Struggles

Let's be real…….there are so many struggles that those with lupus struggle with that it would take hours to write about them all. There are some days that I can handle the pain, sometimes it is too much. Most days I can handle the psychological struggle that comes with having lupus, but there are some days that I struggle. Here lately, the thing that I have struggled with the most is my weight gain.

Since beginning a new medication last spring, I have gained 35-40 lbs. When I first began the medication, I noticed a small change in my weight and I asked my doctor about it. She said that it was not a side effect (it is a fairy new med). Now, 8 months later and 38 lbs later there are articles popping up everywhere that it is a major side effect of the medication. What?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

I am the type of person who is very weight conscious. I have tried for about a year and a half now to get my body in the shape that it needs to be in for a person of my height. I was there for about 6 months and then I began taking this new medication. I go to the doctor Friday, and I am hoping to discuss options with her on what my next step needs to be concerning this side effect.

With everything set aside, the medicine is working. So, do I deal with the weight gain, or do I try something different that doesn't have weight gain as a side effect? I don't feel good about myself with the weight gain, but I don't feel good without the medication. It is a catch 22. I would love to hear what you would do!!!!


~Tiffany~

Start Spreading the News

I'm leaving today..........Can anybody guess where I am headed? Yep, NYC!!!!!! OMG.....I cannot tell you how much this means to me for the hubs and I to get to go to our favorite city in the world!!!! With him being in school three hours away our time together is few and far between. We were going to bring Twinkle Toes, but she decided that she didn't want to walk....bawaha!!!! Lazy bum!!!!!

Something that I am not looking forward to....it's snowing, and I am worried what this will do to my lupus. Yes, it is cold in Alabama, but not with the moisture that comes with snow. How am I am preparing? Well, I am taking Aleve as a precaution, and I'm prepared to take lots of hot baths/showers, and layer up. The only problem I foresee is the walking in the snow. It could be a problem, but if that's the case, we have an unlimited subway pass and we will just ride more. I am very optimistic that this is going to be a great trip!!!! I may even make a stop by the lupus foundation and see if I can plan some volunteer work for the future. 

I know I have taken close to a 6 month hiatus from blogging. The truth being that I have many life changes. The hubs moved three hours away to go to school, leaving Twinkle Toes to me. I have a new respect for single mothers. They are heroes!!! In about October, the people we rented our house from decided that they wanted to sell it and gave us 30 days. Do you know how hard it is to find a place to rent, pack and move in 30 days....by yourself? Long story short, my parents have a finished basement and that is where I have ended up. So, I went from a 2500 sq ft house, with two garages to a 1500 sq ft glorified dorm room. It is much like a studio apartment. Twinkle Toes took my sister's bedroom upstairs and luckily, my king bedroom furniture fit downstairs!!!! Everything else is in storage. The good news......no rent!!!!!!! 

So, there you have it lupies....my life in a nut shell.... Until next time....

~Tiffany......just a little Lupie for Life~

So What Wednesday

Ugh...it is that day again....the worst day of the week!!!! I tried to lighten up my class a little today by showing the "Hump Day" commercial thinking it would make me laugh.....nah, didn't work. I cannot tell you how much I absolutely loathe this day of the week. Anywho, time to carry on with the Wednesday tradition of "So What if....."



SO WHAT IF.........

• I got up an hour late today 
• During that hour, I tried to think about what my kids to do for a sub
• I woke up to the dog throwing up and when I got up to check on her, I couldn't find the vomit. Yeah, I think she ate it.
• I feel completely and totally lost without high heels
• I contemplated ordering emeals bc I am that lazy and don't want to plan my meals myself. Hey, this gluten free stuff is hard.
• I have gained so much weight that I can't fit into anything without elastic
• I refuse to buy bigger clothes
• I am tired of Dave Ramsey. The Hubs and I are not really in a place to pay off bills right now. We are just trying to keep our head above water.
• Speaking of finances, it is nothing for me to have 25 cents in my bank account at the end of the month...if I'm lucky
• My new obsession is sunglasses

I could go on and on today about my what if's, but I will spare you all with just those few. I hope you are enjoying your day more that I am.

Later Lupies

~Tiffany~

OOTD

Shirt: American Eagle

Skirt: Red Dress Boutique

Shoes: Bought off Poshmark

Necklace: (which I am TOTES in love with) Etsy

Just call me Coordinator

As if I didn't have enough to do with The Hubs being gone and me trying to pull the single parent thing, my principal came to me today and asked if I would be in charge of our school's social media outlets. Um, sure!!!!!!!

First of all, it is all I can do to handle my own,  but add 4 more to that and I have myself a mess. So, I guess you can say that I am now our school's social media coordinator. If anybody in the school wants something put onto one of our social media sites, they contact me and I put it on there for them. Yikes!!! Can we say a lot of emails and working all the time? Oh, and do I get an extra planning for this?

But, it will all be OK!!! I enjoy social media and it will give me something to do to keep me busy that is low key and I can do it from home. I don't have to be at school to do it. I just thank the Lawd it was not the yearbook!!!!

Happy Tuesday afternoon lovely lupies!!!

~Tiffany~

OOTD

Top: Gap

Pants: Bought off Poshmark

Shoes: Bought off Poshmark

Cuff: Lenny and Eva

Necklace: Boutique in Auburn (WDE)

(Sorry for the blurry pic. Twinkle Toes needs to improve on her picture taking skills hehe)

Weekend What Nots

I had a fantabulous weekend!!! First of all, this little gem came in the mail. It is a bracelet I had made with the state of Alabama and the state of Tennessee with a heart in the middle because of my long distance marriage right now. Every time I look at it, it makes me smile :)

Then this cutie came home for the weekend. We had the best weekend doing nothing but watching football. I mean, we literally watched football all weekend and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Twinkle Toes is such a Daddy's girl. She cried this morning when he had to go back. It broke my heart!! But, the weekend will soon be here and we will have again for a few days.

Isn't she the cutest little rah rah you have ever seen? She is going to follow in her Mommy's footsteps and I couldn't be more proud.

This is my Dad's 30th something year to be involved with the football program here at our high school. I snapped this Friday night at the game doing what he loves best, analyzing the plays.

I can't help but show you the two cutest nieces in the world!! My sister is a graduate of Auburn and my brother in law is an alumni of the University of Alabama, so they have to alternate weekends of what they put the girls in. Since Alabama had a bye this weekend, it automatically went to the Auburn gear. War Eagle!!!!!

I will be awaiting a call from my rheumy this week. We are looking for better options to manage my pain, fevers, and photo sensitivity. I have a feeling it is going to call for a higher dosage of Plaquenil and Prednisone (the devil of all medications). I am fully prepared to gain about 20 pounds and look like a puffer fish. Until then, here is the OOTD. Please excuse the bathroom. I didn't have time to snap a pic before I left this morning, so I had to snap it when I got to work. I hope you all have a Marvelous Monday!!

~Tiffany~

OOTD

Top: H & M

Skirt: Bought off poshmark

Necklace: ILY Couture

Shoes: Old

Pits and Perks

It's time for the Pits and Perks of the week. I think I will start out with the pits.



Pits

• I have been busy every night this week. Tuesday-ballet, Wednesday-Church, Thursday-Rheumy appt, Friday-ballgame.
• I am exhausted
• I didn't get a good report from the rheumy. The ran 11 labs and will call next week with treatment options.
• I am still not losing weight
• The docs think my weight gain is due to a medication that I can't stop
• My car is still not working right

Perks

• I have been able to be in the bed by 8-9 every night this week. 
• I am doing better with my school schedule. 
• I feel some what better than I did last week.
• THE HUBS COMES HOME TODAY!!!!!!

I haven't sone one of these lately, so here goes an OOTD pic

Jeans: iT!

Shirt: Piko from Kiki La Rue

Necklace: Forever 21

Shoes: Target

Have a fabulous day and a great weekend!!!! War Eagle!!!!

~Tiffany!

So What Wednesday

It's that day again!!!! My least favorite day of the week!!! Hence, here comes another SO WHAT WEDNESDAY!!!

So what if.....

• I dosed the princess up with Benadryl last night for her cough and scratchy throat just so we could get some sleep. Let me tell ya, we both slept like a rock!!!
• I get to school as early as I possibly can because I enjoy the calm before the storm.
• Speaking of school, on 2 out of the 5 days of the work week, I twist my ankle and come pert near close to falling and breaking my entire body.
• I sat in my car for 30 minutes yesterday talking to the hubs because I can't get that quality time with him at home.
• I drink 4 cups of caffeine a day. Sometimes I make it 5.
• I HATE WEDNESDAYS!!!
• I listen to Broadway music all day long and sing along and my kids laugh at me. I freakin love Broadway!!!!!

Have a happy worst day of the week!!!!

~Tiffany~

My not so fun weekend

My weekend started off with the season opener of my high school's football season. Like always, we ate a pre-game meal and then headed to the stadium. Just let me say I.LOVE.FOOTBALL!!!!!! However, when it is hotter than hades, it makes for a miserable Tiffany. It was so stinking hot!!!!! But the beauty of the field, the sound of the band, and the sound of cleats hitting the pavement made it all worth it. That is, until the princess decided to go ape crazy and my mother, nor I could do anything with her. She has been going through so many changes lately, she has forgotten that I am still the boss. Long story short, I took her to my Daddy in the coaches box and he made her sit there the entire first half. She came back a new woman. Praise the LAWD!!!!! She was perfect the rest of the night and slept in Sat morning!!!! Then I took her to meet my in-laws and she was with them until Monday so I could get some rest.

Sunday, I paid for my Friday night fun!!! I hurt so bad, and ran a fever. I think it was because of the sun exposure and the heat. But, then I found out that my cousin, whom I take to school, was sick with a fever as well. I could have had the crud. Who knows. I am just thankful that The Princess was at the in-laws. 

Then I thought I needed some hair therapy. What ya think?

Ribs for lunch???? I think so!!!!

Happy Tuesday Lupies

~Tiffany~

So What Wednesday's Are Back!!!!!

And We're Back!!!!!! I am actually early enough this morning to do a so what post!! HALLELUJAH!!!! I miss so what's.....so here is goes!!!!!


SO WHAT IF..............

I time myself getting dressed in the mornings and I try to beat the time before. Yeah, I'm competitive like that.

My coffee has been waiting on me for the last 5 minutes and I have no intentions on getting up to get it anytime soon.

5:00-6:30 a.m. is my favorite time of the day. It is the only time of the day I have to myself. Since the hubs has been at school, the princess even showers with me.

I sent my child to bed with her iPod and told her to play it until she went to sleep because I was so exhausted. Yeah, that lasted for about 20 minutes.

I listen to Dave Ramsey everyday!! He keeps me sain.


Have a great worst day of the week!!!

~Tiffany~

30 lbs and mortified

Well, the school year is in full swing and other than the sensitivity to the lights, I am doing great!!! Pray that this continues. My classes are large and I did have to send three to ISS for huffing Germ-X in my classroom, but other than that the kids are really good. (Yes, I teach 6th grade and yes, you can get high off of Germ-X. I googled it.) I am looking forward to a great school year.

The hubs is engrossed with his school work as well. He made an A on his first paper!! I am one proud wifey. He studies about 12 hours a day, but I wouldn't want anybody putting me to sleep who didn't :)

Now, the point of this post. I am just going to throw this out there. I have always been up front and honest, and that is not going to change now. When school let out in May, I weighed 115-120 lbs. which is in the healthy range for my height. Today, I weight 141. I have gained 30 lbs in 3 months!!! What the heck happened? I look back at the summer and all I did was eat giant Fudge Rounds, the hubs cooked French Toast all the time and I covered mine with syrup. The bottom line is, I totally did not take care of myself this summer. I let myself go, and for the majority of the summer I did not feel well. I have been researching different auto-immune diets and the hubs has been helping me. We have decided that the gluten free diet would be the best for me. You can still have foods that you would normally eat, but it doesn't have the gluten in it. He has a friend that is a gluten free eater because his wife cannot have gluten, so he is a great resource. Also, I have done research on foods that I enjoy that could possibly have a gluten free brand. So, with that being said, here are some items from my grocery list this week:

gluten free bagels
Philly cream cheese
Gluten free bread
Hellmans mayo
Orgainc or 100% natural turkey
Lettuce
Tomato
Purple Onion
Spinach pizza on rice crust
Gluten Free Frozen meals
Cheetos
Baked Dortios
Ruffles original potato chips
Yoplait yogurt
Sargento light string cheese
Cane sugar

I will have the yogurt and bagels for breakfast, the sandwiches, string cheese, and chips for lunch, and the pizza and frozen meals for supper. The only problem is snacks. I can't seem to find any gluten free snacks that I would enjoy. It makes it really hard because I am allergic to nuts. If any of you have any suggestions, I am all ears.

Have a great Monday lupies!!

~Tiffany~

Back to Work...and florescent lights

Well, lupies......... I am back at work and in the swing of things!! It is Wednesday, the worst day of the week,  and I am exhausted!!! That is to be expected. I always have a hard time getting back into the swing of things and getting my body accustomed to a new schedule.

I have been diagnosed with lupus for 11 years, and not once have I had any abnormal skin irritations due to sun exposure. This summer, however, was different. I had terrible reactions to the sun!! I was able to be outside very little and this crushed me!! I had very little time to take the princess swimming and when we went to the beach, I was miserable. Well, another symptom strikes again. I have come back to work and the florescent lights are causing me misery!!! I break out in hives all over my body and I feel like there are 1,000,000 needles being poked into my body all day long. I am miserable!!

So, what do I do? I called the doctor. Do you really want to know what the doctor said?? She said to wear sunscreen and Cortizone cream for the rash. Seriously?!?!?!?!? I could have told you that!! My make up has SPF 35 in it, and I am in long sleeve shirts and pants. Is this all I can do?? My job is on the line here and that is all the advice they can give me?? I am beyond frustrated!!!!!

Disability is the last thing I want, but the pain is so bad, it has crossed my mind. Do any of you have this problem with the lights and what did/are you doing about it??


Have a happy worst day of the week!!!

~Tiffany~

This is the princess and I before her first ballet class last night!! 

That Contributing Feeling

In my last post, I talked about our move to Tennessee to get the Hubs all settled and ready for school. It has been an absolutely wonderful two weeks. I have felt good and things have been going great. My lupus has never been better and I am able to do things and run errands like never before. I look back and ask myself, why? Why do I feel so well, and able to do things that I usually struggle with at home? I don't have an answer. The only answer I can come up with is I have gone from taking care of a 3,000 square foot house to a two bedroom apartment. At home, there are dust bunnies and dirty dishes because I don't feel like walking all the way to the kitchen to put them in the dishwasher and it is too hard to walk up the stairs to clean my daughters room. Here, it is spotless. The beds are made everyday and the laundry is caught up. What is up with that? The honest truth is, that I like the smaller space to take care of. I don't mind doing these things because I can do everything in less than 30 minutes and have this place so clean that you can eat off the floor, and that makes me feel good!!!! I am actually doing something!!!! I am contributing to the well being of my family!!!! It has been so long since I have been able to do this, I forgot how good it feels!!!

I don't know where the road will go from here. I don't know what the next three years will hold for my family and myself. I will be going back to Alabama this weekend and starting back to work on Monday. I will still be in my 3,000 square foot house minus my helping hands. Am I scared?? Absolutely to death!!!!! Will I get it done?? Maybe, maybe not. I just never knew how much I missed this feeling of contributing to my family.

If you are able to contribute, I know you may wish you had help. In the long run, I may have to finagle my budget and hire help once a week. I don't know, but don't take your ability to be able to do things for granted. Be thankful you are able to contribute.

Wish me luck as I begin my new life as I leave Tennessee and make my way back to my new life with a husband in college and having to be the head of the household. Pray that I stay healthy and I am able to make the best decisions for my family.

Have a happy Thursday!!

~Tiffany~

I'm Back

OK y'all let's face the music....I have been MIA for the past month. I have had so much going on, I have no idea where the summer has gone. I have missed everyone and I feel so left out. I have no idea what is going on, what link ups are happening, and I may or may not have forgot my password to log into blogger. I don't even know where to begin. So, I am just going to give you the DL via IG pictures, which I have also been horrible with this summer.

I went with several teachers from my school district to the MEGA conference in Moblie to learn about the new laws, new teaching techniques, and technology updates. Before we got to Mobile, our principal sent Em J and I a text checking on us. He said there was a terrible wreck in front of the hotel. Little did he know that Danny Glover and Nicholas Cage were filing a scene of a movie blowing up cars and such.

MEGA offers hundreds and hundreds of sessions that you can attend and the conference runs from Monday to Friday. So, we had to sit, for several hours, and plan out what we were going to go to and what day to go. We tried to cover as much ground as possible with all of us going to different sessions and then sharing what we learned. There were some sessions, they were so terrible, that we said we are now less intelligent for being there, but you win some, you lose some. Here is Em J trying to schedule out her sessions.

When the school system allows you a food allowance, you learn to be smart. You eat the free breakfast, which was wonderful, you eat leftovers for lunch and then you spend all your money at dinner. This is a fillet with garlic mushroom and asparagus ...absolutely fab!!!!!

I am such a nerd!!! I was all organized and ready to learn......lol!!!!!!

Em J and I are apple nerds here are all out tech gadgets we took to the conference; 3 iPads, 2 MacBooks, and 2 iPhones. Yes, we bought Steve's last house.

Let's begin with this Pinterest project for my classroom. I am OCD when it comes to organizing my classroom. I saw this on the way home from Mobile and I just about had a cardiac arrest and caused Em J to wreck. We immediately had to stop at a Home Depot to buy the tool box and the next day, I was printing, cutting, and taping. It has a lovely home now right behind my desk.

After being gone for a week, I could not wait to get home to this angel. This was one of those days when she said, "Mommy, I am not sleepy!!!!"

As I have mentioned earlier, Josh has been accepted to DNAP school (Dr. of Nurse Anesthesia Practice). We were making our final rounds before he left and we had dinner with this handsome fella. This was Josh's roommate for 4 years through nursing school. I cannot believe I am sending him to school without big Jon. 

Just the girls after dinner....Isn't Emily beautiful and Emma just precious. (No, not all my friends are named Emily.)

And here is where I spent last week. Getting ready for school start. At the moment, we are with Josh in Tennessee, so when I come back it will be time to start school. I had to have everything just right before I left. I am thankful for the Hubs and Vacation Bible School that entertained my child while I worked :)

I still have little things to do, but all in all, it is FINISHED!!!!!! Can I get an Amen, Hallelujah?!?!?!?!? 

Now, we are in Tennessee trying to get Josh settled and get him organized. That is like fighting a bull in a China shop. He thinks he needs nothing and the printer goes in the floor. Heaven help us all as I am having heart palpitations because he could care less if he is organized. 

I don't want to overwhelm you with my exciting life all in one day, so be expecting a post on how all these changes have affected my lupus and my overall health. 

Have a great Tuesday!!!!

~Tiffany~

Weekend What Nots (with no pictures)

If you are looking for pictures, keep on a moving. I just don't feel the need to take pictures of the family all lounging around in our pjs fighting with the temper tantrums of a 5 year old. Yep, that was basically it. Twinkle Toes has definitely been keeping the hubs and I on our toes by her stomps and yelling that I am about to go cray cray!!!

Friday after the hubs got home, we rested, went grocery shopping at Wal Mart (and saved approx. $30.00 by price matching), rented 2 movies and called it a night. We watched Quartet and Side Effects. Quartet was a great love story of two older people who lost love and then found it again in a retirement home for famous musicians, and Side Effects was GREAT!!! The movie naturally intrigued me because it had to do with Psychology and since that is what my masters is in, I tried to figure it out the whole time. It definitely has a twist and was wonderful!! I highly recommend it.

Saturday, we slept in and went swimming. Twinkle Toes did not poop or throw up!!!!!!!!! Winning!!!!!! Maybe she is learning to keep her mouth closed better because she knows it make her sick. We came home, slept some more and had grilled cheeses for supper. Then I had this awesome idea!!!!! I wanted a Starbucks and a Gigi's cupcake. The Hubs, being the great one he is, was all for it. We loaded up the family, including Phoebe the dog, and headed out for the hour drive to the nearest Gigi's and Starbuck. We all had on our pjs and it was wonderful!!!! We came home with a half of a dozen cupcakes and a happy Mommy!!!!

Sunday, I actually felt like getting out of bed and going to church!! It was a great morning, finished off with a 4 hour afternoon nap, Big Brother, and Turtle Man. Twinkle Toes loves Turtle Man AKA Call of the Wild. She sits there so intently trying to figure out what the animal is. Well, last night there was a deer on there that broke through the glass windows of a town store. The Hubs and I didn't think a thing about it until we put her down for the night and was terrified that a deer was going to jump through the windows on the back of out house. Que Twinkle Toes sleeping with us and me waking up in a flare, barely being able to walk to the bathroom. Oh, it was bad!!!

Carry on Lupies and I will catch y'all later. Happy Monday!!!!!

~Tiffany~

What if Wednesday

As you may or may not have noticed, I have been MIA in my blogging,Instagram and Keek lately. I am going to be quite honest with y'all. It is summer, and there is not much to tell or show. I thought I would sum it all up in a So What if Wednesday post :)



So What If.................

• I haven't posted pictures of anything exciting on instagram lately. If you want to see me reading on my iPad in my pjs just give me a shout. I'll be glad to snap one and send it to you,
• I can count the days on one hand of the times I have put on real clothes since school has been out.
• I lay in the bed all day and take two naps.
• Twinkle Toes and the Hubs have been sick and inflicted for about 2 weeks now and I want to dose them both up with the cough syrup with Hydrocodone (sp) in it so they will sleep and not cough. It is about to drive me completely and totally insane.
• Along with staying in my pjs all day, I don't bathe either. Ahhhh...the life of a school teacher.
• I am dreading the rest of the summer, because we literally have every day planned out after July 4th until I go back to work and it all consists of getting the Hubs settled in his apartment and ready to start the last 3 years of school. 
• I am pumped about a teaching conference that I will be attending in July. I will be going with Em J and we are going to solve the worlds problems, she is going to give me a quick Dave Ramsey course because I have no clue how to budget money, and we are going to lay by the pool. Yep...pretty pumped.
• I feel like a totally different person when I don't work. I feel good, stress free, and I hurt less. However, I miss going to work tremendously!!!! Can I teach part time??

There you have it folks. The school teacher version of What if Wednesday....

Have a Happy Worst Day of the Week!!!

~Tiffany~

Teacher Perks

Yep, it is 10:05 a.m. and I am still in the bed. To be completely honest, I am exhausted!!!! Twinkle Toes has had a terrible cough that she brought home from the beach and it is still here. So, I am getting up at 2 and 3 a.m. to give her cough meds. When I am not giving her meds, I am awake because she is coughing so loud!!!!! You would think since her room is upstairs and mine is downstairs I wouldn't hear her, but I guess it is a mommy thing.

So, we are at the beach going to eat supper, and the hubs says, "Do you feel that?" I am like "What?" Long story short, my transmission was getting hung around 30 mph and I didn't even notice it. (Do keep in mind that my car is less than 2 months old.) The next day, the hubs calls the dealership and they were like sure, bring it in when you get back and we will give it a look over. OK no problem!!!! Um, we took it in on Monday, today is Wednesday, and they can't tell me what's a wrong with it. What the crap!!!!!! If they can't tell me what's wrong with it today, I am going to ask that they give me a new car. I mean, if it is tearing up like this after two months, what's going to happen after a year. It just concerns me, ok it pisses me off!!!!

One more story........ We got home from vacation Saturday and the hubs went to turn on the TV and it was dead. Not only was the TV dead, but the satellite box was dead, the DVD player was dead, the TV in the bedroom was dead, and all the satellite boxes in the bedrooms were dead. Yep, lightning got everything. This is the 3rd time this has happened since we have been in this house and we moved in in April of 2012. We replaced our 8th TV on Sunday. Alabama Power came out yesterday, and determined that the surges are not coming through the power lines. We had already called Direct TV and they sent us another box. Of course, the box didn't work. Had to send somebody out to fix that. The fix it guy determined that the surge did come from the satellite, but because we didn't buy their protection plan, they are not going to replace our TVs. What a crock in my opinion. They determine it is on their end and they won't take responsibility for it. Just my luck!!!!

Ok, what is good about these situations?? I am a school teacher and I am able to be at home for when the dealership calls about my car, I am able to be here when the fix it people come, and I can read my book, The Proposition, all day!!!!! I am loving my job!!!!! 

Later Lupies

~Tiffany~

Sucking the Fun out of Life

Yep....that is exactly what lupus does. It sucks the fun out of life. I know that 99% of the time I am happy, upbeat, and positive, but every dog has its day, right? Well, today is my day. Lupus has taken away from me the thing that I have looked forward to every year since I can remember. My family vacation. Every summer my parents used to load up my sister, myself, and their friends up and we would all go to the beach for a week. I mean we played from sun up to sun down, came in, got dressed, and went out to eat somewhere nice (my mother, sister, and I had to always have matching outfits). After we got back to our condo, we would either play games or hunt crabs on the beach until the wee hours in the morning. Oh my goodness, it brings tears to me eyes just thinking about the good times we had.

When I met the hubs, I wanted that tradition to continue with my family. Every Spring Break and every summer we headed to the beach and did exactly what I did as a child growing up. That was until.....................I was diagnosed with lupus and began all the medication that makes your body so sun sensitive. We still have tried every summer to go to the beach and do all the fun things I remember doing as a child, but it never seems to work out that way. I am stuck under the umbrella with my SPF 50 and my PFG shirt watching everyone get their sun kissed tan and floating themselves to sleep in the ocean. I try to occupy my time by reading, but I catch myself watching all the families playing with their children in the sand or riding the waves. What happened???? Where did my fun go????

As I was sitting under the umbrella today at the beach while everyone else had gone to the pool, I saw this lady come walking down to the beach with a broken leg. Yes, A BROKEN LEG!!! She had that cast wrapped up in plastic and she was good to go. Good grief, people with broken legs get to have fun in the sun and me, who looks perfectly healthy other than the sun poison I got the first day, can't do Jack squat. Have you ever thought lupies, that at the end of the day we have nothing to look forward to health wise. I mean we are not getting a huge settlement from whoever rear ended us in that car accident, we are not getting a settlement from our employer because heck, we don't even make it to work half the time because we are too sick to get out of the bed, and there is not a pain pill strong enough to knock the pain out. It always comes back.

I would love to be at the pool (which by the way is absolutely gorgeous at this resort) with the hubs and Twinkle Toes, but I had to come in because the pain from the heat was unbearable. I would love to go shopping at the outlet mall, but the hubs says we are in conservation mode because we are getting ready for him to go to school (womp,womp).

So, for now, I will just lay here, turn the TV on, watch People's Court and call it a day.

Stay strong friends, happy, and healthy!!!

~Tiffany~

P.S. The hubs just came in my kid threw up in the pool...Lawd help me!!!!!

It's Raining on my Parade Photo Dump

If you follow me on Keek (tiffanyadonnan) or on Instagram (tiffanyadonnan) you will know that I am on vacation and it is raining on my parade. I am currently sitting in the condo listening to my father-in-law (I'm assuming because my husband knows better) cut his toe nails in the living room and eating my weight in sour cream and onion potato chips. Now how's that for a vacation?? Needless to say I am bored out of my mind and thought I would catch you peeps up on what has been going on over the last week.


Let's start off with the 911 Festival. Every year our small town has a 911 Festival because in our little town is where the first 911 call was ever made. It's a big deal with funnel cakes, red necks, and people trying to sell useless crap for more money than I make in a month. Now, don't get me wrong, there are a few things worth looking at, but for the most part it's like a yard sale.

The first thing we see when we get there is a Polaris Ranger pulling a cow train and Twinkle Toes just had to ride.

This is J.R. I have loved this kid since the minute I met him when he was in kindergarten. It is so hard to believe that he will be sitting in my 6th grade classroom next year as a student.

No Southern, North Alabama, festival is complete without Mardi Gras beads and a Rebel flag (can we say red neck capital?)

The hubs liked so he put a ring on it.....again!!! After I lost mine Darla Diving, he replaced it with this beautiful set. Isn't he a doll???

A large part of my week was spent with these two gals. These two gals, along with my 7 week old youngest niece, are my girls. LK stayed with us most of the week and we had the best time eating chips, Nutella sandwiches, and just hanging out. Aren't they precious??

Twinkle Toes survived her first spend the night party. This was right after we picked her up and were headed straight for the beach. She had to best time and was all smiles when we picked her up :)

And then this happened.....She must have been the party animal!!!

We got to the beach on Saturday, and this is what we see Sunday. It rained for 24 hours straight....therefore, I slept for 24 hours straight. Not the way I wanted to start my vacay.

The hubs and I after we got to finally get something to eat. We cannot get enough to eat at the beach. It is our favorite thing to do...

Finally, the rain stopped long enough for us to get to the car to go get some supper.

My first pair of Sauconys. Aren't they bright and fun!!! Now, don't get me wrong, I don't plan on doing a workout or anything, but I may go get on the bicycle just because I am bored.

Day 3. Still cloudy, but not raining....yet. We made it to the beach!!!

They just happen to be my world

Twinkle Toes and her princess turtle.

Here comes the rain.........again

And there you have it folks.....my summer so far!!!! Hopefully, tomorrow, I can show you beautiful beach pictures and happier thoughts. 

Until then, stay happy, healthy, and dry!!!

~Tiffany~

Happy, Happy, Summer

Happy, happy summer!!!!!!! School is out and I am ready to rock and roll!!!!! I thought I would start out today's post with the most bittersweet picture I could. This is a picture of the last day of school. I am thrilled to be out for summer, but I worry about my students. I worry will they have enough to eat, what if their parents abuse them and they have no one to tell? I just pray everyday that my students are safe and happy :)

This is just a happy one of my teacher friends sent me on the last day of school!!! Enjoy!!

Then comes Saturday. The day Twinkle Toes graduated from pre-school. I love this little girl more than words can say. Her teacher told me that she is an absolute ray of sunshine everyday!!! I love that her teacher saw what I get to see everyday!!! My ray of sunshine.

And here is the graduate :) She couldn't be more excited. Oh, and BTW she wants to be a cheerleader when she grows up. She is her Mother's child :)

After graduation we headed north the the Tennessee River to the lake house where we met up with great family friends, my sister's family, and my parents. These are my girls!! Twinkle Toes and my sister's oldest daughter, LK.

All suited and buckled up and ready to go on a boat ride.

She couldn't be happier!!!!

Nothing says summer at the lake like a warm day and cold popsicle.

Because of the weekend before and our little visit to the hospital, Twinkle Toes couldn't get in the water. So, what's the next best thing at the lake, the water hose!!!!!

And this, my friends, was my view the entire weekend. Pure and absolute relaxation!!!

This is the best "Puh" there is. My Daddy with LK on the boat.

Could there be anything more sweeter. This is ME, my sister's baby girl #2. She is less than 6 weeks old and has already had her first outing at the lake. I can't wait until she is big enough to join my other girls.

My Daddy in his happy place!! A fishing boat with clear skies and beautiful water. He is such a hard worker, I wish he could spend more time here.

And this gal is Darla. I love this dog more than I knew...Darla is my sister and her husband's dog that is the dumbest, smart dog I know. We were down at the dock helping my Daddy get the boat on the lift and this angel face decided she was going to step on the running boards of the life and get her a drink. Well, naturally, the running boards were slippery. Dumb Darla took one step and fell in. I just got finished asking Michael, my sister's husband, if she could swim. He was very hesitant, and said she can, but tends to sink. Not knowing that she was going to fall in when I asked, I went in after the doll face. She kept bobbing up and down like a bobber, got under the dock where I couldn't reach her. I kept grabbing for her collar, but it kept slipping out of my hand. I finally got her, and started puling her out. By this time, Michael had handed LK off to my mother and came to help. In the mix of saving Darla, I lost my engagement ring. I am sick, however, I still have the first diamond my husband ever gave me. Several years ago, he had it reset into a dinner ring setting and thank goodness I didn't have it on. I still have my wedding band. So, unless the hubs decides to surprise me, I will be diamond less for the next three years :( 

And that, my friends, was my weekend. I hope you all have a great afternoon. I will be back again soon.

~Tiffany~