Life of Sare

June is “Migraine awareness month! And being that I haven't given a Chiari update for a while, I figured that maybe the end of June might be the time. This is kinda a “woe is me” post, but not to make you feel bad for me, but just because migraines SUCK! With a lot of Awareness Months, they use the month to spread awareness of early signs of detection, how and where to get screened, and to raise funds for the cause. With migraine awareness there isn't really that push (other than to maybe raise money for research but I don't have a favorite fund so I’m not going to even go into that) so, I think I am going to use this month (or this blog post) to help others understand that people with migraines are people. I live a life, well sometimes. I have a favorite food, ice cream (actually it’s donuts). I have a job, well for 9 months in the year… and take every sick day I am offered because of migraines. To be diagnosed with Chronic Migraine, you must have: 1.      Headache ...

Yellow dasies with 3 giant Gerbera dasies right in the middle. And they weren't forget-me-nots, but close. They were purple on color ansade it complete. I don't think there could have been a better gift for me after hearing that she could not find the heart beat.  You see, the gerberas remind me of my nephew. For his funeral we got giant orange ones. Yellow is G-Dawgs favorite color. Forget-me-nots are the flower in my mom's garden that helps me to remember Dillon is always with me. Watching and protecting.   I was with my cousins the morning after my grandma passed, and while we were upset, one of them asked their dad in a search for understanding, "So now instead of rocking us, Grandma is in heaven rocking Dillon and Manti?"  Again, what a gift to receive, to remind me that my baby is in heaven with the 3 angels I love most and aspire to be.  "I can.... I can't find the heartbeat." I wake up those words often. It is the worst nightmare a woman can ...

Since being diagnosed with Chiari, a food log has been introduced into my life. This is both a blessing and a curse. I hate seeing all the crap I eat in a day! It is so gross. But I do love that I am better able to control my migraines lately just based off of what I eat.  There are a few things we have noticed that trigger migraines for me.  1. My bite size breakfast. I hate breakfast foods, there are few things I will eat in the morning. Christian is an amazing husband and knows that if he pre cuts an avocado, a banana, and a chicken apple sausage and lines them up nice and straight I will eat it all up. The problem is, all 3 of those are migraine triggers. So I can no longer have all 3 for a meal I can only have one.  2. Hotdogs. This is one I am not even sad about. Last time we had hotdogs I had more than I needed and then stated that I don't even like hotdogs, I just eat them because they are there. But now that we have been able to link those to my migraines I defin...

As promised, here is a quick update on my brain. Sorry- No pictures   I sill have Chiari Malformation Type 1.   A few weeks ago I met with a neurosurgeon to decide our next move. We talked about my symptoms and my tonsil, and the surgeon decided that the surgery's risk outweighs the rewards. So, we are still in the same spot. Pain, pain, and more pain.   I have been working on a headache journal, and at first, I documented every day. This lasted about 3 weeks, then I forgot about it. I then only documented the last 24 hours leading up to a headache where I rated the pain at a 7 or higher. When I document this I make sure to mention what I ate, how much water I am drinking (I try to drink   3 liters a day!), and what physical activity (if any) I have done.   Last Tuesday, my sister and I made a day out of my doctor's appointment in Salt Lake to see my neurologist. Nothing has changed, and my neurologist seems to be as frustrated as I am with the lack of ur...

I used to hate Mondays. Then I looked forward to Mondays. Monday was my day. I got to help her up. Make her breakfast. And spend all day with her. Monday was the day I learned most from my Grandma, because I was with her from 8 am to 9 pm. Monday's were spend drinking a Diet Dew or 2, eating at least 2 cookies, and always watching Days of Our Lives. There would be a sewing project, a heated conversation due to our clashing generations, then a kiss good night. "Love you G! See you tomorrow."  Now, Monday's are the hardest. I wake up, clean the house, do a project or 2, then go to bed.  There are a lot of things I never thought to learn because G just knew how. For instance, making potato soup. I don't think anyone will ever be able to fill that void. Or fixing holes in jeans. I mean I can, but G just did such a better job so I would just let her do it. And, rarely growing up did you see an iron out unless for a sewing project.  Today, Christian needed his clothes i...

I am so in love with this little girl, I mean how could you not be? Look how adorable she is? I may be a little bias, but my niece is the cutest in the world. Not only is she the cutest, she is also quite possibly the most spoiled little girls in the world.  And has been even before she was born.  I've been meaning to post pictures of the shower I hosted for my little sister way back at the beginning of March, but hey, life happens.  The nursery is decorated in little birds, and my sister had asked me to make a couple things she had found on Pinterest for her, so I figured I would just tag team and couple the theme of the shower with the theme of the nursery. That way everything could be reused and nothing went into the garbage.  I made 4 different invites, but de decided in this one to send out. How cute and classy is it? Love.  Baby Girl has a huge family! So we knew we needed to host the shower at the church. Our family events usual...

Hi,  It's me Bray!! A lot of you have been asking my humans when they are going to have a baby human, and I mean, why wouldn't you? Look how good they look with human kids (sorry human cousins I cut out)! And face it, this family has a lot of good looking human babies hanging around lately. I don't blame all of you for being baby hungry!  But becoming a parent is a big decision, and mom has been really up and down lately with her headaches. She and Dad decided they really need to think through having a child and when it is the right time to bring a human into the world. Mom has a doctor appointment on Monday with her neurosurgeon, and Dad has been researching lots of things to do for Mom so that her headaches can go away without taking all those harsh medicines. Mom can't take most her meds she is on when she is pregnant. They have been talking a lot, and they ask me all the time if I want a sibling. I do, and I want a brother!  That being said, I thought I would take t...