6 Months strong

About 2 years ago was when I first saw it. A cream colored building sitting on the corner of Front St. and Albatross. This was where I met my transplant team and it’s where I would do all the post-operative follow ups. I would become very familiar with the waiting room…the number of chairs along the walls, certain patients who had been scheduled on the same days as me. The faces behind the desk that checked me in and then checked me out. The broken ceiling tile up in the left hand corner of the room.

It’s now mid June and I am back for  my 6 month follow up with Dr. Steiner and the Team. He’s the head Nephrologist. Pretty cool with a big pinch of quirk. They ask how I am doing. “Pretty good” I reply, “except that my hair is falling out like a chemo patient.” Aside from that, my creatinine level, which monitors ‘B’idney’s function is at a healthy 1.2. Protein in the urine is still high at 2.5-3 but not getting worse so Steiner has decided to hold off on another biopsy…for now. YAY!

Back to the hair loss issue. There is no surprise in their eyes. They tell me it’s caused from the Prograf, one of my immuno-suppressants I have to take twice daily. HELLOO?!?! Must I order a 2x4 to paddle you people as this was casually forgotten for discussion beforehand? I have lost 3/4 of my hair and had to chop it all off a couple weeks ago because I could see empty spots on my scalp. When I take a bath, I have my own oil spill of black hair lining the top of the water as well as the bottom of the tub. Not pretty.

The Team decide to switch me onto another drug called, Cyclosporin. I’ve been on it before with my first transplant. I felt okay on it, except that it causes my gums to swell and I have to wear SPF 50 because I become at high risk for cancer (most of the drugs I’m on cause this, so it’s really no biggie).  I’m a bit anxious switching, but I’m also tired of losing all my hair. Not to mention, it’s lost its’ shine and normal texture. I never thought I was a vain kinda gal, but I guess the thought of going bald makes me sad.

I start the new drug tomorrow and will be monitored closely for the next month and a half, getting weekly blood draws to make sure my levels are in the correct range and that I don’t enter into rejection mode. My poor veins…the Phlebotomists have been missing my veins the last three times, so I’ve temporary lost faith in having a pain free vampire suck my blood . I wonder if I can tap a spigot into my vein?

So, that’s the update. I’ll follow up with my levels in the next week or so. Until then, I hope you have a wonderful and fun Independence Day!!!

‘B’idney and Diana

Hucklebuck Land

I look up and see a wall of green. Green with a hint of blueberry sky poking through. There are so many green trees and creeks surrounding me I feel like I’m in my own fairyland.   I hear no cars, only birds chirping and a lawnmower in the distance. I’ll be here for the next week.   Whoever said you can take the girl out of the city, but not the city out of the girl was wrong. I love this luscious green place they call Chardon, Ohio.

Paul, the ‘Bidney’ and I went to visit his parent’s about 45 min down yonder outside of Cleveland.  The place is different than I had imagined. It’s not as boon-doggie as I was picturing. It’s a modern day Jurassic Park mixed with some country.  By Jurassic, I mean this place is filled with all kinds of wildlife. If one had to hunt off the fat o’ the land, there definitely would be no starvation.

When we were driving up to the house at night, my imagination was thinking, lions, tiger and bears (oh my). But in reality, it’s more like

snakes, turtles and deer…lets not forget the gargantuan prehistoric looking snapping turtles... And fox, opossums, raccoons and you’re friendly bird tweeting away. There was one woodpecker that pecked it’s head off in the middle of the night outside of my bedroom window. I didn’t mind, just wondered how it’s head was going to be feeling in the AM?

There’s a lake a couple minutes down the road from Paul’s house. This is the lake where he boasts of catching so much fish it’s like manna falling from heaven. I’m proud to say this girl (me),grew up fishing in her little lake in Irvine as well with a long line tied to a stick with a hook at the end. I too can fish with the best of them. I pull back the hair from my shoulders, pick up my ultra light pole and cast it in. One…two…SNAP! I got one! I got one!  I reel it in and find a Crappie on the end. Not big, but still fun nevertheless. I unhook the fish and throw my line back in. Another minute goes by and the line tightens as the pole bends. This time it’s a Bluegill.  We aren’t catching any thing huge to write home about (even though I am), but the fact that we’re bringing them in faster than we can unhook is pretty awesome. Every once in a while we hook into a bass. Those were the most fun to reel in. Oh yea, I’m double fisting with two poles too, to increase my volume. HA!

Most of you who know Paul (Bub) know that he’s a big competitor and trash talker. He is a great fisherman but every once in a while his talk is bigger than his catch. For instance, he was all blah blah blah about catching Big Ol’ Walter and when he reeled his fish in, this is what he caught below. Enough said.

Well ok, he did catch some bigger ones. The bass to the right was the first one of the evening. We ended going out a few times, Larry joined us on one outing, which was a blast.

We mixed the adventure up by taking a daytrip out to Niagara Falls. We got up at the crack of dawn and parked on the US side. If you’ve never been to Niagara, you must put that on the bucket list.  The place is beautiful and the falls are majestic and you feel the massive power of the water as you travel up to the mist of the falls.

There are a few boats that run up to the falls. All of them are called Maid of the Mist.  The smallest tugboat carries 250 people and from a distance, everyone looks like  a bunch of blue Oompa-loompa’s packed into a sardine can. 

Paul ended up using his luck in a casino nearby and we made it home with the trip paid for. The rest of the trip was spent hanging with the family, playing cards and eating delicious food. Did I mention eating? I gained 5 pounds in a week I ate so much!

Nonetheless, the trip was a blast! I had a great time playing Pinochle with the family. The term ‘sharks’ came into my mind at one point whilst I was playing. That sweet looking family is out for blood, oh, I mean money, when it comes to cards. I’ll be honest, I love me a good game just as much as the rest of them.

Bidney’s twin comes for a visit…

A long look at the back of your eyelids, and 5 months will come and go by the time you open them again. It has been five months since the transplant. Five months that Bidney has been separated from his twin.

A week ago, Bidney’s twin (and entourage) came to visit and a happy reunion took place. Time passed much too quick, but each moment was filled with joy. We hit the beach, the pool, had a delish cookout with a little scooter run around the lake, practiced a little yoga and had a whole lot of fun.

So, instead of writing a novel, I thought it would be fun to share the weekend through a little photo story…

(The Durst Entourage…with me and ‘B’idney)

     

Brian’s son, Max is pure boy through and through. When Brian and Paul were loading up the ocean kayaks, Max was paying attention to every detail that was going on and just fascinated with the boys and their toys. Max especially liked the scooter. Dad took him on a spin, and after they left, Bidney and I took him on another one to the lake. The lake is about a couple min away on scooter, and during that nice quiet Saturday morning, Max, while on the scooter started a sweet little conversation… “So how is your new kidney doing?”  I replied, “It’s doing well. Thank you for asking, Max” which he kindly replies with,“You’re welcome.”  Max proceeded to explain how dad flew over on a plane to give me his kidney and flew back home afterwards and everything was good, except he had a couple bruises. Gotta love kids.

     

(Lily and Max. The sweetest, cutest most well behaved tikes ever. I love, love, love them!)    

       

 

(Bidney and twin avoiding the camera as Brian, Max and I pose)

The weekend was so much fun and it was such a treat to have the gang visit. Bidney’s twin was able to find some adventure on the ocean as Brian and Paul kayaked from Corona Del Mar down to Laguna Beach. Dolphins and sea lions visited them along the way, but nothing could cure the feeling of sea sickness Brian suffered while on water until nature won and he fed his breakfast to the fish.  Poor guy, but as you can see above, everyone was still smiling at the end of the day. 

There are more pictures of the little tikes than of the grown ups. Aside from the fact that they are so flipping cute and better to look at, I think they’re more fun anyway than us grown ups.  Bidney would have made an appearance if he could, but considering the circumstance being that he’s stuck INSIDE of me, I’m sure you all will understand his absence. He was definitely there though.  Thanks Brian and Lyndsey for driving down and hanging out with us. We hope you had as much fun with us as we did with you!

Love,

‘B’idney, Di and Paul

Challenge Rules: (GET READY, SET…)

This Healthy Challenge begins Tuesday April 20, 2010 and continues for 3 weeks, ending on May 11, 2010.  As an incentive, I am adding a $10 entry fee, which will go in the pot for the winner.

1 point for all of the following daily:
30 min exercise
no sugar, desserts (this means anything processed, like muffins, regular fruit flavored yogurts, alcohol, etc)
no carbonation
8 glasses of water
no eating 2 hours before bed
2-3 serving of fruit/veggies
7 hours of sleep

-1 point:

sugar, desserts (per serving)

Bonus points:

1 point daily used to your liking, be it score advantage or if you failed an item.

Maximum 8 pts earned daily. Please keep a daily record and send me the total points accrued at the end of each week.  The person with the most points at the end of this challenge wins the pot. This Challenge is based  on the HONOR SYSTEM.

So, the reason we designed the challenge this way is to live and eat well, which in turn will give more energy… and motivate me to get back on track and lose weight. Because we all know it’s easier to be motivated by a challenge/competition. The weight loss that comes with it is a bonus. Yay!

Get ready, set…good luck!

Thank you, Bobby Flay

I love to cook. I’m always looking for different ways to use the average vegetables, fish, chicken or whatever I can get my hands on. And since I’m starting the Healthy Challenge tomorrow, I thought I’d jump start it by cooking a pot of Minestrone soup courtesy of Bobby Flay. I have chosen to  omit the croutons, but didn’t want to deprive the rest of you so I’ve included it in the recipe below.

(…Do the multiple veggies count as my 2-3 servings?)

Minestrone with Sauteed Croutons and Parmigiano-Reggiano

Ingredients

Sauteed Croutons:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 6 slices Italian bread, crusts removed and cut into 1/4-inch dice
• Salt

Soup:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large red onion, chopped
• 2 large stalks celery, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 1/4 pound pancetta, thinly sliced
• 1/2 head Savoy cabbage, finely sliced, blanched and drained
• 1/2 bunch Swiss chard, washed and finely sliced
• 1 large waxy potato, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 4 cups water
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 3 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 1 bouquet garni (rosemary sprig, 4 thyme sprigs, 1 bay leaf, bunch parsley)
• 3 cups cooked cannellini beans
• 1 cup spinach leaves, washed and coarsely chopped
• Salt and pepper
• Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Directions

For the Sautéed Croutons: Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, add the garlic and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, to flavor the oil. Remove the garlic, add the bread cubes and toss to coat. Sauté until golden brown on all sides, season lightly with salt. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels.

For the Soup: Heat oil in a 4 quart pot, add the onion, celery, garlic, carrot and pancetta and cook until soft. Add the cabbage, chard, potato, water, broth, tomatoes and bouquet garni. Bring the soup to a gentle simmer and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Place half of the beans (1 1/2 cups) in a food processor and process until smooth. Add the puree and the whole beans to the simmering soup. Simmer the soup for about 5 minutes. Add the spinach and cook for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with (sautéed croutons and) cheese.

Let me know if you try it and what you think. Bon Appetite!!!

‘B’idney Update

My blood was drawn on Tuesday, and today Doc and I went over the results. Uh, it was more like Doc having a solo conversation on my voicemail going over my test results. A casualty of phone tag.

Overall, things are good. Yippee! The protein in my urine is holding stable. Good news. Which means, I think I’ve thwarted off the biopsy a bit longer because it’s not getting  worse.  ‘B’idney remains safe for now.  Creatnine bouncing around a bit, but not higher than it’s been in the past. Blood count ok. White cells ok. Bacteria level in range. Protein level maintaining. Minerals need a little work, but nothing to worry about. Basically I’m A OK (smile). Actually,  I’m a little more than ok if I do say so myself.

Thanks for all your prayers. They’re still working. Have a fantabulous weekend y’all!

‘B’idney n Di

The Challenge

TRIVIA ?

How does eating

one  1.76 oz candy bar

turn me

1 pd heavier

the next morning?

I sat up this AM, looked in the mirror and saw my tummy pucker and say hi.

Not to mention the other night, I had a strange phenomenon come over me. I went for a jog and had to actually hold my hands up to the girls, because they were bouncing in rhythm to my pace. Weird. This never happened pre-‘B’idney! This coming from a girl who could once  run without a sports bra. Yes, I have spent $$ for a Super Strapless Adhesive Bra. And have shamelessly asked my best friend to share her blessed assets, if it ever became possible. And let’s throw in that I’ve blamed my mom for shorting me on the boob gene.

Well, I am going to do something about this. Girls can stay, but tummy has got to go.  In fact, I was perusing my friend’s blog, and have decided to borrow her idea (thanks Lyndsey). Her family is doing a ‘Healthy Challenge’ for NINE weeks to motivate weight loss. Yea right. I’m  going to start with three weeks, which is much more attainable. Plus, I still have 10 pounds to lose from my transplant, so this will be good motivation.

Below is what she had listed. I am going to tweak it a bit, adding minus points  and return with a more detailed version, because this chic responds to competition and structure. At the end of the challenge, the winner gets a prize, which Lyndsey’s fam is doing a money pot. Sounds good to me. Feel free to add any other items and join in on the challenge…starting in a couple days.

1 point for all of the following:
30 min exercise
no sugar, desserts
no carbonation
8 glasses of water
10 min of uplifting reading, or journal writing
morning and evening prayer
no eating 2 hours before bed
2 serving of fruit/veggies
7 hours of sleep

…TO BE CONTINUED