Not Me Monday

• I do not consider last week's Not Me Monday a total success because I managed to gross out my husband. No way, I do not aspire to make him feel awkward and uncomfortable.

• I did not discover a lost tub of jelly beans and Skittles from last Easter and devour them in the next 24 hours. Nope, that's gross to eat super expired candy. And besides....I was obviously doing a good deed by not wasting food.

• Since the disappearance of my throat ulcers I do not treat every meal and snack like a Thanksgiving feast. No way, I don't participate in apocalyptic eating....that's gluttonous.

• I did not accidentally drop a large handful of chocolate chips into the peanut butter jar and decide the only way to amend the situation was to dump more chocolate chips in the jar, stir them around, and label the jar as "tainted" and hide it from the rest of the family.

• I did not discover Mark's ticklish spots by squeezing his mini man boobs together to see how big of a cleavage line I can make. No way, that is demeaning and borderline child abuse.

• I did not watch Finding Nemo with my girls and then ceremoniously flush our 4 live fish down the toilet one by one....wishing them all a happier and better life in the big lake.

• I am not completely annoyed that Mark started crawling. No way, such milestones are celebrated and I was sure to document the date and time in his non-existent baby book.

• It did not take Peter telling me Mark smelled like rotten milk to realize that it had been over a week since I last bathed him....barf.

• I did not let Mark suck on a chocolate chip cookie. No way, he is only 7 months old and only eats healthy baby food veggies and fruit....only a bad mommy would introduce her toothless baby to the glorious bliss that is chocolate chip cookies.
  

• I did not just blankly stare at the disgusting blackish greenish brownish yellowish sludge growing inside our toilet.....nearly barf....and then decide the best thing for me to do about it was go downstairs and click away on my computer. No way, I would never turn a blind eye to my desperate house begging for a cleaning. Besides, I always keep my bathroom spotless for health and sanitation reasons.

• I did not force Stella to use apple slices to dip into her peanut butter while I used Godiva chocolate squares. No way, I always demonstrate good eating habits by setting a good example.

Simply Sofia

Sofia was my first baby, my mini-me. I love her. She loves to get her hands dirty and help me or Peter with whatever. I don't know how it happens, but she somehow grows up really fast.....too fast for my liking.

Sofia is in now Kindergarten. This makes her very smart and know lots of things. She's all like, "Yep Mom, that's how we do it in Kindergarten" and "Ugh, no mommy, Kindergartners do it THIS way"


Making pizza with mommy. She's really good at kneading dough....it's one of her favorite cooking things to do with me.

Making a snowman with daddy. She loves to bundle up and go outside with daddy just to be with him.....even if he is only shoveling.

Sofia's 100 Days of Kindergarten Project.
Anyways, she has been in Kindergarten for 100 days. This is a big deal. She was assigned a project. Create something using 100 of something else. (I maybe helped with the idea)

100 Pictures of Things She Thanks Jesus For
(Shout out to uncle Josh for the Polaroid printer thingy!!)




And for the record, she really did do about 95% this project. I cut out the numbers and typed the list items. But she took the pictures, printed them, arranged them, adhered them to the giant 100 (they're stickers), cut the 100 list items, & then glued those on too. And you better believe the title poster has GLITTER letters! I was so proud of her diligence, dedication, and quality control.



A Night To Shine
Sofia participated in a forensics night at school....after she told us she didn't want to. We didn't push it because Peter also hates public speaking and understood her resistance towards it. But then Nona advised us that we get her more comfortable speaking in front of groups of people when she is young....as the fear only gets worse with age. So we took Nona's sage advice and made her do it. It wasn't hard to convince Sofia because all her cousins participated too. She did great and we were beaming with pride. My favorite part is when she is done and is soaking up the applause. All the participants handed over the microphone immediately....Sofia waited for the applause. (Thanks aunt Lesley for taking the video)



Well done indeed....

Snapshots

I am just getting back into sewing....little by little. This is my new(ish) thread holder....I love it. It keeps them nice and organized and de-clutters my previous thread drawer.

After stepping on a pin (awesome) & Stella finding several random pins on the ground....I also decided I should probably own a pin cushion....hopefully now they will stay put.

My work table....with my newest color scheme.

Stella loves to play with her train.
Sharing her train with Mark is fun and new....for now.

Sometimes I let my girls do my eye make up.
They are sure to use ALL the colors.
Sofia went for the dramatic eye make up look.

Stella went for more or an artistic eye look.

My dad brought me flowers last week.
They are still blooming and very fragrant.

I wanna give Crayola a big fat hug.

Painting princesses!

Please note that Sofia had to "create" her orange and purple to complete her rainbow of colors.

Stella's favorite part is watching the water turn colors.

Stella is not really one to sit on concentrate....so her painting is always amazing for me to witness.

Everyone was Kung-Fu Fighting.....
.....in knee high boots.....

We play with our food....sometimes it's healthy food.....

Not Me Monday

• I do not consider Nutella and peanut butter are a fantastic and nutritional form of protein....especially when eaten together.

• I did not discover that 3-4 beers is a fantastic way to ease burning throat, mouth, & tongue ulcers....and further decide that the extra expense should come from "medical" portion of our budget.

• I am not slightly disappointed that my new bout of steroids did not grow me a nice handle bar mustache.....cause that would have made me famous.

• I do not look forward to Valentines Day solely for the purpose of clearance candy....because Valentines Day is stupid. The End.

• I did not beam with pride when Sofia emerged from the bathroom to tell me "Well mom, I just dropped a double deuce...and now I feel much better." Nope, no child of mine uses such language.

• I did not use breastmilk in Stella's mac & cheese because I needed to save the last 1/4 cup of regular milk for Sofia's cereal the next morning. Eeew.....barf.

• I did not seriously consider warming up mugs of breastmilk, adding some chocolate, and feeding it to my two girls in an attempt to rid them of their sicknesses.....nope, that crosses the line into crazy-lady land.

• I did not take Mark along on Sofia's doctor appointment & have the doc take a quick looksie in his ears, listen to his chest, and also discuss his health. No way, I only paid for 1 child and would never sneak in a second child evaluation....that would be a dishonest way to save $30.....cha-ching!

• I did not change our coffee to 1/2 decaf in a sincere effort to reduce my caffeine dependency....and then decide that the best way to handle my caffeine intake change was to drink twice as much....nice Rach....I'm smart.

• I do not wish that the picture I entered for Mark's photo contest was more Asian looking...to give him more of an edge and perhaps a better chance....no way, that would make me racist....because Asian kids are not cuter than pale faces....suckers!

• I did not read full episode spoilers for a tv series (Dexter season 4) that Peter and I are watching through Blockbuster movie mailings. No way, that would demonstrate both my impatience and compulsive addiction to Dexter.

• I do not claim to live a lowfat diet lifestyle and then give way to daily temptations such as cookies, chips, chocolate, salami, bacon, pot roast, & grilled cheese. No way, low-fat is what the doctor ordered....and I take my GI health more seriously.

Just a Formula....and some laughs

My friend.....and neighbor....who also happens to be my only babysitter posted this today and I just had to share it because I thought it was hilarious.

Snapshots....and stuff

I dedicate this post to KMS, who informed me that the spacing between my posts is unacceptable. So here is a disjointed & somewhat unorganized update. Even Mark is upset.

I'm not real sure what this post should really be....so I suppose it'll be a little of everything....and therefore also quite long....so feel free to scan through. Where to begin.....A LOT has happened since my last post.....I miss my blog. I don't really like posting sad baby pictures....so I will equalize it with a happy baby picture. This is Mark taking a bath in his bucket. He loves it!

Indianapolis
I have GI malfunctions....lots of them. They have caused me a great deal of on/off pain and discomfort for the past 2 years. My recent flare ups have been awful. Since this past October I have been dealing with bleeding throat ulcers, colon ulcers, food non-digestion (yeah, that's a word) and constant severe upper abdominal pain.....and no real definitive answers. In December, I had that unwelcome extended hospital stay with pancreatitus, ulcerative colitis, & biliary/liver problems.....always comes at the worst time for me.

My chart was labeled "special" and then I was referred to some specialists at Indiana Univeristy in Indianapolis, IN.

I met with a ERCP/bile duct specialist and only dealt with problems regarding my common bile duct. Any questions regarding my ulcers or my liver would need a different specialist. After my consultation with the doctor, the questions we wanted to answer were about the relationship between my common bile duct, the unsuccessful ERCP fixes, & my elevated liver enzymes. He wanted to take a closer look at my common bile duct and see if a blockage near the bottom of it was the reason for my elevated liver enzymes.

I had an MRI, an endoscopic ultrasound, and ERCP #7.

I also look like a recreational drug user....the nurses started having trouble getting IV's in and had the anesthesiologists use the veins in my hand for the last 2 procedures. This picture does not give a good depiction of my gross arms.....barf.

During the ERCP, the doctor removed a large amount of sludge, made larger cuts into the bile duct scar tissue and inserted 3 plastic stents.....so now "A mac truck can drive through my bile duct." Sweet. And yes, these are actual pictures of my bile duct....barf. (I think I barf a lot)

What Now?

-A liver biopsy in 2008 diagnosed me with Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (PSC)

- PSC is a chronic liver disease that produces inflammation which leads to scarring of the bile ducts inside and outside of the liver. As a result, bile builds up in the liver and damages liver cells. Eventually, scar tissue can spread throughout the liver, causing cirrhosis and liver failure.

- 3 of 4 people with PSC also have IBD or ulcerative colitis....the relationship is not understood.

- I will need another liver biopsy and will most likely search out a liver specialist.

- With a diagnosis of PSC & UC, I am considered high risk for colon cancer....which means yearly colonoscopys.....awesome....keep the good news coming! *sigh* *tear*

- I will have to go back to Indy in 4 months to have the stents removed.

- The doctors can't quite decide if I have Ulcerative Colitis (UC) or Crohn's because people with UC don't usually get throat ulcers. I was told that if my ulcers are deeper in my esophagus, then I definitely have Crohns....but if they are only higher up in my pharynx, then it still could be UC. If I want to find out, then I need to get them tested. Whatever. The treatment is the same so I don't care what I have....as they are equally crappy.

- I will most likely start a new regime of meds to address my UC....which include a nice dose of steroids....maybe I'll grow a mustache.


Let's End With Some Good News

- I did not have choledochal cysts....which can be cancerous and require major bile duct surgery.

- My doctor is confident that these stents will work and I will not have common bile duct problems again!!!! He feels that when I get them removed in 4 months, that I won't have another ERCP again.

- I have zero risk for prostate cancer.



A few pictures

So these were the hotel beds in Indy....a little lumpy. We thought they looked weird.



Stella calls these my pretty bracelets.....pretty indeed.



I would argue that Peter and Stella missed me the most.



I love my family




Old Stomping Grounds
Pati and I went to Butler University to look around, take pictures, and feel old.....very old.

Such a beautiful campus!



Good ole' Jordan Hall....ALL of my classes were in this building!



Schwizter Hall (a.k.a. The Virgin Vault)



Go Dawgs!








Other News

This past November and December were absolutely crazy for me with NamHee Designs....lots of Christmas orders....which was fantastic! Here are some of my new color combos.




Christmas parties, shopping, decorating, and celebrating filled every other minute. Check out out super sick Christmas socks from grandma Feyen.



Sofia likes to be silly



See the rat nest that is Stella's hair? Try to ignore the psycho-from-the-movie-The-Ring look she also has going on here.



So I chopped it off



Two little monkeys jumping on the bed.



I love genuine laughter



Stella is not a good sleeper....and I love when she finally settles down and gets some shut eye.



Sofia and Stella both got some super sick pink boots from Papa....and yes, they are bedazzled with rhinestones & silver studs.



This is me playing with my camera from Peter.



I wish I looked so perfect when I sleep. Maybe if you add some drool, a bunch of zits, & a double chin....then we would be daughter-like-mother.




Snow Pictures

We went sledding. It was a blast!




We had so much fun that Peter could randomly throw Sofia in the air and let her land in the snow. I think Peter had more fun with it than Sofia.



Wheeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!



Plop!!


Completely sunk into the snow.