Alexa's Busy Weekend

This weekend was full of action for Alexa.  It started out on Saturday afternoon when Alexa got to go to a birthday party for one of her pre-school friends at Capital City Gymnastics.  What a fun time!  

They started by doing some stretches. 

(Alexa is the one with the blue polka-dot socks on)

Then she got to practice her balancing skills on the beam.

She got to do flips on the uneven bars - look at that form!

She flew down the zip line.

And even got to slip down the bouncy house slide and jump in the bounce houses.

 

She also got to jump into the foam pit, bounce on the trampoline, and practice on the spring board.  She had so much fun and I wished I was a kid again so I could play on all the equipment too.

Then on Saturday night, she went to the circus with Mommy and Grandpa Tom.  

She got to see all sorts of fun acts but the best were Anna Louise the Dancing Elephant and the Dancing Bears.

On Sunday afternoon, Alexa got to go to Shogun Japanese Restaurant to celebrate Grandma CeCe's 60th birthday.   This is one of those places where the chef cooks the food right in front of you and does all sorts of fancy tricks like making an onion volcano, making flames with the oil, cracking eggs on the edge of a knife, and throwing bowls up into the air and catching them with his hat.  He even went around the table and threw shrimp into the air and had us try to catch it in our mouths.  Alexa thought the show was pretty great!

She even tried to use her chopsticks!

I think Grandma CeCe had a good time as well.

Then on Sunday night, Alexa got to spend time with Grandma Cheryl, Grandpa Donn, her Aunt Taryne, and cousins Foster & Loghen.  

Whew!  I don't know about Alexa, but I'm worn out!  Now I just have to figure out how to keep Alexa occupied this week.  

EIGHT YEARS

Eight years ago, I married my sweetheart.  He's still my best friend and I am lucky to be married to such a wonderful man.  Our lives look a bit different than we would've expected eight years ago but we are abundantly blessed and extremely grateful.  Looking forward to what the next eight years will bring.

Good News/Bad News

Good News:
I’ve always been told I have the blood pressure and pulse rate of a professional athlete. 
Bad News:
If you’re not a professional athlete – in fact, if you only exercise once a year – you shouldn’t have such a low blood pressure and pulse rate.

Good News:
Water is good for you.
Bad News: 
I haven’t been drinking enough and sometimes that’s enough to throw your body totally out of whack.  It led to an ER visit which was followed up by a visit to a Cardiac Electrophysiologist and concluded with a new diagnosis.

Good News:
I don’t usually wear dresses or shorts anyway.
Bad News:
Now I get to wear these pretty little numbers. 

And yes, they go all the way up past my bum and are SUPER tight.  They are not my favorite.

Good News:

I like salty foods.
Bad News:
I don’t especially like adding salt to my cereal but the Doctor says I should put salt on EVERYTHING I eat.

Good News:
I’m fairly healthy and haven’t had to take any regular medications.
Bad News:
Now I’m supposed to start on a beta-blocker.  I’m not thrilled.   The Doctor says it will hopefully help but there is also the possibility it will make everything worse.  I’m supposed to be very cautious when I start it and it may take a while to find the right dosage and/or medication.

I struggled with whether to share this with everyone but for those of you who know me well you may wonder about my new fashion statement, why I put salt on everything I eat, and why I sit down a lot.  I’m also hoping you may remind me to drink lots of water anytime you see me because it's still something I'm not too good at.  So, there it is.  I have a  diagnosis of Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS).  For me, when I stand up my heart rate increases MUCH more than it should.  My body is trying to compensate for the change in gravity and the blood that goes to your legs.  Unfortunately, my autonomic nervous system isn’t working quite right and can’t seem to find the happy balance.  So I get dizzy, my heart races, sometimes I feel sick, and once in awhile I feel like I might pass out.  These are issues I’ve dealt with for years but my body got way out of balance a few weeks ago which caused things to get worse.  I’m feeling much better now and I just need to stay more on top of how I’m feeling and take better care of myself.  

Good News:
This is not life-threatening
Bad News:
It is annoying and will require some life changes.

We apparently like to keep things interesting around here…