This song came up on my Ipod the other day.

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It is very relevant. Things are returning to normal around the house. Ryan and I feel so blessed to have each other and our awesome relationship. We are enjoying the quiet and being alone in our home.

The dogs even feel it too. They are playing and are very happy to have their space back. All is relaxing and calm. At least until the girls spend the night this weekend!

This past Saturday I went over to my mom’s house. She thought she had an ear infection since her ear had been killing her over the past three days. Immediately when I saw her,  I noticed that the left side of her mouth was flaccid (not sure of a better term to use). She also complained of numbness on the right side of her face. My heart immediately sank at the possibility of a stroke.

There was an email going around a while back that suggested you have the person do the following:

1. Smile
2. Raise both arms
3. Speak a simple sentence coherently

Now it didn’t tell you exactly what they should do wrong, so even though I had my mom raise her arms, I wasn’t sure what to look for. I remember learning these tests in a medical class I took in high school also. This is a statement I found online at the American Heart Association official website:

“The American Stroke Association does not endorse “The Smile Test,” also known as “a simple test for stroke,” which has been widely distributed through e-mails.”

The irony of the situation is that the steps listed above are exactly what three different people (nurse, doctor, etc) had my mom do to help diagnose what was wrong with her at the hospital.

These are the warning signs that are endorsed:

• Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
• Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding
• Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
• Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
• Sudden, severe headache with no known cause

I know this isn’t a medical blog, but I wanted to put it out there because with a stroke, time is everything. They can reverse/minimize the damage done to the person’s brain. Someone suspecting a stroke and having some or all of the symptoms above should immediately go to the hospital.

Back to my mom-within minutes of being at the emergency room, they determined that it was not a stroke. A CT later confirmed that she had not had a stroke. Instead, she has Bell’s Palsy. “Bells palsy is a condition that causes the facial muscles to weaken or become paralyzed. It’s caused by trauma to the 7th cranial nerve, and is not permanent.”

It also explains the pain my mom was feeling in her ear. It had nothing to do with her ear at all. All of the ear drops, heating pads, antibiotics, and consideration of bursting her eardrum with a tooth pick did no good. The cause is not specifically known, but they believe it is caused by a virus.

My mom was able to come home Saturday afternoon, and we all felt so blessed and thankful. God is good! When they diagnosed my mom with Bell’s Palsy, she started laughing. She had watched the Seinfeld where Gavin gets Bell’s Palsy, and apparently she had gone around the house afterwards saying, “Well, I’ve got Bell’s Palsy. That’s what’s wrong with me.” I’m not sure how long ago she was saying this, but my response was, “Ask and ye shall receive.”

On Saturday night Ryan and I became empty nesters for the first time since 2003. I know that doesn’t make a lot of sense, so let me explain.

Ryan and I started dating in July 2001. We moved in together in August 2001, and Ryan proposed on
October 6, 2001. What can I say, when you know, you know. In fact, I think that most relationships that stand the test of time were ones where both parties knew that they were meant to be together right away.

We enjoyed being together and moved every year to nicer and bigger apartments. In the summer of 2003, Brendon, Ryan’s younger (but bigger) brother started to spend more nights over at our house.  He was not getting along with their sister, so he eventually decided to just move in with us. That November of 2003, we all moved into a larger three bedroom apartment. It was me, Ryan, and Brendon.

In January of 2004, my dad came to live with us while he figured some things out. So it was me, Ryan, Brendon, and my dad until July of 2004. The people in the apartment above us were awful, and we thought that they were even dealing drugs. We decided that it was time to move, and my grandfather, Papa, helped us get a house because we were tired of paying rent each month and having nothing to show for it. Our apartment was in Carrollton, and the house we found brought us back to Plano (where Ryan and I both grew up). My dad did not want to move to Plano, so he got his own apartment in Lewisville.

Brendon, Ryan, and I settled into our  home. The three of us together lasted all of one month. In August of 2004, my stepmother tried to kill herself. My stepbrother, James, was supposed to be getting an apartment with her and my stepsister, Jaque, at this time. He decided that he did not want to live with her, so he asked to move in with us. So we opened our home, and our threesome became a foursome (no dirty thoughts please-gross). It was me, Ryan, Brendon, and James.

The four of us were our own little family. We spent so many hours together laughing and playing Halo. It was such a happy time in our lives. Then Josh came, just kidding, LOL! Josh had been a friend of ours since 2002. He had found himself homeless a few times throughout his life, and was not getting along with the people he was currently living with. We did not want him to end up on the streets (or bush actually) again. In August of 2005 he moved in with us. He didn’t even really have a room. He stayed in our sun room/atrium, but it was better than nothing. So it was me, Ryan, Brendon, James, and Josh.

Josh had a fiancee from Canada. She was able to come for a two week visit at the end of September, and she too stayed in the sunroom. Can you believe that she still married him after that?!? Love you Josh! Part of the reason for her visit was to be there for the wedding. Ryan and I were married on October 1, 2005. Brendon moved out of the house while we were on our honeymoon. He decided it would be best for him if he moved back into his mom’s house. Josh finally moved into an actual room. It was me, Ryan, James, Josh, and Ashley (some of the time).

Ashley made another visit in 2006 (in March, I think). Some time in 2006 (late spring, early summer maybe) James moved out to live with his dad. Ryan and I turned the room he was living in into a playroom with a bed for Liz. We were considering becoming foster parents, but we had not been married long enough according to the agency we liked. It was me, Ryan, Josh, and Ashley (some of the time).

Ashley came for an extended stay in September 2007. She got to stay until March of 2008. We loved every moment when she was here. She is such an amazing person.  When she went back to Canada (for the last time) in March, it was me, Ryan, and Josh……

until September of 2008. My stepsister, Jaque had gotten into a tough financial position. She gave birth to Jordan in July, and the expenses of a baby were huge. Ryan and I decided to help them out and let Jaque, Jon (her boyfriend and Jordan’s dad), and Jordan move it temporarily so they could save some money and get back on their feet. It was me, Ryan, Josh, Jaque, Jon, and Jordan.

Ashley returned home to Texas for good in October. She and Joshed stayed at the house a while until they got their own place at the end of October. It was me, Ryan, Josh, Ashley, Jaque, Jon, and Jordan for  a month. It was a tight squeeze.

On this past Saturday, January 31, 2009, Jaque, Jon, and Jordan moved out. I wish I could say that it was under good circumstances like everyone else that has lived with us over the last years. We had to ask them to leave, and everyone else left on their own time. The details and events are too dramatic and not worth getting into. All I know is that Ryan and I tried to help them out and were treated with an attitude of entitlement. If I had to summarized in one word why we asked them to leave it would be “Ungrateful”.

Maybe down the road our relationship can be repaired, but for now we are enjoying having our lives back. I just hope that my heart has not been hardened to helping those who need it out of fear. I’m sure God will lead me through that.

Saturday night as we laid in bed, we had this conversation:

Me: Do you hear that?

Ryan: What?

Me: Nothing

And we got a good night’s sleep.

It’s up!

1-26-09

She is just the sweetest dog ever. Her nickname is even Sweet Pea. She’s rocking out her new tag too!

1-27-09

The beginning icicles of a winter storm.

1-28-09

The aftermath

1-29-09

Ryan and I agree on the important things like how we want to raise our future kids, our faith, and how to communicate in our relationship. On the trivial things though, we are as different as can be. I love Cheddar Peppers from Sonic, and Ryan loves the Poppers from Arby’s. Our solution-just go to both places.

1-30-09

Brrr…we woke up to this. Luckily it wasn’t too expensive to fix.

1-31-09

An empty nest at last. Ryan and I have had people living with us since the summer of 2003, until today! Woohoo!

2-1-09

We celebrated with friends at Maggiano’s. It’s one of our favorite places.

So, we woke up Friday morning to this-

Some time during the night the heater decided to stop working. Ryan climbed up to take a look, but he could not tell what the problem was.

We decided it was best to call a repair guy. Luckily we know someone we trust that does just that. He diagnosed that the heater decided to turn itself off……to avoid from catching fire! Ryan and I are not very good at maintenence on the house (please don’t tell Papa), and the heater was so dirty and dusty. That’s why it shut down. After a few hours of cleaning, the heater was back up and running-thank goodness!