good lung report :)

I saw Dr. Bensadoun on Friday and he said my chest xray is clear.  Yippee!  I'll be on 15mg of prednisone for three weeks, then 10mg for three weeks.  I see Dr B again on April 9 and will get a CT done to check for any disease not visible on the chest xray.

Hopefully I will have no updates for you until April 9th... and hopefully it will be nothing but improvement!  :)

Thank you again for all the prayers.  The Lord is so good and has showered me with His blessing and protection.

giant update post :)

I am incredibly behind on my blogging.  There have been so many things I needed or wanted to write about in the last couple of weeks, but due to time constraints, lack of motivation, busy-ness, or pure laziness, I have not written anything.  Sorry. So here goes a monster-post!  :)

Deadly Car Crash- 1/19/2010, 11:30 pm

http://www.lex18.com/news/coroner-releases-name-of-victim-killed-in-wrong-way-crash/

http://www.allvoices.com/s/event-5075804/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5rZW50dWNreS5jb20vbGF0ZXN0X25ld3Mvc3RvcnkvMTEwMzI0NS5odG1s

About two and half weeks ago, Christopher was witness to a horrible car crash in which a lady sadly was killed.  A drunk guy in his young 20s was driving down the wrong side of the highway, allegedly without his headlights on.  He side-swiped one car, then crashed into the lady driving right in front of Chris head-on.  Chris was riding with our friend, Dusty, who safely avoided being slammed into by the drunk guy’s spinning car.  Chris called 911 and was obviously the first responder on the scene. 

Words cannot express my gratitude for the Lord sparing Christopher and Dusty’s lives that night.  My prayers and sympathies are with the lady’s family who passed away.  My prayers are also with the young man who has repeatedly made very poor decisions and now has murdered a woman.  I hope he comes to know the Lord one day.

New Bible Study!

Last fall I joined a small group and we did the book study called “Me, Myself, and Lies” by Jennifer Rothschild.  It was a really good book on cleaning out your thought-closet and getting rid of the trash that piles up in there.  I developed new friendships with the women in the group while growing in my relationship with the Lord.  After a short hiatus during the holidays, our group started back up again last Thursday night!  I was so excited- I really missed the fellowship of Christian women!  Anyway, we are doing the 10-week Beth Moore study “Breaking Free.”  I am anxious to see how the Lord will change me through this study.  I believe all of us have some type of stronghold in our lives that prevents us from the full blessing of living in Christ.

Prednisone and Diet Update

I’m on 20mg daily of prednisone at the moment (started at 60mg on Dec 19).  I will be on this dose at least until February 19, which is when I go see Dr. B again.  Much to my dismay, I am developing chipmunk face again.  Blast it.  And I want to eat all the time.  And I get hot flashes.

The diet is going ok, but not super.  Because I’m on the steroids, I have been allowing myself to “cheat” on more things.  I still don’t eat fried food or drink soda, but I’ve had some white breads and pasta and desserts with all kinds of bad ingredients.  There is no reason to cheat, but I concoct reasons in my head.  I don’t know whether I just have a short pity-party moment and grab that little gold Hershey’s Nugget, or if the food cravings and appetite increase from being on prednisone make me want to eat “bad” food… I don’t know.  Either way, I’m gaining weight again and I attribute that to my diet.  Steroids cause weight gain, but I was doing well with the weight in November and December when I was adhering to the super-healthy diet. 

Fortunately, I cannot continue this eating madness once I get down to about 10mg of prednisone and certainly not once I’m off completely. 

My lungs may continue to cause me problems and I may have to end up on Imuran or some other immunosuppressant after all.  But I believe the Lord has called me to eat properly out of respect for my GI system and I know He blessed my decision.  I have been symptom-free since November 1 when I started my diet.  I need to honor the temple God gave me and get back on track.  I pray that the anti-inflammatory diet will keep my lungs from flaring as well.

Job Update

I am really enjoying my job at the Neurology Center.  I love working with the Alzheimer’s patients and their families.  I am getting more skilled with phlebotomy and doing EKGs.  I am learning a lot about Alzheimer’s, which has been of great value since my grandmother was diagnosed with the disease recently.

Hub Update

Many of you know that Christopher resigned from his Emergency Medicine residency at the end of October.  He quickly figured out that he had chosen the wrong specialty… and that decision primarily came from going through the hospital experience with me this summer.  He wants to be in a field with continuous patient care.  So after a lot of prayer and contemplation, he chose to pursue Internal Medicine.  In January, he interviewed at UK and Wake Forest.  We plan to stay here at UK...  and Match Day is March 18th, so we'll find out for sure on that day.  :)

AVON

Try it.  You'll really like their products.  :)  www.youravon.com/swaynick

New lipstick coming out on Monday 2/8: Ultra Color Rich Mega Impact!

super-exciting shoe deals

As many of you know, I love shoes.  Shoes for me, shoes for Chris, shoes for kids even though I don't have any yet...  I just think they're so fun.  It is especially fun when you get a pair for a most-excellent price.

Anyway, I am a DSW Rewards member, so occasionally I get coupons and things.  DSW has a constant clearance section in the back of the store, which is the only place I shop when I go in there.

I got a free $10 off coupon sometime in December when I got Chris some shoes.  So I went to DSW last week and found a pair of Privo flats that were on sale 70% off.  Plus I had the $10 coupon. So I paid about $8 for those... as opposed to like $60.  Side Note:  Privo is a brand made by Clarks, which are some of the most comfy shoes ever.

Then miraculously I got another $10 coupon in the mail last week!  So I returned to DSW on Saturday and found Chris a pair of Born fisherman sandals for 80% off plus that $10 off.  So they cost me $4.23... instead of about $100.  I almost did cartwheels out of the store.  $4.23!?!  I actually said the word "Yeehaw!" at the cash register when my total popped up.  Thank the Lord I'm in Lexington, Kentucky and people actually say that around here.

milk excitement

A gallon of organic whole milk is approximately $5.50

I love the Manager's Specials at Kroger.

I bought two gallons.

avery does yoga

Preface: This blog post would be WAY better if I had a real photo of what occurred this evening.

So Christopher and I were doing the yoga video for P90X tonight and we were instructed to do the "downward dog":

...and I look down directly underneath me and Avery is also doing the downward dog (yep, it's where the yoga position originated):

I laughed so hard I about fell over out of my down dog position.  It was so cute and so funny!  Little Avery always tries so hard to be included.  Now if he starts doing the prayer twist or warrior-two, I will really be impressed...

weekend fun

Christopher and I had a fun weekend of dates and relaxation...

Friday night we tried out a new restaurant (Bajio Mexican Grill.)  It was pretty good, but I prefer Moe's.  :)  Then we went to see "Couple's Retreat" at the cheap theater and laughed our butts off.  (There was some vulgarity I could have done without, but for the most part it was okay)  To wrap up the evening, we ventured over to Common Grounds Coffee House to enjoy some yummy coffee and live music.  We have a handy-dandy discount card that gets us buy-one-drink-get-one-for-$1.00 every time we go there, so it makes me like that place even more.  Haha.  :)  The artist Friday night was from Nashville- we really enjoyed his music.  And as an added bonus, our friends Laura and Teague showed up, so we had some fellowship with them. :)

Saturday morning we walked around the neighborhood and distributed about 250 AVON flyers I made.  I got one phone call from a lady who wanted me to bring her a catalog!  Yippee!  lol.  I also went to Walmart to get some random items, rented "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" from the RedBox and just spent time with Topher at the house.  He made us whole-wheat pancakes for supper.  Yummo.

Today, I woke up at 6:15 and stayed wide awake.  Thanks, prednisone.  So I got up and did TurboJam.  :)  We went to church in the dreary cold rain.  We grabbed lunch at Ruby Tuesday, because I of course had a coupon. :)  Buy one entree get one free!  Check your mailbox- they send them out like once a month to everybody.  We spent the entire afternoon at home- Chris and Avery napped and I worked on AVON business stuff.  We hadn't had enough of Laura and Teague, so we called them up to go eat with us at PF Changs for dinner. It was delicious.  We all split a ginormous piece of chocolate cake for dessert.  No, the cake is not approved on my diet, but I can't resist while being on steroids...  Eek...!

Now it's bedtime.  Goodness, I did not realize it is already after 10:00!!  Night, night.

good report from pulmonologist

I saw Dr. Bensadoun today, got a chest x-ray and had blood drawn.

My x-ray was "significantly improved" from 11/30/09, which is great news!!

I get to drop my prednisone to 30 mg starting tomorrow morning (two weeks earlier than originally planned!)  I'll do that dose for two weeks, then take 20 mg for two weeks.

I see Dr. B again on February 19.

Until then, continue to pray for healing!  :)  Love you all.

topher's UK interview today

Christopher is interviewing at UK for Internal Medicine residency today!  Say a little prayer for him and wish him luck!

p.s.  he looked so handsome in his navy pin-striped suit.  wish i'd gotten a picture of him this morning...

i sell AVON- please visit my website!

I love AVON products so much that I decided to start selling them!  :)  If you have never tried AVON, now is a good time to start, or if you already know about AVON and need a representative to purchase from, I would love to serve you.

If you are not in Lexington, you can purchase products from my website:
www.youravon.com/swaynick

Shipping is about $3.00- occasionally they run specials for free or reduced shipping costs.

If you are in Lexington, you can also order from the website and select "Personal Delivery," which means you pay no shipping and I bring the products to you.  [Also allows me a larger commission that way ;-) ]

I will not ever harrass anyone to buy anything- I just wanted to let you all know that I'm here to provide AVON products if you want them.  They're so great, they sell themselves.  :-)

Thank you for your business!


Just a few of my favorite products:

AVON Solutions: Maximum Moisture AM and PM cream

Glazewear Lip Gloss

Advance Techniques Intense Repair Moisture Mask (hair)

Glimmersticks Eye Liner

Moisture Effective Eye Make-Up Remover Lotion

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AVON Brands

Avon is a world leader in anti-aging skin care products, fragrance and color cosmetics. Its product line includes beauty products, fashion jewelry and apparel and features such well-recognized brand names as Avon Color, Anew, Skin So Soft, Avon Solutions, Advance Techniques Hair Care, Avon naturals, mark and Avon Wellness.

AVON Corporate Information

Avon, the company for women, is a leading global beauty company with over $8 billion in annual revenue. As the world's largest direct seller, Avon markets to women in well over 100 countries through over five million independent Avon Sales Representatives, who earn more than $3 billion annually. Avon has more than one billion annual Customer transactions.

By the end of 2006, total Avon philanthropy worldwide will have raised and awarded more than $500 million for initiatives and organizations of vital importance to women. Voted "a most trusted brand" on three continents, Avon was also selected by Businessweek as one of "The Top 100 global Brands" and honored as one of Fortune magazine's "50 Best companies for Minorities."

AVON Foundation Information

The Avon Foundation is an accredited 501(c)(3) public charity in the US that was founded in 1955 to improve the lives of women and their families. Now past the half century mark, the Avon Foundation brings this mission to life through two key areas of focus: the fight against breast cancer and support for women's empowerment, including economic advancement and the issue of domestic violence, and more than 300 grants area awarded each year for these important causes. The flagship programs are the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade, which works to advance access to care and finding a cure; and Speak Out Against Domestic Violence, focused on ending the cycle of domestic violence, with a special focus on children. Avon is proudly the largest corporate supporter of the breast cancer cause, with programs in 50 countries, and the commitment to domestic violence is growing.

Avon and the Avon Foundation also respond quickly to national and international emergencies, raising funds and providing support for women and famiiles affected by incidents such as the attacks of September 11, 2001; the tsunami in Southeast Asia; Hurricanes Rita and Katrina; and the military conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Funds are raised through a variety of events, such as the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer series, and the sale of special fundraising products by Avon Sales Representatives. In 2006, the combined global philanthropy of Avon and the Avon Foundation reached an extraordinary milestone: more the $500 million raised and awarded. More information is available at http://www.foundation.org/.

avery loves the snow!

Chris took a few pictures of snow playtime with Avery.  So fun!  Pretty snow!  We love it.  =)

View from our front yard into the street

snow-covered house!

Run, Avery, run!

Avery in the field behind the house

Mighty dog!