March is Endometriosis Awareness Month 🎗💛🌻

March is Endometriosis Awareness Month and I am the 1 in 10. 🎗💛🌻

Yesterday marked 6 months since my endometriosis excision surgery. 🎗

It was about this same time last year that I first spoke to a doctor about the possibility of me having endo.  And after what felt like forever, I might finally have an answer.  Up to that point, I wasn’t getting anywhere with my doctors, and I did the research myself to figure out what was wrong with me.  So when I went to that appointment in March, I stated clearly and firmly “I think I have endometriosis.”  I backed it up with the hours of research I’d done… and I had all of the symptoms. 🎗

Thankfully, our PCP’s physician assistant listened and he immediately ordered an MRI on my stomach.  After getting those results, I was sent to a surgical gynecologist and he said the MRI suggested endo.  He ordered a trans-vaginal ultrasound to confirm it, and eight days later I had that done.  Most women don’t get diagnosed with endo based off their imaging results- but mine was bad enough that they diagnosed it on sight. 🌻 

I thought that would be the end of my medical saga… but then I had to go through three doctors before I finally found one who would operate on me given my situation and the severity of my endo.  Thankfully, my entire experience with Dr. G and Beth Israel was smooth sailing and I had my endometriosis excision surgery six months ago.  I can never ever express enough how grateful I am for him. 💛

Now six months later… I don’t have periods that are as painful and I no longer have pain from Bruno the cyst.  But I’m learning that I was delusional if I thought my day to day stomach pain would completely go away.  I still feel cramps and stomach pain as I go through the cyclical hormone shifts of my menstrual cycle each month.  I’m still nauseous randomly for any number of reasons.  I still have to watch what I eat.  My lower back pain isn’t nearly as awful as it was when my bowels were attached to my uterus, but I still have some pain occasionally.  My incisions bother me often… and I still face the daily battle of feeling like my underwear and pants are trying to kill me. 😕 But it’s way better than before, and I’m so thankful for that.

This Endometriosis Awareness Month, I now have a name for what’s happening to my body.  And I want other women to know that they’re not alone if they experience this.  It takes the average woman 10 years to get a diagnosis.  Listen to the women in your life and believe them when they describe their pain.  It’s not all in our heads.  And ladies, always advocate for yourself because you deserve to be heard. 🎗💛🌻

🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻🎗💛🌻

WDW Annual Passholders

Hi Friends!  I'm just popping in quickly with some fun news!  After six years, Eliot and I can once again count ourselves amongst those perpetual magic seekers... 

Because as of late last night, Eliot and I are now WDW Annual Passholders!!!

If you're following me on social media, (Facebook and/or Instagram) then you probably already know that we're getting ready to leave for Walt Disney World Princess Half Marathon weekend in two days.  Since we're also going back to WDW for RunDisney's Springtime Surprise in April, it just made sense.  And we'll probably try to use our passes for at least another one or two trips before they'll expire a year from now.  

Anyways, I just had to share the news with you all.  I'm super excited... Eeek!!!  °o°

Happy Super Bowl Sunday!!! ✨🏈✨

Happy Super Bowl Sunday!!! ✨🏈✨  I can't even believe I'm saying this... but I'm buckling down for another Super Bowl where I'm watching my team play in the biggest game of the year.  It feels like a dream... 

Naturally, I had to make sure to show my Patriots pride while Eliot and I were out in California last week.  You can take the girl out of New England, but you can never take the New England out of the girl. 💕 My Patriots mouse ears have made their way down to Walt Disney World before… so I thought it was time they traveled with me to the west coast to sprinkle a little bit of pixie dust over in California before today. ✨🐭✨ 

If I thought the odds were against us to make the playoffs, to make it rounds into the playoffs, to make it to the AFC Championship game… I definitely thought the odds were not in our favor to make the Super Bowl… but here we are. 😊 Honestly, for most of us Patriots fans, it feels like just making it to the Super Bowl was our Super Bowl, so we’ve already won in my book. 🏆 I’ll still be a giant pile of nerves watching the game later on today... but no matter how tonight goes, this born and raised girl from Maine is very proud of be a New England Patriots fan. 💖🙂 

Let’s Go Patriots!!! ❤️🏈💙 

Merry Christmas!!! 🎄

Hi Friends!  I just wanted to pop by quickly to wish you a Merry Christmas!  

Eliot and I have been crazy busy the past few weeks between mouse ear orders, desk accessory orders, sewing classes, hockey games, doctor's appointments, holiday events and trying to check things off of our own Christmas to do lists.  I'm so glad that we have today to sit back and just be still before life starts spinning quickly again.

I hope you have a joyous day filled with lots of love, happiness and merriment.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!!! 🎄

Three Months Since Endometriosis Excision Surgery

It’s been exactly three months since my endometriosis excision surgery!!! 💛🎗🌻 

Looking back, I’ve been through a whirlwind this past year.  But it feels like this is a good point to try to stop counting- even though that’s been really hard for me.  I spent most of this past year counting and calculating absolutely everything.  How long does this pain last?  How many days have I experienced this?  How many times do I have to use the bathroom a day?  What day of my menstrual cycle is it?  How big is Bruno the baseball sized cyst at this point? 🎗🌻 

Today, exactly 13 weeks to the day post-op, I’m so ready to put as much of that behind me as possible.  I’ve still got endometriosis- and I am slowly learning to accept that I’ll never be the same me I was ever again.  I have a chronic illness. 🎗 I’m going to have good days and I’m going to have bad days.  But here’s hoping the good ones will finally start to outweigh the bad ones. 💛

I’m going to continue to look at sunflowers as my shining ray of hope. 🌻 Maybe they have always been there smiling at me with encouragement… it just took all of this for me to realize it.  I really loved this beautiful sunflower Starry Night inspired Christmas tree from our trip to Pittsburg back in January of 2022 when Eliot and I went to the Immersive Van Gogh Exhibit with his family. 🎨🖼  And I think I’m going to make myself a miniature version of it next year so I can remember how strong I really am. 💛🎗🌻

Happy 41st Birthday To Me ✨🎂✨

Happy Birthday to the most courageous person I know.  Another year has gone by and while it wasn’t my favorite, I survived it somehow.  This year, I’m feeling blessed to be where I’m at right now.  I’ve reached the 8 week post surgery mark.  While I’ve still had some stomach pain the past few weeks, I feel so much better overall.  And I can’t even begin to describe how much better things are today versus a year ago… 

The truth is, last year all I really wanted for my birthday was to disappear.  And as you know, that’s exactly what I did.  Eliot and I went away for two weeks to the only place I knew would heal me.  I didn’t feel good physically- although I still didn’t know why at the time.  I was emotionally drained out and I didn’t have the spoons for much of anything. And I wasn’t in a good place mentally… it felt like I’d lost myself somewhere along the way.  Basically, I desperately needed a lifeline and I took it.

I didn’t know it at the time, but those two weeks were the greatest gift I have ever given myself.  It was the reset I needed.  The kick in the pants to acknowledge that it was time to pour into my own cup.  Because after two weeks of magic, laughter, sunshine, theme parks, Christmas celebrations, genuine smiles, tropical islands and a spectacular cruise… I returned home a different person.  The little spark inside of me was back. And I needed that fire to get through all of the trials and tribulations that year 40 brought me.

So here’s to another new year… hopefully one with a lot less health issues, but one with more magic, laughter, sunshine and genuine smiles. °o° 

Happy Halloween!!! ✨🎃✨

Happy Halloween Everyone!!!  ✨🎃✨

I just wanted to pop in quickly to wish you all a happy holiday.  I know that I've been quiet this month while I work on healing from my endometriosis excision surgery.  Thankfully, that's been going very well overall.  In fact, I keep catching myself doing things that I still shouldn't be doing quite yet.  I feel pretty good so it's hard to remember that I'm still in recovery when I'm trying to get things (like laundry) done.

I'm hoping to get on here more often, but now that we are heading into our busy holiday season for the businesses, I'm not sure what that will look like.  Eliot and I had a bunch of things we had to put on hold due to my endometriosis diagnosis and surgery, so now we're trying to find the balance of what life looks like moving forward.  Part of me is ready to start running as fast as I can since it feels like I haven't done anything in months.  But I know that I have to pace myself.

In the immediate future, I'm hoping our busy holiday rush will go well and we'll be able to enjoy the holiday season.  We were able to enjoy fall, but it was definitely subdued due to my surgery & recovery.  So I'm ready to go into Christmas mode in full force! 

And hopefully I'll find time to pop in here when I can!  I miss posting regularly and I'm hoping I can get back to that at some point.  I'll definitely be back as soon as I can.  

In the meantime, I hope you all have a wonderful Halloween!!!  °o°