Exercising Diary of a Cyster

Fall Happening's

2011-10-29T18:57:00.002-04:00

Fall is my absolute favorite season! I look forward to it all year long and really try to enjoy each and every day. We've had an eventful Fall thus far...

I had my Picc line in for 3 weeks which made me feel great!

Poor Scott got a nasty cold and was sick for over a week..

He then passed it to his lovely wife (ahem, me) and I'm anxiously awaiting it's departure ;)

We went to our local Renaissance festival and ate our hearts out

We have went to several Fall festivals in our area

Drank countless glasses of hot apple cider

Picked apples at an orchard

Went on a Hayride with my nieces

Tried apple fritters for the first time (YUM!)

Picked pumpkins off the vine at a pumpkin patch

Went to our favorite yard sale fall festival about an hour away and cleaned up

Made a few loaves of pumpkin bread

Enjoyed a band at our favorite local winery

Next up:

Carving Pumpkins

Dressing up for Halloween!!

The Blog lock-out is over

2011-10-15T09:36:00.002-04:00

Yikes, for the life of me my blog has NOT let me sign in for about 2 weeks now. I've racked my brain for reasons why, but for some reason today it let me sign in. Great! It hasn't let me comment on other blogs either, so I do apologize for that. I have to say I'd just sit here and hit "Comment" after "Comment" and nothing. Here's hoping she's all fixed now :)

A lot has happened lately, so in my true to slacker-not-able-to-log-in-fashion, It's a list on the blog type of day..

-For starters the Picc is gone! Yay! It was removed yesterday at work, which was exactly 3 weeks from placement. Feeling good and hoping things continue in that direction.

-Our CF community lost a very near a dear person to me recently. Nicole lost her battle as did her little boy. It's been very difficult lately thinking about her and everything that happened. She is on my mind so very much.

-I officially entered the world of CFRD on August 30th. Been feeling it for a while now, so we decided I needed to keep track of my sugars. Sure enough I landed myself on a carb counting adventure with the help of a Novalog insulin pen. Her name is "Penny." ;)

-I've been trying very hard to enjoy every moment of my most favorite season, FALL! We went to a pumpkin patch, apple orchard, did a hay ride, and have been to 2 Fall festivals. Love this!

-I ran the 2nd annual "Out Run CF" race. I chose to do a 5K with the picc line in tow. It went well and I was so happy to have been able to do it.

-I've recently begun to start "couponing." Not crazy hoarding or anything, just watching for deals on the things that we actually need. So far so VERY good! It's pretty cool to see all the $ we can save.

-Being the crazy person I am, I've started getting some early Christmas shopping done. I've gotten all of my nieces and both of my Goddaughters finished already. Definitely a good feeling :D

-I continue to run at least 4 days a week and love it. There just isn't anything else that makes me feel so great.

That's it for now. Just coming off of IV's yesterday has officially made me feel like I've been hit by a mack truck. I can't remember the last time I felt this exhausted, or slept so deep. Shew. Back to relaxing :)

PICC time

2011-09-24T11:45:00.003-04:00

On Thursday I woke up feeling pretty congested. I just chalked it up to the change in seasons, but still was on the look out during the day to see how I felt. I was getting a patient ready when I felt what I'd call a "jab" of pain in my left lower lung. It was enough to take my breath away. So I decided that definitely warranted a listen with the stethescope.

Sure enough my lungs sounded pretty gross in the lower and mid lobes. They had lots of crackles, gurgles, and tons of expiratory wheezing. I usually have clear lungs, so I knew something was up. I gave Hopkins a ring to see what they thought, and of course they wanted to see me and take a listen for themselves.

I didn't even do PFT's because of the shooting pain. The Dr. took a listen and basically said "So what kind of IV's have workded in the past?" Awesome. I was definitely open to having a PICC line right now. I don't want this to have a chance to turn into something awful. And because we are officially in flu season I want to be safe.

So I went to a new place yesterday for my PICC placement. Other areas couldn't get me in until next Wednesday. Or, I could get admitted. I'd rather not be in the hospital anyway because of germs, but even moreso because I don't feel bad, just playing it safe. So I'm PICC'd and ready to go. Bring on the drugs and "roto-rootering" I'm ready for these lungs to be happy again :)

I'm going to take a few days off from exercising. I think rest is important right now. But I ended this week with running 6.5 miles :)

Colonoscopy Day ;)

2011-09-14T12:59:00.003-04:00

I started my day out with a lovely colonoscopy today. What a breeze! The worst part is definitely the day before being allowed only clear liquids since this girl LOVES to eat. The prep wasn't even a big deal. I did Miralax and Gatorade and since I like Gatorade and drink it frequently it was a piece of cake...ohh cake. Sorry side tracked ;)

I had to have the colonoscopy due to my history of bowel obstructions in the last 2 years. I had intussusception when I obstruced the last 2 times. So to be safe we did the procedure to make sure there wasn't something in there causing it (ex: Mass, huge polyp, lipoma, etc).

Good new is, no bad news. I did have 2 "tiny" polyps, so no biggie. I'll follow up with the doctor in about 2 weeks and we'll go from there. It was a great experience if I do say so myself. The sedation (Propofol) is wonderful! You literally fall asleep, and wake up in recovery. It doesn't get much better than that.

Being a GI nurse who does this all day long, I knew what to expect. In fact, I totally felt like I was a work. I was even taken care of by a nurse I went to nursing school with. Of course, it still makes you nervous, but I think that was because I was afraid something was going on in there. So overall, good day, great nap, good results :)

Think Before you Speak, pretty please.

2011-09-09T15:34:00.007-04:00

Today was a rough one I have to admit. Work was going well, and I was taking care of my patients just moving right along. I was getting an older gentleman ready and he started to ask questions about me. After some chatting he asked me If I was married, yes...how long I was a Nurse, and so on....Then he asked me if I had any children. I replied No. He responded by telling me how I'm really missing out and that I'm really missing something not having children. I held back my tears (not for long) and told him I had lost a baby 2 years ago and have had a tough time ever since. Of course he felt terrible, but I don't care.

I composed myself long enough to finish his IV and get out the door. I could feel it brewing and one of my fellow Nurses asked me If I was ok, and bam the flood gates open. I couldn't hold the tears back any longer.

It's been a very long time since I've cried like this over pregnancy/miscarriage stuff. I think about it every single day, but today was difficult.

I just really really wish people would think before they speak. You never ever know what kind of battle someone is fighting on the inside...

I WON!!!

2011-07-30T19:50:00.006-04:00

The results are in and I officially won the "Biggest Loser" well, "Biggest GAINER" challenge at work! I beat everyone in the office in percentages. I gained 6 lbs total, which for you CF'ers out there know is a BIG deal. I even got a lovely certificate as my prize. Woo Hoo!

Notice the pics of food on my award, especially the Mac-N-Cheese. Boy, do they know me or what? ;)

Swimming and a new 10K plan!

2011-07-25T15:53:00.002-04:00

Yesterday we utilized our beach yet again, but this time not to lay around on the sand. Instead we decided to get in the water and swim! My goal was to swim a certain amount of laps, well that didn't happen, but I stayed in the water for 30 mintues swimming and doing different things. What a difference swimming is than running! Whoa, I actually feel out of shape when it comes to swimming. Crazy. It certainly worked me, but It felt awesome at the same time. I'm hoping to go swimming a few times a week while I can in between my running schedule.

Speaking of running, I signed up for the Outrun CF Fall edition yesterday. Super excited about it too! I've decided to kick my running plan up a notch. I found a running plan today for a "10K in 10 weeks" and I'm going for it. I figure I have 10 weeks as of Saturday until my next race so why not!?

Today was day 1 for me, and it was a 30 minute jog...done :) I like this plan because It's only 3 days a week of running which will allow me to do other things and take some classes at the gym.

The Zumba experience

2011-07-23T20:50:00.002-04:00

I went to my first Zumba class on Monday with a co-worker. It's something I've been wanting to try for a while now and finally bit the bullet and went. It-was-awesome! The class lasted a little over 45 minutes and was pretty much non stop moving!

I've been a member of my gym for a few years now, but have never went to a group class. I guess I'm more of an independent "worker outer" if you will. I like to pretty much just run which is a solo task. Well the instructor spotted that a few of us were new to her class pretty much immediately.

She pointed to me in the middle of our set and with her lovely microphone attached to her head and loudly said "Hey you in the blue are you new here!?" Umm yes, I replied nervously. I though I was off the hook at that point of any more call outs. WRONG! The next set was pretty intense little did I know and guess who gets called to the front of the class to "help" the instructor? Yup, that'd be me.

It was a set of non stop power jogging, jumping all around, and doing all kinds of punching and kicking moves. It kicked my butt for sure. I have to say it totally helped being in the front of the class because it pushed me so much harder to give 110% I felt like the others were looking at me to keep going. It was a pretty cool feeling and worked my lungs so so so hard.

I can't wait to go back next week. It was pretty nice to mix up my running routine a bit. Here's to more Zumba!

Biggest Loser (Well Gainer, for me that is)

2011-07-11T20:11:00.004-04:00

At work starting about 3 weeks ago a bunch of the ladies decided to start a "Biggest Loser" challenge. I gave it some thought and decided to join in this challenge. The catch is, I'm working hard on being the "Biggest Gainer." That's right, thank you CF, I am working my butt off trying to pack on the pounds. Are my co-workers thrilled? Nah, haha, just kidding they are VERY supportive. However I can't help but feel those evil looks being shot my way when I load up a plate of whatever with a stick of butter ;)

So far so good, I've gained 5 lbs!!! Very exciting stuff. I weigh in tomorrow so hopefully I've gained even more!

As for exercise, I was pretty bad last week about blogging about it, but I did post in my accoutability group. I ran a little over 6 miles last week. Last week was one of those busy weeks (especially at work) where you feel like you're head is spinning.

It's been only 10 days since my last post, but a buys busy busy 10 days. We celebrated a birthday party at a brewery, did an Annapolis ghost tour, boated on the Chesapeake, celebrated 4th of July, also suffered a tragedy as someone had a boating accident at our beach and died. We had dinner dates, birthdays, and even went away for the weekend to Ocean City. Shew, I'm tired just rehashing it all, and I know I left things out.

That's about it for now...I'm back to work tomorrow after having a lovely day off. Which also means, back to the gym after a 3 day break! :)

Was it something I said!? Geez.

2011-07-01T21:13:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was one of those mornings that rarely happens around here luckily. I totally started my day off on the wrong note and not by my doing at all. I rolled over Thursday morning to snooze my alarm clock only to get clocked in the nose by my husband. OUCH! Of course it was an accident and he was totally asleep (so he says, haha just kidding Scott) but man did it not only throw me off guard, but hurt. I then get my morning routine all finished about a half hour later. I go over to him (still sleeping as I leave earlier for work) to give him a kiss and get knocked in the head. Man! I know he was unconcious but damn (haha) did I do something to him that he's getting me back for in his sleep? Luckily the day got better as it progressed, well It got better once my husband aka Mike Tyson fell back to sleep and I left for work.

I got a good amount of mileage this week which feels great! I totalled 6.5 miles, not counting my 5K on Sunday. I hit the gym on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. I mostly ran, but mixed things up a bit with the Elliptical and bike today. My knees needed a break from running.

I'm hoping to get some swimming in at our beach this weekend as well! That has always been a great form of exercise for me and definitey challenging.

The Guilt and Happiness of a 5K

2011-06-26T20:35:00.002-04:00

This morning I ran a 5K for "New Balance Women's Health." I was very happy with my time and more importantly how I felt. As I was running I thought to myself, wow, the only thing really bothering me right now are my knees. How lucky am I? I kept focusing on my lungs and thinking to myself how they weren't bothering me at all. Are they just used to exercise and my running? I kept reflecting (yes, still) on February and the flu and how bad things were. As I was running I kept thinking to myself how lucky I am that my lungs recovered the way they did and how much I depend on running to feel this way.

Insert the guilt part...Sometimes I do feel guilty for how I am able to run. Sometimes I feel guilty recording my exercise on this blog and my accoutability group. I fear people are going to look down on me or think negative thoughts. CF is and can be mega b*tch and I know sometimes others aren't able to run or exercise like this. That makes me ache sometimes. But on the flip side it motivates me. I push myself for the others with CF who I consider to be my friends who can't run. I push myself and run that extra mile not just for me, but for us. This is not meant to be a blah post at all, but It's honestly how I feel sometimes.

I push myself to the limit and know I have a different mindset about things. It's just how I am. I reflect and realize that 4 months ago my life flashed before my eyes and that fear pushes me every single day. So here I am running my heart out and pumping those lungs, making them give me all they've got. I do think we make a great trio If I say so myself ;)

U2!!!!

2011-06-24T19:53:00.002-04:00

Wednesday night was one of the best nights ever. We went and saw U2 and it was hands down the best concert of my entire life. I'm still beaming when I think about it. Every song I hoped that they would play they did. The energy in that stadium was amazing and something I hope never to forget. I'm so grateful we were able to get tickets to the show. The opening act was wonderful as well. Florence and the Machine opened for U2 and I adore them. It really just couldn't have gotten any better.

This was my exercise for Wednesday night for sure! My lungs definitely got a fantastic workout too! Those windbags sang their little hearts out for about 3 hours straight. I'm proud of those lungs they love U2 and didn't let me down ;)

7 miles

2011-06-22T15:06:00.003-04:00

Yesterday was quite the busy day for us. I feel like I'm saying that all the time lately. After work we headed up to Hopkins to visit our nephew who had his brain surgery on Monday. He looks amazing and is progressing wonderfully. He's definitely not his normal self, as he's in pain and really sleepy, but overall everyone is very pleased.

I had to skip the gym in order to make it to the hospital on time for our visiting slot. So we decided afterwards we'd go for a long bike ride to get our exercise in. We live close to a beautiful park that's right on the Chesapeake Bay. We biked there and rode around the whole park. We rode on a giant fishing pier, stopped at the beach, saw tons of deer, and tackled hill after hill. Definitely a fulfilling ride. All in all it was 7 miles and boy did I feel it ;)

Brain Surgery and stress

2011-06-20T19:17:00.003-04:00

What a stressful weekend. It was nice in that it was Father's Day and my Dad is certainly someone to celebrate. I had a nice time with him on his day. Otherwise it was such a busy non stop weekend that by Sunday night my body was physically exhausted at every level. I even started to get chills, that's my sign of enough is enough.

I helped my parents this weekend by cleaning and preparing their house for a cookout. As happy as I was to help, it was a lot of work and it consumed most of the weekend. Top that with lack of sleep (big time) and worrying about my nephew's upcoming brain surgery and that about sums up the weekend. Tiring.

On a happy and more positive note my nephew had brain surgery today for repair of Chiari Malformation. He did wonderfully and is making great progress just hours post-op. That's a huge weight off for everyone. Hopefully he keeps up his resiliance and will be home in a few days.

Today I went back to the gym for a good run. They were closed a few days last week for renovations but the doors were open today! The place looks great, and they have a ton of brand new cardio equipment. I broke in a brand new treamill with a 2.2 mile run! I have to say it felt pretty good to run off some stress ;)

From Toyota to Bowel Obstructions

2011-06-13T18:49:00.002-04:00

We had a very eventful, both good and bad last week. The good being that Scott bought his brand new Toyota Tundra and is in LOVE. I'm so over the moon happy for him. He's wanted a truck for so long, and finally treated himself to his dream last week.

Insert the ugly part which is where I thought I may be starting to obstruct while we were at the dealership. I was confident that I was ok since I was able to eat and drink without problem. This is something that doesn't happen with a "normal" obstruction. So after a few hours at the dealership and driving around to show some of our family/friends our new toy I felt pretty good. I even went home and ate a giant bowl of cereal and had plenty of bubbly and gurggly sounds so I was pretty happy.

The next morning I woke up feeling like I was having contractions. Not cool. I was feeling super dehydrated too (classic) so I headed to work had one of the Nurses start a quick IV on me for some fluids. It didn't do a thing for me unfortunately.

I worked most of the day then decided to head home after lunch and just relax to see how I felt. No doubt it was progressing horribly. I called my Nurse at Hopkins and she suggested I go out and buy the Miralax/Gatorade solution and drink the entire 64oz. of joy...(insert sarcasm here). Ok so it's actually not bad at all and I like Gatorade, my nerves were just shot.

So after drinking all of that liquid I thought I was going to explode, correction...I WISH I would have exploded but nothing. Then I knew I was in trouble and needed to get myself in gear for the ER.

We get to the ER and by now I'm just a sobbing mess in so much pain and having so much anxiety over this impending doom of an ordeal. Scott had to go park so I walked in the front door to be greeted by a tiny elderly lady offering me a wheelchair because "you're pregnant and can't breathe" hmm, well you got part of that right little cute lady. My stomach was sticking out so far I really did look about 6-7 months pregnant. The pressure was so bad that It was taking my breath away. Really just not a good combination I must say.

Skip ahead a few hours and lots of pain medication later. I was finally comfortable but the usual tricks of my obstructions weren't working. I got scared. Fast. Then came the dreaded statement that had I not been drugged I may have just lost it..."You need an NG tube" gah!!!!! I had a horrific experience when I was 19 with an NG tube and really wasn't trying to relive those memories but alas I did.

The Nurses were great and so supportive, but still missed and it took 3 tries for the NG (a blood bath horror scene and a lot of vomiting) to be successful. Once it was in about 500cc of fluid came off my stomach. Ahhh. I had visitors the next day but I can barely remember to be honest. I was upset, drugged, emotional, snappy (apparently) and miserable and I barely remember any of it now.

Vaguely I remember a doctor coming in to tell me that they were going to have a surgeon come evaluate me. I've had about 6 obstructions and never had to have surgery. Apparently my small bowel and colon heard those words and got scared. A few hours later I was home free if you know what I mean ;)

Luckily I was discharged from the hospital on Friday after going in Wednesday night. Not too shabby considering how bad this one was, and how bad it had the potential to be. All in all I'm so grateful to be home and NOT recovering from bowel surgery right now. It could have been a lot worse than it was, I recognize that.

After not eating for almost 4 days I'm happily indulging once again, but of course being careful :)

I'm Featured In...

2011-06-11T10:03:00.002-04:00

A Baltimore article HERE. It's about those with chronic illness and the use of social networking....Check it out :)

"Take a break Today" well, yesterday actually.

2011-06-07T15:24:00.004-04:00

I called Hopkins yesterday since I don't feel like we're making much progress with the Levaquin/Prednisone combo. My lungs have been super tight and we can't figure out if it's a bug, or Cayston caused inflammation this time? Anyway, we decided that after double checking my last culture I'd probably respond better to Bactrim. With all this going on yesterday my CF Nurse advised me not to exercise for the day. Definitely not something I'm used to hearing, but listened to her advice.

I ended up getting in 2 doses of Bactrim yesterday and already see an improvement! Very very happy about this. I also decided to go to the gym today to see how I did. I'm SO happy that I decided to go. I coughed up a lot of stuff that's been lurking in there and feel great. I did 2 miles total on my lunch break today.

Let's hope we continue on the "Up and Up"

8.5 miles biking

2011-06-05T12:37:00.003-04:00

After our weekend ritual of coffee on the back deck my husband asked If I wanted to ride bikes with him. I was hesitant at first for a few reasons. My lungs are currently being a little stubborn in dealing with an Asthmatic flare up. Yes, on top of CF I have the asthmatic component. So I was pretty tight this morning but decided I'd still go with him. He rides his bike for miles and miles and miles so I was slightly intimidated by his mad skills ;)

However I decided it was best to go and push myself to my limits and I surely did just that. I was happy with myself because I was pretty much right behind him the whole time. There were plenty of hills to keep me working hard. By the end we had finished 8.5 miles round trip. It felt great, I definitely gave my lungs a mega workout on what is our normal day off.

Here's a pic of the half way point....just outside of the Chesapeake Bay by Gibson Island. I love that we live surrounded by tons and tons of water.

Clinic Visit = :)

2011-06-03T20:01:00.002-04:00

I had my quarterly clinic visit at Hopkins on Tuesday. Overall it went very well and I was very pleased with the appointment. This was my first big appointment since the flu fiasco in Feb-March that attacked my lungs so badly. I was told back then I may have suffered permanent lung damage due to that virus. That terrified me as I've said many times before.

However, I knew (THANKFULLY) that I hadn't suffered permanent damage due to my trusty old home FEV1 monitor. I've been tracking my lung function for a long time now and knew I was back at baseline, again THANKFULLY!

I am back at baseline and even a little better. This made me ecstatic of course for many reasons, but also because my Asthma is flared up right now as well. So despite all that I was able to get the wind bags to show what they're made of ;)

I go back for my routine follow up in August. That works for me!

As for exercise this week I went to the gym 3 days and ran at home 1 day. My total mileage for the week is 8 miles. I may jump on the bike this weekend and ride around the neighborhood and down to our beach. Well, that is if the humidity stays away that is.

Happy Weekend!

Memorial Day Run (definitely different)

2011-05-30T13:02:00.003-04:00

Yesterday was a fun filled day celebrating my best friends birthday. I made it to the gym in the morning and did 2.2 miles on the treadmill. Afterwards was a day of birthday celebrating, hence I didn't make it to the gym early this morning as planned.

I debated running outside but then quickly realized how awful the air quality (code red) and humidity is here and chose differently. Instead I did something I've never done before. I made a course at home in the basement and garage and got my run in that way. I jogged in place for a bit, then started to run around the garage and basement enjoying the lovely air conditioning. I put my Cardio Trainer app on my phone so I could track everything.

In the end I ran for 24 minutes and completed my 2 miles. According to my FEV1 meter, my lungs really enjoyed the run too ;)

What I am no longer...The Boss!

2011-05-28T17:22:00.004-04:00

This week marks the 1 year anniversary of me saying yes to a job that I didn't truly want. It also will now mark when the new boss started and I was purely a Registered Nurse again! I am thrilled at the decision I have made and have zero regrets. I began training our new boss yesterday and we immediately had big issues on our hands. The beauty of it is, I no longer have to take it home with me, have huge worry, and feel like garbage because of my stress level. It was such a relief to drive home yesterday and think to myself that I just get to go home and be normal again :)

I'm so happy to think about the stress level decrease! I think I actually feel a tad bit lighter not carrying around such stress and burdons. (Insert sigh of relief here)

In other news I did a lot of good running this week despite some obsticles. I started on Levaquin on Thursday due to my sinuses being nothing short of insane. I feel like I have a faucet running down the back of my throat and have been waking up congested. No bueno.

Exercise wise I went to the gym this week and ran a total of 7.2 miles. My legs needed a mini break at the beginning of the week due to last weekends running. I'm hoping to get to the gym tomorrow and Monday (Memorial Day) to get some morning running in.

Weekend of Racing

2011-05-22T12:08:00.005-04:00

This weekend sure was a busy one, but a great one! Especially since I challenged myself to running in a race on Saturday and on Sunday. Granted, my legs pretty much don't want anything to do with me right now but that's ok with me! ;) Overall this weekend I completed 4.1 miles :)

After the 1 mile Special Olympics benefit race

After the 5K with my shadow, my Greyhound Hooper :)

Where do I even begin????

2011-05-21T10:24:00.002-04:00

Ok so I've officially crowned myself as the worst blogger in history. I don't know what my deal is here lately. Perhaps I'm just feeling a little bit boring? I'm not sure. So, yes I'm doing the generic gigantic update in 1 post. I haven't been posting my exercise here, sorry. I promise I just slapped my own hand. However I log my daily activity on Facebook in a group started by one of my Cysters. It's so convenient, and motivating too! Ok ok, as for me lately...

VEST-After having the same Vest since 1999, I got myself a sweet upgrade ;) It's rather small, and doesn't weight 800 million pounds. I'm pretty excited about it, especially since I'm so far behind the times Vest wise.

ZENPEP- I started the new enzymes since Ultrase is no longer available. So far so good I have to say. I still have some adjusting and figuring things out but overall I like them. What I like even more is the Z-points program. It's pretty awesome getting HTS, Vitamins, etc. Loving that.

WORK-I made the decision to step down from my current position as Nurse Manager. It's just so not my style at all. I do not have the personality that a manager has to have. The biggest part of my decision to step down was that I miss being a Nurse SO BADLY!!! Being the manager means I am a "paper pusher" and I'm so not a fan at all. I miss my patients. So as of May 24th I am no longer Nurse Manager and indeed, RN again!!! YAHOO!! I can't wait for that level of stress in my life to be gone.

RUNNING-I've been running at least 4 times a week at the gym still. I decided to restart the Couch to 5K plan a few weeks ago. I completed the program and am running a 5K tomorrow in Baltimore. I did a 1 mile race this morning in Annapolis to support special olympics. It was really touching. A young boy with Downs Syndrome slapped me a big high five after the race and told me good job. My heart melted slightly. I signed up for another 5K in June. Keep em' coming :)

GRADUATION!!-This is by far the most important and biggest news on this blog. My wonderful husband graduated college for the, ahem 2nd time!!! I'm so proud of him. He now has another degree in the Computer field. I am SO SO SO SO SO proud of him! He has worked so hard and had a lot of obstacles this semester (mainly with my health scare in February). I think he is amazing!!!

HEALTH-I can't express at all how fortunate I am for how I've been feeling. I think about that flu I had in February every.single.day. I mean it, not a single day goes by where I don't stop and count my blessings. There were so many things I was uncertain of and afraid of. It hit me hard, but gave me the most amazing perspective I've ever had in my life. I will remind myself daily of how rough and scary that was. It pushes me harder and harder to go after everything I want in life. My only gripe right now is Mr. Prednisone. He's visiting me right now because of my insane allergies. As much as I love him, I sort of hate him too. You guys who've been on it understand!

Well that's it for now. I am certain I forgot to mention big stuff, but that's ok. I'm just happy I dusted off this dusty blog and showed it some love again!

Outrun CF!

2011-03-21T18:36:00.004-04:00

I Outran CF on Sunday at the gym. I chose to do a 5K for my race. Overall I'm very happy with myself considering a few weeks ago I wasn't sure when I'd be able to run. It felt wonderful, and was great kick CF's rear by pounding that treadmill ;)

Getting ready to RUN!

Making my way to 3.1 miles!

The Treadmill and I reunite!

2011-03-15T18:24:00.005-04:00

Today was a big day for me. It was the first time in nearly 5 weeks that I got to go running!!! I actually couldn't wait to get to the gym after work today and was watching the clock like a hawk. I was somewhat nervous since It's been a little while, but was just happy to be there and be able.

I knew my tolerance would be lower, and it was, but surprisingly not by much. I was very happy about that. There's not much more to say other than It felt great and I can't wait to go back tomorrow! Today's accomplishment was 35 minutes, totalling 2 miles.

It's so nice to feel like me again :)

One Month Later = :)

2011-03-14T18:15:00.006-04:00

Here's a pic of the line...surprisingly a lot of people asked to see it. Gross eh? ;)

On February 14th I was admitted to the hospital and tested positive for the flu. I had no idea how bad it would get. One month later, March 14th I am IV free as of 9:30 am!! Goodbye to Mr. Jugular line, and thank you for getting me back to being me again. I was terrified that I may not see that again. I still have a little ways to go (not much) but I'm working very hard and my FEV1 is getting back to baseline. Tomorrow, for the first time in a month I am going running!!! Ahhhhhhhh!!!! So excited!

I am BEYOND words of gratefulness!!!!

The best news I've heard in a month!

2011-03-10T16:28:00.002-05:00

It's been quite an adventure these last few weeks to say the least. Each day is getting better and I think I can say I feel, well, GOOD!! So happy to be able to be functioning without feeling short of breath and like I'm struggling. It was no doubt, the sickest I have ever felt in my entire life. I don't think I've ever been so scared.

Last week I had a follow up appointment at Hopkins and I knew it wasn't going to be great. It was only 2 weeks post flu, and they said it would take a while to feel better. So, no real surprise but still disappointing. My IV meds weren't really doing the trick, so we did a little switch-a-roo ;)

I'm happy to report that it's working!!!! I feel a ton better and couldn't be happier. Yes, I still have work to do to get back to baseline, but I will do it! I've already been back to the gym and on the treadmill. I'm only walking for now since I don't want to over do it, but my plan is to be back to running by next week. I miss running so much and know my lungs will be happy with me exercising again. It's been like nails on a chalk board for me not to be active at the gym.

So that brings me to today. My CF Nurse called me to check on me and see what our plan is going to be. We decided to do my antibiotics through the weekend (fine with me) and....DRUM ROLL PLEASE......Remove the Jugular IV on Monday @ 10 am!!! WOO HOO!!!! Best news I've heard all month long!!! Could this flu/exacerbation be hitting the road?? I think so! ;)

Baby steps are still steps...

2011-02-28T16:12:00.003-05:00

Today I took a rather large step and went back to work. Granted, I didn't work with patients, and just sat at my desk catching up on paperwork, but I did it and it felt great.

Getting up this morning was a little rough and I was afraid it was going to be too much. But then again, any morning lung wise for me is the worst time of day. So I took my time and crept along at a snails pace and got to work.

It was so great to see everyone and was even a little bit emotional. This flu and virus stuff really knocked me down to the lowest I've ever felt. I think the fact that I even got in the SUV and drove today was monumental.

Overall I'm tired, but don't regret it at all. The doctor's cleared me today to go back at light duty and I'll do just that. Hoping that each day only gets easier from here on out. I still have a long way to go, but I'll take these baby steps for sure.

Now on to doing a whole lot of nothing for the rest of the day and night.

Train Wreck, me.

2011-02-25T12:40:00.003-05:00

There has been so much going on for a bit now, that I've just had zero energy or desire to blog. It all started a couple of weeks ago, Feb. 10th to be exact. I was driving home from dinner with a friend when I literally felt this illness hit me. Sudden onset of chills and shaking to the point of not warming up. I knew I was in trouble.

In the middle of that night, I woke up at 3am with a fever of 101. I RARELY get fevers, so again I knew something was up and I wasn't liking it. I spent the next 2 days in bed, just praying and hoping I would be sick on my birthday (the 12th).

As it turned out by Friday I felt pretty darn good. Prayers answered and I was thrilled! So we spent my birthday very low key, and ended up going to the movies and bowling. By the time that evening hit, both Scott and I felt sick as dogs....again. And the next day, it just progressed even worse.

Monday came, and I knew I had to make the dreadful call to Hopkins because this was not getting better, but getting worse, and scary. My FEV1 took a sudden hit which scared me and hasn't ever happened before. I made the call and they wanted me in immediately as a direct admission. I knew it was the right thing to do, but still I hated it.

By the time we got to the hospital I was so short of breath, that It burned for me to even walk a few steps. We had to walk a long way to get to where we needed to go, and not to mention the 2 escalators were broken. Awesome. When I coughed, my chest hurt so bad that it felt as if chards of glass were coming up. I can't think of any other way to describe it.

I just layed there and cried. What the heck is going on with me!? The Nurse came in and did all the paperwork, so many vials of blood drawn, blood cultures, swabs, you name it, I was probed. Later that night I was told that I tested positive for Influlenza A. Wow, no joke, this flu is serious business.

So I was in Hopkins for 4 days, slowlyyyyyy feeling better, but barely. I was discharged home on Thursday. I thought things were getting better and then on Monday my PICC line started to really hurt, and my fevers came back yet again. Called Hopkins and was told to pack a bag again since I'd probably get re-admitted for a new PICC insertion. Blah!

Turns out I didn't need to get re-admitted. The Nurses set me up for an outpatient PICC the next morning. That turned into a huge nightmare. I should've spoken up because I just didn't feel confident in the resident at all. It's like I knew he wasn't going to do it. Sure enough I woke up after conscious sedation I had 4 holes in my left arm, and a new line in my neck. Good thing is, is that it works, but it sure is not comfortable. At this point, I'll take what I can get.

So here I am, thinking that I may actually start feeling better. My lungs are still the tightest they have ever been which I don't like. Good news is that apparently with the flu this is normal. They said this could take weeks before my lungs bounce back. Not the greatest news, but as long as they do I'll be happy.

Despite how awful things have been most of this month, I am still beyond grateful for the love and support so many people have shown. I've gotten so many sweet messages, texts, videos, care packages, calls, cards, flowers, and snacks! It's a wonderful thing to have such loving people in my life.

Hands down I give all the credit in the world to Scott for being a wonderful husband to me. He's had to juggle work, school, and me which has been so overwhelming. I couldn't ask for a better partner in my life and am thankful for all he does.

Thank you everyone who's been there sending well wishes. They sure are appreciated!!

10 miles

2011-01-30T16:37:00.004-05:00

Luckily I'm pretty much always motivated to go to the gym and work out. Lately, with having such a loss in our CF community, It sort of upped my motivation. Granted I do have other reasons for this right now as well, however, moving on.I WILL work hard, I WILL stay positive, and I WILL keep going and not let CF get in my way.

This week I did over 10 miles at the gym. I am very pleased with this result. My rib pain/muscle pull is so much better which has helped in the exercise department. I spoke with my doctors and said that I needed alternatives to exercising with this pain. They said running wasn't especially smart right now, considering how much my your arms move while running. So I've chosen to do the stationary bike, and the Elliptical (minus the arms moving) as my exercise.

To kick It up a notch, I've increased the resistance, and done the "Cardio Mode" for both pieces of equipment. Holy sweat! It has been fabulous! I feel very satisfied, considering I can't run. Heck this might just be kicking my rear even more, and I couldn't be happier.

Pain and Loss

2011-01-25T18:29:00.006-05:00

It has not been a good few weeks in the CF community. We've lost 3 people who I truly cared about and was friends with all in the matter of just over 2 weeks. This weekend brought such sad and tragic news as we lost 2 CF'ers who were actually best friends, just 2 days apart. The shock, and sheer hysterics doesn't even begin to cover these feelings felt lately.

I hate this. I hate this so much. I don't know any other word to use to attempt to describe it. Infinite tears have been shed, and I know It's not the end of them either. It's just not fair. I won't ask "Why" but I can't help but wonder....WHY!?

I've contemplated taking a break from the CF forums, and even from Facebook. But then I wonder, am I running away from this? I don't know. I love, and I really mean this when I say it...I love the relationships and the friendships that I've made over the years with my fellow CF'ers. It's times like these though, when I feel like I can't do this, I can't watch this sadness around me. I can't watch people lose their lives with the disease that I have. I can't stand to feel helpless and just watch this sorrow. This is a dark place.

Last night I just couldn't shake the feeling of just not wanting to be alone and scared. Scott is back to school, but I just could not sit in this house alone. So I turned a lot of negatives into positives. I went up to the gym last night with my best friend and stayed on the treadmill for 50 minutes. Infact, I did a 5K. Take that CF!

Please, whatever your faith or belief is...If you could please take a moment out of your day to remember those who have lost their battle lately. Remember their families, children, life, and friends they've left behind.

Missing Geneva, Tom, and Tina.

Ice Skating and other weekend ponders..

2011-01-16T15:56:00.002-05:00

Well my heart broke slightly with the Ravens losing last night. Wait, my heart broke with them giving the game away. Ahh well, there's always next season. The good part is, we still have a few weeks left of football. I love football season, and am always sad to see it go. So here's to the playoffs then the Superbowl :)

Despite my accident prone week, I managed to survive ice skating today. Granted, I've never had any problem ice skating, but given my track record this week I had the helmet and bubble wrap ready ;)

All in all it was a great weekend of friends, family, food, fun, and football. It doesn't get much better than that!

My nephew and I skating :)

I should start wearing a helmet

2011-01-15T11:43:00.003-05:00

I don't know what my deal is this week but I have been a major clutz. That being said, I've got tons of battle wounds to prove it.

As I mentioned earlier this week I ended up at the doctor due to my rub/muscle pains. I'm still taking Tylenol and Ibuprofen around the clock. Sure I feel better with the meds, but during the night not so much.

So as if that weren't enough I added more injury yesterday. It's so ridiculous that I have to laugh. Problem is, the laughing turns to coughing, and the coughing kills the ribs. Alas, I'm a laugher and always will be so I'll just splint and continue to crack up.

Yesterday I stopped at Target to purchase a "fitness ball." I thought It would be something good to do perhaps in the evening, especially to work on the abs. Yes they have these at the gym, but I figured I'd just pick one up in addition. Well brain-iac that I am sat on it without shoes, mistake #1. Then decided to lie back on it and see how my injured back did on it, enter mistake #2. Well soon after leaning back on the ball, my socks were slipping on the hard wood floor. I lost control of my feet, and fell over. Doesn't sound too bad right? lol. Well I fell on my right side (because you know, I wouldn't want to hurt the left side that's already messed up). Sheesh. The right sided fall flipped me over, hit my head on my desk chair, scraped my elbow along a rug (hello rug burn) then landed on a huge vein in my arm which immediately turned black and lumpy. All I can say is what a dummy, oh and ouch.

I run to the freezer, wait I trotted limp-like to the freezer, yeah that's more like it. I grab a bag of brussel sprouts and iced the elbow area. It was pretty gross, swollen, and turning black. For a second I thought I'd broken my arm the way it had twisted.

So I took my regulary scheduled Ibuprofen/Tylenol combo. Only this time It had double work to do. Fix the rib/mucles, oh and the added swollen black elbow and arm. This morning I woke up after not sleeping too well because every move I made was followed by @#$%*#&! ouch!!! haha.

When I got out of bed today I hadn't realized how this fall had hurt my knee. I'm suddenly realizing how much I sound/feel like a 90 year old lady. But It's true, my body is aching today. Perhaps I'll put myself in a protective bubble, and strap a helmet on with a chin strap. Sounds like a plan to me ;)

On a happy note, I still made it to the gym 4 days this week despite this stuff. And I got in a little over 6 miles.

Here's to a non-injured weekend...GO RAVENS!!

Great run, but embarrassing.

2011-01-11T19:20:00.005-05:00

Today was a great running day for me. I'm not sure what It was, but I just felt great running today. Perhaps It helped tremendously that my back/rib pain was so much better!? Whatever It was, It sure was welcomed.

Today's run according to my plan was for 30 minutes. I ended up running 2.5 miles today!! I was really pushing to get to that 3rd mile, but my feet were hurting so bad. Side note-I'm over due for getting new running shoes. Must get new ones, like now :)

Here's the embarrassing part. I have my IPOD on shuffle and was rocking out to, well, rock. During shuffle "A-Ha's" song "Take on Me" comes on and I got pumped. Yes yes I'm a HUGE 80's music lover! Anyway I was so digging the song I didn't realize I was singing it outload on the treadmill. Yup! I was THAT person today. Let's just say that I was happy to be done my workout at that point ;)

Overall It was a great run and I felt awesome afterwards. Maybe It was the fact that It was snowing outside and I felt super excited, like a little kid?

Pulled muscle = OUCH!

2011-01-10T18:20:00.003-05:00

I still am not 100% sure how I did this to my back. All I know is that the pain in so intense that It forced me to go to the doctor today (Which I totally try to avoid). When I woke up this morning I couldn't take it anymore.

I went into work and got the opinion of one of our Anesthesiologists. Turns out he just scared the you know what out of me because "well normally I'd say It's musculoskeletal...however with your Cystic Fibrosis you'd better get checked out." Rats! But being the good, overly worried patient that I am I obeyed his request.

I went to our local "Patient First" center and they were great as usual when I've been in the past. It's quick, no appointment, and It costs me all of $5 with our insurance. Awesome.

They wanted to make sure I didn't have a PE (Pulmonary Embolism), Infection, or Pneumonia eventhough I don't have those symptoms. Better safe than sorry, and I'm all for ruling out. So we agreed I have a severe muscle pull that they had to give me Flexaril. Yikes. I've never taken this before, but I was told It's either going to make me mega loopy and/or knock me out.

At this point I just want the pain to go away. I'm not a huge fan of it hurting when I breathe. It's like awful rib pain on Inspiration, not cool. Luckily a change in position and the pain goes away for the most part. Now If I could just sit or lay comfortably and we'd be great ;) Here's to the meds working!

The Feeling of Loss

2011-01-09T21:19:00.004-05:00

I don't think we ever get used to the feeling of losing someone. I think in our hearts and in our minds we try to prepare ourself and use past experiences to "cushion the blow" if you will. It doesn't work.

Yesterday we lost a wonderful person in our CF community, Geneva. My heart goes out to her lovely sister and close friend of mine Laura, along with her new husband and extended family. It's never easy to lose someone you care about, even if you've never met them in person. These bonds form with having this disease, heck maybe that's one of the positives to pull from having CF. I don't know.

I wish there was more I could do, more I could offer for them during this time. Living across the country doesn't make it easy to be physically available. I just hope they know how loved they all are, and they are not alone in this. These feelings of anxiety, sadness, and helplessness are only a few adjectives I can even think of at the moment. I strongly dislike this, you know what, I hate it. There.

Here's to a beautiful person. I hope you are breathing easy now Geneva.

Dear rotten sinuses of mine,

2011-01-05T18:08:00.004-05:00

This post is dedicated to my (misbehaving) sinuses.

Dear Sinuses,

What was your deal today at the gym anyway? Really? I can't believe how you behaved once we walked in the door. Did you think it was appropriate to throw a tantrum like that and cause a stir? Why did you wait to start draining and make me cough my head off for 25 minutes during my run?! If you would have acted up earlier in the day I could have calmed you down much easier. You really put me in a predicament today just so you know. What, were you just jealous because I was running so you wanted to run as well!? How dare you try to cut my run short today. I hope you realized that you WILL NOT cut my run short, and I will win this! Bwah ha ha!

I want answers! ;) Ok ok, fine, be like that. Try as you may little rotten sinuses of mine to interfere with my exercise and running. Go ahead, you will see who will win every time. What, was today not proof enough!? Go ahead try me again and see what happens! You're going down!

The New Plan

2011-01-04T17:18:00.005-05:00

I thought I'd share the link to my new running plan that I've just started. Every so often I have to change up my running routine a bit. It's always nice to have a new goal, plus It gives me that little bit of excitement to go work out. Who doesn't like a bit of fresh motivation right? So here's my latest endeavor:

My Half Marathon Plan, check it out ;)

First Run of the Year...check!

2011-01-03T16:30:00.002-05:00

There were a ton of new faces at the gym today. I'm thinking a lot of people made resolutions to start exercising, I sure I hope they stick with It. I made a promise to myself a long time ago to not give up on running, I haven't, and I won't.

Today I started a new running plan to really challenge myself. To me It's intimidating, but I won't give up. It's a pretty great 1/2 marathon plan that actually looked doable and not completely scary, haha. I'm ready for it!!

Here's to the completion of day 1 which required 30 minutes (Run 1 min/walk 1 min) which for me was 2 miles. Feeling great and looking forward to the challenge!

Can't think of a better New Year's weekend

2011-01-02T18:07:00.002-05:00

We spent this weekend celebrating Christmas (and New Year) with friends. Saturday night we went out on the town to Annapolis and did our gift exchange. We ended up going to a quaint Irish pub/restaurant. It was probably built in the 1700's, old stone walls, very cool. Afterwards we went to a haunted tavern. It was indeed creepy, but oh so AWESOME!!! We then headed back to our friends house to relax the rest of the evening, enjoy champagne and eachother's company. It was perfect.

Today my best friend and I headed out to celebrate Christmas together. We exchanged gifts then headed out for coffees and manicures. It was pretty sweet to sit there and have someone massage your hands and arms while making your rough old hands look oh so pretty ;) We then went out to lunch, and did a little shopping. Looking back I'm thinking to myself, I don't think the first weekend of the new year could have been any better. I am so blessed.

Tonight It's back to reality as work is tomorrow. However I'm going to enjoy these final few hours of my mini break parked in front of the fireplace watching football. There's no place I'd rather be tonight then here with my husband and pups. Happy New Year all!

Welcome 2011!

2011-01-01T15:00:00.004-05:00

We had a fabulous New Years Eve celebration with Scott's family. We rang in 2011 with tons of family, friends, lots of love and laughter. I have to say it was the perfect start to our new year. Here's to making 2011 simply marvelous ;)

Last blog of the year!

2010-12-31T16:40:00.006-05:00

Wow, It's time to say goodbye to 2010. Without sounding terribly cliche' where the heck did this year go!? I feel like I can think of stuff that happened in early Winter like It just happened yesterday. Unbelievable.

While a reflection on some years is much happier or brighter than others, each one that we have to reflect on is a gift. For this, and so many other things I am extremely grateful.

2010 has brought a lot of things my way be it good, or not so good. I'm happy to have my wonderful husband, good health, our home, good jobs, friends, family, laughter, happiness, and the ability to LIVE our lives to the fullest.

I am so very ready for 2011 I must say though. I'm not a huge resolution person, however there are some things I'd like to tweak about myself ;) I'm also very hopeful for 2011 and grateful to be here to enjoy it as it's merely less than 7 hour away.

Here's to 2011 and to hopes, dreams, and wishes coming true! <3

Mini Vacation!

2010-12-29T16:24:00.002-05:00

Hooray for being off work until Monday! You can't see me, but I'm dancing in my chair as I type this ;) I'm so ready to have some down time and enjoy the last few days of my most favorite time of year. On the agenda is girl time and dinner tonight with a close friend and gift exchange with her girls. One of which is my Goddaughter, so I'm super excited to give them their presents. We have a New Years Eve party, Christmas with some friends, and then Christmas with my best friend on Sunday. Very busy, but very grateful for this lovely time of year.

As soon as the work day was over I ran out of the door (ok not literally) but close. I headed up to the gym and did a 2 mile run. My legs are feeling it for sure. I'm happy to report that according to my FEV1 meter, my #'s were awesome!

Here's to 4 days off work!!!!! Woo Hoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-28T18:37:00.003-05:00

It has been such a busy holiday season but I wouldn't change a thing. This is my most favorite time of year and it truly has been wonderful. We had a great Christmas and are so very fortunate for all that we have. Santa also treated us very very well this year ;)

Truth be told, I'm so sad that it is already over. I really try to absorb every single day, but alas the time still flies by. I can't believe we're already talking about New Year's Eve. Yikes! Umm 2010, where did you go exactly?

I've been running but have been a mega slacker documenting it. So yesterday I did 2 miles, and today I had to cut my workout short due to work but still managed 1.5 miles. Happy lungs= Happy Me!

Attacked by a 7 year old ;)

2010-12-19T20:18:00.006-05:00

Today we spent the day with Scott's family doing our Christmas together. It was a wonderful day all around. I think for me though, besides the obvious Christmas feel in the air was my niece's reaction to her present.

We have her a "Moxie Girl" playset. I was sitting on the floor watching all the kids open there presents chit chatting when suddenly I heard a shriek and soon after landed on my back. That's right, my 7 year old niece LOVED her present that much that she tackled me to the floor in hugs and "thank you's." I have NEVER had a better reaction. And bonus, it was caught on video ;)

Today was a good day!

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

2010-12-12T15:13:00.004-05:00

So I haven't been the best blogger on the planet for a few weeks. I, like everyone else get so busy this time of year. I LOVE it though, as It's my absolute favorite time! Haven't been great about tracking the exercise on here either, but don't worry It's being done. I'm blaming the bad blogging on the Holidays, k? ;)

This weekend has brought us a lot of holiday fun. To start things off on Friday we got together with some family and I made dinner and we watched Christmas shows on TV. It was great, and a tradition we've kept for years now. Then on Saturday I actually slept in! *Gasp* I can't remember the last time I was able to do that, ahhh perfect! After a nice cup of coffee we decorated the Christmas tree while listening to Christmas music :)

Later that night we went out to a fantastically (is that even a word?) delicious dinner. Oh yeah, It was THAT good! Also something we haven't gotten to do in so long with Scott being in school at night. Afterwards, we headed over to Starbucks for holiday flavored lattes, yum! The evening was ended with driving around looking at Christmas lights in some of our favorite neighborhoods. It-was-perfect.

Today, Sunday being one of my favorite days as I get older has brought similar holiday spirit. The Christmas music has been on all day and we made TONS of sugar cookies! I don't know If they are going to survive the day honestly ;) The goal of the day is to finish the Christmas cards and get them sent out tomorrow!

Happy Holidays to everyone! Also, please continue to keep my friend Geneva in your prayers. We are still waiting on our miracle.

We need a miracle...

2010-12-08T20:26:00.002-05:00

Please keep my friend and Cyster in your thoughts and prayers. She needs the miracle right now of a second double lung transplant. Please keep her, and her family close to your heart right now during all of this. Cystic Fibrosis sure knows how to rear it's ugly head at times. But you know what, we have an amazing community thanks to this lousy disease. For this, I am so thankful. So here's to good thoughts, prayers, love, and wishing for this miracle to happen.

SO not feeling the gym today, SO unlike me.

2010-12-02T19:27:00.003-05:00

I left work and headed up to the gym as usual. Something just didn't feel right as I walked in there today. I just didn't have my regular "let's do this" attitude. I kind of felt out of sorts and just blah maybe? I've had a ton on my mind so maybe it was weighing me down somewhat?

Anyway I pushed myself to do the Elliptical and ride the bike for a total of 20 minutes. I started to run on the treadmill and just couldn't. This is so NOT me. I decided to stop beating myself up, because I DID go, I DID exercise, and it's ok to have an off feeling day.

I got home, took care of the dogs and went to bed immediately. Just tired perhaps? Well, yes. I ended up taking a 2 hour nap. Thankfully I set my alarm clock or else maybe I would've slept all night long.

Oh, and I woke up with a sore throat :/ Perhaps this explains the weird vibes today...I think so. Oh well, at least I have an explanation of feeling so strange right?

Thanks Day 30 (My Dogs aka babies)

2010-11-30T19:03:00.004-05:00

Last, but certainly not least are my babies aka furry children Elektra and Hooper. Hands down, these two dogs completely own my heart. I could go on and on for hours about how much I love them, infact I'd never stop talking about them. They are my world, and sometimes It simply takes looking at their faces and it makes my day 100% better.

They are the best snugglers, and love bugs in the world. They have completely different personalities, yet are the best of friends. It's hard to put into words how much I love them honestly. I think I've waited to write about them simply because I wasn't sure how to express it. I still can't.

However, I am so thankful to be the Mommy of 2 of the best Canines in this world. They make my world a wonderful place. Having rescued both of them, I think they both hold a piece of my heart and always will. So here's to my wrinkly beautiful faced Rottweiler/Shepherd mix Elektra. And to my skinny insane Momma's boy Greyhound Hooper. I am thankful to have them in my life, as they are my world, my heart, and soul.

Exercise: Today's included 30 minutes on the Elliptical (jogging type) @ 1.45 miles.

Thanks Day 29 (The GYM!)

2010-11-29T17:31:00.003-05:00

I LOVE going to my gym. It's literally steps away from where I work, so It is super convenient. I actually prefer my gym be near work, that way I can go there right after working and be done! It's a pretty small gym aka no "meat heads" walking around (haha). Everyone there is very friendly, and I feel the people are very down to earth which is nice.

Everyone is different in what they choose to do for exercise. However, for me, cardio is the only way to go. I've tried yoga and just didn't feel the thing I was looking for. So I tend to rotate running, biking, and the Elliptical with different routines. As long as I have my IPOD there to pump me up, we're golden!

I always feel physically and mentally on top of the world when I've accomplished a good workout. The cardio has made a big difference in my lung function too. Just when I think I feel good, I go to the gym and really work the stuff out of my lungs, whoa then I feel great.

For the way it makes me feel, the convenience, and providing me with being able to get the job done...I am very thankful for my GYM!! :)

For todays workout I did 2 miles jogging for 30 minutes on the Treadmill (Or as I heard it referred to today.."The Dread-mill") That cracked me up ;)

Thanks Day 28 (5 Days off work!)

2010-11-28T19:24:00.002-05:00

Tonight I am very sad to see my 5 day break from work end. It was a wonderful time off, infact it was amazing. Thanksgiving x2, Black Friday, Christmas spirit, lazy time on the couch, Football...and lots of it, Family time, and pure holiday fun.

However, despite being sad it's over, I am VERY thankful that I had 5 days off to begin with. My job allows me off every weekend, and holiday. I am so thankful to have been able to have this time off, especially to spend with Scott. It's been a long time since we had so much time off together due to his school/work schedule. Goodbye 5 days off and hello back to work tomorrow. I will miss you good old days off, thank you for letting me enjoy 5 of them :)

Thanks Day 27 (Our Christmas Kick off tradition)

2010-11-28T13:36:00.003-05:00

The day after Black Friday Scott and I go out together. We usually do a little window shopping and start giving eachother ideas for Christmas presents. I love it! Then after that we always put up the Christmas tree and start decorating the house for the BEST time of year!!! (At least my favorite anyway)

We started off the day with a Starbucks stop for Pumpkin Spice Lattes. One word, delicious! Walked around the mall for a while, then had an amazing lunch at The Cheesecake Factory, my fav!!!! We both crashed when we got home and took a nap to refuel.

We got ourselves up in the attic, pulled the mound of boxes down and the decorating began!! I LOVE this time of year! One of the traditions besides the shopping, and decorating is wine. I pour us a glass of wine in a red and green wine glass. Yes yes, I know I am a huge nerd but that's ok with me ;) Oh, and the Christmas scented candles CAN NOT be lit in this house until the Fall scents have burned, and it's after Thanksgiving. So, needless to say my holiday Yankee candles are burning away making the house smell like the holiday's!

So, today (well yesterday since I'm a day behind) I'm super thankful for our Kicking off the holiday traditions. There's no one else I'd rather do these fun and special things with <3

Day 26 (Black Friday and my parents surprise!)

2010-11-27T19:50:00.002-05:00

Black Friday is one of my most favorite days of the year! Yes, I know I am officially insane in admitting that. For me, it's not just about the shopping (don't get me wrong, I love it) but it's about the start of the Christmas season, and just the feeling in the air.

My best friend and I have a tradition of going out every Black Friday. Each year our time that we meet seems to get earlier and earlier. This year we met just after 3:30 am to get in line at Target. Normally I don't "need" anything from the stores, just go for the fun. However this year I was out for a gift to surprise my parents. I bought them a 46" flat screen TV! We decided to take it over to them last night as a surprise. I had just talked to my Dad on the phone and told him I was going to bed after a long day of shopping (hehe, not). We drove over, and then walked in the door with a gigantic box. Merry early Christmas to them! They LOVED it!!!!!

Back to Black Friday...I pretty much got a few odds and ends I wanted to pick up and am finished. I was honestly about 90% done already (thank you amazon.com!) The only person to buy for is Scott, and he's mostly done online anyway so it's perfect.

Yesterdays marathon shopping lasted 15 hours. I really really wish I would've worn a pedometer all day. I'm positive we walked well over 10 miles in steps. It was an awesome day!! Here's to kicking off the Holiday's and to one of my favorite days of the year yesterday. I'm so Thankful for the fun I had and the joys of Black Friday!

Thanks Day 25 (Thanksgiving Day)

2010-11-25T19:37:00.002-05:00

Today I am so very thankful for the way I got to spend Thanksgiving day. I'm summing it up in a list, and it goes a little something like this :)

I'm Thankful For:

Sleeping in today after a wonderful yet exhausting day before of feasting and entertaining.

Waking up to a huge pot of coffee

Not taking my pajamas off all day long

Watching The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

Lounging all day and snuggling with my dogs and husband

Eating a delicious brunch prepared by my husband

Barely getting off the couch

Watching tons of football

Hearing my family members say how nice our Thanksgiving was on Wednesday

Eating way too many yummy leftovers and having good blood sugars ;)

Preparing my Black Friday list and game plan with the BFF

Going to bed early and getting extra sleep.....since I have to get up at 3:15, yes I am nuts, I know (haha)

I have to say, today was pretty much the perfect Thanksgiving, and for this and so many other reasons I am beyond Thankful.

Thanks Day 24 (Thanksgiving Eve)

2010-11-25T10:21:00.002-05:00

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving we have our dinner with my Mom's side of the family. Last night was our dinner at our home. I got up early to run a few errands, pick up my Mom, and start cooking. We spent all day in my kitchen preparing every last drop of food. It was great! One of my absolute favorite things to do is to cook!

Overall we ended up having 16 people at the dinner table. Those that were there truly made it a wonderful Thanksgiving. To me, there is nothing like having your family sit around a HUGE table, laughing, talking, telling stories, and just being thankful for being together. It was perfect. Oh and the smells of the Thanksgiving food lingering in the house all day long, yum!

As part of our blessing last night I wanted to recognize my Mother. We had a very rough year with her, and her health. I honestly didn't even know if we'd be where we are right now. She's come a long way in the last 8 months and I couldn't be happier with her progress. I finally have my Mother back. For this, and our Thanksgiving Eve dinner, I am so very thankful.

Thanks Day 23 (Short work weeks)

2010-11-23T20:20:00.002-05:00

This week was only a 2 day work week for me and it is O-V-E-R! I was so excited when I got up this morning knowing it's almost Thanksgiving and today is my last day of work until Monday! Woo Hoo!

My Mom's side of the family celebrates Thanksgiving on Wednesday, we have for years now. The last 2 years I've hosted it at our house. That means today after leaving work meant a lot of preparation for tomorrows festivities.

So here's to a fun week ahead, and being off until Monday! I am VERY thankful for a 5 day break. Yippee :)

Thanks Day 22 (Automatic Refills!)

2010-11-22T16:34:00.004-05:00

Oh automatic refills how I love thee. On Sunday's I sort out all my medications for the next week. I organize them into the "AM and PM" categories. It is so convenient, and well worth the few minutes it takes to do this.

So yesteray as I'm refilling everything I realized I had zero Nexiums left. Uh-Oh! I NEED my Nexium. I mean NEED NEED NEED! Yikes, I semi panicked then ran to the computer to check my Rx website. According to their records since I am an automatic refiller the Nexium was sent to me in October. Hmmm, really? *scratches forehead*.

I go into the closet which holds all my meds, and lookie there...in a random box was my precious unopened Nexium! Ahhhh. *breathes sigh of relief and jumps for joy*. Thank you automatic refills for keeping me on track and slapping me when I needed you so ;)

Thanks Day 21 (Get-Togethers)

2010-11-21T19:28:00.002-05:00

Today we hosted our annual football party. Originally I had it scheduled for last month, then somehow my brain malfunctioned when I realized that I'd planned the party for the same day Scott was in a wedding! Doh! Luckily it was no biggie and easy to reschedule. Around this time of year schedules start to fill up, but we were able to fit it in and everyone had a great time!

Today my Ravens played Carolina, and I'm sure you could hear us screaming and cheering across the country! WOO HOO!!! Throwing parties, or small get togethers is one of my favorite things to do. I love love love to entertain! Making food, drinks, and preparing to have a house full of people is just awesome to me!

So we made tons of food, had great drinks, wonderful family and friends, and a wonderful day. Of course the day was even better since my Ravens won ;) And for all of these things, I am VERY thankful.

Thanks Day 18 (My Co-workers)

2010-11-18T18:05:00.002-05:00

I've been at my job for just about 7 years now, and love it. I work for great physicians, it's close to home, and I truly love the type of nursing it is. I really lucked out when I stumbled upon the teeny tiny ad in the newspaper looking for a nurse.

My job would be no where near as enjoyable or tolerable as it is without my coworkers. I've never had a job where we've had such a close knit group of people who genuinely care about eachother. I absolutely love it. My coworkers are more than just that, they are my dear friends, and in some ways my family. Today, I am thankful for my wonderful coworkers.

Thanks Day 16 (Back massages!)

2010-11-16T16:36:00.003-05:00

I'm a day late, oops! Somehow I've managed to hurt my back....bad. It's at the base, and boy does it burn. I have no clue what I did to it, but I'm well aware that it is not a happy member of my body at present time. My back seems to give me trouble, a lot honestly. I'm always asking my husband for a back rub and I know he gets tired of it (sorry bunky). It's the ONLY thing that works though, and he is THE BEST.

Maybe It's more than just helping my back though. I notice that if he massages my back I always breathe better. Makes sense, increasing blood flow to the muscles and organs, hence supplying more oxygen. Whatever the case, I.Love.Back.Massages!

I am so thankful for them and the relief they give my back. Oh and I'm super thankful for my husband's willingness to always help :)

Thanks Day 14 (My Inlaws)

2010-11-14T20:09:00.005-05:00

Today we spent the day with Scott's family for Thanksgiving. A little early, yes, but they are going to Disney World during Thanksgiving so we had to. It was such a nice day, and the food was delicious. As I stated on Facebook, I'm glad I wore my loose fitting jeans today ;)

I am very thankful to have married into a wonderful family. Scott is the youngest of 4. I have a great Mother In Law and Father In Law. This also brought me 3 Brother In Laws, as well as 3 Sister In Laws. And to round out the greatness, I have 4 nieces and 2 nephews which I adore. I am so thankful to have such a wonderful family. It's nice to actually enjoy spending time with you Inlaws, not because you have to, but because you want to. It's a lovely thing.

So on top of wonderful food, laughter, and all together family filled day...it's this I am so very thankful for.

Thanks Day 13 (CF support system)

2010-11-13T22:06:00.003-05:00

Ok, so I missed yesterday (Day 12), sorry. I was having a pretty good day, and even made it into work for the first time in a week! Then about half way through the day I knew I had pushed my body to the max and went home. I then slept like I bear in hibernation for hours. I then got a fever shortly after, bummer. I then went to bed early and never made my post for yesterday. However I'm happy to report I have now been fever free fro 24 hours! This is HUGE!!! Good-bye rotten virus! Thank you Immune System!

Today was a sad day in our CF world. We lost one of our dear members, a cyster of mine named Jennifer. I have to admit I was shocked and speechless when I read the news earlier. Infact, I still am having a hard time wrapping my head around it. I want to do my best by pulling the positive from a situation like this, despite how awful it is. So tonight as we've lost one of our own, I am thankful for the wonderful support system I have gained in the CF community. We are there for eachother, support eachother, understand, lend shoulders to vent, or cry on, celebrate accomplishments, and are there for eachother in these awful times. Despite this disease, I am thankful for the amazing people CF has led to me to meet and share my life, and my story with.

Thanks Day 11 (Fresh Air)

2010-11-11T16:40:00.004-05:00

Being cooped up in the house for almost a week now has almost driven me mentally insane. I'm so used to being on the go, and not stuck in the house. However, I've listened to my body all week and rested.

Today I did venture out of the house and it felt great!

I met Scott for lunch at a local restaurant, and did great. I did wake up with a fever at 5 am, but have been fever free ever since. So this was sort of a trial run to see If I really am feeling better. It was so refreshing to just walk outside and smell the Fall air and the coolness on my face. Driving...man that was exciting too! Not driving for a week has been so weird.

Overall I was just so thankful to be outside today functioning normally! The fresh air was superb. Tomorrow, I will attempt to actually go to work. We'll see how that goes. Here's hoping the fever stays away!!!

Thanks Day 10 (Hydration)

2010-11-10T20:07:00.002-05:00

I woke up with another fever today, and decided it was time to see the Primary care Doc. Flu, and Mono were negative thankfully. Altough they said I still could have one of the hundreds of unknown flu strains. My bloodwork was ok overall. But the major finding was SEVERE DEHYDRATION. Despite me trying to drink a ton of water, the fevers have been winning and dehydrating me.

So I ended up getting stuck 3 times which was no fun. I have wonderfully huge veins, but today those veins were somewhere else. Oh that's right, they were off in the land of dehydration. So we get an IV in, and about 500cc's into the IV bag my wrist swelled up like a golf ball because it had infiltrated.

I was sent home to hydrate orally today, again. Only today I was given specific instructions which was helpful in making this happen. Scott brought me home 2 big gatorades to aide, and they have been great (I love gatorade).

The good news is that today I've been fever free since this morning's temperature check! I've been rehydrating, and sleeping my head off. I've woken up a few times completely drenched in sweat, eww. Oh well, I'm hoping with everything I've got, that the hydration has knocked this virus down and out for good!

THANK YOU HYDRATION!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks Day 9 (Feeling Better!)

2010-11-09T16:24:00.002-05:00

Still at home today tackling whatever germ(s) decided to invade. I'm happy because after a very rough night of about zero sleep, topped with fever, chills, and aches, today has been much better! My body is showing this crud who's boss. I'm very proud of my bodies resiliance :) Don't mess with us! So today, in short, I'm thankful for feeling better, and well, more human as opposed to zombie-like.

Thanks Day 8 (My cold not being a CF thing)

2010-11-08T09:18:00.006-05:00

I'm home sick today (boo-hiss). No fun at all, but heck we all have to go through it. Thankfully I don't feel that it is respiratory at all. My FEV1 is great, my lungs are clear, and my sinuses are behaving. What I do have is a lovely fever, chills, and body aches sort of deal. Still, I'd rather it be something like this than something with my lungs. No thank you!

So today I'll be spending the day in bed snuggling with my dogs. I'll be wrapped up in huge comforters, have a heating pad on my back, watching TV (Food Network of course) all day long, while sweating out this nasty thing.

Yes it totally stinks that I'm feeling under the weather, but I'm sure thankful it doesn't appear not a CF thing :)

Thanks Day 7 (Lazy Sunday's)

2010-11-07T16:52:00.004-05:00

I've been feeling slightly under the weather this weekend. It honestly just feels like exhaustion, not like I'm actually sick. My body feels super tired for some reason.

There are a few things combined that make me love my lazy Sunday's so very much. First, being day light savings time again, we get an extra hour of laziness ;) Also, it's Fall (my favorite) which means It's Football season (Go Ravens)!! All of these things make Sunday's absolutely perfect.

I'm thankful to have had the opportunity today to lay around on the couch and do absolutely nothing today. It was perfect, and something I don't do quite enough. Ahh, I still have a few more hours of lazy Sunday to enjoy...see you tomorrow :)

Thanks Day 6 (Being a Godmother)

2010-11-06T16:32:00.003-04:00

Today I am thankful that I have been chosen to be a Godmother. To me, it is the biggest honor I could've been asked. I am blessed to have 2 wonderful Goddaughters who mean the world to me. I adore them both, and any time I get to spend time with them simply makes my world.

After an incredibly LONG and beyond stressful work week I get to spend the evening with one of my Goddaughters tonight. I can't wait. Being a Godmother to me isn't only an honor but a commitment to these girls. I want them to know that I will always be there for them, and will do whatever they need. Granted they are currently only 13 months, and 19 months, but still ;)

I am Thankful today have been chosen to be a Godmother to my wonderful Allison and Kara. <3

Thanks Day 5 (Campfires)

2010-11-05T19:34:00.003-04:00

One of my favorite things to do this time of year, or really any time is to have a campfire. Scott built us a fire pit in our backyard and we spend a lot of time sitting around a campfire. I love it.

Tonight was one of those nights. After a long week of work and feeling completely exhausted, we "vegged out" and sat around the camfire with the dogs. It was cool and crisp outside, so wearing a hoodie was a must. We roasted marshmallows and just relaxed while being mesmerized by the flames that kept us warm.

Did I mention that our dinner was an entire bag of marshmallows? ;)

Exercise today: 15 minute jog @ 1 mile, and 15 minute jog on Elliptical @ .63 miles.

Thanks Day 4 (My Best Friend)

2010-11-04T20:55:00.004-04:00

I love my best friend, and as every day, today I am thankful for her. It's been a very rough week at work and she totally understands it, amongst everything else about me. You see, she too is a Registered Nurse, and she works with me 3 days a week. After yesterday's day of work we decided we needed a mini retail therapy night, stat! ;)

We've been through a lot together. We started working together as teenagers as hostesses at a local restaurant. We survived Nursing School together (though not in the same class), been through the break-ups, weddings, house buying, my pregnancy and loss, CF, I could go on and on....

My best friend obviously holds all of qualities that, well, a "Best Friend" has. However my favorite thing is her ability to make me laugh. Infact no other friend can make me laugh like her. We can merely make eye contact and she knows exactly what I'm thinking. I can imagine what she's going to say and just about lose it laughing hysterically. She listen to me, supports me, and best of all, is my Gym buddy. I am very fortunate.

Today after work we met up and got together to run a few errands which was just lovely. She listened as I talked to her about my own current stressors, and big things I'm going through. What started out as a coffee date, turned into some Christmas shopping (that's right I said Christmas shopping, GAH!) and a cheap but fun dinner at Wendy's :)

A blog post simply can't do it justice on how important my Best Friend is to me. But today I'd like the bloggie world to know how thankful I am for her.

Day 3 of Thanks (Wednesday Date Nights)

2010-11-03T17:00:00.006-04:00

Since Scott's in school for his 2nd degree in computers, it doesn't allow us to really see each other during the week, except for Wednesday's that is. That is the one night he doesn't have classes (maybe the occasional homework) but he's mine all mine at home :)

We've decided to make Wednesday night our date night. To me (us) it's just perfect If I say so myself. By date night, I don't mean going out to dinner, we don't even leave the house. The rules are that when you walk in the door, it's time for comfy clothes, we throw in our favorite frozen pizza, and watch Ghost Hunters that have Tivo'd for the week.

Tonight's date night was lovely. We decided to pop open a bottle of wine and just enjoy each others company...while chowing down on pizza, and a cheese tray with crackers. Yummy. My stomach is very happy, as is my heart ;)

It.Is.Fabulous! I look forward to Wednesday's so much!! I miss my best friend during the week, but am thankful for our time we get together <3

Today's exercise included: Circuit training! 10 minutes on the Elliptical (.5 miles), 10 minutes on the bike (2 miles), and 15 minutes jogging (with cool down @ 1 mile). It felt awesome!

30 days of Thanks (Day 2) My VOICE (3 fold)

2010-11-02T18:27:00.004-04:00

Whoa isn't that like the longest blog title ever? :)

Today's Thankfulness is my voice. Not just the the sound that comes out of my larynx, but indeed more than that. Let me explain..

Today is Election Day all over America. I am so thankful to have a "voice" in the election. I'm allowed to voice my opinion, and it counts. How cool is that? This is something I don't take for granted and am very appreciative of most definitely. It's an honor to walk in to the voting facility and cast my ballot.

Another aspect of my voice is that I still have it. I've recently started back on Tobi and am just waiting for my voice to disappear. But guess what?, it hasn't! Hooray for still being able to speak, even though there is a slight hoarseness going on, I have my voice. I'm sure sounding like Rachael Ray isn't too far off, but today I have my voice for which I am thankful.

Lastly, my voice was heard at work today and I am very proud of that. To say the least I am completely non-confrontational, hate conflict, and am NOT good at voicing my opinion. I guess you could say I tend to hold things in. Well, one of the doctors was throwing a "mantrum" today (Male Tantrum) and I let it be known that it wasn't acceptable. Ahhh, my voice sure did me proud today. Today, this is what I am thankful for!

Exercise today included: 40 minutes on the Elliptical @ 1.65 miles :) I also joined what I think is an AMAZING running opportunity today. Go over to CL and check it out here!

30 Days Of Thankfulness (Day 1)

2010-11-01T17:11:00.004-04:00

I got this idea from my wonderful cyster Colleen's blog (thanks Colleen!) This is such a wonderful idea so I'm going to partake in it. I have to say without sounding like I'm tooting my own horn, but I'm grateful each and every day and make it known. It could be the smallest thing like a cloud in the sky, to something large, like receiving good news. I honestly make sure each day that I am grateful, and now I get to write about it. I have to be honest, it' s going to be hard to choose just 1 topic each day. Where do I start....life, health, husband, dogs, friends, family, career, being alive...here goes!

Today I am thankful for my wonderful doctor. I had an outpatient procedure today that went a little off the planned course to say the least. He was wonderful and talked me through everything. He gave me hope and reassurance, and was every bit of how a doctor should be. Despite being tired and a little uncomfortable, I'm choosing to focus on how lucky I am to be in such great care. I am thankful for the incredible thoroughness of my doctor. Today this is what I am very thankful for.

No exercise today, as the doctor ordered rest for me :)

Happy Halloween!!

2010-10-31T17:33:00.003-04:00

Today is one of our favorite days here at the Muir house. Scott LOVES Halloween, more than Christmas, I can't go that far ;) However he goes all out on this night and people really look forward to it.

I think what makes our house so unique is that he sets up a movie screen in the front yard and plays Halloween movies all night long. We don't play anything super scary, but some good classics and stuff that the kiddies in the neighborhood like.

Each year our best friends come over too, and partake in our tradition. This year on our Halloween menu is a lot of good stuff I think. I made crock pot chili, taco dip, sweet corn cake, 2 loaves of pumpkin bread, and we have apple cider (spiked) mulling as well. YUMMY! I can't wait to dive into the feast.

The food is ready, the movies are playing, the fog machine is doing it's thing. Now time to sit back, relax and enjoy one of our favorite days of Fall. Happy Halloween everyone!!

That's It I'm DONE!

2010-10-29T09:03:00.002-04:00

Colistin has finally beaten me. I've tried every single trick I know on how to deal with the inflammation and these awful side effects. Last night was the final straw for me.

I noticed at work that I was feeling REALLY short of breath and overall like I'd been hit by a truck. So when I got home I did my FEV1 monitor and realized, my #'s had dropped about 15%!!!!! No wonder I was having a difficult time :( I took it upon myself to stop it (don't worry Hopkins will be made aware). I just can't keep doing this every other month and hurting my brain trying to work something out.

I think part of the problem is that I'm so used to being on an inhaled antibiotic ALL THE TIME that I think I need it. Maybe not. I'm so open to trying new things, so that's what I'm going to do now.

For the next 2-3 weeks that I should have been on Colistin I'm going to see if it's ok to do this:
Hypertonic saline 2x/day
Pulmozyme 2x/day (if appropriate)
Hit the gym like usual so no gunk can settle.

I'm hoping my plan works, if not I'm not sure what we'll do since the last time I was on TOBI it was a sudden nightmare of side effects as well. I'm sure there are a lot of CF'ers out there who aren't on something every single month. I need to see experiment because for now it's Colistin-1, Jess-0.

30 Minutes of Hell = :)

2010-10-27T15:27:00.002-04:00

The sinus drainage reared it's ugly head again this morning. I could not only feel it in my head, but in my chest too, and it wasn't pretty. I checked my #'s with my FEV1 meter and wasn't thrilled to say the least. I was able to sleep without interruption and needing cough medicine last night which was so nice. Today, first thing, I loaded up on my Atrovent spray. That stuff is like a miracle for my sinuses. It stopped the drainage and let me get my workout in at lunch time...

Today at the gym it was a tough work out for sure because I felt so tight in my chest already. I decided to do the Elliptical for a full 30 minutes on a higher resistance than normal. It was killer! I was sweating SO much, and then began coughing my head off. Don't get me wrong, this is totally a good thing! :) By the time I was finished I was completely soaked and looked like I had just gotten out of the shower. Yowza!

After that workout my #'s improved drastically, and my sinuses seem much happier as am I ;)

30? More like 80.

2010-10-26T18:20:00.003-04:00

According my birth certificate I am 30 years old. According to the clicks, grinds, and aches of my joints I'm apparently 80 years old. I was so wore out at work today that all I wanted to do was crawl into bed and nap. Instead I came home and got on our Elliptical for 20 minutes. Whoa momma, what a difference than the one at the gym. It was T-O-U-G-H! I'm happy that I survived the "at home" workout today, and am even happier to give my 80 year-old-feeling body a break....until tomorrow ;)

The Never Ending Sinus Rinse!

2010-10-25T16:12:00.002-04:00

Along with the beauty of the Fall here in Maryland comes a vast aray of snot related issues ;) Today I'd like to focus on the Sinus Rinses. I've been trying to do mine definitely once, if not twice a day during this time of year. Last night before bed I decided to do one more before bed in hopes that it would stop the drainage and I'd be able to sleep all night, wrong.

Anywho....little did I know what was capable of coming out of these good old sinuses of mine ;) OH.MY.GOODNESS! Where the heck does it all come from!? Does it ever end!? It's SO gross, but man does it feel good to get it all out of there. Ok, enough booger talk, sorry. I just can't believe that doing these rinses twice a day and still I'm shocked at what's taking up residence near my brain. Ok, done, I promise.

Today's gym routine was a sweaty one. I bought a few shirts like the Under Armour ones, only these are from Target ( a lot cheaper, and boy's size) woo hoo. I must say these things are amazing! I did the Elliptical for 25 minutes, and the bike for 5 minutes, and lifted weights. Time sure does fly working out when you are being entertained by watching "Ellen."

Happy Monday All!

For Me, Exercise is proof.

2010-10-23T21:01:00.003-04:00

For those of you who follow this blog, it's no surprise that I have a hard time on Colistin months. Though every other month I do my best and just, well, deal with it. I weigh the pro's and cons and it boils down to this....Fighting of PA vs. chest tightness, hence the "dealing" part.

On top of Colistin this time of year, be it my favorite, is awful for me health wise. Fall allergies are my enemy though I don't like to admit it. Every night for the past week, I've been woken up by horendous sinus drainage, coughing, etc. I should take stock in nasal spray, zicam, and lozenges this time of year. But it's the whole mind set of doing whatever it takes to get through something.

This morning I woke up all kinds of junky in my chest, sinus drainage, you name it, it was happening. I blew into my FEV1 monitor and was NOT happy at all. Although, it would have been more of a shock if I'd have felt "normal." Luckily, I did not. On Colistin my #'s go down because of the bronchospasms, but this was worse.

We had planned a big hike today, and I knew that exercise would be the BEST thing for me and to make my lungs feel better. After about 3 or 4 hours out on the trails and a total of a mostly uphill hike of 5 miles, my lungs got the workout that they NEEDED so badly.

I worked those lungs hard today, and am happy to say that when I got home and blew into the FEV1 monitor, my #'s were up by about 1/4. For me, exercise was my proof today on how important and imperative it is for my precious little wind bags :)

For the Love of Circuit Training

2010-10-22T10:21:00.003-04:00

Yesterday at the gym I decided to switch things up. The reason being that I had a board meeting after work which I knew would go late into the evening. I had to figure out a quick way to get in my gym time, so I thought why not do some circuit training?

So on my lunch break I did a 30 minute workout which consisted of 3, 10 minute circuits. I challenged myself to really kick it up and boy did I! The first was 10 minutes on the Elliptical as fast as I could go. Then the treadmill for a 10 minute run. Lastly was the bike for 10 minutes. Overall I did about 4 miles which was awesome.

I can't remember the last time a workout was so intense! I LOVED it! I'll definitely be doing circuits more frequently.

Workout. Interuppted.

2010-10-18T18:19:00.005-04:00

Today at the gym, I was rocking out to with my iPOD on the Elliptical. Little did I realize that my cell phone was ringing and it was the Alarm company from work. Apparently our alarm at our surgery center was going off. Rats! I jumped off the Ellpitical after 15 minutes to run down the street to make sure everything was ok. Luckily it was...

It was my fault, I forgot to lock the door. Ah well, at least the alarm was set right!? ;)

That's what I get for chit-chatting outside of work. Hello brain where are you?

Anyway back to the gym I went. I wasn't going to let an alarm going off interfere with my workout. So I jumped back on and did the Ellpitical for about 10-15 more minutes. I got my half hour in, some extra adrenaline from the alarm call, and over all happy lungs. Yay :)

My First Boss's Day!

2010-10-16T10:12:00.003-04:00

I walked into work with to the biggest surprise yesterday. I had a GORGEOUS bouquet of Fall flowers on my desk, a pumpkin spice latte (my favorite), the most touching card, and a box of yummy snacks!

At first I was super confused, but then I looked at my calendar with a red face of embarrassment and realized it was Boss's Day! WOW! I never expected all of this, but it literally set the tone for an amazing day.

I've been adjusting to being the Nurse Manager for about 3 months now. I've been pretty nervous and unsure of myself, but yesterday made me feel like I was going to be ok. It's hard to have worked with this amazing group of people and then to be in charge of them. In a sense It's wonderful because they are simply the BEST. There is no way I would have accepted this job any other way. They are the ones that make it worth while.

Yesterday this boss had a busy day after work so I had to use my lunch break to hit up the gym. It was nice, no one was there! I did the Elliptical for 15 minutes, and rode the bike for 15 minutes. Kick butt workout for sure!

This weekend is a busy one as our friends are getting married. My legs are happy to have a much needed break I'm sure ;)

Today, CF didn't seem so bad...

2010-10-13T17:23:00.003-04:00

Too many times in the Nursing field we have to tell patients bad, or grave news. Does it ever get easier? No, absolutely not. We had a patient today that came in to be evaluated for abdominal pain. As a GI Nurse I expect to see the usual, non life threatening findings post operatively. Not today.

She is only 43 years young, and prior to even starting her IV we got bad news. The radiologist called to tell us her CT scans showed cancer "everywhere." It has taken over her entire abdominal cavity, and beyond. I think it may have been one of the saddest cases we've ever seen.

We brought back the family to talk to them which we do with every patient, as they have just been sedated. She knew before the Doctor even spoke. She cried, her parents cried, we cried...There was nothing we could say. She began to gasp for breath and said "This is treatable right? I want to Live." At that moment our hearts were torn in half for her.

I later spoke privately to her doctor and asked him about her prognosis. He said she probably won't be here in 6 months :( It was today that I got some amazing perspective about my disease, my life, and my care. I think we are still numb from this patient, but if anything I tried to put a positive spin on these events, and thought, you know what sometimes CF isn't so bad.

Today's exercise consisted of 25 minutes of jogging on the treadmill.

"Oh She's an ATHLETE!" you talkin' to me!?

2010-10-12T15:47:00.004-04:00

I've had a crazy busy few days, so this is a catch-up exercise blog :) Recently we went to our FAVORITE Fall Festival in Western MD and walked all day long. I really wish I'd had a pedometer, because I'm sure it would have been up there! By the end of the day these legs wanted nothing to do but be lazy.

We also recently went on an amazing hike. We ran into a huge family of deer, saw huge waterfalls, and all the lovely trees changing. It was perfect! That day our total hiking was just under 3 miles. I should add that some of those hills were so steep, I think they were more like mountains ;)

As for the gym the past 2 days I've worked out a little longer than I normally do. No reason really, maybe it's the good tunes on the iPOD (hehe). Anyway I've been doing 25 minutes on the Elliptical, and about 35 on the treadmill. By the end I'm a salty sweaty mess, but that's ok....I had 2 people walk past me the other day and say "Oh She's an Athlete!" Umm, don't mind me as a turn my head and look at you like you are nuts. Are you talkin' to me!? YES they were! (Insert huge cheesey grin here)

PFT's say what!?

2010-10-07T20:44:00.003-04:00

Well today was the quarterly Hopkins CF visit that we all love ;) I've been fighting a cold for a bit now, but have been feeling so much better thankfully. I was anxious about PFT's even though If they were down I had a darn good reason for it. Still, I'm a perfectionist, and a worrier, so I was still anxious about it.

Well....*Drum Roll Please* I knocked the PFT's out of the park! Each time they went up significantly. I honestly couldn't believe it. I went up 3% from 3 months ago, and haven't blown #'s that good in 5 years!!!!!!!!!! I haven't blown #'s like that, consistently in almost 10 years!!!

I'm beyond THRILLED right now! I guess the Gym is really paying off, and I couldn't be HAPPIER!!! Here's to some much needed good news!

"I Miss Your Blog"....so much to catch up on!

2010-10-05T21:57:00.005-04:00

I feel pretty honored to actually have people like to read my blog and wonder where the heck I've been. Believe me, I haven't not blogged just to be recognized. September was a very hard month in this house, and honestly I just wasn't even sure how to put into words how I felt about things. So on to better things and time to get back to what I like to do...blog!

To sum things up in a nut-shell if you will, my month started off with terrible tragedy. I went over to my parents house to shower because our water system had went up. I walk in the door, and my Father sits me down and said he and Mom had terrible news to tell me. I thought I was going to pass out. My 17 year old cousin who had cerebral palsy passed away in his sleep. To say I was shocked would be the understatement of the year. I can't even explain it. I felt completely numb for days. Our family is in mourning and I still can't even wrap my head around it all to be honest.

I ran another 5K on September 11th. It was respectfully called the "Run to Remember" and it was the most emotional touching races I've ever run. Overall I'm happy with my time and proud of myself. I was on Colistin during the time of the 5K so my chest was tight (side effect) but I still did it, hills and all. What an amazing way to honor our fallen heroes and their families.

We went on a cruise to New England and Canada 2 weeks ago. I can't even begin to explain how WONDERFUL it was to get away!!! There was a slight chill in the air, the leaves were starting to change, and just an overall Fall feeling. This is my favorite time of year, we thoroughly enjoyed it. That reminds me, I really need to post some pics!

My souvenier that I brought back was one I wish I hadn't...a raging sinus/chest cold. I thought I had it by just doing sinus rinses, but turns out I had an ear infectin so the sinus rinses just added to it. Note to those who do sinus rinses, DO NOT use them if you have clogged/blocked ears, or suspect an ear infection. Ouch.

I've been on Levaquin for almost 2 weeks now. I can't complain though, it finally seems to be helping me. This is a stubborn old cold and I want it outta here please. I haven't been on oral abx since January so I'm pretty happy about that.

Aside from the CF stuff, without delving into too much on here, I got diagnosed with stage 4 endometriosis in September as well. It came as a shock to me, but I'm doing my best in taking it all in and making sense of it all...believe me it's hard.

My job has been a major stresser to me. Without sounding like a negative nancy, It's just an adjustment and I need to stay focused and not give up. I need to realize I have to power to make things better and do it. It's been causing me a lot of anxiety which I'm not used to at all, bummer.

Scott is in college working on his 2nd degree after work during the week. It's hard not seeing him all week, but my goodness I am so proud of him, his hard work, dedication, and drive are amazing to me.

I've been working out 4 days a week at the gym and things are going well there. All during the cruise we hit the gym, and the track, so I didn't miss a beat. Infact on the ship I was referred to as an "athlete" I was glowing after I heard that :)

This past weekend we went away for the weekend camping with Scott's family. It was wonderful to be in the woods, outdoors, and be around family that I love all weekend long. I am very fortunate for that.

I decided to take some down time for myself with last months whirlwind things happening. I've always had a MAJOR fascination with JFK and Jackie Kennedy, and well, the whole Kennedy clan since I was about 9 years old or so. I'm reading a great book about them right now, and am hooked to say the least.

I'm sure I forgot things, but that's the gist of it all....

Things aren't awful, I'm not a negative person to harp on things. However, September was rough, and in the words of Green Day..."wake me up when September ends"...

Giving Colistin another try...

2010-09-06T12:01:00.003-04:00

This morning I got up early and decided that yes I may be off work today, but I can't take a break from running. Instead of going to the gym I ran around my neighborhood. It was the perfect weather for it too, cool crispy fall-like in the low 70's, ahhhh. I did 2 miles in 28 minutes. I have to say I really feel a difference when running outside. I suppose it's all the hills that I don't have on the treadmill. I'm excited since I only have 5 more days until my 5K!

I'm giving Colistin another go. It has caused me some bronchospasms in the past, but I decided to see how I did this month. So far so good I must say. I think I have to realize that It does make my lungs tighter, but it's killing the bugs. My FEV1 meter shows a decline when I'm on it, but in the big picture the PA is having it's butt kicked so I should be happy. It's VERY easy for me to obsess over that little monitor. Heck if It's not preventing me from running It can't be that bad right? ;)

Avoiding the Plague

2010-09-02T20:45:00.004-04:00

Scott has had a terrible cold/virus since last Friday. I've been doing everything possible to avoid it believe me. It does help to live in a split foyer I must say. Scott's been living downstairs and I've been upstairs. I think we've both washed our hands to the point where they just may fall off ;) Oh well, you can't be too careful right? I just hope he gets to feeling better soon, I don't catch it, and we can actually be in the same room together. I really have missed my buddy aka wonderful husband this week for sure.

Change of Pace

2010-08-31T21:09:00.003-04:00

Today at the gym I was really on a time crunch, but knew I had to get my workout in. I decided to take a break from the treadmill since I feel like an 87 year old lady today ;) I did the Eliptical instead and liked it....a lot actually. The ones that the gym are so nice and glide so well, no so much like the one we have at home. Before I knew it 25 minutes had gone by, and I was a sweaty salty mess. Guess that means a good workout eh? Tomorrow is break day, and I think this body will be happy to let these muscles chill for 24 hours. Until then....

Moving on Up

2010-08-30T19:05:00.003-04:00

Poor Scott was plagued by a horrible cold/virus on Friday. It was so bad that we actually had to pass on going to the Ravens game Saturday night. Ahem, to miss a football is a big deal you ask?! Oh yes it is in this house!! Poor guy had fevers, congestion, you name it, he had it. The whole weekend was spent resting and fighting this infection. Me, I spent it avoiding Scott like the plague unfortunately.

So far so good (Knock on wood!) I went to the gym today after taking a few days off last week due to my bowel obstruction I had last Monday. My body needed some rest, plus I'm not sure the pain I felt would've even let me attempt to run. Anyway feeling great and moving on.... I had a hard run and loved every bit of the 30 minutes it lasted. I realized today that my 5K is only 2 weeks away!!!

Today's Totals:

Ran 30 minutes

Total 2.1 miles

Pulse 165 max

Weight training: bicep routines

My FEV1 monitor is showing numbers that I REALLY like too! I gave Colistin another 'whirl' after stopping due to some side effects. I have to say, so far so great! Here's to more running, feeling good, and positive things this week!

Too Sensitive? Maybe.

2010-08-28T13:38:00.002-04:00

I can't help but feel a little, hurt, maybe even frustrated. This may sound very silly, but let's face it we can't help the way we feel right? It's a simple thing, yet something that has really been bothering me. I feel like when you email friends/family etc. about stuff that is going on, especially when you've had a recent illness it would be nice if they acknowledged it. I feel that when I am a part of emails, and someone is sick, hurt, upset, or stressed, I try to respond quickly and lend a helping hand or thought. I suppose my feelings are just a little hurt that after having some bumps in the road lately, I haven't gotten what I feel I always give....

When Life Hands you Lemons....

2010-08-27T18:28:00.002-04:00

Oh it was that kind of a week no doubt, and I hope that I have officially seen the end of GI issues for a bit. I think I've officially paid my dues in the Gastroenterology department. Earlier this month it was Gallstones, and after seeing my GI doc he clarified I did NOT have pancreatitis, bonus. Although on Monday night I had a raging bowel obstruction that sent me to the ER. Awful, just awful.

To see the silver lining which I'd rather do, my body is amazing. My body passed those stones early this month, and we've been feeling good "stone wise" ever since. The bowel obstruction situtation was brought on by steamed crabs, so I need to make some changes there. Over all I am so grateful because my body naturally took care of itself and fixed itself without major intervention. Honestly all it took in both situations was some good old aggressive IV fluids. For this I am happy beyond belief. Me and my "gut" have been through a lot this August, but she's tough ;)

That all being said, I am so ready to move on. I had my follow up with my GI doctor on Wednesday and he made me feel so much better! He said "Jessica I just think you've had a run of bad luck this month, you are doing wonderfully!" I don't think he realized just how much on so many levels I needed to hear those words. Again, for this I am grateful. For now it's on to healthier things, positive moments, and a lot of HOPE.

"When you are at the end of your rope, tie a knot and hold on"

My First Blog Award :)

2010-08-22T20:51:00.002-04:00

I received this awesome blog award from my Cyster Colleen. I love having such a great network of those who also have CF. It sure is wonderful to have such amazinginly supportive and understanding people. If you haven't, go check out her blog, here! Thank you Colleen!! :)

SMOKING!! The RN vs. CF...

2010-08-21T09:20:00.005-04:00

I found myself in a tough place yesterday at work. I had a patient call and ask about if she was able to smoke before she came in for her procedure because of her "nerves." Of course I told her no way, but I actually had to convince her as to why. This slightly boggled my mind, and my brain had a hard time comprehending it. Well the CF side of my brain anyway...

I sat there on the phone with her telling her the risks of anesthesia causing respiratory depression and that cigarettes on top of that do not work (in a nut shell). I found myself quietly frustrated. I had to remind myself that this woman has no clue that I have a lung disease and how pissed off I am right now. She's just calling her nurse for advice, and that was who I had to be and was for her, her Nurse. This woman never knew how much I wanted to blurt out and somewhat go off the handle about lungs period. How she is a typically healthy woman who is choosing to kill her lungs, when those of us born with CF have no choice but to try and stop that from happening.

I hung up the phone with her after I gave her the Nurse's side of my advice. The CF side of me was frustrated, but proud of how I kept my composure and did my job. I then went off to the gym for my "other job" of keeping my lungs as best as they can be.

My body despises Cross Training

2010-08-19T16:23:00.003-04:00

I've been a rule breaker. Not really hard core, just funny really. My running plan calls for 4 days of running, 1 day of rest with a day of walking, and a day of cross training. I have yet to do the cross training honestly so I gave it a shot today. Now it's not like it's anything major it's just my stubborness in my brain. I have such a rush from running, and such an amazing feeling afterwards that I have no desire to do anything else.

Today I decided to follow the rules if you will and do the cross training. I did it, but my brain can't comprehend it, as if it rejects it. I did the bike, walked on the treadmill eventhough I was itching to crank it up and run, and did the eliptical.

Boo. Hiss. I watched the clock the whole time, tick, tock, slowly. I thought it was never going to end. I guess I am just so used to what I do and I actually feel the results by running. I reluctantly followed the rules and I'm glad I listened, but boy it wasn't easy.

New Nebulizer + 2 more miles

2010-08-18T20:51:00.004-04:00

I am officially the proud owner of a brand spankin' new Vios Nebulizer! Woo! Who'd have thought I'd ever be so excited to own a new nebulizer? Well after trying to troubleshoot mine, take it apart with no answers, and treatments taking double the time...ME!

I literally talked to someone around noon, and by 7pm I had one delivered to my house. Yay! It feels so good to do my treatments at the regular length of time, and to actually have my treatments be effective! That makes for happy lungs and a happy me :)

Today at the gym I ran another 2 miles. I could feel it was harder today for my lungs than normal. I'm guessing that's due to a few days of treatments not really getting into my lungs properly due to the failing nebulizer. However It didn't stop me at all, and I pushed through it.

Today's totals:

3 minute warm up

2 miles @ 14 minutes each

total mileage of 2.12

Pulse 155

The lungs didn't miss a beat

2010-08-16T19:29:00.007-04:00

I was finally granted permission to go back to the gym today! Hooray!! Could you hear me yelling happily from where you lived? Hahaha. It's been almost 2 weeks, and I've been going crazy waiting to work out again! I know I had to play it safe post hospitalization, and I am happy I did. I, however, am even happier I finally got to run today!!! Ahhh.

I'm even happier that I didn't miss a beat lung wise and am so grateful! I got on the treadmill and was able to run 2 miles without even thinking about it. I wasn't winded, tired, nothing! So happy for that :) It feels wonderful to be allowed to run again, and thank you to my lungs who continue to do their part in making our team a success ;)

Totals: Warm up 3 minutes

Running: 2 miles @ 27 minutes total

Pulse post running 155

Total 2.1 miles

Surprise 30 (and a half) Birthday Party!

2010-08-15T17:53:00.003-04:00

I still can't believe that I had a surprise party yesterday. I woke up this morning still in complete awe of the day. It was the absolute best. Here's how it all went...

Apparently the plans have been going on since my actual birthday which was in February. Unfortunately we had 2 back to back blizzards so the birthday plans really didn't pan out for the big 3-0, or so I thought ;)

Yesterday my best friend and I went shopping and got some coffee, the regular routine to be honest. Around 3pm we headed home and she suggested we go to my community beach for a while and just hang out like we do often. As we were getting close to my house I offered to go home and pack us a quick cooler for the beach which she totally ignored (haha). Now I know why...

We pull up to the beach and I see people, tents, and a lot going on. I suggest to her that we probably shouldn't go to the beach today since clearly there was a party going on. Then she hit the accelerator, and we pulled up and everyone I love (minus a few who couldn't join) were all right there to greet us. There were signs being held up, noise makers being blown, and I was in complete shock and totally confused that it was a party for me! I hope I never forget how I felt yesterday.

My best friend drives a jeep, so during the ride home my flip flops were off. So in my complete phase of confusion she had to reach over me and open my door. My husband then unlatched my seatbelt and pulled me out to be surrounded by everyone. Later I wondered where the heck my shoes were, then I was gently reminded of how I'd never had them on.

I started to look around at everyone and everything and just cried my eyes out. I was so happy and overwhelmed with warmth and love. The biggest kick of the day was they got me a Moon bounce and a Cotton Candy Machine!!!! Talk about pure AWESOMENESS!!!! It was like being a little kid, and I adored every single second of it.

I had a wonderful day with wonderful people! I will never forget my birthday for so many reasons. I mean really, who ever is lucky enough to be thrown a 30.5 birthday party!?

I love my friends and family, and truly am blessed with the BEST!!!!

Withdrawl

2010-08-10T21:47:00.003-04:00

I'm totally missing running and overall exercising in the worst way. I think I'm in the midst of gym withdrawl, haha. I have to play it safe and be smart per doctor's orders and take it easy for a couple of days. However, they didn't specify when I could go back to the gym. I guess this calls for basic common sense :) I've not done anything major since last week, rested my body and let it heal, and am so ready to get my run on!! Maybe one more day.....but that's it!

Hospitalized for Pancreatitis/GI issues

2010-08-08T20:50:00.002-04:00

What a week. However in the grand scheme of life I have a lot to be grateful for. Where do I even begin...

I left off at the 102 degree fevers and hoping the stone would pass quietly and painlessly. Wrong.

I ended up spiking another 102 degree fever that woke me up at 1:30 am. I relied on Tylenol yet again to come to the rescue and break the fever and it did.

Wednesday morning I called my CF nurse to touch base with her since the on call doctor told me to watch things over night. I was told to go to the E.R. for evaluation and if something was going on, I'd be transferred to Hopkins. The rest of it is kind of a blur to be honest.
I was given so much pain medication and nausea medication that I feel as If I were sedated the last few days.

Skip ahead to Friday.....I had an MRCP done which is an MRI of the Liver, Gallbladder area etc, and it was clear for stones. So the doctors think I passed the stone probably on Tuesday when the fevers hit. That was good news though because if I were to have had a stone, the risk of an ERCP (procedure to remove the stone) would have been very risky. I ended up with Pancreatitis from the stone, but all is resolving nicely.

I was discharged late Friday night which I barely remember, but so happy to be out of the hospital. The plan is to increase my Urso in the hopes that it prevents more stones from forming. *Knocks on Wood*

I'm so fortunate that this hospitalization didn't call for further intervention like a stent placed etc. I'd also like to mention how wonderful my husband is for being by my side and taking care of me and being the my best friend.

I am so beyond fortunate and grateful for my wonderful friends, family, and CF family for the wonderful outreach of love and support.

Happy Healing....