Update on Mom & Nashville, AR

So, I've been off all summer and I haven't found time to blog...what????? I tell you, the summers make me so lazy! I find so many other things to do...watch tv, layout, bake, take trips, shop, make peach preserves, visit coca cola plants, and of course, SLEEP IN!!!! What am I going to do when I actually have to start getting up at 5:30 again...this girl isn't going to worry about that now because I have two more weeks before that will happen...and I'm going to enjoy every minute of it!!!

Update on Mom:

Mom's scar has healed really fast and she's been a trooper! She has had a few curveballs thrown her way, but I know she's a strong woman and can make it through! Tomorrow, she will go to take her Radioactive Pill. She has to be quarantined from people for about 3 days...she will have a scan run to make sure that all of the thyroid tissue is gone so that no cancerous cells are left behind. She has already done a lower dosage of this pill and it didn't kill everything, so this is round two for her. The pill makes her very tired and last time I believe it gave her really bad headaches. She is already tired enough with her thyroid, so i'm hoping she'll have more energy soon! Hopefully, after this scan, she will be cancer free and can resume normal life again. I know that her summer has been consumed with doctor's visits, surgery, and worry, so I hope this will be the end of it! Please pray that this radioactive pill will get rid of everything and that when she starts her thyroid medicine, she will finally start having more energy!

Update on my weekend in Nashville, AR:

I had the best weekend! My wonderful friend, Ashley Jamison, took a group of us home to meet her family and to make peach preserves! Ashley was an amazing hostess, and was constantly preparing food for us...she's an awesome cook! Here's our weekend recap:

We left around noon on Friday, and made the 2 hour trek to good ole Nashville, AR. For those of you who don't know, I was not born a "southern" girl. I was raised in Indianapolis, IN...No Ya'lls and Fixin's and Coke (we said POP)...so this was an eye-opening experience for me. I really enjoyed going out to the country and traveling down dirt roads as the cows "moo-ed" at me (which if you know me, I'm scared of dogs, so this really scared me...haha). Ashley's family owns a lot of land, and practically all of her dad's family lives on the land....so as we entered town Ashley pointed out where everyone lived, Granny, Poppa, Aunt Amelia, Aunt Jackie, Cousin Micah, Cousin Ace...and so on. (There are WAY too many to remember, haha!)

Once we made it to Ashley's, we unloaded the car and got right back in to head over to her Cousin Tela's house. Tela is building a house with her husband, and man was it beautiful!! Tela just found out she is having TWINS, so it was fun to see her! She was in Kojies with us at Harding. We left Tela's, and went home to help Ashley cook supper. She made fried chicken, fried okra, creamed corn, homemade mashed potatoes and gravy, and a delicious salad. Mrs. Bernie made Mocha Cheesecake for dessert! We tore up the kitchen, but it was worth it! We spent the evening cleaning up our mess, before we finally decided to hit the hay. We needed our rest before the Peach-Mania began.

On Saturday, we arose to the smell of homemade cinnamon rolls (Ashley spoiled us, if you can't tell already!) Lindsey and I began to sit at the table and peel some peaches, and some more peaches, and even more peaches. Talk about a sticky job...but it was fun! Ashley decided we could go first to make our preserves, and she coached us through the process. What a wonderful coach! Here's a picture of me cooking: (no makeup, so don't mind me)



And sweet, pregnant Lindsey:



And here are my peach preserves, waiting for the lids to "pop" and seal:



After we made preserves, we took the leftover peaches, mixed them with sugar and this fresh fruit powder (to keep them from turning brown), and we loaded them up in freezer bags. This way we'll have some frozen anytime we want to pull them out and whip up a pie or cobbler. YUM! So most of saturday was taken over with peaches...Granny came to help us, and she was so sweet...she showed us how to peel easily (because me and a knife is scary business). Her and Poppa picked all of these peaches for us out of their Orchard, and they were so great to do this for us! Thanks Granny and Poppa!!!!!!!!!!

After peeling peaches, Ashley's daddy took us to the Coca-Cola Plant where he works. They just celebrated their 100th anniversary in Nashville, AR, so there was a Museum to walk-through with Coca-Cola paraphernalia from years and years ago. I loved all of the old Coca-Cola machines...we took some fun pictures, too!

The plant, complete with Ashley's mother:



Lindsey and me in the museum:



The coke machines:



Now that's a lot of COKE!!!



And of course we took silly pictures:













Can you tell we had fun at the Coca-Cola Plant???? We really enjoyed getting to see everyting! Thanks, Mr. James for taking us!!!!!

When we got home, Ashley started working on another dinner...Greek Salad, Squash Medley, Rolls, and her dad grilled chicken with an awesome marinade. Granny and Poppa joined us for dinner...we had a great dinner! After dinner, Caroline, Lindsey, Ashley, and myself decided to take a walk. We walked over to Granny and Poppa's house...this is when the cows were "moo"ing at me and I started walking faster...the girls made fun of me. I know a cow is not going to "get me" but I was still nervous. They were LOUD!! And there were TONS of them! We made it home, safely (thank goodness), as soon as the sun went down. We finished the evening wrapping up the peaches we hadn't finished yet...I slept great that night. Lots of work!

Sunday morning, we went to Ashley's church, and got to meet a lot of her family members. We went home and Ashley made us taco salads. Ashley's mom, Bernie, made us cookies fresh out of the oven...YUM Then we packed up our things and headed home. We really had a fabulous weekend! I enjoyed meeting new friends...Sarah, Valorie, and Caroline...along with all of Ashley's family! If anyone is reading this, thanks so much for a great weekend! I loved every minute of it and I learned a lot!

I'm officially a peach preserve making queen,
Carrie

Mom

So, my mom had her surgery last Friday. The surgery lasted about 4 hours. My dad, Katie, and my Grandma Lillian were all waiting for her in the waiting room, and they were getting so antsy!! Mom finally finished her surgery around 5:00, and immediately went into recovery. The hospital didn't have a room ready for her yet, so they didn't get to see her until 8:00 that night. Needless to say, it was a LONG day for them...and for me. I was just waiting by the phone all afternoon, worried. There are so many things that can go wrong during a surgery, especially one in which they slit her throat open and begin removing things. The main thing to worry about is damaging the vocal chords, but luckily, everything went really well! She can talk, and eat, and get out of bed...things we take for granted every day! She had a really bad night, the first night. The anesthesiologist forgot to put Phernergan into the medicine he used to knock her out, and she spent that first night vomiting every 20-30 minutes. I know she was just miserable!!! Finally, saturday morning, the vomiting subsided, and she began to feel better. She finally got released from the hospital on Saturday evening, and was so happy to get home to her own bed. Her mom was there to take care of her and make her food, etc... Sunday, she started to feel really bad, again. Her hands and feet began to numb and she was shaking. Dad took her back to the hospital on Sunday night, and she was re-admitted. Her calcium levels were extremely low. Now that she no longer has her thyroid, she is having trouble keeping her calcium levels high enough. She has these Parathyroid Glands that were left behind that are supposed to help with this, but apparently they aren't "awake," as the doctor put it. She is currently in the hospital, getting a calcium drip every so often, and blood drawn to keep testing her levels. My sister just called and told me that her Magnesium and Potassium levels are low, too, so they are monitoring those, as well. I'm really hoping that they can get her levels under control...this is the hardest part with the surgery...she will always be on medication to help take the place of her thyroid...POOR MOMMY!!! Please pray that the doctors can finally get her levels where they need to be, and keep them there, and that she has a smooth recovery because I know she's been miserable thus far. I'm hoping she gets to go home soon, for good!

Just wanted to update everyone on my mom! I am flying to Florida on Wednesday, and I will get to spend some time with her...so at least that makes me feel better!

Thanks for your prayers,
Carrie

Babies, surgery, and summer vacay!

Since my last post, A LOT has happened! My sister gave birth to a precious baby boy, my mom found out she has thyroid cancer and has to get her thyroid removed, and I wrapped up my 4th year of teaching!!

Tyler Daniel Kintz arrived on May 10, weighing 7 lbs. 6 ounces! He is healthy and happy! Katie and mike are doing awesome getting used to being parents! I haven't been able to go to Florida yet, due to school, but I leave in a week and a half, and I can't wait to hold my nephew! I can't believe he I already a month old!!! I wanted to upload a picture, but am not sure how to do it from my I-phone, so those will have to wait!

My mom is having surgery this Friday, June 17th! Pray the surgery goes well and she heals quickly! She will have to have radiation three weeks after her surgery, to make sure no cancer cells are left behind. We are hoping once the thyroid is removed, she will be cancer free. Please keep my family in your prayers!

School is finally over! It seemed like the never-ending school year with all of our makeup snow and flooding days, but we made it! I'm so glad to have a break! This summer, I'll be going to Florida and to the lake a lot! Im so glad I have a job with great vacation time! Woohoo! I always sing on the last day of school..."schools out for summer!!!" I hope everyone has a great summer! Don't melt in this heat!

No Sunday night blues for the next eight weeks,
Carrie

April...almost over?

So I haven't blogged in FOREVER! Hunter and I have had a very stressful April, but we made it through and we're ready for summer! I can't believe that April is almost over!!! (but so is school...YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!)

This week has had some crazy weather! Feels like the longest week ever...we lost power on Monday night (luckily it came back on in the middle of the night) and all of the shows we normally watch have been nothing but weather reports because of these dang tornadoes...yuck! Rain, Rain, GO AWAY (and take your tornadoes with you!) Hopefully, tonight will be a different story because if I can't watch American Idol and Survivor, I will NOT be happy! Looks like tomorrow and Friday will be pretty...without rain...and it's about time!!!!!

On a different note...my little sister is about ready to have her BABY!!! I can't wait to meet my nephew, Tyler. Katie went to the doctor, today, and she is dilated to 2 cm. Shouldn't be too much longer...her due date is not until May 14th, so we'll see how stubborn Tyler is! I'm hoping he doesn't make her wait that long because she is starting to get really uncomfortable and swollen. I'm getting excited, though! I'll keep you posted!

Well...that's about all that's going on right now! Hopefully, I'll make another post before May ends...keep your fingers crossed!

Auntie to be...
Carrie

Spring break!

So I've been a little busy lately and haven't blogged...bad, I know! This is our last week of school before spring break and I cannot wait!!!!!!!!! 4 more days!! Hallelujah! I love my middle schoolers but I need a break! Winter is always the hardest part of the school year! So happy for spring...flip flops, dresses, sunshine, grilling...yes! I'll be spending part of my spring break with family! I get to see Tristan, my niece, my mom, my grandparents, aunt, uncle, and cousins! I'll be in Missouri and then hunter and I are going to spend the weekend in Branson! A nice break away! Sorry to those of u who don't get spring break...it sucks to be you...JK!!!!!! Haha. I earn my break, believe me! You probably wouldn't trade me if u could. Well, guess that's all for now. I'll be spending the rest of the week at work, parent/teacher conferences, and watching march madness!! Have a great week everyone!

Happy spring,
Carrie

Upgrade!

So I mentioned a few posts back that I wanted an I-phone. I have had the same flip phone for the past two years!!! In the past few months, I've had several people, including students, who have commented on how 'old school' my phone is.....I was starting to get embarrassed...so....my husband came home from work on our Anniversary with a new I-phone for me!!! Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was pumped...and how did I ever live without one of these babies???? I'm loving it...it's only the 3G, but I don't care...anything is better than my flip phone! He's the greatest! Now maybe i'll take more pictures and actually post them!!!

Loving my new toy,
Carrie

Anniversary #4

I decided to change our picture, to a picture from our wedding, because it's time for another Anniversary! Our 4th Anniversary is on February 24th (this Thursday)! I cannot believe it has already been four years!!!!! It's been a wonderful four years...better than I ever imagined. Hunter and I are so happy together...we've got this marriage thing down! ha. Can you every really have everything perfect in a marriage?? Probably not...but I feel as though we're doing great! I know he would say the same thing. We're still as much in love as we were when we were 18 years old. I'm so happy I get to share my life with such a wonderful man! He still makes my heart pitter-patter. Hunter, I love you! Thanks for making the past 9 years wonderful...4 of which we have been married! I can't wait to share many more years with you!

We will go out to dinner to celebrate, and hopefully, I'll get a new picture of us. We never take pictures anymore, unless we go somewhere special. Like we need anymore pictures of us......we have soooo many, but I'll try to get a new one!

Thankful for my husband,
Carrie