My PRK review

It was time. I have been debating it for years, but 2011 was going to be theyear that I finally bit the bullet and got it done. Corrective Eye surgery. I've talked with friends andthey've all proclaimed it to be the best money every spent. I thought, the Dyson vacuum I bought 4.5 years ago was the best money I've ever spent!

When I went for my pre surgery consult, they deemed me eligible for PRK versus LASIK. Difference - not much, just the healing time. It depends on the shape of your eyeball and how much cornea you have. If it is a thin cornea, PRK is recommended. Instead of cutting a flap in your eye, doing the laser majic, then putting the flap back (LASIK), PRK removes your cornea and doing the laser treatment. They then put a contact on your eye to protect it while the cornea grows back to form the protective barrier on your eye. For PRK, only one eye at a time is recommended, so you don't have total loss of function if your eye bothers you after the procedure. So in about 3-6 weeks, I can go back and repeat the process on eye #2! (I am such and expert now!!)

I was so excited all week about it. 3pm on Friday I would be able to see clearly out of one eye. Then the nerves struck. Sweaty palms, butterflies in the stomach. I've delivered a child for crying out loud, and couldn't get the epidurla until I was at 8cm because the anesthesiologist was on a coffee break or something! Why would I be so nervous about a 2 minute procedure?? Well, I was. But it was time to put my big girl panties on and get 'er dun. You go into a glass room and lay on the cushy table. Everybody else in the doctors office can watch you go through the procedure, but since you are nervous, you don't really care. Then they put numbing drops in your eyes. Next, they put this clip in your eyelids to keep them open. Yes, the first thing that runs through your mind is Clockwork Orange, but again, the nerves kick in and you forget it. The doctor then starts to scrape/remove the layer of your eyeball/cornea with a tiny brush. Its so weird to see this!! The eye starts to water during this process, as he is gently massaging the eye. Then the laser. It miakes a slight clicking sound, and it smells like a very sterile static, if that makes any sense. After the laser, a few more very cold eye drops, and you are done! Easy peasy. A protective contact goes on the eye for about 4-5 days while your cornea starts to grow back.

I have slightly blurred vision, and will probably continue to have this for about a month while the eye heals. But I can see. I can SEE!!! Stupid things like "6:21" on the dashboard of my car - I can see it! "Ryder" brand on the truck next to me on I-75 - I can see it!

Hubby took me to CVS afterwards to file the vicoden perscription, and to pick up some vitamin C, and then home.

Apparently I am in for some pain the next few days, so the doc said to lay low. Thank you Mom and Dad for watching Sally. No eye makeup for a week, so look out my fellow life forms. I don't mean to scare you out in public, but these are doctors orders!

Day 1, success! And I am starting to really think this might be a better purchse than the Dyson vacuum. Maybe :)

Happy Thanksgiving

I do have a LOT to be thankful for, but I am mostly thankful that Sally is on the road to recovery. On Thanksgiving, we were about to walk out the door to Brother & Sister In Laws, and Sally was running a very high fever. Luckily the doctor's office was open on Friday and we got in. Ear infection. Poor thing. She had an ear infection on 4th of July also. Holidays aren't her thing, but hopefully we she will feel good for Christmas.

Late 09 thru all of 2010 has been a crazy time, but I am so thankful for the support of my family and friends through it all. We've lost a business, lost a house, lost jobs and we are STILL STANDING!! I know that we may be entering even more unstable times, but with God by our side, we can conquer.

in October??

Yes, in October, we finally got some tomatoes on our tomato plant. The plant itself is HUGE, but has not produced any fruit all summer. Adam and Sally found a big one out there this morning.

Note to self, this is what happens when you don't plant tomatoes until June. We were a little behind this year, and this is the outcome. Next year, planting will take place in April!

1st sleep over

13 months have flown by and Sally came up to me today and asked, "Mom, why haven't I gotten to spend the night with anybody yet?" That was a very good question. The answer is, Mommy is selfish and wants to be with you all the time! Oh, if only she could talk...

She is however having her first night away from me tonight. When I walked back in the door to the house after dropping her off, both of the dogs looked at me like, "ummm, where's the rest of the cargo? usually there is a blabbing baby in your arms, lady?!" Hopefully we will both sleep well tonight, even if it is not under the same roof.

Sally & Munson

I'm not sure who likes to watch TV more. If Clifford or Dragon Tails is on, then Sally is loving it. If any kind of dog show is on, Munson is enthralled. They are so funny

Summer Evening

The last year of my life has completely flown by. Every night when I put baby Sally to bed, I just stare at her for moments on end. I wish they would never end. I can't explain what it is like to be a parent, but I am just so thankful that this little precious bit of heaven has come down to earth to be with me. And as I am typing this, my eyes are filling up with tears. If only I could bottle up these moments. My husband and my child. Love love love.

First Icee - YUM

She has discovered how to unwrap the toilet paper! She and Munson are such a pair now. She unrolls, then he comps on the toliet paper tube. And as you can see from picture #3, we have such a lovely stash of toilet paper now in the WC. Too funny.

4th in the ER

This 4th of July could have been better. Poor Sally had a fever starting Friday night and just kept rising and rising all day on the 3rd. Finally at 11:30 Saturday night, we took her to the ER because all the Tylenol and cool rags didn't seem to help. She ended up having an Ear Infection. A dose of Amoxicillon later, the fever has broke and she's on the road to recovery. We left the hospital in the wee hours of the 4th and tried to sleep through the night. She felt a little better today, but you can still tell she is under the weather.

I haven't blogged in forever and tons has happened over the last month. Sally is crawling all OVER the place. Her favorite thing to do now is to pull herself up to the TV and push the off button. Then she will look back at you to see if you noticed. Yes! We notice, silly girl. She must be going through a growth spurt now also because she is sleeping a lot more. But, she is waking up in the middle of the night, which I am not fond of. I'm trying to ween her, but I'm too lazy to walk downstairs in the middle of the night to make a bottle. I guess I'm not trying hard enough.
Oh well, we will conquer it some day soon.

I had some interesting news today at work. Our company got bought. I know this happens to companies all over the country all the time, but until it happens to you, you just don't know how to respond. I still don't know how to respond. I don't know what to think. Are the "Bob's" from office space going to come in and see what everybody does at office? I love what I do, and really enjoy the people I work with and hope it continues. Unsettled is probably the best way to describe how I feel. Of course, knowing what is going on in the rest of our country and watching the news each night makes me feel unsettle too. I can only take comfort in God because he is the one with all the plans for me anyway. Praise Jesus!

Milestone Alert! For Mothers Day, Sally gave us a huge present - she began to crawl forward. She's been up on all fours and been rocking, but hasn't actually made any progress until Mothers Day. It was so exciting. I think Sally got inspired from Caleb Sandle. We went to visit him earlier in the day, and he is 6 weeks younger than Sally and was moving all over the place. Crawling and even pulling himself up! Sally just seems to be kind of a cautious child. Even before she grabs things, she touches them with her pointer finger first to make sure it is safe. I think she just needed to see how the crawling thing is done before she attempted this feat.

9 months old

Sally is 9 months old as of Monday. We went to the doctor and the stats are as follows: 19 lb, 14oz (70%), Height = 28 inches (67%), head circumference 17 inches (27%). Overall great health! She hasn't quite mastered crawling, but she's a champ at scootching, rolling around, clapping, babbling, she can even drop a ball in her new toy. These little accomplishments on paper are huge in real life. She's awesome.

Splish Splash

She is taking a bath. I have finally moved her out of the baby bath, and into the big girl tub. Probably waited too long, but she can sit up very well on her own now, so I feel confident with her in the tub. And she is loving it! I will need to add to my wardrobe, a poncho. Water was everywhere, but Sally had a blast. Even Munson and Penny come in to watch to see what all the fun is about.

Still no crawling yet, but when she lays on her tummy, she is moving all around and rolls where she wants to go. Usually she heads for Munson, so he can lick her toes which makes her giggle.

A 4 Generation day

Meemaw came down for a visit over my birthday and for Easter this year. So Meemaw, Mom, Sally and I all spent some quality time together. To celebrate this momentous occasion, we decided to have a "4 Generations Day" on one of her days here. We had lunch, went shopping (for bargains of course), went to get pedicures, and then hung out on the deck at Mom's in this beautiful spring weather. It was so nice to see her and I wish it was more often. Meemaw is 91, Mom 57, Erin 31, and Sally 8 months.

Spring is here

Spring is in the air, and the nostrils in this house are feeling it. I love the first warm spring like weather, but it is so bittersweet. I have been using the Netipot this year, which has helped quite a bit, but poor Adam is so congested. We have a pear tree in our backyard (so pretty!) but is so stinky. Hopefully in another week everything will get better. When the pollen is thick and my car turns yellow, the worst has usually passed.

Ear & Eye Infections

We went to the doctor's office today. Sally tossed and turned all night with crusty eyes. We found out that not only did she have Pinkeye, but she also had an ear infection. Double wammy! Even when she is sick, she is still a great baby. Not too fussy, just kind of quiet and reserved. Hopefully everything will clear up in a few days.

Busy, Busy, Busy

I have fallen behind on my postings. Sorry for the delay. Adam, Sally & I have recently moved and are trying to get settled into a new n'hood. We are actually living IN a neighborhood now - it has been so long . It felt a little like Pleasantville our first week, just because I wasn't used to it. We even have a garage now, not that we can use it anytime soon. It's filled up with junk!

Oh, and I am so ready for spring. I know some friends have had a worse winter than us, but Georgia usually isn't this cold for this long. I hear the bird chirping in the morning, so it must not be too far off, but a beginning tomorrow would be fine and dandy with me. :)

We got Sally Baptized last weekend. It was so special. Mom made Sally the dress out of material from her wedding dress that she and her grandmother made. Talk about heirloom!

Bath time

She's almost too big for the bath in the sink, but she loves it.

Baby & Daddy getting some sleep, until Erin comes in with the camera flash!

Trystan turns 9

These kids are growning fast. Can't believe Trystan is already 9 years old!

Erin's Thoughts

I just don't have time to write in a journal, so this method is so much better. Sally is growing so fast. Just like every other mother, there are certain stages in her child's life that she wishes would stay around forever. Recently Sally just lights up when I walk into the room. When she is hungry, she cries "Ma ma ma ma". When she's happy she says "Ba ba baba ". The hair on her head is getting thicker every day. There are certain shows on TV that Adam wants me to watch, but I would rather just watch Sally. It is absolutely amazing to see children grow, especially your own. American Idol in on the the background right now, but I couldn't care less. When Sally sings, I stop and listen to her. Why in the world did I wait until I was 30 to have children??!! I would have 10 more if they would all be like Sally. (I know, I'm pushing it here).

First Food

Sally enjoyed her first baby food today - Sweet Potatoes. I am so excited that she ate it so easily. Hopefully it will be easy on her stomach. We will see.

Christmas was a blast this year. On the day after Christmas, we all (minus Adam) got on a flight and went to snowy Kansas City to see family. When we landed, 10 inches at least had already accumulated. Absolutely beautiful! It was so nice to see snow at Christmas again, and I'm glad that Sally got to experience it also.

On Sunday, we gathered with the rest of our family and Sally got to see cousin Victoria again. The girls were born only six days apart, but as you can see, Sally has hit a huge growth spurt. Sally is almost 27 inches long, were as Victoria is a petite 23 inches. The girls had fun together. So did all the adults who watched them gurgle at each other.

Merry Christmas to all

Sally Jane with Goon Dog.

Sally Jane with Daddy

Sally Jane with her presents. She (of course) had more fun with the wrapping paper than the presents themselves.

Getting ready for Christmas

We celebrated Christmas with Adam's side of the December 20th and December 23rd.

Poinsettia Sally

Sally, Erin, & Mimi (that's what we've decided to call Sandi) went to Aunt Annies craft show yesterday. To get into the Christmas spirit, Sally wore a poinsettia flower in her hair. She was the hit of the show - all the shoppers and vendors loved her. What's not to love! We then found a vendor who was selling poinsettias, so we decided to take a picture of her among the other flowers. Too cute.

She shopped til she dropped!

4 months old

Sally Jane is 4 months old today! We went to the doctor on Monday and she is 14lbs and 4oz, and 26 inches long. Coos and high pitched squeals are her favorite past time these days. She is also starting to teeth (or drool) now. Adam and I love every minute with her - she's so much fun