Thursday, February 28, 2013

30 Days!

POSSIBLE TMI ALERT: If you get queasy, don’t read it.  But this is life, and my blog, so there you go.  That was your disclaimer.
Kidney. Stones.
Who knew something so teeny tiny could cause so. much. PAIN?! 
It all started Friday afternoon, when I got the BIGGEST wave of nausea and spent part of the afternoon lying on the floor of my boss’ office with a trash can at my side.  I ended up picking myself up off the floor because I had made plans to drive to Tupelo to go to a Father-Daughter banquet for my stepdad, and once I put my mind to something, I WILL do it.  This hard-headedness has caused me to have some serious determination, but has also been the reason for some not-so-good decisions in my life! 
Everything seemed fine that night until I woke up in the morning with some mild bladder pain.  I have had this kind of pain before, and I figured it wasn’t anything that a few cranberry pills couldn’t fix.  Mom and I had a busy Saturday planned, and getting sick was not on the agenda.   Mom and I met Teresa and Tyler at Sweet Pepper’s in Tupelo (one of my favorites!) to have an early lunch and talk wedding reception plans!  I am so SO glad that the Camps are helping so much- not once have I thought of what kind of cake stand I want to have, when the first dance will be, what kind of tablecloths I will use, et cetera et cetera!  I guess in the back of my mind, I just figure that all these tiny details would work themselves out.  Thank goodness everyone was there to ask me all of this, because I would have never thought of these things on my own!  I also brought some wedding crafts that I had been working on to show off, and I am so excited about how everything is turning out!  Now, I just have to dedicate my weekends to being in CRAFT-MODE in order to get everything done in 30 days.  Piece of cake!  Hopefully :)
After lunch, Mom and I headed to Hobby Lobby to look at some fabric when I literally felt the most intense pain of my life in the lower left region of my back.  Mom immediately knew it was kidney pain, and we decided that I would go to the doctor first thing when I got back to Tuscaloosa.  Needless to say, on the drive from Hobby Lobby to Storie’s baby shower (I am SOO sorry I missed this, Storie) we decided that we had to see the doctor RIGHT THEN!  A few hours later, I had a shot for pain in my hip and we were off to fill three prescription meds for a kidney infection.   The plan was to gets lots of rest, and to head back to Tuscaloosa Sunday morning whenever I felt better.  So of COURSE, in my painkiller-stupor, I drive home Sunday morning to collapse on the couch and writhe in pain.  Monday morning I got up and forced so much fluid that I couldn’t stand it anymore and, to Justin’s joy, threw up everything I had eaten for the past two days.  It wasn’t pretty, folks.  And Justin cleaned up everything.  This one is a keeper, I tell ya.
After that incident, we promptly made our way to the doctor to make sure fluids were getting in me, when he mentioned the dreaded phrase “kidney stone”.  Eeek!!  I ended up getting the first IV of my life, and three veins blew in my left arm, and I currently look like a hardcore heroin shooter-upper.  After pumping me with two bags of fluid, meds to break up the stone (gross), and yet another shot of pain killers (we’re BFFs now), we headed on our merry way to Rite-Aid to get three MORE prescriptions filled.  And when I say “we”, I mean I went home and lay in the bathtub while Justin did all this for me (and bought me an AWESOME heating pad).  Again, he is a keeper. 
Thankfully now, I have only a dull pain in my kidneys and bladder, and I am weaning myself off of the pain killers.   Almost all of the stone has passed (hallelujahr), and I have a protruding water belly.   I think if someone were to stick a needle in my stomach, a steady stream of water would shoot out, much like a water balloon.   I am repeating the phrase “HEALTH BEFORE WEDDING DRESS” in my head as I chug more and more water, but with my dealings with my ED in the past, it is a little difficult! In elementary terms, my kidneys have gone from shriveled up raisins to plump little grapes, and I am trying to be patient while this extra plumpness goes away.  Pray that I continue to put my health FIRST! 

Also, 30 DAYS!  Considering there is no February 30th, I can’t say “one month”, but it is basically one month until I get a new last name and am a married lady!! I also have another bridal shower coming up in Tupelo on Saturday at Wet Paint!  So excited to see more of my friends and family, and to paint some pottery!

Monday, February 18, 2013

40 Days

So, I think I have neglected this little blog of mine for way too long.  I could say that this is because I have been busy with wedding things or have been too exhausted to blog, but those would be lies.  Truthfully, I have been a lazy bum lately and have been watching copious amounts of Lost and Sherlock on Netflix.  Really though, Justin and I joined Planet Fitness and have been working out a bit, and I have been able to spend lots of times with friends and family before it starts to really sink in that I have a lot of planning to do!
I had my first shower on February 2nd, and to say it was beautiful was an understatement- mason jars, a bunting banner, and stripey straws were all included, and it was oh-so-sweet! 




Mom even surprised me by making a cake for the shower!  She should be a full-time baker, right?  Right J

I was so glad to get to see a lot of my sweet friends and catch up!  I had forgotten how much I missed Columbus and seeing these girls every day, not to mention family that came from out of town.  Justin and I should find an excuse to get married every year just so I can see everyone!

Some of my sweet bridesmaids- excuse the blink!

Lovely Lockhearts!


After the shower, we had a little bachelorette party in which my only request was that I get to eat crab cakes for dinner.  So off to the Grill we went, and crab cakes were devoured.  Success!


And NOW we have 40 days!  40 days people!  And honestly, I really don’t have THAT much left to do.  Bridal party and family gifts have been ordered and wrapped, decorations have been gathered, color-coordinated stripey straws are here, and cute shoes have been purchased!   I am picking up my newly-altered wedding dress in two days, and will probably need to be dissuaded from wearing it around the house, and this also means I should probably stop giving in to all my pepperoni pizza Combo cravings I have had lately.  Sigh.  Thankfully, UA employees get the entire week of Spring Break off, which happens to be the week before the wedding, so I am saving major crafting time for then!  I have never been one to over-stress.  Rain or shine, goof-ups or none, at 3:00 on March 30th, I will be a wife, and besides, Mom has already done enough stressing for the both of us!
So in celebration of the 40-day mark, I have a few things to look forward to until then!
40 DAYS UNTIL
My vows HAVE to be written- no going back and making correction after correction!
I can have Combos again J
I get to see my 8 pretty girls getting ready with me
I officially gain another sweet family
I un-follow ALL wedding boards on Pinterest
I get to see Justin’s face when he sees his bride-to-be the morning of
I become Brittany Herndon Quinn!