My oxymoron of a week

Needless to say, this past week was very eventful for me- which is ironic, because I spent majority of it complaining about how bored I was. Ha. As you may have guessed, I'm going to tell you about it. Now...where to begin?

Let's start Wednesday, December 17th. I had to report to the hospital at 6 AM for an upper endoscopy. In layman's terms, they put a camera and light down my throat and looked at my stomach. I went under for it, so I had a very nice nap that day. We found out that I have gastritis, or inflammation of the stomach, as well as a hiatal hernia. Basically, part of stomach has gone up into the bottom of my esophagus. Most people don't know that they have one until a procedure like this finds it, AKA me. How is it healed?? Cut back on coffee, chocolate, caffeine, eating late a night before bed, spicy foods...things that I love. No Starbucks for a while. :( But it's ok, it should be healed in about a month or so...just gotta be careful. The gastritis will heal too. It was most likely a result of the hernia and my gallbladder.

Speaking of gallbladders, I no longer have one. :) I had it removed laproscopicly last Thursday, December 18th. I had to be at the hospital at 6 AM for the second day in a row. I also had to clean myself out the night before by drinking a magnesium citrate juice. It worked...I'll leave it at that. They put me under around 7:30 and took me back right after. The surgery took about an hour. They made 4 incisions- one in my bellybutton (weird, I know), one about 2 inches above that, and 2 more to the right of that one. My gallbladder not only worked at only 15%, but it was also infected...it needed to go. I felt a difference that afternoon- I felt so much better, despite the pain from the surgery. I went home around 1:30 that afternoon, and they sent me home with some Vicadin...very good stuff. A couple friends and family came to visit me that night. I got visits Friday and Saturday too- I really enjoyed seeing everyone and knowing that they cared. I slept on the couch propped up on a pillow because I couldn't lay down, and slept there until Christmas Eve...my back was ready for my bed.

Anyway, more about my week. Friday night, the night after surgery, we went to my aunt and uncle's house for the Routt family Christmas, my mom's side. I couldn't eat, and stayed on the couch and didn't move. Fun, I know. Saturday night, it was Peace family Christmas, my dad's side. Got to eat maybe a spoonful of mashed potatoes, green beans, a roll, and a tiny piece of turkey. Again, stayed in a chair and didn't move. I coudln't get comfortable though and started hurting and got REALLY tired. Sunday morning I went to church and was doing good until I walked in, got hot and about passed out. I took a nap on dad's shoulder during the service- I did NOT care what people thought. If they wanted to comment, I was prepared to show off my stitches. I was thinking "Say something, go ahead." (I can be kind of aggressive when I don't feel good haha) I got home from church and took a 5 hour nap...guess I was tired, haha. Monday is when the boredom struck. I couldn't leave the house, and wasn't moving around very well because of the soreness. I got to take the tape off of my stitches though, so that made me feel better. Tuesday, I got to leave the house and get my stitches out. You won't believe how much better I felt after they came out. Wednesday, Christmas Eve, I was in a very bad mood from being stuck in the house all week. We went to the Christmas Eve service at church, and despite almost passing out again (I just got hot again and wasn't used to that much activity), it was a really good service and much needed by the whole family. Christmas Day arrived bright and early. We opened presents, and went to my grandparents house for Christmas dinner, and that was really good. I ate the most I had since the surgery. I had a plate full of green bean casserole, corn, mashed potatoes, rolls, ham, meatballs and gravy, Ike salad, fruit salad, and BBQ weinies....and it didn't hurt me at all. :) And today, I made my debut back in the real world- we went to the mall and Wal-Mart. I hadn't been around so many people in days, and truthfully got a bit lightheaded. I even ate Mexican for dinner. Eating food again feels so good. :)

I know this post is a bit long, but I really just had a lot to get off my chest. Sorry if the surgery details were boring- I could talk about it for a while, haha. But I'm feeling much better. The soreness gets better each day, and my incisions keep looking better and better. Now, I'm just looking forward to hanging out with friends and celebrating the New Year!!!

I'm gonna be a dentist!!

As of today, I am a member of the University of Louisville School of Dentistry's Class of 2013!!!

I can't tell you how excited I am!! All of my friends from WKU, and some others, have all been accepted to U of L too. Some have been accepted by both U of L and UK; as of right now, I haven't. I'm ok with that though: U of L has always been my first choice. It feels so good knowing that my 4 years of hard work at WKU have paid off and that I get to pursue the career I've dreamed about since the 7th grade. It's also great knowing that I'm going into school with a solid group of friends who will be there for me and who will be going through it all with me. Not to mention all of my other friends from home and WKU, and my amazing family. I'm so blessed.

The embarassing part of all of this is that in all of the excitement last night (I found out at 11:30 pm CT) I forgot to thank God for this opportunity until at least an hour after I got the news. I was too preoccupied with calling all of my family and friends and spreading the news. It wasn't until I took a break from the calling (so I could take a breath!) that I even thought to pray. I was reveling in the congratulations and the fact that I'm going to dental school rather than thanking the One who made it all possible.

I should have thanked God right off the bat, but I let my pride get the better of me. For the last 4 years, He has been the One who has given me the strength to make it through my toughest classes. More than that, He's the One who gave me such a passion to be a dentist in the first place. NONE of this would even be possible without God laying my plans out before me. I am so thankful and AMAZED that God works in these ways. It's an incredible feeling knowing that my plans and God's plans are one in the same; there are no words to describe it. Our God is an incredible, gracious, and giving God. I am so thankful for this awesome opportunity He's blessed me with.

Happy Turkey Day!!

I love this time of year. I love the time that I get to spend at home with my family. From Thanksgiving on, the holiday season is filled with tradition for my family. Thanksgiving morning, we always watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Actually, it's more like Allison and I watch and mom and dad complain about how the parade is just a big show now. Mom likes to watch it for the marching bands and to see Santa. Dad watches it because he's watched it every Thanksgiving since he was a kid. I like it all- the balloons, the bands, the performers, the floats, and of course Santa. I'm pretty sure Allison is the same way.

One Thanksgiving tradition I miss is the one where they always used to show Home Alone on TV on Thanksgiving night. I liked watching the Star Wars and James Bond movie marathons that spanned the whole weekend too.

But enough about tradition. The whole reason I started to blog today was wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving, and to remind everyone not to forget why we celebrate. Don't forget that today is a day to think about all of the blessings we've been given. Today is a day to give thanks to God and to be grateful alongside our families.

Don't eat too much turkey. Happy Thanksgiving!!

Tribute to the 1940s

If you could choose any other time period to live in, what would it be? My answer: the 1940's.

I love the sound of the 40's. The music then was just great to listen to. I love listening to Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, and Glenn Miller. I love listening to Michael Buble too- he pretty much has the same sound as them for the most part. I just love that jazzy, big band, easy-going sound. You can just sit back, relax, and sing along if you like, or if the mood strikes you, you can get up and dance. And you have to admit that the dancing back then was awesome. Big band, jazz, swing, jitterbugs- you just don't get that much now days.

The way the people dressed back then was just cool. I would love it we dressed like that. The guys always looked classy. Khaki pants, loafers, sweaters and button down shirts, awesome hats- it was just cool. And the ladies- man, if girls of today dressed like that, that would be awesome. Now first let clarify that I think ladies of today look beautiful too; with that being said, the dresses they wore back then were classy like the guys, but they gave them an air of sophisication and innocence that most women's clothing today doesn't give. They were modest and still looked beautiful.

I think I also love the 40's because of WWII. It's my favorite American war. I love movies like Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers. That generation did so much for our nation, and I doubt we will ever see a generation of men like that ever again. I have nothing but respect for those who fought in that war, as well as all of our soldiers today.

It was just a simpler, different time in the 40's. I feel so blessed to have been born in the 80's, grown up in the 90's, and experience the new millenium as a teenager and young adult. We still live in a great nation, and we have technologies that people back then would have never dreamed of. But there's just something to be said about a time when you had to work hard to earn a living, when patriotism was something to be valued, when family values were important, and when God was still a priority in the American home.

Let the panic begin

So there's this thing called dental school that I applied for over the summer. I've had my interviews, they went well, so I'm done and have nothing else to worry about. That was my view up until, oh, yesterday. For those who don't know, dental schools across the nation are allowed to send out their first letters of acceptance on December 1st- 3 weeks from yesterday. That realization, along with the fact that there are so many applicants from my school alone this year, made me start feeling nervous. Since my first interview back in September, I had the mindset of everything will work out how it's supposed to, I did my best, if I don't get in it's not the end of the world, if it's God's will it will happen....very positive and optimistic to say the least. Yesterday, the thoughts that flooded my mind were more like what if I don't get in, what if there are too many better qualified applicants, what if something with the application service screws up and they can't send me a letter...panic mode was setting in.

I started voicing my thoughts to my friends, and they have been nothing but encouraging to me. Today alone, so many people have offered words that have made me see the positives again. One friend in particular said "You can't mess up God's plans." That really struck me. I have no idea if God's plan is for me to go to dental school- I do think it is though. He's given me such a passion for dentistry and for serving through that. However if dental school isn't in His plan, He'll open doors for me when dental school doesn't work out. The best part of it all is that I don't need to worry about it. I've done my part, and I gave it my best shot- the rest is not up to me. God is in control, and I can take joy in that, regardless of the outcome on December 1st. Of course, I'm still praying for the best. :)

New kid on the block

So I'm new to this whole blogging thing. We'll see how I like it. :)