Zuuuuuuuumba!

I have a new love in my life.

ZUMBA.

Let me explain:

**It is the perfect start to one's day. When you don't want to get up in the morning, take a ZUMBA class at 8:30. Just enough time to get one kid up, and on the bus and the others dressed and fed and to Adventure Alley so you can go shake it! (I soooo look forward to it!)

**If you need a boost... ZUMBA! It's energizing... revitalizing... liberating!

**If your life seems like it is crumbling down around you.... go to ZUMBA! Get that blood a pumpin' and those... dang what's the word..., oh endorphins a bumpin' and before you know it you are feelin' good!

**If there are some parts of your body (you know, back there) that are a bit neglected... go to ZUMBA! I can tell ya first hand it has played a role in some toning to this old tush!

**If you need to escape to the days of clubbing with your girls in college... ZUMBA!

** If you ever watched So You Think You Can Dance, and wished that you could dance like that for just one song... ZUMBA! I may or may not find myself getting lost in songs, daydreaming about being a contestant... (shhhhhh :) )

**You work so dang hard concentrating on the choreography, you don't realize what a good workout you are getting 'til you take a quick water break and notice your face is soo red and you are huffing and puffing!

**You hear a room full of jingles with each shake... I don't have my ZUMBA skirt yet, but it is ordered!!

**You meet lots of other people who like to shake it just as much as you and who make living in a new place much easier.

So there you go.

ZUMBA!

Jack's room part 2

I tried to mesh together Star Wars, which Jack loves with the color red, which he has been requesting since he got his own room. I also wanted these frames (below) that I made a while ago to match. I picked a red that had a bit of an orange hue to it, and brought the turquoise into the color scheme.

$1 Michael's frames covered with scrapbook paper

Jenny and I created this pelmet box in approximately an hour, again tying the two colors together.

I made this simplified version of R2-D2 out of scrapbook paper in under an hour! Jack loved it.

The Chewbacca poster was a gift from his Uncle Vijai, and I found this poster that has all the Star Wars characters and ships on it, with coordinating colors at Shopko. For minimal cost and time, Jenny and I transformed Jack's room into a personal, boyish space. And it was so fun to do!

Biopsy

As part of my routine exam my OB noted that my thyroid seemed enlarged. This was something my previous OB had noted a year ago at my annual exam. TSH levels were found to be normal at that time, meaning my thyroid was working correctly, secreting the right amount of hormone. My previous OB left it at that and life went on. When a second doctor mentioned it almost exactly a year later, a bit of worry resonated inside. That is when news of the miscarriage surfaced and the thyroid worries were pushed aside with bigger and better to worry about.

At a follow up appointment with my OB after the miscarriage, my doctor stated my TSH levels were normal again but recommended an ultrasound to detect any possible reasons for the enlargement. 3 nodules were detected, bringing the size of my thyroid to approximately 5x5cm (a typical woman's thyroid is between 2x2cm and 3x3cm). I was referred to an ENT who subsequently referred me to an Interventional Radiologist for a fine needle aspiration to determine if the largest of the nodules- over a centimeter in size and thus withing the American Thyroid Association's guidelines for needing to be biopsied- was cancerous.

I have been living with the thought that I could have cancer for a while now. And let me tell you that this is perhaps one of the scariest things you can be faced with. I laid in bed Christmas Eve for hours wondering how I would take care of my family if I myself was battling this sickness, or heaven forbid if... well, we'll not go there.

Doctors did tell me that a very high percentage of thyroid nodules are benign, but I think whenever you hear the word cancer- you start to freak out a bit-- you look around on the internet googling things that just make you more afraid- and your mind tends to think things that you shouldn't.

I went in early Wednesday morning for the aspiration. The doctor told me they would take 3 samples with the needle, and then 5 'chunks' to be sent to a pathologist. The entire procedure took 4 hours, and I came home in a cloud - since the meds they gave me took awhile to wear off. I am so thankful that my sister could be here as a support to me and to help take care of my children that day.

My wounds- Andy asked if Edward had been around:) The worst wounds were actually the three places where they tried to get my IV in.

I am so very thankful to report that this morning I received my results. I heard the words I have been hoping and praying to hear: "Katie, the doctors are very sure that your nodule is benign."

All of a sudden I could breathe again. That incredible weight, one that I have been carrying for almost 2 months now has been lifted. I have cried many tears of joy in the past 8 hours. And I hope those are the only kind I have to cry for a long time.

7:13 am

Don't you wish you were here??

Catching up

When we lived in Milwaukee, we had the luxury of spending time with Jenny, Elaina and Carter whenever we wanted. Now we take advantage of the moments we have together and pack in as much as we can. Here are a few of the fun things we have been doing:

Blain putting her best side forward

And I thought it was cute when there were 2 sweeties tucked into the twin bed together:)

They all love Elmo's Celebrity lullaby "The Na Na song" with Ricky Gervais. Cassidy will even ask for me to find it on You tube!

Jack's room

My wonderful sister Jenny is here visiting for a few days so we got to put a bit of our creativity to work. Jack has been asking for his room to be red for a long time. We compromised and Jenny helped me paint a red horizontal stripe. It turned out really nice! Here are a few pictures of the progress... stay tuned for pictures of it decorated coming soon!

We also made this cornice for his window. I was originally going to make some curtains, but decided this would look better for a boy's room. We used this tutorial from the blog Lemons and Lavender.

What Not To Do

I am kinda stealing the theme of my friend Sara's recent post. She wrote about 'what not to do' in an airplane. I am going to take a different twist and tell you what not to do in a car.

Let's set the story: It is Monday night and we decide that we are going to have our Family Home Evening out at the ice shack. We'd talk about being self sufficient and what that means and why it is important for us to be self sufficient. Then we'd fish- one way of being self sufficient- and have some fun. I fed the kids early and we were out the door so we'd have time to accomplish all of this before bedtime. I followed Andy out to the lake so he could stay out later with his friend and I could bring the kids home and put them to bed. We are on our way- I have no idea where we are going so I am following Andy down some snowy country road to the landing. Only he took a wrong turn, and realized it too late. He stopped rather quickly because the street dead ended in someones home. I hit the breaks and I slid ... and slid... and laid on the horn as I slid some more. THEN I REAR-ENDED MY HUSBAND IN HIS NEW TRUCK!! As I slid I had time for my life to flash before my eyes because I knew that there was the possibility that Andy might murder me. (not really) I knew how terribly upset he would be that I hit his 2 month old truck. Luckily, VERY LUCKILY, his trailer hitch saved the day and the only damage was a puncture hole in my van's bumper. His baby truck suffered no damage. phewww! I find it quite incredible that this will cost over $1100 to fix (luckily we only have to pay the deductible). In 17 years of driving, this is my very first accident. And I hit my own husband.

So unless you crave the adrenaline rush, and enjoy seeing your life flash before your eyes, DO NOT REAR END YOUR OWN HUSBAND.