23rd Anniversary!

We met in July, 1986.  I was out with my best friend Holly and she met her husband that night as well.  

We married in March, not quite 8 months later.  It's been 23 years now and seems like just yesterday some days.

 Silk flowers were required due to hubby's massive allergies but they were pretty! 

We've lived in 5 states and 15 residences/moves.  We might not have made this last move, but my health dictated the need to live near neurosurgeons.   Are we settled where we live now?  We hope not, but just might be, as hubs loves his job. Always planned to get back to Texas, though, and just haven't managed it yet.   Who knows what the future holds, but we do know we'll be together, whatever life brings, and that is an amazing feeling!  I pray everyone finds that someone in their life that will be there through thick and thin, for richer or poorer, in sickness or in health.   I think we've tested each one of those - certainly no smooth sailing through the years.  But at the end of the day, when you look at your spouse and feel blessed, then what more is there in life?  There is nothing better.

We not only made a covenant before God 23 years ago, but hubby surprised me with the renewing of our vows at year 10.  That stinker!  I didn't see that one coming - and we had a full wedding, reception and wonderful 2nd honeymoon to Hearst Castle in California.   I was literally shocked!  The full story is found HERE.  

I was told we were going to a very important business dinner and we were running very late.  By the time we pulled up to the church, I was a mess, worried about how late we were.   (We had to "stall" so my family had time to get dressed and get to the church while hubs and some friends ran all kinds of insane errands, driving me absolutely insane.  lol)   The parking lot was deserted but he ran in to "talk to someone".  At a deserted church. OKAY....but I'm still not catching on at this point.  Then he comes out and asks me to come inside for a minute.  This photo is me walking in the side door, SHOCKED to see a sanctuary full of loved ones!  (I still don't know where everyone parked!)

And I've always thought this photo was cute of the boys. They then went to school talking about how their parents just got married.  There were some questions over that one!  lol

And here we are today:

Still getting used to my hair being parted on the "other" side.  Ha!  and BTW, I've had many different hair styles and hair colors through the years  - hubs actually loves change.  The above pictures I was in my "red" phase.  lol  Never knows who he's going to bed with at night with the changes I make all the time!  He did not enjoy my hair chopped super short, but other than that, he's game for anything I want to do. 

Looking forward to many more wonderful years!

21 Years Ago....

21 years ago, our lives changed forever.  Just before our 2nd anniversary and after quite a phyical ordeal, our  little man came catapulting into the world, literally.  (Details not pleasant!). With his grand entrance came this huge personality, this old soul. 

Folks, this is a picture of one week old Ryan - he was huge!   He was 9 lbs 9.5 oz on his due date and look at that hair!!!  

At 6 months, he was really showing his personality....

We called him our little man because he never acted his age.....always seemed older.  Preferred to talk to adults, his brain was always working overtime.

 

When he was in elementary school and needed to do some more work, one time he just said "Mom,  I can't - my brain is full!"  So funny, just like Ryan always has always been.  So photogenic, so outgoing...never met a stranger.

He discovered his love of golf at age 12 and took off from there.

He attended 2 high schools in 2 states and all 4 years his teams won their state golf tournaments.  Amazing!

 Time flies so fast.  How is that we have a 21 year old?  Where did the time go??

This was father and son one year ago today - on his 20th birthday.  Definitely Andy's mini-me! 

This year, Ryan's in college, on the college golf team and doing great.  

Happy Birthday Ryan!!  
You're still our little man!

Side Parts

I was bored this week with hubs out of town and decided to switch which side I part my hair.  Sound boring?  Well......it has been fun!  Trying to train my hair is going to take a while - I've never in my life parted it to the left.  I am right-handed, and this doesn't feel natural.  But, sent this photo to hubs and he loved it!  Do I look that different?  My hair IS fluffier and has more volume - weird coincidence?  

Took this with my iPhone, so sorry about the quality.  Didn't flat iron today, just blew it dry using a flat brush which helps take out much of the curl.  This has no curling whatsoever - just MoroccanOil product and blow drying. 

 

When was the last time you switched your part?  Does everyone do this regularly or not?  I might be weird to be stuck in my ways, never know.  lol

And got some good news today - hubs will be home next week instead of out of town.  Yay!!  I hate the 2 weeks in a row travel.  I will be very glad when this 9 to 10 weeks of travel in 3-4 months is over.   Both of us grew up with dads always gone traveling with their jobs and we did not want that for our boys.  Freak project but should be over by May.  Crossing my fingers!

Have a great day!

Look what I got for Valentine's Day

Yes, I know it is almost a MONTH later, but I thought it fitting since the movie came out this weekend.  (Sound good?)  Ha!  I figure better late than never, right?

Most of my family knows I looooooooove me some makeup samples, and any time they purchase perfume, I beg for the sample makeup if they don't want it.  Love love love makeup, although I really don't wear much at all.  Hubby prefers the "natural" look, so I am happy to oblige him.  But when we go out, I do like to make my eyes "pop" and when I saw this online, I wanted to see it in person. 

Anyhoo.....look what hubs surprised me with  (Ok, he was with me when we found this BUT they were and are sold out everywhere, so this was a total shock!)

Urban Decay Alice in Wonderland Book of Shadows

This is a major collectors item now among makeup lovers, but I couldn't resist.  My first time to purchase any Urban Decay products, I was smitten! 

This is the top of the box - it opens to this pop-up with mirror.  You can't really see it, but just below is the drawer that pulls out with the shadows.

And here are the vibrant shadows, just in keeping with the bright makeup from the movie (which I hope to see soon!)

I tried to adjust the color on this photo to be as spot on as possible and it is, except for the upper left eyeshadow.  What looks royal blue (to me) is actually a beautiful violet purple, and I use it almost daily.  Using an eyeshadow brush, I lightly brush it on my lids for the sweetest lavender color that accents my brown eyes beautifully.  (Never do I wear these colors FULL color!  Hubby might have a shock if I were to do that. lol)

Now, I must say that most people die for the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion (the purple genie bottle to the right) as a primer for the shadow, but I'm not in love.  I prefer my Sally Hansen Fast Fix Eye Primer by Carmindy - love it, and the price (found at select CVS stores).  And best of all, the Fast Fix is Paraben-Free!

However, if you want THE perfect eye liner pencil and color EVAH, you must try the Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on Eye Pencil in ZERO, the most perfect, amazing black color I've ever used.  Hard to describe, but it has a beautiful blue undertone, while still being 100% black. 

Not only does this brand pencil go on SO smoothly, like butter, but this color.......I'm in love!   Waterproof AND blendable for up to 30 seconds and won't budge all day long. This might be crazy, but I line my eyes with the pencil (one eye at a time), use my eyeliner blending brush to blend, then immediately use that brush to do my eyebrows.  I have very dark almost black eyebrows and regular brown or even dark brown shades of eyebrow color are too light.  This black eyeliner is the perfect color for my eyebrows and the color stays all day!    I don't know what else to say, other than hubby is surely tiring of my blathering on and on every time I wear it.   My deep brown eyes just pop with this color.  I got a sample in this set above, but just purchased a full-size one the other day.  I know I will be using it faithfully.  

The other eyeliner pencil sample above,  color Flipside, is also quite nice, but I have less need for that color.  I have tried using it to line my waterline, and it is a little dark for that.

Thank you honey for such a great gift!

A Typical Day with Chronic Pain

 

Kelly over at Kelly's Corner is doing a meme today on "Typical Days in our lives" and I thought I'd participate, since I'm sure my situation isn't common.

First of all, does anyone else suffer from chronic pain that limits your life?  It can get to feeling really lonely, I'll admit.  But I'm still "me", with my loud mouth running all the time and my mind racing........so it's all good!

My boys are now 21 (in a week) and 17, so they don't need much mothering anymore.  lol  I do help them with homework and we chat a lot.  I'll tell you one good thing - I'm ALWAYS available!!  lol

Due to an injury in 2005 and subsequent surgeries, I now have permanent nerve damage with lateral numbness hip to toes on both legs and muscle weakness and atrophy (deterioration).

After a bit of a battle, I now have had a SCS - spinal cord stimulator - for just over a year.  This is like a pacemaker for nerves, and I feel a constant buzzing/massaging on the inside of my body (like a massage chair at a salon) and this is blocking some of the pain signals from my screaming legs from getting to my brain.  It is heaven!!  I have my own remote control - what husband doesn't want a wife with that!  LMBO

 

However, I no longer can bend, lift or twist for the rest of my life. Since I fall very easily due to the numbness and balance issues, my husband respectfully requests that I patiently wait for him to accompany me at night or weekends and asks that I venture out sparingly.  One more fall and I'm probably done for, so I understand his fear and concern.  I can't even go for a walk by myself.  These limitations are some of the hardest issues to face with this.

The good news is, though, that I still have my mind and my mouth (and obviously typing fingers!!), so I get to balance the frustration of wishing my mind and body matched with the realities that things could be so much worse and how grateful I truly am at the end of the day.

So a typical day starts like this:

Bed time:  3AM or later

Wake up:  11AM at the latest, usually

(Hubs does wake me up when he goes to work to give me my morning meds that I must take every 8 hours.) 

Lunch:  Noon or so.  We choose to live close enough to hubs work so that he can come home for lunch almost every day.  This is a love of his and I am happy to oblige.  Such a great time together and to look forward to.  

1 to 5PM:  I get any housework done that I can do - laundry, dusting, Swiffering or vacuuming the hard flooring, sinks, counters, anything I can reach.  Since I am unable to BLT (bend, lift or twist), I cannot do the dishwasher, the toilets or the tubs I have grippers/grabbers all over the house, and this is how I pick things up that drop and also how I do the laundry.   These are around $9.99 at Walmart.  Heavier duty ones are at Walgreens and medical supply stores for a bit more.  These babies will pick up a bobby pin off the floor, so they are very helpful!

I can only do a bit of housework at a time and must rest frequently.  Takes very little to "overdo" and then that affects my time with hubs and the boys.  So I MUST be careful.   When I am not up doing things, I spent the majority of my time reclined, with my legs up.  This keeps the pressure off the S1 nerve and keeps it from flaring.  I still have good and bad days, and know what I need to do to try to avoid flares.  

I have an adjustable laptop desk that pulls right up to my chair, and I use the Internet as distraction from the pain and to keep me occupied, as sitting can be quite boring.  But I must do it.   If you look in the far corner of this photo, you will see my "set up".  I have a printer there and everything (under the gold blanket)!

Although I spend so much time reclined, I CAN go and do things now with the spinal cord stimulator.  No cure, but it did give me a lot of my life back.  Yay!!

Sometime around mid-afternoon, I will get my shower.  I usually wait as late as possible, as hubby really likes that fresh clean hair and skin (truth), and shoot.........if I've already waited THIS long, why not wait until he's almost home.  Right?  lol

6:00PM - Usually eat dinner around this time.  Most often, just a light dinner as we eat our heavier meals at lunch.  A few times a week, I will cook a full dinner for everyone, but they have to help finish. I'm not able to stand up that long for hte full prep, cooking and cleaning.

7 to 10:30 PM - TV time with hubby

10:30 - 11:00PM - Time to tuck hubby into bed, snuggle and chat some more.  Once he's fallen into a deep slumber, I'm back out to the living room, where I usually read voraciously online for many hours.   Current topics: EFT/Meridian Tapping, EMDT - Eye Movement Desensitization Response, and learning how to thread my own eyebrows!

I do miss the "old" Cheri's life.....I was such a hyper girl, always buzzing here and there.  Never did I have a clue that in my late 30's, life would take such a turn.  I'm now 43 and wish my body looked it!  It is humbling, knowing this isn't exactly why hubby signed up for, let alone what I deal with every day.  But I put that smile on because things could be SO much worse, and I know that.  

I have the most amazing husband, who has stood by me through all of these surgeries and procedures, and is an excellent nurse.  He is my best friend and just an amazing support for me.  Without him, I don't know where I would be today.  He's absolutely the best. 

Sweety's first photo shoot

If you haven't been to Upside Down Dogs.com, you must visit.  That site will bring a smile to your face all day long.  Over on the right hand side, you can search by breed, or you can just scroll to see the most recent postings.  

Sweety's Photo Shoot

I submitted this photo of Sweety in December, I think, and then forgot about it when I never saw it.  It was posted mid-January, so it's been a while since I checked it.   Isn't this a funny photo?  You can vote for what you think of the photo - she currently has 26 votes with an 8.08 out of 10.  lol  There is no contest, just something fun.

We have some family who loves Boxers, so here is the link to the Upside Down Boxers!  Click Here.

Take a photo of your dog upside down and submit it! (It is surprisingly harder than you would think! lol)

Vertigo Again!

I have vertigo again and I'm not happy about it.  Ugh!  I have been prone to this for years, ever since a horrid episode that ended up at the ER. 

A vibrating wand with dermabrasion (mine was a very mild, $30 procedure, not the full shebang the one can purchase) placed too close to my ear knocked a crystal loose in my semi-circular ear canals....which led to.....severe vertigo and uncontrollable vomiting and weakness......which led the salon to call 911.....where it took the hospital hours to get me stabilized. 

Not fun.

After 2 long weeks of no driving and an inability to walk a straight line, let alone sleep laying down, I was sent to physical therapy where I was diagnosed with BPPV - Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo and the Dix-Hallpike maneuver was done on me to determine which ear was affected. 

Did you know there was such a thing?  I did not!  Shoot, did you know we all have teeny tiny crystals in our inner ear canals?

This video is a claymation, but shows the procedure.  The figure does flail his hands a bit, but in real life, the person suffering the vertigo is scared TO DEATH as the therapist "throws" them back quickly and hangs their head off the table to watch for the nystagmus of the eyes.  This means that the eye will go back and forth rapidly if that side is the affected ear.  My arms were flailing like I was falling off the roof of a 20 foot building.  The nausea and panic is indescribable.

Here is a video that shows the nystagmus - the eye movement that diagnoses which ear.  I did not personally wear those glasses - my therapist just watched my eyes and said my eye was going SO crazy he could clearly see the problem.  Sometimes the eye movement isn't as pronounced.  At this point, I was at the 2-week mark and done with suffering!

But, the amazing result is that as soon as the therapist performs the appropriate maneuver on your based on which eye responds and in what manner, you will sit up and be cured.  I was so surprised that it was that simple.  

This time, however, they suspect I have fluid in my ears causing the vertigo, but I can tell you I am on top of this due to my balance issues in general.  I have trouble maintining my balance on a good day, let alone when the room is spinning.  I have to move v e r y  s l o w l y so as not to start the spinning, because when that happens, if I am not near a wall to grab, I can fall.  And I don't need to fall ever again.

At this point, I only feel it when I try to lay down, or turn my head too fast.  I am careful not to do that and am hoping this will resolve soon.  Just talked to my bestie Amy on the phone and she has this as well.  Gee thanks - for sending it to me to share the love, dearie!  (Sadly, she is many states away....)

If you get vertigo or know someone who does, check out these videos.  I don't know if you should try this on your own as I am not a doctor and this is nor medical advice, but definitely keep it in the back of your mind and seek help from an ENT or physical therapist, possibly chiropractors as well to get your vertigo resolved and avoid needless weeks-long suffering.  Had I known this was a possible cure, I would NOT have suffered for 2 long weeks. 

Meanwhile, I'm back to the "robot head movement" until things improve here.  

Have a great day and enjoy your non-spinning universe!

Stop the Presses!

I'm sure we all know how damaging and honestly dangerous "traditional" antiperspirants and deodorants are.  Anything with Aluminum is a problem.  However, it is the aluminum that keeps us "dry".  As a true Southern. "fru fru" girl, I hate to perspire - I hate the wet feeling.  In fact, it can ruin my entire day.

Therefore, I've always used antiperspirant and on top of that, I used spray deodorant as well to "cool" me off.  If I was feeling sticky, hot, whatever.  Just more aluminum!

While the aluminum DOES keep the wetness under control and keeps the outside of our body smelling nice, it also locks in harmful toxins by not allowing our pores to breathe.  These toxins then accumulate in our lymph glands in our breast area.  

Some purport that aluminum puts us at risk for Alzheimer's Disease and breast cancer, to name just two.  Therefore, on and off for years, I have tried to find a healthy, "natural" deodorant to use.  Each time it failed - not only was I "wetter" than I could handle, but the odor was not controlled.

Keeping Abreast of It Deodorant Spray

When I read about Simply Divine Botanicals  Keeping Abreast Of It natural deodorant spray, I was skeptical.  But as I read testimonial after testimonial, I really thought I should try this.  After all, my mother had breast cancer at age 38, pre-menopausal, so breast health should be one of my top priorities.

I am here to tell you this stuff ROCKS!  I am on my 3rd day, and not only do I smell nice (a slight herbal scent), but I have NO wetness!!  Even when I was doing something I normally get sweaty doing, I had nothing. I am seriously shocked.  I did not think it was possible.   Even hubby is shocked for me.  He's watched me try and try other things, like the deodorant crystals, Tom's of Maine, etc.

This company states the following about this product:

HEALTH BENEFITS: We have used the Essential oils from our very popular and effective Keeping Abreast Of It! cream and added them to our deodorant.These Essential oils are specific to the lymphatic system.The lymphatic system which flows through out the body groups under the arm, breast, groin area and neck. Chemicals found in most deodorants (Methly parabens) are being found in breast tumors in their ester form which indicates the chemical is entering the body through the skin and not by oral ingestion. Our deodorant actually stimulates lymphatic flow.

Black Velvet Fabulous Foaming Facial Cleanser

Along with my order came some samples of their other products and I HAVE to shout from the rooftops about the Simply Divine Botanicals Black Velvet  Fabulous Foaming Facial Cleanser.  Folks, this products really made me wonder, as it looks like prune juice!  But let me tell you, with enthusiasm, that you have NEVER had skin feel like this after a product.  NEVER!  Velvet is the perfect word to describe what your face feels like after using very little of this cleanser.  While the price is surprising, not much product is required per use and I suspect it would last a long while.  Not only that, but after using this Black Velvet cleanser, I then used my Dead Sea Salt Facial Peel and could not believe the amount of skin that came off.  My skin is gloriously smooth!

I will be ordering this!  I am so thrilled they sent a sample, as I would not have done so otherwise.  I am seriously also considering ordering their Sample set, so I can try the various products without spending the full amount.

I also have samples of the following:

Pack Your Bags They're Leaving! Instant Gratification Eye Gel

I don't have bags under my eyes, but am trying this in case it helps with the dark circles.  Testimonials claim bags entirely disappear in 3 days! 

Honey I shrunk the Pores! Biologically Active Skin Polish/Mask with Fruit Enzymes

This product is interesting - a fruity smell, it made my skin feel awesome after use.

Amazing Face Normal/Combination

Not sure about this - the smell really bothers me personally.  Very strong lemon smell.  It did make my skin feel great, but not sure what to do about the lemony fragrance.

If you decide to try some samples from this company, PLEASE make sure you try this Black Velvet Facial Cleanser.  You will fall in love! 

I'm also very interested in trying You're My Everything from this company.

And better yet?  Hubby came home this morning from a week long business trip and can't stop commenting on how great I smell.  Don't you love it when your husband walks in and just stops and stares at you with a huge smile?

Have a great day - I know I will now that my love is home!