Chiropractor/personal trainer/nutritionist

Well, my chiropractor has given me the okay to go ahead with some more advanced stuff now. My back has been feeling not to bad...my scans are showing great improvement in lots of areas. My pain is way way less than it has been in a long time - which is FANTASTIC.

So he gave me a "free" consultation with the personal trainer/nutritionist who works in his office (she is also his wife...LOL). I had my first appointment with her last Tuesday.

We went over exercises, nutrition and did a basic evaluation of my body. OUCH. NOT good. I definately have a lot to work on. She was, however, surprised when she did my body measurements that both my upper arms are the same size and both my thighs are the same size and my left calf is only 3/8 of an inch bigger than my right. She said it is very rare for someone to be so balanced. LOL

We went through a bunch of other things as well.

For now she wants me to monitor my eating habits and to do a minimum of 20 minutes on the treadmill a day. And I go back to see her next Monday afternoon at which time we will go over my eating plan and add more to my exercise program. It will be moderate right now until we get home from our vacation and then we will go full steam ahead.

She figures that for me to reach my goal (to be down 15 - 20 lbs), as long as I follow exactly what she says, I shouldn't have a problem meeting it in 4 - 6 months. YIPPEE!!!

Shayne, Bailey and I go to the optomitrist

And we all need glasses.

Shayne needs a stronger prescription for all around use. Bailey is getting some for distance - reading the board and watching tv.

And I am back in glasses after 8 years. I had ICL (Implanted Contact Lenses) surgery in 2000. This surgery took me from legally blind without corrective lenses to perfect vision. I have known over the past year or so that my eyesight was worsening - especially when driving...and finally broke down and went. And I was right. I really need them for driving.

so all were ordered and received. The kids are very happy with theirs but I was not. I got a headache right away wearing mine...and noticed that I could not read the dash when driving and that the periferal vision was foggy. So I called them and made an appointment to go back in to have them checked.

I went through another complete exam (new dr.) and she changed my prescription a little bit and I went into "anti-fatigue" lenses which will help with my vision problems with the glasses. So next week, I will have my new glasses AGAIN. LOL

More dr. stuff

Well, I made it to the two specialist appointments by the 8th of December.

The first was a urologist. He said that while the results of my abdominal ultrasound showed some fullness in the tubes between my kidney and bladder it wasn't enough to cause him any concern. He did tell me about proper hygiene stuff. He also said that if my bladder infections get worse or prominent once again I am to go and see him immediately. He also recommended that I have another ultrasound in a year.

My other was with a gynocologist. I have an endometrial polyp and we are keeping an eye on it. So currently, she has me scheduled for a hysteroscopy for the end of January and we will make further decisions after that.

As for all my other medical stuff...my blood pressure is still normal. And I am now on a low dosage birth control pill to see if that helps with my pms problems. LOL

So here's hoping that all that will settle itself down in the coming months.

Buddy bowl

Every so often during the year, the kids have a fun day at bowling. This was the November fun day. It is called "Buddy Bowl". Each member of the Youth Bowling is allowed to bring a friend.

Bailey brought Tamara.



And Shayne's friends were all busy so he bowled with Brandi (my 3 year old neice). Little kids start out with using the "bowling ball guide"...but as you can tell that Brandi had had enough of being treated like a baby and was trying to throw the ball like Shayne.


Everyone had fun.

Shayne and his bowling accomplishments

Shayne is doing really well in bowling this year. He has attended a couple big tournaments already.

One was Zones for Provincials. He came in 2nd. He had a couple rough games but overcame them very well and showed remarkable composure throughout.

The other was 4-Steps. They compete "in house" and then go to zones and then provicials and nationals. He came in 6th at Zones.

His coach is very proud of him.

His average this year has increased from 140 to 198. He is currently sitting at the top of the average board for the youth bowling league.

Here he is showing good form from start to finish:

Shayne's actual birthday

is December 5.

We had a quiet night at home. He had tried to make plans to go out with friends but they all have jobs.

We cooked his favorite meal - bbq steak, baked potatoes, shrimp, veggies, salad and, of course, the ever popular ice cream cake.

More birthday brunch pics

Melissa and her gift:
Shayne and his gift:
Mark and his new coat for work:
Doyle and I:
Bailey:

Birthday brunch

Every year we do two birthday brunches. One in April/May for the birthdays in the first six months of the year and one in Nov/Dec to celebrate the others.

We get together at Moxie's Classic Grill on the north side of the city and chow down. It is a great time to catch up, take pics, eat good food and have a few merry drinks.

This brunch was to celebrate Mark, Melissa, Shayne and Coreen's birthdays.

Luke and Coreen:

Mark and Autumn:

Shayne and Melissa

Shayne is mistaken

As I was driving him back to school after his suspension, we came across some animals trotting down the road towards us.

Shayne says with a surprised tone to his voice "LOOK MOM - DONKEYS!!!"

I burst out laughing. The poor boy. He was sooo embarrassed.

What he was actually looking at was two MULE DEER.

Dec 3 - Dr. appointm"ent - EI Info Session

I had my follow-up dr. appointment today. It went really well. My new blood pressure medication is working...I am back down to normal. We also discussed some other medical issues and she has booked me into a couple specialists. I see them in December.

I went from there to my EI Info Session. This is a mandatory session where they tell you what your expectations are while collecting EI (Employment Insurance). We had to take in our first filled out form for job searching. While informative, it was also confusing about some things...like the distance you are required to travel for work. They say 40 km one way. Well that doesn't really get me anywhere...living out in the country. Then they said "well, one hour commute". Oh...okay...that helps.

At the end of the session, I wanted to talk to someone about this stuff but there was no one around. OH well, guess I have their phone number just in case.