Thankful November

There seems to be a thing going around on social media where every day someone writes something they are thankful for this month. The idea is great. Truly it is. I don't have the dedication or attention span to do something every single day like that. I tried the October photo challenge on Instagram and failed miserably. Day 5. Oh, Day 17? Ok.
I will say this for this post. I am thankful for a lot. Despite the shitty hand I've been dealt and continue to get dealt I have some very wonderful things going on. There are so many days it is hard to see them through the fog of pain, the reality of illness and doctor's appointments and focusing on the negative. I'm sick of being tired and in pain. I'm sick of not going to beautiful places and traveling. I miss the salt air. I actually miss working out. I hate running one errand and being wiped out for an entire day. Then there comes a day that pulls the veil and makes everything feel so wonderful and in that moment, I forget I have anything to bitch about to begin with.
As much as I'm thankful that I had many years without so much as a sprained ankle, migraine etc... the last few years have definitely made up for it. So I'm thankful for a pain-free childhood and lived my 20s like I had to burn myself out on purpose.
I have my supportive husband who puts up with all this drama, and me being crabby and in pain, and not fun on many occasions. We don't go on vacation because I suck. Our outings are short lived. I'm pretty useless with heavy lifting situations and I'm usually in a drug induced coma at night if Daughter #2 wakes up. I have two healthy, beautiful, perfect girls. They are goofy and crack me up. I have a great family that I don't see nearly enough because we are scattered all over the country. I have childhood friends that I will always have a bond with and no matter how much time or distance, I know they will always be there.
Since moving to Texas I've met some really great people. I have friends I've met through my kids and through my Husband and I love those couple of gals. They know who they are. I enjoy the sunshine almost everyday, and Daughter #1 loves her school and all her friends. If this state wasn't run by a bunch of conservative, Republican douchebags and was on the ocean it would be perfect.
Specifically, today I am thankful for the internet and my IBD struggle. Yes. Thankful. Friday I got to meet up with a fellow gutsy girl that I met online through a support page. We slowly formed a friendship and we came to realize some similar interests outside of our guts.
Both of us being JFK nuts was one of our common threads. We met to see the movie "Parkland" and seriously it couldn't have been a better way to transition to "real life" friendship. It was like we'd been friends for years. We went to lunch and we probably could have sat there for 3 hours shooting the shit about whatever. And yes, we DID talk about our issues, but the best part is we didn't HAVE to. In fact we talked about that at the very end. After lunch, she left and I wandered around some shops killing time before a doctor's appointment and I realized, at one point, I felt really light. I just felt GOOD. I mean, I was still in pain and what not but I felt this weird sense of completeness I haven't felt in a while. Then it struck me that this was someone that understood me on more levels than anyone I'd met or known in a long time. There wasn't just the our-kids-go-to-school-connection, or the IBD connection, or the our-husbands-know-each-other-connection. It was really that sweet spot of both of us having this illness that brought us together and yet, if that illness disappeared we'd still be cool. It was almost as if you have this friend and then you both get diagnosed with the same thing so you just "get it". But you can still just be because you each understand so you don't need to explain it. I don't know. I hope that makes sense. Whatever I'm saying is, I'm thankful for my IBD and the internet for bringing me to this point where I have this friend I never would have known otherwise. She's not the first "friend" I have now because of my illness, but she's the first I got to meet up with. I had a pretty shitty couple of days around that pocket of a couple of hours, but somehow it wasn't so bad. I won't even get into those details right now. Thanks, Casey. Glad to now really know you in real life, so when I say "my friend" it doesn't just mean a name or face in my laptop. So I'm thankful. =) Have a great day everyone. Happy Birthday to the USMC today and a big thanks to all the Veterans tomorrow.

There seems to be a thing going around on social media where every day someone writes something they are thankful for this month. The idea is great. Truly it is. I don't have the dedication or attention span to do something every single day like that. I tried the October photo challenge on Instagram and failed miserably. Day 5. Oh, Day 17? Ok.
I will say this for this post. I am thankful for a lot. Despite the shitty hand I've been dealt and continue to get dealt I have some very wonderful things going on. There are so many days it is hard to see them through the fog of pain, the reality of illness and doctor's appointments and focusing on the negative. I'm sick of being tired and in pain. I'm sick of not going to beautiful places and traveling. I miss the salt air. I actually miss working out. I hate running one errand and being wiped out for an entire day. Then there comes a day that pulls the veil and makes everything feel so wonderful and in that moment, I forget I have anything to bitch about to begin with.
As much as I'm thankful that I had many years without so much as a sprained ankle, migraine etc... the last few years have definitely made up for it. So I'm thankful for a pain-free childhood and lived my 20s like I had to burn myself out on purpose.
I have my supportive husband who puts up with all this drama, and me being crabby and in pain, and not fun on many occasions. We don't go on vacation because I suck. Our outings are short lived. I'm pretty useless with heavy lifting situations and I'm usually in a drug induced coma at night if Daughter #2 wakes up. I have two healthy, beautiful, perfect girls. They are goofy and crack me up. I have a great family that I don't see nearly enough because we are scattered all over the country. I have childhood friends that I will always have a bond with and no matter how much time or distance, I know they will always be there.
Since moving to Texas I've met some really great people. I have friends I've met through my kids and through my Husband and I love those couple of gals. They know who they are. I enjoy the sunshine almost everyday, and Daughter #1 loves her school and all her friends. If this state wasn't run by a bunch of conservative, Republican douchebags and was on the ocean it would be perfect.
Specifically, today I am thankful for the internet and my IBD struggle. Yes. Thankful. Friday I got to meet up with a fellow gutsy girl that I met online through a support page. We slowly formed a friendship and we came to realize some similar interests outside of our guts.
Both of us being JFK nuts was one of our common threads. We met to see the movie "Parkland" and seriously it couldn't have been a better way to transition to "real life" friendship. It was like we'd been friends for years. We went to lunch and we probably could have sat there for 3 hours shooting the shit about whatever. And yes, we DID talk about our issues, but the best part is we didn't HAVE to. In fact we talked about that at the very end. After lunch, she left and I wandered around some shops killing time before a doctor's appointment and I realized, at one point, I felt really light. I just felt GOOD. I mean, I was still in pain and what not but I felt this weird sense of completeness I haven't felt in a while. Then it struck me that this was someone that understood me on more levels than anyone I'd met or known in a long time. There wasn't just the our-kids-go-to-school-connection, or the IBD connection, or the our-husbands-know-each-other-connection. It was really that sweet spot of both of us having this illness that brought us together and yet, if that illness disappeared we'd still be cool. It was almost as if you have this friend and then you both get diagnosed with the same thing so you just "get it". But you can still just be because you each understand so you don't need to explain it. I don't know. I hope that makes sense. Whatever I'm saying is, I'm thankful for my IBD and the internet for bringing me to this point where I have this friend I never would have known otherwise. She's not the first "friend" I have now because of my illness, but she's the first I got to meet up with. I had a pretty shitty couple of days around that pocket of a couple of hours, but somehow it wasn't so bad. I won't even get into those details right now. Thanks, Casey. Glad to now really know you in real life, so when I say "my friend" it doesn't just mean a name or face in my laptop. So I'm thankful. =) Have a great day everyone. Happy Birthday to the USMC today and a big thanks to all the Veterans tomorrow.

WEGO challenge Day #11 -- social media, what, who, when, wow!

Today's prompt. 

Write about your favorite social network. Do you love Twitter? Facebook? Pinterest? Why?

I love the internet. I can not imagine what life would have been like in High School or college(the first time) with the 24/7 connection to the world. 

Those who know me, know I love them all. Facebook can be oh so annoying, but the positives of what I have gotten from it, make me hang in there. I have reconnected with people who I lost touch with. I get to see where their lives have gone, see their beautiful kids, faces that bring back great memories, and it's effortless to connect and share pics and info with many people at once. Plus, I have a built in IBD network of so many wonderful people that I have never met, and may never meet, who get it and understand and have been in my shoes and me in their's. My facebook IBD groups made me feel less scared and isolated and singular. It allowed me to own my struggle with IBD. It's brilliant!

I also love Twitter. I love getting all my news headlines, traffic issues, funny tidbits, my IBD community exchanges blurbs about their shitty days or their successes. I love the simplicity of the retweet. I love seeing the randomness that celebrities come up with on their accounts. 

On my old macbook. I'm sure my smartphone was with me too.

I'm much newer to Pinterest but I do enjoy it. It is unreal the ideas and recipes and home decor and outfits and picture scenarios can be in one place. It really seems endless and could take up an entire day. I like that everything is on it's own little boards and it becomes it's own little way of passing ideas and stories. 

I use all three to share my blog and share my journey and pass along details and stories of people that I admire or connect with and feel others should read about. 

I love it. I love that you can find out virtually anything in a matter of seconds. I love video chatting and think there should be more of that. I remember dial up with a phone cord stretched into the spare room of my parents house. I remember when AOL disks came in the mail every other day. Amazing how much has changed. I still write thank you cards though. You know, the ones you put a stamp on and mail?! =)

Today's prompt. 

Write about your favorite social network. Do you love Twitter? Facebook? Pinterest? Why?

I love the internet. I can not imagine what life would have been like in High School or college(the first time) with the 24/7 connection to the world. 

Those who know me, know I love them all. Facebook can be oh so annoying, but the positives of what I have gotten from it, make me hang in there. I have reconnected with people who I lost touch with. I get to see where their lives have gone, see their beautiful kids, faces that bring back great memories, and it's effortless to connect and share pics and info with many people at once. Plus, I have a built in IBD network of so many wonderful people that I have never met, and may never meet, who get it and understand and have been in my shoes and me in their's. My facebook IBD groups made me feel less scared and isolated and singular. It allowed me to own my struggle with IBD. It's brilliant!

I also love Twitter. I love getting all my news headlines, traffic issues, funny tidbits, my IBD community exchanges blurbs about their shitty days or their successes. I love the simplicity of the retweet. I love seeing the randomness that celebrities come up with on their accounts. 

On my old macbook. I'm sure my smartphone was with me too.

I'm much newer to Pinterest but I do enjoy it. It is unreal the ideas and recipes and home decor and outfits and picture scenarios can be in one place. It really seems endless and could take up an entire day. I like that everything is on it's own little boards and it becomes it's own little way of passing ideas and stories. 

I use all three to share my blog and share my journey and pass along details and stories of people that I admire or connect with and feel others should read about. 

I love it. I love that you can find out virtually anything in a matter of seconds. I love video chatting and think there should be more of that. I remember dial up with a phone cord stretched into the spare room of my parents house. I remember when AOL disks came in the mail every other day. Amazing how much has changed. I still write thank you cards though. You know, the ones you put a stamp on and mail?! =)