My Reset Journal: Day's 5-8

As I sit here one hand is on the keys typing and compensating for the other which is pleasantly warming on a cup of hot Chai tea (made with soy, if that helps). However, my heart and emotions are slightly divided. 

Since I wrote The Beginning of the End and No More Giving Up, where I claimed that I would not give up on being healthy and also where I claimed my commitment to the Ultimate Reset Cleanse from Beachbody. I thought that I should bite the big one and also tell about my complete lack of motivation to follow through, at least where the cleanse was concerned. 

Truth is, I did quit, give up or stop (you can insert whatever word you see fitting) the Beachbody Cleanse.

 Is my health not important to me? That's not it at all, however, I am not going to make excuses or really even get into all of the reasons behind my choice or the choices that led me to stop this particular diet. When it comes down to it, I quit and that's all that really matters.

 What I will say is that the menu for the cleanse provided delicious meal recipes that I plan on incorporating into my normal cooking routine and that I did in fact learn some from the cleanse. So I did walk away with an added amount of healthy knowledge as well as a choice to remain a vegetarian (not a Vegan though).

The pictures below are of my last two meals from the cleanse , so I figured I might as well share them.

Fresh veggie tray with humus and a Quonia salad.

Zucchini and cashew soup with roasted veggies

Since this update is totally out of date I have been asked by several people what my plans are now. Well, after my morning cup of coffee, Insanity will be calling my name again and I am eager to get back into that routine and like I mentioned above I will continue living a vegetarian life style! I have limited my soda intake to only drinking it when I am using it as a mixer and I am still working on my sweet tooth!

Becoming Heart Healthy

"Vada is doing Well."

"She has a tiny VSD and her Tricuspid valve (TR) is somewhat leaky; but these should not cause any problems for her over the next several years. Due to the way the VSD and TR interact, I would like to see her back in three months to re-check an echo and look for signs of pulmonary hypertension." 

The above was the doctors notes on today's discharge papers for Vada.

Vada had a check-up appointment with her cardiologist today. It was a routine visit and from the conversation that we had with this doctor during our last appointment in September of 2011 I thought that today's visit would be full of good news as well as with a one year pass between now and our next appointment. 

I wasn't completely wrong. But I wasn't right either.

It turns out that Vada is not finished on her healthy heart journey. 

If you take a look at the above diagram, I will try to explain. Vada still has a small hole in her Left Ventrical. In situations like this, typically, that hole would push blood towards the Right Ventrical. However, Vada's blood flow is going towards her Right Atrium instead. Her Tricuspid Valve is still leaking at a mild to moderate rate, which is also something not new news to us. Through the echo that was done today, it looks as if the blood that's being pushed from her LV is flowing over the TR leak, which could be a good thing compared to the other option which would be PH, and that's all I really remember about our conversation. I did ask about if  V's heart would or could repair itself overtime but due to the fact that she was born with a "unhealthy heart" it highly unlikely and not anticipated by the cardio team. When I asked about Vada having to  need another surgery her doctor said what he noted and what I shared in the beginning of this post.

The way that I am taking this all in and understanding things is that Vada may not need surgery now, but within the next couple of years another OHS wouldn't be a surprise. But then again I am not the doctor. In three months, at our next cardio appointment we will re-check everything and I will have a better idea and understanding about whats really going on and what to expect. 

What I do know now is that instead of moving to yearly check-ups we have moved back to every three months but I am grateful that Vada has a fantastic Cardiologist and team working hard to make sure that her heart is a healthy one and I am going to keep thanking God for that!

 Ive been reading this great book called The Resolution for Women and in it the author talks about living for what matters most. She writes that today, this very moment is a once in a life time experience and by rushing through it (or in this case by letting the fears of the future possibilities consume me) I am devaluing this very moment and the blessings in it. I dont want to let fear take over like I allowed it to do before. I have no idea what all of this new heart information means or what our future holds for us but I do know that I rocked my baby girl to sleep tonight. I held her, smelled her, kissed her and told her that I love her. That was a gift and a moment that I lived in. I choose to be content in this season of my life and I have faith that God has this under control. (But I will continue to update on how things are going. Wink. Wink.)

Sushi Saturday

Recently and while on my cleanse I had to make my own sushi roll for a couple of my meals. Naturally, that's where Justin stepped in, he love's doing stuff like that. (Me, not so much.) Anyway, Justin's rolls were delicious and he was so pleased with his sushi making skills that he decided to do it again only on a larger scale and made a whole family meal of it. He made several rolls  tonight for dinner. I got my very own plate of Vegetarian-Tempeh rolls and Justin and Kiliegh shared a plate of chicken tempura rolls.

Because my husband is also a perfectionist he plated the rolls like you might see at a sushi restaurant and then to add to the family sushi eating experience he also made Kiliegh her own pair of beginner chop sticks. 

Tempeh Rolls

Chicken Tempura Rolls

Kiliegh impressed me tonight with her major consumption of rolls. We have had sushi with her before and she is always up to eating more but this tiny little chicklet ate six whole pieces tonight as well as three of the remaining chicken tempura strips that didn't make it into a roll! I know that it doesn't sound like much but for Kiliegh, it is! To put it into perspective more so, I could only eat eleven bites before I felt as if  I were about to explode and when it comes to sushi, I tend to over eat as much as I can. 

Not bad for a family of three and a baby who ate the veggies and rice separately. :)

Sushi Saturday

Recently and while on my cleanse I had to make my own sushi roll for a couple of meals. Naturally, that's where Justin stepped in. They were delicious and he was so pleased with his sushi making skills that he decided to do it again only on a larger scale and make a whole family meal of it.

So today, he made several rolls. Vegetarian Tempeh rolls for me and chicken tempura rolls for himself and little Miss Rae.

Because my husband is also a perfectionist he plated the rolls beautifully and then to add to the family sushi experience he also made Kiliegh her own beginner chop sticks. Justin is constantly amazing me.

Tempeh Rolls

Chicken Tempura Rolls

Kiliegh also impresses me. We have had sushi with Kiliegh before and she was always up to eating it but this tiny little chicklet ate six pieces tonight! I know that it doesn't sound like much but it is and to put it into perspective more so, I could only eat eleven bites before I felt as if  I would explode and when it comes to sushi, I tend to over eat. 

It's Not Torture, Its Therapy!

Let me first start off by saying that when it comes to Vada's therapist, I give them free range. This set of women are amazing and I trust them entirely with what they do. However, when Christy, Vada's Occupational therapist said that she was going to tape down Vada's hands during their next session, I wasn't overly excited. I don't think that Vada was either because the last night Vada began to use both of her pointers! Little stinker!

Vada's new pointer usage didn't stop Christy from using "the muscle tape" as I call it (but it's also known as Kinesiology Tape), Christy is ruthless--No, not really, shes actually pretty great but just as persistant as Vada can be, which makes them perfectly matched to work together!

The idea behind using the tape on Vada is that those other muscles are isolated so that V can feel what it feels like to have her pointer/pincer working for her.

And the tape worked instantly! Like magic, in fact!

Vada and Christy did many exercises together, each one helped Vada use her pincer grasp and pointer finger. I was amazed and the immediate change. Amazed!

Christy left some strips of tape for us so that Vada could get more practice and I am actually looking forward to taping Vada's hands together--who knew!