Health Update -- Good News!

I thought I'd give everyone an update on my tummy issues.

As you read earlier, or maybe you didn't, I went to see a Naturopathic doctor in Irvine.  He told me to stop my Prilosec (my GI doctor had me on 4 capsules a day, 2 in the morning and 2 in the pm) and my Bentyl (which helps with my abdominal cramping).  He sent me home with 3 new supplements to take instead, just once before bed.

They are working wonderfully!  I never thought about taking supplements instead of prescribed meds, but you know what?  I feel like perhaps God made all of these natural remedies for us to use in these types of cases.  Why not use them and put natural things in my body instead of these man made, processed drugs?  I figure the older I get, the more my body is going to feel used.  I like to think that if I use more natural products, perhaps they'll help my body stay in a better stay and age slower?  Who knows, but I like my thought process!

In addition to fantastic natural tummy meds, I also started taking Nettle.  I went into Mother's Market one day because I was sick of spending money on Allegra and not being able to breathe.  I asked the helpful lady what is good for allergies and she immediately came back with Nettle.  Apparently, it is good for more than just allergies!  Who knew?  I bought the $7 bottle and within 10-20 minutes of taking my first capsule, I could breathe perfectly!  I was sneezing less, my nose was less inflamed, it was incredible!

As far as food allergy results, I finally got those returned to me.  The highest levels kind of floored me!  They include cranberries, whey (which makes sense, since milk products make me so sick), coffee and crab!  Weird.  But even though those were the highest levels, the were still low/within range.  This doesn't mean I don't have an intolerance though.  We know for sure I have an intolerance to milk, that's for sure!

The next step is my Adrenal testing.  The doctor is thinking that perhaps my Adrenal Glands are working too hard (possibly due to stress) and producing too much Cortisone.  This causes a number of side effects, including exhaustion.  So, I will do this test tomorrow and see what the results say.

Tomorrow I go in for a much needed deep tissue massage and then I get my hair done.  We'll see how stressed I am after that! :)  I was told several times by multiple massage therapists that I need to get a mssage at least once a week.  How often do I go?  Well, maybe once every 6 months?  I need to change that...

A Day In L.A.

(The Vanity Fair after party for the Oscars across the street from Saddle Ranch.  Who knew?)

You know, thinking about where I live, you'd think I'd be in L.A. WAY more than I am.  I used to go pretty often in my late teens an early 20's.  There is so much to see and do, I'm not really sure what stops me from going more.

(Random picture of a guy falling off a building.)

Oh, that's right.  I live in Southern California where a simple 35 minute drive turns into 2 hours and 47 minutes.  Got it.

(So crazy to see this band with a billboard and hear them on the radio!  Good for them, sad for me.  Now I have to pay more to go to their shows.)

Well, I am here to tell you that I did venture past my Orange Curtain with my friend Jenn for a day of fun in L.A.  The goal was to see some stars' houses, eat at Saddle Ranch Chop House, and grab some delicious gluten free treats from Babycakes NYC.

What an interesting day it turned out to be, haha!

We start the day in the late morning and decided it be best to go to Shannen Doherty's house.  It wasn't until on our way there we realized it was not only Oscar weekend, but the day OF the Oscars.  Sweet.  Traffic was surprisingly better than expected, so, yay!

As we came upon Ms. Doherty's address, there was nothing but a wall.  We drove up and down the street several times before we decided that she's very private, and that is why we didn't actually see her house.  And how fun that she lives in the 90210!

Our next stop was Courteny Cox's house.  Well, we never found it but we DID find the Wonderland Murders house.  Yikes.  Jenn had to fill me in on what actually took place on this street.  I had no idea, yet here were were, on Wonderland.  It's always a crazy feeling you're in the presence of this type of place.  Where people were actually brutally murdered.  It's just an odd feeling because it's so hard to believe it happened in real life and not just on television...  Weird.

(Saddle Ranch Chop House, Sunset.)

By now, I know this is awful after what we just talked about, we were starving.  We decided it was time to hit up Saddle Ranch Chop House for lunch.  What a great place!  Jenn told me about this place as we were watching Bret Michaels' "Rock of Love".  The food there is delicious!  It was very entertaining watching people ride the mechanical bull in the middle of the room.  The staff was awesome and very friendly.  Seems like they really enjoy their jobs!  I ordered The Hollywood Burger and it was DELICIOUS!!!  I have been craving it recently and even tried making it myself...  Not even close, haha!  I must go back soon.

(The menu.)

(The Hollywood Burger.  YUM!!!)

(This guy was a putz and acting like an idiot and so they let him ride the bull to make him happy.  To the tune of Enrique Iglesias' "I Can Be Your Hero".  HAHA!)

(And then he got smacked in the behind by the bull on the way down.)

After Saddle Ranch, it was time for something sweet, so we were on our way to Babycakes NYC!  I probably spent $30 on pastries and even bought a mug.  What do I need a mug for?  Well, hot chocolate, I guess!  Haha!  My favorite is the blueberry donut and the brownie cupcake with mint frosting.  YUM!  This is another place i'd like to frequent more often.

(Babycakes NYC.)

Our last stop was Donnie Wahlberg's house.  Yes, you read that right: Donnie Wahlberg, not his hot younger brother, Marky Mark, but Donnie from NKOTB.  Now I was never a NKOTB fan and neither was Jenn.  At least not until she saw them in concert a couple of years ago, haha!  We parked on the street and decided to get out of the car since we'd been sitting all day.  Nice place, from what we saw!  And someone was watching TV in the back room, too!  Creepers, haha!

(Jenn, the creeper.)

And so it was time to go home.  We were both exhausted but decided we'd like to do this again sometime.  I'm hoping for sooner rather than later, mostly for the food reason...  YUM!

Rainbow!

It's about time.  Time to blog about my very first trip to a little place called Maui in Hawaii.  After living there for two years and visiting many, many times before and after, I finally made it to Maui.

In a Facebook post from a friend we met in Australia, Marisa and I discovered that Pippy would visiting Hawaii and wanted to reunite.  Of course, as soon as I saw this post I immediately interrupted and said I was coming to this reunion as well.  After all, it had been November of 2008 that we'd seen her!  Thank heavens for Facebook and the ability to keep in touch with fantastic friends!

After many emails and several Skype dates, we made up our itinerary and got our dates set!  I flew in a week after Pippy had been there since I was taking unpaid time off from work and was there a total of a little over a week.  

The flight over to Honolulu was just incredible.  I couldn't have asked for a better seat, even though I traded to be in the middle one instead of my aisle.  I sat next to an older gentleman who, come to find out, was a kid on Ford Island during the attack of Pearl Harbor.  I also sat next a Samoan gentleman, who was the one I traded seats with so he could stretch his feet out.  The Pearl Harbor survivor told me many stories on the flight over the Pacific.  He told me how he could remember the sound and vibrations from the first strike.  He was outside playing with his brother.  His father ran outside and grabbed them, securing them in the far back bedroom with their mom.  His father threw a mattress over all of them while they waited for the bombings to stop.  After an hour, he finally came out. I wish I had taken a picture with this man.  Hearing his stories just brought tears to my eyes.

The reunion began when Marisa and Pippy picked me up from the airport.  With a full heart from the stories of the Pearl Harbor survivor, and a full belly form the sandwich the Samoan man shared with me, I hugged my friends and told them about my flight.  We dropped Pippy off at the hotel and I went back to Marisa's house to sleep and prep for our first day day back together.

We ate, we played, we gabbed.  It was so much fun!  One of my favorite days was when we went horseback riding on the beach on North Shore!  This is where I met Marisa's friends, Lindsey and Paulette, two very cool girls.  We still keep in touch, thanks again to Facebook, haha!  We rode horsies on the beach and even got to run them!  I'm not talking trotting, I'm talking full on running.  It was incredible!  So much fun!  We went back to the ranch and got to play with the baby ponies and even feed them carrots.  Afterward, we hit up my all time favorite Thai food place, Haleiwa Eats.  Lindsey and Paulette were very thankful for the introduction. :)

(Beginning of the ride, heading toward the beach.)

(Keo and I.)

(Pippy, Marisa, me and Paulette.)

(Best way to ride a horse!)

(Sweet monk seal being shy.)

 Early, early in the morning, Marisa, Pippy and I got dropped off at the airport to begin our Maui adventure.  As soon as we landed on Maui, we picked up our rental car and drove to our first dive site with Maui Divers.  On our way out, we were presented with marvelous sighting of Humpback Whales, two adults and a baby!  Not a bad way to start my first visit to Maui!  We idled for a bit so everyone could enjoy the splashes of the whales and then we were off to our first dive site, St. Anthony's wreck.  It was freezing!  Our next dive we did was Molokini Crater, which had some gorgeous shallow reefs that reminded me of Australia.  What a blast!  After our dives, Pippy relaxed at the bar while Marisa and I visited Maui Ocean Center.  Just incredible and so much fun!

(Whale!)

(Pippy and Marisa penetrating the wreck.)

(Not sure what I was laughing at.)

(St. Anthony's.)

(Marisa teasing the fish.)

(Triggerfish are of the devil.)

(Not a bad way to ride.)

(Baby Tiger Shark at Maui Ocean Center.)

(Me and the Sandbar Shark.)

(Marisa and I decided to go whale watching while Pippy dove. We didn't see one whale!)

(Gorgeous sunset on our way to meet up with friends for dinner in Kihei.)

Marisa had to fly out of Maui early to make a job interview and so Pippy and I drove around, shopping and eating.  We then went to a tattoo parlor of a man several locals had recommended so Pippy could get her tattoo.  What an amazing experience!  They bonded over their cultures and ancestors and language, it was incredible hearing it all.

(Pippy and I in front of our hotel, The Marriot.)

(Pippy sucking it up during her tattoo.)

(Every piece of the tattoo has meaning.)

(LOVE this picture. Lots of love.)

We got back to Oahu and did more eating, shopping and gabbing.  I took Pippy to Aloha Stadium so we could get our souvenirs and also took her to the Dole Plantation for some Dole Whip!  YUM!  I also took her to Pearl Harbor so she could get some American history.  We did the audio tour and when we got to the USS Arizona memorial, I decided to talk to one of the guides.  I approached him and as I began to ask him the following, I got choked up and began to cry.  I asked him if there was some one I could find out who the man was that took my grandfather's place the day Pearl Harbor was bombed.  My grandfather hadn't been feeling well and stayed home sick while another man took his place.  I want to find out the name of this man and learn about him.  I will figure it out and I will post my thanks and appreciation to him.  My heart is heavy even now as I write this.

(Audio tour, Pearl Harbor.)

(We met up at Honolulu Zoo for Marisa's twilight tour!  So much fun seeing the animals at night!)

I got to meet up with our friend, Kat, who went to Costa Rica with.  She and I immediately bonded when I met her and I just think she is one of the raddest girls I've ever met.  She now works at a yummy cafe in Kailua, so we went to dinner and met up with her there.  All I have to say is the cheese platter was AMAZING!  Haha!

(After eating at Duke's.)

(At Kat's cafe in Kailua.  Yay reunion!)

(Pippy, Lindsey, Marisa, me and Kat.)

My last night there, Pippy decided to get another hotel and party her Pippy way.  She really is great at meeting people and enjoying herself.  Sometimes I wish I had that talent. :)  Instead, Marisa and I chose a reunion of Fat Kids' night.  We went to Foodland and grabbed anything we felt like eating (including 4 Portugese sausages for me to take home, haha!) and went back to her house to watch a couple of our favorite TV shows together -- just like old times.  It was definitely the BEST way to end not only the evening, but my trip back to my second home.

(Like old times!  Fat Kids Club!)

(Hahaha, the spread.  I think we barely put a dent in it.)

The Problem With IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome).

As I reached for my morning dose of prescription drugs, I stopped mid-reach.  My medicine cabinet is full of all sorts of drugs.  I can't even remember when I started taking so many pills.  I counted and came out with a total of 19 different labels.  This wasn't even counting the several vials I was waiting to refill.  I sighed and popped the pills in my mouth washing them down with water.

Fast forward to Super Bowl Sunday.  I was talking with a friend of mine and her husband.  She has always been such a great support and friend to me.  It took them 10 years to finally diagnose her with Celiac Disease.  She is one of the reasons I chose to go gluten free, after describing all of my symptoms to her.  I got a blood test and it came back negative.  So did hers.  It took several biopsies for them to discover she was a Celiac.  When I was getting prepped for my endoscopy, I asked them to take biopsies -- they stopped scoping after they discovered I had a hiatal hernia.  Anyway, after sharing my symptoms with them, they suggested I get a gene mapping test to check for Mitochondria Disease.  It was a fairly new discovery that this disease affects the gut , not only the nervous system.

The next day I called my GI Specialist to see if she could test me for this.  They told me this was something I would have to be referred to by my primary physician.  After several phone calls and 4 days later, I was told by my primary doctor (which I am no longer seeing) that he will not refer me to a Genetics Specialist because "he didn't see the point."  I was floored.  I was screaming on the inside.

What was the point?!  How about finding out what exactly is wrong with me instead of just giving me this non-diagnosis of IBS?!


For those of you who do not know, IBS is what they tell us patients with digestive problems we have because they have no clue what's wrong with us.  It's basically so they know how to get money from the insurance companies.  And so they feed us drug after drug, treating the symptoms.  Little do people realize that these medications are causing other problems, which we're prescribed more drugs for.

I was furious.  I immediately texted another friend of mine who saw a Doctor of Naturopath.  She is a doctor who combines modern medicine with natural supplements, etc.  I knew I would be paying out of pocket, but I didn't care at this point.  I was tired of feeling miserable and paying money on all of these procedures and drugs that were just causing other problems because of their side effects.

Today was my first appointment at The Institute of Progressive Medicine.   I liked what I saw.  I liked what I heard.  The doctor listened to me.  He heard what I said.  He read what I wrote down and spent a full hour with me.  When I told him I don't have a PPO, that I'm paying out of pocket, he understood.  He let me know that some of the tests I could do with my HMO and so he got me a prescription for those tests.

I left feeling more satisfied and hopeful than I've ever left the GI doctor's.  More than I ever felt with my primary physician who's seen me for more than just my tummy problems.  In the end, I had them draw blood for 2 full food allergy panels that test for more than they do at my primary doctor's office.  Things like black pepper and yeast, not just dairy, nuts and strawberries.  I also left with 3 supplements, including Melatonin, L-Tryptophan and Homocysteine Factors.  All of these together, every night at bedtime, should be replacing the 4 capsules of Prilosec I take daily.

Here's looking forward to a new treatment of helping my body heal itself!  I'll keep you all posted of my progress.

2011 Holiday Wrap Up.

Oh, get off my case, I know.  It's nice to know that I have a life though, right?  A life that keeps me so busy I have absolutely no time to blog?

You're right.  I was watching the Criminal Minds marathon again.  And again.  And again.  I can't help it!  Morgan is so hot!

Anyhoo, here's what you've all been waiting for:  The Holiday of 2011!  Woot woot!

Have I even talked about Thanksgiving?!  Hold on, let me check...  Eek!  Not a real blog post since Texas?!  My word, let's get on this!

Halloween 2011:


The highlights from this Halloween were definitely being with my 2 nieces, Jaiden (2 years old) and Nixie (11 months old).  It was Nixie's first Halloween and it was so exciting to have Tiffer and her family back home.

(Tiffer made a spooky breakfast with a blood red hand-shaped ice cube punch.)

Jaiden dressed as a Bumble Bee.

Nixie dressed as a Ladybug.

And Tiffer dressed as a flower.

How cute is that?!

Let me go back pre-Halloween here real quick.  In our family we have a tradition of carving pumpkins together while watching The Nightmare Before Christmas.  Well, last year and perhaps the years before we carved pumpkins WAY too early and so by the time Halloween came around?  Let's just say we didn't make them look so raunchy on purpose, but hey, it's Halloween so they totally fit the part!  Jaiden picked my pattern and it ended up being the scariest of the bunch!  And yes, I do carve my pumpkins freehand, in case you were wondering!

Ok, fast forward to the night before Halloween:  We took the girls to the church for their Annual Trunk or Treat.  I love going to these with my parents because I get a better opportunity to see the little kids in their costumes.  Sooo cute!

(My pumpkin was so scary, no other pumpkins dared to sit next to it.)

On the night of, I went with Tiffer to take the girls around the parents' neighborhood Trick or Treating.  Jaiden became a professional by the second house.  Remember, this is her second Halloween.  She walked with me, holding my to every house.  then as she braved the front steps of each house, she told me, "You stay here.  I will right back."  So much entertainment!

Thanksgiving 2011:


This last Thanksgiving was pretty small.  It may have been one of the top 5 smallest Turkey Days I've ever been too.  It consisted of only the parents, Gina, Tiffer and the girls, and myself.  But you know what?  That didn't mean a thing in the amount of food we prepared and engorged on!  It was also my best turkey yet, according to the family!  I got to teach Gina how I prep it, so that was pretty exciting.  I like to teach people the way I do things.  Especially when it's successful!

(One of the mandatory appetizers: cream cheese with sweet chili sauce and crackers.)

(The traditional pies.)

(The reminders.)

(Pickle.)

(My beautiful turkey trditionally being carved by The Godfather.)

Christmas 2011:

(Every Christmas season it is mandatory we get Sees.  Here's Mrs. Sees herself helping out!)

(We went to Candy Cane Lane down in Balboa to check out the lights.  Oh and this was my silly Christmas app that was fun to play with.)

(Sweet Baby Kate all bundled up.)

(The winner of it all!  I'd be so bummed if I were their neighbor...)

(Jady is always more than happy to pose for the camera.)

(This was my favorite of the season.)

Ah, Christmas.  (Oh, hold on, I have to take my meatloaf out of the oven.)  Where was I?  Oh yes, Christmas.  This year was another sort of different Christmas.  We were talking about doing another form of charity work but it's hard to do that when Christmas falls on a Sunday.  And so we decided no presents (except for the nieces and nephew) and then we would do each others' stockings.  It turned out perfect and was so much fun!

(Too many stockings for the chimney.  That's a fabulous Christmas!)

(Christmas Eve with Jady.)

This was the first Christmas for Ashley and Adam as a married couple, Nixie and Kate's very first Christmas, and it was such a happy time being all together!  We were sure to Skype VJ and his family later Christmas night so that everyone could show us what they got.

It was the perfect Christmas and I am so thankful for such an amazing family!

(One of the toys that was in my stocking!  Pickle yelled at me not to shine it in my eye.)

New Years Eve 2011:

(Ready for the big night out!)

NYE was... well... different.  Haha!  I decided to go with Gina and a couple of our friends to a Singles' event at Dave & Busters.  We were supposed to go to something that was more our age oriented, but it got cancelled (lots of drama we won't discuss) and we were told to go to this activity.

Nothing says Happy New Years than being at the same event as your exboyfriends' baby siblings!  One of them I've known since she was two.  The other since he was about seven.

Sweet.

We stood in line for what seemed like hours.  When we finally got inside, it was so packed you couldn't breathe, let alone walk anywhere without touching someone.  We got to one of the dance floors and decided to make the best of it!  And so we danced.  Until the heels made it unbearable to stand anymore.

(Green, Deanna and I dancing our hearts out.)

("This party blows" pose. Haha!)

We made the rounds and found ourselves sitting in the mechanical bull room.  We grabbed some stools and sat in a corner.  That was when the night got fun!  Who needed to walk around when everyone else was?  Everyone we knew, including some we hadn't seen in a long time, were making their own rounds and finding us!  It was hilarious.  Have you ever seen the How I Met Your Mother with the "woo girls?"  That was us.  Every time someone we knew rounded the corner and saw us, we wooed!

(Scary fog on NYE?  Not a good mix at 2:00AM.)

All in all, it was a fantastic New Years!  I even got home safely in the fog before all the drunks headed home!  YAY!

(Another New Years Kiss against Fiyero's will.)

And so you have it.  The holidays of 2011 in a nutshell!  Now I'm almost caught up!  Woo hoo!  Until next time!