Tuesday, March 23, 2010

We changed our minds...next trip... Dominican Republic

When my parents announce that I had a choice of a graduation present, one being a trip to any country I wanted, I not only expressed shock but a lot of excitement. My first choice was the Dominican Republic. But there was one exception to my present, my sister would have to approve and come with me. The trip then became a trio when my friend Paola decided to join us in our unknown journey. We had all decided on Peru since it was a country that we all found interesting and worthwhile to explore, but at the last minute when it came to purchasing tickets, Paola didn’t seem so sure anymore. She was scared. I don’t blame her it can definitely be scary to travel outside the country for the first time, in exception to Baja. So in our struggle to find common ground, and after other options were thrown on the table, we decided to go the Dominican Republic. This would be a safer choice considering the DR is close to the US and being been there before I have contacts of people I trust. I couldn’t have been more thrilled at our choice. As much I want to one day go to Peru I am ecstatic to be able to visit my friends that I left behind last year. We purchased out plane tickets this evening, we leave May 26th and return June 9th. I’ll keep you posted on more details as the time approaches.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Update on surgery

Wednesday:
Surgery was done exactly a week ago. I went into the dentist office at 8am. I was taken to an x-ray room where they shot a digital 360 degrees x-ray of my jaw. They seated my mom and sister in a private surgery waiting room and I was taken to the surgery room where they proceeded to take my pressure and hook me up to a machine that would monitoring my heart beat and my overall well being once I was under. I forgot to take my antibiotics so they injected them through an I.V. I believe at the same time they injected the sedatives. The surgery took about 30 minutes; I woke up soon after and was walked to the waiting room to be reunited with my mom and sister. I felt like I was in the clouds so I of course needed help to get into the car. I pretty much stayed in bed sleeping and reading Much Ado About Nothing all Wednesday evening.

My nephew came to visit, he was such great company because he didn’t say much but state the obvious “you had surgery today, huh” and then quietly but soothingly played with his toys on the floor of my room. Anthony came by after work he brought me Neosporin, ice packs, a milk shake, and a purple rose. He was also great company. I loved hearing him laugh at all the silly YouTube videos he was watching. Anthony is so funny; I couldn’t help but smile at all the juvenile things he did. My sister, Noemi stopped by to see me after an outing with her sorority girls. She came in the door and talked to me for a bit not realizing that Anthony was also present in the room, he hid on the side of my closet, and then when she least expected he pooped out, she yelled out of surprise and then couldn’t help but laugh along with my mom, Anthony and I.

Thursday:
I stayed in bed most of Thursday morning. I worked from home for most of the afternoon updating our work’s website and replying to emails. And even though I looked like a chipmunk I decided to go grocery shopping with Anthony in our attempt to make homemade broccoli and cheddar soup. Besides looking awful I felt good for most of the day Thursday it wasn’t until we arrived to Anthony’s apartment that I started feeling a little lightheaded. I rested for a bit while Anthony worked on the soup. He did such a great job, the soup was definitely tasty but we both agreed that next time we would use a more of a mild type of cheddar.

Friday:
I felt well enough on Friday morning that I agreed to help babysit 2 year old Alessandra from noon-ish ‘till about 6pm. We had such a great time at the play ground, watching Ni Hao Kai-lan, having a small tea party, and going to Borders to read and play with stuffed animals. After babysitting, Jesenia and I went to the mall. After some quick shopping we decided to catch up on life over appetizers and coffee at Olive Garden.

Saturday:
Still looking like a chipmunk I went to a Red Cross CPR training class with both the Beckys (Noemi & Paola). Even though it was early, we arrived at 8:30am, we enjoyed watching a training video, cheating off each other on the written test, role playing emergency scenarios and practicing with dummies. I can officially perform CPR for a year now! After the CPR course we walked from city hall to Pokez, a Mexican vegetarian cuisine. Anthony joined us for lunch there, and then we took a quick detour back to my house since I started feeling a little sick after forgetting to take my second dosage of Vicodin for the day, after the quick stop we went to Balboa Park where we attended a Rummage Sale. At the Rummage Sale I bought a red Tea Pot with its four matching cups for an exciting price of $3, a lime green appetizer plate for $1, 270 crystal marbles for a vase Anthony and I bought for $2, and 40 yards of pink ribbon for $1.50.

Sunday:
But unfortunately the combination of activities, the walking, the sun, and not taking my medicine on time, made me feel really sick Saturday evening. I decided it would probably be best to not work Sunday morning. It was probably the best decision I could have made because instead of taking care of toddlers in the morning… I slept and slept until 3:30pm! I was re-energized again and was able to run a few errands with Anthony before church at 7pm. After church we called it an early night and I went home to get ready for school Monday morning.

Monday:
The swelling thankfully when down today so I didn’t look like a “cute chipmunk” anymore. School was great, work was also great, but it must have been the fact that I slammed my finger into a metal gate right before bedtime and running out of Vicodin that scared my sleep away.

Tuesday:
I went for my routine check up in the morning and the dentist said I was healing nicely. But after my check up I had a pretty stressful/intense school day and really packed workday. After getting out late, I picked up Chipotle for dinner and joined Anthony at his apartment while we watched Wheel of Fortune, it’s our must see TV show. After the half-an-hour show, I worked on homework until bedtime but unfortunately couldn’t get myself to fall asleep. There’s just so much running through my mind that I can’t get myself to stop thinking.

Wednesday, today:
Early in the morning I decided to take some medicine to help me sleep. The dosage worked so I skipped my two morning classes and decided instead to stay home and study for a midterm test I have tomorrow and to inform you on what’s happened since my surgery last week.

-Maira

Monday, March 8, 2010

Next trip…Peru!

As a graduation present my parents are helping fund a trip to Peru. It’s going to be an all girls trip. My sister, a best friend and I are planning to fly to Lima and then from there work our way to Machu Picchu and maybe even Lake Titicaca. It’ll be a two week trip starting late may and finishing early June. After that I also hope to attend a conference in Washington DC.
I’ll be sure to blog about this.

Love,
Maira

Surgery this Wednesday

These past few weeks I’ve been experiencing a series of migraines. I finally went to the Wellness Center on campus when I couldn’t keep any food down. The doctor was so alarmed she wanted to send me to the emergency room. But I reassured her it wasn’t so bad. That week I had also had pain around my jaw area so I was almost positive the pain was due to the growth of my upper wisdom teeth. I went to the dentist on a Saturday, to avoid missing any classes, and sure enough my upper wisdom teeth were impacted (trying to come out but were putting pressure on my sinus, jaw, and surrounding teeth). I saw the surgeon today but unfortunately he was booked. I am scheduled to have surgery Wednesday morning at 8. I am excited to get them removed because this of course means I will get some headache relief and get to rest during spring break.

Keep me in your prayers!

PS
Pray for Anthony too, he is a little nervous about this.
I keep on telling him it’s just teeth…