Kylie in TN

My brother took some photos of Kylie for me while she's in TN. He's modest and thinks he's no good. Poppycock I say!

I've Got To Admit It's Getting Better...

This is an xray from my first post-op appt. The doctor said I seem to be healing and recovering very well so far. I still get quite sore and stiff at times but my mobility has really increased in the last few days. I can't not believe that I am only 1 week past my surgery and I feel as good as I do! I got my staples taken out today (which left a little sting after each one) and was told I could now take baths. So what did I do when I got home??... I took a nice hot bath. Ooh did that feel good! And... I was able to get in and out of the tub on my own which I doubted I could do yet!

The picture below is from this morning before my appt. I am also pleased at how my weight loss has been going. I'm still a bit bloated from very irritating constipation caused by the narcotics, but I can tell that atleast I'm getting somewhere! :D And it "makes me happy". My goal would be to lose about 50 lbs. I'm sure it will take me quite a while to get there but 10 is a great start I think! It's a pleasing thought to know that I'm on my way to a healthier me though :)

That's What Friends Are For...

Last Saturday night my wonderful and best friend, Angela, took me to a crop at Scrapbook Clubhouse. This was our last chance to go out and have some fun, a little girl's night if you will, before my surgery. And also she and her family may be leaving for another command before I am recovered and am able to go out and do anything again. So anyways back to the Clubhouse. I had alot of fun with her that night just talking and scrapping away without a care in the world. This was another big reason for going; to calm me down and get the surgery woes off my mind. Apparently some of the girls really liked my work and I was asked to leave a couple things in the store for display. Angela fusses at me and says I'm too judgemental on my self. All these compliments of course made me blush but it did feel good to hear that I must have been doing something right! :P
Angela has also shown me that not all Navy wives are the same. The ones you usually run into remind you of all the drama of the teenage life and you end up regretting the day you met them. With her, I feel like I've known her my whole life (some even think we're sisters) and I can't imagine what it will be like when we do have to go our separate ways. So Angela, here's to you... For being my best friend, and not just my friend but my sister!

Bittersweet Endings...

Well yesterday was my last physical therapy appt. before my big day! We're not sure if I'll be returning to pt after my surgery so we said our goodbyes yesterday. I can't believe I've been in the program for over 8 months (it seemed to go by so quick)! Even though I'm glad to move on to the next thing I'm going to miss all the friends I made there. This is Mary and Jeanne; the main two people involved in my physical therapy. Jeanne Gilbert, although I'm biased, is the best PT ever! She has her way of pushing you to succeed without being the harsh drill sergeant I expected :P... Jeanne wasn't just my "coach", if you will, she is a friend. And although my back issues turned out to be beyond her ability to repair (and required surgery) she never let me give up or get discouraged! She has one of the greatest personalities I have ever came across, and I admire that quality. I will probably never see her again after we make the move back home, but I will always be thankful I met Jeanne Gilbert and the WONDERFUL team at Independence Physical Therapy!

Silly Billy

Kylie never ceases to amuse and amaze me! She has become quite imaginative lately... And she's constantly running around the house playing some game or another. Today it was the bucket that was by her side all day. It acted as anything from a noise maker (filled with candyland game pieces) to a drum and finally (as seen here) a very funny looking hat! I'm gonna miss her while she's in Tennessee and I'm stuck here in bed recovering, but I'll atleast have all these cute little pictures to serve as a reminder of my little Silly Billy!

A Day To Rejoice!

watercolor version

This picture was taken during dinner at Applebee's last night... We decided to go out for dinner to celebrate some wonderful news we received yesterday. Brandon's father had been told months and months ago that he had "cancer of the throat". He has been through chemo and radiation and has even had to have a trache put in. Recently the doctors thought that the cancer was still there... Yesterday we got news that the biopsy done a week or so ago was NEGATIVE! Yes, I said NO cancer! We were all so relieved to hear this great news! The next step is for him to have the hyperbaric chamber treatments to clear up the dead tissues around that area and hopefully heal enough to get the trache taken out. This has been a rough past year but it finally seems that there is "light at the end of the tunnel." I have prayed and prayed that some way his dad would get better, and it finally seems that (through no reward for my own deeds) my prayers have been answered! Being so far away from home and his dad, this whole ordeal has been really hard on Brandon. Our whole family has just had a huge boulder lifted off our shoulders. Although he is not completely out of the woods, the future looks very bright!

Photo Greetings

So I've been messing around in Photoshop Elements 6.0 with the different projects you can do with your pictures. I was thinking about making some photo greeting cards to send out with Christmas cards. I used a pic from the other day and came up with this. Obviously my Christmas ones will be Holiday themed I was just fiddling with the different templates and graphics you can use. I think it turned out pretty cute and I may use the same layout with a different picture for a Fall greeting to send our parents. Well that's all for now!!! :D

Lazy Labor Day!