I've been horrible

I have done a really bad job of updating my blog. Feeling good is a wonderful thing though!

We helped my sister move today. She bought another home in the same neighborhood she's lived in for 7 years now. It's just larger. It's a beautiful house. I'm so excited for them.

I've been exercising like mad! I'm feeling good and have energy now, and I'm doing something with it! I even bought a stair stepper that Casey and I are both using. I'm going to have a booty if it kills me. LOL.

Are any of you "Twihards" going to Twicon 2009 July 30th through August 2nd? It's in Dallas, and they are going to have tons of stuff for us Twilight fans, including a Volturi masquerade ball, guest appearances from the stars of the Twilight movie, and a fansite meet up. It should be great fun. We are thinking about taking Casey, but haven't decided yet. It's quite expensive.

Is it just me, or are any other CFers/transplant recipients/other immunosuppressed people concerned about this?

I hope all of you are having a healthy, happy weekend! If you have time, check out my hubby's blog.

And the winner is...

Ok, so we put the names in a hat... literally, and drew a name at exactly 8:00 pm EST. All the people who attempted to answer a question were entered. Casey drew the name after rooting around in the hat for a good 20 seconds... LOL. It was a completely fair drawing, just so you guys know...

AND the winner is... Christy (and no, not me... haha)!! Congratulations Christy!! Email me with your address, and I will send you the book! I wish everyone could have won. Maybe I'll have another contest again soon!!! Next time I'll make the answers multiple choice. :)

Some of you are serious Twilighters!!! Thanks so much to those who participated. You guys did great. I know they were hard questions. If Casey wasn't so into these books, I wouldn't know half of these answers, but I've heard her talk about Twilight for a year and a half now, so our whole family is pretty well versed in the entire Twilight series. LOL.

Here are the answers for those of you who haven't looked them up yet. If for some reason, Casey and I have gotten any of them wrong, or not answered them fully, please correct us...

1.) What is Edward's full name? Edward Anthony Masen Cullen

2.) What year was Edward born? 1901

3.) What was Edward dying from? the Spanish Infuenza

4.) What color Porche does Alice drive? Yellow

5.) What did Bella call Edward's volvo? A ____ ____ Volvo. Stupid Shiny Volvo

6.) How tall is Alice? 4' 10"

7.) What is Bella's special talent after she's turned? Mind shield

8.) How many ribs did Bella break during her attack from James? 4

9.) Who was Sam's high school sweetheart? Leah

10.) How did Carlisle try to kill himself after he found out he was a vampire? (3 ways) Jumping from great heights, drowning, and starvation

11.) What color was Bella's prom dress? deep blue

12.) What did Edward say Bella did in her sleep? talked

13.) What is Emmett's favorite animal to hunt? grizzly bear

14.) Who is the Volturi leader? Aro

15.) What was the name of the restaurant that Edward and Bella went to in Port Angeles? La Bella Italia

16.) What is Renesmee's middle name? Carlie

17.) Who did Quil imprint on? Claire

18.) What was the name of the half vampire/half human like Renesmee? Nahuel (there were others, but this was the main one)

19.) What was Jacob's nickname for Renesmee? Nessie

OK and this one is only for those who have read "Midnight Sun" (Edward's version of the story, which is only available here)...

20.) What did Edward put on his piano to help him write Bella's lullaby? Bella's lemonade bottle cap

Twilight drawing tonight!!!

Click here to enter the Twilight drawing. You don't have to repost, you don't have to add it to your Twitter or Facebook, and you don't have to spread the word. All you have to do is enter.

Drawing will be at 8:00 pm eastern time tonight. Casey will be drawing the name out of the hat! Look for a post about 8:15 pm for the WINNER! :)

TV and other things

Heidi and Christy have inspired me to talk about TV!

Now I know many of you (especially those with small children or those of you who have a job outside the home) don't have time to watch TV. Unfortunately, I do. :) And because of it, like Christy and Heidi, I am addicted to TV. I love the shows that are on now, and am SO thankful for my DVR. Because of course, without it, I wouldn't be able to catch half of these (and I'd have to sit through all of the commercials.. ughh).

So, I thought I would share with you what my favorite shows are and why I like them. Feel free to comment about your favorite shows, whether they be the same as mine or not. It seems that my faves, and Christy's and Heidi's faves, are very different.

Here they are:

House - I love Hugh Laurie. Plain and simple. He is my absolute favorite actor (it doesn't hurt that he's British)! Because of my nursing background, I also love the medical part. I find myself looking up terminology they mention on there if I don't know what they are talking about. If you are a Hugh Laurie fan, then check out "A Bit of Fry and Laurie" on Youtube. It's hilarious. Especially the "Mr. Burmie" episode (for those of you who are animal lovers. :)

Fringe - Well, I must say that my husband has turned me into a Sci Fi geek. I love everything about this show. Especially the fact that it's not too "Hollywooded up". They keep the characters real. Dr. Walter Bishop is absolutely hilarious and is a such a joy to watch.

Without A Trace - I like the mystery surrounding the disappearances. I also like all of the characters.

Doctor Who - Mix the British and Sci Fi together and you have the perfect show! David Tennant is dreamy (I can't believe I just used that word...LOL) I'm going to be sad when they replace him after 2010. I also liked Christopher Eccleston in the role though, and British tv usually chooses their actors based on their talent and not how much plastic surgery they have had, so I'm sure the next Doctor will do a fine job in the role.

Psych - Oh my, what do I say about this...other than the show is hilarious? Shawn and Gus have the perfect relationship as partners. Casey, Jason and I are ROFL whenever we watch this show. We haven't missed an episode! Again, I'm so thankful for my DVR!!!

Monk - A good mystery coupled with some OCD! Funny, funny, funny. They are canceling it after 2010. Boooo!!!

CSI and CSI NY - I like anything forensic. Even though it's not very realistic a lot of times, it's still fun to watch. I have always been so interested in a medical examiner's career, and this gives me my fix every week. The more gore, the better!

Torchwood - A spin-off of Doctor Who! Again, mix the British, Sci Fi, and of course hunky John Barrowman together, and well... I can't get enough!

Criminal Minds - What a great show! Lot's of serial killer mysteries. I love the characters and the mystery. And of course Matthew Gray Gubler!!!

Eleventh Hour - I didn't like this show at first. But now, it has become one of my favorites. I love the science part of it, and of course the mystery, and Rufus Sewell is phenomenal in the role of Dr. Jacob Hood.

Lie to Me - It's fascinating to watch how they can tell if someone is lying or not. I don't know if everything they say on there is real or not, but it's so cool to watch. I love the mystery of it all.

Ok, I think that about covers it! Do any of you like these shows? What are your favorites?

In other news:

My friend Sara has written some great articles for Examiner.com. Check them out.

Also, check out my friend Aimee's blog. Very cool fundraiser for CF.

Balin is throwing up everyday now. Does anyone know if I can give him a Pepcid everyday, or if that is only a temporary thing? His back seems to be all better, so that's good!

Casey is out shopping with her friends and step-mom today. She texted me earlier, and I think she's going to be buying Delia's out today. LOL. I just love this shirt with this belt and this bracelet. She already has the bracelet, but I'm going to have to buy the shirt and belt online, because they are out of her size at the store.

Want to join an online book club? My friend Carrie has started one. Go to her blog to vote on the upcoming book we are going to read! It's going to be so much fun!!

I'm meeting my family for dinner tonight at our favorite Italian restaurant. It seems I'm going there every weekend now. Jason is working, but is going to try to meet us for dinner.

Don't forget about the Twilight drawing if you are a Twilighter!!

Happy Saturday everyone!

Twilight Giveaway!!!

Here are some questions that Casey and I came up with about The Twilight Series. I thought all of you Twilighters out there would enjoy this. Please answer as many as you can without looking the answers up in the book(s), or on the net. These questions are based on the books, not the movie.

To enter the drawing, all you have to do is try to answer at least one of the questions in the comment section. I know most people won't be able to answer all of them (unless you are a crazy, serious Twilighter like my daughter). You don't have to get them right or answer a certain amount... you only have to try!!! It's that easy! The drawing will be Monday night (April 6th). Again, please don't look the answers up! Just try to answer them from memory.

The winner will get the hardcover book "Twilight Director's Notebook...The Story of How We Made The Movie" by Catherine Hardwicke.



The description on the back of the book... "In this book you'll follow me through the creative process that went into making Stephenie Meyer's hypnotic novel come alive on-screen. Get the inside scoop on the wardrobe, storyboard sketches, behind-the-scenes photographs, and personal notes about making my favorite scenes." - Catherine Hardwicke, director of Twilight

Ok, here are the questions! Good luck!

1.) What is Edward's full name?

2.) What year was Edward born?

3.) What was Edward dying from?

4.) What color Porche does Alice drive?

5.) What did Bella call Edward's volvo? A ____ ____ Volvo.

6.) How tall is Alice?

7.) What is Bella's special talent after she's turned?

8.) How many ribs did Bella break during her attack from James?

9.) Who was Sam's high school sweetheart?

10.) How did Carlisle try to kill himself after he found out he was a vampire? (3 ways)

11.) What color was Bella's prom dress?

12.) What did Edward say Bella did in her sleep?

13.) What is Emmett's favorite animal to hunt?

14.) Who is the Volturi leader?

15.) What was the name of the restaurant that Edward and Bella went to in Port Angeles?

16.) What is Renesmee's middle name?

17.) Who did Quil imprint on?

18.) What was the name of the half vampire/half human like Renesmee?

19.) What was Jacob's nickname for Renesmee?

OK and this one is only for those who have read "Midnight Sun" (Edward's version of the story)...

20.) What did Edward put on his piano to help him write Bella's lullaby?

Remember: You have to answer at least one question to enter. It doesn't have to be the right answer :).

Very Short Post

Getting a cut and color tomorrow. I totally need these thin ends gone!

Balin is doing great. It's like nothing was ever wrong with him. Yay!

I'm going to meet 2 very dear friends from VA for lunch on Friday. We are going to meet halfway. I can't wait.

Casey's piano recital is Friday night. I can't remember the song she is playing though. She's almost ready. One more day of practicing will do the job.

I have had NO nausea at all today. Could be the new med. How thankful I am for a day of eating!

For all of you Twilighters out there, tune in tomorrow for something fun!!! :)

Park pics and... Oh yeah, Twilight

Ok, soooo I finally watched Twilight tonight. I have very mixed feelings about this movie. Having read the book first, like most, I found the movie to be a little disappointing. I was not looking forward to Kristen Stewart in the role of Bella, but she did a much better job than I thought she would. She still wouldn't be my first choice though.

Now, let's discuss Edward, who as all of you Twilight fans know, is supposed to be hunky gorgeous and irresistible. I'll agree that Robert Pattinson does have quite the charm, but (and this is a big but...LOL), he is one horrible actor. I put him on the same level as Ben Affleck, who in my opinion, is one of the worst actors in Hollywood. I did like all of the other actors in the movie. The girl who played Rosalie wouldn't be my first pick looks-wise, but she's a really good actress and seems to play the part well. Seriously though, what's up with Victoria's hair? It's supposed to be fire-red, isn't it? It was very muted in the movie.

Now, on to my absolute favorite thing about the movie... the cinematography! It blew me away! There were parts of the movie where I couldn't even pay attention to what the actors were saying, because of the brilliant shots. All I can say is WOW!

Ok, enough about Twilight, but if you haven't read the book yet, I really encourage you to do so.

We had my parents over for dinner last night. It was a great time. Today, Casey and I took some pics at the park. I hope you enjoy!!

This is one of Casey's nature shots. I keep telling her to add these to her blog. She has taken some really good ones over the past couple of months...

Results

My kidney transplant coordinator called this morning. The results show Prograf toxicity. This is better news than rejection of course. Prograf is the anti-rejection medication that I have been on since my lung transplant in 2001. They think that it is part of the reason my native kidneys failed in the first place. It's definitely hard on the kidneys! So, now that they see it is affecting my new kidney, they are going to first start by lowering my dose.

Prograf is monitored according to its level in your blood stream. They usually keep my level around 7-9. With a kidney transplant, you can keep it much lower than that, but with lungs, it gets trickier, because they are much more likely to reject than a kidney. Since I did receive relative's organs, and am a little less likely to reject than someone who received organs from a non-relative, my lung transplant pulmonologist has agreed that my Prograf level can be kept at around 5 or 6, but he doesn't want it any lower than that. If for some reason that doesn't help my kidney function, then they will have to think about switching my Prograf to another anti-rejection medication. I see my lung doc next Thursday, so they will do labs then and look at my kidney function and my Prograf level.

For all you Twilighters out there, I'm sure you know the movie comes out at 12:01 tonight. Casey and several of her friends are having a Twilight party tonight (yeah, another one) and going to the store at midnight. We had it pre-ordered from Amazon and it will be here Monday. I didn't go to the theater to see it because of my hearing loss, so I am very eager to see it at home with closed captioning. :)

Jason is feeling better, but still having a lot of dizziness when he stands. He's getting rehydrated though.

Thanks again for ALL of your many thoughts and prayers. You guys are the best!! I hope all of you have a wonderful, sunshiny weekend!!

Check back tonight

Jason will be posting the 3rd "Charlie the Unicorn" tonight. It's funny how the little things get him so excited. LOL.

Today is a slow day. Casey is working on a project, Jason is doing things around the house and I'm resting at the moment. My pain is much better today, so I see no ER visit in the near future. :)

Casey had a great time at her Twilight party. She got home around 11 this morning. She will have her book club meeting tonight, and then tomorrow, she, Jason and I are going to have Thanksgiving dinner here. Casey's cousins are coming in from Pennsylvania, so she will be at her dad's house with them on Thanksgiving. I can't have any of my family over tomorrow. My sister and her husband are both sick and now my dad is getting sick. I sure hope my mom doesn't get it. I know her body isn't as strong as it could be yet.

Missing my hubby

Jason left about 3:00 today. I'm really missing him. I have the most awesome husband in the world. He has done so much for me, and this past week, I don't think I could have gotten through it without him. He was stressed about leaving me. I think he needed to get home.. being away from home wears on you, but he also didn't want to leave me here. I know that our dog Balin will be so happy to see him. Jason is his favorite person!! I will be so happy to be home tomorrow to see Casey and to see Jason after he gets home from work.

My pastor and associate pastor called me today and prayed with me. I have such an awesome church family. They have been so good to me and my family.

For all you Twilight fans out there, I thought I'd post a pic of my vampire bite since the movie is coming out this Friday...hahaha! Just kidding.. it's where one of my arterial lines was, and it looks like I got bit by Edward... we can only dream, right. :)



I just saw where they are calling all die-hard Twilight fans "Twi-hards". I guess Casey and I can be considered one of those for sure. She is going to see the movie Friday night with her friends and then going to a Twilight after party. It's a big deal.. if you couldn't tell. LOL.