straight up now tell me?

I'm not sure how many of you remember that cultural reference from Paula Abdul, but it was one of my favorite tapes during my formative musical years. "Straight up now tell me, are you really gonna love me forever... oh, oh, oh? Or am I caught in a hit and run?" Marcus and I were driving in the car yesterday when this song came on the radio--on our new favorite radio station, movin' 92.5-- and we were discussing that we should've thrown something like this into our wedding vows just to "mix it up" a little bit. shoot. S-if you're reading this, it's not too late for you and code name=beautiful. :) Oh yah, just for the record, Marcus and I did decide at that moment in the car, that we were "really gonna love each other forever" and in fact, we were NOT "caught in a hit and run" PHEW.

Okay, now onto my medical issues. I am still basically the same. I continue to vomit. Often. Sometimes I keep crackers down. Sometimes I don't. Sometimes I keep baby food down. Sometimes I don't. I have been eating regular people food when it looks good or sounds good. Occassionally it will stay down... or a portion of it will stay down. Mostly it won't. I am still doing well with water, propel, G2, and sometimes juice. Juice does not always work, however... I keep trying though, because I can get a whole serving of fruits and veggies in one 8 oz glass with the new V8 Fusion and it tastes good. I recommed the Pomegranate Blueberry for all of you who are bad at eating fruits and veggies. :)

We were at the doctor yesterday for Marcus because he played in a softball tournament with the Renton Fire Dept. team and strained his hamstring badly over memorial day weekend. Normally, that wouldn't be a big deal. However, when your job description includes running into burning buildings to save large people, your hamstring is pretty important. So, we went to the doc to see if there was anything that we could do to speed up the healing process. He said don't go to work for at least 3 shifts. Then we have vacation from June 2-18. Nice...

While we were at the doc, I asked him a couple of quick questions, which resulted in some lab work-ups, and some antibiotics because in addition to all of my other issues, I have managed to get a bladder infection too. I know, I'm awesome. :)

My little sister came to visit this weekend, and it was a lot of fun. We cruised around all over Seattle, we checked out the Folk Life festival, we were there when the people got shot, but we didn't get shot, don't worry. We played and laughed, and had lots of fun. She is silly and I love her. My brother is cool too. I love him also. He just didn't come.

I've been pretty discouraged this week, and pretty angry at God. I've been sick for almost a whole school year. That's a long time... I just popped open my bible this morning, and seriously it fell open to this page.

Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again--rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember the Lord is coming soon. Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. -Philippians 4:6-7

And so I will keep trusting and keep praying that God's got this all under control... that He will give me just what I need, and I will thank Him for all that He has done. I can't wait to experience His peace over and over again.

Blessings to you all this day.
brelin

welcome Nina! and and the doc report

I forgot to welcome Nina Elise to the world... our friends, the Roddick's had a beautiful and healthy baby girl last Thursday, and she & mommy are doing great!! Congrats to them and to her big sister Betsy!

The GI doc appointment went well yesterday... He listened and laughed with me about my "progress" and then switched around some of my meds. He took me off nortriptyline (which is lowering my already low blood pressure) and put me on Levsin (which is another anti-spasmodic for the intestine). He also increased my dose of Topamax from 100 mg to 150 mg. This is the one that dulls my nerve sensations and also makes me feel a little "dumb". So, please hold on tight for the next couple of weeks while I adjust to the new meds.... and while I stare blankly at you trying to think of your name, or what I'm trying to say. (tee hee!!)

He also said that I need to do whatever I can to try and not lose any more weight. He said that if I get much lower I will probably need to get my picc line put back in and have IV nutrition. I voted no, especially since it's almost summer and a picc line does not go with tank tops. I told him I would do my best to bulk up. He said that I could try and introduce more foods (like lactose-free milk)... and basically to try and eat low-fat foods that sound good. Low-fat is important because they break down more easily in the gut... for those of you that were wondering why I was eating low fat stuff. :)

Hugs,
brelin

nothing new

I'm still on the baby food diet. I would say that there's no real improvements since the last time I wrote. I'm vomiting a few times a day... which is a little more frustrating than vomiting after eating real food, since I'm eating pureed peas from Gerber... but, I'm almost done with this adventure. :)

I go to see my GI doc tomorrow to discuss increasing/changing doses and/or medications, so I will let you know about that. I went to try and do a little work out yesterday, with fairly little success. I mostly just got exhausted, had to leave early, and then felt terrible the rest of the evening. Shoot.

The past week has been full of sunshine in the Seattle area, and I have been LOVING it!! I have been doing my best to spend as much time as possible outside, soaking up the glorious rays, and praising God for the lovely sun!!
It has returned to the normal springtime rain of May this morning... bummer. I will do my best to praise God for the rain too..., I guess. :)

I think that's all... and so we continue to pray and praise. Praise God for the pureed sweet potatoes and the Gerber dutch apple dessert (which if you warm up in the microwave, close your eyes, and imagine really well... sort of tastes like apple pie!!). And we praise God that I continue to thrive WITHOUT the picc line!! I am still doing well with clear liquids!! YAY!! :)

Thank you JESUS!!
brelin

it's may 15th

Hi All,
I am doing okay. Sunday went alright last week... I had a great time at Sammamish Hills in worship and then lots of fun with Carol & Jim, Aunt Ingrid, & Grandma Rismiller for Mother's Day. I got to see my friend, Aaron, in the musical, AIDA, at the Village Theater in Issaquah--it was AWESOME. If you get a chance, you should all totally go!!

Digesting has been going alright. Sunday and Monday were mostly good-- just vomiting a couple of times each. (Remember, my diet is consisting of juices, water, saltine crackers, and baby food, so I'm not really taxing my system... the goal now is for NO vomiting each day..., so that I can stop malabsorbing nutrients.)

Monday night, Marcus and I got to spend the evening with some really good friends--and it was spent with LOTS of laughter and tons of fun playing Rock Band. I think we got pretty good by the end of the evening. :)

Tuesday and Wednesday went well until the evenings. Then, I got sick both nights.

I have not had any more trouble with fainting--so that's good. :) And, I'm really looking forward to the sunny weather that's been forecast for this weekend!!

Yesterday, I got to spend the afternoon with my Campaigner group. This is the group of girls that I took to Young Life camp last summer. We did a bible study yesterday and it was so much fun!! :) You guys are hilarious!! It was fun to get caught up on all the junior high "stuff" of life.

Hugs to you all,
brelin

happy birthday andy & sarah!

It's my brother and sister's birthday today! They are 21 today!! Happy Birthday, you guys!!

The past 8 days has been full of adventure. Here is a quick summary of what has taken place.

May 3-5: Marcus and I went to Portland and had fun with our friend, Tad. We got to see his new place, and meet his cool friends there. It was super duper fun.

May 6: My dad, Mark's, birthday. We had a smashing birthday party at the Outback for him. This was also Day One of my new "Re-Feeding Plan Diet." On Day One of this diet, I got to have water and juice with a few crackers, so I watched whie everyone enjoyed their yummy steaks. (argh)

May 7: I can't really remember what happened on this day. Maybe nothing exciting. More juice, water, and crackers. Delish.

May 8: This was the morning of real adventure. Marcus had gotten up early and left for work--his shift begins at 8 am. I got up to go to the bathroom. I remember feeling a little dizzy, so I grabbed onto the doorframe of the bathroom--and then somehow ended up on the bathroom floor shaking, thinking "I should try not to hit my head on the cabinets". I managed to crawl to the phone and called Marcus because I thought he would know what to do, and I was pretty sure that I didn't need an ambulance. Anyway, I went to the doctor later, with the help of Marcus' mom, Carol--and it turns out that I just fainted--no seizures or anything. (good news.)

May 9: I'm on Day 4 of the refeeding diet. I didn't faint today... I got to have some cream of wheat, crackers, some juices, water, and a little applesauce.

May 10: Today, I'm going for some big time baby food. I know... HOLD ME BACK, world. The idea of the diet is to introduce the foods slowly, as to decrease the vomiting. I've only thrown up twice since May 6th, so I think things are going pretty well. Clearly, fainting isn't ideal, but hopefully we have that under control now. :)

Anyway, I guess that's all for now. Sorry for being such a delinquent blogger. I will do my best to do better this next week. :)

Hugs and love to all. And, keep those prayers coming.... I'm trusting that God is in and through each adventure that we have... I know that He is with us... and that this week He kept my head from hitting the ground (and the cabinet) when I fainted. To Him be the glory...

brelin

i'm back

let me begin by saying that i had a fabulous time in arizona. marcus and i spent 10 days there, soaking up the sunshine, enjoying each other, and playing with our friends andy & heather for part of the time. we got to see God's beautiful creation in trips to the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, the red rocky hills of Sedona, & the slot canyons of Lake Powell. I also especially enjoyed the 90+ degree weather by laying in and around the pools in the Scottsdale area.

Many of you are wondering how the digesting is going. It continues to baffle me. Somedays are fabulous... other days are ridiculously awful. I learned on our trip that I now get really, really car & boat sick. This (perhaps) would have been good to know before our trip, but, we adjusted some of our plans accordingly. :)

I am keeping down fluids pretty consistently... and clear liquids are staying down almost always (unless I'm in a car, a boat, or I try and eat something along with the clear liquid). So, I'm not getting dehydrated too badly, and I'm feeling pretty good most of the time. I'm still having some pretty miserable days and times, but overall I'm doing alright and my spirits are good.

I'm reading a terrific book, which is challenging my views about what it means to be waiting and resting in God, and I'm really enjoying it... I'll tell you more about some other time. :)

Okay, I think that is all for today! Much love and hugs to you all!
brelin