My New Favorite Photo!

My folks came up this year for Easter (okay, really it was a ploy...they mostly came up to meet LB), and we had a great time with them (and Amy and Ster, too, of course)! (And yes, they like him, and he likes them, and it went great!) But the best part was, despite the fact that I'm normally no good at the self-photo business, we FINALLY got a photo of the two of us together where I think we both look cute! YAY! :) ( Is that even possible? A photo where we BOTH look decent?!? WHAT?!) So there you have it, a cute photo of us at the tulip festival on a rare (GORGEOUS!) sunny spring day in Portlandia.

And just because they're so stinking cute, one of these guys, too. :) Love mi familia!

SO, so, SO Delicious (and SUPER Healthy) "Pasta"!

This is a Jillian Michaels Recipe, and you guys, it is seriously SO good! I added mushrooms and just used spaghetti sauce instead of tomatoes (because I was not feeling so hot and just needed some food so I could take my pain meds) and added in a little garlic, but same idea. It is DELICIOUS!! And if your kiddos are afraid of veggies, if you peel the dark green skin off the zucchini and don't put it in with the rest of it, it honestly looks (and tastes) a lot like linguini noodles, so they probably won't even notice (I'm not afraid of veggies, so I just tossed it all in). I didn't have cheese so I didn't add it, but I'm sure that would make it even more amazing! :) And the best part is it is ridiculously healthy (and super low-calorie)! Bring on the summer veggies!

A HEALTHY PASTA ALTERNATIVE

Craving pasta? I've swapped your usual pasta for a low-carb and highly nutritious version made with zucchini. Even your inner child will enjoy these veggies!

Veggie Pasta With Italian Chicken Sausage

Ingredients:

• 2 small zucchini
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 garlic clove, diced
• 1 cup diced tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 pound cooked Italian chicken sausage, sliced into small pieces
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, or to taste

Instructions:

1. Using a vegetable peeler and turning the zucchini as you go, slice the zucchini into ribbons. In a skillet, over medium heat, sauté zucchini in 1 tablespoon of oil until it's soft and the edges are clear. Add salt and pepper to taste.

2. In a separate pan over medium heat, heat remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and add garlic. Sauté for a minute, and then add the tomatoes and oregano. Simmer for a few minutes, and then stir in the sausage.

3. Spoon sauce over zucchini. Sprinkle with Parmesan to taste.

Makes 2 servings.

The Only Good Thing About Surgery

Flowers from my sweet sister--aren't they gorgeous!?!? I missed taking a photo before the roses were kind of bloomed out, but they are still beautiful!

My mom and sister (and consequently my brother-in-law) have been such rockstars this last week taking care of me. My mom came up for a few days and traded off with LB being with me in the hospital (my sister also traded off when she got there after work), then my mom took care of me for a couple days after LB had to go back to work. When she had to leave to go help my grandparents in Montana for a couple days, my sister took a day off work to take me back to the doctor for my post-op appointment and to hang out and take care of me. I seriously had no idea I still wouldn't really be able to be on my own after the first day or two. Little did I know...

Amy gave me the SWEETEST care package EVER. She gave me an amazing new Kleen Kanteen water bottle that I have yet to be without since I got home from surgery, an awesome book about Portland, a sweet rice bag hot pack, and this AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS tea called "Meadow" (which, if you didn't know, was my camp name for years and years). Plus she brought me a GORGEOUS bouquet of flowers (I vaguely remember pretty much everyone who walked into my room commenting on them for the rest of the day).

My work sent flowers, too, which was super sweet. My supervisor called me the day after surgery to check in with me and had them sent to my apartment after that. The only unfortunate part was that the decision had been made to stay at Amy and Sterling's for a few days (since I couldn't drive), so they sat outside my apartment for a few days before Amy brought me back over to pick them up. But the are really, really lovely.

So, I have to say, despite feeling like complete crap, having gobs of gorgeous fresh flowers at my apartment has been an definite upside to this surgery business! Thanks to my family and my sweet boy for taking such great care of me. And especially thanks to Amy and Ster for letting Allee and me crash at their house and invade their space for awhile, and for helping take care of Allee, too, while I was recovering.

My lovely flowers, minus the ones from LB.

Post-Surgery

Truth be told, this is about two days after surgery, and I'm actually looking pretty decent here. The first couple days were scary.

Surgery is OVER, hallelujah, and I couldn't be happier. I think, overall, it went really well and was successful, but it has been a little rough.

So, for an update in case you missed what actually happened, they:

• took out my ethmoid sinuses (the ones between your eyes)
• and my sphenoid sinuses (the ones at the back of your nose)
• which basically means they combined it into one big cavity instead of a bunch of small passages that can easily get blocked off when I get sick
• removed a bunch of super inflamed tissue
• widened the passages into my maxillary sinuses (the ones in your cheeks that drain uphill)
• shaved down my turbinate bones so they'd stop blocking my sinuses (turbinates are down low, on either side of your nose, kind of by the sides of your nostrils)
• straightened my septum up high where it was deviated
• which basically meant he had to break my nose and re-set it

So, no wonder it hurt, huh?! (That and the fact that, as April put it, "They had instruments INSIDE YOUR SKULL!!!" Truth.)

Apparently there was a lot more inflammation than the surgeon anticipated, so it was a little more complicated and involved than he expected, and took a bit longer to do.

I had a heck of a time coming out of the anesthesia. Apparently I spiked a fever in recovery--I remember them saying, "She's too hot, she's too hot, we have to get her into a lighter gown." Between that, having a hard time waking up so they couldn't give me more pain meds, being in tons of pain, and the meds I finally did get making me super nauseous, we didn't get to leave the hospital until almost 10:00 at night (they thought I'd probably be out of there around 4 or 5ish).

I'm not usually a big baby when I'm sick (in fact, I'm usually pretty dang tough), but I will tell you I have NEVER felt so miserable in my whole life. And when LB and my mom and sister got me back to my apartment that night, the mirror told me that my outward appearance reflected it--SCARY. I've never looked so terrible. EVER. My family assures me that is the truth.

So I guess the good news is that LB has officially seen me at my absolute worst and he is still sticking around! :) He was a CHAMP. Seriously. While I was in surgery, he went and bought me flowers (which I unfortunately neglected to get a photo of until they were already pretty much bloomed out...oops...but they were beautiful!) and this sweet little stuffed puppy.

My puppy might be a bit jealous. ;) Or she might just think it's for her. :)

Don't worry--he brought her a big bone to chew on, too--he thinks of everything!

He came over and set them up in my room, let Allee out, turned on the lamp by my bed and turned the covers down and laid out my pajamas--isn't he the sweetest?! And last night when we were talking about how awful I looked, he said, "You just looked like you felt miserable." Awww.

He slept on the couch that first night at my apartment and got up at all hours of the night to make me toast and get me ice and water and meds and whatever else I needed. He's a sweetheart.

So, yep, I'm doing okay. Still in some pain, but the meds do a good job keeping it under control. The only tricky thing is timing it right so I can still drive and function now that I'm back to work. I have a doctor's appointment on Wednesday and one more two weeks later, and then hopefully this will all be behind me. Thanks so much for your thoughts and prayers and well wishes!

My Sweetheart and My Girl

Aren't they sweet? Allee and LB love each other so much--it makes my heart happy. He was wrestling with her and playing with her the day before my surgery, and they paused to take a break. So cute! :)

Surgery Day!

I'm just getting ready to head over to the hospital for my sinus surgery. A few things I've learned:

1. The night before surgery appears to be the time that people want to tell you surgery horror stories. (Yep, I did tell my mom that it probably wasn't the most helpful thing for me last night.)

2. My family rocks. My mom is up here for a few days to take care of me, and after she leaves on Thursday, Amy's taking the day off to take me to the doctor. They're so great.

3. I have the best boyfriend! LB took two days off work to be here for me to take care of me. He's the best. Did I mention he did all of this voluntarily with no hinting or suggesting or asking on my part? When I told him about my surgery, he said, "I'll be there." And then he called and said he was taking the time off to be here. So nice! :) And he just keeps saying over and over "You'll be fine. Don't worry! You'll be totally fine."

Hope so. :)

Wish me luck! :)