A Wedding, an Evening in the ER and an Awesome Friend.

My cousins wedding has officially come and gone. The day was hectic but beautiful. I felt like it rushed by but my cousin looked absolutely radiant in her wedding dress. We had so much fun and I can't say I managed not to cry, because I totally did, multiple times. I don't think I've ever seen her so incredibly happy and that made me happy.

Following that wonderful day I had a recurring pain in my calves. So bad actually that I didn't even want to stand. The wedding was on a Saturday. Sunday I spent mostly couch bound and Monday was mainly a bed lounging day. On Tuesday I went back to work and back to the squat challenge which I had situated in such a way as to give me a few days leeway to enjoy the wedding and get rest following it. The squats didn't really make my calves hurt worst though it didn't make them feel any better.  On the 19th I noticed that besides the prominent pain, my left leg was swollen. I went to an treat and release because I unfortunately don't have health insurance. $150 later I was told that I had strained my leg and to just rest it, ice it and take some Motrin or Advil. No tests were done. No blood was taken. Cut to yesterday the 24th with my leg still significantly swollen, but not hurting as much, I went back to the treat and release with a request for a follow up. The PA I saw showed concern and wanted me to get a sonogram on my leg. It being 5pm all the techs they had working were already sent home. Wanting very much for me to be seen that night for fear of a blood clot I was sent to a hospital near my house that apparently does well with payment plans. After getting turned round and lost in the hospital with my mom for a good half hour we finally found someone to point us in the right direction. We were sent to the ER entrance of the hospital and I was admitted. 6 or so hours, a nice amount of blood vials and a sonogram later my mom and I left the hospital at 1am.

Thankfully I was told I didn't have a blood clot, however it was discovered that I have a baker's cyst. A baker's cyst is a small accumulation of fluid from your knee joint that forms behind your knee and can cause pain and swelling. Unfortunately there isn't much to do for it. Its a wait and watching game to see if it goes away on its own. If it doesn't then they would have to aspirate it.

So to my dismay I had to bow out of the squat challenge that my beach body coach friend is hosting. I dont want to make it any worse but I am really disappointed that I cant finish alongside everyone else.

However to my surprise her Husband shows up on my doorstop with a gift for me from them and their family. A get well fruit basket.

Isn't it cute? It came with a note that said:

"Feel Better Soon!!! Hope this puts a smile on your face. Nothing like chocolate to make you feel better. Enjoy!
Till next challenge group!"

It was absolutely delicious and I was so happy to receive it and devour it. As was my family. I am frequently surprised by my friends and how sweet they are. It's really nice to have people who care about you enough to make you smile when you are feeling down. It is often hard to keep friends close but you must remember that every good relationship needs work and that life will make things hard but as long as you do your best to let your friends know that you care in the little ways they will stay your friends for many years. I sadly do not have many friends but the ones I do have I hold dear and do my darndest to try and keep in touch with. Till next time readers!

"Friendship isn't about who you've known the longest. It's about who walked into your life and said 'I'm here for you' and proved it. ~ Unknown

"There are some people in life that make you laugh a little louder, smile a little bit bigger and live just a little bit better." ~ Unknown

"Notice the people who are happy for your happiness, and sad for your sadness. They're the ones who deserve special places in your hearts." ~ Unknown

Squat challenge day 10 and a happily ever after

It is day 10 of the squat circuit challenge and so far so good. My friend who is a beach body coach started a group to help us all through it. It is always nice to have a group of like minded people going through the same challenges as you who you can talk to, lean on or just complain along side. My legs burn quite often but it is not as hard to complete as I may have feared it would be when I started. Here is too a full completion of 200 squats by dec 2...may my legs be in my favor.

In other news, this Saturday is my younger cousins wedding. It has been a long year of build up to this point. This is a cousin who is like my sister. She is only about two and a half years younger then me and basically has everything i've ever wanted at her age. She is a teacher, so career check, has a soon to be Husband as of saturday night and even has a condo they just purchased together. I'm jealous. I'll admit that much, and I did have a moment where I felt that it should be me rather then her getting married. Although in all honesty though I did shed tears for the life she's gaining that I wish had been my own I could not be happier that she is getting it. I love her so impossibly that I have also shed tears thinking about losing her. Not to say that she is moving away or that marriage will cause me to see her any less. I've simply cried because after Saturday, everything will be changed. It has been changing for some time now. We've grown and gotten lives of our own. Gone are the summers we used to spend together. Gone are the weekends spent just the four of us, her sister, my sister and the two of us, singing and dancing and just being lost in our own little world. But now, now she won't be just her, she'll be them. Her husband to be, who I have come to view as family, will finally be family. I don't have much issue with him or them getting wed. In fact I've been rooting for them for a while now. Being young and in love has not been an easy road for them and I will be so very happy to see them finally say I do, for life, in front of family and friends. But there is something, quite small but present, that sits in the background in a fetal position. It knows that change is coming and it cries for the past. It cries for four kids who acted out Thumbelina and the swan princess. A group of girls who wanted to merge their family names and all live in a mansion together with our husbands and children. Because with growing up comes heart ache and issues. Money and other peoples opinions on how you should be living your life cause fights you never even saw coming. The older you get the harder life becomes.

Don't get me wrong there are many joys in growing up but there are also many burdens to offset them. And that causes me to worry. Because she's the first from our group to take this leap, wise beyond her years, and I wish her all the happiness in the world and none of the hardships. Saturday evening I will gain another family member and I will say good bye to my cousin as I knew her. That is such a scary and sad concept. Although out of everyone I think she is the best equipped. I've seen her grow so much from that little girl who would cry every time she couldn't please everyone. If any one deserves happiness it's her. Her heart is so open and so warm. And her fiancé loves her so much. I'm excited for this weekend. For the step she will take towards her happily ever after, for the party, for the food. But mostly I'm just excited to see her look and him, and him look at her and watch the love collide as they mark their future into the sky. 

So I dropped the ball again...

I do this often. I get geared up to do something and keep up with it and months pass by with no updates. Sorry guys. So first I told you last time I scored a job, it is as an executive administrative assistant. Fancy wording but it basically just means people tell me what to do and I do it. Everything from filling cabinets, moving boxes, putting things together, rewording blurbs for the website or emails, making excel sheets, filling out information in medical programs and filing. There is an infinite amount of filing. It's a pretty nice place with good people and it pays well which is a very important part for me. 

Anyway the second thing I had said I would show you is pictures lots of pictures. So I deleted a lot of pics off my phone but here is what I still have from Mudderella: 

And Rugged Maniac: 

I also ended up doing a run in September called the Ridiculous Obstacle Challenge with most of my bocce group and some of their friends: 

That run consisted of a ton of obstacles made out of the same material as bouncy houses and it was so much fun. 

Now I also promised you cakes. So my two smash cakes: 

  

The christening cake: 

I made the sun flowers and cross as well as the cake. 

And last but not least my cousins baptism chocolates and cupcakes:

So quite a bit has been going on it my life. My younger cousin is getting married next Saturday and I am in the bridal party. Most of my free time has been involved in doing things for that. So there is my excuse for not keeping up with this although I'm not even sure that anyone reads it. But regardless, after the wedding I will have much more time to keep up. I'm going to try really hard to remember to write at least once a week.

In terms of the Bocce team, I'm still a part and it's really fun. We are on our third season and actually we've made it into the city championships so that's really awesome. 

And working out? Well I've been sorta slacking but I have started the 30 day squat challenge and plan on seeing it through. My friend who is a beach body coach is even running a group to help everyone complete it which is just what I need. Someone to hold me accountable. So if you would like to join in you will be two days behind us but here's the bracket: 

Well until next time I'll leave you with this: