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!!

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!

Home from Virginia

It was so great seeing all of my mom's and dad's family. We packed it all in today. First, we had lunch and opened gifts at my grandparent's house, and then we went to my cousin's house on my dad's side of the family and had dinner. Now we are back home and exhausted!!

I'm back to not sleeping well again. My insurance has all of a sudden decided to give me only 20 Ambien a month. They have given me 30 for YEARS. What do they think we are supposed to do the other 10 or so days? Not sleep? I am going to call my doctor tomorrow and see if they can call me in anything else. It's really ridiculous. Even with Ambien, I have a hard time sleeping, and usually don't get over 5 or 6 hours. With all of the expensive medications I am on, I have a hard time understanding why my insurance company has a problem with this one drug.

I am going to take the tree down tomorrow. I have never been one to leave it up until New Years. Other than that, I really don't have plans for the next few days. I think I'm ready for some chillin' time.

More pics to follow as soon as I can get my hands on Casey's camera (she's at her dad's house tonight). I took my camera today, but didn't even get it out of the car.. oops.

Christmas Day Surprises

Yesterday was a great day. We were able to spend time with my family, Jason's family, and then we had "Jason, Christy and Casey time".. which is always special.

Casey got her iPod Nano that she asked for. I think I had convinced her that she wasn't getting it, so she was really surprised. It's red and has her name and phone number engraved on the back. For every red IPod nano sold, Apple donates $10 to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, so Casey was excited about that.

Casey also got some beautiful antique jewelry from my parents. My dad is an antique dealer and Casey wants all things "old" from them for every birthday and Christmas. My dad got her a beautiful signed bracelet from Kramer of NY. It's a 1940's piece, and is Casey's favorite. I have pictures of her wearing it, but they are on Casey's camera which is with her at her dad's house now, so I'll post them, and other pictures from her camera later. Casey also got a new puppy at her dad's house. She is a chocolate lab, and I think her name is going to be Maggie. She is absolutely precious. Casey was very spoiled this year (aren't they all), but she appreciates everything so much. I don't mind giving as long as she takes care of her things and appreciates it. She definitely loves to give more than receive!

I got an awesome camera bag for my SLR camera. It is large enough to hold all of my future lenses that I'm planning on getting. :) I also got 4 filters for my camera. The picture below of the Christmas tree lights is with my new cross-star filter. I got a lens hood too for my current lens. I want a telephoto lens and a wide-angle lens, but since they are so expensive, I'm going to have to save for those.

Casey made me an awesome painting that I'm going to hang in my dinning room. I have been looking for an abstract painting to hang in there, and haven't found one that I like. This one is perfect!! I am so excited about it.

Jason got a couple new games and accessories for his PS3. He is such a kid!! :) He opened one of the new games I got him and the game wasn't in there. The guy at GameStop forgot to give me the real copy, and I just got the case from the shelf. Thankfully they believed him and gave him the actual copy when he went by there this morning.

Tomorrow, we are going to Virginia to see my grandparents (Mom's side) and to see my dad's side of the family. I am not feeling too good today. I hope I'm not coming down with a stomach virus. I am going to drink lots of fluids and take it easy today. I would hate to miss time with my grandparents again, because I didn't get to see them at Thanksgiving.

I hope all of you had a joyous Christmas with your family!

Here are some pictures of Christmas day with the fam, and then the one of our Christmas tree with my new filter. I will post the other pictures later.

25 Things I am Grateful For...

1. My wonderful husband who loves me, takes care of me, babies me when I need it, gives me awesome massages, is my spiritual leader, loves my daughter like she was his own, provides for me, and nurses me back to health.

2. My daughter Casey. I am so proud of all she has become. She is compassionate beyond measure. She has such a giving spirit, works hard at school, loves God, and has such a passion for life.

3. My dog Balin. He is always here to keep me company.

4. My Mom and Dad. There are no words to describe all they have given me, and continue to give me. They are awesome.

5. My sister. She is the most loyal, trusting person I know. She is always there for me, and I know I can count on her no matter what.

6. My husband's job. So many people are without jobs this year.

7. My doctors. Wow.. God sent me to them.. no doubt.

8. My medications. Without them, I wouldn't be here.

9. The soldiers in Iraq and here at home just waiting for that call saying they are being deployed. You make me so proud.

10. My home. Even though we really want to sell our house and upgrade this year, I am so thankful that no matter what "house" we have, it will always be a "home" as long as Jason, Casey and I are in it.

11. My new kidney.

12. My 7 year old "new" lungs.

13. Cystic Fibrosis, because without it, I would never have met so many wonderful people that are now a very important part of my life.

14. Friends.

15. The fact that my hair loss is slowing down.

16. My car.

17. America. Yes, I'm proud to be an American and happy that I live in a free country.

18. Presents under the tree.

19. SmartWater.

20. My Mac. Well, it's my daughter's, but she lets me use it.

21. Chocolate. I'm so happy for chocolate. The first time in my life really.

22. My grandparents. I am so thankful they are alive and healthy. I get to see them on Saturday.

23. Every birthday.

24. My blog.

25. Jesus. Merry Christmas everyone.

Wordless Wednesday

Quick Update

My nephrology follow-up appointment went well today. I was in and out of there so quickly. I just can't get over it. When I go to lung transplant clinic, I'm literally there ALL day.

They lowered my prednisone dose to 20 mg/day. In 2 weeks, I'll go down to 15 mg as long as the blood work from today comes back ok. I'm waiting to hear something on that.

They aren't sure what is causing my hair loss. They really seemed unsure about whether the prednisone is doing it or not, but I still think it is. As long as new hair starts replacing the hair that I'm losing, I'm not going to worry about it.

My blood pressure has been running a little high despite the diuretic I'm taking, so they started me on a bp med for that. A few more small concerns were discussed, but most of them are due to the prednisone, and as I taper down my dose, those concerns will go away.

I finished my Christmas shopping today after my appointment. I'm DONE.. yay! Mom and I are at the hotel now just chillin'. I'm exhausted. I only got 3 hours of sleep last night, and I'm not used to a full day like this. Thankfully, there is a restaurant here at the hotel that we will go to tonight so we don't have to go back out.

I have my stent removed at 8:30 in the morning, and then we will head home. I hope all of you are having a wonderful Wednesday!

Band concert

Casey had her Christmas band concert tonight. They did AWESOME! With the exception of the hot, stuffy gym we had to sit in for 2 hours, it really was a great concert. They have gotten so much better since their first concert last year. I videoed a couple of songs, but I have no idea how to download them to my Macbook. I'll let Jason put them on the PC tomorrow. The PC and I don't get along. I'd like to post a video of them playing the Ukrainian Bell Carol. They did such a good job with it. Here are a few pics of Casey and then one with her best friends.

Hair Loss and Gingerbread Houses

Weird title I know, but that's what this post is about...

First of all, I'm thankful that my Monday turned out great! And thank you for all of your comments. I hope all of you had a good Monday!! After picking Casey up from her short school day, she got her homework done, we had a nice dinner, and then we decorated a gingerbread house. It's something that Casey and I do every year. It's a tradition. I have found that they are putting less and less candy in the kits every year though. Casey crushed up some peppermint and added it to the roof, which was a nice touch. I am so glad she's not too old to do this with her mom yet. :)

Ok, about the hair loss. I'm losing my hair... again! It's a small sacrifice for a new kidney I know, but it's still not something any girl (or any guy with hair for that matter) wants to endure. About 6 months after my lung transplant, I started losing my hair. They told me it was from the Prograf, one of the anti-rejection meds I'm taking. I don't think that's what is causing my hair loss this time. First of all, I've been on Prograf for over 7 years now, so I would assume my body is used to it. So, I'm thinking the cause is either the prednisone (because of my higher dose), or the effects from the anesthesia I had. Either way, it will come back. I'm not sure how much I will wind up losing, but the last time, I lost almost all of my hair over a 6 month period. When the last of it was falling out, the hair that fell out first was being replaced, so I finally just cut it all off "Halle Berry short" (the Halle Berry before hair extensions). I didn't like it that short, but did like it when it was growing out. It's true, your hair does come back a different color and texture. So, we will see how much I lose. I'll ask the doc about it tomorrow.

Speaking of that, Mom and I will leave for Durham early in the morning for a follow-up appointment with my nephrologist. We are going to stay in Durham overnight since I have to be back Thursday morning to see the urologist to remove my stent. I'll take my laptop and update sometime tomorrow evening.

Heidi asked me to pray for Robynn who is battling cancer and was just sent home in hospice care, because they have exhausted all treatment options for her. She is a young mother with 2 children. Please visit her blog and be in prayer for her and her family. What a sad situation. I know God is in control and we must rely on Him for understanding and peace when things like this happens. It's still very hard. Thank you to all of my prayer warrior blog readers!

Our gingerbread house from a couple of years ago. This year's didn't turn out so good...




This is when my hair was growing back out. I can't find any pictures of it shorter. I do however, have a video that I'm going to post soon of me on the Charlotte news and I had really short hair in it. It did come back curlier and darker. I kind of like this style, but longer hair is easier, because you can just stick it in a ponytail. :) Look at my sweet Casey with no front teeth. All she wanted for Christmas that year was... well, you know the song.

Rules for making fudge

1. Learn what a soft ball test is BEFORE starting your recipe, so you don't have to put your sticky fingers on the keyboard to look it up.

2. Make sure your sauce pan is big enough to accommodate the expansion of your sugar, butter and milk when it boils. You don't want to have to clean that sugary mixture off of your stove.. grrr..

3. Use fluff instead of marshmallow cream. It tastes better and has less preservatives.

4. Use pure vanilla extract instead of vanilla flavoring. It's just better.

5. If you are diabetic, resist licking the bowl, or your blood sugar will be 370 and you will have to take a load of insulin...oops! :)


Easy Fudge


3 sticks butter
6 cups sugar
2 cans evaporated milk (5 oz cans)
2 packages (12 oz each) semisweet chocolate chips
1 jar marshmallow cream (13 oz)
2 teaspoons vanilla


Lightly grease 2 or 3 pans. Mix margarine, sugar, and milk in heavy 4-5 quart sauce pan. Bring to full rolling boil on medium heat, stirring constantly. Continue boiling 5 minutes on medium heat, stirring to prevent scorching (do the soft ball test). Remove from heat. Gradually stir in chips until melted. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into prepared pans. Cool at room temperature and cut into squares.

I love Christmas

What a pretty site to wake up to today. Now, I just need to get presents wrapped and under the tree! I'm going to brave the crowds at the mall today. I just hope my steroid rage can withstand all the rude people that come out during the holiday season!

I hope all of you have a wonderful Saturday, and let the Christmas spirit shine through!! I'll let you know how many people I yell at today..hehe!

Decorations, candy and bedtime

Tree decorated... CHECK!






Peppermint bark made... CHECK!









Daughter in bed.... CHECK!









Now, I'm off to bed. Against all better judgement, Casey and I are going to spend the day at the mall with friends tomorrow. Yeah, so much for avoiding crowds. :)

5 lbs of fluid

I've lost 5 lbs of fluid since yesterday. That 1 diuretic I took did it! They told me that the diuretic would really work with my new kidney. I didn't believe them. I was on double the dose before transplant and it barely affected me. After I took it yesterday, I was in the bathroom every 15 minutes. WOW.. this new kidney does work... haha.

My blood pressure is 90/70 today and I'm have some dizziness, so I am not taking the diuretic today. Thankfully, they gave me the autonomy to play with the dose myself as I see fit. It's not going to be an exact science here. I am going to have to monitor my urine output, my blood pressure, and just my overall health to figure out the dose I need to be on. Getting dehydrated is not something I need right now.

I also forgot to mention that I can drive now! They released me yesterday. With the dizziness I am having today, I won't be driving today, but as long as it's gone by tomorrow, I will be picking Casey up from school tomorrow. We are going to make peppermint bark and decorate the tree tomorrow when she gets home.

I SLEPT last night! It was the first really good nights sleep in awhile. I think it's because I only had 2 hours of sleep the night before. Jason said I was practically in a coma when he got home from work. LOL.

I'll leave you with my favorite performance on the Rockefeller Christmas show last night. Beyonce performing "Ave Maria".

Christmas Spirit

Please take a minute and take the poll to the right. I'm curious to see how people celebrate the holiday season.

I guess you could say I'm officially in the Christmas spirit! I got a lot of my shopping done last night at the mall, and I know what I'm getting all but one person now. I'm going to try to get my Christmas cards out this week, but that's not a promise. Casey and I are decorating the tree after school on Friday. Jason will put it up before he leaves for work that day. We have to put an artificial one up because of my health, but I prefer them anyway. I don't like vacuuming needles the entire time my tree is up.

Jason and I bake pumpkin bread every year for our family and friends. I think this year we will also make some candy. Casey has never made candy before, and I thought it would be a good experience for her. She loves cooking. If any of you have good candy recipes, I'd LOVE to have them.

I do hope my friend Nicole makes her gingersnaps this year. They are to-die-for! Hint, hint Nicole! :)

I'm headed to Duke at 6 am tomorrow. I'll update when I get home.

Here is a picture of Casey that I sent out with my Christmas cards in 2004!



UPDATE: My friend Stacy just sent me this link. It has TONS of candy recipes. Thanks Stacy!