Cadaver Bones!?!

So lately I am discovering how much I despise doctors and dentists in general. Just this past week, I had a rather eventful and yet horrible appointment at a Periodontist. I went on Tuesday to discuss getting some work done on my gums behind my molars. My dentist told me that there is a spot in the very back of my mouth where the gums need to be “trimmed” basically. They slice them and then make it so they fit nicely around the tooth. Sounds simple enough – as long as I cannot feel it. So going into this Periodontist I expected “gum work” to be the topic of discussion, but instead it turns out I have to have the bone under my gums grafted??!?!?! He told me that he uses human cadaver bones and goes in to replace the bone that is deteriorating. Is it ok to freak out yet? Ick! It came as quite a shock to me being that I am rather anal about my brushing and flossing habits. I’m not moving on anything as of yet though. He still has to look through my x-rays and make a treatment plan up. Then I get to decide if I like it or not and what I want to act on exactly. He mentioned that this is probably due to my wisdom teeth being impacted before I got them removed back in 2006. That may have been what messed up the gums and ultimately the bone too. Not happy. I am too young for Periodontal Disease. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see what he says and try not to freak out in the meantime. Oh how I despise waiting. I’ll keep you posted!

While on a walk the other night...

So Adam and I were on a walk with the puppy the other night, when we saw some sort of machine at the end of a neighbors driveway about a block and a half away from our house. As we got closer we realized it was a snowblower - a not so bad looking snowblower - with a laminated sign attached to it that read "FREE". We looked at each other and proceeded to carry it home together with Kya pulling us along. It required lifting because one of the tires was flat. Once we got it into the driveway, Adam tried it and it actually started. He figures it just needs gas and a new tire. Holy cow!!! A snowblower!!!


I went online to go look up the make and model number. Turns out, it is a $500 YardMachine! Wow. Yeah, pretty excited. And who better to get it to work if we DO run into a problem than my very own Mechanical Engineer. Hehehe...

My Productive Tuesday

I had the most productive Tuesday I’ve had in a long time. Last Tuesday night I got home around 5pm to let Kya out and feed her. Due to the fact that it was still light outside, I decided to take her for a run. It was still chilly out, but at least I could see where I was stepping. We didn’t run too long, but it was great to get some fresh air and let her run around a bit after being cooped up in her crate all day long.

After our run, I put in a load of laundry and emptied the dishwasher. I think sometimes I feel better if I know there are two things going on at the same time. So because the washer was going and I was doing the dishes, I felt like I was getting two things done at once. What can I say – I am an efficiency expert.

Then I decided to try out these two new recipes I found online last week. One was a “Lemon, Mint, & Pear Spinach Salad” and the other was “Chicken with Fig Preserves and Red Wine Sauce”. Both turned out really well.

Lemon, Mint, & Pear Spinach Salad: For the dressing you mix 3 Tablespoons of Lemon Juice, 1 Tablespoon of sugar, and 2 teaspoons of oil together. Then you tear up some fresh mint leaves, cut up a big pear, and toss together with the spinach. Pour desired amount of dressing on the salad and enjoy immediately.

Chicken with Fig Preserves and Red Wine Sauce: Brown 2-3 chicken breasts in a skillet. Stir together 4 Tablespoons of red wine (any kind will do), ¼ cup of fig preserves, and 1 Tablespoon of fresh Rosemary (or less if you use dried). Pour mixture over slightly browned chicken, cover, and let cook for about 5 minutes. Uncover and cook on low heat until the sauce becomes fairly thick. Enjoy!

After dinner, while Adam went off to study, I went outside and shoveled the whole driveway. There must have been a layer of ice below the 2 inches I was shoveling because I had to absolutely chip it off the driveway layer by layer. Ick! I guess it was a good workout for me so I shouldn’t complain.

Overall, it was an extremely productive day and I felt I accomplished quite a bit by the time I called it a night.

Talking elevator?

This past weekend Adam and I went to the Song of Solomon marriage conference by Mark Driscoll. Mark is the pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington. It was a great conference and I feel like we learned a lot. Everything he talked about seemed to be convicting to at least one of us if not both. It was a growing and bonding experience.

The funny thing that happened to us at this conference actually took place as we were leaving the conference. We were in somewhat of a hurry because we had to rush home, let the dog out, feed her, change, and get out the door and on the road to Chanhassen. We had Adam’s work party at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre and were cutting it close already. So we were on the elevator leaving the St. Paul RiverCentre and the couple ahead of us got off the elevator, leaving just the two of us remaining. I thought to myself "Hey, my hubby and I are alone…it is a marriage conference, I should give him a kiss." So I did! Next thing I know, I hear a voice from a speaker go "Ooo-ooh!" What the!? So I respond "Hello?" and the voice says "Bye-Bye!"

That was one of the oddest things ever. I was so confused when I heard the voice because I didn’t think there was any way someone could have been watching because I glanced around to be sure there was no video camera before kissing him. Oh, well – I got a great kiss and a few giggles out of it so I’m happy!

Florida in a Nutshell

We are now home from the beautiful state of Florida and I am missing it already. We had 75 degree weather most of the 6 days we were there and the sun was shining brightly pretty much the entire time. Thank you, Jesus.

In chronological order, here are a couple (or all) of highlights from the trip:

Friday:

• Arriving in Florida to find the rain had stopped just as our plane landed. Everything was drying up as we were renting our car and making our way to Island of Adventures.
• Spending the day walking around Island of Adventures and going on two incredible roller coasters: The Hulk and Dueling Dragons! Awesome coasters – though after going on each one twice I did start feeling a bit ill and had to sit still for a couple minutes.
• “Mystic Fountain” Story - Probably our favorite memory from the two parks (Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios) overall! So there is this rock structure surrounded by a fountain and people were standing all around it and it would occasionally squirt water out at people or burst into a huge geyser. It also spoke to those walking by and seemed to indicate that whoever was running the fountain could see the whole scene surrounding the fountain. Adam and I were so intrigued by this that was stood off to the side leaning against a stone wall watching for a good 15-20 minutes. We eventually decided to move along and the voice coming from the fountain says “Goodbye lovely couple sitting on my stone wall for the past 20 minutes watching me. I’m so sad you’re leaving because now I’m…All by myself…All by myself…” It started talking and singing! To us! We thought that because we were behind it and fairly far away, we wouldn’t be seen. We were wrong! We ended up asking a park attendant how in the world the talking fountain worked and all he would tell us was that the person behind it all was no where near the fountain. They watched and listened from a distance. They must have a camera that sees in every direction a good 30 feet out! We were totally shocked and completely caught off guard. Well done and touché, Mystic Fountain!
• Driving over to our hotel (http://www.rosenshinglecreek.com/) and finding that it was the largest, most gorgeous hotel I have ever seen! It looked like the Bellagio in Vegas – huge with a million fountains!
• Adam and I walked around the hotel and found an empty arcade. Being that we were the only ones, we thought we’d try out “Dance Dance Revolution”. Yeah, I am not good at that game at all, but it was really fun being down there all alone just being goofy together.
• Ate dinner outside by the pools then sat in one of the outdoor hot tubs and just relaxed.

Saturday:

• Spent the day at Universal Studios going on lots of 3D and 4D rides as well as a couple great roller coasters: Rip, Rock-it, Ride and The Mummy were awesome!
• Met up with Eric, one of Adam’s co-workers, and continued seeing the sights around the parks.
• Went out to eat at Copper Canyon (http://ccgrill.com/) with a couple of Adam’s co-workers. I had a fabulous, fresh Grouper that night and boy was it good.

Sunday:

• Slept in and decided to check out the fitness center for a bit before lying out by one of the 4 pools. I ran on the treadmill for a while, lifted some weights, tried out a couple machines, and then cooled off on the treadmill.
• Basically laid outside all day and just relaxed. J Rough life – I know.
• The whole Weidt Group gang went over to Houlihan’s to sit at the bar and watch the Vikings get crushed. Sad day, but still a fun group.

Monday:

• Monday was my “Spa Day” where I seriously felt like royalty. I woke up slowly and had a banana while watching TV in bed.
• After letting my food settle I went down to the fitness center again to loosen up before my massage and body wrap later on.
• I then spent an hour in the spa area rotating between the sauna, steam room, and whirlpool before being called by for my Body Scrub and Wrap.
• Step 1 was the exfoliated brown sugar rub, Step 2 was the mud wrap, and Step 3 was the hydrating cream and massage. All I can say is “Amazing”.
• The one funny thing that happened during the mud application was that I had my eyes covered with a towel so I asked if the mud was seriously mud, if it was green, or cream colored or what. The woman (who happened to be black) said to me “honey, right now we could be sisters – you are definitely part of the sisterhood.” I looked up and sure enough, I was dark brown/black! It was quite a silly conversation.
• I took my time cleaning up, grabbed a cup of tea and a pear, and then headed back up to my room. Just another relaxing day at the spa...
• That evening, we went out to eat at a restaurant known for their fish and appropriately enough called Big Fin. The 8 of us shared 3 appetizers: Calamari, Sushi, and a Crab Fondue. And I tried them all. I am certainly proud of my self too. For my main dish I ordered MahiMahi and Adam chose a beautiful Salmon (that was served still on the cedar plank). Both were definitely delicious. I think we shared 6 or so deserts, only because they gave us 2 of the wrong cheesecakes, so they brought us two more. I didn’t complain a bit.

Tuesday:

• This was my day in the sun. I woke up and again woke up slowly before heading down to the pools.
• I spent from 10:30-12:30 at one pool, took a break to have lunch with Adam and Eric, and then laid out at a different pool from about 1:30-4:00.
• While out at the second pool, which happens to be the one where they wait on you and bring you drinks and food, the three of us decided to order fun drinks. Eric ordered a Pina Colada, Adam got a Strawberry Daiquiri, and I got some lovely combination of the two. Heavenly Nectar is what I shall call it. We finished up our drinks while sitting in the outdoor hot tub. It was a bit breezy so we decided to stay warm in there.
• Tuesday evening we headed over to the Summer Bay Resort where Adam’s grandparents and parents were staying for the week. We played a round of mini golf with them and then enjoyed our only home-cooked meal there. It was nice to be with family for a low-key evening.

Wednesday:

• This was our last day in Florida so I wanted to soak up the nice weather while Adam was busy in his last seminar. I decided to go for a jog outside and explore the area a bit.
• After my run I cleaned up and then ran downstairs for a couple last minute errands. I grabbed a bagel and cream cheese, ordered a coffee, and did a little shopping - all from the little shops downstairs in the hotel. I love that hotel!
• My last task was to pack up our bags so they would be ready when Adam came back from his seminar. His seminar ended at 12:30 and we had to be completely checked out by 1:00 so it was tight, but we made it in time. We then headed off to the airport to catch our flight home.

It was a lovely trip and I enjoyed myself thoroughly while Adam sat inside big air conditioned rooms listening to speakers all day long. At least we had a good portion of the afternoons and evenings together. At the end of the trip we decided that when we are older (and can afford it) we are definitely spending the winter months in Florida…sigh…