Playa del Carmen Vacay

As I sit here on our 3rd snow/cold day off school and the coldest day of my entire life (no, really the wind chill was -38!), I realized I hadn't blogged about a much warmer time this winter...our trip to Mexico!  Matt and I went on a trip to an all inclusive resort in Playa del Carmen Mexico from Dec. 31-Jan. 5 in celebration of my 40th birthday last October.  It was heavenly.  We literally had NO responsibilities and could just relax and do whatever we wanted!

flying in

We got there on New Year's Eve, so we got to celebrate the new year outside in 80 degrees, a first!  It was a lot of fun, but we were so tired since we had to wake up at 4 am to be at the South Bend airport.

We spent time at the beach and pool.  It was a great time to go, not too crowded.

These little coati were EVERYWHERE!  They were rummaging around in the dirt and trashcans.

We spent an afternoon in town touring the shops and restaurants.

Our resort, Grand Sunset Princess!

We went ziplining at a really cool place in the jungle!

It was a lot of fun and even though it rained a bit, we had a great time!

waiting on the rest of our group to eat

We also got to go swimming in a cenote (natural sinkhole).

Our resort room was gorgeous!  It was spacious and the balcony overlooked the pool.

We went to dinner each night (usually around 9) and then just walked around the resort.  It was so nice being able to walk around even at night and not be cold or worry about bugs.

 Everyone was so willing to bring you drinks and help out.  Several employees were a little too insistent on us buying into the timeshare there and they kept asking us about it.  We eventually got smart and told them it was our last day, then they stopped asking!

It was a great week away, just the two of us!  We missed the kids (Emmy sent us messages about every day 😃), but it was nice to feel the sunshine and swim in the ocean.

Sunset on the way home

I turned 40!

My 40th birthday weekend was full of surprises starting with my lovely school picture :) displayed around my door and on all the bulletin boards down my hallway on Friday, my birthday.  There were balloons in my room and my favorite Heath bars from the best coworkers!  I love those ladies!  My students were also quite generous with gifts!  They were so excited to give everything they bought/made for me.  So cute! Matt had the day off so he got to come for lunch with me and the kiddos and brought a bouquet of flowers.

Every time we have a birthday in the family, the birthday person gets to pick a restaurant to go to.  I picked Colombo's.  They have yummy pizza and we hadn't been there in a long time.

Then on Saturday, I was under the impression that Matt and I were going on a date for my birthday.  He didn't tell me where we were going, just that the kiddos were going to grandma and grandpa's for the night.  When we got to the South Bend Casino's Kankakee Grill, the hostesses were having trouble finding our reservation for 2.  That's because all these people were there to surprise me:

We had a nice dinner together and then walked around the casino a bit.  A few of us played some slot machines.  Matt put a $5 in one machine and I ended up winning....

Then on Sunday, I celebrated at mom and dad's.  I certainly felt loved and everyone made turning 4-0 a little easier! ;)

Sickness update

I see that I also haven't updated on my "mystery illness" yet.  On January 4th, I went in for my appointment and found out a lot of things were wrong with me . 😩  My vitamin D was really low, I had systemic yeast,  my adrenal glands weren't doing all their jobs and were stressed out by everything else, and I had mono at some point.  Also I was tested for lupus (negative) and Lyme Disease (negative).  I have 5 different prescriptions/supplements that I am taking.
3 weeks ago on Jan. 29th I finally returned back to work for 1/2 days in the afternoons.  All of the supplements are helping!  I was so glad to be feeling a little better and be able to do some things!  I'm not out of the woods yet, though.  My doctor thinks I have an autoimmune disease and I have an appointment with a rheumatologist on March 1st.
I am also on a crappy diet of NO sugar and very little carbs.  Basically anything that my body would turn in to sugar, I'm not supposed to eat.  So I've cut out all pop, desserts, and most processed food because it all has some sort of sugar product.  It is taking awhile to get used to and I am frustrated some days when I have to make a separate meal for myself.  But I feel so much better than I did that I'm willing to do it.  I still get tired easier and there are times when my arms feel prickly, but those symptoms still let me get out and do things.
I am so blessed by everyone who has supported me, asked questions, given money and gift cards, cards, texts, etc during this time.  God is good.

Mystery Illness

So, at the time of this blog post, I have had some "mystery illness" for over 5 weeks.  I've been to my family doctor 3 times, had several blood tests run for anemia, thyroid, mono, hormones that have all come back normal.  I then went to Crossroads Healing Arts, a holistic place where they ran more tests.  As of today, I am still waiting on blood tests to come back and have another appointment on Jan. 4th.  I just feel really run down and tired all the time.  I can do a few things, then have to sit down and rest.  I don't feel sleepy tired, but my muscles are tired.  Not achy, just tired.  It is super frustrating that I do not know the cause of this yet, but I have to keep faith that God is in control and we will figure it out soon. 

I have been so blessed by my family.  Matt has been mom and dad and is doing a fantastic job.  My parents and Cathy have been getting the kids to school and practices.  My church family has been so kind in sending cards and asking how I'm doing.  My school family got together a sunshine box for me with things to keep me busy.  They've been understanding and supportive of all the time I've had to take off.

I do hope to know soon so I can do what I need to to start feeling better.  As Landon said, "I'm ready to have regular mom back, not sick mom." And I agree!