Not Surprised

"When your mind is already made up that you are going to have a terrible day, why would it go any better? You've already ruined your day plus a few others."

So, I don't know when I blogged last...was it Sunday? Nope, I think it was last night? Heck, I don't know!

Today was a nice slow day at work which yielded some changes. It is hard to get used to changes but that's what happens in life. Things change and they may not always be to our benefit or expectations, but they change and we have to be adults and deal with it. Plain and simple.

After work Rusty and I decided to take Marley for a walk. It was so nice out that we couldn't imagine spending the afternoon inside in a gym. We walked over to Becca's and visited with her, Claudine, Eli and Jason. It was a nice visit but was cut a little short since we had walked. It cools off a lot when the sun starts to go down so we had to get home! We then had some supper and went over to watch Biggest Loser at Renee and Ricks. Since I hardly ever post pics I took the camera to post some for tonight. Wish I would have took it to Becca's too! So, here's a couple pics of the Rick and Renee's dogs and here's to me going to bed!

Fragglicious

I have a new sister-in-law that I just found out about around a month ago. Well.........tonight I got to actually talk to her for the first time!!! I will admit it was a little weird at first but then it was like nothing at all! It still sucks because I want to see them in person!! All in good time I suppose. How am I going to fit in all that excitement for a new nephew along with a new brother-in-law AND sister-in-law?? We'll just have to wait another thirty some days to find out! Can not wait!

On another note...headache is back. Had just a few days without it and I want more like that. I got it right around lunch. Some have wondered if it is caffeine withdrawal but I don't know. If I haven't drank it except for on Friday/Saturday for two weeks can I still have withdrawals? Makes me think I should just drink it all the time! ;0) We'll have to see how weigh in goes this week. I need to see some loss!

Until.....well.....I decide to post again, later!

Here We Go Again

So, my husband blogged about eating lunch at Lake Wilson on Friday. I really wish I could have been there with him.

This last week was a little hectic as I had predicted but I got through it. Some days were better than others depending on who was there. Sad, but things go better on those days. I had a headache nearly every evening and I attribute it partly to sitting in the sauna for too long after working out. I finally got rid of it and didn't have one after Wednesday. Thursday night was weigh in. I only lost .1 pounds but I know why and it's okay. Next week will be better. I did not cheat on my pop all week so that was a great accomplishment for me. I am sticking to Friday and Saturday only and am thinking of going to one day only. All in time I guess. Pretty soon my only addiction will be the internet! LOL

Rusty and I went to the gym on Friday evening. My hubby finds a way to make me happy even when he shouldn't and he let me order Chinese. We definitely don't need to be spending money especially with our trip to Vegas coming up. Don't get me wrong........it's not a gambling trip but any trip you have to have cash for. I am so excited but more on that in a bit! Today was a day of straightening up/cleaning the house and going to the gym. Rusty participated in both with me and I was happy about that. Then instead of getting back out he decided he was "done" which meant "lay on the couch" time. I couldn't get sleepy so I watched "Walk The Line" with Joaquin Phoenix. I really like him as an actor and am not impressed with his career path here of lately. Anywho..........We watched "Fireproof" tonight and it was good. It reminded me even more of what a great marriage I have. He may be a smart ass sometimes (lol!) but I am too so we get along well!

Rusty and I have a little over 30 days until we go to Las Vegas to meet his brother's wife and new son they will be having in March. I have never met Randy so it will be great for me all the way around. I am super excited and have gotten to know Dawn (Randy's wife) over the internet and can't wait to meet in person. I feel like I have a sister out there waiting to see me just as badly as Rusty and Randy are waiting to see each other. Funny that can happen in less than a month! We e-mail often so it's like second nature. I think of them every day and can't wait to get out there. Prayers for Baby Doozer to do great would be appreciated! And Dawn too!

I am looking forward to the gym tomorrow. I know I won't be looking forward to the end of the day because that means it's back to work on Monday morning but it's my short week (sort of). This week is my week to have a half day on Friday. Pumped about that and the weekend ahead! Gonna be a long one!

Ok, that's about it for me. No pics to post...as Rusty said, we aren't that exciting!

Oh yeah, my back is doing pretty good! A little pain and stiff in the mornings.....I got spoiled by those two days of being completely numbed up around those areas!

Oh The Joys of Weekends

I am tired and just really want to go to bed but I will blog first.

Saturday was pretty uneventful. I went to the gym around 11 and then came home and just stayed lazy for a little while. I was going to do some pampering for myself that evening but Rusty got called out to Phillipsburg so I went with him. We got home a little after 7:00 and just kind of hung out. We wanted to cut Marley Sue's hair so that's what was done next...........Rusty does such a good job.

Here he is paying close attention to detail.


Here he is pausing for a phone call.


Here's Evil Keiko watching from the background.


Daddy stealing a kiss from Marley.


And here is Marley and Keiko playing after her cut and bath. Momma gave her the bath!


And here is a final one.


Rusty got called out to Great Bend shortly before midnight and I didn't even know when he got home. I was OUT. I just remember waking up at some point and reaching over and there he was. Scary that just ANYONE could crawl in bed with me. That is, if Marley Sue would let them!

Today was a pretty boring day. I got up and started some laundry. We sat around and watched the race and then I went to the gym at 5:00. I had a nice workout. Came home, made dinner, watched Desperate and here I am!

This week is going to be busy. Work will more than likely be days full of stress as people will let their attitudes, negativity, and spitefulness get in the way as always. Such is life, for those people I guess. I'll try to be on my best behavior! There are days when I just about BUST!

All right, I'm ready for bed! G'Night!

Whoa....It's Been A While!

Wow, I was looking at my blog. I knew it had a been a couple of days but I didn't realize it had been since Sunday! So, where to start.............

I know I had mentioned on Sunday the pain I had started to feel but it really wasn't that bad. We had satellite clinic on Tuesday and the drive up, scribing, and the drive back were fine. The time before damn near killed me. So, I figured I could handle that little amount of pain I was having. Wednesday was a nice slow day at work and we all enjoyed that. By the way, I hadn't had a Dr. Pepper (or any soda for that matter) since the previous Saturday. It was getting easier as the week went on. Well, I woke up Thursday morning to what seemed to be pretty close to my normal level of pain.....shit. I had also had a slight headache for the past three days and now my pain was occurring with every step and every movement. Double shit. I had to report to my doctor today so I am hoping with my results he will call back and we can schedule the second injection. Thursday at work our doc's had massage therapists come in and give each of us a chair massage. It was soooo awesome! Thanks to our awesome office manager this was made possible!

Thursday night was weigh in. I had given up all pop (and caffeine) to see if it made a difference. I went in and weighed and lost 3.1 pounds. I was so happy then I remember it meant no more pop! Damn, damn! LOL I get to have them on Friday and Saturday if I want but I am thinking of sticking to Friday's! We decided to go out tonight for our V-Day instead of tomorrow. For one, Rusty is on call tomorrow and for another everything will be super busy! We went to Taco Shop for dinner (yum!) and then to a movie. Rusty enjoys a cheap date! LOL We went and watched Gran Turino which is awesome. It is soooo funny too. I love Clint Eastwood and sometimes it was hard to watch because you realize how old he is getting. It sucks when all the stars you grew to love start dieing. It's gonna suck when Clint Eastwood, Jack Nicholson, Sean Connery, and others I love pass away. Damn I'm getting old.

Not much else. I got flowers today at work and everyone thought it was Rusty and I took one look and said "nope, bet they're from my dad." Dad always sends me something on Valentine's Day.........just like Santa always comes on Christmas morning.

I'm gonna let this do. I'm ready to crash. Woke up this am with a scratchy throat so lets hope it doesn't turn into anything! I'm taking my vitamins like a good girl!

I'm Not Ready For The Weekend To Be Over!

Okay, so a certain someone is asking for a blog so here it goes! My life really isn't that exciting. Same stuff different day!

I should have blogged Friday evening. I had another great day with no pain. I went to the gym and felt amazing when I got home. Unfortunately, I woke up Saturday morning with some pain. I was so upset. I went to the gym and worked out for an hour. When I got home I was pretty upset and began to cry. I haven't cried over my back in a looooooong time. In fact, only two or three times. Rusty quickly shot that down. He said I should be positive so I sucked my tears in before they fell down my cheek and put my big girl panties on. Sometimes a girl needs a shoulder to cry on babe!

Saturday was a great day for Geo-caching so that's just what we did. Rusty was happy, as you can see below.

We took Marley Sue because she loves to go and we like to let her out and just let her sniff around and have fun. Here's a pic towards the end of the day.

And then, there was me. I didn't feel near as much pain as I normally do on our excursions so I know the injections are working. It was amazing how that pain put my mood back below the line of cheeriness so quickly. As you can see below, I put on my happy face.

I was told by a dear friend that they inject pain meds in there also so it is a bit deceiving at first. I was told by her that I may have a couple of days that are bad and then I will perk up again. That was great news to get since that is exactly what was happening. I have until Friday for the injections to give their full effect so I am hoping I definitely won't get any worse. I would so go in for more long ass needles right this moment to have that time of no pain. It was unbelievable, and that's not even a good word for it. Euphoric? Extraordinary? Heaven-like? Those are pretty close.

Today was a normal day around the house. I was slow getting up this morning because I was hurting again. Starts the day out as a bummer. I vacuumed, dusted, cleaned the bathroom and helped out with laundry. I also started a roast for supper. And, here we are! I wanted to get this done because I was thinking of a little pampering...obviously from myself. Rusty doesn't much care for pampering.

So, I am going to try and finish relaxing before a busy hectic TLM day. After the way it ended Friday it ought to be interesting. Don't know how much longer I can go like this.

Double Whammy

Red....for the blood I saw on the doc's rubber gloves after my injections.

I went in for a single steroid epidural injection in the right side of my back today. I quickly realized how much I depend on my husband to be the strong part of me when I am faced with something I am leery about. I've always been so independent and proud of handling things like that just fine on my own. It didn't help that every time I mentioned it at work every person responded with a terrified look on their face! LOL I had done an injection before and have had several of those 5-6 inch needles stuck in my back. I am guessing that I am not as strong without my husband. The procedure went well. All in all they said it would only take about 20 minutes but I was in there from 1:00 until 3:00. Only about 30-40 minutes was actual procedure time. I ended up with bilateral neuro-foraminal injections. That is.........they did both freaking sides of my back!! So, the worst part was the numbing medicine because, of course, I could feel that! So, when we were done with the left side and I found out it was a two fer today......we did the right side then. The numbing meds hurt a tad more on the right side but when I was done I didn't feel any of the pain I normally feel. But, I was also numb!! My legs were a little wobbly and I felt a little unstable, but other than that I was good! My friend Andrea brought me home (thankful for that!) and then my friend Leigh came by with a DP and Caramel Popcorn! She stayed with me until about 5:00 and then I ran with her to pick up Georgia and Jett so I could say hello. She dropped me off and then my friend Becca and her kiddos (Claudine and Eli) came by with a big ole' DP from McD's!!!! Man my friends know me well! They stayed until almost 7:00 and we had a grand old time! By then I was getting a little stiff in the back and sore so I look forward to when I can really get down and play! As of now I am a little stiff. I can not take any Aleve, Naproxin, or anti-inflammatories so I took my last Tylenol-3............I was saving it for something really good!! I needed something though and that's all I had that was Tylenol. Yeah, I'm feeling a little groovy. I kinda like those things so I know I can't have too many of them around! I've had that last one since last August so it lasted a LONG time in my medicine cabinet! Anyway, I am still shocked that I am doing so well but it is in the wee stages. I may have to do a 2nd and even 3rd injection but I'm okay with that. I know the doc knows where my pain is stemming from because he stopped it today! I am keeping my fingers crossed and I ask that you do too! Thanks in advance! Here is a pic of the big needle they used. It's next to a smaller 2 1/2 in. needle! If I could have I would have taken a pic of the needle actually in my back. Would have loved to watch!

On another note, I forgot to mention that my awesome hubby took me to The Oz museum in Wamego, Ks. this last weekend. It is (I believe) the top Oz museum as in memoriabilia. It was pretty cool! Now we just need to make it to Liberal to see Dorothy's house! Anywho....I think that's about it. I just got up to let Marley out and I realized that for so long I've had to brace myself before moving so I was prepared for the instant bolt of pain and I don't have any of that right now!! Just the stiffness, so I have got to learn to relax all over again! It's been a while.........a long while.

All righty then, it's after 10:00 and tomorrow is a TLM day. I hope I don't feel too bad because those days are non-stop action. I don't have to scribe so at least there's not going to be a lot of up and down for me. I just have to take it easy and do my best. I am sure this cost a couple grand and I'm not gonna blow it! Now for finding a way to pay for it.........Ha!

Finally!

So, I was gonna post last night but our net locked up so here I am tonight!

We had a long weekend in Topeka. I had some things to take care of with the Board of Education and instead of making a super long day of it for Monday we just decided to have a long weekend and get out and about for a bit. And of course.............................


we did some geocaching. After a quick stop in Manhattan for a cache we went and visited Grandma Claribel and Erma Jean. She is doing amazing as always!














We also got our first Missouri cache. We now have found caches in 4 states!











And....................our 100th cache was found this past weekend. We chose the Kansas cache in the "Cache Across America" series.


















I guess the scientist in me is still there! Along our journey this past weekend I actually got to see one of the four types of mass movement that I think is amazing! The pic below is an example of "creep" which is one of the four types of mass movement! Just so cool......yeah, I'm a nerd!















Tomorrow is the first of three Steroid Epidural Injections in my lower back. I have had these done over 10 years ago but I don't remember much about it. I was fine until I realized that Rusty wasn't going to be able to go with me and now I am nervous. I have to come home and take it easy after my appointment and it is at 1:00. I already missed 8 hours yesterday and now will miss another 4..........geesh! I am also not sure how this is going to effect my working out. I need to really be busting my butt because I haven't done well lately. I went to the gym this evening and since someone was on the elliptical I like I grabbed a treadmill and did my 5-6% incline. That aggravated my back quite a bit. I was thankful when my machine opened up. I got on there and did some more and it wasn't nearly as painful. So, I burned about 275 calories this afternoon. Not nearly as much as my 600-700 the last couple of weeks. I have got to get back on the ball. Hopefully the doc will say I can go ahead and do the elliptical.

On a side note, I get to hang out with a cool kid named Eli tomorrow for about an hour! Even if I don't feel great we can play on the bed with the dog and cat! Rusty will be here too............he asked where Claudine would be! I think one is enough to start! LOL Just kidding Becca!