Christmas was a wonderful occasion, and someday I will finally post my pictures. Both Anthony and I were spoiled by Papa and Pat with gifts from our family farmhouse in Ohio. Both of our parents spoiled us rotten too with shopping cards, various treats and a new TV (which my blind husband practically begged for), and Anthony surprised me with a new hard drive for my already full computer. Now I can work on my pictures and videos without having to delete stuff first! :)
Anthony has had a bit of a slow year so far. Lemons House Moving hasn't had consistent work for quite some time now, which has meant Anthony has spent many months molding on our couch playing video games. As much as he loves playing assassin, he gets bored pretty easily by now. His brother Brady got him into bulking up just before Christmas, so going to the gym to put himself through his paces has been incredibly enjoyable for him, plus it gets him out of the house. Now that the weather has started leaning towards spring (don't worry, the weather is calling for snow showers tomorrow...this is Idaho after all!), he's able to get out of the house more often. Last fall he started playing Disc Golf (golf with Frisbee's) and is stoked to be getting out on the courses again. On a non-work, good weather day he'll go 3-4 times a day. It makes me laugh how entertained he is by the sport, but it's been really good for him. Work at Lemons has picked up in the last week too, and that's been a blessing as well, however it's still not consistent work. All the jobs they have lined up are contingent on the owner having money, and we all know that's a bit scare. To suppliment some income, Anthony and Brady are starting up a window washing service. My mom made the comment that clients are always asking for referrals, so the boys jumped all over that idea. I'm hoping to get some pictures of them doing their thing once they start up.
I've been dealing with health problems for the most part. In November I found a lump that started to get fairly painful, and I finally caved and went to the doctor. The lump was a Bartholin's Gland Cyst, which is a gland that has clogged for some reason. I won't mention where the cyst was, but let's just say it was painful to sit, walk, or wear pants. Typically the cyst will surface, much like a zit, and the doctor is then able to lance (make a small incision) the cyst & it goes away. Most women don't even feel this kind of cyst, and if they do, one lancing will take care of it permanently. But my body had years of bad health stored up & put it all into that one little cyst! After two lancings, the cyst still hadn't surfaced & was causing me severe pain, so we scheduled surgery. The surgery went well, and I was recovering pretty well, until I went in for my 2 week post-op check up. The cyst wall had grown back, causing the cyst to grow back. We tried lancing one more time, but to no avail. Back to the OR I went, just one month after my first surgery. This go around was much more difficult in all aspects. The surgery was more difficult and intense than the doctor thought because of scar tissue from the first surgery and the depth of the cyst. My pain was far more intense throughout the process because of that, and my recovery was painfully slow. To add to the difficulty, about a month and a half ago I had an abscess form in the same area just as I was beginning to feel and walk better. My doctor lanced it once, and then it ruptured on it's own just before she lanced it again (which saved me about $300!) but as of right now, it is still hanging around and causing problems. I can wear pants (depending on the day), but I still have problems sitting and can't ride a bike. On the plus side, I managed to get a different job while recovering from my second surgery. I'm now working in the Re/Max office for Steve and Shawn Anderson. The job is part-time right now, but I'm hoping to get to full time very very soon. Last week I worked over 40 hours in their office, and worked in Dad's office for about 7 hours. Needless to say, it was a long week. But I really enjoy working in both offices (I help mom out if she needs help and I have time). There's a constant variety of jobs, and I'm learning all sorts of stuff about Real Estate that is bound to come in handy some day!
Other than that, it's business as usual. The animals are still crazy and pester us every chance they get, but we can't help but love them. I figure I should post at least a couple pictures, so below is one for Anthony, and one for me. Anthony took his himself, and it's one of my favorite pictures of him ever, and mine was just after my second surgery and my blood pressure was going nuts. Look for Christmas pictures soon!
