It Can Only Get Better……

Hello folks! Sorry for the loooonnnngggg absence here on the blog. How boring. I should tell you first that our Christmas was just the two of us, and it was lovely. Who would’ve known that New Year’s would not follow suit? Not me! We are off to a rough start for 2012. Very rough indeed.  Let me fill you in…. (and this is only if you are interested. I have to document this as it is a pretty big deal for us. And if you do continue reading, right now would be a good time to get a snack and drink- for it’s a doozy.)

To ring in the new year of 2012, we went to Bend, OR with some of our friends. The second night we were there- Greg passed out and hit his head, hard. Like, really hard. Why did he pass out you ask? It’s a mystery, but I attribute it to dehydration and long hours of standing with locked knees. This happened on the 30^th. That night I was waking him every 2 hours making sure he knew 2+2 and who the current president is. The next day we went to Urgent Care, the doc there gave him some anti-nausea pills and some IB Profin, said it was probably just a small concussion and watch out for further symptoms.

Fast forward to January 5^th- those symptoms were presenting themselves in a big way. He just didn’t look right! Everyone at his work was concerned, I was concerned, and so I picked him up from work and took him back to urgent care. There, they drew his blood and scheduled a CT scan for that evening. An hour later he got a call from the doctor saying his sodium levels were too low and he needed to go right away to the ER. There, they drew more blood and did the CT scan of his head. His sodium levels were still low (lower) and the CT showed a walnut size bruise on his brain frontal lobe and a small bleed! Huh, what!? Next thing we know they are getting him a room at the Corvallis Good Samaritan Hospital and calling the ambulance to bus him over there.

What we learned was that the brain contusion caused a hormone called ADH (anti diuretic hormone) to be released which caused his body to retain fluid, which drastically lowered his sodium levels. This condition is known as SIADH. Do you know what happens when your sodium levels drop? It causes brain swelling, damage, and death. How do they fix this problem? Very s.l.o.w.l.y. If they raised his sodium too quickly, it would cause a whole lot of problems, including his brain cells shrinking, brain swelling, brain damage, and death. The good news was that he didn’t need any brain surgery due to the contusion and bleed. That would all heal on its own, and was healing.

Greg spent the next 5 nights in the care of Good Sam. He was put on a fluid restriction, had to endure a 24 hour EEG, and getting his blood drawn every 2-4 hours. He looked like a heroin addict -his arms had so many holes. At one point, his sodium had dropped to 110. The normal range is 135-145. YIKES! Even the renal specialist said he was quite worried. Slowly, but steadily, he started to improve. Tuesday (1/10/12) afternoon, he was finally released.

He is doing so good now. He is back to work and more himself. We had an appointment with the renal (kidney) specialist yesterday who said that he looks good, and he doesn’t have to restrict his fluid anymore. Oh, to note on that subject, he was allowed to have about 200 milligrams of water about every 4 hours. He could have drunk that amount in one gulp, but stretched it in small, small sips. So glad he doesn’t have to deal with that now. He is back to work. Hurray! He’s getting his sodium checked tomorrow to ensure that things are still good with the fluid restriction off. Our next step is seeing a neurologist. I’m so grateful for doctors who know what they are doing and communicate what they are doing (for doctors are NOT created equal- so many of them are TERRIBLE – thank goodness for the good ones, and THANK GOODNESS FOR NURSES!). I only had to fire one doctor, and I won’t go into the details, but I will say- if you ever find yourself in the hospital (which I dearly hope you don’t), you do NOT have to just take whatever they say as law and abide. Get a second opinion if something doesn’t seem right. You have the right to fire and hire anyone there. Just so you know.

On the whole, I am just so THANKFUL that he is ok. He lives people! He lives! He must have like 9 lives or something with all that he has gone through medically. He is one tough cookie. I believe in the power of prayer and I believe that helped him pull through. I really don’t know what I would do without him. I love him so much. Did you hear that Greg? I LOVE YOU!!!! No more banging your head OK? :)

So anyway- you are now caught up. All is well and returning to normal. I’ll get back to regular and more fun, upbeat posts very soon!

It's looking festive round here!

 Here are some bits and pieces of the festivities around our house. I had a lot of fun decorating this year. We've been having quite a jolly season! I hope you have been too.

I had to end the post with a picture of Napoleon...because really, doesn't he make you smile?  

Thankful

So now that we are into the Christmas Season, let me back track a minute and share with you our Thanksgiving. It was the smallest that either of us has ever had...just the two of us. and Marco, Dora and Napoleon of course. As we were planning our menu, you know, turkey, potatoes, what kind of veggie to do etc.; we suddenly realized that since it was just the two of us, there were no guidelines. So, we decided on a seafaring Thanksgiving..........

with king crab legs.......

fresh king salmon.....

roasted red potatoes, green bean & mushroom side dish.......

...and homemade pumpkin pie with fresh whipped cream....as you can see above, we cleaned our plates and stuffed ourselves full and subsequently needed a nap! After a while we felt up for the pumpkin pie and I whipped the cream for it (using my new cuisinart immersion blender/mixer/food processor). It was awesome.

We spent the day hanging out, listening to records and working on a puzzle......

It was a beautiful, relaxing day. I had to come back to Thanksgiving because I never got to say all the things I'm thankful for here, and I really wanted to share it with you. Because I am so blessed...I'm incredibly grateful for my husband and best friend Greg. He lights up my life with fun and laughter. I am incredibly grateful for my family. Each and every one of you has helped shape who I am. you've all taught me so much. About love, forgiveness, patience, commitment, humor....I could go on and on. For my friends...some of who I count as family. For our furry kids, Marco, Dora, and Napoleon (tiny tim is now Napoleon...yup, he's not going anywhere). For our jobs, our home, car, health...I'm so grateful for this life.

Now, onward to Christmas!!!

Sunrise

This morning on our way taking Greg into work, there was the most beautiful sunrise. I tried to capture it with the camera on my phone. It doesn't do it justice, but at least you get a small taste. Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the beauty that surrounds us here, or rather, the beauty of this earth in general. But specifically, the mid Willamette Valley that we call home. The drive into work is inspiring; it never stresses me out like it did in Phoenix. It kind of kick starts my day...driving through all of this beauty, every single day. We are so blessed.

I promise to share our Thanksgiving photos over the weekend, and perhaps some other random things. Until then....Happy Friday! Have a wonderful weekend!

Too Funny

One of my friends at work shared this video with me today. If you haven't seen it, you are so missing out. It is hilarious! Enjoy!

Introducing....

Good Morning! I have some introductions to make...along with a little bragging. First off, let me introduce you to the new manager at SafeHaven Humane Society...

Yup, it's Greg! He was promoted two weeks ago. I'm so proud of him. I can't tell you how good he is with each and every animal that goes through that place. He's always coming home with stories about them; how they came to be there, what their personalities are like, all of the triumphs and all of the heartbreak. There are a lot of heartbreaking stories out there in the animal kingdom. I'm just so glad all of these furry friends have someone like Greg looking after them, doing his very best for each and every one.

Which brings me to my next introduction...... Please meet Tiny Tim! He is the newest addition to our home as we are fostering him (for now....I really don't know if I can let him go back, he just might have to be ours). He is the cutest, sweetest, smallest little Chihuahua mix you will ever find. He is about a third of the size he should be, so he needs lots of observing and time to grow bigger.
Last night, Greg picked me up from the DCA After-hours, and Tiny came in with him to make an appearance. I tell you what, we were there for an hour longer while everyone oohed and aahed over him. They were all cuddling him, taking iPhone photos to email each other, and talking baby talk. It was pretty much adorable. I think cute animals make people so much braver around each other. People I've never talked to just walked right up to see him and talk to us for a long time. Of course, Greg said that as he was trying to get upstairs where the event was, he was stopped by 10 different females. This little guy is a chick magnet!

We've been fostering another kitten and had her for a few weeks now; her name is Abby-dos. Or Abby number 2. But we call her Abby-dos. She is very well behaved, very snuggly, playful, and just all around cute. When we brought Tiny Tim home two nights ago, she and him made fast friends. They played and chased each other around and gave each other kisses! She completely wore him out. And when she realized that he was in fact not going to react to her taunting to play, she decided to snuggle down with him.

I mean really, do I really need to tell you how flippin cute this is? I think not. It pretty much speaks for itself. We are having too much fun with them I tell you. And as for our other permanent residents Marco and Dora, how are they doing with all of this you may ask? Well, they don't like it very much and stay in the back of the house, mainly our bedroom where the visitors don't really go. When we introduced them, Marco and Dora both just hissed a little and then walked off. Eh, cats. What are you going to do? :)
Last I'm going to leave you with this little video of the scene from above. Enjoy your day!

There are times....

A while ago, my boss sent us this little poem. I liked it so much that I've kept it in my in-box and decided to finally share it here.

There Are Times

To hold open a door.

To surrender your seat.

To thank someone, in writing.

To let bygones be gone.

To remember your parents.

To listen with care.

To surprise with a gift.

To mind your table manners.

To honor tradition.

To give voice to your heart.

Tiffany & Co.

NY Times

October 6, 2011

I just loved the reminder of courtesy, of remembering that there are others out there besides yourself. These days I've been nostalgic. When am I not, really, but lately its only been on the good stuff. I'm kind of coming back to being myself. Slowly, but surely. It is me, after all, who has said time and again that sometimes you have to get lost to get found. I just hope I can always find my way back.

Fall is most certainly here......slowly giving in to winter. It is getting cold and dark and wet. But there is color, vibrant color everywhere I look. In front of our little house too. These trees turn the most beautiful and vivid red. These picture I snapped with my phone just do not do it justice. I really want to bust out my camera, I haven't picked it up since I photographed that wedding. Maybe this weekend I'll put it to some good use....maybe.

As the weather gets colder and colder I'm thinking more and more about the holidays. We have no plans at all except to be home. I'm kind of wishing I had decided to go home (AZ) for the holidays, but between Greg's job and the fact that I have no one close to pet-sit for us, it just wasn't going to happen this year. But, I have to say, I'm kind of relishing in the fact that we aren't traveling. I've been picking up Christmas decorations and can not wait to put them up! I'm going to transform our whole house this year! I can't wait to have a tree and come home to its piney smell. I can't wait to have our cute little home all lit up with string lights and candles. When normally I dread the holiday season, this year I'm filled with nothing but excitement!