UGH...my back hurts!

Why does my back hurt? Because I spent almost all of the weekend either in bed or on a couch. 

Friday night was great fun though!!!! And thank goodness because the rest of my weekend was NOT fun! Friday night my parents picked me up and we headed into town to meet Mike, Tammy, and Keith for dinner at Eddie V's. We were celebrating my dad's birthday which is actually tomorrow. He wanted a nice dinner and that's what he got! I don't really eat seafood and Mike has a shellfish allergy, so even though if was Friday, we both ate the chicken. Oh well! You'd think they would have a pasta or something, but they didn't! It was a great meal and a great dinner out with my family, celebrating my dad! My dad's been through a lot over the past few years. This month 3 years ago, he had surgery for prostate cancer. He had known for almost 6 months that something was wrong, but didn't want to ruin our holidays or family weddings and put himself on the back burner. They found the cancer, did the surgery, and we thought all was going to be fine. Unfortunately, we were wrong. His blood work every 6 months after his surgery showed PSA numbers doubling each time. When a man's prostate is removed, the PSA should pretty much disappear….his didn't. He found out the cancer had come back to the lymph node channels around where the prostate used to live. Around the same time, he had accepted a new job, and he and my mom had bought a lot to build on. There was also some other family things we were all going through. He started radiation pretty soon after that and in May 2012, he went into remission for the second time. He then found out he had skin cancer on his nose and had surgery for that. In July, another company wanted his expertise, so he took a new job helping to start up a new company.  My parents finally were able to move into their beautiful new home in late October 2012, however one week later, my dad tore his meniscus and ACL. In December he underwent knee surgery and in January 2013, we found out his PSA numbers were very low, which was wonderful news!!!! He's been through so much and at times we wondered when he would catch a break……but I think 2013 is going to be a great year for him! My dad is one of the hardest working people I know. Sometimes, he probably works too hard. His goal has always been to provide for his family the best he could and he has done and continues to do a wonderful job of that. When my sister and I were very young and living in Chicago, we had a book called "My Dad is Brilliant." Every page of the book talked about everything this kid's dad could do. We still to this day reference that book and call my dad BRILLIANT…..because he is the smartest person we know! Happy Birthday a day early DAD! I LOVE YOU!!!

So, Saturday morning came and as the day went on, I was left with nothing in my body anymore….sorry if that's too much info! I was sicker than I'd been in a long time and I was SOOOO mad about it! My parent's had given all of us tickets at Christmas to see Chris Tomlin in concert. Saturday night was the concert, right in our town, at the pavilion. When we first got the tickets, I didn't really want to go and my mom knew that. It was the same day as the Jayhawk's last regular season game against Baylor in Waco. I had planned on attending the game in person! Last time I saw them play in Texas they went on to win a National Championship! Oh well, didn't plan to attend the game anymore and as the concert approached, I was looking forward to hearing all the great songs we sing at church live! I didn't get to go since I was still not feeling well at all and had no energy! I was so bummed I missed the concert. Mike sent me 3 videos from the concert throughout the night. It's amazing how great Chris Tomlin sounded live. Mike said the concert was great! Lots of praise and worship. I love how I could hear him singing along with every video he sent me! (BTW, the Jayhawks lost miserably to Baylor….besides the TCU game, it was the worst one I've seen all year!)

Sunday, I wasn't getting sick anymore, but I still didn't feel good and my energy wasn't back at all. Mike was great all weekend and got me saltine crackers, gatorade, and ginger ale. I was able to eat normal food last night, but only a couple of bites and then I felt full! Of course my mom asked that question…."Are you pregnant?" NO MOM! AND EVERYONE ELSE FOR THAT MATTER! Just a stomach bug that came at a bad time. I'm feeling much better today, more energy and all!

Here's a Chris Tomlin song that is one of our favorites!  

Have a wonderfully blessed week!

pups & kisses,

  Tiffany