April 29, 2009

Sidelined

The pain in my knee(s) has not gotten better. I have rested, iced, elevated, braced, heated, medicated - done everything that I know to do to make the situation better. Nothing has helped!  So I am going to schedule a visit with my friendly neighborhood doctor, and see if a better mind than mine can diganosis the problem and get me back on the road to recovery.
 
In the meantime, I have had to suspend all exercise, as it just causes more pain.  This is frustrating!  I was really enjoying my 5K training and looking forward to running the race with M.  (Sigh) But I guess my body knows what it needs, and for now that is NOT running, or aerobics, or even walking on the treadmill. 

April 28, 2009

Wedding Pictures

The proofs from our wedding are in - and with over 800 shots it is becoming extremely difficult to narrow it down to our favorites. (Sigh) If I could only win the lottery, I wouldn't have to choose. 
 
I will try and post a few of my favorite shots later today.

April 23, 2009

Here we go again...

Last year when training for the Blueberry 5K, I injured my knee with what we (the Doctors and I) thought was a tear. But the diagnosis came back severe inflammation and tendinitis. I was given a steroid injection and told to rest the knee - i.e. no running once the 5K was over.
 
Remembering that injury, the associated pain, and all the limitations it caused...I've been extremely cautious in my 5k training this year. I've started slow, taken rest days between runs, iced my knee after runs, and worn my brace.  And once again, my knee is starting to voice its objections. Yesterday - a rest day - it was swollen, stiff, and felt unstable. I wore my brace once I made it home from work...but it is still that way this morning.
 
I am going to give my knee another day of rest (I was suppose to run today) and hope that it will be enough. But I have nagging suspicion that my knee is just not going to let me be a runner.

April 21, 2009

One Month Ago....

....I stood in the front of a church filled with our loving families and closest friends and married my best friend. On that day we joined our lives together - pledging to love one another - for better, for worse; for richer,for poorer; in sickness and health; till death do we part.

And in the month since that day we have a had a lot of the better, a little sickness, and a smidge of the worse. But it has still been the most amazing month of my life. It was capped off beautifully by a bouquet of flowers that M sent to my office. Work has been crazy busy lately and I've been stressed, he decided that I deserved a little pampering. (I will post a pic as soon as I find the transfer cord for my camera).

I am well loved.

April 20, 2009

Pain in my side

M and I had scheduled a training run for Sunday afternoon. But too much food and too much napping pushed the run back to Sunday evening. I jumped on the treadmill and started my 5 minute warm-up, and was immediately hit with a pain in my lower left side. I dropped my speed down and proceeded thinking the "stich" would work itself out.  But it didn't. It kept getting worse, and rather than listen to my body and stop - I kept running. After 23 minutes, I collapsed in the floor in severe pain.  It took nearly ten minutes for the throbbing in my side to go away.
 
I am not sure what caused the pain, I think it may have been running on too full of a stomach. But I know this much, next time my body says STOP....I'm listening.

April 19, 2009

Life on the Farm

When I was younger, I vowed that I would never move back to my hometown - but I did. I also vowed I would never date any guy from my hometown - but I did.....then I married him. And the biggest kicker to it all, is that the man of my dreams is a farmer. Granted, M has a daytime job as a project manager for a commerical contractor, but his free-time (and true passion) is working the Blueberry Farm that he co-owns with his younger brother and father.

I never imagined that I - lover of all things big city, and detester of all things small town/rural/agriculture related - would end up married to a "farmer" - but I am. Even more surprising is that fact that I am beginning to love living out in the country and being a part of farm life. In fact, I find myself longing to learn more about this thing that M loves so much....so I took a few lessons this weekend.

Lesson 1: All farmers/farmer's wives need good boots. The farm is often home to mud, muck, mire, and hosts of other not so pleasant things. And the last thing you want to do is get your nice shoes all dirtied by stepping in them. So M (with my prodding...okay pleading) decided I needed a pair of boots. After shopping both store in our town, I came home with a pair of pull on Georgia boots, youth size 6 - apparently the boots I want aren't made for ladies, so I had to buy a boy's pair.

Lesson 2: All boots have to be broken in - and that might mean blisters along the way. I wore the boots for most of the morning on Saturday, and have a nice blister on my ankle to show for the troubles. But one band-aid later, the ankle feels fine and the boots are already feeling better.

Lesson 3: If you don't know how to operate a tractor....take it slowly. M started teaching me how to drive the tractor on Saturday. By driving, I mean he allowed me to pull it a mere 5 feet across the yard, in the slowest speed possible, while he gave step by step instructions. But I didn't mind, I fear the tractor - or perhaps I am aware of its power and the destruction it could cause if it went awry, so I am happy to take things slowly.

I've got a long way to go and a lot to learn about farm life.....but I think I make a good student. And I know I have a great teacher.

April 15, 2009

Decorating

Readers, pardon me while I try to "decorate" my blog. The layouts will be changing over the next few days till I find the right "fit".

Test

Testing to see if I can post from my e-mail.

Early to Bed, Early to Rise

I have never been a morning person. As a child, I had my morning routine down to just 5 minutes, so that I could stay in the warmth of my bed for as long as possible. Once I grew up and went off to college, I arranged my class schedule so that I didn’t have to be awake before 10 a.m. My roommates quickly learned that if I had to be up early it was to their advantage not to talk to me for at least 15 minutes – otherwise they might see “Devil Kim” as I snapped, snarled, and grumbled my way thru the morning.

I explained all of this to M before we said our vows. But I do not think he fully appreciated my explanations until those first few mornings together – where he asked me where his belt was, and I went off on him. I felt horrible afterwards and apologized profusely. But the damage was done, M now does his very best not to wake me when he is getting ready for work (he has to be up 1 to 2 hours before I do).

I have come to realize that I have to get better at being a morning person. Sleeping in till 7:20 – then getting ready for work in 10 minutes is not good. Snarling, snarking, and snapping my way thru the morning is not pleasant for myself or those unfortunate enough to be in my path. Therefore, the last two nights M and I have been in bed by 10:15 and it has done wonders for my disposition.

In fact, I have woken up at 7:00 a.m. both mornings, been in the office by 7:30 and find that I have a much more pleasant outlook (and more energy).

Granted, I find it slightly said that at 26 I am going to bed at 10 o’clock. It was just 2 or 3 years ago when my night got started at that time. But I know that overall the early bed time is better for my health, my sanity, and my marriage.

April 14, 2009

5K Training

I had my 4th training "run" last night. I managed to finish 2 miles in 27 minutes. My workout consisted of a 5 minute warm up at 4.0 mph, 10 minutes of running at 5 mph, 2 minutes of walking at 4.0 mph, 5 minutes of running at 5.0 mph, 2 minute of walking at 4.0 mph, and 3 minutes of running at 5.0 mph.

After last night's workout I feel like I will be able to finish the 5K (in 7 weeks) with a better time than I did last year. :-)

Lacey update

Lacey underwent a bone graph yesterday morning at 7:30 a.m. By 9:00 a.m., the little “diva” was resting comfortable in a recovery room. The surgeon informed us that he had removed the cyst, which was larger that original thought, and then packed the space left behind with lots of artificial bone material. He then placed her leg in a cast – but it is only on the leg that underwent surgery – which was a blessing. Within a week, she should be able to walk around on her cast. The cast comes off in 4 weeks, then it is 2 weeks in a brace, and then she will be back to her old self – just with a stronger femur.

Her biggest obstacle at this point is adjusting to doing things with one leg in a cast. And since she is a diva and has a bit of a temper, the adjusting is taking a bit longer that we would like (and it is a lot louder than we would care for). But we know that in the coming days, she’ll be up and going again.

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers.

April 10, 2009

Good Friday, Happy Easter

I love 3 day weekends. Granted, I do have to go into the office for 4 hours today. But after that I am meeting M for lunch and then going to enjoy a relaxing afternoon at home. The house has already been cleaned (okay, so I do need to sweep the kitchen and fold a load of laundry) so I have NOTHING to do - but relax.

I think I may read one of dozen or so books I picked up at the book sale at work. Or I might log some time on my treadmill. And if I am feeling really adventurous, I might do both. Tonight M and I will be attending a prayer service at our church.

Tomorrow is the annual children's Easter Egg hunt at church, followed by date night (more grocery shopping and cooking for Easter dinner). Then Sunday will be the Easter Sunrise service, breakfast at church, Sunday School, Sunday Services, Easter dinner with the family, and another egg hunt.

I am sure I won't have much time to blog. So I am going to wish each of you a Happy Easter - may we all remember the reason for this joyous occasion!

April 09, 2009

Update on Lacey

Just received word that Lacey will undergo surgery on Monday. Details are limited at this time. I will post more once I receive word.

April 08, 2009

Working Out Together

For those readers who followed my old blog , you know that M and I have been "retraining" for the Blueberry 5K that is held in June. Due to all of the wedding preparations, the wedding, and our honeymoon, the month of March was a bust in terms of training.

Now we are 8 weeks out from the race and recommitted to running the race at a better time that we did last year. Our plan is to start at Week 3 of the Couch to 5K plan - running on the treadmill for the remainder of April. In May we will move our runs outside, and the two weeks prior to the race, we will run the race route.

Our first run was Monday. I ran/walked 1.5 miles in 21 minutes. It is not the greatest time that I have ever had, but it was pretty impressive given the fact that I had done no training in a month. M, who is a much stronger runner than me, finished 1.6 miles in about 18 minutes. We are going to do a long walk tonight, and our 2nd training run on Thursday.

I have to say it feels wonderful to be able to train for this type of event with my husband. He does a wonderful job of encouraging me to keep going and pushing me when he sees that I am slacking.

Update on Lacey

Lacey goes for an MRI tomorrow at 7 a.m. Due to the length of time required for the procedure, she will need an I.V. sedation. Please continue to pray for Lacey's healing. Also keep the family in your prayers, as they will be traveling early tomorrow morning for her appointment.

April 06, 2009

Prayer Request

This past week, our oldest niece Lacey woke up walking with an exaggerated limp. When questioned by her father (M's younger brother) as to why she was walking that way, she could offer no explanation. Jason decided to take Lacey to the doctor. An x-ray was ordered and it revealed a cyst like liaison on her femur. Immediately an appointment with a pediatric ortho-surgeon was schedule.

Jason, Lane, my MIL and Lacey all met with the doctor on Friday afternoon. The doctor seems to think Lacey has a unicameral bone cyst . However, until a MRI is conducted a definitive diagnosis will not be given. With that being said, all indications are pointing towards Lacey needing a bone graph.

In the interim, Lacey's mobility has been restricted. She is not to run, jump, hop, skip, dance or be on her leg for extended periods of time. During school and church hours, she is in a wheelchair.

I would ask you my readers to pray for several things:

1. Healing for Lacey - I know that the God I serve is the Great Physician and if He desires then Lacey can be healed without medical intervention.

2. Peace for Lacey's parents and her extended family - The thought of a child being in pain is hard for parents to cope with. I can not being to grasp the fear and uncertainity Lane and Jason are feeling as they come to terms with the relatiy that Lacey may undergo surgery. The rest of the family is also burden with worry and fear.....we need your prayers.

3. Lacey's doctor - Pray that he will have the wisdom to make the best choices for Lacey's treatment, so that she can have a complete recovery with minimal pain/discomfort and a short recovery time.

As I know more, I will share the updates with all of you.

Date Night Saturday

M and I are planners by nature. It is reflected in our chosen career paths (he is a project manager for a construction company, I am a controller/compliance officer for a health system). We like to look at the big picture, set goals, and then fine tune all the little details to ensure that we reach those goals.

When we began discussing marriage, we often talked about how we wanted to make sure that no matter where life took us - we were going to take time for ourselves. I recommended that we institute a "Date Night" policy. At least 1 night every month, we would have a date - a minimum of two hours just to ourselves. Since we are newlyweds and have no children, we have decided to make date night a weekly occurrence. As our lives change, and we begin a family, I am certain that the number of date nights we have will decrease.

Anyways, I said all that to say this. This past Saturday night had been appointed our date night. M and I went out to dinner at Ruby Tuesday, did a little shopping at the mall, and then set out to tackle one of our "projects". In another post, I mentioned that M had set down and created an Excel spreadsheet of our projected spending for the next 8 months. One of the items that immediately stood out to me was the grocery budget. $300 a month for two people seemed quite high, so I made it my goal to find ways to reduce that number.

Thanks to a plethora of blogs on the topic of frugal spending, and eating cheaply - I had a game plan on how to tackle my goal. The first step was Saturday night's project. We created a spreadsheet that had list of all the grocery items we most commonly by. We then went to the top 3 stores that we purchase these items in, and entered the base price of each item.

Each week, M and I will sit down and decide what perishable food items we need for the next week. Using our spreadsheet and the weekly circulars, we will see which store has the best price for the item. Then we will look at what non-perishable items ( or items that can be frozen) are sale that week. Using a portion of our weekly budget, we will then purchase the non-perishables to go in our stock pile. Ultimately, I would like to have a 3 month stockpile of food at any one time. Moreover, I hope to buy for our weekly needs and our stockpile on just $50.00.

So that was our first date night as husband and wife. Aren't we nerds????

Cool Giveaway

I love giveaways...the chance to win a prize is just too good to pass by. Therefore, when I saw this giveaway on $5 Dollar Dinners, I had to enter.

Fiber One products are delicious and nutritiuos, and I am eager to try out the yogurt. So if you are interested, click on over and enter yourself.

Rainy Sunday Afternoon

Sunday afternoon was quite stormy - with lots of afternoon thunderstorms that included heavy winds and hail. The nasty weather forced M and I to stay indoors. And being the wonderful husband that he is, M decided to make good use of the time.

A few months ago, I asked M to hang a large picture frame and a mirror that we received as wedding presents. But with last minute wedding plans, the wedding, and then the honeymoon - the hanging just got lost in the shuffle. The rainy afternoon provided the perfect oppurtunity for him to complete this "honey-do" item.

The two pieces look amazing in our living room. And to top it off, M vaccumed the living room after he finished. I must say I am quite the lucky gal.

April 03, 2009

Lessons Learned During the First Week of Marriage

1. Men sprawl out when they sleep. M takes up every available inch of space and if I move a centimeter, it is surrendered ground and becomes his.

2. M thinks that there is only 1 brand of ketchup - and that's Huntz. If I bring anything else into the house, he will consider it grounds for a "serious" discussion.

3. Miracle Whip is not mayo! Anything with the word dressing on the label belongs on a salad, not a sandwich. And unlike, Maria who got Kevin to bend (see Maria's comment to this post ), I won't get a compromise from M on this one.

4. Grocery shopping for 2 people is more expensive, but a lot more fun - and the best part is there is someone to help carry in the groceries.

5. My husband ( it is still weird saying that) loves Spreadsheets. He has built an extensive spreadsheet for our budget. It includes a tab that shows every deposit and withdrawl that we anticipate coming out of our account for the next 8 months. His attention to details is amazing....and a bit unnerving.

April 02, 2009

More Wedding Pics

One reader requested more photos of my dress. Currently, I don't have very many pics of just the dress. But this shot shows off the front nicely.






And here is a shot that shows off the back of the dress.



And here is what a couple looks like after 3 hours of wedding photos BEFORE the ceremony itself....






Honeymoon Day 5

The fifth day of our honeymoon was slated as a travel day. For the first two-thirds of our honeymoon we had been in the lovely Smokey Mountains. The final third of the trip was to be spent in Atlanta, GA - so that M and I could do all the things we never had time to do while in college there. Up and out the door about 10:00 a.m., we took the scenic route thru Knoxville before hitting I-75 south. Since we had no pressing plans for Thursday afternoon, we stopped in Chattanooga to take in the sights at Ruby Falls.

Ruby Falls in an underground waterfall inside Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga. And it is absolutely breathe taking. M and I enjoyed walking thru the tunnel, seeing the geological formations, and when we made it to the waterfall room - we were mesmerized.

After snapping some pictures at the top of the Lookout tower, we loaded up and once again hit the road. By this point, it was 3:00 p.m. and we were starving. So as soon as we crossed into Georgia we began the search for food. We decided upon Fazzolia's - a fast food restaurant serving yummy Italian food. After eating way too much lasagna and breadsticks we made the final push for Atlanta, checking into our hotel around 7:00 p.m. We unloaded our bags, lounged around the room for awhile, then ventured over to the campus of Georgia Tech (my alma mater) to grab a bite at a Chinese placed called Tin Drum. M had a spring roll, I had a crab roll, and we split a bowl of chicken lo-mein. Following the food, we walked over to the campus bookstore, which happens to be a Barnes and Noble, and once again I found books to purchase.

With purchases in hand, we went back to our vehicle and went off in search of the local Krispy Kreme, as I had a serious craving to satisfy. We found the Krispy Kreme (I had remember it from my days as a college kid) and the "Hot-Fresh" light was on. I ordered to 2 "hot" glazed and 1 chocolate covered cream filled, and a large diet soda to wash it down with....

Then M and I found seat by the window, where we shared the sugary goodness that is Krispy Kreme. After devouring the doughnuts, we headed back to the hotel to shower and grab some shut eye as Friday would be another jammed packed day.

April 01, 2009

Biggest Adjustment

I have been married for little over a week now ....11 days to be exact. And in those 11 days, I have two questions repeatedly. I will blog about the most asked question a little later. The 2nd most favored question is "What's the biggest adjustment in married life?"

The first few times I was asked this question - I didn't have an answer. We were basking in the after glow of a beautiful wedding, and honeymooning - it was all new, all glorious, all wonderful. Then we came home. And it took exactly 1 night to figure out what was going to be the biggest adjustment.

Sleeping in the same bed.

What's that dear reader? You are wondering why this is such an adjustment. After all I did share a bed with my hubby all 7 days of our honeymoon, why is it when I return home, I find that sharing a bed is going to take some adjustment. The answer is simply - our bed is so much smaller.

We have a double bed. And when you add in M, me, and the dog there is not a lot of room left. And I think M forgets that I am there. Case in point, two nights ago, nature called around 4:00 a.m. When I got back to the bed, M had thrown his gigantic leg across my teeny section of the bed - there was no space for me to sit. Being the loving wife that I am, I didn't want to wake him, so I tried to nudge his leg back to his side. Nothing. I pushed a little more forcefully - it still didn't budge. Again, again, and again I tried. Finally, my need to sleep overcame any concern for M's own sleep and I slapped his thigh and told him "Move over buddy!". He let out a small snore, a mumbled sigh, and rolled over. He was back asleep before I even got laid down. (Sigh)

There you have it - 11 days in - that's my big adjustment. How about we cover this question again in a month, 6 months, a year???? Readers, what was your biggest adjustment to married life?

Honeymoon Day 4

The fourth day of our honeymoon did not get off to a very good start. I was yanked from my warm bed and sweet dreams by the sounds of my husband who was sick...very sick..in the adjoining bathroom.

I softly knocked on the door asking if he needed my help. A few minutes later the door opened to reveal a very pale, sweaty, and shaky M. I ordered him to take a shower and then sent him back to bed.

We are not sure if it was the quarter pound of fudge, the fried chicken at the Apple Barn, or all that food together that upset his stomach....but he felt awful for hours. Finally, around noon M felt more human and decided that it was time for us to go out. I told him that I was fine with staying at the cabin, but he insisted, so we made our way over to Wonderworks - The Amusement Park for the Mind.

From the outside Wonderworks did not appear to be too busy. But once inside we were overrun with people - namely elementary school children who were running and screaming in all directions as they took in the cool exhibits. Wonderworks has hundreds of cool science based exhibits - you can lie on a bed of nails, feel the force of hurricane winds in a wind tunnel, ride the "Earthquake Cafe" which simulates a 6.2 earthquake. After about an hour and a half of fighting the crowds, M and I decided to call it quits and to head back to the cabin.

We made a quick run over to Books a Million and then went to the cabin to veg before our dinner show at the Dixie Stampede . M napped and I read the third installment in the Twilight Series before it was time to change into our dinner attire. We arrived at the Dixie Stampede, took the customary photo, and headed into the Carriage room. Once there, M sipped on an Orange Blossom (frozen orange sherbet) and I had the Southern Sunrise (virgin strawberry daiquiri) while we listened to the bluegrass sounds of Mountain Ruckus. At fifteen till 6, the doors to the main auditorium opened and we found our seats. Over the course of the next two hours we were treated to delicious southern fare ( creamy veggie soup, cheese biscuit, roasted chicken, pork loin, potato and corn), amazing horse tricks, and all together good time.

After the show ended, M and I decided to take advantage of the fact that our Wonderworks tickets were good all day, and went back. The second time around was much quieter and less crowded. We enjoyed flying space simulators, playing mindball, and looking at the various visual puzzles in the "art gallery".

We left and headed home around 11:00....because the next day would bring more traveling.

Honeymoon Day 3

The third day of our honeymoon started early, as we had to check out of our hotel in Gatlinburg by 10:00 a.m. We got moving around 8 a.m., loaded the truck and closed the doors by 9:00. M and I drove back into downtown Gatlinburg for a quick bite of breakfast at Shoney's. We then headed into the Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum.

After Ripley's Believe it or Not, M and I did a little more shopping. Then he asked me to face another of my fears (I had already did the haunted adventure early in the week) heights. Ober Gatlinburg runs an aerial tram up to the top of the mountain. It is a 2.1 mile trip - and it is HIGH.


The view outside the tram.

Once at Ober Gatlinburg, M and I went to the Black Bear Exhibit. After taking in the sights and sounds of the mountain, we left Gatlinburg and checked into our cabin in Pigeon Forge. We grabbed supper at The Apple Barn and then played putt-putt. We then headed back to our cabin....