Horsin' Around

Last weekend we met my parents in the land of bourbon and horses (a/k/a Kentucky) since we weren't able to go back to Wisconsin for the holidays. The night before we left we innocently stopped at a friend's house to give them our house key so they could watch our dogs, and somehow we ended up staying there and playing drinking games until 3 a.m. Needless to say, the eight hour drive the next morning was extremely long. I also get carsick really easily, so I spent the entire ride through the mountains doing everything in my power to not throw up. When we finally got there, we opened gifts and ate pizza with my parents and then went to bed.

On Saturday we visited a horse park and saw some of the most famous horses ever. Here we are taking a little break from all the horsin' around:

The three of us have been passing around a very nasty head cold for the past ten days, and I noticed something interesting--since when do they put motivational quotes on cough drop wrappers??

Then we went back to the hotel and had a family game night. We played Last Word, and it was pretty fun. You really have to use your brain though, so I was a little slow coming up with words since my brain is fogged with cold medicine.

On Sunday we went on a ride through horse country and saw some pretty horses. My mom had a close encounter with a couple and got some good pictures, but I was still in the car trying to convince myself my stomach wasn't doing somersaults. I really hate having such a sensitive stomach--I can never enjoy car rides unless the road is perfectly straight and flat.

Then we went to a horse race track called Keeneland, which is pretty cool considering my maiden name is Keene. The actual track was closed for the season, but we didn't let that stop us from sneaking up to the clubhouse suites and taking some pictures.

After we escaped the horse track without getting caught sneaking around, we went to the Woodford Reserve to see how bourbon is made. I'm not a huge fan of bourbon, so Hubs ended up drinking three of the four shots we got at the end of the tour. I bet that made him feel pretty good!

And just like that, the weekend was already over. How was everyone else's weekend?

~Fluffy Girl~ 

  

Just the Three of Us

I hope everyone had a great holiday! Ours was very low key since it was just the three of us this year. On Christmas Eve we went bowling, and the most amazing thing happened during the second game--I actually beat both Hubs and Boy! Unfortunately it wasn't because I bowled really well--it was because they both had a really bad game. Oh well, I'll take the victory!

After bowling we came home and played games for presents. If you won a game, you got to open a gift! I totally kicked their butts in Yahtzee. I just couldn't lose! AND I even beat the all-time high score. Look at all those Yahtzee's!!

Hubs got me a gift that was meant as more of a joke, but I really actually like it! Check it out:

NKOTB Greatest Hits CD and poster!! 

This was actually the first present I opened, so of course we had to listen to it while we played games. It brought back lots of childhood memories for me. I was infatuated with Donnie Wahlberg back in the day. He was so dreamy :)

Christmas morning we got up and opened the presents we had left and our stockings. Then I went for a 4 mile run, and in the afternoon we went to a movie. Just like that, Christmas was over!

Honestly, this holiday was bittersweet because it is the last time that the three of us will be together for the holidays before Boy leaves for college--next year, Hubs will be deployed in Afghanistan. I tried not to think about it, but I'm not gonna lie....it was in the back of my mind all week. I hate that he has to leave again in a few months, but I'm gonna have to pull it together so we can enjoy the rest of our time together before he deploys.

What were some of the highlights of your holiday? 

Did you have snow where you live?

~Fluffy Girl~

Small World

The weekend was super duper busy with shopping, gift wrapping, running, got my hair done, more shopping, more gift wrapping, cleaning, laundry, and trying to dodge all the sick germies in my house. Both Hubs and Boy had a bad cold, but luckily I have somehow managed to stay healthy (so far). I really hope they both feel better today since we are about to spend the next five days together!

On Saturday I went for my run on a 3 mile loop trail. While I was on my second lap, a lady I had passed by earlier gave me a high five and said, "You go girl! You are doing great!!" It's so nice to have a complete stranger encourage me and give me props for my effort. That lady made my day and put a smile on my face :)

Funny story--when I was getting my hair done the other day, my stylist and I were catching up on everything that has happened over the past two months since I saw her last. She asked me a question about Boy's relationship status and called his girl by her name, which I thought was a little odd since I couldn't recall ever telling her that. Well, it turns out that she does her hair too, as well as her mother's! The stylist put two and two together when girlfriend's mom told her a story and she felt like she had heard it before--from me! It sure is a small world.

 ~Fluffy Girl~

Staying Busy

This has been a crazy busy week! I have taken on a lot more responsibilities at work recently, and my boss wasn't kidding when he said my workload would triple or possibly quadruple. Honestly, I prefer to be super-slammed busy because it makes time fly by at work. I finally just got caught up, as you can see here by my completely empty inbox. I'm sure it won't stay that way for long!

My job can take me to some pretty interesting places sometimes. By interesting places I mean things like this:

And this:

Never in a million years would I have thought I would have a job that required me to do the things I have done here. When we finally move away in a couple years, I will have a ton of new skills to add to my resume, including hanging out at the dump and scavenging for material.

I have managed to stay on track with my running schedule this week, but my shins are not happy. Hopefully after resting them today I can still pound out my long run tomorrow. I'm thinking about going with the running group again in the morning, but we'll see about that. It was just really awkward the first time I went, so I'm not sure if it's really my thing.

Yesterday after my run I also played a little tennis with Hubs and Boy, but I'm no match for them. Boy is still the tennis champ, which pisses Hubs off beyond words. It's funny to watch them be all competitive with eachother.

Most of the time I just ran around being the ball girl...and taking random pictures of my pretty pink and black tennis racket.

This week I finally got my prescription for Armour Thyroid, and today is my second day taking it. Of course it will take some time to figure out if it will make me feel any better.  I have read what a lot of other hypothyroidism patients have said about this natural hormone (taken from pigs), and a large majority of them love it. I hope I do too! Keep your fingers crossed :)

This weekend is going to be a busy one--I still have more holiday shopping to do, wrapping presents, etc etc. I can't wait until this holiday season is over. I know that sounds all scroog-y, but this time of year always stresses people out and makes everyone crabby. I'm ready for the new year to begin!

~Fluffy Girl~

Going for All Pink

So today I was looking at my marathon training schedule, and I noticed a few things that I totally do not like.

 
First of all, there are way too many X's on this thing and not enough pink (X's are bad and pink, as always, is good). Second, apparently Mondays & Thursdays and me running do not get along very well. I'm thinking about taking Monday's off the schedule completely or making them a cross training/walking day, but I'll give them another week or two and see how it goes. I'm usually still a little sore on Mondays after my long runs on Saturdays, so that extra day of rest might just be what this fluffy ol' body needs. My goal this week is to go for all pink--no slacking!!

Another not-so-cool thing is that I have also been tracking my weight each week on Mondays, and it has fluctuated up and down by two pounds every single week. This week it's up by two pounds again. Very frustrating to be doing all this running and not seeing any weight loss whatsoever. Screw you, thyroid disease. Grrrrr.

Speaking of that, today I got a call from the endocrinologist office--not from the doctor himself, but from one of the nurses. Apparently he didn't wish to speak to me again after I cussed him out last week over the prescription fiasco. Anyways, the nurse was calling to tell me that the doctor was able to put in a "special order" for the Armour Thyroid for me. I guess being a bitch pays off sometimes! I am really psyched to try this medication, and hopefully I have good results like so many other thyroid patients have. Fingers crossed :)

Subject change: Last week was the holiday party for my husband's unit, and it was...shall we say...interesting. The best part of the night was when we picked up a special someone on the way there.

Ho Ho Ho

It's not every day you can say you had Santa Claus in your vehicle!

I'm super glad my work doesn't do a holiday party--I'm not sure I could handle spending any more time with my boss (or any of the other grumpy old men I work with, for that matter), especially if I wasn't being paid to be there!

What about you--does your employer do a holiday party? Do you like going, or do you dread it? Any funny and/or embarrassing stories from holiday parties? Sound off!

~Fluffy Girl~

He's a Quack

Alright, I know I've left everyone hanging the last few days since my doctor appointment earlier this week so here's a long story short: This new doctor is a quack.

I started out the appointment by explaining all my symptoms, and believe me the list is quite long. The doctor typed everything I said into my record on the computer so I know he heard what I was saying, but he wasn't listening. There's a big difference. Strike One.

Then he showed me the results of my blood test which verified exactly what I thought was happening: all my thyroid levels are all on the low end of the "normal" spectrum. As in, JUST ABOVE the minimum. I explained to him all the things that I went through the last time my levels were low back in 2010-2011 and how my doctor in Texas helped me find my "sweet spot". I told him exactly what dosage of Synthroid I was taking and how amazing I felt at that time, and that I had huge weight loss success when I was at the higher end of the "normal" spectrum. But, just like his predecessor, this new doctor refuses to change my dosage because I am indeed within the normal range. Strike Two. 

Next we talked about changing my medication to a natural brand instead of the synthetic that I have been taking my entire life. There have been numerous studies conducted that show that a majority of people felt better and had less symptoms when taking the natural thyroid hormones, and they had better weight loss success. I have read numerous articles about it (it's called Armour Thyroid), and I asked him if that was something that the military prescribes. There is some controversy surrounding this medication, but the doctor said that I could definitely try it and see if I felt better. He calculated the conversion to find the dosage I would need and entered the prescription in the computer. It seemed like this was a small victory and maybe things would get better--until I went to the pharmacy. The doctor did indeed put the prescription in for the Armour Thyroid, but when I went to pick it up I was told that military pharmacies don't carry that medication.  Seeing how I was on a military base, at a military hospital, being seen by a military doctor, don't you think he would know that I couldn't even get this medication there???!!! Strike Three.

HE'S OUT!!  Quack quack.

~Fluffy Girl~

Crazy Time at the Hospital

Well folks, the long anticipated doctor appointment occurred today. On the way home I was incredibly upset about the outcome and fought back tears of disappointment the entire 30 miles. Then when I got home, Hubs gave me lots of hugs and kisses and rubbed my back, and then he forced me to go on a run. I felt a little better after that. And yes, he actually did force me--he literally put my socks and running shoes on my feet, smacked my ass, said "Go get it, Champ" and sent me on my way. There was no arguing with the giant. 

During my run I decided maybe it will all turn out okay. Before I get into the boring details of my appointment, let me first entertain you with the absurd story of my arrival at the hospital. 

Upon entering the parking garage, I knew it was going to be a major pain in the ass to find a spot just by looking at the faces of the other drivers. They had that 'Oh my god, I'm about to drive my vehicle off the edge of the top level" look on their faces. I drove around and around and around the five levels numerous times trying to find someone to stalk to their vehicle so I could have their spot. Unfortunately, there were about 20 other people doing the same exact thing as me. I finally found a spot, pulled in, and heaved a huge sigh of relief. As I got out of the car, I noticed a blue line surrounding my parking spot and let out a long string of curse words that would send my mother running for the holy water to douse me with. It was a damn handicapped spot! Why hadn't I noticed this when I parked there?! Ugh. I got back in the car for another five laps around the parking garage. Finally I found a spot on the top level, so then I had the pleasure of running through the pouring rain to the stairs. I got all the way to the main building of the hospital, but somehow I was at a different entrance than I usually use. The Naval hospital is ginormous, so it took me five minutes to figure out where I was in the building and then navigate my way through numerous corridors to the endocrinology department. I finally found it and then waited in line to get checked in behind a mother with a screaming baby. Babies are cute and all, but I have no patience for them when they are screaming in a public place. It was finally my turn so I stepped up to the desk, and every military wife's worst nightmare happened....I couldn't find my military ID. You are pretty much worthless without your ID on a military installation and they wouldn't allow me to check in without it, so I had to sprint back through the building, back up the 5 levels of stairs in the parking garage--still in the pouring rain I might add--and then I couldn't find my car. So now not only had I lost my military ID, but also my vehicle. After another few minutes of running around like a loony tune, I finally found my car. I got in, shook my hair out like a dog, and frantically started searching for my ID. I found it in the crack between my seat and the console. I have no idea how it got there since I had just used it to get in the gate, but who really knows at that point. I probably threw it in a fit of rage after realizing my first choice of a parking spot had been illegal. So then I had to run back down the five levels of stairs, and when I got to the bottom I realized I was at yet another entrance that I didn't recognize. Once inside, I came to the conclusion that I wasn't even in the right building. I grabbed the first person I saw who looked like they might know where the hell I was and asked ordered them to take me all the way to the endocrinology department because at that point I was soaked to the bone (and remember how I just said the other day how much I despise being wet from the rain?!), I was pissed off, and I couldn't even think straight. I must have looked just crazy enough to be scary, because the young sailor didn't say a word as he quickly took me through two buildings and right up to the check-in desk at Endo. He was gone before I even had the chance to thank him, but I'm sure his quick escape from the wacky lady was reward enough.

From there, my time at the hospital didn't get any better. Since I have practically written half a novel tonight though, I think I will save the details of my disappointment with the new doctor for my next post. 

Stay tuned!

~Fluffy Girl~

Bottom Line

Well tomorrow is the day I meet my new endocrinologist, and I hope he's ready for me! I have spent a lot of time this last week reading up on different treatment options and gathering other information to talk to him about. I hope he really is as wonderful as the nurse says he is, because I'm totally stressed out about my weight gain and other symptoms I'm experiencing. I just want to feel good, have energy, and be healthy. Is that too much to ask?

I haven't been running much the past two weeks--shin pain and complete lack of energy have stolen all my motivation--and my marathon training plan is pretty much in the toilet right now. It also hasn't helped that it has been raining here the past few days, and I absolutely despise running in the rain. Something about my head and face being wet and cold just really does not sit well with me!  The last half marathon I did was in the rain, and it totally ruined the experience for me. I had a chill for days after that no matter how many layers of clothing I put on or cups of hot chocolate and soup I consumed. I may have to give in and start going to the gym on rainy days to run on the treadmill. Not ideal, but I guess it is better than doing nothing at all.

Bottom line is this: I have to get back on track immediately, or this marathon is not going to happen for me.

~Fluffy Girl~

Long Week

Even though I had an extended weekend, this week has dragged on forever and been really stressful. Why do multiple stressful situations always have to happen at the same time? You can be going along in your life just fine, and then BAM! A bunch of crappy things happen all at once. Well, that pretty much sums up my week. 

BUT, let's not focus on the negative. Here's a few positive things that happened lately:

1.   I had an employee appraisal at work yesterday and got another raise, with the promise of another increase after the new year.
2.  I finished my five mile training run yesterday even though it was slow and painful. Darn shins are killing me! But at least I finished, and that is what matters.
3. I got an earlier appointment with my new endocrinologist. Luckily he had a cancellation, so he can get me in next week! That is way better than the January date he originally gave me. Yay! Super pumped about this.

And here's a goofy picture of Hubs and I last weekend at Nauticus Museum. Funny thing is I am standing on my tip-toes just to see out the window, and Hubs is just standing normally. He's such a giant!



Annnnd this is my favorite pic from the weekend:



What about everyone else? How was your week--good or bad? Share something :)

~Fluffy Girl~

Derailed

I'm back! I got a little derailed over the past week when my brother and his wife came to visit, but I'm ready to get back on track. We had lots of fun showing them around the area and just hanging out. We had lots of good laughs and created some memories that will be talked about for years. It is always an interesting time when the five of us get together!

One good thing about getting a little off track on my running was that it gave my shins a much needed break. I only ran on Monday and Saturday last week, so my legs got some good recovery time in between. I'm beginning to wonder if the pain is more than just shin splints and possibly something more serious like a stress fracture. I ran 3 miles yesterday and had some pain, but I pushed through it and finished at the best pace I've had since I started my training. Tomorrow I'm scheduled for 5 miles, so I guess we will see how that goes.

I'm still waiting to hear back from my new endocrinologist about the results of my blood test. I thought I would have heard something by now, so I will be calling him tomorrow to see what my thyroid levels are. I'm really anxious to meet with him to discuss my weight and other health issues--this has gone on far too long, and I am really getting sick of it. I just want to feel good again!

~Fluffy Girl~