What a headache...

I've decided that it's time for me to have a brain transplant, because my head is clearly broken. I've spent the last four days battling a nasty migraine, and I'm still not sure if I can declare victory at this point.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. First, we should probably talk about what constitutes a migraine. I can only write from my own experience, and refer to basic headaches not of the sinus/tension/vision variety. Also, I should let you know that I have a pretty high tolerance for pain. I don't like going to the doctor, so I definitely have a suffer-through-the-pain-and-hope-the-problem-goes-away mentality. That said, having been a headache-prone individual all my life, I classify them thusly:

Headache -- a dull ache that is annoying and painful, but you can still go about your daily routine. You can usually get rid of it by taking two extra-strength Tylenol and drinking a diet coke. Sometimes all you need is something to eat and a tall glass of water.

Intense headache -- a strong ache that is not easily gotten rid of. You can still function, but the ache in your head is ever-present and quite irritating. After trying all the above methods of pain relief, it may also help to get some rest and sleep it off. But often, these intense headaches are just a preamble to a...

Migraine -- a debilitating headache that stops you in your tracks. Your head feels like it's caught in a clamp that's being squeezed tighter and tighter. The agonizing pressure is at the front of your head, just above your eyes. Everything hurts. Light hurts, sound hurts, muscles ache, the thought of eating anything is out of the question because you feel extremely nauseous. Throwing up is not uncommon. All you can do is turn off all the lights, shut yourself away from any sound, curl up in the fetal position, apply pressure to your forehead (sounds counter-intuitive, but it's what works for me), force down some prescription meds and pray that it will go away.

When you have a migraine, you are in bare-minimum, basic survival mode. If you are able to have a normal phone conversation, watch TV, text your friends, update your facebook status, post on your blog, or surf the web, you do not have a migraine. You can't think of anything beyond "Make it stop!" There is no way to "power through" it. Honestly, it feels like your body is revolting against you. Plans are canceled, kids are left to fend for themselves, and life is put on hold while you try to make it go away.

Migraines often come at times most inconvenient. I've had migraines appear on Christmas, at Disneyland, during romantic getaways (insert your "not tonight, honey, I have a headache" joke here). Migraines don't discriminate.

It was about 6 years ago that my headaches really began to get out of control. I was having intense headaches several times a week, I had a preschooler and a toddler at home with me, and I was struggling. I got my eyes checked and ruled out any kind of connection between my headaches and my eyesight. My doctor recommended I get a CT scan, as a precaution. The results showed an abnormality in my brain. While that wasn't the most promising news, in a way I was relieved because I had hope that there was at least an explanation for what was going on. I was advised to have an MRI, and I did. Here's a tip for those of you who may someday need to go in for a brain scan: don't wear a thin white shirt to your appointment. They make you remove all metal from your body, including your underwire bra, and they keep the room with the machine in it very cold. While you are lying perfectly still with your head strapped to a contraption and placed inside a large tube, you really shouldn't have to worry about indecent exposure.

The good news: the results of my MRI showed that while I have an abnormal skull/brain, there was no sign of of a tumor or anything problematic. The bad news was that I was no closer to figuring out the cause of my headaches. I was referred to a Neurologist who helped me get a grasp on the mysteries of migraines. My understanding is that while there are certain identifiable triggers -- diet, stress, monthly cycle, lack of sleep -- the actual cause of migraines is unknown. Thankfully, there are many medications that can help migraine sufferers, and I've had to try quite a few.

I got my headaches under control and then became pregnant with my youngest child. One of the few perks of pregnancy for me is that the headaches seem to go dormant. I was uncomfortable in every other possible way, but at least I was headache free!

But like most problems that you think you've overcome, my headaches came roaring back a couple of years ago. Most often, my migraines arrive in the wee early hours of the morning. I'll wake up at 2:00am with a headache that is so intense it roused me from my sleep to make itself known. Sometimes I'll even be dreaming that I have a headache before I wake up and realize that it's not just a dream. I stumble out of bed, fight off the urge to puke, hunt for my medicine, force myself to swallow some down, crawl back in bed, then pray that I can fall back asleep and wake up headache free. Other times, it is so subtle at first, and comes on during the day so gradually, that I don't realize it right away, mistake it for a milder headache, treat it with the wrong cocktail of medicines, and then by nightfall it's in full blown migraine mode.



Though I get migraines less frequently than I used to (it's once or twice a month now), they are the worst they've ever been. In the past 96 hours I've endured a most persistent headache, and have used the following drugs in an effort to get rid of the pain:

4 Excedrin Migraine
3 Advil
2 extra-strength Tylenol
2 Imitrex
3 promethazine

It just doesn't want to go away. I'll think I've got it beat, and then it comes back. Twice in the past four days I have been pulled from sleep, once at 2:30am and the other at 4:45am, with my head feeling like it might explode. My week was wasted. At this point, I've been headache free for 12 hours. Wish me luck that I might finally have knocked this one out.


Sorry this isn't a very funny or witty post. For whatever reason, I've felt for awhile now like I needed to write about what it's like to live and cope with migraines. I know I'm not the only one who gets them. I'm curious to know if what I described is what others experience. So tell me, fellow bloggers and possible migraine sufferers, does my description sound familiar, or are your headaches different than mine? What is it like for you?

I Like Things That Sparkle

Before you read any further I should warn you that, despite its title, this post has nothing to do with Twilight or Edward or vampires. (Though if you want to read something humorous and Twilight-related, might I suggest you follow this link?). Alright, now that I've made that clear, one of the sparklers shown in the blurry cell phone picture below is my new ring. These were the options I narrowed it down to before inviting my husband along to help me make my final choice. (I figured I would let him offer up an opinion considering he was the one paying for it). Can you guess which one I picked?

I'll give you a hint: it's sparkly, it suits my hand well, and I love it! Not a good enough hint? Oh well... I guess you'll just have to wait and see for yourself.

Lest you think I'll be sporting a ring that's quite ostentatious, keep in mind that the center diamonds in the settings above are slightly bigger than the one I'll be replacing it with. Now I just have to wear my fake one a week more while the ring I selected is sized up, naturally, and the stone is reset. Would you believe that some of the rings I tried on didn't even fit my pinkie? My fingers are so lame.

Ring Shopping

When last I wrote, you learned all about my wonky hands and a bit about my struggles with ring- wearing while pregnant. What I didn't confess to you at the time, but am now willing to divulge, is that the wedding ring I currently wear is a fake. FAKE!!! False, bogus, phony, fakety-fake fake fake!

While I was pregnant with my youngest, my hands swelled and made it impossible for me to put on my wedding ring. Unfortunately, after my baby was born, the sausage-like expansion of my ring finger made it difficult for me to wear my wedding band on any finger but my pinkie. Since that would look ridiculous, as I am not a member of the mafia, I decided the next best alternative was to head on over to amazon.com and find the classiest fake diamond ring my money could buy. With a whopping $30 budget and the only qualification that it had to come in a size 10 — I know! — I began my hunt. After an extensive search wherein I realized that almost every woman in the world wears a ring at least four sizes smaller than what I needed, I finally found a few decent options to choose from.

$29 and two days later (thanks, Amazon Prime!), my tarnish free rhodium plated sterling silver band with a clear, brilliant cut cubic zirconia ring arrived.

When I pulled it out of the box, I was relatively satisfied that it did not look any cheaper in person than it did in the pictures. I chose to overlook the fact that one of the small accent "diamonds" was missing, since clearly I got what I paid for. Nevertheless, I slid it on my chubby little hand and rejoiced in the fact that I no longer had a naked left ring finger.

Now here's the part that's a bit embarrassing... I frequently get compliments on my ring. I've never known how to handle these comments because on the one hand, if I simply say "thank you" I feel like I'm being deceitful, but if I point out that it is indeed fake, I feel like I'm insulting the taste of the complimenter (like, "you're so dumb that you can't tell a real diamond from a cheap knock-off"). I usually just try to change the subject as quickly as possible so as to avoid any more awkwardness.

It's been four years and my fake ring is showing signs of wear. Once I tried to clean it using jewelry cleaner, but it started to literally disintegrate the moment I dipped it in the chemicals. Luckily with a little buffing, I saved it from an untimely demise, but from that point on I knew that the only way my ring could get cleaned was when I washed my hands. ("Rhoduim plated sterling silver" can withstand water, so it seems). I bought for my husband a watch as a gift last Christmas, and while I was there the jeweler offered to clean my ring "for free" — I was mortified and declined as politely as I could. Handing my $29 ring over to a jeweler for closer inspection was obviously not an option.

As it turns out, my original wedding ring fits me once more, and the size 10 phony ring falls off my finger. So why, you ask, am I still wearing the fake? It's simple: my old ring is busted (from being sized up and down too many times, remarkably), a prong is loose, and frankly I don't really like it. [Gasp! The Horror! How can your husband still love you after a statement like that?!] It's true, I said it, I don't love my wedding ring.

What I am about to write will come as no shock to my husband, so there's no need for you to worry about the state of our marriage after this post gets published. When Scott and I were at that point in our relationship where marriage was discussed and we were "unofficially engaged," he asked me what kind of ring I would like. At the time I thought it was tacky for a girl to pick out her own ring (silly, naive, judgmental little old me), so I gave Scott a few guidelines and wished him luck. [Looking back, this was probably the first of many times in our relationship that I later learned my husband could not, in fact, read my mind]. When the time came for him to present me with my ring, Scott, bless his heart, gave me exactly what I asked for, which means I clearly wasn't specific enough.

The ring was simple (what I said I wanted), a diamond solitaire (perfect), set on a thick gold band (uh oh). Here's what Scott couldn't have know but what I would have realized if I'd tried it on before he bought it: the ring, though lovely, made my finger look like an overdressed bratwurst. Thick band + fat finger = bad news. It's not that I hated it, I just felt really self-conscious about the girth of my finger. But I wore it for years, had it sized up and down each time I had a baby, and was generally content with the effort that Scott made to pick out something like I said I wanted. But after my last pregnancy, due to the reasons listed two paragraphs ago, I put my ring in a safe place and the rest you already know.

A few months ago, Scott said the most beautiful words I always longed to hear: "Darling, why don't you get your diamond re-set?" Turns out, he's not a fan of my amazon.com special. He loves me and wants me to be happy, so it doesn't really bother him that my original setting isn't working for me anymore. He wants me to stop wearing a CZ and start wearing the lovely diamond he scrimped and saved to buy me 12 years ago with his hard earned money. (Oh, have I ever told you about how I had established a "ring fund" for myself when I started college? I tucked away part of my wages from each of my random jobs, put it in a savings account, and planned to present it to my future hubby when ring shopping time arrived. I figured that whatever my soon-to-be hubby could afford, I'd probably want something that cost a little more, so my slush fund could make up the difference. See, I was such a catch!).

So here's where I need your help. You see, I'm in the market for a new ring setting, and I want your opinion. What is it you love about your ring? What, if anything, don't you like about your ring? (Don't worry, I won't tell your husband). I'm excited to pick out something new, but feel overwhelmed at all of the choices out there. Tell me what to buy, would ya?

Murderer's Thumbs

There was a cute boy who lived in my building while I was in college. Okay, to be honest, there were many cute boys who lived in my building - I even married one of them - but it is one particular boy who I am remembering today as I prepare to write this post. We were hanging out in his apartment, having one of those casual, surreal conversations about what qualities we were looking for in our future spouse, when he mentioned how important "nice hands" were to him. It was at that point when I hid mine from view and realized he and I were not meant to be. [Looking back, that guy was super lame. Of all the qualities you want/need in a spouse, "nice hands" really shouldn't matter, right?]

You already know about my feet, but it's time I let you in on a little secret, which, if you've ever taken a good look, you already know... I've got wonky hands. My fingers are short and stubby, my nails are weak, and my thumbs are bizarre. When I was pregnant, my hands swelled up so much that my fingers looked like little sausages. Once my wedding ring stopped fitting, I insisted on going to a mall jewelry store to get a plain, cheap gold band to wear so as not to look like an unwed swollen mass. The ring I bought was a men's band, size 12. SIZE 12!!!! By the end of my last pregnancy, even that didn't fit. Fun fact (and reason #57 for why I have no desire to ever be pregnant again): I retained so much water in my last pregnancy that after my son was born, the excess liquid in my body trying to escape caused me to get water blisters all over my hands and feet. It was absolutely as horribly uncomfortable as it sounds. For a mother of a newborn recovering from a c-section, it was a nightmare.

Anyway, all that was to say my hands are wack. And like my feet, my hands have been the subject of my family's musings all my life. Of all my siblings, I am the only one with mutant feet. But with our hands we share a common bond, because 3 out of the 5 of us got some form of odd fingers. Mine are the worst, naturally, but I have a brother and one sister who also suffer from strange digits. When we were all together for a family reunion this past summer, we sat around and laughed about our hands (then everyone pointed and laughed at my feet). It was my affected sister who sent out a family email recently which seriously made my life:

To: my family
From: my sister, Amy (who we affectionately call "Amo")
Subject: Our thumbs explained...

I was talking to a friend the other day when she noticed my thumbs. "You have that dwarf thumb syndrome thing!" she exclaimed. (She's very sweet but not always super tactful). So I decided to get to the bottom of the "Grant thumb" issue. For those of us who have been blessed with one or two of these delightful looking digits, we technically have "clubbed thumbs." The scientific term is Brachydactyly type D (or BDD), although the condition is also known as "murderer's thumb" (fabulous). It's a genetic condition that's actually fairly common. You might also like to know that at least one movie star reportedly has this condition - Megan Fox.

I don't know about you, but I'm ready to OWN my thumbs. No more refusing to share the hymn book with my fellow relief society sisters! No more hiding my thumbs under the plate when handing Christmas goodies to my neighbors! Join me fellow "clubbers!" Say it out loud - I have clubbed thumbs and I'm proud!!!

Wanna join the "club?"
Amo

Never in my life had I sought to find an explanation for my odd thumbs. I just figured, when combined with my feet, I was being taught a divine lesson about avoiding vanity. Then lo and behold! There is a legit medical reason for our thumbs. Clubbed thumbs impact each of my affected siblings in different ways. Amy has normal looking fingers and two dwarf thumbs. My brother Brian is the luckiest of all, since he has one normal thumb and one squat one. As I've previously stated, all my fingers, as well as my toes, look clubbed.

It was the last part of Amy's email that resonated the most, since I absolutely hide my thumbs from people. When sharing a hymn book, I place my whole hand behind to support it rather than have one of my thumbs displayed. I conceal my hands in pictures, try to avoid ordering meals that I must eat with my hands, and never get manicures. While I was in high school, in an attempt to make my hands look more presentable, my mother encouraged me to get acrylic nails. While I doubt they made much of a difference, beautification-wise, I will never forget the first time they tried to fit my thumbs with fake nails and couldn't find a size large enough.

So there you have it. I have dwarf thumbs and wonky fingers. I'm thinking that this must qualify as some sort of disability. What perks could someone with genetically ugly fingers be entitled to? Must do research to find out.

While I'm not sure I'm quite ready to "own" my thumbs like my sister encouraged, I can promise that I will now be more generous with thumb-involved hand gestures. Perhaps someday soon you'll even get a "thumbs-up" from me. If I can work up the courage...

ZEMAS

On a scale of one to ten, one being equivalent to "okay, she's a little bit odd" and ten being roughly like, "wow. she's a pathetic loser!" how bad is it that the highlight of my day was seeing these photos...

...and discovering that a certain inappropriate crush of mine is currently filming a movie called The Lucky One, based on a Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook, Dear John) novel?

I'm thinking another gathering of the ZEMAS (Zac Efron Mutual Admiration Society) will take place sometime next year. Ladies, brace yourselves.

Oh, and if you can't wait that long, I'll try to find a way for us to convene and watch Charlie St. Cloud at my house once I get my hands on a copy. It's totally on my Christmas wish list.

a message for my high school crush

Dear boy I liked in high school,

It's been a loooooong time. I haven't seen you or spoken to you in over a decade. So why, may I ask, do you keep disturbing my sleep with cameo appearances in my dreams? This has been going on for years, boy I liked in high school, and I would like it to stop. Having you waltz through my dreams every few weeks, sometimes interacting, other times just looming... well, it's kind-of weird. It would be ungracious of me not to point out that you are always very respectful, never attempting to do anything that I, as a happily married woman, would consider untoward. But still, just the fact that you're there seems a bit inappropriate, don't you think? Perhaps what we really need is some closure. Is that why you're still lingering in my subconscious? Alright then, let's sort this out.

Here's the thing, boy I liked in high school: we both know that you were one of many crushes I entertained during those formative years. I am willing to admit that I was completely boy-crazy, suffered from what I now realize was a bit of a self-esteem problem, and as a result pursued and dated a number of boys that I now regret. But you were different, I think... because nothing ever happened between us. We were just friends. We had lots of classes together, ran in the same circles, participated in some of the same activities, spent time hanging out and talking on the phone. We were good friends and I valued our friendship, but without hesitation I would have become more-than-friends with you. And I think you must have known that.

I can't say that I liked you for four solid years, because there were times that you drove me crazy! You were an idiot and sometimes a little mean and I didn't always approve of the girls you liked or dated. But the thing that has always frustrated me when I'm forced to think about you, boy I liked in high school who keeps lurking in my dreams, is that I'm fairly certain that you liked me too. Like, liked me liked me. You wouldn't admit it to yourself, but you did. And I think we could have been really great together, in a temporary, you're-not-my-soulmate-but-I-can-learn-a-lot-from-you kind of way. At the very least, you could have prevented me from going after that one guy, the total jerk who used me and broke my heart a little. That would have been nice.

I didn't go to our ten year reunion. I doubt you were there either. We've obviously both moved on with our lives and are full-fledged adults now with real, grown-up relationships and responsibilities. I'd like to think that if I ever saw you again we'd be able to fall back into that easy friendship that we once had. But I can't imagine when or where we'd ever see each other again. So let's just be content with the knowledge that if our adult selves had been around to advise our teenage selves, perhaps things would have been different. But they weren't, and that's ok.

So, do you think we've worked through our issues, boy I liked in high school? Have we come to an understanding wherein you could now kindly step away from my peaceful slumber and stop hijacking my dreams? That would be so thoughtful of you. It would almost make up for your teenage ignorance.

Yours most sincerely,

Me

What's Up?

Hi there!

Did you miss me? It seems I forgot to blog for, like, 3 months. Whoops! If this were a blog devoted to my day-to-day life, I would try to tell you all about what has passed in the last few months. I'd prattle on about our summer road trip/family reunion, I'd post way more pictures than you care to see, and then I'd top it off with the latest sayings and doings of my children. But since I chose from the beginning to devote this blog to all things trivial and unimportant – my random thoughts – I'll gladly stick to my original purpose and favor you today with a list (yay lists!) of random thoughts/occurrences/drivel:

• I bought a pair of jeans at the Gap recently in a size that made me happy. When I got home and tried them on for Scott I asked, "Do they look okay, or do they look like I had to grease my thighs with butter to get them on?" [I feel sorry for men. They get really nervous when we women pose questions like that.] He was wise and said they looked good. But what other choice did he have, really?

• Recently, I acquired a new cell phone. It is so much smarter than me! I've decided it is time to crawl out from under the rock where I've taken up residence for the past decade and start texting. Now I just need a reason to text and someone to text at/with/to. Brace yourself because before you know it I'm going to be using my phone to take 20 pictures a day of random stuff that I will immediately post to my facebook profile. My friend count will deplete and then I'll curse the day I ever laid hands on my smartphone. Just you wait.

• Fall is here and I am so ready! Jeans, boots, long sleeve tees and sweaters... here I come! There is no better time of year and no better choice of wardrobe to accompany it.

• My husband wants me to self-publish a cookbook with all of my favorite, tried-and-true recipes. I think his main motivation stems from the current cluttered mess of recipes I have in my cookbook cupboard. I think it would be fun to do, but it's also intimidating. Maybe someday...

• Guess what has two thumbs and two tickets to see Michael Buble again in December? This girl! And I've got floor seats! Hooray! Now let's all say a collective prayer that I don't have someone tall standing in front of me during the concert. We shorties are at such a disadvantage at any function that requires the ability to see past the person directly ahead of you. I'm debating whether or not to do something that I've never done in all my concert going experience: wait around after the show in an attempt to get an autograph. Seems lame and totally desperate, right? But also kinda fun. We'll see.

• I'm in serious need of suggestions for good running tunes. I get bored so easily with my running playlist. Got any suggestions? I tend to like newer stuff by any number of artists that I wouldn't listen to otherwise. Currently I've got songs by Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Flo Rida, Ok GO, 3OH!3, Jason Derulo, Michael Franti, Rhianna. But I need more! Got any suggestions for me?

• I was asked to co-chair a committee on the PTA this year. I now know what it must feel like to be in the mafia. These women are hardcore! Amazing, talented, but hardcore. I feel so inadequate, out of place, and completely clueless. And I'm not sure they'll ever let me quit. Already there's talk of what I'll be doing next year. If I disappear for awhile, the PTA powers-that-be should be prime suspects.

• Latest book obsession: The Mortal Instruments series. I found these while browsing books at Costco, which is pretty much the best thing ever for a book lover like myself. Don't be fooled by the shirtless guy on the cover – these books are YA and a lot of fun to read! I'm awful at describing plots, so I'll just say that there's a bit of everything in these books (in total it will be a series of 6 books, but only 3 have been published thus far.) Love triangles, mysteries, unexpected plot twists, good vs. evil, teenagers knowing more than their adult counterparts, mythical creatures. I'm not usually a fan of the fantasy genre, but these were based just enough in reality that I could easily handle it. Take elements from series like The Lightening Thief, Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, and yes, even Twilight, and you've got a decent understanding of what to expect from this series. Highly recommended by me.

• Artists and songs I've been into lately:

Wakey!Wakey! – Light Outside, Almost Everything

Jeremy Messersmith – A Girl, a Boy, and a Graveyard

The Temper Trap – Sweet Disposition

Anya Marina – All the Same to Me

Jason Walker – Down

30 Seconds to Mars – Kings and Queens

Stateless – Bloodstream

Now it's your turn... got any book or music recommendations for me? Any suggestions for how I can escape those PTA gangsters? Should I publish a cookbook? Wanna text me? Is waiting around after a concert with the hope of meeting the artist really pathetic? And most importantly... do these jeans make me look fat?

(not me. imagine the above picture with someone 8 inches shorter and with a bigger bum)