, “Are you okay?  Do we need to go to a doctor?”

“I don’t know,” I said.  “Other than a slight headache, I feel fine.”

Later on, as I loaded dishes into the dish washer, Hub again asked me if I was okay.  I told him that I was and that all I had was a slight headache.  We finished our evening routine and everyone went to bed.  That is when my mind started to race.  What if I had blacked out?  What if there had been more traffic?  What if I had been on the freeway?  What if it happens again?

This morning I got up at my usual time and made poppy seed muffins for breakfast (box mix).  My headache is gone and I feel fine.  Normal.  Alive. 

As I was crossing kids at my morning crossing a lady walked by with her dog on a leash.  She smiled at me and asked, “Doesn’t it smell heavenly out here?”  It did.  A mixture of lilacs and Russian Olive tree did make my little street corner smell nice.  I took a few deep breaths.  It was nice to do so with ease.  I’m not taking that for granted. 

The incident in the car happened so suddenly, so out of the blue.  There were no warning signs.  It just hit.  Quickly.  It’s a little scary to think about.  Things can change in our lives in the blink of an eye.  I don’t think I am going to be taking things for granted for awhile.  I am noticing the little things.  I truly am blessed.

And I am so grateful for help from above.

 

Yum!

I don’t have much time for posting today, so I leave you with this treat.  My brother-in-law introduced it to our family:

Rinse off a ripe strawberry and pat dry.  Dip the strawberry in sour cream, roll it in brown sugar, and enjoy!

Bet you can’t eat just one!