Eight Pounds and Counting!

I am in my 5th week of the Curves Complete program. I have lost 8 pounds so far! And half an inch to an inch off of various parts of my body!

Thankfully I am not having a problem with the diet -- the food is good and with 3 meals and 2 snacks per day and lots of veggies "free", I am not hungry.

The exercise and the walking, on the other hand, are more challenging for me! Some days, I am fine on the machines at the Curves gym. Other days my hip just does not want to cooperate. And the walking! This week I am aiming for 6500 steps per day. Next week I will be aiming for 7000 with the eventual goal of 10,000 steps per day. Some days I have no trouble getting even 8000 steps in. Other days, I barely get 3000! Trying to get my work done for HAFF AND get my steps in for the day is a challenge I am still working on. I am also working on finding places that I enjoy walking. One of my favorites is the Arboretum at Penn State.

Rainbow caught in the spray from the fountain at the Arboretum at PSU.

One of the woodland areas of the Arborteum -- on a muggy, buggy day!

I am still trying to work out if the diet and exercise are giving me more energy. I don't seem to need so many naps, but I still want lots of sleep at night. And the number of hours per day which I can concentrate on work don't seem to have increased, as far as I can tell. And the exercise and meal planning eat somewhat significantly into those hours! I am still trying to find the balance!

In the mean time, I am enjoying the great outdoors of central Pennsylvania and the cultural offerings that expand to the outdoor venues during the spring and summer. All while continuing to write, edit and lay out the HAFF newsletters, send out the donor receipts and write and edit articles to post to the HAFF blog.

Heritage Brass at a Sunday evening concert at South Hills School of Business.

Nittany Valley Symphony concert at Tussey Mountain Ski area.

Spring Update

I made my decision what to do about diet and exercise. I joined Curves for Women doing the Curves Complete program. It combines diet and exercise and provides coaching for both. I joined two weeks ago and, as of today, have lost 4 pounds already. I am hoping that the program will help me regain my energy and concentration.



My Neighborhood with local flora and fauna!

 Part of the Curves Complete program is walking. Ultimately my goal will be to walk 10,000 steps a day. Right now they have me building up to that – this week my goal is 5,500 steps per day. So I have been walking around the neighborhood – enjoying the Spring flora and fauna.

I have also walked around at the Penn State Arboretum and at Millbrook Marsh a regional park which also contains some Clearwater Conservancy protected land. The park encompasses 3 different types of wetlands including some of the region's last remaining calcareous fen. Calcareous fen is one of the rarest type of ecological communities in Centre County and there are many rare species in this fen.

The park is well provided with board walks and some grass walks. It is a great place for birding and just a wonderful, green space in the midst of highways and built up areas. It is also conveniently located for a stop for a walk on the way home!

I am also still knitting. There has been a bit of a change in the knitting. We are now meeting with other ladies for Wednesday Women in the Word. A group of women get together for lunch, fellowship and to spend time in Scripture. About 10 of us met last week for the first gathering.

So, I am now trying to find the balance of time, energy and concentration to keep up with the walking, exercising at Curves for half an hour four times a week, learning the new diet and doing the administrative work for HAFF. I'll keep you posted on my progress. If this program does what I hope, I may be able to, finally, get back to Haiti in the fall. We'll see what the Lord has in store!

No Worries with my Heart

I met with the cardiologist today. There is nothing seriously wrong with my heart. As a matter of fact, he couldn't even hear the heart murmur that I was first told about probably 18 or 20 years ago. That is all good news.

I do have a mildly leaky mitral valve (between the left atrium and left ventricle in the drawing), but nothing to be concerned about. Nor do I need to worry about my premature ventricular contractions (PVCs). My left ventricle is a bit impatient. Like its owner!

The (to me) sad news is that neither the valve nor the PVCs are likely the cause of my continued fatigue and other issues. The cardiologist does not think I need a stress test, but recommended that, after I see my GP again at the end of the month, I have a sleep test. He did note some things that indicate I might have sleep apnea. And that would account for my fatigue and trouble concentrating.

So, the search continues and I continue to work out how should I now eat and what is the best exercise for me to do! Thanks again for your continued prayers.

I got to see my heart work!



The heart (not mine) in an echocardiogram.

 Yesterday I had an echocardiogram. It was an interesting experience -- I was positioned so I could see the screen. At one point, both sides of my heart could be seen at once and I could clearly see one side, and then the other contract. The test can also allow the sounds of the blood flowing through the heart and the vessels to be heard. Sometimes it was surprisingly gurgle-y! 

I was also able to ask questions, though I asked many fewer than I could have! I was pleased when I was able to recognize some of the views. All those years teaching the anatomy of the heart to Haitian 9th graders was not in vain! I was wishing I could have had the students there to see the screen with me! I guess you can take the girl out of the classroom, but not the classroom out of the girl.

When the technician opened the first image, she said, "Oh, yes. I see your arrhythmia!" Then she showed me on the little green line at the bottom what my premature ventricular contraction (PVC)looked like. Imagine, in the little green peaks at the bottom of the image above, another lower plateau and that was my PVC.

The test yesterday was to diagnose the heart murmur I have known about for many years -- is it a leaky valve or a hole? Tuesday I will see the cardiologist to find out the results.

In the mean time, I did get the results of the blood test. My magnesium and iron levels are fine. My cholesterol is a bit high. I don't need medication, just to watch my carb intake and increase my excercise. So now, I have to figure out how to watch both carbs and fat -- it seems that food which is low in carbs is high in fat and vise verse! And I am looking into either swimming at Penn State or joining Curves for Women. I will keep you posted, and in the mean time, thank you, everyone, for your prayers.

Heart and Flowers

Or Flowers and Heart, as the order will actually be! Spring is advancing in State College. The Muscari is out and blooming (first photo below) and the little wild violets are popping up in lawns and even between sidewalk blocks (second photo below)! Enjoy the photos and then scroll down to the Heart part.

This is the diagram I used to use in my Biology classes in Haiti, and that I presume is still being used. I have known for a number of years that I had a heart arrhythmia and for even longer that I had a murmur. No one ever indicated to me that there was any reason for concern about either. And I still have no indication that there is reason for concern.

But I was able to get an appointment with my new primary care physician this morning and spent most of the morning in the office. She gave me a thorough going over and talked to me for quite a while. There is still no definitive answer for my fatigue, but there are going to be more tests! One is done already. I had an ECG this morning and will have more blood tests tomorrow and will be scheduled for an echocardiogram and a consult with a cardiologist to see if the heart murmur or the arrhythmia are responsible for the fatigue.

So, I will be in State College for a while yet. Please pray for wisdom for the doctors and technicians and for the causes to be made clear. I still only have about 4 to 5 hours of the day with decent energy and concentration to do my work. Thank you all for your prayers.

I got back from my trip Friday the 12th and was very tired.

Spring arrived in State College while I was gone – this photo and the next show what greeted me as I drove in the driveway that afternoon.

I took a nap that afternoon and slept 11.5 hours that night! Saturday I was dragging all day, but got 2 loads of laundry done. Then Sunday I went to church (no choir or Sunday school) and then took a nap. The folowing week was pretty busy, so I didn't get the tests the doctor ordered till Tuesday the 16th. They took 3 vials of blood, instead of the 2 vials they would take last year. The phlebotomist told me that they were going to run tests for blood chemistry, sedimentation rate and thyroid stimulating hormone level.

 

Left to right, August 2011, August 2012 and April 2013.Sorry,
 I am not very good at the self-portrait setting on the camera!

Thursday the 18th, I got the results of the tests. All normal. The nurse told me that they were the best numbers she had ever seen for me! So, thankfully, no inflammatory disease, neither an under active, nor an over active thyroid and no liver troubles. All good news. But the nurse agreed with me that there still needs to be an explanation for my continued fatigue, yellowing (or bruising) around my eyes (see photo at left) and concentration problems. Friday I had an additional blood test for B12. I just got the results of that test and it is normal as well.

So, now I am looking at finding a family doctor in the area so I can get a thorough going over. I may also need to see a gastroenterology specialist, if the family doctor doesn't find anything.


In the mean time, I keep working on the stateside administrative tasks that I have taken on for HAFF. Thanks for all the prayers for me. God is at work and has His purposes for this season in my life. And I am enjoying another Spring in Pennsylvania. It is exciting to see what bulbs will come up and what trees will bloom next.

He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!

Greetings from Syracuse, NY! But that story is for later in this post. Spring is trying to come to Central Pennsylvania. I have one snow drop up (the squirrels moved the other 10 or 11 to my neighbor's front yard the previous winter) and my forsythia and lilacs are preparing to bloom. My poor little snowdrop gets snowed on, or gets cold, and falls flat, then stands back up again. It has been up and down several times for about 3 weeks or so now!

Easter was less elaborate this year, than last. But I still sang wonderful music with the choir (the red arrow in the photo shows where I am in the choir loft) and celebrated the risen Savior with friends.

Good Friday I called the doctor to ask about my lingering fatigue, yellow staining around my eyes and trouble concentrating for long. He was not in the office, but his nurse said she would would ask him the questions for me.

The day after Easter, I packed up and drove three hours to Tunkhannock, PA and spent two nights with friends from HAFF and ECHO. Then I drove on two hours to Ithaca, NY, and spent a night with friends and supporters there. Finally yesterday I drove an hour and a half to just north of Syracuse to spend several days with friends and supporters here. I have had a standing invitation since last summer to speak to their church missions committee. So, I am here on a trial run and will speak to them Sunday after service.

In the mean time, I spoke to the nurse in the doctor's office today. She said the doctor would like me to get more lab work and once we get those results, we'll see where I am and if a follow-up appointment and further treatment are necessary. I will travel back to State College next week using the same stopping places and will arrive home on Saturday, Lord willing. Then I'll go get the lab tests Monday the 15th.

So, while I am here in Syracuse, I will be catching up on work for HAFF that has been piling up during my travels. And once I am back in State College, we will see how I do. Will I be fine or will I crash? Only the Lord knows and time will tell!

Thank you all for your prayers. I'll post updates as I have them!

Not Much News

There hasn't been much change since my last post in December. My uncle and I enjoyed the new year celebrations together, visited friends in the south eastern part of Pennsylvania and I put him back on the plane to Texas.

Me in mid January in the guest bedroom I use for an office.

Since early January, I have been busy printing, signing and sending the close to 200 receipts that came in from HAFF donors over Christmas and the new year (thank you, everyone who gave!). I also had a February issue of HAFF Happenings to get to the printer in that time. And I had the HAFF mailing list to update for the mailing. Hopefully you will be seeing that issue in your mailboxes soon. If you don't, and would like to be on the mailing list, let me know. But you can also check the HAFF blog in the next week or so, as I plan to post the articles from the HAFF Happenings there as well.

I have also been working with the HAFF board member who is developing a new website for HAFF. He is making the site work and I will be adding the content. Thankfully, April Lambiotte, the new HAFF intern in Haiti, has been helping me copy content from the old website so I can edit and update it as necessary to prepare it for the new site.

I am still knitting -- I have completed a pair of socks for my uncle for Christmas, several more scarves and 4 pair of mittens.

I am still struggling with somewhat low energy, slow mental processes and the ability to keep up with the work for HAFF and life in general. Please keep praying for my full recovery and return to Haiti.

Changing Role and a White Christmas

Since my last post, I haven't had a lot to post about! I have not been getting any more blood tests since my last one in early April, which was still close enough to normal that the doctor released me to normal diet and activity. Since then, I have had a steady, but very slow time of improving in energy and concentration.

Thanks to Carla Wilson for this photo

At the end of March, Greg and Barb Van Schoyck retired from HAFF after 17 years of service. Their role as Co-Executive Directors has been partially filled by the Executive Team in Haiti. But their place as Stateside Administrators still needed to be filled. Teresa Nesman and I have taken on some of the tasks Greg and Barb were doing.

I have really struggled to keep up with the increased work of being Stateside Co-Administrator. Writing the HAFF newsletter with Teresa, maintaining the HAFF mailing list, communicating with people wanting information about HAFF and about donations has about taxed my store of critical and analytical thinking, usually with some tasks going undone for far too long. This blog and the HAFF blog are some of those tasks.  I will continue with this role, even when I am able to go back to Haiti.

I still hope to return to Haiti when I am better able to keep up with the work. If I can't keep up in the US with relatively few interruptions and distractions, there is no way to keep up in Haiti where interruptions and distractions are the rule of the day! As my energy and concentration continue to increase, the day of my return grows closer.

 In the times I have not been able to concentrate on work for HAFF, I have still been able to knit. The ladies still come on Wednesdays and for the fall, we switched to knitting scarves. We found lots of fun novelty yarns and patterns we shared and tried. Some of the scarves were sent to Native Americans in the Southwest US. Others were gifts for family and friends. We will now be shifting back to mittens! I will be sharing some of the patterns with Haitian ladies when I return to Haiti.

 I am always dreaming of a white Christmas! And always wishing for the snowy winters of my youth. Well, this year, if you count all 12 days of Christmas, I got my white Christmas. And it looks like State College will have the snowiest winter in years.


Counter clockwise from top left -- Uncle Richard and me with our Christmas tree; Our white Third Day of Christmas; More Snow on the Fifth Day of Christmas; What is on the ground now.

 My Uncle was able to come for almost 3 weeks this year. So we were able to celebrate our family traditions and a add a few more. As the New Year approaches, please pray with me for my return to Haiti and for the Prince of Peace to come in power to the hearts of people in Haiti and the US and around the world.

Good News!

In the midst of Pennsylvania's early, accelerated Spring, I just got some long awaited news today. My blood work is close enough to normal now that the doctor doesn't think he needs to monitor me anymore! I can slowly work my way back to normal activity and a normal diet now! Thanks be to God and to everyone who has kept me in prayer this past 8 months. Please continue to pray that my energy and concentration will return quickly, allowing me to return to Haiti.

In the meantime, I have been keeping busy singing in the choir and keeping up with HAFF business and activities via email and phone. I have also, when my concentration is not up to email and financial reports, been knitting mittens and sweaters and am on my second pair of socks! These are skills and patterns I plan to take back to Haiti with me and teach some of the ladies there. And it has allowed me to feel like I am doing something useful to others while I recover.

Thank you to those of you who prayed that I would be able to go to my Aunt's funeral. The weather held off and a friend graciously went with me to do the lion's share of the drivine. It was a wonderful service and time of remembrance with family.

Thanks to airports close to home and to the site in Alabama, I was also able to go to Zach Van Schoyck's wedding to Kayla Massey February 24th. It was a lovely wedding and such a joy to be with Zach and Greg and Barb and Gabi on Zach's wedding day. I am now looking forward to having more energy for Gabi's wedding in a few weeks in Georgia!



As I look forward to Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday, I am awed anew that the God of all creation should accept death at the hand of that creation so that He might bring that creation into reconciliation with Himself. As Isaiah 59:16 says, "his own arm worked salvation". May God bring you the joy of His salvation this Easter and always.