Vegas Road Trip

We are going on a road trip!! Today my hubby, dad, nephew, and brother in law are leaving on the motorcycles on the way to Vegas. Tomorrow morning at 430am (Did you know there is a 430 in the morning? Not sure the last time I saw it) my mom is coming to get me, we are picking up my mother in law and sister and law and hitting the road in the truck.

We are going for my nephew's 21st birthday. He ask been asking as far as Bryan can remember to go to Vegas for his birthday so he could "break him in" to drinking. Oh Lord, I need to pray for that boy now. LOL. We are staying at the Hooters Hotel tomorrow through Sunday.

I am looking forward to it b/c its the last trip before I have surgery. I will be able to relax and just have some fun b/c I have about 6 weeks of laying in bed coming up. Yuck.

I pray for safe travels for my family... especially when the guys go from Vegas to California on Sunday for the week. Good health, safe riding, and good times.

Thanks to Mary for watching my kids and Blake for watching my dogs. Love ya both!

We Want To Know Wednesday

{1} Who would you call if you had to get bailed out of jail?
My mom... if I was in jail, I must have done something REALLY bad and she would be the only person with enough money to get me out.
{2} If you were a superhero what would your hero name be? Right now, in my early morning stuper... SuperCoffee! I can drink coffee at the speed of light :)

{3} What do you think is one of your best qualities? Patience? No. Energy? No, that's not it either. Hmm... everyone tells me I am a good listener and give good advice. Maybe b/c I see a lot of things from an outsiders perspective now that I've gone through it all myself.

{4} What song would you pick to be your own personal theme song? I think I need more coffee to think of this one... Certainly isn't "Crazy Bitch" anymore, LOL... Maybe "Survivor", by Destiny's Child? I don't know, I'll get back to you.

{5} What celebrity do you think is most over rated? I don't really get into celebrity stuff... but I don't understand the big deal about Justin Beiber?!?

Pioneer Day

A friend of mine put on her facebook "I am thankful for this made-up Utah holiday as it allows me time off work, time with friends/family, and another round of fireworks".  I don't think I could have put it any better!

Utah celebrates Pioneer day b/c its when the Mormon's made their trek to Utah and Brigham Young(?) said "This is the place"... or something like that, Im not really up on my LDS history, I just live here :)

The only thing that bugs me about this day is some people think this is a bigger day than the 4th of July. The activities are bigger, there are parades, and fireworks. It's a state holiday so a lot of things are closed. (Mind you, Pioneer Day fell on a Sunday this year so its being observed today b/c we don't have holidays on Sundays around here).

I get that its a big deal to some... just not everyone... and I feel that Independance Day is much more symbolic than Pioneer Day and needs all the love (and more!) than the state holiday does. Just my 2 cents...

Happy Pioneer Day, Utah!

Friday Confessional

It's Friday again already?? Yahoo!

I Confess...
I had a bit of a panic attack when I got my FMLA papers back from the doctor. It says I may be out for 3 months. Considering I only have 2 weeks of vacation time, my STD doesn't pay enough to cover bills, and I have enough bills that need every penny that comes in, I thinkI better start taking collections. LOL

I Confess...
We are going to the Tough Enough to Wear Pink Night at the rodeo tonight. It's a family tradition. My mom's battled breast cancer twice now so we like to support the cause. In addition to that, I like the cowboy butts.

I Confess...
When we were at the baseball game last night my daughter was talking about the players and who they live with during the season and asked if one can live with us. My dad said they couldnt b/c they needed their own room. My daughter said "we can kick BryDad out and he can sleep with mom". I giggled and replied "Only if he's super cute!". LOL

I Confess...
My kids are going with the uncle and cousin up to their cabin tomorrow... little nervous. My nephew gets a little crazy and I dont want my kids to pick up bad habits.

I Confess...
Since the kids are going to the cabin, that means a weekend for me and Mister Husband alone.... now that I am thinking about it, I'm sure those bad habit they learn will be short lived :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

We Want to Know Wednesday

Here are my questions for this week:

{1} What would you do with an extra $1000 a month? Ease my worry. Pay off some debt and when that is gone, but money away for big vacations and college.

{2} What category of blogger do you think you best fall under? Are there catagories? I just do my own thing. LOL

{3} What is your go to solution when you are having a bad hair day? Either throw on a hat... or stand it up even higher than normal :)

{4} If you were a Crayon, what color would you be? I have always said RED... but now I am more a PINK

{5} They say love is in the little things. What is a little thing someone does to show you love? Make him his fav drink... rub his neck... hold his hand... send an ILY email... Oh wait, that's what I do. Mister Husband will go get me ice cream or a candy bar... he will take the kids outside to play so I can have some peace and take a bubble bath... He holds my hand.... most recently he has taken off work to go to my Dr Appts and wiped away my tears. Those things are more important to me than anything he could buy.

Sleep? What's that?

Sleep and I have not been friends in a couple months now. When it comes, it is sporadic and short lived.

Yesterday I had to go have yet another MRI and added a CT Scan for something new. They want to redo the imaging to see if anything changed since the epidural since some of my pain moved around. They are also checking for bone spurs b/c that will be the determining factor of what kind of surgery I have in 3 wks.

So how does an MRI and sleep go together, you ask? Well, when you are as clausterphobic as I am they give you this little pill to make you relax. Actually, in my case, they give you two. After two of them, all I want to do is sleep.

On the way home I grabbed KFC, scarfed it down, and was in bed by 530pm last night. Good thing my kids are big enough to care for themselves b/c I was useless last night. However the good thing, I SLEPT!

Yay for sleep!

Friday Confessional

Hello, Friday.Welcome Back!

I Confess:
I feel guilty about having a good experience with the Dr that my friend didn't. She had me freaked out thinking he was going to be rude and not help me. That was her experience with him. Hopefully she finds someone she meshes with.

I Confess:
I feel worse than every. Probably more than I let on. I hate feeling like this. My daughter said "I cant wait for you to have surgery b/c then you will be happy and want to do things again". I sure hope so, sweetie.

I Confess:
I hate having parties... for instance, I got talked into a Pampered Chef party tomorrow. I am so worried that no one will show and the lady will have wasted her time.

I Confess:
I am worried about all the work I am going to be missing while I am out having surgery. My boss has a good game plan to backfill me, but I feel bad that the time I go out is when a bunch of stuff needs to be done.

I Confess:
I am worried about my husband's road trip to CA. He, my dad, and my brother in law, are going to CA on the motorcycles. They are all good riders, but I keep thinking of all the bad things that could happen. I need to keep those things out of my head and stay positive. Pray a lot of their safety. I know they are going to have a great time, but I am just a worrier.

Freaking Out Update

My appointment went well. My fear of the doctor not being nice or not being able to help disappeared the moment he stepped in the room. The first words out of his mouth were," You are way too young for all this"... but went on to tell me that surgery is my only option b/c I can’t live with it and nothing else worked. He examined me, said my right arm is weaker than my left. Asked a lot of questions. We looked over my MRI. He talked to Bryan specifically, showing him what was going on and said "If this was my wife, this is what I would do...".


He showed us the artificial disc that he hopes to use. It's a little metal device. He goes in through the front of my neck, takes out the ruptured disc, and then hooks one metal piece to the top bone and one to the bottom bone, and then it has a little ball that when it comes together you still have movement. As long as I don’t have any bone spurs, this should work perfectly for me. If I do have bone spurs, I will need a bone graft, fusion, and cage around my spine. The recovery for that is 4 weeks longer than the disc replacement.

I have to get another MRI done and a CT Scan done to determine what kind of surgery I will have. They are getting insurance approval and will call me when the appointments are made. We are hoping for surgery the week of the 7th of August.

As we were getting ready to leave, the Dr came out of another exam room and asked us to come meet someone. Inside was a man who was my age who had this surgery done 6 months ago. He had all my symptoms, is my age, but is a fireman... and he went back to work 3.5 wks after surgery. His job is a lot more physical than mine and he went back in that short amount of time. I was glad I got to meet him and hear firsthand how he is doing. It was reassuring. I feel good knowing I am in good hands. I really liked the Dr. He took the time to explain everything to us which is a big thing for me. From what I've read, this has a good success rate.

Pray for no bone spurs so I can do the artificial disc and be on my road to recovery!

Freaking Out!

So as I've mentioned, my neck pain is getting worse.

Nothing we have done so far is giving me relief and I've now got pain in other places. The next step was for a surgical consult with a neurosurgeon but he was so busy I couldnt get in until August 9th.

I called yesterday to let my spine doctor know that the pain is now in my left arm and I get dizzy when I turn my head. She went over to the neurosurgeon's office, told them whats going on and that she wanted the Dr to at least look at my notes and decide if I can wait another month to be seen.

His office just called... my appointment is moved up to this afternoon. I'm not going to lie... I am freaking out.

I haven't slept in about 3 nights, even with pain medication... I am exhausted. I am in pain. I am frustrated. I just want to cry. I feel some relief knowing I get to talk to him today,but then the thoughts of "What if he doesnt think surgery will work for me? What if he doesnt think he can do anything and I have to live like this?"

Lord, calm me. Calm my thoughts. Help me to be still. Be with the Doctor during my appointment so that he can be comforting and reassuring. Let me feel peace rather than anxiety. In Jesus's name, Amen.

We Want To Know Wednesday

1} Which activities make you lose track of time? As much as I dont want to admit it, Facebook. My husband says its the end of the world if I dont check it every 5 minutes. Also, reading books. I can let hours pass just laying around reading.


{2} Is there such a thing as perfect? No... people can be perfect for each other b/c they pick up where the other person is lower, but I dont believe in perfection here on earth b/c it me, Jesus was the only perfect person.

{3} When do you feel most like yourself? When I am snuggling with my kids, riding on the back of the motorcycle, when I am at worship with my arms in the air singing my heart out.

{4} Describe your life in a 6 word sentence. Crazy, Loving, Christian, Sassy, Strong = me!

{5} Share one of your most beloved childhood memory. Hmmm... First thing that came to mind was playing night games in the "backtracks".... but then I remember picking strawberries behind my grandpas garage... or getting dressed for school in my grandma's room... or rolling around on my aunt's fur rug or putting on her makeup in her bathroom. I think about our amazing Easter egg hunts... or my suprise birthday party at my Uncle's in TN where he rented a pony (that stepped on my foot while in jellyshoes! Ouch!!) I have alot of really good childhood memories, I've been blessed :)

Pioneer Bible Camp

My kids are home from camp!!

When I got up there on Friday, I saw Drew first. He walked over to me and said "Hi mom, this week went too fast!"... then we found Ty and all the girls around her were screaming, " No Ty, you cant go yet. We are going to miss you". I swear her counselor hugged her about 12x before we left.

They yakked my ear off the whole ride down the canyon. Telling me about horseback riding, swimming, pushing counselors into the lake, white wars, yummy food ("The best brownies I've ever had!!"), sleeping on the top bunk, the bunkmate from South Africa, Ty placing 2nd in archery (way to make her Poppie proud!) "Devo's", etc...

They are already talking about their adventures for next year. Thanks for an awesome God-filled week, Pioneer Bible Camp! http://pioneerbiblecamputah.com/

Friday Confessional

I Confess...

I've been riding on the motorcycle. We went from North Ogden to Kaysville the other day, on the freeway, and I thought I wanted to die afterwards... but if we dont go that fast, I seem to be ok. Well, atleast my neck doesnt feel like it wants to snap off.

I Confess...

I had not ONE, but TWO, chocolate cake shots for my birthday. For those of you who dont know what a chocolate cake shot is, you are missing out! It's Frangelico and Absolute Citron mixed together in a shot glass... you drink it and then hurry and bite a sugared lemon. Not sure how all of that together makes something that tastes like chocolate cake in my mouth, but no fooling... its amazing!

I Confess...

I miss my kids. I am ready for them to be home. They've only been at camp since Monday and its been nice having time with my hubby to ride on the bike, but I am done taking out the garbage and picking up dog poop :)

I Confess...

My dog isn't spayed... she is only about a year old... and she's had puppies. I am sad for her b/c in addition to being dumped at the shelter all yucky and matted and being on the euthensasia list before she got fostered, she's had a very long life in a very short amount of time.

Having a BLAH kind of day... just random muttering.

I am having a BLAH kind of day today...

My neck hurts... not really anymore than usual, although yesterday my pain was more on my left side than my right, so that was a little different. I went to move my head to the left and I got dizzy with spots. Not sure that is good. Maybe I should call the Dr.although I'm not sure what good it would do though b/c the neurosurgeon hasnt read my MRI yet and my appointment isnt until August 9th. While that seems like a while off, I am glad its after our Vegas trip in a couple weeks so I can atleast enjoy that b/c if I end up having surgery, I'll probably have to cancel my trip for September. I just feel like my head is too heavy and its going to fall off my neck any moment... not exactly fun.

On the plus side... my AFLAC is reimbursing for my appointments and MRI and everything so I don't really have any out of pocket cost for my appointments, so that is nice. Also I found out the office mischarged my copays and I get a credit back for $40.That's a good thing too!

My kiddos are still at bible camp. They come home tomorrow. Both of them jumped right into things the minute we got there and were in a hurry to say goodbye. I guess that's a good thing, right? I pray that God works in their hearts and brings them even closer to Him from the experiences they had this week.

Let's be honest... I am especially glad they will be home tomorrow, I'm tired of picking up the dog poop out back myself. LOL

Speaking of dogs, I have to take my new one to the vet today. The rescue place got the vet info and are not sure she was ever spayed. Uh, problem! We have a voucher for our vet to do a spay check. I really hope its been done and hasnt been recorded b/c I dont have alot of available time to take her in for surgery... but we'll do what we have to do, right?

Well... I am done rambling for now :)

We Want To Know Wednesday

{1}Name five of your favorite new blogs that you're reading. My Family, My World. Iron Daisy. Answering Mormons. Life with Emily. MyBeautifulCollision. (You can link to them from the left side of my page if you'd like)


{2} When you were a young child or teenager, did you have an idea of how many children you wanted and what their names would be? Did you follow through on your ideas? I knew I wanted two kids... but no ideas on the names. I had two kids and inherited one more through marriage.

{3} "What is the silliest thing you fight with someone about? Could be your spouse, sibling, parents, co-worker etc." Toliet Paper! Seriously, one of the only things me and hubby fight about. His inability to replace the roll of toliet paper... or if he does, he sits it on the counter instead of putting it on the thing. Why is it so hard??

{4} What is your favorite scent that other's may not find very nice? ie: gasoline, sweat from your sweetie, etc. Coffee... most people like the smell, hubby hates it.

{5} Thoughts on Plastic Surgery? (had it? want it? regrets?) Who wouldnt like bigger boobs or thinner thighs? I know I'd like things adjusted and rearrainged however its not who I am. Maybe if insurance paid for it I would... but I cant grasp coming up with the money on my own to alter myself.