I had an absolutely fabulous day! I got sicker today than I have in awhile, but even that cannot stop my giddiness. I had an appointment today with a doctor that a few girls from my ward see and who speaks excellent English. That alone made the appointment very helpful.
Next on the “great things” list is that she was really helpful with my being sick. She answered a lot of my questions and gave me a refillable prescription of the magical medicine I have come to count on. She even mentioned that just having me continue my rather expensive prescription rather than trying something else was important enough just because of the peace of mind it would give me. Amen!
The absolutely most amazing part of my fabulous day was having my second ultrasound. At our last appointment what Chad and I saw was something that look like a little bean, and you could see the little heart flutter. That was interesting but today was AWESOME. As soon as Dr. Nadig began the ultrasound this little baby jumped! It was moving and reacting and it looked like a little person. I could see a little face, with a nose and jaw line. Elisa has a nose and a jaw line too–maybe it takes after her. I saw little legs and arms with fingers and toes. I just started to cry. The doctor kept saying that I had a very healthy baby and reassuring me of how positive everything was. The first thing I thought was that it was really real, and the next thing I thought was how much I wished Chad was there too. I cannot wait for him to see next time! I wish I was there too, because the still photos from the ultrasound are exciting. Experiencing that today was truly miraculous.
I had another boring week of good days and bad days–but with some prescription drugs coming by mail on Monday from my mom I have been able to relax and know I won’t have to go back to feeling completely awful for a while. I still do not feel great but I have been able to go on walks outside or leisurely use my elliptical machine. I have gotten some more school work done and can manage to put some simple things together for myself to eat with out my insides trying to be on the outside. Chad and I had a great day on Saturday and I even had a banana split! It was a miracle. The medications have improved my quality of life dramatically too!
In reality I spent most of the week thinking about the things I want to do when I feel better. I spent a lot of time trying to plan a cruise, for this summer, through the cruise line we went on last April. It has been really frustrating and we are about ready to just drop the whole thing. On a much happier note, my parents spent the week in the Bahamas on a cruise celebrating their 30th anniversary. I have been so excited all week long for them and could not wait to hear all about it. Now Chad and I just want to keep their itinerary and repeat the incredible vacation they had.
Chad has been humbling me by slaughtering me at one of our favorite games, Ticket to Ride. I am a poor loser which makes the evenings after I lose not so fun. Elisa doesn’t like winning either, if she thinks she was about to lose. 🙂 It’s confusing for me to be in the doghouse after I lose a game to her. Ha ha ha ha, I am laughing because it is true. I do not understand it either. We managed to find some great unofficial expansion packs and have spent some evenings printing, cutting and taping maps and cards together. I know that makes us nerds. I just compare myself to the people that created the expansion packs in their free time and I feel better. I pretty much hate one of the versions we put together (it’s the reason why I ended up so mad every night) but the new one we put together is a blast! I like it better than the original and it’s not because I’m winning–I am still losing most of the games we play.
I have been a little sick and self-absorbed lately. I also have no sense of what day, let alone date, it is. So when Chad surprised me Valentines Day morning with a homely, little, heart-shaped cut-out filled with some yogurt that was slowly oozing out the bottom I was a little confused. Now I am just irritated that I was not fit to celebrate some of the most excellent people in my life. So, sorry Chad, I really owe you. Especially after melting down in the evening, when you were just trying to help.
What I neglected to put together until this morning, is that since it was Valentines Day yesterday, that means my dad’s birthday was the day before. OOPS!!! Sorry Dad. So I am going to brag about him some and hope he knows that I think the world of him.
Some of my most favorite memories are those that have been shared with my dad. One of my favorite days is still the time we spent on one of his days off. We went out to lunch at a local culinary program at a community college, then got fresh produce at a road side stand. We were going along in his truck with “The Music Man” blaring. I think that music is genius! We stopped at the library and found $40 dollars in a book. At the check out he joked with the librarian that using the library is “better than free!” She had no idea what he was so proud of. Then we went home and tried out one of the very best recipes, “Pumpkin Chowder,” mmm.
Dad is really even tempered. So when my mom and I were going off our rockers, he was great at helping me calm down and move forward. Dad never really got involved in a lot of my issues. He always treated me like a responsible adult. So when he gave his input about guys I was dating or something I was doing I really took it to heart.
My dad is a great story teller. He is really quiet if he doesn’t know you–but watch out! We all get so we are just crying because we are laughing so hard!
He is probably the most creative and inventive person I know. We had plans to float down the Snoqualmie river once, but could not find any inner tubes that didn’t cost a bajillion dollars. So dad and I went and picked up some blow up kiddie pools and a blow up dolphin. Dad’s great idea. They worked great! Of course, we stared blowing them up on the way home so the car was full of water toys. Because he’s my dad, he was not satisfied with the dolphin so he took a Sharpie and drew some gills and sharp teeth so we had a cool shark instead.
I could go on forever about this guy. He has taught me a lot. He has made life so much fun! He is a totally RAD DAD! I cannot wait to see him as a grandpa. Chad and I are going to have the luckiest kids. I love him tons!
Happy Birthday Dad!
