My sis-inlaw, Kati, has this picture on her blog and it made me laugh. Since most of you who read my blog can't see hers, I decided to figure out how to put it on mine, too.

Enjoy!

Guess what we did last night?

Probably no big surprise since I talked about it yesterday.

We had a great time, and the kids were very creative this year.

from left to right -

Emma's, Kimi's, Josh's (the spider), Aaron's (carved by Daddy), Ben's, and Andrew's (carved by Mom)

Happy Halloween!

by the way, No Cavities! Yay!

So now it's Tuesday and I went back to the doctor's office today.

They really just wanted to check my blood pressure because the medication can make your blood pressure drop, and she was worried that would happen. My blood pressure is great and the pain is gone. Well, almost. I traded the sharp stabbing pain for a very small dull ache right behind my eyes. Most of the time I hardly notice it. I would gladly make that trade any day. It has been so wonderful to not have to take Tylenol just to nurse Andrew and then sleep with the heating pad. My research time was well worth it!

Today is the family dentist trip. I do not like this day. I'm not really against seeing the dentist and having my teeth cleaned. What I am against is having all my kids in the waiting room by themselves for the half hour it takes to get my teeth done. I am also not a fan of the hygenist talking to me like a young child about how to floss and how often I should do it. I know all that. Doesn't she remember that she told me all the same things six months ago? I have to explain to her everytime that I floss as often as I can. I realize that it isn't everyday like she wants, but I do it probably four times a week. Most days I can't even find the time to eat breakfast. How am I going to find the time to floss? Maybe she'll go easy on me this time.

We may be carving our pumpkins tonight. We scraped out the goo on Saturday, but we ran out of time before we could carve the faces on them. If we do, I will post pictures tomorrow.

Have a super day!

Today I am having a FANTASTIC day!!!!!!!!

The only bummer about the day so far is the fact that I went to vote and realized that I didn't have my driver's license with me, so therefore I couldn't vote today. That makes three times that I've been there and haven't voted yet. Oh well. Another day.

What has made this day fantastic is the fact that I paid $2.85 a gallon for gas (isn't it sad that I'm excited to pay $2.85?). But wait, that's not all.

I have had horrible pain everyday since the middle of June. Sometimes all day, sometimes just when I feed Andrew. Four very long months. I had mastitis once for a few days, but that cleared up with medicine, but the pain did not stop. I have continued to feed Andrew anyway, and I must admit, sometimes I have not been very happy about it. I knew that if I just gave it up I would be more unhappy though, so I stuck it out. I talked to a nurse yesterday, and she said it sounded like Raynaud's Syndrome. I had no idea what that was, so I did a little research. It turns out that I probably have had Raynaud's Syndrome for a long time - like twenty years or more. It is a disease that makes your body act all wonky when you get cold. The capillaries shut down and your blood flow is restricted, so you have pain. It usually manifests itself in your hands and feet, but can be other places too. I have always, at least since high school, had problems with cold hands and feet. In the winter I have to put on gloves before I go outside because if the cold hits my hands they instantly hurt. Sharp, knife stabbing, kind of pain. I found out through my research that sometimes you can get it when you breastfeed and it affects the blood vessels and so there is the same sharp, stabbing pain. While I was reading about this study, I just was crying and crying. It was such a relief to know that it is a thing, and that something can be done about it. I immediately picked up the phone and called my doctor for an appointment. I went this morning. I told her what was going on, and showed her the articles I printed off of the internet about this study. She had never heard of such a thing and wanted to talk to some of the other doctors in the practice. She did so and they all agreed that it was something wonderful that many of their other patients would benefit from too. It said in the article that you can take a very low dose of a medicine that is a calcium channel blocker and it doesn't pass through the milk and the relief of the pain is almost immediate. She gave me a prescription and wants me to come back on Tuesday to see how it's working. I SO HOPE THIS WILL WORK! The study included 12 women and it worked for all of them. I will be so wonderful to not have pain all the time, and it is extra great to know that maybe my research can help other women too. I'll let you know how it goes.

Plus, I have a no kids date with my husband tonight. We are going out to dinner with my parents and all my brothers and sisters and their spouses. My brother, Scott, is home for a couple of weeks from Afghanistan, so we are having a night without kids so we can visit and have a good time without all the noise and disruptions. Should be fun!

Okay, Kati, quit bugging me. I've been super busy.

So, I went to Oregon. We (My dad, sister Jolene, Andrew, and I) left on Thursday morning around 10:30 am (Sept. 25). We pulled into the driveway of my grandparents house - now my cousin Lisa and her family live there - at 11:50 pm (Utah time). My siblings - Monique, Rick, and Brian arrived about 5 am (Oregon time). Jannette and her kids arrived that morning too, but I don't remember when. My Mom and Eric flew up on Thursday, so they were already there. (Scott was in Afghanistan still, although he is home now on a two week leave - YAY!) My grandparents have 19 grandkids and all but five were able to make it. Some of my cousins I haven't seen for 17 or 18 years. It was nice to catch up.

One of my favorite things about my grandparents house is all the hydrangeas. They have walls of them growing around the yard. It is past the time of year when they are in bloom - usually around early September is the peak of color - but there were still a few blooms around that still were vibrant. This blue one is my favorite kind they have.

The funeral was on Saturday, September 27, 2008. It was very nice. My grandma is buried in a beautiful place on a hill with lots of trees that looks out over the valley. The one drawback is all the squirrels that live in the trees. Grandma HATED squirrels!

This is a picture of my Grandpa, my Uncle Val, my mom, and my Aunt Julia (standing) at the family viewing on Friday afternoon. (I wish I always took fabulous pictures, but alas it isn't so.)

This picture, however, is one of the best I've ever taken. It is looking north from the Devil's Punch Bowl just north of Newport, Oregon.

Here are some more pics of the coast. The one on the left is my baby's first time seeing the ocean. (Devil's Punch Bowl) It was cold, foggy, and very windy. We didn't spend too much time actually on the beach. Dad and Jolene took Andrew back to the car after a few minutes, and my brother Eric and I wandered and gathered shells and rescued starfish that had been stranded by the tide for probably fifteen more minutes before we were too cold to stay out.

We decided to leave to come home on Monday (Sept. 29) after we got back from the coast. We left Corvallis about 9:30 pm (Utah time) and drove through the night. We got home at about 11:00am. It was a long trip, but worth it to me to go. (Thanks Tom and Barbara for making it possible!)

My Grandmother was an amazing person. I treasure the quilts that she has made for me, and it breaks my heart that there will be no more. They warm my body and my soul. She taught me how to make baked apples and yummy chunky applesauce. She tried to turn me into a lady by telling my to not chew my ice, and never put more on my fork than I could put in my mouth. I loved being with her and playing cards with her and being in the garden with her. I loved the smell of her house (which is gone now by the way). I just loved being in her presence. I loved her. I will miss her.

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This is what I found when I poked my head outside at 7 am on October 12, 2008. It was so quiet in our neighborhood that I could actually hear the snow falling.

This is a cute picture of a couple of my favorite people.