Thursday, July 26, 2018

Little Disney girls

Last week we had the pleasure of going on vacation with our little girls to Disneyland and to see family in California and Las Vegas. We had a wonderful time with them and their parents and the little ones were real troopers.

I was able to visit in Downtown Disney with my sweet friend Janell, who I worked with about 36 years ago and have been friends with ever sense. After a wonderful family dinner with my husband's great Aunt Helen, and several cousins on Friday evening, we headed out for two days at Disneyland and California Adventure.

The first morning, we went to the "Character Breakfast" and the girls got to meet some of their favorite Disney characters right off the bat. We rode a lot of rides that day, and took them to see a live "Frozen" show, which they loved. The second day, Rosemary went to the Bippity Boppity Bootique and got a Tinkerbell makeover. It touched me a great deal, as Tinker Bell was Lauren's favorite Disney character. Even though Rosemary did not know that, she was drawn to Tinker Bell after watching "Peter Pan" just like her aunt was as a little one! Vivian was not old enough to do the BBB, but Mimi and Grandpa bought her a Minnie Mouse dress anyway.

We saw the Pixar Parade, and rode as many rides as we could. The girls had a blast and the tired Tallo family drove across the desert to Las Vegas to meet family.

I met my husband's aunt and uncle from Rhode Island for the first time in my 36 years of marriage. They are wonderful folks and we instantly bonded in our Catholic faith. We had a great time and the girls saw most of their relatives. So glad we got to do it.

Here are some pictures from our West Coast adventures. 

Janell and me
Happy Disney Family
My husband and his siblings

Our Tinker Bell and Minnie Mouse




Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Just been out of sorts a bit lately

Getting old is the pits. There I have gone and said it. And not only getting old, but struggling with my new found friend Hashimoto's has made me feel out of sorts for the last few months. I have had hypothyrodism for several years, and have now been diagnosed with Hash'is. I also have another "friend" who causes me a bit of aggravation, and that is my elevated left  hemi-diaphragm.

This whole mess started when I went to a "wellness" visit last December. They saw something on my chest X-Ray that caused them to pull me aside and put me in a room where being frightened out of my wits, I thought I must be dying. I have been to a pulmonologist (lungs are fine) who sent me to a bariatric surgeon, because she was convinced I had a hiatal hernia and my intestines were stuck up in my diaphragm. The bariatric surgeon sent me for some (awful) tests which determined I had no hiatal hernia, but I do have moderate acid reflux (which I knew and was being treated for already). Now the bariatric surgeon has sent me to a thoracic surgeon, who I will see at the beginning of August. He'll talk to me about my elevated diaphragm and what can or cannot be done about it. The diaphragm causes me to be short of breath a lot of the time, and I am even prepared to tell him when I think it happened. In the midst of all of this my endocrinologist is monitoring my thyroid, which has some small nodules on it apparently. And to think, I knew none of this until I went to a wellness visit. SIGH.

I have been trying to keep my head up and ask God for grace, wisdom and understanding (not patience) throughout this whole ordeal. I could be a lot worse off, and I know that. The Hashi's makes me hyper-sensitive at times, where I get my feelings hurt easily or get angry about stupid things very  quickly. One Facebook group I am in has helped me tremendously - I hear other people relate the same things. I am trying to maintain my diet and exercise regimen. I don't get too caught up in all of the different diets and do and don’ts because it stresses me out too much. Since I was diagnosed with Hashi's I have cut back on gluten and carbs, and have lost about 12 lbs. 

Being hypersensitive is not good for grieving mothers. I have cried more in the last 6 months than I have in forever. Most days, I feel like I cannot express myself without making someone mad, or hurting someone's feelings or just feeling like it is the end of the world. I am not depressed, I just feel overly sensitive most of the time. For me, this is really hard, because I have always been sensitive, especially if I thought I hurt someone. I worry about that more than just about anything. I have always hated conflict, and I think I always will. 

I recognize my own ability to overcome that feeling by focusing on the positive, praying and getting up and out of my routine. Walking and praying seems to be a good cure. I think I have prayed the Our Father, Hail Mary and the Fatima Prayer more in the last six months than I ever have. 

I am hoping to get the diaphragm issue resolved one way or the other in August. I'll either get it fixed (if it is not too invasive) or live with it. The Hashi's is here to stay. You just have to manage it. 

"Do not be saddened this day, for rejoicing in the LORD is your strength!”