Deviation

That's the answer.

I went to the ENT for my CT scan and allergy test this morning, and that was the answer: I have a deviated septum.  No allergies.  No sinus problems (in fact, my sinuses look pretty good, apparently). Just a deviated septum.

Just.

Long story short, the deviated septum is [likely and hopefully (because that means surgery will fix it)] causing three things:

1. my drainage to go IN instead of OUT, which leads to sore throats and, well... drainage.
2. a pinched nerve somewhere in my nose/cheek/eye area, which is the cause of what we thought were sinus headaches but are actually facial migraines. 
3. limited breathing capacity.  Apparently I'm only breathing at about 80% of what I should be, which is probably why I sigh ALL THE TIME.  Seriously, people at work comment on it at least once a day.

So, what do we do to fix the problem?

Surgery.  Next Thursday (March 13). Sometime in the morning. The surgeon/doctor/specialist guy will be basically shaving off the part that is doing the blocking (if I understood correctly. I was kind of having one of those facial migraine things going on so I was having trouble focusing on what he was telling me.)  If all goes well, I'll have surgery Thursday, follow-up Friday, recovery Saturday, bounce-back Sunday, and return to work Monday.

Thanks for all who have been and will continue to pray.  It's not scary for me, but it is a little overwhelming.  I wasn't expecting it to happen so soon.  But I'm thankful for so many things today- I'm glad to finally have some answers!

5 Thankful Things - February

Yay! February is finally over, which means Winter is almost over, which means warmer temps and hints of Spring are just a few short weeks away! Here are my five thankfuls for February:

1. Opportunities to be tested in certain areas of my life.  This month definitely held a few of those, and I'm thankful for the opportunity to grow and actually see myself making decisions that are small, but important, with the right focus!
2. Playing my Flute in Church on Sunday mornings, which has not only been a great ministry opportunity for me, but has been an encouragement and blessing to others in the church.  I'm thankful that God gave me the desire to do this!
3. My Sister Leah.  I'm not sure what I would have done without her this month, as she was my go-to fill-in for church ministries when I was sick.  She filled in for me last Sunday in Children's Church (she taught and everything!) at a moments notice, and she's filled in for me at least once (maybe twice) in Wednesday night Awana.  I hate missing out on ministries, but I'm thankful for people like my sister who go beyond what's required of them, and who do it with a smile on their face!
4. Antihistamines. I have no idea why I never thought if it before, but with all the nasal blockage of late, it never once occurred to me to take them.  That is... until I went to the ENT specialist, who wants to take a CAT scan of my head and do an allergy test on Monday.  One of the last things they told me before I left was "absolutely NO antihistamines (and maybe some other stuff I can't remember...) within 48 hours before we see you on the 3rd!"  At which point I was like... "Ah Ha!  Hello!  Why haven't I been taking these nasal passage opening capsules before?!"  On a side note, I now get to endure the weekend without the help of these lovely gems, but hopefully they'll discover something insightful on Monday to alleviate the problem entirely.
5. My sense of humor.  It's something I take for grated all too often, but today I was actually HUGGED for being... funny... I guess.  Life is far to short to go through it cranky and rain-cloud-y all the time! I [almost always] choose to look on the bright side... or at least the humorous side, and I'm thankful for the disposition God gave me.  I know, I know... I have my moments of not-so-sunny-ness, but for the most part, I just like being happy. :)  

Ten Random Things

1. I love glazed doughnuts. Just plain old glazed rings of deliciousness.
2. My favorite color is yellow.  But I like just about any color as long as it's bold and bright.
3. I'm a coffee drinker, but lately I've been drinking TONS of tea, hot and with honey.
4. My favorite "chore" is vacuuming. My least favorite is dusting.
5. I like to learn/know things.  If I don't know what a word means, I look it up, learn its meaning, and use it frequently.
6. I'm very particular about the way my laundry is folded. Unless you absolutely know 100% how to fold to my specifications, don't bother folding my clothes.
7. I'm not a morning person.  At all.  In fact, I'm not so pleasant in the morning.  However, my favorite part of the day is sunrise.  I love the reminder that I've been given another day to grow, learn, and serve Jesus!
8. I super enjoy going to museums of natural history.  I haven't been to one in years, but I like history!
9. Growing up, my favorite day of the week was Tuesday.  I have no idea why, but I still enjoy Tuesdays.  
10. Never in my life have I driven through a car wash. I always loved going through the car wash with my parents when I was little, and I certainly have no aversion to driving my own car through the car wash; I just never have.

Right Now I'm...

Listening: Gavin DeGraw's song "Make a Move" (which I happened upon the other day whilst perusing youtube) and the entire soundtrack to the movie "Valentine's Day", which is fantastic!

Watching: One Tree Hill.  I forget how much I love the characters in that show! And, of course, I've watched "Valentine's Day" about six times in the last month.

Reading: Karen Kingsbury's new(ish) book "Fifteen Minutes"- her writing never gets old!

Eating: Mom's special Valentine's Sugar Cookies. She fills them with strawberry jelly and then adds lots of frosting.... I think Valentine's Day might just be my favorite holiday... ;)

Wishing: That my ENT specialist hadn't cancelled last week due to snow.  Now I have to wait another two weeks to find out what great solutions he will come up with for me...

Needing:  A day of summer.  Just one. Please... pretty please! I think just one day of summer would tide me over until actual summer gets here.

Rejoicing: That I'm finally feeling mostly better! I had sinus infection AND laryngitis for most of a week. BLAH!

Indulging: See prior post about Valentine's Cookies...

Loathing: Nothing outside the norm, I suppose. Just the normal... winter, snow, ice, The Joker... you know what I loath.

Saying: Well, we had a cheese-a-thon last Sunday (a movie marathon consisting of ALL cheesy movies) wherein we watched "Father of the Bride," "The Perfect Man," & "A Cinderella Story" all in succession.  So we've had lots of hilariously cheesy quotes flying around...

Meditating: Genesis 1:1 says that "In the beginning, GOD CREATED the heavens and the earth."  I, along with lots of other Christians, watched a pretty great debate between Bill Nye the Science Guy and Ken Ham the Other Science Guy on Tuesday.  God's creation never ceases to amaze me, and I love to marvel at His creativity!

Picturing:  

Where I was a year ago...

(Cedarville to visit Helen & see Caleb in "Joseph")

5 Thankful Things- January

Something I wanted to do this year was be more thankful.  To take the time to really notice and appreciate the great things I have in my life.  There are far too many things I take for granted, and I don't want to let these blessings just pass by without notice any longer.

So I've decided to try to do a monthly "reflection" of sorts by sharing just five things I'm thankful for during the month.  Here's January:

1. Not having to live in fear of being evicted.  I love love LOVE living at home, and while sometimes I'm afraid my parents will get sick of me, I know that fear is just that: a fear.  There is no truth to it whatsoever, and my parents most likely love having me home just as much as I love living here.  It's not exactly what I planned to be doing at 24, but in some ways, it's BETTER!
2. I'm thankful for a job that allows me to stay home when I'm sick.  In fact, I think they'd rather have me stay home than come to work when I'm sick.  And let me tell you, I have DEFINITELY been sick.  I can't seem to kick this sinus-y upper respiratory thing.  On that note...
3. I'm thankful for a doctor that FINALLY sees the need for serious help with these recurrent sinus infections.  He referred me to an ENT (Ears, Nose, Throat) specialist, who I will see on Wednesday.
4. I'm thankful that our house is NOT heated with propane.  Not that I'm paying for it regardless, since as I already mentioned: I live at home, but I'm thankful that it's not something we have to worry about. 
5. I'm thankful for reconnecting with friends.  I'm thankful, in particular, for my high school friend, Connie, who introduced me to "trampoline jogging!"  I've been jogging 3-5 times a week since the new year, and I've gotta say, it's the best workout I've ever done!