WOOT!

Surgery is ON! (Seriously, never been this excited to get hacked into!) Tomorrow is the big day, so I must go finish the preparations. I'll update when the Percocet induced fog clears a bit in a few days. :)

Today's pick me up

I'm home sick today due to a poorly timed fever and stomach bug. Three days prior to my surgery and I get sick? Seriously, this is just ridiculous. It's viral and so there is nothing they can give me to get me better by Monday, so I've been ordered to rest as much as I can and keep an eye on my temps. If I still have a fever on Sunday, my surgery is canceled. :( These past 6 weeks have been really rough and my countdown to Monday was pretty much the only thing that kept me going, so the thought of having to reschedule it is freaking me out. I have to admit... I'm pretty bummed out and on the verge of panic.

On the bright side, I found this just now which definitely cheered me up some! For those of you that are not familiar with New Moon, this is a pivotal scene in the book. For me, its the only part that makes New Moon worth the read, as I find the first 3/4 of it much too painful to get through. (Explanation of scene below)




Edward has run off to Italy to provoke the Volturi (the Vampire law enforcement- basically a royal vampire family that makes it their duty to keep their existence a secret. Anyone that threatens to expose them gets dealt with quickly) into killing him because he thinks Bella is dead. Overdramatic vampire that he is,Edward is planning on walking out into the Voltera Piazza (plaza) at noon when the sun is at it's highest point and take off his shirt in front of the townsfolk. (SM's vampires sparkle in the sunlight because their skin is like diamonds) Bella arrives just in time to sprint across the piazza, through the big fountain, and slams into Edward who thinks he's already dead and has just been reunited with Bella. She then forces him into the shadows so that no one notices his sparklies and the Volturi won't attack... except its too late. DUM DUM DUUUUUM! :) They don't actually kiss in the book when this happens, but I'll forgive them this little fudge. Oh, and those black dots all over RP have something to do with the CGI sparkle effect. At first I thought he'd grown a whole lot of moles all of a sudden, lol! Oh, I should add that the townsfolk are all in red cloaks because they are celebrating St.Marcus Day so they (and the town) are all decked out. Anyway... enjoy!

Why I love my puppies...

I can always count on them to make me laugh! This comes in handy especially when I'm having a bad day and feeling like crap... like today :(

Sirius loooooooooves yogurt!


Luna does too! So much so, she ran off with the container stuck on her head!


...then she crawled into her bag of food!

Seriously, how can you not love them?!?! Mini also participated but for some reason I can't upload her picture, but whatever... she had yogurt all over her face too! :) Anyway, my dogs are just the coolest, no? :)

On a side note- surgery is about 2 weeks away and I am sooooooooo looking forward to it (weird, I know) so I can start feeling better. If everything goes without a hitch I shouldn't have to stay more than a day in the hospital, which will get me home to my pups sooner. Sirius is the best non-narcotic painkiller, so I'll be looking forward to getting home to him.

Heaven has gained a new angel

As mentioned in my previous post, little Kayleigh Anne Freeman had not been doing too well. Yesterday she returned home to her Father in Heaven, after almost a year of fighting and holding on so that many could be blessed by her precious little life. My heart goes out to this family who never got to take their little one home and will now be parted from her for a while. I am so grateful to know that we can be together forever with our families thanks to our Savior and His plan for us. The Freeman's know this too, and I'm grateful for their exemplary faith and strength during this heartbreaking time for them.

"Time now stands still for all of us who will miss her dearly, who have been touched by her miraculous journey, and who will never forget her soft sweet smell. Kayleigh will forever be our one pound miracle from God and we certainly will all look forward to seeing her again, holding her in our arms and dancing in circles until we can't dance anymore. No words can describe how amazing and beautiful Kayleigh is, but we all know too well that this is only goodbye, for now."

On a serious note

These past few weeks have been rather frustrating for us with one thing going wrong after another. My multiple trips to the ER, numerous doctors visits, upcoming surgery, missing work, Mini being sick (again!) plumbing problems, car problems, etc. It's easy to get caught up in our woes and get stuck in a funk. I'm especially good at that, the funk, which is something I need to work on.

I hadn't been to Kayleigh's blog for a while, and when I caught up today, it was like a nice big bonk on the head. A reality check, if you will. While life has been a bit rocky for us lately, it's nothing compared to the trials this family has been enduring for the past 10 months. The grace and faith with which the Freemans have met every bump in the road, especially this latest turn for the worst, is inspiring to me. It looks like little Kayleigh Anne is getting ready to return to her Father in Heaven, despite a long and arduous fight. Like with little Maddie this is just another example of God's miracles that linger just long enough to bless and change the lives of many.



This is just one of the many premature babies out there, all fighting hard to come home. I have great admiration for the parents of these special little ones, who if they survive, face many trials for years to come. Fortunately not all of these stories have sad endings. I've mentioned Little Ant before, and his awesome parents Kim and Larry. While they lost Ant's twin sister Hailey, this little man has made leaps and bounds over the past 2 years and he is now a healthy and rambunctious *almost* 2 year old!

Ben sometimes asks me why I torture myself following these kinds of blogs and stories. I'm sure that "torture" is the only word that comes to mind when he sees me sitting here bawling over the struggles of people that I don't even know in real life. However, some of these ladies have been a great support to me over the past few years that we've struggled with infertility. While we have never met face to face, we have bonded over the pains and struggles that accompany this difficult and sometimes fruitless (as in my case thus far) path to motherhood. Our hearts ache for the same thing, and while these dreams have been granted to some, and our lives have taken different paths, we still ache for each other now.

I am grateful for these friendships and stories of inspiration. They help me take a step back and have a better perspective of my own trials. They also encourage me to strengthen my faith in the Lord and be more at peace with His plan for our little family.

"And though my heart is torn, I will praise You in this storm..." I love those lyrics. What a great example of faith and trust in God's will. (For those of you that like the song and wonder who its by, the band is called Casting Crowns and the name of the song is "Praise You In This Storm")

Just another reason...

Alice Cullen rocks.... She has a Sirius!!! Well, the actress does, but if she had a pet in real Cullen life (haha) my Blubbers would probably be the only dog cool enough for them! (Not that I'm biased or anything...)



This is exactly what he looked like as a pup! *sigh* Makes me want to run out there and get another puppy... why do they have to grow up and get all fat and lazy?!?!

Anyway, random I know, but it was enough to make my day when I'm not feeling well. Hooray for cute little puppies!!! Eeek!!! :)