Sickness Strikes in a Big Way

I've got some SERIOUS catching up to do here on the blog!

We've had some major things happen in our family over the past two months....so, we'll start with the topic of HEALTH.

February 1st brought quite the unexpected turn of events.

I awoke around 5am with a completely numb right side and incredibly confused brain.

I was so confused and scared, and walked around for a minute to try and get my bearings.

I walked into our bathroom to grab a drink of water from the sink, and the next thing I know, Brett was holding me carrying and me to our bed.  Turns out, I had passed out... leaving a hole in our bathroom door... and an even more confused ME.

I had no recollection of the past few minutes and was still numb and very disoriented.

Brett rushed me to the ER while my mom came to the rescue to watch the boys.

The ER consisted of lots of labs, a CT scan, and the beginning of a rough headache that was treated through my IV.  Of course, these stroke-like symptoms are not new for me...but, the passing out element added an element of seriousness to the situation. 

Luckily, the CT came back ok... and they only found a UTI and incredibly out of whack thyroid?!?

Such a lovely picture taken by my sweetheart.

Following this episode, a crazy series of doctor's appointments and tests begun.  

I went to an idiot doctor, then changed doctors, and began a rat race of testing crazy theories to determine my problem.

In the meantime....

Jack got bronchitis.

And, then Tucker got an ear infection and the start of pneumonia. 

Oh... and Brett stepped on a nail and needed a Tetanus shot.

Such great times.

Three weeks after my initial episode, things got hairy again.

I found myself battling a different sort of headache I had ever had before.

For 4-5 days, I had a pretty good headache right behind my left eyebrow...and then, the headache escalated to the absolute WORST experience of my life.  I experienced pain I had never even come close to feeling, and absolutely nothing helped it.  No stroke-like symptoms... just excruciating pain.

This landed me back in the ER again...with more tests, and lots of pain management.

At this point in time... my level of fear was immeasurable.  

What was causing these episodes and me to feel so horrible?

Would they find something serious?

During February and March I endured the following tests:

CT Scan (2)

(brain)

EKG

(heart)

Holter Monitor of Heart

(heart)

EKG with Bubble Study

(checking for hole in heart)

Tilt Table Test

(finding cause of fainting)

EEG

(checking for seizures, tumor)

My tests always came back looking good.  This was frustrating as it seemed like we'd finally find a realistic explanation...only to be told that it wasn't my case.

Finally... after working with a neurologist... it would seem that we have a conclusion.

My heart is healthy.

My brain is healthy.

I have no seizures, no tumor, no cancer.

What I do have is chronic headaches... migraines, and what are called cluster headaches.

This is part of my genetic makeup...and our goal here is to manage them rather than cure them (since this isn't an option).

Another huge aspect to why my symptoms get so out of control is the fact that I have incredibly LOW blood pressure.  This explains my frequent wooziness..and my fainting.  It also contributes to my pain being magnified and my stroke-like symptoms.

So... we are managing that with medication and eating more SALT (who knew)?

So... at the end of the day....

I feel relief.

It's not fun to wonder when one of these episodes may strike...but, I have an incredible amount of comfort in now knowing what is happening to me, and the steps we need to take to treat it.

I'm not dying.

And, I'm really happy about that!

That Time When I Turned 30

In the midst of all of my health drama... a looming birthday was on the horizon. 

Thirty.

It alone made me feel sick.

And, feeling sick all the time was making me feel more like I was 90.  

An appointment with Candace led me to a spur of the moment decision to chop my hair.

TAKE THAT 30!!!

It felt so good...and was just the change that I needed.

A couple of days before my birthday... Brett and I got ready to head to a Rimrock party at Thanksgiving Point.  On our way, Brett had to stop at the church to get some stuff for a Court of Honor the next day, and as we entered the church... I got quite the SURPRISE!

Brett...along with some help from our families... had put together a surprise party for me that completely caught me off guard!

Friends and family all gathered to celebrate me... and it was sweet, and totally perfect.

My mom and Annie definitely put their decorative touch on the occasion, and Brett had done an outstanding job at putting together a delicious ice cream bar.

No one has ever done anything so thoughtful for me...and I will indeed never forget it.

Some of my party guests....

(man I love them all!)

The party itself was not the only surprise of the night...

Brett had the surprise of all surprises in store for me as they had me sit in front of everyone to open a series of cards.

One from my parents offering:

"2 days and 2 nights of babysitting"

One from my sisters offering:

"2 days and 2 nights of babysitting"

One from Brett's parents offering:

"2 days and 2 nights of babysitting"

One from Tiffany offering:

"2 days and 2 nights of babysitting"

What in the world? EIGHT days and nights of babysitting?????

The last card was from Brett...

A TRIP TO HAWAII!!!!!

I couldn't believe it!

First, how did he keep this party under wraps so well...AND plan a dream vacay without me even having the slightest clue?

I was floored.

Best birthday of my life.

(Just wait until you see my Hawaii post...coming soon)

The even better part, was that I still had more celebrating to do.  

The next day, I had a fabulous time shopping for my trip with my mom and sisters, and then a day later, was treated to a phenomenal dinner at my parents with the fam. 

Turning 30, was a bit of a punch to the gut for me, but man oh man... the people in my life sure eased the pain.  They're what it is ALL about for me... and they have all done so much for me the past few weeks.  I have never felt more support and more loved... and I don't care if I'm 80, as long as I have these people around me!

Sledding with the Pre-Schoolers!

January brought quite the date for Jack and I.

 

Bear Hollow had their sledding field trip, and while I was a bit skeptical about 60+ pre-schoolers on a mountain with sleds, I threw on some thermals and we were off!

 

Turns out, I couldn't have been happier about going!

 

It was one of my most fun days as Jack's mama.

 

We headed up to Mutual Dell, and got to bring Beck along as our field trip buddy.

We had an absolute BLAST!  The hills were perfect, weather was ideal, and the kids were absolutely darling.  And, although I devote a fair amount of my attention everyday to Jack...I rarely get to just hang with him.  We giggled our little faces off, and it's a day I will never forget!

 

Somebody was a bit excited.

 

 

Field Trippin' Buddies

 

(Jack really wanted to pose with his sled as if it were his snowboard.)

 

 

I couldn't help but think as Jack and I were ripping it up on the sledding hill just how lucky I am not only to be his mom, but to be able to be home with my boys and available to be a part of such awesome days as this. For that... I have this little boy's daddy to thank.

 

 

And, I truly couldn't be more grateful!

 

*And, thank you to my only remaining blog reader and trusted babysitter, Annie, for watching Tuck-man so this outing was possible.

 

 

 



New Years

We took a little departure from our time spent in Alpine for New Years, and had the Wankier clan over to our place for New Year's Eve.

It was pretty spontaneous, and everyone brought grub and games.

It was really fun just hanging out... Grandpa Curt especially enjoyed the festivities, and went home to bed before 10:00 pm. Poor, tired dad.

The rest of us partied hardy all the way until midnight!

Cousin dog-pile.

The sparklers were a real hit thanks to Annie.

My sweetheart laid it on pretty thick at the stroke of midnight.

Hubba hubba.

Here's hoping for another awesome year in 2014!

Sledding

Over the holidays, we were lucky enough to have Brett home for EIGHT days straight!

Man, it was a highlight!

We loved having him home and enjoyed movies, lots of playing, and even more time spent with him up in Alpine.

It was great to see so many of Brett's siblings and their kids this year.

Brandon recently returned from serving in Afghanistan, so it was particularly special to have him home to celebrate Christmas.

One of our days over the holidays was spent sledding with Brandon, DeEtte, Grayson, Laurel, Tiffany, Mya, Ethan, Bjornn, and Liam at my parents' house.

Basically, I have decided that little kids (6 and under) are useless in the snow...but, seeing Tucker in snow gear made it more than worth it!

He LOVED the snow and HATED his gloves.

Jack had fun, but was frustrated by his lack of being able to move in his gear.

Grandma Jones kept him warm by the fire when he wasn't busy sledding.

My reason for living this day:

Tiffany was so helpful with my wee ones...as usual.

Later, we spent more time up in Alpine.. and I was able to get some great action shots of my boys with Grayson.  It is so fun to see them getting older and interacting with each other.