Back from the Doc's

I went to the doctor today. Well, I saw a physician's assistant anyway. She told me that the effect of black mold only lasts as long as a person is in the situation and goes away when you are out of it. That the spores may stay in the lungs and cause pneumonia, but she doubts that my problems have to do with the mold. She thinks it has more to do with stress.

While I agree with the stress thing, I'm not sure what to think about the mold issue. I want to know what happens to the spores that enter your body through your lungs. Where do they go? They don't just disappear. Do they get cycled through the body and filtered out by kidneys and liver? Do they create havoc? Or do they really just not cause a problem, like I'm being told?

She did a CBC (complete blood count). The results will show if my white blood cell production is elevated, and in the results there will be a breakdown of white blood cells from bacteria and viruses. But she doubted that the body would produce white blood cells to fight off fungus, which is what mold is.

On the other hand, perhaps it *is* a virus. I feel crappy. My head hurts, my muscles are weak, my brain is foggy, and I feel dizzy. A virus would go away in 10-14 days, so perhaps I'll feel better by the Thursday before the wedding, since last Thursday was the day when my symptoms became full blown.

There is no real down time in my near future. I have to get the kids' dental work done, finish preparing for the wedding, and get ready for and attend a family reunion for 4 days.

The dental work thing is crazy! So many cavities this time to take care of! And I have to get Josh's dental work all done before he is no longer covered...so before the wedding. Josh and Jared have both had to have root canals this go round. Josh has a cavity in about every tooth. He hasn't gone to the dentist for at least 2 years because he hates going and resisted. He is regretting his choices right about now...and so am I!

Betty, tell me what you know about black mold. Why was John's friend in the hospital for a month? Is my physician's assistant wrong, and the mold really can cause other problems besides pneumonia? Is there a way to detox from it?

I'm going to go lie down for awhile..before I make dinner and get the kids ready for bed. The life of a mother has no time for sick days!

Sick and Tired...And a 1988 Graduation Pic

Busy, busy, busy. That's my life. It's all about the wedding or the flooding in my aunt's basement apartment where my mom once lived and where many of her belongings were stored.

The wedding is coming together well, but there are only 13 days left to prepare...even less when you consider the four days that I'll be at my family reunion. Most things are ordered and rented. This week I have to focus on getting all of the details taken care of.

The flood (in-my-aunt's-basement-where-my-mom-once-lived-and-where-many-of-her-belongings-were-stored) was with *sewer* water, though I didn't know that when I was cleaning up and getting things ready for the plumber to come and clean out the drains. Since there weren't any floating logs, I figured it was just grey water, but not mixed w/ toilet water. I found out when the plumber came that I was wrong! And I didn't think there was mold in there either, and I found out I was wrong when the clean up crew came and boxed up my mom's stuff and ripped out the sheet rock.

I worked in the apartment off and on for 7 hours in the sewer water and mold. And then for another 4 after all of the sheet rock was pulled out and just the studs were left...with mold on them.

I called the doc and got an antibiotic after feeling like garbage the day after working in the house w/ the water. Now, 15 days later, I am still dizzy and fuzzy headed. I am dizzy when I just sit. I'm going to make an appt w/ the doc tomorrow and discuss the toxice effects of black mold. I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired, especially when there isn't *time* to be sick and tired!

Anyhow, when I was going through my mom's stuff I found my graduation picture. So I leave you with a pic of me in 1988 at 18:



The make up and hair just can't be beat, can it?!

Take care and have a wonderful day!

Gourmet Macaroni & Cheese

Tonight I soooo didn't want to cook! (okay, so really, I never want to cook!) I thought of macaroni & cheese and immediately felt sorry for Steve! SO! I spiced up my macaroni and cheese and made what I will call: Gourmet Macaroni & Cheese (do you think I'm pathetic? I probably am, but I really think you'll like this recipe!)



Okay this is so easy! Basically you are going to prepare macaroni & cheese according to the box directions except you're going to omit the milk and substitute a 14.5 oz can of Italian Style Stewed Tomatoes (including the juice - it will be the liquid for the recipe). Add some browned, crumbled, and drained hamburger and Voilà! Gourmet Macaroni and Cheese.

Here is the detailed recipe:

Ingredients:
2 boxes of macaroni & cheese (I ♥ Kraft)
1 stick of butter
Cheese packets from the mac & cheese mixes
1 - 14.5 oz. can of Italian Style Stewed Tomatoes
1/2 pound of hamburger, browned, crumbled, and drained.

In a largish pot bring water to a boil and add macaroni. Boil uncovered for 7-10 minutes until softened (do not overcook). Drain noodles and add 1 stick of butter that's been cut into pieces (it will melt quicker); stir to melt butter in noodles. Add can of tomatoes, including the juice (the juice will take the place of the milk.) Stir in the cheese packets.

While macaroni is cooking, brown and crumble 1/2 pound of hamburger in a skillet. Drain grease off of the hamburger and add to the prepared macaroni, cheese, & tomato mixture. Generously serves 6.

Martha Stewart look out! Or not.

Kitty Kandids for a Rainy Day

The kitties are ready to make an appearance:


We call this one TL. He is a boy, so being called Tiger Lily after his mom and grandma might be embarrassing for him, (Johnny Cashe sang about the effects of such a thing in "A Boy Named Sue") so we'll just use the initials.


This little girl is the tiniest and looks like a little kitty fairy, so Thumbelina fits her perfectly. We'll shorten it to Lina, though.


This little guy is named Blackjack. We could shorten it to Jack, but since that is my dad's name and he doesn't really like cats I think we'll stick to BJ as a nickname.

They are fat and happy, and that's all that matters in a kitty's life.


I took Matt to Cub Olympics this morning. It was rainy and cold off and on, which made the water games pretty miserable for complainers like me. Matt was fine with it, though. They had a great balloon launcher there made with some rubber tubing and a pocket to contain the water balloon before flinging it. The boys had a great time watching the balloon travel about 50 yards and then splatting on the ground. A couple of mishaps happened though when the rubber tubing came untied and smacked the little boy's leg who was launching the balloon. Another mishap happened when Matt was at another station directly across from the balloon launcher and he got smacked in the leg with a launched balloon that didn't break. It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt!


I got my ring back from the jewelers on Friday after having them replace Emily's missing birthstone, sizing it, and cleaning it. It is wonderful to have it back!



On Steve's and my tenth wedding anniversary I asked for a mother's ring. After really thinking about it and knowing that I don't wear much jewelry other than my wedding ring we opted to have a custom ring be added to my wedding ring. I designed it and the jeweler created it. I absolutely love it!

It has been chilly and just pouring buckets of rain down for about the last hour or two. In Kentucky our creek would have flooded us in if it'd rained this long and this hard. On a day like that, I would have started a fire in my soapstone woodstove and rocked in my rocking chair while watching the fire and listening to the rain. As it is, I have spent time on facebook and blogs. While I love all y'all, I would rather have my old woodstove. Steve is going to have to make sure our flue can contain the flames, because I *need* a woodstove. And I'd love another soapstone stove like I used to have.

I have also been listening to my playlist and it has really lifted my spirit. While I love the sound of the falling rain, and I love the green that happens because of it, the greyness of a rainy has a way of making me feel a little down. I love, love, love my playlist! Brad Paisley's song, "I'm Still a Guy" puts a smile on my face every time. How I love that guy's songs! He makes me laugh just about every time! And Alan Jackson's "That'd be Alright" (and most of his songs, really), Travis Tritt's "It's a Great Day to Be Alive", and Shania Twain's "Any Man of Mine" song always brighten my day. Michael Buble's "Everything" and the Dixie Chick's "Cowboy Take Me Away" make me glad I have Steve in my life. My music can definitely soothe me, even when I'm feeling pretty beasty.

I've started reading Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz again. Odd Thomas is my favorite of all of his characters. Have you ever read his books? They are not for the faint of heart! Amber can't go outside in the dark anymore because of reading his stuff. I love him! He takes his readers on a roller coaster ride through hell but always ends with happily ever after. I tease Steve that if he dies I'll look up Dean Koontz to see if his wife Gerda is still around; if not, I'll hook up with him. Maybe my threat, and his jealousy, will keep that husband of mine around for a long, long time! And that would suit me just fine!! Koontz's heroines always remind me of me, and I'm a sucker for a man who thinks that my personality makes up the perfect woman, lol! Lucky for me, Steve thinks Koontz' heroines are pretty perfect and finds my quirks endearing. :-)

I'll take a pic of those bridesmaid's dresses like I told you I would just as soon as there is some good lighting.

The sun came out for a minute, so the lighting is pretty ok for taking pics. Here are the bridesmaid dresses. Remember that they will have a little shrug/jacket over the spaghetti straps:

Front:


Back:


Here is Emily's flower girl dress. You can't see the flowers on the waist in the pics, but trust me when I say they are adorable:



I hope that the rest of your weekend is wonderful!!