Update on Nikki

Unfortunately, I am updating with bad news. Nikki recently went in for a routine scan and the cancer is back. This time it is in her liver. She is going to start treatment immediately. My hope is that they found it early enough. My worry is that it keeps popping up in different places. It just breaks my heart to hear this type of news. Things were just starting to look up for her and then she got this unfortunate news. The news prompted her to do something a little crazy - she got a tattoo!! She got a ribbon with angel wings on both sides and it is small on the inside of her wrist. It is her constant reminder to never give up hope and stay strong. Please don't give up praying for her!! She needs all the prayer she can get right now.

Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and prayers.

Changes to Come

Wow. Once again I have completely pushed aside my writing on here!! I've realized that because I am on the computer all day at work, it's the last thing I want to do when I come home! It is definitely something for me to work on!!!

I hope this finds you all doing well!! Life has been pretty busy lately with lot's of things going on around me. I have two very best friends who have recently found out they are pregnant!!! I am SO excited for both of them and cannot wait to spoil those babies rotten!!! It has spawned the question of when we will be ready, and to be honest, it is something that we have been thinking about over the last few weeks. I'm not saying we're ready, just ready to discuss the possibility!! We have been wanting to wait maybe another two years or so, but with two of my closest friends pregnant, it has made us reconsider our decision to continue waiting. Needless to say, this idea has raised many, many questions that we need to find answers to before anything happens. So that is where we are today - trying to find some answers and determine when the right time for us will be.

Since my last post, I went to a taping of the Rick and Bubba show with one of my best friends, and it was so much fun!! We cooked lots of yummy food for them and really enjoyed the show. Justin and I spent a weekend visiting her and her husband in Tennessee shortly after, once I recovered from the stupid cold and sinus bug that was going around. Last week I was in Atlanta for a training class for work. It wasn't bad at all, I'm just hoping and praying that I passed the test!!! Some friends of ours are getting married in May so we went to their Stock the Bar party Saturday night. It was so great seeing some old friends again and getting to hang out with people we don't get to see often enough. This month we have two weddings to go to, so hopefully the month of April won't be too busy - of course, with the exception of the A-Day game!! Speaking of, I'm hearing that ESPN will be there and Saban has challenged the fans to have a packed house for the occasion!! We haven't missed an A-Day game in many years so there is no way we will miss this one!!!

I know this wasn't a very long post, but I just wanted to share a few updates and, as always, ask for your prayers. Baby Dulce is scheduled for surgery this month so please, please pray for her!! Also, my friend Nikki is still in remission, so thank you all for praying for her - she still needs our prayers so please don't forget about her!! I am also going to ask that you pray for Justin and I - we have some big decisions coming up and could use all the prayer we can get.

One last thing - in my post on December 11, I mentioned a personal struggle that I was dealing with, and I honestly didn't think that anything would change. I'm happy to say that things HAVE in fact changed. I'm not positive if my situation itself changed, or if my outlook on it changed...although I'm pretty sure it's the latter because I didn't (and still don't) ever forsee the situation changing. Anyways, the purpose of bringing this up was to thank everyone who prayed for me. I feel like those prayers were answered and it has dramatically changed this aspect of my life. So thank you. I was afraid that if something didn't change soon, I would have found myself in an extremely unhappy state of mind. I am much happier now and have found a way to deal with the things I struggled with, and I can only credit the power of prayer for this turnaround. Thank you all again, it means so much to me.

Have a great weekend!!!

Updates, Updates

Once again, I have gone almost a month without posting!!! I don't know what happens, but it's like I forget to use the internet at all sometimes!! I guess I have been busy after work and spend my free time doing other things besides sitting in front of the computer. Oh well, it's not like there is too much to talk about right now!!

I really can't believe that it's 2009 and the first month is already almost over. Our New Year's Eve was slightly depressing this year. For the last 10 years, I have been in the same location doing the same thing for NYE - I go see Widespread Panic in Atlanta for a 2-3 night concert. I have been doing this since 1999 and can't even remember what I did for NYE before that!! This year, they decided to try out Denver for NYE, which resulted in some unhappy Southern fans!! We just didn't have the funds to take a trip to Denver, so instead I found myself asleep on the couch at 1:00am and completely missed ringing in the new year. Sad huh?!! My husband and I both slept right through midnight!! Oh the joys of getting old....

I have been contemplating a pretty big decision for a few weeks now. This decision will change my life for the next two years and will completely change the course I'm on and the direction my future is heading. There is still so much to think about and so much to research to do before I make this decision, and so many factors go into this decision so it's making it very hard for me to make up my mind. My only fear now is that I have to make this decision pretty soon because I have many things to take care of before the deadline of April 15. So, I would really appreciate your thoughts and prayers right now. It's a scary decision for me to make but so far my close friends and family are being very supportive of the idea. It's just a pretty big step for me and will result in a lot of change...and let's face it...nobody enjoys change. So please pray for me in helping me to make the right decision!!! If I decide to move forward, I think the end result will make me very, very happy!

I'm going this weekend to visit my best friend in Huntsville, and I'm also stopping off to see my mom and brother, who are now new residents of Hunstville!! I'm very excited to have some much-needed girl time with my BFF that I haven't seen since November!! I haven't seen my mom and brother since Christmas so I'm definitely looking forward to a visit with them as well.

My friend Nikki is still cancer free!! And she won a contest that is going to help her with her upcoming wedding in June!! Things have really fallen into place for her right now and I couldn't be happier for her!! Please keep the prayers coming though, because as you are all aware, cancer knows no time limits and can rear it's ugly head again at any time.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy weekend!!! I will try to post again sooner than later :)

Christmas Came and Christmas Went

Christmas is officially over. In a short period of 24 hours, Christmas came and Christmas went. It's hard to believe that we spend so much time preparing for this one day, and when it finally comes, it's over faster that we can blink!!! It will do the same thing in the years to come, but we will still do our hustling and bustling right up to the very last minute leading up to it. It still doesn't make it any less fun or meaningful, no matter how short it is!!

Our Christmas was short, but very fun and rewarding at the same time. My week started off with an ingrown toenail that hurt too badly to ignore, so I found a doctor on Tuesday who could see me right away. The numbing shots hurt extremely bad, but the procedure was over pretty quickly. By the time I came home from work that day, my toe hurt sooooooo badly! I couldn't believe how badly it throbbed and even the pain medicine they gave me did not do a thing!! Needless to say, I did not get any sleep that night due to the throbbing and burning in my toe!! We only had to work half a day on Christmas Eve, and I was so happy that I could get a short nap in before we had to go to my in-laws for dinner and present opening with them and my husband's grandparents. We got some awesome gifts and had an amazing dinner. After we left, my husband and I got home and exchanged our stockings. I was sooooo excited when I pulled out my Nintendo DS and four games to go along with it!!! This Christmas I decided to ask for things that I needed, rather than things that I wanted. My husband knew that I wanted a Nintendo DS, but I really needed clothes for work. So I spent my Christmas money on the things I needed, and so my hubby rewarded me with something that I wanted, which was the Nintendo DS!! I was super excited about it, and have picked out so many more games that I want! After we opened our stockings I had to soak my toe in Epsom salts and it seemed like the pain was finally starting to let up. Thankfully, that was the end of the pain and I got a great night's sleep!!!

Christmas morning we went to my in-laws again for breakfast, and then we headed to Decatur to spend the day with my family. We had an awesome visit and ate so much good food!! The day went by way too fast because the next thing we knew, it was time to head back home. We ate some leftovers last night and I played with the DS for a little while until I had to get to bed. Unfortunately I had to come to work this morning, but I am already looking forward to getting home to play :)

I hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas, and hopefully Santa was good to you all!!!

'Tis the Season

Can you believe that Christmas is almost here already? Do you feel like each year of your life seems to go by faster than the last? I was thinking back to this time last year and what I was doing. Almost exactly a year ago, I was having my second knee surgery, travelling to Atlanta for a work class and then all of a sudden it was Christmas. It just seems so hard to believe that it really was an entire year ago because it seems like just yesterday!!! So much has happened in my life this year - good and bad. It will definitely be a year that I will never forget.

Well, Alabama didn't quite make it to the Championship game, but we almost did! The SEC championship was a great game and although we didn't pull out the win, we had a great time there and did not have any issues with the Florida fans!! I've heard some stories where Bama fans had some unfortunate run-ins with the Florida fans, but luckily that didn't happen to us. It was a long day trip but we had a good time. I'm so proud of our team and what they have accomplished this year. I don't think anyone thought that Nick Saban would turn our team around like he has in just two years. Which raises the question...what can he do in three years? Four, five or six years?? It's enough to give me that tingly feeling in my stomach to know that the best really is yet to come.

I have to be honest in sharing my personal thoughts with all of you, and tell you that I am dealing with a personal struggle right now. It is something that has come up recently, and unfortunately it won't be going away any time soon. I'm learning some things right now and I'm trying to take the things that I have learned and actually apply them to my life. Easier said than done though. I'm having to make a lot of mental adjustments due to these issues that I have never had to deal with before. This is why it is a struggle for me...I've never been in the situation I'm in now, so I'm trying to learn how to handle it. It's not easy at all, and it's something that I'm dealing with on a daily basis. I wish I could share more, but this is something that I have to keep to myself and I just ask that you please pray for me.

On a lighter note, a good high school friend of mine just had a healthy, beautiful baby boy, so I would like to tell Jana CONGRATULATIONS!!! I can't wait to meet Baby T!! Also, my friend Nikki just finished up her LAST round of chemo!!! This is really exciting news, but now it is a waiting game. I think we all know that waiting on things to happen or not happen can be so hard and stressful. Unfortunately, this stress is exactly what she does NOT need right now in order to keep her body healthy. Please continue to keep her in your prayers, as this is a continuing struggle.

As always, thank you all for reading and thank you for your prayers! I would love to hear any feedback, advice or really anything you have to say so please always feel free to leave a comment!! :) I hope you all have a great weekend!!!

What a Weekend!!!

There's just no other way to start this post than by saying ROLL TIDE!!!!!!! Honestly...what a game!! Okay, so now I'll back up and start with Thanksgiving ~ we had a great Thanksgiving this year, although it went by too fast! We left early Thursday morning to drive to North Alabama to my grandmothers. We ate lunch and visited a while with my family that I don't see often enough, and then we left at about 1:30. We then drove down to Hattiesburg, MS to visit Justin's family and got there just in time for dinner at 6:00. Of course the food we ate all day was fantastic!! I think I could eat turkey and dressing all year round!!

Friday, Justin, his dad and I got up and drove down to Biloxi to spend the day at the Beau Rivage casino!! We got there just in time for brunch at the buffet, which was sooo yummy!! We had a couple of Mimosa's with brunch so then we were ready to check the place out. Justin and his dad had been there several times together but it was my first visit there. At this time it wasn't very crowded so we claimed a seat at the bar and played video poker while watching the LSU vs. Arkansas game. Even though I only played quarter bets, I doubled my money!! We decided to go take a look at the craps tables because all three of us were looking forward to playing. Unfortunately, it had gotten pretty crowded by this time, and the table minimums were $10 or higher! We didn't have much time left and we were really hoping for a $5 table, so we watched for a few minutes then headed out. We drove back into Hattiesburg and met the rest of the family for dinner at a catfish-house that is a local favorite.

And then, we woke up Saturday morning and realized that the biggest game of our regular season was just hours away!!! We were so excited that we packed up as early as possible and headed back to Birmingham. We got home just in time to get settled in (and I took about a 45 minute nap!) and finally it was kick-off!!! The game couldn't have gone any better for us, although we really didn't even play our best. I'm still happy because a win is a win, and this one was a long time coming!! Justin and I have been walking on air the last two days and it still seems to be the main topic of conversation in one way or another!! We have the SEC Championship game this weekend against Florida in Atlanta and Justin and I have our tickets ready to go (thanks again Aunt Judy!). I'm extremely nervous about this game..it will be the biggest game for us this year and will be a challenge. We'll see what happens......ROLL TIDE!!

I hope everyone has a great week and I will try to post some pictures from Thanksgiving soon!

Happy Thanksgiving and ROLL TIDE!!!

I honestly cannot believe that Thanksgiving is here, and that football season is almost over!!! Didn't it just begin?!? What an exciting week this should be though...visiting family and eating the best food in the world for Thanksgiving, then hopefully watching the Tide end this ridiculous losing streak against Auburn!!!

First I guess I will update on what we've been up to lately - Last weekend my husband and I went to visit my best friend and her husband in Huntsville. We went to a hockey game Friday night which was so much fun!! I had never been to one before and I wasn't sure how much I would enjoy it. Let's just say that I am already wanting to go back!! We had the best time and it was such a fun atmosphere!! Saturday we spent most of the day grilling ribs, wings and everything else possible! We watched football all day and played the new Guitar Hero!! Another best friend from high school came over Saturday night for a little while and we all had fun being silly and playing Guitar Hero! Sunday we stopped by to visit my mom and brother on our way home and it was really nice to see them. It had been a while since I had seen either of them so it was a short but great visit.

My stomach is pretty much back to normal since my surgery. I had a check up not too long ago and the surgeon said that as long as I don't have any other problems, there was no need to see him anymore!! I'm so happy that things have started getting normal again, but I have had to eliminate some things out of my diet. The hardest thing so far is pizza - it is just too greasy for my stomach to handle now, which is so depressing because who doesn't love pizza?!?! Coincidentally, that is the meal that I ate the night I was put into the hospital so maybe that was a sign???

I do have some VERY EXCITING news to share - I would have shared the news as soon as I heard but as you can see I have not been very good at updating my blog this past month!!! My friend Nikki who has been battling cancer for about a year now is CANCER FREE!!!! Yes, can you believe it?!?! I was so thrilled when I found out!! Her scan that she had at the end of October showed NO tumors!!! So now she is officially in remission which is such great news!! She still has a couple more rounds of chemo to go, but she should be completely finished with treatment soon. She said that the first year of remission is the hardest because that is when there are the most relapses. She still needs our prayer because she needs to be cancer-free for the next 5 years before she is officially "cured". Please continue to keep her in your prayers....as you can see, the prayers are being answered so don't stop praying!!! Thank you so much to those who have prayed...your voices are being heard. God is so good!!!

I am so nervous about our game this weekend - it's only the biggest game of our regular season!!! We are officially playing Florida in the SEC Championship game, but I can't even begin to stress about that game until we get Auburn under our belt!! We will be coming from Mississippi on Saturday headed towards Tuscaloosa. As of now we do not have tickets, but hopefully something will change before Saturday! Who knows, we might just stop there on our way home and visit Tuscaloosa friends and search for tickets!! We do have tickets to the SEC Championship game (thanks Aunt Judy and Uncle Fred!!) so I am very excited about that! The last SEC Championship game I went to was in 1999 when we beat Florida - I'm hoping for a repeat of that game!!!! ROLL TIDE!!

I hope everyone has a great holiday week and a food-filled Thanksgiving!! Please be safe in your travels and remember to give all thanks to God!!! And of course, ROLL TIDE!!