Author: Jen Rios

“My Lips Taste Good”

Today is the day after Thanksgiving, which means it’s ‘changing of the guard’ for my chapstick. To my dismay, Burt’s Bees has discontinued the flavor, Ginger Spice.

That’s my, “Abuela Chapstick”?!!!! So I thought this would be the last season I will use it so I will just finish it. I was supposed to start something new on December 1, but I won’t this time.

I wanted to see how much Chapstick I had left so I pushed it all out and thought to push it back in, but it won’t go back in so I have a “Bag-o-Chapstick”

That’s all that’s left of my Chapstick that reminds me of my Abuela. I can still see and smell her house! I can hear her chanclas shuffling across the kitchen floor.

I think that house has been gone since I was in middle school. When I put my Chapstick on this morning, I smiled to myself and told my Mom, “My lips taste good” I thought of her and Montgomery Wards and the show Alf with fondness…

Well Worth it

Today was Thanksgiving leftovers for dinner. My dinner consisted of a protein shake, corn casserole, cheesy potatoes, stuffing, and to finish it off, strong with pumpkin pie!

My Mom looked at me and said that I don’t look like I am feeling well. I looked at her kind of exasperated and I said, “Of course! We left the house and I’m still trying to get okay from that and I just ate a bunch of carbs and sugar and NEITHER one of those are my friend!!! But, I ate them anyway!!! They were so good!!!

it was well worth how I am feeling right now! I won’t eat like this again until Christmas.

Enough of a Taste

My Thanksgiving meals are modified now. I can no longer eat turkey and that wasn’t a really big deal for me anyway. Now, sides are made for me and they are delicious!

My Thanksgiving meal first and foremost consists of a nutrition shake because I need the protein before I can enjoy any food. I had cheesy potatoes, sweet potatoes, and stuffing.

MY Mom hasn’t been making her pies for a while, and that was a staple for me for my entire life! Well, turns out that my brother, Ray, has taken up that mantle and I had the MOST delicious piece of pie tonight!!!

I only ate half of what was given to us for my dinner. I have leftovers! That’s what I’ll be eating tomorrow. As I was eating my pie, I told my Mom that, “It feels like I’ve had Thanksgiving dinner!”

I haven’t been able to gorge myself for years as a power chair user. I just got enough of a taste today and I am content most definitely content!

Gorging Myself

I saw this meme on Facebook and it made me laugh so much because this SERIOUSLY was me in 2001:

I was pregnant and was not due until December 27. I was hoping to eat my fill on Thanksgiving and maybe even Christmas as well!

Turns out that God had a different plan because I gave birth to him via emergency C-section on November 2, before Thanksgiving! I didn’t even have Thanksgiving dinner that year because I was at the hospital to see him in NICU. he was there until December 3.

I put him in his portable bassinet under the Christmas tree and whispered in his ear for him to grow! He slept for all but 20 minutes for two weeks when he came home. I had to wake him up to feed him.

I have recently been seeing so many March of Dimes fundraisers on Facebook and they show a picture of a preemie baby with a breathing tube in their nose. Seeing those makes me wince a little bit that was such a painful time and I only now am realizing it. Sean was on oxygen the first 24 hours and they told me that was really good for his eyes. Being on oxygen for multiple days can make them blind.

I can’t eat turkey anymore, but seeing this meme made me laugh and remember my plans of gorging myself on Thanksgiving. That didn’t work out.

I Remember EXACTLY How this Feels!!!

This is not a new random tune, but I heard it today and we talked about this not too long ago:

My Mom had recently watched videos about Linda Ronstadt. She wanted to listen to the mariachi concert she gave.

I declined. I told her that listening to women sing is painful for me! It’s painful because I still remember crystal clearly how that feels to sing!!! I have been missing it so much right now!!!

I think that I am really feeling vulnerable right now! We had a great day today and I did not even cry for my mammogram which that is the first! I will sing praises for Lauren and Tammy my techs! I think I exclaimed in the room five or six times, “I didn’t even cry?!!!!”

We are going to handle my shoe situation on December 9 when I get my teeth cleaned. This disease progression is brutal! I was not ready for it, but I guess I was?! This stinks!!!

31 Years?!!!! OR My Eyes are Sick

Today is day #2 of Recovery and I’m thinking it’s going to be a full weekend recovery but I have another appointment on Tuesday so…

Let me talk about these new contacts! They are the easiest thing to put into my eyes! I have been struggling to put them in for the past 31 years?!!!! Each time I go to put them in my eye, they just suction to my eyeball! It’s so surprising!

I thought I was just going to see Liz to get fitted for them, but she wanted me to see Dr. Harris. He looked at my eyes through the machine in the room and had me look up and blink and he poked the bottom of my eye just to see how they were moving in them.

is going to see him on Wednesday and my mom told him and she said, “his”His name is Sean.”

He looked at me and asked a question that I never thought I would ever be asked and to be able to answer in an affirmative way! He said, “I bet he has your eyes.”

I let out a surprised gasp, but I think, I could feel my eyes light up, and I told him, “He does!”

Dr. Harris said that I could discontinue using my Renu re-wetting drops. These contacts fill excellent in my eyes, but I’m not going to discontinue using my re-wetting drops because my eyes are sick. They have been sick for the past 24 years. They got sick when I was pregnant with Sean!