Remicade approved!

After a lot of turns with the insurance company I finally got approved for Remicade treatments. This is my last resort, since I have pretty much tried everything else over the last 20 years. Nothing seems to really work anymore. Remicade is the latest hi tech medication out there for Chron's. It is actually derived from mice. It blocks the body's inflammation process, essentially shutting down the inflammation all over.

Many people have had a pretty immediate dramatic improvement, but I was apparently not one of them. It could take a few months to really work as well.

It is a very expensive treatment, the meds themselves costing about $2000 per treatment, plus the cost of having the 2-3 hour long infusion in the hospital.

I am going in for my second treatment on Tuesday next week, the initial treatment is at 0 week, then another at 2 and then again at 6. After that most people go in every 8 weeks or so.

Of course this medication comes with its share of serious risks, but at the moment I think the benefits outweighs the risks... Ask me later!

We are planning a little camping trip this upcoming Memorial Day weekend. I have rented a cabin in Myakka River State Park, adn we are going canoeing and hiking in the park. They have a canopy walk there that is pretty unique. Last summer when we camped we used a tent, but it is really hot and muggy here in Florida already, so I am glad we get to stay in a log cabin with AC and shower bathroom/shower facilities. These cabins were built back in the 30s but have been fully modernized.

Should be fun!

Today I am catching up on some work and just doing stuff on the computer. Nothing much going on I guess.

Out of the cave!

I feel like I have been in a cave the last three months, with being sick and K been working so much. Finally that seems to be over! Tomorrow we are attending a black tie event benefiting an organization helping developmentally challenged kids through riding theraphy. On Saturday we are spending the day with my friend S from New York, we are going to have lunch on the beach and then go for a cruise on Sarasota Bay. We should be home at 4:30 PM. At 6 PM we are going to attend a BBQ party on Manatee Ave, where there will be whole grilled pig and we will view the heritage parade that passes by just next to us. So we should have a full weekend!

Next Saturday we are going to have a little get together for S who is turning three. We will meet down at the beach on the north tip of Anna Maria Island. The beach there is lovely, and there is a great playground for the kids and picnic tables with grills so we can have a cockout. Should be a fun day!

See you later!

Where are they?

They said they would be here "just after 9:30 AM". Hmmm.... I won't be able to get anything done today if I have to sit around waiting for that stupid tree service. We are going to be gone for two days, and my MIL is staying over to take care of the dogs while we are gone. So I need to clean a bit to make myself feel better. It isn't horrible, but it needs cleaning. Grrr.......

Thank God it is over!

We just got over tax season. S and I have pretty much not seen K for the last three months. He has really stepped up his business this year, but that also meant working tax season 7 days a week LOOOONG hours.

To top it off I have been sick so much the last few months. I started a new med that totally fucked me up. It was a chemo med that supposedly wasn't that different from all the other chemo meds I have taken, but just a few hours after the first dose I got major diarrhea. The doc wanted me to stay on it, since I just really don't have any other treatment options at this time. I did, but it just completely drained me. I was upp all night going to the bathroom, never getting any solid sleep. After a month I just couldn't handle it any more, it made me too sick. The bad part is it stays in your system for at least a month after you stop taking it, so no immediate relief.

Then I got strep throat. No big deal... Then S came home with the rota virus. Normally that is a nasty stomach bug that will be over in a few days. Oh boy! Since I was already so bad off I got complelty wiped out by this! Trying to take care of S and everything else on top, it was hard. Luckily my mother in law came to the rescue and helped out with S. Finally I was so dehydrated I ended up in the hospital. I had lost 11 lbs in two weeks!

Last week everything finally calmed down. All three of us had been sick, so we were now looking forward to a nice Easter, celebrating the end of tax season and being able to hang out as a family again.

On Easter Sunday S started to projectile vomit. It was baaad! She even hurled in the fancy restaurant we went to. Then a day later K started to hurl. They are both still battling the bug (once again a big THANKS to S's school! We really appreciate all the bugs you share with us :X!)

I seem to have escaped the brunt of this round, but today I have extreme diarreah. And we have a hotel reservation in Orlando tomorrow. We are planning on spending a great day at the Magic Kingdom. So I guess I will pack extra clothes just in case and hope for the best...

Speaking about outings... Now when K is working normal hours again we have decided to do a full day outing every weekend for the next few months. Just to hang out and have fun. On our list of things we are going to do we have:

Disney World (this weekend)
Clifford the Big Red Dog LIVE! in Clearwater, coupled with a nice lunch on the beach
A visit to a local horse ranch where we are going to go horseback riding
A day tour to the island Egmont Key (only accessible by boat)
A day at Universal Studios Island of Adventure
A day at the water park Adventure Island in Tampa
A day at Cypress Gardens in Winter Haven

and lots of lots of nice days on the beach. The water temperature in the Gulf of Mexico is already at 75 degrees, so it should be nice!

I am currently waiting for a tree service company to come and pull out a giant ficus tree with a back hoe. It is going to cost us $500, but that thing needs to come out. The roots on ficus trees are really evil, growing under the house and all over. People really don't think about the consequencesbefore they plant these things. They just think it is great with a fast growing privacy tree, but these guys are set to be 90 feet tall. Not a good thing... So hopefully they will be here soon so I can get my day going.

Life

It has been a busy morning. I have been out with the flu for a few days BAD, (my own fault for not getting a flu shot this year, a must when you are as sickly as I am ). Today I feel I got some energy back.

This morning it was really cold, and when S woke up her diaper was so wet her PJs was wet too. I changed her and then we both jumped into my bed to warm up a bit. Stan the dog was there too, and we had a lazy half hour just cuddling. After breakfast I took S to her school, where she goes every Tuesday and Thursday. I have since then been working, sending out invoices and other things.

We are having a birthday lunch for K, since he turns 40 on Tuesday. I made arrangements for us at 1 PM at the Beach House, a really nice place on Anna Maria Island, with an amazing view of the Gulf of Mexico. I also ordered an ice cream cake, which K doesn't know about. I will pick it up tomorrow and drop it off at the restaurant, so it will be a surprise for him. We should be about 9 adults and 3 kids. Should be fun!

I have a hair appointment right before the party, and I can't decide if I should get bangs or not... I am just a bit tired of the same old hair... We will see!

I better get online to book a hotel, we are going to K's grampa's birthday party next weekend, in West Palm Beach. He turns 97! It is just such a long drive, almost 4 hours one way, so I thought it would be better if we arrived the day before and stayed the night.

See ya!

Need... sleep...

I am just so tired... I could use some sleep for sure! But that is not going to happen as long as I have a 2-year old to take care of ;-)!

I am working on a translation of a user manual for Bench Press Machine. Can it be much more boring? It dosn't really help in keeping me alert... And it has to be done by the end of today, since it is due tomorrow at 4 PM Hong Kong time, and they are about 13 hours ahead in time...

I really like this agency in Hong Kong, they have been sending tons of work my way the last few months. Apparently they must like my work!

Well, back to work before it is time for lunch. I definitly need a some Diet Coke (aka caffeine)...

Take care!

Early morning

It has been a very busy morning! We were up early at 7:30 AM, throwing in the first of many loads of laundry. I have been doing all kinds of cleaning, but it barley shows yet! That is what happens when you have been sick a lot and then working like crazy! A total mess!

The carpet is non-savable, the dogs have just ruined by peeing in a couple of spots, plus it is light beige, so all satins are highly visible (think 2-year old with bright red posicle...) I can't wait until we can rip it all out and replace it with tile floors in the entire house! We just shelled out $8500 for a new roof, so it will have to wait just a bit. I hate carpet!

I cleaned my desk today, I relly went into all the nooks and crannies, I didn't just cram everything in a cupboard out of site... Ken is going to get a shock!

Better go for now, the husband is home for a 10 minute stopover...

eBay

Cool! I just made $78 on a few test auctions! I am waiting until Tuesday for uploading all the "good" stuff that is likely to bring in some good cash, but I had a few mixed auctions going, and they did really good! I have been doing eBay auctions for a few years now, and I love it! I both buy and sell, and especially selling Sarah's old clothes is great! A lot of people love buying gently used childrens' clothes. Good for me! I sell her last season, and whatever I make I use for buying her new clothes for the upcoming season. I usually sell twice really big, before the spring season and before the fall season. I meet lots of nice people on eBay. In fact, I like the Internet in general. I found my husband there, I even bought my new car on the Net, and saved a bundle! I also adopted a dog through the Net. I buy most of my stuff online. I just love it!

Take care!

Being sick and hurricanes...

I have pretty much spent all spring being sick on and off, or at least so it feels... First I had my appendix removed in the beginning of May, then I got a whopping case of streph throat, followed by a long stay in the hospital with a stupid blood clot in my groin. My entire left leg is still messed up, hopefully it will improve, beacause it is rather impairing...

We JUST dodged hurricane Dennis, we kissed our lucky star once again. Last year we had 4 scares right on top of each other, but a major hurricane like this in July? Never actually heard of before!

Otherwise life in Florida is quite slow right now, the high heat and humidity brings the heath index way up, and it is hard to muster the energy to move about outside. Not that I can do much of that anyway due to the leg!

I have just started loading things up on eBay, falls sales for toddler clothes usually start to pick up greatly just after the 4th of July weekend. I had 36 auctions ending yesterday, have 14 more today, and I will upload 25 on Tuesday night. They say for Toddler stuff the best start/end time is Tuesday nights after dinner time, and I have to agree that has worked for me.

Well, that is all for now!

Amazing little girl!

I guess they are right when they say your life changes when you have a baby! I have been so busy since she was born. She is an amazing little girl, so full of life and so sweet. I am very proud of her! She is now almost 22 months old, will be 2 in May!!! WOW! Where did all that time go?

We did finally buy a house about a year ago, and we really love it. I painted all the rooms the way I wanted them, no more all white apartment walls! It is a nice feeling knowing you can do whatever you want with the place.

She is very active, but I manage to work quite a lot actually. She is pretty independent and likes to play by herself. Her room is next to my office, but she usually hangs out in the living room or in the office with me. She is right now watching the Swedish version of Cinderella, she loves the evil cat and his antics.

My husband finally quit his high paying job and is now out on his own. He is a bit nervous, but so far it is going great. He will most likely take on some consulting jobs after tax season is over, since things are bound to slow down then.

Well, I better go and get dinner started now. I had food poisoning over the weekend, so I haven't eaten that much the last few days, and now I am starving!