Finals Are Over!

So finals are finally over and I think that the person who is most excited about this is me...and I didn't even take any! You'd think it'd be Allan since he is the person who had to take them, but no, I'm pretty sure I'm more excited. I love having him home! I love having someone to come home to after work. Oh ya, I'm working again. I have completely eliminated gluten from my diet, well, almost completely (I have some exceptions that are worth getting sick for) and am starting to feel better. It's wonderful! So yay for finals being over and getting my husband back!

Human Stupidity

I saw this picture on the inside of my storage bin. I thought it was so hysterically funny that I took a picture. What's sad about it is that I'm sure the company put it on there because they had someone stupid enough to actually try that. If anyone knows of any other stupid warning labels, please feel free to share. My favorite besides this one was on a baby stroller. "Warning: Remove baby before folding." The stupidity of the human race never ceases to amaze me.

Wasted (No, not alcoholically)

I can't sleep at all because I feel so sick so I decided to blog. I was really good today and didn't have any gluten at all, but am still feeling awful. Luckily, my work is letting me work from home in the morning & I only have to go in the office in the afternoon. Unfortunately, I'm struggling with the getting into work part. At least I'm still getting a little bit done from home.

Tonight I took a shower and after shampooing my hair, I was so utterly exhausted I had to get Allan to help me finish by putting the conditioner in my hair & rinsing it out for me. I just couldn't do it myself. *sigh* I can't wait to start feeling better. Hopefully it'll be soon. And Allan is the most awesome person in the world. (Last sentence dictated by Allan himself as I was writing the blog. :))

Diagnosis Feelings (Ranting & Raving)

WARNING: this is me ranting & raving. I think that if I get it out of my system I'll feel better. I'm hoping. So really you don't have to read it. I'll probably even delete it later, but for now, I need to get it out.

For the past two months, I've been really sick. I've been nauseous every single day & have no energy whatsoever. After putting up with it for so long, I went to the doctor. She thought it was diabetic gastroparesis but after going to a specialist & having an endoscopy, I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. The doctor told me it's very common among type 1 diabetics. I've had diabetes for 14 years & never heard that once. I asked if I just developed it in the last two months & he told me that I've actually had it for years, it just made itself manifest in the last two months.

I am so incredibly angry about this. I'm angry with God. I feel like he lied to me. In blessings I've been told that if I took care of myself, God would do the rest & I could live a long, healthy life. Well, I'm in the best control I've ever been in. My last A1c was 6.9! A Dr couldn't ask for better than that! And after I get in such great control, I get this! Don't I have enough health problems to deal with already?! Good grief! I've got diabetes, scoliosis that causes severe back spasms and then all the shoulder, hip & knee pain that can't be diagnosed. I never feel good as is. There are bad days & not-so-bad days, but never good days. Plus, I'm an extremely picky eater. Now over 50% of my diet has to be eliminated. I'm so angry that I just cry. I can't believe how much I've cried in the last 2 days. Ya, way to keep up your end of the deal, God. NOT!

I know that I shouldn't be angry. I should be grateful that although it's a chronic disease, it can be controlled. At least I don't have cancer. But I just can't come to terms with it yet. I'm so angry & somewhat depressed. I don't want to eat at all anymore. Everything I think of, I can't have anymore. I'm sitting around & wallowing in self-pity. Pathetic. 

Since my diagnosis, the only time I've felt ok is when visiting my grandpa in the hospital. He had a stroke last weekend. It was so nice to think of someone else & not myself. When I'm alone or working, all I can think about is myself & this stupid diagnosis. I really need to start school again so I can become a nurse. I think it would be so good for me. I'd be able to focus on those who are far less fortunate than I am & then not feel so bad for myself. I'm going to start classes in January, I think. I hope.

On a brighter note, I have the best husband in the world! After I was diagnosed, Allan made me a dinner of fettuccini alfredo. I really love pasta & was sad I couldn't have it anymore. He went to the store & got gluten-free noodles & bread to show me that I can still have good food. (The noodles were disgusting, but it's the thought that counts.) I thought it was the sweetest thing ever. He has also since cleaned out our cupboards of everything containing wheat. They are pretty bare. But he did it so I wouldn't be tempted & he has decided to do the new diet with me even though he doesn't have to so that it'll be easier for me. Could I ask for a better husband?

Crappy day

So today was really crappy for us, well more for Lexi.  She just found out that she has Celiac.  That's a chronic disease that makes it so you can't eat gluten.  Gluten is found in basically any type of grains, such as wheat and oats. That means she can't have bread, cereal, pasta,... etc.  I feel like a complete jerk because I have just this week until finals and I have so much to do that I feel like I'm ignoring her, and when she most needs me :(.  I love her so much and pray that she and I will be able to adjust to her new diet well.  If you read this please remember her in your prayers.  If you don't pray, start.

Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving this year, Allan and I started off by going to the annual Turkey Bowl. I was so excited for it. It's a bunch of friends (led by Sky & Brandon) playing football. And it is serious business. This year, they made Turkey Bowl 2008 shirts. There were so many people, they ended up getting two games going. I wanted to play so badly but just couldn't. I was way too sick. Allan played though & had a great catch before someone took out his knee. He's still pretty sore from it and has a nice bruise to prove it. I can't wait to see the highlight film.

After the Turkey Bowl we went to my aunt Corinne's house for Thanksgiving dinner. It was absolutely delicious! There were all the traditional Thanksgiving foods & my aunt's AMAZING homemade rolls. Allan was especially excited about those. We then played games & watched the newer version of Miracle on 34th Street.

I'm so grateful for Thanksgiving. I'm sad that it's getting lost in all the commercialism of Christmas. How wonderful it is to have a day set aside to give thanks for all that we have. While the article that the link leads to is just a bit long, I ask you to read it. It is so worth it! It's amazing. Lincoln is my favorite president. After reading that, I respect him even more. I love how religious he is. I mean, this country was built on religion! And I'm thankful for it! :)

Disney On Ice

Last Thursday Allan took me to Disney On Ice. When I got the announcement for discounted tickets from work, I emailed it to him and said something like, "Can we please, please, please, please, please, please go?" About 15 minutes later I called him to ask if he got my message and he responded by telling me he already bought the tickets. Talk about a giddy 21-year-old!

As if I wasn't excited enough, when we got there, I found our seats were on the first row! AH! I was like a 5-year-old little girl. I was so excited! Allan was pretty excited too. I think he really enjoyed himself. It was the best date night we've had...probably ever.

We saw Mickey & Minnie, Donald & Daisy, Goofy, Chip & Dale, Aladdin & Jasmine, Genie & Abu,  Beauty & The Beast, Lumiere & Cogsworth & tons of other castle characters. We also saw Ariel & Prince Eric, Cinderella & Her Prince & tons of other princes & princesses in addition to characters from Finding Nemo, Pinocchio, The Lion King & the It's A Small World ride from Disneyland and many more. 

It truly was one of the best nights of my life. The detail Disney puts into things is fantastic. Allan and I decided that we are definitely going to go again next year. I tried to convince him to get me some cool Mickey ears or an Ariel doll & some other cool memorabilia, but he wouldn't oblige. I'm hoping I can convince him next year. Until then, I have my princess t-shirt to remember the night. 

Halloween Costumes

I finally got my pictures from Halloween! Here is Little Bo Peep and her sheep. It turned out wonderfully. Mine was cute alone, but Allan totally completed it and made it a huge hit! 

Allan's costume ended up taking about 7 hours and a couple thousand cotton balls. Mine was several yards of fabric and one intense pattern. I started it at 9 p.m. the night before Halloween. Luckily, my mom was willing to help me. She stayed up until 3 a.m. to help me and I was up til 5. But look how cute it is! 

The first picture is the two of us at my office. When people saw my costume, they told me it was really cute and asked where my sheep was. I told them he'd be in later. They were all shocked and couldn't believe my husband would actually dress up as a sheep. They said it was only because we're newlyweds. I don't think so, however. I think it's because he's so chill & willing to do anything to make me happy. Isn't he wonderful?

The second picture is a close up of Allan's head. The ears are my absolute favorite so I had to take a better picture. The ears are felt that's glued on. He's so cute!! 

This third picture is the trophy we got for winning the costume contest at the Halloween dance at The Golden Skillet. It cracks me up. It's a soccer trophy with masking tape over it (my favorite part) that they got at DI for $1. HA HA!

Over all, it was a great Halloween. I'm not sure what to do to top it next year, but at least I have a whole year to think about it. I'm definitely going to get started a LOT earlier. If anyone has any great ideas, please share.

My husband, the socialite & utter nerd

Last week, Allan & I were leaving the store and I told him that I would meet him at home since I had another errand to run. However, when I got home, he wasn't there. He should've been home about 40 minutes before me. I called him on his cell to see where he was but he didn't answer. I had to try really hard not to freak out. I started imagining him in some horrific crash on the freeway. A few minutes later, I decided to call again. This time, he answered and told me he was at Hastur Hobbies, a gaming store about 30 seconds from our apt, learning how to play a new game & would be home in 15 minutes.

You have to understand, Hastur Hobbies is the store for the epitome of "nerds." Instead of waiting 15 minutes for my dear husband to get home, I decided to walk there see what game he was learning to play. When I walked in, I was assaulted by the geekdom of the store. The first thing I saw was a display of different accessory books for "Dungeons & Dragons", followed by a whole wall of other video games and yet another wall covered in swords. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against nerds, I just found this amusing.

Right in the middle of the store were some tables set up for the gamers who came to get their "attack" on. Allan was with the group of people at this table. When I walked up, he introduced me to all his new friends he had met that night who were showing him how to play. He then proceeded to show me the awesome new game he was learning. He asked his opponent/teacher if he could attack him with some kind of sword. The opponent/teacher told him that he could...if he had the sword. At that point, I walked away to look at the cooler games they had such as Apples to Apples.

I couldn't help but laugh at my nerdy husband. I could only laugh harder at myself because when I first met him, I thought that he was WAY too cool to be a nerd (Male lindy hoppers are all a bit nerdy. And I love them!). Little did I know that he is as nerdy as they come. :) However, I'm okay with this and have even agreed to let him go back a few times so he can continue to play.

Four hours & 1400 cotton balls later...

For Halloween this year, I wanted Allan and I to dress up together. I searched tons of websites but didn't find any costumes I was really crazy about. So I went to JoAnn's to see if I could find anything in their pattern catalogs that I liked. I found a really cute Little Bo Peep costume & thought of Allan being my sheep. I about died laughing right there. So Little Bo Peep and her sheep it is.

I'm starting with Allan's costume (and still laughing hysterically everytime I picture him in it). I bought white scrubs and a white hoodie and am covering them with cotton balls. It's going to be great!...and time consuming. But four hours and 1400 cotton balls later, the pants are finished and they look awesome! I just have to figure out a way to keep the cotton balls from fraying. I'm hoping hairspray will do it. Now for the hoodie...:S

First Post!

I decided to start a blog for us. I'm hoping Allan will make updates on it too, but we'll see. He's not much of a computer person unless it's for games.

We are currently living in an apt. in Midvale. It's very small, but perfect for only two people. It was a little scary when I first saw it, but my family surprised us by doing a massive cleaning job on it & painting every single wall (and what was the blue cement floor) while I was out of town. It looks great now! It was the perfect wedding present.

The apartment has it's little quirks and I find them hysterically funny. My favorite is that if we use the microwave with the lights on, it'll blow a fuse. Allan discovered that if you turn the power level down, the lights will flicker, but won't go out. However, to make popcorn, all the lights have to be off. When we first came across this little quirk, I couldn't stop laughing. Allan was not so amused. Luckily, he's come to terms with it and now gets a kick out of it. I guess it'll be one of those great "when we were first married" stories we tell our kids about years down the road.