Malianna's Groove

What can I say? She gets it from both sides of the family! ;)

It's Finally Over!

I received my last dose of Solu-Medrol last night. I was excited and relieved to finally have the needle out and to have complete use of my left hand. My poor sister, Norma, has spent more than 12 hours with me over the last 3 days to monitor my meds. God bless her!
Anyway, I felt pretty good even with the discomforts and the high blood sugar readings I've had over the last few days. Overall, I think the medication has had some effect in my recovery. My wonderful nurse, Karol, came to do what I call the "clean-up." She said that I looked better, more vibrant and my skin had more color compared to when she first met me a few days ago to start my medication. I am fortunate and blessed to have such a sweet and caring nurse, even my children adore her as you can see below, and I am also very blessed to have a wonderful sister who takes good care of me. Thank you Norma and Karol!!!

Malianna's Trip to Hawai'i

This past December, Malianna and I went to visit my younger sister, Sharlene, in Hawai'i who's been battling cancer for over a year now. At the time of our visit, Sharlene just had a double mastectomy, so we were there to spend some time with her. Malianna's favorite things to do while there was to be showered with attention from her many Aunties and she loved the beach (she takes after her parents). :)

We had a fabulous time visiting with Sharlene, Carol, Tammy, Anu and the rest of our family. I really
do miss them. Keep fighting sis and we love you!!!

The Ballard's

I wanted to post these beautiful photos that my sis-in-law, Melissa, took of Norma, Mike and their children taken in my front yard. It's the only family photo of all of them before Mike took off to basic training. Thanks again Melissa for taking these!

Day 2... Results Already?

Scott and I took Tiani, D-man and Malianna with Norma and her children to Vao and Lafo's (VOP/Pacific Generation) "Shake-Off" event at Tahitian Noni last night. The food and the company was great! If you've never been to Tahitian Noni Int. in Provo, then you should make it a date to go. Their gardens are gorgeous and the kids had a blast roaming the beautiful grounds. I wasn't too sure if I should go because my Solu-Medrol had to be administered at a certain time starting at 7 pm and finished by 10 - 11 pm, as my nurse required per my doctor's orders. Tonight, it has to be delivered by 6pm and finish before my nurse stops by to pull the needle out. Anyhow, I tried to cancel, but I felt bad for Vao and I told him that if I were to come, I would have to show up with my IV then. Everything seem alright at first as Norma flushed my line, but when the medicine took effect, the migraines crept in and I felt a tightness in my chest. I started to sweat while I sat there, but then it subsided, although the migraines remained. Towards the end of the event, I started to feel a little strange so I tried to get up when Norma came over to check on me and she freaked out when she saw that my blood had traveled more than 1/4 of the way into my IV line. Apparently, I had my foot on the line and was cutting the flow of the meds. I wasn't worried about it since I've had it happened to me several times while I was hospitalized several years ago with pancreatitis and a gall-bladder removal, while I was 7 months pregnant with D-man. It was definitely not a fun memory for me having to deal with a PICC line and be fed via a feeding tube. Anyway, by the time I got to my vehicle, most of the blood had drained back into my vein.

As for day 2's results, I've noticed an improvement from yesterday. Sure the metallic taste and heartburn was there, but as of this morning there is a noticeable improvement on the right-side of my body. I noticed my leg, especially my thigh and my middle and lower back are not tingling as much. The only sensation that are still apparent is a feeling of "heaviness" and the tingling in my head is not as bad, although it's still there. The pain in my neck and hip area are still annoying, but I'm hoping with time it will dwindle. Being that today is my last day of treatment which I'm ecsatatic about, I'm anticipating to get my entire right-side fully functional again. I'm not sure if getting results this quickly is even possible, but I do know that along with this medication and help from Heavenly Father, prayers and the Priesthood blessings that I've recieved have been and are instrumental in my healing. I still believe that my symptoms are not MS-related and I hope my doctor's will agree with me. I think the hardest part of this treatment is having to spend 3-4 hours of my time waiting for my medication to finish when I've got things that need to be done and dealing with insomnia, which I had another exasperating night of it. However, I finally got to bed a couple of hours ago and slept for about an hour or so only to be awaken by the sounds of someone rummaging through Scott's things in his nighstand. When I woke up, Malianna's sweet little smile greeted me. So, now I'm fully awake, though I feel like I'm ready to drop. I meant to call my doctor yesterday about getting some meds to treat my insomnia, but I got tied up with errands, one of them was visiting my chiro. I also visited my mother-in-law, Marla, who was in the emergency room for a couple of hours. She got into a 3-car accident which totalled her vehicle and Scott left his office early and rushed over with Quinn to give her a blessing . We were so grateful and relieved to know she didn't have any broken bones and seem to only suffer from a stiff neck and shoulders [whiplash]. She's the kind of person that will always put others first before herself and that was evident yesterday. She was so concerned about the other drivers and the children, who were passengers of the pick-up truck who caused the accident. I got a call from her a few hours ago and she's doing wonderfully this morning. What a relief!

Well, the day dawn broke hours ago and my kiddies and I are going with Norma and her children to a family day BBQ at the National Guard station, even though Mike is away at boot camp. GO GUARD!!! So, we'll have to finish our Saturday chores when we get back. Scott and Anson have decided to stay home and mow the lawn and work on two of our computers. Out of the 5 computers we normally use, we still have 3 that are operating at the moment, so what's two that don't work? Well, one of the computers that needs to be tended to is hooked to our flat screen and it acts as our "Tivo" and it's free and it also allows us to go online and my kids love to watch youtube, netflix and hulu. The other computer is for my little ones and my hubby built it just for them and they can't go on PBS kids without it (lol).

Day 1 of Solu... what?!

Solu-Medrol. It's after midnight and my sister Norma, just got done flushing my IV line with Heparin and she's finally heading home after spending 4 hours monitoring my IV/medication. My home health care nurse Karol, came by earlier and did my infusion and taught Norma what she needed to do to administer Solu-Medrol into my IV over the next 3 days. For the past 4 1/2 weeks, I've been running around to doctor's appointments and doing labs/tests, all in hopes of finding a diagnosis for my latest health issues. My neurologist and his PA believe that I have MS, so they ordered me to be on Solu-Medrol and to have a Lumbar Puncture (spinal tap), which I went in yesterday to do at the hospital. I hope the results for the LP will be negative for MS (just to prove them wrong). I've told all my doctors that I thought I have circulation issues (possibly some form of neuropathy due to my diabetes that their tests were unable to detect) and pinched nerves. But three of my MRI's showed that I have White Matter Disease in my brain, a lesion in my neck/cervical area and some disc extrusion (no big deal!). Maybe it's stress from having to deal with Dallin's health and everyday family matters and this is how my body copes with it. I don't know, but it is bothersome and I can't ignore my symptoms. We'll have to wait until next week to find out for sure... I still believe it's not MS! Seriously, I've grown tired of being poked, visiting with doctors and paying for co-pays and medications. I've had so many appointments that I completely forgot to take Dallin to his doctor's appointment at the Children's hospital last week. I felt so bad. I've got to re-schedule his appointment for his doctor's next available opening.

Karol showing Norma how to flush and change my line.

The Solu-Medrol left a weird metallic taste in my mouth. I tried eating a few pieces of chocolate during the treatment and it tasted gross. Could you believe that? I actually thought chocolate was gross! In fact, everything I put in my mouth tasted awful, with the exception of some Cracker Barrel peppermints from Norma, which was a welcoming taste. Shortly after the treatment, I came down with the chills and dozed off for a few minutes only to wake up sweating. On top of my usual pain, I'm now dealing with insomnia, a slight heartburn, a dull headache (I'm glad it's not my usual migraine), and lower back pain from yesterday's LP, has set in and I can't seem to relax. I wonder if I should contact my Neuro tomorrow and ask for some zzzzzzz pills and more pain killers. My diabetic nurse called earlier to tell me to stay on top of my sugars, so I'm trying to adjust my insulin pump to help stabilize my "sanity". Right now, I have the urge to get up and start cleaning, but my infusion is stinging and uncomfortable and I'm on the verge of yanking it out. But, I know it's not worth having Karol come back out tomorrow to re-insert it again. It took her quite a while to get it in the first time because my vein flattened quickly when I became tense. I had to try my best to relax and get rid of my anxieties. That was hard.
Anyway, I'd like to thank my awesome sister, Norma, for her help. She's so wonderful and caring. Her first husband died from colon cancer, so she's used to changing IVs and colostomy bags, etc. Since I have trypanophobia, I would not have gone through with this without her. The only other person I'd ask to help me would be my fabulous mother-in-law, Marla, but she has to work. What a blessing it is to have them nearby. Oh, you're probably wondering where Scott is in all of this, right? Well, he actually holds my other hand while trying to watch the little kiddies. He's my sweet supportive hubby. Also, thank you to all my wonderful and caring family and friends for your love and prayers. I have felt them and I appreciate them so much.

A few of Norma's children and a couple of mine raided my bedroom and wanted to know what all the crying was about... yes, I did cry... just a little. lol ;)

So Much To Blog About... Part II

Scott and I became Aunt and Uncle for the 42nd time last month with the birth of our handsome nephew, Mikaele Tu'ipelehake Giovanni, the latest addition to Norma and Mike's clan. Heaps of congratulations to Norma and Mike!!!

Mikaele (or Mik, as I call him), is such a wonderful and calm baby. We were happy he arrived early (at 36 1/2 weeks), before Mike shipped out for basic training. Mike left last week and will be gone until November. G'luck Mike and we miss you!!!

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They say a picture is worth a thousand words...

I say this is worth a million words instead. What do you think?

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~4th of July~

We spent most of the afternoon at "The Beach" with a friend of ours and her family. It was so hot that the kids didn't mind swimming in the cold water. They had fun and they were not eager to leave when it was time to go.

Scott and Mike barbecued ribs, chicken and hot dogs this year. The Ballards, Tomseths, Carters, Aunt Joyce and Uncle Verl joined us. Mom W, Norma, Melissa and I made salads and dips and we were happy to be surrounded by such wonderful family.

The Moea'i fam came over to blow off some fireworks later that night. We love having them over!

So Much To Blog About... Part I

Our handsome Anson just got baptized this past Saturday. He was the only stake baptism that day, so it was quaint and very special. Mom W, Quinn, Uncle Verl, Aunt Joyce, Norma and her children, Zel and his 2 kiddies and a few of our fabulous friends came. Vao, Lafo and Nathan got lost and didn't make it, but showed up at our home for the luncheon with a surprise visitor, Vao's sister Cindy! It was wonderful seeing her again.
I am so proud of Anson and for his decision to become a member of the Lord's church. Although he missed his Uncle Nick, Aunty Alissa and Yia-yia, he was excited to be baptized! Heaps of thanks to those of you who called him on his special day. Also, special thanks to Melissa for taking Anson's photos for his baptism announcement. You can visit her site and view her beautiful work by clicking here. Anson prepping for his first day of Scout Day Camp. He had such a great time that he's dying to go again.

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Deuce took off to Scout camp last week and had a blast. We went up to visit him on "Family Night."

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We had a blast this past week with the Carter clan. We enjoyed our visit with them and wished they didn't have to leave so soon. We miss them so much. Feeding the animals at the Hare Krishna temple.
Hiking up to the grotto.
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Norma and I took our children with Nathan (Vao and Lafo's son), to our town's annual Scottish festival.

We love attending our town's annual Scottish Festival where we use the opportunity to teach our children part of my hubby Scott's Scottish heritage (the MacDuff and Fife clans), and to give them a sense of honor and pride for their Scottish ancestry/history. A highlight at the event besides the bagpipe competition and the Highland games is the "Giant" battle where the kiddies get two options to fight, battle the "Giant" or the winner of the fight. I felt so sorry for the poor "giant" who looked like he was suffering from exhaustion and at times looked as if he was going to collapse. Poor guy.
Deus Juvat!

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Survival of the Fittest...

and trust me, I was not one of them! The Relay For Life event was a blast and at times, I was moved by others who shared the same passion to find a cure for cancer. The "Relay" started out with an opening ceremony on Friday, followed by fabulous live entertainment. Folks walked all night long and into the morning on a pathway through the park lit by luminaries that people decorated in honor of someone that has suffered or is now suffering from cancer. I felt a sense of reverence as I read the names on the luminaries and thought about my sister, Sharlene, who is battling cancer. My heart aches for her and more than anything, I desire a cure now more than ever! Our team of 17 members + 5 [Norma (as pregnant as she was, was out there walking!), with her hubby Mike and their children, Mom, Quinn and Derek], was awesome and even when the thunderstorm came, Tiani, Tatyana and Nikita pressed forward, drenched and cold. Oh, did I mention how romantic the stroll could be at 3 in the morning? I wished Scott was there but he did walk earlier in the evening with me and our children.
Well, when Saturday morning rolled around and the event was winding down, there were only the four of us remaining, Melissa, Amber, Beth (my sis-in-law), and me. I found myself suffering from exhaustion and body aches. I had aches in parts I didn't even know could ache!!! I was all too eager to get home, so I skipped breakfast that was offered at the event and gathered the older kids and gave them their packing assignments. As they were busy, I was suppose to wake up Hinckley, who was sound asleep in the tent. My feeble attempt ended quickly as I dozed off next to him.
Anyway, I'm still a little sore, but I've recovered. I'm so grateful for those of you who participated. I'm looking forward to next year's event.

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My sister, Sharlene's, luminary...

She's one of the main reasons I am so involved with Relay For Life.
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The beginning of the "Survivor's March." "Amazing Grace" was played by the bagpipes. It was touching...

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We got there in the morning to set up camp. Man, I love having kids to help. It sure does make my life a little easier. lol ;)

Some of our teammates. We sold malasadas, wands, halos, bracelets and leis.==========

D-man and his aunty Beth! ==========

Assembly of the masses...

Jarom, the bald guy in black (pictured above), is amazing! He does marathons and he ran (and walked a few times) for over 12 hours non-stop. I wish I had his endurance.

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Our lovely team captain and her kiddies. Her daughter is a cancer survivor!

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The "Woolf" pack was out in full force that evening!

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My brother-in-law, Tavale's, luminary bag...

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The "HOPE" hill!

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This was my favorite part of the evening...

You're probably wondering... what's up with that rasta hat?

It was part of our "Evolution of the 80's" talent, which we performed at 2 in the morning. Our team captain below played Bob Marley. She was hilarious!

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Goodnight, my angel

Time to close your eyes...