Laundry is a Major Pain

I don't think that I have had pain like this since I first hurt my back 13 1/2 years ago. I was 8 months pregnant with Trevor and working at a Veterinary clinic and I was by myself. I took a black lab out to go potty before I went home and it didn't want to go back into the cage. So I bent down and lifted it in and have had back problems ever since. Luckily Dr. Nolz was new in town and Darryl and I were friends with him and his wife and he was able to see me.

I have problems off and on with my back if I'm moving heavy things around or lifting incorrectly but it is a pain that will go away in a few days with over the counter meds and an ice pack.

On Thursday I was doing laundry leaned over with NOTHING in my hands and felt a sharp pain in my lower back that almost took me to my knees. Wow....I really did it this time I thought. So I went right away and took some ibuprofen and continued on in a more careful way. By dinner time I was just about done for. At that point you could have offered me any drug to take away the pain.
Why did I not go to the doctor some may ask......answer no health insurance. So no matter how you feel about health care reform, I want an affordable public option. But that is another subject.

So Darryl helps me cook supper as I can not bend over to get anything and I lay on ice and continue to take ibuprofen. Thursday was my day off from running anyway so to keep the muscle loose I told Darryl that Alivia and I were going on a walk.

We started out and as we get closer to the park I here cheering and such, so I say to Alivia let's go see if Dr. Nolz is over there. Thursday the clinic is closed or else I would have seen him, but I thought I would ask him some things to help make me comfortable until I could see him tomorrow.

There are good and bad things about living in such a small town...bad: people are nosy and want to know your business...good: you can chat with your chiro at his kids soccer game.

So yeah, we find him. He asked how I was and told him I was in severe pain and what I did to get in this pain and he said Logan's game is almost over come to the office and I will take a look at you. I told him that was not why I came over and it was his day off and he needs to ask Shelly so she is not mad that he is doing this etc.

Beings we are friends with him and he is so nice....Alivia and I walked over to the clinic and he gave me an adjustment. I went again today and he gave me another adjustment. Although he did laugh at me and the way I was standing and walking and told me I look like an old lady....but at this point he can laugh at me all he wants. I will be seeing him again tomorrow morning and according to him a lot more this next week.

So please pray for me and my pain. I'm thankful in this case to live in a small town where when you are in desperate need of help, your chiro is there to help you.

Also have learned that laundry can be a major pain.

Update Your Bathroom

We moved into this house 11 years ago. I was 8 months pregnant with Alivia so lucky me was unable to help a lot with any lifting and moving stuff. But also since I was pregnant I was also unable to paint walls etc. So sometime after Alivia was born and life was back to "normal" I had been watching HGTV and sponge painting was "in" and really big. So I convinced Darryl to let me do the downstairs bathroom since it had wallpaper on it and in general I don't like wallpaper. So he said fine...but I had to do it since he hates painting. So I did it and it turned out great as you can see.

But here lately I've been watching more shows about Flipping Houses and from that they talk about neutral colors for being able to sell the house. We will at some time in probably 3-4 years get the house ready to sell. So when we re-did the living room I picked good neutral colors with one dynamic wall and decided I would do so for the bathroom. I mean there was no way I could sell even if it is not for years, with a sponge painted bathroom.....it's too out dated. So I picked colors in the same family as the living room and made one dynamic wall and the rest lighter...it's actually the same color as the square ceiling part in the living room and here you have an updated bathroom that has a lot of potential for the new buyers in 3-4 years.
But most of all it's neutral and I like it!

A day in with......the old lady

As many of you read on Facebook I was not really looking forward to my trip in to Cedar Rapids with the 93 year old lady Labreta that I help. Let me explain how it all started.......

Darryl's dad had originally done work for her and that is how Darryl came to do work for her after he took over Studt and Son Repair. Now it hasn't been until the last 3 years that she had Darryl over to her home doing lots of different stuff and about every Friday he goes over. I come into the picture because in the winter of 2007 she needed someone to get her mail for her about every other day and hang it on a hook outside where she could get it. I said fine on days I go by her house I can do that. Then last year started getting mail all year round plus taking her to Dollar General, Gary's, the bank etc. She now expects her mail everyday, and that I am on call when ever she needs me. I don't do people telling me what to do very well and pushing me around and that is what she seems to like to do. Because she is paying me she thinks she can boss me around and I don't work like that. She never use to be this bad but as the years go on she gets worse. Her and Darryl have had there go rounds as well, but he is more frank and rude to her then I am. OK I told a little to much in the story about our relationship with her....but I do help her out.

So yesterday we went into CR and I will try to make this as short as possible. In general when she finds a person to do something for her she doesn't like to use anyone else. So one time she went into Walmart on the Westdale side of CR and the Korean lady gave her a pedicure. Ever since that one time she thinks NO ONE else on earth knows how to give a pedicure. So we start out to go to Walmart and I ask her where all she needs to go. I have to ask because she will say Sharon (that's me, sometimes it is Shannon lots of the time Sharon) can you take me to the bank. I go over pick her up and take her to the bank. But then she adds on Gary's and maybe something else. So I asked her where all do you need to go...she said to get toes done, Lowes, Walmart and Aldis. I explain that Lowes is way over on the other side of town and it would be better to go to that side since they have a Walmart, Aldi's and I'm sure a pedicure place. Finally after wanting to pull my hair out I some how convinced her.....Praise the Lord it is a Miracle that just happened. I'm still in awe of it!!!

Since we were now going to the NE side of town she wants to stop at Bed, Bath and Beyond to look for a toilet seat. They didn't have a cream colored soft one so we left. I'm waiting at the stop light with the mall right in front of us and she asked how far is the mall from here. I said it's right there across the street. She tells me that's not the mall. I say yes that is Lindale Mall across the street you see where it says Sears. Well that's not the mall where's Younkers. I say way on the other side. I stop arguing with her because I'm not a retard that she thinks I am, I know where the stupid mall is.

Next, I take her to Lowes and all of that goes well besides she buys a cream soft toilet seat, and a white one with some flowers on it which I reminded her the whole reasons we "had" to come to Lowes is because she "had" to have a cream toilet seat. But whatever she wants. It just means I'm going to have to return one of them and I'm never around Lowes.

We went to Aldi's and that went fine and then onto Walmart. There she couldn't find the perfect wastebasket for in her dining room to throw papers away. Right now she just uses a plastic Walmart bag and I show her wastebaskets in about 10 different colors but she decides she will go to Walmart in Anamosa and they will have the perfect wastebasket :)

So all in all it was OK. It was a 4 hour trip with her and I was defiantly tired by the time I got home. The best part of the trip was of course 30 minutes of feet pleasure...and here is a pic of my purple pedicured feet!