I've Been Tagged Again!

 

 

I was tagged again this week, by not 1 but 2 awesome bloggers- Brandi from Yee Wittle Things  and Jesika from Craft Geek JJ

 

Both of the tags were a bit different from each other, so I am going to combine them both into one post. Yes, that’s me, shaking things up again a bit lol.

 

 

From Brandi’s- 7 Things About Me

 

1- I am not a big nail polish fan when it comes to my fingernails, but my toes HAVE to be painted.

2- I don’t watch a lot of TV as it airs. American Idol is about the only show I watch as it’s on. Tivo is my best friend.

3- I hide candy from my family, otherwise I’d never get any. My husband has found my stash, so I’ve had to move it several times lol.

4- I hate paying anyone for something I can do myself. I will study something until I can figure it out myself and will not result to a professional unless I am absolutely certain I can’t do it.

5- I wanted to be a special education teacher when I was younger, until I found out how much paperwork is involved. 2 of my good friends are special ed teachers and complain about that aspect of the job. I hate paperwork.

6- I can not cook unless my kitchen is spotless. Counters wiped down, floors swept and mopped. I’m a clean freak like that.

7- I am the worlds worst singer, but I sing a lot and it annoys my family. Christmas is really bad around here for them lol.

 

 

Questions From Jesika

 

What is your favorite food? – There’s too much to choose from, but I love anything Italian, really.

What is your favorite color? – I love them all but am drawn to bright colors like yellow and orange.

What is your favorite thing to cook? – Spaghetti. It’s my quick go to dinner when we’ve had a busy day and I don’t want to stand over the stove for a long time.

What is the best ice cream flavor ever? – Moose Tracks

When did you start blogging?- November

What is your blog about? – A little of this and a little of that. Mainly family life with a few crafts and recipes thrown in here and there.

What is your favorite part about blogging? – The wonderful women I have met because of it. I have learned so much from other moms since I started blogging.

What is your favorite animal?- Dogs

Do you collect anything?- No, I’m not big on clutter, so I try to stay away from things that will pile up in my house.

What is one store you can not walk by? I have a few- Target, Michaels, Hobby Lobby, and Pier One.

If you were on a desert island and could only bring 5 things, what would they be? My husband, my kids, a blanket (I’m always cold!) bug spray (I hate bugs), and as much chocolate as possible.

 

 

I am tagging these 7 great blogs to tell me 7 things about themselves. Remember, it’s just for fun, so don’t feel pressured if you don’t want to participate :)

 

Crazy Mama

Sincerely Paula

Twelve Makes A Dozen

Cute Coconut

 Nobody Knows What A Red-Headed Mommy Can Do

His Honey and Her Mommy

Mom Loves To Read

1.

The Hunger Games Movie

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I took Mariah to The Hunger Games movie on Tuesday. We are both huge fans of the book, so we were really looking forward to seeing it. I wasn’t very familiar with the actors before watching this film, but I thought Josh Hutcherson was a very believable Peeta, and Jennifer Lawrence did a phenomenal job bringing Katniss to life. I was worried that some scenes would be difficult for a 12 year old girl, but I was happy to see they toned down the violence to what I feel was an acceptable level for this movie. They did a great job of sticking to the original story, but there were some things they left out that I felt were important to the story, or would have enhanced it just a bit more, that I wish they had added. The movie would have been tops on my list had I not read the books, but I did, and like usual, I did think the book was better. You just get so much more- background, emotion, and imagination from reading the books. So, if you haven’t read the books, you are missing out on a lot! Overall, I think the movie was great and I can’t wait for it to come out on dvd.

My mother, on the other hand, had issues with me taking my 12 year old daughter, though she has not read the books. She was just basing her opinion of the movie on the snippets she’s heard from others, which drives me nuts! Yes, it has violence and is a bit twisted at times, but I feel in this story, those things were needed to get a bigger message across. I try to teach my girls that it is not attractive, funny, or cute to act stupid, be a party girl, or have a me me me mentality, but with the media throwing girls like Kim Kardashian and Snookie in our faces constantly, it can be a struggle at times. I think I was so drawn to the books because Katniss is a girl with integrity, values, and grit- a real role model for girls. She puts everyone else’s needs ahead of her own, and stands up for what she believes in. I admire those qualities in a person, and hope I am teaching my girls the same, so that is what I am hoping my daughter takes from the story.

Wordless Wednesday~ Nap Time!

Rocky doesn't care who he's crushing as long as they are comfortable to sleep on.

Banana Bread Muffins with Cinnamon Butter

It seems that on the weeks that don't buy bananas my family gets irritated and asks "Why didn't you buy any bananas this week?" On the weeks that I do, they sit there untouched. I love this recipe for those weeks when my family just lets them get very ripe. These are truely one of the best banana muffins I have ever had. The first time I made them my husband asked if I would make them again tomorrow.

Ingredients for muffins:

1 cup white sugar
1 egg
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c vegetable oil
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 tsp baking soda

Directions for muffins:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray muffin cups with cooking spray and place in muffin tin (or just grease muffin tin if you don't use muffin cups).
Mix sugar, oil, and egg until creamy and light yellow. Add bananas and walnuts. Next add flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir until completely smooth. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full.
Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean after being poked through the center of a muffin.


Ingredients for cinnamon butter:

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter softened (real butter, not a spread)
1/2 to 3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 to 2 tsp cinnamon (this is really to taste. start with 1 tsp, gradually adding more until you reach your desired flavor)

Mix butter with 1/2 cup of the confectioners sugar, adding up to 1/4 cup more until you reach your desired consistency. Mix in cinnamon. Serve with muffins.

Homemade Puffy Paint

My niece and nephew came over for a visit on Saturday. Since it was going to be rainy out, I knew I had to come up with something to do that would entertain them for a few hours. I remembered reading about homemade puffy paint from Delaware County Moms and thought that would be a fun craft project. They kids had a blast creating their art projects!


What you need:

Equal parts water, all purpose flour, and salt.
Food Coloring (I used Wilton's Gel Food Dye)
Squeeze bottles (I bought an 18 pk at Michael's. They were $13. I used a 50% coupon and got them for $6.50. If you don't have a 50%, they usually have a printable 40% on their website)

Directions:

Mix flour, water, and salt together in a large bowl with a wire whisk until smooth. Separate about 1/2 cup each into separate bowls. Put a few drops of food color in your desired shade into each bowl. Stir until color is blended through.
If you have a funnel, pour each paint mixture into plastic squeeze bottles. (I didn't have a small enough funnel but it was easy enough pouring it in with a spoon).
Now go make some awesome puffy paint art!

*Kids like to pile on the paint, so it does take a while to dry. You may want to put cardboard under their paper because some of the moisture from the paint does soak through. (Not the color, but the water does get the backing of the paper a bit wet!)

Don't mind Allison's crazy hair. She just got out of swim class :)

Damian with his masterpiece. You can see where the paint is lifted from the page pretty well by the sun.



My Husband vs. Pinterest

There is a new evil in our house and it’s name is Pinterest. Ok, it’s not evil to me. I’ve been addicted to that site for the past few months, like many others I know. Frankly, I think it’s the greatest site ever! My only complaint is I spend way too much time on there looking for creative recipes, creative crafts, and ways to create memories with my children. My husband, on the other hand, has more than one complaint.

As we pulled into Michael’s parking lot for the fourth weekend in a row, my husband mumbled how sick he was of coming to that store. Something about losing man parts of the body every time he walks into the door lol. Anyhow, as I was dragging him along I found these fantastic slate coasters. We have a lot of natural stone in our house, so these immediately caught my eye.

Me- “Ooohhhh! Look at these! I can decoupage something cool on here!”

Jason- “What the hell is decoupage? That is a stupid word. Please don’t ever say it again. You need to get off Pinterest for a while.”

Me- “Let’s go price the Mod Podge!”

Sunday we were walking along the river at the park. I found these cool things in the grass that had fallen from the trees. As I was scooping them up for a project I have in mind, my daughter Mariah asks what I was doing.

Me- “I have a project I want to use these on.”

Jason- “Didn’t we talk about you staying off Pinterest?”

Mariah- “What’s a Pinterest?”

Jason- “A place that crazy people like to go.”

Last night I asked Jason if he would buy me a sewing machine.

Me- “I found Allison’s Halloween costume for this year, but I have to make it. I need a sewing machine.”

Jason- “Don’t both of our moms have a sewing machine you can use?”

Me- “I want my own. I’m not driving all the way to their houses just to sew a costume.”

Jason- “We will never recoup the money spent on a machine. You aren’t getting one.”

Me- “I can make this costume for $20!”

Jason- “No, it’s a $300 costume- materials plus a new sewing machine. I’m calling our internet provider and having them block Pinterest.”

*Sigh* Maybe he'll eventually see how fantastic Pinterest really is. He sure isn’t complaining over all the delicious meals and goodies he’s benefiting on from all my new findings from that sight though!


So, are you a Pinterest addict too? If so, how are your husbands handling it?

4 Cheese Chicken Pasta Bake

This dish is one of my family's favorites! My kids don’t like any pasta with a red sauce, so they usually eat just plain noodles with a pat of butter. This is one pasta dish they will eat and I usually don’t have leftovers on because they gobble it right up.

Ingredients:


8 oz uncooked penne
2 tbs butter
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 can (about 10 oz) cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened and cubed
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup milk
1 jar (about 4oz) sliced mushrooms, drained
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese
1/4 cup  parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp ground pepper
2 cups cooked and cubed boneless, skinless chicken breast


Topping:
3 tbs butter, melted
3/4 cup crushed butter round crackers


Directions:


Cook penne according to package directions. Drain, and set aside.
In a large skillet, sauté garlic in butter 2 minutes. Add the soup, cream cheese, cream and milk. Cook and stir just until cream cheese is melted. Stir in the mushrooms, cheeses, and spices. Cook Just until cheeses are melted. Add chicken breast and penne. Heat through.
Transfer to a 2 1/2 qt baking dish. In a small bowl, combine topping ingredients, then sprinkle over pasta mixture. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.
Uncover, bake 15 minutes longer, until it is bubbly and golden brown.
Serve.

Wordless Wednesday~ Sibling Rivalry

One lost ipod makes for 2 unhappy girls. Oh the joyous week I've had!

Why the ipod was invented

Moms, when throwing a birthday party for your child, it’s probably not a great idea to let your husband/boyfriend/whatever sit outside in his car and greet guests by blasting Akon’s Smack That. That song is more suited for a bachelor party, not a party that will be attended by a bunch of 8 year olds. While I realize that some dads just can’t handle the stress of a lot of sugared up kids running around singing Disney tunes, if you feel the need to drown all that out, do us all a favor and buy an ipod.

 

Also, if you feel the need to roll up beside me showing off your mad beats by blasting profanity laced or sexually explicit songs while my kids are in the car, you will see that I like to show mine off too by blasting Justin Bieber.

 

Just a little public service announcement for today :)

The bugs of March?

I think we can all agree that the weather the last few months has been a bit crazy. Who would have thought we would be out wearing shorts on St. Patrick’s Day?

 

The news said that with the mild winter weather we should expect to see an overabundance of insects this summer. Let’s just say, summer isn’t here yet, and I’ve already gone 3 rounds in battle of the bugs. I’ve been swatting at mosquito’s left and right. My ankles are covered in their pesky bite marks. Living in an area with a ton of trees, we have to break out the Raid for ants in early June and spray all around the doors and windows to prevent them from coming in. One of the girls didn’t rinse out their juice cup and I came down one morning to a cup covered in those teeny tiny ants. Those suckers are 3 months early!

 

This weekend was simply beautiful out. We decided to load up the kids and dogs and go to the state park and walk the hiking trails. We had a lovely day, came home, and the kids got ready for bed. Shortly after they were tucked in, Allison came screaming out of her room. “I had a spider stuck in my hair. I couldn’t get it out. Finally it fell out and is stuck to my blanket. I can’t sleep in there tonight.” I went up to investigate. We found the spider and upon further inspection, I realized it wasn’t a spider at all. It was a tick! I completely forgot to coat them in bug spray before our walk. Being March, I didn’t even think of using it. Thankfully she caught it before it buried itself into her skin. We then all had to do full body inspections. Not a fun ending to a great day.

 

While I am loving this warm weather, I’m not so sure I’m liking the side effects so much.

 

Have you seen an increase in insects yet?

My Captiva Swimwear Win!

I love reading blogs, and every now and again I will come across a blog offering a giveaway. If the product grabs my attention, I’ll take a few minutes and toss an entry in. While I don’t win much, it’s still fun for me to read about new products. While on Menopausal New Mom's blog I saw a review for Captiva swimwear. Now, if you are like me, swimwear shopping is a much dreaded event. It usually turns into an all day outing, visiting every store, and not being satisfied until you have tried on every suit in the area. Upon reading Deb’s review, the suits sounded comfortable and looked very stylish, so I decided to enter. Surprisingly, I won! Woo Hoo!

I was sent an electronic catalogue to chose my top 3 favorite suits from. That was the hard part. They were all so pretty! But after much debate, I chose my top 3 and sent them my list. I wasn’t sure which one they were sending, so it was like waiting for Christmas to come. The swimsuit came a few days later, and I was thrilled with the selection they sent. Isn’t it beautiful? The picture doesn't do the colors justice. They are even more gorgeous in person!

I tried on the suit and fell in love! This is the first time I have EVER tried on a suit and immediately liked how it looked on me. The material was super soft, the colors are nice and vibrant, and there is just the right amount of padding in the bust area to give me a much needed lift. The suit was very flattering! (I’d show pics with the suit on to show you how much more fabulous this suit is on a real woman, but I don’t think my husband would be too pleased with me modeling swimwear online lol).

If you are starting to think about swimwear shopping, I’d highly recommend Captiva Swimwear. You can find all of their wonderful suits at Macy’s and other major department stores.

If you would like to read the review from Menopausal New Mom you can find it here.

Strawberry Torte

With Easter quickly approaching, I have been in a rush to find new recipes to serve at our annual Easter party. I found this Strawberry Torte Recipe on Martha Stewart's website and decided it looked yummy enough to test out.

Ingredients:

Unsalted butter, for pan

8 extra-large eggs, room temperature, separated

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup cake flour (not self-rising)

2 teaspoons sifted baking powder

1 pint heavy cream

2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar, plus more for work towel

1 quart strawberries, washed, dried, and hulls removed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and line a rimmed 15 x 10 x 1 inch jelly roll pan with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat egg yolks and sugar together until light in color, about 1 minute. Stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla. Add cake flour and baking powder. Stir until well combined.

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Gently fold into flour mixture.

Pour cake batter in prepared pan and spread evenly with a spatula or the back of a spoon.  Bake until cake springs back when touched, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, set 6 strawberries aside for garnish. Thinly slice remaining strawberries. Place heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat on medium speed. Slowly add remaining teaspoon vanilla and 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar. Continue beating until soft peaks form. Set half of the whipped cream aside. Gently fold sliced strawberries into remaining half; set aside.

Lay a clean kitchen towel flat on a work surface with one of the short ends facing you. Generously sprinkle dish towel with confectioners' sugar. Flip cake onto towel, remove baking sheet, and peel off parchment paper. Using the dish towel, roll cake away from you; let cool.

Unroll cake. Evenly spread strawberry whipped-cream mixture over surface of the cake and re-roll. Transfer cake to a serving plate and evenly spread top and sides of cake with reserved whipped cream. Place reserved strawberries on top for garnish.



I have never had a torte before so I didn't know what to expect. My thoughts~ The cake tasted just like angle food cake with whipped cream and strawberries. It was delicious, but if you want to save time, go to the store and buy an angel food cake, spread some Cool Whip on top, garnish with strawberries, and voila, you have pretty much the same thing without the hassle of baking. But, if you are a diy kind of girl and like making food from scratch, this is a great recipe to try out.

*Quick tip- If you don't have a strawberry huller, poke a straw through the end of the strawberry and press through until the top pops off.

Wordless Wednesday~ Spongebob?

I woke up on Saturday to my husband and daughters playing Spongebob. The only problem is we don't own any Spongebob toys, so they decided to improvise.

Leprechaun Trap

The girls and I decided we were going to try to trap a leprechaun this year. Mariah wants to go on vacation this summer, so she really wants some of that gold. Allison just wants to keep the leprechaun as a pet. I don't know how well that would work for her, but if we catch one, I'll let you know!

We decided to put our crafting skills to the test. We built our leprechaun trap with scraps we had laying around the house. We cut a little trap door in the floor of the box in front of the pot of gold and covered it with clovers so hopefully he will fall through it and get stuck. Then, since we all know leprechauns love shiny things, we glitter coated almost everything to attract him to our trap. Hopefully our plan works. If we actually catch him and hit it big, we will be sure to share the wealth. Wish us luck :)

The Lorax Movie

 

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We took the girls to see The Lorax yesterday. I went in not quite sure what to expect from the movie. The reviews have been less than flattering, and my girls didn’t seem too interested in seeing it until they heard Taylor Swift was in it, then it turned into a must see for them. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised that we all enjoyed it very much. The message the movie sends out is one of being environmentally responsible, but they didn’t cram it down our throats to the point of being preachy. There were a few musical numbers, which I tend to usually pray will be over quickly in most movies, but I enjoyed every one in The Lorax. There was also quite a bit of comedy sprinkled throughout. The theater was packed with kids, and there was a lot of laughter going on throughout the whole movie.

 

My only complaint is the movie is titled The Lorax, but he wasn’t on screen as much as I had hoped. Other than that, I loved the movie and can’t wait for it to come out on dvd. As my girls get older, we don’t buy as many movies as we did when they were younger, but this is one I look forward to purchasing to add to our collection.

Little Joys!

I always look forward to spring because I know that Cadbury Eggs are just around the corner. My husband brought me a few home this week and I was thrilled! As I sat there eating an egg I thought how funny it was that something so simple as a Cadbury Egg could just make my day. I kept thinking about how true it is that it’s the simple things that just make life so grand. I can think of a lot of little things that have brought me so much joy this week alone:

Tuesday visits with my mom and nephew.


Watch week at my kids swimming and Allison’s gymnastic classes.


Free samples in the mail.


Pretty nail polish colors.


New socks.

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Having lunch with Allison at her school. This week I got to hear all the gossip of 8 year old girls, which was quite entertaining. I heard about new tv shows, who’s a brat (their words, not mine lol), who likes who, and that Mr. Dan is soooo cute! (Mr. Dan is the custodian, who actually does have a Channing Tatum look about him.)


3 hours I get to spend alone with my husband on Sunday afternoons when the girls go to their grandmothers. Some days it’s hard figuring out what to do, and even when we can’t figure anything out, that time is some of the most precious to me.


Stealing a few minutes each night to catch up on The Hunger Games (fantastic books by the way!)


Good Neighbors.


Warm days and having the door open.


My Gnomeo and Juliet plant pot stickers I just bought at Hobby Lobby. Aren’t they cute?

These are just a few things that have made my world so much brighter this week. What are some of your little joys?

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Wordless Wednesday~ Leap Frog

Leap Frog!



St. Patrick's Day Game!

St. Patrick's Day is one of our favorite holidays! Every year my girls look forward to playing our St. Patrick's Day game. All you need is some green construction paper, a little black pot (I find a 6 pk at Walmart or Michael's for $1-$2) and some gold paper wrapped candy.

Cut out a lot of 3 leaf clovers from the construction paper. Then just cut out a few (I only have 3) four leaf clovers. Sprinkle them all over your house and once the kids find a four leaf clover, they get rewarded with a pot of gold!

I usually make them wear silly headbands while searching. It makes it a little more fun and festive!

Cheesy Roasted Red Potatoes

My husband loves Papa Vino's red potatoes. While these aren't as good as Papa Vino's, they are still pretty tasty and we usually have all the ingredients on hand for a nice addition to any pasta dishes we make.

Ingredients:

1/2 c ranch dressing
1/2 c finely shredded Italian style cheese
1/4 c bacon bits
2 lb small red potatoes, scrubbed and quartered
1 tbs chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix dressing, cheese and bacon bits in a large bowl. Add potatoes, stir to coat.
Spoon mixture into a lightly greased 13x9 baking dish. Cover with foil.
Bake for 40 minutes. Remove foil, bake for an additional 20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Sprinkle with parsley.

St. Patrick's Day Cupcakes!

What do you do when your big sister has a friend sleeping over and they don't want to play with you?

Make cupcakes, of course!

Poor Allison is at the age where her big sister just doesn't want to play with her when her friends are over, so yesterday we had a fun filled day of playing on the Wii, watching Mr. Popper's Penguins, and enjoyed some St. Paddy's day themed cupcakes!

March Is Colon Cancer Awareness Month!

Do you know that March is Colon Cancer Awareness month? As a female, I have had the importance of breast cancer awareness drilled in my head over and over again, and I am so glad that information is out there being preached over and over again. Information is power! I feel that we are doing a great job at getting the word out about breast cancer, why can't we do the same for colon cancer?

Cancer has taken the lives of many of my family members on my fathers side. Breast, lung, bladder, and colon cancer has shown no mercy. Why am I choosing to talk about colon cancer today? To quote Sharon Osbourne, "Nobody [cares] about anybody's colon 'cause it's up your arse...It's not sexy.” I think she hit the nail on the head. We hear a lot about other types of cancer, but who wants to talk about a colon?

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer related deaths in the US. It is estimated that around 60% of colorectal cancer deaths could be prevented if people aged 50 and over were screened regularly. I think there is kind of a fear attached with getting a colonoscopy. I know I certainly don’t want to talk about my behind with a doctor, even if he has seen and heard it all. Then all the horror stories you hear about the prep! I’ll be honest, the prep for the procedure is NOT fun! But here is another quote, one from Dave Barry, that I found on Zimbio that was very funny, and I could really relate to what he was saying:

“MoviPrep is a nuclear laxative. I don’t want to be too graphic, here, but: Have you ever seen a space-shuttle launch? This is pretty much the MoviPrep experience, with you as the shuttle. There are times when you wish the commode had a seat belt. You spend several hours pretty much confined to the bathroom, spurting violently. You eliminate everything. And then, when you figure you must be totally empty, you have to drink another liter of MoviPrep, at which point, as far as I can tell, your bowels travel into the future and start eliminating food that you have not even eaten yet.”

I’m 32. I’ve had to have 2 colonoscopies already. I can tell you, the prep is really the only bad part of the procedure. Once you get through that, it’s all A OK from there. Once you get wheeled in to the operating room, you get sedated. You wake up not remembering anything, and you don’t feel anything but a bit groggy and very hungry.

My Story:

I have ulcerative colitis. A few years back someone posted a link to The Colandar, a calendar of colon cancer survivors, on a website I like to visit. I don’t know what drew me to clicking the link, but I am glad I did. I remember sitting there reading these stories about people who were diagnosed with colon cancer, and they were all so young. Many people associate colon cancer as an “old mans disease” and I was shocked there were people in their 20’s who had been diagnosed. I was on that site for hours reading stories, studying symptoms, just absorbing it all. With cancer so prominent in our family, it’s always good to know the signs. My dad’s brother passed away in his early 40’s from colon cancer. When I was done reading the site, I remember thinking, well, that won’t probably ever happen to me. I’m a woman, my grandma passed away from breast cancer in her early 40’s, if I get cancer, it will surely be breast cancer.

I kid you not, 2 weeks later my stomach was cramping horribly. I went to the restroom and when I went to flush, all I saw was a bowl filled with blood. I panicked. I tried to ignore it, but for a week I was constantly running to the restroom up to 7 times a day, and every time it looked like I was bleeding myself to death. I got back online and reread the stories. I started researching colon cancer websites. I needed to to come to terms with the fact that it was a good possibility that I was going to be a 27 year old cancer patient. It took another 2 weeks before I told my husband what was happening.

I made a doctors appointment. It couldn’t have been worse. I hadn’t been eating, was still spending my days in the bathroom, and had to have a fecal occult blood test done. The test showed nothing. My doctor didn’t believe me. He told me that I probably had “Kool Aid” that I was eliminating and was confusing myself (I don’t drink Kool Aid). He said I was too young to have anything wrong with me. I had to insist on a referral to a gastroenterologist, who also told me I was too young to have anything wrong with me, but did the colonoscopy anyway. This confirmed that I had Ulcerative Colitis.

Living with UC can be complete hell at times. Unless you live with it or love someone who is suffering from it, I don’t think people realize what a toll it actually takes on a body. I even had an emergency room doctor roll his eyes at me once and say “Oh, you just have bloody diarrhea, that’s not a big deal.” Actually it’s so much more than that. I would say that the cramps associated with it are at times worse than labor pains. I have suffered dehydration. I have to get tests often to make sure I’m not anemic. When I am sick I will drop down to 100 lbs which is scary since I am normally 125 lbs, and I am constantly battling fatigue. It also takes a toll on my mental health. I am constantly in a panic when I have to leave the house. Long car trips are out of the question. I have to have a map of bathroom locations when we are at place like amusement parks. If a restaurant only has one bathroom, well, we aren’t eating there. I had to give up food I love- dairy, raw veggies, red meat, high fiber foods, and juice.

It took me 4 years, and 3 different doctors, and a lot of medication switches, but thankfully I have been in remission for the past year. Unfortunately, I know that it can come back at any time. I have also been told that the longer you have UC, the more likely it is that you will get colon cancer. I have a double whammy since my uncle passed away from colon cancer, so it is always on my mind. I have to get screened yearly now.

The point I’m trying to make is it is so important to know the signs. Screenings aren’t anything anyone wants to have done, but they are so important in early detection, and like I said, the actual procedure you won’t even remember. I know it can be embarassing at times to talk about your colon, but I was more at ease with all 3 of my GI doctors than I have been with any other type of doctor. You are never too young to be diagnosed with colon cancer. If you suspect something is wrong, get tested. If you don’t believe the results, get tested again. You know your body better than anyone else.

The The Colon Cancer Alliance has a lot of great information on it’s site. If you find yourself with Chron’s Disease of Ulcerative Colits, the CCFA is also a great website to research.