home sweet home...unfortunately

This post is overdue. I just haven't known how to write it or where to start. I tried to talk myself out of writing it at all, telling myself that I don't owe anyone an explanation. I held off writing until I had more information, until I knew all the answers.

In September, I left to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Philadelphia. I came home and was released on New Year's Day for medical reasons. I was sick for 12 weeks before coming home and did everything I could to stay. About 6 weeks after I left, I started blacking out as much as 15 times a day and passing out randomly, like while I was sitting in church. I went to doctors, had blood draws, and EKG, an echocardiogram, wore a heart monitor, and couldn't get the answers I needed. It was a rough decision, but everyone involved agreed that I would be able to find out what was wrong and get better faster if I were home. I came home on New Year's Day. It was decided that I probably had a genetic condition called Vasovagal Syncope, something my uncle and cousin have too. By coming home, I was able to see the same cardiologist who diagnosed and treated them, someone who is one of the leading doctors in the country regarding this condition. Since I've been home, I have seen the cardiologist and had a Tilt-table Test (I'm not even going to start describing what a horrible experience that was). I found out that I do have Vasovagal Syncope. Basically there is a communication error in my body that makes my blood pressure and heart rate plummet until my body yells "RESET" and then I pass out. The doc prescribed a heart medication to keep my blood pressure elevated. I was in the parking lot at Costco about to go pick it up when I had a realization and told my mom, "What if it's $200! No one is going to want to marry me if I have $200 heart medication!" Thankfully for my future husband, it was not that much. I also have to eat lots of salt (I now order french fries wherever I go) and no sugar. If it works and I don't pass out, then I can go back to being a missionary in Philadelphia. So now I'm just waiting for the next doctor's appointment to find out what's next.

So that's pretty much it. I loved being a missionary and I'm hoping to get back as soon as they'll let me. Until then, I'm trying to stay busy. The hardest part is not knowing how long I'll be home, but all things considering, I'm doing pretty darn good for not so good (:

She's a missionary now!

 

Hi this is Tiffani.  I have the fortunate blessing of being Kensie's mom.  I'm going to be updating Kensie's blog for the next 18 months because last week my sweet girl left for her mission.  It was a bittersweet moment when we dropped her off at the Missionary Training Center in Provo.  Bitter because this mom is going to miss her daughter very much.  So will the rest of her family.  Owen wrapped his arms and legs around her and refused to let go. It literally took three of us to pry him off.  But the sweet so out weighs the bitter.  Kensie has talked about serving a mission for a long time.  She had plans to graduate from BYU the week that she turns 21 and be ready to serve.  When the age requirement was changed to 19 we were stunned.  I immediately knew that she would choose to serve.  She is so excited to go to Philadelphia and learn more about that beautiful and historic part of our country and serve the people of that area.

So what does that mean to the Kensie Kate shop?  For the last few months Kensie has been preparing to be away and that included designing new materials for her shop that will pop up here and there.   I will be printing and shipping all orders.  I am also a graphic designer so I will be able to handle any custom order needs that you may have.

Thank you so much for your support of Kensie and her website and etsy shop.   When I convinced Kensie to open her shop just over a year ago we never imagined that it would blossom into what it is today.  All of your encouragement has meant a great deal to her.  Here's to a good 18 months!  (I hope they go quickly!)

Tiffani

 

imperfect children of god

Lately I have been praying to really see the good in people, to see them as God sees them. To not assume bad intentions or make hasty judgements. It's certainly something I'm going to have to continually work on, but today I felt like I genuinely saw the good in people and the ways they are trying their hardest. The choir sang in church today and all I can say is that I'm so glad they sang today instead of next week, when I'm speaking. I was a mess. There I was. Sitting on the bench. Unable to stop crying. Not because of the music, even though it was incredibly beautiful, but because I was able to get a glimpse of how I think God must look at His children. It started when I spotted two sisters. Two sisters who have taught me a great deal about what it means to be a disciple of Christ. They are pure. They are strong. And their testimonies are beautiful. Then I saw a young man. A young man who has seen hard things in his life and yet is doing his best to be a worthy Priesthood holder and a good example. Then I saw the choir director and how much of her life is devoted to serving in the Church and her family. I looked at every single choir member individually and saw how good they are. I felt a little bit of how much God must love them. In April, a church leader, Elder Holland, gave a talk that included the thought that, "imperfect people are all God has ever had to work with. That must be terribly frustrating to Him, but He deals with it." We are all terribly imperfect, but we must learn to deal with that as we interact with other people, other beloved children of God.

what to know about getting wisdom teeth removed.

I dreaded getting my wisdom teeth out. I have had my fair share of surgeries and I was not ready to sign up for another one. I thought maybe I could sneak on a mission without getting them out, but the x-rays said otherwise. In fact, when the surgeon saw them, he said "These are bad. Your recovery is going to be quite a doozy." Not what I wanted to hear just minutes before being laid on the operating table. The surgeon was able to squeak me in just 2 days after calling for an appointment, meaning I didn't have a whole lot of time to prepare mentally. The night before, I googled and read up on what I needed to know to make the experience as uneventful as possible. Here's what I learned from my own experience:

Don't eat after midnight the night before. Because of the anesthetic used, it can be dangerous to eat any closer to surgery. Because I have had plenty of other surgeries, I figured this was the case, but I didn't find out for sure until it would have been too late.

Wait to eat until the numbing wears off. By then, it should be safe to be done chomping on gauze. Having all the feeling in your mouth also makes eating much easier.

Do not use a straw. I was glad I read about this the night before, because I was to loopy to read the doctor's instructions after surgery. I was fully planning on using straws because I thought it would help keep liquid away from the incision sites. Drinking from a straw creates a vacuum in your mouth that can disrupt the forming blood clots needed to heal properly.

My diet was really only heavily restricted for the first couple of days. I ate applesauce and pureed soup. After that, I could eat most things, I just had to be careful. I mostly chewed with my front teeth and made sure to rinse out my mouth. I stayed away from crunchy things that could get stuck in the incision sites. Cold foods are fine, but it is important to stay away from hot foods for the first couple of days.

Ice is your friend. Ice is only needed for 48 hours, but I used it much longer. I never got much swelling, but the ice was just comfortable.

Lortab. Lortab. Lortab. After a couple of days, I was okay if I didn't take medicine (but certainly more grumpy due to the pain I was experiencing), but if I did, I had virtually no pain.

Sleep with head elevated. In order to prevent dry sockets, sleep with your head elevated more than usual. The worst part of the surgery was that I could not sleep. I am a side sleeper, so to not be able to lay on my side made for a miserable few nights.

Stitches are nasty. My stitches were the kind that dissolved, but no one prepared me for the awful taste when they come out.

That's pretty much it. All in all, much better than I expected.

when dad leaves...

Every time my dad goes out of town, someone gets sick or Owen does something dumb. When he went to Atlanta, my mom got pancreatitis. When we went to Australia, we pretty much all fell apart. (Strep, ear infection, broken arm) About 2 hours after my dad left for Japan, Owen invented a new magic trick. He's really into magic lately. The trick involved putting the back of Finley's earring in one ear and pulling it out the other. Too bad his brain got in the way. A pair of tweezers and my mom's steady hand narrowly prevented a visit to the emergency room. My dad left for scout camp today and this time Owen did something dumb and someone got hurt. Owen was watching a movie on the computer and raised the chair up as high as it would go. He scooted the chair back and then leaned forward. The chair slid out from underneath him and he hit the desk hard. I was sitting on the floor 4 feet away and thought he crunched his nose. Really he got the strangest x-shaped cut near his mouth. At first we thought he would need some stitches, but thankfully it isn't that deep. Dad, you're never allowed to leave again, for our sake. Also whenever my dad leaves, my mom tries to complete a project around the house. While he was in Japan a couple of weeks ago, the project was this wall. We don't have a fireplace so we don't have a mantle and we really don't have any shelves. That means we don't have anywhere that is easy to decorate. This wall has a little shelf on top that will hold pictures, decorations, and stockings.

It is actually painted and decorated now, but I haven't taken a picture yet.