European Cutie ♥: Grandma Katrina's Black Russian Rye Bread ♥

European Cutie ♥: Grandma Katrina's Black Russian Rye Bread ♥

My MS Story

It all began the Thursday before Halloween when my feet went numb.  I kind of have a bad habit of sitting on my feet so I figured it would go away.  The next day they were still numb.  As the next few days went on the numbness was spreading and I didn't know why.  Eventually I decided I better go to the doctor.  They ran a bunch of tests with no answers.  After a long drawn out struggle I had an MRI on my brain.

Various things were running thru my head.  What if I have cancer or a tumor?  What if the problem continues to spread?  How would my husband make it work if I were gone or unable to help?

A few days later I received a call from my doctor to go over my MRI results.  There were signs that the myelin covering of my nerves was breaking down in multiple parts of my brain. (these areas are called lesions) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myelin

My symptoms were spreading quicker than my doctor expected and she wanted me to get into the neurologist as soon as possible.  Along with the numbness, I was now experiencing some weakness/unsteadiness in my right leg.  When the neurologist heard how fast my symptoms were spreading she was very worried and asked me to go straight to the hospital.  My emotions were a whirl wind.  I was so scared.  

As urgent as everyone seemed for me to get to the hospital the first few hours were just one big waiting game.  Once the neurologist got involved things started happening quickly.  I had another MRI, this time on my spine. The MRI results came back and there were also two lesions on my spinal cord.  These are most likely what caused numbness and weakness in my legs.

From the day I first went and saw my family doctor she informed me that this could possibly be multiple sclerosis.  It was just a possibility then.  After the two MRIs, a spinal tap, and a series of blood tests my symptoms pointed to MS but no one wanted to be the first one to say it.

In order to stop the inflammation causing the damage to my brain and spine I was given high doses of steroids.  In all I was in the hospital away from my kids for 36 hours, having steroid infusions and trying to get back on my feet quite literally.  A physical therapist even came in and taught me how to use a cane and railings for stability.   

The effects of the steroids were more than I could have imagined.  I knew because of the doses I received in the hospital that the steroids made me feel crummy but I never expected them to have such an impact on my everyday life.  My brain was foggy, my vision was a little blurry, and my heart pounded out of my chest constantly.  It wasn’t until these symptoms started affecting my job that I realized how much MS could really change my life.

It took a few weeks, but I regained the feeling in my legs.  Now I am just trying to get used to my new normal.  I have a set of symptoms that rotate in intensity and location but never completely go away.  I have a cane for the days when my legs decide to act up.  MS is truly an invisible disease and how I feel can change within hours.  I was raised to always be tough and push through pain.  Now my doctor is telling me to listen to my body and not push myself or I can make my symptoms worse.  I am constantly trying to decide if I am taking it easy to take care of myself or if I am letting MS be my excuse to not do more.

As difficult as it may sound, I really am doing ok.  I have MS and it isn't a death sentence.  It isn't even a "life as I know it is over" sentence.  It is a "oh boy here's a hurdle let's jump over it."  In no way am I saying that it will not be difficult.  Sure life would be a lot easier without hurdles to jump over but we can still jump.  I came upon a quote the other day that states perfectly how I hope to face MS.

You either get bitter or you get better.  It’s that simple.  You either take what has been dealt to you and allow it to make you a better person, or you allow it to tear you down.  The choice does not belong to fate, it belongs to you.  ~Josh Shipp

Halloween 2013 Book

Halloween 2013 Book
We decided to start making books for Halloween each year so we will actually look at the pictures.  Click on the link and you can see it too.

Happy 34th Birthday Daddy!

A day or two ago, David and I were talking and he was saying that his birthday felt different this year.  Not only did we  not really have anything planned, but he also got to stay home with the kids while I worked a ten hour shift at Wal-Mart.  As I was leaving I wished him a Happy Birthday and realized that I forgot to remind the girls that it was daddy's birthday.  The fun thing about kids is if they know it is your birthday they are going to go out of their way to say something cute or do something fun to make your birthday special.  The problem is that they have to remember when the birthdays are.  On my way to work I called Ella and reminded her it was her dad's birthday.  I thought they would wish him Happy Birthday and maybe make him a card, but with the help of Grandpa, Grandma, and myself they make Daddy's birthday pretty fun.

Halfway through the day Grandpa and Grandma came to the house, brought Dave his present of antique books, and took Dave and the kids to lunch.  While they were out the kids said they wanted to buy "dad" a present, so Grandma helped them find a present.  They also told Grandma that they wanted to make cupcakes him.  Grandma convinced them to let Grandpa buy him some, which turned into them buying a birthday cake.  The kids now had cake and a present hidden in Ella's room waiting for me to come home.  

 After work Elena called me and asked me if I would get some candles for the cake.  Just for fun I picked up some "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle" plates and masks to go with the cake.

 We also had pizza to eat.

 The girls were really harnessing their inner Ninja Turtle.

 When came time to light the THIRTY-FOUR candles, even David was afraid of the fire hazzard.

 When just the light from the candles on you cake is enough to light the room, you know you are getting old!

The day ended up people much more eventful than anyone expected.

A Halloween Treat

First things first... watch the video

So, on Halloween night our cat was acting kinda funny.  We thought maybe he was afraid of our dog that usually lives at my in-laws.  Upon closer evaluation we figured out that he was afraid Ella who was dressed up as a black cat for Halloween.  It was the funniest thing ever!  He got so scared/mad I was afraid he was going to attack her if she didn't leave him alone.  Hope you got as much of a kick out of our "Scaredy Cat" as we did!

Welcome home Ezekiel

 After 11 days in the NICU our little guy was finally able to come home so we could all be together as a family.

 The girls were so excited to finally have him home. They still fight over holding him.
 Last night Zeke got his first bath.  He was so funny he cross when he first got in the water and then he fell asleep like it was spa day or something.

 When I was drying his hair it went really curly while it was wet.  It was pretty straight again once it dried.

 He is so handsome with his hair clean and his adorable clothes on.

Ella, Elena, and Evie present 8 YEARS OF FUN WITH JEN!

After celebrating Jennifer's birthday yesterday we thought it would fun to take a trip down memory lane and remember all the fun things we have done with Jen our entire lives!  WE LOVE YOU JEN!

 Sharlie's wedding 2006

Christmas 2007

Sledding 2008

 Ella's dance recital 2009

 Christmas time 2010

PLACE MISSING PICTURES OF OUR CALIFORNIA TRIP HERE

Hot tubbing 2012 

Beach House Christmas 2012

 Jackson Trip 2013

Witch's Tea 2013 

Evie's birthday 2014

SOON TO COME OREGON PICS 2014

Happy 3rd Birthday Evie Elizabeth!

Happy FROZEN Birthday Evie!

Tonight we celebrated Evie's 3rd birthday a little bit early at Grandpa and Grandma Cederstrom's house.  Ever since she saw the movie "Frozen" Evie has been quoting it, listening to music, and talking about Sven and Olaf.  It was a no brainer that she would love a "Frozen" birthday party.

We started off our night with some wonderful post-fast dinner that Aunt Jenn made for us.  Evie was more than happy to eat her broccoli trees!  After dinner we plaid a funny game where we tried to guess Disney characters.  Next Evie got to open her birthday presents from Grandpa, Grandma, Jenn, Steph, and Catherine.  She was so excited to get some book and...

her VERY OWN Radio Flyer Tricycle!!  She was so excited to get her own "bike" that she would hardly smile for the camera!

Next we sang Happy Birthday and had cake and ice cream!

Evie was pretty excited that her cake had Sven, Olaf, Elsa and Anna on it.  I think this is the first year that she really blew out her candle on her own.  Usually one of her super helpful Older Sisters sneaks in and blows them out for her!

Super Yummy Birthday Cake!

We celebrated with...

Evie, Jenn, Elena, Ella...

Stephanie and Dave's cousin Ryan...

and Grandpa and Grandma Cederstrom.

Happy Birthday Evie Boo!  I can't believe that you are already 3!  It is crazy!

A Walk in the canyon

Tonight we went for a walk in the Canyon above Grandpa and Grandma Cederstrom's house in Springville.  We had so much fun enjoying nature and talking as a family.

The girls had a lot of fun on the walk looking for treasures and bugs.  They all got a little tired after awhile, though, and were ready to go home.

If you look really close on the road you can see the cricket that Evie wanted me to take a picture of.  All three girls were fascinated by it, but I wasn't fast enough to catch them all on camera.

This one reminds me of the movie "The Village" except it is the good color instead of the bad color.  The coolest part about this pick is that I didn't play around with the saturation at all.  The yellow really was this bright and the leaves really were that dull. 

Oh The Beauty of the EARTH.

Homemade Gummy Worms aka coolest jigglers ever!

Last week we decided to try something fun that we saw on pinterest...

Homemade Gummy Worms

It sounded like an awesome idea, and although they turned out a little different than we expected at first, they were still super fun.  So, first you make a small box of jello with only 2/3 c of water.  (we doubled this, which was 2 packs with 1 1/3 c of water)  Then let the jello cool until just warm to the touch.  While waiting arrange straws in something that will hold them up.  Next poor the jello into the straws like so...

 Next you play the waiting game... we had to let our worms sit in the fridge over night for them to set up completely.  Then you get the worms out.  Pinterest says to just push them out with a rolling pin, but after some trial and error I found that it works better if you run the straw under warm water for just a second to loosen the jello and then use a rolling pin to push them out.

The rest is history!  My kids loved slurping the jello like noodles. 

Thanksgiving Point Harvest Festival

This weekend we had tons of fun looking at the giant pumpkins, carved pumpkins, giant squash, and more at Thanksgiving Point's Harvest Festival.

Of course the girl's all got their faces painted, and they turned out soooo cute! 

 Evie's favorite part was the Chick-Fil-A cow, but we didn't get a picture of him.

 Ella's favorite part was the scavenger hunt that they got to do while they were walking around.

 Of course, Elena's favorite part was getting her face painted.  If she had a fortune she would blow it all on face paint!