The Last Day of the Year

It's New Year's Eve. Jessica worked with my dad on Algebra till mid-afternoon, and then just hung out around the house. Whenever I asked her how she was, she said she was ok. But when it came time for dinner and Steve wanted to go out to eat, she said she "didn't want to move." She was too tired and also feels like she's catching a cold. So, we had Chinese take-out and a quiet New Year's Eve at home playing our new Electronic Monopoly game that we got for Christmas. Monopoly can go on forever without end, so we stopped at 10:00 (didn't see the New Year come in) with Steve winning. It was a nice quiet and fun evening with the family.

Tuesday 12/30/08

A decent day. Jessica worked on Algebra till late afternoon. (Yes, even during the holiday break since she's so far behind.) And then she wanted to go to the tack store to look for riding pants and horse items to spend her Christmas money on. That was our short outing for the day.

Monday 12/29/08

It was a beautiful sunny 65 degree day. A perfect day to be outside, so Jessica set up a riding lesson this afternoon (one of her Christmas presents), since she said she was feeling ok today. So after spending most of the day relaxing in front of the tv (and Little House), she got to enjoy a 45 minute horseback riding lesson. They worked on turns and her teacher said that she worked them both. So, after we got home Jessica landed on the couch, and headed for bed at 7:00. We are now all gathered in her room to watch a movie with her.

Week of Christmas

It was a good Christmas and a pretty good week; though we did miss the Christmas Eve service due to Jessica not being up to it (with a headache) and the fact that I had a migraine.

We had two families to see on Christmas Day, and a family group of 20 (with about a half a dozen conversations at once!) on Saturday. A movie (Bedtime Stories) on Friday. Returns and exchanges on Sunday and a short Christmas visit with our horse. So, there was plenty of excitment going on, and Jessica may have had a headache here or there, but overall held up pretty well. She got what she wanted for Christmas, was happy about her horseback ride, and we all had a nice Christmas break. After our shopping and a short ride Sunday, Jessica went to bed feeling like she was catching a cold, but I think she was just winding down from our busy holiday weekend.

Monday 12/22/08

Jessica wasn't feeling well today. My dad did a little Algebra with her, but then called it quits early because she wasn't up to it and was falling asleep on the couch. She was really tired and felt like she was catching a cold. So, to bed she went, and took about a 3 hour nap. She woke up feeling better though, and we were able to have friends over for pizza and a movie (Fred Claus).

It seems that her bad days don't end up being as bad as they used to be.

The Weekend

It was a pretty good weekend. Jessica stayed in for the most part wrapping presents and watching Little House.

Saturday she did get to go see Mia, but it was a rainy, yucky day, so it wasn't a good day to ride. And she and I made a quick trip to Target because she wanted to be the one to pick out her new baby cousin's Christmas present (even if she was getting tired).

Sunday evening she (and a cousin) went to the youth group's service and Christmas party at church where they had music, fellowship and ended the evening roasting marshmallows around the bonfire. She had a little bit of a headache, but otherwise held up ok.

Thursday 12/18/08

Jessica started out tired and not feeling too well this morning (including a sore throat), and once even felt like her legs were tightening up. She and my dad studied Algebra for a little while before time for her last interim test. Seeing how she was feeling, I wished we could reschedule the test, but instead she drug herself there. She was shuffling her feet as we left. But she did decent on the test, and we amended her 504 Plan while we were there to allow her to try to go back to school for half a day next semester.

When I picked Matthew up from school, he was feeling much better, and as the day went on, Jessica's energy perked up some. This was especially good, because we had plans for the night. My wonderful kids surprised Steve and I a few days ago with an early Christmas present - tickets to see the Radio City Rockettes Christmas Spectacular. The four of us went. We were dropped off at the door, and Jessica held up ok. It was a wonderful performance and a very nice evening.

Wednesday 12/17/08

Matthew stayed home sick today - sore throat, achey, etc. Steve took him to the doctor, and it's just a virus.

Jessica tried to do a little (online) Algebra this morning, but was having computer issues so she didn't get very far. But, it seems that she's not feeling very good today anyway - really tired, sore throat, and getting a headache. She's been laying on the couch most all day looking like she could fall asleep.

So, I've got one downstairs on the couch and one upstairs in bed, and I'm getting my exercise!

Tuesday 12/16/08

School and my office are closed today because of ice. Yay! So a quiet day at home. We made fudge and no-bake cookies and watched Little House on the Prairie. While I wrapped a couple of presents, Jessica did a little Algebra, but as the day went on she seemed more tired. By early evening (7:30 or 8:00), she was ready to go to bed.

Monday 12/15/08

Jessica was tired today, not feeling the best. Probably because of the weekend. My dad came over to work on Algebra with her as usual, and he said she was "mopey," meaning that she was moving and thinking slow. She took the opportunity to lay on the couch with Pumpkin (our rabbit) while my dad went to get her lunch, and they were able to get a lesson finished. She's tired, but managing ok.

Now we're listening to the sleet and wondering whether school's going to be closed tomorrow.

Weekend

It was a pretty good weekend.

Saturday Jessica wrapped presents, and then went to ride Mia - and she did well. In the evening, the kids hung out with my parents while Steve and I went to his office Christmas party. Jessica seemed to be having a good day!

Sunday was a lazy morning. Then Jessica's life group from church was having a Christmas get-together - going to Wal-Mart to shop for a family and going back to wrap, eat, and hang out. This get-together started at 2:00 and was scheduled to possibly last till 8:00p.m. She made it till 6:00, and then texted me saying she was a little tired and ready to go. I thought she did great to last that long partying! The rest of the evening was spent with the whole family on the couch watching Snow 2 Brain Freeze - a good Christmas movie!

We are what we...

There's the saying "we are what we eat," but what about what we THINK. We are what we think. Our attitudes and mindsets make a big difference in our day, our feelings, and spreads to the people around us. Whenever we ask my dad how he's doing or how his day is, his response is always SUPER. If you mimic that attitude, it does make a difference. Whatever our circumstances, we can learn to be content. I read a note from a friend today that says it better...

What do we really mean when we ask each other “how are you doing?” Most of the time it is a surface level comment just to be polite. For most of my life I have tried to maintain a positive mental attitude. However, from time to time I allowed myself, like you probably do as well, to wallow around in self pity. Then I would despise how I felt and change my thoughts. After changing my thoughts I soon found that my reality would change as well. Henry Ford, the famous American who revolutionized automobile manufacturing said, “Thoughts are things.” He was right. Thoughts determine the lens of how we view and perceive the world. And we can consciously change how and what we think. I’ve done it. In the past, when people asked how I was doing my reaction was usually to give a summary of my circumstances. How are you doing? “Oh, pretty good.” How are you doing? “I’ve been better.” These were common answers to the questions. What I found was that what I thought and then spoke became my reality. Literally, one day I woke up and DID NOT like my reality. So I began speaking a desired reality into existence. Now, when asked how I am doing, I always say, “I’m having the BEST day ever!” The reaction from some people is priceless. These usually sound something like: “Wow, I wish I was too,” or, “Gee, that’s great!” and sometimes the brave (or just curious) will ask, “Really? Why’s that?” It’s one of the most frequent questions I get. How can this be your best day ever? I even have one client who argues with me. She says, “I’m having a pretty good day, but it’s not the best day I’ve ever had.” After several attempts to explain the philosophy behind my statement, her exasperation became so great that she just stopped asking me howI was doing! Have the BEST day ever! It is NOT about the circumstances, it’s about your mindset. Each and every one of us has circumstances each day that range from unpleasant to really bad. If you focused on the circumstances, then yes, that becomes your reality. In my book of faith and doctrine it says, “be content in whatever circumstances in which you find yourself. . .” I thought about that a lot and decided that I would give it a try, and have the best day ever. Also, I began to live in the present. It used to be that I could not enjoy the present because of “suffering from mistakes” of my past, and worrying about what would happen in my future. My conclusion is that the only day I have is today. Now. Right now. That’s it, I can’t get back my yesterdays and there is no promise of tomorrow. I only have today. If that isn’t enough of a realization for you to have the best day ever then “snap out of it!” You see it boils down to this. This is the only day you have. Yesterday is gone, forever, and, tomorrow may never come. Yes, this is the best day ever! No matter what your circumstances, IT IS THE BEST DAY EVER! Some always find a way to ask about bad possibilities:“What if you lose your job?” I was out of work when I found this one, so the door for greater opportunity will swing open. Have the BEST day ever! “What if a family member dies?” Then I will celebrate their life and cherish all the memories I have. Have the BEST day ever! What if you die in a car crash on the way home?” According to my book of faith and doctrine, I am promised a new body in a beautiful place, with my Messiah, forever. Now how can that be bad? Have the BEST day ever! Once you determine that you will not be emotionally pushed back and forth by the “things that happen” in your life, you will find that you no longer continue to attract these negatives. Your reality is that you will begin attracting good things in your life. In fact, people will become attracted to you because of your genuine positive charge. The reverse is true of “negative” people. Nobody enjoys their company and most will simply try to avoid them. Take the first step. Tell yourself that this is the BEST day ever. It’s ok if you don’t “feel” it or believe it yet. Just say it. Every time you are asked “how are you doing?” simply say “I’m having the BEST day ever!” Your speaking it will make it your reality! Have the BEST day ever!

Something to think about.

Thursday / Friday

Jessica seems to be doing ok for the most part; the cold symptoms didn't progress. She even got out to go Christmas shopping with me to Wal-Mart and the pet store, but only with the condition that she didn't have to walk very far. So, not a bad week.

Wednesday 12/10/08

Two days in a row - Jessica was awake at midnight, couldn't sleep, but then slept in till 10:00a.m. But she's been holding up pretty good. She even was up to going to art class Tuesday night. As we were walking out she told me she was tired, but she wouldn't have let on any earlier because she was enjoying herself!

Tonight she came down saying she was going to bed at 7:50p.m. She'd been sneezing all day and was feeling crummy - feels like she's catching a cold.

Monday 12/8/08

Jessica was tired today with a sore throat. This morning she didn't feel good, but, as my dad said, she was being a trooper to try to push through some Algebra still. They worked through a couple of quizzes and quit early. She rested on the couch, and then asked me to go get her something from Wal-Mart but she didn't feel like going. Though, she debated it and decided she'd go too if just in to one area of the store. So, I dropped her off at the door and she went to the crafts section only. She had perked up for a little while, but is again tired tonight. She's been out of breath some and said her heart is racing. Maybe the weekend was too much.

It's time to rest in front of a Christmas movie - Jingle All The Way tonight.

The Weekend

It was a pretty good weekend.

Friday Jessica seemed to feel ok, was happy, and even went shoe shopping that afternoon.

Saturday while Matthew was at a friend's birthday party, I took Jessica to see Mia. I groomed Mia, and then Jessica got her saddled up and rode for a short (15 or 20 minute) ride. Jessica got Mia to gallop for the first time, and she was exploding with excitement. That night she was tired, but rested on the couch in front of the tv. After going to bed earlier in the evening, she was awake at 11:00p.m. wishing she could sleep.

Sunday we got our outside lights put up, or most of them. Jessica helped some, and even helped straighten up the house some. But she was anxious to show her dad how well Mia had done the day before. So Steve took her to the stables for a short ride. And she got her to gallop again, and she did well. We had dinner out with my parents after that, so it was a full day. By evening, Jessica was tired and not feeling too well, but rested on the couch while we watched a Christmas movie or two together.

Thursday 12/4/08

As usual lately, Jessica woke up slow this morning. But this afternoon, she was feeling good and wanting to get out. She went with me to pick up the boys (Matthew and a friend) from school, and then we went to Wal-Mart (the usual). Tonight, the kids and I went to the town's first annual Christmas parade and after-party. There were floats, lights, Santa Claus, hot chocolate, music, people dancing (Cha Cha Slide, macarena, etc.), carolers, Christmas movies on the big screen in the park, etc. Lots of fun! And, as the High School Varsity Dance Team's float passed us, the girls screamed "Jessica!..." (These were the girls that she was on the dance team with up until she got sick.) They were thrilled to see her. And that made our night!

Wednesday 12/3/08

Jessica woke up at 9:30a.m. still sleepy and with a sore throat. But as the day went on, she did ok.

We had our scheduled telephone appointment with the Dallas CFS doctor. This appointment evidently was just to go over things, check in, review and see how things were progressing. It seems that we're doing all the right things at this point. We just have to keep doing what we're doing "for a while." Dr. S said we did a good thing by removing her tonsils even though there was a setback (because of the anesthesia and surgery). Tonsils are lymph nodes. The Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) lives in lymph nodes, so the tonsillectomy "lowered her load," by removing a big portion of it and taking them out of her body. Dr. S discussed her thyroid medication. They can tell how the thyroid is doing by vital signs. If the body temperature, pulse and blood pressure are low, that means they may need to bump up the dose. (Jessica's body temperature has been consistently low the last 11 months.) She’s on a low dose of thyroid medication right now, not even up to the therapeutic dose yet, and so he is going to bump it up some. Her energy is not quite where we’d like to see it, and this should help, along with possibly helping with her focus/attention difficulties. He is going to send us a requisition for some lab work to check what was off or low on the lab results that were taken this summer. And our next appointment isn't for another 2 to 3 months. (That's good!)

Maybe her energy isn't quite where we'd like to see it or where it was, but she has been able to do more and we have seen improvement.

Tuesday 12/2/08

Jessica slept till 9:30 this morning and woke up sleepy. But this afternoon, she was feeling good (even after a very long Algebra session). She, again, wanted to get out of the house (11 months of being mostly homebound makes a major case of cabin fever), and we went for another quick trip to Wal-Mart. By evening, she didn't have quite as much energy, and we ended the night resting on the couch watching a Christmas movie (Polar Express).

Monday 12/1/08

Since Jessica woke up tired and with a sore throat, she was glad that she had the day off from school today. (My brother was still in town, so my dad wasn't coming over for Algebra.) She laid around all morning. But after lunch, did a lesson in Algebra, and then said she felt better and wanted to get out. We went for a quick trip to Wal-Mart. She was again a little tired in the evening. But, considering our weekend, I thought she did real well.