Keeping Our Head Above Water!
I had full intentions of beginning to blog again but well Life got in the way! It has been a Crazy busy year for us so far, but we are feeling like we have finally come to a point where things are starting to fall into place.
I want to recap here because I really don't want to forget how much we have learned through all of this.
THE BIG JOB CRUNCH..Last year John took a few pay cuts totaling 60%. It took some time to adjust, but I have to say we have managed very well and have found different ways to save. In some ways it has been pretty rewarding too! Some things we have done is change our cell phone service, after over 10 years of being with Verizon, we found a new cell phone company, that we absolutely love and has saved us a ton of money! The best thing is they use the same towers as Verizon and so our service has not changed at all. We also changed our cable and phone service (I know we should just get rid of cable, but we're a family that loves watching certain stations and this one will take us some time to give up) and the best part is I have learned to cook more with using our food storage and have made some pretty tasty meals, with no recipes (I might add), It has given me quite a sense of accomplishment and I know that we have been tremendously blessed because of it. We also spend a lot more time as a family and avoid stores at all costs.
DANILA'S BOUT WITH THE TOO FRIENDLY STONE..Last December, the 11th to be exact Danila was rushed to the hospital with horrendous pain to find out that, yes it was another (3rd one I've had) kidney stone! Ugh...these are the total bain of my existence. Curse you genes, my entire family has had them at one time or another and my poor mom has them all the time. Anyway, I ended up staying in the hospital overnight but asked to be released, because Jaidyn was starring in a Christmas Show at the Nugget and I didn't want to miss it, I had already missed opening night. So off we went 3 days later, back in the hospital more pain, this time I was released and sent home with some heavy duty pain pills, then on the 23rd back in the hospital, overnight again but opted to be home with my family for Christmas Eve. By New Years' I was feeling pretty good, no pain, so I my thoughts were maybe I passed it. Took an Xray in January and that darn thing was still there, I was so mad! I was scheduled for surgery the 2nd week of February and to make matters worse, John's employer had changed the insurance at the beginning of the year and neglected to inform his partners (John and Keith), so it was now really not a good idea to have the surgery as it was going to cost $4000.00 UGH! I had a wonderful blessing from your new bishop Dorny and I was confident that I could beat this on my own. Anyway, this went on for 3 more months! Yes, a total of 4 months of this dreaded thing! Finally on April 7th I had spent 2 weeks with constant pressure and lots of doctor visits and decided enough is enough. Mom and I called the School of Natural Healing in Utah (we've taken some courses there) and they told me that if I had tried Hydrangea, and all the other herbs and medicine but things just weren't working to try a reflexologist. I found one here in Reno and she suggested that I was not taking enough Hydrangea and to take 6 capsules 3x a day. I started that day. The next day severe pain! I thought I was going to have to go back to the hospital again, I toughed it out, took some pain medicine and fell asleep at about midnight waking up at 4 am. The next day I woke up feeling lots better, and thought once again that maybe I had passed the stone, but small dull pain continued and I started to feel the pressure again. I went that day for my reflexology appointment. I wasn't sure what to expect but 1 1/2 to 2 hours of my feet being rubbed and pressure points being worked on was so heavenly! I was more relaxed than I had ever been. I returned home, took more hydrangea, went to bed and then Halleluja, on Saturday April 10th at about 7 p.m., after going to dinner with my family I passed a 7 mm stone. I have to say that was the best day ever!
In between those 4 months, our sweet little Bailey was diagnosed with bone cancer in January and passed away 3 months later. Also, Zoe (our trouble maker basset) managed to knock down a large glass from my nightstand and then stepped on it, causing her to be rushed to the emergency Vet (very expensive) and have 8 stitches to her paw!
We have also had the constant reminder that Luis, Luhani and Lana (our foster children) will more than likely not be with our family much longer. This has been real stressful and hard. Luis has been going through some severe anger issues and has been acting out. It's been really hard to help him through this and we worry about how it will affect them when they are no longer with us. We love them and are hopeful that we can still remain a part of their lives even when they are no longer in our home.
So I know it all sounds real depressing and like we've been handed some hard cards to deal with. But like I said we have managed to keep our head above the water and grow closer as a family. John and I have learned so much through all of this and though there are still some herdles to jump and some choices to be made, we feel like we are being watched over every minute of every day and guided to the place that we will eventually end up. In the meantime, we have been focusing on John passing his Engineering test, he has been studying so hard, and he has also decided to take some course studies and get registered as a sleep therapist in order to work for a close friend of ours who owns a sleep center. This will all happen in May. I am also studying to take my test in May, and will have my license as a Real Estate Agent, I have been offered a job to work for a long time friend at Keller Williams and I'm looking forward to doing something that I have always wanted to do. From here we're not sure where we'll be going, but what ever it is, I don't want to forget the last few months trials, how much we have learned, how far we have come and how close we have become!
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