About a few months ago I noticed a strange pea sized lump below Abby's brow bone. Right on the outside corner of her eye. I had noticed it before, but only when she had an allergic reaction to something, i.e., dogs, etc., but it would go away. This time it never went away! I took Abbs to her pediatrician, and she referred me to a doctor at the prestigious eye institute in town. (It's part of the Children's Hospital here; remarkable place!) He thought it was a cyst, so he referred me to a surgeon at the conjoining eye institute right next door. This doctor confirmed that it is indeed a cyst-like mass; a dermoid cyst to be exact. Completely benign and harmless. Basically, when you're a baby, your skull is in sections. Almost like "fault lines", if you will. This is to compensate for your growing brain. One of the sections is split right on the edges of the brow bone. As you get older, these sections fuse together with natural "sutures" that are holding the sections of your skull together. Normally, these sutures fuse together smoothly, and cause no problems. Sometimes, as with Abby's case, the sutures will fuse together, but they bulge at the convergence line. (I liken it to glue pooching out when you use too much.) It causes no pain or problems, but is a bit unsightly. It makes her eyelid appear droopy. What makes it worse is that she is conscious of it being there. If I look at her sometimes, she'll say, "Stop looking at my eye!" That is heartbreaking! I never want her to be self-conscious of anything; especially at 2 1/2! So, on December 12, she goes into surgery to have it removed. Amazingly, she will not require an MRI, as the doctor says he will have the mass inspected by pathology doctors once it is removed. Yay! I'm so relieved! My mind always goes to the worst possible place when I think my daughter is sick. I needed the doctor to tell me that everything is just fine. And it is!! :)
Friday, October 24, 2008
Going back to school next summer. . .
So I've decided to go back to school. This has been a long time coming. I think the last time I was in school was back in '02. All my core education is completed, so really all I have to finish is the degree requirements. I've always been a bit of a science geek, so I am setting my sights on a B.S. in Biotechnology. (I might actually do a double major and also get a B.S. in Forensic Science.) I wish I would have come to this conclusion at the first of the year, so I could have all my financial stuff in order, etc. However, I was hoping to sell my house and move back to the South. Not looking like it's going to happen given our current economic crisis. Things always seem to work out in my favor, though, so I am using this opportunity to take advantage of the wonderful education that Utah has to offer. (Arkansas has no program comparable to the excellent biotech program at UVU!) I wanted to move home for all the wrong reasons, anyway. Let's just say it was something that appeared to be something that it was not, and never will be. I will leave it at that.
Back to the school thing: a biotech degree will open so many doors for me! I am currently a secretary, and I don't see myself doing that the rest of my life. My mom was a secretary for over 30 years and what did it get her? Osteoarthritis. She warns me of doing this job for too long. I know that I will eventually suffer for it if I stay in this position forever. I would much prefer to put my hands to use in a lab. I could work for a pharmaceutical company, a genetics research company, or even a crime lab! Much more interesting than typing silly letters all day. I figure if I take 2 classes per semester, 3 semesters per year (counting summer), I can have a degree in 3 years. It will take a lot of time and dedication, but it's something I must do if I want my daughter to have a good life. I wanted to go back to school a few years ago, but I had just given birth to Abigail. I couldn't see myself leaving her at such a tender age to go to school. Now that she's 2 1/2, I have no worries. Yay! My mom is here to watch her, and her daddy is home in the evenings. (I think my only option will be to go to school at night, as I work full time during the day; I have a good thing going at work, and would hate to screw it up!)
Monday, October 20, 2008
New at this. . .
I have a myspace page where I have a few blog posts, but I thought it was time to create a real blog. Not that I have any profound things to say. I want to start blogging daily about what's going on in the life of Amber, Abby, and Gabe. :)
Below are a few images of my family. I will talk about them a lot, as they are my whole life!!!
Abigail Nicole:
My girl 'n I:
Gabe 'n Abbs:
