Vacation

My best friend Amy came to visit me from Hawaii and we had so much fun! I took the whole week off from work (which was HEAVEN) and we had a great time together. Here are some of the highlights!
We went and saw "He's just not that into you" which was a great, funny movie. As we were walking out of the theater, we saw this display and of course had to get in on the action!
Of course, I could not get her to go see a scary movie with me, namely "My bloody Valentine" but that's cool, whatever! Next we had a great time laughing at the expense of my cheerleading uniform, side ponytail and all!
Apparently Yoga IS good at keeping you flexible. This makes my thighs hurt just looking at it!
We boxed with Muhammad Ali at Caesars Palace,
We met George Straight at the Goat Feathers Antique Shop in Boulder City,
and we ate, ALOT!
Mmmmmm Gnocchi! We got massages, we went shopping, we did a little gambling, we ended up in our jams by 5pm on more than one night, we laughed and laughed, and we got some soul sista tattoos, oh yeah!
Good times were had by all! Sorry it was so cold Amy, next time you will have to come a little later in the year, or bring something warmer than flip-flops and summer dresses, lol! Thanks for such a great time, and for being such a great friend, even though we take the heat of people thinking we are lesbians, they just don't understand us!
I have also decided to try and do a picture a day so that I can keep up better with my blog and my life, because I am sure there is one there, and I am just not noticing it. Knowing me and my procrastinating self, it may not go as well as planned, but I am willing to take the chance!

Slacker

I have been a huge blogger slacker lately, but am going to try to to do better from now on! I don't have anything too exciting this time, just some updates. A couple weekends ago I went to Ephraim to visit Celeste and of course I pick the weekend where a huge storm was coming in. It started snowing on Sunday and I decided that it might be a better idea to get up really early on Monday after the snow had stopped. Well that was a mistake! A drive that is usually 4 hours, took me 7! Here is a view of me driving 25mph down the highway.
Needless to say, I won't be doing that again until winter is OVER! I have never been so glad to see desert in my life!
I did get my test results back so if you want to know I can email you privately. Since I have an open blog and I don't know who is reading it, I'd rather not discuss some of my business so openly! In fact I may jump on the private bandwagon so I know who I am sharing my business with. I am pretty sure I have the email addresses of people I think are reading, so go ahead and leave a comment if you want me to include you on the list of readers.

Work has been completely insane (no pun intended ;P) and I do not see it slowing down anytime EVER! We are the only mental health provider for Health Plan of Nevada (insurance) which serves over 700,000 lives. Now this is not the only insurance we take, in fact we take quite a few others. Well the higher ups that be are in the process of trying to get a contract with Medicaid as well. Are you joking? Not that I don't think it would be great to help even more people, but I am pretty sure my company has no plans whatsoever of hiring more "helping hands" which just creates more work those of us there, and we are already overworked! Oh it just makes me so tired even thinking about it......

For the past week I have had this almost overwhelming craving for french fries. Now I like fries as much as the next person, but have never really been one to crave them. I have also been doing really well with watching what I eat and I have not cheated once this week! So today all I can think about is how good some fries would be and a great idea comes to me. I bought some pre-cooked Polenta (the one in the tube) the other day and have been trying to decide what to do with it. Well I sliced it up, put it on a cookie sheet, sprayed a little Olive Oil on it, and baked it! Wallah~healthy french fries!
Ok so maybe not french fries, but crunchy enough for me to pretend! And yes, I did dip them in Ketchup!

I have also been working on getting all 800 of the pictures from my digital camera, off of my computer and made into actual pictures. I have been making changes to some (black and white, cropping etc..) to get them how I like. Now I have always wanted to enter some of my photos into contests, and Celeste inspired me to go ahead and do it. She has entered some of her photos in various fairs and won! I have a feeling Vegas doesn't have a lot of county fairs, so I am on a mission to find a photo contest somewhere here, and make an entry. I may be asking permission from some of you (Jamie and Amy) as some of my best photos are of your children! Wish me luck!

Voicemail

Here is the voicemail I received today.....

"Hi, this message is for Stacey, this is so and so from the so and so lab. We have the results of your tests and there are some abnormalities that your doctor would like to discuss with you. Please come to your appointment on so and so date to discuss these results."

Are you kidding me? Gee thanks for making me go into an unnecessary panic for the next week until my appointment. Could you not have just called to remind me about my appointment? Did you have to throw in that there were abnormalities and then not be able to discuss them with me? What is the point of that? Sometimes you really have to wonder about people! So much for being "still" this week!

On a positive note, the Zyrtec is working wonders and I have not had hives in 4 days, although I feel a little drugged all of the time! I am not complaining though, beggars can't be choosers! I have also found that I can eat something other than Saltines. Edamame does not irritate in any way!

Maybe they found my twin............

And the verdict is.......

In case anyone was still wondering how I am fairing in my battle against the hives, I finally went to the Dr. I started out with my PCP who proceeded to tell me that I would need to see a dermatologist before I could be referred to an allergist. What??? Then, in order to get the referral to the dermatologist (which the insurance requires) I would need to have a chest x-ray done first. What??? Whatever just do it. So I finally get in to see the dermatologist and she knew immediately what I had (as I am sure my PCP did as well). Urticaria Hives, specifically dermatographism. This apparently affects 5% of the population, typically appears in women, and can last for months, even years (going on about 9 months now). They do not know what causes it and apparently there is no real cure. The Dr. wants me to take Zyrtec once a day, everyday to help with the symptoms and gave me a list of things that "might" help. This list included using nothing with fragrance including soaps, lotions, detergent, fabric softener, deodarant, perfume, etc.. The list also included a list of foods known to aggravate the condition. You know foods like dairy, nuts, chocolate, tomatoes, fruit, and fresh vegetables. Yes that's right, EVERY single one of your basic food groups. Sweet! So not only will I be smelly but apparently I have a new diet of saltine crackers and Zyrtec. Which in my case will NOT make me lose weight. So for the price of my gas to and from 2 Dr's appointments, a chest x-ray, and $45 in co-pays, I now get to not eat anything and suffer in order not to suffer. Thanks, that really helps! Oh, I also got the reminder to seek immediate medical attention, should my throat or mouth start to swell! Will do! Here are some pictures of my affliction.
I would have taken some of my own skin but I am REALLY trying to avoid anything that may even imitate a scratching motion. Ok, I will stop complaining now, at least I am not this poor baby.
*Part Two of the story in 2 weeks........

What do you get?

What do you get when you learn how to crochet?
What do you get when you can't stop buying yarn?















What do you get when Payless is having a sale on shoes?




What do you get when your closet is so full of shoes, you step on one, and a high heel jams into the arch of your foot?
What do you get for $20 when a store is going out of business? (Yes, 4 pairs of pants, a skirt, AND 2 shirts!)
What do you get when the clothes you bought are too tight?
What do you get when you find out your best friend is coming to visit you?

100th Post

I have made it to my 100th post! Instead of doing 100 things about myself, I have decided to list 100 things I love. These are in no particular order although I do love my family and friends the most! I will not take it personally if you don't read all 100.

1. My Family
2. My friends
3. Working
4. My Independence
5. Music
6. Laughter
7. Plants
8. The Sun
9. Pickles
10. Chapstick
11. Books
12. My Car
13. Mail
14. Ice
15. Kleenex
16. Benadryl
17. Bras (love that they lift my boobs up, hate wearing them!)
18. My Bed
19. Socks
20. Shoes
21. Love
22. Daisies
23. Tattoos
24. The number 24
25. Sushi
26. Coffee
27. Slippers
28. Black and White Film
29. Patchouli
30. Lotion
31. Greeting Cards
32. Crocheting
33. Fairies
34. Body Pillows
35. Scrunchies
36. Incense
37. Children (as long as they're not mine!)
38. Magazines
39. Traveling (especially first class!)
40. Art
41. Nature
42. Motorcycles
43. Learning
44. Spanish (learning a little everyday!)
45. French (not learning at all, but love when someone speaks it!)
46. Fresh and Easy Market
47. Animals (most of them anyway)
48. Diet Coke
49. Movies
50. The Ocean
51. Gardening
52. Dragonflies
53. Cooking
54. Mexico
55. Gum
56. Candles
57. Scrabble
58. Camping
59. Photography
60. Lamps
61. Tank Tops
62. Horoscopes
63. Desserts
64. Billy Lane
65. The Color Blue
66. The Food Channel
67. Jewelry
68. Pajama Bottoms
69. Sweaters
70. Tapestries
71. Palm Trees
72. Pin Up's
73. Aprons (Thanks Amy)
74. The Office
75. Hot Baths
76. Being a Woman
77. Not wearing makeup
78. Floss
79. Catalog Shopping (not buying, just circling what you would buy, if you could!)
80. Rice Pudding
81. Calendars
82. Hippies
83. Funny T-shirts
84. People Watching
85. Gnomes
86. Men (oh yeah!)
87. Puzzles
88. Hats
89. Coloring
90. Fires (not in a pyro kind of way, more like campfires, or fires in a fireplace)
91. Made up Motivational Posters
92. Bread
93. Vampires
94. Guitars (no I don't play)
95. My Sleep Mask
96. Massages
97. Pottery
98. Fingernails for scratching these darn hives!
99. Horror Films
100. The World of Blogs!!!!!

Yeah 100th post! I salute you! And in the spirit of motivational posters........

New Year

I have found it difficult to blog lately and I am not sure if it is because my life has become boring and predictable, or that I am not paying attention to the little things that happen to me. If it is the latter, I will try harder, if it is the first, I will work on that!

Christmas was great and I had a great time visiting with my family! Although I could have done without having to get out the snow blower every day I was there! I can't believe how fast my niece and nephew are growing and they bring such joy to our lives.

Yes, I made the hats and scarf, and you can see how much Trenters loves it! So cute! For a good laugh, click on Stephs link and watch the video of my nephew!






If you don't know this about me, I am really into totem animals. Totem animals comes from Native American cultures and traditions. These animals, it is believed, accompany us in both physical and spiritual worlds. Totem animals can come to you in different ways. Mine have tended to just show up in places that I have not been expecting, or just recently, in a book I was reading that struck me in just a certain way. For the past few years, mine has been the dragonfly. Dargonflies represent 2 year periods of change and they beckon you to seek out the parts of you that may need changing. I rarely see dragonflies, but when I was in Hawaii, I saw them everywhere. I had a moment in which the BIGGEST dragonfly I have ever seen landed right in front of me, hence the dragonfly tattoo came into existence.

I have recently been doing a lot of self reflecting and the other day I had a praying mantis show up. I again, rarely see praying mantis', in fact it has probably been years since I have seen one, so it struck me a little bit. Then, in a book I have been reading, the praying mantis kept showing up throughout the story. So I took notice. The praying mantis symbolizes patience, stillness, and calm. It teaches us to still the outer part of ourselves, so that when the time comes to act, we can do so with surety. I am pretty good at hiding this, but my family definitely knows, I have NO patience. There are often times that I may appear calm on the outside, but on the inside I am going a million miles a minute. So this totem has come at an interesting time. Things at work are really crazy and as I have been learning my new job, I have really felt unsettled and unsure. My move has had alot of pros but it has also brought up alot of feelings that I am not sure how to work out.

To make a long story, longer, I spent New Years Eve alone. I know that sounds sad and depressing but it actually wasn't. I had offers to go out, but I just didn't want to. I was able to sit and reflect on the new year up ahead and think about the things I want to accomplish. I also thought about how lucky I am. I may have spent my new year alone, but I thought about others who were alone not by choice, whether their loved ones were gone or they had no loved ones. At least I was warm and have a roof over my head and food to eat. There are a lot of people in this world who do not even have close to what I have.

So I treated myself to Sushi, surf and turf, yummy salmon, and Octopus!









I wrapped myself in blankets, cranked up the heat (because I can afford it), and watched scary movies all night.
I went to bed feeling content.

Last year my word was Live and I think I have done well with that. This year my word is Still.
I don't want to just appear calm on the outside, I want to still things on the inside as well. I want to have patience and calm in my heart. I want to stop being angry at bad drivers, and getting worked up at work. I want to be patient with dumb people, and let things go that I cannot control. I want to be still.

Apparently I will also be getting a new tattoo.