July 2008

Fourth of July Weekend was spent camping with our Kiger Family. Not all of the Kigers were there though unfortunately. Never-the-less we made the best of it and still had fun. We decided to camp at Willow Lake. It is amazing how I have lived here in Oregon for over ten years now and have not realized or even seen half of the natural beauty and wonders that this state contains.


Some of the activities that were participated in were walking, swimming, rides on the paddle boats, enjoying each other's company around the campfires, and even some games. There were even some comic relief incidents that happened. One was that in the middle of the night, some people were arguing very loudly and I waited about 10 minutes then yelled , " shut up and go to bed." It turned out other people thought that was a good thing and didn't get mad at me. One more funny thing that happened (didn't seem so funny at first), was that James locked Cari's keys in her car and so Matthew and Kendra had to drive to Keno to get a spare set. Even though I was sick, it was nice to spend time with family and friends.








On the health front, I have still been having issues with the Crohn's disease. I am still on 60 mgs of Prednisone a day along with the Pentasa and the Zofran with occasional pain meds. Now I have to test my blood glucose levels and I have to use insulin now as well. I know that with Heavenly Father's help and guidance I will get through this. I had anaphylactic shock on Friday and was in the emergency room. It happened during a CT scan. Thankfully the emergency room was right there and the doctor and nurses were able to help me out.
I have also been busy with physical therapy and chiropractic appointments so that I can heal completely from the car accident that happened in April. I am going 3 times a week for each doctor. But I know that I am on the path of healing so it is ok.




HAPPY BIRTHDAYS FOR JULY ARE:

Grandma Day - July 17th (she turned 85 and she looks good!)

James - July 24th ( 40 years old already!)

Kendra Kiger - July 12th ( Happy 18th!)

Troy Gerber - July 16th

Aunt Diane - July 29th

Pappa Kiger- July 26th

Endurance

Life is full of ups and downs. Sometimes the downs come all at once and it is difficult to catch my breath. This June 2008 has been one of the most challenging times that I have experienced with my Crohn's Disease. I was in the hospital for 3 weeks and it was awful. The solution? To keep taking the prednisone at 60 mgs and then get on the Imuran. The Imuran is an immuno-suppressant medication. What that means is that it will shut down my immune system causing me to be susceptible to infections. I am petrified, but I know that this is something that needs to be done. The thing that I have come to learn and accept over this last month is that I can get through this, that all I need to do is to endure. Yes, endurance is the key to my success in this situation. For now I am enduring this immense pain that wakes me up in the middle of the night. My whole left side is swollen from the prednisone, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I am alive and I do have many blessings to focus on. I am loved by my friends and my family and I know that I am going to make it through. It just might not happen as quickly as I would like it to happen, but it will happen. I just can't give up. I have to keep pressing forward with endurance so that I can win this race. I hope that one day though that they find a cure for this disease.