M.I.A.

I apologize that I haven't been posting lately. I will just be honest and tell you it has been a really hard year for us. I feel like I have been walking around in a haze, putting a smile on my face out of necessity not really because I want to. It will all get better. It will just take time & patience.

In August we painted our counter tops. I am so pleased with the result! Chase thought I was a little nuts when I suggested it to him, but it is so amazing what some spray paint can do for a surface.

On the weekend of Sept 11, our little family took a trip to Bryce Canyon. We took the trailer and just relaxed. We took our bikes down with us and attempted to bike Red Canyon. I say "attempted" because we only made it one way. When we got to the bottom is started pouring rain and we couldn't make it back up the canyon. Chase finally got someone to take him to the top to get the truck and picked Hagen and I up at the bottom. It was quite the experience. So much fun though! On Sept 11 Chase laid his little brother's headstone. We didn't realize it until later in the day, but he laid it on the 6 month anniversary of Justin's death. I think Chase gets alot of healing from doing these things himself. The headstone is beautiful.

In September, we took on the biggest house project to date. We had put a new roof on our house, tear off, sheeting, and all. We got bids from a couple companies during the summer but saying they were out of our budget is a gross understatement. We ended up doing it ourselves with the help of some amazing friends and family. It was a huge project and ALOT of work. My hubby worked so hard and I appreciate it more than I can ever express to him. We had a minor flooding mishap but other than that, it went pretty well.

September was a very sick month at our house. Hagen started getting sick the end of August. After a few Dr visits and an ER visit he has been on the mend. We found out he is allergic to penicillin though. Here is how we found out

I also came down with something in the first part of Sept. I assumed it was a cold when we decided to bike Red Canyon. After that excursion it turned into something much more than a cold. After 2 weeks of having it I went to the Dr who said he was going to call it severe bronchitis with a wheeze in my right lung. He put me on an antibiotic and some cough meds. Another week passed without me getting better so I went back to my regular Dr. He put me on a higher grade antibiotic, steroid, and an inhaler. I did feel alot better after a week of that regimen (althought I was still hacking up a lung most of the time) but then I started cough-induced vomiting. After about 3 weeks of vomiting every night (and scaring the crap out of my poor husband) I went back to the first Dr (not my regular Dr) who thought that since the vomiting was primarily at night I might have acid reflux but a tear in my esophagus was letting the acid leak into my lungs causing the coughing and vomiting. He ordered chest x-rays to check for acid damage and put me on an acid stopping med. He asked me to follow up in 1-2 weeks but the med should kick in by day 6 if it's going to work. Well day 10 I went back to my reg Dr with no relief. He ordered a pertussis test and basically told me that if the test comes back negative there is nothing more he can do for me and will refer me to a specialist and if it is positive I just have to wait it out (possibly up to a year?!). I won't have the results until Monday. I am sure it is nothing serious, but next week is 2 months of being sick and I have lost about 10 lbs in 4 weeks (not complaining about that) from daily vomiting. I am starting to get frustrated, as is my Dr. The funny thing is what little bit of fear I do have is not for me. It is for my sweet husband. He has gone through so much and experienced so much heartache and loss, I don't want to be the cause of more for him. :(

Well that's all for now. Sorry it isn't the most positive post in the world but you are all friends and family so I am sure you all understand. We love you all!