Update

So over the last 2 months, I have lost 21 lbs. While I was looking to lose some weight, this was not the way I wanted to do it. I have been on steriod medications, anti-spasmatics, anti-nausea, and pain meds. I still can't wear normal pants, but the pain is a little better today. The colonoscopy showed I do still have Crohn's disease (no joke), but it's not severe enough to be causing the symptoms I am having. So the next test will be a camera swallow. I've had it down before, it's kinda weird. It's the size of a really big multi-vitamin and has a light that blinks on every few minutes to take a photo inside. It's kind of a cool little thing. You wear a belt with a transmitter and they download the pics after it passes through.

I'm working with another doctor thanks to one of my besties Natalie:

(This was so long ago, but I LOVE IT)

She's a fellow Crohn's sufferer and had great success with the approach from Dr. Lawrence. So for the next 2 weeks, I am flooding the body with good bacteria, enzymes, and gluten-free diet (I was supposed to do dairy and gluten-free, but I can't do it... I need my dairy). I've made it 2 days so far... lol... Not noticing a difference yet, but hopefully soon....Anyway, that's the update on my health.

In other news, my birthday is on Tuesday. Last year of my 20's... Maybe it's cuz I've been so sick, but I'm not excited about it like I usually am. I mean, I'm not depressed either... just don't really care... Maybe it's the promise of gluten-free cake that makes it sound less than fun...lol

Crohn's Update

Back on the prednisone, a longer dose than before. So I'll probably puff up this time. I think I need to invest in maternity clothes until this all subsides. As if the nausea, vomiting, and other stuff wasn't enough, time to get fat... No one have a wedding or other special event requiring life-long treasured photos in the next few weeks/months, ok?!

New adventures in Crohn's Disease

So I learned something today: When you're gastroenterologist orders a CT scan for your Crohn's disease, this includes a LARGE tube with contrast shoved where the sun doesn't shine and a huge bag full of liquid emptied in the WRONG direction... My dad informed me later that I am the only person who didn't know this... And while that part is really unpleasant, the aftermath is really what gets you.

Needless to say, I decided going back to work after that fun was not going to happen. I spent my Mom's birthday on her couch watching tv while she played on her new iPad :).

I knew it was probably serious when I described my symptoms for a nurse to call me back and the doctor called me himself and fit me in on Monday and ordered an immediate CT scan. When I came in they did a blood draw to make sure my kidneys were functioning correctly in order to filter the contrast. Unfortunately, they were unable to get any of my veins to work, so they only used the oral and rectal contrast and not the blood. Oh well, hopefully, it will be good enough. Whew, what a day!

The good news about all this is that I got a thorough examination of all my "lady parts" last week and they are in perfect working order. So when I get ready to use them to house a 9 month resident, we're good to go, lol.

Anyway, more updates next week after I see the doctor.

Awkard Job Description

So I ran across this the other day... Is it just me or is this person looking for a multi-purpose hooker?

Girl Friday Job

General light duties, dog sitting, cleaning, running errands. answering phone, organizing house and possibly office. would require occasional overnight sitting. could lead to full time employment. Would prefer someone not attached, female, good word pronunciation, and older mature ladies preferred, attractive and well dressed would be a plus.

Wedding Fun!

Happily Ever After

Ok, so here are the fun details from our wedding :) It was a blast! Special thanks to our vendors:

Caterer: Classic Catering
Photographer: Great Love Photography
DJ: Diamond Productions
Cake: Custom Cakes b y Laura
Photobooth: Facebooth
Flowers: Baylor Balloons & Flowers
Cake topper: http://www.jwcaketops.com/
Dress: Essense of Australia
Bridesmaids dresses: David's Bridal
Groomsman tuxes: Al's Formal Wear

Jessica Simpson shoes

Michael's garters

Centerpieces!

Handmade

Favors

Tables

Homemade

Ceremony

Card box made by me and my mom

Bridesmaid dresses by David's Bridal (each bridesmaid got to pick her own style)

Love this photo of me and my bridesmaids

"I loved her first" Cufflinks

"Father of the Bride"

Centerpieces

The Reception (in our converted barn!)

Guest Bags by The Wedding Chicks

Bouquet! 

Bestman 

Engraved silverware-- Etsy.com (a gift)

My bridesmaids 

Cake table (we put photos of our parents cut their cakes on the table)

The cake topper has my husband's actual rank and metals on it

Shot glasses with veggies

Martini glasses with mashed potatoes

Chicken and beef 

Love this photo of the groomsmen... 2 military (in greens) and 2 tuxes but it totally worked

Oh so much!

Oh so much to write about, prepare yourself! The end is the best, so skip to the bottom if you get bored ;)

First off:

Husband

The husband is doing much better. We had a near incident where his wife was going to go down to Ft. Hood and kick some cammo butt. 3 days post-op we were running low on pain meds so we call and are told that it will take 72 hours...we would be out in 48 hours. In order to have the refill in time apparently we should have ordered the refill the day of the surgery... Being on only a few hours of sleep (meds every 4 hours--puppy going out on alternating 2 hours), I was a little irritable. So I call the clinic and am informed that since my husband was not with me (since I was at work) that they couldn't talk to me. As panic and anger set in, I called in the Big Guns... my father... who then got on the phone with our local congressman, who called the office of the congressman in charge of the Ft. Hood area... and then the doctor called back and the refill was complete... Crisis averted! Looking back now, I may have pre-maturely panicked; however, the idea of my husband in serious pain was not okay and I would rip down full-grown oak trees covered in honeybees if needed to prevent that!

Married Life

We finally got some honeymoon photos back. It was such a blast. I highly recommend Atlantis! Everything was right there: dolphins, waterpark, food, aquarium, beach, several pools, snorkeling, shopping, spa and a casino (which we didn't use). And going in May was perfect because there weren't very many kids there yet. We had an ocean view room that overlooked several ponds with rays and sea turtles.

The waterpark was crazy fun! I know it's silly, but the tube ride that ends with sharks swimming over your head was really cool! We also got to snorkel in the aquarium (where these 2 HUGE Rays tried to eat us...and then I swear they giggles about it! I saw bubbles) and swim with dolphins...twice! :)

Just Liz

So I've been having some soul-searching and discontentment with life lately. I've been feeling a little unfulfilled and frustrated with day-to-day life. I love my husband, my parents, and my pup. My health has been okay, but not great. But when the 3rd person in one week asked if I was pregnant I got a little paranoid. I decided to start running (especially since it helps with job-related frustration)... So I started with 2 minutes of running, 3 walking (since I haven't run since before the pelvic fracture almost 2 years ago) I figured that was good place to start. I created a whole running plan that had me up to 20 minutes of running by my birthday in September... Unfortunately, my pelvis did not agree to this plan... OUCH! I paid for it for a few days. So no more running, must try some thing lower impact... Swimming was suggested; I need a pool! Which brings us to the next thing; husband and I are planning to start loan shopping next week to start building a house (hopefully with a pool)... I am currently obsessed with http://www.houzz.com/. So fun!

So after running out of ways to improve myself and my life, I realized what I really need to do... the thing I've been talking about since undergrad...

Introducing...

Shelter and Support for Trafficked and Enslaved Persons (SSTEP)

There will be much more to come regarding this. My goal by the end of the weekend is the get some media stuff up and running, to include a blog and facebook page. Which means the first order of business is the get a logo... any ideas? If you want to learn more about trafficking in the U.S. look at my links on the right side. Really excited about getting this going!

Sister Wives

My secret (well not any more ;) "trash tv" is Sister Wives... I just find it so facinating... The TLC "tell all" about their new book (No I am not that close of a follow, I had no idea there was a book...) is quite interesting. I can't imagine sharing my husband; but the idea of community living with other women to help out with the kids and each offer something different to the family is nice. I could never do it, but there are some interesting aspects.

I love how Kody's response to marital problems with his first 2 wives was to marry a 3rd, lol... And telling your wife (3rd one or not) that you weren't attracted to her (and never really said he currently was either) is not okay... As I've watched the shows one thing about this man that stands out it his covert emotional abuse. He's not outright about it most of the time, but he is controlling and always makes sure his wives know "their place."

The whole group parenting thing would be very difficult... I would not want 3 other women telling my kids how to grow up. But the support system would be nice... you know, if you liked them.

I do feel sad for the kids having to move to a different state because of their parents' choices. It's neat how they have different takes on whether or not they want to have a plural marriage.

Robin created an "alter-ego" to help deal with being stronger... that sounds a little worrysome...

I love how honest Christine is. She's probably my favorite... I do like Mary alot too. But I feel sad for her. She seems like there are parts of her that are so unhappy with her choice. I noticed throughout the show she gained alot of weight. She looks better now. The clinician in me really would love to sit down with each other them and discuss so much!

Okay, the sleep deprivation has gotten to me! Time to medicate the husband and go to bed! Back to work tomorrow

Army Wife Challenge #57

Well I experienced true Army health care in the form of the hubby having shoulder surgery on Friday. He's been dealing with pain since he returned from Iraq (in August 2011). So after 11 months of pain, shots, useless physical therapy, useless painkillers, and useless PA's, he was finally able to get surgery.

Let me tell you a little about army medicine. It is so not the same as civilian medicine. As a civilian, at a civilian hospital, if you want to be with your loved one up until they go into surgery, you can make it happen. As a veteran of hospital regulations (my mother had cancer twice and I worked with the Advocacy Center to support sexual assault survivors as an advocate), I am usually able to get through the red-tape. However, when dealing with the federal government, it's different. There is no "let me talk to your supervisor"... I found out later why they wouldn't let me be in with him for the nerve block procedure; turns out they mistook the husband's neck for a pin cushion. The surgery before his apparently went long and I happened to run into the OR doctor in the hall asking about the progress. He told me I had waited patiently and he would sneak me in to see him...so it turns out the rules are only the rules if you talk to the wrong person... next time I know! So I guess that part it's as different from civilian hospitals as I thought...

The surgery took a few hours. Then the surgeon came and talk to me a little but wanted to wait till the hubby woke up and tell us exactly what he did. He took a little long coming out of the anesthesia (which was quite scary I must admit). When we finally got to his room, the nurse tried to get ahold of the doctor, but in the words of the nurse ( 6' 3" male nurse, I might add ;) "It's Friday, he probably got outta here already." So I still am not entirely sure what they did to him. *sigh* That part is different from the civilian world...

I met some other Army wives in the waiting area. It was fun discussing our husband's careers. One wife married her husband right out of high school, 15 years later she still loved him but it was hard now that he was having injuries and finished 5 deployments... She also had her mother-in-law living with them (and 3 kids, the oldest a senior in high school) in base housing. One thing I found interesting talking to these wives was that 3 of the 4 had family living nearby. Their parents or in-laws had moved nearby when they got stationed at Ft Hood to help them out. It was interesting because I have never heard of this happening. Now that I think about it though, Ft Hood is really an easy location for such a move. The cost of living is low and retired parents could afford to live near the grandkids and help out during deployments. It was nice to know I'm not the only army wife still getting some help from the parents to survive this lifestyle.

The husband is doing as well as can be expected. I'm struggling with the sleep deprivation of 4-6 hour medicating and feedings, but surviving :). He makes it easy. So appreciative and lovable about it. Note to those who haven't dealt with husband surgery yet: Invest in a baby monitor so you can sleep in your own bed and still hear him if he needed you. That way at least the little sleep you get is comfortable!

Physical therapy starts tomorrow... I decided to take off one more day of work to take him to that and hopefully talk to the surgeon.



http://www.greatlovephotography.com/



Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for:

• being off work due to A/C failure :)
• living in a home with air conditioning and the money to pay for it to run
• my fantastic husband who reminds me how much he loves me every single day
• that I can take off work tomorrow to be with him while he has shoulder surgery
• my Mom being willing to sit with my husband while he recovers from surgery for the next week while I work

What are you thankful for today?

Happy Tewsday 1.0

Happy Tewsday

I've gotta figure out how to make this blog more interesting. Just talking about my life seems so boring... And I need to load photoshop on my laptop so I can make cool icons and such like Sarah!

Oh and in case you don't know me in real life, I should probably explain the title. My new last name is Tews. I was informed by my in-laws that now I get my own day of the week :) So I'm kind of excited about "Tewsdays." I'm trying to come up with a theme for Tewsday blogs. Any ideas? I really like alliteration like "Tewsday Treats"...but what to put as content?

In other news, I'm taking up sewing (as soon as I figure out how to thread the needle in the machine...yeah yeah, I know it's a bad start ;). I'm going to start with patterns and baby clothes and use my friends' kids as models... These are my favorite babies/toddlers:

Cate & Violet

Hazel

Ewa (wish we got to see her more)

Hopefully, once I'm better at this sewing thing, I can do stuff like this chick, because it's kind of the coolest thing ever! In the meantime, I am going to try to come up with more interesting blog ideas...

And yes, I promise more wedding posts; I really want to get my photos back so I can talk about them :) My photographer was amazing so check out her work if you get bored: http://www.greatlovephotography.com/

Wedding Weekend- Part I

Well lots has happened since the last blog... I went to the ER, I got married, I went to the Bahamas, I changed my legal name, I started studying for my MSW (Master of Social Work) licensure examination, and I went grocery shopping (those who know me, know this is kind of a big deal).

So 3 days before the wedding, my Mom and I went to pick up my soon-to-be Mother-in-Law from DFW airport. We picked her up and went to dinner at carrabbas. I had a special of the day, a chicken dish with cream sauce and cheese with an Italian Margarita. It was fantastic conversation and I think the moms enjoyed meeting. On the way home I started feeling very sick, nausea, cramping and decided we needed to pull over. I was violently ill at several gas stations for the last hour of the trip home. I was so embarrassed... and miserable. I assumed it must be ill-timed and very inconvenient food-poisoning...Then the bleeding started. If you've never has colon bleeding, let me tell you, it's a little terrifying.

A little background, I have had trouble with my stomach since I was in high school. I became a vegetarian for a few years and that helped quite a bit, but it was really inconvenient, so I gave it up. Now I just don't eat beef. Anyway, it got really really bad when I started grad school (turns out stress made it worse) and I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease (after several trips to the Houston medical center and lots of crappy tests--no pun intended). I can tell you lots of funny and disgusting stories about living with Crohn's but the blood thing was totally new. Plus I have been in a solid remission for about the last 2 years with only minor, short flare-ups.

After 15 hours of this (and being up all night), the vomiting started and I decided it was time to take a trip to the hospital. So it's Friday, the wedding is in 2 days, guests have begun arriving in town, I'm supposed to pick up my college roommate and one of my best friends ('cause let's face it, the 4 ladies who were my bridesmaids are all my best friends) at DFW Airport in the afternoon, and my dad and I are sitting in the waiting room of the ER (Hadn't told the fiance I went to the hospital yet, because he was in Austin picking up family and I didn't want him to worry). And this wouldn't even be so bad, except that since it was Memorial Day Weekend, many people were visiting family in their nursing home and panicking at the sight of their love one's illnesses and calling ambulances. 21 nursing home patients were brought in during the first hour I was there; and apparently you have to immediately treat the nursing home patients regardless of who else is in the ER... So 4 hours later my dad reminded the nurse that I am still bleeding from my insides. Apparently, my dad is an intimidating person (heehee) and I got a room.

Once I saw a doctor, I explained my symptoms, Dad blurted out that I had Crohn's disease; differential diagnosis over! Any time you mention Crohn's disease to a doctor, nothing else matters... sprained ankle? Probably related to the Crohn's... Headache? I'm sure it's related to your Crohn's... You've grown a 3rd toe? Yeah, Crohn's can do that... WHAT?!? Anyway, long story short, they gave me IV fluids, pain-killer, and steroid medication. I had to cancel the "Pre-Wedding Weekend Kick-off Party" and my poor Amyfriend had to be relayed around by various friends (thanks, Sarah) to get her to my house. But the bleeding stopped and we were able to continue on the next day with wedding festivities...

Blog #2

My friend Sarah has sent people over to view my blog so I better start writing more. I will have to get some themes and such like here, lol... but for now I'll just do a what's-going-on-in-my-life-update :) I promise it will get more fun! I am about to start studying for my social work license, so that should make for some fun posts in the near future :)

Wedding planning is going well... which is good since there are only 5 days left! I am really excited about marrying the love of my life, but wow, it's crazy how difficult it is to make plans. We had to move the wedding up by 4 months because of training. Apparently, it's a good way to start off our marriage as flexibility of a military wife is demanded. Currently, the rumors are flying about deployment later this year (as opposed to 2014 when they were originally scheduled). The good news is we are stationed (by the way, "we are stationed" sounds so weird...I am used to "my boyfriend is stationed") near my family and should know if he's going or not before our lease is up. Anyway, I am learning to be content with each day we do have together. If we have to do another deployment we will make it through :)

So I've never done a blog, but I thought I'd give it a try. I am preparing to marry the love of my life in a little over 2 weeks. This becoming an army wife is a little terrifying. The craziness has already started... We had to move the wedding up 4 months because he was scheduled for training during the wedding date. I figured some encouragement (for myself and other military spouses) would be nice. Getting excited to embark on this journey/adventure!