December Already !?!

It is December 1.  This is going to be a really tough month for me.  Although I am not looking forward to it, it has arrived, so I will do my best to be positive.  If the way I feel physically this morning is any indication of how the rest of my month will go…I’d rather stay in bed!  This ‘whatever’ that has been bothering me the last two weeks still has a strong grip on me.  This morning I couldn’t even sit up at the table to drink my coffee.  I figured it would be rude to lay my head on the table so I just went back to bed.  Hopefully with the doctors being back in their offices this week we can solve the mystery.  Besides the physical pain, this month holds two heart-breaking dates that I will have to deal with emotionally.  Maybe that’s why I feel especially down today.

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Today is the one year anniversary of the death of my father-in-law.  He was a wonderful man who loved me very much.  He is loved and missed by many…10 children, in-laws, grandchildren, great-grandchildren.  I first met him when he and M’s mother came here from Mexico to be with me during a surgery.  It was love at first sight for all of us.  I really feel for those people who don’t get along with their in-laws.  No matter what happens, these people are my family and I love each and every one of them.  It breaks my heart to think about all these people that I love and how their hearts must be breaking today.  Mine is breaking right along with them.  But I am trying to remember all the time we spent together and how, even if only for a while, I was his favorite daughter-in-law.  That is enough to make me smile again.


34482_1363327444808_1280251565_30965876_5705448_nDecember 27 is the ten year anniversary of my mother’s death.  I know I have mentioned this before, but each year it seems like my heart breaks a little more. She was my best friend and she is dearly missed by me and my family, although I think I miss her the most.  She was quiet, kind, patient, caring…I could go on all day long.  Each day I strive to be more like her.  I’m happy to think that I am like her, and it’s extra special when my family comments on how much like her I am.  I’m trying to think of something special to do to commemorate the anniversary.  I think I know what I’m doing, but I’m not sure.  I guess you’ll just have to wait to find out.

This month that means Christmas magic and holiday cheer for so many just doesn’t mean the same for me.  I am going to try to change that this year with a Christmas tree.  Maybe that will help with the loneliness and sadness that I feel this time each year.  I am also going to remember the good times…the good memories.  It doesn’t heal a broken heart, but little by little it eases the pain.

 

Versatility

The awards keep coming. I never thought when I started this little blog that I would have awards backed up to be received. But since I do, I will accept another one today.

I was nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award by Priceless Joy. She has been a wonderful friend to me since we found each other here on WordPress. I am thankful for her help through some really rough spots and I truly believe that her prayers and well-wishes have made me a stronger person.

Here are the VBA rules that can be found at versatilebloggeraward.wordpress.com.

If you are nominated, you’ve been awarded the Versatile Blogger award.

Thank the person who gave you this award. That’s common courtesy.
Include a link to their blog. That’s also common courtesy — if you can figure out how to do it.
Next, select 15 blogs/bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly. ( I would add, pick blogs or bloggers that are excellent!)
Nominate those 15 bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award — you might include a link to this site.
Finally, tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.

So, here goes another 7 things about myself:

1) I love pizza.

2) I was almost done with my third year of college when I had to quit for medical reasons.

3) I speak fluent Spanish.

4) I have only been out of the country one time…I went to Mexico for a month.

5) I would love to visit Europe some day.

6) I no longer have a belly button (weird, right?)

7) I have an ISFJ personality type according to http://16personalities.com.

And here are my nominees (I’m choosing to nominate 10 people instead of 15…this award stuff is tiring!)

1) FighterZine
2) Walking Through Pain
3) Painfully Aware
4) the REmissionary
5) Just A Little Background Noise 2.0
6) Green Grows Dark
7) Chronic Rants
8) Anonymous Real Thoughts
9) Speaking of Marriage
10) Oh What A Pain in the …

My Leibster Awards Ceremony

AWARD NUMBER ONE:

I have surprisingly just been (quite a few days ago, but I’ve been busy, guys) nominated for my first award, the Liebster Award. I was nominated by Tammy  one of the sweetest people I know, , a wonderful woman who also suffers with adhesions and a whole host of other illnesses. She, her battle and her spunk 😉 inspire me every day.

As far as receiving this award goes, it was definitely a surprise. Who knew that my ramblings would one day warrant an award? I am grateful and somewhat humbled. Maybe people are paying attention and if nothing else, they know more about adhesions than they did before.

I copied (SHAME ON ME!) this information about the Leibster Award from one of the best I’ve seen:
Info About the “Liebster Award”

 

The Liebster Award, or “the favorite blog award”, is an internet-based award that is given to bloggers by other bloggers. In Germany, the word “liebster” has the same meaning as “favorite, beloved, or dearest.” This award is primarily given to blogs that have less than 200 followers. That way, it helps the blogger with being more known to the world as well as giving the blogger the opportunity to learn about more amazing bloggers.

As part of this award, I have been asked to answer ten questions, so here goes:

1. If you had $1,000,000, what would you do?
If I had a million dollars, I would probably cry about it first (I know me). After that, I would do the basic, buy a small house (who wants a big one they’re too hard to clean…maybe a condo, then), buy a car, and probably do the same for my sister. I would try to start a non-profit to raise awareness for adhesions (all though I have no idea how one would go about doing that, I guess I would figure it out because it is desperately needed), and the rest would go in the bank to pay my bills for the rest of my life :).

2. Are you more of a tea or coffee person?
You know it’s funny, I used to be more of a coffee person, but I have gotten to where I drink a lot of tea. Black teas are my favorite (I guess they remind me of coffee) but I have also began to drink green tea (I like the kind with flavors like dragon fruit and pomegranate. YUM!

3. What is your favorite Disney movie?
It’s a tie between The Little Mermaid and Aladdin. I loved them both. And I loved singing along.

4. What was your favorite childhood game?
I was always an “indoors” kind of girl. I liked to play school. If I had to pick an actual team sport, I really liked volleyball. I even tried out for the team as a freshman, but then quit when none of the uniforms fit me (I always had weight issues).

5. Who do you look up to and why?
I look(ed) up to my mother. I think that if I could be more like her, I would be a better person. I know that I am a lot like her, but I still strive for more. Never in my life have I known a love like hers…and I probably never will again. When she loved, she loved unconditionally.

6. What kind of color would you describe yourself as today?
Today I am pink.

7. If you could go to any country in the world, which country would it be?
I can’t pick just one. I want at least two. Spain and Ireland. I have always wanted to go to go to Europe, I figure the best countries to start in would be the ones where you can communicate

8. Think of one descriptive word about yourself that begins with the first letter in your name.
Jaded

9. What is your favorite food?
Right now, I am stuck on white rice, butter, salt, pepper, and a little chipotle sauce. I have always been one to get on food “kicks” and that is mine for now. Ask me again in another month and it’ll be something different. Actually, a BBQ sandwich sounds really good…

10. What type of exercise is your favorite?
Well, since I don’t really like to exercise (never have) and it has only become more difficult over the years, I am going to have to say yoga (or the stretches my PT gives me…which is pretty close to the same thing).

AWARD NUMBER TWO:
And wouldn’t you know that during this hiatus of mine (where honestly I’ve been procrastinating about receiving these awards) I received another Liebster Award.

This Liebster Award is from Leslie @ Just Another F-Bomb. I can’t say I know Leslie as personally as Tammy, but honestly when you read these blogs you truly feel like you come to know the other person. You feel their pains because you’ve felt them before, and they feel yours for the same reason.

Now, the ten questions that I must answer for Leslie are:

1. If you could live anywhere you wanted, where would it be?
I honestly have no idea. Wherever the weather is a constant 70-75 degrees Fahrenheit would probably be my answer.

2. What is your favorite vacation spot and why?
As an adult I haven’t had the luxury to vacation much. Just once in Mexico. And as much as I loved it there…now that I think about it, that is probably where I would want to live…my mind keeps going back to the vacation spot of my childhood. Every year (sometimes a couple of times a year) we would go to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. I know that may seem boring to some of you, but I have never been anywhere more beautiful than there during these autumn months when the leaves turn almost every color in the rainbow. Plus, the memories I have from going there with my mother, uncle, and grandmother are priceless.

3. If you could do any job in the world, what would it be?
When I was a kid, I wanted to work for the CDC. You know, in the laboratory in those funny-looking suits saving the world from diseases unknown. However, after careful consideration (and one hell of a long hospital stay) I decided the medical field just wasn’t for me. I enjoy languages and linguistics much more. I was studying Spanish linguistics when the adhesions finally grabbed hold too tight. I intended to translate (written documents) instead of teaching or interpreting.

4. Do you have a favorite teacher who inspired you?
Absolutely. One of my college professors, Belita Faki. She spoke five different languages fluently (as did her 11 yr. old daughter!). She pushed me much farther than I thought I could go. I still feel like I let her down in some way. I hope she doesn’t feel the same.

5. Why do you blog?
I decided to start blogging in order to meet other people with adhesions, but realized along the way that I was meant to meet so many more people than that. Now, I hope to bring attention to adhesions, “the medical community’s best kept secret” and help people to avoid them, or at least be able to have them diagnosed before they are too bad to be repaired like mine are.

6. If you had a magic wand, what would you use it to change?
I try not to have regrets…they cause more harm than they’re worth. With that said, I would have to change something from the future not the past…and since I’m not there yet, I don’t know what I would change.

7. Do you dress up for Halloween?
Absolutely not…but I do dress up my dogs!

8. What was your most memorable day and why?
Man, these are hard questions! I have so many…

9. Kids or pets, which do you prefer?
My pets are my kids, so I don’t have much choice in the matter. I was dealt this health card at a pretty young age. At that time, I wasn’t ready for kids. Now that I would give anything to be able to have a child, I probably wouldn’t be able to even have one much less take care of it. My dogs suit me just fine.

10. How long did it take you to complete the Liebster “task”?
Too long! 🙂

Ok, as part of my accepting these awards, I must choose 10 nominees of my own and give them 10 questions to answer…here goes.

My nominees are:
1.) http://forwomenseyesonly.com
2.) http://boredsick.wordpress.com
3.) http://briannakateiam.wordpress.com
4.) http://chronicerrata.com
5.) http://edsinfo.wordpress.com
6.) http://theinvisiblef.com
7.) http://karennorrod.wordpress.com
8.) http://fighterzblog.wordpress.com
9.) http://disabilitysexy.wordpress.com
10.) http://livingbendy.com

 

Fear not, my friends! If you are nominated for the Liebster Award, these are the following steps you need to take in order to graciously accept your award…

1. Link back and recognize the blogger who nominated you.
2. Answer ten questions given to you, by the person who nominated you.
3. Nominate ten other bloggers for the award.
4. Create ten questions for your nominees to answer.
5. Notify your nominees.

My ten questions for you  guys are:

1.  Are you a “foodie”

2.  Why did you decide to publish a blog instead of just journaling privately?

3.  What is your favorite pet i.e. cats, dogs, goldfish, and why?

4.  Do you feel less lonely since beginning to blog than you did before?

5.  Have you made many new friends in “Blogland”?

6.  If you could be any Disney character, which one would you be and why?

7.  If you were able, what would you volunteer your time doing?

8.  Pumpkin or Sweet Potato Pie?

9.  What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?

10.  I love to cook…what about you?  Are you able to cook or are you one of those that burns boiling water? 🙂