Friday, December 30, 2005

You can look at the pictures for the things we did this Christmas but for a quick update on me. I still have 6 stitches in my bellybutton and two in each of the other two incisions for a total of 10 stitches. This time I didn't get the dissolvable kind because it is safer to use the nondissolvable when you are using old incision scars...It just heals better... You know so my bellybutton will look great in this summer's bikini....HA! Anyways I go in Tuesday afternoon to get them taken out and for more details on what is next to come. I do know that I will be going on Depo Lupron again so my uterus can heal and I love those HOT FLASHES!!!! I will try to update more after Tuesday. Ken and I are looking forward to a new year and will be going to Dallas mid-January for a family wedding I will definitely have pics of that trip. Enjoy the following pictures and HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU AND YOURS!!!

Today I am thankful for Christmas Break.
I don't care if you call it Christmas, Holiday, Winter WHATEVER....you can call it what you like BUT I will stick to the traditional term of Christmas Break. It means the same to everybody... it is a time to be with friends and family, a time to give and receive, and a time to reflect and respond. I so enjoy getting together with my friends and family. They are the ones who keep you going. They're your inspiration, motivation, and the first with your congratulations. Anybody that KNOWS me knows I love to shop. I like to call it retail therapy, but whatever I call it... I SHOP SHOP SHOP. I love looking for great deals for me but I love it when I find the "just the right thing" for others. I put a lot of thought and care into the gifts I give and I soooooooo appreciate when I receive a gift that was given with the same.... it makes it that much better. New Year's bring on a time to reflect on what happened the year before. Ken and I started a memory jar. Every time we did something memorable we would add a little something to the jar...like movie tickets, pictures, receipts, trinkets...ect....This New Year's Eve we will go through it and reflect on our 2005. I can't wait. I also do not set a "resolution" a resolution (to me) is a solution to a problem why not think positive and call it a response to the problem.


This was our Christmas card this year if you did not get one that means one of two things....1 you didn't send me one...I lost my old address book and as I got cards in I sent cards out.... or 2 you sent me a card but you didn't have a return address...that means you Aunt AnnaLee. Well anyways this was our Grand Prize Winner for this year's card. Look at the following to see which ones didn't make it... Another reason you might not of been graced by Copper Clause is becuase we ran out of cards.....anyways if you didn't get one PLEASE send me your address.
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Not too flattering...NEXT...
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Ken's favorite
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Good one.
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Copper Anne smiling!
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Busting at the seams... Her chest is busting out of the front...just like her mom...HA!
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The night before my surgery I had my faculty Christmas Party. We were in charge. This is the group that I teach 3rd grade with. Starting from l-r Fran, Kari, me, Beth (she was Fran's sub during her baby leave), and then Patti. I am very lucky to teach with such a great group of girls.
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The morning of my surgery mom and dad came to my class to help with the Gingerbread Party. I needed their help because it was the last day of school before Winter Break and I had to leave early from school to check in at the hospital. Mom and Dad had fun helping my kids build their houses. THANKS MOM AND DAD!!!
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One of my student's Gingerbread Castles. It was one of the best.
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My Uncle Jeb came in for Christmas...kinda ... this is the second year where he comes in for a few days before Christmas with his girls. We went to Magic Time Machine for dinner one night and Tinkerbell found out that Jeb use to work there and gave him a balloon...to wear. Isn't he cute....
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My Uncle Jeb and his ( we love her, you have to keep her, the sweetest thing, and cute too) girlfriend Laura. Tinkerbell is in the middle.
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Josh and his girlfriend Lyssa at Magic Time Machine.
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HOCKEY!!!!


YOU know we went to Hockey games over the Holiday Break. THis is our teams mascot, T-Bone. He annoys me most of the time but whatever. He is posing for a picture and I guess the girl behind him is too.
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This is our view of the players this year. We are very lucky to sit so close to the penalty box... Thanks DAD. It is a lot of fun.
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This is Boone and his new motorized HARLEY...JUST like POPS (that is what he calls his Grandpa (Ken's stepdad Rick).
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Christmas Eve is always spent with Ken's Mom. We had so much fun this year it was great. We really enjoyed watching our 2 1/2 year old nephew, Boone, open his gifts.
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We couldn't find Copper when it was time to go to bed Christmas Eve and we found her looking out the window. We figured she was looking for SANTA PAWS.
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Santa PAWS is coming!
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Copper is waiting to open her gift.
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SANTA brought Copper a new set of Fairy wings.
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Dad opening a gift from mom.
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Copper with her Christmas ribbon on. She is like...."DO YOU HAVE TO TAKE SOOOO MANY PICTURES OF ME MOM?"...and the answer is YES!!!!
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Josh loves his custom made "Freeman" figure. Ken spent lots of time making this figure look like Josh when he played football at Judson. YES KEN made it. It is really cool and Josh loved it.
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Mom and Grandma passing out gifts at the Stewart's House.
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Tena opening her gift from us. I made her a custom Scrabble board where I glued down letters to spell out things important to the O'Connor Family...like... Tena, Bill, William, and Andrea
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Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Well many of you already know that I am going to have surgery #3 THIS Friday. I went to Dr. Garza (my obgyn/ fertility specialist (#1 in Texas)), yesterday because my cycle was way off. I won't go into detail on that but let's just say I should buy stock in Tampax. Anyways went to Garza and had to have an internal sonogram. It showed that I have 2 cysts...What else is new... and my uterus is too thick. Each ovary has it's own cyst... the right one is 19cm and the left one is around 9. Remember that you are suppose to have cysts (follicles) because they contain the egg and then the cyst is suppose to rupture releasing the egg along with helpful hormones. They usually rupture around 15-17. If your follicle doesn't rupture your body doesn't know to start sluffing off the uterine lining (if you are not pregnant) and therefore your uterus just gets thicker and thicker. When you are at the follicle rupturing stage your uterus should be at 3cm thick mine is now at 19cm. My uterus was getting so thick that clumps of it were sluffing off (starting Dec. 1st) I thought it was a normal cycle but it didn't stop and since my follicle didn't rupture my uterus just kept growing. I thought I WOULD JUST GET A SHOT but was wrong and guess what SURGERY again. I was really upset ...I wasn't sure if it was going to be a simple procedure (like no incisions) or the laproscopy...DING DING DING I WIN it's the laproscopy. That is when they go through my belly button and two incisions on my panty line...PAINFUL recovery. OH WELL good drugs help. I was also really upset because they wanted me to have it early Friday morning...For those of you that know the Friday before Christmas is PARTY day. My kids (who are the best I have ever had a TRUE DREAM CLASS) have been working very hard to earn their Gingerbread house party. They had to pass addition tests (0-10) to earn parts of the house...like if you pass your zero test you get to come to the party, if you pass your ones you get a plate, twos you get the icing, 3 gingerbread (graham crackers) and so on and so on. Well our house building party is Friday and I didn't want to miss a thing. I finally convinced the nurse to schedule me for the latest possible time and they did. It is between 2 and 3 BUT I have to be there at 12 or 1. We only have a half day on Friday so I am going to leave at lunch time and will miss the last 40 minutes of the day. My principal okayed it and my teaching team is going to cover my class for the last 40 minutes. As I mentioned my class is AWESOME so it won't be a difficult task. Although I was upset about the surgery, it does fall at a convenient time because I have to have 2 weeks recovery and that is how long my vacation is... I don't have to miss any school...YIPPEE.

OK different news... I haven't updated with pictures or Weight Watchers updates for a while. I will post pictures later...BUT... I am now up to 20 pounds lost. I am very excited and mom has lost over 15. ( ok so I was reading this to my mom and dad and mom wanted me to say she is up to 17 pounds lost and dad wnats me to say he is up to 25 pounds lost. We don't like to talk about Dad's wt loss because everyone knows men lose wt faster..and I told him wait til after my surgery 19cm of uterus should weigh at least 20 pounds ... I can dream and heck what ever makes me happy and it is my BLoG and I can type what I wnat to.... ;))

I will update details of the procedure later and will try to post pictures ... not of the surgery but other things...like Copper's Santa outfit and other fun pics.

Today I am thankful for TJMAXX. I am absolutely addicted to that store. I go there for Retail Therapy. They have really good stuff. I go there to look and shop and look some more. Ken hates going there with me because I seriously will stay there for hours. After tonight I am sure Josh won't go with me anymore either.