6 Week Post-op Update (Post-op left hip)

I'm amazed that it has been 6 weeks already!!!

Everything is going very well. I had my second post-op appointment with my surgeon this past Tuesday. The appointment involved the final set of images to be taken! The x-rays looked fabulous- there is absolutely no sign of impingement left whatsoever! How exciting is that!?!?

This journey has definitely strengthened me, in many many ways. Physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually I have grown.  I'd write more, but honestly I'm so done with all this FAI crap! Its CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!

So that means that this blog's chapter titled "My Journey Through FAI" will be coming to a close. I am so very thankful for that. Its been long and rough, but surgery has payed off! I may occasionally post updates of further improvements over the next year, as that is the expected time frame for full recovery, but I will start back to posting more creative and thoughtful posts very soon.

Merry Christmas to you, my lovely anonymous blog reader!!!

xoxoxo,
Christina

2 Week Post-op Update (Post-op left hip)

Hey y'all!
Just here to give the skinny on what all happened and how I'm doing!

First, I'm happy to say I'm doing really well overall. Going through a bit of a temporary hiccup due to my sensitivity to medications which have built up in my system on top of seasonal allergies, which is not fun but I'll be fine soon. 

The surgery took place on the 3rd of this month. 

 Like I had suspected from the pain I was feeling and the noises I was hearing, both the labrum (cartilage gasket sealing the joint) and the articular cartilage (cartilage lining the joint) were damaged pretty badly. Luckily, the labrum itself turned out to be larger/thicker than the original MRI's predicted, and thus I did not need a transplant from a cadaver. So they simply shaved the fraying away and made it smooth again. They fixed the impingement by taking off the entire Cam lesion (ball/femur side) and  the small Pincer (socket/acetabulum side) lesion as well. They did all that through only 2 small incisions! 

Its amazing what doctors can do - I can already tell the difference from what if feels like now compared to what it felt like before! I am so thankful that I made the decision for surgery.

Recovery has gone much better this time. This is probably because we knew what to expect and therefore what to do and what not to do. Like the little things that most teenage patients shouldn't have to deal with such as  preventing bed sores that occur really easily due to my circulation disorder. Or having to take 80mg of Nexium a day to prevent a re-occurrence of the stomach ulcer that happened with the last surgery since I'm required to take both Asprin and Ibuprophen (slightly dangerous, but necessary). But other than those things, it was just a basic recovery: Living in my families living room on the sleeper sofa watching Netflix while gelling on the CPM and DVT machines and napping in between medication/meal reminders! 

This week I went to my 2 week post-op appointment. I am now to the "crutches optional" and "no more mandatory medication" status. Meaning if it doesn't hurt too much I am free to walk as much as I'd like, but if it hurts use the crutches and take an Ibuprophen. The first day I must have walked a little too much and ended up very much in pain. Since then I've been taking it easy aside from my physical therapy exercises and have my crutches if I need to go somewhere. 

So thats where I'm at for now! I'll post updates every now and then as I progress and see how it is having two normal hips! Thanks so much for all of y'alls prayers! I can feel 'em!!!  Have a happy Thanksgiving!

xoxoxo,
Christina 

Surgery reschedule is scheduled! (Pre-op, left hip)

Sorry for any confusion!!!
I am over my cold and ear infection and the surgery reschedule has been scheduled:
It'll be this coming Monday (Nov. 3rd)

Details and my  specific prayer requests for this surgery are here.

Table of contents of my FAI story is here.

xoxoxo,
Christina 

Texas Hillcountry Magazine Photo Contest - Vote for me!!!

I have entered a few photos into this contest last minutely. I know they aren't professional quality but I like them and I'm just doing this for fun.

 Please view the photos and click "vote" on the link(s) below!!!


North Prong of the Medina river off of FM 2107, in the little town of Medina Texas. Fall 2013.

Lost Maples State Natural Area, Fall 2012.

Lost Maples State Natural Area creek bottom, fall 2012.

Thanks y'all! The contest ends this Sunday, the 19th.

xoxoxo,
Christina 

Surgery has been postponed: I'm sick (Pre-op, left hip)

Well darn...

As it turns out, there was no surgery today. Because I came down sick yesterday with some flu/cold-like bug. High-ish fever, horrible headache, sore throat, chills and severe body aches. My brother had it last week and even though I stayed away from him and tried being a germaphobe for a few days, and here I am.

Needless to say, you cant have surgery when your sick. So we had to cancel it.

 It is tentatively postponed until sometime in mid-November. Hopefully it'll be sooner though, we're trying to get on the waiting list for if someone else cancels their surgery before then that i'd be able to take their place. I'd really like to get it done within the next two weeks, if possible.

God is in this and has a perfect reason why October 15th wasn't the day that he wanted me in the operating room. He will work out the perfect date for when He does want me there though.

I'll keep y'all posted as to when it will actually be :)

xoxoxo,
Christina 

Coming Soon: FAI Surgery #2 (Pre-op, left hip)

Hey y'all. I had mentioned that I'd be having a second surgery this fall. (full background & details in the link) Well here it comes...

I'm having surgery for my left hip's FAI (Femoral Acetabular Impingement), this Wednesday (Oct. 15th). 

It'll pretty much be the same surgery that I had done on the right hip this past June. It will be arthroscopic, using 2-4 small incisions. The number of incisions depends on what all is going to need to be done inside the joint. It'll start off with two, but if the labrum is damaged, it'll need repairing and they'll need to add another couple of holes to get more access.  Hopefully there isn't any labrum damage, but its definitely possible. The right labrum was fine, but lately the left one has been catching on itself and popping more than usual. Torn labrum is the suspect, we won't know for sure until they get in there. On the MRI taken in May, it was only bruised.  But for sure, the surgery will involve shaving off the bony lesions on both the ball and socket sides of the hip joint. 

I don't have too many concerns about this surgery. I have a great doctor, the surgery itself is relatively low-risk, and I've been through it once already and know what to expect. I'm looking forward to getting it over with and am excited that in a few months FAI will no longer be a part of my life. 

I have one  main concern however, and that is that during the past month and a half I've been experiencing severe numbness/stiffness in my left calf muscle and foot and it hasn't gone away. Doc doesn't  doesn't think it'll put the surgery off though. My PT ruled out a blood clot and spinal/brain injuries. Chiropractor worked on my SI joint and it helped somewhat,  but I'm going to have a deep tissue massage on it on Tuesday and I'm opening that that will help. It seems to be a muscular issue, probably since its been overcompensating my weight for awhile since I've been so off balance. Hopefully its nothing serious. 

I'm also stressed out about how this will affect my school year. I'm not going to be able to get much done during the recovery time, so I'll probably have to do school into next summer. I'll also be missing the PSAT next week and won't be able to take the ACT until the spring. I know it'll all work out but its still really stressful to  have this go on in the middle of your Junior year. Which is a pretty critical year for me since I'm planning on attending college and will absolutely need good grades, test scores, decent extra-curricular acheivement etc... to get  scholarships. But I know it will all work out. God's plan is always what's perfect, my plans are not. 

I'd really appreciate your prayers for me, my family, the surgeon,  the recovery period, my physical therapists, the end results, and ultimately that God would be glorified through everything involved in this situation and how I'm able to use my life afterwards. Specifically that the surgery will go smoothly and be successful, and that I won't have any sort of complications from the surgery, major or minor. That the numbness and pain that I'm currently experiencing with my calf isn't anything serious like compartment syndrome.  That I won't have any pregnancy/delivery related issues from the FAI once I'm married and decide to have kids and that the FAI gene won't be passed on, if it was indeed hereditary.  And finally, that the supposed life-long  results will be positive and that I won't re-develop FAI or develop any arthritis in that joint or ever need a  hip replacement. 

Thanks so much.  I love all of y'all so much and I'm so thankful for your friendships,  prayers and encouragement. 

My mom will email an update probably Thursday or Friday. I won't be able to be on the laptop and thus my blog or skype during the first couple of weeks, but I'll have my phone and will thus have access to Facebook/Instagram and some emails and you of course can text me. Visitors are welcome in small doses!

xoxoxo,
Christina 

4 Month Post-op Update (Right Hip)

I'm just here to report that I'm doing well recovering from the surgery I had this summer for FAI on my right hip (femoral acetabular impingement)!

As of this week, approx. week 16 (4 months) I've made a ton of progress. I'm in little/no pain in the operative joint and I'm ready for the other hip to get done and get further on track to being normal, healthy and active again! 

Physical therapy has gone really well, thanks to my awesome PT! 
For the first 6 weeks the focus was on flexibility and non-weight bearing strengthening. Then the next 6 weeks I got to do fairly normal exercises, mostly partial weigh-bearing but some full. Due to insurance purposes I'm done with going to PT but I'm still doing all of it at home, and and am adding some of my "normal" exercises back in. I'm not able the same amount of reps I was doing pre-op but that's OK. I can't workout every day though, because it irritates it and causes further intra-articular joint swelling. But that's  getting much better and will eventually go away completely. 

So far so good! I think its pretty safe to say that the surgery executed its purpose: increased my range of motion and decreased the pain associated with the joint being impinged by un-impinging it!  I'll give a full report on this after I have the other hip operated on. Stay tuned!

Thanks for reading!!! Sorry I've been such an inactive blogger. Life is  insanely busy these days, especially with FAI related medical activities so for now that's really all I have to blog about. Eventually this blog will get away from being a FAI related medical journal and will go back to being filled with fun. 


xoxoxo,
Christina

Post-Op Update...12 Days late. (Right Hip)

I've been meaning to post an update sooner, but for about the week I couldn't sit at my computer for long enough and since then I honestly don't know what I've been up to. Sorry about that. 

I'm doing really well! Thank you for all of your prayers and sweet comments and emails and cards and ice cream! Y'all are so sweet to take such good care of me. Each and every one of you means so much to me, what would I do without you?!?!?!

Surgery went as well as it could have. Doc says everything looked pretty good and he shaved bone off of the ball and socket, and there weren't any labral tears, just some bruising.  It took about 2hrs, the labrum didn't need grafting, and I only have two incisions, so I'm very thankful for that. I did wake up to a panic attack and a tonnnnnnnn of pain, but aside from that I did pretty well.

 Due to insurance purposes they only let you stay for one night, which in a way is nice. But personally I think you should be allowed to stay until all of your bodily functions have returned to normal after being under anesthesia and have your medications under control. But that's the new medical policy for you. 

I came home early the next morning, and that was a rough first day. For some reason our pharmacy was denying me medication, due to an out-dated allergy list, so I went from midnight until about 5pm without any  pain meds. Not fun. 

Next, I had to get used crutches and the fact that I'd be spending the next two weeks on our sleeper sofa with 2 different machines, one that moves my leg back and forth that I'm supposed* to be doing 6-8 hours a day, and another that squeezes my calf muscles to prevent blood clots. Really annoying. 
But crutches have actually had benefits. Benefit 1: Reduced desire to get up and walk to the fridge for something to eat just because I'm bored. Benefit 2: Great upper body muscle tone. My legs may feel like jello but my arms, abs, and back muscles look awesome. So that's nice. 

I started physical therapy with my awesome PT this week and its gone really well. Not that I can do much - really its more of a "Sit and be Fit" session. But that'll change in the next few weeks as I gain mobility privileges. I'm already noticing a difference when I do range of motion tests, I can actually bring my leg up 90degrees without feeling the joint rub and my internal rotation actually exists now.

I'm completely stir crazy, but I have sorta enjoyed watching a ton of movies and eating alot of ice cream and Reece's Oreos.  But I have to admit, being forced to be lazy and sit around and not being able to do hardly anything for your self is not all its cracked up to be. Honestly, not being able to help out or take care of my own self is driving me crazy. It's sooo against my nature to not be helpful and to be waited on. Its really weird. Sorry Mom, Dad and Michael, I know its driving y'all crazy too! 

I go back to the doctor for my follow-up this Tuesday. Goal is to have my stitches taken out and be relieved of mandatory crutch use! 

 So yeah. That's whats up. Sorry to anyone who was depending on an update post to find out whatever the heck happened to me. I'm alive and doin' fine!  Mainly I'm just really happy that surgery was successful and I'm looking forward to finding out all the cool new things my body can do!

xoxoxo,
Christina

I guess I own y'all an update.

To be honest, I have been avoiding writing this ever since I got the news, so for a little over 3 weeks.

A collage of each hips MRI's (taken 1 month ago

As you probably know I have been in and out've the doctor  for over a year due to severe hip pain & haven't been able to exercise and had to quit ballet. Physical therapy/Airrosti and cortisone shots helped for little while, but I'm a lot of pain once again and am 'back in the system'.  

Some of y'all know that I recently had to change doctors, some of y'all don't so let me clear that up. It's due to my previous one wanting to, how do I put this nicely... uhhh... to completely change his plan of procedure to something that would have disabled me, without performing further imaging to prove his point, just for the sake of earning a few extra bucks? (He wanted to do the surgery 'open', meaning a 10-12" incision, dislocate my entire leg from the joint, and basically have me bedridden for atleast a year.) Long story short, I'll be seeing no more of Dr. S., nor will I be interning with him this summer or anytime in the future. He's lost my trust and confidence as a patient and I couldn't stomach working with him knowing he's over treating pediatric patients just because of the new medical policy (that's my conclusion from research and talks with other doctors).

Sorry, but that is just plain wrong. Right is right even if only a few people are doing it, wrong is wrong even when everyone is doing it. 

So, I now go to a Dr. T. He's the only doctor in a reasonable travel radius who specializes in FAI. I like him alot (as a doctor I mean). Like he actually sent me for extensive imaging about a month ago. Which, while it was not pleasant (the arthrogram part anyways, I do not wish that on anyone.) that definitely was necessary. All Dr. S. did was x-rays. From the MRI we found out everything we needed to know to confirm my suspected diagnosis. 

So yes, I do have FAI (Femoral Acetabular Impingement).

What the heck is that you ask?  It is most likely hereditary, but neither of my parents were athletic and haven't done anything to exacerbate it, whereas I have (ballet/pointe) . Basically, it is  extra bone in form of lesions on the femoral neck/head and in the hip socket. Meaning I have a too-tight/mis-shaped hip socket that is pinching my leg bone which will require surgery to correct.The majority of the pain I'm experiencing is from the cartilage being frayed and severely bruised by the bone pinching it. As well as the fact that the hip socket is cutting into my leg bone - that hurts. Due to the FAI I am in pain almost constantly and have suffered a significant loss in range of motion. I can barely exercise and am thus gaining quite of weight and babysitting (my main income) is becoming very difficult as I can hardly even sit on the floor. 

 So arthroscopically (meaning he'll just use 3-5 tiny incisions) my doctor will go in and shave down the bony lesions to where my hip sockets will be a bit bigger  - to the size they normally would be in a healthy hip joint. 

Therefore, next Wednesday (the 18th) I am having the first surgery, which will be on my right hip. The surgery itself will take approximately 4 hours, unless they have to rebuild the labrum  (cartilage "bumper" in the joint) . Then I'll spend the night in the hospital. Then I come home and spend about 2 weeks on crutches while the initial micro-fractures from the surgery heal. Then I'll be doing physical therapy twice a week for 6-8 weeks. 
Then in October or November I'll go back and have the same surgery, but on the left hip. I'll repeat the PT cycle and then about 5 months after I'm finished I should be back to normal and doing things that "normal" active teenagers can do!!! Like I'll be able to go places and not worry about whether or not there'll be a place for me to sit down, I could wear high heels again, start running, maybe even try Crossfit or something similar, and possibly become mildly involved with ballet again! So to say the least I'm pretty excited. 

As my answer for why I'm having surgery now as opposed to "when I'm older", let me explain. Firstly, I'm in alot of pain (quite miserable actually.) and am gaining weight due to not being able to exercise, which bothers me. Secondly, time wise, this is the most "convenient"  time to have this done. This is my last summer where having a job is optional. Next summer I'll have to have a job to save money for the next years college expenses, car, etc... Having the surgery during college would be pretty impossible if I wanted to keep my grades up, which I most definitely will want to! Then if I meet Mr. Right in that time frame, that wouldn't be an ideal time either. Then when I'm ready to have kids, if I don't have surgery before then I'm at high risk for having a very rough pregnancy and could only deliver via C-section. I most definitely want kids of my own if at all possible but I do not want to  put my health in danger. 

So yes, I admit I'm a bit scared about having surgery, even though  it's low risk and I trust my doctor. I guess mainly because it'll be a first for me. But I'm excited to get it over with and I know that ultimately, God is in control. He is The Great Physician - The Ultimate Healer and Comforter. And while I may have a hard time letting go and letting God, I know that he has a beautiful plan for my life and this is clearly a part of it and He has a very good reason for me to be floating through this storm and clinging to Him. 

Lastly, but most importantly. I want to thank all y'all who I'm so grateful to call my friends. Thank you so, so, soooooo much for your continual thoughtful prayers and sweet words of encouragement. Thank you for putting up with me when I'm grumpy after I forgot to pack some Ibuprophen. Thank you for having an early summer and having fun with me before I can't do anything for the rest of the summer. Thank you  so much! You mean the world to me, I don't know what I'd do without you. I love you all!

xoxoxo,

Christina    

Check out my Texas Bluebonnet Photos!

Texas Bluebonnets! via my photography blog

Life of a Highschooler.

Unfortunately, this is why blogging is a back-burner pastime. 

Gluten Free Dinner Disaster

So. Today's been quite interesting. Slow, but interesting. Here's the highlights.

This evening everyone made dinner for themselves. I decided I was in the mood for pasta. So I checked the pantry,and all we had was the Annie's Gluten Free Macaroni. I'm trying to eat healthier, so I thought I'd give it a try. BAD IDEA. First I boiled, drained and rinsed the pasta. Then I went to open the "cheese" packet. It was all hard and clumpy and wouldn't break apart too well, even after I got it wet with the coconut oil I put on the pasta (we're out've butter) . So I decided to melt some regular cheese to put on it. So I melted the only cheese we had, Parmesan and cheddar, with a little bit of coconut oil to make it soft. Took it out've the microwave and it looked fine, until I poured it on the pasta. It turned into a blob of blubber that couldnt be torn apart. But it tasted good. After putting in this hard work for my dinner when I could've just had another salad, I naturally wanted to try to eat it. Lets just say it was horrible, sodium overdose. The compost is currently enjoying it.

Gone Fishin'

A group of friends and I (OK make that my brother and his friends and I) went fishin' this evening with our local Christian huntin' club earlier this evening.

We found what we thought to be a good spot along the creek. It was deep, open, not as many branches to get our lines caught in as there were upstream. It was also very peaceful, atleast compared to the area overrun with kids who had never fished before who were still pretty skeptical.
So we're sitting on the bank way down from where the craziness and just talking and messing around with our poles trying to fix em' (I never could get mine to cast right. But that's OK, nobody was catchin anything anyways) and sippin' on sweet tea and trying to catch minnows for bait (Yeah. We had a fishing party and forgot to buy bait and everyone was to lazy to drive to the "nearest" bait shop) .
When all of the sudden, the peace disappears. On the dirt road across the way there comes this truck. Going really really fast. Like sliding on the gravel fast. (OK I admit that's fun...) Just blaring. I mean blaring out really explicit rap (I have nothing against rap, but this was really bad stuff that shouldn't have been playing anywhere in public, whether that be your dirt road or downtown.). And It keeps driving back and fourth - as if to say "I'm here to blast y'all out I hope you were having fun it's my turn to disturb nature. But this time with noise pollution!". He kept doing it and then dad hollered down that the BBQ was ready. So we got up and left.

When we told our group how our fishing went we told em about it and everyone goes at once, "I BET IT WAS A DODGE, WAS IT!?!?!?"
Ford > Chevy > Dodge.
It was a chevy, but the driver must be a Dodge lover at heart wantin' to disturb the peace and be intimidating  like that. Rude. Ford people are the friendliest bunch you'll ever meet, I promise ;)

It was a fun and humorous evening filled with good food, nature, and Christian fellowship - even though the only thing caught was a small snapping turtle (we threw him back.)  I hope y'all had a nice evening as well! Get out and go fishin! This spring is beautiful!

God's Not Dead!

He's livin' on the inside and roaring like a lion. 

Go see this movie. Seriously. It is amazing. No matter your beliefs - whether you're an atheist or an agnostic who is against this movie in the first place, just a Duck Dynasty fan who wanted to see what part Willie and Korie had in it, or like me a Christian Creationist (and DD fan!) who was super excited to find out that this movie was being made, you will glean something from this movie. I promise. Go see it. It is really, really, really good.

 I'd write more, but 1. I'm having a really bad circulation attack  2. Its getting late and I should do some research and figure out what to do about it, and 3. I don't want to spoil the movie for you.

GOD'S NOT DEAD - Official Movie Website

God's Not Dead - Official Movie Trailer

Goodnight y'all!

Uh oh...

I think I just started off on the Sherlock craze...
Thanks Netflix.

I'm from Texas, What Country are you From?

Happy Texas Independence Week, fellow Texans! In case you didn't know, March 2nd is Texas Independence Day.

Here's a post dedicated to all things Texas to celebrate our independence from Mexico way back in 1836!


So a quick road map, this post contains: lyrics, quotes, catchphrases, and Texanisms. If you ain't from Texas none of this will make much sense probably! But if you are lucky enough to be from Texas, you're lucky enough and you'll be able to relate to everything here! 

I LOVE MY STATE!!!

John Steinbeck once said, "Texas is a state of mind. Texas is an obsession. Above all, Texas is a nation in every sense of the word." I couldn't agree with him more. 

Country legend George Strait's song, "Texas", is a perfect summary of our great state. 

"There wouldn't be no Alamo,

 No Cowboys in the Superbowl...

No "Lonesome Dove", no "Yellow Rose",

If it wasn't for Texas.            

I wouldn't be a Willie fan.

Nobody'd swim the Rio Grande.

I wouldn't be an American,

If it wasn't for Texas.

Fort Worth would never cross my mind,

An' there'd be no Austim City limits sign.

No Lonestar of any kind.

If it wasn't for Texas.

I'd never've gone to Tennessee,

To sing my songs an' chase my dreams.

Only Heaven knows just where I'd be,

If it wasn't for Texas.

Fort Worth would never cross my mind.

There'd be no Austin City limits sign.

An' no Lonestar of any kind.

If it wasn't for Texas.

It made me the man I am...

Thank God for my old stompin' ground.

I wouldn't be standin' right here, right now,

If it wasn't for Texas." 

lyrics via AZ lyrics

First off, our wonderful state of Texas is neither entirely western nor entirely southern: Texas is Texas, and we're pretty darn proud of that.

Texas has two seasons: Summer and Winter. They usually alternate within the same week. Sunday was a very good example of that. It was in the 80's most of last week. Sunday I got up to go to church, it was 70-sumthin', sunny, and humid. So I put on a spring-y outfit. When we got out of service an hour and a half later, the temp had dropped down to the low 50's. By 3pm it was in the low 30's and I was in leggings and a sweatshirt. Bipolar Texas weather at its best. Welcome to the state where you can get sunburn and frostbite within the same week!

The Lone Star State has three major food groups:

1. BBQ
2. Tex-mex
3. Fried anything             

OK, we do eat things that are healthy. But those are some local favorites for sure!

Tejas, the word that the name Texas is derived from, is an Indian word meaning "friends". We local Texans are known for our friendliness, therefore, we do what foreigners consider strange. Things such as, waving at passing cars while driving. People from the North think that's just plain weird.

Texans talk funny. I "reckon" we drop alot of g's. Like we don't pronounce the 'g' on words ending with 'ing'. Why waste your precious time saying "you guys" when you can just sum it up in a "y'all"?  We often greet each other with a warm "howdy" rather than a northerners "hello". Thanks to us, "ain't" is now a real word in the dictionary. We know exactly where "yonder" is. Why do it "quickly" when you can do it "right quick"? We don't get upset, we get "all riled up" to where we're "fit to be tied" and sometimes "pitch conniption fits". We don't eat dinner, we have supper. When we ask for a Coke, double check to see what kind, 'cause its probably Dr. Pepper that we're askin' ya for.  When we're piddlin' around getting ready to do something, we say "I'm fixin' to!" - its like the unofficial official state verb. If we say sumthin's "bigger'n' Dallas", it must be pertty dern big. When we want to say "No, thats something different", it usually is said like "That's a whole 'nother thing". Those are just a few of our more common words and phrases that we refer to as "Texanisms".

Our state tree is the pecan tree. We pronounce it PUH-CON instead of PEE-CAN. Our favorite desserts usually contain these wonderful nuts. I could totally eat an entire pecan by my self if ever given the opportunity. Unfortunately everyone at our family thanksgiving dinners also love pecan pies, so we have to fight for our share.  Buy me a box of Pangburns Millionairs from Corsicana, and I will love you forever. Best.Candy.Ever. Yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Our state flower is the beautiful Bluebonnet, which is actually a weed, but we don't care. Their pretty. Its a tradition in nearly all Texan families to take pictures in the blue fields each spring. If you don't do this or have memories of this, then are you sure your a Texan? The only years we don't have Bluebonnet pictures from are the years where there were no wildflowers due to extreme drought.

We are serious about chilli. It's actually our state food. Ingredient lists are very controversial as to who's chilli is "real" chilli - like some people think it isn't real chilli if it has beans or chicken instead of beef. I'll personally eat both kinds but I agree, true Texas chilli is made with beef and no beans. Chilli cook-offs are a big deal, as well as a ton of fun. Until you get a bowl that tastes like the cook used a whole bottle of Five Alarm, Tabasco, and half a shaker of Slap Ya Mama! That's absolutely miserable.

Our state bird is the Mocking Bird. They are annoying. Nuff' said. They mock other birds.

Oh yeah, we are crazy when it comes to football. All levels. Peewee, middle school, highschool, college, pro. We love it all. Its an obsession. If you're an Aggie you don't like Longhorns, if you're a Longhorn you don't like Aggies. If your a Dallas Cowboys fan, you don't care one little bit about the Houston Texans. Even though lately the Texans have been alot better, it doesn't matter. Dallas Fans are diehards. We also love baseball and the same rivalry exists between the Texas Rangers and the Houston Astros, you like either one or the other. Texans are sticklers about sports.

Texas is a beautiful state. Since it's such a large state, we have an extreme variety of landscapes. From the wonderful  rocky and river filled Hill Country to the flat Coastal Plains to the beautiful Piney Woods to the dry Panhandle and vast Big Bend regions, Texas is gorgeous. I have to admit, our beaches aren't the best. But we do have wonderful rivers, well at least in West Texas and the Hill Country where the water is clear with beautiful rocks lining the bed. You couldn't pay me to swim in the muddy rivers near the coast or in East Texas, but they do offer great fishing!

Texas Country singer Gary P. Nunn sang it best in his song "What I like about Texas" everything thats so great about our state.

You ask me what I like about Texas 
I tell you it's the wide open spaces! 
It's everything between the Sabine and the Rio Grande. 
It's the Llano Estacado, 
It's the Brazos and the Colorado; 
Spirit of the people down here who share this land! 
It's another burrito, it's a cold Lone Star in my hand 
It's a quarter for the jukebox, boys, 
Play the sons of the mothers of the bunkhouse band!
You ask me what I like about Texas 
It's the big timber round Nacadoches 
It's driving El Camino Real into San Antone 
It's the Riverwalk and Mi Tierra 
Jamm'n out with bongo Joe 
It's stories of the Menger Hotel and the Alamo! 
(You remember the Alamo!) 
Well, you ask me what I like about Texas 
It's Blue Bonnet and Indian paint brushes 
Swimming in the sacred waters of Barton Springs 
It's body surfing at Freo 
It's Saturday night in Del Rio! 
It's crossing over the border for some cultural exchange! 
Well, you ask me what I like about Texas 
Well, I could tell you, but we'd be here all night long
Lyrics via lyricsmania.com

You might be a Texan:

• If you take a week off of work/school for deer season, and nobody makes a fuss about it.
• If you have ever burned your hand on a car door or a seatbelt.
• If you have ever thought your skin was gonna burn off by sitting on a leather car seat in the summer.
• If any and all fireworks are banned due to extreme drought conditions.
• If any temperature below 100 in the summer is a blessing.
• If the thought of your air conditioner breaking down seems worse than the thought of death.
• When it snows for no more than 20 seconds and the entire state shuts down.
• When you hear "The stars at night, are big and bright..." you and everyone in the entire vicinity start singing along.
• Same for the Cotton Eyed Joe. You know the lyrics and the dance by heart. 
• If you know that cowboy boots go with any outfit, all year long.
• If you know that Taco Bell's food is a laxative and is not to be considered real Mexican food. 
• If you say PUH-CON rather than PEE-CAN. Pecan.
• If bluebell is your favorite ice cream.
• When you take a road trip and the longest part is getting out of your own state.
• If  HEB is your favorite grocery store, even though you know the B stands for butt.
• If you wear a jacket in 70 degree weather.
• If you think tubing the Comal, Guadalupe and Frio rivers is a better vacation than going to the beach.
• If your favorite waterpark is Schlitterbahn.
• If you determine the best parking space by amount of shade, rather than distance. 
• If you've been asked by people in other states if you ride a horse everywhere (Seriously though. why do people ask us this!?!??)
• If your family has a secret salsa recipe and you're highly esteemed for it.
• If for birthdays you go to the Texas Roadhouse to celebrate
• If you or someone you know drives a Texas Edition truck
• If you get the best sleep when its raining.
• If the only ketchup you like is the Spicy Ketchup from Whataburger.
• If the only snowman your front yard will ever see is the inflatable kind.
• If you say "excuse me" when you bump into someone.
• If you've ever hit 1 or more deer while driving.
• If you know you can't keep anything in your car or it'll melt.
• If you drink as much sweet tea as you do water.
• If you listen to a lot of country music.
• If you own at least 1 camo t-shirt, and know the difference between all Mossy Oak and Real Tree patterns. 
• If you either bleed maroon or bleed orange. You can't be both.
• If you consider a rainy day a holiday.
• If you know why its called 6 flags.
• If you go all Texas when talkin' to a tourist.
• If you keep hot sauce in your car or purse. (I do this. I have a bottle of Tabasco with me 24/7)
• If you wave to everyone you pass by.
• If Dairy Queen and Buccees are the highlights of every road trip you take.
• If you've never experienced real snow in your own yard.
• If San Antonio is your yearly vacation spot.
• If the first thing that come to mind when you hear the "constitution" is the 2nd amendment
• When you go to other states you don't know what to buy for a quick breakfast, because all you're used to is tacos.
• If you make small talk with strangers and see nothing weird about it.
• If you eat BBQ, chilli, and fried chicken on a regular basis.
• If you like spicy food.
• If you and your friends argue over which company makes better trucks, Ford, Dodge, or Chevy.
• If the Gulf of Mexico is the only ocean you've seen.
• If the bottoms of your feet are always black in the summer.
• If you drive for more than 30 minutes just to get to a decent store.
• If you or people you know refer to all soda flavors as Coke
• If your Christmas presents revolve around hunting supplies and beef jerky.
• If you remember the Alamo without being told to.
• If all your plans get put on hold when the rodeo comes to town.
• If being stuck behind a tractor or trail ride is an acceptable excuse for being late.
• If you or someone you know eats squirrel.
• If you choose a side between Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio.
• If as a kid you and your friends had wars with horse poop, acorns, or persimmon balls as ammo. 
• If you have scared legs because when you were a kid you played outside.
• If your favorite deserts are Blue Bell ice cream, pecan pie, and peach cobbler. 
• If you would rather receive yellow roses than red ones.
• If you own multiple pairs of cowboy boots. 
• 
  

Happy Valentines Day/Single's Awareness Day!

<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3

I really do! 

I am so thankful that you are a part of my life. Each and everyone whom I have the pleasure to know has had an impact on my life and I love you. 

Good friends are hard to find, and you're truly are an amazing person and are very important to me.

 I am so blessed by y'all and I hope you feel the love! Happy Valentines day! 

xoxo,

Christina 

____________________________________________________

So I'm sure you're wondering why this post is two days late. Well, I have a simple excuse-  I postponed Valentines day due to a debate tournament! I was going to post this on the real valentines day, but by then, my laptop battery died from research and I forgot my charger. Plus, who doesn't like a little bit of love no matter when they get it? 

So like I said, I spent my Valentines Day at a debate tournament. (I'll post about that another time as I'm too exhausted to write about it now, but it was awesome.) That really was no big deal to me, as I have no significant other, but I do have amazing friends and an awesome family! I bought myself a bouquet of fake flowers, because I needed them for decorating anyways. Then I bought myself a chocolate bar,or two, or three... because I love them. I baked a ton of cookies for my friends, not sure who all got to eat them because a few whom I will not name pigged out. Then I received a pretty pink rose from a random super sweet little girl at the tournament- I don't even know who she was! And then of course I got some really sweet cards and more candy from my family, today! 

 Yeah, I'm single. Why do so many people find that sooo hard to believe? Why is it so hard to come to terms with the fact I have high standards and have yet to find a young man amazing enough to let him change my relationship status? It really dosn't bother me, so don't let that bother you! God will send me the perfect guy in His time. At age 16, that is not now, at least for me. But for those of you who are in relationships and had a mushy Valentines Day rather than Singles Awareness day, I'm happy for you! On the flip side, candy's on sale as of this weekend!!! 

Happy New Year (Belated) - Life Update

Hey y'all. It's been awhile, hasn't it? Totally my fault, I've not only been busy, but have had a big case of writers block. So please, I beg, comment at the end of this and tell me what you like to read and maybe I can post more often. I really want to!!! So, pretty please with an imaginary three course dinner with a nine dish desert  meal of whatever you'd like all cooked by me on top, send me requests ??? I know y'all love food. I mean come on, that ought to get ya interested in being helpful! :)

Anyways, moving on down the post so you can eventuallllly get to the comment box. 

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Yes, I just wished you a Happy New Year, two months and six days into the year. I can do that, because I'm awesome. No, really its just because I haven't made time to do so before. So I just crossed a big accomplishment off my checklist. (No not really, honestly it was very low on the list on the very back burner.) 

Busy you ask. Busy with what? Good question. I'm not really sure. Life. Family. School. Friends. and everything that goes along with all of that!

Life? Life's interesting. I'm three months short of being half way through high school. Happy that this typically rough part of life is half-way over, but at the same time frustrated because not far off from now I'm going to be an adult starting a new life of my own. Honestly I find that really exciting and am looking forward to it, even though its scary at the same time. But for now, I'm just gonna focus on getting through high school and making the most of my relationships with other human beings! And have fun. Carpe diem!!! (aka the YOLO for smart people who realize YODO too!)  What do I do for fun anyways...I gotta think about that one. Usually I just go shopping or bake or have a photo-shoot or take a drive OR listen to music and just chill on the internet or even take a three hour nap with my cat. Being a teenager is tiring! I need my beauty sleep sanity sleep, and lots of it. We all do! We're not lazy, we're just exhausted from growing and learning and making life plans and dealing with all the drama that life throws at us.
My Christmas Holiday break was great. Pretty chill. My best friend came home to visit so I spent quite a bit of it with her! Baked a ton of delicious desserts. Did a lot of shopping, had a few bon-fire parties, and of course lots of Christmas and New Year celebrations! 
The New Year is starting off well, I didn't make any resolutions. Well except the typical try not to gain a ton of weight one. But with my exercise status that is possible. More on that later. 
A few weeks ago I was asked to do a purposeful photoshoot, meaning not for a few perfect profile pics or flood of instagrams. I got to do my friends audition portraits for ballet summer intensives. They turned out pretty well and I got some cool fun shots as well. 
Today we got a bit of southern snow. So basically non-existent. But it was snow. I also finally got my hair cut - took four inches off. It's still long  but the ends look sooo much better. I don't think I've had it cut since last spring. Oops... #ILOVEMYLONGBLONDEHAIR 

Like I said, school is in full swing. I had the flu or something similar most of last week so I got a tad bit behind, so this week is kinda crazy. I'm only writing now to escape the stress with a decent form of procrastination that needed to be done. 
But some exciting news is that my first debate tournament is next week! So I'm frantically gathering evidence for briefs. Putting together professional outfits. As well as continuously tweaking my partner and I's own rather awesome case, if I do say so myself. For now anyways. We'll see how it does in competition. Currently I have about  5 days to get it memorized and read at a decent speed but under 8 minutes. No pressure there...ha. But despite the nervousness and slight bit of stress being experienced, I'm super excited. I don't care about placing well, it's just going to be a fun and exciting experience for learning and growth in my adventure of policy debate. I'm thankful for such a great partner and friend who was willing to compete with a novice! Thank you W.!

As for how my hips are doing, they're doing fine I guess. However last month when I tried to start adding running to my walks, they started hurting really badly again. Even just sprinting a really short distance. Ran into my PT and she said to avoid it if it inflamed it. It took three days of Advil to calm it down. So I'm still not exactly very active. Especially not since its been cold! So I'm gonna do my best to stay skinny with things like squats and dead-lifts and push-ups and planks and mountain-climbers and jumping-jacks and burpees and exercises of that sort.But that's OK I never really liked running anyways. As for the Nurtrarian diet I mentioned a few months ago...lets just say that since the holidays I haven't been following it as well as I could, definitely need to work on that. I've been consuming too much Nutella and other forms of the lovely substance called chocolate. But I still eat mostly G-BOMS (greens, beans, mushrooms, and seeds/nuts) on top of it so I guess I'm not off the wagon too badly. 

Notice how friends are at the end, I'm too busy to do much with them, and vice versa. Usually when we're together its for school purposes. But when we do get together the fun level is epicly awesome. I just made a word there. Oh the life of a home-schooled high-schooler  on track for big college plans. Ha. I'm laughing right now, (I know right, big surprise to those of though who know me. I'm always laughing about something.) because Google's auto correct is wanting to correct highschooler with preschooler. Hmm. That says alot about how we act when me and my friends are together. So maybe it is better that we don't hang out in person too often...well actually it gets a little crazier on Skype, you know when you make crazy faces over the awkwardness of video chatting and then the camera freezes. Then there's group texting that turns into "who is this" arguments that last for days. Yeah, I'm just a teenage girl.  Here's a screen shot of that auto correct in case you have a hard time believing that. But back to friends. I love each and every one of y'all! Y'all are all so fabulous you their own individual way and we have so much fun together. I don't know what I'd do without you! If you're reading this there's a 94% chance you're one of them, at least according to my Google Analytics statistics. 

Thanks for reading my blog!
xoxoxo,
Christina <3