I really didn't know what to name this post. Sometimes I feel like I have to blog just to say hi to those who don't follow me on facebook, and of course to give a little more detail than I do on facebook... I mean come on... it only allows for so many characters per status message, and you don't want to sit all day and post status updates..... well, most ppl don't.
Just a few things going on in my life...
1.) Jason is snoring.. I mean right now he is snoring beside me. It doesn't help my insomnia at all, but at least my loving husband is going to get a sleep study this Friday. We are thinking he may have some sleep apnea and might need a C Pap machine. I just want something to fix it, and so does he, because he wakes up so tired. We are definitely enjoying him on first shift though, and haven't noticed a big change in his paycheck yet. It will catch up with us, I'm sure. LOL.
2.) I don't like to be one of those bragging moms, but I do have to do a tad bit about Casey. She tells me last week, the night before report cards are supposed to be issued, that she might be getting a B... OH MY!!! She was SO worried. I promised her that a B in 8th grade was not going to hurt her when it comes to college admission. She so wants to go to Duke and is afraid that she will hurt that chance if she slacks at all right now. Well of course she had straight A's in all 8 classes. Most of them were 100s, one a 99, one a 98 and one a 97. I'm so proud of her!!!! She is also in several clubs, including the Beta club at her school. She works hard, and I'm so proud of her for it. She will start back her piano lessons soon.
3.) This weekend is Jason's and my 4th year anniversary, AND my parent's 47th (?) anniversary.... wow! It feels longer than 4 years for Jason and me, but maybe that's because I was married almost 10 years the first time. That makes me sound really old, huh? We are meeting some friends at a Japanese steakhouse nearby. Casey is also taking a friend. We were thinking The Melting Pot, but we did that last year, and wanted something different. I'm so happy to be with a loving, thoughtful man, who also loves my daughter and takes care of both of us. :)
4.) I'm working out like a crazy person!!! I hope it lasts. haha. I'm doing several DVD's, one of which is the Biggest Loser Bootcamp. I love it!!!!!!!! Of course it's hard right now to stand up from a sitting position, because I am so sore, but I'm sure that will get better.
5.) I go see my pulmonologist on the 18th. We will see how my pulmonary function tests look and he will decide whether or not I need to be treated for chronic rejection. I'm praying that my small airways are better. I haven't had to use an inhaler the past few times I've exercised, so that's good!!!! I'm also meeting a dear friend of mine for lunch on that day. Her name is Tiffany, and I have heard her speak before to medical professionals about their relationship with their patients... she was awesome... and I met her briefly, but other than that, we have only had correspondence on facebook. She has CF and has had TWO double lung transplants... what an inspiration.
6.) The Charlotte Observer is doing an article on my Mom and me for Mother's Day. What a great way to bring recognition to my mom for giving me life 3 times, to bring awareness to Cystic Fibrosis, and organ donation. They are going to come interview my mom, Casey and me in a couple of weeks.
7.) My hair is growing... FAST! I'm so happy about that. It straightens out a bit as it grows longer and is much easier to manage. I can get a small ponytail now. :)
8.) My photoshop class is coming along. The last class took me 5 hours to complete, because of all the work involved and the assignments afterward, but at least I'm learning. I still have about 3 classes to catch up on.
9.) I ordered new glasses today. The cutest Coach glasses called Hilary. They fit my face perfectly. I will get them in 5 to 7 days. My prescription hasn't changed that much, only slightly, but I still need new frames.
10.) Jason and I start a new Lifegroup on Thursday. It's a small group of Christian people who get together and connect. We do have lessons to do and reading to do that we discuss, but it's mostly about fellowship. It's been awhile since we've been in a lifegroup, so we are excited... this 1st shift is giving us much more flexibility with our schedule!!! :)
I do want you all to keep my dear friend Lori in your thoughts and prayers. She is experiencing some chronic rejection that is a rare kind, and treatments are not the same as with the most common chronic rejection. Her center is in touch with Duke to figure out the best treatment plan.
I wish all of you a Happy Valentine's Day!!! Lots of love and hearts. :)
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
A blog post
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Bronchoscopy results
I just realized I hadn't posted my bronch results on my blog. They were negative for infection or rejection, which is good, but still doesn't rule out chronic rejection. I continue to have some wheezing with exercise which indicates something going on in my small airways, but other than that, I feel great. My pulmonologist wants me back in 4 weeks to repeat my pulmonary function tests again and see if my numbers have come back up. If not, he is thinking of starting me on a medication called Rituximab, hoping that it would reduce my high antibody count and therefore stabilize any rejection I might have going on. There are many other medications out there to try, so if one doesn't work, we can try another.
I was able to meet one of my CF friends on Monday. We knew each other through the internet, but had never met in person. Her name is Amy, and she had her double lung transplant at Duke 4 months after me. It was so exciting to meet her!!! We hope to meet her hubby Roger soon!
I started my online Photoshop class last week. I haven't learned a whole lot yet, but I know that it is going to be very helpful. I'm hoping to really enhance my photos with it. I know it takes years to master Photoshop though, and my old brain isn't what it used to be. LOL.
Jason and Casey are doing well. Jason is adjusting to first shift with his job! It's nice to have him home for dinner and home at night. Casey gets report cards today. She's pretty sure she has all A's. I'm so proud of her for working so hard. She is thinking now that she might want to work for the FBI instead of becoming a doctor. I don't know about you, but when I was her age, I changed my mind about my future every week or so. I never dreamed at that age that I would ever want to become a nurse. Casey's step-mom has a sister and brother-in-law who work for the FBI, so if she becomes serious about this, she has people who can tell her all about how it is in REAL life, instead of how it's portrayed on TV. :)
I'll leave you with some random photos. I hope all of you are doing well and having a great winter....

Monday, January 18, 2010
Golden Globe Fashion 2010
Isn't it nice to get away from the stress of real life sometimes and talk about something fun... like fashion? I had so much fun doing last year's Oscar fashion review, that I thought I would do it again for the Golden Globes this year, because you know me.. I've got an opinion. :)
I do try to steer away from other reviews before I do mine. I did that last year too with my Oscar review, but ended up having the same review about Beyonce's dress as Perez Hilton, whom I would like to NOT share an opinion with. Anyway, if you would like to see pictures of the dresses reviewed below, but not shown, you can go here or to your favorite celebrity site!
Picking best dressed was very hard to do. I try to pick only ONE, and this year, all the gorgeous dresses made that hard to do. When I say best dressed, I do mean make-up and hair too, because you can take a beautiful dress and ruin it with the wrong hair-do or should I say hair-don't!!! Another thing that I had to consider was not just how these women looked in pictures, but how they looked onscreen last night, because sometimes I thought they looked good in pictures, but not so good onscreen, or vice versa.
HINT: You can click on the pictures to enlarge them.
So after reviewing them all again this morning, here is my pick for Best Dressed:
Is she not perfect? Everything about this screams beautiful? Not only did she stick with her Spanish heritage on this, but the dress fits her figure perfectly. Not a lot of women can wear lines that go horizontally across the body, but Penelope sure can. The lace at the top of the gown makes this black dress seem not so typical. Black dresses can be boring, but no one can say that about this gown! Penelope's hair even screams glamour!
Now, my pick for Worst Dressed:
Can you say "OH MY!"? Chloe Sevigny is one big mess in this horrible attempt at a gown. When she was walking up to get her golden globe, the top of the dress kept blowing up in her face, and then I read where her gown actually tore onstage. Who would want to wear something like that? There are way too many ruffles on this and the "blush" color reminds me of the nightmare bridesmaids dresses in the movie "Steel Magnolias". What also made me pick this as worst dressed was the fact that Chloe has a masculine face anyway, and she chooses to pull her hair so severely back that it in no way helps her look feminine. She is young enough to have worn a nice fitting shorter gown, and to have left this dress hanging on the rack!!!
There were a lot of black dresses last night, flesh colored dresses, and yes, some very bold colors too. I thought there was a lot of glamour there! Shorter dresses are acceptable at the Golden Globes, because it is a less formal event than the Oscars, but I do think they should be left to the young girls, not the older ladies. This leads me to this critique.....
Julia Roberts - Um, what was she thinking? I love Julia, and because of who she is, she can mostly get away with anything, but I'm wondering if she just picked a cocktail dress from 10 years ago out of her closet and threw it on before coming to the award show. I'm also wondering if her twins did her hair, or if she just decided to wake up and not do anything to it at all. She is a little old to be wearing a short dress like that to an awards show in my opinion. And what about the gold accessories? Haven't I seen that necklace somewhere before? Like I said, this must have already been hanging in her closet.
Jennifer Aniston - WOW! The picture I found of her on the red carpet wasn't so great, but I'm thinking that's because the rain frizzed her hair up a bit, but by the time she stepped onstage to present, she was stunning and perfect! I know she wears black a lot on an everyday basis, but no one can say anything bad about this black number she had on last night. I even loved the slit, which can't be pulled off by just anyone. It fit her gorgeous body perfectly and wasn't over or understated. Jen, even though you didn't get it right last year at the Oscars because of your little-girl hair-do, you got it perfect this time around.
Kate Winslet - She wears blues and grays a lot. This gown wasn't bad, but I think it could have been more striking. She wears it well, but the navy color is kind of dull, and there really aren't a lot of embellishments on it. Just kind of blah to me!
Reese Witherspoon - I do believe this is the best I have ever seen her look! She is in the best shape of her life, and it shows! The only picture that I found of her is here. Doesn't she look stunning? (As opposed to her mess of a dress last year at the Oscars). Her hair, make-up, figure, dress all scream glamour and beauty. It's a simple, but yet elegant gown, and the one shoulder number gives it that little extra pizazz it needed.
Kate Hudson - Unbelievable gown! I think this is one of those that people are going to either love or hate. I love it!!! The updo, nails and accessories are perfect. I have to say I wasn't that fond of her shoes, but I'm not that fond of most celebrity shoes these days. Personally, I never would have picked a white gown for her, but I couldn't be more happy with it!
Maggie Gyllenhaal - Again, loved it! Peach? Who would have thought peach? But it's perfect! I like the different lines of the dress, and the fishtail at the bottom was just right. She wore it so well! And her skin tone went well with the color. I do believe she could have done a little more with her updo, but she still looks better than I've ever seen her look.
Mo'Nique - She looked fabulous in gold! The diagonals across the top of the strapless dress were beautiful, and this entire dress draped her frame beautifully. I was so happy she chose this. I also like her hair pulled back, but do think she needed some large earrings to complete this look.
Sandra Bullock - Ewwwww! What cheap material did they use to make this see through number? From her neck to her waist was ok, but the rest, including her hair was horrible! Did she have on a mini-skirt under the sheer outer layer of this dress? It sure looked like it when she walked onstage. I think she could have pulled this color off beautifully if the gown were made out of something other than craft paper... or whatever it is.
Halle Berry - Perfection! She wore the black and gold well, and has the perfect body to show off a little cleavage. I like the way the gown showed off her curves too. It was a stunning gown with the perfect embellishment of gold lace. And I love her hair short again, without those hideous extensions. If anyone can pull of this hairstyle, it's Halle!
Sigourney Weaver - I loved this emerald dress on her. It was perfect for her age and figure. The overlapping "folds" of the dress gave it some nice lines. Her hair and earrings were also perfect. She gets an A from me for sure!
Drew Barrymore - This flesh colored number was beautiful. It had quite a few embellisments, and even though I could have done without the little thing on her hip, I still love the dress on her. She looks elegant! I just saw a picture of her with the tips of her hair colored black, so I was afraid of what she would look like last night, but she was gorgeous. I love the beaded overlay on this dress. I also love her understated hair.
Heidi Klum - Well, she's never my favorite on the red carpet, but I must say, this year, she did look nice. It's not something I would ever choose, but the light blue/grayish gown fit her perfect and I loved the off-the-shoulder look.
Emily Blunt - Another chiffon gown! The chiffon overlay MADE this pink gown though. It would have been boring without it. She wears it well, but I must say, her hair is another bed-head for the night. Why put on a beautiful gown and do nothing with your hair? Anyway, she's still a pretty girl, and worthy of a look!
Mariah Carey - Do you want to even go there?? She was my second choice for worst dressed. I have no problem with her having a little weight on her body. It's who she naturally is. BUT I do have a problem when she wants to show the world all she's got!!! Some people (like Halle) can pull off the plunging neckline, but when you have boobies that are as big as Texas (because of surgery I'm sure), you don't need a neckline this low. The dress also looked about 2 sizes too small for her, as do most clothes that she wears. Uhhh.. her hair was nice though!
Jennifer Garner - Speaking of boobies, she is one celebrity who proves to us that you don't have to have fake ones to look good... even great!!!! I loved her gown last night. The neckline of this sparkly, taupe dress was beautiful and unique. I loved her hair down in the back. I mean you don't always have to have an updo as Jennifer Aniston has already proved for the past 10 years with her same hairstyle. Anyway, Jennifer G's earrings were perfect and so was her make-up. When I saw her on the red carpet, I was stunned by how gorgeous she was, but when the camera zoomed in on her during the show, she looked almost skeletal to me. When did she get so thin??
Fergie - Well, stilllllll speaking of boobs... haha! Anyway, her periwinkle (reminds me of the crayon) dress was gorgeous. I would love to buy it for Casey's future prom. The waistline was so stunning and would flatter almost any figure. I do wish she would have had somewhere to put her large breasts other than right under her chin, but still, she looked beautiful in the gown. I would say she's a bit overtanned, but she's always like that, and her hair is always down and a bit messy, so I won't criticize her on that.
Elizabetta Canalis - In case you have no idea who this is, it's George Clooney's current flavor of the month. She's an Italian beauty!! I did like her dress. It was a fleshy colored number that had a very unique waistline. I liked the criss-crossed, peek-a-boo waistline a lot. It accentuated her beautiful figure. Her hair was down with loose curls and just gorgeous. The color of the dress couldn't go more perfectly with her skin-tone.
Cameron Diaz - Ok, I have mixed feelings on this, because the lines of the dress, the waist-line, the neck-line ALL go perfectly with her tall thin frame. BUT the material reminds me of the 80's bridesmaid's dresses we all hated. I'm glad she went bold with red, since there didn't seem to be many red dresses at all last night, and she can rock some red lipstick, but the material is all wrong. Satin doesn't photograph well either.
Gabourey Sidibe - The emerald color is perfect with her skin tone. The material of the dress flowed nicely over her larger frame. And the beaded waistline was gorgeous. The only problem I have with this dress is the fact that it makes her look much older than she really is. It's very matronly, and she is not. I wish she would have done an off the shoulder, or strapless gown instead. And I also would have skipped the necklace.
Nicole Kidman - Yuck! All the way around. Why does she continue to wear dresses that make her look even paler than she really is. These nude colored dresses she keeps choosing are hideous. I didn't like anything about this gown, including the material, the gathering of material at her hips, or the neckline. I also didn't like her updo. Come on Nicole... you are gorgeous.. show us next time that you are!
Jane Lynch - She reminds me of a big gallbladder for some reason. This being her first awards show EVER, you would think she would have wanted to make an impression. I like the tiny belt at the waistline, but that's it! The material, color, and neckline all scream CHEAP PROM DRESS!
Marion Cotillard - Well, once again... I hated it! What's up with her slip showing beneath the slit in her gown? And the lines on the dress looked like they were designed by someone who had a bit too much to drink. The color could have worked though. It's a unique ultra deep aqua. My brain isn't working enough to come up with the exact color. A few more accessories would have been nice too.
Christina Aguilera - I loved this corset-type blushy/fleshy colored dress. It was very, very unique, but she looked divine in it! Her little tiny frame didn't hurt her!! I loved her short bob too. It completed her elegant look.
Diane Kruger - Well, I also considered her for worst dressed, but then again, I didn't expect anything different from her. Being the girlfriend of the Fringe hottie Joshua Jackson, you would think she would dress a bit better than she does. The color was great, but that's the only thing that was. The neckline reminded me of icing on a very bad cake! And what was up with the white, out of place bow-like contraption at her waist? Her hair was also a greasy looking mess.
Toni Collette - Loved, loved, loved the dress, even though it sort of reminded me of Jennifer Aniston's at last year's Oscars. It was a gold beaded number that fit her nicely, had a beautiful neckline, and hung on her tiny frame perfectly. I also loved her updo with a few curls escaping it, creating an elegant and perfect style.
Courteney Cox - Love her in black! Her black hair and black dress go beautifully together. This dress was nothing special, and very understated, but elegant and beautiful on her. I loved the sparkly waistline. Without it, this dress would have faded into the background. I don't particularly like the part in her hair, but come on.. it's Courteney.. she could be bald and would still be just as gorgeous.
Amy Adams - Ok, it's hard to look good in an evening gown when you are pregnant, but I've definitely seen celebs pull it off before. I was happy that she didn't wear a skin-tight dress like some pregger celebs wear, but still... couldn't she have done better than this? The color was just... well... boring. I know red-heads love green, but this is an atrocious color green. The little broach on her dress makes her look 60 instead of the 30ish she really is. The lines of the dress are horrible, and her handbag is not cute at all. I do, however, love her shoes!
Glenn Close - Her long, black, sequined sheath was to die for! Perfect for her age, figure, and body-type. I also loved her hair. She rocked the red carpet!
Anna Paquin - All I have to say about this dress, is maybe she recycles gold, and then melts it down for a red carpet nightmare!
Kristen Bell - I'm glad she went with a shorter dress. It's not too short, so still elegant, but she's young enough to pull off the shorter length. I didn't care for the color (can't tell if it's white or a light blue), and I really didn't like the style that much, but she still looked pretty. I do like her simple necklace and hairstyle.
Anna Kendrick - I am torn! When I look at her I see elegance, but then again, the dress is a little too much for her petite frame. She's a tiny little thing, and it almost overpowers her. I am glad to see a young actress dress like she belongs in Hollywood instead of a Vegas show, but still, I think she could have done a little less and still looked as glamourous.
Tina Fey - Think "Mary Poppins went to prison". This was a nightmare. A complete and total disaster. She is trying to look 20, but in reality looks older than she is in this horrible thing that someone apparently called a gown. And what's up with her shoes? They are not only ugly, but don't go with the gown at all. I love a nude shoe with a black dress, but not with a black and white dress that is so busy, you could get lost in the Twilight Zone just looking at it.
Zoe Saldana - This girl could wear anything because of her slender figure, but she chose this? Why? I love the color on her. It's one that I don't believe has been worn recently at an awards show, but the dress looks like they kept running out of material to make it, and just kept reattaching more as they found it. Her hair is also just blah! I expected more from this cutie.
Julianne Moore - Grandma's dress gone wrong! First of all there is a seam running down the middle of the dress. There is no shape at all to it.. that's what makes me think that they took a big piece of material and sewed it together however they wanted. And then took a big fluffy strip of material and made a neckline out of it. I do like the charcoal gray color on her though! And those earrings... didn't we some similar on Angelina at the Oscars last year? You can't pair beautiful expensive emeralds with a pillow-case.
Sofia Vergara - I loved this dress! The color, the shape, the train, the neckline all work. I like how they incorporated a little burgundy into the the neckline of this grayish blue dress. Simple hair and accessories complete the look.
Ginnifer Goodwin - Did she get this dress at Forever 21? It looks so cheap! She could have pulled off a short dress like this, but it doesn't flatter her hips at all. From the waist up, it's cute, and the color looks great on her, but as far as the dress goes, those are the only pluses. I do love her shoes, hair and earrings though!
Lea Michelle - Even though I think this black ball gown is more suited for the Oscars than the Golden Globes, I think it's beautiful!! Everything about it screams Old Hollywood, and she wears it well! I love her hair and jewelry too. She did well by going with no necklace on this one!
January Jones - Barf a maggot!!! Can I say that on here? She is horrible! I bet Ashton Kutcher was glad he dumped this girl after seeing her last night. Everything from the ruffles on the dress (can you tell I don't like ruffles) to the school girl headband, make her a train wreck!
Heather Graham - When I first saw her on the red carpet, I thought she looked nice, but the closer look I got, the more I disliked this whole look. First of all, she should have worn color.. not black. Save the black for those with a better skin tone. The sequined gown wasn't ugly by any means. It would have looked great on Courteney Cox or Angelina Jolie, but not on Heather. Her hair was also so severely pulled back, that I thought her eyes might pop out of her head. Her boobs were lopsided, and her accessories were greatly understated.
Christina Hendricks - Loved it!!!!! The color was amazing with her red hair. It was a very light peach. Even though this dress had some ruffles on it, they were at the hip where they should be, and the nice diagonal lines of this dress greatly accentuated her figure. She couldn't have picked a better dress!
Jayma Mays - Did she make this dress in her 8th grade Home Ec class? The top looks like they just threw some white ribbon across a plain black dress to spice it up a bit, and the bottom looks like she was caught in a spider web prior to the red carpet. Can I say anything nice about her look? Yeah, her hair was nice and elegant.
OK now let's talk about my "House" girls.. You know, the girls from the show that SHOULD have won last night, but was once again beaten by some show called "Mad Men" that I have never watched, and don't know anyone who has... anyway... here they are.....
Olivia Wilde - Just a reflection of beauty, but she usually is. After all, she IS married to a prince. It's not hard to look good when you have a figure like she does, but she was just perfect. This shimmery, metallic number flattered her figure and had great lines. The plunging neckline isn't too severe and I love the way it lays around her neck. The diagonal drape across her mid-section makes her tiny waist look even tinier and gives her hips a nice, curvy look. She is auctioning this dress off for Haiti too! 
Lisa Edelstein - This silvery gown was perfect on her! The color went so nicely with her skin-tone and hair color. When I see the picture here, I don't like it as much as I did when I saw her onscreen. It really did flatter her figure and looked age appropriate. I love the lines of the dress, and the clasp at the bottom of the neckline. Her hair and accessories all added to her look.
Jennifer Morrison - Ok, I was bragging about my House girls last night until I saw Jennifer. I can't think of one time on the red carpet that she's looked nice. She always chooses the wrong dress, either looking like a tramp or just a hot mess. This time, I'm not sure what to call it. I think of a very busy sewing machine when I look at her. The color could have worked with her skin-tone and now blonde hair, but the ruffles make it to difficult to see past them and even look at the rest of her. Poor Jennifer.. get a new stylist ASAP.
Ok, I would love to hear your opinions. I'm not sure I have as many readers as last year when I did the Oscar review, but if you are one of my FB friends without a google account, I do allow anonymous messages, so you don't have to sign up for an account to comment. I hope you have enjoyed this. I really do like critiquing all the Hollywood celebs while I sit on my sofa in my p.j.s.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Bronchoscopy number 486
...Ok, not really, but sometimes it feels like it. I have had many of them since my lung transplant over 8 years ago, but not quite that many (I don't think).
I went to Duke yesterday for another bronchoscopy (biopsy of lungs) and a visit with my lung transplant pulmonologist. I had some acute rejection back in October and did some IV steroids and a prednisone taper for it. I went for a follow-up bronch in November, and everything came back clear. No rejection or infection. This was to be my last follow-up bronch due to the rejection, and then I would just go back to my yearly bronch like normal.
Before my bronch yesterday, I had blood work, pulmonary function tests (pfts), and an xray done. My pulmonary function tests were down quite a bit since my last visit. My total lung capacity was only down about 4%, but the number that indicates how your smaller airways are working was down 17%. I had my bronch, and just like last time, had an allergic reaction to something. I believe they have switched the medication that numbs the back of your throat, because the meds they use to sedate me are still the same. Anyway, on top of the sedating medications, I had to get 50 ml of IV benadryl. The rest of the day is a little blurry, because of all of that.
After the bronch, I saw my pulmonologist, and he explains to me that my blood work shows that I have bone marrow suppression. This means that my blood cell counts are really low... both red and white. I'm even more anemic than I was at my nephrology appointment last week, and my white cells are down even lower too. My pulmonologist believes that the combination of two of my medications are doing this, so he has discontinued one of them. It is the medicine that prevents me from getting CMV or cytomegalovirus. Because I was CMV negative at the time of my lung transplant and my mom was CMV positive (in other words, she had the virus sometime in her life, and I hadn't), it put me at risk of developing the virus. For someone healthy, this doesn't mean much, but for someone immunosuppressed, it can cause a lot of problems if you get this virus in your lungs or intestines. I have had it in my blood twice since transplant, but it was treated with an IV medication. Now that I won't be on the medication to prevent it, there will be a chance of me getting it again, but that's the chance my doctor is willing to take, because bone marrow suppression can be much worse and can keep me from fighting off ANY infection. The other med that was aiding to this suppression is one of my anti-rejection medications called Cellcept, and especially because of my recent rejection, he did not want to discontinue that one. He is hoping that my counts will be up in a few weeks.
Now concerning my smaller airways and my lower pfts, he is thinking we might see some rejection or infection on this bronchoscopy. The results will not be back until Monday unfortunately. If it is a negative bronchoscopy (in other words, nothing shows up), then he thinks this is probably just continuation of my chronic rejection, which started back in 2007. Chronic rejection can progress at different rates, and differs from acute rejection in that acute rejection is usually taken care of with a round of steroids, whereas chronic rejection is very unpredictable and can be slowed down, but not really stopped for good. You can have a sudden drop in your lung function and then stabilize for years, or it can be fast and you can lose all lung function over a period of months. My chronic rejection has previously been treated with Cellcept and Azithromycin. That seemed to stabilize everything. Now that my lung function is dropping again, if the doctor suspects it's the chronic rejection doing it, he will decide on a course of treatment. I asked him yesterday what that might be, and he said he won't make that decision until my bronch results come back.
This is just going to be a waiting game to see if my blood counts come back up, and to see what my lung function does. I recently started exercising again, and it seems that every time I start to get in shape again, something sets me back. I'm going to attribute that to being allergic to exercise!!! :) Just kidding... I won't let any of this stop me from continuing my exercise regimen. I will post again on Monday after I get the results. Love to all!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
1st blog of New Year!!
Well, even though it was quick, we had a great Christmas. Casey got her iPod touch she wanted, so all is right with the world. LOL. We really do want next year to be all about giving to those in need and not to those who aren't in need, so that is going to be planned immediately, so that friend and family aren't shocked in early December with my idea. :)
We were able to go up to my hometown to see my grandparents and extended family on my mom's side, and to see my Dad's side of the family too!!! It was a great day. I love them all SO much, and I can't imagine not having all of them here.
We finally got our tree down and the house clean yesterday. It is amazing to have my house back. I'm not sad at all that the holidays are over. However, I am very saddened about my dear friend Angela's family. Her mom isn't expected to live another 48 hours. I just can't believe it's real. I truly hate cancer!!!! Please keep Angela and her family in your prayers. They are struggling as you can imagine.
I wish I had some monumental awesome thing to tell you, but I really don't. Casey is back to school and had a great, but cold day. She was glad she wore her long handles. :) Her school was really cold she said. She is in a geography bee on Wed, but hasn't done much studying for it. We will cram tomorrow night.... hmmmm... reminds me of my college days. LOL.
Jason goes on 1st shift on the 17th. It's a 10% pay cut, so I feel I need to find some kind of work to help get that back. Just not sure what to do. I'm not comfortable enough with my photography yet to charge for it, but I do plan on taking a Photoshop CS4 class soon, so that will definitely add to my photos. Still loving my 50mm f/1.4 lens. :)
Casey has several things she wants to do this summer, but it would take her away for 6 weeks. I told her she could do 2 out of the 3, but she isn't sure which 2 she would choose. I feel bad, but I LOVE my summers with her, and don't want her gone the entire summer. We will see what she decides.
I am flabbergasted... my hair has already grown about an inch. My hairdresser has always told me that my hair grows fast, so that's really good, b/c short hair is SO hard to take care of. I have naturally curly hair and when I leave it curly I look about 12. If I straighten it, I look my age, but it takes so long to fix. I can't wait until my ponytail is back, but am just thankful it's coming back at all. :)
To all my friends who don't have facebook, you don't realize how awesome it is to connect with those you haven't spoken to in 20 years until you get on there. I do wish you would all join.... believe me, I'm on there everyday and many times a day... haha!!!
I am ordering new glasses this week. Mine are old and worn out. I also go to Duke on Thurs for a much needed kidney tx appt. Oh for those of you who don't know tx=transplant. I always abbreviate without thinking of those who don't know that. I will go again the next week for a bronchoscopy where they biopsy my lungs to make sure the rejection is still staying far, far away!! I know it is!!! :)
I have many friends in need of lungs. I hope that you will keep all of the people in your prayers waiting on lungs, kidneys, liver, intestines, pancreas, eyes, tissue, heart, etc. There just isn't enough going around, because there are still those not signing their donor card. What a WONDERFUL last gift you could give someone!!!!
Ok before I go, I must shout out to Kristin, Nicole, Rhonda, Anne-Lewis (who turned 40 on Sunday), and Trenda who are my most dearest friends from VA. And also big prayers to one of my besties Angela, who's mom is in the process of dying as I write this blog. I can't tell you the sadness I feel. :(
I am looking forward to the new year. I hope all of you are too!!! Love to all!!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Randomness if I've ever seen it
This post is totally random. I will say anything that comes to mind, so don't expect it to make much sense. :)
I think that EVERYONE should accept EVERYONE and not judge. I have learned from my new and wonderful pastor that we should not judge. I have friends from every religion, sexual orientation, political affiliation, location, etc. I love everyone... just like Jesus did!!!!!!! Isn't that amazing?
I ordered a new shirt.. pics soon. that says "what are you so afraid of?". What it boils down to is this... we are so comfortable with the people we are familiar with and are so afraid of those who are different.. Well............ DON'T be. Jesus wouldn't be. Why do some people have to be. Especially those raised in the south? LOL.
Ok, another random thought. Why do we try so hard to figure out the right gift for our loved ones who have EVERYTHING already? Why not make a pact with your family that you will all give to a needy family or angel on a tree at church or in the mall, or some other needy family? It makes much more sense than giving someone something that they will just stuff in a closet b/c they have so much already. Right?
Ok, another random thought. Jacob was hot in New Moon!!!! Am I right? I hated him in the book, but dang.. I loved the movie. Can't wait to own it.
Ok on a sad note.. my cousin Garfield passed away this past week. How sad. He always had smiles for everyone. And also some sad news. I have lost 4 CF friends in a little over a week. The oldest age was in their 40's. :( It's so not fair. I'm angry, but also thankful that they have no more suffering.
Christmas decorations are done. Presents are not. I need to get on the ball. Only a few more weeks ppl. WOW.. can you believe it?
Any of you planning on vacations next year? I really want to go to Boston, then up to Maine. I hope that works out!!!!! Have a blessed Christmas everyone, and good luck with the decorations, parties, recitals, concerts, presents and of course family time. Love you all!
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Birthday parties, Anniversaries and Bronchs
First of all a very Happy Veteran's Day to all of you who have served or are still serving in the Armed Forces. This includes my husband who served in the Marines for 4 years. :)
It was a great weekend celebrating Casey's birthday. I can't believe she is 14!! That means that one year from now she can get her learner's permit provided she takes driver's ed in the summer (which of course she can't wait to do). How scary is that??? Casey also got her report card on Friday, and made straight A's. I'm so proud of her for working so hard in her new and challenging school. It's been a rough 9 weeks, but her homework seems to have eased up a bit in the past few weeks thanks to the school's principal stepping in and asking the teachers to tame it down a bit. :)
Jason and I leave for Duke in the morning. I have a dermatology appointment and a lung transplant appointment tomorrow. We are going to stay the night, because I have a bronchoscopy on Friday. This bronch is to make sure that my acute rejection is gone. I am now back down to 5 mg of prednisone. The IV steroid and prednisone taper were not so bad. Of course I had to watch my blood sugars, but other than that, there weren't many side effects.
Yesterday was my one year kidney transplant anniversary. It's hard to believe it has been a year now. There have been very few bumps in the road regarding my new kidney. Praise God for that!
Tomorrow is my 8 year double lung transplant anniversary!!! If you would like to read about my lung transplant, you can go here.
A big humungous thank you to my mom and Uncle Joey. Without them, I would not be here now. For those of you new to my blog, my mom and uncle each donated a lobe of their lung to me, and my mom donated her kidney to me. They are my heroes and I love them both so much.
I'll leave you with a few pics from Casey's party and some pictures of her "new" room. I made the banner and decorated her bulletin board as a surprise for her last week...
Friday, November 6, 2009
Happy Birthday Casey
Thursday, October 15, 2009
If I have any readers left at all...
then maybe this post won't be for nothing. :)
Facebook is my go-to place now for info on my friends and to keep everyone updated on me. I'll try to catch up my blogger readers now.
Since my last post, Casey has started a new school, and she really loves it. It is A LOT of work and very challenging, but the environment is more of an academic environment instead of a regular public school environment, so it's just what she needed. Her goal is still to go to Duke University and go to med school. She still has her sites set on becoming a surgeon, so we will see how that goes.
She has also been running cross country this year. She is doing so well with it. I was worried at first, because Casey is and probably always will be a toe-walker, so I was concerned about her running, but her doctor gave her approval, so that's all I needed to hear. I wouldn't say Casey is enjoying it, but she's dedicated. I really hope that she continues to run after the season is over next week.
Jason is doing well. He is still working 3rd shift, which is pretty tough, but we are just so thankful he has a job in this economy. He does sleep well during the day, so that's a big plus. As long as I can keep the pups quiet, Jason will sleep a good 8 hours during the day. I never did that when I worked 3rd. LOL.
As for me, I had a birthday since my last post. I'm now 39 and so thankful to have made it beyond the age my doctors ever thought I would. Every year is a blessing! Well, minus the wrinkles and saggy stuff. :)
I am currently experiencing some mild acute rejection of my lungs. Well, since my lobes are from 2 different donors, I'm really only experiencing rejection of one of them, but they didn't tell me which one, so I am not sure whether to blame my mom or my uncle. haha. I am finishing up my 3rd day of IV Medrol (a steroid), and will start on a taper of prednisone tomorrow and decrease each day until I reach my baseline of 5 mg/day. I will then have another bronchoscopy (where they take a biopsy of both of my lobes) in November to make sure the rejection is gone.
I am also dealing with the same hair loss that I had after my first transplant. I finally got an answer at my last lung transplant appointment as to why I am losing it. All of the proteins I take in have been going to my kidney transplant site to heal it. Therefore, my hair hasn't been getting the proteins it needs. I was told that typically if a transplant recipient is affected by this, the hair will start to fall out about 3 to 6 months post-transplant and continue for about 9 months. So, as soon as your hair starts falling out, new hair is replacing it. I have strands about 2 to 3 inches long from where it started falling out and coming back in about 6 months ago, and I still have long strands that are falling out. I will have to end up cutting a lot of my hair off again, but I don't think I'll have to cut it as short as I did after my first transplant. I'm also back to (or close to) my natural color again, which is brown. I'm mostly wearing hats or wearing my hair up now, since it's crazy with fly away pieces and very thin long pieces. Thankfully, my hair does grow pretty fast. :)
I am very happy that fall is finally here! I love fall and winter! We are planning on heading to the mountains in a couple of weeks to see the beautiful leaves before they all fall away.
I am still loving photography and got a new lens from my hubby for my birthday. I'm having fun with it, but of course have at least 3 other lenses I want to add to my camera bag. It certainly isn't the camera that costs so much in photography. But the lenses DO make all the difference. Casey is enjoying photography too, even though she has very little time for it right now with her schedule.
The pups are doing good. Balin has had some stomach problems, but they have now attributed that to stress. He still hasn't adjusted to Mia, and I don't know that he ever will. I keep them apart the best I can. I am loving Mia so much though. She is the cuddliest little dog I've ever had. She's now a whopping 3.5 lbs. She looks huge to me.. haha.
The rest of my family is doing great. Dad is still antiquing and Mom is still babysitting my nephew, who is now 4. He will go to kindergarten next year, which is amazing to me. Time flies. My niece Caroline is going to the same school as Casey and loves it as well. My sis and her family are all settled in their new home and are loving it.
As for our house, it's still not up for sale. I guess it will be one day. Now, I'm saying to Jason.. let's just wait until spring, but he says put a for sale sign in the front yard now. We are going to try to sell it ourselves first, and will then go to a realtor if it doesn't sell. The last house I sold on my own was bought by the first couple who looked at it, so I really hope we are that lucky again. With this economy though, I'm not so sure.
My friend Trenda recently had her 4th child, a little boy named Levi. I am so happy for them. She lives in my hometown in Virginia. I really need to get up to Virginia soon and visit my grandparents and other family members, and my many, many friends, some of whom I haven't seen in years. Now that I've gotten in touch with a lot of them again on facebook, I want to see them!!!! There was a reunion of sorts this past August, but I wasn't able to go, because of the side effects I was having from some IV meds I was on, so I'm hoping to at least make the next one... whenever that may be.
Here are a few pictures taken this fall. If you are a facebook friend, you've most likely seen them. If not, enjoy...

Friday, August 21, 2009
Transform your skin
Transform your skin. Mine has been completely transformed with Skinceuticals CF. Below is the link to the website. Just remember, all the celebrities give all the credit to their dermatologists and medical prescription creams to transform their face. This is the one product my dermatologist recommonded. It's doing wonders...."www.skinceuticals.com... Plus if you have malasma, Tri-Luma cream is great at lightening it. It has greatly diminished my dark spots from malasma. Of course, the most important thing for healthy skin is wearing sunscreen with zinc in it, which I do everyday. All of this is really taking a lot of years off of my skin. :) Celebrities don't use those products they are promoting on tv. They see a dermatologist to recommend what to use. Mine even told me to use Cetaphil to clean my face with as long as I use the Skinceuticals and Tri-Luma products to help correct the damage. Getting sun on your face is the worst thing you can do. Wearing sunscreen is the best advice any doc can give you, but unfortunately most people don't listen until the damage gets bad enough to bother them, then it costs a lot to do "correcting".
Good luck.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Post and pics tomorrow?
Maybe!! We'll see how cooperative blogger is! :) I'm going to bed now though. Hope all of you are doing well. Keep my friend Meghann in your prayers. She just got new lungs at UNC. Last I heard she came through the surgery well, but I haven't heard any new updates.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Pink bows and Pink highlights
It's been a busy week with a new puppy, getting Casey ready to leave on a mission trip, Casey's last day of school, packing up the house getting it ready to sell, and oh yeah.. still fighting this infection.
I'm still fighting this C. Diff. It is definitely better on this new medicine, but it's not completely gone yet. I'm really hoping this med takes care of it, so I don't have to do IV's and go in the hospital.
Little Mia is the sweetest thing! She is so loving and cuddly. I think my maternal clock was ticking again, so I've (mostly) satisfied it with a new puppy who I can dress up in little pink bows and anything else I want.. haha. Casey rolls her eyes at this, but loves her pink collar and leash. Jason just tolerates. :) Balin still doesn't like Mia, but I'm hoping this will change as time goes by. I am trying to give a lot of attention to Balin too, but he just doesn't want to be around me when Mia is. At least he can still jump on things that she can't and get away from her. LOL.
Casey and her friends left for a mission trip for the week. I'll miss her so much, but am excited for her. Here are pics of Mia, and of Casey and her friends leaving for their trip. You can still see Casey's pink highlights some, but they really washed out a lot since I wouldn't let the hairdresser put bleach on her hair under the highlights. Oh well, I'd rather not start damaging her hair so early.
I just want all my friends to know that I am back to reading blogs even though I'm not commenting much. I love you all and am praying for you all!






