a looong Monday

As most of you know Ben had an appt with a specialist in Cullman on Monday. Sunday night we drove down to Cullman to spend the night with his grandparents. We love Holly Pond trips! It can be so nice to get away and spend time with people who love us AND play cards all night. I am so lucky I married into a family who can appreciate the competitive things in life. I love playing cards with them!

Monday we woke up and headed to the Dr's appointment. We really liked this doctor and we are glad we went to see him, but we did not hear anything new. He wants Ben to get another MRI in Cullman because they have a special one that can pick up on all the lesions. He also wanted Ben to go on steroids to *hopefully* get rid of or decrease the numbness. Unfortunately these steroids aren't just one a day pills...it has to go in through an IV. There are 5 days of this treatment. He had the first dose on Monday, it takes a little under two hours. Yesterday a nurse came to the house to show us (me) how to set up the IV. Poor Ben has to have the IV in his arm all week. He's been a champ, I'm so proud of him. Unfortunately his ability to sleep is pretty messed up. Almost done Ben!

I was talking (technically g-chatting) with Caylen today and we were discussing my latest nursing school setback (update on that later...ugh). She really helped me realize that if nursing school is not in my future then God could have had me in nursing school and clinicals to help me with Ben's medical issues like the shots and IVs. It's such a blessing that I have *some* experience with shots and IVs before this and I feel comfortable caring for Ben. Thanks for talking today C.

Back to Monday: After his infusion at the office we headed to the All Steak for lunch with Ben's parents and Gran. What a treat! Getting to know Ben's family, I learned pretty quickly about their obsession with All Steak's orange rolls. Thanks for lunch Gran, it was a good treat after a not so fun morning at the doctor's office. They even bought us a dozen uncooked orange rolls that we cooked for my family yesterday. Yum!

After lunch we went to Bham for the Ray LaMontagne concert. He was amazing and his voice was incredible but we were SO worn out. Poor Ben wasn't feeling well and we were both dreading the late night drive home plus the early morning work. It was really good to spend a few hours with Meredith though!

*side note-I just heard that Huntsville City Schools are closing due to the Swine Flu. Does that mean I don't have to work tomorrow?? Weird.

honeysuckle and such

It's been a long week of work. I've had lots of early mornings and long days. Combine that with constantly screaming babies and you get completely worn out. Don't get me wrong, I love working in the infant room! But 7:ooam to 5:30pm with several colicky babies wears you out. I'm sure all of you moms understand.

Driving home last night (if I must be honest) I was in a bad mood. I was tired and had a headache. I was definitely happy about going home and doing nothing. I parked at the apartment and opened the car door and smelled it...honeysuckle! I LOVE that smell! It reminds me of the playground at Jones Valley Elementary where there is a whole row of honeysuckle along the fence. To me, it's the smell of spring and summer. My foul mood immediately lifted! For Ben's sake I should buy a candle that smells like honeysuckle to keep me constantly in a good mood. For some reason I doubt that would be the same...

Here's a little update on Ben:

The last few shots have been much better for him. He still has the symptoms for about 24 hours but they are less severe. Thankfully his body seems to be getting somewhat used to the medication. I still give him his shots, and I don't see that changing anytime soon ha. Last night he slept through the night after getting the shot, that's so exciting! We are going to see a specialist in Cullman on Monday. We are not expecting to hear anything different but it's always good to get a second opinion on stuff like the meds. We get to spend the night with his grandparents Sunday night so we are looking forward to that. After the appointment we are driving to Bham to see Ray LaMontagne and we can't wait!

Have a good and RELAXING weekend!

UAH

I got the letter I had been waiting for in the mail on Saturday. As any Gilmore Girls fan would know(that's for Jen), when looking for an acceptance letter from a college you want to find a packet instead of a small envelope. Welp, I got the envelope from UAH. Just in case you still have no idea what I'm talking about...I did not get into UAH's nursing program. This is not a surprise, the advisors told me that they would accept students from UAH before complete transfer students. Even though it's not a surprise I am still very bummed. I had really hoped it would work out. Lots of thinking and praying to do.

LOVING this song right now. Makes me miss RUF...


Whate’er my God ordains is right, Holy His will abideth.
I will be still whate’er He does, And follow where He guideth.
He is my God, Though dark my road.
He holds me that I shall not fall. Wherefore to Him I leave it all

Whate’er my God ordains is right, He never will deceive me.
He leads me by the proper path, I know He will not leave me.
I take, content, What He hath sent.
His hand can turn my griefs away, And patiently I wait His day

Whate’er my God ordains is right,Though now this cup in drinking
May bitter seem to my faint heart,I take it all unshrinking.
My God is true, Each morn anew
Sweet comfort yet shall fill my heart And pain and sorrow shall depart

Whate’er my God ordains is right, Here shall my stand be taken
Though sorrow, need, or death be mine, Yet I am not forsaken
My Father’s careIs round me there
He holds me that I shall not fall And so to Him I leave it all

Memphis trip

After Ben, it was my turn to go out of town. We really need to coordinate this stuff better! My friend Amy lives in NYC but she came to Memphis to see her family for a week. Driving to Memphis to see her is MUCH cheaper than a flight to New York so we decided to take advantage of her trip home! Meredith drove up to Huntsville from Bham after work last Wednesday to pick me up and we started our journey. I love car rides with Mer. Not only do we have the same music taste, but I also just LOVE being with her. She is one of those friends that we could be doing absolutely nothing interesting and still enjoy ourselves.



When we arrived in Memphis, we didn't know what to do with ourselves. The last time the three of us were all together was my wedding, and even then we didn't enough quality time. Amy's grandmother was out of town and offered to let us stay at her place for the weekend. That was such a kind offer! It was perfect for us!



Thursday we were pretty lazy in the morning, and went to a late lunch at this cute Italian place in Collierville Square called Cafe Piazza. I could eat there every day. That night we met up with some of Amy's friends to play trivia. This was trivia like I had never seen it before. I was expecting Buffalo Wild Wings trivia, on the tv screens and people halfway paying attention. No, this was hardcore trivia. You had to write down your answer and turn it in each time. There were even people trying to walk by other tables and listen in on conversations...cheaters! Usually trivia is not my thing. My one shining moment for the night was knowing that feta cheese originally came from goats. My team didn't trust me, and I don't blame them, so they wrote down sheep. I was pretty proud of myself when I was right, but that was the extent of my contributions for the night. After trivia we went to late night donuts at Gibson's. It wouldn't be a Memphis trip without these 5 cent donuts!



On Friday we went to lunch at the Little Tea Shop in downtown Memphis. After fried catfish, fried okra, lima beans, cornbread and the sweetest tea I have ever tasted I decided that after eating Southern food a nap is required. Wow. That night we got to meet up with Adam and Cile Hess for dinner at the Rendezvous. I had never heard of it, but apparently it's famous Memphis BBQ. When I told Ben we were eating there, he freaked out. I love how he knows his restaurants from the Food Network BBQ specials! Ben-I promise to go back with you sometime! After dinner we walked around downtown.

Please take notice of how much of this trip was centered around food?? Typical. We left Saturday after a wonderful brunch at Amy's aunt and uncle's house. We really appreciated the hospitality of everyone in Amy's family! It was so great to see friends! Happy birthday Kurt and Happy 1 year anniversary to Cile and Adam!!

Adam, Cile, Amy, Kurt, Me

Top of The Peabody

(not windy and cold at all...)

Cile, Merdith, Amy, me


me, Kurt and Amy

at Hueys for Kurt's bday

Mer was there with us too, she was just taking the picure

thinking of the beach...

This new picture under our names may look like any other beach, but I happen to think it's pretty special. That is the exact spot Ben proposed to me outside of the Crab Trap in Destin. Getting a fiance AND eating the crab trap feast in one day...what more could a girl ask for?!? We are super beach crazy right now. I always know Ben is thinking about the beach when he wears his Red Bar shirt all the time. We have our beach trip planned for the summer! Can't wait to go to Gulf Shores with my family.

C-I promise to fully update soon!

All alone...

Ben's out of town for the weekend. I'm really glad he is getting a chance to spend time with our friend Will, yay for guy time! Now that I think about it, "yay" and "guy time" probably don't belong in the same sentence. Whoops. They asked me to come but I figured I would sit this one out. Now where does that leave me...? On the couch. I've had a fantastic night so far. I got home from work around 5:45, picked up enough Chinese food for 3 of me, and stuffed my face while watching Best of Will Ferrell (still not tired of it!). And it's only 8:00! My Chinese food came with 2 fortune cookies. I hate the way they taste but I always open them up to read my fortune. One said "You will throw a party" and the other one said "You are young and beautiful, but wise". I like the second one better. The only party I am having tonight is with my leftover Chinese food and my rented movies. I'm debating going to the gas station to get candy but that would require me to actually get up. Ugh.

Now that I've admitted how completely lazy I am, I need to redeem myself. Tomorrow is "spring cleaning" day. I realize that a one bedroom apartment doesn't have that much space to clean but it needs to be done. Since Ben is gone I am gonna reorganize his clothes. Let's see how he likes that when he gets home, ha! Honestly I just want the house to be clean before the first Braves game of the season. I won't have much spare time between work and watching every single game.

I should probably get off the computer so I can stick with my strict schedule. I've talked myself out of the candy by now so I guess it's movie time. Be safe driving Ben!