Christmas Eve Snow!
You can not see the snow in the pictures but we did have a little snow on Christmas Eve. It was very windy and cold but we let the kids go outside and play in it while it lasted.
Thursday December 24, 2009 - It is not even Christmas day and I am exhausted. We spent the past several days in San Antonio with my family to celebrate Christmas. It was nice to spend time with everyone and let the kids see their cousins. The kids did not want to leave.
To start our visit off our dog decided to eat an entire bar of homemade soap. Needless to say he was sick that night and the next day. I thought all was good until I noticed he was passing blood. So we ended up at a vet hospital and he had to have several tests done and stay the night on top of that. Let's just say he better be on his best behavior for awhile otherwise Jerry may throw him out.
I still have to go to the store today to get stuff to make chili and I still have to wrap all my gifts. I am usually done several weeks before now with all of that but I have been putting everything off this year.
On the house sale... We had an open house on Sunday and it went very well. We had three very interested couples and we will see what happens. I am crossing my fingers that one or all will make an offer soon. We still don't know where we will end up but we will figure it out. We did find out that the foreclosure we are looking into may not go on the market until February. We need to get our house sold first before we can make a move on anything.
I have been feeling okay. I have not been sleeping well, so therefor I am tired. I have had numbness in my legs and pain in my legs and arms. I think the pain is due to the weather. It seems like every time the weather is about to change I have pain somewhere.
I hope everyone has a great Christmas. I will try to post some pictures early next week.
Amanda
To start our visit off our dog decided to eat an entire bar of homemade soap. Needless to say he was sick that night and the next day. I thought all was good until I noticed he was passing blood. So we ended up at a vet hospital and he had to have several tests done and stay the night on top of that. Let's just say he better be on his best behavior for awhile otherwise Jerry may throw him out.
I still have to go to the store today to get stuff to make chili and I still have to wrap all my gifts. I am usually done several weeks before now with all of that but I have been putting everything off this year.
On the house sale... We had an open house on Sunday and it went very well. We had three very interested couples and we will see what happens. I am crossing my fingers that one or all will make an offer soon. We still don't know where we will end up but we will figure it out. We did find out that the foreclosure we are looking into may not go on the market until February. We need to get our house sold first before we can make a move on anything.
I have been feeling okay. I have not been sleeping well, so therefor I am tired. I have had numbness in my legs and pain in my legs and arms. I think the pain is due to the weather. It seems like every time the weather is about to change I have pain somewhere.
I hope everyone has a great Christmas. I will try to post some pictures early next week.
Amanda
Pictures
Wednesday December 16, 2009 - Emily had her Christmas program last night and she was so excited to get dressed up.Happy Monday
Monday December 14, 2009 - I hope everyone is doing well. I have been fighting a sore throat and cough for 6 days now. I think I may give in and go see the dr tomorrow. I am now losing my voice and not sleeping very well at night. I think the lack of sleep has also been contributing to more pain in my legs and arms and numbness in my leg.
As for the house..... There is not really anything new to report. We are still having people come by to see our house which is good and we had a realtor tour last week. We had about 35 realtors come in and evaluate our house as far as price and staging and all that jazz. We had tons of great feedback. We don't need to change anything! Thank God. We are still looking at houses but still wanting to see the foreclosure down the road. The bank says they don't own it so we are guessing that they don't have a clear title yet. That is fine by me. The longer they take the better for us for now. We have been very interested in what the floor plan was like on the inside so we did find a spec that they are building in far south Austin and went and walked it on Sunday. We both liked it and I think it will work. I will just be very happy when we finally have a contract on our house. I am so tired of having to make sure my house is spotless all the time.
Other than that things are fairly calm. Emily has a Christmas program tomorrow and I think that is about all that we have going on this week. I guess I really should think about finishing my shopping. I decided to not mail out Christmas cards this year, do my annual baking and all the other tons of holiday stuff we do. I think we all have enough stress right now and would like to just relax and enjoy the holidays.
Well, I hope you all have a great week.
Amanda
As for the house..... There is not really anything new to report. We are still having people come by to see our house which is good and we had a realtor tour last week. We had about 35 realtors come in and evaluate our house as far as price and staging and all that jazz. We had tons of great feedback. We don't need to change anything! Thank God. We are still looking at houses but still wanting to see the foreclosure down the road. The bank says they don't own it so we are guessing that they don't have a clear title yet. That is fine by me. The longer they take the better for us for now. We have been very interested in what the floor plan was like on the inside so we did find a spec that they are building in far south Austin and went and walked it on Sunday. We both liked it and I think it will work. I will just be very happy when we finally have a contract on our house. I am so tired of having to make sure my house is spotless all the time.
Other than that things are fairly calm. Emily has a Christmas program tomorrow and I think that is about all that we have going on this week. I guess I really should think about finishing my shopping. I decided to not mail out Christmas cards this year, do my annual baking and all the other tons of holiday stuff we do. I think we all have enough stress right now and would like to just relax and enjoy the holidays.
Well, I hope you all have a great week.
Amanda
What a weekend
Sunday December 6, 2009 - We have learned that selling and buying a house is so much more stressful than we could have ever imagined. We found out Friday, to every one's surprise, that the sellers of the "new" house got another offer without a contingency. What this means for us is that we have until Tuesday to either sell our house and take the contingency off of our contract with them or walk away. It is looking like we will have to walk away. I have really been set on this house so it is a little heart breaking for us, but what else can we do. We did go out and look at houses on Friday. One we did not like at all and another was nice but in a totally different school district. I am having a very hard time with the idea of pulling Dylan out of the school he is in. So we will keep looking.
We have found another house that we want to look at. It is a foreclosure and it was a model home that was not lived in very long at all. It should be in fairly decent shape (except for the grass that did not get watered at all this summer). The house is not even on the market yet so our realtor is going to call the bank that owns it tomorrow and find out when we can look at it and the timeline for purchase. It is not as big as the other house but does have a large bonus room upstairs. So it is 1 and 1/2 stories. The kids LOVE the idea of having stairs.
We will see what happens. We still hope we can still sell ours soon so that when we do find something else that we like we can jump. I hope you have all had a good weekend and have a great week.
Amanda
We have found another house that we want to look at. It is a foreclosure and it was a model home that was not lived in very long at all. It should be in fairly decent shape (except for the grass that did not get watered at all this summer). The house is not even on the market yet so our realtor is going to call the bank that owns it tomorrow and find out when we can look at it and the timeline for purchase. It is not as big as the other house but does have a large bonus room upstairs. So it is 1 and 1/2 stories. The kids LOVE the idea of having stairs.
We will see what happens. We still hope we can still sell ours soon so that when we do find something else that we like we can jump. I hope you have all had a good weekend and have a great week.
Amanda
Thursday December 3, 2009 - Hello! It has been awhile since my last post. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. We sure did and really enjoyed the time off of work and school. We have been very busy with work, school, holidays and packing up the house. We don't have a contract on our house yet but we are hoping sooner than later. We have had two open houses and will have a third this weekend. We are all so tired of having the house on the market already. We have been either eating out or eating microwave dinners because I am afraid to cook. The last time we cooked we made fish and right after dinner we got a call from a realtor wanting to come by. We just never know when we will have to load up and leave.
I am trying to take my time with the packing so that I don't get too tired. I have had some pain in my arms the last several days and I am sure the weather is part of the problem. By the time all of the moving and packing and unpacking is done Jerry will be worn out. I am trying to help some but I am afraid to lift anything too heavy. I am so afraid my arms will give out and I will drop something.
I will keep you all posted on the house situation. Our contract on the new house expires at the end of this month so we really need to get a contract soon on our house.
I hope you all stay warm and dry. We are supposed to get snow tomorrow. I will believe it when I see it.
Amanda
I am trying to take my time with the packing so that I don't get too tired. I have had some pain in my arms the last several days and I am sure the weather is part of the problem. By the time all of the moving and packing and unpacking is done Jerry will be worn out. I am trying to help some but I am afraid to lift anything too heavy. I am so afraid my arms will give out and I will drop something.
I will keep you all posted on the house situation. Our contract on the new house expires at the end of this month so we really need to get a contract soon on our house.
I hope you all stay warm and dry. We are supposed to get snow tomorrow. I will believe it when I see it.
Amanda
We Have A Contract
Monday November 23, 2009 - On the new house that is. So now we need to sell our house. We are still hoping to sell by the end of the year. We had a lot of good feedback from our open house but we will see. Keep your fingers crossed.
Amanda
Amanda
House Update
Saturday November 21, 2009 - After several technical difficulties on the sellers' agent's part we finally got a counter on our offer; so we are countering that. We will see how long we can go back and forth. I never thought buying and selling a home could be so nerve racking. We have our first open house tomorrow and then we may have a better idea of how fast we can sell our house. We are still crossing our fingers that by some stroke of luck we can close on both houses by the end of the year. I will keep you all posted. Have a great rest of the weekend.
Amanda
Amanda
Stuff
Thursday November 19, 2009 - We have been so busy the last week I have hardly taken the time to sit at the computer. This time of year is just crazy in general with the kids having holiday lunches and programs and such but we have gone a made it worse. ;) We have put our house up for sale. So I have been packing stuff, moving stuff and trying to stay on top of the everyday stuff. It has been tricky.
So yes we have our house on the market. Why? Well, I have been looking at houses for some time now and talking to Jerry about moving. Of course I never really thought we could move right now. There is a house less than a mile from us that has been on the market for awhile and I have been keeping an eye on it. They ended up getting a new realtor recently so they had an open house this weekend. I told Jerry about it and he said he wanted to go. I did not think he would want to go. So we went and looked at the house and we both liked it. But of course my responsible husband said no we are not going to buy it. I mentioned us just going and seeing what we would qualify for. So we did and we can afford the house and actually make our monthly expenses less. So we have put our house on the market and are waiting to hear back from the seller of the other house if they will accept our offer. We will know this evening. If they don't, we have decided that us moving would be a good decision right now so we would continue to look at houses and hope ours sells.
Other than the excitement of the last 5 days everything is fairly normal around here. I have some motivation to get out of bed so I am not spending half the day in bed, but I am also not able to sleep at night. Hopefully, we can all get some rest tonight.
I hope you all have a great weekend.
Amanda
So yes we have our house on the market. Why? Well, I have been looking at houses for some time now and talking to Jerry about moving. Of course I never really thought we could move right now. There is a house less than a mile from us that has been on the market for awhile and I have been keeping an eye on it. They ended up getting a new realtor recently so they had an open house this weekend. I told Jerry about it and he said he wanted to go. I did not think he would want to go. So we went and looked at the house and we both liked it. But of course my responsible husband said no we are not going to buy it. I mentioned us just going and seeing what we would qualify for. So we did and we can afford the house and actually make our monthly expenses less. So we have put our house on the market and are waiting to hear back from the seller of the other house if they will accept our offer. We will know this evening. If they don't, we have decided that us moving would be a good decision right now so we would continue to look at houses and hope ours sells.
Other than the excitement of the last 5 days everything is fairly normal around here. I have some motivation to get out of bed so I am not spending half the day in bed, but I am also not able to sleep at night. Hopefully, we can all get some rest tonight.
I hope you all have a great weekend.
Amanda
EXCITED!!
Friday November 13, 2009 - Happy Friday the 13th! I hope everyone had a great week. I am so excited because I just noticed that Phantom of the Opera is coming to Austin in the spring. I have been waiting for years for it to come back to Texas. Now if we can just get Les Miserables to come back. I hope you all have a great weekend. I am planning on cleaning the house and doing some yard work this weekend. Exciting I know.
Amanda
Amanda
Great Weekend
Wednesday November 11, 2009 -
November 6, 1999
November 6, 2009
November 6, 1999
November 6, 2009Jerry and I had a great time this weekend in Fredericksburg for our anniversary. We did a whole lot of nothing. It was nice to just sit and have some down time. We did get to see Malford Milligan. I don't think we have been to a concert or show since we had kids. We have decided that we need to get away more often. We were not ready to get back to reality.
There is not much to report around here. Everything is pretty much the same. I hope you all have a great rest of the week.
Amanda
Halloween Pictures!!
Wednesday November 4, 2009 - Here are some pictures from Saturday.
Emily painting her pumpkin.
Dylan painting his pumpkin.
Cleaning out the guts. :)
YUCK!!!
Daddy carving the pumpkin.
All lit up.
Before Trick Or Treating
Friends we went Trick Or Treating with.
Silly
Black cat!!
After it was all said and done. We all had a great time but were very tired.
Emily painting her pumpkin.
Dylan painting his pumpkin.
Cleaning out the guts. :)
YUCK!!!
Daddy carving the pumpkin.
All lit up.
Before Trick Or Treating
Friends we went Trick Or Treating with.
Silly
Black cat!!
After it was all said and done. We all had a great time but were very tired.Eye Update
Tuesday November 3, 2009 - I hope you all had a great weekend. I know we did. The kids had a blast. I will post some pictures shortly.
I did go to the ophthalmologist today to have a follow up and get the pictures of my optic nerve taken. He said that my vision may have improved slightly but I told him I had not noticed any change. He said everything looks stable and you can definitely tell that there is damage to my optic nerve. He said my vision should not get worse and that he wants to see me every 6 months. So it ended up being fairly uneventful. The good thing about having the pictures done today is that I have a baseline of what my optic nerves look like now so if I get optic neuritis again we can look at the differences in damage.
I hope you all have a great rest of the week. I will post pictures from the weekend soon.
Amanda
I did go to the ophthalmologist today to have a follow up and get the pictures of my optic nerve taken. He said that my vision may have improved slightly but I told him I had not noticed any change. He said everything looks stable and you can definitely tell that there is damage to my optic nerve. He said my vision should not get worse and that he wants to see me every 6 months. So it ended up being fairly uneventful. The good thing about having the pictures done today is that I have a baseline of what my optic nerves look like now so if I get optic neuritis again we can look at the differences in damage.
I hope you all have a great rest of the week. I will post pictures from the weekend soon.
Amanda
Update
Thursday October 29, 2009 - Yesterday was my follow up with my family doctor. It was fairly uneventful. He said since the spots on my arms still have some pigment he does not think it is vitiligo but he is not sure. He said to watch them and see if I get more or if they get worse and then we will go from there. He asked about my mood and I told him it fluctuates a lot. Both he and my neurologist are not completely pleased with that. They both want to wait a little longer before we try different medications. With the Betaseron, and MS patients in general, there are lots of cases of depression so it is not a complete shock that I have mood issues. I will go back to see him in 6 months. So far the regular routine will be neurologist every three months and family doctor every six months.
We are all getting ready for the busy weekend. Tonight is Dylan's music program at school, Friday we may go to a football game with my mom, Saturday will be full of Halloween excitement and Sunday Dylan has a birthday party to go to. Then comes Monday all over again. :) Next Friday is our 10 year wedding Anniversary so Jerry and I will be taking a weekend trip to Fredericksburg to relax. I can't wait for a change of scenery even if it is only for a couple of days.
I hope you all have a great weekend. I will post pictures from the weekend in a few days.
Amanda
We are all getting ready for the busy weekend. Tonight is Dylan's music program at school, Friday we may go to a football game with my mom, Saturday will be full of Halloween excitement and Sunday Dylan has a birthday party to go to. Then comes Monday all over again. :) Next Friday is our 10 year wedding Anniversary so Jerry and I will be taking a weekend trip to Fredericksburg to relax. I can't wait for a change of scenery even if it is only for a couple of days.
I hope you all have a great weekend. I will post pictures from the weekend in a few days.
Amanda
Fall Fun
Batman and Ariel
The light on this one came out strange.Monday October 26, 2009 - I have been meaning to blog for quite some time but have just not gotten around to it. Two weekends ago we went to Houston to celebrate Jerry's birthday and his brother's birthday. We were all so tired come Monday morning that the only person that got out of bed to go to school or work was Jerry. We have been busy in the yard since the weather was nice (until today). I think I finally have my garden how I like it. It only took 4 years. :) I am sure I will want to change it in the spring.
This past weekend we had some fall fun. We went to Emily's preschool for Trunk N Treat. We have wanted to do that for years but have never been able to go. We all had a great time. I kept telling the kids there was no need to go trick or treating now. That did not go over too well. ;)
This is going to be a busy week. I have a feeling that will be the case until the end of the year. Dylan has his first field trip of the year tomorrow and a music program on Thursday evening. Of course the most important thing is Halloween.
I have an appointment with my family doctor on Wednesday just to follow up. I do have a question about my skin for him so we will see if he can give me some answers. I have been getting these faint white spots on my arms. They look similar to vitiligo but I am not sure. Many people with vitiligo also have another auto immune disease.
I will see my ophthalmologist again next week. He is wanting to take pictures of my optic nerve to see the actual damage that was done to the nerve. I am very anxious to see how that looks. I have still not had any improvement in my vision and it has now been 5 months since my first symptoms.
The other symptoms; tingling and numbness are still better. I have just been very tired still. I am still spending about half the day in bed on my days off. I was talking to Jerry today about how there is no way I could work a full time job right now. I would probably make it through Tuesday and hit a wall.
Well I guess that is about all for now. I will post more pictures after our adventures on Saturday. I hope you all stay warm and dry.
Amanda
Thursday October 15, 2009 - The car is fixed. It ended up being the battery. :( I think that is the most expensive battery I have ever had to get. I am just happy we have the car back.
Dylan is still a little congested in the mornings and evenings but otherwise is fine. Emily is still congested and runny. I have not decided if she will go to school tomorrow or not. I really need to go to work though. I have not had anymore fever or achiness; I just have a headache today. It seems like I have a slight headache almost everyday along with a stomache ache.
I hope everyone is staying healthy or getting better. Have a great weekend.
Amanda
Dylan is still a little congested in the mornings and evenings but otherwise is fine. Emily is still congested and runny. I have not decided if she will go to school tomorrow or not. I really need to go to work though. I have not had anymore fever or achiness; I just have a headache today. It seems like I have a slight headache almost everyday along with a stomache ache.
I hope everyone is staying healthy or getting better. Have a great weekend.
Amanda
Updates
Tuesday October 13, 2009 - I have a few updates so I thought I would share them. Dylan and Emily's vitamin D tests came back normal, so we will continue on their multi vitamin and try to get as much into their diets as we can. Emily had her appointment with the ophthalmologist today. Apparently, Emily has the dreaded inherited astigmatism as well. She could wear glasses now, but it is not necessary. He said she will have to wear glasses sooner than later and probably earlier than most kids but we will wait another year and check again.
I have been feeling a little better lately. I am still very tired but I am blaming the weather on that. ;) It is just too easy to stay in bed when it is cold and wet outside. I am still having some tingling in my feet and hands but it seems to not be as often. My vision has still not improved any. :( Some days I do notice that is it worse than others but I have gotten used to it for the most part. Other than that things are fairly normal around here. The kids are getting very excited about all the upcoming holidays and bouncing off the walls since they have not been able to go outside and play.
Today ended up being a bummer of a day. Dylan stayed home because of a cough and Emily has had a runny nose and cough. I started to feel bad so I took my temp and it was a little elevated. So we decided to go get dinner since no one felt like cooking. After dinner we stopped at Petsmart to get cat food and then the car would not start. ARGH! So we have gone from one car to no car. We had the car towed and had a neighbor come pick us up. THANK YOU Rita!!!!!! We are thinking the alternator went out and it is covered under the warranty. I am crossing my fingers. So to keep things as simple as possible Emily and I will be staying home tomorrow and Jerry has a co-worker that will give him a ride to and from work.
Hopefully we will get some good news tomorrow.
Amanda
I have been feeling a little better lately. I am still very tired but I am blaming the weather on that. ;) It is just too easy to stay in bed when it is cold and wet outside. I am still having some tingling in my feet and hands but it seems to not be as often. My vision has still not improved any. :( Some days I do notice that is it worse than others but I have gotten used to it for the most part. Other than that things are fairly normal around here. The kids are getting very excited about all the upcoming holidays and bouncing off the walls since they have not been able to go outside and play.
Today ended up being a bummer of a day. Dylan stayed home because of a cough and Emily has had a runny nose and cough. I started to feel bad so I took my temp and it was a little elevated. So we decided to go get dinner since no one felt like cooking. After dinner we stopped at Petsmart to get cat food and then the car would not start. ARGH! So we have gone from one car to no car. We had the car towed and had a neighbor come pick us up. THANK YOU Rita!!!!!! We are thinking the alternator went out and it is covered under the warranty. I am crossing my fingers. So to keep things as simple as possible Emily and I will be staying home tomorrow and Jerry has a co-worker that will give him a ride to and from work.
Hopefully we will get some good news tomorrow.
Amanda
MS Walk
Sunday October 11, 2009 - I want to thank all of you that have donated and all of those that came out to walk yesterday. We had a good time. It was a little cool but better than being 100 degrees outside.
If you want to donate it is not too late. You can still go to my page and donate online. Also, for those of you in the San Antonio area there is a walk at the AT&T center on March 6, 2010. You can sign up for the walk now. I am thinking of putting a team together and then you can sign up to be on my team. If anyone has a team name suggestion I would greatly appreciate it.
I hope you have all had a great weekend. The weather here has been nothing like they forecast but owell. I will take the rain and cooler temps over the heat any day. Have a great weekend.Amanda
Thank You BetaPlus, Again!
Monday October 5, 2009 - I hope everyone had a good wet weekend. It is nice to finally get some rain. I just wish it had come a few months ago when I was having to pay to water the grass. We had a great weekend. It was Jerry's' first weekend home in a long time. He has taken a leave of absence from his part time job. We tried to get a few things done around the house but played lazy at the same time. It was nice.
Today ended on a very good note. I was checking my email and had an email from BetaPlus. Due to the economy, they have decided that people that are on the $50 a month copay program or assistance program will be switched over to a $0 a month copay as long as you are on the medication. YIPPEEEE! So as long as I am on Betaseron I will not have to pay for it. I guess us switching insurance and not having them pay for it helped out in the end after all. So BetaPlus is sending the info to the pharmacy and I will not have to pay for my next shipment.
I sure hope the rest of the week is as good as today was. :) I hope you all have a great week.
*Reminder - MS Walk Austin is this Saturday. I hope to see you all there. Save The Date: MS Walk in San Antonio on March 6, 2010.
Amanda
Today ended on a very good note. I was checking my email and had an email from BetaPlus. Due to the economy, they have decided that people that are on the $50 a month copay program or assistance program will be switched over to a $0 a month copay as long as you are on the medication. YIPPEEEE! So as long as I am on Betaseron I will not have to pay for it. I guess us switching insurance and not having them pay for it helped out in the end after all. So BetaPlus is sending the info to the pharmacy and I will not have to pay for my next shipment.
I sure hope the rest of the week is as good as today was. :) I hope you all have a great week.
*Reminder - MS Walk Austin is this Saturday. I hope to see you all there. Save The Date: MS Walk in San Antonio on March 6, 2010.
Amanda
Busy Day
Thursday October 1, 2009 - Today was a very busy day for us. I had an appointment with the dermatologist just for a follow up - everything looks good. After that I took Emily in to have blood drawn. I have been putting it off for a week. She did GREAT! She didn't cry or anything; she just watched the guy stick her and take her blood. I think the kids seeing me stick myself with a needle has made them a little more tolerant of the doctor and shots and such. Then, Emily and I headed to the grocery store where we spent 2 hours shopping. UGH! That is what happens when you have not been shopping in about three weeks.
We got home, unloaded the groceries, ate lunch and started some laundry. Then I went an attempted to get new glasses with very little luck. Emily was tired, so she would not listen to anything I said. So of course as soon as we got in the car she fell asleep. When we got home it was time for Dylan to get home from school and then I took him to have his blood drawn. He did GREAT as well! I think it helped that Emily told him about it before hand and made it sound like no big deal; so he had to be the big boy since his sister did not cry.
Then we were off to pick Jerry up from work and try once more to get my glasses. I picked out the glasses I wanted and then went to sign in to wait for someone to help me. We waited for 45 minutes. Two people that came in after me were called first. I went to look at the sign in sheet and they had just completely skipped me. So we were there all that time for nothing. We got up and left. Very frustrating! Now we are trying to get homework and showers done. It is way past bedtime.
* I had Emily and Dylan's blood drawn to check their vitamin D levels. There are new studies that show vitamin D deficiencies may be a contributing factor to developing MS. You get vitamin D from sunshine and from milk. Nowadays kids are not outside as much and drink skim milk more; so they have lower levels of vitamin D. My neurologist highly recommended getting them checked so if it is low we can make sure we either spend more time outside or supplement them. Having a parent with MS makes them more likely to get MS and since Emily is female she is at greater risk. If there is anything I can do to make those risks lower I will do it.
I hope you have all had a great week and have a good weekend. Don't forget Austin MS walk is next Saturday in Round Rock. Hope to see you all there.
Amanda
We got home, unloaded the groceries, ate lunch and started some laundry. Then I went an attempted to get new glasses with very little luck. Emily was tired, so she would not listen to anything I said. So of course as soon as we got in the car she fell asleep. When we got home it was time for Dylan to get home from school and then I took him to have his blood drawn. He did GREAT as well! I think it helped that Emily told him about it before hand and made it sound like no big deal; so he had to be the big boy since his sister did not cry.
Then we were off to pick Jerry up from work and try once more to get my glasses. I picked out the glasses I wanted and then went to sign in to wait for someone to help me. We waited for 45 minutes. Two people that came in after me were called first. I went to look at the sign in sheet and they had just completely skipped me. So we were there all that time for nothing. We got up and left. Very frustrating! Now we are trying to get homework and showers done. It is way past bedtime.
* I had Emily and Dylan's blood drawn to check their vitamin D levels. There are new studies that show vitamin D deficiencies may be a contributing factor to developing MS. You get vitamin D from sunshine and from milk. Nowadays kids are not outside as much and drink skim milk more; so they have lower levels of vitamin D. My neurologist highly recommended getting them checked so if it is low we can make sure we either spend more time outside or supplement them. Having a parent with MS makes them more likely to get MS and since Emily is female she is at greater risk. If there is anything I can do to make those risks lower I will do it.
I hope you have all had a great week and have a good weekend. Don't forget Austin MS walk is next Saturday in Round Rock. Hope to see you all there.
Amanda
A Whole New World
Saturday September 26, 2009 - I had my appointment with the neurologist Thursday. It was fairly uneventful. He didn't really say much about my symptoms, but then again what can he do about them. He did give me some medication to give me more energy. I have been spending lots of time in bed sleeping. On days I don't work I will stay in bed either half the day or all day. I am thinking it is a combination of issues; lack of routine, the need to exercise and maybe a little depression. I am trying to change my routine and exercise more and see if that helps first. I hate taking lots of medication. I will go back for my three month check up in January.
On the subject of exercise, I went to a pilates class Thursday night that is for MS patients. I felt great afterwards. The class is offered on Thursdays so I guess I know where I will be on Thursday evenings. There are people there of all abilities; so you are not being judged by what you can and can't do. I will say going to two different MS functions this week has been a little strange for me. I keep feeling like I don't belong. Not because people are not welcoming but because it is just not a community I am used to. It is all new and not a place you ever want to be. It has been nice, though, meeting other people in the area with MS. I don't feel so isolated.
I have been sleeping much better at night without medication. I think working has helped with that. I still don't sleep through the night but am able to fall asleep easier. We did get a new mattress topper for our bed last week. It has made it much softer an has helped with the strain on my neck. I actually slept through the night a couple of days ago and it was very strange. I can't remember the last time I slept though the night before that. I hope I have more of them.
I started a journal a couple of days ago that I plan on writing in it daily for therapy. :) We will see if it helps. I hope you all have a great weekend. I am going to try and get some much needed cleaning done.
Amanda
On the subject of exercise, I went to a pilates class Thursday night that is for MS patients. I felt great afterwards. The class is offered on Thursdays so I guess I know where I will be on Thursday evenings. There are people there of all abilities; so you are not being judged by what you can and can't do. I will say going to two different MS functions this week has been a little strange for me. I keep feeling like I don't belong. Not because people are not welcoming but because it is just not a community I am used to. It is all new and not a place you ever want to be. It has been nice, though, meeting other people in the area with MS. I don't feel so isolated.
I have been sleeping much better at night without medication. I think working has helped with that. I still don't sleep through the night but am able to fall asleep easier. We did get a new mattress topper for our bed last week. It has made it much softer an has helped with the strain on my neck. I actually slept through the night a couple of days ago and it was very strange. I can't remember the last time I slept though the night before that. I hope I have more of them.
I started a journal a couple of days ago that I plan on writing in it daily for therapy. :) We will see if it helps. I hope you all have a great weekend. I am going to try and get some much needed cleaning done.
Amanda
More Pictures!
Tuesday September 22, 2009 - I will eventually get up to date with all of the pictures.:)
Emily's first day of school.
The four of us in front of the sandcastle at the coast.
The family at Snoopy's.
The family at Snoopy's.
What silly kids. They traded toys for the picture.
Emily
Dylan
Emily being silly.
Dylan's first day of school.
Fourth of July
Welcome Fall!
Tuesday September 22, 2009 - I am so glad it is raining and cooler outside. I can't wait to open all of the windows and let in some fresh air. I hope you all enjoy this great weather!
Amanda
Amanda
Sunday September 20, 2009 - We had a good weekend. Jeff and Misty kept the kids last night and today so we could go to the wellness workshops today. THANK YOU Jeff and Misty!!!! I hope you are not too tired. ;) Jerry and I went out to the Oasis last night for dinner. I have lived here 11 years and had never been there. It was nice to go sit outside and not melt and not have three people trying to talk to you at once. The workshops went well today. It was nice to meet other people in the area with MS. I went to a workshop on improving your balance and on motivation. Ilearned that I really have bad balance. :( Jerry had a workshop just for care partners. He was able to talk to other people that have family members with MS. I think it was very helpful for him. I also found out that they have weekly yoga and pilates classes for people with MS at my neurologist's office. I will not be able to make the yoga class due to work, but am planning on signing up for the pilates class. I am excited that I can go and exercise out of the house and not worry about keeping up with everyone else in the room.
Well, I guess I am off to do my injection and get ready for another Monday. I hope everyone has a great week. I will update you Thursday on my appointment with my nuerologist.
Amanda
Well, I guess I am off to do my injection and get ready for another Monday. I hope everyone has a great week. I will update you Thursday on my appointment with my nuerologist.
Amanda
I Made It!
Saturday September 19, 2009 - I made it through the night.:) I woke up with achy legs but that could have been cause by anything. I will continue to double up on the Tylenol before my injections this week. All of my injections this week have to be done the nights before I have work so I really need to not have a reaction. I guess I should try to get some cleaning done. I have still not finished unpacking from our trip last weekend. I hope you all have a great weekend!
Amanda
Amanda
Some Pictures:)
Silly 4th of July hats that the kids made.:)
Emily's recital
Dylan after his first soccer game.
Dylan playing his favorite position.These pictures are from several months ago. I guess I need to download the rest. I am going to try to put more pictures on here of what we have going on. I am still trying to figure out this blog thing.;)
Crossing My Fingers!
Friday September 18, 2009 - I am crossing my fingers that I don't have a bad reaction to my medication tonight. On Wednesday I did my injection and then woke up around 2:30 Thursday morning with a migraine and was shivering uncontrollably. I hopped in the shower to try to warm up with no luck. Jerry came in and thought I was crazy because I was taking a shower at 3 in the morning. :) I got out and put on long pj's and Jerry wrapped me in in two heavy blankets. I moved to the sofa to try and get comfortable. I was shivering, thirsty, had an awful headache and very nauseous. I wanted to take more Tylenol but could not eat or drink because I was afraid it would come back up. So I was finally able to go back to sleep. When I woke after a short little nap I had finally stopped shivering but my head was pounding. It hurt so bad my ears felt like they were going to explode. Finally around 3:30 in the afternoon, after playing musical beds all day, my head was starting to feel better. I felt a little better today but still had a slight headache and was very tired and weak.
When I went to pull my next injection out for tonight I realized that the injection I took the other night was from a new box that I had not opened yet. I had an issue with getting that shipment of medication. It was shipped on a Friday and I was supposed to get it delivered Saturday. The medication did not show up until Monday. So I am guessing it sat in a truck or warehouse all weekend and the medication has to be kept at a certain temperature. UGH! So I just did my injection for tonight out of the same box. I am hoping that I don't wake up in the middle of the night again. I guess if I do I have a good idea as to why. I will let you know how it goes.
Also, my symptoms are not improving. My left hand and arm have a mind of their own. I have spasms and today I was trying to get something out of Jerry's hand and could not get my fingers to grip it. Very frustrating! My right foot still feels like it is asleep most of the time. Thankfully it has not gotten worse so I can still walk on it. I see the neurologist on Thursday. I am very anxious to see what he has to say.
Just a reminder that the Austin MS Walk is Saturday October 10th. I would love for you all to join me. You can go to my page at the link below. I hope you all have a great weekend!
Amanda
http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TRC/Walk/TXHWalkEvents?pg=peditor&fr_id=11720&px=6864140
When I went to pull my next injection out for tonight I realized that the injection I took the other night was from a new box that I had not opened yet. I had an issue with getting that shipment of medication. It was shipped on a Friday and I was supposed to get it delivered Saturday. The medication did not show up until Monday. So I am guessing it sat in a truck or warehouse all weekend and the medication has to be kept at a certain temperature. UGH! So I just did my injection for tonight out of the same box. I am hoping that I don't wake up in the middle of the night again. I guess if I do I have a good idea as to why. I will let you know how it goes.
Also, my symptoms are not improving. My left hand and arm have a mind of their own. I have spasms and today I was trying to get something out of Jerry's hand and could not get my fingers to grip it. Very frustrating! My right foot still feels like it is asleep most of the time. Thankfully it has not gotten worse so I can still walk on it. I see the neurologist on Thursday. I am very anxious to see what he has to say.
Just a reminder that the Austin MS Walk is Saturday October 10th. I would love for you all to join me. You can go to my page at the link below. I hope you all have a great weekend!
Amanda
http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TRC/Walk/TXHWalkEvents?pg=peditor&fr_id=11720&px=6864140
Monday September 14, 2009 - Well I have not posted in a while because we have been busy. Labor day weekend Jerry had to work everyday and I spent the weekend washing curtains and steam cleaning carpets. I figured since I am not watching kids I would do a deep cleaning on the house. Of course the house is due for cleaning again. It never ends.
Emily started school last week and really seems to like it. Today was her third day and she asked this evening if she could go to school tomorrow. :) She has a few of the same kids in her class from last year but is also making some new friends. I think she is going to have a great year.
This past weekend we went to the coast for a very quick trip with my parents, Jerry's mom and brother. We had a good time but wished we stayed a little longer. I think we are all worn out. I still have to unpack and do some laundry.
I am now on my third week at work and it is working out well. I am learning to do several different things and I brought work home today. I am really liking my schedule. It is nice to be able to pick Emily up from school and be with her two days a week. I also get to take my naps. ;)
I have been feeling worse the last week. I am having more tingling in my arms and legs. One day last week while I was filing my finger stopped moving. It was a little scary but did not last long. My left hand has not been working the way it should and my left leg has been feeling very heavy. I actually fell this weekend because I put my left leg down on the floor and there was no feeling so I went straight to the floor. I will see the neurologist next week, so we will see what he says about my symptoms.
This Sunday Jerry and I are going to a conference in Austin to learn about a MS wellness program. I am curious to get more information and find some local programs and support groups.
I hope everyone is getting some much needed rain and stays dry. Have a great week!
Amanda
Emily started school last week and really seems to like it. Today was her third day and she asked this evening if she could go to school tomorrow. :) She has a few of the same kids in her class from last year but is also making some new friends. I think she is going to have a great year.
This past weekend we went to the coast for a very quick trip with my parents, Jerry's mom and brother. We had a good time but wished we stayed a little longer. I think we are all worn out. I still have to unpack and do some laundry.
I am now on my third week at work and it is working out well. I am learning to do several different things and I brought work home today. I am really liking my schedule. It is nice to be able to pick Emily up from school and be with her two days a week. I also get to take my naps. ;)
I have been feeling worse the last week. I am having more tingling in my arms and legs. One day last week while I was filing my finger stopped moving. It was a little scary but did not last long. My left hand has not been working the way it should and my left leg has been feeling very heavy. I actually fell this weekend because I put my left leg down on the floor and there was no feeling so I went straight to the floor. I will see the neurologist next week, so we will see what he says about my symptoms.
This Sunday Jerry and I are going to a conference in Austin to learn about a MS wellness program. I am curious to get more information and find some local programs and support groups.
I hope everyone is getting some much needed rain and stays dry. Have a great week!
Amanda
Thank You Beta Plus!!!
Wednesday September 2, 2009 - Thank you Beta Plus! Beta Plus is a service provided through Betaseron (the medication I am on). I can call and talk to a nurse 24/7, they deal with insurance and they call to check and see how I am doing. Well, our insurance changed yesterday so I had to get the ball rolling with the new insurance so that I don't run out of my medication. Beta Plus called and verified my coverage and all that jazz. Our new insurance charges an arm and a leg for my medication but Beta Plus has a program where no one ever pays more than $50 a month for medication. So I am not getting my medication through my insurance anymore. It is being sent from another company and I have to pay $50 a month and Beta Plus covers the rest up to $6,000 a year. THANK GOD!!!!!! My medication costs about $200 an injection ($2,800 a month) otherwise.
I got my results back from my biopsy and it was normal. Yippee! So for now I don't have to get anymore cut off; I just have to keep an eye on them.
Today was my last day to watch kids at home and I officially start my new job tomorrow at Jerry's office. I am excited but nervous as well. I think it will work out well. I will only be working about 15 hours a week in the office and once I get better at CAD I will be bringing work home.
Both of the kids are a little upset that I am going to work and Emily is having a very hard time because this week I have to leave her with a friend while I am gone. Next week she will start school so hopefully it will be a little easier on her. We will all have to get adjusted to the change.
It has felt a little strange not going to a doctor's office the last couple of weeks.:) That will all change soon. I go back to the neurologist in a couple of weeks and then I will hit one doctor a week for the next month and a half. I think I have an appointment with every doctor I have. I did get Emily in to see a pediatric ophthalmologist; but that is not until mid October.
I hope everyone has a great end to their week.
Amanda
I got my results back from my biopsy and it was normal. Yippee! So for now I don't have to get anymore cut off; I just have to keep an eye on them.
Today was my last day to watch kids at home and I officially start my new job tomorrow at Jerry's office. I am excited but nervous as well. I think it will work out well. I will only be working about 15 hours a week in the office and once I get better at CAD I will be bringing work home.
Both of the kids are a little upset that I am going to work and Emily is having a very hard time because this week I have to leave her with a friend while I am gone. Next week she will start school so hopefully it will be a little easier on her. We will all have to get adjusted to the change.
It has felt a little strange not going to a doctor's office the last couple of weeks.:) That will all change soon. I go back to the neurologist in a couple of weeks and then I will hit one doctor a week for the next month and a half. I think I have an appointment with every doctor I have. I did get Emily in to see a pediatric ophthalmologist; but that is not until mid October.
I hope everyone has a great end to their week.
Amanda
Back To School Update
Wednesday August 26, 2009 - Hello everyone. I hope you have all had a great start to the new school year. Dylan had his second day of school today. He likes his teacher and says he likes school now. He is very excited that he gets to ride the bus this year. Last year he was dropped off and picked up at school and next year when our neighborhood school opens he will not be able to ride the bus. Dylan has several friends in his class; which is good. As some of you know Dylan was at one school last year, another school this year and will be at a new school next year. A lot of changes, but it helps to have some familiar faces in class.
I went to the dermatologist today to have my skin looked at. I was supposed to have it done years ago but never did. I went in and had my moles looked at and had one removed and we are watching several others. If the biopsy on the one removed today comes back abnormal I will go back and have the other four or so removed. We also decided it was time to start treating my rosacea. I have very sensitive skin and I am having a hard time finding something that does not irritate my skin. I brought home facial cleanser, moisturizer plus sunscreen and a gel for the rosacea. I hope it works. I will go back in about a month to look at my other moles, the one I had removed and see if the products I came home with today are working.
As for my MS symptoms.......I have not had any improvement in my vision, I still have some days that I am very tired and my right leg and foot still tingle at times. I am also still having the tingle and pain in my left arm and hand from my herniated disc in my neck. Overall I feel good most days and just try to ignore the pain and tingles. Thank you to all of you for your support! I hope you all have a great rest of the week.
Amanda
I went to the dermatologist today to have my skin looked at. I was supposed to have it done years ago but never did. I went in and had my moles looked at and had one removed and we are watching several others. If the biopsy on the one removed today comes back abnormal I will go back and have the other four or so removed. We also decided it was time to start treating my rosacea. I have very sensitive skin and I am having a hard time finding something that does not irritate my skin. I brought home facial cleanser, moisturizer plus sunscreen and a gel for the rosacea. I hope it works. I will go back in about a month to look at my other moles, the one I had removed and see if the products I came home with today are working.
As for my MS symptoms.......I have not had any improvement in my vision, I still have some days that I am very tired and my right leg and foot still tingle at times. I am also still having the tingle and pain in my left arm and hand from my herniated disc in my neck. Overall I feel good most days and just try to ignore the pain and tingles. Thank you to all of you for your support! I hope you all have a great rest of the week.
Amanda
End of Summer
Sunday August 23, 2009 - It has been awhile since my last post. Lots has happened since my last post. Dylan had his last soccer game of the season, the kids and I went to San Antonio for several days and we have met Dylan's 1st grade teacher.
Dylan's last soccer game was by far the most exciting game of the season. It ended up being a tie so both teams put up a good fight.;) We are taking the fall off but I am hoping to get Dylan back into soccer in the spring. He had fun and I think he was finally starting to get the hang of it.
After the game we rode with my mom to San Antonio. We got to see family, spend time at the pool and learn how to fish. We all had a good time. It was nice to get away from home for a few days.
While I was in San Antonio my cooling equipment came. I now have a vest, neck wrap, 2 wrist wraps and a pillow case that holds ice packs. I think we have more ice packs in our freezer than you can find in any store. I have used the neck wrap and it works well. I have not used the vest yet. Jerry said it makes me look like I am going hunting. Owell!
My injections are going well. I am still having skin reactions in spots and the medication burns going in. I have learned that I need to stay on the Tylenol that I take before my injections. On Wednesday I thought I would be smart and not take the Tylenol. Well, I woke up around 1 am to go to the restroom and I felt awful. I was shivering like it was freezing in the house and sweating. I could not get comfortable and felt like I was going to crawl out of my skin. I was so tired on Thursday I spent most of the morning sleeping.
We have had a nice weekend. Jerry was off on Friday night and Saturday. Friday we had meet the teacher and then we went to dinner. Saturday we got up and went to breakfast as a family which was nice. My brother came into town and stayed the night. Today I am doing laundry and Jerry had to go to work. :( Back to the same old routine.
This next few weeks will be a big change. Dylan starts school on Tuesday, Emily will start in two weeks and I will start working. Lots of excitement! I will let you all know how it goes. I am ready to get back to our school routine. I hope you all have a great week and a great first week of school for those of you going back or that have kids in school.
Amanda
Dylan's last soccer game was by far the most exciting game of the season. It ended up being a tie so both teams put up a good fight.;) We are taking the fall off but I am hoping to get Dylan back into soccer in the spring. He had fun and I think he was finally starting to get the hang of it.
After the game we rode with my mom to San Antonio. We got to see family, spend time at the pool and learn how to fish. We all had a good time. It was nice to get away from home for a few days.
While I was in San Antonio my cooling equipment came. I now have a vest, neck wrap, 2 wrist wraps and a pillow case that holds ice packs. I think we have more ice packs in our freezer than you can find in any store. I have used the neck wrap and it works well. I have not used the vest yet. Jerry said it makes me look like I am going hunting. Owell!
My injections are going well. I am still having skin reactions in spots and the medication burns going in. I have learned that I need to stay on the Tylenol that I take before my injections. On Wednesday I thought I would be smart and not take the Tylenol. Well, I woke up around 1 am to go to the restroom and I felt awful. I was shivering like it was freezing in the house and sweating. I could not get comfortable and felt like I was going to crawl out of my skin. I was so tired on Thursday I spent most of the morning sleeping.
We have had a nice weekend. Jerry was off on Friday night and Saturday. Friday we had meet the teacher and then we went to dinner. Saturday we got up and went to breakfast as a family which was nice. My brother came into town and stayed the night. Today I am doing laundry and Jerry had to go to work. :( Back to the same old routine.
This next few weeks will be a big change. Dylan starts school on Tuesday, Emily will start in two weeks and I will start working. Lots of excitement! I will let you all know how it goes. I am ready to get back to our school routine. I hope you all have a great week and a great first week of school for those of you going back or that have kids in school.
Amanda
Full Dose, Finally
Thursday August 13, 2009 - I am finally on the full dose of my medication. I am still not having any side effects other than the skin reactions. The skin reactions just look like big red bruises that take forever to fade away, 6 - 8 weeks to be exact. I am just glad they don't hurt.
I have started to have a little bit of tingling in my right leg and foot. It is very slight and does not really bother me until I am trying to go to sleep. It feels almost like my leg is asleep but very faint. I am just crossing my fingers that it does not get worse.
Yesterday was a very busy day. I had to take Jerry to work, Dylan to camp and the eye doctor, our cat to the doctor and Emily to the doctor. Dylan still does not need glasses but does have an astigmatism. So we will wait until next year and check again. I took Emily to the doctor to have her eyes checked as well. She has been turning her head to watch TV and squinting. So the nurse that checked her said her vision is 20/40 but that I should not worry about it since she is only 3. So I brought up the turning the head and she said I don't know about that. So I talked to the doctor and as soon as I mentioned her turning her head he said "I don't like that". So he has referred us to a pediatric ophthalmologist in the same office as my doctor. I have called the doctor but she is booked through December. We are trying to get her to squeeze us in ASAP. One, I want to get in and find out what is going on with her vision but I also want to get her in before our insurance changes.
Well I guess that is all around here for now. I hope everyone has a great weekend.
Amanda
I have started to have a little bit of tingling in my right leg and foot. It is very slight and does not really bother me until I am trying to go to sleep. It feels almost like my leg is asleep but very faint. I am just crossing my fingers that it does not get worse.
Yesterday was a very busy day. I had to take Jerry to work, Dylan to camp and the eye doctor, our cat to the doctor and Emily to the doctor. Dylan still does not need glasses but does have an astigmatism. So we will wait until next year and check again. I took Emily to the doctor to have her eyes checked as well. She has been turning her head to watch TV and squinting. So the nurse that checked her said her vision is 20/40 but that I should not worry about it since she is only 3. So I brought up the turning the head and she said I don't know about that. So I talked to the doctor and as soon as I mentioned her turning her head he said "I don't like that". So he has referred us to a pediatric ophthalmologist in the same office as my doctor. I have called the doctor but she is booked through December. We are trying to get her to squeeze us in ASAP. One, I want to get in and find out what is going on with her vision but I also want to get her in before our insurance changes.
Well I guess that is all around here for now. I hope everyone has a great weekend.
Amanda
Insurance and stuff
Sunday August 9, 2009 - I hope everyone has had a great weekend. We had Dylan's soccer game yesterday and then we had to take Jerry to work. While we were sitting in the car talking before he had to go; the car all of the sudden lunged forward. A lady pulled in behind us and hit the back of my car. Ugh! She thought it was so funny. Dylan said we should call the police and have her put in jail. Luckily she didn't do any damage but sometime in the last week someone hit my bumper another time and did do damage. So irritating. Other than that yesterday was a fairly lazy day. I didn't feel like doing much of anything. I spent half of today in bed and did finally get up and start doing some cleaning that is way overdue.
I have been up a lot at night with stuff on my mind. Lately it has been about insurance. We just paid a lot of money for medical bills in the last month and a half and have met our deductible. So we thought we would not have anymore out of pocket this year. WRONG! Our insurance will be changing September 1st. This is a new company and after you have met your deductible you still have to pay 20%. There is a cap on out of pocket but it is $12,000 plus the monthly premiums. WOW! How in the world are we going to afford that? With my medication, MRI's, lab work and doctor's visits we will end up spending lots of money.
I was also reading a story about bankruptcy that I thought was interesting and scary. A very large percentage of people that file for bankruptcy file because of medical bills and around 70% of those people have health insurance. Not Good!
So here we are with a bad economy, an already tight budget and more medical bills. Seems to be the norm right now everywhere. I will be so glad when things pick up. Well, I will stop venting now; just had to get that off my chest and maybe I will be able to sleep tonight. I hope everyone has a great week!
Amanda
I have been up a lot at night with stuff on my mind. Lately it has been about insurance. We just paid a lot of money for medical bills in the last month and a half and have met our deductible. So we thought we would not have anymore out of pocket this year. WRONG! Our insurance will be changing September 1st. This is a new company and after you have met your deductible you still have to pay 20%. There is a cap on out of pocket but it is $12,000 plus the monthly premiums. WOW! How in the world are we going to afford that? With my medication, MRI's, lab work and doctor's visits we will end up spending lots of money.
I was also reading a story about bankruptcy that I thought was interesting and scary. A very large percentage of people that file for bankruptcy file because of medical bills and around 70% of those people have health insurance. Not Good!
So here we are with a bad economy, an already tight budget and more medical bills. Seems to be the norm right now everywhere. I will be so glad when things pick up. Well, I will stop venting now; just had to get that off my chest and maybe I will be able to sleep tonight. I hope everyone has a great week!
Amanda
20/60
Tuesday August 4, 2009 - 20/60 is my vision in my right eye with corrective lenses. I went to the ophthalmologist today to get a new prescription for contacts and glasses. The poor lady checking my eyes did not completely look at my chart before she had me look at the letters on the wall and freaked out a little when my vision was so bad in the right eye.:)
I called and got my results from the lab work done last week. Everything came back normal. I think they checked everything they could possibly check. I also finally went and picked up the prescription for my "cooling equipment". Hopefully I will have it before we go to the coast in September.
I do have a little break before more appointments. I don't go back to the neurologist until the end of next month, my family doctor until October and the ophthalmologist in November unless something happens between now and then.
We are participating in Walk MS in Round Rock on Saturday October 10, 2009. I would love for everyone to join me. You can go to my fundraising page to either sign up for the walk or to make a donation.
http://walktxh.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR?px=6864140&pg=personal&fr_id=11720
I hope everyone is having a great week.
Amanda
I called and got my results from the lab work done last week. Everything came back normal. I think they checked everything they could possibly check. I also finally went and picked up the prescription for my "cooling equipment". Hopefully I will have it before we go to the coast in September.
I do have a little break before more appointments. I don't go back to the neurologist until the end of next month, my family doctor until October and the ophthalmologist in November unless something happens between now and then.
We are participating in Walk MS in Round Rock on Saturday October 10, 2009. I would love for everyone to join me. You can go to my fundraising page to either sign up for the walk or to make a donation.
http://walktxh.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR?px=6864140&pg=personal&fr_id=11720
I hope everyone is having a great week.
Amanda
Blood work and more blood work
Thursday July 30, 2009 - I finally got my results back from the blood work I had done on Friday and everything came back normal. Yippee! I had to go to my family doctor today for a follow up appointment that I was supposed to have a while back. I was supposed to have blood work done for that dr. back in May but that is about the time the wheels fell off so I never had the blood work done. So today I had to have more blood drawn. When I got back home I think Jerry thought I had been in a fight. The lady had to stick me three times today. I hate my veins. I finally broke down and got a prescription for meds to help me sleep. I don't think I have slept well or through the night in about three months. We will see if this helps.
Things have started to slow down around here now if I can just stay out of a doctor's office for awhile. I do have another appointment next week and I hope that is all until September. I think we are all just trying to survive the rest of the summer and are ready for the new school year and my new job. I am very excited about all the changes this fall.
Jerry's mom is coming in the weekend and Dylan has a soccer game on Saturday so I am sure we will have some excitement this weekend. I hope you all have a great weekend!
Amanda
Things have started to slow down around here now if I can just stay out of a doctor's office for awhile. I do have another appointment next week and I hope that is all until September. I think we are all just trying to survive the rest of the summer and are ready for the new school year and my new job. I am very excited about all the changes this fall.
Jerry's mom is coming in the weekend and Dylan has a soccer game on Saturday so I am sure we will have some excitement this weekend. I hope you all have a great weekend!
Amanda
Happy Friday!
Friday July 24, 2009 - I hope everyone has had a good week. Jerry took Wednesday through today off of work. He took Emily to lunch, Dylan to the movies and me to dinner on Wednesday. I was off on Thursday so we went to see Up as a family and made homemade pizza together. We have all missed having Jerry home so it was nice to have him here for a few days.
I did go to the ophthalmologist today and was there forever. He told me what I expected, he can't correct my vision any. My optic nerve is still damaged and he is not sure it will get much better. I will go back in a few months to have pictures taken of my optic nerve. My color vision has also gotten worse and my blind spot is right in the middle of my eye. The ophthalmologist told me I have it in the worse place possible. :( So my vision has improved about 75% since my first visit in May. I think I have adjusted to not being able to see very well out of my right eye.
I also went to have my blood work done today. Lucky me, they had to stick me twice again. I told the girl that my veins are difficult and she said but you have a nice big one here. So she stuck me and got nothing. Ha! So she had to have another lady try. I should have my results back Monday. We are hoping for normal liver and blood counts.
As for my medication I am still on the .50 dose and will go up to .75 on Tuesday. I am still tolerating the medication but have started to have some skin reactions. Nothing serious just noticeable. Speaking of skin reactions, the bruise from where I hit the vein is almost gone. It has been almost two weeks.
I have been wanting to get out and exercise but it has been too hot. So I decided to start Yoga again so I can be inside where it is cool and do something relaxing. If anyone has any Yoga DVD suggestions I would greatly appreciate it.
Well, I think that is all for today. I hope you all enjoy your weekend!
Amanda
I did go to the ophthalmologist today and was there forever. He told me what I expected, he can't correct my vision any. My optic nerve is still damaged and he is not sure it will get much better. I will go back in a few months to have pictures taken of my optic nerve. My color vision has also gotten worse and my blind spot is right in the middle of my eye. The ophthalmologist told me I have it in the worse place possible. :( So my vision has improved about 75% since my first visit in May. I think I have adjusted to not being able to see very well out of my right eye.
I also went to have my blood work done today. Lucky me, they had to stick me twice again. I told the girl that my veins are difficult and she said but you have a nice big one here. So she stuck me and got nothing. Ha! So she had to have another lady try. I should have my results back Monday. We are hoping for normal liver and blood counts.
As for my medication I am still on the .50 dose and will go up to .75 on Tuesday. I am still tolerating the medication but have started to have some skin reactions. Nothing serious just noticeable. Speaking of skin reactions, the bruise from where I hit the vein is almost gone. It has been almost two weeks.
I have been wanting to get out and exercise but it has been too hot. So I decided to start Yoga again so I can be inside where it is cool and do something relaxing. If anyone has any Yoga DVD suggestions I would greatly appreciate it.
Well, I think that is all for today. I hope you all enjoy your weekend!
Amanda
It Is Too HOT!
Sunday July 19, 2009 - I hope everyone is staying cool. We have had a pretty good weekend. I went to Dylan's soccer game with Jerry and Emily on Saturday hoping to not get too hot. After about 30 minutes I was getting very hot. Once we got in the car I realized that my vision was worse from getting overheated. I guess it is time to look into a cooling vest. My neurologist mentioned it several weeks ago but I just thought I didn't need it or didn't want to need it. I guess I just don't want to accept that I can't go outside whenever I want to. I think I am still in denial of everything that has happened in the last two months.
The last several days have been hard on me and I guess everyone. We can't go outside during the day because of the heat so the kids and I are going stir crazy. We are also stuck at home more now because we are down to one car. The kids are also starting to have a very hard time with Jerry being gone so much. I thought it was hard at first but it has only gotten worse. We are going to have to make some changes around here for every one's sake.
We have already decided that me staying home and watching kids is not going to work anymore for several reasons. One, I don't think it is fair to the parents of the kids I watch to always feel like they may not have childcare one day because of the unpredictability of MS. Second, I am in desperate need of time away from the house. I need to talk to other adults and feel like I have an identity. The plan is for me to watch kids until the end of August and then once school starts Emily will be in school three days a week and I will work on those days. I am actually a little excited about working again. I have not worked in an office in 6 years.
Well, I guess that is all the venting I will do for today. I hope everyone has a great week and I will update you on how my ophthalmologist appointment goes on Friday.
Amanda
The last several days have been hard on me and I guess everyone. We can't go outside during the day because of the heat so the kids and I are going stir crazy. We are also stuck at home more now because we are down to one car. The kids are also starting to have a very hard time with Jerry being gone so much. I thought it was hard at first but it has only gotten worse. We are going to have to make some changes around here for every one's sake.
We have already decided that me staying home and watching kids is not going to work anymore for several reasons. One, I don't think it is fair to the parents of the kids I watch to always feel like they may not have childcare one day because of the unpredictability of MS. Second, I am in desperate need of time away from the house. I need to talk to other adults and feel like I have an identity. The plan is for me to watch kids until the end of August and then once school starts Emily will be in school three days a week and I will work on those days. I am actually a little excited about working again. I have not worked in an office in 6 years.
Well, I guess that is all the venting I will do for today. I hope everyone has a great week and I will update you on how my ophthalmologist appointment goes on Friday.
Amanda
Walk MS
Wednesday July 15, 2009 - I wanted to invite all of you to join me on Saturday October 10, 2009 at the Dell Diamond for the Austin MS walk. You can go to the link below to register. If you are not able to walk and you would like to make a donation to the MS Society you can go to my page at the link below. As we all know money is needed to fund research to find a cure for MS. Thanks for your support!
Amanda
http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR/Walk/TXHWalkEvents?px=6864140&pg=personal&fr_id=11720
Amanda
http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR/Walk/TXHWalkEvents?px=6864140&pg=personal&fr_id=11720
Don't hit a blood vessel
Monday June 13, 2009 - Well I figured out last night that I need to be little more careful doing my injections. Apparently I hit a blood vessel or vein. It did not hurt going in but I knew as soon as I pulled the needle out it was not good. Lots of blood came out and my entire body got hot and I felt like I was going to pass out. I immediately called the Beta nurse line and left a message to have them call me back. I wanted to make sure I didn't need to go to the ER. While I was waiting for her to call I got online and did some research and found a lady that injected her medication into her vein and she stopped breathing. So at that point I got off the computer and waited. The nurse called and seemed to think I probably just hit a blood vessel but did not know what would cause the heat sensation. So I decided to stay up for awhile to make sure I was going to be okay. That is the one problem with doing your injection at night. Other than the scare last night I am doing fine.
I keep forgetting to post about my vision so I guess I will update you on that while I am at it. When I went to the neurologist last week it was 20/40 (up close). So it had improved some since the time before when it had gotten worse. I don't feel like my vision has really improved much. I am trying to drive as little as possible because I don't have good peripheral vision or depth perception in my right eye. I will go back to the ophthalmologist next Friday and will know more then. I am hoping he can correct my right eye some but usually with optic neuritis they can't correct it with glasses or contacts because of the damage that has been done to the optic nerve. My brain is just not getting the information it needs for me to be able to see.
I hope you all have a great week. Try to stay cool!
Amanda
I keep forgetting to post about my vision so I guess I will update you on that while I am at it. When I went to the neurologist last week it was 20/40 (up close). So it had improved some since the time before when it had gotten worse. I don't feel like my vision has really improved much. I am trying to drive as little as possible because I don't have good peripheral vision or depth perception in my right eye. I will go back to the ophthalmologist next Friday and will know more then. I am hoping he can correct my right eye some but usually with optic neuritis they can't correct it with glasses or contacts because of the damage that has been done to the optic nerve. My brain is just not getting the information it needs for me to be able to see.
I hope you all have a great week. Try to stay cool!
Amanda
TGIF
Friday July 10, 2009 - I had my appointment today and as I suspected it was very uneventful. They are happy that I am doing so well on the medication. She told me that since they feel that they caught it early and that I am on the medication I should have a good prognosis. Now I am just hoping for a cure and then a way to fix the damage that has been done. I have to go in for blood work in two weeks to check my liver and blood counts. This medication can cause liver damage and low blood counts. I will go back to the neurologist in September unless I have an issue before then. I am crossing my fingers that I don't have another attack anytime soon. I hope you all have a great weekend!
* Thank you to everyone for your emails and comments.
Amanda
* Thank you to everyone for your emails and comments.
Amanda
Nothing New
Monday July 6, 2009 - We had a very relaxing weekend. The kids played in the pool and we went and watched fireworks. I was not ready for Monday. I don't really have anything to report. My injections are still going well. I will go back to the neurologist on Friday just to check in. The pain in my left eye finally started to go away at the end of last week. I still have no idea what was causing the pain. Well, I hope everyone has a great week!
Amanda
Amanda
Eat at Chili's
Thursday July 2, 2009 - For those of you living in South Texas you may want to add July 21st to your calendar. Chili's will donate 10% of your check to the National MS Society Lone Star Chapter. Be sure to print the flyer out and take it with you.
http://http://photos.templin.org/MS-LSC-Chilis-Flyer.pdf
Things here are going well. We are looking forward to a restful weekend. I hope you all have a great July 4th weekend!
Amanda
http://http://photos.templin.org/MS-LSC-Chilis-Flyer.pdf
Things here are going well. We are looking forward to a restful weekend. I hope you all have a great July 4th weekend!
Amanda
Going Well
Monday June 29, 2009 - So far the injections are going well. On Friday a few hours after the first injection my legs were achy. Last night I did my injection right before bed so I slept through any side effects I may have had. I have started out at a very low dose and it will be six weeks before I am on the full dose. Hopefully I will continue to tolerate the medication well.
The only symptoms I am battling right now are fatigue and my left eye is still hurting. MS fatigue is like no other. Some days after only being up for a few hours I physically can't go anymore, I have to lay down and take a nap. As far as the eye pain goes nothing is helping. I think I will wait a few more days and then call my neurologist back. I really don't want to have another MRI right now but if we can't figure out why I am in pain I guess I will not have a choice. I hope you all have a great week.
Amanda
The only symptoms I am battling right now are fatigue and my left eye is still hurting. MS fatigue is like no other. Some days after only being up for a few hours I physically can't go anymore, I have to lay down and take a nap. As far as the eye pain goes nothing is helping. I think I will wait a few more days and then call my neurologist back. I really don't want to have another MRI right now but if we can't figure out why I am in pain I guess I will not have a choice. I hope you all have a great week.
Amanda
First Injection Done!
Friday June 26, 2009 - My training nurse came out today to show me how to do my injections. It went very well. She said I was fast. I am so glad to have that part over. I am hoping I don't have any side effects but it is still too early to tell. My next injection will be on Sunday on my own. We will see how it goes. I hope everyone has a great weekend!
Amanda
Amanda
Day of Appointments
Tuesday June 23, 2009 - I went to see the ophthalmologist today about the pain behind my left eye. After several tests he could not determine what is causing the pain. My optic nerve is not inflamed. But when I had optic neuritis in my right eye that optic nerve was not inflamed either. He did go ahead and do the visual field test in both eyes and I do, in fact, have some blind spots in my right eye. Also, the vision in my right eye has gotten worse since last week. He said he sees people with optic neuritis have fluctuations in their vision.
After seeing the ophthalmologist I went to the neurologist to see the nurse. She was prepared to start IV steroids today but since we don't have an optic neuritis diagnosis there is no reason for steroids at this point. I was given the option to do another MRI or wait and see what happens with my left eye. I chose to wait and see. I am not in the mood for another MRI right now. So she gave me pain meds to help me sleep at night.
While I was with the nurse I asked her several questions about symptoms I have been having. One is tingling in my left arm and she told me that it may be caused by the small disc bulge I have in my spine that I did not know about. Also, I have been dizzy and very tired. Basically she said I have to stay out of the heat because heat makes all my nerves that have been affected by the disease short circuit. I also asked her to clarify the diagnosis of CIS/MS since my spinal scan showed disease. Her answer is basically the way I have been looking at the situation. I have MS but because of timing they can't clinically say that. She said that was crap. They should be able to just say it is MS. But she said everything I am going through and all symptoms are probably MS. So I have MS but my file says CIS. Confused?;)
I also went in to have baseline blood work today. Of course my veins did not cooperate, so I got stuck twice by two different people. Story of my life. I will start my injections on Friday and will go back to see the neurologist two weeks after that for blood work and to make sure I am doing ok on the medication.
Amanda
After seeing the ophthalmologist I went to the neurologist to see the nurse. She was prepared to start IV steroids today but since we don't have an optic neuritis diagnosis there is no reason for steroids at this point. I was given the option to do another MRI or wait and see what happens with my left eye. I chose to wait and see. I am not in the mood for another MRI right now. So she gave me pain meds to help me sleep at night.
While I was with the nurse I asked her several questions about symptoms I have been having. One is tingling in my left arm and she told me that it may be caused by the small disc bulge I have in my spine that I did not know about. Also, I have been dizzy and very tired. Basically she said I have to stay out of the heat because heat makes all my nerves that have been affected by the disease short circuit. I also asked her to clarify the diagnosis of CIS/MS since my spinal scan showed disease. Her answer is basically the way I have been looking at the situation. I have MS but because of timing they can't clinically say that. She said that was crap. They should be able to just say it is MS. But she said everything I am going through and all symptoms are probably MS. So I have MS but my file says CIS. Confused?;)
I also went in to have baseline blood work today. Of course my veins did not cooperate, so I got stuck twice by two different people. Story of my life. I will start my injections on Friday and will go back to see the neurologist two weeks after that for blood work and to make sure I am doing ok on the medication.
Amanda
Pain in the left eye
Monday June 22, 2009 - Well, I have had pain in my left eye since Thursday evening. I chose to try to ignore it. By this morning the pain was worse. I have not had any vision issues but figured I better call the doctor. So I called the ophthalmologist first to schedule an appointment with him. He is in surgery today so I could not get in until tomorrow afternoon. After I called and made that appointment I figured I better check in with the neurologist. I talked to his nurse and told her what was going on. She figures it is optic neuritis, which is what I am thinking as well. So I have an appointment with her tomorrow after the appointment with the ophthalmologist to start IV steroids if it is, in fact, optic neuritis.
Amanda
Amanda
Medication on it's way, finally!
Saturday June 20, 2009 - Insurance called me this morning to confirm delivery of my medication. They are shipping it out Monday and it should be here Tuesday. I sure hope we are over this hump.
Amanda
Amanda
Still Waiting. Really?!?!
Thursday June 18, 2009 - I thought I had my medication on the way last Thursday, boy was I wrong. The company that makes the medication I will be on has a division that works with insurance and gets everything taken care of.(BetaPlus) BetaPlus called me last Thursday and got all my information for insurance and called me back and told me that insurance had approved everything and that insurance would call me early this week to finalize everything. Well I didn't hear from insurance on Monday or Tuesday so I was going to call them on Wednesday to figure out what the hold up was. Before I had a chance to call insurance my Beta nurse, yes I have my very own nurse that I can call anytime day or night, called and asked me if I had received my training kit and I told her yes and then she asked if I had my medication and I said no. She seemed a little surprised and told me to call Aetna pharmacy. I will be getting my medication shipped to me from Aetna pharmacy. So I called the pharmacy and they told me they had no information or prescription for me. WHAT? It has been a week! So I called Beta back and they called insurance back and got everything resolved, so I thought. I called insurance today to make sure everything was a go and once again they told me they had no information on me. By this point I am getting very irritated. So the guy at Aetna pharmacy asked me for my doctor's phone number and Beta's number. He put me on hold for awhile and came back and said that Beta was verbally giving the pharmacist my prescription and that someone from Aetna would call back in 2-4 hours to get more information from me and then I would hear from them again in 24-48 to confirm shipment. An hour later, Aetna called me to get the info they needed and told me the same about getting a call in 24 -48 hours. So we will see. Third time is the charm right?
Amanda
Amanda
Ophthalmologist Appointment
Tuesday June 16, 2009 - Today I had an appointment with my ophthalmologist. I have not seen him in two weeks so of course my vision has improved since I saw him last. He is very happy with my progress. I am still not at 100% but much better. He did say that I have a spot on my optic nerve but he is not concerned with it right now. My pupil is still not responding the way it should so hopefully that will get better with time. I will see him again in a month and he will do a visual field test to see where my blind spots are and we will discuss driving. At that time he will also see if he can correct my vision anymore. I did read an article recently about optic neuritis and it said most people do not regain all of their vision. My fear now is me getting it in the other eye.
Amanda
Amanda
Now we are getting somewhere, I hope
Wednesday June 10, 2009 - I heard from my neurologist this afternoon about my MRI. When they did the scans they broke the spine up into two sections; upper and lower. The lower portion of my spine is clear of disease, but there is a very small spot on my upper spine indicating demyelinating disease. He said this is the best abnormal result I could have. So in all I have 11 non-active lesions in my brain and spine. Basically, this means that I still have the diagnosis of clinically isolated syndrome until I have another occurrence or a new lesion appears. The multiple in multiple sclerosis means there has to be evidence of multiple events and since there is no way of seeing when my lesions occurred they can't consider it multiple even though there are so many. I discussed medication options with the neurologist today and he is submitting the information to insurance to get the ball rolling. Once insurance has approved it the pharmaceutical company will send out a trained nurse to show me how to do my injections. YIPPEE!! The medication I have chosen is an injection that I will administer myself every other day. Once I am on the medication for two weeks I will go back to the neurologist to see how I am doing.
*One question I keep getting about medication is how long will I have to do injections? I will have to give myself injections until the FDA approves a pill for MS treatment or there is a cure for MS. So I will be on MS treatment until there is a cure.
Amanda
*One question I keep getting about medication is how long will I have to do injections? I will have to give myself injections until the FDA approves a pill for MS treatment or there is a cure for MS. So I will be on MS treatment until there is a cure.
Amanda
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