Info about my ER visit

Here is more detail about my ER visit this past weekend – all is fine.

So starting last Sunday I started having lots of pain in my right check. When it first started I just assumed it was a pulled muscle or something, but as the week went on it got worse and I could tell it wasn’t muscular because I couldn’t stretch it out and movement didn’t affect it. It was a sharp pain anytime I took in a breath, coughed, etc. Thursday night I was doing pretty good while up and walking around, but then I went to lay down on the couch and it the pain level would jump when I went to lay back or on my side. So by Saturday morning Id had a few nights of not being able to sleep well and still things weren’t improving at all. So that morning I went to the Urgent care. They did an EKG and the doc came in and said that they needed to do a CAT scan but didn’t have that there, so I had to go to an ER. At the time they were considering me at risk for pulmonary embolism primarily due to the fact that it all started the day after our 14 hour drive. So I went to the ER. The ER doc explained that my EKG was also questionable because most people’s hearts sit to the left, but mine showed that it was sitting to the right – something that they see if there is a clot in the right lung because it pulls the heart to the right. I went to CAT scan which all ended up coming back clean, they didn’t see any clots or masses. So I was discharged with anti-inflammatory because it defaults to assuming that I had a viral infection in the lining around my lung. So now I also know that my heart sits to the wrong side normally, which is no issue, won’t cause any problems or anything, just good to know for future EKGs. Since then it is getting better. Really only feel it now if I have a deep laugh or cough.

So Turner had gone with me to the Urgent Care so we could spend some “special time” together. He was so concerned about if the doctors were going to do anything to hurt me, and then when I told him I had to go to another hospital he freaked out saying he didn’t want me to die. I got him calmed down telling him they just needed to take a special picture of mommy and they didn’t have the right camera there. I took him back home before the ER and had Aaron stay home with all the kids to keep them (and him) preoccupied with something else. Aaron was kind of freaking out too. I was for a while between hearing about the abnormal EKG and before I had results of the CAT scan, but at least knew I was in the hospital if it was anything. Finally after 5 hours and a $100 co-pay I got to go home with a clean bill of health. As soon as I got home we started putting up our Christmas Decorations, and about 10 minutes in to doing that it started snowing some of the biggest snowflakes I’ve ever seen and we all went outside running around in the snow. Couldn’t have been more perfect timing. Plus Aaron and I had a babysitter set up for Saturday night – our first time alone since being in NC, so we were really happy we didn’t have to cancel our date night. Sunday we picked out the “perfect” 2010 Lively Family Christmas tree and got it up and decorated and made some batches of Christmas cookies – so we are finally in the holiday spirit around the house.

Fun Weekend

We had such a good weekend this weekend. Friday night we went to a High School football game for our local team and a nearby rival.  It was so much fun.  The atmosphere was great.  I told Aaron I'm not sure who will be more excited when he starts coaching.  I just love it. I was however glad that I  wasn't a young HS girl trying to dress to impress and freezing my buns off like they must have been - as I was sitting in my jeans, sweatshirt, and covered in a blanket - and they'd have on shorts and tanks to distracted by impressing boys to notice the cold.  Do you think it makes me old that I just wanted to wrap them up in my blanket and tell them they were going to catch a cold out in this weather dressed like that!!!  Oh well, to them I am ancient, and it does make me smile to know that they too will one day be thinking the same thing. Saturday we all went out shopping to get the kids some long pants and shirts.  Happened upon a sale at Old Navy that was "kids shop free"  Basically for every adult items, you got a kids item for free.  Well that just meant that Aaron and I got a free item for every item the kids needed!  Once we were home I finished dinner.  Had out a turkey breast in the crockpot that morning so finished that, made some jalepeno twice baked mashed potatoes, and for desert had a pumpkin crisp with ice cream.....YUMMY!!!  It was one of the best meals I've ever had!  I'd been craving all of those items, so it was fully satisfying.  Sunday we went to the State Fair and met up with Page, Neil and Aaron.  Turner was super excited to see Aaron again (they were our partners in crime at the camping trip).  They have this special handshake where they punch their fists together and blow it up - POW.  It is cute.  Turner has really been missing having boys around, so it is nice for him.  It was good to be at the fair, but lots of walking, and carrying Austin since he decided he didn't want to walk at all and only wanted mommy to carry him.  Needless to say, my arms feel like I was doing pull-ups all day yesterday.  He is a solid boy!  We didn't end up getting to see too much because it just wasn't all working together, but we are still glad that we went.  And now today i'm back at work:(  This job is slowing sucking the life out of me - but hey, it pays the bills.  And I still have hope that it will get better, so I'll stick it out for now.  Just realized that one month from tomorrow we will be leaving for Florida for Disney World!!!!!  I CAN"T WAIT!

Fun Weekend

We had such a good weekend this weekend. Friday night we went to a High School football game for our local team and a nearby rival.  It was so much fun.  The atmosphere was great.  I told Aaron I'm not sure who will be more excited when he starts coaching.  I just love it. I was however glad that I  wasn't a young HS girl trying to dress to impress and freezing my buns off like they must have been - as I was sitting in my jeans, sweatshirt, and covered in a blanket - and they'd have on shorts and tanks to distracted by impressing boys to notice the cold.  Do you think it makes me old that I just wanted to wrap them up in my blanket and tell them they were going to catch a cold out in this weather dressed like that!!!  Oh well, to them I am ancient, and it does make me smile to know that they too will one day be thinking the same thing. Saturday we all went out shopping to get the kids some long pants and shirts.  Happened upon a sale at Old Navy that was "kids shop free"  Basically for every adult items, you got a kids item for free.  Well that just meant that Aaron and I got a free item for every item the kids needed!  Once we were home I finished dinner.  Had out a turkey breast in the crockpot that morning so finished that, made some jalepeno twice baked mashed potatoes, and for desert had a pumpkin crisp with ice cream.....YUMMY!!!  It was one of the best meals I've ever had!  I'd been craving all of those items, so it was fully satisfying.  Sunday we went to the State Fair and met up with Page, Neil and Aaron.  Turner was super excited to see Aaron again (they were our partners in crime at the camping trip).  They have this special handshake where they punch their fists together and blow it up - POW.  It is cute.  Turner has really been missing having boys around, so it is nice for him.  It was good to be at the fair, but lots of walking, and carrying Austin since he decided he didn't want to walk at all and only wanted mommy to carry him.  Needless to say, my arms feel like I was doing pull-ups all day yesterday.  He is a solid boy!  We didn't end up getting to see too much because it just wasn't all working together, but we are still glad that we went.  And now today i'm back at work:(  This job is slowing sucking the life out of me - but hey, it pays the bills.  And I still have hope that it will get better, so I'll stick it out for now.  Just realized that one month from tomorrow we will be leaving for Florida for Disney World!!!!!  I CAN"T WAIT!

Today is such a sad day

Today I learned that Ellen passed away.  I can’t describe the hurt that I have in my heart today.  In so many ways, I feel like I just lost a mother or grandmother.  See, Ellen was my rock when we learned of Denise’s diagnosis. I met her through the MMMT board, and there was never a day that I posted there that I didn’t get a response from Ellen that was uplifting, enlightening and still so real.  It was her posts that kept me grounded and able to keep putting one foot in front of the other.  Over the past year we have continued to email and send cards back and forth.  When Denise passed away, I sent the healing blanket that we had that Denise never had the chance to use to Ellen, wanting its power to be used.  I’ve shared my fears and my family with her, she shared her wisdom with me.  A few weeks back, I knew that Ellen’s health was going downhill, and didn’t know if she would recover, so I sent her an email to make sure I had told her how much she meant to me and how much she helped me, and that I didn’t want to lose her without a chance to say goodbye.  I knew at the time it was my own selfishness that needed to be able to have that last conversation, but as always, Ellen came through and was there for me.  I feel blessed to have had her by my side throughout this awful journey.  Somehow in all the darkness of it all, she was the good that came out if it.  I’d never be able to thank Ellen in a deserving way, there is just too much to say without words to say it.

 

Today my heart breaks for a lost friend, for all the others out there that I know are feeling the same way, and for those who will start this journey without Ellen there on the other end of an email. 

 

 

 

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Update from NC

Hey there!!!!  Well, yes we are settling in and loving it.  So it was a rough start at first.  We got down here thinking that we were going to live in an apartment in the town where I work so that I'd be close while we were checking out other areas.  Well we got down here the day before we were scheduled to move and the lady let us go ahead and stay there that night.  So the apartment is all janked - like couldn't open a single drawer in the kitchen because they hit the stove handle or fridge.  So the whole time I'm just repeating to myself - its only 6 months, I can do anything for 6 months right?  So that night we decide to go out to Walmart to get a few things.  WOW culture shock.  like we were like 5 of the 20 white people in the store.  So we are like "well, maybe we just went to the walmart on the wrong side of town"  So the next morning the guy shows up to do our internet stuff and we start talking to him and he says it is like that everywhere and that Rocky Mount is not a good area.  So we are starting to freak out but still kinda like "only 6 months"  I'm standing in the kitchen and we are talking and Charlie (cat) starts digging in a hole in the cabinet by the dishwasher and I FREAKED out that if a mouse came out .... cue the movers showing up and ask if we are ready to start unloading and I look at Aaron and just say "I can't do this"  So we go over, cancel our lease, tell the movers to take everything back to storage and high tail it out of there towards Raleigh, and get a hotel.  Ended up being in a hotel for a week.  Got a realtor to help us and ended up finding a townhouse to rent in Wake Forest - and we LOVE the area!  Thank god we can be a fly by the seat of your pants people and adjust!    So Wake Forest is wonderful.  The perfect town for us.  I really don't see a reason we would ever leave.  We've made friends with our neighbors and some other people in the neighborhood - but still isn't like the friendships we had in StL, but it will just take time to get to that comfort level.  Work is pretty good.  Still kind of feel like a fish out of water and trying to get my bearings, but that will jsut take time too.  I have about an hour commute, but carpool with a girl at work that I get along with super good, so it goes fast and it is a really easy drive.  Aaron had an interview yesterday for a teaching job.  We are sooooo hoping he gets it.  He signed up and is doing a flag football league and loves that. The boys started daycare this week.  it was just driving everyone crazy that they were home all day and Aaron couldn't really do much to look for a job while they were there.  They love goign to "school".  Turner started in karate and does that 3 days a week.  He loves it and is really good.  Austin has kind of turned in to our devil child and makes us crazy right now, but that is just a stage!  But I am already dreading him being a teenager.  The boys just box, tackle, dress up as Optimus Prime and Bumblebee (transformers) and fight, do karate - ALL DAY LONG.  I mean literally they never stop some form of tackling. Mackenzie is adjusting super good.  She loves school, has made two friends in the neighborhood that she is inviting over or going to their house all the time.  Even had a sleepover already.  We are looking for a place now for her to start back up in gymnastics. This weekend we are heading to the beach again.  It is only about 1.5 hours away so easy day trip.  And it is beautiful.  We also have a huge lake like 5 minutes from us that has nice beach areas and campground.  We have a camping trip planned with the girl I commute with and her husband and son for October 9th, and some other neighbors might join us.  you know us, the get-together organizers and social butterflies of the bunch! So yeah - I can't believe that we've only been here for less than a month.  We've transplanted well.  And the cool thing about here is that everyone is from somewhere else, so everyone is a transplant.  We are ready for visitors anytime!  I wish I could just talk you all in to moving down here with us.  It is so much better than the midwest.  I just can't even describe.  Just soooooo many cool things in like a 4 hour radius, and even a ton just in Raleigh and right around us.  It completely fits us.  Like i said, unless it was for a big promotion or something, I could see us living here for a long long time.

We are moving...in 2 weeks!!!

Not sure how many people have heard the news, so I’m sending this out across the board…..

 

Last Friday I flew in to North Carolina for a job interview with Hospira (pharmaceutical company).  Aaron went with me, assuming I’d have a quick interview on Friday morning and then we would head over to the coast and have a little mini-vacation.  Well, I ended up being at the interview a little longer than expected, and then I was told I needed to go back and meet with the HR lady again before I left.  She asked if I could come back in later that day to conclude things because they wanted to offer me the job and so we started talking salary, start date, benefits…  So I leave with a verbal offer and verbal counter, they end up calling me with a final #, I say yes, and boom I’m back in doing my drug screen.  CRAZY!  So I didn’t get all done there until about 4:30 or so, so at that point Aaron and I decided it would be better to spend our time seeing the area since we would be back in two weeks anyways to make it to the beach!

 

So now our life is a complete whirlwind.  Trying to have the house on the market this weekend.  Searching on-line for an apartment to move in to there – temporary until our house here sells and we get a lay of the land.  My last day at Pfizer is August 26^th, first day there is September 13^th.  We are SUPER excited, and SUPER busy, and edgy and tired, and stressed, and happy and…..  You name it, we are feeling it right now.  But all in all – we are mostly excited.  We will be in/near Rocky Mount.  That is about 1 hour East of Raleigh, 2.5 hours from the beach, 3 hours from the mountains, 3 hours from Washington DC….so many fun things to do.  We haven’t heard a single negative comment from anyone on North Carolina, so I’m sure we will love it.  Can’t wait for the new adventure.

 

We are planning to have a BBQ at our house on Friday the 27^th – everyone is invited, kids and all.  Bring something light (side/dessert) if you want, if not, just come and show up.  Saturday we are having an adults-only goodbye at a bar somewhere, Aaron hasn’t hammered that out yet.  I assume we will be changing cell phone numbers and all that once we get there.  For now, just switch to using my personal email so we can keep in touch.  Jllively2@yahoo.com  If anyone wants to meet up any other time over the next 2 weeks, just let us know time and place and we will do our best to schedule to be there.  Yes we have a lot to do, but more we want to make sure we see everyone.  And by all means – COME VISIT us for a nice beach vacation!!!

 

Our perseverance is finally paying off.  Now let’s just hope this house sells and everything works out well.  

 

Thanks for all of your support!

 

Jennifer L. Lively

jllively2@yahoo.com

awlively2@yahoo.com

 

Potty Training

Well, I've been having a hard time lately with rejection after rejection on the job front. It is really taking its toll, but I have to keep reminding myself that it must be part of the grand plan so I am open when something better comes along. So this past weekend we went to church, and it never fails that it is like the lesson is written exactly for me. Now I'm no super religious fanatic, but our trials over the past year along with a great church that we all love to attend on a regular basis has had quite an impact. So this weekend, Saturday night I break down in bed crying..."I just wish I would learn the lesson already, I don't know if I can take this anymore"..yada yada - you know the break-down. So Sunday we walk in to church and this was what the teaching was based on -

James 1: 2-4
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be complete, not lacking anything.

Chills ran down my spine - I mean, were those words written just for me?! So I've been trying to take a different viewpoint this week and will keep this verse close.

So since I haven't been succeeding in anything else lately - I decided to finally work with Austin on potty training. Aaron was sick last week so I was home a few days, so we started on Thursday, and by today I think he's got it! I feel so proud. Yes Austin is our third child, but really only our first that we can claim all the glory for potty training. With Kenz and Turner Nany was the main person in charge. Tonight Austin went with me to get my hair done and he went, on his own, 5 times while we were out. Even said he pooped one of the times - and it did smell like it although there weren't any skid marks (thank goodness!), so I don't know for sure. And then we went to Walmart and he told me as we were walking through the store that he had to go and held it until we got to the bathroom. I'm so proud of him, and myself. FINALLY, I have succeeded at something!

Getting ready for another interview in North Carolina on Friday. Maybe this will be the one, maybe not. We'll just have to wait and see. But Aaron is getting to come along, so at the least we will get a short vacation away and a chance to see the ocean!
Only 2.5 weeks of work left!!!