Thursday, January 31, 2008
Endoscopy
Had my endoscopy today and found out that my esophagus opening is about half the size it should be. The Dr. took a picture and you can see where it is closed up. He had to stretch it quite a bit to get the opening big enough for the camera to go in. Guess that explains why I have a hard time swallowing sometimes. I did have a barium swallow test done about 3 years ago, but they didn't find anything wrong, although it is impossible to see the diameter of the esophagus that way, according to the Dr. I'm now seeing. I may have to go in and have it stretched out. In the meantime the Dr. took a biopsy to see if there is a bacteria that is causing it to close. I do have to say that it hurts like hell! The absolutely gross numbing solution only works for a few minutes and I can't take much of it so guess I'll have to suffer. Oh, and they still don't know what is causing my pain in my abdomen.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Bragging!
I have a lot to brag about today. I'll start with my daughter. Chelsea text messaged me from the ski resort that she did a 180 and front grab on her snowboard for the first time. I know what a 180 is but I'm not sure what a front grab is, but I am sure it's hard to do and loads of fun. Now for Mike: I stopped at the bowling alley this afternoon and watched him bowl in a 9 pin tournament. That means that if you knock down 9 pins it counts as a strike. So I watched him bowl two 300 games! Now out of all those strikes, in the first game he had 5 "9 pin" strikes and on the second he had 6 "9 pin" strikes, so they don't count as a regular 300 (perfect) game, but it was exciting to watch. And it was fun to be the girlfriend of the best bowler in the tournament! Okay, now for Eline: She's doing so good in school that they are going to allow her to miss 4 days while her dad is here. She got a 3.7 GPA on her first semester report card! Okay, now for me: I got a 90% on my Nutrition test. Not fabulous, but hey, it's an A- so I guess I shouldn't complain. The average score was 82%.
Oh, and for those wondering about my health, I guess I have good and bad news. The good news is that my liver, gall bladder, colon, heart and all blood tests are in perfect order. The bad news is they still can't figure out what is causing my abdominal pain. On Thursday I get to go in for an Upper GI with small bowel scope. For some reason that doesn't sound like fun. I just wish whatever it is would go away or at least show up so the doc can do something about it. I'm tired of tests. I really am thankful that I have the best health insurance, so all of the tests, doctors visits and surgery in the past year have only cost me $184! It has cost my insurance company over $82,000!
Oh, and for those wondering about my health, I guess I have good and bad news. The good news is that my liver, gall bladder, colon, heart and all blood tests are in perfect order. The bad news is they still can't figure out what is causing my abdominal pain. On Thursday I get to go in for an Upper GI with small bowel scope. For some reason that doesn't sound like fun. I just wish whatever it is would go away or at least show up so the doc can do something about it. I'm tired of tests. I really am thankful that I have the best health insurance, so all of the tests, doctors visits and surgery in the past year have only cost me $184! It has cost my insurance company over $82,000!
Saturday, January 26, 2008
I HATE American Eagle!
Here's my rant about the worst company I've had to deal with in a long time!!!!
So, Eline gets a $50 gift card from Mike for Christmas. It came with a $10 off card for any purchase of $50 or more. Sounds good. On Jan. 12th Eline wants to go to the mall and spend her cards. She sees a really cute plaid bomber jacket, but unfortunately they don't have her size. A young lady checks the computer and sees that they have plenty online. So she calls the $%^&*( people at ae.com and tells them she wants to place a customer order. After giving them the item number and price she hands the phone to me. I give the person all the gift card info, $10 off code and my debit card info (for the $3.50 or so in tax). It's all good (so I think) so we go home excitedly waiting for the delivery of said jacket.
The next day I get a nice email telling me that the order has been placed and the jacket will be here in 5-10 days. Well, 10 days comes and goes with no jacket so I call the %^&* people at ae.com. I'm told there was a problem with the gift card processing so they had to cancel the order and were putting the $ back on the gift card. The lady even made me check to be sure I still had the card (which I did). She said it would take 72 hours for the money to go back on the card and I could call back and get the jacket. I make her check to see how many jackets they have in Eline's size and she tells me there are 55 available.
So, today I call back. I'm told the original order was canceled because the jackets were out of stock. What????? I'm also told that they can't put the money back on the original gift card, but they would be sending one in the mail in 5-10 business days. What??????? So I ask about the $10 off card that we used and was told that it expired so it wasn't any good anymore. What????? Three times I ask to speak to a supervisor and 3 times I'm told there is nothing anyone can do about all this, other than send a new gift card which will be here in 5-10 business days. Now, I'm supposed to believe this since so far everything they've told me previously has turned out to be untrue? So after insisting that I speak to a supervisor he tells me that he will give me 2 day shipping and 15% off on Eline's next order at ae.com. I assure him that Eline will never be ordering again from ae.com because their customer service is terrible. I insist that she get back not only the $50 gift card but the extra $10 off. Then I tell him I think it sucks that we have been at this for 14 days and all we get is where we started, and nothing for our crappy service, time and effort. He apologizes, says he'll put a note in the computer about the $10 off and hung up. You'd think that as overpriced as their stuff is they'd be able to do better than that. American Eagle SUCKS!
So, Eline gets a $50 gift card from Mike for Christmas. It came with a $10 off card for any purchase of $50 or more. Sounds good. On Jan. 12th Eline wants to go to the mall and spend her cards. She sees a really cute plaid bomber jacket, but unfortunately they don't have her size. A young lady checks the computer and sees that they have plenty online. So she calls the $%^&*( people at ae.com and tells them she wants to place a customer order. After giving them the item number and price she hands the phone to me. I give the person all the gift card info, $10 off code and my debit card info (for the $3.50 or so in tax). It's all good (so I think) so we go home excitedly waiting for the delivery of said jacket.
The next day I get a nice email telling me that the order has been placed and the jacket will be here in 5-10 days. Well, 10 days comes and goes with no jacket so I call the %^&* people at ae.com. I'm told there was a problem with the gift card processing so they had to cancel the order and were putting the $ back on the gift card. The lady even made me check to be sure I still had the card (which I did). She said it would take 72 hours for the money to go back on the card and I could call back and get the jacket. I make her check to see how many jackets they have in Eline's size and she tells me there are 55 available.
So, today I call back. I'm told the original order was canceled because the jackets were out of stock. What????? I'm also told that they can't put the money back on the original gift card, but they would be sending one in the mail in 5-10 business days. What??????? So I ask about the $10 off card that we used and was told that it expired so it wasn't any good anymore. What????? Three times I ask to speak to a supervisor and 3 times I'm told there is nothing anyone can do about all this, other than send a new gift card which will be here in 5-10 business days. Now, I'm supposed to believe this since so far everything they've told me previously has turned out to be untrue? So after insisting that I speak to a supervisor he tells me that he will give me 2 day shipping and 15% off on Eline's next order at ae.com. I assure him that Eline will never be ordering again from ae.com because their customer service is terrible. I insist that she get back not only the $50 gift card but the extra $10 off. Then I tell him I think it sucks that we have been at this for 14 days and all we get is where we started, and nothing for our crappy service, time and effort. He apologizes, says he'll put a note in the computer about the $10 off and hung up. You'd think that as overpriced as their stuff is they'd be able to do better than that. American Eagle SUCKS!
Thursday, January 24, 2008
It's snowing again!
On Monday I spent most of the day doing snow removal. I think we had about 14 inches. I used my snow blower, which was good, but got ambitious so removed the snow for 3 of my neighbors. I ended up removing snow from my driveway 3 times, but was too lazy to do the others after the first time!
I broke down and bought a Playstation 2. I was looking for a Nintendo Wii, but gave up the search. I really wanted to buy the Dance Dance Revolution game, which is not only fun, but good exercise, and Chelsea wanted Guitar Hero, which simulates playing an electric guitar. So after shopping around we got the game console and the DDR game, with two dance pads so we could have competitions. We couldn't find Guitar Hero so I got online and ended up ordering Rock Band instead, which comes with a guitar, drums and microphone so at least 3 people can play. I also got a few used games that use the regular controller. Chelsea and I have had loads of fun playing a winter Olympic game. I am so bad that we both ended up laughing so hard we were crying. As for the DDR game, I am totally non-musical so I don't have the rhythm to do really well. Chelsea, on the other hand, is very musical and so very good at the game. Fortunately there are different levels so I can play at the beginner and she can play at the more advanced stage.
Eline loves the PS2 also, and had several friends over last night to play. I think I have now sentenced myself to a life of teenagers filling the family room! That's okay, at least I know what they are doing!
School is going well, much less painful than last semester. Most of my classes are on Monday's which gives me more free time during the week.
Work is still good at Old Navy. I am working every Wed. afternoon and every other Friday afternoon. Not many hours, but just enough to give me some extra spending money and to let me have my discount.
Looks like Mike and I will be going to Seattle on Feb. 8th for the weekend. I'm really looking forward to it. Eline's dad will still be here visiting, but he's here to see her, not me, so this will give them some private time. Chelsea will stay at a friend's house so my girls will be taken care of while I party it up in Seattle! :)
I broke down and bought a Playstation 2. I was looking for a Nintendo Wii, but gave up the search. I really wanted to buy the Dance Dance Revolution game, which is not only fun, but good exercise, and Chelsea wanted Guitar Hero, which simulates playing an electric guitar. So after shopping around we got the game console and the DDR game, with two dance pads so we could have competitions. We couldn't find Guitar Hero so I got online and ended up ordering Rock Band instead, which comes with a guitar, drums and microphone so at least 3 people can play. I also got a few used games that use the regular controller. Chelsea and I have had loads of fun playing a winter Olympic game. I am so bad that we both ended up laughing so hard we were crying. As for the DDR game, I am totally non-musical so I don't have the rhythm to do really well. Chelsea, on the other hand, is very musical and so very good at the game. Fortunately there are different levels so I can play at the beginner and she can play at the more advanced stage.
Eline loves the PS2 also, and had several friends over last night to play. I think I have now sentenced myself to a life of teenagers filling the family room! That's okay, at least I know what they are doing!
School is going well, much less painful than last semester. Most of my classes are on Monday's which gives me more free time during the week.
Work is still good at Old Navy. I am working every Wed. afternoon and every other Friday afternoon. Not many hours, but just enough to give me some extra spending money and to let me have my discount.
Looks like Mike and I will be going to Seattle on Feb. 8th for the weekend. I'm really looking forward to it. Eline's dad will still be here visiting, but he's here to see her, not me, so this will give them some private time. Chelsea will stay at a friend's house so my girls will be taken care of while I party it up in Seattle! :)
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
I can't think of a title so I won't have one today!
I had my CT scan last week and the spots on my liver are gone. That's the good news. The bad news is I'm still having abdominal pain so I'm going back in to see the GI doc tomorrow.
Chelsea goes to see the ENT doc today to see about her ears. She has lots of pain in her ears but the family doc can't see anything wrong, so hopefully the specialist can figure it out.
School is going well. So far I like all my classes, but there are a lot of papers to write! It just gets worse as I progress towards my degree!
Eline's dad comes in a couple of weeks and I'm starting to worry about having to feed and entertain him. I told Mike he'd have to come and eat dinner with us a lot. Of course Mike doesn't mind that since he likes my cooking.
I'm thinking there was more I wanted to post but can't remember right now, so I may update later today.
Chelsea goes to see the ENT doc today to see about her ears. She has lots of pain in her ears but the family doc can't see anything wrong, so hopefully the specialist can figure it out.
School is going well. So far I like all my classes, but there are a lot of papers to write! It just gets worse as I progress towards my degree!
Eline's dad comes in a couple of weeks and I'm starting to worry about having to feed and entertain him. I told Mike he'd have to come and eat dinner with us a lot. Of course Mike doesn't mind that since he likes my cooking.
I'm thinking there was more I wanted to post but can't remember right now, so I may update later today.
Monday, January 07, 2008
First Day of School
Two classes down and one to go! Monday is such a long school day for me. I've been here since 10:00 this morning and will leave at 8:30 tonight! Oh well, that gives me lots of extra time the rest of the week.
On Friday Mike and I went to dinner at the Pie Pizzaria. We had a Greek pizza and it was great! Then we went to see National Treasure 2 which we both liked.
It snowed about 6 inches early Saturday morning so it was an adventure getting Eline to the high school for flag team practice. The plows hadn't hit any of the minor roads so my little car was not doing so well. The main roads were still a mess, too, but not as bad. By late afternoon the sun had come out and then all the roads were clear.
Yesterday it snowed about 3 inches early in the day, which Chelsea volunteered to shovel (she also volunteered to shovel on Saturday!). Later yesterday it snowed another 4-5 inches which Eline shoveled, although she wasn't exactly a volunteer! :)
Since the weather and roads were so bad there was nothing to do but play a game. Eline's mother sent her a game called "Mister X" which is a mystery game where two or more "detectives" look for the spy, "Mister X". Chelsea was X and did a great job of keeping Eline and me at bay. We never did find her, so Chelsea won the game.
I go in tomorrow for another CT scan. I think this is my 7th in the past 12 months. I just hate having to drink the barium mixture. Even though they put flavoring in it, it is soooooo gross! I read in the paper the other day that too many CT scans can lead to cancer. Great, just what I needed to hear. The CT is to see if the spots on my liver have grown since my last scan, which I think was in August. I also have blood tests to see if I have Celiac's disease or some other problems to explain my abdominal pain since surgery and colonoscopy didn't reveal anything. I still have the pain but I'm almost getting used to it now. I really want to find out what the problem is, but I am sick and tired of doctors, tests, scans and having a camera up my butt! All of that is almost as painful as the pain itself. I do have to say that I am very thankful for my health insurance. I've had over $40,000 in medical procedures in the past year and it's cost me only $275!
Mike and I have had some discussions about "if we were married". I think we are definitely headed that way, but we have a lot to think about. Mike met my family at Christmas and he wants me to meet his aunt and uncle (his parents both passed away several years ago). Don't know when that will be but of course I'm nervous.
We are also planning a trip to Seattle for a weekend. Mike gets every other Friday off and I am done with school by 11:00 on Fridays so we could get an afternoon flight out and come back on Sunday. Now to find somewhere for my girls to stay. Chelsea is easy, but with the exchange program it's a little harder with Eline. She definitely has friends she can stay with, its just getting all the paperwork and approval that's a pain. Eline's dad will be her from Jan 30-Feb. 9th and we even need to get approval for her to go to Las Vegas with him!
I'm going back to Weight Watchers with my friend Carol, starting this week. I'm below my WW goal weight but about 2 lbs above my personal goal weight. I really like WW and it will motivate me to get back into my healthy routine. I've struggled with that since my trip home.
I think I had at least one, if not two glasses of wine (and even three on occasion) most days while I was on vacation, and so I've had to get back to my "no alcohol during the week" plan which helped me with my weight loss the past few months. I am struggling though with not eating junk between meals. My meals have been pretty healthy, but on vacation I grazed on baked stuff and candy the whole time and now my body wants to keep it up. I know I'll be up way more than 2 lbs if I don't quit! I also have been a slacker when it comes to exercising and there is no excuse! Well, except maybe the weather, but I could get my lazy butt up and go to either the university gym or the base gym. I just hate running indoors, but if it doesn't clear up I will have no choice. I can feel the flab on my legs getting worse!
Okay, enough of that. That's why I'm going back to WW to get my motivation back! Well, it's time for a Social Work club meeting and my last class of the day! I can't wait to get home and relax!
On Friday Mike and I went to dinner at the Pie Pizzaria. We had a Greek pizza and it was great! Then we went to see National Treasure 2 which we both liked.
It snowed about 6 inches early Saturday morning so it was an adventure getting Eline to the high school for flag team practice. The plows hadn't hit any of the minor roads so my little car was not doing so well. The main roads were still a mess, too, but not as bad. By late afternoon the sun had come out and then all the roads were clear.
Yesterday it snowed about 3 inches early in the day, which Chelsea volunteered to shovel (she also volunteered to shovel on Saturday!). Later yesterday it snowed another 4-5 inches which Eline shoveled, although she wasn't exactly a volunteer! :)
Since the weather and roads were so bad there was nothing to do but play a game. Eline's mother sent her a game called "Mister X" which is a mystery game where two or more "detectives" look for the spy, "Mister X". Chelsea was X and did a great job of keeping Eline and me at bay. We never did find her, so Chelsea won the game.
I go in tomorrow for another CT scan. I think this is my 7th in the past 12 months. I just hate having to drink the barium mixture. Even though they put flavoring in it, it is soooooo gross! I read in the paper the other day that too many CT scans can lead to cancer. Great, just what I needed to hear. The CT is to see if the spots on my liver have grown since my last scan, which I think was in August. I also have blood tests to see if I have Celiac's disease or some other problems to explain my abdominal pain since surgery and colonoscopy didn't reveal anything. I still have the pain but I'm almost getting used to it now. I really want to find out what the problem is, but I am sick and tired of doctors, tests, scans and having a camera up my butt! All of that is almost as painful as the pain itself. I do have to say that I am very thankful for my health insurance. I've had over $40,000 in medical procedures in the past year and it's cost me only $275!
Mike and I have had some discussions about "if we were married". I think we are definitely headed that way, but we have a lot to think about. Mike met my family at Christmas and he wants me to meet his aunt and uncle (his parents both passed away several years ago). Don't know when that will be but of course I'm nervous.
We are also planning a trip to Seattle for a weekend. Mike gets every other Friday off and I am done with school by 11:00 on Fridays so we could get an afternoon flight out and come back on Sunday. Now to find somewhere for my girls to stay. Chelsea is easy, but with the exchange program it's a little harder with Eline. She definitely has friends she can stay with, its just getting all the paperwork and approval that's a pain. Eline's dad will be her from Jan 30-Feb. 9th and we even need to get approval for her to go to Las Vegas with him!
I'm going back to Weight Watchers with my friend Carol, starting this week. I'm below my WW goal weight but about 2 lbs above my personal goal weight. I really like WW and it will motivate me to get back into my healthy routine. I've struggled with that since my trip home.
I think I had at least one, if not two glasses of wine (and even three on occasion) most days while I was on vacation, and so I've had to get back to my "no alcohol during the week" plan which helped me with my weight loss the past few months. I am struggling though with not eating junk between meals. My meals have been pretty healthy, but on vacation I grazed on baked stuff and candy the whole time and now my body wants to keep it up. I know I'll be up way more than 2 lbs if I don't quit! I also have been a slacker when it comes to exercising and there is no excuse! Well, except maybe the weather, but I could get my lazy butt up and go to either the university gym or the base gym. I just hate running indoors, but if it doesn't clear up I will have no choice. I can feel the flab on my legs getting worse!
Okay, enough of that. That's why I'm going back to WW to get my motivation back! Well, it's time for a Social Work club meeting and my last class of the day! I can't wait to get home and relax!
Thursday, January 03, 2008
It's good to be home
We had a great time in N. Idaho, but there's no place like home. I love my family in Idaho, but I know I could never live there again. I had the opportunity to reconnect with my two best friends from High School.
I have been friends with Debbie since 3rd grade. She got pregnant when we were juniors in HS and dropped out. She later got her diploma at an adult HS. She eventually had 3 kids with her husband who also dropped out as a junior. They got married and then he joined the Air Force. This was the catalyst for my decision to join. I wanted to be close to Debbie and the recruiter assured me that was a real possibility. Well, of course we were never any where close. Her husband got out after about 12 years and they returned back to Idaho. It was then that they got into drugs and alcohol. After seeing them for the last time about 5 years ago I decided it was better for me to move on from that friendship. I am happy to say, however, that Debbie seems to really have cleaned up her act. She divorced her husband and has purchased her first home. They never had any money before and now that she has straightened out her life she can finally afford a house. It was just so nice to reconnect. We visited for about 4 hours and I feel confident that we'll stay in touch.
Jan and I became friends in about 10th grade but got close in 11th grade when Debbie dropped out. We've been friends ever since and have seen each other every time I've been home. She now lives in Montana with her husband. It was nice to catch up with her and I also saw her parents and one of her sisters, whom I hadn't seen in about 15 years. They all look the same!
I've been busy working at Old Navy and getting ready to go back to school on Monday. I had a list of projects I wanted to get done during my break, however with being sick and then extending my vacation I really didn't get much done. Oh well, none of it was absolutely critical.
I want to get some scrapbooking done tonight so I'm going be done blogging and get busy scrapping!
I have been friends with Debbie since 3rd grade. She got pregnant when we were juniors in HS and dropped out. She later got her diploma at an adult HS. She eventually had 3 kids with her husband who also dropped out as a junior. They got married and then he joined the Air Force. This was the catalyst for my decision to join. I wanted to be close to Debbie and the recruiter assured me that was a real possibility. Well, of course we were never any where close. Her husband got out after about 12 years and they returned back to Idaho. It was then that they got into drugs and alcohol. After seeing them for the last time about 5 years ago I decided it was better for me to move on from that friendship. I am happy to say, however, that Debbie seems to really have cleaned up her act. She divorced her husband and has purchased her first home. They never had any money before and now that she has straightened out her life she can finally afford a house. It was just so nice to reconnect. We visited for about 4 hours and I feel confident that we'll stay in touch.
Jan and I became friends in about 10th grade but got close in 11th grade when Debbie dropped out. We've been friends ever since and have seen each other every time I've been home. She now lives in Montana with her husband. It was nice to catch up with her and I also saw her parents and one of her sisters, whom I hadn't seen in about 15 years. They all look the same!
I've been busy working at Old Navy and getting ready to go back to school on Monday. I had a list of projects I wanted to get done during my break, however with being sick and then extending my vacation I really didn't get much done. Oh well, none of it was absolutely critical.
I want to get some scrapbooking done tonight so I'm going be done blogging and get busy scrapping!
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