A few weeks worth..

It's been a while since my last post because I have been so terribly busy. I have had a lot of tests and papers this semester which has kept me pretty busy. Ryan has decided to go back to school as well he is doing a 2 year online degree program for Software Engineering. Hey we might as well get that edumacation while someone else is paying for it right. He of course still suffers from Sarc they say 3 out of 5 people it just goes away within the first 2 years, but it has been almost 2 years since the first symptoms arose and it seems they are here for the long haul. He has also been told if it doesn't go away in the first 2 years he will probably suffer from it for the rest of his life. About 2 weeks ago he had a severe cold that kept him home from work, he has not missed one day of work for sick time since being diagnosed almost 2 years ago. The pain he has does not cripple him but with all the pain medication he is on he is extremely tired all the time. We have a 40 minute commute to and from work in which I have to drive both ways because he can't stay awake that long to drive. Course it probably doesn't help that we go to work at 5am and work 10 hour days, man I can barley survive that drive. Well he has come down with the cold again and still can't get in to see his doctor, she is always booked but a wonderful woman and I can see why she is so hard to see. He is hoping she will at least call in an antibiotic for him we should hear from here soon.

Well a couple weekends ago we up and decided to take the weekend and go camping. We went to Huntsville, AL, we have lived in Alabama all our lives and have never been. It was about a 6 hour drive which was not too bad. Once we got there we pitched our tent and went to look at the city I can't get over how beautiful and clean it is, I can honestly tell you I have never seen a city so well manicured and clean. It is in the foot hills of the Georgia mountains there were a few mountains to see, but nothing as extravagant as the Smokey's which we are used too. Although it was a little too early we got to see some fall colors it was really nice. We also went to the famous Space museme while we were there which was pretty neat. We both said we wanted to go to Space Camp our whole lives but never got to go. Maybe he can take Haley on year. We also went see the lake in Guntersville, AL which is probably the biggest lake I have ever seen, we were going to rent a boat but it was too windy. While in Guntersville we went to a famous waterfall High Falls, but they have been in such a drought for the last couple of years it was pretty dried up.

Mountains in Huntsville Fall color in Huntsville

High Falls in Guntersville

The space ship in Huntsville

We are still trying to have a baby, but to no avail. I can't say that we really count days or worry about which is the exact day and time we should do it. I don't want to stress over it and worry about it every month and then when it comes time to check you get disappointed because nothing you do isn't working. I figure it will happen when it is meant to happen. I also have a feeling that with all the medication he was on for the last 2 years that may be affecting it as well. I go to my OBGYN next month for my annual check up and I will question her about this and see if he should get checked. On that end I would like him to get checked because at least we would know one way or the other.

And finally why is it that my dog Maggie is the most stubborn thing in the world. She does not listen to anything you tell her to do, she is constantly eating the other dogs food and is fat. We have started putting her in her crate when we feed the other dogs but that is a pain as well, mainly because the dogs do not hoover their food down, they come back too eat throughout the night. And as soon as we let her out she runs straight to the food bowls looking for left overs so we have to pick up any remainder food bowls then feed her so she will only get her amount of course she does hoover her food to make sure none of the other dogs can have extras. Also she has had an upset stomach for like 3 days, she will go outside and eat grass, then she will come back in acting like she is going to PUKE so we have to put her in her crate again so she doesn't ruin the carpet. I feel bad about this but I don't know what else to do, she is not an outside dog and even if I tried to make her one she would bark all night at the neighbors. Maybe I will invest in a bark collar, but I think that is inhumane. You may say, "but you put her in a crate, that is inhumane" actually it is not it makes their life safer. One because they can't get into things while you are away like chewing stuff they could choke on or ingesting stuff they shouldn't plus they can't get out of a yard and get hit by a car. I will be the first person to tell you that I thought it was the craziest and meanest thing I had ever heard of. But when Maggie was a puppy she jumped the chain link fence and ripped her hind leg open so the vet said she had to spend 6 weeks in her crate or she will never heal and to only take her out to potty on a leash no running around. I felt so bad because she was a 6 month old puppy we couldn't play with and she would give us those big sad hound eyes and whine, it tore me up. Once she was healed she was able to run again and wouldn't you know it we let her outside she jumps the fence again and gets hit by a car which banged her up and broke her front leg in half. So we had to get a pin put in it and into the crate for 6 more weeks. Crates become their safe haven and their private space I can't say they enjoy it all the time, but it keeps them safe and out of trouble and I do care about that.

Maggie as a puppy

And her big lazy butt now

What the?

Well obviously it has been awhile since my last post we have been very busy lately. I started back classes about a month ago, Ryan is going to be starting a 2 year degree program online in October to get his Bachelors in Software Engineering. Ryan's last doctors visit went smoothly nothing unusual. He was finally able to tell her that he has sever stomach pains and is sure it is an ulcer. She made and appointment with a Gastroenterologist for Sept 18 so we will finally be able to see if it is an ulcer, due to the predizone he was taking, and hopefully be able to fix it.

We have also had 10 new additions to the family actually 12. We got Haley a couple of Degu's (Molly & Jack) and well the female was pregnant and she had 9 babies. They will be ready for new homes in about 3 more weeks.

We also got a new puppy about 3 weeks ago. Her name is Chloe and she is a brown Chihuahua. She is absoultely adorable. We had no intention of getting another dog any time soon. But for some reason Ryan got this braniac idea to search the classifieds for a Chihuahua a few Sunday's ago and we began calling around just to LOOK.... Well we contacted this lady in Mississippi that had one that she had just gotten herself, but found out she was pregnant and was unsure about keeping the dog. Well let me tell you one look at her and we were in love.. she is 3 1/2 months old and as sweet as can be. She is super tiny and already spoiled rotten. We got a really good deal on this dog, the lady gave us Chloe's beds, toys, and blankets that she had already purchased.



Now we are waiting for Ryan's Doctors appointment this Thursday to see if we can fix his stomach. As far as the MMS listed in my last post Ryan was doing really well on it he got up to about 8 drops twice a day which turned out to be too much for him to handle. He began feeling very nauseous so he quite taking it for a while he has started to take it but will max out at 5drops once a day for now. He is feeling more energetic again. Also I had begun taking it and was doing about 3 drops a day, I too began feeling less tired but because it cleans out the toxins in your body I had to quite taking it since we are trying to get pregnant. They say you should never do a cleanse while pregnant or trying to become pregnant. As far as the Salt stone in place of a deorderant I highly recommend this route it is much better in terms of no stickness, no residue on your clothes, and keeping you fresh all day.

A Miracle for Sarc?

In Ryan's Quest to cure his Sarc naturally in the Sarcoidosis Cure ebook we came across a product called Miracle Mineral Supplement MMS. Which according to this website Miracle Mineral it can cure several illnesses and even save your life. It is meant to push toxins out of your body and purify it. He has been taking it for about a week and he says he has not felt as good as he does now in 2 years. It was about 2 years ago that we realized something was wrong with him.

He kept telling me I should try it so I took it this morning and I will keep you updated as to how I feel. Although I am not sick everyone has toxins in their body and we need to clean them out to be and feel healthier. Just trying to find another way to live naturally.

A New Deoderant??

Among the natural items that Ryan has switched to is a natural deodorant namely Thai Deodorant Stick 4.25 oz.

Recently I read an article that said that deodorant can cause breast cancer. So I did a search to see if that was true here is a link that suggest ingredients in deodorant can cause breast cancer.
The reason being is that your pores in your underarms are some of the biggest on your body which allow anything that you put on them to enter your body. Your body is meant to sweat and when you roll on deodorant you are Blocking your pores, which actually makes you sweat more and which in turn causes more odors. The perfumes in deodorant is supposed to mask the odors not block them. However, this website Is deodorant safe?
will try to tell you that deodorants are safe. So I urge you to decide which is best for you.

So we saw the Thai Deodorant Stick 4.25 oz at our local Health Hut on Schillengers in Mobile and Ryan wanted to try it, Thai deodorant is a pure-natural-crystal deodorant stone product. It is 100% pure and natural. The Deodorant Stone does not contain any harsh chemicals, perfumes, oils, emulsified alcohol or propellants. It is made from potassium alum mineral salts which are crystallized, then hand shaped and smoothed. It contains no aluminum chlorohydrate. The Deodorant Stone is not sticky or greasy it will not stain clothing, irritate your skin, or leak in your suitcase. It is the finest product on the market today and best of all IT WORKS! This can be used by anyone men, women, and teens.

So what do I have to say about a switch to a natural deodorant? I say it is Amazing!! When Ryan bought it I said let me know how it goes. After day one he was saying he really liked it. By day 3 He said he loved it, it was amazing. After 2 weeks of using it he said it was the best thing ever he didn't sweat or smell and best of all it doesn't leave that nasty residue on your clothes. So I was like I have to try this for myself, and I did, I went and got me a stick from the Health Hut and tried it that night after getting out of the shower, and I must say I loved it. After using it for a couple of days I noticed an immediate change, my underarms where no longer sticky in the shower due to all the, I'll say white crap, for a lack of a better word. It has made my underarms smoother, and I must say I did not sweat and we are talking about not sweating in 90+ degree temperatures in Mobile. Again it does not show on your clothes. I am talking about this product because I absolutely believe in it, further more no one encouraged me to do so. I did find that they sell it at Amazon if you can't find it at your local Health store.

Just trying to find a more natural way to live.

Pathetic!!!

I just want to tell you all what a pathetic relationship our dog Britta has with Ryan. This dog loves him so much that she is jealous if he touches any of the other 2 dogs or even me. She doesn’t seem too be jealous around Haley I guess she can sense she is just a kid. But if Ryan pets or plays with one of the other dogs she makes this woo woo sound, which is absolutely adorable, she also makes the sounds if he hugs me. He likes to tease her by touching everyone in the house, but her when we get home and she gets so jealous, she can’t stand it she woo woo’s her head off. Hilarious!!

Sarc Cure?

Ryan has been trying this new regime for a couple of weeks now. We found this website called Sarcoidosis Cure where you can download the eBook that has instructions on improving your health with herbal supplements. Since he is no longer taking Prednisone he needed something for inflammation. He is still on pain medication, but has decided to try and come off the patch because he is tired of being tired.

Some of the herbs are Turmeric which he had to temporarily stop taking because he thinks he has a stomach ulcer and they said not to take this if that was the case. He has a doctor’s appointment next month so we will see about the ulcer then. He is also taking Ashwaganda and Cats Claw for immune health. He is also doing this drink that involves drinking organic apple cider vinegar to help alkalize his pH balance. He also takes Chlorella and Spirulina for energy. Another thing he is doing is swishing compressed sunflower seed oil around his mouth to release toxins. All of this sounds like a lot, but he has seen a major improvement in his energy levels. I can tell he feels a lot better, he doesn’t look so tired, and some of the coloring has returned to his face. Of course we don’t know if this will actually cure anything, but we are trying everything. We will see how it goes.

Doctor's Visit

I know I am slow getting this posted because Ryan went to the doctor last Wednesday in Birmingham for his 3 month checkup. I have to tell you that the nurse who assists his doctor is a total idiot. She never returns his calls and trying to get a prescription from her is next to impossible. He went to his local Doctor here the week before and she wanted him to have a CT scan of the chest and abdomen because she felt enlarged lymphnodes in the abdomen. They couldn't get the scan done in time before his doctor appt in B'ham. However, Ryan called the nurse in B'ham to have her change the CT scan from just the chest to include both. But believe it or not she never called him back to confirm. His doctor down here had to make sure this was done properly how wrong is that.

Anyway that is all beside the point he had the complete CT scan and breathing test to make sure the Sarc had not entered his lungs. They also did blood work, but we have to assume there is nothing to be alarmed over since the idiot nurse has not called us. Well let's just hope it's not life threatening or anything because we may find out to late since she can't do her job. After the CT scan the Radiologist said the granulomas had enlarged, but the doctor said they had not. So who do you believe? The doctor has decided they are the same size and are no longer growing after coming off Prednisone, he has also decided not to put him on Methotrexate which is a great thing since we want to have kids. The doctor also felt he was showing signs of going into remission. He doesn't want to see him again for 6 months and at that time if they haven't enlarged anymore he will consider that remission.... Okay let me get this right remission in his case may mean that they may still be there, but not bigger? It doesn't mean that they will have disappeared? Apparently not remission for him would mean that they are not bigger and they have not moved nor multiplied. But they can remain the same size they are forever!!!! What???? So this may mean he will be in pain forever, well let's hope not. I guess we will have to wait and see in the meantime he continues to take pain medication, but nothing to reduce the size of the granulomas, which I don't think there is anything for that just yet.

Anniversary

I have decided it is time to inform you of our not so wonderful 1st year anniversary trip. Yes we have been married for one year and we had this brilliant plan to go camping, rafting, and hiking. Our Anniversary was April 28, but we couldn't make our trip until May 11 because I had to finish out the Spring semester at school. We changed our plans multiple times as to where we were going to go. First we were going to Williamsburg, VA and camp out in North Carolina on the way. But then we came to our senses and decided we didn't want to spend 16 hours driving. We thought about going on a cruise, but decided spending our precious time with so many annoying people would spoil our fun. So we decided to go to Helen, GA this little dot of a town in North Georgia, we went there on recommendations from my cousin who went there on her Honeymoon and said what a great time it was. Well I don't know what she was doing on her Honeymoon, but I definitely did not see the fun in Helen.

First of all it is a Little German town were all the buildings look like an Alpine town with a couple of German restaurants (which were outrageously expensive I might add). The town looked really run down and most of the shops were closed while we were there. I thought it would be something like Gatlinburg, TN, with all the shops and restaurants in a row, but it was totally boring. But that wasn't the worst of it when we got there we found the campground and set up our tent. Then we decided to peruse the town, not much going on it was a Sunday and kinda chilly and of course we had to pay for parking in this stupid rinky dink town even to eat. We stopped and ate at this pizza place, we ate out on the patio by the water, and I must say it was pretty good for pizza a slice was as big as my head, as much as we tried we could not finish the whole thing. Anyway all the sudden the sky gets really dark and very windy, so we are freezing our butts off trying to eat (we are in shorts). All we can keep thinking is dang I hope it doesn't storm because we are staying in a tent. Then the waitress comes over and says be careful its going to get really bad tonight, might even be tornadoes. AGGHH!! Tornadoes you say! What do we do now do we risk it or get a hotel or leave. Well guess what! That's right we stayed! In the TENT!

I must say in hind sight that was a crazy thing to do. We get back to the site and take our showers no we did not really rough it on this trip, we had hot running water and flushing toilets and yes even mirrors. So as we are showering the wind is howling like crazy, trees are blowing and cracking, because you do know we are in the middle of the woods right. After showering we get back to the tent and it is still blowing like crazy we leave the sides open so that maybe we could see if a tree was coming at us. Well then darkness came and we could no longer see out, but man could we hear it. The wind was so loud and strong it sounded like waves crashing on the ocean. Anyway we didn't sleep a wink the ceiling of the tent keep folding in on us and we just knew all those tree branch crackings were going to fall on our head. I think we fell asleep around 5am for a couple of hours obviously surviving the night and freezing cold I might add, the temp dropped dramatically it was like 50 degrees in MAY!! in GEORGIA!!

At that time we decided to go hiking and went to the trail head. We where on the trail for about 2 hours and when we came back Lo and Behold our dang car had been smashed.

And wouldn't you know it no one was around and of course the douche bags did not leave a note. So now our already sucky vacation just got worse. The back end looked like someone had backed into, it broke my spoiler and crunched the trunk. Even though I wanted to go home and get it taken care of Ryan talked me into "letting it NOT ruin our already crappy trip" ha ha fat chance. Anyway we carried on, we did more hiking and had to go back to the rinky dink town to eat so we ate at a Wendy's no less. We had planned on rafting on the Chattoga the next morning, but they weren't running any trips, so we decided to drive to Cherokee NC and raft the Nantahala. It was about an hour away, but I must say we had a really good time, the water was so freaken cold though, we had wetsuits, wet boots, and water spray jackets on but still froze our butts off.

Anyway after that we shopped around and eventually made it back to our campsite on complete BACK ROADS.......... thanks stupid GPS, well at least we got there... 2 1/2 hours later. We had to eat at the Wendy's again because the other restaurants were closed during the week or just didn't look good. So much for it being the start of their peak season. Why didn't we cook out you say? Because it was still windy and there was a fire ban. I almost forgot to tell you about the annoying campers we had next to us when we got back from dinner. We had had the first 2 nights all to ourselves then a huge RV came with like 10 kids that kept running around screaming like crazy. Anyway we decided to cut our trip a day short and went home. This of course was no suprise to my family, because it seems I always cut my trips short. What can I say I miss my dogs and my own bed. We had planned on going to Destin that weekend, but wouldn't you know it, it forecasted rain so we didn't go and rain it did. Anyway on the way home we stopped at Callaway Gardens outside of Atlanta, that was pretty nice, we will probably take Haley there sometime this summer. They also have a drive through Safari park that I want to take her to.




So I had to take my car to the body shop when we got home and explain to the insurance, that no we didn't get a police report because the Jerks didn't stick around to be reported they smacked us and left. Jerks!!! Anyway so the deductible had to come out of our pocket and the body shop had my car for 3 weeks I just got it back. And I think I have finally recovered from the vacation from Hell!! I guess in all reality it could have been worse............

AAGGHHH!!!!!!!!!

WHY WOMEN WHY? Why is it that when ever I go into a public restroom and go into my stall. In comes a women and she enters the stall right next to me. Why is this a problem you ask? Because there are 5 more empty stalls why do you have to pick the one right next to me. Drives me crazy!!!!!!

Sarc

Well Ryan says he feels 2 new lumps in his lower abdomen. He felt the ones around his heart where getting smaller because he didn't feel them so much anymore. The 2 new ones are causing him a great deal of pain. He goes to the doctor next month to have another CT scan, I guess he will have to ask them to view them as well. He is afraid he is getting lymphoma, he's been very tired and having night sweats lately. Since they took him off Predisone they want to discuss putting him on Methotrexate this drug is a type of chemo. However, it says under no circumstances should you get pregnant or impregnate someone while on this drug. This poses a problem for us since we are currently trying to get pregnant. But I am beginning to feel he should go on this drug and we will just have to wait a while. It would be nice if we conceived this month, but I won't know for a couple of more weeks.

We went to a different church today, his ex-wife invited us because they where doing a healing service. I have always been very skeptical of those TV evangelist that "heal all in an instance". But this was very different, I must say it was a very moving service and I know the power of prayer can help. I know some of my friends would not believe me when I say this because I have always been a little iffy about religion. But I am beginning to see that things do happen, and everything happens for a reason at the right time. So please keep Ryan in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.

I don’t really know what possessed me to start a blog, but I have been reading a blog that has inspired me to start one. Mainly I just want to talk about my day to day life and also in the process help someone that may need it. A little about me I am 30 years old, working full time and going back to school. I was recently working 2 jobs and going to school but was able to finish the 2nd job (waiting tables) last month. I’m beginning to wish I started this blog months ago so I could complain about how much I hate waiting tables and the unbelievably ridiculous people I had to wait on. But that is a whole other story. Anyway I have been married for one year to a very special person. We have 3 dogs and his little girl. After high school I went to college, but didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I met someone and we eventually both quit school and got married. Not the best move, I look back now and wish I had finished school then, but I find school to be much easier now that I am actually focused on finishing. My husband and I where married 7 years but it just did not work out, which the reasons of that I will keep private there is no reason drudging up the past. The divorce was a very painful and depressing time of my life and I have no reason to relive it.

A few months after my divorce my future husband (Ryan) found me on MySpace which I truly believe happened for a reason and came about when I really needed someone. I know “you married someone you met on the internet”. Well not exactly we had actually met in high school my sophomore year in 1992. We had actually dated in high school for a few months, but then I broke his heart, he hated me for a long time after that. But we eventually became pretty good friends he dated someone else, after his graduation he joined the Coast Guard and they got married, had a little girl and later divorced. He had been divorced about 4 years when he saw me again. I was really excited he e-mailed me because I hadn’t spoken to him in 12 years it brought back a flood of memories, some really good times. He, his ex-wife and I were all in the Marching band together (I know a bunch of band geeks). We decided to meet and catch up and a year later we where married and I gained a wonderful step-daughter (Haley), I have no kids of my own, but we are currently trying.

Soon after we were married my husband was diagnosed with Sarcoidosis, an immune deficiency that is currently attacking is lymph system with granulomas in his lymph nodes. Problem is the doctors don’t know how a person contacts this however we have reason to believe it is environmental. I stated that he was in the Coast Guard well after Hurricane Katrina he did a lot of messy, nasty clean up work and was exposed to harsh environmental waste. There has been links to some workers of 9/11 contacting this disease. The disease can be fatal, but so far is treatable. He is in a lot of pain, but is still able to function and work day to day due to the wonders of pain medication. He was on Prednisone for over 9 months which led to signs of Osteoporosis in his hips and back so they took him off of it. The prednisone was meant to control the granulomas in his lymph’s from spreading and enlarging. But I guess his doctor felt the osteoporosis was more threatening and took him off prednisone. He will go back to the doctor in June for a check up and another CT scan. At this point all we can do is try to control the pain and hope they go away. Many articles we have read suggest Sarcoidosis will usually disappear in 2-3 years. Well it has been at least 2 years now that we know of so we are praying and hoping for a miracle.

I guess my goal for this blog is to inform people about Sarcoidosis and hopefully help someone get through the day. However, this will not be totally about Sarc, but about our day to day life.

Thank you I hope you enjoy it.