Turning 37!! Whoot Whoot!

Next week I'll celebrate turning 37 years old (and even better, I still look 21) haha!! 

I LOVE getting older. Living with Cystic Fibrosis is difficult, I honestly didn't think I would live to see my 18th birthday and look at me now! Of course I wouldn't be celebrating birthdays now if it wasn't for my Donor Angel. She selflessly gifted parts of herself to others like me and gave us hope & life. 

Organ donation is definitely very important and it's a beautiful gift to many of us who need people to save us. You are our Heroes ❤️ 

I've been enjoying doing nails (of course) and looking forward to the warmer Idaho summers so I can get out more. 

Health Update:

I'm doing good. My blood sugars are under control, my lungs are steady and my kidneys are still working 😊 however, I'm dealing with a lot more anxiety and stress. I'm hoping to get into a specialist to help me deal with some of my medications side effects. 

Enjoy some pics 😊

Super bright & fun spring natural nails with handpainted sunflowers 

Handpainted Ballerina Gels in a beautiful ombré 

Handpainted Safari Natural Nails 

So as y'all can see I'm going on 8.5yrs post double lung transplant...not bad considering that so many hospitals told me in 2007 that I was not a candidate due to Cepacia and that I wouldn't even survive the surgery. I'm living my dreams working hard to stay healthy and beating the odds every day. 

My Birthday Surprise

Friday I turned 33 years young. Bryan really surprised me this year. . .and not to mention also spoiled me rotten! He made me get up at around 7:45am (on my day off & my birthday!). He had told me he had the day planned out but he kept it a secret. We headed out and after about an hour or so drive he took an exit that was in the middle of nowhere. . .

We pull into a small parking area where a humble little sign reads Exotic Animal Memorial Park. This place is a privately owned animal reserve that cares for many exotic animals and mostly Tigers & Lions which happen to be some of my favorite animals. Most of their animals are rescue animals or privately donated or relinquished to the park to be cared for more properly. They also breed their lions and tigers. They have many LIGERS. . . .yes you heard it they have Ligers. It was just an incredible place. But just seeing the animals wasn't why Bryan took me there. He paid to have the full tour which included playing with the baby animals!!!!

I got to hold the 2 week old baby black bear

We got to play with the baby tigers. . .there was a lot of 'big cat' in that little body!

My husband didn't stop there. . .oh no, he really spoiled me, yep you guess it, there's more!!

The Airbrushing DVD's that I wanted soooo bad! Ed Hubbs is an amazing airbrush artist out of Oregon. I have watched all of his YOU TUBE videos but these are more in depth videos to help me improve and learn from a pro. He gave me a 6 dvd pack that includes: Tribal, Flames & Skulls vol 1,2 & 3 AND how to paint your bike vol 1 & 2

Bryan also took me out to lunch and took me to the mall to spend my gift cards and cash that I got from my family. I just can't believe that I have such an amazing and thoughtful husband. I knew Bryan was special the moment I met him & in that moment I also knew I wanted to spent my life and all eternity with him. He makes me fall in love with him again every day. 

Thanks Bryan for being such a good man, husband and best friend!!

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Tomorrow is my BIG DAY

Well it's practically here. My 33rd year celebrating my life on earth. Bryan has something planned that he say's I'll love so much. .and I quote, "that I'll poop my pants" but I highly doubt anything could make me poop my pants. haha!

Since this is technically the last birthday/life post because my countdown has come to it's end. . .I reserved this day to share one of the most precious things I love about my life.

I love a person I have never met. I love a family that I don't know. I don't know her name or where she is from or even her age. I have enjoyed another 4 years of life that I wouldn't have if she had never came into my life. Not day goes by that I don't thank her for the best gift a person could ever give another person. I don't just breathe with her lungs, but I also laugh, love, and spread awareness of how wonderful and special being an organ donor is. She is a hero that will not get any medals of honor or a schools names after her for what she did, but she will never be forgotten and she lives on through me. She is a part of life that I can not live without. I love my special angel in heaven, my donor, whom I know watches over me.

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Day 2 Almost there!

Wednesday is almost over. . .and then there is tomorrow. . .then it's Friday :)

Today after I worked 5 hours I came home and I wanted to go workout, but the other day I rolled my ankle so running wasn't an option. As I looked around when I got home I noticed Bryan had mowed the front yard but hasn't had the time to get to our back yard. I put on my old shoes and decided to mow the yard myself. The mower we bought was cheap cuz it's old and it's a push mower. . .and it's hard to pull start. BUT I didn't want Bryan to have to come home from work tonight and have to do it.

I love the fact that I can push a lawnmower! We have a big back yard too~ It wasn't easy either. I got the perimeter of the yard done and then the mower died. It does that often cuz it get clogged up with the grass clippings regularly. So I cleaned out the grass build up and started to try to pull start it. I pulled, and pulled, and pulled until my right shoulder felt like a knife was stabbing through it. Yet I continued to pull. Then I thought "Maybe Bryan didn't put more gas in it?" Voila! it was OUT OF GAS. I found the gas can and filled it up. 3 pulls later it started back up. I got about 4 feet and BAM! Stuffing flew up in the air and the mower blades came to an instant stop. The grass in our back yard had gotten so out of control that it completely concealed one of Bella's toys. I grabbed a lawn chair  to prop up the front of the mower so I could look at the blades. . .to see what stopped them so abruptly. The rope part of her toy was tightly wound around the blade and wedged up against the side of the mower. If I was a man I probably you would have [insert swear words here] and gotten angry. LOL but instead I went in the house, grabbed a steak knife and started cutting away the rope in hopes I to get it cut free. Ten or so minutes later I had the mower up and running again. All in all it was a really tough job. It made me want to save up money to buy a riding mower. However, looking at the yard and knowing I have the physical strength to mow without getting short of breath is an amazing feeling :)

It's not just mowing that I love about my life but it's the ability to do all things that I have not been able to do since I was very young. I remember trying to mow the yard at my home in Blackfoot about 5 years before my transplant and I thought I was going to die before I finished. Today I broke a sweat, but never got short of breath, had wheezing, or got light headed. Being able to do hard work is an amazing feeling!!!

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3 days left :)

Today Bryan had to work late and I missed him. It was only a few hours, but I realized how much I enjoy being around him. So today and everyday I love the fact that I have Bryan. He is the most amazing husband and although I know I blog alot about him, but it's only because he's usually always on my mind. He is amazing in so many ways and he is the most important person in my life.

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Day 4

I didn't really get online much yesterday (Easter) to blog. So Friday is my big day :) I'm in the home stretch. haha. I'm so excited, not that we are having a huge party or any party really. . .but I just like aging, it's a privilege that most people don't appreciate.

Today I want to share my love of life. I cannot imagine my life being any different. I wouldn't go back and change anything. I am happy I was blessed with the life challenge I have with Cystic Fibrosis. I am thankful for all the things it taught me. I am thankful I have such a supportive family and I am happy I get to celebrate living my wonderful life another year. . .and many more years in the future :)

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Less than a week until my birthday!!!

Just Six days away!!
Day 6: I love that I still look young. I HATED it for many, many years. . but now that I am approaching my mid 30's I honestly don't mind it all that I get mistaken for being in my early 20's. Once in a while I get mistaken for being younger but that is usually only because that person based my age solely on my height. :) It's a good thing Bryan looks young as well so it doesn't make him look like my "sugar daddy". LOL We are all only as old as we feel right?  and I don't feel a day over 21. Hopefully I continue to look that age too!!


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A week from now

Day 7: I love that I got to go to CF camp as a kid. It is one of the most treasured experiences of my life. I went to camp from the age 7-14, then I cultured Cepacia so I went to a CF camp designed just for the handful of us who had cepacia. I went to "Cepacia Camp" for about another 3 years. After that Cepacia Camp lost it's funding/support. Sometimes I am glad I grew up in a time where science hadn't caught up to CF, that might sound crazy but before the CF community became hyper-sensitive to cross infection. It was more about quality of life for us. It was a time where personal face to face relationships with other CFers was encouraged & Some of my fondest memories are from spending time with other CFers and sharing germs, hahaha.

Here are just a few pics from CF camp

 I won a hula hoop contest. . .I hula hooped over an hour

 These are a few of my CF friends I think of often and miss

 We were assigned counselors and we all shared a HUGE military style tent with beds & sleeping bags

I am happy for advances in treatments, medicine and antibiotics, but it came at a cost and for those of who lived in the good ol' days, we know the price.

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Day 9

I love sunshine. I just think bright sunny warm days are the best thing ever. The only thing that can make a warm sunny day better is to enjoy it on a beach with palm trees :) Sunny days year round is one reason I really liked Phoenix. I think they have sunshine 364 days a year. LOL gotta give them at least ONE day for a rain storm. The great thing about sunshine that makes me even love it more. . .it's free! It's a gift from God that brightens my life.


*NOTE: I am responsible when enjoying sunshine and I wear sunscreen-so I apologize to everyone that has to see my florescent white legs in the summer months. haha

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